Happy Halloween

For some reason - I think I loaded these pictures backwards... They are all out of order. Anyway, tonight we went to Trunk or Treat at church. There were vehicles decorated with people handing out candy, bounce houses, train rides, and a 70's bus(which I am disappointed that I didn't get a picture of). Mikayla did great... she was not afraid of the costumes at all. She got a little cold and tired but other than that it was great. She got lots of candy for Mommy and Daddy to eat... yummy!!! Grandma and Papa came over before we left to see Mikayla and eat dinner with us. Then, we went to visit Uncle Philip and Aunt Amber. After that it was off to church. Thanks again to Grandma for making Mikayla's precious Dorothy costume!!

This picture was from today before we left for story time at the library.

Mommy and Mikayla today.

Wednesday night they had a PJ party at church so Mikayla wore her Halloween pajamas.

This was the trunk that won first prize for best decoration tonight.

Baby Kate and her daddy, Pastor DJ. Kate was enjoying the lollipop she took from her daddy!!

Mikayla watching Ayden dressed up as a turtle.

Sweet Kate dressed up as a flower!

Tonight before we left the house for the church.

The Batson family aka Michael Jackson and Madonna!

Mrs. Shannon and some of the kids.

Uncle Jay and Sam Waller

Lots of stuff

Friday - We (mikayla and mommy) went to my Grandmother's house in Lebanon and spent a good part of the day. My grandmother has not seen Mikayla in her wheelchair so she was very surprised to see how good she is at getting around. She has hardwood floors so Mikayla was loving it. We were going to go the Ghouls at Grassmere(Zoo) but it was rainy and cold so we just hung out at home instead. Saturday morning, I went to the grocery store by myself. I never thought I would consider grocery shopping alone a getaway!! Then, we took Mikayla to the Underwoods house for the day. Mike and I went to the Duke vs. Vandy football game at Vandy. We pulled for Duke and wore Duke shirts to the game. It was really a weird feeling walking to the stadium from parking with all Vandy fans around. Everyone was nice though- no cussing but some funny looks. We bought the tickets from Duke so we sat around Duke fans- there were quite a few there I was really surprised at how many. The game was really good. We had a great time. Thanks Shannon and Alan!! Mikayla had fun with the Underwoods- she only took at 10 minute nap but was still in a wonderful mood!! We did not pick her up until 8pm and she was still going full speed. She even ate great for them! Sunday - we went to church. They had a spaghetti lunch at church but mommy forgot and was not prepared so we didn't attend. After lunch at home we drove an hour away to Honeysuckle Hill Farm. They had a pumpkin patch, hayride, lots of animals, a corn maze and lots of other things Mikayla could not do. While we were there they had pig races. We watched it for about 5 minutes then Mikayla was OVER IT! There was not a lot she could do as far as activities but I think she still had fun. Her favorite things were the pumpkin patch and the pigs. She loved the pigs- that is the first time she has ever seen pigs in real life. She kept saying pig and oink, oink. So cute! She is funny- she doesn't like to pet the animals- a little afraid. That was the first time I had ever petted(is that the right word) a pig- their hair is VERY coarse. We had a good time. Today has been a busy day for mommy and Mikayla. Physical Therapy was at 9 this morning, then to doctor (18 month check up and flu shot), then we went to store. Mikayla took her chair to the doctor for the first time today. She did very well until Dr. Murray stuck his head in the waiting room to see her using her chair- she saw him and started wailing!!! She recovered until it was time to get weighed and measured. I know doctors appointments are not fun for anyone but poor thing she goes to the extreme. She really lets Dr. Murray have it- she really fights him, pushing his hand away, screaming(I mean not just crying but screaming!). I know he is used to kids abuse but I always feel bad. I don't know if other parents go through this same thing or if it is because she has been to SOOO many doctors in her 18 months on this earth. Traumatic are doctor visits for us! After the doctor we went to Kroger and this was another first for Mikayla. She used her chair here for the first time as well. Usually I put her in the front of the buggy but since I had the chair with us I thought I would try it. Well... I don't think we are ready. Luckily this was a small trip for just a few items. She did pretty well. She was seeing things from a point of view she had never seen before. She got tired after a while and I had to push the chair and the cart that did not want to stay straight! The fun part was trying to keep her in one spot while checking out. I finally just locked her wheels so she could not go anywhere- which she did not like one bit. Leaving the store was the biggest task of all. Picture this... cart that wants to go to the right... Mikayla in her chair wanting to stop in the middle of the driveway of Kroger... now having to push Mikayla... did I mention that my cart is heavy because I have a big bag of dog food and I am not feeling good - coming down with something. An hour long grocery outing that should have taken 10 minutes. We will be waiting a while before trying that again... a long while.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

