My Daughter's Eyes

my daughter's eyes are beautiful. they aren't one particular color. they are mostly green but the also contain a little gold, gray, blue and brown.
this one even has some brown stripes in it.
aren't those some of the most beautiful eyes you've ever seen?? (and do you have any idea how hard it was to get her to sit still long enough to take these pictures???)

thursday's theme is all about eyes and eye contact. head over to stacy's and check out what other people have to share.

A Yummy Discovery

the excitement of the find!

admiring the prize!

mmmm! sweet reward!

ewwww! messy fingers!

now we just have to sit back and wait for the next ripe one! (unfortunately she isn't a patient child.) :)

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

little baby and toddler (i refuse to admit that she is actually a preschooler) toes! so sweet!!
yeah, i hate feet with a passion EXCEPT little tiny ones. my goodness, i could eat them up!

does that make me weird??

Best Shot Monday

here are a few pictures i took in my mother-in-law's garden. pretty, pretty flowers!! :)


and if you want to see anymore best shots, head over to tracey's!

The 4 month Sprout and the 3 year Bean

ahhhh, whomever led me to believe that a 8:30am doctor's appointment was a good idea should be shot!
oh wait, that was me?? my bad! ;)

let's start with the bean since she has seniority.
*bean is now 37 1/4 inches tall and 32.4 pounds. that is 45th percentile for height and 65th for weight. she has gone from being taller than most kids her age (93rd percentile at 2 years) to being shorter than average. hmmm. i smell a growth spurt in her future!!
*bean left the exam room with the nurse to go get weighed and measured on the big girl scale. she didn't insist that mommy come too! i wasn't sure she would go because she has been a little clingy with mommy lately.
*bean had her blood pressure taken for the first time today. she sat real still and did just what she was told. she told me (after the nurse left) that she didn't like it. :)
*bean is very healthy and growing great. she just needs to go to the dentist now.... fun!
on to master sprout.
*sprout is 26 inches tall (85th percentile) and weighs 17 pounds 9 ounces (93rd percentile). his head is 44.5 cm. (95th percentile). mama's BIG boy!
*sprout sat up and rolled over for the doctor and nurse who were impressed with his strength and muscle control. doctor told him to stop it though because he was still supposed to be a baby! ha ha!!
*sprout got his 4 shots and 1 oral vaccine (for rotovirus) and took them like a man. well, he didn't take the oral vaccine well (again!). that is supposed to be the easy one but half way through the dose he decides he is done! he got 2 shots in each leg and cried until he got into his car seat. after that he fussed mildly until the car started moving when he fell into a deep sleep. he is still asleep now.
*doctor looked at his freckle/mole and said it looked normal. nothing to worry about. she said that he would probably get more.

what can sprout do?
*roll both directions. used this skill to roll across the room on several occasions.
*blow raspberries. used this skill to spray mommy with rice cereal on more than one occasion.
*sit unsupported. for about 30 seconds to a minute on average. has stayed up longer though.
*reaches for objects. if he sees it and he wants it he tries to get it. which leads to...
*attempts to crawl. before he pushed himself across the floor with his feet and did manage to move but now he tries to get up on his knees. he can't manage it yet but i fear it won't be long.
*sits in his exersaucer. not so exciting except that he figured out (the second time he sat in it) how to turn it so he could see the other toys.
*wants to stand. his legs are getting stonger and he loves to be in this position.
*looks when he hears people talking. it is particularly apparent when i talk. all i have to do is say one word and he will find me. (loves his mama? i think so!)

i think that there is more but i just can't think. sprout reminds me of bean when she was 6 months old which i find a little scary! gotta love this cuteness though!

A Little Bit of Bean

have you just been dying without your beanisms?? sadly i didn't really keep track of these things while we were on vacation. bad mommy! but two things do stick out in my mind...

************

bean had a bottle of water. grandma had a bottle of raspberry iced tea. bean wanted some tea. grandma decided to add the tea to her water.

grandma: there, how's that?
bean: it still tastes like water.
grandma adds more tea.
grandma: how is it now?
bean takes a sip.
bean: mmmmm, it tastes like a dream!

he he! a dream! (she got that from the book "whopper cake", not from me!)

************

i was helping bean brush her teeth. she rinsed the brush under the water. i tried to take it to put it away.

bean: no mommy, i want to slurp it.
me: do you really need to slurp it?
beann: yes, it is a very scientific thing to do.

huh???? and where did she learn the word scientific anyways?

