10:45am Lunch!

Emma, Allison, Kaci - - Mrs. Murfee's Kindergarten Cuties!

I went to the elementary school today to have lunch with Emma . . .actually to sit with Emma while she ate. Her lunchtime is at 10:45am! When a student has lunch with someone, we eat up on the stage and they get to bring two friends from their class with them. Today Emma brought a new friend, Kaci, and an old friend from preschool, Allison. Libby came along, too and we had so much fun meeting Emma's classmates and seeing some other community kids that we already know.

Peace

Nannie took us on our annual back-to-school shopping trip. Here's Maggie and Emma giving me funny faces and peace signs. Emma was determined all day to get a piece of jewelry, so she picked out a necklace with a peace charm on it and so did Maggie. Peace, sistas!

Nags Head 2009

Vacay! Our wonderful friends John and Sharon had us as their guests at his parents condo in Nags Head. Their two boys and our two girls had a blast. We ate out only once, Sharon did most of the cooking as I tried to keep Libby calm. She was always tired and hungry at dinnertime and crying her eyes out. I hadn't been to the beach in three years, and the sand and the sun and the sound of the waves was amazing. I hope I never go that long again without going to the beach. Some other friends and family were in Nags Head at the same time. Kevin, Amy, Maggie and Mason were there, and so were Blake, Leslie, Ashtyn and Ellie, and so were Jimmy, Mary Lee, Whit and Taylor. We all drove onto the beach at Oregon Inlet, popped up some tents, set out our chairs, grilled up some food, and stayed from morning until late afternoon. The kids had a blast searching for shells, jellyfish, and making slides out of sand. Emma swam a few strokes without her arm floaties and if we'd had a few more days at the pool I think she could have really taken off. Libby was close to learning how to swim with the arm floaties on. The pool had a great two-foot-deep area that the kids could walk around in, so I didn't have to hold Libby the whole time. . . I chilled on the pool steps . . . niiiice! Click here to view allll of our vacation pictures!


Emma and Libby, Linton and Garrison


Check out the sand/mud on Emma's face! The white gook is the only sunscreen I've found that will work for Libby's face, so Emma got it, too. It's good stuff.


Four kid pile-up!

The Furminator

We got the furminator. It works great! We got enough hair on the first brushing to make a bird's nest. . . . so I left the hair in the woods.

Just another summer saturday

At Wake beach on Saturday, Sharon caught a small blue crab and an even smaller fiddler crab. The kids were fascinated and searched for "more crabs" and "more crabs"! I asked Libby what we do with crabs and she said, "put em in a pot!" She learned that from her PopPop.


The girls really love the beach. Libby loves it so much she lays down in the sand to get the full enjoyment out of it (and as much sand in her hair possible).




Here we are looking for crabs, minnows, or anything that moves.



PS - Yes, this bathing suit is ruined. It has so much black sand in between the two layers of fabric that the bathing suit looks mostly black. This is the second bathing suit she has ruined this summer. The first one had to be thrown out (I didn't put a diaper on her, she pooped, a lot, it went in the trash and she went in the tub!), but I'll keep this one for more days at the muddy beach.

Ashland Visit

That was my name when I graduated from Randolph-Macon College. They now have a brick for each graduate in the historical campus. I visited the college last week for the first time in eleven years. Some things were very different, others were comfortingly the same. The best thing about the trip was that I met up with four of my sorority sisters for dinner and a campus tour.


Laura, Cole, Kate, Wendi, Mary
We haven't seen each other in years, and we all have different names now, but we had a fabulous time. We couldn't decide if getting together made us feel young again, or just old. Thank you facebook, for bringing us together again!


Our old stompin' grounds! If these walls could talk . . .


Look at Mary's laughing face - gosh I miss that! Hey, anybody seen campus police? We used to care, and now we don't. The fountain was deeper and colder than any of us thought it would be! Ahem, I mean, than any of us remember (Mary).

Hair

The girls pretend they are on an airplane. Their hair looks like they've been in a convertible!

Swimmin Lessons Are Good

Emma's first day of actually letting go of the wall and moving somewhere in the water on her own:


5 years old, July 8, 2009

Toddler Beds and Potties

Libby turned two in April. The pressure is on to potty train her. I wasn't planning on doing it until December, when we would all be home on vacation from work and school. She is not showing any signs of interest, but I realize that summer would be a good time to do it (less clothes to remove). Also, there's the fact that she is my baby. If I potty train her she'll be a big girl. I'm not ready to let go of my baby! She could be moved out of her crib into the toddler bed. Could be. Then she'd be able to get out! She'd come out of the bed, out of her room and down the steps whenever she wanted. I don't know if I'm ready for that. You see, this is really all about me . . . and my BABY!

