A neat day...

Well friends, my camera cord is missing, so while one is on order, words will have to suffice. Two things happened last week that I wanted to share - one funny, and one just neat. We'll go neat, then funny.

Neat: I was playing my guitar on the front porch sitting with Georgia (who was more interested in watcing the trashman than my playing). I had just grabbed the music to "Prince of Peace" because Georgia likes to sing the echo songs. Well, as the trashman made his way up the street, he stopped in front of our house. He walked up to the front porch and asked if he could listen. Not sure why God picked me for this task, because my guitar skills are very limited. (If you find yourself thinking, "I didn't even know Molly played the guitar," you are not too far off track). So, the trashman sat on the steps of the front porch and I sang to him about Jesus - Lord of Lord, and King of Kings. A divine appointment - neat.

Funny: I was playing with the kiddos in the backyard. I turned on the sprinkler and put their suits on and let the burn some energy. When we finished, Georgia wanted to put her clothes back on (the girl changes clothes at least 4 times a day - no exaggeration. 1 outfit is always the black dress that she wore when she was a flowergirl, and the other is usually a red, Spanish, "flamingo dancer" dress that some friends brought her from a trip to Spain.) Before I know it, the girl is squatting in the middle of the yard, telling me she has to go pee. At this point, I feel a mix of pride and laughter - pride at the fact that I have taught my little girl that it is ok to pee in the woods and I am laughing at the fact that she thinks our backyard is the woods. I explain to her that when our house is less than 10 feet away, it is better to just go inside and pee on the toilet. She responds with her new favorite bathroom phrase, "Mommy, I need some privacy" and dashes around the side of the house. At this time, Jackson is wandering into the neighbors yard, so I have to go after him before I chase my naked 3 year-old around. I grab Jack and begin my search for Georgia. I am hoping that she is being discreet because 2 male neighbors are outside working on their house. I can't find her on the side of the house, so proceed toward the front. I am looking, looking, calling for her, and then I spot her. She is squatting down in the front yard behind a small Japanese maple and in front of a bush. I do have to say that if I were going to pick a place to pee, this would be it. And, besides a little mulch on her bottom, she performed quite nicely. :)

Visit to Tennessee

We had a wonderful trip to Tennessee a couple weeks ago. We stayed with Brian's brother, Justin, and his wife, Allison. They were great! We took the kids swimming in the pool, which is great entertainment. Although there was a brief moment when I thought Jackson was going to drown. I was sitting in a chair on the edge of the pool (no, not the big pool - those of you who are dialing children's services can hang up the phone now) and the kids were playing in the water. It was 1 ft. deep, and Georgia was swimming around like an alligator and Jackson was just standing there watching. Well, not sure what exactly inspired him to just try to take off, but he tried to run after Georgia and his upper body was moving a little faster than his legs in the water. As you can imagine, this sent him face first into the water. AHH! Mother alert goes off, instincts take over, and before you can blink an eye I am in the pool (skirt and all) pulling him up. Thankfully, God installed children with this reflex where they gasp for air when they are about to fall in the water (startle reflex maybe?) and Jackson was just fine. He wasn't even coughing or anything. And, not that anyone cares about this, I didn't even really get wet! I attribute this mostly to the lifesaving classes I took in 10th grade and a little to the fact that the water was only 12 inches deep. Ah, the joys of parenting.

Mommy and GeorgiaDaddy and Jackson

Here is a pic of Allison and Georgia together - Georgia was LOVING that they were both wearing orange! Allison is a TV anchor, so when Georgia saw her on TV wearing orange, she was thrilled that they matched!

Summer Photo Shoot

I love these photos because they seem to just epitomize my kids. The individual shots are the little faces that they make all the time but are so fleeting that you can't seem to capture them on film (or whatever digital cameras capture them on...we'll stick with film because it sounds so much more romantic). Have I mentioned that we just love these little kiddos?!?

Catch-Up Time

Busy, busy summer days. I do not post as often as I would like to, but a good friend told me that if I were going to err, it would be better to err on the the side of making the memories rather than documenting them. I concur; which is why I am just posting after quite a bit of time here. Well, here is what we have been up to the past few weeks.

