Rough Day at the Park

Filed Under Outings, Play, Two Years Old | 4 Comments

We went to the park last week with our Moms and Tots group from church. The morning started out great. Bailey actually cooperated and got ready without a hassle- which is rare- can I get an Amen, moms of two year olds? She was rewarded with a powdered sugar donut. Yep, I’m totally NOT above bribery.

We got to go down the hill (I think it was more like I chased Bailey down the hill when she took off running) to see the pond. We had fun walking across the bridge and exploring. It didn’t even faze her that there was a huge pond. It scares me how fearless she is and how she is so impulsive. It was HOT, but she didn’t seem to care.

We saw this duck up close and she thought that was pretty cool.

Then on the way back up the hill, one of those big furry bumblebees got in my flip flop and stung the bottom of my foot- it was still hanging on and I had to flick it off and then oh did it hurt. Plus I had to limp all the way up the hill on my tip toes of that foot while carrying Bailey who was having a fit. But there were a lot of dandelions so I didn’t want her to get stung too! Bad mommy decisions.

When we got up to the top she had some snacks and then went back to play on the playground while I poked at my foot- which felt like it was on fire. I haven’t been stung since I was like 8 years old and I don’t recommend it. But Bailey loves Goldfish crackers and she seemed oblivious to my pain. I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it and scare her but she didn’t notice anyway.

Then right before we left this kid pushed her (not trying to push her off, just pushed her out of the way and turns out he was deaf and couldn’t talk to her anyway) but she went flying off one of those gaps where you can slide down a pole. KWIM? It was about the height of my head so over five feet- I just saw her go flying to the ground and then laying there in a heap screaming. At least she was screaming but I was thinking for sure broken bones! She bit her tongue and it was pretty bloody and she had a little bump/scrape on her chin but I think that’s it!

For a day or two she kept saying “Boy push you!” and “Beelay fall boom park!” POor girl, there was nothing I could have done but it was so awful to watch.

Just Singin’ In the Tub

Filed Under Singing, Talking, Two Years Old, Video | 2 Comments

You’ll have to turn your head to watch this one too. I have never claimed to be great with technology. Someday I’ll figure out how to rotate the video files.

Wordless Wednesday- Pizza

Filed Under Food, Two Years Old, Wordless Wednesday | 5 Comments

My Grandpa’s Birthday/ Bailey’s Tricycle

Filed Under Birthdays, Grandparents, Toys, Two Years Old | 1 Comment

We celebrated Grandpa’s (papa’s) birthday a few weeks ago. This day was also significant for two other reasons: Bailey wore “real” ponytails for the first time AND she got her first tricycle!

Okay but we’re supposed to be talking about Grandpa. He turned 88. I am so proud of him and my grandma. They live on their own in a condo nearby and they do pretty well, most of the time. Bailey loves to go over and visit them! Here she is giving her Papa his birthday present.

My mom gave Bailey her new tricycle that evening. She had so much fun riding around the house with it. It is the pink and purple version of this Kettler tricycle and I seriously recommend it. My mom got it used and the price was really reasonable. It is much more sturdy/stable than Radio Flyer or any of the ones we saw at the toy store. The base is wide, the wheels are wide, and it’s heavy. Bailey is getting a helmet before she takes it outside because we want her to learn early that she has to wear a helmet to ride a bike. We have a family member who had a head injury from a bike accident so I take it pretty seriously!

Happy birthday, Grandpa!

Happy Memorial Day!

Filed Under Patriotic, Posing for Pictures, Two Years Old | Leave a Comment

Not much going on around here. Just delivered some Avon and visited my grandparents. Jonathon and I are going to grill and I am making some key lime pie for him. Just a nice, low-key family day.

Thank you to all the men and women who have sacrificed for our country! We appreciate what you have done and we always pray for our military. We are so blessed to live in a free country.

Check Me Out on StL Mommy!

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I was featured on the StLMommy website today! Check it out here and enter to win the giveaway if you are interested!

(And if you haven’t used this site before, she posts all kinds of great coupons, giveaways, shopping tips, etc!)

Online Education

Filed Under Random, Thoughts | Leave a Comment

I have met more and more people recently who are doing online degrees. Back when I was in college (okay like it was 100 years ago or something- but I was a freshman in 1998 so it wasn’t exactly yesterday!) it was rare to do a whole lot online for school. About the most our college did was offer a few online classes. Mainly things like health and library skills so that you could get them out of the way over the summer. I took one online class and just had to go in to take a final. I got 100% in the class- it was almost kind of ridiculous.

I know things have come a long way. You can get an entire bachelor’s or master’s degree online now! St. Xavier University offers an Online Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction (MS Instruction). In fact, I just signed up a girl to sell Avon who is doing this program. I asked her all kinds of questions about it because I’ve never known anyone who has gotten their entire degree online.

And according to their website, “This innovative Curriculum and Instruction online program provides experienced practitioners with a broad understanding of curriculum development and an in-depth examination of new instructional techniques through the exploration of topics in literacy, diversity, integration of technology, and an interdisciplinary perspective in education.” St. Xavier’s program is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

I am thinking that if I ever decide to go back to school for a different degree (which I sometimes daydream about doing) I might start looking more seriously into online options. I would be curious to hear from others who have done something like this.

