The Clark Family

The Start of Something Good

2012-02-07T20:30:00.000-08:00

So my hubby and I came to a consensus that we needed to eat healthier and loose weight. Together we knew that we could encourage each other to eat the right things and exercise. Well we decided to try some Weight Watchers. Oh my this has been the best thing we have ever done. I have found an amazing website that has a tone of WW recipes! I have a few of the recipes so far and they have been delicious but so healthy! I love fixing all this new stuff it makes me feel like a chef : ) The website that we have been getting our recipes from is skinnytaste.com This website is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! ( I know I already said that once but it really is! )

Monday night we had this recipe :
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/skinny-salisbury-steak-with-mushroom.html

It was delicious!! And the best thing about it was Addyson loved it. She is pretty picky and she ate every last bite of her food that night!

Tonight we had Chicken Parmesean
http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/04/baked-chicken-parmesan.html
It was also very good and again Addyson ate it up!

We are loving the healthy changes we have been making in our life. This website has helped me to find new recipes so we will not get burnt out on eating the same old stuff on our "healthy life change." I hate to call it a diet because I want us to keep this as our way of life. I want our children to see our healthy lifestyle and model by what we do. If you want some yummy, but healthy recipes check out this website. You will not be dissappointed!

Oh yeah tomorrow night is Turkey Taco Soup : )

Lazy Day

2012-02-04T19:42:00.000-08:00

So today was just one of the those lazy days. We had some super needed family time. We played games and just sat around all day enjoying our handsome boys sweet smile and our big girl playing and singing. We played a match game with Addyson and she actually new how to play ! Finally! We have been wanting to play games with her forever but it wasn't till now that she finally gets how to play them. I just love when we get to spend time together just doing the things that our kids want us today instead of rushing around and doing our "to-do list." Hope that everyone had a happy saturday. We sure did : )

* No pictures of our big girl, she was just not into the picture thing today!

Korbin is 3 Months

2012-02-01T12:15:00.000-08:00

Well I really can't believe he is 3 months old! It seems like he has been here a whole lot longer than that! We have been around the world and back since he was born (literally). This boy is quite the traveler : ) Here is what Korbin has been up to the past three months:

Went to his 3 week appointment and weighed 8 pounds 1 ounce
He screamed quite a bit till we figured out what was going on with the little guy
Was diagnosed with severe acid reflux and milk allergy
Taking two medicines for his acid reflux; Prevacid and Zantac
Put Mommy on a Non-Dairy diet : )
Went to see a GI specialist at Vanderbilt and got put on a very expensive formula. Thank the Lord for samples : )
Went back to the doctor for a check up and weighed 11 pounds 3 ounces!!
Had his first Halloween and slept right through it
Had his first Thanksgiving and slept right through it
Had his first Christmas and slept right through it also.
Went on his first airplane ride. A very long airplane ride to go see his Nana and Pa in Alaska
He attended his Uncle Alex's wedding.
He met lots of new people
Has been holding his head up like a big boy since he was about a month old.
Smiling all the time. ( oh yeah and did I mention he is a big flirt! )
I haven't seen him roll over but when I go in his room to get him out of bed somehow he is on his stomach.
He has started to talk and laugh all the time.
He loves when his sister talks to him. I think that is when he smiles and laughs the most.
He has learned to pull his sisters hair.

Our Trip to the Specialist ( For my memory)

2012-01-25T12:17:00.000-08:00

*This post is for me to remember what had happened.

Korbin has been diagnosed with severe acid reflux and a milk allergy. We have been to the doctor almost every week since he has been born trying to figure out what medicines help him with the acid reflux and what to do about the milk allergy. When he was about 2 weeks old the doctor put him on Zantac. It helped him for a short period of time then the next week we were back at the doctor. They decided it would be best if they put me on a dairy free diet to get all of the dairy out of my system to see if he was allergic. They also decided to change from the Zantac to a Prevacid pill that I have to dissolve in water and draw up in a syringe to give to him. By the way he is a really good medicine taker! So we tried that for a couple of weeks and he seemed to be feeling somewhat better. We went on our trip to Alaska for two weeks and had an excellent time by the way. When we came back Korbin was scheduled to see the doctor on that Wednesday. When they weighed him that day he only weighed in at 9 pounds 15 ounces and his acid reflux was still not under control. The doctor thought it would be best if we saw the specialist at Vanderbilt. So that Thursday we were scheduled to see the specialist.

When we arrived to the specialist's office there was a code yellow going on ( a tornado warning). So they did not allow us to go into the waiting room because of all the big windows. They went ahead and took us back to a room. The nurses there were all so nice. Our nurse went ahead and weighed him and the scale said 7 pounds 6 ounces. She decided to weigh him again just to make sure that was right. Keep in mind the day before he weighed 9 pounds 15 ounces. So we waited for the doctor to come. I was so nervous after seeing his weight. The doctor came in and immedietley started to talk to me about what had gone on with Korbin since he was born. I started at the begining which was the day we brought him home (he started screaming bloody murder the DAY we brought him home). After we had finished talking she said that she thought it would be best if we admitted him in the hospital to get his weight up. I cried , the doctor cried with me but I totally agreed with her (if 7 lbs 6 oz was his real weight). I waited in the lobby while they got Korbin a room ready. So I called Jimmy to let him know what the plan was at that moment. While I was sitting there I decided that I should call my pediatrician and let them know that their scale might be a little off ( almost 3 lbs. to be exact!) The nurse said she would definetly let the doctor know. A few minutes after I had hung up from her my phone rang again and it was the doctors office. The nurse said the doctor wanted to talk to the specialist because he didn't think that Korbin was the weight that they had got that day and didn't think he needed to be admited . He wanted her to look at the growth chart to see that he has been progressing and wanted the nurse to recheck his weight on scales on another floor. While all this is going on I just felt so confused and just wanted the best for my baby. If he really weighed 7 lbs 6 oz he needed to be admitted for sure but if not then he didn't need that drastic care. So the sweet nurse took us down to the floor below to check his weight. Sure enough he weighed around 10 lbs every time she weighed him! Praise the Lord. I was so thankful. Let me tell you that things could have been a whole lot worse then this, but when all this was going on I was feeling nervous, scared, upset not knowing what was to come.

So instead of being admitted they sent me home with some special formula that is made up of Amino acids No milk No soy and No gluten that I have to mix with breast milk. They also put him back on the Zantac also. So he is taking a half of the Previcid 2x a day and 1.5ml of the Zantac 2x per day. Korbin saw the pediatrician yesterday and had gained 1 pound 3 ounces in a week! I was so glad that he had gained. The doctor was jumping up and down when he saw that we had a good jump in his weight. So they decided that he needed to stay on this regimen until we go back at his four month check up.

Hospital Stay

2012-01-25T10:16:00.000-08:00

Recovery was a breeze compared to the first time. Everyone who had told me the second c-section is a whole lot easier than the first was exactly right! I was not in as much pain and getting up out of the bed for the first time was definetley easier. I was up moving around by that evening. We stayed in the hospital a couple of days. We could have stayed one more night but I was ready to go home! Here are some pictures of us in the hospital.

Korbin Clay Clark Birth Story

2012-01-25T09:49:00.000-08:00

I was scheduled for a repeat c-section (hoping to just go into labor on my own, wishful thinking!) We had to be there at 6:00 am for them to get me ready to go back to surgery. Jimmy and I took Addyson and my mom to meet Jimmy's parents for breakfast while we went on to the hospital. We got there and they put my IV in and it seemed like a breeze till I began to vomit bile all over the place. To much information I know but I would like to remember the bad and the good. : ) Around 8:15 they were getting ready to take me back. The Grandparents brought Addyson back to see Jimmy and I before they took me back. She was not to sure about what was going on but thought my IV was cool!

They wheeled me back down a hallway to the operating room (seemed like an eternity to get there) The surgical tech that was helping the doctor was excellent. His name was Lonny and helped me so much getting past the whole spinal block. I didn't feel a thing they did such a good job. The spinal hit me immedietley. I was numb from my chest down. It was so sureal to me in just a few minutes we will be welcoming our baby boy into the world.

Korbin Clay Clark was born at 9:48am October 25, 2011 . He was just perfect! 10 fingers and 10 toes and healthy as could be. He weighed 8 pounds 9 ounces and 19 inches long. He was just the perfect addition to our family. A sweet baby boy to go along with our girl full of energy and personality.

We then went to recovery from the OR for a few hours. Addyson was able to come back and see her baby brother for the first time. She was more worried about Mommy then seeing her new brother. The Grandparents had assured her that I was just fine. As Korbin and Addyson both sat in their Daddy's lap back in our little cubby in the recovery I couldn't help but think about how blessed I was to have a wonderful husband and father to my children and two beautiful babies. God is so good to us!

31 Weeks and Counting

2011-08-23T08:27:00.000-07:00

We are finally in single digit weeks count down! We are patientley waiting for Korbin to make his arrival. His sister is super excited. Daddy on the other hand is excited but has lots of work to do before he gets here. It is so crazy how by now when I was pregnant with Addyson the nursery had alreay been done fore weeks. This time we are just taking our time ; )

I wish I would have taken pictures through the whole pregnancy to show the progress. I guess it is never to late to start! Ha!

Reading like Crazy

2011-08-22T14:36:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot of reading going on in our house lately! Addyson is crazy about books. We read approximatley 10-15 books a day for her. The majority of those are read close to bed time. She is just crazy in love with reading. Which makes this momma happy! I participated in a get together called the One Stop Shop the other day ( I was selling my Pampered Chef) they had a lady there selling Usborne books. They are the coolest things ever and also very reasonable priced (about the same or cheaper then Target). They have some of the cutest books for all childrens ages. I would definetley recommend these books to anyone.

Addyson is not the only one that has been reading. I started to read "The Help" on my Iphone the other night and have totally fell in love. It takes a lot for me to read a book. It has to really catch my attention and let me tell you this one has. I have NOT seen the movie yet but really am looking forward to comparing the book and the movie. If you are not a reader this book is definetley for you.

Hopefully you will check out both of these. "The Help" is a great book and Usborne Books is a great company to purchase your books! Happy reading and Happy book Shopping : )

Big Girl Status Just In Time For Baby Brother

2011-08-19T09:23:00.000-07:00

Let me just say that we definetley have a BIG GIRL on our hands. She is sleeping in her own bed all by herself. The first week she really didn't care to much for sleeping in there by herself but the past three days she has went to sleep on he own in her big girl bed! Ever since she has been in her big girl bed I had noticed that she wasn't wetting her pull up at night. When she woke up she would be completely dry. So I decided to try her in panties when she went to bed. Well guess what? We have not had any accidents for 4 nights! She has for sure earned her big girl status!

