Guess Who's 2!

I have a 2 year old...wow! That's so crazy to think about! People always say that time flies when you're having fun, but no one ever told me that time literally disappears when you're having fun raising a child! I can vividly remember seeing her for the first time 2 years ago, it seems like yesterday. I still remember her 1st birthday party like it was last week. How is it that all of a sudden she's 2?

I have enjoyed and loved every single moment so far, but I have to say that this is my absolute favorite stage/age so far. She's right in the middle of the terrible 2s and becoming her own little person, but I just love it! I love all the sass and personality she carries in that tiny little body of hers. I love that I can ask her questions and she actually answers! I love driving down the road and having a conversation with her or walking through a store and talking! It's awesome! She's such a bundle of energy, she literally goes and goes until she just crashes! If we didn't tell her it was bedtime, I'm pretty sure she'd dance and sing and play all night long!

We had a really great BIRTHday celebration all day! When I went to get her out of bed this morning, I walked in singing "Happy Birthday". She really loved that and just grinned! She's been all about singing "Happy Day" and blowing out the candles for the past month. We had yummy cinammon rolls for breakfast (and sang Happy Day again!) and watched cartoons. She got to take a long bubble bath and brush her teeth - her 2 favorite things! We drove over to meet Jamey for lunch. We got there a little early so we stopped at Walmart and she got to pick out a toy. She chose a Sleepy Time Dora doll. She was crazy about Dora's hair! We picked Jamey up then and went to eat at McDonalds. She fought sleep the whole way home! We took a nice long nap together and when we woke up, Jamey was on his way home! The 3 of us went to Chuck E. Cheese. MG got a special sticker and free tokens because it was her bday! She loved some Chuck E. Cheese! She spent all but 2 tokens (we had 22) riding the Merry Go Round and Barney! We left CEC and got some dinner at Shorty Smalls. She was in rare form at dinner. She was climbing us like a little monkey and dancing in the booth. But she was happy! We walked down to Build A Bear next. She'd never been before - we'd been saving it for her 2nd bday! She looked at all the animals and finally picked a really soft dog. She got to step on the peddle and watch him get stuffed and even kissed a heart and put inside. Then we gave him a bath, made him a birth certificate and picked him out a "Happy Birthday" shirt! We stopped off at the cookie place to pick up the cake for her party and got her a cookie. She was worn out by that time! Jamey carried her to the car! She opened her presents from us when we got home. She's so into opening presents, I hate that she won't get another chance for a whole year! After that she pretty much crashed! We rocked and sang (my very favorite part of every day!) and then she was out. She had a big day and we had to much fun! There is nothing better than seeing her laugh and smile! I love that she's such a happy girl. She's full of life and has so much fun - I hope she's always that way!

So...now that you're 2 Molly Grace, this is what you're up to:
*You love Barney, Dora and Minnie Mouse. One of those characters is always on our tv! You'll ask for them randomly through the day ("Baw" = Barney, "Door" = Dora, "Minnie" you can say perfectly).

*You are really into playing right now. You love your dollhouse and all the people. You also love to cook in your kitchen and serve us tea...lots and lots of tea!

*You are crazy crazy crazy about your baby doll. You've had it for over a year now. I bought it forever ago at Walgreens when you had a terrible ear infection. It was just a cheap little doll that I hoped would make you feel better! I had no idea you would become so attached to her. Her pink outfit it now dingy and gray! She has black smudges on her head and feet. Her head is pretty close to falling off and her stuffing has no fluff left in it! That doll has been loved like crazy. She HAS to go to bed with you every night and you love to wrap her up and carry her around. For Christmas you got a high-chair and carrier and you love to feed her and put her down to sleep! You'll kiss her and pat her - you're a good little mommy!

*You love "Blay-ley" (blankey). Blay-ley has to go just about everywhere that baby goes and it's starting to show it's wear, too! My favorite part about Blay-ley is that it's my blankie that Grandma made me when I was a baby! I carried it around for years and now you do, too! It's so special! Blay-ley is the only cover you'll let us put on you at night. We have to wait until you're asleep and come in and cover you with more!

*You're very much a little "mother". You like to take care of everyone and tell everyone what to do! You love to let Cooper and Bandit in and out - even when they don't want to! You love to feed them, and help them eat! You really love to tell them "NO!"

*You take your little stool everywhere and love to help. You help me put clothes in the washer and dryer. You like to wipe things with a towel and wash dishes. You love to stir when I cook. I love having a little helper! You also love to turn the lights off and on while standing on your stool - that drives me nuts! But it makes you so happy!

*You can say just about anything you want to and repeat everything! I'm pretty sure we have years of speech ahead of us, but I just love the way you say things! I've become very fluent in your language! My favorite is "nuh-yew mama" (love you mama) and "nigh-nigh mama". You sound so sweet! I want to bottle up your little voice and keep it forever!

*You are really into calling people by their names and talking about people. Several times a day you'll ask where someone is or name off everyone.
Jah = Josh
Cay-wuh = Caleb
Gyu-an = Granny
Pah = Pap
Mamie = Aunt Amy
Boower = Cooper
Mamer = Amber

*You're still a pretty good eater, but have gotten pickier. You love fruit, it's your favorite! Your most recent favorite is chocolate covered raisins. You think it's impossible to ride in the car without them!

*You know all your animal sounds - they're so cute!! My favorite is your lion sound "roar"...you say it so calmly!

*You can count to 6 on your own and to 10 with a little help. You keep telling us you're 3!

*You can sing just about any song. We love to sing "Jesus Loves Me" at night. You'll make your hands like a Bible when we get to that word! It's too sweet. Of course you love the Barney song. You have to have a hug and kiss when the song says!

*You're all about telling us to "twy it mama/daddy". Everything you do, you want us to "twy it"!

*You love telling us to cry. You'll leave my lap and go sit with Daddy and say "cwy mama, cwy"! If I say I like a toy, you'll take it and say "cwy mama, cwy"! It's so funny! Your Daddy loves it, he hopes you keep that up and make lots of little boys cry!

*You love to dance and play instruments. The Wii "Just Dance" game is your favorite! You'll go get the remote and say "das, mama?"!

*You love to be held - which I love! "Ho me, mama/daddy" is a very common phrase around our house! I love how lovey you are. You'll put your arms around us and lay your head on our shoulders - it's perfect!

*You go to bed around 8pm and sleep until 8am when you can, but I have to wake you up at 6:45 on school days.

*You go to Mother's Day Out 2 days a week and stay with Granny the rest of the time. You have a sweet little BFF who stays with you at Grannys. You and Heath are crazy about each other. You talk about him a lot at home!

*You wear size 4 diapers
*You wear size 2T clothes
*Size 6 shoes
We'll know your height and weight after your appt. Monday. I can't wait to see how you've grown! I know you're a chunk to carry through Walmart!

I know I'm forgetting something, even though this is so long. I just want to remember every little thing about you right now! I never want to forget how sweet and sassy you are at 2!

One thing is for sure, we have never been happier than we are right now! The day I found out I was finally pregnant, I knew that I would love you, but I had no idea how deeply that love would run! You are my heart and I will always love you, little Princess!

A Very Merry Christmas

I love Christmas - it's my very favorite time of year. I love all the shopping, wrapping, decorating, cooking, giving and visiting. There is nothing that makes me happier! I feel so blessed this Christmas! We had a really great 2 days of celebrating!

We've decided that Christmas Eve Day will always be our little family's Christmas. We (well, Molly Grace) spent all day opening a gift then playing with it for awhile, then opening another. I love doing it that way. There's nothing rushed and we get to watch her enjoy each and every thing we get her! My favorite part is just being home with Jamey and MG and spending the day together. That's my favorite gift of all!

Christmas Eve was spent at my parents' house. MG was so fun this year. She really loved handing out presents. That was her favorite part, I think. She didn't even want to open hers at first because she wanted to keep giving them out! I hope my sweet girl is always so giving! I hope she always finds the joy in giving to others! We all ate too much, laughed a lot, and just enjoyed being together. MG got a lot of fun goodies - a Little People Zoo set, a keyboard, a karaoke machine, and a doctor kit. She was really into the microphone on her karaoke machine!

Christmas morning MG got to see what Santa brought - he was good to her this year! She got a new (bigger) play kitchen, dishes, a tea set, a doll bed, doll high chair, doll carrier, pieces to her dollhouse, a minnie mouse suitcase, some movies and I don't even know what else! I carried her out of the bedroom she just stared! I set her down and she grabbed my hand and said "c'mon Mama!". She cooked and served us tea all morning!

After lunch, we drove up to see Jamey's family. We got to eat some more good food, visit with some more awesome family and watch MG play with her other cousins. We had a really great time! There was a Tacky Christmas Sweater competition this year! I made Jamey's shirt myself and he tied for winner! Yay! There was some good competition! Ha! MG racked up again with the toys! I thought we were going to need a UHaul just to get home! Her aunt Wendy got her a set of Minnie Mouse pots and pans and Minnie jammies! We looked at the same pots and pans set back in November and didn't get them. I've been wishing I had! I think I was just as excited as MG when she opened them! Her and Eli had a really good time serving us all tea! She also got a pink race car set, a doll, some movies, a Minnie backpack and some other goodies!

We are finally back home, with nowhere to be and it feels great! MG and Jamey are both taking a much-needed nap and I get to sit here wondering where I'm going to put all of these toys! Ha! I think I'm going to do like we did last year and put half of them up to pull out throughout the year.

We had a truly happy and blessed Christmas. Seeing the smile on my baby's face and hearing her laughter was greater than any gift! She's so precious and I'm so thankful for her.

It's so easy to get caught up in everything that Christmas has become. But I always stop and think about the real reason behind our celebration. I'm so thankful that God sent his only son to be born on Christmas. I'm so thankful for Mary and Joseph and the sacrifices they made to bring baby Jesus into the world. I thought giving birth in a hospital was bad, I can only imagine being in a cold manger! What an amazing woman!

It's FINALLY Christmas Break!

I get 2 whole weeks home with my baby girl! I am thrilled! She's so much fun right now and I feel like I'm missing so much when I'm at work. I plan to soak up and savor all I can during the next 14 days! Ha!

We had a really good day today. MG actually slept later than I did! Crazy! I woke up at 6:30 and she slept til 8:00! It was so nice to lay in bed and watch tv. I even got to take a long shower by myself before she woke up! Yay!