************

that's my girl!

hope you all have a lovely weekend!!

More from the beach

sprout experienced the beach for the first time this trip. he found the sand to be interesting.mommy found that cleaning sand out of tiny, damp baby hands is impossible and it is inevitable that the sand will end up in the baby's mouth. it doesn't matter how careful you are. doesn't matter one bit!

he also found that it was a great place to take a nap.
bean went in the kayak with nana. she loved it!she also loved taking walks on the beach with her nana. she likes to look along the edge of the water for "treasures". the water was quite rough this day and made looking for treasures very difficult! don't worry though, she came home with a collection of small shells, rocks and sea glass.
it was a lovely relaxing week for the whole family. the kids had a great time.hopefully we will be able to fit the beach into our hectic schedules again next year!

Another trip Around the Sun

Here I’m singin’ happy birthday
Better think about the about the wish I make
This year gone by ain’t been a piece of cake
Everyday’s a revolution
Pull it together and it comes undone
Just one more candle and a trip around the sun

I’m just hangin’ on while this old world keeps spinning
And it’s good to know it’s out of my control
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from all this livin’
Is that it wouldn’t change a thing if I let go

No you never see it comin’
Always wind up wonderin’ where it went
Only time will tell if it was time well spent
It’s another revelation
Celebrating what I should have done
With these souvenirs of my trip around the sun

I’m just hangin’ on while this old world keeps spinning
And it’s good to know it’s out of my control
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from all this livin’
Is that it wouldn’t change a thing if I let go

Yes I’ll make a resolution
That I’ll never make another one
Just enjoy this ride on my trip around the sun
Just enjoy this ride

(much thanks to jimmy buffet and martina mcbride for recording such a great "birthday" song.)

i can hardly believe that i've completed 34 trips around the sun. there has been lots of regrets and wondering what would have been over the years. but when i step back and look at the big picture of my life, i can hardly complain. 34 years on this earth, wow! hopefully the 35th will be the best one yet! i'm planning on "enjoying the ride" this year, you can be sure of that. ;)

happy birthday to me!!!

What we saw on vacation

yep, we saw waterspouts again! i've been going to that cottage my WHOLE LIFE and never saw one. bean has only been there twice and has seen them both times. she is going to think that there are always waterspouts at the beach!! sadly daddy and papa were playing golf and nana was taking g.g. to the doctor so they all missed seeing them.
this year there were 4 waterspouts. there was two then they dissipated. then another popped up and then a fourth. the second set were much bigger, closer, and more impressive.

(the top picture is a close up of the spout on the left.)

by the way, i later found out that the one on the right actually hit land. it ripped out a tree at a park before it broke apart. wow!

can you believe that storm blew through and not a single drop of rain fell. not one. just a little wind where we were sitting on the beach. look how dark that sky was. spooky looking even. can you believe it was 11:30am??

i promise more from our beach vacation later this week!! :)

What a difference a day makes....

so, sprout had rice cereal again today. this time he ate the whole bowl. every bite. he only gagged once. after the first two spoonfuls he kinda developed this chewing/sucking motion with his mouth that allowed him to get the cereal down. so that's that. my boy is now eating "food". which is cool because i love this part! i know a lot of people find it gross and/or messy but i think it is super fun.

and now for a few random observations from today.

1. some of sprouts clothes are getting too small, especially the pajamas. his little (or should i say big) feeties no longer fit in most of his jammies. and he is getting a little too long in the torso for some onesies and jammies. he just turned 4 months old. should he really be out growing his 3-6 month clothes already?? gah!

2. sprout has been chewing EVERYTHING he can get his hands on today, including ME. we may finally be making some progress on those teeth that have his gums all swollen. he isn't fussy just drooly and bitey!


and lastly, some cuteness....

