Last Blog Ever!

Well, at least from this neck of the woods. 'Just the girls' disembark Thursday, late morning, for two weeks of vacation in Montana with my parents. Eric completes our final inspection, will load the moving truck, and pull out Friday afternoon. We decided it would behoove the entire family to not make this move a cross-country road trip with the children. The youngest spawn, bless her heart, cannot even drive across town without at least one scream fest. And the girl is loud, people. Like I Know What You Did Last Summer--meets--Jason IV--screaming bloody murder--loud. Perhaps next time?

Therefore, we 'the girls' will vacation while Eric and Walter drive our things cross-country. They'll drop off of our stuff, then meet us at the airport and escort us to our new digs.

We have already found a few darling rental homes in our future city to inspect, as we will not be living on post next duty assignment. We are incredibly excited at the prospect of carpet (not as many dust bunnies!!), a clothes line (!!), and not having to share walls with neighbors.

The girls are very excited to visit with one set of grandparents, and move closer to their other grandparents, as well as cousins, uncles, aunts, etc. Hannah can point out Kentucky, Montana, and Arizona on our map. She can explain to us the events that will take place within the next few weeks, and she seems genuinely excited (just as we are) about her new preschool, new room, new backyard, etc. We have tried to show the girls as many online pictures as possible of their new surroundings, to ease the transition a bit. We have tried to involve them in packing their clothing, toys, etc., so that they can physically see the boxes their belongings will be moving in. We have even discussed how Walter is a part of our family, and as such, will be making the drive to Arizona with Daddy.


The girls are, however, beginning to act up a bit this week. But with the stress we are experiencing right now who can blame them. We don't feel super stressed, but then... we've done this before, the whole 'uprooting our life' bit. It's still fairly new to their dear little hearts.

This is our current decorating theme: every blank wall is stacked high with boxes. Not exactly the picture of serenity.

We will get through it together. It is all very exciting, and we are super-duper pleased with the new duty assignment and timing of it all. Please keep us in your thoughts, and send lots of safe-and-happy-travel-juju our way!

Until next time!

We've Been Busy

We have been up to a lot this last week. Oh my, yes. It has really helped the time fly. All of a sudden, Hubby will be home with us again in just 8 days! I can hardly believe the 6 weeks is almost up. We are so thankful!

What have we been up to, you ask? Let's list the good stuff, shall we...


Big Sister learned how to take a picture of herself with the pocket digital. And, as you can probably tell, we've been spending time at the water park on post. The water park is awesome. It has two large water slides, a 'fun zone' with rope ladders and 'logs' to walk across, fountains in the pool area, etc. The pool itself is inclined, with a maximum water height of 4 feet; this is fabulous for young children. Both Big and Little Sister can splash together with me supervising closely, or we can hold hands, etc., and swim around deeper areas. Pool rules require a ten minute break every 60 minutes, enforced by lifeguards with whistles. While this sounds annoying at first, it's the perfect opportunity to catch some shade, have a snack, reapply sunscreen, or use the restroom. Or all of the above. We all have a lot of fun there, and we can't wait to bring Daddy with us!!

'
Mommy finally finished painting and decoupaging fun scrapbook paper onto our little ol' IKEA table. It gave it a lovely and girly face-lift. We girls like the pink and purple table very much.


The 3 kiddos utilizing furniture the way God intended. Much to Mommy's dismay. *Sigh*


The 3 kiddos playing sweet and precious for Mommy and the camera.
Did you notice what's in Little Sister's hand??


We finished Hannah's swim lessons. She did fantastic! She really made a lot of progress in the water, but best of all, her confidence level with 'new big-girl tasks' has visibly soared. Like... wanting to pour her own glasses of milk... or buckling her own seat belt... etc. It's hard to pinpoint, but she just has more confidence in herself and her abilities.


Exiting the pool using proper exiting techniques on the ladder, as taught and approved by the Red Cross Life Guards of America. Or... something...


With swimming specifically, she now walks away from the wall, and around the pool, all by herself! And at the water park she's been putting her entire face into the water while blowing bubbles, has attempted floating on her back, and has 'swimmed' (mostly me shoving her forward) a 18in. distance between my arms and the side of the pool, and back again to me. Much more confidence in the water! What a darling, happy lady!!


