Christmas 2008

This was such a wonderful Christmas!! Chelsea went to her father's for Christmas Eve. Now that she is older, she spends the night there for Christmas Eve so that she can be there for her brothers when they wake up to Santa's presents. Then she spends the rest of the time with me. Since she was gone Christmas Eve, I had little to do...so my family and I went to Chili's for dinner. That doesn't sound very Christmasy..but you couldn't imagine how packed that place was! Then we went home and played games. I think Chelsea had a really good Christmas. She got lots of great gifts from her dad and stepmom. She even got 2 frogs from them...though those have to stay at daddy's! All she really wanted was a juicy purse...which she got. She is actually hugging it in one of those pictures!! My favorite gift of all time was from Chelsea. She made me a scrapbook. She spent hours on it all by herself. She found all of the pictures and put it together. The only help she got was from my mom...and that was just to buy the scrapbook! It was so touching that I cried the entire way through it!! I'll never cherish anything more! After presents, we went to the movies. All in all, we had a wonderful day. It was a great way to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ!

DC Skate Party

Every Christmas, Chelsea's dance studio hosts a party at the Brentwood Skate Center. This is only for the company kids. They get to hang out with all of their friends, which is always lots of fun. Each company also performs a Christmas routine. They all dress up differently, according to their company's dance. This year, Chelsea's team, the Juniors, danced to Santa Baby. They were to wear anything red & green and a Santa hat. My personal favorite were the Seniors who dressed in footed pajamas!! They looked soo funny! After the big finale, they find their big/little sisters and exchange presents. My Chelsea's sister, Chelsie, gave her a stocking full of goodies. My Chelsea gave a build a bear reindeer with light up antlers and her voice saying "I love you, Chelsie." We had a really fun time. DC is like our second family, so we always love getting together with everyone.

Family Christmas Dinner

After the skate party, we went to our aunt's house for our family Christmas dinner. I think the total was around 30 people!! That's a lot of relatives under one roof! We had a really good time seeing all of our out-of-town cousins. Plus, the food was amazing! Chelsea, Little Kayla (we have 2 Kayla's in the family!!), & Morgan all did a little skit for the true meaning of Christmas. They told what each tradition stands for...like the Christmas tree & the star or angle on the tree. It was really sweet. Little Kayla even dressed the part of Santa! We had a great time with our family and it got us all in the Christmas spirit!

Ballet Dance

Last night, Chelsea's ballet class performed a routine from the Nutcracker. They just dressed up in pajamas to represent being Asian. Apparently they were supposed to be men...which totally freaked Chelsea out! They did a really good job and had a lot of fun. This wasn't meant to be a very technical routine for them...they were simply supposed to act silly and have fun. They all laughed through the whole thing!! The pictures didn't turn out very good, though. They are far away and a little blurry...but you get the idea. Chelsea is in the white top and green pajama pants. The woman with her is her ballet teacher, Mrs. Jennifer. She does work with the Nashville Ballet as well as Chelsea's studio...so she always teaches them a part of the Nutcracker at Christmas.

Christmas Dance

Chelsea helps teach a 5 year old combo class at DC Dance Factory on Wednesday nights. This is a huge honor for her because usually only the older girls get to help teach. Plus, you have to be invited to do it by the teacher. Chelsea enjoys this class so much. She has really gotten to love the kids and they love her too. Last night they had a little Christmas dance they performed for their parents. Chelsea has to do the routines with them so they know what to do. Here are pictures of Chelsea dancing with her class. She had to dress up "Christmasy" too!

Christmas Band Concert

Last night, Chelsea's band held their Christmas dinner/concert. It was a really fun night. During dinner, the children were able to perform for the parents. In order to do this, they had to audition for the band directors. Some children danced with their friends, others played their instruments. Chelsea and her best friend Terah made the cut to perform a duet with their flutes! They did an amazing job and I was so proud. Then we went to the gym for the concert. All three levels of the band performed. Since Chelsea is only a 5th grader, she is still in beginning band. However, she and Terah do share the honor of first chair!! To those of you who are familiar with bands, first chair is a huge honor. It means you are the best player of that instrument in the band!! Here are some pictures from last night...enjoy!

