For the Love of Dolls

Alden loves having a big sister. He has recently started copying her- from what she says, to how and what she eats. Here's his latest obsession.... And yes, I do plan on saving these picture for blackmail when he's older.

It started manly enough- he enjoyed stealing her "babies" and running away with them, tossing them over the railing, putting them in his trucks and driving them around.... All that changed last night...


Yes, he is holding a baby doll in his lap. Notice how she is carefully covered up with the little pink washcloth- such a sweet Daddy!

Here's how he carried Baby Madelyn (named for our friend, Baby Madelyn, who was born around the time that this doll was brought into our family)- over his shoulder. He is grabbing the washcloth to put it over his shoulder, like a burp cloth.


Being a patient Daddy as his baby sleeps....


Yay! I love playing Daddy!!

Warning- Underage Alcohol Handling

With a BJ's opening near us- less then 2 miles away- we have been having fun buying in bulk. One of our recent purchases was a case of beer. Alden was completely enthralled and quite the helper! Don't worry- we stressed the importance of respecting alcohol, waiting until he's 21 to drink, etc.

This makes a great seat!

Oh, even better! I can CLIMB on it!

Wow- it opens! I love that sound it makes when I pick 1 up and then drop it...

Want me to help you put them in the 'fridge?

Here ya go, Daddy! He actually helped hand most of them to Al, too!

Cabin Fever Fun

The kids and I have been having fun staying inside. Here are a few pics of what we've been doing.


"Cereal Picnic"- aka the kids opening the corner pantry, taking the cereal containers to the front welcome mat, and then helping themselves.... What's funny is that I am feet away from them, on the computer- and they still choose this spot!


"Wooden Food Picnic with Mr. Bear"- notice that Mr. Bear has fish, a piece of bread, and an orange- glad he's being healthy!

Eating and sharing waffles for breakfast. They feed each other and think it's hysterical!

SNOW! We got a covering during naptime, but by the time the kids got up, it was mostly melted.

Visiting Daddy at Lowes- this is where he does most of his paperwork.

2 Other Addie Stories

I knew I was forgetting something in that last post! Here are 2 additional stories about Addie....

Last night as we were walking up the stairs to go to bed, she turned around and asked Al for Dottie and her daughter.
Al: Aren't Dottie and Becca Baby both your daughters?
Addie: No. Jus' Becca Baby is my daughter. Dottie isn't.
And as if on cue, she snapped opened her princess cell phone.
Addie: Hello? How are ya? Whatcha up to? Oh.... ok.- snaps phone shut.
Me: Who was that?
Addie: Dottie's Mommy. She's running late. Dottie needs to sleep here.
Al: What's Dottie's Mommy's name?
Addie: (slight pause) Ja-Jew.
Me: What's her Daddy's name?
Addie: Ja-Jew 2
Guess we know who she thinks it Top Dog!!

A few days ago, we were walking to our friend and neighbors house.
Me: Aren't you excited to go play with Anna and Baby Madelyn?
Addie: Yes! Anna gots lots of toys from Santa.
Me: Yes she did! She must have been really good. Aren't you glad that she always shares them with you?
Addie: Mommy, why was Madelyn so bad?
Me: What? Madelyn is the cutest, sweetest baby! What makes you think she was bad?
Addie: Santa didn't bring her any presents. She must have been realllllly bad.
I then try to explain that baby Madelyn (2 mo old) wasn't bad, but that the gifts that Santa brought her were probably in her room. Anna brought her toys downstairs to share- but since Addie and Alden weren't babies, Madelyn didn't need to share her toys so they stayed in her room....
Addie: Oh! So Madelyn DID get toys from Santa and she WAS good!?! I so happy for Baby Madelyn!

A 3 Year Olds Perspective

Addie keeps us laughing these days.... Here are a few reasons why.

Tonight at dinner- this is the conversation we had:
Alden: Grrrrrrrrrrrrr
Addie: Al-gen, stop growling.
Al: Why can't Alden growl?
Addie: He's a baby. Only free (3)year olds can growl.
Al: Really? Says who?
Addie: God.
Well, you can't argue with that....

