addicted to addison

weekend getaway // chicago

2012-05-25T08:12:00.000-05:00

last week, addison and i took a little mini vacation.

i started back at work this week and i start school next week, so i wanted to go somewhere with addison before i got super busy again.

so we headed to chicago last thursday! my friend maria lives up there, so we went and stayed with her.

i've been to chicago once before and loved it. i wasn't really wanting to go up to do anything in particular {besides shop}, but more of just to relax and get away. although a trip with addison isn't really all that relaxing. it was fun and completely worth it though!

we headed out thursday morning. my mom and i took addison to florida a few years ago, but i've never taken her anywhere by myself. so this 8 hour trip was definitely a first for me.

my friend amy was headed up to indianapolis that day, so we met up at a rest area and played a bit.

then, we met up again to do some shopping. maria had to work that day, so we weren't in any hurry to get there. shopping definitely helped us kill some time :)

addison did great on the trip there. she watched some movies, napped, and we jammed. and she ate lots of snacks. the girl likes to snack.

we made it to chicago around dinner time and ended up just staying in for dinner. we were both pretty exhausted.

friday we got up and headed out to get some breakfast. we hit up a bagel place and i had a bagel with some delicious sun dried tomato cream cheese. addison got a blueberry muffin, and we went over to starbucks to get coffee and eat.

after that, we went to millennium park to play in the fountains and see the bean. addison was really excited about it. it was kind of chilly, so i didn't know how long she would last. we took a bathing suit just in case. there were lots of other kids playing, and addison just ran around splashing. she got her clothes pretty soaked, so we whipped out the bathing suit. it's such a grown up looking bathing suit for such a little girl. when we were done with the fountains, we went to see the bean. addison was pretty funny looking at herself. she tried to lick it too. i can't imagine how disgusting that would have been.

we went back to maria's and relaxed for a bit. addison watched beauty and the beast and was apparently a little shocked at one part. after the movie, we played a little and then we headed out to pick haley up at the airport.

addison was apparently a little tired because she passed out on the way to pick up haley. but right when we got to the airport, she woke up and was all smiles.

we headed to dinner at burger bar after that. it was delicious. we had fried pickles {yum!} and maria and i split the veggie burger {amazing!}.

we hit up the grocery store on our way back to maria's. i left haley and maria with addison while i ran to get addison some juice. i heard a lot of laughter coming from their direction, and i found them using addison to get something on one of the top shelves. they were quite resourceful. haley held addison up and addison reached to in and grabbed it. i believe they were getting some quaker rice cake things. who knows.

saturday we woke up and ran to breakfast. i took the jogging stroller in case we wanted to go for a run. i'm glad we did, because i definitely pigged out the whole weekend.

we went to orange, and it was great! we sat outside and enjoyed the nice weather. addison had a good time chatting with maria's dog, james, before lunch. she got quite close to him.

we had some champagne flights with our breakfast. it was 3 mini drinks, with fresh squeezed strawberry, pear, and pineapple juice. they were fabulous.

addison had chocolate chip pancakes, and i definitely stole some. so good.

we walked along the river on the way back to maria's.

we got ready for the day and then headed out to uncle julio's for lunch. um, yum. such good mexican food. delicious chips {thin like chili's. i love their chips}. oh, and the margaritas? amazing. they have skinny margaritas that are "healthier". we gave them a try. and i like being healthier.

after lunch, we started our shopping expedition. i really just wanted to go to h&m, so i didn't do much shopping at other stores. we ended up going back to maria's and then walking down to michigan avenue.

and h&m was packed. so i didn't get myself anything. and i was extremely sad about it. but seriously, there was no way i could have gotten any shopping done. maria was great and walked addison through the store while i tried to shop, but so. many. people. addison got 3 adorable dresses though. lucky girl.

i may plan a weekday trip to atlanta soon and go shopping there. ya, that sounds good.

after we were done shopping, we took a cab back to maria's and addison passed out. when she woke up, we headed out to get maria's dog from doggy daycare. then we hit up target. and i finally did some shopping for myself. at target, which we have at home. but i scored 2 maxi skirts and 2 super cute tank tops.

we ended up just getting panera for dinner because it was getting late. and then we made brownies {my recipe is so yummy}. but really, we just made the batter and ate that. because who really wants to bake brownies?? not us.

sunday, we went and had breakfast at the same bagel place as friday and ate at starbucks again. then we headed home.

