A Movie

Dear Abigail,

This past weekend was a yucky, rainy, windy, cold weekend. Friday night we went to Mexican with Aunt Steph and Uncle Jaybee and Ellie, and on Saturday morning, Mommy and Daddy were wondering what we were going to do for the rest of the weekend. We played with lots of toys, and you and Daddy hid 200 times, so we decided we'd take you to your first movie, like movie movie, like at a theatre movie! There weren't a ton of kiddo movies out, but we lucked up and our theatre was offering a one time showing at 12:30 of The Little Engine that Could. Apparently our theatre offers a little kid movie each Saturday, and it doesn't necessarily be a main stream movie. PERFECT! First we decided to grab lunch at Bread and Co and then, since we had a little time to kill, we ventured over to the toy store right next door. Bad mistake for 2 reasons: 1) I LOVED this toy store and 2) You insisted on taking Lovey inside, to which you left Lovey inside, to which we didn't discover until you were back at home taking a nap. Lesson learned baby girl. Lesson learned for both of us.... Anyway, so after a fun stop at the toy store, we headed to the movies. After a quick trip to the potty and the consession stand for a BIG bag of popcorn, we headed to the theatre that the movie was going to be. It was perfect! It was a small theatre, with just a few other kiddos in there, all about your age or maybe a couple years older. Mommy and Daddy weren't sure what the expectations should be when going to a kid movie on a Saturday at 12:30, so we kind of sat back and watched the other kids/parents. One little girl was dancing down on the front, so we said you could. We caught on quickly that the expectation was that it is a kids movie, a little kids movie, therefore don't have expectations!! Eventuallly the movie started, and you were super excited to sit between me and Daddy in your own big girl chair, with the popcorn, of course. You insisted on holding the popcorn. And eating it, too. Well, the sitting in the chair didn't last too long, but I stratigically sat us in front of the pole/wall area, so you could stand up without disturbing anyone else. So you did, and you climbed on the pole things and sat on the floor and continued to eat your popcorn. At one point the movie got really loud and kind of dark, and I'm pretty sure it scared you (mainly because when anyone asked you about the movie you told them "It was scary and loud and about trains"). But, you jumped in Mommy's lap and sat for, oh, maybe 10 minutes, then back on the poles, or your seat, or the floor. Other than jumping from spot to spot, you did really well. And the jumping only bothered Daddy! I think he was getting nervous, but Mommy didn't care because you weren't bothering anyone else, and other kiddos were doing it - again, expectations! At one point you had to go potty, and on our way back you saw a little girl sitting on the stairs, which meant YOU had to sit on the stairs. That got a little out of control because you kept slowly moving up the stairs and Mommy didn't like that. After a little talking too, and a short time out outside the theatre, we were back to our normal spots, and the movie was coming to an end. All in all, I gave you a 7 out of 10, maybe a 6.5 because of that little timeout episode, but you are 2 1/2 years old AND it was your nap time, so for your first movie experience, I think you did pretty good! Once we got home, and convinced you to go to sleep without lovey (PS - Daddy went back to the store and found it while you were napping) , we all took a little nap. That night you played with Ryan while Mommy went with the girls to a dinner and a movie. Sunday was pretty low key with lots of hiding with Daddy and playing with tons of toys, oh, and we broke out the paint - like the paint paint! You are quite the little artist, I must say!

A fun weekend of trying new things! I can't wait to take you to another movie (and eat lots of popcorn!!!). Love you!!!

