The New Mia Hamm

Parker was having her dinner last night and about 5 minutes into it, decided that she absolutely must have her sunglasses. Mommy, Mr. Sun is out, so I need my sunglasses, OK? She ran to her bedroom and found one pair, but they were not satisfactory. She located this pink pair and proceeded to put them on and eat the rest of her dinner that way. Strange! But I guess that I shouldn't be surprised, she is VERY into costumes and probably eats her meals costumed as a princess at least twice a week,. After dinner, we went outside to play a little more soccer. She got a new ball, shin guards, and new soccer shoes this weekend so I think that she really wanted to try them out. It was actually pretty cool. She was kicking the ball around like a real person, not like a three year old-- much better than I could anyway!! We were so impressed. So, here's a little clip of her "handling" the ball back and forth across the grass. We're just waiting for the Gatorade or Nike people to be calling any day now. hehe. :)

Three Year Checkup

Today, Parker went for her 3 year checkup. She has hit all of her milestones and is doing great. She is 31 pounds and in the 50 percentile for weight, and she is 37 inches tall and in the 55 percentile for height. Woo Hoo!! I would be so thrilled to be above-average for height but I don't think that is even remotely in her realm of concerns. She actually loves going to the Doctor's Office and when we told her that we were going she said Yeeeaaaaaa!!!!! Dr. Martin made the comment that Parker really does talk a lot, doesn't she. hehe. Parker did get one vaccination and only cried for just a second and then was thrilled to get a band-aid and a sticker. She couldn't wait to get back to school to show everyone her new band-aid.

Sunny Sunday

Now why couldn't the weather have been this nice at the Zoo?? We got back from Marianna and went to the backyard to play. Parker will be joining a soccer league in April so we thought we might try to kick the ball around a bit. Well, I say it's a league but really it's like practice for 3 and 4 year olds. Their team is called "The Grasskickers." I'm sure I'll be updating on that soon. Anyway, Parker likes to kick the ball around and really likes when we chase it.

Matt was trying to teach Parker some basics, like not touching the ball with our hands and how we can run and kick and run and kick at the same time.

Running around chasing the ball got a little boring and so we moved onto bubbles- her favorite.

Although Blowing Bubbles can be a tough job!!

We got our patio chairs out and Parker decided that she wanted to sit in her chair too. I think that it's been in the trunk since our trip to the beach last year. Nevertheless, we got it out and all sat around while Parker blew bubbles. A nice end to a fun and busy weekend.

Memphis Zoo

On Saturday, we headed to the Memphis Zoo. We were hoping that the weather would be cool but nice-- that wasn't really the case. I guess we can be thankful that it wasn't storming or just pouring down rain. It was drizzling when we arrived, so we stopped by the gift shop and got a rain poncho for Parker. I don't think it was her favorite thing to wear, but she didn't complain about it. At least the drizzle stopped completely after about 30 minutes in the Zoo. Parker and CeCe walked along the exhibits checking out some of the smaller African animals. Parker and Matt watched the hippos for a while. The main thing that Parker wanted to talk about after that, was that one of the hippos pooped in the water while we were there-- ICKY!!!

Near the Panda Exhibit, Matt and Parker stopped to pose inside a hollowed tree- although it looks like Parker was trying to peek over at the pandas.

Parker and CeCe rode the Carousel. Parker did not want to ride on any of the animals but wanted to sit in the bench seat instead. I guess that turned out to be a pretty good call because CeCe was looking pretty green when they got off!!

We left the Zoo around 1:30 and headed out to eat. We ate at Neely's BBQ on Jefferson. Not the best part of town, but the food was good. Isn't that how it seems to go sometimes?? Parker was great since it was WAY past naptime and we eventually headed back home without a nap for the day.

