4 blogs in 2 days! Thats gotta be some kind of record-it is for me at least.
Hannah is having a rough week.
-While we were in Palm Springs she got her first skinned knee. She has started trying to "run" and she was wearing shorts for one of the first times this year and she fell on the asphalt. Poor girl didn't know what had happened! Now she has a healing bloody knee.
-Yesterday we were playing outside. She has a little Tinker Bell folding chair that she likes to sit in. Well she was leaning on the back of it and it folded up and her fingers were inside the metal with all her weight leaning on it. She was stuck. I leaped to her aid but not before getting a swollen pinky.
-Then she was playing around our front elevated bed around our tree and she tripped and face planted into the mulch. She had sticks of wood and dirt all over her face. Within 30 minutes the damage was obvious. Lots of little bruises and scratches all over her forehead. We went out last night (because Del Taco had $.29 tacos and $.49 burritos for Cinco de Mayo) I was afraid the other customers would think she had chicken pox!
-Last night around 11pm she woke up screaming and I went into check on her-she was burning up! Her temp was 102.4! She's also developed a really gross cough so we are headed to the doctor today. I have maddy today too because her mom had no one else to watch her. I made no promises that she wouldn't get sick.
Look closely. See the scratches? If you click on the pic it'll get bigger and you can see them.
I feel like I get used to being a mom and doing good with Hannah's routine. And then, out of no where, Hannah changes! Currently she is in a very fussy stage and a very "mommy-stage". I do feel very loved and needed but simultaneously I feel overwhelmed and frustrated. I can't hold another baby or even a dog without Hannah getting upset. I can't leave the room without tears. I can't give her to Jesse in the evenings without a total melt down. I went to the movies with a friend last night and I had a hard time relaxing knowing Hannah was freaking out and Jesse would have a rough evening. But, I know its a stage. All of her stages have come and gone and this will too.
For Mother's day I'm getting a one hour massage! I'm very excited. I have that this saturday. We aren't sure yet if we will be going out to lunch or anything because Jesse has a softball game at 1pm that day and we will have church that morning. But I will enjoy my massage as my gift! Maybe we can do lunch or something on Saturday afterwards.
I love the tv show "The Middle" its on Wednesday nights on ABC. Its one of the few sitcoms that I record weekly. I feel like I have a lot in common with the mom on the show. Last week, she watched the royal wedding and was very excited about it. This week she had some good conversations about mother's day. Here is an excerpt from the show. This is a conversation between her and her husband about mothers day-
The mom, Frankie: " As a mom, when you're with your kids you want to be alone and when you're alone you want to be with them. And no matter where you are, you feel guilty you're not in the other place. You know?"
The dad, Mike: " No, I don't feel guilt that way."
Frankie:"Geez! Father's shouldn't even get a day....No guilt? That must be nice!"
Mike: "It is."
I love it! Isn't parenting so different for moms and dads? We both love and provide for our children but in such different ways. Jesse and I have been living this a lot lately with Hannah's current "mommy-stage".
In honor of my second Mother's Day, I bring you a few recap pics:
As some of you know from my previous blog Unexpected Changes, we had to cancel a trip to visit my mom because she got sick. But we were able to make up for it this weekend. It was in the 90s every day we were there and we lived outside! We ate most meals outside, took walks, went to the pool, ate outside at restaurants. It was a wonderful visit. Hannah got to meet her Grandma PJ for the first time! I can't believe they hadn't previously met. Her are the pics...
So tired from all the fun! She loves cuddling with her bunnies.
She loved the fountains!
Notice the line of watermelon juice running down her chin. She also ate her first hotdog and loved it! (torn up into little bitty pieces of course!)
Don't you love her flower petal hood?!
She looks happy but she was really trying to pull her glasses off. Notice how I'm holding her hand down.
Forgot to bring her cute pink sun hat, so we borrowed.
Hi Nana! Thanks for taking me to the pool!
We took a lot more pics on Mom and Craig's camera but I don't have them yet. If there are any great ones I'll share once I get them.
For those of you who don't know, I was really excited about the wedding last week. But not excited enough to get up (or stay up) in the middle of the night to watch it. So I recorded it and we had friends over at 1pm on friday to watch it and have a wedding reception. It was a lot of fun! I've been re-watching my recorded shows and looking at everything online about the fashion, behind the scenes, etc. Here are some pics:
I've had several people ask why I care so much. I think there are a lot of little girls who grow up watching disney movies, playing dress up, twirling in ballet class, dream of being a princess. Kate gets to be the princess! Now, I'm realistic enough to know she isn't living a fairy tale life. I know she has paparazzi in her face, the weight of about 40 countries on her shoulders, the self-esteem issues we all struggle with, pressure and judgement from millions including the reigning Queen of england. I know that this marriage may end just like Prince charles' marriage or it may last and be happy (as far as I know) like the Queen and her prince. But it was fun just living the fairytale side of it. Plus, like any of our US events where there's high fashion (the Oscars, etc) it was fun to see the British spin on things.
