Merry Christmas

Well, we are back in Greenwood after another Christmas. We spent Christmas morning with my family and that night with the Redmond crew. Emma Caroline and Knox got more toys than they know what to do with so we decided to open a toy store to sell them to pay off our mortgage.....just kidding. But our van was piled to the roof with no room to spare. We are so thankful for our family who is so loving and giving. We had a good time in Birmingham but realize that traveling with 2 kids is even harder than traveling with 1. So we are glad to be home with everyone in their beds. We hope that all of you had a very Merry Christmas and that you remember everyday the baby that was "born a child and yet a King."

Meeting Santa

Emma Caroline and Knox got to meet Santa. This was the first time we have done this. EC doesn't warm up to strange men very well (right Uncle Bobby?) so we have never tried the Santa thing. But this year I was determined. Well, she loved it. I'm not sure I have ever seen her so excited. Knox was in awe and just stared. Matt got this picture with his cell phone and I was surprised how well it turned out.

Merry Christmas

Any parent who tries to take a family picture knows how hard it can be to get even a half way decent one with everyone looking. We got a few good ones so I thought I would post them. I highly recommend bribing your kids with candy!!

Just because

I had to put this picture on just because I thought it was precious. My 2 boys looking out the window at the pretty fall day. I also had to snap it quick before Knox reached over and grabbed a wad of fur. He just loves Aubie. Thankfully Aubie has either gotten use to it or he is getting old.

Fireworks and Party

After the parade we went to watch the fireworks. We opened up the back of the van and all the kids (and me) enjoyed a comfy seat. Then we sent the kids to the babysitters and the adults had a party. This group is our Sunday School class and good friends. We have been truly blessed by these amazing people. We had so much fun. We had seafood chowder and chili and many many desserts. It was a great start to this Christmas season.

Christmas Parade

The Greenwood Christmas parade is a big deal in our little town. It is a day full of fun. The parade goes down Grand Boulevard. We gather with other church members at a friends house who lives on Grand. Of course, there has to be food and hot chocolate. This year it was so cold but we were troopers. We braved the cold for the 3 hour parade. But the fun didn't stop there. Once the parade was over everyone walks down to the river and to watch a fireworks show that would rival any big city's (no, I'm not kidding). Then after that there are usually more parties.....but that is another post.

Because of Matt's surgery, Emma Caroline has been in Birmingham with her grandparents for the past week. We miss her so much but have enjoyed our time with Knox. Life is a little crazy with 2 kids running around so to just have 1 here has allowed us to spoil him with attention. Spoiled he is but I think he even missed his big sister. We head to Birmingham tomorrow for Thanksgiving and to get our little girl. So Happy Thanksgiving to all. May we remember all we have to be thankful for especially the grace that has been given to us through the blood of Christ.

Update on Matt

Matt's surgery went very well. The pain is gone and he is feeling much better. He did have to stay overnight in the hospital because some spinal fluid leaked out. They put a "patch" on it to keep any more from leaking out and wanted him to spend 24 hours on his back. But he came home this morning. He has a bit of a headache but over all is doing good. We are so thankful for your prayers and so glad this is behind us.

Matt's Surgery

Just wanted to let everyone know that Matt will be having surgery on Monday morning. He has been suffering from a herniated disc in his back for several months but the last 3 weeks it has been very severe and he has been in a lot of pain. He tried physical therapy for a few weeks but didn't seem to improve much. Then just walking around a little would cause major set backs. Dr. John Davis will be doing the surgery in Jackson at River Oaks Hospital. We feel real confident in him and we are convinced after talking with him that this is the right decision. The surgery will take place Monday morning at 9:30 (or so) and, believe it or not, it is outpatient so we will be home that afternoon. Please pray that the surgery will be a complete success. That Matt will get complete relief from the pain he has been in and full strength restored to his leg and foot. I will post as soon as I can afterward to let y'all know how it goes.

Guess who I met....

I may live in little Greenwood, MS but we can bring in the Stars and they don't get much bigger, in my opinion, than Paula Deen. She has a new cookbook out and came to Greenwood for a book signing. So I stood in line in the cold and rain for an hour and a half. Paula had a cold and wasn't her chipper self but I got her autography. However, Michael was wonderful. He took lots of time and talked to Knox, gave me an autograph and had a picture made. He really is a kind man. I still can't believe I saw them in person. Too bad she wasn't cooking.

Happy Halloween

Our celebration actually started on Sunday. Emma Caroline was a princess and Knox was a giraffe at our church's fall festival. Emma Caroline had so much fun playing games, painting pumpkins and getting "prizes". Knox slept through the whole thing. Then on Halloween we went Trick-or-Treating. It was actually Emma Caroline's first time to trick-or-treat. She caught on fast and had a good time (except that she wanted to go inside everyone's house).

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

Today is Matt's birthday and we have had a good day. We celebrated first thing this morning, opening gifts because someone (and I don't mean Emma Caroline) just couldn't wait any longer. He got exactly what he wanted - lots of itunes. Then we celebrated some more tonight by going out to eat with some friends. Matt got his steak so he is really really happy. Then everyone came to our house for cake. It was a good day and we thank God for 35 years of Matt Redmond and look forward to many many more!!!!

