Father's Day

Big Sister is usually TERRIBLE at keeping secrets.  If we tell her something is a surprise, the surprise is usually the first thing she blurts out when she next sees the person the surprise is for.  She loves picking out gifts for others and usually can't wait to show someone what she's gotten for them.  But, it seems that maybe, just maybe she's getting better at keeping secrets.  Among other things, we got John a light up frisbee for Father's Day.  His sister has one, and he thought it was cool, so Big Sister and I decided to get one for him.  Big Sister was pretty excited about it, but played it cool and never even tried to hint at what the gift was.  She was so excited when he opened it though - she couldn't wait to tell Daddy all about it!

We went to the Montgomery Zoo with my parents and Jamie (what better way to celebrate Father's Day than with all the animals?!), and then we had lunch at Cuco's, which is my Dad's favorite Mexican restaurant.  They used to have one in Birmingham, near where we went to church when I was growing up, but it's closed and the closest one to us now is in Montgomery, so we don't get to go very often (I haven't been in years).  It was a yummy way to celebrate!

After we got home, we enjoyed a bit of pool time, then John and Big Sister went over to his parents house for a bit to visit with Papa Jack and Grandpa Dudley, while Little Bud was napping.  We're planning to have a belated Father's Day dinner with Grammie and Papa later this week.  It's hard to fit all of the celebrating into one day :)

 

sloth bear

sky lift!

both littles had a great time feeding the birds with Grams :)

Little Bud enjoyed "petting the birds"

he would touch it, and then pull back and laugh and then fuss.

It seemed that he wasn't quite sure if he liked touching them or not.

Big Sister wanted this bird to fly up onto her stick.  She showed him what

was on it, then lifted it up and flapped her arms to show him what to do.

The bird did not obey very well!

feeding the giraffes!

finding her own "words" in the word search :)

Check Ups

On Friday, I took both littles in for check ups at the doctors office.  Big Sister had her 4 year check up (a bit delayed because of our hectic schedule) and Little Bud had his 15 month check up.  They're both healthy and meeting all of their milestones!

Here are their stats from the appointment:

Big Sister
Height: 3 ft., 3 in. (30th percentile)
Weight: 33 lbs. (50th percentile)

She was happy to show off all of her "skills" to our pediatrician.  She demonstrated how she can balance AND jump on one foot, she counted to 20 (she can count to 30, but the doctor went on to ask her other questions when she paused at 20), and proudly told her that she dresses herself in the mornings and helps around the house (I guess independence is a 4 year old "milestone", and Big Sister definitely has that one handled!). 

Little Bud
Height: 29 1/2 in. (3rd percentile)
Weight: 18 lbs, 6 oz. (3rd percentile)
Head Circum.: 45 1/2 cm. (15th percentile)

He just cut all FOUR of his molars at one time, taking his tooth count up to 12.  He's wearing size 4 diapers, size 3 shoes and 9 to 12 month clothes.  He is definitely small for his age, but he's growing well based on his own growth chart.  He's a super happy boy who loves trucks (or anything with wheels), playing chase, dancing to music (he'll only dance and clap if he likes a particular song - his favorite band is definitely NeedtoBreath), eating and climbing (by the time I safeguard one climbing spot, he's found somewhere else to explore!).  He hasn't started walking by himself yet, but he does walk behind toys and walk along furniture and walls, and he crawls with lightning speed, so I don't think he has much motivation to fine tune his balancing skills (although I'm sure his knees will be so happy when he starts walking; he'll crawls across any surface, regardless of how rough it is).  Big Sister was almost 17 months when she finally learned to walk, so we're hoping that sometime in the next month or so, Little Bud will figure it out too :)

 

ALA Convention

This year the Alabama Convention was at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina.  As a happy coincidence, the Georgia Convention was also there as well, so we were able to (briefly) visit with some of the Smith family that we don't get to see very often.  I grew up attending both of these conventions with my family, so it's kind of nostalgic to me (although not always the most convenient) for us to bring our kids along with us.  My parents and Jamie were a huge help with both littles, watching and playing with them while John was in meetings and I enjoyed a little spa time.

After dinner, the last night of the convention, my dad was presented with a coin by a retired Brigadier General. Officers are given their own coins to award to individuals they find deserving of them. This General has only awarded six coins and he chose to give one to my dad. (Of course, Little Bud chose this dinner to have a teething induced fit, so I missed the actual presentation.)  I'm so thankful for the integrity and compassion that both of my parents raised us with.  I'm also thankful for all the hard work and sacrifices that my parents, grandparents and great grandparents (and various other family members as well) have made over the years to pave the way in our family business.  Congrats Dad!  

we stopped on the way to check out the Nantahala River

Big Sister "won" the drawing one morning (with a little help from Papa and one of his business friends!)

cruising in the stroller

Daddy painted Big Sisters nails one afternoon  (and even added flower stickers!)

