Rainy day AGAIN???

The rain is never going to stop! It has been so wet here the last few days and I am missing my little furry animals more than ever. Each time I come in that front door I brace myself for Sally's enthusiastic welcome, or stop to listen for the "thump" on the floor upstairs as she jumps off the bed to race downstairs and greet me. Her corner in the kitchen that used to hold her bowls is empty and seems to scream at me each time I pass by. Little by little the white hairs are dissappearing, but every so often I put on a sweater or coat to see a subtle reminder that I used to have a "man's best friend"! Most of all, I miss cuddling with that "basket-case" of a dog each evening after I drag myself to bed after a long day with Addie....this was her time with me and she soaked it up! Bailey the cat liked to spend more time by himself, but he too is missed around here. I walk by the small "doggie" door that is now permanently closed off a million times a day and wonder to myself if he thinks I don't love him anymore, or does he know that I was forced to make the decision to find him a new home. Do animals reason like that? Either way, I am deeply saddened and feel like I have lost 2 little members of our family. I am struggling to remain positive about the situation and thankful that both of them are in good, loving homes, but I still miss them both terribly! I am constantly reminding myself how very blessed Tim and I are this holiday season......Have you all met my little Addie yet? Will someone please make this rain stop....what I need right now is a little sunshine!

Is that you Santa?

Who is that coming around the corner?
Brian was able to snap this photo of the girls watching "Santa" come into the room...right before the madness... And so it begins...Addie immediately lost it and little Lily just stood as still as ever, trying to figure out why Addie was crying and who this big red man was...

"Please don't come any closer....who are you?"...

And there you have it.....my favorite picture of them all....Addie and Lily just couldn't figure it out and they weren't liking it one bit. They were both a mess when we tried sitting them on his lap! I'll post those pictures when we get closer to Christmas!

Well, perhaps Addie will enjoy Santa a little more next year. Just like Kristy said the other night "atleast we didnt wait 2 hours in line at the mall...". We were able to snap a picture of the three of us that I can use for our cards this year, although I was hardly expecting to be photographed. It was the only picture we got where Addie wasn't bucking and screaming with her hands in front of her face! Goodness Gracious....what a drama queen!

Kristy and Lily Visit

Now, tell me you don't think this picture is adorable! All we do is ask them to "kiss kiss", and they simply oblige! How cute! I love watching our girls play together... This visit was the first time I saw Addie not want to share something that belonged to her. When Lily came over and tried to sit in Addie's chair, she became very frustrated and practically pulled her off. This picture was snapped when Kristy and I were trying to show them that they both could sit in the chair. As you can tell, Addie was not quite convinced. She loves this chair from her Mamaw and Grandpa Dave!

Kristy and the girls....What a fun day, as always!

Kristy, Brian, and Lily are coming again tonight to have a little Christmas fun with our own personal "Santa Claus". Hopefully, you will get a peak of this adventure on our Christmas Card. I have feeling Addie is not going to like sitting on "Santa's" lap as much this year! Wish us luck!

Bed Head

This is what the little munchkin looks like when I wake her up from her nap! Her hair is everywhere! I just love that little head of dark crazy hair. Addie has been having a time getting ready for the holidays. She loves the noisy decorations at her PopPop's and GaGa's house and shopping with her Mamaw and Grandpa Dave is always fun because they like to buy her things for their house! She loves the tree and points to it all the time saying "ball" because of all the round ornaments we have. I put a Santa light in our window in the kitchen so that it looks like he is looking in at us, and everytime we come down the steps and she sees it she smiles and says "Hi"....waving that little hand of hers! Tim wants to spoil the child rotten for Christmas, and I have to reign him in. I want there to be something left to get her for next year please! Besides, aren't we working on a budget here? He would do anything for that little girl....you gotta love that! I hope everyone is feeling festive and ready for time with friends and family over the holidays. I have more pictures to post soon from our visit with Kristy and Lily and the final Christmas tree pictures too! Take care....

Getting ready for Christmas...

