So, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while Grace is at preschool, Everly and I tackle the day by ourselves. Sometimes, I will go out and run errands and then come home in time for her to nap, then she is up again and we eat lunch and play and then go get the kids. Other days, we come home right away and play until nap, lunch, and play again. So, it seems like with only one kid at home, I could accomplish great things! I mean, she even naps for an hour and a half to 2 hours. And surely, she could play a little by herself while I work on the computer (the one thing I never seem to have time to do - bills, uploading pictures, blogging....) or go from room to room putting things away or cleaning or accomplishing little projects. But, in reality, by with those 4 hours a week, I end up doing the normal daily stuff and not accomplishing anything extra. Everly needs me and one day she won't, so we just play and play on these days. On this particular day, we had already played on my bed in my room and practiced kissing her baby over and over and I'd tickled her so much by walking my fingers up and down her little body, that she was exhausted from laughing so much. So, I put her on the ground and walked into the kitchen and she crawled and followed me. I got her baby so she could keep playing on the floor....but her whines came and I ended up on the floor with her. And then she was just hilarious; she played with the baby, crawled on me, waited for me to tickle her or peekaboo with her, and tried 100x to open the cabinet door. So, at one point, I decided to get her kisses for the baby on camera and it turned into a 5 minute video. So, here you go. This is not academy award winning and possibly nobody but me will love it so much. I also realize how much I talk; yikes. But, these are "the days of my life" and I truly love them so much. Oh and when you hear the Darth Vader sound from her, it was because she was really congested that day. It's amazing. This sweet baby has not been sick, ever. She has had two runny noses and fever only once and it was actually just the day after her 6 month shots. Anyways, here is the video!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC4_j84UMPo
Saturday, February 18, 2017
Friday, February 17, 2017
Friday Favorites: (For the past month!)
Here's what has been happening recently:
ONE (Bachelor)
A few weekends ago, we went to DFW for a quick weekend. The kids went to stay at Grandma and Pop's for the night, while Vic, Everly and Charley hung out at Ana & Charley's apartment so Ana & I could go to a party! Since I never do things like this, I had really been looking forward to it. As you may know, Ana & I love to follow Mix and Match Mama's blog. She is Shay Shull, who is the sister to a former Bachelor, Sean Lowe. I found her blog back when he was the bachelor, but then after Bachelor was over, I started following it because her life is so fun to follow. It's about adoption, travel, recipes, life with kids, etc. Plus, she has this group of friends who have similar blogs and I love to follow them all. Of course, Ana & I are pretty sure that one day we will all live in McKinney and be friends with this whole group! Anyways, we saw on her blog that her sis-in-law, Catherine (who married Sean!) was having a one year anniversary party for her stationary company, LoweCo. She was advertising on her social media, and you could buy tickets, so we did! It was at a venue in Dallas. We arrived and it was pretty scarce of people, although we spotted Mix and Match Mama and her friends right away! We also saw Catherine and Sean. The room wasn't big; there was a bar and some snacks and a raffle table of goodies. And there were 5 pinatas hung up that were later hit until goodies dropped out. But, we were super surprised more people were not there. We guessed about 70 were there? Maybe a few more. It was kind of awkward sometimes because there wasn't really anything to do but hang out. There was a fun photo booth! You could dance, which is right up Ana's alley, but there was not a lot of dancing happening. I just expected 100's of people to be at this thing, but it seemed like about 75% her friends and 25% bachelor fans! (or for us, also MMM fans!) Anyways, once of MMM's friends, Kara, befriended us to go dance and we found out she was an Aggie! (then, after I got back that weekend, and posted a pic, my friend Taylor said they were roommates in college! how crazy is that!?). We really wanted to go visit with Shay, but again - all kind of awkward and she was having fun with her friends. So, Ana realized we might run into her in the bathroom and we did! We told her we'd come find her, but didn't until we realized they were all leaving early. So, we ran up, introduced ourselves, took a quick picture and then left after they did. Looking back, we really should have gone up sooner. She seemed super nice and I bet she would have visited a little. I also met Erika, her friend, and we visited with her. Anyways, this post is mostly for my memories, but it was still a fun night! Oh and Catherine seemed super fun too! We saw Sean, but he seemed to hang out in the background so we didn't try a picture with him. Anyways, fun night! I'd do it again but I would be braver! ha!
And while we had a night out, the kids had way too much fun with Grandma and Pop!
TWO (100 days of school)
A couple of weeks ago on a Wednesday was the 100th day of school for Atticus. On Monday, they sent home a note to let the kids dress up like a 100 year old person. So, I had less than 2 days to figure something out. Well, I ran to pick up suspenders and a hat, but that's as far as we got. I didn't have any glasses for him to wear or a cane. We really needed an old person to borrow from! And we put on gray eyebrows and a mustache, but he did not like the feeling of paint on his face so he wanted it off. Oh well! He has been so excited about this countdown to 100 days since the beginning of kindergarten. Constantly, throughout the year, he would come home and tell me what day it was. So, Wednesday was a fun day for him! And here he is, although he looks more like Super Mario Brothers in the first picture and more of a 1920's newspaper man in the second picture. Still a cutie!