Little Sister at the Army Band's family night. There were snacks, a bounce house, music and dancing, and a magician! Big Sister and a friend rocked the bounce house almost the entire time. Little Sister stuck by me, and we chatted and helped sell snacks at our FRG table. Here she is with some of the goods all over her face. Too precious!


Little Sister required some more toddler-friendly toothpaste on our last visit to the super market. (Toothpaste is toddler-friendly when it's free of fluoride, and thus safer to swallow for little ones still learning to spit). She picked out Thomas the Train. This girl has never before cared who Thomas the Train is. But she is now obsessed with Thomas, and therefore, obsessed with her toothpaste. As is evident by the fact that she took both toothpaste and box to sleep with her. For the fourth consecutive night.

That's the good stuff, isn't it?!

I'm Learning...

While the Hubs is gone for several weeks to BNCOC, this entire experience is teaching me a lot about the kind of person and mother I am, and the caliber of person and mother I hope to be.

• I'm learning that I do need breaks from my children, to give me time to really relax. To reach that mental bliss where you're not constantly averting your eyes from the grown-up you're speaking to in order to count your child's heads, fingers, toes, etc., from across the room. It's like a nervous tick, and people prolly find it rude. It prolly is rude... Give me, like, 10 more years to outgrow it, please? Okay, 12 tops!
• It's good to miss them.
  
• They deserve a break from me, too. I'm the grown-up they're around 24/7, good, bad and ugly. I tell them what to do, when to do it. I'm taller. I'm bossiest. That must get annoying. They deserve a break from me, too. I'd never thought of it that way before tonight.
• I'm learning that, despite the fact that you are tired, you do need to get physically active to keep yourself (in the long run) feeling energized and healthy. And sleep, if possible, should be a priority, too. Those airline pamphlets have it right: "Adults, please place the mask over your own mouth before assisting your child{ren}." Basically, if you're no good to yourself, you are definitely no good to your children. That means fewer crafts get done... but, alas.
• I'm learning that I'm a little more high strung than I would like to be. *Sigh* It's constantly a work in progress; hopefully it won't always be. But I think I'm learning to role with the punches a little bit more. And really, what screams go with flow more than banana pancakes for dinner 3x in 3 weeks, right? Am I right? But in all seriousness, I read this tonight, I hope it goes through my mind and into my heart more often:

“I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Philippians 4:11

• I should say "yes" more. It's easier to say 'no' or 'not now.' It's not just about safety or cleanliness or facing public ridicule or judgment, though that is sometimes a factor. Like, "Why do we wear clothes outside, Mommy? Why can't we jump down the stairs in your high heels, Mommy?" I do try to say 'yes,' but more than I'd like it's with reservations, like 'in just a few minutes, let Mommy finish {insert chore here}.' I should mean what I say more often. And I should mean "yes, immediately" more often.
• I'm learning just how much I value our family, how lucky we are to have a stay-at-home parent and a totally supportive working parent. It's our ideal, and we're living it. That's pretty spectacular.
  
• We miss Eric so much, but isn't it also completely wonderful how much we miss him? How much we value what he contributes to our daily life? And how much he does indeed contribute? We are so fortunate. End of story.
• I'm learning that, despite all the wonderful people we know here, I need to work a little bit harder at building active/social friendships with them. It can get a little lonely at times, new places and new faces, no real friends. But it doesn't have to if you make an effort. We will remember this at our next duty station. Party at our hiz-ouse!
• I want more Mommy-Daughter dates with my children, separately.
  
• I want more dates with my husband! Just us!
  
• I'm learning that, despite the stigmas attached to drinking alone, sometimes a Mama just deserves a small glass of wine and a hot bubble bath at the end of the day. Or a plate of onion rings, the panko-breaded kind, with Heinz ketchup with freshly ground pepper and just a sprinkle of seasoned salt mixed in. Just a random suggestion....
  

Now, on to that 'good sleep' thing....

