Another school day for Abby and she is still excited to go. While she was at school, Mckenzie and I played with some puzzles and snuggled on the couch together. She was almost asleep, but I made her get up and eat lunch. I should have let her fall asleep because she protested taking a nap for the very first time! I tried everything to get her to take a nap, I even turned her bed around so she couldn't get out and that just made her upset. So, Mckenzie ended up playing during naptime instead today. I hope this isn't a pattern. I am not ready to give up her naptime. I really enjoy those few moments of me time. Mckenzie and I showed up to Abby's school a little early and Abby excitedly asked if Mckenzie could play with her. I love how the two of them enjoy spending time together! Abby's teacher told me a story about Abby today. Apparently Abby told her teacher that Scott has to work to pay for the housekeeper! Nevermind to buy groceries, pay the bills, etc... Silly little girl! We played in the front yard again today and we did our art project out there as well. I had the girls collect twigs and leaves to make a tree on paper. Mckenzie's looks nothing like a tree, but she was so happy that I let her play with the glue! Abby's is a pretty good looking tree if I do say so myself! Mckenzie did fantastic with potty training today. No accidents! Yippee! I gave the girls a shower tonight instead of a bath. Abby just loves showers and would stay in there as long as I would let her. Mckenzie isn't a big fan, but she didn't cry so that is a bonus. Mckenzie went right to sleep tonight, I guess she was super tired after no nap. Abby was the one that didn't want to sleep and kept asking for things like, "can I play with my barbies?" . I found her asleep on the floor in her room. Didn't look like she had been playing with anything though so I am not sure why she was there! I took some pictures today, but the battery in my camera needs to be charged and I haven't gotten around to doing that yet. Will post them later.
BTW, I forgot to write about what Mckenzie did at Target yesterday. We were in the home decor aisle and she picked up a ceramic ball and looked at me and said "Bounce" while nodding her head yes. As I started to tell her no, put that back, she decided to bounce the ball. Needless to say, it didn't bounce but shattered.

Both girls slept in this morning much to my surprise. Mckenzie started waking up around six, but after I went in a couple of times to tell her to go back to bed, she didn't wake up until 8:30! Abby was up and dressed around 8. She actually chose to put on a t-shirt and pair of shorts today. Along with her striped socks, her brown shirt with pink flowers and bright blue shorts made for an interesting combo! I just love the look on her face when she shows me that she is dressed and that she picked it out all by herself. The girls were much less whiny today. I am so thankful for that. During Mckenzie's naptime, Abby brought a million toys into my room. She said they had to be there because it was the bus station. Very interesting. Kind of like the story she told me today. She told me about a girl and her daddy who were walking in the forest and a scary tiger, a dinosaur, and a monster came up and ate them. Somehow it ended up happy. Guess we shouldn't have read her Little Red Riding Hood at such a young age! After nap, the girls were just silly. I ended up chasing them and tickling them for nearly two hours! I can't believe they wanted to be tickled so much! We ran to the store to pick up some Vicks pads to ease Mckenzie's congestion and came back home to have some dinner. We got to talk to Scott and that was fun, but the girls were starting to get restless. I gave the girls a bath and Mckenzie gave me a surprise. She pooped in the tub! GROSS! It's not the first time she has done it, but I thought she was old enough now that is wouldn't happen anymore! Thank God for bleach! Both girls are down for the night, so I am hoping to get a little reading done. No pics today. I need to charge my camera!

What a morning and afternoon! Super whiny/fighting kids and a mommy with very little patience today. Great combo I tell ya! Mckenzie had two accidents this morning but then she was good the rest of the day. She even put herself on the potty without being told before taking a bath tonight! I see the slow progress every day. It is just a long process and even though it wasn't that long ago we trained Abby, I seem to have forgotten how long and enduring a process it is.  We ran to the store to get some milk and surprisingly, the girls were very well behaved there. We came home, got some dinner, and then headed outside to play. We really should have gone out earlier in the day because it was cool after dinner. I miss Florida weather right now. I am not ready for fall or winter. Played around with manual settings on my camera, and I got a pic or two that isn't too terrible. Not good, but not terrible either. Gave the girls a bath tonight and I wasn't paying attention while I filled the tub and it was more like a swimming pool for the girls. They had fun though. I am glad the day ended on a happy note. Hopefully tomorrow none of us will be cranky.



