First Airplane Ride

As some of you may know, my dad and step-mom live in Atlanta. They go to Birmingham often because I have two step-sisters there so I see them a good bit when we happen to cross paths on the weekends there, but I really wanted to take Finley to Atlanta to stay with them. She also has never met her great-grandmother who lives in Atlanta as well. Joey had some Skymiles built up so we booked a trip!! We leave this Thursday and come back Sunday. I'm really excited and really nervous. The flight is only an hour and 15 minutes, but I've never flown with a child. Joey isn't coming so I'm in this alone:( I keep telling myself that even if she screams the entire time it would have been worse had we driven there. Driving was out of the question!! I don't expect her to scream, but I am afraid she will get restless and start fussing and crying. Now that she is crawling, she knows she can get down and go explore. I didn't get her a ticket because that would have wiped out our Skymiles so I'm hoping the seat next to me will be empty. If any of you have any tips for me I'm all ears. Our flight leaves really early in the morning so I'm hoping she will have had a good night's sleep and be in a good mood. She usually isn't hungry right when she gets up so I think I'll get to the airport in enough time to feed her right before we get on the plane so I won't have to worry about trying to make a bottle on the plan while holding her. Then if I can just keep her occupied until we land I will consider it a success! I think we'll be alright because there will be lots to look at and once we get in the air I can get up and walk her around. I am thinking positively, but can't help but hear a little voice telling me that kids NEVER do what you expect them too especially when you really need or want them to;)

There's a hurricane a comin' !

Not really. Now it's just a tropical storm so no worries. Anyway, we are north of I-10 so rarely are we in the danger zone.

This year we decided to put up a little tree instead of our usual big one. We bought a living room set that we intend on "growing into", but for now it just takes up our entire living room so we didn't have room for one in there. We put it in the breakfast nook/kitchen instead. Most of the things from last year still looked good. I had to get new garland and I got a couple cute picture frames from Kohl's. I cannot find this really cute little red tree I used to put on my kitchen table so I need to replace that. I found a cute red tree made out of Christmas balls at Target I may go back and get. Luckily Finley has absolutely no interest in the tree so that's good, but I'm going to tie it to the windowsill just to be safe.

Making Memories...

I decided before I had Finley that I wanted to collect something for her. Like dolls or figurines or something, but I couldn't decide what. My sister-in-law had a great suggestion for something that would really be meaningful, but not take up a lot of space. She suggested I get Finley an ornament every year that represents something she is "in to" that year. Then, when she gets married, I'll give them all to her in a nice box for her to use on her tree. She also mentioned how it would be neat for her to tell her husband and children one day what each one meant. Isn't that a great idea?! So I still need to get her "1st Christmas" ornament, but I got her a Mickey Mouse ornament today because she loves that show Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Seriously, every time it comes on she is GLUED to it and when they start singing the hot dog song she starts grinning from ear to ear. It's so funny!! Anyway, so that's the story with that. I also want to get her the Holiday Mickey and Minnie Mouse plush animals. I saw the ones that are old timey looking. They are the classic Mickey and Minnie. I thought that would be cute to get for her 1st Christmas and I can put them in her room each year. I feel like this Christmas is a big deal because it is the first Christmas where Joey and I will be making our OWN memories and starting our OWN traditions with Finley as a family rather than following the traditions our parents started. I'm sure every mom knows how I feel, but I want everything to be PERFECT for her even if she doesn't remember it or doesn't realize what's going on ;)

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation= Best Christmas movie ever!

I'm so ahead of the game that it's not even funny ;) My Christmas cards are in their envelopes, addressed and sealed. I'm going to get stamps tomorrow and then on my desk they'll sit until December. I got 2 more Christmas gifts so only 3 more to go. All my gifts are wrapped and ready to go under the tree. I still have to finish getting stocking stuffers for Joey and Finley, but that will be easy. This afternoon, I'm going to put up decorations. I don't think I'll finish today, but we'll see. Some of our decorations may have had it so I might have to replenish. I have a really cute idea for my mantle so we'll see how that turns out. Anyways, I feel really good because I know I will have all this done soon and I can just enjoy the season and not fight my way through the mall every weekend. Also, I always feel like my decorations are up for a week and then its time to take them down so it will be nice to have them up for a while this year. I have Finley's Christmas wardrobe ready. She has a smocked dress to wear to church, a couple pairs of Christmas pajamas, 2 comfy outfits to wear Christmas Eve day and Christmas Day. Joey keeps telling me I'm doing all of this too soon, but this week I'm going to visit my dad and then 2 weekends after that is Thanksgiving and we will be in Birmingham for a few days at least and then its December! I think he forgets how fast it comes. I hear my little bug moving around in her room...gotta go!

