Were You Out In The Rain?

....and other questions you should never ask your wife!

Tonight when Tony came home from work I was in the kitchen making dinner. (Yes, you read that right...I was making dinner!) Anyway, Tony gives me a kiss and then...this is how our conversation went....

"Were you out in the rain?"

Um...no.

"Oh, your hair just looks..."

Insert death glare from
me.

"ah...never mind."

While it's true I wasn't out in the rain I definitely looked like something the cat had dragged in!

Lily and I spent the entire afternoon making forts in the family room. Let me rephrase that. I spent the entire afternoon making elaborate forts and Lily spent the entire afternoon knocking them down! We had so much fun...but that's hot, sweaty work let me tell you!

A Sweet Goodbye

Last night I went out with the ladies in my neighborhood for our monthly book club dinner. Tony was running late because of traffic and I was carpooling with some other women on our street. So, we pretty much had to pull some 'tag team' parenting. Basically, Tony walked in the door and I walked out.

In the late afternoon I had told Lily that I would be going out to dinner and that she and Daddy would be staying home together. Lily didn't bat an eye. There was none of the usual "Lily go with Momma" or anything like that. Lily just asked me who I was having dinner with and then proceeded to list off a bunch of names of the women who live near us.

So, as I was headed out the door I gave Tony and Lily a kiss and they both headed up the stairs so Tony could change out of his work clothes. Wow. That was effortless. Then I heard Lily say, "Momma wait" and I thought to myself...ut oh...here we go. Instead, Lily walks up to me and says in the sweetest voice, "Have fun. I'll see you later!" and then gives me her version of the ASL I Love You handshape. Aaaahhhh! Too sweet.

I'll see you later?!? What? Can I just tell you how that was music to my ears? I think it may be sinking in that...yes, sometimes Mommy leaves...but...Mommy always comes back! I don't mind telling you it made me a little weepy.

Birthday X 3

Yesterday, we went to a birthday party at the home of one of the families we traveled with to China. Jim and Wendy have hosted many parties since we've been home and are kind enough to always include us. Yesterday was a triple celebration...Miss Julia is turning 6 in a few weeks and Miss Amanda and Miss Abby recently turned 4! Wow, time is going so, so fast.

We all had a wonderful time and Lily even had an opportunity to play in Jim and Wendy's pool. Check out this old post to not only see how much the girls have grown since last year...but how about the pool!?!

Speaking of birthdays...today is Dave and Jason's birthday. As Lily would say..."Happy You, You!" guys!

Warning...A Little Off Color

So, if I knew Lily was going to come up with this zinger I would have waited a few days before I did the A Lot To Say post!

You will need a little background for this one...

A little over a week ago a bunch of folks from our neighborhood went to Pump*It*Up for a "family fun night". If you're not familiar with this type of place it is basically a large warehouse full of different inflatable slides, moon bounces, etc. Anyway, it turned out not to be much of a "family fun night" for our family. There were over 100 people there and Lily was completely overwhelmed...I wasn't too thrilled either!

If you've ever spent time on this kind of equipment you know you can get what I guess are brush burns very easily. In the short time that Lily and I stayed I managed to get a rather large brush burn on my knee going down one of the slides.

A few days later Lily and I went to Gym*Jam with people from my stay-at-home parent group. Again, it's a similar kind of place with inflatable slides, trampolines, etc. While we were there I was talking to the owner about organizing an outing for our playgroup. Just as the man takes a sip of his coffee Lily chimes in and says, "Mommy hurt her knee at....Hump It Up". Needless to say his coffee came shooting right back out!

What's so funny????

An Extra Long...Extra Fun Weekend

Last Friday we headed to Virginia for an extra long weekend with our friends, Laura and Rich, and their kids. I have been friends with Laura and Rich forever. Well, really only for half of my life. I met them through Robert. Rich and Robert lived in the same neighborhood and Laura and Robert went to high school together. When the four of us were young, broke, newlyweds we spent many evenings playing Pictionary and splitting a 6-pack of beer. Years later when Robert and I divorced we agreed to joint custody of Laura and Rich ;-). I'm so glad we did!

Laura and Rich and their boys, Adam, Ben, and Sam, are some of my favorite people. We don't see them as often as I would like but time apart doesn't seem to negatively impact our friendship. No matter how long it has been since we've been together we can always seem to pick right back up where we left off.

