A Whole Lotta Nothin'...

That's exactly what we've been doing lately.... NOTHIN'. I guess we've needed a couple of weeks to slow down and reboot after the holidays. The P's have gone back to school, I'm back at work, and we're finally getting back on a schedule. I figured since I don't have a whole lot to say, I'd share some pics I've taken recently. Still trying to learn how to maneuver the camera, but its been fun. I look forward to warmer days and taking little mini photo sessions with the girls. Enjoy the randomness that has been our January to date and I promise to have something more interesting to share next time :)

Insisted on pics of the squinkies...

and Ariel too...

Just an ordinary day in the Orrell home

This face right here is decieving ( at times ) and difficult to say no too!

and this one, this is the face Paisley makes for 98% of her photos! How grown does she look here?!

My princesses are also tomboys from time to time. Fun day climbing trees ( in a skirt )

"Sassafrass" as Mrs Jennie would call it....DEAD ON!

I get that response everytime I ask her to do something, mostly annoying, but sometimes cute :)

Sweet threads, right?...She dressed herself

and her favorite outfit...NAKED! ( but with jewelry, of course )

Camera Shy, I Think Not....

My kids have a love hate relationship with the camera. It's really hit or miss with them. Sometimes, if its just me behind the lens, they'll be cute and funny, making faces and even smiling. When someone else is behind the camera and there's others around, you can forget it. The only thing you'll get from them is a few tears.  However, they themselves love to take pictures....lots and lots of pictures. They have become little professionals at taking pictures with our phones, maybe too professional.

Because the P's take so many photo's with the phones, Craig and I find ourselves deleting and cleaning up often. One day, as I'm in the kitchen, probably baking a delicious pie or something, Craig approaches me with his phone and is like " hey, what is this?" I take a look and for a minute, can't quite figure out what it is. Then it hits me and its all I can do to keep from peeing myself with laughter. And then this conversation occurs:

Me:     Well, it looks like a butt
Craig:  Well, is it your butt?
Me:     WHAT! NO!
Craig:  Well, I see long hair...
Me:     Okay, as if I'd take a picture of my butt, on your phone!! That would be Paisley- her hair, her butt
Craig:  What the f*ck....
Me:      <<dying laughing unable to speak>>
Craig    Seriously, where did they learn that from?
Me      <<doing the pee pee dance>> I don't know, but don't look at me like I taught them
Craig    Brittany, this is serious-stop laughing
Me       Craig, they're kids, not porn stars in the making
Craig    What if someone else would have gotten a hold of my phone...this could be child porn!!
Me      <<now I'm snorting I'm laughing so hard>>

 I guess it could have ended badly with Craig ending up on  To Catch a Predator or even worse, prison, butt (LOL) nonetheless, I knew we needed to nip that in the bud real quick, to make sure it didnt happen again. We ask the P's why they took a picture of their butts with the camera and all we can get out of them is uncontrollable laughter. I mean, what did we expect-a drawn out explanation of why they got freaky w/ the camera? Needless to say, Presleigh received her own camera for Christmas, one that's being carefully monitored by the butt police aka Daddy.

Reflecting...

2011 was a memorable year, with lots of change and new beginnings. It started off a little shaky and stressful, but picked up some pace middle of the year and ended on a positive note. 2011 marked my 5 year anniversary, my 30th birthday, my first 5k, my first blog, and my first year in the gym-fully committed. When I sat down to think about 2012 and what was around the corner for me and for us as a family, all I could think about was 1 thing and that's my baby girl turning 5 years old, in 5 months and heading to kindergarten 2 weeks later! I cannot believe it or even think about it for long periods of time without getting teary eyed and all hormonal. And lets not forget little P, she heads to pre-k and will be right behind big sister in no time.

