BABY V. MAKES THREE

We're moving

2010-05-15T21:00:00.001-05:00

Update your bookmarks and come visit us at our new blog

http://villacampafamily.wordpress.com/

What we did today

2010-05-08T21:30:00.007-05:00

Our day got started pretty early this morning because we had a lot to do today. I've been wanting to lay sod in several places in the front and back yards for a while and our awesome neighbor was able to get a pallet of sod for me. I got started around 7:15 with an area in the front yard. It would have been a lot quicker, but I had to dig out some of the dirt so that the new grass would be level with the grass that was already there.

Before:

During:

After:

We also laid sod in a couple places in the back yard and filled in a big spot in the front yard that had been nothing but dirt and weeds. I finished up around 4:00 or so. Robyn helped out a bunch but we made sure that she didn't overdo it. Taylor was content to just watch from her swingset.

Maybe some day we'll have a lawn and not just a yard. And then I'll fulfill my dream of getting Yard of the Month!

2 years ago

2010-05-03T22:08:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite hobbies to is to occasionally look back through our pictures to see what Taylor looked like a year or two ago. Here's a picture from exactly two years ago. She's grown so much but still loves to laugh and smile.

One more month until...

2010-04-27T12:45:00.004-05:00

we find out what we're having!!! Technically it's one month and 1 day, but who's counting? We are!!! Taylor goes back and forth on whether or not it's going to be a girl or a boy. For the longest time she would only say it was going to be a girl and was adament on having a sister. But lately she talks about it being a boy and today at MDO she told her movement teacher that there's a baby brother in Mommy's tummy. Part of me wants to try some of those silly old wives tales that supposedly predict the gender, but I'll probably refrain myself since I know they're not accurate. I guess we'll just have to wait another month (and 1 day) to know! Nick's parents will fly in to be at the ultrasound and spend the weekend with us and we're so excited! They came to the ultrasound when we found out that Taylor was a girl, and we're happy to have them share this one with us, too.
I had another OB appt this morning and everything looks to be fine. I heard the heartbeat again on the doppler - that's a great sound. Oh, how did I forget to mention this?! I'm feeling much better. I still have nausea spells every now and then, and still gag occasionally (lovely, I know) but overall I feel good. And for that I am very thankful!
Since I don't have a picture of baby #2, I'll leave you with a picture of my precious little Taylor taken my friend Lindsay who is a talented photographer.

Recent news

2010-04-25T21:00:00.006-05:00

I (Nick) have wanted a lemon tree for a while, so I got one last summer. The tree is only 3-4 feet high, but we just picked the first lemons off it. There were only 4 lemons and they aren't very big but they didn't seem to be getting any bigger so I picked them hoping that that would spur on growth of new lemons.

In other news, Taylor wasn't feeling well last week so Robyn took her to the doctor on Friday. The doctor listened to her lungs and said that she has bronchitis. They prescribed her an antibiotic, which she has been taking now for 3 days. Her cough seems to have gotten worse today, so please pray that the Lord heals her soon. The picture of her below may not seem like a big deal, but she was so tired yesterday that she fell asleep on the couch for almost an hour. She's never done that before, so we knew that she really wasn't feeling well.

Thanks to Taylor's help, I was able to wheel the bags of leaves out to the street.

Oh, and Tay Tay stole some provalone cheese from Walmart today...put it right in her backpack.

Thank you, Publix! I'll see you again soon!

2010-04-21T14:01:00.003-05:00

So my trip to Publix was a success! I managed to spend $39.85 and save $59.98! This was possible because of their sales, my coupons (I didn't have coupons for everything), a $10 off $50 Winn-Dixie coupon that my generous and dear friend Morgan shared with me! Thanks again, Morgan! And thanks, Martha, for driving and coaching me through my first trip to Publix! They break it down at the bottom of your receipt and give you a Savings Summary. Mine showed that I saved $10 with the Winn-Dixie store coupon, $6.75 with coupons, and $43.23 with their sales. There were a few sale items that I wanted that they were sold out of, and I got rain checks for those things. As long as I redeem the rain checks within 30 days I get the items at the sale price!
I didn't take a picture of my purchases, so you'll just have to use your imagination, but just know that I got about $100 worth of groceries, etc. for about $40. I will say I bought a couple of things that I normally wouldn't buy, but they're definitely not things we won't use or eat. So all in all, I'm pleased and I will be shopping there again!

Finally!

2010-04-19T23:12:00.004-05:00

So I'm finally going to go to Publix tomorrow. I know (hope) it will be worth it. For my first time (and maybe second and third) I'll go with a friend who knows what she's doing and knows the layout of the store. Tomorrow I'll go with Martha. There have been a few weeks lately that I really wanted to go, I just couldn't coordinate my schedule with any of the other Publix shoppers. I have lots of friends who've been making the 45 minute drive to Fairhope (1.5 hours round-trip) for quite some time now and they continue to do so. I've heard from their mouths and read on their blogs their amazing savings from week to week and how they've drastically cut down on their grocery bills. I've been wanting to try it for months, but just haven't felt up to it physically...or mentally for that matter. It takes A LOT of preparation to look through the sales for the week and get your coupons together, but according to everyone I know who does it, it's well worth it. I mean, after all, I work outside of the home very little and therefore, make very little money, so I'm hoping this will be another way I can contribute financially (in a round-a-bout way). I'm really excited and a bit nervous. I haven't built up a huge collection of coupons yet, so I printed several off the internet tonight. I'm hoping that once I get the hang of it and have more coupons filed away from Sunday papers that it won't take quite as long. But we'll see. I'll let you know how it goes. Here's to hoping!

P.S. And who knows, maybe I'll even take a picture of my loot and tell you how much I spent and how much I saved...if you're lucky! ;)

Here's a funny picture of the tot. The only thing it has to do with this post is that she will be at MDO. Thank goodness for trips to the grocery store without my little "helper" - especially when it will be a long trip.

Happy Easter

2010-04-04T18:55:00.003-05:00

Easter Party

2010-04-01T14:43:00.003-05:00

Taylor had a little Easter party today at MDO and I actually remembered my camera this time. The last few parties I've forgotten it. They had cute little finger sandwiches cut into the shape of bunnies and eggs made my one of the moms, cheese, fruit, cupcakes and juice boxes. Then after they ate they went out into the church courtyard and had a little Easter egg hunt. So cute! In one picture you can see two of the kiddos holding up 4 fingers...they were answering Ms. Tracy's question "how many eggs can you find?"

All Tuckered Out

2010-04-01T14:37:00.004-05:00

This is how I found Taylor when I went in to check on her last night. Apparently her belly was a little hot.

Renovation update

2010-03-27T08:38:00.001-05:00

Our renovation is about 99% d-o-n-e! Hopefully we can put some after pictures on the blog today or tomorrow.

Well, it looks like...

2010-03-23T13:45:00.003-05:00

we're going to need to change the name of our blog...because we're having another baby! Most of you probably already know since we made it public on facebook already. But in case you didn't, now you do. I'm 11 weeks and a few days, and I go back to the Dr. one week from today. My estimated due date is October 9th, which is my friend Ashley's birthday and I think it was Streed's due date, or at least close to it.
"Quick" recap: I had my first appt. at 8 weeks and had to go back the next day for an ultrasound. My appt. was on a Monday when the u/s tech isn't there and apparently in this practice it's not standard procedure to have an ultrasound at your first appt. Well, I'll spare you the details but the Dr. said I have a tiny uterus and she wanted me to have an ultrasound which meant I had to come back on Tuesday. So of course I went home and googled "tiny uterus" to find out what all the scary possibilities are. :) Then, Tuesday morning on my way to take Taylor to MDO my car was acting up, so after I dropped her off I started to head to my friend Morgan's house to borrow her car for my appt. But I couldn't even make it there. Soooo, Nick had to leave work to come get me, making me late for the appt. While I waited for him I started thinking that maybe the car trouble was God-ordained because I was going to find out some bad news at the u/s and needed Nick to be with me, so I started crying. To make an already long story not so long, we got to see the baby and it's heartbeat (which made me cry again!) and it appears to be fine. The u/s tech didn't say that my uterus looked tiny on the u/s so hopefully it's ok.
I'll leave you with a picture of our little lima bean...not that it looks like much.

