Playdates

I have been forgetting my camera a lot lately, which is really starting to distress me. Sometimes I am lucky enough to have friends who have their cameras and will send me their pictures. That's how I got the above pictures. But on Friday we met Elle (the little girl of Regan's prek3 teacher) for our last playdate before she is permanently in BR and I forgot my camera. I was so disappointed! Oh well! I guess we will have to make a roadtrip to BR and hopefully I will remember my camera.

We had a busy week last week. Regan had dance camp M - TH from 9am -10am. The 9am almost killed me. I know, I know... if I had to work I would have to be there a lot earlier than that. But I don't have to work, and I am not a morning person and having to be somewhere at 9 am when you have two little people to get ready who both have to have their hair fixed plus getting yourself ready. It's no easy feat. Especially if you're not a morning person. It's going to be an adjustmentAnyway, I digress.... On Tuesday, Regan had her regular gymnastics and she was very excited to have two activities to go to. Her mom, not so excited.... but that's beside the point. On Wednesday we met our playgroup friends after dance camp at Kart Ranch. I forgot to bring a change of clothes and she was none to happy with me, because it was hard for her to climb in tights. We then went to Wendy's for lunch (which is where the above pictures are from) and that is why she has a leotard and tights on in the picture. On Thursday we met Matt for lunch and on Friday we went to the library in the morning and then to our playdate with Elle in the afternoon.

We have just sort of discovered the library this summer. I am embarrassed to say that we never really used it before. I guess I never realized how easy things are now with it being online. And Regan really likes to go (mostly because you can check out videos, too). We only made it to storytime a couple of times, but I hope we will continue to go during the school year and make storytime more often next summer.

Dance Camp

Regan has dance camp this week. What was the only thing she wanted to know? "Is there going to be a stage at dance camp?"

Mom's Shopping Trip

First let me say that I don't like how I look in the first picture. I am not very photogenic and it was the end of the day. But I wanted to show a group picture, so what are ya gonna do? Also, this post has very little to do with my children other than to thank Matt and all of the dad's for giving us a kid free shopping day. We had a blast and we are better mom's for it. And before anyone makes fun of me for the mural pictures, let me just say that we had all had at least one margarita and what can I say..... we are mom's.... we don't get out much.

Addison's First Haircut

I put off cutting Addison's hair as long as I could, but it was really starting to look like a mullet. She wanted no part of getting her hair cut. I guess she liked the mullet.

Regan's New Shoes

I am not much for character clothing, but Regan needed a new pair of crocs and I just thought these were to cute. Regan loves them, of course.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Addison now sings twinkle twinkle little star. Regan is the first one who noticed it. Addison was making singing noises one day and Regan said she's singing twinkle twinkle. Now it has gotten to the point to where you can even understand a little bit of it. Looks like Regan will not be the only performer in the family.

The Next American Idol

Regan watched The Little Mermaid all the way to Florida and back.

A Few Words From Addison

I took a video of Addison saying some of her words. She is now getting to where she will repeat whatever Regan says. One of her favorite words to say is snack, because she loves her fruit snacks. But I didn't want to tell her to say it, because then she would have been running to the kitchen to get one.

Weekend

It was a busy weekend, as usual. Aunt Carla and Dick came on Friday night to get our old bedroom furniture. We got new furniture, so we needed to get rid of it. They needed furniture for their guest room, so it worked out perfectly. They left on Saturday and we went to New Orleans for a baby shower and birthday party on Sunday. Georgina and I went to the baby shower while the guy's took the kids to the birthday party and then we met them at the birthday party. It was fun, but I was exhausted. I went to bed on Saturday night at 7:30pm. I don't know when I have ever done that. I am usually a night owl. I was ready for bed as soon as we got home last night, too. Poor Addison, who does not sleep on the go, accused us of using and abusing her.

In other big news... Addison said Regan for the first time yesterday. It sounds more like Rega, but I know what she is saying.

Big Girl

Addison is now sitting in a booster chair. If you try to put her in her high chair, she fusses and won't sit down. Unlike with her sister, her chair is strapped to the chair and she is strapped in the chair. She cannot be trusted to not try and get down herself.