Pizza and Cupcake Day

On Friday, I took Pizza and Cupcakes to Parker's school for a lunch time birthday party. We thought that Parker might not want to eat or take a nap afterwards if I was seen or stayed around so I passed my camera along to Miss Robin who took some pics of the class for me. I did stay in the office and peer through the tinted window at them, although the kids can also see through the window and they will rat you out in a second. I felt like a prarie dog bobbing in and out of the line of site of these kids. I thought at any second one would say Hey, Parker, there's you mommy!! Luckily I was not found out and got to watch a few minutes of the party. Parker got to sit at the head of a table and wear a silly birthday hat. She was grinning ear to ear as the kids sang to her. Those kids are pretty quiet when food is around. I thought that lunchtime would be very hectic and messy but those kids all sat quietly in their chairs and chowed down!! The pink cupcakes were a big hit.

Here is Parker with a couple of friends, Addison and Auburn.

Chloe, Parker, and Ella.

That night, we went to Marianna for a Family Birthday Party. Parker was very excited about her Snow White cake. It even had a small Dopey on it. After cake, we opened presents and Parker headed off to bed a couple of hours late after all of the fun festivities.

No Longer a Villian...at Least Today

I was talking to my friend Julia yesterday and she was laughing about a story I has previously told her about how Parker ALWAYS makes me the villian. At our house, we have to pretend to be Disney characters, usually princesses, a lot. For the longest time, I have to be the evil person. Parker is , of course, the main character- usually a princess. Matt is always the prince and every now and then, the daddy. I am religated to Jafar, Ursula, the "e-bil sep-mudder", Miss Hannigan, or some other mean character. Matt thinks this is hilarious. Well- this week she has been trying out some new Scooby-Doo fruit snacks and she looks at the snacks and we talk about which characters they are. She has seen a Scooby-Doo Christmas or Halloween special so she is vaguely familar with the characters. While pretending to be the girls, she told me that I could be DAPHNE. At last, I get to be a cool character!! Yippee! My excitement was quickly put in check when she evaluated my growing mid-section. She says that the Dad on Family Guy has a loooooong belly. For months, when I asked her, she would always say that I had a little-bitty belly. The other day, she said that Mommy now has a looooong belly. So much for being Daphne. hehe. :) Will update with Pizza and Cupcake Party Pics ASAP.

Parker's Birthday

It hard to believe that three years have gone by!! On one hand, it has flown by and on the other, it seems like she has been with us forever! She had a great day at school but we are waiting to do a Pizza and Cupcake Party on lunch box day this Friday. Of course, she had to wear green b/c it was St. Patrick's Day too. Parker and Daddy getting ready to leave for dinner at Benihana's. We thought she might like the dicing and chopping. The girls hanging out before heading to dinner. Me at 29 weeks pregnant- ick! At least as the photographer, Matt was a little discreet about my huge belly. The photo guy at Benihana's got me broadsided. We are going to try to see if we can scan it to post, but we are not sure if it will work. Parker had a great time at dinner. She got to have strawberry lemonade in a special cup and we ordered edamame and a sushi roll that she tried. She ate a bite of the Wyndham shrimp roll but she really liked the edamame. She kept popping the beans all over the place though. After some practice, she finally got the hang of eating them out of the shell. Her favorite part of the evening was when the Benihana guy brought out a cake and sang Happy Birthday to her. Everyone in the restaurant clapped. They had a trick candle on the cake and she teared up a bit after blowing it out like 3 times. I think that she was embarassed that it kept lighting back up. She said It won't turn off! It keeps turning back on! She ate a pretty decent dinner, but EVERY morsel of her cake.

