ballet angel

This past week was all about the Columbia County Ballet's production of The Roar of Love!  You may remember that Charlotte was a Pony in this production (that tells the story of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) last year.  This year she was an Angel.  The Angels and Stars come on stage to celebrate after Aslan comes back to life.

We had two rehearsals downtown in Augusta this week and then the BIG SHOW was this afternoon.  Charlotte, of course, did fantastic.  I am also proud of myself for conquering my fear of the "ballet bun" and for volunteering as a stage mom and helping to get the Stars and Angels dressed, on stage, off stage, and undressed today.  35 little girls!!!  Whoo, it was loud in that dressing room, and I am tuckered out!  Now here are some pictures for your enjoyment.

Outside the theatre, just before spacing rehearsal.

Dress rehearsal. Check out that extension! 

(And notice the bun is staying put as well.)

Charlotte was at the front of a line of girls and was worried about remembering all of the cues and hitting the marks on the stage, but she did really well in the performance.

So sweet... and serious.

Happy ballerina after the performance!

With her best ballet buddies, Adair and Skyler.  

These three girls have been in the same ballet class for three years now and get along so great.

take me out to the ballgame

Today was the opening day of T-ball for Toby. I have never been much of a baseball fan, (huge understatement,) but something magical happened today when Toby suited up in his Braves uniform for the first time and now I am LOVING baseball, small town America, and apple pie!

He warmed up with a game of catch before the teams paraded onto the field at 9 am, listened to a speech from the mayor, had a prayer, and sang the national anthem.  I am telling ya, opening day of baseball in a small town is pretty awesome.

After the opening ceremony we had some time to kill with group and individual photos before his first game against the Cardinals.  I got him a hot dog from the concession stand and we visited the bounce houses.  Then Rob arrived with the three other kiddos just in time for game time at noon.

Bench talk is serious stuff.

Next up to bat for the Party Box Braves is #10 Tooooooby Anderson!  By the way, I asked Toby if I could call him "Smalls" like the main character in The Sandlot. (Toby's favorite movie.) He replied that I could call him "Medium" because he is not very small.  I also spent most of the morning calling him "Party Box," because of the shirt, and because I think it would be a rad nickname.

Rounding the bases!

For some reason, he felt the need to hold onto his batting helmet as he rounded the bases.  Those little circles make great handles.

And in the field.  

Toby played left field and short stop today, but will try out all of the positions over the course of the season. Toby was very serious the whole day... he is not fooling around out there.   

I am so proud of my little baller!  

Amelie at 6 months

My sweet baby is growing up!

Amelie is now 6 months old! She had her check-up yesterday and is a very healthy happy girl.  She weighed in at 17 lbs. 10 oz. and was 26 and 3/4 inches long.  She was in the 85th percentile for height and weight and even head circumference. She has chunky thighs, bright eyes, and a smile that literally stops people in their tracks.  Everywhere we go, she turns strangers into friends... that kinda reminds me of my mom.

Amelie is VERY strong-willed and determined.  She wants to feed herself, and she does not like any of the baby foods that she has tried over the past month.  She likes to be held upright, never lying down, and she prefers the one who is holding her to stand.  Sitting down will likely cause an Alarmelie to sound.  She has gotten better about riding in the car, and seems to resign herself to being strapped into the carseat now, which is a huge improvement.

I can't decide whether she is right or left-handed, but I suspect she is another lefty.  That would mean 3 of our 4 kiddos are lefties.  Rob and I are both right-handed, as is Toby.  I think being a southpaw is cool!  Globally, roughly 12% of men and 10% of women are lefties.

Amelie likes to sleep on her tummy.  I generally nurse her before bedtime, but if she is very tired and already well-fed, we will just lie her down and turn on her seahorse which lights up and plays music for a little while and she will usually zonk out without too much fuss.  We have found with our kids, that it helps us to have portable bedtime routines and sleep cues so that when we travel we can still help the kids feel comfortable and "at home" in strange places.  She got this seahorse from Grandma and Grandpa for Christmas and hopefully this will work for our Ami too.

