five

what a lucky lady i am to be married to my best friend and the most wonderful daddy! happy 5 years of marriage babe! how exciting that we have so many more ahead of us!

"Our wedding was many years ago. The celebration continues to this day." ~Gene Perret

the spa treatment

::big-deep-drawn-out-grateful-never-pictured-or-imagined-this-enamor-filled-sigh::


my life may seem like it's full of...

pink-and-purple-princesses-with-lacey-and-frilly-jewels-tutu's-and-whatever-else-is-girly

spilling out everywhere...BUT

i have NEVER felt more enlightened or more enpowered...

to be raising, guiding and believing in...

TWO GIRLS!

i may not ever be able to teach you how to prettily put on eye shadow or even braid hair, but thank you elena and adelyn! thank you for this amazing feeling!

"A little girl, asked where her home was, replied, "where mother is."" ~Keith L. Brooks

if i had a $ for every time i blank, i would be rich

ah yes, parenthood...before you become a momma it's typical to hear the condescending remarks like how you'll never get sleep again, all you do is change diapers, yada, yada, yada. here are a few things that i didn't realize how often i'd come by (multiple times a day!)...and wished i had some moola for every time i _________.


for every time the girls busted me eating something that i was trying to hide from them. (especially lanie with her super smell nose)

for every time i got poop on my hand, finger, arm, forehead, etc.

for every time i have to repeat myself.

for every time i have to wrestle and hold down a child to dress them. (so that's what my brothers were preparing me for)

for every second i sit and look at pictures of my girls. (i could do it for hours)

for every time i kinda seriously don't know the answer when they ask me, "why?" (seriously)

for every time i made a fool of myself to make my kids smile.

for every time i've pee'd with a child on my lap or put deodarant or mascara on while holding a child. (i mea

for every time i get up from the dinner table. (usually a minimum of 8)

for every time i substitute a word for the kid version. (it's "potty" all the time)

for every day i go without a shower...and aren't really bothered by it.

for every time i thought i'd never thought i'd be doing this...but doing it all the time.

"Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories." ~John Wilmot

SISTERS!!!

there are times i just want to scream i from the roof top! SISTERS!!! i just love it! i am so relieved and so so so happy that they have each other!

"How do people make it through life without a sister?" ~Sara Corpening

shitunot

i shitunot as soon as i post a i shitunot post, i could start another one.

i shitunot when i take pictures of my girls it feels like i'm training dogs cuz i'm constantly having to reward them with "treats."

i shitunot elena grabbed her cheeks, pulled down and said, "look, i'm adelyn."

i shitunot jason, my adorable husband, has his sweatshirt tucked INTO his sweatpants right now.

i shitunot i rolled back up the toilet paper that a little someone had UNrolled all over the bathroom floor and used it...it was an entire roll and (apparently) i'm cheap like that.

i shitunot i have gotten 3 under-the-skin pimples in the past month. wth?

i shitunot i watch the old 'beverly hills, 90210' every chance i get. god love the soap network.

i shitunot i coud go to bed every night at about 7pm, but of course i don't and then i can never sleep when i finally do cuz i am so over tired.

i shitunot people just amaze me. good and bad. but definitely beyond my understanding...and i'm trying so hard to understand....and learn from them.

i shitunot no matter how hard i try, i am sooo not that prepared-organized-put-together person. but i definitely get glimpses once in a great while.

i shitunot i've been looking forward to this coming week for soooo soooo sooooooooooooo long.

