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Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

Roar!!!

Sunday evening we took the baby to our church's annual fall festival. He had a blast. They had a "jumpy slide thingy", a train that the kids could ride, hot dogs, a cake walk and Smores! Yummy! It was very cold but we were able to warm up by the fire while we roasted the marshmallows for our Smores. The baby was bundled and warm in his Lion costume.......ROAR......and giggled as he saw the other kids in their costumes.



His cousin, who we like to call "Hay-Hay", was dressed as "Bob the Builder".



Who doesn't love a good ole' fashioned cake walk? That's me holding "Hay-Hay's" hand and my mom holding the baby's hand.


It was a fun day!

Goodbye curls.....hello little man!

My baby is growing up way too fast. On Saturday we took him for his first haircut. No more beautiful blonde curls...... but it was time. He was such the little man sitting there like a big boy in my lap while the nice lady cut his hair. I took his portable DVD player with us because I just knew he would not be still long enough to cut one snip of hair much less a whole head of hair. So he sat there in my lap, watching his favorite Elmo DVD and snacking on his banana puffs. He barely moved. Occasionally he would turn around in my lap and look at me as to say "Mommy, are you still here?"



The beautician said that he won the best behaved baby award.....she obviously does not know the power of banana puffs and Elmo! She saved his curls in a ziplock bag and gave him a "First Haircut Certificate". He looks like a little man now intead of "my baby". Gone are the days when he would let me rock him to sleep and actually sit still long enough for me to sing him a lullaby or read him a book. Oh how I miss those days!

I guess I should be careful what I wish for!

A few weeks ago the baby finally started walking. He was "cruising" around the house holding on to the chairs, the walls and anything else he get his hands on until finally it happened. He just let go and walked clear across the room. I have to admit, when I saw him do this for the first time I had a lump in my throat and it took all I had to hold back the tears (if you are a parent you will understand).

The baby was a little late learning how to walk. We took him to the doctor about 3 weeks ago for his 15 month check-up. I was a little concerned because he was 15 months and had not started walking on his own. Most babies, from what I had heard and read started walking by at least 13 months. His pediatrician did his exam and watched the baby "cruise" around the exam room without letting go. After examining his ears, his pediatrician determined that he had fluid on his ears and said that the fluid could cause the baby to feel like he is off balance, keeping him from wanting to let go and walk on his own. He prescribed nasal spray to help clear up the fluid in his ears and 3 weeks later he is walking.....Yippee!

I wish I had pictures to post of him walking but to be quite honest I can't keep him still long enough to take a picture. He has definitely been keeping me on my toes the past few weeks which partly explains why I have neglected my blogger duties. Hopefully I will have pictures to post at a later date. Uh Oh....gotta go. I hear the baby dragging my pots and pans out of the kitchen cabinet. That is his favorite thing to play with now....mommy's pots and pans.

Okay, so I lied when I said "a few pictures".....

Where was I?

Sorry that I have been neglecting my blog the past few days but I have been taking care a sick baby. I hope to get back to my normal blogging routine soon.

I do want to post some quick pictures from our trip to "The Cotton Pickin' Country Fair" this past weekend. I promised I would and I always keep my promise. We had so much fun and food! Hope you enjoy.

TGIF

Thank goodness it's Friday! I have had such a busy week with work, laundry and all the day to day mommy duties.....not to mention the fact that we are having a slight ant problem at The Hinesley House. Did I mention that I hate ants?

I am so looking forward to the weekend and a fun-filled weekend it will be!!! Not to give out too much information (yall' will just have to wait until Monday for all the details) but tomorrow the hubby, the baby and I are going to a local country fair. I could really get into a lot of trouble at these things.....with all the crafts, antiques and such....not to mention all the yummy food. I can't wait, and I will be sure to take lots of pictures to post on Monday.

Sunday is church, then after church we are planning on going out to eat for the hubby's birthday. His birthday was on Monday but we decided to wait and celebrate after church on Sunday. Happy birthday babe! After lunch it's the usual, boring, house cleaning/laundry catch-up day but don't tell my Granny.....she would have a fit if she found out I was doing housework and laundry on a Sunday. I guess a mommy has to do what a mommy has to do.

I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend!

My First Award!

I would like to thank the Academy, my family…..oh wait….sorry wrong speech! That was the speech I have prepared for when I win a Grammy. Let’s see, my first BLOG award. Oh yeah…..here we go.....

All joking aside, I would REALLY like to thank Reynie at "God, Do you hear this Southern Girl Rambling?" for my first blog award. Thanks Reynie for thinking of me. I guess that means we are “blogging friends forever”. If you haven’t already stopped by Reynie’s blog please do so. I love her blog and you will too!


Now, as with every blog award, there are a few rules that must be followed. These rules are:

1. You may only choose five people/blogs to give the award to...
2. Four have to be dedicated followers of your blog...
3. One has to be a new follower of your blog, or live in another part of the world...