Potty Training

For some of you this may be too much information but there may be someone reading this who is pulling their hair out like I was so I must share what I know. Emma Caroline has been giving us fits with potty training. We had tried several different approaches with NO success. So one day I went to our local bookstore and looked through a few books. I found a different approach in Toddler Wise by Gary Ezzo. (Some may be familiar with his book Baby Wise). He talks about 3 different approaches, we did the Progressive approach. Now we still have some accidents but she is doing so good!!! There are 2 big differences. First, you reward for staying dry and clean. This was good for us to begin with because all we had heard was to reward when they went potty. Well, that is hard to do when they won't go. This gave us something to reward and it gave her incentive. The second thing that made a huge impact was that I bought a bunch of "prizes". Basically junk food that I never let her have. Then we role played with a teddy bear going potty. When the teddy bear went potty she (teddy) got some of the prizes. Emma Caroline really wanted the prizes so we only had to role play that a few times and put her on the potty and she got the picture. This is a very abbreviated explanation, but I highly recommend the book. I hope that it will be helpful to others.

WAAAAAAAR EAGLE!!!!

So, the kids weren't up for this game but I figured I may as well use their picture. Matt and I watched in astonishment as Auburn beat the undefeated Florida Gators. Maybe we aren't loyal fans but we just didn't think they had it in them. Boy were we wrong!! It was an awesome game. So to all of our fellow Auburn Tigers out there - WAAAAAAR EAGLE!!!!

Going to the Pumpkin Patch

Today we went to a pumpkin patch, with our friends the O'Briens, to pick out our pumpkin. An added bonus was that there were a lot of animals there too. We got to see horses, cows, goats, ducks, a donkey and an emu. Emma Caroline just loved it!!! Then we got to play with all the pumkins and bring some home.

My littlest Auburn Tiger

Yes, I promise he is mine (although I will say that I did go back and check pictures from right after he was born to be sure he wasn't switched). My little blonde haired, blue eyed Auburn Tiger. And he is as sweet as he is cute. If you don't believe me, ask his grandparents. Knox now has 2 teeth and is crawling backwards. Tonight I put him in his crib and he promptly grabbed on to the bed and stood up. Once he figures out how to crawl forward my world will be turned upside down but it is totally worth it. And Yes, more Auburn pictures will be coming your way shortly.

Having a picnic

We actually have had some nice weather here in the Delta so we decided to have a little picnic. Emma Caroline loved it but she didn't quite get the concept. She kept saying that she was sitting ON the picnic. Oh well, close enough.

Back from Birmingham

We just got back from a visit to Birmingham. Bobby, one of Matt's brothers, invited him to come play with him and the other brothers (4 in all for those who don't know) in a golf tournament. The really funny part is that Matt doesn't play golf but it was a good excuse for him to spend some time with his brothers and for us to go "home". It was a good trip. The boys actually walked away from the tournament, with a prize, a new 5 iron, for the worse score. But they had a good time. Matt and I had free baby sitting from the grandparents so we went on a date and saw a movie. Can't tell you the last time I saw a movie in the theater. (In case you are wondering we saw The Illusionist. I highly recommend it) I even got to spend a little time with my friend Courtney, who I grew up with. Our kids are about the same age and had a great time. The whole next days Emma Caroline kept say, "we go back to Alli's house?" Courtney, I can't believe we forgot to take pictures!!! Anyway, the highlight of the trip for Emma Caroline was the trip to the Galleria where she got to ride the Merry-go-round. Knox just enjoyed watching. We wound up the trip with the stomach bug. First me, then Emma Caroline then my sweet mother-in-law who had taken care of us. Thanksfully the boys were all spared. Oh well, we enjoyed our little get away none the less.

These Boots are made for splashing

Emma Caroline loves her boots!!! She will put them on with her shorts to play in the back yard on a sunny day, so to get to wear them and splash in a puddle is a little bit of Heaven for her. Thanks Jon and Loren for the boots!!!

War Eagle

These 2 are Big Auburn fans. Emma Caroline will shout a big War Eagle or Go Auburn on her way to the other TV to watch Barney. But she stole her Daddy's heart this morning when she asked to watch football.

Playing at the park

Today we walked to the "big park" (as Emma Caroline likes to call it). It was actually a little cool out and we all enjoyed it. We go to this playground a lot since it is just down the street from us. Emma Caroline likes to swing and go up and down the slides. Knox just likes watching his big sister.

Visits from Grandparents

The Grandparents recently came for a visit. We had a great time and the kids got spoiled, of course. Since there isn't much to do in Greenwood the grandkids are the main event. Thanks GiGi and DeDe and MiMi and PaPa for coming to see us. It was a lot of fun.

Welcome to our blog!!!

I have really enjoyed the blog of a friend of mine who lives far from family and friends. Erika and I were neighbors in St.Louis but never get to see each other now. However, because of her blog I get to "see" her kids grow up. Thanks Erika!!! So I decided to try this bloggin' thing myself. So if you want to know about politics, weather, sports, Wall Street, or even theology this is not the website for you. But if you want to know what is going on with 2 adorable kids and their parents living in the Mississippi Delta this is your one stop shop.