Christmas 2011

Christmas has come and gone, and the Mott family did some celebrating! It was so much fun to see David light up. This was the first year he really understood what was going on with Santa. He was so excited to see if Santa ate his cookies, and what do you know, he did!



He had to wait a few minutes to open presents while Daddy finished showering, so he took in the sites.



Once he started opening, he threw away his trash after every present.  A boy after his mommy's heart.



He had so much fun opening, and never wanted to go onto the next present. He was to open and play with the one he just got.  Silly parents. We could have just gotten him the train calendar and called it done. :) Forced him on we did!



After all of his little presents (a calendar, a magnetic train book, the lunch box/puzzle, a camera, a shake 'n go Thomas, and a Thomas Pillow pet) we gave him his big present from Santa. He was so excited!



He was in love with it, and has been playing non stop since we got it all put together. Santa did a god job!

We also celebrated with family on a couple of different days. David enjoyed helping to pass out presents.



He was in love with the Pez candy that Uncle Jon got all of the kids. Here he is waiting to open the sugary goodness.



He got a talking Henry from Grandma Mott. LOVE!



He had fun opening presents with Justin too. Of course, who needs presents when you can play with the dog toys?



He got lots of cars and trains, and loved everyone one of them.



David had a wonderful Christmas and is a very blessed little boy. I'm sure he is already counting down the days until next year to see what he will get then.

Ten on Tuesday

What is your favorite online-only store?
Does Amazon count? I love Amazon!

Do you enjoy wrapping gifts?
I don't think enojy is the right word, but I don't despise.

What is the temperature in your city today?
Like 30...cold.

What time do you eat dinner?
I like to eat around 5:30.

Will you be making New Years Resolutions?
Probably not. I used to, but never followed through. Now I make short term goals that are easier to obtain.

How old is your oldest pair of shoes that you still wear?
Probably 4 years old.

Do you have any restaurant phone numbers saved in your phone?
I do not.

What is your favorite and least favorite letter to write in cursive?
I don't even write in cursive anymore. When I did, I didn't like uppercase Q all that much.

Do you know any good riddles?
Kids tell me them all of the time, but I never remember them to retell.

How do you feel about snow?
I like it, in moderation.

Meet the newest member of the Mott Family...

Burry!

This year we decided to start our very own Elf on a Shelf tradition. I had seen this all over the internet and didn't think David would like it. An Elf's Story was on TV and he loved the movie! So, David and I went to the store to adopt our very own elf.

We brought home our adopted elf and pondered what he should be named for a couple of days. Chippy, Elf, Pepper, Elfie, Ouchie, Poppy, and David were all top contenders. Then Nate asked, "What was your grandfather's name?" Burwell. Burry for short.

This year we will just get David used to Burry and the magic that he has, so no crazy elf capers this year.

Burry will make his first trip back to the North Pole tonight, and will be found perched on a shelf for David to find when he wakes up.

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

How do you eat your eggs?
Scrambled with cheese, please!

Do you volunteer?
Sure do! Nate and I volunteer to be youth leaders twice a month. It's so much fun!

What’s your favorite brand of jeans?
Whatever is on sale.

What was your child’s first word? Or what was your first word?
David's was "uh-oh". We heard momma and dada kind of, but not in calling us that, but uh-oh was used correctly everytime.

Can you french braid?
Sure can. Not as well on someone else, but I can do my own.

Do you prefer wide rule, college rule, or blank paper?
College rule

Is there a specific treat do you always make during the holidays?
Hmm...mom always makes fudge. I try out differen things every year, and have yet to find something that I love enough to make every year.

Do you have a KitchenAid mixer? Do you want one?
I do, and I love it!!

What kind of computer do you use?
Umm...a Dell at work, and a Gateway at home.

Favorite Christmas movie?
A Charlie Brown Christmas

Ten on Tuesday

What are 3 things that are on your Christmas wishlist?

