Star Sighting!

Evie slept until 9:00 this morning! It was fabulous. She had wet her bed though probably since she was in the same diaper for almost 15 hours. Everything was wet so that was our morning project getting everything back together. I had already dressed for the gym before Evie woke up but we barely had enough time to get out the door to Gymboree.

    We had a nice little class today and guess who was there . . .  Evie Bentley! Her Daddy is Dierks Bentley. Her Mommy, Cassidy, is super nice and we chatted about our Evie's. Her Evie is Evelyn Day and my Evie is Evelyn Claire. We discussed how we both wanted one syllable middle names. Her Evie was so cute! I noticed how neither Evie seemed one bit concerned that they both had the same name and did not even look over when the other mom said Evie.

   I was not sure how nap time was going to go since we had such a late wake up but Evie still went down for three hours. It feels like I hardly saw her today but I got so much done around the house! My daily to-do list was complete for the first time in about 17 months.

   After nap, we played and organized her bookshelf, not sure why I even bother since the books come cascading down to the floor within minutes of being up. We headed out to run a few errands. Evie saw her friend George at Target. We went to the Target with the red balls out front so Evie was thrilled to see them. George likes the red balls too. Although, his mommy is an architect and knows the correct terminology for the red structures that keep the crazies out.

     Too bad I cannot sew at all because it would be quite the lucrative endeavour to open an alteration shop in the area.  I took four things to the shop that a friend had suggested: Evie's outfit that needed new button holes, a dress that needed the hem let out, a dress that needed darts and a pair of shorts that needed to be taken in a touch. Imagine my surprise, when the bill came to $87! Even Evie's jaw dropped to the floor. We were shocked. I asked her to recalculate but unfortunately it was for the correct amount. Sewing lessons must find a place in my immediate future. My grandmother was a home economics teacher so surely there is some genetic link to that type of thing.

     Carl took advantage of the cooler temperatures to mow our lawn. Evie convinced me to take her on a wagon ride by pursing her blue lips stained with Popsicle then she watched her Daddy mow while she ate her dinner. We had leftovers for dinner but sat outside to enjoy the cool breeze. That's my kind of night, hope you had a good one too!

Outdoor Fun!

Evie and I had a super lazy day at home. We stayed home until 3:30 cleaning house and playing. It was so nice! The high today was 90 which felt downright balmy after recent temperatures. That's crazy that 90 feels cool.

   Evie and I did a little sorting activity with her bows. We grouped them by color and size then we counted them. It was so funny to see her but she loved counting. Her little head followed each bow from place to place.

   Evie played outside in her little house and threw her baby on the grill - that was a little scary!  She organized her chairs and tried each one out. I thought she looked pretty cute sitting in the miniature chair.

   We left the house to go to the alterations place but we were almost there when I realized that I did not have the clothes with me. Oh well, we will will try again tomorrow! While we were already out, I took Evie to the park. She walked to the park holding my hand like such a big girl and then covered every square inch on the playground. It's so cute to see her interacting with kids she does not even know although she seems to always find someone to play with. She loves the big girls and was happy to be in the circus with a little girl in the tee pee. The big girl said let's pretend this is the big top and you are a ballerina. Evie thought that was so much fun!

    Evie was thrilled to see her Daddy. I think she was worried it'd be another week with just me so she is doing a really good job of greeting Carl when he gets home. They played outside while I fixed spaghetti for dinner. Evie sure loves pasta. She had a great time catching her penne with the little fork and loved how the little fork suctioned to the table. Dinnertime is so entertaining at our house.

   We are looking forward to a few days of nice weather! Evie was wiped out before her head hit the crib. All that fresh air will tire a girl right out.

