Sunny and Warmer Sunday!

I am so ready to say good bye to February and the cold temperatures and wintry weather. I am so ready to say hello to March and the warmer temperatures, longer daylight hours and Spring!!! It is so exciting to see WalMart putting out their potting soil, mulch, rosebushes, etc. I am so ready!

We did find something to put our aquarium on this morning. FINALLY! We looked at WalMart, Target and PetSmart. We found this bookcase at Target that we really liked. It is black with the distressed edges which matches the entertainment center we have our television on and with the black trim and hood on the aquarium, it looks really nice. It is solid wood and has two shelves. It is 30 inches tall and 36 inches wide so is perfect for our aquarium. Bud assures me that we won't have sagging issues with 'this' bookcase like we were having with the console table last night. I don't know. The instructions said weight limits are 10 lbs. on top, 25 lbs. on middle shelf and 35 lbs. on bottom shelf. Did I mention that this is a 29 gallon aquarium and from what I read on the internet....that equals 240 lbs. water weight plus the 25 lbs. of gravel! The only thing that reassures me is that from the stands that we looked at while we were in PetSmart......the ones for aquariums our size did not seem any sturdier and looked like they were either that heavy plastic stuff or fake wood! So I'm going to just be positive and believe that this will all be okay! We will be adding fish tomorrow night and once it is 100% complete, I will be posting pictures!

I want to share a picture of the sunset that I took last night when we were out running around. The quality of the picture isn't great because I took it with my phone and through the truck window.

I wish that I could have taken a better picture but the sun was setting fast and we were stuck at a red light! Bud thought that I was crazy enough without my asking him to run a red light and drive like a crazed man to get to a better position for me to take another picture!

I have another picture or two of Chloe to share......and I am so excited because we are going to go down to see her Saturday AND her mom is bringing her up next week! We are going to have some girl time!!!!

These were taking at Chloe's Noni and Papa's house. She had her first sleepover last night and from the looks of this last picture.....she had a really good time! We told Sonny Bono this morning that if he and Little Mama will come up with Chloe, we will put them up in a hotel so that we can have a sleepover with Chloe!!!!! Sounds like a win win situation, doesn't it?! ; )

Gigi

Busy Saturday

Yeah, this is pretty much how I am feeling tonight.....dog tired! Got up and hit the floor running.....well, maybe not exactly running! We really didn't have too much planned for today but ended up doing a LOT! The only thing that we really had on our list to do was to get Bud's hair cut. He was way past time for his regular haircut but with traveling so much lately......it couldn't be helped. I'm sure he feels much better this evening and I know that he definitely looks much better! We grabbed McDonald's for breakfast. I got the bacon biscuit and seriously, they should call it a bacon BIT biscuit because there are only two paper thin, two inch slices of bacon on that biscuit!

We ran to Black Sheep after McDonalds in order for Bud to get that much needed haircut. Here is a picture of Fiance working her magic!

After the haircut, we had to make our weekly run to WalMart for groceries. We just cannot seem to get out of there for less than $125! We really didn't get that much food either but I think it is the toiletries and cleaning supplies that are so expensive! Just doesn't seem right that you can carry $125 worth of stuff in just ONE trip into the house!

Came home and put groceries away while Bud ran to auto place to get a new bulb for his truck's tail light. While he was gone, Rhyno and Fiance came by and mentioned that Dillard's was having a huge sale.....60% off and additional 40% off of that price. How could I say no to that! Rhyno also suggested that it would be cool to get Bud a REAL aquarium for his birthday which was last Saturday. We are thinking hoping the bigger aquarium will mean easier time of keeping our fish alive. I'm not really sure how that works. Just seems to me like we will be able to kill a larger number of fish! We ended up with a 29 gallon aquarium. I remember when they sold 20 gallon, 25 gallon, 30 gallon. Today I was seeing 26 gallon, 29 gallon aquariums!? We got the one that has everything you need except for the rocks, decorations, and of course the fish. We were going to buy some fish but thankfully the girl working in the fish department said that we needed to wait 24 to 48 hours before adding fish. Maybe that was the problem the last two times? We got the rocks and one package of artificial plants. Wanted to wait and let Bud pick out the decorations that he wanted. We had already shopped at Dillards and TJMaxx before our PetSmart stop so after PetSmart, headed home with Bud's surprise. He was pretty surprised. Rhyno was so sweet and fixed it all up for Bud. Everyone was pretty hungry....remember that bacon bit biscuit that I had for breakfast? Well, long gone! We went to Outback and had supper and then headed back to PetSmart for some live plants and a shipwreck decoration. I'm hoping maybe we can add some fish tomorrow evening and will be able to post some pictures once the aquarium is totally done!

