Three Blind Mice!

SO.....here it is! The big Halloween costume reveal!



Pretty cute if I do say so myself!

Hilarious Hat Day!

Today was hilarious hat day and rainbow day at Annie's school. Annie wanted to make sure that her hat was suitably hilarious! After trying on a large assortment of hats-auburn hats, GA aquarium hat, pink polka dot and more than one tobogan-she finally settled on the perfect hat for hilarious hat day....

I think she made the right decision! :)

One Happy Camper!

Tonight was a normal night at the Thompson house. Dinner, baths, jams and a story, one more drink of water and then off to bed. That is until about 10 minutes after everyone was tucked in. Thats when the phone rang. Now, I know that sounds so ominous but really it was a good thing. My dad was calling to make sure that the girls were enjoying "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (Phil Fulmer was on tv tonight? With Charlie Brown? What? Sorry, not nice of me!). Silly me, I didn't even know that Charlie Brown was on tonight. I confessed as much AND that I had already put the girls down for the night.:( Charlie Brown is one of those fun holiday traditions that we always did growing up. We never missed it (or Rudolph-mom's favorite). I really hated for the girls to miss The Great Pumpkin so I decided that I would go in Annie and Emma's room and if either of them was still awake or woke up then they could get up and come watch with me. Well, Annie got the prize! I tiptoed in and she popped right up. Emma T. just slept away. Annie was so excited to be the only one up. She grabbed a blanket and headed straight for the couch and even told me I was the "best momma in the whole world"! So, thanks Bo for making my sweet girl one happy little camper! :)



Check out that penmanship! My sweet girl is working so hard and doing an awesome job learning to write all of her letters!

My beautiful little burper?

Before I start, a little disclaimer....not for the faint of heart or easily grossed out!!!
Ok, I know that it is important to have good manners and I know it takes consistancy to mold our kids into the lovely little humans we want them to be but sometimes you just can't help but laugh. For some reason Annie has recently decided that burping is hilarious. I mean belly laugh funny. And even though this is my sweet petite little girl, she is burping like a man (or at the very least her 16 year old uncle). I mean big gross burps. AND even worse they bring such joy to all of the little ladies in our family.
Tonight just as we were finishing dinner, Annie let out the biggest grossest burp ever. And just as I was about to remind her about using her manners and how impolite that is I looked over and all three of my girls were giggling. So of course Annie did it again. Before I could tell her how gross that was and ask her to please not do it again, my girls were laughing out loud. I mean big belly laughes. They could hardly sit up straight they were laughing so hard. By this time even I was having a hard time keeping a straight face! Finally, the laughing died down and Annie and I were able to talk a little bit about using our manners. Hopefully there won't be an encore tomorrow.
Just an aside, she almost had me when she said "but even Pinkalicious burps up brussel sprouts." Thanks a lot Pinkalicious, thanks a lot.

Fall Fun!

Today was a beautiful fall day. Seriously, not too cold, beautiful blue sky (we haven't seen that in forever!) and lots and lots of sunshine! We are a little behind this year and still didn't have a pumpkin so we promised the girls that today would be the day! After working around the house some we all loaded up and headed to the pumpkin patch.
We looked at EVERY pumpkin there before selecting the pumpkin of our dreams (and 2 baby pumpkins)! We finally picked one that was "pretty and warty" per Annie's instructions. Kind of a weird combo, huh?
After our pumpkin patch trip we came home and got to work cleaning it out and carving it. FUN! (yuck) The girls had a great time and were such big helpers! When our masterpiece was complete we headed in for a bowl of yummy soup and settled in to watch our Tigers play (sort of)! We knew this wasn't going to be the perfect season or anything but it seems like everyone else is getting better and better and we are just falling apart! :( Maybe next week will be better!
Here are a few pics of our pumpkin patch fun! (don't forget to click on the picture to see the whole album!)

Fall Fun

Congratulations Becca, Matt and Walker!

We are so excited about some news we heard today! Josh's big sister, Becca, and her husband Matt are expecting their second child in June! Becca just found out this week and we are so excited for all of them! We know that Walker will be a great big brother! My three love Walker and I'm sure they will love having another cousin to play with and love on! What fun!
So Baby Grogan, we are tickled to hear about your upcoming arrival! We can't wait to meet you! We'll love you no matter what but I gotta admit we're secretly hoping for a little girl cousin to play dress up with! :)

A little Halloween fun!

This really is HILARIOUS! Enjoy! :)

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Help!! Halloween Costume Ideas!

