Cool Contest

If you are into scrapbooking you could win $150 worth of great papers and accents just by commenting on this blog before Jan. 2. Even though I haven't gotten around to it in ages, I have a pipe dream that one day I will return to my scrapping! Jack will probably be in college, but a girl can dream, right?

Click here to view the contest & information.

A must read...

So, I'm still up catching up on reading all my fellow bloggers posts and such from the past week. I found one that summed it up pretty well, the 12 Steps to Recovery.

Merry, Merry

I'm hoping you all are just as exhausted as I am. It was a wonderful week of celebrating Christmas and being with family and friends, but it was also an exhausting week. The car has been completely loaded, unloaded, loaded again & unloaded again of luggage, gifts, etc. Although nothing is back where it goes yet. Our dining room table and foyer looks like Target, Toys 'R Us and Macy's threw up. I hope I don't seem ungrateful, because we appreciate all the wonderful things we received, but now it's time to find a home for each one.

We spent Christmas Eve with my family. A couple of hours with my parents, sister, brother & sister-in-law. Jack was pretty fun and even opened a few gifts. Maybe he was in such a good mood because he took a monster nap on the way to Grandma & Grandpa's. Notice the lovely hair.

Afterwards, we headed to my grandparents' for dinner and more fellowship with cousins. It is always a lot of fun and we have a sort of non-traditional meal (low country boil, fried shrimp, hush puppies). Mimi grew up in South Georgia so they always had a coastal Christmas complete with shrimp and anything that goes with it. It's certainly nice to enjoy something other than the typical turkey and ham for once. While we were pulling up, we realized this was the first time Josh had been in 3 years! He has worked the last 2 Christmas Eves in the ER (here last year and in S.C. the year before.)

Christmas morning Josh, Jack and I woke up and celebrated together. Jack was very excited about the car Santa left and kept making his car motor noise. He was pleasantly surprised to find he could get in this car. My parents and sister came up for a laid-back lunch (sandwiches) and movies. The weather was so nice we took Jack's car out for its first road test. He seemed to enjoy it. He loves pushing the button that plays a little song and then dancing to the song. I also made buckeyes (one of Josh's favorites).

On Friday morning, we left at 6:30 to head toward Rome to spend some time with Josh's family. We left early because we had several stops to make. We did a little bit of shopping and then met Carsten & Sarah in Atlanta for an early lunch. Carsten & Josh went to high school together. We went to their wedding in Philadelphia back in May. They live in D.C. and were on their way back. It was so great to visit with them. They couldn't believe how much Jack had grown. (I guess they don't read the blog...lol! Hard to believe? I know.)

Our next stop was Kennesaw to visit with 2/3 of the Pucketts. Wendy had to work, but we were able to hang out with Ben & BJ for a couple of hours. Jack loves playing with BJ. It was a great afternoon. Finally, we made it to Rome. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner with Josh's parents and sister and brother-in-law-to-be. Before it got too late, we opened gifts. Jack really liked the rocking horse. Although, he'll have to grow into it, he will really be rocking it soon!

Early Saturday morning we left to head to Chattanooga to spend the day at Josh's aunt & uncle's house. All his cousins were there, including Derek & Joy (who live in Brooklyn) with their new baby, Emi. It was exciting to meet Emi. We've been admiring pictures for months. She is a real sweetie, and she'll have to be one tough cookie to put up with all these boys around! We managed to get this shot of all the grandkids.

On the way home we managed to share a meal with all of the Pucketts, Wendy included, as we stopped off the interstate. We enjoyed all the time with family and friends, but are always glad to be back home. I got photos uploaded yesterday while Jack took a monster nap after church. I should be working on sorting and putting away all the new gifts, but instead I'm updating you all on our week. Hope yours was just as blessed!

It was too quiet

I've always heard other moms say they knew their little ones were up to something because "it was too quiet." I thought it might have been just one of those things that moms say or was at least a year or two off from our vocabulary. We'll if it didn't happen twice today with Jack.

