The Sea and the Sand

 Hello, lovely readers!  My family and I have been spending several enjoyable days with our grandparents at their Cocoa Beach condo.  Since it's only a three minute drive to the beach from their house, we all piled into the car yesterday evening.  Mother, Father, Grandma and Grandpa all went for a walk, while Georgia, Chrissa and I wondered around the beach.

"It's so beautiful." Chrissa commented.

"Definitely." Georgia agreed.

"I love the smell of the salty breeze blowing off the ocean." I said, breathing deeply.

"You just said our blog name!" Chrissa laughed.

Georgia and I joined her. "That I did."

 You can tell where the seagulls have been!

 The sound of the breaking waves is so peaceful.

 So often beach pictures show crystal-clear water and bright blue sky, but I think that that's not the only beautiful view of this creation.

 "Were did Chrissa go?" Georgia asked, turning to me.

"I think she ran down to the water." I replied, scanning the waves.

"There she is!"

 Chrissa had been running, laughing and jumping.  Shen now was panting,

 ... and letting the waves wash over her feet.

As if in an unspoken agreement had passed between us, Georgia and I simultaneously raced down to the wet sand where Chrissa stood.

 Just then, Mother called to us that it was time to go.

 We turned to take one last look at the beach, 

 ... then departed.

What's your favorite way to enjoy the beach?

That's kind of a strange question to ask in December, I know. ;^)

Merry (semi-late) Christmas!

Hi all!  I hope you had a very merry Christmas!  I know my sisters and I did.  Our cousins, the Brooks, and our grandparents drove down to our house to celebrate with us.  It was very cozy in our living room. ;^)

 Guess what?  Georgia and I got a Wii, two controllers, and Wii Sports Resort (a game)!  We are having lots of fun making Miis, and even convinced Elizabeth to play with us a few times.  In the lovely picture of our TV you can see the Mii I made, playing Frisbee Dog.

Oh.  Georgia says to tell you that other than the Wii, she only got clothes, which doesn't surprise me.

Anyway,

What is your favorite Christmas memory?

A Visit to American Girl Store Orlando!

 Hello, lovely readers!  Last Thursday, we drove down to the Orlando American Girl Store and meet up with our cousins: Victoria, McKenna and Kit Brooks.

"IT'S THOSE PEOPLE!" Kit yelled when Mother dropped us off in front of the store.

"Kit-a-doodles!" Chrissa said happily.

"Chris!" Kit replied, squeezing my youngest sister in a hug.

"Good to see you again, Victoria." I smiled.

"Same to you, Elizabeth."

"This is so exciting!" Georgia and McKenna squealed in unison.  They looked at each other, and laughed.

Then Mother and Aunt Martha walked over.

After all the "hellos" and hugs were finished, Mother said, "Let's go inside, girls!"

 (Note: To see any of the pictures larger, just click on the image.)

The first thing we saw when we walked in the door was all the historical displays.  It was interesting to see the changes on account of BeForever.

 Here's two of the holiday dresses.  On the left is the Ruby Red Ballgown, priced at $50 (which is rather expensive, in my opinion), and the Happy Holiday Dress is on the right.  It was out of stock at the time, as you can see.

 Most of my dresses are from American Girl, but it's still funny to see another girl wearing the same dress as me!

 Ah, Samantha's Winter Coat - this is one of my favorites.  It's not especially practical in Florida, though.

 "Kaya has the coolest tent!" Chrissa said.

"I bet if Elsa build a tent, her's would be cool too." McKenna joked. "Get it?  Cool?"

We laughed.

 Julie looks a little shady in this picture.

 Next, we moved on the the My American Girl section.  Below are pictures of the new-ish winter outfits.

 "I wonder if any of those gifts actually have anything in them?" Georgia asked.

"Oh, they do." Kit replied confidently. "Boxes!"

"Brilliant, Kit." Chrissa laughed.

Kit flipped her short hair and said in a weird voice. "Thank you, darrrrrrling."

 What cute little pets!

 Georgia tried on the Silver Shimmer Dress, but decided not to get it.

 The other side of the store held a small section for the Girl of the Year, Isabelle.

After we made our purchases (which may have included some Christmas gifts), we stopped at the food court for lunch.  McKenna wanted to visit the Disney store, so we pecked in there too.

Then we drove to our cousin's house and spent the rest of the afternoon with them.  

We drove home after dinner.

Where's your favorite place to shop?

Deck the Halls!

 Hi all!  We just got back with an awesome few days with our Orlando cousins Victoria, McKenna, and Kit (which included a visit to the new American Girl Store!  Elizabeth will be posting about that soon).  So, we FINALLY got around to decorating our tree!  It had been up for awhile, but it had stayed empty - until now!

 "Look!  I'm a Christmas tree!" I said, holding a few ornaments while wearing the tree skirt.

"Chrissa, you are ridiculous!" Georgia laughed.  

"I think we need to start with the lights." Elizabeth said, still smiling.

"I'm ready for them!" I said dramatically.

"Not on you, goofball." Georgia said. "Take off the tree skirt and put it where it belongs."

"Okay, okay."

After my two older sisters hung the lights, I tied the tree skirt around the base, and stuck the star on top.

 "The tinsel is next." Elizabeth said, dropping it into our outstretched hands.

 Then it was time for the bulbs!

 "Since there are twelve snowflake ornaments, we each can hang four." Elizabeth handed Georgia and I four each.

 "I think we're done!" Georgia said, brushing glitter off her hands.

"Yep!  It looks pretty good." I agreed.

While my sisters and I were working on the tree, Mom decorated the rest of the house.  The kitchen looks pretty good!

What's your favorite thing about Christmas?