More Road Trip Memories from Thanksgiving

We also had a chance to spend a little bit of time (though not as much as we would have liked) with YaYa, Sir, Auntie Jess Jess, Great Aunt Diane and even Great Grammie.  Sir got a new hip so our rowdy family had to let him get better.  Saige was a little bit upset with her beloved Sir because she couldnʻt sit with him but he still managed to aggravate her enough that now, over a month later, she is holding a grudge.  Any of you that know Saige, know that her favorite baby is "baby boy" and Sir decided to take baby boy and not give him back.  This resulted in tears.    Thatʻs okay though, she had plenty of fun with Auntie Jess Jess, as did Dayton and Addley.  In fact, Addley learned a new cheer and lately has been walking around singing it "rah rah rie, kick him in the knee".  They all got to spend an entire day together at the New Orleans Zoo on Black Friday so I had the whole day to shop!

Addley is quite fond of Great Grammie and likes to follow her around.  I think itʻs because she likes to give her the things she wants.  Iʻve decided that Addley has inherited Great Grammieʻs eyes.

I was hoping to get a picture of the kids with their beautiful Auntie Jess Jess but Addley was refusing to go near her.  I think Addley might have been scared of how tall Jess Jess was in her boots.  At least I managed to get a cute picture of the older two.  I wished she lived closer, sheʻs the best Aunt ever (you are too Aunt Sannie, but you live even further!)

Hereʻs YaYa, Dayton, Saige and new hip Sir starting to decorate the fabulous Novosel fiber optic tree!

Auntie Jess Jess and Saige making it look beautiful.  

Oh, and I did manage to get a picture of new hip Sir admiring his most fabulous tree.  Donʻt you think he should have decorated his walker?

Giving Thanks for Family Time

For Thanksgiving last year (it seems so strange to say that) we took our first road trip with the kids and drove back "home" to Louisiana.  Having lived in Hawaii since the kids were babies, they grew up without family road trips.  The closest thing to a road trip was driving around the island which really only took a few hours depending on traffic.  Not even worth putting a DVD on in the car!  So, needless to say, the kids were super excited about our road trip.  It took us 8 hours with one potty/gas (as in fill up the car) stop and one Waffle House stop.  I was pretty impressed that they all behaved fairly well having never been strapped down for such a long time.  We spent our week at Grandpa and Mom Moms house and it was a jam packed week full of fun activities.  One of the most memorable was our fishing day.  Each of the kids had a turn to ride in the boat (sort of). Dayton got to actually go out fishing in the boat, Saige got to do a circle in the water in the boat, and Addley got to sit in the boat pulled up on shore (poor third child).  Then they all went fishing off the banks and had a turn learning how to use a rod.  Surprisingly, Saige was the one that enjoyed it the most and actually caught 2 fish!!  Dayton didnʻt have the patience to stand there and watch the bobber.  He was more interested in seeing how far he could sink into the mud on the banks (what a typical boy).  The highlight for him was when he had a turn driving the golf cart.  I think Grandpa had fun too, though he claims it was a very quiet day for the fish.  It was probably me that had the most fun because I just love to document special moments with family.  Here are some of my snapshots.

End Of Year Update

It has been brought to my attention that my children are still asleep on my blog.  So I thought I had better give an update since not only is 2011 over, but we also woke up in Nashville Tennessee.  Life is a bit of a blur from August 2011 onwards.  The Cliff Notes version is this (the full length version is highly entertaining):  Dayton started first grade on August 1st in Hawaii, our house was packed and sent to sea on August 10th, we arrived in Nashville on August 12th, we stayed in a hotel with both dogs for a week, moved to a one bedroom apartment for a week, moved to a 2 bedroom apartment for a few months, Dayton restarted first grade the end of August, Saige started PreK the end of August, we house hunted for 2 months and finally found and bought a house, moved into that house on October 16th, our belongings arrived from Hawaii on October 18th and my baby boy turned 6 on October 18th.  I unpacked my camera on the same day.  (Let me take a breath)  We spent the remainder of October trying to get settled and went back to Louisiana to visit family for Thanksgiving.  From Thanksgiving onward was preparation for Christmas and now it is 2012.  Ta-da!  You are all caught up in case youʻve been wondering....Happy New Year and hope to see you all soon!

