happy birthday, gigi!

i don't know what addison and i would do without you. i'm so lucky to have you as my mom. thank you for your support and for everything you do.

i hope you have a wonderful birthday!

santa!

after we went to see ice, we took addison to see santa. we were already out by opry mills, so we figured why not. bass pro has a santa and you get a free picture, so we hit that up.

addison was very excited to see him. maybe even more than last year. i love watching her get so excited!

it was actually addison's 4th time to see santa this year. she saw him with her dad when they saw christmas lights, during her breakfast with santa, and on the train ride. and then again at bass pro. she knows that they are all different santas {she pointed that out one day}, but she still believes in him. so i'm not too concerned :)


she told santa she wanted some princess dolls, a princess doll house, and some unicorn stompeez. i kind of coaxed her into saying she wanted a princess doll house because that's what santa is bringing her. i don't think she'll object. i had no idea what stompeez were, but her dad told me and i got her some. her papa and mimi are giving her princess dolls on christmas eve {when we do presents with them} and on christmas morning she'll get her princess doll house.

now i just need to put the thing together. probably after/with a few drinks.

shrek the halls ice

tuesday night went to ice at opryland. this year was shrek the halls. when we went last year, it was merry madagascar.

it was pretty awesome. i love shrek, so i enjoyed it. i wasn't as prepared for the cold this time though. last year, i had a ton of clothes on. and gloves. and a scarf. this year, not so much. i guess i just forgot how cold it actually was. and i froze.

i didn't get any good pictures, but addison got to go down the big slide this year. last year she went down the kiddie slide and loved it. she loved the big slide even more.

we had lots of fun! i think it will be something that we try to do every year. i'll just try to be more prepared for the cold next time. who am i kidding, i probably won't be.

train ride with santa

saturday morning we got up bright and early to go on a train ride with santa.

my mom heard about it and thought it would be fun for all of us to go. i thought it sounded fun too, so we got tickets and went!

it was definitely worth it. i don't really know what i expected, but addison had a blast on her first train ride. and she got to see santa too!


we were on the last car, which meant that we got to see santa first as he worked his way up to the front of the train.


the ride was about 2 hours long. addison brought some money because she wanted to buy a snack. she decided on oreos. she did get a little antsy towards the end and wanted to get up and move around some. but even so, she was great! and it was a lot of fun.

they have an easter train ride in the spring that has an easter egg hunt. i think we're going to have to do that one too!

christmas program - 2012

last week addison had her school christmas program.

she was SO excited. she practiced her song at home and it was adorable. she kept telling me who all was invited to come and asked if everyone was excited.

it was at a bigger location than last year {thank goodness. it was packed last year}. it was still packed this year, but only a few people had to stand. and there was actually a line to get in. a LINE. all there to see addison sing. because, obviously.

she was a little put off at having her picture taken. she was ready to go see her friends and get ready to sing. but she looked super cute in her santa jammies.

they told us that we needed to stay in our seats during the program and not go to the front to take pictures. we may have not listened. we weren't the only ones though. and i'm not gonna miss taking pictures of addison singing adorably with her friends. common now.


her class sang silver bells. i don't know why, but it seems like such a grown up christmas song. listening to her sing it just melted my heart.



and we may have gone out for ice cream after to celebrate. can't pass up a chocolate milkshake with chocolate ice cream {i kinda like chocolate}.

i can't wait to see her sing next year!!

randoms

i'm finishing up the semester this week {tomorrow is my last night!!}. there's been a lot packed on at the end, so that's why i've been a little MIA lately.

anyways. on to our randoms from the past week and a half or so.


addison got some puzzles at sams with gigi. they're actual puzzles. not the little kid ones with the big pieces. like puzzles with small pieces. so we put one together. and, not gonna lie. it took a while. oh well. we got it done!

we had a little incident. with a deer. and my car. long story short, the deer ran into my car on the drivers side. my mom and addison were both in the car. we were all fine. well, i was a little freaked out. this was my first run in with a deer {when i was driving, at least}. my car didn't make it out unharmed, though. the deer took out my rear view mirror and made a nice hole on the side of my car.