Little Miss Manipulator

2010-03-12T15:57:00.002-06:00

How do children learn to manipulate at such an early age? I guess it's just part of the sin nature that we're born with. In case you're wondering today is NOT the first time Taylor has manipulated me or attempted to, but today was so far the funniest. The scenario goes a little something like this...
- I put Taylor in her crib for a nap at 2 (first mistake, I waited too long, but we were out and about, then my dear friend Heather who I haven't seen in forever came over for lunch and I let Tay stay up a little late.)
- She proceeded to play and squeal and laugh with the occasional, "Mommy, come get me..." cry.
- Then at about 3:00 I heard her say something about her sleepy sack, which she snuggles with, so I went in there to put it back in her crib because I was 100% sure she'd thrown it out
- I was correct.
- So when I gave it back to her, she requested a different CD to listen to.
- I obliged because I was hoping that would help get her to sleep.
- I then told her that if I had to come back in there I would have to give her spanking, but that I really didn't want to.
- There was a pause and then she said, "I love you sooooo much!" I busted out laughing, as did Heather. She must have been thinking that if she said that I wouldn't keep my word.
- Then she went to sleep, hence the ability to blog. :)

Mini Vacation

2010-03-10T08:45:00.000-06:00

We had a mini vacation this past weekend in Santa Rosa Beach, FL with Nick's family. Sunday was the Annual Seaside 5K and Half-Marathon, so that was the reason for the trip. It was wonderful to see Nick's family! They all live in various cities in FL so we don't get to see them nearly enough. The only ones that were missing were Chat, Mia, and Nathan (Jonathan's wife and kids) and we missed seeing them. It was absolutely beautiful and a nice little getaway from renovation land that we are currently living in. Nick took a ton of pictures and he'll probably want to post a slide show later, but for now I'll just whet your appetite with a few pictures.

Beautiful Words

2010-03-09T20:24:00.002-06:00

These are the lyrics to one of my favorite songs (currently). Not only are the lyrics fabulous, but the vocals are great, too. I heard it in the radio a couple of times and called the radio station to ask about the artist and song title, but never got through. I woke up to it this morning on the radio, too. Sooo, in true Robyn fasion, I googled it, which took a few tries since I knew neither the artist or song title. But, alas, I found it. It's called "Yahweh" and it's by two sisters named Tal & Acacia. I hope it touches your heart and makes you want to praise the Lord.

Gaze
I want to Gaze at you
Soak
Soak in all you do
Sit
so simply at your feet
Listen
To your voice so sweet
And Let time Pass Away

(Chorus)
As I simply Praise
Yahweh
My Lord I cry
Jehovah Elohim
The Lord Most High
and When my hands are raised
My Knees they fall
As I simply Praise
Jehovah

Cry
As I see your blood stains
Overwhelmed
As I see your pain
And I'll dance, dance, dance
Because I am set free
You are my conqueror
Jehovah Nissi
And Let time Pass Away

(Chorus)

Do I believe that you're my God
That You're all I need That you're all I need
Do I believe that you'll sit down
and be crowned my king for eternity
Do I believe that you're my God
That You're all I need That you're all I need
Do I believe that you'll sit down
and be crowned my king for eternity
Do I believe that you're my God
That You're all I need That you're all I need
Do I believe that you'll sit down
and be crowned my king for eternity
So Let time Pass Away

(Chorus)

My Daddy, My Abba, My Best Friend
YAHWEH

Just a picture

2010-02-24T19:32:00.002-06:00

I took this picture of Tay Tay eating an orange and I thought I'd share it.

Snow Day

2010-02-12T17:05:00.004-06:00

We didn't get as much snow today as we hoped to get but it snowed on and off for a few hours. Taylor knows what snow is from seeing it on tv so she was excited to actually see it for the first time.

2010-02-08T21:39:00.003-06:00

We're at the start of week 3 of the renovation and everything is pretty much going according to plan. All the walls have been framed in and today (after I took these pics) they hung the plywood so that now the area is pretty much completely enclosed. Drywall will hopefully go up soon and then we'll be on the home stretch. We've had a few minor glitches but things have been very smooth for the most part. More pics later...

Robyn's Thoughts on the Renovation...

2010-01-29T08:17:00.005-06:00

It's Day 5 of the reno and the guys have gotten lots done. I'll have Nick post some more pictures later. Joe, our contractor, estimates about 3 more weeks until completion, which seems so soon. I won't hold my breath, though. I've watched enough shows on HGTV and DIY to know that there may be a few unexpected issues come up...but I hope not too many. :)

Ok, on to my thoughts. Let me first say that we are thankful to the Lord for enabling us to do this renovation! It is something we've been thinking about and talking about for about 2 years. Actually, probably over 2 years, even before we moved into this house. In case you're new to this blog or just forgot, we bought this house from my step-grandmother, and thanks to my step-mom and her siblings, were given a great deal! We knew that there was work to do on the house and some things we wanted to change sooner or later. Some things we changed right away and now we are thrilled to be renovating the master bathroom, closet and laundry room. The bathroom was tiny and had some pretty serious plumbing issues, the closet was tiny and could only hold Nick's clothes, and the laundry room was unfinished (as in you could see into the ceiling rafters and some parts of the wall...creepy) and couldn't be accessed from inside the house. Though we were thankful to even have these rooms in the first place, we knew they could be improved. Sooo, that's how we got where we are today! This project makes me feel like a grown up. Most of the time I don't really feel like a grown-up, eventhough I'll be 30 this June, but doing this project makes me feel like one.

I'm sure we'll learn lots of lessons during this whole process. And in case you don't know me that well, I'm a bit of a perfectionist and a regretter. This isn't a good combination, especially when doing a renovation. In the end there might be a thing or two that I wish I'd done differently, but I pray I'll have a thankful heart and see how wonderful it is even if it's not perfect. We'll keep you posted on the progress. :)

Renovation, Day 3

2010-01-27T22:25:00.004-06:00

Here are some pictures from day 3 of the renovation. I'm very impressed with the amount of work that they've completed. In a nutshell they've gutted the old bathroom, closet and laundry room and have jackhammered the concrete in order to lay new pipes to accommodate the new layout. There are many other things that have gotten done, but it's late so that's all the details you get.

Buddies

2010-01-26T12:05:00.001-06:00

Nick and Taylor are buddies, big buddies. He's a great Daddy and they're really cute to watch. Here are a few shots of the fun they have together playing, snuggling, reading, "painting" with water, and putting marker tops on their finger tips. (Disclaimer: Taylor does not drink coke, that's water in the coke bottle. But Nick does and that is indeed coke in the can.)

Teddy Bear Picnic

2010-01-26T12:00:00.000-06:00

Taylor's class had a Teddy Bear Picnic last Tuesday at MDO. Each child was supposed to bring their favorite teddy bear, which for Taylor seems to fluctuate. This particular day this one was the lucky guy. I'm not really sure what all they did, but I do know each of the bears got an award. Taylor's bear, who is so cleverly named "Teddy Bear" got the award for Softest Bear. You can't tell very well from the picture but her dress has 3 teddy bears on it. It was a hand-me-down from my step-siter, Melanie, and the timing was perfect! Thanks again, Mel!
On an unrelated note, one of her teachers said Taylor was having a "Little Day", meaning that she looked super young that day. I agreed, she did look a little babyish that day.

Renovation starts with demolition

2010-01-24T15:03:00.004-06:00

The talk of our house for the last few weeks has been the renovation that we've hoped to start soon. We've met with architects and contractors over the last couple of months and now that the new year is here we finally decided that it's time to get started. Right now our master bathroom and closet are very small so we're going to expand both of those rooms. And right now the laundry room is attached to the house but is unfinished (no sheetrock and you can see into the attic) so we'll move things around so that you'll now be able to access the laundry room through the house. I think this is the part of the renovation that Robyn is most excited about. And I actually drew up the plans for the remodel so I'm excited to see how my plans turn out.

We've spoken with our contractor and he's going to start working tomorrow so we decided to get started with the demolition yesterday. You can see in the pics that we made some good progress yesterday. We removed the toilet and vanity and got all the tile off the walls in the bathroom. Robyn also worked hard and made a lot of progress on the laundry room. I think we're both sore today so we decided to have a Sabbath and leave the rest of the work to the contractor, although we'll do more work later on.

