Blu Ray

No, today's title does not refer to the Tampa Bay Ray's recent losing streak during the opening round of the playoffs. They still have one game left, so we'll see how that turns out.

What it refers to is this: we have joined the rest of the world in purchasing a Blu Ray player. That was actually Mommy's birthday present for Daddy, which we promptly hooked up to take a peek at. We've been collecting Blu Ray movies all along, so we popped in "Alice in Wonderland" first, and then for Madison, we watched the first half of "The Princess and the Frog." Neat technology, though we're a bit behind on picking it up. It's really clear, but then again, our LED television set makes everything amazingly vivid.

I only refer to this now, as someday they'll be a "Gold Ray" or something like that, where we'll all be having to collect new discs and players because they'll make what we're looking like now seem ancient. The amusing thing about my set-up in the new house is that I'll be picking up:

a) a VHS player. We still have VHS tapes.

b) a record player. Yes, I still like to play records from time to time.

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Today, we visited Doc Williams again, as we have a chiropractic visit every two months or so. Madison, as usual, loved it. She giggled and laughed hard all the way through the experience. Seriously: she has such a good time there. And, like always, she makes sure everyone follows the right routine. She even knows how to roll the sheets out on the beds and clamp them down!

We ate at Cracker Barrel tonight, on a whim really. Hadn't eaten there in a while, so we stopped by to check out their new "harvest menu," and see all the new stuff they have in their store. The decorations and seasonal products they have there are always nice, and the candy is good too - just ask Madison!

10-10-10

Okay, so I guess over the next two years you'll see a post with a similar title. Last year, it was 9-9-9, a day on which nothing really spectacular happened. Today was a church day, so the morning was busy for Daddy as he did another church service with the kids based on the movie, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid."

Tonight has been funny: we've had Christmas play fittings, where Mommy had been taking measurements for everyone. Madison has been acting as the "receptionist," dragging people to their seats to wait, and then bringing them to Mommy, along with that paperwork. If they didn't have any paperwork, Madison would be quick to ask where it is! It was funny watching her even try to take measurements and lead everyone along through the process. There were about eighty people tonight, so it was pretty repetitive, and Madison had everyone laughing despite the wait.

It turned out to be a long day, but Madison made things more fun with her energy, and humor. She's a funny girl!

Haunted Nights of Lights

Tonight was a fun night for the family as Ye-Ye, Nana, Aunt Shain, Jonathan, David, and Hannah joined us for a tour of Lake Lanier's Haunted Nights of Lights.

We drove down for the evening, all prepared. By prepared, I mean that Daddy had his "No Fear" soundtrack all ready to go, complete with appropriate songs like "Ghostbusters," "Thriller," and "Scooby Doo." Mommy was more practical: she brought everyone along some marshmallows on a stick to roast on their open fires they have set up (that alone saved us $20!). Also, she brought a gallon of apple cider and some cups - which was brilliant, actually.

Madison loved that apple cider. You should have seen her gulp it down! She had this cup and it looked surgically attached to her face, as she kept sipping all the apple cider away. When she was finished, here were her words: "More please!"

The lights were good. They were nowhere near as numerous as the Christmas lights they put up - in fact, some of the lights we saw this time around are used in their Christmas presentation. The "Wizard of Oz" lights come to mind. Elsewhere, certain displays are converted from festive and jolly ... to macabre. The elves are no longer tossing presents, and I'll just leave it at that. Fortunately, there isn't too much of that, as there were quite a few bats and pumpkins lighting up the night.

It was a fun evening to get together with the family, and soon it was time to head back home. It's not something we would do every year, but we all did have a good time together.

Moo-ah-ah-ah!

Tonight, Daddy and Madison made dinner - which was fairly simple. It's October, so we made ourselves a Tombstone pizza. Moo-ah-ah-ah! As we waited, we completed a 48-piece puzzle of three Disney princesses, and finished just in time.

Dinner was ready as Mommy came up from the garage, quite tired from a full day of housework.

Madison is pretty funny about routines: tonight at bedtime, things always have to be just right. First, the book. We read one or two books. It is October, so we read a book by Richard Scarry! Moo-ah-ah-ah! Actually, for anyone who knows Richard Scarry books, they are far from frightening. In fact, Daddy was quite bored with this one. But Madison enjoyed it, so that's okay.

Next there's milk of course. That's when it is time to cuddle. Or try to. Sometimes Madison is so excited at night time that there's a lot of squirming in your lap. It's sort of like giving milk to a pro-wrestler who is having an exciting dream about winning the championship. Maybe a pro-wrestler like.... The Undertaker. Moo-ah-ah-ah! Tonight was one of those nights. But many nights, it's a nice quiet time.

