Merry Christmas to all..

and to all a goodnight!



We had a wonderful day, an amazing dinner and made some great memories!!

t'was the night before Christmas...

and all through the house. Not a creature was stirring, oh wait, there's a mouse!!
Yes, we have mice.. some dead, some alive. Emma stepped on a sticky trap and couldn't get it off her foot...gross!!!
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care. (Daniel had Christmas set up for us when we returned home, stockings, the tree, lights, the whole thing..even poinsettias and random ornaments hung in each and every room of the house! Aren't those poisonous plants?!? We hope your Christmas is wonderful, fun, and blessed this year! We are enjoying our last Christmas as residents of MS, at least for now!! I can't wait to see Emma's face tomorrow morning when she opens her stroller and real moving and cooing baby doll!!

graduate

v. grad·u·at·ed, grad·u·at·ing, grad·u·ates

1. To be granted an academic degree or diploma
2. a. To change gradually.
b. To advance to a new level of skill, achievement, or activity

We have experienced a lot of this lately..
For starters:
Daniel got a new job and we are MOVING!!! We are heading back to Texas, San Antonio to be exact. Daniel is really excited about the job change and we are excited about looking for a house, finding new friends, and seeing old ones (my best friend, Carrie, lives there!!), and all the opportunity that comes along with moving to a new place! So that is a form of graduating.. from the country to the city!
Next, my little brother, Jeffrey, graduated from SMU last weekend. I got to go with my parents while the girls and Daniel stayed at his moms. It was a lot of fun and we ate and drank some wonderful things..Cuba Libre is an amazing restaurant!! He is now interviewing for med school and will hopefully find one for the fall.

Also, Daniel's brother, Stephen, graduated from A&M. We got to hang out with them and meet Nannine (Emmaline's namesake) for the 1st time. She brought the girls adorable snowsuits and fur (see post below).!

Emma will be graduating from a crib to a big girl bed when we move because she is now climbing out!! We will have to see how that goes..she is quite mischievous and "naughty" according to my mom

Georgia is such a big girl, so I am going to try some baby food next week (I'm filling her stocking with bananas and carrots)!And finally, I am graduating from a Tahoe to a Suburban!! Yes, that's right..I guess I am really going to be a "soccer mom"..a dream come true..we need the extra room that is for sure!!!!!!!!

2nd child

a forgotten 2nd child?? No, she has fur.And a boyfriend, Hoyt!!

Santa's Wonderland of SNOW??

That's right..we are in Texas and it snowed..a real snow of 2-4 inches. So pretty. Almost makes you want to live where it snows regularly.........naahh!
Emma loved it..eating it, building a snowmen, throwing snowballs, watching the dogs go wild. I got some great pics. I loved seeing her in her new mittens and rain boots!!
We also ventured to Santa's Wonderland last night and got to enjoy the lights in the comfort of our Tahoe, the kids were adorable oohing and ahhing over the lights..too fun.




Emma climbed out of the pack 'n' play for the first time yesterday morning..I was quite surprised to see her playing in her room. I guess it was good the door was closed all the way. Hopefully it won't happen again!!

Holiday fun!!

We have been in Texas for a week now and having a blast. We love staying busy and seeing our family and friends. Emma has had a slow go of getting used to being around a lot of kids again, but she is warming up. We went to Adam & Andrew's 2nd b-day party and went on a fun hayride!! We saw lots of cows.. Emma used to yell, "mow, mow" - cross between Moo and cow, sounds like cow.. so cute. She uses the correct terms now, though. Her new thing is "ME" and points to herself.. and does this a lot and in random situations! Anytime someone mentions Santa, Emma replies, "Nooo" in her little scared voice. Georgia is doing good and still usually sleeps through the night, and then back to bed after a quick snack..she is a snacker and a cat napper!
We also went to the Christmas parade which was fun. Pauline and Kristi were there with their families!
This holiday season is going by so quickly and I am not really looking forward to buying gifts..luckily my girls are still too young to know anything, but there is just an obligation.

I'm thankful for...

not in any particular order.. I thought I would say what I am thankful for the most that has happened the most recently!!

