Thanksgiving in the South

Yup that's right... we headed down to good ole' Mississippi to visit our dear friends Jim, Mitzi, and their daughter Mia. They moved there from Chicago a year ago because Jim took a job at Ole Miss. We were quite brave for embarking on a 10 hr straight car ride with a year and a half old, but Addison did great. We stopped and let her run around and invested in a DVD player to try to occupy her when she really got restless. We went through Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas, and finally Mississippi- it was quite an adventure! I have to say that we were pleasantly surprised with Oxford, MS. It is a really cute town and the people there are all so nice. I was called Mam! Ha ha ha. We had a great time enjoying Thanksgiving together, going to the Ole Miss football game and tailgating, going downtown and shopping at the Square, the guys got in some golf, and it was even warm enough to sit outside and enjoy a fire and have some smores. We had such a blast. Thank you Jim and Mitzi for having us, we'll be back for another game! We miss you already!

It was so interesting to see how much people LOVE football in the South. I am not a huge football fan, but I must admit- after being in that environment it is really fun. The families all come out to the grove on game day and set up tents with elaborate spreads... I mean chandelirs, flat screen TVs with satellites, silver platters, flower centerpieces, pots of chili, grills, etc. This is the real deal! The women get all dolled up and wear the cutest dresses to the game! No sweatshirts and jeans here... People are rebel fanatics... I saw embroidered rebels on pants, smocked dresses with rebels, Ole Miss paraphinelia was everywhere. It was quite a sight to see... If you ever get a chance to go check it out, it is well worth it!

Going back to Thanksgiving- We truly do have so much to be thankful for! We are SO blessed... thanks to all our family and friends who truly do enrich our lives!

Addison's 18 months!

We have a 1 1/2 year old!!! Addison is becoming more and more of her own little person each and every day. She is one independent little girl who knows what she wants. This is a good and bad thing... We have been trying to take advantage of each "warm" day left before it is too cold to go to the park... Grammy & Pappy came out to visit for my birthday and spoiled Addie with their love and attention. She got quite accustomed to her daily Starbucks run- thanks Mom and Dad for helping her to develop expensive taste at such a young age! I know we're in trouble with this one because she is OBSESSED with shoes and purses. She continues to learn new words daily, is a pro at feeding herself with a spoon, loves music and dancing, looking at books, "talking" on the phone, and pushing her dolly around in her stroller. She has fallen in love with Elmo, not by watching TV, but from seeing him on her diapers. She is a true joy and we are so blessed to have her little sparkle in our lives daily. We are about to embark on "time outs" so wish us luck!

Addie was delighted to have Grammy & Pappy out here visiting... She loves being the center of attention, so loved every moment of it. Mere and Natalie also came down for a weekend, which was such a blast. If only you didn't move to Mich... Addie wasn't so sure about having to share her turf, toys, and Mom with Natalie... I have to work on this! She is quite protective of me around other kids :)

(I had this saved since Nov. 17 but never got around to sorting out the pictures, so here we are... a few weeks late!)