Water Girl

Little girl, this $30 pool has been the best investment we've made all summer.  It was 91 today & we had fun swimming then you talked daddy into some swimming once he came home.  I love that I said "Say Cheese!" before taking this photo & this is the first time you tried to pose.  You are the cutest!

You're pretty tricky though.  You had taken 2 play bowls from your kitchen out into the pool.  You gave me a bowl (to defend myself with but I didn't know it yet) then used your bowl to throw a bowl full of water on me!  I got you back & you giggled & giggled.  It's your favorite game to play in the pool right now. 

I'll say "You silly goose!"  and you'll copy "You....goose!  Silly!" 

Oh little girl we love you.  Your daddy loves you so much he got into this pool even though you'd just used the hose to refill it with icy cold water.

Love you baby girl!

Surprise Party...For Your Birthday!

Oh Gracie how you have changed in the past few months!  Things here have been so busy but you have remained the cutest joy in our lives.

You've really started talking, much to our relief.  Last night I said you had to brush your teeth & you told me "you're mean!" but then obliged.  Guess I should get used to you voicing dissent.  It won't always be praise, right?

Today your daddy came home & you greeted him at the door as always.  You've taken to calling him Papa, which threw him initially since he's your daddy & not your grandfather.  You love the Berenstain Bears though so you know Mama & Papa from that. 

As you were greeting your daddy (Papa), I called for you that I had a surprise for you.  I had cut an orange into a flower shape the way they do at our favorite sushi restaurant.  It's gotten you to eat oranges so I was excited to try it at home.  You came running up the stairs, turned to your dad and yelled "SURPRISE DADDY!" then "FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY!" 

It was so sweet.  Of course your daddy just beamed & told you thank you.  I handed you the plate with the orange & you said "Wow!" then turned to him and said "Surprise for you!  For your birthday!"  He told you, "That's for you Grace" and you corrected him saying, "AND you!" 

We all shared the orange together in honor of your daddy's birthday.  Seeing as how his big day isn't until December, it truly was a surprise party.  Well done baby!

God Knows the Plan

Grace,

Last week your dad was in Australia on business and we were out to eat together.  I always tell you we're ladies who lunch when we do that.  You weren't carrying on much of a conversation with me since you'd brought your play cell phone into the place & were busy with that.  I overheard a woman and her friend talking about how hard it was to watch their friends get married and start to have kids.  Still single, they were happy with life but couldn't help wondering when they'd meet their husbands.  They felt God had a plan for them but just wished marriage would be part of it sooner rather than later.

You leaned over their booth & started talking with them so I did, too, admitting I'd overheard them.  I told them that just five-six years ago, my friend Chrissy & I were saying the same things.  We laughed over the common ground and I told them what I'd tell you.

I am so happy none of my other relationships worked out because I would not have been as happy as I am today--not by a long shot! I always thought God had a husband out there for me somewhere & I would sometimes pray for him. I would pray that my future husband had a good day the next day...and that he would get his act together and find me!  :)  I met my husband in God's perfect timing and I never dreamed I would be THIS happy.  Your daddy is so sweet, patient, and he humors me as only he could.  My life is nothing short of amazing and nothing compared to what I imagined for myself.

Ten years ago:  I was just finishing graduate school and starting my career.  I had no idea my plans would be drastically changed when Em got sick, no idea I would ever move back to my hometown.

Six years ago:  I was taking care of my sister and making plans to do so for the rest of my life.  A boyfriend had just dumped me and I thought that was probably it for my dating life/possible marriage/family life some day.  I came to accept that my place was as a caregiver.

Five years ago:  Em was better & moved out.  Not only that, she was getting married and moving to Florida!  Two months later I met your daddy after randomly deciding to do match.com with a friend.

Four years ago today:  I married the best man ever!  We planned to have at least two children and live in the house in MI.

Three years ago:  We had you and found out you'd be our one and only, making you even more special to us if that were possible!

Since then, we've moved twice and aren't sure what the future holds.  I'd like to think we've given up any sense of long term planning.  Here's why:  God knows the plans He has for us, not for despair but to give us hope and a future.  That is my family's mantra following Emily's sickness.  Grace, when in doubt Let Go & Let God.  When my sister was sick, it wasn't until I'd found peace with it that things changed.  When I found peace in being single, your daddy came along.  Every day now I find peace in my life with you and with your daddy.