Snow day

Well, Chelsea finally got her first snow day of the year!! Of course, there really wasn't much snow...but we tried to make the best of what there was. We went for a walk around the neighborhood & played on the playground for a little while. Chelsea spun around on the tire swing forEVER!! It made me sick just watching her. Hopefully the next snow will be a really good one...but this was a good starter!

The Grinch on ICE

After the convention and pool party on Saturday, we went with 2 of Chelsea's friends to see the Grinch on ICE. It was really fun. The Kennedis...as we like to call them...had never been before. We had to wait in line for about 30 minutes. To keep the girls entertained, I took pictures of them "begging"! haha, they had fun acting silly. It was incredibly cold in the building, so we didn't stay for too long. Everything in the building is sculpted out of ice! There are even ice slides that are really fun...but cold on the bottom!! The girls went down the ice slide 2 times each. They couldn't go more than that because the line was too long and they got too cold! But, it was a really fun night.

NYCDA

This weekend was EXTREMELY busy! Chelsea had a dance convention called NYCDA, New York City Dance Alliance. It was held at Opryland Hotel. This is a two day convention. Chelsea danced all day Saturday and Sunday! Needless to say she was exhausted when she got home last night! She did a really great job, though. She really worked hard to learn each routine. I think she learned a lot. I'm proud of her hard work this weekend! Here are some pictures from the convention. Saturday, one of the other girls had a pool party for her birthday! That was a fun way for them to all relax after a busy day.

Baptism

Chelsea was baptized yesterday!!!!! It was one of the proudest days of my life. It was all I could do not to completely lose it! Chelsea was baptized by Pastor Daniel Bell at Christ Church in Nashville, TN. This was a decision that she made entirely on her own. I have always felt that a child needs to understand what being baptized means. I wanted Chelsea to WANT to be baptized and to dedicate her life to Christ. It was not a decision that I needed to make for her. I am SOO proud of her for making such a life altering decision! She has dedicated her life to Jesus! No mother could be prouder!

Halloween 2008

Halloween night was lots of fun! Chelsea's brothers, dad, and stepmom all came over to trick-or-treat. A friend of ours and her two boys also came over. Chelsea was a Leprechaun and her brothers were Batman (Gavin) and Robin (Gaige). Gavin is only 3 and Gaige is close to 2. They were all really cute. Chelsea seemed to have a really fun time running house to house with her brothers. "Batman" kept trying to beat up the older boys that were with us....it was pretty cute. All in all, it was a good night!!

Band Concert

Last night, Chelsea had her very first band concert! It was really good. All of the children were much better than we had expected. They have only been playing their instruments for 8 weeks...so to be able to pull off a concert is pretty incredible. Chelsea is second chair flute! Her best friend is first chair. Chelsea seemed really excited to play in her first concert. She did an amazing job, too! So, congrats Chelsea. I'm proud of you! Oh, when I spoke with her band teacher, Mrs. Waters, after the performance, Mrs. Waters informed me that Chelsea was very talented!! That is quite a compliment!

Kayla's party

Ok, so as you will see, this was one PACKED weekend! On Friday night, Chelsea went to a slumber party at the Embassy Suites in Franklin! There were 20+ girls there!! Then, on Saturday morning, we headed to Chattanoog, TN for our cousin Kayla's 10th birthday party. Of course, this isn't the cousin Kayla we have mentioned before!! We have ANOTHER cousin Kayla! As you can imagine, it gets really confusing because we all are really close to both Kayla's! Anyhow, little Kayla's party was at a park. It was a little chilly, but still a good time. Her parents had set up a volleyball net, so we had a good time playing with that. Chelsea played Kayla a special "Happy Birthday" song on her flute! She practiced the song for a couple of weeks. Her band class isn't even to the part of their book yet...so it was more advanced for her. She did an amazing job playing the song and I think Kayla really appreciated all of Chelsea's hard work! It was a really fun party and it was good to see all of our Chattanooga family!

