"Movie Date"

On December the 11th, the new Disney animation film, "The Princess and the Frog" opened in theaters. It also happened to be my birthday. I love Disney movies, and I have been missing the fairy tale type of movie they use put out when I was growing up.

Also, Ava hasn't ever been to the movie theater. I have been patiently awaiting a movie that we could go see together that she would enjoy. I picked the right one.

The movie was just what we needed. So cute, and filled with great characters and wonderful music! Even a scary bad guy to rank with Ursula and Cruella DeVil. I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and so did Ava. She wanted to go back and watch another movie when that one was over.

I recommend this movie to families everywhere!
Trisha's stamp of approval.

Also, something to look forward to,
Toy Story 3 is coming out in the summer of 2010!
Can't wait for that one.

"Thursday 13"

This is just one of those fun things to do to waste some time.

1. Tantalizing: watching "LL Cool J" lick his lips again and again on NCIS:Los Angeles

2. Talking: to Ava when she is in one of her imaginary moods

3. Target: shopping the clearance stuff and finding the best deal ever!

4. Tattoo: not for me, but SEXY on some guys

5. Tears: welled up in my eyes last night while packing the last few things out of Ava's room.

6. Telephone: not very fond of talking on it, and hate it when I see someone using a bluetooth.

7. Teenager: can't believe its been 10 years since I was one

8. Texas: never been, but I love me some cowboys (not the team, the kind on a horse)

9. Traffic: makes me so frustrated, and I'm glad I'm not in it often

10. Tired: the way I feel after a 12 hour shift or a day of cleaning house

11. Twitter: can't get into it, and don't care to know what everyone else is doing every second of the day.

12. Thoughtful: I strive to be...

13. Tan: not worried about it, and so glad that tanning beds are out!

"30 years?"

I'm turning 30 on Friday! I have been dreading it for reasons I can't quite pinpoint, but my mood about it is starting to change. I guess now that it's actually here, and I have made some fun plans...it doesn't seem so dreary!

The thing that freaks me out is that I can remember when I was a child and my parents were 30. Does that seem weird to anybody else but me? I've never thought about that until this year! Time seems like it goes by faster than ever now, especially watching Ava and Archer grow.

I've always been one to appreciate the present and not take things for granted, but it still becomes a passing memory way before I'm ready for it to! I think if I didn't enjoy life so much, then it wouldn't bother me to watch it fly by! There isn't anything to do but accept it and move on!

Another thing that makes turning 30 a little more overwhelming, is the fact that I never pictured my life to have turned out quite like it has! On the surface, if you heard..."Divorced...living with her parents...single mom to 2" You would think disaster... But, let me break those down for you!

Divorced- gladly divorced for 4 years now! Shellshocked when it all went down, but I can look back and realize that it wasn't going to work out...He changed, and I'm glad I don't have to deal with his issues any longer. Now we just have to raise Ava together, and that is working out just fine. I have been able to forgive, and we have moved past all that to become friends again for parenting sake!

Living with my parents- I chose to move in with my parents and sell our house because I want to move into a different school district before Ava starts school in 2011. We aren't crammed into a little house or anything...Me, Ava, and Archer are living in their "mother-in-law" suite in the basement. We have our own kitchen, laundry, bathroom, bedroom, playroom, and garage. But still, technically we are living with my parents and I hate the way that sounds. I was always so proud of the fact that I was able to keep our house after the divorce, and NOT move in with my parents. I don't mean for it to sound like I don't appreciate what they have done for me and mine. My parents have been such a blessing and a huge help. I couldn't do what I do without them!

Single Mom to 2...I am divorced from Ava's dad, but Archer is a different story. After my divorce, I was most worried about whether or not I would have more children. I have never wanted to just have 1 kid, but what was I going to do about it now? I wasn't very interested in getting married again...been there, done that...but I did want another baby! So, I went about it in an unconventional way. The thought of artificial insemination always irked me because I wouldn't know who the father was. I really didn't want to go that route, but I wasn't totally ruling it out. I was talking one night about my predicament with a friend, who just happened to be a guy, and I just asked him if he would do that for me (help me make a baby). To my surprise, a week later, he accepted my offer...no strings attached, if I got pregnant, the baby would be mine. Well, it worked! It was that fast and a month later I was dealing with the realization that I was actually going to have the baby I wanted! There has been gossip and questioning, but I expected that. I haven't revealed the identity of Archer's "sperm donor" to anyone, because that was part of our deal. I know, I know, I know...I will just have to deal with that when Archer is old enough to ask questions! In reality, we have treated this as if I was artificially inseminated...the father isn't listed on the birth certificate, and he has no interaction with Archer. I think of Archer and the way I came about having him as a blessing! I honestly think God wants him to be here with me...he wasn't an accident or a consequence...he was wanted from the beginning, he was meant to be a part of mine and Ava's family.

So, when you break my situation down like that, it isn't like it sounds on the surface. This isn't what I expected out of my life at 30, its more! I am happy and blessed! I couldn't imagine my life like this, because it is better than I ever expected!

Happy Birthday to ME!

"Phote Frustration"

I borrowed my sister's camera,
I got my props together,

I timed the shoot at the best time for Archer,
and these are the pictures I took.

My favorite,
even though you can't see his beautiful blue eyes.

