Day 243 - August 31

First of all, I can't believe tomorrow is September. Really.

Anyway, today was a momentous day. After a couple days of trying out the booster chair at the big table (and switching her place around so she can see the TV during breakfast, and having our less-than-a-year-old kitchen table get a little "distressed" courtesy of a toddler spoon), we have decided to make the full-on switch to at-the-table dining (with a new padded placemat).

That means we cleaned up the highchair to send it up to the attic. I am slightly embarrassed to admit that, in the 18 or so months that we've used the highchair, we have cleaned it up, but have never removed the pad to really clean it up. It actually wasn't as bad as you'd think (though maybe the move shook some stuff out), but it was pretty gross.

And there was at least one piece of petrified something that Jason thinks was avocado at one point, but I'm thinking it may have been chicken. It's hard to tell. Regardless, the highchair is now clean and will be safely stored in the attic until we decide whether or not we want another child. No one hold your breath on that one.

Day 242 - August 30

Last-minute desperation picture tonight.... We started the day with a puking girl, so the morning was a wash and I was busy this afternoon. There. Those are my excuses.

Now, the picture...

Who knew my old Nike split-toe running shoes would be such a good choice for Zumba-ing? I know I didn't, otherwise I would've pulled them out of the closet months ago.

So, congratulations, Nikes, you've made the jump from fashion accessory to actual work-out gear as intended!

Day 241 - August 29

It's another multi-picture day. I couldn't choose between the two, so I'm going with both.

For $3.50, we picked up a little plastic golf club set at Walmart today. She was VERY excited to take her "clubs" out to the backyard after her nap this afternoon.

And Daddy was more than happy to introduce her to another of his favorite past-times... hockey a couple weeks ago, and golf this week. He might just get her into one of his hobbies eventually!

And, don't you know, two clubs are better than one!

Day 240 - August 28

Today I'm going to post three pictures so I can tell a whole story. That way I can use fewer words.

I call this series "Redneck Shower."

Day 239 - August 27

I took a trip over to Pensacola today to have lunch with some friends and to meet a friend I've known online for years and had never met.

While there, we had to take a quick detour to Dunkin' Donuts before heading home. Sadly, they had run out of decaf coffee (WHAT?!!?!?), so I didn't get my coffee, but it's close enough to fall so at least the pumpkin stuff was there!

So I got a pumpkin muffin (which is pretty much the worst menu item possible in terms of calories and fat).

I was going to just eat half of it tonight and save the other half for tomorrow. This is currently waiting for me to finish posting this picture.... I'm so weak.

Day 238 - August 26

Holy cow! I completely forgot to post my picture yesterday (August 26). I have no idea how that happened.... I just forgot!

I had a picture, at least, though, so that makes it easy to catch up.

It's a little hard to see exactly what's going on here, but if you look very closely, you'll see that Bear is "holding" a crayon. While coloring, Michaela decided that Bear wanted to color, too. So Bear "held" the crayon and took a turn at coloring in Woody.

I love this kid's imagination!

Day 237 - August 25

Have I mentioned the toddler's fascination with diaper changes recently? I think I may have.

Anyway, she's fascinated with diaper changes. Every toy around here gets a turn at needing a diaper change every few days - dolls, Bear (which is a security blanket, for those who don't know), miniature Buzz and Woody Toy Story toys, etc...

Today it was the doll's turn. I almost fell over trying not to laugh at her concentration in trying to get both of her doll's feet in one hand, the way I lift her feet when I change her diaper. It was priceless.

Maybe if she gets good enough at changing a doll's diaper, I can get her to work on her own....

Day 236 - August 24

It's the day I've been waiting for since way back on February 9th when I posted my last haul from the Wee Exchange. Now Michaela's all ready for the winter!

For $178.20, including $16.20 in tax, I got 3 short sleeve shirts, 10 long sleeve shirts, 1 gorgeous Gap Kids cable knit hooded sweater, 3 pairs of pants (one of them a pair of Gymboree ones that match a shirt we got at Wee Exchange last time!), 2 sweatshirts, 5 dresses, a lined rain coat, 2 pairs of shoes, a Radio Flyer tricycle, and a camp chair.

