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9/17/08 - Our day at Disney (9/12/08):  We started the day by buying tickets at our hotel because the lady said that the ticket lines were awful and we thought it would be worth the extra money to skip that part. She also suggested that we not buy a child's ticket because they don't check to verify if the child is under 3 (but really, what would they do? Card a three year old?) Obviously we still bought her a ticket because not buying one would just be wrong. But it would have been nice to save the extra $63 (yes, that's right...it's that much for a child's admission!) Anyway, we got there right when they opened and it was a good thing we bought the tickets at the hotel because the ticket lines were like 5 PEOPLE LONG! GRRRR! It probably took us more time to buy them at the hotel than it would have to stand in that "awful" line. Oh well, we tried not to think about it too much...what was done was done. We took the monorail to the Magic Kingdom and entered at Main Street. Shelby was mesmerized! She was walking around staring up at the castle and all of the fun things around her. We eventually had to put her in the stroller to keep her from running into things and people!

I don't know if I mentioned it earlier but Jeremy got us reservations for Cinderella's Royal Table on Wednesday! We were so excited, especially since we were able to reserve a breakfast time so the girls would be well rested and fresh. We made our way into the castle and the first thing we did was have our picture taken with Cinderella! We all got in the shot because we knew that Shelby would be bashful. This pose was included in the price of the meal, along with an 8x10 in a souvenir frame and four 4x6s. I had tears in my eyes as I watched Shelby and Cinderella. I know it is her job, but she was so sweet to Shelby and Sadie (who had already fallen asleep in the sling).  After the picture, Shelby was given a wand and the girls were both given "wishing stars". We were seated and quickly served. Soon the princesses Aurora, Jasmine, Belle, and Snow White made their way to our table for autographs and pictures. Shelby was a little unsure about posing with strangers (hence the goofy half smiles in the pictures). Aurora kissed Sadie on the forehead (leaving lipstick prints) and Snow White said that Sadie reminded her of her friend Happy! The food was great - stuffed french toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, potato something, muffins, fresh fruit and juice. The service was great and I highly recommend this to anyone who is visiting Disney. It is not cheap but I thought it was worth the money to let the princesses come to us (as opposed to having to chase them around the park and wait in line) and enjoy a great meal at the same time. On our way out, we saw the Fairy Godmother passing. We had seen her on our way in and she said that she would be right back. I guess she remembered us because she stopped and talked to us, signed an autograph and took a picture. She even gave us tips on keeping cool.

After breakfast we all rode Cinderella's carousel and then Shelby and I rode the flying Dumbos while Jeremy and Sadie stood in line to see Ariel. This ended up being the longest line we had to wait in, which was about 40 minutes. Every other ride and show only had a 5-10 minute wait!! It was so nice!  We decided we needed to cool down a little and went to see the Philharmagic 3D show. That was a lot of fun, especially watching Shelby go from covering her ears to reaching out to try to touch the 3D things.  Next we rode "It's a small world" ride and then Pooh Bear's adventure. We got a picture with Pooh but Sadie was hungry and Shelby would not go near him (she was tired and hot), so I won't post that one. Jeremy got Shelby some ice cream and took her to Storytime with Belle while I took advantage of the nursing moms' room at the Baby Care Center. I met a couple of nice moms, one of whom goes to Disney all of the time. She had a 5 month old and she said it was his 5th trip to Disney! She told me of some things that we should not miss (she also had a three year old). After Sadie was fed and changed I got myself some ice cream and staked out a primo spot to watch the parade.  After the parade, we got a snack and browsed the gift shops a little. Then it was off to the Jungle Cruise ride. We ended up riding on a boat named "Sankaru Sadie" so, of course, we had to get a picture of that.  By that time Sadie needed to nurse again so Jeremy took Shelby on a kiddie roller coaster. He said that it was faster than he expected but that Shelby loved it. What can I say...she is her mother's daughter! :) We visited Minnie's house and then went to Tomorrow Land to watch the Monster's Inc Laugh Factory show. This was a lot funnier than I expected and another thing I would recommend that you not miss. Of course, I had to get my own roller coaster fix and rode Space Mountain while Jeremy stayed with the girls. (This was another reason that the short lines were great - I was in and out of there in about 15 minutes.)  We rode the train back to Main Street and then the monorail back to the park's exit (which lost power halfway through the ride) We couldn't believe that we had stayed the whole day! It had been a hot day but we kept the girls cool with plenty of fluids, a wet hat for Sadie and wet hair for Shelby. The girls did great...they were not fussy or grouchy at all. Sadie even found out that her feet are good things to chew on!

It was such a long and busy day it was no wonder that Shelby slept the whole way home. Jeremy and I still don't know how we were able to drive all night long! We have talked about making this trip to Venice and Disney an annual thing...I can honestly say that it was one of the best vacations I have ever taken!!

Love, Mama

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9/13/08 - Ok...you're pretty much only going to get pictures today. Partly because we have so many to share but the real reason is that I'm too tired to think of interesting stories right now. We decided at last minute to drive all night long to get home, after a full day of Disney (more about that later, maybe tomorrow) and a previous night in a hotel during which none of us slept very well. We got home this morning at 4:45 am. Long story short, the girls did great (Shelby slept for 8 of the hours! Whoo hoo!), we are sleepy but we are happy to be home. We were all asleep by 6 am and Shelby didn't get up again until almost ten. Four hours...I think I can make it through the day on that, as long as I go to bed early tonight.


