Summertime, and the livin' is easy

There is only one word to appropriately describe this summer -- H-O-T! Jacob and Annabelle love playing outside, so we've been forced to endure the miserable heat and humidity. At least we have the giraffe pool to help cool us down,

Believe it or not, we've only been to the beach one time this summer. I am almost ashamed to admit that. It's just so hard to watch the kids at the beach by myself and our weekends have been too busy for Heath and I to go. Erika came along on this particular trip. So....we may have only been to the beach one time so far this summer, but that one time was fun!!

Both kids love playing along the shoreline where the waves come crashing in around their feet. That's where we spent most of our time. I was a little surprised. Annabelle really likes playing in sand, so I thought she would want to dig holes and make sand piles. I was wrong. She played in the sand a little bit, but not nearly as long as I thought she would.

As if the beach wasn't fun enough, we went for cupcakes afterwards....and what was already a great day....became even greater.

Thanks, Mom!!

Oh, yes...she ate an ENTIRE cupcake...in record time. She's proud of herself. Can you tell?

Jacob was more interested in the icing than the cake. Once he had licked off all the sugary goodness, he was done. Annabelle, of course, was ready to devour any leftovers, but much to her dismay, I removed the cake before she could dig her little fingers into it. No, I did not eat it. One cupcake was enough for me, too.

All About Me

Hi-eeeeeeee! My name is Annabelle. If you ask me what my name is, I'll tell you. It's "Ah-dehw." I am a big girl now -- almost 22 months old. My mommy says I'm starting to get a little "attitude," whatever that means. I prefer to call myself a wild child. I love to run and climb and get dirty. Today, I fell in the mud at the playground. I was covered in mud. Mommy freaked out a little, but I had a glorious time. I love mud. I also love to dance and jump...on the kitchen table. I think it's funny to climb up there because I know as soon as mommy sees, she races to get me down. Mommy is so silly. What...does she think I'm going to fall or something? Oh puh-leeease!

I can say lots of words now -- sentences, even! Phrases like, "Mo peessss (More please)!" and "Mo dat (cake)!" and "ssiiii pay" (I want to play outside). I call any sort of drink, juice...except, just today, I started referring to my milk as "wok." I like to give my stuffed animals a drink when they are thirsty.

Sometimes, I feed Nin (Minnie Mouse) grapes. Nin likes grapes. Nin gets lost around the house a lot and I have to look for her. I walk around yelling, "NIN!" or "NI-NOW!" That's how I say her name. Nin makes me smile.

Mommy says she can't take me and Dats (Jacob) to the grocery store anymore. I don't know why. I really like the grocery store. I like to yell as loudly as I possibly can while I'm in there. It makes other shoppers look at me. It's fun to open all the cereal and snack boxes, too. I like to stand up and climb around in the buggy. I've only flipped out of the seat into the back of the cart two times. That was a little scary, but I'm over it now. Dats (Jacob) likes to run around the store and throw things into the buggy, like green beans and tomatoes. He really enjoys the produce section. I think it's funny when people I don't know come over to help Mommy run after Jacob or try to make me sit down. But, for some reason, I don't think Mommy finds it quite as funny as I do. The last time we went to the store, the same lady kept passing us on every aisle. Each time we saw her, she looked at Mommy and said, "God bless you." I wonder what she meant by that?

Yes, I am a very "spirited" 21 month old girl. When I'm not getting into trouble, I am eating. When I went to preschool this summer, I stole my friends' food. What can I say? I love applesauce and I just can't help myself. Sometimes, I pretended to be a mommy and fed my friends their applesauce. But, then I usually lost all willpower and stole a few bites for myself. Besides applesauce, I like to eat spaghetti (or anything with tomato sauce, for that matter), every type of fruit, yogurt, cheese, cheerios, broccoli, carrots, garlic rice-a-roni, eggplant and brussel sprouts (among MANY other things). No, I am not kidding. I love brussel sprouts. Mommy made them last night for dinner and I ate them all...every last bit...and then had seconds. Mommy was very surprised. At mealtimes, I climb up into my chow (high chair) all by myself...because I am a big girl and can do lots of things on my own now. The only thing is, Mommy wants me to sit down while I eat. I don't want to sit down. I'd much rather stand. Sometimes, I stand up and put my feet in my food, especially when we eat pizza. Mommy is not amused. I always get in trouble for that.

