Friday, March 9, 2012

Pictures

Lots of photos. Lots of collages. 

1. Naomi started gymnastics a couple of weeks ago at the YMCA. She absolutely loves it!! After her first class, she came home and performed this trick in her underwear: her headstand - complete with arms out to the side! "Ta-da!"   


She's also getting really good about potty time, and these new big girl panties have helped her get excited about it!  Super Skivvies
 2.  Random from the past month: Valentine's dinner, talking with Deddy on the phone in her birthday suit, visiting Geema, Mamie, and Great Aunt Robin, and a day at the park with Deddy!
 3.  Gramama's Valentine's package came in the mail recently, and Naomi had a fit over what was inside.  Fairy wings, a sparkle skirt, and a wand make this little lady feel like the butterfly fairy she truly is!  She seriously wants to wear them all the time, and I have to convince her to leave them home when it's time to go into town.  We've also gotta watch her with the wand - she "bippity boppity boo's" a little too hard sometimes...got Deddy in the nose with one good whack, and Dolly isn't too thrilled about her granting wishes either. It's a good lesson on self-control. ;)

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Our Sleep Battle

We are so very blessed to have a great sleeper on our hands.  Naomi has been sleeping through the night, for the most part, since she was three months old (at that time, sleeping through the night was 10:00pm til around 5:00am, but I'll take it).  That's why it's so confusing as of lately that our little slumber girl has been fighting bedtime and waking multiple times in the night only to demand sleep in our room.  We have a king size bed, so it's not the room that's a problem, it's the fact that she is not feeling comfortable putting herself to sleep anymore.

I have been fighting a losing battle - caving in to her middle-of-the-night demands due to extreme exhaustion. But that has all changed in the past couple of days.  It may be easier NOW to allow her to sleep in our bed, but with my husband pushed into the guest room (soon to be her room) and a new baby on the way, our king size is starting to sound mighty crowded.  Nevermind the fact that she kicks, punches, snores, and takes up the majority of the bed.  Don't believe me?  Think I'm exaggerating?  Check the picture below. That's totally Omi in the top four pictures, and my personal favorite of hers is "Jazz Hands."  Andrew may have other favorites! HAH! (Like the bottom right, perhaps?) Yeah. So, we are making a change before we unleash the beast which may have already happened!!
So, two nights ago, after a two week long battle of the wills, Naomi lost.  Mama prevails!! Bwahahaha...Noo, really. I did. :)  All joking aside, we were at our wits end with crying and fighting the bedtime routine, waking between 2-4am, only to not get a good night sleep thereafter.  This may be Naomi's way of preparing me for the baby, but I don't think that's at all fair considering I'm barely halfway through this pregnancy!! Let the good nights roll until the newborn arrives, ya know?  Ha. So anyways, she's fighting and WHINING (oh how I WANT bedtime to run smoothly at this point and even happen at all) throughout the entire thing: brushing teeth, using the potty...but during reading her books was the only time that was ok (light bulb!). Bedtime prayers, then lights out, sound machine on - the usual.  Fusspot central...for sometimes 30 minutes to an hour!  Where did my angel baby that sleeps so soundly go??? They call this sleep regression. And this is sleep regression at it's finest.

The light  bulb flashed during her favorite part of bedtime: reading with her Deddy.  She enjoys that time so much, so we've extended it.  We start the routine earlier now (6:45-7:00), giving her an hour to unwind, and this extra time has allowed transition periods to run a lot smoother.  We brush teeth and potty, talk about what a big girl she is, and give her a sticker.  Back to the rocker to read books.  She gets to pick them out, and we read in silly voices.  It's easily the best part of the day.

Then, to her room (yikes).  But instead of placing her right inside her bed after we say our prayers, I now rock with her and sing songs for all of five minutes.  These quiet moments rocking my baby are the ones I treasure the most.  I could easily sit there and rock her all night, but her cute little finger points to the bed, and I tuck her in and say good night to her and all of her animal friends.  I can't take all the credit though because her Deddy helps prepare her for what's ahead by saying, "Ok, this is the laaast book. It's time for bed after this one, ok?"

We also both have to credit the constellation sea turtle, since he has made this a whole lot easier as of two nights ago!  We were going to save it for her birthday, but with her scared and fighting sleep in her own room for the past two weeks (and with not only moving to a big girl bed but also a new room soon), we caved in early. She LOVES it, and we do too!! Props to Cori and Isabella in NC for introducing us to such a cool night light. Isabella has the ladybug.  We figured the sea turtle was fitting for Savannah!