Afterwards, Madison rushes out to get the other parent. Tonight, it was Mommy in the kitchen, cleaning up. With her broom! Moo-ah-ah-ah! Madison gets Mommy to come down the hall into the bedroom, where it is prayer time. One by one, Madison lists everyone to be prayed for - only tonight, she added a few names on the list. As she's just learning to speak, it can sometimes be tough to interpret who she is wanting to pray for. But fortunately, Mommy and Daddy were both picking up on the new names, although a little slowly at first: "Velcro," "Asaph," and finally "Cat." She was praying for the animals tonight as well.

Afterwards, it is bed time. Madison points out the milk cup that Mommy must take to the kitchen, and then gives us both hugs and kisses. She gives the sign for "I love you," and has us tuck her in, alongside her doll Alice. There are other dolls that stay close: Stitch and Angel stay by her as well.

Then it is time for night-night. Tonight, Madison fell asleep rather quickly. She was not feeling very well this morning, a little slow. On top of that, Mommy was a little tired too. But before going to bed, we watched a little scary movie: "Coraline." Moo-ah-ah-ah!

It was definitely on the dark side, and wouldn't let Madison watch it for a long, long time. Mommy and Daddy have a list of seasonally themed movies that we sometimes run through in October, from "Ghostbusters" to "The Addams Family" to the king of them all: "The Nightmare Before Christmas." We've watched "Monsters, Inc." with Madison, and Daddy also popped in that "Cars" short: "Mater and the Ghost Light," where the tow truck Mater tries to pull pranks on all his other friends.

It has been a fun month together - but we've got great plans for October. In fact, tomorrow night, we all might be doing something a little ... scary! Moo-ah-ah-ah!

Pumpkin Farm 2010

Today was the day for our annual pilgrimage to Burt's Pumpkin Farm. Today, we decided to go for another visit as well: to Hillcrest Apple Orchard for some apples. We just didn't get to go last month, so we drove over to Ellijay to get a few apples first. It was a quick visit - especially when compared to our stop at Burt's: we spent a few hours there, easy.

When we arrived, we decided right away to eat the picnic lunch that Mommy had prepared for us. Burt's has some picnic tables on the other side of a small creek - a nice quiet location. You actually have to go through a covered bridge to get to it, which Madison loves. We did this last year, and it was so nice that we repeated it again this year. We snacked on sandwiches and listened to the banjo music coming from across the creek. Speaking of which, we seem to have a tradition now set for our annual pilgrimage. We listen to Steve Martin's "The Crow," on the way there - it's the perfect compliment to a trip like this.

After eating, it was time to head over to the pumpkins: Madison was anxious. She was quite obsessed with getting a certain type of pumpkin, starting last night, actually. She wanted a white pumpkin. She sort of had this Captain Ahab thing going, seeking out the legendary white pumpkin.

Well, she obviously found one. Daddy found one too, after a bit of a search. I'm wanting to make a Jack Skellington carving out of a white pumpkin, so I was looking for one with just the right smooth skull-like surface. Of course, I'll share pictures when I'm done, but it should be fairly simple. Madison had her perfect pumpkin too, but that didn't stop us from looking at the huge orange pumpkins as we usually do. Some day, Daddy will buy one of these orange monsters, but for right now, the thought of moving all that weight around doesn't sound like it would be too much fun. Besides, would you carve something like that? And what would you carve on it? I think I'd have to do a big image of Jabba the Hutt or something.

Anyway, Madison enjoyed running around throughout all the pumpkins quite a bit. Ever since we mentioned it last night, she's been saying "pumpkins," and even on the drive over, she was looking out the window to see if she could spot any. Obviously, she said a whole lot when we were pulling up into the parking lot: you can see a whole lot of pumpkins from there. It's a field of orange, and Madison was pointing, and struggling to get her seatbelt off so she could go see the pumpkins. She was really excited to be here, and Daddy was snapping tons of pictures. I think we ended up with over 200 photographs by the time we were done - she just looked so cute in her pumpkin outfit that Mommy put together for her. She scrambled through the pumpkins, hiding behind the large ones - only to pop out and say "Boo!"

Before we bought any pumpkins though - we purchased tickets for the pumpkin farm tradition: the hay ride.

This is another one of those traditions. Madison loved the hay ride. She was so looking forward to it too. I can't explain the attraction to a hay ride exactly. I mean, it's a big thing of hay! Which, by the way, tends to get stuck all over your clothing. But it was certainly fun with Madison. She was piling up the hay and playing games with Mommy. Along the route, they have giant animatronic talking pumpkins, and other festive fall set-ups to see. Of course, you get to go through a pumpkin patch as well, and even through a creek. It's a nice little trip, and boy, the weather was perfect for it too!

