Just Doing Our Thing

These moments that I cannot possibly plan....these are my favorite.

Lately, it seems as though a planned adventure is a sure sign of disaster.  However, adventure manages to seek us out anyway, and usually when we least expect it.  I had an entire weekend full of disappointments when I tried my hardest to fit in a barbecue at a splash park.  But things always worked out in the end, despite not going as planned.  Not one single time.  And that's truly the best kind of adventure anyway.  Life, totally unscripted.  This fact doesn't surprise me.  I've never been a planner.  I've never had any use for schedules, itineraries, or plans.  Things rarely live up to their expectations if your expectations are high.  And you risk missing the fun that is sitting right in front of you when you are so focused on your "plans."  But if you just follow the ebb and flow, figure out how to make the best of a situation and roll with it, magical things can happen.  We proved that last weekend when a trip to the farmer's market turned into a trip to a museum, and then some. But that'll have to be another post because I haven't uploaded the photos yet.

Splashing in puddles.  New favorite activity.

Other than these wacky weekends, there's a whole lotta nothing going on around here.  And I'm not complaining.  After New Year's Day, rather than slow down, things went a bit haywire.  Your dad went back to school, for starters.  I am so proud of him for seeing an opportunity and taking it.  He is making huge sacrifices in order to ensure a better future for our family.  I won't lie, it's been a sacrifice for us all.  Between work, school, softball and the gym, daddy-time is not as frequent as you've become accustomed to.  Every time daddy walks past the front door, you run toward him saying, "Bye!"  It breaks his heart.  However, I give him credit.  He maximizes every minute he does get with you girls.  It would be easy to make excuses, but he never does.  He tucks Sydney in, takes Kylee for lunch, plays with you on the floor, blows bubbles, buys tickets for Disney on Ice, grabs your sisters for impromptu ice cream dates and even takes them along to softball games.  I couldn't have picked a better daddy if I tried.  Well, actually, I did pick him.  But that's all the credit I can take.  He's amazing.  We also had some car trouble, which prompted the purchase of a second car.  We've been getting by with one for far too long, so it was high time.  The new car is so roomy and downright luxurious to me.  It was love at first sight.  Sydney has picked up a second dance class (ballet 3, on scholarship).  I am proud of her dedication and talent.  It does mean that three days of the week she now has after school commitments.  Rather than simplifying, I feel as though we are complicating things.  But it is mostly temporary.  And none of it is bad news.  

Inspecting the new car.

Your new bed.  Looks comfy.

You like it!

You have blossomed into quite the chatterbox.  The things you say crack me up.  My favorites are "I wuv woo" and "Nuggle" (snuggle...which is accompanied by a self-hug.  Every time.)  You could scrape me off the floor when you say these things, because I'm nothing but a melty puddle on the floor.  You also repeat pretty much everything, but some of the things you are saying with tons of regularity are: "Hi, turtle!" to Crunchy, our turtle (and you take a fake can of peas from your kitchen set and pretend to shake food into his tank out of it), "Happy!", all fruit and vegetables are "apples", your sisters' names ("Nidnee", "YaYa", "Ayee"), almost all of the body parts: "eye", "nose", "mouth", "ear", "toes" etc. (but bellybutton sounds like "do do" and hair is "ew"...you know, because when you get a piece in your mouth you say "ewww").  

Trying to catch up on pictures.  This was from a park day in January.

Blowing bubbles in the park.

It's always breezy on Lake Avalon.

Just hangin' out.

Playing at the children's museum.  Nice Mickey water painting, Syd!

You are finally old enough to participate.  Grocery shopping at the museum.

Your favorite stop on our way outdoors: the Finnlee-sized bench.

Your stripey leggings are my favorite.

You are adding new moves to your dance repertoire, and new foods to your diet.  Currently, your favorite foods are apples, cheese, eggs with cheese, grits, banana yogurt, and pretty much anything that I am trying to eat.  Oh, and chocolate.  You love chocolate.  Just in the past week, your tiny gums are exploding with new teeth.  We've gone from six teeth to what seems like a million over night.  There are more molars in there every time I look.  And your smile is quickly becoming a toothy grin.  Your hair is growing and looking rather bushy.  Just today I felt that it is starting to get in your eyes.  Time to buy some cute clips and make you wear them!  We've made up a "big girl bed" for you, which is nothing more than a crib mattress on the floor.  But we are using it for naps for now with the hope that eventually you will be able to sleep there at night.  The too-big shoes that I felt silly for buying just months ago are now starting to fit.  There's enough room to ensure you'll be wearing them at least this spring.  But I'm already wondering what size you'll be in this summer and wanting to plan ahead.  (Impossible!)  I have even been working on plans for your second birthday party.  I know, I know.  It's more than seven months away.  But if there's one thing I know with certainty, it's that time flies.  It's March already.  March!  Wasn't it just New Year's?  Like two posts ago?!

Stuck.  And not happy about it.

A long-awaited visit from Amy, mommy's friend.  Sooo much fun playing in the fountains.

You started out apprehensive but ended up soaked.  Nothing like ice cream and water play in January.  Oh, Florida!

I love when shirts with captions become ironic.

Little lady, doing some grocery shopping.

Looking up recipes in your cookbook.

You will never convince me that it's too early to start planning your birthday parties, just like you will never convince me that it's a good idea to plan out your weekend.  Then again, I also said I could never enjoy such a structured vacation as a cruise, but I was dead wrong about that.  So maybe just maybe I might try to drag you all to the park for a bbq and splash pad date again.  But rest assured, I will call this time to see if it's open.  Fool me once...okay, actually, twice...but it won't happen again (I hope).