A short recap:
We visited two different congregations on Sunday. Everyone was so nice and we are glad to know of sound groups in the area for when we go back.

Monday was our first day playing at the beach. It was perfect for Shelby's first experience; smooth, clear water with no waves. It was pretty windy, much to the annoyance of my bossy first born. She said "WIND, stop winding me"! Sadie took a little cat nap in her tent before the wind blew it over - while she was still in it. Actually it wasn't the flipped over tent that woke her, it was me picking her up to take her home. Later on Monday my aunt visited for the afternoon and took us out to eat.

We got a couple of storms on Tuesday evening...an hour and a half before our appointment for our family portrait on the beach. So, of course, we had to cancel. Although I am disappointed that we weren't able to have our picture taken, I am not disappointed that we didn't have to spend all of that money. But, moving on....

Wednesday was still rainy and cloudy for most of the day. When it wasn't rainy we spent the time at the pool and then went to paint pottery before bible study.

Ok, I think that's all I can do for now. That actually was a lot more information than I thought I was going to do. Man, I'm tired.

Love, Mama

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9/6/08 - We have made it to Venice Beach! The girls did a great job on the ride and it was an easy trip. Shelby has been so excited about getting to the beach...every time we stopped she asked "Is this the beach?" She even asked when we stopped for a quick dinner 5 minutes after we left our house! Other than leaving my cell phone at hotel in Perry, GA and the Subway sandwich maker put entirely too much mustard and mayo on my turkey sub, we have not had any trouble - it was sunshine and blue skies the whole way. Shelby even slept in her carseat for about 30 minutes and that is a HUGE deal! My aunt's beach house is beautiful and we could not have asked for a better place to stay. And I'm not just saying that because it's free! We have already enjoyed the private pool, had dinner on the pier, and watched the sunset. Now that Ike is continuing to head towards the Gulf and away from Florida, it looks like we made the right decision to come. Now if only we could book a reservation at Cinderella's Royal Table!

Love, Mama

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7/17/08 - We spent Jeremy's vacation visiting family. The first place we went was to Oneida TN, which is where my grandfather lives. I always love to visit his house because it has a wonderful view. It overlooks a river and lots of trees. Oh and I also love the private pool! We had a great time relaxing by the pool and Jeremy was able to play tennis with my cousin. On Wednesday we took the girls down to the river. Ashley watched Sadie while Jeremy and I took Shelby in the water. She was a little unsure but ended up having a blast. Her favorite part was when she floated with the current from Jeremy to me. I admit that it was my favorite part too...her expression was pure glee!

We left Oneida on Wednesday afternoon and traveled to Lebanon for a quick visit with Jeremy's family. His parents were headed up to Ohio for the weekend but we were able to attend worship with them and have dinner before they left.

On July 4th we drove up to the"country" to spend some time with our friends, the Pettes and Shumake families. We took the opportunity to take a picture of all of us. The last time we did this was in September of last year...when we were all pregnant! Unfortunately Michael was asleep in his carrier so he wasn't actually in the picture but he was there in spirit! Can you believe that we have 7 children under the age of three!? And only one boy...I guess he'll have plenty of girls to choose from in the future!

Our "big kids" had a ball playing with each other and in the creek. There was a big swing that was hung over the water and all of the big girls took turns swinging. I wish they had another one that the mommies could use...it looked like so much fun!

-Mama

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6/27/08 - On the 14th we had Shelby's official birthday party.  It was supposed to include friends but due to sickness and family obligations, only family ended up being there. This is the party that was supposed to be last month but was postponed so that I could recover a little from Sadie's birth and Kacie's graduation party. I don't really know what I was thinking...it was a lot of hard work. Of course I did bring a lot of it on myself - why must I insist on homemade invitations and cake??!! We had a lot of fun and enjoyed spending time with our family. But next year we are planning on having ONE party for both girls. That will be easier on everyone.

I decided to make Shelby a castle cake. I was inspired by the one that a friend made for her daughter's party. Her's looked a lot better, I guess that's what I get for not making a practice cake. But I did not, for the life of me, know what I would have done with that much cake! Anyway, the cake actually turned out pretty good and I was done by mid morning on the day of the party. I was nursing Sadie and talking to my sister and husband when we hear "Mama, I make a mess." I groaned and told them to go see what Shelby had done...I didn't want to know! She had grabbed one of the towers and tasted the icing! I still don't know how she didn't knock the whole thing over because I had it covered with a huge gift bag. Jeremy and Ashley doctored it up a bit and it looked ok. Then I had to take Sadie to get her pictures taken at my midwife's house (who is also a photographer). When I got back one of the towers had fallen off and the towers on top where leaning even more. It was then that I realized that I hadn't taken a picture of the cake before it started coming apart. So I tried to take it at an angle that would minimize the devastation but no such luck. Here it is, in all it's leaning and 3-year-old-fingerprinted glory. But hey, it tasted great!!

Once again, Shelby was showered with gifts. I don't know what I will do with all this stuff!! She got a bicycle (which was the only thing she repeatedly asked for), clothes, Cinderella doll, books, Tonka dump truck, remote control Backhoe, Bulldozer and Excavator. Yes, that's right, apparently we now own Princess Construction Company. Anyone need to build a castle or, perhaps, a kingdom?

On this day Sadie found her middle fingers. Anyone who knows Shelby knows that she also sucks on these fingers (now only when she is tired.) Sadie hasn't done this consistently since then but they may be the ones she ends up favoring!

