You shouldn't have! (but we're glad you did)

This is what Sammy gave us for Christmas...she did the same for Nana and Papa R, too!  There's room to add a few more handprints and names....

Solitary Confinement

I gave Sammy a large box to play with/in.  She had fun with it all day long including having her dog bed in there to read her books.  My mom always said that kids don't need so many toys because they'd be happy with a stick, a string, and a turd.  I always had to laugh when I imagined that!

What am I sitting on?

Oh, to be so flexible....

Office Depot

Well, I guess that the only color ink cartridge they sent me was Cyan.....

Pebbles

Mommy got the wispy, longest strands of Sammy's hair into a little pony tail.  She reminded me of Pebbles Flintstone!

Special feelings

Sammy has discovered a small pillow that her great-grandmother Jeanne gave to me upon Sammy's birth.  It reads "When a child is born, so is a Grandmother".  No words ever rang more true.

Merry Christmas 2009 v3.5

Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. Luke 2:13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Luke 2:14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Joyful

A great Christmas song and dance

Sammy and the Chipmunks at Christmas Time from Lorna King on Vimeo.

Braids

I did it!  I finally managed to get a rather ratty looking braid into Sammy's hair.  Of course, I had to wet it and distract her with something for her hands while I did it, but, hey!  A BRAID!

 It fell out as soon as it dried.

So Pretty

Sammy now understands the word and connotations of  "Pretty".  If you tell her something is pretty, she repeats the word and smiles.  She continues to say 'pretty' each and every time she passes by the object that is pretty.  So when I told her that her new hat was pretty and would she like me to take a picture of her in it, she quickly obliged.  SHE POSED!  Oh, yeah.  She's a handful, alright.

You better watch out!

You may all remember from last year at this time I explained some of our family traditions.  Well, it was time to bring out our Christmas Elf earlier this week.  When I showed Sammy the elf, she was enchanted.  Little does she know that in years from now, that enchantment will fade and turn to apprehension.  She will have to watch her p's and q's around this little guy!

I'm so impressed!

I found Sammy going through a drawer in the office and then grabbing a piece of paper from it.  I didn't pay much attention to the actual paper but almost fell over when I saw her in deep concentration.  Flow chart?  Sammy?  Seriously?  Whoa...this kid is smart!  Of course, the next time she picked up this paper and read it, it was upside down.

Stylin'

Mommy and Nana spent some time together last week shopping.  Mommy found this cute little outfit just right for a family Christmas party!  (And it looks like Sammy knows how to work the runway!)

Dry air and static electricity

It has been so dry here dispite the snow; dry skin and static in the air.....and hair.  Sammy's hair goes all DonKing on her if she brushes up against anything.  This was just from sitting on the couch.  Let me introduce you to a dandelion puff....

Happy Birthday, Nana!!

Child labor

Sammy decided to help with the dusting and getting the house in order for the holidays. She had a lot of fun dusting everything from furniture, to carpet, to stairs, to dogs. And then, one of our dogs ate the swiffer.

I told you to put them away...

This is what happens when Papa leaves his things laying around. They become TOYS!

It's so soon to be saying this!

Candy Canes

Me? I'm not a Candy Cane fan. At all. I don't even like the smell of them. But I had a few small ones left over from a brownie recipe I had made. I thought maybe Sammy would like one. OMG....that little girl drooled over everything when she was licking/sucking on it. I finally had to throw it out because she was a sticky mess, I was a stinking sticky mess and we left red stains everywhere we went.

Handprints

Last year I found a little handprint kit and I thought it would be a great ornament to hang on the tree. I never expected to find the same kits again this year but I was wrong. Not only did I buy one for Sammy's 2009 handprint, but I bought three more for next year! She would have preferred to dig her nails into the material instead of just pushing her hand down but at least we got it. No do-overs!

Class of 2026

Does this not look like she's posing for her senior class photo? The studious one?

Pretty

The other day, Sammy and I were pointing out Pretty Things and she noticed the rings I wear. She called them pretty and I agreed with her. Then I put them on her fingers. She seemed to be intrigued. Then, she made me so very proud of her vocabuary. The next word out of her mouth was, "More." I rest my case.

Nativity Scenes

We have an abundance of Nativity scenes here, from hokey ceramic ones I made when I was a teenager (yes, they actually had ceramics way back when) to the more recent Willowtree ones. Sammy is learning that there is a baby in each and every one. That she has to kiss. Much like animals she sees. We truly have a hodge-podge holiday decorating theme...

Can you say FASCINATION?