We did some last minute running around with my mom and sister. My child was an angel - minus the short-lived meltdown at Lifeway! At that point I was almost ready for a meltdown, though, so it was ok!

We took a long, cuddly nap together. She was so snuggly and sweet - I miss napping with her. I wish I could do it every single day!

She napped late and Jamey worked late, so it worked out good for her to stay up a little later...which turned into a LOT later! She finally went to sleep around 10pm after 2 rounds of rocking! I'm OK with that, though, I love rocking her!

13 more days of fun...I can't wait!!

Molly-isms

Little Miss Personality has become Little Miss Chatterbox since her tubes/adenoids fix last week! She keeps her daddy and me laughing all the time - even when we are trying to get on to her! She's just too cute for her own good!

Her newest phrase this week - and answer to everything - is "no ma'am, saw-wee (sorry)"! She says this at least 50 times a day! This morning I sneezed and said "bless me"...her response was "no ma'am, saw-wee"!

She's become a little bossy these days. All day and night it's "sit mama...pway mama...dance mama...read mama..."! She definitely knows what she wants and when she wants it!

I love MG's version of oh no!...it's extremely dramatic and drawn out - true MG-fashion! I sprinkled some baking soda on our rug today to freshen it before vacuuming. She saw the mess, threw her hands up then down and said "oooooh-wah nooooo-wah!"

I really love that she knows exactly when to use what phrase!

She's obsessed with "na-nuh na-nuh na-nuh" (bananas)! She would eat them all day if we'd let her!

She loves to pull up a chair and help me when I'm cooking. She'll try her best to drag the chair over herself while saying "chay mama".

MG labels everything she does now. I blame/thank Kindermusik for that! "walk" "stir" "pat" "clap" "sing" "fly"

My personal favorite is "nigh-nigh mama, yuh yoo". There have never been sweeter words spoken!

A Little Surgery and a Little Snow

MG had to be at the surgery center this am at 6:30. She was so sleepy when we rolled her out of bed at 5:45! She was a really good sport, though. Luckily they had Mickey Mouse Clubhouse playing in the waiting room so she camped out in her daddy's lap while we waited. Once they called us back, they gave her some "Princess Juice" and we changed her into a gown. Within 2 minutes she was a little loopy. Within 5 minutes she was giggling like a drunk woman and within 10 minutes she was a rag doll in my lap! Jamey and I were laughing so hard we were crying! She kept just giggling her little head off! Luckily when they came for her she was completely out of it and went with the nurse easily. If it hadn't been for the Princess Juice, the hand-off could have been a nightmare!

The procedure took about 30 minutes. The dr. called us back and said everything went fine. About 30 minutes later we got to go back into a room and they brought her in. She saw us walking down the hall and started screaming "mama" and crying. It was horrible! When they got in the room, they handed her right to me, but she still didn't settle down. She wanted nothing more than to pull her IV out of her hand - it was really pissing her off! They gave her some juice and she drank it up. We had to wait in that room another 30 minutes or so then we got to take her home.

She's been really good. She came home and layed around then we all took a 3 hour nap! She wanted to go lay in our bed and wanted us both in there, too! It was nice! She didn't budge during the whole 3 hours. She never even rolled over!

Since she woke up, she's been drinking a lot and even ate some peaches and a roll. She's really cranky and doesn't know what she wants (except Barney!), but seems to feel OK. She's pulling at her ears a little bit, but she did that last time, too.

On another note, it started snowing tonight! It's been cold and rainy all day, but tonight it's turned to snow. I had no idea until I saw everyone's posts on Facebook! Ha! We bundled MG up and stepped on the porch with her and her first words were "wow...uh-oh!" She kept saying "noh-ing, noh-ing"!

The first snow of the year! Yay!

Happy Thanksgiving

Once again, I'm overwhelmed with thankfulness for all the blessings I've been given. My life is certainly not perfect, but I am so fortunate.

We spent Thanksgiving this year at my Aunt's house. It's the first Thanksgiving (and first holiday) since my cousin passed away. We thought it might help ease the hurt and emptiness if we filled my aunt's house up! It was a really nice day. Molly Grace had a really good time playing with her cousins, Hadley and Chad. She got to feed a hee-haw, which I'm pretty sure was the highlight of her day! That and going up and down the stairs with Chad! She was such a good girl. Everytime I looked at her, I was so thankful for her in my life. I can't imagine the heartache my aunt feels...I hope I never know. The house was definitely missing Wende's strong personality and loud laughter, but she was there in spirit, for sure!

Jamey went home to hunt and eat with his family. I'm so thankful that we are both close to our families. We are so blessed to have such close ties and great support on both sides. We definitely missed him and MG was so proud when we walked in the door! She ran to him with open arms - at that moment I was overwhelmed with thanksgiving! I am so thankful for my husband who loves me for better or worse - he took that vow seriously and I am grateful! I am so thankful that he is a loving, protective, playful, involved daddy to our daughter. I am so thankful that I have a healthy, vibrant, strong, smart daughter. I'm thankful for the memories we've created and the moments that have taken my breath away. I'm thankful for the laughter and love that fills my home. We are truly blessed.

I am thankful that I have a job that I love and that I get to go to that job everyday without worrying about my little girl because she is being loved on by her grandparents every day!

I'm thankful, most of all, for my Lord and Savior. I'm thankful that He thought I was worthy of dying on the cross to save. I'm thankful that He loves me when I'm not loveable and forgives me for the unforgiveable.

I'm truly blessed...

Little Miss Personality

I love how MG's personality has just blossomed. She's not a baby at all - she's a little person! I'm not sure how much I love that just yet! I'm still wondering where my teeny preemie went!

MG is such a little priss these days! She knows what she wants and she's going to do it whether we like it or not! Time out, spanking (yes, I actually gave in and gave it a shot!), talking sternly...nothing phases her! I can't wait to see her as a 13 year old...then a 16 year old! Lord help us!

She's definitely a talker. She loves to perform and be the center of attention...at home! In public it's a totally different MG. She's shy and doesn't like strangers to talk to her, which is fine with me! I do wish that other people would get to see her awesome, funny side sometimes, though!

I can't believe how talkative she is these days - she talks non-stop and can say anything. She repeats everything, too! She loves to come get J or me wherever we are and lead us to the carpet in the living room. She'll point and say "sit mama" or "pway mama?".

Ready for the Potty?

I'm in no hurry to potty train...the way I see it, she will do it when she's ready. I'm starting to think she may be ready even if I'm not, though! She's started showing an interest in sitting on the potty and loves throwing TP in. That's really been it, though, until today. We were in the middle of Big Lots and she stopped, grabbed her diaper and said "uh-oh, potty". Of course she said it as loud as she possibly could! Jamey and I just looked at each other in shock! I asked her if she pottied in her diaper and she simply said "yes"!

I'm thinking maybe we'll give it a go over Christmas break. No pressure, no rush, just see how it goes! I sure would LOVE to say goodbye to diapers!

Ear Trouble

...again/still! We went back today for MG's 2 week ear check. It's been 4 or 5 weeks since she first got the double ear infection. She's done 7 days of Amoxicillin, 10 days of drops and 10 days of Suprax. When our ped looked in her ears, she gasped! I knew it wasn't good. She said they look worse today than they did 2 weeks ago before the antibiotic! 1 ear looked waaay worse than the other. 1 ear had a little hole in the eardrum that looked like it had burst a little and was draining. Great! So...we came home with another antibiotic and ear drops and are waiting for an appt with the ENT. She said she's really concerned about her hearing at this point. SO not what I was wanting to hear today! My poor baby, I just can't stand it for her! I know how bad those ear infections hurt and I just hate it for her. It sure does explain a lot about how she's been acting, though!

Merry Christmas, MG, you're probably getting a 2nd set of tubes from Santa this year!

The Happiest Halloween Ever!

We had such a great night Trick or Treating with Molly Grace! I had her a special Minnie Mouse outfit made, made her ears myself and couldn't wait...but she had other plans! She refused to wear either of her Minnie outfits and wanted to dress in her "Ho Ho" outfit which is a white snowman dress! So...last minute change and she was Mrs. Frosty! She looked adorable, of course!

We went with her cousins and Mamie to a local church's Trunk or Treat. I was a little bummed that the tradition of Trick or Treating house to house has kind of disappeared, but I really have to brag on the whole Trunk or Treat thing. They had their vehicles parked all up and down the church lot and it was so much fun walking 2 feet to the next car and watching Molly Grace ask for candy! She would go right up, hold her bucket out and say "here go...tri tree...tain yew...see yater...bye". Funniest, cutest thing ever!

22 Months Old

In 2 months I will have a 2 year old...wow! The last 2 years have flown by in a hurry. Sometimes it feels like we were just in NICU holding her tiny hand and somedays that feels like an eternity ago. Either way, our lives have changed dramatically and have never been better! Molly Grace has brought love, laughter and smiles to our lives!

So, what are you like as an almost 2 year old? Let's see...sassy, stubborn, strong-willed, smart, funny, silly, loveable, sweet, shy, loud, and amazing!

My mom told me the other day that she once went to a James Dobson conference and he said that the child who will stand up and tell you, the parent, "no!" is the same child who will stand up against peer pressure and say "no!". If that's the case, then we are in luck! Because you don't hesitate at all to tell us no any chance you get! I think it's your favorite word right now. Sometimes you're really polite about it and say "no ma'am", though!

You also love the word "mine". That just started last week, but you are really fond of pointing out to us what's yours! Last week, every chair in the doctor's waiting room was "mine"!

You counted to 5 yesterday all by yourself! We were shocked and amazed and oh so proud! We were trying to get you to come in the living room and you weren't listening so I said "I'm going to count to 3...1," You didn't even let me finish, you said "2...3...4...5"! We totally forgot you were in trouble and had a little celebration! We were so proud of you!

You love to sing your abcs. I can always tell what you're singing. You have the tune down, get a few letters right and end it with "know abc...sing...me"!

Your other favorite songs are "Mr. Sun", "Barney", "Happy and You Know It".

Your 2 favorite people in the world are Barney and Minnie Mouse! You ask for "Bawney" every night before bed. You sit in your daddy's lap drinking your milk and watching "Bawney". You won't go to bed without him! When it's time, you always blow Barney kisses and tell him goodnight!

