New Schedule

I have been part-time for almost a month now. It has been amazing. I cannot tell you how awesome it has been to spend more than 3 hours per day with my child. The weekends have become enjoyable as we don't have to spend our two days off running a weeks worth of errands. The simple enjoyment of being able to do a load of laundry, unload the dish washer or run an errand while home during the week is incredible. I was worried how Evy would adjust to her new schedule of 3 days at school and 2 days at home. She has had a little bit of trouble but I can tell it's because she loves being home with me. She now gets sad when she has to go to school and drop-offs have been resulting in tears. When she went 5 days a week drop-offs were a piece of cake, like she didn't even know we were gone. I can tell she's a little confused about what she is supposed to do each day. This morning when I put her shoes on she said, "Where I going?" And when she wakes up in the morning she asks if she can keep her pajamas on. She knows that if she has to get dressed right away it means she is going to school. This has been a little hard, but it has just reaffirmed my decision as she obviously prefers to be at home. So do I.

Noah and Yoda

Evy got this Noah's Arc Little People set for Christmas. She was calling Noah, Santa so we corrected her and told her his name was Noah. "Yoda?" she asked. No. His name is Noah. No-Ah. "Yo-da." It's really funny, but also baffling because we know she has no problem saying the word no. Apparently, she just can't put it together with the sound "ah".

Merry Christmas!

[Grandma Joan and Papa Jake gave Evy this Piddy Dess]


[Evy obviously reads this book at school. She was able to read it to us from memory when she opened it.]


[Evy followed her cousin Kate around and copied her every move!]


[All the crazy cousins on Scott's side]

Christmas with a two year old is so much fun! We are lucky to live near all of our family, but that usually means we only get a 24-hour visit at each house as we make the rounds over the holidays. Things end up being pretty rushed, but we make sure those 24 hours with each family are jam-packed with fun! Scott is putting Evy to bed and she is exhausted! After she climbed the stairs to her room she stopped and sat down and said, "I just rest here." Hope your holidays were as exhaustingly fun!

Found!

A friend sent me this the other day. She found it on her phone. Obviously, it's from a much warmer time of year but I was thankful she sent it along. Very rarely do we get a photo that includes both Scott and me. Lets be honest, we're all much more interested in looking at photos of Evy!

Dear Santa

Dear Santa,

Evy loves to read books about you and watch you in movies. She waved at you at the mall this week, but tells us she is not interested in sitting on your lap. If you recall the incident from last year you probably aren't that disappointed by this. Evy would like to ask you for "dollies, popcorn and books. "She has been such a good little girl (for a 2-year old) and is having fun talking about everything related to Christmas. Her favorite Christmas songs are Jingle Bells and Rudolph and she picked out a Care Bear ornament to hang on our Christmas tree.

We're looking forward to your visit!

Funny Things Said by Evy

As we were getting in the car yesterday I told Evy she could bring Elmo, Baby Bear or Dolly with us because Bunny is too big to bring. She said, "No, mom. Bunny is just right." I let her bring the bunny because I loved her answer so much.

A Cluster of a Weekend

The objective was easy; spend the weekend in Chicago and celebrate my nephew's second birthday. But things can never be as easy as they sound, now can they? Friday morning we discovered that my problem-child of a car was leaking a lot of oil. A consultation with the dealership resulted in a no-go for driving my car to Chicago. After a lot of negotiation I was loaned an SUV. Obstacle 1, taken care of. Saturday night, just before the birthday party Scott was opening a beer bottle. The top of the bottle shattered and sliced his middle finger. Two hours at Urgent Care and 5 stitches later obstacle 2 was taken care of. On Sunday morning we left around 9 a.m. to return home. Four hours, two detours, two stand-still accidents and 100 miles later we checked into a hotel. I've always wanted to visit Princeton, IL. Things were looking up when I realized our hotel had a pool and there was a wal-mart next door. I just needed to grab some shorts for Scott and he could go swimming with Evy. See obstacle number 2...no swimming for a guy with stitches. Crap! For $6 I secured some sweet shorts that say "Dream" on the butt and suddenly had myself a white-trash swimsuit. At 10:30 a.m. this morning we arrived home safely. Obstacle 3, tackled.

Don't Steal Moon!

