The Toohigs

Princess Haney Turns Four

2012-01-18T15:56:00.001-06:00

This past Saturday, we celebrated Haney’s fourth birthday in a big princess way! While Helen Grace has not gotten into the dress up phase, she was interested in every other part of the party. They bedazzled a crown, a star wand, and a jewelry box; put on a princess parade for all of us; and then were surprised by Cinderella who read to them and danced with the girls. It was quite the shindig! Happy birthday, Haney!

Love this pic of HG and the birthday girl in action Caught them in a moment of stillness…which lasted two seconds Even Mallory got in on the fun

This video is of the Princess Parade and is proof that HG will learn a lot by going to school…including how to walk in a line. :) Once she got the hang of it though, she really had fun!

Little Gym Birthday Fun

2012-01-18T15:49:00.001-06:00

Our friend Abby turned three and celebrated with a fun time at Little Gym last Friday night. It’s been a while since Helen Grace has been to Little Gym since ours in Southaven has closed, so HG was in hog heaven. It took some work to get her to participate in the group activities because all she wanted to do was run from one thing to the next!

Happy birthday, Abby!

Favorite Words, a Bow & the Robot

2012-01-11T22:43:00.001-06:00

There are two words that John and I are going to be very very sad when Helen Grace starts saying correctly…

“Chocolate” pronounced by HG as “choc-o-lat”
“Milk” pronounced by HG as “mulk”

During our Gracie Bleu date today, I got her on camera saying these, and as a bonus, she busted out in the Robot dance. Where did she learn that?!?! The best I can think of is from Fresh Beat Band???

Also, here are some new favorite phrases that have appeared this week…

“Allllmost” (as in, whenever you ask her if she’s ready to go, etc.)
“Silly me!”
“I can’t; I’m busy.”

Before-bedtime-cuddles with DaddyAnd then all of her babies needed to be put to bed too.

Today, I gave HG an ultimatum- get a haircut or wear a bow. While she was on the fence about her decision for quite a while, she stuck with the bow decision for most of the day. She had one moment of weakness right at naptime when she realized we were going home to sleep, and she begged to go get a haircut. Too bad, so sad, baby girl! (By the way, this bow business is driving her daddy off the deep end. He’s very anti-bows. Next time you see him, make sure you tell him how cute she looks wearing a bow.)

On a lunch date with Mommy

A Thing for Shoes

2012-01-08T23:39:00.001-06:00

My girl definitely has a thing for shoes- and Mama’s fancy work heels for sure! These pics are all taken over the weekend. She can’t get enough. I think we have a problem.

She wanted to wear a pull-up today, so we hauled her potty into the den in hopes that she’d think about using it. For some reason, she decided to take a break there of all places while she was walking around in Mama’s shoes…still wearing the pull-up…

Some other cute pics from the weekend…

Pausing her drum jam session for a smile for Daddy Running errands with Mama isn’t so bad- a sucker and a bird’s eye view of downtown Hernando.Skip to my lou Video from Daddy’s soccer game last weekend- she and John had fun kicking the ball around on the turf after the game.

And to start off the week with a cute story…during HG’s bedtime prayer one night this weekend (during which she insists on making sure your hands are properly folded), I was thanking God for our sweet baby girl, and she popped up and said, “That’s me!!!”

School Days

2012-01-08T23:04:00.001-06:00

If you know John or me at all, you know that we have been in the midst of a lot of intellectual debate (is that a PC way of saying we’ve been duking it out?) about when Helen Grace should start school. John wanted to wait another year or two, and I would rather go ahead and get her started in some sort of program. Since Grandma and Peggy ran a preschool for years on Long Island, they are obviously filling her head with more knowledge than I could ever dream of, but I want to make sure she’s learning to be independent, to mind people other than family members, and to not be a tattle tale (which she already is).

While we differ in opinions on timing, we can at least agree on where we’d like her to go. As a graduate of CBHS, John prefers a Catholic school. If we are going that route, I would prefer a mostly all girls school, so we focused on St. Agnes.

St. Agnes is co-ed for preschool, all girls for first through six grades, co-ed for seventh and eighth, and then single ed again for high school. I know it might sound crazy, but I love that the girls are never allowed to wear eye make-up and only after eighth grade are light nail polish and foundation allowed. I enjoyed (and still enjoy to some extent) growing up in a bubble, and I want Helen Grace to grow up slowly as well. I hope that at St. Agnes she will develop strong friendships with boys along the way but that she will be in an environment where she’s not scared to answer the questions in class correctly and to not have to be anxious about the cute boy sitting next to her. There are already enough distractions in life!

So back to the present…I thought it was so crazy to call so soon for info (lordy, she’s not even three!!), but I was encouraged by many to go ahead and get the ball rolling back in the fall. Sure enough, the admissions process gets underway in January. We were scheduled for her ‘play date’ (an evaluation through play with several kids and teachers) this past Saturday, so the three of us went for a tour on Friday so that she’d be comfortable there. I have been a nervous wreck as the date has gotten closer, and of course, I’ve stressed over every possible detail of the whole thing- what we all should wear, will she be shy, how will she act when we drop her off, how will she act when we’re not there, etc.

I don’t know how or why we deserved it (the Toohig bad luck is a seriously real thing), but we could not have asked for a better experience on both Friday (9:30) and Saturday (8:30) mornings. Helen Grace woke up in a good mood, she got ready easily and willingly, and we made it there EARLY. All of our outfits fell together perfectly and were appropriate. (John even commented that her outfit on Friday was the picture of prim and proper- a green smocked dress with pink polka dots, pink sweater, white tights, and pink shoes. That’s EXACTLY what I was going for!) I am still shaking my head- things like that just don’t happen so smoothly for us!

On Friday, the *awesome* admissions guy gave us a tour of the campus, and while HG was shy at first, she soon warmed up. When we entered the Early Childhood Center and she saw the enormous fish tank surrounded by animal murals, she was instantly hooked. We continued onto the preschool rooms, and she immediately wanted to go inside and explore. We would walk into a room and watch what the kids were doing, and she’d take our hand and try to pull us over to their tables. I thought we’d never get her out of the classrooms! She loved the playgrounds, music room, library (with its own section for little ones), distance learning center (where the preschoolers take virtual field trips to places all over the country), chapel with beautiful stained glass windows, etc. and kept asking, “What’s next?” By the end of the tour, she was so excited and didn’t want to leave. We bribed her with lunch with her daddy before he had to go back to work.

On Saturday morning, as we pulled up to the school, she said, “Is that my school?” She was excited about playing while Mama and Daddy went to a boring meeting, and she met a new friend, Olivia, in the parking lot. We walked into the building with Olivia and her parents, and HG was still happy…but she started to bury her head in my shoulder as we approached the drop off table and the St. Agnes high school student reached out her arms to her. Another kid nearby started screaming as he left his parents, and the panic started to set in. I tried to remain calm for her sake. Luckily, Olivia was talked into walking hand in hand with the high school girl, and when HG saw her getting out of her daddy’s arms to go with her, she also decided to go along. She even dropped Lovie in the process and was off around the corner without a second glance. We were shocked but oh so pleased.

We went off to a meeting where the president and both deans spoke to us and enjoyed getting to know some of the other parents. Soon enough, we were headed back to pick up the kiddos, and we found HG in her classroom, cooking away. She was happy to see us and dragged us around, showing us all the toys. We really had to work hard to get her out of there- she was having so much fun and didn’t want to go. As we left the ECC, she was literally skipping down the hallway. One of the staff members met us as we walked, and she asked HG if she had fun and if this was going to be her school. Helen Grace responded enthusiastically, “Yes!! Yes!!” John and I were grinning from ear to ear, watching her.

Since HG balked as we headed to the parking lot and wanted to see what was “next,” we went to check out the elementary school basketball games going on in the gym. She was fascinated by all the whistles and action, and most importantly, the bleachers. We finally convinced her it was time to go, and as we walked to the car, I asked her if she had cried when she left us. She responded like I was crazy to ask her that- “I happy! I not cry!” What an answer to prayers. And to think I made myself sick with worry!

We will wait to see if we get an acceptance letter in February, and that will put an end to our debate about when to start her in school- 3K, 4K, or Kindergarten. At least we’ve fallen in love with a school that we feel will nurture our child in a Christian environment as she grows into a young lady, teach her through technology but also encourage her to learn through play, expose her to all kinds of amazing opportunities, and identify her strengths and help her chase her dreams. It feels so nice to see this next phase of her life starting to come into focus. Making these kinds of decisions can be tough at times, but being a parent and watching her joyful reaction is an amazing experience.

Hello, Dolly

2012-01-06T13:22:00.003-06:00

Baby dolls have officially taken over our house. When HG goes upstairs, her baby dolls go with her. When she comes downstairs, they come along too. They all need to sleep in her bed with her (which leaves Mama a very small sliver on the edge). And you can’t just take along one or two… “Lots” have to come with you. They are constantly crying or needing to take a nap- high maintenance to boot! I found her the other day upstairs in her playroom, rocking a sleeping baby. Ok, so it can be pretty cute at times. :) Here she is holding court on our bed with her babies…

And just to kick off this beautiful weekend, I’ll share a cute pic that John snapped of my sleeping angel…

Funny Girl

2012-01-06T13:11:00.003-06:00

HG has kept us in stitches with the things coming out of her mouth lately…

Helen Grace hasn't been sleeping well at night, so when she saw a new Curious George movie at Target last night, I told her I'd buy it for her and let her watch it tomorrow if she slept all night. She thought about it for a sec, turned and put it back on the shelf, and then walked away.

When I picked up HG from Grandma’s recently, Grandma opened a little Hershey’s bar that HG usually splits with Peggy. As she opened it, she noticed a bite out of the bar…about the size of a little girl’s mouth. She asked Helen Grace who ate the candy bar, and she said as calmly as can be, “Buster ate it.” (Buster is Grandma’s dog)

If you leave her line of sight, she’ll start hollering, “You disappeared, Mommy!” Lately, she’s transferred that to her budding career as a magician. She’ll cover up a grape with a napkin, say “Abracadabra!,” and then pick up the napkin- and act surprised that the grape is still there!

As we walked into a store here in town, I reminded her that we don’t touch things in stores, especially very fragile things like pottery. Of course, as I shopped around, I touched a bag or a shirt or a necklace, and HG urgently reminded me, “Don’t touch, Mommy!”

HG likes to holler from the back seat, “Go fast, Mommy!” When I told her once that I couldn’t go any faster since there were cars in front of us, her answer was, “Honk your horn!”

I was helping her get in her car seat the other day. I really don’t remember giving any words of wisdom, but maybe I suggested that she put down her sippy and then click her seat belt or something like that. She responded, “You’re a genius, Mommy!”