Halloween is coming up and so far no costumes! Now, if you know me at all you know that I really like homemade Halloween costumes. AND if at all possible I want all of the girls to either be the same thing or things that go together. Some possibilities so far are: flowers (the three together could be some kind of garden), butterfly, bee and flower, Auburn cheerleaders (this would be easy and since the girls will be going to Auburn for the game probably the most practical) and my personal favorites either the three little pigs or three blind mice!
Anyway, the countdown has started! T minus 10 days!!!! Any suggestions would be welcome! :)

It hasn't happened in 43 years....

yet, lucky us (I say that with massive amounts of sarcasm) we were there to watch history being made. Yep, you guessed it...we were at the Auburn/Kentucky game on Saturday night. Oh yeah, the most miserable (and ridiculous) game I have ever had the misfortune of attending. Not only did my Tigers get beat by Kentucky (the first time since 1966) but they looked awful and it was freezing cold. Just when it looked like our boys in blue might make a comeback the flags started flying. 10 flags that penalized us 75 yards!!! And just ask me how many times KY was penalized. You guessed it....a whopping 0! Do you think these refs are Alabama fans or what?!?!?
So in spite of a really crappy game (in the freezing cold) we had a really great weekend overall. Really busy but really good! Josh had a youth event he had to be at so he got up on Saturday morning and headed for a passport workday. That meant that the girls and I were on our own as far as getting up and getting to Auburn. We did great...my girls are AWESOME riders! We made it to Chris and Megan's house around noon and put on all of our cute Auburn gear! Megan made the girls the cutest little auburn outfits and they could hardly wait to put them on....thankfully I saw a weather report so I picked up little white shirts to wear underneath. Once we got all of our gear on, we headed out for a quick lunch and to run a couple of errands before Tiger Walk. The girls were so excited about Tiger Walk...seeing the band and cheerleaders and Aubie and the football players! So exciting. We didn't get a great spot so I think Annie was the only one who actually saw anything (she was on my shoulders) but that's really all that mattered. Emma and Gracie were more interested in hanging out in the warm and comfy stroller! After Tiger Walk we took the girls over to play at Rachel's house (Molly and Macy's house if you ask them)! They had a blast! They made homemade pizza for dinner and played with the dollhouse and watched movies all night! What fun! After dropping the girls off I headed back to campus to meet Josh to head for the game! Yes, the miserable, cold, my high school team could have mopped the floor with them, Auburn game. Oh well, everybody has a lousy game (or two) sometimes...I won't give up on my team. I know they have it in them to be great! Hopefully next week will be better!
Here are a few pics of Megan and the girls in the outfits she made them! Thanks Megan!

And the worst mom in the world is.......

ME!:( So sad! This morning 2 out of 3 of my girls woke up with a fever. Thankfully we're not 3 for 3! Last night I thought Emma felt warm so I took her temperature and it was a little high. Annie too. I gave both girls some tylenol and sent them to bed. Both were acting fine and seemed to be feeling fine so I wasn't too worried. I went in to check on them around 10:00 and Annie seemed to be fine but Emma was burning up! I took her temp....right at 102. Not terrible for a kid but still pretty high. I called my mom who assured me that she would be fine overnight and advised me just to check her out in the morning. This morning both girls were still feverish so I figured I better call the doctor to see if they needed to come in. Now, normally I am not one to go to the doctor...someone has to be bleeding or throwing up or really feeling lousy for me to darken the door but with all this flu and swine flu and "worldwide pandemic" I thought it was better to be safe than sorry!
As soon as I told the girls we were going to the doctor there was a breakout of weeping and wailing and even some gnashing of teeth. No, seriously it wasn't that bad but they were not looking forward to it. I figured out that the outburst was because on their last visit the girls had gotten shots (Annie had to get 4)! Annie kept saying "but mom, you promised no more shots until I am 10!" She's right I did promise. A promise I (not being a Dr.) had no business making but made nonetheless. I tried to reassure both of my girls that today would be a shot free visit. I finally got eveyone calmed down and into the car.
When we walked into the waiting room Emma made her first announcement: "No shots for Emma!" As we waited in the waiting room she told all of the other children that she was not getting any shots today! When they called our name to take us to a room she informed the nurse that she didn't want a shot today. When the NP student came in to check us out Emma again reminded her that there would be "no shots for Emma". When the NP came in to REALLY check us out Emma once again made her announcement. So far so good. Everyone agreed that today there would be no shots for Emma or Annie! YAY! Both girls were so good while they were getting poked and prodded and looked over, even when they did the strep test to confirm our diagnosis. BUT when the strep test came back negative (yay!) things started to head south quickly! Because we had ruled out all of the normal illnesses (strep, flu etc.) they would have to do a blood test to check for a viral infection. This time it wasn't a shot but almost as bad...the dreaded finger stick! When the girls saw those pokers you would have thought they were being chased by a hungry bear! They both ran to my lap and tried to hide! Annie looked at me with big tears running down her face and said "You said we wouldn't have to get any shots!" I felt like the worst mom EVER! I did say that. I did tell her that this visit would be pain free. If I could have taken that finger prick (and every one from now on) I would have. I felt like I let her down and not only that but that I let something hurt her. It made me wonder about our relationship from now on. Will she trust me now? Will she believe me when I tell her that everything's ok? or when I tell her she doesn't have to be afraid because she is safe with me? What if nothing I say matters to her anymore?
It turns out that my worries were unfounded (as is usually the case). As we walked out the door both girls got princess stickers and Annie turned to me and asked if we could go to the bagel store for lunch. I immediately said yes and you should have seen the smile light up her face. I think her faith is restored and I'm thankful....i'm also thankful I didn't pass any police on our mad dash to the bagel store! :)

