Our Not So Exciting, but Oh So Wonderful Weekend!

We didn't do anything particularly exciting this weekend, but we did enjoy a lot of great family time, just the three of us.  I am always looking for things to do and places to go and people to see in order to make our weekends together fun.  The truth is, sometimes LESS is MORE!  That was definitely the case this weekend, and I have the pictures to prove it.  You will probably find this post boring, but I want to document ALL of our memories---the exciting ones as well as the not so exciting ones.  So, here's a glace at our weekend, starting with Friday.......

Friday morning while I was making breakfast for Kyndall, I looked over to see this......

This may seem like no big deal to you, but this HUGE for Kyndall!  Up until now, she's shown absolutely NO interest at all in standing, walking, or even pulling up.  So to see this was exciting!

She was so proud of what she'd done that she attempted to reward herself with a little treat.  Dr. Pepper for breakfast?  Why not?!  Mommy does it!

Friday was a gorgeous day, and this baby loves nothing more than to be outside!  We spent almost the whole afternoon in the back yard.

I apologize for the abundance of pictures, but I was having so much fun playing around with my new camera!

We came inside and watched Veggie Tales and waited patiently for Daddy to come home.  This stool from Nonie and Poppie is her new favorite place to watch her shows.  I think it makes her look like such a big girl!

Matthew will kill me for sharing this, but I'm gonna do it anyway.  =)  There are very few things I really indulge in, but one of them happens to be Little Debbie holiday cakes.  ( You know the ones.....the Christmas trees, Valentine's Hearts, Easter Eggs, etc.)  They're nothing but sugar and absolutely terrible for you.  But, I love them.  They make me happy.  So, I bought myself us a box last week at the grocery store as a "treat", fully expecting it to last AT LEAST until my next trip to the store.  If you know my husband very well, you know that he is the WORST when it comes to savoring and enjoying things like this.  If it's there, he's gotta have it.  He has no concept of rationing things and making them last or any form of self control.  I actually considered hiding my our treats, for fear that he would eat them all up before I ever got a single one.  Wouldn't you know, I was RIGHT!  He found them, ate them, and thought nothing about it.  He even had the nerve to tell me he gave one of my our precious treats to the DOGS!!  What?!  Needless to say, he got an ear full and on Friday afternoon, he came home with this.........

Not just one, but TWO boxes of treats!

I'm a happy girl again, and I definitely don't think he'll be laying a hand on MY treats again anytime soon!  =)

Friday night we got take-out for dinner and just hung out at home.  Saturday was a gorgeous day, so we ran a few errands (including casting our votes in the SC primaries!) and then enjoyed a nice lunch while we were out.  We came home for Kyndall to play and nap before heading out again that night.

She got these two fridge toys for Christmas and she LOVES them!  And I love them because they entertain her while I'm cooking or cleaning up the kitchen!

She has also recently discovered this horrid magnet, which we got in the mail from a local walk-in clinic

Once she was up from her nap, we headed out again, this time for dinner.  We had a couple of gift cards that we got for Christmas, so we decided to treat ourselves.

Thanks for the cute outfit, Aunt Kelly!  (Side note.....I'm loving how her hair has started flipping out in the back!)

Ready to go eat!





By the time we got home, it was time for baths and bed.  I really wanted to get a picture of Kyndall with her Daddy while she had these PJ's on, but she was less than cooperative, to say the least!

"Daddy Loves Me, I'm his Princess"......More like "Daddy Loves me Even when I'm Bratty!"

This morning, we woke up to freezing temps and lots of rain.  So I made the executive decision that we would skip out on church today, to avoid risking Kyndall having a relapse of her recent pneumonia.  Matthew made sausage, eggs and grits for breakfast and we enjoyed a lazy day of movies, snuggles on the couch, and a little bit of house cleaning in between.  It's rare that we do this on Sundays, and although I missed being in church, it was kind of a nice way to spend our day together.

Watching the rain fall, and admiring Mommy's new Valentine's Day decorations





While Kyndall took her nap, I got a few things marked off my to-do list.  One of them was to hang this gorgeous portrait that Kris Kimel took of Kyndall back in September.  I've been searching for the perfect frame, and I finally found it.  I am so happy with how it turned out, and SO grateful to Kris for her beautiful work!!!

Maybe I'm biased, but I do think that's one beautiful baby girl

I also found time to set out my Valentine's Day decorations.  Decorating my house for the seasons/holidays is one of my favorite things to do. 

She was so little last year!

And lastly, I found time to put the new comforter on our guest bed, just in time for Aunt Kelly's visit this coming weekend! 

And there you have it---a completely boring, yet absolutely wonderful weekend!  We have a few things to look forward to this week, such as play dates and picnics with our Moms group, my new ladies Bible study on Wednesday night, Kyndall's Baby Net appointment on Thursday, and finally, Kelly's arrival on Friday!  I hope that everyone has a wonderful week!

15 Month Check-Up

Today was Kyndall's 15 month check-up and shots with Dr. Traynham.  Technically, she's almost 16 months old, but we fell a little behind with our appointments due to the holidays and being out of town.  Here are her stats, as of today:

Height :   30.25 inches (28th percentile)
Weight :  19 pounds 8 oz. (20th percentile)
BMI :     15%

She's still a little tiny for her age, but the doctor isn't worried at all, since she's steadily gaining with each appointment.  As with every visit, they had me fill out a check list of developmental skills for her age.  Some of them were :

Feeds herself : Check
Drinks from a cup : Check
Knows 3-5 words : Check
Knows at least 2 body parts : Check
Tries to use a spoon : Check (Although, she's not yet using it properly---I think "tries" is the key word though)
Attempts to remove clothing :  DOUBLE CHECK!  (Shoes, socks, hairbows---you name it!)
Can stack at least two blocks : Check
Walks well : Nope!

