The Adair Family

Fun!

2012-01-08T19:31:00.002-06:00

Addison and I went to Houston this weekend to attend Katy Kalz's wedding. It was such a fun girl's weekend with ginger, her girls and Bess. Melissa and her family were there too, but they didn't stay the night. Angel and Jennifer came to visit the hotel and we had a fun pajama party in the hotel! Addison played chutes and ladders with the kids and we grown ups had so much fun visiting and catching up!! It was a FUN weekend!!!

Eew

2012-01-06T13:36:00.001-06:00

So I'm doing a cleanse. Actually, mike and I are doing a cleanse. Nothing crazy. Just avoiding refined foods, dairy, etc. And taking herbal supplements to help move things along, if you will. I'm on day 4 and just blew it by inhaling a bagel with butter. Omg I'm so mad at myself and I feel SO gross.

Wah.

All About Addison

2012-01-01T21:36:00.004-06:00

Addison. My superhero princess.

She loves My Little Pony, Barbie, Princesses, etc. She also loves The Avengers, Spider Man, Wonderwoman, etc.

Pretty much, she's awesome.

All About Aiden

2012-01-01T21:21:00.004-06:00

Aww, Aiden is my buddy. He loves to cuddle, loves to give kisses, and I am happy to oblige. I love him SO!

Aiden is a talker. Always has been. It's always been lots of fun to "talk" back and forth with him. It's just that now we can actually understand some of what he says. The following is a list of random words I've noticed him using a lot lately. Clock
Night Night (nye nye)
Hi
Bye Bye (guy guy)
Light (yite!)
Lola (yola)
Kitty Cat (key ca)
Doggie (ga ge)
Daddy
Momma
Round and Round (rourourou)

Animal sounds:
Cow: Moo
Duck: wackwackwack
Horse: Nay
Cat: Meow
Dog: woof woof

He also can point to any body part when prompted. (well, MOST: like toes, knee, arm, fingers, hair, etc. Can't identify forearm, ankle and the like. YET)

Can verbally identify the following body parts:
Eye: eye
Nose: no
Ear: Eee
Mouth: Ma
Haie: Air

I think it goes without saying, he's absolutely perfect.

2011-12-20T20:57:00.002-06:00

Well, I did it. I got through Grandma's memorial. Not sure what I said, not sure I ever will know what I said, as I can't imagine EVER watching video, but I guess it doesn't matter.

I had a few friends who came, and y'all- Holly, Ginger, Josh, Kalyn... you will never EVER know how much it meant to me. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Aaaaaand now I have a house to clean, gifts to buy, gifts to wrap, food to prepare, bills to pay, emails to return, blahblahblahblahblahblahblah.

Merry Christmas!

Grandma

2011-12-19T22:50:00.003-06:00

I miss my Grandma so much it hurts.

It literally hurts.

I haven't felt this way in a long time. Weird to say, but the last time I remember feeling this way was when I felt "heartbroken". Years ago, before I was married, when I felt the literal ache of the loss of a loved one. A silly boy at the time, but I felt the pain none the less.

My heart aches. I miss her. I miss her so much. I am sad to have lost such a positive, sweet, precious role model in my life.

I've felt this way for two days now, and this is only part of the cycle. I always feel hope and joy after the heartache. I remember how lucky I was to have known her, and remember all of the wonderful times we shared. I am hopeful that I will be able to carry on her legacy. Hopeful that I will be able to make an impact on my own children and grandchildren the way that she did. Hopeful that I will live a life as full and as rich as hers.

She is a part of me, forever and always. I love her. I miss her.

sweet grandma

2011-12-15T17:59:00.001-06:00

This is a video I will cherish always. Grandma is almost completely unresponsive anymore. She's on morphine every two hours and off of all of her other meds. Hospice is taking wonderful care of her.

This moment will always and forever be etched in my heart. I love her so.

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Yo Gabba Gabba

2011-12-08T19:40:00.004-06:00

My kids love Yo Gabba Gabba. I love Yo Gabba Gabba. We listen to the music in the car and I actually like it. I knew Yo Gabba Gabba was coming, but already had tickets to the Nutcracker and Mike and I decided it was too expensive/too much in one day to buy tickets. I was so bummed. Until Mike saw the Groupon Deal. 65% off tickets. Um, YES.

So after the first act of the Nutcracker we picked up Daddy and Aiden and all went to Yo Gabba Gabba. Poor Aiden was NOT feeling well, he'd had diarrhea and fever for 2 days. Naturally, being the amazing parents that we are, we gave him some motrin and brought him along. [I feel terrible about it if you can't tell :-( ] It just would have been too sad to have him miss it. He loves Yo Gabba Gabba almost as much as he loves me. :-)

Yo Gabba Gabba was such a great show and just so much fun. Addison and I danced almost the whole time! Aiden stayed in Daddy's lap most of the time, and even though you could tell he wasn't feeling great, the motrin definitely helped things and he had a fun time.

"Listening to music and dancing is AWESOME!" -DJ Lance Rock

imma get my christmas wrap on

2011-12-07T20:37:00.001-06:00

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The Nutcracker

2011-12-06T10:12:00.011-06:00

I took Addison to see Ballet Austin's The Nutcracker on Sunday. I can't describe how much fun we had.

We started with lunch at the Shady Grove. Here's a classy photo we took in the restroom.

The first thing we did when we got to the theater was look for a keepsake. Addison saw a Clara Nutcracker and never saw anything else.

One of my old students now dances with Ballet Austin and got us discounted tickets, 10th row, right on center. The seats were AWESOME.

Once the show started, Addison was in HEAVEN. She gasped when the Snow Queen came onstage. She watched the young dancers intently, taking in their every move. She loved the snow. She loved the music. She loved the costumes. It was all so magical.

They have the Trail of Lights display out around the venue and Addison wanted to take a photo with all of the different pieces. :)

To top it all off, Addison said to me as we were leaving, "Momma, today was the most SPECIAL day EVER." I couldn't agree more!!

silly boy

2011-12-02T21:25:00.001-06:00

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Sleepover

2011-12-01T22:28:00.003-06:00

After our Thanksgiving dinner, Addison and I stayed at mom's for a sleepover with Melissa and all of her kids. All of us in mom's bedroom. 5 kids and 3 adults. It was actually really fun!

The boys fell asleep almost immediately, and the girls watched West Side Story. Addison LOVED it. We eventually had to turn it off so that she'd finally fall asleep. :)

Is she not the prettiest little girl EVER???

Thanksgiving, Day 2

2011-11-27T21:00:00.003-06:00

I've tried to write about our Thanksgiving at my mom's house numerous times, but I kept giving up because words simply can't do it justice. Sooo I'm just going to throw it all out there whether it makes sense or is entertaining or not.

In one word, our day was: Crazy.