Jack really enjoys exploring and happily plays with his toys with or without you (although there is usually a lot more laughter if you join in!) Today I was trying to get a million things done. Needless to say, he did a lot of independent play. This morning as I was on the computer checking messages and paying a couple of bills, he was happily playing in the upstairs living room. Batting his balls around the room and then it got quiet...too quiet. I walked into the room to find him playing with the remote to the television, which is off-limits to him (and he knows this!) He looked at me so innocently, as if he hadn't been caught red-handed!

Then, this evening just after Josh got home it got quiet again! Josh was changing and getting his things together for his night shift, and I was in the kitchen preparing a dessert for our Sunday School Christmas Party. Jack was crawling back and forth between our bedroom and the kitchen. In his defense, it was his dinner time; and I was again trying to get too many things done at once! After playing in the living room for a while, he got too quiet. I walked in to find that he had pulled the tissue box off the side table and pulled 20+ tissues out of the box and was happily sitting in his mess of tissues! I wanted to scold him until I noticed he was trying to eat them! The poor kid was hungry! So, I sheepishly pulled my poor starving child's dinner together and discarded the half-eaten tissues, but not before snapping a photo to share with all of you!

Hope you all are enjoying your holidays! I'm looking forward to a fun week with family and friends. Safe travels to you all!

A couple of photos...

Star in the Making?

I haven't had the opportunity to blog much this past week. It has been a rather hectic week around here. Our church was putting on a Christmas production on Saturday and Sunday evening and our family was responsible for two of the actors. Josh played the role of Jesus (as an adult, of course) and Jack was young Jesus (a one-year-old Jesus...not much of a stretch, huh?).

Anyway, the production took us to church every night Wed-Sun for rehearsals and then the actual performances. It was important for Jack to be at each rehearsal because they were recording them for a DVD they are putting together. I was really proud of how well he did. Not so much as an actor, because he really just had to sit there and play with some blocks and look at the Three Wise Men and Mary & Joseph, but as a one-year-old staying up way past bedtime 4 nights in a row.

The Sunday evening performance began at 6, so we actually got home in time to put Jack in bed at a normal hour. He was a little grumpy this morning, but that could have been because I dragged him shopping and to the grocery store. Anyway, hopefully we'll be getting back to normal this week. I like to think he's wondering why he didn't get dressed up and play with any wooden blocks tonight (for the first time in 5 days)....ha, ha, ha! I wish I had gotten a picture of him during the show, but I was waiting off stage. Here's a picture of him in his costume.

Tis the Season

Tis the season for baking goodies. Here's what 10 dozen cookies look like! That's right, 10 dozen.

I was invited to participate in a cookie/treat swap. For the swap we were asked to assemble 20 bags of treats or cookies with a 1/2 dozen cookies in each bag. All the baking was worth it, I came home with 20 bags of treats which I'm sharing with all the sweet folks who take care of Jack at church (Sunday School teachers, Early Steps Preschool teachers, Nursery workers).

What a Difference

What a difference a year makes. What a difference a day makes. What a difference a couple of hours makes. Yesterday was full of rain. This morning started out much the same. I'm not complaining because we sure needed it, but rainy always makes me just want to stay inside. I had a couple of errands to run so this afternoon we ventured out. I soon noticed the sun was brightly shining and the temperature was hovering around 60 degrees. Pretty nice for December...especially since this is the same town where it snowed last week!

Once we got home, I couldn't resist taking Jack out for a stroll. I plopped him in his wagon and off we went around the neighborhood. It was so nice. As I was pulling him, it occured to me that we had a stretch of 2-3 pretty warm days in early to mid-December last year. Believe me, I remember...it allowed me to get out of the house with my 2 week old and stroll around the block.

What a difference a year makes.

The Proofs are Here

Less than a week later and our fabulous photographer has our proofs from Jack's photo shoot online. Anyway, they are so incredibly cute that I couldn't help but post the link here. I hope you all enjoy these adorable shots as much as I do!

