Several weeks ago, I walked upstairs from doing something to find the scene above.  As soon as Wyatt saw me he said "Leave me alone mom, go downstairs.  I'm tryin to clean!"  Then 30 minutes after that he was throwing up and running a fever ....

Ben and Wyatt both looooovvve the junk food.  I won't lie and say I never steal a goldfish or two, but really no thanks on the chips.  I'm just not a snacker like these two are!

A few weeks ago, we took Wyatt to a train exhibit.  They had all kinds of trains to look at and play with.  Wyatt LOVED this! 

I just love my hycainths that are finally blooming!  There is really nothing better than seeing the result of your fall efforts popping up out of the ground come spring.  For some reason my daffodils haven't fared so well, but I'm going to plant a million of these next fall. 

This was the scene in my bathroom one Saturday morning.  Normally playing in the tub is strictly off limits.  Especially with the water running, but I was desperate to shower/get dressed and this was the least of all the trouble he could get into so I let it fly.  Pick your battles.

I can't get this picture to rotate, but Wyatt is super duper proud of the hand print caterpillar that he made at school.  I don't hang all of his artwork on the fridge, but I did hang this and every time W sees it he points at it and smiles. 

These things are soooooo good.  We have a 2:00 ration of chocolate every day after lunch and this was the flavor of the week.  If you find them in the store, you won't regret buying them!

Lately

I suppose I went MIA for a while.  Since all 3 of you who read my little blog have mentioned it to me at some point or another over the past month, I'll see if I can't get back into the habit of updating.

So, here is a little snapshot of what is going on around these parts lately.

- Wyatt loves all vehicles.  Trucks, Busses, Bulldozers, Excavators, Fire Trucks, Tractors, Fork Lifts ... etc.  You name it he knows it.  And believe me, you better not call something by the wrong name!  His daddy likes to take him to Home Depot every now and then to look at all the equipment.

- Its been a pretty rainy winter, but we take every opportunity possible to get outside and play.  Its Wyatt's happy place (and also keeps my house from getting destroyed)

- W has recently discovered a love of DariQueen and frequently asks his daddy to take him on the weekends!

- What is it with a little boy and a puddle?  They're like magnets for W.  This happened to be a semi-warm day so I let him splash away and he loved every second of it!

- A couple weekends ago we had NOTHING to do one Sunday afternoon. (Which is awesome) We got up that morning, ate our requisite pancake breakfast and walked down to the park.  We came back only for lunch and nap and he woke up asking to go again.  So we did.  It was glorious.

- I get SOOOOO bored with my clothes at the end of a season like this.  I realize I'm late to the game, but I decided to try to start getting some inspiration from Pinterest.  Takes a little longer than I normally like to spend, but at least it gives me a fresh take on the same old clothes I've been wearing all winter.  This was today's inspiration/creation!

Christmas 2012

I feel way behind here, and I have a million bajillion Christmas pictures to share.  I'm trying to limit them, but then I always worry that I won't post a picture of a certain person or event and then someone will get their feelings hurt because they weren't included.  So here is my best attempt:

We kicked off Christmas the weekend prior by going to my Grandfather's house to celebrate with the whole family.  This is about the only picture we captured there of all the great-grandchildren (that were present ... some were missing for various reasons). 

The next evening, Ben's Christmas gift from me arrived .... kinda tough to pull off the surprise delivery/setup of a Green Egg table when the man who built it needed an extra set of muscles to help lift everything.  He was pleased nonetheless! 

I spent the whole next week getting gifts ready and wrapped.   And spent all of W's waking moments explaining that he CANNOT open the presents under the tree.

I (and also my Mom) also spent that week trying to get a picture of W in front of our tree.  Mom ended up getting some that I just LOVE ... but they were in front of her tree (dinosaur shirt ones).  Guess there is always next year?

The weekend before Christmas was spent in Tennessee with Ben's family.  After a long, stressful battle with traffic we arrived on Friday evening.  We spent the weekend eating, unwrapping gifts and having a really great time with both of Ben's sets of Aunts/Uncles. 

Wyatt also got a fun new toy from Lolly and Pops, which he just loved.

