2012?!?

It's herreeee, 2012!

I failed to update as often as I would have liked in 2011. Maybe we'll do better this year.

Kayla did finally celebrate the anticipated 4th birthday. We gathered all of her cousins except for Abigail, and grandparents to Tokyo Steakhouse for dinner. Kayla was so excited about opening her presents, she hardly noticed anything else, and certainly didn't want to eat...I made her a rainbow cake and she was pretty interested in that! Cake and sweets are her absolute favorite. She shakes when she gets excited to get a piece of something. We were at a a friend's birthday party over the summer, Brooklyn, and Kayla got her piece of cake and then went up to Brooklyn's Mom and said, "I think my tummy is telling me something. It's telling me it needs more cake." We all got a good laugh out of that.

For Halloween Kayla dressed up as Dora and we met up with her friend Kate and Kate's Mom and Dad, Trey, Ashley and Eddie, and Addie, and Tiffany. We didn't trick or treat in a very busy area, but it was just enough for the kids to get out in their costumes for a little candy.

Thanksgiving was low key. A dinner at my Dad's and at Cary's parents house. Kayla and Pawpaw put on a puppet show for us. It was cute.

We had a lot of fun getting ready for Christmas. I checked out a book that had 25 legends of Christmas, and as we opened each box on our Advent tree, we read about one of the legends. Kayla loved doing that. She had a blast putting the ornaments on the tree and playing with my nativity set. When we would ride down the road at night Kayla would shout, Christmas lights!!! every time we passed a decorated house. We went to Callaway Gardens to see their light display with Nana and Pawpaw and Kayla loved doing that. We also went ice skating, but Kayla was less than graceful on the ice. Her favorite part of the doing that was a cookie and hot cocoa.

Kayla spent most of Christmas with her Dad, but we were able to spend Christmas morning together. Kayla passed out all of the presents and had a special present picked out for Nana. I let her pick something for everyone and for Nana she chose a pillow and blanket. She was absolutely thrilled to give it to her. Kayla got some puzzles, clothes, stuffed animals, books, and some art things. She is always very appreciative of gifts.

Over the Christmas break while I worked, Kayla spent time with Nana and Pawpaw and played with Pawpaw a lot. They have a very special bond.

I am looking forward to a fabulous 2012. Kayla has started ballet classes that are held at her school and she seems to really enjoy them so far. Can't wait to see what else she shows interest in and what other adventures we have in store!

I almost have a 4 year old!

Time goes by too quickly! I cannot believe summer has come and gone and that fall has only just begun and it's already freezing out! The colors of the leaves are perfect right now.

Kayla had a great summer. She spent her days off school at Nana Shu's house and really enjoyed it. We went swimming at the lake in our neighborhood, went to the pool, visited Mimi in Maryland, went to the park and library, and she spent time with some of her friends, Trey and Addison. School started in early August. She's back at Chapel Hill Christian school this year and is in the older 3 year old class. Her teacher is Mrs. Dancy, and so far Kayla is having a great year! We just had parent teacher conferences yesterday and Kayla got all "G's" for Good. Her teacher said she is very smart and ahead of her classmates.

Kayla's best friend Kate is in the younger three year old class, but they get to have lunch, naptime, and after care together. She seems to have lots of friends and spreads her joy and energy to others.

She started playing soccer in September and has about 3 games left for the season. The very first game was pretty rough because she was angry she wasn't scoring a goal. Lots of crying!!! We talked to her about being a good teammate and every other game has been great. She has scored a goal in almost every single game and the important thing is she running around and having fun. She's really fast!

Kayla still loves to read books by making up her own words. It's always entertaining! She also still loves to color and tells me she wants to be an artist when she grows up.

On the food front, Kayla still has a major sweet tooth! She will eat anything labeled "dessert". She told me a couple of weeks ago that the only foods she liked were pb&j, pizza, and macaroni and cheese. So I've got to figure out a way to get this girl loving her veggies! She will eat them but I have to make her! My latest trick is her rolling a dice for how many bites she has to take. If she ever rolls a 1, it's her lucky day!

Kayla is very excited about her birthday. She asks me every day how many more days it is.

I can't believe she is almost four. She has brought me more joy than I thought possible and I love her more than words could ever express. I hope she always knows that my love for her will never change.

Loving Spring!

With warmer weather there seems to be more to do and boy have we been filling up our schedule!

Easter weekend was lots of fun! Kayla had an Easter party at school and then the Saturday before Easter we had some friends over (Jake, Tiffany and their little girl Addison, and Ashley, Eddie, and their son Trey). They dyed Easter eggs and hunted for eggs all night long! By Sunday Kayla told me she was tired of hunting eggs. We had a great celebration at church and a nice lunch out. We needed naps Sunday afternoon and then we spent the rest of that night hiding and hunting for more Easter eggs! Kayla loved her Easter basket from me and Nana Shu. Lots of goodies!

I used a Resurrection Eggs kit I purchased to tell Kayla the story of Easter. She had lots of questions and I hope that some of it will stick with her.

Last weekend Kayla had a special "first". A camping trip! My Dad, Donna, Kayla, and I drove to Vogel in North GA with Cary's truck and a pop-up camper. We arrived around 6:30pm and began to set up camp. Kayla was so excited and was running all around. We grilled hamburgers and ate baked beans for supper. We were all starving! It got dark quickly and Kayla was very cautious as we warned that a bear had been spotted scavenging for food. We roasted marshmallows but Kayla didn't like them all burned!