After we got back from the hay ride, it was time to start rolling the wheelbarrow around. Madison likes to ride in the wheelbarrow at Burt's, along with the pumpkins we pick up on the way. Sometimes she tries to push the wheelbarrow too - which we seem to get a picture of each year. Eventually, she'll have the strength to push it on her own, but that's a long time from now, and by gum, I don't want to think about it!

Once we selected all of our pumpkins, it was time to head out. We actually spent a long time there, longer than we usually do. It was fun just looking at all of the pumpkins and decor. I couldn't imagine just going to a grocery store to get a pumpkin: you've got to go to a pumpkin patch!

We drove to the new house after leaving Burt's - and there is where we left the pumpkins, on the front porch with a nice fall display that Mommy made up. We watched "Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were Rabbit" on our new television, and by the time that ended, it was time to head home.

Madison fell asleep very quickly tonight, and in fact, so did Mommy. It was a big, full, wonderful day.

Mad Hatter Day

The Mad Hatter once said, "I've been investigating things that start with the letter M." Of course, Madison is one of those things. Another would be the holiday Mad Hatter Day. That was today, the sixth of October. You've probably noticed that in this household, we're quick to celebrate days like this. Madison wore her regrettably large hat and sat down for a spot of tea with us this afternoon. But you're probably wondering why today is Mad Hatter Day. We'll start at the beginning. And when we get to the end, we'll stop:

Mad Hatter Day is 10/6. The date was chosen from the illustrations by John Tenniel in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, wherein the Mad Hatter is always seen wearing a hat bearing a slip of paper with the notation "In this style 10/6". We take this as inspiration to behave in the style of the Mad Hatter on 10/6 (which is October 6 here, although in Britain Mad Hatter Day occurs on June 10...but I digress...) Some astute observers have noted that the paper in the Mad Hatter's Hat was really an order to make a hat in the style shown, to cost ten shillings sixpence. However, it is well known that Time Is Money, and therefore Money Is Time, and therefore 10/6 may as well be the sixth of October.

So there you have it. One of the goals of Mad Hatter Day is apparent silliness (pronounced as Ed Wynn would say it: "thilliness"). This we generally accomplish on any day of the week regardless. Madison is quite an expert on thilliness - er, silliness. Perhaps she learned it when she met the Mad Hatter at breakfast at 1900 Park Fair (the restaurant at the Grand Floridian). It was a perfect time for a meal, all on a golden afternoon. Furthermore, he seemed to really enjoy her company. They both share the same first three letters in their first names, and as luck would have it, they both shared an unbirthday that very day! It really was a special time, as Mommy and Daddy looked on over their tea. Clean cup! Clean cup!

Today, Madison went to music class once again, enjoying it quite a bit. Also, there was a bit of shopping going on: we'll be seeing some new holiday-themed clothing on Madison in the near future. Maybe as soon as tomorrow, when we have plans to go to find some pumpkins and apples!

We had plans to go yesterday, which is why we're going tomorrow. You see, Daddy's watch is exactly two days slow, so we should make it there right on time!

Boo

Many have often said that Madison's look and even the way she acts remind them of a girl called "Boo" from "Monsters, Inc." In some ways, I'd have to agree - tonight we watched the movie again on our new television at the new house. It was a nice evening together, cuddling on the new couch. It has been such a quiet neighborhood, and for the first time, the weather is turning quite cold. It wasn't a gradual drop - the temperature just plummeted to a point where it was downright chilly.

We made time to watch a movie tonight, and enjoyed the parts with Boo in them. Madison says "boo!" a whole lot around us and everyone else. That is actually something she does quite frequently, especially this time of year. She loves to jump out and scare you - and if you act all frightened, it's hysterical to her. She has a great time with that - so much so that she'll do it again and again. She'll chase anyone around the house, or wherever, just for a chance to scream out: "Boo!"

Tonight, we are saying goodbye to Ba-Ba and Nana. They are driving home tomorrow, after spending a few weeks here doing quite a bit of work. Actually, they've painted several rooms in the new house and even hung up curtains. In fact, they've got the guest room all filled with nice furniture too (that's where they've been spending the night, of course). Everything is ready - all we need to do now is get some movers to haul the heavy stuff over there and we'll be set to live in our new home. That first day in the new house is going to be quite a thrill: Madison has enjoyed the new house quite a bit, especially her new room. She knows just where it is. Tonight, we played with her Thomas the Train set in the room for a while, and laid out where the kitchen, tea table and shelves go. All that's left in there is the television set and cabinet, and that room will be ready for some serious playtime. Not that it has been neglected thus far. Right now, it's been a great place for fun for us. Can't wait to move in officially!