I know I wear Mommy out. Occasionally, I give her a break and read books on my own for a while...even though I like it better when she reads to me. It's fun to pull down ALL the books from the bookshelf. At bedtime, Mommy reads Goodnight Moon. It's one of my favorites. I like to play peek-a-boo with Paul in Pat the Bunny, too.

Eventually, I do get tired. Being a wild child can be exhausting, you know. As much as I enjoy acting crazy, I like to sleep...a lot. I still sleep late in the morning. If Mommy doesn't have to be anywhere, she lets me sleep in. The latest I have ever slept is 11:30 AM. Now, THAT was a good morning!

Oh, one more thing. Did you see the pictures and video of me wearing the blue and white checked outfit? Guess what size it is. You may remember seeing baby pictures of me in the same outfit. It's a size 6 months. I may think I'm a big girl, but I guess I am still "little." :)

Is That a Sandwich or a Birthday Cake?

Friday was a big day -- the last day of the summer preschool session AND Jacob's birthday. Even though we had a party planned for the next day, of course, he had to have a school party too.

He had the best time. He even got to stand up on the stage while the big kids in summer camp sang happy birthday to him. Then we sang to him again when it was time for cake.

For the preschool party, I made a peanut butter and jelly "cakewich." Heath's mom gave me this cake pan shaped like a slice of bread. It came with a recipe and I couldn't wait to try it out!

Jacob, as well as the kids in his class, were most definitely amused. And, let's be honest. So was I. :) What a fun cake!!

Proud moment: One of the kids looked at the cake and said, very excitedly, "Wow! Where did you get that?!?!" Jacob replied, "It's my birthday cake!" His classmate said, "I know...but what store did you get it from?" Jacob yelled, "It didn't come from a store. My Mommy MADE it!" :)

Puzzles, Pancakes, & the Playground -- Now THAT'S a Party!

Can you believe it? Jacob is four. He's four. HE IS FOUR! I'm sorry. I have to repeat it to let it sink in. It seems just like it was yesterday that we brought him home from the hospital. He was so tiny (under 6 pounds at that particular time). We sat and watched him sleep. We listened to him make those precious little baby sounds. We tried desperately to get him to eat.

Four years later, things have changed. Instead of watching him sleep, now we just pray that he will sleep past 6:00 AM, as well as take a nice long afternoon nap. And those cute little baby sounds that used to make us melt? They've turned into a running faucet of questions and conversation. While Jacob still has the ability to make us melt (like today when he told me I was "so pretty"), more often than not, his random comments and questions now make us laugh...REALLY hard. Trying to get him to eat is still a challenge. If it isn't a snack or breakfast food, he isn't interested. When he was a newborn, we had to go to extreme measures to make him eat (i.e. letting him drink milk from a tiny little medicine cup). Now our "extreme measures" consist of singing the "Party in My Tummy" song and not letting him eat the next meal until all of the last meal is gone. For example, he wouldn't eat dinner the other night, so he was forced to forego his regular breakfast food and eat meatballs, lima beans and rice from the night before. He didn't like it, but eventually ate it, knowing if he didn't, he would find the same meal in his lunchbox.

Jacob's favorite meal is breakfast. He loves cereal, pancakes, waffles, eggs, sausage, bacon, etc... It's the one meal I know he will eat. Given his affinity for breakfast foods, it only makes sense that his favorite restaurant would be IHOP. When we're traveling, he can spot an IHOP from a mile away and if he had his way, we would eat at IHOP several times a week. "How about we just go to IHOP for dinner," he says. The boy LOVES IHOP. As I tried to come up with fun, creative ideas for his fourth birthday party, in the back of my mind, I knew a party at his favorite restaurant would thrill him like no other party could. I decided to go with it -- a pancake party at IHOP.

He absolutely loved it. Since it was his birthday, I even gave him free reign of the syrup. His create-a-face pancake was swimming...errrr...make that drowning...in every variety of syrup. He quickly discovered that you can, indeed, have too much of a good thing. He hardly ate any of his drowned pancake.

Despite the drowned pancake, he and his friends had a great time and the IHOP employees couldn't have been any nicer. They were so incredibly helpful and patient with us.

Since one of Jacob's favorite activities is putting puzzles together, we gave them out as party favors. The kids were happy to have something to do while we waited on our pancakes.

Annabelle enjoyed herself too.

THE CAKE

Jacob decided he wanted a puzzle cake this year. I did a little internet research (and of course, called Erika to make sure this was doable) before I said, "okay." Erika and I worked tirelessly through the night and this is what we came up with. I was pleased. Erika was pleased. Jacob was pleased. As I rediscover every year, baking and decorating cakes is a lot of fun...and a lot of work. Thank you, Erika, for ALL your help!!!!!

