204 Days Later

The Conversation that I thought would trump our last record-breaking topic, came to end after 204 days.

I think it is only fair that I admit that I went against every logical and practical belief that I have.

I swore that Julien would be provided with a vehicle that would serve its purpose, and remain free from anything remotely appealing to activities that might cause my child to make an unwise decision due to his still immature frontal lobe.

I had in mind what would be allowed and what wouldn't be allowed

and somehow...

my common sense threw me a curve ball.

Continued..

If ever there was a way to dispel energy, this was it.

Um...I guess I wasn't the only one confused about where we were.

The death trap.

Or so I called it.

It wouldn't have surprised me one bit had I ended up at the bottom.

I was so busy watching Addie and making sure that she didn't go near this without assistance.

Her lack of depth perception and this - did nothing for my ability to relax.

Once we were away from the big open holes in the floor, it was easier to relax and watch the fun!

Thank you Bergen for sharing your day with us!

Happy Birthday!

Nut House

The first two months of 2014 has been absolutely crazy.

Between the weather, crazy schedule changes, winter colds and daily chaos, I feel rather impressed that I'm still functioning at a somewhat sane level.

I know I'm not the only one that can't remember the last time they worked a full five day work week.

We have had A LOT going on.

It seems I say that often, but it never ceases to amaze me that just when I think I can grab on to a few seconds of downtime, something comes along to squash it to smithereens. 

Just this past week, I unexpectedly ended up spending more time in downtime Birmingham.  

I despise dirty parking decks, and playing the wait and see game, but it appears that after five long days, things are looking much brighter!  

WHEW.

In the midst of traveling the streets of downtown, we also had some pretty exciting things taking place at Henderson Manor.

Conversations came to an end, decisions were made in record breaking time, we were provided with peace and clarity, a Little Blond Primate provided us a smidgen of hope in our daily commute and it turns out that it was indeed, a February to remember.

It's the little things in life that makes us happy.  

Details coming soon, assuming I am not derailed by snow, ice or a volcanic eruption.

Bergen's 7th Birthday!!!

In the midst of February chaos, we had the opportunity to go and play at Bergen's party!

Bergen's party was at Mountain Brook Gymnastics and Addie loved absolutely everything about it.

We had several helpers assisting throughout the party, so between them and me, Addie was right in the middle of all the action.

No judging the ballet outfit.

My brain apparently can't decipher the difference between a dance outfit and a gymnastics outfit.

Addie may have been a little slower and needed some help, but she never hesitated to do what everyone else was doing.

She is so brave!

When Mommy is away

During one of the snow days last week, I had to go into work for a few hours.

When I returned, this is what I found.

Julien and Chris in charge created opportunities I never even considered.

Picture of the Day

Snow?

While the rest of Alabama was sledding, building steroid infused snowmen and mixing buckets of snow cream, we enjoyed our few minutes of snow accumulation.

Julien built a fire in the fire pit 

and Addie walked around for a few minutes until she decided it was too cold.

Such a let down.

If I'm going to get a snow day, I want one that is fully storybook enjoyable.

This ice covered dusting of fluff isn't making me happy.

One day our driveway is covered in ice so thick we can't get the car out of the driveway and then the next day, we are riding bikes in the park.

What a winter.

Guacamole Nazi

It may appear to be just a huge bowl of guacamole, but in fact, it made for one of the happiest parts of my birthday.

Not just because it was a home made mix of yumminess, but because it was years of hard work paying off right before my eyes.  

Addie loves avocados.

When she is anywhere near a peeled avocado, I suggest backing away 

and 

try not to act like you are going to take any away from her.

When she spotted the bowl on the counter, she went from sweet cupcake girl to Guacamole Nazi.

While that part of it was amusing, it was watching her scooping spoonfuls onto chips that really melted my heart.

This took years of therapy and hard work to accomplish.

I was so proud!

Addie stood there for a good 15 minutes eating bite after bite.

Normally, a plate and a seat at the table would have been required, but this Little Miracle Monkey got a pass.

A HUGE thank you to chef Toni for making this for my birthday.

It is a once a year treat.

~~~

January 25, 2014

Happy Birthday to Me!

I thought we were past January, but obviously not.
There was also my birthday.

My Little Monkey had no problem posing for a picture with me

and it may have had something to do with the happy birthday cupcake cake balloon that we retrieved from Publix.

This wasn't the original.

The original is probably still floating amidst the fluorescent lights high above the frozen food aisle.

This is the replacement.

Julien even agreed to a few photos and it didn't take bribery or threats to make it happen.

It was a good day.

Especially since I was surrounded by my babies.

~~~

January 25, 2014

Thank You Snowflake

After the trauma of Snowpocalypse, it is not surprising that when snowflakes fell on Mississippi, the schools in Alabama hit the eject button.

I do not blame them one bit.

Subsequently, that meant that Addie's dance class was also cancelled.

She knows when she takes her dance backpack to school, that when we pick her up, she goes to dance  class.

When Addie suddenly had a change in routine this afternoon, she became a little upset. 

After quick reassurance from her aide, she was fine.

However, she could not understand why we went home and not to dance.

When we arrived home, Addie took her dance backpack into the hallway, and I thought she was heading to the office to hang it up.

Instead, I found her sitting by the front door clutching her leotard and ballet slippers and asking for help.

All her sweet little self kept asking was, "Dance?".

Thank you Alabama weather for crushing my little ballerina's heart tonight.

February...

On the heels of all the fun and new experiences that reared their ugly heads we encountered in January, we needed some down time.

Even Thomas looked a little dazed.  

An afternoon of inside playtime was most welcomed.

Addie has a lovely winter cold that brought with it a cough annoying enough to keep even the cats awake at night.

She doesn't sleep, we don't sleep.

I have tried every home remedy, every natural organically grown, farm raised, hand mixed, herb laced, bottled, crushed and liquefied remedy.

 And yes, I even tried tying a beet root to the third intermediate phalange on the left hand of the primate during a quarter moon on the second day of the second month in an even year.

Didn't. Work.

Finally,  I broke down and let commercial advertising reel me in.

After the third brand of cough medicine, we had a night of rest.  

When I say a night, I mean, I slept like ten hours.

Un.Real.

Once we get this cough to leave the Little Primate's body, the rest of February will be a breeze.