Bubba and Bean

bean and bubba had a little play date yesterday. they got to dance to some fun music- you will have to ask mommee what the guy's name was though because i totally forgot! yay, go me!

anyways, here is my dancing queen and her man...

and this is the way she looks at him. is that a look of love, or what?!

i think he must feel the same way. what do you think??

damn they are cute! :)

Back Again

i'm back. :)
why did i leave? well, i realized that i was getting a little addicted to all this.
you know you have a problem when you are getting ready to go on vacation and you are spending a ridiculous amount of time trying to figure out if you are going to have access to the internet where you are going and if not where you were going to have to go to get said access.
hello! you are going on vacation you nut case! you do not need the internet on vacation!!

and i truly didn't need my computer. as a matter of fact, i can honestly say i didn't miss it..... much. ;) we had a wonderful time at the beach. it was all very relaxing. the kids had a great time. i probably gained a good 5 pounds...... why does that always happen on vacation??

but enough about me. i know you are really here for bean and sprout updates!

*bean went down the slide at the pool. she was always too afraid before. she will do it now if someone is there to catch her at the bottom.
*bean let me pull her under the water in the pool. she did it without crying or any other kind of hysterics. floating on her back still freaks her the heck out though...
*sprout is getting better at sitting up. don't believe me? here is proof:(is that not one of the funniest facial expressions you have ever seen! he he he!)
*sprout took five 8 ounce bottles yesterday- FIVE! that is 40 freaking ounces. obviously we need something a little more substantial. he tried cereal today. he was incredibly interested (he grabbed my hands and pulled the spoon toward him!) but he was very unsure what to do with the cereal once it was in his mouth. we need some lessons in swallowing it seems....(the cereal looks kinda thick in this picture but in reality it was barely thicker than formula.... weird.)

hope you all had a lovely weekend!

Busy

we are so busy right now. so much is going on the next week or two. i've decided to let the blogging go until things get a little more under control. i will certainly miss you all.

before i go here is some stuff that blows my mind:

1. sprout now rolls everywhere. he will roll across an entire room in just a few seconds.
2. sprout "blows raspberries" all the time. he can't get enough of it.
3. sprout can sit UNSUPPORTED for about 20-30 seconds at a time!!!

insane!!

i'll see y'all later!! promise! :)

We came back from Cincinati...

Welcome to Parrot Head Nation!

it is nothing but a sea of grass skirts, hawaiian shirts, bikini clad women, and the occasional shark or parrot. oh and beach balls, parrot heads love to play with beach balls it seems! it is where the beer and margaritas flow like rivers. that picture makes it look like it is all college students but that is untrue- parrot heads come in all ages. there were some as young as about 2 and some others that were easily over 60.

we tailgated a little off from the main group of crazies. but when i went down to use the port-a-pot i saw all kinds of interesting things. my favorite was probably the group that were playing "d-r-i-n-k-o" instead of plinko. they looked like they were having a mighty good time. i forgot to take my camera down there- boo! and my people watching shots came out pretty crappy in the concert so i don't have tons to share. but here is proof that guys dress up in coconut bras.... he did have the sense to put a shirt on with it at least! ;)

it was insanely sunny and insanely hot, but we had a great time. so i took a little video of the encore so that you all could feel like you were there. yeah, it is dark and you can't really see a damned thing BUT you can here the music and that makes it all good. ;)

FINS UP, BABY!

Jimmy, here we come!

we (husband and i- NO kids) are going to hang out with jimmy buffett this evening. well, our friends are going to be with us and jimmy is going to be on stage.... but wouldn't it be cool if he was really hanging out with us! ha ha!

if you've never been to a buffett concert you should go, just to experience the theatrics of it. i'm not talking about what is on stage. i'm talking about the fans. you NEVER know what to expect. girls in cocnut bras and grass skirts, of course. guys in coconut bras and grass skirts- absolutely! there will be several as a matter of fact. parrot hats, shark fin hats, cheese burger hats, hawaiian shirts as far as the eye can see. you never know what you are going to see. it is good people watching times. oh so good.
of course the music is good too! don't get me wrong, i'm a parrot head at heart too! (i will not be one of the girls in the coconut bras and grass skirts though, oh no!)

i think i'm going to take the camera this time and maybe i'll get some shots of the interesting people.... and maybe so of my drunk ass husband dancing. i love you honey! ;)

see ya when we get back!

Bean's Photo Shoot

Bean turned three so she needed to go have her portraits taken. i was supposed to bring a prop. we took her fancy nancy purse and sunglasses.... OMG the cuteness! take a look-she did a great job following the directions that the photographer gave her. her only problem was that she kept wanting to look at me instead of the lady with the camera! i must say that the second shot is my absolute favorite. i think these pictures totally capture her personality. didn't they come out great?!!
hope you enjoyed bean's "glamor shots"! (he he!)

