Let the presents begin...

We always do a lot of traveling during the holidays and have many days of opening gifts. Today we kicked off the 2007 week long Christmas celebration at Aunt Becky's and Uncle Rodney's. Morgan got a new car from her adopted grandparents, Pappy Carl and Grandma Ruth, Uncle Rodney, Aunt Becky, and cousins Anna and Shannon. She was thrilled!

Getting in

So proud of the car

Dear Santa,

The shirt says it all!

Christmas Decorations

I am finally done with 95% of my Christmas decoration. I hate that I am even this late in getting the decorations up...I feel like if I am going to take all the time and effort to put the stuff out that I'd like to enjoy it for more than 12 days! We have a very eclectic Christmas at our home. Nothing really matches, but it all looks nice!

O Christmas Tree

The stockings were hung by the....wait! No chimney!

Morgan's Tree

The Many Faces of Morgan

What happens when you try to get a 17 month old to sit still for a Christmas card photo...

Trees

Yesterday we began the arduous process of Christmas decoration. I love the holiday season. I love getting out the decorations and lovingly placing each piece in it's display place. However, I hate, hate, HATE putting up and "fluffing" our Christmas tree. I want someone to come in and do that for me. I will put the ornaments on it, but please someone get it out of the box, string the lights, and make it look like a real tree and not a Christmas Stick. It seems every year that the day that should be a fun time of decoration always turns into a 15 hour day of cleaning, moving furniture, short tempers, and 3 hours spent on one string of lights that isn't working on the pre-lit tree.


In any event, we did get the tree up and all lights working. There is only one ornament on the tree right now because at 11:00 last night I was too exhausted to start with that project. I also have a tree that is just for Morgan. It's a little taller than she is right now, and it has been placed in her room. I hope to get both trees decorated tonight.


Here are a few pictures of Morgan "helping" with the tree process!

Helping Mama "fluff" Morgan's Tree

One more turn and this baby will be done!

There Dad, I straightened it out for you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What a feast we had today at the Tenney household! It is so wonderful to be with family on this day to enjoy each other and officially kick off the holiday season! We had a fabulous meal. The deep fried turkey actually cooked all the way through this year, we ate on time, and actually watched ALL of the Macy's parade.

There are so many things to be thankful for each year. One more year to be together, with family in good health tops my list. I am thankful for family that desires to be together at the holidays. I am so thankful that we are close to our families. I am thankful for technology that allows me to see my parents via webcam almost every day, even though they live a thousand miles away. In such a busy world where I never seem to get a moment to slow down, days like today are treasures. I pray for health for our family during the next year so we can all come together again next Thanksgiving to celebrate.

Brrr!

After a few days of reprieve in the 60s, old man winter has slammed into West Virginia. Last night it snowed enough to stick (not much, but I noticed on my drive to work that people had snow piled up on their cars) and today's high is a very cold 35 degrees. Right now, according to the weather channel, it's dreary and 33. They actually use the word dreary. How am I supposed to get excited about work?

Give me a break people....

What part of this outfit screams "I'm a BOY"?!?! I am not kidding when I say that while I had Morgan out today that THREE people commented on what a cute little BOY I had. And this is exactly what she was wearing.

I don't get it. Is everyone in Morgantown colorblind? Or is it me....is this coat and hat really red, or blue, or another non-female gender specific color?

I realize that many times I dress Morgan in gender neutral clothing and with her short hair it is not always easy to tell that she is a girl. But today was not one of those days.

So have I lost my mind or has everyone else?

WFMW: Traditions

The holiday season is creeping up fast, and I am trying to get ready for the hustle and bustle of the season. Rocks in my Dryer sponsors a Backward Day on WFMW. Instead of telling you what works for me, I am soliciting ideas for what has worked in the past for you. Alaina asked a good question that I am going to use. Since Morgan is getting old enough to start participating in some holiday activities, my question is very simple...what traditions do your family enjoy for Thanksgiving and/or Christmas? I'm most interested in the traditions that would be good to add into our routine for toddlers but that would also still be fun when they are older. Feel free to leave ideas, websites, recipes, or anything else that you think would be helpful!

