Demolition Girl

We finished tearing the tile up in the half bath yesterday. Steve and I have never been so sore. That tile was really stuck down good. Abby loved watching the destruction happen (from a safe distance of course). We are really making some progress on the bathroom now. I've got the mirror frame and toilet paper holder sprayed to match the new faucet and the walls all painted. Now we've just got to get the new floor laid down.

Abby learned quite a few new words this weekend including her current favorite "sit." She's been telling Maize to sit all weekend, although Abby's version of sit sometimes comes out a little like a word she shouldn't be using. She had a lot of fun playing with her dad this weekend and has become a professional laundry chute user. We've got pictures to share, but I have to wait until Abby's napping to get the camera out, so you'll have to wait until tonight or tomorrow.

An Observation

Swim class is over. It was fun, but I don't think we are going to register for session 2. Abby is a little too young to learn basic swimming, even though she was doing great at working on her swimming skills.

I was in bed with Abby last night playing toys and this thought struck me. Abby was hugging and snuggling her little teddy bear. Why is it that we teach kids that bears are nice to hug and play with? They watch Winnie the Pooh on t.v. When Abby sees her first bear in the wild (and it's bound to happen since we live in the U.P.) I'd rather her think, "Oh no! That's a bear, I'd better run!" Not, "Oh look, a cute cuddly bear. I wonder if we can eat honey and sing songs."

Just a thought...

Pig Tails

Curly pigtails today :-) I love curly pigtails!

The shirt is a size 2t. I can't believe how fast this girl is growing up. Yesterday she learned two new words - key and pool. I think she also said five this morning, but I may have been hearing her counting toy. We are enjoying our nice weather today with the windows wide open - Abby is staring off into space out one of them. She loves watching for birds.

Tot Swim Class - Day 5

We had another great time at swim class today, except for the fact that the pool was icy cold. Friday is the last day of this session, then we will have to decide whether to re-enroll in the next session. Abby is getting to be a real water baby and has been having lots and lots of fun!

I got the half bath primed today, but the paint is slow to dry and we have friends coming to play video games today, so I probably won't be getting to the actual color for a day or two. Tonight Abby's friend Maddie is coming over and tomorrow she is going to play at AJ's house, so she should be all socialized and ready to enjoy some additional company this weekend in the form of Steve's co-workers.

We bought our first "Michigan" blueberries at the store today - yummy! I can't wait to break into them at dinner!

Big Girl Play Date

Abby had a big girl play date today with other kids who have stay at home moms. She seemed to have a really good time once she finally stopped clinging to me. It's a regular Tuesday play group, so we'll have to check it out again and see if she likes it just as well the second time.

Abby got her 8th tooth on the 4th of July. She's got all her incisors now, so we'll be working on the molars next. She also chipped her top central incisor, but just a little bit. Her dad said it wasn't a big deal, and with as active as she is she will probably do it a few more times. I just can figure out whether she chipped it chewing on ice or whether it was from playing.

I am going to be working on the half bathroom again today, once my arms get the strength up. I scrubbed walls for an hour last night and still have about one-third of the bathroom left to scrub. Then it's on to painting and floor removal. This has been back breaking work! But I can't wait to see the finished result. It is going to look great.

Tot Swim Class - Day 3 and 4

Abby was not too happy last Friday at swim class. She could see Grandma, Grandpa and Daddy from the pool and really, really wanted one of them to save her.

After a wonderful weekend of company (Grandma Mary, Grandpa Scott, Auntie Em, and Auntie Hannah) we are back to the normal routine, and back to updating you all on Abby's latest escapades. We had swim class on Friday and again today. Friday was a long class since Abby could see Grandma, Grandpa, and Daddy during the class. She really, really wanted one of them to come and rescue her from the pool. But she did make it through the whole class with only a few whimpers and did everything that I asked her to do. Today's class was great - she was happy, smiled and waved to everyone, and was having a blast. She was being the star of the swim class show.

We had lots of great adventures with my family this weekend. Abby took them on a trip to Sault Ste. Marie, Canada. We checked out the mall so that Hannah and Emily could have some new clothes for school that no one else would have. We also checked out Crystal Falls, a really beautiful fall right outside Sault Ste. Marie, Canada. Abby went all the way to the top of the waterfall (on my back). We also checked out the casino buffet in town, watched part of the pow-wow, saw the fireworks, watched boats coming through the locks, took Hannah and Emily to stick their toes in Lake Superior, and saw the fireworks. Needless to say, we were pretty well exhausted by the end of the weekend. But it was definitely worth it.