i wish we could have stayed longer and hung out more. and done more shopping {when it wasn't so crowded}. but alas, we had to come home.

like the ride there, addison watched a bunch of movies and ate lots of snacks. we both ended up not being hungry for lunch {hint, the snacks}, so when we stopped for a potty break, we went to panera and she got a smoothie and i got some iced coffee {my new favorite thing}.

we had so much fun on our trip! thanks maria for letting us stay with you and putting up with us! and thanks haley for letting us crash on your weekend!!

addison is now gearing up for yet another trip with her daddy. the girl is a traveler!

i'm going to gear up for some serious pool time.

have a good memorial weekend!

ticket for one

2012-05-15T14:45:00.000-05:00

yesterday, i had a first.

i saw a movie.

all by myself.

i'm not going to lie. i was kind of looking forward to it.

i took some grapes and cheese for a snack. and some water. i thought about taking wine, but then i thought that it may be a little early in the day to drink {but really, is it ever too early to drink??}.

it was a matinee movie {on a monday, no less}, so i knew there was a possibility that i'd be the only one in there. and that would have been pretty cool. i could've done anything i wanted!! not that there was anything excited i wanted to do in a movie theater by myself.

but, there were 2 other girls in the theater when i got there. and 2 older ladies came in later and sat behind me.

the movie didn't look all that great. but i had finished the book the night before and really wanted to see it.

it wasn't really that bad. it had cheesy moments. i found myself rolling my eyes every time there was a romantic scene. but that's just me, i think.

sitting right in front of the old ladies was entertaining. they were about my granny's age. and they had clearly read the books, because they were chatting throughout the movie. just little things. it was especially funny during the steamy scenes. it felt awkward sitting close to them during those. but funny at the same time, because they had read the books.

this was the first nicholas sparks book/movie that i didn't cry reading/watching. i'm seriously a softy when it comes to books and movies. but this one didn't make me cry. i kind of felt that it was an accomplishment. go me!!

i definitely don't think it will be the last time i go to the movie by myself. it was really relaxing. i do prefer to have friends with me, but something it's nice to just be all by yourself.

now off to find some other books to read!

recent reads

2012-05-11T09:29:00.001-05:00

i thought i'd do a post on some of my recent reads.

i've been kind of a book worm since school started to slow down a bit. and now that i don't have school and work, i've been reading a lot. i start back at work the 21st and school the 29th, so i'm trying to get all my reading in before then.

1 - 3 // mr. grey

i had NO idea what these books were about. i had seem the name tossed around on blogs and twitter, and i thought it'd give it a go.

well, i was definitely shocked!! but i loved the books. i read all 3 in less than a week.

just a warning for those who haven't read it and haven't heard anything about it...they're, um, how do you say? dirty. yes, that. and probably a bunch of other words that i don't want to say because i know my dad is reading this.

i've told all my friends about the books, and i've gotten a few of them hooked. you're welcome, friends!

4 - 5 // divergent & insurgent

i heard about divergent right as i finished the hunger games series. i was looking for something else to read that was similar to the hunger games, and this hit the nail on the head.

it's really different from the hunger games, but still kind of has that feel. lots of exciting stuff. action and love.

the second book didn't come out until the beginning of may {so just a few days ago}, so i had to be patient and wait for it.

i don't like waiting.

as soon as it came out, i bought it. i decided to re-read divergent so it would be fresh on my mind.

insurgent didn't disappoint! it was even more action than the first.

definitely a good read, especially if you liked the hunger games.

6 // the vow

i read this just because of the movie. i thought it would be interesting.

it wasn't really all that great. at least not to me. i enjoyed learning about the story, but nothing really beyond that.

i'm curious about the movie. i haven't seen it yet, but i'm going to watch it and see how well it portrays the book.

7 // water for elephants

i never saw the movie, but really wanted to. i knew it was a book, but i forgot until just recently.

i thought it would be a good book to read by the pool. i started it the other day, and will hopefully finish it over the weekend.

so far, it's pretty good. it's starting to get more exciting. i can't wait to finish it and watch the movie!!

