Christmas 2009

We had a great Christmas in Durham this year. Dave and I had a fun time getting everything ready for Mia. She slept in until 9am and we were both waiting anxiously for her to get up and see what Santa brought. We videotaped her first seeing all the presents under the tree and her new princess piano and zebra bouncer. See, if you didn't know, Mia is going to be a piano prodigy. I've already got it all planned out. She loves playing the piano and not just banging away at it. She pretends to really play a song. She gets that from her Gramma DeeDee and her cousin Ben. So we bought her this pepto pink piano that she loves. You can even record the songs she plunks out. She loved playing it until she found the extra buttons that add a beat to the music. Now she just runs up and presses the beat button and dances around like a hip hop baby. My plans for piano prodigy have been put on hold.

Mia really got into opening presents.

She's a natural!

Pigtails are flying!

She wouldn't wear these antlers even for a 5 second picture.

Ginger

This Christmas I really wanted to start some traditions for our little family. I thought we would try out decorating a gingerbread house the week before Christmas. It was really fun and Mia LOVED it most of all. I should start out by saying Mia has a serious sweet tooth. When she wakes up in the morning she says "Breakfast! Chocolate!". When she wants a snack she says, "Crackers! Chocolate! Candy!". It was challenging to get her to put the candy on the house at first but she finally got the hang of it and did a great job decorating. She called it ginger and every few minutes from the time we finished it until I threw it away Christmas Eve (I had all I could take) she screamed to have her ginger placed on the ground where she could eat the candy off it. She still asks for it sometimes. I think we will make it a tradition and I just pray she gets over the "ginger" obsession next year.

If I've said it once I've said it a million times, this child is a mess.

She really worked hard!

She has frosting in her hair but she is soooo pleased with her ginger!

Let It Snow!

It snowed for about an hour a few weeks ago. It didn't stick. You can barely even tell it's snowing in the pictures. I was doing the dishes and Mia ran in the kitchen and said "SNOWIN!". I laughed then looked out the patio doors and sure enough she was serious. We had to immediately go outside and play in it. She thought it was so cool. She loves being outside and takes every chance to run out the door if it's opened for any reason. Today she ran out in her onesie. It was 39 degrees. I had to coax her back in with some M&M's.

We've had many discussions about NOT eating the berries outside. Scary.

Believe it or not I meant to take this headless shot. I like to get all crazy with my camera. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't!

I love this girl!

Yep, she was really that excited.

Oh Christmas Tree

I love the smell of a real Christmas tree. I DO NOT however love watering it and vacuuming up the million pine needles on my floor. But it is really beautiful and Mia LOVES it! So it's worth it.

Where Did My Socks Go?

Oh, that's right my new camera rocked them off!! That's right I am in heaven and LOVING my new camera. Our point and shoot just wasn't getting the job done. I missed all the cute pictures because it was so slow and Mia is so fast. So, Merry Christmas to us, we bought a Canon Rebel T1i. Now I have to learn how to use it and people it takes some serious know how to get the most out of these cameras. And I know nothing right now. So, slowly but surely I'm gonna master this thing. Too bad blogger doesn't show you how amazing these pictures really are. Scroll down and look at some pictures from other posts. They don't even compare!! Don't tell anyone but I just kissed the camera.

First photo shoot with Mia. I love these pictures for so many reasons. 1- She has chocolate on her mouth. 2- Her jacket is too small but she loves it anyway. 3- The ears on her too small jacket are SO CUTE!

Halloween 2009

We had a great Halloween even though Mia had an ear infection to top of a rough week. She was feeling much better by Halloween since she started her antibiotic. My mom came for a visit and we did a very little bit of trick or treating. Mia was a cute cat but didn't like her costume. It was a very warm day and her costume was super hot. She looked adorable in it though and I wish I could have gotten more pictures of her fully dressed up.

We live in an awesome neighborhood and were "Spooked" by our neighbors.

You can't get cuter than this!

I LOVE Halloween but had a hard time getting ready for it this year due to traveling and Mia's surgery and ear infection but I did get to do one Halloween craft I was dying to finish. It's our "devilish" family silhouettes. It's hard to tell but even Roxy has horns on her picture! Click on the picture for a better look.

I attempted a Full Moon Cheesecake. That's supposed to be a bat. At least it tasted yummy!

Mia was trying to eat all the candy including the wrapper. She loved opening the door and seeing the trick or treaters.

Mia and her pirate cousin Annika. We couldn't catch Ben because well, he was busy of course!

Mia and her Grandma DeeDee.

She really was that cute. I wish she would have worn it longer than 5 seconds but I'm learning that some fights with Mia just aren't worth it.