You might think spending a weekend in a house with 3 teenage boys and 2 dogs would be stressful. In this case, you'd be wrong. I'm not sure if Laura and Rich have Valium piped in through their ventilation system or what their secret is but there home is ALWAYS a joy to visit. When you walk into their house you enter "The Stress Free Zone". Seriously, we have visited them countless times since they moved to Virginia and we always feel sad to leave. Their home truly is a special place.

Speaking of special...Adam, Ben, and Sam are amazing, sweet, patient, and kind young men. How many almost 15 year old boys do you know who would willing and enthusiastically go to the playground and play with a 2 year old??? I mean really play. We're talking happily "eating" the lunch Lily made for them out of mulch and then asking for seconds of pretend strawberries, yogurt, etc. What about giving up their bedroom so their Godmother and her family could move in for the weekend? Ben did it without batting an eye. Laura and Rich didn't force the boys to be nice...it is just what comes natural to them. If that doesn't speak volumes to the kind of parents and family life they have I don't know what does!

We had such a wonderful weekend! We talked for hours, ate, drank, and laughed, laughed, laughed!! Lily had a blast and thoroughly enjoyed spending time with her doting Godparents and the boys. Heck, Lily even enjoyed the two dogs! Lily wasn't the only one that had fun...I was able to wiggle in some spa time, Tony played golf, we celebrated Rich's birthday, spent a fun afternoon at Maymont Park, and we even got to see Ben and Sam perform in Seussical! Thank God it was an extra long weekend or we would've never been able to fit all that fun stuff in!

I could go on for hours about what a great weekend we had...instead, I'll let the pictures do the talking!

Nice. Very Nice.

Saturday evening Tony, Lily, and I had dinner at our friend, Janis's. Janis used to be Tony's work wife. No, they didn't get divorced...but...since Tony is working someplace different now I guess they are undergoing a trial separation!

Tony is crazy about Janis and it is obvious why. Janis is warm and friendly and a lot of fun to be around. I instantly liked her from the moment we met and after watching Janis with Lily Saturday night...I like her even more!

Janis welcomed us into her beautiful home and immediately made us feel comfortable. Lily is normally very good when we go places but it is always a little nerve racking when your little one goes "exploring" in someone else's house! Janis was such a gracious host and put us all at ease in no time!

The four of us have had dinner together before but normally we go out to a restaurant. On Saturday night we ate at Janis's and everything was absolutely perfect! Seriously, I think even the Top Chef judges would have been impressed.

Speaking of Top Chef....I know most "normal" people have basketball or football pools. Not us. Tony, Janis, and I have Top Chef and Project Runway pools. This season I won the Top Chef pool by picking Stephanie to go all the way. My prize for winning was a scrumptious home-cooked meal at Chez Janis.

Now, if the fact that we have Top Chef and Project Runway pools doesn't make us strange enough you should know that on Saturday night Janis and Tony competed in a quickfire challenge. If you don't know what a quickfire challenge is you really must check out Top Chef!

Since I was this season's winner I got to pick the ingredients for the quickfire. I chose spinach, tomato, and feta. How can you go wrong with those 3 ingredients?!? The appetizer had to include...but was not limited to...those 3 items.

I'm not sure what got into my husband but he was really psyched for this competition. Unbeknownst to me Tony packed his favorite knives and sauce pans to bring with him. (Okay, it's scary enough that he has favorite knives and sauce pans...I know. I really don't know what has happened to him!)

It was obvious Tony had given a lot of thought to what he was going to make long before I announced the ingredients. It is true that Tony asked me several times before Saturday night if I had decided what I was going to have them use for the quickfire...but I hadn't. I didn't really even think about it until I was sitting in Janis's kitchen Saturday evening drinking a yummy glass of wine and daydreaming about what I was hungry for.

After I picked the ingredients Janis and Tony headed to a nearby grocery store to do a little shopping. They were back in no time and went straight to the kitchen and started whipping up their culinary masterpieces. The two of them worked great together. Maybe if they ever decide to leave the exciting world of accounting behind they can open a restaurant!

Now, you may be wondering who won the quickfire...it was a tie! They both came up with beautiful and delicious appetizers. See for yourself:

Janis's creation

Tony's creation

After the quickfire challenge Janis treated us to a delicious meal. The salad, entree, and dessert all looked too pretty to eat...but that didn't stop us! In fact, I ate way too much...and would have squeezed in more if I could!

Not only did Janis put together a delicious meal she also somehow managed to keep Lily thoroughly entertained! Janis was kind and sweet and patient and involved Lily in every part of the evening from food prep to conversation to clean up. Lily LOVED every second of it!

