Love hate relationship

Lexi, also known around the house as Monster and Doodle, has become Arielle's best friend and worst enemy all at the same time. We refer to her as the Monster because everytime she walks into a room she knocks stuff over with her clumsy, big paws or her hard, wagging tail. This drives Arielle crazy because she works so hard to organize her stuff and the minute it gets out of order she yells, "No Monster!". Other times she'll say, "Monster, come get me" and they'll chase each other around the house. Every time they play together Lexi just mouths Arielle's hands and arms but you never know if Arielle is going to laugh or cry about it. Lexi, being the dominant dog that she is, likes to sit on other dogs and people every chance she gets. This particular day Arielle was lying on the floor when Lexi walked over to her and sat right down on her tummy like this was the best seat in the house. Of course I ran to grab my camera right away but Lexi ran after me. I wish I could have taken a picture of that but we couldn't get Lexi to do it again. Instead, I took a few pictures of Arielle copying Lexi's every move.

Elitch's

This is the third year in a row that we have had the pleasure of taking Arielle to the Six Flags Elitch Gardens amusement park. Every time has been a lot of fun for all of us but this time was especially memorable because it was the first time Arielle got to ride on the Roller Coaster and Bumper Cars (although we didn't make it on the Ferris Wheel this year which was dissapointing but the line was too long and slow). We ended up being at the park for nearly seven hours...and Arielle was very good pretty much the whole time. It was only just before lunch time that she got crabby but once she ate it was smooth sailing for the rest of the day.

The roller coaster ride to me seemed like it would be very scary for a three year old. They got to go around the track three times and each time the operator would stop them and ask if anyone wanted to get off. I saw some kids that were obviously older than Arielle getting off after the first run but Arielle stayed on for all three runs! Each time she went around I know I saw the look of fear on her face after they went down the first hill but she hung in there and told us how much fun it was and that she wasn't scared. You can see the look I am talking about in one of the pictures if you look close enough.

The bumper cars had us rolling with laughter {if only we had brought the video camera and not left the camera in the car when we changed for swimming} and it was so fun to watch Arielle enjoying them! Zak and I both knew that she wouldn't be able to steer because we've seen her in the Barbie Jeep at home and she just doesn't have the ability to steer yet. The operator noticed it too because he kept trying to tell her what to do. All she did was go around and around in circles in her bumper car and every time someone bumped into her she laughed so hard!

I loved seeing Arielle enjoy all the rides that day; the teacups with Daddy, the kiddy rides all by herself and the water park slides with both of us. It definitely brought back memories from my childhood that I hadn't thought about for several years. What I remember the most was how afraid I was of the roller coaster. It wasn't until my early teen years that I actually got on one and figured out that it was actually fun, not scary. I'm already looking forward to going again next year when she is a little bit older and perhaps tall enough to get on more rides.

Flowering Frenzy

I have been wanting to post a blog about my flower garden since the summer began but never got around to it. If I had remembered to take pictures of my garden sooner you would have seen how beautiful the GLADIOLUS were before I had to cut them down because they were leaning so much. There were so many different colors...orange, magenta, pink, white and peach. The glads are definitely worth every second that I have to dig them up and replant them each year.
I am also really loving the MUMS that I planted last fall and I think they are blooming early this year. I have pink, burgundy, yellow and white mums. Another favorite flower of mine is the WILD COLUMBINE because of it's detail and coloring. When I first planted my columbine it didn't look like it was going to make it and didn't have blooms until a few weeks later. Now it has tripled in size and looks lovely! The CANNAS and CALLA LILY give the garden a tropical touch which is what I like the most about them. The DIANTHIS and CATMINT add a woodsy-cottage feel and are two flowers that every garden should have. One thing that did suprise me this year was that my IRIS bulbs did not bloom in the spring. I had planted some of the same iris in my old garden and they were great bloomers (they still are too and I know this because I drive by the old house just to see them!). Hopefully they will bloom next spring because I missed seeing them in the garden this year. Fortunately I had planted some along the rocks along our back fence and strangely enough, a lot of those ones bloomed.


















Arielle loves the garden as much as I do! She has learned only to pick one flower at a time or else mommy won't be so happy with her. She likes to "plant" the flowers that she picks in her pots of dirt or "float" them in a little cup inside the house for display. I really hope that flower gardening is something that she and I can do together as she gets older. It is a great mother-daughter past time.



















I hope you enjoyed the pics of my flower garden. Hopefully as the years go by I will be adding more gardens...God knows we have enough room for them in our immense backyard!

Feeling better and dressing up

I am happy to say that Arielle is feeling better after her 48 hour bout with the fever. Apparently it is going around because a co-worker's son was down with the same thing this week. Luckily it wasn't anything worse.

