Seasons

I updated my question on my poll. I had a measly 5 people respond to the last one about the Olympics, 2 of the votes coming from Ryan and my dad. So to the other 3 people that read my blog, thank you for your vote. (Who knows, Ryan could have voted all the other times too). Anyway, I changed my question to see what season is the most popular. I personally LOVE fall! Its hard not to think of the different seasons when you constantly see decorations, clothes, outdoor furniture changing to accommodate the upcoming seasons. I mean, when the pools open in May, you start to see Christmas stuff at Hobby Lobby, or when its freezing outside you start to see pool toys and outdoor furniture being displayed everywhere you look. I understand why they put things out so early, but its hard to wrap your mind around Christmas trees and hot cocoa when your on your way to the pool. I was at Hobby Lobby today and was smelling the pumpkin candles and looking at all the "harvest" decorations and can't wait till the fall. It seems to me, that stores try to market the holidays too early, they try to "rush" to the next season by putting stuff out several months in advance. To me, life goes by so quickly and if you're constantly reminded of whats coming in a few months, you long for that time and not the here and now. I don't know, maybe I'm not making much sense. Although I love fall, the changing leaves, to cool, crisp weather, the colors of that season, I still am enjoying August (what's left of it) and will do the "fall thing" when the time comes.

First Day of School

Her "book bag" and lunch bag.



Too antsy to sit still to get any good pictures


"I'm ready for school, mom!"

Well, we made it! Adriana did great! The teachers told me that she didn't cry all day. She was a little hesitant at first, but she started playing with dollies after about 2-3 minutes of being there, so I was able to slip out of the room. The teacher told me that they went outside twice to play, which I'm sure Adriana loved, since she loves the outdoors so much. I know she had a great time and was tuckered out when we got home. She didn't move at all when I laid her in her bed for a nap.


I enjoyed a little free time myself. I actually thought that I would be bored out of my mind, but I almost ran out of time running errands. I did sign up at the gym and had every intention on going and working out after I ran a few places, but didn't have any time to do anything. I will be starting working out on Wednesday (I want to take a Water Yoga class on Wed, but am afraid, by what I saw today, that I will be the only one there that isn't drinking Ensure and on some geriatric exercise regiment. I guess I'll be the young "whipper snapper" in class). I had to go to Best Buy and get a new phone, which took an hour and a half, hence the reason I waited till I didn't have my child with me running amok in the store. I am tired of the idiots at bust buy. I could rant and rave about them, but I'll spare us both time. Anyway, that ended up taking a lot of my time. I did end up at the mall, but didn't spend too much money.
All in all, I think this is such a great program she is in and can't wait to see progress with it.

School Days

Well tomorrow is Adriana's first day of school. That's right, I'm shipping her off to behavioral school. Just kidding. We enrolled her in a school through our church, that has great reviews throughout our community. Its called RidgeKids and I'm so excited about it. While she is there she will do: sign language, music, art, gym class and most important snacks! I think that it will be good for her to also socialize with other kids her age. She is like a sponge and loves to learn new things and is always curious about the world around her. She also loves being around other kids her age and playing with them. She will be going 2 half days a week. Tomorrow is her first day and I'm just running around here making sure everything is in her book bag and that everything has her name on it. We went to an open house last week and she loved being there and playing. Often times, I think she gets so bored at home, she needs something challenging to help her develop. I will be staying in town most of the time while she is in school. I will probably end up at the mall and spending money, but hopefully not. I plan on joining a gym and losing these 30 lbs that has stuck with me from my pregnancy. I'll post tomorrow and let you know how our little scholar did.

Time for a Change

Alright, I know you have noticed that I have changed things up a bit, I just thought it was time for a change. I may be adding/deleting/ moving things more as I keep working on this page. I added some things like a poll and hopefully new pictures and things. I hope you enjoy the "new" blog.

Alright, I'm falling behind. Yesterday (Monday) was my mom's (29th and holding) birthday. It was a very busy day for us, so I am a day late and a dollar short (as usual). Happy Belated birthday mom, I hope you had a good one!

Well, my baby is officially no longer a baby (at least in my eyes). Today my Adriana turned 18 months old. In my mind, for some reason, I think of 18 month olds no longer as baby's but as busy little toddlers. I know that she has been a toddler now for quite sometime, but now its official. Yesterday we had her doctors appt, and she weighs 24lbs. She had to get 2 more shots, which she hated, but did really well getting them. The doctor said that she is doing good with her development. I can't believe how fast time goes and how fast she is growing up. She no longer lets me cuddle with her and barely stops long enough for me to grab her and give her a hug. We are just taking everyday one day at a time, as we are now approaching the terrible twos and seeing how she pushes her limits from day to day. Although she is an ornery toddler, we love her more and more everyday!

Caught Red Handed

Alright, Here Adriana is caught in the act. She was in my room, very quiet, so I figured she was into something, and sure enough, she was as still as a statue hiding behind my door. I still don't know what she was hiding for, maybe cause she was in my room and knew she wasn't suppose to be, either way, I finally got it on tape.

