It's that time of year again....Spring is here!

Which means.....Yard Work

We're at it again. Well, Matthew's at it again. I help where I can... Mostly, Sophia and I rummage through the weeds as I pull them and she looks for worms. or lady bugs, or my personal favorite, "Rolly Puppies" :)

So, if you've ever heard us talk about our yard, you know there's a lot of things that we wanted to change when we bought the house. And ever since the very second that we got our lawn mower and Matthew started mowing the lawn he has HATED the tree in our back yard. It drops these "berry" things that are horrible. We can't walk barefoot in the yard because stepping on one of those things is like stepping on on a pebble. Horrible. Makes you bend over in pain horrible.

Once we had Sophia, it got even worse. Playing in the yard meant going out to sweep it first. And during the "put everything in your mouth" phase, we were constantly on the lookout...who knows what damage these thing can do!



So...After almost 4 years in the house, and almost 4 years of talking about it's non-existence in our yard, the tree is going.

I don't know if I will miss it more this summer when the shade is gone, or if Bandit will. He LOVES running circles around that thing! Here's the last picture we have of Bandit making his run around the tree!


And down a little further is a picture of the yard after the tree was taken out. It really opens it up. Now if you know anything about Yuba summers, you know they are hot. And shade is a necessity. So while we won't have a tree for the shade this summer, a new one will replace it soon. One that absolutely does NOT drop anything. Except it's leaves in the fall of course.



This year, like most years, I had projects planned for my Spring Break. Matthew thinks that sometimes I create a project just because he knows I can't sit around for a week and do nothing. I don't deny that. If there is something I can do that makes something look better than it already does, then I'm on it. I love projects! And some people might think I'm crazy but I like painting too. So that's how I started the week. The weather didn't make for that many days outside anyhow.

Thursday night after getting home from school we had a quick and cold rain pass over the neighborhood. It was one of those small storms where your house might get rain, but 2 blocks away they are as dry as can be. And since it was a small one, Sophia and I ran outside to do some rainbow hunting. :) What a fun way to start Spring Break. We ran around in the sprinkling rain searching the sky for colors. We didn't find a single one, but Sophia melted my heart as she stood in the driest part of our yard singing, "I'm catching rain, I'm catching rain" with her palms out. She sure has a way of making us smile.





After our big rainbow hunting adventure, we ran to Home Depot to get paint for my bathroom painting project. Paint turned into yard supplies, and painting supplies. I guess that's what happens in the spring. After getting Sophia into bed, I taped the bathroom up so I would be ready for painting in the morning.

I'm proud to say that Friday morning, I started painting the hall bathroom at 8:30 and was DONE by 10:30. A personal best! (This is what happens when you dedicate all your school breaks to house projects. Sometimes I think I could work for HGTV and show them a thing or two!)

Sophia and I had some fun projects this week too. We did some art with Shaving cream. Of all things! But it turned out awesome! And we had MANY egg hunts after Easter. Many. She couldn't get enough of me hiding the eggs and her finding them.







And we hung out with Tita and Addison as much as we could. Until the germs hit our house. Then we went into Addison withdraws. We can't get enough of that little sweetie. Here is a picture I stole on one of her many afternoon naps in my arms. Love that little girl!


And just as we started break with a rain storm. We ended with a hail storm. A big hail storm. It almost looked like it had snowed in the backyard!




And for those of you dying for Easter pictures, an Easter update will be next! As soon as I get all my project-clutter cleaned up!

Introducing Addison!!!

Our precious little niece made her debut! And while I was DYING to announce it to all of our blog followers, I had to use my self control to wait until my sister announced it on hers first. Finally! ( You know I'm joking Carly....I remember those first few weeks in a blur, trying to stay awake, and wondering if I would EVER set hands on a keyboard again, let alone update the blog...!)


Carly and Josh have fallen into the parenting role so naturally. It's been amazing to watch them during their first few moments, days and (already!) a week. Watching them go through all of these things makes it all seem like it wasn't that long ago that we were experiencing them too. The nights without sleep. The celebration of a 3 hour sleep-stretch. The phone calls to mom. The feeling of being a human pacifier. But it's been so fun to watch and be a part of, and they are champs. I like to think that all of their babysitting Sophia was practice for them, but it's obvious that it just comes naturally to both of them.

I was showing off some adorable Addison pictures to my classroom parents this week, and one of them asked if she was my first niece. I told her that she was and then asked how she could tell. "You've got that, ' I wanna do this again' look on your face." she laughed and then said, "It was the same look I got before my 2nd and 3rd kids arrived!" :) So funny. Someday we plan on it happening again, just not right now...



