Reason for a blog

This is an idea that I've been mulling around in my brain for a few weeks. I've recently come across some blogs where there will be women, even mothers, who take the time to write a blog post about how frustrated and sick they are of reading about other bloggers' kids. They find the blogs pointless and feel like their blogs where they write about other things then their kids are better because they have 'substance' or so they think.

Well ladies, I am here to tell you that my above shown child is the only reason that I started a blog. The whole point of my blog is to keep family that is not within a 24 hour drive updated on how their beloved and only grandchild is doing. It keeps their spirits high when they need a laugh and provides them with endless photos of her. I'm using this blog to archive my child's life and our family. I didn't create this blog to entertain you so stop dissing on my way of blogging. I appreciate your criticism and accept it and now I'm telling you to back off. :)

Exclamation Point!

This is a picture from a few seasons ago where Evelyn put these glasses on and just pouted at us for like 2 minutes till she broke out in giggles. She is my little drama queen, where ever that came from.

My story for today illustrates that quality of my daughter. We were riding home from daycare on Monday. She was just jabbering away about her teacher and her friends when all of sudden this came out of her mouth. "Aunt Kenna, Aunt Shelly, Aunt Melly." And that was it. I got a little apprehensive of a possible fit when I had to tell her that Aunt Kenna and Aunt Melly had gone back to their home in Arkansas. She was quiet for a sec. " Grandpa?" I asked if she was talking about Grandpa Brad and she confirmed that was the person she was talking about. I then had to tell her that Grandpa Brad had gone back to Arkansas too.

This is the part where I almost pee my pants. All I heard from the back of the car was, "Oh...my...gosh! That's AMAZING!!!" The end.

Birthday 2

So, I realize that this is really late but I'm just working through my photos. :)

Here are some pictures of the second party we threw for Evelyn's second birthday. This one was on the weekend after her birthday. The Blairs, the Nelsons, the Pascuals, the Coats and Karina, Epharin and Angela joined us to make this a wonderful day to celebrate our daughter. We ate frozen strawberry shortcake and mini Reese's peanut butter cheesecakes. And Evie was embarrassed to the point of almost crying when everyone cheered her blowing out the candles. We just want to thank all of our friends for their presents and for celebrating with us. We love you Sihaya.
Her hair was cute and she was cute and we loved it all. I think next year she will have a birthday theme though. I've found some fun ideas and we'll see what happens.
This is my cake. It was hard to cut because it was so frozen but it looked amazing and I was very happy with myself.
My mini Reese's peanut butter cheesecakes. There is a little Reese's peanut butter cup in the middle that just made these so good that I had made them both Friday and Saturday that weekend.
Opening presents and eating cake.
The black and pink doll is actually a vampire doll that we have lovingly named "Creepy". That's even what Evelyn calls her. :)

Burn Victim

So to continue the dinner-dumped-on-the-arms-and-face-terrible-burns story, Evie and I walked into daycare this morning and I was telling Lupita to just leave the band aids on when I got a good look at the skin and my heart dropped out of my chest. She had a huge blister ran the length of her middle right hand finger. The issue is that it is on the inside of her finger so it rubs against her pointer finger. Let's just say that the daycare providers have been turning green each day that I have shown them the burns, especially the finger length one.

I looked at it and immediately resolved to take her to a burn center. We got in at 1 today and they kindly told me that most of the burns we 2nd degree and the rest 1st. And guess what...2 nd degree burns hurt the worst. They're not mild enough to be healed in a day or two but not terrible enough to have killed the nerves. Poor baby! At least when she does something she does it all the way.

The appointment ended with us setting up another one in a week so that the center can monitor the finger-length burn and another one, a huge brown paper bag filled with two types of gauze and mesh sleeves, and a baby that would have made a good mummy for Halloween. We only have to change the dressing twice a day and extend and contract a few fingers a couple times a day so that the skin doesn't shrink and make mobility an issue. :) We're just happy dinner didn't end up on her head. Small blessings.

Hot stuff coming through!

Evelyn decided to try and help us out in the kitchen last night by grabbing a hot Corningware dish and pulling it off the counter onto the floor. Of all the things that could have gone terribly wrong (landing directly on her head for example), I believe that we are very blessed that these are the only burns she received.

