I take requests

Lilly was less than thrilled to be without her beloved pacifier this week (restricted to bedtime only).  The drives home were especially rough.  It got progressively better throughout the week (pictures below are from Day 2).

Um, hello... a little help here.  Can't you see I'm suffering?

It turns out a little song and dance goes a long way.  I sang at least 10 songs (with motions) on the way to pick Ellen up from SACC Wednesday to avoid another round of what Lilly dished out Monday and Tuesday (and now of course she wants to sing every time).  Old McDonald, Wheels on the Bus and Itsy Bitsy Spider are her favorites but I tried to switch it up to keep the crowd interested.

I hope this weekend is kind to us.

Pacifier Update

The days of me giving Lilly her pacifier first thing when I pick her up from daycare are over (she wasn't allowed to have it during the day (except at naptime) but would come in with one in the morning and then as soon as she saw me in the afternoon would run to her cubby to retrieve it - I was always second fiddle).  It hasn't been easy, I don't deal well with the crying, but we are making progress.  The number of years of therapy it will take for her to get over this is yet to be determined.

February 6th, happier times

And now for some good news.  Not only did Phillip get a raise! (he will find out more details soon) but he found a quarter on the ground in the parking lot at work.  Stop the madness!  I am so proud of Phillip.  He deserves every penny (or quarter).

They had her at horseback riding

Ellen was all smiles when I picked her up from school Thursday afternoon.  She doesn't usually say much on our short rides home, and I have learned not to ask too many questions, but on this particular day she had just come from her first Girl Scout meeting and was excited to share her experience, including showing me the best friends necklace she made.  She is already talking about the next meeting.  I should also note that Ellen was equally as animated Friday when telling me about her field trip to Travellers Rest Plantation.  I like these kinds of days.

Dove dark chocolate hearts, I need you in my life (but it's probably for the best that the bag I bought Phillip for Valentine's Day is almost gone).

Lilly couldn't reach the toothbrush holder on her bathroom counter using her purple hippo stool so she threw it to the side (literally) and turned the wicker trash can upside down and used it instead.  Cheeky snail.

Ellen's mattress pad started falling apart after we washed it last weekend (not sure what happened there) so we had her sleep in Lilly's room until we could replace it.  What was going to be one or two nights turned into seven but I finally picked one up at Walmart yesterday afternoon.  Ellen is back in her own bed tonight although she probably wouldn't have minded a few more sleepovers with her sister.

Sunday morning iPad time in Lilly's room

While Ellen does her nightly worksheet/reading for school Lilly does her own "homework".  She colors or draws on Ellen's old papers.  She doesn't miss a beat!

Phillip:  You are crazy

Ellen:  Don't judge me

Lilly's doesn't know it yet but her pacifier days are coming to an end (starting tomorrow).  It's time.  But I am feeling kind of sad about it.  This is going to be a tough transition for her (and us).  The plan is to eliminate all day time usage and only give it to her before bed.  There will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.

We went to the zoo yesterday.  Not only were our free tickets about to expire (I was able to score an extra one for Laurie), it was perfect zoo weather.  It was meant to be.

Our complimentary passes

We were hoping for a little interaction but the kangaroos had something else in mind... napping (I don't blame them)

Informational signs like this are posted throughout the exhibit

More of the same on the other side.  Oh well, maybe next time.

The girls and I rode the Wilderness Express

Lilly kept saying "All aboard!" as we waited our turn but she didn't know what to think once we were settled in the peacock car (being tired and hungry probably didn't help)

The Zebras came over to us.  This is the back of their enclosure, only visible from the train.  I think they were hiding :)

Aunt Laurie and Ellen are two peas in a pod

Ellen purposefully chose to wear the flamingo shirt Andrea and Caleb got her for Christmas

"Mingos"

One with the goats

She could have stayed here all day

Choosing what animals they wanted to ride while waiting in line for the carousel

Our last stop was the playground.  We ran into a family from daycare who we don't get to see very often.  When I asked Ellen later that night what she enjoyed most about our day at the zoo she said seeing Sadie.

My favorite part of the day, or favorite line rather: 

"I'm not wasting my time on sheep." -  Ellen as we made our way around the Grassmere Historic Home and Farm (Fun Fact: That was my first time ever going to that section of our zoo.  We need to go back in the Spring/Summer when the gardens are in bloom and all of the animals are out.)

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We washed the cars this afternoon.  It was another nice day so we took advantage of the sunshine and the warmer temps (the high is only supposed to be 30 degrees on Wednesday so we are enjoying this while it lasts).  Lilly got soaked (her system is flawed) but both girls had fun and the cars got mostly clean :)

The wind blew Ellen's hair into her eyes right as I took this

(Randomly a cold front came through as we started washing my car)

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Let it be known I am not ready to go back to work tomorrow!

