Funny Friday

Ride that horsey, Chloe!  Giddyup!  And yes, Grace is the one that wanted Chloe to ride her horsey...

Grace's dentist appointment

Today I took Grace in for her first dentist appointment.

It is a very nice facility near our home.

Inside the waiting room, there is a big ship the kids can play on.

Grace liked being the captain of the ship.

They also have a large saltwater aquarium that fascinated Grace.  She saw it and said, "Yook, Momma!  It's Nemo!  Ann dares Dohr-ee!"  (Look, Momma!  It's Nemo!  And there's Dorie!)

Then she looked at the little clown fish and said, "Doan war-ee Nemo.  You fine yur da-ee soon!"  (Don't worry, Nemo.  You'll find your Daddy soon!)  Needless to say, Grace is a big Finding Nemo fan.

Soon it was time to go into the back with the hygenist.  All the workers at the dentist office were wonderful.  They showed Grace all the tools and called them interesting names like a water hose for the rinser thing.  They also had televisions mounted to the ceiling above each chair playing Finding Nemo to entertain the children while getting their teeth cleaned.  Grace was really bashful and wouldn't let them clean her teeth which was okay.  We just wanted her to become comfortable with the process first. 

Soon the dentist came in.  We were surprised to find out that she also happens to be Grace's teacher at church!  What a small world!  The dentist was amazing with Grace.  She sang the ABCs to her while examining her teeth.  Grace cooperated much better than I had anticipated.  Grace got a great report - great spacing between her teeth and no plaque build up.  She did recommend up trying a Tigger spinbrush so Grace will be more accustomed to the tickling motion of the cleaning tools at her next visit.

Then Grace got to select a toy out of a basket as a surprise.  She chose a "peent pin-suss wing" (pink princess ring), of course.

And finally the dentist gave Grace a Certificate of Bravery that included a free cup of icedream from Chick-fil-a.  What a great first visit to the dentist!

My pregnancy this week

Grace and I went back to my OB today to follow up on last week's glucose test.  I did the fasting test which meant nothing to eat until the nurse took some blood.  And just like the doctor thought, I don't have gestational diabetes.  Thank goodness!

My blood pressure was 110 over 70 and I actually lost 2 pounds this week.  That means I've only gain 11 1/2 pounds so far.  I'm sure it's just water weight that I lost since I didn't drink or eat anything before my appointment today.  Or it could be the fact that I wore capris and a tank top instead of jeans and blouse.  Who knows?

My next appointment is scheduled for 3 weeks out.  The doctor wanted me to come back in 2 weeks but we'll be in Charlotte during that time.  Thankfully my doctor has given me the okay to travel since I'm young, healthy, and have no complications.  We'll be in Charlotte for 2-3 weeks for David's surgery.  Please be sure to keep us all in your prayers.

Last day of school

Today was Grace's last day of school for a while. 

Lately she hasn't been wanting to come home from school when I arrive to pick her up.  She keeps saying, "I don wan to go home now.  I jus wan to stay at stool!"  (I don't want to go home now.  I just want to stay at school!)  I have to admit it kinda hurts my feelings, but at the same time I'm really glad that she enjoys school and learning as much as she does.  And it's great for her to get regular interaction with other children her age.

I think she really has benefited quite a bit from being in this particular school.  I love the way everything in the classrooms are at her level.  Each child gets a lot of one-on-one time with the teachers. There is a 6 to 1 student teacher ratio at her school.  And each child progresses at his or her own pace.  They are taught to be self suffient along with manners.  They have regular storytime and naptimes, individual learning time called "work" and one-on-one lessons with the teacher.   It's amazing what all Grace has learned in the short time she has been attending.  Her vocabulary has grown to impressive levels and she can say all of her ABCs. 

After the baby is born we plan to let Grace re-enter school again.  I'm certain Grace will miss it in the meantime, but with all that is going on now it just makes sense to take her out for a while.  And I have to admit that I'm looking forward to spending more time with just her before the baby comes.   Montessori schools, we are going to miss you but will see you again this fall.

My pregnancy this week

My belly is really growing!

I had another OB appointment today.  I gained 3 pounds since my last appointment 4 weeks ago for a total of 13 1/2 pounds so far.  My blood pressure was 108 over 68.  I had to do the glucose test to check for gestational diabetes today and did not know I wasn't supposed to eat just before my appointment.  I was starving when I woke up so I ate a bowl of granola cereal minutes before heading to my appointment.  Needless to say, my blood sugar was high - actually it was reading borderline gestational diabetic.  So I get to go back to the doctor one week from today for another reading.  My doctor doesn't think I have it but he wants to double check it to be sure. 

Baby is doing well although my belly is measuring 2 1/2 weeks further along than I actually am.  No surprise there.  Just look at the size of my belly - it's huge!  Some interesting things to note:  Little Indy has taste buds now and can taste what I eat.  Time to load up on the broccoli.  Indy should have hair with color and texture now.  Although Grace didn't have any until she was 2.  Baby fat is starting to grow under the skin.  Baby can open and blink his/her eyes and he/she can get the hiccups.  It's amazing how much growing they do in such a short time!

Beachy fun

After church today, Grace and I drove down to Gulf Shores and met up with Hope and Seth for the afternoon.

We had a lot of fun playing at the beach.  Grace really enjoyed the water.

At some point she convinced each of us to go in with her.  The water was actually warmer than we expected.

Then Seth dug a hole in the sand and Grace hopped in it.

