My Little Lamb

Homemade Beef Jerky

2012-01-08T12:53:00.003-06:00

Royanne was at MAACO for 4 hours while I was running

errands. She "helped" Alfredo tape cars and was

eating the homemade beef jerky by cousin Stephen.
She told me it was awesome

and spicy and gave me a thumbs up!!!

I love the fact that she isn't afraid

to try new foods.

Watching Black Jack on T. V. at Aunt Kay's

2011-12-31T14:59:00.001-06:00

Royanne told me she wanted to play cards.

So, I'm trying to remember where the matching/memory

game is and she says, "if you want another card

you tap your fingers, (and she taps the table

with four fingers) which means

'I'll take another, thank you' but if you do this,

(and she moves her extended fingers back and forth, palm

side down, right above the surface of the table)

it means 'no thanks, I don't need any more cards.' "

I'm rolling and laughing hysterically and she's

about to be really mad because she

thinks I'm laughing at her, which I am, but

not like she thinks.

So hilarious, this girl of mine!!!

UT-OH!!

2011-12-30T16:01:00.001-06:00

"Momma, you gotta be careful when you have gas,
because it might be diarrhea!!"

What To Say?

2011-12-13T21:07:00.002-06:00

So she comes to me and says "Can I have a drink of your tea?"

and I could smell her breath.... so I said

"What is that you're eating?

Is it chocolate? Where did you get it?

Who said you could have it?"

She just looked at me. 1 sec , 2 seconds, 3seconds,
4 seconds 5 seconds pass and she says:

"It's a long story!"

Bag of Coal

2011-12-07T13:10:00.000-06:00

I was talking to Royanne about good and bad behavior and coal. afterwards I asked her what she would get toys or coal. she said a little of both

2011-05-31T16:29:00.002-05:00

Royanne said, "I had the best three days, ever!"

at Schlitterbahn. She rode the WolfPack tube ride,

The Congo River and several other tube rides

I cannot remember the names of, and not

once exhibited any fear. She loves the water!

MANY thanks to Joe & Janice for the invite!

Bilingual Three Year Old!

2011-05-26T16:03:00.001-05:00

Royanne: "I can speak Spanish:

uno, doze, trez, cat-row, sink-o, sayz"

Professionally Speaking

2011-05-16T21:52:00.008-05:00

Royanne was sorting her hair ties, bows, etc., in piles. She just

got some new ones from Abby. She told me she was

separating them professionally.

BAA*HA*HA!!

Paul & Silas (and Uncle Roger)

2011-05-14T21:45:00.006-05:00

Mom takes Royanne on Wednesdays after she
gets finished working her half day with the bone doctors.
She told me that she was telling R that Uncle Roger was
going to be going to Guatemala to teach them about Jesus.
R thought for a moment and then said, "Do you mean like
Paul and Silas did?"

Mom's comment to me: Don't think she's not listening in class!

Child Labor, LOL

2011-05-13T20:17:00.000-05:00

Liam went with Kay to work

and Annie with w/ her daddy.

Name Change

2011-05-10T16:14:00.002-05:00

Royanne: Mom, I'm changing my name.

Me: Why? R: I don't know.

Me: To what? R: Kate.

Me: Kate? Why Kate?

R: Kate Middleton, mom!

Me: Why? What do you like about her?

R: I like her face and her clothes.

Me: What kind of clothes does she wear?

R: Princess clothes, of course. And she has her name on them.

Me: She has her name on them? Why?

R: So everyone in the town will know her name!

The Culuh of Buttah!!

2011-05-08T16:12:00.002-05:00

"Mom, I have a butter booger," she said.

I said, "Never heard of that."

She said, "It's yellow!"

Off the Shoulder

2011-05-08T13:01:00.000-05:00

So last night she does the shoulder thing again
(slipping her nightgown off of one shoulder)
and says, "This is what monsters do."
And I said, "What, exactly?" And she said,
"They use their furry arms to wear their princess
pajamas on their shoulder (pronounced soldier).

Pitcher vs. Picture

2011-05-07T13:16:00.002-05:00

Bruce: I'm looking for a pitcher.
Royanne: Why? A picture of what?
Bruce: Not a picture, a pitcher.
Royanne: A picture of what, I SAID!!

Target

2011-05-05T22:40:00.000-05:00

It was embarrassing! Bruce went down by the books and DVDs at Target & Royanne saw the toy aisle. I usually avoid that section! It was I want this, I want that! .....especially when she saw all the princess stuff! All we went for was a pool! Bruce was settling down her tantrum when she said,

"Look, dad, this is how it's gonna be: you're gonna buy me something!"

