So then the dreaded day came... when Payton woke up on Wednesday I told her that it was the day we were sending her binkies to a little baby, and we needed to gather them all up and put them in the mail. I asked her if she wanted to send them to a baby boy or a baby girl, and she wanted to send them to a little girl. She willingly gathered them all up and put them in the little package I had bought just for the occasion. Then we walked out to the mailbox, and I let her put it in there and we waved bye bye!
Our package!
She didn't seem upset at all, so I was wondering how bedtime would go... and amazingly she didn't shed even one tear! She asked for a binky, but I told her that we sent them in the mail today so they were all gone (I had actually gone back out to the mail later to retrieve them, and had thrown the whole package in the garbage). She asked why, and I told her because she was a big girl and didn't need them anymore. Then I told her all the things big girls could do, and it was like a game to her because she kept asking me to name more; big girls can help me push a cart at the store, they can run and jump, they can eat chicken nuggets, they can go play at Grandma's trailer, they can hunt for Easter eggs, they can brush their teeth, they can sleep in a big bed with all their stuffed animals, they can watch Dora... you get the idea! She was so happy about all the things that big girls could do that she went to bed without a peep, and I didn't hear from her until 7am the next morning! We're amazed at how simple it was, we should have done it a long time ago. She still likes playing the game "name what big girls can do". She was much more capable than we were giving her credit for!
We haven't had a single problem at bedtime, but we also have not been able to get her to go down for a nap without them, which is what I was afraid of. I knew she would be giving up her nap sometime though, so I wasn't completely surprised. I still told her we were going to have quiet time for a little while in the afternoon, even if she wasn't sleeping; this mama does have to stay sane after all! :)
Carter has officially outgrown another wardrobe, and we've had to put away all of his 3 month clothes. Size 6 months fits him perfectly now! He's a big boy! He's smiling a lot more now, and is much more aware of his surroundings. He loves his playmat, and is even starting to grab and swat at the toys hanging over him.
I'm starting to grab toys!
Handsome boy :)
Last Sunday was a special day for us at church, Kyle and I had the kids dedicated. Everything went perfectly, Carter slept through the whole thing and although Payton was a little shy, she was very cooperative.
Kyle and I wrote prayers for both kids that they had framed, and they also gave us candles with their names on them and the date of their dedication
We went up in front of the whole church with our family, and Pastor John said a few words and then a prayer for each child. It was very special for Kyle and I, and we want to especially thank Chelsea and Richard for traveling so far to experience it with us. Afterwards we went back to Rick and Sue's house for breakfast and to hang out. Since we were dressed so nicely I thought it was the perfect opportunity for a photo op!
I love this one!
3 generations!
Payton has been super duper girly these days. She refuses to wear anything but dresses or skirts, and likes to accessorize with bows, sparkly headbands, tights, high heels, the whole nine yards. And I do NOT have any input whatsoever on what she wears; she is extremely particular, and it's probably been a good year since I've been able to dress her.
P thought this was the perfect outfit to go play at preschool... I just bit my tongue!
Payton is also staying dry all night long, which is awesome. We still have her wear a pull up over her underwear just in case, but since her underwear is always dry in the morning pretty soon we'll take those away too. She doesn't wear a pull up when she naps, but she sleeps for such a long time at night (up to 12 hours) that I wasn't sure if she could consistently stay dry, but I think she's doing great. I bought a waterproof pad for her mattress, so we're good to try just underwear all night long!
Right now she's in the why stage, everything I say she then asks me "why". I don't even think she expects an answer, she just automatically says it. She says so many funny things, but can also have quite the attitude. She reminds me a lot of myself at that age! She repeats so much of what we say; today we went to the grocery store and it was pretty windy. I commented on how windy it was, and she said "it's ok mom, don't worry the wind won't hurt you, I've got you!" I wanted to laugh because it was so cute, but I just told her thank you. I recall saying something similar to her when she was afraid! Every night when I'm putting her to bed I sing to her "I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be". For a while she'd say "no, I'm Rapunzel" or something like that, so instead of saying my baby she'd want me to say whoever she decided she was that night. Well now it's gotten to the point where I'm singing "I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living my Dora the mermaid who goes underwater to clean up the garbage with the mermaids and save the mermaid kingdom with Marianna you'll be". Geez!
We had a great weekend, yesterday my Aunt Tawnya and cousin McKenna drove all the way down from Gig Harbor to just spend the day with us and to meet Carter. It meant a lot to me that they would travel all that way for such a short amount of time, and I was very glad I got to see them. I haven't uploaded those pictures yet, but I will include those in my next blog! We hung out, ate lunch, then my mom and dad came over to visit and we went to see their house and how the construction is coming along. It's looking great! They also visited my mom's trailer, and then it was already time for them to hit the road. Thank you again so much for visiting guys!
Later that evening we went to Rick and Sue's house to celebrate Sue's birthday, which is today. She's the big 5-0! Hard to believe! We had dinner, presents, cake and ice cream. Kyle also prepared a presentation that was a look back on all of Sue's haircuts over the years, so there was lots of laughs and jokes too :) Happy happy birthday to the best mother in law a girl could ask for!
Kyle and my anniversary is coming up on Friday... 5 years! It's been an incredible (and busy!) 5 years; crazy to think how much life has changed since we said "I do". I feel really blessed to have such a great husband and father to my kids. We were planning on doing a special dinner in Portland Friday night, but then Kyle got asked to work at the football game. It's homecoming and they were short on chaperones. So I think instead I'm going to go with him and hang out and watch the game. Oh, the joys of being a teacher's wife! We're still going to do our dinner, maybe on Sunday instead. I actually enjoy doing the school functions, because it's fun to see Kyle interact with all of his students, plus trust me: people watching does not get any more interesting than a couple hundred high schoolers!
Anyway, hope you all have a great week! Happy birthday to Grandpa Book!
