Lolly won't stay in her crib anymore

I remember when Nana learned how to get out of her crib. She was much younger than Lolly. I was hoping that maybe Lolly would never learn, and we could get her to take naps forever. Then we did something not so well thought out. We transitioned her crib into a toddler bed. She couldn't sleep all night, and she figured out how to open the door to her room. We put her crib back together the next day, but it was too late. Now that she knows how to open the door, she had the motivation she needed to learn how to get out of her crib on her own. I'm not ready for this.

Then again, it can be kind of cute. Here's an example.

Nana's Turning 3!

Wednesday is Nana's official Birthday--6:30 AM mountain time :DThis is the most recent (the others are from 3 months ago) picture I have of her actual face--she's kind of smiling. . .

Irreconcilable Differences

Nana doesn't want to go to the potty.
I want her to.

Nana will take off her diaper to mess on the floor.
I don't want her to.

Nana won't sit on the potty seat.
I fail at bribing her.

Nana will run naked through the house all day.
I don't let her.

Nana loves toilet paper.
I'm running out of toilet paper.

Nana doesn't want her diapers, but she also doesn't want the potty. . .
I just want the stink to stop.

I still remember Halloween... do you?

So, I figured I should put up some pictures of Eenie and Nana in their costumes before I forget what it was they dressed as. Aren't they cute. Eenie's pic is in a cornbox (kind of like a sandbox, but way cooler and less messy). I want one. They had it at Port Farms. (We were finally able to go with our friends the Bruenings after missing out on invitations from other friends--I was so glad we went.) Joanna was the cutest Tinkerbell (and that's saying a lot when you consider how many kids dress up as that ;D). We didn't get a great picture of her. . . she let me put up her hair in a bun and everything (she usually never lets me touch her hair, seriously, I can't even brush it out of her face--she puts it right back if I do!). Anyway, I told her it was Tinkerbell hair, and she was all for it. The next day (this is a picture of the next day) I was able to do it again when I told her it was Princess Nana hair. (She likes being a princess). I think she's cured! I have been able to do her hair a lot more often lately. . . sometimes without even bribing her. Yay!

Fall Pics of Nana (before I edit them)

It was so beautiful and warm outside. I just had to take Joanna out and get some pictures of her. Thank you, thank you, Turners for lending us your camera. Hopefully we will be able to get another one soon (ours broke :P), but I'm so glad we were able to capture these pics. You guys are the greatest!

Glum, Glum (aka, don't read if you are susceptible to depression)

Okay, lately I've been in some sort of deep funk... I can't seem to do anything (at least not well), or turn my thoughts into more productive ones. Berate, Berate, Berate. (But Hey, at least I'm not interrupting people as much :D). So, I'm way behind on posting. I was going to sit down and throw up a few scrapbook pages, maybe talk about how awesome the plans I have to decorate my house are, ummm... I'm sure there was something else..., but really I don't feel like posting much right now. So here are a few pictures--you can make of them what you will. I might go take a nap.
Robert made good bread--4 loaves
Seth came to visit and interview at LECOM. Keep your fingers crossed.
My fairy prince. Apparently, when he sleeps, his wings come out. (*picture not staged--notice the princess blanket and dragon)
Our new floor.
Asbury park. They have cool puppets.

Fnow! (not a typo, that's how she says it)

Sorry this is so long... Believe it or not, I cut a lot of cute stuff out of it. If you make it to the end, my favorite part is where I tell her she can play in the snow if she can find some and she smiles a little. My hope is that at least the grandmas will watch it... we'll see. I think the end is pretty funny. Joanna was having a bad day. She was incredibly whiny that day (I guess I shouldn't think that's cute, but it is) asking for her "pink coat," not the purple one that we bought last spring. I should've known what was up. As soon as I let her put it on, she wanted snow! It's barely September!! It was too funny, so before I answered her, I took off her coat, grabbed the camera and started over--this is what followed.

I'd be a much better parent if I didn't have kids.

Some of the fateful things I have said this week.
1) Ok, you can have the crayons, so long as you don't color with them.
2) What do you mean you don't want a popsicle? (trying to force a "pockle" on Nana when she wanted a pickle).
3) The closest you're getting to playing in the snow is me putting you in a cold bath. (See following post).
4) To Robert: When do you think we'll be ready for another baby?

Camping near Montour Falls

What a nice camping trip. We didn't have time to hike and see all of the waterfalls. (We saw three nice ones on the side of the road). We are going to come back when we have more time. It is such a gorgeous area.