But it's true. I do have baby fever. I hold Addison and I feel so much love for her. It's the same kind of protective, "I will do anything for you" kind of love that I have for my own daughter.
But for now, just as Carly told me waaaaaaay back in her 1st few days as an Auntie, "I'm having fun holding her, but I get to go home and sleep." :)


Sophia Updates

Sophia has blossomed since her change to the new preschool. She asks me EVERY day, after getting piggies in her hair, "Go to 'cool Mommy?" And all the talking we thought she was doing before was NOTHING compared to the conversations we have now. From the minute she gets in the car she sings new songs, shows me new art projects, and tells me countless things that she did at school that day. We could not be happier with the outcome.



We have been experiencing so many spring-like days lately that we've already made several trips down to the park to play. We especially like the weekends when Daddy can come with us too.

Anticipation for Addison (And the new Hogue Blog!)

Our little niece is almost here!

Here are just some thoughts I have for you Sister as you head into the most amazing adventure of motherhood...

One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given was to listen to yourself. You will know Addison better than anyone else. People will want to give you their advice and their "expertise". You will learn her personality faster than anyone else, and you will know what she needs and when she needs it.

It's okay if you have nights where her tears bring you to tears. It's okay if you need help. It's okay if you need a break.

I know that we've shared with you that the biggest surprise for Matthew and I was how hard a new baby can be on a marriage. So don't worry if it is hard. You both will grow and you both will change, and it will be incredible in the end.

This amazing little miracle is making the two of you a family. :) And we are so excited for you.




On a side note: Carly and Josh have created a blog to keep everyone updated with their lives too! Here is the link, be sure to save it to your favorites to keep updated!

http://the-hogues.blogspot.com/

2nd Birthday and Lessons Learned

Mickey and Minnie Cupcakes

Opening her first present!

Cuddling with Daddy before everyone arrives

The day before her birthday...what a happy girl!

(and a healthy breakfast!) Seriously, I think she could live off of grapes and bananas, but we're not arguing about that!

Sophia's Birthday Banner
***Many Thanks to Sue for the use of her Cricut! :) I LOVE that machine!***

The banner hanging in place. I am SO happy with the way it turned out, just as I had pictured!

The Birthday Girl while we were singing "Happy Birthday" to her! She was such a ham, looking and grinning at each person as we sang! :) It was such a nice and laid-back evening, just dinner with the family! LOVED it!


In just the short month that it's been since our last post, Sophia has made some big changes. So here's the catch-up version for you:

Goodbye #1: Binky Bye-Bye
Just after her birthday ( and I mean days...) Sophia got rid of her binky. We thought for sure this would be something that would cause nights, if not weeks, of no sleep in the Taylor home. We thought this would be the ultimate melt-down of melt-downs. But just in Sophia spirit, she took it like a champ.

For weeks Sophia had been into Barney. To the point where Matthew and I know ALL the songs, and if you ask Matthew, he'll tell you he doesn't but he DOES know some of the dance moves too! :) (Sorry to sell you out babe, it just cracks me up!) So we resorted to telling her that "Barney was broken". I'm not sure what that meant in her head, but she processed that to mean that we could not watch Barney. (YAY!!!). So while cooking dinner a few nights after her birthday, I got to thinking about all the strategies I'd heard about for getting rid of the binky. And that's when it hit me. It would break.

(Disclaimer to Sophia: Years from now when you are reading this, you have to understand that your Dad and I were not playing a trick on you, simply making the transition easy for you to understand!)

So that night, while Sophia was in the bath, and cluelessly playing with her Daddy, I "trimmed" the tip off of her binky. Now the theory behind this is that it loses it's suction and doesn't feel the same.



We were fully prepared that she wouldn't be ready to go through the night without it. After bath, we brought her into her room and got her jammies on. After jammies is when she ALWAYS asked for her bink. So she did, and I pulled it from the same shelf we always keep it on. Only this time it was cut. She put it in her mouth and then pulled it out and looked at it. She looked at it for a few moments and then handed it to me, saying "Mommy, here." I asked what was wrong and she tilted her head, furrowed her brows and told me, "Binky broken." At that point we asked her what we do with something that is broken and she told us, "throw away." So we told her that was something she had to do. We set her on the ground and she walked up to the kitchen, opened the trash and threw it away. She started to walk away, but we had her look at it one more time and tell it, "Bye-Bye, Binky." We were a little astonished that it was that easy. How could she be SO attached to it, but simply throw it away?!

