Daddy's New Project...

Richard has been working so hard in our garage to build a new "man cave" equipped with a bathroom! He has had to frame it in; move outlets; add cable outlets; build a platform for the bathroom; hang sheet rock (by himself); insulate the rooms, etc. He will have to add molding; sand/paint the sheet rock; put down the flooring; and, anything else that I am leaving out! I am so proud of him! Secretly, I think he is proud of himself, too! The room has a ways to go before completion, but he loves having challenging projects to complete.

Kamdyn calls the room, "Daddy's new home." Every time we go down there she says, "Daddy, I like your new home. You're doing a good job!"

For those inquiring minds (Richard's friends).....here are the pictures so you can see for yourself instead of imagining!

The "cave!"


Hanging sheet rock in the bathroom.




The entrance to the room.

Happy Valentine's Day.....Early!

Nanny and Pop Pop came to visit this weekend with an armful of gifts for Valentine's Day. Kamdyn was so excited to get her new surprises. She got a few church dresses, a new Valentine's Book, and a Fancy Nancy felt storyboard. She LOVES them and, boy, does she love Nanny and Pop Pop! Thank you Nanny and Pop Pop for spending Friday night and Saturday with us. We enjoyed having you and look forward to next time!!

Just for Fun!

One of my most favorite things about having a little girl is playing dress up with her! She will probably be so embarrassed when she grows up to see some of the things that I dressed her in, but I hope not! I think she looks adorable! I'm sure my Mom thought she was dressing me in adorable clothes, too. I look back at pictures and think, "What was that?" I'm sure I was fashionable in those times; however.....

Kamdyn lost her BIG pink hair bow somewhere in the house as well as her pink boots, but I just had to get a picture of these fancy tights!! Stripes and polka dots??? At least they are the same colors!! :)

PS I hope those of you who have been accusing me of being slack with updating my blog here lately, will be satisfied with my 4 posts tonight!! :) I promise to do better. January is a slow month. Not much going on....and, most of Kamdyn's new "things" are verbal instead of picture worthy. I've got to get the video posting thing worked out!

The I LOVE YOU Book!

For those of you with children who have not read any of Todd Parr's books, you've got to purchase them. He has an entire series which Kamdyn got hooked on when she was only a few months old, thanks to Nanny! She has been obsessed with The Mommy Book and The Grandma Book for sometime. She has both of them memorized and all of the pages are close to falling out in each of them because she has read them so much. The pictures are so colorful and are filled with child-like primary colored drawings. The words are simple and are easily memorized! She got The Family Book for Christmas and loves it, too!

Ruthie came for a visit last night on her way to Anderson and surprised Kamdyn with a brand new Todd Parr book called The I LOVE YOU Book! Kamdyn immediately saw it in Ruthie's hand. She eyed it, then looked at me, looked back at Ruthie, and looked at her Daddy as if to say, "Do you see that book? Is it for me?" She wouldn't ask Ruthie for it, but you could see the excitement in her eyes. Ruthie sat down with her and read it to her. Kamdyn has a new favorite book and already has each page memorized in one short night! Thank you Ruthie!

I'm going to scan my favorite page and post it soon. I laugh outloud everytime that I read it and see it. The illustration is hilarious! I would do it tonight, but Kamdyn sleeps with a book EVERY night. Tonight it was, of course, The I LOVE YOU Book!

Little Miss Make-Up is at it again....

I finally gave in and let Kamdyn play with her makeup set that she got for Christmas at our house. Up until now, we have reserved the makeup for Nanny's house only! Kamdyn is just so responsible. It's weird, but I trust her to do the "right thing." She knows what to do with the makeup and I do not worry about her putting it all over the walls, carpet, furniture, etc. I may eat these words in the near future, but I honestly do no think so. She sat in her playroom floor by herself for about 30 minutes putting on her makeup. She knew to stay on the towel and could only get up to look at herself in the mirror. When she was finished, she closed everything back up. She put the lids on tight and closed her makeup inside the case. I guess she knows that if she does anything with the makeup besides put it on her face that she will never see it again!! :)

LOVE the eyeshadow on her forehead!!

Richard came in from outside and said, "What in the world is on your head?" In her sassiest teenage-toddler voice, she looked at him like, "Duh, Daddy" and said, "It's makeup. I just put on eyeshadow. I'm getting ready because I'm going somewhere in a minute!"

