School Party

Tessa's school Christmas party was so cute!  The kids had a whole program of songs and rhymes they had been practicing all month.  I was excited to see Tessa perform with all of her little friends.  It was a large group of parents and grandparents attending and my little darling had a touch of stage fright.  She broke out of line to come get a round of reassuring kisses and hugs from me and Gamma.  She did AWESOME singing and dancing, and I liked the extra hugs and kisses between numbers.  Such a sweet girl!  Enjoy the couple of songs I was able to video!       

Adoption Day

In addition to celebrating a birthday and a half-birthday for Tessa, we also celebrate Adoption Day.  We like to remember the day she legally became ours forever.  This year, she requested an Ariel theme.  She actually got a little confused and thought we were having a party for Ariel.  After all, we had just had a party for Jesus, why not one for Ariel too?  She's funny.      

I copied a Pinterest idea for the cake and Tessa helped, mostly by taste testing, while I worked.  I was pretty proud of how the cake turned out.  Tessa ate so much of the icing that the next day her poo was blue.  She was hilarious announcing this from the bathroom.  I realize that I do not normally discuss poo but it really was too funny not to mention.   

A new Ariel nightgown and Ariel toys made for fun presents.  Tessa looks so pretty in her new jammies.   

We went out for Mexican food and then drove down to Fountain Inn.  This cute little town has carriage rides around Christmastime.  The horses take a break from their usual Charleston tours and come to the Upstate for a few weeks in winter.  Tessa liked that our horse's name was Jake, as in Jake & the Neverland Pirates cartoon. 

We clip-clopped around town admiring the Christmas lights and decorations.  If you noticed, the boys are wearing top hats.  We are getting into the spirit of our Christmas country - England!

The Ariel fun continued the next day when we made sanddollar cookies.   

Santa Party

We had our annual Santa Party with the SS class.  This year, Tessa was happy to sit on Santa's lap and tell him that she wanted Ariel for Christmas.  

And then Santa gave her an Ariel doll.  How about that!?  She was thrilled and we immediately opened the box to play with pink Ariel. 

Santa noticed right away that Tessa is a little singer.  He got tickled listening to her sing "cheese" in progressively higher octaves each time I took a picture.  Then they sang  "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" together.  Santa has an impressive singing voice.

These little munchkins had a great time eating pizza, sharing their new toys and playing hide and go seek.  There was even birthday cake for Jesus which the kids loved.  Happy Birthday Jesus and Merry Christmas! 

Decorating & Baking

Decorating for the holidays is fun, but when you have a little helper it is sweet too.  Tessa was so excited about putting up our tree when we got home from Texas.  I was excited too, until I realized about half the lights were out and I needed to restring the entire tree.  Since we have a full basement and a fake tree, I have been spoiled by leaving the tree intact, lights and all, for the past nine years.  Each year, Ryan carries it upstairs and we plug it in with very little fuss.  Not so this year.  But, after trips to three different Targets, because lights sell out quickly, our tree is now beautifully lit.  And it had better stay that way for at least another nine years. 

 

The bonus of the lights ordeal was that, while at Target, I found a small tree on sale.  So Tessa now has her very own tree.  We decorated it with ornaments from mine and Ryan's childhood.  I'm always sentimental when I look at ornaments from my childhood and, of course, I got sappy watching Tessa hang them on her tree.  She also has things she made at school, pink jewels and princesses on her tree.  Finally both trees are done. 

Holidays mean baking around here.  I am not much of a baker since I don't personally eat many sweets, but my child is doing her best to change that.  Not only does Tessa love sweets, but we find endless Christmas cookie ideas that I wouldn't mind trying.  Our first project was gingerbread.  Tessa's new favorite kitchen utensil is the rolling pin.  I forsee many rolled cookies in my future.  We mixed and rolled and cut our cookies.  Each time I called them gingerbread men, Tessa corrected me.  We were making gingerbread girls.  My usual ocd self had to take a back seat when it came to icing them.  They were her cookies so I let her run with it.      

And she did a fabulous job!  She was so proud of the finished product and I was proud that our cookies were edible.  We had rolled and cut the scaps in smaller shapes and they kind of looked like dog treats although Ryan assured me they didn't taste like dog treats.  Don't ask how he knows what dog treats taste like!  But the gingerbread girls were adorable and Anabelle was happy to eat the other cookies.  Stay tuned for more baking adventures from our kitchen.     

