Half Marathon Sunday

On Sunday we got up "bright" and early to venture up to Columbus. This year was a little bit different since I didn't have to pump right before race time! It was 37 degrees at the start and I didn't warm up like last year. So I was wearing two pairs of pants, two socks, two long sleeved shirts, a short sleeved shirt, a jacket, gloves and a hat!
I stayed pretty warm actually despite the fact that I sweated through everything! We stayed on the mark and really booked it for all 13 miles. We ran to each mile marker which was a relief to some of my muscles. We ran to the 11 mile marker and I couldn't be stopped! I had to keep running. I walk/ran the last two miles and finish 9 mins earlier than last year!

Kari and I finished together at 3:30:07.

Mom finished: 3:39:56 a FULL 15 mins faster than last year! WOW!

Katie finished 14 mins faster than last year! She booked it the last two miles and could not.be.stopped! Katie's time: 3:26:47

Following the race, and big post-race carb-o-licious lunch, Millie, Mom and I napped for about 3 hours! It felt great to be warm again. All and all it was a great race. I really can't wait to RUN it next year. Click here to see more pictures.

Evenings

Just hanging out in the evening. Also, a pictures of Millie's new hiding place.


Click here to see the rest of the pictures.

Hanging with the Ashes

We love getting together with the Ashes. Lillian is so great with her brother Jonathan and of course Millie. I love getting caught up with Margie and of course eating some delicious food! So we went over to the Ashes and the kids just had a ball. Never underestimate the power of a cardboard box! Click here for the pictures.

Savannah

On Saturday we took a quick (very quick) trip to Savannah to witness Jeevan's baptism. Jose's cousin, Benny, is a Deacon at the Hunter Army Airfield Chapel. Most of Jose's family came for the festivities. The godfather Roy Harris and godmother Angela were both there too. We had a fabulous lunch at Chart House Restaurant followed but a Gator victory vs. LSU. We were back on the road after breakfast at Clary's Cafe. Millie was great on the way down and slept the entire way home. I was a fun quickie trip and we were happy to be there for the Navarro's big day.

Click here to see pictures from the weekend.

New Shoes

When Grandma Terry was visiting, we tried to pick out some new shoes for Millie online. It's really hard to do that because you never know what size to get. Will she grow out of them? Will they slip off her feet? Mama D bought Millie her first pair of sneakers and white sandals at the beginning of summer so I wasn't really sure how to make sure I got Mil the right size.

So Millie and I headed to the mall to find some shoes that fit. Would you believe that Kohl's didn't have a single pair of size 5 shoes in stock? So I walked out into this unfamiliar mall (if you know me at all, you will know that I hate malls). Where to go? Well I looked directly across from the Kohl's entrance and to my surprise, there was an entire store of kids shoes! I couldn't believe it! I walk in not knowing what I would find. I had a price point in mind that I wanted to stick to. I knew I didn't want to deal with tying shoes, I was looking for velcro shoes only.
I was pleasantly surprised to find a big selection of kids shoes in various styles. The lady was really helpful and Millie was such a trooper. But they should really consider installing a gate on the entrance to that store! I found a pair of "church" shoes and a casual pair. Hopefully G-ma Terry approves! Click here for more pictures.

Click Click (2 videos)

Happy Birthday Mat!

Well, Oct 5th was the big day but we celebrated all weekend. I was happy to make this cake for Mat. Terry did some of the "dirty" work, aka: sifting flour. Pavan helped with the design, making sure I had it just right. The boys were quick to critique of course. At least I know what I am getting myself into each year. This will be his birthday cake for many years to come!

Mat is an amazing father and a wonderful husband. I am a very lucky girl to have him in my life. Click here for more pictures.

Head bopping like Grandma T (video)

Just a little something that Millie picked up the last time Grandma Terry came to visit!

Apple picking 2009

So after we picked out our perfect pumpkin...and yes after an outfit change, we headed down the road to BJ Reece Apple House. Not sure we would head to the same place again but we did get some great apples! Black Arkansas, Yates, Golden Delicious and finally Rome Beauties. So far I have made Applesauce in the crockpot, apple crisp, Apple Chicken. I am running out of ideas and I need to use the rest of these apples. Any suggestions?



Click here to see the pictures.

Pumpkin Patch 2009

This weekend Mat's parents came to visit for Mat's birthday. It was so great to see them and catch up. Of course, as always, we had a busy weekend planned. On Saturday we headed up to Dawsonville to Burt's Farm. You may remember that we made the drive up here to Burt's last year. We had so much fun and the pumpkins were giant, that we wanted to do it again!

Millie, dressed in her trick-or-treat "sweet as candy" outfit from Mama D, had a great time touching, hitting, posing with all the pumpkins. She also enjoyed all the mulch and rocks that she put in her mouth. We got a chance to take some great pictures. We went on the hayride again and Millie seemed to really enjoy it. Much more than last year when she was strapped to me in the baby bjorn!



