Big week

The week went by so quick and so much happened at work, I'm just amazed I got anything done. I was stuck in my class again this week and I have vetoed any more as they will simply be a waste of my time. I was also told this week that I will be working "a lot of extended days and probably weekends" for the spring and summer - launching 3 major products at the same time is hell! Tried to think of a better word but there's not one. Where's the winning lottery numbers when you really need them?

Several exciting parts to our week - met with folks from a local company that builds playsets and they can put one in for Beca on April 10th! I'm so excited it will be in so quickly! Happy Birthday to me!

Beca put her poopy in the potty every day except today, which meant she wore a dress almost every day this week! She distinguished her Hanna Andersson dresses from her regular dresses quite well! The picture is one of my very favorite new ones (not Hanna)! We also figured out several of the older dresses no longer fit.

And I got to help put some more things together for Traci's wedding - programs are done! I have a few more framing projects to finish and I have to figure out which dress I am wearing yet (ugh!). I guess the weather might just help me decide! Will it be 80 or 50 - who knows!?!? there's only 8 days to go so we'll see if the 75 and sunny holds for that day!

Easter fun

We had a very interesting Easter weekend. The Cottles dropped the poodle off at her hotel (she got a suite because Mommy forgot to call more than a 10 days out) and headed to Wrightsville Beach! After a long fight over whether or not to take a nap, we decided to give in to Beca and went to dinner, walked on the beach and played in the pool - she bounced up and down in front of the mirror and kept yelling "I a frog... ribbitt, ribbitt." Beca was having a great time shrieking and ended up scaring a little boy who didn't like loud noises (there was a big echo in the indoor pool area). There was a pretty good bed fight but Beca was too tired to really continue so she eventually drifted off in her tent.

Saturday, we didn't wake up until almost 10AM, which is very unusual for me and Beca! So we tried to get a little shopping done but never found what we were looking for, ate lunch and headed back for beach time and some more pool time. yeah, no pictures the whole day. We made Beca walk in the soft sand so she would get tired! Which by the time we got out of the pool and upstairs for a snack, she was exhausted and took a good nap. I had to retrieve a wedding dress for my little sis Traci (and learn the bustle) so I had to wake the sleeping beauty and her jester. Then dinner with Steve's parents and brother and Traci joined us too! Beca was silly and funny and loved being with her Ema, per-Frank and Uncle Bobby! She loves to chase him and he came down to the beach with us and she tired herself out by chasing him in the sand!
Easter morning we did not make it to church. I think we would have slept in again had I not set an alarm. We had our own little service and read the Easter story from 2 of Beca's children's bibles. Beca quickly spotted the Easter basket I had put together in the car when I was the only one awake about an hour earlier - mostly toys but it took her a while to figure out the eggs had M'n'M's in them. She wore a traveling dress and put on her pretty Easter dress when we got to Ema's house - the crinoline never would have made it in the the car seat. It fit better than I wanted it to since it was a 4T. Baby Sara (who was my doll and likely had a different name that no one can remember) also had the same dress, just in her size. Beca played some musical instruments throughout the day with Ema but none as amusing as her "carmonica". She is actually quite good at it and has some sort of song in her head that it goes with. As family members came in, she received an additional 5 or 6 baskets/bags of Easter goodies and a Cinderella pillow book (that's almost 2 feet tall). We kept the candy rationed pretty well so lunch could be eaten.Unfortunately, a poopy accident occurred and a melt down ensued when she wasn't allowed to wear her dress any more. The promise of an Easter egg hunt finally melted that away. Since there were only 2 kids (Aidan is Steve's cousin Tracy's son and he is 6), it was a lot of fun. I think Beca liked the eggs with the money in the because the noise it made when you made it a shaker was neat. Beca did pretty well but occasionally needed help from Corey! The exhaustion finally caught up with her and when we said it was time to go, she said a quick "bye" and headed for the car. The ride home was filled with a tantrum, about 45 minutes of sleep and then another tantrum.
Our dinner was amusing too. We picked up McDonald's because we were tired and not really that hungry after the yummy pork chops and ham at lunch. Beca got the orange drink and gave us her usual "mmmmm, that's gut" (pronounced "goo-oot"). About halfway through dinner, she asked us "What kind of drink is this?" reply - "It's orange, baby." follow-up question - "Is it orange pumpkin or orange mango?" I about fell out laughing about this question but composed myself long enough to answer "I think it is orange with a hint of pineapple." It was just too funny. The orange mango came from her shampoo. It was overall a very Happy Easter (especially when we got back in our own beds)!

He made it!

Even with all the crazy weather, Steve made it home! His flight was slightly delayed and a little bumpy on the descent because of the wind.

