Baby Girl turns 2!

Time flew by as it always does....my baby girl has now been with us 2 years! Life has been more hectic and definitely more entertaining since her arrival. If you'll remember she brought a storm with her and seems like one still. Tyler likes to call her his little tornado. She breezes through catching your attention while leaving a lasting effect on her surroundings. We spent two days celebrating her birthday. She had Mother's Day Out on Thursday so we took cupcakes for her class to eat with her. Plus, Tyler took the day off for several different reasons so we went to Lillie Mae's for breakfast before taking the kids to their preschool. Then that night, we also had Baskin Robbins ice cream! Today was her Minnie Mouse Party with family and some of her church friends.

While she is definitely spunky, here lately she has taken on a bit of a quiet, bashful side out in public. She never fails to smile for people though.

(At her Minnie Mouse party today)

 

Right now Ansley is into taking care of her babies! She has me "wrap 'em up" so she can put them to bed. She pushes them around the baseball field in their stroller. She likes to share her sippy cup and food with them, too. Oh and most importantly she wants to change their diaper often!

(eating with her friends)

 

Speaking of food, Ansley has hit a little picky stage. I think she just knows what she likes and refuses to eat any of the food that is good for her. She likes a lot of carbs and sweets! I can still give her the squeezable toddler foods that have some veggies in it. Otherwise, she wouldn't eat any veggies. She literally sits at the table with her jaw locked at most meals. She eats on the go more and just about all day long! She will eat grilled chicken and hamburgers most of the time. I am learning to hide her favorites until she eats some of the good food.

(having a cupcake at school on her actual birthday)

Ansley is talking really well; using sentences a lot. I can understand her pretty much all the time. Tyler and others have a harder time since it is still baby talk. Actually, I think Garyn understands her just as well as me! The girl loves to sing, too. She knows about 10 different songs that she likes to rotate through. Her teacher said she was teaching the class the ABC's because she sings it a lot when at Mother's Day Out. I don't know how she remembers all the songs so quick since we didn't teach most of them to her. She just started singing them all of the sudden, including her ABC's. It is so cute to hear her little voice. I love her baby talk and random words for things.

She is still napping well, for about 2 hours in the afternoon. We struggle sometimes with her fighting nap/bed time. She asks for a drink, wants to read more books, and/or wants to get her baby. So sometimes I have to let her cry a bit to get her to settle. Other days she goes down right away and doesn't fight me. At night, she sleeps from 9:30ish till about 7. We have had many late baseball games and so her bedtime has gotten later and later.

(Climbing the fence at Garyn's game; yes, she still climbs a lot!)

Speaking of baseball, she loves to go to the games! I can't tell if she likes running around outside more or going to the concession stand! I am glad she likes them though since we are there so much.

She and Garyn have already started fussing and arguing. Ansley likes to run up and grab whatever Garyn has and then he comes running to tell me. Most of the time, she comes right up behind him telling me her excuse. Ansley thinks everything is hers and doesn't ever want to share. I don't remember Garyn being so defiant about that, but he also didn't have to share with anybody at home. I will say, however, that she and Garyn love each other. She mimics him a lot and asks for him a lot when he's gone. She is stubborn about everything, as well, she tells me what she wants to do all the time and where she wants to go. Then gets mad if we don't do that. She started pitching terrible fits just in the last couple weeks. She doesn't like my rules!

 

(Daddy, Garyn and Ansley the morning of her birthday)

 

We haven't officially started potty training but she likes to pretend and sit on the potty all the time. I take her 3 or 4 times a day when she asks. She actually went pee-pee her first time at church! I think she sees the others going and tells them she wants to. So we are gonna work on it a little more but I am not gonna push it. I feel she just thinks its the thing to do but doesn't quite understand how to make it happen when she sits down. She also still uses her pacifier. I attempt to limit it to naps and night time but she asks for it a lot in the car. I am not ready to completely take it away from her since the baby is coming and I want my sleep and rest! I think she would regress when he had a pacifier and she couldn't.

 

And that brings me to the little man; Ansley has no clue that I am about to have a baby. No matter how many times I tell her, she hasn't once mention a baby in my belly or even responded to me telling her. At the same time, she may completely know and is just ignoring the idea. I think she will like having a baby but won't like the time consumption a baby brings for me. She stills wants me to hold her a lot and like I said is demanding about what she wants and when. There isn't much patience behind that sweet smile!

("queaning" or cleaning)

Other updates.....She now says "Garyn" instead of "Gar".
                           She loves to color and draw.
                            She loves shoes still and picks hers out.
                           She likes to put things in bags to carry.
                            She weighs about 24 lbs.
                            Her hair has gotten really long!
                           She loves Wiggles songs.
                           and last, her "I wuv you" is so adorable!

Ansley, we love you so much and can't wait to see where your personality takes you in life! We know you will be determined and take the initiative with anything you set your mind to!

Being intentional in April

Well, its 12 days into the month and I had intended on writing this a lot sooner.

I have lost some focus on my overall 2013 goal of being more intentional, obviously. I still think on it from time to time but have moments were just getting through the day is best I can do!

Baseball season is in full swing for Tyler and just starting for Garyn. We are spending most of our nights at the fields. I enjoy it mostly. I get tired of not knowing what to do for dinner, though. We have eaten out and eaten fast food a lot more than I like. But I do think one of my goals for March was to enjoy baseball season! And we are doing that still! Ansley sees the school and says "Bay-ball game!" Garyn has some buddies he has been playing with well, too.

For April, I want to be more intentional about setting aside my time for the Lord. I have gotten into a nice pattern of doing my bible reading/ study while Ansley naps. But it isn't always quiet and focused. Garyn is usually in the room watching TV or playing on the computer. I would like to do a better job of finding a quiet spot to focus more. Our new bible study led me to that conviction. We just started "Discerning the Voice of God" by Priscilla Shirer. She talks a lot about being quiet before the Lord and focusing on worshipping him. I really want to know God's will for my life, especially with our house decisions we are making. Besides that,  I feel it is another step on my walk with Christ to be closer and in tune with Him for every decision I face.

Other areas I need to intentionally put my mind to are:

-preparing for Ansley's 2nd birthday party!
-staying on top of budget with groceries
-above means I need to work on organizing coupons
-spending time with both kids on a one-on-one level
-praying often for others and prayer requests
-reading "Circle Maker" more consistently
-staying in touch with family members, especially sick ones
-and last, watching my attitude with my family

I really want each activity/ task I do with and for my family to have purpose. I feel I get caught up in what I want to do or feel should be done. Later, I wonder why I worried about that particular thing when I could have enjoyed something else. I would love to intentionally prioritize and not waste my time. I know I will never be perfect and will have down time that is meaningless. However, when I know more about facebook status rather than having Garyn read a book to me, I feel I have failed for the day!

So, even though half of the month's gone already, I am jumping back on track and getting intentional about my day! I hope I haven't bored you with my ramblings and that you'll wonder what next month has in store!