My Baby...Growing Up

I know that I have not posted in what seems like FOREVER! I had a moment tonight that I really felt like writing about, so I guess I am jumping back into my blog. It has been a difficult week, so this moment, however fleeting, was so precious that I felt like I needed to document it. Lilly Grace had been playing downstairs with her Daddy and had on her princess Belle dress. I was walking up the stairs with her, and she was struggling with getting up the stairs...tripping on her dress and falling as she tried to navigate each step. I grabbed her waist and explained to her that if she picked up her dress in the front that she wouldn't trip. I held her dress for her as she ascended the stairs, and a mixture of emotion and premonition hit me like a ton of bricks. As I held her dress, I got a mental picture of her wedding day and me helping her walk in her dress. I began to tear up as a realized (and prayed) that I would be able to help her navigate her way to what will one day be her future husband on the one day that she will actually be a princess. I wanted to capture that moment forever...as a little girl who needs me to tell her how to walk in her gown because I know that one day she will be able to do it on her own. I said a little prayer in the middle of my emotional moment that she will again ask for my help on her wedding day and that she will still remember how much I love her and cherish her precious heart as I let her go, as a woman, to begin her life with her husband. I love you, Lilly-Bean!

"Uh Oh!"

Pressley said her first actual words (that she meant to say) today. It was the cutest thing...she was sitting on the floor in front of the fridge playing with the magnets when she dropped one. She looked down and said, "uh oh." I looked at Mike and said, "did you hear that?" I thought for a minute that it was a fluke, seeing as how she isn't even saying "Mama" or "Dada" yet (well, she does, accidentally say dada sometimes, but not in direct reference to Mike). Then she picked up another magnet, threw it down, and said, "uh oh" again. She repeated this a few times, which I am sure had something to do with the fact that she realized she had an audience. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry...I did laugh because it was hilarious, but I wanted to cry because I feel like Pressley has truly grown up in an instant. I am not sure if it is just because she is the second child or what. With LG, it always seemed as though we waited forever for the "next" thing to happen, but with Pressley it feels like I just blinked and it's almost been a year since she was born. I just want to put her in slow motion so I can enjoy every moment of her like I did with Lilly Grace. I guess the only remedy is to keep having kids so I can keep having moments:) (no, I am not dropping any hints or even thinking about a number three right now!!!)

I thought I would share some pictures that Lilly Grace took of my little Pressley just so we could freeze this moment in her life...the day she spoke her first words. LG has become quite the photography fanatic...her angles need work, but she's not half bad for a two-year-old. By the way, those are two little teeth you see in the picture...they just sprouted last week.

Gymboree Rocks!

Yeah, yeah...I know it's been a while...get over it. Anyway, I took Lilly Grace shopping today because it's Gymbucks redemption time. If you are a total Gymboree freak (which also makes you a total geek like me), you know what that means. LG is really into shopping these days and loves the mall, so I took her to good old GA Square this evening to buy some clothes. I intentionally DID NOT take her to the MOG (Mall of GA) because the Disney Store is strategically placed right across from Gymboree, which assures every mother who walks out of Gymboree a trip to Disney Princess land filled with toys from floor to ceiling that every kid wants and is totally willing to pitch a fit for. That's called planning ahead...I didn't have the energy to convince Lilly Grace that she doesn't need a Minnie Mouse coffee mug. Ok, to the point...we bought bathing suits!!!! I know it's January, but I like to think ahead. We are going to the beach in June...I know what you're thinking, and I don't care...they were just too dang cute to resist. LG picked hers out (the cute green one-piece and matching cover up) and I picked the adorable pink bikini for Pressley...can't you just see that little butterball on the beach with the butterfly fanny stuck up in the air - I CAN'T WAIT!!!! Maybe she'll actually agree to touch sand. As for LG, I'm not counting on it.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I know I have not posted in forever...I have been completely absorbed with reading every night. There is something about the quiet of a house with sleeping children and a roaring fire tended to by my wonderful husband that makes me want to sit in the recliner and read. I am almost done with Breaking Dawn, so I will be back to posting on the blog more often.