1) my family's love for Bama football!! Roll tide!! We got to go to the Alabama v. Auburn game on Saturday. My parents graciously watched the girls Friday night and we headed up to Tuscaloosa & hit the Strip.. the local bar area... so much fun.. I hadn't been out in a long while and it was my first time to spend a night away from Georgia! My parents said she did great, though!! If you live in a hole, then I will tell you that Bama creamed them... 36-0, ending a 6 year long losing streak. They are #1 in the nation and have a big game next weekend! Some of my favorite things about being in such a fun atmosphere were the chants they do and things they say.. these people are serious about football! This game is equivalent to the tu v A&M rivalry..
- "Hey Auburn, We just beat the HELL outta you!" (repeated like 10 times at the end of the game)
- "I said it's great to be from Alabama..I said..." sung throughout the game and you can imagine what happens when Sweet Home Alabama is played!!
- "Auburn ain't shit" & "The party's over" were buttons everyone was wearing
They also boo'd the band...which was funny.
2) Georgia loving to sleep..she is sleeping now from 10:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m.. not sure if it will stay that way, but each morning I smile a little more rested!!
3) Emma's love for her grandparents.. she would rather be around them, so that has been a nice break for the both of us!!
4) my family coming to visit us in Louin.. nice to not have to travel all over!
5) Daniel having a work week in NO, so I can go to CS without feeling like I am abandoning him!
6) Pauline and her girls came to see our house and hang out with us on Friday.. that was so nice of them and was a lot of fun!! Thank you girls!!
7)Snapfish and their good deals.. I already got all of my Christmas cards and they will be sent out Monday..that is good for me! Relief is on my face!! So here is a sneak peek of what our Christmas cards will kindof look like..


That's right, me and the girls are heading to Texas TOMORROW for at least 2 weeks, to see friends and family.. Jeffrey & Stephen are graduating, so we will be staying for that on the 13th of December!!

Tagged!!

I am so excited.. Thanks to Lindsey I have been tagged..my first time ever!! I will now answer questions about my hubby!

1. Where did you meet? we met at Carrie's pool b-day party, May 30, 2001, eventhough we had been at the same party before that and didn't know. He worked with a lot of my guy friend's at the famous Double Daves!

2. How long did you date? long time..almost 5 years, but not the whole time..

3. How long have you been married? it will be 3 years in January

4. What does he say that surprises you? he is really strict on Emma and I am sure will only get more strict as the issues arise!

5. What is your favorite feature of his? his blonde hair and eyes
6. What is your favorite quality of his? he is very dedicated and hard working, in most aspects of his life- work, family, fun!

7. Does he have a nickname for you? this is a popular one, Baby, Miss America, EJ

8. What is his favorite color? don't know really, green probably

9. What is his favorite food? oysters, or Italian

10. What is his favorite sport? Football, hunting
11. When and where did you first kiss? my backyard when I lived on Westover in CS, the night we say we 1st started dating

12. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? we love football, college mainly, watching, going to games, etc. we also love watching certain tv shows and getting really into them! - How I met your mother, The Office, DCC

13. Do you have any children? 2, Emma is 20 months, Georgia is 2 months..
14. Does he have a hidden talent? he is a great cook, but not so much a hidden talent because he cooks almost every night!
15. How old is he? 29 just a few days before G was born

16. Who said "I love you" first? don't recall..that's sad.. probably him?! I'll have to ask and see what he says.

17. What is his favorite type of music? Rap, for sure, he knows all the words and dance moves - I guess that could be a hidden talent..he is a great dancer!

18. What do you most admire about him? he wants to work hard for his family and knows what's important in life. He keeps his priorities in check for the most part and it is hard with a lot of his "distractions"

19. Do you think he will read this? maybe
20. Where did you go on your first date? He cooked for me at his house! It was great and that really did win me over!

I now tag you Stephanie, Francie, Nikki & Ashley!!