Badges

2011-04-12T20:47:00.005-05:00

Royanne was watching Max and Ruby
while doodling, making 1s & Ps on her paper.
I asked her what she was doing and she said she
was trying get her architect badge. She said it
like I should know all about it already.
I said, "How do you do that?"

She said, "You have to go to someone's house
and write all the letters in their names."
Hmmmm....... I didn't know that!

And Baby Makes (only) 3

2011-04-06T09:40:00.002-05:00

Royanne: Mom, if there were four of us at home,
we'd be a quartet.

Turnips

2011-03-31T21:02:00.006-05:00

Bruce was cutting up turnips. He offered Ro a taste.

(RAW) She agreed. She took a bite from the side of her

mouth. (She likes it, hey, Mikey!)

She offered me a bite. I gave a loud "NO THANK YOU!!"

Instead of saying "You don't know what

you're missing!" she said,

"You missed something what you're missing!!"

She is so funny!!!!

She is Always Listening

2011-03-31T20:34:00.003-05:00

I was in the office, trying to do a few things at

the desk. Royanne came in and asked me to give

her the calculator in the drawer. I asked why?

She said "I have to count my calories."

Defining Family Retreat

2011-03-29T09:04:00.002-05:00

This title really says it all.
You can post pictures and share little funny tidbits.
All of that is perfectly OK and what the blog is
all about. However,......

Saturday during lunch at the Family Retreat, Bruce was
shadowing Ro as she walked along the wall outside the patio
where others were eating. They were just chatting.
He walked over and told me:
"Royanne just announced two things.
#1 - You have taught her to love her God.
#2 - You have taught her to be brave.

WOW! I'll take that!

In Great Great Aunt Jessie's Tree

2011-03-28T14:12:00.004-05:00

Tree climbing, bug & bird watchin',
wild flower pickin' and
looking down the throats of wide mouth bass,
caught by Quentin Lorne.
Fun times for a little girl.
Oh yeah, and rock collecting!

Gone Fishin'

2011-03-23T22:06:00.002-05:00

Royanne wanted her small teddy bear from the diaper bag
(the bag that no longer carries diapers)
and I was digging for it. I was trying to drive.
And not weave..............

She asked me again, and I said, "I'm fishin'
for it. Give me a minute. Keep your pants on!"
She said, "You're not fishing, you're driving!"
and then, after thinking some more, she said,
"And how can I take my pants off when I am in
my car seat!!??"

Harry Potter

2011-03-23T21:55:00.002-05:00

Royanne has discovered Harry Potter!
Oh, the repetition, watching it every day!!!

On the way home from church tonight,
she was yelling "HAGGRID, HAGGRID!!!"

She really likes him, even if he is big and tall.
He's her big teddy bear!!

The Govenor, Rick Perry

2011-03-16T15:47:00.003-05:00

Sunday, as we entered the church property, I
took the belt off of Royanne's car seat because
I had to get her dress on. It was tooooo
poooofy to wear in the car seat.
She said, "NO! Rick Perry will put me
in jail!"

Mimi Has Three Brothers! (not two)

2011-03-16T15:40:00.002-05:00

Royanne: Momma, does Mimi have a sister?
Me: No, Annie, she has two brothers: Layton & Roger.
Royanne: She has another brother: Jesus!
(I chuckle)
Royanne: And I have a brother, too: JESUS!

Uncle Craig

2011-03-08T15:54:00.004-06:00

We were drawing and coloring, being our creative
selves....
Annie: Mom, what should I draw?
Me: How about Uncle Craig with his policeman gun?
Annie: OK!
[a moment goes by.....]
Annie: I'm gonna need help with the gun, momma.
Me: OK.
[I draw a gun, best as I can. She finishes her picture.]
Me: Annie, how come Uncle Craig is smiling so big?
Annie: He's really glad he didn't shoot Abby by accident!

LOL!

The Things She Says! (Part 1,000,000)

2011-03-02T10:11:00.002-06:00

Royanne was brushing my hair. It's in that
messy in-between state of longer growth. She
held my chin and said : "When you grow
up, I want you to be somebody"

BAA-HAA-HAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Make-Up

2011-02-27T16:21:00.012-06:00

She has a very unique way of applying her
make-up. Everyone says so!

If it's good on the lips, being on the
chin must be even better!

It sure seems like she puts makeup on in the car A*L*O*T !!!

