Healthy Stuff

It seems that I've seen a lot of stuff like this on the Internet today. Just wanted to pass it on.

A quote from Jillian Michaels:
Apparently California is requiring a warning label be put on McDonalds food. Like cigarettes. This is why I tell you never to eat this crap or feed it to your kids.

I'm guilty. AC has enjoyed her fair share of french fries, probably the worst thing on the menu. But I'm always striving to do better. She deserves better, after all, and it all starts with me. Thanks for the reminder, Jillian.

And then I found this on Twitter. I must admit that the author is a little more passionate about this stuff than the average person (plus the tweet came from Jenny McCarthy who has been criticized for her unvalidated claims on autism). It's worth a read, I think. Anything to help raise my awareness.

Christmas

Our Christmas celebrations began on the 22nd when we loaded up the car and headed to Mamaw and Papaw's house. We spent 3 days with them and Daddy. We also had visits with lots of family members...both Aunt Tammys, Valerie, Bradley, Aunts Kaye and Faye, Aunt Robin, and Aunt Marissa! We really missed Aunt Nicki and her crew and Uncle Judd! It wasn't the same without you all.

These 3 days were a wonderful time for my girl. She got lots of presents and snuggles. As always, we left with full hearts because of the love and generosity that our family continues to shower us with. We are so lucky to have all of these people in our lives.

AC opening a few presents!

Yummy cupcakes by Aunt Murr!

We arrived back at Nina and Papa's on Christmas Eve and headed straight to the Redmon Family Christmas. It's a real party and we didn't want to miss seeing this side of the family. With almost 100 relatives in 1 house, things are bound to be entertaining. This is the second Christmas without my Granny, so it was nice to have everyone together to celebrate Christmas just as we had when she was here. She was smiling down on us all that night, I'm certain. I didn't get any pictures this night. Too much going on and a certain little girl was completely wild. Lots of sugar, lots of kids, a new present, and a visit from Santa...she was not sitting still for any pictures, I tell you.

A few short hours later and it was morning. Here are a few pictures of AC's first glimpse at what Santa had left at Nina and Papa's. It wasn't much because we can't fit any presents in our luggage, but she didn't notice and was excited just the same.

Showing the doggie her new markers!


Shining her new flashlight at Daddy

We couldn't spend a lot of time with the presents because we had to hurry to make it to church. Here is the best picture I could get of this excited girl in her Christmas dress.

Soooo happy to be with her Aunt May.

After church, AC took a quick nap and then we headed out for another family Christmas celebration. Nina's side of the family. It is an annual tradition for all the cousins to sit on my grandma's couch and take a picture. I must say that it is quite interesting to look at how much we've all changed over the years. Here we are this year.

After eating, the present-opening began. Barbies=love for AC.

Loving her new princess costume.

2 new Barbies!! (Just a little side note...AC's hair is a disaster. I'm aware. It was a rushed morning. Pick your battles, right?!)

A Doctor Kit!!

Sweet Baby Caroline

Giving Papa a shot with her syringe from the doctor kit!

Checking Mommy's heart

Aunt May and Justin

After the celebration wrapped up, we all came home and called it an early night. We had a great Christmas this year. We are so very blessed to have so many great people to love. And who love us.

The First Few Days at Home

I know...it's been a while, right? Well, our little vacation is drawing to a close and things have started to slow down a bit. I found a little time today to upload some things to the blog. Here is just a glimpse of what we've been doing for the last 3 weeks.

We arrived at Nina and Papa's on Monday, December 19th. Two days later, AC and Nina made Christmas cookies.

We were thrilled that Uncle Benny was home too. It was nice to spend a few weeks with him. He and AC enjoyed a few movies - "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

Breakfast with Santa

Well, it finally happened. My girl got to meet Santa for the very first time. Her school hosted a "Breakfast With Santa" this morning. It was really nice. The line for Santa moved quickly and we got to eat breakfast and mingle with friends for the last time before our long break. The food was good, there were crafts for the kids, and Santa brought candy and a small toy for each child.