Before he met me, your dad watched his mom suffer through and lose her battle with cancer.  He moved from North Dakota to Michigan and that was a big leap away from the security of family and friends.  Oddly enough, when I met your dad on our  first date, I was indifferent.  It wasn't until I mentioned the weight of caring for my sister and he said "I know what you mean. I took care of my mom." that I really took notice.  Because of my experiences with Emily, I appreciated his strength of character and admired his ability to love someone while watching them suffer. It is not easy--it is incredibly painful to watch someone you love suffer every day, with no way to help them.  We share an uncommon bond that has helped each of us to cherish each other & you all the more.  Life is special. It's precious.  We hang onto it and each other with both hands, appreciating each day and the little joys because we know how much the bad days can hurt.  Neither one of us get too worked up by the little things in life, including most of the messes you make because we know that there's really no sense in sweating the small stuff.

God always had a plan for us. We joke "How else would a girl born in Germany and a boy from Montana ever find each other?"  We appreciate each other because we waited so long, we lived so much during the wait, and share so many common experiences.

Our anniversary is today but we don't have much planned.  To be honest Grace, we live most of our days treating each other with kindness and love.  This day isn't too much different than any other in that sense.  We say I love you almost every night before we go to bed, we joke around rather than get truly angry at each other's faults, and we appreciate and focus on each other's good qualities.

I am sure God has so many amazing things planned for your life Grace.  Please remember that during hard times, you are growing.  God is teaching you more than you know and that knowledge will be essential down the road.  We all have to learn how to love, how to let go, and how to appreciate life.  The lessons don't come easy because they can't be taught easily.  If your road is harder, rest assured that God has so much joy waiting for you soon.  Six years ago I had a very, very hard road.  Now I have joy and the wisdom to appreciate it.  God will always be there & so will we.

I love you so much more than you'll ever know!  You are awesome and one of God's greatest gifts to me.  Thank you for bringing me so much joy every day.

Love,
Mom

You Are Awesome

Grace,

You are just awesome.  I love love love being your mom, particularly now that you've turned 3.  Somehow just before your birthday you become quite a handful and then after that you are much more fun again.  It might be just the chaos of the holidays each year.

Every month you change so much!  I just read you 10 books until you fell asleep.  It seems you have caught on to giving me more and more books as a way to extend bedtime.  That's okay.  I'll just push your bedtime back to accomodate it.  I never could understand parents who limit their kids to one, two or three books!  Tonight you fell asleep mid-book but I finished reading The Cat in the Hat to you anyway, just relishing the time we have together & watching you sleep (and snore). You are so beautiful!

A big change this month?  You are sleeping in your toddler bed!  The first six/seven months of your life you coslept in the bed with us.  We always said we would never do that.  Then we met you and realized that's what you needed so we adjusted.  Then you started sleeping on the couch.  We couldn't leave you in your crib because you were strong so early that you'd just climb out.  We converted you to a toddler bed & would find you every morning on the couch.  You just woke up and moved to where you wanted to be.

We waited until you were ready for your bed.  I am really glad we did.  Growing up, my parents took a very authoritarian approach and bedtime was always filled with threats, etc.  Recently, I noticed you'd been using your room as your room.  You played in there more, realized all your clothes were there, checked your outfits out in the mirror in there, etc.  A few weeks ago I started mentioning your bed as we played in your room and that one night soon you were going to sleep in it.  Each time you would start to cry & I just said "Oh you don't have to do that now!  Someday we will."  After less than a week, when I said it was time for bed, you grabbed your blankies and headed for your room.  I seized the opportunity, grabbed a bunch of books to read & it went great.  Yes, you cry a little bit sometimes but you never really throw a big fit about it.  You're cute.  You'll turn your light on and come out & all I say gently is "It's time to go night night." and you run back to your bed.  Other times, I'll just ignore you & you'll stay in the hallway for a few minutes, then whimper, turn your light off and go to bed.  Thank you for being easy on something Grace!  I honestly think we haven't yelled or had any traumatic moments about it because we waited until you were ready.