Blizzard of 2011

2011-02-22T16:02:00.009-06:00

As soon as I put Pokey outside, he wanted back in...
whimp!

He soon found a spot that had been protected
by the fence overnight....less snow.

Examining the snow on the trampoline.

Tasting snow from a safe location......the hood
of the car.

JOY!

Long undershirt (long handles, they were once called...)
Liam's hand-me-down- snowpants and her nightgown.
Fashionista!

She Has An Ear For Music!

2011-02-14T11:36:00.004-06:00

Changing the Sheets

2011-02-14T11:24:00.002-06:00

I was attempting to change the sheets
and mattress pad
(the cat had a messy furball on them, and it
went all the way through--ick!).
I usually try and do that job without my
little helper, because she likes to crawl
under the sheet as I shake it out,
and I have to try and
make the bed with her in it.
I said, "Royanne! Do you want to be a
hindrance or a help?"
She said, "What's a hindrance?"
I said, "Something that keeps you from
getting your job done."
To which she replied:
"I want to be a helpful hindrance!"

The Things She Says! (Part 999,999)

2011-01-30T21:40:00.001-06:00

Me: Royanne, where did you get this ring with the rose on it?
Royanne: from China when I went there, when
I was pregnant. With my sister. When
I was a baby. Yeah, from when I went there. To China.

(where does she get this stuff?!)

Mom's At A Loss!

2011-01-27T22:02:00.004-06:00

I guess it has been 100-120 days so far....Miss Royanne

has been VERY sassy. Throwing tantrums, kicking,

hitting things, throwing things,

yelling, screaming, sobbing....and nothing seems

to deter her from it. Not a spank, not standing in

the corner, not taking away TV time, NOTHING!

I try and talk to her about it. I explain disrespect gets her

punishment. I tell her I keep trying to find a way to

get her to understand,

to get her attention. Tonight, amidst sobs, she tells me,

"Momma, I understand. You're right."

Tonight I got her attention by denying

her time in our bed, either with

books, or a short movie, or silly

snuggling. I'm sad about it.

She sobbed almost to the point of

throwing up.

Literal Translation

2011-01-21T16:10:00.002-06:00

Royanne has a head cold. She has a hard time sleeping
(translation: I have a hard time sleeping)
We tried the steam in the bathroom.....
rocking, consoling, books.....
Bruce wanted her to try some Mentholatium on her
nose. He said, "It''ll open your head up."
To which she replied:
"YOU WANT TO OPEN UP MY HEAD???!!!!"

She knew I was laughing, even in the dark!

2011-01-02T06:36:00.002-06:00

Last night Royanne wanted to sleep with us.
Of course, I said yes.

She said she wanted to tell me a scary story. She
went on and on about this bad guy and this
other bad guy, and the policeman was even
a bad guy.

Then she asked me if I wanted to hear a happy
story. Who doesn't? So I said "yes!"

She said, "There was this little gore (her way of
pronouncing girl) and she went to Souper Salads, and
she ate good food, and she was happy. Her mom
was there and her daddy. But she pee-pee'd her panties...
Just like I did!!!"
And she pointed down at her waist.
"...Then she lost her TV and she cried and cried,
so she got a spankin' from her daddy
just like I did!"

I said, "And who got the last laugh?"
And she said, "DADDY!"

Jonah

2011-01-01T18:31:00.002-06:00

Royanne was in one of the empty bins I'm using to
organize and weed out the clothes that are too big
for me.

I said, "What are you doing in there, little missy?"
and she replied,
"I'm trying to run away from God."

Mary

2010-12-22T06:33:00.003-06:00

Royanne is trying to learn the song
"Mary, did you know?"

However, all she can remember is:
"Mary, did you know you had a baby?"

The baby didn't do anything, and he wasn't
slated to do anything in the future.
She just wanted to know if Mary knew
she had a baby:
Too funny!

New Tutu

2010-12-15T22:31:00.009-06:00

Our friend Britney made Royanne a tutu because she knew

Annie enjoyed dancing. She wore it that very afternoon

outside, playing at Uncle Roger & Aunt Marybeth's. She worte it

to two of her Christmastime dance recitals.

The Things She Comes Up With!

2010-11-26T14:03:00.003-06:00

Royanne is with Bruce at MAACO today, on this
Black Friday.
No, I am not shopping today. I have a lot of
WBS to get caught up.

Kay just called me. She's at MAACO today.
She'd asked Ro what I was doing.
Royanne answered:
"She's minding her own business."

