Tis the season!

After Thanksgiving dinner, we rested and then made plans to shop a little at Wal-Mart's midnight sale. When I say "we", I mean mom and I. Bruce stayed home with the girls and I left around 11:00 P.M to pick up mom. We were mainly going for the Shark Steam Mop. We weren't planning to "Christmas shop". We got our item when the store allowed the Black Friday items to be opened. We grabbed them and headed to check out shortly after. We got in line some time around 1:00 A.M. We didn't reach the check-our register until a few minutes after 3:00 A.M.

We had a good time. So much that we decided to head to Orlando on Saturday. We did a little more Christmas shopping. I prepared myself for crazy, but it wasn't at all. We were able to walk through the mall without any problems. We got checked out without any issues. The lines were pretty short. We had a great day. It was fun to see the mall decorated for the holidays - it gets you in the Christmas spirit. I can't wait to get my tree up. Bruce says he can wait!

Christmas decorating will be a little more adventurous this year. Emmalene will want to help. I'm sure those little hands will want to touch everything bright and shiny!

Madison wants us to decorate our front yard with junk, I mean yard art. I'm not a fan of yard art. Never have been! We'll be on the look out for tasteful items, I'll keep you posted on what "treasures" she finds!

Christmas is on the way. Our goal is to constantly remind ourselves what Christmas is really about. Just like everyone else, the commercial side of it tries to sneak into our home, but we'll keep pushing ourselves to see Christmas for what it really is about - JESUS - the best Christmas present EVER!!

Gobble Gobble

Our Thansgiving was wonderful! We stayed at home and invited Grandma, Grandpa and Mrs. Pemberton over for lunch. Our extended families were spending Thanksgiving with other family members and we decided to enjoy our feast at home.

Bruce's client, Mrs. Pemberton, was free this Thanksgiving and Bruce asked her to join us. She came over for lunch and seemed to enjoy herself.

We had way more food that we could ever eat! I cooked a turkey breast that had been soaked in a brine. It was fantastic!! I made it last year and this year Madison requested it. My dad grilled a turkey and we had lots of sides...Sweet Potato Souffle, greens, green beans, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, squash casserole, rolls, gravy, deviled eggs, relish tray, etc. Lots and lots of food! Emmalene dined on Stage 2 Gerber turkey, carrots and corn casserole. She isn't ready for table food yet. So, she had her own feast - jar style!

After lunch we sat down in the living for a long visit. Mrs. Pemberton headed home around 4:00 P.M. Grandma and Grandpa left around 5:00 P.M. Tjey helped us clean up the kitchen. We took the kids outside for a little bit to play. It was a great day!

Emmalene wore her "Gobble Gobble" onesie for Thanksgiving. She won't wear a bib. Everytime you slip one on her, she pulls it right off. I tried the ones with snaps, but she pulled so hard on it that she actually brought blood to the skin around her neck. So, no bibs for us. We just try to be extra careful not to get it on her clothes. We've got lots of oxi-clean!

You are...

Some time ago, I heard Joel Osteen (a television pastor and author) talking about speaking positive words over your children. He shared a story about his sister-in-law who everynight when she tucked her son into bed, spoke words of encouragement over her son. She would start by saying you are my superhero, you are my Buzz Light Year... Anyway, I thought that was really neat. So, I started it with Madison.

At first, I thought she'd think it was silly, but she didn't. She loved it! So, every night when I go to her room to tuck her in (you're never to old to be tucked in!), I start out by saying You are... One example of that is last night I said the following: You are going to be used by God in an amazing way. He's going to use your gift of words to bless people and encourage them possibly by writing cards or praying for them. You are the brightest star in the sky. You are the prettiest tulip in the garden. You are the smartest girl in your school. You are my sunshine. You are the face that I want to see as soon as I wake up every morning. And so on.

Well, one night I kissed her goodnight after prayers and walked out. She yelled out "Mom, you forgot to tell me who I am". So, I headed back in there to do what I started. It's become one of our nightly rituals and I'm so glad I started it. Everyone needs to know who they are!

Emmalene's First Car

Emmalene got this car for her birthday from Grandma & Grandpa. At first, she didn't know what to think about it. She soon realized how fun it was and relaxed and enjoyed the ride. One time we even saw her with her elbow propped on the door and her other hand on the wheel. We all took turns pushing her down the street. She didn't care who was in charge - she just wanted to keep moving!

Look at those eyes peering over the wheel!