Grant’s Farm (second visit this season, first with pics!)

Filed Under Outings, St. Louis, This Rocks, Two Months | 6 Comments

Title says it all, really. We love Grant’s Farm and just went for the second time this year. Bailey LOVES it. She gets so excited to “Ride choo choo train” (the tram) and “see animals all day long.” We met up with Amy and Kaitlynn, and Kim and Mackenzie and Tristan. We all parked close together and the girls were happy to see each other. I got a picture of them together before we went in and met the rest of our group.

And yes, I had Bailey’s stroller. She hates it with a passion and so I don’t make her get in it too often. Only if we are walking really far. And usually if we are going through a parking lot. If we ever have another child I guess I don’t need to invest in a double stroller. Really the stroller is just my diaper bag carrier. And when we go shopping it’s my clothes rack!

I love that you ride a tram to get into the park. I would say the ride is about 15 minutes but can be longer on a really busy day or if there are a lot of animals in the road. The rule is that kids sit toward the inside and adults sit on the seats along the edge. So that you don’t lose stuff… or a kid… well today I turned and reached toward Bailey who was sitting on the inside and somehow my shoe (Birkenstock sandal) went FLYING off and landed on the ground. If you know me IRL you know that I tend to have outbursts so of course without even thinking I was all “OMG my shoe! My shoe is over there!” And the tram tour guide started asking me on the microphone about it. He couldn’t get the driver’s attention in time to stop (the tram is like four 10-row cars long) so they had to radio the next tram to pick it up. So then on the microphone he had to ask me what color my shoe was and everything. I’m glad they got it for me because that would be like walking through the zoo without a shoe… ick! Plus not a cheap shoe, either.

Here is Bailey before the tram ride started and before the shoe incident.

She fed a goat with a bottle for the first time today. She asked me about it a couple times. I kept trying to blow it off because I know the goats are a little psycho sometimes if you go in their pen. Like they will start nipping at your clothes, nudging you (not gently, either!) and put their front feet up on your leg to reach the bottles. Bailey was NOT happy with just feeding them through the fence- she wanted to go in there. This picture was taken within the first ten seconds while it was still fun, before she had three goats climbing on her and fighting over a bottle. She kind of freaked out and I was trying to get the lens cap on my camera and stuff it in my pocket because the goat area is so dusty AND I was afraid they would bite at it. Now when I ask her about feeding the goats she says, “No no goats! All done goats!” We will probably try another time through the fence.

And toward the end of our visit, by the camels. You can buy food to feed the camels and Bailey is always sticking her hand in the food dispensers to see if there is anything in there. They’re like those gumball/candy machines where you put in a quarter and turn the dial. She is such a scavenger.

Overall it was a really fun day and I am looking forward to going back! I am so glad we got a parking pass again so that we can go whenever we want. It is a great way to spend a morning because it’s closer than the zoo and smaller/less crowded so the kids can run around more.

Diggy Daddy

Filed Under Talking, Two Years Old | Leave a Comment

Bailey has started calling Jonathon “Diggy Daddy” or “Diggydiggydiggydiggydaddy.” She also likes to call him “Daddy Maddy” and she calls me “Mommy Dommy.” She is kind of starting to make rhymes even if she doesn’t realize that’s what she is doing. It’s cute and entertaining.

Yesterday as he left the house, she said, “Bye bye Diggy Daddy see you later gator all day long Barney baby!” I looked at her and said, “WHAT?” and she repeated the whole thing, exactly the same. So apparently she put some thought into it. Or something.

Tonight when she was in time-out she said, “All done time-out! Beelay obey now all day long please!”

She never ceases to amuse. Oh, and she is 25 months old now, but it is so nice to just be able to say that she’s two and not have to get all specific about it.

Not sure where to start…

Filed Under Avon, Daddy, Friends, O.T., Two Years Old | 6 Comments

because I don’t really have much to say when I think about it… but when I start writing I end up coming up with a few things. I am having a hard time getting into blogging lately. Which is probably evident by my more sporadic posting! Things are going well here.

Bailey has been seeing an Occupational Therapist for a few weeks now for her eating issues and they are improving. She is also working on movement, like swinging and rocking which she has never been able to tolerate. I have a lot to say about this, but right now I just don’t feel like typing it all out. The therapy is hard, but it is going well. I hope that makes sense. It also gives me a new respect for moms who go to therapy multiple times a week, month after month… it takes a lot out of you. We only go twice a week but I have already discovered this.

Jonathon and I are doing well. We usually are, so it’s not like that is big news, but just something I like to be aware of. I have a good marriage. I met someone a few days ago who just left an abusive marriage and her thirteen-year-old daughter was also hurt. I don’t want to get into details but ti reminds me how blessed I am.

Avon is mostly good. I worked at a career fair on Thursday and then helped my manager with some meetings on Thursday night. It was a long day but I feel like I made some good connections. I am still working hard toward winning a cruise. My numbers are good so far but I need more orders- so if there is anything you want, let me know! You can shop on my Avon site and order for Representative Delivery.

