Jesus is my BFF

Kenyon was baptized on Sunday. We explained that Pastor Tom would sprinkle water on her head and say a prayer. After we clarified that she would not disappear, as if Pastor Tom was putting a spell on her (blame Disney), we told her that meant Jesus would be her BFF. She seemed happy with that. How else do you explain baptism to a four year old?

She did wonderfully, wasn't scared a bit. She was more concerned with showing off her "church necklace" during children's time. We got her a cross with pin cz stones in it. She loves it.

At the end of the service we officially joined the church, with Hank and & me transferring our membership from Baptist and Episcopalian to now Methodist. We wanted to wait until Sara was with us to join as a family. It was special for all of us. We have finally found our spiritual home, it has been a long journey - four years in the making, but we are home.

A special thanks as always to my dear, sweet, Amy for taking pictures and being Kenyon's Godmother. She and Jules are such a blessing to our family. And even though Aunt Erin & Uncle Chip couldn't be with us we know they will serve Kenyon well as Godparents too! My little girl is very lucky to be surrounded by such love.

Put Your Big Girl Panties on...

This is what a big girl looks like. Kenyon went for her two year appointment and the dr told me she is the size of a three -four year old. Tell me what I don't know. She weighs 34 pounds and is 36 inches tall. She has grown 5 inches in the last year.

She has her "heppie" (helper) chores she has assigned herself. She helps feed the dogs, carefully holding the food bowl with both hands trying not to spill. Same thing when cleaning her plate form the table. At first she would throw the plate in the garbage because that is what they do at school. Now it goes on the counter. She holds her plastic box while Hank picks the "matoes". Every Wednesday morning she collects the paper form the front yard when on her way to school. Finally she walks around the yard and point out the dog poop announcing "YUCKY!" so we can pick it up out of her way. She will be a CEO of a company, I know it because she is already managing all of us in the house - two and four legged.

Two weeks ago she was moved to the Preschool room at school - SIX MONTHS EARLY! Turns out she was more ready for it than me. I have quickly seen my sweet baby vanish and this strong independent young girl develop before my eyes.

In two weeks she can sing her ABCs every time she sees something with writing on it. She can count to 10 and when helped to 17. It is so cute when she says free and furteen. She sings patty cake almost everyday and coaches herself as to the things that she needs to do. If she wants milk we will tell her first bath then milk. Now she will sit around saying bath, milkie...or outside , no bath, milkie. Sometimes she will change the order putting what she really wants first to see if we are paying attention. I swear her vocabulary has tripled in two weeks. Now instead of "NO!" It's "I don't want it!"

The biggest growth has been the big girl panties. As of Monday she has been wearing panties at school. She had one accident on Monday, but has remained dry the last two. She naps in a pull up, but has been doing well otherwise. Yesterday when I went to get her the teacher told her to go potty before she left. She ran into the little bathroom, climbed up on the stool, dropped trow and sat down. I almost cried. She looked so grown up.

With or without me my baby is growing up. Every morning I am greeted with "Good Morning, Mommy how are you?" followed by a huge hug and a squeal and lots of kisses. That she will never be to old to do.

We are crazy....

We have decided to strike while the iron is hot and start house hunting. The rates are low and many are trying to get just get out. So...I called up my fabulous realtor Barbara and got her on board. Next thing we knew we spent most of Saturday house hunting.

Kenyon did very well. She loved running through the houses that were empty. Of course she had a fabulous outfit to wear .

We did quite a bit of narrowing down. We figured out what was going to work for us and what wouldn't. We did find one house we are interested in so we will see if it works out.

We will keep you posted. I have to admit having an updated house is exciting BUT the thought of packing all of this mess up and moving makes me want to puke or go to bed for a week.

Kenyon's playdate

Since our anniversary was yesterday our friend Amy took pity and offered to babysit for Kenyon (Sara was her helper). She brought along Jules for the fun of it. Those girls had a great time. We got home just after 11 pm. Kenyon had fallen asleep watching Spirit just before we got home. She has never stayed up that late before!

By the time we got home Jules was still awake! Poor Amy. Kenyon managed to sleep until 6 am. That was the best we got this morning. Needless to say she was a bit of a bear trying to get her ready for school this morning.


Thanks, Amy! We had a great time at the Jubilee Theater in downtown Fort Worth. We even splurged on a 1/2 lb box of chocolates at a nearby chocolate factory. We brought a white chocolate armadillo home for Sara to take back to her friend, Tempe, as a "Howdy from Texas!"

