Just Taking Some Pictures

These are just a few pictures I took over the last few days of Mary Paul. She is getting so big and as always is so much fun. She gets excited when we talk about Ellie Jane, who will be here two weeks from today!!! I am nervous about having two kids, but hopefully I'll do okay. Enjoy the pictures of Mary Paul!!!

Mary Paul is Getting Bigger

Mary Paul is getting so big and so smart and so contrary. She argues with everything. For example, while drinking apple juice I said, "How's your apple juice, Mary Paul?" Her response was, "No. I'm not drinking apple juice." When I told her she couldn't lick the play-dough, her response was , "But I have to lick the play-dough." Last week, for the first time ever, I just left a buggy full of items and walked out of the store. Despite the fact she is entering her terrible twos, when I am not exasperated, she cracks me up. She came out of her room this morning wearing a hat, shoes and a "coat" (her blankie around her shoulders). She danced all over the room. She also is loving to tell stories and has the vocabulary to do it. A final funny story that occurred after I left the previously mentioned cart of groceries.

Me: Mary Paul, today we need to go to Target and Publix.
MP: No. I don't want to go to Publix.
Me: Well, we have to go to Publix to get the rest of the food the ladies retreat.
MP: (Sigh) You don't eat ladies for treats.

Playing dress up with whatever she can find. It was 8:15 in the morning so we were still in our pajamas.

Please Pray

Please pray for our dear friends, the Tuleys. Bryan and Jeff were in each others' weddings. They are sweet family going through a difficult time. Thank you all.

www.thetuleys.blogspot.com

Big Christmas Post

We had a wonderful Christmas!!! We were gone for two weeks. We had our family Christmas the Monday before the 25th. As requested, Mary Paul received a globe and some mittens along with a train table. Bryan loved his XBOX 360. We left the next day for Atlanta. We had wonderful time with Bryan's family and got to spend Tuesday through Friday with them. We drove home Friday afternoon, washed clothes, repacked and left Saturday morning for West Virginia. It was a long 10 hour drive but worth it for the family time we got o have with my family. Bryan got to snowboard every day and had a blast. He also got to spend a lot of time with fellow snowboarders Andi and John. Mary Paul had fun playing with her cousins. I, unfortunately couldn't do many outdoor winter activities, being 30 weeks pregnant, but my sisters and mom took good care of me and played a lot of board games. Those of you who know me, know I love games. We loved the snow, but Mary Paul hated the cold wind. I think she prefers the beach to the snowy mountains. Enjoy the monster post of pictures, but hey it was a two week Christmas.

So, believe it or not, this was not posed. Mary Paul loved this snowman and carried him around the house.

The requested globe. She loves it. She likes to spin it and ask, "Where does ____ live?"

Mary Paul loved playing with Claire. An besides Brian and Beth, Claire really only loved playing with Mary Paul

This looks like she's saying, "Gag me with a spoon." I just caught her mid move though.

Mary Paul and my other big kid had so much fun playing in the snow together.

An Incredibly Busy Weekend

So...Mary Paul is two years old!!! I cannot believe we have had the honor of such a blessing!!! We had a great time at her party. As you can see, the girl loves her sweets. This past weekend we went to Knoxville to spend some Christmas time with my family. Then we went to Gatlinburg to spend the evening. I ended the weekend with our church Christmas party. This year I organized a Christmas pageant. It went very well. Mary Paul was an angel, literally.

It snowed in Nashville, again, and we took Mary Paul out, late (meaning past her bed time) so she could play in the snow at night.

Waiting to paint pottery after a long drive to Knoxville. We made a reindeer plate with her hand prints.

Ashley with an very creepy wax Nicholas Cage at some random Hollywood car museum. Wax figures creep me out.

Can you guess what color sucker Mary Paul picked? I think it was red. I could be wrong though.

Mary Paul was a great angel. She loved wearing the wings. She did a great job walking and sitting/standing in her place.

Thanksgiving and the Pink Pig

We had a great Thanksgiving. We got to see both sides of our family. We spent the first part of our week with Bryan's family. During that time we went and rode the Pink Pig for the first time. She started off happy, but as you can see got quite upset as we waited. Once her turn to ride came around, she was a happy camper again. Then we went to my side of the family and got to see all my aunts and uncles. Finally, we spent a nice weekend with mom that was very relaxing. We are busy getting ready for Christmas now and can't wait for Santa to make his appearance at our home!!! Also, enjoy the video of Mary Paul singing "Jesus Loves Me."

Tidbits

This past weekend we went to a birthday party. Mary Paul had a great time. It was at a local playground, which she loved. There was a huge dinosaur cake with green icing. In other news, we made Mary Paul's crib into a toddler bed. She had her first nap today and is sleeping in it as I write. She did play a lot during her nap time, but tonight has gone straight to bed. Also, a note of interest, we were at Bass Pro Shop last night and found out that they have a Santa Claus this year. The one here is great. Anyway, the set up is, of course, more rugged, but with trains, two games and a coloring station. Mary Paul saw him, ran up, climbed in his lap and proceeded to ask Santa for a globe. The best part is, the picture is free! You can order more, but every first picture is free. I'm sure we'll take Mary Paul in a pretty dress for another picture, maybe a different Santa, but it was a great surprise!!!