four years ago today, michael and i were married.  the years since have been amazing.  it’s such a blessing to be able to share your life with your best friend and to wake up every morning knowing that you’re loved.  i know that some days i take that for granted and forget to be grateful.  but today, i am grateful.  grateful that michael loves me, even on the days that i am difficult to love.  grateful that he is such a wonderful father to leslie and lucy.  and grateful that i get to be his wife and do life with such an amazing partner.  happy fourth.  here’s to many, many more.

this weekend our family made the trip to great wolf lodge.  aside from a stomach virus that attacked us while we were there, we had a great time.  here are a few pictures (none of the actual waterpark, as i couldn’t figure out how to keep our camera dry).  if you haven’t been, you definitely need to go…but please don’t take along a stomach virus.

our family has had a busy november so far.  it’s been a good busy though, full of fun things that we get to do rather than not-fun things that we have to do.  for instance, last week, the girls’ uncle erin came for a quick visit to take some pictures and hang out.  in case you don’t know somebody like her, you should.  everyone should have an uncle erin in their life.  last year, after lucy was born, bridget came to visit and brought erin along.  pictures were taken, fun was had, and leslie fell in love.  a few days later, erin put our pictures on her blog.  leslie was looking at them with me and i asked her if she remembered who had come with aunt bridget and taken her picture.  ”uncle erin” was her response.  i guess in her two-year-old mind it just made sense that  since bridget was her aunt, erin should be her uncle.  and so erin became uncle erin.  and it stuck.  and i’m pretty sure that my girls are probably the only ones who will ever refer to her as their uncle.

on friday, we took uncle erin to the airport.  as she was giving goodbye hugs to the girls, leslie started admiring her necklace.  here was the exchange that took place:

leslie: i like your pretty necklace, uncle erin.

erin: thank you.

leslie: where’d you get it?

erin: at the store.

leslie: wow.

erin: do you want it?  here, you can keep it.

me: leslie, what do you say?

leslie: uncle erin, i’m so proud of you for sharing!

well, that necklace has stayed firmly around leslie’s neck since her uncle erin left.  she’s worn it swimming, sleeping, bathing, and for everything in between.  she has told total strangers that her uncle erin gave her this necklace because she loves her.  and today she told me that she’s going to wear it when she gets married.  one thing is for sure: uncle erin has captured my little girl’s heart.  i love that.

“i miss you, uncle erin…but i’m still wearing your necklace!”

an update.  mostly in pictures because this mommy’s brain is too tired to form actual sentences.  so here goes.  first comes lucy’s birthday:

the morning of, she got chocolate donuts with a candle.  breakfast of champions.  she also got a fun telephone from her big sister.

her party was a couple days later.  family came from all over, and fun was had by all.  lucy especially enjoyed her birthday cake.

leslie has a fancy new addition to her big girl bed.  as if she didn’t already feel enough like a princess…

last week we took a family trip to evan’s orchard.  pumpkin patch and apple picking for all!

i love this one…that’s kayla in the background.

we’ve been busy.  leslie can’t wait for halloween.  tomorrow is trunk or treat at ma’s church.  friday is the ‘thriller’ dance downtown, and saturday is the official trick-or-treat.  by sunday she should be sufficiently sugared-up and exhausted, which could make for one cranky three-year-old.  pictures to come…

]]> http://juiceandgoose.wordpress.com/2009/10/27/finally-2/feed/ 2 juiceandgoose IMG_4908 IMG_4907 IMG_4921 IMG_4933 IMG_4938 IMG_4958 IMG_5027 IMG_5049 IMG_5064 IMG_5068 IMG_5089 IMG_5101 IMG_5123 IMG_5129 IMG_5138 IMG_5145 IMG_5183 http://juiceandgoose.wordpress.com/2009/10/13/these-boots/ http://juiceandgoose.wordpress.com/2009/10/13/these-boots/#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:30:34 +0000 juiceandgoose http://juiceandgoose.wordpress.com/?p=394 ]]>

leslie just got new rain boots.  her previous pair of boots were a size 6.  her feet are an 8.5.  new boots were necessary, as was a new raincoat, and of course they had to match.  she loves her new rain outfit.  last friday was the perfect day to get some use out of the new boots and coat.  it poured down rain all day.  after i picked leslie up from school we headed to mcdonald’s to celebrate another good day at school.  our happy meal was missing half of its contents, but by the time i discovered this fact, both girls were seated and munching away happily on some french fries.  i made the decision to not disrupt them in order to drag them back up to the counter to ask for our apples.  instead, i opted to go myself.  i could see them from the counter, and it would only take a second.  before i got in line, i decided to just make sure leslie remembered what to do if someone tried to take her.  just in case.

me: leslie, what do you do if somebody tries to take you?

leslie: i’ll put my boots on first, mommy.

at least if she gets taken she’ll have boots…

leslie had a great day at school today!  she came home with numbers written on her arm (0-4) and we’ve talked about them a LOT.  when i picked her up this afternoon her teacher said, “leslie, get mommy’s present out of your pocket.”  leslie reached into her coat pocket and pulled her hand out in a tight fist.  she said, “here mommy.  i got you zero candy.”  and then she grinned the sweetest grin and said, “gotcha!  zero means nothing!”  (she needed a little help from her teacher coming up with the last part of that, but she is a genius nonetheless.)  i pray this trend continues and that yesterday’s incident will quickly be forgotten and never repeated.

in other news, lucy is sick.  she was having trouble breathing this afternoon, so i took her to the pediatrician.  luckily, it’s not the flu!  instead, it’s an upper respiratory virus which is causing all sorts of yummy drainage and leakage, plus a high fever.  she’s on a decongestant to help with that, so hopefully tomorrow will be a little better than today.  we’re supposed to go to cincinnati this weekend to visit michael’s mom and dad, but that trip may get put on hold if lucy still has a fever tomorrow.