Tot Swim Class - Day 2

We had a better day at swimming today. Abby was a lot more comfortable and actually did most everything we asked her to do. There was a lot of leg kicking going on! She kicked her legs while floating both on her back and her belly. Big improvement over last session. She also even tried blowing bubbles in the water, but she didn't quite get the blowing part down. And she again jumped off the edge - but it was only because she really, really wanted her mother. We had a much more enjoyable swim. Still quite a bit of crying, but at the end I threw her up into the air and caught her. That got a few smiles and laughs out of her.

Another great development from swim class was meeting another doctor's wife who stays at home with her 21 month old boy. We even got invited to the playgroup that she is in on Tuesdays, so it should be a great way for Abby to get more exposure to other kids and help me meet some new friends. And, most importantly, swim class has tired Abby right out, so she's been sleeping for almost 2 hours now :-) I've cleaned the entire living space, swept, and cleaned the kitchen. Hooray for free time!

Just Another Terrific Tuesday

Abby tried on her outfit from India today. She is still a little to small to wear it, but we still had a little princess party in it. As you can see our stairs are all wood now and they look pretty good. They could use some sanding and staining, but for having been covered with nasty carpet they didn't turn out too bad.
This is Abby pretending that she can't hear me telling her to get down from the shelf. She's figured out that she can climb onto almost everything in the living room and she has been taking advantage of that ability to the greatest extent possible. She's also been on top of the couches, cedar chest, and fireplace surround. We need to work on teaching Abigail that climbing is fun, but is not an indoor activity.
This is Abby's dishwasher box house. She's been having a fun time playing in the box with her chair. We cut two windows into the sides and she loves peeking out of them.
Abby has moved on to a new favorite doll. For a very long time, JoJo the water baby was her favorite, but now she especially loves playing with "Uncle Nate" the doll from Mildred. Nate comes with us all over the house and he even gets to wear his clothes, unlike JoJo.
Someone was having a great time with my sunglasses, right before she broke them into 3 pieces. Guess I can justify buying a new pair now. She thought she was hot stuff in my glasses.

Tot Swim Class - Day 1

Abby had her first day of Tot Swim Class today at Lake Superior State University. We wanted her to feel comfortable in the water, so we signed up. Luckily we actually were up and rolling before 9 am, since we arrived at the information desk to register 2 minutes after the class started. But we weren't the only late comers, so it was okay.

Abby HATED swim class. She was clingy and when she wasn't full out crying she was whimpering. No smiles for anyone. She did do a lot of the things they wanted the kids to be doing though, so it wasn't a total loss. She even jumped off the edge, but only because she really, really wanted her mommy. We'll be back every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next few weeks to see if we can make a water baby out of her :-)

Mirror, Mirror...

Someone has been enjoying the ability to stare at herself for hours (okay... maybe minutes) in her new mirror. She really cracks us up. There is a small stool that came with her vanity and she won't use the play set until you set her on the stool (she's a little too short to get onto it herself).

We had a long and busy day yesterday. Steve got up way early to go to Gaylord and pick up the load of Angel Food. I ended up awake at 4 am too. And when I tried to get up at 6 to shower and get ready I woke Abby up, so we all had a pretty early day. Abby and I helped out at the church wide garage sale (and got rid of a lot of stuff) and then passed out the Angel Food when Steve and our friend Kevin got back with the food. By the time we made it home we were beat.

We let Abby watch the Michael Jackson music video special last night, since we couldn't find anything else we wanted to watch and love him or hate him Michael Jackson made some very entertaining music. Abby had a great time dancing. She may have even learned a few new moves. She continued the dancing at church today. She's going to have to be enrolled in dance class as soon as she's big enough. Speaking of classes... tomorrow Abby and I are going to enroll her in a tot swim class. The class also starts tomorrow (we think), so we'll probably be hitting the pool as well. Steve and I thought it would be a great skill for Abby to learn early in life, especially since Grandpa and Grandma Hodges have the pool to swim in and we have lots of lakes to play in around us.