Big Girl

Lucy is 3 years old.

It is blowing my mind. She is such a big girl. Although, she is just a baby in my heart...the young lady that she is becoming is keeping me on my toes!

She likes clothes, shoes, bows, nail polish, makeup, lip stick, jewelry, sparkles, coats, scarves, fixing hair, and above all the color pink! She is a girly girl to the core.

Yes. She is still a kid though and plays in the dirt, in her cavatini, and lays on the floor.

But, she is looking at her Highlights magazine! She also looks through our mail, clothing catalogs, and my gossip magazines. Oh, and forgive my uncleaned floors...

She tries to stay little, like her sister. But, the poor thing is just getting too big. She is thinning out too; her little baby fat is disappearing...

She is playing with "big girl" toys too. She has a ton of Barbies and accessories now! I have even let her play with the Barbie shoes and small purses. 

Now, instead of the continuous moping around about my first baby growing into a little girl. Let's celebrate her achievements.

Lucy Milestones:

• She is using the potty all the time now.
• She is even waking up in the middle of the night to have us take her potty, with no wet morning pull-ups.
• She ate her entire soft taco the other night! Yes. This is worth celebrating. The only thing that she really goes to town on is canned Spaghettios. Yuck.
• She can and will paint your toenails. Just ask Heath.
• She has memorized two prayers.
• And, she has become the best big sister ever! She is always helping Olive and trying soothe her when she is upset. I have never seen such love! My heart melts. Related post to come later.
• She does the Goof-bot (the robot dance Goofy does on Mickey Mouse club house). 
• She can spell 'Lucy' and 'Mickey Mouse.' 
• She can even write her name, if she is looking at an example.

I just don't know what I'll do when she starts preschool next fall. Bah!  

Toy Boxes

I have been nesting again. I really have the mental energy to do a lot to our house every evening; but, my physical energy only allows for one project a night. I am having a much rougher go this time around...

Anyway, we have two "boxes" or "bins," whatever you want to call them, in our living room.

Note: the black things on the wall next to them, are the latches for the big, baby gate that we used to have to block the stairs. It will be back out soon enough... :[

The bins used to hold photo albums, craft stuff, blankets, etc. They were catch-alls. Then, when Lucy came, I cleaned them out and they currently hold all of her living room toys.

The toys that you see in the picture? They are from Lucy's room. Of course the toys in the bins weren't enough, she had to bring more out!

I was recently cleaning up the living room and going through the toy bins. I've been slowly taking the things that are too small for baby mouths and putting them in Lucy's room. I decided to separate the toys into the bins by "baby-friendly" and "toddler-toys." Then, I decided that each of our girls would get their own toy bin, once Olive's toys started to take over the living room too. Wouldn't labels be nice? :)

I started by making two 7 x 5 in. name tags, one for Lucy and one for Olive.

Seriously, how sick of "olives" will Olive be? :)

I printed them on card-stock and for anti-destruction purposes laminated them. I love my laminater! :) Lucy loved it too. :)

I wasn't sure how to adhere them to the lids of the bins. I didn't want something that would be permanent necessarily or leave a gross residue. So, for the meantime we pined them on there. I think I can staple them...I'm not sure.This part is to be determined, and I lean heavily on my intelligent husband for a fix...

 

Lucy was so proud and told me who's bin was who's, over and over again. :)

It was a small change; but, I love it. 

I know that once they hit a certain age that it won't matter who's bin is who's anymore. But, this way they can each decide what toys they want in the living room and what toys they want in their bedrooms. Each of them only get what fits in the bin! Also, when it comes to clean-up time, they know where it goes....hopefully. :)

What do you think?

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Today I'm Loving...

...that Easter is coming soon!

...that dying Easter eggs is still so fun for me! :) This year I got some great ideas from Pinterest.com about it too (like, using a whisk to dip your eggs).

...that we finally tried "Five Guys." My sister and a few Facebook friends have been raving about it. I gave it an A...not quite a plus, but it was good! :) My dad would love it. They have homemade burgers and fries. The burgers are huge too! I couldn't finish mine...or the fries for the matter. Presentation? They got a D. It is totally a "guy's" restaurant...to be expected with the name.

