19 months - and snowed in!!!

19 months!

Hey Kenya Kay,

You are sleeping away this snowy snowy day!!  It is snow day #6 this year and I haven't been into work since Thursday.  Of course I love the extra time with you but I think we're all getting a little stir crazy being snowed in for so long!!  Plus you are sick so your daddy and I are sleeping in shifts since you wake yourself up coughing about every 5 minutes, and if we don't catch you quick enough you cough and cry so hard that you puke all over the place... i.e. you know how to keep snow days from getting boring chica. ;) This is like the millionth time you've been sick so finally this week we decided to pull you out of daycare for good.  Since you were totally healthy we thought you'd get one last day to say good-bye to your teacher and friends but it wasn't the best idea cause you just got sick again.  While you'll surely miss your awesome teacher Mrs. Cadence and friends, you are a lucky girl to have the best stay at home daddy in the whole world.  He has been using our new Ninja all the time to make you power smoothies (not as intense as Auntie Pam's green flashes though) and is becoming a regular at the health food stores trying to boost your poor weak little immune system.  We're glad you are a fighter and have such a positive attitude through all of the struggles and we can still have a good time even on sick, snowy days...  and with with all of the garlic oil, oregano oil and all the holistic remedies we're trying, you're smelling like a little Italian kitchen!! Here are some photos of you staying busy on these snowy days:

"Babies" are your new fascination - you love putting them to sleep, patting them on the back, crawling around like a baby while saying "baby", and "animal babies" is your new favorite video!

Here you are baking cinnamon hearts - this is right before you dumped a cup of water all over them - oops!  They still turned out okay :)

Pulling an all-nighter with dad and hijacking Mommy's phone while she was sleeping

Playing with some new Charlie Brown stuffed animals from your Auntie Julie

Such a daddy's girl - he can always make you laugh!

Making homemade jello play-doh

Orange, which you call "non" (with a long o) is your very favorite color and always your first pick!

In addition to the four batches of play-doh and baked goods, we've also been making lots of paintings and valentines (but mostly we've just made a lot of big MESSES).  Dad says going to the basement is the most exciting part of your day since we can't leave the house.  We are up to 15 birds now (Daddy has been helping your grandpa sell birds as a side business) and you love going to say hi to them all.  Some of their names include Mr. L (L for loudmoth), Tuki (after the burrito song), Juan Pablo (after the Bachelor, we're ridiculous), Chicharron, Fiesty, Hothead, Chevron, Threads, Twinkletoes... I can't remember the others.  We switch out which ones we keep upstairs and have decided that Tuki definitely sings the best tunes.  You also love going down in the basement to bang on your daddy's drums - you are getting really good.  When you were the flower girl at cousin Casey's wedding, we couldn't keep you away from them, you kept running to the front of the church and trying to play them til the pastor there told us no more.  I know when you see them at our church you are always itching to get up there and play too.

Some other fun trips this month have been your first time to the Tarry Hall roller rink and first time to Chuck E Cheese's.  My students won a skating party for raising the most money at our Fun Run so we all got in for free.  We started by pushing you in a stroller around the rink but you were so adamant that you wanted to get up on skates of your own.  The smallest they had was size 7 which was way too big and we just couldn't make it work.  So you hung on the sidelines with Daddy while I did laps with my students (they were holding me up after 20 years off skates) and I gave you high fives each time I came around (which you were always ready and waiting for).  My students all looove you like crazy and you love soaking up the attention by giving them hugs and blowing them kisses.  And I just loved the FUN quality time with them and you - it sadly is a rare occasion when my mind isn't flooded with thoughts of test scores, data, planning, grading and the like - all part of being a teacher these days.

Chuck E Cheese's trip was to say good-bye to your nana before she went to Florida and to celebrate the engagement of two very special people - your Uncle Bradley and soon to be Auntie Jenna!!  Your favorite part was driving the race car (just like your dad).  Uncle Bradley won you lots of tickets so we got to bring home some cool prizes like an air rocket which you love shooting at your mom, dad and Santa (thankfully it's made of foam so it doesn't hurt).  Their wedding is set for September 6th and you get to be a flower girl again! 

You were okay driving the car with this mouse...

but you were not a fan of the real Chuck E Cheese and were really nervous about all the characters dancing on stage

having fun with Nana

Photo with the lovebirds - soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Dorr!!!

Okay well this is the 2nd time I've written this blog and it keeps deleting for some unknown reason (I should move to handwritten letters one of these days) so I'm going to try and publish.  The snow day calculator is predicting 91% chance of another snow day tomorrow!  Crazy crazy... see you soon when you wake up - hope you are healing in your sleep!!!  Love you more than anything in the whole wide world - to the moon and back!!!

Love, Your mama