The Littlest Angel

Well, we are having a much better day today. Finley seems to be in a good humor and I decided against letting my bad week get me down so we are going to the mall to get my grandmother a Christmas gift. She loves sweaters from the Gap and I just happened to get an email with a 25% off coupon. Yea! Actually last night my week made a turn around because I got Finley's Christmas card pictures and they are perfect!! She looks so sweet and innocent in them. Notice I said "looks". Just kidding! She really is sweet and happy most of the time. Hopefully, getting her out today will help with the fussiness. A couple weeks ago Joey won a bunch of gift certificates to local restaurants. I think we have used all of them except Longhorn so we are going to use those tonight. I think we may take Finley to the park or Bellingrath Gardens tomorrow. We are doing something outside for sure. This weather is too good not to be outdoors. I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!!TGIF!!!

Crappy week...

I have had a crappy week!! Monday, I locked my keys in my car an hour before I was supposed to meet Jessica to take Finley's Christmas card pictures. Pop-A-Lock came really quickly, but I still had to pay $50 and I was wound up pretty tight because I was trying to pack up the car and get there on time to meet her. Then as I went to pay him, I realized my debit card was missing so I had to call Joey so he could cancel it. I'm sure they charge to get another card although I don't know how much. I tried to start over yesterday, but Finley just isn't happy. I think she dislikes Mobile as much as I do because she just crawls around whining and fussing all day. Today, I was on my way to Hobby Lobby minding my own business when I pass by a cop on a motorcycle hiding in the bushes. I look right at him and then glance at my speedometer. I wasn't even going 40 mph so I just went about my merry way and then here he comes pulling me over!! For a second I was thinking why in the world is he pulling me over. My window tint? Is my tag expired? I really wasn't sure what was going on. He comes up to the window and says he clocked me doing 39 (I'm still thinking, yeah and...)in a 25 zone. The road I was on was not in a school zone or a residential neighborhood. It is just a two lane road that runs by Target and comes out on Schillinger. 25 mph? Really? It turns off a road where the speed limit is 45. I was really ticked off. I am all in favor of cops pulling people over who speed. I never speed (knowingly) anymore because I always have precious cargo with me and I was totally unaware that the speed limit on this road that I drive on all the time was 25. But, it really ticks me off when cops resort to hiding (in the bushes nonetheless)in places where the speed drops ridiculously low all of a sudden. GRRRRR! There is a difference in seeing someone driving recklessly on the highway or in a school zone and pulling them over ( and there are plenty of them because I spend many days trying not to get killed on I-10), but hiding and pulling someone over for going 40mph? I don't care that it is over the speed limit, it is really slow. My neighborhood speed limit is 25 and that road didn't have a house or business on it. I felt like mentioning to him the time our house alarm went off at 2AM and it took the cops 25 minutes to get to our house. I think that should make us even. Then he told me to have a safe day. What a jerk!!!! I am safe you butthole, I'm driving 40 mph!!!!!I am eligible to go to driving school so it won't go on my driving record, but I still have to fork over over $100 two weeks after Christmas. OH IT MAKES ME SO MAD!!!!!!!! What makes it even worse is that I see people FLYING (wheels screeching around my corner)through my neighborhood all day long and using it as a cut through to another main road. Where are the cops then? Mobile is one of the most dangerous cities in America and I'm being pulled over for driving 40mph on a service road. I realize that I'm making excuses and maybe being irrational , but I don't care. I am staying at home the rest of this week and starting fresh on Monday.

Finley's 1st Christmas!

I'm starting to get excited...maybe a little too excited ;) I couldn't resist putting up her tree any longer. Thank you Cici for my 1st Christmas tree!