Terrible, Adorable Twos.

With Ivy being in the "Terrible Two's" stage I've come to learn two very valuable things. For one, the "Terrible Two's" stage ain't no stereotype that gossipy 3 years olds made up, man. That girl knows how to throw a tantrum like it's her job these days. And (more importantly) number two, that it's crucial to focus on all the sweet and adorable stuff that comes along with this difficult age. Otherwise you'd probably find me laying facedown next to her on the cold grocery store floor; sobbing, kicking, and screaming along with.

For instance, when she whiningly begs me to hold her at the most inconvenient times by yelling, "Hold you peez!", I need to forget the fact that it's an inconvenient time and remember that there will most likely be a day that she doesn't want me to hold her anymore. Hopefully that's not until high school though.

Or when she throws a screaming fit because its time to change clothes, I need to remember that before long, she won't have to hold onto my shoulders for balance as I pull up her pant legs anymore. I love that. She'll probably grow out of saying, "ahh-m...ahh-m!" for each shirt sleeve I slip onto her arms, too. I'm going to miss that raspy little voice that can't even come close to pronouncing it's "R's".

Of course I need to remember that when she's stubbornly refusing to sit in her highchair or booster seat at restaurants, there will one day be a time where her weekends and lunch dates will be spent with people much more awesome than her own lame parents (or so she falsely thinks!), so I need to appreciate the time spent chasing her around the restaurant kitchen and parking lot while she can still pencil us in.

When she gets all dramatic about an "ouchie" (even a fake "ouchie"), she won't always insist I kiss it better. That I need to remember every time she gets "hote".

When she marches into my bathroom while I get ready, relocating all the toys she had previously been playing with from the other room to the floor and pulling out all my makeup and toiletries, I need to forget about the mess she's making and remember that it's only a matter of time before she won't want to be in the same room as me every second of every day. I'm convinced that the day she goes into her bedroom and shuts the door behind her will be the saddest day of my life. Or pretty close anyway.

When food is flying across the dinner table and she's refusing to eat anything, I need to remember that there will most likely be some nights in the years to come that she's too busy with friends, sports, or school to make it home in time for dinner. I'll sweep up the peas any day over that.

When she's totally stalling for bedtime, asking for her 8th drink of water or one more story each night, I need to remember that I can't tuck her in for the rest of her life (contrary to what the book "Love you Forever" portrays. I just don't see myself climbing through any 2nd story windows in the middle of the night during her adult life...) So even when the bedtime routine takes over 5 hours--and yes, it totally has taken that long and that is no exaggeration--I need to remember that there's nothing I'd rather be doing at night, and to enjoy the time spent with her now (even if at 1:00 am!), while the feelings are mutual.

Basically I need to welcome Ivy's toddler tantrums and attitude and "NO's!" with open arms, because with this age comes many more perks than anything; snuggling and reading to her each morning, her sweet innocence, "opening" her banana peels and buckling up her sandals, playing the most thrilling games of hide and seek, dance parties that fill the room with squeeky laughter, nightly baths that are the perfect amount of bubbly, and the ability to smooch her whenever I want without any eye rolling. Two year olds aren't so bad after all, now it's the teenage years I'm worried about. ;)

Lost and Found: An old roll of film.

There's nothing better than finding a half used-up roll of film, finishing it, and then anxiously waiting to see what images were taken with that poor abandoned first half. You can tell we lost this roll quite a while ago, because in the first few frames we're all sporting beanies and coats, Ivys hair was about 5 inches shorter (in length and height!), and because some were taken during a bike ride to feed the ducks. Ha! Just thinking about doing that now gives me heat stroke. The last pictures are obviously a little more recent and are certainly more telling of what we've been up to lately-- playing in an air conditioned house directly underneath a ceiling fan. ;)

forced stay-caytion.

This weekend will be spent swimming, cleaning, shopping, eating, playing, working, and basically, anything else to help distract us from the fact that we're not currently at my familys annual Newport reunion that we look so forward to all year long. Obviously traveling was a no-no right now cause I'm too pregnant, talk about poor planning on our part! ;) 

On a happier note, congrats to Denise from West131 for winning the Wild Juniper giveaway! 