Corning Museum of Glass

We were headed to the Stake Temple trip in Palmyra, and decided to leave a day early so we could go camping and see this neat museum that a friend from Robert's class had mentioned. We got to Corning (aka the "crystal city") later than we hoped. So, we stopped by the gift shop and planned to visit the museum later (Of course the gift shop was enough--we spent an hour there). We took a few brochures. It looks like you can blow your own glass--something Robert and I have always wanted to do. We will definitely be coming back!

Swamp FHE

For family home evening we headed to the swamp. (Actually it's this education-themed nature preserve called Asbury Park that includes a swamp and a long trail.) It was fun to watch Joanna chase Robert along the boardwalk. It is a very nice place. We'll have to come back when they are open so we can see inside the building and learn something about the area's ecosystem.

Joanna hit a milestone here. We asked her to smile for a picture and she finally did! She kind of pressed her lips together and pushed up her chin until the corners of her mouth forced her cheeks back. At least it's pretty close to a smile. You can see what I mean in the pic. It wasn't a fluke, either, she kept "smiling" for most of our pictures.

Comfy Couch

We updated our plaid couch. (We bought it from the lady that used to live in our house--it is really nice and clean, but not very, um, well it's better now.) I love that Robert sews stuff. I had him make these pillow covers. (the blue fabric is perfect! We found it at Wal-Mart for 1$ a yard. I might make valances out of it too.
) We'll add butons or something later to the blue ones, and maybe some round pillows, but for now I think this looks great. Over Labor day weekend we are going to try to replace the floor. I'm so excited. Everything is coming together. All we need to do now is finalize where we want to put up pictures, build some bookshelves, and find some more seating. Uhhh. . . there's probably lots more I'll think of doing, though, so we will probably never really finish ;P

Celebrate Erie

They closed off a few blocks downtown over the weekend for this giant city party. (Seriously, it was HUGE. And by nightfall the whole place was so packed we had a hard time getting out of there.) "The Foreigner" played (don't ask me, my favorite musical group was probably "Barney and Friends" the same time this band was popular, but a lot of people seemed excited about them). It was a lot of fun (and apparently we missed all the good stuff like the children's museum games because we got there so late, and the fireworks because they were on Sunday). They had a chalk walk all down one block. The pictures were pretty neat--there are some really good artists here. Next year we'll have to do more there.

Chic Insomniac

Funniest thing all week! Joanna was supposed to be sleeping. Apparently, she got into her toy chest instead. Her room had been clean. Anyway, when I went in to check on her, I found this mess and her in bed. I was about to chastise her, when she sleepily threw off her blanket and sat up looking like this! I busted out laughing. She cries if we turn off her light before she is asleep, but maybe it is too bright for her. Sunglasses are a good solution, I guess.

Our Yard Has the Blues

Hooray for Craig's List! This wonderful, thoughtful young lady put a free swingset online. We nabbed it as soon as we could. Joanna loves it. Every time she uses it she gets a stick to make sure there aren't any spiderwebs. We've noticed that our yard is turning blue. We have a blue hammock, blue swings, blue camp chairs and a blue shed. If we paint the other shed blue, only the plants won't be blue in our yard! (Our house and even our trash cans are also blue).

Presque Isle

Sunday it stormed. We took Michelle to see the beach, but the storm brought in a bunch of garbage. There were dead fish everywhere and a dead bird we figured must have drowned in the storm and then washed up on shore. It was a little creepy.

Palmyra and the Temple

Robert and I haven't been able to go to the temple for a long time. Things got way too busy with school and the kids and then moving. However, since Michelle was here, we were able to take a babysitter with us instead of having to leave the kids for eight hours (six hours driving), which is something difficult for a nursing mother. Before we did a session, Michelle went in and we waited for her by taking a stroll through the sacred grove.

The Spirit is strong here. It feels as if Joseph Smith saw Jesus Christ and the Father only a week ago instead of coming on two centuries.

Michelle and Kirtland

Michelle came to visit us before she goes to serve a mission in Brussels, Belgium. Robert had school, so I went and picked her up from the Cleveland airport. (I only got lost once. . . hee, hee) We stopped in Kirtland and took the tour. (Kirtland is a place in Ohio where the early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints gathered together). It is so good to be with Michelle.

Mish Dish

We had the missionaries over for dinner (this is actually the 2nd time). We had fun. They are really funny. Early Joanna, Eenie, and I went to the beach with a group of women from church--but I forgot my camera (sad day).

Peanut Pork BBQ with Raisins

Robert wanted BBQ for Sunday Dinner. We didn't have any BBQ sauce. . . so I did the best I could. Usually you use brown sugar, ketchup and mustard for BBQ. I had maple syrup, ketchup and honey mustard. It ended up smelling oriental so I added peanuts and raisins. It was pretty good. Next time I won't put ketchup in it, though.