Happy Halloween-Part 1

Happy Halloween

We started celebrating Halloween on Friday evening, by going to our church for Trunk or Treat!

Jillian was the Little Mermaid, with red hair and all!

Wyatt, a cute Zebra, complete with a wild maine and tail!

Ms. Fremd, from our church provided face painting.  Jillian chose a candy corn for one side of her face and a pumpkin for the other!

Tigger was there!  If your not familiar with trunk or treat, people decorate the trunk of their car, truck bed or even the back of their suv and hand out candy in the parking lot of the church.  It really is a lot of fun.

Among the trunk or treating and face painting they had pumpkin painting and food!

Saturday we met up with some of our closest friends, The Bidwell's, and did some more trunk or treating and trick or treating at Kroger.  Afterwards we went back to their house and ate chili, watched a few halloween movies and let the kids play, (which consisted of them blowing raspberries on each other tummies, it was hilarious!).  We had so much fun, and there's more to come tonight.  We have several places on the schedule tonight, so that will be part 2!

Happy Halloween!!

Saturday's Top 5 Laughs

These are my top 5 laughs for the week!

1. Jillian, my 3 year old told me this morning while I got ready for work, "Don't worry Mommy, I be good for Daddy", she then went over to her Daddy and said "Daddy, you be good for me."  Yes, she know's who's in charge!

2. Wyatt, my 5 month old, was eating his baby food one night this week and proceeded to spit like he was blowing raspberries in the air, food going all over him and me, I told him No,No, which came off as funny because he started laughing.

3. Last night we took the kids for Trunk or Treat at our church.  Jillian was the Little Mermaid, so I sprayed her hair with Red hairspray.  When we went to wash it out last night she said look Mommy it turned brown again!  I was so proud.

4. This wasn't my child, but so funny I had to share.  I was getting Jillian dressed in her costume at the sitters yesterday, and another little girl was watching Jillian.  Ms. Debi asked her what she was going to be for Halloween and she replied without skipping a beat, a BOOGER!  So funny, she's 2!  For the record she actually is going to be a cupcake...ha!

5. Jillian has gotten to be so perceptive lately, she knows which way we are suppose to go now.  Which now makes for a backseat driver.  So the other day I was taking the kids to my grandmother's house, but needed to stop at Kroger first, so I passed up the shortcut to my grandmothers.  Jillian had a fit, she said "your going the wrong way", and I said well we have to go to Kroger first, "No we not going to Kroger, we going to Memmaw's house", she hollared back at me!!


This is a blog hop, so if you have funny things that happen each week and would like to share it with us all, please link up at The Mommyhood Chronicles.

Letter to Jillian #2

Dear Jillian,

Since October is breast cancer awareness month, I thought this would be the perfect time for me to tell you GiGi's cancer story line.

GiGi, before cancer

I'll never forget when Papa and GiGi told Jo-Jo and I the news.  We were at our church for a holiday craft festival in November, when they asked us girls to go upstairs to talk.  Jo- Jo and I  were both nervous and didn't know what to expect to hear.  I really can't even remember who said it first but when I heard the word cancer the first words out of my mouth were "Oh No!", and tears followed shortly behind.  I, mommy had just found out I was pregnant with you, and I was filled with emotions.  But Papa and GiGi stayed strong, well maybe with a few tears, and told us that we were gonna fight this thing.  And so she did!

In October of 2007, GiGi was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Although she was never given a stage of severity her outcome looked good.  She had met with all the right doctors and they had a plan.  First a biopsy, then surgery, then chemo and radiation.

GiGi underwent surgery November 2007.  They removed one of her breasts, or boobie's as you call them, and pretty much all of her lymph nodes under her arms.  Lymph nodes are these small little balls that we have throughout our bodies, that trap foreign particles, such as cancer, so that's why they had to remove them.  She came home that same day, very sore and very groggy.  

Shortly after her surgery she started chemo and radiation.  Chemo is a mean nasty drug that kills cancer but makes you feel like crap while doing it.  GiGi had 3 rounds of this nasty medicine, and then a few lesser ones after that.  It worked, the chemo had killed her cancer and GiGi went into what they call remission for six months.  I think she was even in remission when you were born.

August 2008

Unfortunately it didn't last long.  After almost one year had gone by, since she was diagnosed, one of GiGi's scan's came back and it looked as though cancer had come back.  This time in other areas of her body.  She did everything the doctors suggested and fought harder than you could ever believe! Your GiGi was one STRONG lady.

 She got to be here for me when you were born, and she got to see Jo-Jo and Andy get married.  I think that those two things made her fight even harder.  Just the mention of you, Miss Jillian and her eyes would light up and you could see the excitement in her bubbling up.  We spent just about every Sunday with GiGi, and every holiday that came up.  She fought for about 2 1/2 years, October 2007 until February 2010.  Always remember baby, she was not ready to go, nor did she give up, her body just couldn't take it anymore.

There is so much little girl, that I want to tell you and want you to remember about how wonderful your GiGi was.  I am going to try my best to write you these letters to tell you about just how great she was and to write down all the blessed memories that we have of her, but I can not tell a lie, this is really hard for mommy to do.  I love seeing all the pictures of her with you, but it makes me miss her so much.  Just yesterday as I was looking through all the pictures of you two together, I found a video of GiGi making you laugh.  And even though you can't see GiGi, you can hear her.  Oh how that brought back memories, just to hear her talking.  What I would give to be able to call her and talk to her!  I would tell her all about you and what a wonderful little girl you are, and how you make me smile everyday.

I'll write again soon, I hope but for now I'll leave you with some of my most treasured memories, pictures of you with GiGi!

