A Close Call

Grace has inherited her Daddy's nack for pulling his arm out of socket and you've probably seen a few pictures of her doing just that in some of my earlier posts. A few weeks ago, I was cleaning up after dinner and Grace went upstairs looking for Matt. The next thing I know Grace is running downstairs crying and holding her arm. I knew instantly that she had done it again!Here's the kicker. The first time Grace did it, the doctor showed us how to pop it back in in case she ever did it again. Ummmmm no thank you! I told Matt I would be right back in the ER again because there was no way I would try that myself (although it did look pretty simple when doctor did it)! Matt took ahold of her hand and arm and BAM popped it back in!! SAAAAWEET!!! Once it's done, she's immediately fine! It's the strangest thing! She also did it last spring. While we were sitting in the waiting room at the ER, she reached for a bandaid on her leg and somehow popped it back in herself! Imagine explaining that to the people at the front desk!! Needless to say we didn't have to take a trip to the ER thanks to Dr. Daddy who saved the day! Later that night, Matt and Grace were having their daily evening "wrestle match," she fell off of Matt and onto her hand. The next thing I hear from her was, "Oh good grief! I just did it again!" WAHAHAHAHA!!! No, she didn't do it again. And, YES, Matt and I were hysterically laughing for the rest of the night!!!

Happy Half Year!!

My little munchkin is half of a year old!! Can I get a collective.....Awwwwwwwww! So what's new, what's new this month. Let's see. Anna got to get out (or sit in her stroller, with the umbrella up, with her snow suit on, covered in 3 blankets, in the garage) and play in the snow for the first time! HA! We have had a lot of snow so far this winter and she woke up from her nap after Grace and I had JUST gotten all bundled up to go outside. So she got to go out with us for a bit and seemed to like it. I didn't have her down making snow angels quite yet, BUT the winter isn't over either! :)

Anna is BUSY, BUSY, BUSY these days!! As soon as I sit her up, she instantly starts reaching for anything and everything to get her hands on. AND everything goes right to her mouth. Ohhhh and if she finds a tag on a toy, she is in pure heaven! It's hysterical! Who cares about the toy. Just give the girl a tag to chew on! She'll sit and suck on one FOREVER!! We're now accepting tag donations at the Gentry home if you're feeling charitable!


She is still ALL SMILES most of the time and I LOVE it!! That's usually the first comment I hear from people when we're out and about. Grace just keeps getting funnier and funnier to her. I have a great video to post of her belly laughing at Grace being silly. But all Grace has to do is simply look at Anna to get a rise out of her.

We're back on the cereal train now and she's doing much better with it. Most of it is staying in her mouth and I see us moving onto veggies in the near future! Am I the only mom who thinks that is exciting?!? As a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom), we look forward to the little things every day! Ohhh we get to start carrots today! YES!!

No new news to report on teething......other than the constant slobbering and drool that I should start collecting to recycle in some way. Maybe I should google that to get some ideas!

I'm sure you're all wondering what's happening on the sleep front around here. We're currently in a feast or famine stage. When it's good, it's GREAT! BUT when it's bad, it's BBBBAAAADDDD!! She has slept through the night for the past three nights which puts mommy in a state of pure bliss! I have even had to wake her up at 8:30am to eat!! WHAT!!! She is getting over a cold and I'm keeping my fingers, toes, and eyes crossed that this continues to happen and doesn't stop once the snot train stops!! And on that note, she HATES to have her nose wipes/picked! Yes, I said picked. What mom hasn't picked her kid's nose from time to time. Grace used to let me go after one for as long as I wanted. It's almost as if she knew, Ok when she's done I'll finally be able to breathe again! Not AK! She is never happy when I go after one of those long, stringy ones that I pull for what seems like a mile and almost chokes her before it comes out!! Sorry! Did I just take that one too far? But, moms, you know EXACTLY what I'm talking about don't you!!!!

Isn't she so friggin' cute sitting there playing with her kitchen!! Sorry, sometimes I get easily distracted. Oh wait, I see something shiny! :) No I haven't been drinking. I'm actually on 3 (yes 3) nights of good sleep and I have a bit of my pep back into my step!


