Little Red Wagon

(FYI, I drafted this post in my head many different ways, but somehow it's not coming out right as I type. I'm too taken up with emotions over this that it's hard to put into words!)

Many years ago, my granddaddy made me & my brother a little red wagon. A hand-made Radio Flyer...haha! No really, my granddaddy was a very handy man. My brother inherited this wagon as the years went on and it has been in pieces in his attic for quite some time.

Well, not anymore. Spence gave Caroline the most special Christmas gift ever. He spent many weeks sanding, painting, putting together and making this wagon safe for Caroline. I cried and cried and cried when I opened the big bag it was in...I had no idea!!! It just brought back so many memories for me and not to mention how special I thought this was for Spence to do this for us. He could have easily kept this wagon for his two children (and one on the way, I might add) but he was kind enough to let Caroline have it.


As you can see below, Caroline has had a great time in it. I hope she will enjoy this as much as Spence, my cousins and I have over the years.

I'm trying to find a picture of my Granddaddy's shed at their house...it has a slight incline to walk up into it and I used to looooove to be pushed down that incline in the wagon. But, the funny thing is, I used to think that hill was soooooo steep and it made me go soooooo fast. But, to look back at it now, the incline is no bigger than one step up. I will upload a picture once I can find one!

(PS - this post still didn't come out as I had wanted it. I can't quit tearing up to get a full thought on here.)

Thank you, Spence - you have no idea how much this means to me.

Giving Sydney extra hugs, too!

Fit for a queen

Me, Caroline & Spence

Christmas Card 2010

Christmas Pictures

No, not Christmas CARD pictures - I haven't even begun to think about those! EEK! Just some things around the house (still not done decorating) and our family picture with Santa at Bass Pro Shop.

Our tree - I'm proud of it this year. Last year it looked kinda puny even thought it's artificial, but we took the extra time to fluff it a little better this year.

On a side note, Caroline is petrified of the tree. We put it up Saturday night after she went to bed and when I brought her out Sunday morning, she started shaking and whining. And to-date, she has YET to even attempt to touch it. Fingers crossed!

How cute are these two guys? The Santa on the left is from Kirkland's this year and the one on the right is from Pier 1 last year (but still probably there this year!).

Our family picture. Caroline wouldn't go anywhere near Santa. As we were walking down the aisle to get closer she clamped on tighter and tighter. I could have let my arms go and she would have still been hanging on. So...the professional that he is...opted to just sneak into the picture. (The picture quality is kinda stretched...I'm not telling how I got this picture.)

Santa at Bass Pro Shop

On Sunday, we met up with The Martins to take the kids to see Santa at Bass Pro Shop. As we waited in line, all the kids goofed around and played with whatever they could get their hands on. They all did surprisingly well. No meltdowns until we actually saw Santa!

Daddy thinks Caroline needs one for Christmas. And Daddy is wrong.

Caroline & Logan discussing sneaking out of the house to go fishing later.

Really can't tell which twin this was, but they seem to be having a deep discussion about something.

One of Caroline's many silly faces

I saved the best for last. Caroline typically doesn't let Wade too far out of her sight. At first, I was trying to marry off Caroline & Logan. But, I may be changing my tune now. However, Wade didn't seem too impressed.

Caroline tried to give him a goldfish and he froze and didn't move until Caroline left him alone. She even gave him a couple of hugs, too.

Silly Saturday

What a silly little girl! Caroline was having so much fun on Saturday morning and I couldn't pass up the chance to snap some pics! (Please excuse the cheese in her mouth...cheese makes her THAT happy!) HAHA!

she loves her baby doll stroller!

Double Trouble

Remember my post about Caroline's Belly Buddy - aka: Katherine, her BFF? Well, the two are at it again...

Some background, first:

1. Caroline and Katherine (who is 2 weeks younger) have been in the same class since they were 8 weeks old. Since they were mobile in the Infant 1 room, they have been buddy-buddy. Side-by-side almost all day long. I even beg the teachers to move Katherine up soon after Caroline so she'll have a familiar face in her new rooms.
2. In the mornings, I have to drop Caroline off in a different room than her current one because her teachers don't come in til 8 AM. Katherine is always in there because she gets dropped off early, too.
3. This room is the Infant 2 room that has a large table in it with built in seats for the tots for snack & lunch time. (Meaning: Caroline's Toddler 2 room wouldn't DARE have anything that the kids could crawl up on...haha!)

So, as I dropped Caroline off one day last week, I went to put her bag in the cubby in her real room and as I walk by the room I dropped her off in, I see the teacher squatting on the floor, pointing to Caroline & Katherine who are sitting under this large table saying...

"No! Stop, girls! Don't do it!! Come on out!"

Seriously? It's 7:20 AM and she's already up to something? My first reaction was "Miss Ashley! Is Caroline trying to bite?!!!?!" And her reply (with a smile):

"NO! Caroline and Katherine sit under this table every morning and switch shoes. They each take one off and trade."

My child, with the shoe fetish. Like mother, like daughter.

Fast forward to today. As I drop Caroline off this morning, Katherine sees Caroline, her face lights up and she ruuuuuuns to sit under the table and already has a shoe off...ready for Caroline to play!

How can you have a bad day when your child is as silly as these two girls. I pray that Caroline and Katherine can remain best friends for ever and have as good of a relationship as I do with my best friends. You all know who you are! XOXO!

Thanksgiving Day 2010

We had yet another wonderful Thanksgiving with Wally's family this year! We got up early and headed over to Granny & Papa's house to have a day filled with family, fun and food! Wally was on call on Thanksgiving Day, but thankfully he only got called out twice and didn't have to stay out long on either call.

Cleaning before the guests arrive

Calling all her friends to tell them "Happy Thanksgiving!"

The boys (Tanner & Collier)

The girls (Caroline & Jessica)

Sweet baby Jessica - not a baby anymore!!!

What Thanksgiving wouldn't be complete without a complete run-thru of your body parts? Excuse the grocery store feet!

First Trip to the Dentist

I know you (my two faithful readers) probably think I'm crazy, but Caroline had her first dentist appointment last week! After I Googled "first dentist appointment" and saw that the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that your child be seen 6 months after their first tooth...I thought "Well, now is just a good of time as any..." Seeing as, by those standards, I was 10 months late.

The morning went just as I had expected...hectic, to say the least. The hygienist and I sat knee-to-knee as Caroline was in my lap, on her back with her head in the hygienist's lap. She screamed, yelled, kicked, fussed, gagged, you name it... And I'm sure if you were to ask my mom - I still acted like that at the dentist til I was 8 years old.

Each time Caroline was able to sit up, Wally and I would say "Yaaaayyy!!!" and clap and smile and hug...trying to make it a more enjoyable visit. Well, the last time she was on her back with the dentist checking everything out, Caroline was just a-fussin and saying "YAAAAYY!" at the same time. It was actually a little funny.

And as soon as they were done, Caroline was fine. All was better. We snapped this pic after the cleaning was over. Daddy couldn't bear to take pictures of the actual cleaning since Caroline was so upset.

On a side note, the dentist kept saying "That's ok Caroline, you just bite down on my finger as much as you want." I wanted to say "Listen Lady...if you only knew the issues we've had with biting...you wouldn't be saying that!" HAHA - no really, Dr. Dee was AWESOME.

Oh, and if you were wondering, her teeth are perfect...just like the rest of her.