John was picking on HG the other night, and finally, she’d had all she could take. She turned to him and said, “Stop it, John!!!”

When she’s trying to get settled in the bed at night, she flops around and says, “I’m trying to get company (comfortable).”

When John and I are snickering at what she’s said, she’ll ask us, “Why you laughing at me?”

In the past, I’ve been able to occasionally get away with playing the radio in the car while HG watches her videos in the back without sound. (There’s only so much Barney a mama can stand.} She used to not mind just watching the video; however, recently we were all driving somewhere, and she said, “Can you turn off that stuff, that music? I can’t hear George.” Busted!

She loves to “help” her daddy exercise. She will direct him to do more push ups or sit ups, etc., and then she’ll randomly bust out with her own repetitions at times. She’s actually pretty creative. She’ll put her feet on the ottoman and her arms behind her on the arm of the chair (so that she’s in a sitting position) and push herself up and down. If only her mama had that much interest in exercising!

I love the way she says ‘band-aid’- “band age.”

She loves to tell you that the sun’s out in the morning…and that she doesn’t want to nap because the sun’s out…and you need to get out of bed because the sun’s out…it never ends.

When HG woke up from her nap today, I was climbing the stairs to get her, and I looked up to see her standing at the top of the stairs, looking like such a big girl. I asked her, "Where did this big girl come from?" She turned and pointed to her room. Touche, my dear, touche!

Kairos Moments

2012-01-05T23:08:00.001-06:00

Being a mama is not always easy. There are {lots of} moments when I lose my temper, want to pull my hair out, and dream about going to the bathroom ALONE. But being a mama is also an amazing, breath-taking, God-given gift that I don’t take for granted. I understand the gravity of the precious gift of life that I’ve been given.

I love this article in the link below, “Don’t Carpe Diem.” In the middle of the crazy, Chronos time (every day life; ‘real’ time), I try to focus on and remember every detail of the Kairos moments (God’s time; time outside of time) that seem to stand still and glitter and shimmer in my memory…those shrieks of laughter and giggle fits as I tickle her, the carefree voice that rings out in spontaneous song, the face of an angel that leans up to mine wanting a kiss, and the arms that wrap themselves around my legs. Carpe the Kairos moments, mamas!

http://momastery.com/blog/2012/01/04/2011-lesson-2-dont-carpe-diem/

So Long, 2011!

2012-01-01T22:54:00.001-06:00

2011: A year in review…

January: I joined John for a weekend in Portland, Oregon, after a his business trip. We LOVED it- beautiful countryside full of waterfalls, mountains, and rivers and a great city full of culture, amazing views, and delicious food.

March: We moved into our new house. We couldn’t be happier, but I don’t want to even TALK about moving in the next ten years. We’ve been here nine months, and I’m still trying to decide where to hang pictures.

April: I again joined John on a business trip- one of my dreams- HAWAII! This was a dream of a getaway for us but marked the beginning of SEVERE separation anxiety for Helen Grace (which is still ongoing).

May: Helen Grace turned two! We celebrated on the real day with a zoo trip with John and me and later dinner and cupcakes with grandparents. That following weekend, we jumped and bounced with our family and friends at Pump It Up.

June: This goes down as the worst month ever- two surgeries (melanoma and endometriosis) and a car wreck (I was rear ended on the way to work). Things could only go up from here.

July: John, HG, and I were honored to be in CB and Emmy’s wedding, and Helen Grace did a great job as a flower girl for the first time.

August: We said goodbye to our dear Granny Grace but had some very special last visits with her. I have found a frame for Helen Grace’s room with all of her namesakes, and I enjoy seeing GG’s face every time I put HG to sleep. I feel like she is looking over us.

On a visit in March…

September: Helen Grace experienced the Grove for the second time. We still haven’t braved going into the stadium with her, but we enjoy playing on the Square while everyone else has cleared out to go to the game.

October: We experienced the phenomenon that is called trick or treating in our new neighborhood and also Zoo Boo with the cutest little ghost around. She really got into it this year. We also survived the first time that ALL of HG’s grandparents were out of town for several consecutive days.

November: We visited Aunt Emmy in Philadelphia, MS, for a weekend, and we got our first snow of the winter!

December: We had another snow and hosted Christmas and New Year’s Eve. It was quite a busy month with holiday and birthday festivities for some of our favorite people!

We rang in 2012 with our family and friends on New Year’s Eve. All of HG’s grandparents, the Browns (both parents and kids), the Mullins, and the Egners came to play with us. Around 9:00, HG put herself in our bed, so we knew it was time to wind down the shindig. She finally fell asleep (in our bed- a special treat to end the year) around 10:15, despite the roaring kids’ screams and fireworks going on outside. It was a small miracle in itself. 2011 has brought us countless blessings, and we are so excited to see what God has in store for us in 2012!

“Cheese!!” How many people does it take to put up a baby gate?And Isaiah was off chasing Rebel! The chase continues. If only I had been fast enough to catch the shot of him with his feet sticking out from under our bed… Life long BFFs: Larry, John, CB, Billy Feeding Gabriella The girls thought it was hilarious to take pics of each other. Isaiah found the glasses in HG’s vet kit. And now it’s HG’s turn. “Ok, people, time for bed.” This is how HG and I rang in 2012. I wouldn’t want it any other way!

Cupcake Cutie

2012-01-01T22:39:00.001-06:00

On Saturday morning, we celebrated our friend Libby’s second birthday at a great place called Cupcake Cutie. The kids colored, played with play dough, and chased each other with matchbox cars and balloons. Not to mention the delicious little cupcakes to savor! It was almost like a First Time Mom reunion, and we kept saying, “I can’t believe how big they’ve gotten!” Happy birthday, Libby, and thanks for letting us celebrate with you!

Ready for cupcakes with Libby Coloring with Callum Play dough with Camille Dancing girls Sweet hugs A hug from the birthday girl Chocolate mustache Giggles with CarolineFlirting with Grant

Monkeys & Chopsticks

2012-01-01T22:35:00.001-06:00

Since John was off of work on Friday and the weather was unseasonably warm, we headed to our home away from home- the zoo! Monkeys seemed to be the common theme of the day- from animals to kiddos acting wild! We ran into the Harrisons and Baldersons too, so HG enjoyed running around with Tyler and Callum and, of course, flirting with Finley.

Our own little monkey, climbing like a big girl and giving her mama a heart attack

Thomas and his family came back in town for a visit this weekend, which made Helen Grace’s whole month! I think she was more excited to see him than Santa. We met the Mullins, Browns, and Egners for sushi on Friday night, and Thomas and HG stayed quiet and busy the whole time with their iPhone and iPad. HG tried using their kids’ version of chopsticks and REALLY did well and ate well with them. I snuck a pair in my purse to see if they have the same appeal at home!

Thomas, HG, (Sarah) and Isaiah

Mommy Days

2011-12-30T23:46:00.001-06:00

Helen Grace distinguishes week days as either Grandma days (Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday) or Mommy days (Wednesday and Friday). Because I’ve been off of work this week, most all days have been Mommy days (with the exception of a few grandparent times here and there), Wednesday was still technically a Mommy day. After a romp through my jewelry box, we headed to the Booksellers at Laurelwood to meet Ms. Hope and Baby Emily for lunch and then stopped by Grandma’s office on the way home. It was great to put on make up and real clothes and get OUT of the house!

She thought it was super cool that Ms. Hope let her feed Baby Emily some bread.

On Thursday, we met Spiffer and Bubba for lunch at BYB. As usual these days, Helen Grace conked out on the way there, and while she slept in my arms for the first few minutes, she soon warmed up and wanted to sit with Bubba and Spiffer- and she gave out some super sweet cuddles and kisses! HG and I spent the afternoon in her play room, playing with all her new toys, and I watched in amazement as she started laying out and covering up all of her baby dolls…just like my mom tells me that I did as a little girl. It was an eerie (but cool) glance back in time!

Oh, No She Didn’t!

2011-12-30T23:31:00.001-06:00

Tuesday was another lazy day for HG and me, but John went on into work. Late in the morning, I headed for the shower. HG was content to play with her new toys and watch her cartoons at first, but soon, she came knocking on my shower door, wanting to get in. She had just had a bath the night before, so I put her off. She was obviously not happy with my response. When I got out of the shower, she was standing at the columns around our bathtub with a green bath crayon in hand. {Brandy had given her Barbie dolls for the tub with bath crayons, and we had tried them out the night before.} When she heard me scream, she immediately burst into tears and realized she had done something wrong. She was NOT happy when I put a washcloth in her hand and put her to work scrubbing the columns. BIG crocodile tears. At one point while I was taking pics and texting them to her daddy, she turned to me and said, “You bad. You teasing me.” She thought I was laughing at her. I assured her that I was NOT laughing. Later, after she had made good progress (and I helped a little bit), she said, “Shew! This is real hard!” I think we have now effectively driven home the lesson that bath crayons are only to be used in the bathtub, and the stupid crayons have now been hidden away from little hands.

Holiday Hangover

2011-12-30T23:25:00.001-06:00

The day after Christmas was majorly low key for us. After Helen Grace finally woke up around 9:00, we stayed in our pajamas all day, and HG opened round three of presents (from Nini, Teddy, CB, Emmy, Bubba, and Rod & Sharon). She had a BLAST with the vacuum, microphone, vet kit complete with kitty and puppy, and the princess and the pea doll and bed. We only left the house to drive through Backyard Burger and stop by Nini and Teddy’s to eat and say thank you. We all enjoyed a nice, lazy day together! {Again, please forgive the diaper. Like I said, it was a laidback day.}

Oooooh, a vacuum! (Now if only it were a functioning one…) A microphone!!!!!!We have laughed and laughed at her with this microphone- she sings “Like a Rock Star” by Fresh Beat Band constantly. When it came on tv as she was playing with the microphone, she almost hurt herself trying to get to the tv in time to dance and sing along.

The vet kit from Bubba was a big hit too. She told me she was Dr. Ann, our vet, and has been doctoring on all her stuffed animals. Our vacuuming vet- quite the multi-tasker.Mommy’s favorite present of all Taking a walk in Mama’s shoes

Christmas Evening

2011-12-30T23:22:00.001-06:00

We officially celebrated Christmas over dinner at our house on Christmas night. I am blessed with a family of matriarchs who pitch in to throw a fabulous party. Spiffer, Grandma, Bubba, Sharon, and Meredith each brought a dish (or two or three) and/or dessert (Spiffer even decorated my tables), and all I had to do was provide the ‘atmosphere,’ appetizers, and drinks. Pretty good deal if you ask me! We really enjoyed hosting so that Helen Grace could be comfortable in her own place and play with all her new toys too. For the first time in quite a while, ALL of the Moore family was together, as well as Jeanne and Peggy, of course. Rod and Sharon came in from Florida, Amy and Chad drove in from Louisiana, Meredith from Oxford, Ryves from Jackson- we came from all corners of the South! We had a great, laidback night and enjoyed watching HG and Selena Kate play together. HG was fascinated with her and was in SK’s face all night. Good thing SK is so good natured! We were so grateful to spend some real quality time with our family, and I was even more grateful when Helen Grace slept until 9 a.m. the next morning. Santa came a day late to Mama!

