Christmas Wrap-up!

Can I just say that despite these hard economic times and a very tight year for us financially,

WE HAD THE BEST CHRISTMAS!

Izzy was so much fun and it was just so special to watch her reaction to all the gifts. It took us over 2 hours to open presents Christmas morning, not because she had so much (even though she did), but because she wanted to play with everything the minute she opened it. I know she is still so little but she seemed appreciative of her presents and we tried to make a big deal over each of them so she would realize each one was special (or we hope so). Obviously, this is not everything she got, but it's a sampling of her favorites; the Backyardigans Flip Open Sofa, books & tea set and her babydolls. She also got a mini TinkerBell Power Wheels from Ya Ya & Mike, a shopping cart w/ play food to keep at MeeMaw & PaPaw's and a kitchen set to keep at Pap & Nanny's. The best part is though, all those gifts and all she wanted to do was get in Daddy's Shop Vac box and play! Ha! I also managed to get one half-way decent pic of Izzy in her in her Christmas dress on Sunday to post. We really enjoyed our gifts to each other and from friends & family as well. I think they all really there's from us too. I had to start shopping in July and I had to get up at 4am and go out with the crazys on Black Friday to get everything I needed, but it was all worth it in the end. I hope you all had as wonderful a Christmas as we did.

Christmas Va-K Has Begun!

Let the partying commence...I'm on vacation until January 5. Halleaujah! and as you can tell by neglected blog, I need it. This has been one of the absolute worst weeks; deadlines, staff out, technical delays on web applications, face breaking-out in multiple places, bad wreck in front of the Y on the night of Clark's Work Christmas Party, major back pain again (hmmm...I wonder why?), 4 hours of sleep every night, had to address 50 Christmas cards, the printer for my staff's gifts was behind, Izzy's 15mo check-up=shots (and I was alone-ya'll know I hate those), Izzy was scared of Santa, forgot my camera for pic of Santa, at work till midnight Tues. night-ALONE, shopping at SAMS Club until 9:30pm Thurs night and then unloading it at the Y until 10:30pm, crying uncontrollably at the bank (of all places) and in front of my baby which only made me cry harder b/c I had just had all I could take (and in my last apprx 6 years of life might have cried like that maybe 5 times-I'm not a cryer anymore people-which made me again cry that much harder)!!! Ahhh...but let's recap yesterday; I gave my staff their drawstring bags...which they LOVE, mailed my Christmas cards and TJ, Eli, & Jakes package and Brian & Jennifer's baby package (that I've had for about 4 months), delivered more can food to the CUOC, got the ornaments for the Y's members, played with Izzy, had a wonderful dinner-made by my hubby, found a chair that goes perfectly with my new desk (that Clark got me for Christmas, ha!) on craigslist for only $15 and the best part...I slept from 11:30 pm until Noon, ohhh it was wonderful! It was the best sleep I've EVER had and what a great way to start off a vacation. I feel sooo good! I told my man that's all I wanted and he made it happen. Ahhh...yea! and already today Candi has come and taken Izzy's pics in a super cute green and red tutu. Can't wait to see them! More good stuff: had a wonderful visit from Kristin and Kristi last weekend. We went on the tour of homes with Candi and Ashton and had the absolute best time and so much fun. Then we had a little partay that night at Candi's and Frissen finally busted out the news that she was expecting a wee little tiny sweet baby of love! We are so happy for her and Brooks. I cannot wait! Oh and all the girls gave us the BEST gifts! Frissen made us adorable throws, K-dawg made us some sweet smelling body scrub & little post-it note holders, Candi put some recent pics in frames for my bedroom and ironically enough, bought me a framed initial, that I had just been talking about wanting minutes earlier. Of course Izzy got tons of super cute clothes from Candi & Kristi (that we've already been wearing this week) and Kristin made her some fabric books, which she loves and has one in the car already. Those too we had seen at the Holiday Market, but refused to pay the price they wanted for them. Yeah Frissen for making them! Whooo, this is a long one. Well, I've got presents to wrap, cookies to make and a house to clean and we are taking Izzy to see the lights at Castle McCollough (sp?) tonight too. I gotta share these pics and then

I'm off to fa la la la la la la la la!

