February 2014

I'm not even sure where to start!  Life seems to be going non-stop and my thoughts are just all over the place!  I'm pretty sure Addison is 2 going on 8.  The attitude, the gestures, the facial expressions, the vocab are just unbelievable to us.  This girl can talk!  I constantly get "reports" from school saying she was very chatty or very talkative.  She seems to be one of the more out spoken children in her classroom.  I really need to work on what I say because she REPEATS EVERYTHING.   She's so observant and even when I don't think she is paying attention, she must be because of the things she'll say.
We've been dealing with snow the last couple weeks which have made for some fun days.  We have gone out in the snow to play a little, but she gets cold/bored quick and wants to go back inside.  We have been house bound a few days and have made the best of the situation.  It was pretty fun just hanging out with Justin, Addison & Brinkley.
Addison is always changing up what are her "favorite" things to do are, but currently she really loves playing with play dough, memory (matching) games, throwing the ball for Brinkley, reading books upon books, playing with her stuffed animals in her crib and playing with stickers.  Her new favorite show is The Little Mermaid...it's an old cartoon that I remember Amanda & Shelly watching when they were younger so it kind of cracks me up that Addison likes it so much.  It's on every morning while we are getting ready for work and she just loves Ariel.  The show seems scary to me for a 2 year old, but she doesn't seem to be bothered by it.
Her current snack obsessions are marshmallows & chocolate.  She asks for marshmallows all the time!  When I introduced her to hot chocolate with marshmallows it was like her world exploded!  She couldn't believe 2 wonderful things could be eaten together.  She still has a cheese "problem" and asks for that as often as she asks for marshmallows.  I try to have enough good foods lying around so I can give her better snack options, but sometimes she wants nothing to do with it.
Addison is becoming more & more independent and wants to do or try everything on her own.  Simple tasks like getting on the bed take just a little longer because she is determined to do it herself.  I like this attitude, but sometimes it is exhausting!!  Everything has to go a little slower and she gets super ticked if you help.  She has been really into helping me make cookies and wants to do every step by herself.  She actually lets me do the eggs because in her words, "that's messy".  Addison wants to do a lot of things with Brinkley...she is usually a good dog, but gets a little skittish when Addison grabs her around her neck and tries to drag her around (I wouldn't enjoy that either!)  We've had to keep a closer eye on them, just because Addison is bossy with her.  Brinkley really is good with her in every other aspect, but I don't want to give her a reason to snap at Addy.
Other than that, nothing too exciting going on in our life!  Basically the same old stuff day to day and wondering when I might try and potty train Addy and upgrade her to a big girl bed!

Texas 2014

This year my mom decided she needed to head to Texas in February.  She asked if I'd be interested in the trip and I couldn't pass it up!  The trip was yet again, my mom, my sister Shelly, Addison and myself.  A lovely little girl's weekend.  Addy was such a trooper and did really well with all the flights.  There were four flights total, 2 there and 2 back with a long leg (2 1/2 hours) and a short leg (about 30 minutes).  Addy slept during the 2 1/2 hour trip out to Texas and then again on that same flight home!  This makes travelling so much easier.  She is also easily entertained with the movies & shows we have on our Kindle plus my mom got her several sticker books and regular books to play with and Shelly downloaded a few games on her iPad.
We arrived in Texas and went straight to the nursing home where my Grandma lives.  Addison warmed right up to her and gave her a big hug & kiss.  My Grandma had some stuffed animals on her shelves that Addison quickly made her own and was very comfortable in her environment.  Addison warmed up very quick to my Aunt Diane & Uncle Wes as well.  She had fun playing games with both of them and got use to their house in a short amount of time.
We had a great few days.  We went to an Aquarium on one of the days we were there and Addy had a blast.  That day we were able to take my Grandma out to dinner to the place right around the corner from the nursing home.  It was a pretty warm day, so it felt good to be out in the sun.  The next day was supposed to be nice again, so we decided to walk to the playground and let Addy blow off some energy.  She was in love with this playground and had a ball!!  She probably walked up the stairs to the slide a good 30 times and also went on the swings for awhile. Later in the day we had my Grandma over to my aunt's house for dinner.  We pretty much made a ton of different appetizers and just hung out all day.  It was nice to let Addison hang out and play with my Grandma.  This also gave us some time to hang with my Grandma while Addison took a nice nap.  She took some really good naps while in Texas, but slept like crap at night!  That child just doesn't like you changing up her bedtime routine.  She slept in bed with me all 3 nights and on the last night developed a little fever.  The poor thing was pretty toasty so I threw her into a late night bath hoping it would bring it down.  She eventually fell back asleep, but man was I tired!
By the time we arrived home, Addison was itching to see her daddy.  She was sooo happy to see him at the airport and I'm not sure she let him go until after we got our bags and got to the car.  Another great Texas trip in the books!!

