To Nana's House We Go...

---SANITY--- This is why you do not tell a 2-year-old any plans of what is to come ahead of time. At all. Honestly. For the sake of sanity... for days now, I have been hearing about "Nana" and "Graycop" (grandpa) and "Caw-go" (Chicago). Sassy has been talking about what clothes to pack. What doll to bring. She wants her butterfly doll. 15 minutes later, and, oh wait- now she wants her lamb doll. And don't forget her green shoes. Oh, and we'll have to bring the pictures we had taken for Nana. And the skeleton picture she made weeks ago that has been hanging on our fridge and it probably crusted over in food-prints because Sassy wants to take it down and hold it every time we eat. We'll need to bring that, too. Sassy needs her "ice cweam bag", as well, to hold her "colowing books and cwayons", because what would our trip be without those?? I am exhausted, and I am not even close to being packed and ready to go. I need a nap!

But, just to brighten your day, here is a really cute picture of the girls...

Gingerbread Village

This morning, we took a trip up to Gingerbread Village, which is a fund-raising event for The Assistance League of Wichita. You basically pay a small fee to tour a little pathway of about 20 or so gingerbread houses, and then each person gets a kit to sit down at a table and construct their own. It looked like some high school kids were volunteering by going table to table to show you how to construct the actual house. Good thing, too, because ashamedly, I wasn't quite sure how to do it.

Anyway, we saw some really cool gingerbread houses, a gingerbread farm, and a gingerbread castle. Sassy loved decorating her house, even though 90% of the candy and cereal ended up in her mouth rather than on her house. Big shocker! Every time I would tell her to put it on the house or that she'd had enough, she'd just give me a sheepish grin and ignore everything I had to say. Shocker #2. All in all, worth the trip.

Some of the cool houses we did not make:

And, the beautiful one we did:

The Car...

So, last night we were all in the car on the way to run some errands. Sassy was in big girl panties like she has been. Ty and I were talking in the front seat, and she was in the back just rambling on and on to herself, as always. As a parent, you get the innate ability to tune out most of the babble and only pay attention to the important things. Well, as I hear her say "...in my panties", my head whips around and I question, "What's in your panties?!?", not fully wanting to hear her response. She looks at my like I'm an idiot and says, "MY BUTT"! I thought I was going to die laughing! So, for all of you who may be wondering, her butt is, indeed, parked in her panties.

Mint Chocolate Cookies

Last night, we decided to make Mint Chocolate cookies. Sassy has been getting into helping in the kitchen, but last night, she took it to a whole new level. We began talking about baking cookies before dinner, and from then on, she had a one track mind. She kept asking and asking and asking about it. Finally, when we said it was time, she said, "I haf to go get somefing" and ran to the basement. Moments later, she reappears decked out in apron (with no shirt, mind you), chef's hat, and oven mitt. It was SO funny!

She was a big help. She plowed through about half a bag of chocolate chips while Ty made the first part on the stove. Then she helped pour it the flour, use the mixer, etc. She was so excited!

(Warning- child endangerment ahead...)

We even let her lick a beater.. raw eggs and all. She looked so cute, I had to pull out the video camera, too. I even made a comment that the tape will be destroyed if she comes down with salmonella!

She was pretty pooped, and the dough had to chill for 30 minutes before shaping the cookies, so we decided it was her bed time. She didn't even care! Ah, the ignorance... er, innocence of children!

Today, after playschool, I told her we could go home and have one of the cookies she and Daddy baked last night. For the whole way home, she rambled about making cookies. I look back in the rear-view mirror, and I see her with her hands together making circles out in front of her, saying, "I stirred and I stirred and I stirred"...

I don't ever want to imagine the day when she sounds any more grown-up than right now. **Sigh**

3 Months...

Yesterday, Little A turned 3 months old. 3 months!!! Seriously, I think that was the quickest 3 months of my life! Yet, again, it feels like she has been a part of our family for so long.