Normally, it takes Lily a little while to warm up to people...but not Janis. Maybe it was because Janis got down on Lily's level to talk to her...or because she let Lily help her cook...or because she let Lily blow out a candle between each course...or because she played with Lily on the floor...or because she fed Lily strawberries with gorgonzola (one of her favorite things)...or...you get the idea! All I can tell you is that Saturday night Janis definitely had a 3 foot shadow!

We had so much fun at Janis's that we stayed way past Lily's normal bed time. Lily handled it like a trooper. Truth be told, I don't think Lily wanted to leave either! As we were driving away from Janis's house Lily said, "Janis. Nice. Very Nice!" I couldn't agree more!

If it means we can come back I hope Mommy wins next season, too!

Here are a few more pictures from our wonderful time on Saturday night! Janis thanks for everything!!

A Lot To Say

I know I've posted several times about how chatty our little Miss Lily is. I guess it was only a matter of time before that loquaciousness got us into "trouble"! Here are two fairly recent examples:

While we were in Maine all of us went out to lunch together one afternoon. The waiter who took care of us had an EXTREMELY large beer belly. We're talking really, really big. It sort of looked like he was hiding a keg under his shirt! When our waiter walked up to the table to take our order Lily said as loud and as clear as can be, "Ball hiding under shirt. Lily see it?" Well, needless to say we all wanted to climb under the table! The waiter didn't bat an eye and acted like he didn't hear a thing. I tried (unsuccessfully) to divert Lily's attention...but no such luck. She asked multiple times to see the ball hiding under the waiter's shirt!

After the waiter walked away...I can only imagine to go and spit in our food...I tried to tell Lily that that wasn't a ball under his shirt...it was his tummy and she couldn't see it. I thought all was well until the waiter returned and Lily said, "Tummy??? No! Ball hiding under shirt. Lily see it!?!"

Miraculously, we got out of the restaurant alive and no one contracted food poisoning!

Here's another recent embarrassing moment. The other day Lily and I were in line at the grocery store. There was a man in front of us who had a very pronounced dimple in his chin. The man was very sweet and was chatting away to the two of us. Suddenly, Lily points at his chin and says in her serious voice, "Man boo-boo chin." I assured Lily it wasn't a boo-boo. I told her it was called a dimple and didn't hurt the man at all. The next thing I know Lily says, "Lily touch dimple." I quickly responded, "No. Can you help Mommy unload the groceries?" The man then said, "I don't mind" and leaned forward. So here we are standing over our groceries while Lily sticks her finger in this poor guy's chin!

I can even talk while I'm eating corn on the cob!

Obviously, I'm going to have to get a lot more creative with my distraction techniques!

Down Under

I'm not sure who gave them permission (certainly not me!) but Mary Beth and Katie are in Australia. Yes, that's right...Australia. As in...on the other side of the world...the southern hemisphere...over the international date line...koalas, wombats, kangaroos...shrimp on the barbie and G'day mate...yup, that Australia.

Here's the problem. I talk to Mary Beth every day....several times a day. I see Mary Beth a minimum of once a week. Now, what am I supposed to do? Yeah, yeah, yeah...they said something about a school trip was organized to participate in World Youth Day...an opportunity for an audience with the Pope...a trip of a lifetime...etc. I get it...but, can we talk about me...please? I'm suffering from some serious sister and niece withdrawal!!

Happy Birthday, Beanie!

Me and the birthday girl!

Christina looks older...doesn't she?

Today is Christina's 9th birthday. Happy Birthday, Bean!

Lily and I joined the girls for lunch today and had fun sharing in Beanie's birthday festivities!

Aunt Pappy, wanna share your sundae??

Aunt BaBa and I both have pretty purses!

Hope you had a great day Beanie. We love you even more than you know!!

Slumber Party

The teal and brown triplets

Saturday night Christina spent the night at our house and we had a blast!

We had a little cookout...


...we went out for ice cream...


...the girls took a tubby together...


...and Beanie and Aunt T had some quality time...

Beanie has slept over since Lily has been home, but this time Lily "got it"...if you know what I mean. Lily was so excited...that is until it was time for her to go to bed and she knew Christina was still downstairs!

As usual, Christina was WONDERFUL with Lily. Christina is an amazingly patient, kind, and loving cousin!

