Happy anniversary Asheville

Eight years ago this week, Chris and I packed all of our college-worn, earthly belongings into both of our cars and a UHaul trailer and moved from Iowa City to Asheville. We had no idea what to expect - We hadn't even seen the apartment we had already signed a year-lease on over the phone. We didn't know a single soul in Asheville, and the only thing we had waiting for us was Chris's job at the Country Club. We didn't even have cell phones, and I can remember clear-as-day, both Chris and I finding a pay phone outside of an Arby's on our side of town and calling each of our parents to let them know we arrived safely and that we'd call them in the next few days when we had a better grasp on the situation.

I look back at ourselves then and smile. We were engaged, broke and halfway across the country from every single friend and family member we knew. It was single handedly the best thing we ever did, the best decision we have ever made. Not only did we stumble across a city that holds more character, beauty and friendships then we could ever ask for, but I truly believe it has made us the rock-solid couple that we are today. Thank you, Asheville. We love you dearly.

Rayn's birthday adventure

After making our way back up to Asheville after our long weekend in Birmingham, Taylor and I were thrilled to join our friends, Beth and Ryan, and help them celebrate their daughter, Rayn's, big third birthday this past Sunday afternoon. It was a Dora the Explorer themed party, and Miss Rayn's parents put together a fantastic gig that received lots of squeals and giggles from the girls, and quite a few groans from us parents that have to throw their own three year old birthday parties later this year. Way to set the bar, guys.

The party started across the street from Rayn's house, and each girl received a map to help navigate them to the celebration.

First they had to climb to the top of the highest mountain.

Then they had to sing a song to the Grumpy Old Troll to get over the bridge. And the whole time this scavenger hunt is going on, Ryan had the Dora songs playing through the window. Nice touch, guys.

Then they had to go through the rainbow river - Which was a hallway filled with different colored balloons. Such a good idea!

And then they reached the big bash, which was complete with party favors and cupcakes.

There was also a Dora pinata that the girls were able to destroy and reap the coveted candy reward.

Taylor's first taste of Smarties. She scavenged up a bag to take home and they have made fantastic potty-training rewards.

Yep, it was a pretty fantastic party. And with Taylor's big day a mere two months away, I'm going to start planning our big bash now. Her actual birthday falls on Master's Sunday, not to mention I'm going to be 38 weeks pregnant and we could possibly have sold our house and be living somewhere else by then. Any suggestions?

The greatest family on earth

So I had mentioned last month that Chris and I are currently house hunting in order to find a place that can hold our growing family. And since we've been in our current house for seven years, there's been some natural wear-and-tear to the place. And in order to make it tip-top in preparation of putting it on the market, we decided that we needed to spruce the joint up a bit, paint some walls and replace the upstairs and basement carpet. And because I'm in no shape to be breathing fumes or moving furniture, and because Chris wanted to avoid having Taylor following him around during the big project constantly peppering him with, Why you doing THAT Dad? What you doing Dad? What's that for Dad? Where's that go Dad? Chris packed up the Caddy and sent Miss T and me to my sister's house in Birmingham for a long weekend to soak up some family time and basically stay out of his way.

It was a fantastic visit, in that I was there long enough that I truly felt like I was able to spend some quality time with almost all of my Blackwell family members. And Taylor very much enjoyed being spoiled by her Beeba, Dirky, Great Granddaddy and the Graffeo gang. She was in heaven. And it most likely had something to do with the outrageous amounts of cupcakes she was fed during the weekend. Okay, so I also ate an unhealthy amount of sugar. But being as big as I am right now, what's the point of counting calories, right? And I'm directing that comment to Grandddady, Libba, Dirk and their food-calculator apps they were constantly using on their phones. Life is too short to take the time to figure out how many calories a slice of pizza has in it. Food is good. Enough said.

