Introducing "Tiny"

A special visitor from The North Pole arrived at our house right before Thanksgiving. A special Elf from Santa tasked to keep a direct eye on Anna-Grace and report back to him her good and BAD behavior!

We had to give him a name and once we convinced Anna-Grace we didn't need to name him Elfy the Elf (everything like like that right now, she gets a stuffed dog and wants to name him doggy the dog...a stuffed cat....kitty the cat, we're hoping she gets a bit more creative with age)we decided on Tiny! He watches her all day then flies back to The North Pole at night to give Santa the head's up ( I think she frequently moves from the Nice to Naughty list). When he returns he is in a new place in the house. You just never know where he will land next!

Professional Beach Pictures

While we were in Myrtle Beach, we scheduled to have some professional pictures done. Since we have not taken any "family" pictures since Anna-Grace was 2 weeks old I was extremely excited and even more excited when the pictures came back......I couldn't be happier with them. Here's a few of my favorites!

Another Angel Part 2

So this week I was looking forward to blogging about our recent vacation to Myrtle Beach and sharing the AMAZING photos we had taken, intstead I have to post about how Anna-Grace got another Guardian Angel Tuesday evening.

As you all know my Grandmother has not been doing well and my mom tracked me down at the beach to let me know that she was not doing well and she thought it best if I come home. We quickly packed and headed to Fayetteville. We got here around 5:30 and I got to spend an hour and a half with her until she took her final breath. When we got here she was mumbling and groaing like she was trying to tell you something but you just couldn't understand. Finally about 6:45-6:50 she stopped mumbling and got really quiet she lasted till 7:00. I have never watched anyone die and I can imagine in some circumstances it's tough to watch becuase the person suffers so much. Not my Grandma, she just close her eyes and took her last breath. She looked so peaceful and beautiful all at the same time. I would swear she had make-up on. It doesn't make it any easier.....it sucks that she's gone and I hate more than anything that Anna-Grace will never know her like I do. I hate that when Chris and I got married 3 years ago we had 4 Grandparents and now we have 1. But I have to take comfort in the fact that she lived the life she wanted. She spent money when she wanted to, she went where she wanted to go and she loved unconditionally. And she passed away in the comfort of her own home surrounded by her friends and family.

Sorry to go off on a tanget, but I have a lot on my mind, and this was just the less emotional way for me to share it!

Another Angel......

Pa-Pa passed away last night at his home, surrounded by his family. It's a sad time for all of us, but I know Granny is happy to finally have him with her. Chris and I always say that Granny had to have hand picked Anna-Grace so I know with the 2 of them watching over her she's got a great life ahead of her.

Pa-Pa

Chris's Grandfather has not been doing well these past few weeks and my Grandmother is right behind him. It's been hard on me thinking that Anna-Grace is going to grow up never truly knowing what wonderful and amazing people they are and how much they love her. I have to take comfort in the fact that they have gotten to spend more time with her than most Great-Grandparents do and that we will make sure to tell her all the time about them. I was going through the pictures we had of us with Chris's Grandpa and made a little Picture DVD for his dad and Aunt. Just thought I would post it on here too!

Wet N Wild

Chris and I along with our friends Steve and Shannon decided to head for a weekend adventure at the Wet N Wild Water park in Greensboro. We timed it just perfect since we got there right when they opened so we got hit all the good rides before the lines got to long! We got our exercise and had a good time minus the kiddos! The picture up top is of me going down the tallest slide at the park and the one below is of us at dinner.

Day at the beach

Last week was enough to drive me insane work wise. It's just been a crazy couple of weeks for Chris and I both,so when Chris asked me on Thursday night if I wanted all of us to go to the beach Saturday I jumped at the chance for a day of fun and relaxing in the sun.

We woke up to some not so nice rainy weather, but the skies cleared up on our way there and we arrived to a beautiful, sunny day at Atlantic Beach! Chris definitely gets brownie points for that suggestion.

Time with Grandma Leen

Chris and I have had a hard time these past few weeks with my Grandmother and his Grandfather getting worse and worse health wise. My Grandma Leen just keeps getting worse, so Anna-Grace and I battled the horrible storms on Friday and headed home for the night. It was just a quick trip since we had to be back Saturday night, but I did get to spend some quality time with her. Anna-Grace always seems to brighten her day and I know she enjoyed seeing her. Please pray for both of our Grandparents, and us, we all need it.