For the past week Addyson has been begging for her brother to get here. I keep explaining to her that he still has to grow a little bit longer before he makes his appearance. She is dying to meet him, hold him, kiss him and love all over him. ( I don't blame her I am ready too!!) Last night I brought home some clothes for her and him from a consignment. She was carrying his pants around yelling "Korbin come here so I can put your pants on you!" Is that not hillarious? We are all anxiousley awaiting the arrival of baby Korbin Clay. We can't wait to see his sweet face and love all over him. I know that Addsyon is going to be an excellent big sister. I have decided to put a callendar up in Addy's room to mark off the days till baby Korbin arrives. Hopefully this will help her to be a little more patient : )

Big Girl Bed

2011-08-08T20:35:00.000-07:00

Addyson got a big girl bed the other day! She has been super excited about it. We have transitioned really well from the crib to a regular bed. That is definetley a relief. I thought it was going to be really hard for her. She has slept in it every night since she has had it. I have to lay down with her till she falls asleep but that is only for 5 minutes because the second her head hits that pillow she is out. Tonight when I was laying with her she said " Mommy I am ready to sleep by myself." I said ok and kissed her and started to get out of the bed. She sat up and said " No Mommy I don't really think I am ready." I said " Ok just let me know when you are ready." Addyson said " Mommy you are my best friend! We are bestest friends ever!" WOW is that not the sweetest thing ever! Love this girl so much. The only thing that is not working out to well with the big girl bed is the new wake up time. 5:45 am comes really early ; ) Every morning when she wakes up she says " I slept good in my big girl bed!"

Looks like she really enjoys her new bed!

Update of the Past Few Months

2011-06-03T18:40:00.000-07:00

It has been forever since I have updated! we have had so much going on lately that this was the last thing that I was thinking about. So to get back to Addyson and what we have been up too. Here it goes : )

We babysat Daniel. Addyson and him had a blast !

Addy loves to swing! She would stay outside all day long swinging.

Nanny Robinson celebrated her birthday.

Daniel celebrated his 2nd birthday. This is Addy eating a yummy cupcake at his party.

She colored eggs for Easter for the first time by herself. She had so much fun and made some really prety eggs.

We attended the Easter Egg Hunt at Grace MBC. It was so much fun!

Addyson in her Easter Dress on Sunday morning. This was the only good picture I got of her that day. She was going through little phase of not wanting her picture taken and smiling with her eyes squinted. I think that we are over that now though : ) Thank goodness!

Helping Jen at Chick-Fil-A! This is definetley our favorite restaurant !!

Yum, Yum!

Addyson eating an icee at the Gallatin Spring Fest.

Eating her breakfast burrito on our way to church. This has become an every Sunday thing. We love those burritos!

Alex went to prom with his girlfriend Kelsea. He is all grown up : (

We attended one of my good friends from highschools wedding. Kristen was so beautiful! Congrats to Dan and Kristen!

We attended another birthday party : ) It was a beach party for Rebekah. She was turning 3.

This is Addy eating her cupcake at another birthday party we attended for Allysa and Kayla.

Oh yeah did I mention that the past few months has been full of her silliness ! She is so funny. She makes Jimmy and I laugh harder than anybody we know!!

Sumglasses are a must for us this summer !

She is loving watermelon...

Mmmmm...

Addyson and Daniel playing with Samuel's birthday present. Samuel was turning 1 year old.

Memorial Day weekend was our first time in the pool this year. This is Addyson all ready for the pool.

She chose not to get in though. She would rather just sit and watch Mommy and Daddy swim... Crazy girl!

It is in the upper 90's here in TN and she is wanting to wear these boots! She begged us to let her wear them. I just love this picture of her!

Addyson got her first real hair cut! This was the first time that we have really cut her hair. Julie has trimmed her bangs but that was it. She did so good for Mrs. Julie!

Kennedy celebrated her 2nd birthday. It was a super cute cookies and milk party. Her mommy is so creative just love her. Addy and Gavin loved Kennedys piano she got.

Well there you have it folks. That is what the Clark Family has been up too the past few months that I have been MIA. Hope that catches us up a little bit. We have some fun and exciting things that will be happening this summer. Can't wait to share them with you! Looking forward to a much needed visit from Nana, Cheryl, and Uncle Alex. Also finding out if baby Clark is a boy or a girl. Our summer fun has just begun....

Gavin is Turning One

2011-02-22T21:00:00.000-08:00

On saturday we went to the best birthday party that I have been to in a long time. My cousins son was turning one and she wanted his first birthday to be great! And it was amazing!! Bri and Jennifer are so talented. They are the master minds behind this party. I think that they could make anything look good. All of Bri's family was in so that was so great to be able to spend time with them. We had such a wonderful weekend with them. Here are some pictures from the party. Enjoy!

Landon and Addyson playing at the kids table.

Our turn at the photo booth.

Addyson in her Big Sister shirt. I think that she would wear it every day if we would let her.

Beth and I in the photo booth. Loved getting to see her !

The cake !

Aren't these just adorable? Such a wonderful idea!

This signature canvas was made by a good friend of mine, Jenna. She did a great job on it.

Kennedy and Addyson playing at the kid table. Addyson just adores this sweet girl!

This is where Addyson spent most of her time. She figured out that if you sit in the photo booth you get a chocolate mustache. Smart girl !

The Birthday boy eating his yummy cake !

Happy Birthday Gavin Brock! So thankful that you are in our lives. We just love you to pieces.

Happy Valentines Day

2011-02-14T08:28:00.000-08:00

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY FROM ADDYSON !!

Loving Us Some Snow Cream

2011-02-09T19:17:00.000-08:00

Well the snow is here to stay for a while, so we decided to make the best out of it and make some snow cream. It was Addyson's first time to help me make snow cream ( my first time to make it by myself) and her first time to eat it. For our first time I think we did pretty good. It was super yummy!!

Her first bite of snow cream...

It was a hit! They loved the "cream".

He's My Rock

2011-02-09T15:55:00.000-08:00

Here is Addyson singing one of her favorite songs for this WEEK! She has a new one every week. But this one is definitely a favorite this week .

Snow, Snow Go Away....

2011-02-09T07:25:00.000-08:00

I am completely done with all this snow. Monday we got about 2 inches where we live. Addyson loves it. She knows that Frosty the snowman comes alive when it snows. Ha! I still worked yesterday even though it snowed. Surprising huh? I mean we live in Tennessee. What is up with this crazy snowy weather? I am so ready for the Spring. Painted toe nails, open toed shoes, and short sleeve. Ahh...

Oh well since we are still having winter we might as well enjoy it. We might not have this much snow next year.

Yesterday after we got off work we all went to Blue Coast Burrito. We go there almost every Tuesday for their special $6 burrito and there kids meals are $1.99. It is super yummy. We all just love it and oddly enough none of us ever get tired of it. If you think that Qdoba is good you ought to try this!! It is amazing. We must go there way to much because they know us by name now. Ha! Oh well it is super good and cheap.

Busy Weekend...

2011-02-09T07:12:00.000-08:00

Well we had quite a busy weekend. Lots of fun expected stuff and some that weren't so expected. Friday I didn't have to work. This will just be until March but I am so glad for the fridays that I am able to spend right now with Addyson! So we took a trip to her favorite place. Target, that is where she gets everything, according to her! Including a great snack, chocolate milk and popcorn. Yummy. We don't usually do chocolate milk during the day, just in the morning and at night but I just couldn't resist her sweet face that day.

Friday day night Addyson and I went to an elementary school Valentines dance with one of my close friends daughters. This was my first time in a long time to get to go to something like this. Let me just say WOW! It was crazy!

Here is Addyson doing the Cupid Slide with her Aunt Paula. Oh yeah by the way they had a great DJ!! That just so happened to be the girl that I work with her husband.

Well after we got done at the dance we headed out to see Addyson's Poppy. He was having some issues with his heart. When we got there I went back there without Addyson but she sent Sophie with me for Poppy to hold so he wouldn't be scared. They ended up keeping him over night. He got to go home to next day. Since then he has been to a follow up doctor and is scheduled for an arteriogram on Monday. Just praying that there is nothing serious going on.

Saturday night we went to a Valentine dinner at our church aka Miss Casserole Pageant. We had such a good time seeing everyone dressed up in their evening wear : )We especially liked Miss Sausage. I think that we are just a little bit partial ; )

For dessert they had some yummy cupcakes. As you can tell Addyson loved them!!

Well after that big weekend Addyson was worn out!Oh yeah and this is what we did for the super bowl!

Such a Big Personality...

2011-02-01T20:57:00.000-08:00

I just can't get over this big personality in such a little girl!! She is just busting at the seams with it. I just love her! I have no clue where she comes up with some of the things she says and does.

"It’s her beauty that captures my attention. It’s her personality that captures my heart."

Seeing Their Faces

2011-01-28T12:48:00.000-08:00

I just don't know what we would do with out skype! Addyson asks atleast once a day to get on to skype. Whethere it is to talk to people who are 4000 miles away or just 20 minutes up the road, she loves to be able to see their faces. Technology these days is amazing. I am so thankful for the people who invent such great technology. They now have an upgraded version where you can talk to more than one person at a time. we can talk with my parents who are in Alaska and my brother who is in Indiana on the same screen! All morning Addyson has wanted to talk to Chris and Alex, but with the 3 hour time difference we have to wait till later in the afternoon to be able to talk to them. Finally about 1:30pm our time it was late enough to call them.

Addyson Skyping with Uncle Chris and Uncle Alex. She was definetley enjoying every second of it.

Snow Day

2011-01-27T20:07:00.000-08:00

This is what it looked like out our front door today!! God sure can paint a beautiful picture!

When I woke up this morning the ground was covered with a thick blanket of snow!! About 4 inches to be exact. It was just beautiful! So since it snowed so much the roads were pretty bad this morning so we got a SNOW DAY from work. Yeah I know that sounds just a little bit crazy. But here in TN it is normal. We are not to used to all this snowy weather. I think after this year though we are going to be pretty use to it. It has snowed more this year than any year that I have lived in this area. So today I had a great snow day with my sweet girl. We didn't get to sleep in but it was still great! The roads were a little better this afternoon so we went and visited Daddy at work.

She loves when she gets to visit daddy at work. It is a treat for her. We took him lunch and ate with him. Daddy also thinks it is a treat when Addyson and Mommy come visit him !

Addyson has been begging me to let her paint since she got paint for Christmas. I finally got up the nerve to let you paint. So I cut her a piece of paper off of her roll on her easel and gave her a glass of water and she went to town. She had the paint all over her by the time that she was done. She made a beautiful picture for the first time painting. I have always looked forward to having a piece of artwork on my walls that my child had made and now I finally have one! Can't wait to frame this one and hang it up. I know that there will be many more to come after I saw how much she loved to paint and draw. She will sit forever and draw (she must really enjoy it because anyone that knows Addyson she does not sit for very long at all)

Excuse the way her hair looks she had just taken a bath. I know you are wondering why she had a bath before she was painting. It was just a spurt of the moment thing and she really wanted to paint. I couldn't resist that sweet face and the way she said please!

Isn't it beautiful? I have just the place for it : )

I loved that I got to spend the day with my girl, but I am just a little bit over the snow. We are ready for spring so we can play outside, plant the garden, and go pick strawberries. It will be here before we know it. But while we wait we will enjoy the things we get to do together on these crazy snow days.

Fabulous is Loving Life

2011-01-26T07:13:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Trop 50 for sponsoring my writing about fabulous bloggers. This year Trop50 is granting 50 fabulous wishes. Click here to enter for a chance to win $1,000 to help grant a friend's wish!

Well this is my first time for doing something like this. I thought everyone reading would like to know who's fabulous blogs that I like to read on a regular basis. When I think of a fabulous blog I think of someone who you can tell loves their life! And all of these people that I have choosen to be my fabulous 5 blogs you can tell by reading their posts that they just enjoy life.

