Gotta Love 'Em...

Dads that is :) Ryan is an amazing dadda. And I am so, so thankful that he truly loves Maeve and LOVES spending time with her. He plays with her every night when he gets home from work while I get dinner ready and I'm pretty sure its the highlight of both of their days. The one quality of Maeve & Ryan's relationship that might need a little work is his disciplining... or lack of. When Ryan is in charge, it's really whatever Maeve wants- which is fine and great, because I DO love that they have this special bond... BUT when I've told Maeve "NO FRUIT SNACKS" a thousand times throughout the day and Ryan walks in the door and opens a pack up for her its kind of frustrating. A few nights ago, I was cooking dinner and Ryan was "in charge." I wasn't really paying attention to what they were doing but I peeked into Maeve's room and there they sat, with about 5 opened packs of fruit snacks in front of them- REALLY??? Right before dinner? And after I've told Maeve no all day long?? No wonder Maeve gets so excited to see Ryan come in the door!

One of my favorite "daddy" moments that I want to keep as a memory forever happened this morning... Ryan got up with Maeve this morning and I got to sleep for an extra 20 minutes or so (which was VERY nice!). When I got out of bed and wandered into the living room, Maeve was sitting at her high chair with a plate full of.... CHEESE and GOLDFISH and.... gulp, A KOOL AID JUICE BOX. I think my eyes bugged out because Ryan (who was stretched out on the couch watching "Dora") said "what's wrong?" I said "Did you seriously give her cheese and gold fish for breakfast??? WHY???" And he replied simply with, "That's what she wanted." I couldn't help but laugh :) A few goldfish and chunks of cheese along with a sugar packed drink won't really hurt her & I know that. And it really made me think of just how special dads are. Sometimes they're just so clueless- but I think that quality is what makes them so much fun for kids. Around here, it really is "anything goes" with dadda. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I love the bond Maeve and Ryan share and I don't think it would be the same if he parented like I did. My favorite times are nights when there is absolutely nothing to do and I can sit back and watch them play, talk and connect.

Thanks for being such a great dadda Ryan!!!

Just What I Needed.

After a horrible morning, I was pretty excited to get home, feed Maeve lunch and get her to bed so I could crash. And that's just what we did. She slept for about 2 hours, which allowed me to get in a quick nap and read a little bit. After nap time, Maeve woke up super sweaty so I thought an "after-nap-popsicle" would be perfect. (Ryan had to make a midnight run last night for watermelon popsicles- and yes, he found watermelon!) So Maeve and I sat on the front porch for about a half hour just eating popsicles... she was making me laugh and today, that is exactly what I needed. I took a million pictures... there's something about diaper booty babies eating messy popsicles that is SO CUTE :)








I couldn't convince her to hold the popsicle by the stick- so she just took a hold of the whole thing :) We usually eat those popsicles from the plastic so I think she's used to being able to grip it anywhere... oh well, made for messier, cuter pictures :)

Mishap In The Kitchen.

So far this week I've stuck to our "menu." And today was no exception- I had everything I needed to make a yummy tater tot casserole and salad. I had browned the turkey, mixed together the soups and milk and had it all ready to layer in the casserole dish. I opened the cabinet where our dishes are kept and stretched up high on my tippy toes, trying to reach a certain dish. Next thing I knew, I had my entire set of corning ware smashed on the counter/floor. Maeve was taking a nap- so she was fine and none of the glass got me, but since this certain cabinet just HAPPENED to be right by where I was cooking, glass went into the turkey & soups!!!! I picked out a few pieces and thought perhaps I could salvage it, but in the end, I had visions of rushing to the ER because one of us swallowed some glass, so I tossed the turkey & soup. :( I was in a rotten, horrible mood when Ryan got home- and I know he was trying to help, but by offering to go to the store and get MORE turkey and soup so I could start all over again wasn't really what I wanted to hear at the moment. Actually what I was most upset about was my corning ware!!!! Haha! I never thought the day would come when I'd be sitting cross armed on the couch pouting about "my favorite casserole" dish!!! (that's really what I said to Ryan- or something to that affect- "Ryan I am not starting dinner all over, plus what am I going to cook it in??? I just smashed my favorite casserole dish!" Needless to say a couple minutes later we were both laughing about that :)

In the end, as he always does, Ryan saved the day. He took Maeve & I out to one of my favorite restaurants: Saucy Dogs in Jonesville. It is AWESOME- and a well kept secret of southern Michigan. The barbecue is comparable to Sonny's (our FAVORITE place to get BBQ- but they only have them down south) and their salad wedges are soooooo good!!

