Georgia Aquarium

Today we hit the road for a mini-vacation. Our first stop was the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. Road construction on the last 3 miles of the trip is no fun. Thanks to Ken's phone we were able to take surface streets and avoid SOME of the delay. Mom and Carroll and Aunt Deana, Uncle Doug, Katie & Lindsay met us there, too. It was quite crowded, but amongst the crowd we found Ivan, Laura and Reece as well as a friend from school, Cook, and his parents!

It was challenging to keep Jordan interested in such a big crowd. It was hard to see things and was, therefore, hard for her to be curious about what was going on. I didn't have an opportunity to read as much as I usually would have, but still got to see some pretty cool things. We'll definitely have to go back!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today is Kenneth's birthday. I texted as many of his friends as I could round up and we are all going to Guad's tonight for dinner. I'm sure Jordan will be excited to surprise Daddy with a trip to his favorite place!

Camp...

For those of you who don't know, I've been at Camp Opportunity this week. I've been involved with Camp since 1992 and I don't ever count my summers as complete until I've been to Camp! Jordan and Kenneth had a great week all by themselves...

Jordan had a special treat yesterday and Nana picked her up from school to go to the lake! I'm going to the lake after a shower and Jordan and I will come home tomorrow. I can't wait to see my girl!!

first lake trip of the summer

Yesterday morning we drove Jordan to the lake. We hung out with some friends last night and my Grandma is up from Florida, so it seems like a great time for a visit!

There were some interesting things about this visit...first off it's been a year since Jordan's been to the lake, so I knew there would be a little bit of a learning curve as she figured out what she could and couldn't do. Next, Jordan is (day time) potty trained, so needing to go to the potty on the boat would probably be interesting. (Ask me about this if you're curious...I won't go into detail here!) And last but not least, since she has been sleeping in her toddler bed at home, we had to tackle the new bed hurdle!

The bed was definitely the biggest challenge. Jordan did not take a nap and didn't get to bed until late. We made up the bed and put the bed rail on before Kenneth and I left, but she would have nothing to do with it! She ended up sleeping in the OTHER twin bed in the room and without the bed rail. She wouldn't let Mom put pillows down on the floor beside the bed to cushion a fall, either. So Mom went back in after she fell asleep and put the pillows down...which were needed because she did fall out of the bed!

I met everyone for lunch today and got to hear all about the rules on the boat and Papa Carroll's new name..."Captain"! It is difficult to explain how happy Kenneth and I are to have such great friends and family who love our girl! :)

Happy Father's Day!

I must brag for a moment about how proud I am of myself for keeping Kenneth's Father's Day present a secret until today!!! I couldn't think of what to do and a co-worker suggested a Greenville Drive baseball game. This was about a month ago and we hadn't been yet so I thought it was a pretty good plan. I knew that Kenneth would want to see his Dad, so I called the Manning's to see if they wanted in on the plan...thankfully they did!

Kenneth always sleeps in on Sundays since Jordan and I go to church, so I didn't want to make breakfast or anything so that he could just go right back to sleep when we left. For some reason, Jordan didn't wake up on the best side of the bed so she wouldn't so much as give Kenneth his card not to mention a hug or kiss for such a special day!

Anyway, Kenneth opened Jordan's card first and it had our 3 tickets to the baseball game. Then he opened my card which had the 4 tickets for his family. Kenneth had been talking about wanting to see his Dad, so I had called his Mom to make sure she would cover for all of us!

The game started at 4 and although it was warm (spelled H-O-T!) we all had a great time and made it to the end to see the winning hit! And, I just want the record to reflect that we did not leave my Dad out! He was in town last weekend for Jordan's birthday, so we went out and celebrated an early Father's Day with him...

3rd birthday

The birthday party pictures are up (scroll down the page almost at the bottom)! I will do my best to come back soon and fill in some of the gaps that are missing in the blog...I can't believe how far behind I am!?!?!

:)

a cute birthday moment!

