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!!