with the deer incident behind us, we went to breakfast with santa the next morning. addison's school provided the tickets, so of course we were even more excited about it. FREE breakfast. WITH santa. what more could a girl hope for?? anyways, we sat with some of addison's friends from school. it's so fun watching her with her friends. the grinch was there and addison wasn't a bit scared. although she didn't want to get too close in a picture. she also got to see santa and we got a free picture. MORE free? i'll take it. and they had a train ride outside. it was pretty awesome, if i say so myself.

after breakfast, we decided to continue the holiday activities and we went to the parade. the weather has been so un-december. or at least was. it's supposed to get cold today and stay that way for a while. but last week it was warm. like 60s warm. we rode to the parade in the jeep. with the windows out. in december. i'm not complaining. addison got to see frosty and lots of floats. some may have been pretty cheesy, but she still loved it. which is all that matters. personally, i enjoyed watching {and listening} to the old men in a trailer singing.

and then addison just looked adorable going to school. she said she was a rockstar, so she couldn't wear a bow. because rockstars don't wear bows. i mean, obviously.

holiday nails

i love thanksgiving. family and food. and it means it's closer to christmas. so it's safe to say, the day after thanksgiving is one of my favorites. i don't really get into the black friday shopping. unless it's online shopping. i don't really want to get out with all those crazy people. although addison did go black friday shopping when she was just a week old. i guess i was crazy once.

wow, i'm rambling.

anywho, addison wanted me to paint her nails. it was the weekend after thanksgiving, so i thought i could do something festive. i gave her the option to have candy cane or christmas colors. she chose candy cane.

my initial plan was to just alternate white and red. so i did.

and apparently it wasn't good enough.

"but i want stripes! like a candy cane!"

finnnnnnnnne.

painting a 4 year olds nails is a task. well, painting any small persons nails is a task, regardless of the age. their nails are tiny and their version of staying still is definitely not actually staying still.

but, alas, she got holiday nails. and i'm pretty damn proud of them.

needless to say, they're all chipped now. but they looked good while they lasted!! and she was so proud, too. she would show them off to everyone. and she even gave me the credit!!

4 year appointment

unlike last year, i actually scheduled addison's 4 year appointment closer to her birthday. it wasn't even a week after her birthday. mom of the year here!

she was awesome and entertaining, as usual. she talked to everyone. surprise surprise. she's definitely not a shy child. unless she wants to be.

one of the many fun things about the doctors office is having your child pee in a cup. this isn't the easiest task for a 4 year old. obviously i have to assist. lucky for me, it wasn't messy. this time. i foresee some messes in the future though. maybe i should take gloves next time.

her stats were:

- 36 lbs {up 5 lbs from last year}
- 41 inches {up 3 1/4 inches from last year}
- 20/20 vision {same as last year}

the vision test always makes me laugh. they have one chart with numbers and letters, and another with shapes. she did the one with the shapes because she knew more of those. there was a ship on it, and she kept calling it a pirate ship. silly girl. when the shapes got really small, i had a hard time seeing what they were, but she could see them just fine.

she didn't have to get any shots this time, but next year she'll need all of her shots for kindergarten. woo hoo! that should be a fun visit.

thanksgiving 2012

thanksgiving morning started out with my mom, addison, and i running a race. addison "ran" in the stroller. next year we may try and let her actually run/walk though!

it was a little chilly that morning. and super foggy.

my friend, haley, was running the race too. she did the 5 mile and we did the 5k, so we didn't get to run together. but we still saw her before and after, and addison loved that!

addison is an interesting running partner. i would say fun, but that's a stretch. she can be fun, for sure. i always tell her before we go run that i can't talk to her. i can't answer her questions or hold a conversation. she always agrees and says she knows, but as soon as i start running, the questions start coming. she's also quite the motivator {not}. during the race, she kept talking about the people passing us and telling me to run faster. maybe she'll be a personal trainer.

after the race, addison went with her dad for their thanksgiving. my mom went to her friend's house, and i went to some family things with my dad and step mom.

we had quite the day. family time and good food. doesn't get much better.

addison's 4th birthday

addison's birthday was the day before thanksgiving. she had school that day and they had a thanksgiving party in her class. it was "pies with parents". nice little party for her birthday :)

the night before, i blew up a bunch of balloons for her room {like i did last year}. since she was with her dad that night, i got to just leave them in on her floor and not worry about sneaking them in.

