Bye Bye Summer

Summer FLEW.  It does every year.  This summer was different for us though.  Bryan got a teaching job for this new school year (2012-1213) so he was HOME all summer!  I should interject that he got his DREAM job.  He is so excited about the future now.  No horrible husband on Sunday nights anymore!  No more dreading work on Monday for him!

So anyway, as I was saying...We got some stuff done around here!  My honey-do list was long, but it is amazing what you can get done when both family members are teachers (YAY!) and are FREE in June and July.  I have to say, it is going to be so cool for Lucy to have us home and be able to go and do with her in the summers.  Sorry about all of you who chose careers where you must work all year round.  YIKES.

I won't bore you with a ton of type (although my gift for writing is something quite amazing), but here are some pictures of our fun this summer:

Mimi and Papa visited for their vacation in June.  We went to the Aquarium and fishing.  Lucy, being the brilliant fisherwoman that she is, of course caught the only fish.

We introduced Lu to water balloons.  They were a huge hit.  Any excuse to pelt mom and dad with a flying object and she is in.

One of my favorite people of all times (and one of my roommates from college) Julie visited with her family on the way home from their vacation.  I love this family so much and wish we could see each other more.  Julie and I tend to be the same person-a lot.  My child thought she'd died and gone to heaven as having 2 other kids in the house is her DREAM.  Thanks Nate and Jules for sharing your kids with us!

                                         

One of my best friends of all time is getting married in September.  We had a fabulous time at her (and you to Jerry) wedding shower.  Thanks to Todd and Bobby it was a FABULOUS evening!  So good when John, Kara, and I are together.  It is like 6th grade comes rushing back :-)

Perhaps one of my favorite summer activities was the bachelorette trip to Destin, FL for Kara.  This was a KID free trip.  Yes, did you hear that?  KID FREE.  I missed Lucy like crazy, don't get me wrong.  But  do you know what it is like to just walk to the beach with your drink, towel and book?  ONLY THOSE 3 THINGS!!!!  I READ A BOOK PEOPLE~A WHOLE BOOK!  Mommy need the break.  All moms, DO THIS.  We had such a good time, and I loved spending time with all these great women from different parts of Kara's life.  We stayed in an incredible beach house, had wonderful views, much laugher, and a few adult beverages.  All prepping for September.   This wedding of hers is going to be epic.  She will be a beautiful bride!

I went from one wild and free mommy to MOMMY! in the matter of one afternoon.  My family headed down to Destin the day the other ladies were set to leave.  That means I got TWO weeks at the beach, which was a very bad thing.  No, not because I got so much sun.  We all know I was under the umbrella most of the time.  In fact, if you saw me on the street, you'd think I was stuck inside all summer.  Anyway, it was just so good for my soul to be at the beach for so long.  If you know me well, you know it is my favorite place on the planet.  (If you're thinking about a lovely Christmas or birthday gift, St. John, USVI is my most favorite beach spot-thank you Deb and Mark for getting married there a few years back and allowing me to come and enjoy paradise).  Two weeks spoiled me rotten.  I did not want to come home.  It was beautiful and perfect the whole time I was there.  UGH.  Reality bites.  

Lucy falls more and more in love with the beach each summer as well.  She was devastated when we had to come home.  I keep telling her when she grows up and becomes a doctor, she can buy Bryan and I a beach house.  We can have family time there.  Do you think brainwashing works?  I sure hope so!  

We had a blast though.  Lucy plays hard all day, then crashes at night.  Oh wait, we all do when we are at the beach.  Our last night there we took the obligatory "crazy family from TN that isn't so tan but is dressed like they are and all coordinate" pictures on the beach.  They are always my favorite.  Thanks dad for photoshopping out all the seaweed (which according to my mom is full of fish poop and icky stuff-all so Lu would stop playing with it).  Love my parents.  Love them for helping B with the kid while I had time away, love them for taking us on vacation when we are dirt poor, love them for their quirky ways.

