As Aiden would say...

"What da world?" I can't figure out why my picture no longer fits in the title box. I didn't make any changes to the template. Any suggestions?

Sweeter than any sugarplum

This is my girl, Audrey.

This little one is 16 months going on 26 years old! Sometimes I think she acts more grown up than I. For example, when she is ready for bed, she'll turn off the TV, take my hand and guide me to the gate at the bottom of the basement stairs. "Baba. Night night" she'll tell me and be ready for bed. She'll mimic anything we say to her and it actually sounds pretty close. Our favorite thing about her language is her favorite word, "pookoo." We've discovered this word can mean many things: purple, crayon, present, and the list goes on. She also refuses to eat without a spoon and always uses "pwease" and "dank oo." What a little lady!

She loves to sing "Old MacDonald" so she'll sing "e-i-e-i-o-duck" because she always wants the duck to be named first. When any music is on while she is sitting(or even when it is dead silent), you can see her kicking her legs to the rhythm. She also does this when you hold her or when she is trying to fall asleep. It sounds funny in the monitor at night. And dancing? That girl has some rhythm! I see toe shoes in her future!

Audrey is named after my dad's mother whom I believe to be one of the kindest women I've ever known. I was so worried that this baby would be a hellion and I would always be yelling at her using my grandmother's name. That would be too weird!Luckily this Audrey is following in that Audrey's footsteps. She cannot stand to hear anyone cry, especially babies. Tonight in Target she heard a baby crying and she called out, "don't cry" and blew the baby a kiss. If she accidently head buts us while we are holding her she'll say "saawwwyy" and "ets hug." Can't get much sweeter than that. Although my grandmother hated her name I think she's so happy to have such a beautiful and gentle little girl as her namesake. Santa will definitely be good to her this year!

Audrey's wish list from Santa:
1. A doll with a doh (pacifier) or one that talks.
2. Books
3. Puzzles
4. Anything kitty cat

Someone bring me my wrist cuffs!

I always knew I was meant to do something good and this quiz solidified that answer for me! According to this scientifically proven, research based quiz I am Wonder Woman!



Take the quiz at www.thesuperheroquiz.com and see what superhero you resemble.


What about that bad side we all try to keep hidden but seems to emerge at the worst possible time? See which superhero villain fits you at www.thesuperheroquiz.com/villain. When it comes to the bad guys I most strongly resemble The Riddler.



What does it say for you? Do you think it fits?

Tuesday Tell All: The Twelve Questions of Christmas

Real or artificial tree?

Artificial for now but real once the animals are gone.

Do you like eggnog?

Yes...yummy creamy goodness!

Favorite gift received as a child?

My dollhouse which Audrey will get in a few or twenty years.

Do you have a nativity scene?

Yes and Aiden loves to arrange the people. He likes to have baby Jesus in his room but I told him the baby needs to stay with his mommy and daddy since he is only a tiny baby.

Hardest? Easiest person to buy for?

Hardest: my brother Billy. Easiest: the kids.

Favorite Christmas movie?

Twas the Night Before Christmas...you know the one with the mice and the clock.

White lights or colored lights?

Either but we have white this year.

Favorite Christmas song?

The Chipmunk Christmas Song or Baby, it's Cold Outside.

Travel for Christmas or stay home?
Traveling around the city is fine. All of our closest family is within a 20 minute drive.

Do you open presents Christmas Eve

or Christmas morning?

Christmas Eve at Cathy and Larry's house with Trav's side of the family. Christmas morning at home alone with the kids. Christmas night at my mom and dad's with my brother.

Do you tell the Christmas story?

We read the book to the kids.

Good for a giggle

Amy Ritchie sent me this video on Monday and I really needed a good laugh. On Monday, neither Aiden nor Audrey slept well, the car passed out which will put us out $400 this close to the holidays and school was wacko! Thanks Amy...enjoy everyone!



When looking for this on YouTube I found a few more like it but none that truly hold a candle to this one.

Question: If you are married, would you redo it this way and what song would you use? I totally would! Our song would be, "You're the One that I Want" from Grease, Travis' favorite guilty pleasure!

Tuesday Tell All Catch-up

I feel like I've been in the Twilight Zone! Something weird happened with our computer that wouldn't allow us to log on to any websites: no email, no blogspot, no ebay! I have no idea why it works now but I ain't askin any questions neither!