We finally nestled in to our beds and it sure was nice to have a warm body next to me, it was cold! The next morning we had bacon, fruit, and waffles. Yum! Kayla said breakfast was her favorite part but did not enjoy her hands being cold. There was a playground in walking distance so we spent a good bit of time there and I was able to hike a little. We headed home shortly after. It was a beautiful park and just the right amount of time for me...I'm not much of a camper. I'm glad we got to do it.

Kayla's school year is winding down and I can hardly believe it! Tomorrow I get to visit her school for a special Mother's Day brunch. May 16th Kayla gets to attend a Pony Party at a farm and May 17th is a special water play day at school. I'll try to get some pictures up soon!

Spring Break

Kayla was on Spring Break last week. I should have planned a trip for us but I guess I wasn't thinking too far ahead this year.

I had to work so Kayla spent most of the week at Nana Shu's. They took a trip to the library one day and had breakfast at Cracker Barrel. She had a good week but started getting a cold mid-week. Thursday was my day off so we had a really fun day. We went to the library, Chuck-e-cheese, and McDonalds.

Friday evening Kayla was very draggy and her cough was bad. Friday night neither of us slept much because she was coughing and crying all night. Poor thing :(

Saturday we went to the Dr. and found out she had an ear infection. She got several prescriptions and by late Saturday she was feeling better already. We dyed Easter eggs and painted pictures on the back porch since it was a nice day out. Saturday she slept great so we decided to spend our last day of "vacation" by taking a trip to the zoo. Kayla was a little whiny and the animals were not very active, so I think the highlight of the trip were her two rides on the carousel.

We'll be celebrating Easter soon. Kayla will be having her first performance in chapel on April 19th.

Springtime and Growth

It's hard to believe my last post had pictures of Kayla in a warm jacket and snow all over! It feels so great right now in sunny GA. High 70's and flowers blooming everywhere. Spring makes me think of growth and let me tell you growth is a funny thing. Sometimes things seem to take a long time to grow and other times it happens so quickly!

A few highlights from the past months:

I took an Anatomy class that meant I had to be in Newnan very early in the mornings so my parents were kind enough to allow me to drop Kayla off with them. They would fix her breakfast and take her to school 2 times a week. Such a blessing! Those early mornings were hard though...I was usually getting Kayla out of bed! Thankfully I am done with that class and will now have another class 2 times a week, but at night. Kayla's Dad and my parents will help with that...again couldn't do it without them!

In February Kayla had a Valentine's Day party at school. She had a great time getting Valentines from all her friends and decorating (and eating) a big cookie! Mommy didn't know until the day of that I was supposed to get Valentines...how did I miss that memo? I came through though :)

Kayla went to a fun birthday party for Eva Duffy. They had a moon bounce, music, lots of food, cake, cookie decorating, ponies, and a pinata! Kayla and Mommy had a blast. We also had a successful Happy Visit to the dentist - no cavities! Also in February I ran a half marathon in Orlando, FL. My Mom came to stay with Kayla and it was so nice having her here knowing Kayla was in good hands. They did a lot of fun things and made lots of memories. My favorite surprise getting back was seeing beautiful violas planted in my flower boxes! Kayla is supposed to help me remember to water them because they "get thirsty".

It has warmed up in March and with daylight savings we are enjoying getting outside more - winter seemed so long! Kayla is so good about playing by herself...her imagination is very vivid. I usually exercise when I get home and she does very well entertaining herself. Then we fix dinner, get a bath, and read a story before bed. It's a nice little routine.

Kayla still enjoys school and will be going back to Chapel Hill Christian in the fall. They have to wear uniforms next year. It will be nice not to have to worry about what she'll wear from day to day.

Kayla has been sleeping great in her bed all night, no bedwetting, and is really growing so quickly. I can't believe I will have a 4 year old on my hands soon enough! It's a little bittersweet because I love her sense of wonder and innocence right now. She just soaks everything in and really seems to enjoy life. She talks soooooo much! Sometimes it drives me crazy but she always ends up bringing a smile to my face.

Sometimes I can be a little hard on her but I really want her to know just how much I love her and want what is best. I've started a notebook where I write down one thing for the day that I want to share with her. I hope I can keep that up!

She got a haircut last week. Here's a picture:

Snow and Ice!

Sunday night we were hit hard with a snow storm. We got about 4 inches of snow through the night and as the week went on it all turned to ice. Schools were closed all week. Kayla and I stayed home together for three days and it was great. It was nice not having to leave the house for anything and we got to spend some time together.

We played in the snow a little but weren't able to make a snowman. Kayla got cold pretty fast but I think she enjoyed herself.

Wednesday I braved the roads and took her to my parents house. Well today the roads are way worse than yesterday so Kayla is now snowed in at my parents and I'm here. Outside my house 4 vehicles ran off the road or got stuck. I'm very thankful I made it safe and sound. My car is actually parked at the top of a big hill and I had to walk home. Again, thankful I wasn't with Kayla during that!

Happy New Year!

I briefly tried to explain to Kayla the concept of New Year's. I guess she got it because Monday night she slept in her bed all night but called for me over her monitor in the middle of the night. When I went in to check on her she was sitting up and happily pronounced, "Happy New Year!".

It was too sweet for me to even be annoyed so I tucked her back in, smiled, and went back to bed :)