I went a little over budget, but it was worth it for three of the items - the trike, a beautiful Gymboree sweater-dress w/leggings and that amazing fancy Laura Ashley dress all the way to the right in the picture. That's going to be Michaela's Christmas dress and it was the deal of the century.... it still had the tag attached. The tag said that original retail price was $175, though it was sold at a discount store for only $69. I got it for $20. Did I mention the tags are still on it? The top is velvet and the skirt is embroidered silk.

Silk.

Silk.

It's a good thing she loves her dresses!!!

Although the dress was the deal of the century, I'm also pretty happy that she's got a bunch of playclothes to wear to "school" now, too, since she came home the first day with strawberry juice all over the front of her. It's nice to have cheap stuff that I don't mind her ruining! Yay for Wee Exchange!!

Day 235 - August 23

In my files, I called this picture "ladybug cake." I know, super creative, right?

The more accurate title would be "Mommy is a sucker."

This small cake was purchased on the way home from playgroup where we had just eaten birthday cake. But I went to the bakery at the grocery store (I was there to get tomatoes and apples) because I've been nursing a chocolately chocolate cake craving for days, and this little masterpiece was right at 2-year-old eye level in the front of the case.

There was squealing and a "pleeeease little ladybug cake!!" And I couldn't resist her. And I didn't get chocolate cake. Or even one of the yummy-looking almond cake petit fours in the case. Nope. I bought a small yellow cake decorated like a ladybug.

The good news is that it is VERY tasty. And divided up into four pieces, this little cupcake-sized cake was a perfect little treat for me. Today and tomorrow. (And, yes, I shared - and will share again tomorrow - with the toddler.)

Hello? Willpower? Yeah, anytime you wanted to come back would be great. Thanks.

Day 234 - August 22

Today was a naked day (for the toddler! for the toddler!!!). It seems like Michaela is getting to a place where she prefers nakedness. I'm not sure how I feel about that. So far we've contained it to the house, so I think we're good. We might have to nip it in the bud, though! She specifically requested a naked nap and then wouldn't let me put clothes on her when she got up.

But when she's this cute, how can you argue.

Day 233 - August 21

Last night, we had dinner with some friends that just transferred down here from Kodiak. Although they told us not to bring anything, we, of course, had to grab a couple of "Welcome to the Gulf Coast" gifts. So, armed with a bottle of wine from an Alabama "vineyard" (is it a vineyard if it's muscadine?), a six-pack of a pecan nut brown ale from Mississippi, and a bottle of Sangria to have with our fajita dinner, we headed over.

We forgot one small token, though.

At least that gave me something to take a picture of today!

(So, Robb and Mandy... if you find yourself over here, these were going to be for you!)

Day 232 - August 20

More of my office for today...

I've been on the hunt for some more storage for my office so I could pull my paper crafting supplies out of their rubbermaid totes in the closet and get them in a more accessible place. This will also allow us to turn our file cabinet around and make it easier to get to, keeping our filing issue from getting out of hand like it normally does!

I found a storage system this week at Hobby Lobby that is made specifically for paper crafting supplies, so it fits 12x12 paper, along with pretty much everything else I needed to put in it. Jason and I put it together today (with a little "help" from Michaela - you can imagine how that went) and I moved my stuff out of the closet!

So now all of my crafting supplies are in one place, easy to see, and easily accessible. I think that probably means I have no excuse for not hand-making our Christmas cards this year. Time to get on it!

(Notice the stack of papers to the right of the TV? That's the "tamed" file pile... it's only about two months worth of stuff... we had about 10 months worth at one point!)

Day 231 - August 19

Could someone please tell me how my "baby" is eating a lunch that looks like this? I swear it was yesterday when she tried her first taste of smashed up sweet potatoes....

Day 230 - August 18

Remember how I said the landscapers cut the phone line? Well, I figured I'd at least show off their handiwork.

We are SO happy with what they did and how it looks! Now we will no longer be the ugly house in the neighborhood with the builder's special "landscaping." Yay!!

