Melissa had a convention in Indianapolis for 4 days. She was representing Duke at a Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing Convention. They put her up in a fancy-pants hotel; Melissa asked me to meet her out there and take care of Hannah while she worked the convention. Yahoo for me!! We both flew in on Halloween and met at the airport. Hannah was dressed head to toe in her "Dorothy" costume. She recognized me when I first saw her -- and my heart melted.
Is she the cutest Dorothy you have ever seen? Melissa was stopped by EVERY one telling her how cute Little Dorothy was.
She even had a To To dog that she brought with her on her trip. I couldn't stop smiling or hugging her!
The outfit all started because Hannah had a pair of those gorgeous red shoes. (Linda, I know you are impressed....all because of a pair of shoes.....)
Every morning after Meliss went to her convention, Hannah and I went down to Starbucks and got some yogurt. Then, we'd sit and and eat it while people ooh'd and awww'd at her. When Hannah sees a cell phone, she has to have it. Pushing buttons, trying to make calls.
Oh, yeah, (I almost forgot) this is the reason we were in Indianapolis! Look at Melissa's poster! I can't tell you how proud we all of are of our Meliss. She's a genius. She has Hannah in one arm and writes a research paper with the other. And Duke is so impressed they send her to present her research at this huge convention. Wow. Hannah was proud of her Mom too.
Oh, yeah, (I almost forgot) this is the reason we were in Indianapolis! Look at Melissa's poster! I can't tell you how proud we all of are of our Meliss. She's a genius. She has Hannah in one arm and writes a research paper with the other. And Duke is so impressed they send her to present her research at this huge convention. Wow. Hannah was proud of her Mom too.
One morning when I was trying to get Hannah to take a nap -- I was rocking her and singing to her. She was drowsy and looked up at me and cupped my face with both her hands. Being a Grandma is the BEST!
We went for a walk and found this great canal that had ducks in it. We got cheerio's out to feed the ducks -- Hannah ate 'em. Maybe the ducks got a few.
That smile never came off my face the four days we were there.
On our second day -- Melissa's long-time friend, Beth, came up to stay with us for a couple of days. Her husband, Tom is going to University of Indiana getting his MBA. So, it was a blast shopping and hanging out with Beth and Ainsley. 
We went out to dinner to the Cheesecake Factory. I gave our waitress a big tip cuz there was silverware and crackers and yogurt bites all under the table. The girls were so cute and did great with the daylight savings time change. We ate great dinners and took cheesecake desserts to go. Melissa said that Hannah was alseep before we shut the door to the car. The best part was going back to the hotel, putting the girls in their cribs to sleep and sitting out in the hallway with the door cracked open while we ate our cheesecake and talked about every subject we could think of. Thanks Beth and Meliss for making it so much fun for me.
Ainsley is a DOLL. She's 18 months old and the sweetest and calmest little girl ever. She knows how to "sign" alot of words. But, the cutest thing about her is when she wants to talk to her Mom or get her attention... or when she gets nervous about something ---- she says over and over "Mom .... Mom ....Mom....".
We shopped and we shopped. Melissa and I went shopping the first night we were there and then went to a wonderful steak dinner at St. Elmo's. (James, you would have LOVED it). We had mac and cheese topped with crab and a chocolate cake dessert that melted in our mouths.
Hannah loves her sippy cup. We had to make sure she stayed hydrated with all the shopping we were doing! We found a few outfits for her and a pair of crocs too.
Meliss and Beth dressed up the girls is matching dresses. They wouldn't stay still long enough to get a good picture. The are second cousins, you know. Beth married James cousin, Tom.
When Beth and I were out shopping with the girls -- Beth found a cute Hello kitty brush and hand mirror that I HAD to have for Hannah. I would say "Where's Hannah?" and then show her the mirror while she smiled and jibber-jabbered. (aka-talked)
We drove to Bloomington where Beth and Tom live. We saw where they lived (I loved your place!) and got a driving tour of the University. Melissa and I LOVED it. We went to a little town called "Nashville" and shopped on the streets where these little old houses had been turned into store and boutiques. It was awesome! Then, we got Tom and went to dinner at a Turkish restaurant. This is Hannah getting excited about eating at the Turkish restaurant. The food was great. We all got something different and we all tasted each others -- except for Tom's dish -- cuz he got something we thought would be a shiskabob type thing -- but is looked like ..... well, poop. He said it was good tho. :)
A couple of hours before we checked out -- Beth and I took a last ditch to the mall. I found this little Elmo play laptop and couldn't resist it. I ALMOST gave it to Ainsley cuz she loved it soooo much -- but once we got packed up she forgot about it. Mom.....Mom.....Mom....this is Ainsley asking Santa to bring her this computer for Christmas...... ;)
You can't go to Indianapolis without going to the Indy 500. We were passing by all these great cars and not really caring much about them. Really, tho -- it was a great museum. The fun part for me was taking a tour bus and DRIVING on the actual track. We all learned everything we needed to know about the Indy 500. I love this picture of Hannah and Ainsley for many reasons. Hannah is giving Ainsley just a little push with an innocent look on her face. AND, they are sitting next to a sign that reads...."Please Stay Off". 
Grandma and Hannah
There seems to be some kind of tradition to kiss the ground at the Indy 500. Beth and Meliss wanted to experience ALL of it -- so down they went. Look at Hannah trying to figure out what the heck Mom is doing.