Our little lady is now dozing right off at bedtime again, and although she is still waking in the night, I go in there and rock for a little while as I do at bedtime.  I know I'll have to gradually stop this as well - gradual extinction, but it's only been a couple of nights.  We did this too while weaning.  She would want the nightly pacifier, and I would go in and offer her water.  Usually she would fuss a minute and fall back asleep.  Now that she's older, I know I have a bigger battle on my hands.  She will do fine though.  At least now she can clearly understand what's expected of her ("this is your bed...THAT is Mama and Deddy's bed").  We're planning on transitioning to a big girl bed by the end of the month, so I will let you know how that step goes for us.  My plan is to get her EXCITED about it and let her help me make the bed, place baby dolls and toys in her new room, etc.  Any ideas?  What worked for you??

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Is It May Yet?



I know, I know. Slow down.  But look how cute all of these birthday ideas are for the littlest (in the near future NOT so little anymore) Lee??  We've decided on yet another low-key party for our soon-to-be two year old.  Who needs a big lavish party anyways - especially when you can't remember a single iota of it?! So, after tossing around ideas about the state park with playground or Oatland Island with animals (both places charge a rental fee), we've decided to keep it the least cost-prohibitive - FREE - at the beach. Can I get a yes ma'am or what? :)
 

So like last year, I'm going to make everything in our kitchen, and between now and then, I'm going to be scouring thrift shops and antique joints for fun, beachy gear that we can use for the party.  We're on the lookout for a large canopy for the beach, like the one pictured below, that will end up very family-friendly for many years to come.  With as many trips to the beach as we like to take during the summer, a large shaded area for the kids is more than welcome.  And with a birthday party for a toddler, a shaded area with tables will be just what we need to get out of the hot sun. 




I have a few ideas I'm taking from another Anni Daulter book, Naturally Fun Parties for Kids.  She has wonderful ideas for inexpensive, do-it-yourself parties, and one chapter is dedicated to all things beach and children.  I will post more on that as time draws near. 
thank you, Gramama, for the inspiration here! :)

What do you all think of a party at the beach?  I'm thinking low-key, come as you are, come if you can - if you can't no big deal.  No presents. "Your presence is your present."  It will be fun for Naomi regardless of all the fuss, and here's to hoping it doesn't rain this time around!






Monday, March 5, 2012

19 weeks!!

19 weeks
 Well here we are! Almost halfway through the second pregnancy, and we only have a couple of pictures of my growing belly to show for it! HA. It's too funny to look back at the time while I was pregnant with Naomi because we took a gazillion pics all the way from first trimester 'til the end - sometimes too many pictures. I'm not sure why exactly we haven't this go-round, but we are getting better about leaving the camera out for quick access. It's not like we have to wait for the film to develop at the photo shop. No, we simply plug it in - simple as that. No excuses. I will get better. Right? Of course!

showing off our basket of baby must-haves for the paula deen blog. more on that later. note the brown bunny and pink mouse Naomi's wrapped in her blanket. They're Jellycats nonetheless! :)
Naomi smiling for the camera!
Andrew and I have been busting out house preparations for (what we hope) potential buyers to come in and take a look.  We LOVED this house when we first laid eyes on it, still do, so we're hoping someone else comes along and sees what we still see.  Light-filled rooms, large bedrooms, two car garage, & a private  backyard to name a few.  We've had three agents call and set up showings for the house, and they. never. came. once. Heh. The joys of selling a home! We organize, store, clean, store, and pack up the puppy dogs and the Ganz (Andrew's lovely nickname for Naomi that has stuck), and did I mention store?  We are storing stuff in the closets, under beds, in the attic, even at Andrew's office. And now, on "show day" we store miscellaneous must-haves but so-called "clutter" in the cars. Guitars, small catch-all containers in kitchen, laundry baskets, diaper pail - yuck, toys, strollers....Yes, I have more than one stroller - they're multipurpose (don't ask how many JellyCats Naomi has)!  

So yeah. Each time the agent wants to show the house, we bust fannie to get it SPOTLESS and out the door, and no show.  First time, the potential buyer was in a car accident. OK. Valid excuse. Poor woman, I hope she's ok. Second, we messed up and went out of town without leaving our agent a key. Total fail. And third time, tornado sirens and torrential downpours rained on our parade.  Uuuuuggggghhhh. Andrew compares it to the boy who cries wolf - next time, we're gonna leave WHEN we hear a knock on the door, the house will be a wreck, and we won't care. Because they won't show. Oh but they will.  See the similarities to the fable now? :)



beautiful when in full bloom! I give it less than a month!
Anyways, we have our fingers and toes crossed that someone will come see the gee-orgeous confederate jasmine draped along the front banister & trellis and the garage and fall madly in love with it just as I did four years ago.  We are hoping to move closer to Andrew's job, out closer to the islands, into a larger home.  Like I said, fingers and toes, people. Fingers and toes! 

