Happy Halloween!

We hosted our first annual "Fall Fun Night." It started out with one couple and before we knew it, we had a house full. We had hot dogs, baked beans, chips and some yummy cookies. We had little guest who were 4 and under. It was great. The kids enjoyed their time together. They got a little spooked by some of the trick or treaters so we stayed pretty close to home and visited neighbors that we knew. We hope to keep up the tradition and look forward to next year.

Daddy and Caroline

having fun!

having dinner with Minnie

enjoying the wagon ride

Caroline and her cousins, Ansley Kate and Jay

Caroline and Mommy

When are we leaving, I'm ready!

Daddy handing out candy to our friends

The group, we were so impressed to get all 8 kids to stay in place long enough for a picture!

So sleepy...

our family

Catherine and Rylie

if only I could get this candy corn open...

loving the swing

Game.... cocks.... Game.....cocks.....

I think it's time to go home...

daddy and Mr. Stacey cooking the hot dogs

Little reminders

God has a way of reminding us daily just how loved and blessed we are. So for Caroline's first birthday, we wanted to share our love with others. Instead of gifts for Caroline, we chose to collect donations for Epworth Early Intervention Center. Caroline's friend Clara goes to EEIC and they are struggling with budget cuts to keep the center open. Caroline's friends and family were very generous and we collected around $750 for EEIC. We were so excited for Clara and her friends.

Last night, Andy and I were going through our mail. We came across a letter addressed to us but we didn't recognize the return address. I assumed it was for a baby shower or a wedding shower, etc. However, I wasn't ready for what I was about to find. It was a thank you note from Gage and his mom. Gage is a student at EEIC and has been there for 2 years. Gage has Down's and has made great improvement since he started the center. His mother was so appreciative of our gift. As Andy and I read the note, we couldn't stop the tears. Gage is the most adorable little boy with the biggest grin! He looks so happy! As we read her note, it made us realize once again how blessed we are and that even though we have "struggles" with Caroline, we could have a lot more, more serious problems. I think it is important to be reminded of what other people are going through and to be thankful for where you are!

Thank you to each of you who helped make this possible. You touched our hearts and the hearts of many others. What a blessing you are!

Visiting our family in Virginia

We enjoyed a great weekend visiting with Uncle Ed and Aunt Lill. As always, they were great hosts. It looked like we were moving-we brought baby jail, her toys, cups, bottles, etc. We left Thursday afternoon after Caroline's doctor appointment and when Granny got work. We had a little scare. We got a call from Mrs. Jerri that Caroline was running a fever of 103.2. I picked her up, rushed her to the doctor only to discover they didn't know what was wrong. Flu test and strep test both came back negative, YEAH. Caroline slept about an hour and a half. Granny rode with her in the back and was a huge help! The last 3o minutes were TOUGH. She was tired of riding and was very sleepy. She went down as soon as we got to their house.

Friday, we were on our own. Aunt Lill and Uncle Ed both had to work so we enjoyed some free time. We visited Uncle Dan at the office and then he treated us to lunch. Caroline had a ball especially when Uncle Ed let her have his phone. She was hooked!

Uncle Dan and Mr. JJ gave Caroline a gift card to Babies R Us for her birthday. Since we don't have one close by, we decided to go while we were there. We found some great things and still have some money left on her gift cards. After Babies R Us, we headed to an outdoor mall and enjoyed shopping. It had some really great stores but we didn't see anything we couldn't live without. By the time we were done, Caroline was really sleepy...

One the ride home, within minutes of getting in the car...

Uncle Ed let Caroline do whatever she wanted...

On Saturday, we headed to Carters Mountain in Charlottesville. It was my first visit to an apple orchard and I had a ball!

Picking apples with Uncle Ed

Having fun in the pumpkin patch
not a very happy little worm

looking for the perfect pumpkin
happy fall ya'll

thanks Granny for pushing me all over the orchard

family photo in the pumpkin patch

enjoying apple cider doughnuts

We love that Uncle Ed and Aunt Lill are closer. We try to take advantage of every chance we get with them. We had an awesome time! Until next time...