15 minutes before we ate, the scene was this:

Small kitchen. Very small kitchen.
Adam is laying on the floor, head under the sink, body completely across the entire kitchen. This is because Adam broke the faucet earlier that afternoon. Mike "ran" to the store to buy a new one, since a working kitchen sink is crucial on Thanksgiving. I say "ran" because Black Friday kept him out much longer than it typically would.
Blah blah blah blah BLAH... gah why is this story so hard to write?
So while Adam fixed the sink, we were doing the following. All at once.
Mom making mashed potatoes, stuffing
Mike carving the turkey
Melissa making sweet potatoes, cranberries
Me making peas, green beans,
Me realizing I didn't heat our rolls.
Mom realizing we didn't have gravy yet.
Me realizing I hadn't started my dessert, which needed to cook while we ate dinner.

Um where were the kids during all of this? I literally have no memory of the kids. Yikes.

So yeah. Maybe it doesn't sound crazy. Or maybe it does. Whatever. I finally got it all down in words and I am officially DONE with this post.

Oh wait, one last thing. Here's one of the only pics I got that day. And I LOVE it.

Thanksgiving, Day 1

2011-11-24T21:44:00.009-06:00

Dinner at Grammi and Grandpa's house. Delicious as always. I only contributed macaroni and cheese, but yummm was it good. It's John Legend (the crooner)'s recipe. You should go here and make it. Everything else was standard Thanksgiving fare. No complaints at all. All perfect and delicious!

May I interest you in some photos?

The following is a series of unfortunate photos. It's all we got.

Tomorrow we will celebrate with my side of the family at GaGa's house. I will be making the mac and cheese again, peas with pancetta, sausage balls and APPLE DUMPLINGS.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Thanks for reading this lil' ol' blog!

this is happening

2011-11-24T12:37:00.001-06:00

Happy thanksgiving friends :)

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gross

2011-11-23T13:23:00.001-06:00

These are my pants. I am disgusting because my kids are disgusting.

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Things Heard Around the House... A Lot.

2011-11-20T09:06:00.003-06:00

"I love you."

"Aiden, don't feed doggie."

"Aiden, please don't scream at me."

"Addison, think about this before you get emotional. Is this really something to cry about?"

"You little stinker!"

"Wow Addison, that's a really big/impressive/crazy word! Where did you learn that?"

"Aiden, don't ride Lola."

"I love you."

"We will set up a sleepover soon, Addison. I promise. I know you REALLY want to have a sleepover."

"LOLA!"

"Gus Gus!"

"Mike, I have to work on Saturday."

"Aiden, get down, please."

"I love you."

my phone

2011-11-14T22:02:00.002-06:00

is a piece of crap. I like to use more severe words in every day speak, but seeing how I don't know everyone who reads this and don't want to offend anyone, I'm sticking to words like crap.

Here is a word for word (letter for letter, actually) copy of a text message conversation that took place this weekend between me and our babysitter, Kat.

Kat: Hey Girl! Do you still need me to watch Aiden tomorrow? Or both of them?

Me: Hi! I'm so sorry I've been mia! I'm so not sure about tomorrow. Did something else come up? I can't

Me: Ugh Ny

Me: Omg my phone is going CRAZY!

Me: Um anyway jjjjjj

Me: imkg

Me: omg!

MeL omg I am dying laughing. my hone is seriously

Me: Wow

Me: J all ul trying to say us u have no idea what

MeL LOL I give up

2011-11-14T19:29:00.003-06:00

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bedtime

2011-11-14T19:29:00.001-06:00

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croup

2011-11-11T21:09:00.002-06:00

Croup: "a throat condition, occurring usually in children, characterized by a hoarse cough and laboured breathing, resulting from inflammation and partial obstruction of the larynx." For some reason, the main side effect of croupe: a bark-like cough, isn't listed in the definition. I don't agree with this definition. The bark cough defines the illness.

Yep, our kids have croup and they are miserable. So sad and miserable. High fever, no energy, hurts to cough, hard to breathe, no appetite, feeling crummy, etc etc etc.

I love them so much and want them to feel better! Looks like we'll be dealing with this through the weekend, and that's a BUMMER.

So while the kids are sleeping, I will too. Because I doubt they will sleep through the night. The coughing will be back, and the fever too. Poor babies.

thankful

2011-11-06T19:28:00.001-06:00

It's hard to tell, but I made this leaf garland and wrote different things that we are thankful for on each leaf. You know, things like swings, dance class and glitter. Also teddy bear, orange juice and books. You should take a look at it next time you're over. Maybe your name is on one of the leaves!

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best friends!

2011-11-06T19:22:00.001-06:00

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impromptu play date

2011-11-06T13:28:00.001-06:00

Embyr came to play so her mommy could go to the Dr.

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solo

2011-11-05T16:41:00.003-05:00

Well I guess we are doing this. Addison is doing a solo.

I am struggling with how I feel about this. On one hand, I do not want to be a pushy dance teacher mom. But then I watch this and remember that she LOVES it. And then I worry that she's too young. And then I look over and she's painting a new "art project" and I am reminded that she's still a normal kid doing normal kid things and not a crazy dancer. And I'm not a crazy dance mom.

I'm not a crazy dance mom.

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Trick or Treat!

2011-10-31T20:44:00.005-05:00

2011-10-30T17:30:00.001-05:00

We are carving pumpkins. Mike told Addison to put her hand in the pumpkin to clean it out.

"Daddy, you know I'm not good with slime."

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Happy Halloween!

2011-10-30T09:46:00.007-05:00

Yesterday we attended two costume parties: First we went to Auntie's house for a fall (not Halloween)/ birthday party for Annalie and Micah, and then Kassidy's 4th birthday party.

Who am I? I didn't take any pictures. Ugh. Thankfully we have friends and family who love us and take pictures of us.

This year we were superheroes. Addison was Spidergirl. She was SUPPOSED to be Wonderwoman, but since I bought the costume a month ago, she grew at least 2 inches! The wonderwoman costume doesn't fit her anymore! A last minute trip to the store got us a Spidergirl costume. Whew. Aiden was Superman. So stinkin cute.

Mike and I were Super Mom (actually "Super Momma") and Super Dad ("Super Daddy"). Mike had a tool belt with diapers, bandaids, goldfish, toys, etc. It actually came together really well!

And now, here we are: The SUPER Adairs!

Harry the Hedgehog

2011-10-24T20:28:00.008-05:00

Addison's class "pet" (a stuffed animal), Harry the Hedgehog, came home with Addison on Thursday, and we had him all weekend. Here's the "report" we are sending back to school to go in "The Adventures of Harry the Hedgehog" book.

Harry’s Visit to Addison’s Home

Wow, I was SO excited to have Harry spend the weekend with us! We had a super busy and super FUN weekend!