Oh, and even though no one sees the back, we were happy to recycle some of the plants we took out of the front to soften up the fence around the pool area a little, too. It's like a different yard!

Day 229 - August 17

Now that AT&T has been out to fix the phone line the landscapers accidentally cut with a shovel yesterday, I can get caught up on yesterday's post! (We have DSL for those wondering how the phone affects the internet...)

I was disappointed that I couldn't get this picture up yesterday! I was so prepared... having taken it right around 8 in the morning (how about that, Melissa... you're not the only one who can get your picture done that early!!). I couldn't believe I wasn't able to post it!

So yesterday was Michaela's first day at her Mom's Day Out program. Since I worked for her first year, she's obviously not a stranger to daycare, but with a year at home with me under her belt, this was a pretty big switch in the routine.

And I LOVED it.

Oh, Michaela liked it, too... only she got pooped out about 2.5 hours into it and I had to go get her early. She's not used to 4 hours of activity in the morning, so I'm going to have to work her into staying for the whole time. She'll head back tomorrow and I think I'll bring her a little late and pick her up before lunch... hopefully 2 hours will be manageable for the first few times!

Here's my girl in her play clothes, with her backpack all packed and ready to go!

Day 228 - August 16

Before I get to the business of today's picture, and since I'm horrific at updating our other blog, I just have to mark a different kind of 365....

I've officially been out of the Coast Guard for a year now. On this date last year, I got my dependent ID and joined the ranks of veterans, and stay-at-home moms. It's been a quick year and I'm down to only a little while longer before I decide whether I want to go back a year from now or not. I'm leaning heavily toward not. I'll have to stop there for now, though, and maybe update the other blog with my thoughts on that. I just needed to say it's been a year. Wow.

Onto the real business of this blog... today's picture.

For some reason this morning, when I opened Michaela's closet to pick out a dress for her (she got some shots today.... dresses are much easier for access to thighs than shorts!), she decided she wanted her singing/dancing bear toy thing. As I was taking that down from the shelf, she spotted her hockey stick and promptly decided she wanted that as well.

For the short time we were home this morning, she ignored the hockey stick, but Daddy came home after a dentist appointment and made sure she paid attention to it! Though she's shown every sign of being the world's biggest girly girl (child seriously flips out when she gets dirt in her shoes or on her hands), I think Jason still has hopes that she'll want to play hockey. Personally, I plan to encourage soccer, mostly because it's a lot cheaper and generally doesn't involve early morning ice time.

But I'll let Jason have his fun for now... with the Care Bears hockey stick and puck!

Day 227 - August 15

A year and some change after moving into our house, I'm finally getting around to purging some stuff from the office and getting it a little better organized.

Jason took Michaela out this morning so I could tackle this project - I can't work on it during nap time because the office is right next to her room and I'd wake her up - and I barely scratched the surface. I still have a closet to clear out and we need to get some kind of storage shelves/bins to organize the papercrafting supplies I'll theoretically get around to using again one day.

But, at least some surfaces are showing again! Look! It's my desk!

Day 226 - August 14

Rody is back!

This time, instead of a borrowed green Rody with Uncle Ryan as the power source, we have the birthday gift pink Rody and Michaela power.

As long as we can keep her from smacking her head on the ground too many times (falling backward is bad, in case you wondered), this should be hours of fun for her!

Day 225 - August 13

Sometimes this girl just makes me shake my head in confusion.

For the last two weeks, Jason has been out of town for work. Every other day for those two weeks, I have had a shrieking child on my hands when it comes time for a bath. Even my mother was treated to this display of displeasure at being cleaned, and all her Grandma charms did little to stop the crying completely.

And, yet, in the pool today, Michaela was more than happy to pick up the hose (I needed to do a little refilling thanks to an apparent lack of rain while I was gone) and douse herself (not to mention the part where she was actually submerged in water in the first place). She seriously played with the house for the full half hour I had it on.

I used this to my advantage, though... when we were done swimming, I brought the shampoo outside and washed her hair in the yard. With the hose. We had laughing instead of crying. Maybe now that Jason's back, she'll go back to normal in the tub, but, meanwhile, I have a secret weapon (and I'll be getting some kind of hose/sprayer attachment for the tub for his next trip).