Big Sister and "Cousin S" (who is definitely one of her favorite people!)

My lovely parents

Big Sister dancing with my Grandpa (brought back sweet memories for me!)

Big Sister and a few of the other littles were the life of the dance party!  She couldn't wait for the music to start!

Big Sister dancing with Little Bud.  So sweet!

Papa and Little Bud

another picture of Big Sister and Grandpa

The last night of the convention, Jamie took some pictures of our little family - I love this one of Big Sister!

Big Sister and Little Bud

Mommy and Little Bud

sweet boy!

It's almost impossible to get a family photo with these two!

Dad with the Brigadier General and his wife

The original inn

Sunset over the spa

checking out the waterfall

Sleeping on the way home :) She always wants me to take her picture when she's napping in the car.

Growing Up

Big Sister seems to have been thinking a lot lately about growing up.  She's had 3 meltdown episodes in the last 2 days where she's inconsolable about the prospect of moving out when she's grown up.  I've tried to talk to her about the fact that she might actually WANT to move out when she gets older, and reassured her that we won't make her move out until she's ready (within reason of course!), but she just tells me (with tears spilling from her eyes and rolling down her cheeks) that she'll miss me too much.  It really would be such a sweet moment (what Momma doesn't want to hear that her sweet little girl loves her so much!), but the fact that she won't be consoled, and no amount of hugs, kisses and reassurances helps her feel better, makes the situation just a tad bit frustrating.  At the end of one such conversation, she did say that she would like to have her own babies one day, and I was able to use that to bring things around to a positive note saying that maybe, just maybe when she's grown up, she can move into the house next door to us, so that I can come over and play with her and her babies.  She liked that idea very much.

She's a little foggy on other aspects of growing up as well.  In addition to talking about moving out, she's been interested in the idea of getting married (asking questions, etc.).  She's thinking she might get married to Little Bud.  I guess there's plenty of time to explain why that isn't such a great idea ;)


While we're on the subject of Big Sister... the other day while we were at a family member's graduation party, Big Sister came and whispered in my ear that she needed to go poop.  I thought it was a little strange that she whispered this, because she's never been shy about having to go to the bathroom before.  So, while she was doing what needed to be done in the bathroom, we had the following conversation:

Big Sister: "Does everybody poop?"
Mommy: "Of course."
Big Sister: "Even Liz?" (she'd been playing with John's sister Liz before she had to go potty)
Mommy: "Yes, even Liz."
Big Sister: "Oh."
Big Sister: "I don't want to poop anymore." (meaning she never wanted to poop again)
I then explained about how the body works, taking the nutrients from the food we eat, and getting rid of the things we don't need, which seemed to help her feel a little better about pooping in the future.
Then, she finished of the conversation on this note...
Big Sister: "It's just that I'm so BEAUTIFUL and my poop is NOT!"
The girl had a serious revelation while sitting on the potty :)

Life with a 4 year old is never dull!!

Miss Independent

Big Sister has been becoming increasingly independent lately.  We've had a few power struggles lately, and John and I have been working hard to find good ways for her to demonstrate her independence.  She now dries herself off, dresses herself and brushes her hair after a bath.  She helps put away groceries.  She helps set the table before dinner.  She likes to get everything out for Little Bud's diaper changes (although she runs for the hills during the actual process!).  We got her an electric toothbrush so that she can brush her own teeth after breakfast and lunch (we still brush them at night).  Having a few responsibilities around the house seems to be helping her to feel more independent.  She is proud of herself when she completes a task, and you can see her confidence grow when we congratulate her and give her a high five.  I'm learning that parenting is all about balance, creativity and choosing your battles...

This morning Big Sister got dressed, brushed her hair, and then...
"fixed her hair", with little clips in odd places that don't match her clothes.
She was so excited about how nice her hair looked, that I decided to let her keep them in,
even though we're running a few errands this morning.

Desoto Caverns

On Sunday, we drove over to Desoto Caverns with John's grandparents (who are visiting from New Hampshire), Grammie (John's mom) and his sister and her boyfriend.  Big Sister wasn't so sure about walking down into a cave, but she decided to give it a try, and ended up having a fun time exploring and learning (although she did try to act scared a few times and asked the tour guide if there were any bears in the cave!).  After the cave tour, Big Sister was able to ride a few rides, pan for gold and dig for crystals.  She was one happy (and tired!) girl!

watching the presentation

inside the cavern

Big Sister was very serious about listening to the tour guide

Big Sister exploring with Gigi and Grammie

Daddy and Little Bud (his new hair cut makes him look so grown up!)

panning for gemstones!

treasures :)

bumper cars!

playing in the fountain

tired girl on the way home