Happy Halloween!

I feel like we have been celebrating Halloween for a week! Sunday afternoon, we went to a party given by the Jacksons, Wallers and Taylors! The kids had a blast bobbing for apples, finding prizes in the haystack and busting a piñata! On Tuesday night we went to the Halloween party at Decatur Country Club. They made bats out of their hands (so cute), competed in a sack race and ate ghoulish things like goblin fingers and mummy toes with brew ha ha punch (chicken fingers, french fries and Shirley Temples)! Growing up my family always celebrated Halloween with the Smithsons and the Nichols. Here is a picture from one Halloween – Dama Nichols (Miss Piggy), Chuck Smithson (Kermit), Nicholas (Smurf), Christopher (some Star Wars character??), Ginny Smithson (Cat) and me (Surfette). ***Notice we all have matching handpainted buckets.*** I am not sure where Charles Ryan Nichols and Stacey were while this picture was being taken. By the way, if anyone finds the belt to the Miss Piggy costume in the Hickory Hills neighborhood…please let Susan Nichols know! Anyway, we have started a similar tradition with the Barnetts, Bibbs, Bronaughs, Godwins and the Lawsons. We rotate houses and everyone brings a portion of the meal…then we take the kids trick-or-treating! This year we had a fabulous Yummy Mummy Appetizer (thanks Jill), chili and Sam Barnett's famous cheesecake!!! We even had a hay ride to go trick-or-treating! I never know who is more excited about all the candy – the kids or the adults??? This years cast of characters: Colwell Bibb and Banks (Troy Bolton from High School Musical), Mary Reese (Minnie Mouse), Frances Bibb (Bee), William Barnett (Ninja Turtle), Leland Barnett (Bride), Addy Lawson (Bunny), Evans Lawson (Darth Vader), Liza Bronaugh (Princess Leah) and Max Godwin (Auburn Tiger). Thanks Barnetts for having us this year…we enjoyed it! I do feel sorry for all the school teachers out there today...I know mine stayed up way past their bedtimes and ate way too much sugar!

“The Dental Chair”

Our blog description says “...created to keep all our friends and family up to date on the happenings of our chaotic lives!” Let me just give you a glimpse of last night at our house!

First, Krystal (our loan officer) was so sweet and made a house call for us to sign all our loan papers for the new house. The kids were bouncing off the walls and we were trying to listen to her. All I need to say is THREE RING CIRCUS! But thank you Krystal for making a house call after working hours! After we went to Debbie’s house to eat a delicious and delightful meal of chicken vegetable soup and cornbread, we came home for what we thought would be our normal bedtime routine. I was in the kitchen trying to make a snack for Banks to take to his class and 2 Sour Cream Pound Cakes for his teachers as their Halloween Treat. I am almost done cutting out the orange Rice Krispie Treats in the shape of pumpkins when I hear Jody yelling at me to come to the bathroom. Mary Reese busted her chin open when she fell from the side of the bathtub. So you would think we would load up and head straight to the emergency room, right???? Just in case you didn’t know, the dental office serves many more purposes than a place to go to get your teeth worked on. All of my family has experience “the dental chair” from getting stitches in our chin or getting your arm x-rayed there first to just make sure it was broken (Stacey). So naturally we called Popsy and he met us at his office. Mary Reese was the bravest and most co-operative almost 3-year old girl I have ever seen! After getting 3 stitches in her chin, she got a trip to the Treasure Tower! Thanks Popsy for saving us from the Emergency Room! Thank you John B. for coming to get Banks and getting him to bed! After finally getting home around 8:30, I still had 2 Sour Cream Pound Cakes to cook and realized I had forgotten to buy the plates and napkins for Mary Reese’s Halloween party. So, I got the first cake in the oven, called Stephanie (she was thankfully at Kroger) to buy plates and napkins, and was getting the stuff measured out for the second cake when I smelled something burning. I thought the pound cake had boiled over onto the bottom of the oven, but I quickly realized the oven was on BROIL instead of BAKE. So my Sour Cream Pound Cake was burnt on the top and runny the rest of the way through! I had to pour it out and start from scratch! Needless to say, I only got 1 cake made last night and will have to make the other one tonight! Thank you Steph for always coming to my rescue! The chaos continued this morning when Jody called to say the Huntsville Branch of Gulf Eagle Supply was burning to the ground! He was trying to get the kids to school, deal with the electricians that were fixing a few minor things at our soon to be old house and get to Huntsville with the spare keys to their trucks. Luckily no one was there when the fire started and the cat got out alive! Welcome to our world, don’t you wish you could join us!!!