...that the weather is so wonderful, we are opening the windows in the evening!

...that the weather is so wonderful that Lucy and I played outside last week. Then, we got yelled at for making roads in the yard with her cars...sorry Dad, I mean Heath. I joke about this because I got yelled at as a kid for "tearing up" the yard by my dad. Heath "yelled" at me for the same thing. It was the back yard, inside the privacy fence! Gee whiz...by the way, the roads were kind of already there, we just pushed the grass aside.

(The ghostly orb that you are seeing to the bottom, right is a Squirty tail. The chihuahuas served as modern-day Godzillas for our little town.)

...that I am having more energy these days! I cleaned the house on Sunday! Spring cleaning is beginning! Or, nesting...one of the two.


...that my sister, brother-in-law, and nephew are coming over this weekend! I love spending time with family.

...that I can find humor in my impending labor pain (from a BabyCenter.com newsletter):

Labor pain is funny until you actually feel it, again.

...of course my baby Lucy and wonderful husband.

..and my friends, family, readers, and followers.

Happy Wednesday! And, Happy Birthday to one of my bestest friends! :)

I'm "Such a Mom"

I always said that I would be "the cool mom." I'm going to stay up with the times and styles. I'm going to continue to listen to popular music. I won't wear mom jeans or otherwise embarrassing clothes. I won't talk about boys or sing along in the car, especially during sleepovers. I will understand shorts that are just shorter than the finger-tip rule. I will understand asking to shave early. I'll remember myself as a child...

I'm not doing so well.

I don't know if it is my getting older, having "real-life" responsibilities, or being a mom that has changed me. I just don't see things like I used to.

Scary movies are scary. Watching someone get stabbed in the torso repeatedly is not just a fun thrill. It is terrifying that those people are out there!

Nickelodeon is kind of smart-alleck-y.

What is with all of the toys these days for little girls? Bratz? Give me a break. But, have you seen the Monster High dolls?

And, now they have costumes for little girls.

Let's pretend for five seconds that this little girl isn't wearing makeup. Are those fish net stockings? Or knee high boots? Let's just file this one in the "Toddlers & Tiaras" file.

I realized that I was being a little more critical than usual; but, I was finally told by Heath that I was "such a mom" when I made one particular complaint. It was about a song that hit the top 40 list a few months ago. I think it's just awful. The song is "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People. Catchy tune - I'll give you that.

The lyrics include these lines:

Robert's got a quick hand.

He'll look around the room, he won't tell you his plan.

Yeah, he found a six shooter gun.

In his dad's closet hidden with a box of fun things, and I don't even know what.

But he's coming for you, yeah he's coming for you.

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

I feel that this song reeks of school shooting. It really bothers me. I sounds like an awful anthem! After hearing the actual lyrics of the song, I can't stand to listen to it. I refuse to support the song, the idea, or the band. We even googled it, to see if the band reveled the meaning. Someone online claimed that it was to "raise awareness of school shootings." Yeah, okay. I don't believe that. It wouldn't be so upbeat.

Am I really being "such a mom"? Am I too touchy? Because, I swear I didn't used to be like that.

What do you think? Any other "moms" out there?

Lucy's Ready. I'm Not.

We play with Lucy's baby dolls at home. She feeds them with a spoon. She puts them in the high chair and stroller. We have tried to teach her how to love her babies.

Last night, we were sitting in the living room. I had just pulled chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. I was blowing on one of them, trying to dodge the reaching Lucy hand coming at me. In between blows, I was chanting, "Hot, hot, hot."

Lucy began to mock me, whispering, "Haaa, haaa, haa."

Finally it was cool enough and I gave Lucy her bite. Yum. Chocolate chip cookie. Wait, "Lucy! No! Bad girl!"

I watched as Lucy stuck her chocolaty tongue out and scraped the cookie onto the floor with the side of her index finger.

One dish towel later, I was scrubbing the floor, the side of the couch, and Lucy's face, all covered in chocolate. She promptly took the towel away from me, wiped her babies mouth, the couch, and the floor as well. Alright - how could I stay upset with that? :)

She then proceeded to use the dish towel as a blanket. She went around the room, wrapping up every doll or stuffed animal. Once I figured out what she was doing, I tried to help her. She settled on carrying around a stuffed pig the rest of the night. He would come unraveled, then she would bring him to me or Heath for "re-wrapping."