Weekly Randoms and Pictures

Well, it's officially three weeks (minus one day) until Eric returns home. I can hardly believe our time apart is half over! And we've only had frozen pizza for supper twice. And pancakes for supper thrice. Okay, and once for lunch, but we were sick that day! And I served them with smoothie!
Our schedule this week consisted of story time, swim lessons, park time, making cookies with the girls in full charge (I made myself proud and really tried hard to step aside and let them do the work, spills and all!), as well as Amelia's 2 yr. well exam. Amelia is 23lb.s 8 oz., some odd inches tall... (2nd child, right?) right on target developmentally, and, other than seasonal allergy yuckiness, the overall picture of good health.

Here, Amelia is sporting her new stingray visor (courtesy of the craft time at the Barr Memorial Library) at the special Louisville Zoo comes to Story Time event. Both my brave ladies pet a very large snake named Regina, a hedgehog named Peaches, and a chinchilla named... Chincilla.
No pictures, though, as I was too busy holding Amelia back: she wanted to pet the miniature barn owl, who was not to be pet, but she was quite passionate about it. "I pet owl! I pet owl!"
Swim lessons for Hannah are going well. To be honest, she has had minimal swim time in the last year, and in a class full of 6 yr. olds, she is not progressing as quickly as they are. BUT: Hannah has learned to climb in and out of the pool all by herself, hold onto the wall while she kicks her legs underwater, and blow bubbles in the water with her mouth and nose. And after each lesson, she matter of factly states that she had fun. That is really all that matters.

Every princess needs a castle. And a good pointed-foot ballet move. Done and done!

Some of the free boxes I scored via 'recycle-dumpster-diving' were a little weakened, so we reused them to make a fort, instead, complete with 'secret tunnel.' Even Walter jumped in a few times.

By early last week, Amelia had been attempting to climb out of her crib several times. Each time she attempted this feat, she would catch her leg in the bars of the crib, and begin screaming, "I shtuck! I shtuck!" I feared she would lose her balance somehow during an escape attempt and break her leg. Paranoid? Possibly. Better safe than sorry? Most definitely.
Not wanting to purchase or assemble any major pieces of furniture while my hubby is away or 7 weeks before a move, I was lucky enough to find a secondhand toddler bed in our desired price range that was within a 5 minute drive. Unfortunately, the bed is blue plastic Disney Princess, specifically The Little Mermaid. You know, the one with the C-shells? Not ideal. I'm contemplating taking a little Goo Be Gone to the large sticker on the headboard.

I don't know, is it just me? I don't exactly dislike the whole 'princess' thing, with the dressing up, and the fantasy about living in a castle or dancing and singing to woodland creatures. I did that, too, and I turned out fine. (Mostly I wanted to be Laura Ingalls Wilder or Anne Shirley, though. Way cooler.)
I just do not want my daughters worshipping specific characters who possess no valuable or admirable qualities as a person. Or who wear purple pasties and call it an outfit! It's called a tee shirt, Ariel, try getting one!
Erm... Anyway. Amelia has transitioned pretty smoothly. I do hear the pitter-patter of little feet leaving bed to get a book, and I have had to put her back into bed, at most, 4 times in one night. But it's been a solid week now, and the crib has been taken apart and tucked into a spare closet. In these pictures, I walked into her room after nap time only to discover some books scattered across her bed, while she was on the floor. I'm not certain if she fell asleep on the floor, though, or if she just woke up earlier than I expected... Precious, though, either way.
I can't believe our baby girl is in a toddler bed! Seems like just yesterday we were in the midst of colic and co-sleeping and total, insanity-inducing sleep deprivation.... *Sigh*
Well, that 'bout wraps things up for this week. Y'all come back, now, ya hear!!

Our New Bedtime Routine

Our new bedtime routine, now that Eric is gone for a few weeks and I shoulder this 'home stretch' myself, lasts from about 6:30pm to roughly 8:30pm. That is quite a home stretch.
I begin by trying to have the girls entertain themselves while I finish up the day's dishes, sweep under the table, and make sure they have done their chores (i.e. fed the dog dinner and put their supper dishes on the counter). Depending on how well they entertain themselves, or each other, without hurting themselves, or each other, this can take a lil' bit.

They we commence the climb up the stairs, while I look to grab the much loved pink blankies and a really, really well loved bunny. If Amelia decides she wants to climb the stairs 'aw by self!' then, this too, can take a few minutes. She has to keep looking behind to remind me she's doing it 'aw by self!' and to see that I have both her blankies.