We tried and tried to do a family picture before Church.  I had the camera setup great in the first set, but W didn't want to cooperate.  Sooooo ... when he finally did I had re-positioned the camera and I ended up with a wonky camera setup and I just had to crop this the best I could. 

We came home late that afternoon and I scurried to get myself ready for work the next day and for Christmas Eve.  Ben ended up not working on CE so he stayed home with Wyatt and took him to a special Waffle House breakfast and met me at Mom and Dad's house later in the afternoon.  Despite the coldish-wet weather Ellie and Wyatt loved playing outside while Dad and Ben grilled. 

We had a wonderful beef tenderloin dinner followed up with more gifts.  We were lucky to have Grand Meme join us this year for Christmas Eve ... she enjoyed seeing all the kids even if they were wild wild wild! 

We tried to get pictures of all 3 grandkids in their matching outfits.  It was a struggle but they did get it! 

Kimmie and I decided to bathe the kids and get them in their jammies before leaving to go home so that we could just transfer them if they fell asleep in the car.  Great plan, but the reality is none of them fell asleep on the way home .... they were still on a present high!!

After we got home and got Wyatt to bed, Santa Claus made his visit to our house.  Couple things I learned about Santa & Mrs. Claus:

 1) he is a perfectionist (see ... putting train tracks together until 1:30 am) and
 2) she overshops.

Wyatt was thrilled with all of his gifts on Christmas morning!

We had planned to go up to the Farm for the afternoon, but since I was on the verge of getting sick, we were all exhausted, and Ben had to leave town the next morning we ended up staying home.   It was a little sad not seeing my extended family but this was what we really needed.  Wyatt got to cruise the neighborhood in his new tractor from Meme and Papa.  (And for the record, this wasn't a case of dueling grandparents .... Wyatt loves fire trucks and 'hook up' trucks so they had the same idea with just a different twist.) Wyatt will be cruising to neighborhood gatherings in style this year ....



And with that, Christmas is over. Whew! 

Wyatt loves, loves, loves trucks.  And cars.  And anything with 4 (or more wheels).  We spend countless afternoons driving cars, building 'awesome tunnels' for cars, driving trucks, crashing trucks, racing trucks, etc.  Of all the many toys he has, cars and trucks are his favorites.  So it seemed fitting that I take these photographs.

I must admit, the one of him laying down with cars around his head was a borrowed idea from Pinterest and the one of him sitting with all his cars was borrowed from my sister. 

I don't think that truck picture really did his collection justice.  I'm pretty sure we have more around the house that I didn't include.  Anyway, I think you get the idea!

Pink Pig

Well, so I'm behind here on my little blog, I've been meaning to catch up all month with a little December update.  But I kept procrastinating, and now I don't even remember what we did all month. SO ... here goes my attempt.

We took a family trip to the Christmas Tree Farm Home Depot and picked out a tree.   In all honesty, we didn't spend much time looking.  I believe this was the second tree that Ben stood up and Wyatt approved so we got it. 

I meant to take photos of our decorations, but never really got around to the few finishing touches I wanted to add to everything so I just didn't.  I mainly wanted them as a reference so that next year I can remember how I hung the garland, where I placed things, etc.  Oh well.

Here is Ben in his Griswald t-shirt hanging his Griswald ornament on our tree!

OH!  and the best part about this tree of ours?  It didn't fall over this year.  (Yet)

Mom and I also took Wyatt down to ride the Pink Pig one morning.  This has become a little yearly tradition for Mom to take the grandkids down to Lenox to ride the pink pig sometime during the Christmas season. 

Wyatt wasn't so sure at first.

But he ended up really enjoying it!

Post ride-picture.  We've done this every year! 

W was sliding down the 'bench' by this point and no longer cared to pose!  I still think this is a cute picture.

And afterwards, we went to see Santa.  Wyatt had already visited with Santa (umm. in like early November) so we just waved at him from afar!  

23 versus 33

10 years ago: I never would have thought I would have an ongoing text conversation with 3 of my friends discussing the ins and outs of motherhood. Today:  I don't bat an eyelash when I see a text from a dear friend asking for breast feeding advice. 