Heath and I watched as she rocked him, hugged him, and even put him in her chair "to sleep." When she laid him down, she said "shhhh" and "night-night." Then, she leaned over and kissed him on the nose.

I teared up. It was the cutest and sweetest thing I had ever seen. Heath and I just kept looking at each other, beaming with pride.

I said, what everyone is now thinking, "I think she is ready for a baby."

Then I thought, "I'm not though!" haha.

We still need more Lucy-alone-time. Either way, it is nice to know that any future babies will have a wonderful bigger sister in Lucy. :)

And, this is where the pig slept all night -

We tried to get pictures of Lucy holding him and rocking him; but, she wouldn't sit still for us. These were the best, blurry images we could get, haha -

Motherly? Yes. Model? Not yet, anyway. :)

Rookie Move

Lucy was hitting a bag of chips with a plastic drumstick. I told her, "No. No."

She insisted on hitting it and looked me straight in the eye while hitting a few more times. I said, again, "No!"

Then, I put my hand on top of the bag; so, she would quit hitting it.

What does she do? She, of course, whacks the crap out of my hand.

Rookie move...

Next time I'll take the drumstick out of her hand.

The drumstick hit a nerve and I couldn't feel my index or middle finger for a good 2 minutes. My hand is bruised. It hurts.

Lesson learned.

Play-Date Gone Selfish

Last night we had a play date. My friend, Crystal, and her son, Ty, came over for dinner. It's been ages since we've seen them and really got to sit and talk. So, we invited them over for supper (chicken alfredo with garlic cheese bread - yum!) and to try out the new playroom.

When they were littler, they basically just tried to eat each other. Ty would try to bite on Lucy's shoulder and she would try to poke him in the eye. They were a mess. haha. Therefore, we tried to keep them at a pretty good distance, just sharing toys and/or food.

Now, I was excited! Ty and Lucy were old enough now that they could just roam the playroom. They could just go crazy. Sure, they might poke each other a little bit; but, after seeing Lucy run over by a plastic car, I thought she could handle it. Plus, Lucy is a product of Daycare! She plays with other children all the time and usually lights up around them! She would be super social.

Or, so I thought...

When Ty and Crystal first arrived, Lucy and Ty were super shy. They just looked at each other.  It only took a few seconds after I turned off Elmo's World, for them to warm up. Lucy walked up to Ty, hit him on the shoulder, he turned around, and she said, "Hi!"

I was so proud! Yay! She was being sweet and social.

When it was time for dinner, they sat across the table from each other. They didn't really "talk" to each other; but, they giggled back and forth a lot. A lot! It was like it was contagious.

Again, yay! She is being social and smiley!

Then, we went to the playroom.

She got so upset with almost everything Ty played with. She specifically clung onto a doll stroller and a blow-up ball, trying to hold onto them both at the same time. If Ty would even put his hand on them, Lucy would squeal at the top of her lungs, very high pitched. Then, she would try to pull it away or hit his hand off.

I was seriously shocked. I had never seen her do that before! Of course I have seen the familiar fit, when we take something away from her. But, I had never witnessed jealousy like this! All I could do was apologize. I just could not believe her behavior.

Then it dawned on us. Perhaps she is like that at Daycare! She just might have turned into a selfish, fit-thrower. We made sure to ask Daycare first thing this morning.

"Does Lucy share?"

"Does she take other childrens' toys away?"

Thank goodness they answered, "Yeah, she shares," and, "No, not really."

We realized that it was all about her own toys - toys that we didn't realize at all that she had an, apparently deep, affinity for! Well, she hasn't ever really had another child in her playroom. She hasn't really ever had to share her toys at home, except with us. So, I guess we wouldn't have known until now.

Who would have known Lucy was a little selfish and was in need of a lesson about sharing?

Heath told her, "Elmo wouldn't be very proud of you right now, Lucy."