"If you wish to forget anything on the spot, make a note that this thing is to be remembered." ~Edgar Allan Poe

23 months

oh sweet ad, i can hardly believe we are planning a SECOND birthday party already! today, you are 23 months. you are at a very fun age... you want to do everything we are all doing and all by yourself. it is something new with you everyday. and how very refreshing for us. i joke that you're my little egyptian princess...you love to be held and rubbed. as independent as you want and try to be, you really are just such a snuggler and love some close lovin'. you wrap both arms around our head to bring us cheek to cheek, you hold our face to give us big smooches and you tuck your head in our neck to rest your head. you love to learn, but it has to be on your terms. you're impatient, stubborn and have a great sense of humor. you love to dance, climb, rock your babies and keep them warm. you have a blanket and ear fetish. you love you ear the most, but will play with any exposed ear...mostly dad's and mine. you push my hair out of the way. it's sweet. you have the best smile and laugh...and make us smile and laugh all.the.time. even when you're really naughty. i don't know what it is, but we cannot help ourselves. it is not good. one of the big things this past month is you FINALLY let us brush your teeth!! hallelujah!! and of course...you showing interest and success with pottying like a big girl! we can't believe how big you're getting, ad.
we love you little egyptian princess! it's so much fun watching you grow!
happy 23 months adelyn ann!

"It kills you to see them grow up. But I guess it would kill you quicker if they didn't." ~Barbara Kingsolver

potty training, take 1

so this morning as i was using the bathroom, the usual happens....ad comes in, pushes my legs and says "me potty, mommy...me potty." adelyn has been obsessed with the process of using the potty for a few months now. she loves to sit on the toilet, lift up the lid, put down the lid, 'wipe' herself, flush, wash her hands, push her pants down around her ankles, etc. i let her do this, daily. i figure it's a good thing. she grunts and pushes, but nothing ever happens.

well today i was letting her have her turn when it dawned on me to get the pink potty out! duh. and...it turned into kind of a potty training day, on accident. i wasn't nearly as prepared as i should have been and would like to have been.

9:00 - 9:20 - sitting on and admiring the new pink potty. nothing happens.
9:20 - walk in living room...turn around..walk back into bathroom, ad says "pee pee mommy."
9:22 - ad sits and PEES!!!
mommy's shocked! potty dance, m&m and sticker given! and i get out the underwear (out of elena's drawer :S) to see where this could go...why not?!
9:30 - 10:15 - sits on toilet several times and nothing. loving pulling her underwear down and sitting all by herself. pseudo wiping.
10:25 - accident under the kitchen table (she usually hides). go to sit on toilet, nothing. onto second pair of underwear.
11:00 - ad goes in the bathroom on her own, sits and PEES!!! but forgets to pull down her underwear. onto third pair of underwear. potty dance, m&m and sticker given!
11:35 - sit on toilet, nothing.
11:45 - accident at the kitchen table while eating lunch. barely enough to make it through her underwear, but onto fourth pair of underwear.
11:50 - sit on toilet, nothing.
12:00 - 2:30 - naps in diaper. wakes up with poop.
2:40 - sit on toilet, nothing.
3:05 - sits on toilet and PEES!!! potty dance, m&m and sticker given!
3:35 - sits on toilet and PEES!!! potty dance, m&m and sticker given!
4:10 - accident. barely enough to make it through her underwear, but onto fifth pair of underwear. sit on toilet, nothing.
4:25 - 4:50 - sits on toilet several times and nothing. loving pulling her underwear down and sitting all by herself. pseudo wiping.
4:52 - accident right in front of the toilet. sit on the toilet, nothing. onto sixth pair of underwear.
5:10 - sit on toilet, nothing.
5:25 - accident while eating dinner at the table. barely enough to make it through her underwear, but onto seventh pair of underwear.
5:45 - 6:20 - sits on toilet several times and nothing. loving pulling her underwear down and sitting all by herself. pseudo wiping.
6:22 - accident. mommy thinks we are regressing. :( bath and then diaper for bedtime.
6:58 - sit on toilet one last time before bed, nothing.

i called this "take 1" cuz i'm debating whether i'll stick with it. i do believe she is really CLOSE to being ready, but maybe not quite there. she's not upset (at all!) when she has an accident. she tells immediately AFTER she goes potty. she's definitely on her way.