Kristi's reaction to Frissen's big news!

All these great presents and we play with an empty box and a ribbon ;)

Just us girls!

So Daddy left at 3am today for training in Machine Computer Programming in Ohio. He will be gone until Saturday in the wee hours of the morning. All I can say is one day down and five more to go. Marshall and Kaylee were here today to help me out with Izzy, but as predicted, she knows her Daddy is not here and she's more attached to Mommy than ever! However, she did play with them enough for me to get my laundry folded & put away, dishes washed and 2 gallons of sweet tea made. I knew I had to get the tea done, b/c Mee-Maw is coming tomorrow night and Frissen is coming Thursday! I gotta have sweet tea for those two ladies or they just might become dehydrated while they're here ;) I'm going to wrap some gifts tonight after she goes to bed in a few minutes and hopefully wear myself out enough to go to sleep pretty easily tonight too. We shall see how the rest of the week goes. Clark's never been away from Izzy and I've never been away from him for more than a couple of nights myself! Atleast she and I have eache other though, poor Daddy is all alone :( Surely, we will all make it ok and truly have something to celebrate on Saturday! But a few prayers for us this week are always appreciated! Here's a couple of pics...just for fun!

Big Girl Day!

So, I didn't plan for any of this today, but I guess you never really "plan" anything when it comes to kids...especially toddlers. Lil' Miss. Izzy has shown me she can be Big Girl Izzy today and try to do everything by herself. I have to say she was pretty successful at most of it!

She can put her hat on by herself.

She tried to put her shoes on by herself.She can sit at the table by herself.

And she did all this Big girl stuff with lil' girl ruffles on her lil' butt ;) Such a cutie patootie!

Such a HOOT!

First of all, I've been wanting this outfit for a long time and they finally had it on sale, so I snatched it up! However; I wanted an 18 mo. even though this little girl is still wearing 12mo. at almost 15 mo. old, but they didn't have 18 mo. in the pants. So I went ahead and got 18 mo. in the shirt and 12 mo. in the pants. Well, thank goodness I did. I still had to roll the waist up on the pants b/c they were still too long and big! Anyhoot, (ha! get it? hoot and her outfit has owls on it?) yeah, anyway yesterday was little Alex's 2nd birthday and we went to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse party he had. He was so cute with his little Mickey Mouse badge and ears on! I didn't have my camera, but I'm sure mom will post pics! Then Candi had a pair of ears for Izzy too! So adorable! Alex was eating when we got there and she couldn't hardly wait to get a hold of him! Needless to say...I think he could wait though. Poor thing doesn't know he's going to be molested when Izzy is around! As soon as he finished opening his gifts, she was on him like white on rice; kissing him, and patting his head...a little bit hard b/c she was sooo excited...Alex took as much as he could and then Candi saved her little one from anymore abuse. Then after some of the guests left and was just the two of them they were crawling and walking all over the place with each other. Alex got ahead of Izzy one time and he turned around and motioned for her to come on and he waited for her. It was sooo super cute and sweet. I even feel like a normal mommy; we have a playdate/pic session scheduled for Friday, b/c I'm actually off from work! I can't wait...I'm sure if Izzy knew and understood she would be excited too!

Ghetto Fabulous!

This is a quick one! I couldn't help it she's so stinkin' cute! We've had our first walking injury as you can tell. She fell and her chin caught the corner of Clint & Jen's coffee table :( It doesn't distract from her cuteness though ;) The outfit and baby Nikes are from Ya-Ya and Mike. The boggin is from Frissen. The combination is one Ghetto Fabulous Girl. I've also posted pics to the "Walking Tall" entry!

I AM SICK OF VIRUSES & BACTERIA!

