Taylor Times

Reading to Joe, Jan, and Zach

2011-12-21T20:03:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUmuaweykXQ

Toy Story Mr. Potato Head!

2011-12-20T13:06:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2011-12-19T12:36:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Daddy's birthday a few times. This party was at Becky and Eric's house. Gigi made him a delicious Carrot Cake.

Davis and I had tons of fun sticking our fingers in the icing. I enjoyed my piece, and, as always, asked for another one. Davis ate two bites of the icing off of his piece and was done. Daddy enjoyed left over pieces several different mornings for breakfast. He got a new suit, sportcoat, and shoes. Davis and I gave him some pictures of us and pictures that we made for his office.

Christmas at School

2011-12-16T12:52:00.000-08:00

We had a "Pajama Day" at school and watched The Polar Express.
Brady and I had fun playing ball outside at recess in our pjs.

At school, I made a Christmas present for Mommy and Daddy. I also made the wrapping paper and wrapped it all by myself!

This is definitely a special keepsake that will hang in our house every year at Christmas time!

Silly Sparky!

2011-12-15T13:20:00.000-08:00

Sparky is our Elf on the Shelf. He has been super silly this year! One morning he was found reading The Night Before Christmas to all of our stuffed animals.

One morning he had gotten into our cereal, eaten a bunch of it, and wrote our names with it on the counter.

Another morning, we found him in our refrigerator, and our milk was colored red and green! Another morning, we awoke to find our Christmas tree decorated with Dawson's underwear. hee hee hee :)

Dawson's School Christmas Performance

2011-12-13T20:01:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGZSc8s5Afg

We made a Gingerbread House!

2011-12-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

Room Mothers glued two milk cartons together, attached them to a tray, and covered them with graham crackers. Our teachers sent home a letter requesting different types of candy and telling our parents how to make the frosting.

All of the kindergarteners met with their parents in the lunchroom early in the morning. We spread out our candy, pulled out our frosting, and got busy working.

Brody and I were some of the very last ones finished. I was extremely particular with my house. I chose the design and where all the candy was going to be placed. Mommy covered part of the house with frosting, and I placed all of the candy on the house.

This was one of the most fun activities we have ever done! I had a blast and have enjoyed showing it to everyone who comes to visit. It has been a great Christmas decoration for our house!

I'm on Grandma's and Santa's Nice Lists

2011-12-12T19:50:00.000-08:00

For now........

Talladega Christmas Parade

2011-12-12T13:08:00.000-08:00

Davis and I counted down the days until this fun Christmas parade! We met all of our friends on the "square" in downtown 'dega to watch the parade.

In the picture below is Gracie and Anna Grace. In the picture above from left to right is: Addison Woodruff, Lauren Cofield, Davis, Gracie Perry, Ryals Jones, Morgan Perry, Anna Grace Jones, Parks Woodruff, Dawson, and Mali Cofield. We are now carpooling to and from school with Mali, Gracie, and Molly Jones.

Of course, throughout the entire parade, I was TOTALLY focused on getting and eating candy. The decorative floats and singing were lost on me. This was one of the first parades Davis has seen, and he loved it!

McWane Center with Gigi and Becky

2011-12-11T12:31:00.000-08:00

Huntsville Botanical Gardens Christmas Lights

2011-12-10T08:55:00.000-08:00

We spent the weekend with Gigi and she took us to see the Christmas lights at the Botanical Gardens in Huntsville. The excitement in our faces (captured by Gigi) is priceless!

2011-12-09T15:41:00.000-08:00

Our First Visit with Santa This Year

2011-12-09T15:07:00.000-08:00

We went to see the same Santa that we have seen several times at Brookwood Mall. We went on a Friday afternoon and didn't have to wait in line at all! As Santa was saying hello to us, we were both walking up to him talking about what we wanted for Christmas.

I asked for a "big surprise," and Santa immediately responded, "oooohhhh!" That's one of my favorite requests to hear. I have a lot of fun with surprises!

I also asked for an angry bird and a remote control helicopter. Davis asked for bunches and bunches of cars and a Leappad. As you can see, we were still talking to him when it was time for us to go. In the below picture, Davis is blowing kisses to Santa. I am eyeing the candy the picture people have to offer.

