Halloween 2009

I can't begin to tell you how much fun we had on Halloween this year. Our great friends, The Cassidys (Rich, Lisa & Ava), had another Halloween bash at their house. Mark took his 4-wheeler over and we had the "hay ride" again while taking the kids trick or treating. Good times were had by all. Below are some great pictures from the night.....I think you'll notice that the costumes were stepped up another notch this year. Well, I think that's an understatement. I'm disappointed that I didn't get more pictures, but I did the best I could! First and foremost, here is Snow White...the cutest one EVER!

Below is the witches brew (a/k/a chili)....The Cassidys go all out don't they?

Mark and I (and many other couples we know) are BIG fans of the HBO series True Blood. Anyway, we decided to dress as some of the characters this year. By far, the funniest one was Mark who decided to dress up as the character Lafayette. Look below for a comparison and I think you'll agree.....


I dressed as Sookie Stackhouse...the telepathic waitress from the series. I think I did pretty good, don't you? Of course, I wasn't near as funny as Mark....I don't know that anyone was as drastic as Mark!

Judd dressed as Sookie's boyfriend, Vampire Bill Compton. I think he did great, don't you? Oh...and little Seatharoni was the cutest dragon ever!

One of my best buds, Julie, dressed as Maryann Forrester from the series. Those of you that watch the show will totally get how she's dressed. And, yes, Lafayette just had to pose...again!

We also had the most beautiful fairies! Shyla & Mya dressed up as fairies, but I don't have a picture of Mya where she's looking at the camera. Poor Myra is VERY shy, but that's okay. She looked beautiful and below is the beautiful fairy Shyla!

Our hosts, Rich and Lisa, were dressed as "Mummy & Dead-dy" complete with coffin and duck tape! My first question to Lisa was, "Oh my gosh! How do you pee?" Sounds just like me, huh?

We had the best animal rescuer around for miles....Ava!

We also had Cruella Deville and one of her dalmatians! Good thing there was only one so I don't guess she'll be getting that coat this year!

We also had a "boom box boy" with a total throw back to the 80s! Isaac did great and his costume was totally wired for sound! He's so smart! We had great jams for Halloween...complete with the King of Pop....Michael Jackson!

And what would a party be without Elvis and Priscilla? Of course, the King got a little upset when he found out Isaac's boom box didn't have any of his hits on it. And we had a rule at the house for the evening....if Elvis was in the bathroom for longer than 2 minutes, we had to go check on him because he didn't want to repeat history!

Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf showed up with lots of goodies!

Let's Go Hunting Daddy!

Daddy has a great big hunting blind that he uses for turkey hunting. Anyway, Zoe LOVES it and Daddy set it up in the house so he and Zoe could play Barbies in the tent! Zoe thought it was great and I can't begin to tell you how hard I laughed at the "talk" going on in that tent! Needless to say, Daddy always goes for Sergeant Carter and it's HYSTERICAL!

Snow White

Mark and I went to see Creed on Wednesday, October 14th. Anyway, my parents were wonderful and came down to spend the night with their baby. Nana surprised us all (especially Zoe) and brought her own Snow White dress to play dress up with Zoe. Is that not the sweetest thought EVER?!? We love you Nana! Here are the pics (and Dad you did a great job taking pictures using a camera you didn't even really know how to use)!

Ava Turns Five

I can't believe that Ava Cassidy has turned five! We had a wonderful day last Saturday playing at the Cassidy's house and below are a few of my favorite photos of the day!

Graham Crackers & Milk

I'm not sure how many of you know this, but my husband has the biggest sweet tooth. Every night he will dig through the cabinets and pantry trying to find something sweet to eat. Since yesterday was Friday and I go to the grocery on either Saturday or Sunday, we're a little low on things around here. I came up to the bonus room last night and found Zoe dipping graham crackers (cinnamon flavored) in milk with her Daddy. Of course, this is a first so I had to grab my camera. They are too cute.....

I definitely have a Daddy's girl on my hands!

I can't say that I blame her - I'm a Daddy's girl, too!

Pumpkins with Daddy

Zoe's school closes four times per year for teacher training, etc. Anyway, Daddy and I split those days between us and yesterday was Daddy's turn to stay home. Zoe had a blast staying home with Daddy and Mommy had bought pumpkins for them to decorate. Daddy sent me this picture at work yesterday and it melted my heart....my girl looks so grown up and she is so beautiful. Where has the time gone?