So, before I even start posting, let me say I am very frustrated with myself. I forgot to take pics of us as a family when we were all dressed up and celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We all looked very nice yesterday but in typical "mom-ness" I only thought to take pics of Hannah. It wasn't until I was putting her to bed and we were both in our pjs that I realized we had taken no family pics. I'm still upset today about it. We had a very busy day and it just escaped my mind. (I will be sure to do better for Mother's day when we will all be dressed up again!)
We got up early to get all dolled up for the 9am easter service. Then we came home and got ready to have 14 people to our house for Easter lunch. Then we had company from about 1 till 8:30. We had a wonderful day! And, we came out ahead because once people had left we discovered a bounty of treasures-wonderful mashed potatoes made from a super secret recipe from JJ, delicious chocolate covered strawberries and pavlova dessert from Beth, a sippy cup left by Holden, yummy peach tea brought by the Wrights, strawberries from Tim, and spiral sliced ham from the Hunters!
Saturday we dyed Easter eggs with Hannah. In my mind I envisioned a fun, glee-filled experience as a family. Thats not exactly what I got. I should mention Hannah has 4 giant lumps on all her back gums and two have recently sprouted sharp points. She has been extra cranky, fussy and clingy the last few days. We started with Hannah standing on a kitchen chair pushed up to the island. I was right there with my arm around her. Well, she slipped off the edge of the chair and I caught her before she hit the ground but she was very startled and wouldn't calm down. I tried to distract her with the stickers for the eggs-lesson learned, Hannah is afraid of stickers! yes! She did not like them at all! She didn't want them on her hands or on her shirt. She wasn't too sure of them being on me or Jesse either. So she just kept crying. This was my wonderful egg dying experience! Fortunately she did like the finished product!
I walked around the living room "hiding" the eggs and she followed behind me picking them all up and putting them in a basket! I couldn't believe she got the concept. It was so cute. We hid and found the eggs about 3 times. She loved it. She also loved clapping the eggs together, which makes me thankful they were hard boiled!
So, enough talking, now for the pictures you've all been waiting for (especially Ashley :) )
Jesse and I both really enjoyed our pastor's Easter sermon. For the last couple months we've been doing a series on pain and he wrapped that up yesterday. We've been learning how God uses pain for many reasons-to remind us of our need for him, to teach us something, to bring us back to Him, to empathize/minister with others in the same position. There were many more reasons, but these hit home for me. Yesterday was a message of hope. He said "Raise your hand if you are a member of the human race." So of course, thats everyone in the room. Then he said, if you are a human, you will have pain in your life. Some will be kindergarten level pain, some will be graduate school level pain. Some will be physical, some emotional, some mental. But there will be pain. We have hope. The pain ends if you have trusted in Jesus as your savior and Lord. We have the hope of eternity in Heaven with Him, pain free. Our pastor told about his sister who had struggled with extreme depression her whole life and died because of untreated breast cancer-she had lived a very painful life. But when she passed away, having believed in Christ for her salvation, she passed into eternity pain free and what a joy that is. We finished the service by singing the song "I Will Rise" by Chris Tomlin and it really hit home. I am so thankful for the hope of my future eternity with Him. Please read the lyrics (emphasis is mine)...
There's a peace I've come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There's an anchor for my soul
I can say, It is well Jesus has overcome
and the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead
And I will rise
When He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise, on eagle's wings
Before my God
fall on my knees,
and rise...
I will rise
There's a day that's drawing near
when this darkness breaks to light
and the shadows disappear
and my faith shall be my eyes
Jesus has overcome
and the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead
And I hear the voice of many angels sing
Worthy is the Lamb!
And I hear the cry of every longing heart
Worthy is the Lamb!
I will rise
when He calls my name No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise, on eagle's wings
Before my God
fall on my knees,
and rise...
I will rise....
I will rise....
Today, I was renewed in my quest to have Hannah potty trained early! I am so sick of diapers and leaking diapers and waste and stink and throwing away money. So, after breakfast, we went straight to the potty-read books, sang songs. Then Maddy came and she played in the bathroom with us. We had a grand time! Then Hannah poo'd in the potty and we had a wonderful celebration. There were high fives and a piece of candy and the ritual of flushing the toilet. This afternoon after nap she also pee'd in the potty! Again, high fives, candy and flushing! Yay Hannah!
I will admit, potty training is way harder and requires more patience than weaning, dropping the third nap, getting rid of the paci, transitioning to the sippy cup, and all other changes we've made thus far. But, probably the most rewarding!
We got to go the the park today. Some days Hannah is afraid of the swing but today she walked right up to it and made it clear that she wanted in it. She swung for about 30 minutes! She loved it today! She also tried to climb up the slide-life lesson #1564 for Hannah-slides are for going down, not up. (trying to prevent future injury) She climbed up the steps and slide down about 15 times. Then after nap, potty, and snack this afternoon we played in the backyard. She had so much energy today! She is exploring and moving non-stop.
