Thanksgiving

It is hard to believe that Thanksgiving has all ready come and gone. We had a great day. As usual, we had pumpkin pie for breakfast while watching the Macy's Day Parade. This year, I added mimosas to the tradition. Yum! We didn't spend the day alone. One of Chuck's friends from the Academy brought his family over from Pensacola for the day, and they spent the night too. We hadn't seen the Robbins since 2004 so it was a great day to catch up with them. Of course we had too much food and have been eating left overs since. All in all, it was a such a great, low-key day. Of course, we are so thankful for so many things we have been blessed with and that made the day even that more special.

We didn't venture out to far yesterday on black Friday. We went to Walmart and Kmart, but by the time we made it there the madness had all but cleared out. Other than that, we spent the day decorating the house for Christmas. Even went as far as buying our tree last night - getting ready to decorate it here in a few minutes. Friday, again, was a great family day.

My parents are officially in the car on the way here. They made it to Twin Falls, ID last night and last I talked to them today they were outside of Vegas. They will be with my brother and sister-in-law by Monday and with us by Wednesday night or so. We are excitted to have them here but I think they are both going crazy waiting to get to this little one...

Holiday Shopping

I can very easily say that with the exception of two people, we are officially done with our Christmas shopping. I have never been done this early - I usually don't even start until our Christmas decorations are up which is always the weekend after Thanksgiving. I am so on the ball this year!

Actually, the truth is, I don't want to have to be out Christmas shopping while my parents are here - they get here next Wednesday. I just want to be able to hang out with them as much as I can.

There is a problem being done this early though! I keep buying for Addie even though I need nothing else for her. I just keep seeing such cute clothes and outfits that she MUST have... My thinking though is now that I am done, I won't be going into stores therefor no longer coming across MUST-haves for her. We will see how that works...

And I think other than last minute cleaning - and obviously the cooking - we are ready for Thanksgiving too. We did all the grocery shopping over the weekend. I set my table today even though I will admit it isn't the prettiest Thanksgiving table I have ever done. (No dried leaves or homemade cranberry candles this year. I am not even breaking out the fine china this year.) I will bake my pies tomorrow so we can have pumpkin pie for breakfast on Thanksgiving while watching the Macy's Day Parade.

Charlie is especially excited for Thanksgiving this year. He always does the cooking which as you know is sooo much work. And every year he says "Next year I am not doing as much." But it never fails we do just as much as the year prior. I think for about a week now, he has been walking around the house saying "I can't wait for Thanksgiving." I am not sure why.

Today, I am thankful for my husband. For so many reasons but for his love for cooking in particular. I don't mind cooking but I certainly don't like to do it every night and I am not as good at it as he is. I am so thankful that he picks up my slack in this department and doesn't mind doing it either. Of course, I am thankful for him for so many other reasons- too many to get into on our blog. But just want him to know.

Ultra Sound

I am off to have an ultra sound this morning. I am told that there is nothing to be concerned about, but that the ultra sound is just a precaution. There may be some fibroids in my uterus because I have been having some issues that last few months. The doctor is pretty confident that if there are, they are not cancerous - which is good considering I don't think I am done with those parts. Addie needs some siblings and that will be really hard if something is wrong in there. Anyway, I won't have any results for a while as I won't even get the results from today until my next doctor appointment which isn't for another couple of weeks. I am a little nervous, but am comfortable with the doctor I have been seeing and feel she would be honest with me if she felt like there was something to be concerned about. I guess I will just have to keep busy over the next few weeks to keep my mind off it - which I don't think will be a problem at all! Wish me luck...

Thanksgiving at the Squadron

Addison and I met up with Charlie at the squadron today for the American Hornet Thanksgiving meal. It was really nice - lots of people - lots of food. I will say though, it was really weird eating turkey, stuffing, and all the other fixings at a picnic table outside. Only in Florida, I guess! (It is 70 here today!!!)