8 // the lucky one

yes, i'm all about books that have movies based on them.

my friends told me this book was really good, and i'm all about nicholas sparks, so it's next on my list of books to read. actually, it's the only one that i haven't read in this list.

i already bought it, so as soon as i finish water for elephants, i will be starting it!

the movie doesn't really look all that good to me. not sure if i'll go see it. but i'll definitely read the book!

so, those are all of my recent reads {and a to-read}.

any book recommendations for me??

graduation

2012-05-10T08:12:00.000-05:00

i graduated from belmont on saturday.

no big deal.

i honestly can't believe it. not that i didn't think i'd graduate. i just didn't think it would happen so fast. i feel like i was just starting my time at belmont, and now it's over.

well, it's not really over because i'm in graduate school. but it's hard to believe i'm done with undergrad.

it's official! i snuck my phone in with me during graduation, so i took pictures during the ceremony :)

and even better, it was on cinco de mayo!! so even more reason for celebration!

it was an awesome day. long, but awesome.

we had prepped addison for the day. we told her that it was my graduation and that she would have to be quiet for a while.

she was really excited and kept saying "it's your graduation day, mommy!".

well, someone got some stage freight when it came time to yell when i walked across the stage. all of my family and friends (all 7 of them. students only got 7 tickets for family and friends) were quiet because they were waiting for addison to cheer. she got a little scared, and finally said something. but instead of yelling "congrats!" or "yay mommy!", she said "happy birthday mommy!". unfortunately, i didn't hear exactly what she said. but i heard it was hilarious!

addison did great during the whole ceremony. probably better than me. i was one of the first to graduate. they did it alphabetically by college, and the college of business was the first, so i got to walk early.

all of the family went out of lunch after. then that night i went to a derby party and celebrated with friends.

i still can't believe i'm done. it's crazy. no more undergrad. woo hoo!! now i just have to finish up this graduate school stuff. and then it will be on to the CPA exam. will it ever end?? hopefully some day!

addison's first haircut

2012-05-09T09:59:00.000-05:00

yesterday, we took addison to get her first haircut.

yes. she's 3 and hasn't had a haircut. but her hair is just so pretty and curly! i was scared that cutting it would mean the curls would disappear.

but her hair was getting a little out of control. it was so tangly. she would scream every time we had to brush it. even when we used detangler, it was still a mess.

so i admitted defeat and we went to great clips.

my mom and i get our hair cut there from a super sweet girl, so that's who cut addison's hair!

and addison loved it!

she cut off about 3 inches, but it's barely noticeable. and her hair still looks curly! score!

next time we get her hair cut, we may try some layers or something fun. you know, girly stuff.

steppin out saturday - graduation

2012-05-08T10:05:00.001-05:00

finally. i'm blogging again.

saturday, we stepped out to......my graduation!!!

on addison: dress, kohl's // shoes, thrifted
on me: dress, blush // shoes, steve madden // watch, michael kors

linking up with steppin out saturday at harper's happenings.

kisses for mommy!

no more undergrad! now on to graduate school.

more on graduation, and catching up in general, another day :)

weekend shenanigans

2012-03-27T11:50:00.003-05:00

this weekend absolutely flew by.

last week was pretty rough for me, and i'm so glad it's over! i'm done with my first semester of grad classes {go me!} and now i just have 2 undergrad classes. i graduate in a little over a month! yay!

i got to celebrate the end of my horrible week by going to see the hunger games with friends.

let me tell you...i'm obsessed. i read all 3 books in 3 days. i would stay up until the wee hours of the morning reading.

i got all of my friends hooked on the books, too. we were all SO excited for the movie. we bought our tickets well in advance, and made a girls date for the premiere night. we had dinner and drinks, and then went to the movie!

it was packed. we had to stand in line to get in. we did get to sit together, so that was a plus!

the movie was good. i hyped it up a lot because i was so excited, so it didn't exactly live up to my expectations. but it was still good and i'd definitely go {and probably will} see it again!

saturday morning we had plans to go to a birthday party. it was about an hour away, so we hitched a ride with mary and gavin who were also going.

addison loves gavin. and he's at the age where he can play with her now. he took a little while to warm up to the fact that another kid was in the car with him, but once he did warm up, they chatted and laughed the rest of the way.

the party was outside, and it ended up being a chilly, rainy morning. being the great mom that i am, i didn't bring addison a jacket because i thought it would be warm. she was a little cold, but she warmed up when she ran around. the kids had lots of fun! and they got cute dinosaur masks.

we had lunch and then ran by mary's in laws, then headed home. we were all exhausted, especially the kiddos. gavin passed out pretty much as soon as we headed home, but it took addison a while to give in and sleep. but once she did, she was out.

saturday night, my mom and i had a girls night at mexican. it's kind of sad that they know us there.

one of the manager's saw us and asked if i had seen the pictures of my daughter on the wall. i was really confused at first, but then remembered that the balloon lady had taken pictures of the kids with their balloons to put on the wall. addison had her picture up there twice. we may need an intervention.

sunday i went to breakfast with family and then did some group stuff for school. and then i made a bazillion cake pops.

our weekend wasn't exactly relaxing, but it was a lot of fun! we were busy pretty much every second. needless to say, i'm still exhausted. and i don't see that going away any time soon.

more coffee, please!

