Furry Mop heads and More

Trick or Treating in the Nhood

2010-10-31T19:55:00.001-07:00

So, it's that time of year. Oct 31 = Trick or treating. Syd was a sweet Tinkerbell and S2 was a Ladybug. They were so cute. Syd has really enjoyed this Halloween season and all the fun events. This is actually the 5th time she got to wear her costume out this year! Here are a few pics from our night in our nhood. We have such wonderful neighbhoors. I always love seeing them.
So, here's the post from tonight. I realize this still means I have some catching up to do from the past few months of blog slacking.
Some of the nhood kids all pose for a pic (thanks to digital, there's actually ONE where most kids are actually looking).

Miss Priss is really to go! (Note the side ponytail and "criss-cross applesauce braids" in her hair). Side ponytails are important to her these days since "the big kids wear their hair like that". Peer pressure at 3, really?

Such sweet and happy kids. We are so blessed.

Beginning the trick or treating. S2 doesn't eat candy yet, but she does know how to reach for treats!

Not a quitter...

2010-09-07T06:44:00.000-07:00

I haven't quit the blog...just been on vacation from the blog. Real life has been busy. I just downloaded about a zillion pictures and I have lots to update since I haven't posted since January! We've had a baby since then. More soon.

Welcome Bob & Amy

2010-01-24T21:16:00.000-08:00

So, after we saw Elmo and the Sesame Street gang, we came home and to get ready because company was on their way. Bob had never met Sydney and we hadn't met Amy, so it was nice for all of us to hang out. Bob is a good friend from Atlanta that we used to get to see a lot more. He's an old roomie and is most famous for what many in the ATL now know as "Big Bob Pancakes". Amy, welcome aboard. It was great to meet you.

Sydney LOVED the visit, and did all her cute kid tricks to prove it (see the cheer stunts). She even got to help feed the dog, Farley and play peek a boo with him too. Come back soon guys. We had a blast.

ELMO Live in Ktown

2010-01-23T15:24:00.000-08:00

Elmo came to Ktown a couple of weeks ago, so we had to go. He brought all his S. Street friends too! As you can see Syd danced and sang and got lots of BIG hugs from her furry friends!

Sydney really didn't want to leave and REALLY wanted to get on stage. She gave the S Street security team the saddest little face after she was told no (by all parties questioned) and I think it' melted someone's heart. So, here's Sydney with her new friend and security escort out of the S Street event ;).

New Year's Eve-First Night Knoxville

2010-01-16T15:24:00.000-08:00

The pretty trees in Ktown.

Syd getting ready.
The girls dancing. H didn't break it down quite as much as the little girls did. Trace and I

Three adorable girls- Sydney, Eva and Elizabeth

The girls with their Daddy's.

We spent New Year's Eve in downtown Knoxville for First Night Knoxville. http://www.firstnightknoxville.com/

The C family joined us and we had a blast. Syd began the night well dressed and warm. (Thanks again, Aunt Mandee for the fab scarf!). As the night progressed and the dancing continued, the winter gear came off. I don't think they stopped dancing. It's very cute right now. If they want to dance on a stage in a few years, it may not be so cute ;).

Syd LOVED seeing baby L too! And, baby L smiled like she enjoyed Syd's giggles too- very sweet!

Christmas Morning!

2010-01-10T12:02:00.000-08:00

And finally, a post about..Christmas morning! Sydney had a blast. The only two requests she had of Santa were a baby doll (as if she has NO baby dolls at home) and a BARBIE Jeep. Apparently she was a good girl this year because Santa brought both items (and a few other surprises). Trace and I thought last year was the sweetest Christmas ever watching her in awe over the lights. This year she believed in Santa and knew it was Jesus's Birthday and we had a wonderful, magical Christmas. It was chaos, but fun chaos. After everything from under the tree was open, she asked, "where's my Barbie Jeep?". We told her Santa left a note for us to check the garage for one more gift. The mother in me was concerned I was raising a very self-centered kid until she noted that Daddy and I needed more presents too. (Whew- she can think of others! ;). I explained that it's good to give gifts as well as receive them and that sometimes great things can come in little packages (like spa gift cards). :)
Here are a few pics from Christmas morning. Please excuse any mess or morning hair you may see. This is real life at the P house.

Christmas in NC

2010-01-01T14:11:00.000-08:00

The weekend before Christmas, we went to NC to see more family. You all probably remember the snowy weather. It was nuts, but fun. As most of you know, T has a new vehicle that he's really proud of, so it was a fun chance to put it in 4WD and get us to Aunt Pat's. It is the first time, I've had a full appreciation for the new ride, but I now give it two thumbs up. (On a side note, for those of you who know my Dad and T, T was VERY proud that his ride didn't get stuck, but my Dad's 4wd ride did get stuck. It's a man thing, I know, but I'm pretty sure this will come up for a while if I know both of them well ;).

Depending on which part of NC you were in, there were between 4 and 14 inches of snow.

Enough about the snow....The most important fun was getting so see all of our family.

One of our favorite things to do over the Holidays is get together with Aunt Pat. She is one of my favorite people and possibly also one of the best cooks on the planet. It has to be a REALLY special event to get all of us out of the house to drive through what we did in order to spend time with family. Here are a few pics from our get together at her house.

Sara- Thanks again for the hospitality. We had a great time at your house and it was really ok that we didn't have power....who needs that anyway ;)

The next day, we went to Mom and Q's for the N get together. The whole gang was there, all the kids and even Momma Q from Cali. It was great company, great food and here's a pic of the big fam. Also, check out Syd with new baby James. She was so excited to hold him.

Merry Christmas in TN!

2009-12-25T20:42:00.000-08:00

http://portablenorthpole.tv/watch/95ec89f4442e4b633d988b64a18d0b93
Here's the message Santa sent Sydney.
Where to begin... We'll start with Christmas in November :)

Our Christmas festivities actually began in November with a visit from the C family from Louisiana (Trace's sis). They were here for Thanksgiving. While they were here we enjoyed Thanksgiving, complete with Turkey, lots of food and visitors from both sides of the family.

We also finished decorating the Christmas tree, went to the fantasy of trees with family and friends and opened some early gifts. Check out the adorable green/red outfit Syd wore to festival of trees. It was one of of her favorites as was her phone with a message on there from Uncle J. She mostly just loved the time with family and loads of attention. She learned to make lots more silly faces and sounds. D and S are in the pre-teen years and we enjoyed time with them. Kids are much different in various ages, so we got to learn what is important at that age. (The answer: Wii games, bottle cap necklaces, fun things to do).