Today I am thankful for the men and women of the 43rd fighter squadron. As well as all the other men and women who serve our country. I am thankful for the freedoms that their service gives me. Thank you!

Potty Time

Addison has figured out how to take her diaper off. Even when she has pants on. She has been doing this for about three weeks now and after the first week or so, I decided that if she was going to take her diaper off, I was going to put her on the potty everytime she does it. Full well knowing she is a little to young to be potty trained, I just thought sitting her down on the potty would get her used to the idea. In the last few days, whenever we are changing her she either points to the bathroom, or gets up and walks over to the potty. (Making progress!) This morning while I was getting her ready for her bath she walked over to the toilet. More out of habit than anything, I put her on the potty - AND SHE WENT TINKLE!!!! Of course, I made a huge deal out of it and she got really excited about what she had done. I am such a proud mama right now. But am curious to know if this means we should really be working on her or just keep doing what we have been doing? She isn't even 18 months yet, but she seems to be getting the whole idea. Thoughts???

$5 Meal Exchange

Addison and I met up with some of the ladies and kids from our neighborhood today for a $5 meal exchange. The idea was to bring a dish that cost $5 or less to buy all the ingredients. We were all to bring the dish and extra copies of the recipes to share. We met up at the park by the community center here in base housing so while we were eating and chatting like mom's do, the kiddos were able to run and play, hopefully wearing themselves out! It was a fun lunch and what a great idea! So anybody out there looking for a fun and unique idea for a get together, I highly recommend it! Who doesn't love to eat, socialize, spend less money and get new recipes??? I am thinking of two different events in the future that I am going to steal this idea for... Here is the recipe I used today... (Over the next few days, I will post some of the other recipes I got today - many yummy, yummy things!)

One-Dish Pasta and Veggies

1 1/2 cups of uncooked pasta - any kind (I used corkscrew cause the kids like it)

1 cup carrots

1 cup broccoli

1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Cheddar Cheese Soup

1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

* Cook pasta according to package directions. Add carrots and broccoli the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Drain.

* Mix soup, milk, mustard. Add pasta and veggies. Stir together.

I always add salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste - as well as peas and a bag of shredded cheddar. (Other veggies that are good in it are squash, zuccini, onion, corn, tomato - you can use really whatever you have.)

ENJOY!

New Family Picture

A few weeks ago, we had our family pictures taken on the beach. Most of you know that once Addison sees the beach she makes a bee-line for the water. So needless to say, she did not have the attention span needed for this years holiday picture. The photographer was only able to get about 8 and of those 8 only 2 really turned out well enough to use for our Christmas card. This picture is also our new profile picture.

The Holidays

I realize we still have Thanksgiving to get through - and while I always love Thanksgiving, I am very motivated this year to get my Christmas shopping done early. My mom and dad are going to be spending the month of December here at a rented beach house so I am feeling the rush to get the shopping done early so I don't have to do it while they are here. I am having a little luck so far and am lucky in that Chuck and I have decided to only do stocking stuffers for each other rather than a big Christmas. His stocking is almost done. I just have to get it out to see how much more - if anything - I need to get it full. Addison is super easy, in fact, we got her half way done over the weekend. And of course, Grandparents are easy too - give them some baby pictures and they are content. I just feel like there are a lot of other people I need to buy for that I am having a hard time with ideas. (Teenage boys? What do you get them?)

And while I am motivated to get my shopping done, I am not as enthused about the holidays this year as I have in years past. In all honesty, I think the HOOOOOOT weather here is throwing me for a loop. It is hard to feel like it is Christmas out when it has only cooled off to the 80's in the last few weeks. Not holiday weather if you ask me!

