As of Late

I'm a blogging machine these days! (Nick in the middle of midterms = no social life wife)

Here's what we've been up to:

Still loving cheetah of course. Ev calls it, "Chee." She is really starting to love getting dressed everyday. I say, "Lets go pick out your clothes," and she walks right into her room and starts pulling all her clothes out of the drawer. Then after they've all been taken out of the drawer, she starts putting them in the hamper. (We have clearly established a morning routine)

After getting dressed we go into the bathroom and Ev brushes her teeth while I brush/do her hair (it takes 1-3 minutes). Surprisingly, she doesn't hate getting her hair done. I think it because I let her sit with her feet in the sink with the water running while she plays - plus since I'm the worst at doing hair, it takes me a millisecond before we're finished. The best part though? If Nick's home, I say, "Go show Dad how pretty you look," and she runs to show him that she is all ready for the day.

She loves showing Nick her outfits and hair and I love watching her get excited while doing so.

I've really been enjoying our mornings lately because I know they won't be like this forever. Someday down the road we'll have more kids, there will be school/practice/stuff, and things will likely be insanely unorganized and chaotic. Its nice to just take our time and have fun while I get her ready because I know I will eventually be that mom whose kids have their pants on backwards, straggly hair, and a sack lunch full of toys. 

So basically I'm relishing the fact that at this moment, I sort of have it together. In the future, that certainly won't be the case, but hey, Ev can really rock the straggly hair so I'm not too concerned. 

Nick's Grandma (the original Evie) gave Ev this dress for Christmas last year. I was devastated when it didn't fit her at all last winter/spring and fretted that she wouldn't get to wear it at all. Luckily, she's still wearing size 12 months, so it still fits! I guess there are some perks to growing like a snail. 

And even though she's a little pop tart, I still think she changes constantly. She is becoming such a little girl to me. (It might be more the attitude than her physical growth)

Still obsessed with Blanket.

And Lion King.

And Zone bars. Seriously, she eats a Zone bar everyday. 

(I'm such a good mom)

Guys, the fact that my child's hair is in pigtails is a freaking Christmas miracle! 

I DO MY CHILD'S HAIR.

So the part is unintentionally zigzagged, but it is DONE.

SIDE NOTE: Aunt Darel cut 11 inches off her hair and looks like a total babe!

Couldn't resist putting this picture of Al Pal in here.

Ev still loves reading, especially anything with flaps, textures, animals, or noise.

Surprisingly, she loves it when I sing. We have a couple of books full of nursery rhymes and I usually sing them. We read those about 12 times a day.

She loves Nick and usually cries when he leaves. 

It helps if I let her shut the door for some reason. (I think my child my be a control freak)

I love this picture. I caught her laughing while she was watching Lion King. 

Don't worry the crayons are non-toxic and the markers are washable.

Grandpa Smart ("Bam-pa" as Ev calls him) has come down the last few weekends to fish with Nick. Ev is OBSESSED with the Wolverine. When he leaves she walks all around the house saying his name looking for him. My Dad jokes that when Ev says his name its a "celebration of life." I'm beginning to think he's right.

Grandma Melinda sent Evie a Halloween package full of goodies. Of course her favorite thing was the cheetah purse. She carries it all over the house. I love putting it away each night and peeking inside to see what she carried around all day. Its usually an assortment of toys, chapstick, crayons, utensils, and paper.

The magic word in our house is "Bye-Bye."

Ev rushes to the door and waits for me to open it when she hears the magic word. 

She's talking up a storm these days. Sometimes I can't believe that she knows so many words. She really lives up to the stereotype that girls talk early and frequently. 

She has also taken a turn for the cuddly. I honestly can't believe that my baby actually wants to snuggle with me. She was never a cuddly baby and now when she wakes up for a nap she loves to lay her head on my shoulder for a few minutes.

ITS FRIGGIN AWESOME AND I HOPE IT NEVER GOES AWAY.

In Snick news, Nick is plugging away at school like a champ. He's much better at managing his time this year and I feel like we see him a little bit more which is nice. He is the captain of an LBA (Law Basketball Association) team and has been fishing with what little spare time he has. 

I'm going crazy not being able to run/exercise. I feel like I never spend any time on myself (which isn't true) because I don't get that hour everyday to think, jam out to my tunes, and exercise. However, I have been getting to some long lost projects as well as some new ones. My knee still hurts like a mother and I'm trying to patient with it, but it just sucks. 

Oh, and the rain is officially here. It took long enough! I was beginning to wonder if it would ever rain. The universe kindly responded by giving me relentless rain the last week or so. I'm not complaining though, the rain doesn't bother me one bit. I am worried about Ev being cooped up all day so I'm looking into putting her in gymnastics or soccer. They have programs for toddlers here, so I'm hoping she'll enjoy some indoor activities during the rainy season. 

When I sit down and think about what we have going on in our lives, it doesn't seem like that much, but somehow at the end of each day I'm exhausted. Between school, church, playdates, errands, and just life I seem to have little spare time. But I know that's not true. I just need to make more spare time. 

But its raining, Ev's napping, and I really just want to turn on my CHRISTMAS MUSIC and read a book. Here's to shirking my responsibilities and listening to "All I Want For Christmas is You," before its socially acceptable.