Bath time. And one more chore for the girls: put your own dirty clothes in the hamper for me. I try to get the washing of hair and bodies out of the way first, so there's time to play while I'm just outside the doorway folding a load of laundry. Can't fold it inside the doorway, because there is generally splashing. Even though I ask them not to splash. Repeatedly.

Next, it's time to push the basket to the wall, and get the girls out of the tub. They like to lay on the towel on the floor for a minute or two, giggling with their heads together, while I rub the other towel on their backs and heads and little, pruned feet.

Then, it's a race to the bedroom, with me always in third, as I stop to fold towels and rehang them on the way. Time for pajamas, combing of hair, and one more trip to the toilet for Hannah.
This can take a little coaxing. Or, if coaxing fails, one could always threaten the loss of tonight's story books. Hypothetically speaking, of course.

When pajamas are on, and hair is combed, we reconvene on Hannah's bed with (hopefully) between 3-5 books. Depending on what time it is. And how many times Hannah was told to go use the restroom. Amelia picks at least one book, Hannah at least 3 (she is the bigger sister, and she utilizes all the rights this privilege entails).

Books read, hopefully without any arguing about who gets to turn the page. Take turns, girls.

Now, it's time to race back to the bathroom for a round of teeth brushing. Again, me always in third, as I stop to replace books on the shelf.

Teeth brushing ensues. God willing, for a gentle but vigorous two minutes. Spit, brush your top teeth, too, please don't spit on the floor, Amelia, no, I said 'brush your top teeth,' let Mommy do this for you, now,' etc.
We spit our final spit, rinse, tap, replace into the holder, wipe our mouths, and one more race back to Hannah's bed.

Now, the girls will lay side by side and we sing a few lullabies. This is where I'm cultivating their love of Sound of Music with a little Edelweiss and My Favorite Things, a.k.a. "Sing Raindrops on Roses, Mommy." If this goes well, then there's Five Little Monkeys or Twinkle, Twinkle, too. Depends on how much yawning the vocalist interrupts herself with.

Finally, or almost, a hug and kiss goodnight between sisters. A hug and kiss goodnight between mother and big sister. Double check that the really, really well loved rabbit and pink water bottle are in their proper places beside Hannah, then the gentle closing of the door.

Amelia and I move down the hall to her room, where she gently demands some Lullaby Ro-a-bye, Baby (at least 3 times), as she lays her head on my shoulder. And maybe the Alphabet Song just for good measure.

Finally, finally, I lay Amelia down in her big girl bed. Did you know she made the switch? Just last week... a big girl toddler bed... no more crib... With a kiss goodnight, and a final check that both pink blankies and purple water bottle are in place next to Amelia. As well as her meerkat named Meow. And her Elmo lovey.

Tip-toe out the door, and close it gently. *Sigh* of relief, and a check of the watch. Is it really this late already? Finally, finally...

Now, there was a point to all this rambling...

My point was, I do not always act out this routine with the grace, sanity, and calm volume of voice that God gave me. No, no. Sometimes not. Like, really not. There are no perfect mothers anywhere, least of all in this house. And I am not looking for a pat on the back here. This is what every mother/father/care provider does each and every night.

I simply write this down to acknowledge that... well, whether I always like it or not, I am privileged to be able to actively participate in this routine. This monotonous, redundant, frustrating, tiring, precious, much loved, looked forward to, almost sacred, routine. It is important to my children. Therefore, it is important to me.

My point is that last night, for the first time,

I realized that my nights like this are numbered.

Pretty soon they will be asking to take showers separately, not baths together. And they'll want privacy. And they won't need me to clock them to see how fast they can get their pajamas on. They'll have a chapter book they want to be left alone with, and not want me to read so many books, or any at all, to them. They will know how to brush their own teeth, and God willing, do so for a gentle but vigorous two minutes. They especially won't want me to sing to them, definitely no more Sound of Music. The list goes on and on... doesn't it...

Please, please let me appreciate this wonderful, precious, much loved, looked forward to, almost sacred, routine. Please let me coax more, threaten less. Please let me use my 'inside, happy voice' more, and my 'Mommy's getting pissed voice' less. Let me appreciate it more, and more often. Let them remember this routine with warmth and fondness. Please. I know I will.

