I spy with my little eye...

(From last Sunday)

Bonus:  Backseat Peek-A-Boo

Don't touch your sister

Lilly is sick.  (And we don't want it!)

It all started Tuesday night when she threw up in her crib.  The worst is over and she is feeling much better today, just not well enough to go back to school.  

Ellen gladly played hooky yesterday but today is swimming day at Henry Horton State Park, as is every Thursday, so she chose to go to SACC instead. 

I am trying to catch up on a few things while Lilly is napping.  I washed a few loads of laundry yesterday but that is about all I was able to accomplish.

  

It won't be long before Lilly is back to her old self... and back to her old ways.

Garden Party

Fruit tea, lovely ladies, wide-brimmed hats, flowy skirts, a slight breeze, tea light candles, broccoli salad, beautiful flowers and green, green grass.  It was everything you might imagine a Garden Party in late June to be.

The day after the day I turned 34 years old

Birthdays, what are we going to do about you?  I am not too thrilled about being 34.  I thought I might feel better today, one day in, but after a restless night's sleep thanks to child #2, I woke up feeling blah. 

Although Phillip did call me this morning to inform me that Lilly woke up with Kate Gosselin hair, the old Kate Gosselin, and no day could possibly be bad after that!

A few birthday highlights...

Ellen serenading me in bed with the you look like a monkey and you smell like one too version of Happy Birthday.

Cinnamon rolls for breakfast

A birthday message spelled out with Alpha-Bits

Lilly being flexible with her naptime so we could eat lunch at Olive Garden (thanks for the gift card Andrea and Caleb!)

Ellen telling me "there is nothing wrong with being peach" when I told her I was jealous of her tan

Lilly saying ohhhh in church when she discovered my shiny, dangly earrings

Spending the afternoon with Lilly, even though she screams like the little boy in Looper when she doesn't get her way (Phillip and Ellen went to see Monsters University with Laurie)

Tomato soup for dinner, with crackers

She'll be coming round the mountain when she comes

Ellen had a great time in North Carolina!  She stayed with Andrea and Caleb, who did a great job organizing this trip, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday nights (Ellen slept with Ashling and Cade slept on Ashling's floor) and spent Thursday night with my parents.  Andrea, who is getting certified in the Orton-Gillingham reading program this summer, was in class all week but she arranged for Emily, a fellow teacher, to baby-sit Ashling and Ellen and take them fun places.  Mom and Dad helped out too (it was a family affair).  Cade and Quinn went to Ms. Anna's so it has just the girls for the majority of the daytime activities.

Here's what they did:

Monday:  Travel Day (Ellen hitched a ride with the Doughties)

Tuesday:  Children's Museum

Wednesday:  Movies (Smurfs), Chuck E. Cheese with Granddaddy, dinner at K&W, church at South Fork

Thursday:  Swimming, dinner and shopping with Grandmother and Granddaddy

Friday:  North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro with Grandmother and Granddaddy (and Cade too!)

Saturday:  Brunch with the Clauset, Doughtie and Howell families, Travel Day

They also had picnic lunches, played outside, colored with sidewalk chalk, watched Berenstain Bears (a must when visiting North Carolina) and played Barbies.  (I will update as I find out more.)

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Nancy was able to meet up with Mom, Dad and the kiddos yesterday at the zoo.  So glad she was able to spend time with Ellen.

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Ellen is on her way back now and I can't wait to see her!

Five minutes, maybe less, after dropping Ellen off at Chris and Mindy's early Monday morning Phillip called and said exactly what I had been thinking on my drive in to work... I miss her already.  And we really did miss her this week.

We, as in me and Phillip.

Lilly, on the other hand, has enjoyed being the center of attention and is not so sure she is ready for Ellen to come home.  One more week?

It's a nice day for a white wedding

Thanks for this, Netflix

Phillip and I have been married 10 years as of today.  Add that to the 6 years we dated for a grand total of 16 years together (check out those math skills, babe).

A lot can happen in 6+10 years.

I wouldn't say we've only stayed together for the kids but we've totally only stayed together for the kids, the kids we weren't planning on having.

Good thing we had kids.

Happy Anniversary, Phillip!

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

Ellen is in North Carolina this week.  I am so thankful she is able to take a break from SACC, see her cousins (Quinn is crawling!), connect with family, make memories and most importantly, be loved (there is no greater gift).  Thanks to all involved for making this happen.

I am also thankful for... 

A good night's sleep

Fresh-picked blueberries

My baby, who isn't really a baby anymore, waking up happy, happy, happy

Little sisters with big sisters

Whitt's Wednesdays

Being reminded your 5 year old is indeed only 5 years old (sometimes I forget)

Safe travels

Pep talks

15 minute breaks

Music that makes you feel something

Loose teeth!

FaceTime

Movies after work, even when they cost $11.50!

Pats on the back

This is a test. This is only a test.

Full disclosure:  I borrowed this Father's Day quiz idea and most of the questions from Hannah.  I tweaked it a little since it was our first time (and since Ellen is a little older than the ideal participant). 

Afterwards I kept thinking of questions I should have asked.  I will have to save those for another time.  Can't wait until Lilly is old enough for me to test her knowledge - the younger they are the more fun it is!

All questions asked by me, all answers provided by Ellen.

What is Daddy's favorite color?

Blue

What is Daddy's favorite sport?

Basketball

What is Daddy's favorite team?

Duke

How old is Daddy?

33

When is Daddy's birthday?

August

Where was Daddy born?

West Virginia (he was born in Memphis but my parents are from WV)

Where does Daddy work?

Cool Springs (Franklin)

What does Daddy do at work?

Types on the computer

What chores is Daddy good at doing?
Mowing the lawn and weeding; taking out the trash

What is Daddy's favorite restaurant?

