Aunt KT's Surprise!

(The girls waiting for the train and showing off their perfectly coordinating purple ensembles.)

Aunt KT had a BIG surprise for the girls.

And when I say BIG, I mean BIG.

So we hopped on the train, met her at JFK, telling the girls that we were meeting KT at work for dinner. Hot Dogs.

When we got there, she gave us a blue wristband....

...We waited anxiously to go through Jetblue crew members security, which is quite fast, you know, when you're with a crew member... :)

...And then ran into this sign...

And we flipped!! Except Ella, she wanted her hot dog. That child. ;)

Then the girls got their drink service... :)

We got our places in front of the stage...and waited...until KT motioned for the girls to go with her... QUICK!

And this is what happened while they were gone...

(Taylor decided she would only take pictures with children and I think that her peeps even took the pics and then sent it through email? I still don't know how we got them. :)

I hear from Leesy, that Ella and Pais made the Diva work for their love! ;) They were too shy to give her a hug, so they compromised with a high 5!

Elise also told me that she told Ella,

"You're so beautiful!"

and to Paisley,

"Your hair is SO pretty!"

Her father was handing out Taylor Swift guitar picks!

This second picture was in an Adobe file, so I don't know how to change it to upload...so I took a picture of my screen! :)
I really like Taylor Swift, and I've said this before, but I really think that she is a safe choice when it comes to celebrity role models for girls. And seriously, can't help but love her innocent, sing songy, simple, cute, pretty songs! Just love her. And she writes all of her own music, which I admire in an artist.
Ella listens to her every night on my ipod, so when Kaye offered to take us, Scott and I were super excited!! Thanks for thinking of us when deciding who to take! That was a once in a lifetime opportunity and so fun! I'm still not sure if that has sunken into the girls yet, as Paisley said she wanted Taylor Swift to be invited to her birthday, but with the pictures and memories, they are sure to never forget this fun night!

Yay!

And, if you youtube search this concert at JFK, you can find a couple versions with Paisley on my shoulders, bouncing up and down to the music! ;)

Paisley's 5th Birthday with Paka and Mimi. And The Chair.

We were so happy and had peace of mind that Paka and Mimi came all the way from Utah to visit and help with the girls while I was in Las Vegas and while Scott worked! I'm sure Paka got pictures of all the fun things they did. The girls favorite memories that they told us about were playing UNO, Reading books, going to Barnes and Noble, seeing Megamind and that Mimi made the best breakfast. Thank you again!! We also celebrated Paisley's 5th birthday while they were here! I was glad I at least got to see them...but like always, it's never long enough!

We had a yummy Sunday Pot Roast and a yummy Buttercream Bakery Cake!

The girls LOVED the card from Auntie Jen...and the nail stuff and the books and the Jingle Pup...She's good at gifts if you haven't noticed. :)

Elise made the SWEETEST card to Pais and got her a Unicorn Pillow Pet. I just heard Paisley in bed a few minutes ago say, "It's just so fluffy, I think I'm gonna die!" (Despicable Me!)

Paka and Mimi got the hard to find Disney Princess Wii game and the Littlest Petshop game as well. A perfect pick for Paisley the princess, puppy lover!

Thanks for celebrating with us.

She also got the Leaspter Explorer from Grandma Sue and Papa Kent, (I brought presents back from Vegas) which everyone is loving! I catch Scott playing it while the girls are at school. If we were to recommend a toy for the season, this would be it.

Scott and I were walking up our street (Oct. 29th) headed towards the girls school for their Halloween Celebrations. I love that he can go to things like this on his days off. However, when I saw this chair on the dirty street, and HAD to have it, it took me a lot of convincing...and he still wasn't having it. At that moment, I kinda wished he wasn't there. ;) I remember saying,

"Scott! Can't you imagine this chair blue or yellow or white? And our girls sitting in it on their birthday? Opening their presents and blowing out their candles?!"

He replied with a, "Is that how you imagine their birthdays to be like?"

So I took a few steps forward, turned around, picked it up and threw it in our car. He loves it now and I do too! On the bottom is a little note that says...

"For Our Baby Girl Blue, Paisley Anne On Her 5th Birthday!

