The Fullers

Happy Holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year from the Fullers!

We are enjoying the holiday season very much. For Thanksgiving, Melanie's parents flew in for a quick trip and we had an early Turkey Dinner with Allen's parents Wednesday night. They got on a plane Thursday morning to get back to Colorado in time to celebrate the day with the rest of Melanie's family. Those of still in Tennessee got to eat plenty of good food at Allen's Aunt & Uncle's house. It was a wonderful day. Thanksgiving morning, we put up our tree while watching the Macy's Parade. Virginia Anne - who doesn't watch much TV at all - loved watching all the performers and big animal balloons. I think her favorite was Snoopy since he's in one of her favorite books.

Each night, Virginia Anne counts to three as we light our tree and the various lights outside the house. She enjoys counting down the days until Christmas on our countdown chalkboard, lighting advent candles, and putting Baby Jesus to sleep each night in his manger. Last weekend, we got to see carolers and policemen on horseback at our town Square Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony (Virginia Anne was completely captivated by both sights).

We hope you all are well and we wish you blessings during this season and in 2009!

Big Girl Stuff

Virginia Anne has reached several milestones in the past few weeks. She has begun potty training and after only a couple weeks of having the potty in the house, she's already using it. This morning, we changed her bed into a big girl bed by taking off one side railing, and lowering it closer to the floor. She easily gets in and out of her bed now! It's terrifying for Mom and Dad, but she's ready for it. Her nap today went wonderfully and she put herself to sleep tonight just like she always does!

She can use a knife now to cut up her food and loves pulling a kitchen chair over to the counter so she can climb up and watch Melanie cook. Gramma C & Papa B came to visit last week and she definitely impressed them with her talking, climbing, and explosive personality. Sometimes we have to remind ourselves that she's only 18 months old because she sure seems a lot older.

Enjoying Fall

We are enjoying the fall season in the Fuller household. We've been to the pumpkin patch twice, the Nashville Farmer's Market, and are gearing up for Halloween this Friday. Since our last post, we traveled to Phoenix, Denver, DC, and back again. Allen was speaking at a conference in Phoenix in September and Melanie & Virginia Anne went with him to visit her Uncle Cliff, cousins, and some friends that live there. While Allen worked, Melanie & Virginia Anne enjoyed lounging by the pool and fit in a trip to the Phoenix Zoo. The weather wasn't too hot (only in the low 100s) and we had a great time with family and friends.

Melanie & Virginia Anne spent the next week in Denver while Allen came back to Tennessee, but he went to Denver the following weekend to celebrate Melanie's Dad's birthday. Just to rack up some more frequent flier miles, while in Denver, Allen flew to Las Vegas to speak at another conference! Now that's a lot of flying to fit into a week and a half.

October has been much calmer...well...sort of. Allen went to DC earlier in the month to - you guessed it - speak at another conference and meet with some clients. This time, Melanie & Virginia Anne stayed at home. With the election less just over a week away, and a good chunk of our client base involved in politics, things are very busy at Flat Creek. Allen has been working hard and we'll all sleep a bit more come November 5th.

Melanie ran in the Nashville Race for the Cure on October 4th and was excited to help raise funds for breast cancer research. Since the day after the race, however, at least one person in the house has been sick with either the flu or a cold. We're all very much ready to have sneezing, coughing, and runny noses be behind us.

Virginia Anne is growing up quicker than we can blink an eye. She is counting to two, talking all the time, running everywhere, and is a delight to each and every day. She is telling jokes, loves animals, pumpkins, and flowers. We're starting to see the beginning of "2," but all in all she's just a true joy and a very sweet little girl. Right now, she's quite sick though and can't seem to get rid of a cough she's had since Saturday.

We hope you all are well and enjoying this wonderful time of year!

Hurricane Gustav

Melanie's cousin, Natalie, lives in Pensacola, FL, and came to visit this weekend to escape Hurricane Gustav. Luckily, the worst parts of the storm missed her house, but we sure enjoyed seeing her. Petey and Virginia Anne did their best to make it hard for her to leave, but she said something about getting back to her husband and dog....blah, blah, blah. :)

We hope that all family, friends, and friends of family are safe during this awful, vicious storm.

