Christmas Questions

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? definitely hot chocolate. I hate egg nog!

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? I'm not sure...this is our first year to do Santa with Hampton, and I'm not sure he'll even understand yet.

3. Colored or white lights on tree/house? I prefer white for our tree, but I like colored on Hampton's tree.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No, but I would if I knew where to get it and how to hang it.

5. When do you put your decorations up? Whenever I MAKE myself do it. I love it when it's all done, but I do not enjoy doing it.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Not sure...?

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? When my parents tricked me about a gift I wanted SO badly. They found a similarly-shaped box and wrapped it up. I was so disappointed when I opened it because I just KNEW I was getting what I had asked for! Of course, they gave it to me, but I had to sweat a little.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I really don't remember truly believing in Santa, but I do remember seeing my dad sneak past my room holding my new basketball.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? not usually.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? I have enough Victorian ornaments to decorate a full tree, but lately, I have been decorating using ornaments from Clint's and my childhood. Hampton has a tree with his own ornaments too.

11. Snow? Love it or dread it? I like it, but we don't see it often. When we lived in Alabama, we'd get enough to stick about every 4-5 years. Of course, we get NO snow in South Florida. We're lucky if it drops below 60 in winter.

12. Can you ice skate? Uh, no. I can wobble around holding the rail, making a fool of myself.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Oh yeah...It was a softball glove. The most awesome one ever.

14. What is the most important thing about the holidays for you? Spending time with my family and seeing everyone healthy and happy. Hampton's joy will be cool to see.

15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? Divinity. But I also discovered Panettone last year. That stuff is AMAZING!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Opening gifts together Christmas morning.

17. What tops your tree? A big gold ribbon that cascades down the tree.

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Both. I honestly LOVE to give more. But I love it when people care enough to give me something to let me know I was thought of (even tiny cheap things).

19. Candy Canes, yuck or yum? YUM.

20. Favorite Christmas show? It's a Wonderful Life

21. Saddest Christmas song? Christmas Shoes (by far!). That song makes me cry almost every time I hear it.

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night, and I Want a Hippopatamus for Christmas. :)

October 2009-Hampton's TWO!

It's been MUCH too long since I've updated, so I had to do 2 posts...check the one labeled "September 2009" for more!

October was a busy month for the Usher House! The best way to post the pictures is probably a list, so here goes...

1. We started the month by driving to north Florida to visit Mamaw and the rest of the Ushers. It was a very long drive - 11 hours!! When we came home, we split it into 2 days. Hampton had lots of fun playing with his cousins and grandparents, and he even got to meet BJ the Pig which belongs to Clint's brother Wes!




















2. A few days later, Hampton's MawMaw & PawPaw flew in for a visit for Hampton's 2nd birthday. They bought him a tricycle for his birthday, and he LOVES it! I bought him some elbow & knee pads and a helmet, so he had fun wearing those. He played in his tent with MawMaw & PawPaw too.
















3. We had a birthday play-date for Hampton at the park with his friends from church. It rained SO hard that day, but the kids all had a BLAST! So it was a success after all. We love our new church family!
















4. A few days later, the Usher family drove down to celebrate Hampton's birthday, and we had MORE cake and ice cream! Hampton enjoyed daily wagon rides and walks with Nana and Pop. He even saw a huge grasshopper one day. He still asks to see it every day by saying "hopper again" Of course, the "hopper," as he calls it, hopped away a long time ago.
















5. Finally, Hampton went Trick-or-Treating on Halloween as a Safari Guide. He wasn't going to wear his hat at first (which made his costume), but we told him he could get candy if he wore his hat. That did it! He put it on right away! We had a great time at our friends' the Nunez's that night. Hampton's buddy Eli is the one dressed like Thomas the Train.

September 2009

SO sorry it's been so long since I've posted! And so many BIG things have happened since I posted last, so I will have a couple of posts for you to read. These are a few misc. pictures before we get to the big events - the alligator in the lake; Hampton "tasting" a butternut squash, and a very beautiful sunset! We are SO glad fall is here! The weather is finally getting a little cooler here in South Florida, though it's still HOT!

