Cliche in every way, but time really does fly by-especially after you have kids. The realization of this really hit me last year, when I turned 30. I've never been one to make resolutions, but like the idea of setting goals for myself, something I had never done in the past....until I was approaching 30.  During one of my " Oh my God, I'm aging" anxiety attacks and somewhere shortly after the new year had arrived, I decided that I needed to start pushing myself harder. I realized I had become complacent and content doing the same things every day at work and at home. By no means do I dismiss the fact that raising a family and running a household is always important and hard work and by all means keeps you on your toes, but at some point in time, you need to do things for yourself as well, if you ever want to be fulfilled as an individual. I realized that to be a better Mom, Wife, Daughter, Sister, Friend, etc, I needed to be a better me. I needed to be a little selfish, self absorbent, and self centered- to be fulfilled, but only in moderation. I pushed myself to new levels at work and earned myself a new title, I pushed myself in the gym and for the first time in my life developed a bicep and a love for running. I told myself I was going stop watching so much trash tv and  whattaya know I actually read 6 books. It doesn't seem like a lot, right? But the growth I have experienced and the change in my outlook is huge. That's really all that matters in the end, how you feel about the life you're living and the life you lived. I've come to know myself pretty well over the last couple of years. We've faced a lot of trying times as a family and as a couple, but each of those experiences have put me where I am and helped me discover where I want to be. A sense of clarity, is worth its weight in gold. And, just as it has taken a lot of hard work to get to where I am, the place of knowing who I am, it will take a lot more hard work to get to where I want to be.

My most recent post on Facebook went something like this:

"This year there will be new knowledge to gain, new concepts to take in, new skills to learn, new people to meet, new friends to enjoy, new sights to see and new thrills to experience! I have a feeling 2012 is going to be full of great things indeed!"

One of the comments I received was from a lady that I worked with for many years, Mama Bern. She always had the most positive things to say and I really did enjoy her prospective and miss having her around. What she said, sums it up when I think about the goals I'm setting for 2012. I want all the memories capable of making! 

"Amen, Brittany! Life is for Living, So do It to Its Fullest...you will have great "rocking chair memories (as do I...ha ha)"

Christmas Past

** friendly advisory, this is an extra long post, not to be confused with a novel and will require a fair amount of your time to read. blog neglect is a result of laziness and procrastination and can only be cured with more time in a day, but is intended to get better in the coming year, promises.

We spend nearly 6 weeks preparing for Christmas, at least I do anyway. All to have it here and gone in the blink of an eye. 8 days past Christmas and  Day 1 of the new year and my decor is still up, the tree hanging on for dear life and yet, I still don't want to get rid of it all. Partly due to my dreading the hours it will take, but mostly because I love Christmas and all that comes with it-I'm just not ready for it to be over yet. Christmas was wonderful this year, why on Earth would I want to see it go?! As the P's get older, they are more into it and make it fun for us all. Watching Christmas movies and Christmas classics on tv day after day, reading all the Christmas stories each night at bedtime, listening to the girls running through the house first thing in the morning on the hunt for Freddie, our Elf on the Shelf, the daily "sleeps"count down till Christmas, Craig's constant whistling of jingle bells, and not feeling guilty for indulging in baked cookies 2-3 times a week -all the little things that make the holidays so special to me. And just like that, its gone. No more music, the lights disappear, and Freddie is packed up and hidden on a shelf for real, until next year. Yep, Christmas is now in the past, kinda crazy how fast it goes.



To recap, I have been out of work since December 19th, that's 14 days for those bad at math. I get back to the grind on Tuesday and I'm not looking forward to that either. I wanted to spend as much time as possible hanging with the P's and take them on fun little Christmas adventures during my time off. I also wanted to experience Christmas without all of the hustle and bustle and rushing here and there, and let me tell ya, how nice it was! I will make this a regular vacation from here on out.

 Lots of mornings spent snuggling on the couch and watching cartoons during my time off! Even Cayenne enjoyed the extra snuggle time!

School Christmas parties- There's always a party for something at school these days, or so it seems. This was fun and meaningful though, so its all good. Paisley's little class put on a small play. Set in the manger, Paisley was to be the night wind, however, that night the wind would not blow, because Paisley refused to do so. Instead, that wind, it howled and cried until I held her throughout the remaining performance. I told Mrs. Terri I would not come to anymore performances to avoid the disruption, but she assured me that Paisley would participate when she was ready and it was okay to keep coming. Presleigh's class performed carols to the parents. Its started out strong with the shaking of jingle bells. Presleigh stood up there, shaking those bells violently,but with her head down the whole time. I could barely see her lips move from behind her hair. She stuck it out through 3 more songs, lifted her head a little and barely moved her lips, but hey, it was something and I was a proud Momma!