Great visit with Sage, Wyatt and Walker

We were blessed to spend the evening with our very good friend Sage and her boys. We had a great meal and enjoyed some time outside playing. Caroline loved having someone to play with and having friends over. I enjoyed my yime with Sage. She is truly a woman after God's on heart! Thanks Sage for taking time to spend an evening with us! :0)

Caroline trying to figure out what Wyatt is doing

Wyatt

Walker

USC vs. Kentucky

We enjoyed the USC vs. Kentucky game with our friends Chris and Charissa. It's fun to go to the game with rivals and still be able to have a good time! We enjoyed BBQ sandwiches, chips and the Canfield's famous beer cheese. It was a great game!

Happy Birthday Jack and Grace

Can they really be 8??? Yep, Jack and Grace turned 8 this past week and we enjoyed a yummy dinner out to celebrate! Happy Birthday guys, we love you!

Grace

Great with her great grands

Jack

What Little miss has been up to...

I know it sounds cheezy and people say it allthe time, BUT she really is changing everyday. While some days are a struggle, she is such a sweet, precious little girl! So here's what's new:

• Food-We are pretty much done with baby food completely. We have a few jars in the pantry that we will use at some point, I hope. For breakfast she eats grits, oatmeal or pancakes with a nutri-grain bar and some type of fruit-fresh fruit or mandarin oranges. For lunch she eats whatever Mrs. Jerri makes or I send an extra lunch just in case she can't eat what they have. The lunch I send usually has some sort of meat from the deli (chicken, ham, turkey), a vegetable and some yogurt. Supper is pretty much the same as lunch. She loves nutri-grain bars, goldfish, cheerios or fruit for snacks. She truly is a good eater, she will eat almost anything!

feeding herself spaghetti

• Jabbering-I think we are going to have a talker on our hands. She jabbers nonstop, especially when I am on the phone. It's almost like she is trying to out talk me... She says "uses" for juice or shoes. If we are putting on her shoes, she will say it and try to put her shoe on her foot. But if we are eating, she says it and points to her juice. It's really exciting to watch.

• Personality-Girlfriend has got a personality, not always a good thing... She loves to giggle, laugh, etc. She loves to feed you when she's eating, she just smiles and laughs and does it again. She will pick up her baby doll and "love the baby." She loves for Daddy to get her sugar under her neck. Yesterday we were playing in baby jail and I was tickling her. She would laugh until she was almost out of breath and then she would fall in lap almost to say, I am ready again! In the mornings during breakfast or on the way to Mrs. Jerri's we listen to "her" music. She "sings" along in the background-too funny!

• Playing outside-Caroline loves to play outside. She got a slide set for her birthday and loves it. The rock wall is still a little tough for her but once she does it, she remembers what to do. She enjoys crawling around the yard and is attracted to the few things that she can't touch. She will swing in her big girl swing for 20 or 30 minutes. She loves to go for strolls and enjoys the birds and the barking dogs...

• Walking-Caroline has finally mastered walking. Every once and a while she will still crawl to get where she is going. But for the most part, she walks. She loves the freedom of being able to reach things, like the pictures on the refrigerator, and keep going. All my pretty Christmas cards are slowing coming down. I am going to have to figure out a new system for the new cards this Christmas!!!!

So these are all the "good" things that Miss Priss has learned. I would love to say that it stops here but it doesn't. Where there is good, there is also bad and where there's bad, theres the UGLY!! Little bit has learned how to throw a FIT! All out, crying, fall on her bottom and fly back onto the ground. Tears rolling down her cheek, heart broken, spoiled rotten! Everyone said to ignore, leave her there and she will get over it. I sure hope they are right. The momma/teacher in me doesn't want a rotten kid! But she isn't old enough to reason with, so we shall see what comes of it. Any advice, let me know. I would love to hear it. Stay turned, I am sure there is more to come!!!

sweet time with granny