One tradition we always did as a family and that I will be starting with Morgan is making paper chains out of red and green construction paper. The day after Thanksgiving my mom would have the strips cut and we would each get 32 (the number of days between Thanksgiving and Christmas). We would use a glue stick and loop the paper together and Mom would help us make a chain of alternating colors that we could then hang on our dresser or in our room somewhere. Every day we ripped off a link as a "countdown" to Christmas. On Christmas Eve there is only 1 link left!

Some variations I have thought of that we might start include:

--write something nice to do every day on the countdown rings, or maybe on every 5th ring

--put a sticker or star on one or a couple of the links and if your child gets the star they get to be "in charge" that day (i.e. pick dinner menu, daily activities)

One tradition I plan to start this year are letting Morgan pick an "angel" off of the various trees set up around town to purchase some gifts for a needy child. She will pick the angel and pick out (and eventually pay for) one of the gifts.

Finally, a tradition I started for my brother, Patrick's sister, Morgan and our neice is to give a new ornament to each of them (my brother and his wife, my sister and brother in law, Morgan and Julia seperately) every year. That way when they are decorating their trees they can think of family. And when Morgan leaves home to be on her own, she will be able to take all of her ornaments with her.

Poetic Justice

It never pays to be in a hurry. Never. Bad things happen when one is in a hurry. Case in point...yesterday I was trying to get out a skillet from my cabinet to make dinner. It was later than usual and I had a rather grumpy toddler running around my kitchen asking for cheese and creating havoc everywhere. I was trying to get dinner made fast and the skillet was caught on something in the cabinet. Rather than look in the cabinet to see what was holding things up, I did what any harried mother would do...I yanked. Hard.

One millisecond later pain was shooting from my foot. In my haste to get the skillet out I had knocked over some pots stacked in front of the skillets, sending them all flying and my largest, heaviest stock pot crashing, rim side down, right on my big toe. More precisely, the crease/knuckle of my big toe. It created the kind of pain that had me literally wailing in the kitchen, hopping around clutching my toe, and crying huge crocodile tears. I ended up sitting down because the pain was so intense. I am sure it looked pretty funny from a fly's perspective. The dog was barking at me and trying to lick my face...Morgan was jabbering loudly and gesturing at me and trying to climb in my lap in a touching but painful attempt to stop my wailing. The only adult in the house is wailing on the floor. It was a total mess.

It took a few minutes for the pain to decrease enough for me to stand back up. Then I had to gingerly coax my foot to the floor and put weight on my toe. I am pretty darn sure it's broken. It's black and blue and I tore some skin off in the process. And to add insult to injury the spot that is most painful is right at the crease in my shoes so when I walk in these shoes, that crease presses into the bruise/broken bone.

Moral of the story....take a few seconds to slow down and pay attention to what I was doing. 10 seconds of looking and adjusting would have saved dinner being 15 minutes later than it already was, one poor big toe from assault, and one still harried mom in less pain. Thank goodness Morgan wasn't right beneath my feet when it happened!

Behind Already

According to this Christmas Countdown site, with only 55 days left until Christmas, I am already behind in my organization! I should have started October 21st with my getting organized week for the Christmas season and I am already half-way through "reality check week".

In all seriousness it is nice to have the holiday season approaching, and I look forward to searching this site a little more for some ideas to perhaps make it less hectic. I am already ahead in my Christmas buying though! I only have a few small items to purchase and my shopping is complete. I am one of those people who shops all year long and is constantly at the clearance racks in the stores looking for my loved ones' gifts. (Sorry if that is a revelation to any of my family members....no I don't pay full price for your gifts!)

This is my favorite time of year. Not because I will possibly get a few gifts, but because I get to GIVE gifts. Gifts of time, donations, prayers, food, and treasures to family, friends, and most importantly, those who are less fortunate than I am. Not that I need a reason or a season to give to the homeless, nursing homes, orphanages, etc., but it always seems that my heart is gladdened more by giving at Christmas. My favorite thing to do is to gather angels and tags from the various "trees" around town and give to people that I will never see. It makes me happy to think about how I might make someone smile on Christmas day, just by doing something that has made me smile. That's the best way to give a gift.

