Month: March 2015

Super Bowl Sunday, OH THE TOE!

Tatum hates it when people ask her what happened to her toe or if they look at it, she cries and wants to hide. This must be the part of her that wants to be in tact and fully functioning!

Well, now, it is March 29th, and the TOE is now ready to be toenailess. And…it is not pretty!

In fact, it’s pretty painful, the poor Tot. She usually wants to wear socks in this 90 degree heat, and always reminds me to “Be careful of my toe, mommy!” I wish I could rip the darn thing off and make it feel better. And so it toes…..

 

 

“Why?”.…Yes, the first, “WHY?” poured from her lips yesterday. I said we were not going to go to gymnastics open gym and she asked me why. After giving her a satisfactory answer, she continued to ask me. This is the sign of things to come. Curiosity is a fine trait, but broken record questions can be a tad tiring. 

The question I enjoy hearing is, “How are you?” This has been a question she asks on her Minnie Mouse “phone” (it’s a mirror but I don’t want to diminish this pleasure) to the people she calls. Today, however, as we walked up the stairs, she said, “Mom, how are you?” I returned the question, and she says, good. Now, was that sufficient? No. She then asked the surroundings in the house how they were. I told her to ask follow up questions like, “Are you happy today?”

Basically, Tatum has to be continually talking. If it is not to me, it is on her little mirror.  If I try to get a word in, she says, “S-cuse me, talking!”

Now, I can only project what life will be like with a questioning, conversing, monologuing, garrulous child/teen. It can mean life will never ever be boring. The key is for me to teach her the part where you turn it off and use those things on the side of your head. God even gave us TWO!  “Know this, my beloved [Tatum] : let [you] be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” (James 1:19)

She will blossom into an articulate leader who can influence others for GOOD! 

Muffin or Pancake? This is my usual breakfast choice for Tatum. I make delectable coconut muffins and pancakes…if I do say so myself! 🙂

This morning, I opted to see if she wanted eggs instead. She hopped on that wagon and I decided to make her scrambled eggs with fruit. Now, I partook of the same delicacy, but I always put this super hot Chalula sauce on my eggs. A little dab will do ya, yet I pour it all over. She saw me doing this and wanted to try it.
My warning did not faze her one bit. In fact, she asked for the bottle. I decided to give her plastic cup of just a touch. 

Then…she just reached for the bottle.  What do I have on my hands her? My Spice Girl? Holy Moly, I am in for a wild ride with Ms. Tatum…and I love it. 🙂

 

More Jocy! Tatum cannot get enough of my dear friend. Blessedly, I enjoyed a day with her one more time sans her girls (which was sad, but nice to be with her).

We went to the Scottsdale Arts Festival

without the dreaded stroller. Yes, it did work as she got to run a bit ahead. Jocy wanted to visit a few jewelry stops and some art booths. She almost bought this cool piece:

which was made of glass…way cool.

Tatum was more interested in the behind the scenes; LOVE! After I told her what it said, she leapt off! (Just kidding! 🙂 She had a blast just being in and out of this  wordy sculpture…and I had a fun time chasing her around. (well not really)
Time for a break and selfies:

(Love my giraffe shirt from Jocy!)

Then a silly one with mom. La La La.

Finally after Jocy found a gorgeous ring:

We made some wishes and plopped pennies in the fountain. Funny enough, I NEVER have pennies nor change, so I had to beg for them!

 

Plop Plop! We made two wishes. Wouldn’t you like to know!?

A teeny tiny time with Tatum getting to draw. The crayons at this stage are more fun to pour out of the cup than to utilize for drawing. Alas… the drawing ended in about 2 minutes.
Finally back to the car. Lucky me, I had to carry her back to the car, and again, lucky me, we were on the OPPOSITE side of where we parked. Got my workout in!

Jocy, I adore you. I adore you as a mommy, friend, daughter, and woman. You exude beauty in how you handle pressure, how you parent, and how you love others. Being in your life for over 30 years keeps me reminiscent of how special our friendship is. May you be blessed in your life with Joseph, Ella and Audrey. XOXO

 

Zoo-bound and ready to enjoy the animals!

We enjoyed seeing the lions and tigers, but they were sleeping. She was confused that they get to lay around all day. But then, the activity livened up when she saw the giraffes. Feeding them lettuce made her feel just like being with her mommy! LOL. 

Then I got to feel this monstrously long tongue come towards me. 

Jocy treated us to a ride on Crocket the Camel. She kept greeting him with “Hi Crocket!”  Lasting about 2 hours, she soaked it in as much as she could. I think the monkey pit freaked her out a bit as they jumped all over. Jocy made it fun since I did not have to be the 100% monitor. Love her..XOXO

 

Oh wait…HI TRAIN!!!!

 

The idea came from another, but I had to jump on it!
How can I help Tatum learn about the power of prayer unless I get her involved? We made a Prayer Pail, and proceeded to put all of the people in our lives on popsicle sticks. This way, we could pick people out each day and pray specifically a blessing over them. 

This morning, we chose Bob, Elizabeth, Nicholas and Coti! They received such love from her as she enjoyed participating in the picking!