We've Taken Over Gatlinburg!

Gatlinburg.....just as usual, except for 22,500 teens who are here for the four Winter Xtreme Conferences! Jake is the master of all this madness and he is exceptional at it...so cool, calm and collected and totally in charge. Pete is the master of ceremonies and is great at it. These kids (and adults) are having a fabulous time and many decisions have been made for Christ. Of course, there can't be a conference with preaching without the 'master preacher'.....Johnny Husband! All of his sermons are great and I KNOW! Here are a few snapshots from last night.

Pete...the best MC of the universe! Sorry, Rick! He IS my son-law- you know!
Toby Mac is the Man! (But of course, Johnny Husband is Manlier!)
A great concert! All four of them!

Gatlinburg Here We Are!

A Day In Gatlinburg! The weather was unusually warm so we ventured out to enjoy the sites! Goofy Circus Putt-Putt and the Star Cars tour.

Two Clowns clowning around at the Circus Putt-Putt. They look just like Lindsey and Taylor!
Is this Papa or another wild Indian?
Miss Gatlinburg!
Addie Loves Herbie!
MiMom Loves the Flintstones!
Addie Loves Racing and Racecars!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

It is wonderful to have friends who think enough of you to get you exactly what you want for Christmas even when it is your Christmas Day Lunch! Our sweet, long-time friends, Gene and Charlene White have done just that very thing for us for the last few years. They prepare a huge delicious meal for us and there is always enough for more than one family, so we invite Jake's parents to come as well. This year we were able to have Jake's parents, his sister, Jennifer and her husband Luke, along with their little daughter, Ella. Also, Eddie's mother, Granny (Viola) was able to join us and she is always a delight to be around. We had a great time celebrating Jesus's Birthday!

We were happy that Santa was able to make a surprise visit on his way back to the North Pole! He also shared with us a story about why we really celebrate Christmas. Santa really is a great guy!

Addie patiently awaits "her turn" to open her stocking! During our family time we take turns from the youngest to the oldest opening our gifts. However, on Christmas Day after we have lunch everyone opens their stockings. That is a "free for all" and everyone just goes for it. But at stocking time, Addie thought she had to wait her turn so she sits patiently then finally asks Jake if it is her turn now!! I think her favorite item of the day was her fishing pole!
Family is wonderful and it is nice when cousins actually like each other. My niece, Lindsey, and her fiance, Taylor were able to drop by for a brief visit before everyone is off to Gatlinburg!!

Christmas Eve 2007....Traditions

This was a very different Christmas Eve for Johnny and me. We actually had a Christmas Date. After the wonderful Christmas Eve service, Johnny and I had a great Italian dinner together then went to the movies. It was a great time for the two of us. We really enjoyed being together. Christmas Eve has changed for us throughout the years. It was always a real treat for me as a child to look forward to spending Christmas Eve at my grandmother's house, exchanging gifts with the large family then heading home in the backseat of the car always looking in the sky hoping to catch a glimpse of Santa on his way to my house. When the grandparents are gone, things really begin to change. It is then time to make new traditions with the family. Ours changed when we began to have Christmas Eve services at Woodstock not going to Wilmington as often during the Christmas holidays. It was then a chance for Mom and Dad to come to Woodstock to visit us which did happen on occasion. Then, came Xtreme, meaning we all head for Gatlinburg on Christmas Day or the day after. (You will hear about that soon!) As a parent with grown children the time comes for their traditions to begin for their families as well, which means sharing our children with the other parents! That is not so easy! However, it is a necessary thing to do. It is a part of having a growing family. So....new traditions must begin for Johnny and me. For the last two years, we have had our family time on Dec. 23rd which has worked out well and we had a great time as a family, as always. Christmas Eve for Hollie and Pete is spent with his parents, the Hixsons and Deanna and Jake spend Christmas Eve with Jake's parents, the Carswells. Then on Christmas Day everyone, including the Carswells, all gather at our house for a delicious Christmas Day Lunch, provided by a great friend that I will tell you about next! Will our new tradition be a nice dinner and movie on Christmas Eve? We'll see as the years roll around. Stay tuned! Christmas Eve will be here again before we know it! Regardless, Christmas Eve can always be great if you are celebrating with someone you love as much as I love my wonderful husband, Johnny.

