How do you grill with two small children under foot?

You wear one of them.

Although she wasn't terribly happy in the back pack, she enjoyed her dinner.

A lot.*

Your welcome little girl!

__________
*did you see the left side of her head? That is some serious post dinner hair. Lydia, like her sister did, tells us when she has finished eating by spreading as much food as possible into her hair.

mg

Loves

mg

What 10 months looks like

For the past two days this is what 10 months looks like:


Let me be clear. She was smiling seconds before this photo was taken. She was smiling seconds after as well.

Lydia has discovered her voice. She breaks out in shrieks whenever she needs attention.

As the second child and, more importantly, as the little sister to attention monster Madeline Opal, Lydia is always trying to get more than a scrap of attention.

I know her shrieks are shrieks of love.


I just wish she'd show her love a little quieter.

mg

August has disapeared before my eyes

Three weeks ago I started teaching again. For the first time since Lydia was born.

I love it.

• I love my students, or at least most of them.
• I get out of the house a couple of nights a week.
• I get to teach what I know and love. (Public Speaking and Interpersonal communication)
• I like money.
  

I hate it.

• I hate the extra time it takes out of my already full life.
• Although I know I said I loved getting out of the house, it is always very hard to leave the girls and Kevin.

There is only so much time in my day and the blog has been back burnered. I know there is so much that I am missing. I loved May because I made a point to blog even the little parts of our days. Now I miss that. That is what this blog is about for me. With Madeline's start of preschool just around the corner, a short trip and the fall birthday season approaching hopefully I will get on the ball. Until then, enjoy the real reason you visit...

Maddy in my bathrobe!

mg

Meet Manny

Manny came into our lives way back in 2002. Kevin has a thing for Manatees and I picked this stuffy up on a trip I took to Florida while we were still dating.

Lydia has taken a liking to Manny as we now call him.

Ok, it is more like a loving. He is her bedtime lovey and she loves him dearly. Could I have used the word love any more times? I guess I love that lovely word. (I make myself sick.)

Today I had a little photo shoot with Lydia and Manny.

I imagine this is the smile she will give me when she is 12 and no longer wants to smile for her momma. That might be wishful thinking, because this is still awful cute.

But not as cute as this:

Man is this little girl a happy thing. I love how she smiles with every inch or her face!

mg

Now that is what I call love

mg

My first...

Niece!!!!!

Meet Juliette Adrianna.

She was born this morning at 7:17am. She is so very small and it makes me wonder if my girls were ever that small. I have have been assured that they were.

The very tired, but very happy parents. I can hardly believe that my little brother is a dad. He is going to be a very awesome one at that.

Madeline is even more excited about Juliette than I expected. She couldn't wait to visit her and spent much of the time there rubbing her head and giving her kisses. She must have asked to hold her a million times. Right after this photo was taken Madeline leaned in close and whispered, "I love you" to Juliette. Then I died. But came back as I didn't want to harm my beautiful *little* niece. (MY NIECE!!!!)

She spent the longest time just staring at her. Then reality hit, and she remembered she was a high energy 3 year old and she wanted to run around and play with the hospital bed.

And this guy...

not only is he a natural newborn baby holder, but he is an uncle now too!

Now for my favorite photo of the day!

Madeline isn't at all possessive. Nope, not Madeline.

Congratulations Elliot and Kathy! She is the perfect addition to our family.

Welcome Jules! We are thrilled to welcome you to our family! We can't wait to see the shenanigans you and your big cousins will get into as you all grow. For now stay small, stay sweet and stay beautiful. Some thing you are very good at already!

mg