Thanksgiving

We celebrated Thanksgiving at Nanny & Pa's house.  As always, we had a good time as you can see by the big smiles.  I'm thankful to have such great in-laws.  Tessa went swimming every day and is now at that wonderful age where we didn't have to get in the pool with her.  It was still warm in Texas but the water was too cold for me.  We still think it's funny that Tessa named Ryan's dad "Pa" but on this trip she made up even funnier names for him.  At one point she was calling him Grampie which made us all giggle.  So, of course she kept saying Grampie, Grampie, Grampie just trying to get us to laugh more.       

While Paula was cooking, Tessa set the table.  She had a grand time pulling out every piece of silver.  Most of the utensils were in the right place but we had a few extra surprises.  Grampie, for instance, had the usual forks and knives plus a bonus pie server.  You just never know if you need your own pie server at Thanksgiving dinner.  Everything was delicious. 

After dinner, we went over to our friends' house.  Tessa was fascinated with their new baby.  And I was fascinated by how my baby looked like such a big kid next to their baby.   

The kids all played together and then we snapped our annual photos of the mommas and the kiddos. 

On Friday we visited Grandma Bobbie and Aunt Dana.  My grandma looks really good, you would never know she's had such a rough couple of years just by looking at her.  She is glad, as she put it, to be "on this side of the dirt."     

Our same friends came over on Friday night for one last visit.  These two swam and played and totally wore each other out.  Tessa just loves B and we wish we could see him more often. 

We opened a few early Christmas presents.  Tessa was so proud of her handprint tree, each grandma got one this year as a present.  Thank you Pinterest!

The trip went quickly and soon it was time to make the long trek home.  We made good time on Saturday and, when we got to Alabama before dinner, I hinted to Ryan that we could just drive straight home.  He wisely said that we should stop as planned and just take it easy.  He had work to do and we had all been in the car long enough already.  Our night in the hotel was relaxing and sweet.  Tessa and I watched a teeny bopper movie on the Disney channel while Ryan worked.  After all the excitment, it was nice to get a good night's sleep.  The next day while I was driving, our car died in a seedy part of Atlanta.  We had overwhelmed the car battery by simultaneously running the dvd player, the laptop, the navigation system and maybe even charging a cell phone, we're such a suburban family!  We all said a prayer of thanks that it was daylight, that the Auto Zone was open and nearby and that there were two cops in the parking lot with us, just in case the locals got rowdy.  Ryan changed the battery and we were on our way in no  time.  Unfortunately it wasn't just a battery problem, the alternator was bad too.  Only thirty minutes away from home, we died again.  This time next to an Advance Auto Parts and a PlayNation dealer.  While Ryan charged the battery, Tessa & I played at the "park."  God really took care of us and we made it home safely.  Just one more thing to be thankful for.    

New Orleans

On our way to Houston for Thanksgiving, we stopped in New Orleans again this year.  It's a great place to spend the night and enjoy the local color.  On our must see list (or should I say must eat here list) was Cafe du Monde.  An icon of New Orleans, this coffee stand serves up fresh and yummy beignets with their super strong coffee.  Silly Ryan thought one order of beignets would be enough for us.  Um maybe one order each, they are so good.    

And speaking of good, we had a variety of Cajun food for dinner at Acme Oyster House.  Our hostess got a kick out of Tessa eating her gumbo.  I sure wouldn't have touched it at her age but my child loves it.  When Tessa asked where Tiana was, we answered that she must be busy in the kitchen making more gumbo.    

The next day, we toured St. Louis Cathedral and admired the beautiful painted ceilings.  Tessa was not impressed and only wanted to jump off the pews, so we didn't stay long.  

We did a little shopping in the touristy French Market.

And then we had an early lunch at Central Grocery.  One of my favorite TV travel hosts visited here and recommended the muffaletta.  It was, in fact, invented right here in this little Italian grocery in the heart of New Orleans.  Italian meats and cheeses on soft fresh bread and piled high with olive salad then drizzled with olive oil.  I am an olive lover and this sandwich was fabulous.  You can see that it's as big as Tessa so I was ok sharing this time.  The store itself is neat too, a hodgepodge of foodstuff.  I liked looking at all the imported cheeses and canned goods but the hanging dried fish weirded me out a little.  Especially when I wasn't paying attention and bumped into one with the top of my head.  Ewww!!!  Dried fish cooties in my hair!       

