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Kid's Quips

2012-01-24T00:07:00.000-05:00

Caryn. You totally win the quote game. :) What is your heart's desire? Game of Memory? A teeny tiny Boy Ville? Perhaps a Pretty Princess set? :) I might make an exception and whip you up an oven mitt if you prefer! :)

Moving on...

One of my favorite recent quotes from the new three year old in the house came the other day in the car. We were driving by one of those "We Buy Gold" places with a person, dressed as Gumby, waving manically outside.

Sesame: "Mommy, who is that?"
Me: "You know Sesame, I don't know. Who do you think it is?"
Sesame: "It's Dr. Roscoe."

She didn't miss a beat! It just goes to show what a few fun hats in a Dr's office can do for a kid! :) We love you Dr. Roscoe!

Another recent gem:

Sesame: "Daddy, may I go into Jack in the Box, Please?"
Husband: "I don't know Sesame. It's kind of late."
Sesame: "Actually, I know the Jack in the Box. So it's okay."

Where does she get this stuff!? Her expressions to accompany the hilarity are fantastical as well. Love that kid. Speaking of my kids:

Um...Where did my baby go???

For real. This girl is not a baby any more. Three just seems so...

Big. Fun and fantastic, but old and big too.

Meanwhile, these two love each other. No, like I can't sleep until I hug you kind of love one another. It's rock-tacular. Except when their expression of said love includes sitting on the other one. Or clawing the other's face. All with good intentions, mind you, but harmful nonetheless. I mean who wants love-claw marks. Maybe that Twilight chick, Bella, if she'd gone for the werewolf dude. But that's a long shot.

Favorite. Little Dude. Expression.

I call it his "Old Man" look.

He reminds me of Carl from the movie "Up."

Only armed with a teething ring instead of a walker with tennis balls.

Slight difference.

Yep. That's my boy.

Drool and all.

He finally has two teeth and a third just broke through today.

He's also eating like a maniac.

Does this ever stop with boys?

Seriously.

I heard they always eat all the time.

Anyway, he's doing well.

Still not interested in moving about much.

He's very much an observer.

Be back soon-ish.

My Kids.

2012-01-04T22:24:00.001-05:00

My kids make me smile. Wait. The way they adore each other makes me smile.

Sesame sneaks into Squirt's room when he wakes up from a nap before I even hear the boy. It's amazing. Her "Mommy sense" is almost more attuned to him than I am. She drags the footstool to the rocking chair over and climbs up to greet him. He squeals and giggles every time he sees her. She's like an instant happy pill! :)

Little Dude loves, loves, to snuggle with Sesame in her bed. I lay him down next to her every evening at bed time. He immediately extends his left hand out to touch her cheek. Seriously. I think it's the boy's way of saying "I love you" without words. It's too cute. She responds with squeals of delight and says, "Ezzy, that tickles." or "Ezzy's playin' with my cheek. Do it again Ezzy!" He cannot contain his joy at her enthusiasm. His little feet kick a mile a minute and his arms flail about.

Squirt also enjoys partaking of imaginative play. I know, he's well ahead of the cognitive curve. He has been dressed as Cinderella and baby Emma in the past week. Shhh...don't tell husband dearest. :)

Sesame worries when she doesn't know where Little Dude is. For real. She hunts around the house calling out for him. It cracks me up because, most of the time, I'm holding him. When she discovers his wherabouts she cups he hand over her mouth, hunches her shoulders up, squints her eyes and gives a silent laugh at her lack of observance. Love that kid.

I also heart their matching pajama-jams. : ) Too cute. (Thanks Nonnie and Pawpaw!)

On a random side note, this photo from our first snow:

Is in desperate need of a caption. For real. :) I cropped it just right in camera so the poor boy looks like the little brother in Christmas Story, immobile, left alone, in a snowy field. : ) No worries, husband was right there. : )

Caption this photo or fill in the thought bubble. I'll choose a winner this weekend. Winner receives their very own version of Lil' Blue Boo's Boy 'ville, Box 'O Princesses or Customized Memory Game! : ) I feel like giving today! :)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2012-01-02T14:32:00.001-05:00

We had a fantastic Christmas with our family out West and celebrated the New Year here at home! I'll brief you more on the gifts, games and giggles in our Christmas later. For now, I'm going to try and find homes for all this new stuff! :)

Christmas Time

2011-12-07T15:51:00.001-05:00

My son has totally, completely and successfully filled the leg of his sleeper with poop two times this week. I'm not just talking about a tiny smear of poo, I'm talking fill the leg. Literally. It's as if someone took a funnel and just dumped it into his clothing. The first episode was mind-boggling. I went to change his diaper and there was only a small dab of poo - the rest was completely clean. How does that happen?? The diaper was secure. Immovable. How does a tiny, pumpkin sized being manage to poop out of their diaper?! Really!?

Okay. Now that I have that out of the way....

We snuck off last week on Thursday evening to Christmas at the zoo. Fan-tastic. It was a bit chilly, but that made it all the more fun! :) We donned our happy hats and waltzed around watching the polar bear, brown bear and bats. Since it was evening the bats were actually awake and active. Waaaaaaaay fun. They're pretty interesting little creatures. Z even enjoyed watching all the Christmas lights that were timed to the music.

Sesame was cracking me up. When she woke up from her nap, I shared the surprise with her. She looked at me and said "I want to see the polar bears. Daddy wants to see the sharks. They do this-" insert little girl spin-jump with crazy jazz hands flapping about. "Sesame, when do the sharks do that? I've never seen them dance before??" Very seriously she replied, "Only Daddy sees them do it." and then pranced off singing about squirrels or some thing.

I chalked it up to silliness. Turns out, the young sharks do the exact dance when they get over excited in the touch tank at the zoo. No, really. They do. The kid could win a medal for replicating the molar shark dance. She proved me wrong!

Now for me to stop babbling and show you some photos. :)

Preparing to enter the zoo.
Yes, that is a Pricess Leia hat.

Checking out the "real live reindeer."

Little Dude would NOT keep his eyes open for a photo. I have four photos that look EXACTLY like this!
But isn't his Yoda hat cute. :)

There's a seal. See it. To their left. He looks like a shiny rock.

I do exist! :) Leia and Yoda. How nice. :)

AHA! A photo with eyes open AND a smile!

Yes, I know this is turned the wrong way.
No, I don't know how to fix it in blogger.
No, I don't know why it happened.
Yes, that's ironic because I'm a photographer.
Yes, I posted it anyway.
It's my fam. Aren't they cute. Even when they're sideways!

A blurry photo of all four of us!

Running out of steam!

Ain't he cute. :)

Singing Christmas songs together!

Disobedience.

2011-11-29T13:40:00.001-05:00

Before I begin I would like to apologize for the utterly atrocious grammatical display that is my blog. My husband likes to remind me, frequently, that this is a display of irony in the most public form. You see, I studied Creative Writing and English in college. For real. See. Irony.

Moving on...

I have a two year old. You all know her as Sesame. Mostly I relay messages of her hilarity, sense of song and frequent imaginary play sessions. Life, however, is not all rainbows and sunshine with her. Please do not mistake me, I adore her with all my heart and want the best for her. Which is why I decided to share this.

Today we arrived home from Bible Study, paired with a short trip to Pappy and Yia Yia's, just barely before nap time. I plucked Sesame from her seat, ran her through the misty rain and placed her in the entryway. I stooped down to her level and instructed, "Sesame, I want you to go to your room, take off your shoes, put them away and get into bed. It's nap time. Mommy will be in after I bring Squirt in from the car. Do you understand?" "Yes, Mommy, " she replied, "I understand."

I know that may seem like several instructions for a two (almost three) year old, but I know she is capable of completing such a list. I jaunted to car, snagged Z, carried him up to his room, plopped him in his crib and went to Sesame's room.

No Sesame.

I heard singing from downstairs. Loud, twirly "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" singing. I peered over the balcony to see my sweet Sesame twirling about the living room with her Little People, singing.

I zoomed down the stairs, mind racing as I went: Should I just gently correct her?? Should I spank her??? Should I give her time out?? What kind of offense is this?? Where in the scale of disobedience does this lie??

Scale of disobedience. There is no scale. There is obedient or not. She is clearly disobeying me. She knows if she is disobedient she gets spanked. No questions.

I grabbed her upper arm and turned her to me. "Sesame" she stared at me with wide eyes, knowing she was in trouble, "What did Mommy ask you to do?" "Go upstairs. To night night time." "Did you obey me?" "No, Mommy." tears commence. "Sesame, what happens when you disobey?" "I get a spanking."

She knew.

How like our walk with the Lord. He continually reminds us how to be obedient. When we fall He is there to pick us up - but loves us enough to allow us to endure consequences. Loves us enough to discipline us. He tells us ahead of time what the consequences of sin and disobedience are - and how to avoid them - yet we still fall over and over and over.

I suppose my thoughts on this topic were stirred up, not only due to this instant, but my time in the word - both through lectures and studies. In fact, I might be slightly plagiarizing* from a sermon I heard. The Lord is teaching me something and I'm willing to admit I don't know what yet and I'm a little scared. But this isn't about me.

I spanked Sesame and quickly hurried her up the stairs. I scooped her up into my arms, hugged her, told her I loved her but she must be obedient and then promptly tickled her.

The hug concluded the punishment. We'll tell Daddy what happened when he comes home, but other than that, it will not be brought up again. We moved on. When she wakes up from her nap, I'm going to take her out into the snow and make Parrot Poop helmets. Parrot Poop helmets are a blog entry all their own. I'll tell you sometime. I promise. I might even include pictures.

*Fantastic Sermon by Michael Boehm - which I will link to when it's posted. :)

A Day in the Life...

2011-11-28T13:47:00.001-05:00

So. Happy Thanksgiving. :)

I was going to share a few photos from our Turkey Day. The first two were test photos to prepare for a photo shoot. Little Dude is only a week younger that the intended subject - which made him the perfect candidate for testing. :)

Love that kid. :) He's a total charmer. Soooo smiley. Not that Sesame wasn't, he's just more so. He's perfect the art of raspberry blowing.

"Riding the horse" aka Pawpaw's knee.

Story time with Pawpaw! I LOVE JAN BRETT. I'm sorry, did I yell that loud enough???? I LOVE JAN BRETT!! Her stories are fantastic! I'm on a Gingerbread Baby kick right now. We just checked the Umbrella out of the library as well.

Story time with Nonnie and Pawpaw. Nonnie is Sesame namesake. She goes by Sesame too. :)

The lovely table.

My little bro came out of his cave for lunch, ate, then retreated back to his cave. He didn't even emerge for pie. It was nice to see him for the meal though!

Mis padres in their element. :) They make some fantastic food in this kitchen.

Z's Thanksgiving meal. He snacked on some mashed potatoes a bit later, but this was his main meal.

My Momma explaining Facebook to my grandparents. I cannot even begin to describe this moment. :)

Story time with Momma - we have a TON of story time these days. I heart it.

Little Dude and his Momma. He's wearing the baby doll cap from the basement. :)

The next two photos are among my favorite of my children. :)

She was reading to him again. I love these two and their love for each other. :)

Show Tunes

2011-11-23T10:05:00.001-05:00

We like music in our home. Okay. That is a complete understatement. We LOVE music. Any kind, it's always on. Sesame has taken a liking to music as well. Her current digs: Bluegrass (we aren't sure, but the kid loves it) and Musicals. She prances around singing all the songs from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Sound of Music and Mary Poppins. Most recently, she has started involving Little Dude in these dance sequences. She pushed him around the dining area today singing "Old Bamboo." Love. While I have yet to capture the dynamic duo in action, Husband snagged a video of her performance of "So Long, Farewell." I'll warn you - it's the whole song. No, really. The. Entire. Thing. Enjoy.

This Post.

2011-11-21T15:40:00.001-05:00

This post has little to do with my children, or poop, or Momma-hood as it were. This post has quite a bit to do with conviction.

This past weekend I had the privilege of photographing a beautiful, newly engaged, couple. We spent a couple hours on the Butler campus in general merriment while I snapped photos. Our last stop was The Circle downtown. The bride to be needed to change clothes so we decided to meet up at the Starbucks.

Confession: I was a teeny bit stoked. I heart Peppermint Mochas and have been trying to stay away from Coffee shops on a whole. I mean, hello, I can brew my own espresso and steam my own milk at home for a fraction of the cost. It's just a matter of laziness. However, this particular venture was the perfect excuse to snag a cheery beverage.

I arrived and meandered to the long line. We are talking looooooooooooong line. For real. I stood there pondering the menu and secretly thought "How can they charge $4 for these drinks." I moved forward a bit in line and started to stare out the windows at the gorgeous Christmas decorations. Christmas is so happy. :) Then I saw this:

In the split second after seeing these two men my heart began to sink. The thought of paying $4 for a drink - I did not need - became exceedingly ridiculous. I was overwhelmingly convicted.

I started to write my response off. "Oh, you're just being silly." followed closely by "They wouldn't really use the money wisely." Seriously.

I mean, Seriously.

Did I really have that thought? Does it matter what happens to the money after I give it? Who am I to not give that which is not mine to begin with? Who am I to not obey simply because four dollars might be added to beer money? Who am I to judge?

All these thoughts and questions bounded around in my brain in a matter of seconds. I knew I needed to remember the moment. So I took the awkward photo. I started, yet again, to write it off as just being an ironic moment. "Oh, look at that," I said to myself, "all these people in Starbucks and no one is willing to give to these men. How ironic." But it was so much more than that.

What a statement on our culture as a whole this is. Some people payed with cash for a Venti Holiday drink - 4.75 plus tax - and then walked by these men without acknowledging them. My intent in sharing this moment is not to discredit those who do not give. Nor is it to scorn those that ignore - for I am usually among them. My intent is to share a moment in time when the Lord brought my own inadequacies to my attention and called me out on a commandment.