We Love You! Mommy and Daddy!

My Best Friends Wedding. November 12th, 2010. Las Vegas, Nevada. Anthem Country Club.

So the pictures pretty much sum it all up.

Beautiful, Happy Couple. Wonderful Family and friends. Lots of LOVE! Such a Beautiful Wedding!

Karisa and Marc

Wedding Rehearsal- Wednesday, November 10th.

I love how everyone just adores this little girl! She is SO loved!

Rehearsal Dinner with Karisa's family. So fun to meet such great people that I have only heard about for so many years!

I can't even describe how honored I am that I got to be a part of their wedding. It just really made me see how wonderful it is to see people that you care about, sharing special, glorious moments! It makes me so happy to see Karisa happy. She was the perfect bride, a storybook one, were she is the only daughter, who has parents that would give their all in order to give their deserving daughter the perfect wedding and that is exactly what it was. Everyone at the wedding felt that love for one another. It was a really special, perfectly planned day, I'm pretty sure everyone wanted to do it all over again! The ceremony was touching and memorable, the reception was SO fun with great food and a lot of dancing, with a beautiful view of the Las Vegas Valley.
It was wonderful to see friends old and new! And, thanks mom for running around and getting jackets and lip gloss and everything!

And I must say...I can very surprisingly write one heck of a MOH speech. Cause I also must say, I was quite nervous.. Thanks for loving me. ;)

So that was it, the end of the Year of Karisa. And it was one of my most favorite years yet. But don't worry, we've already got plans a brewin', just so we have more to look forward to! :)

Also in Vegas...

...my brother Joe and I got up early to get to see my sister, Caden and Jensyn, before she left for a conference out of state! It was the best and I took advantage of my little sister rights and borrowed pretty much everything I wore for the whole weekend, jewelery and shoes included. Thank you Jen!!

And, if you go to Las Vegas ever, please eat at Los Tacos Taqueria. I'm so excited there are two locations now. MMMM...carne asada burrito and jamaica! I parked my sister's car and ate outside of Goodwill, b/c I didn't want her car to smell. :)

I also got to spend some time with two of our nieces. Jensyn (8) and Nicolette (18m)!
Sweet Things!

Moving backwards, from Thanksgiving Weekend to Halloween and EVERYTHING between!

There was a little sunshine today. I predict it to be the
last ray of sunshine for NYC until April.

And Tangled. I love the baby 3D's.

A gingerbread house yesterday. That was eaten today...

Mame, Paisely's class hampster that we're watching for the long weekend, who has bit Scott...twice.

She has been fun to have rolling around in our apartment in her ball though, while cooking Thanksgiving food and other activities. She backs up far and runs fast to get over the ledges between the doorways. So cute.

Pais calls her, "Mama-Mama Mamey!"

So I finally convinced my two parade poopers to come out this year for the parade. Ella came to see Pikachu and got dressed in her clothes the night before so she wouldn't have to in the morning. She was pretty grumpy that morning...just like Scott was...until the parade started...then they were ALL smiles. You know you loved it Scotty. Now, It's not the easiest or funnest thing to do or wait for, but it's totally worth it. (There were several times I wished my dad was there to wake up early (like 4am) and save spots for us on the street. I think the Fabbi's should come for Thanksgiving next year! Please?! It would be SO fun :)

Paisley came especially to see Spongebob again.

Ella came to see Pikachu. She's talking to Jensyn on the phone in one of the pictures! Seriously, what are the chances that one of her best friends would pick the same spot as us to view? They had fun together.



Thanksgiving was delicious at the Graham's, once again. This was the 3rd year, it's pretty much a tradition now that we LOVE!

Paisley's class celebrated the November birthdays in her classroom the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. She and her friend Gabriel are seriously the most darling friendship of the year. They argue over things, like if the number zero it the largest or smallest number and tell stories and laugh. SO cute. And, as I was dropping Pais off to her class, she informed me of what she wanted me to wear, all the way down to what lipstick to put on (red) and how she wanted my hair done.