Halloween Preview

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We've been Booed!!!

We were beginning to wonder if anyone was going to boo us this year! Tonight we went to watch the Austin Homecoming parade (we love a parade) and then to eat Mexician. When we got home...we had been Booed! Tomorrow we will have to get busy and boo two more friends but you will never know who! Thanks to whoever booed us...we have no clue who you are!

We’ve grown 43 inches!

Every year on their birthdays, I mark Banks and Mary Reese’s heights on the back of the basement door. Since we will be in the new house before each of their birthdays, we did it one last time at the Canal Street house! Banks has grown 2 ½ inches since his birthday last December. Mary Reese has grown 4 ¼ inches since hers in November. The Canal Street house will always be special to us because it was the first house Jody and I bought, and we brought both kids home from the hospital to that house. Overall Banks has grown 24 ½ inches and Mary Reese has grown 18 ½ inches for a grand total of 43 inches in that house! I guess we will have to find a door at the new house and start our tradition there!

And these are a few of my favorite things…

They always tend to have this song on during the holidays, so with the holidays coming up…here goes my list: (I am taking a break from the boxes, tape and newspapers for a minute, can you tell?) 1. Anything made by L’Occitane - I got hooked on these products a few years ago. One of my friends got married in Atlanta and we stayed at the Four Seasons…they had L’Occitane products as their complimentary bathroom products. Some of their products I am addicted to are: the lip balm, the hand and foot lotion, the Olive daily face cleanser, and the entire Immortalle line. Jody loves to the Cade After Shave Balm. The stuff is on the pricey side but will last a long time (the facial products will last me 6 months, so averaged out it is not too bad). I usually stock up on this when we go to Indianapolis to visit one of my brothers and his family…but there is a new store in the Summit (can also buy online at http://www.loccitane.com/)! Make great stocking stuffers!!!

2. Johnson and Johnson Bedtime Bath and Lotion - When I was pregnant with Banks, my Aunt Carol gave me a big tub full of the Johnson and Johnson products and this bedtime bath and lotion was included. The bottle says “makes babies sleep better” and I will swear by it! I still soap and lotion mine down at night with this stuff before I put them to bed and they smell FABULOUS (even still the next morning). I have gotten several of my friends (even ones without kids) addicted as well. Santa always leaves a bottle of this in my children’s stockings!

3. Momagenda - One of my friends gave me one a few months ago for a treat (thanks Steph) and I don’t know how I have ever lived without it! It has monthly views as well as weekly views. The great thing about the weekly one is that I have a row to keep track of my schedule and then the kids have their own rows so I can keep track of them. Another great thing…it comes in 5 wonderful colors! Mine is the green one pictured above. Love it, Love it, Love it. Would make a great gift for any mom!

4. Fontaine Maury Plates - My kids think these are the best thing in my kitchen! They love setting the table because everyone in my family has their own plate with their name on it (the best part is…they are doing a chore and don’t even realize it!). We even have some with The Murphrees on them for our guests! They come in a variety of choices including solids, stripes, plaids, dots and prints with tons of clip art and “monogramming” options…so they are totally unique! I got my mother a set for all the grandkids to eat off of at her house. I get mine at Eloise and Henry (http://www.eloiseandhenry.blogspot.com/) here in Decatur. They have also become my new birthday/wedding/Chirstmas/whatever present…I always get a great response when I give them! FYI – The Pottery Barn Kids silverware goes great with them!