Dillard's did have some amazing sales going on! I picked up some Daniel Cremieux dress shirts for Bud. They were on sale for $27 and $22.50 plus got an additional 40% off of that! Of course I had to hit up the baby section for Chloe. I found three cute outfits. I bought bigger sizes for her.....I think they are 6 month and 12 month sizes. It is really hard to get good pictures of these clothes but I wanted to share with you what I found! I got all three for $21!!!!!

The little Razorback dress is 12 month size and since her Gigi and Gramps live in Fayetteville......home of the Razorbacks......it would not be right for her to not have some Razorback outfits! Now if Chloe has a little brother....I found a crib mobile of little Razorbacks! So cute!

Bud and the boys just put on Dumb and Dumber so think I will head into the living room and grab some popcorn while there is some left.

Enjoy your weekend,

Gigi

Happy Friday everyone!

I am busy today with cleaning, laundry, all of that fun stuff! Bud is coming home from Muskogee this afternoon. He will probably be pretty tired. He wasn't feeling well last night. Thought something that he had eaten for lunch hadn't agreed with him.

Our guppies both died last night. It was a sudden death. I fed them mid morning per instructions that Bud had given to me. Not only did he verbally give me instructions.....but we had a visual lesson as well. I had to pass a test. Maybe I didn't pass it as well as I thought because one day in my sole care and they are no longer! At one point yesterday afternoon, I glanced over at the aquarium and Fred is on the bottom -- belly up. I called Bud immediately and he asked if I was sure. I think that there are probably three pretty good indications that a fish is dead. (1) floating on the bottom of the aquarium - check (2) floating belly up - check and (3) no movement from gills or fins - check. Pretty sure he is dead, Bud! Bud was devastated but at least the female was eating and seemed to be in good spirits considering that her roommate has just sunk to the bottom of the aquarium and is no longer chasing her all over the place. Hmmmm.....maybe she killed him! Is that a smile on her face? Is that a little margarita in her fin? Is there a little more pep to her swim? I think SO! But alas.....as the day grew to a close and we returned from dinner.....she was no longer swimming with that pep and she wasn't looking too good....a little green around the gills (excuse the pun)! It wasn't much longer that we noticed her floating next to Fred and soon Ethel was no more. I think I should have named them Romeo and Juliet! Bud instructed me to take the little net and dispose of their little lifeless bodies but no.....can.....do! Bud will have to take care of them once he is home. We have gone through three fish in just a matter of maybe two weeks so I'm thinking maybe we should rethink this fish as pets thing. It isn't working out so well....especially for the fish!

Rhyno and Fiance came by this morning to drop off Olive for the day. As they were leaving, three police cars slowly drove through our little cul-de-sac. It was really strange because our neighborhood is a very quiet neighborhood. I have seen "a" police car cruise our neighborhoods now and again but with three.....I'm thinking that they were looking for someone specifically. Rhyno told me to get back inside of my house and lock the doors! Hey, I have an attack dog remember! Unless of course, if there were treats involved....she would probably throw me to the wolves to get her treats! I'm guessing that some kids had skipped school this morning and were acting suspiciously.

Want to share with you another thing that happened to me. We have been getting phone calls from practically the first day we moved here and got our telephone for a lady whose initials are L.O. From the many messages that have been left and caller ID info, it appears that creditors are looking for Miss L.O. I cannot tell you the number of times that I have tried to explain that this number is not L.O.'s number and hasn't been for now over 5 years. They act like they don't believe me and I guess that is understandable BUT I've suggested that they call the telephone company and can verify that this number is MY number now. Anyway, apparently not all of these people who are looking for Miss L.O. are the sharpest because the other day, the woman actually asked me - after I had explained all of the above - if I KNEW L.O. I asked her if she knew the person who had her phone number before she did.....it isn't like we bought her house or anything. We went to the phone company and they randomly gave us this phone number. She then told me that she would have this number removed from their records. Thank. You. Very. Much!