Mommy and Me Ballet Class

2010-01-13T12:36:00.004-06:00

Taylor and I had the privilege of going to a Mommy and Me Ballet Class this morning! You just don't know how excited I was! I would LOVE for her to be a dancer, but don't worry I won't be one of those pushy moms who tries to live vicariously through her children.:) I couldn't find the little camera so I don't have any pictures, but we plan to go again next week, so I'll be sure to take some then. I think she had a good time. There actually wasn't a lot of ballet today, but it's a 12 week class, so I'm sure we'll progress into more dance. It really was more of just a "movement class" where we warmed up, stretched, sang songs and did hand motions/body movements with them. The teacher briefly told the story of Swan Lake and showed them pictures of swans and a ballerinas, then we did some toe-walking, skipping, and pirouette turns across the floor and back...and by "we" I mean the teacher and the mommies.And by "mommies" I mean one other lady besides myself. The teacher said there were more people there last week and that Kindermusik started back up today, so that might be a conflict for some.
After class Taylor said she had to go potty again (we went right before class started, too) and then when we came back into the class she excitedly screamed that she went tee-tee on the potty and was wearing big girl panties! Thanks for that!
She's on her third week of wearing big girl panties and going potty and I must say that she is doing excellent! Yippee!
Ok, I'll keep you posted on the subject of ballet and will try to get some pictures next week.

Prima Ballerina

2010-01-04T11:54:00.005-06:00

Taylor is truly a girl after my own heart today. She found my Tchaikovsky Nutcracker Ballet CD and said she wanted to listen to it. Then she got her tutu out, which for some reason she called a scarf, and said she wanted to wear it. So of course I put her hair in a bun and took pictures. I mean, who wouldn't?

Oh no she dit'in

2010-01-04T09:57:00.003-06:00

This is the conversation I just had with Taylor.

T: you got a boo boo? (pointing to a spot on my face)
R: no, that's a blemish.
T: you got another blemish? (while pointing to another spot on my face)
R: yep. thanks.

She's an observant little thing. And oh so complimentary. ;)

Lots to say, so little time...

2010-01-04T08:18:00.004-06:00

Once again, I apologize for my lack of consistent blogging lately. I have lots of reasons (excuses), some very valid, but I'll spare you. I need to come up with some type of plan on when to blog...actually my whole life is in need of some structure :) So I make no promises but I hope to post more often. I do, however, promise to make a Christmas post soon.

As the title says, there is lots to say! Happy New Year, first of all! Also, I gather from people's comments/questions, that the previous picture of Taylor on Christmas morning needs some explaining. Nick made that post and he liked that picture, so he put it on there. It captures her excitement. The present is actually a chunky little toy mail truck. We got it because she enjoys playing with other kids cars/trucks sometimes and we chose the mail truck because for a while now she has been interested in the mail truck and gets excited when she sees or hears him. So that's the story behind that.

The most note-worthy thing around here is that TAYLOR IS POTTY TRAINING!!! Yep, she's been going on the potty since last Tuesday! She spends most of the day in big girl panties (or "underwear" if you're Nick and don't like the other word). Of course she still naps and sleeps in a diaper and for now she'll continue to wear a diaper for errand running. I must say a huge thank you to Nick's Mom, Carole, and sisters, Lisa and Val, for their contribution! The whole week of Christmas we were in St. Pete visiting Nick's family, which you would already know if I had blogged about it. ;) Anywho, I jokingly told Carole that I wanted her to go ahead and get Tay potty trained while we were there. Well, I was only partly joking. So, she got the little potty out and some potty training books and patiently took her to the potty numerous times everyday. Lisa and Val also took her potty and read books over and over again. Two of Tay's girl cousins who are potty trained were there, so Tay got to go with them and I think that really helped her get it. She never actually did anything on the potty while we were in St. Pete, but something definitely clicked. We didn't have anywhere to go the Tuesday after we got back home, so I figured I'd put her in underwear and take her potty all day long. I was so thrilled when she actually went! She's never been scared of the potty and has been sitting on it for months but now there is some action! Whoop whoop! Ok, I'll leave you with a visual of the little potty-training-punkin!

Look what I got for Christmas!!

2009-12-25T20:02:00.001-06:00

(more pictures to come later...)

My reindeer shirt

2009-12-24T09:13:00.003-06:00

It's been almost a month since we last made a post, so here's a quick picture. Taylor made this shirt in Mother's Day Out last week. If you can't tell, it's a reindeer whose antlers are a little lopsided.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T16:07:00.001-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving Y'all! We had a great day today and we hope you did, too! We hosted our first big holiday meal. We were able to do so because we have some newly inherited dining room furniture. It couldn't have come to us at a better time and we are very thankful for it - Thanks Terrie and MeeMee! Robyn's parents and one of her aunts came over and everyone brought yummy dishes, so it was a great group effort. We didn't brave cooking the turkey. Neil took care of that for us. I am very appreciative for everyone pitching in - if I had to do it all myself I would have been a little stressed to say the least. All of the food was delicious and I think everyone enjoyed it! We hope y'alls Thanksgiving meal was just as delicious as ours and that you have taken time to count your blessings and be thankful for all you have.

Thanksgiving Photo Shoot

2009-11-26T16:02:00.002-06:00

Tay Tay and I had a little photo shoot this morning on her new swingset while Mama was cooking a feast. I love some of these pics so I had to share.

Deuteronomy 6:5

2009-11-21T16:00:00.001-06:00

Here's a sweet video of Taylor saying her Bible verse. It's very neat to hear her say her verses. We didn't even know that she knew the chapter and verse of this passage until she said it for this video.

Go Canes!!

2009-10-31T13:42:00.001-05:00

"Fall Harvest Party"

2009-10-29T13:44:00.004-05:00

Today Taylor had her very first party at MDO. They were celebrating "Fall Harvest" but we all know it was really a Halloween Party. :) They had a pretty normal day until 12ish when the party started. Basically they just ate lunch and then some of them played. On Tuesday they painted on small pumpkins, so they brought those home today, along with a "treat bag" with little goodies and lots of candy. A few of the other mothers brought stuff to put in all the kids bags...but not me. I mean, it did not even cross my mind to bring gifts or goodies for the teachers much less the kiddos! I'm still kinda new at this whole mom thing. Perhaps I'll have it all together and know what I'm supposed to be doing by the time she's in Kindergarten...one can hope. Anyway, back to the party. It was fun and I'm so glad I was able to go. My mom and step-dad were able to come, too, which was fun. It's almost 2:00 as I type this and Taylor is in her crib just singing away - I wish you could hear her. I'm not sure why she isn't tired. Certainly it couldn't be that she's wired from the juice box (which she's never had) and THREE cookies she had at the party. That's probably not it. Hopefully she'll crash soon. Enjoy the pictures!

Zoo day

2009-10-17T19:51:00.002-05:00

We took a family trip to the Audubon Zoo yesterday and had a lot of fun. We've been talking about it for a few weeks so we picked a date on the calendar and hoped for good weather. The weather was great in New Orleans and we were thankful for that. Tay Tay has been very excited about going to the zoo. She loves animals. Her favorite animal lately has been giraffes so that's was she really wanted to see. But she also wanted to see the elephants, monkeys, tigers, gators, and bears. We were able to see all the animals that she wanted to see but the zoo was so big that we couldn't see everything.

Just so you know, there are a good bit of pictures in the slideshow so be prepared.

Let It Be Known...

2009-10-06T13:58:00.004-05:00

Taylor said she missed me today!!! You better believe I'm gonna mark the calendar! :)
AND I got my first phone call from MDO this morning saying that she fell in the classroom but was ok. I'm glad they weren't calling to say she was sick, or that she had been bitten by another child, or something like that. As soon as I heard the voice on the other end I knew who it was. After she introduced herself, she said, "Taylor's fine, but she had a little fall in the classroom..." and then went on to tell me that she cried and her mouth bled a little but that she was ok and was now playing in the gym for her "movement" class. I know that will not be the last time she gets hurt when she's away from her Mommy or Daddy, but to my knowledge it's the first. They said she may have hurt her finger a little, too, because she was holding it funny the rest of the day, but was bending it some. I'll be keeping an eye on that. She's now napping, hence my opportunity to blog!
The picture has nothing to do with this post, in case you're wondering. I took it at my Dad's house when Taylor and I stayed there a couple of weekends ago while Nick was out of town. She climbed up to the table, put on T's glasses, and started "reading" the paper as if she does that everyday. Nick and I don't get a newspaper, so she doesn't see us do this. But I guess she had seen Poppy and T do this the previous couple of mornings, and thought she needed to too. Silly girl!