After the chaos fun at IHOP, Jacob had a serious sugar rush. We drove over to the playground so he could burn off some of that extra energy.

It was a very fun morning and Jacob had a blast. God even turned down his thermostat for us and kept the temperature below 90 degrees while we were at the playground. What more could we ask for?! Family...check. Friends...check. Good food...check... Fun party...check. Nice weather...check. Everything was perfect! Happy fourth birthday, Jacob! I love you so much!! Let's take this next year a little slower, ok? :)

God bless America, land that I love....

Our fourth of July weekend was a whirlwind of activity. We headed to Georgia for the weekend to visit Philip, Michelle and their adorable dog, Grazie. It was a very fun trip and, true to form, we packed in as many activities as we possibly could. :)



Annabelle loved Grazie. Grazie loved Annabelle. They followed each other around the house throughout our visit. Grazie gave Annabelle lots of baths kisses. Annabelle willingly shared her sippy cup of milk with Grazie...on several occasions They soon became best friends.

After what seemed like a very short night, we woke up and drove into Atlanta to see what we could seee. We ended up at the Children's Museum. Jacob and Annabelle had a blast. Both of them were sleepy, as we arrived during their naptime (they both fell asleep in the stroller), but they still had tons of fun. Jacob ran from exhibit to exhibit, playing and exploring, not sure what to do or where to go next. Annabelle acted much the same way.

Much of Jacob's time was spent near the grocery store. He liked unloading the truck and pushing the boxes down the conveyor belt. I thought this was going to be his favorite area...until he found the tree house.When I asked him to tell me his favorite part of the museum, I was 95 percent certain he would say the treehouse. I was right. He loved climbing up and down the rope ladders, going down the slides, hopping across the bridge, running up and down the stairs. He couldn't get enough of the treehouse.

Happiness

Annabelle thoroughly enjoyed the huge water table play area. She had so much fun fishing and splashing in the water. Thank goodness they had little raincoats for the kids to wear or she would have been completely soaked.

Jacob had fun here, too.

After we left the museum, we walked to the World of Coke. Jacob and Annabelle, once again, fell asleep in the stroller and it worked out well because we waited in a Disney World-esque line just to get through the door. Jacob slept through most of our tour, but Annabelle woke up during the first informational movie. I thought it was funny that the child we had to pay admission for slept the whole time, while the one who got in free woke up. Oh well. It didn't really bother me. I wasn't about to wake Jacob from his nap. Anyone who knows Jacob knows what a mistake that would have been.

We met the Coca-Cola bear. Sorry, Jacob. You missed out on this one, but at least you're in the picture!

My favorite part of the World of Coke has always been the tasting room, where you're free to try all kinds of sodas from around the world. I don't know why this is my favorite part because, in my opinion, most of the drinks are not good. So many of them taste like cough medicine. Even though they're gross, it's fun to try them out. I even tried all the gross ones I remembered from years ago just to see if my tastes had changed. Nope. Still gross. Reason #5,372 why I'm glad I live in America!

It's not July 4th without fireworks, so the next night, we went to a local park where a festival was being held...complete with fireworks. Earlier that day, we went to church and the service was fantastic. Jacob had so much fun in sunday school. For the rest of the day, he talked about it -- about the games they played, the snack they ate, the friends he made. I think Annabelle had a good time as well.

On our way to the park!

Already looking for fireworks.

I love picnics...and chips!!

I love Uncle Phil. He gives me rainbow Jell-O!

Jacob had his face painted for the first time. Sure, he's painted his sister's face with a Sharpie, but he's never had his own painted...until now! He sat motionless in that chair...much like the way he sits for a haircut. He asked for a star...

and a star, he received!

Hey, look! I got stars, too!!

...because you can't celebrate America's freedom without.......a whoopie cushion?!?!?!

Thanks for the lift, Aunt Shelli! Now I can REALLY see these fireworks. The question is, can you?

Later that night, we let Jacob play with a sparkler -- another first for him. He liked it just fine until the sparks were about halfway down the stick. Then, he yelled for someone to TAKE IT!

The Race Is On!

Don't you know? It's playtime!!

Annabelle, attempting to wake her brother from his nap.

She was standing there yelling, "Datcha! Datcha! (Jacob! Jacob!) If she is awake, he is not supposed to be sleeping. At least, that's what she thinks. They fight. They yell. They aggravate each other. But they can't stand to be apart.