My lonely valentine

I was sound asleep by 8:30 Friday night (I fell asleep while watching the Olympics).  Happy Valentine's Day! :)

Here are a few things that happened (and one comment) around the 14th...

1.  We filed our taxes Saturday afternoon (we played outside afterwards)

 Zip line

Lilly fell chasing after Willie and Bella's ball but she got it :)

Checking out the damage

2.  We got an e-mail yesterday letting us know some first graders at HES are being treated for head lice (and I haven't stopped itching since).  I immediately said a prayer.  Now is not a good time!  Truth be told, I am deathly afraid of lice.

3.  Lilly peed in the potty for the first time Monday.  Yay!  She told Ms. Ledbetter she needed to go :)  She tried telling us she needed to potty one night last week before her bath but Ellen, who always uses the bathroom before getting in the tub, hopped on the toilet as Lilly raised the lid and she ended up peeing on the rug.   

4.  Phillip and Ellen went to see The Lego Movie with Laurie Sunday afternoon.  They all three liked it.  On their way to the car Ellen asked where they were going next... "Please say Olive Garden."  Random.  (The answer was church.)

5.  One of the announcers at the Olympic bobsled events cracks me up.  You know the one.  He starts out sounding like your typical high-energy sportscaster who is passionate about his job but quickly, and I do mean quickly, takes it up about 10 notches.  He is something else.

Can you feel the love tonight?

Really?

Ellen has a penchant for saying "Really?" after almost everything Phillip or I say (kind of like in that one Arby's commercial).  And it's very annoying.  We had an intervention (one of several) on the way home from church Sunday night and although she hasn't kicked the habit altogether, it has gotten better.  One downside to hearing someone else's catch phrase, or whatever you want to call it, over and over again, annoying or otherwise, is the possibility that you will start saying the exact same thing yourself.  Which reminds me of a time a few years ago when Phillip was big into saying "Are you kidding me?!"  Our church secretary was not impressed when that was my response/reaction to her letting me know about an issue with the copier.

I have to remind myself to breathe these days.  Work is stressful.  Home can be too.  Even Lucy is feeling it.  She peed in the living room last night (we have had several pee incidents this week, mostly involving Lilly).  Life's little challenges feel awfully big sometimes.

"Sometimes fun comes first."
Ellen's response to "safety first" - she was jumping on the couch at the time

I sat with a group of older women at the Ladies Brunch I attended at our church a few weeks ago.  Someone commented on how young Phillip looks and the others all agreed.  Not one of them said anything about my youthful appearance, not even as a courtesy.  And just yesterday one of the directors at our daycare told Phillip that he looks younger and younger every time she sees him.  Come on, really?

While watching Olympic ice dancing one night this week (or was it over the weekend?) Ellen posed a Barbie similar to what she saw on TV and began to dance her around the living room.  In a matter of moments Lilly had an ice-dancing Barbie of her own.  Both girls ran into the kitchen, dolls in hand, to show me their Barbie's moves.  Have I mentioned I love the Olympics?  I really, really do.

"He's always had a late sleep schedule."
Regarding Phillip - we let him sleep-in a little on Saturday :)

Lilly's teacher told me that several parents have come in asking her to point Lilly out to them because her name comes up a lot when their child talks about school.  Ha!  For better or worse, Lilly is one popular kid.

Ellen had a snow day Wednesday (church was also cancelled) and a 2 hour delay yesterday morning.  We had a dusting (the wet kind), nothing compared to states near Tennessee like Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, but the threat was enough to give some of the kids in our area a mid-week break (Metro schools did not close but most of the surrounding counties did).  I was hoping to get at least a few inches of snow this winter :(

Ellen's valentines are ready for delivery, all 21 of them.  We bought blank cards (red with scalloped edges, white envelopes) from the Target dollar spot again this year and she used various shades of pink, purple and red markers to personalize them for her classmates (she made one for Ms. Gildemeister too).  We slipped a pack of heart-shaped fruit snacks inside each envelope and sealed it with a sticker.  Sweet and simple.

I was having trouble getting into the Valentine's Day spirit, spent a lot of my drive venting to my sister (feeling complainy), but coming home to not one, but two packages helped soften my heart.  Nancy and Russ sent the girls cards, sweets, stickers and cute stuffed monkeys (Ellen chose the pink one but slept with both of them last night).  Andrea and Caleb sent us a card, fancy chocolates, Goobers, Jelly Belly Dips (strawberry jelly beans dipped in chocolate) and pink socks for the girls.  So thoughtful.  Thank you!

Two are better than one

Call me, maybe

A new round of SACC Clubs start next week.  Ellen is going to be in the Rainbow Loom Club which will meet Wednesday afternoons from 4-5.  We also signed her up for a free Girl Scout program (through SACC) that will meet once a month starting February 20th (she will receive a free Girl Scout membership good through September 30, 2014).  Besides their cookies, thin mints represent!, I am not very familiar with Girl Scouts but based on the flyer I think Ellen will enjoy the activities they have planned.