Love, Mama

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6/7/08 - Just for fun:

Sadie:  Birthdate - May 7, 2008

Your date of conception was on or about 15 August 2007 which was a Wednesday.

You were born on a Wednesday
under the astrological sign Taurus.
Your Life path number is 4.

Your fortune cookie reads:
Don't ask, don't say. Everything lies in silence.

Life Path Compatibility:
You are most compatible with those with the Life Path numbers 2, 4, 8, 11 & 22.
You should get along well with those with the Life Path numbers 6 & 7.
You are least compatible with those with the Life Path numbers 1, 3, 5 & 9.

The Julian calendar date of your birth is 2454593.5.
The golden number for 2008 is 14.
The epact number for 2008 is 22.
The year 2008 is a leap year.

Your Native American Zodiac sign is Beaver; your plant is Wild Clover.

You were born in the Egyptian month of Epipy, the third month of the season of Shomu (Harvest).

Your date of birth on the Hebrew calendar is 2 Iyyar 5768.
Or if you were born after sundown then the date is 3 Iyyar 5768.

The Mayan Calendar long count date of your birthday is 12.19.15.5.9 which is
12 baktun 19 katun 15 tun 5 uinal 9 kin

The Hijra (Islamic Calendar) date of your birth is Wednsday, 1 Jumadiyu'l-Avval 1429 (1429-5-1).

The date of Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 23 March 2008.
The date of Orthodox Easter on your birth year was Sunday, 27 April 2008.
The date of Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent) on your birth year was Wednesday 6 February 2008.
The date of Whitsun (Pentecost Sunday) in the year of your birth was Sunday 11 May 2008.
The date of Whisuntide in the year of your birth was Sunday 18 May 2008.
The date of Rosh Hashanah in the year of your birth was Tuesday, 30 September 2008.
The date of Passover in the year of your birth was Sunday, 20 April 2008.
The date of Mardi Gras on your birth year was Tuesday 5 February 2008.
 
As of 6/7/2008 2:34:10 PM EDT
You are 0 years old.
You are 1 months old.
You are 4 weeks old.
You are 31 days old.
You are 758 hours old.
You are 45,514 minutes old.
You are 2,730,850 seconds old.

Celebrities who share your birthday:

Today is not one of your lucky days!

There are 334 days till your next birthday
on which your cake will have 1 candles.

Those 1 candles produce 1 BTUs,
or 252 calories of heat (that's only 0.2520 food Calories!) .
You can boil 0.11 US ounces of water with that many candles.  

In 2008 there were 4,091,063 births in the US.
In 2008 the US population was approximately 281,421,906 people, 79.6 persons per square mile.
In 2008 in the US there were approximately 2,181,000 marriages (7.4%) and - divorces (3.7%)
In 2008 in the US there were approximately 2,423,000 deaths (8.3 per 1000)
In the US a new person is born approximately every 8 seconds.
In the US one person dies approximately every 12 seconds.


Your birthstone is Emerald

The Mystical properties of Emerald

Though not meant to replace traditional medical treatment, Emerald is used for physical and emotional healing.

Some lists consider these stones to be your birthstone. ( Birthstone lists come from Jewelers, Tibet, Ayurvedic Indian medicine, and other sources)

Agate, Chrysoprase

Your birth tree is

Poplar, the Uncertainty

Looks very decorative, no self-confident behaviour, only courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, artistic nature, good organiser, tends to philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership serious.

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5/14/08 - Sadie is a wonderful baby and Shelby has been doing well with the adjustment. (The real test starts tomorrow...Jeremy has to go out of town for work until Thursday!) The only thing that has been an issue is how loudly she runs! She is not even 30 lbs but sounds like she weighs 100 lbs!!   It startles Sadie and also makes it hard for me to rest! Oh well...if that's the worst thing then we are doing pretty well! Shelby loves Sadie and wants to hold her everyday. For some reason Shelby especially wants to hold her when Sadie is naked - she says "Can I hold her nekked?" Shelby still calls her "Baby Sister" a lot so I've been reminding her that she actually does have a name!

We took Sadie for her check up on Monday. She had gained 3 oz already! He said that she is beautiful and was impressed with her weight gain. Sadie's cord also came off Monday! I was a little surprised it came off so early; Shelby's came off when she was about 2 weeks old.

I can't believe that tomorrow is Shelby's 3rd birthday!  I feel like she was Sadie's age just yesterday! 

Love, Mommy

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5/9/08 - Sadie Margaret was born on May 7, 08 at 2:55pm. We had a beautiful and easy home birth that lasted about 9 hours from start to finish. I am so thankful for my gorgeous, healthy baby girl. She weighed in at 7lbs, 4 oz and measured 20 3/4 inches long. She is such a calm baby; even our midwife said Sadie is one of the calmest babies she has seen. Jeremy and Leah were great and helped me so much! Even my two of my sisters were involved in the actual birth (the other arrived after Sadie's birth. She was so disappointed!) I couldn't have asked for a better experience! Praise God!

Big Sister, Shelby, was fascinated at her little "Sadiebug". About 3 hours after her birth, Shelby exclaimed "Baby Sister is here!" Apparently it took her that long to process all the action!

Love, Mommy

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2/18/08 -  I have been wanting to post some of the funny things that Shelby has been saying. I hope I don't forget any of them!

