29 & Holding

That's what the cookie cake says that Chris got me for my 29th birthday, and that's just how I feel.  I'm 29 today, and I'm holding on to this last year of my twenties for dear life.  There's just something about being able to say you're twenty something that makes you still sound young. I realize my thirties will probably be the best years of my life, but thirty sounds so old to me, and I'm just not ready for that.  At least I have an entire year to prepare.

Mourning aside, I had a wonderful birthday weekend.  Friday, Chris brought home the delicious cookie cake.

Saturday, he made me an appointment to get a pedicure and my nails done.  I used to get pedicures all the time, and it was wonderful to enjoy that hour all to myself.

My parents also came down on Saturday to see all the kiddos and so Chris and I could have a night out.  The weather was beautiful so we go to spend some time playing outside.

Then on to our date night!

We went to Grimaldis which has the best pizza I've had in a long time, and then we went to see Crazy Heart, which we both found to be surprisingly really good.

I got beautiful flowers from my dear sweet friend Tami.

I got a cute purse from my sister and her family.

I got lots of mail from my generous family, you know, birthday cards with the good stuff in them.  And my mom also made me a homemade chocolate cake Pioneer Woman style, yum!

We ate at Twisted Root on Sunday for lunch. And I'm sure we made it memorable for everyone eating there with this wild bunch.

Then Chris, Scarlett, and I came home and had a nice long nap which was a perfect ending to a great birthday weekend.

Dress Up

Scarlett loves to put on clothes, shoes, & accessories. She loves hats, gloves, sunglasses, headbands, socks, and her dress up clothes. She especially loves our shoes. If someone comes over and leaves their shoes at the door, she'll have them on in minutes. The only thing is that she wants to put all of this on herself. I have to keep her little dress-up clothes chest up high in her closet or she'll have them out and scattered all over the place all the time. When I'm trying to fold laundry, she's right there putting on more than I can fold.  It's actually amazing how well she can clop around in my heels and Chris's boots!

Mine! Mine! Mine!

I think this all began with that dang Sesame Street episode where everybody gets "mine-itis." Scarlett knows I don't like it when she shouts, mine!, so it usually comes out of her mouth when she's frustrated, or mad at me, or having a difficult time sharing with her cousins.  She'll grab the object, usually a toy, hold it tight against her, and assert, mine! She'll then look to me for a reaction. If other kids aren't involved, I try to ignore her so she'll get the idea that it's not the cool thing to do. It's actually amusing that she says it during the day when it's just me and her, I mean it's not like I'm fighting over toys with her, but I guess she just wants to make it very clear to me and the cats what all is hers. Drama. Queen. She'll grab my purse, My purse! She'll grab Chris's cap, My hat! Mine!  She'll grab the book I'm reading, Mine! Today she was in a particularly argumentative mood, and while I was changing her diaper, she grabbed her foot, glared at me, and shouted, Mine! My toes! She stared me down, daring me to argue with her.  Of course, I only held in my laugh.  Yes, my dear, those are indeed yours!

Way to Go Daddy-O

Recently I congratulated Chris on finishing his Master's Degree, and I shared about his promotion to a position that took him out of the classroom for half a day in order to serve as his school's behavior specialist. Well, that has all changed! After a series of nerve racking interviews and some mid-year changes, Chris was promoted again and is now the principal intern at his school. His district requires every principal to complete at least one year of interning before moving on to an assistant principal position. He now works full time as an administrator on his campus along with two other principals. This new position required him to leave the classroom completely just this week. It was a fast and furious transition for him, full of highs and lows and a fair amount of bitter-sweet stress, but we are so excited about this new career path and are thankful he was chosen for the position.

I have to say, I am a little sad, because as a principal, Chris will probably never coach again if we stay in Texas. And I know he's my husband, but I have to say he was a really good coach. He connected with his players, made it fun, and provided encouragement and motivation to his teams. His players looked up to him, and he was a positive role model for all the young men he coached. But then again, all of those characteristics will also be what makes him a great principal too. The Lord has blessed our family so much, and I thank HIM for all that he does for us.

My Funny Valentine

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Snowy Day

It has been snowing all day today. This is a record setting day for Texas; it's the snowiest day we've had for 32 years! Scarlett really enjoyed playing in it. She kept saying, "It's cold!" but she enjoyed stomping in the snow and picking it up. Looking up at it coming down wasn't so easy though. Her favorite was building a little snowman; she's been asking for him all day!

Potty Time

Every time I think of the word, potty, which is quite often these days, I think of the song Eddie Murphy recorded back in the 80's. Instead of, Party all the time, I thought he was saying, My girl wants to potty all the time, potty all the time, potty all the tiiiimmme! And never once did I question the randomness of the lyrics either; I just sang along! And I could have swore that Mandy was in on that with me, but she says she doesn't remember...

Well anyway, my girl actually does want to potty all the time, Scarlett that is. For a little over a week now, she has used her potty chair at least once a day, usually twice. She goes for Chris, and she went for Mimi this weekend. And now, for the past few days, she goes very easily, right when she sits down. So now what? What's the next step? I don't think she's ready to say, Hey mom, I need to pee! And I do have to ask her if she needs to go, then I help her sit on the potty for her to actually go, but she's doing so well, there must be a step 2 to this process....

Zhu-Zhu

Scarlett has been saying lots of words and phrases that we love to hear and love to laugh at, but she also says some things that make me cringe. It started with, "That's scary!" The first time I heard it, I was so surprised. I don't want her to know what that means! I don't want her to be scared! Then a few days ago she blurted out, "Go away!" I promise she didn't get that one from me.

So my mom bought Scarlett a Zhu-Zhu pet, and Scarlett was so afraid of it the first time she saw it. Then seeing it move on it's own was just more than she could handle. "That's scary!" She cried. I secretly agree with her; little hamsters that look kind of real and squeak and run really fast are not my idea of cuddly, fun-loving toys either, but whatever.

I remembered her first Christmas when she so scared of her adorable rocking ladybug that sings and moves its tentacles (or whatever those things are called). But I kept showing it to her, and she finally came around, and now it's one of her favorite toys. So like with the ladybug, I started toy therapy with the Zhu-Zhu. I just kept saying things like, "See Scarlett, it's just a toy" or "See, it's cute like a little bunny!" Finally, she touched it one day. Then she eventually touched his nose, which is one way to make them squeak and chatter. She refers to it as "toy" or "bunny." But then we'd forget about it for a few days and she'd see it and become afraid all over again so I just put it away.

Then this morning she actually asked for it out of the clear blue. "Where'd toy go?" I gave it to her, and she got really brave and held it, kissed it, talked to it, and put it on a truck and pushed it around!

She even wanted him during breakfast.

She served him tea. She said, "He thirsty!"


Then she made him an egg.


Then everything went a bit awry when I touched his back which makes him run across the floor. She didn't like that one bit, but at least we're making some progress! Hang in there little Zhu-Zhu!