This one made it onto the Christmas card. I cropped this one, and it turned out cute
for his "first christmas" pictures.


Archer was my first subject for the day.
When Ava got home later I tried to get my pictures of them together.
DISASTER!
I was so frustrated and stressed by the time we got done,
I'm surprised I even got any worth mentioning!
Got a lot of pictures like this...
which are cute to me, but not christmas card worthy.

I also took some snapshots of Charlie while
I was babysitting him that day.
He enjoyed having his picture taken,
and he cooperated nicely.

Look at that sweet face, and that cute bum!
In retrospect,
I will either have to take something for anxiety
before my next photoshoot
or just pay the professionals.
Who am I kidding,
I am just going to have to keep practicing
until I get better at it...
I'm not one to throw in the towel after
one bad day with a camera around my neck.
Eventhough, that day it felt more like a noose!

"Stockings"

My mom wanted some new stockings this year for her grandkids, so I helped her with making some very unique, very cute, very cRaZy stockings!

We had made things like pillows, purses, and even the bedding and accessories for Ava's nursery using crazy quilting. The idea is that you mix and match material, then embellish the design with anything you want! I guess thats the cRaZy part! We always have fun with it! This time, I got to do the fun part...I designed them and sewed the strips, then my mom added the ribbon, rick-rack, buttons, and patches. We did all of those steps in one day. Then, we monogrammed on the top pieces. The last step was putting them all together, and my mom went over to my Granny's house to let her help finish them up!

You can't really appreciate the 3-D effect the embellishments make in the pictures, but you get a good idea! So festive and just right for kids!

This is the finished project in my mom's living room.
She hung the stockings on a fire screen,
because my dad doesn't like the weighted stocking holders...
He is scared one of the kids will pull them onto their head!

"Let it Snow, some more!"

I love snow! We don't get much of it here in Alabama, but I've always been a big fan of the white stuff! Yesterday, we got a light dusting that wasn't much more than an icey mess, but don't think I wasn't going to whip out the snow bibs for the kids!

Ava stayed out there and played for about an hour. I was in and out, mostly monitoring her from the inside of the house, because Archer wouldn't enjoy being out in the cold. One time she came in, and I asked her if she was working on a snowman? She informed me that she was making an ice sculptor of a dog, on a mountain...quote, "I call it Dog Mountain". I could see it from the house...it looked like a pile of snow to me!
She changed her mind about going down the slide, and opted to climb down the ladder instead...she didn't want to land in the big pile of snow at the bottom. Nothing like frozen snow for breakfast!
Sharing a cup of hot chocolate on the front porch with my baby girl, priceless!
Eventhough I didn't take Archer out,
I still tried out his new snow bib
He was warm and cute...chilling in the house! I hope, hope, hope that we get some more, SO...
Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

"Thanksgiving in Review"

I was lucky enough to actually have 6 days off in a row surrounding the Thanksgiving holiday. This post is going to fill you in on why I was WAY too busy to blog, eventhough I would have loved to have a few minutes to sit down at the computer...that just didn't happen!

Wednesday: While Ava was at preschool attending her Indian and Pilgrim Thanksgiving Party, I took Archer with me to the hospital where I work for our ENT Thanksgiving lunch. My coworkers got to love on him and he got to try banana pudding for the first time! He loved it!

Thursday: While watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, we cooked a couple of items for our Thanksgiving lunch. I tried 2 new recipes:

The corn was runnier than I wanted it to be, but it tasted yummy! The cranberry salad had a great taste and texture to it, but with all of the other desserts to choose from, mine kept getting skipped over!

This is a family picture we took as soon as we all arrived! I knew we wouldn't all stay in one place for long!

We visited with my mom's side of the family that morning, my dad's side of the family for the afternoon, and then I went over with Tiffany and Mikey to his family's supper...busy much!

Friday: My mom, Archer, and I braved the crowds Friday morning for some "Black Friday Fun". We weren't out with the hard-care shoppers...we got out and about around 7 o'clock. Ava had went to her dad's the night before, so we only had Archer with us, and we all know he is always up for anything! The night before, we scoured the papers for the deals that we were looking for! We ended up finding almost everything we wanted.

That afternoon I worked on my Christmas decorations. Ava was excited when she got home from her dad's and found out that Hannah and Amy Beth were spending the night with us! I was surrounded by kids and christmas stuff!

Saturday: Woke up with kids here and there...Christmas decorations EVERYWHERE! I helped my mom with her decorating all day long! That night, one of my friends Lori came over and she had a nice visit with me and the kids.

Sunday: We went to watch Hannah and Amy Beth get baptized at their church for morning service. My NaNa went with me and the kids, but I was still very tired and stressed by the time we got done with church and going out to eat! Needless to say, we took a nap when we got home!

Monday: I am ashamed to say, I did not do one productive thing on Monday! Yes, the house could've used some attention, and the clothes needed washing...but I ignored all of that and caught up on some of my shows and played with Archer all day!

With Thanksgiving behind us, I am now looking forward to Christmas, but I hope we can spread the get togethers over a few days so we aren't so rushed from place to place!

I almost forgot to mention how thankful I am for everything the Lord has blessed me with! My heart is bursting with thanks for Ava, Archer, my family, friends, health, employment, housing, transportation, food, too many things to list! I am Blessed!