The Lost Balloon

Before I get started, I want to share that I got a new lens for my camera today. Why you say? Because I was jealous. Jealous of my friends who brag about their 50 mm lens. So I got it today after an email from Nicki pushed me over the edge. It is going to take quite a bit of practice on my part before I feel comfortable with this lens. Because with the Nikon D40, you have to manually focus a 50 mm lens - which is not an easy thing to do when your primary subject is a highly active 2 year old. Most of my pictures today were soft, but a few turned out really nicely. I think this might be the case until I get a higher quality camera. Someday I will get a fancier camera that can auto focus with this lens, but for now I will just dream......

Also, thanks so much for all of the awesome comments about the train. Seriously, you guys rock and I have found several good ones on Craigslist for cheap with lots and lots of pieces and a table. I would have never thought of that.

The background on these pictures is that Lucy got a balloon tonight. She LOVES balloons so she was so pleased with herself and her balloon. I tied it around her wrist loosely because I knew that if she lost it she would be devastated. Out we went to practice with the new lens. She was happy for a while to play and frolic about with the balloon around her wrist. But then she became determined to get it off. I kept telling her that she would have to hold on to it tightly if she took it off her wrist because it would fly away and be gone forever. She listened for a while, but then off it flew. The look on her face was so sad, and of course I caught it on film. Her little eyes welled up with tears and she kept saying, "Come back, boon! Come back!" I told her we would just have to watch it fly away and tell it bye bye. She did and then the rest of the time we were outside she would look up to the sky and say, "Boon, boon, are you?? No see you." Then she would jump and say, "I reach boon." Pretty pitiful.

I will let the pictures do the talking.






Isn't this the saddest face you have ever seen?


She was trying to find the balloon here.

She finally accepted the fact that the balloon was gone.

Oh well, guess I better get back to my normal nightly business - coloring my feet with chalk.

Such pretty light in her hair.

Really cool light in her eyes.

She wants to throw all of her chalk pieces and watch it break. Good thing I bought the super cheap chalk on the dollar row at Target. She knows I don't prefer she throws it, so this is the look she gives me to say, "I am throwing it anyway Momma."

Rockstar!

If Lucy could have one toy that would make her so happy, it would be that Thomas the Train set and table. You know the one, it is set up in any toy store and at our Barnes and Noble. The girl will stand at that table and play with those trains forever. I have to drag her away from it. Why in the world does it have to cost so much? I know it is really nice, but I am scared she will not care about it in a few months and don't want to invest hundreds of dollars toward it. Maybe we will just get her a few of the trains. The problem is, if you don't have the tracks glued down on a table, I know it will make her crazy when the tracks come apart. I think it is a really cool toy myself, but is it worth hundreds of dollars? Probably not.

I love to document when Lucy does something really sweet. My mom got her this doll bed from Ikea. It was just raw wood. I painted it pink and painted polka dots on it and put her name on it. It is adorable. Today, she took her baby over to the bed, fed her a bottle, and sang her Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. You should hear her sing this song. It would melt your heart. She doesn't get every word right, but she sings a sound for every word. It is so so so precious. Then she told her baby night night and patted her back. It was too much. I would have loved to have it on video, but I would have ruined the moment and I didn't want to do that.

Also, today she played with her little friend Ava. She is sometimes just a bully with her and is going through a VERY possessive stage at the moment. She gets a little rough from time to time. Today she shoved Ava and I told her to tell her she was sorry and for the first time ever, she actually apologized. Usually when I ask her to say sorry, she just ignores me and refuses to say it. I was glad that she finally said it. Also about the possessive stuff, Anna is also very possessive at the moment. So yesterday when I told Lucy we were on our way to play with Anna and Louis, she gathered up everything she could reach in her carseat and told me, "My juice. My raisins. My shoes." etc. Ugh. We know it is yours honey.

And finally she is starting to always associate people together. She has never talked about Anna's brother Louis until recently. Now whenever I mention Anna she says, "And Woo Wee too!" And today when I mentioned Ava, she said, "And Taty." Katy is Ava's mom and you know she can't say the ck sound. I just think it is cute how she is talking about other people now too.

Lucy got a birthday present in the mail today from her Aunt Seashy (my baby sister Katy). I knew it was some sort of really cute clothes, and I just caved and let her open it today. I couldn't handle the suspense any longer. I am SO glad I didn't wait. Look at what she sent. This is AWESOME! It says Rockstar on it. I love it. The other pictures are from tonight with the chalk on the sidewalk. It was still so hot, but it was nice to get out.