Ring Pop

More Sugar Please!!! I allowed Kamdyn to have a ring pop from Wal-Mart on Saturday while we were waiting in line to check out. It took her three days to eat the entire thing, but, boy, did she LOVE every minute of it. Sugar on top of a ring (a fancy diamond ring in her eyes!) .....what more could a prissy little girl want?

Here she is enjoying her ring pop while watching one of the gazillion movies that she watched this weekend. This has been the rainiest January that I can remember!! We're tired of the rain and fog!! We want to go outside and play!!

The Three R's

Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic.....

Hmmm, not sure why they say "three R's" because I only see one R and I'm sure my observant baby girl will be pointing that out soon to anyone who tries to say, "The Three R's" to her!

Reading:
Kamdyn still has a love for books that I hope will remain for the rest of her life. The other morning when we came back from Jazzercise, she made it about one foot from the door before she plopped down to read her Toddler Bible. She stayed there for at least 20 minutes. She would not let me take off her jacket or her shoes because that would be an interruption!!



This is the happy grin that I got when she finally snapped out of her "book zone" and noticed that I had the camera on her!



Writing:
She is also getting the hang of holding her crayon and coloring in the lines. She completely amazes me! Richard spent about 10 minutes one afternoon with her showing her how to hold her crayon and color in the lines. Wah-Lah! And just like that she is taking her time attempting to color in the lines. Look how tiny that apple is!!

Look at that grip!


I guess our next task is getting her to color the objects their actual colors instead of blue leaves and blue strawberries! :)




Arithmetic:
I don't have any pictures of this because my life would be in jeopardy; however, Kamdyn's new "thing" while riding in the car is to pick out ALL of the numbers on EVERY sign we pass. I never realized how many numbered signs that there are on the road until now.....mile marker numbers, speed limit signs, highway numbers. On our 25 minute ride to and from Georgia's everyday, we must pass at least 50 numbered signs. And, with each passing sign, Kamdyn asks, "Mommy, what's a 5 and a 5?" I say, "Fifty-Five." Next sign, "What's a 1 and a 1, Mommy?" I say, "Eleven!" Yep, you get the point. I, being the patient Mommy that I am (ha!), tell her each and every number ALL the way home!! Today she surprised me. She started with the usual, "What's a 4 and a 5, Mommy?" Then, she said, "What'a a 1 and a 1? Oh, I know that one, it's eleven!" My how quickly they learn at this age!

Introducing Apple Jacks

I've done so well at keeping Kamdyn away from sugary cereals. Her favorites until today were Rice Krispies and Cheerios. I'm afraid I've ruined that by allowing her to get Apple Jacks today at the store. She sat so well in "Big Church" with me this morning that I just couldn't resist!

Kamdyn: "Mommy, can I have some Apple Jacks?"

Me: "Just a few because you need to take your nap!"

Kamdyn: "YAY! Daddy, Mommy said I could have some Apple Jacks!"

Daddy: "Apple Jacks?" confused b/c we NEVER have sugary cereal here!

Kamdyn: "YES, APPLE JACKS!! THEY ARE FILLED WITH SUGAR!!"

Mommy and Daddy: laughing LOUDLY!!!

Kamdyn: after eating the Apple Jacks, "Mmm, I REALLY LOVE these!"


Oh well! I did it to myself and she will probably never eat Rice Krispies or Cheerios again!

Precious Moments

Kamdyn's most recent visit with Mama Lucy included taking the lights off of her ceramic Christmas Tree. Richard enjoyed this same precious moment with Mama Lucy 30+ years ago when he was a child. I had to share because all of these moments with Mama Lucy are indeed precious!


I LOVE this!! He was trying to blow the lights out! Look at those cheeks! It looks like Kamdyn got her healthy dose of "cheeks" from both of us!


Those precious little fingers and look at that adorable outfit!!

Goodbye Barney and Baby Einstein.....