You are talking up a storm, seriously! It's craziness! You are using 3 word phrases pretty often and it shocks me everytime! I'm just not used to having an actual conversation with you! The other night you said "hod me...mama...pweese"! You better believe I held you after that!

You love love love to talk on the phone - for real and pretend! Anything can be a phone for you and you have some really funny conversations. You always pick it up and say "yeyoh, yeah, sjkdljgisohdhig..."!

Other fun things you say:
No no Booper
Ba Back (right back)
Hee Haw (yee-haw)
Nigh Nigh Mama/Dadddy
shoes
chair (when you want to eat!)
ball
awww baby
I get
goh it (got it)
bi bi bi (bite, you know this one well!)

You can really say anything you want to, you just have to want to!

I'm pretty sure you hit the "terrible twos" at 20 months, but the closer we get to 2, the worse it gets! Luckily it only comes in moments and you're quickly back to your fun, loving self. But sometimes those moments seem like an eternity - especially when I'm alone with you in Walmart and you are screaming at the top of your lungs and kicking! You definitely know what you want and when you want it!

You love to eat, but you're kind of picky these days. You love apples and Nutra Grain Bars and would eat nothing else if we let you!

You sleep great at night. You go to bed with no trouble after being rocked for a few minutes (which is my favorite part of the day!). You have to be on your belly on the left side of the crib and you have to have baby on the other side facing you! It has to be just right each night!

You're still a finger sucker and want to have your hair in your fingers. You wanted my hair when you were little, but now you've started pulling yours out to suck on. The left side of your head is pretty much bald. I freaked out at first and worried over it, but then I let it go. It's your comfort thing, you'll grow out of it and you're still beautiful even with a comb-over! ha!

Happy Birthday to my sweet angel...the one I prayed for and hoped for for 5 long years! You have made our lives complete and we love you more and more each and every day!

Here We Go Again With the Ears...

Of all the things for me to pass on to my child, it had to be my crappy ears! Since she got her tubes last November, things have been awesome. No infections and barely a runny nose. But 3 weeks ago she started with the snotty, coughing, goopy eye stuff and we haven't been able to shake it. We took her to Urgent Care 2 10 days ago and she had an awful sinus infection and double ear infection. He couldn't even see her eardrum or tubes because it was so bad. I felt like Mother of the Year at that point! ha! We did 7 days of antibiotic and 10 days of drops and I assumed it was cleared up. Today we went back for a re-check and got the news I didn't want to hear! Both ears are still infected, the left way worse than the right. Both tubes have come out and are in the ear canal. So...$90 later we have the most expensive, strongest antibiotic she can have and an appt to go back in 2 weeks. We're almost definitely headed back to the ENT for a 2nd set of tubes, too. I hate that my poor kiddo has all the ear trouble I've had! She got a sucker and a sticker out of the trip, though, so she's a happy camper!

Talking Up a Storm

I can't believe how much MG has started talking all of a sudden again! She's starting to use phrases and it's freaking me out! Ha! Last night she said "mama pwease hole me"! We cheered and made such a fuss over her! She didn't know what was going on!

Life

Life has changed so much in the last 2 years...and I can't imagine anything better!

I don't get to sleep in on Saturdays anymore..but I get to be the first one to snuggle a smiling little girl who reaches for me and pats me back while I hold her!

I don't get to go out to dinner or just "out" very often anymore, but I get to rock a sleepy little one and hold her close before hearing "nigh nigh momma" and getting the sweetest kisses in the world.

I don't get to spend my money on myself very often ( but I do have everything I need/want!) but I do get to pick out sweet, girly dresses and bows like I always wanted!

I don't get to soak in a nice hot tub and read a good book after a long day, but I do get to splash and play with a soapy waterbug and read stories with a cuddle bug in my lap!

I can't jump in the truck and go wherever, whenever. But I do always have good company in the back seat and I get to hear lots of sweet songs and stories while we drive!

I haven't listened to "real" music in my truck for a year! But I get to see the smile on my sweet girl's face when Barney comes on the DVD player or we sing "Mr. Sun" together!

Vacations take days and weeks of planning/packing instead of last minute throwing together. But the memories are so much sweeter!

I wouldn't change a single thing about my days! My life is exactly what I hoped for.

Life at our House

I haven't written anything in awhile - there hasn't really been anything post-worthy going on! Just plain old 'life' happening!

We took MG to the fair a couple weeks ago. She definitely enjoyed it more this year! She played a couple games, fed some goats and rode 2 rides! She devoured a footlong corndog and a funnel cake on the way out!

Last weekend, my mom, MG and I went to my grandmas for the day/night. It was the first time MG and I had gone away without Jamey! He missed her like crazy! We had a great time, though. Neither one of us slept much so we were really happy to get home Sunday and take a nap!

Today I was putting MG down for her nap and she said "nite nite Doo-er" to Cooper! That's her first 3 word phrase all on her own! Then she said "nite nite Momma!" I was so excited! It was the sweetest thing ever.

We're still loving Kindermusik. She loves singing and dancing, but loves the hand stamps at the end the best! Tonight she even got a belly stamp!

Life is good at our house!

New Puppy!

We've been talking about getting a new puppy for MG. We'd decided to wait until Christmas or maybe even next summer so I'd have some time off to spend with it. Today one just kind of fell into our laps and it was perfect, so we just went with it!

Cooper is the newest member of our little family. A friend of mine from work just happened to be telling me about her neighbor who was looking for a home for her King Cavalier Spaniel because she was going through a divorce and couldn't keep it. I've always wanted a King Cavalier, but knew I could never afford one! As soon as I saw a picture of that cute little fellow, I knew he was mine!

We picked him up tonight and he is absolutely perfect! He's a year old and already potty trained which is so freakin' awesome!! MG loves him and calls him "Cew-er"! They have run and played chase all night! I have never heard her squeal and giggle so much! I love it!

Love You

MG will say "luh ewww" now and then when we say it first or tell her to say it, but never on her own...until tonight!!!

As I was putting her in bed, she looked at me and said "luh ewww"! My heart melted like it's never melted before! Wow! What a feeling!

Motor Mouth

When Jamey and I first started dating, I was painfully shy and didn't talk much. He always teases me now because he says he used to wish I'd talk more and now he wishes I'd shut up now and then! Ha! I think that's so funny because I worried about MG for the longest time because she wasn't talking...and now she won't shut up! It's great, I love it! I love hearing her little voice constantly. It's so sweet!

Her favorite word right now is "saw-weee". She says "saw-weee" at least 150 times a day, seriously! If she accidently hits us or for no reason at all, it's "saw-weee".

"Pweeeese" is another favorite right now and "tain-ewww" for thank you. The girl definitely has good manners! I love the "no ma'am"! I guess she hears that a lot!

"shoo-wee" is heard a lot from little Priss! If the tiniest speck of dirt or piece of grass gets on her hands, she freaks out! She runs to us, holding her hand out, saying "shoo-wee"!

MG has started singing so much lately. I absolutely love that! Anytime we sing Barney's "I love you...", she'll hug and kiss us then at the end she comes in with "luh me toooooooo"! She makes a fish face and shakes her head singing "toooooo"! It's so funny, we die laughing every single time!

Out of her Shell

Evidently it only took MG 1 week of Kindermusik to get the hang of things and come out of her shell! Tonight she was all over the place and we couldn't make her sit with us...for any part of it! She had the best time jumping, dancing, running and singing! When it was time for hand stamps at the end she ran up on her own and stood with her hand out waiting! I was such a proud momma at that moment!

The smell of memories

It's always amazed me how a certain smell can trigger such a strong memory.  Tonight I put on some lotion before bed.  The lotion I chose was the same lotion I took with me to Memphis when my tiny little girl was in NICU.  I used it everyday because my hands were so chapped from scrubbing up 4 or 5 times a day.  As soon as I put it on tonight I immediately felt an overwhelming urge to break down in tears.  I hadn't thought too much about our birth adventure in awhile, but tonight, with every breath I take in, I can't help but remember.  I can remember and smile now, though!  That was just a short season of our lives.  The wonderful beauty of the past 20 months has been worth every tear that was shed! 

Hair Cut

Molly Grace (finally) got her first hair cut! She was sporting the baby mullet and of course it looked adorable on her, but it was time for a trim! I decided to trim it myself at home. I knew there was no way she would sit still in a strange place long enough for a stranger to cut it! So we camped out in the living room floor with Barney playing on the tv and her toys in front of her and I trimmed it up. I ended up taking about 1 1/2 inches off the length. It looks so cute now! It looks so thick and bouncy!

Kindermusik Kid

Tonight was our first Kindermusik class. Tuesday's are also MG's Mother's Day Out day and the Kindermusik didn't start until 6:15, so I wasn't sure how all that was going to pan out, but...it was great! She had a blast (once she realized I wasn't leaving her there!).

She was a little reserved at first and wouldn't leave my lap, but then she got really into it! She never ventured very far from me, but she participated the whole time! She was so into the singing, movements and story! It's a 14 week class so I can't wait to see how much she grows! I'm hoping it will help her socialization skills. I worry a little about her since she stays with my mom MWF and goes to MDO (in my mom's class - where there's only 4 other kids) the other 2 days. I'm hoping this will help a little with her seperation anxiety, too!

Playing Catch-Up

Nothing really spectacular has happened at our house the past couple of weeks! I'm back at work and MG's back to her Granny's/Mother's Day Out during the week. We're both doing great! I'm loving first grade, but am always happy to get home to my girl!

Molly Grace did get to move up to the next room at MDO. Her Granny moved up with her! Ha! She gets to eat at a table and sleep on a mat for nap! Mom said she does great with both.

We bought her the coolest Little Tikes playground. It has 2 slides, a tunnel, a playhouse and is just the coolest thing ever! She loves it! We also got her a battery-powered Dora 4wheeler. It was supposed to be for Christmas, but we caved! She hated it at first and freaked out, but she got the hang of it and now we have to peel her off it kicking and screaming!

She's such a little talker these days. She can/will say anything you say or ask her to say. She says a lot on her own now, too. She will say "hep" (Help) or "peeez" if she needs something. We still get "no" and "no way" a lot but she's also started saying "yea". She'll beg for Barney "baw" and even go get the pink Wii remote for us so we can turn on Netflix!

