Beach Bound

Evie on Kiawah Island, South Carolina. September 2009

Evie at Ormond Beach, Florida. July 2010

Evie at Navarre Beach, Florida. May 2011

We are on the way to the beach. It seemed like a good idea to go before Baby Boy arrives so here we go driving over 400 miles for a chance to feel sand on our toes. Evie has been talking non-stop about going to the beach. She has a pretty good grasp on it and packed her bucket, bathing suit and swim diapers. I love hearing her talk about the beach and am looking forward to seeing her in action at the beach.

Rough Day

Happy Birthday to my Dad and Evie's Ipop!!!!

Evie had a rough day with lots of tantrums. She needed me for every little thing and kept saying, "sit with Evie" when I would get up to do things. She did enjoy the Royal Wedding. I told her that the bride was a princess and she kept requesting "more princess." Evie also let me know that she is a princess.


Thank goodness we had plans to get out of the house. We met Campbell and Christian at Brilliant Sky for story time and messy art. It is pretty crazy taking kids into a toy store but they did great. Evie had a few meltdowns that lasted less than a minute. I love how toddlers can turn their emotions off and on so quickly.


We decided to take the kids to lunch at McDonald's. Evie is way more interested in playing than eating. She had some type of altercation with some older boys that resulted in hysterical tears. I figured she was just tired but it was more than that. All the way home, she chanted, "other boys scared Evie - not Christian." I rocked for a little before nap time and she told me they hit her. Those playgrounds can be so chaotic but I felt horrible that I did not see this because I would have addressed this with the mom. Evie woke up mid-nap talking about this again so I patted her tummy and covered her up. Thank goodness, she went back to sleep.


We played outside with the boys. Evie sees them and gets so excited. She thinks their backyard is a park and calls it a park because of the play set. We decided to call it an afternoon as we were spending more time drying tears than playing.


Evie was so happy to see her Daddy and was not so happy about grass mowing night. I appeased her with a picnic and her bubble machine. We even had "cream" for dessert. Evie loves ice cream cones more than the average toddler. She even kissed her cone because it had a hole in it. Bedtime could not come soon enough. TGIF!

From first to last

Evie had her last day of school today. It's amazing to think about how much she has changed since September 2 when she started school. I had to carry her in for months and she would start crying as we walked down the hall to her classroom. She always managed to turn off those tears by the time I was in the parking lot. As the months went by, she was so excited to go to school and loved her teachers Ms. Lori and Ms. Linda. Evie was always thrilled to see me standing at the gate waiting for her to notice me. Those few seconds before Evie noticed me were always so special because I saw her in her element without her knowing that I was right there watching her go down the slide or read books with a friend.


 I loved knowing she was in a safe place with teachers that took good care of her while I had a little time to myself. Evie will be ready to go back to school in August but not as ready as I will be since Baby Boy will have arrived. Two days a week seems like a lot right now but she is ready to learn new things and have new experiences.Time goes by so quickly and Evie is really growing up before our eyes. She has lost those pudgy cheeks and fat little legs but she has turned into a whole new person with lots of opinions and funny commentary on the world around her. She chooses her own clothes and hairstyle, tells me what would hit the spot for breakfast and points out all the places of interest along the way. I love watching her change and grow but spend some days wishing that I could keep her just the way she is right now.  That's not possible so I just take scores of pictures and Carl videos her adorable antics. Those snapshots and video clips will always be so special to us even when Evie is all grown up because after all she will always be our little girl.

Thunder Rolls, Lightning Strikes

It has been so stormy here with torrential rain and lots of sound effects from the sky. We have taught Evie that storms are pretty because they happen so much here. She sleeps right through them and I could hear her settling down at nap time telling the thunder it was pretty.

I did not think it was so pretty last night when the tornado sirens kept going off but it's just part of the weather in Middle Tennessee. It was a two coke kind of day because I was exhausted from the night of storms.

   We did a whole bunch of nothing today since it was so rainy. Evie loves staying home in her pj's just like her Mama but she will only wear two piece pj's now. She is too grown-up for footed sleepers these days. We are hoping this is just a phase but I need to stock up on a few pairs of the two piece ones. Mary and Lucy were sweet enough to give us some hand-me down ones too.

Carl was not here for dinner so we had pancake night. Evie loves any opportunity to use her whisk so we whipped up a batch of fluffy pancakes. She also thought it would be fun to wear her ladybug costume to make the pancakes. So, she ate dinner with just a diaper to try to preserve the costume from becoming a sticky mess. Evie prefers syrup with a side of pancakes so it can get a bit messy.

I am looking forward to sunshine and school for Evie tomorrow.

My Little Helper!

Evie had a snow make-up day at school this morning which was just so wonderful for me!We literally left the house in a torrential downpour but she made it to school on time. Evie noticed a duck on the side of the road if that tells you how much rain we have had and she kept saying "more ducks" all the way to school.