Need your advice/opinions, please

2009-10-05T16:02:00.003-05:00

Taylor is 2...and has been since July 28th. Since I'm a horrible blogger and NEVER posted about her 2nd birthday, you might not know that. And with the age of 2 come some transitions, among other things. Transitions that need addressing are potty training, kicking the thumb-sucking habit, and moving to a big bed. To be honest I really haven't tried very hard at all with the first two and am just now toying with the idea of the third. There is no rush to get her out of her baby bed and she doesn't try to climb out (not that her short legs could reach), so I kinda want to leave her in there for as long as possible. So what do I do first? I don't want to try too many transitions at once or too early. And as far as the thumb-sucking goes, where do I begin? And what are some different methods that some of you have tried and found successful? I might try this little doll called "Thumbbuddy to Love" but not sure. We have everything we need for potty training, I just haven't really put forth much effort. Soooo, this is where I need your advice/opinions - not to be confused with stories of you bragging about how it was sooo easy with your own children...kidding...kinda ;) But really I would like to hear (or read) how you other Mommy's have done it. Ok, go ahead to the comment section and type away...especially those of you with former thumb-suckers. :)

Funny a.m. Conversation

2009-10-05T14:51:00.003-05:00

If you know Nick well, you are aware that he is rather particular about some things. A bit of a neat freak, if you will. And a little OCD. This is the conversation that took place this morning as he was putting on his tie. (He does this weird thing before he starts to actually tie it.)

R: As soon as I heard that noise I knew just what you were doing.
N: I don't even know why I do that. It's just something I do.
R: You are so OCD.
N: You think I don't know that? Dude, I'm clinical!

At least he knows. And at least he's not as bad as those people you see on documentaries who have to do things like touch the doorknob 3 times before they leave the house, or weird things like that. Not yet at least. :)

No Love for the Mama

2009-09-29T13:46:00.002-05:00

This is the conversation Taylor and I have everytime I pick her up from Mudder's Day Out.

Me: I missed you today!

Tay: I missed Daddy. I want Daddy hold you.

Me: Daddy can't hold you, he's at work. Did you miss Mommy?

Tay: I missed Daddy.

I guess it's true what they say...absence makes the heart grow fonder. And since she's away from Daddy much more than Mommy, her heart clearly is fonder of Daddy. Don't get me wrong, I'm very thankful that they love each other so much! It would just be nice to hear her say she misses me, too. :) I kinda think it's a game now, though. One can hope, right?!

Note to Self...

2009-09-18T15:00:00.002-05:00

Always, I repeat, ALWAYS have an extra pair of clothes for your child in their diaper bag or at least in the car. Along with that, always have those nice little scented bags or some kind of plastic bag to put nasty diapers in.

I did these things when Taylor was a baby, but have since slacked off...as in, I never have these things with me. Until now. That will change after our little incident in Target. The whole trip was pretty much frustrating, but I'll spare you all the other stuff. Just know that Taylor had a dirty diaper pretty soon right after we got there. I thought it was just a little poop, or maybe even alot of poop, but I had no idea what was to come. So, my stinky daughter and I continued to look around the clothes department and proceeded to the dressing room (where nothing worked, might I add) but I decided that since I didn't have one of those aforementioned bags for stinky diapers that I would continue shopping and just wait to change her in the restroom before we left. Then we continued to leave a trail of stink everywhere we went (Taylor, not me) and got a few toiletries. On the way to the checkout I realized that her diaper had leaked onto her shorts and was very noticeable. I could just feel the stares and read their minds..."Woman, could you please take your stinky child and leave?", or "I wonder if she knows there is diarrhea on her child's shorts or should I tell her?", or "Good grief! Where is that coming from?"

After I checked out, and forgot to use my coupon (dang it!), we walked into the restroom. Thankfully they had one of those changing stations, which I'm sure was covered in germs. But oh well. There was this cute pregnant woman washing her hands who said something like, "Girl, you have a mess to deal with!" We conversed and she tried to help me out by offering to get me a Target bag, but I was Johnny-on-the-spot and had quickly thought to consolidate my bags so I could use one I already had to put her dirty shorts in. I know, I'm so green. Anyway, her diaper was like nothing I've ever seen! I don't know if it was the frosted mini wheats she ate yesterday or what, but it was a mess! I decided to spare the other shoppers and staff and throw the diaper away outside. It would have been just plain cruel had I not.

The whole point in saying that I needed a change of clothes for her was that I needed to run another errand, but didn't want to take my 2 year-old in just a diaper and a shirt. So we headed home instead. Next time hopefully I'll be more prepared!

Pictures from first day

2009-09-15T20:57:00.001-05:00

Too cool for school

She Did Great!

2009-09-15T13:25:00.003-05:00

Today was Taylor's first day at Mother's Day Out, or Mudder's Day Out as she likes to say, and she did great! Sweet Nick went in late to work so we could all go together to her first day and so he could take some pictures (which he'll post later because I don't know how to take them off the new camera). No tears at drop off or throughout the day, I'm happy to say. However, one of her teachers said she did ask to go home once or twice and she also said "I wanna go see Daddy." But she asks to see Daddy even when she's home with me, so that's no big surprise. Sweet, yes...surprising, no. She does looove her Daddy! But they said she had fun and was very good. Yay!

The color of the week is red and the shape they'll be working on is a circle. She colored a picture and helped another little boy color his, too. She also made a necklace today with colored plastic beads and a wooden cross and the teacher said she was the best at stringing the beads. I know it sounds like I'm bragging, but I promise I'm not - I just want to have a record of these things since my memory fails me (this must run in the family - if you've read Shelley's blog lately, you know what I'm talking about). On Tuesdays they do "movement" which I guess is kind of like P.E., and on Thursdays they work on Spanish! I'm super excited about this since she is part Cuban after all. Funny story about Movement today - Taylor was playing with a ball and according to the teacher dropped it intentionally. Before she could pick it up another kid took it (of course I'm wondering which kid this was so I can tell him/her what's up) and Taylor just looked up at the nearest teacher and said, "Ms. Tracy..." - I can just picture her doing this. And I'm impressed that she called her by name!

Now I know that every day probably won't be this great, but I'm glad the first one was and that she didn't get in trouble!

Pictures to come soon!

Mother's Day Out

2009-09-08T15:57:00.002-05:00

Today is supposed to be Taylor's first day of Mother's Day Out, but she has the Croup and had to stay home. She is currently still napping...nearing 3 hours, which she never does! I know she needs it though, because she didn't sleep well last night. And neither did I because I slept in her room, too. I just got off the phone with one of the nurses at the pediatrician's office and for now I'll continue to treat her at home, unless of course she gets worse in which case I'm to call the Dr. back. I have a feeling she won't be well enough by Thursday to go to MDO, so it's looking like she'll miss the first week. I hope all the other kiddos haven't already made their new best friends and left out my Tay Tay. Ok, she just woke up - gotta go.

"Go tee-tee, Bear"

2009-08-27T15:16:00.005-05:00

Potty training hasn't really started around here yet, but we have some of the things we need when we start. Nick's sister, Val, gave Taylor a generous gift card for her birthday which we used to buy some potty training paraphenalia...Froggy potty, Sesame Street panties, and pull-ups. I've been saying that I don't think that Taylor's ready yet (though I thought a little differently over the past couple of months), but I think it would be a more accurate statement to say that I'm not ready yet. A few reasons include, but are not limited to, the following: I don't love a challenge and I think it might be just that; she's about to start MDO next month and I don't think she (or I, for that matter) need too many transitions at one time; I haven't done ANY research/reading whatsoever to get tips; I think it's a waste of time and energy to start too early; and maybe, just maybe, my baby is growing up too fast!
So in the meantime, we'll talk about it and practice with her dolls and stuffed animals. She does sit on the potty and even asks to, but nothing ever happens. I'm glad she's interested in it, but I'm not pushing it just yet.
The picture below was all Taylor's idea. She sat her bear on there all by herself and said, "Go tee-tee, Bear." I cracked up, as I do often when listening to her funny little self.
On a related note, she really has become quite the nurturer lately, taking care of her babies, changing their diapers, taking her Bear to the potty.

