Thanksgiving 2008

We left the Friday before Thanksgiving when Andrew got out of school and drove over to see Bob & Gail in South Carolina. All of us were really tired, so we just mainly hung around the house, ate good food, played cards and talked. It was exactly what we needed.Picture time before church. Big smiles.Monday, we drove to Florida to visit Andrew's sister and family. It was a LONG 12 hour day of travel. Katherine had a great time with her cousins, Rose & Grace. Here she is playing on the swing set. Look at the beautiful sky - the weather was great in Florida.Fun at the mall on Wednesday. Andrew entertained the girls while I shopped for a couple of hours.We went to the beach on Thanksgiving morning to take some pictures. Katherine finally decided that the sand was okay to walk on. It was too cool to dip her toes in the water. Maybe by next summer, she'll like the beach. She enjoyed picking up shells and did not want to leave.

The highlight of Andrew's trip was that Tim & Becky's rooster did not like me. I had two unpleasant encounters with the thing while I tried to get some stuff out of our van. The first time, it attacked my leg, so I ran back in the house. When I thought it was all clear a couple of hours later, he cornered me behind the van and then chased me back into the house. Andrew thought it was hilarious.

We left Florida early Friday morning and drove to Atlanta to visit with the rest of Andrew's family for a couple of hours. We left there around 6pm to drive the rest of the way home. After 16 hours of traveling, we were all glad to be home!

Katherine's First Slumber Party

Katherine spent her first night away from home without us last Friday night at The Howard's house. She was not at all sad to see us leave, and actually didn't want to be bothered for hugs and kisses. She said, "Bye, y'all!" and returned to playing. The report is that she did well. Amber saved her from getting her nails painted black and her hair sprayed white like Beetle Juice. And, there were a couple of hours in the middle of the night when some non-mothers allowed her to wake completely up and play. She ended up sleeping the last half of the night in the bed with Sara. Andrew & I were glad for the night alone and both got about 12 hours of sleep! I think the slumber parties will have to be a regular thing.

Halloween 2008

Katherine was the cutest little butterfly this year for Halloween.On Wednesday night, we went to our church's Fall Festival. It was late in the day for Katherine, so she looks a little dazed and tired. I think her Mama was more tired than her, though! Here she is with Kendall. There were a couple of toddler rooms. Katherine liked the balloons but was still a little small for the bouncers and games. Next year she'll love it.
Walking through the choir room to the festival with Julia Davis. I love this picture. This video is crazy. It's of Andrew & Katherine going down the big slide at the Fall Festival. First of all, it's with my camera, so the quality is poor. Second, I forgot that if you hold the camera sideways, the video will be sideways, and you can't turn it. Third, it's kind of far away, so you can't see it very well. But, the sound is great. Lauren is talking about how it would be hilarious if Katherine's wings caught the air and she flew away. Amber is yelling at Katherine and laughing. Andrew is bouncing up and down at the top of the slide trying to get going. Katherine really doesn't know what in the world is going on. Catch her face at the very end. So...turn your head sideways and enjoy!

Friday morning, Katherine's class at school had a little party. This picture cracks me up - the wings and her costume were a little bulky for the seats.

They enjoyed unhealthy snacks and juice while the moms stood around taking pictures. Katherine is the oldest in her class, and she knows every one's name. When we were looking at these pictures, she pointed everyone out to me and said all of their names well enough that I knew she was saying the right name for the right child. Stuffing their faces.

October Days

Last week, Katherine & I joined Mimi and Harvey at the beach for a few days. The condo was very nice, and the pool was amazing - the biggest one I've ever seen.Katherine did not like the sand at the beach, so I went alone for a couple of hours both days and read and walked and relaxed. Katherine did like the pool very much. She swam a couple of times every day.Katherine's other favorite activity was to pick berries. She was finally big enough this time to wear the bathing suit Aunt Linda gave her when she was born!Our trip was cut short when my dad called after falling while painting our house. The ladder slipped, he rode it down on to the driveway and shattered his elbow. We packed up and left Friday afternoon, so we could be there for his surgery Saturday morning. Since we were back early, we were able to go to the quad with Amber. We forgot Katherine's sippy cup, so she drank from a bottle and poured most of it down the front of her.Sara was only there for the last ten minutes that we were, but she was camera crazy!Katherine says Sara's name so cute. She says "Saysa" and always says it really quiet. Katherine spent Sunday afternoon with them, and Sara was her favorite this time. Sara was happy!

Roll Tide!

For those of you who don't live in Tuscaloosa and are not aware, The University of Alabama football team is currently undefeated this season. This past week we were ranked #2 in the country, and Tide Mania is at a high in town. We went out to the quad this weekend to be part of the tailgating scene. Of course, we were not totally prepared - didn't know everywhere reasonable to park cost $10. We had $2 with us, so parked forever away and had to trek across the soccer fields before getting to the action. We stopped by Brandon Howard's tailgate first and said hello before moving to the crowded quad. Katherine was hilariously happy. This grin was so big and cheesy, it just cracked us up. Belle is the youngest of the Cormiers and 5 months younger than Katherine. They were not exactly sure why they had to sit on a cooler for pictures and were looking to each other for answers. The Cormier's tailgate won the prize for the week. They got a Publix gift card and video time on the big screen in the stadium. Andrew & Katherine are in there on the right side. Here's a little video clip - kind of hard to see Katherine, but she didn't like it when everyone started screaming.

We watched the saxophones warm up when waiting for the band to play on the library steps. Katherine couldn't make it long enough to hear the band - she conked out. She was so fast asleep that nothing woke her up on the long hike back to the van. Next time we go, we'll take $10 and go a little later to hear the band play.

50th Anniversary

Katherine, my mom and I went to Nashville right after church on Sunday for the 50th wedding anniversary celebration for her sister, Linda (and her husband, Jimmy). We stopped first at my cousin Lynn's house. Lynn is an artist, and Katherine enjoyed looking at the dog and the peacocks she made. Katherine had been sick Friday & Saturday, but seemed well enough to make the trip Sunday. She was fine until about half way through the dinner. Then she fell asleep, and her fever came back. Katherine and I slept Sunday night sideways on a hide-a-bed. The sideways part was so she wouldn't fall off, since she travels a lot when she sleeps. Needless to say, I didn't sleep very well. She woke up with some serious bed head.

I Can't Think of a Good Title for This Post

We didn't take many pictures during September, but there has been a lot of activity here. We've had a couple of Alabama football parties at our house, Bob & Gail came to town (twice), and I got to enjoy a girl's night at Amber's house. We're also getting things done around our house. My dad is painting the outside, and we had a dead tree cut down in our front yard. These are a few pictures of Katherine playing on the stump before it was ground up.