Bedtime is so easy. Jamey and I are amazed and grateful every single night! She asks for her milk, sits with Jamey and watches "Baw". She tells Barney goodnight, points to her pink chair in her bedroom and we rock for a minute. When she's ready, she points to her bed, tells me night night and lays down! We don't hear from her until morning! We're so blessed!

No Way

Molly Grace has been a pro at telling us "no" for awhile, but now she's started with "no way" when she really means business! It's too funny!

Funny Girl

MG was in her bedroom playing while I was in the living room. All of a sudden I hear things falling - sounds just like someone pulling all the clothes off the shelf...again! ha!

So I say: "Molly Grace, what are you doing? Am I going to be mad if I come in there?".

I hear a very innocent and muffled "yeah".

I ask again, "I am?". Just to see what she'd say.

And again, "yeah".

Me: "Do I need to come in there?".

MG: "No"!

I couldn't stop lauging!!

Little Mommy

My sweet little girl has turned into a little mommy lately! She's had a thing for baby dolls for awhile, but just recently she's started wanting one special baby. She will hold her and pat her. She pushes her in her stroller and feeds her. At night I have to lay baby down on the pillow right next to MG! And I have to make sure I cover them both! MG will reach over and pat baby's back while I pat hers! It absolutely melts my heart! There is nothing sweeter - except when she holds her baby, pats her back while rocking and says "awwww bay-bay". I swear, the sweetness of that phrase and the adorable southern way she says it makes my heart explode! I love it. It's my very favorite thing she's ever said or done! My very favorite is when she wraps her arms around me, pats my back and says "awww bay-bay"! I love that little girl so stinkin' much!

Hi Ho! Hi Ho! It's Back to Work I Go!

Day 1 of PD week down, 3 more to go! Then only 126ish days until Summer Break again! Ha! I was really surprised at how smoothly this morning went. I got up and got ready, MG woke up on her own (thank you, Lord! I hate having to wake her up!). She drank her milk in my bed while I dried my hair. I got a little cuddle time in - because there was no way I could resist the "momma...momma..." and outstretched arms! Then we were on our way. I LOVE that I get to take her to my mom's house and leave her with them instead of a daycare. I just can't say enough how blessed I am! She didn't cry when I left, I had to ask her to come back and kiss me bye! That makes it so easy to go back to work!

We both had good days. She played with her cousins and BFF, threw a couple fits, took a good nap and was ready to come home. I sat through some meetings, ate lunch with good friends/coworkers, sat through more meetings, worked in my room and was ready to come home!

Fingers crossed tomorrow morning goes just as smooth!

"Ooooh Sit!"

Yep...that's the new phrase being repeated in our house (and in Walmart, the mall, and anywhere else my little kiddo goes!) Ha! I'm not sure where she even picked that up. I'm guilty of saying $hit every now and then, but I never say it as "Oh $hit!". It's so stinkin' cute, though. She says in at the perfect times. Tonight her ball rolled under the couch and she couldn't reach it. She was on her belly stretched as far as she could saying "ooooh sit...ooooh sit"! This afternoon she was looking for Bandit and couldn't find him. She stopped, looked around and said "ooooh sit!".

A Dentists' Dream

MG and I took a trip to Big Lots today to look for decorations for my classroom. She's been in the weirest, whiniest, clingiest mood the past 2 days so I wasn't sure how it would go! She did pretty good at first, then got really fussy. She had a great time going up and down the toy aisles, but never asked for anything! She's so great, she'll pick something up, play with it or love on it then put it back and tell it bye! How great is that?! She found a package of toothbrushes, though, and went crazy! Holding the package wasn't enough, either. We had to open them and get one out - she really wanted all 3 out, but settled for one. They just happened to be Care Bear brushes so we got her the "Grumpy Bear" one out! She brushed her teeth all the way through Big Lots, in the truck on the way to Walmart, all the way through Walmart and the whole drive home!

RIP Sophie

Today we said goodbye to a good friend, our "baby" and a member of our family. I really hate goodbyes. Sophie hasn't been herself for awhile now. Turns out she has heart worms really bad. At this point there was nothing we could do for her except let her go in peace. She couldn't run and play like she wanted anymore without hacking and wheezing and nearly passing out. She wasn't able to lead the life she wanted so we let her go. I like to believe she's in Heaven. Maybe a special Dog Heaven!

I can't say enough about Sophie. She got me through some very tough times - the hardest year of my life, actually. When we weren't able to get pregnant and I was so unhappy and defeated, Sophie came along and filled a little bit of that emptiness. She needed me and I needed her. We rescued her from the shelter, nursed her through Parvo, and watched in amazement as the small lapdog we thought we adopted grew into an 80 lb ox! Ha! She never quit thinking she was a lapdog, though.

Sophie was such a good playmate for MG. Even though she was huge and tended to be wild and jump, she was always so gentle with MG - like she knew. She never jumped on her, but was always so excited to see her! She loved to give MG big slobbery kisses! MG loved her, too. I hope she's still young enough that she won't remember. It's going to break my heart the first time she goes to the back door and asks for "Suh-wee".

ABC 123

We've been working hard on counting, but it's not going so great! But it's super cute! I try to get her to repeat the numbers, but it's just not happening. Here's how it goes:
Me: 1
MG: teewwww
Me: 3
MG: Gooooo!

The ABCs aren't going much better:
Me: A
MG: teewww
Me: B
MG: Goooo!

Although today we did get all the way to K with her repeating after me! She lost interest after that!

Fat Lip

Yesterday Molly Grace's accident of the day was a knot on her forhead where she tripped on the blankie and hit the wood floor...

Today's accident of the day was falling into the open dishwasher and busting her lip. I didn't see her fall and her back was to me when I turned around so I didn't think it was serious. When she turned around, though, blood was running down her chin and she was screaming. I felt so bad for her. She got lots of extra loving after that!

Manners

Molly Grace needs a lesson in manners! Ha! This was our conversation this morning:

Me: Would you like some milk?
MG: GO!
Me: Want mama to make you some mmmmilk? Say mmmmilk..
MG: GO! GO!
Me: Can you say mmmmilk?
MG: GO! GO GO GO!

And a little later...
Me: Molly Grace, no! We don't hit!
MG: (while wagging her finger at me) No! No No No!

The Kinders in Concert

Molly Grace went to her very first concert today! We've been going to the weekly library shows/events at the mall all summer. There has been an african drummer, a ventriloquist, a couple of dramatic storytellers and lots of fun stuff. She's always sat through them and even paid a little bit of attention. But today's end of the summer concert was, by far, the best for her! She had an amazing time. Her smiles and squeals melted my heart!

We got to sit in the very front row right in front of the stage. From the beginning she did not want to sit still! When she did sit, it was in Caleb's lap! She danced all over that floor. She clapped when they clapped, yelled "yay" when the songs were over, jumped when they said jump, meowed like a cat and shook her booty! She even got a kiss from a ghecko (not a real one!), a hug from a teddy bear, and got to hit a beach ball.

My little music lover/dancer had a great time! I hope she always appreciates music and dance so much! I do hope she outgrows the habit of lifting her shirt up in front of the stage, though! We've got a little talking to do about that! Ha!

First Bunkin' Party

Molly Grace (who I knew would be fine!) and her daddy and I (I was a little worried about her daddy!) survived her very first sleepover! We haven't spent a night away from her since her last night in NICU 18 months ago!

Our Sweet Molly Grace

I love following "Kelly's Korner" blog and this week she's doing a Show Us Your Life link-up about how people announced their pregnancies. I don't link up often, but I like this story!

During 3 years of trying to conceive, I had lots of time to plan how I wanted to tell Jamey when the time came! I had so many fun ideas and sweet ideas, I just couldn't wait! In 2008, I found a cute tshirt that said "World's Greatest Dad" in camo. I bought it because it was so perfect and I just knew we'd need it. Month after month, we didn't need it so I shoved it in the back of my dresser - still hopeful that one day I would get to pull it out! I honestly can't even remember the other sweet ideas I had, this one sticks out in my mind the most! Anyway, after months and years of TTC and different procedures and pills, the excitement and surprise just kind of went out of it. We were "trying" and planning every month so when it did happen it's not like it would be a surprise! So I quit thinking about it too much.

In June of 2009, I woke up and decided to take a test. I don't even know what made me want to take it. I didn't dream that I was actually pregnant - we hadn't even "tried" or taken our special medicine the month before. I had 1 PT left and I took it. I have to add in here that we had company over. Everyone else was already awake and laying hardwood floor in my living room while I was in the bathroom peeing on a stick! I was absolutely shocked when the 2nd line appeared. Actually, "shock" doesn't even begin to describe what I felt. I was absolutely frozen. I have no idea how long I stood there in my bathroom holding that stick. After what seemed like an eternity, Jamey walked in the bathroom. Every single fun, sweet and cute idea I had planned flew out the window. All I could do was hand him the stick - I couldn't even say anything! He looked at me and I shook my head yes. He said "well holy shit". From there I don't even remember what went on. Somewhere in there I snuck off to the drugstore and bought some more tests and took at least 6 more just so we could see them turn positive! After 3 years (36 months) of negatives, we just needed to see those positives!

So that's how I told Jamey he was going to be a daddy! Hopefully if there's a next time, I will get to pull out some of my fun plans...

We told our families on Father's Day weekend. My dad got a tshirt that listed my nephews names then said "#3...coming soon". My in-laws got a wrapped picture of the ultrasound.

We were so excited then and we didn't even know how amazing our little girl was going to be!

Big Talk

I don't know what happened, but it seems like overnight Molly Grace has started talking up a storm - both on her own and repeating anything we ask her to. I was so worried for so long that she was behind, but I keep forgetting to allow for her adjusted age. She seems to have hit this milestone according to that.

We sat in her room and for the longest time she'd let me say a word and repeat it right after! Jamey got her sweet little voice recorded on his phone and it's precious! She's really starting to put 2 words together more often. I love it!

suh-ur-ruh

Yep...that's how Molly Grace says "sorry"! It's so funny. She says it in the sweetest voice, but it definitely is not a sincere sorry! Ha!