New Years Eve

We hadn't planned to do anything for NYE because of all that had gone on the prior week.  With it being a work day, Addy being sick and travelling we just weren't feeling it!
Justin, Addison & I had a nice little dinner and hung out.  Addy went to bed a little later then usual, but nothing too exciting.  At about 10:30 I announced that I didn't think I was going to make it til midnight, however, Addy had other plans.  She woke up around 11 and I brought her downstairs to hang with us a little.  At 11:30 we brought her up to our bed to read and book and then it was bedtime again.  Justin & I watched the ball drop from our bed and then it was lights out for me!
Here is the only pic from that night...Addy in our bed reading a book at 11:30!

Christmas 2013 in NC

We made our long trek back home (around 12 hours!) the Saturday after Christmas.  Addison is such a trooper and did so well on the drive.  At one of our stops, she insisted on running around and taking a short walk, so we obliged.  We knew we weren't going to be getting home anytime soon and the kid needed to let some energy out!  Our carpets had been professionally cleaned while we were in NY and my parents had come over to put all the furniture back into place and tidy things up for our arrival.  It was so nice to come home to a very clean house!
The day after, we had our Christmas dinner/present opening scheduled with my family.  Addy was once again ecstatic to open gifts.  She was finally feeling/looking really good so that was nice.  Every time she opened a gift she said, "Look Guppy"!. My dad said it was like she knew my mom did all the shopping and was showing him what they got her.  It was a nice quiet finish to a long week and I actually got some family pictures!  It is nearly impossible to get a picture of all 4 of us, so i was soo happy!

Opening Gifts

Shelly & Addy

Take 1

Take 2

Take 3

Christmas 2013 in NY

Once again, I have let time get away from me!  Christmas & NYE have come and gone and we are almost to Valentine's Day!  Let's back up and recap our Christmas this year...we drove to Endicott the Saturday before Christmas (a Wednesday this year).  We would be in town until the following Saturday and had lots of fun plans!
Unfortunately, things did not play out as we had hoped!  Justin's grandma (Nana) was admitted to the hospital the day we were driving up because she was having a hard time breathing.  She would have to stay put at the hospital until Christmas Eve when the doctors decided to have her flown to the Cleveland Clinic.
Talk about change of plans! Also, Addy decided to get sick.  The poor kid started off with a bad cough & cold. Justin, Addy & I were scheduled to head out to the cottage on the Sunday after we arrived, but Addy woke up with a horrible, nasty cough.  Katie was only in town until Monday morning, so i knew I had to get a quick visit in ASAP, but I also knew I couldn't bring Addy to meet Katie's 2 month old baby and risk getting him sick.  I decided to leave Addy home with Justin and head out alone which was a good choice because Addy eventually got worse.  I got back from the cottage and Addy was in full blown clingy mode.  She didn't really sleep well that night and when she woke up in the middle of the night she had a nice fever.  Her cough kept getting worse and her fever wasn't going down and then she decided to throw up.  So next stop for us, was the walk-in clinic.  The doctor we saw was the same one we saw on our last trip!  She said it was good we brought her in because she sounded like she was on the way to getting bronchitis.  We got Addy some medicine and hoped she'd start feeling better soon.
Christmas Eve day was bizarre...pretty much everyone, except Addy & I, went to the hospital to spend time with Nana before she left for Cleveland.  Addy was still sick, but I really wanted to go see Nana before she left, so I packed her up and off we went.  Addy was thankfully in good spirits at the hospital and behaved the whole time.  We were in and out in a half hour because I really didn't want Addy catching anymore germs!  After, Addy & I went grocery shopping for a few of her favorite foods to hopefully get her eating again then we hung out alone til roughly 6:30 when family started showing back up.  That night we went to Uncle Greg's & Aunt Lisa's for a late dinner.  It was great to see everyone and Addy had such a great time with her cousin Jordan.  Jordan is only 2 months younger then Addy and they were two peas in a pod!  They had fun chasing around Nicole & Natalie's little dogs and just hanging out in general.  Addy didn't get to bed until 10:30 that night, but it was definitely worth it.  She slept good that night and woke up looking somewhat better on Christmas day.  She still had her sick eyes and would go back & forth between feeling great and feeling yucky, but overall, the day was good.  Addy opened WAY more presents than any child ever needs and she loved it all.
The day after Christmas it snowed a lot!  Addy was on the mend, but I wasn't going to chance it and take her out in the cold to play.  Instead we watched Grandpa do the snow plowing from inside.  She loved watching him!  For the remainder of the days we were in NY, we laid pretty low.  We met up with no one else and just tried to enjoy the little time we had left.  Here are some pictures from our trip...