Swimming and Baskin Robins

Evie did great sleeping last night. Thank goodness because we could not have handled a repeat performance. Evie was so happy to see her toys and played this morning around the house. She was so hungry and ate a huge breakfast so she might be growing again! Evie ate an entire bowl of cereal, several strawberries and a Nutrigrain bar plus a cup of milk and juice. That's a pretty big breakfast for a 17 month old. I made some brownies and Evie played with her little chairs from her Ipop. She lined them all up in a row and rotated her baby in and out of the lineup. It was quite methodical and done with so much determination.

     We went to a pool party at Amanda and Jackson's house. Evie had so much fun pointing out all the balls. She spotted a wagon and hopped right in for a little rest. Amanda made some yummy hot dogs and Evie enjoyed hers thoroughly along with some watermelon and brownies. It was so fun hanging out at the pool! Evie was so relaxed after lunch and just sat in her chair taking in the experience. It was so unusual to see her sitting so still.

   We headed home for naptime but someone was not too interested in sleeping. She sat in her crib and talked to herself before falling asleep. It was so funny to watch her on the monitor.

     I woke Evie up and told her we were going for a surprise. Baskin Robins was the surprise! We met Amy and Audra there for an afternoon treat. Evie and I shared a cup of mint chocolate chip. I am pretty sure that Evie liked it since she was stuffing it in her mouth with her chubby little hands. She was sticky from head to toe. Audra and Amy were so good! We dodged a major storm while we were in the store.

     We came home to get dinner together. I chopped and Evie watched quite intently to see what was going on. We made chicken fajitas for dinner. Evie was so happy to see her Daddy and I mean HAPPY! She ran to him, threw her arms around his neck and squealed with delight. It was so sweet and of course the feeling was mutual.

    We had a fabulous day and I look forward to another exciting day tomorrow.

Wedding Weekend!

We had a whirlwind weekend! It started on Friday when we left Nashville at 3 which is late for us when traveling. Carl worked in the car, Evie played and I drove the first stretch of the trip. We got to Atlanta at 11:00 because we ran into two wrecks and a tractor trailer fire. Our trip should have been 3.5 hours. Carl said we had been in the car long enough to drive Evie to her cousin's house, drop her off and drive all the way back to Nashville. It was a LONG trip. Ahhh, it's just one of those things that you cannot do anything about. Luckily, Evie is a really great traveler and keeps herself busy with her baby doll and her airplane book. We hardly heard a peep from her even though it was an extended version of the trip we had all anticpated.  She did sleep a little towards the end and was just giggling away when the firetruck drove by with it's sirens on. All that traveling when she was a baby got her off to a good start!

   Kurt and Lollie had a delicious dinner waiting for us from the Buckhead Diner. Lollie's sweet mom, Beth, was there and they had all waited up for us. Mary and Lucy tried to stay up too but they fell asleep since it was so late. Evie was in a great mood and played with Hattie, the golden retriever. We headed upstairs and she went right to sleep and I woke her up at 8 to see her cousins.  Mary and Lucy were so excited to see her. They are so sweet and gentle with Evie.

   We got on the road about 10 to Greensboro, Georgia for my aunt's wedding. My Uncle Jim died several years ago and my Aunt Dale was fortunate enough to meet a wonderful man to marry. I told her that she was lucky to have found two great men in her life - that's hard to do! Evie was so happy to see her Nana and Ipop. The wedding was at 3 and it was a beautiful service. We were in and out in less than 10 minutes. Evie did fantastic and only added a few thoughts of her own. Nothing too noticeable so we were very proud of her excellent behavior. Then, it was time to head to the reception. It was all lovely and the cake was absolutely divine. We sampled all three flavors. Chocolate was my favorite and I think Evie agrees! Evie looked so beautiful in the dress her Aunt Lindsay got her. It is the sweetest little white dress with smocking and flutter sleeves. Aunt Lindsay always finds the best clothes for our little Evie.