I don't have "things" on my list. I have all of the things I could ever want or need. I wish for peace, happiness, and love.

What’s your favorite Christmas song?

O Holy Night and Christmas Cannon by Transiberian Orchestra.

Do you have a favorite band or singer that sings it especially awesome?

I like Carrie Underwood's version of O Holy Night, but I'm not picky - I love them all.

Have you heard about the website goodreads?

Now I have. :)

What are 3 books you want to read?

Probably the Hunger Games books. I need to find time to read again.

Do you hunt deer?

Um, no. My uncles do though - a lot. They brought some meat to Christmas one year at moms house. She showed Bambi - awesome.

Have you started Christmas shopping? Are you completely finished?

I'm just about done. Only a few more things to pick up.

Did you shop on Black Friday? What was the best deal you got?

Technically, yes, but it was much later in the day. I got some make-up on super sale from Ulta.

What’s one holiday tradition your family has?

We always go to church on Christmas Eve. I rembember 1 year that we didn't and that was because snow kept us away. 6 inches in a couple of hours will do that. They used to have an 11pm service, and I loved it (hence why we didn't go with 6inches on the ground at 11pm - it got cancelled) Now they have a 5pm and an 8pm service. We go to 5 since it is for familes with little kids.

How many blogs do you read? Do you subscribe/unsubscribe often or do you purge every once in a while?

I follow 15ish. I haven't purged any yet. I subscribe to the ones and I like, and bookmark ones that I don't visit as often.

Sprinkle Food

My mom and I threw my sister, Courtney, a sprinkle today. In case you don't know what that is, it's a baby shower for someone who already has a child and doesn't need all of the big stuff, just little things to celebrate baby. I wanted to make some special desserts, so I spent much time searching the internet for some easy desserts that would be perfect to celebrate a baby girl. I made 3 - but one came out of a box because I ran out of time, so I'll only count 2 and the punch.

I only managed to take 1 picture the entire time I was baking, and that was for the one that came out of the box. All well, David had a blast helping mommy cook.



I started by making Lemon Lime Cookie Balls. My inspiration came from here. I only made a couple of tweaks.

Lemon-Lime Cooke Ball Ingrediants

12 premade sugar cookies

1 brick (8oz)of cream cheese at room temperature

1 lime

1 lemon

1 bag white chocolate chips, or other coating chocolate

1. Start by taking your sugar cookies and putting them in your food processor. If you don't have one, borrow. I tried to do this with a rolling pin and Ziploc bag. Horrible fail. Crush until fine. Pour into mixing bowl.

2. Zest the lemon into the cookie mixture, then squeeze juice in. Repeat with lime.

3. Add cream cheese and mix well. Use a mixer to do this, wooden spoons may break, and I cannot be held responsible for that.

4. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a lined cookie sheet. You can add sticks if you would like at this point. Put into freezer for at least 1 hour.

5. While in the freezer, place 1/2 of your chocolate into a small crock pot on low. This is the best way to melt chocolate. Trust me, I have tried a million ways, and this rocks. Just before you are ready to use it, put the rest of your chocolate in.

6. Using a fork (or 2) roll each ball in the chocolate and place back on cookie sheet. When done, place back in freezer.

Done. Takes some time, but very easy to make, and very yummy! I added some colored sugar after I dip each one for some decoration. I think this made about 25 (I doubled the recipe and ended up with about 50.)

Next up were Oreo Cookie Balls. Same concept, different flavor.

Oreo Cookie Ball Ingrediants

1 package oreos

1 brick (8oz) cream cheese at room temperature

1 bag of chocolate chips or other coating chocolate

1. Start by taking your oreos and putting them in your food processor. Again, if you don't have one, borrow. I tried to do this with a rolling pin and Ziploc bag. Horrible fail. Crush until fine. Pour into mixing bowl.

2. Add cream cheese and mix well. Again, use a mixer to do this, wooden spoons may will break, and I cannot be held responsible for that.

