The Gingerbread House Machine!!!

Earlier tonight we completed our annual Gingerbread House Project. It was lots of fun! As we started, Blakely announced that she could do it all by herself this year; all while nicknaming herself (by song) the "gingerbread machine!" I was rolling! It didn't take long for her to discover that this was a sticky job, and it took a little persuasion on my part to keep her working solo! In the end, she made all the decisions...one of which was that all four sides must not be identical! She also assigned us new names and jobs to complete as her assistants...things like making sure the extra heavy candies didn't slide from their assigned spots! She was very proud of her final product; as shown in the last photo where the gingerbread house now rests! As you can see in the 4th picture, she was singing along to the Christmas music playing in the background as she worked! Also, I'm sure she would want everyone to know...the background shot was hers! She asked for the camera so she could photograph her favorite candy! It actually came in handy! Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Blakely's "Aunt Lynn Dress"

Ever since the package arrived, Blakely couldn't wait to see what was inside. As you can see, the package held a beautiful Christmas dress. Blakely immediately asked to try it on, and then every morning thereafter requested to wear it to school. I tried to dissuade her, but she was relentless. Finally on Monday of this week, it was rainy enough that I felt like it was safe to send her to school wearing the dress. Much to my surprise, it stopped raining in time for recess...not to mention they painted that day too! Luckily for me, and the dress, Blakely is a very neat child! As always, she came home as neat and clean as I dropped her off that morning! As you can see it has a manger scene smocked on it, and it has been another way to continue talking about why we celebrate Christmas. It's been nice to hear Blakely asking questions and realizing that Christmas is about baby Jesus...not getting presents. Her favorite song from her Christmas program is "Little Drummer Boy." Now every time she hears it, she says,"Mommy that song is really about Jesus." It is amazing how much they can learn at such a young age. This year, we get to talk more about the true meaning of Christmas! Thank you Aunt Lynn for such a beautiful dress and helping us to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas!

Blakely Believes!!!

It has taken 4 years...but Blakely finally believes that Santa is safe! It has been a long process to reach the point that we could even discuss taking a picture with Santa. I am still pleasantly surprised to see how all those tears and screams of terror could turn into the beautiful and serene photos seen above! I don't know what happened over the last year, but it truly was magical! Blakely was so excited to see Santa this year. I didn't have to make any promises, or outlandish offers of treats. She was more than willing to visit the big guy this year. These are just a few of the shots of her time with Santa! I loved watching them spend time together talking and reading...two of her favorite things! He was so sweet! Now she can't wait to see what he leaves on Christmas Eve!

PS- I apologize for the quality of the pictures...but seeing as they are pictures of pictures(thanks to copyright laws), they are not all that bad! You do what you have to some times :)

Christmas in Pink!

Not that long ago, I was out shopping with a friend and we stumbled across this treasure...the perfect tree for our little princesses! Blakely loves pink, her room is pink & green, and she has lots of pink ornaments. That's all we needed for this cute little tree to find its way into her room. It is her nightlight for the month. She just happened to be wearing her cute pink Christmas dress the day we decided to let her decorate her tree. Thanksgiving had come and gone, we went to Chili's for dinner...we had eaten enough leftovers from Thanksgiving, then we came home and began this little project. She was excited because this was the first tree to go up this year...we now have three! As you can see, she is very proud of it. We have added a few more ornaments since then, but you get the idea! Pink is the new red!!!!

We Love Christmas!

Over the weekend, we packed up the car and headed out West...to Watt Rd. that is! On Friday, Billy saw an article in the paper...no, it wasn't in the Sports Page! Anyway, it was a story on a West Knoxville business that was doing their part this holiday season to help raise money for those that are in need. We weren't sure what we were going to find, but we were more than satisfied with our $10 investment. It was "Disney-esk!" It was a drive-through display of lights set to music. We drove through, following the path, until we could find a spot to stop where we weren't a hazard. We even braved the cold in order to get a better view. In the end, our second stop provided the best vantage point. I'd say before Santa arrives, we will be going back to enjoy the light show again! Blakely loved it as much as we did! We finished off the night with some yummy hot chocolate! Happy Holidays!!!

Oh My!!!

After we subjected Blakely to the Christmas Card photo shoot, she decided to direct a photo shoot of her own. It started with her taking random pictures of us, then it progressed to what you see above. As you can imagine, we laughed so hard we cried when we saw what we looked like! We added the last one, just to prove that our faces weren't broken! We actually coordinated our silly faces pretty well...you see, we couldn't say what face we planned on doing. Billy just counted to 3 and then we waited for the result. The only other rule was that you had to make a different face each time! What would we do without digital cameras! Enjoy!

