Mavis Miriam At 16 1/2 Months

Mavis has become a toddler.  She can keep up with her brother and sister like a champ and is a tough little girl.  She is a bruiser and when she falls and gets hurt she only cries for a second.  She will ask to nurse usually, which is still the cure all for her.  "Na?"  Probably TMI, but she will pinch my other nipple while she nurses.  Making public nursing interesting.  I can't seem to break her from this habit, because in the middle of the night I'm half asleep and just don't have the energy.  She still prefers to nurse for most of her nutrition.  She will rarely eat the food I put in front of her unless it is a cracker, chip, or sweet.  Obviously she isn't hurting nutritionally...

 Ask her where her "boo boos" are and she will lift her dress or pants to reveal her knees. 

 We can't seem to get her knees healed, because she falls on her knees constantly...keeping up with her brother and sister.

 She will let out a sweet little whimper when I ask to see her "boo boo."

 Mavis loves to draw and bite the tips off markers.  She is constantly asking for paper and something to draw with.  Constantly.  She will scream and demand if I give her the wrong thing...like, if she wanted a certain marker.

 These curls kill me.

 She also loves to eat chalk.

 She is a busy girl.  She puts all of our shoes away for us if she sees them lying out and she loves going in her stroller for a walk.  

She is still waking up 3-4 times a night on a GOOD night.  Don't even ask me about the bad nights...

While having three kids has made me a totally laid back parent...I wouldn't say Mavis is the laid back third child I was expecting.  She is just as high maintenance as her brother and sister.  I'm exhausted.  I know it will get easier and I know just when it gets easier I'll miss where we are now...I think.

Enchanted Forest 2012

The annual Enchanted Forest trip.  We went with a couple of our favorite little families and one Grandpa.  This year I wasn't pregnant and sick and I didn't have a tiny baby that I couldn't put down, so I got to go on some rides.  Mezmur and I LOVE the Frog Hopper and I got to go on the Log Ride with Mezmur and Dan.  Mezmur is my little thrill seeker.  Rhett chickened out on the Log Ride while we waited in line.  Obviously, I didn't call him a chicken to his face and we don't force our kids to do anything...well almost anything.  I do make them get a photo in the witches mouth whether they like it or not.

 Awww...the play.  This year Rhett was too cool for the play.  Dan offered $5 if he didn't smile the whole play.  A mention of Harry Potter and an utterance of Justin Bieber and the $5 was ours.  He tried to hide his smile, but we could see it in his eyes.

 Runner #1.

 Runner #2.

 Sisters.  Mavis loves her big sister.  They chase each other around the house growling and Mavis follows Mezmur everywhere.  I hope they will be best friends.

 The best witches mouth photo we could get...

Mezmur was scared all morning about the witches mouth, but Dan told her she just wanted to kiss the children, not eat them.  The first thing she did when she saw the witch was give it a big hug and she declared that she loves the witch.

The Hansel and Gretel witch was another story.  "Come closer my dearie, come closer my dearie, and see if the oven is hot."  It's the stuff of nightmares for a four-year-old little girl.  Not to mention creepy animatronics from the early eighties...yikes.

Meredith's Shower

The wedding is coming up!!!  So exciting!!!  My mom and I got to throw Meredith's shower last weekend.  Have I told you how much I love Meredith?  There was some non-cheesy shower activities, good treats, good booze, and good company.  All-in-all I would call it a success.

 I made some ginger simple syrup infused with mint.  Mixed with some lime, sparkling soda, and rum...yum.  Here is the bride with her tasty cocktail and cute straw.

 The best part.

 I thought a photo booth (of sorts) would be fun.  I came up with a way to combine wedding advice and the photo booth.  Rhett helped me make a mini chalk board and each guest wrote a little message and got their photo taken.  I'll be putting a book together for Meredith of all her friends/family and their advice.

 The other activity I found on PINTEREST!  All the guests helped to weave a heart for Meredith and Aris to keep.  Of coarse, Meredith was sweet and kind and said she loved it and wanted to keep it, but you know...I wouldn't be insulted if it ended up in a closet. 

 Here are the party favors.  Washi tape is my new favorite.  I used it on just about everything from "thanks" flags on the party favors, to an M + A on the gift (thanks Sarah), and on the edge of the mini chalk board.  I also decorated the little plastic pots the plants came in to make them look pretty.

Next up...the wedding!  I've got flower girl dresses and pants and a vest for Rhett in the works!

Mezmur Turns Four

Mezmur's day started with chocolate chip pancakes and an afro.

 This was a big birthday for our girl.  She got nail polish.  Up until now I held off on nail polish, because I didn't think she was ready for it.  Turns out...she still isn't ready.  She told Mavis, "I'm more prettier than you because I have nail polish."  That's Mezmur's "thing" and it drives me crazy.  We hear a lot of, "I'm prettier than you, because I'm wearing...(fill in the blank)."  We talk a lot about being pretty on the inside...one day she will get it.  She got a new birthday dress made by mama, a afro Hello Kitty necklace, and a pink "sparkly" Hello Kitty purse for her birthday, so I guess...she was feeling very pretty on her birthday.

Mezmur LOVES strawberries and loves Strawberry Shortcake...I'm not talking about the dessert.  Although, she did get strawberry shortcake for dessert for her birthday, but she didn't eat it.  She's the kind of girl who eats the icing off a donut and frosting off a cupcake, so I guess there was no frosting on her strawberry shortcake.

A beautiful girl and her afro in the sunshine.

The sun really did shine for Mezmur this year.  We had her little birthday party on the hottest day of the year.  I think it reached 99!  It was hard to be a  hostess when it was so hot.  My kids know two things about me...I'm cranky when it's too cold and I'm cranky when it's too hot.  It's a good thing we live in Portland!

Mezmur had a little Strawberry Shortcake party.  There was a kiddie pool, a homemade pinata, a strawberry cake, a pass the Strawberry Shortcake friend game, and a few good friends.  Here is Mezmur looking on...

The cousins had a little Grandpa lap time.

The pinata was a bit of a disaster.  I didn't use strong enough string when I attached it to the pinata, so in the end...

...I was too hot to deal with it and let the two big boys bash it on the ground and sprinkled the goodies on the ground for the little kids.  Sort of a bummer, since the pinata took about a month to make.

She got sticker earrings from the pinata...she felt pretty with those too.

I was obsessed with winning a vintage Strawberry Shortcake doll panel off Ebay for party favors for her friends. Obsessed!  I won, but payed a fortune!  They are really cute though and I think her friends liked them.

Mezmur didn't eat a bite of her strawberry cake either.  I guess she isn't into cream cheese frosting.

I'm surviving the summer!  Surprisingly, it has gone by really fast so far.  This post took me four days to type though. 

Happy Birthday Mezmur Mimi!  We love you so much and we love watching you grow!  Now she asks everyday if she is five.  Slow down girl!