Sam Loves “Pumpums”

Last year we decided Sam was still too small to really enjoy a pumpkin patch, besides the fact that by the time we thought to do it, it was too darn cold! So this year we decided that it was a first that we had to do.

Our first Pumpkin patch visit was in Hayden. We met our friends Amanda (who is a fantastic photographer), and her daughter Lilly early so we could enjoy the morning before it got too hot. The girls always love playing together, and Amanda and I love getting to hang out too, so it was the perfect opportunity spend time together, get outside, and to get some amazing pictures. We got to go on a covered wagon hay ride out to the pumpkin patch, and Sam and Lilly really seemed to enjoy themselves and each got a cute little pumpkin and even “posed” for some pictures. Lilly wasn’t a fan of the loud chickens or the hay, but for the most part they smiled and laughed. Amanda and I kept laughing as we were chasing after them, or saying “go, go, go” to speed things along. We had a wonderful morning but the heat got to be too much so we had to take an indoor shopping trip afterward. Thank you again Amanda for these beautiful shots!

Our second Pumpkin Patch visit was to Tate Farm in Meridianville. Sam’s Mimi and Granddad wanted to go with us and enjoy a day at the Cotton Pickin’ Pumpkin Patch, and I’m so glad we did. This was a much bigger deal and had a ton of stuff to do. We looked around, Sam got to swing and play in a bin of dried corn. They had a huge playground with slides that she kept wanting to go down. We even ran into a new friend from the library who has also joined our Mom and Tot group. We got to take a hayride to pick out a pumpkin, since Daddy was with us we got a much larger one this time, and only paid $5 for it! We got a bite to eat for lunch, where daddy bought Sam the sweetest little pumpkin sippy cup. Then we went through a hay maze, where we let Sam lead the way most of the time. She did pretty good for a 20 month old. After that we decided to try out the petting zoo, Sam loves animals and kept going in and out of the pins where you got to pet piglets, a sheep, a few goats, and some bunnies, and even got to see a calf. Our last thing to do before Sam started to drift off to sleep was a tractor/train ride. Daddy rode with her, and she proves to be quite the daredevil so I don’t think we will have any issues getting her to ride rides at Disney in the spring! It was the perfect day! Afterward we even went to the toy store where Sam got her picture made with Brobee from YoGabbaGabba! We love fall!

		Tate Farm VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

 

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Dear God,

Thank you for everything you do for us. Thank you for fall and for the time we get to spend with each other in the beauty of our surroundings. Thank you for our friends and family and for the memories that we are able to make with them, and for the memories we are able to capture in pictures. Thank you for my sweet precious daughter, and for her enjoyment of all of these amazing things. Thank you for reminding me of the childlike innocence that we all once had. Thank you so much for all that you do, please continue to bless our family and all of those around us.

AMEN

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Until I can get caught up!

Here is the link to all of my youtube videos.

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos?feature=mhee

I promise I am working on updating, just been so busy I haven't had a chance yet. :) Enjoy!!

20 months old!

My sweet girl is 20 months old. I can hardly believe it! She just keeps getting bigger and more fun, I love this age! She seems to add new words daily, she can feed herself with a fork or spoon (not always the cleanest, but she gets the job done), she also “feeds” her baby, and can tell me 18 animal sounds when asked during a song of Old McDonald, she is now calling some animals by name my favorite is “quirkle” aka turtle. She got all four eye teeth in at the same time, and I am convinced this is why we don’t remember being babies, those suckers have to hurt! When she does something wrong she sings the “I’m so sorry” song from YoGabbaGabba, and when she is sleepy she pretends to snore and asks to go “night night”. She shows empathy when someone is upset by patting them on the shoulder whether it’s me because she accidently hit me in the face for the hundredth time or a little girl at the park who is crying because she doesn’t want to leave. (Heart melted on that one, big time!!!). She calls her friends Lilly and Emma by name. She hears my nephew’s middle school band,  and shakes her booty like she has been dancing since birth. My daughter is amazing.

The not so wonderful part of toddlerhood is something I am ok with because I know that she will learn from me and herself. She learned that temper tantrums are normal, and ok to get frustration out, but not allowed in a parking lot with moving cars. She learned that mommy will let a lot of things slide, but hitting isn’t one of them. She learned that mommy will always be there during naptime, and that sometimes screaming it out is the only way for mommy to get a shower sometimes. Honestly the tantrums stink, I hate being the bad guy, but I’m her momma and it’s my job to teach her better ways to deal with anger, and ultimately that I will always love her no matter what. All discussions end with a hug and a kiss, or a nap, and I’ll enjoy it while it lasts because I have a feeling that when she is a teenager it wont.

Sam got to spend a lot of time with friends and family this month. We spent the day with the Watts family at the Depot Days festival and had a wonderful time. We had several playdates with Lilly and Emma, along with our trips to the library and walking. We made a trip to Albertville to visit the Great Grandparents and her other cousins were here too. They had such a great time playing with Mamo’s keyboard and riding on her walker while Leigh Ellen pushed them around.  My parents kept the other 4 grandchildren and brought them to my house to let them play after church . Sam always loves spending time with “Brambon and Braby” but she doesn’t see her other cousins very often. Sam kept kissing “baby” Mackenzie, and loved running around with Jakob since he is her size. Sam also got to see her first football game of the season while listening to her cousin Brady play in the band. She loves hearing him play the trumpet, and “helped” him practice a little bit.