Independence Day

Our July 4th weekend was great. Saturday morning the girls were in the children's parade in Deltaville. Martha made a "Happy 100th Birthday, Deltaville" float out of their wagon. Libby and I went home for lunch and naptime while Chucky and Emma stayed in town for the big parade. We all met at 4 at the ballpark and set up our tailgating area, complete with our new camouflage easy-up tent. People thought we were kidding when we said, "Hey come visit us, we're just over there, under the camouflage tent!" We relaxed in lawn chairs, while the kids played on the blankets and went back and forth inside to watch the ballgames. The lights around the ball field went out and I pulled Libby onto my lap and Emma sat with Chucky. The first boom was loud, and I put my hands over Libby's ears. I looked over at Emma, and she had her hands over her ears, too. Libby was fussing and I held her ears tighter and bounced her on my lap. She settled down and watched the pretty fireworks. I love that moment on July 4th. No one is talking, we are all looking up, and if you're lucky, you have a kid on your lap, or at least one nearby. I realized that next year Libby will be three, and might not want to sit in my lap and be bounced. I know everyday might be the last day she wants to be rocked at bedtime. I do no take these moments for granted . . . at this point in my life I feel like I am doing what I was born to do.


The float for the children's parade. Maggie and Emma pulled while Mason and Libby rode in high style.



Emma and "Nannie"

Shaken It

Turn down your speakers, unless you love AC/DC as much as we do:



We have never been accused of having too much rythym . . . the tradition continues.

Norfolk Botanical Gardens

Wednesday the girls and I went to the Norfolk Botanical Gardens, where we met my friend Kristyn, and her daughter Aubrey, who is two and a half. Kristyn has another baby on the way! The girls played in the fountains for a while, we had a picnic lunch and we looked at butterflies and caterpillars.
I had not seen my friend in a while, but we picked up where we left off and had a good time trying talk in between the bathroom breaks, clothes changes, snack breaks and general whining. From the kids. You know.
Here is my friend, looking faaabulousss, and her beautiful daughter:



I miss my friend! She is an easygoing, laughing, breath of fresh air. Would it be weird to make her picture my desktop background? Yes, I guess it would. So here she is on my blog, forever!

Here are Emma and Libby playing in the fountains:


This is a very cool caterpillar that will turn into a butterfly:

Kitchen update

New floor . . . check
Old cabinets painted white . . . check
Walls painted . . . check
New curtains . . . check
New light fixtures . . . check
New counter top . . . coming this week!

Before and after pictures coming soon.

Wedding Reception

Chucky's cousin Jonathan got married on Saturday. We left Libby with Ghee and PopPop and took Emma with us to the ceremony. It was her first wedding, so she had a lot of questions, and was a squirmy wormy on the bench seat. We picked up Libby for the reception, and both girls had a blast after they got some food. Emma danced to every song as long as someone would hold her hands or flip her around. Libby danced and twirled, but as the night went on insisted on me holding her and dancing around. I was sore the next day but knew I might never get to hold her and dance again, so I did it, and I loved it.


Libby is glad her cousin Mason arrived!


The rare pose for a picture by Emma.


Emma and Daddy dancing. More like gymnastics.


My new favorite picture.

Emilyyyyyyy!

Shannon, Tiffany, Janet, Emily, Sharon, Kate, Tracy

These are my girls. We get together once a month for dinner. Emily HAD to move to Ohio so we threw her and her husband a going away luau party. It was a party I will remember forever, I had so much fun! Joseph was the DJ and decided that from 7 to 1:30 was long enough "dudes"! I think we would have danced for another hour, we didn't want to say goodbye! She left two days after this . . . but the good thing is we have all found facebook and can live together online until she comes back. She WILL come back!


Emily named her special drinking cup "Deli" - short for Deltaville!



Check out Joseph's expression! He pretty much thinks she is craaazy!

CueHumber

Notice at the end how she angrily pushes the food in the floor. Is she going to be ten and still doing that?! She needs an anger management class!

Hee-Haw!

Happy Mother/Father's Day

Mom was in Italy for Mother's Day, so for Father's Day, we celebrated "parent's day"! We did our favorite things - eat crabs and give gifts! As you can see, Emma is a busybody and wanted to "help" everyone.

