Back to Life?

For those of you who may not know, mine and Lance's first "child" is Hoss, a miniature dachshund. He is a grumpy fellow, set in his ways, obsessed with food, and just down right cranky. Contrary to popular belief, these are the qualities that, quite frankly make Hoss, Hoss, and the reasons why he is such a cool dog! However, knowing he is this way, we do take precautions when other small people are around...he's like a magnet. He's the dog all the little ones want to mess with...it's kind of like the girl that hates cats, but the cat ALWAYS jumps up in her lap.

Anyway, on to the point, Hoss is almost 10 years-old and sleeps a lot. I guess Lindsay finally noticed this and asked me why he sleeps so much. I proceeded to explain to her that Hoss is getting old, and, trying to prepare her for the inevitable, that one day he wouldn't be with us anymore. I did not use the word "die". Lindsay emphatically replies, "But he'll come back to life." I immediately think, Where in the world did she get that? My mind went to Snow White and thinking that maybe she somehow got confused about Snow White being asleep when the prince kissed her, not dead. So I asked her, "Where did you hear that?" She repeats herself, "He'll come back to life." I say, "Who do you know that did that?" I'm trying to explain what I mean (I'm still thinking that she's gonna say Snow White). She replies enthusiastically, "Jesus did!!"

OK, duh! Why did I not assume that she was referring to our Saviour instead of some dumb cartoon? It turned out to be an excellent opportunity to talk about Jesus and how He conquered death! So, be on guard momma's...you never know when your day-to-day, ordinary conversations can be such a tremendous opportunity to impart the Lord's truth to your child!

"Free" Years Old

I have been told that having a three year old is much more difficult than the notorious "terrible twos". We are currently on day 5 of being three and I think I have to agree! It seems that turning three makes you more independent, opinionated, wise, and moody. But, aside from all of that, turning three has been lots of fun! We've had days filled with Princess nightgowns, pretend cupcakes, weenie dog purses, tutu dresses, tricycles, family, and friends this past week and it has been a blast.

We had a mini-party at school complete with Krumballs and balloons. Those kids went crazy over those balloons. Just a reminder that the simple things in life are still so very exciting to a small child!

Some of Lindsay's favorite things:

Painting toenails, Wearing lip balm, Riding her tricycle, Putting on a thousand bracelets at one time, Bubbles in the bath tub, Trixie (one of her dogs), Wearing other peoples shoes, Imagining & carrying on conversations with anybody and everything, Singing along to the music, Playing with her cousins, Asking a ton of questions, Bedtime stories, and Snuggling with her bunny. She has such a sweet spirit (most of the time) and loves to be around people. She cracks us up on a daily basis with the things that she says about how she percieves things in her little world!

Where has the time gone? It is so hard to believe that my baby girl is three!!

Have You Bathed in a Horse Trough Lately?

We spent Christmas weekend with Lance's family at his sister's ranch in Starr, TX. This was the first time that we had the opportunity to visit and stay at the Boot Jack Ranch. We had such a great time. Since everything is very rustic, Lindsay took a bath (and we showered) in a horse trough.

I am very disappointed that the pictures that I took of her ALL turned out blurry (darn camera)! But, you get the jist, so I'm posting a couple of them anyway :)

You can tell from her rosy red cheeks that she spent too much time outside in the wind. Her cheeks are not red because she was hot!! Quite the opposite in fact!! It was so cold while we were there and we even ran out of propane (that is what the central heat/air runs on) in the middle of the night on Friday night. The temp in our room was 58 degrees when we woke up on Saturday! Thankfully we were able to build a fire in two different fireplaces to warm up. Lindsay had such a blast with her three cousins that she didn't even notice that it was cold!

Moving on Up!

Lindsay has finally moved on up into her new big girl bed. It's been a long time coming, but we finally got it done!

She's been ready for quite some time and outgrew her crib months ago, but it just took a little time to get her furniture. She's been sleeping in the new bed for a week and has done great! The best part about the transition is that she will not get out of the bed until you come into her room to get her. I have pondered "teaching" her that she can get out on her own, but have decided to hold off on that for later. :) So, we'll see if she figures it out before then!!

We still have some kinks to work out in order for her "new" room to be completed. We need to get some new sheets and curtains and rearrange some of the things on the wall. She doesn't care though...this afternoon she told me "Thank you for my new big girl bed"!!

Do You Have One of These?

I have this "thing" that is always around that seems to capture every moment of my life.  My words, my actions, my reactions, and pretty much every move I make.  You may have one of these "things" too.  It's always there, soaking up every moment of my life, taking things in, processing, and then regurgitating in some form or fashion that which I have allowed for it to take in.

