Oh, How I love these kiddos!


This was taken today as they were celebrating the purchase of their new pj's. Oh, the small joys in life.
I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Does Anyone Know This Girl?

I found this picture in my camera and thought you, my trusty readers, could help me. hee hee.

The Latest and the Greatest
Well, not really the greatest, but here's the latest scoop with us. We have been in Birmingham now for 7 weeks and are still thoroughly enjoying our time back home. We have enjoyed being close to family, the much needed fellowship of old and new friends, and being reacquainted with out favorite places in town. The only downer of the experience is that the newness of the apartment has worn off and we are all getting a little stir crazy. Neily asks every day when we will have a yard to play in and wonders where her other toys are (most of our stuff is in storage). She even asked the other day if one of her friends in Franklin was in storage, too, because she wanted to play with her. I laughed because it was so cute and she was so serious. I, too, am ready to have our stuff again. I admit that this time of year the longing deepens for our home to decorate, our home to build memories in. (That's a whole other post for another day!) Moving on, my goal this week has been to turn that frown upside down and not let it get the best of me. I was motivated by my friend becky to get off my hiney and start doing more organized crafts with my kids. I was motivated because she wrote a blog entry about the other girls in the blogosphere who inspired her creativity and I knew I was no where in the realm of making that list. so, I decided to commit to doing some fun craft with the kids 3 days out of the week. This week we have made Thankful Trees where we (i.e "I") write on each leaf what we are thankful for and glue the leaves on the tree. Tomorrow we are going to make leaf people. Next week we have Peanut Butter Playdough on the agenda. I will keep you posted on all of our crafty adventures! And we also decided to make Friday night movie night here at the Stephens. The kids are SO excited about this and so are we. Tomorrow night will be the debut of Polar Express. Neither of our kids have ever sat through a whole movie before, so well see how it goes! Nonetheless, I will enjoy snuggling if not for just a little while.
Happy Thursday everybody!

The Tale of Two Trick-Or-Treaters

Once upon a time Tinkerbell and her Pumpkin were on a search find the yummiest candy in the land.


They set out on the long journey with hopes of all that they would find.


They met a lot of nice people along the way who shared goodies from their homes.


Tinkerbell and Pumpkin learned quickly that the magic phrase "Trick-or-treat!" brought them good fortune. (In Pumkin's case, it was more like "Wicka-Ta-Weet!")

As the night grew cold, they returned home. They were overjoyed that, indeed, they had found the yummiest candy in the land.


After a long day, Tinkerbell and Pumpkin snuggled up with the King for a Halloween bedtime story.


Happy Halloween Everyone!

It has been a while since I have blogged. In the move I lost my cord that allows me to put pictures up, so I have been a little lost as to what to write about. I could write and tell you the joys of living in an apartment--rude neighbors, getting your car scratched up in the parking lot, dog poo everywhere . I could tell you about yesterday when I sat down at the computer and, before I realized it, had eaten about 20 Hershey's kisses. I could tell you how I am sometimes eager, sometimes anxious to see what God is going to do in the days and weeks ahead. I could tell you that I am pretty excited about watching Eli Stone tonight. That has become one of our favorite shows. I could tell you about my anniversary that is coming up. 8 years. My hubby is truly my bff and I wouldn't want to take this journey with anyone else. I could tell you that when I was unpacking neily's backpack today, I found a "feminine product" in her lunch box. My mistake. I was in a hurry and meant to put it in my purse. I'm sure the teacher loved that. And lastly, I could tell you how my children make me laugh. In preps for the Thanksgiving/Christmas season we sang "O Come Let Us Adore Him" last night before bed. Sweet Neily kept asking "who get's to go through the door?" After trying to explain the difference between "adore" and "a door" we simply answered "Jesus." That's always a good answer, right?

Have You Heard About Lala?
We have been in Birmingham for a week now. I think we are close to a point where we finally feel rested again. The transition to a "new" city has been easier than I thought and we are happy to be here. However, adjusting to an apartment has been a bit harder than I expected. The complex is somewhat small and on the side of a hill, so there's no room to "stroll" with the stroller and I can't really run around the complex for fear of being run over. Thankfully there is an exercise room...