Chick-fil-A (that is one of her favorite restaurants)

What is Daddy's favorite food?

Mushroom and black olive pizza

What is Daddy's favorite dessert?
Creme-filled doughnuts (probably not his favorite dessert but he does indulge in a Krispy Kreme glazed cream-filled every once in a while)

Where does Daddy like to go on vacation?

Chicago

What is Daddy's favorite thing to watch on TV?

Basketball, football, baseball

What is Daddy's favorite song?

The baseball winning song (Go Cubs Go, which they play when the Cubs win at home)

What is Daddy's favorite thing to do besides play with you and Lilly?

Play Call of Duty

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy?

Go to the park

I like when Daddy...

Tickles me

What is special about Daddy?
He is a good person
Anything else?
He is good at fixing the truck but now we don't have the truck anymore so he doesn't have to fix it!

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I planned to ask a few more questions, and I did, but decided to call it quits when she started giving silly answers. 

The only question with a right or wrong answer that she didn't know the answer to was where Phillip went to college (he went to Harding and Lipscomb).  It was a wild card.  We don't talk about college much but I thought she might remember it had something to do with Bison (we brought it up a few times).  Apparently someone hasn't been reading their Harding magazine :)  She will learn soon enough...  

Phillip and his girls (all three of them)

Or, the father of my children, my children and one of my dogs.

Happy Father's Day my love.

Canned goods

She stacked while I shopped.  This and the free kid's cookie from the bakery kept her occupied (and happy) just long enough for me to grab what we needed and go.

Out like a light

I took this last Tuesday night as we were walking into church for VBS.  Lilly will typically transition from the car to her crib without waking but only if it's naptime or bedtime.  The fact that she slept through a whirlwind of activity, including the singing, really surprised me.

Both girls enjoyed VBS this year but after four late nights in a row, I was kind of ready for it to come to an end.

(I scheduled two make-up gymnastics classes for Ellen for Monday and Thursday nights of this week (she still has two more to make up) so this is the second week in a row of quick dinners, quick baths and at least one little girl's head hitting the pillow a little later than normal.  Clearly I wasn't thinking.)

At the kick off party Sunday night
(Unfortunately the only night I took pictures since I ended up helping with the snacks M, T and W)

The balloon animals were a big hit

Before she got soaked...

 And I mean soaked!

L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.

Listened to Noah & The Whale yesterday.  L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. has been stuck in my head ever since, hence the title of this post.  But life does indeed go on.  After good things happen, after bad things happen, while they are happening.  It isn't very often I feel like everything is going to be okay, but sometimes on Sundays, usually around the time the girls are going to bed, a wave of peace passes over me and for a few seconds I feel like everything just might be okay.  It doesn't last long but maybe that is all I need to get me through another week.

I got my hair cut almost two weeks ago and I still don't know what to do with it!  Story of my life.  Even my trusty straightener can't salvage it :(

Considering taking Lilly out of The Children's Academy and letting a friend of a friend keep her in a home-based daycare she recently started (she's a kindergarten teacher who is taking a break from teaching to spend time with her own two young children).  Lots to think about.

I mistakenly bought 8 rolls of regular paper towels instead of the select-a-size kind.  I am reminded of that mistake every time I reach for a paper towel, which is often.  This is no way to live!  I want my select-a-size!

We made Ellen take a nap yesterday (I can't remember the last time she took one).  She rarely lays around on the couch but that is exactly what she did after gymnastics (she got a ribbon!)  She also said her head hurt and she barely ate any lunch (just grapes and string cheese).  She perked up after a dose of Tylenol but we still strongly encouraged the nap (I think Summer SACC is wearing her out).  She was NOT happy and she fought it hard, but she eventually fell asleep.  We won!  Or so we thought.  She stayed up way too late last night so that may be the last nap we ever initiate.  You win, Ellen.

Lilly Update:  She says hi, doggie, Daddy/Dada, Mama (but not often) and she said Bible for the first time today in Sunday School.  Ellen and I thought she said up this morning but we couldn't get her to say it again.  She also makes sounds for Ellen (sounds like NaNa), George, Lucy and randomly, our neighbor across the street.  She shakes her head no and screams when she doesn't get her way.  She likes to "talk" on pretend phones, on our old cell phones and on anything that looks like a phone.  She's been sitting on George lately (he's there, it's convenient) and she likes to get in his kennel, with or without him.  She likes washing her hands.  She closes herself in the downstairs bathroom and waits for us to come visit, like it's her little house.  She turns the TV off and on.  She waves at other babies (and grown ups too).  She spends a lot of time in the play kitchen.  She likes to take other people's things.

I told Ellen we needed to start reading more (we haven't been reading as much lately).  I joked with her that she had already forgotten her words (sight words) and how to read.  She denied this and proceeded to say "I see a white chair" very slowly and deliberately as if she was reading the words out of a book.  What does that prove?!  Absolutely nothing.

Ellen also said...

"I have nothing in common with her."
Referring to Lilly - ha!

"My hands are getting bigger... that's why I need three paper towels."
Justifying the need for more than 2 which is usually what I limit her to in public restrooms

"Ohh girl, you got busted!"
After I spilled a drink in Phillip's car - it wasn't much but he was not happy

Overheard at Chick-fil-A...

After a little girl collided with her brother at the bottom of the slide she told her Dad very matter-of-factly "I am never going to feel better."

Speaking of Chick-fil-A, we used our free kids meal vouchers from VBS last night.  Both girls eat well there (Lilly better than Ellen) and they love playing in the play area.  And don't forget the Ice Dream!

Lazybones

Caught someone laying on the clean laundry (from last Saturday)

In between storms

Saturday morning chores