When we got home we opened a couple of presents. We are saving most of her presents for her family birthday party this weekend in Marianna. Parker loves to play doctor and loves to dress up so she got a pet doctor costume. Her favorite part to play is giving shots. She'll say it not hurt, it not hurt. Here, you can pick out a sticker. :)

Dino Dash Training

Monday the weather was pretty decent so we headed out for another bike ride. Parker thinks that she is practically a pro now. She doesn't want us to touch the bike while she is riding. She can pedal pretty well but her steering is horrible. It takes us like 10 minutes to get 50 feet. At least she looks cute riding. Now, if she wasn't so bossy!! :) Parker has decided that since Matt is running in races that she wants to run races too. She and Matt practiced running down the block. Banjo and I could not even keep up. Well, Banjo wanted to, but I had to keep him with me so he wouldn't get all tangled up in their feet. Parker has running form like a wet noodle. HA! After admiring Matt's medal from the half marathon, Parker has decided that she wants her own "necklace" for running a race. She wants a blue necklace or a pink one. Matt had to explain to her that she had to run in a race first, and then she could get a medal. She looked at him all funny and said But we are running in a race right now!! Well, yes, I guess technically- a foot race with Daddy might equate to "a race." We have been joking that Parker is training for the Dino Dash 1K, yes 1K. It's usually the last weekend in May and they have a regular 5K and a 1K for the little kids. I think she'll be ready. :)

The LR Marathon

So we really did have great plans and expectations for the weekend. The Saturday plans were to pick up the mattresses (check on that one), and then after nap, to go to the Smoke on the Water BBQ Festival down by the Clinton Library. Well, it was just cold and damp on Saturday so we skipped the Festival. At least we would have the LR Marathon on Sunday. Matt left the house on Sunday morning to head down and run the half marathon. Parker and I were going to meet him at the finish line and take pictures and celebrate. Somehow, Matt and I both missed the accurate starting time for the race even though both of us had looked at the materials. We thought it was supposed to start at 8:30 but it really started at 8:00!! Matt made it to the starting line just in time before the gun sounded. According to his estimates, Parker and I would meet him down there a couple of hours later. OOPS!!! Parker and I were standing in the stands looking for Matt and he came up behind us. We had missed him at the finishing line!! B/c of the 30 minute mess-up, we had missed him. Sorry Matt!! The Marathon Celebration was fun but crowded so we didn't stay that long and eventually headed home. We ended the weekend with Matt and Parker playing computer games. As usual, she is dressed as a princess, crown, dress, and all. Congrats Matt on a great half marathon!!

Out of the Crib!

The mattresses for the princess bed finally arrived. Parker spent Friday, the 13th as her last night in the crib. She knew that we were supposed to pick up the new mattresses on Saturday so upon waking that morning she was very excited. We went almost three years with no falls or accidents associated with the bed. Seriously, THE day she was moving out, our luck had run out. Although it really was totally my fault. I felt sooooo bad. Parker was dancing around in her bed with her blanket on her head pretending to be the pizza man or somebody. I lowered the rail on the crib and turned around to get some clothes for her. The next thing I know there is a huge thud and she is laying on the floor. She flipped, face-forward and handsfree, out of the crib. Poor thing!! She was crying and I think that it scared her even more than it hurt. I thought she might have a knot on her head but nothing appeared. But all was well when she finally got sit on her new bed for the first time.

No Zoo Today

On Saturday morning, we had planned on going to the Zoo. Well, it was free admission day at the Zoo but we didn't realize it would be so hectic. We were driving along the interstate and all of the sudden the traffic stopped and was starting to pull over to the side. I was thinking that there must be a wreck or something. Oh no, it was the line for the exit for the Zoo. Are you kidding??!!--- It was like a Razorback game!! There were at least 30 cars waiting along the interstate. OK- time to re-evaluate the Zoo situation. Matt and I decided that going that day would be miserable so we headed for the next exit to figure out a new plan. Parker was so sad that we weren't going to the Zoo, however, she quickly cheered up when we asked her if she wanted to go for a cupcake. So, we headed to Cupcakes on Kavanaugh at about 10:45 in the morning. I was thinking that we might be the only family there, if they were even open. But, every table was filled!! Glad we're not the only ones that let our child have cupcakes before lunch!! I had a red velvet, Matt got a carrot cake, and Parker got a Black Tie cupcake, which was chocolate cake with white icing, and chocolate sprinkles. Such sophisticated Taste!! I thought, for sure, that she would go for the rainbow sprinkles! Of course, she proceeded to lick all of the icing off first and then had just a few bites of the cake. Next, we headed downtown to play on the outdoor equipment by the river. It was such a nice day and really crowded. Parker really enjoyed crawling through the tunnels and especially sliding down the BIG tube slide. Some of the big kids were kind of pushy but we made sure that we got our turn!! By now, it was lunch time so we headed to Flying Fish. Downtown was so crowded with people from the Volley on the Rock volleyball tournament and the SEC women's tournament at Alltel. The line was long but it went by quickly and we were able to get a table by the open windows. Parker watched the people go by and loved when the horse and carriage would drive past us. Here she is watching the traffic.