I cannot end this post without a picture of Miss Chloe.

She is all decked out in her Razorback finest! She is dreaming of her first Razorback game that Gigi and Papa will be taking her to! Not to mention her first Cardinal game!

Have a great weekend!

Gigi

Tired of winter!

Okay, I know that it is February and it is supposed to be cold but seriously? I'm so done with this cold weather and the snow and the wind chill! Done, done, done! They are predicting rain/snow showers for us tomorrow......not what I am wanting to hear! BUT.....on my way to church this afternoon, WalMart is getting their parking lot ready for Spring! They actually had stacks, yes....stacks of potting soil, mulch, etc. in their parking lot ready to go!!!! That gives me hope that Spring is just around the corner!!!! I am so ready to crank up my lawn mower and start working on my flowerbeds! I can't wait to trim the monkeygrass and lay out some fresh mulch!!!! But for now, I have the fireplace cranked up and I keep running over to it to thaw out! It was cold in the chapel this afternoon. It was quiet except for everyone's teeth chattering! As soon as my hour was up and I was back inside of my jeep, you can believe that I turned my heater on high! I could never live where it is cold for very long because I would be very crabby!

Bud has been very busy this week with work. He is going to have to be out of town tomorrow and Friday. He must have caught something while he was in San Francisco last week because he has been coughing and feeling really tired. He said that he felt a lot better today so that is good! He has another busy week coming up next week. I know that he doesn't mind his out of town trips but the out of state ones are not as much fun especially when they are happening often and so close together!

Not much going on here so this is a short post. Want to leave you with one of my favorite pictures!

Just melts my heart!

Gigi

Exercise and Rick's Bakery

I started back into my walking routine this morning after being off of it for almost a week! Gotta get the beach bod before summer! I know.......I probably should have started getting this bod ready for the beach L O N G before now! And I also know that going to Rick's Bakery after walking is not going to get this body ready for the beach any sooner! I just felt like after my break from walking -- I deserved a little reward for getting back into walking! My dad didn't walk this morning since he is recovering from a bad cold but my mom did walk with me. Thanks Mom! And in all fairness to myself, when I suggested Rick's Bakery to my mom.....she very easily could have said no and we could have eaten a healthy breakfast and been just as content. BUT.....she almost knocked me down getting out of the Mall, into her car and was halfway to Rick's Bakery by the time I caught up with her! It was good too and the guilt didn't last long....felt better by the time I took that first bite!

Something has been bothering since I left Maumelle on Friday. I was at a gas station filling up with gas before getting on the interstate when this guy approached me. He said his mother-in-law was in the hospital in Fort Smith which is probably 2 hour's drive north of Maumelle. Anyway, he asked me to pay for his gas and said that his wife was in his truck or SUV or something on the side of the building and I could go with him and see for myself that he was telling the truth. I told him that I was sorry but that I couldn't help him. I never seem to handle these kinds of situations very well. I really should have told him to bring his truck around and I could have put some gas in it for him. There were so many other people around getting gas and after I turned him down, he didn't ask anyone else. I don't know how long he had been there or how many other people he had asked before me. It is still bothering me and I feel like God was giving me a test and I blew it....and I blew it BIG TIME too! I always think of how I should have handled things after the fact! I guess when situations occur that are outside of my comfort zone....I panic and just try to get away as fast as possible and get back into that comfort zone. I've been praying for that man and his wife and praying that they found someone who responded in a more Christian way than I did. And also praying for myself that I will stop, think and pray before I respond too quickly!

It was cold here this morning and Spring cannot come soon enough for me! To cheer myself up....I bought a bleeding heart at WalMart over the weekend. It isn't really a bleeding heart yet, more like roots in a bag of dirt but I am thinking positive here and know that soon, very soon, I will have a beautiful bleeding heart plant! And yes, I know that I have to take it out of the bag and actually plant the thing first! May need to take a container and get some holy water from the chapel tomorrow when I am there to sprinkle on my little plant once I plant it! I don't do as well with houseplants as I do with outside plants. Mother Nature helps me out and if left to my own devices.....my plants tend to either dry up and die or get overwatered and die! Bud shakes his head every time he sees me put another little plant in my shopping cart.....he knows that that plant is on borrowed time. I leave with a smile and high hopes while Bud is following behind me with a frown and knows doom is near!

