Children's Museum

I started this post a while ago, but I am just now getting a chance to finish it.  I decided to just do a short explanation & pictures instead of doing a really long post about each thing we did.

Terry & I took Natalee to the Mississippi Children's Museum a couple of weeks ago.  It was a first for all of us & it was so much fun!  Definitely worth the $8 a piece to get in!  They have so much stuff for the kids to do!  They have five basic themes that provide the content base for the museum exhibits: Mississippi Heritage in the Exploring Mississippi Gallery, Literacy in the Wild About Reading Gallery, Health & Nutrition in the Healthy Fun Gallery, The Arts in the Express Yourself Gallery, and Mississippi Industry in the World At Work Gallery.

Scrabble!

Loading the dishwasher

Doing the laundry

Grocery Shopping for Veggies

Scanning the groceries

Makin' music in the music room

Driving the boat

After the MCM, we decided to treat Natalee to a Gigi's cupcake.  OMG!  They are to die for!

This is the Birthday Surprise.  Delish!

Afterwards, we went by Babies R Us to pick up a few things for the baby.  On the way out, we stopped by Applebee's in Madison, then headed home.  Except for the rain, all in all, it was a wonderful day!



February

Not much happened in February.  Nothing too exciting went on.  We did end up going to the Children's Museum, but that will be in another post.

Natalee has watched Tangled one too many times.  She refused to wear her hair any way except in a braid for much of February.  She still likes the braids, but now wants a ponytail so she can be a cheerleader.  She says cheerleaders wear ponytails & bows, so she wants to wear it.

Our doctor appointments went to every two weeks.  Everything is starting to seem too real!  I took the 1 hour gestational diabetes test, on a Wednesday and failed.   I went back that Friday for the 3 hour.  Luckily I only had to get my finger pricked 3 times instead of 4 cause I passed after the 2nd hour!  Terry & I went to the hospital & pre-registered while I was off that day.  We went to eat at this nice little Italian place.  They have the best Italian food & is super cheap!  We got a pizza, salad, fried ravioli & two drinks for $25!  Not bad I thought!  We got the oil changed then headed to Winona.  We stopped at Special Treasures so I could get my early Valentine's present...a pair of Toms!  I love them. I had been wanting some but really couldn't see paying $50 for a pair of shoes.  Now that I'm pregnant & my feet are starting to swell, I thought they would be the most comfortable, so I had to get them.

While we were at the hospital pre-registering, we got some sad news.  Mamaw Woodard, Irene's mom, passed away early that morning.  Her visitation & funeral were that following Sunday.  It was a sad day, but we know she is no longer suffering.  She was a wonderful woman who loved to cook & decorate cakes.

Natalee got addicted to a new song.  She started singing Red Solo Cup by Toby Keith.  She knows it just about word for word!  It's hilarious to listen to her!  If I can ever find my recorder, I will get a video of her & upload it, but I have no clue where it went!

For Valentine's, Terry, Natalee & I went to eat.  We went to Flatland Grill & had a great dinner.  We then went to Wal-Mart!  Natalee & I got Terry a movie he had been wanting for Valentine's and Natalee got to pick out a Barbie.  We were all happy! We have gotten to the point that Valentine's is just another day to us, but we like to do something for Natalee on holidays so we usually go eat and get her a little something.

February 21 was a bittersweet day for me.  I got our baby girl registered for K-3.  Yes, in August she will be starting school!  I can't believe our baby is growing up!  Natalee is excited about going to school.  She asks every day if she gets to go that day.  I've tried explaining to her that she will get to go in about 5 more months & her little sister will be here before she goes, but she doesn't quite understand yet.

January

Instead of posting on each event, especially since there really wasn't anything special going on, I will just catch up on what happened in January.

Terry had to work New Year's Eve, so Natalee & I went to moms.  Andy, Kerry, Sandy, Dustin & a bunch of his friends were there.  We just sat around and had finger foods.  Didn't really do much.  In fact, everyone left before 10:00! We went home & Natalee went to sleep.  I stayed up & watched the ball drop, but was in the bed not long after.