We ended the day coloring and drawing on our big notepad. She practiced drawing different letters and wanted us to write a lot of different names. She also likes to draw our family and friends. Don't you love Banjo's long stick tail? (He's the blue one below his name.)

Dinner With Friends

On Friday night, we went to the Priebe's house for dinner. They have a little boy named Thomas that is about 5 1/2 months younger than Parker. They had a great time meeting each other and Parker really enjoyed playing with all of the "new" toys that Thomas had. The kids were hilarious. Thomas kept pretending to fall asleep on the floor and Parker kept telling him to "Get up, Thomas Pree-vee, Get up and play!! " All Thomas really wanted to do is watch his new "Cars" movie. After playing a while, Thomas's mom put on the movie and Parker and Thomas sat side by side on the sofa, watching and talking to each other. I was so busy taking pics of the kids and thoroughly enjoying the other adult company that I forgot to take pics of the adults. Oh well- I'll try to do better. Thanks so much to the Priebe's having us over and for such a wonderful dinner!!

Playing Outside

Last night was so nice so after dinner we went outside to play for a while. Parker received some new bubbles in her Valentine's Goody Sack and she has really been wanting to go outside and play with them. We have been telling her that we can play with them when it gets a little warmer. Everyday since then, she looks outside the window and says- it's a little warmer now, it's a little warmer-- can we play bubbles? So our first priority was, of course, playing with the bubbles. Parker was having a fun and messy time blowing bubbles but the blower wasn't really working well so we moved onto playing with her ball. We played kick the ball to each other and she would want us to kick it really far and then run after it. Next, we decided to go for a bike ride and take Banjo for walk. Parker loves to ride her bike around the neighborhood and ding the bell as we drive along. Sometimes she gets to pick the route we take. She really loves being the"boss" and directing the group. She also likes to point out to Banjo where all of the cats are so that he can bark at them. Sometimes he's not so great at finding them on his own. Friday is again Lunch Box day. Another great day of weather and warm enough that Parker got to wear a short sleeve shirt. She made a comment about where her sleeves were?? I guess it's been a while since she's been in short sleeves. hehe.