Do you have one of these?  Here's a picture of my mine:

I am constantly reminded that I have been given the job to disciple my daughter and teach her how to be a follower of Jesus and to love others.  However, a lot of times, I am teaching her the exact opposite!  Of course, I'm not intentionally teaching her anything that goes against the principles that I listed above, but actions most definitely speak louder than words!

Lindsay is at such an impressionable time in her life and she picks up on EVERYTHING.  This is such an important time (it's important all the time, but you catch my drift) for me to make sure that I am examining my own heart and ensuring that I'm "spilling" out the right things.

Whew~ what a tremendous responsibility we have been given as parents! 

I pray that the Lord would daily remove the stone from eye and reveal to me the areas that I need to work on in my own life so that I can pour out His love on my daughter and others.

I'm back, just a little slow!

I am back from vacation and trying to get back to reality!  I will admit that I am moving very slow, with a very "foggy" brain.  I am going Monday to have blood drawn and my thyroid levels checked.  I am pretty confident in my self diagnosis...my levels are going to be low.  I'm just not sure what the doctor is going to do about it.  Please pray for me and my doctor, that God will give us wisdom and guidance to make the right decision for my care.

Lindsay returned to school on Thursday and had such a wonderful time with her friends and Mrs. Ashley.  I found out that a few of the kids in her class have been ill or are currently ill.  We are all aware of all the sickness that is "going around" right now and our little ones are especially susceptible.  In addition to making sure they wash their hands and sneeze into the bend of their arm, it is just as important that they get adequate rest and a healthy diet to keep their bodies fueled to fight off infection!  Reality is that our kids are going to get sick at some point, but I have a strong conviction of doing my part to help Lindsay's body fight off sickness on it's own!

If you are a steady reader of my blog, please become an official follower!  I know there are those of you that read my blog but do not have a blogger address of your own...you can still be a follower!

Starting School & What's for Breakfast?

My baby girl is starting school tomorrow!!  I am so excited and so is Lindsay!! 

I know that breakfast tomorrow will be especially vital in getting her day off to a good start (she'll be playing hard at school and need lots of energy), so I am going to try a new recipe...Crockpot Oatmeal (yes, I am obsessed w/ my crockpot)!  

Lindsay asked me for some "oatmilk" this morning, so I hope that she'll enjoy the surprise I will have waiting for her when she gets up.  The beauty of the recipe is that it will be cooking away all night, so all we'll have to do is just get up and eat it in the morning!!

Now, what to pack her for lunch...hmmm

Crockpot Oatmeal

2 c. steel cut oats (not instant or rolled oats)

6-8 c. water

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

2 apples, peeled and diced

1 c. raisins

1 c. bananas

1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray.  If you are planning to cook the oatmeal 8 hours or longer, use 8 c. of water.  If you want to cook it less than 8 hours, use 6 c. of water.  Put first seven ingredients in crockpot and cook on low.  Just before serving, stir in bananas and walnuts.

Edited to add:  The oatmeal turned out pretty good...next time I will add more vanilla & cinnamon than the recipe calls for...it needed just a touch more flavor.  Thankfully, Lindsay was very excited about her "oatmilk" and gobbled up a bowl full before we left for school!

All marked up

Remember that fabulous deal that I got on clothing from TCP where I paid $2.24 for each piece of clothing?  Well........we can "mark" one of those shirts off the "wearable" list!!  Somebody in my family left a Sharpie marker on the counter a little too close to the edge.  Can you guess who that was and can you guess who discovered said marker?

I am so thankful that her shirt is the only thing she marked up and not my carpet or cabinets!

Potty Party

Today is our 7th day of potty training and Lindsay is doing fantastic.  Today is also our second day in a row accident free! 

 

When we started this process last Friday, I hung a piece of poster board on the wall in her bathroom and wrote "Potty Party" at the top and drew about 40 squares on it as a place for her to put a sticker each time she used the potty.  The idea was for her to eventually get a sticker in each square which would mean a Potty Party celebration.  I had no clue that she would do it so fast!

So, this afternoon we threw an impromptu Potty Party, which she LOVED!!  Here's a shot of her playing and eating her cupcake.

Potty Training - Day 1

Day one of potty training complete!!  And, I think overall, it was pretty successful.  Lindsay only had two accidents and stayed dry during nap time.  Whoo-hoo!!!!!!