We are called to care for those that cannot care for themselves. To love the unlovable. To "Cheerfully open our home to those who need a meal or a place to stay." (1 Peter 4:9) We are reminded by Jesus himself, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’" (Matthew 25:40) How very frequently I forget this. How often do I not make that meal for someone who is ill because I don't have time? How frequently do I walk by a homeless person on the street with my head down, because I have somewhere to be? How readily do I deny love to the unlovable for this silly reason of preoccupation?

The Lord has truly blessed my family in innumerable ways. My job as his servant is to share those blessing - be it by giving time, using the gifts He has given me or dropping $4 into a cup that is not my own.

When my turn at the counter came, I ordered a tall coffee, payed the 1.80 with my debit card, added some cream and marched out into the cold. I dropped my four dollars down into the cup and handed the coffee to the man. "You need this more than I do," I said. "Thank you," he replied, "God bless you." "He already has," I thought to myself.

Little Dude.

2011-11-16T23:41:00.001-05:00

Both Husband Dearest and I feel that our tiny Squirt of a boy has grown by leaps and bounds this week. He's making more communicative sounds. No, really, he is. Even Sesame thought he was say "Mommy" today. I told her he wasn't, and then he made a sound that was extremely convincing for her case. His hand/eye coordination isn't so...hmm...how shall I say...like a flailing baby giraffe. He's actually moving objects from in front of him to his mouth. Love it. He's so smiley and giddy and easy going - yet he knows what he wants.

Today marked a milestone for him as well. He entered into the land of food. I noticed he was eyeing my spaghetti last night, so we started rice cereal today. :) Enjoy.

Life.

2011-11-13T16:37:00.001-05:00

So. Life has been ... busy. I have had approximately 5 billion varied posts rattling around in my brain at any given time, yet they never quite make it here to my little corner of the interwebs. So. In an effort to leave you hanging no longer, here is a quick run down of life in these parts.

1. We (meaning the 2 year old in our family) is currently obsessed with all things musical. By this I mean she has successfully memorized all of the songs from Sound of Music, excluding "The Sound of Music" and "Climb Every Mountain" because, and I quote Sesame here, "They are scary Mommy."

2. Little Dude is growing like a weed. A WEED I say! He and Sesame are total buds these days. The following photo is one that he will hate me for one day...but I don't care. I hear these matching pajamas - Thanks Nonnie!

3. Little Dude has also entered into the happy-screech-like-a-pterodactyl-because-I-don't-know-how-to-control-my-volume phase of speech development. Lovely. He happy screeches, I screech back, Sesame asks why I'm screaming. She didn't quite get the whole "I"m teaching him to speak" vibe. Oh well. It worked for her. Little Dude is such a charmer. His eyelashes curl all the way back to his eyelids. Spittin' image of is Papa. :)

3. Little Dude had a magnificent, glorious and clandestine poop the other day. The situation deserves it's own post. Prepare to be amazed.

4. Sesame likes to jump in leaves. A lot. A lot a lot.

5. I heart Pumpkin Spice lattes.
6. We are running late to leave for church...so I'm publishing this as is since it's been..you know...a month. :)

Thanks to those 5 of you that read this!

Random.

2011-10-18T23:08:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the radio silence. There really is no good reason. I just kept telling myself I couldn't post until I posted a specific post - but I've resigned it won't happen. :) And Grammy needs some photos. :)

Sesame is now a book lover. Completely and Wholely. I cannot begin to describe how happy this makes me. Not only does she love books but she re-enacts them in her play time. Love.

Little Dude is growing like a weed. A still quite small weed, but growing none the less.

Oh. The post I was waiting to write - about Kelsay Farms. Everyone in the Indy area should go there. Now. This weekend. The kids had so much fun there! Seriously. They have a corn pit and Hay tower. Yeah, you want to go now, don't you. I thought so. :)

Number One looks like she's 2 going on 16. If you say that to her, she'll start singing "I am 16 Going on 17." We're a bit Sound of Music obsessed right now. ;)

Oh. So Little Dude has been a bit urpy. As in a baking soda-vinegar-explosion-that-won't-end kind of urper. He has mad skills that would rival any in the Guiness Book of World Records, I assure you. That said, I was taking his photo the other day, shock dismay, when he started laughing.

I couldn't figure out what was so funny.
I made faces to see if it was me. No go.
I laid on my back and looked up to see if he say something funny. Nope.
I tossled him about a bit to see if I could stir any slight laugh. Nothing.
Then I took this photo:

Ah, yes. I see what was so funny. He managed to puke on his leg while laying down and Momma didn't notice. How could I have missed that one. :)

He is seen like this most afternoons. He LOOOOOOOOOOOVES his red lovey. Which may or may not look slightly like silky women's lingerie. We'll leave that there.

Looking back at these photos makes me realize how many painted onesies I've done for homeboy. Poor Nells. :) She just gets dresses.

Okay. It's late. I"m done.

More fun and exciting posts to come.

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2011-10-03T11:58:00.001-04:00

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Spelling 101

2011-09-28T21:03:00.001-04:00

As promised. :) A quick, fun way to play and learn at the same time. I love learning. I love playing. Hence why this is my favorite. :)

All you need is a muffin tin, shaving cream and food coloring. Pinterest may have suggested this activity to me. Well, my Momma used shaving cream for spelling in her classroom, Pinterest just kicked it up a notch. :)

This my friends:

is Sesame's face when I told her what we were going to do. We hadn't actually done anything yet. This is her expression at the thought of what we were going to do. How can that not make the whole event worthwhile?! : ) Okay, moving on...

Drop a drop or two of food coloring onto the shaving cream.

Isn't it all pretti-ful with the drops

Allow the munchkin to mix the food coloring into the shaving cream. (Science opportunity: talk about distribution. :) Yay. I love to get my science on with my kids. Don't tell anyone.)

Don't forget to supervise.

I know I ~~always get distracted when I'm taking pictures and forget I'm the adult~~ never am too wrapped up in the moment to parent. Never. (snicker)

That's right.

Sesame was a little jovial and flung shaving cream on the floor.

See.

She kind of freaked out. I think she thought she was in trouble. Good thing we have a dog that eats anything. Homer snatched it up before I could explain it was soap. Not Cool Whip.

See that face. That is the "Golbov face of concentration." Husband dearest makes it all the time. It makes me smile. :)

This is a fabulous activity for several reasons:

It really works the fine motor skills of toddlers. You can have them draw shapes, work on letters and even replicate things they see around them in your house. I could continue on this educational rant, but I'm just going to show you photos of us playing. Then you'll run and get some shaving cream. :)

Wow. Look at Sesame's cursive. She is so advanced. :) (wink, wink)

All in all shaving cream = great fun. :)

The Weekend.

2011-09-24T00:25:00.001-04:00

So. This is weird. It's a quarter after midnight and I'm the only one awake. It would see the interrupted sleep habits Number Two has caused make it difficult for me to sleep some times. Odd. :) Moving on...

Sesame has learned to play with her food. I'm okay with this when it results in fun photos such as these:

My girl with grapes in her cheeks trying to say: "I'm a squirrel Mommy!" but really just giggling so hard she can't even make a Mrs. Mumble gesture. Love.

This Little Dude:

is developing quite the personality. He's going to be such a lady-killer with those eye lashes (Thanks Abuelito!) He seriously "talks" all the time..that is...when he's not eating or sleeping. :) He also thinks fans are hilarious. And the song Hickory Dickory Dock - but only when Husband Dearest sings it.

Okay.

It's late.

I'm sleeping.

Happy Birthday to my Niece Peanut! I LOVE YOU GIRLY! :)

Our week. :)

2011-09-21T22:05:00.001-04:00

My son rocks. No really. He does.

Here is a series of photos from our much needed "happy day." (more on that later)

A photo titled "Om nom nom." for the Uncles.

"Who are you crazy lady and what the heck is this contraption in my face. I am trying to eat my hands and you interrupting. Please. Go away so I can eat them."

"Oh, it's you Mommy."

"I love my Mommy. She's the best."

Can you believe Little Dude is already 3 months old. THREE MONTHS! Unbelievable! He's really starting to look like Husband. The past week he's been a bit screamy and then today he was FABULOUS. He was happy and talkative and giggly and smiley and playful. Sesame and I thoroughly enjoyed him. His personality is so smiley. I love that his favorite past time is staring at/laughing at ceiling fans. Little Dude did this for 30 minutes today, I kid you not. Love.

Number One is pretty rockin' too. She's patient when I need to turn my attention to Number Two. Not to mention this kid is stinkin' hilarious! In the car the other day I used the phrase "Out of control." Without missing a beat she replies, "No Mommy, the control tower is at the air port. Not here." Jigga what?! You're two kid. Oh, and then there's her phrasing. What two year old says, "Excuse me Mommy, Would you please pass the ranch so I may put it on my watermelon?" Ignoring the fact she wants to put ranch on her watermelon, that's a pretty complicated sentence!

Okay. I'm done boasting on my awesome kids.

Except these two photos of Sesame dancing:

And maybe a glimpse of what life is really like in our home:

That's right. I fell asleep feeding my son. See his face? It's saying "Come on lady, it doesn't take that long to give me a bottle." :)

Okay. I'm done.

Really.

:)

Science and Laughter

2011-09-14T13:51:00.001-04:00

That's right. Science class starts at age 2 in the G-clan household. "Why?" you ask, because:

A) Science is fun.
B) My daughter asked to do a "Science Peer-i-scent" aka "Science Experiment." Yes, that's right, she asked to learn. I'm sorry people, but all the mounds of dishes, laundry and toys can wait. If my Sesame requests to learn, I'm going to soak up the opportunity.
C) I secretly love having a toddler about so I can make messes and then blame her.
D) Science is fun. Duh.

Today's adventure includes a lesson in density. :) I ~~completely stole this experiment from an episode of Sid the Science Kid~~ saw this somewhere, and decided to spice it up a bit.

So.
Here we go.

The cast of characters:

As you can see, I have six glasses out that appear to be filled with water.

Oh, but they are not all water.
Muahahahaha.

(That was my evil scientist laugh - I felt it was appropriate here)

That's right. White Vinegar.

With the baking soda.

Boo-yah. Take that Sid the Science Kid. I'll take your density and raise you...um...some cool reaction thing.

(Note: Husband is the scientist. I studied liberal arts. Cut me some slack on the terminology.)

Step 1: Begin adding one ingredient to each glass.

Step 2: Take excessive photos of terrific, tiny toddler hands.

Step 3: Stir ingredients in and discuss why some float (pepper & parm) and why some dissolve (sugar & salt).

Step 4: Take photo of cute little scientist in her apron.

Step 5: Be sad when you realize your baking soda is old and does not react well with vinegar.

Step 6: Show toddler the fabulous lemonade and mix it together with enthusiasm.

Step 7: Be sad again and start gagging when you realize your baking soda is not expired - you only mixed it with water. How do you know this? You just drank vinegar-lemonade.

Ew.

Gross.

Step 8: Listen to your toddler laugh hysterically while you spit, gag and rapidly drink coffee to wash away the gross-ness that is vinegar-lemonade.

Step 9: Improvise and make cool vinegar-lemonade-baking soda explosion.

Step 10: Laugh at the cool bubbles with your toddler and admire the sweet mess you made together. :)

Tomorrow's play time experiment:

And, to appease Grammy :):

Guess who is starting to dig story time at our house!? Little Dude LOVES it when Sesame and I read. It makes me so happy. :)

Moments Like These...

2011-09-12T18:24:00.000-04:00

...make me one happy Momma.

I love to see unprompted interaction between my children.

I love to see them enjoying each other - even though their communication at this stage is non-verbal

I love that Little Dude has a certain "Sesame look" set aside for his Sister.

I love that Number One (Sesame) gives concerts to Number Two (Squirt)

I love that Little Dude coos and oohs and aahs at his sister's antics.

I love that Sesame tells Little Dude about the Lord.

All the time.

Every

Single

Day.

But mostly, I love that I am privileged to stay at home and bare witness to their relationship.

Watch them grow together.

Watch them play together.

Watch them love the Lord together.

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Joshua 24:16

Family.

2011-09-04T16:53:00.000-04:00

Apologies for disappearing for a spell - we had family in town! :)

My most adorable and favorite niece is growing like a weed! 11 months already! Can you believe it!? Peanut has the most gorgeous blue eyes and toothless grin EVER. :) I think we'll keep her.

See. Gorgeous. I told you. :)

Little Dude (Squirt) is turning into quite the little charmer.

We dedicated him this past Sunday while Husband's family was in town. I cannot wait to see what the Lord does with this little life!

He's very shy. :)

Peanut and Sesame enjoyed a brief trip to the Children's Museum with Grammy and the Mommies, while Ezra snoozed with Yia Yia and Pappy.

This face. Yes, the one pictured above, is the exact same face her Daddy makes when he's concentrating and her Grandpa. Love it. Love.

Who went and planted Sesame's in the garden? Don't spread it around, they'll all be picked!

After the museum Sistah and I decided we needed to exercise.

Here is Sister looking all fit and flawlessly executing the zumba moves. I, on the other hand, am flailing about like a poor man's Richard Simmons.

Let's recap:

Sister's Zumba = Professional Dancer

My Zumba = Beached Whale

As if my postpartum body needed more of a workout - the girls woke up from their nap and wanted to play.

Notice Sisters gleaming smile. Notice my flushed cheeks, lack of a smile and Sesame's skeptical stare.
Thus is my first Zumba experience.

