Our snow bunny

When we moved to Tennessee, I expected to see more of the white stuff than we have.  They called for snow one other time and it missed us - so I was actually pretty excited when they started predicting a blizzard.  And stayed excited when our power and cable stayed on!

Elizabeth had seen snow before - we may have gotten an inch when she was about 6 months old.

See how much fun she had?  You can see where she even dropped her teether beside the Bumbo.

So you can imagine my excitement when we got four whole inches and my sweet husband volunteered to take our daughter out to play in the snow for the first time.  Somehow I got out of the duty, being 9 months pregnant and all.  And, after spending many years frozen on the softball field, I didn't mind being in charge of the camera, with the ability to run back inside the house whenever I wanted.

The bundle-up process was an adventure, since I've never thought to buy boots or mittens.  I gave a good attempt at making a couple mittens the night before, but they didn't turn out very well (or very warm-looking, for that matter).  We pulled on the tights under her jeans and put ziploc baggies over two layers of socks and mashed her little shoes on.  I found the smallest pair of mittens I could, thinking at least they would offer elastic around her wrists.  

 

Here they are!  Ready for the big snow!  See Butch on the outside waiting for them!

 

Now, the ground is really hard because we got a layer of sleet, then a layer or snow, topped with a final layer of sleet.  The best thing about our back yard with snow is that you don't have to search out the dog poop before she goes out to play!  Maybe gross, but realistic.  Anyway...they walked around for a bit and then Scott wanted to rig up some sort of sled to pull her around on.

And so he found a tarp in the shed that worked for a while...until she rolled off.  Then, he sent his loving wife in to get a clothes basket...

 

Yes, that is a bungee cord he has hooked to the holes.  Can you tell we both came from thrifty families?!  This worked for a little while until we had our first snow casualty, which resulted in a snowy/snotty nose and lots of tears and screaming (from my child...not Scott!). I missed capturing the display because I had gone inside to start some water for hot chocolate.

See?!  Nothing like chocolate to make it all better.  That's what Grandma Bettie says!  She enjoyed her first hot chocolate experience very much - as she tried to fish out the marshmallows.  Of course, I helped her finish the mug (refer to paragraph one comment about being 9 months pregnant)...

 

Once we got her face cleaned up, we realized she had a little scratch under her nose, which explained the hysterics over the tumble.  But all in all, it was a good first play in the snow.

Adventures in mommyhood?

Just some random thoughts for the day.  Scott laughs at my comments and says that I'm going to relate to that Trace Adkins' song, "You're going to miss this," pretty soon.  Me?  I'm not so sure that I will miss ALL of this!

Thought 1:  Dreams

When I was coaching, I would dream about games.  I'd dream about my pitchers and situations...  Last night, I dreamt about laundry detergents.  I've had vivid dreams about taking coupons to the store.  And I'll keep dreaming about the same thing all night since I'm in my very-pregnant-rotisserie-chicken method of sleeping (where I have to roll over every hour).  I'm not really sure what that says about my life or the things that occupy my thoughts...

My dear husband, taking a nap with Tina.  He hasn't had any interruptions to his sleep during this pregnancy.

Thought 2:  Kids and their eating habits

When Elizabeth started eating solid food, she ate everything in site.  I have never felt so good about my cooking!  

I remember her gobbling down a plate of beef stirfry one night that I was sure would be rejected.  So at what point did my child begin to form an opinion...and what makes it change DAILY?!  Take last night, for instance.  I heated some cabbage and noodles from the freezer and added kielbasa - which I thought would be mild enough to be like hot dogs for her.  She likes hot dogs...she likes noodles...I thought this would be a great dinner.  As soon as it hit the high chair, she crinkled her nose and pointed to the rolls.  She did the same thing the other night when I made spaghetti with shells (because I had them in the pantry) instead of regular noodles.  It's as if we've developed an "I don't trust it if I don't recognize it" mentality that only applies to the high chair.  Because Lord help me if something falls to the floor that she can get her grubby mitts on later...or if she can get something (anything!) out of the dogs' bowls.  I realize I am not the only mommy to have trials at the table, but it doesn't make it any less frustrating!  So I've decided to just ride the rollercoaster and see what the meal of the moment might be.  We went to Publix after we left the gym today and they had samples of clementines set out.  My daughter ate two whole pieces and kept asking for more.  So I bought a box and we'll see how this goes!