The first thing we did when we came home from school on Thursday was introduce Harry to all of my stuffed animals. Then my mommy and I read Harry’s favorite books to him, so that he would feel happy, not shy, in our home. After a little rest time, my brother and I had to go to work with my mommy at the dance studio. I always like to sit in on dance class with the big girls, and Harry liked it too.

After my daddy picked me up at the studio, we took Harry to our neighborhood park. We had lots of fun sliding, swinging and climbing! Before we knew it, the day was over and Harry slept in the special bed I made for him in my room.
Friday morning, I had dance class! Here we are with my two best friends, Kassidy and Embyr!

After a yummy lunch at the County Line (where we got to feed turtles!) we were off to see a dance show with all of the dancers from the TV show So You Think You Can Dance! My mommy and daddy agreed that it was a good idea to leave Harry in the car during the show, and I understood, because I knew Harry was tired and needed a nap anyway.
The next morning, my mommy’s dancers had a performance at a Fall Festival in Round Rock. Here are all of the Dance eMotions Rising Stars with me and Harry!

After the performance I went on my FIRST SLEEPOVER EVER at my cousins’ house! I WAS SO EXCITED! I have 4 cousins, ages 7, 5, 3 and 1 and they are my best friends in the whole world. I love them so much! Here's Harry, me and my Auntie in a photo that Auntie texted my mommy on Saturday night:

And here I am with all of the cousins (and Harry, of course!) at bed time:

Sunday night we went over to my GaGa’s house for dinner. Harry helped Daddy grill steaks, and I played with my crazy cousins. It was a really fun night with my family!

Monday morning, I had school, and Harry stayed home with our dog and cat. Once I was back home, we enjoyed just sitting around and hanging out, since our weekend was so BUSY! I hope Harry gets to come and visit us again, we really liked having him tag along with us on our adventures!

cell phone photo

2011-10-22T20:47:00.001-05:00

A nice picnic lunch after school one day!

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hanging out with momma's dancers

2011-10-20T20:49:00.001-05:00

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Aunt Susan

2011-10-10T09:42:00.002-05:00

My mom called late last night with the news that Aunt Susan passed away suddenly yesterday. She didn't have any more details yet.

Mom has to break the news to Grandma today. Which would be terribly difficult regardless, but Grandma's memory issues are going to make this even harder for Mom.

RIP Aunt Susan. We love you.

My Poor Family

2011-10-09T19:07:00.003-05:00

I tried a cheesy chicken lasagna recipe tonight and it was terrible. Which, let's be honest, at this point is really to be expected. Imeanreally.

I'd estimate that only 10% of what I cook is edible. This is a very realistic estimation.

(those cupcakes from last night? Yeah, out of a dozen, 9 are still sitting there uneaten. I think that speaks volumes, considering my husband loves pumpkin ANYTHING, and also considering the fact that I offered these cupcakes to the entire family at multiple times throughout the day.)

I suck. :(

Tonight Was The Night

2011-10-08T18:41:00.001-05:00

Only two ingredients. Pumpkin and yellow cake mix.

Pumpkin Cupcakes.

Thank you, Pinterest.

Baby Riley

2011-10-08T17:21:00.002-05:00

Love her.

yee-haw

2011-09-28T19:51:00.001-05:00

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Santana

2011-09-28T16:50:00.004-05:00

Duh. I forgot to blog about Santana. Well, at first I forgot, then I decided that since it didn't have pictures, maybe no one would care, then I forgot again... and now here I am.

Mike's parents took us to Moody Theater to see Santana perform at Austin City Limits.

Holy Crap, it was SO good. I mean. Better than you could ever imagine. Really, that good.

His opening band was Michael Franti and Spearhead. I'd heard them on the radio before, and they never really impressed me. A little too reggae for me. But WHOA. Live, they were awesome. So joyful and honest and just GOOD. I really enjoyed them.

And then Santana comes out in his white suit and white hat, all badass and awesome. Words won't do it justice. It was insan. (unrelated inside joke: have you watched Up All Night? It's insan.)

Thank you to Gloria and Marshall for another fabulous show. We had a BLAST!

Good Times

2011-09-26T22:49:00.011-05:00

Tonight we took the kids for a walk.

I'm ashamed to admit that tonight was the first time that Addison really rode her bike that she got for her birthday (IN MAY). It's just been SO. HOT. I have no other excuses.

Anyway, check out my ADORABLE children:

Yes, I let Addison dress herself. Our deal is... school days and any other time that "mommy says so", she has to wear an outfit that I pick and she agrees on. Any other time, she gets to wear the outfit of her choice, as long as I agree on it.

rain!

2011-09-24T20:32:00.001-05:00

Gaga took us all to see rain this afternoon! We loved it! The Beatles had such awesome music, it was such a treat hearing and seeing it live. Thank you Gaga, we had so much fun!

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aiden in dance class

2011-09-23T18:11:00.001-05:00

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Too Good Not To Share

2011-09-22T22:38:00.001-05:00

My babysitter posted this on my facebook wall tonight while I was at work:

Addison: Excuse me.
Me: oh my you tooted..OH MY YOU TOOTED!! (plug my nose)
Addison: It smells great!! Can you please take your fingers off your nose so you can smell it?

Hahahahahaha.....!!

Oh my goodness I just can't stop laughing about this! Is that bad?

What I did today

2011-09-14T16:31:00.003-05:00

Yes, this REALLY is a post all about what I did today. I'm sorry. I'm just really excited.

So, I went to the doctor. I know, right?! SO EXCITING!

No, that's not the exciting part, people. The exciting part is that I had time between my appointment and picking up the kids from school, so I went to Target. (obviously.)

And I bought myself the CUTEST pair of black boots, totally inspired by my obsession with pinterest. YAY! I got new shoes! I can't remember the last time I bought myself new shoes. And they're riding boots! Woohooooo!

THEN (yes, it gets better) I went to the Verizon store and I GOT MY PHONE FIXED! For free! Many of you are probably aware of the piece of crap that is my phone. I wasn't receiving calls, texts, messages, sometimes for days at a time. And I stopped getting emails. And I almost never had internet service. And weird messages would pop up and then disappear. So obviously I'm not exaggerating when I say it was a piece of crap. And I'm also not exaggerating about how HAPPY I am to have it fixed!

AND tonight we're going to see Carlos Santana at ACL! Can you even believe it?! Mike's parents are treating us and I'm so excited. Even though I don't feel good. I don't even care. I'm going tonight and am going to have fun.

Oh, and by the way, back to the doctor bit. I was diagnosed with bronchitis and an ear infection. Glad I went. I'm on antibiotics and a nasal spray and am looking forward to feeling healthy again soon!

2011-09-11T03:56:00.001-05:00

Awe man, I'm officially sick. Been awake coughing and blowing my nose for almost 3 hours now. (it's 4 am). I want to cry. I sort of already am. That's when I know I have a fever, I cry. How weird is that?