How Time Flies...

It's hard to believe that only 2 years ago today we welcomed this little bundle of joy into our world...

Amelia Grace Ferreira

What a joy it has been loving you,

discovering your personality

(most of the time),

learning all about our precious Little Sis.

You don't like to eat meat,
your thumbs bend all the way back--just like Daddy's!
you have never met a stranger,
you prefer when Mommy sings "Ro-a-bye, Baby" at least three times before bed,
you are the most opinionated short person we have ever encountered,
you idolize your Big Sister, and like to copy her ballet "plies!!"
you love Goldfish crackers, a LOT,
you are snuggly and giggly,
and you currently do NOT like to wear clothing, or diapers, for that matter...
especially in public...

But you are the best Amelia Grace we know.

And we love you just the way you are.

Amelia, you are a joy. It is a privilege to be your Mommy. You make everyday an adventure, you remind me, in your own way, to slow down and enjoy all the precious moments we have together, to find awe in the little things, to take time to be silly or snuggle. You have made me a better mother. You are a wonderful little girl, and our family would never have been complete without you.
We love you. Happy 2nd Birthday, Gracie Girl!!

Lost::Reward Offered!

Lost::Reward Offered!
We are missing our little girl's right sandal! It is nowhere to be found. It is exactly like the shoe in the above picture. Except, you know, it's the opposite.
Date last seen: May 17, 2009
Location last seen: On Amelia's right foot.
Circumstances surrounding disappearance: It appears to have mysteriously made it's way to the outside of our van door. Perhaps it was thrown out?! As Mommy was closing the door and walking away. At a gas station. Somewhere in the great state of Illinois.
If you have any information about the whereabouts of our missing right sandal, please contact us or your local authorities immediately!

This Week's Random Bits

Eric left for BNCOC/VA 2009. We dropped him off at Louisville Int'l Airport early Sunday morning, and then the girls and I drove straight to St. Louis to spend a few days with my Grammy and extended family. My younger cousin Sarah was having a BBQ to commemorate her graduation from high school. I used to baby sit her. I distinctly remember a time when she was 4, and explaing the ways of the big, wide world to her little brother John (then 2), and she'd say, "It's a cinch, John. This is how you're asposed to do it." And now she's old enough to vote and go to Ole' Miss. Sheesh.
Miss Amelia's mullet is long enough for piggie tails nowadays....

While in St. Louis we decided to visit the Saint Louis Zoological Park. If you're in town, I highly recommend it. It is a spectacular zoo! We spent about 4 hours there, with precise directions from Miss Hannah Bee to view the lions, tigers, flamingos, zebras, sea lions and hyenas. We missed the hyenas, but made up for it by seeing some crocodiles, kangaroos, wallabees, hippos, rhinos, etc...

Skip to Walter, resting in the backyard after an intense game of fetch. Our dog is awesome.

Here are my girls being read to by my Grammy. This scene warms my heart. The girls adore her, and Amelia would run around her house calling, "Gammy! Gammy! Gammy, Gammy!"

A family picnic lunch at the Louisville Waterfront Park right before Eric left. Amelia's chowing down on a cookie from the Homemade Pie and Ice Cream Kitchen. Yeah, they sell cookies there, too. If you're in town, I highly recommend it. I didn't get too many pictures of this day. But we ended the afternoon taking an early supper at the New Albany Brewing Co., Eric's pick. Awesome pizza.

Me, in front of the camera... er... sort of, for a change. Road trip!
Once in St. Louis, I was able to visit a Hobby Lobby for the first time ever. Oh. My. Goodness. It was heavenly. I spent my whole allowance on lots of little crafting 'wants.' Oh, yes... By the end of summer, all my projects should be crossed off my craft to-do list and looking good. Of course, it'll all just go directly into a moving box, but I'm so excited for our next home!

Amelia didn't really like getting wet by the sprinkler. She prefers baths and pools to showers and sprinklers.

And here's a Little Tykes thing, off the curb, which we will utilize for the remainder of our time here in Kentucky.

Hannah Bee running around our yard back at home, utilizing the awesome sprinkler Mommy found on the curb at the end of last summer. Woohoo!