Hope for Christmas- I had the opportunity to volunteer at Hope for Christmas with West Ridge this year. I worked in the Santa's Workshop and it was so much fun, like I seriously did not want to leave. I assisted children of all ages in picking out Christmas gifts for their Mom's and Dad's or maybe Grandparents, or whomever maybe caring for them. They were so cute picking out their little gifts and more excited about providing a gift for their parents than even receiving one for themselves. I never heard or had 1 child who cried or whined for one thing in the store for themselves! Shocking considering my kids and their meltdowns in every aisle. Hope for Christmas served over 2300 families in Northwest Atlanta this year, providing a Christmas meal for each of them and handing out over 6300 toys for the children of those families. It was a phenomenal experience and has made me realize how more of my time I need to give to charities and non profit agencies. Look for more on that in 2012! Oh, and THANK YOU to those of you who provided your recommendations of me and made it a possibility. you lied through your teeth for a good purpose :))

We took the P's to see their first movie on the big screen, Chipwrecked!  They loved it and were well behaved the entire time. Little Pais even gave a round of applause when it was over and I teared up a bit. We gave them the full experience with sprites, popcorn, candy, chocolate, etc whatever they wanted to keep the quiet and it worked! Of course Craig was not exactly happy about this as I was prying the wallet from his fingers. Talk about getting your underwear in wad, if you wanna get Craig all worked up talk to him about the price of snacks at the movie theatre. He's the first to make sure I bring my big purse so that it will hold all the zip lock bags of snacks and his own drinks. Usually I'll break the rules and go along with him, but this time I didn't want the cheapskate in us both to win.
One day we went out to get Christmas pedicures, Craig took a backseat on this one- we left there with red and green toes and jolly little designs, even I got a design on my toes and never do that. It was a lot of fun for them and it worked out perfectly because they were able to show them off with the above average temps that week.

On Friday, my Mom, Josh, and I went to see an Invasion of a Christmas Carol at Dad's Garage. A spin on the classic, including improv and a special invader character=hilarious! The actors are great. I laughed from beginning to end. Our invasion character was The Randiest Milkman of London. The actors do not know who the invader will be until he randomly shows up during one of the skits, then the fun begins. If you haven't checked out Dad's Garage your missing out. So much fun and reasonably priced. Can't wait to do that again next year!

We spent the last couple of days leading up to Christmas with lots of family. Making the trek to Thomaston, GA to visit with Craig's side of the family, PawPaw stayed with us through the holidays which was an extra treat and then spending Christmas Eve night at my parent's for our annual Low Country Boil. Before we knew it, it was 1030 and time to get the kids ready for bed in preparation for Santa Claus! We put out cookies for Santa, carrots and water for the reindeer, and read The Night Before Christmas. After they were tucked in the real fun began for Craig and I as we hauled toys, one by one, down from the attic. Before the real Claus' turned in for the night we decided Freddie would play his last little trick on the girls. We lined their door from top to bottom with green streamer so that when they awoke Christmas morning they'd have to bust through to get out. Great, awesome plan in theory, until Paisley woke up crying in the middle of the night scared to death by what she saw and unable to get out of her room. FAIL.