    Evie napped off and on in the car throughout the day but that's nothing compared to her normal three hour siesta's. We figured she'd go right to bed but that was not the case. Evie was up until midnight!  She has tunred into quite the little nightowl. It was so frustrating because we were tired and hot and so was she! I rocked her and rocked her more than I have done since she was born. She'd fall asleep and then wake up as soon as I put her in the crib. We slept on the loveseat for a bit but I was roasting with my sweaty little baby laying across me. Finally, I got her to sleep in her crib. Well, that only lasted for about 30 minutes. I was asleep and heard her crying so I went to get her. We rocked and rocked, by this point she was so exhausted so I made sure she was completely asleep and put her in the bed with us. She slept until 8! I think it was just too much for her for one weekend. We are so glad that we were able to see everyone and had such a wonderful visit. My parents had fun watching Evie run around and see her interact with other kiddos. Uncle Ben, my brother, loved seeing Evie too. Evie had never met Aunt Dale or Brian. I had not seen them since I was pregnant with Evie so it had been awhile.

   Evie was asleep by the time we hit the interstate. We stopped at Kurt and Lollie's to get Evie's music box. Evie was so happy to see her cousins so we went to lunch at Jason's Deli. It's so fun to see Evie play with Mary and Lucy. I told Mary that she was such a good cousin and she told me that's because Caroline is such a good cousin to her and that she is so nice. I thought that was just precious!

     Evie did great on the way back from Atlanta. We stopped to see Lake Nickajack and get something to drink. Evie slept for about an hour or so. She was too busy reading to take a nap. That little reader loves her books.

    We are so happy to be home! Nashville is a fantastic place to live but we wish it was in Knoxville since that's so much closer to our family. Evie was so happy to see her crib and we are ready to hit the sack too. Hope you had a great weekend!

Feeling a little Crabby!

Evie has gone 10 days in a row without a morning nap but decided this morning that she was really tired at playgroup. It was Christina's birthday so Courtney had cupcakes for everyone. It was Evie's first taste of red velvet and she thought it was pretty tasty. She hit every single child there! One little boy got into a little confrontation with her. We thought it was pretty funny but of course we did not let them know it. We came early for lunch and nap. She went down way before nap time and still slept a little more than three hours. It's hard work being a toddler.

     I had my six month checkup from my surgery so my little shadow went with me to my appointment. I had every trick that has every worked with me but she did great. At first, she was a little nervous because she thought that she was going to the doctor. Once she figured out that it was my turn, she was perfectly content to hang out in her stroller. I got a great report and it was so good to see my doctor. She's expecting a little girl in two months so she was thrilled to see Evie. They are on a first name basis. Dr. W has told me that she loves my stroller for about a year now. She could not remember what type it was so she was going to call me but was able to find it in BRU. It's a Maclaren and it's my favorite piece of baby gear that we purchased.

    It was so hot again today and poor Evie was roasting in the backseat. We are planning to turn her forward after our vacation because it just gets too steamy back there for her. We had a nice afternoon at home playing with all of our balls and picking up our groceries. DO you have a Harris Teeter near you? I am HUGE fan of their Express Lane, meaning you order the groceries online and they have them ready when you get to the store. It's even better this summer because it's only $1.95. That's a steal to not have to lug a 24 pound toddler into the store in the steamy heat, lug everything around and then put it all away. Not to mention it cuts down tremendously on my impulse purchases. Try it, you'll be hooked!

    Carl is en route back to our house from Arizona. There is a huge storm brewing but his plane lands in just a few minutes and we cannot wait to see him. He's had a busy week but was in  a beautiful place. He had a chance to play golf and spend time learning new things. Evie is in bed but I am am excited for him to come home. It's been a long week without Carl. Chicken Parmesan is in the oven and the house is picked up. Can't wait to see my sweet husband!

Sweet Girl!

