It's hard to believe that another year has come and gone.
Our family just one year ago
So much has happened in 2013. Some things I will always remember and some things I hope to forget. It's been a year of smiles, new starts, laughter, and lots of illness. Through it all, I have had my family by my side, each step of the way. Good or bad, easy or tough, it's life and I'm so thankful I'm living it with my precious family.
Yeah, so it's July 12th and I'm finally posting photos from the Fourth of July. Yikes! We had a rainy Fourth, but it was still lots of fun. We were able to shoot fireworks, which Emma loved and Sophia did not. They sure looked cute in their holiday outfits, despite the crummy weather.
I've been trying to have a little school time each day with the girls. Emma has been practicing her writing and Sophia has been working on colors and numbers. They love learning and are so proud when they accomplish a new task. They've been great little students!
Sophia has been doing a great job with counting. Here's a little video of what she can do.
There are no words that can describe this little munchkin. Her voice, the way she says "I love you"...these are things I want to remember. She doesn't let me video her for long, but what I get always makes me smile.
Dying eggs is getting much more fun now that both girls are able to participate. Of course, they don't have the patience to wait for the eggs to color, but they love the process. Tonight we all had a good time dying our eggs and found a way to make the time pass more quickly.
Emma started taking dance last summer and has really loved it! She takes classes at The Little Gym and her class is a combination of tap, ballet, and gymnastics. She's not a big fan of the gymnastics, but she still has fun with her friends and teachers.
This weekend, she had her first recital and I was so excited to see her perform. She's one of the youngest in the class and I was impressed with how well she was able to keep up. When she first started, I wasn't sure if she had the attention span to learn the dances, but she has really impressed me with how much she has learned.
Things have been so hectic around here, but it's been a good hectic. I've been getting ready for our Christmas break from school and planning crafts and other fun stuff for the kids at school.
Here at home, we've been trying to fit in Christmas activities in between the bouts of illness that seem to have taken up permanent residence. This week, that illness infected both me and my mom. Andy was out of town, so I stayed home with the girls since my mom couldn't be here with them. Even though I wasn't feeling well, it was great to be able to have two days at home with the girls. It gave us a chance to get a lot done.
On Tuesday, Sophia woke up (too) early, so I brought her into bed with me in hopes that she'd fall back to sleep. She did, but spread out so much that she took up the entire bed. She was so cute and cozy that I didn't have the heart to move her.
Emma had a Christmas party at school this Wednesday and I was excited to be able to attend. Being a teacher is a blessing to be able to have summers and vacations with your kids, but it's hard to be there for the little things throughout the year.
We were asked to bring in cookies for the party and the girls and I had a great time making them on Tuesday. The girls seemed to think that all cookies they helped decorate were fair game for eating, so I had to cut them off and finish the rest on my own.
After Sophia and I dropped Emma off at school, we headed out to run some errands. I forgot how easy shopping can be with just one child! When we got home, it was so nice out that Sophia and decided to take advantage and went on a walk. She had so much fun looking at all of the Christmas decorations around the neighborhood.
After lunch, we headed to Emma's school for her party and we got to see her sing with all of her friends. She has been practicing her songs so much at home and I was so proud of my big girl!
Only two more days of school and then I have two weeks off with my girls! I can't wait!
My sweet Emma loves to sing. She makes up songs at home, and can memorize a song really quickly. Her Sunday School group has been practicing for an upcoming performance at church and Emma is the star of the show (in my humble opinion!). I'm so impressed with how focused she is and how comfortable she is when she practices in front of people, since she's usually shy around people she doesn't know.
Whew, what a day! Both girls were tired from yesterday's late night and slept in. Once they got up, they had a quick breakfast while I made Emma's lunch for school. Emma asked for watermelon in her lunch today, and while I was cutting it up, Sophia just had to have some. It's her favorite thing in the world to eat. If I get smiles like this for something as simple as watermelon, she can have it whenever she wants!
Once both girls were dressed, we headed off to school. I was so worried about today because it was raining and I wasn't sure how I would manage getting both girls out of their car seats, through the large parking lot, and into the building as dry as possible. Luckily it wasn't raining too hard so we did pretty well.