Since we got home after Grace's birthday extravaganza, she has been going to sleep on her own (in her crib!) without much of a fuss. I realize this is mostly my fault since I usually run to get her when she starts crying so she won't wake up everyone else in the house. Doesn't everyone do that with the second child? Or am I just saying that to make myself feel better about it!! :)

Anna got a new jumper for Christmas and we were finally able to bring it home last weekend. I just about bust a gut every time she's in it!! It took her a few minutes to figure out that she can jump. But now that she's got it mastered, she nearly jumps right out of it!! We'll stand in front of her and jump, and she starts laughing and jumping uncontrollably!! HAHA!! I'll have to get a good video to show you all what I mean!

She is very aware of her surroundings, new people, voices, etc. We were at a memorial service over the weekend, and she took notice to each speaker or new voice (and then back to chewing on a tag, of course!). She sits quietly (usually) wherever we are until she takes it all in before she starts playing.....or chewing on a tag. I'll say it again, she is such a laid back, content (usually!), happy baby! Now if we can just keep her sleeping through the night, Mommy would be one happy lady!!!

We have her 6 month check-up next week so check back then for her official stats!

FYI

There is a new post right below the Sledding and Party Planning post. Sometimes I don't always have time to download the pictures AND write the message. When I go to publish my post, the entries get posted in the order I started them (for me that's downloading pics). Sooooo check out Grace's 3rd Birthday and see what you think!

Also, if you are reading this and don't have a Google account, please do so at www.google.com. That way you can become an official follower (see bottom right hand side of my blog) and make comments if you feel so inclined!! :) All you need is a username and password. You may have to post a comment twice before it appears on the blog......side note. I like to hear what you all think (only positive comments, of course :)! )!! And maybe one day when my blog is printed in book form (hint, hint!), your comments will also be printed!

Happy Commenting!!

Sledding and Party Planning!!

Here we are again and I'll, once again, say I can't believe my little girl is turning 3!!! The girls and I were planning on heading to Indiana last Thursday to make sure I had enough time to get everything ready for her big birthday party on Saturday. I got a call from mom on Tuesday evening with news that they were expecting up to 6 inches of snow on Thursday!! I knew if I waited to leave on Friday, I would never have enough time to get half of the preparations done. So, I threw everything together and we headed out on Wednesday. It was a good thing too because they got PLENTY of snow just as expected!!!






We couldn't have been more excited because we LOVE the snow and Nana, Grandma, Aunt Laura, and Jack all had the day off as well! Grace had never been sledding and I couldn't wait to get her out in the mix!! As you've read in my earlier posts, she LOVES a good thrill ride (this is making me extremely nervous for her teenage years!) and I knew she would eat up every minute of it. We started at Grandma's where she has a great hill in her front yard. We brought a sled but quickly learned that Jack had the better idea in using his snow tube!!! That sucker could flat fly!! And, not surprisingly, Grace LOVED IT!!! I didn't get many pictures of her sledding because I was focused on getting videos. You'll see some of those after I have a chance to compile them all together. After we mastered the hill at Grandma's it was time for the big cahooney!! For you locals, we went to the hill between the Baptist and Catholic churches over by the pool. Ummmm can I say BEST HILL EVER!!! It didn't look too steep UNTIL we got up to the last 15 feet or so! After flying down the hill a few times, I could've definitely used a ski lift to take us back to the top! Poor Grace was a frozen popsicle so we called it quits and headed in for some hot chocolate. BUT don't worry because there was more snow fun to be had! After Grace's nap, Nana showed us how to make snow ice cream! FUN!! And delicious if I do say so myself!!

On Friday, Grandma watched the girls while I tried to get ahead of the game with the party food. I decided to make Grace's cake myself this year. Not exactly sure what kind of ridiculous nonsense I was thinking at the time but I went with it. I planned on making mom's strawberry cake since it's pink and Grace requested a princess party. We decided to layer the strawberry cake with a white cake mix to make it stand taller and, you know, look more professional! HAHA! Once I started icing the cake, I noticed something that would make anyone from The Cake Boss break out into a full body sweat!! The cake started to separate on the top!! NOOOOOOO!!! And I'm not talking about a small crack here and there. I'm talking about crevices that resembled something from Death Valley!! We tried patching it with must've been a gallon of icing. And mom even broke out wooden skewers to try and hold the sucker together!! All we could do at that point was say a little prayer that it would hold until the party!