Hopefully we can work on it and invite Ty over again some time, if he wants to! We'll see how it goes!

Side note:
I got a new blog design, obviously! Our friend Justin did it for us! And, my wonderful husband helped with incorporating it. Didn't they do a great job? What do you think?  

Also, I got a new button! If you have taken the previous one (the very few of you out there), please replace it with the new one! :) It's a lot cuter! Thanks for the support!

Email subscribers: You will have to stop by and see the new look!

Ignorance Really is Bliss

Lucy got run over by a plastic car.

Yep. You read correctly. I watched as Lucy was smashed by a plastic, toy car.

 Let me explain.

As you may already know, I was Banned from DayCare; therefore, I can't go visit Lucy over my lunch hour anymore (which results in more blog posts - yay?). It was pretty difficult at first; but, Heath and I were beginning to manage pretty well. It was getting easier. But now...the children are going out to the playground during our lunch hour. We can hear them outside playing.

What's the harm in peeking out the window? None. Right?

Wrong.

The window in my office looks directly over the daycare playground. Heath is the one who first looked out and called me over.

"Cori - come look. She is walking around."

Of course I took off running for the window. She was so cute, just walking around in the grass, all wobbly. We were kind of surprised that she was unaccompanied. She was just going about her own business. We would never leave her to herself in our back yard. She'd be eating grass or rocks, or something!

She was walking along the sidewalk while the bigger children played on tricycles and big-wheelers. A few even had those plastic cars - you know, the red ones, with the yellow surround? They were some like those. One kid was pushing a car down the side walk. It was like slow motion.

Lucy was standing at a sidewalk intersection, not even looking at the bigger kid charging her way. My heart was begging for Lucy to move.

Lucy turned and bam. The bigger kid hit her with the car, pretty hard I might add. It knocked her down, flat to her belly, her head only about an inch from hitting the cement, as the kid continued to push the car over top of her.

My baby girl just laid there on the sidewalk with a plastic car over half of her body.

I was instantly...pissed.

I wanted to just go running to her rescue and to scold the older child for being so mean and careless. But, I was two floors up, watching helplessly. I waited...

She didn't cry. Whew...once the kid finally realized that Lucy was too big of a speed bump and backed up, she got up. She gave him a dirty look, which I enjoyed. I was so proud that she didn't cry and was very relieved that she wasn't hurt.

Now, where in the H-E-double-hockey-sticks were the daycare people?

Oh, out of all THREE of them out there, one was with the younger babies, in the stroller (rightfully so). The other two? Talking. Talking? Yep - just chattin' it up on the other side of the playground. There weren't even any children in their view! One had a cellphone in her hand too. She wasn't using it; but, I was still annoyed.

The entire thing happened and no one saw it - but, the second floor window parents (us!).

I knew then that an awkward, passive-aggressive conversation would soon be taking place between me and the director. I wondered how I would explain what happened without being a psycho, protective mommy. I mean, the director wasn't even there at the time.  However, I have to say something. If I achieve nothing else, I just want them to know that we could be watching, always.

If they want to ignore children (which they shouldn't be), at least they will know that they should always be watching Lucy. Her momma's a bit on the crazy side.

After discussion with, the also infuriated, Heath, we decided that perhaps it is better not to watch. Ignorance really just might be bliss...

Oh, who am I kidding? Now, I'm going to be at that window like a hawk!

Renovation: Complete!!

We are done! Whew! It took us about 2 months, which isn't too bad. A big thanks to my husband and his family for doing this for us (Ron, Bob, Sam, and Derek)! I am so excited to share the completed room with you!

If you are just now joining us, go check out the Basement to Playroom Transition. Then, check out all of the updates: Renovations.

And, the drum roll please...the photos you have all been waiting for...click on any pictures to make them larger, then hit back.

This is a three photo comparison of one of the walls: the before, the in-progress, and the after. This was the creation of a whole new wall.

Next, is the corner you see when you first walk into the room. Sorry - some of the angles aren't exact. As you can see, we painted that black beam white and finished the ceiling.

Here is the stairway down and my new holiday storage closet! Again, the angles are bad - sorry!

Here is another look toward the stairs.

