I've got that joy,joy, joy down in my heart!

Our day did not start with joy - just keeping it real- but overall it was a JOYFUL day. Moms who pretend like everyday is perfect need to share their secrets with the rest of us! By 9:00, Evie and I were both ready for naptime. She woke up on the wrong side of the crib this morning. Nothing made her happy but after nap - she was back to her sweet, sassy self. That kid needs her sleep.

   Jacob and Kristin came over for a playdate which really brightened our day! Kristin even brought delicious baked ziti. YUMMY! Can't wait to try her recipe because my baked ziti is never all that good. Evie and Jacob had a great time playing. They crawled in the colorful tunnel, shopped for groceries and played with the folding doors in the den. Why are all children fascinated by the opening and shutting of a door? They were both pretty impressed with the lemon poppyseed scones. Evie was wiped out and apparently she wiped out Jacob too. Kristin's email this afternoon said, " Your child seriously wore my child out. Jacob  is still sleeping." She wrote that at 4:40. Sounds like a great nap to me. Naptime is always a happy time. Since, Carl is gone - which means less laundry and no cooking, I settled down with my Jodi Picoult book.: Change of Heart. It's really good but hard to read at the same time. Jodi Picoult writes from the perspective of  all of her characters. Lindsay and I were engaged in our little long distance bookclub today when I expressed my burning question. Does Jodi write the entire book at once or does she write each character's part and then tie it all together? That's something that I am interested to find out about - Google and I might be investigating that later tonight.

   Evie and I had such a fabulous afternoon. We checked out a really cool bookstore in Cool Springs. It's called The Book Gallery -my friend Carol had told me about it several months ago and we just got around to checking it out. It's in the Kroger shopping center on Mallory Lane between Kroger and Jo-Ann Fabric. They have a gigantic selection of books and they are all super cheap. Evie got four new board books for $9. Now, that's a deal! Some of them are a tiny bit dented but that's okay since they would not stay in perfect condition for long at our house anyway. What a great find! Evie and I will go back soon. Books are one of the most important things you buy your kids! My parents bought me lots of books and I have always been an advid reader with the exception of the last 15 months. Although, I did read plenty of sleep books but that is not quite the same.

     After our bookstore jaunt, we went to Chick fil A for Family Night even though we are missing one very important member of our family. We called to tell him all about it! Evie LOVED it. I had never been to Family Night before but it's really fun. Kid's meals are free with the purchase of an adult combo so we both ate for $7 since I had to have a lemonade. They had a ballon artist and a singing sensation named Rachel Sumner. Evie was enthralled by the ballon artist but he was too busy making elaborate balloon animals so we skipped that part tonight. We had a great seat and Evie clapped her way through dinner. She had a ball and devoured her four tiny nuggets and fruit. I had never given her raw apple since it seems like the perfect choking hazzard but she thought apples were really tasty. We even ran into three different friends so I guess we really  do live here! Family Night was the perfect combination for her: music, kids, balloons and food! It was pretty crazy but she was having so much fun that I was mostly able to overlook the screaming kids, the cold fries and the popping balloons. Evie makes a terrific dinner date. Not quite as good as her Daddy but she comes close.

    We came home and played with bubbles in the kitchen sink. Every morning, I get an email from Productive Parenting with an activity suggestion that is age appropriate. Evie always enjoys the activies and it gives us something new and different to do each day. Sometimes the activities are really simple. Other days more elaborate but they are always ideas that you can implement easily with the stuff you already have right in your house. I filled the sink up with warm water and lots of  bubbles. Next time, I will use Mr. Bubble because that smelll  takes me right back to my childhood; taking a bath in my Aunt Ebby's pink bathroom. 

  I put her slip resistant bath mat under the kitchen chair - this was really easy to do since I had washed it the other day and it has been sitting in the laundry room waiting for someone to take it upstairs. Anyway, Evie climbed right up in the chair with a little help from me. Look at her sweet feet, she's standing on her tippy-toes! She had a grand time and I had a pretty good time watching her. That's the very best part about being a mom is all the fun stuff you get to do with your kids! Although, the hugs and kisses are pretty fabulous too!