Touch-A-Truck

Last weekend we went to Kennesaw for Touch-a-Truck. Can you say loud? Oh my goodness. Pretty much any truck you can imagine was there for kids to climb up in. Construction trucks, 18 wheelers, lawn-care trucks, police cars, school bus, etc. Here are a few shots of the day.

Here is the picture of Kayla working on that box I mentioned in a previous post. And that is Macy's chair she is sitting in. She has definitely out-grown it, but it works great for projects that I don't want her crawling around in.

Tellus Science Museum

Isn't this just the cutest little ponytail??

We went to the new Tellus Science Museum with all of Kayla and Macy's cousins. They had a great day of exploring. Most of the concepts were over their heads, but they sure did have a great time playing with all of the hands-on stuff.

Digging for fossils.

Panning for gemstones.

Kids Say the Darndest Things

One night on the way to church Marc, Kayla, and I stopped for a quick dinner. Kayla said that she wanted both chicken and macaroni and cheese, so we bought a kids dinner that came with both as well as a drink and a biscuit. Once we sat down Kayla said she didn't want the biscuit and all she had asked for was the chicken and macaroni. We told her that the meal came with a biscuit, but that she didn't have to eat it if she didn't want to. She again told us that she didn't want the biscuit and next time we should just save our money and not order one.


Funny new sayings: Kayla will randomly say " Let's get this party started" and Macy now says "alright!" and "munch you." Munch you is her way of saying bless you and she started this all on her own. Yesterday she said "munch you mommy." That was her first 3-word sentence. The girl is growing up!

Last week Kayla wanted to dig a hole, but I wouldn't let her do it in the middle of the yard. We did find a place behind a tree in a pine straw island. After several minutes of intense digging in our clay and rock filled back yard she wanted me to come and see what she had done. She had barely scraped the surface off, but she was so proud of it. I told her she was doing a good job and her response was, "yeah, I'm good at digging." A couple of times since then Marc or myself would make a comment about how well she was doing something (like coloring in the lines) and she would add, "and I'm good at digging too." She keeps us laughing, that's for sure!


One more quick story. While cleaning some things out of the bonus room I found a small wooden box. I asked Kayla if she wanted to paint it (Okay, duh! Why did I ask? The girl will paint anything at any given time.) So she picks out her colors and get started. She made her plan and worked on that box for a good half-hour and called me over to check it out. She then asked if she could give it to a friend. I told her that it was her box, but if she wanted to give it away she was more than welcome to. I thought surely anyone in the family would treasure this little box painted by a 3 year old. Well, she says, "I want to give it to my best friend Emily." How stinkin' sweet is that? She did all of this hard work and wanted to give it away to a friend. I was impressed for a child her age to come up with that on her own. So she diligently finished painting the outside, complete with a rainbow. The next day she got the inside all painted and we took it to Emily last night. Kayla couldn't wait until the end of Cubbies to give Emily the box, so as soon as she saw her she gave it to her. Little Emily's face just lit up. She was so thrilled about the box and when Kayla showed her how it opened she was even more excited. I am so glad that Kayla has such a sweet friend that she looks forward to seeing at church.

Judgement

This blog has pretty much been about my girls and the things we are doing, but God has really laid something on my heart that I believe he wants me to put on here. I have no idea if it is for myself, because by writing it down I am cementing it in my mind, or if there is someone out there He plans on leading to this blog and He wants them to hear it.

At church last night I heard a great sermon. Dr. Vines was preaching on the Day of Judgement and he had some really thought-provoking and self-reflecting statements. When our time comes to stand before the Lord we will be judged. There is no way around it. I completely believe that when you are saved you will enter the kingdom of heaven, but we will be held accountable for the life we lived here on earth. We will be judged on our words, our faithfulness, and our treatment of others including other Christians. We will be rewarded for the things we do in this life. I don't know about you, but I don't want to approach Christ with empty hands for a life that was wasted. Just living a "good" life doesn't mean you are living the life that God has called you to live. We must be faithful to do what we are called to do.

I'll end with one more statement Dr. Vines shared last night. We may not be afraid to die, but will we be embarrassed to die because of a wasted life? I do not fear death. I do fear leaving my husband and children, but I do not fear death. I know where I will spend eternity. On the other hand, I know how embarrassed I can get at things such as if I say something that sounds stupid, or if I don't like the way I look, or if I do something that seems silly. I'm very sensitive to such things, but the embarrassment of standing before my Lord with nothing to offer from a wasted life, that is something I don't want to experience. I want to lay my rewards at His feet and hear, "well done my good and faithful servant."