I hope all of you had a great summer too.  I'm working on 3 weeks at the beach next summer...

Don't Do Drugs

Did you do the "Just Say No" program when you were in 5th grade?  I did.  I never did drugs either.  I thought it had worked!  Successful program!  Well, maybe not.

You know Lucy?  That kid of mine is sometimes rather sickly.  She has terrible allergies, but has had a relatively healthy year (knock knock) since we had her adenoids out.  However, in February, her nose always starts to run, she coughs, and sneezes all the time.  We put her on Singulair for this last spring and it really helped.  We were also doing Zyrtec at the same time.  Both managed to keep her dried up and sinus infection free.  HOORAY!  However, you may recall that at many times she seemed to be demon possessed.  We had been at our wits end with her.  Everyone had been telling us that 3 was worse than two, and by May, we were true believers.

One night, when I was sure I was going to be driven insane by my child's radical behavior (screaming, hitting, defiance, head butting-do I need to go on?) something hit me.  I was talking to my mom and connected a few dots.  Drugs were started about the same time she turned 3 and started acting like a little hell's angel  spirited toddler.  Hmm, could it be that the drugs had incredibly awful side effects?  I did what all good moms do-I went to WEB MD!  I have diagnosed myself and others with a lot thanks to this website :-)

According to the web, those two drugs Lucy was on can cause: emotional outbursts, aggressive behavior, sleeplessness, difficulty with concentration...THAT WAS IT!  So, we stopped the drugs, the allergies were at bay, and my sweet baby girl was BACK!  HOORAY!

So in the future, remember-JUST SAY NO.

 

Theme Song

If your life had a theme song, what would it be?  I was randomly thinking about this the other day.  I'd like to think mine would be that 90's song by Robert Palmer-"Simply Irresistible."  You know, the one with the video of the women in those black leather dresses, black hair and RED lips?!  However, my theme song actually is probably something more like "The Wheels on the Bus."  Hahahaha!  Being a mom is so NOT glamourous!

Speaking of being a mom, I just had my FOURTH Mother's Day!  How is that even possible.  I was cuddling Lucy in bed this morning telling her that I'd probably have another baby when she was 17 and didn't want to cuddle anymore.  She informed me that she'd like it to be a brother.  Can you imagine?! Anyway, it was a great day.  I got a beautiful cameo necklace, an adorable book Lucy wrote about my "favorites" which was HILARIOUS, and was able to drive up to see my grandma for her 61st Mother's Day!  It was a day of MOM-ness.

Summer has also officially started!  I forgot how much I love lounging!  Lu is still going to school a few days a week-mostly so she and I don't kill each other.  Did I mention how fun THREE is?  If you are an expectant mother, you might want to stop reading now.  Let me tell you, the "terrible twos" were   like a sunny day in the park compared to the HELL ON EARTH battle 3 has become.  My mom taught Lucy the following rhyme/poem a long time ago.  Lu recites is proudly.  It is SO TRUE.

"There was a little bitty girl,

with a little bitty curl,

right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good, 

she was really, really good.

And when she was bad,

she was HORRID."

When Lucy is good, she is the most precious child in the world.  She is cuddly, and compliant, and funny, and A-dorable!  But when she is bad...take cover-I'm talking hurling of shoes, spitting, screaming, fist making, TOTAL defiance.  It is a complete 180, and you never know when it is coming.  It is mind blowing.  So far, we've only had a couple of FULL ON MELD DOWN days in the past few weeks.  In the spring, it was happening for much longer periods of time-like full WEEKS.  Maybe (insert picture of me knocking on wood) things are getting better.  