We're all tired and falling back into normal routines - with the addition of a bit of Zumba. :)

Total Clearance Score!

2011-08-24T17:23:00.001-04:00

This:

was the ultimate Clearance Section score today. I've been pining away for a leather topped bench with storage inside for a year or two now. It's the perfect place to plop down and put on shoes while hiding laundry or ~~random crap that is lying around my house before unexpected company appears~~ toys.

The kids and I were winding up a trip to Bed, Bath and Beyond, aka "The Sheet Store" to Sesame, when I spotted a random clearance section. And there it sat, calling forth with blissful angelic sounds, "the leather bench" (said with the SNL Sean Connery accent.*)

The bright yellow clearance tag read "retail price 149.99 clearance price 20.98" I looked over my shoulder thinking I was on candid camera. Nope. No cameras. Upon further inspection I found the purpose of the drastically reduced price.

A broken hinge. No big deal. Even I could fix that.

Two scuffs and a slight puncture.

On the back.

The part that faces the wall.

The part that will not be seen by anyone.

I whipped out my cell phone, thankful A) I had it with me and B) it was charged for once. Husband agreed this would be a wise purchase. I mean, seriously, you can't even buy plastic storage tubs for 20.98!?

So. There I am. My cart is full with a 2.5 year old Shirley Temple look alike, a Care Bear and a floral print purse in the front; and, a large infant carrier, complete with 9 week old slumbering babe, in the back. I already squeezed the 10 tray/organizers under the carseat in an effort to not carry them in my hand. So. Out of necessity, I scooted the brown leather bench across the entire front of the store, with my feet, whilst dragging a cart full of children behind me. I wasn't about to leave the bench just sitting there. Hello!? Someone could snatch it up!

Also, watching my mild TV obsession, American Pickers, paid off. I chose a line with a young male cashier and politely asked, "There are a few other damages that aren't mentioned on the sticker," points to the small puncture (on the back!) and scuff marks on the front, "Would you take 15 for it?" And what does he do?! GRANT MY REQUEST!! AND I had a 20 % off coupon?! Jigga what?! Take that!

Leather bench total cost: 16.00

Score.

Another project I've been working to conquer before we house family for a week:

Sesame's Big Big Girl Room.

Theme: Polka Dots. :) Love

Progress is slow but looks better everyday.

I'll keep you posted as I paint. I saved a ton of money by purchasing paint samples in all the colors. The circles don't take up too much space and thusly, saved money. Sweet. Money that I can buy more sweet, cheap leather benches with!? Just kidding.

If you've made it this far in this post you deserve a cookie. Thank you for putting up with my overflowing joy at saving a few dollars. :) Have a great day!

*If you get that reference then we can be friends. If not, we need to talk more. Note: This does not apply to family members. I love you always and anyway.)

A Note.

2011-08-23T17:00:00.000-04:00

I love my kids. :)
They rock.

Sesame was twirling around the house with a Sunday straw hat on and an open umbrella yesterday, singing "Let's Go Fly A Kite" at the top of her 2.5 year old lungs. She told me she was Mary Poppins. I told her I was Bert. She said "Mommy you are a gurrrrrrrl. Bert is a boy. You can be the penguins that dance." I said "Okay." and waddle-danced around the living room. Lil Dude just tooted and cooed at the crazy dancing penguin people.

Squirt urped on me 5 times yesterday. Five. Times. These five times were the only times I had to actually change my clothing because of the copious amounts of fluid that erupted out of his teeny, tiny 9 week old mouth. There were other urp incidents that were not wardrobe change worthy. It's amazing what I deem acceptable with number two.

Squirt is totally rockin' the old man expressions these days. His strained peas smile spreads across his face more and more frequently ever day. His falling into mild patterns that are allowing me to plan more effectively for outings and quality time with Sesame. I love the special time the Lord grants me between 5 and 6 am with Squirt. He wakes, eats and is happier, more satisfied and animated than any other time throughout the day. I'm eager for him to be a bit bigger, but am cherishing moments such as these.

Sesame lined all her stuffed animals and dolls up on the couch today. When I inquired, "What are you doing?" She proudly reported, "Sending them to school." "Oh," I replied, "Are you the teacher?" She looked at me like an alien "Mommy, I am 2, I cannot teach them school. I will teach them Sunday. About Jesus and dying on the cross."

I cried a little.

My sweet Sesame is growing into such a person. A person who shares the gospel message with stuffed animals, grocery store clerks and her little brother. I don't mind that potty training is taking forever - she's picking up quickly on what's important. :)

If only we were all so bold as Sesame.

Ninja Homer Clone and Reptar

2011-08-10T19:41:00.002-04:00

Now that is a title. :) Right. So after my last post Husband dearest asked about the "chasing the not my dog" story. Upon ceasing my re-telling of the episode, he immediately begged me to re-tell the story, once again, to the world via this tiny little blog.

So.

I had Little Squirt up on my shoulder/against my chest venturing around the house picking up Sesame's loose toys. It's quite the task. I must say, I feel closely related to primates when I do this. I tend to use my feet much like hands so as not to disturb Little Man's cozy, content place on my shoulder. If only I had thumbs on my feet. Moving on...

As I picked up what felt like the tenth naked doll baby I realized Homer had been outside for an extended period of time. I thought to myself, "Self, it's probably not the best idea to leave a black, longish haired dog outside when the heat index is 110." Thusly, I decided to let him in. I opened the back door and whistled to call Homer inside.

Only he was outside of my yard.
Down the easement.
Far away.
Between to houses.

I immediately ~~frantically screamed like a crazy lady losing her mind~~ called his name. He turned and looked over his shoulder as if to say "Come and get me Momma." Then turned away.

At this point I freaked.

I went bounding across the yard in my bleach stained, too small, post partum T-shirt and yoga shorts - Squirt in tow. And, by "in tow" I mean still being held on my shoulder.

And he's 6 weeks old at this point.
With decent head control.
But not enough for a sprint across a prairie-like 1/2 acre yard.

As I bounded, dodging dog poop and sand toys, I half yelled at Homer half tried to protect my son's head from banging into my shoulder, or head, or chest or pretty much anywhere that his floppy neck muscles would allow. I am fairly certain he looked like a Dwight Schrute bobble head on crack.

He was a trooper though.
Cooed the whole time.
I think he's going to be laid back. :)

We neared Homer when I noticed something odd. This dog was smallish. Homer is not. This dog had no collar. Homer has a choke chain collar.

This dog, was not my dog.

Yes, it's true. I ran, with my newborn son, across our yard in clothing that should really be at the bottom of a trash can, only to find that the dog I was chasing, was not mine. Fail.

But at least my dog was lounging on my bed, legs flailed about haphazardly, snoring in obedient domestication.

Thus ends the dog story.

This Reptar. I dubbed Squirt "Reptar" because of his reptile like skin. It's all in love kids - all in love. In all seriousness though, his skin is so terribly dry that we might have to see a pediatric dermatologist. Poor kid. Keep your fingers crossed that detergent switches, olive oil, hydrocodone and insanely thick lotion goo will do the trick.

Growing Boy.

2011-08-02T17:03:00.003-04:00

This won't be long.

No, really - it won't.

I'm not going to elaborate on how I'm typing this in the kitchen, standing up with a pile of asparagus in front of me while Sesame is playing in a sink full of water, pantless.

I won't spend my precious moments of time recounting the tale of why my couch cushion is sitting in the middle of my dining area, covered in baking soda and seltzer water.

I don't think you even want to know why I'm on my fourth shirt of the day and why the only pair of summer weight pants that fit me have been washed twice today.

Even though you would most likely cackle uncontrollably if let you hear how I chased after my dog. Only to find out that it was, in fact, not my dog - I will not tell the tale.

Why?

Because this little dude:

has been waaaaaaaaaaaaay too fun today to think about any of that! :)

Have a fabulous day!

Rain, Rain - Yay!

2011-07-30T18:26:00.004-04:00

It's been a teensy bit dry for the past month or so in the Mid west. Dry as in our lawn is yellow dry. We've even heard thunder and lightening yet been denied a cool, summer rain. All that changed yesterday. :)

Sesame, Squirt and I were outside on the swing set when the thunder started. Loud, bone-rattling peals that sent Sesame into rigid, robot-faced scared mode. I may have laughed at her "scared face." I'm working on capturing the moment on film. Anyway. No rain. We decided to return to the fabulous-ness that is air conditioning.

::Begin Sidenote:: How did people survive in Indiana without air conditioning?!? I mean, really?! 115 with the heat index AND the air is so thick you can barely breathe. I'm an admitted big, fat wimp when it comes to heat. I'd rather go without heat in the winter and huddle around a fireplace. ::End Sidenote::

Not ten minutes later, husband came home. Not ten minutes after that, it started to pour! :)

"Mommy." pauses in thought, "May you take me outside in the rain, please?"

For the briefest moment, I considered saying "No."

We had people coming over in an hour.

The house looked like a pre-school day care arena without a janitor.

My favorite couch pillows were drowning in a sea of laundry and Little People.

There may or may not have been a bottle on top of the laptop perched upon a pile of coupons.

Then I looked at Sesame.

She's had a fair bit of change to deal with lately. One being the loss of attention. She has transitioned magnificently. She loves being big sister and seriously helps. Without her, I would probably be de-hydrated and bored. (She brings me water and "reads" books to me while I feed Squirt).

I thought: Why in the world would I give up this opportunity to say "Yes." to my girl?

Katie @ Heart Gone Walking wrote a great post about "saying yes" at the same time I began writing this post. It says everything I was thinking.

As a stay at home Momma I have to say "No" about 7,082 times a day. And Sesame is a good child. The times when I get to say "Yes," at this age, seem very limited. So, why not soak myself in some rain drops. :)

"Yes, Sesame." pauses so as not to cry, "I would love to take you out in the rain."

So...It's Been Awhile.

2011-07-22T15:45:00.001-04:00

Forgive me, but we've been adjusting around our home just a bit. :) Little Dude is rockin' sleep time. He's fairly consistently sleeping 6 hours waking, eating, and sleeping for another 2 hours. :) Ahh...second babies. :) Also, I love my job. Just sayin'. I think it's the only job that involves poop and crying I would willingly tackle. It just so happens I some fabulous examples of why my job rocks.

Numero Uno:

The first baby smiles and coos. Love.

Also - how much they love each other. It's pretty great.

Secondly:

Sesame came into the living room and loudly stated, "I need lotion - for my belly." "Okay sweet heart, Mommy will be there in just a minute." Five minutes pass. No sound from Sesame. A nervous "I'm going to have a ginormous mess to clean up" feeling birthed itself in my belly. "Sesame?" I called out. No answer. Where was she? In my bathroom. "Lotioning" herself. With conditioner. "Look Mommy - I'm a big girl - I did it by myself!"

Love it.

Can't blame her - except for the ruined rug - which I didn't like anyway. :)

Thirdly:

I'm pretty sure this one needs no caption...

...but I've been silent too long. :) I LOVE how these two already love each other. Ezra smiles at the sound of Nellianne's voice. He coos at her. He turns his head. I know being the big sister isn't always easy (nor the younger brother) but I am amazed at the bond they are already forming. Maybe it's just Momma's wishful thinking - but I really think it's there. Sesame and Squirt rock the house together. I can't wait to see who they become! :)

Anyway.

I'm hoping to not be so silent. We have projects in the works and already a drove of stories to recount. They had both pooped and were wailing the other day at the same time. Good gravy. What does a person do with twins!? :)

Introducing...

2011-06-20T07:09:00.002-04:00

Ezra Thomas

born June 18, 2011

8 lbs. 7 oz. 21.75 inches long

Squirt is pretty much awesome. :) I'll regale you all with the details of his birth - but I'm a bit busy at the moment. :) Perhaps I'll re-master the art of typing while nursing. We shall see. :) So far though, he's a pretty laid back little dude. He let's me know when he's hungry, but he's not in a hurry. He looks and has the mannerisms of an old man - which completely cracks me up! Seriously, little man is fantastic. :) Nellianne has taken to Ezra quite well and we're all heading home together today as a family of four. I can't wait for this new adventure!

A long, long last...

2011-06-18T07:11:00.003-04:00

OK, kids, the day has finally arrived! Wife's water broke today in the wee hours of the morning (4:22am). Homer looked very concerned, and kept farting because he was nervous. After a semi-conscious gathering of things and a few calls to the doc and her parents, we were off the the hospital. We checked in ok, and Wife now looks like a very cheerful Borg. We've got a few hours to hang out while Wife (with very mentionable help from the Lord) performs a miracle, and then we'll update you all with how things went. In the mean time, prayers are appreciated, so keep 'em coming!

This is the game face. Fierce, eh?

Just here for moral support,
-Husband-

It's True...

2011-06-18T07:11:00.002-04:00

Although there are a ton of downsides to hauling around a wee one internally - I still enjoy it. : ) Call me crazy, but it's a bit easier when one of them is on the inside as opposed to the outside. I, however, cannot WAIT to meet little Squirt. Despite the endless contractions that never quite get close enough or intense enough, I'm savoring this last little bit of pregnancy.

Baby Squirt on his/her due date

Baby Sesame on his/her due date

I most definitely have carried the two children in different ways. Less swelling this time around and less (as in half) the weight gain. Of course, that might be because I never lost everything from the first go around! :) Anywho, I'll quite rambling! Hopefully the next post will include an introduction to our newest family member!

Laughing Out Loud

2011-06-10T14:22:00.001-04:00

I found some photos. I know, you all are shocked. :) There I was, planning to post something all crafty, because for once in my life I remembered to take photos of a project, when I found these fantastical photos. And I laughed. Out loud. No, really, not just like IM speak "lol" - I really laughed out loud.