Evie and I had such a fun day together. She is such a little explorer and is so interested in everything I do. Tasks that seem so mundane to me are fascinating to her. We went to the rec center this morning and Evie cried when I left her. Heartbreaking! Luckily, there were three little girls walking down the hall when I was walking out. I told one of them that my little girl would be so excited to see her. Well, when I picked Evie up, they told me she loved those girls. She did not look all that happy to me but that's because she was having a diaper issue. Not sure why the ladies did not notice since it was quite apparent. I hopped in the shower and Evie decided that she wanted me to read her a book at that very moment. She was not so happy to hear that I could not read her the book so she decided that Barnyard Banter needed to come in for a little dip. Luckily, I was able to rescue the book from the water.

Evie was so happy to be in Gymboree class today. Miss Rachel told Evie that she was having a ball! Evie just heard ball and started scanning the room for a ball. She also told me that Evie was going to be the life of the party with her personality. HA! That comment was before Evie got mad because she preferred the sled to doing the freeze with the rest of the group. She's only one after all so it did not really bother me. Kids are all over the place and it's not developmentally apporpaite to keep one years old on task.

   We came home for lunch and naptime. Evie seems to be growing another tooth because her nose is running a lot and she is a little cranky. She had a hard time settling down for her nap but then slept for a good long stretch.We played at home for a bit before going to Target for a diaper run. I bought Evie a new ball. They were all out of pink so Evie chose the purple one. It's almost bigger than she is but she held it in the cart except when it fell 100 times as we finished our shopping. Next, we headed to Whole Foods to get a few things. A lady came up to me and told me that Evie was so beautiful that she did not look real that she looked like a doll. I assured the lady that Evie was indeed very real but that I appreciated her kind words. 

      We came home and played outside for a bit. Evie was so excited to play with her ball. It was so hot that we had to come inside. We had so much fun being together. I love how Evie understands so much now and will follow simple directions. She hugs me a lot and tries to get me to kiss her Raffi. I am really enjoying this age watching Evie grow before my eyes.

     Evie's teeth still seemed to be bothering her so I gave her a little medicine. She perked right up after her bath so we played in her room. Evie loves to sort items into containers that have lids. She put her magnetic letters in and out of an old wipe box for almost thirty minutes while I sorted her clothes and organized her drawers. It's so sad that she is growing out of so many of her clothes and that we are getting closer to the size 2 section in her closet. My baby is growing up too fast!

        Evie usually goes right to bed but was not so interested in sleeping tonight. I had to go in her room twice which is extremely unusual for her. She misses her Daddy so much and cries whenever she hears the word Daddy. It's so sad. Thank goodness that Daddy is coming back soon!

Eating Out with Evie!

It's another hot one in Middle Tennessee. Evie and I went outside quickly this morning for a wagon ride. I took her down to the end of the culdesac and then called it a day. Then, we went on the back patio for a few minutes and sat under the umbrella. Evie collected her balls and played in her house. We met Carol and Cassidy and Amanda and Logan at Chuy's for lunch. Carol and Cassidy are moving to Texas for two months so we wanted a chance to say good-bye. Our kiddos did great at lunch but it's such a kid friendly place to go. Evie had her own little kids cup which she promptly dropped to the floor and sprayed water everywhere. Apparently, they are not made to hold up since one little tumble to the ground was all it took to destroy the cup. We had a nice lunch and got a cute shot of the kids.

  Evie was not interested in napping this afternoon. It took her forever to get to sleep and then she woke up a little cranky. We met Kristin and Jacob at Chick fil A for Kid's Night. We got there at 5:00 so it was easy to snag a few highchairs. Evie exhausted me during dinner. She was was more interested in the top to her little bottle of milk than anything else. It was really great when she had a little tantrum during dinner too. Luckily, the balloon guy and the cow kept her pretty entertained along with a cup of ice cream. Kristin and I had a good visit although quite chaotic. That's just the way it is now, since we spend our days kid wrangling.

   Evie is already asleep since she had a busy day. I am about to go organize a few drawers. It's amazing how quickly things get out of hand.

Pool Day!

