A Summer in photos....part 1

I didn't realize that the "firsts" would continue for years...it is so much more than first words, steps, smiles, etc...

This summer was full of firsts: trip to the dentist, kayaking, momma and mommie going away for a night, first trip to the capitol, ballet lessons, first krispy kreme, etc..etc...etc..

80 degrees...

Today it was 80 degrees. Yes, I said 80 degrees. It will be 55 and raining tomorrow, but today we rejoiced and acted like it was summer. We practiced playing outside all morning, eating a huge lunch, taking a delicious nap, and playing outside again until dinnertime. We bounced back to spring in order to make EASTER cupcakes! This is our 3rd and final installment of cupcakes for awhile. We might make them again around 4th of July, but who could resist Easter cupcakes -- our finest to date!

A few pics: Easter Cupcakes, EG with her new baseball and glove, planting our seedlings, and I don't think I ever posted a pic of her big girl bed....

The snow is gone

The snow is finally gone out of our yard. There are a few lingering snow banks in the neighborhood, but all of our snow is gone. It is a big day. It means that soon it will dry out and we will reclaim a large part of our home -- our back yard. EG can entertain herself for hours outside. However, she is getting to be a pro at that skill inside as well.

About a month ago we started making a conscious effort to help her learn to play by herself. When we all get home from school, we encourage her to go and play in her "office" or in her kitchen by herself. Some days she plays by herself for an hour and other nights she doesn't make it 10 minutes. It is fun to watch her create fun for herself and to see her imagination grow.

Last weekend, we made St. Patrick's Day cupcakes and Wednesday night she told us that tomorrow is green day at Miss Kaffy's (her daycare). She didn't think she had anything green, but we dug around and found a t-shirt that is too big and a hoodie that is perfect. She fell in love with the hoodie and fought to wear it to nap -- which she lost.

We went and spent the night at Gma and Papa's on Friday -- what fun. Some of EG's cousins were there which made it even more fun. We also get to see Ninna soon...

A few pics: cupcakes, St. Patrick's day outfit (she looked like a boy) and her curls...







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Spring? Not yet...

I grew up in the South. March should be spring. Easter was the first day of sunbathing season. I think my older sister came to Easter dinner covered in suntan oil for years. However, I now live much farther north -- much farther.

March isn't anywhere near spring. Yes, the snow is melting and it isn't -4 (for the high), but I can still see snow and everything is still very gray and dark. There are hints of change. The sun stays up longer. I can see some gray looking grass. I went to the mall today and didn't even take a coat. The biggest sign of spring is my growing desire to wear flip-flops outside, which I will do around 50 degrees (it used to be 60 degrees was my limit for showing toes, but I have had to lower my standards).

We have also started spring shopping for EG. We spend a lot of time looking for good deals and stocking up for next winter. We are buying a mix of 3T stuff for spring and summer and 4T stuff for next winter -- I got a cream turtleneck 4T for $2.89 at Gymboree today. I love buying her clothes and getting deals on all of them. We really only splurge on shoes. Her feet deserve the best.

We have an Easter dress for EG, but it might not be warm enough. Luckily, Easter is very late this year so we might have a shot at her wearing it.

Here are a few pics for the fans!

2010

I realized that I only wrote 14 blogs last year. That is not impressive at all. At our blogging peak, we wrote almost 90 in one year. I guess with a lack of time and busier lives blogging falls down on the list, but I still like having it around. I am not going to commit to writing more blogs. Every blog I read usually has a low point and then they swear they will write more and they don't. I will just say that I will continue to post as I have time and something to say. There used to be two of us doing this, but m quit years ago....

Updates:

1. Potty Training: all done. check. [famous last words]. EG has done great. She wears panties all day and usually through nap as well. I sometimes put her in a pull up at nap if she has had a ton to drink, but she wakes up dry. I think that is about me not wanting her to have a bad experience (waking up with wet panties). She does wear a pull up at night, but she is waking up dry in the mornings too. I really had this potty training built up in my mind as a struggle, but so far it has been fine. Again, she was ready. It was her decision.