So Seth started to bury her.  Grace looked up at Seth and asked, "Seffs!  Wat you doo-in?"  (Seth!  What are you doing?)

It didn't take much convincing for her to enjoy it.

Seth would bury her in the sand. Then Grace would dig herself out and insist on being buried all over again.

 Seagulls were everywhere.  Actually these are "laughing gulls."

As soon as Grace saw them she took off to "tach uh burd!"  (Catch a bird!) 

They would see her coming and fly away laughing.

But that didn't stop my baby from trying over and over again.  "Tum here burd!  I jus won to pay wiff you!"  (Come here bird!  I just want to play with you!)  She is diligent if nothing else.

Just another beautiful sunet

Lunch with Nanna and Gran

Today Gran had a doctor's appointment in Mobile, so Grace and I drove across the bay so we could see them.

We decided to eat at Chick-fil-a, one of mine and Grace's favorite restaurants.

We traded Grace's kid's meal treat in for an ice cream cone.

Needless to say, she loved it.  In fact, she may have gotten a little sugar high from it.  Lunch was fun and we had a great time with Nanna and Gran and can't wait to see them again.

Playing at Queenies

Today I went to my parents house to pick Grace up and bring her home.  It was a lovely day so we played outside for a bit before heading home.

She loves playing in her playhouse.

Grace starts off by walking across the bridge.

And then she makes her way across the stepping stones.

She likes to count the stones as she walks across.  Grace can count to fourteen.

Then Grace goes into her playhouse through the side doorway.

And welcomes everyone else to come inside and "pay" (play).

Then she leaves through the front door and starts all over again.  It's so funny to watch.

Then Seth caught this lizard and decided to show it to Grace.

She likes to look at "yizzards" (lizards).

But she doesn't like to touch them.

Soon it was time to head home.  She had a great time playing at Queenie's house this weekend, but I'm so happy to finally have her home.

Our final evening alone

Today was our last day without Grace at home.  While it's been wonderful getting some alone time together, David and I (and Chloe, too!) miss Grace terribly.  I'm driving to my parents house tomorrow to bring her home.

In the meantime, we spent the afternoon at the pier.  It was a gorgeous day outside.

We fished, but all we caught was this stingray.

My sweet husband, a talented fisherman, removed the hook and let the stingray go without getting barbed.

Then we headed home and watched another beautiful sunset from our balcony.

Each sunset we watch seems to be more beautiful than the last.  Sigh.  I love living on the bay.

The sunset of date number three

After the great entertainment at the restaurant, we headed home for an early evening.  When we got home I noticed that our lemon tree had even more blossoms blooming, so of course I had to take some pictures of them.

I love this picture.  Do you notice the little stem that is yellow on top, pinkish-purple in the middle, and green at the bottom?  That's a teeny tiny baby lemon!

Like I said earlier, there are many flowers that have opened up.  I wish you could breathe in the fragrant aroma coming from our balcony.  You can smell it all the way up the stairs.  It's heavenly and I just can't seem to get enough of it!

I'm so excited that there are literally have scores of more blooms just waiting to burst open!

But of all the pictures I've taken of our lemon tree, this is by far my favorite.  I caught it just as the sun was starting to lower in the sky.  I'm enthralled with the way the light is streaming through the petals.  I'm thinking of framing this one...

After a few moments, I headed inside to share a glass of wine (okay grape juice in wine glasses, but I can pretend right?) with my gorgeous and wonderful husband as we went upstairs to watch the sunset together.  We snuggled on our swing off our master bedroom and watched as the sky changed colors.  And we talked about how much we enjoyed our weekend together.  And how even though it was wonderful having some alone time, we both really missed Grace.  Home just doesn't seem the same without her.

The sunset was beautifully spectacular.

But sharing it with my husband made it even more enchanting. 

Dinner and great entertainment

Today was a pretty low-key day for us.  We slept in until noonish - what a wonderful luxury!  Then we went shopping around town and finally out to an early dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Original Oyster House.

While eating our meal, David looked out the window and noticed two kayakers paddling our way.  We watched them as they came closer and closer to the restaurant.  We were casually talking about how funny it would be if one of them tipped a kayak over.  Then the guy capsized his kayak right in front of us!  We couldn't help but giggle like school kids as he thrashed around in the water and watched his kayak sink.  Soon everyone in the restaurant was standing up to better view the spectacle.

The lady kayaker tied her boyfriend/husband's sunken kayak onto hers and then started paddling over to the guy who was floating on his life jacket.

He was just hanging out enjoying the water while she worked away towing a kayak full of water along.

Then he started swimming and abandoned his life jacket.  Apparently he told her to come back and fetch it so he could swim to shore.

He splashed around quite a bit while she returned to rescue his life jacket - all the while still towing his sunken kayak around.  David casually asked me what I thought the guy would do if he yelled, "Gator!" out the window.  I think the poor guy would have drowned himself.  By this time I was laughing so hard I had tears streaming down my face.  Half the restaurant was, too.  Not to mention all the photos people were taking of the couple.

After the girl captured the life jacket, she had to turn around yet again - this time to give her poor guy a break.  He had exhausted himself splashing about in the water and didn't make much headway.   Being the good woman that she apparently is, she then paddled herself with all her gear, towed a sunken kayak full of water, and her boyfriend/hubby to shore!  What a workout that must have been!

By the time we finished our meal - and dessert - the couple had finally reached shore.  They managed to unload all the water from his kayak and paddle off into the sunset.  Sigh.  I just love happy endings!