10 years ago: whether or not I had a babysitter had absolutely zero effect on my social life.  Today: our babysitter is our lifeline to the outside world and searching for one can be the single most stressful event of my week.  (Guess I do lead  pretty charmed life)

10 years ago: my biggest concern on a Friday night was what I was going to wear to a particular social event.  Today: it is 'what in the world am I going to feed my son for dinner, and what TV shows are we going to catch up on after he goes to bed'

10 years ago: a weekend road-trip was just that.  Today:  it is a week long preparation for that trip, and a week recovery upon our return. 

10 years ago: I hated going to bars.  Today: I still do.  Guess some things never change?

10 years ago: going to the grocery store was a chore.  Today: it is an escape.

10 years ago: cooking a (balanced) meal each night was never a consideration.  Today: it is cathartic.

10 years ago: I felt the need to explain my decisions to those who might not completely understand.  Today: I (we) make the best decisions for our family and don't really worry about making others understand.  There are just some things people never do 'get' unless they are in your shoes.

10 years ago: if I didn't want to do something I thought I needed to give an excuse or explanation.  Today: I simply say "no I won't be able to make it" and leave it at that.  

10 years ago: the timing of a party really made no difference to me.  Today: we do our damdest to schedule life around nap and meal times.  A well fed-well napped child is MUCH more pleasant ... for everyone.

10 years ago: I had no clue how much joy a child would be to my life.  Yes, things are different now.  My car may have 3 month old teddy grahams stuffed in the seats. I may not have the most stylish clothes in the world.  I may bitch about having to mess up Wyatt's nap schedule to go to something.  I may have to miss fun social functions because of my responsibilities at home.  But really, I'm much more fulfilled today than I was 10 years ago. 

So I guess this is all to say that I guess life does really get better as you get older!

Thanksgiving

The year Ben and I got married we decided that the best way to celebrate holidays with our respective families was to alternate holidays and years.  This year it was Thanksgiving with Ben's family and Christmas will be with mine.  (Although we do celebrate Christmas with both families every year ... just not necessarily on the actual holiday)

The tradition has (at least since I've been around) always been to go to Ben's aunt and uncle's home in Knoxville.  It is always a jolly time, enjoyed with copious amounts of family, food, laughter, wine, and Black Friday Shopping.  Oh, and The Christmas Story is usually playing on a continuous loop on the television.

We arrived in Knoxville on Wednesday evening and relaxed with Ben's aunt and uncle and brother after we got Wyatt to sleep.

Thursday morning started bright and early with a pancake and bacon breakfast - Wyatt's favorite!  Then I stupidly got him dressed in his Thanksgiving outfit.  He looked adorable.

Not five minutes later he was completely dirty.  Oh well.

Once Lolly and Pops arrived, he ran to the truck to greet them.  And also to get his toys out!  And, just in case you were wondering that is dirt on his bottom. 

Trailer trucks, or anything that hooks together is a big, huge deal right now.  So immediately he asked his Pops to rig this ride-on and wagon together. 

He was in hog heaven.  And yes, we watched him VERY closely in the street.  Didn't actually let him ride there very long.

We then went inside for a quick lunch and wardrobe change.

While Wyatt was napping, we all got busy with the meal preparations.  And by 'we all' I mean Ben's mother and his aunt.  Ben, did carve the turkey though!

After a very scary oven incident, we finally got the whole meal prepared and came together for a pre-dinner toast!

It was a lovely afternoon and evening! 

We started out early the next morning, as is Longmire tradition.  We hit up breakfast at Hardee's, and then the outlets for some Black Friday Shopping. 

Here is my shopping buddy helping me out at Loft!

We wore ourselves out, and headed home for lunch and naps.  Only the wild monkey fell asleep on the way home from the outlets which meant no nap for anyone that afternoon :)

That evening, we headed out for a fabulous dinner with friends.  And thanks to Lolly, Pops, Great Aunt Susan, and Great Uncle Alfredo this was a dinner sans-babies!!

 We had a lovely evening! 

Unfortunately, the fun ends there as I was awakened at 3am to hear "Katie!  Wyatt is throwing up".  As it turned out W was the only sickie ... Ben, his mom, his dad, his brother, and his aunt had all picked up the same terrible bug.  Somehow his uncle and I did not get it.  (Awesome immune systems, I guess?)

So to sum it up -- the first half of Thanksgiving was perfect.  The second half reeked of vomit.