You are the toughest kid I know.  You ran into an open kitchen drawer with your eye tonight & fussed for 2 minutes and it was done.  I would have been upset for at least another hour!  You are just so tough!  You have incredible motor skills that allow you to dangerous balancing acts and not fall but when you do fall, you're never really injured.  I'd say you're a tomboy but you love necklaces, finger nail polish, and dress up shoes too much.  By the way, you've recently been using markers to color your finger nails & toe nails.  I drew the line when you started coloring the bottoms of your feet though.  When they get wet that washable marker starts coming off & there are little foot prints everywhere!

You are talking & understanding so much more now!  I am totally impressed by you.  Each day you say new words.  I recently called a speech therapist I'm friends with & we talked about you for an hour.  She agreed with me that you wouldn't qualify for speech now so there's no sense in taking you in for an evaluation.  Go Grace!  Of course, your new language skills make for some funny moments.  Lately you follow me to the bathroom a lot and ask me "You poop?"  Um...not right now but thanks for asking!  When I get really upset about something and launch into a mommy lecture like "Stop pouring milk all over my floor!" you press your fingers to your lips and "Shush" me.  It's sooooo funny and effective.  I can't stay angry with this little person shushing me.

You still love to dance.  My favorite was tonight.  You kept putting your hands over your head and trying to spin in a circle--a very very fast circle.  Poor thing, you'd lose your balance & fall down.  You aren't one to give up though so I finally had to coax you into a new dance move to keep you from getting hurt.

You are starting to sing now that your language is coming.  You love to figure out the words in songs.  You can usually pinpoint the first and last words of a line.  It's hilarious to hear you hit high notes because the squeaking is beyond adorable. 

You pretend to be a puppy A LOT.  You love licking our faces and we cringe and bear it because we love you and you are so cute.  You'll grab my face, turn it & give it a big lick.  When I go "eww!" you just laugh hysterically.  We were having a hard time not running out and getting you a new puppy so we ended up buying you a FurReal dog that is a robotic dog.  You think he's great & have taken him on car rides.  I still see a real dog in your future but we're hoping to hold off a bit longer.

We built our first snowman together, me and you.  It was a blast.  We ended up building him 3 times because you would pat him down a lot--and he'd fall down.  He also fell down when you hugged him.  You are quite the hugger.  You'll ask "You need a hug?" and we'll say "Hey!  I need a hug!"  you laugh, then run into our arms, giving us a kiss if we're lucky.  Then you turn to the other one of us and wait for them to say "HEY!  I need a hug, too!" You'll go back and forth at least a dozen times.

You and I do a lot together. We play ball and tonight you made up a game where I hold a small basket & use it to catch the ball you throw.  You help me move the laundry from the washer to the dryer.  I taught you to grunt and yell PULL evidently because you do that all the time now.  We cook together, too.  You would love to crack eggs but I've talked you into letting me crack them into a container and then you dump it into the batter.  Your favorite foods right now are anything chocolate, pancakes, and of course, ice cream. With your daddy, you play playdoh, Moon Dough and train a bunch.  You'll have a picnic with anyone willing. 

You are the sweetest little girl I know.  You brighten our days and I absolutely love it.  I'm already dreading the day we don't get to spend as much time together.  I hope someday we'll be best friends because you are awesome & I love having awesome friends.  In the meantime, I'll have to be a bit mean to you as I stop you from eating dirty snow, make you wear gloves outside, refuse to let you put pudding in your hair, and make you change your dress after 3 days of wearing the same one.  Thank you for being my little buddy and such a sweetheart.

Love you!
Momma

The End of Another Year

Oh Grace,

I cannot believe the year is ending today! I can't believe you're 3!  So much has happened in the past few months.  We're in Washington now.  The two months leading up to the move were filled with last visits with friends and family, chaos, and waiting.  The move kept getting pushed back which drove me crazy.

