two.

Lunch at Subway

 

Silly Girl

Where has the time gone?  It is hard to believe two years ago we unexpectedly welcomed this tiny little bundle!  Katherine made an entrance none of us will forget and has been keeping us laughing ever since!

She is such a sweet little girl with a wonderful disposition. Although, she has started to exercise her independence lately.  This morning at church she wanted to be measured like Luke!

Vocabulary - She is really talking a lot now.  She can talk in 4-5 word sentences.  She will repeat most anything you say and seems to understand everything!

Learning - Katherine knows several colors, numbers and shapes.  She likes anything artsy - coloring, painting, stickers, etc.  She knows several animals by sight and what noise they make.  She knows she is two, but holds up three fingers!

Eating - oh, sweet girl...this is still an area that needs some work.  She remains very picky and eats very few, if any vegetables.  She likes most fruit. Lately, she has begun to eat more meat.  She will normally eat steak and chicken.  Sometimes a pork loin.  She loves milk, cheese and yogurt.

Activities - pretty much anything Luke is doing!  She loves baby dolls, stuffed animals, blocks and her kitchen stuff.  She also loves to be read to and we do this daily. 

Potty - After her premature foray into pottying several months ago we have hit a roadblock.  We are encouraging potty use frequently and the same at school.  She sits on the potty a lot but rarely produces anything!  She mainly likes to get the toilet paper when she is "all done"!


We are truly blessed by our sweet girl!

Catching Up

Bop and Katherine got a little nap in

We have spent the past several days catching up with the house.  It ended up taking two nights for Paul to get the sink and disposal back together.  He didn't have a part he needed Tuesday night so it was Wednesday after supper before we had water in the kitchen.  We had two dishwasher loads ready and waiting as soon as it was hooked back up!

The Olymics started so we are trying to keep up with that, too.

We have also been getting ready for Katherine's party!  Can't believe baby girl is going to be 2! We ate Mexican with Mom last night and this morning we went to Gallatin.  We have found someone to rent Kitty's house so now begins the process of cleaning out years and years of memories and belongings.  Bill and Paula are handling everything so nice -- each of the three boys and their familes will go through the house and write down anything they might like to have.  Once the three lists are made, they will compare them and divide everything.  After that was complete Paula insisted on keeping the kids for awhile so Paul and I could work at the house uninterrupted.

She brought them home this afteroon.  They were both asleep in the car when she got here so we let them sleep for a bit. 

Tomorrow is the BIG day -- Katherine is so excited!

New Kitchen!

Not everyone shared my enthusiasm over the new counters

He was happy when we stopped for Italian Ice!

Today was a kind of busy day.  I ran the kids to school this morning and got home in time for Terminix to remedy our recent ant infestation.  I was beginning to think it was my poor housekeeping that was driving the ants in, but the nice buy guy informed me there was an ant colony right outside the porch so they were making a beeline right to the kitchen from a space under the back door.  Whew....I won't have to fire the maid!

Shortly after he left the grainte installers arrived! I contemplated keeping Luke home so he could see them work, but decided that wasn't a good idea.  He would have probably been in the way and with the some of the sealer they used it was a good thing he wasn't here. It was very strong! 

Since I was trapped in the house all day I did the chore I procrastinate on the longest...ironing.  We literally wait until the clothes are falling out of the basket and we have nothing to wear before one of us tackles the job.  So, I got a lot accomplished!

They were here for over three hours, but it looks fabulous!  Mom came over and brought lunch so she could see it.  I tried to get most of the drawers and cabinets cleaned out and put back together before I left.  Paul has to install the new faucet and hook up the garbage disposal, hopefully tonight.  Then I am just waiting for the new cabinet hardware I ordered to come in and our little mini reno project will be complete!

Getting Ready

Our new countertops are scheduled to go in tomorrow!  Tonight, Paul and I worked to get the old counter and sick dismantled.  This saved us some $$$ instead of the company doing the demo.  It was fairly easy -- I say that since all I did was help carrying it downtairs.  Paul unscrewed everything and cut the caulk lines.  We installed new pendant lights a few days ago.  To say I am excited is an understatement!  Mom came over tonight to entertain the kids while we worked.  It went very smoothly and did not take that long.

Spellbound...