My little pick-me-up

The day was dreary which always makes me grumpy. (I dislike winter but for Christmas. Snow...grrrr.) But to my surprise, my frown was to be turned upside down. I was called into the back room where Mike and Evie were sitting at the iPad. Mike turned it towards me and showed me this picture explaining that he was showing Evie the KSL article about the lights being on at Temple Square.

He smiled, "I showed her this picture and she very sweetly said that the two people were married." I was shocked. How could my little girl even know the word 'married' and further then that, how did she connect the fact that these two people sitting next to each other meant that they were married. But my smile almost turned into tears when my husband then shared with me the next thing Evie said. "Then she looked at me and said, 'Mommy is pretty.'"

The human race has children for more then just the reason of procreation. We have them because we need to love something more then ourselves. We need something to take care of and forget ourselves. And yes, we need them to tell us that they love us and that we're pretty. The simplest statement from a child can make everything right with the world. I love my husband and little girl so much. Thank you for being a part of my family and telling me that I am pretty.

Witches Hats

This is an idea that I got from one of my new most favoritest blogs. www.ourbestbites.com was a lifesaver this Halloween and all holidays for the rest of my life! These are witches hats made from fudge stripped cookies, Hersheys Huggs, chocolate frosting and sprinkles. It was a blast and of course delicious. Evie, Eli, Erin, Michelle, myself, and Chase were very, very pleased.

I don't get her either, but I love her. :)

Happy Halloween

My little Evie was Boo from Monsters Inc. (A movie that since Halloween night we have watched once or twice a day. :) Erin was the cutest bee and Eli was a 'little ninja'. It was a night of wonderful food and goodies, fun costumes, wet sidewalks, and potty training.

I made a Sully stuffed animal into a backpack that Evie wore when we were trick-or-treating.

The lovely bee.

The pumpkin soup...cilantro/lime soup is more like it. :)

These are my Halloween turtles. Thanks to all that helped to make them. They will now be a holiday treat every single holiday!

This was my craft for the holiday. I took regular jars and glasses that I found at DI and mod podged tissue paper onto them. Then I put Christmas lights and flameless candles in some of them and this was the result. Another project that I will have to perform for each holiday I think.

And the best letter to be personified in a pumpkin. It even looked like the right color. :)

Go Utes.

Creative Genius

This was part of our visit to Arkansas, which was an amazing trip. Well the above project is part of the reason it was fun. With life continuing for Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Melly, and Aunt Kenna, Shell and I had to find something to do with ourselves when our husbands were doing homework and Evie was sleeping. So after lunch with Kenna one day, Shell and I went and spent 2 hours at the only craft store in the area, Hobby Lobby. We looked at multiple projects that could keep us occupied but finally decided to decorate wooden letters with scrap book paper that represented the members of our families and we used a wonderful invention called Mod Podge to achieve our end.

After the letters I decided that I needed to add to my wall decor. We went and got a canvas and one night just let Evie go crazy on it. Mike, Evie and I each did a hand print or foot print and then Evie and I decorated it. It was a fun little project that looks great on my wall and reminds me of my little family.

This is Mike's letter. Suites him, doesn't it?

This is Evie's letter and she never lets me forget it. We walk in the house and she immediately starts pointing to the R and talking about cupcakes. She makes me laugh.

Picture Me

Evie's new passion is getting her picture taken with some object on the top of her head. She'll put either a bucket or a hat on her head and then say "Picture me Mommy, picture me." Luckily Uncle Eric was obliging on Sunday. She's a cute little gangster. :)

These are some pictures that our friend Katie took of Evie the night that Mike and I went to a preview of Megamind! But that is for another post. This one is still about Evie and her obsession with things on her hear right now. All things except a winter hat of course. Do they make toddler winter hats that look like Easter baskets?

Drum roll please

It was the Friday before Halloween (great timing Meaghan...). I had just taken the last few diapers out of the pack and put them in the diaper bag. I looked down at the empty diaper wrapper and in that instant decided that I didn't want to buy anymore diapers. They are expensive and I just didn't want to do it anymore. To add to this crazy idea Evelyn had used her little frog potty before. She had started asking to use the potty both in public places and at home. And believe it or not she had been waking up in the morning dry. All indicators that she was ready right?

Well (knock on wood) I am now announcing that my big girl is potty trained!

