Halloween Party

For the past few months, I have been saying that I was going to teach myself how to do appliques. I even bought all of the materials to do so but I have never taken the time to try any projects. Chris is out of town for a few days and today is Addyson's Halloween party at school, so last night I decided I was going to make her a shirt to wear. So, being that this was my first try; I had no expectations. I originally was going to do a pumpkin but I came across the word "BOO" on a coloring page and thought that maybe a little easier for my first try. Well, I was wrong. The sewing part was a lot more difficult that I had anticipated because of all of the circles that I had to sew. Any other time it would have probably looked ridiculous because it really wasn't straight but being that it is for Halloween it doesn't look to bad for my first try. What do you think?



Here is my little pumpkin this morning when she was all ready for school. Of course I had to bribe her with Curious George fruit snacks just so she would let me take her picture!




Then she was playing Peek A Boo around the cabinet while I was trying to get her picture!



Last year, I found this really quick recipe for some very cute Halloween cookies. I made them againt his year for her new class.




Aren't they cute?

All you do is take Nutter Butter cookies and dip them in white chocolate. Let them dry on wax paper. Take some black icing and give them eyes and a mouth and you have GHOST! So easy and cute! We have a busy weekend planned this weekend. Lots of Halloween festivites for the "Whoo Family." I am very excited! Hope everyone has a great and safe weekend. Happy Halloween!

Just So Cute!

Lately, Addyson's personality has really started to come out. Last night, while trying to help me with the laundry she put this hat on backwards. I had to take a picture because she was Just So Cute!

Pumpkin Carving

A few weeks ago, Addyson's Nana and Opa picked her up from school early and took her to pick out a pumpkin. Opa had hoped to have some growing in his yard for her to pick this year but due to all the rain the pumpkins never came. He had some plants with a lot of blooms but no pumpkins. So, they set out to find the perfect pumpkin!



Their was a lot to choose from but she finally found the one she wanted!




Last night, Daddy and Addyson decided to carve her perfect pumpkin.




Of course, Daddy did all the cutting but he let Addyson help with cleaning out all the inside.





They worked very hard on this pumpkin. Addyson was so excited when they were finally done!

Disney Character Breakfast

On Saturday, the whole Caldwell clan headed to Millington to the military base for the Disney Character Breakfast. Now, we were not sure how Addyson would do with this because she is absolutely terrified of dressed up characters. We do not do Santa or the Easter bunny. If she even sees them it is instant tears! However, she loves Tinkerbell and that was one of the characters that was going to be their so we decided to try it out.

It was very cool. They fed us breakfast and gave the kids stickers, crayons, and color sheets to keep them occupied while waiting for the characters to arrive. They also played Disney movies on these big TV screens. The whole event was hosted by Cruel la D' Ville. They gave each kid an autograph book so that they could get the characters autographs.

Addyson did pretty good. She got to meet.....



The Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland



Cinderella and Prince Charming



Tinkerbell, which is her absolute favorite. I think we have watched this movie every other day since her birthday!



And Snow White.

Speaking of Disney, I came across two really GREAT deals on some Disney movies for Christmas presents and I just have to share. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was just released in the BlueRay/DVD combo pack on Oct 6. Amazon.com has it on sale for $19.99. When you go to check out use the code: snowhite and you get $10.00 off. I bought this for Addyson and I think with shipping and everything it was around $12.50.

Also, the new Tinkerbell movie is being released tomorrow Oct. 27. Their is a $10.00 off coupon here. Obviously, I have not purchased this one yet because it comes out tomorrow but I have heard that it will sell for $24.99 which would make the final price $14.99. It is said that just the DVD will sell for $15.99. So, either way this will be a good deal!

Cindy Loo Whoo

So, its been almost a MONTH since I have posted anything on this blog. Life has just been crazy lately. It seems every weekend their has been something going on and no time to post anything. So, I told myself starting this week I would get better.

In the last month, I think Addyson has changed so much. She surprises Chris an I everyday with what she knows and the things she says. She has turned from our sweet little baby into a very independent two year old. These days everything is "mine" and "I do it myself." While most days I am very thankful for the patience that God has given me with motherhood, it is very exciting to watch her transition from a toddler to a little girl.

This past weekend, we went to Zoo Boo. The Memphis Zoo hosts a fundraising event ever year for Lebonheur Children's Medical Hospital during Halloween. You go to the zoo in costume and trick or treat. It is a lot of fun for the kids.

This year Addyson is being Cindy Loo Whoo for Halloween. If you don't know who that is, she is the little girl from the Dr. Seuss book/Jim Carrey Movie "How The Grinch Stole Christmas." I bought her the dress but with the help of my mother-in law sewed the red cape that she is wearing.