Birthday Party

We went to a birthday party today for our friend's little boy at the Children's Museum. I didn't put them in their fourth dresses yesterday, because they were in the backyard the whole day. So, they wore them today. Addison's is a hand me down from Regan. We only thought that Regan had a big head. It has two buttons in the back and we almost couldn't get it over Addison's head.

4th of July

We had a few people over for the fourth. The kids played on the slide and Matt cooked hamburger's on the grill. One of our friend's brought over some sparkler's and Regan got burned on one. She was sufficiently tramatized by it (made worse by her being tired from playing all day) and we will probably here about this incident from years to come.

In other big news... Regan can buckle her own sandals. It's very exciting!

Regan Likes Steak!!

As I am sure that most of you know, Regan is one of the pickiest eaters on the planet! Pretty much if it has flavor, she has no interest in it. So, lately I have been making her try new things. I tell her she can't have McDonald's (her favorite) anymore if she doesn't at least try new things. I have questioned my motives when mostly what I have gotten is big dramatic tears proclaiming her dislike of any food that I have made her try thus far. I make her try a bite and you would think I was making her eat a whole bowl. Well, finally my persistance (or stubborness. Whichever as Regan would say) has paid off. Tonight Matt grilled some steaks and I talked her into trying a bite and she liked it. She was as excited that she liked it as I was. She even ate a little after her initial bite (this after having pasta wheels and a hotdog). And now she is excited about trying new things. She told me that she wants to eat everything that Addison eat's. I guess she has been feeling a little bit of reverse peer pressure since Addison eat's almost everything and will try anything.

The quote of the night: I sure do love this steak.

Animal's

Regan has a collection of small animals that she has gotten from various places. Occasionally I will find them in makeshift beds or around a food bowl (and by food bowl I mean a plastic plate from Regan's kitchen with a plastic banana on it). Apparently, today they were really interested in watching Addison sleep.

Bracelet

I bought some stuff for Regan to make bracelet's before we left for vacation. She spotted the stuff while we were looking for other crafts to bring. She made them in VBS and wanted to make some more. I wouldn't let her bring it on vacation (Aunt Carla and Meredith you can thank me later), because I saw in advance the disaster that could become. But, of course, she wanted to make one as soon as she got home (she has the memory of an elephant). Isn't it beautiful?

Brunch

On our way home from Destin we stopped and had brunch at Big City where Dick plays on Sunday's. Where Regan ate pancakes and rice and Addison ate everything I ate. She insists on sitting on my lap when we go to restaurants and she also insists on eating whatever I am eating. I have learned to deal with it, but it's still a little annoying when she grabs a tomato out of my salad and eats what she wants off of it and then throws it back into my salad when she is done (she doesn't like skin very much). You also have to be prepared for her to let anything she doesn't like fall out of her mouth. Anyway, It is a delicious buffet. If you are ever in Ft. Walton for Sunday Brunch, I highly recommend it. We also stopped and had coffee with my grandparents in Pensacola. Luckily we were only driving to New Orleans and then home the next day.

Fun at the Pool

Vacation

We just got back from our annual trip to the beach. The girls had fun, even though neither one really liked the beach. Addison hates sand and Regan was more interested in practicing swimming and jumping into the pool. She did like finding sea shell's, but had no interest in building sand castles this year. Aunt Carla and Meredith came out and babysat our kids and our friend's kids, while we went out to a wonderful dinner. Thanks guys!! It was nice to get a little break from the kids. We let our kids get way off schedule as far as sleeping, so now it is back to reality. I'm sure it will take at least a week to recover; but ,as always, it is well worth it for a little time away.

Water Slide

Regan wants to have her birthday party at home this year. She wanted a bounce house (I think because her friends have them), but since her birthday is in August it is pretty much out of the question. I looked into renting an inflatable water slide and decided it would be much more economical to just buy one. We have already gotten our money's worth. Some friends came over and played on it today. The kids had a blast.

Louisiana Children's Museum

We went to New Orleans for the weekend. On Friday we got much needed haircuts and Matt and Regan went to Phil's softball game. On Saturday we took the kids to the Children's Museum. It was Matt and Regan's second time and Addison and I's first time. I have to say, I can't believe we have never taken them before. The kids had so much fun. We were there for two hours and they weren't ready to leave. If I had had lunch for them we probably could have stayed another hour. Matt and I went out for some kid free shopping and dinner that night. Thanks Sue for babysitting!