We went back to her room to continue the routine of story and bed, and we had some tears. She burrowed her head into Matthew's shoulder for about 10 minutes and all the while we talked about what had happened. That the binky broke and she had to throw it away. After she calmed down she went right to bed, and didn't wake up once. :)

The next two nights she asked for it, and each time we just asked her questions. "What happened to your binky?" "Oh it broke, what did you do with it?" "That's right you had to say 'bye-bye' because it was broken" and that was that. Easy Peasy.

Goodbye #2: Diapers
That's right! We are on to Pull-Ups ladies and gentlemen! :) I think that this is an exciting announcement because it means that our budget is about to get a break! There's really not much to expand on this news, other than the fact that she's working so hard on using the "polly" every time she needs to go. (except for poo...if anyone has tips on how to make her use the potty for poo's, we'll take 'em!)
Sitting here reading this, I'm thinking this might be the strangest request I've ever made!

Hellllloooo Preschool (And a lesson for Mommy & Daddy)
Last week Matthew and I got one of our biggest lessons in parenthood to date. We learned the value of making tough decisions for your child, even if that means putting yourself in situations that you are not comfortable with. Sometimes being a parent means sticking to what you know is best for your child, and following through. Long story short, Sophia is now at a new preschool. And just as all parents can remember the jitters in the stomach feeling they had for their kiddos on the first day of school, we had it this morning. But she did amazing. She played some puzzles with us for a few moments and after kids started arriving she played with them while we talked with the director for a few minutes. When it was time for us to go, she gave us our hugs and kisses and happily went back to playing. We got out the door with no tears. When I went back at the end of the day, she had a fantastic report! So we are confident that despite the stress over the weekend, she is in the right place. She was so happy tonight telling us SO much about her day. I honestly hadn't seen her act this way in a long time. And she happily sang us the whole song of the ABC's! We'd been working on this, it was such an amazing surprise to hear!

For your viewing pleasure: Sophia and the ABC's!

Happy Birthday Sophia

Sophia,

Tomorrow morning, you will wake up like you do any other morning. You will probably chat with your Minnie Mouse or your Lala, maybe even sing us some Jingle Bells or parts of the ABC's. You may even climb out of your big-girl bed and wait at your baby gate with your favorite book (of the day). For you the day will feel the same as any other.

But tomorrow will feel different for your Daddy and I. Why? Because you are turning two. Two!

We are so surprised by the little girl you are becoming, and each and every day we thank God that he gave us you. You are so perfect for us, and we know that God gave you to us to take care of, watch grown, and help us to become more patient. And our patience is something you have been testing for some time now.

You've perfected the art of whining. But, when we tell you that you need to ask or talk like a big girl, you can snap right out of it. You amaze us with your communication skills. You ask for the things you want, (usually with manners) you tell us about all of the things that you see in our environment, you show us your understanding of the world and the way things work with your simple sentences. (When we come to a red light in the car, you'll tell us 'Red means stop!' and when the car begins moving again you tell us 'Green means GO!') You take experiences you have had and apply them in a million other places. (Like when Uncle Jim took us on a walk through the pasture to see an owl house, and then Aunt Pam and Uncle Bill took us on an owl hunt out at the cabin, you talked about owls for weeks...every time we found a bird house you would tell us it was an owl house, every time there was a notch in a tree you would point and tell us "shhhh, owl sleeping." )

I'll admit that we're not so great about documenting everything that you do, and maybe in the past two years we've forgotten to write down a milestone or two...but there is just something so real about experiencing your growth in the moment. Not taking a moment to stop and think "Oh, we have to remember this..." but actually sitting and enjoying the seconds that matter. Because that's how they feel. Like seconds. Ticking by so quickly, and we don't ever want to forget them.

So here are some of the things that we want to remember about you at two years old;

You are such a sweet, sweet girl. You interact with us on such a level that sometimes we forget you are a toddler. When we sneeze you tell us "Bless you Mommy" though sometimes it sounds more like "bess you Mommy". If we are coughing you will ask us, "You okay Daddy?" And helpful. Oh my gosh are you helpful. When we tell you that it's time to clean up, or that we need some help with something you are right there ready and willing to help. Laundry is a favorite weekend chore. You will haul out the laundry baskets so they are all in the hallway. You will help us separate it into piles and then hand each piece to us, one at time, as we load the washer. At night time when we clean up before bath, you will even sing your cleanup song from daycare "Clean up, Clean up, Everybody, Everywhere. Clean up, Clean up, Everybody Do Your Share!" :)

You LOVE books. Each morning when we come to your room, if you're out of bed before us, you have a book in your hands. When we sit down on the floor cross legged you immediately grab the nearest book and plop right down in our laps ready to read.

You are learning so much so quickly. You know the melody to the whole ABC song, and when we sing you know almost all of the letters! It scares us sometimes how quickly you are learning and the things you are taking in.