Much to my dismay our kids love the television!  And, really what child doesn't?  We do pretty good at limiting how much they get to watch.  This afternoon after church and lunch they wanted to watch something.  Luke was supposed to put his comfy clothes on, but failed to do so.  Since he was running around in his underwear Katherine had to do the same!  I thought this picture was so funny....pretty much identical profiles.  We did get naps after this which was a plus!

My Bubba

I don't know who was more excited to see who this afternoon!  Katherine had been asking about Luke every so often since he had been with Nonna.  She was so excigted to see him!  He had a great time in Tullahoma and was well behaved from report.

I worked this morning so Paul and Katherine visited in Gallatin.  When I was finished working we all went to see Kitty.  She was so surprised to see us -- we interrupted her Bingo game!  She did not seem to mind at all though!

We spent the rest of the night hangin out and catching up with Luke!

Friday Night Fun!

Luke got a special treat tonight.  He went to Tullahoma with Nonna to spend the night at Nanny's.  He was so excited!  We took advantage of being one kid down and met Paul for supper.  He suggested Mellow Mushroom and I quickly agreed.  We had not been there in forever and I do enjoy their pizza!  It was suprisingly easy to get in and out considering it was Friday night.  We ordered  small pizza and split it.  We were shocked when Katherine ate some of it!  It had pesto, mozarella and tomatoes.  She loved it!  It seems that her appetite is improving and she is branching out in her taste palate!

Silly Kids!

It really is Monkey see, Monkey do around here.  If Luke does something then Katherine does it and vice versa.  It doesn't matter if it is a silly face, a dance, running, jumping, etc.  They really are like two peas in a pod.

Redneck Grillin'

Tonight, I made salmon for Paul to grill.  When I went down to check on them this is what I saw.  Luke had gotten out the chairs for them to sit in while Paul was grilling!

Our Kiddos

We only have a few weeks left with our Sunday School class.  We have decided not to teach again this coming year.  We are planning to get plugged in to an adult class of our own. This little kids have been so much fun and we love all of them!  I know I remember my 3-year old SS teachers and have great memories Mr. and Mrs. Duffield - I hope our little kids can say the same thing 30 years from now.  What a blessing they have been to us!

Rain, Rain Please Stay!

JoAnn's clearance section = easy entertainment



Showing off his pirate ship





We started the morning by eating breakfast at MacDonald's.  We let the kids play on the playground for a while.  There were some things we needed to finalize at the granite company today so while we waited for them to open we went to JoAnn's to find some things for Katherine's birthday party.  Unfortunately we did not find what we needed but the kids had fun.  They picked out some fabric for Nonna to make them a pillowcase out of.  While we were in the granite place the bottom fell out of the sky.  It rained and rained and we need it! 

The rest of the day was low-key.  We ended up grabbing supper tonight and taking it to Nonna's.  We finished putting her bookshelves together for her.  Tonight after Katherine went to bed she woke up crying.  We decided we were going to let her cry it out.  Well, she cried so hard she made herself sick...she threw up everywhere!  Yuck!  We cleaned that up, but both kids were wired after that.

Friday the 13th

Katherine wanted to wear Luke's AU hat this morning!

So excited to see BopNene tonight!

There was nothing scary about our Friday the 13th.  We made a last minute trip to Murfreesboro after work.  Jon and Kristen purchased a foreclosure this week to flip so we wanted to check it out.  Bill and Paula came, too.  We all met at Chuy's to eat.  It was so fun doing something impromptu like that.  We went to look at the house first which is great!  Just needs some updating and cosmetic fixes and it should be back on the market soon.  The wait was long at the restaurant but none of us minded because it was so nice outside.  The kids were great.  They got to watch the tortillas being made and got their very own dough ball!

It was a late night for them, but it was worth it!

Feelin' the Love

There is a whole lotta love between these two!

You would think it was WackyTacky day at school again!

Most of the time I lay the kids outfits out the night before.  I failed to do that last night so Paul got to pick out their clothes for school.  Luke's was not too bad - red shorts, navy shirt with a green tractor and green Crocs.  Katherine, oh Katherine -- she had on plaid shorts with a top with snails on it and just to add to that her rain boots!  They were quite a sight walking in to school this morning.  I explained to both of their teachers that Dad got them dressed this morning.  They all just knowingly  nodded their heads!

Luke likes to stand in doorways or openings and ask that you "pay a ticket" to pass through.  Usually my ticket is tickling him.  Kaherine's ticket is to gice him a big hug!  So sweet!

BopNene

Sportin' their presents from Jim and Claudia!

