More of our weekend

This is my favorite t-shirt of all time. T&rget rocks.

The Kid got ahold of a sheet of stickers in the car.

Dinner and a show

This past weekend, we attended a children's theatre production of Alice in Wonderland, with Mark. It was The Kid's first 'theatrical' experience and we were suprized to find out that lunch was included in the ticket price. She really seemed to enjoy it, although she let it be known that it was too dark when they turned the lights out.

Mark's lunch (Mac & Cheese, Chicken fingers, Oreo fluff and a cookie)

The Kid says "Mmmm! This cookie is delicious!"

Mark has my permission to shave my head bald if I ever get the 'Mom Helmet' hairdo.

Mark and The Kid

The Kid with Alice, The Duck (??!?), The Caterpillar, and The White Rabbit

She sings....sorta

I couldn't pick just one, so I'm putting up all three. Enjoy.

All about eyes

There are lots of ways that I am POSITIVE my daughter was meant to be a part of my family. One of those ways is her bizarre sense of humor. For awhile now, I've noticed that The Kid would, on occassion, cross one (although sometimes two) eyes. I was a little concerned about it, because it wasn't all the time and they/it would uncross as quickly as they had crossed. Well, recently, she will be doing something and then walk up to me and when I look at her, she has this really serious look on her face, but her eyes are crossed and then she starts laughing hysterically. I guess it got a reaction out of me, because now she can totally do it on command and she thinks it is the funniest thing ever. I know her Grandpa would be so proud of her!


The other way I know she was meant to be in my family is how stunning she looks in glasses. Much like her momma, she will always have a hard time finding glasses that will stay on her face, but they will look good on her.

Unseasonably warm day

It was 75 degrees the other day. Which was quite a big change from the blizzard we had had the week before. Here's a couple of pics from the day. (LOOK at how long The Kid's ponytails are getting!!!)

Maybe we should branch out.

The Kid and I play this game that I like to call 'Wake Up, Momma!'. The rules of the game are simple. I pretend to be asleep, and The Kid tries to wake me up. The real key to the game is, that I only wake up when she gives me a kiss. The other day, we were playing our game and she had said "Wake up, momma!" a couple of times, before crawling up into my lap (presumably to give me my kiss). She puts her hands on either side of my face and says "Wake up, momma! It's time to go to T@arget!" I laughed so hard I nearly passed out.

The Kid is smart

The other day, The Kid was singing Happy Birthday to me and when she finished I asked her if it was my birthday and she said yes. Then, being the little smarty pants that she is, she decided that we needed cake. Leave it to my kiddo to pretend it's someone's birthday just so she can get some birthday cake.

She also has a mind like a steel trap. A couple of weeks ago, we went to a baby shower. Before the shower I had picked up a couple of gifts for 'the new baby'. She thought it was all for her and so we had a talk about how the presents were for 'the new baby' and that pretty much seemed to satisfy her. Even when we went to the shower, we talked about how the soon-to-be momma would be opening lots of presents of toys and books. The Kid understood that these were off limits because they were for 'the new baby'. Well, she has not forgotten about that because since the shower, when she asks for something and I say no, she will nod wisely and say "for the new baby". Then I have to try and explain to her that "No. It's not for the new baby, honey. You just simply can't have that sharp knife/scissors/matches on the counter."

Ice/Snow Storm

Saturday - 3pm



















Sunday - 2pm

Photo Series: B&W

This was a rare occasion where The Kid let me fix her hair and curl it.

Photo series: "Through the beach ball"

I wanted to call this "The Kid in the Plastic Bubble" but I was afraid somebody might take me seriously. FYI - If you don't know me personally, don't take anything I say seriously.

You will have to excuse me...

I have a new camera, so I'll be all about pictures and the fun things I can do with it for a few days.

I call this series "Study on a Monkey"

Happy Valentine's Day!

A BICYCLE!!!



















Ooohhhh! It is red and shiny!


I can't reach the pedals.
















But it is a good place to enjoy my Valentine's sucker!

2.5

My little girl is 2.5 years old today. These milestones are always kind of bittersweet for me. She is changing so fast and I wish she would slow down. Every time she does something new, I'm so proud of her and yet, at the same time, I just want to go sit in a corner and have myself a little cry because she's not my baby anymore. I missed the first year of her life, you would think she could show me the common courtesy to slow down and quit learning and stuff. But, no, this is the way it was meant to be.

My girl, LOVES to dance. Turn on some music and she will dance herself into a frenzy. She is as good of a dancer as I am. I am serious. I have thought about getting her into dance classes, but I don't want her to make all the other kids jealous. She is PHENOMENAL! I think she is the next Martha Graham. She reminds me a lot of a young Elaine off of Seinfeld, complete with the little kicks.




Have I mentioned that she talks ALL THE TIME now? Well, she does, and sometimes, it's pretty dang funny.

Here's some of my favorite things.

One more time? - after a book, a song, a popsicle

Cheers! - If we each have one of the same thing, they must touch and we say "Cheers _____!" Sometimes this is a drink, if we are both wearing a hat, our noses, our thumbs. Anything really.

Fleemo! - Flamingo!

Mayme tay-mahr-wow - maybe tomorrow- usually said right after I have said "Not right now, honey."

Dah-doh! Dah-doh! - Donald! as in Donald Duck

Mick clue Mow Cluh! - Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!

