Hangin with the cousins.


Thanksgiving Fun...
We went to Missouri to spend Thanksgiving with Nathan's Aunts, Uncles, etc. It's always alot of fun. On the way we stopped in Branson and at Bass Pro. We stay with his uncle Mark and Aunt Lita (who is seriously the world's best cook) and this year was especially fun b/c our little 2nd cousins Ashley and Angelica also stayed there with us. They are the two most beautiful little girls and Kaleigh had a lot of fun with them. On Thanksgiving day there were about 40 of us and we all saw Grandma Statton. On Friday everyone got a kick out of watching Nathan and I watch the Arkansas/LSU game, each rooting for different teams. Friday night we went to a community theater called the stained glass theater, which is always a fun tradition, and Saturday on the way back we stopped at Branson Landing. I loved it, especially this time of year. They were playing Christmas music for the fountains and the weather was gorgeous. We let Kaleigh walk around and she was squealing and having such a good time, and so cute, we thought people were about to start throwing money at her!

More Birthday Pictures

Birthday Parties
It's been a while since I've updated, so just a few pics from Kaleigh's birthday.

One Year - and She's Off...

Happy Birthday Kaleigh! I can't imagine our lives without you and God blessed us so much when he gave us such a good, happy baby. You have gone from being a tiny baby to almost a little girl, but you will always be our baby. You change a little bit every day and it's amazing to watch you learn right before my eyes. I think we can say officially that you are walking. You let go of the furniture and take about 10 or 11 steps sometimes. You have two bottom teeth and are getting your top teeth. You love to look at your books and explore the house. You can say mama, dada, bye-bye, baba, and wave and blow kisses. You also give your daddy sugars when he asks for it (with your mouth wide open). You love to listen to music and dance. You are starting to repeat things that we say. You love to smile and make faces and be the center of attention. We love you so much, Kaleigh!

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

Fall, Boogeymen and Fishnet Hose

Aaahh, October, month of cooler weather, beautiful leaves and of course, Halloween. I have another reason to love October now since Kaleigh's birthday is on the 15th.

Confession time - I've never really liked Halloween. Mainly b/c of the evil aspect of it, and the focus on scary and dark things. I used to like scary movies but I think since Kaleigh has been born, those don't appeal to me at all. When I had to wake up in the night with her, all I could think about was the boogeyman or the Scream guy. Even worse, when I wake up & don't hear Kaleigh, I start thinking about Elizabeth Smart or the Amber alert girl whose movie was on Lifetime. Or what was on the 6 o' clock evening news.

Growing up, I wasn't allowed to go trick or treating, and my parents (I love you!) didn't really want to spend much money on costumes for school or a fall festival that I might go to, so we would put together some kind of homemade costume. At least two years in a row I was a punk rocker. Since it was the 80's this consisted of a regular dress of mine paired with fishnet stockings and some kind of neon coloring in my hair. And I'm pretty sure one year my fishnet stockings had a big hole and I went to the church fall festival looking more like a prostitute than a punk rocker. I won't even talk about the time I dressed up as a boy...

Get Your Own! | View Slideshow

I'm trying to teach Kaleigh to use the potty. She seems to like it so far...

To Step or Not to Step?

Okay, I have to brag a little bit. Our little boo (that would be Kaleigh) took 7 or 8 steps the other night. Before then, she'd taken maybe 2 steps to get to Nathan, but it was more like falling. We were so proud, we got out the video camera, and she even did it again for the camera! Of course now she doesn't seem to want to do it at all, but she has gotten really good at standing in place. We'll see what happens.

Our Vacation

Nathan took some much needed vacation time Thursday and Friday so Wednesday after work we packed up the camper and set off for Hot Springs. Kaleigh was also having a vacation, she got to stay with her Nana and Poppa. I'm so thankful they were able to keep her for a few days.
We stayed in a RV park really close to Central Ave and Thursday we did some shopping, ate lunch at McClard's BBQ (I think I'm still full from eating there!), Nathan did some fishing that evening at the campground. Then, we went to Books a Million & had coffee and read magazines and looked at books. I know, it sounds kinda boring, but for me it was just so wonderful not having to worry about anything. After we got back to the camper it had started storming and I was a little afraid of being in a tornado. I kept thinking if we died we really don't have anyone lined up to take Kaleigh. (I know, depressing, right?)