Christmas morning arrived and the kids didn't wake until 9am! That's what I'm talking about! They ran straight to our bedroom and were ready to go. They received all sorts of good toys this year from Santa and family. I tried to upload our videos, but You Tube wouldn't cooperate! In the midst of a wrapping paper storm, they were laughing and shouting with excitement. They received Lalaloopsy's, Squinkies, Leapfrong Learning Systems, 1500 piece art sets, games, remote control cars, purses, dress up boxes full of shoes, gowns, jewelry, and the list goes on and on. I'd have to say that their Harry Potter movies created more excitement then anything else-should've known! Santa could have saved a lot of money!
That afternoon more family arrived for more eating and opening of gifts, 13 total and it was great! I love having a houseful of people, especially on the holidays. Christmas was good to us all this year. The girls are beyond spoiled and are not allowed to receive any more toys until next Christmas. For those of you that are family, this is your warning, NO MORE TOYS.....or else! If you want to be generous, think college fund / wedding fund/ sweet 16, I need a brand new car like Sally at school fund. We'll need all the help we can get in those areas. And my blogs will no longer be photoless and lame, because Craig spoiled me as well with a new camera WOO HOO! I so needed it. Taking pics with your cell phone for a straight 2 yrs and relying on fam or friends to hook you up with pictures is the worst. Neva again...... that's once I learn to use the damn thing. I think he kinda knew I'd be expecting the camera so he decided to throw me a curve ball and upgrade me with some brand new diamond earrings! They are beauties. My original pair of diamond earrings he gave me were a Christmas gift almost 9 years ago and were the first piece of jewelry he ever bought me. I wore them religiously from that day forward and unfortunately this year, lost one on our beach trip. I was literally sick over it, even cried. Nothing can replace the sentimental value of those earrings, but these sure do make it a little easier. Thank you, honey, for making this Christmas extra special for your girls. Guess I really have no room to talk when it comes to that ridiculously expensive remote control car you bought, consider my lips sealed

I hope all of you made lots of memories over the holidays and relished in the time spent with your families! Here's to all things great in 2012!

Fear for Christmas...

Sounds like such a scary topic, right?! One probably more suitable for Halloween, not Christmas, where everything should be jolly and bright. However, it is those fun Christmas festivities and jolly traditions that have brought out the fear in our little P's. I'm beginning to worry, that unlike most children, when the P's think of Christmas they will begin to shake, cry, and ball up into the fetal position, rather than singing Christmas carols and penning a Wish List for the big guy. One Christmas adventure after another has done nothing but leave them crying, unable to talk, and even worse I'm afraid, scarred.

It started with our trip to Sleepy Hollow Tree Farm, where we intended to cut down our own tree. As a kid, my Mom would take us here and it was always alot of fun and left me with great memories. Not so much this time. As we are driving through the farm, we find a field of tree's that seem to look like what we wanted. We park the car and set out with our saw to find the perfect tree. Every time we'd say " Hey, what about this one, it looks nice" Presleigh would say sternly, "No, its too big, I do not want that tree." After about 5 attempts and a few tears later, we decided to let her pick out the tree. So, off she goes and just a minute later, she's found it, our tree......or more like our sapling. This puny thing put the Charlie Brown tree to shame. Because I didn't understand her fear of all the normal, full grown tree's, I decided to ask her what it was that made her so afraid. She stated that she was afraid it would fall and if it fell, we would have to get a new house. I get it, I guess. Passing up on the sapling, we discovered that they sold Frasier Fers from NC so in all, our trip to the farm to cut down a tree, ended with us buying one netted and ready to go instead.
Cutting down your own tree to drum up the Christmas spirit= FAIL

The following weekend was our trip to see Santa Claus. I book this appointment 3 months in advance every year. Not only is he a phenomenal Santa, but I love that you can get a dvd recording of the visit each year.I thought this would be THE YEAR. The year that the P's would pee themselves with excitement as soon as they saw him. I talked it up for weeks, Oh, Santa he's great, He brings you sooooo many toys, He's really nice and by God if you don't sit in his lap with a smile on your face this year and tell his fat ass  jolly self what you want for Christmas, you will not get anything! Only kidding about that last bit of course, but I sure did think it. I don't know why I continued to lie to myself, I should've known better. In previous years, it was the 4 of us plopping down on Santa's lap to soothe the P's discomfort, why did I ever think it would be any different this year!? Off we go anyway, dressed in Christmas gear, singing Santa's praises all the way to Phipps. We take our spot in line and before we know it, it's their turn. Annnnd, guess who got a free visit with Santa again this year..... yours truly. They would not move once positioned, as if they were frozen, would not by any means make eye contact, mummer a word, and I don't even think they blinked. They gazed off into the camera and the obnoxious guy shaking a Elmo in their faces and would not crack a smile. NOTHING. The only one's smiling were the rest of the families in line, who found their reactions hysterical. Red faced and embarrassed, I corral us over to the picture counter, where up on the monitors the attendant has our pictures ready. The only thing I could blurt out was " Oh my God, they're terrible!" Honestly, everyone makes a bad photo once and awhile, but this, it was genuinely AWFUL. Mouths open, eyes widened, the fear of God written all over their faces. Pretty sure, it was the worst day of their lives. I didn't buy the picture, but in hindsight wish I would have, just so you could see it and say, Yea, you're right, that is bad.
Trip to see Jolly Ol' Saint Nick and share our Christmas wishes=FAIL