Emmalene's 1st Birthday Cake

Emmalene's party was at our home. It was originally scheduled to be at Highlands Hammock. We booked a pavilion, but the cool weather changed our plans. We were afraid the wind was going to be too much. We moved it to our home and served chili. Our family and a couple close friends came by to join us in celebrating Emmalene's special day.

First Birthday Present Time

Emmalene was sitting on Daddy's lap and watched my every move. She's not "unwrapping" presents on her own, but the ones with tissue paper she could pull on a little bit. She needed pajamas and regular clothes, and she got them! She got a few cozy ones and dressy ones as well. When I would hold up the clothes, she would take them out of my hand and touch them. She loves clothes/laundry. One of her favorite things is to pull the laundry out of the basket as I unload the dryer.

Emmalene's First Cupcake

These photos are out of sequence, but they capture the first of the first! Emmalene wasn't happy after she put her hands in the icing of her cupcake. She immediately started crying. She was fine pointing at it, looking at it, but touching it turned her off quickly! She's not on table food yet, so I'm sure just touching it was strange.

The cupcakes were yellow cake with buttercream icing. The cake was a Creamy Coconut Cake with a jungle theme. In future post, you'll see the dessert table.

Bye - Bye

Emmalene was waving bye bye to the party guest as they headed out from her 1st Birthday! Every morning when Madison leaves for school and Bruce leaves for work, Emmalene waves to them as they drive away. Sometimes this is delayed waving, after they're already out-of-sight, but she bids them farewell in her own timing.

Cousins

Mark, Madison and Emmalene are all cousins. Mark is 11, Madison is 11, and Emmalene is 1. Madison and Emmalene's middle name is Noel. Mark's middle name is Leon which is Noel spelled backwards! Just a little something that they'll always have in common!

A computer - Can I touch?

Well, sure you can if it's at Grandpa's! Emmalene was sitting on Grandpa's lap and punching away at the keys. She then moved to the monitor which is full of little fingerprints now! That's okay - Grandpa said she could!

Emmalene's First Haircut

Emmalene had been needing a trim for awhile, but I couldn't bring myself to cutting it. After trying to keep a bow in her hair (worked for awhile until she started pulling it out), I knew the time had come. I took her over to mom's house and she trimmed the little piece in the front that was down to her nose. We left the sides for now.

Mom has a highchair in the kitchen that we buckled her in. She then snipped the piece in the front, but it was no small project. She was twisting and turning trying to see and touch the comb everytime it passed by her face.

Grandpa and Daddy tried to get her attention by making her laugh. It worked!

Toe Shoes

Madison has been dancing since she was four. She loves ballet and has been with the same studio all of these years. Ms. Amy, the dance instructor, told the class that they were ready for toe shoes in August. They had until October 19th to purchase them (they're not sold in the studio) and bring them back for their official practice on that date. Madison asked everyday when we were going to buy the shoes.

Miss Amy recommended a store in Ft. Myers and we made plans to travel down there on October 2nd. Well, October 2nd couldn't come quick enough! The owner of the store, seen on the left side of the photo holding Madison's hands, was just as excited as Madison was about toe shoes. She was great! She spent a lot time explaining how the shoes needed to be cared for and how to prepare them for her first practice. She taught us how to stitch the ribbons and elastic around the heels. The purchase of the shoes came with a key chain shaped like a ballet shoe which she hung on her school backpack. Grandma & Grandpa surprised all of us by purchasing the shoes for Madison. THANK YOU Grandma & Grandpa! That was a hugh blessing!!


October 19th arrived and Madison was ready for her first practice. She was sooooo excited! She'd wear those shoes to bed if we'd let her! Miss Amy gave them exercises to do at home to help their toes and feet adjust to the new shoes. She wears toe pads to cut down on the pain of being on her toes, but she never complains! She loves it! Her recital is in May and they're busily practicing once a week in the studio to prepare. As the recital draws closer, practices will be more often.

The store owner told Madison that she has perfect feet for toe shoes and she was impressed with how straight she stood immediately after putting on the shoes. This girls a born dancer!

Once upon a time...

there was a little girl named Emmalene who loved books!

Emmalene has a square full of books in the book shelf. She pulls all of her books out at once and then sits down and looks at them. Her favorite ones are the touch and feel books. The kind with texture such as fur on the rabbit and whiskers on the cat. When she's done looking at her books, she then pulls down all of the other books when we're not quick enough to catch her!