She is just the sweetest, most content little baby. She loves to smile and coo. So precious!

Picture Day

New pics of Sassy and Little A:

Pajama Time, Potty Training, & More...

What an eventful few days we have had! First, I would just like to say that Sassy is doing AWESOME with her potty training! She is still having accidents here and there, but she has been in big girl panties 100% of the time besides nap and bed all week, and she is almost there. I am so excited for her! She is so proud of herself, and she should be. Go, Sassy!

Yesterday, we had a play date at our house, which was fun for all. We were going to go the children's theater last night, but Ty was running late, and I just didn't have the courage to do that by myself with both girls. It worked out ok, though, because Parents As Teachers had a pajama story time/play date at the school library, and Sassy had a really good time. She made two crafts, played with the story board, listened to Bear Feels Sick and had animal crackers and juice. Each kid took home a free copy of the book, as well!

This morning, Lynzee and I took the girls to Kohls and to McDonald's for lunch... a rare treat. The girls are napping right now, and it's off to a birthday party this afternoon and dinner with Tom & Lynzee. Busy, busy. Enjoy a few pics:

-Sassy listening to Little A's heart with her homemade stethoscope-

-Sassy practicing her "knife skills" on the watermelon-

-Little A and her goofy grin-

-Sassy mid-jump in front of the house this morning-

-Mommy and Little A's self-portrait-

Sassy Pants...

Oh, Sassy has been cracking me up the last few days. I swear, I never realized how funny little kids can be. Of course, I am partial, but seriously... she makes us laugh. A lot! Her new thing is harumph-ing (is that a word?) whenever we ask her to do anything. Like, we ask so much of her, you know? She will roll her eyes (literally) and make comments. This morning, I said we had to get up and get ready for preschool and she replied, "I haf to go to pweschool ewery daaaaaay!" Hard life, I know. And, no, you do not go to preschool "ewery" day.

The other thing is when I ask her to try and use the potty, it's always "I went"... as in this morning, before school, 6 hours ago?!? We were at Lynzee's house, and I said that she had to try to go on the potty before we got in the car and she said, "I went potty yesterday, mama!" Oh, well, in that case...

Wow, after reading this back to myself, maybe it's only 95% funny and 5% concerning to me. She does know how to talk back!

The Holidays

Is anyone else beyond excited that Thanksgiving is in a couple of weeks and it's officially "that time of year"? I freakin' love the holidays! I love the music, the decorations, all the fun family activities available through the community and different venues. I love spending time together as a family, staying inside on a cold day, having extended pajama weekends. I love reading books together, watching movies, cuddling under lots of warm blankets...

This year is especially exciting because Sassy is really getting into it. She was way excited about Halloween, and now she is enthusiastic about Christmas. Every time we go to the store, she asks to look at the Christmas stuff... she loves all the colors and lights and sparkles. I feel really blessed that we will be able to travel home and see family this year. As stressful as the travel is, there's really no comparison. Plus, everyone is waiting patiently to meet Little A!

I have been doing my usual stressing about holiday shopping, our budget, and gift-giving. It is something I enjoy very much but also something that proves to be difficult every year. It has been rather cathartic to sort of let go this year. We are keeping things to a minimum. We are making homemade gifts. We are trying very hard to choose things for our family that we think they will love. We are focusing on quality over quantity. It's going to be great! I saw something in my Wondertime magazine yesterday that I thought was fabulous. I think we are going to try this as a family this year. It's to buy "Something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read". I love it!

I had to include this little picture of Sassy atop my post. She wanted to get "dressed up" yesterday... (read... to wear tights). She looked so dang cute and as soon as she got dressed, she asked to take pictures. HA- do I have this kid trained or what? She reported straight to the front door to go to "our spot". And, she even found a prop- her leaf. Too cute!

For which she will kill me later in life...

'Nuff said!

Back into the swing of things... sort of...

