So today is Noelle's first full day of Parent's Day Out. The program actually started last week, but due to the utterly oppressive heatwave we've been having, all Metro schools were running at half days. Unfortunately for Jaime, this also affected Parent's Day Out. So while Noelle went last week, she was only there for 3 hours instead of the full 5.

THIS week, Noelle had a fever Monday night and couldn't go due to their restrictions against allowing plague-y kids to attend. But all is clear for today, and in fact, Jaime has already dropped Noelle off and all appears to be clear.

So let's cross our fingers that the place doesn't lose power, or get flooded and Jaime has to go pick up Noelle early.



UPDATE: She did great! She ate almost all of her lunch, and took a 45 minute nap on her nap mat. She only woke up then because a little boy woke up crying and ended everyone's nap. They sent home a little "report card" telling us how her day went. We're so proud! And, Jaime got a LOT done around the house.

Noelle has been holding steady at 12 teeth for the last 4 months, but Andy noticed this morning that finally another one has poked through the surface! She has been a little irritable and clingy lately, but she goes through that sometimes for no apparent reason. After an early nap for a cranky girl this morning I discovered she had a fever, and then noticed two more teeth coming in on the top. Teething can cause a fever, so I'm hoping that's all it is and not that she's sick. She has been acting pretty pathetic today though. I took some pictures of her, and when I showed her this one she said "sad." Aww. I'd be sad, too, if I had 3 teeth coming in at the same time.

Just wanted to let everyone know that you can now make comments on each post. If you have something you'd like to say to Jaime, or Noelle, or I. Just click the "Add comments" button below each post.

That is all

Is there any other phrase on God's green earth which can so easily melt the hearts of Daddys? Noelle doesn't say it all that often, but when she does I feel this shiver run through my body and I receive just the smallest glimpse of what it must be like when we tell God we love him.

Today was Noelle's first day at the Parent's Day Out program we've enrolled her in for the fall. She will be going there Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9-2. This week they are having half days because it's so ridiculously hot here, and their AC is needing repair. So, we're doing 9-12 this week. I had been feeling a lot of mixed emotions about sending her to PDO. I knew that I would enjoy the time to get things done and maybe relax a bit (what!?), but I also felt a little bit of guilt because I don't "need" her to go. It's not like I'm working during those hours and need the childcare. However, I know that it will be great for Noelle to meet some new kids (or friends, as she calls them), learn to listen to another adult, and just get out of the house and play with some different toys. So even up to Monday morning I was still feeling somewhat hesitant about sending her away. Then on Monday, Noelle just acted like she did not want to be with me. She didn't want to color, didn't want to swing, didn't want to watch Elmo, didn't want to read books, she was just in a pretty bad mood. And I said thank you Lord for PDO starting tomorrow.

We had pretty much the same kind of day today, with her being pretty irritable when it came to anything I suggested. She's getting big into the "mine" now, only it's really more like, "NO, MIIIIIINE!!!!!!!" She was playing with my makeup brush this morning and when it was time to put it away, she said, "No, MY TURN!" Later when Andy came home, he was outside watering our near dead tree and took the dogs out with him. Noelle and I were talking to him through the window in our bedroom, and Noelle looked at Nacho running around and said, "No, Nacho, MY OUTSIDE!" She apparently owns the entire outdoors. Also today at lunch, I was trying to help Noelle get some peas on her fork and she looked me in the eyes and told me to "let go." Yikes. I just wasn't feeling the love today, and many time outs were had. For both of us.

I think Noelle's playschool teacher has her work cut out for her, with 8 kids probably going through the exact same stage of figuring out what belongs to them and how they are a separate little person with their own needs and wants. Glad it's her and not me!

Of course, that little girl says some amazingly sweet and funny things as well. On our way home today I asked if she was hungry, and she said, "Chicken nuggets please." Whoa! I turned right back around and headed to McDonalds for that one. Also, Andy sneezed yesterday and she said "Bless you." So cute!

The bad thing about putting off writing a blog post is that inevitably more and more things happen that you want to write about, and then it just gets really overwhelming to even think about, so what usually happens is that I just put it off even longer. There are a ton of things that I could have written really nice posts about since my last one.

For instance, our trip to the lake with my parents, brother and sister-in-law, and nephews. It was a great weekend spent partly in a 3 bedroom condo we shared and partly on my dad's boat. We played games every night after the kids went to bed, went to a horrible beach one day, swam in the resort's pool, took my Grandma's sister to dinner, and just had a really good and fairly relaxing weekend. As relaxing as it can be with 3 kiddos!

I could write about how ridiculously hot it has been, 100 most days, and how at 10:30 at night it's still over 90. And we think our air isn't working in the office and garage, so we have to have someone come out on Friday to check it out. I'm thankful we have working air in the rest of the house, I honestly don't know how people survive in this kind of weather without it.

Also, Noelle has been pretty goofy lately, and we've had some good days together. I'm glad that I got a funny kid, although looking at her parents you could expect that. She's currently obsessed with "icy pop?", a name she created herself for the freezer pops my mom brought to the lake. The other day I asked her what she wanted for lunch and she said "something new." Where does she get this stuff? She's also becoming more interested in what is hers, and today wouldn't let me read her a book because it was "MINE!"

We also have a pretty much brand new kitchen, and although it isn't finished yet, it's looking pretty good. We had some issues with the workers along the way, but most everything got resolved. Now we just need to tile the backsplash, repaint, finish organizing the cabinets, and then a little later on we will pull up the floor, refinish the hardwoods, and replace the rest of the cabinets.

So there has been a lot going on already this month, and hopefully now that I'm caught up I can get back on track with the blog. Thanks for your understanding! :)