Dental Dent

2010-11-18T09:47:00.003-06:00

Captain's Log: Wednesday evening 6:05 p.m.

All week, last week, when Bruce and I were at the convention, just a minor
bump on her head. After an afternoon of playing with the football, jumping from the fort and playing on the swings......

Royanne and Liam collided. Liam was left unhurt, but Royanne was sent flying into a low teak table, and her front tooth and the one next to it were both jammed up ¼ inch and back ¼ inch. There were e few big blood drips on the floor, Kay was trying to get the blood off at the sink to see how bad it was, I was trying to keep my composure……

We went to Williamson Seton on 1460. Luckily she didn’t have a big tear in her lip – I thought she must have, and initially, I thought her teeth had come through her upper lip. Which, in retrospect, would have been better, because now she most likely have these crooked teeth until the permanent ones come in. The emergency room was $1310, so I am not going to a dentist until I note a change in her injury. She is in bad pain, ”hates the taste of pain reliever” --- in her words --- and won't take any. Tried to give some to her last night and it came right back up. Poor sweet girl! But she was a trooper. She cried herself to sleep on the way to the emergency room, and was brave with the triage nurse and the doctor. Now, I have to get her to eat something. First the ear ache with the blister on the ear drum on Tuesday, and now this!
Mom said Abby and Liam were still very upset when she got back from the hospital (she drove us).

The Doctor Will See You Now

2010-11-16T13:57:00.003-06:00

After a night of late late tears, repeated in the early hours
of morning, a trip to the doctor revealed what I
knew was developing:
Royanne's 6th or 7th ear infection.
Dr. Tompkins pronounced her ear had a
big blister on the ear drum.
I was glad she didn't ask if R was still drinking when she
was horizontal. Truth is, she enjoys a sippy cup of chocolate milk
while she watches a little TV before bedtime.
$175 and 5 days from now, things should be
back to normal.

Nickel

2010-11-14T23:03:00.001-06:00

After the week we were gone from her,
she came back saying,

"Who put a nickel in you!?"

Brother & Sister(s)

2010-11-13T22:38:00.003-06:00

While we were in California at the MAACO cruise &
convention, Royanne acquired a brother and
a sister.
Cautious to not discourage imaginary play,
I went along with it, asking questions and inquiring
about them. The girl, Shond, and sometimes
Shonda, lives in California and is in
high school. She's four years old.
The brother's name is Fond. And sometimes Fons and
at other times, Fonds.

She told me all about them. They are real to her!

UPDATE: Nov. 22, 2010:

She was pacing and talking to Shonda,
talking on the play phone in her play kitchen,
telling her about her day, making facial
expressions and using
good voice inflection. Now there is another sister,
Angie. And Fonds is sick; he has a fever.

Storytime

2010-10-26T12:55:00.002-05:00

R: Tell me sumtin 'bout when I was in your tummy, momma? Please?"
M: I ate a lot of graham crackers, salad, grapes and cheese."
R: OH! I love cheese, I love pregnant cheese the best! It has chips in it.

Junk, plain and simple

2010-10-26T12:53:00.001-05:00

She's a mini-me.
When something doesn't work right, or it
gets the better of her and frustrates her,
she says,
"It's just a piece of junk!"

Halloween Candy Aisle Quote

2010-10-25T12:47:00.000-05:00

And I quote:

"I have chosen my God for
setting his life on me."

Pedicure...... OUTSIDE!

2010-10-25T11:38:00.009-05:00

Remember the day at Kay's when the girls wanted to
paint their nails and Kay put down an old shower
curtain in the kitchen? Well, I don't have one of
those, but I did have another option:
OUTSIDE!!!

Nosey Pokey!

After I finished taking a few pictures, she'd
put several kinds, one on top of the other,
on her toes and her fingers!
Then she scratched her neck,
as I shouted "NOOOOOOOO!"

It's no fun getting gummy, tacky polish out of hair!!

T-Ball (at home)

2010-10-25T11:15:00.019-05:00

Bruce came home with this, and I thought he was
C*R*A*Z*Y, but it has given us a lot of fun!

She was all over the place, so he drew around her
feet with chalk so she'd know where to stand.

And then he drew around the T-ball base.

I had to convince her she could hit the ball a lot more
times if she moved from the waist up, and didn't
step out to meet the ball.

Here she is proud of her progress!

Not too thrilled with (more) tips,
this time, from her daddy.

Giving in to instructions.

Close, but missed.