Sick baby!

Walk-In Visit

My sick lil Elf...Christmas Day

Gannon, Addy & Adam

Surrounded herself with her presents!

On the mend!

December 2013

Wow, the past couple of months seem to have really gotten away from me!  So much has happened, but I haven't really felt like reflecting on it.  Within a short two month span, we surprisingly found out I was pregnant and then seemingly just as quickly, found out I had miscarried.  I didn't want to write about it, but I also don't want to forget about it.  These turn of events have made me realize yet again, just how precious life is.  We saw a little heartbeat back in early November.  After some light bleeding two days before Thanksgiving I went in to get checked out by the doctor.  They unfortunately couldn't find a heartbeat anymore...the baby was measuring in around the 9 1/2 week mark which meant it had really just "happened".  So many emotions were had by all.  Justin & I were obviously upset, but tried to remember just how thankful we are.  We have a very happy, healthy 2 year old little girl who just lights up our entire world.  Addison definitely helped us push forward - she kept us smiling over those very tough days.  As time goes on, it doesn't hurt as bad.  I still think about where I would be in this pregnancy week-wise and think about how Addy would have been with a sibling.  Hopefully, one day we will be able to have another child and give Addison a sibling.  

On to happier things!
Since turning two, I feel like Addison has become a full blown little person.  She has SUCH a personality on her!  Justin & I took Addy to her first parade...it was the Raleigh Christmas parade and we had a great time!  Addy loved the horses, princesses (pageant queens), floats, dancers, dogs and so much more.  On the flip, she hated anyone who was dressed in a character costume, motorcycles & clowns!  

My family also took Addison to the Raleigh Museum the Saturday after Thanksgiving just so we could all get out of the house and do something fun.  We all had a great time, but my favorite thing happened at breakfast that morning. While Addison was sitting on my mom's lap she looked at us all and announced, "I pooping on Grandma!"  Now, i know when she says pooping, she really means peeing, but still it was hysterical.

On Grandma's lap at breakfast

Communication. She has been speaking in short sentences for a little while now (Addison wants M&M's, blow on food, have a good day mama, love you too!)  It is getting easier to communicate with her and I feel like we have actual conversations.  Don't get me wrong, she still has moments of pure giberish, but that mostly happens when she is singing.   A couple of weeks ago, Justin said to Addy, "Are you an Octonaut?" (Disney characters) and Addison's response was "I'm not an Octonaut, I'm a princess!"  We are trying to get away from the princess mentality, but she does love her princess shows!  Her two favorite songs right now are Jingle Bells & Enchancia, Enchancia (Sofia song).  

Attitude. Addison can be so so sweet but on the flip can be so so sour!  She has tantrums on the daily when she doesn't get what she wants and they are BAD!  I think the tantrums are extra bad right now because she her two-year molars are trying to come in...at least i hope!  She has such a mischievous side to her and is pretty defiant.  If you are going to give her instructions, you have to be ready to follow through by forcing her to do it because she will hugely ignore you if she isn't interested in it.  I have to try and remember her sweet moments when she is being "bad"!  She can be so loving and cuddly!