Selena Kate and Amy The Junior Kids table (Since our youngest generation is now two strong, we aren’t really the ‘kids’ anymore.) The Grown Ups table The Grandmas table”Here’s your lovey, Selena Kate!” Love this. Such a big helper. ;) Selena Kate, a snake, and her daddy, ChadThe Moore cousins- William, Amy, Meredith, Ryves, Sha Again, such a big helper! EVERYONE- Bubba, the three sons (Rod, Ben, Bill), and their children and grandchildren Peg, Jeanne, and usToward the end of the night, HG and I retired to our bedroom for her nightly milk and Nick Jr. shows. Mere Mere came to join us too.My Christmas snuggle bunny

Bubba blessing us with a prayer

Santa’s Anti-Climatic Arrival

2011-12-26T22:45:00.001-06:00

Helen Grace woke up at 4:30 a.m. on Christmas morning wanting to open presents, but I somehow got her to sleep until 6:30; however, by that point, she only wanted to sit on the couch and have more milk and wouldn’t even let me change her clothes. She didn’t want to have anything to do with opening presents. Lawdy! Finally, an hour or so later, she caught sight of the gifts around the tree and decided to investigate. She was super excited about the train, fire truck, Melissa & Doug ice cream set, and cash register. Now she can *really* play Gracie Bleu! She also got a doll high chair, the Leap Frog Tag Jr. reader and books, and a giraffe pillow pet. She has played with her gifts endlessly and really seems to be enjoying them. I keep trying to move them upstairs to her play room, but they slowly seem to reappear downstairs in the den…

While John went on to mass at 10:00, we all decided it was best for HG and me to stay at home with her not being in the best mood. We snuggled on the couch and watched Brian Boitano’s skating special and cartoons. So glad my girl loves some ice skating!

During HG’s *short* nap, Granddaddy and Spiffer arrived to help us get ready for the Christmas evening soiree at our house! More to come about that in the next post.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T22:14:00.001-06:00

On Christmas Eve morning, Spiffer and Granddaddy came over to have some fun, quality time sharing some chocolate, peanut butter croissants and exchanging our presents for each other. HG hadn’t slept much at all the night before and was super cranky, so it wasn’t worth the battle to get her dressed. At least she had had a shower!

{Side story: At one point over the last few days, I said to her, “Ok, grouchy pants.” She patted her thighs and responded, “No, Mommy, my pants are right here!}

So, back to Christmas Eve morning…she was so excited about the doll house/bookshelf and Melissa & Doug cookie set that Spiffer and Granddaddy gave her. The bookshelf is now in her room, and she gets so excited about it every time she walks in there. She was very particular about where the little doll furniture and people were placed.

“What’s that??” “Oh, woooow!”
Peek-a-boo! Arranging them juuuust right. Baking cookies for Granddaddy

On Christmas Eve night, we headed to Grandma’s to spend the evening opening gifts in front of the fireplace. She loved handing out presents and playing with all the packing supplies (from Aunt Kathryn’s box) and wrapping paper. She was tickled pink about her raincoat and slippers, and she is so excited about this upcoming semester of Little Gym with Grandma and Peggy. Our evening was cut a little short when she started rubbing her eyes and then wanting some milk and to sit on the couch- her universal sign for ‘Get me to bed NOW.’ She fell asleep in the car on the way home around 7:00, but we woke her up to get medicine in her and she was out again by 7:45. I threw in the towel when she woke up for the second time at 9:30, and I took my pillow upstairs and climbed in bed with her. I could have sworn that I heard reindeer on the roof during the night!

Watching Grandma get our snack tray ready

Getting Ready for Christmas

2011-12-26T21:48:00.001-06:00

We’ve had a busy week as we prepared for Cwiss-mas (aka Christmas). Helen Grace (and now John- lovely) has caught my head cold, so she’s been pretty pitiful and cranky. We’ve done the best we could to start our own traditions and get our holiday honey-do list done with what interest/energy/cooperation she gave us. For example, I searched and searched for an old school Advent calendar like I had as a child- the felt kind with pockets that you take out an ornament each day and hang it on the big tree at the top. I finally found one online, but in true toddler fashion, Helen Grace showed no interest in hanging one ornament a day and insisted on taking out all of the ornaments at once and putting them all on the tree or hiding them- it is her ‘game’…maybe next year!

She helped me make peppermint bark and loved smashing the peppermints!

And also a chocolate chip cheese ball… “Wanna taste?”She’s been lining things up all over the place. And more… She has had to be in my lap or attached to my leg all weekend. This is what happens when she only gets one hour naps. She helped Granddaddy wrap presents.

She is combining the line from the book, “Black bear, black bear, what do you see?” with the nursery rhyme “Ba Ba Black Sheep.”

And the cutest little ‘Merry Christmas’ wish from the cutest little girl (albeit snotty)! I listen to this over and over and over.

Christmas Catfish

2011-12-26T21:25:00.001-06:00

On Friday night, we met the Florida Moore crew at Seafood Junction as they had just arrived in town for the holidays. Helen Grace was especially clingy to me at first, but after Granddaddy and Spiffer walked her endlessly around the restaurant, she warmed up enough to end the night dancing with William. You just never know what you’re going to get with our little toddler! :)

Clowning around before everyone arrived Dancing shoes

Santa’s on His Way

2011-12-21T22:58:00.001-06:00

This morning, Helen Grace asked to wear something with Santa, so that’s just what we did! She got ‘Ho Ho Ho’ed at everywhere we went, and she’d respond with a cheery, “Merry Christmas!” When you ask her what Santa is bringing her, it’s still, “A toy that talks.” At least she knows what she wants! We met Bubba and her friend, Mrs. Dilma, for a shopping trip to Hobby Lobby and then lunch. Bubba had so much fun walking around the store with HG, hand in hand, and telling everyone she met that this was her great-granddaughter. At lunch, Helen Grace almost fell asleep in my lap, and no sooner had we turned onto Poplar as we left lunch had she conked out. {I have been getting her to bed about 30 minutes earlier this past week, and I’m waiting on that to kick in and keep her awake in the mornings. Maybe it’s a growth spurt??}

Also, the last few days, she’s put aside her homebody ways and asks constantly to go ‘out,’ ‘to the stores.’ This afternoon, to satisfy her requests, we ran to our country vet to get some meds for the kitties and to the grocery store. I never cease to be amazed at the coolness of our vet’s office/compound, and HG’s mouth hangs open most of the time with all the animals she sees and hears. Today, we saw a monkey, cows, goats, horses, chickens, and guineas.

And to get Christmas off to an official start, John and I bought ourselves a new fridge for our gift to each other this year, and it arrived tonight with the help of Teddy, Gabe, and Granddaddy. Oh, the things that excite me these days!! I can’t help it- it’s HUGE and beautiful!

Chasing kitties Her response to my saying, “Show me your Santa!” Shopping with BubbaMoooooooooo!

A Fly on the Wall

2011-12-18T22:16:00.001-06:00

John has recently been a fly on the wall to some conversations between Helen Grace and I that he thought were pretty funny. Just a little sampling of the craziness overheard in the Toohig household with a wild two year old…

As soon as I got out of the shower one morning, Helen Grace decided she needed some sketti for breakfast- and right then. I ran to the kitchen in my towel, warmed up some noodles, dropped them and some applesauce at her place at the table, scooped her up onto her seat, and ran back to finish drying off. When I came back to check on her in a few minutes, applesauce was ALL over her placemat. I asked her, “Helen Grace, did you eat any of it, or did you just smear it everywhere?” Very honestly and matter of factly, she answered, “I smeared it everywhere.”

She was set on trying to wear her placemat as a hat. When she got frustrated, she asked me why it didn’t stay on her head. “Because, baby, that’s not a hat; that’s a placemat.”

Helen Grace has been increasingly interested in the presents under the tree, especially the ones that she sees with her name on them. John observed her ‘interest’ one night and came to get me. The box for one of her gifts is a rectangle but has one side of the top cut out, so as she had been investigating, the wrapping paper tore and was hanging open. I had a big grown up moment when I caught myself lecturing her on how I was going to return her gift to the store the next time she tried to open her present. She immediately burst into tears and hid behind the curtain, although when I told her this was just a warning and I wouldn’t return this gift, she calmed down. Drama mama!

Checking out the new gifts that had shown up under the tree while she napped…so excited!

While we were driving to brunch this morning with Grandma and Peggy, Helen Grace was playing with a little toy cow. Out of nowhere, HG starts yelling, “Poo! Poo!” Grandma was sitting next to her and jerked into action. “Where, Helen Grace, where?!” “The cow. Poo. See the cow’s poo?” Ummm, well, it turns out that it was a *bull* cow that was anatomically correct, and she just thought it was poo on the cow’s bottom. We all DIED laughing when we realized what she was talking about! Oh, Lordy, the conversations that are to come!

And just a random pic from the week after a one hour nap. She was super clingy and demanded on crawling into my lap in that instant. To top if all off, she was not happy with Daddy taking a pic. Welcome back, Terrible Two’s! We just thought you had left the building!

Birthday Brunch

2011-12-18T22:04:00.001-06:00

On Sunday, we celebrated the December birthdays (Peg, Jeanne, and Bubba) over brunch at Owen Brennan’s- one of our favorite Moore/Toohig traditions. Helen Grace was in hog heaven as she dissected chocolate covered strawberries (and ate just the chocolate), held her little mouth open like a birdie for ice cream off my plate, and ran around the table from lap to lap. Since Peg and Bubba’s birthdays were yesterday, the saxophone player gave them a birthday treat by coming to our table and playing a song for them. At first, HG was scared to death and jumped into my lap, but she soon relaxed and really enjoyed getting to see it up so close. Another great birthday brunch in the books!

Happy birthday, Bubba and Peggy! We love you!

This is going to be a disaster.She only wanted the chocolate- not the strawberry. Binoculars

Naps, a Haircut & Santa on a Motorcycle

2011-12-18T21:49:00.001-06:00

Saturday morning, I worked for almost three hours to get Helen Grace clean, dressed, and in the car (she was obviously not being cooperative), and we finally started out to run some errands and finish our Christmas shopping. First on our list was a haircut for Helen Grace since she preferred that option over wearing a bow. About five minutes into our drive, I realized she was too quiet, and sure enough, the child was SOUND ASLEEP. I hollered at her and tickled her with no response, so I turned the car around and went home. I left the car sitting in the garage running while she slept for over an HOUR.

