We're still Here!

Hello all of you out in the blogosphere! I bet you are wondering if I went AWOL or decided to abandon by family blog. The answer is obviously "No!". I thought that being home would give me more time to keep the house clean and keep up with the blog, but with a three and a half year old that has all but abandoned naps, I can't seem to find the time to accomplish all of these tasks. I will have to fill you in on our month with one big blog update. Sit down and hold on!

I haven't taken a great number of photos this summer. I have done more napping than anything else if I am being honest. I am not normally a sleeper, but pregnant Angie can nap with the best of them! Fortunately, Sarah has been very tolerant of all of my pregnancy "quirks". She is happy to read me books while I snooze or sit and watch "Max and Ruby". All I need is about twenty minutes to recharge my battery for the rest of the day. We haven't gone as many places as I had planned this summer (thanks to a "fantastic" sciatic nerve pregnancy complication, I can't walk as much as I used to...). We have managed to visit friends and the mall on occasion, and Sarah is not complaining. I am the one who misses all of the travel!

Here is a photo of Chris and Sarah at a department store in Pikeville. I had to snap this because Sarah is not usually a fan of shopping, but if you put her in a room full of recliners, she is as happy as a lark! I wonder who she gets it from????

Julie (my friend with double my energy at this point in my life) decided to have a luau play date with homemade goodies, hula skirts, and island music. We were happy to go over and participate in the neighborhood fun! Here is Lily eyeing a wonderful cupcake.

The other kids were more interested in playing than eating. The slip and slide has definitely been the toy of the summer for our three year olds!

Tristan, on the other hand, will never turn down food for playtime... We had such a great time. Thanks Julie!

Although I cannot explain exactly why, this playground in the mall is one of Sarah's favorite places. When I have to hit the good old Motherhood Maternity store, or the Children's Place, there is no argument from her. I can bribe her into submission with a promise of fun on the playground. There are no slides, swings, sandboxes, etc., just foam and rubber characters on which to climb. She is in heaven!

What a mischievous pose!
I look at this photo and think back to the days when I feared bringing her here because she always got knocked around by a "big kid". Now she is the big kid!

This month, we decided to work on making Sarah more mannerly and self sufficient (before baby number 2 arrives). We opened up a handy dandy responsibility chart that I bought long ago, just waiting for the appropriate time. Sarah is expected to brush her teach, dress for bed, clean her room, say please and thank you, show others respect, and the biggie for her "stop whining". She took to this chart immediately and within 12 hours, her behavior was probably 90% better than the days and weeks before. She is such a type A personality, she is highly motivated to receive her smiley face each day for the different categories. We promised her a surprise at the end of the week if she got at least 4 smiley faces per day. We wanted to make the first surprise a great one to show her how proud we were of her efforts. She has begged to go to "Kentucky Cheese" or Chucky Cheese as most of you know it. I have never taken her before, so I decided this would be a very special first reward.
She was so proud of herself, she told everyone that week that she had a new chart and earned her reward.
Aunt Amy decided to join us in the fun.
Sarah now knows that this is Chucky, not Kentucky. So much for the cute blissful ignorance.


She also earned her reward for week number two. Her new obsession is gymnastics. Chris recorded some Olympic caliber gymnastics and let her watch. She has begged ALL DAY EVERY DAY since this point to take gymnastics classes. I am still working on finding a time that will work, but they do have an open gym each week. ($5 per hour). This satisfied her need for gymnastics and is now her weekly incentive for her responsibility chart. I found her a cute leotard at a yard sale. She felt just like the "teenage" gymnasts she watched on TV. This is a win win situation if it will keep her behavior where it has been recently.

She loves swinging into the foam pit (as always).



Her new favorite is the balance beam. This is what she wanted to watch OVER and OVER on the television.


What a grin.

I am really surprised at her interest in the beam in particular.

A great dismount!

I can't believe she is already flipping on the trampoline. For those of you who knew me in middle and high school, "Like mother like daughter".


Preschool is just about to start, our summer fun is drawing to a close.I adore getting to spend quality time with my girl (just the two of us). Pretty soon, this will be a rarity. I hope she is making lasting fond memories as well.