Boo in the Zoo

We took our little Minnie Mouse to the local zoo for some trick-or-treating fun last week-end. She loves all things Disney and has a closet full of dress up clothes. But our official Halloween costume is this pink Minnie.
Of course, we all had matching ears. I love that Ryan humors me and wears them too.
We had a few treats at the house before heading downtown. Here Tessa is contemplating a Minnie Mouse lollipop. Rather than eat it, she gave it a kiss and set it down.
Waiting in line proved a little traumatic thanks to a boy in a bloody skeleton mask. Tessa isn't at all a scaredy cat but it was pretty gruesome. We concentrated on pointing out Tessa's favorite characters who were also in line. Thank you local families for providing so many princesses and Buzz Lightyears to help distract her. Once inside the zoo she was happy again, although several times she asked about the skeleton.

Aren't the grandparents just adorable in their matching ears too?

Old Friends

Granny's lifetime friend Alice Jane came to Greenville for a visit last week. Even though their lives have taken very different paths, these girls have been friends for over 80 years. I find that amazing and so sweet. We joined them for lunch where Tessa behaved like an angel, thank goodness. Alice Jane is so funny and straightforward. When I showed her this picture she said "Well Nancy Lee, we look like what we are - a couple of old ladies." May I look this good when I am 85!

Pumpkin Patch Playgroup

Pretty sure this heat wave we are having qualifies us for an Indian Summer. Nonetheless we had a super fun, if super hot, playdate at the pumpkin patch.

Fall for Greenville

Fall for Greenville is one of my favorite downtown events. Sampling different foods and wandering down main street is a wonderful way to spend the afternoon.
It was an eclectic mix - Nutella crepes, shrimp & scallops, curried chicken, crab cakes, fried green tomatoes, nachos, funnel cakes and more. It's fun to all get different things and share.


We went with my parents and I was expecially glad to have extra eyes on Tessa since it was so crowded. Ryan heard on the news that the city expected 150,000 visitors downtown this week-end. I think they were all there with us on Saturday!


Taking a break with Gampa.

My beautiful baby.

Near Liberty Bridge they had a large children's area with rides and bouncy fun. Tessa, of course, rode the carousel. She also climbed the huge inflatable slide all by herself. The crowds were getting pretty crazy by this point so we started making our way back to the car. Fun day.

Bye-Bye Binkie

Yes, my child is over three. Yes, my dad is a dentist. Yes, my daughter still had binkies. For quite a while now Tessa's binkie time has been limited to when she is in bed or in the car. I haven't inhibited her speech or caused her mouth to be deformed (maxillofacial plates don't fuse until about the age of 4) or done any other harm that some binkie-phobes worry about. It's just been an object of comfort for all of us.

But today we made the transition. We said bye-bye to the binkies. I rounded up all our binkies from the house, the car, even G&G's house. I told Tessa that we would mail them to the the Binkie Fairy. The Binkie Fairy would then give the binkies to babies that needed them.

Tessa was great with the concept, until it came time to put the last binkie in the package. Then came the tears. She pitifully tried to open the package and retrieve a binkie but my tape job held. In to the post office we went and before either of us could really believe it, the binkies were gone. I cried when she whispered "bye-bye binkies." Quick Momma, get those sunglasses on before Tessa notices the tears.

When I explained the plan to my mom (who coincidentally has the same adress as the Binkie Fairy) she said "Oh, that's so much nicer than what I did to you. I made you watch while I cut your binkies up with scissors like some kind of Binkie Massacre!" She made me laugh so hard calling it a massacre. I'm not traumatized and Tessa won't be either. I'll keep telling myself that tonight when she's crying for her binkie.

Oktoberfest

Last week-end was the Greer Oktoberfest complete with an oompa band and folk dancers. These ladies not only performed, but gave dance lessons too. Tessa had a great time learning to polka.

Here's Tessa showing off her new dance steps with her daddy.


Momma and Daddy had dance lessons too. When the teacher said something about the young couple if front, I looked around thinking "who?" But she was talking to us. Ha! Made my day to be referred to as the young couple. Of course the reason she wanted our attention was to tell me to reign it in a bit on the turns. Apparently my flamboyant turns are more shag than polka. Oops!

After all that dancing, we were hungry. Tessa dove right in to Ryan's brat, complete with sauerkraut and mustard. I was shocked that she liked the sauerkraut but she kept coming back for more. What a fun family day, I love our little downtown.

Aunt Claire's House

Tessa and I jetted cross country to Idaho for a visit with some of our favorite people, the Kosmickis. My sweet baby was wonderful on all of our flights. Our connections were uneventful, even "Dee-troit" wasn't so bad. Tessa didn't sleep a wink on the plane but was easily entertained with coloring books, stickers, snacks, dvds and my ipod. I thought I was so smart buying the Color Wonders markers to avoid any messes. Of course, I bought the glitter version and we ended up with glitter everywhere. It looked like we were flying Tinkerbell Express. Fellow travelers were sweet complimenting how well Tessa behaved. Warms a momma's heart to hear that. But, at the same time, I wanted to say "knock on wood, we're not there yet!"
With four kids under the age of 7, we purposely planned the visit during the school year. What I didn't realize is that I would be there for W's first day of 3k. What a bonus to see this growing boy hop on the bus for his first day of school! It seems crazy to me that W and Tessa will eventually be in the same grade.

While big brother and sister were at school, G2 and Tessa had a wonderful time playing together. Even though he is more than a year younger than Tessa, G2 runs and climbs and jumps like a big kid. He had no trouble keeping up with my big girl.

And I just can't believe this beautiful child is old enough to be in first grade! Tessa adores G1 and happily followed her around in the afternoons. Very exciting for Tessa was when we took G1 to dance practice. We arrived early and Tessa and G1 were able to play in the huge studio, pure bliss for my little girl. I really need to look into dance classes for the spring.

Coach Brad was nice enough to let Tessa practice with W's soccer team. G1, aka Assistant Coach, patiently taught her how to kick the ball and Tessa was dribbling in no time. Of course, she preferred to pick up the ball and run with it - to a whole other field! She is three after all.

Did I really think the kids would sit still for a picture?!

With the kids playing together so well, Claire and I were able to spend hours chatting and just catching up with each other. Though we talk on the phone all the time, it's different when you're sitting at the kitchen table and drinking coffee together. I'm so sad that we live on opposite sides of the country but at the same time grateful that our friendship is strong enough to survive the distance.

Sky Top Apple Pickin'

State Fair

On this beautiful Labor Day week-end, we headed over to the Upper SC State Fair. Midway rides, junk food, a circus, animals, and people watching all made for an interesting afternoon.
We all rode the ferris wheel together. Tessa has no fear of heights, wish Momma and Daddy could say the same.
Daddy took Tessa on her first "Dumbo" ride. Let's go high!!!
Momma took Tessa on her first roller coaster ride - wwweeeeeee!!! She loved it and asked to go again and again.
And, of course, we rode the carousel. Tessa can spot one of these from a mile away. It's still her favorite ride.

And what's a fair without a FUNNEL CAKE!?! Tessa enjoys them almost as much as Momma does. We also tried deep fried Oreos, yummy.

Momma's Birthday

Happy Birthday to me! I was lucky enough to stretch out my birthday over ten days this year! It started with a special girl's night out, then there was birthday cake, shopping, steak dinner, more cake and Ryan taking the day off work just to spend with his girls. Thank you everyone for making my birthday so special.