On Monday, Jan. 2, Shane, Ryan & Dustin went to Memphis to see WWE in person.  We had so much fun watching for them on TV that night.  Natalee was scared though.  She though Ryan was gonna fight "the bad guys" (in her words).  They got a lot of "air time" & even got up close to one of the wrestlers.  I know some of you don't know what they look like, but here is a link to some of the pics they are in:  http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/2012-01-02/sheamus-the-miz-photos

The next Monday, Jan. 9 was the BCS bowl game.  Alabama vs. LSU rematch.  It was a good game!  The first game LSU whooped the mess out of the Tide, but this game...let's just say LSU couldn't even get past the 50 yard line!  It was a SHUTOUT!  The third in LSU history & the first in BCS bowl game history!  Roll Tide Roll!!

Natalee ended up getting an upper respiratory infection in the middle of January.  She was coughing so bad & had a high fever.  I can't stand to see baby girl so sick!  She was supposed to go to have her teeth cleaned with Daddy & Irene on a Thursday but ended up feeling bad, so she wasn't able to make it.  That afternoon when I got off, Irene & I took her to the after hours clinic.  She had almost 103 fever when we left (about 5:30).  She had been given Tylenol at 4 & her fever was still over 102 when we got to the clinic!  She stayed home that Friday & the next Monday, but was feeling lots better by Tuesday!

The last weekend of January, Natalee went with BB to Louisiana. They went to visit with Carol & Madison.  She had so much fun!  They went to a Japanese restaurant & Natalee talked about the man and the fire for a long time!  Of course, she didn't eat anything, but she enjoyed it.

This is on their way back home.

Hope you all had a great first month of 2012!

Catching up

I know I'm behind, but I've been busy at work then by the time I get home, this pregnancy has me all worn out.  I have got to get everything caught up soon though!  Don't want to be too behind when little Miss Sadie Grace makes her appearance!  I have at least gotten through Christmas, so that puts me only two months behind, so hopefully I can get caught up within the next week or so!  I will add pictures to all the posts I have already done sometimes this weekend, if I find a chance between a baby shower & getting the baby's room in order! 

Christmas - The End

Dec. 24, mom & Callaway had their annual Christmas Eve "get-together", so we went over there for a little while.  Natalee made some cookies for Santa.  She did a great job at cutting them out & decorating them! I think she got more flour on her & the floor than the cookies though!  She even had to put some on papaw's nose!  She loves to help me bake cookies & cupcakes.  We sat around socialized with everyone & ate some snack foods.  We were all gathered around when there was a knock at the door.  Natalee ran to see who it was & she started screaming!  It was SANTA CLAUS!  She was so excited!  He brought her a present & told her he would come back after she went to bed to leave more!  She got a "cool" (her words) pair of Princess pajamas.  She had to put them on right then!  We went home & FINALLY got Natalee in the bed! She was one wore out little girl!

Christmas morning, we were up at 5!  Since Terry had to leave for work at 7, we got up early so he could see what Santa brought and open presents with mom & Callaway.   I got Natalee up & took her into the living room.  She was soooooo excited to see what Santa brought.  She got a salon/vanity, roller skates (which is all she asked for for several months), a Melissa & Doug Trunki (suitcase), some games for her Innotab (which she got for her b-day), a red tutu & butterfly wings, make-up, jewelry, movies, Candyland game, Color Wonder book & light up markers, a Minnie Mouse flashlight that shows pictures on a wall, paints & paintbrushes for her easel, and a stocking full of stuff!  She loved everything! 

When we got to mom's, they were waiting on us.  Natalee opened the first present & got the only thing she had been telling Nana she wanted for a month....Uno Moo!  She loves this game!  We went in with Brandi & Dustin & got Callaway a gift he had been asking for for a long time....since he was 15, if you ask him.  It was an authentic Arkansas Razorback helmet.  It is gorgeous! He put it on & didn't want to take it off.  We thought he would wear it all day, but luckily that didn't happen!   We got most of the presents opened before Terry had to leave.  The only thing he didn't get to open was a gift for both of us & we both knew what it was....a new TV!!!  We really needed a flat screen to open up the living room & that's what we got!  After all the presents were open, we ate breakfast then went to Debbie's, to see what Ryan & Katie Lauren got. 