3 year appointment

2012-03-20T10:17:00.000-05:00

addison turned 3 in november. being the awesome mom/planner i am, she didn't have her 3 year appointment until february 28. just a couple months late. no big deal.

apparently being 3 means you get to wear cool gowns at the doctor. she felt pretty rocking in it. it was a little on the long side though.

now to her stats.

- 31 lbs
- 37 3/4 inches
- 20/20 vision

they checked her vision, which they had never done before. i couldn't even see what some of the things were that she could see. i blame my lovely case of pink eye for that.

the doctor said that most kids don't have 20/20, so she's got good eyes.

she didn't need any shots this visit, which was a plus. but she did have her finger pricked. she wasn't too pleased with that. but she did get a cute bandaid, which made it all better.

addison is obsessed with giving mommy and daddy things (like at gymnastics, they get stamps at the end of class and she insists on giving mommy and daddy stamps too), so she insisted on giving us a bandaid. the nurse was super sweet and got us bandaids, too. luckily we didn't have to have our fingers pricked :)

maybe her 4 year appointment won't be so late, but i can't make any promises.

randomness

2012-03-01T07:54:00.000-06:00

we've been playing a lot of pretty pretty princess and hello kitty bingo around here lately. addison's gotten really good at both games, but her attention span is lacking. oh, and she's starting to become a sore loser. we're working on that, though.

i got a keurig for my birthday and i love it. i've been having a nice cup of coffee every morning.

addison and i have been enjoying breakfast time together. i don't get to see her as much as i used to with school and work, so i've been savoring every moment with her.

we had a date a few weekends ago and went to the cheesecake factory for my birthday. well, we tried the cheesecake factory. the wait was 2 hours. ridiculous. so we went to carrabba's. where the wait was an hour. which is still ridiculous. but not as much as 2 hours. addison was SO cute. she wore the denim skirt from her 2nd birthday party. crazy, huh? it was HUGE then, and it's still a little big now. 1.5 years later. oh well. she rocked it. she wore adorable flower tights and a matching flower scarf. i about died. my baby looks so so big.

we've been having fun with granny too. we took addison's new book pinkalicious: pinkie promise on our last visit. addison loves it. we got it from her school's book fair. my mom cleaned out granny's tupperware cabinet and addison loved helping with that. she would try to match up the tops and the bottoms. she did a great job!

my spring break is next week and i'm pretty excited. although i'll still be working and probably doing a ton of homework. oh well. it's still spring break!

pink eye. and more pink eye

2012-02-20T07:12:00.000-06:00

3 weeks ago addison had pink eye. just one eye was infected, i started giving her the drops and it cleared up completely within 48 hours.

2 weeks ago, exactly, my eye started to feel sore. i went to bed with a sore eye, and woke up with a swollen eye.

i had pink eye.

addison has had pink eye before, and i've been lucky enough not to get it. i guess my luck ran out.

this was my eye that tuesday morning. nice and swollen.

i started using the drops immediately and it seemed to get a little better.

it finally started to look like it was clearing up last sunday.

but, alas, it had decided to jump into my other eye.

lucky me.

i woke up last monday with one swollen eye and both eyes sealed shut. i'm sure that's a lovely visual for you. but seriously. pink eye is gross.

i went to the doctor and got different drops. now, a week after that, i'm all cleared up!!

i really hope i never get it again. i seems so much worse as an adult.

i was really afraid that it was going to be this vicious cycle of pink eye. i thought addison was getting it again after mine started clearing up, and i was sure i would get it from her again. but she didn't get it again and our eyes are all non-pink...

for now.

randomness

2012-01-30T07:46:00.000-06:00

so i think it has come down to this. i'm so busy with school and work, so phone pictures is what i am resorting to.