Emma was happy to be back in her normal classroom today and she was sure that they must have painted the walls her favorite color (green). Alas, they had not but she was cool with it. After Sophia and I said goodbye, we headed to Kroger to get gas and to do some shopping. I was meeting some friends at 10:20, so we were mostly killing time so we didn't have to go back home. I realized that I hadn't eaten breakfast, so I stopped by Chick-fil-A for a chicken biscuit and sweet tea. We parked the car and watched the rain and listened to music while I ate and Sophia had a snack.
Pay no attention to the horrible state of my nails. Please and thank you.
I met my friends at a warehouse that gets tons of supplies from the ORNL lab. There are bookshelves, computers, desk chairs, etc., that are auctioned off for super cheap. I really need new bookshelves in my classroom and was so excited that they had some. I bid on them and I'll know if I "won" on Saturday. It was like yard sale shopping and ebay shopping all rolled into one! Kids aren't allowed in the warehouse itself, so my friend Stephanie watched Sophia while I browsed the goods. I was sure I would hear screaming, but she did great! It's impossible to be unhappy when Stephanie's around! Sophia had had a long morning of being in the car but she took it like a champ!
A bargain shopper's dream!
After we placed our bids, Sophia and I headed home for lunch and a little playtime before it was time to pick up Emma. Sophia and I were listening to Pandora and Beyonce happened to come on. Her little ears perked up and she started dancing to "Put a Ring on It." Wise words, sister! Check out my girl workin' it!
Picking Emma up from school was a lot trickier because it was pouring rain when we got to school. I took my own backpack that would fit Emma's backpack and lunchbox, her raincoat and umbrella, and Sophia and I hunkered down under my umbrella. We managed to stay pretty dry, but it wasn't easy! When we got home we noticed that Emma's puddle jumper had come in the mail. Both girls were pretty excited about the delivery. We can't wait to try it out!
Someone was REALLY excited!
After Sophia napped (Emma did not), I made dinner while Andy kept the girls entertained by making obstacle courses and helping Emma build a pizza on the iPad.
And that was the beginning of the end. Emma did not nap and was so cranky for the rest of the afternoon. Every little thing set her off. This made Sophia grumpy too, and dinner was a nightmare. Emma refused to eat a bite of her chicken and dumplings, which is her favorite meal ever. There were tears all through dinner until we asked her if she wanted to lay down in her room and she said yes. She obviously needed a break. She hung out in her bed until dinner was over and then Andy got the girls ready for bed while I cleaned up. She was in a little bit of a better mood, but fatigue and hunger are a recipe for disaster and it wasn't long before she lost it again. She was in tears going to bed, which breaks my heart. She was crying because she didn't want to go to bed. She said she wasn't tired. Uh, I beg to differ. After prayers and some songs, she felt better, so I hope she gets a good night's rest, because boy, does she need it!
Sophia is so vocal. She is that kid in the store...you know the one. Screaming, yelling, shouting. She's happy, just LOUD.
She has really started to love reading and will read the same two books over and over again. She also loves animals and wants to know what they're called and what sound they make. She is HILARIOUS when she reads Brown Bear, Brown Bear because she attempts to make the animal noises and it quickly becomes more like Screech Owl, Screech Owl.
This time, she also decided to give each of the animals a kiss which was so sweet.
It's a sad day at our house. We are officially saying goodbye to routine naps for Emma. She'll still nap maybe once a week or so, but it was becoming such a battle to get her to sleep, which led to major frustration for the both of us.
This week I decided to try something new. She must lay in bed for about 20 minutes. If she falls asleep, GREAT! If not, I softly knock on her door to give her the ok to get up and play with her "quiet box." I put together a box with random quiet objects that she doesn't get to play with all the time--stuff that Sophia can't play with. She knows that she can't be loud, come out of her room, or play with anything else not in the box. So far it's working out great, but I'm waiting for the inevitable testing of limits.
My biggest worry about giving up naps was that she was going to be super cranky and tired, but she's happier now that she's not being forced to nap. We'll see how it goes once the "new" wears off.
