So Proud of my Kiddo!

If only I could get Lillian to be a great clean up helper in her BEDROOM. She is great helping me unload the dishwasher, take out trash, and pick up toys from the living room, but when it comes to cleaning up her own room she falls short. One day...sigh.

But I am still super proud of my girl for helping keep her classroom clean!

Little Moments with Big Meanings!

Just about every night around 6pm my family comes together at a round table and eats a meal that has been prepared. This is a time where we put down the phones, turn off the tv, and stop all homework. Some families call this dinner and others call it supper. I grew up calling it dinner I believe.

My child has not really added either word to her vocabulary and simply crawls up into her chair at the table with eyes of excitment ready to eat(most of the time) when I ask her to come sit down.

While sitting down eating we talk about various kid friendly topics. I typically start with how my day went and ask her to tell me how hers went. She usually skips telling me how her day went and starts talking about something else.

A few days ago our conversation was about Jesus. Lillian talked about how he had ouchies in his hands and feet and at night when we say our prayers we need to tell him sorry for the things we do wrong. This conversation truly amazed me and has layed on my heart since.

Her table etiquette is not always that great, but it has become a battle that is not worth fighting because she is eating and eating healthy! But conversation at the table is Great. Conversations are no longer one sided with me doing all the talking. She asks questions and answers questions.

Our conversation last night was somewhat odd, but well worth it at the end. She asked me if I was happy. I responded with "When you listen and do what I ask, I am very happy". I asked her the same question. She responded with a simple yes and a smile then proceded to eat her mac and cheese. So I asked her why she was happy.

"betause I get to talk!"

I thought about her response while cleaning up the kitchen and finishing the shelves in the laundry room. It isnt that my child isnt allowed to talk throughout the day rather she isnt given the opportunity to have deep conversations, becuase I am busy with chores or homework. My childs favorite part of the day is dinner time when she has my undivided attention.

It would be unrealistic to say that I will just stop doing chores and stop doing homework to devote more undivided time with her.

From this day forward I vow to make a meal for our Conversation Hour every night!

Fall is nearing and Apples are falling!!!

While on a mini vaca at my sisters "beach house" we stopped at a local apple farm and picked up two BIG boxes of apples for super cheap. My sister is by far the best "molly homemaker" I know. She makes a lot of stuff from scratch and freezes it to have on hand . I have a lot to learn and may I say big shoes to fill!!

Sunday evening she set out to teach me how to make homemade applesauce. Her process is SO MUCH EASIER than my moms canning process. Helping my parents year after year pick, clean, and can the produce from the garden gave me a "No Way" mind set.

In the short time that we had set aside for applesauce making fun, I made about 2 quarts. Which was definantly not as much as I thought I would have made with as many hours as I spent cutting, boiling, and pulsating apples in the food processor. But it felt great knowing that making 2 quarts of applesauce fresh from the orchard is way cheaper than buying the same amount from the grocery store!

Tonight I made an apple pie and I hope to make an apple crisp soon!!! need to get some fresh oats and brown sugar first.

A Dream...Or Reality?

It has been a typical day in the house for me with ONE exception: Lillian stayed home with me.

She usually goes to school on Thursdays because I go to the gym in the morning and again in the afternoon for aerobic classes.

She has been under the weather the last couple of days. Yesterday she stayed home as well and was acting extra "sassy". Which meant I was extra stressed. Today she was the sweetest little girl ever. We got up and went to the gym, went to get salads with a friend for lunch, did a quick walmart and cupcake run(addicted to the cupcakery!!), then came home so Lillian could have a nap before the second trip to the gym. Busy typical thursday for me and Lillian enjoyed tagging along.

Naptime in the Sites household has always been somewhat of a hassle. Today Lillian went to sleep very easily which meant I got to relax for a few hours and talk to Joe for a few minutes on the phone. She slept peacefully for 2.5 hrs, which was even more awesome!

So on the way to the gym this afternoon Lillian had a HUGE story to tell me!!!