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and finally, my friend april sent me this and i just think it’s too funny to not share.  enjoy.

A man came home from work and found his three children outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and 20 wrappers strewn all around the front yard.

The door of his wife’s car was open, and so was the front door to the house and there was no sign of the dog. Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall.

In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing.

In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened.

He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door.

As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over
the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel.

She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went.

He looked at her bewildered and asked, “What happened here today?”

She again smiled and answered, “You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world I do all day?”

“Yes,” was his incredulous reply.

She answered, “Well, today I didn’t do it.”

first, let me say this: i do not want leslie to be “that kid” at school.  nor do i want to be “that mom.”

okay.  so, today i made a deal with leslie that if she had a good day at school we would go to mcdonald’s for lunch.  she’s been having some trouble following directions and remembering to put her work away, so i shamelessly resorted to bribery.  when i picked her up, we waited a few minutes for all the other kids in her class to be dismissed, and then i asked her teacher how her day was.  i could tell by the look on her face that there would be no mcdonald’s in our future, and my heart sank.  here’s the report that i got:

apparently, leslie’s class is equipped with a “mystery bag.”  (a bag with something in it that the kids can stick their hand in, feel around, and try to guess what it is.)  i assume they have been taught how/when to use this bag.  today, leslie got the bag and proceeded to fill it with all kinds of stuff that didn’t belong there.  she then carried it around with her like a purse.  her teacher took her out in the hallway, explained to her that what she had done was not good, and made her put all the things in her “purse” back in their proper places around the room.  and then she told her that filling the mystery bag with all that stuff was what babies would do, and that if it happened again she would not be able to come back to school because school was for big kids, not babies.

well, my initial reaction was to be upset with leslie for not following directions, so i told her i was disappointed and that would not be going to mcdonald’s.  she literally cried her eyes out the whole way home.  so, as i was listening to my sobbing three-year-old, i started wondering  what exactly i was so upset about.  was i upset because my child had put some stuff in a bag and pretended it was her purse?  nope.  i think i was mostly upset about her being told that she could not come back to school if she did it again.  she’s three, folks.  three.  and she’s being threatened with expulsion?  i just so want her to have a positive experience at school.  i want her to like her teacher (which she does), i want her teacher to like her, and i want her to have friends.  i know she’s only been in school for four weeks and that i’m probably completely overreacting.  right?

so, what would you do?

on friday, i dropped leslie off at preschool and headed north to the outlet mall with my friend alison.  she is having a baby boy in just a few weeks, so we went in search of a rug for the nursery and some cute baby boy things.  the trip was a success.  lucy tagged along in her stroller and did great.  someday, she will make an excellent shopping partner.  since leslie had school, she stayed behind and had a fun day with ma, complete with chick-fil-a AND ice cream.  it was late when we got home, so leslie was already asleep.  before i crawled into my own bed for the night, i went upstairs to take her potty (some nights when she has a lot to drink after dinner we take her potty after she’s asleep.  it’s easier than changing sheets the next morning.).  as i carried her back to her bed, she said, “mommy, i want to sleep in your big bed.”  i was not hard to convince since i’d been apart from her all day, so i carried her down the stairs and we snuggled down in our bed.  as i lay there praying for her, our family, and anything else that happened to pop into my head, i was reminded of this sweet picture michael took when leslie was just a couple of weeks old.  someday my babies will be too big to snuggle…probably a lot sooner than i’d care to think about.  i hope i can always remember moments like this one.

we went through a phase before lucy was born when leslie would cry every night before bed because she was scared.  this would usually end with one of us giving in to snuggling with her until she fell asleep or with michael agreeing to sit outside her door.  for whatever reason, this phase just ended one night and she’s been fine about going to sleep on her own ever since…until last night.  as usual, michael took her upstairs, bathed her, and read her a few stories.  he came downstairs.  she cried.  she whined.  she yelled for her mommy.  mommy eventually gave in and went upstairs (and i am so glad i did!).  the encounter went something like this:

leslie:  mommy, i’m scared of monsters.

me:  remember, monsters aren’t real.  do you remember the song you can sing when you get scared?

leslie:  (does a rousing rendition of ‘god is bigger than the boogey man.’)  but i want jesus to come here.

me:  jesus is here, sweetie.  you just can’t see him.

leslie:  no mommy.  i mean, i want jesus to come out of my heart and snuggle with me.

me:  well, you can ask him to do that.

leslie:  okay, mommy.

so this morning, i asked her if jesus snuggled with her last night.  ”yep!  he did!  and it was nice.”

i love that kid.