Friday, March 9, 2012

Pictures

Lots of photos. Lots of collages. 

1. Naomi started gymnastics a couple of weeks ago at the YMCA. She absolutely loves it!! After her first class, she came home and performed this trick in her underwear: her headstand - complete with arms out to the side! "Ta-da!"   


She's also getting really good about potty time, and these new big girl panties have helped her get excited about it!  Super Skivvies
 2.  Random from the past month: Valentine's dinner, talking with Deddy on the phone in her birthday suit, visiting Geema, Mamie, and Great Aunt Robin, and a day at the park with Deddy!
 3.  Gramama's Valentine's package came in the mail recently, and Naomi had a fit over what was inside.  Fairy wings, a sparkle skirt, and a wand make this little lady feel like the butterfly fairy she truly is!  She seriously wants to wear them all the time, and I have to convince her to leave them home when it's time to go into town.  We've also gotta watch her with the wand - she "bippity boppity boo's" a little too hard sometimes...got Deddy in the nose with one good whack, and Dolly isn't too thrilled about her granting wishes either. It's a good lesson on self-control. ;)

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Our Sleep Battle

We are so very blessed to have a great sleeper on our hands.  Naomi has been sleeping through the night, for the most part, since she was three months old (at that time, sleeping through the night was 10:00pm til around 5:00am, but I'll take it).  That's why it's so confusing as of lately that our little slumber girl has been fighting bedtime and waking multiple times in the night only to demand sleep in our room.  We have a king size bed, so it's not the room that's a problem, it's the fact that she is not feeling comfortable putting herself to sleep anymore.

I have been fighting a losing battle - caving in to her middle-of-the-night demands due to extreme exhaustion. But that has all changed in the past couple of days.  It may be easier NOW to allow her to sleep in our bed, but with my husband pushed into the guest room (soon to be her room) and a new baby on the way, our king size is starting to sound mighty crowded.  Nevermind the fact that she kicks, punches, snores, and takes up the majority of the bed.  Don't believe me?  Think I'm exaggerating?  Check the picture below. That's totally Omi in the top four pictures, and my personal favorite of hers is "Jazz Hands."  Andrew may have other favorites! HAH! (Like the bottom right, perhaps?) Yeah. So, we are making a change before we unleash the beast which may have already happened!!
So, two nights ago, after a two week long battle of the wills, Naomi lost.  Mama prevails!! Bwahahaha...Noo, really. I did. :)  All joking aside, we were at our wits end with crying and fighting the bedtime routine, waking between 2-4am, only to not get a good night sleep thereafter.  This may be Naomi's way of preparing me for the baby, but I don't think that's at all fair considering I'm barely halfway through this pregnancy!! Let the good nights roll until the newborn arrives, ya know?  Ha. So anyways, she's fighting and WHINING (oh how I WANT bedtime to run smoothly at this point and even happen at all) throughout the entire thing: brushing teeth, using the potty...but during reading her books was the only time that was ok (light bulb!). Bedtime prayers, then lights out, sound machine on - the usual.  Fusspot central...for sometimes 30 minutes to an hour!  Where did my angel baby that sleeps so soundly go??? They call this sleep regression. And this is sleep regression at it's finest.

The light  bulb flashed during her favorite part of bedtime: reading with her Deddy.  She enjoys that time so much, so we've extended it.  We start the routine earlier now (6:45-7:00), giving her an hour to unwind, and this extra time has allowed transition periods to run a lot smoother.  We brush teeth and potty, talk about what a big girl she is, and give her a sticker.  Back to the rocker to read books.  She gets to pick them out, and we read in silly voices.  It's easily the best part of the day.

Then, to her room (yikes).  But instead of placing her right inside her bed after we say our prayers, I now rock with her and sing songs for all of five minutes.  These quiet moments rocking my baby are the ones I treasure the most.  I could easily sit there and rock her all night, but her cute little finger points to the bed, and I tuck her in and say good night to her and all of her animal friends.  I can't take all the credit though because her Deddy helps prepare her for what's ahead by saying, "Ok, this is the laaast book. It's time for bed after this one, ok?"

We also both have to credit the constellation sea turtle, since he has made this a whole lot easier as of two nights ago!  We were going to save it for her birthday, but with her scared and fighting sleep in her own room for the past two weeks (and with not only moving to a big girl bed but also a new room soon), we caved in early. She LOVES it, and we do too!! Props to Cori and Isabella in NC for introducing us to such a cool night light. Isabella has the ladybug.  We figured the sea turtle was fitting for Savannah!