Another God conversation....
It was really foggy in the morning, and she was thinking about it later that night.
Addie: Who moves the clouds?
Al: God.
Addie: I don't see him.
Al: He's far away (not wanting to get into a deep theological conversation with a 3 yr old)
Addie: Ok. We can use the car to go see him then.
Guess we've been taking too many long trips....

It's 4am- Addie is crying hysterically in her room- I rush in, thinking something must be wrong because she doesn't do this very often....
Me: What's wrong sweetie?
Addie: Dottie pee-ed out. She needs new diaper and new clothes!
Me: Are you friggin kidding me? (Sorry, at 4am, being awoken out of a deep sleep because a DOLL "pee-ed out" doesn't bring out the best in me)
Addie: No, Mommy, I'm not friggen kiddin' you. Dottie isn't comfortable. She needs to change. She needs her flower shirt, acorn pants and pink diaper.
I guess I should be glad that she obeyed me by staying in her bed..... And yes, I did change the doll, diaper and all. I'm still shocked at how clearly she can think when awaken by pretend pee!

She is also proving to be a picky eater. When presented with any food, her first response is always "I can't like it, Mommy!" Thankfully we have been reading the "How Does A Dinosaur..." series, so after asking her "What does a good little dinosaur do?" She will happily quip "Try 2 bites!" and then scarf down 2 bites. It's a strange little routine, but it at least gets 2 bites of food in her!

Good-bye MiMi

When Addie turned 3, we decided that she was a Big Girl and no longer needed her MiMim (pacifier). After 1 failed attempt at having her "buy" a baby doll with it (giving her MiMi's to Mommy and having Mommy hand over a baby doll), we decided to not try again until after our Christmas travels.

On the way home from the airport, we stopped at a Build-A-Bear, so Addie could pick out a new lovie to replace her beloved MiMi in. This way she could feel it but not get to it. I cannot take credit for the idea- it's from my friend Megan!

As you can see from the pictures, Addie wasn't too sure about the whole thing.... In the end, she left with a cute dog she named Kiley and whose left leg is surly going to be her favorite!


Getting 1 final suck before she puts her MiMi into Kiley.

And the MiMi goes in.

Watching her put the MiMi in the left foot.

NOT liking the machine that puts the fluff into Kiley

All smiles now that the loud noise is over. She chose a Santa dress for Kiley to wear.

The first night went surprisingly smoothly- I think she was just too exhausted from getting up at 5:30am and only have a 30 min nap on the plane. That was part of the reasoning behind getting the stuffed dog when we did! Still, I will continue to be optimistic that our MiMi days are behind us. Now I just need to tackle Alden's paci obsession....

Christmas in Kansas City

For Christmas, the kids and I headed to Kansas City to spend the holiday with my family. As per my other post, getting TO Kansas City was an adventure. Once there, we had a marvelous time!

My brother, Uncle Ian, was fantastic- his quirky sense of humor made him a favorite with the kids. My Dad's Donald Duck voice when his nose was touched, was an instant hit with the kids- and that's actually what Addie first told Al about her PopPop Old! Young was loving and compassionate as usual. Annie, my brother's fiancee, was super sweet and taught Addie how to wink. The cousins had a great time playing together- Anesu, who is 6 months younger then Alden, is the same size as him! Addie and Kuda enjoyed playing and eating together (the slide show will show you that!)

We spent many hours building with the old wooden blocks that I played with as a kid. My Dad is working as a Ski Patrol for a local Ski Resort, so we went skiing for an afternoon- and the conditions were perfect! The kids had fun playing with the designated Uncle/Grandma/Grandpa while I was free to ski! Marki, the cat, was always a hit when he showed his face- he was smart and stayed out of range most of the time. While there, we experienced temps from the teens to the mid-60's (yes, it was bizarre!). I was even able to squeeze in a visit with a family that I teach!

It was a wonderful trip- and thankfully I can report on a totally boring flight home! Delta might be rude, but they are punctual and didn't cancel any of my flights.

There were too many pictures to choose from, so enjoy this slide show!