Day 224 - August 12

Unlike my friend, Melissa, who managed to have her Project 365 picture up before 8am this morning, I almost forgot mine today!

The funny thing is that I purposefully took this picture today, just for this and then almost forgot to post it. Go figure.

Anyway, I tried to get this same picture yesterday, but was too lazy to pull out the real camera. So I tried to get it with a cell phone, but every time I asked her to smile, she started jumping up and down, too. Taking a picture of a moving child with a cell phone and expecting to have anything other than the background in focus is pretty silly. So armed with a camera that I can control the shutter-speed on, I got what I wanted today.

Michaela has two uncles, my brother and Jason's brother. Both of them (and their families) gave her birthday presents a little late this year, with my brother getting her gift to her while we were visiting, and the one from Jason's brother's family arriving while we were gone. The similarities don't end there, though.....

Check out what Michaela's holding....

Day 223 - August 11

It can be unsafe to leave a toddler unattended to take a shower. Or it can be funny.

I had to leave her alone this morning because I made the silly assumption that a lack of a nap yesterday and a super late bedtime last night would've resulted in a toddler tired enough to sleep in this morning. What does one thing have to do with the other? Well, I chose not to set an alarm since I thought she'd sleep in, so I didn't get my shower done before she got up. That's not usually a good thing.

Thankfully, Michaela was on her best behavior this morning. Other than visiting me a couple of times, and stepping on the scale at least once, she kept herself occupied in the living room.

Of course, I wonder what exactly she's doing to stay occupied when she's not right near me, but as long as I don't come out to anything broken, I'm usually too busy catching back up with her to give it much thought.

She left me a hint this morning, though. This is what I almost stepped on as I walked through the living room. Does anyone know if an obsession with diaper changes translates to readiness for potty-training??

Day 222 - August 10

I have now deemed traveling alone with a toddler (ie, without another parent) my own personal version of hell.

It's not that it's REALLY bad, but it's not fun and I don't think I'll be voluntarily doing it again anytime soon. (Or ever. Grandparents, take note.)

And I really think that the TSA should have some kind of special set up for a lone parent traveling with a small child (or children) to make things just a little easier. Having to handle a carseat, multiple carry-ons, removal of shoes, taking out of liquids and a computer, while also wrangling a toddler who doesn't want to stay in line is just ridiculous. And it was definitely the hardest part of the day. Oh, and thanks so much to the people who used the "family and medical liquids line" even though they obviously had neither of those things.... glad you held us all up so you could have the "shorter" line.

Beyond that, the suckiness that is traveling with the kid - in general, not just by myself - is that she doesn't really like to sleep on planes, so she gets cranky and out of sorts, which just isn't cool in large, crowded spaces like, say, the Atlanta airport.

What's even better is when you get to Chili's, thinking you'll grab a quick bite to eat on your forever-long layover, and you realize that the toddler who wouldn't sleep on the plane will sleep in her carseat while you're wheeling her through the airport.

Although the impromptu nap messed with my dinner plans, I have to say that finding the gate that had just been vacated and propping her seat up on her backpack so she was leaning back a bit and could sleep comfortably gave me a nice little 45 minute break, which was just what I needed.

And thank goodness for Go Go Babyz wheels which allowed for the wheeling and sleeping in the first place.

Day 221 - August 9

I'm caught up!!

This morning, my mother-in-law and I took Michaela to the Adirondack Animal Land to keep her occupied and see some animals. She had an absolute blast, and Mimi and I enjoyed ourselves as well!

Other than me being attacked by a bunch of camels (I'm not kidding), the highlight of the trip was when Michaela got to feed a giraffe! I was shocked that she wasn't scared at all and asked to feed him again later!

Day 220 - August 8

In an effort to tire out the kid for a 2+ hour drive to her other grandparents' house, my mom and I found a playground yesterday morning so she could run around.

As per usual, she saw a swing and that was the end of running around. (Which also resulted in hardly any sleep during the ride, in case you wondered.)

