Lights Out

Spring 2011 has been full of storms and flooding. We've been very lucky to miss most of it. Last night, we had very strong storms and one tornado pass through Obion County. Our electricity was out for a few hours. Stella was taking a nap during most of the storm and when she finally woke up, it was time for dinner. We put her high chair by the front door to catch the rest of the light. Once it was dark, we had to light every candle in the house. She played with her spaghetti by candlelight for the longest time.





I think that Stella knew something was up because she was wired last night! She was giggling and running around the house like a crazy person. We finally got her settled down a little and she watched Toy Story on her portable dvd player with Daddy for a few minutes. The electricity came back right before bed just in time to rock her to sleep. All is well at the Turner house today. I'm thankful for God's protection for our community. We've been very fortunate during this stormy season.

** Stella is holding a flashlight in this picture. You can never be too prepared!

Maddie's 1st Birthday

Maddie Mae is turning one! Stephen's family got together yesterday at Wee Play to celebrate. Stella had lots of fun with all of her cousins.

A Little Shampoo

I had to post another picture that I took on my phone last night. I keep forgetting to grab my camera!

I can't believe that her hair has grown so much in the past few months. I played with it as I gave her a shampoo last night. :)

Piggy Tails

Guess who's hair is growing like crazy? It's wild and curly, but I tried out some pig tails yesterday. They made me giggle.

Oops!

Well, Stella was 15 months old before I realized that her high chair was put together backwards.

You'll have to look closely since the wood on the high chair is similar to our floors, but you can see that the foot rest is sticking out from the back. Not to worry . . . her daddy fixed it good as new. We laughed so much about it.

Stella's New Friend

Our friends Jeremy and Mallory moved to North Carolina a couple of years ago. They are in West Tennessee this week and we're so glad that they got to come to our house last night for dinner. We've only been able to see their son, Caden, a few times and it was the first time they've been able to meet Stella. Caden turned 2 last month and is such a sweet little boy. They loved playing together! I wish that we lived closer to each other.

Caden loved pushing Stella around in her car.



I can't believe that I got two pictures that weren't blurry. Caden was pushing so fast and constantly on the move, it made it difficult to get pictures!



Stephen helping Caden shoot some basketball. . . I think he's going to be quite the athlete.



Jeremy and Caden



They were tired and sweaty, but Caden still looks like he's trying to decide what to do next.



Stella likes him. She's trying to pat his back.



Jeremy and Mallory are expecting a baby girl in about 8 weeks. We can't wait to see them again and hug on sweet baby Molly!

LAUGH

After you laugh this hard . . .




you are exhausted!

Mother's Day

I walked out of my bedroom this morning and heard Stella giggling as she ran down the hall to greet me. She and her daddy had been up a few minutes and he was making me breakfast. She made it to me and hugged on my leg. I reached down to pick her up and she patted my back which I'm sure meant, "I love you, Mommy." I look at Stella and have a hard time believing that I helped make something so cute and wonderful. I'm thankful everyday, but most especially today for being blessed to have the gift of Stella. Being her mom is my dream job! Thank you God for my sweet, little family. My heart is full today.



I love that I finally captured the Stella Stinker face today! She cracks me up when she snarls her nose up like this. It normally comes directly after hearing, "No no!"

On Our Toes

Stephen and I have to be on our toes at all times. Stella is a little path of destruction according to her Aunt Sis! There is nothing in our house that has not been handled by her little fingers. We heard something unfamiliar yesterday so Stephen went to check out the damage. She loves to grab things out of my drawers in the kitchen. She finally figured out how to get the aluminum foil off of the roll. I'm not happy about this new skill!



And just because they are so cute, I wanted to post a picture of Stella's Tiny Toms. I love them!

What a weekend!

Whew, I'm tired. We had a long weekend. Aunt Sis and I attended a conference for Junior Auxiliary in Memphis with other members of our local chapter. We were away Friday - Sunday and enjoyed at least two days with no rain. Nene was willing to go with us once again and watch Stella so I did not have to leave her all weekend. I'm just not ready for that!

They had lots of fun on their own. Nene took Stella to the zoo on Saturday. She sent me this adorable picture as they were leaving that I think sums up Stella's thoughts for the day.



I can't wait to see the other pictures! Stella has gotten so big. She was all over that hotel room. We were joking that she must have walked 10 miles over those 3 days. She opened every cabinet and door and picked up every item in the room at least 5 times. She's learning and exploring - it's so fun to watch. Last year's trip to Mobile, Alabama for the conference was quite different. I love watching my baby grow!