a teaser

I just made a cute new shirt for Emerson. We're going to attempt a photo shoot one day this week and I'll get them up next week. You'll just have to wait and see.

Hee hee...

more of my favorite things...

A few months ago, I posted a list of my favorite things. As the seasons have changed, so has my list. So here's what tickles me these days.

Brunch. We're having friends over for brunch tomorrow and I'm so excited! I love making brunch and don't get to do it nearly enough. This may be a resolution for me in the future. Screw Sunday dinner. Give me Sunday brunch any day!

My "Cleo" Crocs. I generally think Crocs are ugly, if not functional. But my new Cleos are darling (well, Jeff doesn't think so, but I do), lightweight, comfy, and reasonable at around $30.

Old Time Radio. This is one of my all-time favorite things. I have a collection of around 1000 shows from the 30's, 40's, and 50's. Most of my shows are comedies (Jack Benny, Ozzie & Harriet, Burns & Allen, Fibber McGee & Molly, and The Great Gildersleeve are all time faves), but I also love cheesy detective shows like Dragnet, Yours Truly Johnny Dollar, and Boston Blackie as well. I listen every night as I fall asleep. Old time was even instrumental in letting me know that Jeff was "The One." I'll have to tell you that story sometime.

College football. The season starts this week, and I CAN'T WAIT!! My Hawkeyes have a tough schedule with road games in the Horseshoe and @ Happy Valley, but I have high hopes. Oh, and my #2 team looks pretty good this year...Hook 'Em Horns!

Fruit smoothies. I don't know if it's the abundance of summer fruit or what, but I can't get enough of these. Yum. My fave is a banana, orange juice, mango, and strawberry smoothie with milk. :)

The Bible. I've made a commitment to read some every day, and while it's definitely a daunting task, I'm taking so much away. What an amazing boost for my faith.

Naps. I have been taking more than my share of naps lately. Hence the lack of posts here (sorry, Adri!) Emerson is just wearing me out lately, so my afternoon catnap is just what I need to recharge.

The WDW Radio podcast. I've mentioned it before, but it's worth hearing again. If you're a huge Disney fan, are planning a trip there, or just need a fix of all things Disney, this is the show for you. It has been my constant training companion as I've run literally hundreds of miles with Lou. He was even the reason I signed up for my first 1/2 marathon to begin with.

Talking in your sleep. Most specifically, Emerson talking in her sleep. She does it just about every time she is dozing, and it's funny to hear with is in her mind as she drifts off. Pretty cute stuff.

Ok, I think that's it for now. Happy weekend, all.

you probably won't find this funny, but...

...this is my current kiddo crack-up.

Now, looking at this, you just think it's a picture of Emerson eating some unidentified thing. It's a loaf of bread from a set of food that she got for her birthday. But the kicker is, if you ask Emerson, she's eating "bread on the cob."

And he she is, noshing on "apple on the cob."

In fact, there are many things you may never have realized come on a cob. We've had peas on the cob, watermelon on the cob, and yesterday, she even fed hay on the cob to her stuffed cow. Jeff had just cut the lawn, and she was sweeping up bits of grass to make "hay" to feed to her cow.

Why didn't anyone ever tell me how funny kids are? Sheesh.

...and it begins.

Whilst driving this morning, I was singing along to "Stay" by Sugarland. Barely 5 words in, came a frantic "No, no!" from the back seat.

And then she said it. "No, don't sing, Mama."

Really? Is my singing really that horrible? While I'm not planning on trying out for American Idol anytime soon, I don't think it's that bad.

Or is it just that embarrassing to have your Mama singing along with the radio? Either way, the teenage years are going to be a long haul, kid.

Ah, the joys of living with a 2 year-old.

how cute are we?

Here are a few quick pics from the weekend...my thrill-seeking girl!

G'nite, all.

i'm back

Hi all,

We're back from our weekend at the lake with the Miehe's. Emerson was amazing for the 6 hour (each way!) trip, and had such a fun time playing at the lake. Between jumping off the docks into the water (I swear this kiddo doesn't know that she can't swim!), playing in the sand, riding the Sea Doo (takes after her Mama!), and going out on the boat, we had loads of fun and slept really well. There was a terrific thunderstorm on Saturday night, and I know Christa's kids didn't appreciate it, but I love sleeping during a good storm.

Anyways, lots of laundry to do, groceries to buy, and pictures to download. I'll share when I have them up.

b-day pics and more

Here are a few pictures from Emerson's birthday party, birthday dinner, and the last 2 weeks.


We started the day at a local inflatable jumpy place with our friends. Emerson loves to jump, so this was perfect for her.