New Do....

Kenyon has decided she is a ponytail girl. She loves for Miss Kim to put her hair up in a rubber band. I try it and she promptly pulls it out. Lucky for her I don't use those bands with the plastic balls on it like mom did.

They would slip and crack her on the knuckles. She would cuss and pull our hair tighter until she was mad as hell and we were crying. Whoever invented those must not have been a mom.

I remember when Hank would fix Sara's hair to take her to daycare. By the time I picked her up at the end of the day her pigtails were lopsided and halfway undone. I could always tell how good of a day she had by how messed up her hair was.

With Kenyon it is how messy is her shirt. Non of the other kids in her class seem to get near as dirty or have half the amount of sand in their shoes at the end of the day.

Birthday Party

Yesterday we went our our friend Jule's second birthday party in Keller. The park where it was help was great! Everything was very low so we didn't have to worry about Kenyon careening down the slide and landing halfway across the park. She started yelling "fing, fing" before we even got out of the car.

She had a chance to spend some time the her friend Conor, and the Daddies got to talk military, and other stuff they like to talk about. We even got a few good pictures of the bday girl.

Not sure what is wrong with Kenyon but she won't eat bday cake. She will eat ice cream, chocolate, and an occasional cookie but not cake. I think she only licks the icing off the cupcakes at school. Now don't get me wrong, we don't give her a bunch of these teeth rotting sweets, so when we do it is a treat.

At Conor's party all she did was stick her fork in the middle of the cake and picked the whole thing up. Then she looked at me as if to say, "What now?" Maybe a love for sweets is something she skipped out on in the gene pool. Unfortunately her parents love a good dessert.

We are still working on how to drink out of a juice box. She finally gave up and took the straw out and just drank it out of the tiny whole in the top. Tilted her head back and squirted it in her mouth.

All in all she had a fun time was had by all.

Hanging with my gnomies

Erin, this one is for you....

Hank HATES gnomes. I mean Hates them. When we were getting to know each other one of his questions was "do you like yard art?" Little did I know then he really meant "Do you have gnomes in your yard?" If he had his way this is what he would do with all the gnomes of the world....A gnome Gitmo if you will.

Well, my sister Erin and her dear husband, Chip love to figure out what gets under your craw then they peck away at it much like a chicken pecking your eyes out. Since Hank's hatred for the little magical elf came to light they have torn pictures out of magazines and put them on the fridge, bought a gnome in a box at B&N bookstore, and wrapped a little garden gnome holding a Christmas wreath and placed it ever so gently under our tree one year. It has gotten so bad Hunter & Roz have begun texting pictures of gnomes to him. Dang kids and their unlimited texting. No disciple and no respect for their elders!

Jane, never to be outdone gave Hank a t-shirt for his bday that said the "Slowly the garden gnomes are stealing my sanity." Now Hank loves that shirt and wears it quite often. Never has a statement been more true.

There is a point to this, I promise. So, when I was PG we went to OKC to spend Christmas with the Miles gang. Hank, being good natured, bought three colorful garden gnomes and began hiding them in the least suspecting places around Erin's house. One was in the kitchen and I forget where the others wound up. Knowing Hank in the bathroom on the toilet.

This weekend Kenyon discovered the gnomes that had been tucked away in the garage for several years now. Hank pulled them out and let her play with them in the front yard. He called me outside so I could witness our child holding the gnomes by the tip of their pointy little heads and making them dance. Then she would gently push them over and say "night night" The third she would cradle in her arms and pet as if to get it to go to sleep.



She kept referring to them as "My babies". It was pretty sweet. But not sweet enough to leave them in the front yard for decoration.

















I really don't know what he has against them? Travelocity has been able to make a go of having a spokesgnome. They are pretty cute, especially when they are trying to make you laugh at breakfast.

Pooh

As I have mentioned in other posts Kenyon has taken a liking to Pooh. I got her a little Pooh bear at the consignment sale. Needless to say she has to hold it while she watches Pooh and friends. Hank was lamenting at the fact all cartoons are all computer animated now. I think he still secretly roots that Wylie Coyote will outsmart the Roadrunner. He needs to give up that dream, just like the one I have that the Big Wheel although making a an expensive comeback will EVER be as cool as it was the first time. I know I am old school.