All weekend Katherine has been asking for BopNene.  She calls Bill "Bop".  We called them from the pool last to night to see if they would like to meet for lunch after church.  We ate at Mimi's Cafe.  There was a wait and it took a long time to get our food once we ordered.  The kids grew restless quickly.  The food was OK but Paul and I both said we would not go back there anytime soon.  The kids enjoyed seeing Bill and Paula! 

The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing, installing new kitchen lights and getting ready for the company to come do the template for our new counters this week!

A Whole Day with Nothing To Do...

We couldn't believe it when we realized we had nothing going on this weekend.  After last weekend's rush and a mid-week holiday it was exactly what we needed.  We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast that Paul cooked, did some chores around the house then headed out for some shopping for a mini kitchen makeover.  Both kids fell asleep on the way to Hendersonville so I did the looking while Paul stayed with the kids.  I ended up buying pendant lights at Lowe's and Home Depot to bring home to try.  We had lunch at Zaxby's before we went to Mom's for a bit.  There were a few things she needed our help with. 

Resting was next on the agenda and then we all went to the pool after supper.  The water was so warm and that is how I like it!  Katherine got right in without protest so she and I played while Luke stuck close to the steps with his water gun.  We picked up some goggles and new floaties for him at Wal-Mart this morning.  He loves that he can open his eyes under water now! 

Oh, What Kids Say!

For Mother's Day and Father's Day Luke's teachers asked the kids different qestions about their parents.  I have been meaning to take a pictures of these for awhile, but finally remembered this week.  I think they are hilarious!  Apparently I work on a cash register and Paul likes to cook hamburgers and hot dogs! Considering, we have never made hot dogs at home I find that one especially funny!

Our Independence Day

The cupcakes Luke and Nonna made

Kathrine - post cupcake!

Someone thinks her shoes belong on her hands

Luke got a special treat by getting to spend the night with Nene and Pop last night!  I was able to get up and get to work early this morning.  Paul and Katherine went to Gallatin mid-morning to pick Kitty up for their cook-out lunch.  I worked until about 2 then had a late lunch at the farm.  I didn't stay too long because we needed to get home for naps before we went to Mom's for supper. 

Paul smoked some pork for bbq and Mom had the trimmings.  We decided not to go see fireworks again tonight.  Since the kids were up so late last night we didn't want to put them even further behind schedule.  We were all in bed at decent hour and Paul and I watched some on TV.  Seems like this day went by in a blur!

Fireworks on the Third!

Katherine had a good seat for the show!

We ran in to one of the little girls in our Sunday School Class.

We had a low-key 3rd.  I was off since I work tomorrow.  The kids went to school for awhile so I could get some errands done.  The main one being finally deciding on the granite for the kitchen!  I went in to get the paperwork done.  Tonight, we decided to go the fireworks in Hendersonville. Bill and Paula met us there.  Katherine fell asleep on the way there so I sat in the car with her for a little bit.  We saw one of our kids from Sunday School so that was fun for Luke.  They ran around and played before the show started.  All the kids enjoyed the fireworks.  They did not seem to phase Katherine at all - she went from lap to lap.  It was a later than usual night for the kids, but they won't be in any hurry to get anywhere tomorrow.

All Smiles!

Princess wanted to eat breakfast with K this morning

Not quite sure what this face is about

You never would have known it was Monday around here with how happy the kid were this morning.  They both slept great and are recovered from the weekend. Now, if Paul and I could recover as quickly.  We did have a little break in the heat so the kids and Paul played outside while I cooked supper.  It is funny how 90 does not feel that  bad anymore! 

Mother Daughter Dinner

Virginia showcasing her domestic side!

We continued our busy weekend today.  After church we ate at Subway which was followed by playtime and naps. The heat is relentless -- still topping 100 degrees!  We are staying inside as much as possible.  We took advantage of having the Boyds in town one last time tonight.  Mom hosted us for dinner.  Mrs. Reynolds, Virginia, Mrs. Morris, Laura, Mom and I had a great time!  The meal was simple which was perfect.  We more enjoyed touring Mom's new place and catching up and reminiscing about the past.  I promised Paul I would be home in time to help get to the kids to bed so I had to make an early exit.  Paul has done overtime with the kids while I have enjoyed my friends this weekend.  I told him he needs to plan something fun away from the kids soon. 

It was a great way to kick off a new month!