One big highlight of the trip was that Libba, Dirk and I were able to take Princess T to see the circus for the first time. And not just any old circus, The Ringling Brothers Circus - aka The Greatest Show on Earth - was in town, and our hosts treated us to tickets. I had grown up going to see the Shrine Circus in Sioux City, and was thrilled to be able to share the wonders of the Big Top with my daughter. And she was amazed. And so were we.

Oh, and remember the drama I told you about when I took Taylor to see Princesses on Ice and she threw a fit because I wouldn't buy her a $13 snow cone? Well, you can officially call me a sucker now.

I did however draw the line and refused to buy her one of those spinning, glow-in-the-dark, rinky-dink toys that catch everyone's eye. Because they cost $25. Seriously? But luckily she was too jazzed about the clown cup her snow cone came in, and totally forgot about the other over-priced crap they were selling.

And after reading Water for Elephants a few months ago, I was particularly looking forward to seeing the elephants perform. And watching them charge into the arena in all of their giantess and splendor pretty much took my breath away. However, by that point my little peanut was too pooped to watch, and she took a catnap while I enjoyed the rest of the show.

The rest of our weekend was spent outside in the sunshine and in front of Libba's lens as much as possible. I hate even bringing up the weather while a third of the country is being hammered with the blizzard of the century, but being able to run around in seventy-degree wonderfulness has definitely given me a case of spring fever. Here's a fabulous picture of my growing bump that my super-talented sis took.

And after making record time back home on Sunday, we rolled into the driveway and had Chris show us around our shiny, re-carpeted and re-painted house. Only a few more improvements to make before we put it on the market, and thus begins another adventure for the Famous Amys ever-growing family. Wish us luck!

33 months old

Taylor passed her 33-months-of-being-alive marker this past week, putting us a mere three months away from both her big birthday and her welcoming a brother or a sister to her life. Yes, we are just about 12 weeks away from welcoming a new little peanut into the party mix we call our family, with our almost-three year old being the spicy nugget of our ensemble. She's definitely the star of the show that gives our entire family that extra boost of flavor.

Our little Princess showed us a lot of love, growth and sass these past weeks, making for one wonderful, yet frustrating, month. We were able to experience the sweet, unparalleled joy of watching our precious girl open Christmas gifts, and we were also subject to some of the biggest, earth-quaking tantrums we had ever witnessed. The emotional rollercoaster we call living with a toddler… It's not easy, but all you need just one unexpected hug, smooch or, I love you Mommy, and that's enough to make this the best job ever.

So we did hit a few milestones this month, one of which was getting her teeth cleaned at the dentist. We had a routine checkup right before Christmas, and both Dr Jennifer and I were blown away by how awesome Taylor handled the whole appointment. Of course it helps that our dentist is a good friend, but Miss T was super cooperative with both the cleaning and the examination. And not only did everyone leave the session with their fingers in tact, but I'm happy to report that despite the gummies-intake, our Princess has perfectly healthy teeth.

I would have to say that the biggest milestone we hit this past month was moving into her big girl bed. We've been crib-free for over two weeks, and she has been sleeping like a champ in her new space. And while it is harder to get her to fall asleep at nap-time with all that freedom surrounding her, all she'll do when she gets out is grab a few books, crawl back up in her bed and under her covers and read, and then I'll catch a glimpse of her on the video-monitor, totally snoozing with a book open across her chest. As my mother says, She's a Blackwell!

Taylor has also become quite the question asker lately. All day long I am peppered with inquiries such as, Mom, what that lady doing? Where that person going? Who that? Why her wearing a hat inside? What him eating? And because Chris and I are the only source of Taylor's education right now, we try to respond with each interrogation with facts and general knowledge. Well, Honey, I think that man is going to the post office, or I believe that woman thinks berets are back in style and is trying to look sophisticated while buying her cat food.