Kindermusik Love

I've been debating since before summer started whether or not I should take MG to Kindermusik classes. It looked so fun, but I wasn't sure if she'd like it. She tends to withdraw in crowds so I wasn't sure she'd even participate. Yesterday, one of MG's sweet little friends had her 2nd bday party at Kindermusik. I was so excited to get to try it out! It's official - we will be doing Kindermusik in the fall! MG had a blast. She participated the whole time! She didn't have a single fit, even when she had to put the props/instruments away before she was ready. Everytime a song was over she'd just clap! She had the best time! Now I can't wait for the fall classes to start!

Vacation Bloopers

I was just thinking the other day that nothing funny ever happens to us. I never have funny stories to tell...I guess God wanted to prove me wrong! Ha! Here are our funny vacation moments...

*Before we ever got to Branson, we had to stop at Walmart and buy me new shorts because my zipper broke when we stopped to eat lunch!

*Molly Grace ran to the outside play equipment at McDonalds before I could stop her and got soaking wet. Then she got oatmeal from head to toe and we had to change clothes in the bathroom!

*Shoneys...enough said! Ha! Did I mention the grown man who kept burping loudly during our meal? Jamey loves that story!

*Molly Grace pooped in the floor of our hotel room...then stepped in it!

*Molly Grace then peed in the bathroom floor while I was trying to get the shower warmed up to wash the poop off her!

*Molly Grace peed on Jamey the next night while he was holding her and I was running a bath.

*I scraped/bruised my booty while giving MG a bath - hurt like $*@(#**!!!

*Forgot to pay for lunch and had to go back

Good times...good times!

Family Vacation 2011

We just got back tonight from 4 days in Branson, MO. We wanted so badly to take a family vacation this summer - it was Molly Grace's first - but I wasn't ready to brave a long trip with a wild toddler! We settled on Branson because it was semi-close and there was so much to do.

We left out Sunday evening after Wende's funeral. We drove my aunt's house to Jamey's parent's house. It was a 4 hour drive after a long day and no nap for MG! She did great though! We got to my In-Laws' house around 9pm. MG was wired and played, ran, sang, spun around for a good hour before crashing!

Monday morning we got up, ate breakfast and headed out to Branson. We'd made reservations for 2 nights at a resort with a splashpark/waterslide. As soon as we parked and got out of the car, MG could see and hear the splashpark and got so excited! We checked-in and headed straight to the water! She had such a good time splashing and playing in the pool. We had to drag her out to go eat dinner. She was so exhausted and hungry at that point that she was a mess! It was right at 6pm and everything was packed. There was no way we could go in somewhere and wait for a table, then wait for food...so we stopped in at Shoney's since it was a buffet and she could eat ASAP! BIG mistake!! The food was OK - and that's an exaggeration! If you're ever in Branson, DON'T go to Shoney's no matter how desperate you are!! Take your chances anywhere else! Ha! It served it's purpose, though, and created a great memory. Now everytime we see a Shoney's, we'll laugh at ourselves! After dinner, we ran by the outlet mall. There were only a few stores I wanted to go in and it was so empty, so it was great! We spent the longest time in The Disney Store. I swear, shopping in that store with a little girl of my very own is like a dream come true! We bought 2 princess dolls (Belle and Snow White)! I could've spent a fortune on MG in there! Back at the hotel, we all crashed. MG got to sleep with her daddy and I got a whole queen-sized bed to myself!

Tuesday morning we got up and ate breakfast at the hotel restaurant. It was really good. MG ate for free, but if they'd known how much she was going to eat they probably would've charged us! She gobbled up some eggs, biscuit and gravy, potatoes and fruit! After breakfast, we headed down to The Landing to do some shopping before it got too hot. I love it down there. It's like a cobblestone mainstreet. Of course Molly Grace got a "souvenire" from the toy store as soon as we got there! She also got a fun float for the pool, a yummy sub from Charley's for lunch and a smoothie before we left! She was so tired at that point so we headed back for a nap. After resting, we went back to the splash park and pool. We spent several hours playing and had so much fun! Around 6, we got cleaned up and went into town for dinner at the House of Chicken. We had to wait a little bit for a table, but MG entertained herself by playing with the rocks outside! I finally got smart and thought to stick a coloring book in her bag, so she colored while we waited for our food. It was really yummy! We all thought so! After dinner we stopped at my favorite flea market. I've never bought anything there, but I love to roam! We got back around 8:30ish, let MG play awhile, and went to sleep around 10:00. Tonight I got to sleep with the cuddle bug and Jamey got a bed to himself!

Oh - and we decided to add another day to our stay! We were having way too much fun to go home!

Wednesday morning we got up and ran into town to a few stores I'd been eyeing. I still didn't buy anything, I just love to look. Jamey has a big problem with that! Ha! It bothers him that him and MG get stuff and I don't. I finally had to explain to him that getting to buy princess dolls, pink hairbows, and purses IS fun for me! Ha! After a couple stores, we weren't sure what we wanted to do. It was pretty cloudy and kind of cool so we didn't want to get in the water and it wasn't time for lunch yet...I'd been wanting to go in the Titanic museum for a few years now (since we saw it in Pigeon Forget 3 years ago) so decided it might be fun. The sign said it was "kid friendly", but it definitely wasn't toddler or stroller friendly! There were too many people in too tight of a space! But the artifacts, pictures and exhibits were really neat to look at. I'm glad we stopped. MG, on the other hand, did not have such a good time! Like usual, she was such a trooper, though! By the time we got out, it was time for lunch - MG wasn't shy about letting us know that! We drove all over town and ended up at a little diner right across the street from where we'd just come from - a typical happening on our vacations! It was a really cute little diner with the best hamburgers! There was even a guy singing live on stage. MG watched him for a little bit and even waved at him! We had a really huge, really yummy banana split for dessert and Molly Grace tore into it! There was ice cream everywhere. She ate more on her own that Jamey and me combined! The sugar kicked in pretty quick, too, because she couldn't quit squealing and dancing in the booth! On our way out, Jamey took her up to see the music again. Our sweet waitress got up on stage and took Molly Grace up with her to dance! I was shocked when MG actually took her hands and went up with her! She lasted all of 30 seconds before she wanted down! We left the nice singer a tip and left. We got all the way back to the resort before we realized we hadn't stopped to pay on our way out! I couldn't believe it! We had to go all the way back and pay for our yummy lunch! MG fell asleep in the car, poor girl! She was so tired. She didn't even wake up when we got back and I took her out of her seat. I carried her all the way in and layed her down without her budging! When she got up we headed back to the water for 1 last time. It was still pretty cloudy and breezy so we didn't last long! When we got out, we headed to 1 last store that Jamey wanted to go in - the Coleman Outlet. You can't go to Branson without going to the Coleman Outlet! Ha! We were still pretty stuffed after 3 days of eating, eating, eating so we were thinking of just skipping dinner, but on our way back we saw a pizza place/arcade that we took a chance on. I'm so glad we stopped because we had the best time! The food was Ok, but the fun was Great! Molly Grace had the best time running from game to game, putting coins in the machines and gathering tickets up! She loved the tickets! We played SkiBall, basketball, a dancing game, Wack-A-Mole...and lots of other stuff! With her tickets she got to buy a pretty beaded bracelet, paddle ball, 2 play unicorns, a coloring book, and a ball. Pizza, games and bed! What a great last night!

Thursday morning we got up, ate breakfast, loaded the car up and headed to Springfield for a Bass Pro shopping spree. I was so excited for Molly Grace to see all the animals, fish and water displays. She lasted about 15 minutes, cared nothing about the animals she did see, and fell asleep in her stroller! On the plus side, Jamey and I got a good 1.5 hours of peaceful shopping! We stopped at Burger King for lunch and let MG play out some energy then headed home.

We had such a great time! I have to put in here what an awesome kid we have! She's ornery and rotten as can be, but she's so great!! I am such a stickler for routines and schedules and she is too so I was worried how she would hold up. Even with the late bedtimes, short naps, sleeping all in 1 room, random meals, and running till we dropped - she was so good! She went right along with the flow. She never fussed when we were traveling - even on the 4 hour trip home! Her smiles and laughs were the best part of our trip! I loved seeing her having so much fun. I know she won't remember this trip, but her daddy and I will!

Pictures to come when I'm not so tired... :-)

Saying Goodbye

Wednesday my cousin Wende went home to be with Jesus. I haven't posted about it before now because I wasn't sure what to say. Goodbyes are hard, they suck. I'm not sad for Wende. She's in Heaven where she will never struggle or suffer again. She will never have to take another shot and her body will be healed and whole again. She's getting to sit at the feet of our Heavenly Father - there's nothing about that that calls for grief. My heart hurts for those she left behind, though. She was a wife, mother, daughter, sister, grandaughter, aunt, cousin, niece, and friend...that leaves behind a lot of sad hearts.

Tonight was the visitation. Until tonight, I've been able to pretend it's not real. Tonight as I saw her mom and dad shed tears, it broke my heart. I watched her son and daughter and couldn't help but be reminded that they will never hug their mom again. It doesn't get any more real than that.

The visitation was beautiful. The church was full of flowers. I have honestly never seen so many flowers at a service before. The line of people there to say goodbye was unbelieveable. They were wrapped all the way around the church. Wende was a free spirit and full of life. She was strong and only did things her way! People loved her and it was nice tonight to see how many lives she touched.

Molly Grace went to the visitation with us. There was a lot of family there and I knew she wasn't old enough for it to be traumatic. Before we left, I walked up front to say goodbye to my aunt and Molly Grace saw Wende lying in her casket. She pointed and said "shhhh". She thought she was asleep. For some reason this was so comforting to me. The way MG saw her was so innocent. Her soul is no longer in that sleeping body. She can rest peacefully.

Time for Toddler Bed?

So I'm wondering if it's time to switch MG to her toddler bed. She's never tried to climb out of her crib - which always shocks me since she's such a monkey. But last night she woke up when J went in to cover her and got so upset when he left. She was hysterical, standing up, screaming. She threw her leg over the side, but I ran in there, told her no and layed her back down. J and I were watching the monitor and she threw 1 leg over again. I ran in there just in time to see her fall out and land flat on her back on the floor. Scared me to death. It scared her and her daddy, too. At that point, we took her to bed with us. We were all exhausted and it was easiest!

Fever Virus...Ugh!