Link to Jack's proofs

Say Cheese

Saturday we took Jack to have some photos made, sort of commemorating his first birthday. A great gal I grew up with does photography in our hometown. I've been admiring her images for months on her website and facebook profile. I was excited for the opportunity to have her photograph Jack. The shoot took us to Athens, actually Winterville (which is right outside of Athens). We even managed to get some Christmas shopping done and squeeze in a home-cooked meal with my family. (Thanks, mom!)

Anyway, Sue Ann (our photographer) posted a few "sneak peek" shots from Jack's session on her blog. There's one shown here, but hope you'll take a look. We are so pleased with what we got. We can't wait to see the rest. Thanks, Sue Ann!

I guess it's also been several days since an update, so I'll fill you in on some fun things that happened this week. First of all, it snowed here on Monday! Fun, right? None of it stuck, but it was so pretty! Here's a picture of it coming down in our backyard. Jack wasn't nearly as interested in watching it fall as I was. Maybe once there's some to play in, he'll be more into the snowfall. Anyway, how cool is it that we have snow here on Dec. 1? "Very" is the expected answer!

Our final MOPS meeting of the calendar year was on Friday, and it was a bit silly! We had a game where each table had to make one of their members into a reindeer with only the supplied materials. Somehow I was selected to be the guinea pig...I think I was a pretty good sport. What do you think?

We also brought cookies to swap and share with the lovely and sweet volunteers who keep our children each meeting. I wasn't in the baking spirit and instead assembled these reindeer cookies I spotted in the Family Fun magazine. I've posted new pictures on the Picasa site as well. Hope you all are enjoying your holiday season.

One Year Old...Can it Be?

Yes, we are officially parents to a one-year-old. Friday marked the first anniversary of Jack's birth. We spent part of the day putting up Christmas decorations and preparing for Jack's party on Sunday. Friday afternoon we headed to Gwinnett and had dinner. The day also marked a year of mothering and fathering, so we treated ourselves to a tasty meal at one of our favorites, Carraba's. Here's Jack showing off his birthday attire, which I made thanks to some serious encouragement from a great friend ;)

Afterwards, we went to Bass Pro Shops for Jack to have his photo made with Santa. He had his photo made last year, but of course was barely a month old. He didn't really smile for the photo and seemed a little leery of this white-haired dude, but I'm just proud he didn't cry.

Sunday was the big party. Lots of family and special friends joined us to help celebrate Jack's first birthday! It was a hectic day getting everything ready, but it all turned out really well. Jack seemed to have fun, and Josh and I sure felt blessed. It was so neat to have so many people from so many different aspects of our life come to support us and share their love with our little one. Thank you all for being such wonderful grandmothers, grandfathers, great-grandmothers, great-grandfathers, aunts, uncles, great aunts, great uncles, cousins and friends! Jack has a lot of people that love him, and for that we are blessed.

What a year it has been. Josh and I have been caught up in the "this time last year" game for a few weeks now. "This time last year, we put up decorations wondering when you would go into labor, or this time last year, we were bringing home a brand-new baby!" Mostly I would say it has flown by, but strangely in some ways it has been a long year. Weird, I know.

What a fun kid Jack is, and the excitement grows each day. We have enjoyed our journey into parenthood (just like everyone said we would) Then again, everyone said it would change us. I guess it has, but only for the good. We're much more thankful people; much more patient people (I think); and much more easily entertained people!

You can view many more photos from Jack's big day here.

Where we're going...

Jack can officially see where we're going...not just where we've been. This week signified the turning around of the car seat. I know he didn't grow any overnight, but he just looks so much older and more grown up sitting so upright...weird, I know! Must be one of those mom things. As you can see, he's still silly when turned around.

Wednesday night we asked the Shaws to join us at the Magical Night of Lights at Lake Lanier Islands. I'm a sucker for Christmas lights and a little eager to begin some silly holiday traditions with Jack, I guess. The lights were good...Britton (the Shaw's nearly 3 y/o) enjoyed them the most. At the end of your driving tour, there's a silly holiday carnival. Thankfully, Jack's not old enough yet to care about riding anything.