I want to be a doctor when I grow up!

2011-12-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

Happy Davis

2011-12-06T12:39:00.000-08:00

Visiting the Nursing Home

2011-12-03T20:10:00.000-08:00

Your Christmas Angel joined our home this Christmas season. Our first event of sharing Christmas cheer was visiting the local nursing home. We went with Brady, Lillie, and Ruthie.

This sweet lady loved our reindeer antlers so much that we left a pair with her. She was fascinated with the little bells and ribbons that adorned this certain pair. She was also "taken" with little Davis and wanted her picture made with him since he gave her his antlers.

We sang Rudolph and Jingle Bells.

We passed out Christmas cookies. We put them in little baggies and put labels with Bible verses on them. Davis and I had a great time baking the cookies and putting the stickers on the bags. We were a little uncertain about visiting people we didn't know, and truthfully that was o.k. with our moms. We weren't there long but we did learn the importance of sharing a smile during this special season.

Davis singing "Jingle Bells"

2011-12-03T14:25:00.000-08:00

Shall we say particular?

2011-12-01T12:14:00.000-08:00

Church Christmas Play Practice

2011-11-30T19:59:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0y0ATDWbBq8

Getting our Christmas Tree

2011-11-29T15:36:00.000-08:00

2011-11-28T15:05:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qStJWkToFRE

Davis can read Brown Bear Brown Bear all by himself, but he doesn't ever want to do it for the camera.

Davis reading Brown Bear

2011-11-28T14:53:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-24T16:07:00.000-08:00

https://picasaweb.google.com/110349211742718412366/Thanksgiving2011?authkey=Gv1sRgCImyqvT9vPGvEw

Playing with Lillie

2011-11-22T14:44:00.000-08:00

Lillie goes to the same preschool Dawson went to, which is how we met. She was a pilgrim in their Thanksgiving program. Mommy and I played with baby Allie while the rest of their family attended the play. Below is a picture of Lillie with her mom, Jessica.

Hard at Work

2011-11-21T14:43:00.000-08:00

Fun with Friends in ATL

2011-11-20T14:18:00.000-08:00

Joel and Russ went to the Titans vs. Falcons game. Alexis and I went to Andy Stanley's Northpoint Ministries Buckhead satellite church. I love going to their worship services when we visit ATL Check out the online sermons. They are great!

Have you seen these yet?! Super cool! Put in your money and choose from over 36 different drink selections!

THE FALCON

2011-11-17T19:06:00.000-08:00

So, we pulled up to school this morning, and standing outside were several football players, cheerleaders, and......wait for it!.......THE FALCON! WOW! This was an incredibly super cool thing! (In case you didn't know, my school's mascot is the Falcon.) Of course we had to park, so we could walk up and see them close in person. Davis and I were excited to have our picture made with the falcon. Our carpool friends are in 2nd grade, so this is nothing new to them. Thus, they rushed on into the school.

Indians and Pilgrims

2011-11-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

We just so happened to walk Dawson into school on the perfect morning. We were pleasantly surprised as we walked in the room and discovered it was going to be a very special day!

The seniors helped their kindergarteners make these indian shirts. These are some of Dawson's buddies. From left to right: Isaiah, Brady, Dawson, Brody.

Dawson and his senior, Tate

group shot of kindergarteners with their seniors

The kindergarteners are each paired with a senior at the school. About once a month they get together and do some type of special activity with their seniors. The kindergarteners made their own indian shirts, and the seniors dressed up as pilgrims. Here is a short clip of the seniors' moms giving the kindergarteners headfeathers. They had a great time playing several different games and enjoyed fun falltime snacks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atn1AlyNhr0

Dawson's First Camping Experience

2011-10-28T14:36:00.000-07:00

The Davis Speedway

2011-10-27T18:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyHj-m2-QO0

Fall Festival at First United Methodist Church in Talladega

2011-10-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

cupcakes for the cake walk

2011-10-25T19:18:00.000-07:00

Playdate with Anna Harrison

2011-10-25T18:41:00.000-07:00

Candy Goody Bags

2011-10-24T19:21:00.000-07:00

We had fun sorting, counting, and bagging the goody bags for the fall festival at church. Davis was a great helper in the beginning. Halfway through, he became the tornado we were desperately trying to get rid of. :)

Talladega Super Speedway

2011-10-23T19:03:00.000-07:00

Joel and I were invited to sit in the President's Box at the fall Nascar race. Above was our view (zoomed in) and below was our view; we were right at the start/finish line.