The first:

This is so hilarious because what you don't see is my daughter's face when she realizes there was something in the bucket that she put on her head. "What was inside?" You ask. Water. That she put there. Two seconds before this photo was snapped. :) See - you're starting to think about laughing aren't you????

Then there is this photo - which needs no explanation save my husband has waited his entire life to have children for a moment like this:

I'm sorry, can we just zoom in on that face a bit:

Ah, parenthood. :) Happy weekend!

On Missions.

2011-06-03T07:11:00.000-04:00

I have a heart for missions. No, like a heart that wants to move to Kodiak, AK someday to help with missions on the Emerald Isle - kind of heart - for missions. I feel very called to serve in that particular place for my Lord. But, the time is not yet. Regardless of my love for the people of Kodiak I know that the Lord has me here, in this time, and in this place for a purpose. He's been teaching me about contentment. He's been teaching about my role and job as a missionary to my neighbors. He's opened doors and shut them. He's moving and creating opportunities to share the Good News that is Jesus Christ. (Can I get and Amen?!)

That said, Husband and I have talked several times about instilling a love for missions in our children. What does that look like? How do we do it? How do you show them to perceive the needs of others - both spiritual and physical? When is too soon? When is too late?

As with most things parenting, we determined you can never start too early. :)

Our Middle School kids are doing their yearly mission trip this week. There is no grand trip across, or out of, the country. Our kids are preparing the grounds of an area where Missionaries come to rest between travels. They are working in a local food bank. They are doing work which they will see the results of in their own community. Awesome. :)

Husband is with them. We decided since I am 2 weeks away from birthing Little Squirt that maybe I shouldn't be shoveling dirt, digging ditches and hauling metal fencing, so I'm visiting them and taking photos. :) Although, all that manual labor could through me into a welcome labor. But them husband would miss the rest of the trip. And that would be sad. I digress...

Sesame and I visited yesterday morning. On the way over, I explained that we were visiting the kids and we would be helping. "I wanna diiiiiiiiiiig!" She shouted from the backseat. I sighed to myself thinking, she totally doesn't understand in her little 2/5 year old mind what's going on. She is totally going to be unhelp.

No. She jumped right in. New shoes dirty and grimy. Her little Elmo shovel in hand, placing tiny bits of dirt into wheelbarrows. Little Sesame grunts echoed around the open field as she tried so desperately to move the wheelbarrow. It rocked. :) Afterward, on the way to Pappy and Yia Yia's, I asked her what she thought. She replied, "I like ta help the people." "I know, aren't the kids cool!" thinking she meant the middle school kids. "No, Momma! You tell me dah fish-uhn-rees (missionaries) we helped." I paused. "Yes, Sesame, we helped the missionaries so they can go tell people about Jesus." "I like Jesus," she said, "An i cream (ice cream) We have i cream?"

While she doesn't totally understand, something got through. :) At least Jesus came before the ice cream.

We brought our own Elmo tools to help with.

She jumped right in without hesitation - but what kid doesn't want to dig in the dirt and help with wheelbarrows! Come on! :)

Takin' a break after an entire hour of work! Whoa baby! :) She even got to drink kool-aid out of a big girl cup! Look out world! :)

Let's Just Say This...

2011-06-02T11:51:00.001-04:00

There is a post coming today.

:) About time, right? :)

Zoo.

2011-05-24T15:22:00.000-04:00

A) I love surprises. No, really. I LOVE surprises. :) Today I received one of the best when husband randomly took a day off. Yay! :) Best. Day. Ever. :)

B) We went to the zoo last week with Yia Yia. Sooooooooo fun. :) While I think every school in town was there on a field trip, we still had a fantastical time! :)

So...does anyone notice a similarity between my Momma and me? yeah...We just look a bit alike. :)

Good times in the Safari part of the zoo. Except the warthog. He was gross. Even Sesame thought he was ugly. Poor guy.

We made a quick trip to look at the butterflies...but there were no butterflies, only orchids.

This is Sesame's new thing - compliments of mimicking Momma. She puts her hands up like this and says either, "I'll be right back" or "Wait, stop right there." :) I love my little meme.

On the way home we stopped by Nonnie and Pawpaw's (my grandparents). Sesame and Pawpaw watched a firetruck and fed the squirrels.

Nice, relaxing day. :)

My Best George.

2011-05-18T13:59:00.001-04:00

My bestest buddy George is pregnant and expecting her first baby in August. I threw a small baby shower for her last week. It ended up being too much fun! :)

Her sister practicing her Auntie duty of book reading. Note: She is practicing her story telling abilities on a stuffed lamb, which, for whatever reason, makes me giggle. :)

Mmmm...Yogurt Parfait Bar...Mmmm

It's the three of us! Yay!

It's the three of us in Superstar mode. :) YAY!

Our next fun task was freezer paper stenciling onesies for Carlos (George's unborn baby's in-utero name) and maybe one or two for Squirt. Sesame woke up from her nap and painted a onesie for Squirt...She also might have painted her mouth when I was taking photos.

This stripey onesie was Sesame's creation. Not too bad for a 2-year-old! :) Good times had by all!

Preparation

2011-05-16T09:54:00.001-04:00

I have never been good at preparing. Perhaps this is one of the numerous reasons I married a card carrying member of the Eagle Scouts. :) Planning, at least for me, is generally done internally. I create check lists, visualize scenarios and then promptly file them away for when I need them. Did I mention I am queen of procrastination too? :)

Last night husband and I made a run to the labor and delivery floor. Everything is totally fine, we were just being cautious. I am convinced the purpose of the trip was to reveal our total and complete lack of preparation for Baby Squirt. Up until now we have casually talked about "Oh, we should do this" or "Maybe we should pack a bag now." Last night, en route to the hospital, we realized the infant car seat resided in a trash bag next to the Christmas decor in our attic. At our home. Still in storage from a year ago. Awesome.

We also realized we haven't taken the time to prepare our home to grow. I know that sounds odd. My first reaction to my own thought is, "Well it's a little late now!" but honestly, adding to a family takes some preparation. We've been talking to Sesame about Squirt, but haven't done as much discussing amongst the two of us.

I thought of the gospels. John the Baptist's sole job being to prepare a way for Christ. "And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God..." (Luke 1:76-78) and "You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ " (John 3:28) How cool. How awesome that my Lord and Savior would see preparation so important to the human experience that he would send a single person, filled with the Holy Spirit, to clear the way for Christ to reveal Himself.

Now, I'm not saying that this is on the same level as our preparation for Squirt. Goodness gracious no. I'm just recognizing how important preparation is to humanity. This isn't the only place we see God specifically taking time and making effort to prepare His people for an event. We see it in Matthew 26:17-30 with the preparation for the Passover, which, come to find, is really a time of Christ preparing his disciples for His physical departure from them. We see it in the Old Testament numerous times in preparation for battle (Joshua), to re-build the temple (Ezra), to prepare for a nation to be born and show the light of Christ (Genesis) and a call to followers to Prepare for the Lord by removing obstacles from their paths. (Isaiah)

The Lord knows our nature. He created it. Established it. He even ordains the anointed human soul when unblemished by sin. There is a need, a desire, to be prepared in all of us; even if we don't always feel that small to-do list in the back of our minds. When that need is unmet, worry and anxiety set in and preside which is something we are not called to act upon (Philippians 4:6). The kinds of preparation we see in the Bible are eternal. They all work/worked together to prepare for the final coming of the King.

Now, like I said, I know our preparation for Squirt is not on a level playing field with Christ's return. I mean, hello! But, for whatever reason, the Lord has layed these two ideas on my heart in tandem. Squirt will be arriving (hopefully not for 4-5 more weeks) and will be tiny, new and helpless. As the Momma and Daddy it's our job to care for this completely dependent life. It's our job to mold this tiny personality. The first step in this process is to be models for Christ. How can we present Christ to our infant if we are worried? If we are anxious? If we are unprepared? I'm not saying we need to go all Mom-zilla with five thousand plans,etc. but having the car seat ready and bag packed, might be a good idea. :) Christ didn't just show up in the world, He let people know what was coming and even how to prepare for Him.

Maybe it's time we made a list to be a bit more prepared.

Da Dress.

2011-05-11T15:17:00.000-04:00

I do love sewing. Please don't confuse this with being a good seamstress, because that phrase anything but describes me. I cannot, for the life of me, cut fabric in a straight line. I even have one of those awesome self-healing sewing mats and rotary cutters. My cuts STILL come out wonky. Not to mention I can't sew in a straight line. Nonetheless, I love to sew. :) I have been working on this cute dress from Sew Sweet Patterns. I heart this pattern, but, really, it's practice for the pattern that I REALLY LOVE. :)

Anywho, it's turned out very nicely. :) It's taken me twice as long as it should have. But look at this close up:

That's a placket. I sewed it there. All by me lonesome. A placket I say! What? You don't know what a placket is?? I didn't either...but Sew Sweet's awesome patterns had the foresight to have a glossary at the back of the PDF pattern. Very handy. :) The only thing left are the button holes.

Grrr. The button holes. They have been a royal pain for two days!!! I have done a few "practice runs" on scrap fabric flawlessly. I mean, honestly, the machine does all the work! But every stinkin' time I try to add them to the actual dress, I get this:

As you can see, the left one almost worked. And then the thread broke. Or at least appeared to. Any ideas or suggestions???? I'm desperate!

On another note, this little girl:

LOVES to play outside. :) I couldn't be happier that she requests to play outside on her swing set and in the sand box immediately following every nap. :) I heart her. And, yes, I succumb to her requests even though the temperature today has reached 90 and I'm 5 weeks away from birthing a child. Hello swollen limbs, you are so worth those smiles. :)

Too. Cute.

2011-05-01T16:28:00.000-04:00

We've spent as much time as possible outside lately. What with our new swing set and all. :) This face and expression is frequently seen on Sesame:

It's her "Homer-just-came-outside-and-I-love-him-and-he's-my-dog-and-I-want-to-pull-his-tail-and-take-him-for-a-walk" face. Love.

Also note the prairie grass. Yes, that is my backyard. Yes, those are dandelions. No, we don't care that we have a field of them. And, yes, husband did mow the lawn yesterday. (Big pat on the back to him - it took 3.5 hours with our push mower!)

I must say. Watching him push mow the lawn while Sesame played outside on the deck/her new swing set from my kitchen window = one of the top ten moments of life. :)

There Are Days...

2011-04-28T18:20:00.000-04:00

...when ants invade my home twice in one day. Again.
...when the laundry room curtain falls down on my head.
...when the dog won't stop barking loudly.
...when my attitude stinks like husband's dirty socks.
...when I feel like I yell "No!" all day long. Even though I don't.
...when I just want to lay down and sleep.
...when all I do is complain to myself in my head all day.
...when I am so negative, rays of seething anger and disgust radiate from my head like an overheated cartoon character.
...when my laundry is clean, but in a ginormous pile on my bed.
...when I eat Easter candy and leftover junk food most of the day.
...when I just can't operate.

and then I remember...

I didn't read my Bible today.
I didn't pray today.
I didn't spend time actually reading the sticky notes of Bible verses around my house.
I didn't put first things first.

Lord, forgive me for teaching these traits to my daughter. Forgive me for falling to sinful nature and wallowing in selfish pity and thoughts. Forgive me the broken sinner that I am.

Let's make tomorrow better Lord. :)

"Worry weighs a person down, but a kind heart cheers a person up." Proverbs 25:12

Stickers.

2011-04-27T13:27:00.000-04:00

Sesame is very into helping these days. I pretty love it. No matter what we're doing at home she is so eager to help. In an effort to encourage this behavior, we have made every possible attempt to find little jobs for her around the house. She loves laundry (we'll see when she hits age 13) and, as of late, tools. She also finds paying bills hilarious. No. Really. She laughs when I say, "Mommy is paying bills." I have yet to discover why it's so funny, as it's one of my most abhorred household chores. If only I could trust her to write the checks for me. :)

Anyway, one of the "bill tasks" she's been helping with is placing the return address stickers and stamps on the envelopes; because, really, who cares if they are all catty-whompus on the envelope?! :) We've also been using a sticker chart to move along the potty training. So, stickers are pretty popular around these parts.

One day, after laughter filled bill paying, Momma failed to put the stamps in their home. Which is out of reach of said small sticker-loving hands. I returned from the mailbox to find this:

I can't say I blamer her. I heart the liberty bell too. If those stamps weren't worth almost 50 cents a piece, I'd wall paper a room with them. (Please do note the wall paper sarcasm - While the art would match my mauve counter tops and blue-gray toilets, I do not want them on my walls.) Anyhow, she quickly learned that the were "special stickers" as Mommy said. "These stickers only go on mail." "An bills" Sesame said. "Yes, exactly. That's how the mailman knows he can take them." She looked at me, grinned and giggled saying, "Da mail man likes bills toooooooo." I have no idea where she comes up with this stuff. :) But she sure does make paying bills and using stamps a ton more fun! :)

Family Photos.

2011-04-19T14:11:00.000-04:00

It's been 4 years since my side of the family has had a family photo of any sort. Wait. I think there was one snapped last Easter by Conrad's parents. Yes, there was. Nellie's hat was falling off. :) Anywho, the point is, we have photos of all of us from our wedding and that's pretty much it. We decided to rectify the situation this Spring. See, I didn't want my daughter thinking we didn't want family photos before Little Squirt came on to the scene. And that large empty frame in my mother's kitchen has needed a family photo for almost an entire year. :) So. Without further ado, a little snapshot of our session with Elizabeth Chapman Photography:

Again, these are just a few. Love them all! Hope you enjoy them! :)

What We've Been Doing

2011-04-18T16:52:00.000-04:00

We've been getting ready for Grammy and Grandpa's arrival! The plan is to assemble our swing set, on Saturday, while they are here. We though it would be a fun project. So, in preparation, we've been organizing all the pieces. Someone in particular has been helpful.