I also had a quick break in between everything and got to run into Gymboree to pick up my holds. I got some great stuff, including this dress and these sunglasses (not to wear together) but I am so excited about them!

Bailey also loves, LOVES her friends. Every day she asks me where we are going and then checks to see if we will be seeing Addison, Kenzie, Ella, and always Gabe. Gabe has been her favorite for a long time. Which is funny because they ignore each other when they are together. Here are a few pictures from a playdate with Mackenzie and baby Tristan. Bailey was obsessing over Tristan again and kept kissing him.

Video- no more crib!

Filed Under Sleep, Twenty-three Months, Video | 1 Comment

Just realized that I hadn’t shared this video of Bailey. It was during the saga of moving her into her big girl bed, about a month ago. Here we had taken apart the crib and she was supposed to be sleeping on just a mattress for the first time. You can see how much energy she has- that is about average for her if that gives you any idea of what I do all day long!

Oh and sorry that it’s sideways. I took it on my regular camera instead of the video camera and I couldn’t figure out how to rotate the file so you’ll just have to turn your head!

Mother’s Day #3

Filed Under Being a Mom, Daddy, Holidays, Two Years Old | 3 Comments

I can’t believe I have already celebrated my third Mother’s Day. (Yes, Bailey was born about a month before Mother’s Day in 2007). I am so, so thankful to be Bailey’s mom. She is better than anything I could possibly have dreamed of. She is not “perfect” but she is perfect for me. I have so much fun with her, I love to hear what she has to say and to watch her learn. I just adore her.

Here she is in her new Mother’s Day outfit. She always wears a new dress for a special occasion before it goes into the clothing cycle. I know I am weird about her clothes but I love dressing up my little girl!

My mom and my grandma… yes they are wearing the same shirt in different colors… not planned that way. I love them both and I am so blessed to live so close to both of them.

This was our dessert. I thought it was such a cute idea. Little votive holders for flower pots, chocolate ice cream, and silk flowers. Very simple but it was fun for something different. My mom is always crafty and comes up with neat food ideas. She used to sell Pampered Chef back when it was first popular (like early 90s maybe).

Bailey and Daddy They surprised me with a sweet card that they made together, and breakfast in bed on Sunday morning. I even got to sleep in late! And for dinner I was surprised again- with stuffed crust pizza and cinnamon sticks! My favorite. My gift is, um, still being decided upon. Don’t ask, it wasn’t worth the fight.

Silly monkey face girl! I love her!

Church Staff

Filed Under Church, Friends, Two Years Old | 3 Comments

Last week (or I guess two weeks ago now) Bailey and her friend Elle were sitting in the chairs at the nursery registration desk. They are there ALL THE TIME anyway since Kelli and I both work in the nursery. They both just climbed up and sat and talked together and ate donuts. Kelli sent me this picture that I took that day.

Maybe they’ll be doing this together in 15-20 years? Crazy to think about!

Help Me Win a Caribbean Cruise!

Filed Under Avon | 2 Comments

I have the coolest opportunity with Avon- I can win a cruise. Airfare to Miami, a celebration dinner, and then a four night Royal Caribbean cruise. All I have to do is meet a preset sales goal and I am guaranteed a ticket.

So what I am proposing is a win-win situation for all of us. I am offering you Avon products at 40% off the price shown on my website. (With the exception of clothes, shoes, licensed characters and some gift items which will be 20% off). This will help bump up my sales and help you get some CHEAP stuff! If you don’t live near me, I just need you to pay for shipping.

Interested? Here’s what you do. Visit my Avon site. You can fill your shopping cart on my site and then when you submit it, choose “Representative Delivery.” I will figure out your total and get back to you with information on payment (and shipping, if needed). I accept Paypal, checks, USPS money orders, and credit cards if you will be paying in person. I would like to have the orders by the end of May.

If you don’t care about the discount or don’t want to pay for shipping (like if you have a very small order of heavy items or something), you can shop online and choose Direct Delivery. Avon will ship your items directly to you (use the code FSANY for free shipping) but I will NOT be able to give you any discount on this order.

Thank you so much for your help. I appreciate the orders that I have already gotten. I am looking for a ticker or something to track my progress!

Claire’s First Birthday Party

Filed Under Birthdays, Friends, Parties, Two Years Old | Leave a Comment

Last weekend we went to Claire’s birthday party. Bailey was SO excited because we had the invitation hanging where she could see it for a few weeks prior. (Actually, she kept saying, Happy Birrrday Claire, go party see Claire’s Mommy!”) She’s kind of a fan of my friend Sarah, who is, in fact, Claire’s Mommy. So sweet.

I have a lot of pictures from the party. Sarah- will be getting you cd to you on Monday, I’ll leave it on your door if you’re not there. Bailey had a great time and Claire was the perfect one year old party girl! She enjoyed her cake and was happy to see all her guests, and had lots of fun opening presents. And Bailey even ate about half a cupcake!!