I have so many happy memories from Saturday night. Here are just a few:

• Christina and Lily sitting in the same chair when we ate out on the patio...even though there were other chairs available!
• Christina giving Lily "How to eat an ice cream cone" lessons.
• Christina reading Lily her bedtime books. Can I just tell you how sweet this was??? Lily looked at Christina like she was magic and Tony and I thought so, too. It was really beautiful!!
• Christina and I watching Princess Bride together.
• Just spending time with these two sweet girls!

Time spent with Christina would not be complete without a few Beanie-isms. Here are two from Saturday night:

• "Aunt T, Lily is so smart. Did you send her to the baby brain academy or something??"
• "You know what I don't understand? I mean, why do mosquitoes bite us? You think they would just bite vampires and leave the rest of us alone. They'd get a whole lot more blood that way!"

There were countless other little quips that had me in stitches. Honestly, I could have a blog filled with just Christina-isms. She has such a sense of humor...coupled with a keen eye, a sharp tongue, and a dead pan delivery...it's an extremely dangerous/hilarious combination! I will not be surprised if she becomes a stand-up comedian some day!

I can't wait until we have another Aunt T, Lily, and Beanie day...or night...or both!!

Lavender Lily

Months ago our neighbor's, Mary Ann and Rich, gave Lily the nickname, "Lavender Lily". I have no idea where they came up with this ;-).

Lavender Lily. Who? Me?

The other day I got Lily dressed in the little lavender outfit her Great Aunt Mary gave her for her birthday. When I put Lily down for her nap I couldn't help but notice that her lavender gingham check shorts matched her lavender gingham check sheets. Hmm...coincidence?

After her nap Lily opened up a special package from our friends, Andee and Lee. In the package were a bunch of great birthday gifts including a tote bag with lavender straps and Lily's name embroidered in lavender. Another coincidence? Hmm...I don't know.

When we went outside to play Lily grabbed the purple sunglasses Aunt Sheila gave her and the tote bag from Aunt Andee to complete her lavender ensemble. I think Rich and Mary Ann are on to something!

I can imagine what you may be thinking...come on, TJ, you get Lily dressed. Trust me. Lily is 100% more girl than I have ever or will ever be.

You wouldn't believe me if I told you how many times we have been ready to walk out the door and Lily stops to run back and get a particular purse or pair of Hollywood's. Luckily, Lily has named her Hollywood's ("Black ones", "Barbie", "Nai Nai", "Easter", and "Aunt Sheila"). This aids in the search for the exact pair Lily wants. I assure you once Lily gets it set in her mind no other pair will do!

PS - Happy Anniversary Aunt Pappy and Uncle Dave!

Happy 4th of July!

Do you like how the swing completes my patriotic outfit?

We had a nice, quiet, low key 4th of July. No parades or fireworks this year...just a fun (but damp) neighborhood picnic.

The parade in town started at 3:00...smack dab in the middle of nap time. Now, don't think I'm a mean mommy. I've loosened up a bit with Lily's schedule...but...to skip nap to go to a crowded, noisy parade seemed like a lose-lose proposition.

I think I have mentioned a time or two that Lily is *not* fond of loud noises. So, you can imagine how she feels about fireworks! Naturally, we did not take her to the huge community fireworks display...but...every night for the last few nights we have enjoyed (NOT!) our next door neighbor's fireworks from about 9:00 - 11:00!!!

Lily is an extremely light sleeper...we're talking she wakes up if the phone rings! So, you can imagine how much she enjoys hearing fireworks in her sleep. I vividly remember this time last year during one of our neighbor's fireworks frenzies holding Lily as she cried and I was crying, too! They really are nice neighbors...it's just for the past two years at this time of year... I'm ready to strangle them!

Other friends in our neighborhood have an annual picnic that is always a lot of fun. This year the weather didn't exactly cooperate but that didn't stop us! Despite the rain there was plenty of good food, good friends, and good fun!

There are a TON of kids that live on our street. I think we came up with a total of 14 kids under the age of 4 at the picnic...and I don't know how many "big" kids! Lily was absolutely in heaven!!

If you want to see how much Lily has grown check out my 4th of July post from last year.

Hope you all had a Happy 4th, too!

One Of My Most Favorite People On Earth

Today is my brother-in-law Ed's birthday. I won't tell you how old Ed turned today but I will give you a little hint...his age matches the speed limit on many highways!

As the title of this post indicates I am crazy about Ed. Ed is kind, humble, gentle, and loving.

Despite all of these wonderful things I make it my personal mission to give Ed the most obnoxious birthday card each year! Somehow he still loves me!

Happy birthday, Ed!