Here we are with some of our friends who were also invited to attend and occupy these special seats, The Woodruffs and the Perrys. You may recognize Mrs. Perry. (She was Dawson's preschool teacher last year and is the director of the school.) To say we had fun would be a definite understatement. The race was great too!

Playing in our tent

2011-10-22T18:23:00.000-07:00

Putting Up Our Tent

2011-10-22T18:13:00.000-07:00

Daddy's favorite hobby used to be hiking and camping. He said I am old enough now to go camping with him. I am super excited about it! We got a three-man tent. Daddy thinks when Davis gets older he will want to go with us, and anyone who knows my mother knows that she would never CHOOSE on her own accord to go camping. Boy time here we come!

Daddy does an excellent job at letting me help him with things. He is a very patient dad and great with teaching me how to do things without just doing them for me.

Fun on the Slide

2011-10-21T18:02:00.000-07:00

Precious Angel!

2011-10-21T15:08:00.000-07:00

Soccer Trophy

2011-10-20T18:34:00.000-07:00

Our soccer team celebrated the end of the season at a local Italian restaurant. Davis enjoyed being included as one of the big kids!

This is Harrison, my friend from across the street. He was super proud of his trophy!

We all had fun playing with these toy and candy machines. You would have thought we had money for the amount of time we spent playing with them, but we didn't. I was also proud of my trophy!

Trick or Treat!

2011-10-20T18:30:00.000-07:00

Dawson has enjoyed playing with these Window Clings from the $1 buckets at Target. They have been very special to him and he was even nice enough to help me put some on my window.

Smile Allie!

2011-10-19T18:43:00.000-07:00

Mexican Dinner Dates

2011-10-19T18:26:00.000-07:00

Dawson and Ryals
We didn't have Wednesday night church tonight, because we are taking a break before our Fall Festival which is next Wednesday. Thus, the Joneses and Taylors decided it was a perfect night to go to Mexico!

Davis and Anna Grace
Boy, did we have fun with our girls at "Mexico!"

PYL N

2011-10-19T15:10:00.000-07:00

our new Alabama license plate for our new RED Buick Enclave - Birmingham-Southern College "name tag" as Dawson calls it - PYL N (PILE IN!)

Kindergarten Field Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-18T19:11:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Patch - Kindergarten Field Trip

2011-10-18T19:09:00.000-07:00

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

Itzy, Bitzy Spider

2011-10-17T12:42:00.000-07:00

There was a not so "itzy bitzy" spider outside of our kitchen window for several days. Daddy said it was a Zipper Spider. The first day we noticed it, Davis sat for 20 minutes and watched the spider work on his web. (Again, it's the little things in life!) We sang "itzy, bitzy spider" probably 20 times. Literally, that spider worked on its web all afternoon. A few days later we had a big rainstorm and our pet spider disappeared. Davis was very sad. He still walks to the window and says "where's spider"? That's a great thing for our guests to hear as they are eating dinner at our kitchen table. :)

Space & Rocket Center Rest Stop

2011-10-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

Every time we drive to Nashville, Davis gets very excited when he sees the rocket.
On our way home this time, we stopped at the "Rocket Rest Stop." We were fascinated at the size of the rocket and had a blast running circles around it! You know, it's all about enjoying the little things in life; although, this thing is not so little!

Professional Athlete in Training

2011-10-13T12:35:00.000-07:00

Sunset on the Beach

2011-10-10T18:00:00.000-07:00

Thunder on the Gulf

2011-10-09T17:52:00.000-07:00

You know, we Taylor boys, are all about some racing! We were thrilled to find out a few weeks before leaving for our trip that the boat race, "thunder on the gulf" would be occurring while we were there. When we arrived, we found out just how lucky we were. The condo we had chosen to stay at (cheapest prices ON the beach) was right at one of the most important turns of the boat race. AND....our condo was on the top floor! We had the best view and absolutely LOVED watching the boats race! It really did sound like thunder.