Barney is your absolute favorite right now. sigh. It's become another one of those words we have to spell, or endure for at least 30 minutes. Although we are not as big of fans as you are, at least we know you are learning from it. You take in everything he says and does and talk about it non stop.

You LOVE to help me in the kitchen. Which is adorable. You just have to have your "coffee" when you see Daddy and I getting ours. So we've come up with a solution to tantrums by pouring milk in your cup the same time we add it to our coffee. So sometimes milk is "milk" and sometimes milk is "coffee"! :)

You are truly Daddy’s girl. You tell me all the time where your Daddy is. “Daddy’s sleeping” on mornings when we make it up before him, which are most! “Daddy at work” when I pick you up from daycare. And often, “Daddy, I luuh you” is the first thing you tell him to wake him up in the mornings. I know that he’s not a morning person in the least, but I do know that this melts his heart every single time. You also are starting to become quite the football fan. You would find Daddy’s Bronco’s ornament on the tree and tell us, “Daddy’s football”. And if a sporting event is on TV, whether it be basketball, baseball or hockey, you will stand, hands raised and yell “Touchdown!” We wouldn’t be surprised if your next new word is “Teebow.”

You are becoming quite an individual. You are your own person, and we all know it. You have spunk, you are funny and we think you are so smart. But you challenge us too. You challenge our parenting skills. And let me tell you…you are stubborn. I spend the whole day with 22 students who test me constantly, and hands-down your little, tiny self gives me the biggest run for my money.

I heard a short saying this morning on the way to school from a mom who sometimes missed the little moments in her kids’ lives, and it brought me to tears (particularly because last night was a very challenging one with you!) So I want to share it, so that I can be held accountable to it. She said, “Remember to make time for the little things in your kids lives. Today they are little things, but as time goes on and you look back, they will be the big things.”

So on this note we just want to say, “Happy Birthday Sweet Sophia”.

We love you much.

Mommy & Daddy

Christmas Magic

This year Christmas was so magical and fun. Sophia was so interested in every part of it, and was so fun to establish some of our traditions with her.

Decorating the Christmas tree was a big adventure this year! We separated the ornaments into two categories, "breakable" and "Sophia" :) We gave Sophia her box and let her go to town. It was adorable to see her try and hang them on the branch. Branch, not branches, because when she was done they were all clumped together! We decided to finish the tree with the breakable ornaments after she was in bed, and we were sure to space all of ours out! :)

Exploring the Christmas Tree

close up with the tree....love the look of wonder on her face here!

Okay, maybe not all on one branch, but surely clumped together

getting into a little mischief while we were busy with all the Christmas to-do's...yet she's so good at cleaning up that it's hard to be mad...!

Christmas carols were heard at all times of the day (and night!) around our home. Not only did we play them since the beginning of December, but our little sleep-talker would even sing them in her sleep! Her most popular saying this month; "Better watch out! Santa Cause is comin' town!" and "Jingle Bells". Adorable.

Sophia absolutely LOVED that her daddy put the Christmas lights up on the house. EVERY time we would go outside, or drive up to the house she would exclaim, "Daddy did the hoooouse!!!!" in her sweet little voice it was the cutest thing EVER. And I'm pretty sure that it made climbing up and down the ladder to hang them seem like it was worth the effort for Matthew. (And a big thanks to the Grandpa's too! Don for the ladder and Whit for the non-fear of heights!)

Sophia and her daddy with the Christmas lights!

Sophia tried her best to help out when Auntie Carly and I did our Christmas baking. She was such a good girl to stand on the stool and watch, and we took full advantage of her nap time as well!

Cooking coffee on her spot in the kitchen

Just some of the goodies we were baking...

We went on our annual Christmas Lights Tour and Sophia LOVED it. "More Christmas lights please, Daddy!" is what we heard from the back seat all evening. We were certain that she'd fall asleep at some point in the evening, but she was so interested in everything she was seeing. She'd point out each and every snowman, Santa, the occasional Mickey Mouse, and baby Jesus. She was totally into it. :)

We watched Polar Express and every time that we mention the word "movie" she's convinced that we are watching Polar Express, and is sometimes disappointed to find out that there are other movies!

We sent my dad a message to wish him a happy Eve of Christmas Eve (on December 23rd!) since that was something we used to say when we were kids, and something he and his brother used to say when they were kids! Way to start the anticipation 2 days before the big day! Sophia tried so hard and said "Eve Christmas Eve" :)

This year we did something a little different for Christmas. We generally jump from family to family on Christmas day since we are so blessed to have all of our family in town. But it gets to be so much packing, unpacking, and clock watching that it's hard to really enjoy ourselves in one place. With Christmas being such an important holiday and the family time so crucial for making memories this year we made a decision to split our time over two days. We spent Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas day with Matthew's family. It was so nice to not have to pack up everything several times through out the day, and just enjoy our time with family.