Annie's first fieldtrip!

Today Annie went on her first real field trip! She was so excited! Last night, she raced to bed because "I've got a big day tomorrow!" She could hardly stay still she was so excited. On the way to school today she kept telling me to hurry up and asking if we were going to be late even though we were early (yes, I said early. I know that's not like us but I didn't want Annie to miss one minute of her field trip fun).
Annie's class had a funfilled day exploring the pumpkin patch. They even got to bring home a baby pumpkin of their own. So excitng! They also stopped by the park for a snack and a little playtime. Thankfully, the rain moved out and made way for a beautiful sunshiney day! I think a good time was had by all!
I know everyone is dying for pictures (me too). Well, sad to say I don't have any pictures because I didn't get to go on the pumpkin patch field trip. When I found out that Annie's class was going I asked Annie if she wanted me to go with her but she quickly informed me that she was "big enough to go with just her teachers and friends"! I even asked her again this morning to be sure she hadn't changed her mind and decided she wanted mom to tag along but she was certain she was big enough to go on her own! Seems like she was right...everything went off without a hitch!

Totally off the subject but worth mentioning: Emma says that her dad is enjoying his new job in "Bethleham". Hilarious! She can't wait to join him there!

Mom, how do you spell.....

My little school girl has been a writing fool lately! She is always asking how to spell this or that and then writing on any scrap of paper she can find. Don't get me wrong, I am tickled that she is learning so much but being a walking spellcheck does get old! Annie informed me that her favorite name to write is Bo "because it only has two easy letters!" This is some of Annie's "homework"-she was practicing writing the names of some family members....she's not crazy about S's or G's so if you have one in your name don't be looking for a card anytime soon! :)

Big news and fun with stickers!

No, the Thompsons are not adding to our numbers! There is no baby on the way in this family so don't go getting any ideas! BUT we do have BIG news!! Josh started a NEW job this week. He will be serving as the Minister to Youth and Children and the Thompson family will be moving! Exciting, scary, happy, sad...lots of emotions accompany this change (as is to be expected). This has been a SUPER crazy week because in addition to Josh starting a new job (in another state) we also had a death in our family and all of the emotions and events ( I know that's not really the right word but it's the best I can think of at the moment) that go along with that as well.
First, let me take a minute to brag on my three little ladies! My girls outdid themselves. They were sweet and kind and quiet (when they needed to be) and respectful and just generally good girls at in some situations that were not particularly child friendly. I really am so proud. The visitation and funeral were about 30 mins away (and Josh is working about 3.5 hours away....he has spent a ton of time in the car this week) so the girls have had to do a fair amount of driving. A family friend was so kind to think of the kids and provide snacks and crayons and coloring books and stickers to help pass the time. So today on the way home while the two little girls were sleeping, Annie T was hard at work. So hard at work that she totally wore herself out! This is what I found when I pulled into the driveway and got ready to unload all my girlies! Hilarious! I have to give it to her, we had talked about how we don't put stickers on the car windows or seats or our carseats and this girl listened. All car surfaces were sticker free! Annie T was another story!

Something to think about.