Stats & Stars

My sweet little girl is not so little!! She weighed in at a whopping 13.7 lbs and is 23.6 inches. She is in the 97th % for weight and 90th for height and to put it in more perspective she weighs 2 more lbs than Emma did at the same age! She is 2 and a half months old so maybe that makes a difference. G has also rolled over for Daniel from her front to back from her right side - (he said that was important because it means she is going to be right handed)! Georgia also slept through the night for the 1st time - 8 hours straight..YEA!! I could tell she was a little bigger than Emma was. So cute! We are having a lot of fun and excited about Thanksgiving. We are going to have 5 more dogs and 6 more people in our home. This is a home not big enough for our family of 4, so it should be interesting.
We also decided to go by Bass Pro Shop today after our dr. appointment to get a picture with Santa. They are free so I figured when Emma was crying I wouldn't be out any money.. So we waited and it was a winter fun land! Emma was having a blast until it was her turn! Luckily Georgia was willing to tell Santa what she wanted.. And we also got a family pic too, Emma included! ;) I will try and scan them in oneday.

Here are some pics of Emma and Georgia with their Great Grandma Laverne. She has Alzheimers and lives about 30 minutes from us in Soso..yes, that is the name of the town!! It was really sweet to see her hold Georgia for the 1st time. She loved it and Georgia was all smiles too.. just as happy and comfy as could be.. you could really see that Grandma knew she was holding someone special! She kept grabbing her toes and rubbing her tummy.
A quick story.. Emma was helping me make some muffins. I bought her some star sprinkles.. they are flat and colorful.. and gave her some while she "helped" me.. she was twirling around in circles with her stars and of course they spilt on the floor. She asked for "mo" and I told her no, she had to pick up the other ones first.. so she proceeds to get on her hands and knees and is sucking them up off the floor. I was dying laughing and cringing.. and asked why she wasn't using her hands.. she kept going. Of course, silly Mommy, the stars are flat and she couldn't pick them up, so she just licked them off the floor! Gross, but hilarious.. and I didn't even have to clean them up! What a clever, little helper!
isn't she so beautiful and grown up!!

Sleepy G

So my little G is a sleepy one. She does wake up often, but she sleeps so much and I just hate to wake her up! She also is smiling a lot and making us really happy. She is losing her hair in the back but I do tummy time when I can. Emma is getting better with her each day and G now has 2 pink blankies of her own.. Emma is pretty jealous of those and tries to steal them on a regular basis. Georgia is getting better at the bottle and has a regular fussy time each night, but for the most part is a happy little angel!


She still looks like Emma to me, but definitely has her own look to her. I guess we will have to wait and see! She also loves to watch football and talks a lot.. she coos and goos and squeals.. really fun to chat with! My favorite time of the day is in the morning, around 8:30 when we are just waking up.. she is smiling and talking..we go to get Emma from her crib.. Emma always asks for Georgia to lay in bed with her.. they smile and Emma says "good morning Geo-gia"..so sweet! My 2 girls are the best! Wild and crazy days, but the best! Enjoy these pics..

An Accident Prone Scaredy Cat

We ventured to the park in Forest and finally found it after a whirl around the lovely town.. it was nice.. a little creepy area of town with some suspect people around, but it was ok.. Emma went down a slide and totally face-planted! Poor thing had dirt and pieces of wood all over her face, dress & tights.. I felt so bad for her and it wouldn't come off. So now, just in time for Christmas pics, she has little cuts and scrapes on her face. Also, while we were there.. there was these little boys and anytime they would come near her she would freak out and start crying.. my poor, antisocial child. She needs to be around other kids and times like that make it so apparent! There have been numerous times like this, at a park, mall, the library, wherever we try to go. Ready to move!


The next day we are heading outside to play and the girls are all dressed up to take some Christmas pics (round 2). I have all my gear with me and am holding Georgia.. Emma is excited as usual and is running on the deck.. splat.. she face-plants again.. this time one of her scabs from the day before breaks open and there is blood. And it won't stop! How convenient.. you may think I am being selfish..true, but to get these girls dressed and both in the right picture taking mood is hard! So that effort was thwarted.
Emma is not only scared of small children, but bugs, ants, loud noises like the vacuum, men and animals that move or not, too! I am fearful to even get my hopes up about Santa's lap. I probably will, though.. a little torture is good for even the smallest child!
So I have an accident prone scaredy cat on my hands...what to do?? I am taking the "force them into the situation but be there for assurance and a hug" approach!

Daddy & his girls

He's a busy Daddy and good to all of his girls! We love you and thank you for working so hard for us!