Here's the link to the Festival of trees. If you haven't been, it's worth adding to your list of Knoxville Holiday must-do's. Sydney and her cousins decorated cookies, made ornaments, saw cool gingerbread houses, Santa, and much more. (http://www.etch.com/Fantasy.cfm). Rach, TJ, Koose and Kristy, we are so happy you guys came over to enjoy the day with us too! AND...Cindy & Jimmy celebrated their 10 year anniversary on this trip. Happy Anniversary! We love you guys.

Later in Dec, we got some SNOW in TN. There are lots of kiddos in our neighborhood, so they got to play and sled and make a snowman. By the time I got out there to take pics, some of the gang had gone in for hot chocolate. Here's a pic of the snowman the kids and nhood Dads made.

Some good friends of ours (and nbors) had a Holiday party for their kids at http://www.eventsatsherlake.com/. On another note, we hadn't ever been there before, but it's a great place to go if you are looking for a kids birthday party venue. We had a fabulous time and it was awesome to let the kids play and jump and burn off all that ENERGY and the adults got to see each other as well. We always end up seeing each other so much more when it's warmer outside. Here are some pics from that big day. As you may expect, she had a GREAT nap that day!

Also included a picture of Syd and Dora. Her love for Dora hasn't faded with time.

And...some videos. Enjoy

As this post is getting long (and I expect Syd will be awake from naptime soon), I'll post Christmas morning pics, Christmas in NC pics, more swimming pics and NYEve pics soon. Note to self, this is way easier to keep up with if you do it regularly.....

Making Cookies w/ Grandma Dotty

2009-11-29T12:29:00.000-08:00

How cute is this?! So sweet....

This is from a trip to NC a few weeks ago. Mom watched Syd for a few hours while we enjoyed an evening out. It was great for everyone!

Louisiana Trip-Oct 09

2009-11-29T12:17:00.000-08:00

In Oct, we flew to Louisiana to see family & friends. This is where T grew up and we haven't been there in about 3 years, so it was fun to see everyone! Syd jumped on the trampoline with her cousins, made cupcakes w/ her Aunt Cindy and Savannah, played with Lacy (the puppy), amused her Uncle Jimmy and lastly, saw the family do lots of new tricks. Her Uncle Bud even showed her how he can pull his finger off and take out his teeth. This one caused great laugher for the adults and serious confusion for Syd. You just never know what can happen in Louisiana.

Some explanation on the last picture.....as most of you know...we have good news! Syd thinks she needs to do everything her Mommy does, so "watching the new baby" was no exception. Check out the screen :). This is cute while she's 2, but be assured, it wouldn't be so funny in 15 years or so. She is now absolutely convinced there's a baby in her belly too. We'll work on those explanations in a few weeks.

Cute Pink Cast-Oct 09

2009-11-29T10:39:00.000-08:00

So our little monkey is not invincible. A few weeks ago, she fell on the playground at school at had a small break in her arm. She selected a hot pink cast, of course. After she figured out she could still do most everything she wanted to do, she was ok. Her teachers at school told me she was still super-independent and the cast didn't slow her down at all. We all survived 3 weeks of more difficult bath routines!

Earrings!

2009-09-24T20:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pll9Ky0BTng

Sorry I haven't posted this until now, but Sydney got earrings after her second birthday. She was such a big girl. We had talked about it a few times then we decided we were ready to go, so....here we go. YES, the girls who pierced her ears did both ears at the exact same time and I highly recommend that if you are thinking about doing this for your little girl. There were 10 solid minutes of tears, but nothing a trip to Marble Slab couldn't take care of :)

Our little princess loves for people to compliment her earrings and always notices when other little girls (or people in general) have them pierced.

Pony Party for Eva

2009-08-22T20:21:00.000-07:00

Syd's good friend, Eva, turned 3 a couple of weeks ago. She had a pony party and we had a blast. All the kids wore their best cowboy/cowgirl attire. We got to see some great friends that we don't see too often and the kids LOVED the pony rides! Here are some pics from the party.

Syd looked very cute in the cowgirl hat and pink cowboy boots. If you click on the link below, you'll see another incredibly cute kid in the same outfit :). It is actually Catherine's and she was nice enough to let us borrow it. THANKS again. It was seriously adorable :)

http://catherineandcarson.blogspot.com/2009/06/rabbit-and-pony.html

http://www.ponypartytn.com/party.html
Check out the cutie cowboy, Eden! The camera battery zonked out before we got a lot of pics, but Eva was adorable and we loved seeing baby Elizabeth again AND meeting baby West for the first time. Syd was also squeeling with excitement to see Allie, LeLe and B. We also loved seeing the grown ups too :)

Duck Races in Ktown

2009-08-22T19:55:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed an afternoon at Volunteer Landing at the annual rubber duck race. http://www.knoxnews.com/photos/galleries/2009/aug/22/great-knoxville-rubber-duck-race/ Although our ducks didn't win, we had a great time watching them float down the river. Syd enjoyed the Kiddie activities (bounce houses and slides are always a sure crowd-pleaser).
She climbed up the big slide all by herself with no fear. Our baby is getting so big.

Visit with the Mills and a trip to Cades Cove and Congrats BECCA

2009-08-12T16:50:00.001-07:00

Congrats Becca!!! You graduated and we are so proud of you. Good luck!
Last weekend, we were fortunate enough to get to spend some time with the M family. They live in DC and we don't see them often, so it was a real treat. THey were on their way to Alabama to see Becca graduate (again, GO Becca!). Syd enjoyed time with Katie. Can you tell Syd is excited?! Between the two of those girls, I'm not sure who has more energy. Syd loved it and it was great to have a moment with someone keeping my little busy body entertained. Sydney did all of her usual cute, smart kid tricks to keep them entertained--(cheerleading stunts, counting, singing the alphabet, etc).

The girls escaped for some girl time (sushi and shopping) and the boys did what boys do- enjoy sports. Given that Scott and Trace grew up together in Louisiana, they also had to make a pit stop for some Cajun food as well.
Over the weekend, we went to Cades Cove to enjoy the scenery and so what nature had to offer. It was beautiful. Sometimes you forget how pretty it is here.

On our short nature walk, we did see the signs noting that bears hang out there (in the woods), but we didn't really expect to see any. Needless to say, we were surprised when the hikers ahead of us told us to shhh and pointed to the baby bear just ahead. We watched with admiration, excitement and admittedly, a little fear! We were pretty close to this bear! And...being close to a bear in the wood is a little different than being close to a bear in a zoo, mostly because the wild strong animal is not in a cage. Anyway, it was certainly a highlight of the trip. The bear crossed the road in front of us and went to the other side to eat lunch and make bear surprises. We kept telling Sydney to "shhhhh" in hopes we wouldn't cause any bear concern. It was definitely a highlight of the trip! !