We love you,

Tony, Lily, and your much younger sister-in-law, TJ

2 Year Check Up

My Nai Nai gave me this pretty dress for my birthday!

Today was Lily's 2 year check up. Here are her latest stats:

Height: 35 inches

Weight: 28 lbs

Head circumference: 19 1/4 inches

In the Height and Weight category Lily is in the 75th percentile, down from the 90th percentile at her 15 and 18 month check ups. Lily's head circumference still ranks in the 90th percentile. Obviously, she needs room to store all that sweetness!

Both Tony and I were surprised to see that Lily was in the 75th percentile for height and weight. Without exaggeration people tell us every day how HUGE Lily is. It turns out 25 percent of 2 year olds are HUGE-R.

Dr. Lane was thrilled with Lily's development. Not surprisingly, when we first arrived Lily was not exactly thrilled to be at the doctor's office. Thanks to Dr. Lane's great way with little ones Lily warmed up in no time. Before we knew it she was talking Dr. Lane's ears off!

During the exam Lily had a finger-stick to test for anemia and lead levels. Lily barely flinched when they pricked her finger. Lily was far too interested in watching the blood that was coming out of her finger then in worrying about how it actually happened. We will have to wait for the lab results to find out Lily's lead levels but her hematocrit level was perfect.

Before the nurse pricked Lily's finger she told Lily that when they were all done she would give Lily a sticker. When the nurse finished with the finger-stick she put a sparkly band-aid on Lily's finger. Lily was thrilled with the "sticker" on her boo-boo.

Daddy, look at the neat sticker Christine gave me!

Lily is and has been AMAZINGLY healthy. Other than her appointment when we first arrived home and her scheduled one year, 15 month, 18 month, and 2 year check ups Lily has only been to the doctor one other time. When Dr. Lane reviewed Lily's chart she commented on how rare that is. I told her we had better knock on wood...fast!

There was one surprise during today's visit. Our AMAZINGLY healthy girl is now taking her first antibiotic...her first prescribed any kind of medicine. If she is so healthy why is she taking an antibiotic, right? Well, the other day I noticed Lily's index finger looked a little red and puffy. I asked Lily if it hurt and she told me it didn't. I touched it and it didn't seem to bother her so I just assumed it was irritated from Lily sucking on it. Lily still uses her index finger as her built in pacifier. Since we were at the doctor's anyway I asked her to take a look at it.

Dr. Lane poked and prodded Lily's finger and Lily didn't bat an eye. Then Dr. Lane said something like, "Ohhh...hmm...Lily needs an oral antibiotic." What?? It turns out that Lily has an infection in her index finger. Poor baby. There is no sign of a cut or any opening on her finger but it only takes a microscopic opening for the bacteria to get in.

Being the incredibly well adjusted person that I am my eyes filled up with tears when Dr. Lane told us Lily's finger is infected. I know that may seem ridiculous but if we hadn't already been at the doctor's I don't know how long it would have taken me to realize that there was something more serious going on with her finger.

All in all, Lily had a great check up and we certainly can't ask for more than that. I love Dr. Lane but I really hope we don't see her again until Lily's 3 year check up!

Grammar Police - Part 2

Thanks for the great birthday presents Miss Paula and Mr. Clint.

First, I want to thank Paula for finding the misspelling in the Lily and Ivy post. Of course, I spelled inseparable wrong intentionally to see if anyone would take me up on my request to point out spelling and grammatical errors.

Second, if you buy that I have some lovely ocean front property in Arizona that I would like to sell you!

Mommy, Blogger has a Spell Checker...maybe you should use it!


I had to tell Mommy how to spell "Hollywood's"!

Lily and Ivy

Last Christmas Aunt Pappy gave Lily an American Girl doll named Ivy. To say Lily was not fond of Ivy in the beginning would be a huge understatement. It was the fact that Ivy's eyes open and shut when you move her that really did Lily in. So, Ivy sat on a shelf in Lily's room for many, many weeks untouched.

Then one day Lily decided that Ivy wasn't so bad after all. For weeks...maybe even months...Lily and Hi V were totally inseparable. During that time Tony and I went to a craft show and found these adorable matching dresses for Lily and Ivy. Naturally, right after we bought them Ivy found her way back onto the shelf (aka toy purgatory)!

Well, it looks like Ivy has regained Lily's favor. I thought we'd better strike while the iron was hot and brought out the matching dresses. Lily absolutely LOVES them...and so do Tony and I!!

I think these pictures are so sweet.