Times have changed

After I got all the kids down for a nap today, I walked into our living room to find the above. Yes, a cherished wedding gift that sits on our cocktail table (a piece that I have always loved for its elegance) has obviously turned into a bedpan for #2. Not sure when he did it, not sure what possessed him to use it over the potty, and not sure what to say. The kid has officially left me speechless!

And meet Johnny....

We had an hour long wait at the Red Bar (yummy restaurant at the beach), so I took the kids in the Zoo Gallery store across the street. We were busy looking at all the interesting artwork and little dodads (actually I was busy trying to make sure that six little hands didn't touch every breakable thing in the store) when we came across a huge basket full of over thirty blabla dolls/ stuffed animals. Bruce immediately starting kicking his legs and waving his arms in anticipation and excitement. Mae and Whitt both have one; Mae, the flower girl and Whitt, the polka dot lion, so I decided it was time for Bruce to bring one home. I put him in front of the basket, so he could crawl over and pick one for himself. Much to my surprise, he beelined to "Johnny." It was love at first sight; he had absolutely zero interest in any of the others. He grabbed hold and wouldn't let go, shrieking in delight, so Johnny was the pick. At dinner, we received a few, "that's an interesting doll" (personally I think Bruce was offended when anyone called Johnny a doll). As I was laughing at Bruce's taste in "buddies" and thinking to myself what does this say about my child, I started thinking about a story Tim Kimmel told at his grace-based parenting conference. His son had asked Kimmel if he could give himself a mohawk. At first, Kimmel was taken aback, but then he realized his son came to him with respect and love asking his permission. His son's heart was in the right place; God longs for our heart, not our hair. As Kimmel said, "Our hair is just a toy God gave us on top of our head." So that is it! Johnny is a model of a sweet, loving, respectful little dude with a heart for God (hence his heart-shaped tattoo) who loves serving others or at least serving Bruce who at this point won't sleep without him. By the way, the man is going to read this and say I think way to much!

The ROAR heard round the World....

So, after being at the beach all morning and the pool early afternoon, the man and I decided to take the kids to the playground post naps one afternoon last week. The real motive behind it was the little cafe across from the playground. We knew we could watch the kids run around while we enjoyed a cocktail and have a conversation without the inevitable interruption every two minutes or so. We were a quarter of the way through our beer and margarita when we heard a giant, boisterous, and repeated, "ROAR, ROAR, ROAR!!!" The man and I looked at each other and simply said, "Whitt" in unison, nothing out of the ordinary to us, but then as I looked around, I noticed the other patrons at the cafe looking at each other with a mixture of surprise, shock, concern. Their faces said it all, "What in the world is that!!?! Do I go help? Do I call 911?" And, who am I kidding, I am sure this was the same scene three stores down due to the sheer volume of the "ROAR!" Next I noticed two little boys scrambling from the lookout tower where they had all been playing, leaving only Mae behind with Whitt. The playground noise returned to the usual level of excited shrieks and yells, and the man and I went back to our cocktails and each other. On the way back to the beach house I asked Whitt what he was "roaring" about. His response, "I was pretending to be an oogily monster who was rescuing Rapunzel."

Makes perfect sense to me!

Thirty Pounds...

wet maybe, yet she flings herself through the air with wild abandon doing her "dive" which is really just a giant cannonball with her hands held high in the dive position. She bobs back up and swims to us with a giant smile, eyes twinkling with pride. She does it over and over and over again, and I absolutely love watching it over and over and over.

This girl of ours has been blessed with such a unique spirit. Don't let this little princess fool you. She is the perfect combination of all things girly and feminine with an independent streak that can hang with the best of the boys. Even at age two, she was just as comfortable playing with Thomas the train as strolling around her baby dolls and playing dress-up. She has a quiet confidence to her that is balanced with the perfect amount of assertiveness. Already at age four, there is a natural inner strength to her that she just seems to understand better than anyone. Not to mention, the girl can make her daddy move faster than anyone else out there. Bravo, little one!

"Good things come in small packages." Well, if you are looking at our sweet Mae, this statement is an absolute truth!!

Happy Father's Day

To our real-life superhero!

We love you!!!

Believe it or not M, it is times like this when you are irresistable. There is just something about a man who will do anything to get a laugh out of his little ones.

A Date with a Redhead....

So, the five of us have been at the beach for the past week which has been absolute perfection! Any sort of schedule or rule was thrown out the window. It has been a week of lounging, snuggling, playing, basking, laughing, eating, good wine, good coffee, watercolor painting, kite-flying, shell-hunting, swimming, cooking, reading-a week of all the best indulgences in life. It was two years into our marriage when we decided that as much as we love, love our extended family (they are the best!) we needed to keep a week of vacation for just our little family. It is truly my favorite week of the year, this little retreat of ours. I always come away feeling restored, relaxed, refocused and more connected.

This year started a little different. Bruce and I flew down early Saturday morning while Michael and the "big" kids drove down with the load. The plan was for Bruce and I to get all the business done before the others arrived that night-open the house, grocery shopping, etc. But as we pulled up to the house, I decided to take advantage of having Bruce all to myself. I unlocked the doors, found the keys to the beach buggy and off we went for a little lunch date. It was salad and calamari for me, and green peas and calamari for Bruce. As I sat talking and cooing to my precious redhead, it crossed my mind that one day another woman will be sitting across from him in the spot that is so dear to me. As I said a prayer for the sweet baby girl somewhere out there that I will one day be blessed to call my daughter-in-law, I just couldn't help but think to myself, "He is all eyes for me right now, girlfriend. You are just going to have to wait a couple of decades."

Yes indeed, this little redhead is all mine (for the moment that is)!

My buddy....

Mae and Whitt have been taking swim lessons the past two weeks, fifteen minutes each, back to back. Well last Thursday as we were on our way to the pool, I told the little ones that Gaga and Grandaddy were coming to visit and would be waiting at our house after swimming. Their excitement nearly blew the roof right off the car. About thirty minutes later, Whitt was right in the middle of his lesson when, W: Stop! Battention! (for some reason he says battention instead of attention) Guess what Mrs. Terri!?! (the swim instructor) (Whitt with a very serious look on his face was making sure he had her full focus.) T: What? W: My buddy is coming to my house. T: Oh, really. Who is that? W: Grandaddy!!!!! (huge smile on his face, clear blue eyes sparkling) Then he was back to business, learning to swim like "Nemo." He just had to share his special news. His buddy is already wrapped around Whitt's little finger, but I think this post definitely cinches the knot a little tighter. And, by the way, does anyone else think Grandaddy and Ernie look alike? Check out the hair. We love you, Gaga and Grandaddy!!