Our little lady is now dozing right off at bedtime again, and although she is still waking in the night, I go in there and rock for a little while as I do at bedtime.  I know I'll have to gradually stop this as well - gradual extinction, but it's only been a couple of nights.  We did this too while weaning.  She would want the nightly pacifier, and I would go in and offer her water.  Usually she would fuss a minute and fall back asleep.  Now that she's older, I know I have a bigger battle on my hands.  She will do fine though.  At least now she can clearly understand what's expected of her ("this is your bed...THAT is Mama and Deddy's bed").  We're planning on transitioning to a big girl bed by the end of the month, so I will let you know how that step goes for us.  My plan is to get her EXCITED about it and let her help me make the bed, place baby dolls and toys in her new room, etc.  Any ideas?  What worked for you??

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Is It May Yet?



I know, I know. Slow down.  But look how cute all of these birthday ideas are for the littlest (in the near future NOT so little anymore) Lee??  We've decided on yet another low-key party for our soon-to-be two year old.  Who needs a big lavish party anyways - especially when you can't remember a single iota of it?! So, after tossing around ideas about the state park with playground or Oatland Island with animals (both places charge a rental fee), we've decided to keep it the least cost-prohibitive - FREE - at the beach. Can I get a yes ma'am or what? :)
 

So like last year, I'm going to make everything in our kitchen, and between now and then, I'm going to be scouring thrift shops and antique joints for fun, beachy gear that we can use for the party.  We're on the lookout for a large canopy for the beach, like the one pictured below, that will end up very family-friendly for many years to come.  With as many trips to the beach as we like to take during the summer, a large shaded area for the kids is more than welcome.  And with a birthday party for a toddler, a shaded area with tables will be just what we need to get out of the hot sun. 




I have a few ideas I'm taking from another Anni Daulter book, Naturally Fun Parties for Kids.  She has wonderful ideas for inexpensive, do-it-yourself parties, and one chapter is dedicated to all things beach and children.  I will post more on that as time draws near. 
thank you, Gramama, for the inspiration here! :)

What do you all think of a party at the beach?  I'm thinking low-key, come as you are, come if you can - if you can't no big deal.  No presents. "Your presence is your present."  It will be fun for Naomi regardless of all the fuss, and here's to hoping it doesn't rain this time around!






Monday, March 5, 2012

19 weeks!!

19 weeks
 Well here we are! Almost halfway through the second pregnancy, and we only have a couple of pictures of my growing belly to show for it! HA. It's too funny to look back at the time while I was pregnant with Naomi because we took a gazillion pics all the way from first trimester 'til the end - sometimes too many pictures. I'm not sure why exactly we haven't this go-round, but we are getting better about leaving the camera out for quick access. It's not like we have to wait for the film to develop at the photo shop. No, we simply plug it in - simple as that. No excuses. I will get better. Right? Of course!

showing off our basket of baby must-haves for the paula deen blog. more on that later. note the brown bunny and pink mouse Naomi's wrapped in her blanket. They're Jellycats nonetheless! :)
Naomi smiling for the camera!
Andrew and I have been busting out house preparations for (what we hope) potential buyers to come in and take a look.  We LOVED this house when we first laid eyes on it, still do, so we're hoping someone else comes along and sees what we still see.  Light-filled rooms, large bedrooms, two car garage, & a private  backyard to name a few.  We've had three agents call and set up showings for the house, and they. never. came. once. Heh. The joys of selling a home! We organize, store, clean, store, and pack up the puppy dogs and the Ganz (Andrew's lovely nickname for Naomi that has stuck), and did I mention store?  We are storing stuff in the closets, under beds, in the attic, even at Andrew's office. And now, on "show day" we store miscellaneous must-haves but so-called "clutter" in the cars. Guitars, small catch-all containers in kitchen, laundry baskets, diaper pail - yuck, toys, strollers....Yes, I have more than one stroller - they're multipurpose (don't ask how many JellyCats Naomi has)!  

So yeah. Each time the agent wants to show the house, we bust fannie to get it SPOTLESS and out the door, and no show.  First time, the potential buyer was in a car accident. OK. Valid excuse. Poor woman, I hope she's ok. Second, we messed up and went out of town without leaving our agent a key. Total fail. And third time, tornado sirens and torrential downpours rained on our parade.  Uuuuuggggghhhh. Andrew compares it to the boy who cries wolf - next time, we're gonna leave WHEN we hear a knock on the door, the house will be a wreck, and we won't care. Because they won't show. Oh but they will.  See the similarities to the fable now? :)



beautiful when in full bloom! I give it less than a month!
Anyways, we have our fingers and toes crossed that someone will come see the gee-orgeous confederate jasmine draped along the front banister & trellis and the garage and fall madly in love with it just as I did four years ago.  We are hoping to move closer to Andrew's job, out closer to the islands, into a larger home.  Like I said, fingers and toes, people. Fingers and toes!