3. Roll into 1 inch balls and place on a lined cookie sheet. You can add sticks if you would like at this point. Put into freezer for at least 1 hour.

4. While in the freezer, place 1/2 of your chocolate into a small crock pot on low. This is the best way to melt chocolate.

5. Using a fork (or 2) roll each ball in the chocolate and place back on cookie sheet. When done, place back in freezer.

Again, I added some decorations after dipping each ball. This should give you around 30. I doubled it and got just over 60.

Last up was my party punch. Easy recipe and I didn't need a printed copy to remember it while I was putting it together at the party. I started with this recipe, and tweaked from there.

Cranberry Party Punch Ingrediants

2 cans frozen lemonade mix

64 oz of cranberry juice

4 cans of ginger ale

2 pints of sherbet (mine was strawberry lemonade)

1. Prepare frozen lemonade according to directions on can. Pour into large punch bowl.

2. Add cranberry juice.

3. Just before serving, spoon sherbet into punch bowl and then add ginger ale. Enjoy!

It was a fun afternoon. Of course, no one took any pictures. Mom and I were too busy keep food out and helping guests. Lots of cute girly things were received. Baby Lyla is already so loved.

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

Do you wear glasses, contacts, or are you one of those perfect eyed people?
Perfect eyed person here!

What is the next item you are going to purchase?
Nothing planned. Odds are it will be diapers.

Have you ever watched Judge Judy or any other real court show?
Sadly, yes, I have watched them a time or two.

How do you feel about fake nails?
They look nice, but I don't have the time or money for upkeep.

What is your favorite sport to watch?
Football!

If you could create your own Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor, what would it be and what would it be named?
I don't know that you can improve on Ben & Jerry's. I would like to see a pumpkin flavor during the holidays.

Do you have any scars?
I have a chicken pox scar in the middle of my forehead.

Does your pet’s name fit them? Is there a more appropriate name?
I think it suits her. Sadie is the perfect name.

What is your favorite television show theme song?
There are so many to choose from - Dinasaur Train, Super Why, Curious George, Thomas the Tank Engine...we DVR most of our shows and fast-foward through the intros, so the only ones we watch are David's.

What was your favorite activity on the playground?
The swings. Those were my favorite.



Pinterest Projects

I am addicted to Pinterest. In case you don't have an account, it's a site that lets you bookmark things and organize them in folders with pictures. It's great! So much more organized than my old IE bookmarks.

Months ago, I started looking for some easy Christmas crafts. I found so many crafts to do for gifts and ornaments. I decided that I needed to move beyond just pinning the projects and needed to actually do one.

I started by making my winter wreath. Materials needed were: straw or styrofoam wreath, yarn, white felt, a small stuffed snowman, glue gun, glue sticks, scissors , and ribbon to hang.

This was my inspiration:

Here is what mine looks like on my door:

I think it turned out pretty well.  I did learn that you shouldn't trace with a pen onto white felt, so I had to remake some of the flowers. I think I made about 75 of them to complete this. Time consuming, but easy and I love it!

Next up were some ornaments. I started making these glitter ones.

These were pretty easy to make, though did get slightly messy with the glitter. To make you need: glass ornaments, Mop 'n Glow (I used the one with the blue lid) and glitter (I used the mega pack from Wal-Mart). All you do is swish the Mop 'n Glow in the ball, empty out all of the extra liquid, pour glitter in, shake it all around, and dump out the extra glitter. Super easy and fast to make. You can see a picture tutorial here. Here are what mine looked like when I was done :

Last up was the snow globe ornament. Here is the inspiration:

To make, you need glass ornaments, epsom salt, sticker letters, and ribbon.  You add the salt into the ornament to just less than 1/2 full. Put the top back on. Use a sticker letter (or cut a letter out - I used my Cricut and some sticker paper) and place firmly on the ornament. Add some ribbon, and you're done! Here are mine:

There you have it. I think I will be making some more ornaments to give as gifts. They were so easy and fun to make!