Wow, five dedicated followers? I am some what new to blogger world so I don’t even know if I have any followers….ha ha. Well, here goes nothing…..I choose to present this award to the following bloggers:

Straight From the Heart
Good Times with the Garretts
Sunflower Hill Diary
Southern Values

As for my “new follower” , since I don’t know any bloggers in another part of the world just yet, I choose Daphine over at "Just Stuff". Congratulations ladies and gentlemen (yes, there is one gentlemen in my blogger list) and thanks again Reynie!

The Baby's 1st Birthday!

Today I would like to reflect on a very special day in my son's life.....his first birthday! The baby, as I like to refer to him, turned one last June and we celebrated with family and friends. The celebration was outdoors at my parent's house. I knew that I wanted an outdoor party and it made sense to have it at their house since they have a lot more land than I do. It was a beautiful summer day. He had an Elmo themed party so I made an Elmo cake. We prepared hamburgers, hotdogs, coleslaw and baked beans....yummy!



The baby wasn't too sure what he was supposed to do with the cake but after a while he figured it out! He had cake from head to toe! We literally had to give him a bath before he opened his gifts. Notice in the picture below he is in a different outfit and his hair is wet.



My dear friend and co-worker Stephanie put together a video of all his pictures from birth to 12 months and put them to music. We played the video at his party for all the family to see. It was very sweet. Thanks Steph!



He enjoyed opening all the gifts but I think he enjoyed playing with all the paper more. Go figure!



The Hubby and I got him a Radio Flyer wagon for his birthday. It is a two-seater with seatbelts as well as a canopy attachment for shade. He loves it and to this day he enjoys going for afternoon walks with mommy and daddy in it.




It was a great day!

Sunday Rest

"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

I've been tagged!!!

I just found out that I was tagged by my good blogger friend April at "Straight From The Heart". I have never been tagged before so bear with me. I think it means that I am supposed to list six random things about myself. Here goes nothing.....

1. I am terrified of storms. I am not as terrified as I used to be when I was little but I have to admit I get a little uneasy whenever there is a bad storm in our area. When I was little and in school while it was storming I would "act" sick so that my parents would have to come and pick me up from school. Pretty sad huh?

2. I used to drink pickle juice when I was younger. I have my aunt Debbie to thank for this unusual craving although I have not done this since I was about 14 years old. Occasionally when I was younger I would pour me a glass of pickle juice and drink away. Don't ask me why I did this though.

3. When I was in high school I was a "Marching Indian". I was on the dance line/colorguard for 3 years in our high school marching band. During that time I traveled to London and marched in London's New Years day parade. I actually met the queen of England which was so amazing! We also traveled to New York and marched in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade...Rest in peace Mr. Easterwood!

4. Right now the gas tank in my car is on empty and there is not a single gas station in my area that has gas. If you live in Georgia then you can probably feel my pain with this one.

5. I am lucky enough to be able to wear "scrubs" to work which is like wearing your pajamas. I work in the medical field so "scrubs" are the clothing of choice for me.

6. My first car was a 1998 Ford Probe. It was silver, had a sunroof and I thought I was "the stuff". I remember all my friends piling in my car after school everyday to go "joyriding". If only I knew then what I know now......Seatbelts save lives!

There......that wasn't so hard!

Now, if your tagged,this is what you do:

1. Post the rules on your blog
2. Write 6 random things about yourself
3. Tag 6 people
4. Please pass it along for fun...

Let's see......I tag:

Carrie's Family
Good Times With The Garretts
Sunflower Hill Diary
Shell in your Pocket
The Berry's Patch
The Shabby Nest

Yall have fun!

Under Construction!

I would like to send out a huge thank you to Debbie at "Shell in Your Pocket" for helping me with my blog design. As I have said before, I am a computer dork and I was in need of some serious "blog layout" help. Debbie instructed me on how to change my template around and I am very thankful. She is a sweet lady that Debbie!

My blog layout is still a work in progress mainly because I can't decide on what background to use (seasonal or neutral.....I can't decide). If you check in on my blog often, you may witness the blog identity crisis that I am struggling with. I will be changing it around a little until I can decide on which one I like best so please excuse the mess.

Thursday Thirteen: Happy Fall Yall’

Monday marked the beginning of the Autumn Season so what better way to kick off my first "Thursday Thirteen" post by listing thirteen reasons why I love Fall.

1. The weather: I just love the cool, crisp days of fall and I enjoy being able to spend time out doors without sweating to death or having my toes and fingers fall off due to frost bite. The temperature is just right!

2. The Fall foliage: The leaves on the trees are so beautiful and make for a picture perfect day.


3. Trick-or-Treat: Last year The baby dressed up as “Tigger” which was so much fun! He was a little too young to remember but it was still fun for mommy and daddy. He was so cute in his costume. I am already checking out costume ideas for this year. Hmmm….what shall he be this year??