Lilly is so cute (and helpful) with the dogs.  She pets and pats and gives hugs and sometimes even kisses.  She helps us feed them, fill their water bowls, give them treats and even tells them not to bark ("no bark!") when they go outside (she's the boss of everyone, including the dogs).  She welcomes their attention.  She wants so badly to play with Lucy and be chased by George.  What we really need is a puppy.  Or better yet, a kitten :)

I am very sad about the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman.  Tragic.

Lilly - Ellen too, for that matter - can be a handful during worship but it's getting better (knock on wood).  We still have some work to do but both girls did great last Sunday, comparatively speaking.  Lilly colored while Ellen made this phone (and a few calls)...

We typically take Lilly to the nursery during the song before the lesson, keeping her with us throughout the first half of the service, including the opening announcements, singing, prayer (she's been known to give an enthusiastic "Amen" at the end), scripture reading, communion and collection.  She is always excited to go/ready for a change of scenery and she makes sure everyone knows it... by waving good-bye as one of us (usually Phillip) takes her out (you exit the front of our auditorium to get to the nursery).  Several people have commented on her wave.  She knows how to work a crowd.

Ellen went to Skate Night for the first time this past Tuesday.  First grade was the featured grade level so Ms. Gildemeister was there too.  As if the skating part wasn't fun enough, Ellen was one of the winners of a drawing they had and her class ended up winning the Golden Skate, a small trophy given to the class that has the most kids in attendance.  Score!

By default Lilly watches more TV at this age than Ellen ever did but the length of time she will sit and watch any given show varies (she would rather play).  Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, or "Minnie Mouse" as Lilly calls it, is her top request.  Oh Toodles!

The Olympics are on!  The Olympics are on!

Last Thursday night Ellen and I attended Heritage Elementary's first annual Talent Show.  Forty acts in all (mostly singing, dancing and playing piano/instruments).  My bum was numb when it was all said and done (bleacher bottom) but it was worth it.  These kids are going places!

Instead of simply saying yay or nay, Lilly is into nodding her head yes and shaking her head no :)

Ms. Gildemeister uses a color-coded behavior clip chart in her classroom: Red=Outstanding, Orange=Great Job, Yellow=Good Day, Green=Ready to Learn, Blue=Think About It, Purple=Teacher's Choice (sounds scary) and Pink=Parent Contact.  Here's how it works.  Each child starts out with their clip on green, Ready to Learn, with the opportunity to move up (or down) the spectrum throughout the day.  The color their parent ends up seeing, the color the child uses to fill in that day's square on their calendar, is where he/she was by the end of that day.  So each night we check the behavior calendar in the back of Ellen's binder to see what color day she had, usually green, occasionally yellow, secretly hoping to see red.  We recently learned that only three students have received this honor so far this year so now we are shooting for orange instead :)

Phillip is escorting Ellen to the Father/Daughter Dance at Heritage tomorrow night.  One of the two is excited.  I think the other one will come around eventually.

Excitability may occur, especially in children

Lilly is allergic to penicillin (we think).  Lilly had been taking amoxicillin for her sinus infection when Saturday, day 9 of 10, she broke out in a rash covering most of her body.  This being our first time dealing with an allergic reaction of this type we deferred to the experts, Matt and Sara Jo, who we happened to see that very same day.  Thankfully Lilly's reaction was not as extreme as Cole's.  It could have been a lot worse.

We swapped out the amoxicillin for Benadryl and it did the trick (she only had a few traces of rash this morning).

A little bean bag fun a couple of days before the outbreak

February 2014

We started the month off with sunshine (and warmer temps), an art project, an allergic reaction (Lilly), gymnastics, leftover chicken spaghetti, a matinee with friends (The Nut Job with Cole and Savannah), clean sheets, Chick-fil-A, basketball (we got to see Cole in action) and The Hunger Games (Netflix).

Here's a look at the rest of the month:

February 2nd - Super Bowl (Go Broncos!)

February 4th - HES Skate Night (1st grade is featured grade level)

February 7th - Father Daughter Dance at HES
                        KFC Activity
                        Opening Ceremony for the Sochi Olympics

February 12th - Dentist Appointment - Ellen

February 14th - Valentine's Day

February 15th - Sweetheart Banquet (Southern Hills)

February 17th - President's Day (No School)

February 20th - Girl Scout Meeting

February 21st - Traveller's Rest Field Trip
                          HES Movie Night

February 22nd - Men's Breakfast (Southern Hills)

February 24th - Kendra's Birthday

February 27th - Chili Supper at The Children's Academy