Fall Break at the Beach

2011-10-08T17:25:00.000-07:00

We went to Orange Beach for Dawson's Fall Break. It was the first time we have ever taken a vacation with just the four of us. We had a blast!

Late afternoons were our favorite time on the beach. For two of our three days, we skipped dinner, enjoyed junk food, late afternoon snacks, and watching the sun set.

These are the shirts Daddy brought back to us from his guys' football trip. They went to Penn State College to see Coach Paterno coach and to cheer for Alabama.

Mommy and I enjoyed several walks on the beach looking for "treasures."

Plum tired out from all that playing.....It's hard having to entertain big brother all day; i'm certainly not used to this!

Fall Break

2011-10-08T15:24:00.000-07:00

Tailgate Party

2011-10-07T12:21:00.000-07:00

Mommy and I went to the big Tailgate Party at Citizens Baptist Medical Center. Ms. Donna and Ms. Roxiann work with Daddy, and they just love me to pieces! Ms. Donna has hung pictures we colored for her on her wall right by her desk. It was the day before the LSU VS AL game, so Mommy had to wear her AL shirt and cowgirl boots with pride. Daddy, needless to say, was in his LSU gear. Mommy and I decided I should dress in neutral territory!

Super Cute Spectators

2011-10-06T12:05:00.000-07:00

enjoying my own soccer game.....It's easy to score a goal when there are no other players! :)

"Gooooo Daw-Dis!"

Thanks, Gigi, for taking such great pictures! :)

Soccer

2011-10-06T01:00:00.000-07:00

Talladega Parks and Recreation coordinated soccer teams and I got in on the fun halfway through the season. Better late than never!

I scored a goal in my 2nd game and in my 4th game!

As you can see, I was pretty proud of myself!

Taylor Super Speedway

2011-10-05T12:18:00.000-07:00

ANOTHER ear infection

2011-10-04T12:16:00.000-07:00

Back at the E.N.T.'s office.......Thanks to the Lord for our portable DVD player!

Great's Birthday Party

2011-10-02T19:37:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday Great!

Sharing a kiss with his Lena Bear - I'm guessing, the most glorious moment of his day!!!

Fun with the artist of the family, Aunt Becky! Great restaurant entertainment. Got it at Target....kind of difficult to erase, takes a little "elbow grease." Board is white on one side and blue on the other. Makes very little mess; thus, great for car trips and restaurants.

We always have reusable sticker books in our "restaurant bag" that stays in the car, along with Color Magic books and markers. Has allowed for many peaceful meals.....another item we love is Wikki Stix. Lena took a special liking to the stickers! For anyone who may be reading, these are great items for Christmas presents! Thanks to the activities, we were relatively calm at the restaurant and the adults enjoyed some grown-up conversation! Happy birthday Geat! You are such a special member of our familiy, and we love you dearly!

A Serious Rock 'n Roll Performance

2011-10-02T19:32:00.000-07:00

all by "yours truly!"

The Joy of Technology

2011-10-02T18:47:00.000-07:00

Playing games on smart phones and the ipad is now our all-time favorite activity! We have thoroughly enjoyed the ipad that Joe bought for all of us, and we have had fun discovering many of the same games on the phones.

Can we say UNCOOPERATIVE?!

2011-10-02T12:16:00.000-07:00

Great's Birthday Party at Riverchase Park

2011-10-02T12:13:00.000-07:00

First Time on a Zip Slide

2011-10-02T11:41:00.000-07:00

Of course, Aunt Becky had to demonstrate how it is done!

Then, I tried it and LOVED it!

This is no ordinary grandmother!!! She's definitely a GIGI!

DeSoto Caverns

2011-10-01T18:49:00.000-07:00

Nana and Pop were in town for the weekend, and Pop has a special interest in history. So, we decided to take them to Desoto Caverns, which is about 25 miles from our house.We went on a tour of the cave, that is longer than a football field and higher than a 12 story building. Davis and I were both extremely interested in all of the "big rocks!"

looking at fish that lived in the cavern

We watched a laser light show about the creation of the world, from Genesis. We also saw what it was like to be in absolute, complete darkness! Pretty cool!