Evie and I headed to the rec center bright and early this morning. She did great again while I worked out. Evie is turning over a new leaf with her separation issues and Mommy is too. Her teacher told me that she played with the kitchen again and rolled a ball to another little boy who was in there. She was so happy to see all the balls in there so that should keep entertained as long as she stays on this ball kick. I am so happy that she does well in there because it gives me such a nice break. Before Evie, exercising would have been at the bottom of my list of things to do. Everything changes with a baby. I enjoyed my time reading magazines and catching a few minutes of the news. It was good for both of us! Never, would I have imagined looking forward to going to the gym but I will take any break that I can even if it involves a little sweat.

  We came home and did some laundry. Evie thinks that's really fun. We read a few books and she played with my contact lens case for nearly 20 minutes. That might be something good to entertain her with on a long car ride.

 Evie is still worn out from staying up late with Abby on Saturday so she took a 3.5 hour nap. It was so nice to get a few things done around the house and I finished my book. Nothing too life changing - Shopaholic takes Manhattan - but it sure was entertaining. I just finished I will Carry You so it was time for something a little lighter even though Angie Smith did an amazing job telling the story of her daughter's  life.

    We went to a pool party this afternoon. It was so fun to hang out with some other moms and their kiddos. Evie started off being really interested in the snacks but then she decided that the baby pool was pretty fun. She got on a float with Stephen and they looked so cute. It was a perfect photo opportunity but I did not have my camera at the pool. Evie ran up and down the stairs lots of times and walked around the perimeter of the baby pool as if it was a labyrinth. She was entertained and that's all that really matters. Evie loved seeing the big girls and even tried on one girls shoes.

   We came in time for dinner and a bath. I jumped in the tub with her to save a little time. She thought that was just the funniest thing and let me play with her little boat. Both of us are exhausted so that must mean that we had a really fun day!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the dads in our life: Daddy, Ipop and Poppy. We love you so much and appreciate everything you do for us.  Dads always bring fun and a little surprise to family life. You just never know what a Dad might have up his sleeve. Moms are the ones that have to worry about everything. When I was a little girl and went to Camp Thunderbird twice a year with my Dad as an Indian Princess.  Our dads had two rules: have fun and don't get hurt. They'd make this huge deal of reviewing the rules with us as a joke. We'd have to repeat the rules back to the dads. Can you imagine how many rules the moms would have? It was always fun to eat lots of junk food, stay up late and see this big scary bear at talent night. Carl and I feel so fortunate to have both grown up with two parents because moms and dads bring such different elements to the family. Carl is such a wonderful Daddy and I know it's because he had such a good example growing up with his Dad.  He remembers his Dad patiently teaching him to fly a kite in Charleston. Carl is so sweet with Evie and could not love her anymore if he tried.  He is so gentle and thoughtful always telling her she's beautiful and making her laugh by being silly while enjoying each special moment with her. It's so amazing to see our own relationship with Evie grow as it gives us a glimpse of how much our parents love us!

   We had a wonderful day. It was our first time celebrating Father's Day in Tennessee so we both missed being near our Dads. Evie gave her Daddy a new weather radio since she broke his and a barbecue sauce of the month membership. I am not kidding. He loves barbecue sauce so he was thrilled!

    It's so hot that we can barely breathe. We have been outside a few times for short spurts but it's just unbearable out there. Evie does not seem to mind so we let her play in her house, swing in her swing and take a ride in the wagon. Our grass is as crispy as a piece of fried chicken. We need rain and some cooler temperatures so air-conditioning can take a break. We checked out the new gelato spot this afternoon. It was so yummy! Carl had Double Oreo and I had Almond Joy. Evie had both. She loved the tiny spoons. A cold treat is perfect on a day like today.

    Happy Father's Day to everyone!!!

Crayons, Wagons, and Babies!

Mama was not happy to come home from the grocery store to find out that Evie had written on the wall with a crayon! Carl left it for me to see. Evie is only supposed to color in while sitting in her highchair or at her table. I guess she got that past her Daddy since she colored on the bathroom wall. It was nothing that a Magic Eraser could not fix. Those things are are AMAZING! I am sure this will not be the last time that Evie writes on the wall.