Since I kinda blew the healthy thing this morning, I've decided to just not cry over it and the family will be going out for pizza tonight! US Pizza is oh so good! It is gluten free so doesn't that count?!?

Blessings,

Gigi

Back home but my heart is with Chloe!

I had the best time staying with Sonny Bono, Little Mama and Chloe last week. I got to their home about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night. Chloe is changing every day! I'm sorry that I didn't take even one single picture but it isn't easy taking pictures when you are holding and loving on a baby 24/7!!!!! And I did NOT want to put her down for pictures......next time I will might take pictures. I had the best of intentions. I had my camera, the battery full of life and just did not even get the camera out....not even once! But I do have some pictures courtesy of other sources that I will share!

This picture was taken the day that I got there. She visited her daddy at work for the very first time! I know that her daddy was super excited to be able to show off his little daughter to all of his coworkers!

I was able to hold Chloe a lot and loved every single minute! When you hold a newborn in your arms.....and look at that little miracle.....you can't help but feel like God is right there with you. I feel like He is there like a parent watching His children's excitement over a special gift. And what a special gift Chloe is! We are truly blessed! I was able to experience the sleepless nights, heating bottles, sterilizing bottles, diaper changes and even the ultimate dirty diaper where EVERYTHING has to be cleaned and changed and washed out! But how I loved every single minute of it!!!!! I also got to experience cuddling with a newborn and watching the many many faces that she makes while asleep. It truly touches your heart! Then there is the feeding times when she looks into your eyes and really studies you and you hope that somehow she can see how very much you love her and how your life will never be the same because of her! We enjoyed little "chats" where she moved her little mouth and looked at me trying to figure out how I could make sounds come out of MY mouth and she tried so hard to contribute to our girl talk! She will be cooing soon!!! She is so alert and so strong! When I held her sitting up with her leaning against me to burp, she would tilt her head back so that she could look at me! My heart melted every. single. time !!!! And I don't care what anyone says.....she is REALLY trying to say Gigi! haha I had to leave for home Friday at 2 p.m. and I hated having to leave her!!! I miss her so very much. I miss her mommy and daddy too of course. Her mommy and I had some good girl talk times in the late hours of the nights and wee hours of the mornings. Sonny Bono was back to work so I didn't get to spend as much time with him but do treasure what time we did get to have together. I have one more sweet picture that Little Mama's step dad sent to me this morning of the little family. I think that it is so precious!

I arrived home about 5 p.m. Friday evening. We took my parents out to Catfish Hole for their anniversary. Their anniversary was actually earlier in the week. It was very good and we all ate way too much!!!! I was pretty tired but it was good to get out and spend time with the family! We passed a gas station that was having its grand opening and had gas for $1.99 a gallon! There were lots and lots of cars in line taking advantage of that!!!!

Saturday was Bud's birthday. My parents took us out for breakfast at Susan's. They have the best breakfast menu and great prices! It is always busy so you need to get their early! We decided it was a good time to make our WalMart run since it had been awhile......our bill was for $199 so I guess it HAD been awhile since we had done major grocery/cleaning supply shopping! Or so I keep telling myself so that I don't break down and cry! We stopped at Dime's Meat Market and bought steaks for supper. I had to show off pictures of Chloe of course! Bud grilled out steaks, baked potatoes and cabbage for our supper. So so good. Mom called and said that when Dad woke up from his nap, he had a fever and chills so they decided to not come over and share his cold. We appreciated that so much that we told her that we would call when the food came off of the grill and she could come by and pick up their dinner! Hey, I let her come inside of the house....I didn't leave it on the front porch or anything! They live 2 miles away so it was still nice and hot by the time she got back home with it! Rhyno and Fiance were here and Little Buddy so we all played Taboo and then Karaoke. I don't sing so I just cheered them on from the side. They thought that they were pretty good but after I played back some of their songs that I had recorded from that night......let's just say 'blackmail'!!!!

Sunday morning we visited PetSmart, Best Buy and Barnes and Nobel. We ended up buying two little guppies....Fred and Ethel. I think Ethel is already pregnant! Little hussy! My aquarium is only like a gallon or two so we were very limited as to what we could put in there! I tried to take a picture of Fred and Ethel but fish don't pose very well.