The hair was a challenge but after a few ideas, I decided to use her own hair and A LOT of hairspray. The costume came out really great and everyone seem to love it. I am looking forward to Halloween this weekend so we can dress her up again.

Demolition Days!

My in-laws, also known as Nana and Opa to Addyson, decided to tear their brick shed down in their backyard. It was infested with termites and spiders and it was just time for it to go! So, they rented a backhoe and the demolition began. Addyson and I stopped by for a visit after church last week and she was very interested in what was going on in the backyard.

Nana took her outside to watch but after a few minutes she was back in the house because it was to loud. So, Nana found her something to cover her ears and she stood out their for an hour watching what was going on. It was so cute!





She watched from the swing and then she wanted to stand in her playhouse. It was really close to where he was working. She could stand in the playhouse and be right in the middle of the action and still be safe.

It's the simple things....

Sometimes I think we forget how easily entertained children are. We think they need the best games or swing sets but really all they need is....




A BOX!!!

Gammy and Papa sent money for Addyson's birthday and we decided to buy her a wagon. Of course it had to be put together! While dad was doing that, Addyson was having a ball with the box the wagon came in. It is amazing how they can be so entertained by the simplest things.

Daddy finally got the wagon together and here it is. She loves it! She made us take her for a walk at nighttime after Chris got it together.




Thank you Gammy and Papa!

We go to the zoo allot! This was part of the reason we wanted a wagon. Addyson loves the zoo but she also loves to get in and out of her stroller a million times while we are there. So, with the wagon she can get out and in on her own. Here are some pictures from the zoo.

I did it!

Since high school, I have always worked out in some sort of fashion. It hasn't always been consistently but I would take some classes at the rec center here and their. About 8 weeks ago, I decided that I was going to start running. I did some research on the Internet and it said the best way to become a runner is to find a race and sign up. So, I did. I signed up for the Chick Fil A 5K on Labor Day. The website also said you should give yourself about 8 weeks to get ready. So, 8 weeks ago I started running. Beginning with a mile or so and working my way to 3 miles. I used this website called mapmyrun.com. It is a very cool website that allows you to put your address in and map your neighborhood so you can see how far you are running each time. Some weeks I did better than others but surprisingly I was getting better each time and even actually enjoying myself a little bit!

So, this morning was the race and I DID IT! I have never been very athletic and I didn't play sports in high school so I don't have allot of confidence in myself when it comes to this sort of thing but I was determined that I was going to finish this race. I wasn't trying to win, JUST FINISH!

I asked my friend Erica to run with me. Here we are before the race.



Erica is an aerobics instructor. She is in much better shape than me! I told her don't worry about me, just run. We will cross the same finish line. I knew their was no way I could stay up with her and I was right! She finished 81 and I finished 451 out of about 900-1000 people. But hey, I finished and that was my goal!

Here were are after the race.



Chris and Addyson came along for moral support.





Now that I have done one, I am going to do more. I plan to do another one in a few weeks, trying to talk the hubby into doing it to!

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So, I have some pretty creative friends that played a part in Addyson's birthday celebration that I feel everyone should know about it and use when ever an occasion comes up.

First, Addyson's very cute cake was made by Rockstar Cakes. Jessica Kelly is the owner/creator of the cakes. I have known her since I don't even know when. We lived next door to each other for half my life. She does amazing work. Here is Addyson's cake again....




She does all kinds of cakes, not just birthdays. So, check her out next time you are in need.

Next, is not only a friend but my cousin Leslie. She owns Baby Goodness Boutique. She is a stay at home mom who needed to make some extra money. So she bought an embroidery machine and a sewing machine and taught her self some skills. She does amazing things. She sells all sorts of cute things for your little ones. I have ordered many things from her but she made Addyson two full size hooded towels for her birthday that are just precious!








Here are some pictures of Addyson enjoying her gift.






Check out her website next time their is a holiday and you need a gift or a birthday comes up. She has all kinds of fun things.


Finally, their is Natalie. Natalie owns Sweet Lemons Gifts. She does thank you cards, invitations, labels, and all kinds of cool stuff. She did not do Addyson's invitations because she cannot do die cut but I did ask! However, I did order some thank you cards and some labels and they came out great! She has these really awesome fill-in thank you cards where you just write the name of the person who gave you the gift and what it was! It saves a ton of time with thank you cards! Here are the ones I ordered for Addyson...



Lilly Kate, which is Natalie's daughter, gave Addyson these for her birthday along with matching labels.



I just love these with the ice cream cone! Next time you are need of some note cards or thank you notes. Go to Natalie's etsy store. She has some really cute things!

All three of these women are amazingly talented and are using those talents to try and support themselves and their families. So check them out!