Christmas Card Photo Shoot 2008

Recently, Blakely was playing with our little Santa and letting him know her deepest wishes! Being the opportunist that I am, I decided it was past time to get that annual Christmas Card picture out of the way! Here are a few of the shots that I took...if you know me, then you know there were many more that did not make this post! Even though these didn't make the card, I thought they were blog worthy! You'll have to wait for your card to see the winning pose! If I get brave, I will post the "silly face" shots we wound up taking after we finished taking all of these! From our family to yours...Merry Christmas!

My Baby Is Growing Up!

Year after year, Blakely and I head to the mall to make our annual Christmas Ornament. Some years we go with a friend; this year the Solomons joined us. I usually spend several nights prior to our trip trying to decide on a new handprint incorporated design. However, this year, I wasn't really an active participant...none of that was necessary. For the first time, Blakely was able to complete the project on her own! I helped her decide on the Christmas tree, but that's where it ended. She chose her colors, and decided to add the brown "stems." I was very proud to watch her hang her first solo ornament on our tree this year! I can't wait to see what she comes up with next year! My baby is growing up!!!! Sniff! Sniff!

Family Fun at Fantasy of Trees

This year, Daddy joined us for some family fun at the Fantasy of Trees. We had lots of fun looking at all the pretty decorations and watching Blakely work on her many art projects...one of which she consumed as soon as it was completed!!! My favorite part was when she decided to brave it on the "bucket of fun." Before we boarded our tub, she was adamant that we not spin around at all, but just as soon as she settled in, she found some extra courage. As you can see from the blurry photo, we were whirling around pretty fast!!!! Now I think it's time for roller coasters! You will also notice a picture of Blakely with 2 boys holding back curtains...all my training came into play as she went on her first "Secret Santa" shopping trip all by herself. She made Daddy proud when she returned with change...something I don't often have when I return from shopping! Hee hee hee! Before we left, we had her face painted (she chose the penguin which represented the theme this year: "Penguins on Parade"), braved the line to see the gingerbread houses, and posed for just a couple more pictures before calling it a night! We had lots of fun...especially since Daddy came with us!

Having Fun with Friends at Sprout!

Just before Thanksgiving Break we headed to Sprout to play with Abby and her little sis Natalie! We had lots of fun playing in the market, dressing up, and creating a little art! Blakely couldn't resist showing off her kangaroo puppet! There is always lots of fun to be had whenever we go to Sprout with friends!!!

Parent Observation Day at Dance!

It's hard to believe that this is Blakely's third year in dance! She has moved her way up into the combo class a year early, but you would never know it to watch her in class...she keeps up with the big girls just fine! Ms. Sheena likes to send the class home with homework, but Blakey never seems to mind; since she is always dancing around the house anyway!!! She is really learning a lot this year from Ms. Sheena. Luckily (for all the parents)she goes over the skills and steps that they cover in class so that we know what they are doing. We can't wait for the recital!!!

Happy Halloween...Again!

Here is a better version of our Halloween pictures! I finally went back and corrected it! Now you can actually see everyone a little better!

UT Homecoming 2008

Even though this has been a less than stellar season, one little Vol fan has still managed to enjoy herself! Blakely has joined us for several games this year. She loves going to the games and cheering for the team. Before this game, she found a sparkly "T" for sale at the UC. She couldn't wait to have Daddy put it on her to complete the look. Add in the megaphone and sparkly poms and you have a mini cheerleader on your hands! The crowd around us always enjoys listening to her little voice singing Rocky Top and cheering on the Vols! Luckily we were in the sun, so it was actually very warm...a perfect day to spend with family!

We Love Everything Disney!!!!

It was another venue, the same 4 girls! This time, we saw the latest Disney On Ice show. It was lots of fun! Blakely really enjoyed herself this year. It is amazing how rational she is getting. Things that would normally have given her a scare in past shows, didn't even phase her this time. She would just lean over and explain how it was so obvious what they were doing! We tried not to get too many souvenirs this time, but of course we had to have a cute little Minnie and a butterfly light. The only truly useful thing was the sports bottle of lemonade; which as Blakely pointed out, was "filled with the lemonade we make at home Mommy!" (A.K.A. Countrytime!) Anyway, we had a great time and really enjoyed watching the post show demonstrations. They really have a lot of talented skaters from all over the world!!! It really was amazing to watch! My two favorite pictures are 1-Blakely super excited by the ice & 2-Blakely asleep with Minnie looking like her twin! What can I say...we love Disney!!!

Blakely's After-School Activity!

If you are wondering what Blakely is up to these days, look no further! Every day after school, she can't wait to see what has arrived in the mail. She is always excited when she receives mail, but especially these days. That's because there have been lots and lots of toy magazines in our mailbox lately! I caught her at it again, and I thought you just might like to see how seriously she takes this activity. Of course she is all smiles when she spots something she wants!!!!

Happy Halloween!