I did not really do anything interesting while Evie was at school just ran a few errands. It's so much easier to breeze in and out of places without lugging my 30 pound toddler with me.

Evie was thrilled to help me put away all my purchases. She needed some new sippy cups since we lose them left and right. Evie yanked them out of the package and put them in the diswasher. Then, she tried to start the dishwasher. She LOVES distributing toilet paper to all the bathrooms and putting diapers in her diaper stacker. I bought some maternity underwear which Evie found very interesting. She told me they were big. Yes, Evie, they are big. I told her she could get some underwear too if she learned to use the potty. She started laughing hysterically and said, "that's so funny Mommy." Her interest in potty training has disappeared but it will come back one day so I am not too worried.

We all enjoyed a nice afternoon siesta before going outside to play. Evie was looking everywhere for her boys today but was happy to see the big girl from next door. Evie had to have an apple once she saw that Millicent had an apple too. We sat in the driveway reading books and playing with her dolls for a long time. All this activity made Evie thirsty so she decided to help herself to some water from the fridge.

Evie and I worked on getting some clothes ready for Baby Brother. I washed them in Dreft this morning and the smell brought back so many memories of Evie being a baby. That has to be the best smell! Evie was a great helper or as she calls it a "help her" hanging clothes in the closet. She was quite chatty telling me how everything was so cute! She loves to play with her babies in her brother's room moving them from station to station. Evie thinks they like the swing best. Let's hope that Baby Brother likes the swing more than Evie did as a baby.

Magnificent Monday!

Evie and I had such a fun day together. We did absolutely nothing but that it is what made it so magnficient. Our morning was spent on the couch reading books, coloring and watching Elmo. Evie was extra cuddly today so we just held hands and snuggled. I wish she'd stay this size forever.Then we did a few things around the house before lunch. Evie napped for 3.5 hours and I did nothing but read a book. It was so nice not to rush around doing things.

It turned out to be another gorgeous day so we went outside to soak up the sun. Evie loves her new sidewalk chalk although it does not write as well on our rocky Tennesee driveway. She took her baby for a spin on her cycle.

Our neighbors Claire and Rachel came over to bring Evie some goodies. We love being surrounded by older kids and are constantly amazed at the things they give to Evie. She got a huge box of books, things to play school with and some computer games. Evie's favorite was a magnetic doll set for the fridge.

Evie was so excited to see her Daddy. I made chicken tacos for dinner in the crockpot. Try them if you have not already - take a pound of chicken and put it in crock pot, then add an envelope of taco seasoning to a jar of salsa and pour on top. Then add some water. My chicken was frozen and it took about 5 hours. Delicious! We have lots of leftovers and I am actucally excited to eat them.

Jesus Christ is Risen Today!

Happy Easter! We have had a wonderful Easter. Evie looked so pretty in her Easter dress and did a fantastic job in her new classroom at church. She walked right in like such a big girl which shocked me a bit. Carl got her for communion and she came right in to sit between us. She was so good with a little help from some strawberry newtons. Evie received communion for the first time because she held her little hands out just like her Mommy and Daddy. She usually just has a blessing but she thought the communion wafer was quite special. Carl and I both love Easter and enjoyed the music at church. It always makes us a little teary especially this year since my emotions are totally unpredictable. Evie has been telling everyone all day Happy Easter! It's so cute to hear her say it.

We snapped a few pictures when we got home and our neighbor, Andy, came over to take a few pictures of our family. Evie finally had a chance to see what the Easter bunny brought her and her favorite item was a new sippy cup that keeps drinks cold. That will be perfect for hot summer days. We invited Courtney and Christian along with their boys for lunch. Evie was so excited to see her boys and all their eggs.

We enjoyed lunch before going outside for an egg hunt. That was the funniest part. Campbell sat right down and had some dessert. Evie opened every egg and ate the candy before collecting the next egg. Then, she decided dessert would be pretty nice too. Christian kept hunting for eggs although we still had tons of eggs that the kids did not even pick up. They must have had plenty of candy. Evie gave her boys a hug and kiss before they left.



Everyone left about 2:30 and Evie was crashed in her crib at 2:35. Mommy crashed at 3 and Evie finally woke up at 5. She was pretty tired after all the excitement of the day.

It was a gorgeous day in Nashville so we enjoyed some more playtime outside! Evie would stay outside all day on her cycle and kicking balls. Perfect weather for Easter. I love the warm weather and look forward to lots of fun days in the sun. Hope you had a wonderful Easter!

Egg Hunting!

We had a super low-key day which was just what we needed since we will be OOT for the next three Saturday's. Evie went to bed really late last night but she still managed to wake up at 7:15.

