Tiny Rocking Horse

I found this at a garage sale this morning, it's old and beat up but there's something about it that I love. I thought "I might be able to fix that up" and it was worth the $2.00 that I spent. I brought it home and Paige was instantly in love, she used a whip to clean it and then decided she needed to fix it with her hammer. She "fixed" it and then rode it off and on all afternoon! How fun, this little horse has to be older then me and it looks like it's been loved by lots of kids!

Even cowgirls get tire sometimes!

Horse Show

There was a horse show at the Anoka Fairgrounds today, we noticed it as we drove by so we decided to stop. Paige was amazed by all the horses, it was a small show and we walked right up and got a front row seat. She pointed out all the different horses "a mommy one, a baby one" there was a pony that she thought was a "baby". At one point in the show they were riding bareback and a girl fell off her horse. I'd say she was about 14 years old, she fell right in the mud and her face and clothes were a mess. I was pretty impressed, she jumped right back on as if nothing had ever happened.  Paige couldn't stop talking about how the girl fell off her horse, she would reenact the scene over and over with her little arms up in the air and then falling down. After dinner tonight we were swinging and she decided to tell me the story again (several hours later), she'll probably dream about it tonight...that girl remembers everything!

 Pretending to fall off the horse.

Our little rock-star!

Turtle

When we pulled in the driveway yesterday we found a turtle sitting in front of our garage door. I was amazed how fast this little turtle could move, he was quick! Paige chased him around the front yard, she kept wanting us to hold him. The turtle wasn't happy when we picked him up, he hissed and tried to bite us. Paige loved chasing him around and had a hard time keeping up with the little guy. After a while we thought it would be best to stop torturing him and let him go. Luckily, it was dinner time so we distracted Paige with food or she would have never wanted to leave the turtle :). Here are a couple pictures of her little turtle chasing adventure.

22 Months Old

On this rainy day our sweet girl turned 22 months old! We started the day off with a trip to the donut shop, we wanted to go to the park but the rain changed our plans. She complained about her mouth hurting again so I think her 2 year molars are still giving her trouble, they haven't popped through, but they must be sore. I guess it's all part of growing up, in 2 months she will be a two year old...hard to imagine!

After nap we took a last minute trip to Como Zoo and she took her first ride on the carousel!

 She was pretty nervous, so we all sat in the sleigh together...she wouldn't go near the horses!

Because I never want to forget...

There are so many things I never want to forget, it's that time again...
~The way you like to tell me "that's a big one and that's a baby one". It's your way of telling me the size of something.
~You really love to golf, it's one thing that will hold your attention longer then 5 minutes.
~You LOVE being outside and you have a total fit when we come in. I often bribe you with a snack, probably not the best idea but I pick my battles.
~ You want to dip everything in ketchup, everything on your plate goes in the ketchup before you eat it.
~You have pretty much mastered your colors, it's amazing!
~I've been spelling your name for you and you try to spell it back, but you're confused with the letter "A" and you think I'm saying "8". It sounds something like this P-A-9-10-E, it's really cute.
~You still sing all the time, when we're in the car  you ask for the "moo-moo" song (AKA: Old McDonald). Auntie Tracy gave us a CD with a bunch of kids songs and you've picked up a bunch of new tunes!
~You still love mac n' cheese and if given the choice you'd eat it for breakfast lunch and dinner. When I tell you it's lunch time your response is - it's noodle time.
~You still like to read, it makes me happy that you'll sit with me and read several books. You really like this little polar bear book and we recently taped a polar bear show on National Geographic that you LOVE. You're so interested in them and you try to act like them when you watch it...you crack me up.
~You're very particular, and you're a minimalist like your daddy. You don't like to have anything in your shopping cart and rarely let your babies ride in the stroller, you push them around empty. You have a little table & chair set and you don't like anything on the table, I tried to have a tea party with you and you made me put the tea set and cups on the floor. Your sand/water table can only have one little red cup, although sometimes you let me use my yellow cup to play too. You have opinions and I love that about you!
~You kiss me often throughout the day, you'll walk up out of the blue and say "mommy, hold you". When I pick you up you kiss me and hug my neck tight, it's the best gift ever.
~You like to have polish on your toenails, and you love to wear headbands.
~You are still counting and have added 11, 12, 13 & 14 to your list.
~You sing the alphabet song, it's not always right but you've got the beat :).
~ You went poo-poo on the potty before your bath the other night. I was shocked and you were thrilled!

We love you and you make daddy and I so happy. Your smile lights up my heart and your giggle makes my day, I love that you always want me to dance with you! I also love that you still want me to hold you like a baby (which you often tell me to do), you snuggle in and suck your thumb. You're a great kid!