MY BIG mistake was that i just didn't plan this. so i didn't have the TIME to commit to her. i believe in basically having them in your view at all times and i couldn't do that today. i should be feeding her drink after drink and rushing her to the toilet as SOON as she starts to go. it takes work on both our parts and i failed today, not her.

so we will see....i'll keep ya posted. either way, it was a day of sorrow and celebration. it is so sad and so wonderful to see them growing up and becoming less and less of a baby. i dread it and look forward to it all at the same time.

i'm really proud of you, adelyn!

“Diaper backward spells repaid. Think about it.” -Marshall McLuhan

a bike rider and a mall walker walk into a bar...

or around the block...whatever. the bike rider said she had trouble remembering how to get started pedaling...

and the mall walker wasn't a mall walker at all, but the bartender thought she looked like one...winter coat, dress and tenner's.

so then the bike rider thought they could race...

which they loved and each one always ended in a hug...

the bike rider had a stronger hug than the mall walker...

they'd really plow into each other though. 'lil buggers can run fast!

it never got old, even after knocking each other down...

the bike rider and mall walker continued to race into a huge hug...

the mall walker always got a head start, but the bike rider would always win...

either way...they had fun! the mall walker...

and the bike rider...

"Humor is perhaps a sense of intellectual perspective: an awareness that some things are really important, others not; and that the two kinds are most oddly jumbled in everyday affairs." ~Christopher Morley

vday

valentine's day was celebrated in our true fashion...movie and food...with our little loves...

we snuggled up...

with a special valentine's treat...

and "charlie brown's valentine" movie...

put the girls down and enjoyed a fabulous crab leg dinner...with cloth napkins and all, whoa.

"I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon." ~Author Unknown

the truth

time for the truth...

1. i can only wear long socks. false. i can't stand long socks. i only wear ankle socks. i have an odd tactile defense and if i have to wear dress socks (which are of course long), i am constantly hiking them up and making sure they're on perfectly. i most definitely cannot scruch or roll a sock down!

2. i cannot sleep on my back. true! cannot. i can get tired that way, but will not fall asleep on my back. if i roll over during sleep onto my back, i wake up...sometimes gasping for air. what up with that?!

3. my dad has called me "cupcake" my whole life. false. but not by much. my dad has called me "cakes" my whole life. i could probably count on one hand how many times he's actually called me "molly." he only calls me "cakes."

4. i kinda laugh every time i open a new package of food. false. i get kinda pissed. seriously. i know food supposedly "settles", but come on. it makes me crazy that a bag of chips is barely half full, my vitamin bottle isn't even close to 2/3's full, etc, etc, etc. i could go on and on. it makes me want to start some kind of campaign to stop this. i've thought about writing letters and i've even taken pictures over the years of different containers NO where near full. yep, how about that for some truth.

5. i cannot spread apart my toes. false. but oh how my husband wishes this were the truth. not only can i spread my toes, but it's like a damn peacock spreading it's feathers. if my husband could change one thing, he would not make my bra size bigger, he would not have me actually enjoy cooking and cleaning, he wouldn't even stop me from nagging...the boy would just like my toes to have a little bit less range of motion. or maybe he would just change the way i use my toes to say, "i love you thiiiiiis much, hunny."

"Truth only reveals itself when one gives up all preconceived ideas." ~Shoseki

find the truth

my friend, d, tagged me to complete a fun post. so here goes. here are 4 LIES and 1 TRUTH about me...can you guess which one is true?

1. i can only wear long socks.
2. i cannot sleep on my back.
3. my dad has called me "cupcake" my whole life.
4. i kinda laugh every time i open a new package of food.
5. i cannot spread apart my toes.

come on and guess! you might be surprised!

"Truth is a great flirt." ~Franz Liszt

3 1/2

lanie you are 3 1/2 today and we just enjoyed a tiny celebration in your honor. it's only right, as you throw us birthday parties almost every day! ;)

you quite enjoyed your ice cream cup!

at 3 1/2 years old, lanie jae...

