Some sugar to start the workweek

Hot fun in the summertime

Like other parts of the country, Asheville has been hit with record-high heat the past few days. And what better past time for the scorching heat is loading up with snacks, apple juice and sunscreen, and hitting the pool. And apparently Paige, LeAnn and I weren’t the only people that came to this solution, as the Rec Park pool was packed to the gills this past afternoon. Complete with two YMCA busses full of pent-up energy, not to mention the normal crowd, we saw more tiny, scrawny bodies flailing into the water than in a stunt-scene from Titanic.

And, of course Taylor was amazed by all the action. Not so much interested in the actual swimming, as she was squealing at other kids, stealing fruit from Paige and giving her buddy, Miss Elliot, some sugar.



And because our three babes are all starting to resemble real-life little people, I tried to get a group shot of all of them. And this was the best I could get –



Well, it would have been better if we weren’t pointing them directly in the sunlight, and if Taylor hadn’t had discovered a bag of potato chips right before the picture.

Oh, and here’s another pic of the three of them, which I think gives a pretty good description of each of our daughters –



Miss Taylor, always looking for food. Miss Rell, extremely cute and well-behaved. And Miss Elliot, plotting her escape.

Yes, I think we gonna have lots of fun with these girls. Yes, I do.

Just a quiet place to sit and rest. I’m very tired...

We’ve had the same bedtime routine with Taylor for the past ten months – Bath, bottle, rock to sleep. And that’s rocking all the way to a sleep, which can take anywhere from ten to thirty minutes to get her completely conked-out. And then we would add an extra five minutes for good measure. Because once she’s out, she’s out for the night. And, yes, I know that by actually typing and posting this to the world, my daughter is going to wake-up, shrieking at 3.00 tomorrow morning. Yes, I know how the Universe works.

And, after rock-rock-rocking her to sleep, we would put her in her completely bare crib with just her binky and her blanket, and then turn on her Baby Einstein genius-breeding music to deepen her slumber. And that’s how we’d been doing it every night for the past ten months. And then finally one night a few weeks ago, after the bottle, Taylor kung-fu gripped her baby and pointed to her crib, and was all, Um, Mom. This is SO BORING. If you’re gonna be this lame. Just put me in my crib and let me entertain myself to sleep.

So I put her in her crib. Wide awake. And, without turning on her music, gave her a kiss and walked out. And then I stood on the other side of the door, holding my breath, waiting for her to cry. But she didn’t. And after seven minutes of semi-quiet, I ventured downstairs with the monitor, poured myself a glass of wine, put my feet up and watched the last ten minutes of the Daily 10. Score.

And finally, after a few minutes of relaxing and catching up on all of my celebrity gossip, I clicked the video monitor and watched her, sitting up, scoot to the bottom of her crib, scoot back, cover her doll up with her blankie and then turn on her mobile sound-board and then laid down. And went to sleep. All the way to sleep. Double score.

The next night it was the same deal – Bath, bottle, point to the crib, party with her doll, fast asleep. And then again the next night, and the night after that. And so on and so on. Not to mention it's the same routine at naptime. Triple-quadruple score.

And after a week of being such a good, grown-up sleeper, I threw a few more stuffed animals and a pillow in her crib. You know, so she doesn’t become a one-toy kid. After a few more nights into it, she convinced me to put in a few cloth books for good measure. Because it’s important for her to read. Or just use them as extra cushion.

It’s wonderful. She’s like a little person now. Done for the day, lay down on my pillow and read a book before bed. So grown up. And while on the outside I’m totally caught up on chores and tabloid trash, inside I’m a bit bummed that I’m missing my Taylor snuggle time before bed. And how I totally didn’t cherish that time when I had it, and how most nights I bribed her asleep so I could finish folding clothes or watch a movie or something so much lamer than cradling your baby girl and rocking her to sleep. I’ll never have that back with her, and that stings my heart a little bit.

However, as easy as the new routine is, the wake-up routine is still hampered by extremely full diapers, an empty belly, bed-head and a rather unpleasant disposition.

So it’s not all sunshine and roses. Hear that, Universe? No need to be checking in at the Amys house. We’re just dandy.

All in the family

We’ve been lucky to have Taylor’s Grandpa and Grandma Amys in town for the weekend, allowing Chris to be able to spend Father’s Day with his own dad and letting Princess-T be spoiled rotten for the past few days. Seriously spoiled. And I’m no fortune-teller, but Momma’s predicting a pretty wicked grandparent-hangover starting tomorrow morning.

And yesterday, we all packed ourselves in the car and took a day trip a few hours north of Asheville to visit our extended Amys family, the Garcias, and check-out their new, mountain-vacation home. Wonderful views, wonderful visit.

Chris and I are super excited to finally have some family in North Carolina, even if it is only part-time. And Taylor couldn’t be happier to be surrounded by such fun, sweet kiddos.

And today we are celebrating Chris’s second-year being a father, as well as Greg’s 30th year as a dad.

And while I’m sure Greg will be able to pass much invaluable fathering advice down to his son over the following years, Chris already, in my mind, possesses the three greatest strengths in being a successful father – Patience, humor and, of course, love.

All grows up

WHAT? What do you mean I can’t have macaroni and cheese for breakfast, lunch AND dinner? That’s IT! I’m outta here. And don’t even try keeping me locked in this baby prison. I’ll find a way out. Just you wait and see.

It’s fun to pet the Rubes

So Chris and I have been logging some serious hours trying to train Taylor to be gentle when interacting with Miss Ruby Blue. And even though, overall, the Rubes has been 68% sweet, 32% annoyed with baby-T’s existence, we don’t want to give our four-legged daughter any excuses to become 100% miserable. And now that Taylor is moving, grooving and a bit more excitable, she’s been known to take that pent-up baby energy and smack Rubes across the nose or pull her ears. And don’t even get me started on the plastic golf clubs Chris got T for her birthday. Yes, that was a brilliant idea. The minute she reaches for the driver, Rubes vacates the room.

So for the past few weeks, whenever Taylor feels like attacking Ruby, Chris and I intervene and show her how to properly love on her sister. And, as you can see, it’s starting to soak in.

So, yes, it’s a process. But a fun one. Oh, and the video also shows some of Taylor’s celebratory, arm-swinging dance moves, and my super-annoying rendition of the dancing Zebra song that echoes throughout our house constantly. And, yes, Taylor is still OBSESSED with her plastic sandwich bag full of baby spoons. It's her most favoritest treasure of the moment. Other than Ruby.

Easy like Sunday morning

It’s been a pretty uneventful weekend for the Amys clan. And by uneventful, I mean relaxing and wonderful. The weather has been gorgeous, so we’ve spent the majority of the past two days at the park, the pool and, of course, our front yard.