I've really been trying hard to keep my blog a happy and positive place, but I've just about had all I can take this week and I need to vent somehow! After over a week of not sleeping b/c my poor baby was sooo very sick with bacterial pneumonia, I've had week number two sleepless nights b/c my computer was sick with a virus!!! Growl! GROWL! So, while I was trying to download a program for the computers in the lab at the Y (which I had already spent hours on setting up and making notes on for our computer guru) a message popped up on the taskbar saying I was infected! When I clicked on the notice it immediatly started downloading "Microsoft Anti-Virus Pro 2009" which I had never heard of and didn't authorize. I knew immediately something was wrong and started deleting files...sure enough it was a big fat fake anti-virus program and a completely viral infection! It disabled my Norton and there was a fake anti-spyware program making it's way around my poor computer's insides as well! So I deleted files and tried to do what I could until 2am. The next day I took my laptop to work and starting comparing it to my desktop...the viruses had also taken over my security center! The virus set-up a fake security center that looked just like the real one (I do have to give kudos to whoever came up with this virus-it's very sophisticated)! Finally, after downloading some new and REAL anti-virus software and 43 infections later; my computer is somewhat back to normal. I'm still tweeking a few things. Well, after this I had learned my lesson so I put the same anti-virus software on my desktop at the Y. The installation, however, did not go as smoothly. For some reason I had to change some of the proxy settings on my desktop that I did not have to do on my laptop and it took several hours of trying different things (including uninstalling and reinstalling it) to figure this out! I've also been helping my co-worker set-up her new computer (that she had to get b/c her's completely and totally crashed) and since she now has Vista, certain things, like installing printer drivers, have proved to be almost as annoying as the viruses! AAAAHHHHHH! Also, I had to recover my computer to a previous day and time, which was Sunday and I believe this has also caused some bills I scheduled that day to be paid to be deleted and now I have a late payment on one! I am just sooo frustrated! Now, I am trying to get this issue cleared-up and Clark is sick with what I'm not sure, but I'm sure it's either...yep you guessed it; bacterial or a virus!

Walking Tall!

FINALLY! After months of holding onto fingers and furniture, not to mention the last month of taking a few steps unassisted here and there, we are officially walking! Usually, if we ask Izzy to walk to us (after she's already standing mind you) she drops to her knees and crawls to us. Then she started taking a couple of steps towards us until she realized we were watching and again hit her knees. Well, Saturday she took 3 whole steps to me, but we didn't get too excited b/c I didn't ask her to, and Clark wasn't looking. Then tonight I came home from work and the grocery store and she was standing at the edge of the couch. When she saw me she got excited and bent her knees to go to the floor and start crawling to me. Instead I said "walkie walkie to Mommy" and she stood back up and walked right to me!! Not only that, she had these little balls that go with her kitchen set, one in each hand! She couldn't have reached out and grabbed the couch or my hand if she wanted to and luckily Daddy was watching too! We are so proud! It may have taken her 14 months to do it, but she's been working on other things; her vocabulary is more diverse than any of the other babies around her age (most of which are older than she is). I just wish we knew when something big, like walking, talking, etc. was going to happen so we could have the camera ready! You almost want to have surveillance cameras going 24 hours a day! Hopefully, I can post a pic tomorrow. Anywho, I was just too excited to wait...I had to post it tonight!

HAPPY HOPPIN' HALLOWEEN!

Isn't she so stinkin' cute? You wouldn't even know she has bacterial pneumonia! Yes, she's a sick girl, but hopefully on the road to recovery. We've been home all week and obviously staying in tonight, but we are having fun with visits from family, friends and trick-or-treaters. We might even get crazy and carve a pumpkin! Maybe next year we'll finally get in on the treating side of this holiday (considering last year she was only 2mo. old and this yr she's sickly). Thanks again Auntie Frissen for scoring the "Ghouls just wanna have fun" shirt that I loved last year for super cheap! Good thing they only had 12mo. left! Skinny little thing!Mee-Maw scored the bodacious bunny costume! Could the child be anymore adorable? My kids at the Y are trick-or-treating in the different departments after school today too. That's always a lot of fun. The Big "F" Family wishes everyone a Safe, Spooky and Happy Halloween!

So Stinkin' Proud!