granny played pretty pretty princess with us one night. i enjoyed seeing her in the jewels! it snowed the first time this year, and my mom snapped a pic before she took addison to school. she was ready for the snow. we went to see beauty and the beast in 3d. of course popcorn was involved. addison and i both loved it {and maegen did too! she went with us :)} my mom got some chocolate covered fruit, so addison and i had it for dessert a few nights. addison really liked the bananas. we built towers at my grandmothers house, and took turns laying down and having a tower built on our head. addison really enjoyed knocking the towers down. and lastly, a few weeks worth of balloons. a ballerina, hula monkey, and elephant. wonder what she'll get this week?

the first week

2012-01-17T11:10:00.000-06:00

last week was my first full week of everything.

i started my internship on monday {i'm working monday, wednesday, and friday}.

and had my monday night class for the first time.

i started my first grad classes on wednesday and thursday.

and the whole week wore me out.

we did a lot of training at my internship. there are 4 tax interns in total. i'm really glad there are other interns so i don't feel like i'm the only one. the other girl tax intern has never done any tax stuff before {like me}, so we're in the same boat. the other 2 guys have, so they know more of what they're doing. but hopefully the training will just stay in my brain and i'll get the hang of it!

we moved to our desks on friday afternoon, so yesterday we started doing practice tax returns all by ourselves. luckily i'm close to the other tax people, so i was able to ask lots questions {and i have lots!}

my first grad classes went really well. wednesday night is a tax class taught by my favorite teacher, so i'm actually excited about that. and thursday is audit, which i don't like. but i had the teacher last semester and he's really nice, so hopefully it won't be too bad.

i also have friends in both classes, so that makes it a lot better.

the biggest adjustment i've had to make is not seeing addison very much. since i have 3 night classes, it means i'm not seeing her before she goes to bed those 3 nights. i missed her a lot last week and i know that will continue. grad classes are only 10 weeks, so once they're over i'll get to see her 2 more nights a week, which will be much better. i know this is for the best and will definitely be worth it in the end.

i'm officially becoming a big girl.

an ogre and a panda

2012-01-11T07:12:00.000-06:00

a few days after christmas, we took addison back to opryland to see the christmas shrektacular. it was a free event. it was first come, first serve as far as seating went. it was really crowded when we got there {which was 30 minutes early}, but we got a good place for the kiddos to see.

not only was shrek there, but kung fu panda was there too! addison was so excited and she sang and danced the whole time. she'd answer when they asked questions and everything. it was so cute!

i'm all about the free kid events!! although you could spend $50 a person to have your picture taken when the characters. um, no thanks.

merry madagascar ice

2012-01-10T08:23:00.000-06:00

a few weeks ago, we took addison to see the ice exhibit at opryland.

the theme was madagascar, which addison loves.

i had never been before, so didn't know how cold it was going to be. i had always seen people wearing those ridiculous coats, but i didn't know if they were really necessary.

well, they are. i had thick socks, my boots, my northface, gloves, and a scarf. and the coat. and i was still a little chilly.

addison was so cute in her big blue coat.

she got to go down the slide too. she loved that. she went down at least 3 times.

we had a lot of fun! it's definitely something we will try to do every year!

addison's birthday

2012-01-06T07:15:00.000-06:00

so, addison's party was over a month ago. and i'm just now getting around to blogging about it. oops.

anyway, addison's birthday was exhausting. i'm not going to lie.

but it was great. she had a blast and that's all that matters.

we rented a bouncy house. the weather forecast looked awesome about a week before the party, but then it changed and showed that it was supposed to rain all day. i was worried we wouldn't be able to do the bouncy house, but the rain let up right before the party and it was perfect! {just a bit muddy}

i was a little preoccupied with everything else, so i was the worst picture taker ever. i feel horrible and wish i had actually taken some. oh well.

we had goldfish, gummies, pretzels, and capri suns for the kids. my mom made salsa and i made rotel for the grown ups. but i'm pretty sure some grown ups dipped into the kid snacks :)

i also made cake pops for dessert. we got cupcakes from publix too {i love publix}.

i made a little addison banner with paper doilies. i used the left over scrapbook paper from the letters to cover the clothes pins. clever, huh?

a nice blurry picture of me, addison, and her daddy.

and the birthday girl's candle.

i was really surprised at the number of people that came to the party. i invited all of the kids in her class, but only 1 rsvp'ed. i was scared that only 1 would show up, but 3 did. it was great! addison had so much fun playing with them. a lot of friends and family came too. it was a great birthday!!