THREE (Co-sleeping)
Vic was gone Sunday through Wednesday a couple of weeks ago. 2 of the 3 nights, I had kids come into my room throughout the night and get into bed with me. I actually don't mind it at all, but when Vic is here, he prefers they be in their own beds. And 4 of us do not fit great, so I agree. But, if just one sneaks in, it doesn't usually bother me. Anyways, they were pretty cute when I would get up each morning.
FOUR (our snuggle bunny)
This girl loves her daddy and gives the sweetest snuggles!
FIVE (Date with Atticus)
A couple of Friday's ago, Vic had to come home for the afternoon to talk to the Dish Network guy so I went to pick up Atticus from Kindergarten alone. As soon as I got there, he asked me what Blue Baker was and then asked if we could go there. So, we had a spontaneous date! I remembered they had cookies and so I thought it would be fun to just take him and then run a couple quick shopping errands. And it was fun! He is really growing up so much and is so smart and inquisitive. He ordered the biggest cupcake they had with chocolate milk and just talked and talked. Oh and apparently. his teacher had a drink from Blue Baker which is why he even knew about the place!
SIX (Fun in the car)
The kids LOVE to play in the car after school or have me drive them around our neighborhood without seat belts. On this day, they were being so silly and I just had to have a picture. Everly was being a seat belted, well behaved baby in the back.
SEVEN (Grace Plays)
I just want to keep recording how much Grace play. Atticus is really into Star Wars toys and building his own Lego ship creations right now, but this girl is always into playing something "girlish" as she says. Princesses, baby dolls, dress-up, you name it, she plays it. Oh and I may have mentioned in the past her love of playing "Mrs. Summer and Hallie". Last year in preschool, she would come home wanting to play teacher/student and would use her friend's name and her teacher's name for us to pretend to be. Well, one of her current "best friends" is Hadley so it's recently changed to Mrs. Summer and Hadley. But, we play whatever it is in the moment she has on her mind. Many times, she just pretends to come to school and bring a toy or tell me (Mrs Summer) about made up scenarios of what is happening in her life or she will sing songs. And in the past when Atticus would play, his name would be "Crosby" (another friend last year) and she will still incorporate him into playing even when he is not here. She is just so funny! And she is into playing with Everly but also getting VERY upset now that Everly crawls to wherever Grace is to play with her toys. Grace will yell about it when Everly is at least 10 feet away. I am trying, over and over, to tell Grace that Everly might not even touch her toys and that there is no reason to scream everytime. Ah...little sisters!
EIGHT (Dinosaur Zoo)
Atticus's friend, Greer, gave us tickets to see the Dinosaur Zoo this past Sunday. It ended up being only me and Atticus going, but I loved having another date with him. They were giant puppets but it was a cute show.
NINE (Swings)
2 -3 afternoons per week, we will stay at Atticus's school after he gets out and play at the park. To the side is this little tiny park with one slide and two baby swings. Grace still fits so she and Everly got to swing and Atticus pushed. It was such a fun afternoon. Everly couldn't stop laughing and LOVED being pushed. Her weight kept getting pushed to the front of the swing and it was so funny to watch her hang there. I have pictures and video of Atticus and Grace (when Grace was around Everly's age) and it's funny to realize how long it has been since we've been to this park to play.
Happy Friday Everyone!
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Happy 36th Birthday to Vic!
Vic's birthday fell on a Sunday this year. The kids and I thought we would celebrate Saturday night because we had church and were headed to a friend's house Sunday afternoon. Grace and I made him a football shaped cake (just because it was Super Bowl weekend) and we got him a the new Reba gospel music CD. We had a fun evening. And then the next day we went to Chris and Katherine's to eat hamburgers, let the kids play and go to the park, and hang out. Vic and Katherine share a birthday so we celebrated them both!
36 candles took up way more room than I imagined on this cake!
Vic was noting how tall Atticus has gotten!
We made this cake in the afternoon. In our pajamas. And then Grace posed. Even though I didn't ask her to. This girl!
The birthday boy with is 3 presents! #in2017weareonabudget
So, the funniest part about gifts was that I had asked the kids to make cards or make something. Well, Grace took this as picking this princess gift bag out of the wrapping stash and going around the house to put things in it for Daddy. When Atticus and Vic got home from the grocery store that afternoon, Atticus took a Star Wars bag and did the same. It was so funny watching Vic pull out toys, books, and picture frames of people around the house. They were SO proud of what they wrapped and he did a good job of being so excited about it! haha!
Happy Valentine's Day!
