In the News This Week

Avery's newest craze is to put lotion on. She's always been a helper in every way, so I don't know why this surprised me.

It's really cute after baths, she'll pop the top, rub her hand on the lid, then on her face, hands, legs, and belly. It also happens any other time we're at the changing table (which is a lot).

In other family news, Kenny went back to school this week after spring break. It's hard to believe that it's already Wednesday. I'm glad last week didn't fly by as fast as this.

We enjoyed having Daddy home with us, but it is amazing how much more we get accomplished when he's not here. I guess it's less tempting to watch movies or go shopping alone.

All is well with the pregnancy. I've experienced a lot of dizziness and queasiness, as well as not really wanting to eat. Don't get me wrong; I always want to eat, but once I go look for something, absolutely nothing sounds good. Not fun, but I'm sure it's helping the pregnancy pounds stay away for a while. I had a dream last night that the doctor told us we were on track to have a 10 pound baby! Wow. Hope that doesn't come true.

The first month of the business has passed. In all honesty, it was not a full month, but rent is due for April, and I'm anxious to see if we've sold anything else. This weekend is our booth at GraceLift, so hopefully we'll get a lot of business there too.

Open For Business!

So it's taken a while, but Paintdrops and Lollipops (the umbrella company name for Little Boy Blue and PattyCake Designs) is open for business!

Last week, Ashley and I ventured into The Shoppes at My Kids Attic to get ideas for our upcoming booth at GraceLift. Then just for fun, we asked about rent prices. Little did we know, there would be a spot in our price range! So, between Wednesday and Saturday, we rented, painted, and filled our new boutique! It all happened so fast, and we're glad that it did.

Since we decided to hold off on the website for a while, things seemed to slow down for our ideas and readiness to promote. Now we hope it will pick back up now that we have a real outlet for our products. People will be exposed to our items daily instead of monthly!

So, if you're in the neighborhood (or if you want to head toward Colliseum Blvd.) take a gander in My Kids Attic. Toward the back, on the right side, you'll see "Paintdrops & Lollipops!" (The real life image is much more appealing that the picture below. The camara could not capture the quaint, coziness of our boutique.)

Guess What?!

I Am Blessed

Saturday was a long day for Kenny and me because of the track meet in Mobile. It was a successful day, considering the schools we were up against were all 5 and 6 A schools with outstanding athletes. The girls finished 6th overall (out of 11 teams), and unfortunately, the boys did not place.

Of course the day seemed a bit surreal because Avery was not bobbing along by our side. Our good friends, Dawn and Chris, volunteered to keep Avery at home for us so she could go about her normal routine. It was fun hearing their stories about her when we got home that night, and even more fun the next day when I would discover new things she had been taught. (Good things; nothing involving sticks or hitting me with them.)

To make a long story shorter, my point is that I missed Avery terribly. I saw her that morning at 7:30 when we left, but did not see her again until the following morning. So, I'm thankful that I am blessed to get to stay home with her each day. Otherwise, I would be pretty sad if I had to leave her everyday.

Sweet Meet

If you've been a part of a sport that's "in your blood" you know what I'm about to describe. For basketball it may be the smell of the leather ball, or the gym floor. For football it may be the nasty sour shoulder pads. Volleyball, balls resounding off of red, bruised arms. For soccer, maybe the freshly cut grass under your feet. Baseball, the sounds of the balls hitting metal bats.

For me it was the sound of the PA system, along with the smell of the air and rubber track on a good "track day." There are bad track days (those which include rain and wind), and there are good track days. The good ones have a briskness in the air, sun shining above, and this smell that's just hard to describe, other than saying the smell of Spring.

So far during practices this season, we've had some good ones, along with some bad. It's been fun being on the opposite side of things, as a coach instead of a runner, but it's been a little hard adjusting to not being the runner. Of course I can still run, but it's not the same as the feeling of fast competition. (Except the day Kenny and I raced...a sight to see!) So, I haven't felt the sense of nervousness that comes along with the smells and sounds of track season....until yesterday....

Yesterday was our first track meet of the season. We heard all week from parents telling us how nervous their kids were, and I was really glad to hear that. That meant they were serious about what they've been working so hard to achieve. And they did it.

Not only did we have the largest team by far, which showed up when there were entire heats in races of only ACA kids, but we finished well in most events. It was great, we were proud, and the kids improved.

Onward and upward to Saturday's meet!

Conversation Anyone?

Avery's vocabulary is continually growing. Everyday I'm amazed at what she can say on her own.

We have embarked upon a new stage where it is not cool to just repeat things. Avery is definately her own little person with her own little mind. She'll start a conversation with you and continue until she's finished. She even gets a little frustrated when we don't understand what she's trying to tell us.

She's also very impressionable. She always has been, but now it only takes one time to show her something before she can do something new. Of course our track kids just love this. They are constantly teaching her something; sometimes we don't see it until we are home, sometimes it's immediate. Sometimes it's good things, sometimes it's bad.

For instance, yesterday two boys thought it would be funny to give her a stick and have her say, "hi-yah!" while hitting the ground. Okay until she walked up to me and said, "hi-yah!" while hitting me with the stick. Of course I turned and said, "Avery, you know we don't hit people, blah, blah, blah." One boy just ran, the other said he was sorry and that it was his fault. I think they learned that they really are impacting her.

Some of the more fun things they have taught her include having Avery put her hands on her hips, shake them from side to side and say, "I'm too cute!" It really is too cute. And now she says that all the time.

And for those who are wondering, we really do practice...this is just before, after and in between!