Shelby is still looking forward to her baby sister. Almost everyday she will ask me what we will do with baby sisser. One day the conversation went like this:

S: "What we do wid baby sisser?"
Me: "Well, we can hold her"
S: "What else baby sisser?"
Me: "We can hug her and kiss her."
S: "Yike this?" *makes tiny kissing noises*
Me: "Yes, that's perfect"
S: "What else baby sisser?"
Me: "We can give her a bath"
S: "And den put her jammies on, nice and warn?"
Me: "Yes, we can put nice and warm jammies on her."
S: "Otay, what else?"
Me: "Ummm...we will feed her milk"
S: "She drink mitch from a bottle?"
Me: "I don't think so, Mommy will give her the milk, Mommy makes it for her"
S: "Oh. What else?"
Me: "Ummm..."
S: "We pat her tute boo-tay?"
Me: "Yes, we will pat her cute booty."
S: "What else?"
Me: "We can smell her head"
S: "It smell yike buebeddies?"
Me: "No, I don't think it'll smell like blueberries. She'll just smell like a baby."
S: "Otay, what else?"
-etc, etc, you get the idea!

Shelby loves to draw pictures of baby sisser and she even sings "I so esscited for baby sisser" to the tune of either "Jesus loves me" or "Read your bible and pray everyday". I think that Shelby expresses all of our excitement around here. We can't wait to hold that sweet little girl in our arms.

Other Shelbisms:

-I am always calling Shelby a silly goose when she does something funny (which is a lot). She started saying "you so siddy, mama goose" to me!

-I was carrying her to the van after church. It was really cold. I noticed that Shelby had her mouth open and her tongue stuck out. I asked her what she was doing. She replied "I eat the cold."

-Last weekend we were visiting with one of my sisters and celebrating her birthday. On Saturday night Shelby decided to get up 3 times btw 11:30 and 3 am. She finally told me she was hungry so I gave her a snack. While she was eating I asked her why she kept getting up. She thought for a few seconds and said in a whisper, "I so esscited for baby sisser." I told her that baby sister was not coming that night so she could go back to sleep. She said ok and slept for the remainder of the night.

-She's been adding extra syllables to some of her words. I know I have a southern accent but I'm pretty sure that the word "again" has only 2 syllables and not 3 or 4!

-Yesterday she said "Happy Balentine's day" to me, Jeremy, Kacie and the puppies. She even offered hugs and kisses so I wouldn't have to steal them like I usually do. She and I worked on a few things for Jeremy. She made him a card. I am so proud of this card that I almost gave it to him early. She told me she wanted to write "I yove Dada" on it "all by self". On another piece of paper I showed her how to make each letter. Go to the pictures page to see the end result.

I must take a few moments to talk about the people she drew. The one on the far right is "Dada" wearing a hat, his ears are the long lines appropriately coming from his head and the 2 lines across his "legs" are supposed to be his arms. A little side note for you here: those same two lines are the "baby in the beddy" on mama. Apparently Mama doesn't have arms! The small head on the bottom is supposed to be me and the lines coming from my head is my hair. This is how she draws hair and we think it is b/c, when we draw pictures of her, we put 2 pigtails on her! Oh and the little circle to the left of Jeremy's head is "Baby sisser". Shelby drew herself right beside her daddy.

Then we made him some brownies. I realize that it seems like we make nummy-nummies a lot around here. We really don't, it's just that there are a lot of special occasions between Christmas and March. Can I also please mention that Shelby rocks at cracking eggs into a bowl!?

Shelby and Dahsia have been able to enjoy some of the wonderful weather we've been having. Apparently she is checking to make sure her face muscles haven't frozen during the cold days...she sure was making some funny faces that I just had to share!

Even though it's a few days early, here is what is going on with "baby sisser" as we approach 29 weeks, according to babycenter.com:

How your baby's growing:

Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds ( like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

Love, Mommy

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1/15/07 - I had an ultrasound last week on the 9th. And, to quote a pretty and smart little girl I know, I was  "so esscited!" And for those of you who are wondering, yes, I was almost 23 weeks which is a few weeks past the typical timing for this ultrasound. I actually had it scheduled to be before Christmas but had to cancel it and reschedule for a later date. This baby has been moving around a lot and I love feeling those little flips!  We had originally decided to not find out the gender of this baby but, I admit, that I was tempted to know this time.  So I thought that I would have made a decision by the time of the ultrasound but, on the  morning of the appointment, I still was unsure. But I did make a decision by the end of the appointment. The result is....in a sealed envelope!!

The appointment went well. Jeremy was able to videotape the whole session and there was a part when we were looking at the baby's face and saw the mouth moving! It was so amazing! The baby weighs approximately 1lb 1 oz right now.  The heartbeat was 157 bpm and my fluid level was a healthy 11.17 cm (I had low fluid with Shelby). Shelby was a little unsure about the whole thing and eventually became disinterested. Dahsia, however, proceeded to tap dance very loudly on the plastic chairs that were in the room! I think we are going to have some jealousy issues out of Dahsia!

Shelby thinks that there is a "baby sisser" in Mama's "beddy" and I hear that kids are generally right about those things. Who knows?! Then again, she was the one who said that I had 2 babies in there!  She also likes to draw pictures of the baby "sisser".  I wonder if she knows something we don't?! 

The other day I was tickling Shelby's tummy and she said "no, Mama, don't tittle Shelby's baby!" What a funny girl! She makes me laugh all day long! I can't believe how fast she (and her vocabulary) is growing.   Today she is 32 months old! 

Love, Mommy

P.S. - I know there are people checking this site regularly.  Please leave a message, we miss reading them! 