A Trolley, Ducks, French fries and more

Dear Abigail, Daddy went on his annual trip to watch the NCAA tournament with Mr. Mike and Mr. Scott, or as you like to say "Daddy went to CinciMati to watch football"; therefore, WE had to go somewhere, right?! We decided to head to Memphis for a long weekend, but Mommy decided we weren't just going to do nothing, we were going to make a real trip out of it. First things first, we had to stop by the hospital so Sarah could do an ultrasound on the baby! At this point Mimi nor Papa Rob knew that you were going to be a big sister, so we had to kind of fib and tell them we were having a long lunch and then hit some traffic, when really we were just making a pit stop! Sarah tried to see if the baby was a boy or girl, but at 12 1/2 weeks, it was just too early, even for her. BUT, we got some really great pictures and you got to see your baby brother/sister for the first time!! After the hospital, we headed to Papa Robs for a quick visit (and to tell him the good news)! You had your "Big Sister" shirt, but Papa Rob wasn't the quickest to realize that, so you handed him the picture and said "I'm a Big Sister!!!" He caught on real quick, and of course claimed he had known for some time now, and we just let him think he's the only one who figured it out :) After a quick trip to the park to burn off some of that 'being cooped up in the car for hours on end' energy, we headed to Mimi's. At this point she is getting super anxious as she has been expecting us for awhile. She, of course, was sitting outside, waiting, when we pulled up and immediately came to the car to get you. You immediately handed her your picture and told her the same speech "I'm a Big Sister!!" Mimi was super excited, and while she was a little mad that we fibbed (and waited so long to tell her), her mood was quickly changed when she realized the baby's due date was her birthday!!! Now that Mimi and Papa Rob knew, we could relax a little, and of course, tell the rest of the world! So we did, via Facebook :) That was Thursday. We had another big day planned for Friday. On our last couple visits, your BFFL has been, well, left out of the visits. Not purposely, but the visits were either short, or the timing was off for both of you or something. So this visit, I made a promise to both of you that we would spend a WHOLE day together, all three of us! So we did... We headed out Friday morning and went straight to the doughnut shop. Now, you've heard me talk about your non-sweet eating self, right? And while, yes, for the most part, you don't eat the sweets, occasionally you find something that is sweet and will eat it. So, we decided to let you try a doughnut (and Mommy was dying for one and you never have to ask Sarah twice). I let you pick out your doughnut and low and behold, you picked out the largest doughnut there - the Bearclaw! Mommy didn't mind, because I knew I'd end up getting to eat it, but I was a little leery of you actually liking it and eating the whole thing! But, you came through, and just ate one claw! Let me tell you, one claw was all you needed. You, hands down, got a sugar high and then went straight into a sugar coma! It was actually pretty funny, and by the time we got to downtown Memphis, you were out of it. That's right - we went downtown, downtown! We decided to take the trolley around downtown and pass by the river and the bridge and all the fun places Mommy has worked, or eaten at, or just had fun! You loved sitting on your knees, staring out the window. After the trolley, we headed to the Peabody Hotel, to meet some ducks! See, the Peabody Hotel (a pretty famous hotel in Memphis) has a long standing tradition where ducks march into the lobby from the elevator and into the fountain. It happens every day, and today, we got to watch them. You had an excellent view right in front on the elevator on the red carpet they march down. You were so excited as they walked by and continued to be excited as they swam around the fountain. We watched them for a little while, found a couple goodies in the Duck gift shop, and headed to eat at another Memphis tradition - Hueys! Mommy and Sarah LOVE this place, and you've eaten at it before, when you were a little thing, but this time you got to really experience it, including the loaded fries (yes, today was not about eating healthy :). I will admit, you weren't on your best behavior, as you insisted on licking Sarah, or wiping your fork on her, or just being, well, not well behaved - but it was your nap time, and we had a busy busy day. After a delicious lunch, that yes, consisted of ice cream - PS, i did NOT know they were going to bring you ice cream..., we headed to Mimi's. Mimi got home right about the time we did and you guys played outside for a bit, and after a good dinner and bath, you headed to bed to get some much needed rest! Because... Saturday morning, we headed out to the zoo! Let's see, me, you, Mimi, Lynnie, Clara Lee, Ash-ash, Aunt G, Emily, John Michael, and Katie all met up at the zoo! We actually got to see a lot of the animals and the gorillas were being extra cutesy! One of them scared the mess out of me and Em!! And the bears came right up to the window while he was playing with his ball in the water! We had a picnic and even got to play on the playground - oh, and the weather turned out really nice. At first it was a bit cool, but soon enough that sun popped out and it was so nice. That night, everyone came over for Mommy's family birthday party - including the whole gang mentioned above, then Mammaw and Pawpaw and of course your BFFL, Sarah. Because it was so nice, we were able to play and play and play outside. Okay, you were able to play and play and play while the adults sat in chairs, eating pizza and ice cream cake!! You, little girl, are one smart cookie. I'm not sure how you've pulled it off, but you have convinced Clara Lee to always be the 'pusher' and you always the 'rider'. We can't for sure say it's all you, because CL loves you beyond words and would do anything for you, so maybe it's just her, but nonetheless, you sat like a little princess in the wagon or the car or whatever, and just let Clara Lee push and push and push you. Poor CL's face was so red, but she was grinning ear to ear the whole time! You kiddos had so much fun running around, enjoying the awesome weather. I know this summer is going to be great with Mimi and Ash-ash off for the summer! Sunday was a supposed to be a little more low key, and it was sort of, but I think you burned just as much energy if not more! After we got in a good walk, you and Mimi and Em went to Clara Lee's house to play while Mommy went furniture shopping with Sarah. I got home around 3, which was about the time you got home and by the looks of you, you had NOT had a nap, and I'm not even sure you had quit moving other than the car ride! You looked exhausted, so we stayed in for a little bit but the weather was just too nice so we had to go back outside for just a little bit longer. After a good dinner and a extra good bath, we went to bed, only to get up early Monday morning to drive back to Nashville... This weekend was an extra eventful weekend in Memphis, and I think extra fun, too! Love you Big Sister! PS - you may be asking "Mommy, why no pictures?" to which I would respond with "Mommy left her camera at home and when I took Mimi's camera on Friday, the battery was dead and then Mimi took the camera to the zoo and I haven't got any pictures" In other words, blame Mimi :) xxxxooooo