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

What are you doing for Thanksgiving this year?
Putting up my Christmas tree. We already did a big family Thanksgiving, so the actual day is pretty low key.

What are you most thankful for this year?
I have so many things in my life to be thankful for. See here, here, here, and here.

Do you have any traditions on Thanksgiving? The parade? Football? Long naps?
PJ day!

Is it called stuffing or dressing? Is it in the bird or a separate dish?
Doesn't matter to me. I don't eat it  either way.

Do you cook?
Yes, but not turkey.

What is your favorite dish?
So many....sweet potatoes, corn casserole...

What is your dessert preference?
Cheesecake

What is your favorite Thanksgiving memory?
Could be my sister's mashed potato mill, or it could be the food fight we had one year. Hard to say.

Do you plan to shop on Black Friday?
Not this year. Midnight? Are you kidding me? I need to sleep before I shop,

What are you most dreading about Thanksgiving this year?
I'm not dreading anything. I love good, quality family time with my boys, and that is what I shall have.

Grateful, Grateful, duly Grateful

In youth group this week we had a worship service. It is always interesting to see how youth worship with no other adults around. :) As part of the service, our fearless leader read a book as part of her sermon titled Grateful, a Song of Giving Thanks by John Bucchino. I had never heard of the book, but was instantly in love when she finished reading. I think this is a book that everyone should own and read to their children. It is a book of thanks and faith, with beautiful illustrations.

There was one page of the book that struck me more than any other page. It read:

"In a world that can bring pain,

I will still take each chance-

For I believe that whatever the terrain

Our feet can learn to dance."

Tomorrow it will have been 1 year since our first miscarriage. Everyone told me that if I made it through the due date, that I would be okay. I think they were wrong. In the weeks leading up to tomorrow, I have been a mess. I'm not sure why this date seems to be harder for me, but it has. Maybe it's the time of year, or the fact that I have several people in my life pregnant now, some of whom are due the time I would be due if we hadn't lost a second baby. Maybe it's a day that I have to get through once, and then things will be easier.

I know that the service was supossed to be for the youth, but I believe that God was talking to me during the service when Nancy read that book. I think it was something that I needed to hear, something that I had been waiting to hear.

Of course, the main idea of the sermon was not for me, or what I needed to hear, but about how we don't thank God enough for what we have. We say "thank you" to people all of the time, but when was the last time we counted our gifts from God? If we woke up tomorrow with only the things that we had thanked God for today, would we have anything?

She asked us to do an acitivity where we wrote down 5 things that we were thankful for.  It took me a while to think of things, not individual people, I was thankful for, but by the time she said done, I had my list. She asked us to keep the list somewhere where we could see it and help to remind us to say thank you for those things everyday. Here is my list:

Five Things I am Thankful For

1. Faith in God

2. Unconditional Love of Family

3. Fellowship with Friends

4. Support of Church Family

5. Hope for a better tomorrow

These are the five things that I will be thanking God for every night. I will count my blessings instead of sheep.  I will learn to dance, no matter what the terrian.

Thanksgiving Thanks, Things

I am thankful for many things:

My iPod. I love it. It plays music when I need it, keeps tracks of appointments, and holds movies to occupy David when I need to go to the grocery store. It's an amazing little device that, even though I could live without, makes some things so much easier. I am now also in love with my iPhone!

Thomas the Tank Engine. If you have a boy, you know how cool Thomas is. He lets me get cleaning done, laundry started, and dinner finished. He does not cause confusion and delay in our house, and we are never cross when he is on.

My washer and dryer. They make things easier and are very effective in what they do. The same can be said for my dishwasher. Modern conveniences that I have come to love and adore.

My car. It was the first major purchase I made after I got my first job post grad school. It's cute and reliable. Plus, I have a great dad who helps do all of the routine maintence on it.

My microwave. Some nights we wouldn't have dinner without it. That is horrible to say, since there is nothing keeping me from cooking, but we all have nights that Bagle Bites just sound good.