Yesterday we heard some very sad news. Josh's grandmother (Mema) died yesterday morning. We heard around lunch time and we've just kind of been taking it in since then. It's so funny to me that when something like this happens there is so much stuff to be done and everyone races around making preparations that we hardly take any time to think about how the person we've lost touched our lives. (I know the "stuff" is important and has to be done but I think if we're not careful we can avoid our loss by being busy.)
With all of that in mind, I have taken some time today to think about things I know about Mema and ways she has touched MY life. I had the privlege of knowing Mema for about 8 years. We met while Josh and I were dating (and once I even shared a bed with her! A memory that makes for a great story and conversation starter!) so I knew Mema for not quite 10 years. Not a lifetime of memories like her grandchildren had but long enough to get a feel for what someone is really like. One thing I remember about Mema is that she called everyone "beautiful doll". Kinda of a funny thing to say but endearing too, especially because you know that she meant it. She truly believed that each one of her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren was beautiful and even more because Mema believed it, you could believe it too. She was always so excited to see us and just wanted to hug our necks and visit. She watched my girls perform an endless number of tricks and took them for "rides" on her walker! I never knew a walker could be such fun!
Mema was a charter member of her church; a church she attended for close to 50 years. She loved her church and always taught Sunday school for years and years. She impacted so many people just by being a part of their life and spiritual development over the years. In fact, when Josh and I got married my great grandmother was not well and we needed to hire someone to help take care of her during the reception. Someone who lived in Chattanooga and went to church with my parents found out who Josh's grandmother (Mema) was. She had been in Mema's Sunday School class years earlier and because Mema had touched her in a major way she volunteered to stay with my great grandmother. It is amazing to see how one life can impact another even across miles and years. Mema's impact didn't stop there. If you visit her church and walk in the prayer garden that carries her name it's easy to see how many lives she touched in her 82 years.
While this loss is sad for those of us here on earth, it's not so sad (in fact it's a downright joyful day) for Mema. Over the last several years Mema had not been well. She had become a diabetic, had multiple back surgeries and suffered from pretty much constant joint pain. She is free from all of that today! Because of her love for Christ and her acceptance of his wonderful gift of salvation, Mema is in paradise. I really started to think about this when I lost my Granddaddy 2 years ago....about how death is not scary or even all that sad when you're a Christian. (Dond't get me wrong....it's plenty sad for those of us left behind.) Instead it brings hope and peace and comfort. Mema is healed. She is with her husband and mother and countless friends and family members who have gone on before. And even more importantly than that she's with her Savior!! When we told the girls, Annie asked if Mema was with Jesus like Grandaddy Bob. We told her yes. That Mema is with Jesus and Pawpaw and she's probably running and laughing and maybe even dancing! Celebrating! From now on, that's how I'll choose to think of Mema.

Can you say MORTIFIED????

Today we decided to skip church and just sleep in (scandalous, i know) and spend Josh's last day at home (more about that later) working around the house and spending time as a family. Good plan, right? The girls really wanted to "eat lunch at a restaurant and since they had been good all morning we agreed. So around lunch time we loaded up and headed to the Mexican restaurant right down the street. Josh and I both love mexican food and the girls usually really like it too. In fact, it's usually one of those places that the girls eat and eat and eat! So we ordered our meals and when they came everyone started eating. Everyone but Emma that is. Emma starts pointing at her plate and yelling (yes I'm serious, yelling!) "That's poop! I don't like poop! (she's talking about her refried beans!) That's disgusting! No like! No like! I not eat it!"
Are you kidding me?!?! My sweet Emma! This continuted for hours (no, only minutes but it certainly felt like hours)! She absolutely refused to eat or be quiet until we removed her plate from her sight! Good thing she had eaten plenty of chips! Oh Emma, things like this make me very nervous about the future!!

This one's for you, Uncle Daniel!

So as most of you know in addition to my three sweet girls, awesome husband, wonderful parents etc I also have two of THE coolest little brothers around! My youngest brother, Daniel, is a sophomore at McCallie and he is (as you should all know by now) a star running back! Yes, I said it...only a sophomore and already starting (and doing AWESOME!) on Varsity!
Tomorrow night is the biggest game of the year! The Blue Tornado will take on the Baylor Red Raiders at the red school across town. McCallie has won for the last 11 years in a row, totally crushing the competition! :) We are so disappointed we can't be there to cheer on our boys in blue (we couldn't get a ticket even if we could go...it really is that big of a deal) so we decided to do our part to support our team and our sweet Uncle Daniel! So, Uncle Daniel, this one's for you! GO BLUE!!!!

GO BLUE!!!!