Not much, and yet alot

Have you ever had one of those weeks when you don't have much going on, and yet you are busy all week long?!?! I guess that has been our last week.
We had a great visit to the zoo on Sat with Hannah, Crystal, and Joe and that was a lot of fun. Hannah fell into a small river though and DRENCHED herself and skinned her knee up. I think she was embarassed and scared more than anything, but she was fine. On Sunday, we spent most of the day at the church (9am-noon and 4-8pm!) and I think Hannah was pretty spent after that.

I overheard this conversastion between Hannah and Molly on Sat. morning.
Hannah: Molly, go down the stairs.
Molly: .........................
Hannah: Molly, GO!
Molly: ........................
Hannah: Be happy. Don't cry. Just do it!

Anyway, I have plenty of pictures and an absolutely adorable video that I will get up tomorrow.

New Craft

I like to try new crafts with Hannah and our latest one involved white glue. I don't know why, but she (along with all other 2 year olds I am sure) love to work with glue. Up until this point, I have only let her use glue sticks, but we have branched out to white glue now. She loves it!

We bought sparkly sequins and colorful pompoms to glue onto the classic paper plate.

My little artist's hard work!

Let me recreate the scene(s)

So, Sunday was a BIT of a bad day for Hannah. She began with a new Sunday School class since it was promotion Sunday. It went fine though and the morning seemed to go well. We left for home around noon and after lunch at home put Hannah to bed. This is when the "fun" began. She has discovered how to take her diaper off lately, so when I heard the familiar rip of the diaper tabs I knew she was getting into trouble. When I went up there the diaper was off...laying on the bed.....and was full of poop!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, it was not fun! So, we cleaned that up and I explained to Hannah (calmly of course) that we do not, on any occasion, take off a diaper. I stripped the bed of it's top sheets and let her sleep on the waterproof mattress pad. About 30 minutes later I heard the again familiar rip from our child who is still not napping. I went up there to find her without her diaper, and this time she has peed all over the bed. Lovely! So, I (calmly of couse) explain that we DO NOT TAKE OUR DIAPER OFF! Then I strip the bed of its mattress pad and let her sleep on the bare mattress (mean Mommy, I know!). Anyway, long story short, she NEVER took a nap on Sunday. That was especially wonderful when we had to go back up the church for a meeting at 4pm and she had to be in childcare. Let's just say that they were glad to give her back at the end of the night.
So, then there was yesterday. Let me first say that I am now wishing that I had a picture to share that would have captured "the moment" yesterday, but, alas, I don't. Again, I put Hannah down for a nap and the "fun" began. She didn't do anything that I was immediately aware of until I got her up from her nap. At that point, I found my child with her one piece outfit on upside down and quite desheveled. Her diaper was laying at the end of the bed and she looked a bit confused. Apparently, she had removed her outfit, removed her diaper and attempted to put her outfit back on. The leg hole was over her head and the arm straps were through both legs. It was funny to say the least. This is why I kick myself for not taking a picture! Thankfully she had not gone to the bathroom on the bed this time. So much for my attempt to keep her clothed today by putting her in a one piece outfit. Apparently this caused all the more challenge for her.

PRAY FOR US...it might be a long few days!!!!

While I LOVE Hannah's new language abilities and her new found independence, I have found that she has also become quite the DRAMA queen!!!! WOW, nothing like a 2.5 year old to keep you on your toes. I think she swings between being joyful, funny, and happy to crying and whining about 27 times a day. Seriously, it happens in about .4 seconds flat!

See for yourself...

A few funny things Hannah has said lately...

Me: Hannah do you like Hotel for Dogs (the movie)?
Hannah: Yes, I LOVE Hotel for Dogs.
Me: Do you really?
Hannah: I do, I really do.

Me: Hannah let's go upstairs to take a bath.
Hannah: OK Mama, I tackle Molly first. (her new favorite pasttime is tackling our sweet Molly)

Me: Hannah, what do you want for breakfast?
Hannah: CORN DOGS and honey mustard! (WOW, yummy!)