Sleep. She is going to bed around 8 and wakes anywhere from 6 -7:30.  We have had a few sick nights recently where she has joined us in the middle of the night, but hopefully she will go back to sleeping through the night soon!  When she goes to bed at night, she talks or sings to her buddies that are in her crib and then usually drifts off to sleep peacefully.  I love listening to her on the monitor at night because you never know what she will say!

Hanging with her buddies

Meals. Addison is still a pretty good eater.  She still has her preferences of Mac & Cheese, pizza & hot dogs (all very healthy, i know), but will try other things.  She is really into pears right now and cheese is always a favorite.  

Other tidbits I want to remember: Addison is pretty good with her manners.  She is consistent with please, thank you and your welcome.  if she forgets, she quickly remembers when prompted.  She is a great little helper.  She seems to really like little chores, such as: feeding Brinkley, putting her dirty clothes in the basket, wiping up the table, unloading the dishwasher, helping with laundry, throwing trash away and so on.  She is happy when she helps and I like that!  Addison knows the morning routine and recently told Justin, "Daddy get your shirt, Brinkley hungry".  We broke out in laughter because she knew the sequence of the events.  Lately she has enjoyed getting her nails painted.  When the paint comes off a nail, she requests that I paint more on.  She can count easily to ten (although she forgets 2 most of the time!) and has starting working towards 20.  Colors still seem to give her a hard time, but she is getting better.  Her favorite books right now are the llama, llama series.  We have three of the books and she wants to read all three every night multiple times.  I have tried using the "time-out" technique with her, but she seems to enjoy it!  If she does something bad, she'll say "I go sit in time-out" like it's a fun thing to do.  Addison "helped" us put the Christmas tree up and she has been really good with it.  She touches the ornaments occasionally, but doesn't try to destroy anything (knock on wood). 

Last, this child is so weird, she enjoys sipping water out of the top of my contact case!?  She loves filling up these tiny tops and then drinks the water from them.  I have an extra case that is just for Addy so she isn't drinking the contact solution residue left on the ones I actually use!

Next on our "to-do" list after the holidays is potty training!!! Oh the fun we will have!!

Drinking from a contact case top

A carriage ride through Brier Creek Shopping Center with Marty the horse

Addison's 2nd Birthday Party

I can’t believe it has taken me this long to write about Addison’s 2^nd Birthday party!

The day came and went in the blink of an eye, but I know Addison had a great time (when other children weren't trying to use her toys obviously!)  I didn't really have much to do other then prep some food, put decorations up and get the birthday girl ready to roll.  The Friday night before her party, I went to my parent’s house with all the groceries for the party and set up shop.  I enlisted the help of my mom, sisters and even Justin.  Everyone was hugely helpful!  My mom, Amanda and I did the majority of the food, Shelly watched Addison to make sure she didn't get into any trouble and Justin made the pizza rolls. It was a group effort and worked out well.  The menu included: Mac & Cheese, pizza rolls, little hot dogs in crescent rolls, veggies & dip, fruit kabobs, chips & salsa, Swedish meatballs, sugar cookies and cake.

On Saturday morning, Justin, Addison and I just hung out for awhile.  Once she went down for a nap, it was go time for me.  I showered, got completely ready and then headed over to my parents.  Once I was there, my sisters helped setup the tables, decorations and put the finishing touches on the food.  We were in good shape and surprisingly didn't have to run around like crazy people.  Eventually, Addison woke up from her nap and Justin brought her over to my parents for the big party.  The party started at 4:30 and we were ready to go!  Some of our friends were out of town, but we still had a good showing.  There were 3 other kids at the party, which was actually a pretty good number.  We ate an early dinner and mingled for a little while.  After everyone was done with food, we moved on to the present portion of the event.  Addison was pretty good, but had a fit if anyone took one of her new toys away from her!  We did have some crying moments, but got past them quickly.  Soon it was cake & cookies time…we sang Happy Birthday to Addison and she looked so happy!  She ate some of her cake, but was mostly interested in running around with her friends.  The kids ran around for awhile before everyone called it quits.  It had been a long day for me, so I wasn't complaining!  All-in-all it was a great day and I still can’t believe little Addison is 2!