Meet Samantha- A Lesson in Savings

For some time now, Lil' Miss has wanted an American Girl Doll to call her own. Since it really wasn't in the everyday budget, we told her that she'd have to work hard at saving up her money to buy one on her own.

Well, almost one year later, many, many quarters later (she gets a quarter for every chore that she does), and after tithing the first 10% to church,  Katy finally got her doll!!

After much deliberation, Katy chose her doll;

Meet Samantha!

Samantha is the first American Girl book that we read together.

Kudos to Daddy for coming along for the doll selection.

While we were enjoying a special birthday lunch at the American Girl Store Bistro, Katy informed us that our meal was Samantha's first. When I asked her to elaborate, she told us, "....that it's like when you came over on an airplane as a little girl, Mommy. Samantha used to live at the store and she didn't have a home. And now, I picked her and she's coming home to live with us!" 

Talk about little ears listening to every detail!

Happy Birthday, Katy! 

We are so PROUD of you for learning a valuable life lesson- how to save your money and how to work hard to earn what you want! Good job!

Ringling Bros. & Barnum Bailey Circus- Legends

First Circus!

Last night, we got to partake in a special treat- the circus! Lil' Miss' first circus, to be exact!

When we got there, Lil' Miss got all into the action! First, we stood in line to get her face painted. She chose a butterfly and I have to admit, it turned out looking pretty awesome! Glittery, and everything! Next, we were handed balloon art in the shape of a heart headband and a giant balloon ring. Since Lil' Miss was looking cute with her butterfly face paint, we decided it would be the best time to get her picture taken, next. So, Katy climbed up on the "tigers" and had her picture taken (by herself- she didn't want Ted and I in the picture-Ha!). 

After all of the initial whirlwind, we decided that it was dinner time. Since Chick-Fil-A was one of the main sponsors of the circus, we dined on our favorite chicken nuggets. Yum!!

Once we finished dinner, we moseyed on down to our seats and Ted took Katy down to the floor to enjoy some of the pre-show entertainment. They had acrobats and elephants and an inflatable bouncy house out for the kids to enjoy.

Since Katy had never been to the circus before (and it's been a LOOOONG time since either Ted, or I, had been), we weren't really sure what she would think of it all. Needless to say, though, she enjoyed it! She was enthralled. There was SO much to take in once the show started- it was hard to catch everything! There were clowns, animals, acrobats, motorcycles and more! Lots of fun!

When the show concluded, we asked Katy what her favorite part was. She told us, "Everything!"

Happy Halloween 2014- Word Up!

"Word up, it's Wordgirl!

Word up, it's Wordgirl!

Flying at the speed of sound. Vocabulary that astounds.

From the planet Lexicon.

Watch out villains, here she comes!"

"Faced with a catastrophe, we need the living dictionary!

Her superior intellect keeps the crime world in check!

Go girl!"

"Huggy Face is by her side, vocabulary a mile wide.

She'll make sure that the crime won't pay, and throw some mighty words your way!

Word up, it's Wordgirl!

Word up!

From the planet Lexicon."

"Watch out villains! Here she comes!!"

(For those of you not familiar with Word Girl, here is a link and a picture. :-)

Also, Lil' Miss was in our local newspaper, too!

Hide and Seek, Katy style!

Yesterday afternoon, Katy had taken to playing hide and go seek with Ted. She kept hiding in the same kitchen cabinet. After a couple of rounds of this, Ted told her to go find another, new hiding spot.

Katy rushed off exclaiming, "Daddy, close your eyes!! I've got the perfect hiding spot!" Ted obliged and closed his eyes.

Then, several seconds later, after struggling with the child door lock to the utility closet, Katy shouted out, "Daddy! Please open this door for me!"

Hahahahahha.... that's one way to play hide and go seek! ;-)

Selfie

Katy's selfie

Katy's Uncle Rob and Aunt Julie got Katy a camera for her birthday, back in February (Thank you!). She LOVES it!! It's a kid-friendly camera and has lots of fun features (camera, funny props, video). She's had a blast running around taking pictures of whatever strikes her fancy.

