Our Sweet One is...well, One!

Below...she's a leetle unsure of the flame and flamingo head coming toward her...And then the Happy Birthday song does her in...Oh but all is well once she has a taste of that yummy icing...

My weetle dirl (*high-pitched voice*) turned one a few weeks ago. One. ONE!! (But, honestly, was the pink flamingo birthday party really for her.......or for me?) Our sweet Harpie is getting more and more fun. Here are the fun things about Sweet One of late...

-The way she wrinkles her nose when she's laughing.

-The way she mimicks her mama and blows her hot oatmeal. Or her cold fruit.

-The way she REFUSES to SIT in the bathtub. She prefers to stand at the helm with her duck and the faucet in hand.

-The way she prefers books to almost anything else.

-The way her weetle mouth says "Wheeeee" whenever she hears/sees her new slide, or a swing, or outside in general.

-Her animal noises.

-Even though she's in the 48%percentile for weight, her arms have managed to somewhat maintain their many creases...and although her arms are a little tan, the creases are still pale white.

-Anything liquid (not just water, but also milk or perfume or whatever) is "wat-uh-wat-uh-wat-uh...."

-The way she'll dance to ANYTHING...even the rhythm of a sewing machine. That girl loves a good beat...whether or not it's musical.

-The way she loves buttons, and calls anything circular and small a "butt-uh" (button), including those two things on her chest!

-The way she kisses and dances with the "beh-bee" in the mirror.

Lotsa sisters = Lotsa wardrobes!!

It's been awhile...I realize...but I hate beginning every post with "Sorry it's been so long"...so no apologizing here...only my thoughts on sisters and sharing wardrobes. I'm sure many of you can relate. Hopefully. We aren't the only weird ones, are we?

Some Quirks and Comments On the Ins & Outs of Sharing Clothes with Sisters:

How many times did I hear (and say) "Yes you can borrow it, BUT DON'T STRETCH IT OUT!" As if the borrower was huge...and my sisters aren't.

How many times did I hear (and say) "Yes, you can borrow it...only if you don't look better in it than me"...because, obviously, I had a reputation to uphold, and my sisters' beauty was a constant threat.

Fights on any topic could be resolved instantaneously when one of us threw out the dreaded phrase, "FINE! THEN YOU CAN'T BORROW MY __________!" (insert article of clothing most frequently borrowed) Silence. Then begging of forgiveness.

Most of the time, if the girls ASKED first about borrowing something, it was no big deal. But if I was unavailable and they ASSUMED, and wore without asking, somehow it was a VERY big deal...involving the possible prohibition of future clothes-borrowing. Grrrr.

I didn't want to single out any sisters, but, ahem, Sarah, does this phrase sound familiar?: "I'M SO NICE!!" This would be heard after much begging and pleading and when Sarah would FINALLY give in and allow a sister to borrow something, if for no other reason than to make it known that, yes, Sarah IS nice.

Let's say, perhaps, that there was some reject article of clothing in the very back of my closet...forgotten...not cared for...who knows. Then let's say, perhaps, that a sister found that reject article of clothing and saw it's potential and wanted to borrow it or *gasp* HAVE it. Well in that case, I would suddenly decide I liked it and would become very possessive of this coveted article. The epitome of maturity, I was.

Before I left for College, I kept a continuous list of everything I borrowed from the girls...that became my shopping list. Very clever. And then I found out that College had a dress code. Skirts only. And then my clever list idea was discarded. I'd need MUCH MORE than that list.

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Well, there's SO much to say about our June support-raising travels...So much so, that's it's overwhelming, and easier to just decide not to write about it at all. So, just know it was profitable, and fun!

And Harper, of course:

Hi, Weekend. I really enjoyed you.

Much to celebrate this weekend. And this weekend did not disappoint! To me, there's nothing better than family gathered around a birthday meal at IHOP! (I never claimed to be classy.) The IHOP people even sang me a birthday song (Yes, they actually have a birthday song!). I wonder how many birthdays, on average, IHOP hosts yearly. My guess is, and I might be stepping out on a limb here, Not Too Many. I love breakfast. And no...this is not what I wore to IHOP...although...seriously...would it have mattered?:

So...I was a tad disappointed to find out that my Birthday and First Mother's Day landed on the same day this year. Come on. A girl only gets one Birthday a year...and one Mother's Day a year. Can't I have TWO special days a year...not one lumped-together-special-day that I have to share with all the other moms in the world?

But...Oh, Harper. How I didn't fully realize what you'd add to my life. What a crazy and challenging and sweet 9 months of motherhood I've experienced with you. Oh, the patience and perspective I've gained. What extremes of emotion I've felt. This Mother's Day, with only 9 months under my belt, I was challenged to become like the wonderfully wiser and experienced mothers I was honored with (not the least of which was my mother). I found myself realizing that celebrating motherhood totally outweighs celebrating me. (My friend Anna May discovered the same thing this year...Happy Birthday, AMDG!)

