Banana Bread, Brushes and Brellas

It was a bit of a dreary day in Nashville. We are ready for blue skies and warm days. Evie and I invited Campbell over to play this morning along with his Mommy. Christian was at school. It was so nice having a play date. Campbell and Evie played well and needed little interference from us which gave us time to drink coffee and eat banana bread. I made my favorite recipe for banana bread that has lots of sour cream which makes it super moist. Evie is a huge fan so it looks like I have a use for all of our brown bananas.

Evie and Campbell wore each other out! They both went to sleep without a fuss. Campbell was asking for his nap and Evie fell asleep within minutes of hitting the sack. Evie is getting too smart for me. I gave her sassy as we were heading up for her nap. She asked for a pink one so I told her the handle was pink. Evie said, " No, it blue." She was right - it was a blue sassy. I took a nap too after finishing my last assignment for my online course. YEAH!!

Evie and I did a little painting after nap. I found some washable paint at the dollar store in the little plastic cases with several colors. Perfect price and a good size for little hands. It makes me a little nervous when the colors get all mixed up but Evie did pretty well. I gave her lots of brushes which minimized the color mixing that drives me batty.

Carl came home and took Evie outside to play in the rain with her new "brella.: Evie loves umbrellas and can spot them a mile away so I bought her a cheap-o umbrella to play with and it has provided lots of entertainment already. It will probably be broken by the end of the week but Evie thinks her Daddy can fix everything so she's not too worried.

    Evie is really into what we are doing next. She likes to know the plan and what is happening next. She likes to ask me about the next toy and the next book. We are still hearing "againt" every time she wants something again. Sometimes she even says "againt two" which means another time. I think we read "I'm a Big Sister" approximately 100 times today. She loves that book. Let's hope she likes being a big sister just as much as she likes the book.

Boys are Back in Town!

Evie and I went to Peek a Boo Playtown this morning. It was a happening place this morning. The Zinghopper's were even there singing and dancing for St. Patrick's Day. Evie was excited because they even had cake. We made a green noodle necklace and played with bubbles. It was a fun morning and I felt sure that Evie would pass out at nap time.


Guess what someone did not stop talking long enough to fall asleep. She just chatted away and was perfectly happy in her crib for 2 hours. I went in to get her out of the crib, she said, " Evie, no night-night."


We were folding clothes upstairs when Evie spotted her boys outside. They just got back from visiting their grandparents. Evie was ready to go see her friends. Campbell and Christian were driving their gator and Evie took her turn in the drivers seat. I told Christian not to worry that Evie would not drive it. Well, she took right off driving across their yard with a big grin on her face. Thank goodness, that I had grabbed my camera on the way out the door. Be sure to notice that Evie has three bows in her hair. Courtney was so sweet to bring those back for Evie. My little one was so happy to have new bows that she wanted to wear all of them!

Evie was thrilled when her Daddy drove up. They had fun running around the yard together while I prepared some chicken tortilla soup for dinner.


By this point, Evie was showing some signs of crankiness. We fed her a quick dinner and put her to bed. It's Bachelor night but the Cougar's are playing. We did not know that the game would be on but it is so that is way better than The Bachelor! Good Luck, CofC!!!

Weekend Wrap-up!

"So, mom what is our plan for this morning!"

"My feet sure are cute."

"Now, that sounds like a great idea."

Evie loves her animals except for the lion because he is "scary."

Evie puts her animals in the cave. Notice the lion way back in the cave - AKA under the chair.



Playing dress-up is so much fun!

It rained all weekend in Nashville and we were LAZY! We loved it! On Saturday, we took Carl's truck to get the emissions test and then went to Costco to get a few things. You can get 90 days worth of Claritin for a really great deal. Thanks to Carl's cousin Stephen for the tip!
Evie is still taking forever to fall asleep for her naps and then waking up between 4:30 and 5. She still needs a long nap so we may have to adjust bedtime. We are hoping this is a phase because we like early bedtimes at our house. She went to bed at 7:30 last night and woke up at 8:30 this morning which was wonderful.  Tonight, she did not get to sleep for quite awhile after we put her in the crib. She's very content and just does her thing which involves lots of songs and talking. We are amazed at how much her vocabulary has grown in the last week. I have gotten a few comments regarding Evie's bubble toy. It is from Gymboree and she uses it all the time!