While we were opening cards and presents today, one of the cards had a check in it. Without missing a beat, Jordan held it up and proudly announced "This is for the bank!" What can we say...we've taught her well!

:)

potty update

I meant to say the other day how well potty training is going. I'm not sure why or when, but I decided to quit obsessing about it and asking Jordan every 30 minutes or so if she needed to go. And I guess it's working! Friday morning was a 'Muffins for Moms' Mother's Day party at ARBC and Ms. Nikki commented on how well she's doing. I think that's when I realized that there hasn't been an accident in a while...at least not at home. Yesterday we went to Rock Hill for Mother's Day and Jordan's pull up was dry after an hour and 1/2 in the car and 30 minutes of that she was asleep. I remember her saying when we were still about 30 minutes away from the Manning's that she wanted to go potty when we got there. I just didn't think she meant that she'd hold it in the whole rest of the way! Woo hoo!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today is Mother's Day! Kenneth brought me breakfast in bed which was so sweet. It was 7:15am and Jordan was still sound asleep (as was I!). So there I was eating my breakfast and by the time I was done, Kenneth was fast asleep...bless his heart! (Please note the sarcasm!) :)

A little later (after everyone was awake) we left for Rock Hill to spend some time with Kenneth's family. As always, we had a great time and great food--Mita cooked; I don't think she ever takes a meal off!

I love this picture...if you look at the album on Shutterfly you'll see how challenging it can be to get a picture of the 3 of them--no one is ever looking at the same place as anyone else! But this picture (to me) captures how they each feel. Mita just loves holding Jordie and would hold onto her forever if she could. Papa is just in love. Almost anything she does makes his heart melt and that face just shows it!

Pop!

We met Pop for dinner tonight to celebrate his birthday...which was actually Cinco de Mayo, but we weren't all in the same space until today! I have to preface these pictures by saying that Jordan chose what to wear today all on her very own--I didn't have anything to do with it!!

We had a few minutes before we needed to leave, so I thought we'd create a little surprise for Pop. I printed a sign for Jordan to hold while I took her picture. Those of you who know Jordan know that she has a "cheesy" smile in which her eyes just disappear...really cute, but her eyes are so beautiful that I want to see them in my pictures!! I handed Jordan the sign and asked her to put the sign in front of her chest. This is what I got:

Jordan would not put the sign in front of her for anything! She did not want to cover up her Clemson Tigers. Who can blame her, really?!?! :)

So then I asked her to at least open her eyes! And this is what I got:

big girl (day)bed

Some of y'all may know that we have been talking about making the transition from the crib to a big girl bed. The intent behind purchasing the crib that we did was so that we could get full use out of its function--from crib to toddler bed to full bed. There are definitely those children out there who aren't contained by their cribs for very long at all and the toddler bed is a critical part of their bedroom furniture. Thankfully, Jordan is very content in her crib. A few weeks ago, though, she hiked her leg up on the top of it like it was nobody's business. That sort of sparked this whole conversation. We finally decided that we would just skip the toddler bed and go straight to the full bed. Why have to do 2 transitions? Well, there are a few things at play here. #1--there is a conversion kit that needs to be ordered from Babies R Us that provides the side rails to connect the head and foot board. #2--a full size bed, box springs and appropriate bedding need to be purchased for said bed. So, we've left things in standby mode as we figure out the best way to make all that happen.

This week, however, we got a note home from school that Jordan was climbing the fence at school. And she's been climbing or attempting to climb most anything she comes in contact with! She can now easily climb up on our bed (it used to take her a minute to get the right footing and something on the bed to grip). She can also climb right up onto the barstools in the kitchen. So, this morning, we decided to go for it and convert her crib to a toddler bed. At first, Jordan was very excited. Then as we started taking her friends out of the bed and her mattress out of the bed, she was singing a different tune! But, we made it through and in the end Jordan happily helped each of her friends climb into the bed. "Jazmyn, put your feet here and then use your arms to p-u-s-h yourself up!"