Melanie's High School Reunion

We returned Monday from a five day trip to Colorado. We got to see Melanie's parent's ranch up near Walden (beautiful) and VA got some up close and personal time with her Uncle Jim. He taught her a new cheer that he says each morning - "Dogs! Dogs! Dogs! Dogs!" (while clapping in a chant like fashion) Even after we returned to Tennessee, Virginia Anne kept on chanting every time she saw Petey and every time she saw a picture of Uncle Jim. It was absolutely adorable.

We also had a nice dinner with Melanie's entire family. VA got to eat dinner on her very own picnic table out on the deck. Melanie tried to put her in her high chair for dinner and she would have none of it. Once her food and sunglasses were in place, we could all tell that she was enjoying herself to the fullest extent possible.

Melanie had her 10 year high school reunion and it was nice to get to see old friends and catch up. Virginia Anne got to come with Mom and Dad and she even found a little boy her age to chase around the party. We had to call it a night earlier than we wanted to, but a certain little girl needed to go to bed.

Other highlights of the weekend included getting to see Melanie's cousins, Kevin & Angie, going to the Boulder County Fair, and a visit with Virginia Anne's great-grandmother. We even got to squeeze in a trip to the Denver Zoo with Uncle Joe & Aunt Erin, which made Melanie especially happy because she's a zoo addict. There were two lions!!! Can you blame me? :) Plus, every time VA sees a picture of Erin, she points and says, "Ewin" in her little voice. Too cute. 

One downside is that Virginia Anne has come down with a cold and we're pretty sure she picked it up on the trip. She's a tough kid though and are sure she'll get better soon. 

More Teeth

VA has a lot of teeth now! She has six on the bottom (including two molars), and five on the top. One top molar came in yesterday and the other one is nearly visible. That gummy smile that was present for so long is long gone.

Goin' Swimmin'

Over the past week, Virginia Anne and Melanie have had the privilege to join our friends, the Hilleary's, at the pool at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). It's a wonderful pool for little kids because one half of the pool has a very gradual slope down to about 4 feet of water. Virginia Anne can even walk down to the rope line at the end of the kids area and still stand up.

They went once last week and VA started out having a very hard time walking around in the water. By the time they left, she was walking around very well on her own, dragging toys along with her. Today, she was just cruising all around, playing in the jets, showing all the kids how good she could walk around. Melanie continued to be very nervous and not take her hands off of her, but she never fell over and was less than pleased when it was time to go home.

Next summer, swim lessons are on the to-do list for sure!

A Nice Little Weekend

Nothing that new to report over here at the Fuller household. This weekend, we had dinner with some friends, bought Petey a doghouse, and helped Allen's parents setup their new iMac. All in all, a very nice weekend here in the 'Boro!

Virginia Anne and Melanie went for a jog this morning along Murfreesboro's Greenway. It runs along the Stones River, and the part we were on goes through a Civil War battlefield. It was hot out today, but along the river, there was a cool breeze and it was very shaded. Both of them really enjoyed it and plan on making it a frequent outing, even with the higher temps we've been having.

The Beach

The Fullers have just returned from their first family vacation to the beach. We drove about 10 hours to the Alabama Gulf and stayed in a small community called Kiva Dunes. We met some of our dearest friends who live in Knoxville and have a baby boy slightly younger than Virginia Anne. Even though it was just a few days, we really enjoyed ourselves and learned a lot about how vacations have changed now that we have a little one.

Virginia Anne really enjoyed playing in the sand on the beach, but hated the noise from the ocean. Hurricane Dolly's impact could be seen even where we were as the waves were very loud and got bigger each day. Jellyfish were all over the place so we barely touched the water. The pool on the other hand was wonderful. Most of our time was spent there and Virginia Anne protested every time we pulled her out of the water. Next summer's goal - swim lessons!

The Zoo

We went to the Nashville Zoo last week for the very first time and while Virginia Anne loved seeing the animals, I think Melanie definitely had more fun. Neither of them could stop talking about it for days!

We saw elephants, giraffes, gibbons, alligators, leopards, zebras, and so many other animals. It was definitely a trip worth the drive and the money. Nashville has a carousel, jungle gym, petting zoo, and tons of other things to do for only $13 per adult (VA was free). Needless to say, we'll be going again soon!