This Thomas Kincaid house was given to us last Christmas by Sammy's great-grandmom Jeanne. It lights up and recites The Night Before Christmas. Last year, Sammy was all...yawn....big deal. This year however, this TALKING house that LIGHTS up is really really neat! If her vocabulary was slightly more advanced, I would have heard, "Mimi, put me up on the counter again, please, because 14 times is NOT enough times to have heard this story in the last 30 minutes. Now, please." We have found Mama, Daddy, kitty, doggie and Santa in the house. No matter how many times we find them, she's surprised that they haven't moved into different rooms.

Your turn

Sammy's baby doll (Hi, Nana!) came over with her the other day. I asked Sammy if she wanted me to take a picture of her babydoll. (Yes, Sammy understands the words 'camera' and 'picture'. It's that black thing that Mimi won't put down.) Sammy decided that she wanted to show the world that a.) she's a good mama and feeds her baby, b.) she's a good mama because she feeds her baby cookies, and c.) she understands the concept of 'sharing'.

Comparisons

Auntie was letting me feel my little grandson and Sammy was interested, also. The fact that her Auntie has a large belly did not go unnoticed! And the comparisons began.....

Mixed berry

Auntie let Sammy finish off her juice box. I don't know if Sammy actually likes the juice or the straw better!

I remember you

Auntie Sissy hasn't seen her little neice for awhile now and Sammy is one of her cravings. She came over the other day after nap time (Sammy's not Sissy's) and once the two of them saw each other? It was all over. Hugs and more hugs.....

No Peeking!

In her daily wanderings around here, Sammy stumbled upon the secret stash of wrapped presents. Ok, not so much 'secret' as merely tossed onto the guest bed. But she rarely goes into this room. It's boring. It has nothing to interest her whatsoever. Until now. I've had to stack these gifts all together in the middle of the bed so little arms can't reach them. Already her height is playing into her ability to reach higher and further than others her age. I can only hope that when she's around 7 or 8, her curiousity will get the better of her and she'll open a few gifts. Daddy, this is what you call 'payback'.

Can you say Camera Ham?

It's beginning to look like Christmas

I had to make a stop at a craft store the other day with Sammy. And, of course, they had all their Christmas items out on display. Sammy is gonna LOVE this holiday. She was so tickled by the sights and sounds and colors and glitter and atmosphere here. Almost like being on chocolate.....

Do you see what I see?

No, this isn't a post about a Christmas song! Take a close look here that this little beauty....see? right there? HAIR! HAIR growing over her ears!! Yippee!! She's getting long little girl hair!

No, it's not Easter yet

Sammy found a plaster rabbit I have in the backyard. Naturally, with any animal she finds or sees, she wants to kiss it. Except horses. She has a love/hate relationship with horses. She loves them, but is wary of them. I guess it's Love From a Distance.

Let me in!

Here we are again, outside, with the big dogs. Sammy so wants to run with the big dogs! But we keep them kenneled up because Ginger would knock her over running around and Madison would growl at her. But that doesn't stop Sammy. She loves doggies. Grumpa held her up above the gate so she could get an unobstructive view of them. Daddy holds her on their dogs so she can get a horsie ride on a German shorthair!

There's a mouse in the house!

Sammy has discovered the various mice we've painted on the walls in secret places here. She shoved some things out of the way and was so delighted to find this one. She likes to kiss the mice she finds. She has even said "mouse" a time or two.

Happy Thanksgiving

We're busy here in the kitchen...hope you all have a wonderful blessing-filled day!

Cookie

I was named after a cookie my mom craved during her pregnancy with me. Guess which one? I've always given thanks that she didn't crave Fig Newtons. But let me tell you, I LOVE Fig Newtons. And so does Sammy!

Little piggy toes

Sammy wore her Uggs this morning and promptly took them off. I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt with her feet being too hot in them and decided to walk around barefoot. But while she was doing that, I just couldn't help but take a few shots of those stinky little monkey toes! Within a reasonable distance, of course.

Scrapbook time!

I'm sure with time, Sammy will display an interest in what the heck Mimi is doing with all those pictures she takes. I will introduce her to the fun of stickers and glue and glitter and all the things that make up scrapbooks. She will soon tire of it all and only be interested in the stickers I can attach to her shirt on her belly. So be it. We'll both walk around with stickers on our bellies.

Velcro

I always remember a friend of mine whose sister owns a daycare. When velcro was first introduced and the little children would sit down to listen to storybook time, there were always those kids who couldn't be quiet and pay attention for very long. They would play with their shoes; their new velcro shoes. The teacher would have to speak over the sound of velcro opening and closing, opening and closing. So it was when Sammy decided to sit with me at the computer and play with her velcro shoes. Open, close, open, close, open, close....time to learn how to tie laces!

Bend and stretch

And when was the last time you could bend over exactly like this and touch the floor? Sammy had to call the paramedics for me afterwards.....