The movers came 10 days before we moved & packed everything up.  We lived in a hotel in Milwaukee for 8 days and it wasn't the best stay.  The first few days we had fun but then you and I both got very sick and ended up just laying around the room every day.  Three hours after we landed in WA, we were in urgent care.  You had a double ear infection and the start of a sinus infection & I had a bad sinus infection.  We hadn't realized it was that bad until after we landed in WA, then you really started to act sick.  We aren't ones to wait on going in, so we took you to the dr right away and were so glad we did.  Between us we had 7 prescriptions to fill!  Your daddy felt so bad that you were sick and away from what you knew as home, I thought he was going to buy half of the toy aisle at Walgreens while we waited for our medicine!  You ended up with a big stuffed animal, a doll, and a ball.  Then at checkout you spotted a display of m&ms, took one out & said "thank you."  All we could do was laugh...and get you the candy of course!  Thankfully, you'd slept on the plane so you never cried if your ears bothered you on the flight.

The house we rent now is awesome.  We went from a 1200 sq ft apartment to a 2600 sq ft house and it's wonderful.  You have a bedroom and a playroom.  I have a sewing studio and your daddy has an office.  We even have a guest room, which grandma and grandpa will appreciate.  You had so much fun just running around here those first few days!!

Overall, you've handled the move well.  You were nearly mute some days we were here the first month but recently you've started talking up a storm!  The other quirk you've developed is that you don't like to leave the house.  That's slowly changing but it's like you're afraid we'll move again or like you just don't want to go explore this new place.  You even hated going to eat suddenly and you've always enjoyed that.  We took you out yesterday and you enjoyed your meal.  Of course, it came with a free ice cream and you remembered that.  You drank your chocolate milk then said "ice cream...ice cream...ice cream."  We suggested you try eating lunch first.

You got a lot of smiles today because of your wardrobe.  You decided to wear the Halloween costume I made you (Dorothy dress) and the ruby red glitter shoes.  You looked sooo adorable!  It was funny to see a little girl dressed as Dorothy after Christmas though.

Speaking of Halloween, you had refused to try the costume on the whole time I was making it so the hem ended up being  a little long.  If I even held it up to you, you'd scream "YUCK!"  Thanks, Grace. :)  We were surprised on the big day though.  We were in the hotel room in Milwaukee & said, "Do you want to go get candy Grace?"  Well, for candy, you put the dress on right away.  You were pretty good at trick or treating.  Daddy had to hold your hand very tightly but you went up to houses with him.  You never said trick or treat but we did get a couple thank you's out of you.  In the car, the whole ride back to the hotel you said "thank you" to us over and over.  It was adorable.  Soon after, you fell asleep and poor daddy had to carry you through the whole hotel to our room.  He's a trooper though and didn't mind one bit.

We had Thanksgiving here three weeks after moving.  You'd been fussy all night the night before but I still had the big meal on the table at noon.  You slept through it.  When you finally woke up you were so miserable so we took you to another urgent care.  We were worried maybe your ear infections or sinus infection hadn't cleared up but they had.  The dr. told us you were just sick (as opposed to sick sick).

We flew back to Ohio the weekend before Christmas and spent four days.  You had just started talking more.  When I got off the plane with you I said we were going to see grandma & grandpa and they were here, right now.  You yelled "Yea!  Grandma! Yea!" and we ran through the airport together to find them. Oh Grace you are so loved.  There's not much better than seeing the close bond you have with them.  They played with you in the airport while we waited for our luggage and you had a blast.

We had three Christmas get togethers and your birthday party in just 3 days time.  That was a LOT to squeeze in on that trip!  You were fussy for a lot of the trip but I don't blame you one bit.  We'd just moved, we took yet another big plane trip to OH, there was a 3 hour time difference, lots of excitement, etc.  For your birthday party we kept it simple.  We filled the living room with balloons (about 80 of them), ate chocolate cupcakes with pink icing & ice cream, had you open presents and we were done.  You LOVED the room full of balloons.  Your party was a blast.  I just can't believe you're three.  Thankfully, you still like me to call you baby and hold you like a baby from time to time.  I think neither one of us are ready for you to grow up.