Brit took a trip on the carousel and the train, while the big boys tossed skee ball. Derek one a nice prize for all the kids. We finished our stay with a stop at the fire pits, where you can roast marshmallows. (Which they charge for by the way...as if you didn't pay enough to ride through.) Overall, it was fun and I would go back. If you do decide to go: 1. try to get as many people in your car/minivan as possible (I think 9 is the limit); 2. bring your own marshmallows and coat hangers and roast away (we even saw a family who brought their own graham crackers and hershey bars!); 3. pre-purchase your ticket online (you save $10 from the gate price) and use the coupon code 5253 when checking out to save an additional $5.

It's the season of thanksgiving and the season for a very big celebration at our house. Jack turns ONE on Friday! Wild, right? It seems like I just started this blog and now he's a year old. Here's Jack with someone I'm very thankful for, his great grandfather. It was great spending time with family today for Thanksgiving and all the great food ain't bad either. Enormous thanks to Josh's sister and her fiance who delivered a massive spread for dinner (they felt bad b/c Josh was on call and couldn't join me and Jack in Athens). We thought they were bringing by a plate, but instead brought enough to feed an army! How thankful we are for such wonderful family!

The Big Gorge

We spent Saturday afternoon at Tallulah Gorge with some friends who had come up to visit for the day. It was a very chilly day, but we bundled up and enjoyed the beautiful views. Jack enjoyed being outside and riding on Josh's shoulders. Here are a couple of photos from our hike.

Our little Picasso

We have a stainless steel fridge, so the front is not magnetic. It certainly means a clean look, but there's no place to display our little ones first piece of artwork. One day a week Jack goes to the preschool at our church for a few hours. On Thursday, he made this.


Cute, huh? I guess we have a budding artist on our hands :) I wonder if they let him choose which hand to make the turkey with. He is definitely favoring his left for most things these days. He feeds himself mostly with his left hand. Last night, we were at Cracker Barrel and Josh put a little bit of ranch dressing on his spoon and let him hold it. He knew exactly what to do. It was so much fun watching him figure out how to use it. Oh, there's a Krispy Kreme in Commerce now! So, we learned that Jack likes ranch dressing and hot doughnuts!

Today we went to Tallulah Gorge with some friends. I'll post some photos soon.

Sorry for the links to the photos. Blogger wouldn't let me add photos tonight.

Tag...I'm it

So, a friend of mine recently tagged me on her blog. I was tagged to share 7 random things about myself. I'm just now getting around to putting my mind to it.

Here goes:
1. I love college football. Specifically, Georgia football, but I'll watch just about any teams. I not really sure when the love began...maybe in the womb. I think my mom "carried me" to a bowl game and then the season following my first birthday was quite a memorable ones for the Dawgs. I like to think my parents were on cloud 9...a beautiful one-year-old girl and a national championship. What more could two people want? Oh, yeah a 4-year-old son! :)

2. I find great satisfaction in having empty clothes hampers at my house. I don't really mind doing the laundry either. I think I like it because it's a pretty mindless task.

3. I constantly think about creating a TO DO list, but never do. I think about writing things down, but never seem to get around to it. Then I forget what I need to do/buy. This drives my husband crazy! He loves lists.

4. The idea of scrapbooking is very appealing to me. I used to really enjoy doing, but can't seem to make myself dedicate the time to it these days. My excuse these days is time & space. I know pretty lame.

5. Gift wrapping is one of my favorite things to do. I love wrapping presents in pretty papers and big bows. It shows you went the extra step of getting out tape and scissors. That being said, I still take the short cut and use a bag and tissue every now and then. Mostly, because...

6. I'm incredibly frugal went it comes to some things. I cut coupons (of which only about 10% probably get used) and reuse gift bags and tissue! Ooops...telling all my secrets! I made a special trip to CVS today just to save 25% on my purchases.

7. I love correspondence. I find great joy in writing and mailing notes to friends and family. I guess because I know how happy I am after opening a handwritten note from the mailbox.

Now, I'm supposed to tag 7 of my friends, so here goes:

Brooke

Carolyn

Heather

Jessica

Kajal

Kathy

Tori

Tag, ladies...you're it!

