Too. Cute.

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.  :)

Sesame Overload.

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.  : )

Drama.

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.  :)

What You Missed...

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.  : )

Okay, We've Made Up.

It's true.  Now that I've played with this beta version of blogger I'm a fan now.  It's safe to say that our love will continue to grow and bloom like the dandelions in my yard.  :)  My swift recovery from hatred might have something to do with the option to use helvetica as the standard font.  maybe.  :)  Moving on...

Life has been C-R-AZY here at the homestead.  VBS is this week at church and husband and I are half of the Emcee team.  The other half is comprised an awesome couple we do the MIddle School Youth Group with.  I'm fairly certain the wife (who has a talent and knack for photos as well!) wouldn't mind her name floating about blogland.  However, I think her husband might assume that a name mentioned in the blogosphere, means crazies will find her and take her.  And, quite frankly, I like them and I want to keep them around.  So no names.

Jesopete, I"m a rambler today.

So we went to the local Freedom Festival this past Saturday (hence previous joy. photo).  I thought I might share with you all the rest of the photos...well most of them...I still have more to sort through.

Daddy and his girl waiting for the parade to reach us! 

Have I mentioned I adore these two!?  I mean, really, they're my favorites.  And Sesame's facial expression in this photo is actually a smile.  She's a looker.  :)

So when I look at this photo I might start to tear up a little bit, because I might start thinking about how my Daddy used to carry me on his shoulders, and, I might also start thinking about how Sesame is big enough to hang out up there and not fall off, and I might then start thinking about how she'll be too old for parades one day and sulk on the sidelines wishing she had cool parents who let her have a cell phone so she could just stay home and text people, and I might I then think how she'll finally have a cell phone when she leaves for college, and then MAYBE, JUST MAYBE I might start sobbing hysterically shed a tear at the thought of her taking her kids to the parade and watching them ride on her husband's shoulders.

I mean, hypothetically of course.

I would NEVER actually think all this.

Or cry.

NEVER.

Homer dog came too!  (Random side note: Sesame says Homer all the time.  It's actually quite cute - it just sounds like "Homo."  We need to work on our "R's")

Yay for Daddy's shoulders!

I lovingly title this photo: Steve Urkel meets My Scrunchie-Nosed Midget.

Yay Parade!

A genetics lesson for you:

Daddy loves sweets.

Momma loves sweets.

Therefore, baby will also love sweets

"Hey Mister!  You dropped this!"

I think she was wondering where their pom-poms were.

Another Daddy-Daughter Moment that might have made me cry.

Maybe.

My daughter is both diva AND and adventuresome boys scout!

Fireworks!  :)  

Nothing better than a fun-filled day of local activities!  Not gonna lie, I think I might have to frame some new Daddy-Sesame photos for the house!  :)

Splish, Splash, Grammar Nazi

A slightly delayed swimming post...

So today was a bit of a packed day, even though we didn't do much. As can happen. First the trip to the baby doc went well, and we're now a fan of the nickname "Baby Jellybean". It feels like far less of an Orson Scott Card ripoff than "Baby Bean". I'd post ultrasound pics, but A) they're fuzzy and show something that looks like a jellybean/peanut, and 2) you people don't comment enough to have earned it. Muhuahaha!

After the baby doc appointment, we had a rare and magical chance to have lunch alone with each other. While I'm sure that to outsiders we looked like a normal couple conversing, I must admit that it was a bit more schizophrenic than that. Here's a taste:
====================================
Husband: "It totally torques me when people claim that mispronunciations are "just accents". Seriously, 'po-tay-tow' is NOT the same as 'po-tah-tow'. Arg, and then on the radio yesterday, some dude they were interviewing mixed up "weary" and "wary"! I mean, he was a WRITER!"

*Wife groove-dances in the booth to the in-house muzak while staring at a salad*

Wife: "You know, I really, really like craisins! They're like raisins......plus awesomeness. There must be fields where they just set out the cranberries to dry.........But what if it rains?"

*"The Ballad of Curtis Loew" by Lynyrd Skynyrd comes on the muzak station*

Husband: "Wow, this is my favorite Skynyrd song! It's so......moving..."

Wife: "...I really just have no idea how people can confuse "there", "their", and "they're"! I mean, of all the easily confusable words, they have SUCH different meanings!

" ...On the day old Curtis died, nobody came to pray.
Old preacher said some words, and they chunked him in the clay..."

Husband: "Man, that's really sad..."

Wife: "I know! They might go their whole lives and not have anyone tell them how to use the words correctly!"
==============================================

"Hmm...I think I'll just take this green snakey thing and fill the pool myself..."

"I wonder if this is like the inside water...maybe I could drink it..."

"Nope...definitely too cold and uncontrollable..." (Note...we were lauging hysterically at this point. I mean, hello?!)

*shriek*squeal*giggle* Basically, if there's a sound related to joy a toddler makes, it's accompanying this photo.

Thirsty doggie.

"Finally! I can get a drink!"

I'm pretty sure that Conrad perfect this thumb over-the-nozzle move for this moment in life: spraying his children.

It's tough to get this from the pictures, but Midget Lady was a trooper, because the hose water was Lake Tahoe cold! It's a good thing she's been prepping her Thunder Thighs for just such an occasion.
Joy. Exuberance. Zeal.

Um...that's actually a smile...

Is that a gang sign?! Where did my 16 month old learn gang signs!?

Okay, favorite part of the day. Our neighbors just acquired a small yorkie named Sarge. Nellianne walked over, turned around and said "Hi' to Homer and then turned back to Sarge and said "Hi" again. ADORABLE!

I love this kid. : )