Sock puppets!




She isn't always this dirty, she had just taken a bite of pasta!

 Abby had school again today so Mckenzie and I hung out at the house. We read a million and two books and it was so fun. I love to snuggle and read a good book. Still working on the whole color thing with her. I find myself getting frustrated because she is still struggling with them. I know she just needs more practice. Abby had a another great day at school. I just love how excited she gets when her teacher dismisses her from class. She comes running out of her classroom full speed ahead to hug Mckenzie and me. The rest of the day was pretty chill, just hanging out at home. I sent back the garbage can I ordered for Mckenzie's room because it was damaged. I love how easy PBK is to work with. I called them and they had UPS pick up the damaged item at the house and ordered a new one for me in one simple phone call. I am getting excited to decorate Mckenzie's room. It probably won't be for awhile yet since we have to paint her bed and find a dresser, but I know she is going to love it when it is done! The girls are in bed, but I don't know when Mckenzie is going to go to sleep. Tonight is the first night she protested when I put her to bed. She started crying and wanted me to leave her door open. She has always slept with it closed and I am not going to start opening it now so she can run back and forth between her room and Abby's. She didn't get upset the second time I closed her door, but now I am watching her on the video monitor just playing away in her bed. I guess as long as she stays in bed I can't complain.

Abby had a dentist appointment this morning to fix two cavities. It started off really good and ended not so good. At first she was laughing so hard because her dentist tries to be funny for the kids. She made it all the way through until it was time to polish her teeth. But, I think by that time she was tired of laying there with her mouth open and she started crying and wanting me to hold her. Made me sad to see her so upset. But, she is a little trooper and it was quickly forgotten, although she did tell me she isn't going to the dentist again. So, I can't wait until her next cleaning! That should be lots of fun getting her there! I bought Abby a four leaf clover necklace for being so brave and took the girls to Chick fil a for some lunch. Abby saw one of her friends from school and she also made a new friend. Came home for nap and I guess I wasn't thinking because I put Mckenzie down in her panties! She woke crying two hours later because she had peed her pants. I think she was trying to get out of her bed though to go potty because she was standing in the puddle when I got in there. Talked to Scott this afternoon and he said he would call when he got where he was going. Oh, I think Mckenzie knows the difference in flight suits. When Scott goes to work here, he puts on his green flight suit. When he travels, he wears deserts. When Mckenzie saw him put on his desert flight suit today, she started crying. It broke my heart. I can't imagine what it did to Scott. It rained a bit this afternoon so we stayed inside to play. The girls played very well together and only had some minor disagreements. I like days like that! Abby fell asleep this afternoon while watching a movie, so now she is trying every excuse in the book to stay up a little longer. I saw Mckenzie on the video monitor climb out of her bed so I went upstairs to tell her to get back into bed. I must be too noisy though, because she was already back in her bed with a little smile on her face. She hasn't gotten out since. I am hoping she stays all night.


I was doing dinner dishes and went into the dining room
to find Mckenzie had climbed up on the table! She was so
proud of what she had done. It was hard to be upset with her.




Abby's four leaf clover necklace. She is so proud of it!