I can't close this post until I give a BIG shout out to Papa!! Every time he turned around either mom or I was sending him to the store for something we forgot. He must've made at least a half a dozen trips to get MORE stuff for us. THANK YOU, PAPA!! I REALLY appreciate your patience!!! :)

Happy 3rd Birthday, Grace!!

Soooo are you all sitting on the edge of your chair dying from the suspense as to whether my cake held up? I feel as though I left you all looking off into the distance like an actor on a soap opera does right before they break for a commercial......maybe taking a deep breath with a cocktail (because they seem to have a full bar in every room) in your hand wondering did it hold up? Was the strawberry cake everything she dreamed it would be????













Well let me tell you the cake was a BUST!!! In all honesty, it didn't look THAT bad, but I didn't want it sitting on the table for pictures either. As much as I wanted to have an emotional breakdown, I luckily didn't have too much time to think about it. Dairy Queen saved the day and they even had a princess cake! On a side note, Mom, Laura, and I did have a slice of the strawberry cake while everyone was eating ice cream cake and it tasted pretty darn good if I do say so myself!!
Ok, let's move past the cake drama shall we...............

I decided to have a brunch since we had a memorial service to attend at 1pm. This turned out to be great for us because we were able to get so much done ahead of the big day. We got the house all decked out in princess decor and were STILL getting food together when the guests started to arrive. Thank you to everyone for making the drive given the snowy conditions outside! The Bischof's got 10 inches of snow and weren't able to make it. And Mags had to work but they'll hopefully be able to join us next year! Before I forget, take a look at the picture of me and Mom. We looked at each other and noticed we were dressed in coordinating outfits..........TOOLS!! Oh well. Didn't seem to bother us any!

Grace was really into opening her gifts this year! Last year, we had to push her along a bit, but not this year! A couple highlights are a gigantic, remote controlled spider and two hermit crabs!! I'm mentioning those because she is the only 3 year old GIRL I know who is ECSTATIC to get reptiles, dinosaurs, or anything slimy!! HAHAHA!! If we go into a toy store, for example, Grace will sure enough pick out a dinosaur, frog, snake, etc.! I find this to be rather hilarious!!



We had such a fun morning celebrating Grace turning 3!! Thank you, once again, to Mom for ALL of your help!! I wouldn't have been able to pull it all together without your help......and we have a fun cake story to talk about next year!! Thank you again to everyone who was able to make it and, of course, for all of her goodies!!

We had Grace's little party at home on Monday evening. I had a couple presents that I couldn't wait for her to open! The Lite Brite and Strawberry Shortcake playhouse turned out to be big hits! BUT she LOVES her new bike!! YAY!! We got her a little basket with tassels, a bell, and a license plate so she'll be all fixed up by the time she hits the road!!


Happy Birthday to my not-so-little girl!! May the next 3 years be as much fun as the last!!

5 Months Old!!

The past month has brought some new and exciting adventures for Miss Anna Kate! 6 days after her 5-month mark, she rolled over (from her tummy to her back! Yay! We're still waiting for her to rollover from her back to her tummy. She gets herself all worked up trying to get over that last hurdle and I'd say it'll happen any day now. She also started sitting up for longer periods without us holding onto her. She looks like such a big girl sitting up (with the boppy around her) and playing with her toys! Soooo technically I should be including these milestones in her next update BUT I couldn't wait. She has really started to play with toys once they are put in front of her or around her and keeps herself busy until she face-plants onto her blanket from trying to get her go-go gadget arms to get a toy that is JUST out of reach.

This girl ALWAYS has her tongue hanging out of her mouth: when she's concentrating, playing, squealing, you name it. That sucker is out there for you to see! She has become a drooling queen and I'm sure an appearance from a tooth isn't too far away. I'd say we go through a minimum of 5 bibs a day......and that's on a good day!

Most people, doctors, books, etc. will tell you that a baby's sleeping pattern will only continue to improve after birth hence making the "up every two hours" during the newborn months seem doable. However, Anna seemed to backtrack this month and sleep has once again become a thing of the past. Somehow, she went from getting up once a night to MULTIPLE times during the night! WHAT!! Is this really happening? I found myself thinking out loud during the many times I was rocking her in the middle of the night, "But you were only getting up twice during the night when you were brand spanking new! Grace started sleeping through the night at 3 months......doesn't this mean that you should too? And here we are at 5 months, and I STILL resemble a newborn kitten whose eyes haven't fully opened due to the EXTREME swelling due to lack of sleep! And then you look at me with those great big blue eyes and flash your cute little toothless smile and all is ok again.........UNTIL my 6am wakeup call comes in and I think it can't possibly be 6am........I only JUST went to sleep!" Ohhh these are the days of my life! :) I'm feeling that one day soon (all fingers and toes are crossed!) we're going to start getting some more sleep around here. And then maybe my eyes will finally reopen to their natural state!