Her mantra as of late has been "I wanna job!" or "I help you wit dat Please." She's so fun. I love two. :)

I promise there is more to come. I have a story about my car dying. At ten at night. While I had my large Homer dog and a 15 minute walk ahead of me. Because I didn't have my cell phone. Oh, and I'm 31 weeks pregnant. Awesome. :)

If You Tell A Toddler...

2011-04-07T13:41:00.000-04:00

..to get ready for bed on her own; her attire will look like this:

I think she'll sleep quite well in that hat. Perfect for dozing. Not uncomfortable in the least. :)

A Week = 100 Years

2011-04-01T14:24:00.000-04:00

Doesn't it drive you crazy when your favorite blogs don't update for like, a week!? What is THAT about. [note: sarcasm] I have decided that a week = 100 years in blog time. Hence, the title of this post. :)

We had a busy week. A mighty busy week. I had the 3-hour glucose test. (Yes, I failed the first one. Silly chocolate chip cookies...) and Sesame's friend, Saffron visited all day. SO FUN. I mean, honestly, look how adorable they are:

Yeah, how many 2 year olds do you know that will snuggle up on a couch like this.

Apparently, the bathroom is the cool place to hang out as well. Or it might have been dubbed the "store" while they were playing. :)

On Tuesday we trekked to the outlet mall with Yia Yia and Aunt Becky - who were greeted at our home with this smile:

We shopped for several hours rendering Sesame unable to even complete her snack. That cracker, on her seat belt, had a bite out of it. I'm fairly positive she fell asleep mid-bite. What a trooper. :)

Then Wednesday I spent most of the day cleaning and in the kitchen - which I don't mind doing. Kitchen = food. Yum. :) The down side to this time in the kitchen is sometimes I become extremely focused. Like in a zone - singing and dancing - not noticing that Sesame has been extremely Ninja-like for half an hour. Extremely Ninja-like. Which might then sometimes result in photos like this being snapped:

Yeah...Crayon on the new windows. Score: 1 for Sesame; 0 for Momma. At least Crayola was kind enough to make all their crayons washable. And at least Windex was kind enough to clean the crayon off quickly. :) We'll try harder next week! :)

Remember when trophies were cool...

2011-03-21T13:17:00.000-04:00

Well, I do. I also remember not having many of them because, I don't have an athletic bone in my body. I did, however, receive a trophy in late high school for a Speech Team, dynamic duo performance. 5th place baby. Oh yeah.

So. Trophies. Didn't have many as a kid - but today - or rather a few days ago - I was gifted the equivalent of a blogging trophy! YAY! [cue much rejoicing] Allie, from Guten Strudel, which is a most fantabulous and hilarious blog you should all be reading, tagged me for the Stylish Blogger Award. I feel so loved. :) As a thank you, I am going to play along with the rules.

The Rules:

Uno. Link back and thank the person [Thank you Allison!!!] who gave you the award. [check-done]

B. Share 7 things about yourself.

3.14 Award 5 recently discovered blogs.

Lastly. Contact them and tell them about their award.

On to "B" then, shall we. :)

1. I am a piler. Like, the tv show Hoarders kind of piler. No, really. I have trouble parting with items that might some day, at some point, come in handy. I have two boxes of empty, glass baby food jars in boxes, in the attic. Why? Because some day I might have a cool project that will necessitate them. When husband says, "Hey where's the water bill?" I generally respond with, "It's in the second pile to the left of the dresser, halfway down, under the yellow folder." Now, it may seem unorganized, but, darn it all, the water bill is right where I tell him. If I organize the piles, everything falls apart and I can't find anything. Thus, I will continue to hoard and pile. :) Sorry family. :)

2. I enjoy changing my hair style frequently--much to the chagrin of my husband. :) Here, let's look at the past 4 years:

Aw... Wedding... Skinny... Looooooong hair = husband's fav.

This is how I surprised husband when picking him up from work after 2 months of marriage. SURPRISE! I cut all my hair off.

He was surprised.
He was not elated.

I, however, think this is one of my all time favorite hair cuts. :)

If I could rotate this for you, I would, but I'm lazy, so I'm leaving it. :)

This is the "in-between" stage.

Here we are back to looong locks again. [sigh] Ah. I do like very long hairs.

Then, this cut came to us this year. ADORE. I'm sporting a longer version now, because I'm growing it out again! Shock. Dismay. :) There were a couple other styles between Sesame age of 0 and 18 months - but photos of myself stopped occurring during those years. I was like a ninja. Never seen, but always there. :)

3. I am a C. I am a C-H. I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N. :) I love the Lord. Like, hard core, Praise Jesus, love the Lord. Husband and I are trying to live a life that glorifies Him daily. It ain't easy, but we do our best. We were both blessed to be raised in strong Christian homes that taught us what it means to be a follower and what Ephesians 2:8, 9 really mean. I am beyond grateful that our parents laid a foundation in us that is unmoving--and hope we can instill that same love of Christ in Sesame and Squirt. [Stops, wipes tear] Moving on...

4. I cannot stand: slow drivers in the left lane, ants in or out of my house (now I'm itchy) or people who talk/text on their cell phone in line at any store. I mean, really, what is so important that you can't put down your phone for 5 minutes to check out. Honestly.

5. I randomly start singing and dancing at various points during the day. Like, no-one's-watching-sing-at-the-top-of-my-lungs kind of singing. Generally oldies or Broadway. What is the most awesome part of this??? My daughter has decided it's cool and now joins in. :) I heart her.

6. I am a ginormously huge pregnant woman. I increased to a rather large size whilst pregnant with Sesame:

Approximately 29 weeks with Sesame.

And that trend seems to have only been magnified during my pregnancy with Squirt:

Yeah...this is only 27 weeks with Squirt.

It's all good though. I'm a fan of birthing large, robust children that I don't feel I can break. At our 24 week ultrasound, Squirt was weighing in at an estimated 2 pounds. I might give birth to a whale.

7. I heart: sewing, ironing (it's true...I would iron my pillow cases if I still had the time), pedicures, a large glass of ice water with lime, cinnamon toast, blogging (had one since like 2004...on xanga...it still exists...even though I don't write on it...and no, I'm not linking to it.) digging in freshly tilled dirt, spinning til I'm dizzy, Thanksgiving and Sci Fi. (That last one is thanks to Husband dearest!) :)

Okay...now to pass on the love. If you aren't reading these, you so should be. :)

1. Naptime in Naptown or Heart Gone Walking - both are a fantastically hilarious read by my real life friend, and former college roomie, Katie.
2. In Sock Monkey Slippers - the food. Oh. The food. Every recipe I have made from her blog has been scrumptious. Especially the butternut Squash Mac and Cheese. Oh baby.
3. Joy's Hope - Julie is so stinkin' funny and real. I love her blog. She is awesome at all things crafty and has some wonderous tales of how Christ has worked in her life - through thick and thin.
4. Lots of Scotts - A grand Momma who loves the Lord and recounts how everyday occurrences are teachable moments.
5. Vintage Dutch Girl - Amanda is just funny. :) She has some mad sewing skills and isn't afraid to be down to earth and honest! Did I mention she's hilarious???

YAY! I think I'm done! It only took me like week to actually finish this post! :)

Why Being 2 Is Awesome.

2011-03-17T16:38:00.000-04:00

Yesterday and today have GORGEOUS outside here in the midwest. The gray, rain clouds have departed to bring us a brief reminder of why we live here. :) Thus, the cleaning has been put on hold and the laundry is piled in the hall, because, let's face it, playing outside is waaaaaaaaaaay more important. :)

Which brings me to the age of 2. I heart this age so much. I honestly can't recall a better verb or phrase to describe it. Sesame is so capable and full of curiosities. She LOVES to jump. She LOVES to throw. Throw anything. Balls. Rocks. Homer's leash. She loves to skip. She loves EVERYTHING. Which, is making me realize how awesome all these things really are. :)

Example number one:

This lovely green ball cost a grand total of 2.00 at Wally World. We purchased it about a year ago. It lives on (miracle) and entertained Sesame for 30 minutes yesterday. Did I mention all she did was throw it, run after it and throw it again. I didn't even help.

Example #2:

She loooooooooves airplanes. The kid can spot them with her ears alone. She perks up, cocks her head sideways and loudly proclaims: "DADDY AIRPLANE!" I'm looking. I'm listening. I don't sense a single sign of any flying object. But, sure enough, a minute or so pases and there is the airplane.

Note: It's also cute that every plane is "Daddy's airplane." Husband dearest is an aero engineer,which; in 2 year old land, means every airplane is Daddy's. :) Awesome.

Example Numero Tres:

This next series will give you a glimpse of the joy Sesame experiences when throwing a single rock.

Oh yeah. Those faces are only a 10th of the expression she exudes on a daily basis. We have no problem with animation in this household.

I love this kid. I love this age. I am so blessed to stay home and experience every moment of it. :)

Post

2011-03-16T20:52:00.001-04:00

This is the third time I have tried to write a post.

This is the third time I have come upstairs without my camera.

My daughter is also now repeating the mantra, "I have to go pee-pee Mommy" from her bed.

I think this post will be delayed yet another day.

Random.

2011-03-10T13:18:00.000-05:00

1. Dear Kohl's - I think I might have to leave you a neatly folded note that says, "I am breaking up with you." What is with all the girl toddler clothes!? I have been a faithful infant clearance rack shopper since January 2009. You have never disappointed, what with your cute jumping bean play clothes and Polo dresses for a mere 2.00. When the time came to graduate to the next section I wept. Why? Because every piece of clothing - clearance and not - seems to have giant photos of Disney princesses or Dora the Explorer brandished across the front. Now, I recognize there will be a time when my daughter falls madly and deeply in love with princesses. But on all her clothes? I think not. Please, bring back the cute, colorful, fun, comfy clothes. I miss them.

2. Dear Target - You are my new retail love. You have replaced Kohl's. My daughter is, at this moment, wearing navy and off-white polka dot leggings (gathered at the ankle), an empire waist Peter Pan collar knit navy coat, with a sweet off-white, ruffle-necked T underneath. How much did this entire, adorable outfit cost?? $7 dollars. Oh Yeah. I can't find an outfit this cute, at this price, used at Once Upon a Child! Thank you for being reasonable and having simple, cute items for my 2 year old. You rock.

3. Why do I have 13 sewing projects cut and half sewn?? I mean, really, why!? Does anyone else do this? Am I alone?!

4. I have now entered the beached whale phase of Squirt's pregnancy.

5. I love being a beached whale.

6. This:

Made me laugh. Very hard. And for a long time. I'm not ashamed.

7. I am also not ashamed that my husband and I played Paper, Rock, Scissors to see who would change Sesame's dirty diapers as a little tyke. Nor am I ashamed that as she grew, she would walk up to us and try to play when she had a dirty diaper. :)

8. I leave you with some Sesame-isms:

Conrad: "Sesame, are you sleepy?"
Sesame: "No." pause "I'm just restin' in my car seat."

Conrad: "Sesame, Num-Num time is over. Give it to Daddy please"
Sesame: "Okay." walks away dejectedly. "That's a big bummer."

Me: "Sesame, would you like to have blueberries or apples?"
Sesame: "I would like ice cream" pause "Chocolate." pause "with a spoon."

Me: "Sesame, what should we call baby Squirt when he/she comes out of Momma's tummy?"
Sesame: "Ummm....Jesus."

You Might Be Feeling Better If...

2011-03-03T14:55:00.000-05:00

Your Momma catches you jumping on your bed...

Fever free, happy, playful, asking for food, requesting "piggie-toes" (pig-tails) in her hair, asking for food, using the potty, playing with Homer...I think it's safe to say, she's feeling better! :) Praise the Lord!

Livin' in the Momma Hood

2011-03-02T22:43:00.000-05:00

This week has been particularly trying. Sesame woke up on Monday morning sounding like Darth Vader and Chewbacca had a love child. Come to find out, she has Croup and a sinus infection. If this winter were labeled for posterity sake, it would be titled "A Plague of Illness Upon Our House." We just can't seem to make it more than a weekend with all of us well.

That said, and also noting we currently have one operational vehicle, amounts to a fair amount of time quarantined in our own home. I love being home, don't get me wrong. Usually I relish in the hours spent finger-painting and playing in cookie trays of beans. I don't mind staying in the confines of our adorable house. But this week has been a bit different.

Sesame has gone from no fever to 101 in the span of half an hour. This means were coloring pictures for Grammy and five minutes later she's a limp noodle wanting nothing more than to have Momma "hold you." (aka hold her). My patience has been worn. After going several days sans potty accidents (including an accident free day whilst traveling!) she had five accidents in one day.

My house looks like a tornado hit. The load of laundry in the dryer has been there since 7:00 this morning. The are dishes piled on the counter from the past two days. The batcave (aka bathroom) looks like a brigade of pre-schoolers came in and played "Win, Lose or Draw" on the walls, and left towels and wash cloths draped over every drape-able surface. We ate frozen pizza for dinner last night and Kraft Mac and Cheese tonight.

And I have been home since Sunday evening. How is this possible?!

I lamented my frustrations to my Momma tonight on the phone. "I just feel so lazy! Nothing has been done in our house and I haven't left for three days. Not even to run to the grocery store!?" "Emily," she said, "You haven't done nothing. You've taken care of a sick little girl. She hasn't been hysterical or crying the whole time, despite being sick. You are doing something."