 

Finally, our girl is plowing through milestones so fast it is hard to keep track.  She can roll tummy to back and back to tummy.  She is cutting her first two teeth right now.  She can sit up mostly by herself.  She is eating baby cereals and first foods and joins us for all meals in her high chair at the table. She has recently started "blowing raspberries" and experimenting with sounds her tongue makes.  (This involves an immense amount of slobber.) She can pick up small objects with her fingers and pass them from one hand to the other.  And sometimes, when she is really upset about not being picked up, she says "mmmamamama."

Sometimes I jokingly ask, "Whose idea was it to have all of these kids?!?"  But baby girl, there is no way our family would be the same without your sweet smiles and giggles. 

Happy Half Birthday Ameluska!

Calhoun, GA and Savannah's baptism

A few weeks ago we took a mini-road trip around Georgia.  Rob took us to Calhoun, GA where he attended high school and showed us the sights.  Behold!  The sights!  Just teasing... Calhoun is a small town.  Much like the one I grew up in waaaaay up north.  Ha!  We even went to church there on Sunday morning and visited a small branch of our church, where Rob seemed to be a bit of a celebrity.  This part is no joke.  I have never in my life been personally welcomed to church over the lectern and had everyone in the chapel turn to stare and smile at me. And this was no brief greeting!  It went on and on.  And where was Rob while this was happening?  In the foyer with the baby!!! Holy heart attack Batman, I was very overwhelmed, but very welcomed.

We also took the kids to New Echota. I had never heard of it before, but it was at one time the capitol of the Cherokee Nation.  (Before the Trail of Tears.)  There is a museum there now and historical park to explore.  It was a perfect outing for our own little tribe to get some wiggles out and learn about a different way of life.

Our best group shot... sun in the eyes and all. Sidenote: I cannot imagine living in a home that size with four kids. But so many people did just that, back in the day, with many, many more kids.  The handwoven baskets inside were gorgeous though.  I would happily take those home with me.

We spent the night in a hotel near the highway and took our bathing beauty for her first swim in the hotel pool.  (Check out those rolls!  I love 'em.)  Amelie did pretty well in the hotel room overnight.  Jake is still our most restless sleeper and luckily Rob shared a bed with him! Every time I looked over there Jake was in a different position and he even fell out of the bed once. (That didn't wake him up though.)

We also ate THE WORST Chinese food in the history of takeout.  Initially we wanted hoagies because I forgot that we were in rural Georgia... and there was not a single place to get a hoagie, (not even a Subway,) in the whole town!  So Rob improvised and brought back THE WORST Chinese food.  Seriously, I actually gagged and ate a granola bar I found in my purse for dinner instead. (Rob concurred that his food was bad, but mine was truly inedible.)

And finally, we ended our road trip on a fabulously happy note.  We drove up to visit Rob's sister and attend the baptism of our niece Savannah.  (Dressed in white in the center.)  Our kids love getting a chance to play with their cousins and we are so glad we got to share this special day with Savannah.  Jake had no nap and was feeling pretty anti-social by this point unfortunately.  I bribed him to be good by telling him there would be cake after the baptism.  SO of course the moment Savannah came up out of the water Jake declared, "Now we eat tate!" Love that goofy little Bear. 

Dr. Seuss week

'Twas the week of Theodor Seuss Geisel's birth, 

and the kids came home from school with looks full of mirth. 

 "I'm to dress as my favorite, I'll be Cat in the Hat!"

 "Me too, I'm Fancy Nancy or something like that!" 

 Their teachers were devilish and missed not a trick, 

they added crazy hair day, crazy sock day, yeah... they laid it on thick. 

 I went straight to work with sewing machine and hairspray. 

The can I've had for two years? Almost used in one day. 

 I whipped up a tall stripey hat and bow tie, 

 my cute little Toby... perhaps I did cry.

The hair and socks were no biggie, they were quickly done.

I'm more stressed about the upcoming required 'ballet bun.'

And last but not least, the accessory stash barfed-

Beads, jewelry, curls, heels, bows- topped with a real Parisian scarf!

I made their fantasies real! I created their looks!

I love Dr. Seuss and his inspirational books!