We had cupcakes instead of a cake for her party.

She was so happy to have her cupcakes with blue M&M's...her 2 most favorite treats!

Em's friend Connor gave her a tea set, and it's been a HUGE hit. We have high tea every day!

Still working on perfecting our smile for the camera... Would you like some tea and cookies?

Helping the birthday girl blow out her candles on her 2nd b-day. We had a fun afternoon at the pool and a lovely dinner @ Grammy & Grandpa's house.

"I'm gonna catch you, you better run. I'm gonna catch you, here I come" This is her new favorite Laurie Berkner song, and she loves to be chased by her Papa while singing it.

We watched the US National Show Ski championships in Rockford, IL on Saturday. Here's the 4-time defending champs, the Mad-City Ski Team, in their opening pyramid. They are absolutely amazing. I'm so proud of my cousins!

Sporting her new frog boots from Godmama. I think they look lovely with her jammies, don't you?

Hope you have a great week. We're spending time with friends over the next few days, so I'll catch up with you later~

one more favorite word

I forgot this one...

va-BOOM = vacuum. As in "Papa use the big va-BOOM in the basement."

That one just tickles me.

eh-tay! (that means thank you)

This post is addressed specifically to Aunty Judy, Unkie Phil (I swear, that's what she called you all on her own; we refer to you as Uncle Phil), and Masilla~

Emerson received a birthday package in the mail from you today. She was quite curious to see what was inside.

She was confused at first, to find her favorite library book. She kept saying "House book from li-be-dad."

She's just starting to "smile" for the camera. I know she looks like the Wild Woman of Borneo here, but she's' happy, I swear :)

Once she understood that the book was hers to keep instead of "sharing" it with the library, she was so excited. She started reading through it and looking for her favorite pictures. Then, out of nowhere, she said "Eh-tay. Eh-day, Masilla." So sweet. And as her Mama, I can't tell you how it makes my heart smile to hear her express gratitude. We've been working very hard to thank people who help us as we go about our days, but I'm so excited to see that she generalized it to people who weren't even present. So cool!

Needless to say, the book was a big hit! Thanks for thinking of our birthday girl!

my favorite words

Our party is officially in the books, and when I get the pics all set, I'll post them here.

Anyway, I wanted to tell you some of my favorite current pronounciations~

GO-nana = banana (She used to say this correctly, but has started calling them gonanas in the last month or so. It's so funny to her.)

bon-NUM= bottom. We hear this when we're changing her diaper or brushing her teeth. I'll be sad when she can say it correctly.

pun-NING= pudding. One of her favorite treats. Grammy is known to bring it up just to hear Emerson say it.

She's quite the talker, that Emerson. I wonder where she gets that from?

it's party time!

Well, we're ready for the big birthday bash around here. The cupcakes are baked and decorated, the goodie bags are stuffed (and have already been wrestled away from both Emerson and Jiko), the house is clean (as much as I felt like doing before having 8 2 year-olds over to eat!), and the presents are wrapped. We are ready.

But are we? Are we ready to have a 2 year old? Tonite, as we said prayers with Emerson, I prayed that God would give Jeff & I patience, guidance, and strength to handle the challenges that will face us in the year to come. I know that she will test us, and I also know that it's part of her growing up. She's already such a big girl...talking in full sentences and chattering the days away. I can't believe the two of us have conversations, CONVERSATIONS all day long. She's such an amazing girl with so many great ideas. I can't wait to see how she turns out. But I'm really not in any hurry...

rockin' out

Ok, so I realize that I've done little in this past week to redeem myself in the eyes of my blog readers. Considering that I have absolutely no patience for a lack of posting on other blogs that I read, I need to stop being so lazy around here. Sorry.

As I type this, I'm listening to a little 80's hair band music (currently Patience by G'n R...what a jam!) Last nite, I watched VH1...who even knew that was still on...and got sucked into the Top 100 songs of the 80's. I literally couldn't pull myself off the couch. It's funny how songs are such powerful memory triggers. Lots of the songs reminded me of summer days with friends and family in Lake Geneva, and even more reminded me of those clumsy, hormone-riddled junior high school days. Man, did we love those hair bands...I remember reading the liner notes of my friend Janessa's Poison Look What the Cat Dragged In record (RECORD!!!) We thought those guys were so hot! Bon Jovi, Guns n'Roses, Warrant, Poison, Def Leppard...those were the good old days.

It's funny that Emerson will likely look back on Beyonce (ok, I totally admit that that's the only current pop star that I can name!) and others as her "good old days."

Anywho, that's what's in my mind on this lovely Sunday afternoon. Hope you make it a great week.