It's hard to remember that sometimes. It's hard to remember among the piles of toys and laundry that snuggling my fever ridden daughter, is part of my job. It's hard to remember that watching "The Kite" episode of Shaun the Sheep 5 times in a row, is part of my job. It's hard to remember that being pooped on, is part of my job. Mostly, it's hard to remember that all of those things are contributing to the character of Sesame. How I react to everything establishes a portion of her personality.

In the end, she won't remember the dirty dishes, the laundry and Mac and Cheese. She'll remember the "goodest blanket" that we snuggle under, in Momma's bed, when she's sick. And the chicken noodle soup. And the two baths a day. And the book reading.

That's what I remember at least.

I suppose my prayer in all of this is to learn patience and contentment. To be resting in the role the Lord has placed me in during this time and season of life. Hopefully, I'll get the hang of this soon, what with the family growing and all! :)

Potty Training Take 2: Day 3

2011-02-18T14:22:00.000-05:00

Disclaimer: This post talks about poop. And pee. And lots of it.

Dear mothers of the world,

   None of you warned me what this potty training business was like. Day One was awesome! Smooth sailing. Lots of attempts with success, which means I'm the awesome, cool Momma who gets to pass Skittles out. Yay. But then Day Two came. And Day Three. Now I am mean Momma. I demand every 20 minutes that we sit on the potty. I am the Momma who says, "No, we cannot go to the park because you will pee everywhere. We can, however, go in our backyard, because I don't care if you pee there." We have had 7 failed potty attempts this morning. All did start with "Potty Momma, Potty!" followed by a brisk sprint to one of the two mini-toilets in the house. Sadly, she starts peeing shortly after telling me she needs to. While this does make her brisk sprint morph into a cowgirl waddle by the time she's in front of the potty, it makes for lots [pause for emphasis] lots of wet laundry.

---------------------------------Beginning of Massive Poop Story----------------------------------

   Yesterday may have been the peak. We had an event which I will forever call by name the "Poo Shoe" incident. My dear friend was over for lunch, and to remind us humans still wander the earth beyond our walls, when Sesame disappeared. I lost track of her for half a minute. Half a minute. That's thirty seconds. During which she ran into my closet, shut the door and let a giant turd loose in her powder blue drawers. Ew. Gross. Upon finding her she reminded me that if she pooped, she received a sucker. "No," I said, "Only if the poopy is in the potty." "Oh, dear." she said and hung her sweet braided head. Up the stairs we went. Jenn even braved the putrid smell. I decided laying her down would be best, since we only had a solid turd to work with. Bad idea.

   As soon as I tugged her training pants down the poo flew out, resting near her tiny toes. "AHHH!" I yelled. Because, really, what does one say when a solid poop turd flies around on a changing table! Sesame, ever my mimic, began to scream with glee, thinking it a game, and flailing around with joy. Normally this a non incident. I like joy in my house. I like squealing. I do not, however, like tiny toddler feet that have a large piece of poop molded to them.

   That's right. Sesame managed to aim her right inner heel to big toe directly into the magnificent poop. Immediately after which she began to fling her foot about in an attempt to A) do the jitterbug or B) remove the poop. Fortunately, Jenn was there and able to help me reign in the horror/laughter/baby feet, and remove the excrement. Sesame just giggled the whole time. I almost puked.

-------------------- End of Massive Poop Story------------------------------------------

   So. Aside from that incident, the potty training is draining, but moving along, apparently, like normal. What did you all do with potty training??? How did it work for you??? And, how in the WORLD did you manage to EVER leave the house?!!? I feel like that day will never come. :)

Potty Training Take 2: Day 1

2011-02-16T12:34:00.000-05:00

Number of panties + pants combination in the wash as I type: 4
Number of times Sesame screamed "POTTY POTTY" and then went running to the bathroom: 4
Number of times Sesame put pee in the potty: 3
Number of Skittles consumed before nap time: 10
Number of times Momma slipped and put her entire arm in the potty: 1

I'd say it's not going too badly. I'll let you know after nap time. :)

Confession.

2011-02-15T14:01:00.000-05:00

1. There has been a serious lack of photos on this blog lately. What is that about?!

2. For the past two days I have become increasingly unbalanced. I went to the doctor today only to find out I have been storing the Nile in my ear canal. Perhaps that's why Egypt has been in such unrest lately...

3. I have moments like my husband. Remember the marker incident. Oh, and the egg incident? Well, yesterday husband came home from work, to a giddy toddling girl and a wife still in her pj's. He hugged his ladies and chased his dog. [sigh] All was right in his world. Then he went to the bathroom. "Honey," heard his barefoot, pregnant, pajama-ed wife in the kitchen. "HON-NEY," he yelled at the top of his lungs do his deaf wife. "Yes," she said back. "I think Sesame learned to open the toilet lid." That's right ladies and gents wife, aka moi, had a catastrophe on her watch. Apparently while deaf, disoriented Momma made dinner in the kitchen, little Sesame discovered the inner workings of the toilet. She then pulled almost an entire roll of toilet paper off the roll, placed it in the toilet, re-closed the lid, climbed on top of the toilet to the sink where she then attempted to wash her hands. How did husband discern all this you ask? Because there was Twisted Peppermint hand soap all over the vanity, complete with resplendent, sparkling bubbles in the sink. Who was supposed to be watching this child when all of this happened?! Me. Emily. The Momma. Parenting FAIL. At least she was trying to use the potty and at least she knew to wash her hands. Right???

4. I fully intend to bribe my child to use the potty with Skittles. It has been decided and purchased. I'll keep you posted on the pee and poop in the potty progression.

5. This is one of my favorite photos of my husband and me. Not just because he has a crayon up his nose. Not just because of my expression. Not just because I'm wearing an IU shirt and he is wearing a Purdue shirt. But because it completely captures our personalities. :) I heart you husband. :)

6. Sesame's first Valentine's Day in 2009:

Sesame's second Valentine's Day, 2010:

Sesame's third Valentine's Day, 2011:

Oh, wait...there aren't any photos. Momma fail, again. :) Ya'll just have to settle for some from later today! :) It's close enough, right! :)

What I've Heard Lately...

2011-02-08T23:01:00.000-05:00

I came down the stairs with Sesame's shoes. I was gone a total of 45 seconds. She barreled around the couch, arms spread wide and proclaimed: "Momma, it's so nice to see you. Give me a hug!" For real. Where did this girl come from!?

The other day at dinner: Husband: "Sesame, do you know who Daddy's favorite is?" Sesame: "Unc Ryan." "What? No, who is Daddy's favorite." Sesame stopped, actually put her chubby pointer finger to her chin as if to ponder the questions of the universe, and decidedly stated, " Uncle Ry-an" as if Husband didn't hear her the first time!

In the car today: Sesame: "Momma, wus daaaaaaaat?!"
Me: "Oh, that's a trash incinerator. The big trucks take our trash there and they burn it so it won't be at our house anymore. It's stinky huh?"
Sesame: "Yeah. Shoo-Wee. Like Daddy." :)

Me: "Sesame, do you want a brother or a sister?"
Sesame: "bru-der"
Me: "What do you think we should name him?"
Sesame: (without missing a beat) "Jesus." - at least she's paying attention when we read the Bible and go to Bible Study! :)

And, perhaps my favorite new phrase: "Momma, hold you." What she actually means is, "Momma, hold me." I"ll take that grammar debauchle any day - because those cute Sesame phrases won't last forever. : )

The Last Week.

2011-02-03T17:41:00.001-05:00

We have had the flu.

We have had sinus infections.

We have been tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiired.

So tired, we've fallen asleep in random chairs/places.

So sick and so whiny, we've gotten away with most anything.

Except abusing the dog.

Who was cute and lazy all week too.

See.

Cute

and

Lazy.

We have snuggled and watched "My Six Loves" more times than I care to admit.

But only the first half of the movie

because someone doesn't like the second half.

We have been iced in for a day...

or two.

We have tried to distract ourselves with painting on the walls and

adding photos to the paintings.

In the end, we gave in to the PBS morning lineup. And started last Friday with Between the Lions and watched everything right up to Dinosaur Train (which I agree with Katie about by the way).

And then we did that on Monday.

And Tuesday.

And Wednesday.

And today.

And.

Finally.

I think Whiny Pants McGee might be getting better.

No, wait.

She just sneezed the Nile of Snot-dom out of her nose.

Excuse me while I go do my job.

Cabin Fever and Sesame's Stitchery!

2011-01-22T16:47:00.001-05:00

So. I broke out the sewing machine this afternoon. :) It's been awhile. I scoured the internet searching for a pattern that could be cut out and completed in one afternoon nap time. Dana at Made did not disappoint. :) She has a tutorial for how to make your own pattern from you child's existing clothes which I then used to make Sesame a pair of leggings. Guess what?! I made them in an hour and a half! Moi, me the girl who cuts out fifty billion patterns and never, ever actually completes ANY of them! Seriously kids, if I can do this, so can you! :) AND the cost is AWESOME-TASTIC

Old pale pink Gap Stretch t-shirt from high school: Free

Elastic from an old pair of sweat pants: Free

Hearing husband giggle at my comments to myself while doing project: Free and fun!

See.

Awesome.

Tastic.

And look:

They didn't turn out too badly! :) I'm going to try them on her when she wakes from her nap. I'll let you know if I find any complications then. :)

---------------------------------------------------------

So last Thursday we had a a bit of snow here in the midwest. Just a tad. :) While I heart snow, it does tend to produce a bit of cabin fever in the house. I cried out to facebook asking for ideas to entertain a two year old. The internet did not disappoint.

Exhibit A:

Out modified version of MckMama's Winter Suncatcher. Too fun! The cupcake tray made awesome sun catchers with four small versions of various colors. We played with water and food coloring to maker ours. Hence the brownish, purple one. That was Sesame's creation. :)

Another favorite (from MckMama again) was rice on a cookie sheet. :)

We got a good solid hour of play time out of this one! We even put our alphabet magnets on the tray, covered them with rice and went on a "treasure hunt" for them. I might have had more fun than Sesame. I also might have started talking in a pirate voice and scowling whilst on our treasure hunt. And, I might have frightened her to saying: "Momma, why you scare me??" and "No, silly talk. Scae-wee."

We also played in cabinets. Because, why not really! :) Oh, and at this point in our play time I noticed something.

See that star. Can you see what's in it??? No?? Let me zoom in a bit.

Blue food coloring. On her little toe. Now, I ask you, how does one manage to squish blue food coloring between their little and ring toe??? It's not on top of her toe, just in the crease between them. My daughter is turning into a smurf.

But a very happy, hobbit like smurf! :)

The Marker and the Eggs.

2011-01-19T13:50:00.000-05:00

Wouldn't that be a fabulous title for a Children's book??? I even have an illustration in mind... Moving on...

Over the long weekend Sesame reared her curly-mopped head and showed us exactly what two means. There were no tantrums or hitting or screaming, but there were exercises in independence and curiosity--to put it nicely. :)

On Saturday morning I ran to the grocery store and to complete some errands. I asked Husband to keep an eye on Sesame to which he replied. "sure." He's not a morning person. 'Sure.' from him in the AM is the equivalent to my "Yeah, that sounds great! Come on Sesame let's make Cupcakes!" I left did my errands and returned about 45 minutes later. As I trekked upstairs I noticed a black smudge above our light switch. "Hmm...I thought...that's odd." Then I noticed another. And another with three tiny streaks - oddly the size of a Sesame hand. As I arrived in the office I found a pile of papers with black magic marker covering their notes. "HUSBAND!" I yelled. "What?" he replied. "WHAT HAPPENED?! DID YOU KNOW SHE DID THIS?! THERE'S MARKER EVERYWHERE!?" "Oh." He replied. I then gave him the Mom look, even though I'm his wife. "I though I got it all" he said.

The story he recounted goes something like this: Husband falls asleep on the couch shortly after wife leaves. Sesame finds a black magic marker. Sesame decorates Momma's papers with said marker. Sesame realizes her hands are dirty and wants them clean. Sesame scoots down the stairs spreading small traces of finger prints along the stairwell wall. Sesame wakes Daddy up and says: "Daddy, hands yucky. Clean, please." At least she was polite. : )

Husband and I have a conversation about what it means to watch a two year old -- and sleeping is not on the list. : )

Monday comes. Husband has the day off (insert happy dance here!) and we have a grand time playing as a family. I find my cell phone (I NEVER know where it is and when I find it it's usually not charged!) and discover I missed an important phone call. "Husband," I say, "Can you keep and eye on Sesame for me?" "Yes." He says. I'm on the phone in our room chatting away, when Sesame walks in. "Momma!" she exclaims, grinning from ear to ear, "Help in kitchen!" I think, 'Oh how cute is she, wanting me to play in the kitchen with her.' Then I realize she is holding not pretend eggs, but real eggs. Like the kind chickens lay--you know--the ones you buy at the store and put in cake. Not only is she holding them, but one is cracked open and running down her arm. "I HAVE TO GO!" I scream into the phone. "HUSBAND!" I yell! "What?" he says calmly. "SHEHASREALEGGS!HOWDIDSHEGETINTOTHEREFRIGERATOR?!WHATAREYOUDOING!?"

We had Sesame clean up the eggs, and help put away the trash, after which we talked about NOT opening the refrigerator. Goodness gracious. If I would have known my eggs were in danger, I would have put them on the top shelf!

Beware: We Have A 2 Year Old Amongst Us.

2011-01-17T21:58:00.000-05:00

This post is not as menacing as the title leads to believe! :) I'm merely here to share a piece of our lives from the past week. Sesame turned two last Wednesday. TWO! I can hardly believe my little girl has gone from this:

to this:

In two years! Goodness gracious. She is so much fun! :) The Lord has truly blessed our family with Sesame's vivacious personality. I can not wait to see who she grows into! :)

We had her 2nd birthday party on the 15th. A small gathering at our house with family and honorary Aunts and Uncles. : ) No need for a ginormous celebration at age two - family was overwhelming enough for her!