Okay, so I know it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but pre-Christmas preparations are in full swing at the Marlar house. We put up one tree and still have one left to go...I am thinking of nicknaming Mike "Ebeneezer" because he cannot stop complaining about all of the "stuff" everywhere that comes along with Christmas. We took the girls to have their pictures made with Santa, which did NOT go over very well. I thought I had Lilly Grace prepared for Santa by pumping her up for the entire week. She had her list ready to spout off to him, and she actually seemed like she was going to be okay with it when she first saw him...that all took a turn for the worse when we got within a five foot radius. She started crying, Pressley started crying, and I almost started crying...needless to say, the pictures will probably by endearing in twenty years.

We also made the trek to Toys R Us to buy all of the toys from Santa...I have to say that I was disappointed. There just isn't a big selection of toys for two/three year old girls. There are tons of Barbies, Hanna Montana, and High School Musical...all of which is too old for LG. There's also a lot of baby things for kids up to two years, but not a lot in between. She's not really into babies, so that left us with lots of Play Dough, Art Supplies, and Leapster (which is really for kids 4-8, but she's really into games and stuff). At least she'll be able to practice her numbers and letters with some of the games that we bought. After we got everything, we went to Wal Mart for some other stuff, and I realized that a lot of the toys we bought were cheaper there...so we went BACK to Toys R Us so I could return the expensive stuff and save a few bucks. At least Mike and I got to go to lunch...that was nice.

Thanksgiving is this week, and so begins the crazy next month that is the "holidays." We have a turkey-frying party Wednesday, Thanksgiving at Nana & Papa Chuck's on Thursday, the Cory Smith concert on Friday, Thanksgiving at Grandmother's on Saturday, and oh yeah...did I mention that LG is spending the night in the "Georgia Bus" for the Tech game? What were Nana and Papa Chuck thinking? We'll see how that goes...

Blessed

Okay, it's been so long since I blogged that I don't even know where to begin! This calls for a list...

1. Before we left for vacation, we took the girls to the Pumpkin Patch here in Jefferson. They had a new maze this year, so we decided to let Lilly Grace give it a try. She quickly realized that there was candy hidden down a certain path...Sweet Tarts (her first time eating them), so instead of trying to find them over and over again each time she went through the maze, she politely asked Mike to pick her up so she could see over the barriers to the candy. Sometimes she's too smart for her own good.

2. Speaking of smart, we were having a conversation on the way to Janet's the other morning about the moon, which is now in the sky when we leave the house every morning. Here's how it went:

LG: "Mommy, looka the moon! It's beautiful, shiny, and big."

Me: "Yes, sweetie, it's a full moon."

LG: "It's way up high - I don't want to touch it."

Me: "Well, that's a good thing because you can touch it from here."

(about five minutes later - sun is coming up)

LG: "Mommy, the dark is going away...can you make it dark again."

Me: "No, sweetie, the sun is coming up and the moon is going down. The sun brings light during the day."

LG: (very sad) "Well, I want to touch the moon before it goes to bed."

Me: (we're out of the car now) "Well, maybe one day you will touch the moon."

LG: (jumping, trying to reach it) "Mommy, I can't touch that moon because it's too high. Maybe if I had an airplane I could reach it."

NOTE: I have never explained airplanes to her

3. We went to Jamaica, mon. One word - AWESOME! There is something to be said for all-inclusive resorts....you don't have to carry money (or worry about it for that matter)...you can eat really good food and have really good drinks at any hour of the day as much as you want without paying or tipping...people wait on you hand and foot...you can scuba, snorkel, go sailing...and you don't ever have to step off the grounds of the resort (and that's a good thing!). We stayed a Couples Negril http://www.couples.com/ and I highly recommend it to anyone seeking ultimate relaxation at an affordable price.

4. I have the best husband on the planet. It is our five year anniversary this weekend, and our gift to each other was the trip to Jamaica. We are on a strict no-gift policy this year. Well, this evening, Mike said, "I want to give you your anniversary gift a little early," to which I replied, "you better not have bought be anything." (Yes, I am one of those women who really means "don't buy me anything") He led me to the computer and proceeded to start a video that he created and burned on a disc. I sat at the computer and cried as I watched the sweetest, most romantic thing I have ever seen. He made a video of all of the pictures from when we were dating, when we got married, and when we had kids...put it to music ("A Moment Like This" by K. Clarkston)...and even had captions edited in with sweet things like "And then our family grew - Lilly Grace - May 2005" and "One just wasn't enough - Pressley Kate - April 2008." I swear, sometimes I wonder what I did to be so blessed...there are not enough diamonds, cars, or expensive things in the world that compare to how rich I am.