I recently took a moment to flip through the pictures on her camera. There's a lot of blurry ones, but there's also some decent pictures, too. The one that made me laugh, though, is the picture above. When I came across it, I asked Katy who took this picture of her (Katy's the only one that uses that camera). Very nonchalant and matter-of-factly, she replied, "I took it- it's a selfie."

Omigoodness- I nearly died laughing! Where, oh, where does she come up with these things??! It's not like Ted or I go around spouting off pop-culture terms like, "selfie." From the looks of this selfie, I think we're in trouble, come ten more years, or so..... what do you think??!!

Sentence of the Day- Big Red

This afternoon, Katy suggested that we fly her kite from Grandma and Pop-Pop Tinkey. We told her that it was such a nice day outside but just not windy enough to fly a kite. Ted even went so far as to point out the trees and say, "See how the trees aren't moving? That means that there isn't any wind."

She responded in kind with, "Well, we could get the fan and plug it in and then it would be windy enough to fly a kite!"

Gotta admit that's some pretty good logic for a three year old.... ;-)

This is Why I'm Afraid of Parks and Playgrounds!

Little Gymnast at the Playground

See this little monkey? My pink-Princess-y-Look-Mom!-No-Hands!-feet-in-the-air little daredevil!?

Up until now, I've been able to quell my inner fear of parks and playgrounds and the dangers and risks that they pose to children. But  now... After watching Katy and her friends at playgroup flip, slip and trip their way down the slide any way BUT on their bottoms...!

Lord.Help.Me! (And please, please, PLEASE be safe, Katy Grace!)

Little Gamers

"My friend, Cecilia came to visit me last Saturday (along with her Mommy and Daddy)."

"Just like our daddies, we like to game, too! Here we are at Dave and Busters 'driving.'"

"Deal, or No Deal!"

Open Gym at Romp n' Roll

"Today, I went to Romp n' Roll for Open Gym. I stayed and played for two and a half hours!"

"The next Gabby Douglas on the balance beam!"

"I like to chill in the ball pit."

"Look Ma- no hands!"

"Swing faster, Daddy! Swing higher, Daddy!"

"It's fun to climb and explore at Romp n' Roll"

"There's no mountain too high for me to climb!"

"Kisses for my Daddy for meeting me at Romp n' Roll after work!"

Sporty, We are NOT!

While playing in her cousin's playroom, last week, Katy walked out with a baseball mitt on her hand. She held up her hand and exclaimed, "Look- a puppet!" Hmmm... I guess that's what happens with the daughter of an artist (who loves the Muppets) and a designer who are are not sports-minded in the least....!

Super Mom!

 

Best Buds!

Out for a stroll!

Storytime at the Library

Time for a snack!

"On a Dinosaur built for two...."

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week I took care of our friends' 10 month old daughter, Kylie, during the day. That means that I had two kids on Monday and Wednesday and three kids to watch on Tuesday (Elizabeth comes on Tuesdays). EEEK!

With the exception of naps (or lack thereof), Katy, Kylie and Elizabeth were pretty well behaved. We had a good time and there were no major meltdowns along the way. Still, I've learned some very important lessons, this week!

-When you have more than one kid it's very easy to forget to eat lunch. I used to wonder how women could "forget" to eat... I mean, I love to eat- how could I forget to do so?!? Between feeding baby food to one, cutting up food for another, dodging  spoonfuls of food flung in the air, cooling down hot food enough for a toddler to consume, making sure everybody has proper drinks, napkins/bibs, age appropriate silverware... when is there TIME for mom to eat?!?

-It is near IMPOSSIBLE to get two children to nap at the SAME time!

-It is also near impossible to have a clean floor when there is more than one child running around. I swept the floor multiple times each day and I still felt crumbs and sticky spots.