Still can't believe she's 2!

As usual I am late in updating this, sometimes there just aren't enough hours in the day! Since our last post we have celebrated Anna-Grace's 2nd birthday! It's still hard to believe she's 2! Everyday it's still something new and I swear she gets smarter every minute. Chris and I are going to have to go back to school to be able to keep up with her! We had 3 parties for her...the first one was a small one at our house with just the three of us, the 2nd one was her big one at our house and the last one was at Nana and Papa's! Nana is still getting used to getting around with her new wheelchair so it was just easier for us to go to them this time! I made a slideshow of all the pictures and added in a few randoms from the end of June! Enjoy!

God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy!!

Ok so I know that is not a song by George Strait, but none the less an appropriate title for our evening last night. By some grace of God the rain held off in Raleigh and we had PERFECT weather for our tailgate and concert with Julianne Hough, Blake Shelton and George Strait.


We hung out with tons of old friends and some family and had an awesome time. George Strait sounds in concert just like he does on his CD's. No wonder he's been making records since before I was born! I think my camera said we took 180 pictures last night....So I'll just post a couple!!LOL

OBX Weekend Away!!

A friend of Chris's got married at the Outer Banks this past weekend, and with everything that has been going on lately we really needed to get away. We had not really celebrated our anniversary or even spent much time alone, so we (along with friends Troy and Shawna) headed to the beach for a weekend getaway.



The wedding and the weather was beautiful and it was nice to get away. The hotel we stayed at was inexpensive and right on the beach and I think we will be taking many more trips there, alone and as a family!

Pirate Fest 09

Every year around the middle of Easter ECU does a spring kick-off for their upcoming football season. They have carnival rides and pig cookoffs,fireworks and even a little ECU scrimmage. We took Anna-Grace and Ashlyn last year but once again couldn't do much because they were so little (both of them had just started to crawl).




Boy was this year different. We started off on the carousel and easy pick because Anna-Grace loves the horses, however this year the girls got brave and rode 2 rides on their own. They were a little scared at first but it didn't last long. They rode the whales, the cars....TWICE, and picked ducks.




We then headed over to a grassy area to watch the fireworks which Anna-Grace did not like (they were way to loud for her)she did keep saying that she liked the pretty colors, but I think it's just because she tries to find the positive in things! We all can't wait to take them back again next year!

Easter 09

As usual I am late on posting, but better late than never.

What else can I say about Anna-Grace's Easter other than it was like Christmas! She is one spoiled little girl!

We started off the weekend at Aunt Kathy's where she hunted Easter Egg's with Kairi while Thorne watched from his wagon (he'll be ready to go next year). The girls did so good, they even ran in opposite directions for the Easter egg's so they both got an equal amount. Anna-Grace was then treated to a big Easter basket from Aunt Kathy.




We then headed home where she was visited by the Doo Doo Di (Chris's mom) Easter Bunny!

We stayed home Easter Sunday so Anna-Grace could get her Easter Basket from the "Easter Bunny" and hunt Easter Eggs. My mom and Grandma came down and we had lunch and hunted Easter Eggs! AS you can see in one of the pictures she took a bit of a tumble on the concrete while hunting for Easter Eggs, she scraped up her arm and her forhead, but cried for a second and quickly wanted her daddy to put her down so she could go get her eggs! Afterwards we headed to the hospital to see Nana and Papa where she got her 4th and Final Easter Basket (I think I forgot to mention the presents and clothes that her Grandma Debbie and Grandma Leen brought her).




She had such a good time and for the next week wanted to know if she had anymore Easter presents. Not to mention the fact that we are STILL hiding Easter eggs. I think the greatest part about her age now is doing stuff like this with her. Last year she didn't understand and just ran around and though she may still not understand the "true meaning" of Easter she looked forward to it and was excited. Watching her run around hunt Easter Egg's with "smarshmellows" and money for her college fund in them was definitely worth the wait.

What a beautiful weekend

Since the weather was so nice this weekend, I had several projects/outings planned for Anna-Grace and myself. Chris is working :-( and we have been spending sooo much time at the hospital that I really wanted to do something different to get Anna-Grace out of the house (and ME!) so we could blow off some steam.