Friday - we slept in (yay!), went downtown and got some brochures & coupon books, and ate lunch. Then, our big event - we both got a bath and massage at the Buckstaff baths. It's still set up just like it was 50+ years ago. First I undressed and then wrapped up in a sheet. An attendant led me into a stall with a whirlpool tub filled with the Hot Springs water and I soaked for 20 minutes. Next was the sitz bath, then the steam room. My favorite part was next, when I got to lay on a cot wrapped in my sheet and they put hot towels under my back & neck, and then a cold towel around my head. It felt soooo nice. That lasted 20 minutes but I could have stayed longer. Then was the shower with 8 showerheads coming from all sides. Finally was the massage. It was all very relaxing.
I met Nathan afterward and we walked up & down the street looking in all the shops. That night we came back and ate at the Hot Springs Brau Haus, a German restaurant I had seen. It was really good. I had the shnitzel with vegetables & German potato salad and Nathan got Bratwurst & some other kind of sausage, a pork roast, and German potato salad and saurkraut. The bread was also wonderful.

We were thinking about going to Magic Springs on Saturday, but the weather wasn't looking good so we decided against that. Turned out to be a real good decision. Saturday night we ate out with my sister Kelly for her birthday and a bunch of her EEE pledge sisters from OBU. Kaleigh loved the attention she got from all the girls. We had a fun time.

Okay, I love Clay Aiken and am so excited that he is coming out with a new cd of classic love songs! Actually it came out today. I was a huge fan when he was on American Idol and very proudly referred to myself as a Claymate. This morning he was on Good Morning America singing and Kaleigh stopped her playing, looked straight at the TV and said "Clay". I couldn't be prouder!
Shelly

Just a little recap of highlights from the past week -

Tuesday night Nathan and I got to go to a play at the Rep called Moonlight & Magnolias. It was a comedy about the producer, director and screenwriter of the movie Gone with the Wind. The story goes that the screenwriter had never read the book and had only a week to write the screenplay, so they locked themselves in the director's office with only bananas and peanuts to eat and the producer & director acted out the story for the screenwriter!
The really fun part was that this was a private performance sponsored by Bank of the Ozarks (we got the tickets from Nathan's parents) and they had all kinds of good food to eat - fruit, spinach dip, yummy little pastries, quesedillas, chicken strips...

Friday, we had our play date at Nitzia's. It was alot of fun. Pictures to come soon.

Friday night my sister came over. On Saturday morning Nathan went to help the Bunge's move and I went garage selling for a little while. Then Nathan called & told me to go to the new Shoe Carnival in the new shopping center at the Alcoa exit in Benton and get tickets for a movie premiere from ALice 107.7. Me, Kaleigh, & my sister drove up there and got the tickets then went in the store to do a little shopping. It was absolutely insane! You literally could hardly walk in there. Then, they announced that they had $5 handbags for sale and pulled out some boxes of them. It was a madhouse! Women running, crowding around these boxes, purses flying and being snatched up. Shoving, kicking, hair-pulling, biting... Okay maybe I exaggerate a little, but I'm still happy to have gotten out of there alive.
Afterwards we got all hyped up to watch LSU play Auburn. This was one of the most important games of the season. Kaleigh put on her LSU windsuit and got ready to cheer them on. Unfortunately, the game did not go as hoped. The really bad part is, the officials made some terrible calls. Now, I know that everyone makes excuses when their team loses, but I really strongly believe that this game was decided by the officials and that should never be the case. I would be the first to admit that LSU just wasn't good enough & did not deserve to win, but that's not what happened here. Oh well... And thanks to the wonder of DVR Nathan and I went back & watched the Arkansas game Saturday night. At least somebody won...

I know it's a little late, but I'd like to share what Nathan and I did over the long weekend. We thought about going out of town but Nathan and Kaleigh were both recovering from colds so we said to ourselves "what can we do that would be relaxing and fun? I Know! We can redo our bathroom!" What a great idea... We got started Saturday morning. I thought we'd have the wallpaper off the wall by noon. Not happening. It took many, many hours. We stopped on Saturday night to watch the game.

We'd been wanting to go to the movies for a while so my sister came up from OBU to babysit Sunday night. We went up the dollar theater & watched "My Super Ex-Girlfriend". Not necessarily our first choice, but it was the only one we weren't late for. Of course I missed half of it standing in line for popcorn since there only appeared to be one person working at this huge theater, but wadya expect when you pay $1 to get in?
Monday morning we finally finished painting and now we just have to replace the light fixture, put down new floor, buy a cabinet, pick out a shower curtain, paint the cabinets. . .
Maybe by next labor day we'll be finished.

The green wallpaper was what we had, and this floral monstrosity was underneath that. Stay tuned for a picture of the completed project.

Kaleigh was all played out & fell asleep on the floor.






I watched Noah recently and Kaleigh & Noah had fun playing together. Judging from this picture, Kaleigh had more fun than Noah!


Kaleigh got a little rage during the Football game on Saturday. She was their little cheerleader.