We have been casually working on potty training with Kenyon. The other day she managed to 'pooh" in her potty. It hasn't happened since, but we keep trying. We are not totally committed to hard core training yet. I know our friend Amy has the colored marshmallows in the ready for their potty training weekend. I haven't decided what method we will take. I guess I should do some reading.

This is how we ride

So, Kenyon is growing up so fast she already thinks she should be able to drive my car. She likes to jump out of her carseat the second the latch is off and dive in the front seat. She did that Thursday as if she was ready to go cruisin' Blvd. I guess when she is old enough to sneak out and take my car I should make sure the keys are well hidden. With a face this cute you would give her just about anything.

On the other hand, Gam, Pop, Jane, Everley, Jacey & Maeve are all piled in the new Traverse headed to visit Aunt Erin. Rozalyn's prayers have been answered. She got Aunt Jane to Okie country. I have already called the Edmund PD to warn them they are coming. Dad has loaded the ice chest like he is going to a third world country. Of course Erin will tell you it is hard to get some Epicurean delights across the Red River.

We met the group north of Ft Worth to get our ice chest filled with ribs, a huge bag of jumbo shrimp, and steam bags of Parisian carrots that I can only find at HEB.. I wish we had a HEB up here.

Leave it to Dad to outfit the brand new vehicle with a deer hauler on the back. It was either that or hook a trailer up to it and I think Mom would draw the line at that. She still holds delusions that it is HER vehicle. Ha.

Nana Came to Town

Jeannette came to visit last weekend. She had not seen Kenyon since Christmas and was definitely seeing a different kid. Her vocabulary has expanded tremendously since moving over to Early Preschool at daycare.

On Saturday Nana came to yoga with me and then we stopped at Kroger where Kenyon had her first ride in the car grocery cart. She loved it, especially since she could reach all the candy at the check out counter. She is partial to icebreaker sours.

Jeannette managed to get Miss K to sit still to read some books. What else would a librarian do with a book collector? Kenyon must have at least 50 books. I told hank that I would rather stumble over books than step on Barbie shoes that get stuck in my foot. I don't care how good she looks at 50.

Notice her Pooh bear. Kenyon has developed a love for Poooohhh and Mo Mo, which is a good thing since it appears Jack from Jack's big music show on Noggin has been taken off the air.

Kenyon's Kitchen

is open for business. I picked this cute kitchen up at a consignment sale for $15. When Kenyon saw it the following morning she let out this deep "Ohhhh" and spent the next 20 minutes playing with it, which we all know is like a year in toddler time.

She is getting bigger and bigger everyday. Some days too big for her britches. Literally. She is wearing a 2-3t in shirts and 24-2t in pants. I am grateful for the clothes that Aunt Jane and Neighbor Lori passed from their twin girls. We are covered with plenty of dresses and fun skorts.

Lori gave Kenyon a Mo Mo dress (Elmo) and loves to sleep in it and wear it over her PJ's. She also has two more Elmo outfits from Jane that are the next size up. It is funny how she has become attached to certain things. I had to hide a pair of sandals that were too big for her because she kept wanting to wear them. She even slept in one of them.

She loves a brown Gymboree sweater that she not only sleeps in but has dug out of the dirty clothes crusted with dried yogurt from the day before only to wear it to school. What can I say pick your battles. Hank said that the teachers have probably seen kids come to school with s@!t on them. I said fortunately we have never sent her to school like that. Now whether we have gone to work with s@!t on us is another thing.

Christmas is coming....let's hope only the goose is getting fat.

As promised I am giving a list of things the girls may want or need for Christmas.

Sara

Hoodie - XL or Womens M/L
Icoaster - is it made for magnetix
Webkins

Marine Tycoon (computer game)

Dragonology or Mythology books (check with Erin)

Hair Straightener (like a curling iron) - She used one at Kaley's house and she looked great!

Kenyon

Anything she can chew or gnaw on.
Socks - 6-12 months

Short /long-sleeved onsies - 6-9 months solid colors

Jacket (not a coat) - 6-9 months, not pink

Bibs that have a plastic backing on it

Plastic bibs

Sleepers, footed - 6-9 months

Soft blocks

Stacker s(rings, cups, etc)

Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Piggy Bank

Fisher Price Nativity (Touch & Feel if you can find it)

OR any other Fisher Price Little People set

Chatter phone

What a Difference Four Months Makes

So I thought I would throw you all a bone and give you two posts in one day. I took a picture of Kenyon with Gam & Pop this week. When I was saving it to my laptop I saw another picture of her at just a few weeks with the gparents. She has grown so much. It is hard to believe that she was ever that small. Here skinny little bird legs are a thing of the past. She has discovered her hands, looking at them and then cramming them into her mouth until she chokes. She has figured out there are things going on below her waist. She tries to "help" change her diaper. She grabs her feet, although she hasn't tried to get those in her mouth. Oh, to be that flexible.