Oh! And the big news is that Addison now will keep bows in her hair. She even wants them there. She definitely says bow and it sounds like she says "I want a bow." She still prefers to wear Regan's (I guess in true southern fashion, she believes the bigger the better); but will now wear her's, too.

Daddy

I forgot to mention the most important thing in my last two posts. After saying it to her every day for the last few months, Addison finally said Daddy. I think she is trying to tell me that she doesn't need no stinkin therapy.

Early Steps

The Early Steps intake person came today. She did a pre-evaluation. She said that normally Addison wouldn't qualify, but since she has a medical condition that is related to speech problems she automatically does. Tomorrow I am going to call her PT to get her to help me to pick and evaluater. They will then come out and do a full evaluation and tell me exactly what level she is on. And after that they will set up the therapy.

Addison's 18 month Well Visit Appointment

All went well. She absolutely hated being examine, which is normal. She also didn't much appreciate the shots, which is to be expected. When they were asking me about her talking Regan was there to remind me of things that she says that I wasn't thinking of. All in all it was a normal trip to the doctor.

Busy Week

Regan has had VBS every morning this week at the church where she went to Mother's Day Out, and we have done something every afternoon. She had a playdate on Monday with her Prek-3 teacher's little girl. They took dancing together and her mom would bring her to school for the fun stuff, so Regan became pretty good friends with her. She was going to be in prek-3 next year, but they are moving. So, that was some sad news. On Tuesday she did gymnastics in the afternoon instead of the morning, because of VBS. She had swim lessons Wednesday afternoon. On Thursday we met our playgroup friends at Chuck E Cheese (which is where the pictures of Addison are from). Today was her last day of VBS and we might go to the pool. It will be nice to have a low key week next week.

I think Regan had fun at VBS. We went to her program today. We couldn't see her very well, because she was behind some taller kids. The teacher told us that she was disappointed, because for practice Regan was in the very front and new all of the moves. Our girl loves the stage.

p.s. I don't think they told Regan to pose like that. They gave us a cd of pictures and none of the other kids are posing like that.

Weekend

Matt took the girls to New Orleans this weekend, so that I could get some stuff done around the house that I can't seem to get done when they are around. He and his mom took the girls and Matt's sister's kids to the Aquarium. By all accounts they had a good time. When they got home today I asked Regan if she missed me and she told me no. This is after telling me before they left that Addison was going to cry about me not being at Granny's. When I said that I didn't think she would she said in a very melodramatic voice... but she LIKES you. I thought it was because she was sad that I wasn't going, but apparently I was wrong. Apparently she told Matt while they were there that she wanted us to move next door to Granny. I now know where I rate. : )

Working the System

Some of my best childhood memories were time spent with my cousin's. We spent a lot of time together in the summer, and it was great for me (being an only child) because it meant constant playmates. A symbol of that happiness is flav or ice popcycles. My Aunt Bonnie kept her freezer stocked with them and we would eat 10 a day. I hadn't seen them since then (except occasionally in the store) until two summers ago when one of my neighbors started giving them out to the kids one day when we were all playing. You can get a box of 250 at Sam's. Since then we all have them in our deep freezer's in the garage. I gave one to my cousin Betsy when she came for Addison's baptism, for old times sake.

Yesterday we went outside and it was miserably hot. I asked Regan if she wanted to draw with chalk and she said that she wanted to ride her bicycle. I said I thought it was to hot, but she said we could try. I thought it was a little odd, because usually I have to practically force her to ride her bike. It wasn't until we got to the end of the street and she wanted to turn around that I figured out what she was up to, and I was right. The past few times she has ridden her bike we have come home and had popcycles. Sure enough as soon as we were in the garage she asked for a popcycle. She could have had one without riding her bike, but I guess she figured she had to earn it. It is very funny to me how kids think they are smarter than their parents. I didn't say anything, and I got them their popcycles.

Stomach Virus

All of us (except Matt) came down with a stomach bug this week. It hit Regan and I the hardest. While Matt and I were out on our date night she threw up and had a low grade fever. The next day I started to feel bad and threw up a lot Thursday night. Matt's mom was nice enough to come help me on Friday. Regan threw up Friday morning and we both layed in bed most of the day.