Saturday was Peg and Bubba’s birthday, so we met them for lunch at Newk’s while Grandma was stuck at work. Of course, we couldn’t go to Newk’s without going to Gracie Bleu. I swear we should own stock in that place. After lunch and ice cream/bribery, we went straight to get a haircut. She was actually really well behaved. She picked out a sucker while we waited for just a minute, and she even let the lady put the cape over her. She got a little shy when the stylist started talking to her, but there were no tears or fits. I was so proud of her!

When we were running our errands afterward, we ran into SANTA on a MOTORCYCLE. He was sitting outside Hollywood Feed- maybe he had been in there earlier, but he was sitting on the motorcycle talking to some friends. Helen Grace had a fit to go over to him (although she didn’t want him to hold her), and she proudly told him she was a good girl, got her hair cut, and had earned her sucker. She was so excited and has talked about it all weekend!

After another two-hour nap and a quick dinner, we jumped back in the car and headed to Southern Lights in Southaven. We let her get out of her seat and sit in John’s lap while we drove through it, and while she initially thought that was cool, she was ready to get back in her seat by the end. This was our first time through Southern Lights, and we really enjoyed it. We are officially ready for Christmas!

Birthday hug for Peggy Helen Grace got a hold of my camera at Gracie Bleu.

Holiday Story Time

2011-12-18T21:32:00.001-06:00

On Friday morning, we met the Jacobs for a special Christmas story time on the Collierville square. With Lilly’s encouragement, Helen Grace walked up front and sat on the floor with the big kids. They sang songs and shook their jingle bells, listened to a book, decorated an ornament, chowed down on cookies, and wrote a letter to Santa. Very fun morning!

Showing off the ornament she made. This is what I got when I asked them to show me their letters to Santa- take one. Take two. Ok, I give up.

Hostess with {Not} the Mostest

2011-12-18T21:19:00.001-06:00

On Wednesday, we hosted our moms’ group for a play date at our house. We were so excited that our friends came all the way out to the ‘country’ to play with us. We decorated snowmen and Christmas trees, and then the kids stormed the playroom. I wish I could say that my little angel was the hostess with the mostest, but in reality, I had to take her to her room to cool down several times. Not a big fan of sharing her own toys. This was the first time that she’s had a lot of friends on her ‘turf,’ and she didn’t take it so well at times. (Her grouchiness could be, in part, due to this weird mid-morning sleepiness she’s been having lately- she even conks out if we are in the car around 10 a.m. Not sure what’s going on.) All in all though, we had a great time and look forward to hosting and playing with our friends again soon.

Weekend Wrap Up

2011-12-13T23:12:00.001-06:00

Some pics and stories from our weekend…

We visited baby Paxton Orr and his mommy Christy (and aunt Misty) last Friday. Then we met Granddaddy and Bubba for lunch at McAlisters. Hugs for Bubba. I can’t get enough of those sweet cheeks. Just up from a nap and super sweet and happy. Where did my baby go???“I’ll take the whole bar of choc. Thanks.”We struck out on Sunday to get some Christmas shopping done and stopped for lunch at Panera. Hugs with a mouthful of food. Daddy’s biggest fan

I got her a children’s book that plays the tune of Silent Night and tells the story of the nativity. Friday afternoon, she wanted to read it, so I had just sung through it with her. A few minutes later, I found her making up her own words…primarily, “Baby Jesus, go to sleeeeeep.” So freaking cute.

She saw the Huggies box and said, “Mommy, that’s my name!” (She saw the H at the beginning.) Then, she pointed to the S on the end and said, “Mommy, it has YOUR name too!”

She pointed out the window as we were driving to two crossed jet trails in the sky- “An X, Mommy!!”

We met Ann Maxwell, Emmaline, and Mrs. Emily for a Gracie Bleu date, and as we were driving home, I told HG that Mrs. Emily and I went to college together. “You went to Ole Miss together, Mommy?” Well, yes, child, we did. When I asked her what team we cheered for, she responded, “The Rebels.”

She’s started saying, “Something’s wrong here,” when she notices that something’s not right.

We took the long way home through our neighborhood to check out the Christmas lights. One yard got her so excited that she started yelling, “Merry Christmas, Mommy! Merry Christmas!”

It’s so hard to teach a two year old about the nativity and the true meaning of Christmas, but I sure am trying. When we were at the Enchanted Forest, she ran over to a nativity scene, pointed to the manger, and said, “Look! Baby Jesus!” I’m glad she’s getting at least a little of this!

Enchanted Forest 2011

2011-12-13T23:01:00.001-06:00

We have had such a fun time creating traditions for Helen Grace from year to year, especially now that she remembers them! We went to the Enchanted Forest this year with Mrs. Hope and baby Emily.

After a brief but wild fight over her outfit (she picked one out, put it on, then refused to keep it on her body and tried to rip it off), we finally made it out the door, to visit baby Davis Hudson, and then to meet the MacDermants at the Pink Palace. Helen Grace had a blast running from tree to tree, checking them all out, and she even gave me some cute cheese pics.

The cackles and squeals started as soon as we entered the ‘forest,’ when she saw all the animated figures. She wanted to touch it all, and she ran from one area to the next, then back to the first one. Hilarious to watch.

As we approached the end of the exhibit where Santa waited, she said she wanted to sit on his lap, but once we got in line, she changed her mind. She and I walked around and looked at gingerbread houses while Mrs. Hope and Emily visited with Santa, all the time she kept saying she didn’t want to see Santa. We got down the escalator and out the front door when she busted out with a whine, “I wanna see Santa!!!” That erupted into a full out fit as we got in the car, but thankfully, Curious George in the car finally calmed her down. Where did that come from?? I guess it’s just the typical toddler indecisiveness (and thankfully she gets over it relatively quickly), but it kills me to see her so upset and emphatic.

We met the MacDermant ladies at Newk’s for lunch and enjoyed a meal together where everyone behaved and ate well- how nice! We had such a nice girls’ day, and I am happy that Helen Grace will have these fun, early memories of the Enchanted Forest that I had as a child.

Doing her penguin walk

Gotta touch it…she decided that since it was hard, it must be ice instead of snow. Emily waiting to meet Santa She loves baby Emily Kisses for Mrs. Hope

Santa 2011

2011-12-11T00:01:00.001-06:00

Last Saturday, we went to Breakfast and Bounce with Santa at Brandy’s church. I had been talking up Santa a lot, and Helen Grace seemed excited to see him. {The way she says Santa is hilarious- rhymes with Fanta, the soft drink.} Santa arrived and ate breakfast at our table, so she would take a break from the jumpy and come stare at him and then go back to bouncing. When it came time to sit in his lap, she was the first in line because she realized he had a present for her (each child received a gift from Santa)…but then she balked and headed back to the jumpy. I let the line die down and gave it another try. Again, she was willing to watch other kids, but when it was our turn, she clung to me and wouldn’t even look at him. BUT when she noticed he was leaving at the end, she freaked out. We both went running across the church to try to stop him, and when we caught him, she went right up to him, hugged him, and talked to him for a few minutes. Whew! So glad that I was able to snap a pic with her and Santa in the same frame!

The long awaited picture Chasing Frankie

The First Round of December Birthdays

2011-12-10T23:48:00.001-06:00

December is a busy month for birthdays in our family! CB’s is the 8th, and Grandma’s is the 9th. We had a joint birthday celebration this week, and Helen Grace enjoyed signing cards with x’s and o’s ‘all by herself’ and singing happy birthday.

Snow Day Play Date

2011-12-10T23:38:00.001-06:00

After our romp in the snow on Wednesday morning, we headed to the Bakers’ house for a MOTs play date. While the kids went wild and had a great time as usual, there were quite a few moments of idyllic peace- all the kids sitting around a table coloring happily, Christmas music playing softly, cookies baking in the oven. We are grateful for these times and memories with our friends!

Snow Ball Fight

2011-12-10T23:27:00.001-06:00

Just as we were recovering from the shock of snow in November, we woke up to ANOTHER blanket of snow Wednesday morning. I was so grateful that it chose to come on my day off this time! Olive Branch got a lot of really beautiful snow, and we made it until almost 7 a.m. before Helen Grace demanded that we go outside to play. I know that our Northern friends reading this are chuckling at our definition of/excitement about snowfall and also HG’s thrown together snow ensemble. Since Grandma is a Jersey/Canada/Long Island girl, she has already thought enough ahead to have boots, snow jackets, hats, and gloves ready, this Mississippi girl is a little behind. Luckily, her snow jacket and boots from last season still fit. We need to find some really warm gloves and hat though, especially if it turns out to be a cold winter as predicted. We played until we couldn’t feel our fingers and then headed inside for some breakfast. What a fun morning!

First step She’s having a blast.She came trudging over to me, and as she got closer, I noticed she was whining about something that I couldn’t understand. I looked down and saw that her boot had come off in the snow! I plucked her up and put her on dry land while I retrieved the lost boot.Whoopsy-daisy! Catching snowflakes on her tonguePerfecting her snowball technique Still trying to catch the snowflakes….realizing how frozen we were. Warming up inside and watching the snow fall with the kitties She was trying to make him ‘cheese’ for me- forgive the breakfast on her face. Granddaddy came over to play with us that afternoon, and a snowball fight ensued!

A Dino-Roar Good Time

2011-12-10T22:58:00.001-06:00

Our god daughter, Courtlyn, had a dinosaur themed fifth birthday last Sunday night, and to Helen Grace’s delight, it was a jumpy party! We had to leave a little early for John’s work Christmas party, but Helen Grace didn’t even bat an eye when we left her with Granddaddy and Spiffer for the last bit of the party.

Always walking on her toes. After 45 minutes in one room of jumpies, they move the kids to a second room, and since we were the last party of the day, they started deflating the first room. HG was fascinated and kept saying, “They go flat!” and clapping her hands together for effect. Tried to catch one with HG and Daddy, but I wasn’t fast enough. Playing with Granddaddy and Spiffer John took this from the outside of the jumpy- see HG in the white shirt almost at the top of the climbing wall. I about had a heart attach when I realized no one was spotting her. She’s fearless! The birthday girl and HG We met baby Elliott Saenger too! “See ya, Mommy!”

2.5

2011-12-04T22:23:00.001-06:00

The day after Thanksgiving, our baby girl officially turned 2 and 1/2 years old. It has been an amazing ride, and I feel like we have had the time of our lives.

