Time for Church

We went to church this morning, like we do every week. What made today different? I remembered to take pictures of the pretty princesses!!

Campbell

Cassidy

Saturday Afternoon Fun

Saturday afternoon was just as busy as Saturday morning. I took Cassidy on a long bike ride around the neighborhood, and then we all went to visit Mama and Papa. Matt and I snuck away for a dinner alone while the girls watched their Grandparents.

Cassidy in her sports car... soon to be Campbell's sports car!!

Exploring the neighborhood

A big tree fell in the dog park during the storm last week, so we sat and rested for a few minutes.

Mommy and Cassidy

Mama and Papa got this special table just for Cassidy... isn't it cute?!? That's her portable DVD player on the table... she can watch whatever movies she wants at their house. The word "spoiled" comes to mind...

A Maxi-Tasking Morning

Today we've already gotten so much done, and it's only 12:30PM!! We haven't been multi-tasking today, we've been MAXI-TASKING! What have we done?

Took Cassidy to dance
Took Campbell to my Mom and Dad's while Matt waited for dance to end
Completed a coupon deal at CVS (four 12-packs of Pepsi products for $3!!)
Picked up Matt's car from the shop
Cooked cinnamon rolls
Made lunch for Cassidy
Fed Campbell - twice
Checked email
Watched the mailman drive by
Posted Pepsi codes for my bargain hunting friends
Attended an implementation status update call for work

I feel like we've been in overdrive and the day's only half-over!!

Campbell LOVES Mama and Papa!!

Cassidy at CVS standing under the precious Extra Care Card... it really DOES pay you back!

#2

Matt got me the coolest birthday cake ever! It's an ice cream cake that looks like a giant yellow M&M. I was SO EXCITED to have such a cool cake, and Cassidy could barely wait to sing "Happy Birthday" to me.

As Matt pulled the cake out of the freezer, he looked at me and asked "do we have any birthday candles?" Luckily, we found one in the drawer... but it was a #2 candle from Cassidy's 2nd birthday. No sweat, a candle is a candle and it really doesn't matter what number is on it.
C

Cassidy was so funny about my #2 candle... she said, "Mommy is 2?" So I answered, "Mommy is #2 and Daddy is #1, that's why Mommy has a 2 on top of her cake." She nodded as if that made sense to her. I'm glad it did, because I really couldn't think of any other explanation.

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It was a fantastic birthday!!

The coolest cake ever!

Lighting my #2 candle

Cassidy singing "Happy Birthday" to me!

Happy Birthday, Mommy!

Today is my birthday!! A long time ago, we decided we were going to try our best to teach our children that it's better to give than receive - especially on birthdays and Christmas. For Cassidy's birthday each year, we've tried hard to play down the gift aspect and turn the focus toward doing things for others instead.

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This year, I decided I wanted to celebrate my special day by bringing breakfast to the girl's school for the teachers and staff. Cassidy was a big help in getting it all set up! The staff really seemed to enjoy it, and it made me feel good to show how much we appreciate them. Check out the pictures!

I made 2 of these signs and placed them on the table with the food and orange juice (I put our full names on it, so I blacked out that part of the picture).

The spread - YUM!!
Campbell and her Auntie Shawna

Campbell and Miss Cherry

Cassidy and Marissa... isn't it adorable how they're holding hands?!? The cuteness is overwhelming!!

Fun at the County Fair

We went to the local County Fair today, and had a great time!! As soon as we got there, Cassidy spotted the face painter. She's been known to have some pretty random stuff painted on her face, and today was no exception... she asked the guy to paint her face like a bat. A furry black bat, not a baseball bat. Huh? Where does she get this stuff?!?

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There was tons of awesome food there, and we even saw a few friends. We spent most of the day in the Midway area on the rides - fun!! Cassidy rode a train and some kind of horse ride, and we slid down a huge blue slide together TWICE. We met a really nice girl named Kassidy at the top of the slide, and I thought that was pretty cool.

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Little C slept most of the day, but she did wake up long enough to eat. Since it was supposed to be in the mid-70's today, I dressed her in a long sleeved onesie and her Baby Legs legwarmers. We got quite a few compliments on her legwarmers, which makes me feel like I've been redeemed in the cute outfit area.

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Check out the pictures of our day!

Big C getting her face painted like a bat.

Standing in line for something... can't remember exactly what.
Big C on the train.
Big C on the horse ride.

Little C woke up long enough to eat today, but then went right back to sleep. Check out her Baby Legs!

Mommy and Cassidy preparing to slide.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

A Good Outfit Day... I Think...

Everyone has heard of the infamous Bad Hair Day. We have those at our house. We also have Bad Outfit Days, which started outnumbering the Good Outfit Days about the time Big C turned two. Once she realized she could have an opinion about her clothing, all bets were off. I've posted about her questionable wardrobe choices a few times before... this is old news.

Big C has been trying for months to get me to let her wear a pair of boots that are two sizes too small. They are Stride Rites and we need to keep them for Little C, but it's too soon for us to make that kind of investment in another pair of boots for Big C... if I buy them now, she'll outgrow them before next summer. So I've been stalling, hoping to fend her off long enough for the weather to cool down for the season. As luck would have it, I stumbled across a cute pair of boots in Wal-Mart last night. The best part? They were on CLEARANCE!! I scooped them up and brought them straight home.