We used the trolley lines to zip around town and that was Tessa's favorite part.  We even bought her a  Canal Line Trolley Christmas ornament.  The only time we had trouble using the trolley was trying to get out to the Garden District.  For those of you up on your Disney trivia, that would be the part of town where Tiana's bff Charlotte lives.  We eventually gave up on the St. Charles Trolley and drove the famous street in our own car.  We passed Tulane University where Ryan was accepted.  Food for thought, we might never have met if he had gone to school here.      

With storms rolling in, we said good bye to the Big Easy and headed for Texas.

Thankful

The Sunday before Thanksgiving, we had a SS class party.  One of the many things I am thankful for is this wonderful group of friends.  We are raising our kids together and bonding during this crazy and hectic phase of life.  This picture of our kiddos makes me laugh, they are an active bunch to say the least.  It is so NOT one of my usual pictures but it is precious in it's own way.  Tessa is holding one of the babies and she took me literally when I said not to let go.  Poor little guy had to be pried out of her grip after the picture, she was determined not to let him fall.   

And of course we are thankful for G&G.  They put together a turkey care package for the long ride to Texas.  Lots of great things to keep Tessa entertained in the car. 

Indian Princess

As Tessa's class prepared for Thanksgiving, they learned about Indians and Pilgrims.  She came of school one day wearing this adorable Indian outfit that she had made.  They do the cutest crafts!

Birthday Time

Big Chief Papa Bear had an Indian themed birthday this year thanks to Tessa's current fascination with Pocahontas.  We celebrated in style with headdresses and everything. 

Gampa's gifts were Pocahontas toys, dress up clothes and jewelry, all for Tessa naturally.  My little Indian Princess is just precious.

And then there was pie.  While Tessa was at school, I had the luxury of making Gampa's favorite chocolate pie in a calm kitchen.  It's not a difficult recipe but it does require constant stirring which is so much easier when you have two hands.  And the first thing Tessa did when she got home from school was open the fridge and stick her finger in my beautiful pie.  She tasted it and deemed it delish, glad I pass muster with mini Giada.   In this picture Gampa's debating whether or not he will share his pie with the rest of us, but of course he did.  Happy Birthday!      

Halloween

My girls were cheerleaders for Halloween this year and they were precious.  The weather was nice and our Minnie cheerleader trick-or-treated all around the neighborhood.  Our Aggie cheerleader couldn't handle all the excitement and had to stay home.  We started off on our street where Tessa followed a group of big girls from house to house.  Even though she wasn't quite as fast as they were, she always managed to wiggle her way to the front of the pack before each door was opened and candy was passed out.  We did several more streets and her candy bucket got heavier and heavier.  Ryan kept offering to carry it for her but she refused to let it go.  Smart girl, Daddy was planning to raid her candy even before we got home.     

After trick-or-treating we let Tessa answer the door and hand out candy.  She was hilarious, running excitedly to the door everytime the doorbell rang.  She is so expressive and dramatic, she just makes me laugh.  She told me, with big eyes and many hand gestures, "ALL THE KIDS ARE COMING TO MY HOUSE!!!"  When girls or cute boys would come to the door Tessa would fill their bags with candy.  But when scary boys (skeletons, vampires, etc.) would come she would stand inside the door and throw the candy at them.  I don't think the boys cared as long as they got some candy.        

Even before Halloween, we had lots of fun places to wear our costume.  We went to our church's huge fall festival and my parents came with us.  There were rides, games, inflatables and candy.  We ran into friends and the kids had so much fun.  There was a ride similar to spinning tea cups which Tessa rode with three of her friends and no adults.  A little scary for us adults to watch but the girls thought it was awesome.  They could barely walk when they got down they were so dizzy.  

She also had a dress up day at school.  The kids all came in costume and trick-or-treated around the church offices.  Then they had a little party with, to Tessa's delight, cupcakes.  Here is her sweet little class lined up to go play outside.

And we always try to make it to Boo in the Zoo.  This year was the best one yet because all of the animals were still out.  

Tessa wore her costume to dance and gymnastics too.  I don't have a picture of her sweet dance class (gasp) but I do have this one from gymnastics.

Vegas

I had a girl's week-end in Vegas with my bestie and it was fabulous!    