CONTACT!

Stepping out of the traced placement......
just tired of this for now..............

....moving on to what she's already mastered!

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego

2010-10-25T06:27:00.004-05:00

Sunday afternoon, after Home Group and a few errands,
this ole momma was whooped. I decided to take a
nap while Bruce and Royanne were outside.
A lot of times, my week catches up with me on
Sunday.

As we were doing those dreaded errands,
(dreaded when you have a sleepy 3 year old with you),
Royanne was telling me about the furnace and
Shadrach, Meshach and Adednego. Except she
couldn't remember how to say Shadrach.
So she was just leaving him out.
She told us about the hot furnace and how
the mean man tried to burn them.
How the angel protected them.
I said, "What book is that in?"
She didn't remember.
I said, "Daniel. They were Daniel's friends."
I said, "Who was the King?"
She didn't remember.
I said, "Nebuchadnezzar."

After the last errand, she fell asleep, so we made
2 more unplanned stops, and Bruce went in alone.
He was looking for one last item to complete a
Halloween costume.

Once home, Bruce and R went outside and I headed
for the bed. I heard them come in and out and R
told me they were going to go down the street
so she could ride her bike.

During the next few hours, their noises faded in and out;
I was so tired!
When I woke up, Bruce relayed this story to me:

He said they'd tried to wake me a few times because
R wanted to tell me about her experiences down the
road. She'd spotted a small seed of some kind as she was
riding, and she made Bruce stop right there and
dig a hole and plant it in someone's yard. She'd
been greeted by one of the ladies we see on a
regular basis, walking her miles, as we are outside in the
front yard. They always have a little conversation. Bruce
wondered why this stranger stopped to chat, but I told
him it must be our walker-friend.
He said she talked non stop the whole time.
She really had a lot to say about Meshach and
Abednego. Everytime he'd tell her, "You've left out
Shadrach!" and she'd say, "Oh yeah!"

This is where it gets funny: when they came back
in, R said she was 'really sweaty' and and wanted to
take a bath. Bruce suggested a shower would be better,
and she agreed. She announced that Meshach &
Abednego were going to take a shower with her.
He said, "You've left out Shadrach."
She said, "Oh, yeah!"
She talked to them and soaped them up real well.
When she got out to dry off, she asked for
another towel for them, a hand towel.
She said she'd need a big towel for herself,
and dried them one at a time.

After all were refreshed, she continued to play with
them. She went and got her doll that giggles,
a ball and her puppy, Pepper. She put them in the bed
with me and told Bruce they were all going to
'watch a little TV'. He told her to move the ball that
was up against my back, and she told him no, that
"Abednego wants to sleep with momma."
Shadrach and Meshach were the other two toys,
I guess.

I wonder where Daniel was?

Big Words & Phrases

2010-10-22T09:05:00.003-05:00

Big words: small kiddo.

Stabilizers
(training wheels on a Peppa the Pig DVD)
Apologize
Frustrated
Disturb
Aggravating

"Momma, ever see an elephant wearing a hat?
HA! Definitely not!"

"I definitely don't see that!"

Royanne 5:1

2010-10-22T08:54:00.002-05:00

Occasionally, we end our day piled up in the bed,
watching some DVD of Royanne's together.
Last night she was jumping all over the bed, not
at all interested in settling down one bit.
We were watching a DVD about Jonah, and
the child commentator, for lack of a better
word, was reading scripture and giving the
chapter and verse.

Bruce said, " In the book of Royanne,
chapter 5 verse 1, it says you should curl
up next to your daddy and watch the movie."

Not missing a beat, she says, "Well, in Esther 5:18,
it says I should lay down next to momma!"

:)

Going to the Halloween Store

2010-10-18T11:49:00.015-05:00

...Unsure what is real and what isn't.....

She really was amazed by the zombie babies!

She kept going back to them!

STEP HERE: She jumped!

This is her reaction to the one that crawls after you
(motion sensor)

Creepy body parts.

Getting used to the one that follows ya!

Roll it Down!

2010-10-18T09:01:00.000-05:00

Royanne uses her foot to lower the window when
she desires. Gotta love those power windows!
I have to keep the LOCK switch in the on
position, because the window down, with the wide
wheels on the Acura, hurts my ears.

The window was locked, and she said,
"Momma, put the window down
to the ground, please"

Castle In The Corner

2010-10-05T07:57:00.017-05:00

Above is an example of what I desired for R's
room. Bruce went to look at it and pretty much made
it exactly, except for the color.