Now that our little Bug is feeling better she is back to doing her favorite things around the house. I think her number one favorite thing to play is Dress Up, like a princess of course! Arielle has more dress ups than I can count and she loves each one of them the same although it is apparent that the Little Mermaid has been loved the most! Sometimes all she needs is a tierra, princess shoes and a wand to transform into a princess. There are time she can be seen wearing two outfits together complete with jewelry and accessories! No matter what her choice of dress up is she looks so beautiful and so girly...I just enjoy seeing her all dressed up! And I can tell how proud she is of herself because she gets a shy but boastful expression on her face where she tucks her chin under her face and looks up at you with a straight smile then slowly closes her eyes. There are no words to describe her proud expression exactly but I know that look and each time I see it I get butterflies in my stomach because I am filled with so much love and endearment for her.

Fever

As we set out to run errands yesterday and attend a friend's one-year birthday party, it became obvious that Arielle was running a very high fever. Immediately when we stepped outside in the driveway she told me how hot she was and tired (it was only 10:30 am so I didn't really believe her) and I told her she could sleep in the car. Well, she did just that much to my surprise but when she woke up her whole body was burning up. The temperature was hot enough outside but there was no mistaken that my baby had a fever. We ran in the grocery store across from the party and got her some medicine. At first I thought maybe she was feeling the affect of being at the pool for three hours the day before in 100 degree weather but her temperature persisted throughout yesterday and today. Needless to say we left the party very early and although Arielle was very dissapointed that she did not get to eat the cake (I mean the frosting), she was happy to go home and rest.

The thing I love about Arielle when she is sick (that doesn't sound like I mean it) is that she is so calm and peaceful. She is not one of those kids that gets very upset and cries when they are not feeling well. Like the time she threw up in her bed from the cream corn, she just calmly told us that she threw up and talked the entire time we were cleaning her and up until she threw up again. Last night when she woke me up at 3 am and her temp was 103, she just calmly said, "Mommy I don't feel good. I need medicine." That is another thing I should mention...this kid loves medicine. Always has and always will I guess. Her favorite thing to do when she take medicine is fill the little cup up with water to drink several times. Right now she is sleeping and she went to bed so easily. I hope her fever breaks and she doesn't wake up with another temp.

I'm glad I got to stay home from work today but I hope she feels better soon...

The path to home...

Everybody has experienced the age old parenting tactic where your parents "threaten" to leave you somewhere because you refuse to leave with them. Today Arielle was no exception to this rule. We were at the fancy pool and Arielle had missed her nap. She was very tired from all of the splashing, jumping and swimming that she was doing. Her first outburst came when the lifeguards blew their whistles for the 2 o'clock adult swim and she was forced out of the pool. This did not make her happy but she calmed down when she realized that all of the other kids were being kicked out as well.

Later when we decided to leave and Arielle wasn't cooperating is when Zak told her that we would just leave without her if she didn't want to come with us. This of course made her get up and run after us (works like a charm!). As we walked together holding hands on the way out she said, "If you leave me at the pool I won't know my path home."

Wouldn't it be scary to not know your way home? I never really thought about this before but what Arielle said really made me stop and think about it from a child's perspective. No wonder this tactic never fails; the thought of it actually happening is probably so terrifying to children which is what makes them run after their parents. I'm not so sure I'll be using this tactic in the future but it's good to know that it works and for good reason.

Today's art projects

Arielle could not wait to come home so she could work on her arts and crafts projects. I let her have at it, glue and all! The best part about arts and crafts is that she can do them all by herself. Every time she picks up a marker or glues stuff down on paper I am just blown away by all the little details. I wish I could frame and hang every single project but I can't so I've decided to start taking pictures of some of them...it's the next best thing!

Wednesdays

We all look forward to Wednesdays at our house for one reason...it is Show & Tell day at Arielle's school! For the past few months Arielle has enjoyed getting to choose one toy, all by herself, that she can take in her classroom and share it with her friends. Each week she puts a lot of thought into which toy she is going to bring with her. Sometimes she can't decide before we leave the house so she tells me, "I'm just going to bring them both in the car so I can decide later." She must have heard me say that once because it sounds much too grown up for her but it just makes me smile. I have never had to argue with her about only bringing one toy, despite the fact that she tells me her friends, Kayla and Alexa bring two toys. She is very understanding about the rules of show and tell and it just makes her day to hear me say it's Wednesday!

Today for show and tell Arielle chose to bring her newest toy, a small butterfly fairy keychain that Daddy bought for her. What makes this toy special is that it came with a teeny-tiny comb that can be hooked on the keychain. When Arielle told me she wanted to bring the comb in school I told her she needed to keep it attached so she didn't lose it but I thought for sure we would never see it again. Much to my surprise the comb was still attached to it when I picked her up. She makes me so proud!

Bobs, Bubbles and Belly Flops!

What do all of these words have in common? These are just a few of the things that Arielle has learned at swim lessons this summer. When we got to her first class last month we were happily surprised to see that Mr. Aaron, her instructor from the Parent-Tot swim classes, was now her Level 1 instructor as well. Mr. Aaron worked a lot with us in the toddler class to make sure that Arielle was ready for the next level. I remember how much she and the other toddlers cried when Mr. Aaron would have their parents pass them off to him. It took Arielle a couple of classes to get comfortable with the idea of being in the water with a near stranger but eventually she did it.