she was so surprised when she walked in her room! she played in her balloons for a little bit, then opened her present. i didn't get her much because her party was her big present. i got her a sticker book {the girl has SO many stickers}, a puzzle, and a helmet. my mom got her a radio flyer tricycle. and it's pink. so cute!!

my mom and i took her to dinner that night. she got to pick where we went. and she picked panera. she's a little obsessed with that place.

when we were standing in line, there was a police officer behind us. addison started talking to him. he was extremely nice and even offered for addison to come sit in his car after we finished dinner.

and addison took him up on his offer!

he was seriously the nicest police officer ever. he let addison sit in the drivers seat and showed her his computer. she got to shine the bright light and turn on the blue lights. and she got to use the siren. at one point she was kind of trying to get out, but he told her there was more to see. it was pretty cute!

definitely a special treat on her birthday!

after that, we went to my dad's to have dessert. which was delicious. then we went home and both went to bed. we were a little worn out.

on friday, we took addison to mexican for her birthday. we waited until a night that her dad could go with us. i was really excited because we told them it was her birthday so they sang to her and put whipped cream on her nose. she was so surprised! and she loved the attention :)

definitely something i think we'll do every year.

now i'm going to try not to blink because if i do, she'll be turning 5 tomorrow.

ariel birthday party

addison's birthday party was a blast!! she had so much fun. we had it at a local bouncy place that she loves. a bunch of kids from her class {10 to be exact} came. she was in heaven playing with all of her friends.

i ordered her invitations from poshberry parties and they were adorable! i was going to try and make the invitation, but i found these and fell in love. i also got the cupcake toppers from the shop as well.


i ordered her shirt from character designs. it was perfect!



we got the cupcakes from publix {which we will continue to do because they are delicious and cheap}. and i made cake pops {funfetti and strawberry}. i also made chocolate chip cookie dough pops {which were delicious but a HUGE pain to make}.

addison is not at all spoiled.




one of her dad's friends got addison a fish. like a real, live fish. needless to say, she was excited. and it's staying at her dad's :)

the party was a blast {although i am glad it's over}. i still can't believe my baby is 4!

happy birthday, addison!

it's hard to believe that you are 4 today. you amaze me every day with the things you say and do. you're learning so much and sometimes i think you're 4 going on 40. you're beautiful, kind, loving, sometimes a handful, caring, smart. and i'm so proud that you are my daughter.

as much as it makes me sad to watch you grow up, knowing that i will never have you as a newborn or crawler or 3 year old ever again, being your mom has been the absolute best and most rewarding experience.

happy birthday!!

fall leaves

my mom made a big pile of leaves in the backyard last weekend.

addison ran around...

played...


and threw them.

i think she may have had just a little fun.

mommy/daughter day

saturday addison and i had a mommy/daughter day.

there was a deal on tickets to the symphony a few weeks ago, and i bought them for us. it was disney in concert. i thought it looked like something addison {and i} would like. and i figured it wouldn't be that big of a deal if she didn't like it because i got the tickets on sale.

i decided to make a day of it, so we went to lunch together. i couldn't decide on a place to go, so i gave addison a few options of food. she wanted a cheeseburger, so we went to the pharmacy.

we had been there once before and both loved it. they have a delicious black bean burger {and i assume cheeseburger because addison loved hers}. i had heard that their milkshakes were really good, so addison and i split one. addison made sure the waitress knew that we needed 2 straws. and she insisted that we take sips at the same time. precious.

we got to the symphony a few minutes early because they had some activities for the kids. addison got to decorate a crown, which she wore almost the whole time.

addison seemed to really like it! our seats were really good {from what i could tell. i had never been before and i don't really know what good symphony seats are}. i'm not gonna lie, i really liked it too. it was neat getting to listen to songs from some of my favorite disney movies.

addison promptly passed out in the car on our way home. guess a day with mommy wears a girl out.

halloween!!!

i made addison's costume again this year. it wasn't too difficult. after searching pinterest and google, i found this martha stewart tutorial on how to make a mermaid costume. it's for an adult, but i liked the way the tail looked and thought i could make one similar for addison.