More posts coming soon. I have so many pics to download and so little time. Syd was a flower girl in a wedding a couple of weeks ago and went to a pony party the week before...again, more to blog on soon. Lauren- thanks for updating the cades cove pics on facebook

Sydney turns 2....that means a bday party at the zoo!

2009-07-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our baby is 2, but she is. We had a birthday party at the zoo. She had lots of friends and family there to help her enjoy pizza and cake...AND some fun at the zoo. Thanks to all our great friends and famiy who helped make it a great day. Sydney has been to several birthday parties lately and was thrilled to have "her turn". She is ALL about presents and gets so excited to see her friends. Here are some of the pics from the big day!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29266714@N05/sets/72157621706059084/

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ViewSlideshow.action?&collidparam=974542813205.928329080805.1248045660503

Photobook to celebrate Gran's 80th bday

2009-07-19T15:47:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

80th Bday party for Granny

2009-07-19T15:34:00.001-07:00

As most of you know, "Granny", turned 80 a couple of weeks ago. We had a big party in NC to celebrate the occassion. My sister made her the photobook in the post above. Here are some pics of the occassion. Gran was absolutely thrilled. She was beaming the entire night. It was awesome.

Music Ideas from Cookie Magazine

2009-07-05T20:50:00.000-07:00

I saw these ideas for your iPod from Cookie magazine and thought I would share with those of you interested. As much as I love being a Mom, there are actually moments I don't want to listen to one more silly song in the car and I just want to crank up music that I enjoy. For those of you who know me well, you know the crazy variety of music I like to listen to :). Yes, it includes hip hop and yes, it includes country.

Here are a few grownup songs that Cookie magazine suggests grownups and kiddos can enjoy!

Three Little Birds by Bob Marley
If I had a $1M by Barenaked Ladies (love this song and have seen BNL in concert)
A-Tisket, A-Tasket by Ella Fitzgerald
My Doorbell by The White STrips
L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole
I Wish You Well by Bill Withers
Sir Duke by Stevie Wonder
Howling at the Moon (She-La-La) by the Ramones
Child by the Five Stairsteps
Caberet Hoover from the Triplets of Belleville soundtrack

I'm not sure that I'll load all these, but just sharing the suggestions. Shout if you have some favorites that need to be loaded on the iPod.

May 09-FHS Graduation

2009-07-04T09:04:00.001-07:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Trace loves teaching, coaching and helping others in general. He has been teaching at FHS the past few years and in his time there he's taken interest in many students. One student he's taken a particular interest in is L. Here she is WALKING across the stage, GO L, GO! We're all so proud of you.

The Sandbox

2009-06-14T21:49:00.001-07:00

One of Sydney's favorite things to do is go see our wonderful neighbors. For the neighbors with kiddos (or grandkids), she knows exactly where the toys are stored and even has favorites. (Yes, she does have toys at home, but other toys are always so much more interesting than your own). Anyway, T & M's sandbox has been one of her very favorites for several months.
Trace is really handy around the house and loves a good project (or....as he puts it "another item on the honey-do list"). We have actually been researching swingsets because we think it is about time for her to have her very own playland in the back yard....but after researching it a while and observing her with our neighbors swingsets, we decided we can wait one more year on the swingset AS long as she has her own sandbox this year.
Long story short, after lots of time, effort and trips to Home Depot, a sandbox is now on our back patio! Here's a link to DIY Networkhttp://www.diynetwork.com/diy/gr_lawns_landscaping/article/0,2029,DIY_13852_5871990,00.html in case you are inspired to do this yourself! Trace went all out! Our sandbox has a place to store toys, benches for the grown ups, it's cedar wood and is stained to go with our house...and it's on wheels, so this sandtrap o' fun can be moved easily. Have I mentioned lately that he could just be the best Daddy (and husband) in the world?!
Also, my Mom saw colored sand in a trip to Wally-E-World one day and so we HAD to get the fabulous colored sand for our sandbox too. We have green, blue and purple (plus regular light sand colored) and it's like a mardi-gras mix, but mostly it looks blue (and it's pretty fun). Go Crayolahttp://www.crayola.com/products/splash/additional/toys-games.cfm for thinking out of the box! The corporate part of my brain is thinking...I bet their corporate brainstorming meetings are fun. Oh...and some pictures of the cute kid in the sandbox!
I still need to get a final picture now that it's finished (the final version includes seats, staining, etc.), but for now...here's the post on the sandbox! :)

April-May09 pics

2009-06-14T21:41:00.001-07:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

And here's a cute video of my Dad swinging Syd on the back patio. She loves it.

More updates from April & May, but in June --Family visits

2009-06-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

Sydney loves to see her family. In April, some of our family came to visit! We saw other relatives in NC when Granny & Pa came up from Florida. It was so awesome to see Sydney remember and interact with everyone. Even though she may go a few weeks (or even months in some cases) without seeing everyone, she remembers and knows they are special to her. We are so blessed to have such wonderful people we call family. Here are some of our favorite times from April.
Highlights in the photo album include:
*Visit from Sydney's Grandma Dotty & Pappa Quayle + brunch w/ Becky & Aubrey at one of my Sunday morning favorites, Downtown Grill & Brewery. http://www.downtownbrewery.com/
*Trip to NC to see Granny & Pa, who were up from Florida. We got in lots of fun play time with some of Sydney's cousins: Clay, Levi, Faith & Audrey.
*Visits from Frank, Dad & Melody. Frank is actually Sydney's uncle. He's so great with her. He had spark some of the most hearty giggles and high pitched squeals from our little girl. It's hard to believe my little bro is already 9 years old. Last time he and Melody were here, we went to Bayou Bay. Trace is always telling him, it's time to try some frog leg pizza or eat Gator bites, so this is exactly the kind of fare we ate :).http://traceandrobin.blogspot.com/2009/06/april-may09-pics.htmlAnd a fun pic of Sydney with one of her favorite things in our house, a giraffe. You can't see it here, but there's also a lovely "baby giraffe" that now lives in Syd's room (removed from the office).
She's now a pro at taking pictures. Here she sheds a big grin (yes, as she stand on my car) before church one day. (she's saying CHEEZ!!!).