The holiday season is always rushed and busy, but I am going to try and focus this year on what the season is about...the birth of my Saviour. The gifts of giving of myself. And the time to spend with family. Truly it is a blessed time of year.

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at Rich's Farm in Smithfield, PA picking pumpkins and petting farm animals. Morgan had a fantastic time picking out her pumpkin. She walked with her Daddy through the corn maze, watched the pig, lamb, chickens, cow, and horse in the petting "zoo", climbed the hay bale mountains, and went for a tractor/wagon ride. She also pet the cow and the horse, but she didn't really like the horse. She liked to listen to the pigs snort around in their pen and wasn't sure what to make of the lamb. It was a cold, crisp fall day and I think the beginning of an annual family tradition!

I have been trying for a couple of days to get some pictures uploaded to this post, but for some reason blogspot won't upload them. You'll have to visit Morgan's site to see the pictures, and if I can get them to work, I'll post them here!

Pumpkin Art

How do you dress up your pumpkin?

West Virginia Fall

It's been a late fall season and there have still been a few hot days (over 80) in October, so the leaves have just started to change here in Appalachia. I snapped a few pictures along the ridge close to my in-laws house as I was driving home from there the other day.

The pretty progression of color in one tree

View from Sunrise Ridge

This reminds me of a picture that would be paired with a Robert Frost poem

Beautiful rainbow on the drive home

Two Fantastic Recipes

Here are two recipes I have had lately that are just delicious!

White chocolate, cranberry, and macadamia nut cookies

Servings: Makes 36 (large) or 72 (small) cookies.

Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries (about 6 ounces)
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips (about 8 1/2 ounces)
1 cup coarsely chopped roasted salted macadamia nuts (about 4 1/2 ounces)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift first 3 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Add both sugars and beat until blended. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla. Add dry ingredients and beat just until blended. Using spatula, stir in cranberries, white chocolate chips, and nuts.For large cookies, drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, spacing 21/2 inches apart. For small cookies, drop dough by level tablespoonfuls onto sheets, spacing 11/2 inches apart.Bake cookies until just golden, about 18 minutes for large cookies and about 15 minutes for small cookies. Cool on sheets.

Do ahead: Can be made ahead. Store airtight at room temperature up to 2 days or freeze up to 2 weeks.


Fabulous Pumpkin Mousse

2 small packages sugar free vanilla pudding (instant)
2 cups milk (skim preferably)
1 can Pumpkin (depending on your taste)
½ tsp Pumpkin pie spices (or cinnamon & nutmeg)
1 cup Sugarfree Cool Whip

Beat pudding, milk, pumpkin and spices with a whisk. Fold in Cool Whip. Refrigerate for at least two hours (longer if possible).

Keeps 3-4 weeks in the refrigerator. Yields 4 servings of 2 Weight Watchers points each. (Very big servings). Can also be used to make pies. Use a baked pie crust or graham cracker crust. Makes 2 pies for 2 points at 1/6 pie.

Hiatus

I hated to realize today that I haven't posted on this blog for almost a month. Things have been so busy at home and at work that I just haven't had the time. Add to that the fact that Morgan and I have both been sick for well over a week and that leads to one very tired Mama.

While it's been super busy, there really hasn't been much going on to report. Patrick has been working and on the road a lot with his new job as the Suicide Prevention Coordinator for WV. On Saturday the 6th we participated in a 5K walk for suicide prevention in Huntington. That was a lot of fun. It was a gorgeous day and the park was really nice. Patrick's sister Amy and our niece Julia joined us and we had a good time.

Last weekend Morgan and I were in Buckhannon with my aunt while Patrick was out of town. We wrapped Christmas gifts, played Scrabble, and did a little shopping. It was nice to have some help with Morgan since I have strep throat and have been running a fever for a few days.