Tim and I finally bought a grown-up Christmas tree on Sunday. We can't have a real tree due to Tim and Addie's allergies, so we figured we should have a nice "fake" one. I had to use a pencil to keep the tree straight last year, so it was time to make the investment. Addie was so amazed with the lights on the tree. She just stood back and watched us put it together. She also fell in love with this reindeer decoration I have. She carried that thing around all over the place!

For some reason, I just can't seem to get motivated to shop for gifts. Since I stopped working, I have sort of trained myself to stay away from the mall and places like Kohls, Target, Old Navy....for fear of spending money we don't have on things I don't necessarily need. Now I think that mindset is keeping me from enjoying Christmas shopping!! Plus, I have been feeling a little down in the dumps about my animals and that doesn't help my urge to shop either! Hepefully, I will get motivated here soon and get it done. Christmas is just around the corner.... I will post pictures of the finished product sometime in the next week or so....

Addie visits Berwind, West Virginia...

Some of my favorite child-hood memories take place in that tiny coal-mining town in West Virginia where my grandparents lived. Addie finally got to take her first trip down there to see my Papaw while we were visiting over Thanksgiving. She, of course, made herself right at home and was a big show-off for all of our family. This is Addie getting a ride on Papaw's knee as he sings this old song to her. She loved it when she was teeny, tiny... Since we will not travel for Christmas, Papaw gave Addie her Mickey and Minney Mouse early and she LOVED them, especially the pink one! She carried that thing all over the living room and it was just as big as she was....

Papaw also sent us home with a bed for Addie when she gets old enough to move out of her crib. It has a dollhouse for the headboard, and it is adorable. I am going to repaint it and get it all ready for her over the next year. She will love sleeping in this bed, I just know it! Today, Kristy and Lily are coming down for a visit and Addie and I are very excited. We haven't seen them in a few weeks and it seems as if so much growing takes place in that period of time! I will take lots of pictures.....

Oh...many of you have asked.....Sally, the dog, is not behaving herself in her new home. My Dad and Julie are doing all that they can, but she is not making it easy for them to fall in love with her. She has already scared off one of thier precious cats and that was only after she bruised him all up and sent him to the vet for some x-rays....I''m very worried and pray that she will settle down and get a long with the other animals. I have no idea where she will go if this doesn't work out.....Hopefully, Big Ed (the cat) will venture back home soon....

We are alive!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Tim, Addie, and I headed to West Virginia on Thanksgiving day to spend the holiday with my family. It has been almost a year since I headed to the mountains to see everyone, so we decided to tackle the trip. We had dinner at my Aunt Sandy's house and Addie got to spend some quality time with her cousins, Gunnar, Dariyan, and Samiya. They were so cute! This is my Papaw after a nice full tummy! He loves to have the family all around him, so he was in heaven that day!

All of the kids played really well together. Addie was a big show-off and shared her toys so well with her cousins. Papaw brought stockings for all of the little ones with these little books in them. You know Addie loved that! Books are her favorite thing these days. Somehow we ended up with extra books in her stocking once we got home...did she do that on purpose?

This is Addie and Daryian. Its so neat to see them side by side. Daryian and her brother just turned 3 in November. I remember when they were Addie's age just like it was yesterday.

I'm not sure about you all, but this Thanksgiving was pretty special to me, because in all my 30 years, I don't think I have spent as much time focusing on all of the things I am really, really thankful for......Its not that I am ungrateful, but in years past, I am usually preoccupied with family and traveling and food and other craziness, but this year, I felt especially THANKFUL! Thankful for a loving husband, beautiful healthy baby girl, wonderful family, my health....and some amazing friends. I tend to worry a lot about the little things and fret over things that are often times beyond my control...so....I made sure to take the time to really feel blessed. And it felt great......So...Thank-you God for blessing us and getting us home safe and sound!

I will post more about our trip in the days to come.....I better get off here and go celebrate! Tim turns 35.....oops 33 today!!!! Happy Birthday Honey! Don't worry, Addie doesn't know that you are older than me!