I have a lot of respect for single parents. I don't know how they do it without a light at the end of the tunnel. I was trying to get a room cleaned out today but several times I just had to sit down and rest. Having to think of and do everything for Beca, Zoe and myself was just exhausting for a week (and I had big time help from Pop-pop over the weekend!). My hats off to Mary who has to do it regularly (hubby is in the Air Force). I can't believe my Mom did this with 2 of us. And my grandmother did it with 6! My grandfather was in the Navy in submarines so it was months at a time! And Steve really does quite a bit every day with Beca. So I am completely a spoiled working mother when it comes to Beca!

We're off to the beach so I'll try to post some picts of that and Easter! Beca is so excited about her hat and gloves and dress and new shoes! It's too cute!

The rest of Day 7 (and Daddy's home tomorrow)

From my side, the training class was a bust today. Did not live up to expectations. And I snapped at one of my closest friends. So sorry Jenny!! I wanted to be captivated by this class but when you think you are going to be doing an activity and you get a lecture for almost 4 hours, it kind of takes the wind out your sails. Especially when you are trying to behave because you said you would. It's all talk and no real practice. By the time we do something, I'm so bored and listless that it reminds me of my early days of 4th grade before my teacher started giving me extra work to keep me busy. Thankfully, there's a mini break starting when I wake up tomorrow. The best part of the work day was that I demolished a plate of Sushi at lunch and LOVED all of it (my 3rd trip for sushi - thanks to Jenny)!

Beca had a fun day, although it apparently started with pooping during her early care session almost right after I dropped her off. Every girl in the classroom was dubbed one of the princesses (and I think by Beca) - Kate had her princess shirt on and she was Cinderella (and looks it), Taylor Grace was Belle (and looks it), her teacher Megan was crowned Ariel (red wig and she could be), teacher Beth (aka Jeffy) was Jasmine, and Beca starred as Sleeping Beauty. I think there were others as Aurora/Sleeping Beauty too.

And after we got home, she watched some Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and for bed, I introduced some brand-new PJ's featuring Mickey and Pluto, along with the clubhouse, the Handy Helpers, and a bunch of the gears!! She was so happy about them, we had to take pictures (her "girls" are with her)! Can't wait until she sees the rest of the PJ collection! I asked her to hold still so I could put her diaper back on when she went potty tonight and she said "Yes, Your Highness". I wonder if she can give lessons to those at work who have yet to realize my royalty status!

The best part is that my DH comes home tomorrow just before it is time to pick up Beca from school! Now if only I can get the house cleaned up from trying to straighten out my office (which meant emptying the office into other areas but not Beca's room) and starting to wash the spring/summer wardrobe for Beca. Thankfully her shoe collection is not as big as mine (yet)! Hopefully, I found everything...

Days 5 and 6 (& some of 7)

Day 5 was St. Patrick's Day. Beca had fun in her green and wore her headband most of the day. We had dinner with Cynthia, whose hubby is also in San Antonio. Beca thought it was neat that Cynthia was with us and Jason was with Daddy.
Day 6 - Beca is starting to get wary of the waking up early thing - all so that I can get her to early care and make it to work. But with a promise of going to Elijah's later, she was ok. So, we went to the grocery store after dinner to get an ice cream cake and then went to Stephanie and Neil's. Neil kindly made spaghetti (especially since I had invited us over to their house!) and Elijah and Beca ate as much as they could before they had to go play (which was running aroudn the house with their balloons). And I got to play with a smiley Emily after dinner (she was not smiley during dinner). She has the best baby cheeks!! And we got a postcard from Oma of her hotel - Beca's been carrying that around for a while.
Day 7 - we both woke up early which was good. Beca got to watch Mickey Mouse after breakfast and I made it to a training class on time. Too bad it's been nothing but lecture for over an hour and my butt hurts!!
ONLY ONE MORE DAY UNTIL DADDY IS HOME! And I am not going to work tomorrow or Friday!

Luck of the Irish?

The tiny portion of Irish Beca might be is not from my side, but she still looks marvelous in green! Her headband was a craft project with Pop-pop. She put on the stickers and he took care of the tiny rhinestones! It's a little big for her but she loves it.

4th day gone

As promised, another busy day! Beca helped make pancakes this morning - she loves to help me stir. And she loves to help do laundry. Every batch I drop on the dryer door, she says"Thank Yoooou!", even though it's her helping me! Her other very amusing thing is that she refers to her soft Baby Ariel doll and her little lamb as "my girls". Her "Poo" (pink poodle blanket) gets thrown in the mix too. So her girls and both of my girls traveled to Pop-pop's house again. Zoe reminded the squirrels that it was her yard when she was around. Beca got to take a walk and watch movies while Pop-pop caught up with the NASCAR race. Beca had no interest in the cars on fire or slamming into walls while Lady and the Tramp was available! And the most exciting part of the day is that Beca told Dad that she needed to go poopy on the potty and she did! She also went again after her bath! Yeah! And we had her "favorite" for dinner - hamburger and french fries! All around a great day! Still miss Daddy and Oma though!