The minute Regan is feeling a little sad or a little bad here comes Nurse Addison to the rescue. Addison is very affectionate and Regan wants affection on her own terms. When Matt is laying down with her for her "1 minute" at night if he tries to snuggle with her she will tell him "No more doll games" and "I am not your doll." It is almost comical when Addison tries to comfort Regan. She starts by patting (or hitting, however you want to look at it) her. Then when I tell her soft soft she will hug her and kiss her and lay on top of her. The whole time Regan is trying to push her off and saying "Addison, go give some love to mommy." Sometimes Addison will come love on me, but usually she only has love for Regan. When Regan is feeling well and Addison wants a hug (which is all of the time) Regan will either hug her at arms length or squeeze the life out of her. I think to try and deter her from ever wanting one again, but it doesn't work.

Physical Therapy and Speech Update

I took Addison to a PT appointment for evaluation. They just want to keep an eye on her to make sure that she continues in the right direction. They were very happy with her walking. She also said it looks like her arches are going up on there own. She is still rolling her feet in a little, but they think it will correct itself. They told me to make a conscious effort to work on going up and down stairs with her. They are going to see her again in August.

I also mentioned my speech concerns to her, because she owns the center and they have speech therapists on staff. She has the evaluation sheet used by early steps and evaluated her on speech, too. She said that she is not going to qualify for early steps speech therapy, because you have to be below average. Addison scored above average on cognitive and average on speech. A baby is supposed to have six words by the age of one and Addison has five. She said that we could put her in speech through insurance. She also said that I have a valid concern since she was a cleft pallet baby. She said that we could put her in speech through our insurance and they could evaluate her once a month or so to make sure that she is staying on track and to give us pointers to help her move along. And also to have someone to have to call if something comes up that I am concerned about.

Addison's Doctor Visit

Well, Addison does have a slight ear infection. Her left ear is red, but no fluid. He said that he is not convinced that it was caused by going under water, because she would have to have been under for a prolonged period of time. So, I guess I should stop secretly cursing that kid. She is on ear drops for a week. It should be fun trying to get her to lay still while we put them in.

I also mentioned to him about how Addison is not making any sounds or saying any words where her tongue has to hit her pallet. And I asked about speech therapy. He said that normally he would wait until 2, but since she has the cleft pallet history he is willing to start her sooner. He is going to start her in early steps, which is a louisiana program for early intervention. I'm not that excited about it, because I haven't heard good things about it. But I figure we are starting early and if it doesn't work out then we will go through insurance.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a very nice weekend and I didn't take pictures of any of it. I took the girls to the zoo on Friday with our friend's from playgroup. Matt had a half day, so he met us for lunch. I then took the girls to a birthday party on Saturday by myself. We were having people over for a barbeque on Monday and Matt wanted to clean the patio. I immediately regretted agreeing to take them by myself. They had ponies, and they had them on the side of the house in the sun. Well, I didn't want Addison to be in the sun the whole time. And I forgot sunscreen. So, I ended up standing in the driveway trying to watch both of them. It was not fun. On Sunday we went to church and then took the girls to the pool in the afternoon. Some brat kid shot us with his water gun and Matt and I were so shocked that we weren't paying attention as Addison walked off the little bench and was submerged under water. As a result, I think Addison has an ear infection now. She has been cranky all day and woke up from her nap with a fever. I guess I will be making a trip to the pediatrician tomorrow. Thanks kid. Today we had a couple of friends over and we grilled while the kids played. Well, Addison slept for most of it. But by the looks of the playroom and Regan's room, the other kids had fun.

More Pictures from the Party

Graduation Party

My cousin graduated with his MBA this weekend, and his graduation party was on Sunday. We had a really nice time. We got to see family that we don't see very often, and the kids got to swim which always makes them happy. At one point we thought Addison was going to go swimming with her clothes on. I forgot to put the memory card in my camera, so these are the only pictures that I got.

School Pictures

Regan's teacher sent home a cd of pictures that they had taken of the kids throughout the year. I pulled the ones that Regan was in and put them in a Kodak Album.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?UV=217741974685_495842427306&mode=fromsite&collid=47228333206.976843427306.1210816057536&conn_speed=1