For memory’s sake, here are some things she’s up to right now…

At bedtime, she says, “Bye bye! Sleep tight! Bugs bite!”
She broke her first piece of McCarty pottery- a bunny.
She will now break out into spontaneous song, and the best part is that I can usually tell what song it is!
She can somewhat dress herself- shoes are easy, and she’s getting really good at pants and jackets. Socks and shirts are still tricky. (Although she’d much rather be naked.)
She gets her left and right correct more than 50% of the time, although not perfect.
She has done great in her big girl bed. I like that she will usually come on downstairs in the morning when she wakes up, although I typically have to wake her up on mornings that I work. She’s only gotten out of bed in the middle of the night twice, and she’s just fallen off once. She had fallen asleep in the car and was one of the 1 out of 10 times that she wakes up when I lay her in her bed. She rolled away from me toward the edge and was kicking at me and fell asleep in mid fight. I wasn’t going to try to touch her again, so I put pillows on the floor below her. My dad was here watching her that afternoon, and when he went in to check on her, she was asleep on the pillows on the floor!
The phrases “Don’t do dat, Daddy!” and “Whaaahht?” are used quite often.
Now when you ask Helen Grace her name, she’ll say her whole name. It started as Helen Toohig (in the video below), but now, she says Helen Grace Toohig. I must admit, I was floored when I heard Toohig come out of her mouth. The realization hit me all at once that 1. my name is now Toohig and is no longer Moore, 2. we have named her this name, and 3. now she considers it her own. Crazy grown-up moment.
Hearing her echo (or ‘gecko’ according to her) is a new favorite activity. She loves to yell, “Gecko, Gecko, Gecko!,” and then gets tickled pink when it comes back to her.
The child can’t get enough parmesan cheese, and apparently, that’s an inherited trait. Grandma said she would turn her back in the grocery cart for a second and John would have eaten half of a wedge of parmesan straight through the paper.
She thinks it’s hilarious to pull a stool up to the light switch and turn the lights off on you in the shower.
When I ask her, “How much do I love you?,” her response is, “A lot,” or “Soooo much.”
She likes to help me by opening the fridge for me, so I asked if she’d get the milk out for me. Her response- “Sure, I’d be glad to.”
Her somersault has gotten really good and straight, and she’ll gladly do it anywhere you ask her to in order to demonstrate this point.
So far this Christmas, she hasn’t shown much interest in the Christmas tree or the Elf on the Shelf, but she LOVES looking at outside Christmas lights as we drive through our neighborhood.
She’s still a light eater and would rather snack throughout the day than sit down and eat a big meal.
She takes a long afternoon nap (2-3 hours)- thank goodness! She wakes up between 6-7 a.m. and goes to bed around 9 p.m.
She shows no interest in potty training. She’ll act interested for a day or two and we’ll get excited, and then she’ll totally regress and cry if you even mention that she sit on the potty.
She is really getting into early reading games- either the ones where you hold the pen over your answer and the pen tells you if you’re correct or iPhone games with ABCs, matching, or puzzles.
She can pick out at least half of her letters. We have these blocks that spell out ‘Merry Christmas,’ and she carries around the H for her name and hands me the S for Mommy’s name.
Her imagination is out of this world, but she’s started seeing things like monsters. She thinks it’s hilarious if I karate kick them, so I’m very grateful that there aren’t hidden cameras in our house. I gotta do whatever I’ve got to do to keep my baby girl happy and laughing!
Her level of vocabulary is out of this world. She carries on complete conversations, and she leaves me shaking my head that she’s still a little girl but comes up with these words and thoughts!

Daddy caught me snoozing one night I had started working on decorating the Christmas tree, but then this little blondie curled up in my lap. The tree can wait!You know Mocha is desperate for attention when he curls up next to Helen Grace and lets her hang her hand on him for a long piece of time. During one of her on-again-off-again excited-about-potty-training moments, I got big girl panties on her. Modeling her first pair of jeans Playing after Daddy’s soccer game"What’s your name?”

Peanut Butter & Jammies

2011-12-04T08:20:00.001-06:00

On Friday night, Helen Grace and I had a girls’ night at the symphony with her grandmamas. The Germantown Performing Arts Center hosted an event called Peanut Butter & Jammies, where the kids wore their pajamas, brought their blankets and lovies, listened and danced to a few members of the symphony play some songs, and then enjoyed chocolate milk and cookies. I was impressed when we got there that she followed along with their instructions to get a carpet square and sit down on the floor (although she wanted me to come along), and then she followed the lady through some stretching exercises. Very cute to watch her! {Let’s hope that she behaves this well at school.} We eventually saw some friends of ours and enjoyed dancing with Grandma and Spiffer. Afterward, I thought we’d never get her out of the lobby- climbing the stairs was really fun- but we eventually got her moving toward the car and headed to Sonic for a late dinner. Spiffer and I didn’t discuss where we were stopping, but as we pulled into Sonic, Helen Grace starts yelling, “Shake!!!,” and listing off all the flavors of milkshakes. I think we have a problem….ha!

Patiently waiting and taking it all in Stretching Laying down because all the big girls were doing it Loving on Monkey Making snowflakes fall with Spiffer We found Mary Claire!!

Visiting Fun

2011-12-04T07:31:00.001-06:00

On Friday, we caught up on some much needed visiting. While I have met Whitney’s little baby, Mallory, a time or two in the hospital, Helen Grace hadn’t gotten to see her. We went to visit them Friday morning, and HG was all excited about seeing a baby, although after we got there, not much could keep her away from Haney’s play kitchen. :)

Afterward, we met the Baldersons for lunch, and sweet Callum let HG play with one of his little cars. You would’ve thought that car was candy she got so excited. I think I’ll have to let Santa know how much she enjoyed it. We watched Finley while Jess and Callum went to the potty, and Helen Grace was so protective of her. She wanted to make sure that I didn’t drop her off my lap and that she didn’t cry while her mommy was gone.

“What? What I’d do?” Big trouble happening here

Fun at Grandma’s

2011-12-04T07:08:00.001-06:00

When I borrowed Grandma’s camera to get the snow pics, I found all kinds of funny times captured with Grandma and Peggy. This is proof of the silliness and laughter had at Grandma’s! Notice how Jeanne always seems to stay on the back side of the camera… :)

“Take my picture!”

SNOW!!!

2011-12-04T07:03:00.001-06:00

Can you believe it?! For the first time in two decades, the Memphis area got snow in November! On Monday night, we started working on decorating our Christmas trees, although it held Helen Grace’s attention for about five seconds. On our way up to bed, we stopped at the front door and noticed the HUGE flakes falling from the sky and covering our entire yard (although not the streets). It was cute to see HG remember the snow- she squealed, “SNOW!” In the morning, a lot of it had melted, but there was still a good bit left. Grandma suited her up in the new boots and coat she had gotten for a day such as this, and they went out to PLAY!

Cousin Birthday Fun

2011-11-29T23:32:00.001-06:00

On Friday, we made a quick trip to Jackson to celebrate Cam and Hastings’ birthdays. Since we had quite the crew for this trip (my parents went with us, and John was off work too), we took Grandma’s minivan. I know that one is inevitably in my future, and although I’m still fighting it pretty hard, there are definitely some BIG perks to driving a minivan!

As usual, Helen Grace was in hog heaven with Hayes, Hastings, and Grace Ann and followed them around like a little puppy. I only had one *minor* mommy meltdown- Helen Grace came downstairs from the playroom for some reason, and I just happened to notice her hands—COVERED in marker ink!!! I mean, it looked like she had decided to draw ON her hands than with them. I panicked because we were at Cam’s parents’ house which is very nice and neat, and HG had just walked down a long stairway with white walls and white carpet. I was SURE that she couldn’t have done all that without leaving a trail, but THANKFULLY, she hadn’t touched anything on her way downstairs. She was not happy to have me (and John and Suzanne) hold her over the sink and scrub her down, but we eventually got the majority of the damage off of her hands and shirt. Whew! That is exactly why markers do not exist in our house- at least for right now!

HG has figured out how to use my camera, and she is obsessed. She has actually gotten pretty good at the aim and captured these glorious ones from the backseat of us driving the stylin’ minivan. BEFORE the marker incident TROUBLE! (and never a moment of silence) One of the birthday girls- Hastings turned five. Grace Ann, Hastings, and Hayes Bubbles never get old! Teaching them “I Like to Jump” (school song) “Hosanna” (another school song) The girl always seems to end up with my banana milkshake.Proof in point- Same drive home along I-55, same drink of choice- October 2010

Thanks for letting us celebrate with you, Cam and Hastings, and happy birthday!!!

Thank God for Family

2011-11-26T15:53:00.001-06:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving day at Grandma’s with all of Helen Grace’s grandparents and great grandmother. Helen Grace was so excited to give them all her handprint turkeys that she/we made them, and she wanted me to hand her each person’s so that she could personally deliver them. She didn’t eat much since we were sitting at the dining room table instead of her seat at the pub table with her DVD player, but I do understand a little since the new Curious George movie that she’d been excited about was finally on. Ha! After lunch, we headed outside to enjoy the beautiful weather. It was truly the perfect fall day and felt just right in the sun. Finally, around 1:30, I started trying to convince her to come inside and lay down for a nap, and by some miracle and a few minutes of rocking, I was able to get her down somewhat painlessly. Helen Grace slept almost two hours on Grandma’s bed while the guys slept in front of the tv and the girls chatted in the pub. She woke up clingy (love those wake up snuggles) but was soon ready to go visit Teddy and Nini and show us her dance moves to her new favorite band, the Everly Brothers. Hilarious! We came home with lots of leftovers for dinner, and while Daddy participated in the annual post-Thanksgiving Monopoly game at the Browns, Helen Grace and I cuddled on the couch. Couldn’t ask for more!

In the spirit of Thanksgiving…

I am thankful for a healthy and happy child who spontaneously bursts into song, imagines all kinds of wild things, loves to give her family lots of hugs, sends me random kiss storms, comes up with three syllable words, and makes me cry happy tears on a daily basis.

I am thankful for my hubby who is also a wonderful daddy that loves to play with and chase our baby girl and send her into giggle fits. And he fixes my iPhone when I’m in a panicked fit, and he takes HG for the morning so that I can sleep in. McDreamy!

I am thankful that my baby girl loves her grandparents and Bubba so much and goes so easily to them. It is such a gift from above to watch my parents and grandparents be grand(and great)parents. They are as over the moon for her as we are, and her excitement about hanging out with them sure makes it easier to leave for work or a date night. We are so thankful for ALL that our parents do for us, so selflessly and endlessly. I only hope that we can do the same for our children in our lifetime.

I am thankful for a wonderful circle of friends, both old and new, that make a girl feel pretty special and loved.

I am thankful for a full belly, a warm house, jobs that provide for our family, intelligent and caring doctors, and the freedom to vote.

