Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween!


And now the comic relief.
Disclaimer: No child was harmed in this moment, due to the cat like reflexes of her daddy.
"Philip, I'm not sure she is going to be able to sit on that pumpkin all by herself."
"You just take the picture. I promise, I'll catch her if she falls."

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Papa Papa Toast


Helen has now started some finger foods. This past weekend I spied some Papa Papa toast and decided to let her try it. She loved it, especially with her two new bottom teeth! For those that don't know what Papa Papa toast is here's the deal. Papa Papa is our Brownsville great grandfather, hubby to Mama Em. He slices sandwich bread into 3-4 sticks and let's them sit in the oven on warm for hours until they are good and crispy and then brushes them with just a little bit of butter and let's them cook on low for even longer. The result is a light buttery crispy treat that everyone loves. I've tried to make them myself but they just don't taste as good as when Papa Papa makes them.


Here is our little way to say thank you this morning! Sorry I could not get Helen to smile. She was too busy gnawing on her toast.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Monday night was a difficult night in our house. We started sleep training Helen which means she screamed for about an hour with Daddy stepping in about every 15 minutes to quickly pat her and say he loved her. Mommy can't go in because Helen will want "the good stuff." Just after Helen finally gave up her fight, we heard Philip crying in his room. The next thing Mommy heard on the monitor was Daddy saying "Philip, where are your clothes?!" At some point in the night, Philip had stripped naked and fallen asleep...without a pull up. The result? Our first bed wetting. So Philip ended up coming to bed with us around 4:00 a.m. Tuesday evening Daddy revealed this picture that he had taken just before leaving for work early that morning. See any family resemblance?

Monday, October 27, 2008

More Traveling

This past weekend we went up to Brownsville for our cousin Martha's third birthday party and her little sister Amy's, christening. That means it was a big huge Moss party with all eleven grandchildren in one place! Aunt Emily outdid herself with a Pajamas and Pancakes party Saturday morning, complete with pumpkin painting. Sunday morning was the christening of Amy. I love the way the Brownsville First Methodist church does baptisms. After Amy was baptized, the minister presented her to the congregation, and walked up and down each aisle for the congregation to see this precious little one to whom they had just made a Christian commitment. They also have children's church so when it came time for the little ones to join the minister at the altar, Little Philip went running and fell right in line with everyone, without the slightest apprehension or look back to mom or dad. After the christening we had a delicious brunch with shrimp and grits, one of my favorite dishes.

We hated to leave but Daddy had to drive to Starkville Sunday night to be there in time for a big campus recruiting event this morning. Thankfully, that is his only overnight trip this week. So this Monday morning we are getting back into our regular routine and finishing up costumes. Unfortunately, Peter Pan's hat, made from the neck of a green turtleneck, does not fit over his head. I should have known with that Moss noggin! I'm off to Hobby Lobby to see if I can find something that will work. Helen's Tinkerbell costume is all but finished. She will either look like an adorable little green fairy, or an adorable baby showgirl. Let's hope for the first part!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Trip to the Mountains

My dear friend from college, Liz, invited me and the kids up to Cashiers, NC to spend a few days there with her two children. Cashiers is kind of a special place for me. It was at Liz's 2000 wedding in Cashiers that I polled all of my girlfriends about whether or not to accept Philip's invitation to go to the Moss family beach reunion as a first date. So glad they said yes!

Brace yourself from some serious jealousy. On Wednesday and Thursday I was blessed to experience this majestic view from the back screened porch of Liz's family's mountain home.

While the kids were napping Wednesday afternoon, I stepped outside to experience the beautiful sight, sounds, and smell of the mountains of North Carolina. I took in a deep breath and looked up to see this. It was the perfect week for the colors of autumn to make their debut.



Little Philip and Helen were in heaven with their friends, Matthew and Mary Branch. They played on the golf course, enjoyed riding in the golf cart around course itself, and had a special treat of feeding carrots to Ed and Fred, the resident donkeys at High Hampton Inn.

Helen, not to be left out, made great friends with Etta, a chocolate lab. Who knew she liked doggy kisses so much!




Thank you, Liz, for a wonderful time to catch up and play!

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Pumpkin Patch Year Two


We returned to Old Baker Farm this year for another great day at the pumpkin patch! If Philip had fun last year he really had fun this year! He really enjoyed the hay maze, barn full of baby animals, hay mountain, pumpkin patch, horsey swing, hay ride and more. This year, Little Philip is a big brother so he had to hold his sister in the picture rather than a little pumpkin. Our friends, the Hilsmiers, join us with their two boys, and Uncle Robb and Aunt Ellen also came along for a fun fall day.

Daddy almost dropped Philip off the hay mountain. You can see hay flying off of his foot and a bit of a panicked look on Daddy's face in this picture. The hay mountain was about two stories high.

Thankfully, he recovered.

