"SAY CHEESE!!"

This is so funny, and I just had to share it. So, my sister-in law, Mariana, had a wonderful idea to take a picture of all the grand kids as a Christmas present for the grand/great grandparents. I thought it was a fabulous idea and I knew they would all really appreciate it. However, we did not think through the process of actually getting them ALL to cooperate at the same time. Thankfully, we decided to just try to snap some at Debbie's house rather than go to a studio. (After you see the pictures, you will understand why.) So I get them all dressed up, head over there, and everyone looks great....until I say it's time to take the picture. I don't know what came over J.D., but he had his mind set he was NOT taking this picture. I told him I was going to have to spank him if he did not cooperate, and he quickly informed me that he would take the spanking. I explained that it was not one or the other, but he still insisted on the spanking. So I did what every good mother does, and I gave him what he wanted! ha! However, the spanking did not work. After MANY trips to the bathroom, he still refused to stand there and take the darn picture!! I felt like an awful mother and was on the verge of tears. So, needless to say, we did NOT get a good picture. Not even close. I feel really bad, because every one else did so good, and I just don't know what his problem was. Below are the results of the photo session. Better luck next year?!?

HE DID IT!!

If you didn't read the previous blog, J.D. was asked to be little boy Jesus in the Idlewild Christmas presentation. The first few nights did not go well at all, but after much talking and bribing, he was very excited about his debut appearance last night. Sitting backstage waiting, he kept asking, "is it my turn yet to go on the stage?" He was SOOO stinkin cute in his little costume (of course I'm not biased).

Before he actually went on stage, he had to wait quite a while in this dark "tunnel", and we were concerned he would get scared, so Aunt Karen (dressed as a Hebrew) went with him so he wasn't back there with people he didn't know (thanks Aunt Karen!). We were very worried about the initial "break away", but he did fabulous. They said it was time, and he jumped up and held Aunt Karen's hand and was grinning ear to ear. Jimmy and I stood there and watched him walk away and I felt like I was going to lose it. I don't know what came over me, but I immediately started to tear up and felt this gut-wrenching pain in my stomach. I looked over at Jimmy, and he obviously was having the exact same feelings. He looked like he couldn't decide if he was going to cry, laugh, or throw up! We said to each other that it's going to be one awful day when we drop him off for college! Ha!

So, we quickly went out into the sanctuary on the side so we could see the imag's (which weren't working 2 songs earlier, and I did some MAJOR praying, so thank you Lord for allowing those to work! ) And there he was, out on this big rock with Mary and Joseph ( or as J.D. called him, Jophes) watching the caravan come by and bow to him. He was SO good up there. He just watched and was actually pointing, and talking to them, and of course, smiling :) We weren't sure what he was saying to them, but apparently he was pointing out the kids he knew (Micah) and talking about the animals he saw. Jimmy and I stood there on the side holding hands trying to hold back tears and literally beaming with pride. Our little "shy guy" did it, and he couldn't have done it any better. As I was standing there, I thought of the day he was born, and just how I didn't know at the time how much I could possibly love this new little baby that I had just met. Of course I loved him the moment I saw him, but I can say I love him so much more now than I ever thought humanly possible. God gave us such a precious little boy and I know that He has wonderful plans in store for him - if I'll just let him go! :)

Lastly, I hope God allowed Poppy a front row seat tonight. He would've been so proud of him. After he expressed his concern that J.D. was wearing a "dress" and blush, he probably would've shed a few tears himself. Ha!

p.s. His first words off the stage was, "can I have my truck now?" (what we bribed him with - whatever works! ) :)

"J.D. to the Principal's Office"

Oh my goodness - what an interesting night we've had.
So, recently J.D. was asked to be "little boy Jesus" in the Idlewild Christmas presentation. I must admit that my first instinct was "not a chance", because, well, I know my son. But after thinking about it, I decided that I didn't want to hold him back from a potentially exciting opportunity because I don't think he would do it. I fully believe that kids live up to what we as adults "label" them as (good or bad), and I'm working hard to not make excuses for, or to feed into his shyness. My mom had to push me my whole life to come out of my shell, and I'm seeing that God has given me a child after my own heart. So no better PUSH than to throw him out onto a stage in front of a few thousand people! Ha!
Anyway, tonight was the dress rehearsal, and let's just say it didn't go so well. He was only the backup, and thank goodness the main kid was a rock, because there was no way in tarnations he was going out there tonight. As soon as they gave me his costume he started the drama : the burying his head in my legs, covering his eyes, crying, etc. etc. So, we promptly went to the bathroom and received a "talking to", to which he did not respond well to, as you can imagine. He finally did put the costume on, but was NOT happy about it. (Just a side note - imagine being Mary and NEVER having to spank, or be embarrassed because your child is throwing a temper tantrum in public....just a sobering thought. ha!) Once we realized that he was not going on, I decided to take him into the sanctuary to let him watch the program and see what he was SUPPOSED to do. He thought it was great and was really enthralled by it.
As soon as we walked out of the church he said, "Mom, that was so much fun. Can I have my treat you promised me now?" What in the world????
So, stay tuned to find out if he makes in on stage. We are backup on Friday & Saturday (let's pray that the main kid doesn't get sick) and then the main on Sunday. GOOD LUCK, J.D.