Modern medicine. Sometimes I take for granted that, expensive as it may be, I have access to great health care.

I'm thankful for technology. Sometimes I think it's a curse, but other times I don't know what I would do without it. Just making a phone call, or sending a text, Skyping, a quick email.

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

What are your pantry staples?
Pasta, pasta sauce, cream of everything soups, stocks

What are your refrigerator staples?
Milk, cheese, eggs, yogurt

You already look like Heidi Klum (or your favorite supermodel). Now, what are the top three non-physical things you would change about yourself?
Be more extroverted, work on my craftiness, and cooking skills

What’s holding you back from your dream job? (If you already have your dream job, how did you get there?)
I love my job. I got here by dropping out of pharmacy school, majoring in psychology, knowing that I could do nothing with that and that I was not ready to be an adult, going to grad school, moving to the middle of no where for two years, and then having the best interview ever. It was cake. :)

You have $500 to spend but it has to be on one item only. Go.
Easy, iPad

What is something that you are embarrassed to admit you buy on a regular basis?
Ben and Jerry's ice cream, so not good for you, but so good!

What’s in/on your bed every night?
4 pillows and me

What is a non-necessity item that, no matter how expensive it gets or how tight your budget if, you will always find room for it?
Starbucks

What is the weirdest sandwich you’ve ever made?
I've been told that my fluffernutter sandwiches are weird. Who doesn't love peanut butter and marshmallow?

Would you rather: Be banned from Pinterest forever, but gain a million captive Twitter followers; or, never get on Facebook again but gain five thousand blog readers?
Neither. I happen to very much enjoy Facebook and Pinterest. I don't write my blog for thousands to read, just the cool people. :)

Thankgiving Thanks, People and Places

I am thankful for my friends. Most of my friends have been around for years. They saw me through the awkward middle school years, high school, college...I'm going on decades with some of these wonderful people. We may not talk all of the time, but we always pick up right where we left off.

I am also so thankful for my "internet" friends, as Nate calls them. I'm in a group with 11 other May '09 mommies and even though we have never met in real life, I know that they are amazing women. We chat daily about any and everything. I love my May mommies!

I am thankful for my co-workers. I love my job. I am so lucky and blessed to have gotten into such a wonderful building (thanks Mr. Beresford!). There is not a day that goes by that I don't remember how lucky I am to be here at the river. I love this place!

My house. I love my house. It's small, but perfect. It provides us with what we need and has so many wonderful memories attached to it. I bought it as a single woman. Nate told me he loved me for the first time there. I came home to it after my honeymoon with my husband. We found out we were pregnant there and brought home our baby boy there. We watched him sit, crawl, and walk in that house. Even though I know that we won't always be there, I will always love our first house.

Starbucks, any location. I am a $4 a cup kind of gal every week. I have my favorites  - Iced Chai, Hot Chai, Passion Tea Lemonade, Pumpkin Spice, Salted Caramel Mocha...all depends on my mood. And don't get me started on the Cranberry-Orange Scones...

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

What’s your favorite television show  for each day of the week?
Monday: 2 Broke Girls, Hart of Dixie (DVR'd)
Tuesday: 90210, Parenthood (DVR'd)
Wednesday: DVR'd episode of NCIS or House
Thursday: DVR'd episode of what I didn't watch last night
Friday:  Movie night, if we're home
Saturday:  Movie night, again, if we're home
Sunday: Desparet Housewives (DVR'd)

How many times do you wear your jeans before you watch them?
Two to three times, depending on what I was doing the days I wore them.

What is your favorite pasta shape?
The spiral kind - hold more sauce.

Do you read newspapers?
Nope, never was a big paper reader.

Do you sleep in socks?
No, I get to hot.

Favorite genre of movies?
Romantic comedies

How do you feel about wrestling?
I like the uniforms?

Should men pluck their eyebrows?
Maybe not pluck, but shape, yes. No one wants to see a unibrow.

