Family

Even though there is distance between them, I hope Lilly Mae and Sarah Beth can get to know each other well and become good friends.  During our family visit they played well together for the most part and enjoyed each other's company.  SB even cried after LM went home. 

In ten years I'd love to see the sweet innocence of these girls as teenagers the way I see it here.  Our only hope is Christ.  We are trying to teach this to SB.   She will make mistakes, I know.   I just pray that when she does, her response will be to stand in awe at the grace of Christ and love him more for it.

Pretend Play is the BEST Kind of Play

This is how we have fun.    It seems the more money we spend on toys, the less she actually wants toys.

Take a guess as to what she's doing here. 

Hide and Seek? no

Bored? no way

Seeing if she can fit in such a small space? no...wait...yes partly

Pretending to be a bunny in a hotel room waiting on room service? yes, you finally got it!  How'd you guess?

Potty Training

Dear reader,

 

If you have a late potty trainee, don't despair.  Sarah Beth is a month over three now and is just getting the hang of this.  Frankly, she's smart enough to have conquered this long ago, but has refused saying things like, "I'll NEVER use the potty" or "Will you buy me this toy if I start using the potty?" or "I don't really need a party for using the potty."  I read all I could find about how to potty train a stubborn toddler.  Based on all the personal advice, reading on my own, and downward glances, I've decided to approach it in the follow way.

• take some time off (a week or more if possible)
• get rid of the diapers completely
• fill her up with tasty liquid until dinnertime
• set the timer for potty times so I won't forget
• punish her for refusing to cooperate when it's time to potty (not for accidents)
• reward her with stickers and treats for doing a good job
• double the reward for poop
• be consistent
• pray for sanity in the process

Just a little FYI:  As I was composing this post, she went in her closet and pooped. . .  I love being a mother.

Why I Like Being a Mommy

Who wouldn't wanna greet this in the morning?

Party fit for a Princess

Today was SB's third birthday party.  In her own words, it was her "best birthday party ever." 
I opted to hold the party a few weeks before her actual birthday hoping that the weather would be a little cooler.  It was.
One of my former students came as Cinderella to entertain the girls and they really loved having her there.  If you live near me and want a Cinderella for your party, she is for hire.  Send me a comment or email and I'll put you in touch.

Meet n Greet:  Question of authenticity- "Where's your prince?" SB asks.

I was tired before it was over.  Thanks for the help, Mom and Crystal.

A sweet and caring princess.  SB had 4 cake pops on her plate and still managed to take a bite of Cinderella's.

Tea Time for 12 toddlers!!

Two pretty princesses, one semi-smile.  By now, you know how she rolls.

Mary Ellen looks more excited about Cinderella than Lilly Mae.

Thank you, Brooke for doing a super job.

Baby Remy, Crystal's boy.

Mary Ellen, Katee's girl.

She's got smiling down to a science.

The gentlest touch...

doesn't always...

receive a warm welcome.

I leave you with this.



Happy Birthday SARAH BETH!

Camera Shy or Camera Hater?

Why does SB not look in the direction of the camera?  That's how she rolls.  As beautiful as she is, and she being my daughter and all, I'd love to take multitudes of photos of her.  It may never be.

Mouth full of chocolate cupcake and a bribe to smile.

The best I could get after a plead to look my way.

This = Smile

Jason's Wedding

These are some of my favorite pictures from the wedding (in no particular order.)

This is the second flower girl dress I made. 

This is the first flower girl dress I made.

Erica

Erica is SB's cousin, Todd's niece. Cody is her boyfriend and has been for as long as I can remember.  These are sweet kids.

 Erica wanted some photos taken with Cody, so I obliged.   These are the ones I picked to show you.  Cute huh?

Flower Girl Dress

Remember these people?  This is my brother Jason and his fiance' Allison.  They'll be married in March. 

Allison asked me if I would make flower girl dresses for SB and Ada, her other niece.  I agreed to do it but needed some ideas of what she wanted.  I got what I asked for, down to the last detail.  In the image below are the contents of a box I got Christmas day from Allison.  This is a girl who know's what she wants. 

I know you can't see all of what's here, but there are 8 or so labeled fabrics, labeled photos of sample dresses she likes, and a page (front and back) of instructions for one dress.   

This is my first dress - a little too long.  Ok... a lot too long.  The bottom photos show how I shortened it.  SB wasn't really willing to model a second time.  This dress isn't for her anyway.  It's for Ada, Allison's niece.  SB's will be posted later, when I get to it.

Gift Tags

By the time you read this it will be Christmas day (or after) and you won't care anymore about putting tags on gifts, but... here's one way we got SB involved with gift-giving this year.  She and her daddy sat down with a pen and lined paper (cringe!!!)  to make gift tags for everyone.  He drew circles and labeled each one while she drew in the faces of each recipient.  I backed them with scrapbook paper and they were later attached to gifts.  They could be prettier, but at this point I don't really care.  The drawings are awesome enough. 

I hope some of these end up as refrigerator art.  They should.

Baby Pictures

 Today was the first day I've seen Remy in person.  He's my other sister Crystal's baby.  I've only gotten a few snapshot sent to me here and there over the phone since they live in Florida.  It's always a joy to take a few photos of new babies who normally put up less resistance than toddlers.   I was glad to snap a few while they were here.   He's a cutie!

A photo tip:
These pictures were taken in a small bathroom where the walls were close to each other.  I used a bounce flash since I don't own studio lights anymore.  (A bounce flash is just an added camera flash turned toward a wall instead of directly on the subject.)  It produces a more modeled effect rather than a flat, bright flash on the face and cast shadow. 

Smile

It's nice to have family over especially when you don't see them much.  My dad's side of the family came for a visit this weekend for Christmas.  We exchanged gifts, ate a big meal and spent time together which is always a pleasure.  I wish my whole family lived within a few miles of each other. 

My step mom makes great desserts and brought over an entire dessert for each person since we all like different things.  Cupcakes for the girls, pecan pie for me, cherry pie for my sister Katee, and brownies for the men since they're not as keen on sweets.

Katee likes pictures, so we took a few of Mary Ellen and Lilly Mae and SB. 

Unfortunately SB's patience for picture-taking runs thin.   This is what we get when we ask for a smile.  I guess I'm happy for at least a look in the direction of the camera.  Actually, I really like this picture.  Her resistance was probably waning due to the fact that we had cousin Lilly Mae over.  Lilly Mae enjoys the occasional snap in her direction and doesn't immediately run the other way.   I wish some of the enthusiasm would rub off.

Smile! Please?!!! PLEASE Smile!

Like this, Mommy?!!!




I'm 8 weeks old and you don't see me complaining about taking a picture.