MG went to bed last night with a low-grade temp, but I just assumed it was teeth. I gave her Motrin before bed and hoped for the best! She moaned and wimpered all night. It was pitiful. She woke up this morning burning up with a temp of 103.6. She was so lethargic and not herself at all. She wouldn't leave my lap and just layed there. The ped. said there's a fever virus going around and to keep her hydrated and keep the Motrin/Tylenol going.

We layed in the recliner for about 3 hours! Seriously, we never moved. I think I dozed off more than she did! I fixed her some lunch around noon. She wasn't really interested in eating, but she did drink a little water for me. After lunch I put her down and she actually sat with her Little People and attempted to play a little, but it lasted all of a minute! I picked her up and sat down in the rocker and she instantly went to sleep. I put her in her crib, but she woke up about 45 minutes later crying. She was sitting up, facing the wall, just crying. She wasn't fully awake, just miserable. I took her and layed down with her in my bed and she slept 2.5 hours longer.

She woke up around 4 and obviously felt a lot better. Her fever was down with the Tylenol/Motrin and she was more alert. We went into town to get some frozen yogurt because I knew she'd eat that! And she did. She loved it. We got pineapple and cheesecake with strawberries and blueberries on top. It was so stinkin' good! She was in such a good mood so we made a quick stop at TJ Maxx and headed home.

It was already close 6 when we got home and I hadn't even thought about dinner so we all jumped in the truck and went to our favorite chinese buffet. We needed something that was ready right then! Right after we sat down, my sis and her family came in! They got to sit right next to us. MG was SO excited to see her cousins! She ate really good. Her favorite was the canteloupe, honeydew, and strawberry jello! She kept trying to stand up in her highchair so I'd tell her to "sit". Everytime I said "sit" she'd say it right back to me! It was too cute!

After dinner we ran by my parent's to drop something off and let MG play awhile. Then we headed home. As we were walking in the front door, I said "knock knock" and I'll be danged if MG didn't repeat that, too!

We played for a few minutes until MG gave me the cue for bed - she crawled in my lap and cuddled up!

Another good day with the loves of my life!

18 months

I have an 18 month old...that's craziness!! In 6 months, half a year, I will have a 2 year old. Where does time go? I swear, just last week she was a teeny-tiny little thing!

So, my sweet Molly Grace, you are 1 1/2. You are full of life and laughter. You are spunky, sassy, and silly. Your personality and sense of humor are awesome. You are loveable, independent, strong-willed, strong, and sweet. Your laugh is contagious. You are curious and fearless.

I love the age/stage you're at right now. I love that you understand what we say to you, you try to talk back with us, you can show us what you want, you love to go places and explore. I love that you're always happy and smiling. Unless we cross you (which is very rarely!) you are always happy.

You are really starting to talk more. You try so hard to say things we ask you to. But you have to want to do it, otherwise it's not happening! Your daddy says that comes from me, he may be right! Your favorite word is "fwag". Everytime we see a flag you get so excited, point it out and yell "fwag". Your other words:
"mo" (more)
"no"
"ba aww" (back off - and you even put your hand up!)
"geh gaww" (get gone - you tell Sophie to get gone a lot!)
"mik" (milk)

You can tell us the sounds that a pig, cow, horse, dog, cat, and sheep make!

You love to read. You love the remotes and cell phones. You're crazy about your baby dolls. You love your Little People and blocks.

Your favorite thing in the whole world right now is your sandbox and water.

Right Now:
Clothes: 12 mo and 18 mo
Shoes: 4 1/2 (your 4s are getting too small, but 5s are too big still)
Diaper: Size 4
Teeth: All but your 4 eye-teeth, but I'm pretty sure those are trying to come in
Weight: We'll find out tomorrow
Height: " " " "
Naps: 1/day - usually 2.5-3 hours after lunch
Foods: You eat any and everything! You love fruit, it's your favorite!

(Not a Typical) Wednesday

Today wasn't really a typical day for us, but that's what makes remembering fun!

Molly Grace woke me up around 8am. I love that she's finally sleeping a little later. Of course, summer's halfway over already and soon I'll have to wake her up super early again! :-( Oh well...it's great while it lasts! We got up and ate some oatmeal and played a little. There was a 2pm program put on by our library that I really wanted to take MG to so I was hoping to get her down for an early nap. I knew if we layed around our house it would never happen. We headed over to my mom and dad's house to let her play with her cousins and BFF, Heath. I was hoping they would wear her down! She had the best time playing, chasing, running and giggling! She is so full of life - that's the best way to describe her! MG's laugh can lighten an entire room! She's truly my sunshine!

As soon as she climbed in my lap and layed her head down, we headed home hopeful for a nap! She layed right down and went right to sleep! Yay! But...she woke up 20 minutes later ready to tackle the world! ha! It worked out fine, though, because I had time to feed her lunch and we weren't at all rushed. I let her eat in her highchair in the living room while she watched cartoons - this never happens in our house so it was a treat! I really needed a second to finish getting myself ready, though, since naptime was so short!

After lunch, we got dressed and headed to the mall. The program today was a man from Ghana. He told African tales and played African drums. It was a really neat program. He let everyone take turns coming up to play drums. Molly Grace got to go up with her granny and play then she got to play all by herself! She loved it so much. Maybe we have a drummer in our future? She always seems to be drawn to the drums!

After the program MG played on the playground with her cousins. She was so beyond tired at this point! But it was too late in the day to let her take a nap. By the time we got home and layed her down in would have been well after 4. So...we walked the mall for a little bit and got some things done.

When we left the mall it was around 4:30. I ran by to drop something off at my mom's house. My nephews were "swimming" in her jacuzzi tub and had bubbles everywhere. Guess who freaked out and wanted to swim, too?! I fought her off as long as I could, but after dragging her out of there for the 5th time it was easier to just put her in there with them! They had a blast. She poured cups of water over their heads at least 20 times! There was one heck of a fit when I got her out!

When we got home, her daddy was already there and Molly Grace was so excited to see him! She was so fussy and tired, though, so we sat in the recliner watching Barney while Jamey showered. I thought she was sitting there watching it, but when I looked down at her, she was asleep! She only slept a few minutes - she woke up when I tried to lay her down.

We ate some supper and she crawled right back up in the recliner in Jamey's lap! We decided it was best to put her out of her misery! At 6:15, she got her milk and went to sleep...and we didn't hear from her until morning!

Our Tuesday

I'm loving everyone else's daily play-by-play so I thought I'd do another Day in the Life of Molly Grace post today! It's summer break and we're home together all day so sometimes we have to be really creative to find things to entertain us!

7:30 - I woke up and it was so dark and stormy and MG was still out like a light so I went back to snoozing, too!

9:00 - I woke up to the sweetest little voice talking over the monitor. When I went in to get her out of bed, she jumped up and started gathering her things! We always have to bring a blanket or 2 and at least 1 of her dolls from bed. I fixed MG some oatmeal - her favorite - and she ate it while watching Barney - her new favorite!

After breakfast there was oatmeal everywhere - in her hair, on her face, all over her belly and down both legs! So off to the tub we went. Bathtime is Molly Grace's favorite part of the day! She filled her bucket and poured it on her belly at least 50 times! She washed her own belly off!

We played in the living room for an hour or so. We didn't do anything special - just hanging out! Then I jumped in the shower while she entertained herself (I love that about this age!). She sat up on the bed with me while I did my makeup. She loves my makeup and gets so excited everytime I pull it out! She loves the brushes.

When we were both dressed and beautiful we headed out to meet Jamey for lunch. That's my favorite part of being off for summer. We drive over and meet him for lunch at least once a week.

We picked Jamey up and headed to McDonalds. We got a big corner booth so MG could have a little space. She didn't even need a highchair. She sat on the seat, and ate from the table. I couldn't believe how big she looked sitting there! She loved her ketchup! She ate an entire cup full and we both had it all over us!

After dropping Jamey back off at work, we headed back to town. I used Jamey's hair clippers on the dog last week so we had to run to Target to get him some new ones! As soon as we walked in the doors, MG took off running toward the play area. It wasn't too crowded so we stayed and played awhile. There was another little girl her age and they played so well together. MG must have went down the slide 20 times! She would climb up all by herself. If another kid was up there already or in her way, she kept pushing them and saying "GO! GO!". I think we might need to work on patience.

When she was done playing, she took off running barefoot out of the play area towards the little rides. I wrangled her up, held her down and put her shoes on, then she rode in the ice cream truck. When it was over, she refused to get out! When I got her out, she went into wet noodle mode and fell on the floor having a fit! I love those public fits. Sometimes I just have to laugh. I picked up my screaming little diva and headed to Target. We got what we needed and headed out.

I had a tired, cranky little girl at this point! She wouldn't let me put her down at all once we got home. I rocked her for a minute then layed her down in her bed and she was out. She slept almost 3 hours. She would be so mad if she knew I played "Just Dance" while she was asleep! Ha!

Right after MG woke up, her daddy came home. They played while I cooked dinner. We had cheesy potato soup, brocolli, and garlic biscuits...yum! MG ate it up! Luckily she's not too picky. Tonight was the first time she willingly ate brocolli, though. She couldn't shovel it in fast enough!

After dinner and cleanup, I went into the bedroom to plug my phone in and my little shadow followed me. Somehow from there we all 3 ended up laying in bed! We tickled, laughed, wrestled and played many rounds of Peek-A-Boo! When MG is done, she's done! She got down off the bed, went in the living room and found her shoes! So we went outside to play. It was so nice that we ended up staying later than we meant to.

At 8pm we came in, got jammies on and she climbed up in her daddy's lap to drink her milk. They had a little cuddle time before we took her to bed and tucked her in. She gave up loud, dramatic good night kisses and made up kiss her palms (which we have to do everynight before bed). Jamey laid her down and we haven't heard a peep since.

I love how easy she is these days. And she's such good company. She's a little person!

Sorry

Cute story I want to remember!

Jamey, MG and I were hanging out on our bed playing around. Of course the wild child wad all over the place and rough housing! She head butted Jamey on accident. I said "tell Daddy you're sorry"-never expecting a response. She looked at Jamey, said "sweee", and kept right on playing! Of course she wouldn't repeat it for us!

Another Good Weekend - warning, it's LONG!

I love weekends! Even when I'm out of school and home everyday for the summer, I love weekends! I like that Jamey's home with us (not just because he can help me out with our wild child! Ha!) and we get to do some family things.