Both girls had Little Gym today and it was my day to be with Emma at dance. I miss being with her in the parent and child classes, but it's fun to see how independent she's becoming. She's usually so timid and I love seeing her blossom and be adventurous.
During the gymnastics portion of her dance class, the girls had a chance to "surf" on the wheel. It looked like so much fun and Emma couldn't wait to do it over and over again!
My crazy, wonderful child makes me laugh each and every day. She is such a character and loves to perform (when she thinks no one is watching). She has a toy microphone and she loves to walk around and sing all evening. Sometimes she'll sing an actual song, but most of the time, she'll make up her own song, complete with made-up words.
Much to my dismay, Sophia has slowly been giving up her morning nap. If she seems tired during the day, I try to put her down for a nap, but she just sits in her crib and cries or plays. She just isn't having it. On most days, skipping this nap doesn't really seem to bother her at all.
But there are some days when she just can't make it until nap time. Today was one of those days. The girls were just finishing up lunch and while I was cleaning up, I noticed that Sophia had gotten pretty quiet. I don't know how she managed to fall asleep with Emma singing, banging, and talking, which just goes to show that she must have been pretty tired.
Can you believe that this same tired girl was up 20 minutes after Andy took her upstairs? Luckily, she took a great nap later on.
We've hit full on walking mode, people. It's exciting, scary, adorable, and sad. My baby is growing up so fast that I can hardly believe it.
Emma summed it up perfectly when she stated, "Sophia isn't little anymore! Yea!"
Emma might be ecstatic about the idea of her little sister keeping up with her, but Mama is wondering how to slow the time down between now and her one year birthday (which is a little over a month away!!!).
Meanwhile, I'm just enjoying watching this little high-stepping cutie!
Who knew that blowing raspberries could be so funny? Apparently Emma does it pretty hilariously because Sophia couldn't stop laughing (and neither could we!). I just love these precious giggles!
We took the girls to Greekfest this evening. We look forward to going every year (mostly for the food!). I always see lots of former students and fellow teachers, and this year was no exception. We went around dinnertime so we could enjoy a yummy Greek dinner.
After we ate, we watched the Greek dancers and then the crowd got a chance to get on stage and dance. Last year, Emma walked right onto the stage and walked right back off again. She wouldn't dance for anything. I wasn't expecting much from her this year, but she surprised us by dancing like crazy!
She wore her little jingle wrap and shook her hips while we walked around. When she got on the dance floor, she was ready to go!
So, I saw this vlog on another blog and had the genius idea to have Andy do it with me. I had no idea that it would take us (literally) hours to complete. Something about putting a camera on two people that are tired and goofy makes for nothing but nonstop laughter.
And yet, 56 takes later, we prevailed. Not really, but this was the best we could do.
I apologize in advance if you want to claw out your eardrums.
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house? What is the bug that when you touch it, it curls into a ball? What is the bubbly carbonated drink called? What do you call gym shoes? What do you say to address a group of people? What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs? What do you call your grandparents? What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket? What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining? What is the thing you change the TV channel with?
I'll say it again; our little girl is growing up so fast! Every day, she surprises us with a new word or talent that, more often than not, has us cracking up. She is full of personality and she makes "the norm" so entertaining. Dinnertime is always a favorite time of day (when she's happy). When Andy and I were growing up, dinnertime was a sacred ritual where our families could talk, laugh, and discuss the day's events. We both knew that this was a tradition that we wanted to carry on with our own children, even though it sadly seems to be lacking in so many families nowadays. Emma usually dominates the conversation at the dinner table, but of course, we don't mind a bit!
Here's a little glimpse of the Emma that we experience while we enjoy a meal together. I will warn you; this is a bit long, but if you are an Emma fan, it's worth it! :)
After a little bit of a white Christmas yesterday, we woke up to the yard and streets covered in snow this morning. After breakfast, we bundled up and took Emma outside to play. The last time it snowed, Andy had to work, and I wasn't able to do too much with Emma besides walk in the snow. Since he was home today, he took her "sledding" down our front hill. We didn't have a sled so we improvised! She loved it!