Christmas Eve 2007

Katie, our eldest granddaughter is really growing up. She is now 9 years old and in the fourth grade at Cherokee Christian School. Such a real sweet dollbaby and we are so very proud of her.

She is nothing less that a pure delight to her Mimom and Papa.

December 20th...in the middle of Christmas....Happy 30th Birthday, Hollie!

We did it! We actually gave Hollie a surprise party for her 30th birthday! It was a 29 Forever
Theme with a Prom dance for the HHHixson High School! And of course, she and Pete were crowned the Prom King and Prom Queen! It was so much fun. Most people dressed in their most unlikely prom wear for the evening. Hollie, Pete and some friends arrived on the Fur Bus. Below are some of the pictures from the evening. Go to Hollie's blogspot to see more fun pictures of the evening.

Queen of the Prom...Hollie and Her Prom King
Dancing at the Prom
Carson doing the ......Superman? Dance? Anyway, he was sure good at it!
Proud Mom and Dad
The Prom King Entertaining the Prom Queen!
The opening of the dance floor by the Prom King and Queen

Snapshots at Christmas Gatherings at the Hunt House

Friends catching up and friends meeting new friends
Hard working helpers...thank you Lord!
The GirlFriends!
Meeting around the table...
Our sweet Governor and sweet Hollie having a Merry Christmas!
The older four Hunt girls!

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!

This is the downstairs security guard!
This is my upstairs security guard...notice his two little helpers!

Hollie and Pete went to Las Vegas for Hollie's 30th birthday get-away (her blogspot has some great shots that may be used against them!) and Deanna and I had the privilege of keeping Hope and Addie. Deanna has another "engagement" to attend (go her blogspot to read about the "engagement") so I went to Addie's school Christmas party with her. It was so much fun until Addie didn't get to keep the book she brought to the 'book exchange'...then it was time to GO!

"The Reindeer Games" lead by Ms. Purdy! Can you name these four reindeer?

Christmas began with the Church Staff Party... Yes, Church Staff!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everybody! Okay, Okay, I'm going to try to update this page this afternoon, Lord willing!

37 Years of Wedded Bliss!

Johnny and I celebrated our 37th wedding anniversary on November 21. It usually falls during the week of Thanksgiving and it could not come at a better time since I am so very thankful for such a wonderful husband. His first goal is to be a Christian that honors Christ in all he says and does and he is successful! His second goal it to love and honor me as his wife and help-meet and keep me happy and he is very successful at that was well! His third goal is to love and honor his children and grandchildren and spend all the time he can with them investing in their lives and he certainly does that well! Thank you, husband, for all you are and for all you do for us making us happy every day. We love you dearly!

The Costa Rica Thanksgiving Family Vacation

We had an absolutely wonderful family vacation to Costa Rica! Celebrating Thanksgiving in a foreign country is always interesting but we had a great Thanksgiving dinner together and were literally as stuffed as turkeys! This is Addie when it was time to leave! I felt like doing the same thing, but I would not be able to get away with it since Johnny was there! He would have been too embarassed.
One of my favorite things about Costa Rica were the monkeys! The ones we took with us and the ones from Costa Rica that lived in the trees!

We stayed at the Four Seasons and they had a fabulous children's program. The kids really wanted to stay all day long and even in the evening for the special activities. They had a great staff who really liked our kids, of course!

Hopie and Petie!

Carson and Jake!

Beautiful country! and Beautiful kids!

Go to Deanna and Hollie's blogspot for more great pictures of the Costa Rica Family Vacation!

A Short But Wonderful Trip to New York City!