Friday evening was so nice so we decided to tackle cleaning out our garage. We've been stacking stuff in there for a yard sale for the past year! And we haven't put anything up in the attic that MG has outgrown so all her baby stuff was still sitting out there. We sorted, trashed and stocked the attic! MG stayed up later than usual "helping" us outside. Every toy that I would put in the attic or yard sale pile would somehow make it's way back out! It was like Christmas for her getting to play with all the toys she hasn't seen in awhile! Once we finally came in and were settling her down for bed, her Mamaw and Papaw stopped by for a quick visit. They were on their way back from vacation and couldn't stand passing through without stopping for hugs and kisses! Once she finally got in bed, she was out! Until we got ready to go to bed and went in to cover her and say goodnight (which we do every night). As soon as I covered her, she popped up and held her arms out. We tried leaving her and getting her to go back to sleep, but there was no hope! She ended up in our bed. I woke up sometime in the early morning and we were in the shape of an H in bed! She was horizontal in the middle of the bed between us passed out! Lucky for me I got her head and Jamey got her kicking feet!

Saturday morning we were lazy in bed! Jamey and MG got up and went to get some breakfast to bring home since we had nothing! After breakfast, we did NOTHING all day long! At 3pm we were all still in our jammies laying around. We all dozed off and took a few catnaps here and there throughout the day - it was awesome! We did finally get out and run to Hastings. I owed Jamey a Wii game for his bday and we finally found it. He can now sit in his recliner and "hunt"! Ha! We stopped on the way home to pick up some rolls and ended up just grocery shopping. We grilled out steaks for dinner and they were so good. MG got to play out back while we got ready. We all passed out shortly after dinner! Lazy days make me tired!

MG was an angel and slept until 8:30 this morning! Yay! She actually got up earlier, I'm sure, but she's so good to play in her crib. She never cries. I wouldn't have even known she was awake if she hadn't started talking to herself! It's still so strange and wonderful to wake up to a little voice talking! I love it! We let Jamey sleep as long as we could, but finally MG had to go wake him up! She loves getting to wake him up, she thinks it's so funny. After breakfast we did a whole lot of nothing again - and had a great time doing it! We played "Little People" for a long time and watched some Strawberry Shortcake. After lunch we ran to Home Depot and bought stuff to build MG a sandbox. After her nap we all went out. While Jamey built the sandbox, MG had a ball playing in water. I filled up a plastic tub and gave her a watering can and she watered everything she could find, including me and herself! Once Jamey got her sandbox finished, she was in heaven! She had the best time. She danced and twirled in it. She threw a bunch of sand, ate a little, too! She layed down and "sunbathed" a little! We're so lucky to have a Daddy and husband who's willing to do just about anything to make us smile! We're 2 lucky girls! There was a heck of a fit thrown when it was time to go in! It took me a good 20 minutes to get all the sand out of her hair and everywhere else!

She's in bed now and we're watching a movie. Another good weekend, for sure! Next week is Jamey's vacation and we're so excited!

Typical Conversation with MG

Me: "Did you have fun?"
MG: "Nnnnnno-wah"

Me: "Are you hungry?"
MG: "Nnnnnno-wah"

Me: "Are you going to listen to momma?"
MG: "Nnnnnno-wah"

Me: "I love you so much, do you love momma?"
MG: "Nnnnnno-wah"

Me: "Want to go outside and play?"
MG: "Nnnnnno-wah"

Rumpelstiltskin-MG's first play

I've always loved the story of Rumpelstiltskin and I've always loved to see plays! Today I took Molly Grace to our local university to see the play "Rumpelstiltskin". It was an hour and a half production so I was really worried how MG would handle it. I had visions of her running wild, squirming, squealing and having to leave early. Jamey and I took bets on how long she would last. I bet 20 minutes! Fortunately, I lost!! I called Jamey when it was over to inform him that we officially have the BEST kid ever! She sat in my lap the entire time. She didn't even start squirming until about an hour into it. She "wow"ed at the lights and effects. She loved the singing. I'm just so proud of her and so shocked! We had an awesome time. I can't wait to take her to Disney Live in October!

Father's Day

Molly Grace wants to wish her Daddy a very happy Father's Day!

We've had a low-key kind of day. We had a yummy breakfast at Cracker Barrel with my family, took a nap and now MG and her Daddy are sitting in the recliner together snacking on Fruit Loops!

MG is a lucky girl to have the Daddy she does. He loves her, takes care of her, and he's wrapped tightly around her little finger!

Daddy's Girl

Molly Grace wanted to go outside (and somehow managed to get the sliding door open a crack???), but Jamey wouldn't let her. He went over and closed the door back. She looked at him and in the most pitiful voice said "noo-ow dada". Seriously...I thought he would melt into a puddle of mush on the floor! We're in so much trouble because that girl has her daddy right where she wants him!

Phrases and a cute NO!

It's so funny to hear words and phrases coming out of Molly Grace's mouth! Granted, unless you know what she's saying, it's hard to understand. But I know what she's saying! And I'm a proud mama!

She's been a little parrot today - copying whatever I say! I got her to say "get gone" and "back off" to her daddy tonight. Probably 2 phrases I shouldn't teach her, but they were so cute! She puts her hand out and says "back off" and shakes her finger and says "get gone"! Ha!

Her word of the day is NO! I'm not sure why she all of a sudden started saying this (maybe because she hears it an awful-lot these days!), but it's her new favorite. It's not a mean No. It's a really pitifully sweet "nooo-ow".

Yesterday she said fish when she was eating goldfish!

Park, Splash Park, Playdate and Dinner Out

Molly Grace had a play "date" with her BFF this morning! The little boy my mom is keeping, Heath, is definitely one of MG's favorite people right now. She loves him! She really loves to hold his hand and lead him around. She's definitely the one in charge of their relationship! But, like I keep telling her, someone has to be in charge, it might as well be her! Ha!

They are really so cute together. She's feisty, wild, bossy, and independent; he's quiet, calm, and submissive. They work well together! I'm so glad she's got such a good friend to play with.

This morning we met Heath and my mom at the park so the kiddos could play. They had a great time swinging, sliding and chasing eachother. We got to feed the swarm of geese that showed up - they were starving and taking bread right out of our hands before we could throw it. Poor MG got bit 3 times! They played in the huge sandbox for awhile then rinsed off at the splash park. MG loved the splash part. I bet she drank at least 2 gallons of water, though. All she wanted to do was put her mouth under the sprinklers! Gross!

She played her little heart out then took a 3 hour nap! We went out to dinner tonight when her daddy got home then ran by to get some groceries. She was in rare form tonight, for sure. She was especially sassy and strong-willed! I cringe daily thinking about how difficult she's going to be at 5, 10, and 15 years old!

Party, Sliding, Parade, Swimming, Park

...we had a full weekend! We left out early Saturday morning for MG's cousin's 2nd birthday party. She had a great time. She loved the blowup waterslide and had so much fun playing with the big kids.

After a very short nap, we went to a parade downtown. It was MG's first parade and I really thought the sirens would terrify her, but she loved it. She stood there and waved at everyone! She even got some really good goodies - a popsicle, sunglasses, a frisbee, sunscreen, pretty beads and of course some candy. She wasn't sure what to think about the horses. I don't think she could figure out why they were in the middle of the street! Ha!

We got hit with a terrible rain storm on the way back from the parade. We couldn't even see the road. But it cleared off pretty quickly and we got to jump in the pool for a little bit. MG was in absolute Heaven! She loves the water, but hasn't been in a big pool since last summer when she was too young to know what was going on! She laid her head back and floated, stuck her face in the water, and even "swam" to her daddy - kicking and flapping her arms and legs! She's going to be such a little fish.

We headed out pretty early Sunday morning to come home. About an hour into the trip she got pretty fussy so we stopped at a park on the river and let her run and play for awhile. She got all her energy out and rode the rest of the way home quiet as a mouse! She watched her movie and even snuck in a quick nap.

Today she's full of energy and sass!

Funny Little Copycat

MG is such a little parrot lately! She will (finally) copy whatever we say! It's so fun. Yesterday she said "sun" because I said to her "look Molly Grace, the sun is shining. See the sun?" And she kept saying "ssssun".

Saturday we saw a flag (which she is still obsessed with) and she FINALLY said the word "fwag". Now that's all we hear! She woke up this morning saying "fwag"!

She has the sweetest, silliest little personality. I hope she always does. She's just so fun and carefree. I love that she's starting to actually "get" things. If she's watching tv and something funny happens, she laughs. If something great happens, she claps. If something falls or spills, she says "uh-oh". When we ask her something or offer her things, she'll shake her head yes or no. It's so awesome to see and hear her doing/saying things at the appropriate times! She's such a little person now.

This is definitely my favorite age/stage so far. I will take the fits, squeals, hard-headedness, and struggle for independence that this stage brings anyday! It's all worth it for all the smiles, laughs and pride!

Little Monkey

I can't remember if I've posted about MG's newly developed climbing skills, but I want to be sure and get it down for my benefit! Jamey reminded me tonight that I needed to make sure and put it in here what a climber she is!

Really just overnight MG has started climbing on everything. She can get herself up on the couch and recliner. She does her best (and is pretty dang close) to climb up in the tub, into her stroller, in/out of her highchair and she's figured out how to get herself down off the bed. She's such a little monkey! And, of course, she has no fear! She's all over everything!

2 new words!

mmmmmmmk (milk - the 'mmmmm' is said with a very serious, painful face! Ha!) I'm always emphasizing and stretching out the beginning sounds so if she doesn't get the whole word, she'll at least get that sound (that would be the teacher in me!), so today she totally mimicked me! I had to laugh out loud! And of course she repeated it at least 10 times before I could get her milk! And of course I jumped up and down and cheered like a fool each time!

shewwww (shoe) She brought me one shoe and clearly said "shewww" and wanted me to put it on her!

Hellllooooo Summer!!

Friday was my last day of school for the summer! I'm so excited to get 2 months home with my baby girl! We have no plans - which makes it even better! Time to play, nap, relax and enjoy!