DC Halloween Party

The second we walked in the door from Chattanooga, Chelsea had to get dressed for the Halloween Party at DC (her dance studio). I was even painting her nails green in the car on the way home...and mind you, I was car sick!!! Not fun! Anyhow, we had just the right amount of time to get dressed. Chelsea was a Leprechaun this year! Her costume was just adorable...if I say so myself. Of course, we couldn't have it just plain like we bought it....I had to add rhinestones to it too! It turned out perfect. Chelsea had a really fun time at the party, as usual. She painted a pumpkin, got a tattoo, and danced around with all of her friends. At the end of the night, they announced the costume contest winners. There were several great costumes. In Chelsea's category (age 10 and under) there were quite a few runner ups....but there was only one BEST COSTUME OVERALL WINNER.....and that honor went to CHELSEA!!!! This is her 3rd year to win best costume! However, in previous years, they name several winners....but this year, they only named one overall winner...so that was a real treat! Chelsea won a basket of candy and a webkinz!

Gentry's Farm

After church on Sunday, Chelsea & I headed out to Gentry's Farm in Franklin, TN. We had never been there before, but I had heard it was a fun place....and it was. Chelsea & I had a really good time wondering around the farm together. The weather was just perfect for it, too! We got lost in a 4 acre corn maze....we went on a nature trail...we went on a hay-ride (though there was no hay in the wagon!!) & got to see a field of cows and 3 homes that have been lived in by the Gentry's for hundreds of years. Chelsea even got to meet Mr. Jimmy Gentry himself!! There was also a pumpkin patch were you could pick your own pumpkin. It was a little picked over, but it was still really cool. The pumpkin I carved came from that patch! Chelsea opted to buy 2 larger pumpkins that had already been picked. All in all, it was a really fun day!!

Pumpkin Carving

After Gentry's Farm we headed home and carved our pumpkins. Chelsea has done this before when she was younger, but she doesn't remember ever carving a pumpkin before. Plus, she really never actually carved any of the pumpkins when she was younger....she would lose interest WAY before the carving began. So, this is really Chelsea's very first pumpkin! I think that she did an amazing job. I didn't help with the carving at all...she did it all by herself!

Awards

Congratulations to Chelsea for her recent academic awards! The first nine-weeks award assembly was today and I was so glad I was able to attend. She was awarded Honor Role & Most Improved! Chelsea seemed really proud of herself...as she should be. This report card was her best one to date! She had 6 A's & 2 B's....with 4 of those A's being perfect 100!!! Chelsea has to work extremely hard to balance her school work & her dance team. All of her hard work is definitely showing. I'm SOOO proud of her!!!

The Cheetah Girls

Chelsea and I went to the Cheetah Girls concert last night at the Sommet Center. Wow, was it a good show!!! We had seen them perform before, but this time was even better. We had amazing seats, so we had a really good view of the girls. They sang all of Chelsea's favorite songs. They even sang up in the air on 3 gorgeous chandelier swings!! At one point, they went backstage for a costume change, and came back in the middle of the floor seats! That was just more than Chelsea could stand! When they ran back up to the stage, they came beside our seats and Chelsea was able to touch all 3 of the girls hands! Of course, that was the highlight of her evening!!

Zoo

Chelsea and I went to the zoo on Sunday. It was just the two of us and we had a really great time! The animals were pretty active, which made it lots of fun to watch. Chelsea took TONS of pictures of all of the animals. Below are just a few of the best pictures.

Ravenwood

Chelsea got to perform during half-time at the Ravenwood High School football game on Friday night!! It was so much fun watching all of the kids dance in the middle of the field! I think there were over 100 kids in all. It was a really great experience for her. She got to do it with a lot of her friends from dance, too. After they danced, they all got to go to a slumber party!! They had an absolute BLAST!! Unfortunately, I couldn't get any good pictures of her on the field, but here are some from before and after.

New Big Sister

This is my new big sister at dance!! However she is not my sister in the related kind of way. At dance we have a new big sister every year, and she buys me presents at competitions and I do the same for her. If you scroll down a little, you will see that DC (the dance studio I dance at) had a picnic. Well that's where we meet our new big sister. DC always tries to make the sisters alike. Well this year I have Chelsie, and my name is Chelsea. Ya, it is spelled different but it is pronounced the same way! She is so far really nice, (she even decorated my locker!) and I can't wait to have her as my new big sister this year!!!!!

