Hey everybody!! In case you were wondering, we're all still here!

Time to get caught up, as once again I've been slacking!
We've had a lot going on the last couple of weeks, and though my blog is ALWAYS on my mind, it just doesn't always get the attention it deserves. I suppose I must take care of my children, instead of my blog, though they may both say that I neglect them as well!

First of all...have you noticed my cute "family" at the bottom of my blog?
Go ahead.
Scroll down.
I'll wait for you to get back.
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Isn't it so cute! I put it on there a couple months ago and have kept forgetting to bring attention to it. I just love how I look in that bikini! If only I was seriously a stick figurine like I look in that bikini...Oh, those were the days!

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We surprised Harrison and took him to Monster Jam last Saturday night. Disclaimer: He totally did not deserve to go as he had a less than pleasing attitude with his Mommy {perhaps Mommy needed her happy pills :) } and had I not already spent the money, and had I not wanted to surprise him (because he really has taken the last 9 months of being a big brother after being "IT" for 6 1/2 years totally in stride with few complaints or wanting to send her back) and if I weren't just a total pushover who loves her little boy....then I probably would have scrapped the whole idea!

But I didn't, and we even went early because I'd gotten pit passes (note to self not to do that again!) Shoot me if I ever wait in line 2 hours to touch "Grave Digger" or to get the drivers autograph. No thank you. Aaron reminded me that some people are seriously into this. Not I. I mean, seriously- a 50 year old man had a driver sign his sweatshirt. Isn't that something I would've done with New Kids on the Block in the 6th grade???

As for me, someone forgot to tell me what shoes to wear. I was the ONLY person in the entire stadium with any sort of heel. It seems tennis shoes or work boots are the proper attire for such an event. Next year I will know. I figured that this was as close to a night on the town I was gonna get for a while, so I should at least look nice. Anyway, it was fun. Lucas Oil Stadium is really nice and I'd love to go for a game sometime~ that would totally rock! I don't envision that in my future either.

We went to eat at the old Union Station in the Holiday Inn because it was closest and Aaron didn't take a coat (smart one). We thought we were in for a nice quiet meal until a hockey team of 7 and 8 year old boys came into the restaurant. Let me tell you....Harrison is an angel compared to those children. There were bottles flying through the air (plastic bottles) and the smallest of the bunch repeatedly said "Sam likes big butts and he don't know why". The most amusing part of it was that the parents allowed all the wild animals, I mean boys, to sit at the same table and the parents at separate tables. I was just amazed at the way the parents let the wild animals, I mean boys, act. Once again let me say that in comparison, Harrison is an angel, and I am a strong disciplinarian.

Harrison loved all the big trucks, but says his favorite part was when the demolition derby cars raced. Fortunately no one was injured as has been the case elsewhere (fatalities) and we were smart enough (and cheap enough) to sit in the nosebleed section, which in Lucas Oil, still provided an awesome seat! Also cool was the motocross dirtbike drivers doing stunts (flips and all sorts) in the air...now these boys have *you know what* but I can't put it in my blog :)

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Hayden is making her way around these days with no problem! Last night she crawled down the hall and when I snuck a peek she was picking toys out of the toy basket. The next time I looked, she had crawled to her activity table and was standing at it playing. Everything she picks up goes in her mouth and Harrison is very cautious of this. I'm most proud of the fact that she is now saying "mama"- my heart is gushing! Her hair is growing, even starting down the back of her neck~I've been thinking about how I am going to have to learn to do little girls hair soon! She is getting her 6th tooth. I think it's causing her a little more pain than the others because she is drooling a lot more and is a little fussy! She's developed a little bit of a bad schedule. She nurses and goes to bed and then wakes up around 12:30 to nurse again...and again...and so on. Don't quite know how to break this cycle and I certainly know that I won't be "letting her cry" anytime soon! She weighed 17 lbs. 10 oz. at her 9 month appt. last week. She's still taking after her Mama...petite :) She is one tough little girl and I suppose she has to be if you know what I mean *wink wink*. I can't believe that she will be ONE in just a couple months. Where does the time go?

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Harrison asked me this week "How do you get a girlfriend?"

He apparently has his eye on two little girls at school. I am trying to teach him that saying girls are "hot" is no longer appropriate. There was a time that these first time parents of a little boy thought it was kind of cute, but that is no longer, and now I get to try to reverse this "behavior" and teach him to "respect" girls. That is a hard concept to teach, but is SO important, especially with all that he will be exposed to out in the world. Anyway, I reminded him last night that it wasn't just about looks. I asked him if the girls he liked were nice. He said AnneMarie is a little "cranky" and Savannah is "nice". AnneMarie was his "girlfriend" last year, even though he said she was "bossy". I think by the way he is talking about her, they'll probably end up married. This is probably the way Aaron refers to me 90% of the time...cranky and bossy! He also mentioned that one of his friends likes AnneMarie also. In his words... "There's a problem...Garrett likes AnneMarie too" It's like an episode of "As First Grade Turns" or "Days of our First Grade Lives"....

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I'll close with a few more pictures! Eventually I am going to post some more Christmas pictures...but seeing as I still have some cards laying in a basket to send and I am still putting away Christmas decorations, I figure it's okay to still post them eventually...since I'm still doing other "Christmasy" things.

This is Haydens' "official" Christmas dress. However, she wore it once and will be wearing it again if I have to take her to a fancy restaurant just for this purpose. Yes...she had a matching flower headband that I stayed up making the night before just so that she could have it! OCD!

You know who this is....and he looks so sweet and innocent. NO WAY! This is the sweet and innocent one~

This is Harrison's favorite "activity"- hunting any wild animal or flying bird, innocently gliding through the air until.....

And if you had to put up with our family, you might feel the same way Hayden does...WORN OUT!!!

Bless their hearts...I love them both so much~ and despite the MANY times I feel like hanging Harrison from his toenails to the ceiling fan...and turning it on...What on earth would I do without them? I know I'm not alone in feeling this way some days, but then I'm reminded of all the people who would give anything to have a child, and I realize I'm so blessed to have Harrison's "attitude" or Hayden's waking me up in the middle of the night.

~I love my life~