It seriously doesn't even look like the same room! Here are some more photos of the room:

In case you were wondering what was in all of those storage containers...


Clothes for dress-up and doll clothes

ABC blocks



Small toys



Large toys



Large Legos



Stuffed animals

Here is a closer look at my new framed books, from my dad. Read more about it here.

And, here are more of our books. We have a ton of Golden Books!

And, finally, I will leave you with a picture of my new shelf. I had so many Lucille Ball items. I have collected them for a while now. I used to put them in our spare bedroom; but, that is now my Lucy's nursery. :) So, my collection had been in totes for a couple of years.  Now, they are all up and proudly displayed. I love it!

All the dolls are Lucille Ball dolls, except for the one on the left. That is Lucy's 2010 Holiday Barbie. And, my husband would like me to mention that he has one more bracket to put up on the left side; so, that is why it looks lop-sided.

I tried not to be so girly; but, the flowers and butterflies on the walls pushed me right over the female edge. Oh well. I will worry about making it more neutral when the time comes (if at all).

Lucy loves her new room! She just runs and plays all over. We all love it and are very excited that it is complete!

What do you think?

Renovations: Finished Shopping

Alright - I have put a restriction on myself. No more buying things for the new playroom.

Just joining us? Read about the Basement to Playroom Transition to catch up.  Also, you can catch up on all the related posts here: Renovations.

I have finished buying things for the basement; because, frankly, I need to be. Otherwise, we will be in the same crap-filled situation we were before. And, may I remind you of our borderline Hoarders situation? Yikes...but, on a good note, I finally found what I was looking for! Check it out! :)

All you Target lovers out there know the brand.

I am still not 100% in love with the open, backless shelves; nonetheless, I will make it work. How so? Of course, I'm going to fill this unit with cute totes! These were the ones I decided on...probably too many. But, I sure would hate to not have enough!

Our entryway light is very yellow....sorry! It made the colors look off.

These polka dots were just what I was looking for! I decided on some other, not-so-girly colored totes (the teal and lime ones). I'm really trying to make this room non-gender-specific. But, I will admit, the dark pink has gotten a little out of hand...

Who knew I had such a soft spot for dark pink, dark purple, lime green, and teal? Future Lucy big-girl-room colors? Hmmmm......

Heath is at home today finishing up on the painting. Then, this Friday they are finishing up the trim. To end the night, I get to fly in, scrub carpets, vacuum, and dust. Don't be jealous; your day will too come. haha. Right!

Perhaps on Saturday, I will get to start moving in furniture!

Alright, so here is what I left you with:

Yes - I know. It's a perfect diagram of the room. I should be an architect...but, enough talk about all of my talents. Let's move on.

I am thinking this layout for furniture:

Again, the furniture is perfectly to scale (ha!). These are my thoughts as of now; but, you how that goes. You get furniture in the room and quickly change your mind or realize that it won't work how you imagined. We'll see.

I sure hope I can give you all a final renovation update next Monday!!

Any fun ideas or suggestions for our playroom, before I make our final touches?

Weekend O' Fun

I have a few topics to discuss; however, on this Monday I lack the energy to critically think. It is a typical Monday for me....with a few less hours of sleep. Lucy took a 2 1/2 hour nap yesterday afternoon and well, she didn't want to go to sleep last night. I don't blame her; Heath was watching the Masters and it has the same effect on me. I tried to stay up, but no such luck. I fell asleep too, when Tiger tied for first...woke up during his last putt...oops.

I thought I would just share a few pictures from our weekend. On Friday night, I had kick-boxing, which is a little out of the ordinary. Our instructor couldn't hold class on Saturday morning; so, she decided to have a Friday evening class. I kind of liked the change! :) I was so energized afterward that I came home and weeded the flower beds!  Did I mention the weather was gorgeous?

On Saturday, we got up pretty early to go shopping with my dad. He is getting married soon and had to get some items for the wedding. We were more than happy to tag along! :)

We started the morning at the bakery. Lucy loved her glazed donut twist!

Yes - there is a tear in her eye. This was following a fit.

She even had some milk to go with her donut.

Don't mind my man hand...