So on the days Lu is home with Bryan and I (by the way, having a hubby home all summer=much getting done on the "honey do list"!) we plan on having some fun!  The small pool has been a hit so far.    Much easier to deal with than the mammoth pool last summer.  Lucy also loves playing with the hose in the yard.  Sometimes she thinks it's funny to spray me.  I am rarely amused.  The in-laws are coming in a week for their vacation!  We are doing lots of day trips and I can't wait!!!!   I'm going on a weekend trip to FLORIDA with some girlfriends for a BACHELORETTE trip too.  I have no clue how I will leave my baby girl for that long, but I'm sure once I am there it will be good.  Why do moms have such a hard time doing stuff for themselves?  We need  DESERVE it.  I will NOT feel guilty!  (Still working on this).  Bryan is taking a class this summer to try to finish up his masters.  I am so proud of how hard he has worked this past few years.  He had a job interview yesterday for his DREAM job-fingers crossed!  

In my spare time, I've painted a few canvases this month.  My favorite was for my cousin Mandi.  Her family is a MARINE family, and she wanted this for her kids' bathroom.  She wanted something sort of "vintage American" and I totally love it!  I am going to do one for me now too!

Today was crazy hair/clothes day at school for Lucy.  She looked FABULOUS!  She was so proud. 

                                    

                                                    

 If Lucy had a theme song, it would be "Born to be WILD!"

 

Drama, Drama, Drama

The first day of our child's life gave us a small clue about how "dramatic" our little girl was probably going to be. She had this little "drama cough" as we called it, that she did over and over AND over. There was nothing wrong with her, she just had this totally dramatic tiny little cough. The drama cough continued for many, many months, and became a little running joke in our family. Fast forward to present day, we still have a lot of drama going on.

I know, you're thinking, this girl?

Drama??

Yes.

We have one tough cookie as far as being hurt goes. Lucy has been to the ER more times than I'd like to think about, and when she falls down or gets hurt, AFTER the major screams, cries, rolling on the floor, (a.k.a. DRAMA) she always bounces up and goes on about her business. Her shins stay bruised, her elbows too, she has a slightly chipped front tooth, and possibly a broken nose right now due to a recent fall on some tile on her FACE, but really, she's tough.

I suppose her being tough is a good thing rather that than some shy, timid little girl that is going to get run over by the bullies of this world, right? I mean, I DO sometimes wish she weren't so headstrong, but I think in the long run she'll take no prisoners. However, if her current behavior keeps up, she might find herself amongst some prisoners. I'm telling you her little temper is FIERCE. We've had to implement this little bad boy:

It seems as though Lucy currently believes that throwing friends down on ground, smacking them up the side of the head, and being totally defiant towards her teachers is going to get her somewhere in life. She still has a lot to learn. Lately each time I pick her up, I get the, "Well, she had kind of a rough day" speech from her teachers (sometimes both at once-yeowzers!) So we decided to give the positive reinforcement a try. If you will note, the start chart is totally filled with stars! The child LOVES it. I thought we were home free, especially after she had her first banana split as her reward. Turns out, she wasn't that impressed with the dessert, and today she knocked her "best friend" down to the ground when she took a toy Lu was playing with. Oh joy. The drama continues. I may suggest to the teachers that all children be outfitted with a similar get-up to the one Lu is wearing below. That way, we know that no one gets hurt.

We recently had some drama free time with some great friends at the zoo. We still have our passes for a few more weeks, so we wanted to take full advantage of that little piece of plastic. Lucy and Ella had a good time, and we were so thankful no children were harmed in the making of these photos. And notice there is NO FEAR when it comes to my child wildly embracing a human dressed up as some "character." She did NOT get that from me. I still won't go near those freaks.

Easter was a couple of weekends ago too. We had a great day at church, the weather was nice, andLu got to have an egg hunt at my parents house.

You can see we are all color coordinated, and that is totally normal and not OCD-ish at all.(I keep telling myself that). Please note her face in many of these pictures. DRAMA, DRAMA, DRAMA. I sure hope all this drama pays off in some way some day. Anyone want a dramatic anesthesiologist? Probably not.