I keep thinking I should just focus on Thanksgiving first. It is a week from Thursday!!! How is that possible??? A first we thought it would be just the three of us, but our dinner has grown to include one of Chuck's Academy buddies and his family - they are stationed in Pensacola, and possibly a couple in the squadron who will have just had, or be getting ready to have, a baby. While I do not have to worry about the menu - Chuck is the Thanksgiving chef around here - I love to have a beautiful table for the day. And since the house gets so thrashed in the process of the holiday, I would really like to have it clean too so it isn't doubly trashed after dinner.

And of course, our Thanksgiving weekend always includes the decorating for Christmas. So I really, really need to drag/find my bins with the decorations... A big undertaking in itself! Maybe if I can get myself through Thanksgiving and get my house decorated for Christmas, I will be feeling in the holiday mood. Let's hope!

Holly Fair

I ran away yesterday with some girlfriends to the Panama City Beach Junior League's annual Holly Fair. Being that my mother has been taking me to craft shows and bazaars since I was knee high to a grass hopper, the show was so-so. I have been to so many great, great, great ones throughout the years that this one couldn't even compare. It was nice, but there weren't as many vendors as I thought there would be and there was A LOT of jewlery. (And no quilts, mom!) I only bought a few things - some stocking stuffers for Charlie and my ornament for the exchange at the next MOPS meeting.

Everytime I do to these events, I think to myself that I am really going to get on the stick and get crafty. I always tell myself that "next year" I am going to enter into a craft fair and try to make some money for the holidays. And every year, it's the same thing. I get all motivated and get going for a few weeks and than get side-tracked and loose my mo-jo. If all works the way we are hoping, next fall I will have a lot of time to do these things and will be able to hit the circuit with my mom and make some mula!

It was super nice to be away with some girlfriends for a few hours. And I think Charlie really looked forward to having that baby all to himself all morning as he hadn't seen her much last week. They had fun - they went to the playground, played outside. (Daddy may have had even more fun than she did.) And even though it was nice to be away, the best part of the day was walking in the door and meeting a little girl with a big smile on her face, a "mama," and her arms up for a hug! You can't beat that!

MOPS Day

Today was a MOPS morning for us. It was a busy one too. It was my tables turn to provide the food, so I had three dishes to take in. We also collected the food for our canned for drive. (I did well - I took 32 items for the drive.) We had to bring our favorite picture as well as our Operation Christmas Child shoe box donation - which I walked off and left at home.

Again, I was really pleased with the report I got from Addison's "teacher." They went on and on about how good she is. One of the ladies in the room went as far as saying that Addie is "the sweetest thing - I may just have to steal her." Ok, so that sounds creepy, but she is a little old lady who volunteers her time at the church, so it didn't bother me at all. But it is always nice to hear from an outside source, what you know to be true - that your baby is AWESOME!

It was a good meeting. Today we had a guest speaker - a local photographer. (His wife is in our MOPS group.) He talked about some of the basics of photography and how to take great shots of our little ones. I found it really ironic that today of all days is the day he came to speak to our group. I have been thinking a lot lately as to pursuing a "career" in photography - even going so far as talking to schools. (Being a military wife, getting another degree in photography isn't really an option as only two schools nationwide offer online photography degrees.) After he was done speaking, I approached him when the meeting was over. I wanted to find out where to start, what he suggested, etc. He graciously gave me a lot of helpful hints and was kind enough to answer all my questions.

Needless to say, I don't know if photography is something that I will pursue. I have a few other things that I would like to do as well - event coordinating or interior design. But I feel like those two career options are things I need to attempt once Chuck is out of the Air Force as those are both client based businesses. While photography is too, I feel like photography is something that would be easier to start over with every time we move. The one advantage I have is that whenever we move somewhere, I automatically have a social network because of the squadron. That would help me get myself up and running each and every place we move to. Because what military family - or any family for that matter - doesn't want pictures taken of their kids, families, events, etc? And don't those pictures turn out better when the "subjects" are comfortable with their surrondings and the person taking the pictures? Definitely!