Dr. Seuss Week

This week is Dr. Seuss week at Parker's school. They got to bring their favorite Dr. Seuss book to school. Hers is "Green Eggs and Ham." I guess that technically it's her favorite b/c it's her only Dr. Seuss book. We have read it so many times that she likes to "read" it herself. She takes on this very dramatic deep voice and says "I no like Green Eggs and Ham!!!, Not in a box, not in the dark, not with a fox..." and it continues. A drama queen, this one. Yesterday after school, her favorite teacher (well really she's the administrator/owner of the daycare), Miss Jennie, brought Parker into her office and gave her a special "prize." She said that it was for Parker's early birthday and that when she saw it in the store she wanted to go ahead and give it to her. She made sure that no other kids could see (we were in the office, not the classroom) and pulled out a huge sack for Parker. Inside was a new Dr. Seuss book "I Can Read with my Eyes Shut" and a stuffed Cat in the Hat. Parker was so excited. Now you can see why Miss Jennie is Parker's absolute favorite. She is like her second CeCe. So last night, we wrote a thank you note to Miss Jennie for the gift. I mainly helped with the wording and writing , of course, and Parker drew pictures of Miss Jennie, a snake, some letters- P and M, and a penguin. But when we got ready to fold it up and put it in the envelope, she was so upset and didn't understand why we had to give it to Miss Jennie- it was her note!! Here's Parker P with her 80's side ponytail and her "prizes" : Last night, I tried another crock pot meal. This time it was Chicken and Brown Rice. It sounded wonderful and called for all healthy ingredients with no butter and I thought it was going to be great. It looked good when I put it all together raw. Not quite so lucky... It was horrible. Not inedible, but not good. We all ate a serving and then I looked at Matt and told him that I imagined that this was the kind of food they served in jail. He likened it to dog food. I can't say that I disagreed. We laughed, save the chicken breast from the top and then threw away the mushy, icky rice. At least everyone was a trooper for eating one serving. hehe. Today was dance class day at school. Of course, Parker was all smiles. Well this was after her foul mood upon waking when she said "good morning" and I said something else to her and she told me she was not talking to me, just Daddy. I couldn't help but laugh. She quickly got over her "Daddy only" attitude when I let her pick her outfit and shoes. Of course, she opted for something pink. Parker with her dance bag. We love that little hoodie that she is wearing, and we have definitely gotten plenty of wear out of it. I think that it might be on its last legs. YaYa Julia gave it to Parker when she was about a year old. I guess we are lucky that it has been so stretchy!! It wouldn't be such a problem except that Parker has issues with jackets being zipped. If she has a jacket or coat on, then it absolutely HAS to be zipped. If it has a hood, she HAS to have it on her head. (In this pic, I convinced her to leave it off for the pic so that we could see her hairbow.) And if it has pockets, her hands HAVE to be in them. Her little OCD issues crack me up!

A Sick Weekend

Parker was sick this weekend. She started running a low grade fever on Friday night and it lasted all weekend. So, usually we try to do something fun or productive with our weekends. This weekend we did neither. We just hung out at the house. Matt attempted to put together the new bed, but a piece was cracked and we had to call the furniture people and they couldn't deliver that new piece until Monday. Parker didn't really feel like going anywhere so we sat around and read books a lot, and played some Memory game too, of course. She was still running fever on Monday morning so we skipped school (and work) and headed to the doctor's office. Turns out that she had an ear infection and her sinuses were full. Ick!! So, we got some antibiotics and and appt. for a couple of weeks out to make sure that everything looks good. This is her second ear infection in about 2 months!! If only the weather would cooperate, I'll bet she wouldn't be so sick. My last post it was 76 degrees and this weekend, it snowed. Unbelievable!

Lunch Box Day

Friday is lunch box day and for some reason, Parker just loves it. We had to take our lunch everyday when I was growing up b/c we didn't have a lunch program at school. Occasionally a Junior or Senior class would sell baked potatoes or spaghetti or something like that, but for the most part, I was brown-bagging it. I really liked that ham with the cheese chunks in it-- isn't that the grossest thing ever. Ick- makes me want to hurl thinking about it now. Now, on lunch box day, Parker will bolt out of bed and be so excited about lunch. Maybe that's b/c her lunch box is Disney Princess. And you know how into anything Princess she is. Today she took a turkey and cheese on whole wheat tortilla, baby carrots, red seedless grapes, wheat thins, and I threw in a monkey fruit snack b/c I felt guilty. She wanted monkey fruit snacks last night but she had already brushed her teeth and it was too close to bedtime. Doesn't she look so grown up, like such a big kid?

Clearly Hair- esay

After I picked up Parker from school, my mom called and she was telling me about telling a friend about Parker's crazy hair days. We think that her hair is pretty straight but then somedays, after nap or in the mornings, you have got to wonder what she does to wallop her hair like she does. Well- it just so happens that I picked her up from school and her hair was a mess. Her hair bow was lost-- as it is about 3 days as week, and her hair was just wild. And duuuuuusty, too! It was 76 here yesterday and so they played outside alot. She appeared to have just rolled around on her head. So, anyway, my mom and I were talking about this hair situation and laughing about it. Parker apparently knew that her CeCe was talking about her. We went to her room to get ready for bath and she started combing her hair. I tried to get a pic before she coiffed her 'do but this is the best that I could do. Her crazy hair is one thing that I have vowed not to worry about. I mean, she is at daycare with 10 other kids that have the same look. I remember having to sleep in those stinkin' pink hair rollers when I was growing up. I WILL NOT make poor Parker P do that. I specifically remember having to sleep in them on Saturday nights before church and the night before school picture day. I probably had dark circles under my eyes from tossing and turning with those things attached to my head, but by golly, my hair was curly and presentable!!