Guess what?!

Dear Abigail,

Guess who's going to be a big sister??!!!

That's right! YOU!!!!! Mommy and Daddy are having another baby and you are going to make a fantastic big sister, I can already tell! Mommy and Daddy told you over dinner last Monday and you didn't seem to care too much, but when asked specifically if you wanted a little baby boy or a little baby girl you said plain as day "BOY"! BUT, you also tell me that you have a sister in your belly! So we don't know which to believe! You've done such a good job at telling everyone you are going to be a "Big Sister" and then you let everyone know that that means you are getting a baby - or sometimes you say that there is a baby in Mommy's belly. Of course, you usually follow that up with running to Mommy's belly, lifting my shirt, pinching my belly and saying "I got your baby! I eat your baby!!" And then when I ask what it taste like you say " French fries"!! Ha!! You are flat out silly, and that's what's going to make you a great big sister! Just about six more months till you get to prove it to us!! Your new baby brother/sister will be here around September 25th, and all 3 of us are super excited!!

Love you big sis!!!

Gymnastics

Dear Abigail,

You heart gymnastics...

And that's about all I can say about that :)

Love you!!

Another weekend

Dear Abigail,

After a long week in Snowshoe, it was time to get back to the normal life, and we all know our normal life just means we are going to be busy busy busy!!!

On Friday, Mommy had a baby shower for a girl I work with and you got to join us (thanks to your school being randomly closed...) but, your friend Jacob (and his mommy) got to join us, too, so it all worked out pretty good! You were very eager to show Jacob how the tiger roars and preceded to show him, right in his face, many many times! After a good nap, we decided to head to the park for an afternoon swing, and then that night Daddy ended up working super late, so Mommy and you ordered pizza and did Mommy's new favorite out of the ordinary dinner - ate it straight out of the box!!! and you did too!! I love setting my tables, but every now and then it sure is fun to not dirty a single dish!!

