Hurry Christmas, Hurry Fast!!

Geez, another year had came and almost went, now Christmas is just days away!  All the running around shopping, hiding barking presents in the attic, trying not to spend too much for fear of the wrath of money Grinch, finally screeching to a halt!  Time to relax with the family, eat way too much and indulge ourselves in opening presents! Why not, don't we all deserve this at least one time a year?





So, Santa, You Know Where We Live, You Have No Excuse For Not Showing Up!



First look at first snow of the season!








Really?  You Can Do Better Than This!!!



All The Presents Are Wrapped!

Wrapping Paper Courtesy Of Noranda Aluminum!!



We Already Have Our Pj's Picked Out For The Big Night!



I've Been A Good Girl, Promise!








We Helped Papaw Decorate The Yard!





Whether You Get Here By Rocket Ship....



Private Landing Strip....



On Wagon Pulled By Geese....









Or By Plane, Just Get Here All Ready!!!



PS  To all of you that can't be here with us this Christmas, I love and miss you!





Proud Momma!!

Madeline and Lainey

This week was a big week for the girls and I.  After 3 1/2 years of life, Lainey got her first haircut!  Yes, I know, she should have gotten one sooner, but I didn't see the point, she never got a split end and even after being asked a dozen of times if she wanted a haircut, she said no!  Last week that changed.  Lainey came to me and said she wanted a haircut, so I jumped on it and got an appointment before she changed her mind!

Lainey Before...

It was also time for Madeline to man up and get a cut.  We have been letting her hair grow so she could donate it to Locks of Love, for it feels like forever, 1 1/2 years anyway!  The last time we thought it was long enough, the hair stylist said it was still too short, so 6 months later, it was finally time.  So, she too got a hair appointment!





Madeline Before...



Lainey was sooo excited about haircut day!  She was grinning from ear to ear.  She got up in that chair and did everything Kel Kel told her to do!  I could not have been prouder of her!  Lainey may have a tough exterior, but she likes to be pampered!!  She is going to be a diva like her sister for sure! 



During...



Madeline doesn't wear her feelings on her sleeve like Lainey, she is quite hard to read.  That morning before school she didn't seem too excited about haircut day, but once she got home, she was pumped.  She told all her friends at school that tomorrow she was going to be a new woman!  Madeline had right at 10 inches of hair to donate. And the new "woman" Madeline is ADORABLE!   



Here Comes the Big Cut!!



Before going to the hair salon, I read online about the qualification for donating hair to Locks of Love.  It said that they require the hair to be 10 inches for it to be used for their wigs, but, they would also except other lengths and sell it to offset the costs of making the wigs.  So, not only did Madeline get to donate her hair, but Lainey got to as well!  Some kid somewhere is going to hair a great head of hair, and we couldn't be happier for them!



Whoa!  Three Pounds of Hair!!





A Beautiful Product!!





Almost Over With!!



I'm Gorgeous!!



A View of Pru!



Adopting Rumor Star aka Prudence!



Snuggling with Madeline!





Binkie Time!





Playing with Lainey!




Prudence is the new Pink!





Punk Rockin Pru!



Stretching Out!



I'm a Lucky Dog!!





You Say It's Your Birthday, Really??

November, a favorite month of mine.  I love the beautifully colored leaves, the cooler weather and Thanksgiving!  Something else special happens this month, my mom's birthday.  Most of all our birthdays are clumped together so it is easy to remember them all.  Papaw, Terry Bruce, Robbie Lee, Dallas's grandma, his mom, dad and one of his sisters and of course, my birthday, all are in September.  Then we have the March/April grouping of birthdays, Madeline, Lainey, Memaw and Jeremy, along with 3 special  anniversary's in May, The rest are spread out throughout the remaining months, and all are fairly easy to remember, except mom's!! 

I think we always forgot her birthday because of all the excitement of Thanksgiving, then, of course, Black Friday, which reminds us that Christmas is just around the corner!!  Who's house are we going to for Thanksgiving and Christmas?  Does Jeremy get to come down?  When are we putting up the tree?  Who are we getting gifts for?  What are we getting for everyone?  Damn, tax bill, really, before Christmas??  Charlie Brown, Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus is coming to town, A Christmas Story and many other favorites, on TV for our viewing pleasure, all that on top of our daily hectic lives.  No wonder we forget Momma Alice's birthday every year!! Yes, they are all excuses, lame, but excuses none the less.  The truth is, we all remember her birthday now and have for awhile, but it is sooo much fun aggravating her, so we keep up the facade!!  So, Happy Birthday Mom!! (November 16th 19??)  Thank you Memaw for birthing Alice so that she could go on and birth Jeremy and I!! Love you!!

Okay, Okay!!  So, Maybe some of us still forget, but it doesn't mean we don't love you!!

Nieces and Nephews are sorta like Grandkids!





Lainey and Owen



I'm sure everyone has heard the saying, "If I knew grand kids were this much fun, I would have had them first!"  And/or, "Grand kids, you can spoil them and sent them home!"  Well, it has come to my attention that this is also true for nieces and nephews!  My sister-in-law, Sarah, beautiful name, and her family stayed with us for a couple of weeks recently with her son, Owen,3, and daughter Abbie, 1, oh, and of course, her hubby Duke.  Believe it or not, it was a joy to have them here.  Eight people under one roof, a two bedroom house, wow, so this is how my grandparents felt growing up!  Grandma had 7 siblings, Grandpa had 8, Dallas's dad had 6. Needless to say, there isn't enough Xanax in the world that will convince Dallas and I to become the next Duggers!