We learned about stalactites and stalagmites.

It was an awesome experience, and we highly recommend it! If you decide to go, give us a call and we'll meet you there. We'd love to see some of our old friends and visit there!

Tubs of Fun

2011-10-01T13:26:00.000-07:00

This was one of the first times Davis has ever been on an amusement ride, and it happens to be one of Mommy's all-time favorite rides.

We spun super fast

and it sure didn't take lil' man long to figure it out.

Grandparents Day at school

2011-09-30T12:13:00.000-07:00

We had a special day at school for our grandparents to visit and see some of the things we have been working on. I enjoyed reading a few of my short books (of sight words).

We had a "class meeting" for our grandparents to see. Davis jumped right in the circle and participated in every single part. We say the pledge with our voices and with sign language. We talk about the date and count how many days we have been in school. We practice telling time, and we sing a song with all of the sight words we have learned.

This is a picture of me with my friends Zach and Natalie.

We made a flower craft with our grandparents and made handprint pictures.

Davis had a great time playing with all of the toys in our classroom. In this picture he is telling us the names of all of the farm animals and making all of the farm animals' sounds.

Alpaca Farm

2011-09-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

Getting a picture of the three of us looking at the camera and smiling is IMPOSSIBLE! Nana and Pop bought us matching shirts, per my insistence, at the outlet mall at the beach. Finding the exact same shirt in infants, toddlers, and boys sections is a very big challenge; but not too big of a challenge for Nana and Kathleen!

Nana and Pop had the fabulous idea of visiting an Alpaca Farm while we were in town. Alpacas are beautiful animals and have a cat-like demeanor.

They let us pet them a little bit and Nana even got a kiss from one!

This is what their fur looks like after they've had a haircut. Their fur is used to make costly apparel and accessories.

Happy First Birthday to our Cousin Reed!

2011-09-25T09:29:00.000-07:00

Isn't Reed the cutest?! His birthday party had a sailboat theme. Can you tell?

He sure did love his birthday cake!

playing with his grandmother and grandaddy (a.k.a. Judy and Chuck Eastman)

Fortunately, he is still young enough to share the joy of opening presents with me!

And, fortunately, he's still young enough to be willing to share his toys!

And, fortunately, he's young enough to be willing to share his balloons.

However, he's not too young to wrestle his oldest cousin to the ground!

Driving a John Deere four-wheeler

2011-09-24T18:15:00.000-07:00

Kathleen and Charles had a BIG surprise for us when we arrived in Franklin on Saturday. They bought this four-wheeler several months ago at a majorly discounted price for baby Reed to drive one day. In the meantime, they have been kind enough to transport it - twice! - from Nashville to Franklin and allowed Davis and I to drive it.

It took me about 20 minutes to learn how to steer and stay on the sidewalk. Pop was a good teacher and supervisor.

Once we got the steering figured out, there was no stopping us!

Davis kept switching from riding in the back to the passenger seat.

An adult had to chase us, because I had a hard time getting up the slanted driveway (that you see in the back of the picture below). Each time we reached that spot we needed an extra little push. This was such a special treat for us - on Reed's special day! Thank you so much Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Charles for making our weekend so grand!

First Comes Work, Then Comes Play!

2011-09-22T12:58:00.000-07:00

My SENIOR!

2011-09-21T13:06:00.000-07:00

Every kindergartener at The Donaho School has a "senior." This is a friend who visits us about once a month and acts as a role model. It is a really big deal and we get super excited when we see our seniors around the school! My SENIOR even comes to see me at pep rallies (as well as my friend and across the street neighbor, Lesli). My senior's name is Tate, and I pretty much think he hung the moon. :)

This is my oh so sweet teacher, Mrs. Bodiford. She has been fabulous and a real gift from God!

Looking Handsome at Church

2011-09-18T11:35:00.000-07:00

Great Pictures Taken By Gigi!

2011-09-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Jumping for Joy on Wednesday nights!