Last night when we walked out of daycare Evy said, "Oooooh! The moon!" The way she observes everything continues to amaze me. Of course, I didn't even notice the moon in my hustle to get into the car. Halfway home she started whining. Something about the piece of paper she was holding. She said, "The moon is going to take my paper!" "Don't take my paper, moon!" Good grief. At least she's a silly little grump.

Play Nice

At the open gym this morning Evy wanted to play in a bounce house like the one pictured. The slide doesn't have steps up to it--just one huge step so Evy couldn't get to the top of the slide by herself. She was the only kid in the bounce house so I decided to take my shoes off and get in to give her a lift. We were having fun when another child came into the bounce house. His mom was right behind him and didn't want to get in. She looked at me and said, "Well, now I can't tell him I'm too big" in kind of a snotty tone. I'm sorry that I ruined your lie ma'am. I took the high-road, smiled and offered to give her son a boost up the slide also. I wanted to say "Well, it looks like you might outweigh me so you could still tell him you're too big." Play nice kids!

Allergies?

Evy has been having problems with her eyelids lately. Two weeks ago we were at the doctor because her left eyelid was swollen and on Saturday she woke up from her nap with this monster. We took her to urgent care today and they think it is some sort of allergy. The doctors aren't too concerned with it and it doesn't seem to bother Evy but it just looks so sore! Have any of you ever experienced this with your kids??? It's not pink-eye. The eyeball is not red and there is no drainage from the eye. Just a huge, red, swollen eyelid.

The House That Evy Built

Scott was out of town all weekend so this project was a perfect activity to keep Miss Evy busy and sitting still for 45-minutes! She wanted to eat all the candy so it's amazing that any of it ended up on the house. The frosting was a mess but at least I can use the excuse that a 2-year old made it. It probably would have looked the same way if I made it myself...

Full-Time Fun

This was the first Friday on my new reduced schedule and we had some full-time fun. It was a bonus that my brother had a continuing ed class in town so we got to hang out with my sister-in-law, baby Mason and Evy's "buddy-boy" Jacob. We hit tot-time at a local gym in the morning and then went swimming and bounced on the bed (a lot!) at Jacob's hotel. Jacob and Evy like each other a lot, they just display it in different ways. Jacob loves to give Evy hugs and Evy prefers for him to stay out of her space. They did agree on one thing...kissing baby Mason. Poor kid, about got smothered.

Gussy Gus

Evy has this stuffed Pluto at home and has just named him Gussy Gus. I have no clue where the name came from but I've started referring to him as Gussy Gus too. It's just too funny not to!

Fabulous!

We took advantage of a rare three days at home and did some major cleaning. Piles for Goodwill and old electronics ready for E-bay. I'm feeling great about the extra space in our usually out-of-control cupboards and closets. It was all going well until I turned my back for 15 minutes (long enough to wash the dishes) and came upon Scott playing one of his old video games. Within 2 minutes of walking into the room Evy says to me, Who's that mean guy? (translation: who is the guy dad's shooting at?) and follows with Oh, crap! Wonder where she picked that up...

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful that I will have 4 full days to snuggle up with this cutie-pie over the holiday! These are Evy's two-year photos. Credit goes to Kimberly Raso Photography.

Pretty Moving

I hate to even admit this. The events leading up to Saturday's kickoff were pretty emotional and left me feeling like a blubbering idiot. It started when I got a glimpse of DJK crying as he ran out to hug his adoptive parents on senior day. It continued through the National Anthem and reached a sonic boom in sync with the flyover. I about lost all control when I saw the grown man in front of me crying after the flyover. Why did I leave my damn sunglasses in the car???

Good Cause & Good Luck

Some of my friends are on the volunteer guild for the Iowa Children's Museum so we all decided to have a fun night out and support the museum this weekend at a fundraiser. We had a good time supporting a good cause and it didn't hurt that Scott and I had some serious good luck as well. I won a watch and a necklace and Scott won the grand prize trip to Las Vegas! Hopefully we'll take the good luck with us to Vegas...

Rare Footage of the Animal

Even as an infant Evy was not a cuddler. So, rare moments of stillness like this are very cherished! Lately she has been asking me to carry and feed her like a baby. I'm happy to oblige!

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo

You know your child has watched Cinderella too many times when she waves her pretend wand at you and says, "You new Piddy Dess." A Fairy Godmother in training, perhaps. Or, an indication that she thinks my clothes are in rags like Cinderella and I could use a new dress...