2 year pictures

2009-05-31T18:06:00.000-07:00

Sydney will be turning 2 in 3 weeks! Can you believe it? Where did my little girl go? We went to the UT Gardens http://utgardens.tennessee.edu/ for this photo shoot. Here's a sneak peak at the photos by Simply Southern Photography. Check it out.http://www.simplysouthernphotography.com/blog/?p=2092

First Tricycle, First Scar

2009-05-16T21:24:00.000-07:00

So, we thought it was time to get Sydney some "wheels", so off we went to get something fun for her to ride. Little did I know that trip to Target would be so eventful. I think we were both excited to be in the toy section looking at tricycles. We found one (see pictures) a Dora tricyle that even had Dora's voice, so as you may guess, once this was spotted, no more research was needed. We put the enormous box in the buggy and then we knew we needed more.....we still needed a horn! What kiddo doesn't need a horn for their tricycle? So, we played with a few and then she found the one that was a must have! And with an enthusiasm she RAN to put her pink horn in the cart, her head hit the card and hit at just such an angle so that her alligator-clip hairbow went into her head. There were some tears and she told me to kiss her forehead and then she seemed better. Then, I actually saw the red streaky mess that was all in her hair. My baby was actually hurt. We went to the bathroom (yes, though the entire store with a kiddo bleeding from her head) and washed it off, left the store (yes, we did buy the tricycle) and went to see Trace. He called a friend of ours who is a nurse (Miss Anita) and she assured us all was well and no stitches were needed. None were needed, but two months later, there's still a scar, her first scar. Here's a picture of the tricycle, which ironically, was just a little big for her, so Trace ended up getting her another tricycle for use this summer. She's ready to go for next year though :).

More Swimming

2009-05-16T20:58:00.000-07:00

Remember the post about swimming from early April...well, I finally downloaded a couple more videos from her March swimming sessions. She's still swimming and Trace says she's a little more advanced now, but I don't have it on video now....For now, enjoy more of her swimming and enthusiasm :) And notice, her extremely proud parents....ESPECIALLY her Daddy when acts like she's lifting weights http://traceandrobin.blogspot.com/2009/04/swimming-w-her-daddy.html. This may be more than you care to watch regarding swimming, but if so, just don't click on it ;). Not only am I using the blog to keep friends and family updated, but it's also a digital reminder to me of what Syd was doing at various points in her life (at least that's the plan for now).

Swimming w/ her Daddy!

2009-04-03T05:00:00.000-07:00

Sydney goes swimming with her daddy about twice a week. They have a great time and he's taught her a lot. Check this out! Amazing!!!! More to add on this topic once I download more pics, but for now.....

Duck Duck Goose Sale & MORE DORA

2009-04-02T19:58:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, the bi-annual Duck Duck Goose sale is happening right now in Ktown. I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity to shop before it opened to the public. As most of you know, I love shopping. Even better, I love finding great sales. I found lots of great summer stuff, some still with tags. As I've posted before, Sydney is really into Dora right now. Here's something fun I found for her at the Duck Duck Goose sale. She is starting to play "pretend" and tell me funny things. Enjoy the picture :)

Here's the link in case you haven't experienced this shopping event before. http://www.dkdkgoose.com/main.html

Fun Day at the Zoo

2009-03-31T07:30:00.000-07:00

We're already been to the zoo a couple of times this month. Sydney loves to "go see the animals". We just love watching her see the animals. She is amazed that the animals do the same things as humans. We got to see an elephant get a bath, a giraffe eat snacks and monkeys make poo. All of these were quite memorable to her. Every time we see one of these animals in one of her books, she reminds us what she observed at the zoo. Here are some pics from one of our zoo visits.

Sometimes watching the humans is pretty fun too.

DORA the explorer...LIVE!

2009-03-18T15:00:00.000-07:00

WE DID IT!!!! WE DID IT, HOORAY!!! Can you hear the music now? The music in your head right now is from Dora the Explorer. We went to see Dora LIVE in Kville a couple of weeks ago. Syd and Catherine both danced and sang along....and they knew what to say when Swiper came along :). Really, they couldn't have been any cuter! Kari, Brenda and I had a great time watching the girls enjoy the show AND the super exciting blue cotton candy. We had a great time guys! We'll play again soon! Syd has been asking if we are going to see DORA every morning when we get in the car!
Kari does a much better job at posting her adventures quickly! Here's Kari's post from the day :)
http://catherineandcarson.blogspot.com/2009/03/dora.html

Who doesn't love girl scout cookies?

2009-03-18T08:22:00.000-07:00

Left the room for 5 minutes and she figured out where the cookies were and how to get in them! And...after all, who doesn't love a Thin Mint cookie during Girl Scout cookie season?! :)

Dogwood Arts & Home Show

2009-03-11T01:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from the Dogwood Art & Home show a couple of weeks ago in Knoxville.

. CAN YOU TELL WE ARE READY FOR SPRING?!!!!Also, we've been into animals lately. Here's our girl pretending to be a frog. RIBBBBIIITTT!

And....any cute kid living in Ktown needs at least one or two pictures in front of the well-known sunsphere.

http://www.dogwoodarts.com/hgshow.htm

Into stuff....playing w/ cards

2009-03-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

It's never too early to learn to play cards. Check out the really cool step stool. This has brought Sydney a whole new level of independence. All the stuff she wasn't already into a few weeks ago is now a possibility now that she can reach more stuff. Heather made this for her and painted it special for our little girl. So sweet!!! Thanks again, Heather. You are so good to our baby girl.

More snow and a tiny snowman

2009-03-02T17:48:00.000-08:00

Making funny faces :)

Stop the pictures. I'll take one for myself. She has been on a huge camera kick lately and had to take her camera with her everywhere for the past few weeks. See our little kiddo making the cutest little snowman ever. (Yes, this is from last month, I'm just now catching up on downloading pictures, etc).

Making the Headlines...

2009-03-01T23:03:00.000-08:00

And something from the Farragutpress.... Last month, the Farrugut baseball team had their annual diamond dinner. All of us attended and the press got this cute pic of Trace & Sydney. It made the papers and I can see why. Aren't they sweet?! Sydney has turned into the biggest Daddy's girl lately!

Fun visit from Grandma Dotty

2009-03-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

Sydney's Grandma Dotty came to visit last month and that meant QT w/ Grandma for Syd and a date night for her parents. As you can see, the girls had a great time. They made bread pudding (a family favorite) and drew pictures and had lots of fun! Thanks again, Mom! We enjoyed seeing you.

Our little monkey

2009-02-24T16:28:00.000-08:00

Some more pics of our silly monkey in her cute monkey PJs (thanks Miss Jamie) and peeping over the shower curtain. Don't worry, she didn't climb up there by herself :)

Walking in Mommy & Daddy's Shoes...