This weekend is WVU football and the Red Ribbon Race (we're not running in this one, just working the tables). Fall has certainly arrived in WV. I am not a big fan of fall because it is the beginning of winter, my least favorite of the seasons. But this year I am glad to see it come. Frankly I am tired of my summer clothes and it's been refreshing to have a little crispness in the air. Fall is a time to remind us there is beauty in dying and that life is renewed every year. While winter is always so long for me, I look forward to life renewed in the spring.

'Lo Mo

Morgan's understandable speech has really picked up over the past two weeks. She's really good at saying no and vigorously shaking her head...big surprise there. She has also become very fond of hello, or in her slang, 'lo. She will walk around with her play phone, or the real phone, or a TV remote, or really anything to her ear and say "'Lo? 'Lo?! LO!!!" I am, sure she picked that up from listening to me say Hello to her play phone about every ten seconds. She LOVES to play with phones, but she will not talk to anyone live on the phone. But when she plays she'll talk on her phone, then put it to my ear and I will talk, then she takes it back and talks some more. It's hilarious. Over the past three days she'll just walk around saying 'LO 'LO 'LO, and so that's what we've been calling her. Now if I could get her to say Mo (that's Daddy's nickname for her) that would be way cool. Although I haven't been able to get the phone conversation on video or photo, here's a few pictures of Lo Mo I took today.

Daddy brought home beads from New Orleans

My New Orleans Al E. Gator

Self Portraits

Did You Notice

Did anyone notice that Morgan has the same Binky in her mouth in both the 2006 and 2007 pictures in the post below?!?! Interesting....well maybe it's just interesting for me, but I have to say that in 14 months we have only lost ONE Binky. I say it's dilligence on my part. Others may say it's obsession.

Anniversary

Today is Morgan and Ellen's one-year anniversary. It has been a year since I returned to work outside of my house since having Morgan. It's hard to believe it's been that long already. Although so many things have changed with Morgan and in our lives there are many days that I just can't admit that a year has gone by so fast. It is also amazing to me how much Ellen loves my daughter, as if she were one of her own grandchildren, rather than just a charge to watch. I think it helps greatly that for the past year Morgan has been the only child there every day (sometimes Ellen watches her 6 year old granddaughter, or her friends' children). Morgan gets daily one on one attention that has helped her mature and grow as well. It is clear that Morgan loves Ellen very much. Ellen has taught Morgan so many things...how to roll, how to blow kisses, how to eat new foods, how to put her toys away. I certainly couldn't ask for a better person (outside of my family) to watch my child. Ellen is very much a part of our family now and even when Morgan gets too old to stay with Ellen, she will continue to hold a very special place in my heart. She takes care of my precious angel every day, and does a fantastic job of it!

All ready for my first day with Ms. Ellen

Arriving at Ms. Ellen's

One year later....too lazy to get up and get dressed to go!

Today Morgan took Ellen some pink roses to celebrate their anniversary. Mama left with tears in her eyes. It may have been a year, but there are days it is still hard to leave my baby in the morning.

Start your day off right

This morning as I was heading into work just a few moments ago I was listening to Sirius satellite radio as I almost always do on my 45 minute drive from home to work. I had steered away from my usual morning talk show (Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio) and had flipped over to the pop station that I usually listen to in the afternoon. That channel has been playing a rash of really bad songs: New Kids on the Block, Hanson, and Milli Vanilli to name a few...oh and this horrible song by Gnarls Barkley called Crazy! It follows me everywhere I go...it's driving me crazy!!

But every once in a while one of those bad songs comes on and you forget for a moment that it really is a bad song. Today that song was The Macarena. I was actually excited to hear this song and began car-dancing to the music while I sat in traffic lights. Car-dancing always embarasses my husband, but it was just what I needed today to get my blood flowing and to put a smile on my face. While listening to the song I thought of days past when I watched my Dad do the Macarena in the middle of a tour bus aisle with a group of high school girls in the 16th hour of a 20 hour bus trip from Belgium to Italy. If that image doesn't make you smile, nothing will!

So that's my story for this morning. The moral is to enjoy car dancing because you may make someone laugh! And at least I don't video myself doing it!