This is what I mean about being "particular", you wanted to wear your bib while playing with play-doh!

More Golf

Here's a little video of Paige's golf stills, I must say she has a pretty good shot! Her new thing is to try and hit the ball into the driveway in hopes that it will roll in to the street. It's fun for her but exhausting for mommy, lots of running down the driveway! 

Garage Sale

Today I'm thankful for garage sales! It was an early morning and with daddy being gone all week we needed something new to play with. Luckily, auntie Shelly gave us the heads up about a good garage sale nearby! We bought a little sand/water table and Paige played in it for almost an hour this morning! It was really windy out so we played in the garage...she loved it!  

Watering flowers

Paige's favorite thing to do now is "watering flowers" as she says. The neighbor brought us some extra flowers so Paige and I planted them yesterday. She's putting her new watering can to good use, she even waters the trees. It's a serious job, she is very focused and I'm pretty sure all of our flowers are going to drown. Oh well, she likes it and it keeps her busy. Let Paige know if your flowers need watering!

Look who put her own pants on!

I did it all by myself (well, mommy helped me pull it over my rump)!! I'm so proud!

Happy Mother's Day

It was a very Happy Mother's Day for me, what a gift! I always wanted to be a mom, but never knew it would be this good. Paige is the sweetest little girl, she has a huge heart and a beautiful smile. She fills my life with joy, excitement, love and pride. I had a great day with family, but the best part was just watching Paige play in the back yard. She's grown so much in the last few months and has truly turned into a toddler! She still has time to take a break from sliding or playing with toys to come over and give her mommy a squeeze around the neck.  I love her so much and I love being her mommy!

Swing-Set

A huge thanks to Uncle Mike for making it possible for Paige to have a swing-set of her own! This is a hand-me-down from Alice and Andy (and Julie too). Uncle Mike took it apart and hauled it to our house so that Paige can use it. She loves it and is really good at going up the ladder and down the "big slide". She found a caterpillar in the grass and pushed it on the swing for a while today. I see lots of sliding and swinging in our future!

 She's so proud of herself!

Watching...

I've noticed so many things in the last couple days, I feel like I'm watching a true toddler instead of a baby. It makes me happy to see her growing and developing all her new skills. We went to the park this afternoon and watching her climb, slide and run around was great. I found a "toddler" park, it's not as huge as the big parks and there are not as many options to fall from 5 foot ledges. I felt free to let her run and crawl around the tunnels, knowing she wouldn't take a major tumble.
On the other hand I've also been watching my sweet little girl "test" me. She suddenly has selective hearing, I knew this would happen sooner or later. She pushed me several times today and I finally had to give a time-out this evening. It was heartbreaking, she was crying and yelling "sorry mama". My heart told me to go in and scoop her up out of her crib and hug/kiss her, but my mind kept saying to stick to my guns. It worked, she didn't test me at all the rest of the night.
She's growing up so quick and pointing out everything, I get the play-by-play every time we're in the car. She tells me everything she sees "look, horses...look, yellow school bus...look, lady walking...look, motorcycle...look, train" I could go on and on. On our way to ECFE this morning she noticed that a dog was sticking it's head out the window of the car next to us. This was unreal to her, she kept saying over and over "dog got head out window" and laughing hysterically. The bad part was when the car turned into the gas station and she couldn't see the dog anymore...oh boy was she mad and cried the rest of the car ride!
She's my little buddy and I feel blessed to spend my days with her. Some days are hard, some days are easy but every day is totally worth while. I love you sweetie!

Happy 2nd Birthday Kenley!

We had so much fun celebrating Kenley's birthday (and Eric's too)! She is the sweetest little girl and her smile is brighter than the sun! She amazes me and has taught us so much in her two short years. Today was her day and it was fun to celebrate her life, from the moment she came upstairs she was glowing! She knew the party was for her! Her smile is contagious and it was beyond adorable to see her excited about all the attention! We love you Kenley Joy, and I really love that you didn't want to get your hands dirty so you licked your cupcake instead of eating it!

 We were also able to watch Eliot's soccer game! What a cute group of kids!

Happy 6th Birthday Andy!

I honestly can't believe that Andy is already 6 years old (or will be in a couple short days). It seems like just yesterday we were sitting in the waiting room waiting for the arrival of my little nephew! He was adorable and cuddly, one of the sweetest babies around...he quickly turned into one of the most athletic little boys I know. He has a huge heart and is an amazingly patient big cousin to Paige. She's lucky to have such a good buddy and cousin. We love you Andy and we hope you dream about "Bey Blades" for days...Happy Birthday!