Just us - there’s a little of the before, but mostly it’s the after...

Beautiful Girl!

It was one of those mornings when I just didn't have it in me to care.

This little Monkey wanted to play in my make-up, so I let her play away!

It kind of helped that she couldn't open any of the containers.

She felt like such a big girl!

Sure, I caved and opened just one item for her...it is old and I keep it around just for these situations.

Addie is so sweet and pays very close attention to everything that I do.
(well...I don't actually line my eyes with blush, but you get my point...)

My beautiful girl couldn't have been happier!

~~~

April 29, 2012

Royal Pain

Because so many of you always ask...

Rudy is now a permanent part of our home.

Last week he finished another round of antibiotics and is doing well.

He has learned that jumping onto our counter tops and tables is not the brightest of ideas and he has even learned to play nice with Thomas.

He enjoys spending time on the deck with Alley and Thomas, but his very favorite thing - ever

is playing in water.

It doesn't matter if it is the bath or the shower, fruit loop is right in the middle of it.

He has become a complete royal pain whenever there is running water in the bathroom.

If we are in a hurry, we have to lock him out, otherwise he will jump right in and stay until we extract him from the pool of water or mist of the shower.

He stayed in the bath the other night until he could no longer touch the bottom of the tub and started to tread water.

Once we physically extract him from the water, he will lay still as we dry him off.

I don't know why we put ourselves through the trouble of it all.

It's kind of sad when Addie thinks she's getting in the tub, then Rudy completely takes over, forcing her to wait her turn.

Once he completes his hydrotherapy, he sleeps just like a baby.

Wacky Tacky Dress Up Day!

Addie had Wacky Tacky Dress Up Day - one of my favorite dress up days of the year!

It was really quite funny this year because Addie is paying more attention to everything that I do.

Most mornings, after I get Addie dressed, I tell her to go and look in the big mirror in my room so that she can see how beautiful she looks.

(Sure I want her to see how beautiful she is, but that also usually buys me a few extra minutes so that I can get dressed!)

On this morning, as I was getting her dressed, she kept looking at each article of clothing.

She would pick up her dress and look and then look at her socks and then look at me.

I know she thought I had lost my mind.

When we walked downstairs to get her shoes, she was not the happiest of little Monkey's.

I'm not sure if the planets were just slightly out of alignment or if she really was a little distressed at her attire.

Snowflakes, penguins,

frogs, umbrellas, cats and flowers.

I'm sure in some jacked up psychoanalytic way, it is all relative.

She obviously moved past the trauma because she was as happy as could be when it came time to plant flowers at school.

Of all days, Chris and I had a long day at work and decided to go out for dinner.

It was on the way into the restaurant that it occurred to me that Addie might attract a few more glances than usual.

I was so right and so didn't care.

She's beautiful no matter how she is dressed!

~~~

4/25/2012

Mother's Day 2012

Sigh.

It was a bi-polar kind of day.

It was awesome to spend time with family and my aunt was thrilled to have everyone at the lake house.

In addition to Mother's Day, we had three birthday's and two graduations to celebrate.

We cooked, we talked....and we ate.

There was tons of cake and yummy lake food.

The kids were thrilled to have the opportunity to go fishing, flip each other out of the hammock, run all over the deck and slide down the slide, over and again.

Not even the rain and cooler temperatures slowed them down.

Julien was having the best time!

Chris was back from his four day golf trip (spoiled rotten) and ready to take on the day.

But, my heart was broken for Addie and it was all my fault.

I'm not a lake person.

I used to be, but I'm not anymore.

I have my little Fungus Monkus who not only does not understand the danger of slipping and falling, but also does not understand the danger of water.

The water level was down from the pier a bit, so it's not like I could have made something work in order to give Addie turns on the slide and I couldn't sit with her and let her put her feet in the water...because she couldn't reach.

Had she fallen off one side of the pier, there wasn't much water before it was just concrete.

On the other side of the pier, it was a nice drop before she would have hit water and then there was the two story slide.

Nothing was practical and I'm too worried about her to even try to "give it a try".

So, the entire flippin day, she kept saying to me over and over, "water?" and I kept telling her how sorry I was.

I suck as a Mother.

Imagine this sweet little face begging to do what all the other kids were doing.

It just broke my heart.

I would have been okay had she just sat with me and watched, but she wanted to run around...and I couldn't blame her, but I just couldn't take the chance.

The deck is pretty darn high up.

At one point, Chris took us for a ride on the golf cart.

It helped to temporarily occupy Addie, but it still didn't make it all okay for her.

I'll make it up to her - somehow.

...and a HUGE thanks to my aunt for hosting the Mother's Day/Graduation/Birthday celebration!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day - especially to my Mom!

I have the most amazing Mom in the world...you know she's special if she took a moment out of her busy Christmas Morning to read to me - just as she always tried to do before bedtime each night.

With four kids, that takes an amazing amount of effort to accomplish such a task - and that was after working the entire day, then coming home to make a five course meal from scratch.

The reasons why I love my Mom are too great to list.

I am so proud to have her as my Mom.

I swear I can remember that moment, I don't know how it's possible, but the memory of this picture is clear in my mind.

I Love You Mom!

Today was a day for me to reflect back on those first few days with my precious baby boy.

He was beautiful!

I was content to sit and hold him and love him all day long!

I couldn't get enough of watching him sleep.

and my beautiful baby girl.

I have kept this picture all to myself until now.

Those were such private moments.

There was no better day than today to share this precious photo.

~~~

We enjoyed Mother's Day at the lake today.

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day...a picture or two coming soon.

Recycling Day at School

Addie is - just a little - attached to her soccer shirt.

I didn't hesitate to let her wear it to school and she thought she was pretty cute stuff when her friends noticed what she had on.

It was recycling day at school and Addie was happy to participate with her class!

(picture courtesy of Addie's teachers)

April 23, 2012

Spring Soccer - Game Three

It's Alabama.

One soccer game it's 300 degrees outside, the very next soccer game, it is so incredibly freezing cold that I was pretty sure Addie was going to develop hypothermia before we made it off the soccer field.

This was game three and the third buddy that Addie had been paired with (and on a new field).

If I didn't know that the buddies are younger kids (for the most part) who have obligations of their own, I would get a little paranoid that Addie was repelling every buddy that came near her.

This time, Scott was the unlucky soul to grace her presence.

It took Chris and me half the game before Addie even decided to touch the soccer ball.

I'm convinced part of her anxiety is from having to meet someone new each time.

Addie was very nervous