2011-09-14T11:39:00.000-07:00

and that is exactly what we've been doing.....along with singing, marching, dancing, and signing. We have formed a special friendship with a wonderful lady at our church, Mrs. Martha. She has children and 2 grandchildren that live in Atlanta that she sees on a regular basis. However, we have somewhat adopted her as our "in town grandma." There is something about her that is very comforting and makes our hearts shine. These are pictures that are on the bulletin board in our Sunday School/Wednesday nights classroom. This past Wednesday morning, on the way to school, Mommy was telling us that we would be going to church tonight. Davis said "church.....Ms Martha?....sing.....and MARCH!" He got so excited! Then, on the way home, he was very upset when Mommy turned onto the street that leads to our house. He knew that if we had stayed straight, we would get to church. He kept saying, "no.....go church....sing....church Mommy!" Trying to explain time and that we would be going later that day was very difficult!

Buzz Lightyear and Woody

2011-09-12T18:21:00.000-07:00

our new pjs! We are SUPER DUPER excited about these! Davis has been flying "to infinity and beyond" ever since we got them.

Great Pictures by Gigi!

2011-09-11T11:29:00.000-07:00

Thanks for taking such great pictures for us, Gigi! We will post them soon on Shutterfly!

Swinging at the Park

2011-09-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

The Donaho Tailgate Party

2011-09-09T19:20:00.000-07:00

The Parents' Association at our school hosted a Tailgate Party for one of our first football games. We have a 1A football team, and they are doing really great this year!

Naturally, at the tailgate party, we played football. I think I was tackled a little more than I tackled others. I was laughing hysterically the whole time; once I start laughing I can't stop; I get this crazy cackle laugh from my Mommy. She used to do the same thing when she was little and still does occasionally. Anyway, when you are laughing hysterically, it is kind of hard to stay alert and focused on the game at hand.

That is my friend, Natalie, in the background. She is one of my classmates; and, yes, in the picture below she is tackling me! Don't worry I got her back.

Of course one of my favorite parts of the party was the sugary drinks and junk food! I ate chips, a brownie, and drank a Sprite! It was a very special party! Again, Davis didn't want anything to do with the cookies, brownies, or hot dogs. He focused on eating his chips and then ate Gigi's chips. Right before it was time to leave, we squeezed in a short game of "corn hole." Davis really got into that game! Go Donaho Falcons!

Taylor Super Speedway

2011-09-09T15:23:00.000-07:00

Racing Blocks

2011-09-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

Who can build a tower the quickest with all their color blocks? Dawson won! Yaaayyy Daw Dis!

Playing with cars

2011-09-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

First they drove up and down the "hill" on the Elliptical.

Then, they drove into our makeshift playhouse (i.e. cardboard box) which was the parking garage.

They each drove one at a time from the "cars" bucket in the playroom, into the foyer, over the "hill," and into the "parking garage." This was all my idea, and Mommy almost got the whole house dusted and vacuumed on this morning with very few distractions! :)

25 months old!

2011-09-03T10:30:00.000-07:00

I weigh 33 pounds and I am 36 inches tall. My favorite thing to play with is cars and I am fascinated with airplanes. I also like playing with balls and doing anything outside. In the above picture, I am making a fire truck sound which sounds something like this - "weeeeee awwwww weeeeee awwww"

Mommy and I enjoy scrambling eggs together in the mornings after we have taken Dawson to school. I am still not a big fan of meat, only choosing to eat chicken nuggets, so eggs are a great source of protein for me. I still LOVE my milk, and if it was up to me I would live off of milk, fruit, and crackers. I am not nearly as interested in sweets as my big brother is. However, everytime Daddy gets the chips out I go crazy and continue to ask for more and more until they are "all gone." When given the choice, I will choose salty snacks over sweet ones, just like my Daddy. Mommy and Dawson think we are crazy!