______________________________

So, in my last post, I commented that I wasn't sure if the summer would pass by slowly or quickly. I can most definitely tell you now. The race is on...to fall. Summer? What summer? It seems every time I blink my eyes, another week goes by. I can't remember another summer flying by so fast. Seriously, I can hardly believe we're already halfway through July. Wow!

PRESCHOOL
Teaching the three year olds has been fun, but certainly not without its challenges. Take for instance, potty time. Taking a large group of three year olds to the bathroom is not easy and not something that is done quickly. Bathroom breaks can take up to 20 minutes...and that's no exaggeration, as most of them need individual help. Actually, now that I think about it, doing ANYTHING with a large group of three year olds is a slow process. But that's ok. They're adorable, fun to work with, and they crack me up all the time. Between the giggles, screaming outbursts, glue accidents, and numerous trips to the bathroom, hopefully, they're learning something. :) What can I say? I'm having a good time and the kids seem to be enjoying themselves. That is what really matters right now. Isn't it?

Jacob moved up to the 4 & 5 year old class because he's so advanced for his age. Ok, so maybe that wasn't the real reason, but he did move into that class. Since the three year old class was so large, two kids who fell in the "almost four years old" category moved up to "lighten my load." Jacob was one of the two. From what his teacher tells me, Jacob is doing very well and knows as much (or more) than some of the four year olds. Hmmmm. Maybe he is advanced for his age. I've always suspected he was a genius. :) The other reports I hear about him usually have to do with his incessant talking (not in a bad way). This does not surprise me. He does the same thing at home.

Annabelle loves her class. She typically walks right in -- all smiles, no tears. Here are the reports I get about her from her teacher: "She loves to eat and she sometimes takes other people's food. Every time I turn around, she's getting into someone else's applesauce." Annabelle, apparently, likes to be a helper too. When she's not trying to snag it for herself, she enjoys feeding applesauce to her classmates. It cracks me up that she is the little "snack snatcher." Especially because she is the littlest (in terms of size) in the class. She eats the most, yet weighs the least. I think her favorite part of the day is when she gets to play on the playground. She loves playing with sand and there is plenty of it out there. Sometimes, even her ears are filled with sand. She doesn't mind getting dirty. That's for sure.


STOMACH FLU, COLDS, & EAR INFECTIONS! OH MY!
For four weeks, Jacob and Annabelle have been battling runny noses, coughs and ear infections. Jacob has been fortunate to escape the ear infection, but not Annabelle. She came down with a double ear infection three weeks ago and went back to the doctor Monday only to discover she still has it...along with a nice case of conjunctivitis (pink eye). She started the summer with a stomach bug which caused her to throw up ten times in three hours. She got sick at preschool one Friday in June and her teacher informed me that was the very first time a child had ever thrown up on her. She's been teaching that class for years!!!! Can you believe that? Of course, it had to be my child...the very first week. Ugh. Annabelle, that was not exactly what I had in mind when I told you to make a good impression. :) Oh well. I believe she has since made up for it. Thank goodness, she was the only one who caught the stomach flu.

As soon as Annabelle was well, Jacob caught a cold, gave it to his sister and they can't get rid of it. It's been four weeks, yet the runny noses and coughs still persist. To top it off, I got strep throat over the weekend -- loads of summertime fun. Heath has had a sore throat off and on for several days. Although he hasn't felt great, he hasn't been bed-ridden either. Hopefully his sore throat won't turn into strep. I'm praying we'll all get well soon and at least have a healthy second half of the summer. If Jacob and Annabelle don't get over their colds, I will most definitely go insane. Do you know what it's like to wipe two runny noses 24/7 for FOUR WEEKS?!?!?!?!? AAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!! Just had to get that out.

BEFORE WE WERE SICK
At the beginning of June, we took a weekend trip to Charleston. Heath and I celebrated our eighth anniversary at Peninsula Grill. It was amazing. If you haven't eaten there, I highly recommend it. We'd been talking about having dinner there for years, but never got around to it until this year. Funny...we had an incredible meal at Peninsula Grill while my parents stayed at the hotel with Jacob and Annabelle dining on Chick-Fil-A combos. Even though it doesn't really sound fair to me, I don't think my parents minded a bit. Plus, we brought them back a large slice of coconut cake.

The next day, we played...as much as we could in the 100 degree heat. Jacob and Annabelle had fun at the park in Mount Pleasant.