   I had a chance to do some reading this weekend with all the rain keeping us indoors. I finished The Most Important Place on Earth - a book about raising your child in a Christian home. It was excellent and made lots of amazing points. On a totally different note, I read Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother. It was much different from what I expected but really good. Most parents want what is best for their kids but we all have such different ways of getting there. Can't wait to discuss this one at book club. It will be interesting plus we are going to my favorite noodle house for dinner.

Life is short . . . eat dessert first.

Evie and I had a nice morning at home then we headed out for grocery shopping and story time. I decided we needed some mini-cupcakes so I let Evie choose our flavor. She's definitely my daughter since she chose chocolate. She also picks the chocolate chips out of her granola bars. I love it!


We met some friends for story time at Brilliant Sky. They let the kids paint with shaving cream which was a huge hit. Evie calls Carl Ho Ho when he is shaving. I thought it was fun that they gave the kids paintbrushes and encouraged them to make new colors. That is an idea that we could try at home.


All the way home Evie talked about cupcakes and was so excited to have one. We walked in with the groceries and she announced "cupcake time" in her most jubilant voice. I figured why not so we sat down and enjoyed a cupcake together.


It's supposed to rain all weekend so we took advantage of the nice weather and went outside to play. We came in for a quick lunch before nap time.


Evie and I read lots of books after nap time and relaxed around the house. Evie has assigned names to all of her favorite books. We know just the one she is referring to when she requests upside down (Silly Sally), girls (Sisters are fun),  school (Miss Bindergarten goes to Kindergarten) and rabbits (Pat the Bunny.) She was so excited to see her Daddy when he came home from work. She waits for him every afternoon at the storm door. Our neighbors love to see her standing there waiting for Carl so they wave at her and give her some entertainment. Carl and Evie went outside to play before dinner. Evie loves having both of her parents giving her undivided attention so we blew bubbles and played in her tent.


Evie took her bubble bath and watched her Daddy do his nightly push ups. She calls them "up it's" and that makes a lot of sense. We are able to settle in for a rainy weekend. Happy Friday!

Picnic

Checking out Bentley, the dog while holding her baby and purse.



"Okay, mom, you can take my picture."



Evie loves her Easter eggs and is ready to celebrate another holiday - a few weeks early!

Her first bowl of Ben and Jerry's ice-cream! Of course, she loved it especially with her Lilly spoon.

Evie and I had a wonderful day! Thursdays are always good though because she gets to go to school and have fun with her friends while I go have fun by myself. Evie was so excited to show off the "Evie tails" to her teachers and they knew just what she was talking about when she told them.

  I had a nice morning running errands and even had time for a quick stop at a Matilda Jane trunk show. It was good to see everyone and I bought Evie a precious little lemon dress. Can't wait to get it!

Evie seemed like such a big girl when I picked her up. She was building a castle but when she saw me she came running to the gate. Usually, I lift her over the gate but she wanted to open the gate herself and she started walking down the hall. It's amazing how quickly they change! I love all the conversations that we are having these days. Some of them are pretty funny and I am still amazed at her memory. She talked all the way home from school about our picnic and about "Evie's Nana." Her boys went to visit their Nana and Evie wants to be sure they are not visiting her Nana.

It was a gorgeous day perfect for a picnic with my little girl. We had a great time playing in the backyard. She had her grocery cart, baby stroller, hula hoop, purse and two babies outside with along with a lawnmower and a drum.  Evie LOVES her hula hoop. We hopped in and out of the hoop for the longest time. She had a blast and so did I. Evie was banging on her drum singing Jesus Loves Me when we decided to go inside.

   It was naptime but Evie had other plans. She continued with her singing, took her shirt off two times, used her blanket as a tent and tried out a new hairstyle. It's so hysterical watching her when she thinks that I am not able to see her. She was so exhausted that she fell asleep sitting up and gradually toppled over. Naptime ended at 5:00. Let's hope this does not become a habit. That girl loves to sleep just like her Mommy.

   Carl is on his way back from South Carolina. He had to make a quick trip for work. Quick as in less than 24 hours in the state that is nearly 6 hours away. I am sure he is exhausted but he was able to see his parents while he was there and had a meeting. Evie will be so excited to see him in the morning. She cried when she woke up this morning and found out that her Daddy was not home. It was pretty sweet to see her searching for him in our bed.
   