Ok back to the update.......Anna is still super, duper long and is already in 9 month clothing! I'm assuming it's time to make the switch to bigger clothes when her toes are all curled up in her jammies! :) She is still a VERY happy, laid back, go-with-the-flow baby! She is almost always content to run errands, do a little shopping, etc. which is good since we're always on the go.

Anything and everything Grace does is still hilarious (or at least worth a good smile) to Anna! She is really starting to feed off of Grace and interact a bit more with her. I can't wait to see them in the months to come!

That about does it for our 5th month update (yes I realize that she's already less than a week away from 6 months!!!!) but I was A TAD behind on my posts! It is 11:08pm and instead of going to bed to try and reduce some of my "newborn kitten swollen eyes," here I sit typing this post for you all. Ohhhhh just trying to take care of you people!! 10-4!

One Proud Momma!!

Grace had a new classmate start in her class the first day after the new year. When I went to pick her up, Mrs. Karen told me she wanted to talk to me because Grace did something really sweet. Mrs. Karen said that Halley (the new classmate) was sitting by herself off to the side of the classroom and no one was playing with her. She said Grace went right up to her and said, "Hi! My name is Grace." and started playing with her! Some of you may read that and think what's the big deal. Let me tell you this. When you see (or hear about) your child making good choices/decisions and treating others the way you would want to be treated, it instantly makes that lump rise in your throat and tears start welling in your eyes! I scooped up my heart after it melted right onto the floor and gave her a big "squish your guts out" kind of a hug and told her how proud I was of her. I Love, Love, Love this girl!!!

Happy New Year!!

HAPPY

NEW

YEAR!!!!

We had a pretty darn good 2010 and can't wait to see what 2011 holds for us!!

Many wishes for a healthy and prosperous new year!! And maybe one year soon we'll actually make it to midnight!!

Christmas in Indiana!!

Soooo let me first just say I screwed up on the top pictures and don't want to take the time to fix them so sorry!!

On December 26th, we made the trip to Indiana and it snowed for most of our trip! The roads were still iffy in Knoxville and fairly slushy in some parts in the mountains but the good ol' Kia pulled us through! Was there ever any doubt?!?
We made our first stop at Nana and Papa's house where we were greeted with a house full of people. Great Nana, Don, the Miller's, the Davis', Bischof's, and Mohr's were all there! We got to visit with the Henderson clan for a few hours before they had to take off to northern Indiana. The next morning we opened presents and Grace stopped cold after her very FIRST one! She opened some weebles and that was it......she was satisfied!! We had a great couple of days at Nana and Papa's visiting with everyone. It's not very often that all of us can get together at the same time and it was nice to have everyone under the same roof!



We spent the next two days at Grandma's house. Grace was super excited when she opened her new scooter and helmet! You all know I've talked about her......ummmm not so small melon. Once she put that helmet on, we nearly wet our pants! Hysterical! Ok so her head isn't THAT big, BUT once you put a helmet on a kid who just so happens to have a melon that's on the bigger side, it IS pretty darn funny! Grace, when you read this please know that comment is only coming from someone who also embraces her no so small melon! :)





While we were at Grandma's, something very exciting happened..........Anna rolled over for the first time! YAY! She rolled from her tummy to her back which was interesting since it's usually the other way around first. Looks to me like she's going to do things her own way! :) She's been SO close forever now and finally did it! She doesn't seem real interested in doing it again, but at least I have witnesses!

This visit seemed to FLY by! We had a great time seeing everyone again! We got spoiled beyond belief as you can see from the last picture. We could barely fit the girls in the car AND we had to leave some gifts in Indiana! Message to family: our girls no longer need any gifts for AT LEAST 5 years! Our house is exploding and Matt is finishing out a storage space to accommodate these toys as we speak! While we greatly appreciate the gifts they received, in the future we will not only accept donations to their college funds! :) Thank you again for spoiling us rotten!

We'll see you all again for Grace's big 3rd birthday party!