We haven't had any accidents for a few days. She knows when she has to go and sometimes doesn't even tell us. I leave the light on in the bathroom for her and she'll toddle in there all by herself and the only indicator that she did anything, beyond what I need to dispose of, is the button undone on her pants. She is even sleeping in her panties at night and I am happy to report that there haven't been any accidents there either. She has never had an accident during a nap when she was in her panties.

I couldn't be any prouder of you Sihaya. I love you.

Birthday 1

Here is my little girl on her 2nd birthday. We just did a small celebration with family. Shell and Chase, Grandma Teresa and Grandpa Jim, and Bex were there and Evie opened her presents from Grandma Maureen and Grandpa Brad. She loves the doodle pad and Skippy John Jones is one of her favorite books now. And of course she has some kind of food on her face and some boogers running, who would she be if those weren't there. She made sure Aunt Shellie got some kisses and she took this lovely picture with Aunt Bex. I'm not even sure what is in her mouth. :) It was a good birthday and she was very happy.

All gone

So I'm looking at all these blogs with these little babies that have their pacifiers attached to their shirts like Evie did so long ago. And I realized that I never made that announcement...Evie no longer has binkis.

About two, three months ago when she started daycare that was one of the few things we had to change. None of the germ sharing thank you. And it was surprisingly easy. We just let Evie know that she was a big girl and she didn't need it anymore. We just stopped giving it to her. The first few nights during bed time were tough, but we just reassured her that she was a big girl and it was going to be okay. No more losing the silly thing! Thank you Sihaya for being so amazing.

And we're still here... 2

(Read the post before this first. It was to long with all my paragraph spaces. :)

Do I believe that she has been mean and derogatory towards the staff? Yes, I was a witnedd to it Evelyn and I were in the waiting room (Sihaya was so good and patient, love ya baby) when this lady came out of the back. She demanded a refund for the co-payment she had made for seeing the doctor and began to berate the receptionist for insinuating that the lady has sworn at her.

"So you're saying that I swore? Just said F,F,F,F at you? Well you're a liar, liar, liar!"

Another woman behind the desk then said that she had heard the angry woman swear at the receptionist too. A witness? Then the woman said something that kind of made me angry. "Well, with this Mexican lady sitting up here." The receptionist then insisted that the woman not call her a Mexican. The angry one was on her way out the door at the is point. "Well, you are a Hispanic right? A Mexican?" Then she repeated the word as if it was an insult and she were a little child taunting someone. "Mexican, Mexican..."

I felt bad for the receptionist, the other family in the room, and my Evie for having to see that. I had never seen such blatant racial slurring. I also felt bad for the angry woman. I don't know what life has thrown at her but she certainly made no friends in that office yesterday. I don't know if it was ignorance or just pure anger that made her lash out like that, but her actions will never be forgotten. She can't take it back or change how she behaved. I also feel like she should be ashamed of herself. No person should feel okay making another person feel the way she made the receptionist feel. Plus, she made us sit in that office for two hours! :)

This story has made me reflect on my actions and the hope that I never leave such a nasty after-taste in the mouths of those that I don't necessarily interact with but am around. And that the race of another person should never be a means of attack.

And we're still here...

So, I've been mulling this story over in my head all night. Evelyn went into the doctor yesterday for her 2 year check-up. It went great and Dr. Miles said that if he and his wife had had a girl he would have wanted her to be just like Evelyn. Flattery...will get you somewhere. She was 27 pounds and 2 oz and 32 inches tall. She's in the 50% percentile for both measurements. She eats healthy, talks in 4 or 5 word sentences, and is progressing in potty training. What more could I ask for?

But that isn't the point of my story. We were in the office for 2 hours and didn't even see Dr. Miles for an hour and a half. We got their at 4:30 for our appointment and weren't even in a room till 6. And it wasn't until it was 6 that I finally learned why things were so backed up. The reason? An irate old woman that threw the entire schedule off. She is apparently just a grumpy old lady that has repeatedly been rude to the staff. She has apparently sworn at them as well as being just plain mean. So Dr. Miles wrote her a letter explaining that he could no longer be her doctor because of repeated infractions. She showed up without an appointment demanding to plead her case with the doctor...schedule pushed back 2 hours.

Arkansas Visit Teaser

This picture by no means does justice for the cute little creature that happened to bite me this weekend...