Thumb Sucking

2009-08-27T14:23:00.002-05:00

I wish I was writing to say that within the past few hours Taylor has miraculously quit sucking her thumb (see Dentist Appt. post if you don't know what I'm talking about). However, that is not so. She just got up from her nap, which wasn't long enough and therefore she is still tired. So she's laying on the couch right now and I said, "Stop sucking your thumb, Taylor." She promptly obeyed and then burst into tears. Awesome. This is going to be fun!

P.S. In case you're wondering how I reacted, I told her to keep sucking it. Yes, I was a push-over in this situation. No, I am not always. Gotta go Google "tips and tricks to get your kids to stop thumb sucking" - wish me luck! :)

Taylor's 1st Dentist Appointment

2009-08-27T13:17:00.006-05:00

Taylor had her first ever dentist appointment today and I am thankful to say that she could not have done better! Yay! What an answer to prayer. The hygienist who called her back tried to talk me into letting Taylor go back by herself but I quickly nipped that in the bud. I mean, really, she's ONLY 2 and it's her first ever appt and she's never seen anyone in that office...EVER. I'm sure she meant well when she said they like for them (the patients) to get used to going back their by themselves, but I think there is plenty of time for that thankyouverymuch!
I packed one of her babydolls, Abby, in her diaper bag in hopes of Abby comforting Taylor. My other thought was that maybe Abby could get her teeth "cleaned" first so Tay could see what it was all about. And that's just what happened. All of the hygienists were very nice, as was her Dentist. I didn't get a picture of the Dentist examining her teeth, but took several of the actual cleaning.
At Taylor's 2 Year Check-up the pediatrician gave me a list of Pediatric Dentists that their group refers to and I'm glad she did. So far I'm happy with my choice. My main reason for taking her was to have the dentist take a look at her frenulum - that's the piece of tissue that connects the inside of your top lip to your gums. Since birth Taylor's has been very thick and connects very low on her gum line, but the pediatrician has never seemed concerned...and believe me I've asked her about it several times. So at her last appt. I asked her to take a look at it again because it hasn't changed any and she suggested going ahead to the dentist. The dentist and pediatrician said the same thing - years ago it was common to perform a frenulectomy (clipping of the frenulum) but since then they've changed their tune and now think it causes more harm than good. Sooo, she said we'll just leave it alone and watch it. She also said that we need to get her to quit sucking her thumb because it's pushing her teeth out. This is no news to me as I see her teeth every day. Thankfully she only sucks it when she's sleeping or tired, not all the time. However, I still don't think it's going to be an easy task, but the dentist said it should be easier than if she sucked it all the time. Looks like it's time for me to look into different ways of stopping thumb sucking. Too bad she doesn't just use a paci...then I could just take it away. Not the case with the ole thumb.
Ok, enough of the details, here are some pictures. Check out the nerve of this child sucking her thumb while laying in the dentist chair! And in the last picture she's showing you her stickers and one of the goodies from her prize bag.

Roooooooollllllllll Tide Roll!

2009-08-04T21:55:00.004-05:00

I got a huge bag of hand-me-downs today from my step-sister - thank you, again, Mel! Not only was there one Alabama cheerleader outfit, but there were two! Yay! I thought to myself, "Nick will be thrilled!" Please pick up on the sarcasm here. But I know of several others who will be happy to see her supporting the Crimson Tide. Of course I had to play dress up with her and take some pics. I took one on my phone and sent it to Nick. You know what he said? He said, "I don't even care that it says Alabama on it. She's just too cute!" So I left her in the outfit until he got home and he was even more smitten in person. We hope these pics make you smile!

Laundry Day

2009-08-04T21:51:00.002-05:00

We hope your laundry day was as cute as ours! :)

Baby guitar

2009-08-02T16:04:00.002-05:00

I just took this picture of Taylor playing her "baby guitar" and thought it was too cute not to share.

Shark Week

2009-08-02T12:01:00.002-05:00

In case you didn’t know, Shark Week starts tonight on the Discovery Channel. I only mention this because I’ve been a fan of Shark Week for years, but last year Robyn got into it to. And I mean really into it. As in, a month or so ago she asked me when it was coming on again. As in, last year she would tell me to change the channel so that we could watch Shark Week.

I’m not complaining, I just think it’s funny that she likes these shark shows so much.

Excuse Me, Bug

2009-07-18T22:14:00.003-05:00

This afternoon as Taylor was playing in her baby pool she splashed some water out onto the deck. Then she looked to see where the water landed, and noticed a tiny little ant where she splashed and said, "A bug! Excuse me, bug!" I laughed then asked her if she said that because she splashed water on the bug, to which she replied yes. Then she proceeded to say "Magis (magic) words" which she recently learned from a song about manners on an episode of Barney. I tell you, Barney is a bit annoying, but there are some really good lessons on those shows. And since there are usually only FOUR episodes at a time available "On Demand", she really learns those lessons well! Thank you, Barney.

For Poppy

2009-07-18T16:06:00.002-05:00

This picture is for Poppy (Robyn's daddy) because he LOVES when people wear their baseball hat backwards. Just kidding. He can't stand it. So when Taylor took my hat off my head and put it on herself backwards, I immediately thought of him and ran to get the camera. So, Poppy, this one's for you...enjoy! ;)

Silly Girl

2009-07-18T16:01:00.002-05:00

Taylor thought it would be a good idea to get as close to the pool as possible without actually getting in it. Silliness ensued and this is how it ended.

Trash to Treasure - Part Deux

2009-07-11T00:01:00.005-05:00

Another recent project is this little table that truly was trash. My friend, Elizabeth, got it out of someone's trash hoping to use it at her house, but it wasn't quite right for the space she wanted it for. Soooo, she gave it to me and it is perfect beside my couch. BUT, I thought I'd like it better with a fresh coat of paint. And this is the finished product.

Side note and Lesson of the Day: Do not, I repeat, do not under any circumstance, unless there is no other way to get around it and it is already about to fall off, ever attempt to remove veneer from a piece of furniture. You see, there was a piece of veneer on the top of the table and on one corner was this tiny little spot that was beginning to peel up. Soooo, on a whim (NOTHING I ever do on a whim turns out good in the end) I decided to start to peel it off. BIG mistake. And I knew it immediately, but it was too late. I was already committed. After many attempts - I'll spare you all the details - I finally had all the veneer off.

Trash to Treasure

2009-07-10T23:45:00.003-05:00

Here is one of my latest projects. I had been wanting a desk for myself for quite sometime and after much searching, finally found one that met the criteria...a good price and just the right size with a good amount of storage. I saw this

on craigslist, and after going to look at in person with my hidden potential glasses and can-do attitude, we bought it for $50. Then after many hours spent stripping off the old paint, sanding it, and putting on a fresh coat of stain and poly, this is how she turned out...

Its not the best picture of it - the flash kinda washed it out a bit - but you get the idea right? I still have to stain and replace the dowel buttons (the little peices of wood that cover the screw holes) and I'll probably eventually replace the hardware, but for now just repainting the old hardware is what fit the budget. I forgot to take a "before" picture before I took off the hardware, but it was spray painted silver.

Mock-(yeah)-ing-(yeah)-bird-(yeah)

2009-07-09T22:13:00.005-05:00

Your welcome for getting that song in your head. This picture has nothing to do with the post, I just didn't want to post again with no picture. How many times can I say post and picture in one sentence?
Taylor, who has been quite verbal for a long time now, is talking in sentences most of the time these days. Very fun! She is constantly repeating things I say - not always right after I say them, mind you. So this means she is really listening...not always obeying, but listening nonetheless. For example, today we were in the kitchen. I was washing dishes with my back to her and she said, "Watch your head." I guess she got close to the bar. You see, on one side of the kitchen there is a bar-like counter along the wall and I tell her to watch her head because she likes to walk under it, but she is getting taller (notice I didn't say tall, just taller) and has come close many times to hitting her head. Then later she heard someone on t.v. say "tattoo" so she started saying tattoo. And the other day in the grocery store a lady said, "She is very cute" and when she walked away Tay said, "I vewy cute." I really need to start writing down everything funny she says, because when I sit down to blog about it (which yes, isn't that often these days) I can't remember all of them. It's definately time to start watching what we say in front of her!

On another note, Nick feels like he's coming down with a cold, too. Boooooo.