Mother, I would like to use the computer so that I might get a jump start on studying for my college entrance exams. I'm not even sure when/where she learned about college entrance exams....

She has an imagination that rivals my own growing up. She refuses to stand on the bath mat next to the bathtub because she is afraid to step on the ladybugs (it's ladybug-free). We play lots of hide-and-seek for Toodles (it's a 'character' off of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse). She makes the best popcorn cookies and ice cream soup you have ever had the pleasure of eating. And she makes THE BEST coffee I have ever had. And her imagination is not ALL about cooking....there are always puppies and kittens running around our house, eventhough I am very allergic....

I wake up every day, anxious to see what new thing she will learn or discover. I am so proud of her, but at the end of the day, once she is sound asleep, I sometimes go back to look at pictures of her from the day we met. I still wish I could have just a little more time with my baby. But no, this is the way it was meant to be. In six months, she will be three. 3!!!! If you need me, I'll be in the corner...having myself a little cry.

PS. She's not wearing real earrings, they are the stick-on kind. She has to wait until she's 13 for the real thing. But her armband tattoo?? Totally real.

And the other way we spent the weekend.

FREAKOUT! (I am having trouble editing, so just ignore the part after she starts swinging around the shopping cart.)

Our weekend in pictures

It was bitterly cold outside all weekend long (today, with the windchill, it was way below zero), so we stayed at home where it was warm. Here's how we spent the weekend.

#1 Veggin' out. #2 Diaper Patrol #3 I know you told me not to touch it, but I'll keep trying for the next 15 minutes when I move on to the next thing I'm not supposed to touch. #4 See??? I CAN play independently. #5 NO!! YOU say 'cheese'!

Cowboy dreaming

The Kid woke up very, very early this morning and she was crying. This wasn't her normal nighttime cry, this was her 'get in here NOW because I'm about to have a full scale freak out' cry. So, I go into her room and rub her tummy and ask her what's wrong.

Her answer?

"I don't want to play the cowboy game!"

Actually, that is the translation. What she actually said was "I want play cow boy game!" I know she means 'don't want' because everytime I set a meal in front of her with mushrooms in it, she will pick one out and say "I want eat mush roooooom! Yeeeeeech!" But I'm still unclear as to whether she was dreaming about cows (often called cowboys by TK) or cowboys (like John Wayne). And what could this game be? Curious.

Babies on planes

There was an story on all the news sources today about a family that was on a plane and their 3 year old daughter would not stop screaming and crying so they were kicked off the plane.


It's a good thing China Southern didn't have the same policy.




















On a totally unrelated note, the picture above was taken one year ago. I can't even believe that that is the same little girl. She looks so scared and tiny and sad.

What a difference a year makes!

A perfect day

Somedays as a parent, I feel like I do a much better job than other days. Today was one of the really great days. We didn't have any fights over getting dressed, fixing her hair, putting on her coat, getting strapped into her car seat. The Kid was in a great mood, I was in a great mood. We went to the playland and every few minutes, she would come over and give me a hug. (That's pretty unusual....she normally only wants to hug when I want her to do something she doesn't want to do.) Everywhere we went, some stranger was stopping us to say how well behaved The Kid was. I don't really care what people say, but it is nice to have them commenting on the good things. Usually, people walk away from us raising an eyebrow and shaking their head. This is usually right after The Kid has been acting like a lunatic and I know in their mind they are thinking 'glad that's not my kid'.

It's funny. A couple of years ago, my definition of a perfect day would have been so different from today. I probably wouldn't have spent ANY time at a mall playland. I wouldn't have made up silly songs and sing them in public to make my daughter laugh (I would do just about anything to hear that laugh). I would have been the one raising an eyebrow and shaking my head at some mom who was having a difficult day with their child.

I wouldn't trade places with 2-years-ago-me for anything......today, that is. We'll see about tomorrow.

Snow Day 2007

ABC about me

A - available or taken: Available (Do you HEAR that Orlando???)
B- best friend: I have a few very close friends that I would consider my best friends. And that includes family members
C- cake or pie: Costco cake
D- drink of choice: Coffee or Diet A&W Root Beer
E-essential item you use everyday: Pens, phone, my hands, my feet, my brain.....
F-favorite color: Green or purple
G-gummy bears or worms: Gummy Bears
H-hometown: Ankeny, IA
I-indulgence: St&rbucks coffee on occassion
J-January or February: February. It's different than all the other months.
K-kid's names: Miss R
L-life incomplete without: My daughter and the rest of my family (that includes friends!)
M-marriage date: 11/11/11
N-number of siblings: Two sisters
O-oranges or apples: Apples and sometimes oranges if I'm feeling brave
P-phobias or fears: Unripened fruit, feet, clowns, bugs....the list goes on for days
Q-favorite quote: "I never did mind the little things" and "NO, Steven! Only when I say so! Only when I say!"
R-reason to smile: My daughter's laugh. Hugs and kisses from her, too.
S-season: Winter! I LOVE snow! I wish we had gotten the snow instead of Colorado!!!
T-tag 3 people: Nah...I just did it because Donna did it.
U-unknown fact about me: I am teaching myself how to play the psaltry.
V-veggie I don't like: Brussel sprouts
W-worst habit: I mutter to myself constantly
X-xrays: My back a few years ago.
Y-your favorite food: Pasta with tons of garlic and mushrooms
Z-zodiac: Libra
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