I arrived before my friend and took a cab over to In-N-Out burger.  I am a kind of a fast food junkie and I wanted to see if this place was worth the hype.  It is, especially since I ordered from the secret menu.  I had a double double mustard grilled with a side of fries well done.  Super yummy!  Whataburger will always be my fav fast food but this is a close second.   

This was my view from a pool lounge chair.  It was hot and sunny and exactly what I was craving.  

After dinner we roamed around and were given tickets to get into a nightclub and have a drink for free.  Even in our wild and crazy college days, we weren't too big on nightclubs but free is free.  So, feeling a little old and a little unhip, we headed to the nightclub.  The hilarious part was that this club was mostly other suburban moms having a good time.  We had to laugh at ourselves.  The advantage of being two unescorted girls is that you get invited into all the clubs for free.  So throughout the week-end we checked out several and had fun people watching.  It's hysterical to watch drunk people dance on a bar, or at least we thought it was.        

I have been to Vegas a couple of times before, but was never able to convince Ryan to go to the wax museum with me.  Claire was all for it and it was the highlight of our trip.  We spent HOURS there, cracking ourselves up posing with the stars and taking pictures.  Click here to see the slide show.  I have a huge star crush on Matthew McConaughey.  He has his flaws, not marrying the mother of his children and not wearing deoderant among them.  But with that crooked smile and don't give a damn attitude, I just think he's adorable.  And that Texas drawl, oooohhhh!  If I could have heard his voice calling me darlin' I would have melted on the spot.

Not to miss out on a man-candy oppurtunity, Claire posed with her "Other Brad."  I think they make a great looking couple.  Angelina will probably sue me because I cut her out of the picture. 

And no trip to Vegas is complete without seeing at least one Elvis.   

This is the only gambling that we did, penny slots.  You guessed it, we both lost.  Ha!  Funny how I just didn't have the nerve to play blackjack without Ryan there to help me.  Math and probability are not my strong suits.    

We had left our schedule pretty open to allow us to actually have time to visit and bond.  Yes, we went to Vegas and didn't see any shows, hardly gambled and actually slept at night.  Crazy, I know.  But it was wonderful.  Sitting down with my friend to eat a meal where the only interruption was a waiter offering to refill my glass was heavenly.      

So maybe our champagne brunch at the Wynn turned into lunch and was edging towards dinner.  Perhaps we had too many refills.  Did I mention heavenly? 

We did manage to do a little shopping, but I'm unclear why I came home with nothing for myself!

Even though we stayed at the MGM, we seemed to spend a lot of time at the Venetian.  Thank goodness for the monorail.  Everything is a long walk in Vegas, I'm pretty sure the hallway to our hotel room was a half mile!   

All of the food in Vegas was delicious but I was most excited to try this Mario Batali restaurant and their extensive list of wines.  Our waitress recommended several wines which we proceeded to taste.  And of course, the wine I liked best came with a whopping price tag which I did not realize at the time.  We had wine, pizza, dessert and espresso.  My kind of meal and worth the price.    

We also dined with the Kardashian's at this famous Italian restaurant.  We didn't actually see them, but they were there on the same night we were.  Maybe we just didn't see them because we were dining outside and watching the Treasure Island show.  The crazy thing is that this night I got sick.  Apparently all of my overindulging on rich food had caught up with me.  Seriously!?  I have always had a cast iron stomach.  I just do not want to think that part of aging means that my days of eating anything and everything are over.  And no, I had not had too much to drink that night, it really was the food.  Maybe I am just out of practice, and I need to eat more french fries.  I can work with that.     

Our last night in Vegas we walked the long way back to our hotel.  The mega hotels are incredibly beautiful, especially at night.  We watched the Bellagio fountains from the Bellagio and it was breathtaking.  I love this angle looking at the Eiffel Tower with the fountains in front.       

The trip went entirely too quickly. I felt like there were so many things still for us to talk about without all the interruptions of our daily lives.  I'm so grateful that we both have wonderful husbands who can let us do fun stuff like this while they hold down the forts at home.  In fact, they did such a good job with the kids that maybe next year we can try New York.  Or maybe I shouldn't push my luck.  Claire left before I did and suddenly I was very homesick.  I just wanted to be back with Ryan and Tessa.  I suffered through by going to the spa before flying home.  A girl's gotta do what I girl's gotta do.