Too Sassy for my Diapee......

Well, Fall has finally arrived up here and Kenyon has been styling in her new wardrobe. She is so cute, I just want to eat her sometimes. Her cheeks are ripe for kissing. Our neighbor, Lucy, has been keeping our girl furnished in new outfits. Both times she has arrived at our door with outfit in hand uttering the words, "I couldn't resist". Kenyon's Halloween ensemble is sponsored by Lucy.

Happy Halloween!

We had plans to make it to the pumpkin patch, but Kenyon fell asleep before we could get there. So, we will try to get some costume pictures on Halloween.

Friday we went to her almost 4 month check up. She got 4 shots which she did not like a bit. She is still hovering at 15 pounds and is in the 95% for her age group as she is for her length. She is in the 72% for her head.

This week Fin joined Poppy in the near death experience club. He went in for a routine teeth cleaning and had a severe reaction to the anesthesia. It was touch and go for a while, but he pulled through with all of his faculties in tact. Sylvie doesn't understand why she can't go to the dog P A R K (we have to spell it so they don't get excited). Fin won't be able to go for another week.

As you can see, I have made some changes to the blog. Since I started this I have become addicted to blogging and reading others' blogs. I have added some of my favorite. I have to blame my friend, Jess for my new found addiction. Her blog is We Like It. On there she has many blogs and websites listed that I have fallen in love with. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have.

Stay tuned more to come.

Smiles to melt your heart.. :)

As you can see our girl has no shortage of smiles. She has begun to giggle and blow bubbles in the last week. She loves to lay on the floor and roll around. She is working towards reaching for her toys.

My favorite milestone this week happened in the nursery, I was feeding her right before bed and she reached up and touched my face. If that doesn't melt your heart I don't know what will.

We put in an appearance at her daycare carnival this week. She wasn't very impressed as it was her bed time. We used it as an excuse to try out her chickie costume. She did pretty well except she was starving so instead of collecting eggs with our little chick we wound up milking her, so to speak. As I was dressing her I begin to sing the song about the little chickie that wouldn't lay an egg so I poured hot water up and down her leg, the chickie hollered and prayed and layed a hard boiled egg. Well, Hank had never heard the song. he thought it was weird.

We are still hoping to make it to the pumpkin patch this weekend. The plan was to make it this last weekend, but there always seems to be so much to do. We did go out on a family walk on Saturday. The dogs kept looking for any driveway that they could turn in so they could quit walking. I put Kenyon's little pink sunglasses on her and off we went in the stroller. She managed to get in a good nap and look stylish while doing so.

She has really caught on to her exersaucer. She was going to town this morning jumping up and down smacking the pieces. See the princess and her royal court (the saucer has a royal theme). She still has to have a blanket helping her stay propped up, but she loves playing with the toys. Notice the princess had on her royal bib while her royal court stood at attention.

Ahh crap, I mean Audad

Well, we have a new member of the family, one audad sheep. it is hanging in Sara's room finally. It resided under the dining table for several weeks. Our neighbor, Tom, helped Hank get it on the wall. Needless to say there was much backslapping going on afterwards. See the trophy pictures.
Kenyon is finally over her virus. She is growing like a weed. Hank took her to the Dr. this week because of her low grade fever. He said it was normal and not to worry. I told Hank that her fever was because she was so smart her brain was working overtime. I can't help it our baby is a genius. She had a big week at school. She got to ride in the buggy outside and got to sit in the exersaucer. Today I packed away her playmat as she rolls around too much and has lost interest. So, she has graduated to her exersaucer. I'll get some pictures posted of her in it soon.

Miss K is rolling around like she has been doing it forever. She definitely has places to go and things to do. Here is a series of pictures:

Kenyon's school pictures came back and were awful. There was one pose with her shoulders up around her neck and a big frown on her face. My picture that I posted previously was way better. We decided to keep our $50.

Hank managed to get a picture of Kenyon and me earlier this week. She was wearing an adorable dress I picked up at a consignment sale.

Finally, I selected her Halloween costume.....our girl will be a baby chicken. Her school has a fall festival next week. I will post pictures, don't worry. There will always be more pictures.