Best Shot Monday

ok, so i don't have any great shots this week. they are all just average... i mean, they are adorable because they are of my children BUT there isn't anything spectacular about them. instead of a "great" shot i will share a "funny" shot.

bean decided that sprout wanted his picture taken with "princess potato".... i'm not sure that she was right about that!does that look like the face of a boy who wants his picture taken with "princess potato"? i'm thinking no! ha ha ha ha!!!

head on over to tracey's (she's back) to see some great shots!

You've got to be kidding me

ok, which one of you told my son that it was ok to start moving?? you heard me- i said moving!!! he's only 3 1/2 months old!!!

i'm not talking about rolling- he's been doing that for a while. i'm talking about him rolling on to his stomach and then scooting himself toward something. it is purposeful moving. he sees something and scoots toward it. he puts his head down between his hands, he gets up on his toes, then pushes with his legs. this results in him moving forward 2-3 inches. he will do it over and over again until he gets tired, gets frustrated, or runs into something. he is not content to sit still. we never know where he will be in his crib when we go to check on him- yes, he does it while only partially awake too! it looks rather unpleasant, his poor little face is mashed into the floor when he does it, but he doesn't seem to mind too much.

i'm not prepared for this. i didn't even know that babies could move like that at this age. bean didn't move at all until she was 6-7 months old (and she scooted on her back). she didn't crawl until 9 months. i have a feeling that sprout will be crawling MUCH sooner than that.

serenity now!!!!! ;)

I was wrong

yesterday i said that being called "sweetheart pumpkin" was the best thing ever. i was wrong. bean was hugging my head this morning (yes, my head. it felt a bit odd) and said:
"i love you so much princess mommy"

princess mommy! awwwwwwwwwww!

i still absolutely love "sweetheart pumpkin" but there is something about "princess mommy" that seems a little more special. :)

The one where we have the best conversation EVER

you missed your beanisms last week didn't you? don't worry, they're back!

************

i walk into the living room. i sit in the large arm chair. bean comes running up to me and yells:
"hey! you sat in my seat, little woman!"

(he he!)

************

at the dinner table the other night she is eating her pasta. she suddenly looks up at me and declares:
"oh dang it again! i forgot to eat a afternoon snack!!"

(she really did have a snack. she can be a little forgetful at times!)

************

bean has a doll named aubrey. aubrey does all kinds of things according to bean. she spits her food all over the table. she yells in the library. she says bad words. (aubrey is a trouble maker it seems) the other day she says this:
"aubrey eats pillows with baby sauce."
her aunt says, "ummm, what is baby sauce??"
she looks up and says "you know. it comes in a little can."

(hmmmmmmmm. no baby, i don't know!)

************

today she is sitting on my lap while i check my email. she wraps her arms around me and looks me in the face (close to my face). this is the conversation that followed:
"mommy?"
"yes, sweetie."
"mommy you are the best mommy ever!"
"i am?!"
"oh yes!"
(long pause)
"i love you."
"oh, i love you to bean!"
"i still love you. but i won't love you when you gone."
"you won't!?!"
"yeah, i will. i love you. you're the best mommy in the world!"
she laughs. she hugs me tight. i hug her back.
then she says, "l love you sweetheart pumpkin!!"

(sweetheart pumpkin! that may be the best thing anyone has ever called me!!)

************

hope you all have a lovely relaxing weekend!!

Ewwwwwwwww!

why oh why do both of my kids have to have a stomach virus?!? gah!
they aren't feverish, they don't act sick, BUT potty time has been less than pleasant around here for the past 24 hours. oh the drama!
guess we aren't going to matthew's birthday party after all. :( booo!

My Fancy Nancy

here are some shots of bean with her new fancy nancy gear. (purse and sunglasses) my bean isn't quite as fancy as nancy but she sure is cute!!













she is getting her 3 year portraits taken today. we are taking the purse, sunglasses and a string of pearls (fake, of course) with us. i can't wait!

***edited to add....
OMG! taking the "fancy gear" to the photo shoot may have been my best idea EVER! the pictures are SO CUTE. when i get copies i promise to share! :)

The Cure For a Bad Day

what can turn your otherwise glum day around?? having your daughter decide that she would like to share her helium balloon with your infant son. oh yes, that would definitely do it.

holding on!

ooops! i let go!

whoa! its flying!!

we played with this balloon for a good 15-20 minutes. all of us (yes, that includes bean!) had a good time. and that baby smile was just what i needed to turn a overwhelming and frustrating day right around!