We love you, Papa

Dearest Papa,

You're home now. You're with your lovely wife of 60-plus years. You're with your Heavenly Father. I can only imagine how peaceful it must be for you now. Your pain, frustration and confusion must surely be gone now.

I'm thankful we were able to see you last week. I'm thankful that you were able to meet your great grandson and spend most of a year getting to know him. I know he won't remember getting to know you, but we'll tell him all about you and his great grandmother. We'll make sure he knows what special people you both were.

I'm so thankful to have so many special memories of you. Some that I am able to touch on a daily basis, like my cedar hope chest. I wonder if you've already begun to craft benches, shelves, tables and such in your new home. Thanks for sharing your beautiful craftmanship with your family and friends.

I have to admit, we're shedding tears here for you. We can't help but think of how much we'll miss you, but I am comforted knowing that any tears you may shed will be ones of happiness.

We love you, Papa.



*John Blakely Giles, Sr. died Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Dancing the Day Away

Thursday night Jack got his first real haircut. Josh had previously trimmed the sides while I was out of the house, but this was an all around hair cut. I held him still while Josh did the trimming. It looks so cute and even more like a little boy and not a baby! I can't believe he'll be one in a couple of weeks!

Since I can't remember what I mention in my posts and I'm too lazy to review previous posts, I probably end up repeating myself. Anyway, Jack is beginning to show more signs of some word development. Josh and I both swear he said or tried to say "milk" a couple of weeks ago. He seems to be saying "Daa" or "Maa" when being held by one of us, but I don't know if I'm ready to chalk any up as first words. Am I just an idiot or is this first word thing really supposed to be clear cut? Despite my uncertainity for his word development, he has definitely figured out that cars, trucks, tractors, etc. make a motor sound. Whenever he is pushing a toy with wheels he makes a motor sound with his mouth. It is so cute and funny! As you can see from this photo, he also loves his blocks. He takes them out of the box and puts them back in over and over again.

Josh, Jack and I went shopping on Sunday to try and get some work done on our Christmas list. We stepped into Brookstone, where an Ipod tower was blaring music and Jack just started grooving in his stroller. I captured some of it with my camera. If you have 53 seconds with nothing else to do, check it out.

A Great Read

If you're looking for a great read, I'd like to make a recommendation: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. I would say I don't have a lot of time to read, but really I don't make enough time to read as often as I'd like. But, when Josh picked this book up in Amelia Island last week and mentioned it was along the lines of Tuesdays with Morrie (one of my favorites; What? I like sappy books), I thought it sounded interesting. He'd heard about a few months back and had been wanting to pick it up. On Sunday, I thought I'd use our 6 plus hour ride home to see if this thing was any good.

Well, it is. In fact, I highly recommend it. It's an easy read and can be read in pieces easily...although I knocked it out in a few hours on Sunday. The book is a recount of a professor's observations, life lessons, etc. as he prepares and then delivers a "Last Lecture." Unlike typical last lectures, this will truly be his last lecture as he is terminally ill. Anyway, after you read the book, you can watch the lecture online. The book was written after the lecture gained national recognition.

Doughnuts for Democracy?

Tuesday after we voted we headed down to Athens to visit my grandfather, who is in the hospital. On our way back home, we found ourselves staring at red, glowing Hot Doughnuts NOW sign. It lured us in like a moth to a flame. We resisted the urge to order dozens and requested one each. When we arrived at the window to pay we heard, "did you guys vote today?" We proudly replied we had and showed our stickers. "No Charge."

I read on Facebook about free coffee at Starbucks & ice cream at Ben & Jerry's for voters. This is something I could get used to. Can we have an election every month? (Minus the campaign ads, of course!) Some of us are really wishing for a do-over and not just for the doughnuts. :)

If you're happy and you know it...

Clap your hands, right? In the last two weeks Jack has really taken to clapping. I think I mentioned he learned it, but he does it all the time now. It really is cute. Here's a picture of him and his friend Naomi at the beach this weekend. He's too busy to hold her hand because he's clapping his hands!