   Evie loves her new wagon! It's going to entertain her for a long time. We had the Onello's over for dinner tonight. Carl made some delicious ribs and I made a few sides.  I made some guacamole and salsa. My college friend Susan gave me the easiest salsa recipe. Chop a little onion and some cilantro. Dump a can of Rotel and petite cut tomatoes into a bowl. Mix it all up together and it tastes like you have been working all day.

 Abby and Evie had so much fun playing. They even liked sititing in the wagon without us pulling them around which was a lot easier for us! Abby really liked Evie's little playhouse. Evie was able to make it up to see the lightening bugs. She was not as impressed as we had thought she would be.  We had so much fun visiting with Maura and Tim while the girls were playing. Maura is expecting twins in October so Abby is going to be a big sister! It's so fun to see Maura pregnant with these babies since I remember her being pregnant with Abby when we all lived in Charlotte. Abby knows all about babies and loved pushing Evie's stroller. Evie and Abby hugged each other. It was so sweet! Dinner was served outside since the girls love it out there. The girls did great sitting at Evie's little table. It was blazing hot but it was worth it for our girls. We came inside for dessert. I made some whipped cream and the girls licked the beaters. Evie was hanging out on my hip while I made the whipped cream. Of course, she remembered all about the beaters from the other day. We had a fantastic Saturday and hope you did too.

Toddler Galore!

Evie and I were so excited to go on a nice long walk this morning. It was the first morning with temperatures suitable for walking. We enjoyed a nice balmy 74 degrees which felt delightful after the heat wave that we have been experiencing.

   Evie and I had two playdates this morning so we were rushing around the house trying to get it all together. Our first stop was Carol and Cassidy's house. They are leaving for two months. We are going to miss them so much!  Cassidy will change so much while she's gone. We might not recognize her. We had a nice morning playing with all the kiddos. Evie was a little more interested in the muffins than the toys but she warmed up quickly to the brightly colored balls. It's so fun to play with these kiddos that we have known for almost a year. They have all changed so much!

     Next, we headed to Kristin and Jacob's house. Evie and Jacob play so well together and Jacob was thrilled to show Evie all of his fun stuff! Kristin convinced me that I need to join Costco. She served this delicious Greek Chicken pasta for lunch. YUMMY! Evie liked it so much that only a few pieces ended up on the floor. Kristin and I could chat all day but it was time for Evie to nap so we headed back home.

   Evie napped and I did my housewife duties like mopping, laundry, calling the cable company etc. Just for the record, I prefer my Mommy jobs to my housekeeping responsibilities. I did have success with the cable company and was able to lower our bill while scoring an additional 100 channels. Not sure that we even watch the ones we have but it sure feels good to get something for nothing. Although, it's all part of their gimmick, they expect me to call to complain about how much it is costing me and then they lower it when really they were overcharging me. I got it all figured out!

    Evie and I had a nice leisurely afternoon at home. We colored with crayons, built block towers, tried on jewelry, ran around outside and covered ourselves with blue marker. It's time to get Evie some Color Wonder markers so she can only scribble on specified objects in our house. Although, she did look pretty cute in blue! These pictures do not capture the full scope of Evie's artwork.

    Carl came home and we opened a few packages together. Evie loves getting stuff in the mail. We ordered some fun stuff with Carl's points he earns through his work and most of it came today. Evie got a swing and a little red wagon. I got an ice-cream maker and some new camera stuff. Evie was so excited to see her new swing. It's similar to the one at her Nana and Ipop's house. We put her in it inside the house and rocked her back and forth. I took her out so we could take it outside and she got so mad. You would have thought the world as she knows it was coming to an end. She perked right up when she figured out our plan to hang the swing outside. Happy Friday! We sure are glad it's the weekend around here.