In September, we visited the Miami Metro Zoo in September with our friends Ms. Shannon, Katelynn, and Kristen Tucker. Hampton loved the aquarium and seeing all the animals! But we picked one of the hottest days to go. Shew! It was hot...

Summertime Fun

We have been so blessed with great friends here in South Florida! I have lots of "mommy" friends, so Hampton has lots of friends to play with. Just today, all that was on my agenda was grocery shopping, and the Lord blessed me with the chance to meet my friend Shannon for breakfast and we shopped together! We've been able to do several fun outings recently. On Wednesday, we went to Hollywood Beach and played in a splash park before going to the beach. Afterwards, we came home and swam in the pool with lots of friends. Yesterday, we went to a place called Monkey Joe's. It's a huge place with lots of inflatable jump rooms. The funny thing about this place was that they had 2 jump rooms for kids under 3, but Hampton was afraid to go in them. BUT, he was not afraid to go down the slides that were probably 10-15 feet high!! He was a little daredevil! He zipped down the slides so quickly that it was hard to get a picture of him. Katelynn Tucker was my life-saver and helped me keep him entertained since they wouldn't let adults on the slides. Since he picked the "big kid" slides, he had to do it himself. Thankfully, she was there to help him out. Anyway, here are are some pictures of our eventful week...

Katelynn, Kristen, Nathan & Hampton playing in the splash park

Katelynn and Hampton

So much fun!!

Shannon and me on the beach

Katelynn and Hampton

Hampton checking things out

Hampton exploring our backyard

Kristen and Lily

Nathan and Dylan

Katelynn helping Hampton climb the ladder for the slide at Monkey Joes.

Zipping down the slide!!

Mommies just hanging out (trying to stay sane - it was LOUD!)

Hampton and his buddy Katelynn

Katelynn and Hampton in the tall jump house

Formal vs. Casual

As you can see from these pictures, Hampton has experienced the extremes this week - he looks so sharp in his new navy three-piece suit, but he also knows how to kick back and relax! We've been doing a lot of swimming lately. He always looks so cute after a swim all wrapped up in a towel! In the picture of him sitting with Clint, he and Daddy were doing their Sunday morning routine of having a breakfast bar on the patio together. I love this picture because they look so much alike!

We are flying to Birmingham tomorrow for cousin Erin's wedding. It will be a quick trip because we'll be back on Monday. Hopefully I'll get some good pictures and have a new post next week. Bye for now!

What's new? Not much.

There are not a lot of new and exciting things going on in the Usher House. But since I haven't updated in a while, I thought I'd post. Hampton is talking a LOT now! He picks up new words everyday. He is learning people's names too. That is so cool! This morning, he was looking out the window at our pool guy calling "Abel!" So cute.

This weekend, we had fun playing in Hampton's "new-to-us" tent. Lexie even got inside!! The pictures are a little blurry, but you'll get the idea.

I have accepted the role of Nursery Supervisor at our church. It has been demanding but lots of fun. We rearranged the nursery and implemented the use of several forms and policies. So far, everything has been well-received and seems to be working well.

Hampton has been having sleeping and bedtime issues lately. For a while, he was screaming when we'd put him to bed. When I say screaming, I mean SCREAMING (it's a wonder the neighbors didn't call the police for abuse)! He got over that, and now for the last couple of nights, he has awakened in the night crying. Last night, I brought him to our bed, and wow! I don't want to do that again! He stayed awake for an hour after coming in the room, and then he flails and flops around like a wild horse! Neither Clint nor I slept well last night. And he woke up SO early this morning. Tonight will be a battle, but I must be strong and break this cycle. UGH.

At the end of this month, we'll be flying to Birmingham for Erin and Caleb's wedding. We can't wait to see everyone. Lots of people in Clint's family haven't seen us in a long time - long before we moved. So it'll be good to catch up. Mom and Dad will get to come too to see us before we have to fly home. It'll be a short trip, but we're looking forward to it.

I think when we get back, it'll be time to revisit the "potty training" topic. We'll see...

So maybe we DO have a lot of NEW going on! I guess with an almost-two-year-old, there's always something new!