i'm promising myself to be better about pictures next year.

santa ornaments

2012-01-05T14:14:00.000-06:00

i know this is a little late to help with this christmas {since it already passed}, but it may be helpful next christmas!

my mom found a really cute santa ornament on pinterest, and i recreated it.

my mom had the clean ornaments that split open in the middle already, so didn't need to get any of those {and i also don't know where you would buy them. maybe a craft store like hobby lobby or joann's}.

what you'll need:
clear ornaments
red scrapbook paper or card stock
scissors
cute ribbon
black craft paint
white puff paint {i used sparkly}
small paint brush

cut the red paper in strips {probably about 1/2 an inch wide} and then curl it with the scissors like you would ribbon. it was a little more difficult than ribbon {as you'd imagine}, but you just have to do it a couple times to get it curly. and i actually would curl them around my finger to make them curlier.

then i put the strips in the clear ornaments. my mom helped tie the ribbon through the hole in the ornament. then i painted a thick black line around the ornament. by the time i finished the last one, the first ones were dry {i did a little over 20}. i used muffin tins to hold them while they dried and it worked perfectly! before i painted the white belt buckle, i used a fine tip sharpie to write "from addison - christmas 2011" on the bottom. just so her classmates would know who it was from :) then i used the puff paint to make a belt buckle. that was probably the easiest part. i let them dry overnight, and they were good to go in the morning!

i think they turned out super cute!! and they were pretty fun to make, too!

we didn't forget about jerry

2012-01-05T07:46:00.000-06:00

so my goal of taking pictures of jerry every day...i failed.

anywho, we didn't forget about him! just the taking pictures part. but i did snap a few pictures when i thought it was a very cute/clever idea.

he played pretty pretty princess with hello kitty and monkey.

the little beanie baby snowmen tied him up one morning, which wasn't very nice.

and he went fishing! i found the idea on pinterest.

so that was jerry. he also hid in a stocking, rode in santa's sleigh, hid in the fridge, made a snow angel, had a snowball fight, and lots of other things.

hopefully i'll be better at documenting next year. addison was sad to see him go, but i know she'll be really excited to see him next christmas! she has already threatened to call santa and tell him i've been bad. silly girl.

2011

2012-01-04T09:23:00.000-06:00

here's a recap of 2011 on the blog...

january - i went to chicago for new years. it was my first real trip away from addison. we also had a lot of snow, so addison got to have a lot of snow days. and we got to play in it too!

february - i celebrated my 22nd birthday. we also got to have a fun valentines day that included yummy treats and some car riding.

march - addison moved up to a big girl bed. she did so well with the transition! we played with photo booth, which is one of her favorite things to do on the computer. addison also went to some classes at the zoo with gigi, and i got to tag along for one.

april - we went to the zoo for an easter egg hunt. addison was actually talking about it the other day. it was crazy to me that she remember something from 8 months ago. we also dyed eggs for the first time, and it was a lot of fun!

may - i finally started using my new white iPhone. and i still love it!!! addison got to ride in gigi's jeep for the first time, and loved it. she requests to ride in it all the time.

june - addison went to the dentist for the first time and joined the no cavity club. we also got to go see trucks in the park. and addison started swimming lessons, which was a little rough. thankfully it got a lot better!

july - addison spent a week away from me and took a trip to the beach with her daddy, which was also her first trip to the beach {outside of my belly}. we went to see elmo live and addison had a blast. we also went to the chattanooga aquarium and saw lots of fun fish {and butterflies and turtles}.

august - i had a big girl vacation with my friends to hilton head. it was also the month of concerts because i saw maroon 5 and katy perry within the same week. addison finished up swim lessons, and also had her first sleepover with her second cousin georgia. we also had a visitor from alaska, my cousin liz and baby finn!

september - i was very busy with school this month {as with most others}. we were able to make a trip to the zoo, though!

october - addison started preschool {and still loves it! as do i}. she went to her first fall festival at said preschool. we went see the lion king and it was addison's first time to see a movie at the theater. it was amazing {and beauty and the beast comes back out soon! we will definitely see that!}. she also halloween party at her school.

november - we celebrated addison's 3rd birthday with an awesome party that included a bouncy house. it was also the month that i announced getting an internship, getting into graduate school, and applying to graduate undergraduate school. woo hoo!