5. Big Sky Granola - One of my all time favorite snacks and breakfast treats made with lightly sweetened oatmeal, whole almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds! Just yummy! Thank you Stacey for introducing me to this! The bakery is located in Birmingham but the Publix stores down there started carrying their products. Stacey use to keep me supplied until they stared carrying it in our Publix (usually right when you walk in the door). You can also buy it online (http://www.bigskybreadcompany.com/). Great for snacking on during all that holiday shopping! Way off this subject, we got a second offer on our house last night! So we now have a back up contract should for any reason the first one not go through (we don’t foresee any problems but it is nice to have a Plan B)! So say a little prayer that everything with the house selling and buying goes smoothly! As of right now, we will spend our first night in the new house on November 8th!

Field Trips, Football and BOXES

Friday I spent the day with Banks and his class at Tate Farms in Meridianville (http://www.tatefarmspumpkins.com/). If you haven’t ever been…GO…it has something for all ages. He was so excited because he finally got to ride on the school bus! It was so cute watching his class and all the kindergarteners load up on the bus. When we got there (at 10:00) they had their picnic lunch…I still can’t imagine eating lunch so early. After lunch we were assigned a tour guide, Ms. Ashley, who was will our class the entire day. We got to do so many fun things like “swim” in a huge pool of dried corn kernels, go through a hay bale maze (way to go Ms. Byrd for leading us through without getting lost), jump out of a barn window onto a huge pile of hay, pet the animals and go on a hayride to pick a pumpkin! Banks decided to ride home with me and before we got back on the interstate, he was snoring! As soon as I got home with Banks, we got the kids settled with Jody’s parents and headed to Tuscaloosa for the weekend. All of my old college friends always try to meet up at one game a year. Lori and Bill graciously opened up Hotel Orrell for the weekend! Lori was so sweet and cooked dinner Friday night for us, Bethany and Justin, and Amy and Bobby. We all went to bed early because we knew Lori would have us on the quad way before 8:00! We tailgated before the game with Lori, Bill and their Tuscaloosa crowd (thanks for letting us crash again)! The game was FABULOUS! Jody and I had great seats again this week…50 yard line, 32 rows up, behind the Alabama team with Van Tiffin 2 rows down in the next section! After the game, we hung out on the quad before loading up and heading back to Hotel Orrell! I guess we are all getting old because we were all asleep before the end of the LSU/Auburn game! Banks and Mary Reese spent Saturday afternoon and night with Popsie and GiGi. They went out to the house they are building and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows in the outdoor fireplace. Banks also learned how to operate a digger that was out there. So as soon as we arrived back in town, he had to show us! After getting home and getting the car unpacked, I started packing up for the big move. I got all my cookbooks packed (don’t think I will be doing much cooking in the near future), most of the den and cleaned out several pieces of furniture that the movers will move with all the stuff in it! My sister reminded me tonight that the one good thing about moving is that you tend to clean everything out and start fresh!

“First” Common Thread

What does getting your first report card, going to your first school Fall Festival, and buying your first pair of blue jeans on your first trip to Old Navy in Decatur have in common? This are all things the Murphree family did this afternoon!!!! Banks got his FIRST report card from Pre-K and he scored pretty good. (Maybe all those York Peppermint Patties that he has been bribing his teacher with had something to do with it?) They don’t get grades only S – Meets or exceeds expectations, P – Progressing toward completion of skill or N – Needs improvement. Banks got a lot of Ps with a few Ns. His Ns were things like: takes care on one’s own needs, follows school rules, practices self control, identifying the Table of Contents and Title Page in a book, reciting his address (he just knows we live on Canal Street…we will wait until we move to master this task), reciting his phone number (I asked him his phone number tonight and he said 555-3245. I guess that is better than 867-5309, right?) , using scissors appropriately (since he has cut several articles of clothes, several sets of sheets and the skirt on the table beside my bed…I don’t encourage his use of scissors), holding pencils appropriately (I am afraid to say that he has inherited my left handedness) and uses glue bottle and glue sticks appropriately. Ms. Davis did comment that he “works hard and shows a lot of enthusiasm about things in the environment.” Banks-Caddell was suppose to have their Fall Festival tonight. It got cancelled after about 30 minutes because of the severe weather threats (it still has not rained a drop tonight). He did get a free arm band to do all the games because he sold so much wrapping paper (thanks to all of you who bought). They are rescheduling…so he will get to go to his FIRST Fall Festival. BUT I did stay up late last night to make a Sour Cream Pound Cake for the cake walk...I wonder what they are doing with all those cakes? Tomorrow is Banks’ FIRST field trip to Tate farms. He has to wear his Banks-Caddell Pre K t-shirt and long pants. His jeans from last year were floods on him so we headed to Decatur's FIRST Old Navy on their FIRST day open in search of him some new jeans. He found some and Mary Reese decided she needed a pair too! I wasn’t quite ready for her FIRST blue jeans but she does look pretty stinking cute in them! She looks like she is almost 3 going on almost 23 with her jeans, fleece pull over and flip flops! She could have been an Old Navy Poster Child! We also got to spend a little time with Baby Carter! Tomorrow I am going on the field trip with Banks. As soon as we get back, Jody and I are headed to Tuscaloosa for the Alabama/Tennessee game. Every year all of my college friends try to meet up for 1 game and this is it! I will post the field trip and football weekend pictures when I get back. After that it is down to business – the packing MUST begin!