Do you have dimples?
Nope

Do you like to camp?
Yes. We haven't gone since David was born though. We need to do that again. Fun, family times.

Thanksgiving Thanks, Faith and Family

Many people are posting what they are thankful for each day on Facebook. I'm horrible at updating my status daily, so I thought I would share things I am thankful for here. I have so many things to be thankful for. My life is full of blessings!

I am thankful for my faith. Without it, I don't know how I would get through the day. My faith has grown and changed a lot over the years. Through the change, my love for God has not wavered. There were days that I might not have liked him, but my love remained. As I grow older, I know that it will continue to grow and change, but the constant of love for God will always be there.

I am thankful for my parents. I have parents who have always supported me, no matter what. Dad always made special pancakes for big occasions, and even let me have ice cream for breakfast the first day of my senior year. Mom has always done everything she could to make sure we had what we needed, and most of the time, what we wanted. Raising 3 girls can't be easy, but they did it, and I think they did a pretty good job.

I have an amazing husband - I mean amazing. He is my best friend and stands by my side. We may not have been married as long as some of my friends, but we've been through our share of heartache. We have grown closer and become a stronger couple with what we have been through, and we will continue to do so.

My sisters drive me crazy. We hardly ever agree on anything, and trying to make a decision on what to do or how to do something becomes a huge ordeal. We didn't get along, at all, living under one roof, but now that we all have our own lives, we get along better. Still, we drive each other nuts. I wouldn't have it any other way. Despite how crazy they can make me, I love them both and am thankful that we are as close as we are.

David. Does he even need more explanation? He is truly a miracle and gift from God. I am thankful for him, every dirty, smelly, sticky little boy inch of him. Even on the days that he is driving me nuts, I have to stop and thank God that I have a little boy to drive me nuts.

My church. I have been going to the same church for (20) years. Some of the same people I grew up with are still there. These people watched me grow up and have supported me in my faith for so long - Dave Courtright, Angie Weiser, Helen and Rob, Kevin and Carol. Robin Wildman...I could go on. We've also met so many new people who support Nate and I in our role as parents, and who allow us to work with the youth group. It may not be the biggest church, or the most contemporary, but it's comfortable and some place that I want to bring David up in.

This ends the first installment of thanks.

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

What is your favorite month?
That's a hard one. I like lots of months. I'll go with October. It's my birthday and all of the leaves change color.

What is the best candy to get while trick or treating?
Heath, but no one gives those out.

What kind of pen do you use?
Bic Gel pen - .5

You go to a new Italian restaurant, what is your go-to order?
Chicken Parm - Yum-o!!

If you could choose to have any celebrity’s hair, who’s would you choose?
Lucy Hale - I love her hair. Can I have her body too?

What’s your favorite board game?
Does Apples to Apples count? I dig that game.

Do you know how to play poker?
No so much.

What do you think about Old Navy commercials?
They can be annoying, but cute.

What hurts worse- a stubbed toe or a paper cut?
Paper cut - that hurts!

What’s your favorite kind of pie?
Cherry

Halloween Treats

After making David's birthday treats, seen here, I have decided that I am in love with how easy it is to use cookies and chocolate to make adorable chocolate covered cookies. For Halloween, I decided to make some treats for David's class. I think they turned out spooktacular!!

Now, some helpful hints for you. Melt your chocolate in the microwave foe 30 seconds at a time on 50% power. If you over heat your chocolate, it will smell and taste funny.

Don't use gel frosting like I did this time. Transport is much harder as the gel will stick to anything, including the wax paper that you try to cover them in.

I had intended to put sticks in these, but to do so, I think you need double stuffed. When I used a pop sickle stick in these, it broke the cookies.

Eyeball Cookies

To make the eyeballs, I dipped a golden Oreo in white dipping chocolate. 1 bag will easily make 20-25 cookies. I added a gummy saver before the chocolate set to make the iris, and a mini chocolate chip to make the pupil. 