No More Office with a View

I've given up my window office. I've given up my seat at the management table. And quite frankly, I've given up enough salary to give Scott a mild panic attack. My team is taking me out for an "ousting lunch" today because effective Monday I will be replaced. Four months ago I asked for an internal demotion. It's a complete change in jobs and a change that allows me to work part time. I am lucky to work for an employer who was willing to make this happen and starting December 1 I will be working 20 hours per week. I could not be more thrilled! Over the last two years I have struggled with the fact that Evy spends 50 hours per week in daycare. I basically only see her on the weekends and I spend my weekends running around like a mad woman trying to get all of our "household" responsibilities done. We don't get much quality time together. She will be little for such a short period of time and I do not want to spend that time at work. I want to spend that time with her, because you can never go back and do it over. So, this is farewell to a chapter in my life that has been professionally rewarding and hello to a new chapter that will be personally rewarding. Wow! Ten years ago I never would have seen that coming...

Don't Take My Happiness

On Sunday night Evy enjoyed her first Happy Meal. It was a treat for her. It was a treat for us. It was fun to let her open the box and get a toy. This morning I read that San Francisco passed an ordinance that would ban restaurants from including toys in children's meals that don't meet certain nutritional guidelines. Give me a break! I don't need the government protecting my child from Happy Meals. I understand the issue. We want children to eat healthier. In my opinion, that is the job of the parents. Maybe San Francisco can change their city mascot to the Hamburglar...

Playing Hard!

A pony wearing, princess, doctor.

Not Good

The last two mornings on my way to work my car has flashed the following warning "Ice Possible Drive With Caution." Crap, we are heading down that slippery slope.

Evy's 2nd Birthday Party

I'm pretty sure Evy thinks the entire month of October is her birthday. Today we hosted her birthday party at our house. This officially wraps up the second birthday celebrations! We went with (what else?) an Elmo theme! Evy's seen the huge Elmo balloon at the grocery store for months and was soooo excited to have one of her own. I made the Elmo cake and yes, folks that frosting was put on with real-life icing bags and that's a big deal becuase I don't make anything.

Evy is 2!

Happy Birthday baby girl! Where have two years gone? This morning we celebrated with candles in our pancakes. Evy opened her presents and is wearing a new skirt and sparkly shoes to school. Such a diva! At two years old Evy loves playgrounds, pony tails, piddy desses, other kids, dogs, TV, and her family. She isn't too fond of vegetables, hair brushing, or waiting for anything! She is full of spunk and character and gives us a good laugh every day. We feel very lucky to have her and wish for the years to slow down!

Happy Halloween Elmo!

[Taking a break at mom's office]


[The night before, we practiced trick-or-treating and made sure Evy knew that wearing the Elmo costume meant candy. We're not above bribery.]

[Does mom sit around and eat candy every day at work?]

Today was my office's annual trick-or-treat event and I was accompanied by Elmo! No problem! Evy hit all three floors and gathered a nice little stash! She loved picking out pieces of candy to put in her "bag." Suckers seemed to be her favorite pick, but she was a little confused. Each time she picked a new sucker out of a bowl she would try to put the one she was eating back in its place. She was a big hit with all the rest of the kids since most of them seemed to be Elmo fans too. She had a little groupie who kept following her around saying "Melmo!" and wanting to touch Elmo's nose!

I Not Wear Dat!

Evy loves, loves, loves Elmo! She sleeps with a stuffed Elmo, she loves to watch Sesame Street, read Elmo books and wear shirts with Elmo on it. I was thrilled when my friend let us borrow an Elmo costume for Halloween. What could be more perfect for this Elmo lover?

Silly mom. We have had the costume around the house for weeks trying to coax Evy to put it on. "I not wear dat" she says every time we ask her to put it on. If you ask her what she's going to be for Halloween she responds "Elmo." But, she won't put it on. Some people may be wagering on the outcome of the Iowa vs MSU game this weekend, but in our house the wager is on the Halloween costume. Elmo or No Elmo? Only time will tell...

Lil' Pumpkin

Everyone seems to be doing the same things---All of the blogs are talking about trips to the pumpkin patch and pumpkin carving. We didn't want to be left out! Scott carved and Evy and I watched. Evy touched the "guts" but wasn't too fond of them. As I snapped a picture of our glowing creation Evy said, "Say cheese jack-o-lantern!"