Here's how it went for AC:

We arrived, bid on a few things at the Silent Auction in the lobby, found a seat and started coloring. About 5 minutes later, Daddy spotted Santa making his way across the room to his bench up front. AC was thrilled. She smiled from ear to ear and covered her eyes! A few minutes later, we got some food and ate breakfast. After the line had dwindled down to the last few kids, we decided to join it. Here we are. She started to get a little nervous, so I began to really exaggerate the greatness of Santa. It worked.

She cautiously crawled onto his lap. I stood right there and encouraged her to tell him what she wanted this year.

She told him she wanted a puppy! Santa got a kick out of that! Then he handed her a candy cane and a stuffed dolphin. She was a happy girl.

After "Breakfast With Santa," we went to Stein Mart just to look around. I paid no attention to wear I parked the stroller as I looked through the kid section. I turned around when I heard her say, "Mommy, me have eweben (11) Santas!" She had picked every Santa figurine out of this display! He must have made quite an impression!

Christmas Party '11

Oh my word. We are a VERY tired bunch today. It's been a crazy week! I'll keep this short and sweet. First, it is Daddy's birthday!!!!! We enjoyed dinner at Bone Fish Grill and ate some banana pudding for dessert (he requested this instead of a cake). Before Daddy's birthday celebration, AC and I had a fun Christmas party at her school. Here are some pictures.

AC at snack time with her friends, Sadie and Nicolas.

All the girls waiting patiently for their gift from Ms. Lyndi. How crazy is it that 4 of the 6 girls have curly hair!

Ms. Lyndi must have been out of her mind when she thought these were a good idea! Take a minute to imagine what this exact moment sounded like. Yeah, it was that bad.

Girls being silly on the playground.

Sliding with friends!

Best buddies. Melts my heart.

Playing with Ms. Lyndi's homemade gingerbread play-doh (which she eventually started eating...but she wasn't the only one)!

Whew! I volunteered to help Ms. Lyndi with the party, so I was there the entire day with AC. I don't know how she does it everyday. Those nine 2 year old wore me out!

Happy birthday, Daddy! We love you!!

Busy Around Here

It's been a busy week around these parts. Here's what we've been up to!

On Tuesday night, AC had a Christmas Program at school. She had to be dressed in her Sunday best and be there at 6:30. Overall, the night was a success. She enjoyed herself and behaved well for the most part. Hopefully, I will have a little video to share of her center-stage meltdown and her quick recovery when "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" began. In the meantime, I have a few pictures below.

On Wednesday, AC went to school, Gracie went to the vet, and Daddy had his office Christmas party. All three of these events were successes.

On Thursday (today), AC had a formal speech evaluation. She had an informal evaluation at school 2 months ago where they recommended she be screened more formally and comprehensively. So this morning a speech therapist came to our house and did the evaluation. I'm so very happy to report that she did wonderfully. Her scores were completely average for her age range and therefore she doesn't qualify for speech therapy services. She talks a lot. It just isn't always clear. I had had concerns a few months ago, but I believe starting preschool has been therapy in itself. Her speech has developed remarkably since she started in August. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

Speaking of shoulders, my dad had surgery on his shoulder this morning to repair a torn rotator cuff. Everything went well and he is recovering at home. Pray for my mom and brother, his nurses! Ha!

This evening AC and I played with Daddy's shaving cream. She LOVED making herself look like Santa. She kept saying, "Ho, ho, ho!"

Fixing Mommy's Santa Face!

All of the students at her school singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." She's on the front row right in front of the kneeling teacher who assisted her during her meltdown.

The main characters in the nativity story.

And finally...a birthday cake for Jesus. They all sang "Happy Birthday" and blew out the candle. Very sweet.

And the festivities aren't over. We have a big Christmas party at school tomorrow and "Breakfast with Santa" on Saturday. I'm anxious to see how she will react to sitting on the Big Man's lap! More fun pictures are sure to come!!

Coat and Boots

Someone is super, duper, completely, and totally excited to come home in just a short while!

She loves to wear her coat and boots and talk about all the things she's going to do in them when we finally get there!