On Saturday morning, Mommy and Daddy and you headed to the park to burn some energy, and guess who we saw - Jacob and his family!!! It was such beautiful weather and we enjoyed every minute of it that day. After your nap, we headed over to Miss EP & Mr. Jay's house. We hadn't been over there, since, well, maybe Halloween - yowzers, maybe not... Anyway... they did SUCH a good job prepping their house for you 3 rugrats!! They even taped down the piano key guard thing! Good thinking because you and Ellie both went straight to the piano to try to open it. Mr. Jay even bought you kids cotton candy - which we avoided and decided to save for next time, like in 5 years, but it was the thought that counts. We had the jumpy house outside and we grilled and the boys played corn hole and the mommies chatted up! You even went to sleep over there, only to fall off a REALLY tall bed, but it didn't seem to affect you, as you went right back to sleep! We had a good time (and good food!) and were glad to get over to their house.

Sunday was a little laid back, well, sort of... You and Daddy went to Home Depot and then to Publix while Mommy rested/got things situated at the house. After our nap, I mean your nap, Ellie and Aunt Steph and Uncle Jaybee came over and Daddy grilled out - told you that weather was beautiful!!! You and Ellie blew lots and lots and lots of bubbles and we ate some yummy tacos. It was a fun weekend, getting back to normal!

Love you baby girl!!!!

PS - yes, that's right, not a single picture...

Snowshoe 2011

Dear Abigail,

We went on what now I can call our annual ski trip to Snowshoe, West Virginia. While some things were the same as last year, we had a lot of differences, too!

First, we decided to all ride together (that is, me, you, Daddy, and Uncle Jaybee, Aunt Steph and Ellie). We sent the majority of our ski gear up with Aunt Steph's parents at their last visit, so we weren't too too cramped in there. And we had a fancy luggage holder thing a majig on the roof!! So we set off Saturday (Feb 26th), right after lunch, with the thought that you little ones would take a nice long nap. Nah, you girls decided to watch movies and request snacks the whole way! We had decided pre-trip to stop in Bristol for the night, and stay where we stayed last year. Now, if you remember from last year, we put you girls down in separate rooms in pack n plays. Once asleep, we brought Ellie into your room and hung out in the other room. This year we had an different thought - why not let you to go to sleep together?!! Good idea, right? hmph... Well, long story short, it didn't work out. Ultimately, you both went to sleep in separate rooms and then, again, we switched you over to Ellie's room so the parents could hang out.

We were ready to roll Sunday morning, specifically you and Mommy. You woke up extra early and so were ready extra early! While the rest of the gang was sleeping/getting ready, we made our way down to breakfast where you discovered your first lady bug of about 2 million. You were quit intrigued with it, and let the waitress know that it marched across your table.

After a long 2nd half of a trip drive, including a stop to eat lunch, no nap and a super fast Walmart stop, we were finally headed up the mountain. Nona and Papa were so happy to see us, and we were all pretty ready to be there, too. You girls did really well considering the drive was over 10 hours AND you had about 30 minutes of nap time, total!

Now, once we got there, things might have seemed a little different. Biggest difference, NO SNOW! That's right, last year, if you recall, we had to break out the snow chains, still got stuck, and walked up a driveway in our snowboots, just to get to the house. This year, it felt like a warm spring day!! It was crazy, and you just kept asking for the snow (as a matter of fact, you asked for it the whole trip, and even pointed it out when you saw it on the mountain top where we skied!)

The week went by pretty fast, and while I may have a little bit more details if I had written this the week of, I still have a pretty good synopsis of how the week went down!

Monday it rained. Well, it didn't start off raining. It started off as a really nice day, so you and Ellie and me and Aunt Steph and Nona went on a little hike, while the boys patrolled the weather, sending us updates via walkie talkies...