Our sweet girl

Not much to report today. I just wanted to share these cute pictures that I took of Hannah this evening. We are both so thankful to God for this little one!

Hannah and I successfully completed what might have been the longest week EVER!!! It was a great week though. I co-lead a camp at church this week called Advocacy Camp. We had 43 kids in 3rd-6th grade for the week. This year we studied homelessness. The kids learned all about how and why we should advocate for people living in homelessness. We took a lot of field trips to some great places here in town, the world hunger farm, a fantastic shelter downtown and the attached center, and a wonderful cafe that serves lunch each day for people living in homelessness. Overall, it was a great week! I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to do this! I have been so reminded this week about how much I miss teaching. I am so thankful that God has put that calling on my life because it really draws me to kids of this age. Now don't get me wrong, I would not trade staying home with Hannah for anything, but I am also so thankful for weeks like this in which God reignites in me my other passions. Here is one story to go along with this.
Those of you in teaching will understand when I say that in the classroom....throw up happens....A LOT! It is one thing when your own child gets ill, but when you have to clean up after another child, it is just different...trust me! Well, I guess being home for 2 years has caused me to forget a bit about the throw up. Well, I was reminded about it this week! On Monday we visited the world hunger farm which is outdoors in the Texas heat. When we returned the children were walking down the stairs into the church. A girl at the top of the stairs suddenly (and I mean suddenly) got sick and managed to throw up ALLLLLL over the girl a few steps down from her. IT WAS AWFUL!!! Anyway, I rounded the corner to this MESS and immediately thought "welcome back to the classroom!" Anyway, I got the little girl down to a large sink to wash her hair out and while I am rinsing her off she says "well, at least my hair will be clean for my birthday party today." If I could have sunk in a puddle of tears I would have at that moment! I had no shampoo or anything else to adequately clean the throw up out of this little girl's hair, but she was just thankful for, what she thought was, clean hair. As we continued the week studying homelessness, I was just reminded about how much these small things can mean for people. We were all reminded this week to be thankful for all that God has given us, but also to trust in Him and His provisions for our futures. We are not guaranteed a nice home or great food at every meal, but He has promised to care for us, even more than the grass of the field and the birds of the trees! I am so thankful for that this week! We serve an amazing God!

On the flip side....it was long! Poor Hannah really struggled through this week. Mother's Day Out was closed this week for a semester break so we had childcare at the church for those of us teaching camp. Hannah stayed at the church until about 1:30pm each day (which is about 1.5 hours past nap time) and then came home and napped. Today, she napped from 1:30-4:50pm when I woke her up. It has been this way most of the week which means bed time is later, and she wakes up cranky in the morning...you see the pattern! Anyway, I am looking forward to a low key weekend with lots of hugs and hanging out. Our little one just needs our full attention after such a long week.

8 year anniversary

8 years ago today, I was delighted to become Mrs. Whitlark, the wife to a wonderful man. It was a great day that I remember with incredibly fond memories. So much has happened in 8 years. We have lived in 3 different apartments, and 1 house. We have completed 3 degrees together (undergrad and master's for me and a PhD for Jason). We have both begun new jobs and careers in teaching. We have a wonderful daughter. Most of all we have great joy in our life and we are thankful to God for these past 8 years.

The above and below pictures were taken almost 8 years apart to the day in the same location. What a difference 8 years makes with a daughter and, AHEM, a few extra pounds for me (or maybe more than a few...)

Jason, I have loved every minute of these last 8 years of marriage with you (even the not so fun times and especially the good times) and I look forward to many more. I love you dearly and I am so thankful for you today!

Weekend Retreat

Jason and I had a wonderful time in Fort Worth on Friday night and thoroughly enjoyed our time alone! It was a little wierd being away from Hannah, but it was great to have some adult time too. We went to dinner at Texas de Brazil which is a FANTASTIC restaurant that we both love. We have eaten there once before, but it is truly amazing! It is seriously the best meat I have ever eaten.