Jack is such a busy boy these days. Although I know he enjoyed himself during our trip, he was so happy to be home. Last night, he played and played crawling all around the floor and pulling up on the couch and ottoman as if he had missed them while we were gone. He hasn't really figured out this whole time change thing, but we're working on it. He's been up at 5 the last two mornings, which is not my preferred waking hour. I'm hoping an early nap today will help encourage a longer slumber tonight.

I've uploaded several photos from our trip. You can view them on our Picasa site. They are in the October & November albums. Don't forget to vote, if you haven't already.

My Advance Apologies

Disclaimer: I'll begin this entry with an advance apology/disclaimer, it may veer off the subject of a cute and cuddly nearly one-year-old and into subjects not usually gracing this page, but it was an interesting weekend. So, read on at your own risk. If you hate the entry, ignore it and check back because I'm sure I'll soon be back to normal.

As you may have read from my previous post, we spent a long weekend at Amelia Island in north Florida. It is a beautiful place with a charming downtown area with shops and restaurants. We had the opportunity to spend our trip with Daniel, Rachel & Naomi Gowder, some friends of ours that currently live in Texas. We don't get to see them as often as we'd like, so it was a special treat to be together again. Naomi is 2 1/2 going on 15; she's so cute and sweet and a ball of energy. She had a good time playing with Jack and his toys. They were very cute as Tinkerbell and a monkey on Friday night as we enjoyed the halloween festivities.

Josh's mom watched the kids at the condo during the game on Saturday, which was the most unpleasant portion of the trip. It wasn't just because we lost; we're used to that. We lose all the time to the Gators in Jacksonville. What made it so bad is we didn't get trampled by an awesome team (like what happened against Alabama). We instead gave the game away. Remember, I warned you about this entry. Anyway, I don't consider myself a big whiner. When we lose, I accept it and move on, but Saturday was just sorry. Up until the final minutes we beat the gators in total offense. I mean it's pretty easy to score when you get the ball on the 10-yard line everytime, which is where we kept giving it to them.

Missed field goals, interceptions, fumbles, you name it - it went against us. We couldn't catch a single break and surely not from the refs. Two bogus calls (a very favorable UF spot & a mysterious penalty) gave the Gators their first touchdown drive. Does anyone think it's completely bogus of the SEC to put the same head official on this game after what happened last year? Penn Wagers hates Georgia, that was evident when he tried to give last year's Auburn game away to the Tigers. Our kicker couldn't hit a simple field goal and the momentum just tumbled completely in favor of Florida.

Also, is it just me or are Florida fans disgusting? (No offense, Sarah) Just a reminder about the disclaimer. I could count the number of collared shirts I spotted on UF fans. I'm not trying to be snooty or say you have to wear a collared shirt to a football game, but come on people...cut-off sleeves for the guys and trashy t-shirts for the ladies? It was not their best showing. I was actually standing next to one guy while waiting to get in who was proudly missing one of his front teeth. No joke. Anyway, so at least our fans have a better fashion sense.

Okay, last thing about the game, I promise...but no more whining about last year and how unsportsmanlike the dawgs are, Urban Cryer. Believe me, you showed everyone just how classy you are by hanging 49 points on us. I expected it; I wasn't at all surprised to see you run up the score. If you'd do it to pitiful Kentucky who you had no beef with, of course you'd do it to the team that embarrassed you and your team on a national stage last year. Thanks for being the bigger guy...you are the portrait of good sportsmanship.

I'm done. I feel better.

On the way back to the car, our group was discussing that our week was only going to get worse...Election day is Tuesday! I don't normally run around preaching about my political views, but this is my blog and I provided a disclaimer, remember. Anyway, I'll be one of the first to admit that George W. has not been one of our finest presidents. In fact, he's probably one of the worst. He doesn't seem to be the brightest crayon in the box, but I do believe our president deserves our respect. Just because John McCain is a republican and has been endorsed by Bush doesn't mean they will do things just alike. I think even republicans can admit that things need a drastic turnaround. Anyway, I don't think the drastic turnaround we need is to start spreading the wealth around like socialists. As our wonderful pastor pointed out recently, the government was created to protect us from outside threats. The constitution never said anything about taking money from some people and giving it to others. Let me quickly follow that with the statement that I believe money should be moving from some pockets to others, but it should be a choice. Just like I choose to give money and time to my church; the boy scouts; the free clinic; the soup kitchen, etc. I also have great fears about someone who supports partial-birth abortions. I just can't understand the support of such a horrific act.