Ethel is the one on the left who looks tired....she is the female! I personally think God made the males of all species more colorful and attractive so that they COULD get a mate! He knew if left to their own devices....the world probably wouldn't become populated! hee hee

Love,

Gigi

Doing the happy dance!

I am so excited!!!! I will be heading to Maumelle first thing in the morning to see Chloe!!!! Yippie!!!!! I need my Chloe fix!!!! I talked to Sonny Bono this morning....he was asking if I was still planning on coming down. Most definitely BUT I also wanted to make sure that if I come down....I will be able to help them more than just being in their way! I know that they have had so much company since Chloe's birth....I just wanted to make sure that this is something that "THEY" wanted more than something that "I" wanted. : )

Another reason for being excited......we have sunshine this morning!!!! It is still bitterly cold but with the sun shining.....doesn't look as cold! I am so ready for Spring and doing yard work again! I think because my mom never let me play in the dirt or get dirty as a little girl....I ♥ my dirt now!!!! It is just so gratifying to mow the lawn, get the weed eater out, edge the driveway and sidewalks and then it looks good for about a week. Housework just doesn't have that same length of gratifying time. It seems like I get the whole house clean and turn around and it needs to be done again! Same with laundry and ironing! A woman's work is NEVER done!

I guess I need to tackle this:

So that I can be doing this tomorrow morning:

My yellow jeep and I will be heading down to Maumelle first thing in the morning! If you see me on the interstate, WAVE!

Gigi

Warning.....a lot to post!

I have a lot to post this morning! First of all, Bud and I had the best weekend ever! We drove down to Maumelle and got to hold our little granddaughter for the very first time! My heart is so full now!!!! Chloe is so perfect, so precious and so beautiful! I love love love watching all of the facial expressions that she makes! And she smiles! Little Mama and Sonny Bono said it was gas but I DO NOT believe that for one minute! She SMILES!!!! If it was indeed gas....then she has gas a LOT and that just is not the case....not this time! She SMILES and she is so strong! She holds her little head up and looks around! I don't have many pictures of Chloe and myself....believe me when I tell you that I DID hold her a LOT! Thank you so very much for letting me be so selfish with your daughter, Little Mama! I promise to be better next time! AND since I WAS holding her so much....I didn't get to take as many pictures as I wanted......and was NOT going to put her down to do so. I do have my priorities! Here are some of the pictures that we took when we got there Saturday morning.

Can you tell that Bud is in love with that little angel?! First thing this morning, I had to send pictures to his computer at work so that he could show off his little granddaughter! haha He is definitely a proud grandpa!!!!

Here are a couple more cute little pictures. Here she is with her daddy. Daddy started back to work this morning and I know that he is missing his girls very very much this morning!

We came home Sunday morning. Daddy is going back to work this morning and I know that they have had so much company so we wanted the little family to have some 'down' time with just the three of them and hoped that they were able to get some rest. I appreciate them letting us come and stay Saturday night.....it meant so very much to us. My body left Maumelle but my heart is definitely still back there!!!!

When we left Maumelle the weather was pretty warm and looked like it was going to be a sunny day! I didn't even need to wear a jacket! I think it started raining on us in Clarksville and by the time we got closer to Fort Smith, we had snow! Here are a couple of pictures taken while Bud was driving down the road.....not the best pictures but considering we were blasting down the highway and if you look at the GPS....you can see where we were going 75 mph!!!!

This is a picture coming into Fayetteville. You can see the University of Arkansas and that never fails to make me smile! I ♥ living in a college town!!!! When you see the college, you know that you are close to home!!!

Bud and I spent a very low key Valentine's Day yesterday! We ran to WalMart and for our romantic meal.....we had turkey sandwiches and macaroni and cheese! haha My sandwich was actually pretty awesome.....on a croissant, ranch dressing, turkey slices, a couple of slices of bacon, some swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and red onion. YUMMY! It was very very good. Bud had grilled out steaks while we were in Maumelle so we were really wanting something kind of light and somewhat healthy! We did exchange Valentine's Day cards and I will post the pictures of those and let you tell ME who the romantic one is in this relationship! haha

Seriously though.....I feel very lucky that I have a husband who even thought to buy me a card and then took the time out of his busy day to bother with fighting the crowds and standing in line to pay for the card! I DO treasure this card and I treasure Bud! We are getting to be pretty antique treasures with more rust than not but we are rusting together!!!! haha

Today is Mimi and Poppy's 52nd Anniversary! Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad! And they spent the morning walking at the Mall with ME! haha I think they were going out later and buying something for their anniversary and talked about going out for a steak dinner tonight! Right now, they are probably napping with Dad in his recliner and Mom on the couch......just snoring away!!!! Here is a picture of the walkers going into the Mall. Poppy has on the Partners jacket and looks like a serious walker!