Since I had to make a corn casserole for granny's house, I went home to get that ready, then everyone came to the house to see what Natalee had gotten.  According to them....too much!  And they were right, she did get too much, but it was her last Christmas as an only child, so we decided to make it special!  Natalee & I went to granny's around 4 to see if she needed any help.  We got tables set up & supper finished, while we waited on everyone else to get there.  We ate around 5:30 or so & got the living room cleaned back up.  Then it was time to open presents.  The kids got their stockings first.  Natalee got some Dora cards & some candy.  Brandi played Santa & handed out the gifts this year.  When we do it, we hand them out one by one so we can see what each person got.  Ryan was wanting this one game for his PS3 & was so upset when he didn't get it.  Needless to say, Henry & Hope played a trick on him & it was the very last present handed out!  He was in heaven then!  Natalee & Carter loved playing with each other & their toys.  Carter got Sock Em, Bop Em & I think Ryan & Henry enjoyed it more than Carter did! That's ok though, cause he played with Natalee & her toys!

We had a very long & enjoyable Christmas holiday.  Hope you all did too!

Christmas - Part 2

On Friday, Dec. 23, Daddy & Irene came to the house to celebrate Christmas.  Terry had to work that afternoon, so we did breakfast/brunch.   We had breakfast casserole, monkey bread, chocolate chip crescents, cinnamon rolls & orange juice.  I'm sure I forgot something but this is what I can remember!  We sat around, played with Natalee, ate, & opened presents.  I don't remember everything Natalee got, but I know she got a TON of movies and a few clothes.  I got some cupcake decorating things & some cookbooks.  Daddy also made all of us (me, Terry, Brandi & Byron) a Redneck Wineglass with our initials!  Too cute!  Again, I'll post pics as soon as I can!

Christmas - Part 1

After our appointment on Dec. 22, we headed to Stewart.  We had Christmas with The Mitchell's that night.  Since Mrs. Delma provided all of the food for Thanksgiving, Terry & I decided to provide the food for Christmas.  He was given a ham from one of his jobs, so we cooked that, along with corn casserole, english peas and cheese & spaghetti.  Mrs. Delma provided the homemade rolls, homemade cinnamon rolls, a lemon pie & a pecan pie.  It was all delish!  We sat around, ate, visited, played with Natalee & opened gifts.

When we first got there, Natalee gave them their present to open to find out the sex of the baby!  They loved it & were surprised!

Natalee had so much fun!  She loves going to Mamaw & Papaw Mitchell's! She got a Tangled guitar, a camera & bag, a vtech kidijamz, some clothes & several other things.

 I got a gorgeous pair of cowboy boots!  Love them! Can't really remember what Terry got.  I know it was a couple of pair of jeans, a pocket knife & a laptop bag.

After we left Stewart, we went to mom's to give them their "baby" gift.  They all thought it was a boy!  They sure were shocked! But they loved it!  We took granny hers and she loved it too!  We then went home & rested for the rest of the holiday festivities!

Christmas Happenings

Saturday before Christmas, Terry, Natalee & I loaded up & headed south.  We went to Madison to eat supper then headed back north to Canton.  We took Natalee to see "Canton - the City of Lights".  It was amazing!  She had a blast & loved looking at all the Christmas lights.  They had the whole town square lit with different scenes, the courthouse was beautiful, a giant Christmas tree that was GORGEOUS, a couple of carousels, a train, a horse & carriage, & so much more!  When we first got there, we stood in line for the carousel for probably close to an hour.  Natalee wanted mommy to ride with her.  She picked her a horse & we got on.  It didn't really look safe to begin with but Natalee wanted to ride so we did.  Once it got going it was going really fast & Natalee started crying.  She kept saying "It's going too fast!  I want off!", but we couldn't just hop off so we had to finish the ride.  It was kind of wobbly too.  That is the only thing we rode though, cause it was really cold & so crowded.  So we ended up walking around the square, taking pictures, & looking at all the beautiful lights.  Before we left, we stopped by the book store for some hot chocolate.  Yeah, it was not good!  All in all we had a blast & Natalee had so much fun!