We were both covered in chalk. I wonder why.....



She started something new tonight. She would sit here and wait for a car to drive by. Then she would wave a huge wave to them. They almost all waved back. The only ones who didn't were unable to see her. She was so proud when she got a big wave back. So, here she is sitting and waiting.

Here she was saying "Car car. Are you? Come on cars."

"Hey Mom. Here comes one!"

So pleased that someone waved back. It really was so cute.

The Excitement is Building

So Lucy is literally busting at the seams because she is so excited about her upcoming birthday party. I love that she understands that a party is coming up and it will be all for her. Every single day she says, "Party???" And I tell her that we still have a little while to go. Every day she gets out the cute plates and party favors for the party and shouts, "Birthday Party!!" She gets out each favor and assigns it to one of her friends. So cute. When she sees one of the invitations she gets so excited. When we ask her what she wants for her birthday she enthusiastically says, "Cake and bicycle" every time. Easy enough baby girl. Your wish is our command and in the garage we have a shiny red old school Radio Flyer tricycle for you - streamers on the handle bars and all. I can't wait to see her little face light up when she finally gets her bicycle. We also have an easel and art kit for her. For her party, which is a week from Sunday, we are having friends and family over with sprinklers and baby pools for the kiddies and hot dogs and apps for dinner. Very low key and low stress, but lots and lots of fun. I got that cute octopus sprinkler from Pottery Barn Kids. Just wait until you see how precious Miss Lucy is going to be for the party. We have already been practicing wearing what she will open her presents in. Oh, it is so cute. Don't worry, it just goes with her swimsuit, but it is really really awesome. You know I wouldn't let my girl down with a crappy birthday outfit. She is going to be quite the spoiled princess for her big day. I must admit, I am pretty excited to watch her open presents and eat ice cream cake. Oh the ice cream cake, she will be in HEAVEN!

Two days ago we let Lucy play in a rain shower we had. It was a light rain and I didn't get great pics. I want to get some fun ones of her in a better shower. Today we played at the Children's Museum. We have never been before and it was a blast. I can't handle the miserable heat, so we are always looking for fun indoor activities. There was so much to do and play with. The kids loved it. Then we met Anna, Louis, and Mandy at the book store. We always have fun with them and to top it all off, we ate yummy Vietnamese food for dinner. When I asked Lucy if she wanted Vietnamese for dinner she said, "No mama, French fries." I am sure the Vietnamese would be proud of her fondness of their food. She literally would not eat one single bite. Anna however, sat and ate several big bowls of pho. It cracked me up. The food really was so good.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. I have been in a bit of a funk lately. Not sleeping well, tired all of the time, grouchy, and just not feeling great. I think it is because we are couped up all day inside and never get any fresh air, but the heat is stifling and the mosquitos are out of control. I can't take Lucy outside for one second before she is swarmed and the bites swell so badly on her soft skin. Blah. I need the heat to chill. I am so lucky because Lucy has been so lovey and sweet the past few days so she always makes me feel better.

Feeling Great!

Thank you all so much for the kind comments on my last post. I really appreciate them. Lucy is much much better and back to her normal self. She seems to have one big tantrum a day, but I know that goes with the territory. She turns 2 on August 1st and she is just letting us know that she has BIG opinions about every single thing. At church this morning the sermon really touched on being patient and trying to understand where someone else is coming from and dealing with it in a kind and loving way. I thought it spoke loudly to me about dealing with Lucy as she is going through these changes in a more positive and understanding manner. I had gotten really frustrated with her lately and I think we are back on track. The sermon was exactly what I needed to hear. I was so tired this morning and almost convinced myself to just skip church, and I am SO thankful that we didn't. I know I was supposed to be there.

Did anyone see that Miss Universe was filmed in Vietnam tonight? I really don't like pageants but was flipping through the channels and heard them say Vietnam so I watched. Miss Vietnam even made it to the top 10. She was beautiful.

Today is the first day that I have had my camera out since July 4th - SO SO SO unlike me but I haven't felt like taking pictures and I know Miss Priss has not wanted her picture taken. I got some cute ones this afternoon. Lucy was so cute in her dress and then we ate popsicles and drew with chalk after dinner. I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

My favorite of the day. I missed that smile and laugh so much when she was sick. It is so nice to have it back!




Nicki, this is an Addy Mai look alike!