The one thing she didn't ever get comfortable with in her early years was going underwater but that all changed this summer! Bobs, otherwise known as putting your head underwater, have become one of Arielle's favorite things to do while in the pool. The first day of swim lessons she wouldn't do them. Even on the morning before her second lesson she told us she wasn't ready to go underwater but when she got there she went for it and was very proud of herself! Now she does it all the time without hesitation...I am so amazed at her accomplishment! She has also perfected her bubble blowing in the water which she first learned in her toddler classes but it is a very favorite part of the Level 1 classes for all the kids.

At today's swim lessons the kids were jumping off the side of the pool where the instructor was waiting for them and instead of going leg's first, Arielle did a belly flop both times! It's so cute to see those little kids sitting on the top step of the pool waiting for Mr. Aaron to carry them away for their next lesson. At first I honestly didn't think that Arielle could sit still for that long or pay attention for that amount of time but I was wrong. She is the only one in the class that isn't doing something their not supposed to at any given moment.

Her improvement shows every day. Just this weekend Arielle was doing the dog paddle in our pool. We are so proud of Arielle and how much she has learned to LOVE the water!

Words and their meanings

Arielle came up with yet another funny line for the blog and I couldn't wait to post it. She was playing with a new toy from the garage sales and asked me to open it. Well, it was easier said than done and after I finally figured out how to do it she said, "I'll leave it open, Mom, so you don't have a heart attack when you have to open it again!" After I giggled on the inside and smiled, I told her that it would not give me a heart attack to open it again, it would just be hard to open. Then she asked me what is a heart attack.

This is a new phase for her, asking me what something means. It makes her sound so grown up to ask such sensible questions. I am doing my best to explain the meaning of words to her but it's not always easy. One of the words she asked for the meaning of was "later". This made me realize that just because she speaks so well doesn't mean she actual knows the meaning of what she is saying. I guess she has been pretending to understand me for the past two years and now she really wants to know what all of these words are that she has been repeating. Who knows but she sure is growing up so fast.

Sorting kids and grown-ups

On the fourth of July, I told Arielle that she was going to spend the day with grandma while Daddy and I hung out on the boat with our friends. I said their kids were also going to be with their grandma so it would just be grown-ups on the boat. Her response was, "Oh, it's like sorting the kids and the grown-ups." I thought that was a smart way of describing it! Although Arielle was very upset that she wasn't going out on the boat, she was very happy to spend a whole day and night with grandma. Zak and I ended up having a very nice relaxing day at Boulder Res on the boat and I even got up on the wakeboard a couple of times. I didn't go anywhere but down after I got up but at least I tried. As for Arielle's day, she got to stay up late to watch fireworks from grandma's deck despite the fact that she hadn't had a nap. As you can imagine she was very tired the next day and for pretty much the entire rest of the weekend.

Today we went our friend's BBQ and this time there was no sorting! Arielle got to play with her little friend, Ella. They had a lot of fun with the bubble grilling machine that Jen brought over.

Arielle even got to feed our friend's horse and pony which was the highlight of her day...

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

When I told Arielle that it was Daddy's birthday this morning she said, "It is?" and without hesitation she dropped her blankey, stopped watching her show and ran over to gave him a great big hug! It was so sweet and genuine and I'm glad I was there to witness it. Then when Zak told her he had to go to work she said, "But it's your birthday." I just have to wonder in amazement at how someone her age can even understand what a birthday really is and be able to capture the emotion that goes with it. To her, naps are bedtime and bedtime is really just a nap and everything she talks about happened today or yesterday so she doesn't really have a concept of time. I digress...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DADDY...WE LOVE YOU!

Arielle has been a long roll of cuteness for the past few days, it just makes me sad that I don't always have a pen handy to write down all the cute things she says and a camera or video recorder for all the cute things she does. Like this morning when she said, "Mom, do you know who my friend at school is?" I said, who and she said, "Sawyer". But it's not what she said that was so cute it was how she got really shy and put her hands behind her back when she said it...like it was a big secret that was now out of the bag. Then today when I picked her up from school, one little friend told me, "Watch what I can do!" then he rolled around on his hands and knees. Before he could finish five other little friends, including Arielle herself, said and did the same thing all at the same time. They were like little baby birds in the nest all trying to get the worm from their mama. I didn't know what to say and even if I did say something none of them would have heard me because they were all talking at once. Where was the teacher? To make things even better, Arielle gave out hugs and kisses to many of her friends before we left. On the way home she told me that she gave Kayla and Alexa kisses on the cheeks and she gave Anthony a kiss on the lips. I had to explain to her that we should only kiss our friends on the cheeks, not on the lips. She just said, "But why?" I was waiting for her to ask why Daddy & I kissed on the lips but she didn't. Phew...I'm not ready to explain the birds and the bees to her just yet.

Always be my baby!

While at dinner the other night with Zak's parents and my parents, Grandma was talking to Arielle about sleeping and how she needed to get lots of sleep because that is when she would grow. Arielle's replies was so cute! She said, "No, I can't grow up because Mommy and Daddy want me to be their little girl forever"!

I think Arielle listens to me better than I think she does. I just think it's very selective listening!