Bathroom Words at Preschool

A few months ago Oliver became infatuated with a certain set of vocabulary words that little boys love to use.

I got so tired of hearing these words that I told him they were Bathroom Words and I didn't like them.

Bathroom Words belong IN the bathroom, and if he feels the need to say them, he must go there by himself to do so.

Today I picked Oliver up from preschool and my friend Kelli told me that while using hues of purple, orange, black, and yellow to paint like Picasso, she heard Ollivander say to himself very seriously,

"That picture looks kinda Halloweeny. My mom doesn't like the word weenie"

Happy "Alice's First Smile" Day!

Darling Miss Alice smiled her first social smile last Saturday...which, incidentally, was also my birthday. It was all very magical if you ask me.

Because I was too busy enjoying the smiles, we didn't get any pictures of the momentous occasion until the next day, which happened to be "Alice Wears Her First Dress" day. It was rather serendipitous as it made for some ridiculously adorable photos of this girl and her grin.

And I'd like it to be known that our mutual friend Jesse, who has teased me for MONTHS about my weakness for adorable clothes for this baby...especially anything with ruffles on the bum, delighted in spending all three hours of church showing her and her new dress off to anyone with eyes to see, making sure to point out the ruffly bottom. It seems I'm not the only one with a weakness...

The Bloopers:

 

This is another of Alice's exceptional facial expressions...only we didn't have to wait six weeks for this phenomenal frown. She's pulled this one since day one.

Snowpocalypse 2014

A few days ago we started hearing about a major snowstorm headed our way. Then a couple of days later, we heard that Governor O'Malley had officially declared a state of emergency.

Last night the snow started falling and didn't stop. This morning we woke up to a winter wonderland, and while ten inches of snow is nothing to you out in the west, the whole state shut itself down.

This means that all of us, even Jesse, were obligated to stay home an relax! So we did!

Oliver played in the snow while Jesse and I shoveled our parking spaces and walk way.

 Then we all lounged around the house snuggled up in our fuzzy robes, and kept our fingers crossed that our power would stay on through the snow, hail, freezing rain, and then more snow that fell.

And as long as our power stays on, we'll declare today a success!

Electronics Addict

This boy is so dependent on electronics that when we told him that he had maxed out on tv, ipod, nook, and nexus time for the day, he went and found the calculator...

The crazy thing was that when I complained to Jesse about Oliver's lack of imagination, Jesse said, "Well, if you're not going to provide him with anything to do, what do you expect?"

My response, "TOYS! I have provided TOYS! How is that not something for a three year old to do?"

The men in this house need an electronics rehab...

Addicts.

I'll Bet You

"I'll bet you that bag of M&M's that Oliver fell asleep on the floor in his room" I told Jesse when I realized how late it had gotten...

Quiet Time Encore

Ahh... The Sweet Sound of Silence!

One Thing Is For Sure...

I REALLY like her!

I REALLY like them both!

A New Delicacy

Guacamole Fruit Snacks

created by Oliver J.

One Month

Miss Alice Miriam is one month old today!

My friend asked me the other day how I was doing.

I told her that for the first time in weeks, I actually believe myself when I say that we're going to make it...

With each day...

I feel a little less overwhelmed. 

I find a little more energy. 

I get better at letting go of the things I can no longer control. 

The list of things I can't do gets a little bit shorter.

With each day, Alice brings more joy to our lives.

We can't believe we ever got by without her.

All photos by Best Friend Annie