Happy Birthday!!! You're 7 years old!!!

Hard to believe that Chloe Grace is already 7 years old! She is such a smart girl and the absolute joy in our lives. I should have been better about updating our lives last year. Maybe I will update 2010 in a day or two and then stay current with 2011. I said, "MAYBE!"

6 years???

Age 3 at her Princess Birthday Party!

It is so hard to believe that 6 years ago I met Chloe Grace for the first time. My life was changed when I held that tiny baby in my arms. She is the absolute joy in my world. She's smart, witty, faithful, a child of God, and a great caregiver. Gotta love that Chloe Grace! Happy Birthday!

First Time Ever!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chloe had her picture made with Santa Claus at her school's Winterfest. This is the first time in her life that she has been even in the same room with Santa much less sit on his lap. I'm thinking she likes the Jolly Old Elf now!

Summer's Gone :(

Summer has come and gone and now it is time to start back to school! What a busy few weeks, this may have been one of the fastest summers that I can remember. Chloe reached a big milestone today! She lost her first tooth. Isn't she just the cutest thing EVER!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

It was a good day in spite of the fact that I had to leave the beach. And I did get to share the ride back with Chloe. We got to talk about all the things we did at the beach and just how many more days till we returned! Pictures tell the story so much better. Just indulge me for a while here:)

Kiss My Toes and Crabs!

It started with 'Kiss My Toes' but quickly changed to 'I've Got Crabs'! Let me explain...The first time we hit the beach just 3 short years ago, Chloe was very hesitant to get near the ocean. Fast water and big waves were just a little overpowering for a 3 year old. So, I came up with the story that the waves were just kissing her toes. [And, with those freshly polished toes, who wouldn't want to!] Tonight was no exception. It had been quite breezy all day and the waves were quick and big so we had to relearn the process slowly, letting the waves come to us and kiss our toes. What fun! It wasn't long till we were wet past our knees and almost swept off our feet a couple of times. Oh, about the crabs. We were crabbing on the beach. Grant and Pepaw netted 3 big Blue Crabs for our little bucket. We walked up and down the beach looking for more but guess the wind was just too much for the little critters. We released our crabs and headed back to the condo for a good night's sleep.

We're Baaaaack!!!!

We made it! It's just turning 2 AM as I sit and listen to the ocean beat against the beach. I cannot wait until daybreak to see the white sands and the rolling water! Driving all the way through was great [for us girls anyway, we rested in the back.] We stopped in a small place in Mississippi to eat and were asked 'Smoking' or 'Non-smoking' when we went in! It's been a while since I heard that! Great cheeseburgers and tater babies, a check of Facebook [yes, free Wi-Fi] and we were soon back on the road again. The trip was really uneventful until we reached Foley, AL. Right in the middle of town, at least 3 deer were crossing the 5 lane highway and almost met head on with the truck. OMG! Brakes were slammed on and all that were sleeping were soon awakened. We stopped at the rental agency and picked up the keys to the condo and here we are, unpacked and ready for bed. We have new living room furniture and Gil and I have a new chest in our bedroom. A nice little surprise! Stay tuned for beach fun! It's going to be a wild weekend. Chloe Grace fell asleep smiling.

Remembered!

I remember. From sitting on the arm of Grandma Murphy's big blue chair and listening to the story of Beowulf to the long summer days spent at the Tennessee River...I remember. From hearing tales of my ancestors to the shenanigans of brothers and cousins gone wild...I remember. Anyone who ever crossed paths with John T. Murphy remembers him. He never met a stranger. He was a big hearted man who left giant prints on this old Earth. I was blessed to have him be my Uncle John. I know he stands at the river's edge waiting...

It's Official!

Chloe is a big girl! Yes, those ears are pierced! And, she is so proud!

Spring Break ~ Day 2

WOW!!! Chloe and I had a fun filled day today. Who knew an old lady could do so much??? We started the day at the Safari Park near Alamo, TN. If you have never been there, you gotta go! It was great, even with the giraffe in winter storage we saw lots of animals, including a pregnant camel due to deliver just any day, and had so much fun feeding them all. The emus chased us all over the park pecking on the car window for more bread. Chloe squealed everytime! We got to walk around and feed the goats and pigs. They were moving the camels so we watched as one patiently went where she was told and as another kicked up quite a fuss as he didn't want to change pens. Then there was the poor camel that was great with child! She could hardly move. We cannot wait to go back and see her baby! The giraffe will be back in April so we most definitely will be making another trip down the road a bit to see the Safari Park again. Want to join us?
After the drive through the safari, Chloe wanted lunch at the Penne Pasta Store. [Some of you may know this as Old Town Spaghetti Store!] We ate and decided we would go to North Park and play a while. I ran into an old baseball mom friend and we sat and watched our granddaughters play for a couple of hours. Twenty years ago we would have never imagined that one day instead of following boys on the ball field that we would be watching little girls play! Life is so good!
The only downer to our whole day was the Library. We stopped at the North Branch for Chloe to get her first card and check out some books. They refused to let her have one because I was not her mother or her legal guardian. They have to have the PROPER ID to verify addresses. OMG, it's a library card for goodness sakes! Anyway Miss Priss got mad and we left.
We ended the day playing outside and Chloe performing a gymnastic show with me as the announcer. We packed a whole lot of fun into today...Wonder what Day 3 holds for us???

Another Portrait!

That Chloe...She just keeps drawing. This time I was the model for the portrait. How funny she kept telling me to turn around so she could see my face! She really concentrated on getting my features just right. She drew 3 noses off to the side to try and pick the one that looked the most like mine! Funny girl!

A Budding Artist

I am not exactly sure where my time goes and how it happens that it has been so long since the last post. I know that you remember that Chloe goes to Pre-K where I teach so we have morning time together every morning waiting for the bell to ring. What fun! She draws and helps me get my morning tasks completed before the kids arrive. Today she drew a picture on the board and it almost broke my heart to erase it. But after school she re-created the whole face and I thought I would share with you. Check out those rosy red lips!

Missing you...

February 17, 1956 - October 23, 2007

Happy Birthday - Chloe

5 Years Old!!!

Merry Christmas ~ It truly can be Christmas Everyday!

And this is just Christmas Eve!!!
Look how big Baby Ava is getting! Sweet baby!!

The Grinch Will not steal our Christmas!!

Jumping for joy over an Easy Bake Oven...

Checking out the new digital camera...

Notice the letters around the tree. Chloe cut them out all by herself. Smart Girl!!!

With Uncle Brent...

And that was just a few from Christmas Eve! Gotta get Brandi's card for the BIG day!!!

Chloe Reads!

If you scroll down to the bottom of the page, you can see Chloe reading Panda Bear, Panda Bear, What Do You See? She is NOT picking her nose while 'reading' just scratching! She reads the book sooo much that when our librarian at school tried to speed things up by skipping a few key words, Chloe corrected her. I was told that she was very polite while doing so. You will probably have to turn off the music at the bottom before starting the video. Enjoy!

Trick or Treat!

And the winner of 'The What Do I Wear for Halloween' Contest was the Cheerleading outfit! Thank you to Bailey for letting Chloe borrow a 'real' cheerleading dress! What about the pose? Think she is ready for the sidelines?

Just a few more...

Outside enjoying the fall day!!

Pumpkin Patch!

Brandi and Chloe went to the Pumpkin Patch a couple of weeks ago for these pictures! I had to miss this trip because of a meeting in Memphis:( I cannot believe how grown up she is.

D is for Dog!

D is for Dog! Chloe and Abby are studying the letter 'D' this week in Pre-K. What if we had 101 of these dalmations????