I saw this awesome rainbow cake on Make-and-Love-It and knew it would be perfect for Sesame. I gave a talented young lady a call to see if she would help out with the cake and away we went! Jane (note: she is 12 years old...TWELVE...and an awesome baker!) and I were up until 1 am making this fabulous cake. We had so much fun and Sesame loved it!

How awesome is that?! It tasted fabulous too! : ) We ended up with half the cake left - so we fed it to the Middle School kids at church. : ) They are so reliable to eat up the sweets we have leftover! : )

Sesame was in rare form - so excited about the presents she could hardly contain herself.

Related much? I think so...

Loving her cake. : ) She is soooooooooo my daughter!

I heart this photo for so many reasons. First of all, it contains all of my grandparents - a very rare photo op. :) Secondly, they are all reading one of the books Sesame received for her birthday. Remember the "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Little Miss Naughty" books? My George gifted them to Sesame. Love. :) Yes, well, my awesome grandparents are reading those books. :) It makes me smile. :)

This photo is great because it shows: The girls I nannied for playing ring-around-the-rosy with my daughter. Yes, I baby sat for them. I'm playing my old card here. Not only do I think of them as sisters, but my daughter ADORES them. I"m pretty certain, if given the option, she would live with them forever. Afterall, when you build tents and pretend to be in a battle zone taking cover under the kitchen table, how could a 2 year old not love you. :)

Awesome day. Awesome food. Awesome family. I heart birthdays and can't wait for more memories! :)

Sesame Overload.

2011-01-05T14:02:00.000-05:00

I typed that title and then thought to myself, "I'm not in Sesame overload...it's quite the opposite..." I just meant that this post will be a Sesame story overload. It's been a big week here at our house. The last week of being one has brought about some fun times. Such as this:

Oh yes. That is blue all over her mouth. Momma and I were have a fabulous little conversation when Sesame went on an excursion in Mommy and Daddy's room. I hopped up to reign her in. As I grabbed her arm and turned her around, I discovered a lovely little blue moustache and goatee. "Sesame!" I gasped "What have you been playing with." Being the diligent little rule follower she is, she marched me right over to her coloring table and did this:

That's right, she fully admitted to rubbing blue crayon all over her face and even reenacted the monumental occasion for Yia Yia and Me. She promptly proclaimed, "Sesame no, no" to the aqua crayon and handed it over.

Gotta love this kid. :)

Another rite of passage was achieved in our home this week as well. Sesame and Husband dismantled the crib and assembled the "big girl bed."

She was a fabulous little helper and has made the transition beautifully. I, on the other hand, bawled like a newborn when I arrived home to find her crib in the garage. I, perhaps, most of these moments are harder on Momma than child. : )

She's showing us how to sleep in a big girl bed. Homer is almost as excited as Sesame. I'm fairly certain the two will never part again. He's slept in her bed with her for at least two naps that I'm away of. It's really quite adorable! : )

Her accompanying sound effect sounded something like a snorting/dying pig followed by a quick giggle = Sesame version of a snore. She even instructed, "Ike dis, Momma!"

Happy Face Picture!

Sad Face Picture!

While I miss the close, snuggly rocking Sesame to sleep, this new season is bringing such joy. Laying in bed, reading books and singing reminds me of some of my first memories. I love how methodical Sesame is about bed time. We must have Amos and his lovey as well as blankie and Num Num. We simply must read a book (right now she's stuck on Clifford's Christmas Presents). We never close our eyes without being "cuh-vah-d up." But most of all, I'm loving that she won't even consider sleeping unless we've said our prayers. Her sweet, dulcet voice makes small requests at prayer time for people, inanimate objects, even some stranger we saw at the grocery store. Her little personality is blooming into a person who knows Jesus is important. As a stay-at-home Momma, that is the single biggest pay check I could ever as for. I am, by no means, rushing this little life along, but I can not wait to see what the Lord does with my little Sesame. : )

Random.

2010-12-30T09:29:00.000-05:00

Sesame's newest addition to the library of songs she requests, as well as performs, is the old hymn "Trust and Obey." :) BSF has helped in the training of this one, I can't take credit. I must say, it's quite adorable to hear my nearly 2-year-old sing "trust obaaaaaaaaaaay. Other waaaaaaaaaaay. Happ-EEEEEE! in Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesus. Trust. O-baaaaaaaaaaaaaay." :) Gotta love this kid.

Speaking of Trusting and Obeying...Today is a very special day in our household. It marks four years that Husband and I have been married. :) I tell you what, we've already learned the amount of trust and obedience to the Lord a marriage takes -- I can't wait to see how the Lord continues to train us. :) I love you Husband!

And, as requested, photos of the family Christmas tree! :) YAY!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! :)

What You've Missed...

2010-12-27T14:10:00.000-05:00

1. The Infamous CVS Mooning of 2010. That's right. My mother and I were mooned last week whilst waiting in line at the CVS Pharmacy. It was completely unintentional, but; we were still mooned. Fully. There we sat, stowed away in the heated confines of Max (Momma's car), waiting for Sesame's Amoxicyllin to be filled, when we spotted two large human beings climbing a giant snow pile in the parking lot. "Is that a guy?" Momma said. "I thought it was a girl," I replied. "I just don't know, Emily. (she squints a little) It's hard to tell." "I know, maybe it's a guy with a pink Colts hat." Then, it happened. Large, androgynous human being number one, leapt atop the pile, promptly bent in half in an effort to not fall down, which lead to the "Infamous Mooning of 2010." I'm not just talking a peeping crack here people, we're talking the whole Grand Canyon. This, of course, sent my mother and I into fits of laughter (because what else can you do?!), which is the exact moment the Pharmacist chose to open the tiny glass doors and deliver our medication. I'm fairly certain that she thought we were insane. As we began to drive by my Momma whispers to me, "See if you can tell if they're guys or girls!" "Okay" I whispered back. To this day I do not know why, A) We were both whispering or B) the gender of our mooners. There are something in life you are just not meant to know.

2. An exhausted, almost 2-year-old

That's right, opening presents, singing and eating has drained her so much, she has been falling asleep with books open right on her lap, in prime reading position. Love this kid.

3. A rendition of Frosty the Snowman by Sesame at least four times a day. Her sassy version includes lyrics such as, but not limited to: "jolly soups" "pipe nose" and "down dare hat." While I can justify the first two phrases, I have no idea where "down dare hat" came from in the real lyrics.

4. Crazy Haired Husband dancing with Sesame. This both warms my heart tremendously and scares me at the same time. You see, when they play and dance around all crazy both of their hairs seem to grow at a rate that Chia pets would envy. Seriously. I feel as though at any point, their hair might outgrow the living room, sprout legs, and run around yapping like an overgrown Shitzu or Gremlin. Eek. But, on the flip side, they love each other tremendously and are hopelessly adorable when they play together.

Baby Jesus

2010-12-16T18:44:00.000-05:00

First off, it must be noted that my daughter and I may or may not be decimating a bag of Chili's tortilla chips and salsa for dinner. Obviously, I am a great mother who always feeds her child a nutritious dinner. (Please tell me you noted the sarcasm in that statement.)

Today my awesome-tacular Momma kept Sesame so I could have my hairs trimmed up. My mop was beginning to look a lot like this:

While John Lennon can carry this crazy hairdo well, I do not think it becomes my feminine side. Anywho, My Momma was keeping Sesame. : ) We sat in her living room, consuming leftover chocolate cake with chocolate icing while Sesame played with the Willow Tree Nativity set on my parents coffee table. "Now Sesame, do you know who that is?" I asked. "Bay-be Jeee-sus." "Yes," I said, "That's right!" She carried on, talking to herself and mumbling. Then she came across a Bible. "Bye-boooowl." she exclaimed to no one in particular. THen our conversation went something like this:

"Yes, Sesame, that's God's true Word."
"Two Word." She mimicked.
"Sesame, God's true Word says that Jesus came to the earth as a baby..."
"Bay-Be Je-sus." "and then died on a cross..." "Cross...criiiiiiii - ing."
"That's right, it was very sad, but not for long because Jesus took all our sins, died and rose again on Easter!"
"YAY! Happy!"
"That's right, happy. And if you chose to ask Jesus into your heart someday, you will live forever with Him in Paradise, because He will forgive all your sins!"
She paused and said "Please?"

This is the point at which I began to shed a few tears. My baby, my almost two-year-old Sesame, is already willing to ask Jesus into her heart. Now, I know she's only two, and this is just her trained response to a question, but I can't help but rejoice in the thought that she didn't say, "No." : ) I'm overwhelmed with joy at the thought of her inspecting the Bible, even though she can't read it. I am ecstatic at the thought of her telling her 2 year old playmates about the "True Word" (thank you BSF) and Jesus. How beautiful. That little snippet of time in my Momma's living room today is a glimpse into the joy that will beholden unto me when my daughter actually accepts the Lord (as I pray everyday!) someday. My heart was overflowing today, what will the Lord do on that day when she chooses to recognize she is a child of His. I cannot wait. : )

'Not to us, Lord, not to us, but to Your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness." Psalm 115:1

Two. Almost. : )

2010-12-11T10:52:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe my Sesame will be two in one month. My goodness how time flies. : ) She's becoming more and more a real person these days. She's so patient with me. It's not often that one can describe a toddler as patient either! : ) See the view from my computer chair (where I've resided quite a bit as of late) looks like this:

I have a little sidekick in the photo business. : ) She generally just walks around talking to her dolls, playing with Homer and entertaining herself. But then there are moments when she crawls under my chair and proclaims "Mommy, arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrre ooooooooooooooo???" (translation: Mommy, where are you?) Giggles promptly explode after that and I am pleased as can be to take a break from the computer screen. : ) My girl is great. : )

Foe Toes.

2010-12-08T14:54:00.000-05:00

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree...

2010-12-04T17:24:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year again. The time when snow is falling and Christmas trees are begging to be felled. Today was our family's 2nd annual Christmas tree hunt! :) Soooooooo fun! Sesame was old enough to play in the snow...and we ACTUALLY had snow this year! YAY!

Chillin' in the garage, pre-tree trip.

My co-hort in crime, Heidi. Note how awesomely cheese-tastic her smile is - as she casually holds a saw to her side. I heart her. : ) We've gone with their family for two years now and this is definitely a tradition we plan on sticking to! : )

Daddy and Sesame. She missed him. Can you tell??? : ) He spent a week in Italy for work and we are sooooooooooooo glad he's back!

Why are photographs of my child walking away from me so incredibly cute!?

Heidi's kiddos just ran by Sesame in this photo. She was ecstatic to be romping in the snow with other kids - even if they're 8 & 9. Kids are kids to her. : )

Lovingly titled: "DAD! There's snow in my boot. It's cold. Make it STOP!"

Dad's response: "Suck it up!"

My kind of parenting. : )

How gorgeous is this girl!?

I will title this: Man inspects tree.

Man cuts down tree. Wife holds tree. Tree falls.

She was trying to look up into the snow. Upon a brief eyeball snow dusting she, squinted and squealed "Soooo c-oh-duh!"

So much delight from snow in the eyes.

Ah to be a toddler.

Oh, wait. Here's where the "Tree falls." title goes.

Here's da Momma!

And Squirt.

: )

That's right.

Number two will soon be here to wreak havoc with number one.

Baby Squirt's ETA is June 16, 2011.

And we couldn't be happier! : )

Guest comment from Husband:

In advocacy of real Christmas Trees:
1) Yes, it's a Christmas Tree, not a Holiday Tree, even though we swiped it from some pagan religion. It's ours now.
2) "It's so messy and it gets needles everywhere" is a totally weak-sauce excuse to get an artificial tree.
3) Nothing replaces the awesomeness of tromping through the snow to pick out your own tree.
4) Real Christmas Trees are served up by Americans who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty, who love hot chocolate, and who can tolerate a bit of chilly weather. Artificial trees are yet another way of bowing to the Man.
5) Your house will smell pine-fresh for a month!
6) Fakery is for fakers.
7) Pre-lit artificial trees rob you of those memorable family moments when someone falls off a ladder or electrocutes themselves. (And yes, I'm serious. Those are memories that last a lifetime.)

I recognize that there are many who may choose to disagree with me on the above items. For those of you who are severely handicapped, over 70, or live some place where real trees are not available, I give you a pass, and say, "Merry Christmas."

For the rest of you, I highly encourage you to embrace a sap-covered, freshly-cut-but-dying tree and put it in the middle of your house. You'll be happy you did.

Kind regards,

-Husband-

Because...

2010-11-17T18:01:00.000-05:00

...she's cute, she's well dressed, I haven't put a photo of her up in a while and I allowed jumping on the bed today, I am going to post a photo. :)

This is her smile.

She even said cheese.

One little monkey jumping on the bed...

Exhausted from all the jumping!

Drama.

2010-11-15T12:36:00.000-05:00

I've already had several people describe my daughter as dramatic. Generally, I sneer at the thought of a dramatic girl - it conjures up images of junior high girls flipping me the capital W, cocking their head and proclaiming, "What-Eva," as they swing around the walk away. This kind of drama is NEVER allowed in my house. Sesame's little W will be slapped with a big fat backhand if that ever happens. Ahem, I digress.

