In the blink of an eye....

This

turned into THIS...

Only a year ago...she still needed training wheels....she had every book read to her, she had all of her teeth.  Today.... she rides her bike like she's done it for years, she reads chapter books to ME, and just look at that toothless wonder.  I'm not sure how so much can happen in so little time.  I get the chills when I think about how she has gone from a tiny baby into a BIG girl right before my eyes...  

God granted us a beautiful sun shiny day today on her special day! She was excited to find a princess balloon and one present ( a pink watch) at the breakfast table.

And, I was thrilled to get to bring treats to her school and read her class one of her favorite books "Fancy Nancy Bonjour Butterfly!"  I couldn't believe that I actually came to her school without bringing something home made.  I had planned on bringing these:

But Missy changed her mind and asked for a Mrs. Field's cookie cake instead ( and I have to admit... it was mighty tasty!)  I think she thought it was pretty tasty too...

Being that it was her "lucky day" at school today...she also got to bring show and tell in the sharing can. She chose her jump rope....she has become QUITE the professional jumper!!!!! I can't believe how good she is!  I loved watching her read her clues to her classmates about what was in the mystery sharing can!

The rest of our afternoon was filled with a picnic and fun at the park and of course monkey bars and hula hooping!  

When daddy came home... she got to open one more present (an Ariel princess and the prince) and then of course for dinner, the restaurant of choice was.... Chick-fil-A.  Sophia had a ball playing in the play area (though I cringe every time she comes out of there...just thinking about all the nice germs she inherited :) ) J was not too fond of the chicken nuggets but was pretty content with the fruit cup we ordered him!  And of course a little ice cream always seems to bring on the smiles!

Hmmm... I'm not sure what I think of these chicken nuggets...

But that bite of daddy's ice cream was darn good!

When we were saying our prayers tonight... we asked Sophia if she had a good birthday and she said...."This was the BEST birthday ever!"  Music to our ears!! 

SIX seems so BIG to me.  I pray that Sophia enjoys every minute of the next year... that she makes time to laugh, to love and to continue being her STRONG little self.  And a little selfishly, I pray that this year goes slowly....that I remember every story she tells me, that I never forget how she looks with every missing tooth, that I cherish every picture she draws for me and every squeeze she gives me.  

Happy Birthday to my "ALWAYS BABY" Sophia.  I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always...as long as I'm living my baby you'll be.

Can't wait for the big celebration on Saturday!

Congratulations!

It's a boy AND a girl for my cousin Lindsay and her husband, Justin!  I had so much fun with these cookies for Owen and Olivia....Hope those sweet babies continue to get stronger so they can come home from the hospital soon!

Hard to believe it was 6 SHORT years ago tonight that our lives were about to be changed forever....  Six years ago tonight... the only pitter patter of feet we heard in our house came from Mr. Willie.  Little did we know how Miss Sophia was about to turn our world upside down.  Can't even imagine my life without her.  Check back tomorrow for some BIRTHDAY GIRL pictures!

It's been TEN years....

and nothing has changed a bit!

My dear friend from graduate school came to visit this weekend.  Our time was short...but we enjoyed catching up, and I was thrilled Sophia and Joseph got to finally meet this special person.  The weather didn't cooperate with my plans of going to the park to play....so we just enjoyed time inside chatting and playing.  The kids adored Tim and were sad to see him go!

Can you guess what professional photographer took this picture?

Oh how I wish I had a scanner so I could post our graduation picture next to this one.  We haven't aged a bit... HA!

It's so great to have friends that you feel like you can just pick up where you left off even when our visits are so few and far between!  Can't wait for our next reunion...hopefully it is not so long...and hopefully we can meet Tim's family next time!  They are lucky to have him!

It's finally....

OUT!

Now she truly looks like an "almost 6 year-old"!

Cupcake Crazy

Sophia gets to bring treats to school on Wednesday for her birthday.... I've been so busy lately... I thought I would just make some plain ol chocolate chippers....but then I found this idea HERE.