-Moms are the ultimate multi-tasker. Moms of more than one are UBER multi-taskers! It's not just talent, it's survival!

-Moms of more than one must possess superpower strength that I am severely lacking in order to get fed, dressed, get out the door, to a destination, on time and in a pleasant mood. Amazing!!

-Moms of more than one must run on adrenaline because it certainly isn't sleep!

Let's just say that after this week, I've got a new-found admiration for moms of more than one (Thanks Mom!)! I've also discovered that the most important lesson I learned this week is that having one is WONDERFUL!! Whew!

Watch Your Words Carefully...!

We were having dinner at a friend's house the other night and Katy was enjoying their very kid-friendly backyard. Trampoline! Swings! Swing set! Slides! Tree house! At one point in the evening, I caught Katy trying to climb up the rope ladder in her beloved Kermit flip flops.

I said, "Katy, those are not appropriate shoes for climbing. Please get down from there!" 

I pulled her off the ladder and distracted her with the swings and went back to talking to some friends. I looked over at Katy a little bit later only to see that she had taken off her flip flops and was half-way up the rope ladder. I guess it's all in how you say things.... Smart (too smart for OUR own good!!) Girl!! It's all in how you phrase things...!

Just an Ordinary Day....

Just an ordinary mess on an ordinary day... 

Such is the life Lil' Miss (and her friend, "Yaya" :-)

Park Playdate!

"Yesterday, it was 72 degrees in Charlotte! It's still March, right?!? SOOOoo... we met Joey and Ms. Lauren at the park."

 "Boy, do I love to 'drive' and sit behind the wheel! Vroom, Vroom!"

 "Seriously, Mother- ANOTHER picture?!?!?"

"All of this playing and swinging and sliding sure makes a girl feel peckish!"

"Lunchtime with Joey!" 

(Notice how Katy is leaning in- she actually gave him a kiss, later- and she was the instigator!")

Mallard Creek Recreation Center

"Today was a Mommy and Me day. So, we went somewhere a little different- somewhere we've never been. We visited the Mallard Creek Recreation Center."

 "There was a big indoor play place for me to climb and explore."

 "I had the whole place to myself! Well, not if you count Mommy but she told me that she was too big to climb."

 "Then, we went to the Mallard Creek Park for a little fresh air."

"Wheee!  I had lots of fun!"

Light at the End of the Tunnel

Sweet baby girl exploring her world at the park.

MYO Pizza Playdate

As you can see from the picture, Katy couldn't wait until the pizzas were cooked before she dug into the toppings! ;-P

Miss Lauren and Joey came over for a playdate, today. We had fun playing with cars and school buses. Then, it was time to make lunch- make your own pizzas! Everybody got some dough and then got to pick from a variety toppings- ham, broccoli, mushrooms- to decorate their own personal pizzas. Kid (and Mommys, too!) friendly and yummy!

Let's Rock! Elmo

Santa brought me Let's Rock! Elmo, this year for Christmas.

What instrument should Elmo play with, today?

I have a lot of fun dancing and jamming with Elmo!

Look at me movin' and groovin' and showing off my mad dancing skillz!

"Rock and Roll, Baby!"

Xtreme Play

In the ball pit!

  

Bounce, bounce, bounce around!

Already prepping for a very Mickey/Minnie 2nd Birthday Party (Coming soon!)

The weather outside is definitely chilly- way too cold for a trip to the park- so we decided to run off some extra steam at Xtreme Play (Monkey Joe's wanna be). The place was PACKED due to Cabarrus County having off for MLK holiday and there were lots of kids (and inattentive parents) literally BOUNCING off the walls. We managed to have lots of fun, though! Katy especially liked anything that had a steering wheel and she loved going down the big kids slide- my little wild child!

Rock 'n Roll, Baby!

"(She's) a little bit country...

(She's) a little bit rock 'n roll...

 

Don't know if (she's) happy or sad... 

(I'd say she's pretty happy, wouldn't you?)

 

(Her) music makes (her) feel whole..."