Hannah talks ALL THE TIME. WE may not understand exactly what she's saying -- but SHE knows. She's busy, she's on the go. She smiles, she giggles, she gets excited and throws her arms up. But, above all, she talks and talks. I love it. So, I wanted to get a video on the camera showing how much she talks. I turned the video on.....She stopped talking. Yep, said a couple of coo's; and that was it. But she LOVES her yogurt!
We went for a walk and found this great canal that had ducks in it. We got cheerio's out to feed the ducks -- Hannah ate 'em. Maybe the ducks got a few.
That smile never came off my face the four days we were there.
On our second day -- Melissa's long-time friend, Beth, came up to stay with us for a couple of days. Her husband, Tom is going to University of Indiana getting his MBA. So, it was a blast shopping and hanging out with Beth and Ainsley. 
We went out to dinner to the Cheesecake Factory. I gave our waitress a big tip cuz there was silverware and crackers and yogurt bites all under the table. The girls were so cute and did great with the daylight savings time change. We ate great dinners and took cheesecake desserts to go. Melissa said that Hannah was alseep before we shut the door to the car. The best part was going back to the hotel, putting the girls in their cribs to sleep and sitting out in the hallway with the door cracked open while we ate our cheesecake and talked about every subject we could think of. Thanks Beth and Meliss for making it so much fun for me.
Ainsley is a DOLL. She's 18 months old and the sweetest and calmest little girl ever. She knows how to "sign" alot of words. But, the cutest thing about her is when she wants to talk to her Mom or get her attention... or when she gets nervous about something ---- she says over and over "Mom .... Mom ....Mom....".
We shopped and we shopped. Melissa and I went shopping the first night we were there and then went to a wonderful steak dinner at St. Elmo's. (James, you would have LOVED it). We had mac and cheese topped with crab and a chocolate cake dessert that melted in our mouths.
Hannah loves her sippy cup. We had to make sure she stayed hydrated with all the shopping we were doing! We found a few outfits for her and a pair of crocs too.
Meliss and Beth dressed up the girls is matching dresses. They wouldn't stay still long enough to get a good picture. The are second cousins, you know. Beth married James cousin, Tom.
When Beth and I were out shopping with the girls -- Beth found a cute Hello kitty brush and hand mirror that I HAD to have for Hannah. I would say "Where's Hannah?" and then show her the mirror while she smiled and jibber-jabbered. (aka-talked)
We drove to Bloomington where Beth and Tom live. We saw where they lived (I loved your place!) and got a driving tour of the University. Melissa and I LOVED it. We went to a little town called "Nashville" and shopped on the streets where these little old houses had been turned into store and boutiques. It was awesome! Then, we got Tom and went to dinner at a Turkish restaurant. This is Hannah getting excited about eating at the Turkish restaurant. The food was great. We all got something different and we all tasted each others -- except for Tom's dish -- cuz he got something we thought would be a shiskabob type thing -- but is looked like ..... well, poop. He said it was good tho. :)
A couple of hours before we checked out -- Beth and I took a last ditch to the mall. I found this little Elmo play laptop and couldn't resist it. I ALMOST gave it to Ainsley cuz she loved it soooo much -- but once we got packed up she forgot about it. Mom.....Mom.....Mom....this is Ainsley asking Santa to bring her this computer for Christmas...... ;)
You can't go to Indianapolis without going to the Indy 500. We were passing by all these great cars and not really caring much about them. Really, tho -- it was a great museum. The fun part for me was taking a tour bus and DRIVING on the actual track. We all learned everything we needed to know about the Indy 500. I love this picture of Hannah and Ainsley for many reasons. Hannah is giving Ainsley just a little push with an innocent look on her face. AND, they are sitting next to a sign that reads...."Please Stay Off". 
Grandma and Hannah
There seems to be some kind of tradition to kiss the ground at the Indy 500. Beth and Meliss wanted to experience ALL of it -- so down they went. Look at Hannah trying to figure out what the heck Mom is doing.
Hannah talks ALL THE TIME. WE may not understand exactly what she's saying -- but SHE knows. She's busy, she's on the go. She smiles, she giggles, she gets excited and throws her arms up. But, above all, she talks and talks. I love it. So, I wanted to get a video on the camera showing how much she talks. I turned the video on.....She stopped talking. Yep, said a couple of coo's; and that was it. But she LOVES her yogurt!One last word on my trip. I can't tell you what it meant to me to hang out with Melissa and to see her as a Mom. I knew she'd be a good one. I knew she'd be patient and understanding. But seeing it, really seeing it -- is indescribable. One night I was sleeping in bed next to Meliss. Hannah's nose was plugged -- and I woke up to Melissa holding Hannah in bed and talking to her, calmly telling her it was o.k. and telling her she loved her. Priceless.
I've known Beth since she was in Junior High. To see BOTH of these Mom's take care of their kids. Cuddle them, teach them, talk to them, rock them, laugh at their actions....well it
is a blast. They are incredible. Mom's are the best. Mom's always make you feel that you are the best person in the world; that everything you do is perfect and wonderful. They keep your self-esteem up where it should be. They see you for the daughter of God that you are. My Mom was my best friend and we were close til the day she died with me by her side. These girls see how important it is to be a Mom. And I salute you both.