Our Little Climber I had a surprise today. I found out Kaleigh knows how to climb stairs! She hasn't been around any until today but she was pretty good at making her way up those stairs. We were at Immanuel Baptist for a Friendship International meeting and Kaleigh needed a little break so that's when we made the discovery. Speaking of Immanuel, I really like their church. They have a neat little food bar/ coffee shop and a workout room and some really cool playrooms for the kids. They even have gymnastic equipment and have mommy & baby classes. I can't wait until our church gets our new coffee shop and one day a rec center. I will be up there all the time! So anyway, back to Kaleigh, after she discovered her climbing ability she came home & was trying to climb up on the couch. We put a little cushion down to help her. I think we may have created a monster!

Today was Lake Day at Degray with the Sunday School class. We had such a good time and the weather was gorgeous. I was so excited because I actually wakeboarded! I've gotten up once before but this time I stayed up for a few minutes. I asked Nathan later if I looked as wobbly and clumsy as I felt, but he said no, that I looked really in control. That made me feel good. Nathan was even more excited about it than I was, really. He was the one who talked me into doing it anyway. I'm just disappointed not to have any pictures of that.
We had a great time. Randy did some awesome jumps for us and I think us girls just liked hanging out in the water (other than in the swimming area where the fish were attacking us!)

Hi, this a post from Kaleigh Statton. I used to love sleeping in my daddy's arms but I hardly ever do that anymore. Only when I'm really really tired like I was in this picture. And I know I look angelic while I'm sleeping, but do not be fooled!



My teddy bear is so much fun to play with. He likes it when I give him kisses on his little black nose.








I really enjoy bathtime and wearing my washcloth on my head like this.








Also my mommy got me this new little riding toy and I like to sit on it and zoom around the room if somebody pushes me.

Being a Stay-at-home-mom (SAHM)
A recent discussion with a friend led me to evaluate the status of being a SAHM. Personally, I love staying at home with my baby girl, and it has always been my dream job. Although my position is now enviable by some moms who are working outside the home, try being a high-schooler whose only true heart's desire is to be a SAHM. It just didn't sound that great to most people to say that I hoped one day to stay at home and take care of my husband and children, but what can I say? Even now, I know a lot of people look down on my "job", but it's nice to have some appreciation for what I do.

Stay tuned for more on the ups and downs of my career. - Shelly

Sunday Night Supper Club

Wow, life sure does seem busy lately! That's fine with me though, I get plenty of time to sit around the house. We went to church on Sunday and actually went Sunday night. Afterwards was supper club at IHOP. I think the workers were a little overwhelmed by our 20+ group (& all at one table), but the waitress did a great job. Monday morning I took Kaleigh to storytime at the Bryant library. It was so much fun. At least I had fun, Kaleigh was mildly entertained. They did a really good job. There were books, puppets, songs and hand motions. It's good to be able to find some activity for a 10 month old. Monday night was bible study at Sara's house. The bible study is really wonderful and I'm learning so much. Sara made some amazing black bean salsa. I ate so much I can still taste the onions but it was worth it! My 3 fave foods with onions - 1. black bean salsa, 2. Philly steak sandwiches, 3. chicken & dumplings. That list was in honor of Jill's lists, which I really enjoy.

Okay, I'm going to try & write more from now on since pictures won't load on our slow speed internet. I'll just start from last week. On Monday Kaleigh and I went to Cabot to visit my friends Amy and Tracy and Kaleigh played with Tracy's adorable kids. We got back just in time for me to get to my bible study at Nitzia's. Then Tues. night was bunko. I almost won the loser prize but Begina beat me out on a roll-off. Wednesday, Kaleigh came down with stomach bug of some kind. It was not a good day to be a mom! I won't go into details, but let's just say there were two incidents in which Kaleigh, onesie, diaper and all were rushed into the bathtub. Fortunately, through the whole thing, Kaleigh remained perfectly happy and by Thursday and a whole bottle of pedialtye, she was all better. Kelly came down Wed night and on Thursday we went back to school shopping for her. Thursday night she babysat while Nathan and I went to eat at Kobe for a work outing. I had Sushi for the first time and even though I didn't love it, the fried shrimp roll and unagi were pretty good. We came back & watched Glory Road (good movie!). On Saturday, me and Nathan finished the guest bathroom that we have been working on for a while. We sponged the walls, painted the cabinet and put down peel & stick tiles and finally finished at 9:00 p.m. WHEW! It is a good feeling to be finished.

Kaleigh had fun at her recent play date with all her friends. She visited Mimi and Pawpaw and liked playing with the cat. Another photo session.

Kaleigh's new LSU shoes, fun time in the swimming pool, and her two new teeth (bottom center)

Pictures from Riverfest. We had a good time listening to Lifehouse & watching the fireworks.

Fun At Wild River Country! Kaleigh liked the water pretty well. We were very grateful for the little Jumpers. It was really the only thing she could do.

Went to the Old Mill & took some pictures. Lance, there is one for you.