Therefore I am going to catch up as much as possible and double dip last week's and this week's Tuesday Tell All:

Last Tuesday: Season of Giving

I hate tooting my own horn so this is a toughie for me. One nice thing I've done lately is give blood at my student council's blood drive last week at school. I felt that I should donate since I was coordinating the drive and asking others to do so. I was so nervous as it was my first time. Secretly I was hoping that I would fail one of the little tests along the way: contact with blood (Aiden always gets bloody noses from digging for gold), low iron (not the case anymore...those pesky multivitamins!). No such luck. I went to get my collection bag and sat on the donor table. One guy couldn't find a good vein...my lucky day...not! He switched me to the lady he called "the vein guru" and of course there was a "pretty one" as she called it on my left arm. Darn that guru! I admit I teared up from the anticipation of the needle but I should have been crying because I was making a huge deal over nothing. It was painless and I was able to help someone without asking for anything in return. Two teachers at my school have had family members recieve transfusions in the last week. I know they didn't get my blood but I feel good for helping the cause. I plan on giving again since I am, and this is in the guru's words, "an A+ sponsor with A - blood."

Something nice that was done for me doesn't really fit as neatly into this topic but I am going to make it fit since it did give me a better outlook. Freshman year at UK I was walking to take a test in a class I dreaded, biology with Dr. Just. He was one of those professors that was bound and determined that no one get an A in his class so his tests were impossible. Scowling, I was walking across "Blanding Beach" when I heard, "You dropped something." As I looked around on the ground I realized this was impossible because everything I needed to fail that test was in my backpack. I looked up at him with a confused look. He merely pointed to my face and said, "Your smile." Of course that comment led me straight to my lost smile, along with the realization that, as much as we hate it, people do see more than we may think we are exuding. I am a pretty friendly gal but anyone who saw me on that day before my chance encounter probably didn't get that vibe. I try and give off the same energy that I like to attract, which is friendliness mixed with fun. I regret that I never saw that guy so I could thank him. BTW, I failed that biology test (and ultimately the class) but retook the course with another teacher and got a B+.


This Tuesday: O' Christmas Tree, O' Christmas Tree

I don't think I'd ever want one of those department store window showpiece trees that some crave because it goes against what I think of when I think of the holidays: that is family. Here are some of my favorite ornaments and what they say.

Prewedding ornaments: Kiss, UK, WWF Wrestling, a computer, Scrabble board, ballet shoes, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz. We found the fun stuff and loved just being us, embracing some of our cherished youth and finding stuff to like together.

Teacher ornaments: A large variety of ABC's, books, schoolhouses...you name it! I do like the one that reads, "Support Wildlife: Teach School."

Wedding ornaments: fancy decorator ones we received as gifts and 7,346 "Our First Christmas" ornaments. I love them all but it doesn't bother me when the fancy ones break. Each of the first Christmas ornaments is special because it shows a little about the giver. My favorites are the bride and groom snow people and the Santa riding an alligator we bought on our honeymoon in New Orleans.

Ornaments commemorating the kids: I love all the ornaments with the kids' names on them, including the ones with four of whatever that can symbolize the four of us. Of tthe kids's ornaments ornaments, my favorites are their dohs (pacifiers) on ribbon that hang on the tree. Aiden's is a blue doh and Audrey's is a UK doh, the only one she'd use for four months straight. The only thing I don't like is that I have more ornaments that have three characters not four as we need now so I don't want Audrey to get jealous one day (that is something I totally felt when it came to my older brother...he was mom's favorite :) ).

Some may not like it because it has no particular color pattern or doesn't stick to one particular style. To me, it is a representation of all of us and love.

Through Noni's eyes

When I was young I'd beg to stay at my grandmother's as long as she'd let me (sometimes it was a week over the summer!) and my kids do the same. They love to stay at either Mamaw and Papaw's or at Noni and Pop's house.

My mom was over the other day so I uploaded her camera to a disk for her since their computer is pretty much shot, and it would take me 40 minutes to get her to do it on her own anyway. I love seeing what the kids do at her house unfiltered like this. Here are some of my favorites.

Audrey's favorite thing to do at Noni's is to sit in this rocking chair. When she was a few months younger and would tip over very easily we would hide it. Wherever it was hidden she would seek it out.













This was Aiden's reaction when he was asked to sit next to his sister and give her a kiss. He is usually game for kisses (especially is you are taking his picture) but was not up for it this particular day.















Mom has also figured out how to take movies with her camera. Hers captures sound and mine doesn't...needless to say I am jealous! This first movie is too long but Audrey looks cute wearing her Chinese outfit I bought her in New York while she is bouncing on her horse.




This second video is pretty funny. You can learn two important things about Aiden from it:
1. He clearly loves playing in this car because his knees are hitting the steering wheel with every step he takes.
2. He has had his picture taken too many times.
Pop has created a spot for Aiden in the garage with his own tool bench, tool belt and tools. They could hang out there together all day!