Flying back to WA was a bit miserable.  We knew how badly you were going to miss grandma and grandpa & I knew I was going to miss them, too.  At the airport you held so tightly to grandma's hand.  The whole time we'd been in OH, anytime people said goodbye, you'd grab ahold of grandma, grandpa, daddy and me to make sure we were staying with you.  We tricked you at the airport & I still feel badly about that but there wasn't a better way.  After we checked our bags, I told you "let's go potty."  You made grandma come with us but as soon as you & I went into a stall, grandma went out and they left.  Your daddy said grandma was just sobbing--we would have been, too, if we'd said goodbye.  When we came out, you immediately realized they were gone and threw yourself down to cry.  We were right by security though so we cheerfully said "Come on Grace, we gotta go!" and you followed grudgingly.  The rest of the day you refused to go anywhere alone with me, nervous that daddy would disappear on us, too.  I'm sorry baby.  We've seen you say goodbye to grandma and grandpa and at least an hour of sobbing is involved.  It really was for the best.

You slept through both flights but when we landed, you expected to see them.  At baggage claim, you made me cry because you were calling "Grandpa" and looking for them.  You handled them not being there pretty well.  I had a worse time with it!  When we came in the house, you started crying, angry that we were back here.  I wasn't too happy about it myself.  We spent the next day hanging out just watching cartoons together until it was time to run to the grocery store.  We went there to pick out a cake or cupcakes for your daddy's birthday (it was that day).  You picked out the perfect ones for him:  chocolate with pink icing.  You took 20 minutes to do it!   I guess you were just making sure you made the right choice.

We waited nearly 5 days before you Skyped with your grandparents again.  By then, you seemed to have accepted things.  You told grandma to "come" a few times and broke her heart a bit but playing with them through Skype seems to be ok.

You and I have been sick for the past week.  Christmas Eve you were sick so I rolled out the cookie dough & baked the cookies while you were sleeping.  Sorry, we didn't want you touching the dough and getting us all sick.  When you woke up and saw them, you tried to communicate with your dad by taking a cookie & a box of Cinnamon Toast cereal and pouring the cereal on the cookie.  "Momma" your daddy said "Gracie says these cookies need something on them!"  I whipped up some icing fast then.  We hadn't made those cookies since you were 2 the Christmas before.  I couldn't believe you remembered them but I was happy and excited that we had a tradition.  We assigned some cookies to you so that we wouldn't accidentally eat your cookies (and germs).  You had a blast frosting them, being so careful!

Up until Christmas Eve, we'd read books about Santa, talked about him a little, and watched tv shows about him.  We didn't take you to go see him because you aren't a fan of the close and personal visits with holiday characters (Easter Bunny included).  We weren't sure if you understood any of it.  Well, I got out the Santa plate & asked you to pick 3 cookies for Santa.  Oh Gracie, you were so cute!  You took your time, carefully picking out two of the cookies I had done then you seemed to think "Wait!  He needs one of mine, too!" and thoughtfully picked out one of yours for him, too.  You picked out a carrot for the reindeer, too & you were excited!  I was excited to show you the empty plate the next day but you were over it by then.  You were like "An empty plate?  Who cares?"

Christmas morning you were thrilled to see a train table and huge train set.  It was an hour before you even looked at the presents.  In fact, it was about 8:00 that night before we were done opening presents.  You'd open one then play with it for a long time.  We all took a 3 hour nap, too.  Other favorite presents this year?  Grandma & I found a talking doll at the thrift store in OH and you think it's amazing.  You loved the wooden pizza set aunt Emily and uncle Brian got you.  Matt & Amber got you a doll that pretends to eat bananas from a bowl and you love that, too.  You were mesmerized by the jewelry box with the dancing ballerina inside for awhile.  Really, you seemed to love all your gifts except for the ones that were clothes.  We got you a bunch of board games to play with you and you got some  Mon Dough and Play Doh sets that you loved, too.

Uncle Wayne, aunt Alicia and Jacob got you a ton of things, including a Tangled doll.  You hadn't seen a princess Disney movie before so we watched that with you while you held the doll & you were mesmerized.  You fell asleep before it was over, still holding your dolly.