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

First Dentist Appointment


Today Little Philip went to the dentist for the first time. Dr. Clark Thomas at Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry was our new hero by the end of the day. It started when we first arrived and the receptionist opened the glass window with a huge smile, naming Philip by name as soon as we arrived. The waiting room had two flat screen TVs showing Finding Nemo, one of our favorite movies. Philip sat in one of two toy cars facing the screen for about five seconds before finding a music keyboard to occupy his time while Mommy filled out paperwork. Helen was a perfect little sister, content to sit in the Baby Bjorn the entire appointment. When it was Philip's turn to go back, he picked the red examination chair and was pretty excited not only to continued watching Finding Nemo on the flat screen above his head but also to taste the grape flavored examination gloves. What a concept! Philip was a perfect patient, and got a clean bill of health. Because he was a good patient, Dr. Thomas gave him a gold token that he used to get a bouncy ball out of a fancy vending machine. He also got two stickers for his shirt, Batman and Scooby Doo. I didn't even know he knew who Scooby Doo was. At the end of his appointment, Dr. Thomas helped him put his green handprint on a ceiling tile next to his name. Dr. Thomas's office is in a new location so they are decorating the acoustic ceiling tiles with patient handprints and names. It's very bright and colorful and we were super happy with our first dentist appointment!

Saturday, October 04, 2008

Captain Rodney's Cheese Bake

Although it feels like at least a year, it has probably only been about three months since I had this incredible dip made by my sister-in-law, Emily. This is called Captain Rodney's Cheese Bake. The key ingredient is Captain Rodney's Boucan glaze, or any glaze made by Captain Rodney. Emily first had  this cheese bake in Greenwood, MS at a shower earlier this year. She brought back some bottles of the glaze from the drug store where it is sold there. You would think Birmingham would have this stuff somewhere but for the last few months, I have been searching and searching. I called and emailed the company in Bell Buckle, TN and finally got a response that Whole Foods carried it. I sent Philip to the store immediately but they had to order it for us. I waited three weeks for a call from Whole Foods that my order had arrived but as of today, I still had no call. So, I went today to check and there on the shelf were several bottles of this amazing glaze.
Since we are gearing up to watch the Vandy vs. Auburn game, it was fitting to have a pregame appetizer so we opted for the Captain Rodney's Cheese bake. It was so dang good that half of it was gone by the time I got the camera out. Mind you, it's just me and Philip eating it. That diet will have to wait. I'm in ooey gooey cheese bake heaven right now!

Here is the recipe in case you want to make it and believe me, you do. I warn you. This is highly addictive!

Captain Rodney's Cheese Bake

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
8 oz. cream cheese
2 green onions, finely chopped (optional)
8 crushed Ritz crackers

Mix the above four ingredients and place in a greased quiche or tart pan or anything made for baked dips. Top with the crushed crackers and bake for 15 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven.

8 slices of crispy cooked bacon, chopped.
1/2 cup Captain Rodney's glaze (Boucan glaze is the same as Mango Pepper glaze)

Top baked cheese with crumbled bacon and drizzle the 1/2 cup glaze over the top. Serve with crackers or any chip you prefer.

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Little Pumpkins


If any of you subscribe to the Family Fun Magazine, you know what a great monthly list of fun crafts and activities it offers. For October, the cover features a tiedyed pumpkin t-shirt idea. There was no way I was going to attempt to tiedye with a three year old and six month old so I took care of that part during an afternoon nap this past week. Once the dye was set, Little Philip helped me decide what kind of pumpkin faces to put on his shirt and Helen's shirt. He would say "do one like this" and he would squish up his face. And so, he decided what kind of pumpkin faces to do one by one by making the face he wanted me to draw. Notice that Little Philip is holding his sister's hand. Anytime they are next to each other, he insists on holding her hand.

Krispy Kreme




Daddy had some leftover Krispy Kremes from a recent student recruitment event. Little Philip was in heaven, as was his mommy! However, as we continue to wrestle with his picky eating habits, you will notice that he, too, has a fondness for icing. He ate around the doughnut but we had a hard time convincing him that there was more icing in the very center. Instead, he wanted to eat another one, leaving each one half-eaten.

Vanderbilt College Game Day!

As we prepare for Vandy to take on Auburn Saturday in Nashville, we are also preparing for ESPN College Game Day to broadcast from Vandy's campus. This is a list of possible signs to hold up behind the broadcast podium, sent to me via email from some fellow Vandy alums.

1. This Doormat is ticked. (last word changed for family friendly blogging).
2. Hell hath no fury like a woman's jean's company scorned.
3. Karma owes us...big time!
4. We Read Option and Read Books
5. I didn't need a tutor to write this sign!
6. Only at VU: QB= High School Valedictorian
7. Bobby Johnson can solve the credit crisis too.
8. I used to work for Goldman Sachs, now I am a full-time Gameday groupie.
9. Vanderbilt: Top 25 in darn near everything.
10. We have no chance [wink, wink]
11. Vanderbilt 'Intramurals' > Auburn football.
12. Vandy vs. Auburn - Culture vs. agriculture
13. This is the only way an Auburn fan could ever get into Vanderbilt.
14. If VU wins the SEC, should we leave for a better conference?
15. Been doing well in the SEC without an athletic dept since 2003.
16. Home Depot: We don't wear orange, but we sure can build a team!
17. Spurrier's Visor Being Held Captive - Send Lou for Negotiation.
18. Vandy: Ranked. UT: Rank
19. Vanderbilt Bandwagon: Looking for Volunteers
20. Kirk - No hard feelings, you're not in our top 25 either. (Kirk Herbstreit was the only voter
in AP poll to have us unranked this week)

GO 'DORES!