Hello, Hannah Montana, Beyonce, and Britney. Well, let me rephrase and explain! We are not officially "over" Barney; however, we have been able to introduce Hannah Montana to our repertoire of music that we are "allowed" to listen to in the car. I guess I can be blamed or applauded (depends on how you look at it) for Kamdyn's love of music. I love music and I love to sing, even though I'm not that great at it! Kamdyn has definitely inherited this trait and loves music just as I do. It's just that I've completely grown tired of the endless repetition of Barney. I have it memorized and know exactly what song is coming next. So, I requested some Hannah Montana CD's for Kamdyn for Christmas because she "really" did want them! *wink**wink*

Slowly, but surely, she is asking to listen to Hannah Montana. Not only is she learning Hannah Montana songs, she also knows a few songs that almost 3 year olds probably should not know. Last week I heard her singing, "Womanizer, womanizer, womanizer!" And, just today we were riding down the road without the radio. I was talking on my phone to Nanny when all of a sudden I vaguely hear in the background, "If you like it den you chouda put a ring on it!" She continues and I, of course, bust out laughing which exasberates the entire thing! She continues, but LOUDER. I don't know how she picks up so quickly on these songs. We only listen to my music about 1% of the time, honestly!! Otherwise, driving becomes almost a nightmare! How she remembers these songs, I'll never know!!

Cartoon Chatter

We've been up for almost two hours now. Long enough for Kamdyn to wiggle around in the bed with me for a while, eat breakfast, and turn on cartoons. I figure while she's watching cartoons, I will catch up on the computer........email, blogs, facebook, etc. A few seconds ago, Kamdyn looks up at me and says, "Mama, when are you going to be finished working on the Internet?"

Seriously........I mean, we do play on the computer quite a bit, but I've never told her that I was on the Internet!! The things that they pick up on and learn! It's amazing and so funny!

Happy Saturday Everyone!

First Weekend in 09

It seems as if it has rained ALL DAY EVERY DAY since Christmas when Kamdyn got her new swing set! It's just been pure torture for her! In between rain showers we have suited Kamdyn up in semi-old clothes and really old shoes to allow her a little bit of play time on her new swing set. I've gotten quite proficient at wiping the swing and slide down with a towel! UGH!!

One of Kam's Christmas presents was a new PINK soccer ball. We play soccer every time that we go out, too! Kamdyn is getting the hang of the kicking thing. I have to keep reminding her of the rules of soccer! She looks at me funny A LOT when I say this, but seems to be understanding a little better each time. I hope she enjoys sports as much as I did! It's okay to be an athletic girly girl!! Her next gift will definitely be a child sized basketball goal!! Mommy and Daddy want a real basketball goal so Mommy can spank Daddy in some backyard b-ball!! :)







My baby girl is growing up WAY too fast! Look how tall she is and how "grown-up" she looks in this picture. Where does the time go? I can't believe that she will be 3 in April. The last three years have truly been a blessing!


Kamdyn refers to this as playing "kickety kick ball!"


I think Kamdyn can take him???


She sure does try hard!


I thought she was listening to my rules about not throwing it.....her hearing is a lot like her Daddy's!


Picking weeds with Daddy

Happy 2009!

We are still here, but just haven't had very most to post in this brand new year! Our New Year has started out great and we hope that yours has, too!

Here are a few pics from what we did a few days prior to the New Year. We spent a few days in Charleston with our great friends, Shannon and Allison. We had a great time just hanging out with them. I got to catch up on some much needed sleep. We even slept until 10 one morning without any interruptions (i.e. "Mommy, I'm ready to get up! Mommy, I need to go potty! Mommy, I'm hungry!") It's funny how things change the older that you get. We were content to hang out with them without the big "hoopla" that we've been known to create in our younger years!! :)

Kamdyn was occupied by Ruthie, Mama Lucy, and Nanny! She had a great time with them and we appreciate our wonderful family for always allowing us to have a break and hang out with our friends.

We went to the Clemson/Carolina basketball game in Columbia on our way to Charleston. We didn't have tickets, but bought them from a guy when we got there. We were on the 9th row directly behind the Clemson bench. It was an awesome game even though it was a nail biter! Thankfully, the Tigers won!!

Richard had to take a picture of this girls shirt!


OP coaching those Tigers UP!!


Stitt, even though it wasn't his best game.




Richard being Richard!!


Watching the Clemson bowl game! Not so good.....


Allison cooking us some dinner!! Thanks, Allison! Everything was delicious!


Our low key New Year's Eve! We watched the ball drop and went to bed! That's my kind of party.....well, I really prefer to be in bed by ten!