2009-02-24T14:54:00.000-08:00

Sydney is still on a kick where she loves to walk in "grown-up" shoes literally and figuratively. See our little girl "working" on her computer, walking in Mommy's shoes, ready for school with her DORA backpack and taking the suitcase for a "trip". Between the 3 of us, we did have some real travel in January.

But...when she can't walk in our shoes, she loves to walk in her own shoes. She loved her baby uggs this winter. Here she is all tuckered out from a birthday party. Thanks again for the cool shoes. Sydney says "Thanks Aunt Holli".

Snow!

2009-02-03T19:12:00.000-08:00

We saw some white flakes in K-town this week. School was cancelled and the corporate world sent everyone home early. Even though we've ALL had the sniffles the past week, we didn't let that stop some wintertime fun outside. We have a bit of a hill in our backyard and we enjoyed coasting down on one of our summertime water floats. (Trace is so clever). Note to self: Go buy some sleds.

Mexico Trip-Part 2, Dolphin Show & Beach pics

2009-01-31T15:42:00.001-08:00

As promised, here are some pictures from the rest of our Cancun, Mexico trip. We stayed at Dreams Resort and they had a dolphin area at our hotel so we got to see dolphins play every day! The resort was right on the beach so we got to enjoy some time there as well.

We also had a few outings off the resort. One of the outings was with the Collins family to La Isla mall and acquarium. The aquarium featured a dolphin show! We saw all the animals in the acquarium, then we were ready to see the show. The kids even got to put their hands in the water and pet a stingray!

Here are a couple of videos from the show.

and some more pictures!

Mexico Trip-Part 2

And 3 kids thoroughly enjoying a trampoline!

And three more tidbits from the trip:

1- Sydney was calling two of the little boys in the acquarium "Diego". Yes, we watch a lot of Dora around here.
2- We saw mother nature in action. After the dolphin show, we were walking back to catch the bus and a camera slipped away from us and fell into one of the dolphin pools. The pool it happened to fall in was the one with the newest baby dolphin (only 5 days old) and its momma. The place where the camera fell was actually too deep for the net to grab it, so a diver had to go in and retrieve it. Normally, this wouldn't be a big deal, BUT there's a very young baby and a VERY protective Momma dolphin and any intrusion into their space wouldn't be welcomed. Long story short, they distracted the dolphins to the other side of the pool and then a diver quickly went in to get the camera. The second the Momma dolphin saw an "intruder" to her space, she was on her QUICKLY way to check it out. The diver got out before the Momma Dolphin got him and the camera was recovered. This was Cindy's camera and she was the maid of honor in the wedding and had taken tons of photos from the trip. The good news is that her memory card SURVIVED....and she still has all the great photos she took!
3- I went to Wal-Mart. I know this shouldn't sound exciting, but a visit to a Mexican wallyword is a new adventure. I didn't have the memory card for my camera with me so after visiting 3 different malls, I was advised to check out wallyworld. Jimmy (my bro-in-law) was up for the adventure, so we hopped on a bus and away we went. After some less-than-eager-to assist help from a salesperson there, we got what we needed. No need to ellaborate any more on the whole experience, you all can probably imagine the people-watching we were able to do during this visit. Good times.

Sydney was happy to come home. She's familiar enough with the airport now to know when things have changed....like there's no water in the fountain and the Santa hats were missing from the bears since were wearing them last time we were there.

Mexico Trip-part 1 Kristy & Mike wedding

2009-01-22T18:33:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, we hopped on a plane and headed for sunny Cancun, Mexico last week. Sydney was a great little traveler. She even got to hand the FSA team her own passport. She's such a big girl.
The event of the trip was the wedding! Trace's sister, Kristy married her sweetie of 2 years, Mike. They are such a great fun-loving, happy, funny, wonderful and loving couple, which is always good if you are getting married :) Here are some pictures/videos from the big day!

Sydney and her Aunt Kristy both enjoy life and love music, people and fun!

Sydney is so used to doing "ring around the roses" and falling down at the end, she thinks that how all songs/dances end. She also LOVED showing everyone all the fish she found in the acquarium.

It was so much fun to get to see some of the Pate gang and meet the new "inlaws" who were all wonderful.

Next post will include tourist/beach/dolphin show pictures.....Enjoy!

Friends

2009-01-11T18:56:00.000-08:00

Aren't these girls sweet? I love it!

Sydney and Catherine got to play a little while last week and Catherine's brother, Carson, found a new toy. Trace was so great with him too, he was really excited seeing Carson figure it all out.

Now, here's something fun....Two blog mentions on sharing of the same jumpy jump. :) Trace and I bought it when Sydney was about 7 months old. It's a fabulous toy for 2-3 months, but there's no good reason to just let it sit idle in the garage. NO, you share this little "gym" with friends. We're so glad it's getting some great use!

http://catherineandcarson.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-years-and-neighbors.html

http://missinglinkfam.blogspot.com/2008/05/hop-skip-and-jumperooooo.html
We're gearing up for our trip to Cancun to see Kristy get married and will post more soon!

New year, New School!

2009-01-11T18:32:00.000-08:00

Last Monday began something really big...a new school for Sydney. She is going to school 4 days a week now. As most of you know, Sydney's regular babysitter, Heather has exciting news...she's having a baby. Syd is still with Heather one day a week right now and you can't even imagine the enthusiasm she had last week when I dropped her off-sheer joy! Trace agreed to drop her off at school first, since the first drop-offs may be the most traumatic (for all)! She did cry, but everyone was really sweet and they let me call lots to check on her and they also said the tears went away shortly after she was dropped off. I finally handled a drop-off on Friday and think I may have actually cried more than Sydney. Seeing her cry and reach out calling my name was simply terrible. I was "together" by the time I went to work and I'm going to brave "drop-offs" again this week- WISH ME LUCK! :) I actually work with several of the other parents from her school and they all have wonderful things to say about the school. After one week, I agree; we found a winner! She is excited to play with the kids and to learn all the fun things they are teaching her. The teachers have told me she's "very smart, funny and has great manners". I'm glad I've gotten good reports so far, but I know she's human (and sassy at home), so we'll just take one day at a time. I know she's even used the "big kid potty" for them too so maybe she'll do well with that there as well.

Here are a couple of pics of us the first day she went to school. I know you like the glamorous background for the pic of Sydney and I. The reason the pantry is the background is she was refusing to smile until we did tricks, like jump out of the pantry... She's really getting a mind of her own.

More Florida pictures from Christmas!

2009-01-11T11:37:00.001-08:00

And now that we have the battery charged, here some more from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Florida. As you can see, Sydney Loves presents and her family! Enjoy!