You and I are just starting to feel better so hopefully we'll start the new year healthy.  My new year's resolutions with you are that we start exploring the fun stuff in Spokane together.  There's a mom's group we might try and I'm going to check into library story hours.  You're talking so much more we've decided to hold off on speech testing so that goal is on hold.  We're also going to start doing things together that we didn't have room for in the apartment in WI.  One of the first things we're going to do is make our own playdoh.  I can't wait!  I'm hoping to keep up with this blog for you better, too.

I'm off to bed now.  I love you Grace. You're MY baby.  You're the sweetest little girl in the whole world.

Mommy

Never Doubt God is Good

Grace,

     This past two months have been extremely stressful for your parents.  Just three weeks after moving here for your daddy's new job, we found out the company was being bought out.  My daddy (your grandpa) had been through a buy out before & I knew the truth:  no good comes from a buyout if you are the company being bought.

     A few months ago, your daddy did the unthinkable.  He started looking for another job before his job was in trouble.  Your daddy is a very smart man.  He has an intuition when it comes to business & sees signs before others do.  I hope that you consider his opinion on these matters when you're a big girl some day.  I'm telling you, your daddy may not ever wash ALL the dishes or put his laundry in the right hampers for me, but when it comes to business, he's right.

     When your daddy took this job, there was so much promise for it!  Just three weeks in when the buyout was announced, he called me and said "I'm going to throw up."  He felt so bad for moving us here.  We made this move because his job in MI was unstable.  We made this move so we'd have stability for you and for our family.  That secure feeling was taken away 3 weeks after moving here and every month since has been stressful because we haven't known what would happen in the buyout.  Your daddy has grown to absolutely hate his job and I don't blame him.  In the first week of August, he started seriously job hunting.

     I'll be honest with you Grace.  Mommy is very good at SAYING "God will put us where He wants us." "God won't put us in a bad situation that can't be worked out for good later" and "Nothing comes to us except through God."  Trusting God is a whole other battle for me.  I did great the first week of your daddy's interviews.  Since then it has been hard for me. Nothing about this has been making sense.  Why did God move us only to move us again 11 months later?  What is the plan here?  Plus, I felt guilty after seeing you with your grandparents recently.  Boy is there a love connection there!  You love them so much & whenever we'd go anywhere, you'd cling to grandma, lest she possibly run off without you.  They love you so much they can't bear to leave most times!   I sew when stressed Grace & believe me I have been sewing!!!  I cut over 500 doll diapers when your daddy was out interviewing in WA so I guess I'll be adding a doll shop soon to my online stores after I finish them.  Your Halloween costume is half finished already, too, and it's still Sept!

     My prayer for daddy's job interviews was the same:  Let our path be made clear to us.  When your daddy's phone interview with Washington went better than any other phone interview he's ever had, I thought "No way God wants us in Washington!"  Panic set in.  I don't know much about Washington.  Spokane doesn't have a zoo.  What if I'm not happy there?  What if this is the worst decision we ever make?  What if you hate us for taking us away from your grandparents?

     This past week you've actually wanted me to sing you to sleep.  I started with the same song every night, whose words spoke to my heart:
I don't want to leave here.  I don't want to stay.
It feels like pinching to me either way.
They place I was wasn't perfect but I had found a way to live.
It wasn't milk or honey but then neither is this.

There's a section that goes:
If it comes too quick, I may not recognize it.  Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?
If it comes too quick, I may not appreciate it.  Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?

It's about God's people wandering through the desert in search of the promise land.  This is how I've been feeling Grace.  We have loved a lot of things about Milwaukee but your daddy hates his job and I hate this stupid apartment.  Why all this moving?  Why this pit stop here in Milwaukee with this cheap, tiny apartment?  Is it so we can recognize and appreciate our blessings when they come?

I think that is why Grace.  Never mind that we can't always understand God's plans.  When the big picture finally comes into view, it's beautiful the way God works.  I don't see God's plan right now but I'm sure I will later.  I am so thankful that there are friends in my life who helped keep me semi-faithful this past few months.  I hope you have good friends like this someday.  When I didn't know how to trust God one step further, your aunt Emily happened to call and she reminded me that God is always faithful.  God provides for our needs.  It was the encouragement I needed when I needed it & a perfect example of how God works.