Ssummmmertimmee!

The girls are enjoying summer - the baby pool on the back deck, water country, sprinkler in the yard, they even think plucking worms off of tomato plants is fun! These are their best "funny faces".

Can't Believe I Did This:

Green Anaconda. 7 feet long, 15 pounds www.mypetsforparties.com

Has it been a month?

Wow, this blog has been neglected! It has gotten warm, and we're all outside! Mom and Dad have returned from two weeks in Italy, we planted a garden, went to the animal farm, signed up for kindergarten . . .will post more soon!

Kitchen

The kitchen is being redecorated. We are getting the wood stained cabinets painted white, a new floor, new countertops and curtains. Finally. We have lived in the house for three and a half years and the kitchen has always been my least favorite room. Almost to the point of using the word 'hate'. The cabinets are already white and even though nothing else has been done yet, I am already happier when I walk into the room. It should all be finished within two weeks, then I'll post some before and after pictures.

Shelby

I was playing with my macro lens and got what I think is a great picture of my original baby girl, Shelby.

Playin'

5 is cool.

This is totally Emma. Walking down the middle of the road without a care, two different shoes on, loving having her picture taken, and so proud that she gets to walk Shelby.

Kiss Shelby!

She did this the first time without anyone asking her to, and I just happened to see it. So much for trying to recreate the moment.

2

Libby turned two today! We had a great day, starting out at the Y, then to River Birch Animal Farm (ammmlllss!), then home to play in the backyard (lots of pictures), naptime, and some of her favorites for dinner plus homemade birthday cake! She talks in sentances, knows most body parts (shoulder and elbow are the new ones), and really knows she's cute and uses it to her advantage. If something is missing, she calls for it. "Here, toy! Come see me!" I have no idea where she got that from, but it is so cute and innocent. She also demands things "right now". We have been working on saying "get my milk please" instead of "get my milk right now!" Libby has violent fits every now and then, which convince us more and more she is going to be a football player. For about thirty seconds she'll wreak havoc on whatever is nearby . . . pull Emma's hair for no reason, throw books, kick a doll, swat at the dog. She's crazy I tell ya! People have talked so much about her red hair, she realizes it's something different than most people. I gave her a baby cabbage patch doll for her birthday that has red curly hair . . .and I asked her, "who else has red hair?" and she said, "ME!" Here she is kissing her new doll:



Even though the girls fight, Libby's best friend is Emma. When she wakes up, she says "where emma?" If we go somewhere without Emma in the car, "where emma?" If Emma has a banana, Libby says, "i want nana, like Emma!" Everything's gotta be "like Emma." They play great in the bathtub, pouring water on each other and whispering and plotting to get me wet, or make me laugh with their crazy hairdos and silly dances.

The time from age one to age two is my favorite, but I'm not sad it's over. There is so much to look forward to, and I have really enjoyed my girls being babies. I've soaked it all in and hopefully taken enough pictures and videos to help keep my memories alive. I know I'll forget . . . I forgot in the three years between the two . . . but I'll always be thankful . . . and ready for grandchildren!

Shelby Eat My Corn!

Chocolate . . . and food stuck in eyebrow!

More Easter activity:

Easter 2009

To see more Easter pictures, click here .

Happy Easter! Church at Zoar Baptist, lunch at Ghee and Pop-Pops!

Birthday Party

We had a joint birthday party for the girls at the firehouse. We had 52 people! I just wanted to get it all overwith, the family, the friends, the cake, the presents - and it worked out great! We had beautiful weather and happy kids! We have lots more pictures - click here to see them all!

Cutest Ballerina in the World

Emma did her dance routine to Mary Poppins' Spoonful of Sugar. The teacher was dressed like Mary Poppins and there were fifteen (yes, 15!) little 3-5 year olds twirling and grinning all over the stage. I can't wait to see it again when we get the DVD! I sat in the audience waiting for her class to come on stage, and I was as nervous as if I were going on stage. I put her hair up in a bun, and slathered makeup on her face (two firsts for her). She had glitter sprinkled all over her face, hair and arms. She looked really weird, but she enjoyed it, and I did too. Being in the dressing room with all the mothers and daughters was a natural thing to me, I felt like this was where I was meant to be . . . I don't know what I would do with a boy!

Libby stayed home and Uncle Joe and Lindsay came to babysit. In a couple of years, she'll be dancing, too. If she wants to, of course! She might rather play football if she keeps up her tough-girl act!