Picts for her Daddy and Oma

This one was earlier in March but I think it's hysterical. It's supposed to be the bonus room on her box fort but the contractor never started the addition! So she ran around the house a few times in it, amazingly without injury to herself, the box, the dog or the house! Pop-pop and Beca had fun making the Wolfpack sign. We may have lost another season in sports but Beca will at least know how to howl! Beca in her only Hanna Andersson outfit that isn't a dress - and she let her pigtails be put back in. We're going to have to upgrade to bigger ponytail holders! i call this Silly Preppie Beca - and with her sunglasses on, she was hysterical! The thing I can't believe the most is that her hair can go up in a ponytail! She looks like such a big girl! And those are 3T jeans - if her legs grow any more, she won't be able to wear 3T's in the fall!They were fun to take so I hope they were fun to see!

2nd & 3rd days gone

Yesterday was such a gorgeous day! Beca got a lot of outside time. And then we had dinner with Pop-pop! And in the middle of dinner, we all got to talk to Steve and my Mom (Daddy and Oma, respectively to Beca) on the webcam. What an amazing world we live in where we can talk to people like that! It makes longs trips apart a bit easier. Just after we hung up, Beca said "I miss my Daddy and Oma". How sweet!
Today was even more exciting. Started out as a bright and shiny day with a chance for Beca to run around Kohl's (up and down the Escalator!), have her popcorn at Target (the $1 for popcorn and soda is the best idea my friend Stephanie ever tipped me off to), and then ride her mini-power wheels at Pop-pop's. I got lots of "I love you Mommy"'s always with a big hug - Beca is totally into big hugs now! Then it suddenly began raining! She still had fun and continued her afternoon at Pop-pop's, making a trip to Trader Joe's where she asked the cashier very politely for a red balloon (no prompting!) and then took a really long walk sans stroller around the neighborhood. During all that, I got to head to my friend Carrie's to put together a small scrapbook for a gift - I finished an entire 24 pages of a 7X7 album in less than 4 hours! Beca was almost asleep when I got back but never got there - she didn't even want to get in her Princess tent for fear she might just lay her head down! She crashed big time after her bath, though. Zoe, after being up all Thursday night for protection duty, wouldn't lift her head all Friday night, but decided tonight that after being alone all day, she desperately needed some play time. That meant almost an hour of chasing the laser. I figured she'd eventually get tired of it but I had to stop the game. Now she's crashed and I am thinking I should be too!
Tomorrow promises to be equally as exciting!

1st day gone

Steve left this morning for San Antonio and so did my Mom. Beca has thus far been excited that Mommy picked her up from school and she got to ride in Mommy's car! I'm exhausted from my last few days of work (over 50 hours this week already) and questioning my choice of career regularly. There are days where being a Quality Engineer is fabulous and our products are totally great but there are just as many days where fighting the insanity of the executive staff seems so futile - they think quality just costs them extra money in the short term. The whole long term view of what quality could cost them (their name, the company) is just lost on them. So, I'll continue doing 3 people's job.
But for the next week, I'll be coming in later and leaving earlier, possibly not going at all. All to find a little girl who has yet to go to sleep tonight and has only gone poopy in the potty once in the last 2 weeks. Of course, when she said to me tonight "I love you Mommy" and then blew me a big smacker of a kiss, I knew the inevitable fight over the dress in the morning would still be worth it!

February pictures

Beca didn't take a nap and fell asleep on our way back from picking up dinner. When I brought her in, she acted like she wanted to eat but then she landed on her chair like this.

At the beginning of February, I received a bunch of boxes - Tupperware and Pampered Chef. Beca won in the whole thing - her Daddy built her a box fort, or as she calls it - her palace! He even made sky lights (that's how Mommy got the picture of them in their box) and hung a lamp in there. Steve fit about half his body in there. I'm too claustrophobic to even try.

I actually took some bridal portraits for my "little sis" Traci - she had wanted beach pictures and we picked what seemed like the worst day of the month. It was cold and raining - so hard on the drive to Wilmington that her mom, Jan, almost pulled over. But the most amazing thing happened. Even though everything showed 100% chance of showers all day (which for a Quality Engineer means "take the picnic inside"), the rain stopped as soon as we pulled in Traci's driveway and did not rain again until we were getting ready to leave! Thank be to God - and that my mom got to come along too! We had a lovely day and got some amazing pictures at Kure Beach Retreat Center and Kure Memorial Lutheran Church! Unfortunately, I can't post them yet! But I can share some from Traci's shower that was 2 days later!


