We Are Thankful

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday at our house. We are reminded each and every day how blessed we are to have our jobs, our home, our health, and most importantly, our precious child. It was so nice to just lay low, and not be rushed for once. We started the week off with a Thanksgiving play at Blair's school. Why must I cry at every event?

Blair was more interested in showing her sucker off than performing. Oh well, whatever works!

We had a laid back day on Wednesday. Blair and I headed outside for a little fall photo shoot. She wanted to show off her Iron Bowl shirt that Aunt TT made her. It was definitely a hit!

Pop and Mimi came into town just in time for the festivities to crank up. Pop treated us to Thanksgiving lunch at the Ritz Carlton on Thursday. It was something different that he had not done before, and it was SUCH a treat. Blair liked it so much, she waived her hands in the air from side to side!

Felix was extra excited on Thursday night because not only was his belly full, but his Saints also won their Thanksgiving Day game against the Cowboys. But little did we know what excitement we had in store for Friday!!

Felix, Blair, and I got up early Friday morning to run an errand, and only Pop would have this set-up waiting on us when we got home...

We let it slide since the majority of the decor was orange and blue. And I will say, I think this Trooper Towel is what got it done for the Tigers on Friday night. That's one decent Bama fan to buy that for his Auburn daughter ;)

It is always Verdigets' tradition to get the Christmas tree on Thanksgiving weekend. We got up bright and early on Saturday morning to bring the perfect tree home. Unfortunately, it was freezing outside and Blair wasn't digging the "tree patch" as she called it.

We eventually got home and warmed up and spent the rest of the day learning about the Christmas tree and about Santa Clause. I am looking so forward to this holiday season with Blair. I think she is going to be at such a fun age, and I can't wait to teach her the true meaning of Christmas. She is only going to be a baby for so long, and I want to cherish every minute of it.

We hope that your Thanksgiving was as special as ours was, and we hope that your bellies are as full as ours STILL are. We are truly blessed in every way possible, and we have so many wonderful reasons to celebrate this holiday season.

Happy Thanksgiving, War Eagle, and Merry Christmas!

The Verdigets

Sara Frances

Last Saturday, I got to celebrate the upcoming birth of a precious little girl. Mama Oakes was just glowing, and it was written all over her that her cup runneth over with joy!

Anna Kate was kind enough to open her home to all of us. I swear that girl sure can swoozie it up...

And would there be a better theme than OWLS?? Well, heck no...

Anna Kate whipped up a "beer punch" that had me going back for seconds (or thirds?????)..

Ashley and Sara Frances got some adorable things. Jess even made her a precious sign for the nursery. Contact me if you would like her information. She is SUPER talented (and awesome).

And in case you were wondering, Sara Frances WILL be an Auburn Tiger :)

I am so fortunate to have such a fun, loving, caring group of girls in my life. The shower was wonderful, and Ashley was surrounded by so much love. I told the girls it was one of the few showers I have been to where I didn't have to close the door to go to the restroom. Now, THAT is special! Ashley, we are SO happy for you, and can't wait to meet that black-headed little angel!

Weagle Weagle!!!

I am so fortunate to have family close by so I can do adult things from time to time. The grandparentals are always willing to come watch the monkey at any time, and I am so grateful for that. My Mom and Aunt June came this past weekend so I could hightail it to Auburn for a tailgate reunion. But, first thing's first. Blair wanted to ride the pig.

She talked a big game until we got there. She seemed a little concerned in the beginning, but then warmed up.

Blair is so lucky to have Nonna and Aunt June at her every beck and call. Pardon all of the droopy faces. Blair had a cold and by the looks of her hand in her mouth, I think we have some teeth starting to bother her :(

Saturday morning arrived, it was time for me to hit the road to A-U-B-U-R-N!! I promise I didn't speed at all, but I tried every attempt to make it in record time ;) I had this crew waiting on me to get there...

Now, if those faces don't have fun written all over them, I don't know what does! The Deckers treated the "Tara's" and AK to lunch at Hamilton's. It was just like old times. We spoke of dancing to the Eye of the Tiger, our initiation to red wine, and painted on jeans. It was a great lunch and I loved getting my Decker fix.

Next stop....the X and the Old Horshoe! I tell ya, all these girls here are all rugged but right! Here is my 1998 Chi Omega Pledge Class. You didn't only have to be a brainiac to be a part of this crew, but STYLE was also high on the list. All I can say is BOOTS, BOOTS, BOOTS!!!!

Meet Darby and Erika. Not only were they in my pledge class, but we basically lived together freshman year. They've been to "Dega" with me. And I've been to the emergency room with them. Pretty similar. Anyway, they are celebrities. You can read their blogs here and here. I have people from all over say "Oh, you know Darby??" or "Erika is YOUR friend?". Yes, they are my friends. I'm glad to say I knew them before they were famous ;)

And then there is this bunch. This bunch has trouble written all over it. I say we've done pretty good for ourselves though :) Bless Lil Gin's heart. She walked all over campus just to be with us with a bun of the oven, a boy bun that is ;). Don't worry Ginny, I'll have him named by the time I see you on Saturday!! Hee Hee!

It was a great weekend in Auburn and to top it off my team WON!!! It's never been better than now to be an Auburn Tiger! I am so proud of my team, and I can't wait to root for them in the SEC Championship game!! Thanks to all the people who helped make this weekend so much fun! War Eagle!!!!

My little monkey

Boy have we had a week! Let me tell you, it was one that will go down in the books. Let's just mix my birthday with a couple of stomach viruses, and a husband who travels for work, and voila!!!!!!! You get chaos! We started the week off on a good note with a birthday brunch at Blue Ridge Grill. It was Diddy's treat and sure was good!

After that, things pretty much went downhill. Felix left for the week while Blair and I started our weekly routine. After a fun Tuesday night dinner with the girls, I found Blair at home in the crib covered in vomit. Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday dear Tara, Happy Birthday to me! Ugh, it was terrible. Thanks to my wonderful neighbor and my Dad, reinforcements showed up and we were able to get the job done. Those who know me know that I don't handle those type icky situations too well. I did rise to the occasion, and I think Blair knew it. She wanted her Mommy and that was ok with me!

So, the virus left Blair and the next stop was MOMMY! YAY! It hit me on Friday and I was so sad because we had a weekend full of Spooktacular events lined up! Friday night Blair had to miss her Halloween party at school , and then I had to miss my first 5k ever on Saturday morning. It was a bummer. We were able to go out and get some Christmas shopping done later in the day just in time for the sickness to hit Daddy!

So, enough complaining. We did manage to get in a few Halloween festivities despite the bug. We made ourselves head out and participate in the neighborhood Halloween party. Blair knew I was weak and she cooperated just fine in her costume!

She was the perfect little angel. She kept patting her head and saying "my monkey." Yes baby, whatever you want! After a wonderful boston butt in the cul-de-sac, we headed in to watch our Auburn Tigers win ANOTHER one! We hung out and rested all day Sunday so we could get some trick or treating in that evening. Blair was excited to put her costume on and was ready to hit the streets. Luckily, we didn't have to go very far!

Blair loved trick or treating. She was a little skeptical of all the costumes at first. She warmed up well and hung in there. I think she learned to love Halloween as much as her Mommy does! Blair, I'm so sorry your parents were sick and I promise to make it up to you next year!