This is one of those old metal lunchboxes. Mommy and I found them in the dollar bins at Target, and we were super excited! We got a "Cars 2" lunchbox and a "toy story" lunchbox. They are relatively small and not insulated, so we are using them to keep our toys organized. Currently, I enjoy putting cars in the Cars 2 box and carrying it everywhere I go.
I am talking much better these days! Some of my words are much clearer, and I am saying new words every single day. I will try to keep you informed of my growing vocabulary through our blog. Ever since we saw the movie "Cars 2," I call everything that resembles a car, "Cars 2." I say it kind of fast and string the words together. Some of my favorite phrases right now are:

Cars 2
where are you?
Thank you God! Amen! (and I point up at the sky when I say this)
"Days" for Davis
THE BEST PHRASE OF ALL THAT IS SOOO STINKIN' CUTE: Daw Dis! I no longer call big brother Daw Daw. It started when Mommy and Gigi kept trying to get me to say Daw SON. We practiced the "son" word a lot. Eventually, I got the hang of the "s" sound and could say my own name. Then, I just started tacking on the end of my name to the beginning of Dawson's name, thus I have "Daw Dis!"

Playdate with Anna Harrison

2011-09-02T18:25:00.000-07:00

A Sweet Goodbye

2011-09-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

Finally, the day had come when we must say a sweet goodbye to our wonderful 2004 Nissan Murano. We bought it 2 weeks before Dawson was born. We have put approximately 30,000 miles on it each year! This car carried both of our babies home from the hospital. The BLACK CLOTH interior has seen many crumbs in its day, not to mention milk and other messes. It has been very good to us and has been the best car Mommy ever had. Unfortunately, it's getting old, high mileage, and too small for anyone else in addition to the two car seats in the back. So, we took a family picture with the good 'ole Murano and headed off to trade it in for something bigger......Stay tuned......

Dawson's Tattoo

2011-09-02T11:42:00.000-07:00

Dawson has been getting tattoos or face painting to show his school spirit on Fridays! This one is a D for "Donaho" but is upside down and just so happens to be a "D" for Dawson as well.

The issue has been that he doesn't want to wash them off at bathtime. So far, our rule has been that they must be gone by Sunday morning for church.

Kindergarten Update

2011-09-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

Dawson is loving Kindergarten! His teacher, Mrs. Bodiford, is wonderful! She has a son in the other kindergarten class, so she is very keen in her knowledge of little boys at this age. Davis and I have been parking and walking in with Dawson during the first three weeks of school. We walk into his classroom, say hello to his friends and teacher, give him a hug, and then say our goodbyes. He loves this and you can just see his little shoulders drop and the anxiety drain from his face once he has entered the classroom, hugged us goodbye, and begun his daily classroom tasks. Occasionally, Mrs. Bodiford is so nice to share with me about something Dawson has done during that day or week at school. Here are a few of my favorites:

On the first day of school during some free time, he gathered all of the students on the carpet. Once they were all there, he started giving some rules and passing out "playing cards." He organized a game with the cards for the whole class. Mrs. Bodiford said she was so surprised that she disregarded what she needed to be doing with them at the time and sat back and watched this to see how it would all play out. She said everything went well and all the students were having fun for about 5 minutes! She shared this story with me on the 2nd day of school when I asked her if he had been acting shy, quiet, or reserved, which was my suspicion. She looked at me funny, laughed, and said "Oh No! Dawson isn't shy. He's quite creative and seems to be a leader." Then, she went on to share the above story. Interesting! Very interesting!
At the end of the first week of school, Mrs. Bodiford asked the class what they were going to be doing over the weekend. Dawson told her he was going to a Jimmy Buffett concert! I found this out on Monday morning when we walked in to drop him off. Immediately, she approached him, hugged him, and asked him how the concert was. He said it was great and then looked up at me and grinned. I asked her what she was talking about, and then she explained. I started laughing out loud and said, "well, obviously, he has much better ideas than his Daddy and I for a fun weekend."
After naptime, one of the boys was having trouble rolling up his nap mat. Dawson walked across the room to where he was and told him, "if you'll bring it over here, I'll show you how to roll it up." Thus, the little boy picked it up and followed Dawson to his napping spot where they both laid down the mat and Dawson proceeded to "teach" him how to do it.
One morning during the third week of school, we stepped into the classroom and heard, "Hey Dawson is here everybody!" The little girl who yelled that across the room quickly walked over to Dawson and asked him to play with her first. Immediately following was a little boy, named Brody, who walked up and started pulling on his shirt saying, "play with me, Dawson, play with me." Then, a third child called out from the other side of the room, "hey Dawson, why don't you come play blocks with me?" I hesitated sharing this story, because I do not want to sound boastful as a mother. However, I think it offers much insight into his personality, and of course, I left the school with a huge smile on my face that morning!
Dawson is becoming very sneaky. He has been caught twice at home trying to sneak a bite of sweets or junk food from the pantry when we're not looking. Gonna have to pick back up those parenting books to figure out what to do with this situation!

