Stay away from that camel!

While we were up in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for Christmas, we visited the Smoky Mountain Deer Farm & Exotic Petting Zoo which ended up being really close to our cabin. They had all kinds of animals that you just don't get to see every day, including kangaroos, camels, peacocks, and more. We were told that the camels have been known to grab things from people, including babies from their mother, so Joy made sure to keep at a comfortably safe distance. Brooklynn loved it and it was cool seeing her take in all the critters.

Brooklynn's Very First Christmas!

Brooklynn's first Christmas was a really special as we spent a few days up in a cabin in Gatlinburg, Tennessee with the Cutter family. She was battling a cold, but Brooklynn still hung in there and really had fun opening her presents and playing with her cousins, uncles, aunts and grandparents. Look for even more photos from the trip soon.

One more week until Christmas!

Here's another Christmas picture of Brooklynn for you all to enjoy. Now that it's cold outside, she loves to get all bundled up ini her red coat, hat and gloves. We're really looking forward to Christmas next week and enjoying it with our family.

It's beginning to look a little like Christmas!

Even though she can't open her Christmas gift from her Great Aunt Rita, Brooklynn still loves to play with it near our tree. It's going to be a lot of fun celebrating BGC's first Christmas this year and it'll be really neat to see her open her gifts...if she can figure out how to do it.

Giddy-up, giddy-up, giddy-up let's go!

We went to MiMi and PaPa's mall up here in Normal, Illinois and it ended up being a mall trip like no other for Brooklynn. She got to ride her first merry-go-round as MiMi put her up on a horse...er, cow...and rode with her. She absolutely loved it and smiled each time she passed by us! Later on we blew a couple quarters on a much more stationary horse, but Brooklynn loved that one too as it galloped in place. I gathered after this quick trip to the mall that this little girl is going to love amusement parks when she gets older!

Vacation with MiMi and PaPa!

Brooklynn finally made it up to MiMi and PaPa's house to see them this week. They hadn't seen her in several months, and it was great to finally be able to come up north and visit. MiMi was worried that Brooklynn wouldn't remember her, but that went by the wayside as soon as Brooklynn reached out for MiMi and gave her a great big hug right after we got off the plane. It's going to be great to get away from our busy life in South Carolina and relax up here in the cold Illinois. (We all brought our coughs and colds up with us as well.) Look for more updates the next couple days!