For dinner we had pound chicken that I loved and Jesse liked. I joined a cooking group through my church and can now have fabulous meals with very little work. Its very nice! Jesse has liked all the meals and I love just defrosting a meal I made a month ago and popping it in the oven or crockpot. If you get the chance to join a cooking group, I highly recommend it! Put in 4 hours with your friends one evening a month and get 7+ meals out of it. Voila!
So, thats a run down of our day-Potty, Park and Pound chicken! Yumm!
Hello all 5 of my readers! Have you been missing me? Its been almost 3 weeks since you've heard from me. I so much to catch up on!
First-Hannah is blooming vocally! She has learned the Itsy Bitsy Spider; she follows me around the house doing her version of a spider and saying "issy issy". When I stop and sing it her face lights up. She learned this song while visiting Pop's and Poni's house in Oklahoma City. She also says Yes; well, it sounds like "Jes". Today I asked her if she wanted her blanket to which she responded "Jes!" She also says "Quack Quack Quack" when she sees ducks (or chickens) but it sounds like quick "Ah-Ah-Ah". And finally for a monkey I always say "Oh Oh Ahh Ahh" and she says "Ahh Ahh". It looks the same as the duck but her vocal inflections are very different. Its obvious what she is saying, especially since she will be holding a stuffed monkey or looking at a book with monkeys.
Second-She is an excellent walker and getting very close to running. She will chase the dogs or get excited and walk very quickly-it'll soon be a run and will keep me moving!
Third-Our trip to vegas was wonderful!! I cried a little when I left Hannah in Oklahoma City but once I left it was great. I really enjoyed my time with just me and Jesse. It was a good reminder that there is more to me that just being a mom (though I love that role) and that Jesse and I need time together just us. We need to make a bigger commitment to going out on dates. We loved our hotel-I highly recommend The Trump whenever you may be in Vegas. It was beautiful and quiet and close to the strip. The first evening we were there we had dinner at the Wynn and explored the Venetian Hotel including a Gondola ride through the canals.
Gondola at the Venetian.....
The Conservatory at The Wynn......
On day two, we had a fabulous breakfast at the Wynn then took a taxi to Planet Hollywood and made our way down the strip stopping at the Coca Cola store for pics with the Polar Bear, and going all the way to the Luxor where we met our friends and started working our way back up the strip. We saw lots of beauty, lots of trash, lots of ridiculousness. But we loved it. It was very windy this day and therefore I performed several Marilyn Monroe moments, but I tried not to be too embarrassed and let it ruin my day.
The coca cola bear.....
That night we went to an interactive dinner theater called Tony and Tina's wedding. It was performed as if we guests at the wedding. We watched the ceremony, had dinner and wedding cake, all the while interacting with the actors who were the Bride and Groom, Wedding Party and other guests. Before the show the actors came and mingled with us in the lobby and I got to talk with a lot of them. I think because I was so talkative they bumped us up to a VIP table so we were right in front of all the action. I had a blast! I don't know if Ryan, Shawna or Jesse did-but I did! On our way home this evening we saw the fountains at the Bellagio (which is the nicest hotel in vegas, IMHO) and then headed to the Wynn to see the "performance" at the lake and have dessert.
Waiting for the fountains at the Bellagio.....
Jesse doing the YMCA at "the wedding" (our friend Ryan is to his left in the hard hat).....
The Conservatory at the Bellagio. Beautiful!.....
Day three we had a good breakfast at the Palazzo though we wandered through several hotels for about an hour trying to find the "perfect place" to eat. Then we headed over to Ceasar's palace because I hadn't seen it yet but had read it shouldn't bee missed. Here I did the only shopping of the whole trip at H&M because we don't have that in Denver and treated myself to a new dress and new shirt. Being in this hotel made me want to go to Italy and Greece and see for myself what it really looks like! I hope the real thing has less slot machines and more sunshine!
Random.....
We joined up with our friends and headed to Wild Bills Gambling Hall which looked very old style compared to many of the other hotels/casinos. But we had a lot of fun playing Black Jack here and I won $35! Which of course made my day! We then headed to the Paris which I think was my second favorite hotel, after the Bellagio. It really made me feel like we were in Paris! We went to the Rio for their famous buffet-after all we were in Vegas, we MUST do a Buffet. I don't know that I got my money's worth or that the food was really fabulous but it was good and we had fun. For our last night we went to a dueling pianos bar in the Palazzo. Some of the songs were a lot of fun and some I had never heard before. But overall it was a good night.
The best thing about our last day in Vegas was leaving. I had a wonderful trip but I was soooo glad to get home to Hannah! She seemed happy to see me too and gave me lots of hugs and snuggles.