Room before..............

Kitchen construction

frame......

a shot underneath

bed fits underneath, slats ready

experimenting with the height, bringing things up
there.

Here, trying out the ladder. I really like the
ladder. After he made it, he took it to
MAACO and John painted it for me so
it wouldn't have any runs.

Mattress covered, with her favorite rainbow material,
pillow made, shelf equipped with CD player and CDs....
she loves it! She slept up there the first night
it was completed. It took forever to paint ....
all those slats!!!

Bed and castle mattress both have the same rainbow
material. The bed's is a blanket, the mattress "upstairs"
is covered in it. I made a pillow slip type enclosure,
and sewed it closed by hand. This way, I can remove
it and wash it .

This picture was before the ladder was
permanently attached. Across the entry,
which could be a little painful, is a sheep
skin compliments of Aunt Kay, from
IKEA.

Completed!

Area for the babies, their beds, table, etc.
Currently the play kitchen is outside the bedroom door,
in the hall. It gives her more bedroom room until I decide how to
find more play room. We might change around all the whole
house, cramming the office into our bedroom.

Muddy Puddles

2010-09-07T10:31:00.015-05:00

Royanne has never played in the rain / mud puddles.
Ever. We went by to visit her pre-school after it
had rained and she looked at the puddles like
she wanted to jump and play, like Peppa Pig, so I said,
Go ahead....do it!"
She was surprised I was going to let her, and
she had so so so much fun!

Praying at Dinnertime

2010-08-30T07:29:00.002-05:00

At dinner, when we pray, Royanne always
points to whom she wants to go first.
Sometimes she will add comments or
request clarification to our portions
of prayer.

And, almost every night, she
prays for Aubrey's daddy's back.
It is so cute!
When Jeff said hello to her at church,
she shrunk back like she didn't know
him, but she does, because she
prays for him.
So, so sweet.

Hole in One Tongue

2010-08-30T07:20:00.003-05:00

Last night,
I had already given Royanne her cereal.
She's a cereal lover, and sometimes eats it
at night instead of leftovers.

I bit my tongue, eating my
salad and salmon. Royanne was in the
living room, watching TV and came
running when I yelped. It bled
and bled and BLED!

Later, after I cleaned up the kitchen, I
showed her the hole in my tongue. It
is really big!

She held up her forefinger and said,
"Be right back!" She ran
around the corner to the dining room,
and I could hear her saying,
"Jesus, God....my momma bit her
tongue, real bad, and it hurts
real bad. Please make it all
better."
And then she popped back around
the corner.

How touching is that?

ROYANNE!!

2010-08-28T22:28:00.003-05:00

That's what I said. What I yelled.

I had started the bath for her. I told her I'd be
right back, that I was going to the kitchen
for a second.
I got the expensive shampoo and conditioner
and "hid" it in the sink. I took it down
from its high hiding place on the back of
the door....in my makeshift sorter (a plain
plastic over-the-door shoe organizer).
I placed it there so it'd be handy.
I didn't think she was paying me any attention.
I poured some bubble bath in the tub,
under the running water.

Then I went to the kitchen for a second.
Then I decided to feed Pokey.

When I came back, the tub held the contents of
both the shampoo and the conditioner.
oh, THE BUBBLES!!!
That's when I said, "ROYANNE!!"

And that's when she broke down and sobbed
because I normally don't raise my voice.
She cried, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to; it was an
accident! Pleeeeeeease forgive me!"

After a few deep ones, I did.

We hugged.
I said, "I forgive you. I'm disappointed,
but I forgive you."

I wonder what was on her mind?

2010-08-27T15:58:00.000-05:00

Make Up

2010-08-27T15:49:00.012-05:00

There's really not much to it, but she got sneaky
and went in my bathroom and got my make-up.
I'm not much for make-up.

I love it when I can ZOOM and take some
pictures without her knowing.

CAUGHT!

Messy!

Her face when told to stop with the
make-up.

Hair glue.

Make up on her shoulder.

New Marky Board

2010-08-20T20:55:00.002-05:00

Royanne loves her new board. Here you can see
where she drew a picture of me.

Notice how my arms and legs come right
out of my head!

Exotic Resort

2010-08-19T15:37:00.042-05:00

Most of these animals are on the endangered list.
Many of them are from Africa and India.

One of the many kinds of dear took a
liking to Abby's shirt and started chewing
on it with grass in its mouth...
and left a big green stain!