Playing computer games with Granddaddy Just waking up

Warming Up for Turkey Day

2011-11-24T18:54:00.001-06:00

This week, we have been stretching, hydrating, and getting ready for the BIG event- Thanksgiving!

We’ve dressed up as pilgrims. We’ve practiced our napping skills.We perfected our sweet potato casserole recipe. And we are keeping the grocery store in business with our boiled custard consumption. “Sorry, Mommy; all gone!” (I think she likes it. Notice it running down her chest.)

Bring on the turkey!!!

Thanksgiving: Byhalia Style

2011-11-23T22:17:00.001-06:00

On Sunday, we gave thanks with almost all of the Moore family at Bubba’s house. Everyone one was able to make it except for Amy and her family, but we are looking forward to celebrating Selena Kate’s first birthday together in January.

Ryves and Meredith brought their significant others, although this was Mary Chris’ second Thanksgiving with us. It seems that the boy cousins went easy on our guests. After the relentless teasing that John underwent when we were dating, I am shocked that they were nice! They only dragged out one old picture of all of us cousins as kids. :)

While Helen Grace threw a major fit right before everyone got there, she pulled herself together and flipped that toddler switch just in time for the crowd to arrive. She was the perfect angel, cheesing for pictures and giving everyone hugs. I’m not sure how she made that transformation, but I sure am thankful she did!

And for the record, William and Ryves are STILL picking on me about the runny sweet potatoes I made for Thanksgiving dinner over five years ago. This year, we bought the sweet potato casserole at Holiday Ham, but they were still laughing about how my first attempt as a married woman at my mom’s famous dish ran all over their plates. Geez, give a girl a break!

The eternal kids’ table…as much as we pick on each other, I am very very thankful to have grown up with my cousins and look forward to growing old with them. Taking her baby to Uncle Doctor Rod She found a little bitty pitcher that had 25-year old playdough stuck in it. William worked tirelessly for at least 15 minutes until he finally chiseled it out with an ice pick (after this tooth pick failed him). Hilarious! Hate that she has her finger in her nose, but I have to document that she was actually willing to let William hold her for a second. Quite the fashionista….the couch’s armcover makes a great shawl. Cousins This is such a typical picture of our life…William laughing hysterically at me. Why does this always seem to happen? This time it was because my hair got stuck in the crepe myrtle. Trying to fit in in Byhalia…she’s climbing on Calvin’s tailgate. :)

They Ought to Charge Us Rent

2011-11-20T23:40:00.001-06:00

In the words of our friend, Hope, the zoo ought to charge us rent and set up three cots. We just couldn’t resist the opportunity to get some fresh air on Saturday, and we were so pleased to see that their Christmas decorations were out! Since every miniature and/or pointy tree that HG sees is a ‘Christmas tree!!!.’ she was particularly giddy.

Outside the gates, this HUGE tree greeted us. She was most curious about what was inside it. “Let’s go, Mommy, let’s GO!”

Helen Grace loves to play in those photo booths at the zoo, so this time, I finally caved and agreed to let her do it. She thought it was hilarious and actually cooperated pretty well.She was SOOOOO excited about showing it to Daddy!Let’s go ice skating! (The zoo’s ice skating rink opened on Saturday.) Getting her pumped up for ice skating. She had been so excited about it (we watched a little before we left the house and she was transfixed), but she started to get nervous as we approached the tent. Being a big girl and ready to check out this ice skating thing She was ok for the first few steps, but then the panic started. This was taken in the one second I was holding her before the staff started freaking out that I was holding her. Have you ever tried to put down a two year that is throwing a fit?? Good thing John was there to separate me and the “kind” zoo staff. After I managed to get her off the ice and out of my arms, I skated for a lap or two, and then we were done. She said, “Skates off. Shoes on.” She was quite the trooper- I’m proud of her for trying. HG’s skate and Daddy’s skate Getting serious about Dippin Dots…her daddy took these from the front…. And this was my view from the back. “I push it!”

My Friend, Thomas

2011-11-20T23:37:00.001-06:00

The Mullins came back in town this weekend, and Helen Grace was soooo excited to see 'my friend, Thomas.’ She would say that phrase over and over. They played together at Teddy and Nini’s house on Friday night and then went on a dinner date to Zaxby’s. Thomas also came over to our house Saturday night to watch the Rebels lose (again). The kiddos had a blast playing together. We only wish they lived closer!

Blurry but too cutePatting him on the back

Turkeys Take the Library!

2011-11-18T15:41:00.001-06:00

We have had such a fun day of play today! (Like all that rhyming?)

We met our friends Amy and Mary Claire at the Olive Branch library for story time. Grandma and Peggy take her there all the time, but this was my first time. Helen Grace pranced around and showed us where everything was, and man, they have a great kids’ section! They have probably 50 puppets and a great puppet stage, a claw-foot bathtub, a playhouse, and touch screen computers. For story time, they have a whole other room complete with craft tables. HG was in heaven. They read stories and sang songs about turkeys and Thanksgiving and then made their own little turkey. We had such fun exploring the library with Amy and Mary Claire!

Afterward, we took lunch to the Coats’ house to play with Ann Maxwell. HG was recovering from a meltdown when we arrived (she pulled her arms out of her carseat straps and refused to put them back, even with the threat of a spanking) and was in great need of a nap. But she straightened right up and turned on the smile when Ann Maxwell came bounding to the door to greet us. (Praise the Lord!) After they managed to get down a few bites of lunch, they took off to AM’s room to play and didn’t come out for forever! Needless to say, HG zonked out within five minutes of leaving their house- ha!

AM wanted to share a seat with HG, although HG was less than thrilled about her idea. :)

My Little Sweet Pea

2011-11-18T15:29:00.001-06:00

Helen Grace has been so cute and sweet lately. Case in point…

Mommy getting a foot rub

She saw John rubbing my feet one time, and at first, she fussed at him but then realized how much I liked it so she started ‘helping’ him. The other night, I was joking around and asked her if she wanted to rub my feet. Well, wouldn’t you know, she walked right into the bathroom, grabbed the right lotion, and went to town lathering up my feet. Jackpot!!

She’ll often say, “I love you too,” out of nowhere. Hilarious that she adds the ‘too’ on there, even when no one said ‘I love you’ first. And she’s been giving spontaneous kisses. My girl has always been a sweet one, but in the last year or so, she hasn’t really been one to hand out lots of kisses…until now. Whoo hoo for Mama! She even woke up one morning blowing kisses like crazy. Who can have a bad day after getting off to that kind of start?!

When we were playing one morning, she told me to pretend to be the baby and she was the mommy. I was supposed to be sick, so I was crying. She came over to me, put her arm around my shoulder, patted me, and said, “It’s ok, sweetie.”

She went to sleep the other night with both of her hands holding my hand. {Tear} And the child is a ‘pumper’ as she is falling asleep. John accuses me of being one too- he says I pump my foot against his leg. Apparently, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Just when I feel that I reach my limit of toddler meltdowns and am overwhelmed that I am sometimes the only one she wants to hold/feed/bath/comfort her, she jumps in my arms or wraps her arms around my legs in an all out fit and is instantly soothed. The ability to soothe my child is one of the gifts of motherhood that I have yearned for my whole adult life, and that helps take away *almost* all of the frustrations of the crazy moments.

A little off topic of my *sweet* pea…

She’ll say, “Hush!,” to her babies when she’s playing mommy.

Over the last two weeks, she’s been waking up on her own and coming downstairs- and at a decent hour. Very nice! She’s only surprised us once in the middle of the night. I was too delirious at 3 a.m. to really notice, but I think it was storming really bad around that time so I’m sure that’s what woke her up. This morning, she walked into our room at the exact second our alarm clock went off, which scared her to death and had John and me in stitches.

One night, HG was using every excuse in the book to not go to bed. She pulled out the ‘hungry’ one which I can’t wholly ignore, right? I got her some animal crackers, and she was snacking on those while I read her books. Afterward, she came up with yet another excuse.

HG: “I need a glass of water.”

Mommy: “Why?”

HG: “I coughing.”

Mommy: “You haven’t coughed in hours.”

HG: {insert fake coughing here}

And I have to share a potty triumph moment!! This morning before her bath, she was running around naked, and like always, when she had to go, she asked for a diaper. Somehow, I was able to talk her into sitting on her potty instead. (I think it had to do with watching Fresh Beat Band on my phone.) She sat there for a few minutes, and then all of a sudden, the music on the princess potty went off and her face lit up! We did a potty dance and called Daddy and all her grandparents- she was so proud of herself! We’ll see if we can keep up the momentum now!

Philly Trip

2011-11-16T22:43:00.001-06:00

This weekend, Helen Grace and I hit the road for a girls’ trip to Philadelphia, MS, to see Aunt Emmy! Before we left town, we met Daddy for lunch at McAlister’s.Once we got started on our trip, she lasted for about 5 miles, and then she was sawing logs with her kitty cat pillow, her blankie, Lovie, and Monkey. She slept for almost two hours, so the trip was pretty uneventful. When she woke up, we stopped for a coke and a bathroom stop and made it to Emmy’s around 4:00.I think Em loved HG’s Etch-a-sketch as much as HG does, and after dinner and a trip to Sonic, the two of them spent the night cuddled up on the couch, drawing and guessing animals.Bedtime in a new place was NOT so good. Pretty bad actually. She kept asking to go home and was wound up. After I rolled over and ignored her chattiness, she finally went to sleep. The first night she woke up every hour or so, asking for ice cream (random!) or if the sun were up. By 6 a.m., I was wide awake, and this is what I found snuggled up behind me. (My ear is in the far right corner.) She had a hard time settling down the second night as well, but, thankfully, she slept all night. We spent Saturday morning hanging out on the couch and playing with Em’s dog, Peaches. HG watched her from inside the house at first, then moved out to stand on the porch in my arms, and eventually got brave enough by the end of the weekend to climb out of my arms and stand on the porch. We met our friends Beth, Elizabeth, and Rylie for lunch, and man, the girls were WILD together! The two girls just feed off each other, and with both quickly approaching naptime, they were delirious by the end of our lunch date. The best one we were able to capture of the two of them. Ring around the rosie And we all fall down! Chasing each other like wild women

Trying out some of Emmy’s glasses. For some reason, this makes me feel like I’m looking back into my awkward childhood! Em’s neighbors have a beautiful gazebo that HG called “the park.” I made sure to let her run off some energy there before we hopped back in the car on the way home.We made it to Oxford around lunchtime and met Mere Mere for a quick bite, and then we busted a move back to Memphis to meet our newest little “chick,” Mallory Carole Harris (Whitney’s second little girl). She was due to arrive on the 15th, but instead, she made her debut through an emergency csection on the 12th. Mama and baby are both home and doing well now.