Taking Candy from a baby!

2008-12-31T21:00:00.000-08:00

And finally, here's what really does happen when you take candy from a baby!!! She's not quite two, but we get the idea she's about to start tantrums....you know the kind with tears and you see the kid laying on the ground kicking. Those are real tears, people! Such drama from our little llama.

Holidays in Florida!

2008-12-30T21:10:00.000-08:00

After we saw family in NC, we got on a plane and traveled to Florida to see relatives. We saw aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and friends! They just live a few minutes from the ocean, so we make time to go see the waves and see what Sydney thought.....And...she scared me to death, this kid has no fear. I thought Trace and I could just roll up our pants a little and walk in the shallow water, but our little swimmer had other ideas. She was ready to play! We also went to the Disney Vero Beach Resort while we were there and she got to see Donald Duck and Goofy. She was SOO excited. She kepted waving and telling them "hi" and she gave "high five's" and was a bundle of enthusiasm that afternoon. It was precious! We had a great time! And just so there's at least one pic with Santa...Here goes....

Drawing with Aunt Karen...

She found Pa's straw hat and Granny's slippers and she was off to the races...

Sharing some smiles, M&M's and sunglasses with our Florida family .

Our day at the beach and Disney resort...

"

http://dvc.disney.go.com/dvc/guest/resorts/resortLanding?id=VeroBeachResortLandingPage&bhcp=1

Holidays in TN!

2008-12-30T21:00:00.000-08:00

Watching Sydney enjoy the holidays has been such a joy this year. There really is something magical about enjoying the Holidays through the eyes of a child.

She loved the lights, the presents and after about 10 (yes, 10!) visits to Santa, she warmed up to the jolly fella and got some pics on his lap! We traveled to North Carolina and Florida to see relatives for the Holidays (more on those trips and some Santa pics in another posting)...

And a cute one of Sydney using her purple and gold "poms" from Grandma Dotty. GO Catamounts, GO! And...thanks Grandma Dotty!

Holidays in NC!

2008-12-29T16:25:00.000-08:00

Enjoying time with relatives in NC!

One of my favorite times during the Holidays is our visit with Aunt Pat. It's the one Holiday get together that always feels like the Holidays. She is one of the best cooks EVER! (I'm not kidding- she's the real deal). Last year when we had over 20 people at our house for T-giving, she was the first one I called for advice.

The Holiday's at Aunt Pat's house mean that at least a million Santas, Elves, trains, snowmen and the likes come out of storage for their place in her home. (Ok, maybe not a million, but there isn't a space in her house that does have something Holiday in it). As you can see from my little brother's expression, I'm not the only one who enjoys the Holiday's at Aunt Pat's house :)

After the morning with Aunt Pat, it was on to see the Grandparents in Sylva and Bryson City....Here are pics from those visits..

We've been trying to explain Jesus's birthday, Santa, presents and a whole host of other concepts, but at the end of the day, she understands...

1-presents are FUN to play with and unwrap

2- We keep telling her to sing Jesus loves me and Happy birthday, but she isn't sure the connection

3- it's another time of year with candy!

4- she gets extra time at home with her family!

5- everywhere she goes there are lights or Santas and Santa says "ho Ho ho".

Pics from the Farragut football banquet

2008-12-28T21:04:00.000-08:00

Yes, of course, her Daddy is so proud.

I'm working on the Christmas post today...stay tuned.

The Potty Dance...

2008-12-16T21:18:00.000-08:00

Now that Sydney has been using her Elmo potty for a few weeks, we've come up with some routine around this event. One component of this routine includes a song. Thanks, Jamie M., for sharing this song. It may never leave my brain :)......Anyway, after Syd does her business, she sings her potty song (and Trace and I sing it too). It's a big deal and it includes hand motions. I'm not posting a video yet b/c all of them include Trace and I singing as well. Maybe later.

I was tagged!

2008-12-16T20:47:00.000-08:00

and I'm supposed to put up my 4th picture from my 4th file...... Here goes....It's a picture of Trace and I from Christmas 2000.

No, we weren't dressed alike on purpose.

This is at my friend, Natalie's apartment before a night out in Asheville.

This is also the first time I brought Trace home to meet my family in NC. If you ever want a giggle and have a few minutes to hear the whole story, ask us about that week :). We hadn't been dating too long and after returning to Atlanta after a few days in NC with the family, it was a turning point for Trace and I. I called my sister and said after the last few days, this relationship would definately take a turn-we would either get married or never talk again. I'm so glad we're married!

Julie L- You are tagged! What do you have in your prize closet?

Blast from the past....

2008-12-13T19:42:00.000-08:00

I know everyone says Sydney looks like Trace, but I found something in the picture vault that says she may have a few of her Mommy's traits as well. She is starting to reflect traits on both sides of the family. It makes sense too b/c I don't even know who brings our mail. HA HA- just checking to see if anyone is reading the posts or just checking pictures :).

(This is the Christmas pic of me when I was about 21 months- 3 months older than Sydney's current age)

CANDY...

2008-12-12T21:04:00.000-08:00

Clearly, someone still remembers what happens on Halloween.......

Beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

2008-12-12T20:51:00.001-08:00

There really isn't anything sweeter than seeing the excitement on Sydney's face when we light up the Christmas tree. She is really enjoying the holiday season. Tells us that Santa says Ho Ho Ho, LOVES lights, wants all the candy she can find (though I think that's leftover enthusiasm from Halloween). Last weekend, we went to see the Living Christmas Tree. If you haven't ever been, it's worth checking out.

And one more from Tgiving

2008-12-12T20:46:00.003-08:00

where Sydney is showing her Grandpa Robb (Robin's dad) the tree we started decorating....Enjoy

Moods

2008-12-12T20:39:00.001-08:00

Sometimes we're sweet and say "pleeeeez" and sometimes we're grumpy when we don't get our way.

November Updates...

2008-12-03T19:48:00.001-08:00

So, it's been a while since I've posted.......Here are some fun November updates....

Sydney has decided she's BIG. She is pretty sure she can drive (see below). She also LOVES to wear Mommy and Daddy's clothes, shoes, etc.

Sydney is now a potty fanatic. She loves to come home and sit on her Elmo potty and make presents for her Mommy and Daddy. What a sweet kid! And smart too - she's really getting the hang of this potty stuff.
She loves to make laundry-folding time fun. No neat stack of clothes is safe from this little in-home tornado. She prefers clean clothes to be moved all over the living room!
She can say tons of words and is fairly skilled at communicating her thoughts. She's even started helping out around the house. Here she is helping vaccuum and sweep just before Thanksgiving.