Nona took us to a really cool cave, and a crazy path to get us there, but once we were there, you girls had fun playing in the woods. About 10 minutes into our trip, we got a call from the Daddies warning us of a massive storm quickly approaching, so, to calm their nerves, we headed back home. BUT, we didn't make it, and instead got a smidge wet, but we survived. And they weren't lying either - one heck of a storm passed through, that even frightened me a little! We clearly weren't going to be doing anything in the snow that day, so what else were we to do but cook! You girls helped Nona cook banana nut muffins and you were quite good and mashing up those nannas!

Monday afternoon (I think it was Monday...) we headed up to the top of the mountain to play at Big Top. Again, if you recall, Big Top is where there are lots of jumpy house things and video games and all kinds of fun things to do when it's raining on a mountain top!! It had one of those really big jumpy slide things and you LOVED that. Then you saw a trampoline and insisted that you jump on it. Now, it was one of those trampolines that you sit in a seat and jump and go really high, but you failed to notice the thing you had to sit in and get buckled up in. We waited in line and watched the little boy in front of us and when it was your turn, you wouldn't get in that seat. Oh well, they had plenty of other things to jump around on.

Tuesday was a little blurry for Mommy, mainly because it was my first day skiing and I was living it up! But, you, Nona and Ellie had tons of fun doing all sorts of things! Including making brussell sprouts!!! GAGARONI! Aunt Amy would be so proud, though, but man alive, Mommy was happy she wasn't a part of that!

Wednesday the boys went out skiing that morning while I stayed in with you girls. BUT, guess what, we took you girls up the mountain to go skiing yourself!! That's right - you skied!!!! Mommy was so stinkin' proud of you! You did so good and loved every minute of it. "Aunt" Mel (that's Ellie's Aunt Mel) is a ski instructor on the mountain, specifically for kiddos, SO, who better to teach you to ski, huh! And she did such a good job - you were a champ, no doubt!

Here's you on the magic carpet...

Look at you go!!!

You are loving it!!!!!

And again...
All by yourself!
And then you needed a break!!

After another couple runs, you and Aunt Mel decided to have a snowball fight, and I'm pretty sure you won!! We got you girls home for naps and then off I went skiing again! Oh, speaking of naps... so, we decided to try to give the sleeping in the same room thing another go because Nona had an extra bedroom. Again, it didn't work out. Both of you had your own personal issues, and therefore we had to put you in Nona's bed while Ellie fell asleep in the other room, then put you in that other room once you were asleep! Sleeping arrangements were pretty crazy the first couple days but we got things figured out and while you never truly slept good in the same room together, you at least weren't sleeping in the bed with me (like you did the first night!!). We have Nona (and Papa) to thank for all that because she was so good about getting up with both you girls in the morning (and even in the middle of the night if it called for it!). We were EVER so grateful, no doubt!

So, Thursday and Friday get a little mixed up, too (i really need to make a point to write stuff down!!!) BUT, I've got the main points, just maybe not in the right order...

So at one point, Daddy and Uncle Jaybee took you girls to the park that they claimed was FOREVER away, but ended up just being 11 miles!!

And at some point we all went swimming! Yep, swimming on a ski vacation! It was a little chilly, so Mommy didn't last too long in there, but you loved it and I had to persuade you with who knows what do get you out of the water!!!

You and Nona and Ellie made us breakfast one morning, which consisted of biscuits and gravy (Aunt Steph is supposed to send me pictures!!)

I'm sure I'm leaving tons out, but here's what you can take from this trip - FUN! You and Ellie had so much fun playing together, copying every single thing each other did, playing with Jackie (or Daisy as you preferred to call him) or yelling at Jackie, or playing with your rolly bee/lady bug, or on and on and on!

Here's you looking for snow with Daddy...

Playing blocks with Ellie...

Snuggling with Ellie...

Reading books with Ellie
And then nosy Jackie joining you girls...

We had so much fun and you love you some Nona and Papa, too! Oh, and another highlight for you was when Aunt Carol made you your own personal scarf!!! You loved it and insisted on wearing it the whole night!!

Such a good time and we can't wait to go again next year! You are gonna be one heck of a snow monkey!!!!

Love you!!!!!!!