Baby Kicks and I love you!

Carl felt our baby boy move last night for the first time and again this morning. It's just as special this time as it was with Evie! My little Evie did not want to lose her spotlight quite yet so she told me something very special this morning before Carl left for work. She said, "I love you, Mommy." I have been waiting two years to hear that special sentence and it was the sweetest thing ever.  Evie just cannot decide what she thinks about having a baby brother. She suggested that a baby doggie might be nice this afternoon. I loved it when she tried to feed her brother a strawberry using my belly button as her portal of entry.

Evie and I had plans to see Conductor Jack this morning. She starts talking about guitars as soon as we pull in the parking lot and they love watching her shake her little booty to the music.My pictures are a bit fuzzy and it's obvious that I was using my old camera. The two people singing are The Zinghoppers and Evie loves their music. I had a latte while we were there and can still feel the effects almost 12 hours later. That was one strong cup of coffee so if you need a jolt of caffeine head to your local Whole Foods for a real pick me up.

  It's Dr. Seuss's birthday so we went to Barnes and Noble to meet our friends Devin and Mary but the "event" did not quite live up to the hype. Evie kept talking about the "hat" and telling me she was "scared". Not exactly sure what she was scared of but she told me was scared all day long! Tomorrow, we will be on to a different word.

   We came home for some playtime outside and Evie had a blast watching the men work. They kept working very loudly as nap time approached and then proceeded to bang on our door multiple times. It was so loud that I felt surely they were going to tell us it was some type of emergency. Instead, the tallest man that I have ever seen in my life was standing at the door telling me he needed to light our pilot on the water heater. Carl had talked with the men this morning and they had not mentioned this little detail. He had his little gas card with his picture ID and his truck was in my driveway with the gas logo clearly visible on it so I let him in my house. He lit the pilot so it was worth a delayed nap time for hot water. Evie woke up around 4:30 and we headed to the park for a few minutes of swinging.

   Carl was not here for dinner so we decided to make pancakes. Evie loves anything with the word "cake" in it so she was thrilled to whisk it all together. We had another fun girls dinner with extra syrup and sticky hands. Evie was in desperate need for a bath after her pancake supper. She was ready for bed even after a late nap so I have had plenty of time to get a few things done after being completely lazy during nap time.

    I just finished the trim in Evie's new room and it looks so much better. The trim was off-white but appeared almost yellow so it looks a lot better now that it's a crisp white color. We use the color "creamy" by Sherwin Williams on our trim and it never disappoints. Now, I just need to pick a shade of pink for my little pink princess and we will be all set for the next step of our project. Happy Wednesday! Only two more wake-up's to go until the weekend.

Playdates, Park and Potty!

Evie and I had a really fun day together! It started off a bit crazy while preparing for a play date at our house. Evie is very routine oriented just like her Mama. She knows we watch Super Why, read the paper and drink our tea in the morning. We do not make muffins or clean bathrooms. Evie wanted me to sit in my seat and be with her. We finally got ready after I burned a batch of muffins. OOPS! Luckily, I made a quiche and fruit salad too. Although I have decided Krispy Kreme doughnuts are on the menu for the next time. Our kids are all over the place so it's a bit hard to balance quiche and coffee at the same time. Moms are always going to choose coffee over quiche! Evie loved having all her friends over and did a great job sharing all her toys.

We played outside after everyone left to enjoy the gorgeous day. Evie napped and I cleaned up the destruction that occurs during play dates with 2 year olds. Carl came home to change clothes quickly because had a dinner meeting downtown. Evie and I headed to the park to play. We had so much fun playing outside. Evie is going to be sad when I cannot go down the slide or sit on the dinosaurs anymore with her.

We decided to get some gas since we were near Costco and then headed to the mall for a few quick errands. The mall was packed with people waiting to hear Jennette McCurdy sing. I have never heard of her but it seemed like she had a pretty big following tonight. Evie and I ate Subway together and then we picked out cookies. Evie wanted a pink cookie but they did not have any. She settled for a snickerdoodle. We made a quick potty break in the family bathroom. Evie decided that the little potty looked quite enticing so she asked to sit on it. Of course, she did not like it as soon as she was on it but I was thrilled to see her interest is still there.

  We came home for a little playtime before bed. Evie loves bedtime because she gets to use her "pink paste" and see her "stars" on the ceiling.