Oh Boy....They made it. Sydney enjoys PLAYtime, Grandpa shoes and showing off the tree we started decorating Tgiving Weekend.

Her Uncle Mike also came down (no pics of Mike as she's not yet 2 and he's scared of her yet!) and we went to see her first movie, Madagascar II. It was awesome. She loved it. In fact, she roared at the lions for the first 30 minutes of the movie.

We are so thankful for every day, for every smile, for every eskimo and butterfly kiss.

2008-11-24T22:32:00.000-08:00

Into Everything

2008-11-03T18:37:00.000-08:00

Sydney and I enjoyed some drawing time on Sunday. I'm really not talented in this area, but I'm at least trying to expose her to drawing. The most important thing to note, however, is the fact that there was no way she would get far away from her lollypop (look to the right).

Here she is ready to go play outside. Isn't her hat cute?

In case you can't read it, her shirt says, "what happens at Grandma's stays at Grandma's". It's from Judith and it fits perfectly this year.

See our little monkey climb. She's been doing this a while now. We have to watch this little monkey closely as she's always getting into something!

Sydney, it's ok, sometimes I feel like this in the mornings too.

Wickedly Cute on Halloween!

2008-10-31T20:50:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year! Sydney has already figured out what candy is, so a day dedicated to dressing up AND candy is really a dream come true for this little girl. She was dressed as a bumblebee and was simply precious. We walked around the neighborhood, got lots of candy and enjoyed time with some of the other cute kiddos in the neighborhood.

Thanks again to everyone for all the goodies. Miss Brenda, she especially loved the pumpkin bubbles and puppy book. Aunt Karen & Uncle Mike- she looked adorable in her cute PJ's and she loves the books too! We are very blessed to have such wonderful family and friends not just at Halloween and always.

Pumpkins

2008-10-26T20:41:00.000-07:00

Sydney loves to point out the pumpkins anywhere we go whether it's walking in the neighborhood, grocery shopping or at a pumpkin patch. Last weekend, we went to search for a pumpkin for the Pate house. She loved the 'farm lifestyle' she saw and really enjoyed playing in the corn, sliding down the slide and the hayride to go get the pumpkin. See some of the pics from this day.

Mommy's little helper- Future baker?

2008-10-26T20:27:00.001-07:00

Sydney loves to help in the kitchen! Yes, I actually do a few things in the kitchen from time to time :). She insists on stirring anything in sight. Friday night, I decided to make a bread pudding for Trace & Syd to enjoy on Sat am. Sydney grabbed the bread and ran away with the pieces, then she was having so much fun, I couldn't stop her. By the way, I gave up on this bright idea, since all the bread ended up on the floor. Cereal was great for Saturday morning anyway.

WCU Game

2008-10-26T20:09:00.000-07:00

And a couple of pics from our trip to Cullowhee a couple of weeks ago... We went to the WCU Game. Go Catamounts!

UT-Bama Game

2008-10-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

We took Sydney to the UT-Bama game this weekend. SHE LOVED IT. She loved seeing all the people, watching all the comotion, giving high 5's and more. Here are a few pics from Saturday's activities.....She needed a long nap to get this party started :) Since I went to Grad School at Bama and Trace has UT ties, we were afraid to confuse Sydney with too many mixed messages. As you can see, her Daddy helped pick out her wardrobe for Saturday.

Grandpa?, Squeeky Shoes, funny Laugh & More

2008-10-18T10:33:00.000-07:00

Quacking at feathered friends...

She calls any male that looks over 50 "pa" or "Grandpa"- especially if they are missing a little hair on top. She has done this in Walgreens, while watching the Pres debates, etc.

Fun at Home

2008-10-18T09:40:00.001-07:00

I'm always posting about the adventures we have when we leave the house, but we have plenty of fun at home too.

Some of our best times are at home. She's starting to imitate things Trace and I do- it's pretty funny and sweet. She's also getting VERY independent. Here are a few of Sydney's favorite things at home:

*BANDAIDS! Who knew a Barbie bandaid could cause SOOO much excitement for a little girl. I'm not kidding; this means serious excitement and it doesn't matter if there's a boo boo or not.

*Rock, Rock....She loves to rock in the big rocking chair. She will push us out of the way, so she can sit and rock by herself like a big girl.

*"Stir, Stir" She loves to play in the kitchen and really enjoys helping stir up something good.

*Being a typical girl- this includes requesting makeup, hairbows, a purse, etc.....Put on makeup! She now has her own brushes and follow the same routine as her Mommy in the am.

*Help! She loves to help sweep and vaccuum. She's getting really independent and gets really agitated when we try to help her. She insists on holding the broom by herself.

*Eat :). She loves to eat yogurt, cheese sticks, animal crackers and all the normal kid stuff

*Dance! She loves the Dora talking kitchen and pushes the music buttons over and over.

*She also loves to get a towel or blanket and wrap it around her and carry it everywhere!

She loves going to strolls in her wagon, but usually gets out and walks in the neighborhood with her Mommy. She loves the kids and grownups in our neighborhood.

Hot Air Balloon Festival

2008-10-09T20:58:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, we took Sydney to the Hot Air Balloon festival in Knoxville. We enjoyed music, beautiful balloons and time with friends. The kids thought the balloons were very cool, but when the most awesome part of the whole event started (the musical balloon event!), they really just wanted snacks and to play with the football. Sydney doesn't know she was the youngest kid there. She is certain she can play football just the same as a 4 year old boy. Ty was really sweet to share his football with all the kiddos.

Shoes, Shoes, Shoes

2008-10-09T20:04:00.000-07:00

Sydney is really into SHOES! She loves to bring us her shoes when she's ready to go and she gets the biggest kick out of trying on other shoes she may find around the house. See her small feet in her Daddy's shoes..... and in her Mommy's shoes.

Friends

2008-09-23T21:09:00.000-07:00

Sydney got to play with Keaton a couple of weeks ago. She is a such a cute little bundle of happiness.
http://missinglinkfam.blogspot.com/2008/09/friendly-weekend.html

Friday night lights....

2008-09-23T20:40:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from last Friday's football game. Sydney and I came with The Carroll's and the girls were so cute. (For those of you who don't know who the Carroll's are, let me introduce you to this awesome family. Eva's Mommy, Heather, keeps Sydney during the day when Trace & I are at work. Scott is Eva's Daddy.). Eva and Sydndy are both such cute girls and are always excited to see each other on Monday morning (the squeels and hugs tell me this is true), but just like sisters, sometimes they have their moments when they don't want to hug. They both have cute curls.