That's right, almost 16 months old and STILL not walking!  Dr. Traynham is sending us back to Baby Net to see if they will evaluate her again, and possibly provide some sort of physical therapy.  He's confident that it's a matter of "I don't want to" or "I don't know how" rather than "I can't".  Her muscle tone and lower body strength are perfect, so he's not too concerned.  So, if she qualifies, then Baby Net will work with her on some exercises or activities that will encourage her to WANT to walk!  As long as I know there's nothing wrong with her, I'm ok with her taking her time.  She's healthy, happy and smart and that's what matters most to me!  =)

Ready to go see Dr. Traynham

Fake smile, but I'll take it!



She loves watching the other kids in the waiting room......

Mommy is always prepared with my bag of "tricks" to help entertain her during the long wait.  Today, it was goldfish--a rare treat!

She was pretty upset after the shots, so we made a stop for ice cream and that made everything better!  On our way home, I looked back to see this........

When we got home, I was happy to find a surprise in our mailbox.  My sweet friend Leigh had sent us yet ANOTHER package full of adorable clothes for Kyndall!  Along with the hand-me-downs (which we LOVE), she also included this outfit and matching bow as a gift for Kyndall.  Too cute!!!!  Just what we needed after a rough morning!



New Tricks!

 There's a very good possibility that Kyndall will someday look back at my blog and think that she spent 99% of her life in the bathtub.  But, as I've said before, it's the only time I have her undivided attention, which means I can get her to cooperate (somewhat) and show off her smarts.  She wasn't willing to show me ALL of her tricks (she has quite a few these days!), but here's a pretty good sampling of a few.......


Happy Birthday Aunt Kelly!

Today (yes, Friday the 13th!) is my sister's 25th birthday!  I can't be in Tallahassee to celebrate, so I decided that dedicating a blog post to her would be the next best thing.  I hope she agrees.  I also thought it would be fun to take a look back at her birthday from last year, since that was in my pre-blogging days and I've been wanting to document it to look back on in years to come.  It was memorable, to say the least!

Kyndall wasn't quite 4 months old at the time, and I hadn't yet braved the 6 hour drive to Tallahassee by myself, for fear that it would just be too hard to do alone.  My sister was going through a really tough time in her life and I wanted to surprise her by showing up for her birthday.  So, I started thinking and came up with a plan.  Kyndall and I would take the Amtrak from Charleston to Jacksonville, and then someone would pick us up there and drive us to Tallahassee.  It sounded like the perfect plan, and I was confident that I could do it alone.  Plus, it would only cost me around $45!  Not bad!  There was only one negative:  We had to board the train in downtown Charleston at 4:30 a.m.!  Yikes!!

We left the house at 3:30 a.m.



Waiting to board the train

Matthew helped me carry Kyndall and our bags as far as he was allowed, before saying goodbye to us

The trip wasn't bad at all!  It only took a little over 3 hours to get to Jacksonville, which is about the same amount of time it takes in a car.  It was very bumpy and the train rocked back and forth the entire time.  This helped to keep Kyndall asleep most of the trip, which was what I had hoped for.  It was dark outside, so I didn't have any pretty scenery to look at.  I tried sleeping, but that wasn't happening.  Once we got to Jacksonville, my Dad was waiting for us and helped me with our luggage.  Kyndall was such a trooper during the whole trip, but she was definitely glad to get to Tallahassee so she could get out of that baby carrier and stretch!



Kelly's birthday wasn't until the following day, so I had to "hide out" in Tallahassee and not let anyone know I was there, other than my parents.  I didn't want to risk spoiling the surprise, so I didn't tell anyone that I was in town.  The next day, while Kelly and my Mom were at lunch for her birthday, I walked up behind her in the restaurant with a bouquet of balloons and tapped her on the shoulder.  The look on her face was PRICELESS!  She immediately started crying, and between the tears she managed to mumble a few words like "what??....how??....when??...."  It was the best surprise EVER!  I was so proud of myself for actually pulling it off.



That night, we had a little party for her and invited a few close friends.  I forgot to mention that she was DEATHLY sick, and really wasn't up for much celebrating.  She'd been in and out of the ER all week, and was really not feeling good at all.  This was another reason I so badly wanted to surprise her.  She was having such a rough week! 





Kyndall wore her cupcake attire for the party =)  Look how little she was!

I wish I had another great birthday surprise up my sleeve for this year, but I don't.  So, I thought I'd share some embarrassing pictures with you instead.  You're welcome, Kelly!  =)  =)

Let's take a walk down memory lane.........

Ok, enough with the embarrassing pictures.....onto some of my more recent favorites.......

As you can see, we've shared a lot of great memories, and I look forward to many, many more!  Happy 25th birthday, Kelly-Bug!!!  I love you very much, and so does this little lady.......

It was FREEZING and windy, and I wasn't getting the pictures I had hoped for, so we moved our little par-tay INSIDE!

"Don't think I won't jump, Mommy!!"

So over it by this point......

Not exactly our best photo shoot to date, but you get the point.  (This was sooo much easier when she was a baby!)  Anyway, ALL that to say..........

"To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time." - Clara Ortega