"mommy, my eyes hurt" ( I look back and notice they are a little red and watery and ask why) "because of the bird" (what bird?) "the big yellow one, I like birds. he was mean though. he poked me in my eyes" (what? when did he do that?) "in my car, he came in the window" (at this point I was slightly confused but then remembered she watched Seaseme Street this morning, so I asked if it was the yellow bird off the tv) "no mom, it was smaller than that Big bird and it had red feathers and it sang like this...(she hummed a tune) I wanted to sing with him but then it hurted me. That wasnt nice mommy"

I explained to Lillian that I wouldn't let Lillian a bird did not fly into the car and asked her if that happened when she was sleeping. She quickly replied with...

"No, mom it really hurted me"

at which point she pulled her blanket over her head until we got to the gym.

Depolyment 2010

As I am sure all of my readers know, Joe deployed in early December 2009. He has officially been gone for 8 months(4 more left), minus the 2 weeks he was home for his rest and relaxation period. We did very little rest and relaxation though...lol. We went to Disney World for a week, then stayed with my parents for a couple days. When we got home we put together a swing set and fixed a few things around the house.

He returned to Iraq to find that half of his company were transfered to other Camps. This meant that Joe will not have as much down time, because him and his coworkers would be covering a wider area. We are both curious to see how this will turn out.

I am about to hit the books again in a couple of weeks, so I am sure the remaining 4 months will go rather quickly. I am excited to say that this is my last semester of classes before I graduated with my Bachelors Degree!!!! In the spring I will be completing an internship field study.

I am super excited that MOPS is about to start back up for the school year and am eager to meet new christian moms, but saddened that I will not be attending Spring Creek MOPS. Their meetings are on Thursdays again this year but because of my classes I wont be able to go. I missed all of last semester as well because of classes. A friend of mine goes to another group downtown that meets on Fridays. Cannot wait to see what the new MOPS year will bring!

The Hump has passed so let us begin the countdown!

A Ball of a Summer!

Little Miss Curious on her way to her 1st practice!

She has a great pitching arm!

her favorite part...Wearing that cool hat and hitting the ball "really far"!

Game Time

The Indians! Crazy group of kiddos!

Just hit the ball! Ran towards 2nd base instead of 1st!! haha

Waiting for a grounder...with no glove!! She did NOT like the glove at all!

Huddle Time

Lillian walked away yelling

"Mommy, I did It!"

Awards Dinner
Lillian loves her Trophy!



Lessons Learned this Summer:

1. Just because the city says Yes to 3 year olds does not mean that 3 year olds have the capacity to understand the concept of the game. With that said, it was so funny to watch these kids play!!!

2. Tee Ball should be played on a grass field and not a dirt field. These kids spent more time playing in the dirt than actually paying attention.

3. Just because my child is potty trained and knows where the bathrooms are, doesnt mean that she will take the extra time to walk to the bathrooms to go!

She decided to pull her pants down and pee in the field, which was slightly embarrassing....

Last name for Lillian along with other randomness!

I am more thankful everyday to continue sending Lillian to the Youth Academy through the summer. She is only going part time of course, since I am not in school.

Lillian is showing great congnitive skills with colors, letters, numbers, and puzzles. She is also beginning to remember how her days go and who she plays with and what she does with them.

Her best friend just so happens to be a boy...lol. His name is Evan. Ms. Jen says that Lillian plays with Evan for most of the day...unless she is being tormented by a red headed boy named Ryan, then she just sits in the corner ignoring everyone. Lol...I guess I can be thankful that she is not the one doing the bullying. We occasionally get to see her friend at random places around town and begs to walk around with him and his older brother "because I like them mommy!" she says. I wish we got to see Evan's mommy more often, because she is so sweet and I would feel more comfortable setting up a weekend outing for the kids with her! Lillian asks every now and again to go see him. I keep telling myself that this is innocent age appropriate fun and am thankful she has a really good friend even if it is a boy!

Lillian now has a last name...lol When people ask her what her name is she quickly without hesitation responds, "Lillian Sites" The first time I heard her say it, I laughed and made her repeat it! I now walk around asking her randomly to tell me what her name is! I am curious to see how quickly she will respond with " I just said it".

She is also writing letters. She will be coloring one minute and when you go check on her she will have a bunch of odd looking writing all over the paper. When you ask her what it is she quickly points to something and says " this is a small b for ball...or this is L for my name". After looking at her odd looking writing as she says what she wrote, I remind myself that I am 23 years older than she is and her letters look AWESOME!!!!