Chelsea

DC Picnic

Chelsea is a Junior on the DC Dance Factory dance competition team. Every year, the entire studio gets together for a picnic at Crockett Park. It is always a lot of fun, but this year was even more fun than usual!! A spirit war was started last week by 2 of the younger teams. Well, the Juniors couldn't be shown up by a bunch of younger kids, so they had a "spirit parade" at the picnic. I'll post video of that once I learn how to!! Needless to say, our girls have won the war....for now anyway. The older girls were none too please by the parade! A true spirit war has begun at DC!!!

Ravenwood Dance Clinic

On Saturday, Chelsea was able to attend a dance clinic at Ravenwood High School in Brentwood, TN. She was really excited about the opportunity. She knows many of the girls on the Ravenwood Dance Team and their choreographer is one of her dance teachers. It was a really cool clinic. The girls will get to perform their routine at Friday nights football game!! Pretty fun! Here is a picture from the clinic.

Trio

Congratulations are in order for Chelsea!! She just found out that she was chosen for a dance trio!! She is on a competition dance team at DC Dance Factory in Franklin, TN. This will be her first year doing a trio. It is a huge honor!! I couldn't be more proud of her. I just had to post this to let everyone know her exciting news!!

Big Kayla

This is our cousin Kayla. She is a freshman at Western Kentucky (but she is wearing an Alabama hat). She was in town yesterday, so we all went out to dinner. She just made the dance team, and we are sooo proud of her. She gets on my nerves. haha. But my mom says to say "but I love her very much". If she reads this, next time she comes in town I'll be a goner!!
by, Chelsea

TGIF!

Finally, Friday is here!! Chelsea is going to her dad's this weekend, so I am pretty much just gonna sit around the house. I really don't do much while she is gone. Since our house is on the market, I may clean a little. For the most part, Chelsea and I keep our part of the house pretty clean, but it won't hurt to do a little more. Plus, I always have laundry to do. For those of you that know me, you will know that I truly despise laundry! I put it off until the last possible moment! Anyway, I hope Chelsea has fun at her dad's. She enjoys spending that time with them and with her brothers. They mean the world to her. I will miss her, though!

My brothers

These are my brothers, my dad, and my step mom. The oldest one is Gavin, and he is 3. The youngest one is Gaige, and he is 1 and a half. They are the best thing!!!! I love them sooooooooo much!!

Dance

Here are some cute dance pictures of Chelsea.

Gymnastics

Well, congrats are in order for Chelsea!! She finally landed her back handspring last night without a spot!!! She was able to do it about a year ago, but then she got hurt and lost it. She is such little walking accident...for those of you that don't know her! Let's see, she got her first cast about 3 years ago when she broke the growth plate in her elbow. This happened when she tripped over a girl at dance. Then she got her first full leg cast that same year when she fell up the metal steps at school. That resulted in another broken growth plate, but this time in her leg. Then, last December, she dislocated her knee (same one she injured before) while taking off her dance shoe!! So, that meant another full leg cast! That's when she lost her back handspring. Sooo, long story short...congrats to Chelsea for finally mastering it! She had to overcome a lot, but she stuck with it! I'm so proud of her!!

Since Halloween will be here soon, I decided to upload some pictures from last year's Halloween. Once I figure out how to do a slide show, I'll add more.

My First Blog

Okay, so this is my first official blog! I have really no idea what I'm doing...so this should really be interesting. I've read a few blogs on this site, and I really enjoy them, so I thought it would be cool to have one for Chelsea and me. We do so many cool things, that I have decided to share them! Unfortunately, I have no pictures on the computer I use at work, so I will only be able to add them from my laptop. Plus, I haven't got a clue as to how to upload photos onto this page anyhow!! Soo, for now our page will look pretty boring until I can learn how to do things better. Perhaps I'll get Chelsea to help me. She is becoming a real computer whiz...so she will probably know how to do it.