Boxes, Boxes Everywhere

This morning we told Parker that her new princess bed was delivered last night. She followed with "oh mommy, now am I a REAL princess?" Um, well- yes! of course you are. Her princess bed is really just a daybed that we have been selling to her as a "princess" bed so that she'll be super excited about moving into a new room and giving New Baby her old one. So Far, So Good. As soon as the room is put together, I'll post a pic. The walls are pink- Very Princess! The furniture boxes are huge and heavy and I don't see how Matt is going to get these moved around. Or how in the world that we are going to get these things assembled. I will definitely try to help but I have a sneaking feeling that Matt will chase me out of the room to work alone. hehe. Tonight I made Jambalaya in my CrockPot. I put it on at lunch today and then just added the shrimp and rice when I got home. It was a hit! Matt said that he really liked it and now we still have enough to have some for leftovers and add some to the freezer for a quick and easy meal another day. This is my second slow cooker meal that I have made in the past couple of weeks. I'm trying to do at least one CrockPot meal during the week b/c it feeds us forever and makes for a great meal for another night down the road. Last time, I made Chicken and Dumplings and they were great too! I'm sure with my capability of burning cookies and who knows what else that I will have a disaster before long, but keep your fingers crossed. :) Parker loves putting together puzzles and tonight was no different. At night,we usually end up reading books, playing the Memory game, or putting together puzzles. Let me tell you-- she is only two-- well almost three-- but she can play a mean game of Memory. She is good!! Although sometimes we have to remind her not to cheat, which she calls "cheek." When she wins, which is often, she'll say "and I not even cheek!!" obviously beaming with pride as she stacks up "her pile." Tonight was a puzzle night and she put together a 25 piece Winnie the Pooh puzzle. A genius in the making!! :)

The Day I Felt Really Old

On Sundays, we generally clean the house and I make a trip to the grocery store to get whatever we need for the week. So I'm in the middle of Kroger doing all of my shopping and I don't even remember what sort of elevator music they were playing, but I caught myself thinking... "Man, they are playing some pretty decent music at Kroger today"... And then I almost laughed out loud at myself. By the way- I saved $67 using my Kroger card and coupons, I was so excited about this b/c I've been really working hard to pay attention to what's on sale and really make an effort to pair up with coupons. Then I get home and Matt and I are putting up the groceries. We don't have enough room in the freezer with all of the stockpiling that I'm trying to do with my frozen sale items. We resign ourselves to the fact that we are going to have to remove the frozen beer mugs from the freezer. It was a sad day in our household. Granted, it has been months and months and maybe longer for me, with being pregs and all, since those mugs have been used, but it was like the passing of an era. Then I remembered my music situation at Kroger and figured out that I am officially somewhat old. And then I giggled again. Well Parker P is super into cleaning the house. She really loves being the helper and throwing stuff away and getting her cleaning rag and "using spray." She answers every request with "of course" and always does her best. I hope she is this helpful when New Baby arrives. This is a cute pic of her cleaning the kitchen floor with Matt. Somehow I think he talked her into getting into all of the little nooks and crannies which are the perfect size for a 2 year old. She loves it. OK- I know that she looks like little Orphan Annie or Cinderella but she really does like it. :) Really she does... A huge thanks to Sherry Lux for clueing me in on how to do the pics. She has such a cute blog and family so I am constantly stalking her blog for updates. I am going to add her as a clickable Blog I Love as soon as I figure out how. One step at a time...