Wow! This has been a busy Halloween! We had lots of fun over the past few weeks celebrating with friends and family. We had a party at our neighbor's house where there was lots of food and fun, headed to school for a carnival on Monday, then a Halloween day costume parade. Halloween eve we headed to Blakely's dance school for a party with lots of activities with friends, and then went trick or treating around our neighborhood after having a little family "party" ourselves! I can't believe it has finally come to an end! As always, Blakely had more than one costume. You will see she and her teacher were matching Cleopatras, then she opted for the cute and fun Daphne(from Scooby-Doo) for the remainder of the night! I'm not sure what to do with all the goodies she collected, but I'm sure she won't be without candy for a long, long, time!

Cheetah Girls Rock!!!

Blakely had her first concert experience on Saturday, along with Mommy, Nana, and Aunt Laura! After a crazy Halloween day, we headed to Thompson Boling Arena on Saturday to see the Cheetah Girls One World Concert. I wasn't sure what we were in for, but I have to admit it was actually a lot of fun! It was too cute watching Blakely and her Aunt Laura screaming, dancing, swaying, and singing! They had lots of treats while they enjoyed the show. First popcorn, then cotton candy, followed by a non-sugary treat from Nana (very cool glow sticks). There were a couple of moments that had Blakely covering her ears, but for the most part the noise level was manageable! I think after this weekend, we are in for many more concerts! It was "Cheetah-licious!"

Blakely's First Field Trip!!!!

Blakely and the rest of her class were very excited about the Pumpkin Patch field trip. The field trip was originally scheduled for last Friday, but had to be postponed due to rainy weather. Needless to say, Monday couldn't get here soon enough. But, as you can see, the weather was perfect on Monday! We had lots of fun! We started off by taking a few silly class pictures while we waited for our hayride. That is Blakely and Ms. Judy, along with her friend Abby, in that cute shot of 3 on the hayride. After listening carefully to the instructions, we were off. While we were on the hayride we saw lots of pumpkins, cats, and cows! Blakely's favorite cow was "Oreo." When the ride came to a stop, it was off to the pumpkin patch to hunt for that perfect pumpkin! We actually were looking for two...one for Blakely and one for me! Blakely had lots to choose from, but finally settled on two rather large pumpkins...both with nice & sturdy stems! You may notice she even found a pumpkin bloom while we were in the patch. (it's the shot of her looking up and pointing at the green vine...look closely and you too will see the yellow bloom!) After we made it back from the pumpkin patch, we had a nice picnic lunch and some free play time...that's when we took all the pictures at the end! We really had lots of fun on our first field trip, and we can't wait to carve our perfect pumpkins into the perfect jack-o-lanterns!

Happy Halloween!!!!!

Dollywood in the Fall!

Here is a cute shot of Blakely and her Aunt Laura on our most recent outing to Dollywood. They had lots of fun riding all the "big girl" rides together. Aunt Laura and Nana joined us for some fun on a nice Fall day! I couldn't believe all of the new rides Blakely was willing to try. Being tall has its advantages when it comes to amusement park rides! Now she can ride everything except the really big roller coasters! We had lots of fun!

Blakely Follows Nana's Lead!

Blakely has watched Nana bake and decorate cakes for quite some time. The other day, she wanted in on the action. She has decided that just mixing up the batter is not enough. Now she wants to take over decorating too! With just a little help from Nana and Mommy, she managed to decorate this pumpkin cake for all of us to enjoy! She was very proud of herself...of course we were very proud of her too!

Blakely is always ready to take a picture!

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Our Little Dancer Shines!

Here are a few snapshots I took when we had the chance to attend Blakely's first "Parent Observation Day" at dance last week. As you can see she is very focused during the class, but never so focused that she can't pose for a quick picture during a music change! It's hard to believe that this is her third year!!! Her teacher is really great! We love her!

Blakely is ready for Fall!

Blakely is really excited that Fall is here. We have been busy playing with friends, enjoying the cooler weather, and learning new things!

This picture was taken on our most recent trip to Dollywood. Now she is asking if we can make a display at our house with hay, flowers, cornstalks and pumpkins.

Blakely Loves Her New Big Girl Room!

As most of you know, Blakely recently upgraded to a big girl bed! We have completely redone...or I should say, finally decorated her room. She loves having tea parties, dancing to her big girl music (i.e. Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Cheetah Girls, etc.), and sitting on her new bed reading. I caught her, tiara and all, doing just that one morning after I made the bed! After we set everything up, she decided that she really likes having a bigger bed. Her quote was, "now I have so much more room!" Even more importantly, she is sleeping there all by herself...as long as you don't count her stuffed animal collection! We are very proud of her!!!

Blakely Is All Vol!!!

We spent the weekend visiting with friends and former UT Letterman during the Letterman Weekend festivities. Blakely really enjoyed herself. On Friday she had the chance to run on the field at Neyland Stadium, touch the "Big T," and visit the locker room on a private tour. Then gameday included a pep rally, food, and fun with friends! She definitely is a trooper, because the weekend was packed with activities, and it was very hot!!!

Blakely Is All Vol