So yes, quite the mishap in the kitchen today, but the day was totally turned around with a 20 minute drive to Jonesville for some awesome food. I feel kinda bad we strayed from our budget, but... what can ya do???

We got back in town around 7 or so and swung by the studio (as if I don't spend enough time there...) to visit my mom while she was teaching the company. Maeve loved watching the older girls dance and she burned some energy dancing herself :) We're all looking forward to (hopefully) a restful night- and tomorrow, I will continue with my quest in the kitchen!!!!

Loooove Is In The Air!

So my favorite holiday is ONE day away and I am super excited! I've been guessing about what Ryan has in store for what he knows is one of my fave. days of the year :) And I will admit- that perhaps I am living in a dreamland sometimes and my expectations can get pretty wild but each and every year its usually the same thing... dinner and flowers :) Which is really nice, and of course makes my day, but I dream about him setting something romantic up- totally original and unforgettable. So far, our Valentines days have kind of all blended together... haha that sounds horrible! Ohhhh I love my man sooooo much- thats the purpose of this post actually- to share with you the wonderful early :) V-day gift he gave me...

Tonight (Thursday) I had a meet in Saline... BLAH big time to that! Saline is a good 45 minutes away and I had just judged last night, which meant I missed Maeve's dinner, bathtime, etc. So I was super bummed that I was going to miss out on spending time with BOTH of them for the 2nd night in a row. So Ryan came up with this fantastic idea that he AND Maeve would come WITH me to Saline- first off, I was excited because I loooove just driving with him- a chance to sit and talk without distractions- 2ndly, I was excited to show Maeve what I do- even though she doesn't really have a clue, its still fun to expose her to gymnastics! and 3rdly, I thought it was so sweet that Maeve and Ryan would have a "daddy/daughter" night out. So I was thrillllled to say the least as we started off for Saline. The plan was to drop me off at the high school and then Ryan was going to take Maeve to McDonalds for some chicky nuggets and some playtime in playland. Then he was going to bring her back and let her run a few laps around the track, watch the meet, that sort of thing :) It was AWESOME to see her and Ryan in the stands- she was clapping at everything and I smuggled a few of the 3 musketeers mini bars they had at the judging tables and gave them to her in between breaks :)

The night was really wonderful- besides hearing and seeing a poor girl pop her knee out of socket... YUCK!!!!!!!! So yeah, I am counting tonight as a Valentines day gift- I didn't have to drive at all.... YEA! And I got to sort of spend the evening with my 2 loves. I thought it was super selfless of Ryan to come home from a long day at work and hop in the car for a 45 minute drive just to go to a mcdonalds and watch a boring high school gymnastics meet... but ya know? That's just the kinda guy he is :) And I am blessed tremendously. :)

Now get this, tonight was just the start of our Valentines Day festivities! :) HAHA... tomorrow is the "Daddy/Daughter Dance" at the studio- Ryan took Maeve last year when she was 5 months old!! So we're getting all geared up for that... and then there's Saturday! Who knows what surprises await :) haaahhh.... but like I said, I already feel more than loved and thats what Valentines day is allllllll about.

I will probably update on Sunday... about our entire weekend. If you haven't noticed, I've been slacking a bit on blogging. Nothing really has been going on, and by the end of the night, usually I'm too tired to come up with something to write about... SO everyone, have a LOVELY, LOVE FILLED weekend!!!!

My First Post of 2009!

Welcome to the New Year everyone! No, I wasn't awake to ring it in, but here I am, in 2009! Not to be a "Debbie Downer" or anything, but I was as sick as a dog last night- we ate at "Hunt Club" and I got some greasy thing that made my stomach hurt instantly. So yeah... I was up from about 3-5 in the bathroom. Nice. Also for some reason, out of all the mornings, Maeve decided to wake up at FIVE this morning... wth? But Ryan got up with her- I was exhausted from my overnight stay at the toilet. He let me sleep in until 9 or so... and then opened the bedroom door and let Maeve tackle me :) If you HAVE to wake up, I would prefer to be awakened like that :) My stomach still doesn't feel good- I had coffee and a teeny bite of muffin this morning but thats it.

Also, I have been ditched for a football game. Ryan, on his DAY OFF, decided to go to his bosses house (of all places!!!) to watch the game. Thankfully, Maeve is sleeping and I am hoping to get a nap in and wake up to a better feeling stomach.

And to answer everyone's question: NO I AM NOT PREGNANT! That's a fact!