Abby's second day of school today! She didn't argue about going to school, but it was definitely harder to get her going today than it was on Monday. Lots of reminders about getting dressed, although, she made her bed without being told more than once so that is helpful. And she left Lambie at home again today. Her choice. We were running a couple of minutes behind, so I was trying to hurry Mckenzie into the car and instead of letting her get herself into her seat, I put her in myself. Well, apparently I am getting old because I pulled a muscle in my back. Hurt like crazy! Got Abby to school and Mckenzie and I came home to vege on the couch and watch the Wiggles. I felt bad that for her having to watch tv all morning, but she didn't seem to mind one bit. Got Mckenzie down for an early nap and took one myself. Scott came home early today, so he was able to pick Abby up from school and keep an eye on the kids for me. Abby had another great day at school. Guess they made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in her Chef class today. Poor girl has to be peanut buttered out because that is what I sent in her lunch bag too! Scott took the girls to the park to play this afternoon. They had a good time until Mckenzie fell off the swing onto her face. Poor little girl has quite a few red marks on her face and she ate/snorted lots of dirt. She didn't seem to care about any of that though when she got home. All she was concerned with was showing me her pacifier got dirty and needed to be washed! Scott gave the girls a bath and then he made me go to the walk in care center on base to get something for my back. He took the girls to get some dinner while they waited for me. When they came to pick me up, Abby was so excited to tell me all about the play area and the slide. She had a great time playing. Mckenzie was excited to see me and kept hugging my leg. I love those little girls! We got home and Scott switched the crib into a toddler bed so I don't have to lift Mckenzie in and out myself since he is will be travelling soon. So far, she is staying in her bed. I hope it lasts all night! I remember the first night we put Abby into a big girl bed. We told her not to come out of her room for anything and it wasn't too long after we put her down we saw her little head poking around the corner. I firmly told her to get back to bed and she started crying. Turned out, she had only needed to go potty. I felt horrible!

We had a busy afternoon around here. I put Mckenzie down for an early nap again so she could get a little nap before I had to go to a dentist appointment. I dropped the girls off with a friend who's girls are the same as Abby and Mckenzie. I am so thankful she was able to help me out so I didn't have to drag the girls with. The girls had a great time playing with their friends. I know they missed me because as soon as they saw me, they both let out high pitched girly girl screams! I love it! We came home and I got the girls ready to go to gymnastics, well, I should say I got Mckenzie ready to go. Abby was upstairs and dressed practically before Mckenzie and I made it into the house. We tried out a new gymnastics facility today and I really liked it. Mckenzie's age requires parental help and it was so much fun to be able to play with her. She loved it! Especially jumping on the trampoline. The teacher was great and worked so well with the little ones. Abby enjoyed her class too! She did great on the balance beams and has gotten so much more confident with doing activities on her own. I remember how she would run up to me and want to stay with me. Now, she hardly even looks back at me when she is in class. Every now and then, I would catch her looking at me, but she never needed me to stand by her. Scott made it to the class in time to see a little bit. Both girls were ecstatic when they noticed he was sitting there. 

Abby came over in the middle of the night and I didn't feel like arguing with her over where she was going to sleep. So this morning, before she was fully awake, she was starting to sit up and saying "school". She scurried off to her room and a few minutes later I heard "bed made, check. dressed, check. room picked up, check." She ran back to my room so I could zip her dress and she was ready to go for the day. Apparently she was very excited for her first day of preschool! We got pictures taken and we were off to school. Abby had to bring in a picture for her teacher. Just so happened to be the art project her and Mckenzie worked on yesterday. Mckenzie thought she was going to school too. She kept saying she was excited and when I got her out of the car, she reached down for her backpack that had been left in the car from another day. Mckenzie even went into Abby's class, but she didn't cry when I picked her up to go. So,  little one and myself came home and worked on colors. She hasn't had as much work on things like that and it shows. I don't know if we made any progress, but every little bit helps. Mckenzie went down for an early nap; I wasn't even sure she would fall asleep, but she did! I had two hours all to myself and I spent it reading (Thanks Laurie. I enjoyed the book. Wouldn't have guessed the ending!). We got to Abby's school a little before school let out and we got to watch her play with her friends. Abby was all smiles and told me she had a great day at school. And, she ran to give Mckenzie a hug and told her she loved her! I love how sweet and caring she is. Both girls really. Earlier in the day, Mckenzie wasn't getting into her carseat with any sense of urgency (she never does), so I told her if she hadn't started climbing into her seat in three seconds, I was going to put her into the seat myself. Well, she looked at me, leaned over to hug me and said "sorry". So sweet! The girls and I headed to Target (imagine that, I am thinking about asking for a frequent shopper discount) to get Mckenzie a leotard. The girls are both starting gymnastics tomorrow! When we got home, I got dinner going and then we headed out front to play on the driveway/sidewalk. The girls had fun riding their bikes and playing with chalk. Mckenzie made me draw her a house. I do not like chalk and it was pure torture for me to touch it, but Mckenzie looked so sweet asking me that I couldn't say no. Scott came home and we got to eat a nice home cooked dinner again. Tonight was bacon wrapped pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes, corn and dinner rolls. Another very tasty dinner!