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OMG!

2011-09-07T18:06:00.002-05:00

There was just an elephant on the tv, and Aiden started walking around with his arm out like a trunk and roaring like an elephant.

That settles it. He's brilliant.

Things I Didn't Understand Until Now

2011-09-07T16:51:00.003-05:00

- The need for my children to have a daily bath. Addison used to only bathe twice a week. Sounds gross, I know. But she's just never been the type to get dirty. Aiden, on the other hand, definitely gets his hands (and feet, and hair, and everything in between) dirty. By, like, 10am.

- That I no longer get to bathe daily. Sounds gross, I know. It is. I used to roll my eyes at mommies who complained of not having any "me" time. I get it now.

- That even if I don't have time to bathe, I do have time for facebook and that's just really messed up.

- That if I don't take care of the day's tasks the night before, (lunches packed, outfits picked out, etc.) my day will be TOTAL CRAP.

- That in order for my house to be somewhat clean, it's necessary for me to vacuum a lot. More than once a week. Seriously, I'm just figuring this out.

- That it doesn't matter how hard I try, all of the kids' CRAP will never EVER be put away all at once and all in the right place.

- That Fantasy Football is a really big deal. To some people. Ahem.

- The difference between Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson. That's a lie. For some reason, I will never understand the difference between Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson.

First Day of School

2011-09-06T16:51:00.006-05:00

First day of school was a great success!

I dropped Addison off in her classroom first, since I expected Aiden to have a rougher time. To our surprise, Mrs. Haedge wasn't there- she lives in Steiner Ranch, one of the main areas devastated by the wildfires. Nobody knew whether her house is safe or not, I hope it is. These wildfires have caused so much devastation and tragedy. Ugh.

So, today Addison had Ms. Amy, her teacher from the 2 year old class! Yay! We love Ms. Amy! Addison had no problems with first day jitters, she marched herself right in and didn't look back! I DID get a great big heartfelt hug and kiss before she left me, though :-)

After big sister was successfully dropped off, Aiden and I walked down to his room. We put his backpack and lunchbox in his cubby and walked him to his little chair. He did GREAT! There were at least two VERY LOUD AND UPSET babies already there (I say at least two, because that's all I remember seeing, but the sound of the cries were much louder than only two kids!). The poor teachers had their hands full! As much as I wanted to stay, I knew it was best to let the kids and teachers just close the door. So I gave Aiden a big hug and kiss and told him I'd be back soon. I snapped this picture from the hallway.
Right after I took this, he started crying. :-( I walked away, and when I walked back by on my way out about a minute later he was done crying and eating his goldfish.

When I picked Addison up, she told me that she had a GREAT day. Aiden was very happy to see me, and his teachers said he did great. They said he did have a few minor moments of tears, but that they were short lived and as long as he had his teddy bear and paci he was happy. We weren't in the car longer than 2 minutes before he was fast asleep. He woke up while I was transferring him from the car to his crib, and he hasn't slept a wink since. Ohboy.

Aiden is EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME now, so I only got pictures of Addison this morning. Aiden IS in the second picture here. This was the best I could do.

2011-09-05T19:50:00.003-05:00

I'm 0 for 3 with these Pinterest recipes. I made Paula Deen's Chicken Spaghetti Casserole and it was...meh... I'm maybe not giving myself enough credit. Mike and I both ate it for lunch the next day, so that says something, right?

The next meal I attempted to make was an overnight blueberry french toast casserole. I was so excited about this! Woke up to it this morning, threw it in the oven, an hour later, it was an undercooked, under mixed, yucky mess.

The NEXT meal I made was a stuffed crescent rolls covered in cheese. It was OKAY. Kinda like a hot pocket, but not. I'm trying, really I am! I WANT to feed my kids meals from home! I really do! We're just all so picky! Any suggestions?

Bless my family, I hype up these "homecooked meals" that they'd "better appreciate!" and then I turn out mediocre food at best. And they do it with a smile on their faces. :)

I try, I REALLY REALLY do!!!

Edited to add: DUH. I also made "heaven in my mouth" crock-pot chicken and dumplings AND a not so heavenly bbq and pineapple chicken. What a massive oversight leaving these two meals out of the original post was!

Meet the Teacher

2011-09-01T21:49:00.005-05:00

Last night I went to Bethany School's Open House, and this morning Addison got to meet her new teacher, Mrs. Haedge! It's pronounced Hedge, like hedgehog. The Hedgehog is their class mascot :-)

I LOVE her teacher and am THRILLED with her style of teaching, her curriculum and the year ahead for Addison!

Aiden tagged along (he didn't get to meet his teachers, they don't do that with the "baby class") and made himself quite comfortable. He looks like such a big boy in this picture!!

I can't believe this is my baby girl's last year in preschool. She's even in a totally different wing of the school. Where the "big kids" learn. And my BABY boy is starting school this year too?!? I don't know if I'm ready for this!!!

Uh-Mazing

2011-09-01T20:21:00.003-05:00

I don't know if it's because I was STARVING when I got home from work, or if this really IS as good as it seems, but this was heaven in my mouth:

Crock-Pot Chicken and Dumplings:
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (I used 2 very large ones)
2 tablespoons butter
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth
1 onion diced
1 tablespoon dried parsley
4 grands flaky refrigerator biscuits

*Edited to add: Cook on high 4-6 hours. 30 minutes before serving, separate the chicken with a fork and add the biscuits (each biscuit is divided into 9 small pieces). Continue to cook on high until eating time!

Frikin' Amazing. So good. Oh my goodness. So good.

my kids are the cutest

2011-08-30T19:49:00.001-05:00

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Recipe

2011-08-29T15:30:00.003-05:00

This is a crock pot recipe I found that claims to taste like Rudy's creamed corn. Wanted to put it here because I can't "pin" it and don't want to forget about it.

1/2 stick of butter
8 oz cream cheese
1/3 cup of half and half
2 lbs of frozen corn
1/2 t each of salt and pepper
1 T sugar

Throw it all in a crockpot and cook on low for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally.

Oh, and here's another one:
BACON RANCH SLOW COOKED CHICKEN ~
2 Tbsp Real Bacon Bits (I use 1/2 bag or jar)
1 tsp minced garlic (can use powder)
1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can Chicken Broth
1 cup Sour Cream
4-5 Boneless Chicken Breasts (skinless) (I poke holes in them with fork)

1. Combine first 5 ingredients.
2. Spray crock pot with Pam & put chicken breast in crock pot.
3. Pour ingredients over the chicken breast.
4. Cook 3-4 hours on HIGH until done.
***Makes an excellent gravy to serve with mashed potatoes, rice or noodles***

bath time

2011-08-25T22:15:00.001-05:00

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deep thoughts

2011-08-25T16:10:00.005-05:00

1. I was just throwing out/gathering for donation tons of kids clothes and toys and wondering... since doing this is SO NECESSARY in order to avoid clutter and complete chaos... and I don't do it often enough (maybe only twice a year?!)... if I SCHEDULED days to do this, like months in advance, to set aside a morning or afternoon completely devoted to purging... would I do it? Would that really work out? I feel certain that other things would come up and take priority. I think I'm gonna do it and see what happens.