Anyway, I'm off the soap box. You can be relieved. Later I'll post some cute pictures from our trip and tell you more about all the cute things that Jack is up to these days!

Bloggin from the beach

So, I'm bloggin from the beach...okay, I'm not literally on the beach right this moment (sand and a laptop probably don't mix...especially when it's not your laptop!), but I can see the ocean from where I'm sitting. We're here at Amelia Island in North Florida for the big Georgia/Florida showdown. Some old friends of ours have joined us and we've got a big condo on the Plantation. Jack's napping and everyone is getting ready to head downtown for some shopping.

Last night we enjoyed some great food at Barbara Jean's. If you've never heard of it...they have them in a couple of places down here. They have fabulous crabcakes! We ate at the one at St. Simons earlier this summer. It was delicious. We're all looking forward to halloween festivities here tomorrow. The kids have costumes and we hear there is a hayride. I hope to have some great photos to share once we return on Sunday.

In the meantime, Go Dawgs!

Martha Stewart Moment

So, today Jack and I went to a Halloween party, which was a lot of fun. It was a trial run of his cute little monkey costume. I think it went pretty well. He kept it on for at least an hour. All the kids had really cute costumes, and we even got a group picture (well, sort of). My friend, Carolyn, was our gracious host and even had crafts and halloween-themed projects for the kids to do. Thanks, Carolyn. We had a blast!

Since they are far and few between I have to share my Martha Stewart moment with you. Here's a photo of the dessert I took to today's Halloween party. I'm guessing the recipe has way too much trans fat and is not organic enough for Martha Stewart (probably a little more up Paula Deen's alley...it has a stick of butter in it!), but I think the artistic touches were something to write home about or at least blog, but it wasn't without drama...

After covering some of my nutter butters with melted white chocolate, I realized I couldn't locate the tube of black icing I bought to pipe on ghostly features and to decorate my tombstones. I panicked! Enter Prince Charming from stage left. Seeing my obvious distress that the picture perfect dessert I had designed in my head would now seem pitiful, Josh stepped in. He quickly headed to the pantry and found some chocolate chips to melt. A few moments later, I turned around to find these festive ghost faces! Awesome, right? A little while later he returned to the kitchen to find me having had assembled what I deemed to be my perfectly festive dessert.

Josh: You're going to take a picture of that aren't you?
Me: Heck yes I am!
Josh: You're probably going to put it on the blog aren't you?
Me: Uh, yes...aren't you proud of it?
Josh: Well, I guess I'm proud of my part.

So, thanks Josh for saving the day!

On a Ride...

We had our third MOPS meeting on Friday and I happened to catch a glimpse of what Jack and his fellow Giraffes (that's the name of his class) were doing to pass the time without their moms.

I think they make Jack ride alone because he pulls the other kids' hair. What a bully. He must get that from his daddy. I condone no such behavior.

Wedding Weekend

Our weekend included UGA Homecoming game, a wedding and a birthday party. Here are some photos from all the fun.

One of my bestest and oldest friends (old as in I've known a long time, not old as in years...although it's been more of those then we'd probably like to admit) got married on Saturday evening. Jack was very cute in his dress shirt, slacks and sweater. He was also very well behaved during the ceremony. He enjoyed a little dancing with me and Josh.

Here I am with the beautiful bride. Terri looked fabulous and oh so happy, especially when dancing their first dance. I was so very happy to help celebrate such a special day in her life...I was also very happy to taste all the yummy cake. Her cake had 3 different varieties, then if you throw in the groom's cake, it's a miracle I only ate 3 pieces! I tried the layer with strawberry filling, the lemon layer and the groom's chocolate on chocolate. The only one I bypassed was the apple spice...I had to say no at a certain point. I don't think it makes it any more excusable, but I didn't eat lunch. Just a late breakfast and little snack b/f the 12:30 kickoff of the game...which by the way was perfect weather.