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12/30/07 - It was nice that Christmas was early in the week this year. I like it when we are able to spend the weekend celebrating and visiting with fri ends and family. Plus, it makes traveling so much easier when it's spread out...especially since Shelby does not sleep in the car. Anyway, Shelby woke up on Saturday morning with a low fever and didn't eat more than a couple of bites of waffle. Other than that, she acted fine so we got in the car and headed to middle TN. After about an hour, she started asking to "get up, pease" and getting upset. We stopped and I took her temperature under her arm. She hates this and it made her even madder for me to hold down her arm. It was still going when I stopped and read 102.2 at that time. I gave her a little acetaminophen and went to get her some ice cream from McDonald's (since it was cold and I figured she might eat it). However, we had just crossed into central time and breakfast was still being served for another 25 minutes. So we got back in the car and drove for another half hour. The medicine had begun to work its magic and Shelby was beginning to act more of herself (which means we were being serenaded by a lot of wonderful, yet, made up songs). We got her a Mcflurry, which she loved, of course. She said "Mama, what's candy name?" I told her they were M&Ms. She said "I yove Mimmanims, Mama." We got to the in-laws' house and put her down for a nap. Her temp (and mood) went up and down over the whole weekend but she was still drinking a lot of fluids and eating a little bit of food so we weren't concerned that it was something serious. We even suspect that it might have been because she's getting her 2 year molars. I'm not sure if that's the real reason b/c she never got sick with any of her other teeth but, then again, they are her molars and she had no other symptoms. She was feeling better by Monday (albeit a little whiny and cranky), when we exchanged gifts with J's family. She got a lot of cute clothes and fun toys. One of her favorite new things is her Elmo water baby from her Aunt Allison. She opened it, stared in disbelief and asked "dis is Shelby's?" She loved that she was able to take a bath with her too.

After all the fun we got back in the car and came home. It was about 11 pm by the time we got her in bed that night but she did pretty well during the drive. On Christmas morning, she opened a few presents and got distracted by some of them. It took some persuading to get her to open the rest of them but she eventually did. She loved her new nightgown and immediately wanted to wear her "pritty dress". She then added her new boots (and then Converse) to complete the look.

We had a great day and were all thankful for our lovely gifts that were so thoughtfully chosen.   My aunt bought us all aprons (my sisters and I had ladybugs on ours and Shelby had cherries on hers).

My absolute favorite gift was from my husband. He always surprises me with creative gifts! I would have never thought of these shirts but I love them!  Shelby was a little confused and didn't like the fact that I was wearing "Shelby's" shirt. I think that we finally convinced her that the shirt with my face on it was really hers. I can't say I blame her...I'd much rather have her face on a shirt than my own!

We had a great time visiting with family and friends (even though I didn't get a single picture of that!) We are so fortunate to be surrounded by such loving people. I hope that you all had a Happy Holiday, or at least a good day (if you choose not to celebrate). I hope you enjoy these pictures as much as I do.


Oh, and in case you were wondering, "Elmo baby" has not replaced Dahsia. In fact, Shelby received the water baby, a My Little Pony baby and 2 Curious George dolls and none of them have taken a spot in "Everbody" (which are her sleeping buddies). I even put one of the Georges in her bed at naptime and she crawled out of bed, took the George and proceeded to throw him (with an over-the-shoulder throw) out of her room. She was NOT happy about that addition! I guess there's some criteria for joining Shelby's club. Anyway, I'm actually glad that Dahsia's still around (where ever we go :))...I kind of like her, especially when she talks and dances (hee hee).

Love, Mommy

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12/17/07 - A couple of weeks ago we celebrated my niece, Lindsay's ("chi chi") 5th birthday. She loves Ariel and had a splash party at a local family center that has an indoor pool. It turned out to be a good day to be inside b/c it was so rainy! Shelby was "so esscited" to go swimming and had been talking about it all week.

One the way home the next day, we stopped by Old Time Pottery to check out their Christmas tree prices. We found a nice one and they were priced at $29.95. Then the guy told us that he would give us another $10 off the price since it was their last day to sell the trees. What a great deal! Jeremy and I put the lights on that night but waited until the next day to finish decorating so that Shelby could put up the ornaments. She did a great job and only broke 1 ornament. Luckily it wasn't anything special or sentimental.

Here's the latest sign that Shelby has learned. She had a tough time at first getting all of her fingers to cooperate but was so pleased with herself when she finally got it! (In case any of you don't know, the sign means "I love you".)

Love, Mama

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12/12/07 - In case you haven't met her, I posted some pictures of Shelby's baby, Dahsia. Dahsia goes everywhere with us...to the grocery store, to the park to swing ("pease-a push Dahsia, Mama"), to the chiropractor ("Dahsia's back hurts"), on play dates and all around the house. Dahsia uses the potty, turns off the lights and occasionally even gets in trouble with her Mommy. Shelby has recently started talking for her and I love to have a conversation with Dahsia in her high pitched voice and words that are pronounced just like some other little girl I know! Since Dahsia is only surface washable, she can only watch Shelby take baths but Dahsia occasionally sleeps in the freezer in order to freeze and kill the bed bugs and germs (he promises that it works and it does make me feel a little better).

I love to watch Shelby and Dahsia together, they have such a good time. I am planning on working on some scrapbook pages so that, one day, they can look back at their good times.