This was at cousin Amy's wedding, I think GiGi bought you those adorable little pink shoes!
~October 2008

This was Thanksgiving at Memaw Helen's house
November 2008

Here GiGi was probably getting you dressed and talking to you, she loved to talk to you.
~Fall/Winter 2008

All dressed and one of my favorite pics of you both, look at those beautiful smiles, she was so happy!

Kisses, oh how she showered you with kisses!

And tickles, your laugh just made her day.

This was your 9 month photo shoot at Papa and GiGi's house.

April 2009

Same photo shoot, but it was close to Easter and this was your Easter dress.

Mommy keeps the nursery at church and GiGi always sat in to play with you.  You loved making this face.
~Spring 2009

The pond in the back of the house at GiGi's, you loved to stick your feet in it.
~Summer 2009

Love you baby girl,

Mommy

Wordless Wednesday

"It's Fall Ya'll" Party

Every year for the past 4 or 5 years, Randy and I have hosted a fall party at our house in October.  The first one we had turned out to be so much fun, we decided to make it a tradition, and if you know me, you know I LOVE my traditions!!

We enjoyed my Chili, PB & J sandwiches, lots and lots of cookies, White Chicken Chili, compliments of Kimmie, it was delicious, caramel apples, thanks Ms. Cassie, and hot caramel apple cider with s'mores!  Activities included eating, a hayride through the back roads, pumpkin painting and sitting by the fire talking with friends!

Russel and Sam, Ann's boys and Sam's friend Dougie, sat in the front of the hayride.  Sam and Dougie both wore shorts, not sure if they knew how cold a hayride can get!!

Meet Ann, my daddy's fiance, and my dad.  They dressed up real cute for the party.  She held Wyatt in his monkey blanket and he feel asleep.

Mason and Jillian, sat beside each other on the hayride.  Watch out daddy, Jillian has a boy....friend!

Jillian and I being silly on the hayride, and Laney who hates pictures actually got in on this one!!

Cassie holding Wild Cat Fan Noah

This is my bestie, Cassie you met her in a previous post called Party Time, she was the momma to the Princess who turned 3.  We've been besties since high school!  Her and her family always come out and help us celebrate fall.

Jillian and Mason

There's a huge corn field right behind our house, and these two just couldn't resist playing in it.  Mason belongs to some friends of ours that go to church with us and his Daddy went to high school with Randy and I.  Jillian and Mason are only a couple of months apart in age, and they play so well together!  It's amazing the difference in Boy/Girl play and Girl/Girl play!

His bib says it all these days!

Wyatt man finishing his dinner so we could go on the hayride.  I have to post though that he made me lie!  I just posted last week that he didn't have stranger anxiety yet but boy was I wrong, he wouldn't hardly let anyone hold him, only Mason's daddy Keith, and Ann, my Dad's fiance (whom he know's and you met earlier).

The kids and Ann getting ready for the Hayride!

The sun has set, and the kids were getting bundled up all ready for the hayride!

Randy was so excited this year, he got a friend to loan us this tractor, just for the hayride.  I have to say it did make a world of difference.  We usually just pull the wagon with Randy's truck.  He said he also enjoined the tractor over the truck because he felt like he was able to see us and hear better.

Big Red decided he would join us this year, Thank You Brandi for holding on to him and not letting him jump off!!  I think he had fun getting out of the yard for a chance!

My girls!  This is me, with the wind blown bangs, Kimmie, all bundled up and Cassie looking all sly!

We all gather around the campfire after the hayride and skewer up some marshmallows to make s'mores and drink hot caramel apple cider.  Perfect for the great fall weather we had.

The kids painted pumpkins inside the smokey garage.  Don't worry, we weren't exposing them to second hand smoke, well the cigarette kind, the flu on the wood stove in the garage was all stopped up and we didn't know it at the time!  We had the doors open for ventilation but the camera could still capture the smoke left over.

They were some serious painters!  Good tip for painting, I use pill containers, you know the ones that have the days on them, and fill each kid one with all different colors of paint.  That way there is enough to share and everyone has there own paint, because that's important!

Miss Jillian was concentrating very hard.  It's funny though, all the kids just glopped paint on their pumpkins, no real drawings or faces.

OOHH, scary teeth!!  (And eyes, oops!)

Why they love those things I don't know but they do.  This is Blake, Cassie's oldest, also known as my first baby, just ask him!!  He and Jillian played a fun banter game of "My Mommy", no "My Mommy".  It was cute!

This one is Wyatt's pumpkin, didn't he do a fantastic job!  Okay, just kidding, I painted it but it was his pumpkin!  Mine had rotted on the bottom, yuck!

Jo-Jo got in on the action, painting her a pumpkin and Noah one too!  He was already in bed.

Randy and I and our foster dog, Roxy.  

The warm, glowing fire!

The kids jumped on the trampoline in the dark.  Jillian's hood wouldn't stay on so Blake put her winter hat on instead.  He's such a good little helper!

B.B. and Angie, his name being Brian Bohannon, but Jillian has always called him B.B. for short.  I think it's cute!

Uncle Alex looking more than thrilled with me and Uncle Andy bring Jo-Jo some Cider!

Jo-Jo and Andy, so cute!  You may have thought he didn't exist, because I always talk about her and Noah and not him, but alas he appeared that night.  He runs a golf course and had weird hours, so it's rare we get graced by his presence! 

Me and the bestie!  Please excuse this horrible picture of me and my pooched out jacket!

This is Alex, I was trying to get a picture of him, with the marshmallow on fire in front of his face, but the camera doesn't show the fire.  Darn, we tried this I don't know how many times!

Here he is blowing it out, sorry Alex I still didn't get it!!

It was a beautiful fall day, but a chilly fall night.  So we bundled her up.

Roasting marshmallows, can you smell them...ummm!

We had a blast with our family and friends!  Thanks to all who came out and helped.  We'll have to do it again next year!!!