Jack made it up until about an hour past bedtime then he gave up. He enjoyed resting his head on his sweet Aunt Emily. Later he woke up to help wave goodbye to the new bride and groom. After changing into his pajamas he slept most of the hour ride home.

On Sunday afternoon, we headed to the park for Drew's 5th birthday party. It was a chilly afternoon, but as you can see Jack loved the swings as usual. In the words of a sweet kid I know: "It was the best party ever!"

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Just got in from Terri's wild and crazy bachelorette party down in A-town. Okay, so it wasn't that wild and crazy, but it was a ton of fun. In fact, I can't remember when I have laughed that hard. Most of the old crew from high school/WFBC was there. Stacie and Cassidy organized it and kept it a secret. She just thought she was having dinner with them, but we were all waiting on her...with some fantastic accessories.

We all got a kick out of the gifts she received, which I won't share here...tee hee hee. Anyway, it was a fun time and the wedding should be the same. Looking forward to Saturday night.

Hazards Ahead

Well I guess there are definitely hazards related to learning to cruise. Jack took his first big tumble yesterday after trying to bravely get from the support of his pack n play to the support of a toy. Needless to say, his bravery is higher than his skill level at this point. Also evidenced by the fact that he keeps trying to climb the stairs. Anyway, a pretty dramatic crying spell followed the spill and he has a small bruise/carpet burn to show from it (just beside his left eye).

But as you can see, the tears didn't last long. He was soon back to his adventurous and playful self. What a fun time to be around as he is learning so much everyday.

Visitors

Thursday morning found Jack and I welcoming visitors again. This time in the way of his Grandmommy and cousin Sean, who were out of school for fall break. They arrived just before lunch and we all had some time to play before meeting Josh for lunch. Sean really enjoyed feeding Jack. Although it usually ended up being a little messy, the two seemed to be having a great time.

They played most of the afternoon until I basically made Jack take a nap. He might have been content to skip it all together. We watched a movie while he napped and I started on dinner, which I needed to take to some friends in our Sunday School class. After Jack had dinner (with help from Sean), I set off to deliver the meal. On my way home, I got a call from Josh who was finishing up a shift at the free clinic and was ready to break away for dinner.

We met him at the clinic and then headed to El Campesino, one of Josh's mom's favorite places here. We always have such great service there and the wait staff loves Jack. They are always teasing him and making faces for him to laugh.

On Friday morning I had a MOPS meeting to attend. Grandmommy and Sean decided to stick around and play some more with Jack while I headed to the meeting. We had a great meeting and a wonderful speaker, Ivy Hall of Initials, INC, which is based here in Clarkesville. Ivy's a great speaker and a phenomenally sweet person. She is one of those people that no matter what whenever she is talking to you she makes you feel like she is truly interested in what you are saying. I feel like I probably don't always give off that same impression...something to work on.

After the meeting, Tate & Brit came home with me for the afternoon, but not before a stop at Josh's office with Andrea & Andrew. After our brief pit stop we picked up Wacky Packs and lunch for everyone at Sonic and headed home. Grandmommy, Jack & Sean were all waiting on us. We also had another visitor!

We're having the yard re-seeded in hopes for a more positive result and the guy was there tilling up the backyard. The boys couldn't wait to get outside and watch the real live tractor. Even Jack enjoyed it oohing and aahing as his hair blew in the breeze. Just after lunch our company left and it was just me and the little boys. We sure enjoyed our visit from Grandmommy & Sean.

After Derek picked up the boys, I started on dinner. Once Josh got home, the three of us enjoyed a quiet evening at home. We watched a movie after putting Jack to bed. It was one of those relaxing evenings that is the perfect ending to an active week.

Saturday morning we headed down to Athens for the UGA/UT game. We enjoyed a fun tailgate with the Carrs and a nice victory for the dawgs. We're halfway through the season and our easiest games are behind us. Here's hoping the dawgs can finish strong like they did last season.