The job search has been a mess this time.  We had an offer here & an offer in WA.  The WA offer ended up needing negotiated a couple of times due to problems with the recruiter of all things.  There was a time we were wondering if God really did want us in WA.  One night we both prayed very hard for answers, saying we'd walk away from WA because it didn't look like God's plan and the next morning, WA worked out.  For the sake of honesty, I'll tell you that a company in IN really wants your daddy, too, but the only thing positive about the place is it's only 4 hours from grandma & grandpa.  In comparing the other two offers, WA really beats out the job here. In the words of your grandpa "It's an offer you can't refuse."  That's saying a lot for two grandparents that don't want to see you move across the country!

Your daddy signed the contract with WA last night.  I feel like we were standing on a plank over an ocean of uncertainty and just took a flying leap off it.  I guess in a way that's what we did.  There's so much more uncertainty this time, especially since our last move didn't work out.  I've never been to WA.  We watched a documentary on bear maulings recently and that didn't help!  We both hope this move is good for you and for us as a family.  We've had you living in a super tiny apartment all year but this move means we'll be able to rent a house 2-3 times this size.  You need space.  Any house we'll rent will look like a mini mansion compared to this place!  Our kitchen in the next place will be big enough for us to cook together, something that's been impossible in this tiny place.  Of course I'm worried about making friends, missing family, moving you (not to mention hoping you'll love airplane flights!), and just about everything related to your future.  There's a good chance we'll go overseas for a year with this job & while all the other changes scare me a bit I'm excited about that!  Overall, my biggest worry is taking you from your grandparents.  We're getting a new phone that will let you Skype from anywhere with them but I still worry that I'm ruining your life sometimes.  Of course, I worry about that when I let you eat Fruit Loops (your favorite cereal) instead of something healthier!

When I talked to your Grandpa a little while back, I told him I was worried.  We have one life, with a limited number of days.  If we moved to Washington, how many days do I have left to spend with them?  What is more important than time with family?  He was very reassuring.  My best friend Lisa reminded me that it is quality time, not quantity that matters.  She's also right that no matter what happens, we will all work to keep the bond and relationship strong. 

Your Veggie Tales video you've been making me replay over & over lately has reminded me that we should trust God's path.  Maybe the best way to spend our days on earth is to follow the path God gives us, be a blessing to those we meet, and appreciate the time we do have with our family instead of hoarding time as if it belongs to us and not to God.  Grace, I hope you're smarter than me & won't need to learn lessons from Veggie Tales at 34 years old!  I also hope you know that whatever path we follow, we are trying to follow what God wants for us, you included.  I love you and God is good!  We're off to Washington in six weeks--are you ready to become a mountain woman with me? :)

Busy, Busy, Busy!

Oh Gracie, you are such a busy little girl these days!  Adorable, curious, and lots of trouble.  There are so many things to tell you about!

Potty training has been back on.  You were trained at a year and a half then decided diapers were awesome and quit for awhile.  You're back to being a big girl now.  The difficult thing is that you love to wear dresses & insist on sitting on the regular toilet seat so we've had to teach you quickly to lift your dress.  I also had to teach you not to wipe with your dress.  You looked at me like "But mom, look how convenient this is?"  Oops!

This past week you seemed to realize that the toilet was a source of water. On Friday I caught you filling up your play dishes with water from the toilet.  A few days before that you were making spit balls of sorts by dunking toilet paper into the toilet & then throwing the ball against things because it stuck.  My you are inventive......and messy!

One more toilet training story:  Last week we toured a condo we might rent a few months from now.  You loved it--one of the few any of us have liked.  It was empty as the tenants had moved out awhile back.  We had you in a diaper and when you made yourself at home by yelling in the bathroom that echoed, we had a good laugh & didn't think anything of it.  Then, you shut the door & I stopped laughing.  I knew you wanted privacy.  Unfortunately, the place was so empty there was no toilet paper for what you were going to do.  We stood there & died of embarrassment as you grunted in the echoing bathroom, leaving little to the imagination of the woman showing us the condo!  We apologized profusely but she has a 3 year old potty training now so she understood.  When you gotta go, you gotta go.  Thank goodness we still had wipes in the car!