4. Football season: There is nothing like going to a football game on a Friday night. Sadly, so far this year I have not been able to catch a game but you better believe I will be at a football game on a Friday night very soon. I like college football okay (Go Dawgs) but I love to visit my old high school football games more.

5. Pumpkins: This year, now that the baby is old enough, I would really like to start a family tradition of visiting our local Pumpkin Patch. Not only is it fun but it also makes for cute pictures.

6. Fall Consignment Sales: I love a good bargain and every year around this time one of our local churches hosts their annual Children’s Fall Consignment Sale to benefit their preschool program.

7. Trips to the mountains: There is no better time to take a day trip or a weekend trip to the mountains. The leaves are changing and it is so beautiful.

8. The Fair: In our town the fair usually comes around the same time of year and that is usually RIGHT NOW. Yes boys and girls, the fair is in town and there is nothing like a good ole’ fair corndog. Smear some mustard and ketchup on that puppy and I say “yummers to my tummers”!

9. Snuggling up with my hubby: Enough said!

10. Candles: I like a lot of candles in my house and I love lighting everyone of them. For some reason I usually light them a lot more around this time of year.

11. Soup and cornbread: Yummy! I just made a huge bowl of homemade soup over the weekend. It is delicious. I will have to post the recipe on a later date.

12. Thanksgiving: This is my favorite time of the year (along with Christmas) because it is the time of year when you give recognition for all the blessings that God has given you. God has given me many blessings this year (that sounds like a good Thursday Thirteen post “Thirteen blessings of God” although I can name a lot more than thirteen. I also love Thanksgiving because you are able to get together with family and eat lots of yummy dishes.

13. Yard Sales: Nothing like waking up on a cool, crisp Saturday morning in search of treasures. I have recently found a new love for this pastime from reading all the blogs in blogger world. It is amazing what some of you have found at yard sales!

Wordless Wednesday

My car stays very thirsty these days!

Meet "The Hubby"

Ok ladies....try not to be too jealous about my next post but I am married to the best husband ever! Three years ago last May I was lucky enough to be able to marry my best friend and ,besides the day that my son was born, it is without a doubt one of the best days of my life.

We actually met through his mom. I was working for a local doctor's office and she just so happened to be my boss. One day out of the blue she came to me and said "I want to introduce you to my son". I know, no pressure right? Well, at the time I wasn't so sure it was a good idea, I had just gotten out of a two year relationship and I wasn't ready to start the whole dating thing again. A few months passed and she mentioned introducing us again so I said "Ok". We went out on our first "date" at "Judgement Journey" in Lagrange. It wasn't an official date because he was a Youth Minister at the time and he was there on a youth trip but I agreed to meet him there. I was so glad that I did because since that night we have been inseperable. We would talk on the phone for hours and hours after that first date. I could not even tell you what we talked about. I just liked hearing his voice. A few years later we were married.

I can't tell you how many times I have come home from a hard days work and he has had supper on the table and clothes in the wash. He is always willing to help out around the house from doing laundry while watching the Georgia game or doing the dishes. Not only is he my best friend but he is the best daddy that any 15 month old could ask for. "The Baby" adores him and his eyes light up when he walks into the same room. I am so grateful and thank God everyday that he brought "The Hubby" into my life....with a little help from "The Hubby's" mom of course.

Meet "The Baby"

Meet my 15 month old who I will refer to as "The baby". Yes, he does have a real name, however, I guess I am a little paranoid when it comes to using real names when blogging on the web (mainly because my mother has put all these horror stories in my head about using personal information on the internet). Anyways, where was I? Oh yeah, The baby is 15 months old and he is my only child. He was born on June 23, 2007 which was one of the best days of my life and also one of the worst. Let me explain........"The baby" was born by c-section at 3:34pm and he was beautiful and perfect in so many ways. Everything was fine until the doctors discovered that "The baby" was born with a congenital heart defect called Pulmonary Stenosis (when the pulmonary valve in the heart is narrow or blocked). He had to have emergency surgery at Childrens' Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston and spent 5 days in the CICU there.


Those were the longest five days of my life. I was horrified and to be quite honest there were several times I thought I would never bring my baby home from the hospital. Thankfully I was wrong and "The baby" is doing well as you can see. He has had no problems from his heart surgery and he has gotten a clean bill of health. He is growing like a weed and is into everything since he just started walking. I am so thankful that God answered our prayers and that we were blessed with a healthy baby boy.

Hello blogger world......

This is my first post in blogger land and I am hoping that I can find enough to talk about. Please excuse any grammer issues that I may have as well as run on sentences......I can tend to get carried away sometimes so I am apologizing in advance. I have enjoyed reading many of your blogs for several months and decided, what the hay, I am going to give this a try myself. This is pretty easy so far. I hope in the future I can come up with some interesting and amusing stories. For now, I think I will end my first official blog post. Until next time....