Ready for a NEW Year!

Happy New Year!  Today I look back and reflect on the year 2023.  If I'm honest it was quite challenging.  From health issues of family and friends to surviving the kitchen remodel, pressures of college applications and decisions, switching soccer leagues, a water main break in the front yard, a flooded laundry room, Savannah's first car accident, and oh so much more there was a tremendous amount of stress . . but you know what, by the grace of God we made it.  

Preston is at a sleepover and the rest of us enjoyed take-out dinner, lots of time to watch the OC, and an early bedtime too.  Here's hoping for an amazing 2024, one filled with joy and laughter, one filled with glimpses of the Lord at work and the faith in knowing He works all things together for good.

Online Driver's Education

This kid was not so excited about starting his all-week online driver's ed the day after Christmas!  BUT, it has to be done and we are just grateful for the chance to take it online from the comfort of home. ;)

Christmas Day!!

Merry Christmas!!

We were so grateful to be home on Christmas Day!  We woke up and opened Santa gifts before getting the cinnamon rolls in the oven.  Then it was off for a quick run to "preburn" some calories.

We so enjoyed being home and having a relaxing morning celebrating together.  Once we had exchanged a few more gifts we all got ready and went into hostess mode getting ready for my family to arrive.

We did a little baking and tidying up and before we knew it everyone was here.  What pure joy to celebrate on Christmas Day all together.  Of course, PawPaw brought the coin jar for the kids to guess how much money was in it and this year Julia won!

We finished lunch and opened more gifts and before we knew it everyone was on their way back home.  Our little family decided to drive around and see some lights before calling it a day.  Beyond grateful for the birth of Jesus and for a chance to just enjoy time as a family together.

Christmas Eve in Charlotte

With Christmas Eve being on a Sunday, Carmel opted not to have a later Christmas Eve service.  So, we ended up going to two services today. We went to our service earlier at Carmel, which was packed out, and then went to a later service before dinner at Calvary. It was a fun experience being at Calvary and sitting in the balcony and a great way to prepare our hearts for Christmas Day tomorrow.

Bachmann Family Christmas

We traveled to Greenville, SC today to celebrate Christmas with Dave's family.  After a yummy Italian meal, we exchanged gifts and enjoyed dessert before heading back to Charlotte. It had been over a year since we were all together so it was nice to catch up with everyone. :)

Grandkids with Grammy & Papa

 

Winter Break Adventures

What did my kids do on the first day of winter break??  Straighten Preston's hair of course. LOL  I have been insisting that he get a haircut sometime before Christmas, but he really wanted to see what it would look like straight so Savannah was happy to assist in the process.  As it turns out, curly is better for this guy!

 

We also "enjoyed" or "endured" a trip to see the gingerbread houses at the Ballantyne Resort.  Apparently, everyone in South Charlotte had the same idea because the wait to get in was loonnggg and one teenager wasn't so thrilled about leaving his gaming session to see candy houses.  But I was happy to continue with our tradition! ;)

Breakfast with the Girls

 

The Grahams invited us over for breakfast this morning. It was such a blessing to be able to catch up with Mrs. Poats and these sweet ladies!  We shared stories, laughed, and savored the time we were able to spend together before the holiday craziness truly begins.  We were missing the Marions, who were in Hawaii, but these girls have been in church together basically since birth!  Can't wait to see where the Lord sends them next year. ;)

 

Clemson said YES!

We are ALL super excited . . the long-awaited Clemson announcement arrived and she's officially IN!!!  Again, now the wait begins for honors college and scholarship money, but her heart is happy!  Praying the Lord provides a way to make this adventure happen!! 

Comedy in the Chaos

Someday I'm going to look back and laugh at what we did to survive the kitchen remodel . . but that day isn't today.  However, I want to be reminded of a few of the ways we lived.  We prepared most of our meals in the garage on a folding table.  I used a Target microwave, instant pot, toaster oven, and griddle to make most meals, but we quickly discovered the garage voltage could only support ONE mini appliance at a time.  So some nights we brought the instant pot into the laundry room.

We rotated beach towels on the dining room table so that it would withstand heavy usage.  I have to say Savannah taking CPCC chemistry online and trying to dig out so many kitchen utensils and ingredients for labs was not easy either, but we made it work . . somehow.

On one of the last days of the remodel the water main in front of our house broke and water gushed for over 12 hours before the city finally came to repair it.  They had to dig a hole over 6' deep on the front lawn to get to the pipe to repair.  So we had no water.  Somehow, some way we all survived the remodel and will hopefully soon move these inconveniences to the back of our minds to enjoy our amazing new kitchen!

Once we had the plastic down it was time to put up "mom's tree" downstairs.  Preston thought he was being funny but I didn't find it humorous.  SO so thankful this is all behind us now!

Sleepover at the Principal's House

We found out this summer that the principal at JMR, Mr. Milote, was selected to serve as the principal for the new high school opening next year.  We also found out that Mrs. Thompson was selected as the new principal for the middle school, which is super exciting.  However, Mrs. Thompson has a son Max, who just happens to be one of Preston's best friends.  So I guess it's only a little awkward to have a sleepover at your principal's house. :)  These boys had a grand time and I was told they were well-behaved. HA!

First College Acceptance . . ASU!!!

 

It may not be her top choice, but to have her first college acceptance is a HUGE relief and milestone!  She's officially accepted to Appalachian State . .  we have to wait to see if she is accepted to the honors college and what kind of money they are willing to send her way, but for now I have one excited girl!!!

Soccer & Racing in Savannah

 

Dave has always wanted to run the Savannah bridge race so when we realized it was the same weekend we already had a hotel booked for Preston's soccer tournament in Savannah, GA it was a done deal!  Only Dave decided that he would really make it one to remember by doing the double dipper, both the 5k AND 10k back to back!

So I drove to drop him off for the race and came back to get the kids ready for the tournament.  Of course, there was a delicious breakfast awaiting at the hotel . . . and mind you it didn't take long for Preston to get chocolate syrup all over his white uniform shorts before the game even started.  In the end, it didn't really matter because it rained a LOT and he was filthy after playing on muddy fields all weekend.

  

We made it back to see Dave cross the finish line for the second race!

It was a fun weekend with a lot of downtime as our game times were quite late, but these boys enjoyed playing pool and watching videos in the hotel lobby.

We also enjoyed walking around downtown Savannah before the games on Sunday.

These boys played so hard and did well, but unfortunately, we barely missed the playoff cut . . . but no one from our family was complaining because it meant we could arrive back in Charlotte at 8pm instead of 11pm. We are all a bit thankful for a little reprive from soccer for a few weeks. :)