Mommy's Birthday

My birthday was September 26th. My parents were wonderful and came down to spend the night with us. Anyway, both my Mom and my hubby and daughter made me cakes. Can you say chocolate overload? Anyway, they were both WONDERFUL! Daddy and Zoe decorated my cake with sprinkles and candles, which I LOVED. Here are a few pics from the day....

This one just cracks me up. My parents will probably want to shoot me for putting it on the Blog, but I couldn't help myself. Zoe had shared her crowns with Nana & Papa and can you see how enthused my Dad looks? His crown is on upside down & Nana definitely looks "surprised."
Nana & Papa Playing Dress up and Barbies

My birthday cake from Daddy & Zoe. I let Zoe spell "Happy Birthday" with the candles. She did a pretty good job for a three year old, don't you think?

Zoe LOVES chocolate....just like her Nana & Daddy!

Meet Barbie

As I've mentioned before, Zoe is obsessed with dressing up and playing with Barbies. Anyway, Daddy bought Zoe this Barbie dress as a surprise quite some time ago, but I think she forgot about it. Anyway, she found it and immediately put it on. Isn't she beautiful? Not sure about the posing, but she is definitely a princess!

Just Had to do This.....

These are some of the attorneys I work with.....

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The Monster Mash

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Dancing with Daisy

My Dad bought Zoe a doll she can dance with. They bought this doll at a store in Branson, Missouri that sells "old" toys from back in the day. Apparently, there used to be dolls you could attach to your feet and dance with. My Dad came across one for Zoe and brought one back for her, which I must say is absolutely adorable. My parents amaze me with how often they think of "their baby." I simply couldn't ask for more. And let's not forget the hoola hoops Nana brought back for her and Zoe. It's a good thing Nana cane do it well because I sure can't. But I've definitely been trying....I hear it's EXCELLENT exercise for your mid-section. Without further adieu, here's Zoe in action with her Dancing Daisy Doll......

Strangers.....

Mark and I have been having lots of conversations with Zoe about strangers. In today's world, we feel it's very important to have these discussions with her. In the past week alone, there have been three Amber Alerts issued in the Nashville area. It's enough to drive you insane if you let all of the bad stuff in this world bother you. Anyway, we periodically ask Zoe what she should do if approached by a stranger. We give her scenarios like what she would need to do if a man told her he had some baby kittens in his car that he wanted to show her, etc. You get the idea.

This morning on the way to work, we were stopped at a stoplight when a man walked across the street in front of us. Following was the conversation:

Daddy: "Zoe, who is that man?"

Zoe: "He's a stranger!"

Daddy: "What should you say to him if he tries to talk to you?"

Zoe: "Don't talk to me! You're a stranger! I don't know you!"

Daddy: "Zoe, that's GREAT but I think you should shout it at him so other people can hear you."

Mommy: "You should scream STRANGER and tell him not to talk to you."

Daddy: "Yeah....say it in your outside voice."

Zoe: (Screaming as loudly as she can) "OUTSIDE VOICE!!!!!!"

Daddy: "No sweetie....scream "you're a stranger" in your outside voice."

By this point, Mommy was absolutely worthless because I was crying with laughter. My child never ceases to amaze me!

Ginny Pig......

Mark and I have been riding to work together to try to save money on gas. Not that gas is exhorbitant right now, we're just trying to be "smart" with money in this current economy. Driving two different vehicles to locations that are literally five to seven miles apart doesn't make much sense. But, I digress.....

On our way to drop Mark off at work, Zoe was sitting in the back looking at a book with pictures of several animals. Following was our conversation:

Zoe: "Mommy, look at all the animals!"

Mommy: "Cool, huh?"

Zoe: "Mommy, look at the horses!"

Mommy: "I see baby! Aren't they beautiful?"

Zoe: "Mommy, do you like Ginny Pigs?"

Mommy: "I sure do like Ginny Pigs!" (a/k/a Guinea Pigs)

Of course, I had to say all of this without falling out of my seat from laughing. I bet you'll call Guinea Pigs....Ginny Pigs now!

Z - O - E....What's that Spell?

Every night I work with Zoe on her letters. She knows all of her uppercase letters and about 3/4 of her lower case letters. Of course, the lower case letters can be a little tricky. Anyway, I've been working with Zoe on writing her letters. I took my buddy Julie's advice and began with her name. I'm so proud to say that that practice has paid off because my child wrote her name for the first time all by herself.....well, wrote it where you knew exactly what she was spelling! Check it out....