As I strolled up to the exercise room at the apartment complex yesterday evening, I was thrilled to find only 1 guy there. "Sweet!" I thought to myself. It's 5pm on a weekday which is typically one of the busiest times in a gym. I walk inside and hopped on one of the 6 treadmills they have lined up in a row. It doesn't work. Okay, so I get on the next one. Doesn't work. You see where I am going with this. No wonder no one is there. None of the machines work! I came back to the apartment pretty bummed out. All dressed up and no place to sweat. But, then I remembered reading my super cool friend Brooke's blog where she shared about LaLa. Lala is similar to iTunes, only you can listen to an entire song (for free) before you buy it and the songs are cheaper than itunes. SO, last night the kids and I boogied down to some songs on Lala and I definitely got my cardio in. We danced around to some of my old favorites like "Bust A Move" by Young MC and "Hey Ya" by OutKast. And I shamelessly admit we even danced to the Electric Slide! After the kids went to bed, I mellowed out to some Avett Brothers and Sandra McCracken. In times when the economy is like it is, we are all about free stuff at the Stephen's house. So, head on over to Lala and enjoy your favorite tunes!

My friend BEcky tagged me for one of these little things. I'm tagging Amanda Skinner, Kari, Holly Welch, and Amanda Underwood!

1. Five names you go by:
Allison
Al
Ali
Saunders
Ali-cat

2. Three things you are wearing right now:
Glasses
Pajama Bottoms
A sweatshirt that's 12 years old

3. Three things you want very badly at the moment:
The stock market to rebound
To stay in Birmingham permanently
To be settled in our apartment

4. Two people who will probably fill this out
Amanda- when she returns from seattle
Kari -when she gets done painting

5. Three things you did last night:
Read
Watched an episode of King of Queens
Ate dinner at Zoe's (thanks Cheryl!)

6. Three things you ate today.
Granola
Chic-fil-A (thanks mom!)
Fiesta Pie (thanks Mindy!)

7. Three people you talk on the phone with?
My mom
My sister
Kari

8. Three things you are going to do tomorrow?
Watch football and eating chili
Going for a run
Hang out with my family

9. Two longest car rides:
Georgia to Colorado Springs
Georgia to D.C.

10. Three of your favorite beverages
Coffee
Water
Diet Dr. Pepper

Can you tell this little boy LOVES his trucks? This is what I find every morning when they watch Dora.

SWEET HOME ALABAMA...At least for a little while!

Well, the Stephens are headed back to Alabama! Mitch's project here in Tennessee finishes in a few days and we will soon begin packing up to set up temporary camp in Birmingham. So, get your pencils out as I will be sending out our new address sometime soon. Looks like we will be moving around Sept 30th or Oct. 1st...yikes! That's just 3 weeks away! We are sad to leave Franklin as there is so much here that we have grown to love. However, we have known that this time was coming and we do feel like it's our time to go. There is a lot that we are looking forward to in Birmingham and that helps the parting not be so sorrowful. I kinda get queasy at the thought of change (even good change), so pray that all of this transition will go smoothly. We will be bunking up in a 2 Bedroom apartment while we are in Birmingham, so I REALLY hope the kids adjust well to sharing a room. I always find comfort in Little House on the Prairie...if they can all be happy in that tiny house with up to 5 kids, we should be fine with just our 2!
So, to all of our friends in Franklin, we will certainly miss you! To all of our friends in Birmingham, we sure can't wait to see you!

I Couldn't Resist...

You're feeling: a little overwhelmed, a little anxious
To your left: a fly-tying table
On my mind: sadly, chocolate (due to question 1)
Last meal included: leftover lasagna
You sometimes find it hard to: say what I really mean.
The weather: sunny and humid
Something you have a collection of: i echo amanda in her collection sentiments...although I do enjoy my Spode Christmas china. Is that considered a collection?
A smell that cheers you up: pumpkin bread and chili. Can you tell I'm ready for fall?
A smell that can ruin your mood: dog poo
How long since you last shaved: one day
The current state of your hair: pony tail...the usual
Largest item on workspace (not computer): Neily's latest art work
Your skill with chopsticks: none
Which section you head for first in a bookstore: magazines
Something you are craving: a relaxing day with my hubby watching SEC football
Your general thoughts on the presidential race: i'm kinda ready for it all to be over
How many times have you been hospitalized in the past year? none
Favorite place to go for a quiet moment? the bath tub
You've always secretly thought you'd be a good: pianist. I just never gave it enough time.
Something that freaks you out a little: Not knowing where we will be living next month
Something you've eaten too much of lately: empty calories
You have never been: to Disneyland. And to be honest, I really have no desire to go.
You never want to: rent again. oh, this time has been dreadful!

