The Sheridan Tribe

Peter flew home from SLC on New Year's eve. Connor was so happy to see his big brother! Ellen picked him up at the airport and met us at the Embassy Suites in Charlotte.

We all went out to eat at Carrabba's. The food was delicious and the company great but Ellen and I were both feeling pretty rough...a nasty cold has been circulating and we got caught by it.

They are such a cute couple. We just adore Ellen and apparantly Peter does, too!

The plans were to spend New Year's Eve at First Night in downtown Charlotte but after dinner, I was really feeling terrible and as much as I wanted, I could not imagine walking around in the cold...and if you know me, you know I LOVE LOVE LOVE New Year's celebrations and can usually ignore feeling sick or tired so I am pretty sad about this...my sweet family chose to stay with me at the hotel and we watched football...

and played some games...

and then my non-alcoholic champagne needed an opener I did not have so we didn't even toast in the New Year...but we wore our crowns and blew our horns and exchanged our traditional kisses...we sure missed all our friends and family we normally party with but it's not a bad thing to stop occasionally and just enjoy the quiet moments in life...

Patti and Andrew were pretty bored so I am sure they will be even more excited to get back to the iceburrrgggg where they have so many friends...hopefuly later today I will feel well enough to visit with my good friends here in Charlotte! Regardless, it's now 2009 so...

HAPPY NEW YEAR...

Our wish is that 2009 will bring every good thing to your family...

We missed having Steven and LaNelle home for Christmas but sweet Peter flew out early Christmas morning to spend a week with them...

and they had a VERY VERY

WHITE CHRISTMAS...

But here in the South, we relaxed in the hot tub at the beach...

We started our whirlwind Christmas visits on December 21st with our first stop at a resort in North Myrtle Beach where we relaxed and just enjoyed being together..we loved having a visit from my nephew David... he always makes the beach fun!

Connor LOVES having his brothers around!

Then, we went to Conway to visit with DT (Daddy Tom), Dee Dee, my sister Kerry and her 3 boys, Floyd and Laurel, and Jerry and Kim and David...what fun!!!!

The boys loved their new Clemson jackets...and they love being ORANGE with the biggest tiger fan of all...their beloved DT...

Connor was finally convinced to stop playing with his cousin Jonathon long enough to open two fantastic gifts...a remote control car and an air hockey game!!

Uncle Floyd and my nephews...Kim's son David and Kerry's son Patrick...aren't they good looking??? They are such FUN and NICE boys (oh yeah...and cool too!)

OK this is not a bar...we HAD to do some last minute Tanger shopping and we took a break to eat at Logan's...the food was delicious and we LOVED IT!!!!

Sarah Beth loves Uncle Floyd as much as Patti always did...and still does....why don't I have any pics of Aunt Laurel, Uncle Jerry, Brad or DeeDee?????

Jean was in Raleigh (with a nasty cold) preparing for our arrival...but here is a photo of my sisters Kerry and Kim, me, and my brother, Floyd...

We left the beach on the 23rd and headed northeast to Raleigh...we were so excited to see Kalib (oh and Heather and Kyle, too!). My boys were being silly in the kitchen at Heather's house...

and Connor found a computer to play his ongoing NeoPets game...

Poor Kalib was sick and he spent most of our visit cuddling with someone on the couch....my poor baby!!!! But, I was sooo glad to get to hold and comfort him!!!

when he did get up, Kalib wanted to take pictures and of course Grandma handed over her camera so most of my pics from Heather's house look a lot like this...

After loving on Kalib, we left Christmas Eve to go to Jean's house for her traditional "potato soup-ham biscuit-game playing-testimony bearing-celebration"...and once again, we had sooooo much fun and the heartfelt testimonies of all that were there really invited the Spirit into our holiday...I am so thankful we had an opportunity to reflect on the reason for Christmas...and I loved hearing the beautiful testimonies born by the little ones...even on Christmas Eve, they were quiet and still and reverent and bore testimony of their love for our Savior Jesus Christ and his birth, life and especially the atonement...words cannot describe the Spirit felt during those moments...Thank you Jean and Jeff!!!!!

Jeff did most of the cooking while Jean and I (in almost matching sweater vests) did the talking and eating!!!! no surprises there....

Lauren and Patti and the ever present Ipods...

Michael ALWAYS has a huge grin!!!!!!!

and Sarah Beth LOVED Uncle Jeff's spicy potato soup

Peter getting reverent for the bearing of testimonies

and after that the texting starts again...even on Christmas eve...at one point the adults all texted to the kids...MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

after all the guests left it was time to open presents (our family tradition includes opening ALL presents on Christmas eve..and on Christmas morning Santa's unwrapped gifts and stockings are all that is displayed...I read somewhere that that is a German tradition and we have German ancestors but I don't know how it got started...we've done it that way for generations...)

from youngest to oldest is our rule so Sarah Beth started and Gramps finished... and we were all EXCITED!!!!!

Jean and Jeff in their comfy chairs...poor Jean was struggling with a fever by this time... but she still had the Christmas Spirit...

I'm going back to Raleigh in a few weeks so I can beat Jean playing the game she gave me...she missed part of the 80's while on a mission in Sweden but too bad...it's on!

I loved Pete in his red sweater vest...

We went to my Mama's after Jean's house...it was midnight when we got there and we noticed that Grandma's stocking was missing from the mantle....did we interrupt Santa???? would he come back???? the twins were too exhausted to worry much and were soon fast asleep...but in the morning, Grandma's stocking was back and filled up...and WOW WOW WOW Santa went CRAZY this year....Nintendo DS for Connor and a video chair and lots of games...

and for Sarah Beth...a cupcake maker and a candy game and WHAT???? an IPOD for an 8 year old???? and it already had Primary songs and Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers and Disney songs...what a SMART Santa!!!!!!

and then MORE????? NO WAY..ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

a Wii

with 2 controllers, chargers and 8 games...what was Santa THINKING?????? He sure surprised some very happy twins!!!!!!! and he left adult kids and parents stockings full of gift cards, Merle Norman makeup, perfume, cologne, CASH, and more....UNBELIEVABLE....

We ended our Christmas journeys back at Jean's house for grilled steaks..now that's my kind of Christmas dinner!!!! Sadly, I had to work Christmas night (somebody's got to pay for all that fun!!!) so we had to leave right after eating...

ok Ninna would fuss about not using the china and crystal but we loved the easy clean-up!!!

By now we had amassed so much that Andrew was in charge of lashing it on top of the van...but Grandma gave some good supervision!!!!!!

He did a good job and everything stayed secure and dry during the rain on the way home Christmas afternoon...but we couldn't have fit anything else in the van...

I guess that's why Santa left one last present back under our tree in Lexington...we love rocking out on the Wii...come over and join us some time!!!

We hope your Christmas was as Merry as ours...we realize ours was ridiculously showered with material presents this year but we also had so many GIFTS and they are what we really treasure and will linger long after the Wii is gone...family, friends, love, and most of all the Gospel of Jesus Christ...we truly have it all and are so thankful to be this blessed!!!!

Hope you all have a very

Happy New Year...

We will spend new Year's Eve in Charlotte at First Night with Peter and Ellen

so stay tuned for our next post...