My Take on the Current Political Situation...as Quoted by MamaNeena

Okay, I have a good friend from college who blogs daily and is quite hilarious. She posted her political rant on her blog today, and I couldn't have said it better myself (well, I probably wouldn't have cussed as much because my family reads this). So here it is...

"...here is my take on politics.
Suck it!
To all those folks out there bitching about paying and not paying taxes - suck it! Taxes will never, ever, ever go away so just pay your share and shut up!
To all those folks that are all upset about the war and the soldiers and what is and isn't our place in all of it - suck it! My brother and his wife are over there doing their job and doing it well. Try saying thank you for a change rather than a bunch of political mumbo jumbo. They might appreciate it.
To all those folks that are up in arms about education and if it is working or not - suck it! Quit blaming teachers. Quit blaming schools. Quit blaming government. Quit blaming parents. Maybe, just maybe, it could be the fault of the kid. Take responsibility, do your homework, quit expecting miracles from teachers, and take an interest in your kids and their lives. And, for Pete's sake get that damn cell phone off your kid's ear and make the little f*#ker do his assignment!
To all those people saying 'gimme, gimme, gimme' - suck it! Get a job, do some hard work, and quit expecting everyone to help you all the time. If you only do what you've always done then you'll only get what you've always gotten.
To all those folks making issues with health care, social security, and the like - suck it! I'm just tired of hearing about this one. We live on one income by choice, pay for our own health care, insurance, retirement, and whatnot. We're doing fine. Make the right choice for the future, work hard, and quit blaming your money problems on everyone else.
Just vote for the candidate of your choice. Be confident in your choice. Realize that there will be no huge changes overnight and just be happy and feel blessed that you get to live in this wonderful country in the first place. Quit picking on the politicians so much because none of us are stepping up and giving the job a whirl.
Plus, I can guarantee that there is not a single person out there that wouldn't have something from their past jump out if they were in politics. None of us are perfect and most of us couldn't do the job we are asking McCain and Obama to do. So, suck it!
God Bless America!"

-MamaNeena
http://mamaneena.blogspot.com/

Amen, sister!

Got Gas?

Okay...I am gonna talk about gas...both kinds...
WHY ISN'T THERE ANY GAS??? We live in America for Pete's sake...it's the year 2008...I feel like I am in a time warp back to the gas crisis of "I probably wasn't even alive" year. The hot topic of conversation today at school (among students and faculty) was "is your tank full?" Maybe that's the problem...maybe we've created mass hysteria to the point where every person on the road is stopping to fill up when they get to 3/4 of a tank so they are full in the event of an "emergency"...okay I could understand this if you are pregnant or something and need to get somewhere quick, but c'mon...most of the people in this town are either driving to the grocery store, the Peach State Speedway, or the Pendergrass Flea Market (I do love Jackson County even though I make fun of it often)...all of which are less than five miles away. There was even a rumor that they were going to cancel the GA vs. Alabama game (GASP!), but Sonny Purdue didn't want to tick off all of his friends in the upper echelon of GA football, so instead he's ticking off the whole state. I can see it now...all of the drunk, overpaid, middle aged alumni will be obsolete during the game while the criminal element in Athens is busy siphoning gas from the half-million dollar RV's all over town (hehe)...okay, I shouldn't laugh. Although some people blame Ike and Gustav for the shortage, I personally like to blame Sonny Perdue...I don't really have a good reason other than the fact I am really mad at him for taking away state raises, so this just gives me another reason not to like him. Where is ol' Sonny now? Why, he's in Europe, escaping his state in the middle of a crisis he's responsible for...what a good little politician. Hope he has fun being driven around in a car full of gas!

On to a more positive subject...(sorry, had to get that frustration off my chest...I know, I am cynical and angry right now)

Okay, just a note on the second type of gas...Lilly Grace has become quite aware of it, and she thinks it's funny. Of course, I am horrified because I detest bodily functions...especially ones that make weird noises. Needless to stay, when she looks at me, giggles, and says, "Mommy, I tooted!" all I can do is laugh.