MAJOR MILESTONES

Our Mady-cakes has 3 major milestones to report. Over the last few weeks, she has become quite the "big girl". First (and my favorite), she all of a sudden decided that she wanted to hold her own bottle. One day when I was feeding her, she just pushed my hands down and held it with her own two little hands - I was so shocked, and thought for sure it was just a fluke, but she's been doing it ever since. This may not sound like a major thing, but believe me it is. J.D. NEVER held his bottle, so this has come as such a pleasant surprise. We're having a little trouble transitioning to the sippy cup, but I'll take this little victory for now! :)
Secondly, we were at our favorite place, Chick-fil-A, and Mady climbed up to the second step in the playground area. (Mommies, you know what I'm talking about). I could not believe it - they are pretty big steps, and I was shocked she could get her legs up that high. It's also funny to watch the different personalities - J.D. was fully capable of climbing at that age, but he was too shy and didn't want to get in the other kids way (Mommy's kid). However, Mady didn't give a toot who she got in the way of, and in fact was slinging her leg over some other kid - she wasn't about to let some little rugrat keep her from seeing what was so great up there. Side note - I was in the other room and Jimmy was playing with J.D. in the family room, and he looks over in the kitchen to find Mady sitting right in the middle of the kitchen table. She had gotten up in the chair, and climbed on the table - quite the climber she is. I see many more skull fractures in our future - Ha!
And lastly, we finally switched her over to her big girl car seat. It was becoming almost impossible to buckle her in the old one, so we decided it was time. She looks like a little peanut sitting in that big seat. I had a little meltdown the other day when I looked in the backseat and saw TWO toddlers looking at me - my baby is GONE!! Sniff, Sniff!! I can't believe she's getting so big, and it seems the days and months keep flying by and there's nothing I can do to stop it.

I pray that the Lord can help me stop and cherish and be thankful for all these little milestones instead of wishing them away for a "easier day" (whatever that is?) Thank you, Lord, for my little Mady-cakes and the way she keeps us on our toes.

~Allison

STOMACH FLU = AWFUL!

WHEW!! It has been a crazy month for us. We ended October with our Halloween party, followed a week later by Mady's birthday. I had been "burning the wick at both ends" those two weeks and was so looking forward to a relaxing week with not much on the schedule - Ha! Should've known that sounded too good to be true.
Wednesday night I was awaken around 3am by J.D. throwing up all in his bed - YAY!! Poor guy, he was so sick, and continued to throw up several times throughout the night. I think we both maybe got one hour of sleep in before Mady woke up the next morning. Needless to say, being up since 3, my patience was thin and was just counting the hours until bed time. So, I finally get the kiddos to sleep, and I drift off into oblivion...until 1am when I awoke running to the bathroom. Yep, I got it! So, I'll spare the details, but didn't get any sleep that night either. I felt really awful the next day and did the only thing I knew to do...called Mommy! My mom, bless her heart, was heading out of town, but took time to come over and help with the kids and even made me some homemade chicken soup - yum! I slept for 12hrs that night and felt like a new woman the next day. I thought life was starting to look better, then...yes, you guessed, Jimmy got it the next night - yet another night with little sleep (couldn't sleep with all the moaning & groaning. ha!) He stayed home from work the next day, so I had to play nurse, mommy & house cleaner that day - let's just say it was NOT a good day! On another note, J.D. was so sweet when I was sick. He would say, "Mommy, I'm so sorry you sick, I'm sorry". I kept telling him he didn't have to be sorry, but it was so precious - he has such a tender heart and really cares about stuff like that. Anyway, I think we've all had it now (Mady had a little diarr, so hoping that's all she'll get), and am really hoping we can get back to normal, whatever that is, before the holidays. Although, I better be careful - wishing for normal is what gets me in trouble! :)

OUR LADYBUG TURNS 1!!