The first blog that I just love, love, love reading is http://kellyskornerblog.com/. I have been reading her blog for about 2 1/2 years now. It has made me laugh, cry, rejoice, and has given me some great fashion ideas. Her blog is amazing. I hope each of you will head on over there and take a look at it. I hope that you will enjoy it just as much as I do!

The next blog that I am am crazy about is http://theidearoom.net/. She has some amazing crafting/cooking ideas. The first time that I ever found her blog it was through a recipe search. I was looking for a new dessert idea for a Thanksgiving get together I was attending. Since I have found her she has gave me so many wonderful crafting ideas that I just can't wait to try. At the begining of the year she just added a new guest blogger that posts once a week. I just love that weekly post from http://cleanmama.blogspot.com/. She always has a great house cleaning/decluttering posts. And we all know that we need that. Things just seem to accumulate so fast and you don't know where it comes from like dust and stuff!!

Another blog that I really enjoy reading is http://www.ana-white.com/. Ana is from Alaska! She is great at what she does. She designs great look alike furniture plans that are super easy. (or they look like they are super easy. I haven't tried one yet but have great intentions to try to atempt to make ~~some~~ ALOT of the ideas.) She has a great doll bed plan that looks really easy that I am just dying to try! Hopefully I will get around to it in the next month or so. But really her blog is just amazing. It is definetley worth checking out.

This next blog is two sisters who are some awesome crafters, http://www.shanty-2-chic.com/ . They have some super ideas and I just love how much they are so shanty chic. There style is just right up my style alley! They have craft link up parties all the time. That allows other crafters to post their ideas to the post. I love that because then I can see a whole lot of ideas and not just one. A lot of times a giveaway goes along with the link up if you are choosen as the top idea. Check them out! I am sure you will find some great ideas.

Last but not least a friend of mine has a great blog that is used for her small business. Her blog is called http://giftsofgod.blogspot.com/. She paints these beautiful paintings. And I am priveledged to own own of those paintings. I just love to see all of the new things that she is doing. She doesn't just do paintings, she does a variety of different things. God has given her a wonderful talent. I would definetley recommend you to visit her site!!

These five blogs in my eyes are FABULOUS!! They all just love life and you can tell it by their posts. I hope that you will take the time to look at some of these blogs. The first time that I read most of these blogs they just sucked me in and I did not want to stop reading. I hope that these blogs will do the same for you!

Don't forget to enter the 50 Fabulous Wishes contest for a chance to win $1,000 to support a friend's wish. I was selected for this Tropicana Trop50 sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses
Blog With Integrity, as I do. I received compensation to use and facilitate my post.

Family Get Together and Full Time

2011-01-25T20:42:00.000-08:00

** It has taken me a week to do this post. With me going full time for a short period of time my life has been turned upside down. Trying to learn how to manage things while working .

My parents came in from Alaska last week to see us and to do some errands around TN. Uncle Adam came to see Nana and Pa too while they were here. Addyson was so excited to see them. She got to spend every waking moment with them while they were here cause mommy had to start work full time the week they arrived. Just for a short period of time. I am taking someones place for maternity leave. She just had a sweet baby girl on the 8th of January.

Jaya Grace 7lbs. 8 oz. 18 1/2 inches

Addyson just loved her Pa and Nana being here. She was a little disappointed that Uncle Alex and Uncle Chris didn't come with them. She asked me where Chris and Alex were and I told her they were in AK and her response was "I don't like that!" Wished they were able to come with them but they had things they needed to tend to while mom and dad were gone.

On the weekend my Uncle and Aunt and their daughter Morgan came to Tennessee to visit for the weekend. They live in Virginia so they have only been able to see Addyson a few times since she was born. Morgan was so excited to see Addyson. She spent the night with us and Addyson pulled her around the whole night and Morgan did everything she wanted her to do. They had a great time.

Mom and dad were suppose to leave out on Tuesday afternoon but their flight got delayed till Wednesday at 12:45. So when they came back Addyson was super excited. It was so great to see our family that we don't get to see very often. So glad that we got another chance to be together. Looking forward to the next time we can see all of them.

Happy 2011

2011-01-01T18:44:00.000-08:00

We started off our new year by doing something that Addyson had never done before. We went to the movies. She had been talking about the Yogi Bear movie from seeing it on the previews so we decided to take her. She loved it. Mommy and daddy liked it a lot too. It was in 3D and she didn't care for the glasses to much so next movie will NOT be in 3D. I think that she will really enjoy the movies if it is not 3D. Addyson was loving Boo Boo. She kept on saying "aww he is a cute little bear." We ended the night with a great dinner with family. What a great way to end the year, with people you love.

New years eve day getting ready to go watch Yogi Bear in 3D.

Eating at Demos'. She was so tired. It had been a long day.

New Years day morning. All dress up in her new dress up clothes.

I am so ready for this new year to begin. I am anxious to see what the Lord has in store for us. Hope that every one had a safe and happy new year.

A Skyping Christmas

2010-12-29T19:27:00.000-08:00

We have had a great Christmas this year. Addyson, Jimmy, and I have just spent time together and had so much fun. And we are still spending time together till the first of the year. Every year Jimmy's work shuts down till after the new year. I just love it. We are able to do so many things while he is off.

Addyson woke up about 7:30 am on Christmas morning. Before we went and got her out of bed I could hear her over the monitor singing Santa Clause is coming to town! And did I mention that we got a WHITE CHRISTMAS IN TENNESSEE ? When she came out of her room she was so excited to see all of her gifts that Santa had brought her. Before we started opening any gifts we set the computer up on the coffee table to be able to Skype my parents in Alaska. Addyson didn't want to open any of her gifts she just wanted to talk to Nana, Pa, Alex and Chris. Mommy and Daddy opened all of her gifts while she was Skyping! We didn't have to get her any gifts just let her talk to Nana and Pa on Skype. After we got done opening gifts Jimmy cooked us a wonderful breakfast. Later that day we headed over to Jimmy's parents house to celebrate Christmas with them. We ate and ate and ate till we were just miserable! Everything was just amazing. Even though we have missed my family being her for Christmas this year we have had a great Christmas. So thankful for all of our family and friends that we have spent time with over these past few months. We just love getting together with family and friends. The gifts do not matter at all it is the time we get to spend with them ( and the food !)

Addyson got a little black eye. She fell down the stairs at her granparents house and hit the gate that keeps the dog from going upstairs. She is getting very clumsy. It is a good thing she is super tough and never cries about getting hurt because I see a whole lot of accidents in her future.

Our White Christmas !!

Her Easel that Santa brought her.

This is her Jessie that she was dying to get.

Opening gifts at Nanny and Poppys house.

Showing off her boots that Uncle Jeffy and Aunt Cindy got her.

Opening her stocking

Skyping with Nana,Pa, Alex, and Chrish all the way in Alaska.

Eating Christmas dinner. Yum, yum!

Opening her new camera. She loves taking pictures like mommy.

Where have We Been?

2010-12-14T20:41:00.000-08:00

It has been super crazy around her. We have been all wrapped up in the holiday festivities that I have not even had a chance to write about what we have been up to. Sunday we got a big suprise of about 3 inches of snow. We were suppose to pick up my brother, Alex, from the airport at 10:30 am. Because of all the bad weather his flight got cancelled and delayed a few times and we ended up not picking him up till about 9:00 pm Sunday night. We were so glad for him to be home. Addyson was so excited for him to be here. She did not want him out of her sight for any amount of time!

This was when Uncle Alex first came in the door. Can you tell that she was excited?

Addyson and Uncle Alex eating some dinner together.

Eating at Chick-fil-a for the first time in 6 months. He said that if his phone rang while he was eating he would definetley not answer it. He was going to savor every bite of it!

Here is Addyson with her new friend Reese!

Last week I took Addyson to the mall for the first time in who knows how long. We were only going to go into Macy's but ended up going to a bunch of different places. She was done shopping before I was so I promised her to see Santa and get a cookie. She sat in Santa's lap and instead of getting a cookie we got a Build-a-Bear. She picked Clarice from Rudolph. She is Rudolph's girlfriend. Clarice is known as Reece at our house.We take her EVERYWHERE !! She had a blast picking out clothes for her. We BOTH had such a good time. Can't wait to go back to get Rudolph.

Well hope that it will not be so long before I update on all the fun things that are going on around here.

Home...

2010-12-14T20:18:00.000-08:00

This week has been long. Monday we got a phone call that they could not wake up my husbands 90 year old Grandfather. He had gone into a comba and passed early Tuesday morning. He was a great man of the Lord. We were sad to see him pass but know that he is home with Jesus. So thankful for all the times we got to spend with him.

Look at him looking at her. He sure thought she was something!

Addyson moving Papa Robinson's chair up and down.

Addyson with Nanny Robinson

Black Friday

2010-11-26T20:08:00.000-08:00

*Warning* I have only had 3 1/2 hours of sleep. So if things just seem to run together you will know why. Oh how I love Black Friday Sales!

Yesterday afternoon I scanned through all the sale papers mapping out my plan for Black Friday. My list consisted of first stop Walmart at 12:01am to get a $15 Shop Vac, a $12 Toy Story 3 Jessie (regular $30) and 4 mini choppers $2.97. Next stop was Belk 4:00am to get $19.99 dress boots. I left my house at 10:015pm and arrived at Walmart around 10:30. They had all of the Door Buster items in the middle of the isles on pallets and wrapped in plastic. There was people everywhere. I mapped out where everything was that I was going to get. At 10:45 they started taking off all the plastic and letting everyone put the things they wanted in their cart. I got the Shop Vac, 4 mini choppers and the Jessie. Did I mention that there were only 6 Jessies in the whole entire store?? The man in front of me took 3 and the other lady took 1 leaving only 2 Jessies when it was "my turn" ( if "my turn" is what you want to call people grabbing things uncontrollable) That was the most important thing that I came for and it was a close one but we got her!

Cooking For Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T11:09:00.000-08:00

I am just super excited about Thanksgiving. It is one of my favorite holidays. We will be having Thanksgiving at my in-laws house this year. Even though we will not be having Thanksgiving at our house I have been doing some cooking. I just love to cook and bake. It is definetley one of my favorite hobbies. For Thursday I will be cooking Aunt Helen's Broccoli Casserole, a pumpkin roll, and a Cranberry Salad. I have been making Pumpkin rolls for years. It is a long process to make one but is definetley worth it. Pumpkin rolls were one of my Nana's favorite desserts. She would have me make one every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The Cranberry salad is very yummy! I thought I would leave you with this recipe. It would be a great addition to your Thanksgiving dinner!

Cranberry Salad1 cup chopped cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp grated orange rine
2 cups chopped apples
1 cup of pecans
13 oz. box rasberry gelatin
1 1/2 cup water

Pour 1/2 cup sugar over cranberries. Let set for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl mix together orange rine, chopped apples, and pecans. Stir in cranberries. Boil 11/2 cups water and add 13oz rasberry gelatin to water. Stir gelatin mixture into cran/apple mixture, place in shallow dish approx 8X10 size let chill over night.

I am so thankful for the abundance that we have. I know that we will definetley have way more food then what we need for this holiday! God has truly blessed our family.

Awesome Giveaways

2010-11-23T09:15:00.000-08:00

This is such a great giveaway. I have been wanting one of these so so bad!! Shanty2Chic is giving away a Silhoutte. It would be great if I could win one instead of having to buy one. This machine will do just about anything you want.