2. Getting out of bed. EG has been in a toddler bed since late summer. She has always been really good at staying in bed and going to sleep until winter break. She started getting out of bed after we put her down. These are things we have "caught" her doing:

twirling in her room
running down the hallway
sitting at the top of the stairs
reading books to elmo
playing with her new jewelry box
looking for dress up clothes

We were totally frustrated with the "game" of going upstairs and getting her back in bed. After a few days of thinking about it I went to find our old Dr. Ferber book. Sure enough, he had an entire chapter dedicated to this very issue. It made me feel better that it was a common issue and he had ideas for solving it. We used his method (as we always have) and of course within two nights and 3 minutes (total) of crying she was staying in her bed again.

3. Once we solved the getting out of bed and playing issue and potty training had settled down we realized EG was still having trouble sleeping. She would wake up and just need something -- covers put back on, kisses, a little rocking in the rocking chair, etc... What we started to put together is that she was cold during the night and/or uncomfortable. Her covers weren't big enough, she had so much stuff in her toddler bed that she couldn't move around so.....

4. Time for the big girl bed. Her crib converts to a full size bed, so we went to the mattress store and let her try out a lot of mattresses and we picked one out. I went and picked it up on Friday afternoon (we figured a 3-day weekend was a good time to try and transition) and brought it home. After an hour of trying to "convert" the bed we finally got it done. We put on the linens and EG practiced getting in and out of bed.

5. She has done great with the big bed for the two nights she has had it. She has trouble settling down to fall asleep -- she's pretty excited about the bed -- but once she falls asleep she stays asleep until morning. Hoping this continues. This morning when she got up she said, "My feet have room in my new bed!"

Potty Training

When the girl makes up her mind -- it's all done. Here is how it started:

1. Daycare started talking about pull-ups and being a big girl.
2. Bribes: 1 chocolate chip for trying, 2 for peeing, and 3 for the whole deal.
3. Other little girl (who has two older sisters) at daycare started going potty and wearing panties. The other little girl and EG are about two months apart.

EG asked me on the way home one day when we could read books in bed. I told her when she is a big girl and doesn't have to wear diapers we will get her a big bed and we can read books in bed.

We got home and she asked to pee on the potty and wear a pull up. That was about 4 days ago and today she wore panties all day. She even woke up at 1am last night and came to get me because she had to potty. She woke up dry this morning.

We have no idea where this is going. We haven't read a book or researched it at all (so not like us). I think this is one of those things that really isn't about us or how we do it. She was ready to try it - so she did.

We aren't getting rid of the diapers or changing table yet. We will just see how it goes.



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The Christmas Card Question

I think with the invention of FACEBOOK the entire Christmas card sending ritual is becoming questionable. Throughout the year, we post on FACEBOOK a few of our favorite moments and a couple of great pictures. As this holiday season rolls around, the question is - do we need to send out photo/xmas cards?

I think the answer is yes. I still have friends who are not on FACEBOOK (although that number is shrinking). I also don't have business associates on my FACEBOOK page. I try to keep my worlds somewhat separate. Many of my older family members still don't have a computer. Additionally, how do I know if people are actually checking their social network sites?

Here is the real reason to send out Christmas cards: they make people happy. I love going to the mailbox each day during the season and seeing how much the children of my friends and family have grown. Reading the holiday letters entertains me. We keep all of our cards from the year before so we know who to send cards to the next year and it is fun to compare cards from year to year.

Finally, I write on my xmas cards. I try to write a small personal note on the back of each card. It only takes a few minutes, but for those few minutes I am talking to an old friend, a dear family member, or some other person who means something to me.

I will send out cards this year. I will treasure the ritual of sitting on the couch with a black sharpie, an address book, last year's cards, stamps, and write to each of my people and sharing a memory of them - if only for a few moments.

Now - how to choose which card -- which picture -- what saying. Religious? Non-Religious? Oh, the decisions. I will be using shutterfly. I have made about three Shutterfly books and loved them. Additionally, a few years ago we had shutterfly xmas cards and adored them. We tried other places with "cheaper" price and ended up with cheaper cards. I couldn't stand last year's card.

I really like this card for this year.

And, I will continue to use SHUTTERFLY for my books. They are so fun and easy to make!