Well, it has been a week since Little A has been home from the hospital. I am happy to report that she is doing fabulously! It has been a bit of a challenge to get back into our normal routine this week. We hit a little bump in the road with Sassy coming down with an ear infection which resulted in yet another drip to the pediatrician. I swear, we are going to pitch a tent in the waiting room and camp out soon... save a little on gas or something. By the end of the week, though, everyone was doing well and almost back to normal.

Sassy has been quite the challenge this week. Granted, she was in pain for a couple of days with her ear infection and really just feeling under the weather. Ooh, did she see a lot of the inside of her bedroom, though. That little mouth on her is a wonder. I can't imagine where she gets her little attitude from, or her sarcastic undertones... I'm at a loss! The one thing that no one can argue, though, is that the girl is smart. Really smart. I'll take it!

We've had a pretty laid back weekend so far. We went to the park yesterday, which was a lot of fun. It was chilly- probably about 55 degrees- but the fall colors were beyond gorgeous. The park we went to had some beautiful landscaping and I cannot even begin to describe the scenery yesterday. I just wanted to breathe it all in. Inhale the beauty. Mmmm...

The travesty of the whole thing is that this park, which is absolutely a great park, is less than a mile away from our old townhouse, yet we never knew it existed when we lived there. So many missed opportunities...

Last night we watched Shrek the Halls and baked some Andes mint cookies following dinner. We are just planning on catching up on some cleaning today, and maybe going to a park here in town or something. Trying to enjoy the great outdoors before it is too, too cold...

Here are some pics from the park:

I was trying to tell Sassy not to get too close to the ducks so as not to scare them...

Then, we walked up onto the dock and they followed us right up there. I guess they are pretty fearless...
Sassy peeking out of the peephole-

Sassy & Daddy sliding down the "fast slide" together-

Sassy showing Mommy her pretty big blue eyes-

Daddy taking the girls for a walk around the pond in our new stroller. Sassy loves to be the big girl and stand on the back part!

Our Little Preschooler...

The day has come... Sassy officially started preschool yesterday! She is attending two mornings a week for about 3 hours. I never really anticipated having her start so soon, but it just kind of fell into place. I got a recommendation about a great preschool in our town, and we really loved it when we went to visit. Sassy will be able to get some solid social time, work on some school concepts, learn to take direction from someone other than Ty and I, etc. Also, Little A and I will have some great one-on-one time, which is really important.

It wasn't an insane transition yesterday, as she is used to attending MDO once a week. Tyler went with me to drop her off, mainly because it was also our voting site, so we just went to vote straight afterwards. Sassy was a little tentative when Tyler took her to the classroom, but I would attribute most of that to the fact that it was Tyler dropping her off. If it would have been me, she would have been, like, "See ya, mom"! and ran off.

She was very excited about the entire experience once we came home. As soon as Daddy came home from work, she told him all about it. How she colored a turtle and made teeth with marshmallows... We are thankful to be able to give her this opportunity and excited to see how she grows with it!

2 1/2

My Sassy turned 2 1/2 on Saturday. Looking back has proven to be a strange dichotomy- on one hand, it seems like time has gone by so fast. On the other hand, it's as though Sassy has been a part of our lives forever. There are so many fantastic things about Sassy, I really don't even know where to begin. She is so, so smart. She is learning new things every day, she has a great sense of humor, and I think she is going to be a funny little girl. She is nurturing and sweet, and at the same time, spunky and spirited. She is a beauty, and her capabilities are increasing all the time. Here are some Sassy's recent milestones:

*Steadily progressing with potty training

*More consistently drinking from a "big girl cup"

*Mastering every puzzle you put in front of her

*Counting past 10

*Singing various nursery rhymes without being prompted

*Identifying some letters of the alphabet

*Putting on her own shoes and getting dressed and undressed easily

*Washing her hands on her own... with soap :)

Halloween, Part IV

So, after all the pre-Halloween festivities, the actual day finally arrived! As you all know, Little A was in the hospital, but we still made the most of our day. Ty brought Sassy up to the hospital at about noon to attend the peds. floor Halloween Party. Any of the non-contagious kids could attend, and they invited Sassy, which was so nice! The kids got to trick-or-treat, hear a story, and decorate sugar cookies. Sassy and Little A spent some time together, and we hung out in the hospital room until Tyler's family arrived.