2. I feel VERY behind in just discovering the fact that Addison can play computer games all by herself and actually really enjoys it. She plays all kids of learning games and is really good! I wonder how long she could have been doing this, had I known about this completely uncharted territory of entertainment for my kids! And I wonder, does everyone know about this but me? I never hear any moms talking about their kids playing computer games. Is it bad? Should I not encourage it? Oh my. I just went through a complete thought process here on the blog, in real time. Wow. Now I just really don't know how I feel about these computer games!

Thoughts?

Edited to add: I didn't want to post this on facebook, as I really try not to put completely random and pointless things there, unless I think they're funny, in which case they're not useless. Anyway, it feels like it doesn't belong here on the blog, but I didn't know where else to put it. I'm just trying to justify blogging nonsense. Carry on.

CHEESE

2011-08-25T14:52:00.002-05:00

Forgive my obnoxious prodding. If you stick it out til the very end, it's totally worth it.

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Pinning Madness

2011-08-24T22:53:00.014-05:00

Pinterest has made me realize that I ~~want~~ need the following things in my life:

Riding Boots

A badass jacket

This entire outfit

As well as this entire outfit

And I need to ~~make~~ eat:

Peanut butter pie parfaits

Peanut Butter Cookie Bars with Cake Mix

And the kids would think I'm ~~cool~~ awesome if I make the following for them:

Yo Gabba Gabba Pumpkins

Sky Parfaits

Glow in the dark Bowling Pins

And these things are just the tip of the iceberg. Oh, pinterest, why can't I quit you?

ridin'

2011-08-17T22:02:00.003-05:00

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best friends

2011-08-17T22:02:00.001-05:00

Addy and embyr. After a birthday party on Saturday. Love that SWEET girl!

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THIS is the video I meant to post yesterday.

2011-08-16T17:12:00.003-05:00

It's cuter than the other one. Promise.

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knock knock jokes.

2011-08-15T22:09:00.002-05:00

Laughing at addisons jokes can be painful sometimes. Today however, she really had me giggling.

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DUDE! This is the wrong video. Boo.

2011-08-14T11:36:00.002-05:00

http://josh-reinke.blogspot.com/http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

improv

2011-08-09T17:18:00.001-05:00

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jazz 1

2011-08-09T17:11:00.001-05:00

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belle!

2011-08-05T09:48:00.001-05:00

Round 3 of princess camp. She has now met cinderella, Ariel and belle. I'm pretty sure her life is complete now.

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2011-08-03T22:23:00.003-05:00

Have I REALLY not blogged in over a week? OH NO! Let's play catch up, shall we?

Tonight, thanks to Holly, I found my newest time waster: Pinterest. Once you start, you can't stop. Ugh. I love it. I hate it. I love it!

I only have two more days of Princess Camp! Please don't misunderstand. I LOVE my princesses. I just don't love the exhaustion that comes with Princess CAMP. I am SO tired. Like, really really REALLY tired. Really.

And I only have two more weeks of summer classes at the studio! Then it's back to normal with a full schedule and full classes. I'm just about OVER working twice as hard to make half as much money. SO not fun.

Funny: One of my princess camp teachers told me that she and another teacher were whispering to one another during the "quiet" part of camp (ballet). She said that Addison camp up to them, and whispered to them: "I like pickles now".

My hairdresser hooked me up with an AWESOME deal on a Brazilian Blowout today. My hair is straight and so pretty! And will be this way for a few months! And I hardly had to pay anything! What up, LiAnne?! Holla atcha girl!

Aiden is THE BEST. Well, Addison is THE BEST, too. They BOTH are the best. You know who else is the best? Mike. And you. You're the best, too.

Oooh, I've read some books lately: I read A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard. Oh my word, what a story she has lived to tell. It is absolutely horrifying and inspiring at the same time. I also read a book called Spoiled, written by two hilarious ladies who write a fashion blog/website. The book is not one I recommend. I do recommend you visit their website, though. They really are a hoot. Too bad about their book, really. And did I blog about The Firm yet? Yeah, I read that too. Good stuff. And a book called Crazy Girls. Don't read it. Not worth your time. Annnd... Jimmy Fallon's last two books. Super funny. Very quick reads. Like, finished in an hour quick. Bummer. I also read Water For Elephants, but had to stop reading it because I couldn't take the animal cruelty. I'm so weird, I know. And I read The Help as well. Am NOT looking forward to the movie, so don't even ask. I'll gladly take suggestions on what I should read next.

I feel like we're sufficiently caught up now. See ya in another week, I'm sure!

Product Overload

2011-07-23T16:42:00.004-05:00

Ever wondered what products I use to keep my skin and hair so radiantly beautiful?

No?

Well Shut Up! because Imma tell you anyway.

So.

You know I love me a good bath. I find bath salts to be essential nowadays and recently I've been loving EO Bath Salt in both coconut & vanilla and Chamomile and Lavendar. I get it at Whole Foods and LOVE IT.

While bath salts are a luxury, and not something I indulge in every day, moisturizing is essential and I DO "splurge" and moisturize daily. I use Cera-Ve Moisturizing Cream from head to toe. It's perfect for face, elbows, legs, whatever. Perfect combination of light and creamy. No scent, either, which I actually like.

For soap, I like to use bar soap. Loofahs creep me out. I feel like they harbor way too much bacteria. (I don't use sponges for dishes or housework for the same reason. Eew.) Right now I'm actually using Caress, because I can't buy expensive *everything* and it was on sale. And I really, really like it. Will buy again when I'm out. It's not filmy at all and is just barely scented.

For my hair I have two different products, depending on whether I'm air drying or blow drying. When air drying, I use Shu Uemura Liquid Fabric Texture Spray. While I *like* it, I can't honestly say that I love it. I haven't found anything I LOVE when air drying, unfortunately. This is the best I've found. When blow drying, I use Redken Smooth Down Heat Glide, and I DO love this product. Not greasy at all, but does a great job of keeping the hair smooth.

Make-up. Put together the facts that a) I've been driving Mike's car lately because my inspection is due on my car, b) my make-up bag is in my car, c) I'm a combination of lazy and forgetful, which leads to my not getting the stupid make-up bag out of the stupid car, and you'll get the fact that d) I haven't been wearing make-up lately. But the products I WAS wearing regularly, I was very happy with.