Thought 3:  Nesting

Since I am now home for most of the day, this has become my obsession...and I am slowly passing that onto my child.  With the help of my husband, I have organized the baby closet and also moved my "pantry," which was stationed in the garage, to the top of my cupboard shelves so I can see what I have and food doesn't freeze.

We clean daily - which is necessary with two dogs - but also because I can't stand to see dirt on the wood floors.  So back to this impact on my child.  The dust rags are stored at her level and several times a day, she'll get them out and begin her dusting - the couch, her books, the coffee table, the dogs (who HATE to be dusted).  When I vaccuum, she follows behind me, holding the cord.  Yesterday was bathroom cleaning day and she was kind of half paying attention to me and half playing in her room.  So I cleaned the toilets and sprayed down the shower and walked to the kitchen to grab the Clorox wipes.  I walked to the kitchen and back...I did not pass Go, did not collect $200... And on my way up the hall, I hear the tell tale "splash, splash, splash"... Then I see my child, elbow-deep in the toilet, no doubt cleaning it.  As soon as she saw me, she slammed the lid down - busted.  And we proceeded to scrub her hands in the sink.  When it came to wiping down the shower, she saw that I had the rag out and was washing everything off, so she ran to her room and grabbed a washcloth, came back in the bathroom, and wiped everything down behind me. 

I continuously ask Scott whether this is the smartest idea for me to have such an influence on our children...

Ok, 3 thoughts for the day are good enough.

Elizabeth Rose - All Around the House

I am so thankful for the now 50 degree and sunny weather!  Quite a change from what we had a couple weeks ago when my daughter and I were trapped inside the house because it was just so darn cold!  So I thought I would provide a sampling of my daughter's daily activities...

This is "lucky" the rocking horse that sings.  She can't get up in the saddle by herself yet, but she can squeeze his ear so the song plays...over and over and over and over...

Playing in the pop up tent...I'm not sure what's going on with her hair...And yes, that is a yellow highlighter in her hand.  I was paying bills and somehow, she claimed it.

Playing the piano for Mommy.  Ah, we thank the Cash family daily for this wonderful gift!

Well, we attempted coloring, but mostly, she just likes the book because it's Sesame Street.  I won't let her play with the crayons without me because I am not in the mood to paint this rental house before we move.

Reading books with her daddy!  He bought her that t-shirt, by the way.

Not in the mood to pose with Mommy...

A Christmas for the dogs...

Things have been crazy in our household and I have not found my way to the computer in a while.  Tina came in the Monday before Christmas with a huge gash across her chest and leg.  A trip to the emergency vet, $400, and a sleepless night later, she was all stitched up with a cone on her head.  Of course, Butch was scared to death of her and wouldn't relax when she was anywhere within 500 feet of him.  That only applies to when Butch was allowed in the house though...he peed on the Christmas tree twice last week.  I have no idea where that came from, but it just added to the overall dog-weirdness of the holidays.

Christmas morning for us was different and wonderful.  We didn't travel at all, which is new for our little family.  So we were excited to start our own traditions.  Scott spent no less than two hours putting together Elizabeth's toys but watching her face as she saw her rocking horse for the first time was well worth it.

We enjoyed a wonderful day together and felt very blessed for our little warm house and wonderful life.  With God's blessing, next year we will be a family of four and will have one crawling around and one tall enough to pull most of the ornaments off the tree. 

Here's a shot of the Christmas turkey that almost wasn't.  To make a long story short, we didn't eat until almost 7...and now I know why most women wake up in the morning and put the turkey in...ha!

And my Christmas cactus actually bloomed on Christmas day!  Scott and I tried to figure out if that meant anything...like this is going to be an amazing year...but it turns out that they are supposed to do that.  Who knew!  Ah well, I'm expecting an amazing year anyway

Halloween

I've never really been that big a fan of Halloween.  We don't decorate the house or buy a ton of candy or anything.  So I didn't put a ton of thought into what Elizabeth was going to be because I knew we weren't going to go anywhere.  They had a trunk or treat at the YMCA and also church, but they were both on nights that Scott couldn't go and I didn't want to experience all that fun on my own. (ha!)

So Halloween night rolled around and I put the candy by the door and Scott asked if we were going to dress up Elizabeth.  We had been given a hand me down flower costume from the Campbell's that "we'd been hauling around for over 800 miles" (quote, my husband) and that's what I was going to try her in.