Keeping with the traditions, each year after our torturous visit with Santa, we go to Macy's to ride The Pink Pig. The girls LOVE the actual riding of the Pink Pig, however, they despise Priscilla, the actual Pink Pig. As you made your way through the line, you reached an area where you could have your photo taken with Priscilla. She's a doll, decked out in her poodle skirt and saddle shoes. As cute and sweet looking as she could be.  As it was our turn to have the picture taken, we walk up and the picture takers try to get the girls to sit in Priscilla's lap- not having it. Instead, they hide behind me. I pick Paisley up and sit her on my hip closest to the pig and she loses it, full blown hysterics. Switch her over to the other hip and she's fine. Presleigh meanwhile, is latched onto my leg with a kung fu grip and ol' Craig- he's just standing there, smiling and gritting his teeth through the whole experience. I did buy that picture, see it below- Notice Paisley's fake and fearful smile.
Experiencing a family tradition in the city of Atlanta since the 1970's= FAIL

It was a rough start to December with all the Christmas fun and to keep my kids from sounding completely abnormal, there were some things they enjoyed. For instance, the Christmas parade, all 2 hours of it, they loved that. Or decorating the Christmas tree, they were really involved this year and still are. That tree has been decorated, un-decorated, and re-decorated for weeks now. And lastly, watching all the Christmas movies on tv. Which I'm counting my lucky stars for- finally a break from Harry Potter, however, I may have bigger issues because Paisley now says her boyfriend is Woodstock-a bird, you know, from Charlie Brown. Yea, ISSUES. Athough we hit some rough patches this month, I really do love sharing the holidays with the girls. Whether it be through tears or laughter, they really do make the holidays so much more fun and I'll let you in on a little secret, I fear they day they actually stop believing in the guy who scares the crap out of them. So I'll continue to take a seat on his lap each year, if need be.
Finding the true joy's of Christmas=SCORE!



Cookies & Christmas Classics



Hi My Name Is.....

Lil' Red Fred aka Freddie.

I traveled all the way from the North Pole at Santa's request to meet The Orrell Family, specifically The P's, the weekend after Thanksgiving. I come from the Elf on the Shelf family, where our mission set forth from the big guy is to keep children on their best behavior. For if they misbehave and do not mind their parents, they risk finding themselves on Santa's naughty list. My magical powers allow me to fly all the way to the North Pole each night with a detailed report for Santa Claus. In the morning, before they awake, I will have returned from my journey and they will run to find me, for I may be hiding or I may be found getting into mischief myself!

Boy were the P's suprised to see me after their weekend trip to Nana's. I had found a nice cozy little place right beside a beautiful fireplace in their dollhouse. The dollhouse was the perfect place for my first nights rest, I couldn't have asked for better accommodations! I made sure to leave my girls a little note on their chalkboard, thanking them for the hospitality and telling them we were going to have lots of fun this month as we get ready for Christmas. That Presleigh, she was a skeptic at first, I wasn't too sure I was welcome or that she was buying it. I kept catching her glancing my way in disbelief, waiting for me to flinch with what  sometimes seemed like a wee bit of fear. Little Paisley however, was sooo excited as she said to her Mom " see, I told we'd get an elf, Santa knows we're good "They snuggled in their beds that night as Mom and Dad read them my story and the name Freddie was born. I am now an official member of the Orrell Family. A very large family at that-I was not prepared for all those beastly dogs and curious cats, this place is a circus! For goodness sakes, my first week here I nearly drowned in the toilet when that rico suave of a cat, Romeo, thought it'd be real cute to bat me with his paws right off the bathroom counter and into the the toilet bowl. Revenge will be so sweet, Rooooomeo!