december - we visited santa {which addison LOVED} and addison had her first school performance where her class sang rudolph the red nosed reindeer. omg i died of cuteness.

better late than never, right? so ya, that was our 2011 all in a huge collage. i can't wait to see what happens in 2012! i'm excited about big things happening for me, and most of all, i'm excited to see addison grow and do new, even more awesome things!

christmasssssssss

2011-12-28T08:19:00.000-06:00

we started a new tradition on christmas eve. before we headed out to do my step-mom's family thing, addison got to open one present. i labeled it with a heart instead of an "a" like all of her other ones. so she had to do a little hunting to find it.

it was a pair of princess christmas pjs. i figured that since we'd be out late, they would be good for her to change in to and wear for christmas! it's definitely something that i want to continue to do.

so we headed out to do my step-mom's family christmas around 4:30 and we didn't leave until 9. and we still had to go back to my dad's and open presents. so needless to say, it was a long night.

addison had a lot of fun though. my step-mom's niece has two boys and addison is right in the middle of them age wise. so she always loves playing with them!

when we opened presents at my dad's, it got kind of ugly. addison wanted the same presents as everyone else, so she kept getting upset. i blame it on the fact that she was really tired.

when we got home, which was around 11, she had a hard time going to sleep. but after some cuddles, she passed out.

then i got to put on my santa hat. i had gotten the baby doll, stroller, and diaper bag from my dad earlier on christmas eve {they were already wrapped}, so i had to unwrap and open all of that. then i had to take her pink guitar out of the box. then it was just figuring out where to place everything!

i pretty much just stuffed as much in her stocking as i could. and everything that wouldn't fit sat on the floor beside it.

i finally went to bed around 1. i was exhausted.

luckily, addison was too. she didn't get up early or anything. chris came over christmas morning and we both went upstairs to wake her up.

she somehow got turned around in her bed. i honestly don't know how that happens.

chris brought her downstairs and made her close her eyes. she was SO excited to see all of her presents.

after addison got to play some with her santa gifts, we had a yummy breakfast. my granny spent the night christmas eve so she could be here christmas morning, so that was nice. after breakfast, we went and opened all of the gifts that were wrapped under the tree.

addison definitely racked up. i didn't go as overboard as last year, but i still went a little crazy. at least i'm going in the non-crazy direction.

addison's loot included {but not limited to}: bitty baby + stroller + diaper bag; pink barbie guitar; pink hunter boots; 2 pairs of toms {silver sequined from papa and mimi & purple herringbone from friends}; ariel & tangled barbies; clothes {4 shirts + furry jacket + purple coat + white skinnies + denim jacket + 2 pairs of pjs + tights); 2 scarves; mermaid potato head; picnic playdoh; llama llama book; cupcake cake pan; mix & measuring set; animal cookie cutters; candyland; hello kitty umbrella. that's all i can think of. now that i'm listing it out, i realize how much it was. and i'm sure i'm forgetting a few things. goal for next year: go less crazy with presents.

her stocking was full of random things. hello kitty undies + chapstick + nail polish + coloring book + stickers + other things.

yes, my child is spoiled {just like her mother}.

but seriously. look how adorable she is with her baby. and in her new toms. sometimes i wish i could borrow her clothes.

i won't go into much details about what i got from santa, because that just isn't as exciting as what addison got. but i did get some cute new clothes, for work and play. and lots of gift cards, which i'm super excited about using. santa brought me my watch that i have been lusting after {i was planning on buying it with my first check from my internship}. he {or should i say she, aka my mom} surprised me with it early. i'm totally in love with it!

christmas this year was a blast. i'm so glad i got to experience watching addison get excited about everything and tearing into presents. this was the first year that she has really gotten into it, and it was awesome! i'm excited about the years to come. but for now, i'm ready to regain energy from christmas chaos and relax before my crazy semester starts {in less than a week!}

happy birthday gigi!