Some funny things that HG did/said this weekend in Philly:

She leaned back in a chair, wiped her forehead with a dramatic hand, and said, “Shew, Mommy, I’m exhausted!”
She was shifting around in a chair, and I asked her what she was doing. “I’m getting comfortable.”
I was on the phone with my mom, and I realized that HG was really quiet. I called out to her, and she came out of Em’s laundry room with black hands. What?? I asked her what she had touched, and she took me directly to a huge (and open) bag of charcoal.
She saw an Ole Miss Larry Womble print at Em’s house, and for the first time, completely unprompted or without any context, she yelled, “Ole Miss! Go Rebels!”
She comes in the bathroom a lot with me, but for some reason, one time at Em’s, she became my coach. She followed me in there saying, “You can do it, Mommy! I know you can!” And when she heard me go, she said, “Yay, Mommy!! You did it! I’m so proud of you!” Can you tell we’ve been reading her potty training book?? Too bad she still shows no interest in going herself. She will run around naked after bathtime and then tell you when she needs a diaper, but she refuses to go to her potty. Grrr.

Out of Nowhere

2011-11-13T21:47:00.001-06:00

My child started singing Jingle Bells out of nowhere today! I guess she feels Christmas in the air?! Last year, all we got from her was the “Hey!” at the end of the chorus, but this year, she’s got about half of it down. :) I took this video in the car tonight so you can’t see anything in the dark, but the audio is hilarious. She’s shaking jingle bells from Spiffer’s house.

Sick Baby

2011-11-11T11:17:00.001-06:00

Helen Grace rarely gets sick- she’s only had two ear infections in two years- for which I am very grateful. So when she does come down with a cold, she is pretty pitiful. On Sunday night/Monday morning, she started getting stuffy, and by that night, she had a horrendous cough. After two nights of no sleep for anyone in the family, it was time for a doctor’s visit. I tried to prepare her by telling her there would be no shot, and while she was calm on the ride, all hell broke loose when we pulled into the parking lot. Guess the flu shot visit was still fresh in her mind. When I tried to get her out of the car, she slid out of her car seat and into this heap on the floor of the car. It didn’t get any better. She went totally limp when I tried to carry her, crying hysterically. Throughout the whole waiting room wait, the poor nurses’ attempts at taking her temp and weight, and even the visit with the doctor, she was flailing and slapping at anything she could reach, even yanking the doc’s stethoscope. I have never had a more embarrassing mommy experience. After all that, the verdict was that her ears were clear but she had a ton of drainage in her throat. We left with a script for Amoxicillin (to be taken along with Mucinex) and a happy baby (once we got to the car). Although she did NOT get the Gracie Bleu she was promised if she were a good girl, she did ask to go to school, so off we went. And after two days of trying to get this medicine down her, I finally figured out the trick. She likes the cherry flavor of Mucinex but not the Amoxicillin, so I pour both of them into a measuring cup, mix them together, and suck them into the dropper. The meds go right down by little birdie’s throat- whew!

My pitiful baby girl She didn’t even make it to her bed before passing out this night.

On a brighter note, here are some things my little Miss Priss has been up to...

She says, “Pssst!,” to get your attention.

The easiest way to get her out the door to Grandma’s on Mama’s work days is to remind her that she and daddy will ‘chase’ the school bus. She is fascinated with buses and going fast in the car.

She has a new obsession with Taco Bell. Must be genetic. If we pass a restaurant that is brightly colored, she says, “Taco Bell?!”

After one of her sleepless nights this week, she told me, “I grumpy.” No kidding, child- so is Mommy!

When she is pretending to run a store (usually Gracie Bleu) or wants you to pretend to be someone, she’ll walk up to you and say, “Hi, ma’am!”

To wear her out before bedtime, John will chase her in circles around the house, much like his mom did to him as a child. I’ve heard the stories but of course was never able to witness John’s childhood; however, I recently got a glance into what it must have been like. One night this week, I picked up HG at Grandma’s around 7:00 p.m. Grandma was chasing HG at full speed around her house- through the foyer, living room, pub, kitchen, dining room, and back again. HG had the same glint in her eye and crazy laugh that I’m sure her daddy had 30 years ago running in that same loop!

As she pets Rebel or Mocha, she’ll say, “Sweet boy!”

When something doesn’t go right, she’ll say, “Oh, boo!” or “Whoopsy daisy!” Isn’t it funny how your children will teach you what you say too much?

Most anything is “pretty cute,” and she starts each day by popping out of bed and squealing, “Sun’s out!” {Except for one morning when she walked herself downstairs and into our room and said, “Hi, Mommy! It’s foggy.” She obviously stopped to glance out the window to check out the weather!}

‘Rainbrella’ means ‘umbrella,’ and ‘nosey’ is something that comes out of her nose…usually on her finger…ewww!

Pretending to be a ducky, complete with shaking her tail feathers

And I’ve finally figured out the secret to taking a shower alone (and in peace) with a toddler in the house- squeaker shoes! I heard every single move she made so that I didn’t have to worry where she was. Also, after my shower and while I was on the phone with Grandma, Helen Grace had some fun with the toilet paper roll.

“What?! What I’d do?!”

Good to the Last Drop

2011-11-07T20:19:00.001-06:00

Birthday Party Overload = Successful DST

2011-11-06T14:45:00.001-06:00

Saturday was a marathon birthday party day…one for John Hudson at 1:00 in Midtown and then one for Remle and Daily Mattice at 3:30 in Nesbit…both of which were during nap time. I was very nervous about how this was going to go down, but although we had a few ‘moments,’ she really did pretty well.

Little John’s first birthday party was at the University Club. As we drove up, Helen Grace almost came out of her car seat- there were THREE jumpies in the front yard. We had to drag her inside, telling her we had to go in and say happy birthday first, and then we realized that the jumpies weren’t for the party but for the Club’s fall festival later that afternoon. Eek! Soon enough, Mr. Joe from Music for Aardvarks pulled out his guitar, bubbles, drums, and shakers and made her completely forget about the jumpies. Whew! After watching John eat his cake, during which he picked the whole thing up and shoved his face in it, we slipped out to make our way to birthday party #2. Outside, we found that the jumpies were unsupervised, so we let HG duck in and jump for a minute. We thought she’d surely be so exhausted that she’d conk out in the car, but NO SUCH LUCK. She did that crazy, high pitched talking the whole ride home to keep herself awake.

We dropped off John at Spiffer’s to get his car and found Bubba was there to watch the Rebels’ game. (Are they still playing football??) We went in to say hello, and she caught her second wind; however, a few minutes later on the way to Remle and Daily’s party, her eyelids started fluttering. I hollered and woke her up, and as soon as she saw the PETTING ZOO, she was up and at ‘em. She LOVED the animals, although I never could get her to feed the goats. (To her credit, they were hungry little monsters and were pretty ‘active.’) She would hand me the food and wanted me to feed them. But she did get the pen with the bunnies and loved to feed them and the guinea pigs. After some more cake and ice cream, she was starting to show signs of meltdown. She was playing out in the yard with some boys, swatting leaves with sticks, and she came running to me with tears running down her face. I never could figure out what had happened (not sure if she got swatted or if they hurt her feelings), but regardless, it was time to GO. She cried almost the whole way home wanting juice instead of the water she had in her sippy, but by the time we got home, she was calm- and still awake. We got some dinner in her and then put her to bed around 7:30.

Daylight Saving Time happened in the middle of the night on Saturday, and I woke up with a start at 7:30 old time/6:30 new time this morning. The house was quiet. Hmmm. I laid there for about thirty more minutes, and around 8:00 old time/7:00 new time, I heard the pitter patter of little feet in the hall upstairs. I slipped out of bed, through the house, and up the back stairs. I peeped around the corner of the playroom, expecting her to be playing in her kitchen, but I found nothing. I turned to go down the hall, and there she was, peeping through the crack of the door to the playroom! “Go away!,” she said. I had to go back downstairs and wait on her to come down on her own. Little Miss Independent!

John, the birthday boy She’s finally figured out how to do these things. And she thinks she’s pretty cool because of it. Having a BLAST!! At last, the jumpy! On to the petting zoo… When she saw the bunnies were out of food, she insisted on refilling their bowls. She thought it was pretty neat to watch the guinea pig eat the food she brought it. Riding on the train Pardon the Crystal Lite face (and shirt) This was as close as she’d get to the pig. And the closest she’d get to the goats. I finally got her to put the food on the side of the trailer, but she never let them eat out of her hand.

Ho, Ho, Ho, Hosanna!

2011-11-06T14:10:00.001-06:00

Helen Grace puts on a full out performance when her school music comes on. She broke out in song and dance after dinner the other night, and I was able to get it on camera. The video’s a little long, so I understand that only her grandparents will probably watch the whole thing. :) My favorite is the face she’s making when she plays the guitar in the first song and how she’s dancing and singing “Jesus loves me” in the very last song (around 3:40). Love my little singing and dancing girl!

Baby Emily

2011-11-04T15:08:00.001-05:00

We love, love, love going on dinner dates with our friends, Mrs. Hope and Baby Emily. Hope and John work together (and Hope’s mom recently retired from there too), and Hope and I have gotten be good friends as well. Helen Grace likes to dote over Baby Emily and tell her all kinds of important life lessons I’m sure. If only we could understand their conversations!

Our Silly Girl

2011-11-02T16:43:00.001-05:00

Helen Grace took a bite of two pretzels, handed me the remnants, and said, “Look! Two halves!”

When I went upstairs to wake her up one morning this week, I heard her holler, “No, MA’AM!” as I approached her room. I opened the door to find her in her princess tent, wearing her tennis shoes. She stuck her head out and said, “I READY to go, Mommy.”

She was shivering the other day. I asked her if she was cold. She responded, “I not cold. I freezing.”

Usually, when she wakes up, she will yell for me and just sit in her bed and wait for me to come get her. On Wednesday, I took a nap when she took a nap. I woke up to her walking into my room and saying, “Hi, Mommy.” Scary, but she is getting to be a big girl! On a side note, she said she went down the back stairs that are carpeted, so she smartly avoided the front stairs that are hardwood. Whew!

Last night, this child took her seat from the kitchen table to the ottoman in the den, climbed up on it, and got settled in with her blanket in her lap. Then she showed Daddy her silly face. Crazy girl!

Shopping and Dancing

2011-11-01T22:17:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, we hit one of our favorite shopping events of the year, Merry Market Place! Helen Grace was entertained by playing on the stage with Granddaddy, going up and down the stairs, and sampling all the cheese balls in the building, which allowed for plenty of time for Spiffer and me to focus on shopping. After we grabbed a quick bite to eat, Helen Grace had a blast spinning and dancing with Spiffer.