Our Little Patient

Mia finally had her eye surgery! We've been waiting for it to happen for a long time. She was born with a clogged tear duct and it has been pretty annoying. Last Monday she was sick but they decided to go through with the surgery anyway. It was a very quick and easy procedure. They just stick a wire in her tear duct and clear it out. She was such a trooper considering she was starving and seeing all the people in scrubs made her want her daddy. I got to go back with her and hold her while they put her to sleep. She didn't squirm or cry at all when they put the mask on her little face. She was lucky to have an amazing team working on her. I was a little sad leaving her in the operating room but it literally was 10 minutes and I was holding her again. All the nurses and doctors said she was "phenomenal". If you know Mia I'm sure you are shocked because she can put up a major fight and usually does. She had those people eating out of her hand though! We aren't sure if the procedure worked because her eye still tears sometimes. We'll just have to wait and see.

So cute in her little gown and yellow socks!

The doctor put his initials above her eye to be sure to get the right one. She's holding her mask here and it smelled like watermelon and had stickers on it. These people know kids.

Happy to be eating finally with only a red eye to show for her surgery!

The Big (not so) Easy

Mia and I had an adventure last week and flew to New Orleans to visit my sister and her family for a week. Flying was a nightmare and I thought we would never get there. I have to say New Orleans wasn't what I expected and I LOVED it. My sister actually lives in Metairie, LA which is very close to New Orleans. We had so much fun hanging out and actually ventured out to do a few things. We had 2 toddlers and a 4 and a 7 year old so it was wild to say the least. Working our schedule around the kids,napping, and school was difficult. It all worked out well though. Mia loved playing with her cousins and from the second she woke up until the second I put her to bed she would call for her cousins. The highlight of the trip was just spending time with my family. I love going to a new place and tried to soak up every second of New Orleans. It is so beautiful. I love a place with culture and history. I saw the graveyards that you just have to see to believe. I saw the neighborhood where Brad and Angelina live. I saw the French Quarter. I also saw my new favorite zoo. I saw the beautiful Tulane campus where my bro in law teaches. I ate authentic jambalaya pasta, a muffaletta sandwich, and have a new passion for beignets. Walking the neighborhoods in the French Quarter makes you feel like you have stepped back in time. People say it's not what it used to be before Katrina but I loved it anyway. I would love to go back and see it one more time before they move. Mia came down with a nasty cold the day we flew out. I was worn out when I got home but it was worth it. It wasn't an easy trip but it was WELL worth it. Family, fun, beignets... oh my!!

Embarrassing picture of me eating jambalaya pasta at a funny knock off of The Cheesecake Factory.

Mia loves alligators and of course the zoo had a ton of them and even a couple creepy white ones.

If you are wondering if I ever do my child's hair, I try people, I really try.

To be honest Mia was kind of wary of her Aunt Melissa. She would look at her then point at me and say "Mama". I think she was concerned that we look so much alike.

Mia almost died on this cheetah statue but Aunt Melissa saved her life.

I'm pretty sure this gorilla could have killed us if he wanted too.

The house in the middle is a good Katrina reminder.

Luke eating his beignet from Cafe du Monde. I wanted to steal that from him and pour the powdered sugar down my throat. I personally LOVE beignets.

Mia's first experience with play dough. Hope she liked it because it's not happening again for a LONG time.

New Orleans is not the most politically correct city I've been to in my life.

St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter. This church was amazing. So beautiful inside I almost cried.

Mississippi River at the French Quarter.

These girls and their caramel apples! Mia didn't get one. Grace shared though and yes they got EVERYWHERE! My niece Charlotte (the little one) loved hers best.

I loved the homes in the French Quarter.

Saw lots of voodoo signs.

This picture is my favorite.

One highlight of our trip was picking up my awesome nephew from school.

North Carolina State Fair

I LOVE the fair. Always have and always will. We didn't go that much growing up because I'm not sure it was the safest fair but now I go every chance I get. I don't ride the rides at the fair. I love rides but not ones that are taken down and put back up a hundred times a year. What I love about the fair is people watching, eating, eating, eating and well you get the point. It seems like out west they like to have their fairs in the blazing heat of summer. Even the fair in Louisville was hot, hot, hot. When I was growing up the fair was in the fall. It was cool enough to enjoy it but not freezing. So when I heard the NC State Fair was coming in October I was ready and willing to get my grub on. We had the best time. We were having a cold spell so we had to dress warm and didn't stay as long as I would have liked because we had to go at night. Oh the food we ate! We ate a huge turkey leg, corn on the cob, blooming onion, foot long hot dog, elephant ear, and deep fried Reese's cups. Dave had a stomach ache when we left but I felt great!! I have to say this fair had the most food I have ever seen at any fair anywhere. We took Mia to see the cows and she cried at first because they stunk. She is such a funny kid. She loves to be in her stroller and watch everything going on around her. She really enjoyed the fair. She may look like her daddy but she takes after me with her love of the fair and all things fried.

Dave in line to get our deep fried Reese's cups.

Mia enjoying her first bite of deep fried heaven.

Wish I had some of that corn right now.