My little thief

Adriana has been cracking me up the last few weeks. Her new thing is to steal things that she knows she's not suppose to have (i.e. my cell phone, camera, remotes, books, jewelry, etc.) . She knows she's not suppose to be getting into these things, so what she does is takes the item and goes and hides behind a door or under the table. Her biggest thing is to take jewelry out of my stand up jewelry box and grab a handful of bracelets and goes and hides in my dark closet behind the door. She can be as still as a hunter in the middle of deer season (bad analogy, I know, sorry) and won't move anything but her eyes. Sometimes it takes us a while to find her, because she's so good at hiding. Use to, if she was quiet she was probably in her room "reading" but now if she's quiet, we know she's up to no good. She will take the most random things and will hide. When my parents watched her while we were in STL, they said she took a whisk from the kitchen and ran and hid behind the door in their bedroom. Now, there are things that she takes that she shouldn't, but its so hard to be mad at her when she gives you the most sheepish look when she gets "busted". She will either throw the object in her hands on the floor as if to say " it wasn't me who put this here" or she will just stay as still as can be and just move her eyes to the side and gets this little half grin on her face. She doesn't know if she's in trouble or what. I know its cuter in person, but its still funny to me. If you come and visit, hold on to your jewels and pocketbook or my little thug daughter might take them from you.

Our Camping Trip

Well we got back yesterday afternoon from our mini vacation, and we had a blast! We went to St. Louis with my best friend and her husband for a "kid free" vacation. This is the third year we have done this, and I look forward to it every year. This year we attempted to tackle camping, and I am proud to say, that we made it through without killing each other! Susan and Jim have a pop-up camper that we all slept in. We figured in the middle of August sleeping in a camper with A/C might be the best thing, however, once we got there, we realized that a part to the A/C was missing, therefore we wouldn't have any air this weekend. It actually worked out really well. It has been a heat wave the last few weeks here, with a heat index of at least 100 degrees, however this last weekend, starting on Thursday (the first day down there), a cold front moved through and we couldn't ask for better weather. With the high in the mid to upper 80's each day and into the 60's at night, it was absolutely perfect camping weather.

While we were in STL, I was able to visit with a couple of friends that I don't get to see that often and visit my Alma mater, MoBap. I got to see my friend Mindy (who was in our wedding), Annie (a college roommate), and friends who still work at MoBap (Rob and Renee). I had so much fun visiting people and catching up with them. I am so blessed to have such great friends, even if I don't get to see them that often anymore.

Overall, we had a great time. I would say the worst part was having to drive to that bath house every time you had to use the bathroom, which during the day, it wasn't so bad, but in the middle of the night, it got to be a nuisance. Despite that little inconvenience, we had a great park to camp in.

It was so nice to do what we wanted to do, when we wanted to do it. We got to go to a movie, shop, go to a nice dinner, go to Six Flags and just bum around. It was nice not to have to worry about diaper bags, nap times, babysitters, etc. It was a good break for all of us and though we enjoyed it, we still missed our babies, and were ready to get back home. Here are some pictures from our trip. We can't wait till next year.

This is us "roughing it" as we lie in the camper watching movies.

Us around the bonfire on the last night.

Me and Susan hanging out by the campfire,

We are men, hear us roar! Jim and Ryan beating

their chest like cavemen, as they were trying

to have the biggest bonfire in the camp ground.

Me and Mindy after lunch.

Vacation Time

Silence fills the air currently at our house. Its a funny and rare sound after having an adventurous toddler running around. Adriana was whisked away today by my parents for a mini vacation with them. They are taking her home with her, where she will be able to go swimming, swinging and torture their cat for a while. Me and Ryan are going to St. Louis for a camping trip with my best friend, Susan, and her husband. This is the third year we have gotten together for an "adult only" vacation, no kids. I must say its nice to get away and relax for awhile. We are going to go to Six Flags, do some shopping and just hang out and have fun. I know I'm going to miss Adriana, but its a good break for both of us. So as I sit here like a child, anxious about not having "mommy" responsibilities for a few days, I will still miss my little girl.
Hopefully, I will have lots of stories and pictures next week, so stay tuned.....

A Long Distance Greeting

This is a little video we took of Adriana this morning. I know this is really only geared towards Ryan's parents, but still thought other people might like to see her saying "hello" to her grandparents in Alabama. Its hard being so far away from family and only getting to see them a few times a year, but we do our best to talk about them and show pictures. Our nephew, Jack, calls Ryan's parents "Pop Pop" (Grandpa)and "Hee Hee" (Grandma). We don't know how he has come up with these names for them, but that is what they are called. Here is a video of Adriana saying thier names. This is about the first time she has ever said them, and I'm glad we have it on tape. We love you 'Pop pop' and 'Hee Hee' and we can't wait to see you soon.