To Sleep or Not To Sleep

I don't know about you, but I love that moment in the day when all the kids are in bed and I can climb into my bed, pull the covers over my head and go to sleep. Granted it's sometimes hard to tune out the noise of the TV, the crackling baby monitor and my 3 year old whom doesn't require much sleep. I need a drink of water. I need to go potty. I'm scared, I heard a noise. I saw a moth - come get it. I didn't give you a kiss or hug. Call it what you will, but this child hit the age of "throwing oneself out of the crib", was moved into a big girl bed, and hasn't really slept much since. Did I mention that she was 18 months at the time? I tried gating her in her room and she climbed that too! It was then that I lost my ability as a parent to enforce nap. If I tried to get her to nap it usually resulted in a 3hr battle - ending in no nap. If I avoided the whole nap battle, it usually resulted in a little girl nodding off while eating dinner. I'm pretty sure we thought she was narcoleptic at one point. In fact, she goes from awake and active to passed out. She doesnt seem to have an "about to fall asleep" phase. The best part is this: when she DID nap it usually resulted in a delayed bedtime! She would get her second wind and stay up for hours past us adults! Seriously, the kid "needs" her sleep, but doesn't seem to require it. Now she is 3.5 and will nap on occasion, but that typically means the whole house will be kept up way too late. Here are some rare napping moments. Notice that NONE are in her bed!


Dayton has always been a pretty good napper. If we skipped nap, it usually meant he would fall asleep somewhere.


This was after nap - he came out of his room and fell asleep a bit longer. Too cute.


And a human sized Dora always helped him sleep.


Perhaps Dora was magic. This is actually Saige passed out.


I remember this nap battle. She is just outside her doorway. It appears as though I won.


These chairs do recline.


I got pushed out of my own bed.


Refusing to sleep in her bed. Obviously waiting for an important call.


A back rub from brother helped with this nap - even though he used his feet.


A cold travertine floor instead of the sofa beside her and pillow behind her. Seriously.


Kicked out of my bed again. I bet this was a Saturday morning at 6am.


Who falls asleep on the way TO the beach? Saige.


Again in the chair that reclines. But chooses to sleep on the arm.


Notice adult bed with no adults. Probably a Sunday morning at 5am.


Sweet brother holding her hand.


Not reclined recliner again.


Apparently a very tough day at preschool.


Is she crying? Hiding? Counting? Nope - she's sleeping in the middle of the cold travertine floor again.
Thank goodness for preschool - they are able to get her to nap every single day. I just have to deal with her staying up 2 hours past bedtime.

Raising A Princess

This could also be titled "Raising A Middle Child", "A Diva", "A Spirited Child"....you get the picture. I don't claim to know much about raising a girl even though I am one myself. I have come to realize that raising girls is MUCH different than raising boys. While neither one is easy, girls are most definitely more difficult. Of course one needs to factor in personality and temperament and I'm sure some mothers of girls reading this may disagree, but I digress. (I've wanted to use that in a sentence for a long time) That poem comes to mind....sugar and spice and all things nice, that's what girls are made of. That's the fairytale version. This is how I see it:


More often than not, girls are dirtier than boys.


Girls can wear clothing that says princess and yet act the exact opposite. Hands on hips and rubber boots automatically add sass.


Girls develop strange eating habits at a young age. Snacks taste better when eaten in roasting pans.


Cake pans work well too.


A girl's creativity has it's own set of rules.


Girls are always pretty in pink.


Girls are born to nurture. Babies are their best friends.


A girl has MANY moods. This is Saige's angry face.


Sunglasses often hide these many moods. The bigger the better.


Girls like to do things their own way. Saige wore this garden glove for a week. She even slept in it.


The middle child often likes to pretend she is the youngest child. Who says you can't be swaddled at 3?


Girls love chocolate.


They like to style their own hair.


Girls love babies of all types. These babies were given cookies for being good.


Girls sometimes have double standards. Babies must have naps but not big girls?


Girls can be fiercely independent.


Girls love presents of all sizes. The more presents the bigger the smile. This does not change as a girl ages.


Girls are not always so graceful or coordinated.


Every girl must own a pettiskirt and tutu. It is a wardrobe essential.


Girls also love jewelry.


A girl is never too young to have a spa day.


Accessories are also an important component of a girls wardrobe.


Girls are natural multitaskers.


Girls love flowers. This also does not change as a girl ages.


When a girl has confidence, she can pull off any look.


When given the option to dress oneself, a girl will always choose princess garb.


The more sparkles the better.


Ballerina garb is also loved.


It is important to a girl to look stylish at all times, even sunbathing.
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