I can not resist a chance to take some pictures. This past Saturday, Vic went to an all day Men's Bible Study and so the kids and I went out for pizza, a target run and then to the George Bush Library to take some pictures. Well, I had hoped to go mid morning to GBL first and then do lunch and target but Everly took a really really long nap (I'm talking 3 1/2 hours) that morning, so we had to reverse our schedule and do lunch first. So, we didn't get to GBL until about 3:30 and it was hot (talking 86 degrees that day!) and they were really trying to smile and hold still, but it wasn't working great. And really it was just supposed to be fun to go there and play and take some pictures, and not a big deal, so we took a few, and then actually left after that because they both had to go to the bathroom. I was tempted to let Atticus go in the woods part back behind there where we were taking pictures, but it was also right next to the cemetery where George and Barbara will be buried one day. And there were cameras on it. And I just didn't think it was appropriate. Plus, my luck would be the event would be filmed and put in the newspaper! I'm not sure if letting your 5 year old take a potty break in the woods of a presidential library is against he law or not, but I'm sure it is frowned upon. Anyways, the other funny thing, was that I gave them all suckers, (yes, even Everly - clearly she is the 3rd child) and let them eat them during pictures. All was fine, until I tried to take it away from Everly to get a picture of her cute smile. She did NOT want me to take that away. Also, by the end, she was the hottest, stickiest mess. And who didn't bring the baby wipes from the car? Me. We got done, traipsed back across the grounds to the car, got in and while we did, some precious paper (that I actually think was a piece of trash) flew out of the car (it was super windy that day too) and across the parking lot faster than I could find it. Well, that just made Grace incredibly upset that her special paper had blown away. So, basically this fun outing was fun, but had it's normal ups and downs of being a 10 months, 3 & 5 years old. But, Happy Valentines Day anyways!
Also, for Valentines Day, Atticus made a Star Wars Valentines box; they both had parties at school and got tons of treats and Everly and I hung out to eat cheerios and then I had to wake her from an epic naps she must have been having! It was a good day to be the kids!
Everly is 10 months!
Here are Everly's updates at 10 months old!
And then she crawled right on out of that room and went about her business getting into stuff. Notice the sticker on her bottom!
- Her weight is approximately ___
- She is in size 3 diapers and going into her 9-12 month or 12 month clothes.
- She is a great sleeper and still taking 2 naps per day.
- Recently, she has become attached to her blankets. She has one yellow and white afghan that Melbo made her and one multicolored afghan that the ladies of the church gave her when she was baptized. She sleep with both every night, but tends to lace her fingers through the multi colored one and wrap it around her. The other night, she was upset but not ready for bed and I grabbed her paci and her blanket and brought them into the living room where she calmed down. She would also just lay down on the blanket in the floor like she was ready for bed. Cutie!
- Still only has 7 teeth and no more poking through yet.
- At 9 1/2 months, she started crawling and is always on the move now.
- She still can't pull up to her feet yet, but can pull up to her knees. However, mostly she doesn't seem too interested in pulling up at all.
- We have misplaced and hopefully NOT lost her plastic mallet, her favorite toy. We do not lose toys often, but I can't find this one anywhere! However, she is also starting to get bored with her toys. So, I have to pull out something else from the big kids toys to let her play and find other things for her to look through and mess with and then she will want to play with her own toys again. Vic is planning to get into the attic soon to get some more out.
- She generally has still only been happy when Vic or I hold her, but we are currently visiting another church and she actually stayed in the nursery the past two weeks! It has been so nice to have just two hours to worship and go to Sunday School and focus. On the first day she did that, she also let Katherine and her friend, Lindsay hold her when we celebrated Katherine and Vic's birthdays at Katherine's house. I was so shocked and almost didn't know what to do without a baby to hold! But, since then, nobody else has really had her to hold.
- She still loves baths and they are becoming a routine at night now.
- She is still a good eater, but not even going near any fruits or yogurt.
- She has started guzzling water from her sippy cup. So much that she will take in too much and cough. But, I'm glad she likes water!
- She loves one-on-one time and seems to know when that time is. She is by far, our quietest and most relaxed child when she plays. But, she still prefers to not have me far from sight when she plays either.
- She does NOT like it when someone takes things away from her. Atticus and Grace will quickly grab something out of her hand, whether to play with her, or because she shouldn't have it. Her reflexes are not as fast yet and she gets so upset with them. I have had to have many talks with them about gently taking things from her or not taking them from her at all.
- She has started to enjoy her porch swing more and we played at the park where there were some baby swings and it was so fun to have Atticus push her. She loved it and laughed and laughed!
- She will copy me when I say "mamamamama" and it's the sweetest. But, she has gone back to being so quiet and not talking too much. How can she make any noise with Atticus and Grace around? :)
- She loves her Daddy. She will light up when she sees him at night and will tuck her head into his neck and chest. So. Cute.
- This past month has just gone very fast! I'm already starting to plan her first birthday party!
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