They were too darn cute....so I thought  I would give them a try....I still need some practice...but I thought they would be a hit with the kindergardeners.  Too bad Miss Sophia decided she prefers a store bought cookie cake!  OH MY!!!! How can this be....my daughter selecting a "not from scratch" birthday treat????? Well.. like the saying says... "Let them have cake."  So cookie cake it will be...and I guess these guys will have to find a new home.

This is what my work station looks like while icing...

Now that I can pretty much make my royal icing in my sleep...(remember a few months ago when I wanted to pull my hair out over it???)  Well...now I think it's time for some experimenting...I'm looking for more shine.....I guess that means I will have to start doing some more research and I'm sure that means I will need lots more practice, darn!

And here are some cookies I just finished for a little boy's first communion...

Here's a sneak peek at a game I bought at Tuesday Morning (always looking for bargains) for Sophia's Mermaid party.  It's like a ring toss but uses foam balls instead and the targets are of course water creatures.  Shhh.... Team Sophia had a few practice rounds today..but don't tell the other party guests!

She got pretty good...and pretty excited about it.  Of course it will be more fun outside on a sunny day or even in the pool.  I'm already saying a few prayers that the sun will be shining on her special day. As you can see...Joe just had fun throwing the balls and chasing them!  Imagine that!

So I have a feeling Miss Sophia will be missing something in a very short while.  Any guesses?  Hint:  It's white and wiggly.

It's been a while...

a year or so since these little guys have graced us with their presence.  They are my favorite flowers in our yard.  Their blooms are so pretty....and last only a short while....

But I think what I love about them most is....that they remind me of this...

(no, not of the progress report...though I am darn proud of her good marks today)....

My Sophia!  April is her month.  She was supposed to be a May baby...just like her mama...but boy was I thrilled when she surprised me in April.  I think she knew diamonds would be her birthstone if she just came into the world a little sooner than expected! :)  I remember seeing these flowers right before she was born almost 6 years ago...and every year since....April is their month too!  And just like she does...they add a little beauty to my day.  One week from today...my baby will be 6....how can this be?  Some days her stubborn"ness"  makes me want to pull my hair out....and other days I see every bit of myself in her.  She is one AMAZING little miracle.... and I think the day she was born will always seem "just like yesterday" to me. 

Here are a few cookies I was working on for her birthday..... Purple is really not my color.... I'm generally more of a red and blue kind of gal.  But I think these will go with the birthday theme.

I was trying to take pics of the cookies this morning and guess who poked his head in my camera???
Mr. smiles!  You wouldn't have guessed that actually he was rather cranky today....but let me at least toot his horn (Sophia has been laughing over this Junie B. phrase... "toot your own horn" all week) and tell you the ENT specialist  today said he handled his adenoid scope test better than any other child she has ever seen.  He was soooooo good...didn't even cry when they stuck that strange little noodle thing in his tiny little nose.  I was one proud Mama!!!  But better yet.... we discovered his adenoids are not abnormally large.  That means...no surgery necessary.  But back to the drawing boards for his allergies and reflux....singulair here we come!!!

So...it has been quite a week so far.  Sophia seems to have overcome her bad headache bout ( still not sure if it was allergies, migraines, or a virus) but whatever it was I hope we don't have any more repeat episodes.  Headaches are no fun at all especially when you are only almost 6 and the swings and monkey bars are calling your name:)

ACHOO!!!

Because I can't keep this little guy indoors....this is what he looks like at the end of the day!

Can you see his poor little swollen eye??

But he is still all smiles... at least in these pictures.  We've had our share of grumpy moments the past few days....but I don't blame him....itchy eyes, sneezing and runny noses.... no fun.  But still not complaining about the beautiful weather we've enjoyed this week!!

Kid tested....

Sister approved...

Down right good!