Nap time today put a whole new perspective on why we have a video monitor. It was so interesting to watch her experiment with the freedom to get in and out of bed. She did put her feet on the ground a time or 2, but fairly quickly decided to curl up and go to sleep. Even when she woke up, she stayed in her bed and called for us--like usual. Kenneth and I were both pleasantly surprised...

The best affirmation we got on our decision was late this afternoon...Jordan was downstairs playing and she looked at Kenneth and told him that she wanted to go get in her bed and lay down, but not go to sleep because she LOVES her big girl bed! What else can you ask for?!?

dude...revisited!

You may remember that a few weeks ago, Jordan decided that the "Hey dude" that Kenneth was talking to was a real person. Tonight, he resurfaced! We were all in the living room and Kenneth was tickling Jordan's knee. She was trying to watch something on the television, so this distraction was frustrating her. She looked at him and quite emphatically stated, "Daddy, I'm going to tell dude he can't be your friend anymore!"

Just before he started to address the tone with which she spoke to him, Kenneth looked at me as he realized exactly what she said. We both got so tickled at it that the "teachable moment" passed us right on by.

Is the doctor going to fix me, Mommy?

Given the fever that Jordan ran yesterday along with the cough and runny nose, we made an appointment this morning. The cough and the runny nose don't bother me, but when there's a fever that lasts all day, that's when I want someone else to take a look. I'm glad that Jordan still views going to the doctor as a positive experience, so we always try to see someone we know. Today's lucky doctor was Dr. Anderson. We saw him the last time we were there with strep throat and Jordan talked about him for days, so I figured we were safe. Jordan chatted him right up and he patiently answered all of her questions, commented on her good behavior and casually announced that she has bronchitis. In fact, I had to ask him again what he said because Jordan started talking more loudly when she realized that he wasn't talking to her, so I really couldn't hear him. 10 days of antibiotics later, she should be fine and she can go back to school Wednesday.

The word bronchitis really has a negative connotation in my mind and makes me think I should be worried. But, Dr. Anderson was so calm about everything that I didn't really think much about it...until I could get to a computer and Google it! In my defense, when I Google a diagnosis, symptom or other medical issue I only look at a maximum of three sites that appear and try to pick ones I know--Dr. Sears, baby center, etc. And I stopped reading when the consensus was that bronchitis was not a big deal...as long as it didn't turn into pneumonia.

I took Jordan and Kenneth home and went to work for a little while. I'm still feeling pretty crummy, though. My throat still hurts, but I don't really think I'm SICK, so we'll see what happens. I'm happy to be home while Jordan will be sleeping, though, so I can get a nap myself! It is much needed!

After our naps, Jordan decided that her pink baby needed to see Dr. "Andason", too. She put her in her car seat, made sure her pajamas and hat were on and that I was going with her. She had a very interesting dialog about her trip to the doctor, if Dr. A fixed her when she went to the doctor, medicine, etc. I wish I could remember it all!

cough + fever = run from crocodiles?

Jordan has had a runny nose over the last few days and a cough that has increased in frequency since Friday evening. Kenneth and I were debating last night about whether or not she and I would go to church today. When she woke up with a fever of 101.3, the decision was made for us! I woke up with a sore throat myself, so it was a good idea for us to stay home.

The thing is that even with a fever and a runny nose and a cough, she has been in the best mood today! Recently, Jordan has been really "getting into" watching movies and videos. Dora is a big favorite and especially the one where she goes to the soccer game. During part of the movie (I think--I'm not usually around when she watches, so I've not seen it), Dora and Boots have to cross a bridge. There are crocodiles in the water below. Dora says, "Run! Here come the crocodiles!" I don't think I can count on my fingers and toes how many times Jordan said that same line with the same inflection and the same intensity and the same passion! She asked for Kenneth to run with her, chase her, play with her all day. That might explain why he was quick to jump on the "morning shift" when we were figuring out who was going to stay home with our sick girl tomorrow! :)

Hey, dude!