In other news, "li'l D" is moving around all the time! It is so reassuring to feel that movement! I'm almost halfway through the pregnancy...Lord willing, I will be holding both my babies soon! I wonder if Shelby will like this baby as much as she likes Dahsia? I guess it depends on if the baby lets her write on his/her head with a black pen or likes to "jump" off Shelby's bed.

Love, Mama

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12/3/07 - Jeremy's mom brought Shelby a gingerbread house kit last weekend. We decided to put it together because that's all that Shelby could talk about! After she washed her hands, she ran across the kitchen yelling "I so esscited!" She had the best time putting the candies and icing on the house and, of course, taste-tested plenty of nummy-nummies! It was so fun to share this experience with her and I think we will be adding this activity to our holiday traditions!

I am feeling great and have been feeling the baby move for a few weeks now!  It's such a wonderful feeling!  I am so thankful for my wonderful and growing family! 

Love, Mommy

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10/31/07 - Because Halloween was on Wednesday this year, a family from church hosted a Trunk-or-Treat on Tuesday night. The kids played a few games and then went trunk-or-treating. It was a great idea and so much fun. Shelby was a candy corn this year. I actually made the costume last year but she would not go near it! She was still apprehensive but we told her that she had to wear the costume to get nummy-nummies! I loved my little candy corn and thought she looked adorable!

Love, Mommy

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9/26/07 - I told Shelby to put on her shirt (a new skill we are working on) and she tried and tried and finally pronounced her shirt to be a hat. She was very proud of herself.

I am so proud of my little girl and the person she is becoming. I know that I am biased but I think that she may be one of the smartest kids I know. She says her ABCs (she's done this for a while but now you can understand every letter). She can even count to 15. I wake up every morning to the sound of her singing (via the monitor) and she sings all day. She has a great memory for tunes and often makes up her own words to different tunes. She is continuing to learn sign language and is great at puzzles. She has a constant thirst for learning new things and I hear "Mama, whassat?" about a million times a day. When she asks me this question she repeats the word to herself. She loves to "read" and I can hear her reading to herself when I stand outside her door after her nap. She likes to read the bible and almost never lets her Dada forget about bible study. I am so blessed to have this little person in my life. I thank the Lord for wonderful children! Lord willing, I will eventually be surrounded by several more wonderful and smiling "lights".

Love, Mama

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9/21/07 - Shelby decided she needed her rain jacket in order to help us wash the car. She had a blast running around while we made it "rain" on her!  I guess she must have missed wearing it...we haven't had rain in a long time! 

Love, Mama

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9/14-16/07 -  Last Friday was Jeremy's birthday and we went to visit his family to celebrate. We had a good time catching up and visiting with his Grandma (who has been in recovery from a car accident since the end of July). We took the girls to the park and then invited over for a cookout. There were 6 little girls there! It was loud but really fun! I love to hear little girls laugh!

Love, Mama

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9/13/07 -  Shelby and I went on a hike at Harrison Bay State Park. It is only a few miles from our house and we took advantage of the nice weather by going for a short hike. Shelby loved seeing the "yake" and I was really surprised because she usually hates water (HA HA! ;)) After we finished hiking we went and played on the playground. Shelby made a couple of new friends too! I didn't take any pictures of them together because, well, let's face it, would you like a stranger taking pictures of your kids?

Love, Mama

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9/12/07 - Shelby and I were playing outside the other day. My sister, Ashley, called and while I was talking to her, Shelby decided she wanted to play in the "puppies" water bowl. This is not unusual since she is physically incapable of leaving untouched any body of water! Anyway, I told her to not play in the water and asked her if she wanted to come and play on the swing set. She said "no, I sit" and patted the stair that is right beside the water bucket. She proceeds to turn around and back up to the stair, misses the stair and sits right in the water bucket! It was so funny! She was so surprised and, I think, a little scared. I laughed so hard at her getting stuck in the bucket! Unfortunately I didn't have my camera handy. So, instead of that, I've posted some pictures of Shelby running through the sprinklers again...this time she had clothes on!

Love, Mommy

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8/30/07 - Jeremy had Tuesday off so we decided to take Shelby to the Creative Discovery Museum. A couple of months ago, we bought a membership and I think it was money very well spent! We all had a great time, especially since school is back in session which meant there were no big kids there to run Shelby over. We were able to enjoy most of the activities: water play, digging for "dinosaur bones", and even recording our own songs and listening to them. That was pretty funny b/c Shelby's voice was hoarse from a cold so her version of "twinkle twinkle" was scratchy! After all of that fun, we had lunch at the Cafe Dino-mite, the cafe in the museum. We have never eaten there before because I figured that they only had smiley faced chicken nuggets and other kiddie food. But the food was so good! I had a 3 cheese and tomato panini that was delicious. Then it was home for Shelby to take a nap before I ran some errands.

Shelby really enjoys going to bible class at church. She walks around singing the songs but my favorite is "Read your bible" and Shelby's version sounds a little like this...

"Read ju boble an pay ebyday, pay ebyday, pay ebyday
Read ju boble an pay ebyday an doe, doe, DOE!"

**If you need a translation, let me know! :) **

And by the way...can you tell who dressed her that day?!

Love, Mommy

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8/18/07 - Shelby has figured out that she can take her step stool and carry it to the light switch and turn the lights on and off. She then applauds herself!

It hasn't rained here for a couple of weeks now. I decided the other day to run the sprinklers. While that was going on, I fed and watered the dogs. And, as she usually does, Shelby followed me out to the porch. Since it was almost bath time, she was running around in her diaper only. Our porch is screened in and fairly private so I let her play while I filled up the dogs' water bucket. I go back outside and Shelby is in the yard, running through the sprinklers!! She was having the time of her life and was squealing with delight! Needless to say, she was soaked by the time she came in and we just popped her in the tub!