I think that you can click on the pictures and enlarge them but don't hold me to that! Well I have a ton of laundry to do and a list of things that I need to get accomplished today that is longer than normal so I had better get to it! But first, one more picture of Chloe!

Have a wonderful day!

GiGi

More Chloe Pictures

I know everyone is wanting to see more pictures of our little princess. This first picture is in the lobby of UAMS where we were STILL waiting for Chloe to make her appearance. Notice that every single guy in this picture has a beard! Must be the 'in' thing!!!! This was taken on Saturday....remember that Little Mama and Sonny Bono were checked in at 7:30 a.m. on Friday morning. We didn't look TOO bad at this point but Sonny Bono said that he wished that he had gotten a picture of us all together on Sunday morning!

Here is a picture of the little mama and daddy right before they headed to have the c-section....finally Little Mama was going to get some relief! At this point, our excitement over Chloe's upcoming birth was overshadowed with worry about Little Mama and Little Chloe. Little Chloe had been in distress and we had collectively decided in the waiting room that if the doctor did NOT do something....we were going to storm Little Mama's room and do something ourselves! Poppy said he had birthed calves so he was nominated as head surgeon....thank you, God, for not letting THAT happen!!!! Little Mama....you have no idea how lucky you are!

And here is my favorite picture! That smile....priceless!!!!!

I will have more pictures to post soon!

GiGi

Still as good as we remembered!

On Saturday early afternoon we decided to eat an early lunch at one of our favorite restaurants.....Gadwalls in North Little Rock. We used to eat there more often than I care to admit! They have the best hamburgers, chicken strips and homemade fries than anywhere else that we have ever been to. Little Buddy has missed Gadwalls and every time we are back in Little Rock....he has hoped we would be able to eat there but most of the time, our trips are fast and busy and we just couldn't manage it. To say that he was happy is an understatement......the pictures say it all!


He can now cross this off of his 'bucket list'. haha Next thing to cross off.....Shotgun Dan's Pizza.

Schools were closed today. We had more snow fall overnight and temperatures were below freezing so what fell, stayed on the roads. Even though the temperatures didn't get out of the 20s....the sun did peek out and melted what was on the roads, sidewalks and driveway. THAT is the kind of snow that I like....when it first fell yesterday morning it was a heavy wet snow and it was beautiful on the trees, fences, etc. I had planned on going out with my camera to Lake Fayetteville to take some pictures but by the time I was ready to head out.....the snow had melted off of the trees! : (

Little Chloe is home along with her mommy and daddy today. I haven't talked to her daddy in a couple of days but I'm sure he is staying very busy and trying to catch up on some of his sleep that he missed! I tried to call a few minutes ago but just got his voice mail so I bet he is spending time with his little daughter and enjoying every single second of it! He had tried to call last night but it was 9:56 p.m. and we were asleep so by the time we got to the phone to answer it...he had already hung up. I tried to call back a couple of times but with Sonny Bono.....if you miss his call.....there are no second chances! haha I hope he calls this evening....I've missed hearing from him and an anxious to hear how things are going. I don't feel comfortable calling right now since they are so busy with family there and getting settled in at home.....never sure when it is a good time to call. I remember how hectic those first few days back at home are....trying to get settled in.....people calling and coming by.....a very busy time for sure. It is really nice with modern technology because even though we live too far to see her every day.....Sonny Bono can post pictures on his facebook and we can at least not feel quite so far away. Babies change so fast those first months and weeks especially so I am very grateful for facebook! Here are a couple of pictures that he posted today of her in her coming home outfit.....isn't she precious?!

Now how about some pictures of Chloe with her daddy and a picture of the three of them? hint, hint, hint!