Friday Rainy Randomness

Some thoughts for you this fine Friday night, because this is my life:

--Target used to not really be my thing. I'm not much of a shopper, but I would selflessly tolerate the clearance aisles for my beloved. However, since becoming a mother and no longer working outside the home, Target, amazingly enough, has become my playground...my get-away haven. Now I'm dragging Taylor slowly through the aisles, and he's dragging me out.

--I love "going out for coffee." Except I don't like coffee. So yeah a steamer. It's the new coffee. And it's cheaper than all those other crazy mochafrappawhatever drinks.

--One thing I really want to do: perfect my cupcake-making and decorating (so*ahem* I might need that cupcake book from Target, hun).

--Why are Target team members' walkie-talkies always so LOUD? ..."Who is responding?"...

--So Harper's now 9 months--that's 37 weeks--two words: sleep regression. Take note, readers with children approaching 37 weeks. Look it up. And go to bed earlier.

--Speaking as a proud mother, can I just say that my daughter is a music prodigy? She has already mastered several instruments (including tamborine and castonets), she can now clap, and she knows how to shake it. Yeah, this girl can dance. And will...to ANYTHING that has a beat, whether it's music or not. Her daddy's Muryland background has had an influence.

And in the spirit of randomness, who doesn't love a nice make-up party?

...or a nice hat?

I love awards...and lists...

Wow! Thanks Pam! I'm a Kreativ Blogger! Notice, however, I haven't won the Frequent Blogger award lately.... So I'm supposed to list seven things I love and then pass it along to seven (eh, maybe three) people, so here goes. And because I'm so kreativ, my list is going to be an un-list. Enjoy.

Seven Un-things I love:

1. Uninhibited singing in T's and my new ride

2. Unmuscled yet somehow sculpted arms (get a load of that "bicep")

3. Undone cookies (who's with me?? chewy is way better than crunchy)

4. Uncoordinated chubby fingers attempting to grasp small potential food items

5. Underwear (no picture needed here:)

6. Unteethed gums in a smile so wide it forces one's eyes closed

7. Unscheduled afternoons in which napping occurs

I crown Dannielle and Anna May and Valerie with this fine award:) Have fun kreating...

Sick, weak. Sick Week.

We've all seen the adorable commercial. For Puffs PLUS (lotion and a hint of shea butter:). The sweet girl with the cute nose helps out the sweet boy with the red nose by giving him some Puffs PLUS. And his red nose and sniffles are magically gone. Instantaneously. And they all live happily ever after.


What the commercial doesn't tell you is that Puffs PLUS doesn't heal your throbbing head instantaneously. It also doesn't tell you that the speed at which you go through said tissues is directly related to how incurable a red nose is, even with Puffs PLUS. In other words, when you and your daughter go through 3 boxes in 2.5 days, it doesn't matter if you use pure clouds to wipe your nose, it will still be red.


So, brilliant makers of Puffs PLUS, until my head colds are fairy tales, I'll be disappointed in your product:) I'm kidding...I'm thankful Taylor splurged for his girls!


Oh and by the way, Harper has pneumonia. Enough ranting about tissues...please. This poor girl has been tortured. Between blowing my nose, sucking hers, a cool chest x-ray, breathing treatments, pulling out my stethoscope, prescription filling, forcing antibiotics, a frantic trip back to the pediatrician because she was sounding worse, and forcing "cherry-flavored" steroids, we've had quite the week.


I think we're on the upswing though. Both our moods are improving, much to Taylor's relief.




These pics are from her first breathing treatments (note her chubby hand gripping the mask; and she's gnawing on it...How sweet and sad is that!?). Then we got smart. Daddy would hold while mommy sang and danced as loud and as animated as she could. Then we (Nana) got brilliant. PraiseBaby. She didn't mind the confining mask and strange fog coming from it, as long as she could fixate on PraiseBaby. The penguin is lovingly refered to as "Mr. Monia"--he's the all-seeing nebulizer. Cute.


I'd consider myself a homebody, but I've never so looked forward to make-up, a stroll through Target, and a Starbucks vanillasoytwosquirtscaramelonesquirtvanilla steamer (if I can even taste it...)!

Competition

This is the first year I've had to share my valentine.


It gets worse...She's beautiful, has smooth skin, her hair has volume and is always fixed (and clean!), she has an enviable wardrobe, is always smiling and quite the flirt, and HER cellulite is CUTE!

How can I compete with that??!


My fat friend and I made valentines the other day for our...well...valentine. She's one creative cat, that Harper. Her philosophy of card design is simple...does it taste good? We can all learn alot from her.

Happy Valentine's Day, from the competition and I:)