We had a really great weekend. Saturday was Jamey's bday and we had a really low-key family day. MG and I took a 3 hour nap (Happy Birthday to me! Ha!) while Jamey did a bunch of outside projects he'd been wanting to finish up. We did get cleaned up and have a nice bday dinner at Olive Garden. It was SO good and MG was SO good! She's such a pasta lover like her mama! We finally got a Wii for Jamey's bday. We'd been wanting one for awhile, but we hate spending money! But we finally broke down and got it. And it was so worth it! We danced, bowled, shot hoops, jet-skied and played tennis all day and night!

Sunday we had Jamey's family up and my family over to cook out and celebrate his bday. It was so nice to have all our families together. The kiddos had a great time playing in the pool and water slide. MG (and all the kiddos) was worn out and took a really good nap then slept really good last night!

Jamey was back to work today, but MG and I are home and being lazy! I love summer!

From the Mouth of a Babe (my Babe!)

It's so crazy how much MG has started jabbering and talking the past couple weeks - just out of nowhere! She jabbers continuously like she's having a conversation. She even changes the tone of her voice like she's asking questions, being serious, joking, etc. It's too cute. My mom says my sister was the same way. She never really said many plain words, she just jabbered continuously, then one day she started talking in sentences and never stopped! Ha!

She is starting to say more words we understand, too. Her new thing is "wahhhhw" (wow). Everything is wow! She's gotten extremely clear with bye-bye, da-da, ma-ma (which I very rarely hear!), mo (more - which she uses for everything!), tain-ooo (thank you).

MG's also really getting good with her animal sounds. She can do cow (my very favorite! Her lips make the cutest little shape!), cat, dog (she mimics Sophie anytime she barks or howls), and duck.

Summer Cold

Jamey has always made fun of me because I'm the odd ball that always gets colds in the middle of hot summer! My poor baby inherited that weird gene from me! She's so snotty, stuffy and got the goopy eyes. I hate it for her. It's such a hot, sunny day that's perfect for playing in the pool, but she's stuck inside resting!

Pool Time

It was so warm and sunny today that we decided to get MG's new pool out! It's been hiding away in the closet in it's box just waiting for the perfect day! The water was so stinkin' cold, but she dove right in. She loved the slide and loved splashing. She played until she wore herself out. I figured I'd have to drag her out kicing and screaming, but she got herself out and went to sit in her chair on the patio. Tomorrow we're going to attempt the water play area at our park! Can't wait!

Five and Three

2 funny stories...

Yesterday we were taking the air mattress down that was in our living room (we'd had company, it wasn't just up for the heck of it!). We let a little air out of it and let MG go to town jumping on it. Then one of us got the bright idea to count to 3 and fall on it which sent her up in the air! It was too funny and she loved it! But, the rest of the day she kept saying "shree" everytime she wanted us to do something! I guess she thought that was the magic word!

I've been teaching MG how to give "five" and she's finally getting the hang of it. Tonight she was giving me lots of kisses, but being a stinker and wouldn't give her daddy any. I was counting the kisses she gave me. We got to kiss number four and she went on playing. I said "can I have five?" - meaning kiss #5 and she immediately ran up with her hand in the air to give me "five"! It cracked me up. She's so funny!

7 years

On this date, 7 years ago, Jamey and I were married. In some ways in seems like a lifetime ago. We've been through so much in those 7 years. In other ways, it seems like only yesterday! All I know, is that I'm thankful each and every morning that I get to wake up next to him and fall asleep with him beside me. God blessed me with an amazing partner in life and such a wonderful daddy to my daughter.

I'm sure most people would think we're crazy, but we didn't go out for a fancy dinner or go away for the weekend. Instead, we chose to stay home, be lazy and just enjoy our family! We had a fun dinner out last night with Molly Grace - that will have to count! This morning Jamey got up and got donuts for breakfast. He's happy for any excuse for those! Ha! He also surprised me with the most beautiful set of bracelets. They are gold with handblown Murano glass beads and swarovski crystals. I was so surprised! They are beautiful. I told him for his gift I would do his laundry today! Ha! We've been super lazy all day long. It's 2pm and we're all still in our jammies. I've already had a nap and MG is taking one now. Our life may not be super exciting, but it sure is happy!

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband! Thank you for all you do for your family.

Miss Attitude

Little Miss has developed quite the attitude lately! I don't know where she learned to squeal, but it's not my favorite sound! Anytime she gets mad and wants us to know it she lets out the shrillest squeal - usually while she's shaking her head back and forth! She doesn't hide her emotions at all!

Today I got the foot stomping fit. Instead of throwing herself down on the ground she started stomping her feet at me.

Is it possible for the Terrible Twos to start at 16 months?

A few more words

dah-dah (bye-bye)

mom

nack (snack - my favorite of her words!)

ird (bird)

nie-nie (everytime she sees any kind of flag/banner)

mo (more)

me

Springfest, Breakfast, Yogurt and a Meltdown!

It's only Saturday and we've already had a very fun and very full weekend! Last night was my school's Springfest. A friend and I were hosting the "Duck Pond" game. This was my absolute favorite game at my elementary school's Fun Fair every year and the kids seemed to really love it last night. It was something fun the little ones could do, too! Molly Grace and her daddy came to help me out then we got to walk around and enjoy. We had a nice hotdog dinner on the sidewalk and a yummy snocone afterwards! MG really loved playing in the "duck pond"! She splashed all over me and her and even had to bring a duck home with her! There were only a few fits - when she couldn't get on the big bouncy slide and when the snocone was gone! Most of the time she was perfect, though! I loved having her and Jamey out there with me!

This morning we got up and went to breakfast at Cracker Barrel. As always, it was great and we all ate way too much! MG had the explosion of a lifetime while we were there and that wasn't too fun, but it is what it is! Ha! From there we ran all over town - some flea markets, Home Depot, the sporting good's store... we were in and out of the car at least 10 times! And she still did great.

Tonight MG and I took Jamey to the new yogurt place in town. We tried it last week and loved it so we wanted him to try it. It's all non-fat, low-fat or no sugar added yogurt and it's all amazing! Tonight MG and I shared birthday cake with gummy bears and sprinkles. She's my excuse to get to eat that! Ha!

We really needed milk so we thought we'd go ahead and run to Kroger and get all our groceries. We really should've just stopped at the station and gotten milk and come home! MG was awful!!! I broke open the NutraGrain bars and that kept her happy for a minute or 2. She got to ride in the car cart for the first time, but that only made her happy for another minute or 2! She wanted to get in and out the whole time, she didn't just want to ride. And I forgot to mention the part about having to bring her pillow into the store with us because she wouldn't leave it behind! I've never had to walk out of a place with a screaming baby before tonight! She was not happy at all. We walked around outside and waited on her daddy and she was fine. We even hung out in the entrance and let her play in one of the car carts. When another little girl walked in and got in the car, though, she lost it! She did not understand. Then Jamey came out with the groceries in a different cart (one minus the car part) and she lost it again! Poor baby has not had a good night! She came home, ate some goldfish, drank some milk and passed out!

I wonder what tomorrow will hold...

Mother's Day 2011

I had a great Mother's Day weekend! We started the weekend off with a trip to see Jamey's family. We went in to his brother's house Friday night and Molly Grace got to play outside with her cousins before bed. She was in Heaven playing outside - I think she'd live out there if we'd let her! We had a nice breakfast with all of Jamey's family to celebrate Mother's Day then we headed home. Molly Grace and I were both exhausted so we took a nice, long, cuddly nap together (because some little someone refused to sleep more than 20 minutes the entire way home!)!

Sunday, Jamey and Molly Grace got up early and went to get donuts for breakfast. It was a wonderful treat to get to sleep in, not have to worry about breakfast AND get my favorite breakfast treat! Happy Mother's Day to me! Ha! They each had me very sweet cards that made my day. I'm a card person and I love seeing what card people pick out for me. I also got a kit to make a stepping stone for our yard with MG's handprint. We got my mom one for Mother's Day and I really wanted one for myself, but never got around to getting it - so that was a nice surprise.

We went over to my parents' house for lunch with all of my family. My aunt and grandma were both in which was another nice treat! We had a great time eating and visiting - I really love getting together with family, I'm so blessed! I even got to take another nap when we got home. 2 naps in 2 days - what a treat! Last night, we decided to go out to dinner so I didn't have to worry with cooking or cleaning. MG was so good and we really enjoyed being out together.

It was a really great weekend. The very best gift I could possibly have, though, is the love of my little girl! I get to be her momma for the rest of her life and nothing can top that. There's no greater gift than the love of a child. The day she was born, my world was complete. I love that sweet, sassy little princess more than she will probably ever know. I'm honored to be her mom!

Pictures to come...I'm horrible at that part!

Roll 'Em Up

All through Target today, Molly Grace kept rolling her hands and saying "row-whoa-whoa-whoa". She really loves some Patty Cake!

More

Molly Grace has started signing "more" everytime we eat or she wants a snack! If we don't do what she wants quick enough, she'll sign for "more" then too! She signs with her 2 pointer fingers! It's so funny! The best part is that while she's signing, she says "mo...mo...mo"! I guess she wants to make sure she gets her point across!

Happy Meal

Molly Grace got her very first Happy Meal for dinner tonight! There's no doubt she's a fan! She had to have a few fries on the way home - who can blame her there?! She even got a little bit of ketchup to dip in. She mostly just sucked the ketchup off the fries, though!

We also discovered that she's a fan of Run DMC! ha! She was really breaking it down, white girl style, to Aerosmith and Run DMC's "Walk This Way"! What can I say? It's never dull at our house!

Tornado

We've had the craziest, scariest weather the past couple weeks. AR is notorious for spring tornadoes, but I've never seen anything like this before. We've been hammered the last 3 days especially. There's been numerous tornados and flooding all around the state. We've been really lucky and haven't had an actual tornado on the ground in our town - until today! As we were dismissing this afternoon, it started pouring, then hailing. When they should have been dismissing bus riders, our principal came over the intercom and told us all to evacuate to the safe shelter. There's a short overhang that we have to walk outside under to get to the safe shelter. The wind and rain were blowing so hard you couldn't see anything and it actually hurt when it hit. Thank goodness my 2 nephews had already come down to my room so I had them with me. I had them each by the hand and wasn't letting go! Evidently, the tornado touched down just a couple miles down the road from us. SCARY!!! I'm so glad we weren't on our way home yet when it hit and I'm so glad our little bus riders hadn't been dismissed yet. I'm tired of spring and it's craziness!