The first five seconds were successful and then I think she got freaked out and started fussing.  My child isn't crazy about stuff on her head anyway and a giant flower head is no exception to that rule.  We ended up turning on "her programs" (Sprouts) and that appeased her until the doorbell started ringing and she was able to hand out candy. Crisis struck again when we had to take a pack of M&M's away from her because she was eating through the wrapper and this mood lasted since the Tennessee / South Carolina game had started.

We left the front porch light on for an hour and then turned it off to get ready for bed and our cranky little flower was more than ready.  I missed Gary McSwain trying to scare the pants off me, but all in all, it wasn't a bad night.  Early bedtime for everyone and then an early wake up call, since 15 months old don't understand the meaning of daylight savings time.

The trouble with sourdough...

It's not like staying at home with my daughter doesn't take up all of my time...there are always chores that need done or errands that need run or concepts that need taught (like everything is not a du-CH and mommy is not elmo)...  But anyone who knows me knows that my idle hands do no one well and I decided to give them a go at bread.  My mom has always made wonderful bread and my sister is now a pastry chef...I figured, it's in my blood!  Plus, it's economical and who doesn't love the smell of fresh baked bread in their house?  That was my thinking anyway and so I set out to try sourdough first.

Now, let me begin by explaining that I haven't always had the most time to spend in the kitchen, so it's not like cooking is second nature to me.  So as I began on my sourdough, I carefully followed the instructions and made the starter.  It was still pretty warm outside then, so I put it in the garage to rise.  I checked it the next morning...nothing.  The next evening...nothing.  Well, maybe if I move it into the refrigerator...nothing.  No rise - yet there was a lot of STINK!

I was ready to throw it out completely and spray my kitchen with a good can of lysol (Cassandra style) when Susie told me I could still try to make pizza dough out of it, even if it didn't rise.  So I tried...  My husband walked in the house that night, kissed me hello, and lovingly asked, "What is that?" 

"It's pizza," I said.

"It is," he retorted?  "Well, I guess I sort of see that."

I threw it out. 

So I gave up on sourdough completely and thought, I have started this journey on too much of a challenge.  I just need to stay simple and make easy rolls.  Ok, so when they say to add WARM liquid to the yeast, to me, that means to let it boil just a little bit.  Needless to say, there was no rise AGAIN and my dinner rolls came out as rocks.  My poor husband, again my guinea pig, attempted to eat one, but we really don't have the money for him to get broken teeth fixed at the dentist, so I didn't push it.  I threw them out too.

Therefore, I determined that since my mom makes fantastic bread and my sister is a pastry chef...why should I waste time specializing in bread??  It's not like that is going to be my contribution to family dinners anyway.  So back to the drawing board.

Next crafts project...sewing!!!

Our little girl is one!

I'm not sure if Elizabeth will ever appreciate me doing a blog to record the events of her life.  It will probably be outdated once she's old enough to read it.  But I hope it keeps our family and friends updated on her progress.  That, and it may keep the print journalism major in me active. 

We spent Elizabeth's first birthday in Las Vegas, also celebrating Aunt Anessa's wedding.  She had quite a lunch spread.  Her grammie made her turkey and macaroni and cheese (her favorite!).  There was salad and hamburgers and crab dip.  Unfortunately, we ran into the afternoon nap time and also a major case of the crabbies.  We attempted to get her to smash cake and she did...right into her eye...and screamed.  After a two hour nap, all was cured!

 

At one, we are so proud of our baby girl...sorry, our big girl now.  She can walk and tries to run but always ends up going at an angle and crashing.  She loves the doggies...they are not too sure about her.  Her vocabulary is...well, it's hers.  She says mama and dada, dog, book, duCK (sounds like it's German with an -ech on the end!), "all done", up and down and I love you (I la la).  She loves her books...especially when they are all over the floor.  Lately, she runs to the door when her daddy gets home from work and I see my big husband melt.  She gives the best open mouth kisses.  She loves anything with cheese and salt...she is not crazy about sweets.  I still wonder if she is my child.  

This year has been such a blessing.  It seems like Scott and I look at each other at the end of every year and say, "This was the best year yet."  And the past one is no different.  It's funny how having a baby changes you.  Who would have thought we would have both gotten out of coaching?!  Our lives are completely different and we have never felt more blessed.