Oh, and another really nice thing the hospital did for us: One of the child life specialists came in and said that Disney donates new costumes every year for all the sick kids to wear. Well, this year, the floor wasn't too full (luckily), so they had some extras. The girl asked if it would be okay if she gave Sassy a costume to play dress-up in, and I said of course! So, she brings in this giant bag with a Cinderella gown, a Princess Jasmine 2-piece outfit, and a Snow White ensemble complete with shoes, a crown, and a purse. All brand new, all from the Disney store for Sassy to take home! How nice was that?? Even though Little A was the patient, they were so considerate of Sassy while we were there!

After some visiting, they headed back home to do some actual trick-or-treating. The downtown businesses had a big event and all the businesses handed out candy. They had a big bounce-house, too, which Sassy just loves! There was also a "trunk-or-treat" at the downtown park. This is a new concept for me- maybe it's a Kansas thing or maybe I live under a rock- not sure. But, cars basically park in a circle with their trunks facing forward and fill their trunks with candy to hand out. Then, the kids just go from trunk to trunk for candy. Pretty cool.

Sassy hit up a few neighborhood houses on the walk home, and made her rounds in our cul-de-sac. One house had this horrifying scary mechanical monster that made loud noise and removed it's own head. They all thought Sassy would be terrified, but she laughed and said her famous, "Do-it-again"! So much for a fearful reaction from her...

While we would have liked to spend Little A's first Halloween together as a family, it really turned out alright, considering!

RSV

So, as I stated before, Little A was admitted to the hospital Tuesday night for difficulties breathing. We got word of her RSV diagnosis sometime Wednesday. The irony- she was officially the first case the hospital has seen this season. Joy. Aren't we special?

Basically, she had a mild case. The entire reason she was kept for so long was that she required oxygen and deep suctioning to help her breathe. Otherwise, she was in pretty good shape. Thank God- no ICU, nothing too, too serious. It could have been a lot worse, especially for a baby her age. She had some ups and downs- they had a hard time weaning her off of the oxygen. All in all, we are more than happy to be home and she is doing really well today.

Here were the major downsides to our stay:
--We missed out on spending a good quality Halloween as a family.
--Our visit with the in-laws was basically ruined. I mean, they still came, but it was nothing like we had imagined.
--It is nearly impossible to get any quality sleep in a hospital room with an 11 week old. Period.
--Hospital food sucks. Bad.
--I was without Internet for 6 days. Kill me now!

Here were the upsides:
--I really felt like I got to spend quality one-on-one time with Little A. She was, for once, the center of attention!
--The hospital had a very cute little Halloween party for the sick kids, and while Little A was unable to go, Sassy was invited and had a lot of fun.
--I got very caught up on every iota of political info before the election- who hoo for around-the-clock news stations.
--I actually- get this- READ. I read four entire books. Cover to cover. What?!? I read The Zygote Chronicles (not so good), Little Earthquakes (I really liked it), The Alchemist (good, but not quite understanding all the hype), and Perfect Match (any Picoult book is great).
--The staff was wonderful. From the triage guy to the ER docs to the peds. nurses and CNA's to the RT team- we had a really great experience.

I will posts some pics from Halloween later. Not that I was there or anything... **bitter**

Poor Little Sick One...

My Little A has had a rough go of things this past week- hence, the lack of updates. She was having breathing difficulties last Tuesday night and we brought her to the ER. She was admitted shortly after, and eventually diagnosed with RSV- the first case the hospital has seen so far this season! She was a trooper, though, and was finally released last night. Poor girl.

More about our stay to come...