Mommy & Natalee riding the Carousel

The courthouse was beautiful!

Daddy & Natalee

Some of the decorations

Natalee LOVED all of the Christmas decorations.  She even had her own tree in her room.  The weekend after Thanksgiving, Pete the Elf, came back to visit Natalee.  She really enjoyed looking for him every morning!  I TRIED to remember to get a picture of him in all the places he liked to hide & all the things he liked to get into, but I think there were a few I missed (of course!).   He was caught in the tree with a half eaten candy cane, in the basket of ornaments on the counter, in the Halloween candy, in the cabinet in a glass....you can imagine what kind of mischief he got into!

Natalee's tree

Some of the Mis-Adventures of Pete below...

got on mommy's computer

Got caught in the chandelier

Even got in the Halloween Candy!

Found him a swing!

The "flour" note Pete left for Natalee on Christmas morning!

It's a....

GIRL!  On Natalee's birthday, Dec. 22, we had our ultrasound appointment.  I planned to have it that day, since I would be off & I wanted Natalee to have something special to remember her third birthday by, after all it would be her last as an only child!  Our appointment was for 2:15.  They took me back & did what they needed to do to get all of the measurements & everything.  The tech went & got Natalee & Terry.  Natalee was kind of scared at first.  She kept saying she didn't want to get a shot.  I kept telling her we were at my doctor, not hers, but it still didn't help.  Terry had to hold her the whole time.  The tech showed her the baby & where the arms & lets were.  She then let us hear the heartbeat.  Natalee was so excited to see her little brother or sister on the "tv screen".  The baby was stuck in one position & did NOT want to move, but the tech finally got her to wiggle enough that we could tell it was a girl!  Natalee was super excited!  She & Terry kept saying it was a girl the whole time, but mommy just knew it was a boy!  Boy, was I wrong!  No one thinks it's a girl though.  Everyone still thinks it's a boy, but we have proof she's a she!

To tell all of the parents, we wrapped little bottles filled with strawberry (pink) malted milk balls.  I had a poem attached that read: "Pink or blue, which will it be, open this present & you will see!".  They then opened & saw the pink!  It was cute!

We have had a hard time coming up with a name for this little girl.  There are several names out there that I love, but Terry wasn't thrilled about any of them.  We had finally narrowed it down to Sadie Grace & Lillian "Lily" Brooke.  Natalee keeps calling her Sadie Grace, so it looks like that will be her name!  I love it!  Not too many people in the family like it, but the way I see it, is they got to name their kids, so let me name mine! LOL

Natalee turns THREE!

Wow, it's hard to believe our baby girl is THREE!  Seems like yesterday was the Christmas Eve we got to bring her home from the hospital!

Her official birthday wasn't until Dec. 22, but we had her party on Saturday, Dec. 10 (my b-day) at a local cabin.  It's a really nice cabin that is only a huge living room, a really nice kitchen, a bathroom & a really nice deck surrounding it, overlooking a pond.  Since it was big enough to hold everyone & was FREE! we decided it would be the best place for a birthday party!  We had her party at 10:00 that morning & had a breakfast bar.  It consisted of blueberry & strawberry muffins, bacon, cheese & egg muffin cups, powdered donuts, chocolate covered donuts, sausage balls, Sunny D & milk.

Natalee decided she wanted a kitty cat theme, so we went with Hello Kitty.  It was too cute.  Just wish I had more decorations than I did, but it all worked out great!  We (the kids) played Pin the Tail on the Donkey & had some balloons they were playing with.  I think they really enjoyed themselves.

She had so many people show up and more kids were there this year than there had ever been.   After we all enjoyed breakfast, we opened presents.  Natalee got so many toys, I think she still has some she hasn't played with! And on top of that she still had Christmas to go! We then enjoyed chocolate or vanilla cupcakes with pink frosting & vanilla ice cream!  I think everyone had fun!