Love, Mommy

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8/5/07 - Last Friday I took Shelby to feed the ducks and geese at a pond near our house. We took a couple of pieces of bread for them. I think that we both decided we didn't really care for them. The geese were so brazen! They all came running up to us when they saw we had food. And they got really close and one goose actually hissed at us! Shelby was excited at first but then got a little nervous and I had to hold her until they got away. The ducks were much better and we even made a duck buddy but Shelby and I are still not big fans of birds - at least up close. So we watched them swim for a little while. Shelby tried to take off her pants so she could go in the "pool"!

We went on Saturday to watch Jeremy's cousin play in a softball tournament. It was so hot so we didn't stay long. Shelby did her best to keep cool! Back at Nana and Papa's house, she played with her cousins and a new friend, Riley who is only a month younger than she is. The girls enjoyed a story time with Bethany (J's sister and Sara and Lindsay's mom).

Tonight on the ride home from church Shelby was singing a song that had the word "money" in it. We had the following conversation:

Me - Are you singing about money?
Shelby - Yeah
Me - Do you have any money?
Shelby - Yeah
Me - How much?
Shelby - Eighty Free
Me - Eighty three! That's a lot! What are you going to buy with your money?
Shelby - Ummm...puppy.
Me - A puppy! What kind?
Shelby - Ummm...blue.
Me - Sounds like a good choice.
Shelby - Yeah.

So I give her a penny. She promptly put it between her toes and said "Mo money!"

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7/30 - 8/1/07 - We visited with J's family this week and went to his sister's house for a cookout. Since it was so hot and Shelby had been saying "I want pool" for the last week, she, Sara and Lindsay went swimming. They let Shelby borrow some floaties (water wings, swimmies, whatever you choose to call them) and she was able to move around by herself. It was a good thing she had them b/c I decided not to swim and just stood beside the pool, being the lifeguard. Shelby did so well moving around by herself. I really should have looked into swimming lessons more seriously...oh well! She eventually figured out that she could climb the ladder and jump off into the water (as you know, she LOVES to jump). She went all the way under water and when she came back up she was just grinning! She has always been my little water baby and I am so glad she's not afraid of going under. She jumped off many more times before it was time to get out for dinner! She had a blast and slept well that night!

Back at home we had to downgrade to the little plastic pool but she still had a good time! It is almost too hot to go outside without doing something in the water!

The other morning, I went to get Shelby from her room. She was sitting in the glider and reading Cinderella. She said, "hey mama" so sweetly when I came in! Later that same day, she climbed up in our recliner with her "Fancy Nancy" book. She even had her beads on...I wonder if she wanted to be fancy like Nancy?

Love, Mommy

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7/29/07 - It's been a while since I've posted about my funny Shelby. She continues to increase her vocabulary and understanding. She just amazes me! I am so privileged to be able to spend time with her. Along with her curiosity comes a lot of messes!! Here are some things she has done lately:

- She has a baby doll to which she has recently become attached. After a couple of days of asking her she finally named her "Dahsia". (This is, if you recall, her version of Jessica.) How sweet that she named her baby after me! Anyway, last Monday she was pushing Dahsia in a stroller in our garage. She accidentally let go and Dahsia rolled down our driveway and into the street! Fortunately there were no cars coming that would have to avoid hitting the "baby"! Imagine how scary that would be if you were driving!

- I bought her a plastic dishpan, some funnels and baster so that she could play with water on the porch. It started out great and she liked pouring the water in and out. Then she decided she wanted to get in. She stripped from the waist down and stepped in! She was giggling and squealing the whole time!

- I know all of you moms will appreciate this one: Shelby was playing on her Dora couch while I checked email. She handed me her diaper and said "mama, poopy diapee". Nice. Thanks, Shel! Luckily she hadn't sat on anything and I was able to clean her up.

- After a month of sleeping in her big girl bed with no incidents, I went to her room to get her from her nap. She was looking guilty in her bed and, sure enough, she had cleaned out her sock drawer and bookshelf! It hasn't happened since!

- Everyone knows how much Shelby loves to sing. She has learned a few more songs and I must say that she has the most lovely voice I've ever heard. She can now sing her ABC's, Twinkle, twinkle, and Jesus Loves Me.

-Thanks to Kate, Shelby has fallen in love with Elmo! She now walks around singing "I wanna watch Elmo" over and over again...all day long!

Love, Mommy

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7/22/07 - J and I decided to go see Hairspray on Friday night, after VBS and putting Shelby to bed. It was so GOOD!! My feet were tapping the whole time! Jeremy enjoyed it also. On Saturday we drove up to Knoxville and went to the Melting Pot. I love that place and it is always a nice treat to go. Before heading back, we stopped by the UT campus and took a walk (because we were so full!) It was nice to see the changes that they have made but I wish they had done them while we were there! My freshman dorm room didn't even have A/C!

We have both been reading the new Harry Potter book that we received on Saturday morning. It is very good so far. For any of those who have finished it already...don't tell me anything!!

Love, Mommy

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7/20/07 - Today at approximately 5:00 EST I will have been married for 5 years!! I am so thankful to have a wonderful, loving and Godly husband. Without him, I would be lost...spiritually and emotionally! Our lives have been turned upside down a couple of times in the past few years and he has helped me deal with the darts that have been thrown. He is also a wonderful Daddy! Here's to many more years and babies!!