my mom got some fabric for me to make the skirt. i put off making the costume until the day before i needed it. surprise, surprise. i made a target run to get a top for addison to wear {just a plain white tank top}, and i saw that they had the tank top in hot pink, too. i got the idea that maybe i could just make the tank top into a skirt instead of making one out of fabric. so that's what i did! i turned it upside down so the straight seam would be at the top, i cut off the straps, pinned it on addison, and then sewed! it isn't really the prettiest sewing job, but it fits her! i got blue sparkly and light pink tule and cut it into squares and attached those to the bottom of the skirt with some fabric tape that doesn't require ironing. my mom also got some purple shiny fabric, so i used that for addison's "boobies" {that's what she likes to call the mermaid top}.

i worked some yesterday, but left early so i could go to addison's school party. i tried to be festive and halloween-y and wore black and orange.

addison had a blast at her halloween party at school! my dad went with me so he got to experience her class first hand. not sure if he's going to want to go to another class party :) we got there before any of the other parents. the kids were all just waking up from their naps and were starting to get into their costumes. i asked the teacher if there was anything i could do, and she asked me if i could read the kids a book. of course i agreed! i read about 2 pages and i lost the kids. oh well. at least i tried. the party had a ton of snacks for the kids and they even got to decorate a mini pumpkin!

we headed home from the party and i changed into something warmer, then we went to the park to trick or treat. we did it last year and addison loved it. and it's so close that it would be silly not to go. there's always a line, but it seemed to move pretty quickly. it was pretty cold, but it definitely didn't deter anyone!

after the park, we came home to warm up for a few minutes. then we walked around the neighborhood. addison didn't actually trick or treat in the neighborhood, but we went to a house that had a few bounce houses. they own a party business, so they rent the bounce things. addison played in one for a little bit. and they had popcorn, so chris and i ate some of that, too.

addison is really into handing out candy, so we ended up just coming home after she jumped and did just that! she already had a ton of candy, so she didn't need anymore anyways. she was so funny handing out candy to all the kids. she would chat with them all about their costumes and say "happy halloween!" after she gave them candy.

it was definitely a successful halloween! addison scored a ton of good candy {of which i have already put a dint in. sorry addison! not really. i left plenty for her}.

hope everyone's halloween was fabulous!!

ghouls at grassmere

sunday night we went to ghouls at grassmere. we've gone the past two years and addison's had a blast. so of course we had to go back this year! addison was a fairy the first time we went and she was a pirate last year.

this year, she wanted to be ariel. she's a little obsessed with the little mermaid. but she wanted a pink tail/fin thing.

i made her costume again this year {i'll tell how i did it in another post}. i've been lucky and have been able to find pretty easy ways to make her costumes. i'm just waiting for my luck to run out.

we went right after the titans game, so addison was a little worn out. and it was pretty cold. but getting candy definitely perked her up!

addison has a halloween party/parade today at school. then we're going to the park to trick or treat, and then maybe around the neighborhood. last year addison was more excited about handing out candy, so she may just want to do that again this year. we'll see!

happy halloween! hope it's filled with lots of fun {and candy}!!

our weekend

we started the weekend with addison's {cold} soccer game. it got cold towards the end of last week, and i don't think i'm ready for it. i love wearing warm clothes and boots, but i don't like being realllllllly cold. oh well.

i had to take snacks for the soccer game. nothing makes me feel more like a soccer mom than taking snacks. i got some little halloween bucket things from the $1 bin at target for each of the kids. i put some witch hat cookies, string cheese, grapes, and drinks for the kids in them. and some light up bracelets that my mom had. i thought it was cute for the game before halloween :)

after the game addison had a birthday party to go to. we went to 2 parties last weekend. is there a birthday season?? because if so, we're in it.

sunday we went to the titans game. it was addison's second game. amy, addison, and i sat in my dad's seats. my aunt and uncle gave me their seats, too, so maegen and haley sat in those. and maria went with her boyfriend. so we were all there! we tailgated for a little bit before.

we had a blast at the game. addison behaved {for the most part}. she made friends with the couple behind us and the girl that sat beside me. we even stayed for the whole game {and the few minutes of overtime}.

after the game, we went to ghouls at grassmere. i'll save that for another post, though :)