I'M SO PROUD OF MY GIRL!

Lipstick

You've heard me talk about Zoe and Dane before.....if you've forgotten, you can check out the post by clicking here. Anyway, I took Zoe into school the other day and Dane's mom said, "I wish someone had a camera." I said, "I just so happen to have mine in my car. What's up?" She said, "Take a good look at Dane." I couldn't help myself because I completely lost it. Dane had gotten hold of his mom's lipstick and gone to town. It was hysterical! Of course, Zoe wanted in on the picture, too. She loves Dane!

I just know Dane's dad is so proud!

Creed - I'm So There

I Literally Can't Wait.....

September 11, 2001 - We Should NEVER Forget

We live in a world today that has been forever changed, forever changed by terrorism and the acts of violence that took place on September 11, 2001. We should never forget.....never forget the victims and never forget the acts of heroism that took place on that awful day. And we should not become complacent when it comes to terrorism and/or terrorists.....a direction I fear we are already headed with this administration. We live in the best country in the world and there are MANY who do not like democracy! Again, we should NEVER forget.....

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Daddy & Softball

Mark has started playing softball on Wednesday nights in Hendersonville with his good buddy Shannon. Anyway, last Wednesday (September 2nd) Mark was playing third base and took a line drive right to his knee. He was lucky that it didn't hit him directly on the knee cap, but he did get a rather nasty bruise and it was swollen. Before Mark left last night to play softball he was loving on Zoe and following was their conversation:

Daddy:

"Zoe, I love you. Daddy is going to play softball with Mr. Shannon and he won't be home before you go to bed. Give me some hugs and kisses...."

Zoe:

"Oh Daddy. Are you going to get another boo boo?"

Now, how funny is that?!? My buddy Shelley said it best when she said it was out of the mouths of babes.......

My Musical Girl

Dancin' Machines

Pegasus & Eating Veggies with Daddy

Where Do They Come Up With This Stuff?

As I've blogged about before, every Wednesday Zoe's class has "Show and Share." When I went to pick up Zoe from school this past Wednesday she said, "Hey Mommy, come here I want to show you something." We went over to a table and she started pointing to some dinosaurs and saying, "Look Mommy! Dinosaurs!" Her buddy, Jack, is standing beside her saying, "Those are mine." I said, "Jack, did you bring those for Show and Share?" Jack said, "Yeah." I said, "Wow! Those are cool!" He said, "Yeah, I got them at TJ Maxx." Is that not hysterical?!?

As I've mentioned before about Zoe, she tends to always want to take Sleeping Beauty Barbie and Handsome Prince (a/k/a Beach Ken). Well, we took those last week and Handsome Prince came home sans his pants. Now, Zoe won't touch him because "he's naked." Her Daddy keeps saying, "You just remember that big girls don't touch naked handsome princes." LOL! Now, handsome prince has remained in my car because Zoe refuses to touch him. Mark was putting Zoe in her car seat in my car and he put Handsome Prince in Zoe's lap. Zoe proceeded to pitch a fit and throw Handsome Prince across my car to get him off her lap because he's naked. Mark turned to me and said, "Let's just hope she keeps this up until she's at least 30!" Here's for wishful thinking Daddy!

A Sign Your Child Watches Too Much T.V.

So, my child has been in trouble today. All day. To the point where I took away everything she has and only allowed her to look at books. Sad, huh? Sometimes that's the only way to get through to a three year old. Anyway, Zoe LOVES to watch movies. And she comes by it honest because her Mommy and her Papa both LOVE to watch movies. Anyway, Zoe was finally good this evening and earned some of her "privileges" back; however, those privileges did not include movies and/or t.v. of any kind. I was downstairs unloading the dishwasher and called out to check on Zoe. I said, "Zoe, what are you doing?" She replied, "Watching the news." There you have it. My three year old was desperate for some t.v. time so she had resorted to watching the news! Hysterical, huh?