Too Much Candy

2011-11-01T22:16:00.001-05:00

As everyone was walking out the door last night, my dad captured this video of the post trick or treating craziness. He emailed it to me this morning with ‘Too Much Candy’ in the subject line, and I think that very adequately describes the scene!

First Haunted House

2011-10-31T22:52:00.001-05:00

While I got my flu shot on Friday at Walgreens, Granddaddy kept Helen Grace entertained with the inflatable haunted house at the front of the store. {Maybe this could qualify as her first haunted house?} The girl has started cackling like crazy when she really gets tickled, and she rivaled the wild laughing of the witch that the house played when the motion sensor was set off. She could have stayed in this house all day. I think Grandma needs to get one for next year…. ;)

“You not scary!”

Extreme Trick or Treating

2011-10-31T22:43:00.001-05:00

To say that our neighborhood takes trick or treating lightly would be like saying that Ole Miss fans just grab some McDonalds before a football game. I was not properly prepared for the craziness that fell upon us after the sun set.

Since our neighborhood has lots of long driveways, our HOA asks us to hand out candy at the end of our driveways instead of at the door. Our neighbor invited us to go on a hayride, so I really hadn’t put much thought into handing out candy. At least my mother was forward thinking enough to throw together a really snazzy table situation for us while I was at work today. {Reason #1,231 that I’m so happy she has retired!} She also had dinner and cupcakes ready for us when we got home which was a lifesaver as I rushed to get Helen Grace dressed.

While Helen Grace and I rode on the hayride to do some trick or treating, her daddy and grandparents manned our table at the end of our driveway. Throughout our tour of the neighborhood, we saw people with stand up heaters at their tables, a projector tv playing the NFL game, full-sized animated skeletons, strobe lights, and even a casket. Buses of church groups from all over the county parked at the entrance to the neighborhood, and the streets were packed with trailers pulling loads of kids.

Even though I spent most of the night with my mouth hanging open, we really had a great time soaking it all in. Helen Grace thought the ‘hayride’ and ‘more houses’ were really cool and loved getting on and off the trailer. She was pretty brave at saying Trick or Treat on her own, and I’m so glad that Bubba and her grandparents were here to watch it all as well. What a fun night!

Getting our night started off right Scaring Grandma and Peggy- “BOO!” And Bubba too. And then Granddaddy. We were all terrified of our little ghost. First hayride Trick or Treat! We even saw Bert and Ernie. HG thought that was really cool that they were handing out candy. More houses! Clowning around (and warming up) with Peggy

Zoo Boo

2011-10-31T21:49:00.001-05:00

We kicked off our Halloween festivities with Zoo Boo on Friday night. This was our first time to go, and Helen Grace LOVED IT!

Weeks ago, I bought Helen Grace an Olivia (the pig from the cartoon) costume, but when I asked her what she wanted to be, she said a ghost. I thought it was just a random choice and assumed she would soon forget…and then she continued to ask to be a ghost for a month. So last week, I called my dear friend Rachel and asked her to throw together a ghost costume like one I had seen on Etsy, and HG couldn’t be more pleased with the result.

Helen Grace was really excited about going to the zoo for Zoo Boo and getting to wear her costume, but she started to balk as we approached the zoo. When she saw other kids walking in with their costumes on though, she quickly asked us to help her into hers. She was very hesitant about going up to the people giving out candy- she kept wanting me to ask for her- but she slowly starting warming up.

The highlights of the night were the boat ride and the dance party. Since all the other kids were riding the rides, she wanted desperately to ride as well. She had so much fun on the boat ride that we had to immediately get back in line. Then we found the dance party in the amphitheatre near the pandas, and I thought we’d never get her out!

We will definitely be making Zoo Boo a Halloween staple for our family- great times!

Not too sure what to think about all these peopleChecking out the map to tell us where to go Starting to warm upWatching the singing pumpkins The straw maze was pretty cool, especially since it was tall enough to be over the kids’ heads but short enough for parents to see over! Once she got on the boats, she was giddy and so proud of herself.

Shaking her BOOty at the dance party

Our best attempt at a family picture Fun with Daddy We ran into our friends, Jack, Lindsey, and Jackson, but this was the best pic I could capture of the kiddos during the dance party.

A Pumpkin Painting Machine

2011-10-30T09:21:00.001-05:00

I thought we’d try our hand at painting a pumpkin this year, and Helen Grace thought that was the coolest thing since sliced bread (or since Fresh Beat Band in her world). She basically refused to let me document with photos, so I just have a few at the beginning and then one of the finished product. :)

Cookies, Hosanna, & Flu Shots (Oh, Shaw!)

2011-10-28T16:19:00.001-05:00

Last week, Granddaddy and Spiffer kept Helen Grace for us one night, and John and I went to see Memphis, the musical, with the Hudsons. We had a delicious dinner at Itta Bena and danced and sang our way through the show. When we got home, my mom had the cutest story from putting HG to bed that night. She was laying next to her in the bed, and when HG turned her back to Spiffer, my mom started scratching her back. HG rolled over to face her and said, “I’m twying to sweep, Siffer!” Well, excuse me!

Helen Grace and I were sitting on the couch, and John sat down next to us. Helen Grace squealed, “We’re a family!”

When I was putting her down for a nap, I put my head on her shoulder. Now, she will often pat her shoulder and ask, “Mommy, want head on my shoulder?”

HG requested sketti for dinner, and as I sat it down in front of her, she exclaimed, “I love you!!!” and blew me a kiss.

Helen Grace has fallen in love with those Pillsbury sugar cookies, especially the ghost ones for Halloween. She asked for one the other day, but we had already eaten them all (heehee, you just can’t stop yourself!) so we headed for Kroger. We struck out on the Pillsbury ones, but we found some other ones with sprinkles that seemed to satisfy her cookie need. When we got in the car, I gave her one and then let her hold the box on her lap. As we drove home, she held one cute little finger in the air asked, “Just one cookie, Mommy.” When I reminded her that she had already had one cookie, you could see the wheels turning in her head. She quickly popped up one more little finger, and she changed her request- “Just two cookies, Mommy.”

This Kroger trip was hilarious for another reason too. On the way there, I started playing a mp3 of the Hosanna song that she sings at school. She FLIPPED OUT when she heard it! She was so excited that she didn’t let go of my phone throughout our entire trip. “Again, Mommy!,” she said. “This is my song. I sing it with my friends at school.” I’m sure we made quite the scene at Kroger, jamming out to a kids praise and worship song and stalking cookies like mad women!

Getting her Gracie Bleu fix last weekend

She took a nap in my bed this week, and after an hour, she woke up, crying uncontrollably. She wiggled and whined her way down to the end of the bed, slid off onto the floor, curled up into a ball, and went back to sleep. ????

We were sitting at dinner the other night, and out of nowhere, she says, “Oh, shaw!” Peggy has been trying to teach her this Irish expression for months, and HG was so proud to put it to use. Now she can’t get enough of it. Lots of ‘shaw’ around our house!

Today was flu shot day. I’ve been trying to get her prepared for it for weeks, talking about how Caillou got the flu and was so sick and how shots hurt at first but keep you well. The deal was that we would both get our flu shots today (HG at her pediatrician and me at Walgreens). She was calm the whole way to her doctor and mostly in the waiting room, but when she saw a nurse, she lost it. We finally got it done though, and she calmed right down. I think the BandAid made it better. She showed it off proudly like a battle scar for the rest of the day. I treated her to an ‘upcake’ at L’Oven, and she was very excited! She then changed her mind about going with me to get mine, so after lunch, Granddaddy and Spiffer entertained her at Walgreens during my turn.

Hugs, kisses, and cuddles for Granddaddy

Choo Choo!!

2011-10-23T09:13:00.001-05:00

Although I had all kinds of elaborate plans for our Saturday, when we asked Helen Grace what she wanted to do, she asked to go to the zoo. So off we went! Another beautiful day at the zoo…not sure what Memphis has done to deserve this great, fall weather, but we love it.

She wanted to see monkeys, bats (must be the Halloween books we are reading), pandas, and the farm. Also, we finally rode the train around the farm for the first time- and the second time actually. Once just wasn’t enough for little miss! I loved watching her face- her mouth open in awe of being on a choo choo, fingers clasping the seat tightly, and the wind blowing her hair all over the place. Precious memory.

We tried to get her on the little boat ride that I remember so fondly from my childhood. She seemed interested at first, but she balked when I lifted her into the boat. Maybe next time!

One of the few pics I was able to capture of the photographer… She loves this guy for some reason. The panda walked right over to her, laid down, rolled over, and showed her his belly! She pretended to be scratching his head.. Mama is going to tickle a smile out of her. Waving to the black bunny First time on a choo choo Our second time around She was not getting on that boat. Chasing a birdieAwww, one of my favorites of the two of us.The rooster was too loud. “There’s a cow- IN THERE!” “There’s a horsie!” “MOO!”“Look, Mom, no hands!” Not a happy camper to be leaving the zoo

Cedar Hill Farm

2011-10-22T16:25:00.001-05:00

Last Sunday, we headed to Cedar Hill Farm for our annual pumpkin patch trip. Since it opened at noon, we knew we were on borrowed time with Helen Grace’s nap around the corner, but we thought we’d give it a shot. She wanted nothing to do with the hayride, pumpkin patch, or pony ride, but she was focused on the “pet store” (petting zoo), the playground, and the animated chicken show. We squeezed in some fun times before our little crankpot showed up around 2:00!

“Ewwww! Yuck!”

Some 2010 favorites…

Some 2009 favorites…

Lunching with Lawson

2011-10-22T15:29:00.001-05:00

On Friday, Helen Grace and I went to story time and lunch at The Booksellers at Laurelwood (formerly Davis Kidd) with our friends Melissa and Lawson. We all rode together since we live pretty close to each other, and Helen Grace talked Lawson’s ears off the whole way there. She kept telling him she was two and would describe things we were passing to him. They seemed to enjoy story time, although Helen Grace was in my lap most of the time, and we had a great lunch with our well behaved kiddos too. Well, Helen Grace didn’t spend much time in her seat- she preferred the windowsill- but she was quiet and ate like a champ. What more can you ask for? Oh, and they both fell asleep on the way home! Mel and I had a nice, quiet car ride with real conversation- what a treat!

And on a side note, we have entered the world of WHY. I *might* possibly pull out all of my hair. She incessantly asks why about anything (even if it doesn’t make sense), and I really try my best to give her real answers and not blow her off. At a point of exhaustion yesterday, I asked her if anyone had ever told her that she asked a lot of questions, to which she responded, “Why?” AAAAAHHHHHH!

Going on a bear hunt Best pic of the two of them I could catch during story time Time to eat! Lawson’s such a happy baby!