Donuts with Dad

2011-09-01T11:36:00.000-07:00

More Touchdowns Titans!

2011-08-28T11:19:00.000-07:00

Everyone was yelling and excited about the touchdown, and Davis stands, signing "more," and yelling "more touchdowns!"

Cole's Birthday Party

2011-08-27T11:17:00.000-07:00

We had a marvelous time celebrating Cole Conti's 2nd birthday. Kara and Aaron threw a really great party! We got to bounce,

and loved playing with a pirate water table,

and played in the sand table,

and swung together on the swingset,

and rode cars and bikes,

and then the Hoover fire fighters came to visit!

Oh Boy, was that cool! We had never seen a fire truck that close up before. They let us go inside the cab where they ride, and they even let us ring the bell on the front of the truck.

If I had a hammer......

2011-08-27T10:33:00.000-07:00

I'd hammer in the morning.......

I'd hammer in the evening.....
all over this deck!
Our deck had a few nails that were sticking up. Gigi took us out to help her hammer them back down. Boy, what a fun activity this turned out to be!

Swinging at the Park

2011-08-26T11:25:00.000-07:00

These great pictures were taken by Gigi! Thanks, Gigi! Family, we will get them posted on Shutterfly soon; I promise!

Playdate with Lillie and Allie

2011-08-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

Lillie and Allie came over for a late afternoon playdate and dinner. Baby Allie is only a couple months old. Lillie is 3. She and I attended preschool together last year, and she is still there this year. We had a good time playing.

Banana Pudding Celebration

2011-08-24T10:13:00.000-07:00

Daddy has been working extremely hard on a very important presentation at work. He finally finished it and presented it to lots of important people today at work. We decided to make his favorite dessert and surprise him with it and a special dinner when he got home. He was surprised, and we were all pleasantly surprised with how delicious our banana pudding was! It doesn't require any cooking and uses a limited number of ingredients. It was a very easy recipe for me to help Mommy make. Click here for the recipe!

A Banana Pudding Celebration

2011-08-24T10:11:00.000-07:00

Looking too cute.....

2011-08-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

to not take a picture......notice the "boo boo" on my knee.......that's a mainstay these days and probably for many years to come! on our way to Bible Study.....Mommy attends at First Baptist Church in Talladega, and we stay in a "Mother's Day Out" program for an hour and a half. I went last year from January through April and did pretty well. Currently, it's the only time I'm away from Mommy besides the church nursery on Sunday mornings. This schedule seems to be working well for both of us at this time.

Marching with the Dinosaur

2011-08-19T14:54:00.000-07:00

Befriending a Caterpillar

2011-08-18T15:41:00.000-07:00

oh so cute after my nap.....I slept with my airplane, goofy, and blankey. I woke up wanting to play with them and take them in the car to pick up Dawson from school.

On our way out to the car, we saw a caterpillar in our carport. It was the first time I've been up close and personal with a caterpillar. One of my favorite books right now is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, so I was thrilled to see a real one.

Beautiful Elizabeth Taylor a.k.a. "Lizzy"

2011-08-18T10:39:00.000-07:00

Mommy and Daddy's "first child" tends to get neglected occasionally these days. Don't start to feel sorry for her though; she lives a might fine life now, especially since Mommy has been staying at home with us. She loves her some naptime! When we sleep, she sometimes gets some attention all to herself. She also loves to lay on the deck in the mid-afternoon and soak up the rays. She looked so pretty with her hairbows after having been at the groomer, so we had to give her a moment of fame on the blog. We all love her so much; she is a fabulous dog and special member of our family!