The petting zoo portion was really big,
and they milled around us. For "wild" animals,
they are tame and will eat from your hand. Most
were born on the property.

She said, "Not again!"
The first time was funny, but not the second.

Bambi?

Baby!

Thief!

The antlers were furry, like velvet.
Pretty cool!

Here you see the Llamas running for the
food they know the visitors will be throwing
over the side. Buckets of food were $6.
We ran out before the end of the tour.
Oh, well!

Feed me!

Very tame, see?

They were so sad to see the meal train take off!

I call this one BUCKY!
It wasn't Bucky, but one of the Llamas spit
on my mother and it stunk BAD!

The camel's name is Goober. For real.

He's huge! And very lovable !!

Will dance for food!

Staying cool.

Here two are fighting, antler to antler....probably
fighting over a woman!

Goober racing back to the tractor pulled
train as it turns a circle
and makes its way back to the station.

The beast weighed 2500 pounds!
Tame as a big old friendly dog.....

....complete with a black tongue.

Resting in the shade.

Eating the food tossed from the train.

More, please!

Goober following the train. He is fifty
years old.

Here he is going to the woods for some solitude.
The zebras make him nervous.

Later that night we ate at Souper!Salad!
and Liam turned his shirt around backwards
and was shaking his hands in the air, acting
crazy as usual, when he banged his fingers on
the table top. He yelped and people turned to
stare, thinking we were breaking his arm or
something. Why, you ask, was Liam wearing a
long sleeved shirt when it was 103 outside? He is
always cold! WOW! He's lucky!

Tired (and grouchy) travelers.
The funniest part of the day?:
They wanted to spend the night at a hotel
so bad! Mom thought, sure why not?
Johnson City isn't far enough away
to need to spend the night, so we spent the
night at a LaQuinta right near where I live.
Abby, who can read street signs, was asleep
when we arrived, so they never knew.
Cool trick!!

When I First Held You

2010-08-19T11:04:00.004-05:00

When I first held you,
the wonder of your arrival
filled me with awe.

You were -- and are --
such a miracle to me!
I had such high hopes
and fervent prayers for you,
and I still do.

You teach me something
every day,
and you remind me that
prayers and hopes
are often surpassed.

I am so thankful
to be your parent --
and I'm blessed
to have a
child
like
you.

-Dena Dyer

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far, Afterall....

2010-08-09T08:09:00.002-05:00

Our A/C's been out since Saturday when we returned
from a go-and-come-right-back-trip to Ft. Worth.
As a result, I have been agitated due to the 89
degree temp in the house.
I found myself fussing at Royanne, inquiring why
her attention span is so short, why she jumps from
activity to activity,
toy to toy,
room to room,
project to project.....
never finishing A THING!
ALWAYS leaving a grand mess
in her wake......

As I stomped off (in my mind),
I took ice from the freezer for my
breakfast shake;
went to the washer to start a load;
went to gather more towels;
found my shoes in the hallway
and put them on;
gathered the towels;
stopped to clean the toilet;
stopped again to sift the cat's litter box;
picked the towels back up;
dropped them on the kitchen floor;
made my breakfast smoothie;
fed the dog;
tossed some junk mail;
added to towels to the machine,
along with the soap....

Then I realized I can't complete one thing
before starting another one, either!

Fish in Water

2010-07-24T11:21:00.026-05:00

Royanne really enjoyed her swimming lessons this
summer. Her instructors were Calvin and Katie.

Going through the hoola-hoop was a favorite.

Full of new information after class!

Jumping far, going under.

Learning to float. They had to be able to do this
with minimal assistance to pass.

Relaxing during class, playing red light, green light.

After swim class, she wanted to "practice".
But you can't practice in 10 inches of water!!
Here she is throwing Toto in for a swim, even though
I cautioned her to not.

Drippy!!

When you can't practice your floating, you
improvise!!!

Gettin' rowdy!

Using the foam bar bells facilitates learning
how to kick properly.

Floating.

Kicking perfected.

Listening to instructions and guidance.

Here Annie has an egg that was used under the
water, teaching them to be able to see: they had
to fetch them.

Learning how to use her arms in swimming....the
instructors called it ice cream scoops.

Here we see a mate about to jump in right after she
did, although they were supposed to jump one at
a time!

Royanne's sweet teacher, Miss Maray, had to go to
west Texas to care for her sick grandmother. One day after
swim class, we took her a present - it was her last
day - and got some hugs. It was a sad day; Miss
Maray is really gonna miss her kids!
(As you can see, we got there barely before nap time!)