Also, stay tuned for some pictures of the newly painted guest room! My sweet husband spent many hours and days painting over the pine paneling. GASP! Some of you may think that's a major no-no, but it just wasn't our style AT ALL. So we changed it. And I LOVE it!

Sick Girls

2009-07-08T16:30:00.002-05:00

Taylor and I are sick :( She has a cold with a cough and I just have a bad cold. I even cancelled my clients today. Feel free to pray for a quick recovery so we can be back to our old selves again...and so I don't have to cancel my clients Friday, too. I would post a picture of us, but Taylor doesn't look a bit sick and I look like rough. So in the words of the soup nazi, "No Pic for you!"

Shout Out to Zout

2009-07-02T11:25:00.003-05:00

This is by far my most favorite stain remover. I discovered it a few months ago and so far it's removed every stain I've tried it on. It's definately better than Shout, Spray and Wash, and OxyClean in my opinion, though I know some people love those products. Our Wal-Mart doesn't carry it, but Target does. If you've never tried it, I highly recommend it!

Kissin' Cousins

2009-06-25T12:54:00.002-05:00

My Future's So Bright...

2009-06-16T15:07:00.004-05:00

I gotta wear shades. Taylor LOVES her sunglasses. She likes to wear them on top of her head like Mommy and Daddy, too. And for some reason, she often puts them on upside down. I think that might be a kid thing.

Quick Little Beach Trip

2009-06-16T15:07:00.000-05:00

Friday morning Taylor and I took a quick trip to the beach. One of my oldest and dearest friends, Juli, was on vacation with her husband, kids, and husband's family. We hadn't met each others children and I think the last time we saw each other was late summer 2005. So it was great to see her again. On the way home I realized that we didn't really get to catch up that much since we were watching our kids like a hawk and regularly distracted by them. But nonetheless it was a fun trip and a nice little getaway for me.

Stickers, Stickers, Everywhere

2009-06-16T14:57:00.000-05:00

Taylor has a new-found love for stickers...and putting them everywhere! In case you're not sure what to do with stickers, just look at the pictures below for some ideas. :)

Little Miss Songbird

2009-06-14T15:00:00.003-05:00

We have a little songbird, ladies and gentlemen. Taylor loves to sing. She sings her version of the following songs: ABC's, Jesus Loves Me, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, the Clean Up song from Barney, and The Wheels on the Bus. Just this morning we were awoken by her singing "Happy Birthday" over and over...not the whole song, of course, just those two words. We went to a birthday party yesterday afternoon, and my birthday was last week, so I guess it was fresh on her brain. Anyway, she cracks us up and surprises us with all she knows. Either Friday or Saturday morning she looked at the coffee cup I was using and said, "Ben", meaning that that was the cup that our friend Ben drank from last time he and Katie were here. How does she remember these things?! There is no telling what all is in that brain of hers. Yesterday she picked up my glasses case and perfectly said, "What's in there?" She normally speaks in just one or two words, not full sentences. She is definitely growing up, and it's hard to believe she'll be 2 next month!

Daddy/daughter morning

2009-06-06T17:08:00.003-05:00

This morning Taylor and I went to the farmer's market downtown. We had a good time, but not as good of a time as these two people.

Funny Conversation

2009-06-05T13:15:00.002-05:00

This is the conversation I just had with Taylor.

Me: Ok, Tay you know what time it is.
Tay: Outside?
Me: Nope, it's naptime.
Tay: Sad.
Me: (laughing) Did you just say you're sad because you have to take a nap?
Tay: Huh (which means "yes")

Poooool's Out For Summer

2009-06-03T22:03:00.004-05:00

Clever, huh! You can thank me later for getting that song in your head. If you didn't get it, then nevermind. Anywho, since it's summer (not really, I know it's still spring, but it feels like summer) we got out the baby pool. Last weekend we spent some time in it Saturday and Sunday. All three of us fit in there, so that made it even more fun. I think Taylor and I will be getting alot of use out of it. She is such a water baby!

Make your own caption for this one

2009-06-03T22:01:00.004-05:00

I can't wait to hear the funny things some of you will come up with. Namely, Donna, Shana, and Hillary...don't let me down. :)

Sweet!

2009-06-03T22:00:00.000-05:00

I took this a few weeks ago after Nick finally shaved his beard. Isn't it so sweet! (the picture and his smooth face :))

UN-BE-LIEVABLE

2009-06-01T14:57:00.005-05:00

I truly think I just witnessed a miracle. I couldn't find my Swallet all morning (it's a thing I keep my driver's license and credit cards in) and was beginning to think I lost it. So I called Discover and reported it as lost, and was then on the phone with another credit card company when I walked into my bedroom. Bet you can guess what happened next...yep, I looked down and there it was just sitting on my carpet! Unbelievable! I has just said to the lady on the phone, "I might have lost my card and wanted to see if there had been any charges on it. I don't want to cancel right now, just want to see about charges." Just then I spotted the Swallet! Of course now I can't remember exactly what I said next, but it was something like "you have got to be kidding me" or "of course that would happen" or "unbelievable" or something like that. I had been in that room earlier getting ready for work and it was right there, in plain sight! If all things are for God's glory, then I can only believe that there was a deeper reason that the whole thing unfolded as it did. I actually said to the credit card lady I was talking to when I found it that I had been praying all morning to find it and God just made it appear. Perhaps she needed to hear that. Perhaps there is something for which she needs to pray. Perhaps she simply needed some affirmation that God is real and that He cared about the little things. Or perhaps it was for my own sanctification and faith building. Whatever the reason, I'm more than thankful it was neither lost nor stolen!

2009-05-25T10:11:00.004-05:00

We took this video of Taylor last night after dinner (sorry that we didn't put a shirt back on her). We've been working with her on ABC's and we sing "Jesus loves me" to her every night before bed. So after dinner last night she wanted to practice.

Today she counted to 10 by herself (without repeating or skipping any numbers, like she usually does). She also knows all the letters of the alphabet but has a hard time putting them all together. It's fun to teach these things to her because she really seems interested to learn.

words, words, words

2009-05-24T21:34:00.003-05:00

These days I should refer to Taylor as Little Miss Chatterbox. She's always been pretty verbal, but lately it seems like she surprises us daily with the new words she knows and says. She will repeat most things and just this past week, she said "golly", "goodness", and "that's not good" just to name a few. My three favorite things she said today were "dot com" which she repeated after hearing it on tv, "anyway" which she repeated after me, and "newbies" (as in the nickname for New Balance shoes) which she's heard Nick say but this time she came up with it on her own. She even pitched a fit because I told her she couldn't wear her "newbies" to the grocery store. I wanted her to wear her pink shoes because they looked better with the smocked bubble she was wearing, and I don't like when a pair of shoes ruins an outfit...can I get an amen?! I let her win and wear the newbies - don't judge me for giving in ;) - and she still looked cute.

She's also been quite the little songbird lately. She sings parts of "Jesus Loves Me", "The Itsy Bitsy Spider", and the alphabet. I don't have it uploaded yet, but we'll put a video on here that Nick took of her singing. TOO CUTE! Oh, and when we got home from church she was singing "round and down" and I figured out that she was singing "The Wheels on the Bus". I guess she heard that in the nursery and misunderstood round and round.

I'll have Nick post a video soon for your viewing pleasure and entertainment.

I promise I'm coming back

2009-05-18T22:34:00.004-05:00

Sorry for my lack of blogging. Have had a lot going on. I will return, I promise!

This picture was taken one year ago today. So much has changed since then. Her hair is so much longer, she is walking and running, and she has a huge vocabulary! Nick and I watched some old videos of her on the computer tonight and it is hard to remember her as a baby, when she didn't walk and talk. But in the same breath I can say that time has flown by and it's hard to believe she'll be 2 in July! Crazy.

"Tain-tu Mommy"

2009-05-01T18:49:00.004-05:00

This is how Taylor says "thank you" and she says it every time she brings me something that she knows she's not supposed to have (i.e., remote control, phone, pens, etc.) And believe me, that's alot. I'm trying to teach her to say "here you go" but she is so used to me saying thank you when she hands me stuff that it just comes out. We'll keep working on it. Speaking of other words we're working on...yes ma'am. I'd even take "yes" over "huh" which is short for uh-huh. Can you say tacky and rude? My Southern Belle will say yes ma'am, not huh...I hope. Nick is not Southern so this is a bit of a foreign concept to him. I'm positive my parents thought he was rude when they first met him since he didn't (and still doesn't) say ma'am and sir. Perhaps they've gotten used to. Or perhaps they still think he's rude...hopefully the former. Anyway I'll keep correcting her and hope that it sticks.