This afternoon we were all downstairs doing our own thing--I was playing solitaire on the Xbox (lots of fun, huh?!) and Kenneth and Jordan were playing in the play room. Kenneth's cell phone rang and because of caller ID, knew exactly who it was and answered "Hey, dude!". After a few minutes I realized that it sounded like he was talking to my brother. I needed to tell him something anyway, so I asked Kenneth if it was Trey. Before he could answer, this voice calls out from the playroom, "No, it's dude!". I was so caught off guard that I asked her again who it was and she said, "Mommy, it's dude". Kenneth had stopped talking mid-sentence and we just stared at each other in disbelief...the things they hear when you don't think they're listening!

I really am working on catching up!

I know, I know! I can't believe it's been since early February that I've posted anything! I'm sorry! I'm working on getting our Florida trip pictures uploaded and then I'll work on posts.

Just know that there are LOTS of pictures from our trip. Mom, Grandma and I all had our cameras out. I've tried to take out the obvious duplicates (who needs 45 pictures of meerkats, anyway?!?), but just put the pictures on slide show and play it really fast! I have a hard time deleting pictures of Jordan--she's just too cute!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Tonight we painted Valentine's for our family and friends. Jordan loves to paint and tonight proved that we don't do this near enough! We talked about how we are making these to give to and realize that there is still some understanding to be had about giving and receiving! :)

We hope you will have a terrific Valentine's Day...we love you!

a night at Nana's

Yesterday afternoon, Jordan woke up from her nap and was delighted to learn that she was going to be spending the night at Nana and Papa Carroll's! A friend of ours was getting some folks together to celebrate his birthday. He actually turned out sick (bronchitis), but we went to dinner with a newly married couple who we haven't seen since their November wedding. There was plenty of time for Kenneth and I to catch a movie, too! I was happily surprised to be able to sleep in until around 9...

Big girl underwear update--Jordan wore big girl underwear all week and learned how quickly we respond to that little word 'potty', especially in the car. We've stopped more than once this week on the way to or from school to go potty with varying degrees of success! Friday night we went to Guad's and even though it only took a little more than an hour to go from school to Guad's and home again, Jordan went to the potty 5 times--4 at the restaurant and once at McDonald's less than 200 feet from Guad's! :)
Yes, I took her every time, so Kenneth is due!

an afternoon with Mita and Papa!

I have to be at work this afternoon and evening and although the nursery is open, I will be there before anyone gets there and after they leave. With Kenneth being sick, I didn't want him to be dealing with Jordan by himself. Thankfully, Mita and Papa were happy to answer the call to come down and help entertain. Jordan was in a great mood and (as usual) enjoyed being the center of attention!

Daddy's not feeling so good...

Kenneth came home yesterday and went straight to the bed. Jordan and I left him there today to go to Zoo "school" aka Zoo Tots! The zoo offers programs for certain age groups periodically and this one was about how animals move..."Hop, Walk and Crawl". Given Jordan's love for hopping and jumping, we figured this would be right up her alley! We also met Joy and Brooklynn there and it was nice to hang out with them, too...

One of the highlights of zoo school is seeing what animals they bring out to share with the kids. When the first ones came out, I was really missing the fact that Kenneth wasn't there! Madagascar hissing cockroaches! Yuck! Joy and Brooklynn happily pet them and I was thrilled that Jordan wanted nothing to do with them. I don't even look at their box in the reptile house--which is hard because it's right at my eye level and Jordan likes to look in each box, of course! The second animal was not a problem--a black rat snake. I'll take snakes over bugs and spiders any day of the week! Jordan did enjoy touching the snake...

We ran through the zoo (literally, to keep up with Brooklynn!) and had a chance to see the new lion and giraffe exhibit. Somehow we managed to avoid the crisis of not going to the playground and stopped by the store to get some soup for Kenneth. Jordan's compassionate side is really showing more and more. She was very concerned that "Daddy not feel so good?" and happily helped me carry the tray and soup up to him when we got home. In an effort to put as much distance between whatever is wrong with Kenneth (high fever, cough, generally zapped), Jordan and I met Nana and Papa Carroll for dinner and came home just in time to go to bed. Feel better soon, Daddy!