Frankenstein Cookies

To make these, I used the Halloween spooky green melting chocolate by Wilton. You will need 1 bag for each 15 cookies you want to make. I again used golden Oreo's. Before the chocolate sets, use black sprinkles (or decorating sugar) to make some hair. Chocolate chips make great screws, and mini chocolate chips make great eyes. I use black gel icing to make the mouth, but is if I make them again, I will use chocolate in an icing bag.

Pumpkin Cookies



Again using golden oreo's, dip them in orange dipping chocolate. Like the green, you will need 1 bag per 15 cookies. I used black gel icing, but next time would use chocolate in a frosting bag. I had Sugar Daddy's to make stems, but they didn't stay in very well, and in the packing process, I took them out.

I learned that gel icing makes it impossible to put these in the cute treat bags. It sticks and leaves your face on the bag, not the cookie. So, the kids will have to make due with them being brought in on a platter. Hopefully they don't mind.

ZooBoo

Every year the Indianapolis Zoo does ZooBoo for Halloween. They decorate, have lots of activities for the kids to do, and even have trick-or-treat stations set up for kids to get some candy. It's a lot of fun! Everyone is in costume and it's the last time all of the animals are out for the year. (Something about African Plains animals not liking snow.)

This weekend, we took David. He was scared at first (he was not a fan of his costume), but once he got used it it, he had a lot of fun. We can always judge how much fun he is having by how few pictures we get, since we spend more time chasing and laughing with him.

Not so sure about this...





It's Tigger!!



Meerkat Love

Petting the ghost

Leaping Lizards!

Trick-or-Treat

Watching the bats

A real bear

Momma!!

It's a lot of walking for a little bear

Wordless Wednesday

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Ten on Tuesday

What is the worst compliment you have ever received?
Someone told me that I shouldn't be upset about my miscarriages, because "at least you have one amazing little boy." Whereas I see what she was trying to say (I do have a perfect little guy who I love more than anything), it doesn't mean that I can't be upset about loosing two other babies.

Did you/would you tell everyone the name of your baby before they were born, keep it a secret, or not choose until after they were born?
We didn't know the gender until he was born, so the name was a secret too. We didn't tell anyone the names that we had decided on. We are still keeping the girl name a secret just in case. I work in a Junior High, so finding a name that doesn't remind me of a kid is hard enough. I don't need others comments about name choice.

What is your favorite candle smell?
I love Clean Linen. So fresh!

What is the best birthday/Christmas gift you received when you were pregnant or the best birthday/Christmas gift you gave a pregnant person that was really appreciated?
Whoever bought the blanket that David now calls "bink" was a life saver. He loves that thing! For me, I had a couple of people get me pedicures while I was pregnant. I love that chair. I would marry it if I could (not really, but I do love that chair!).

Who was your favorite teacher?
I've had so many teachers over the years. Dave Courtright, my Sunday School teacher for years. Mr. Walker, my Anatomy and Physiology teacher. Mrs. Dodges, my English teacher. All of my band teachers. I could go on...

What is the best game/activity you have ever played at a baby shower?
At my shower, they had everyone put a piece of paper on their heads and draw a baby. It was funny to see what everyone ended up with.

What was your major in college and did you end up using it in your career?
I started as a Pharmacy major. After Organic Chemistry kicked my butt, I switched to Psychology with a minor in English. I went on to Grad School, and majored in School Counseling. I am now a Junior High Counselor.

What is a beauty product you swear by?
I'm a fan of my Bare Minerals foundation. It's an everyday necessity.

What is the kindest thing a stranger has ever done for you?
One helped me get my groceries out when David was throwing a tantrum. That man was heaven sent. I also had someone pay for my Starbucks one morning, so I paid for the person behind me. I hope that it kept going for a while.

If you could recommend one new baby necessity, what would it be?
I loved the swaddlers! We would not have made it through our ear infections without them.