I knew she would love them, and she did. She wanted to wear them to school today, so I asked her if she would trust me to choose her outfit. She agreed. I dressed Little C up extra-cute, and a Good Outfit Day was had by all... in MY eyes, at least. Big C went to Wal-Green's with me tonight and the cashier looked at her and said, "Awww! Did you dress yourself today?!?". Ummmmm... no...

Campbell's Namesake

Campbell met her namesake today! My brother Mike and his wife Becky live in another state, so we don't get to see them very often. There was a special event at Mom and Dad's church, and we finally got Becky and Campbell in the same room at the same time. Here are some pictures!!

Campbell loves Aunt Becky!

A great picture of Becky... too bad Little C looked away!

I Love Paula Deen!

Matt and I went to see Paula Deen today. It was WONDERFUL... not only did we get to have lunch by ourselves, but the show was great! We're both big Paula Deen fans, and Matt chose our seats very carefully to ensure we had the best view possible. He did a great job, because we could clearly see her - she was only about 50 feet away from us!!!

Paula is just as sweet and funny in person as she is on TV. If you're not familiar with her, she has a show on the Food Network and is a true rags to riches story. She has a book about her story that may be made into a film. I love her more now than I did before. Is that even possible?!?

Me and Kim waiting for the show to start

Me and Matt enjoying some much-needed adult time!!
The stage lights were bright, and when Paula came out, she stood on each side of the stage and looked at the crowd and said "I just wanna see ya'll!!"

Paula and Michael

A Royal Bike Ride

Our Pastor's wife left some princess dresses for Cassidy before they moved away. They're sparkly and feathery, so she's obsessed with them (no surprise there). As we were getting ready for her bike ride the other day, she decided she REALLY NEEDED to wear the sparkly purple princess dress. She rode all the way from our house to the playground and back! About halfway home, she told me she was getting tired and asked me to carry her bike so she could walk. Ummmm.... I don't think so!!
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Hurricane Hanna

Hurricane Hanna came and went today without much fanfare. It was a good teaching opportunity for Cassidy, though. She helped us gather up the flashlights, and we talked about the big storm that was coming.

Cassidy was more interested in playing with her flashlight and splashing in the puddles than in the storm. Cassidy has always enjoyed splashing in puddles... but I'm not sure if it's really the puddles she loves or the puddle-splashing outfit she gets wear. She was so excited to put on her rainboots and slipper (Cassidy-speak for slicker), and was proud to carry her Dora umbrella.

Here are some pictures!

A Royal Meltdown

Cassidy got a great surprise this afternoon - Nana came to pick her up from school! Nana picks Cassidy up from school a few times a month, and Cassidy really likes getting Nana all to herself (especially now that Campbell is here).

Cassidy's Nana is extra-special and makes sure they always do super-fun things together. Today's activity was a trip to the mall to ride on the train and the coin-operated rides. This is one of Cassidy's most favorite things to do, so she had a ball. They even got their picture taken in the photo booth - fun!! Cassidy would much prefer to do fun things with Nana all day, and had a hard time coming back to reality this evening.

Cassidy wanted something and Mommy said no... and we were all promptly treated to the Back Arching Anti-Time Out Chair Spasm. If I were a better Mommy, these rare but powerful tirades would get some kind of reaction out of me. But for some reason, I tend to space out when she does this. And the more she screams and throws herself around, the more I tend to just sit there and watch her. I try not to laugh at her, but it's hard not to.

Contrary to popular belief, our angel misplaces her halo every now and then!!

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Cassidy loves her Nana!!

Cassidy doesn't love being told "no"!!

Campbell Stats

I meant to post this last week, but forgot when we all become preoccupied with Juno. Campbell had her well baby check-up last Tuesday and she's growing! At 11.5 weeks, she weighed 12 pounds and 1 ounce (50th percentile), is 23 inches long (75th percentile), and her head is 16 inches around (90th percentile).

Grow Campbell, Grow!

Labor Day Weekend

What a busy (and fun) weekend we've had!!

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We're still getting over the sadness of Juno expiring on us last Wednesday. It was quite a shock to come home and find him like I did. Cassidy is doing better, and every night we ask God to tell Juno we miss him. I picked up his ashes Friday morning, and Matt and I are in the process of picking out a really cool urn-that-doesn't-look-like-an-urn.

After Gymboree Art on Saturday, I took Cassidy to the mall. On the way home, we stopped and got our nails painted. I picked a pretty burgandy color, and Cassidy chose to have hers painted black. I have no idea why... she had chosen dark purple, but then changed her mind and stuck with it. She looks hilarious!

On Sunday, we went to a party at Cassidy's friend's house. Meredith and Lindsey live in the neighborhood right across the street, so it was a very convenient afternoon activity. Miss Cherry, one of Cassidy's FAVORITE-FAVORITE teachers was there. Cassidy would have stayed there all night if we would have let her - I'm surprised she let us leave gracefully!

Cassidy played with her sand and water table for a long time today and we ate a late lunch on the deck. We spent a few hours at the pool and then went to visit Mama and Papa.

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I need a nap. Here are a few pictures from the weekend!

Big C and Little C just luuuuuuv Mama!

Little C relaxes with Papa... sometimes I wish I could still fit in his lap like that!

Cassidy is such a good sister - she said "Mommy, Baby is pulling my hair!" but she didn't get upset... she just laughed!

Cassidy took this picture (check out my kickin' manicure!!)

Princess In Training

Cassidy relaxes after enjoying the last swim of the summer.