And while her simple inquiries are pretty adorable, sometimes it is quite obvious that she's just talking to her herself speak. She loves her voice about as much as she adores her own reflection in the mirror. The minute she catches a glimpse of herself in any sort of reflective surface, she stops, twirls and says, I look beautiful, Mom. And I always respond, Yes you do, Love. You look perfect. And, as a both a mother and a woman, I hope with all my heart that she never stops admiring her own loveliness and charm in the mirror. Because she will always be the most splendid thing I've ever seen.

But this month wasn't all silly questions and glamour, we had a number of come-aparts that shook both of us to the core. After almost a year of handling Taylor-tantrums, I had started priding myself in being able to calmly deal with the unnecessary crying fits and occasional tests of my authority. But, whether it be she's evolving past my yoga-breathing or the fact that I am entering my third-trimester, we had a few instances this past month that incited high-octave screaming and left both of us crying on her bedroom floor.

For example, Taylor is currently in a no-pants faze. As in, she has refused to wear anything resembling jeans, pants or leggings for the past month. Couple that with both the freezing temperatures outside and the light-weight princess costumes she has been gifted, and getting her dressed in an appropriate outfit to leave the house has turned into a daily battle. So a few weeks ago, Paige and I decided to treat our Princesses to a matinee of Tangled, the new Rapunzel movie. I was looking forward to it, and Taylor was thrilled to go to a big girl movie with her buddy. Well, I woke her up from her nap to go the show, and after informing her that we would have to put pants on under her costume to go, the scene that followed was one of her shrieking and squirming on the floor as I laid all six and half months of my pregnant body on top of her and forced her kicking limbs into leggings. And after ten minutes of wrestling her and threatening her that we wouldn't go, I finally became so overwhelmed and frustrated that I swatted her bottom. And she stopped still, her face grew bright red and she screamed at me, MY BOOTY! And then we both gave up, exhausted and hysterical on the floor.

And after fighting her sobbing, yet wearing pants-self into the carseat so we didn't miss the movie, I had to stop and count to ten before driving out of the driveway because I was so frazzled. Because the last thing I ever wanted to be was the Mom who spanks and yells at her kid. And after collecting ourselves, depuffing our cry-eyes and getting some I'm-sorry-I-spanked-you popcorn and treats, we were all smiles by the time Tangled's opening scene began. And as I held her close while watching the Princess-wonderfulness unfold before us, I just kept kissing her head and savoring the moment. Because in just a few months it won't be as easy for me to just take a Thursday afternoon to go see a movie with my daughter. So for the next 12 weeks I need to just soak-up all the Taylor-time I can, even if that means she's not wearing pants.

Elliot turns three

Yesterday afternoon we adventured to Chuck E Cheese to help Miss Elliot Scully celebrate her third birthday. Not only is Elly-bean Taylor's bestie and partner in crime, but she is also a very special, honorary member of our family. And we love her dearly. And we were super excited to share her special day with her, Paige, Danny, Kyla, Logan and her other friends and family members.

And I don't know who was more excited for the big party, The Birthday Girl or Princess Taylor. For one reason, we had never been to Chuck E Cheese, and since Chris and I grew up going to Showbiz Pizza for special occasions when we were younger, we totally pumped our daughter up on the venue to the point that she announced, before even going yesterday, that she wanted HER Ariel Birthday Party there this year.

And Miss T was also pretty fired up to give her buddy her birthday present - A Tinkerbell costume. Because after having Elliot over for our dress-up party last week, and knowing her love for the animated pixie, we knew she would be thrilled to have a new, sparkly outfit to wear. And Taylor was so sweet about giving her the gift, and never once said, I want that! or That's MY costume! No, she walked into the party and announced to her friend, Here's your Tinkerbell costume, Elly! And then marveled and squealed over how beautiful she looked in it.

And because I am having fun experimenting with my new, fancy computer, here is a video and picture montage I put together from the special day. Enjoy!