Ok! I know, I know! This is my first post in a while, but I've had a sick Daddy, an even sicker baby, and a mountain of stress at work. So...I hope all that is a suitable explanation. Now that I atleast have everyone back in good health, for the time being, I have been accomplishing a few things I've been wanting to do. One of these is making one of our favorite desserts..."Death by Chocolate"! It's so easy: Brownies, Chocolate Mousse, Cool Whip, and Heath Bar Bits layered in a dish. However, I came upon a problem with the mousse. I've only ever been able to find a mix for it a Lowes Foods. Well, apparently now even they no longer carry it. Sooo...after a phone call to the professional baker, Frissen, who didn't know where else (in Asheboro) I might be able to find a mousse mix, I decided to find a recipe for one. Which I did and I very easy one at that: 1 pint of whipping cream whipped into medium stiff peaks, 160z jar of hot fudge and 2tsp of cocoa baking powder stirred in. That's the first thing I'm proud of! The second is I was able to make it and it is sooo yummy! Personally, I think it's better than the mix and my "Death by Chocolate" is all the more delicious for it.

1st Buggy Birthday!

Our sweet Isabelle Claire turned 1 year-old August 30th. We had a Ladybug themed party, lots of guests and lots more presents! I've attached a few pics!

Ladybug Goody Bags for the kiddos filled with: ladybug tatoos, ladybug roll-tape gum, ladybug bubbles and ladybug slide puzzles.

I made Ladybug clips to attach a wallet of Izzy to some Ladybug ribbon we tied to the mantle. I bought the pre-painted ladybug wood cut-outs at Hobby Lobby, painted "Izzy's 1st Birthday" and the date on each with a white paint pen and glued them to mini-clothespins.We tied Ladybug ribbon to regular Tupperware bowls and then put mini self-adhesive ladybugs (Oriental Trading-not Hobby Lobby) all over them! So cute! We added them to the cake carrier also.

I bought the Ladybug pan at Hobby Lobby and made the cake...believe or not, Daddy decorated it! He said all those years growing-up helping his aunts with all of his younger cousins cakes finally paid off. I was very busy and the clock was a tickin'...Superdad to the rescue :)

I made a mini-cake for Izzy and again, Daddy decorated like her own mini-ladybug! I bought ladybug fabric and matching ribbon at...you guessed it Hobby Lobby and decorated her highchair with it. She also has a ladybug balloon tied to the back of her chair, you just can't see it. She was being a little shy..

but obviously that didn't last very long!

Isn't it a shame that no one bought this baby a birthday present?

A couple last shots of my cute little 1 year old Birthday Ladybug in her ladybug birthday outfit opening her birthday presents.

I have totally lost my mind!

Yep! It is official, I have lost my mind and started a blog. If it wasn't for my sweet baby girl, whom so many love ALMOST as much as her Daddy and I do, then I still would be in the dark ages with no blog. Alas, she is here and a whole year old now and I have realized how much I am depriving the world of her cuteness :). No, no, for real though when KPL started one I thought she was crazy, but I then came to enjoy it and I can keep up with her far away adventures just by the click of a button. Then KB started one and I thought pigs must surely be flying, but I looked out the window and they were not; but again I appreciate being able to check-in on the original "baby" through her posts. While on Va-K KPL and I discussed the possibility of me starting one and I have still procrastinated by telling myself I don't have time. But this week several events have occurred that have weighed on my conscious. 1st my baby Izzy turned 1 yr old and so many of our friends and family were unable to attend. While I was happy a lot of our loved ones were there to share in her special day, I was also sad that I couldn't share the day with those who were so far away. Next, I received a letter from one of my best friends, who has called, e-mailed and as a last resort sent a letter b/c I am so busy and hard to get a hold of. Again, this saddend me and made me feel like a horrible friend. Also, work has finally begin to lessen for me (like 12 hrs a day down to 8 or so) and therefore I have atleast a little time to take the desperate and extreme measure of starting a BLOG! aaaahhhh! Scary! Sooo...hopefully, more posts to come in the future to keep you all updated on our crazy F lives in our crazy F house ;)