So, while she wasn't throwing down "whatever's" today, Sesame I might have, maybe over-reacted a little bit today. We took Homer to the groomer's this morning. She was all a twitter in the backseat yelling "Home-uh! Home-uh! Goo Boy!" She giggled and guffawed at the sight of him in the car. As we exited Ruby (my car) and entered the groomer's her face changed. Confusion flashed across her face. "Momma, Home-uh?" She asked. "Remember Sesame, Homer is too big to have a bath at our house like you do, so we have to bring him here to get all clean. We'll come and get him after his bath, okay?" She thought about this for a second. "Oh-tay. Home-uh Keen." I chatted with our Groomer lady (who has permed, frosted hair, frosted lipstick and even pink frosted nail polish, stuck in the 80s much, I think so) who is so very sweet! I handed her Homer's leash and all chaos broke loose!

Sesame started wailing, "HOME-UH NO NO! HOME-UH HERE!" Homer, who hates the groomer's anyway, started clawing at the floor, almost pulling poor Dolly Parton Groomer lady over. Sesame started running toward him, almost taking out a small terrier in the process. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" Sesame is screaming. And I'm just watching. That's right. I"m so stunned I can't even respond. My children are cause mass chaos in a teeny tiny Dog Salon and I'm laughing in my head. The only other time I've ever seen Sesame this hysterical about leaving anyone/thing is when we have to put her car seat on the conveyor belt at the airport. Man, does that girl wail when that happens. Finally, I coax Sesame out of the Salon with a bribe to go to the library.

As I buckler her in, still gasping as she recovers from her meltdown, she eeks out, "Home-uh Allll [begins crying again] GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE!!" Meltdown number two. "Sesame, it's okay, we're picking Homer up later! He's coming home again!" "HOME-UH!!! NO!!!" She practically clawed through the window as we were driving away. Ten minutes later, as we pulled into the library parking lot, she was still crying. "Sesame, " I said, "They don't allow crying girls in the library, you have to stop before we go in." "Oh [heaves] tay [sobs]" After another minute she finally calmed down and we went into the library, payed our overdue fees (yes, I'm that mom) and enjoyed quiet play time.

My daughter may fit the word dramatic today. I think she's just exploring the emotional side of being female. Hopefully we can channel the drama for good and not evil. :)

Shopping.

2010-11-11T17:22:00.000-05:00

Okay. Before I write this it simply must be known that I abhor Christmas decor, etc. before Thanksgiving. Sorry, but the Turkeys need some love too. That said, I am also willing to acknowledge that a fair amount of Christmas shopping must be done before Thanksgiving when on a budget. So, in light of the frugal and budgeted shoppers during this holiday season, I thought I might suggest a few places to shop that would support the local economy/handmade/fair trade industry. Moving on...

1. Imagination Station - I cannot say enough about this fantastic toy store. For starters, it's like Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium. Without Dustin Hoffman and Natalie Portman. Although, I'm fairly certain they would love this toy store. Seriously, if Sesame even hears the word "Imagination" she starts squealing "Mah-juh-nay-sin." "Why?" because they allow children to play with the toys! That's right, they have a play kitchen out, a train set, a tent, a giant marble track and even an old closet converted into a bedroom for several little dolls. They generally carry unique toys that insight creativity and, my favorite, learning!!! Every toy we have from the shop is consistently played with. Love.

2. by Tavi - I own a large tote from this site that I purchased at a Christian business fair in the summer. The bag is handmade by women in Cambodia trying to support their families. Center for Global Impact (CGI) is purchasing sewing machines and sewing lessons for these women in Cambodia with the hope they will learn a trade that can support themselves, their villages and families. But, as the website states, "...a product without a market is pretty much useless." CGI is attempting to help establish an international outlet for these products, via the website and small art/business fairs. Personally, I LOVE my bag!!! It has two pen pockets, one "cell phone" pocket, a very large zipper pocket inside and comes with four smaller "nesting" zipper pouches. The smallest holds 5 cough drops and the larges holds a 5x7 spiral notebook. Those exact measurements were taken by yours truly. Anyway, I would highly recommend supporting this endeavor and snagging a cute bag for your bestie! : ) Did I just type "bestie" ?! Who am I!? What has this blog done to me?!

3. Tickled Fancy via Etsy - If you've met me in real life, you know I heart earrings. Big, fun, unique earrings. Tickled Fancy has just that. Chic, awesome jewelry at extremely reasonable prices! And by reasonable I mean the earrings are $8.00 not $80. [sigh] Try the store, you can thank me later.

4. Patricia Leeper Fine Arts via etsy - Okay, yes I realize this is a canvas print of a dog, but Patricia Leeper did the same type of print for me of Sesame and Holy Frijoles, it's Uh-mazing! She combines the posterized black and white photo with whatever words you would like on the canvas. Ours has words from the blog describing Sesame and her gregarious personality. This gift comes in a little pricier ranging from $60 (10x10)-$435 (30x30) but is the perfect gift for the in-laws or parents! Patricia is most gifted.

5. Kids Ink Children's Bookstore - This store used to be on the Southside when I was growing up. I remember playing int he store while my Momma sought out books that met her Master's Degree requirements. Now that the store is up on the Northside, we don't make it there as often as I would like to. Nevertheless, it's still reminiscent of the bookstore in You've Got Mail (shame on you if you don't know what I"m referencing, because it's the most charming book store EVER!). Anywho, check it out, you'll love it!

What You Missed...

2010-11-03T14:27:00.000-04:00

Confession: I miss my blog. It's so crazy true. I miss writing about the crazy antics that happen in our home. I'm fairly positive only 5 of you really read each word, which is completely cool with me, but I miss sharing the chaos that is our life here. So. Since I have too much to do (much less now thanks to my dear friend Suzy!) I will waste only a few small minutes here to relay a few stories.

1. I have learned that when a child is 21 months old you must be extremely specific in your instruction/discipline. I told her she couldn't climb on a stool. Two minutes later she was dragging a chair into my kitchen to aid her ascent to the kitchen counter. When I said "Sesame, Momma said No!" She politely stated, "No, stooh." (aka no stool) "Ah, yes," I thought "That really is what I said." So I clarified and life went on, yay.

2. Sesame LOVES bath time. I mean, who wouldn't when bath time means sitting in warm water for half an hour filling tea cups, playing with soap and splashing about! One day Sesame had an extra long bath. I was teaching her about physics (don't hate, my husband is a rocket scientist and I would remiss if I did not teach her about what Daddy does) which involved creating a whirlpool in the bath tub. Long story short, Sesame tried to create whirl pool which resulted in half of the bath water splashing out onto my shirt. She giggle and loudly proclaimed, "Mommy aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaall wet!" I then decided a happy, giggly, almost 2-year-old makes anything easy to handle.

3. I need to plan better. Shock. Dismay. We haven't had a weekend home in an entire month. I don't know how you working women keep a house, a job and a family going at the same time. I have learned that my personality + work + staying at home + house work = MAJOR FAIL. (The fail part being we have piles of clean laundry, dirty bathrooms and heaps of dirty dishes.) I just need to let it go. :)

4. I hear Bible time. The day goes smoother, life is happier and my attitude is a whole lot healthier when I have consistent time in the Word. Amazing how following God's instruction makes life work! Who'd a thunk it?! : )

5. Sesame was Einstein for Halloween. (I told you husband was a rocket scientist!) That's right. My girl will be no princess or fairy. No silly pink tulle for our Halloween costumes!

Here she is ready to take on the 4 square court at youth group.

I actually made her lab coat from one of my old shirts. And, get this, I didn't sew the sleeves shut.

Points.

I think my sewing skills might be on the up. : )

She even has the crazy Einstein eyebrows and moustache! :) Yay for silver eyeliner!

Let me draw your attention the lower left corner of this photo. See that lovely little speckled trail.

That's pee.

I think the trick-or-treaters frightened my dog whilst we were away, because he welcomed us home with

a pee trail.

A pee trail.

Yes you read that right,

A Pee Trail

from the top or our staircase,

through the entryway,

through the living room,

through the dining room and

through the kitchen.

Nice.

I used an entire can of Spot Shot to clean that one up.

It reminded me that we don't want another dog,

At least until we potty train Sesame.

Check out the mad scientist laugh! : )

Her notebook was choke full with equations such as, the theory of relativity. You know that one don't you? Yeah, I didn't either.

Good thing husband was on that one. : )

A Post To Tell You...

2010-11-01T16:06:00.000-04:00

..I won't really be posting today. :( I know. Sadness. I miss you all so very much! There's just a ton on my plate right now - including 2 wedding, 2 family and 3 senior edits. True story. : ) So. Here are some photos.

A little dark but still something! :)

A Video, A Photo and A Verse.

2010-10-14T07:45:00.000-04:00

So... this video is a month old now. Sorry for the noisy locust sounds - under the trees, by the sand box there is no escaping their cacophny.

That's my girl. I heart her. : ) She's working on verbs these days to go with all the nouns she's learned. Too fun.

Also, let it be known that Sesame rocks the braided pigtails. It's true.

And, yes , that is my messy garage that is full of stuff to be moved to the attic, put in a garage sale or really (let's be honest) just needs to be tossed. Seriously, three rusted silver spoons, who wants those??? Maybe the American Pickers, but even they might run from my garage screaming "Hoarder, Hoarder!" (Yes, that's right, I both watch and referenced American Pickers. I am not ashamed.)

Moving on... I just really feel like the Lord is teaching me to remember His bigness these days. We have several friends facing insurmountable odds - things like divorce, cancer, leukemia, miscarriage - things that just seem too big. But Jesus is bigger than anything. He isn't surprised by anything. After Hannah gives birth to Samuel and takes him to the temple she prays the most beautiful prayer of praise. The second verse says: "No one is Holy like the Lord! There is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God." (1 Sam. 2:2) I just keep thinking of this verse. I woke up last night with this passage on my heart. God is solid, immovable, consistent. He is mightier than anything we will ever face. There is such comfort in that knowledge. I mean, think about it, Jesus overcame death and sin. Hello - what could be more difficult than that!? Today I am resting in the promise that God is in control, He is BIG and He is holy.

Travel.

2010-10-12T12:55:00.000-04:00

There exist in the world few phrases that strike horror and fear in my being. A few would be:

1. "We apologize but the air conditioning on the plane is not functioning at this time."
2. "Please keep the windows of the plane closed. This will prevent temperatures from climbing to above 100 degrees on the interior of the plane."
3. "We apologize but we're oversold the flight this evening. Please be patient as we try to rearranged passengers."

Oh yes. U.S. Airways (that's right I'm telling the interwebs what airline!) said all these things in one flight. Normally (as in before I became a Momma traveling with a 20 month old) I wouldn't have minded these phrases. I may have even scoffed at the people who did mind! However, they take and entirely new meaning when you have a 30 pound child riding on your lap for an hour and a half. That's an extra 30 pounds of heat-producing gusto we're talking about. On a flight without drink service. Wahoo.

It really wasn't that bad. The hardest part was keeping Sesame from opening the window shade. She kept exclaiming, "air - plaaaaaaaay - Ar-plaaaaaaaane! Out!" The sweet thing. She just wanted to watch the airplanes - but her Momma was too concerned with setting the plane ablaze because one window open can cause the temperature to rise "ten degrees" (Yes, you read that correctly...it is in quotes from flight attendant Ernestine...who was a dear with a Jamaican accent who was just doing her job!)

Okay. I'm done with negativity land.

Our trip to South Carolina ROCKED! Sesame is such a fun age to travel with right now. She was excited about everything. Good times. : ) I'll regale you all with stories later, but for now a pile of laundry is calling my name! : )

The Orchard.

2010-10-04T22:33:00.000-04:00

So. Since I was a wee lass of three or so, my Daddy's side of the family has made a yearly trek down to the Apple Orchard every September.

(That's me in the pig tails. I do, however, now look like the lady behind the pigtailed damsel. Moving on...)

This year my Aunts, Uncles, Parents and Brother were unable to attend again. Sesame ate enough apples for all of us though!

And, can I just say, when I'm 85 I hope I'm spry enough to navigate through a minefield of apples on the ground! My grandparents are in their mid 80s and leaping about like yesterday's spring chicken! Grandma even picked Sesame up at one point. My baby is sweet, but she is hefty! I don't know how she did it! Hs'e super woman I tell you, super woman!

This shot is, by far, my favorite of the day. Sesame is riding on my Pop's lap in the front seat of the van. We were driving over a couple rows so don't call CPS too fast! She was so giddy and I'm fairly certain he enjoyed having a squirmy worm Sesame on his lap too.

Look at the triumphant waving of the apple. She picked it all by herself. She kept saying "Ap-uh. Big Gul" (aka "apple, big girl.")

Being a good sharer.

Love the orchard. Love being with my family even more. : )

A Response to the Call

2010-09-29T15:05:00.000-04:00

I have a lovely college roomie. Well, 7 lovely college roomies, but this post is about one of them and her blog this week. Katie (whom I generally call by first and last name..but won't, because these are the interwebs and there are creepers out there.) wrote up this post two days ago about a refugee family living in Indianapolis. I immediately commented and then called her. The family has nothing. As in, NUH-THING. And, yes, I meant to yell that. With a broken heart she called out to all her blog stalkers and interweb friends for help.

The response: overwhelming. Because of the amount of donations she will be helping several refugee families in the apartment complex with basic necessities, like soap, coats and under garments. How awesome!

I am amazed at how a response to the Lord's call to "learn to do right, seek justice, encourage the oppressed,. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow." (Isaiah 1:17) is blessed! I also find it breath-taking the number of people she has talked to with the same mindset. "I have all this, but I didn't know where to take it. I just want someone who really needs it to have it." It's almost as if God were preparing people for this to happen. : ) I love God - He's so cool.

So, for the next couple days I have dubbed myself the Southside Donation Driver. Wanna help?? Send me an email and I'll gladly collect your donations and get them to Katie.

"Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us." 1 John 4:11, 12