Like winning the toddler lottery

About a month ago Chris was talking with a woman that works in his office about Taylor's uber-obsession with Princesses and how our house currently looks like the Disney Store, and she remarked upon how her granddaughter's also adored Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty when they were younger, and that she had some old dress-up costumes that were gathering dust at their beach house that we might be interested in. And after spending her holiday at the coast, she so kindly brought back the frilly, sparkly outfits for our precious Princess. And when Chris showed them to her, her little body started convulsing and she started shrieking, SLEEPING BOOTY DRESS! CINDERELLA COSTUME! with such enthusiasm that Ruby even got up from her nap to check out the action.

And who better to share her new loot with than her very best princess friend, Elliot. And just watching these two beaming toddlers prune in front of the mirror and remark on each other's outfits was like watching Taylor open her Christmas presents all over again. An absolute joy.

Now the only problem is trying to leave the house without one of the new costumes on.

Goodbye 2010, Hello big girl bed

So one of our first projects of 2011 was rearranging Taylor's room to make space for her big girl bed. And if you want to get technical, the absolute first thing we did once the sun came up on 1.1.11 was devour a ginormous pancake breakfast, and then we strategized as to how we were going to fit a twin bed AND a crib AND a changing table AND lots and lots of toys into the not-so-huge room that Taylor is in.

You see, Chris and I moved into our house nearly seven years ago. And for a newlywed couple with a chocolate lab puppy, it was a palace. But throw in a toddler, all our stuff and now a baby-on-the-way, you can safely say that we're a bit cramped. It's not that I want a much bigger house then I have - Lord knows I don't want anymore space to keep clean - It's just that our three-floors are laid out with two bedrooms on the second-story and one bedroom in the basement. And while huffing it up two flights of stairs whenever one of the kiddos is hungry, crying, whatever would definitely help the baby weight come off, it makes more sense to just have Taylor and Baby share one of the upstairs rooms until we find a new house. Yep, we're six months pregnant and house hunting… We're an HGTV nightmare.

And because I promised everyone that Taylor would move into her big girl bed once Christmas was over, and because all of our holiday guests had visited and left, we decided that this past weekend was the day to move one of our twin guest beds upstairs and get our toddler out of her crib. And since I'm in no shape for heavy lifting, and way too scatterbrained to make design decisions, Taylor and I adventured to Target to pick out bedding while my wonderful husband sweated out the previous evening's fun by moving furniture up two flights of stairs all by himself.

And while Chris definitely had the more physically demanding of the two jobs, I was placed in an ugly battle of the wills over what bedding would be on the new big girl bed - OF COURSE she wanted the entire Disney Princess bedroom set, and I was totally in love with a cute, bright flower comforter and sheets. And after plenty of squeals and whines, and a phone call to Chris in protest, we finally agreed on the Princess sheets and a solid-colored, not-Princess quilt. Truce. She gets to sleep on her Cinderella pillow every night, and I get to cover up the hideous, matching sheets every morning.

And after returning home and making up her new bed, our little Princess was so excited to get in her bed that she asked to skip lunch and go right to nap time. And then she cuddled up in her new space and slept for two hours.

And after attending a New Year's party that afternoon, we got home and Taylor immediately requested we all go upstairs just so she could look at her new room. She absolutely LOVES her big girl bed, and has been sleeping like a champ in it. And I don't think she realizes yet that she can get in and out on her own free will, as each afternoon and morning she just lays under her Princess sheets and reads a book, waiting for us to come in and snuggle up beside her and say that it's time to get up. Which I am totally fine with.

So we have successfully conquered one more milestone in de-babying Taylor. And just saying that makes my heart ache a bit. Because even after Baby arrives, Miss T will ALWAYS be my sweet baby girl. Just hopefully one that won't have a binky in her mouth and will at some point be wearing big girl undies. But we will tackle those battles in due time, and hopefully with the same triumph and savvy as we did with this transition. Regardless, we are very proud of our little girl.