I am feeling pretty positive about what I learned today however and think that photography may be something feasible for me. I am defintely getting to the point where I need to do something outside of the house for myself. I love being home with Addie, but I think for my sanity and my child's, I need to get out and be creative. I am also thinking about taking over one of the "jobs" in our MOPS group. One of our members is moving and obviously has to give up her position. It doesn't seem like there is too much work involved - only about three hours a week - so I am considering it. I will let you all know what I decide on that.

Addison is napping now. I am hoping it will be a long one - it should be since she was up early and busy from the get-go - but I am not going to hold my breath. Only other thing is store for the day is a trip to the store to get diapers. (Have I mentioned recently, how over diapers I am? Is it too soon to start the dredded potty training?) Weather is good so I am hoping to get Addie outside to play but since it gets dark so early now, I am not sure if that will work out or not.

It is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is two weeks away all ready. Before you know it, Christmas will be here and gone. I hope you all have wonderful plans lined up for the holidays...

We survived the storm...

Well, we survived the "hurricane." Quite frankly, it was a whole lot of hub-bub for a little wind and rain. It may have been worse other places, but we didn't even lose power here. Thankfully! Hurricane Ida, you didn't impress me!

This week... Cancelled

We had a crazy week planned. Doctor visit today, Pampered Chef party tonight, Addison doctor appointment tommorrow, November coffee tommorrow night, Veteran's Day Wednesday, MOPS Thursday. At this point, tonight's activity and tomorrow's night activities have been cancelled.

For those of you who haven't been paying attention, we currently are bracing for Hurricane (Tropical Storm, now) Ida. Presently the wind is blowing lightly and it is raining, but it sounds like the worst of the weather is hitting Pensacola now. Ours is supposed to hit us in the middle of the night. I am not convinced it will and I hope I am right. In the meantime, we are just sitting here. I keep thinking that at some point tonight our power is going to go out and we will be sitting here in the dark. (Sure hope that doesn't happen because what will I do without facebook???)

Funny that this is happening now because Chuck and I were just talking over the weekend about how we made it through our first Florida hurricane season without a hitch. I guess that is what we get for saying that... We totally ticked off the weather Gods and this is our punishment. HAHAHA The end of hurricane season is a mere three weeks away. Strange to get one so late in the year, but as long as the weather continues on like it is now, it will be a walk in the park. And besides, we could use the rain. (Again, I probably just jinxed us.)

I guess if you don't hear from us over the next few days, you will know we have no power. But I will do my best to at least post something on here so everyone will know we are okay.

Halloween

Neither Chuck or myself are really very excitted when it comes to Halloween. That being said, we have been pretty good sports about getting involved with the Halloween hoopla since we have become parents. But since Addison is still pretty little, we didn't think she would be interested in trick or treating. I thought we would be out for a little while and she would loose interest and than we would spend the rest of the evening chasing her. We made the decision about a month ago that we were going to sit it out one more year with her. We thought that the party at the ACS squadron here was good enough and that she wouldn't even know what she was missing. Our plan may have succedded too if we wouldn't have been giving out candy at our house. Because we had such a steady stream of trick or treaters, I had to leave the front door open. Addison stood at the screen door looking at all the other kids coming and going for a good 45 minutes. She lookes like someone had stolen her puppy - she looked so sad. We briefly talked about getting her dressed up to take her out at the last minute, but the only thing I had ready for her to wear was the hula costume and it was way too cold for that. Boy, to see the look on her face made me feel terrible and I can safetly say that I don't ever want to disapoint that child ever again.

We had such a huge turn out too! All week, I kept telling Chuck I didn't think we had enough candy. On Saturday morning we got up and went and bought an additional five bags - bringing our total to 8 bags of candy. Wouldn't you know - we still ran out! Barely an hour into it, we had to turn our light off. (And I wasn't being really generous either - every kid was getting one peice.) Holy smokes! I guess next year I will know that Sam's Club will be making a fortune off the Schuck's at Halloween.

PS, have I mentioned how much I dislike Halloween?