Meanwhile, she looked pretty tiny in this giant swing!!

Day 219 - August 7

I'm finally getting caught up! This picture is from Sunday. I was lucky enough to get a third day in a row to cuddle my new niece, Gabriella (Gabby)!

In between the cuddling, though, I had to take a few pictures.

*sigh* Other people's babies are so sweet!

Pause

I just got back from dinner out with a friend and haven't had a chance to look through my pictures from the day yet, and I'm tired.

So today's picture will come tomorrow - maybe even in the morning. Hopefully it's worth the wait!

Day 218 - August 6

Today's picture just straight up made me laugh when I looked down at it on the screen after I took it.

My plan was to get another shot of Michaela with her Uncle Ryan, having fun playing with the hose during a big picnic at my parents' house today.

I got that, but even better is the expression on my nephew's face off to the right. I wish I'd known he was going to have that reaction (or that I needed to look for it) because I would've composed the shot differently to get more of him in there. Either way, it's enough to make you laugh!

Day 217 - August 5

Fun with an uncle!

I would like to thank my brother not only for giving Michaela a Rody Horse like this one for her birthday, but for also teaching her the fun of having someone else bounce her while she's on a Rody Horse, thereby setting the precedent that her father and I will now be stuck with forever.

Thanks, Ry.

Day 216 - August 4

First of all, I have to say Happy Birthday, Coast Guard! The Coast Guard (or, more accurately, what became the CG) is 221 years old today!

And now for a post that has nothing to do with the Coast Guard....

My mom (Grandma) and I took Michaela to the Lutz Children's Museum this morning. There's not much to it, but it's the perfect kind of place for someone Michaela's age to burn off some energy, do some hands-on learning/playing, and see some small animals (mostly rodents and birds).

While she enjoyed pretty much everything about the museum, she especially liked ringing the bell on the "trolley." I think there may have once been a rope attached to the ringer in the bell, but it was no longer there, so it took some work to get any noise out of it. Michaela figured out how to do that pretty quickly (with help from Grandma holding her up to reach it), and was cracking us up with her giggles every time she got it to ring as loud as possible.

Even funnier was her flinching every time. I was excited to look down at the screen on my camera and see I captured that reaction with little blur or camera shake! This just makes me laugh because all she wanted to do was the ring the bell, but then she'd scare herself every time!

Day 215 - August 3

What did people ever do before the creation of things like laptop computers with DVD drives when they were flying with their kids?

Our first flight today was less than 45 minutes so I read the same "Toy Story" Golden Book about 15 times and then went through about 500 of the 1300 picture I have on my phone to keep the kid happy.

The second flight was just over two hours, though, so the computer came out and Buzz ("Toy Story 2") came on. That kept her occupied and happy for at least an hour. I got to read a whole chapter of a book!

Here she is wrapped up in the story of Woody being stolen by Al from Al's Toy Barn. DVDs at 30,000 feet.... genius.

Day 214 - August 2

My sole purpose in life this morning was to tire out the toddler so she'd take a nice, long nap this afternoon and I could get the rest of my t0-do list done. I was successful. She slept for just about 3 hours this afternoon - the longest nap she's taken in a couple weeks - and I got everything done.

I can think of worse ways to spend a morning tiring out a toddler....

Day 213 - August 1

Pardon me, but your Type-A-ness is showing.

I'm in the midst of packing for a week-long trip. It's just me and Michaela going and I'm stressed about traveling alone with her. Mostly I'm stressed about getting the two of us and all of the crap I'm bringing with us into the airport (and then back out again when we get back here next week). With two decent-sized bags, a carseat (which the kid will be riding in, thanks to our Go-Go-Babyz wheels), my backpack, her backpack, a camera bag and a diaper bag, it's a lot to wrangle and I seriously get a headache just thinking about it!

In addition to that for this trip, I always stress about packing for every trip. That's just a given. So I pulled up my trusty excel spreadsheet, updated it for this trip, and got to work. I've got all the big stuff done already and I still have a day and a half til we leave. Whew!

Now to figure out how to get us into the airport.