Scrapbook pages
Etch glass
Tattoos
Vinyl decor
Cards
Iron transfers
and so much more!!!!

Oh man how I would love to win this! Hopefully I will get lucky this one time. If anyone is interested in entering this giveaway head on over to http://shanty2chic.blogspot.com/! While you are there check out some of the amazing things that they create. They are some super crafty girls.

Infarrantly Creative is also giving away a Silhoutte! Visit this blog also to enter in this AWESOME giveaway! http://www.infarrantlycreative.net/ And also http://www.theidearoom.net/ is giving away a machine also!

Jessica's Baby Shower

2010-11-22T18:52:00.000-08:00

On Saturday I hosted a baby shower along with a couple of friends/co-workers, Allison and Michelle. It turned out super cute. Everything went so smoothly and was just great. Here are some pictures from the shower.

Isn't this cake just amazing? Jessica's sister in-law Rebecca made it. She also made the chocolate covered strawberry topiaries to accompany the cake.

This is some yummy mocha punch. It is super addicting.

These are the favors. They are small mason jars filled with homemade hot cocoa mix.

This is one of my remakes of a Pottery Barn Christmas card holder. I will have to do a post on this real soon! For the shower we used it to hang baby pictures that everyone brought. In the invitation we asked everyone to bring a picture. During the shower everone was suppose to guess who each of the pictures were. It was a great game. Loved to see baby pictures of everyone!

These are the clips that I made to hang the pictures from.

This is Jessica. The soon mommy to be of her second child Jaya Grace.

We had such a good time at the shower. Jessica got some really cute things for Jaya. Can't wait to meet this sweet baby girl! It won't be long till she arrives. Just love having people into my home and having such good fellowship.

26 Months Today

2010-11-18T21:42:00.001-08:00

Is she really 26 months today? Time is slipping away to quickly. Can't believe that she is this old. She has really started to come up with things that I have no clue where she learned them. Oh yeah and did I mention that she has a 13 year olds attitude?! Not kidding. But hopefully this will not stick around for long!! Here are some of the things that Addyson has been up to this month.

Went Trick or Treating on Halloween and loved it
She was the cutest bumble bee ever!
Still carries her trick or treat bag around with her and asks me to put candy in it.
She is in love with Toy Story 3. Jesse is her favorite.
She also has started to watch a little bit of Chuggington and a ton of Imagination Movers her favorite!
She loves to go to Baskin Robins and eat "pink" ice cream. Also known as Rainbow sherbert.
The other day I told her that she could not have any gum and went to her doll Sophie and told her " I JUST WANT A PIECE OF GUM SOPHIE!"
She is ~~becoming~~ very dramatic!
She can remember anything that you tell her.
She is still in the process of being potty trained and it feels like we are never going to be, but I know someday she will be.
She went to Chad and Lindsay's wedding and had a blast dancing.
She followed the photographer around at the wedding wanting her picture taken. (Wonder why ? )
She had a long over due play date with her best friend Avie.

She is growing up way to fast. She thinks that she is a whole lot older than what she really is! And I think that they say that it doesn't get any better when it comes to girls! Oh well I love her just the way that she is. That is what makes it fun and interesting.

Ready for Chad and Lindsey's Wedding

Visiting her best friend Avie

The cutest bumble bee ever!!

Just Like Poppy

2010-10-28T11:02:00.000-07:00

We have already had a really exciting morning and it is only 9:00 am! Just like any other Tuesday I had to go to work and Nanny comes and picks Addyson up to keep her for the day. Well when I got out of the truck this morning I thought that I had unlocked the doors when I got out to get Addyson to put her in Nanny's car. (My doors do not unlock automatically when you turn the car off.)When I got to her door it was still locked. So I went back around to my door and it was locked! I had locked my keys and Addy in the car. I tried to call locksmiths and they were all different names but the same recording. (HOAX!) So I called the police department and they sent out the firefighters. Addyson was calm as could be while waiting for them to get her out. She thought it was great that firefighters "just like Poppy" were rescuing her. ha! Addyson could not stop saying "just like Poppy!" They were great.

Daddy's Prize

2010-10-27T19:58:00.000-07:00

Daddy promised her a prize if she was a good girl at the doctors office when she got her shots. So he gave her a choice between a "chino" from Starbucks, she loves them, or ice cream. She told him she wanted pink ice cream. So that is what she got! And she sat and ate every last bite of it. Isn't this face just adorable?

2 Year Check Up

2010-10-27T14:08:00.000-07:00

Today was Addyson's 2 year check up. She was so excited to get to go see "Dr. Keish" as she calls him. The nurse weighed her on the big girl scale and she thought that was just great. She weighed all of 37 pounds! And when I say all of it I mean it. She is getting to be hard to carry around. She is solid as a rock! She stood nice and tall for the nurse to check her heighth and she was 35 inches tall. Almost 3 feet but not quite. She was very still for the doctor when he was checking her out. She especially liked him looking in her ears. The doctor said that she was one healthy girl. She had to get 2 shots today. I had told her yesterday that she was going to get a shot. She has been watching her Nanny give herself insulin and was not scared at all. She said " I be a big girl like Nanny. It not hurt!" Well she made it through the finger prick and was fine, but the shots she was just not up for. She did so good though sat very still with tears coming down her face. This was only the second time that I was in the room with her when she gets her shots. Normally I stand right outside the door because I have this thing with needles. But I am trying to get over it and thought the best way to do that was to conquer my fears and stay in the room with her while she gets her shots. I felt so bad leaving the room everytime that I knew that I was going to have to suck it up and stay in the room with her. So needless to say Mommy did really good today too!

Addy has not been taking naps on the days that I don't work. It is hard for me to put her down when she wants to be with me because I wasn't with her the day before. So today after she went to the doctor I think that she was just so worn out from the shots and the whole day that she decided to give it up and take a nap. I just do not know what to do with myself this is unusual at our house these days. Well I better get back to my "me" time and get some things done that I have been dying to do.

Old Technology... New Home Decor

2010-10-26T20:10:00.000-07:00

My "old technology"

So about a week and a half ago I posted on Facebook that I was in need of an old console t.v, hence the title "old technology." In less than a few hours someone at messaged me and said that they had one. I messaged her back and she said that I could pick it up any time. So about 2 days later I went and picked it it. The sweet lady was from a church that my dad use to pastor. I tried to offer her money for it but insisted I just have it. It is super nice. After posting this on facebook all of my friends curiousity had piqued. They were all interested in what I was going to do with it. Now that all of you think that I am crazy. I have started to take this "old technology" and form it into my own peice of home decor. I have never done anything like this before but would love to start doing a lot more of it. I just love some of the things that I have found that people have made their own with just some elbow grease and a little paint. Well I know that you are dying to see what I have done so far on it. With out any further blabbing... here is what I have done so far.

This is my "new home decor" so far. Excuse my husbands legs in the picture. He took out the t.v part for me. He is so good to do that kind of stuff for me. I hope to get the rest done pretty soon. You know we stay pretty busy around here.

Addyson at 25 Months

2010-10-22T19:05:00.000-07:00

So has it really been a month since her second birthday. Wow is time still flying by or what? I am a little late on getting this up but we have been super busy. Addyson has been up to a lot of things this month.

Celebrated her 2nd birthday
Went camping at defeated creek campground and had an awesome time
Started to love swinging again
Played with Play-dough for the first time
Went to see Mrs. Polly at her pumpkin patch for the 3rd year in a row.
Visited Honeysuckle Hill Farms and had a great time
Learned to say her ABC's
Sings all the time!
Loves watching the Movie The Chipmunks
Went to Kameryn's birthday party
She is still singing happy birthday to herself after a whole month.
She can count to ten.
Asked her Nanny if she was nervous. ha! and she used it in the right context.
She is talking to me in conversations now! I can talk to her as if she was an adult.

She is just growing like crazy and learning so many new things. Love to hear her say new words it is so cute.

No Surgery for Me!

2010-10-21T17:41:00.000-07:00

After a month of preparing myself for going under anathesia and the IV, because those two things I dread more than anything, I am NOT having surgery thanks to good ole bronchitis. This is the fifth time this year that I have had bronchitis and I am totally annoyed by this sickness. I was really disappointed that I was not having surgery because preparing yourself mental for something like this is the hardest part and I had reached that point at the begining of the week. Now I have a whole month to sit and think about what could happen and how much the IV is going to hurt. Ha! I know that I am crazy but I can handle all the pain that comes after the surgery but cannot stand the thought of a needle in my hand or bend of my arm or back side of my wrist. I know that sounds pitiful, but I just am really afraid of IV's!

So you ask what kind of surgery am I having? Well about 6 years ago I had a skiing accident and hurt my knee. Ever since then I have had problems with it. They told me at some point I was more than likely going to have surgery. So about 2 months ago a friend of mine dropped by unexpectedly and scared me. When she did I jumped and came down on it the wrong way. I had an MRI and they found that I had torn my meniscus. I am sure that the skiing accident just made the meniscus weak and when I came down on it the wrong way it just torn in half. So I am having surgery to repair my meniscus.

So now until Nov. 22nd I will be preparing myself for my surgery. I will tell my husband a million times how nervous I am and my daughter will hear me and she will say "Nanny, you nervous?" And by Nov. 19 I will be mentally ready for my surgery, because believe me physically I have been ready since my accident. It has not been easy but when your a mommy and a wife and work a job you just have to suck it up and keep on.

Another Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

I am so behind on things that have been going on. We have been super busy and have had no time for "blogging". But I know that I have to do it cause this is like Addyson's baby book. I don't want to forget the things that we did or the new words that she said. So on with the post enough of all the excuses of why I haven't posted in forever.

We visited a local farm with Jimmy's parents. They have a bunch of activities for small children. It was such a great trip. Addyson loved it. Her favorite part was the pumpkins of course. She is completely obsessed with pumpkins right now. She carries a small pumpkin around the house with her all day long. It is so cute! Oh yeah and her other favorite part of the trip was getting an icee while we were there. Yum! The drive there and back was beautiful. The leaves had already started to change making the drive even better. So glad that we found this great place.

This place was super cute.

It had a petting zoo and pig races.

Milking the cow.

Drinking her icee. Yum Yum

Her favorite part. The pumpkins!

A Week of NO Work

2010-10-20T19:54:00.000-07:00

Ahh.. a week with no work for my husband or me! It was amazing. We spent our week at defeated creek campground. We had such a great time. We went last year and Addy was not that much into it, but this year she absoulutly loved it. She played so hard every day that by the time it was 8:30- 9:00 she was more than ready for bed. We ate a ton of food while we were there and I am not exadurating when I say a ton! Everything we ate was so so good though. While we were camping we also took our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. Addyson loved being able to pick out her own pumpkin. All she kept saying while we were there was "big punkins"! We love every second of our trip. Can't wait to go back next year.

Fishing with her Daddy for the first time!

2 Years Old

2010-09-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Well here we are again. This is the day that our lives were changed forever. Our sweet baby girl was born on this day. It is hard to believe that she is turning 2 years old ( or as she says 2 months). Everyone that she has been around for the past month has known that her birthday was coming up because all she can sing about is Happy Birthday to me. Oh yeah and her doll Sophie is having a birthday today also according to Addyson. We are so blessed to have this sweet child in our lives for the past two years. The Lord has truly blessed us. We are so thankful for each year we are able to spend with her. This day is to celebrate her life and God giving us this child. We thank Him for all the moments that we have been able to share with her so far. She is learning and growing so quickly. I have heard many mothers say time just seems to slip right through your fingers whenever you have a baby. Well they are right. That is exactley what is happening. Yesterday she was born and today she is turning two and tomorrow she will be starting Kindergarten.