So, I decided to go ahead and take the plunge completely and put her to bed in panties.  I do realize that there is a risk involved, like her wetting the bed and me having to change bedding in the middle of the night, but I think at this point it's all or nothing.  I do know she is capable of holding it all night long, so we'll see how tonight goes.  Thankfully, she really didn't have much to drink before bed time, so I think our chances are pretty good :)

And as happy as I am about her magnificent achievement, it does sadden me just a bit.  I guess that's just the mom in me...

*Edited to add:  We made it through the night with dry clothes, a dry bed, and a dry kid!! :)

Starting "School"

Lindsay will be starting "school" in September with the First Baptist Church's Parents Day Out Program.  Right now, I'm very excited about the opportunity that she will have to learn and grow with kids her own age.  However, once the day arrives for her to go, I may not be so excited about the fact that my baby is growing up!  *sniff, sniff*  So, as anxious as I may have been when she was a newborn to get past whatever the current "stage" was, now I find myself wanting to slam on the brakes and slow things down just a teeny weeny bit.  I mean, after all, she is already two years old! 

I did find her the cutest little pillow to take with her for nap time (I can really see her sleeping with a room full of other two year olds).  The pillowcase has her name embroidered on it with different color fabrics.  She seems to be super excited about having a pillow with her name on it, so maybe we will start practicing taking naps with our little pillow and Kinder Mat!!  Click here to see the cute pillowcase.  To my surprise, when I went to get the link, the actual one she made for Lindsay is featured on her website!

Then there is this thing called potty training...  To be honest, I have not really started officially potty training.  We've been doing pull-ups since she started showing interest in using the potty.  They are so much easier to pull-up and down (huh, I imagine that is where the name came from!) than a diaper.  So, I guess it's about time that I take the plunge and get this girl using the potty and wearing big girl panties!  I really think that she'll train fairly easily (I'll have to let you know if I still think that once we get started).

And, once again, I am reminded that It Won't Be Like This For Long.

Battle of Wills

I know this may come as a big surprise to some of you (ha), but Lindsay is extremely stubborn! We are working through some major behavior issues, which she chooses to use mostly against me and Lance.  Yesterday, Lindsay and I went toe-to-toe not long after she woke up that morning and throughout the entire day.  However, what happened last night takes the cake...

The three of us had no more sat down to eat dinner last night, when Lindsay says that she wants to get down.  Lance instructs her that she needs to stay in her chair and eat.  Well, this ticks her off just a little and she tries to pick up her plate and sling it across the table.  He catches it before she really has time to complete the task and this really ticks her off!  So she grabs her cup and throws it on the floor!  So now, it's like, ok, you are still going to sit in your chair and I guess you won't be eating or drinking while you are sitting there!!  Then she gets all crazy and pleads with me to let her down, she pulls out all the stops.

After she sat there for what seemed like forever, she asked to get down using her manners.  Lance told her that she needed to apologize for the way she acted and he would let her down.  She looked at him and said, "I don't want to say your sorry.  I  don't want to say it."

If that's not rebellion I don't know what is!!!!

Needless to say, after she sat there for even longer, she finally relented and apologized to her daddy for being so ugly and went on her merry way.

Doesn't this paint a perfect picture of how we have that same rebellion in our lives?  No God, I'm not apologizing, I'm not going to let you have this little piece of my life.  Wow, who would of thought that the Lord would use my two year old's rebellion to convict me of the rebellion in my own life?!  Very humbling, isn't it?

Are you prepared?

As parents, we try our best to protect our children.  Some of us might even be labeled "over-protective".  However, the true reality is, that we cannot protect our kids from everything that this world throws at them (this is where our faith in the Lord comes in).  Falling down, scraping knees, busting noses are all part of growing up and learning how to survive!!

My niece and nephew came to stay with us for a few days this past week.  For fun, we thought we would take them to the water park in Canton, but since the weather didn't cooperate, we ended up at the Dallas World Aquarium.  We arrived around lunch time, so we decided to eat lunch in one of the cafe's.  We had been sitting down for about 15 minutes munching on chips when all of the sudden Lindsay starts to cough and takes the most strained breath I have ever heard.  My mom was sitting across the table from us and she very calmly said, "Kelly, she's choking".  I reached over, snatched Lindsay out of the booster seat, laid her over my legs on her belly, and hit her on the back with the base of my hand 3 or 4 times .  This all happened so fast, I really don't recall the exact order of how things happened.  As soon as I hit her the first time, she did start to try to cough and spit and drool.  I looked over my shoulder and told the waitress, "we need some help over here" and they guy at the table next to us said, "she's coughing, that means she's getting air".  Albeit a strained cough, she was coughing!!!  All of the sudden this paramedic lady appears out of nowhere to check Lindsay out.  Thankfully, after a lot of coughing, she was back to normal.  She ate a little lunch and then had a great time at the aquarium!!

