Happy Halloween!

Okay, so I've been the most HORRIBLE blogger EVER!!!!!!!!! It's been SOOOOOO crazy around here and I've been SUPER busy filling Christmas orders, on top of the usual holiday chaos. In order to catch everyone up to speed with our family, I'm just going to do some quick recapping, starting with Halloween.

Truett decided he wanted to be a fireman this year. He had gotten a really nice fireman outfit from Gramma and PaPaw for his birthday in June, but had not really played with it much.

Well, a month or so before Halloween, he became OBSESSED with firemen. He wouldn't leave the house without the full get up on. He wore it EVERYWHERE...restaurants, my mom's house, the grocery store, the doctor. I thought I was going to have to surgically remove the thing before all was said and done.

The week of Halloween, Truett's school had a little 'Fall Fest' thing where the kids wore their costumes, played games, etc.... Guess who lost his costume the night before???? Yeah...I mean the kid LIVED in the costume for WEEKS and the night before Halloween, we couldn't find it ANYWHERE! Jay ran out to Target and found a fireman costume to do the job.

Truett at Fall Fest '09

Emma, of course, was the good ol' firehouse Dalmatian

Concentrating really hard on which temporary tattoo he wanted.

We were all given freshly-spun orange cotton candy as we walked out...YUM!

We did find the costume the next day (at the bottom of Truett's laundry hamper....guess he thought it needed to be washed!).

On Halloween night, the kids trick-or-treated through my mom's neighborhood....GOOD TIMES! This was the first year Truett knew what was going on . He thought it was the COOLEST thing to knock on the neighbors' doors, ask for candy, and actually GET it!

Happy Halloween!

"One, Two, Three....Ladybugs Came to the Ladybug Picnic"

Our sweet girl turned ONE on October 1st! I can't even believe how fast this year has gone by. I've been telling everyone that I still feel like she is only 6 months old or something. I think that I'm subconsciously 'babying' her and I don't know if it's because she's my 2nd or if it's because she's a girl....maybe both! I just remember Truett's first birthday and thinking that he was such a 'big boy', whereas with Emma, I don't feel that at all.

Anyway, it was a busy week for us, but we still managed to have TWO birthday parties!! :) On Thursday night (her actual birthday), we headed over to my mom's house for a birthday celebration. We had dinner, cake, and opened presents. YUMMY kabobsOf course....DONUT CAKE....no party is complete at the Goulas House without it!!Emma wasn't too big on the cake (definitely does NOT get that from ME!). Actually, I think it's the icing she's not too fond of (again, definitely NOT from ME!). So, she looked at the cake, touched it a couple of times, but was pretty much over it. After cake, she opened her gifts. Reading her birthday cards from MawMaw and Gooey Opening her present from Nannie Em....What's inside???BOOTS WIT' THE FUR!!!!!!!!!LeeLa' and PaGou gave Emma a walker/pusherStruttin' her stuff with her new toy and boots!

Emma's new book that Jay and I gave to her. My grandma sent a newspaper article to me that was all about this book. It's a book dedicated to redheads - Little Redheads Across America.

It's filled with pictures of little kids with red hair from every state in the country. Each picture has a little something about each kid. The book also has facts and myths about redheads, tips for handling being teased about having red hair, explanations of why you have red hair, etc.... It's a really cute book! Thanks for the idea, MawMaw! I know Emma will love it for years to come, because whether her hair changes color or not, she was a redhead FIRST! :)

On Sunday, we had her birthday party here. We always call her 'Little Lady', and with my previous obsession with ladybugs, it was a no-brainer when it came to choosing a 'theme' for her party. Everything was very 'girly', too....so much fun! The invitation And, OF COURSE, she had to have her very own special party dress (compliments of Gifted Sistas - http://www.giftedsistas.blogspot.com/)

I made Emma her very own 'dig into it' cake, too. I was keeping my fingers crossed that she would be more excited about this cake than she was about the donut cake....did I mention that she's never had cake before? I mean, her first delicious bite of cake, and....NOTHING! Anyway....

I also made pink and chocolate cupcakes for everyone else, along with flower-shaped sandwiches.

After we ate lunch, it was time to open presents.

Some of her 'firsts' as gifts were her first baby stroller from Gramma & PaPaw, her first Barbie doll from Paran Ben, and her first rocking horse from Charlie, Michelle and Olivia. She also got her first cellphone from Jay and me, along with her first very own collection of books from Aunt Wendy, Uncle Todd, Kennedy and Madison. Uncle Jim, Aunt Stephie and Dakota gave her her very first remote controlled toy....a Smart Puppy! Some gifts were her 'first' AND 'second'....Uncle John and Gramma gave her the same baby doll....TWINS! :)

LeeLa' and PaGou gave her a Raggedy Ann doll (which my mom MADE). My mom has made a Raggedy Ann or Raggedy Andy doll for my brother and sisters, both of my kids and myself. I LOVE THEM and think she should sell them!!! (Let me know if you're interested in ordering one!)

My mom personalizes the heart of each doll she makes. :)

Emma & Papa putting together her new toys

I was so glad that Emma was able to get her very own toys instead of sharing Truett's old toys because in Truett's mind, they're still HIS, no matter how 'babyish' they are. So, NOW, it's Emma's turn to share HER toys with Truett, which he has constantly been reminding us of BEFORE the gifts were even opened!

After presents, it was time for CAKE! She wasn't too sure about everyone singing Happy Birthday to her, and was even LESS sure about the cake! Again, she really didn't get into the cake at all.

Notice the 'pure excitement' on her face as we sang the Birthday Song!

This was the moment where I thought she was going to take the plunge and dig right in, but it was just a MOMENT, and nothing more!

Of course, by this 'after cake' picture, it would seem as though she really got after it, but in reality, she got full of icing because she kept sticking her elbow in the cake each time she would turn in her chair, trying to escape! hahahah!

I guess Truett enjoyed the cake enough for both of them!

Here's Jay after the party! :)

We had a great time celebrating with everyone....well, ALMOST everyone. Sarah was on a church retreat, so she wasn't able to make it to the party and Emily is in North Carolina, but they were DEFINITELY here in spirit!!!!

Emma-We love you so much and are so blessed to have you as a part of our family. I am so proud to be your mom. You add so much to our lives and we look forward to watching grow. Thank you for brightening our days! We love you, Little Lady!

Our Sweet Little Lady

Today is Emma's 1st birthday! This past year has just flown by and it's hard for me to even picture her as anything other than a baby. I remember being pregnant and just KNOWING she was going to be a girl. I bought her first bow before I had my first ultrasound and ordered her PINK bedding with her name embroidered on it before we even had confirmation from the doctor that she was, in fact, a girl (Jay wasn't too happy about the trust I put in my 'gut feeling', but luckily for me, it was right on)!

Emma is such a sweet little thing and loves following Truett around. She's definitely more serious than Truett EVER was, but as she's gotten older, she's started loosening up a bit. :) Her read hair has stuck around, and has even started to curl a bit. When I was pregnant, I would ask Truett what he thought his baby sister was going to look like and he'd always say, "She's going to have pink hair and green eyes." We thought that was so funny, especially once she was born and out came this little redhead that we NEVER expected!!! :)

October 2008

November 2008

December 2008

January 2009

February 2009

March 2009

April 2009

May 2009

June 2009

July 2009

August 2009

September 2009

October 2009

Emma-

You have brought so much joy to our family. Being the first granddaughter on both sides of our families, you have introduced us all to the world of pink and frilly! We have enjoyed every second of loving you and watching you grow. I can't wait for this next year and look forward to the many tea parties and pigtails to come!!! We love you, Emma!