"I cookin!"

2010-08-31T20:32:00.000-07:00

She loves to cook so much. She says " I cookin Mommy!" So cute... I just love all the new words and phrases that she is saying. She is just full of new and exciting ideas.

Silouette Machine Giveaway

2010-08-25T11:52:00.000-07:00

Ok I would really love to own one of these! It is called a Silhouette I have been making all of my party decorations by hand. This machine would make my life so much easier. It does so many different things. You can:

Make paper party supplies ( This I love)
Heat Transfers ( This I love, love!)
Glass etching
vinyl cutting ( This I triple love! )
Scrapbooking

This machine would be so awesome to own. Now if I could just win this giveaway!!

Head on over to Kara's Party Ideas to enter to win this handy dandy machine.

23 Months

2010-08-21T19:27:00.000-07:00

Only one month till the big day. Addyson will be 2 years old. My how time flies. My daughter is becoming quite the comedian these days! Just wait till you see what she has been up to this month.

She has fell in love with the book Goodnight Moon. She can repeat all the words on every page.
She has been going to bed in her own bed instead of mommy or daddy rocking her every night for 3 weeks now.
She has been going on the potty, but after two day of doing so good she decides that she likes diapers again.
While at church on Sunday she yelled out to our pastor when he got a little bit louder than she thought that he should be " Binion hush your mo..." she was not able to get the whole thing out before her Nanny put her hand over her mouth. So funny, but a little embarrassing : )
She loves to say " I like it so good!"
She told us at dinner one night "God is so great!"
She is loving Twizzlers WAY to much! Oh yeah and mints too.
She likes for me to put piggy tails in her hair and leaves them in.
She is such a good little swimmer!
Every now and then she will ask to lay on the couch by daddy to go night night instead of laying in her bed. So sweet!
She loves when I take her picture. She just smiles so big for me.
Went to Nanny's every day for a week cause mommy had to work.
Went to her Great Aunt Helen's 60th birthday party
Loves to help mommy cook.
Got a package from Nana and Pa in the mail. She was so excited!!

I think that I could go on and on about all the things that you are saying and doing now. You are just growing like crazy. Next month we will be celebrating your 2nd birthday. So thankful to have been blessed with this time with you. You are such a sweet and amazingly smart baby girl.

Alot Said In Four Words

2010-08-12T20:14:00.000-07:00

While sitting at dinner tonight everything was quite. Addyson said four of the clearest words I have ever heard her say. "God is so great!" When she said that I just did not know what to say. It made my eyes fill up with tears thinking of how great our God really is.

WOW is all I have to say....

Big Girl Stuff

2010-08-01T21:17:00.000-07:00

So we are on night three of Addyson going to sleep on her own in her bed! She cried the first night what seemed like an eternity but tonight she only cried for a few seconds when I put her in there and then stopped as soon as I walked out the door. You do not know how long I have been saying that we were going to begin this process and just haven't done it with everything that has been going on. So glad that it is going pretty smoothly. We keep telling her what a big girl it is to go to bed on your own. It 's a big deal for her because all of her life we have rocked her until now. It is sad in a way but it is way over due for her learning on her own.

On another note. I totally have abandoned my consignment items this year. It is one day away from drop off and I have not tagged one item. Or for that matter I have not even got the totes out of the closet that contains consignment stuff. So that is where I will be tomorrow night. In the floor of my living room tagging consignment items. YAY!! I really want to just leave it in the closet and just not deal with it, but I cannot do that. There has been so many items that I have got from consignment since before Addy was born and I just cannot pass up going to the Pre-Sale and getting all the good stuff. I get so many compliments on things that I have gotten from consignment. It is a big part of Addy's wardrobe!

Chili's Giftcard

2010-07-31T22:26:00.000-07:00

The Undomestic Momma is giving away a $50 giftcard from Chili's. I just saw the comercial for their new burgers. Would love to have this giftcard to go try them out!

Love this blog that I found too. Can't wait to browse it a little more.

My Testimony

2010-07-31T21:22:00.000-07:00

A lady that I know has wrote a couple of books that are filled with testimonies of people that she knows. She had asked me a couple months ago to write down my testimony and send it to her for her next book. Well while browsing through a blog that I visit often her post for Friday was Share your testimony, so that is exactly what I am going to do!

I was raised a PK (preachers kid). We have been in so many places due to my dad pastoring and helping in revivals. I had been lost for quite some time and friends and family would ask me if I was lost and I would always say yes. I would never go to the alter though. We were on a trip to Tennessee for a revival that my dad was preaching in. I was so convicted during the whole revival.We were only suppose to be there for a week but the church decided to continue on with revival into the next week. The night that they decided to continue, on the way back to our hotel room , my father had asked all of us kids if we wanted to stay and of course I said NO. I just wanted to run from the conviction that I was feeling. We stayed and attended revival on Monday night. I was sitting on the front row with my mother and a teenage girl that was a member of the church came up to me and asked me if I was lost and needed to pray. I told her yes and prayed for what seemed like a couple of hours. Then all of a sudden I felt the burden in my heart roll away. The conviction that I was feeling was gone. I had been saved by the grace of God. I had let go of everything that I was holding on too. It was just between me and God. Nothing was going to save me except for Him. Not the Pastor, not my Father or Mother, not the girl that asked me if I was lost and needed to pray. Praise the Lord my father chose for us to stay!

Salvation is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I do not know where I would be if I did not have the Lord with me every step of the way. It is so important to me for my daughter to grow up in a christian home and know the importance of being saved and going to church. I am so thankful that I married a man who feels the same way. God has blessed us in our life tremendousley.

Unworthy?

2010-07-28T21:02:00.000-07:00

Unworthy? Totally. Life is so rewarding when living it for the True living God! It is amazing the things that He provides for us. He is so much in control of our life. My AMAZING family and AWESOME friends are truly a blessing from Him. They are there for us each day. I do not thank Him enough for His blessings. His never ending love is amazing.

Is it really true that she will be 2 ?

2010-07-28T20:34:00.000-07:00

It is not true I just know it can't be. We are just two months away from Addyson's second birthday. Time has no respect for us Mothers. We just want our babies to stay little forever, but that is not how it was intended. She is becoming such an amazing girl. Soon she will not a baby anymore, she will be a toddler. She is definetley out of most of the baby stages. ( Except for the dreadful potty training that she loves one day and refuses the next.) But I love the things that she does that are grown up like carry on a conversation with me and helping me clean ( she says I want to play clean up Mommy. Oh how I wish that I was just playing clean up) and picking up her toys when she is done saying words that I never imagined an almost two year old could say and swimming across the whole pool all by herself jumping in and going under coming up laughing. These are the things that I love about her growing up. Oh how I miss the rocking and the late night feedings when it is just her and I. She knows so much more than I could imagine that she could know at this age. She is such a smart girl.

22 Months Old

She says that Taco Bell is her favorite place to eat
She can count to 5
We moved into our new house which was a little bit of a crazy transisition
She can swim so much better than I could ever imagine
She can go down the slid all by herself
She loves to pick the garden in the evening
She has started giving some of the best kisses ever
She loves her daddy so much. When you ask her who she loves she says Daddy and when you ask her who's girl she is she says Daddy
She went to VBS for the first time and was not to sure about it
She has played with her friend Avie a whole lot
We went and visited Nanny and Poppy at camp. She rode the jet ski for the first time while we were there and loved it !

Eating ice at camp... this will keep her occupied for hours.

Getting ready to go swimming at the Dale Hollow Lake.

Jaden and Addyson on the 4th

Sitting in her freshly painted pink room!

Eating watermelon with Avie on the front porch.

Addyson with her favorite boy ! She loves Gavin so much.

Britax Car Seats

2010-07-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

Britax is one of the best car seats on the market. My daughter has a Britax Marathon and we just adore it. It is super comfortable for her. Over at Sugar Pop Ribbons they are giving away a Britax Chaperone Infant seat. I would love to have this car seat for our next child. When I bought my daughters car seat we got such a good deal on it. These car seats are quite pricey but they are so worth it for all the safety features. I really love how easy these car seats are to take in and out. With the push button latch it is so simple and also a whole lot safer than the seatbelt. Let me just say that I would never buy any other type of car seat than a Britax! They are great! Visit Sugar Pop Ribbons to enter this great giveaway and many other giveaways too!

Life Is To Short

2010-07-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

There is a lot going at the Clark residence.We have moved out and moved in, covered up paint and repainted, we have made new friends and seen old friends and so much more. Oh yeah and did I mention that Addyson has learned to swim by herself ( with her floaties of course) and go down the slid too! We have been picking our garden ever night. (If we don't pick it every night it gets over grown). We have been super busy but having so much fun this summer. We have some big stuff planned for the rest of the summer. Don't know if we will ever slow down : ) But loving every minute of being with my sweet baby girl and husband. The time we spend together is so important. Trying to make every second count... Life is to short to sweat the small stuff.

Behind...

2010-07-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

Well I know that I have not even posted Addyson's update for 21 months. We have just been a tad bit busy. Last week we enjoyed a few days of Vacation Bible School before Addyson had a virus. I headed up the commencement dinner on Friday night for VBS which went so smooth considering everything that happened that whole week before it. Oh yeah and how could I leave out that in between VBS we also moved and said goodbye to my parents who moved to ALASKA. Yeah I know that sounds crazy but nothing is crazy when you are doing the Lords work and that is exactley what they went to do. He was called to pastor a church up there a few months ago. After months of waiting to make their trip up there because of a few delays they finally made it on Tuesday Night. So thankful that God gave them a safe trip up there.

Now let me get on to what Addyson has been up too.

21 Months

She can sing the whole line of "Jesus Loves Me" and it just melts your heart
She can say any word that you tell her.
She can carry on a conversation with you
She went to Do Re Mi for the 2nd time, but the first time at their new facilities.
We moved into our new house.
She loves to bring her stool over to the kitchen sink and do dishes.
She has started to potty train
She got a virus and then had an awful cold after that.
She had to go to the doctor for her cold and thought that she was dehydrated but thank goodness she finally started drinking
She is trying to adjust to a lot of new things and ideas
She loves to go to Sonic and get a drink
She helped Daddy and Mommy in the garden

She is growing up way to fast! She is so sweet and I just can't get enough of her. She is definetley turning in to a Daddys girl! When you ask her who's girl she is she says "Daddys girl!" I know he wouldn't have it any other way.

Camera Strap

2010-06-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

Over at Steals, Deals and Heels they are giving away a cute camera strap from Sugar Pop Creations!
Go on over there and check it out!!

Diaper Bag Giveaway

2010-06-15T22:19:00.000-07:00

This bag is super cute. I am always looking for new ways to carry all the necesities for going out with a almost 2 year old. You think that it is going to get better when they get that age but I think that you bring a whole lot more with you! Thanks to The Small Fry for the great giveaway. This blog is just full of information. Check it out!

Casio Digital Camera

2010-06-15T21:46:00.000-07:00

Dear Crissy is giving away an awesome digital camera for Fathers Day. Everyone knows how much pictures mean to me and my husband! They are super important. That is the best way to capture the memories your family is making. I try to take a picture atleast once a day. Sometimes I get a little behind but most of the time we get one!