For "powder" I use LORAC perfectly lit luminizing powder in luminous. I put "powder" in quotations because it really doesn't look or feel like a powder. It just kind of highlights and gives a slight shimmer to your face. I really, really love this stuff.

For my eyes, I use Clinique color surge eye shadows in purple. Every Christmas my mom gives us Clinique make-up bags, and this was in last Christmas' bag and I LOVE it. I also use a white shimmer right under my eyebrows, no specific brand- whatever is cheap. I think it's covergirl right now.

I always curl my eyelashes and use mascara, and I have no idea what kind of curler I use, or what kind of mascara I use. Whatever mascara is pink with a green top, that's what I use.

When going out and actually DOING my make-up, I always darken my eyebrows. I just find that it finishes the look. I recently found Revlon Colorstay Brow Enhancer and am loving it.

So, there you have it. Fire up the google and get to looking for these fabulous products. You won't be disappointed, I promise.

The cutest EVER!

2011-07-22T21:46:00.000-05:00

ch-ch-ch-changes

2011-07-21T21:09:00.005-05:00

Mike has been a full time stay at home dad this summer, and I've been working what feels like all the time. This has brought about many changes in our household, including but not limited to: a major change in interests for Addison. No more Barbies and Princesses for this girl. She's all about SUPER HEROES. Mike has introduced her to the following cartoons and/or movies, and she has seen each more times than I'd like to admit:

The Avengers- she sings the theme song ALL THE TIME. Avengers Assemble!
Batman- she's way into all of the villains- Two Face, The Joker, Poison Ivy, the list goes on and on... (She hasn't seen any of the Batman movies, only the cartoon)
Superman
Spiderman
Green Lantern- she pronounces it Green Lanterin for some reason, which makes me giggle

I know there are more, but to be honest with you, I don't really pay much attention. All I know is that she LOVES superheroes and pretends to be one most of the time.

She calls herself "The Wasp". And her superpower is her "shooters". Not exactly sure what the shooters do, but they come from her arms and she swings her arms around and makes a "peew peew peew" sound as she does it.

I knew Mike was going to introduce these things to Aiden in good time, I mean let's face it: Mike's "office" is a storage room and place to display his comic book and figurine collections. Seriously, if you haven't seen it, it's a sight to behold. But never in a million years would I have thought that Addison would give a rat's ass about this stuff. (a rat's ass? what a gross saying).

BUT. She loves it. And it's added a whole new dimension to her character and personality, which is actually pretty cool. AND she fights off the bad guys with her superpowers, so our family is always protected... which is pretty cool too.

josh

2011-07-15T22:42:00.002-05:00

Our close friend josh just found out he has non hodgkins lymphoma. He's starting his fight in a couple of weeks. Tonight he came over to play with us. We played some wii, watched a movie, and enjoyed ourselves immensely. We love josh and hope and pray and KNOW that he will beat this. Love love love joshie.

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Down One Man

2011-07-12T22:06:00.005-05:00

Wo-Man. The studio is down one instructor.

Once of my teachers (Addison's teacher) emailed me on Sunday night to tell me that Monday would be her last day. She'd told me that she was looking for another job- as side job- to make more money. And she told me she'd give me plenty of time to replace her, if needed. Less than a day is not "plenty of time". So, I'm hustling. I put an ad on craigslist and am interviewing all week. Because she might not have had many summer hours, but she sure had a lot of fall hours: 25.

Ugh.

I want to scream. But I'm not screaming. I'm just trucking along filling in for all of her summer classes and trying to find a qualified person to fill her fall classes.

Anyone wanna give dance teaching a try? Let me know!

Accents

2011-07-09T21:53:00.006-05:00

I don't know why... but I have an, what some might call, "obsession" with british accents. I'm trying to acquire one (not to use permanently, of course, because that would just be weird). No, no... I only want it to be used for fun. Remember, what's fun for you is probably different from what's fun for me. You may have noticed this in previous posts. You probably did, actually.

Accents. Yes. I try to use them when we're at home, having normal conversations. "What, Addison? You want more juice? Of course, hang on just a minute, mommy will have your juice after she finishes the dishes. Oh, I forgot to tell you that we have plans to go have dinner with some friends tonight. Yes, won't that be fun!"

I like it! It's fun!!! Maybe we'll get to have a conversation while I'm speaking with a british accent. Wouldn't THAT be fun?!?!

My Hero

2011-07-06T21:32:00.003-05:00

Addison had her first swim lesson yesterday. More on that later.

Before leaving, I had to stop by the front desk to ask a question. There was some sort of confrontation on the other side of the desk, I noticed it right away. At first it was just words, but then I saw a "boy" (he was maybe 16 or 17 years old?) slap a woman (she was probably 50?) I tried to tell Mike, sort of under my breath, so as to not cause a scene or draw more attention to it, and bless him, he was very "Mike" about it. Huh? What? Then the boy punched the woman in the face, calling her every curse word under the sun. I then loudly told Mike what was going on, and when we both looked back over, he had her under his arm and was pulling his hair with all his might. I told Mike to go and help her! She was all alone over there and was being attacked!

So, Mike ran over and immediately utilized his hold training he'd learned back from his Region 13 days. This boy was STRONG. Finally the YMCA staff woke up and called for back-up. A few men ran over to help. There were literally 4 men trying to pry this boy off of the woman. As soon as he could free an arm, he used it to either punch the woman, or whichever man he could reach. Luckily, Mike never got hit.

While this is happening, I'm trying to keep Addison and Aiden away from the scene. The YMCA had finally called 911 and were trying to re-route the people coming in the front doors. They put the most incompetent staff members on this job, I swear. So I started doing their job, making sure no one came near the commotion.

By this point, they've got the boy on the floor, but all 4 men were still required to hold him down. He was bleeding from his mouth and was still VERY strong and aggressive. Shouting profanities and trying his hardest to hit whoever he could.

The woman behind the desk told me that he was "special needs" and the woman was his "job trainer". It was his first day. They had called his mom, and she showed up within minutes. It seemed like when she showed up, he calmed down a bit, but still all 4 men were on top of him. She was on the brink of tears- almost like this was new to her, like she'd not dealt with this before.

The police showed up, and then the paramedics. Once he was able to, Mike left the situation.

It was CRAZY. If Mike hadn't intervened when he did, I wonder how much longer the boy would have attacked the woman, how much harm he could have done? I don't like to think about it.

On the way home, I said something to Mike about using his old Region 13 moves. He told me he had one student last year who he had to hold down like that many times over the year. He said his student wasn't quite as strong as this YMCA kid, but close. And that he was just as violent, except most of the time self-inflicting- banging his head on the floor, etc. I can't even imagine seeing this! And then coming home, cool as a cucumber.

He is my hero. My husband, my hero.

2011-07-03T21:24:00.002-05:00

Click here to see some photos from my Grandmother's party.