After lunch and shopping, I talked the guys into stopping at Cold Stone Creamery. I know; I know - I shouldn't have done it. But, it was so good! Abuelo, as we call my dad (long story), even shared his oatmeal cookie batter ice cream with Lucy. She was pretty happy about it, which you can't tell because she is hardcore chewing on that spoon...



Lucy and her Abuelo

To end the day, we bought Lucy a helmet...

Playing with my iPod - no helmet necessary.

So, she could ride this:

Hers isn't Barbie; it's Disney, of course!
Thanks Aunt Nikki, Uncle Brian, and Alex!

Yesterday, we went on a picnic. It was windy; but, Lucy loved it! :)  Then, as I said before, we let the soft, whispering voices of the Masters commentators whisk us away to dream land - the perfect Sunday!

How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun?

Renovations: Trash

I've broken down. I am so proud of myself and my progress, that I just HAD to share. Remember in my first post about our Basement to Playroom Transition, I told you that we had a pile of junk in our den so large that you'd report me to Hoarders on A & E?

You better start looking up their number. I'm showing you all one photo.

Click on the photo to see the madness up close.

Believe it or not, I thought we had put this stuff in here in an organized manner! haha.  Needless to say, while the construction is going on in the basement, I got very tired of looking at this pile of junk. I walked past it everyday going to and from the garage. :{

So, as soon as they got my closet's done, I was jumping at the chance to start filling them up! I had already started to sort keepsakes and just had to put them in organized totes for easy, stack-able storage.

I am not even kidding - it took me about 15 hours to get this far:

I think I found every picture ever taken in that original pile! I have approximately 1,000 photos that I need to put in albums - ugh!  Now I question why we ever made doubles.....can anyone help me with that one?

I did pretty good at getting rid of things though. Here is what ended up on the curb Monday morning:

1) Yes - I took a picture of my trash, on the curb.

2) Yes - The sanitation workers took it all, surprisingly.

And, 3) I think we went over why one of the trash cans doesn't have a lid, yesterday.... :{

Who knew Lucy's diaper boxes would come in so handy?

Finally, since I have been involving you in my decor ideas and dilemmas, I thought I would share a couple of pictures of items I got this weekend for the room.



Sorry this picture is so blurry. I was trying to keep Lucy and the chihuahuas off of it for at least two seconds, for a picture on  my phone. This was the best I could do.

I was excited to find this mat, with all the colors I want to incorporate into the room!  Also, Lucy was with me in the store; so, I let her hold onto it, in the cart. She loved it! She hugged it and hit it, with tons of smiles. She even tried to chew on the corner a few times, which I had to halt.  I could tell she was excited too!



I am not sure what I'm going to do with these yet. I have a bookshelf and an entertainment center that will be going back into the room. So, perhaps I will put them on the shelves. Still not sure....they were on sale (I'm a sucker!) and they matched the colors well; therefore, they had to go home with me. :)

Are you now understanding how we got that big pile of crap in the first place? haha.

I will be sure to continue the updates. Heath and I have finally come to the consensus that we are about 2/3rds done with the room! Yay!

Wish us luck!

Any ideas on colorful, canvas totes or white toy shelves? Again, I could use the help finding these!

Oh, the Guilt Look

I get it almost nightly in our house.

The scene in the evenings is often that of me sitting on the couch, while Heath is on the floor with Lucy.

Don't get me wrong, I play with her. But, she isn't that interested in anything for too long and moves on, usually across the room. I simply can't keep up. The window, balloon, baby gate latch, curtain tie, remote, iPod Touch, shoe, or sock is far more interesting.  Believe me too, the list goes on!

Heath, however, will remain on the floor almost every evening, even if he is watching television or Lucy is across the room.  This doesn't stop him from giving me 'the look'. It is very much opposite of this face, which everyone else sees.

Here he is:

Don't let that cute face trick you though. He can give a pretty guilty glare at home...

Alright, alright, so I'm exaggerating a bit. But, he does say all the time, "Come down here; play with us."

Play with us?

With us?

Hmmmmmm........

Where is Lucy at?

Stacking the toys...

and the pride of stacking them, without 'the tower' falling.

I think Heath just wants me to play with him!