We brought Max home today!! He will be 9 weeks old on Tuesday! He is adjusting so well to his new home and we couldn't be more excited! He has only 2 times since we brought him home. Once at the cat (poor Patches) and once when Chris quit playing with him. He is so playful but he also loves to snuggle!!!

This is the newest addition to the Chambers family - Sir Scruffy Maxwell Chambers. Max is an 8 week old Miniature Schnauzer puppy. We will be brining Max home next Sunday. Thankfully we have been able to go and visit with Max on two different occasions since we originally met him and decided that he needed to be a part of our family. Tonight we got to take him for a ride to the park. He really like being outside! He seemed to be fascinated by the grass and he tried to eat EVERYTHING that he saw...including a splatter of paint on the sidewalk.

Wow! It is hard to believe that I have almost made it to the end of another school year. On one hand it seemed like I would never get here and on the other hand it seems like it was just yesterday when I met my 3rd graders for the first time. It has been a great year and I am going to miss my class tremendously. Alison is now going into the 6th grade and Nicole will be in 1st. My babies are growing up way to fast! I always begin each summer with plans to spend "quality" time with the girls and enjoy our time together....every summer I end up working on school stuff and before I know it the summer is over! I am determined that this summer is going to be different. This summer I am going to enjoy my girls and let my job go for a few weeks. This is hard for me to do but I am going to make this summer count because they deserve to have their mommy all to themselves for a few weeks!

Happy Summer!

Nicole graduated from Kindergarten last week! She was so excited! She told me that she had to be at graduation because if she didn't graduate then she would have to start kindergarten all over again! Thankfully she graduated and now she is on her way to 1st grade!!

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Today Alison's 5th Grade class went to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. I was fortunate enough to get to go with her today and get to be mommy instead of teacher! We had a great time! The kids were great, the weather was perfect, and the tour was AMAZING! In addition to the regular tour we got to go on the roof top tour. It is worth the time and money! You get to see some of the unrenovated areas of the house and then we got to go out on the roof tops - Very Cool! Mr. Vanderbilt sure had an eye for detail...there is even a fancy wooden door that leads to his attic!

It has been a long time since I updated this blog so I thought it was about time. Over the past few weeks life has been a roller coaster! We spent several weeks just knowing that Chris was going to loose his job at Eastman. As the time drew closer for the "word" to come, our life went into panic mode. THANK THE LORD, Chris did not loose his job so now we feel like things are getting back to normal...at least a little bit anyway.

We completed the Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University last night. Dave really knows his stuff and his Baby Steps are transforming our lives. Can't wait to complete all of the baby steps and have true financial peace. It will be a while until we reach this goal but at least we are on the way.

It is hard to believe that in just a few short weeks, Nicole will be finished with kindergarten and Alison will be on her way to 6th Grade! Where does the time go??

Here are some pictures from the past few months:

Alison sang "Realize" at her talent show at school. Chris played for her. They both did such a good job!

A few weeks ago we went to Bays Mountain. We hadn't been there in a while. Everyone had a great time!

Alison got glasses a few months ago. I think she did a great job picking out just the perfect pair!

We went hiking with the Aubrey family. The weather was gorgeous and we all had a great time. Algie felt quite certain that Nicole would be the one to actually get in the water...sure enough when we got to the falls, Nicole fell in. It is a long hike back in wet shoes and socks!

The weather has been beautiful! This weekend we planted grass (which you can see in the background) and we planted this little tree. Hopefully one day it will provide some much needed shade to our front yard!

Today was the annual Bristol Christmas Parade. There was a big crowd at the parade despite the very cold weather. Alison and Nicole danced in the parade ALL THE WAY down State Street (they started at the Bristol Herald Courier). They both did a great job! When we met the girls at the end of the parade route, Nicole started to cry. When I asked her why she said it was because she couldn't feel her feet...ouch! Alison didn't complain at all - what a trooper! Here are a few pictures from today...

Alison and Nicole before the parade

Waiting for the parade to begin...

My niece Bonnie plays the saxophone in the Tennessee High Band!

The girls dancing in the parde...

Tomorrow is the big Bristol Christmas Parade. This is the first year that Alison and Nicole are going to be in the parade. They will both be dancing with their dance academy all along the parade route. They are super excited about getting to wear their new dance sweatshirts and their new gloves!! It is going to be so cold but they will have on several layers of clothing so maybe they will stay warm...I'll post pictures tomorrow.