2011-12-27T07:24:00.000-06:00

happy birthday mom!

you are a wonderful mom and gigi. i don't think addison and i could have done any better!

hope you have a great day!

it's santa time

2011-12-20T09:53:00.000-06:00

i don't think addison could have been more excited to see santa this year.

when i told her we were going to see santa, i asked what she was going to tell him she wanted. she could only come up with 2 things. a doll and a pink guitar.

when he asked her what she wanted, she got shy and said she didn't know. but after talking to him for a minute, she warmed up and told him her 2 things.

i love the place we go to. we went last year and again this year, and they have been great both times. we didn't have to wait to see santa. and we can take our own pictures!

addison last year with santa.

and the year before that.

funny thing about her wanting a doll. on black friday, my mom told me that american girl was having a sale. so i looked on there, and decided to suggest that papa and mimi {my dad and step mom} get addison a bitty baby for christmas. i also picked out a cute diaper bag and stroller. i figured that if addison got a nice baby doll, we could get rid of the rest and she could just have one.

who would have known that my idea would have been the only thing she wants. the doll, diaper bag, and stroller are already wrapped under papa and mimi's tree. but i talked to them about switching gifts so santa could give her that stuff, and they were fine with it. so i'm just going to wrap some of the gifts i got addison for papa and mimi to give her, and we'll swap.

and i ran out this morning and got a pink guitar. from santa, of course. it's a barbie one. and it's obnoxious. i don't know how long it will last. it may be returned to the store. we'll see.

rudolph the red nosed reindeer

2011-12-15T09:12:00.000-06:00

last week addison had her first school performance.

each of the classes at her school did a different christmas song.

her class sang rudolph the red nosed reindeer.

we had been practicing singing it for a little while.

she was super excited about singing.

all the kids wore christmas pjs. {of course addison needed a new pair for the occasion}.

i was scared she would get stage fright and not want to sing.

some of the kids before her, which were in the younger classes, got upset. nothing too bad though.

let me just say, it was hilarious. she was adorable. as soon as she got up on the stage, she waved at EVERYONE. she was smiling and waving like it was her job.

then when the music started, she stood there and sang and danced. it was adorable. and i couldn't stop laughing. i was so proud. it made me so extremely happy. i can't believe how big she is.

it was a little dark, so the pictures weren't great. but i will never forget the first time she got up on a stage to perform, and just how cute and funny it was.

oh, and i'm pretty sure addison had the most fans. there were 10 of us. me, her dad, my mom, my granny, my step-brother and step-sister, maegen, jenna, haley, and jake. so ya, my child has groupies!

addison's christmas list // 2011

2011-12-05T08:49:00.000-06:00

well, addison didn't exactly put this list together. when i asked what she was going to tell santa she wants, she said "micky mouse strawberries". i have no clue where she got that. just putting together 2 of her favorite things. but i thought these would be things she'd like. and some of them have already been ordered.

1. bitty baby stroller // $48
2. bitty baby // $48
3. bitty baby diaper bag set // $36
4. martha stewart mix and measure prep set // $19.99
5. pink leotard // $15
6. llama llama home with mama // $15
7. kids original hunter boot // $75
8. pink tiny toms // $34
9. toddler cardy uggs // $120
10. disney princess briefs & hello kitty briefs // $18 each
11. sally hansen insta dry nail polish in fuchsia flare and chartreuse chase // $2.49 each

i love spoiling addison. i'm so excited for her this christmas! she loves opening presents now and seeing everything, so it's going to be so much fun.

i can't wait for christmas!!

christmas-y

2011-12-03T10:08:00.000-06:00

santa's coming!!! i know him!!! -- from my favorite christmas movie.

oh, christmas. i love it so much! especially the decorating and shopping.

which is why i wanted to give my blog a little holiday love.

source
yay for christmas!!

meet jerry + first day of presents

2011-12-02T09:12:00.001-06:00

this year we decided to start the elf on the shelf tradition.

we read the book on wednesday and addison named her elf. i have no idea where she comes up with certain names. but we now have elf jerry to look over her and report back to santa.

yesterday morning was the first day he was out, and he was eating breakfast when addison came downstairs.

i'm hoping jerry will encourage addison to be on her best behavior, since he's reporting to santa and all. i know i will be!!

addison also gets a present every day in december until christmas. it was something my mom did for me, so i wanted to do it for addison. i always loved getting to open something every day. they aren't big gifts, just little things from the dollar section of target and such.

so last night she got to open her first present. and she was really excited about it.

she opened green nail polish. i wanted her to open it well before christmas so her nails could be green {kinda christmas-y}, so i'm glad it was her first gift! it's sally hansen insta-dri nail polish. i heard that it actually dries fast {sometimes nail polish doesn't do what it says it does}, so i thought it would be good for addison. since she never sits still and all. i painted her nails last night and it does dry super fast! score.