Eggs are so tempting for you.  Last week I found you cracking them on the floor.  Last night I caught you getting the carton out of the fridge & told you no no.  You went to shove the carton back in the fridge but it tipped over and open & nearly a dozen eggs fell on the floor and broke.  Oops again!  Your cooking skills really are coming along though.  You can make your own peanut butter and jelly sandwich!

Angelina Ballerina is your favorite show.  How much do you love it?  The other night you leaned up and kissed her on the TV, then said "I love you!" to her.  You practice dancing through the whole show.  You spin with your arms above your head and it's the cutest thing ever.  Don't worry, we will put you in ballet once you are three.  Of course, every time I grab the camera you stop dancing!  I'll catch you on film yet little girl!

Helping mommy glue nuts on a caramel apple!

I've been keeping busy making felt food toys and banners.  I'm on a bit of a deadline, trying to get as much to photographers now so I can have pictures back in time for the holiday rush.  You've been so sweet about helping me, from hoarding the pieces I need to make an item to helping place letters on banner & saying "There you go!" or "I did it!" in your sweet little voice each time.  Sales are picking up so we're back to going to the post office several times a week.  One day, grandma & grandpa had just left & you were so sad.  You have a 4 foot tall elephant appropriately named "Big Elephant" that you insisted on carrying everywhere even though he is HUGE.  I really needed to get some orders out so I ended up carrying you and Big Elephant out to the car, then into the post office and back out again.  You just laid on Big Elephant like you didn't care where I took you as long as you had him.  We cheered you up by letting you Skype with grandma & grandpa that night and all was better.

Hoarding the tops of my snow cones

Girl, you are a total Fashionista!  You love dresses, hats, and shoes.  LOVE them.  You love dresses so much you started insisting on wearing them to bed.  On the third night, I realized you would love nightgowns since they are dresses for bedtime and we whipped one up together the very next morning.  You helped a lot, handing me pins and saying "There you go!" each time with pride.  You loved the finished product & I gave a huge sigh of relief!  It's bigger than I planned but I guess that means you might be able to wear it for a full year.  That's rare with any outfit with as fast as you grow!

Going to have lunch with daddy

When it comes to fashion, you know what you like.  This picture shows 3 of the 5 pairs of shoes you had me buy this past month.  Yes, five pairs in a month.  We will be avoiding the shoe aisle for awhile so we can afford your education when the time comes.  The Hello Kitty galoshes really are cute and when you wear them with dresses like this you always get a smile from the strangers we pass.  The sparkling Disney shoe in your hand is like a ruby red slipped but in pink--can it get any better than that?  I don't think so!

The pink croc on the stairwell was an interesting purchase for us as parents.  Before we had you, we said they were ugly shoes and our daughter wouldn't be wearing them.  Then, I realized everybody else was wearing them and didn't want you to be left out so we bought them.  We love them.  They wash up easily, you can put them on yourself, and you love them enough to wear them to bed.  By the way, yes you wear shoes to bed often.  Right now you are still sleeping--a grey dress shoe on one foot and a black dress shoe (that is 2 sizes too small!!) on the other.  By the way, that black shoe is being passed on to a friend so don't get too attached.  You are too young to wear shoes too small just because they are cute!

While we're on the subject of shoes, little girl, where did you put our shoes?  I just helped your daddy search this place top to bottom to look for his black dress shoes.  This is obviously your doing because all the shoes in the shoe section of our closet are missing.  Your poor daddy had to change his pants & wear brown shoes instead because that was all he had left!

You haven't met a hat you haven't liked, which brings me to your bike helmet.  Yes, we got you your first bike!  It's a European style balance bike (no pedals), pink and you love it.  How cute are you?

Of course now that we got the bike, it's too hot to be out trying to ride it (101 yesterday with heat index of 115).  That hasn't stopped you.  You'll bring the bike in the house and try to ride it.  Very cute.

The helmet is the best hat you've ever seen in your opinion.  You wear it in the car a lot.  Each time, I pray we don't get in an accident where someone will think I'm such a bad driver that you have to wear a helmet!

Well, little girl, I'd better go.  You'll be waking up soon and there are still a few more things I want to get done before that happens.  Love you!