Saturday after we went to see Nana and Papa at the hospital we came home and made her 1st Bunny House....or should I say I made the bunny house and she ate the bunny house!! LOL She did however, help me clean up after. Then today we went to feed the ducks by the hospital and to the park. We stopped by the grocery store and picked up some Popsicles and came home to eat one. As you can see from the pictures she had to share with all the dogs because "they loooove Popsicles!"

I had quite a few pictures so I just put them in a slideshow! Enjoy!!

It's a sad day

To add additional bad news from our last blog, Chris's step-mom's Dad Mr. Jack Ellis passed away today. The picture above was of Anna-Grace with her Great-Grandaddy this past Christmas. I think it is a really great picture of the two of them! With Wanda being in the hospital Anna-Grace has not spent that much time with him lately but I am sure she will want to know where grandaddy is the second she walks into thier house. I hope she remembers him and I know he is watching over her now! You can never have too many guardian angels!

If our life wasn't crazy I don't know what it would be!

Man! Just when we think things are slowing down and we are getting on a schedule life comes knocking on our door reminding us nothing is ever completely under our control.

My car is still in the shop (going on almost 2 weeks now). To make things more aggrivating I am driving a rental with no power locks or windows.....and it's a 2009? I didn't even know they made cars that didn't have power locks and windows anymore!

Anyway that is the least of my worries. Chris's step mom had to have an unexpected surgery yesterday and will be having another one tomorrow. So any spare time we have we have been trying to spend at the hospital. She is doing well though and I think having Anna-Grace visit helps her feel better! For an almost 2 year old she is a great baby to take to the hospital. She plays and shows off for the nurses but hates it when they come in to work on her Nana. She says "They won't hurt my nana" and "Nana's gonna be alright"! She is too smart for her own good.

As far as Anna-Grace goes she still amazes me everyday. She listens to everything you say. She reminds me a lot of my dad, he always used to say he didn't talk much becuase you can learn more about a person by listening to what they say than you can carrying on a conversation. She's not so good at the not talking part (just the oppisite she won't be quiet!) but she does pay attention to everything you say and do, and if you are not careful she will repeat what you say and do at the least expected time. The other day I asked Chris (with Anna-Grace sitting quietly in her highchair) what he wanted to drink with his supper soda or tea. His response was "Bud Light". He really was just kidding and asked for a soda and we went about our business. About 10 minutes later I asked Anna-Grace what she wanted to drink Apple Juice or strawberry milk to which she responded (and these are her exact words) "Bud Light.....I LOOOOOOOOVVVVEEEE Bud Light". Now anytime we ask her what she wants to drink, Bud Light is her answer. We are thinking of taping her and sending it into the Budweiser people but fear Child Protective Services would be knocking at our door withing a matter of minutes. LOL

Obviously as busy as we have been I haven't had time to take too many pictures, but I did post one recent one of Anna-Grace with pigtails! That's right I can finally put her hair into pigtails! They look more like devilhorns at the moment, but it's ok they are still cute!

What a weekend!

Since Chris was working again this weekend, and it seems like with all the cold/rainy weather Anna-Grace and I have been stuck in the house FOREVER. I decided this weekend we would make a special trip to Fayetteville to go see Playhouse Disney Live. For those of you who have not yet learned....my child has a very large obsession with Mickey Mouse, and all the cartoons on Playhouse Disney. I kept asking her all week if she was ready to go meet Mickey Mouse and she would shake her head no. So I was not quite sure if this would be a fun trip or just a waste of time and money.
We headed up to Fayetteville Friday night and stayed with my Mom and Grandma, (what a coincidence my fabulous cousin from PA and her boyfriend were stopping through on their way to Spring Break in Florida!). With the show at 1:30 I tried desperately to get Anna-Grace to take her nap early, and after 30 minutes of fighting it she finally gave it, fast forward to me having to wake her up a short 45 minutes later screaming and crying. We got dressed and once she ate her lunch her mood quickly improved and we headed to the theatre.
