I made some changes to my chocolate chip cookie recipe....I think they were some good ones.  :)

A nice end to a rather hectic day!
Here's a quick run down....

J woke up with his usual allergies being extra horrendous.  Poor little guy!!!
Despite his itchy, watery eyes and runny nose....I could not deny him the pleasure of enjoying the beautiful weather....so we went outside this morning while Sophia was at school.  Upon coming inside...( I was carrying him....okay...practically dragging him) he decided to push the alarm buttons.  Alarm sounds....and mommy forgets how to disarm system.  Dog goes nuts, J runs away from me....alarm company calls...and I can barely remember my name!  Whew! Did I mention that J opened the window in the dining room when I was making my coffee this morning?  I thought it had been too quiet for more than two minutes...

Next...we decide to walk to pick up Sophia from school.  Beautiful day....perfect weather....2 happy kiddos!  Sophia skipping along.  She decides to hit the button at the crosswalk...accidentally hits the wrong one, so I step in and hit the right one.  A few minutes later as we are getting ready to cross... a car flies by us honking... I look up thinking it is someone we know (but instead it is a disgruntled woman giving us a rather inappropriate gesture)....still wondering if Sophia's wrong touch of the crosswalk made her miss the light or whether she was just having a bad day.  At this point I was a little disheartened by her rudeness...but nonetheless still enjoying the beautiful day.

After we get home,  I get a message that my dentist needed to cancel my appointment b/c of a water main break (how often does that happen???)  Okay....so a few hang-ups....but still in good spirits.  So, we decide to head to the post office to mail Sophia's handmade birthday invites....she was pretty excited about this ( and I was hoping to get the letters hand canceled).  Upon arrival, there was only a short line, and the lady at the counter was friendly and named Sophia too!  But once again...as we were leaving we were struck with yet another rude encounter.  I was getting ready to put J in his seat when an older gentlemen pulled up to pull in the handi-cap spot next to me....He was clearly agitated that it took me more than 20 sec to fasten J's seat belt.  He would not pull his car in until I closed J's door even though there was plenty of room.  Then...he just sat in his car and glared at me (J saw the man b/c he had been admiring the man's dog in his car).  J's remark...."That man mean!"  I said..."maybe he is having a bad day!" (And for the record...I watched that man get out of his car as I pulled away....and I think he walked quicker than me....he didn't look handi-capped....but I guess you never know....)

Besides a few splinters in J's hands from the swing set, Sophia falling a SECOND time on her injured elbow, and then running out of the correct band-aids for the boo-boo, the rest of the day was fine.  I'm sure I left something out....but that's all my tired brain can remember.  (Just remembered how I lost my keys in this cute little bookstore we happened upon today....searched the car for more than 10 minutes and under the car before thinking to check back inside the store)....

Just hoping the benadryl helps J's swollen eyes and my two munchkins get a good night's rest...b/c I know it will start all over again tomorrow.  nite nite!

Sunny Daze

We have had beautiful sunshine here all weekend!  The kids had their spring pictures taken yesterday....and we couldn't have been blessed with better weather.  It was truly "Picture Perfect."  Before we undressed the kids... I had to take a few pictures of them by our neighborhood lake.  I need some practice "picture taking" in bright sunshine...  but at least I got a few of the kids in their springy ensembles!!

As you can see... I did a great job capturing their BACKS....they were too fast for me and Brett and I paranoid that J was going to head straight for the water!!

So we kind of gave up on picture taking and headed for the park.... I got a little better at photographing their faces while they were playing.  Miss Sophia was pretty proud of herself for doing the monkey bars all by herself!!

This morning....the weather was gorgeous once again....and I was able to get to my camera quick enough when I spotted the little munchkins hugging each other.  I can just hear Joseph saying " I love you too, doodah!"  

Now if I could just enjoy the weather WITHOUT sneezing....life would be good....but I'm not complaining!  Enjoy your week!