At the zoo... love that face... love that girl...
And Miss Hannah Bee will begin swim lessons next week! This particularly excites Mommy, as I distinctly remember almost drowning as a child. Twice. I know my girls mostly swim in the bathtub at this juncture, but alas...
Saving the best update for last: Eric discovered, shortly after arriving to BNCOC/VA 2009, that his graduation date (and therefore, his return date) will be bumped up by 2 entire weeks! He is expected to fly home on either July 2 or 3, instead of July 17. FABULOUS! Obviously, we are quite excited by this, as we do so like him.
M'kay, that's about it I think.

This Week's Random Bits

I attended my first, and last, Ladies' Night Out with my group of FRG gals here this week. I hated to take off during one of the last weeks Eric and I will have together for a while, but... I needed to take off during the last free nights I'll have for the next 8 weeks. Plus, these are wonderful ladies, and I don't get together with them nearly enough.
We went to a charity event at the Melting Pot in Louisville to benefit St. Jude's Childrens Hospital. The food... oh my goodness... Have you been to the Melting Pot before? I had not. Oh. My. Goodness.
Ladies in Kentucky party in hats. Regretfully, all I have are baseball caps, which clashed with my kitten heels.

Hannah is very devoted to journal time lately. She has three little notepads that she's constantly 'writing' in, though don't let her catch you calling it a notebook: it's a journal. It's fantastic to watch her deep in thought, 'writing.'

Amelia during some family drawing time. Can you tell I trimmed her mullet? A whole inch! She looks like such a little lady now!

The weather is sporadic this week. We take advantage of outside time when we can. At least, with 'inside time' comes more craft time. I seem to remember a special Hallmark Holiday approaching... The girls were very excited to craft some cards this week. Hannah, with encouragement, signed her name in all of them, too. She refused to learn how to write "Grandma." Sorry, Grandma!

A little gardening! We planted some sunflower seeds in a backyard bed, and a few Super-tunias and seeds in our baskets and one large planter out front. We're keeping it really simple since we're moving at the end of summer. Other than our hanging baskets, all of our outside planters (3 large and 6 small) were discovered last winter on someone's curb. Again, I practically jumped from a moving vehicle to claim them, and I distinctly remember a phone conversation with my sister as I'm standing at the gas station, vacuuming potting soil off the floor of our trunk because one of them tipped over on the drive home. But that only cost me 4 quarters, so who gets the last laugh? Mwa-ha-ha!!

Miss Hannah-Bee and me at the park. She refused to let me work the camera here, but I actually quite like her picture. Between the two of us, we almost have an entire face.
This girl cracks me up! We've celebrated her 5th birthday three times in the last two weeks. Basically, we find whatever baked goods we have in the house, pop some candles into them, and sing 'Happy Birthday' to the whole family after dinner. We decided to leave the cloth celebration banner pinned up in the dining room in anticipation of yet another 'birthday.' At this rate, it may remain up until Amelia's (real) 2nd birthday!
Eric has officially started BNCOC this week. I forget what this particular acroynym stands for, as there several. Hundred. Let me ask the DH about this ASAP. Anyway, the gist of it: it's a 10 week training school for soldiers once they've been promoted to Staff Sergeant. They take lots of classes, like leadership, Army history, sexual harrasment prevention, etc. It's exciting stuff.
Regardless, we are lucky that the first two weeks of this course take place right here on Fort Knox. So Eric will be able to come home each night, and will also have Sunday off. But the remainder of his BNCOC will take place at the Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base in Norfolk, VA. He will be gone from May 17 - July 17. We are not exactly looking forward to this, but it could be a lot worse.
And that is this week, in a nutty nutshell.

A Mommy's Rant Rave

The poop just seems to hit the fan when Eric is away. I dislike the coincidental calamity that ensues as a result of stressful incidentals occurring while there is just no possible way for me to take a break. In layman's terms: it has seriously been one of those weeks!!
But now that it's over, Daddy's back and can provide some extra hands for helping fold laundry, tickling and playing "kitchen," running out to grab more milk so Mommy can make sure supper hits the table on time, or just providing a little parental support when the going gets tough, now... now it's darn laughable.
It's nice to get a little perspective on how wonderful we really have it, despite the fact that this week:

• The microwave died. It just flat out died right in the middle of reheating blueberry pancakes for supper! I cleared everything off the counters so I could plug it in to all the different outlets, trying to figure out if it was simply the outlet, but alas. This actually made me cry, because it was the last straw, I dislike incidental purchases, and I'm a budget lady, and while it certainly won't break us it just wasn't on 'the budget.'