We ate some cereal before heading to the Farmer's Market. I was trying to find a pound cake for Easter but they do not seem to be quite so popular in Tennessee. They had every other type of cake there - coconut, chocolate, vanilla. Oh well, since we were already there we decided to have a few of our favorite doughnuts. Evie enjoyed her doughnut while listening to the man play his guitar. Carl and I hope we are not raising a hippie girl. We noticed this little girl about 8 or 9 dancing to the music as if she was on drugs. Carl said she looked like her parents had fed her acid for breakfast. Pretty accurate description! It was really crazy! Her parents were not too thrilled but she just kept dancing.

We ran a few more errands and then came home to play outside. It was a gorgeous day! Evie took forever to fall asleep because she was so tired from last night. She woke up about 4:40 and we dyed Easter eggs with her while telling her all about Easter. Evie was so excited about her pink eggs and kept asking to eat one. We let her eat one but she was not impressed. It was so funny to see her expression. She has had a boiled egg before but just little bits. I put a little salt on it and she ate a little more then she decided that the yolk was pretty tasty. We hid some eggs for her and she loved it. At first, she did not even care that they were empty then suddenly she remembered that they should have at least a few jelly beans in them.  We had a fun day. Evie would agree since she ate all three meals outside. She loves to have picnics.

We are looking forward to celebrating Easter! Easter Bunny has already left treats and Evie's dress is ready for church. She is so excited about her new shoes and has been talking about them all week.

Sweet Girl

Evie and I had a much better day. She has been such a sweet girl. We relaxed around the house this morning and ate biscuits. Have you tried the mini-biscuits by Pillsbury? Evie loves them with lots of butter and a dab of strawberry jam.

We went to Audra's birthday party this morning. Evie was so excited because it was a party with cake at the park! Her two favorite things at once! We had a great time playing with friends, using sidewalk chalk, blowing bubbles and exploring the park.

  Evie crashed at nap time and slept for longer than usual. Her little eyes were fluttering on the way home so I knew she was tired.

   Evie made up for yesterday! Carl told me that he told her to be a good girl today. Not sure what it was but she was absolutely perfect all day. We had such a fun day together.

"She Drives me Crazy."

Yes, it's true Evie drives me crazy. Although, she says, "don't crazy Mommy" when I say I am going crazy. We had one crazy day today. It was even a MMO day but I thought we'd never get there. Evie moves really slowly in the morning since she is not used to going places quite so early. That works well most days but MMO is not something that I like to be late for at all! I want to get every minute that I can. Evie thought it would be really fun to call me "Mom" over and over this morning. It sounded way too grown-up coming from a 2 year old. I reminded her that my name was "Mommy" and that her name was "Evie."

Thank goodness for mom friends. I do not know what'd I do without my mom friends. Carl appreciates them too because then he does not hear nearly as much out of me. Our biggest problem this week is excessive crying for no reason. Not even crying because she wants something just crying to cry. AHHHHH, it's driving me crazy and makes me hope that Baby Boy is a nice, peaceful little fellow. I am up a creek if he comes out like Evie. She has been opinionated from day 1 even the nurses told us that she was a drama queen within minutes of her birth. I overheard her telling her babies not to cry. Where has she heard that before? Evie kept telling them "it's okay, don't cry baby."

Nap time was quite pleasant for us both! She slept a really long time and I did a few things around the house. Evie was not happy to be up although she had been calling "Mommy" for nearly 10 minutes. Then, she found a tube that Carl had put a map in and ripped the map. We need to learn to put everything out of her reach!That kid is a little monkey and can get into everything. I was not thrilled about the map being torn although I did not want it plastered on my wall either. Evie looked at me and said, "Evie don't like that" as I cleaned up the pieces off the floor.

Thank goodness, Carl took her for a jog when he got home so I could have a little break from my Evie. We ate dinner together and Evie perked up some as she ate her mango. Not sure why but she loves to talk about mango. Evie came out of the shower clean and fresh. There's nothing like a sweet, clean baby and it makes the long days worth it.Tomorrow has to be a better day!

Back in Business

It's been a rainy, yucky day. We had to cancel our Easter egg hunt for the second time and we just stayed home all day. Evie wanted to go to the park and reminded me of that all afternoon. We went yesterday with The Porter's and saw a snake. That was the highlight of Evie's week as she keeps making "sss sss" sounds.

We kept busy with our regular household duties such as sweeping and mopping. Of course, there was plenty of time for books and toys.

I made cookies during nap time which is always a much bigger production that I ever anticipate. It takes me so long to bake cookies because I do one pan at a time. There has to be an easier way to get this done.

All of our electronic devices are working at the same time! Thank you, David for helping us out! I wish that I had a tenth of his knowledge regarding computers. Carl tries to understand but I just nod my head and pretend to know what he is referring to. We are thrilled to be back in business. I'd rather not have cable than not have Internet.