When we walked in (late of course) the show had just started and Anna-Grace could see Mickey Mouse through the doors.....her eyes light up and she screamed "Look mama it's Mickey Mouse on TV". That was the start of one of the best 3 hours of my life. She was so excited there were several times when she pure screamed with excitement. The picture below is an example of one of those moments!
















She danced the hot dog dance with Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Minnie, helped the Einsteins Blast off, Sang a son with Pooh, Tigger and Darby, and danced with Handy Manny. I think I watched her more than I watched the show, but it was well worth every penny to see her as happy as she was. I think we will be hearing about this trip for months to come :-)




So from that story you would think great day huh? And it was. My grandma ended up taking the family to dinner since Laura was in town and Anna-Grace and I left a bit later than expected. We were exactly 13 miles from home when I killed Bambi with my car! Actually I should say she committed suicide because she ran into the side of me but needless to say I wish she would have picked the next car. Anna-Grace and I are fine (she slept until the cops came). But my poor car isn't, and I was scared to death. It's the first time anything like that has happend while Anna-Grace was with me. Now one more aggravation to deal with this week!

First Haircut

Now before I start, I know what you are thinking. The child hardly has any hair, what in the world did I cut? Though she does not have much hair on top or on the sides, she was sporting a nice mullet in the back. So I decided to take her with me when I had my hair done and had my hairdresser trim it up in the back so she doesn't look like Billy Ray Cyrus :-)

She did so good, sat there just as still as could be. And yes I saved the hair!LOL

It's snowing, snowing, snowing.....

We woke up this morning to a Winter Wonderland outside. It's maybe the 2nd or 3rd time it's snowed since we have had Anna-Grace so I was oh so excited when we decided to close the office. I woke Anna-Grace up and showed her the snow, the title of this blog came from the statement she made for the next 30 minutes....it's snowing, snowing, snowing. Chris's mom is here helping us this week due to some changes at work so her and I got Anna-Grace all bundled up and headed outside. AG was so funny because she didn't want to walk on the snow. When I put her on the grass (the only place the snow was sticking at that point) she said Uh-Oh like she messed something up. That thought only lasted a few minutes then she was having her Granny make her snowballs and throwing them at me. We came inside and started some soup and baked some cookies for Daddy.


Little did we know that was no where near the end of the snow. When Anna-Grace woke up from her nap you couldn't even tell we had been outside. I think we got 2-3 inches while she was sleeping! Anyway it was a blast, we just wish Daddy didn't have to work....here's hoping he makes it home tonight safely!

I have a WONDERFUL husband!

Not sure if any of you watched the CMT show Can you Duet. But there was a couple on there name Joey and Rory. They are a husband and wife duo and they were my favorite. They didn't win, but have since put out a CD that is just as awesome as they were on the show!


A week or so ago Chris was looking at their myspace page and found that they were going to be in Clayton NC. So we got together with some friends and made the trp to see them. It was such an awesome show. They way they sing together you can almost feel how much they love each other. It even showed when they were singing "Grandma's got her Daisy Dukes On". :-) The highlight of the night had to be after the show when they signed autographs and posed for pictures! I got to meet them and even bought Rory a beer! We even got an autographed picture for Anna-Grace, mom and dad can't go away for a night and not bring our Princess back something.



All in all Chris and I had such a blast! With all the cutbacks I have had to make with my staff and the overwhelming amount of work I am going to have waiting for me tomorrow it was so nice to get away and not have to think about it.
I can't say thanks enough to Chris for planning such a special night!

Christmas at Grandma Leens!

Since my Grandmother was in the hospital on Christmas Day we decided to wait until my Aunt, Uncle and Cousins were able to make their annual trip from PA before we had Christmas at her house. It has been since before I gradated High School that we have had that many people at Grandma Leen's but it was so nice. We took lots of pictures so I will only post a few. It was worth more than words will ever be able to describe to see how happy it made my Grandma to have all of us there.



My Grandma loved the Elvis calendar we got her!


All the Grandkids and Great-Grankids!


Me with my beautiful cousins!


Me Anna-Grace and my Grandma!

Opening more presents!

More fun with the Pauls

The day after Christmas we took a quick trip over to see Tommy, Kristel and Colin. We let the kids have a little play date while the dad's watched Batman and Kristel and I drank our Christmas stresses away with a few glasses of wine!