Emma's not in this one, but look at how cute they are!

Gymnastics

Emma takes gymnastics lessons every wednesday at preschool. The lessons are finished for this year, and the kids put on a show to show us what they have learned. Here's Emma doing a bridge, and she got herself in that position all by herself!

She also did rolls and cartwheels and they even finished up the routine with a small pyramid.

Kendall, Logan, Sarah, Evee, Emma

I am so proud of Emma. This spring she had to learn a gymnastics routine and a dance routine, and do them within a week of each other, and she was great, and cute, and great! No stagefright . . . yet.

5

Emma is 5! She's a big girl, but still a little girl. Now that she's five, she has to take care of herself. The big rules are: dress herself, brush her teeth, and wipe herself. It's been a week and so far, so good! All I have to for her is her hair. She has even figured out how to get her socks on. The only setback is that she doesn't always put on the clothes I have laid out for her. She thinks pink and red look good together . . . ugh! Here come the battles.

She is a better big sister now than ever. She and Libby get in to trouble together, though! They shut the bathroom door and Emma played in the sink and Libby played in the potty. A whole roll of toilet paper was shredded, dipped in the water, and scattered around the bathroom. I have no idea what I was doing! When Libby needs help, Emma helps her and talks to her and brings her toys. This morning I needed to pull a splinter out of Libby's thumb and Emma brought her blanky to her. How sweet! Libby is almost two and Emma has finally accepted her. They still fight, but it's not as often. It is more violent, though. Libby can take more and dish more out these days.

I registered her for Kindergarten. I had butterflies in my stomach that day! She was very excited and is ready for kindergarten. She peeked in every door and checked out the cafeteria. We go back in May for orientation, and again in June for her screening tests.

We had a butterfly birthday party at the firehouse to celebrate both girls' birthday. Their birthdays are just three weeks apart, so we just did it all at once and got it overwith. My friend Julie took all the pictures, so I don't have any to share yet. We had 52 people! Emma has met so many wonderful little friends that it's hard to decide where to draw the line. Believe it or not, we did not invite everyone we wanted to.

I can't believe five years ago Chucky and I had a five pound premature jaundiced little girl, no sleep and a prayer. Now we are a family, we feel like a family. It's a great feeling!

More Computer Troubles

My lovely lemon of a laptop broke. Again. The left hinge broke, and the monitor screen split away from the backing. It's tax season, I have work to do, I'm mad. I called HP, and after all the voice messages led me to enter my product number, it tells me there is a special hotline for people with my model . . . a left hinge hotline. I backed up just in case, and shipped it away to be repaired. It came back in four days and I was jubilant! BUT the jerks restored the operating system to the factory settings. I had to re-install every program and printer, and all the data. For a broken hinge! I'm still sorting it all out. HP Jerks.

Wish I Could Sleep This Well

One night last week, I was doing my getting-ready-for-bed routine. One of things I do is put Shelby in her crate for the night. I couldn't find her. I looked in all her usual spots and in some unusual spots. Calling her was pointless because she is deaf. I was pretty sure she was asleep somewhere in the house. We have to touch her to wake her up, so I actually needed to find her, not just call for her. (When we touch her, she wakes up with a startle and it makes me jump every time) I went outside looking with the flashlight, and started to panic. What if she ran off? She can't hear!!!!! I told Chucky to get up off the couch and help me! He went upstairs and checked the kids rooms (I already did that) and found Shelby asleep under Emma's bed. What I thought was Emma's snoring was actually Shelby's snoring. Phew.

Our Lovely Weekend

What did you do this weekend?
Oh, I'm glad you asked! I have most of it in pictures.

Friday night, we had parent night at Emma's dance class. Here she is in the van waiting to go inside. I'm not sure who's more excited, Chucky or Emma!

Libby really wanted to participate but settled for a front row seat.

Saturday was a blur of birthday parties and an open house. Sunday, we washed the vehicles and got this one ready to sell:

Anyone want to buy it? It's a great hunting truck!

We went for a walk, rode bikes, raced cars, swept, read, colored, and just spent the entire day outside, and as you can see from this picture, I pulled weeds. That dug up some earthworms, which the girls found fascinating. I was just trying to hold in my squeals and shudders because they are just grosssss! Ewww. Emma put two in her bug box, but they escaped through the screen. Libby found a baby one just her size. I really tried to teach her to be gentle and nice with it, but after they saw me lift one up with a stick, they did the same. Only it was not so much lifting as it was jabbing!