Wednesday was my cooking day. I could get used to cooking the day before, without my children there...don't get me wrong, cooking together is something I LOVE to do...just not all of it. Here are the girls getting the pomegranates out for The Pomegranate Fruit Salad that we always had growing up at my Great Grandma Potter's house. And, Pais helping with the candied yams, cause you have to have yams at Thanksgiving! They were a yummy lemon and orange juice recipe with the usual sweet stuff too. I also made mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, pecan tassies, rolls (that I still can't get right) and asparagus. It was a super fun day!!! And the best part?! Scott didn't have to work that night, the night before or STUDY!! The first time in at least 5 years! Yay!

Daddy's first day. And the night before.

I moved a sleeping Paisley into her bed, next to Ella one night...where Paisley automatically lifted her knee up on Ella's leg and then Ella reached over and put her arm around Paisley! Love it!! Those little snugglers.

It wasn't long after that, that Pais woke up to send her daddy off to his first day of work at NYU Langone Medical Center. She said as he walked out the door, and after him being home for 2 months with us,

"We'll see you around dinner time, okay daddy?"

Because you know, she wanted to reasure him that everything was going to be okay, not to be sad that he wouldn't be with us all day and to have a good day at work! :)

I love how similar their eyes look in this picture. Sleepy eyes!

We love fall in New York...

...because other people love Fall in New York too and then we get visitors! My older brother, Jason came out for a week to take an AIG, diamond lab, see some old friends of his from when he lived in the City and to hang out and spoil us.

WHAT gets YOU through homework??

I found out that candy corn does.

Here is a cake Jason brought home one evening, so good. And a humongous leaf he brought home to Pais from his walk in Morningside Park. There was also lots of studying going on in our household this week ....it was the week Scott took (and passed) his boards to become a CRNA!! Yay! Jason was also studying for his diamond certification and PASSED his test too! Double yay! We celebrated by going to, Ella's appropriate choice, "Big Daddy's" for dinner.
It was also Brother/Sister night! And our sweet friend Madeline joined us!

We went to the AMNH to look at all the rocks and jewels! But first we stopped at Central Park for one of those last Fall park days...gonna be too cold soon!! I had my first knish, with mustard, of course! And then Jason took us out to dinner! I had my first Osso Bucco, which was delicious and tender. Then, Jas taught me how to eat the marrow out of the bone with a straw...I made him do it first. :) It was good!

I have to give a shout out to Scotty for giving the girls awesome hair for their school festival. He straight up researched medieval hair. I'm so glad to know if I die, they'll still have cute hair. I'm so out of control.BIG GREEN HALLOWEEN is the name of the Fall Festival that the girl's school does every year. One of their biggest fundraisers. I can't remember how much they made now, but it was over $30,000.00. I was volunteered to be a part of the Haunted House, where I played a "Wandering Ghost Bride" searching a cemetery for her love that was turned to stone!" It was dramatic, there were people in our neighborhood spotting me on the streets a couple days after saying, "You were the bride in the haunted house!" It was funny. The Haunted House alone made over 5 grand, in 5 hours. This place is crazy.

Jason came to say goodbye, by going through the Haunted House with Scott and the girls before he took off. It was fun, the girls said that he was trying to take animals out of the cages that were set up in a separate room of the Haunted House that was staged as a scary "PETCO" store with mean, scary, crazy lookin' animals. They talked about it for days after...how Uncle Jas tried to take the animal out of it's cage! Cute stuffs.
Scott was also SO excited to spot Mary Louise Parker with her son at the event. Celebrities come out in the Fall in NYC. I am pretty sure I saw Mel Gibson and Scott saw Alan Alda all in the same week.

And that's the end of our super fun week with Uncle Jason!

Except I need to post the video of ALL of us trying to mimic Sleeping Beauty's sing-song voice, it was hilarious. Paisley won. She walks down the street singing it.

Who let's their child do things like this?!

Oh, yea, me.

But I must say, that this isn't a mother letting her daughter put herself in danger.

An Early Childhood Education graduate like me, would say that it's building awesome gross motor skills!

We were at a school playground the other day, where Ella found a blue piece of plywood under a bench that said, "Police Line, Do Not Cross" all over it. Soooo...being the child that she is, she picked it up and propped it on to the bench...

And well, you see what happened...

I'm not the most loved mother at playgrounds. Oh well.
Look at how happy they all look!