And for a photo session starring my sister and her family.

Wish there was more of ME! (No I don't)

Wish there was more of my kids! This much is true.

So Much To Post...

2011-07-03T12:04:00.003-05:00

So little time.

Or, really, so little energy.

I still need to get to Aiden's birthday. And Mike's birthday.

But first... (spoken in my best Julie Chen, host of Big Brother, voice. If you didn't get that joke you're most definitely cooler than I am.)

Grandma's 90th birthday.

Key words to summarize last night's celebration:

Hummer Limos. Hot. Malfunctioning A/C. CRAZY HAPPY KIDS. The County Line. Drunk Aunt Susan. Free drinks. All you can eat meat. British accents. Hai Le.

How Do I Waste My Time? Well...

2011-07-01T22:04:00.004-05:00

The Bachelorette is SO STUPID. The stupid girl, the stupid guys, the stupid staging of "moments", it's ALL SO STUPID. Why do I watch it? I don't really, actually. I record it and then "watch" it while working (returning emails and such). But ugh. I still hate myself. (i also suspect at least 3 of the bachelors are gay. so that's fun to watch. so uncomfortable.)

I still love The Real Housewives of Anything. And Watch What Happens Live. And anything on Bravo. It's a love/hate relationship and I LOVE it.

So You Think You Can Dance? YES. Melanie? YES. This show is a total crock (as if they really draw the dances "randomly" from a hat each week. Puh-leeze.) But I still love it. It's clear they want Melanie and her partner (Marko?) to make it far and I'm totally on board with that.

Did you know that I record Days of Our Lives every day? And delete it every night without watching it? I just read the 2 sentence synopsis and delete it. So I feel like I'm still in tune with the story lines but I haven't actually watched an episode in months. It's pretty awesome.

Oh.

Have you seen Bridesmaids?

GO SEE IT! It is LAUGH OUT LOUD, PEE YOUR PANTS, LAUGH TIL YOU CRY, DOUBLE OVER IN A GOOD WAY FUNNY.

And thus concludes my report on my television and movie watching as of late.

Aiden's first steps

2011-06-25T23:39:00.000-05:00

Of course I missed it. But am so thankful that Mike got some good video! He starts off a little slow, but really gets the hang of it after a while. YAY Aiden! My favorite part of the video is the very end, when he laughs at his cousins squashing acorns on the sidewalk. More laughs in the next video. :-)

aiden laughing

2011-06-25T23:36:00.000-05:00

OMG His laugh just KILLS ME! SO CUTE!

Princess Camp

2011-06-25T22:43:00.010-05:00

It's a 4 year old's heaven. For real.

For the first time, I hired a Cinderella to come make an appearance on our last day of camp. She wasn't exactly the perfect Cinderella, but she was cheap, came through in a pinch, and the girls bought her hook, line and sinker.

Notice how doggie's posed in all of these pictures. This meant the world to Addy.

The girls were SO EXCITED to perform their princess dance they'd been practicing all week. Again, just the cutest! Here they are after performing. (look at who's IN Cinderella's lap)

So NOW I feel guilty because I took individual pics of all of the campers with Cinderella and need to email them to their parents. And instead I just blogged.

And I think I'm about to blog again because I now finally have the video from Mike's phone of Aiden's first steps. I really, TRULY believe that these videos are the cutest ever in the history of the earth.

TOTAL CHEESE

2011-06-25T22:16:00.002-05:00

But I love my sister.

We are working closely right now, selecting songs for our new teams for competition season. I love being with her, she always makes me laugh, and makes me happy. She really does make me happy.

I just really love her.

Dance!!!

2011-06-24T22:29:00.002-05:00

So these are actually out of order. The last video posted is my favorite. The second to last is my second favorite. Etc, etc.

Loving dance and am feeling inspired :-)

SYTYCD 6/22/11 Flying Hip Hop Routine

2011-06-24T22:29:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD 6/22/11 Sing, Sing, Sing Routine

2011-06-24T22:28:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD 6/22/11 Turning Tables Routine

2011-06-24T22:27:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD 6/15/11 Statue Routine

2011-06-24T22:26:00.000-05:00

ummmm

2011-06-22T23:12:00.001-05:00

So You Think You Can Dance is SO GOOD y'all.

WATCH IT!

I'm posting videos of my favorite dances as soon as I have enough energy and/or time.

WATCH IT!

The Adairs Visit

2011-06-20T00:23:00.005-05:00

Grandpa (Marshall)'s parents came in for a weekend visit. It's always nice to visit with them.

All Kinds of Out of Order

2011-06-19T23:19:00.006-05:00

Yeah, Aiden turned one almost a month ago, and I've still not blogged about it. I'm just waiting on some pictures, and to be honest, that blog seems so LONG and descriptive, I'm just not sure I'm up for it right now.

And don't even get me started on recital.

So, here are some pictures of recent swimming adventures.

Bath time

2011-06-14T22:07:00.006-05:00

If I'm being honest, I'm not sure why I'm doing this. I'm exhausted. But I feel like it's been so long since I've posted.

Here are a couple of pics taken during bath time lately...

Of course I need to blog about recital, but I really wouldn't know where to start. So I'm going to sit on it for a while and blog when I'm ready.

I AM a good mom! I AM! See???

2011-06-08T22:32:00.010-05:00

This is a little activity I picked up from a blog found here. Very cool website for creative activities for you and your kids.
I made crayon rubbings of different textures around the house, and then sent Addison on a scavenger hunt to find where each rubbing came from. It was lots of fun!

The Final Chapter (I hope)

2011-06-07T22:49:00.002-05:00

I am so tired.

So Imma get right to the point.

Addison has not had any accidents in 3 days now. Has pooped in the potty two times a day for the last three days.

As brief as I'd like to keep this, I'd just like to point out that none of the strategies I tried were what made this happen. I think she just woke up one day and decided to cooperate. No joke.

The Update You've All Been Waiting For

2011-06-04T22:38:00.003-05:00

Here's a potty update. Let's see... where to start. I guess I'll start by saying that I think we've attempted every approach that exists. The suggestions of having her sit on the toilet with a diaper. Yep, tried it. A new potty seat. Yep, tried it. 3, in fact. ...

After Addison continued to poop in her panties, we decided (contrary to what I said in an earlier post) that it was time to put her back in diapers. Because she did NOT want to wear a diaper. We told her that it was a diaper all the time- ALL THE TIME. She was not happy, but finally accepted it. Because not accepting it meant she'd have to poop on the toilet and she was not interested in doing that.