Sydney is at quite a few Farragut events and is no stranger to the ball field.

Here she is with Marge D. She loves Marge. Her husband, Tom, and Trace coach together so these girls are both at the ball field a lot. Sydney loved playing with her football bracelet and has developed a real intrigue with jewelry lately. Here are Sydney and Eva dancing at the stadium before the game started.

Trip on the Dragon's Tail and NC Family

2008-09-23T20:09:00.000-07:00

We took a trip to see family in NC a couple of weeks ago. It was such a beautiful day, we decided to drive over the "Tail of the Dragon". The Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap, with 318 curves in 11 miles, is America's number one motorcycle and sports car road. There were tons of motorcycles out this day. Sydney did really well-slept through most the the drive. Trace decided there was something not quite right about it all- way too many curves in a car, but he felt much better later. Taking this trip in an SUV was fun, but didn't look nearly as fun as zipping around the curves on a bike.
http://www.tailofthedragon.com/

Once the big curves were over, we made a stop to stretch and take a couple of pictures. No, Sydney didn't really ride a motorcycle, but it was a fun picture :).

And here are some pics from the weekend. The big kids (ages 8 & 5) are so funny trying to carry Sydney around like she's a tiny baby and they are grown ups. They are very loving kids.

Here's Sydney and her Uncle Frank.

And cousin's Audrey and Clay. Audrey LOVES milkshakes, but advises us that Granny's are better. We found out the super-secret stuff to make them better (extra sugar). Yes, that's sugar in addition to milk and ice cream. It's a good thing these kids run and play a lot.
She loves to show off and has lots of tricks up her sleeve.
See below. She's telling us how old she is.

Labor Day pics- Florida trip

2008-09-13T07:43:00.001-07:00

We downloaded the pictures from our Labor Day trip to Florida to see family. Sydney was a happy little traveler. This is actually her third airplane trip and she continues to be a great traveler. In fact she loves to "GO". It's football season so Trace was unable to go, but Sydney & I had a great trip. She was really wiggly on the plane and it was a full flight both ways, but we managed. I would much rather have a happy, but wiggly kid than try to manage a screaming, unhappy kid. Of course, she would be loved either way.

Here she is passing time in the Knoxville airport. She loves to "rock, rock" and this chair was just her size!

When in Florida, we got to see lots of family. We met our new cousin, Kares, for the first time ever. She's sooooo cute and good. This baby hardly ever cries! It's amazing.
Sydney loved seeing her, but wasn't too happy when I held this baby.

Here's Kares and her Daddy, Kris.

And a picture of all the girls- Carly, Kares, Robin and Sydney.
We went swimming and she loved it, as usual. She loves the water and has no fear- just wants to walk right in! Here she is ready to swim! Yes, more animal prints :)

Aunt Karen was there to make sure Sydney had LOTS of ice cream. Here she is on her second cone!

Mandy & Tom came down from Jacksonville. No pics of Tom & Sydney as he told her he was a scary monster so she wouldn't get too close.

Tammy came by to see us. It was so great to see her. Pa showed Sydney how to play with the bowls and spoons and "bake a cake". By the end of the trip- Sydney could say "Granny" and "Pa" and point to them. It's so sweet to see her play with her great grandparents. It's hard to keep her still for a picture- attention span of a 14 month old!

Sydney watching Kris & Carly's dog, Mona.

We finally made it to the beach to see the ocean, but......red flag means dangerous waters- don't swim and Sydney was exhausted from all the fun, so....we'll get cute pics of her on the beach next time.

Football Time in Tennessee

2008-09-09T20:56:00.000-07:00

In case you aren't from the area or have been hiding under a rock, you probably know......it's football season. Here's our girl helping cheer on her Daddy's team at a local HS football game. GO Admirals!

Sometimes these games last a long time. Here's our girl at halftime enjoying some choc chip cookies. YUM!

And it isn't just the high school teams playing the game...... It's also COLLEGE football season. Here's our girl in some UT orange.

Here she is playing with one of her favorite purses from her Aunt Kristy.

YES!! Her Daddy is so proud she's a football fan....

So Smart......Talking..other tricks

2008-09-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Here's our girl reading one of her favorite books about dogs. Everyone is convinced she needs a puppy. :)

Our little gal loves to help with laundry. Well, she LOVES to run around the house with her new finds from the laundry pail when we fold clothes!

Some of you have been asking if she's talking... IS SHE EVER!!

Sydney is a walking, talking, climbing little gal these days. She can repeat anything you say and she has a pretty extensive vocabulary for a kid her age! We're reading lots of books and talking about colors and shapes. She's also having fun with crayons and making music via any means possible. She can point to most of her body parts, but her favorite is to show us her tongue and belly button. YELLOW is her favorite color right now. In fact most everything is "yellow" these days. She goes "ape" for bananas. At this point, she can fairly well communicate what it is that she wants- either via verbal skills ("bite"= food, "side"= play outside, "GO" for "let's go") or physically taking our hand to lead us where she wants to go. She's just started using two word phrases like "thank you" and "did it". We can understand her :) and so can Heather. Are we in for a new world or what?!

Music & IPod & Dancing & James Brown

2008-09-02T21:06:00.000-07:00

We let Sydney borrow the ipod for a while last week. She loves music and dancing.

Once she masters all the stellar moves her Mommy & Daddy teach her, we think we found some instructional videos on youtube that may help take her to the next level. Let us know what you think! Trace & Robin

But she's isn't always such a scary tiger. She loves to laugh and keep us entertained as well. See our giggly little girl below.

Weekend in NC with Family

2008-08-10T19:55:00.000-07:00

I went with Mommy & Daddy to North Carolina to see some of my family. I saw aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc. It was so much fun. My cousin, Audrey, had a birthday party at the pool. I showed everyone my tongue, went "quack" like a duck and "roared" for everyone. Those are some of my favorite tricks these days. xoxo- Sydney

Here I am with my Aunt Sara, Grandpa Robb, Uncle Frank and cousins Audrey, Faith, Levi, Clay.

My Grandpa Robb is pretty funny. He makes funny sounds and LOVES it when I roar.

My Aunt Pat is also funny. We did pat a cake at the party.

The girls- Aunt Nicki, Mommy, Grandma Dotty and Aunt Sara

I LOVE the pool and the water!

My Granny flew up to see us. I LOVE it when she comes. She reads great stories.

Pictures From the First Year!

2008-08-07T21:47:00.000-07:00

Ready, Set, Go....

2008-08-07T12:00:00.000-07:00

We're blogging. We hope you enjoy watching our little girl grow up as much as we do. Much Love, Trace & Robin