Finally a Decision

I have finally made a decision about the girls' room. I really didn't want to wait for the bedding set I found that was on back order. I couldn't get it until May IF it came in when I was told it would come in. We've been burned too many times with something being on back order that I didn't want to go through that again. Plus, I really wanted to do this for Kayla's birthday next month. Here is what I have found, and I am going to go with the pink paint. It will be light pink with white furniture and green accents around the room. I even found an ottoman at Target (yeah for the new one that opened by my house) that matches great. I am getting excited about it, but we only have 4 more weeks. The closet is still full of stuff that needs a new home. We're doing this as a surprise, so once the paint starts going up on the wall we are going to be locking the door so the girls can't get in. I can't wait to see Kayla's face when she sees it. We are planning on putting wrapping paper up on the door and letting her open it for her birthday. Ok, I need to quit updating this blog and get to work on that closet!

Spring Fun

So it snowed on a Sunday and was in the 80's a few days later. Only in Georgia. I have been really enjoying the warmer weather (today's cold rain excluded from my enjoyment). Kayla and her Daddy love to go to Home Depot for the monthly projects. We just found out yesterday that Lowe's does kid workshop days twice a month. Either it will give us more flexibility in case they can't make it to the monthly Home Depot workshop, or I will rarely have a Saturday morning at home with the whole family. :) This month they built a race track. And it's all for FREE! Gotta love that!

Bubbles. The girls love them. Me, not so much. It's great if I have control of that little wand, but has anyone ever given a 21 month old the bubbles? We only do that if it's bath night.

Helping Daddy with yard work.

Zoo

Last Friday we went to the zoo with some good friends. We decided to get the season's passes this year and I think we will really enjoy it. The girls LOVE the zoo. Kayla was especially fascinated with the komodo dragon, but kept calling it an alligator. When we were there it was walking right up next to the glass sticking its long tongue out. I thought it would give her nightmares, but she thought it was great.

Totally wiped out.

Dentist Update

What a difference our experience was today! It is a small practice where the dentist does everything. He came out to the waiting room and talked to her and asked her questions. Kayla was shy, but that's nothing unusual. She did start to panic when she saw that she had to lay down on the chair, but they had a Dora movie already waiting for her. The TV's here are personal ones hanging straight down from the ceiling rather than a couple of shared ones between chairs. She did cry the entire time he was cleaning, flossing, examining, and doing the fluoride treatment, but she kept her mouth open and did everything Dr. Miles asked her to do. He was very kind and spoke to her and to me (unlike the other place where I was the only one they talked to). He was very understanding of her crying and kept explaining that this was a normal reaction to unfamiliar situations, but the fact that she kept her mouth open was great. He then took me on a tour of the practice and explained what services they offered. I was so proud of Kayla and when I told her it was okay she cried, she said "but I obeyed and opened my mouth." She went on to explain that she was crying because she thought it was going to hurt, but that it didn't hurt. Before we were leaving Dr. Miles was asking about Macy (who miraculously stayed quiet in her stroller the ENTIRE time) and he asked if he could just take a peek and make sure her gums and teeth were okay since we were already there. So we go back and Macy lays back in his lap, watches the movie and lets him look, clean, floss, and count her teeth! Not one peep or squirm out of her. And that was all done at no charge! So if anyone needs a pediatric dentist recommendation I will gladly pass along their information. Now I just have to convince myself I'm not a bad mom for letting Kayla go through that first experience 6 months ago...

The Dentist #2

If anyone remembers this then you will understand the apprehension I am experiencing this morning. We are headed back to the dentist. I have chosen a different one, and have prepped her the best I know how. Obviously my efforts last time were not helpful. She seems excited because it is a different dentist. We've talked about what to expect and how if she clamps her jaw shut it will probably hurt again. I would not recommend the previous dentist because I felt it was so much like a factory - get them in and get them out. They didn't seem to care about the child. In hindsight I should have walked out as soon as they asked me to hold her down they way they did. I know that if she gains a fear of the dentist at a young age then it will take a long time to get over it. My prayer today is that she would feel comfortable and that the dentist will be gentle and kind. Right now she has placed all of her fear with the last dentist and seems to think that a new place will be a better experience. If today is as traumatizing as the last I'm not sure what we will do.

It's About Time I Added More Pictures

The girls love riding on Daddy's back, and Kayla wanted Macy to ride her back. They both enjoyed this one.

Macy is thrilled she got some pudding. Kayla looks like she just got caught.


So more pacifiers have been found. The man who cleaned our carpets (if anyone wants his contact info let me know) found a few more under her bed. He laid them on her changing table and I kept forgetting to get rid of them. They were hidden behind a jacket that hadn't been moved in a few days. Well, she got ahold of them tonight. Here she is trying to figure out which one she wants to try. (And I am choosing not to think about what kind of germs might be on them. Immunity builders, right?)

"Hmmm, is this one good enough or should I try another?"

Kayla came out of the playroom like this today. She found one of her old bibs that was in the doll box, a doll pacifier, and one of Macy's little bows. The girl cracks me up!