Why did I lay her over my legs instead of on the floor, I have no idea, but the Lord was in control of the situation and He gets all the glory!  I know that I cannot protect Lindsay from every little thing, but I now know that I can be a little more prepared, just in case!!

Out of the blue tonight, Lindsay told me, "I was coughing in my booster seat.  The lady had on gloves (referring to the paramedic lady). I coughed up a chip."  This happened on Thursday, so I have no idea what brought it to her mind.  

I am so thankful that I did not panic and that I felt the peace that passes all understanding!

Silly Girl

Lindsay has reached that time in her life where she just cracks us up all the time!  Yesterday at the doctor's office she was sitting in my lap observing all the other kids.  She was narrating for me a little girl's interaction with her mom.  Lindsay looked at me and said, "Mama, that baby is crazy!"  Of course, I couldn't help but laugh and thankfully the other mom didn't hear what she said!

You know how it is when you notice that your kid is being really quiet, it almost always means that they are up to something that they shouldn't be?!  Here are some pictures of Lindsay after I caught her getting gum out of my purse (and eating it too).

Tonight we made a birthday card for Lance (shh, it is a surprise!), and Lindsay kept telling me that she was going to draw a circle, square, whatever it was that she was going to draw.  Of course, her shapes were not recognizable, but she was giving it a good effort.  After a while of coloring on a plain piece of paper, she wanted her Wonder Pets coloring book.  I thought I would ask her just to color a specific shape on the page.  Here is how it came out:

I thought for a two-year old, this was pretty darn good!!  We'll keep this one for the record books.

Lindsay is also into taking pictures of herself with my camera.  Most of the pictures are just a big blob, but I thought this one was cute...

I love all the wonderful memories that we are able to make with this little blessing from God!

Birthday Par-tay!

We gathered this past weekend to celebrate Lindsay's birthday.  We decked our yard out with balloons and Elmo stuff and were expecting an "easy" birthday party.  Well, I don't know if you know this or not, but there is no such thing as an easy two year old birthday party!  It was ca-razy, but Lindsay had a blast and many friends and family members were there to celebrate with her.

Our favorite baker and cake decorator, Alissa, made this beautiful cake for Lindsay.  Elmo is affixed to the cake with a skewer, so after the party we let Lindsay eat him like a sucker.  She had a blast with him!!

She really didn't need any help with the candles, but I guess that is what I am doing?!

All of the kids LOVED the slip-n-slide and water activities.

A shot of the little ones playing!

After the party, she was one tired girl, but still wanting to play with all her new stuff.

Next year I will have to try to do better to get pictures of all the kids, but I was just a little busy!!  Thank you all for coming and sharing this special time with us.

Two Years Already?

Over the next few posts, I would like to tell you about each member of our family.  First up, Lindsay Elise.

This weekend we will celebrate Lindsay's 2nd Birthday by partying Elmo style.  This Mama is having a hard time believing that her baby is going to be two!!  

Lindsay loves to talk, sing, and dance.  Her rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star will make your heart melt.  She is affectionate, loving, reserved but fiery, tender-hearted and just flat-out hilarious!  I love it when she nods her head in agreement as she is trying to convince me to do something for her.  It's like "come on Mom, that's a great idea".

The other day while I was getting her breakfast ready she went and got Lillian (her baby doll) and put her in the high chair.  Then she found a bib to put on the baby and tried to get a spoon out of the drawer for her.  She was going to give Lillian her breakfast!!!  I finally convinced her that Lillian could just sit on the table and watch!!

It is so awesome to see her bow her head when we pray with her at the dinner table and at night-night time.  She squints her little eyes and keeps them shut the whole time.  What really cracks us up is when she keeps her eyes closed while she is putting a bite of food in her mouth or taking a drink during the prayer!!!

She wants you to kiss her boo-boo every time she falls down or bumps into something.  And I am willing to kiss everyone of them!!  She is starting to show compassion for others by her willingness to kiss their boo-boos.

Our prayer for Lindsay is that she would fall in love with Jesus.  Compassion is just one of the many things that she will be taught by Jesus.  I am excited to see what her next lesson will be as He molds and shapes her into a warrior for Him!!  That is so cool!

My baby is growing up so fast and so I know that "It Won't Be Like This For Long".

*Editor's Note:  I am having trouble uploading images, so I'll try to post more pics after her birthday party.