Madeline and Abbie



I remember when I had my kids, my parents always worried that the girls would not remember them because they lived so far away.  I reassured them that Madeline and Lainey could never forget them.  Of course, even with this situation at the forefront of my mind, I sometimes feel the same with Owen and Abbie!  So, getting to spend this quality time with them, instead of the short weekend visits, was important to us all.  Owen is 8 weeks younger than Lainey, which makes them great playmates, then you have Madeline that is 4+ years older.  When there is a baby in the house, Madeline goes into babysitter mode.  She loves to play, feed and snuggle with them.  While they were here, I couldn't wait to get off work and play with them.  We took them all, plus another to the carnival.  Before you think I am crazy let me tell you, it was a blast!  They would decide on a ride together, then took turns riding with each other. All in all, the two weeks went by smoothly, but fast.  It was sad to see them go, but we were all ready for our old routines again. 





Together, Dallas and have 1 niece, Abbie, and 6 nephews, Ryder, Owen, Gage, Jaden, Sergei and Eli.  Two of which, we have never met, but are hopeful that someday soon, when the time is right, we will.  I guess nieces and nephews are also like Lays potato chips, you can't just have one.  As happy as I am for the ones we have, I am still sad for the ones we don't.  Jeremy and Brandon have started the necessary papers to begin adoption procedures.  I just typed my referral letter to help out.  My heart and soul go out to them.  They wish to be parents so badly, and from watching them with my kids, I know they would be wonderful at it.  They are not only great uncles to Madeline and Lainey, but to their friends' kids as well. I know in my gut it will happen for them, and that girl/boy will be the most loved, cherished and cared for kid on the block!  Not only by their parents, but by their Aunt Sarah as well.  Aunt Sarah sends you hugs and kisses until we formally meet. Know you are loved!



Jeremy, Brandon and Lainey



Anything Can Happen On Halloween!!







Another year, another costume!!  Halloween has came and went. This was the first "real" Halloween for Lainey!  Of course, I dressed her up the last two years and, of course, I took her "trick or treating," but this year she was old enough to GET it!! She walked up to each of those doors and said "trick or treat" and "thank you" to everyone.  There was no shy bone in her body once she realized that candy was involved!  Dallas, unfortunately, had to work this year, but took them to one house before to see the girls in action.  She kept saying, "okay, dis the las house, I freezin, oh wait, can we go to dat one?"  Madeline enjoyed herself as usual, she has gotten over the "scary" costume issue, which is a good thing.  I understand it's scary for a kid to see people dressed up as ghost and such, but I also know they can miss out on a lot of fun stuff from being scared of everything too!  Example, Thriller!



In my attempt to be more adventurous, this year I decided to participate in "Thrill the World."  Thrill the World is an annual international dance event and world record breaking attempt, for Guinness World Records, in which participants simultaneously emulate the zombie dance seen in the music video of Michael Jackson's "Thriller."  As apprehensive as I was, I dressed the girls in their costumes and myself in mine, the zombie version of the "lunch lady," RIP Chris Farley!!  We went an hour before the actual recorded performance to learn the dance.  Lainey, not yet over her scary costume phobia, chickened out at the first sound of the scary music, but Madeline and I danced on! If I would've had another hour, I probably would have gotten it down, but I did okay considering I haven't dance danced since I was 7 or so.  I was proud of myself for taking a risk and going out of my comfort zone. I, not only had a good time dancing like a crotch grabbing zombie, but I spent quality time with Madeline, whom I am always telling, "You can do anything!"  Hopefully, I set an example of that for her, but a fond memory would suffice!  For a look see at my awesome dancing skills, search Thrill the World Sikeston 2010!



 

 

2008



2009



2010

At The Dog Wash!





Learning To Groom!



Although we had our rough times in KC, we had our good times too!  Through work, I once again made new friends and made a career.  I started Pet Smart a few months after moving there.  I started as a cashier, but quickly moved into management, still longing for something more.  I knew I loved the job, loved the people I worked with, loved the pets, but as I watch the dogs in the pet salon I knew where I really wanted to be.  Unfortunately, it took awhile to get there, with all the begging and pleading to let me move on, sometimes being an asset to the company can have it's drawbacks, but once an opportunity for a salon manager position arose, I jumped on it with both feet!  To be a groomer at Pet Smart you must become a bather, go to an academy and then complete an apprenticeship with a salon manager and after grooming 100 dogs under their tutelage, you become certified.  It was a lot harder than it sounds, but I enjoyed every bit of it, and without it, I wouldn't be where I am today.  I love all my PS friends and miss you dearly!!

 

My Other Daughter, Prudence!

Eight years later, I am still grooming, and still loving it.  It most defiantly, is a ever changing job, and for the most part, is different everyday.  Its a joy to get regular customers that not only you care about, but care about you, and become a part of the family.  Give me a call if your dog needs a buzz @ Animal Health Center in Charleston!!  1-573-683-4445



The End!