See my fantastic salad!!! They even had sushi at the salad bar, which delighted my heart!
We then were able to watch Night at the Museum 2 in our hotel room, which was great! We stayed at the same hotel that we did the night of our wedding, so that made it extra special. We had a great time walking around down town on Friday night and Saturday morning. For some reason it just holds many fun memories for us, so it was great to be back there.
Anyway, it was a great getaway time for us and Hannah had a great time with Papaw and Granny too. Jason asked her yesterday what all she had done while away. Here is how that conversation went...

J: Hannah, did you ride in the Mule with Papaw?
H: (enthuastically) YES!
J: Did you go swimming?
H: Yes!
J: Did you go on the swing?
H: Yes!

At this point, Jason was becomming a bit skeptical of her answers.

J: Hannah, did you and Papaw go skydiving?
H: (enthuastically) YES!

Well, I guess what happens at Papaw and Granny's stays at Papaw and Granny's....at least until we gain some more verbal skills. But, we know that Nemo was watched, much swinging occured, a bubble bath was taken, and Hannah was loved on by Papaw and Granny. So, thank you Papaw and Granny for loving on Hannah and giving us a much needed break together! We love you guys!

Our little....flamingo?!?!

Today was the last day of Mother's Day our for the summer. There will be a two week break before she starts again for the fall. So, today she had to say goodbye to the Toddler 2 room so that she can prepare to move up to the Preschool 1 room for the fall. Really!?!?! Is she already in a preschool classroom?
Her 2 sweet teachers, Miss Mindy and Mrs. Jessica wrote her a sweet little goodbye note and sent it home with her today. Included with the note was the following picture of Hannah....

...um, yeah!!! So, I have NO idea when this happened, but I guess one day in dress up time Hannah became a flamingo. I think this might become my all time favorite pictures of her. Maybe it's because of the face she is making, or maybe it is because this will become a great picture to pull out in 13 years. Oh, that makes me smile just thinking about it!

Well, tomorrow the 3 of us are off on an adventure. Hannah will be spending tomorrow night with Papaw and Granny while Jason and I celebrate our 8th wedding anniversary. We will be staying in downtown Fort Worth for the night and doing everything we can do without a 2 year old around. You know, eating at a restaurant for longer than 17 minutes, casually strolling down the streets of Fort Worth, leisurely walking in and out of stores, watching a movie uninterrupted, and sleeping in!!!! It will be great! We have never had a night away without Hannah so this should be a treat for us. Hannah will not miss us one bit either. She will have plenty to keep her busy at Papaw and Granny's house, and I know she will LOVE every minute of it. YIPPEE!!!!

Wise Words for Moms

So, we have moved past our big boo boo of the week. I am glad to move past that one too, since it was not fun to see my baby hurting like that.
However, we have had 2 full days now of some pretty serious disobedience. Yesterday and today it centered around nap time. We have been strict from the beginning that Hannah is not allowed out of her big girl bed during bed time and nap time. At first she did great, without ever struggling with getting out. But, lately, especially yesterday, she will get out 5-7 times before she even takes a nap! It took us about 1.5 hours yesterday of her getting out of bed, being disciplined, and doing it again, to get her to take a nap. It was not fun at all for any of us!
Well, a few days ago, I got a great resource in the mail that I wanted to share. My sister in law, Kacy, shared it with me, so I bought it. It is called Wise Words for Moms by Ginger Plowman. It is basically a chart that gives the child's behavior (in our case disobedience), then it gives heart probing questions to ask your child about that behavior. It them gives scripture of reproof (how to "put off" sinful behavior) and of encouragement (how to "put on" righteous behavior) followed by additional verses to follow up with. You can read it in the midst of disciplining your child which is so helpful.
Anyway, I sometimes get flustered in the midst of disciplining Hannah and don't exactly know what to say. I am very thankful for this resource which helps me to focus in on her little heart in times like these.
So, trusting God, I move on from days like these (where she was disciplined no less than 4 times during nap time today!) and trust in His teaching for our family.
WHEW, pray for us, since this is much easier to say than to do!