This would be great to take on the go with us instead of our large camera! It also has You Tube capture mood!

Car Seat Giveaway

2010-06-15T10:43:00.000-07:00

Over at A Moms Impression they are giving away The First Years True Fit Rebound Convertible car seat. I would really love to win this car seat! We are super in need of another car seat and it would be great to not to have to buy one and just win it!! Head on over to this giveaway to enter. Good luck everyone ; )

I JUST WON A GIVEAWAY FOR THE FIRST TIME

2010-06-11T19:41:00.000-07:00

I am so stinkin excited!! I just won my first ever giveaway. I won it over at Take It From Me. They were giving away the cutest pair of flip flops from Sugared N' Sweet. They are a cute little etsy shop that has hair accesories and flip flops. Here is the pair that I won from this cute little shop!

Stop on by the Etsy shop and check out all the items they have to offer. They are also running a special right now on the flip flops

Posey Flip Flops. Buy one pair for $16 or Buy 2 Pairs for $30!!! YAY!

Dads Rock Giveaway

2010-06-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

Now is this an awesome giveaway or what?? I would really love to win this giveaway. My husband would be super excited. He would probable think that is one of the best fathers day gifts I have ever given him! Head on over to Mrs. Moneysavers to enter this giveaway!

Do-Re-Mi

2010-06-09T17:54:00.000-07:00

This is the pavillion where they are eating Breakfast and Lunch and also having assembly.

What have we been doing this week? Spending a total of 8 hours in Sam's Club or GFS to buy food to feed 150 people for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for 6 days, a "few" hours cleaning dorm rooms, and much much more! This is all to get ready for a big week at Do-Re-Mi Gospel Music School. This is the first year at their own facility that has been built over the past year. Dad has poured every last ounce of energy he has to make sure that this was built before this week. And as of 11:30 on Saturday night it was ready for the Students to begin showing up for the week!

I know you all are wondering what is Do-Re-Mi? The purpose of Do Re Mi is to preserve and promote the rich heritage of shape note gospel music. Our goal is to improve church music. Following the spirit of God is foremost in our daily activities. Recognizing our daily duty to God formulates our theme, "Doing our best for God." He has done so very much for us. Head on over to their website for more information. This school means a lot to our family. I attented the school for about 4 years. It was such a great time of fellowship and learning about music. So glad to be a part of this wonderful school!!

This is the girls dorm.

This is the classrooms.

This is the boys dorm.

The bathrooms that are amazing and clean (unlike the ones that we used at the university where the school used to be held!!)

For more information visit http:/www.doremigospelmusicacademy.com

Awesome Sand Box..

2010-06-08T20:43:00.000-07:00

There is this super cute sandbox that is in a giveaway at A Mom's Balancing Act. Have I mentioned that is my new favorite blog. The sandbox is from Hayneedle. They have tons of good stuff. I never new that this place existed until I found this blog. You can go on over there and enter the giveaway too! There are also tons of other giveaways if you are not super interested in the sandbox.

Awesome Deal

2010-06-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine told me about this awesome deal. I just wanted to pass on this good deal to everyone else. Go to MedCoHealthStore.com they have all the things that a drug store would have. The coupon code that you can use is First10. It is $10 off a $10 purchase and the shipping is only $.99! So tonight I got some great stuff. Here are the things that I got. I signed up and my husband up to get two orders. Hope you all enjoy this great deal.

First Order

Crest Cool Mint Gel Toothpaste
Garnier Fructise Curl Scrunch Gel
Dove Ultimate Stay Smooth Anti-Perspirant Deodorant

Total Bill $1.83

Second Order

Irish Springs Bath Bar- 3 Pack
Gillette Fusion Hydro Gel Shaving Cream
Burts Bees Lip Balm

Total Bill $ 1.46

Isn't that awesome?? Just one item out of each order would cost a whole lot more then what I payed for all three! I always love a good deal.

Trying to Decide on Pots and Pans

2010-06-02T20:23:00.000-07:00

Well I have been putting this off forever. My pots and pans look terrible. They are the Tephlon kind and have started to look really bad and I know that it is really bad for you to eat out of the pots since they are peeling. It is definetley time to get new ones, but which ones should I buy? I don't want to spend a lot of money but I want a good set that is going to last me. They also have to look good because they are going to be hanging from a pot rack when we move. Here are some that I have thought about but not sure if they are good quality. What do you think ?

These are Paula Deen 10- Piece Stainless Steel Cookware

T-Fal Ultimate Stainless Steel 12 Piece set

What kind of pots and pans do you have? What are your favorite types? Just curiouse so I can make a descion on what kind to buy!

Enough with the Giveaways

2010-06-02T18:02:00.000-07:00

I know you are probably thinking man this girl is crazy about giveaways. Well I am. Why not try to win something instead of paying full price for it. This is something that I would really love to win. I have been looking at these before I even had my baby girl. A few friends of mine at church swear by their Ergos. This is just a must have in my eyes. I just never wanted to spend the money on it, but it would be so totally worth it! The blog that I am entering all these awesome giveaways is A Mom's Balancing Act. It is a great little blog. You should go on over and visit her and enter some of the giveaways she has to offer!

I love this galaxy grey carrier. It is very versatile either for a boy or a girl. I have tried other baby carriers such as the becco carriers and Ergo is definetly the best one in my book!

Another Giveaway

2010-06-02T17:33:00.000-07:00

I really really really would love to win this giveaway. It would be perfect for when we make our big trip to visit my parents and brothers in Alaska. I am really looking forward to going to visit them, but are looking for some good luggage to take with us. This would be perfect for our carry on. It would definetly be easy to pack around with a 2 year old in tote also. There are many other products on this website that I would love to have for everyday and traveling! The website is called High Sierra. Go check it out! They have some great stuff. You can visit A Mom's Balancing Act to enter this giveaway. Also while you enter the giveway check out her blog it is great!

Two Amazing Babies

2010-05-22T19:44:00.000-07:00

Today we went and kept our sweet baby cousin, Gavin Brock. Addyson just adores him. We had such a good time keeping him. She was such a big helper. He would wimper a bit and Addy would say "Mommy hold him! Pick up!" So Cute. She also tried to teach him to play Patty Cake. She was doing the hand motions for him and everything. Patty Cake is one of her favorite things to do with her Nana right now. She can't get past the "Patty cake, Patty cake" before she burst into laughter! They both were so good, that it makes having two kids at that age feel easy! (Maybe I am just dreaming and exagerating! Ha!) But they were amazingly good and I didn't expect anything less ; ) Here are a few pictures from our day.

Giveaway...

2010-05-18T09:38:00.000-07:00

Found this while I was blog hopping! I would love to win this to get Jimmy some new summer clothes. He needs them something crazy. For posting this on my blog I get one extra entry. Ha! Not that it will help me win it because I am sure there are hundreds of people entering this giveaway. But oh well you never know

http://www.yachtcandy.com/nautica-giveaway#respond

Here is the link where you kind find this great giveaway!

Guess What

2010-05-14T21:15:00.000-07:00

Can you guess what we have been doing?

Thats right we have started packing. Oh yeah and that is Addyson's little hand in the bottom left corner helping Mommy and Daddy pack. She is such a big helper. While Daddy was taping together all our boxes I was taking a few pictures of Addyson. This is one of them. She just loves playing outside so much.

Our Weekend

2010-05-12T21:27:00.000-07:00

This week has been a little crazy. Well when we had the crazy flood last weekend it flooded our crawlspace and our heating and air unit. So instead of sleeping in a hot and sticky house we stayed with Jimmy's parents for a few days until it cooled off this weekend. We enjoyed spending time with them but were so glad to be back at home in our own beds.

I had this Friday off so Mom and Addy and I ran errands all day on Friday. We took Teddy to the vet to get his shots.That was a little crazy. I have never seen him act the way he acted when we got there. He was literally growling at the dogs that came in the door while we were in the waiting room. Thankfully we got through that trip without anyone being scratched or bit by sweet little Teddy! Ha! We had lunch at a yummy place on the square. Before we went in the restaurant Addyson wanted to go up the steps of the courthouse so she walked up there and sat at the top with her Nana.

On Friday it was Chris' birthday. He turned 15 and is now able to get his permit! Wow it doesn't seem like he should be old enough to do that yet. We tried to teach Addyson to sing Happy Birthday to Chris but instead she walks around saying Happy Chris!

On Sunday we had such a good service at church three were baptized. It was just a good day in the Lord. It was such a good Mothers Day. We got to spend time with my Mom and gave her the gift I had made for her. I took all of the recipes of my Grandmothers and compiled them into a cookbook. Wish I would have got pictures on Mothers Day... just slipped my mind. : )

Flood of 2010

2010-05-03T06:36:00.000-07:00

Well after a sleepless night because of Addyson being scared of the storms did not go to bed till 3:30 and we were up at 5:50 Saturday morning to tornado warnings and flood warnings. Whenever it rains the creek next to our house occasionally will overflow and fill our yard. The farthest it has ever been is up to the tree in our front yard. At about 7:00 it was beginning to get closer and closer to our home. We knew then that it was time to get out of there or we would never make it out. We gathered our pictures and our computer (that is loaded with pictures since Jimmy and I have been married) and got out. When we got to the top of the driveway the water was over the top of our stairs and there was rocking chairs, trash and logs floating in our front yard. When we went to leave the roads were closed all around us and were not able to leave our road. We went to some friends house from church and were so thankful for opening up their home to us. About 12:00pm we were able to leave and get to Jimmy's parents house.

Jimmy went back over to the house with his dad to find that the water had only got underneath the house and up over the heating and air unit. So thankful that is all the farther it went. I can't imagine how the people feel that lost their home in this flood. I praise God for watching over us and our home.

19 Months Old

2010-04-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

Wow has she really grown up in the past month! Addyson is amazing us every day:

Weighed 28 pounds and 32 inches tall at the doctor this month.
Went to her good friend Daniels 1st birthday party
Loves her cat Teddy so much... talks about him non stop
She loves to help Daddy feed Teddy.
Enjoys watching anything that has to do with Veggie Tales
Can say so many words that I cannot even begin to tell you!
Loves to ride in her stroller while mommy walks at the park.
Went on an Easter egg hunt for the first time and loved it so much that we had to re- hide the eggs so she could hunt them again. She hunted them 4 times!
Helped Mommy babysit her favorite baby cousin Gavin!
Loves loves loves the outside so much... I think she would stay out there all day long if we let her.
Went to her first softball game to see Kam play

This month has been full! I can't even remember everything that we have done. Hopefully next month I will keep up a little better and take more pictures. We have been crazy busy lots of new and very different things are going on in our life right now. Learning how to lean on Jesus like we should. Learning not to be selfish and let God lead knowing it is all to honor and glorify Him.

18 Months Old

2010-03-19T20:30:00.000-07:00

Time has flown by so quick! Addyson is already a year and a half old. It seems like ~~we just had her first birthday party~~ she was just born. Our sweet baby girl has been growing like crazy this month.