With love,

GiGi

Chloe Ann Maddison

Little Chloe is FINALLY here! Here is a picture of our little diva:

I went down to Maumelle on Wednesday and got there early afternoon. Little Mama wanted one last dinner out before Chloe was born. She chose Johnny Carinos in West Little Rock mainly for a certain dessert that she was wanting but unfortunately when it was time for her to order her dessert....they weren't serving it! BUMMER! The food was really good and it was a really nice restaurant.

Thursday Little Mama had her last pregnancy doctor's appointment. Miss Chloe still wasn't doing anything....no dilation....nothing! The weather was terrible....raining and raining and raining! We met Sonny Bono and did a little more last minute shopping for Miss Chloe. I hoped if she heard about all of the neat things that she was getting....that she would want to come out and see! No such luck! Thursday night was spent finishing laundry, cleaning the floors, last minute touches on some of Chloe's 'toys', you know, that last minute stuff that you want done before you leave for your hospital stay!

Friday morning Little Mama and Sonny Bono left to go have one last breakfast as a 'couple' and then headed to the hospital to be checked in at 7:30 a.m. They started inducing and Miss Chloe was not born until 5 a.m. SUNDAY morning! They had to shut off the pitocin a couple of different times. Miss Chloe just did not do well with the higher dosage of pitocin.....her little heart rate dropped and she was in distress. As soon as they stopped the pitocin....Chloe's heart rate went back up so we were thankful for that! Sunday morning they finally FINALLY decided that Chloe just wasn't going to born without a c-section. Little Mama was still only dilated to 5 cm and by this time she was so exhausted that it would have been so hard for her to try to push and deal with delivery. Sonny Bono and Little Mama were wheeled down to have the c-section and about 20 minutes or so later....Sonny Bono sent us our first picture of Chloe Ann via his cell phone. Lots of hugging and tears in that waiting room, for sure! Chloe Ann weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz. and is the most precious, beautiful little girl that I have ever seen! We were able to go into Recovery one at a time to see mama and baby for a few minutes. Of course, we all took cameras so Miss Chloe is a celebrity with all of her paparazzi! Little Mama's mom and grandma got to hold Miss Chloe and the smiles on their faces was priceless for sure! I am looking forward to holding her for the first time as well and I'm sure that I too will be smiling ear to ear! I can only imagine what it feels like to hold your first grand baby or great-grand baby but I know that when MY first born puts HIS first born in my arms.....I'm sure that it will be a feeling that I will never forget. I even now remember as if it were yesterday what it felt like to hold each of my sons for that first time....I can only describe it as being like what I imagine standing in Heaven will feel like.....the joy, the peace and the love. I hope that Sonny Bono will be placing her in my arms for the first time.....very soon! The suspense is killing me! haha

On a positive note about the long labor and deliver....we finally met Little Mama's mom and step dad, grandmother and grandfather. They were very nice and it felt like we immediately became 'family'. Of course, when you are sitting there with someone for that long of a period of time...you DO get to know them pretty well! haha Her grandfather and step dad had us laughing so hard that at times we were crying and bent over! I really like her family and now that Little Mama and Sonny Bono are married and have their own child....our two families are now a part of each other. Her family were telling us how they thought so much of Sonny Bono and what a wonderful job we did of raising him. I wish we could take the credit but I think he just kind of turned out that way in spite of us! haha We couldn't be prouder of him ourselves. He is going to be a very good, loving daddy. Here are some pictures of what we did a lot of....waiting....and waiting.....and waiting.




We did a LOT of waiting. I don't have any pictures of Little Mama's family waiting but since we kinda just met....I didn't want them to know think that I was a psycho snapping pictures of them since we had after all just met!

Here are some pictures of Sonny Bono coming out to tell us that his daughter was born and mama and baby were doing great. Can you see the happiness?!

After Chloe was born and we got to see for ourselves that Little Mama and Miss Chloe were doing well, we left to give the new little family some time together. Time for the parents to get to know their new little daughter and time for the new little daughter to actually see that mommy and daddy who have been so happy and anxious to finally meet her face to face.....who until that moment have only been voices and little pokes and prods on Little Mama's tummy! They are a beautiful family and I pray that God will bless them with good health, many years of happy memories and all of the strength and wisdom that He can provide for them on this new journey in life.

I have more things that I want to post but don't want to put anyone to sleep so will save it for another post. Excuse the picture overload but have to post another picture (or two) of this beautiful child that God has blessed us with.

With love,

GiGi