The picture for Abby's teacher!

Posing for pics!

Trying to be like big sis!

We had another lazy morning around here. We all stayed in our pj's for the better part of the morning, that is until Mckenzie spilled tomato soup everywhere! It was in her hair, all over her clothes. The dog sure enjoyed cleaning up the floor for me, just wish she knew how to use a mop instead of her tongue! So, while the dog and I cleaned up the kitchen, Scott gave the girls a bath. Abby and I ran to Target and to the grocery store during nap time. I was looking forward to going out by myself (the only reason I would be tempted to go on a weekend), but Abby so sweetly asked to go with and ran to get her cute little dress shoes, there was no way I was going solo. Abby was unbelievably good in the stores. She said please and thank you and excuse me when she was going past other people. Too bad some of the shoppers at the grocery store didn't have her same manners. I told one dude off today because he was so rude. The store was super super crowded making it difficult to maneuver the aisles. I had seen this guy running through the store, pushing around people to get whatever he wanted and looking very grumpy. Well, we were in the yogurt aisle and we couldn't move and neither could the three or four other carts because of all the people around. Well, rude guy pushes past all of us and mumbles under his breath that somebody needs to move. Well, I didn't like the way he was acting so I told him he was just plain rude and it would be nice if he would use the words excuse me instead. He didn't say anything back. Not sure if he got the picture or not. We got home and Scott was nice enough to unload all the groceries for me. I love when he does that for me! Abby helped put groceries away too, which was very sweet of her. Takes a lot longer, but she was very proud to help! Dinner was pretty tasty tonight if I may say so myself. Herb crusted tilapia and garlic parmesan mashed potatoes. Both made by me! The girls worked on a stickers project together tonight and did so with no arguments! I can't believe it because they were sharing stickers and a piece of paper to put the stickers on. So unlike them. Usually they both have to have everything of their own. Abby has her first day of pre-k tomorrow! She is so excited and I am excited for her too! Her clothes and shoes are all picked out, now lets just see if she actually puts them on tomorrow. She has been known to change her mind a time or two! No photos today. I took the advice of a good friend who suggested I switch to manual photography if I want to improve the quality of my photos. I don't have a photo worth posting, but it is a work in progress! Maybe tomorrow I will capture something that is clear enough to post!

What a great day! The girls both slept until 7:30 and Scott got up with them. I was woken up by Abby shouting at me to come downstairs to get some french toast and eggs! I don't know what it was today, but Abby was so polite all day long, using her manners and helping Mckenzie. I love to see her mature, but at the same time, I miss my little girl :-( Mckenzie rocked the whole potty training thing today. No accidents and she woke up dry after a three hour nap! Amazing! We went to a local park this morning to take Mckenzie's two year photos (a little late I know!)I am not super happy with them. There are a couple of decent shots, but I just couldn't capture a perfect one. I really wish I was a better photographer, but I guess I would need to take a class or something to actually accomplish that. I didn't learn to be a nurse on my own, why should I expect to become a photographer without any kind of classes either. Anyway, the park we visited was beautiful. There was a good sized lake that had a floating bridge over it. The kids liked looking at the water and pointing out how gross it was (the water was a little green), but they did enjoy looking at all the lily pads on the water. Abby and Mckenzie kept finding sticks to dig in the dirt with or rocks to play with. I love how they are tomboys at heart running around in dresses! A good combo I think! We came back home and had a quick lunch before putting Mckenzie down for a late nap. Today was another one of those days where all of us (Scott included) ended up taking a nap! Poor Abby fell asleep on the floor again. She says she likes it, although I don't know how she does it! After we all got up and moving, we decided to have a picnic in the park. We picked up Subway sandwiches and went to the purple park. The girls were both so excited to go to the park. It was a bit chilly out there today and the girls probably should have been in long sleeves but they had so much fun. There is a football field at the park and we had races that the girls always seem to win! As Scott was getting Mckenzie ready for bed, I could hear Mckenzie giggling like crazy and telling Scott "Daddy stop, Daaadyyyy stop". She loves to be tickled and as soon as Scott stops, she is begging for more. Abby does the same thing. Silly girls.