She can now wear 24 month clothes
She loves her baby dolls so much. She rocks them and says shhh,shhhh,shhhh to make them go night night!
She is crazy in love with her Uncles.... and I think that they are in love with her.
She is repeating everything (and I mean everything) we say.
She says so many words now that I can't even keep track of them all.
She learned to sing "Deep and Wide"
She can spell her name A-D-D-Y.
Her favorite foods right now are any kind of fruit and oatmeal especially apple cinnamon oatmeal!
She got to meet her new cousin baby Gavin for the first time!
She went and visited her Papa at his work and saw the big firetrucks.
We went to the park and she wasn't to sure about all the sand getting in her shoes or the grass on her hands when she fell down.
She loves milk alot!
She loves going to Chick-fil-a on kids night to see the cow. She loves the cow so much she let him hold her. We were completely shocked!
She loves wearing her sunglasses.

Our baby girl is growing so fast. She is learning new things everyday. It is so crazy how time flies. She will be turning 2 before we know it!

Best Drive Thru Ever

2010-03-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

So my husband has been on to me for 2 weeks now that it was past due to get our oil changed. I usually take it to Walmart and wait for about an hour and a half and Addyson gets really irritated and tired of being in the cart. I have been putting it off for just that reason I did not want to have to wait that long and have to take Addyson out of the car. So I decided to try out the Valvoline. It is a DRIVE THRU!!!!! We didn't even have to get out of the car and it only took about 20 minutes. It was so great. The people were very friendly and explained everything that they were doing on my level (cause I do not know anything about cars)! It was just a great experience I will definetley be going back there and it will be on time because I won't be dreading it!
There is even a $6 off coupon on there website.

Addyson in the back seat with her babies while we got our oil changed!

To Be That Size Again...

2010-03-02T19:47:00.000-08:00

Okay so tonight I have finally came to that realization that I really, really, really need to loose weight!!! Starting tomorrow, because if I drag it out any longer it is going to get worse! Whenever I set my mind to the whole working out thing and I start seeing results I really get down to business. My goal is to loose 30 pounds! ha! That is a big goal I know but it is what has to be done to actually look halfway decent in a bathing suit this summer because we all know I will never look like this again

I mean really this is before my sweet baby girl and before Jimmy and I were married. Ahhh to be that size again! Wish me luck on my weight loss endeavor!! I need all the encouragement I can get.... I really need to stick with this ! Oh yeah I was looking at some weight loss blogs and this is what I found at The Token Fat Girl

"I'm still following the "S" plan (no snacks, sweets or seconds except for days that begin with S or special occasions) and it really has cut out a lot of excess eating."

Coupon Crazy

2010-03-01T18:56:00.000-08:00

So it is Monday AGAIN... This weekend just has flown by, but we had fun while it lasted. On saturday we went and visited Addyson's Papa at his work.We had visited him one time before but Addyson was really little. She enjoyed it a little more this time then the first time. All the big fire engines with all the buttons to press inside looked like a whole lot of fun to her.

I have been trying extra hard to save us money on our groceries... I have been getting on to all the coupon sites and printing out the coupons that I will need for the week. It is really helping out a lot! Today I got a bunch of new coupons in the mail ( Thanks to Freebies 4 Moms) I also got 6 FREE PAMPERS diapers in the mail with coupons. That was really exciting. It is like Christmas at my house when I go to the mail box and find all the free samples and coupons. I just love getting free samples and coupons! After getting all those coupons in the mail today and all the coupons yesterday out of the sunday paper it was just very unorganized! Too many coupons.... believe me I am not complaining. So I started looking for something to organize all of the coupons that I have and I came up with this

You can get this off of ebay for $5.99! I will let you know if it works when I get it which will hopefully be soon. Sometimes whenever I am shopping at the grocery I sometimes forget that I have a coupon for something and pay full price for it. Yuck. (Which it is not like I have any other distractions... ha!) I am hoping this organizer will keep me from doing that!

Something I Didn't Know About My Husband

2010-02-21T20:41:00.000-08:00

Can anyone guess where we went this weekend??

You got it we went bowling. I haven't been bowling in forever. Jimmy and I have not ever been bowling since we havebeen together. Tonight I found out something that I did not know about my husband, he is a very good bowler! He had his own bowling ball and his own shoes... sounds like a professional to me (wink, wink)! ha! Well here are a few pics of our first bowling experience together. Oh yeah good thing I got these pictures because after I took a few they announce over the intercom PLEASE NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY!! Oops!

And who could forget a picture of my sweet baby girl... this is from the other day when she woke up from her nap with crazy hair!

He is Here...

2010-02-19T22:41:00.000-08:00

Tonight when Jimmy and I got off work we headed down to the hospital to see the newest addition to the Osborne family, sweet baby boy Gavin Brock. He is so adorable! So happy for Jason and Bri. Love this sweet little family so much.

Addyson at 17 Months

2010-02-18T06:48:00.000-08:00

Can't believe that we are one month away from being 1 1/2... Time goes by so fast. Here is what Addyson has been up to this month:

Got to play in the snow for the first time and by the way it was 5 INCHES not just a dusting!
Found out her Pa and Nana were moving to Alaska
Has become very interested in the potty, so trying to work our way into potty training.
Is saying a bunch of new words like crazy that I can't even keep up with.
Has learned how to open the refridgerator.
Went to her first Valentine party at church and had a blast!
Got some really neat books for her Valentine present and some pretty red heart balloons.
Has been trying to cut her 1 year molars for about 2 weeks now.
Visited Daddy at work a couple times and got to ride on the new Hustler electric lawn mower.
Has had some really bad Eczema the past few weeks.
Loves to look at books more and more everyday.
Went to a couple of dentist appointments. One to get her teeth cleaned, and the other to look at her long frenum (the piece of gum that attaches to your top lip.) She is going to have to have surgery on it soon...
Has learned to play hide and go seek with mommy!
Is sucha sweet baby girl... loves to give hugs and kisses
Waves at everyone no matter if she knows them or not
~~Has become~~ is much more independent...
Has been wearing her hair in a pony tail and not taking it out!

Addyson is changing everyday. She is growing up so fast. We just love our sweet baby girl...

Look What Addyson Has...

2010-02-17T13:30:00.000-08:00

It is another pony tail in her hair! I know that you all may think that I am a little crazy about being so excited about Addyson's pony tail, but it is a really big deal because she is actually leaving it in and not taking it out! Hooray!!! Oh yeah and you can't forget about the bow in front of the pony tail. We can't go without that either!

Valentines

2010-02-16T20:14:00.000-08:00

*** Sorry this post is so late!! Was without my camera for a couple of days! ( it was miserable with out, didn't know what I was going to do!!!)
Well this year we did Valentines cards for the first time for a church party. When I was filling out all of her cards and making cupcakes for the party I was thinking about how that is not the last time that I will be spending the day making cupcakes and filling out cards for one of her parties.The party was called Love Thy Neighbor party. It was so cute. They got to decorate little mailboxes to put their Valentines cards in. They also played games and ate some really cute and yummy snacks. Oh yeah and there was also a really cute puppet show too! Addy loved the puppet show. It really caught her attention (which does not happen very often) If you want to see more on the Love Thy Neighbor Party head on over to our friends blog!

On Friday Mom, Addy, and I went shopping. We went to World Market and found the cutest heart shaped pasta. (and by the way they also have the cutest Easter decorations there) Friday night we went out to mom and dads for a little Valentine party with a few friends. Mom and I made homemade Fettucine Alfredo with the cute heart shaped pasta. It was yummy. We even decorated for the party. ha! We all had such a good time. Oh yeah I totally forgot we also set up the chocolate fountain... How could I forget that !

Addyson's first Valentines...

Tonight we went out for a little while and took our Valentine with us... Addyson. She let me pull up her hair in a pony tail and she left it the whole night. I was so proud of her. She took it out whenever we got back in the car. Well I hope that everyone has a good Valentines Day!

Addy with her hair pulled up! Can't believe that she left it in for that long! Hopefully that means more ponytails in our future!

Potty Training

2010-02-08T11:38:00.000-08:00

Well Addyson has been crazy about the potty for weeks now. So we decided to bring the potty chair in and start to ease our way in to potty training. You know they say that there is a window for each child to be potty trained and if you don't try in the window your potty training will be a nightmare!Well I think that this is the begining of the window for Addyson. Addy thinks that sitting on the potty is so exciting. She loves it. The potty chair that she has sings and that is great for her because she loves music and it will encourage her to go to the potty! My goal is to have her potty trained by 2 years old and you know that is only 7 months and 10 days away. ( yes I am counting !! ) I think that the main thing that we will have to focus on is consistency and praising her for going in the potty. If that doesn't work we may have to resort to the reward concept. Maybe a few cookies (Addy's favorite) every now and then for going on the potty. I don't know we will see how it goes!

Snow Days

2010-01-31T22:45:00.000-08:00

Has really loved this weekend! We got a whopping 5 in. of snow. It has been great just to relax and not have get out of our pj's. We spent some time with some good friends of ours this weekend and had a wonderful time. Addyson got to play in the snow for the first time. She seemed to like it, but couldn't stay out in it to long because it was so cold. Had a little touch of Cabin fever from being inside the house since friday afternoon, so we got out tonight and ate supper with mom and dad. Glad we got to spend time with them too!

Babies, Kitchen, and Magna-doodles: A Few of Our Favorite Toys

2010-01-26T21:37:00.000-08:00

Addyson is loving playing in her room with all of her toys. She especially loves three of her toys. Her baby is defenitley number one on her list. She loves to feed her baby her bottle. Her kitchen is another one of her faves right now. She loves to cook for mommy and daddy and any one else that comes to visit. And last but not least she likes to draw on her magna-doodle. She always has such a beautiful picture drawn on it. She loves playing in her room so much. It really shows when ever she gets done because it is a ~~mess~~ disaster, but she knows the routine that we do not go to bed without cleaning up all of her toys!

Thankful For Healthiness

2010-01-20T20:31:00.000-08:00

Man has today been one crazy day. I took Addyson to the doctor for her checkup and she got 3 shots. The doctor said that she was a healthy girl. She weighs 25lbs. and 15 ozs.and her height is 31". Man has she came a long way from being a little bit under weight. So glad that she is average now! I promised her that we would go to Chick-fil-a after she got done. You know she loves that place, it is her favorite! After leaving the doctor today I could not help but think about how thankful that I am for such a healthy baby girl! God has been so good to us. He has given us this amazing and very smart girl. She exceeds my expectations of what I thought that she was going to be like. God made her just the way that he intented. I just love every piece of her. He sure did a good job. We will be going to the oral surgeon next friday. Addyson will more than likely be having surgery. Praying that everything will go well. It is a very routine thing but just makes me a little nervous being the mommy.

Psalm 139:14 "I will praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are your works, and my soul knows very well."

Addyson at 16 Months

2010-01-19T20:42:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that she is already 16 months old. She is almost half way to 2! She is learning new words and new things every second. I am amazed by how much she knows. She is such a smart girl.

Learned to open doors

is a little bit frustrated because she is very smart and wants to do things on her own. Very independent, we are trying to figure out where she gets that from. ; )

New words: Please, Thank you, Hi Teddy, Sit (that is what she tells the dogs) Jaden, go, Hello, Potty, Breakfast, Myla, and many more that I have forgot to write down!

Loves wafer cookies so much that she comes and gets mommy and daddy by the hand and takes us in the kitchen and points to the cabinet they are in.

Had her second Christmas and loved opening all of her gifts. She had to make sure every last bit of paper was off of the gift before going on to the next one.

She learned how to pray. It is the cutest thing. She has to hold Mommy and Daddy's hands while she does it.
Learned how to sword fight from her friend Jaden.