• Mommy accidentally broke the french press. And since the microwave is broken, I couldn't make myself a latte. Seriously, no coffee?? NO COFFEE?? Not to mention, incidental purchase. Crap, those keep coming up this week.
• Amelia took at least 45 minutes to go to bed each night this week. Forty-five minutes. She would not stop jumping in her crib, and shaking the side rails! NOTHING worked. Except waiting. She wasn't upset, just... crazed... hyper? And then Hannah and she would get in a verbal sparing match, with Hannah constantly saying, "Stop it, Amy! Go to sleep!" To which Amy just kept replying, "NO!"
• Hannah didn't like sleep either, this week, only she was waking up the girls an extra hour early each morning! No one got their full nights rest this week. No one. Everyone was just a little crabbier, a little more tired.
• We thought Amelia actually broke the crib! The latch just needs an extra tug, now, to stay put, but Amelia has actually managed to jar that latch loose from so much jumping and shaking. Talk about your incidental purchases! We may need to get this girl a toddler bed, because there is no way this dare-devil child would be safe on a twin. We'll see how next week plays out, as we had planned to keep her in the crib until after we moved.

But on the bright side, because there's always a bright side:

• Daddy was just on TDY. He is not deployed. He is nearby and returning soon, safe and sound. And he's happy to come home, too. And we're happy to have him! Bonus!
• Hannah is getting better about talking on the phone. Normally she just holds the phone... and smiles at the person on the other end. Possibly disappointing? Yes. She asked every day to speak to Daddy, and actually spoke to him, which makes us feel better about the upcoming 8 weeks he will spend in Virginia for BNCOC.
  
• When Hannah and Amelia weren't verbally sparring this week, they were playing so very well together! Hannah has taken to 'reading' to Amelia, as well as teaching her (what she remembers) from ballet. They use the back of the chair as a 'barre.' I have caught them in some extraordinarily sweet moments this week.
• The girls have played so well together, in fact, that I've taken time to sit on the floor next to them and read for myself. So I did, in fact, get to 'escape' a little when needed. I chose to pounce on the bandwagon that is 'the Twilight series.' Not bad.
• Amelia has learned even more words and phrases this week! (Perhaps that's why her sleep has been so screwy: her brain is so busy). For instance, now she helps herself to her bag of cashews in the pantry (our little vegetarian needs her protein!) and will bring it to Mommy or Daddy saying, "Mo' nut! Mo' nut!" Of course, if you deny her this treat because it's too close to meal time, well, I don't envy that parent... And now we tease her, saying, "Is your name Amy B? Amy C? Amy D?" And she will say, "Hannah-Bee! Amy-G!" It's just been amazing to hear her vocabulary literally triple in size the last two weeks.

Anyway. A simple rant turned rave here. That's life as a parent for you?

Spring Break 2009

Here's a picture of my feet on the spring break of my dreams....
a sandy beach...





And here's a picture of my feet, on the spring break of my reality. A sandy... sandbox. In the backyard of our not-so-exotic Kentucky home. *Sigh*
(Yes, I am so pale I match the 'white sand' in the sandbox. And I'm in desperate need of a pedicure, no? I try to stick with a more natural look, but have sadly inherited my father's feet. And while I'm sure he's glad they don't look feminine, me... not so much).


But we are fortunate enough to be enjoying 70 degree days with gentle breezes and lots of outdoor time this week. The girls have been thoroughly enjoying their sandbox, our replenished supply of bubbles and sidewalk chalk, and eating snacks outside at our little picnic table.... The girls spent some time picking 'flowers' in the front yard with Mommy and Daddy watching on and reading.... We also logged plenty of time at our favorite parks getting good and dirty...
We have had a pretty darn good spring break this week!!
Happy Spring Break!