After the hayride we picked out our perfect pumpkin as well as some others and headed to the exit. But not before we picked up as much "bad" foods as possible. Fried Apple pie, caramel corn, apple cider, peanut butter straws, etc etc. It was another great trip to Burt's. Click here to enjoy the pictures.

This is how I color

It's short but sweet...

My ohio girl

Millie is cutting 2 of her bottom molars. She hasn't really been affected by it so that is good news. I tried to get some pictures of the big teeth popping through but it was a bit difficult as you can see in these pictures (in the link). Click here to see more pictures.

New Gator Dress

My mom handmade this adorable dress for Miss Millie. It's reversible and you can see both sides here. I admire my mom's talent for doing amazing things like this. She had taught me to sew and I have tried to make several things in the past. But I get so frustrated and give up about 90% through the project. Click here to see the pictures! We look forward to wearing this dress for weeks to come! Check out those football buttons on the blue-side. THANKS GRANDMA D!!

Bathtime Fun

Mat came home the other day with these bathtime letters/numbers. You get them wet and stick them to the tub or bathtub walls. Well, Millie found that you can stick them to her web body too. She loves sticking them on her body and yelling "oh" and sometimes sticking her hands in the air.



She is giving the ducky a "kiss" in second photo there. To see more pictures, click here. Jon and Terry come to Atlanta on Friday for the weekend! We can't wait to see them!

My cowgirl

My little cowgirl, could she get any cuter? As I typically do every Sunday, I lay out all of Millie's clothes for the week. Sometimes in the pictures you will see clothes hanging from hangers in the background. This is done for a purpose. Although Mat is one of the best dad's (ever)...his sense of style is not so much. He was reneged of this duty when he put Millie in a crazy non-matching outfit one day long ago.

Anyway, so every Sunday I lay out all the clothes for the week so he knows just what outfit she will look the most adorable in. It's certainly not hard with such a cute girl and all of her amazing clothes (that I don't buy)! Well, it got a little cooler this week and so although I laid out dresses and skirts all week, I am having to change that to pants and jeans. All of her adorable summer dresses are being pushed further and further in the back of the closet. This makes me sad. So unless it warms up soon, this will be her last picture of her in a summer dress. Boo hoo!

Photoshoot / Zoo

On Sunday I had the pleasure of photographing some adorable babies! I started off the day with Jay and Melissa Rhoden, some of Mat's dearest friends. Jay and Melissa were willing to go the distance with their little ones (JR and Nora) and let me try a bunch of different things. I will post the album when I am finished with it but for now, I will just give you a tease.

After visiting with them I headed to Jennifer and Andy's house to meet sweet Rachel. She seemed huge compared to the twins! But what a cutie! It was so good to visit with her and hear her birth story. It's truly amazing what women go through to bring a life into this world!












I rushed home so we could take Millie to the Atlanta Zoo. Mat has been wanting to go for awhile and it was the perfect day to do so. I think Millie had a good time. I had to point out several of the animals because she couldn't find them with her little eyes. But she did good following my finger out to the various animals. It was fun to see her running around the Zoo. It was almost closing time so the Zoo was relatively empty. We did buy a pass so we could come back at any time. And we will! It's so close to our house!

Click here to see the pictures from the zoo.

Puppetry Arts

On Saturday we took advantage of the Smithsonian Museum Day. It was a day or free general admission for you and a guest to hundreds of museums and cultural venues nationwide. Millie and I went to the Center for Puppetry Arts. We toured the museum which had a Jim Henson exhibit going on right now so we got to see Kermit, Big Bird, Ernie and Rowlf. It was really really cool (for me) to see all of these old friends. Millie was obsessed with Big Bird and didn't want to move away from him. Other than that, she had fun running around and watching all the other kids. We didn't stay for a performance, maybe next time. No pictures allowed in the museum but we could next to these big feet coming out of the ceiling since it is technically part of the "building". To see more pictures of our morning, click here.

That afternoon, we went to lunch with the ladies. Angel, Katie and Meagan. Click here to see those pictures.
It so good to get caught up with these ladies. Although we met at work and do work "together" these two ladies are some of my closest friends. I am blessed to have them in my lives.

And finally, Sidebar has decided not to do the outdoor tailgate this year which has limited the kids on where they can go to watch the game. So we are just kinda rotating houses so the kids can still go to bed on time. So on Saturday Mike, Katie and Meagan came over to Casa Tainow to watch the Gators clobber Kentucky. We won't mention how OSU clobbered Katie's precious Illini. Click here for those pictures.

All ready for fall

My sister gave me allllll of Chloe/Courtney's warm clothes which turned into a 40 pound box of clothes sent by my parents! I washed and hung up everything and her closet is stocked! So even though it's in the 80's today, I dressed her in this cute corduroy dress.

Click here to see the rest of the pictures.

Pay back is a...

Millie got bit today. There was a struggle over a toy. Culprit is anonymous as Millie was anonymous when she bit a kid awhile back. Here is her wound. And her cute NJ outfit :-)

Millie saying "Cheese"

She is really starting to pick up "cheeeeeeeeeeese" when I hold up the camera. I will have to get video of this soon!