Remembering Grandpa

Today marks the fifth anniversary of my grandfather's death. I have been very reflective today, remembering what a funny and interesting man my grandfather was. He was a plumber by trade, an honorary firefighter, a WWII veteran. I watched him care many years for his dying wife with fierce love. After her death in 1991 he spent over 10 years volunteering at the Senior Citizen center, playing cards, helping friends, and watching my youngest cousins after school. When he got sick with lung cancer he went to live with my mom's sister, but maintained his house and always dreamed of returning there one day. On the day before his death he asked my family for someone to drive him to my wedding. Sadly, he didn't make it there in person, although I know in my heart that both he and my grandmother were both there in the front row.

When I came to college I spent many weekends in Pittsburgh with Grandpa. We would go to Kings Restaurant at the end of Presque Isle Drive every Saturday morning for breakfast. I would try to cook him a "real" meal every trip. He would watch John Wayne movies and swear he had never seen them before, then quote many passage in the movie! When Patrick and I started dating he opened his heart and let Patrick in. I think he was very fond of my husband and was happy when we announced our engagement. He loved to teach Patrick about electrical and plumbing jobs and would tell stories for hours about the past.

It always amazed me that Grandpa continued to live in the same house that my grandmother passed away in. He was strong. He was bull headed. Sometimes he was so stubborn you just wanted to throw up your hands and walk away. But he loved his family. He was loyal. He would do anything for his friends. Although I was much closer to my grandmother, Grandpa will always hold a very special place in my heart.

I miss him immensly. In our last trip to Pittsburgh we drove past his familiar green house. Sure things have changed, and it was on the market again, but it mostly looked the same. On Monday Patrick and I sold Grandpa's Jeep. I had been driving the Jeep since February of 2003 and it still smelled like Grandpa, even on the day we sold it. Even though the sale was a huge answer to prayers, I was sad to see it go. It was as if the Jeep was my last remaining connection to Grandpa. And now it is gone.

Today is a sad day, but Grandpa wouldn't want me to be sad. I am remembering his silly smile, the way he would talk about his life, and the picture in my mind of him rocking in his chair with his ball cap perched on his head, watching TV, with his tray table next to the chair, eating a "samich".

Grandpa, I miss you lots. I know you are in Heaven with your wife, and I can't wait to see you there one day.

Cousins

Over the weekend we had a "mini" family reunion with Patrick's family. Patrick's parents, grandparents, and his sister and her family all came to Webster Springs to spend some time together. It was wonderful to get to see everyone. Morgan and Julia were so fun to watch. Now that they are both mobile they played together, "talked" to each other, and were total entertainment for the adults!

Below are some pictures of the girls from the weekend. Morgan is almost 14 months, Julia is almost 11 months.

Aunts and Nieces

Aunt Jennifer and Julia

Aunt Amy and Morgan

Bailey's Weekend

This pretty much sums up what Bailey did this weekend. What a LAZY dog!

Gratuitous Weekend Pictures

What happens when you turn your back for 20 seconds




Morgan at BareFoot Landing (in the mall)




Future Fighter Pilot (just like Grandpa)




Begging for cheese

Up Close and Personal

When it's too quiet you know someone's up to no good...

Today while I was in the living room attempting to account for a missing ball popper ball and remove an Easter egg from said popper (Morgan LOVES to put things down the hole), I noticed that it was quiet. Too quiet. You know that feeling....when there is not a sound in the house even though your child(ren) are home. And you just have that "OH NO" feeling in your stomach as you realize you haven't heard any sounds for a few minutes.



So I went on the hunt to find Morgan. Thankfully our house is fairly small and there were few places she could be. I found her in our entrance room/mud room which we refer to as Bailey's room because that is where her cage and food/water are. When I walked around the corner I found my daughter dipping a wash rag (that she got off the edge of the tub from her bath the night before) IN the dog's water dish and then sucking the water out of the rag!!!



Naturally I let out this "Just what do you think you are doing" half yell half laugh. Morgan and Bailey both jumped about 5 feet in the air. I wish I would have had my video camera because it was cute, even if it was gross. Morgan had stretched water across the entire length of the room. I guess she felt that I needed to mop the floor!