Our Little Ballerina

Neily went to her first ballet class on Saturday. We had not planned on signing her up for anything since our time here was limited, but this opportunity came up last Thursday and I couldn't pass it up. A neighbor who has a little girl Neily's age told me about a new ballet class that was opening up for girls ages 3-5 at a local studio. We jumped on the opportunity b/c it was pretty inexpensive and we could just pay each month (so if we move in a few weeks there wouldn't be any money lost). Neily was a bit apprehensive at first, but once we bought her leotard and ballet slippers she was fired up. Here are a few pictures from her first class. There were only 2 of them in the first class which was really nice so Neily could get to know Miss Heather. Unfortunately, my camera wasn't working well and most of the pics I took were dark. These are the best of the bunch.

Trying on her new outfit. don't you love the panties showing?


Learning how to walk like a ballerina - Jake joined in for a minute. He was dying to get out there and dance, too!


Stretching with Miss Heather before class started


Neily and her neighborhood friend, Ella

ARRINGTON VINEYARDS

We decided to do something different this weekend for our night out. We usually eat out once on the weekend an were just tired of all our ususal places. So, we decided to take the kids, grab Subway and head over to Arrington Vineyards for the evening. Our friends the Russell's joined us with their two little ones and we had a great time. Although it was a bit warm, there was a nice breeze and some good live music that made you forget it was a hot summer evening. We will certainly visit again before our time in Franklin comes to an end. I'm just sad we didn't discover it sooner!

WELCOME TO HOLLAND
by
Emily Perl Kingsley.

c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have notshared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It’s like this……

When you’re going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It’s all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, “Welcome to Holland.”

“Holland?!?” you say. “What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.”

But there’s been a change in the flight plan. They’ve landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It’s just a different place. It’s slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you’ve been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around…. and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills….and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy… and they’re all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say “Yes, that’s where I was supposed to go. That’s what I had planned.”

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away… because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But… if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things … about Holland.


Thanks, Samuel, for putting this up on yourblog. I have a couple of friends whose little ones have disabilities and this was so helpful for me to read and gain a little more understanding of their daily battles. I hope you all gain something from it, too.

This is our cat Bailey. There really are no words for this picture. This is how she sleeps when she's on the porch. It cracks me up every time.

Dress Up -

While Mitch and I were working in our bedroom this weekend the kids were entertaining themselves in our closet. They were giggling and babbling on. They came out looking like this. I still can't believe the both managed to walk all the way down the hall wearing Mitch's size 14 shoes!

Sharing at it's Finest

For some reason I have never made cobbler. Mitch has asked me to for years, but I just never have...
Until this weekend. I made this recipe and my hubby was a very happy man! It was so fabulous and so easy. We made it for company on Saturday evening and it was so good that I made more last night for Mitch to take with him to work. Instead of blackberries I chose to make it with blueberries. I think it will try it again soon with peaches or apples.
I wanted to post this great picture of the cobbler in a cute little cup donned with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but Mitch ate it all before I could take the picture! So, instead of showing you a picture of an empty cup, here is one of what was left after we "tried" the cobbler again last night. As you can tell, we sure tried it a lot!

My Little Sleeping Beauty

Oh, how precious they are when they sleep!

Oh the woes of being two...
Jake is getting his 2 year molars and i must say that we are ALL ready for this short season to pass. We have had lots of long days with a very whiny little boy. Oh, it can be so hard sometimes. Short naps. Long afternoons. But then I look at this picture and it truly takes the frustration away. Hmmm, maybe I should tape this picture to his forehead for the rest of the day?

Sunflowers

I tell you what. These sunflowers are so tall! I just can't get over how much they have grown. Here is a picture of Neily on Mitch's shoulders. It's hard to tell from the angle, but the tallest sunflower is still at least a foot taller than the two of them together.
I love the other picture of the orange color sunflower. I have never seen one like that and I think it's so beautiful. I hope more grow so I can cut them and put them in my kitchen.