The Wilson County Fair with The Cassidys

We went to the Wilson County Fair with The Cassidys (Rich, Lisa & Ava) on Saturday, August 22nd. For those of you that don't know, the Wilson County Fair is the largest fair in the state of Tennessee and it is VERY NICE. If you live close to the Nashville area, you should definitely check it out. You won't be sorry! And I can't begin to tell you how much fun we have whenever we get together with The Cassidys, not to mention how much my cheeks hurt the next day from laughing at Rich. He's EXTREMELY funny and when you get to "people watch" at the fair, all I can say is I wish I were as quick-witted as he is! He is a HOOT! Anyway, below are some of my favorite pics from the day.

Ava & Zoe waiting to ride a pony.

Ava & Zoe with their money for the pony ride!

Daddy, Zoe & Freckles

Daddy, Zoe & Freckles

Zoe just chillin' out....I love this photo!

Zoe & her buddy, Ava!

Getting carrots to fee the goats, llamas & more!

Zoe feeding a goat.

Zoe & Ava on Zoe's favorite ride of the day!

Ava & Zoe

Ava & Zoe

Ava & Zoe....I love this pic!

Mark, Zoe, Rich & Ava riding the monkey...Zoe HATED the monkey!

A better view of the Monkey ride. Everytime they passed by us, Lisa & I heard, "No!"

Apparently, Zoe didn't want the monkey to spin! LOL!

This was classic Rich & Mark at the fair. Every time Lisa & I did anything with the girls and left the guys with the strollers, they were always chillin' on a bench. As for Lisa and I? Well, we never got to chill out on a bench! We could never find one! Go figure!

Poor Dane.....

Every Wednesday, Zoe's class has "Show and Share." When Zoe first transferred to Ms. Gina's class and she told me the class schedule and that Show and Share would take place every Wednesday, I said, "Are you a glutton for punishment or what?" She just laughed and said it could get a little "hairy" at first, but that every child actually did very well with it and it taught the importance of sharing items that belonged solely to them at home. Well, today is Wednesday and Zoe has taken Sleeping Beauty (a/k/a Sleeping Beauty Barbie) and Handsome Prince (a/k/a Beach Ken) to school. I can't tell you how many times she has taken these two dolls, but she always asks to take them. What can I say? My child LOVES all things Barbie and all things princess:0) Anyway, her buddy Dane walked into school this morning and I said, "Dane, what did you bring for Show and Share?" Dane said, "A football!" I said, "Wow.....that's cool!" I was already on my way out the door and I heard Zoe say, "Dane, I brought Handsome Prince for you!" I can't begin to tell you how hard I laughed! It's a good thing Dane has an older sister because he was definitely stuck today playing the roll of "Handsome Prince." My child is a character!

Oh Man.....

Have I mentioned I'm a FANATIC for all things Twilight? Yeah....I have to see this movie! I can't wait!

"Jenny Penney"

Yesterday after church, Mark and I were on a mission to find a new pair of white sandals for Zoe. She has had her current ones since April and they have held up pretty well considering how rough she is on them, but I noticed they were starting to come apart. Needless to say, we can't have our child running around in shoes that are falling apart! So, we first hit my favorite store, Target, and I found a really cute pair, but they didn't have her size! I was bummed too because we always seem to have that problem at our Target store. I'm guessing I'm not the only Target fan, huh? Anyway, we then went to J.C. Penney and I found Zoe a very cute white pair of sandals for $8.93 total! Not too shabby if I do say so myself. When we were exiting the store Zoe asked, "Hey Mommy, are we going to Target?" I said, "No baby, we've already been to Target and they didn't have any shoes for you in your size, remember?" She said, "Yeah, 'cause we bought sandals at Jenny Penney." I said, "What store did we just visit?" Zoe said, "Jenny Penney, Mommy." Now that was too cute for words! Just had to share. By the way, I hope you all call J.C. Penney.......Jenny Penney!

Cinderella Puppet Show

Zoe's teacher wanted to take the class to see a puppet show at the Nashville Public Library. The library downtown is directly behind Zoe's school, so I jumped at the chance to volunteer and help take the class. I wasn't allowed to take any pictures using a flash until after the puppet show was over, so I don't have many photos to share. But, considering the puppet show as the story of Cinderella, I think it's safe to say that Zoe LOVED it and has been asking to go back and see it again. Enjoy the photos!

Sleeping Beauty

As I've mentioned, my little Zoe loves to dress up. She was playing and said, "Mommy, I want to be like Sleeping Beauty." Not really knowing where Zoe was going with this, I just sat back and watched her in action. This was the end result......

Looks pretty much like this, doesn't it?