Beca's love of berries - straw, blue, black and rasp (or fuzzy, as she has named them) - is extensive. Every morning for breakfast and generally some for dinner. She likes them in cereal and yogurt or now with Whipped cream because I couldn't stand the thought of giving her Ranch dressing with them. She eats ranch dressing with pretty much anything and that's what she was asking for - umm? ew! Anyway, she can eat her weight in berries if we let her. Hope you enjoyed the picts. If you really want to see the bridal portraits, email me the request (people I know only).

Daily forgetting

OK, so that last post had little to do with the princess and the poodle and was a selfish diatribe on my life as it stands - i feel like I haven't accomplished anything lately as our Christmas decorations still are not completely put away. they have made their way to the bonus room in one area and we did manage to get a bag for the tree and put it away.
So for the girls - the poodle is a riot! she found a mesh bag of tennis balls tonight - oh yeah, it's been laying on the floor for 2 days and she has walked by it several times and not even noticed it (umm, she's getting groomed next week but currently looks like a small black bear cub, not a standard poodle). she kept throwing it in the air and all the balls would fly up in the bag, inevitably one smacking her schnoz and then she'd drop them. then she'd pounce on them. This was after a good 20 minute run back and forth for her soccer balls in the back yard. Yeah, she still thinks she's a puppy, even though she just turned 5!
And the princess has taken to telling me "Don't tell me not to *fill in whatever I just told her to do*". It seems to be a more popular phrase lately and always directed at Mommy. We've started our Mother-Daughter war already. Of course, Daddy caves easily so she just asks him. And those Hanna dresses? We are using them as a bargaining chip in the potty training. She has to not mess up her panties at school for 5 days and then she can wear a dress and maybe her Ariel nightgown. I'm sure I'll be a mean mommy and find another clause to add on. But she does get to wear her dresses to Sunday school regardless. She has recently started making up and telling stories - long ones... Lots of the involve "Poo" - her poodle blanket - and something about an alligator. Her daily wishes are to ride the carousel, Dumbo, Jungle cruise, whatever and she wants to go see Mickey on the "kews" ship. I wish we hadn't told her that she would see Mickey next year on our Disney cruise (January 24, 09!). Oh well, her princess rug will have to suffice for a while!

March already?

Wow, February just escaped me. Steve got a Wii for his birthday (I had a sore shoulder for the first week but the bowling is soooo much fun after a hard day!) There was a lot of sickness in the family, with the flu and other cold viruses going around. I started feeling bad on Steve's birthday and then spent Valentine's Day shivering and sleeping. The next day, Beca had one of her tubes removed - it was most of the way out but had wax stopping it from moving, as well as stopping up the tube for over a month. I was really disappointed the month before at the pediatrician for not recommending that it get taken out earlier. We got the "Oh it should fall out on its own". I dislike the phrase "it should" intensely. Nothing goes as "it should" - Proverbs 16:9 "In his heart a man plans his course but the Lord determines his step." Not the plan we believe "it should" but there's always something good there. Anyway, had to postpone a birthday gathering for Steve because I couldn't stand up very long. Pretty glad we did. That was the last weekend of the month. It was really fun and Steve's parents surprised him by coming to visit for the day. Beca loved having her friend Allie to play with and also her Ema, per-Frank, Oma, and Pop-pop all in the same place! And we had a fabulous cake by Jeremy - every cake by Jeremy is fabulous and this was Steve's favorite - Boston creme.
Amazingly, the last week of February was the most hectic. I played tennis and bowling with several sorority sisters on the Wii, then left early the next morning for Minnesota/Wisconsin to visit a supplier. Thankfully, we finished early so I could sneak in an hour at my mecca - the Mall of America! Hanna Andersson has a new store and Beca got some new dresses, along with some Disney store items! Happiness in a few shopping bags! Had dinner in this adorable little town - an old logging town on the St. Croix river. Best pork chops I've ever had and a dessert called a Chocolate Habanero Cake. Oh wow - wonderful chocolate and then the back of your tongue and your throat just tingle like crazy! OK, more than tingle. Other than the freezing cold temperatures, it was a good trip! Except the late flight home and the training class the next day - all day, on a Friday! So, being out for work doesn't mean there isn't still other work and I was back in Saturday morning. Not too long though.
Beca is definitely a creator. She loves play-dough but does not like to color pictures as much. She would rather color on a blank sheet of paper. She gets frustrated with lines and that she can't stay in them. I think she also gets frustrated that the picture doesn't turn out exactly like she thinks it should. So, its off to another tea party - some days the singing set, some days the tin set. But generally with a little girl who really wants to wear a Hanna dress.