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with the post, but it's cute. This was taken almost one month ago and I forgot to post it. She had just put one of my socks on, which looks more like a leg warmer. Doesn't she look so proud?

As I type this she is working on her ABC's. She knows the tune of the first four letters and has gotten the order right a couple of times over the past few days. Most of the time, though, it's more like A D C D or C B C D. But, hey, cut the kid some slack...she is only 21 months old. We're also working on counting to ten, which is quite humorous at times. She does not like "7" and pretty much always skips it. Not sure why. Anywho, enjoy the funny picture!

Photo Shoot with Poppy

2009-05-01T16:13:00.002-05:00

My Dad, "Poppy", took these pics of Taylor the other day when he was babysitting. These four are my favorite. I hope they make you smile.

Now about that stress test...

2009-05-01T15:57:00.002-05:00

I totally forgot to blog about it. Thanks, Lisa, for the gentle reminder :)
Quick recap for those who don't know/forgot: last fall I was having some breathing issues, went to the Dr, had some tests run with no clear diagnosis, Dr. wanted to try me on Singulair (which does NOT come in a generic and is rediculously expensive) and I never got it filled and just lived with the breathing issues. Side note: I do not agree with treating symptoms when you don't have a proper diagnosis! Now I'm not talking about the common cold or minor things like that. I'm saying, don't just shove drugs, prescription or otherwise, in my face and hurry me out the door without diagnosing me! And if you can't, then send me to a specialist!
Have I made me point? :)
Ok, enough about that. Anyway, I began having some new symptoms (heart palpitations, a little bit of heart burn) and I know enough about heart disease to know that women can have weird symptoms like that. So I called to make an appt and my regular Dr. was out so I chose to see another one in the group. He ordered a stress echocardiogram and wanted me to wear a heart monitor for 30 days. The stress echo was just fine and revealed that I have some PVC's (premature ventricular contractions) which are basically just some extra beats. I just have a little more than some people and I happen to be very aware of mine. Oh, and I don't have to wear the heart monitor.
So is the breathing mystery solved? Nope. But at least we know my heart is ok.

Don't hate me because...

2009-04-26T22:02:00.004-05:00

I have cool shoes. Tay got her first pair of New Balance tennis shoes. We've been talking for awhile about getting her some grey New Balance and we finally did it. Aren't they sooo cute?! We bought them a little big in hopes that she can get alot of use out of them. Can you buy tennis shoes for kids that are more economical than these? Yes. But can you buy tennis shoes for kids that are cuter than these? Absolutely not! I mean, there are a ton of tennis shoes out there, but the majority of them are not my style. So we bit the bullet, and bought some that are adorable, not to mention better for her feet than some of the cheap ones. I'm all about buying quality shoes for kids while their little feet are developing. We hope you like her shoes, but it's ok if you don't. We love them.
P.S. The "outfit" doesn't do them justice, but we don't have any other pics of her in them.

Just in case you're wondering...

2009-04-26T21:48:00.002-05:00

No, Taylor has NOT taken another 3 hour nap. It must have been a fluke! She must dislike me and the thought of me being very productive during her naptime. Several days in a row after her most wonderful 3 hour nap, she slept for only an hour and twenty minutes or so. And this past Thursday, she only slept an hour. I was SO MAD! One might ask, "Why didn't you just leave her in there? She'd probably fall back asleep." I would answer, "I tried, but she was screaming bloody murder. No, she absolutely would not fall back asleep." So on Friday, when my mom and step-dad came to babysit while I had a stress test done (more on that later), she slept for 2 and a half hours. Like they had anything to do but play with her...and she decides to take a great nap! Yep, she's definately plotting against me and doesn't want me to get stuff done. So I will keep her on her one nap a day schedule and hopefully she'll fall into a 2-3 hour nap pattern very soon. Believe me, we both need it.

Noteworthy

2009-04-15T12:30:00.001-05:00

Taylor took a 3 hour nap yesterday!!! I hope she does the same today...and for many, many days to come.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T20:26:00.005-05:00

Happy Easter everyone! We hope you had a wonderful day celebrating the resurrection of our Lord Jesus! He is Risen! We had a great day - church, home, Mama's for lunch, home again for naps and a quiet evening around the house. Taylor got her first Easter basket this year. The first thing we bought to put in it was a book called "What is Easter?" that I found at Target over a month ago. I almost started crying in the middle of the store when I read it. Then when I told Nick about it I did tear up. It goes through many of the things associated with Easter, like dying and hunting eggs, new dress/hat/shoes, easter bunny, etc. Then it talks about the REAL meaning of Easter...Jesus dying for our sins and being raised three days later. So that's of course my favorite thing we gave her. She also got a recorder (a.k.a. flutaphone) which she loves and cracks herself up when she blows on it, 2 pieces of candy, a ball, and some animal crackers...random, I know. Then in her basket at my mom's house she got a card, some money for her piggy bank, pink playdough that mama made, a cookie cutter and some stickers. We had a good Easter meal at Mama's with Mama and Neil, and my step-sister and her family, Melanie, David, and Kaitlyn. Mama also made some jello so the girls could do jello jigglers and they turned out cute. Taylor didn't like the taste of it but liked squishing her fingers in it. Oh, I almost forgot, the dress Taylor wore was made by my mom for my older sister when she was 3. Then, I wore it, last year Ella wore it, and this year Taylor wore it. How special!

My Little Pony

2009-03-31T09:38:00.002-05:00

Ponytail, that is. I put Tay's hair in a ponytail for the first time today and she looks so old! 20 months old and wearing a ponytail? Where has the time gone and why does she grow so quickly?

Pancake Princess

2009-03-29T21:42:00.002-05:00

Lately Taylor has been loving pancakes. No, she does not have them with butter and syrup...just plain and we plan to keep it that way. Anyway, the last several times she's seen the box of mix in the pantry she says, "pantate, pantate" and then proceeds to get upset when she doesn't get them. So when we got her up yesterday morning Nick asked her if she wanted pancakes...before he even started making them. He quickly learned that this was not a good idea and we will only ask her if she wants pancakes AFTER they are made and ready to be eaten. Here she is being a little helper. Don't you wish you had a little helper at your house?

Chillin Out Maxin' Relaxin' All Cool...

2009-03-29T21:35:00.003-05:00

...but she was not shootin' some b-ball outside of the school. This is how I caught Tay chillin' in her chair the other day. She cracks me up!

P.S. Just in case you were wondering, the title is a throw back to the theme song for the Fresh Prince of Bel Air.

Little Houdini

2009-03-29T21:28:00.004-05:00

Taylor has been sneaking limbs out of her sleep sack lately. It's not uncommon for us to go into her room in the morning or after her nap and find her with one arm or both legs out of her sleep sack. I don't know if this means that she's ready to be done with it or if it's just because it's a bigger size and she can get her arm out. All I know is that I'm keeping her in it for now.

DONE!

2009-03-29T20:06:00.007-05:00

YAY!!! We finished the pink bathroom and are very pleased! Daddy (Robyn's dad) might be even more ecstatic than we are as he did the things that we don't know how to do. THANKS DADDY! In the process Nick learned how to "float out" a wall and did a great job on the spots that he did. My brother-in-law, Chip, and an old friend from college, Ryan, were in town for staff meetings and they even helped out by priming the walls...without being asked. Thanks again, guys. This enabled Nick to get a coat of paint on the walls later that night, then another the next night, then I put a final coat on the following day. Daddy patched a hole in the wall from a recessed medicine cabinet, put up the new light fixture, and installed a new faucet (which was not an easy task) over the course of a few days. What did I do, you might ask? I was the task master :) Just kidding. Besides putting one coat of paint on the walls and ceiling, I also painted the vanity cabinet and doors to the linen closet. Ok, so now that you know the break down of who did what, here are the pictures - sorry they're out of order, but I can't fix it. Hopefully you can figure it out :)

Dancin' Queen

2009-03-24T06:52:00.003-05:00

Taylor proved to be quite the little dancer at Natalie's wedding reception. It wasn't until she saw the two flower girls out on the dance floor that she decided to give it whirl. I guess she thought she needed to show them how it was done. She pretty much only had one or two dance moves, but she was a hit! Nick and I were so shocked that our shy baby was dancing in front of everyone. I hope you enjoy the video. Be patient, it takes her a second to get started. :)

Weekend Fun

2009-03-23T10:43:00.003-05:00

Just a quick post and a couple of pics to tell you about our weekend. We went to Birmingham for a wedding and a visit with our dear friends, the Comptons. I'll post more pics and a video later, but for now here are just a few. Saturday morning we took the girls to Overton Park, a cute little toddler friendly park/playground in Mountain Brook (a.k.a. where-some-of-the-rich-folks-live). Taylor was tired and kinda freaked out on the way there but I think she had fun once she started playing. She's never been on a see-saw (or "teeter-totter" if you so prefer) before, but she loved it! The weather was beautiful and perfect. On the way back to the Compton's house we stopped for lunch, then Taylor passed out in the car. She was absolutely wiped out! Stay tuned for more pics from the weekend and a video of Taylor, the Dancin' Queen.