We met my parents up at Lake Erie - they have a little cottage up there. It is so relaxing and peaceful! We took the kiddos on the boat, and they loved it! They both sat with Nana and watched Poppy (we are trying to get Georgia to call him Popeye because we think it will be funny) as we cruised along. I took Georgia below deck into the little cabin and we bounced up and down as we went over the waves. It took Jackson about 5 minutes of listening to the hum of the motor before he was asleep and Georgia followed suit shortly thereafter.

We visited COSI as well (for those of you out-of-towners, this is an absolutely FABULOUS science museum geared toward kids. The kids and I rode in the space module - very cool, and Georgia learned that with the right set-up (proper use of a fulcrum, I think?), she could lift a car! There is a car attached to a giant steel beam with a rope at the other end. The center of balance is positioned so that you can pull on the rope and lift the car. Well, of course Georgia wanted to give it a try. She grabbed onto the rope pretty high up when her end was low and the car was in the air, and then when we let the car back down, Georgia did not let go of the rope, and it took her soaring above our heads. A moment of panic ensued with Brian's arms wide open, ready to make the catch of a lifetime and me pulling with all of my weight to bring her end back down. This, I must mention, is the first time I have been happy to have those extra pregnancy pounds! :)

July 2nd marked Georgia's 3rd birthday! I can't believe that our little girl is growing up! She got a bike helment and is now riding her "big girl bike" - which, I got as a steal at a garage sale for $7! We had family over to our house to celebrate with us. Georgia is such a sweet girl and I love her more and more every day. When she arrived, I remember feeling a new kind of love that I had never known before and that could not have ever been explained to me until I became a parent. But if you would have told me that my love could grow even more, I would not have believed you. But, alas, it has. I feel so blessed that God has given us these little ones.
Gram holding Georgia as we sing to her - the cake was yummy (my favorite: yellow cake with chocolate icing!)

We went to the 4th of July parade in Dublin. Let me just say, we got more candy at that stinking parade than at Halloween! I like to think that it is that my kids are so dang cute that people cannot resist handing them candy. But, I probably should take into account the fact that I was watching like a hawk for the candy passer-outers, and taught Georgia (as any good mom should) to hold out both hands and say 'please!' Jackson was the dark horse in it all - people walked up and gave him candy too and if his hands were full, they just set it by his feet. Brian and I already ate all of the good stuff, but the kids are still enjoying the dum-dums suckers.

Haircuts All Around!

We went to the Sterling's for dinner not to long ago, and the kids both got their first haircuts! (Yes, Georgia is almost 3 and has never had even a trim!!!). Jackson's hair was growing over his ears and he was beginning to form a bit of a mullet. Amber did a GREAT job. Jackson was very amused by a popsicle, and then a lollipop when he had polished that off. Georgia was SO desperate to get her haircut too that she sat still like an angel with no bribery needed. :) While we were along for the ride, I got my haircut too. Two days later, I cut Brian's hair - just buzzed it. Amber and Cory were right in saying that it is not a good thing for your marriage - ha! I am not so swift with the clippers and Brian is a bit of a perfectionist (bad combination). I guess I would rather fork over the $15 than go through the stress of the haircut. Actually, it wasn't that bad. It was actually my best haircutting job yet (I think I may have done it 3 other times, so really, the only way I can go is up!). Brian only had to touch up a few spots and he even complimented me on my work afterward! Yea. But, I think in everyone's best interest, I'll leave the haircutting to Amber.Jackson loving his purple popsicle. He may have eaten equal parts popsicle and hair.The final outcome - so handsome! Amber is a pro!Georgia is eating this up!!! She begged to have it cut - Amber maybe took 1/8th of an inch off, but it was the greatest thing ever in Georgia's eyes.Georgia now says everyday, "Mommy, I need to get a haircut again!" = she would have it everyday if she could!

Fun in the Sun!

So I let Georgia and Jackson play outside in the sprinkler the other day because it was so hot. Who needs a pool membership when you have a good old garden hose and sprinkler to run through?!? They LOVED it!!! Georgia was getting the biggest kick out of spraying Jackson - Brian and I keep saying that he is going to be one tough cookie when he gets older!

A few more pics of the day...

Officially Walking!

Well, Jackson had taken 7 or so steps on his birthday, but he now likes to walk everywhere.  It was about 5 or so days ago when he decided that he would rather walk than crawl.  He gets himself to standing and then takes off.  He is not quite keeping up with Georgia (but at her pace, it may take awhile!) but he does just fine!  Check him out!