Perfect Timing!

It looks like our house has sold and the timing couldn’t be any more perfect! Last week we had 2 sets of serious lookers and thought we were getting 2 offers in 1 day. We did end up getting an offer on Saturday, we countered back on Monday night and they countered back immediately and we accepted. We are still trying to settle on a closing date with both houses but it will be some time between November 7th and November 14th! Looks like we will be in the new house just in time for Thanksgiving! Say a prayer for us that these transactions will go as smoothly as possible! So if you are bored one night and are dying to pack up things…grab a box and come on over!!!

Flip Flops in October???

If any of you know Mary Reese, you know she has a shoe fetish. She LOVES shoes, especially flip flops and high heels. Last year for her birthday, my mother bought her a box set of all the Disney Princess shoes at Costco. Well, one night (before her birthday) we were over there and like always Mary Reese went to “Debbie’s” closet to try on all her shoes. A few minutes later we heard her coming into the kitchen saying “Me, Me, Me!” but weren’t real sure what she was talking about. We quickly found out when she rounded the corner with the box of shoes in hand. Needless to say, she got her birthday present a few weeks early! This summer she developed a deep love for flip flops…she wears them with everything (even her beautiful French hand sewn Easter dress but it wasn’t worth the battle). Yesterday when I pulled up at the house, she came running to the car sporting these purple sequin wedge flip flops that she and Nanny Nan bought yesterday. She said they were just like mine…which they do remind me of my Yellow Box ones. Honestly, I don’t think she is going to retire her flip flops for the winter. So if you see her out in the middle of winter with her flip flops on…I am not a terrible mother and she does own tennis shoes, clogs, nice “church” shoes and other weather appropriate shoes…she just prefers flip flops!

Homecomings 2007

Yes...I meant Homecomings. We started celebrating Thursday night with the Decatur High Homecoming Bonfire and Pep Rally. The kids had fun cheering for the Raiders and watching the bonfire. Friday we picked Banks up from school and headed to Tuscaloosa. We drove down the strip and ate at Mellow Mushroom before we headed over to the quad for Alabama's Homecoming Bonfire and Pep Rally. They had everyone on a stage attached to the front of the library. Mary Reese and Banks loved seeing the cheerleaders and Big Al. Jody almost ran into Nick Saben coming out of the bathroom! The kids had a ball watching the HUGE bonfire, dancing to the band and cheering with the cheerleaders. Big Al was even riding around in a golf cart! Banks got a new jersey...his Brody one was too small!!! Saturday we tailgated on the quad with our friends Lori and Bill Orrell and all their friends from T-town (Thanks for letting us crash your tailgate)! The kids got their faces painted...Banks got Big Al and the Alabama A while Mary Reese got a pink heart (imagine that) with Bama written in it. They were great at the game and loved cheering and keeping their eyes out for Big Al. Mary Reese was infatuated with the cheerleaders. Towards the end of the game...we walked down by the field so they could see everything close up! Mary Reese was asleep before we got off campus and Banks wasn't far behind her... they were exhausted!