Pinkalicious Party

here they are. the promised shots of little bean's third birthday party......

blowing out the candles on her pinkalicious cake. it wasn't the best cake i ever made but she LOVED it and that's really all that matters in the end! there were matching cupcakes as well.
here bean is opening gifts. her little girlfriends kept getting closer and closer and closer. i guess they had to get a good look at the loot! where are the little boys? i guess they couldn't sit still that long... or maybe they just don't care that much for "girl" toys! ;)
checking out her new fancy nancy book. she loves her some fancy nancy! the same friend who got her this book also got her a fancy nancy purse and sunglasses. (i have pictures and will post them either tomorrow or thursday- promise!)
post gift romp in the bouncy castle. it is not my favorite bouncy castle picture (that can be seen here) but i do love the prancy marching style she has going on here. and no, she did not step on the baby! ;)
bean's third birthday is over and done and i still can't believe i have a three year old!!

Best Shot Monday

we had a lot of family in town for bean's third birthday party this past weekend. so daddy and i took them to see the fireworks in a nearby suburb. they were quite good and bean had a wonderful time. sprout, of course, slept through the whole thing.

i love this shot here. bean climbed up on one of her aunts and laid down on top of her. this was her position for a good portion of the fireworks! i thought it was pretty darn cute!
and here is my best shot of the week. it is heavily cropped- it didn't look like this when i took it. (there was a street light and a house in the picture originally) i love fireworks and this in the best fireworks shot i've ever taken.
tomorrow i will try to get some birthday party shots up. i promise! if you want to see more great shots head over to melody's!

Birthday Bash/Weekend Funny

well, the big birthday party was yesterday. nothing really went quite as planned (it never does, does it?) but it was a success anyways. thankfully, after days and days of rain we had a clear day! it is always nice when it doesn't rain on your outdoor party. (especially when it rained on our parade the day before!) ;)

our theme this year was "a pinkalicious birthday". bean's favorite story (right now) is pinkalicious. it is a very cute story about a little girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and turns pink. so we had everything pink at our house yesterday. except for the snacks, that is. see, in the story the doctor tells the girl that the only way to turn back to her normal color is to eat a steady diet of green foods. so, to prevent bean's friends from turning pink from all the pink cake and ice cream, we also fed them honeydew, kiwi, green grapes, cucumber, celery, and broccoli.

it has been an extremely hectic weekend and i feel like i'm way behind in everything. but i did want to share one party picture before i get back to work. so here it is, my birthday girl in the bouncy castle..... i think we could call this one my "weekend funny" too!is that not one of the best pictures you've ever seen?!?! i'm pretty sure you can tell she was having a good time at her party even though you can't see her face. can i tell you how much i love this shot?! i SO love this shot! ha ha ha ha!!

hope you all had lovely holiday weekends!

Happy Birthday Bean!

for most of you today, july 4th, is independence day. but at our house it is much more special. it is the day little bean graced us with her presence. and you really can't have a better birthday- you get a parade and fireworks every year!
things have changed a lot in the past 3 years. we have gone from this:


awwwwwww, tiny baby! you were just minutes old here.




to this:




awwwwwww, mommy's little princess! you are just full of personality!





our lives were changed forever 3 years ago today. it has been quite a ride. and i wouldn't change a thing!
happy birthday bean! we love you!!

Oh Yeah!

bean is totally potty trained. we are officially done with pull ups! the bean has decided to wear her "big girl undies" to bed. and what she says goes (at least in this matter). two nights of success so far. she is totally proud. so am i. woo hoo!

Uhhhhhhhh......

does this hands on the hip pose concern anyone besides me? i mean, that is an awful lot of attitude to be throwing around when you aren't even three years old yet (not until friday, that is). we've seen entirely too much of this lately. well, ok, it is funny and cute to look at. BUT the attitude stinks! you hear all about the terrible twos but no one says a dang thing about the tumultuous threes! i have a feeling this is going to be an interesting year.

if i'm getting this at three, what is it going to be like when she is thirteen? ...i'm totally screwed, aren't i? ;)