Sleepy girl

2009-03-11T21:13:00.003-05:00

Taylor hasn't quite adjusted to the time change yet, so this morning I had to wake her up so that we'd get her to the babysitter on time. I took these 4 pictures just after waking her up this morning and thought they were too funny not to share. In the first 2, she's still pretty much out of it, but she had started to wake up when I took the second 2.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NICK!!!

2009-03-03T15:23:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to wish Nick a very Happy Birthday! He's 31 today. He gets the Most Dedicated Employee Award because his company gives you the day off on your birthday and he chose to go to work anyway. Is that dedication or what?! The co-workers in his department treated him to lunch and Taylor and I got to join them. How nice!

Here Goes Nothin'

2009-02-10T12:56:00.006-06:00

I've been making these frames as gifts for some of my friends' children. I made one and took it to a baby shower a few weeks ago and got a lot of interest from others. A few people asked if I take orders to which I responded, "Sure!" So the next week I made my first sale! Woohoo! I've been thinking for months now that I should try to sell them for a little income. So, what do you think? And what would you be willing to pay? Answer honestly...and feel free to be anonymous :)

P.S. I am capable of painting things other than polka dots.

Did I Do That?

2009-02-08T21:33:00.000-06:00

I hope you read that in your very best Steve Urkle voice. :) I left Taylor in her high chair for a few minutes and returned to find this! No, the newspaper was not within her reach, until she made it to be so by pulling the table cloth towards her. Then, I guess she thought the newspaper needed to be on the floor. And so it was. Doesn't she look so guilty?!

Mommy's Little Helper

2009-02-08T21:26:00.003-06:00

Taylor has become quite the copy cat in the last few months. Last week she was a big help while I was vacuuming the living room and dining room. She even helped me move the chairs so I could get under the table. She's very strong! I think she enjoyed using her toy vacuum. Looks like she's going to be a neat freak like her Daddy.

Peek-a-Boo

2009-02-08T21:20:00.003-06:00

Taylor LOVES her Daddy and loves to watch him when he's outside working in the yard. This particular day it was too cold to join him so they played peek-a-boo through the window. I'm not sure who had more fun.

Word(s) of the day

2009-01-28T12:55:00.003-06:00

Today Taylor has added 2 more words to her vocabulary: apple and okay (which sounds more like otay). And I almost forgot to mention that she's 18 months old today! Where has the time gone? It's hard to believe we'll be planning for her 2nd Birthday Party in just a few months!

Big Girl

2009-01-26T20:33:00.004-06:00

Taylor has been acting and looking like such a big girl lately. Sometimes it's her outfit, sometimes it's her hair-do, but all the time it's her attitude that makes her seem so grown-up. I think we might be getting a little taste of the terrible two's. And she's adding to her vocabulary daily...no kidding. Some of her new words lately include: turtle, car, Amy (babysitter), Baxley (Amy's brother), Poppy/Papa, Gran (kind of), picture, Streed (kind of), Gidgey (neighbor's dog, teeth. She's quite the chatterbox! She LOVES to read and asks you to "wead" to her all the time! And I think she's even begun to try to stall me when I get ready to lay her down for her nap, because as soon as I start to put her in her sleep sak she points to the rocking chair and says "wead" over and over and over. Within the past week she has started "reading" (a.k.a. babbling) when you open a book. Isn't she too young for this? Oh, and I almost forgot, she can count to 2! She's super funny and fun, and I'm glad she's developing so well...but I wish she'd slow down!

Kissin' Queen

2009-01-26T20:30:00.003-06:00

I wish I had a picture to post, but Taylor has become quite the kissin' queen lately. She's been giving Nick kisses for a few weeks, but is now giving kisses to me, too. Yay! She more or less leans in and lets you kiss her rather than puckering up and kissing back. But we'll take what we can get. :)

630

2009-01-12T21:43:00.002-06:00

So I got my score for the PHR exam in the mail today and I was very pleased. A passing score on the test is a 500 and a perfect score is a 700. I was really hoping for a 600, but was afraid that that may have been a little too lofty of an aspiration. So I was very happy when I opened up my test results today and saw that I got a 630! On just about each of the six sections of the test I missed just four questions.

Oh, and I got a gold pin that says "PHR." Boo-ya.

Friday Morning Fiasco

2009-01-09T10:35:00.004-06:00

You will not believe what happened at the Villacampa house this morning! Before I tell you, let me set the stage. It was sometime after 7:30 a.m., Taylor was awake, Nick had gotten up and was pouring Taylor's milk, and I'm still laying in bed mostly awake. I hear an unidentifiable noise, then I hear Nick say, "Oh crap, Robyn come here quick!" My first thought was there is some type of animal in our house! As I am jumping out of bed at lightening speed I ask, "What is it?" to which he replies, "It's a squirrel!" Yep, a squirrel! Do you know how crazy those things are? I mean, I am an Alpha Gam, and I'm the only squirrel that should be in my house! Back to setting the stage. I am laughing as I type this because I know we looked hilarious! So I run to the den, then I tell Nick I have to go find my glasses (this is one of the MANY times I wish I had Lasik surgery, or better yet naturally perfect eyesight), then I look in the usual places that I leave them only to find no glasses. So I go back to the den to try and "help" Nick in my blindness and we watch this squirrel run around, scurry up blinds and then jump off, then run up my ficus tree and try to run up the mantel, then run over to the love seat (yes, I will be saturating it with Lysol), and finally run out the back door with the help of Nick corralling it. It was absolutely unbelievable to say the least. And in case you're wondering how it got in...the chimney. Nick forgot to close the damper last time we used it, which has been quite some time ago might I add! Then he tells me, "I was just thinking yesterday that I might have left the damper open." He also said that he was thinking just a few days ago that he needs to put some screening on the top of the chimney. I must say I have to agree. Can you imagine if that happened when Taylor and I were here by ourselves? I'm pretty sure I would have wet my pants...and then called my dear neighbors to come help me. And Nick is now out of town, so I'll probably be having nightmares about being attacked by a squirrel. Maybe I'll sleep in Taylor's crib with her. :)

P.S. Please pray for Nick's safety as he travels this weekend.

Some Christmas Pics

2008-12-27T20:02:00.003-06:00

Here are some pictures from Christmas in Grand Bay from last Saturday and some from Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Hover your mouse over the picture to see the caption and enjoy!

Like Mother Like Daughter

2008-12-27T19:50:00.005-06:00

If you know me well, you know I love presents...and peeking into them before I'm supposed to open them :) I was, and still am, notorious for wanting to open Christmas presents early. And when I was little I usually peeked into (or totally unwrapped then rewrapped) my presents before Christmas morning. Well, it seems that Taylor has inherited this wonderful trait. Earlier in the week I heard the sound of paper tearing and walked over to the tree where Taylor was to find her tearing into her gift from Aunt Lisa and Uncle Erik. So I told her "no" and started to move her away from it, but I just had to get a picture and a video of her first. The wrapping paper was ripped from being shipped from Florida, so I guess the temptation proved to be too much.

"All Done"

2008-12-27T19:26:00.004-06:00

First let me say, "No I'm not pregnant, nor do I want to be right now." Ok, now I can proceed with my story. Nick and I were talking about babies and big families, etc. and Taylor chimed in with her opinion. She basically told us that she wants to be an only child when she said, "All done." Nick and I immediately cracked up. Too bad for Taylor she doesn't get a vote. Not to mention we know we want more than one.