This past weekend was another busy one. Seems like our weekends go by so fast. Friday, Mikayla and mommy went to story time at the library then went to our favorite place- the grocery store. She said hi and bye to every person that passed us in the aisle. Saturday we spent a lot of time outside washing vehicles. I discovered that Mikayla is a little princess. Anytime she got grass or dog hair on her hands she flipped out. It was really funny. Saturday afternoon, Mikayla went to spend the night with Grandma and Papa. Mike and I went to a group function at the Raceway in Goodlettsville. We had a really good time! All the men stood at the fence and watched the races and us girls sat back and had some girl time. It is nice to sit and chat with people who you don't get a lot of time with normally. Then, Sunday we went to church -then picked up our baby girl. Sunday evening we had a potluck dinner/meeting at church for the Hometeam Leaders. There was lots of good food there. We got to tour the new addition of our church. I cannot wait to have our first service in the new sanctuary. It is hard to believe our church is only two and a half years old and we are already have to add space. What a wonderful "problem" to have.
I wish my videos would load to here. Mikayla is talking so much. I cannot even write everything she is saying- animals and their noises, names of people, names of toys, food, where she wants to go and what she wants to do. It is truly amazing all the stuff that comes out of her mouth. We are having conversations- at 17 months old!! She is coloring "pictures" and painting. God has truly blessed us with Mikayla. I wish everyone could see her in her wheelchair. I could write on here how well she is doing but you need to see it to truly understand it. And she loves spending time in it... she asks for "chair" when she wants it. Anyway... we are so excited about what Mikayla's future will bring. So glad that people want to be a part of it by reading our blog... thanks. We love you all. On a side note... my once very independent girl has become a very clingy, needy baby. This week she cannot play by herself at all- she wants mama beside her all the time. I cannot even walk out of the room and I hear "mama, mama, mama" until I return. Hopefully, this is just a stage and won't last very long. Between her and the pest of a dog- I feel very, very needed. I sometimes want to run away!!! It is ok though- soon enough she will not need me as much and then I will be complaining about that... haha!

Mikayla eating yogurt. She started out using the spoon but soon that became old and the hands came into use. By the time this picture was taken she had started finger painting with the yogurt on her tray. In this picture she is "drinking" yogurt out of the yogurt cup.
Mike told her to look how messy her hands are...
She is proud of her messy hands.

Yesterday at lunch- Mikayla's favorite mac and cheese.

She looks so big and serious in this picture.

Let's see... Thursday Mikayla and Mommy went to the Nashville Zoo. We had a good time... so much fun that we bought a membership. Some of her favorites(elephants, giraffes, and monkeys) were very close to the fence so Mikayla could actually see them. When she realized what animal each were she would make their noises... very cute!! Friday, we went to the library for story time but it was cancelled so we went to to Grandma's to work on Mikayla's Halloween costume. She is going to be Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. We searched for a costume but could not find one that fit her so Grandma agreed to make it. Thanks Grandma!!! It turned out soooo cute- can't wait for her to wear it- she just needs her ruby slippers! Mikayla spent the night with Grandma and Papa Friday night so Mike and I went to eat at O'Charleys in Bowling Green. We remembered why we never eat there... just not our favorite. Luckily we had a gift card so we did not feel to bad about it. Saturday morning we got up and I made Mike go grocery shopping with me... our favorite thing to do!!!! After the dreaded chore and some lunch we drove up to Bowling Green(again) and went to the World Mustang Finals. Mike LOVESSSS mustangs!!! They had a car show and drag races. After being there for 3 hours - picked up our baby girl. That night we watched the MMA Saturday night fights... I guess you could say we had a redneck kinda day!! It was a good day! Sunday we went to church, watched the Titans, then went to Grandma and Papa's. Today, Mikayla and I went to the zoo again! We went with our friends Andrea, Kate, Tammy, and Jackson. I think everyone had a good time but it was a LONG day(3 and 1/2 hours). Last week we did not get to see the farm animals but we took time today! I put some random pics above.