So. Addison expressed that she did not want anyone to know that she was wearing a diaper. So what did Mike and I do? Scheduled a sleepover with her idol/cousin Abigail of course! We thought- perfect! She does NOT want Abbie to know that she's in a diaper... the "shame" will fix this! Um. No. Addison said she felt poo poo, went to the bathroom, and we sent Abbie in with her. They come out, we're all on the edges of our seats, and it turns out that all that happened in the bathroom was that Addison asked Abbie to "fix" her diaper (whatever that means), and Abbie obliged. Addison conquered her fear of Abbie finding out, and then it was no holds barred. We decided to let her wear panties to bed (not sure why), and what does she do within 5 minutes? POOPS IN HER PANTIES.

We had Melissa come get Abigail, told Addison that only big girls can have sleepovers. She didn't care. We took toys away from her with each "accident". The toys became larger and more beloved with each stupid accident.

So now we're making her go commando 24/7. She's missing playtime with cousins, dance class, trips to the store, EVERYTHING. She has to stay home all the time. Twice now she's pooped in the toilet, but both times, later in the day after we rewarded her with panties and one toy returned from the banished toys in our closet, she POOPED IN HER FREAKING PANTIES. So undies were thrown away, she is back to nude, and she lost more toys.

Currently the toys that are in our closet are: Her favorite new barbie with crazy cool fairy wings, ALL of her My Little Ponies (including the two "big" ones that talk that she got for her birthday), her whole bucket of Barbies, her new Princess Couch, her new Pillow Pet, 4 Princess Baby Dolls, her Barbie House.

We keep telling her that at the rate she's going, she's going to end up with nothing left. "I know. That's ok."

I just want you all to know that I'm screaming on the inside. LOUD.

sad story

2011-05-30T11:14:00.002-05:00

This just happened:

While sorting laundry, Mike holds up a pair of my pretty risque "jammies".

He seems confused. "I don't remember you wearing these lately."

"Oh, I didn't. I used them to wipe kid snot."

Oy.

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Poop

2011-05-26T21:15:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry, y'all. I don't know what else to do here. Maybe somebody will impart some wisdom here and help a mama out. Because I'm at a loss.

So.

Addison pees on the toilet, no problem. No accidents in a LONG time. Her bowel movements are very consistent, once in the early afternoon and once before bedtime. But always in a diaper. Backstory: There has always been hesitation when it comes to pooping... she's suffered from some constipation issues early on, daily miralax has helped with this. But she still obviously has some hurdles to overcome. She always insisted she'd go on the toilet "when I'm 4". So, we were patient... figured that Addison is strong-willed and decisive, and would prove to us that on her fourth birthday she was ready.

Her 4th birthday came and went. She said she "didn't feel it".

The next day she had the tiniest of accidents in her panties. Very soft. Not constipation. We sit her on the toilet and she says she "can't".

The next day, same thing.

Same thing the next day. And then a HUGE poop in her panties.

I get angry. Threaten lots of bad things... she is in tears every time, saying "it hurts". I look at her bottom, it's not red, I see no sores, etc.

She has a well-check. Doctor says everything looks fine. He says we have two options: go back to a diaper until she's ready (not an option as far as Mike and I are concerned) or boot-camp style, go without panties or anything for 3 or 4 days until she's "trained". This option is easier said than done. Um... Mike and I both work. And Addison is THE MOST strong-willed child I've ever met. Not an exaggeration.

She will tell us when she needs to go, and then when she sits down, she holds it in, cries, and says it hurts.

But then she goes in her panties, we ask her if it hurt when she does this. She says no. So then it shouldn't hurt when she sits down, right?

Tonight we took a toy away from her after she had a small "accident". Told her she could get it back once she started going on the toilet. Then, for whatever reason, she told me to take her FAVORITE toy that she received on her birthday. Asked me to "babysit" her.

Um, okay? I guess?

SO WHAT THE HELL DO I DO NOW?

Answers to frequently asked questions:
yes, we read to her when she's on the toilet
we also let her watch videos and play games on our phones
we try to keep the mood "light"
the stools are definitely soft. not hard, no reason for it to hurt.

I'll say it again. I'm at a loss. Help?!?

Well Visit

2011-05-24T21:34:00.004-05:00

Our one year and four year well checks went well!

Addison is at 85% height, 75% weight
Aiden is at 75% height, 25% weight

Addison has 20/20 vision!

Other than these facts, the appointment went according to routine. They did get their shots :-( More than one nurse said to me "you're very brave!" as I had a crying 4 year old and a crying 1 year old on each hip as I was trying to leave the office! Oh well, not the best planning on my part.

Addison's 4th Birthday

2011-05-24T20:01:00.008-05:00

Wow. I can't believe our little baby is 4 years old. I played a game once where I had to describe something with 9 words, so I'm going to do this to describe Addison. Addison is:
Smart
Stubborn
Artistic
Empathetic
Dramatic
Silly
Fun
Girly
Awesome

Our Sweet Addison.

Addison decided she wanted to have her party at Sharkey's cuts for kids. It was an all girl party, which was a bummer for her boy cousins and friends, but it WAS fun for the girls! They all got manicures, hair up-dos, makeup and had a fashion show down the runway. They were asked how old they are and what they want to be when they grow up and these facts were announced as they came through the curtains. Addison said she wants to be a mommy. So sweet.

Addison getting her make up done :-)

Our camera battery died :-( so the pictures end here. If you attended the party and got any cute photos, could you send them my way?

It was a really fun party for Addison, getting pampered with her friends. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, you know? After Sharkeys, we gathered at our house so that Addison could open her presents. Then we all (my mom, sister, neices and nephews, and Mike's parents), went out to celebrated Addison's birthday one last time at Jardin Corona.

Thank you to everybody who took time out of your day to come and help Addison celebrate. She's SO happy that she's FOUR!

Movies in the Park

2011-05-17T16:39:00.000-05:00

Thank you J and K for inviting us! We had so much fun and are definitely planning on coming again. (except we might pass on the movies in the pool...that just sounds...not fun.)

throwing tantrums is exhausting

2011-05-17T14:24:00.001-05:00

After three MASSIVE tantrums today, this is where addison ended up. Asleep in the hallway outside of her bedroom. She passed out mid-hissy fit.

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2011-05-16T21:17:00.001-05:00

Addison's FOURTH birthday is on Saturday.

I've overscheduled myself and am teaching Saturday morning from 10-12, and then have our auditions for next year's competition teams from 2-7. So I'll be away working during, pretty much, her entire birthday.

I know, I know... "it's just a DAY." I know. But just as much as it's HER birthday, I feel like it's mine too, in a way. Four years ago, my life forever changed. And I want to celebrate the perfect, sweet, amazing child we are blessed with!

Instead I'll be working. Boo.

it's here!

2011-05-16T19:23:00.002-05:00

One week shy of a year old, aiden's first tooth has appeared!

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good thing Gaga has this one covered

2011-05-15T15:51:00.001-05:00

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she dreams big

2011-05-15T15:50:00.001-05:00

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