We had a short but great trip to New York City this month. I was there only for one night but for two days and did a lot and saw a lot. You can make much progress in NY when time is short! The weather was sooo perfect! Johnny went on to upstate New York for a Timothy+Barnabas conference (it snowed!) but I could not go because I needed to get back home to leave for vacation in Costa Rica the next day! I will arrive in CR on Friday with Jake, Deanna, Katie and Carson and Johnny, Hollie, Pete, Hope and Addie will join us on Monday.

I guess we have seen the Christmas Show with the Rockettes at Radio City Hall five times and this time was as great as the first! They had changed some parts and added some great new stuff and we loved it again! How can you not love everything about New York?

We really can't go anywhere without someone knowing us in some way! We walked out of Carnegie's Deli in New York City and someone said, "Sir, aren't you Johnny Hunt?" We had never met these people, but one of them knew who Johnny was. They minister to Jewish Christians in New York City.

A word from your sponsor

I thought I would let all of you know that I am alive and loving my sweet wife BIG TIME! She seems to get more beautiful, charming, and enjoyable with each passing day. Hope all of you are enjoying Jesus and the life He has so richly blessed us with. You are loved.
Your sponsor, Johnny Hunt

We Finally Found Them!

Special Friends...Blaine and Pat Johnson

Leave it to the men to get the details on certain things and you are sure to not get all of them! We were to meet our special friends who were members when we were at Long Leaf in Wilm. at the Salt Works restaurant after the men's conference supposedly at 11:30am. So we were there at 11:30am but it was the wrong Salt Works (there are two of them) and it was to be at 12:30 and not 11:30! So, one hour later, we found them at the right place. Luckily, they had eaten a late breakfast and didn't want lunch, we had already eaten at the wrong Salt Works. However, we had a short but great visit with them and it was nice to see them again. They are coming through Atlanta around Christmas and we hope to visit with them again. This time I will give the details! Happy 80th Birthday, Blaine!

A Quick Trip to Wilmington, NC

Johnny scheduled a men's conference in Wilmington quite a while ago that was held on Friday night and Saturday morning at Northside Baptist Church. So, of course, I went along with him for a first visit back to Wilmington since both my Mom and Dad have been in heaven. It was quite a different experience for me, but I had a great time visiting with my brother, sister-in-law, nephews and nieces (Lindsey was there, too!). The Fair happened to be going on and we enjoyed that but it was sooo cold and windy. We almost froze to death, but had a great time!

I have to figure out a way to see them more.....they actually like me......so much fun.

Saturday morning soccer game..in the cold wind!

Blaise, my nephew, (in the red pants) will not have a career in soccer....it did not seem to be his passion, but he did enjoy the snacks at the end of the game.
My precious special little nephew, Dalton, had a wonderful time at the Fair!
My sweet little niece, Maranda, and her mom, Julie (I like her, too) on a ride at the Fair. Maranda especially liked the music and danced all night!
No visit to the Fair is complete without cotton candy no matter how worked up the kids already are! Sugar highs are required at the Fair!

A quick trip to Wilmington also means a brief visit to the cemetary.

I am really missing them both.

Happy Halloween....Happy Birthday!

Well, they did it again! My two sweet daughters celebrated my 35th birthday, again...with style....weird style at MY request. My birthday is a day I like to come and go quietly but they like to have a party because they know that party is what I like to do, but not at my expense. So, to celebrate my birthday I insisted that we celebrate it on Halloween but the requirement for participation was that each person had to dress up...after all, it WAS Halloween. We went to the Swan Coach House and had such a great time. Here are some pictures from the big event.
If you were not invited to the party, don't fret because at least you have another chance to eat at the Swan Coach House because they may not ever let any of us back in there again. The staff may not have been too thrilled about us being there, but the other guests in the restaurant got a kick out of our party. Can you believe that we were the only ones there who were dressed for the occasion? Some people just do not know how to have fun!

The two best daughters in the world!
A Great Birthday Cake!