Send me your email address and we'll get the ball rolling. :)

FULLY TERMED!

At 38 weeks I can safely go into labor at any moment. The question of course, is when I will. I can't even believe how much bigger and more uncomfortable I got with this pregnancy, I'm secretly convinced that there are twins in there. On the bright side, only a couple more weeks of this business. Until D-day, I'm pretty sure I shouldn't step foot inside any elevators or even any public buildings for that matter, just to be safe. With how huge I am, I'm sure that'd be a violation against some sort of fire code. (Plus, I've seen that episode of Saved by the Bell where Zack delivers Mrs. Beldings baby in an elevator during an earthquake. No thank you!)  For the next little bit I'll be patiently (yeah right!) waiting with my bags packed, twiddling my swollen thumbs. Hopefully this is the last of the blackmailing "belly shot" series for a good long while.

Fathers day.

I love this holiday. It helps me remember that I have the greatest Dad, that I have the best Father-in-law, and of course, that I'm married to one of the best Dads in town. Happy Fathers Day! :)

Our Summer uniform & picture-perfect curls.

Ivy's chlorine-filled locks were looking too awesome today, I couldn't resist snapping some photos of her while mid-dorito bite.

P.S. Our house has had a strict "swimsuits only" rule these days, I don't hate it. 

Backyard "upgrade": Part I

The great thing about two year olds is that they're easy to impress. Turns out all we needed was this $4 sprinkler ball and she's as happy as a clam in our backyard. Alriiiiight!

saturday morning snapshots.

1. wardrobe decisions // 2. the explosion of pink tulle that remains // 3. a dwindling "little sister countdown" chain! // 4. new hanging plants for the backyard // 5. bedhead // 6. smoothies and toy story // 7. coloring // 8. dishes, laundry, and chores // 9. my personal job security // 10. fresh paint

Backyardigans.

After a couple years of putting the backyard on the bottom of 'our list' of home improvements, Geoff and I decided it was high-time we finally make it a little more enjoyable out there and a little less... of a rectangle of unshaded grass. We just decided this today of course, so we got as far as Home Depot where we bought a picnic table for the patio and brainstormed some quick, cheap ideas. (Any playground suggestions/garden tips/heck..even fun sprinkler attachments you recommend?) We got home, set up the table, and celebrated the beginning of our backyard makeover by grilling a Summer-y dinner and eating outside in our suits. (It's the only way we could have survived out there!) Combine that with Ivy's plastic pool and the hose she was playing with and you can say things were kept pretty classy. ;) Can't wait for more patio dining this Summer, and obviously, even more so for patio dining in the Winter months!

Turning my frown upside down.

Confession: I was a total grump yesterday. I don't know if it was because of the serious heat we experienced or what, but I decided that I'd better make another list of things I'm grateful for to get me in a better mood. I can not only say that it worked like a charm, but it turned today into one of the most productive Saturdays we've had in a long time. We finally crossed some daunting things off our to-do list this morning and it felt like a million bucks! I can't say that would have happened if I was still being a turd. The things a simple, good attitude can do! Anyway, here's my grateful list:

-A work-free weekend that gave us more time to play with V, 'nest', shop at Target, and go out on fun dates. 

-Kit Kats and rainier cherries. 

-A handy husband who went from room to room this morning touching up paint, hanging art, cleaning ceiling fans, etc. 

-A packed hospital bag. The end is near! 

-The mini baby shower a.k.a "sprinkle" my thoughtful Sisters and Mom threw me last Monday against my will. They took me out for dinner and yogurt and all came bearing gifts. I forgot that clean, teeny rompers and onesies are way cuter than stretched out, yellow-stained ones. Thanks for ignoring my demand to not bring any presents guys, I don't know what I was thinking. ;)

-These two little buddies pictured below. Where I would be without them, I don't want to know.