- you are funny. always have been. but seriously, funny. you crack us up several times a day.
- you are smart. a few weeks ago you just passed your 4 year old screening with flying colors and they commented that they should have given you the 5 year old screening to see where you were at. :)
- they also had to change one part of the screening assessment because of you. they have objects for the shape portion and there was an "egg" for oval and (of course) you argued that it was an egg. so now they've sinced changed it. ;)
- you can count, but once you get to 29, you say twenty-ten. i have to remind you of 30, 40, etc.
- you love to read and often read to your sister. you have a very sharp memory and can recite most books we have extremely detailed. you especially love reading about princesses.

- you love to rhyme. you're pretty good at it, but will make up words if you can't find something t rhyme with it.
- you love strawberry shortcake!!! you even have us often sing strawberry songs to you before bed. you would love to live in berry bitty city! and i'd go with ya!
- you're very active, BUT you love to snuggle up and watch a movie!

- you still move your tongue back and forth very fast when you're focusing.
- you draw/make cards daily. about a dozen. sometimes bday cards, sometimes invitations. they're for all your family and friends and you "mail" them out.
- you perform your ballet for us almost daily.
- you sing all the time. usually you're singing and dancing at the same time. you make up your own songs and are quite the performer...

e performs from Molly Leone on Vimeo.

- you make up games. your latest is "frog frog dolphin." when you say "dolphin" you have to splash. clearly it's off of "duck duck goose." you make up things like this often and it's too cute.
- you love to dress up and pose in front of the mirror or the camera.

just the other day, you set your camera up on the couch and you would press the button and hurry and jump in front of the camera and pose. you did it dozens of time. looks like you've already figured self-timer out. ;)

- you set the table every night.
- you almost always help your little sister with whatever she needs.
- you still wear pull ups at night. although 9 times out of 10 you are dry, it always seems a few nights after we stop them you wet the bed.
- you still have nightmares. you haven't had a night terror in a looong time. ::knock on wood::
- you're still back and forth with naps. literally some days you have no problem staying up and some days it's melt down city around 3pm.


- you're very thoughtful. you are always, always thinking of others.
- you're still wearing size 3T, but really need 4T.
- red remains your favorite color. purple is your second favorite color.
- you are starting to do preschool workbooks at home. you love them.
- you still love to draw. you draw lots of scenarios now...usally it is the 4 of us at the beach or in the yard.

you put grass on the bottom and the sand on the sides. and of course a sun.

you draw lots of butterflies too. and those scribbles are supposed words. you read them to us.

- you can write all the letters. you often write several down and then try and sound them out to see what "word" you made. it's never a true word, but it's very fun what you come up with.
- you know quite a few sight words...and love to sound out words. so much so that recently we thought you may possibly be reading and are going to start exploring this to see where you're really at.
- you love school. and you love dance class.

- you beg for the same breakfast every morning....waffle with peanut butter, banana and honey. it has literally ruined your day when you don't get it. serious.

- tacos remain your favorite meal...and you keep it together like such a big girl!!
- you have a teenage tone in your voice more often than not. you so get that from your dad. ;)
- you rarely get a time out anymore. you may need a break, but i don't know the last time you truly had a time out. we usually catch it before it gets crazy and you get some alone time instead.
- one of the biggest things you have done in the last 6 months is...STOPPED SPITTING!!! you still do suck your thumb, but you have finally broke this disgusting habit of spitting and instead swallow any spit you collect while enjoying your thumb. whew. you are still filling a big 'ol sticker chart on this (momma's making sure this habit is good and gone), but once you do - you get thee biggest prize ever! seriousy, you get whatever you want.

keep dreaming big lanie jae!!! happy half birthday! and now...lanie in action (tongue and all)

"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today." ~Stacia Tauscher