Christmas Eve was great. We went over to my parent's house early in the day and just hung out. Mom made amazing appetizers and had all the makings for delicious croissant sandwiches to munch on throughout the day. We took our time opening our stockings, our gifts, and then went to church. After church we went back to mom and dad's and had dinner. Mom and I had made her grandmother's recipe of homemade chili in individual pie crusts. It was delicious, just as I remembered having as a kid on Christmas Eve. Sophia conked out before we went home, and slept in the back room until it was time to go. Such a relaxing day.

Sophia and I on Christmas Eve.

Our Santa Claus delivering gifts from under the tree

So happy to get her own baby doll. Named, "Baby Doll"

Reindeer footies on her Christmas PJ's

Santa Claus came to our house!

Sophia and I opening our stockings

We were so excited to see Sophia's reaction on Christmas morning. The anticipation was almost as much as waiting to see what Santa Clause had brought when we were kids! So much so that we were actually up, AND out of bed BEFORE Sophia on Christmas morning. For the first time in her 23 months, we were up before her! Go figure! So we got up, got the coffee going and turned on the Christmas tree as we waited for our little sleepy head to wake up. I'm certain that next year will be the end of that.

Waiting for our little sleepy head to wake up!

Sophia was so cute. We got her up and explained that Santa Clause had come to bring her a present because she had been a good girl all year. Before we brought her out we asked her if she wanted to see her toy and she nodded her head yes. So we headed out to the living room and she was able to see her new kitchen! She looked at it for a long time, apprehensive as she is most new things. So I asked her if she wanted to make me some coffee? She said yes and jumped down ready to play. Ever since she's been cooking more than I do. I'll be in my kitchen while she's in hers, and it's so cute to listen to her play.

Playing with her new kitchen!

Just the other night I was doing the dishes and I was eavesdropping on Sophia and Matthew playing together. It was the best;
Sophia: Daddy want coffee?
Matthew: Sure. Can I get a mocha-latte-hazelnut-basilnut-nonfat-grande coffee?
S: oh! Yeah! Daddy want milk? (With her head tilted and eyebrows raised!)
M: Sure. And breakfast. Can you make me some breakfast?
S: bekfast. yep. (goes to her stove and stirs her pots and pans)
Here Daddy. bekfast.
M: Oooh, this looks good, what did you make me?
S: bekfast.

It went on and on for almost half an hour. It was the best dishes washing time I've ever had, listening to my two loves playing kitchen together.

After our Christmas morning as a family, we traveled over to (great) Granny and Papa Joe's house for Christmas with the Taylor family. It was cute to watch the kids play together this year, as they are all starting to become aware of "play" and actually playing with others instead of just playing near others! It worked out perfectly that after a big lunch with the Taylor clan we opened our gifts and enjoyed the family time. We stayed until late afternoon, when Sophia could no longer keep her eyes open and headed home for nap-time. Sophia took a good nap while we got everything ready for the afternoon/evening Christmas with Matthew's family. Whit, Sue and Alisha came, with car loaded, over to us. It was the first time in all of our Christmases together that we had Christmas at our house. And it was amazing. It was so nice to have Sophia in her own environment (especially considering she woke up from her nap in a less-than-stellar mood, and she was able to get back to herself in her own home). We enjoyed an evening of family time, gifts, stockings, and dinner. After getting Sophia down for bed we spent the evening playing some new games and laughed more than we had in a really long time. (Matthew and Alisha both make it a rule of thumb to say things in games that make their mom uncomfortable, so you can only imagine the topics that were coming up!)

Christmas day with Grandma Sue!

She asked me to come in for coffee...or Matthew suggested I get in there and then the asking began...how do you say no to a face like that???!

And to finish up our Christmas celebrations, we had a 3rd Chrsitmas celebration the following day with GG & Papa. It was great to be with family for 3 whole days celebrating such an important day. Somehow, Christmas with a child of your own just takes on a whole new level of emotion as you think about God sending his son to Earth to die for us. Thinking about the day of Jesus's birth and what God had planned for his son on that day makes it even more an event to be thankful for.

And then New Years....Carly and I took on a whole new cooking challenge; Tamales. And for a couple of white girls, they turned out perfect!

Merry Christmas from the Taylor Family

Updates and pics from our holiday adventures will be up soon!


Hope everyone had a very magical, merry Christmas and a fun and safe New Year!