I know I always say this, but this is my new favorite age. She is still little and snuggly but she talks and understands so much that she makes me think of a much older child. I love it!!!!

		20 months! VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

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Dear God,

Thank you for everything that you do for us. Thank you for our precious sweet daughter and all of the things she is doing. Thank you for our friends and family and all the time we have been able to spend with them. Thank you for watching over us and keeping her healthy this month. Thank you for letting me be here to watch her grow every day, I look back and can’t believe how much she has changed right before my eyes, and can’t imagine missing all of this. Thank you for the life that you have blessed us with, we are truly grateful for every single thing. Please help us to continue to live our lives through you, and to follow this beautiful path you have set before us. Thank you.

AMEN

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Happy Anniversaries

Can you believe that Patrick and I have been together for 11 years?! Me either! I mean I know that we know each other inside and out, that we have been through everything together, that we love each other as much or more than we did when we first started dating when we were 16, but it’s amazing how time has flown. Not to mention that 4 of those 11 wonderful years we have been happily married!  We decided to make this year special for just us, since last year we took a family vacation, and the year before we were pregnant and moving so we didn’t do a lot of anything. I planned our wedding anniversary date, and Patrick planned the weekend after.

		11 Years! VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

For our anniversary, Sam and I spent the morning at the store getting Patrick a bag of his favorite candy, my hubby has a sweet tooth, and then the afternoon playing. I had arranged for my parents to come up and watch Sam so that I could “surprise” (right, my husband spoils every surprise ever) Patrick and take him to a nice interruption free romantic dinner at his favorite steak place. My parents brought Sam some dinner and Patrick had a lovely time at dinner and even had an adult beverage with our meal. When we got back Sam was happy to see us, but had obviously had a great time with her Granna and Grandpa.

Patrick decided for his portion of the date, we would go away for the night, which meant leaving our sweet girl for the first time. I asked my parents if they would mind spending the night at my house, so Sam could be in her own surroundings sleep in her own bed, and hoped that she would have a good nights sleep for all of their sakes. My parents jumped at the opportunity as they are always offering to just take her home with them, but I’m obviously not quite ready for that. We spent the day with Sam’s Mimi, and then late afternoon she left and my parents came over to take the night shift. It was hard for me to say goodbye, I have never left for more than a few hours for a dinner and a movie, or to help with a shower, or to wrap Christmas presents. Right before we left Sam started running a little bit of a fever, I got out my charts and the tylenol for my mom to give her and told her to call if it went up. I was a little apprehensive, and to be honest I cried for a minute when we left the house, but Patrick reassured me she would be great, and so would we.

Fun with Granna and Grandpa VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

We went to Bridge Street in Madison so that we could have dinner, watch a movie, have some drinks and go back to the hotel without ever having to get in the car. As soon as we got there I called to check on Sam, and her fever was gone, what a relief. After that I felt like I could relax a little. We checked into our hotel, walked down to get dinner (ran into some good friends and talked for a minute) and started our night. After dinner we went and got some chocolate and white chocolate covered strawberries at a candy shop and took them back to the room so we could call Sam to say goodnight. We said prayers with her over the phone which made me feel better about not being there, and my mom said that she was asleep shortly after. We saw “DRIVE” at the theater, not exactly a romantic date movie, but we both enjoyed it and then we had a few drinks at the bar afterward. It was great to walk out of the theater and see only a couple of people in one of the busiest shopping centers around. We walked down the strip a bit just to enjoy the beautiful night, and to just be together like we had been when we first met. It was amazing! We are going to try to start doing this for ourselves once a year, for our anniversary of course, to be able to celebrate us as a couple, not just us as a family.

Weekend Getaway VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

When we got home, my parents had taken Sam to church with them. It gave me a chance to clean up and wash our clothes from our overnight bag. The best part was seeing Samantha’s face when she saw us back home. She missed us, and I missed her! I’m not sure if we will do another overnight alone anytime soon, but I’m glad she enjoyed herself, and we did too.

We also got some very sweet gifts for our special day. We decided the date, the candy I got Patrick and the flowers he got me were more than enough for us to do for each other. His parents got us a gift card to one of our favorite seafood resturants, and my parents not only gave us free babysitting but paid for our dinner on Saturday and my dad gave us a bottle of my favorite wine that he bought 4 years ago to give us later on. He decided that this year we had been through a lot and had earned it. It was the sweetest thing, especially since now there aren’t any of the wineries left in Alabama. It could be our last bottle.

Well that’s all for now. I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband and family!

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Dear God,

Thank you for everything that you do for us. Thank you for giving me my best friend for a husband 11 years ago. Thank you for letting us make it through the rough spots and for becoming a stronger and happier couple. Thank you for giving us this weekend away, and for letting Sam enjoy her weekend too. Thank you for our families, especially our parents. Please bless us with a lifetime of happiness and love. Please help us through our hardships so that we may grow even more as a couple and as a family. Please give us another 80 years to love each other. Thank you for everything you do for us.

AMEN

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