We got rid of the paci...

Discovered that her frenum ( also known as the peice of gum that attatches above your upper lip) is very low and she will more than likely have to have surgery.

Is learning how to sing Deep and Wide
Dances and you can't help laugh because it is so adorable.
She has 6 teeth now: 4 on the bottom and 2 on the top
Spent her New Years Eve sleeping while her friend Daniel was up partying.
You have to have a pillow in your bed to go to sleep at night.
In the mornings you hand me your blanket and pillow before you get out of the bed
She loves to sit on the potty

Hope you enjoy the video of Addyson dancing!

Santa... A Little Late

2010-01-12T18:21:00.000-08:00

Here is Addyson and Santa. Sorry it is so late, just got it in the mail today : ) She was not to sure about him... Hopefully next year will be better!

New Years Eve

2010-01-01T21:48:00.000-08:00

Sweet Daniel... He out did Addy and stay up till the new year! Playing an intense game of Rook...

Playing with Aunt Paula...

Eating like a big girl at the coffee table..

Well we spent the last few hours of 2009 with some good friends. We ate lots of good food, and played some Rook and just had a good time! I have been reflecting back on the past year and how God has truly blessed our lives in so many different ways. I am looking forward to this next year! Can't wait to see what is in store for 2010. : )

Christmas Cont.

2010-01-01T21:28:00.000-08:00

Lilly after helping Addyson open all of her gifts...

Christmas

2009-12-27T22:00:00.000-08:00

Addyson's messy room after ChristmasOpening her new baby doll that Pa, Nana, and the boys got her.

Riding in her new Cozy Coupe.

She loves to push her babies in her stroller...

Taking video with our new Flip. It takes awesome videos...

Christmas this year was a whole lot different from last year! Addyson was really into the whole opening gifts and excited about what she got. Other than me being sick all Christmas, everything was wonderful. On Christmas Ever we went to Jimmy's parents to have Christmas with his Grandparents and Aunt. We ate a big dinner and opened gifts too. Addyson did a really good job opening her gifts. She had to make sure that every little piece of paper was off the gift before she went on to the next one.

After we had gotten home on Christmas Eve it was time for Jimmy and I to be Santa for the first time! We were so excited about putting her new toys under the tree. Mom and Dad and the boys came over Christmas morning to watch Addyson open her gifts. When she first got up she didn't pay no attention to her gifts, but then she finally saw them and got excited! Mom fixed breakfast for all of us also. When I woke up Christmas morning I was running a high fever so after Addyson had finished opening her gifts I went and rested so I would feel better for the rest of the day! Later on that day we went to Mom's to eat finger foods and open gifts. Addyson loved her new Cozy Coupe, that Nana and Pa and the Boys got her! After we got done opening gifts the boys all went to see Sherlock Holmes, while me mom and Addyson stayed back home and rested! All and all our Christmas was really good. Wish that I would have got a whole lot more pictures than what I did, but just did not feel very good at all. Hopefully next year all this sickness will stay away!

Christmas Get-Togethers

2009-12-20T21:57:00.000-08:00

Man has this weekend been busy. We have had a weekend full of Christmas get-togethers with friends and family. On Friday my friends from high school came here. We were suppose to eat at our house but with all of the sickness going on around here (oh yeah by the way we all have had a virus this week on top of all this crazyness right before Christmas) we thought it would be a better idea to just go and get something. So we went and got a bite to eat and then came back to our house to open gifts. We had such a good time Addyson got a ton of cute stuff from Aunt Tink Tink and Aunt Allison.

On Saturday afternoon we had Christmas with Jimmy's family on his mom's side. Addy loved on her Nanny real good while we were there. I know that just made her day with them sweet little arms wrapped tight around her neck hugging as hard as she can. Just love when she does that! It is the sweetest thing.

On Saturday evening we had my work Christmas party. Jess made some really awesome food! Everything was so wonderful. We all had a good time playing Apples to Apples and just spending time with everybody.

Sunday night was our Christmas play at church. Addyson found her a new little friend after the play his name is Cooper and he is just as cute as he can be.

This weekend was busy, but great. The best times are the times that we spend with our family and friends. So glad we got to spend time with everyone this weekend. Looking forward to these busy few days before Christmas!

15 Months Old

2009-12-16T16:09:00.001-08:00

I can not believe how quickly time is going by. Addyson is growing up to fast! This is what she has been up to this month:

Weighs:25 lbs.

Is getting to be so much fun to play with. She has such an imagination for such a young age!

Takes Mommy/Daddy by the hand into the kitchen to shows us what she wants to eat.

She loves to brush her teeth. She goes to the bathroom first thing when she gets up to brush her teeth.

Got her H1N1 shot

Ran a 104.1 fever for a whole night. The highest fever she has ever had. It scared Mommy and Daddy ~~just a little~~ alot!

Met Nana and Pa's new dog, Lilly.

Learn to say down when she wants down instead of wiggling all over.

Had her first virus. It was awful. ( Mommy and Daddy had it too!, Oh yeah and we gave it to Nanna and Pa... Sorry Pa and Nanna )

has been taking ornaments off the tree when she knows she is not suppose to

has learned how to open screw on tops

Sat on Santa's lap and didn't even cry but snarled her nose up at him : )

got a new kitten and named him Teddy

is getting cuter and cuter by the minute

is attempting to say any word that you tell her

She is very smart and outgoing and sweet... I just can't get enough of this baby girl!

A New Addition to The Family... Lily

2009-12-08T20:55:00.000-08:00

Pa, Nana, and the boys got a yellow lab puppy. Her name is Lily and she is beautiful. We went and visited her last night. She was a little bit scared at first, but warmed up to Addyson really quick. I am sure in no time they will be into everything together, partners in crime!

Christmas Tree Decorating

2009-11-29T14:48:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving Day

Dad and Alex in their Chick-fil-a shirts...

Addyson loves wearing my scarf...

Checking out the tree...

I hope that everyone had a good Thanksgiving! We had a wonderful one. Ate lots of great food and spent time with family. We also put our tree up the other day and Addyson has just loved looking at it. I so thought that she was going to rip every ornament off (which I wouldn't put it past her yet, it has only been up two days!) We put the tree up while she was in bed because if she saw us putting the ornaments on it she would think it was ok to touch them and take them off. When she saw it for the first time decorated her mouth fell open and got really excited. She loved it!

Feeling a Little Better...

2009-11-23T10:57:00.001-08:00

Addyson is feeling a little better today still running a low grade fever... Hopefully she will start to get better. Want to be fever free for 24 hours before Thanksgiving. Hopefully she will be better by then.

Just a Virus

2009-11-22T15:49:00.000-08:00

Well Addyson had her first really really high fever. Last night she ran a 103.6 fever all night long. It finally broke this morning when we gave her a bath. We took her to the doctor today and they ran flu and strep tests on her and they were both negative. The doctor says that she just has some type of virus. Thank goodness! Hope that she will be better by Thanksgiving.

14 Months Old

2009-11-16T07:07:00.000-08:00

The Chic-fil-a cow AKA Uncl Alex

She can say please and thank you..... when she wants too!

She now weighs 23 pound

She loves her room...she will play in there for ever

She has a vivid imagination

Calls every animal a dog

Knows how to blow her nose on a tissue

Smells everything that she touches (just like her mommy)

Still only has 2 teeth and really working on getting her two top teeth. They are about to pop through the gum

She can point to her eyes, ears, mouth, nose, belly, and hair when you ask her where they are.

Has changed from a straw sippy cup to a regular sippy spout

Her favorite book is Goodnigt Moon

Everyone who comes over she tells the c'mon and waves her hand for them to come in her room.

She dressed up for Halloween as a flower and got all kinds of treats
Doesn't cry when mommy leaves just when I come back and she realizes I have been gone.

Went to see her Uncle Alex be the Chic-Fil-a cow and did not like it one bit.

Love to wash her hands over and over and over.

Getting sweeter by the minute!

This is just a bit late but you know that life has just been a little bit busy with a 14 month old ; )

An Imaginary Tea Party

2009-11-15T21:40:00.001-08:00

So I just had to write about this tonight! It was the cutest thing ever... Addyson and I went back to her room to play for a little while. Her tea party set was sitting on her table so I sat her up in one of her chairs and I sat in the other one and I acted like I was pouring her tea into her cup. With out me saying anything to her she pick up the cup and and made a sipping noise! I was thinking what an imagination she has, but that was not the end of it. I handed her one of the little cakes and she made a chewing noise. As far as I know Jimmy and I (or anyone else) has never showed her how to do that! She never ceases to amaze me! Wish I had pictures of this moment, but didn't not want to ruin it by getting up to get my camera : ( I just love this sweet baby girl so much : )

Our Trip to Springfield

2009-11-10T20:18:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Mom, Jessica and I took a trip to Springfield to go to the Antique Barn. I went looking for an old trunk and found just what I was looking for. Jess got a really cute old orange quilt. While at the Antique Barn the people who work there was telling us about a good restaurant right up the street called The Depot. So we headed over there. The food was really good! We all had such a good time... Can't wait for our next trip...

I Never Knew a Flower Could be so Adorable...

2009-10-31T21:37:00.001-07:00

Addyson and Klaire... (Klaire was a ladybug)

Addyson eating her cheese puffs that Nana and Pa got her for Halloween... Addyson and Papa

Addyson and Pa...

Uncle Alex and Addyson...

I never new flowers could be adorable until I saw this one! Addy was a flower for Halloween and looks so cute in her costume. We went to Chick-fil-a to get some dinner tonight with mom and dad. They were giving out free kids meals to the children who were dressed up. Mom and Dad brought Addy a pumpkin filled with Gerber cheese puffs, sippy cups, and Teddy Grahams. We then went to Jimmy's mom and Dads. Addy got Teddy Grahams, Goldfish, and bananas. She got all the goodies a one year old could ask for on Halloween!

Donuts YUM, YUM...

2009-10-26T15:08:00.001-07:00

Can anyone guess who these people are?? I would tell you but then I would be ~~dead~~ in really big trouble!! ; ) Jaden and Addyson eating their donuts...

Jaden...

Uncle Alex and Addyson

Bro. Rick, Jimmy, and Topher...

On Saturday night Mom and Dad had a Halloween party. We had such a good time. We got to spend time with friends and family and eat good food. What else could have been better than that?? Jaden and Addyson especially had a good time eating donuts! Here are some pictures from the party..

Addyson at 13 Months

2009-10-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

Sweet girl...

Eating their bed time snack....

Addyson is just full of personality and we are just crazy over her! She is saying things that just make us stop and think did she really just say that . I have been lookin back on some pictures of last year at this time and it is just hard to even think that she was that little. Every day that goes by she is learning new things...

She is ~~walking~~ running everywhere

She can say the name of the person in a picture

She eats a bed time snack with her Daddy Mini Nilla wafers and milk

She says yes before she does something she knows she is not suppose to do to get your approval

She learned to climb on top of her table in her room

Went camping for the first time and loved it!

Visited the Pumpkin Patch and picked out a pumpkin

She can alot tons of new words. book, up, down, play, out , no no, hi,this, baby, shew (when something is yucky)

She ~~helps~~ mommy clean

She learned to dance

She is getting sweeter and sweeter every ~~day~~ minute!

Can't believe all the new stuff she has learned this month. I am anxious to see the many things she will learn in the days to come.