I can't believe my baby is ONE!!!! We celebrated Mady's birthday this past Saturday, and we did a ladybug theme - OF COURSE!! It was is Memaw's backyard and it turned out better than I ever expected. The food was great, the decorations looked amazing, and I think all the kids had a good time - even Mady! Ha! It was a beautiful day and we had such a good time.

Here's the Birthday Girl in her Ladybug Birthday outfit :

I decided to make her cake for her, and it turned into a hysterical nightmare!! (hysterical now, not that funny then). I dropped it getting out of the car, so I had to perform major surgery on it (and nurses do NOT get training in that), then I proceeded to spill RED icing all over it. Like I said...nightmare! However, in the end, I thought it actually looked great and I was glad I did it.

Mady also LOVED smashing into her cake. Well, she didn't really smash, it was more like a "girly mess." She would pick up one piece at a time and put it in her mouth - still, red icing got EVERYWHERE! What was I thinking making her cake RED??

This was one of my favorite things: opening presents. She was a riot! Every present I would show her, she would open her arms, reach out for it and say "OOOHHH". Such a GIRL!! She acted like every present was her very favorite. I've been to my share of 1yr old parties, and I have NEVER seen a child act like that - it was hysterical. Do we think maybe her love language will be "gifts"? Ha! We're going to be in trouble when she hits 13!!

Well, that's about all. It was a wonderful party and I actually got to enjoy myself some (which is unusual when hosting a party) and I genuinely think everyone else did as well.

Mady,

We are so blessed to have you as our daughter and we thank God for every one of those 365 days he's given us with you. We beg God for many many more days and a lifetime of more memories. We love you so much more than you will ever comprehend. Happy Birthday, my ladybug!! :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Happy Birthday, Mady!!
Madelyn Elise Ammirati was born Nov 6, 2008 @ 1:44pm. 8lb, 4oz.
I can NOT believe it has been a whole year. Where did the time go?? In some ways it seems like yesterday, and then in other ways it seems like she's been here forever. She has brought us so much joy and we can't imagine our lives without her. I prayed so hard for a (healthy) little girl, and God blessed me with such a precious little lady.
Happy Birthday, Mady - Mommy & Daddy & J.D. love you SO much!!!

TRICK-OR-TREAT

Fall is absolutely my favorite time of year, and this year was no different. We started off the Halloween holiday by carving pumpkins. This was actually our first time doing it, and J.D. really enjoyed it, so I'm sure this will be a yearly tradition.

And then it was on to the good stuff...Trick-or-Treating!! We started a few years ago having our families over for dinner on Halloween and then going trick-or-treating. Every year we seem to add some people, and it has now become too big for our house. This year we actually put up a big tent in our bag yard to accommodate everyone. It was actually really nice and it didn't feel so cramped. We had chili (was hoping it was going to be a little cooler, but oh well) and all the fixins and then headed out for the main event. J.D. dressed up as a pirate (HE got the idea from his favorite Backyardigans episode). He practiced for weeks saying "Argggh", and was calling everyone "Matey" - it was hilarious! I "made" his costume, and it was rather funny. Of course I thought he looked great, but we did have a few laughs at his expense - some people thought he looked like a gypsy!! Jimmy said it was definitely a more "Johnny Depp-ish" pirate. Ha! We joked that Frank would have had something to say about it and would not have let me live it down. He was SO excited, though, so who cares?? And then of course Mady was a ladybug - what else?? We borrowed a costume from Joscelyn and it was just too darn cute. She was precious. All in all, it was a GREAT night. J.D. had an awesome time and is STILL talking about it. In fact, the next morning, the first thing he said when he woke up was, "thank you for taking me trick-or-treating. I had SO much fun!" That makes all the hard work worth it - what a thoughtful little guy. Fun memories!! :) Here are some pics :

Well, I finally did it!! I've been wanting to start a blog for awhile now, but frankly was kind of scared. However, with much encouragement from some of my friends, I decided to take the plunge. (Thank you Paige & Ashley). A few months ago, I became overwhelmed with the feeling that I needed to start journaling for my kids. I tried to shake it because, well, I'm not that great of a writer, and I kept telling myself I didn't have time. But it kept haunting me and I knew I would never forgive myself for not doing it because I was lazy! :) Time is all I really have with my precious children, and before I know it that time will all be gone. I want them to one day look back and read the things I thought, what I was feeling, and most importantly, to see how very much I loved them and how special they are to me. I think that is a gift any child would be blessed to have, and a gift I hope to give my kids. ENJOY!!