Christmas in Simpsonville

I got Dad this red nose. It blinks! We all took a turn with it! That's my hat Dad gave me last year!

Oh, Christmas Tree! Oh, Christmas Tree, how lovely are your branches!

Mom as Santa's helper

For the last 8 years, Erik's Mom (Sharyn), Dad (Gerry), his Aunt Michelle and Uncle Mike (and us of course) have gotten together for Christmas the weekend before. For the years Erik and I lived in Georgia, they met us there--Mom & Dad drove up, Aunt and Uncle drove down; sorta in the middle, well, kinda, if you consider that Georgia is certainly in the middle of North Carolina and Florida. Anyway, once we all moved to the same general area, the two of us here in the Blythewood and Mom and Dad in Simpsonville, we have taken turns about where we visit for our weekend. Mom and Dad had it this past weekend, but Aunt Michelle and Uncle Mike were snowed in under 15 in. of snow, so sadly, it was the Barlik 4. Erik and I arrived on Friday in the rain--it was just nasty if you ask me. We still weren't sure if aunt and uncle would come down on Saturday, so we had dinner and relaxed and watched a Christmas movie on tv. Saturday, upon finding out that 15 in. of snow causes you to stay put, the four of us solved Tiger Woods' problems and the rest of the world's too, and then ventured into Pickens Co. to go to Aunt Sue's, a little setup with shops and a resteraunt, which ended up being right at Table Rock. It was pretty quiet, just us for the most part; they were getting ready to close for the last 2 weeks of the year. We had lunch there; as a side note: usually you are told what the place has, Aunt Sue's had a list of what they DIDN'T have, they were getting rid of all of their parishables I guess. Anyway, we left and took the long ride back home and prepared for our Saturday evening ritual--dinner, game--sometimes cards (Hand and Foot) or more recently, Erik's version of Christmas Trivia Uno-Monopoly style, then presents.

On a serious note about this, God was really good to all of us this year and blessed us. Because of that, we received very nice gifts. We are thankful that God has provided for all of our families this year when so many have had very difficult circumstances. Erik and I were happy just to have the time with Mom and Dad. But we were showered with love and presents. I am thankful for in-laws who care so much and demonstrate the meaning of the season in more ways than one!

Anyway, here are a few pics that I took. They are silly, but we had fun!
I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

Us--we try to take a family picture each year. This year we had to figure out our timers. I think this is the only time we do this!