Love, Mommy

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7/4-8/07 - We went for a visit to my grandfather's house on last night and stayed until today. We are usually only able to stay for a couple of days so it was nice to be able to be there longer. Shelby swam, fished and went to a 4th of July parade. It was a fun week but we are glad to be home and in our own beds!

Love, Mommy

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7/1/07 - Shelby loves books, always has. J and I are big readers too so I guess that's to be expected. She recently has begun to find herself a little spot and "reads" to herself. It is so cute...what she says is mostly unintelligible but she does include the occasional "puppy" and some very enthusiastic "yes!" I got the video camera out to record her the other day and she glanced up at me, said a pacifying "cheese" and continued reading!

We went to Middle TN again this past weekend. We were able to spend some time with Sara and Lindsay on Friday night and Saturday morning before Kate's 2nd birthday party. It was so funny to see the girls together again. They were cracking each other up! I can tell they are going to be good friends as they grow up! We made sure to get some pictures in front of Nana's beautiful sunflowers. The bad thing about taking pictures with sunflowers is that everyone is having to face the sun!

While sitting on the swing, Sara spotted a rolly polly and showed it to Sh and L. She proceeded to inform all of us, in a teacher voice, "Rolly Pollies turn into balls when you touch them!"

After checking out Nana's tomatoes, Lindsay excitedly told us "look, there are littler ones and huge-er ones!"

 Saturday was Kate's 2nd birthday and it was an Elmo party! J, S and I went early so we could have more time to visit. The girls napped and then the party started after everyone woke up. We had such a great time and the girls played so well together! After all the guests left, Jeremy and Brad went to hit a bucket of balls at the driving range. While they were gone, Micah and I got a chance to catch up. Shelby kept coming up to me and saying "Dahsia" over and over again. We didn't know what she was saying so we eventually ignored her :) When Jeremy came in he immediately said "Jessica, is she saying your name?!" We had been trying to figure it out for half an hour and he does it in about a minute! So, yeah, Shelby occasionally calls me by my name now! However, I usually don't respond in the hopes that she will take a hint! I didn't think I'd be dealing with this for at least another year!

We all went to a mexican restaurant for dinner and headed home. We didn't get Shelby into bed until almost 11! But it was so worth it to spend time with friends. There are just some people with which you hope to be friends for the rest of your life! We are so blessed!  Now, if I can only get them to move here with us!

Love, Mommy

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6/25/07 - I went to the gym tonight for a yoga class. While I was gone Jeremy converted Shelby's crib to a toddler bed. She went down really well tonight and I'm not sure that she even realizes she can get out. I guess we'll see what her room looks like in the morning!

Also while I was gone Shelby was running around with no clothes on awaiting her bath. Jeremy kept asking her if she wanted to use the potty and she finally ran to the bathroom and used it!! Not only did she use the potty, she also sprinkled on the seat, bath rug and floor!! :) Obviously we need to work on her aim...didn't think I'd have to for a girl!

Shelby's first time on the potty and I missed it...I'm never going back to the gym!

6/26/07 - She was still in the bed this morning and before/after her nap. I still think that she may not realize she can get out if she wanted to. And I am glad to leave it that way! Then again, she has always surprised us when it came to sleep training.

No more potty action today. Unless you count that she asked to sit on our toilet and then wanted me to sit on her potty!

Love, Mommy

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6/17-22/07 - For Father's day, we went to Sir Goony's family fun center. Jeremy has wanted to go there since we moved here a couple of years ago. It has mini golf, go-carts, arcade, etc. Anyway, Marcy and Kacie went with us and we had a good time playing mini golf even though it was SO HOT! J, M and K then rode on the go-carts while Shelby and I cheered them on. Then we went home and had a cookout with Ashley and Jon. It was a fun day.

This past Tuesday Jeremy left for NYC to attend a training class for work. Shelby and I decided to spend the week down in the Atlanta area visiting Ashley, Jon and some friends. Leah came over and we all took Shelby to a park on Wed.morning. All of the playground equipment was so hot that we went for a walk on a trail through the surrounding woods. We found a lovely shaded deck that overlooked the Chattahoochie River. Shelby was fascinated with an ant that she found. She watched it for about 10 minutes and followed it where it went! During Shelby's nap back at Ashley's place, she, Leah and I worked on my scrapbook. We got 8 pages done and I have kick-started my motivation! Shelby and I went to church in Duluth with Leah and her husband. It is a small congregation and there was only one other little girl there. She and Shelby were in the same class and they both cried so much that her mother and I had to leave the adult class. They had a good time after we calmed them down. On Thursday, Ashley, Shelby and Kacie and I met my friends, Anna, Leah and Roseanna for lunch at Ruby Tuesday's. I got the turkey mini burgers and a salad and they were so good! I highly recommend them to anyone! We had a great visit and it was so fun to see those girls. I am so blessed to be surrounded by so many good Christian friends, a lot who that are spread throughout the South! We took Shelby back for a nap and then played at Ashley's apartment until Jon got home. Then it was off to the Cheesecake Factory! Kacie, Shelby and I drove back on Friday morning and then S and I picked Jeremy up at the airport. He had a good trip also...safe flights, good Wednesday worship service in NJ, dinner at Tavern on the Green and he even made it to see the Lion King on Broadway. We are all thankful to be home safe. As nice as it is to visit our family and friends and see different places, there truly is no place like home!

Love, Mommy

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