Papa's & Popcorn & "Papa"

Leia Rose REALLY wanted to go in the beetle when we drove to Oma's and Papa's land today in Siler City. So here she is, squeezed between the cooler and the side of the car (but still in her booster seat, mind you). : )

On the way, Oma got a call from a realtor who wanted to show the house immediately. Well, this call really stirred things up for lots of reasons. (I wish I could say this call ended in the sale of the house, but it didn't.) So, we all stopped at a gas station and the girls and I got out to play in the grass. Well, the gas station had a HUGE flag, and I stopped to take some Fourth of July type pictures. : )

Before going to the land, we all went out to the local Mexican restaurant (because our favorite burger joint, Johnsons, was closed), and while we were there, Annie really perfected naming the parts of the face, saying "Eye" and "No" (for nose) and "Ma" (for mouth).

The biggest surprise when we got to the land was that the neighbor had built a driveway right under the powerlines. This was GREAT news because Mom and Dad don't have to clear as much land to put their driveway in! They can use it as a joint drive! Then we went to Sanford to let Brian see the model home they're going to build, and Mom got a bit sad at the reminder (mostly in regards to the kitchen counter-top tile) that it's been a while and certain options may not be available when they buy.
After dinner tonight, we did another dessert-tasting: this time with 18 different kinds of popcorn. I'm happy to say that Annie joined in with the rest of the family yet again. By the end, she finally got the "one-two-three-put-it-in-your-mouth" drill. : )

In addition, today Annie learned to say "Papa," and here's the way she looks when she says it. : )

As for December 30th, we said goodbye to Oma and Papa, spent the morning packing, and then the afternoon/evening driving to Grandma and Grandpa in Newberry. Whew! No time for pics that day! : )