So here we are with 2 weeks until Christmas and I've got to tell you, those girls are a tough crowd. On some days Im not too sure they give a lickity split whether I have good things or bad things to report to Santa and then others, their just as sweet as Mrs Claus' gummy gumdrops. All I can say is I'm thankful my employment is seasonal whew! and God bless their parents! I'll make sure the big guy gets them something extra special this year, especially Mom </;o)

I Am Thankful....

Thanksgiving has come and gone with a blink of an eye and a few stuffed bellies. Between 2 Thanksgiving Feast at FBK w/ the P's and our regular Thanksgiving lunch at my Grandparent's, we were definitely eaten' good for about a week straight.

I look forward to Thanksgiving and my Grandmother's cooking ALL year! As a matter of fact, I'd venture to say, that anyone who has a lick of sense eaten my Grandmother's Thanksgiving Feast would say the same thing, it's that good. I pretty much fast for 2 weeks leading up to the day so that there is plenty of room in my tummy for all the goodness. Creamed potatoes- SHUT YO' MOUTH! There are photo's and videos of me dating back to age 4-5yrs old eating her creamed potatoes, licking the bowl, spoon, counter, whatever may have a smidgen of tater left on it and yes, if you're wondering, you can still catch me acting like an unfed animal when it comes to getting the last bite. That Craig's one lucky guy ;)

My brother Josh came out Thanksgiving Eve to hang w/ Craig and I for a bit. We watched I Love You, Man and called it a night. I needed to be well rested for the run I committed to the next morning. He says he does this every year, that way he doesn't feel so guilty for all the carbs he eats and because he's always been the smart one, I decided to tag along. I woke up, prepared frittata's and met Josh for our first annual Thanksgiving run annnnnnd struggled. Running in 30 degree temps is no joke, especially when you've never done it before, my chest was on fire. Needless to say, it wasn't my best, but hey, it was a solid effort and I will do it again.

When the Orrell " We're always running late " Family finally arrived in Trenton, GA- it did not disappoint. Babies, Grandbabies,Great Grandbabies, OH MY! There were 22 people in attendance this year. I remember the days where there were less than half that. 2 plates at lunch, 2 pieces of cheesecake, followed up by another plate a couple of hours later and I was finally content. Mmmm mmmm good! You out did yourself again this year Grandmother, and me and my 5 extra pounds, Thank You.

It's only appropriate that on Thanksgiving, we give Thanks for those things we are Thankful for.

I Am Thankful:

-That I get to attend Thanksgiving with my family as I have every year since I can remember

-That I have a husband who attends that Thanksgiving me with every year, for 7 years, while missing his   own family meals, because he knows how important it is to me.Who isn't turned off by the fact that my plate may be piled up just as high as his is with food.

-For a Grandmother who spends 24hrs preparing /cooking  for 4 generations of family on Thanksgiving and a Grandfather who mans ship and offers full support. For the 2 who love nothing more than to have all of their family under one roof, if only for one day and a few hours a year.

-For my Mom and her unbelievable amount of strength, dignity, and grace. One who always does for others before herself and who can still rock a pair of skinny jeans and high heels. Funny, smart, successful and beautiful, she is the Mom I aspire to be everyday.

-For my Stepdad, who without his inept ability to scare the absolute crap out of my brothers and I from birth to graduation, I would be the biggest baby this side of Paulding County. The one who took me to get my permit at 15-which was the first mistake considering the 2 dented family cars, 2 totaled cars as a teenager,  1 burned out clutch, and 1 curbed/busted tire later. All that and he has yet to charge me for his labor.

-For 2 younger brothers who now, I actually claim and even consider them my friends. Who have turned out to be quite alright regardless of the mass amounts of torture they endured on my behalf.

-For pretty amazing In-Law's that I love and enjoy spending time with. Who treat me as one of their own, accommodate me in anyway ( ex.preparing 2 beef hamburgers just for me while everyone else eats deer ) and love our little P's more than I could ever ask for

-For each and every one of my girlfriends, for without each of you, your lending ears,and a great glass of wine, I'm quite sure I would have lost my sanity.

And last but most importantly, I Am Thankful and beyond blessed for this little brown eyed beauty and this little strawberry blonde cutie, who remind me each and every day what life is all about.