Happenings

Let's begin this blog by me stating that I do, in fact, brush her hair. Girl Scouts honor! But my girls like to do crafts first thing after breakfast, pre-clothing and hair brushing. And I consent because if they accidentally get paint on their 'jammas' versus their clothes, well... who cares?We had a few rainy days keep us inside lately, so we tried some new crafts. Here is Hannah painting a peg doll! Which we will later construct into a necklace, once we get more hook things at the craft store. We, mostly me, are excited about the endless possibilities found in the unfinished wood aisle in Michael's in conjunction with the weekly 40% off coupon which allows me one new craft per week at a bargain! Yes!!
This week's craft bargain (Yes!!): Peg doll necklaces for the girls. Came across this terrific idea here. The girls named them Hannah and Blue. Can you guess which is which?
Here is an adorable photo of Hannah from last week, a couple days before a tornado almost got us!! Yeah, did I mention the tornado? We were seriously, incredibly fortunate it dissipated 3-4 minutes prior to reaching Fort Knox. Thank God Eric is such a weather fiend, and once he heard the sirens he turned on the news, firmly stated we were getting the girls out of bed and bringing them downstairs in case we needed to crowd into our little windowless half-bath (it's actually more like a glorified shoe box with a toilet--but whatever).... and then right before it was time to grab a blanket and crowd in there, it was gone. Crazy.
At last week's story time there was a guest speaker from the Humane Society of Nelson County. The woman brought her 11 yr. old cocker spaniel, Tater Tot, in to meet the children and teach them about dog safety. We learned to only approach dogs on leashes, and only pet them if you receive permission from their owner. And if you see a dog approaching you in an aggressive manner you:
get down and pretend to be a rock! Amelia had fun copying the big kids.
There's Hannah approaching Tater. What a sweet dog!! She likes apples, so her owner brought a baggie full of apple pieces for the kids to feed her.
Hannah pretending to 'be a mountain' while you wait for the dog to sniff you prior to petting them. Sweet girl! What an animal lover she is. She says that when we get a house of our own she wants another dog named Daisy, and also two cats named Brown and Brownie. I see a compromise in there somewhere... and a lot of lint rollers...

Been a little while...

We've had a somewhat busy time lately. Last week, Eric went to Mardi Gras with the band. Usually, we do just fine with him gone, as we're pretty used to short trips and long days. But then there are those times when he leaves, and the remaining family goes to the nuthouse.
This was such a time.
Amelia is still working on those bottom bicuspids. Not only is our sweet girl a bit of a drama queen, she does not suffer teething kindly. And we ran out of teething tablets. And can't remember where we bought them in the first place.
And Hannah, for whatever reason, took to throwing huge tantrums anytime we were in public. Oh, yes. Lovely. There was the FRG get-together where a kind lady had to carry a screaming, crying Hannah to our van for me... then, there was her well-exam, where upon discovering that they closed the immunization office early and that we would have to come back later, she screamed, cried and ran away from me... and I had to chase her down the hall carrying Amelia, two lovies, a diaper bag, and a blankie with a pharmacy full of people staring at us. Mommy did the 'walk of shame' a few times last week. By Wednesday, we stopped leaving the house.
Luckily, everyone is feeling a little less cranky this week. In fact, I'd say we're back to down right sweet and adorable.

Here's Hannah 'making' some icing for her 'cupcakes.' She has decided to rename herself Rose, and says she is having a wedding tomorrow at 6. *Sigh* This is my problem with little girls liking Princesses: basically, their whole goal in life is to find their prince and be married, wear dresses and crowns. I've told her that weddings are for Mommys and Daddys, and we should just throw a dinner party. Or a birthday party. Or her inauguration... where she'll be a President, a highly respected political status, and do wonderful things for humanity. And she'll still get to wear the dress!
She's four, so she doesn't care.

Painting in pajamas, a favorite pastime. The girls have a whole new stack of art to put up on the art wall. Now, if I could just find my tape.

Amelia is getting better at painting. Before, she was confused by the process of using the water to wet the paint, and instead kept rinsing the paint off before touching her brush to paper.

Just a sweet face. Her mullet is getting so long, I'm tempted to trim it. But I fear she might look more like a little girl instead of a big baby. I'm not ready for that, yet.