Meet the Kinkajou, a cute, cuddly, nocturnal animal that perchance has teeth strong enough to break skin. On Thursday of last week, my family and I visited a Safari Drive-through zoo. The drive was okay filled with Emu and Zebras and Buffalo, but the real fun part was the petting zoo that we didn't even know was a petting zoo till the attendant suddenly allowed my sisters to walk into the lion and liger cage...amazing. We also walked into my friend's cage (pictured above). Michelle was holding the little darling and it was sucking on my fingers. I have the look of surprise on my face in a video which I will share later. The real part of the story is that how many people can say that they have been bitten by a kinkajou? Heh?

This is a teaser so you will just have to sit on that thought.

Father or Spider

So Mike and I about peed our pants last night. Earlier in the evening we had gone to Arctic Circle because Evie was starving and we thought she deserved a treat. The purple spider above was the toy that she got. She won't go near the thing. Its gooey and squishy and she'll have nothing to do with it.

Well as we left our friends', the Pascuals, last night, Evie noticed that Mike had put the repulsive spider on top of the rear-view mirror. "Ew! Mommy, I don't like that. Yucky spider." This one-sided conversation continued for another minute, then suddenly stopped. A second later both her father and I hear, "I don't like you father!" It was emphatically said with much gusto and I bet Mike's heart stopped for a second. We burst out laughing in shock that she would say something that no parent ever wants to hear. Then she said it again and because we were listening real hard this time we did hear the intonation of an 's' at the beginning of the word which only made us laugh harder.

Father or spider? Let's hope its never 'father'.

My Little Butterfly

I walk into to Evelyn's daycare on Wednesday to find that my little girl has been turned into a butterfly. What is really amazing is that she sat still long enough for her teacher to do this...she wouldn't have for me. :)

Here's the funny part. We went to the store to pick up some stuff for dinner and while we were there we passed this 4 or 5 year-old boy sitting in one of those car-carts with his little brother who might have been a year if not younger.

Little Boy: Where did she get that done?

Me: At her daycare.

Little Boy: I want to go to daycare.

I smiled as I walked away, not knowing that the funny part was coming.

Little Boy: Well Johnny, I guess you have another girl friend. (Big grin on his face.)

Mother: (In exasperation) No, Johnny does not have another girl friend. He's to young.

Me: (snickering and thinking of all the other girlfriends that Johnny might have and the tastes that he has in women. Paint and sparkles?)

The End

Nesting

Nesting is the only word we have for it. Evie's thing for the past few weeks is to nest. She will gather as many pillows and blankets and stuffed animals as she can find and put them into a huge heap. Then she'll roll around in it for a minute, pretend she's going to sleep or just bury herself. After that she will literally pick every item up and move it to another area, roll around another minute then move the whole nest again.
These pictures are from the bathroom nest, I was in there cleaning up a little bit and all of a sudden I turned around to a nest that was as big as the bathroom floor. I couldn't get out she had packed so much into the bathroom. That's all I have to say about that.

Screamin' Kind of Love

Evelyn and I recently started taking a different way home. That way consequently takes us by this old water-tower that was converted into a sign for the Trolley Square Mall here in Salt Lake. The first time we passed it Evie asked me what it was and I explained that it was a water-tower. Now every time we pass it she makes sure that she has it right, that it is a water-tower.

Well, I'm on the phone with my sister Michelle one day this last week and we pass the water-tower. Apparently Evelyn was under the impression that I wasn't listening to her because all of a sudden I hear this loud wail from the back seat. "WATER-TOWER!!!" She proceeds to scream this one word at me about 15 times with me laughing and demanding that she quiet down, Aunt Shellie laughing on the other side of the call because its so loud that she can hear it, and Evelyn giggling between declarations. Ah, the joys of motherhood.

Homework Nazi!

The above picture us what I get when I ask Evie to smile. She makes us laugh.

Now my story does have something to do with Evie smiling. Her and I were getting into bed and Mike decided to take break from homework to come and help me. Well, help is a relative term. Helping to him means harassing Evie till she screams at him.

She didn't disappoint. As soon as she had had enough, with a smile on her face, she forcefully told her daddy to, "Do your homework." We, her parents, couldn't help it. We busted up laughing and then both gave her a big kiss on the cheek. That's how most scuffles end in our house.