Birthday Party

2010-07-19T09:09:00.025-05:00

I chose the theme The Three Little Pigs
for her birthday party, and enlisted Kay's
artistic assistance.
I purchased a display board and we
brainstormed. In the end, Kay and Amanda
completed it...I was very pleased!
Here you see the wolf's windy breath
knocking down the fence.

In this picture you can see the wolf peeking
through the window. The curtain is made from an
old blanket, the wolf from fur from another project.
See the little pig in the house of sticks?
Too cute!!

This house was made from sticks found in the yard.....
very adorable!

The brick idea came from a friend who had her whole
family dressed up like the three pigs and the wolf
for Halloween. We dyed sponges the color of bricks!

A close up of the house made of sticks...

...and the straw house.

Completed brick house!! Notice the pot the
wolf fell in when he came down the chimney,
hanging on the fence.

The only thing that is hard to see/understand is
the pathway to the straw house.

The three little pigs! Bruce made these cakes.

Asleep on her big day.......

......requested breakfast......

......requested activity.......

......big big big mess!

When she opened her very own ironing board, she
said, "OH! I have my first machine!"

BLOW! BLOW!

With Abby!

Nice Horsie

2010-07-16T13:03:00.003-05:00

Cowboy Bob came to Royanne's school for
a special picture taking event. Royanne has
hand fed Aunt Janice's horses and she's
had rides on the horses at Kiddie Acres. This
day, she didn't like horses.
Figures...........
:(

1095 Days

2010-07-12T21:17:00.000-05:00

In the beginning.............

She's gone from having such a small footsie,
to being too big for her britches, at times!
LOL.
Our little one is sure developing her
own personality.

Meeting the family when we went to the 2007
Kelly family reunion, she was quite the hit.

Blue was pretty jealous in the
beginning. They are buds now and soon I
expect Blue will be sleeping in her bed,
at her feet.......
and no longer be at mine!

Her first Halloween was cold and wet.........
inside this pumpkin!

RECENT PICTURES OF THE BLUE-EYED GIRL

I cut the picture off, but here she was trying
to rub her belly and pat her head.

She loves to string beads.

Happy Birthday!

2010-07-12T07:35:00.005-05:00

Playing the piano with cousin Abby

Today is Annie's birthday. Let us have a
moment of silence (LOL).......

This girl says something every day to crack
me up!

*we parked next to mom's car at church
and she says, "It's Mimi's car! I wonder if
she has a gift for me?!"

*(I was sitting in the back seat with her, at her request)
she was getting sleepy in the car and
drool was running down her arm as
she sucked her thumb and I said,
"you've got slobber to your elbow"
and she said "that's OK, I don't mind".

*I found her lost stickers and she
said, "that's SO wonderful!"

*I was commenting on how pretty
the clouds were and she said, "Don't
look at the clouds, they're MY clouds!"

*as we left to go swimming:
"It's a beautiful day to go
swimming, mom!"

*on listening to her CDs in the car,
"I want it super super super super
super super duper loud!"

*when I had that stomach flu thingy,
"Mom, I will babysitted you!"

*after coming back from playing
with Liam (boy games)
she said, "momma, that monster
died me" (aka killed me)

*"when I fall down and get hurt,
it breaks my heart"

*we were cuddling and I said, "whatever
angel up there picked you out and sent
you to us, she did a good job" to
which she looked up and said,
"thank you, angel"

*we were talking about her growing
up, but wishing she'd stay young and safe,
and I said "I hope one day you can
go to a private school" and she said,
"you can't come to my school. it is
private"

In regards to seeing Abby and Liam:
"I am so prouded!"

These past 1095 days have flown by!
We thank God for you every day.

Lost....then FOUND!!

2010-07-09T09:34:00.010-05:00

Royanne kept telling me how much she
liked my bracelet. So, we made a trip to James
Avery in April to see what they had
for small people. She was very excited and was
very well behaved while we were looking
around at the display cases. We settled on
an adult ankle bracelet due to the fact
her wrist was too small for even the smallest
of charm bracelets. The saleswoman cut
it down to fit her wrist and gave me the
extra chain, telling me when the first
one got too small, we could
bring back the other part of the ankle
bracelet she'd removed,
and have the clasp attached to it. That's
like 2-for-1 and I am all about that!

It was so cute, when someone, like Bandi, for
instance, would comment on her bracelet and
she'd tell them it was from James Avery.

Things went well; she didn't try and take it
off or anything. That was a concern I had, actually.
One day she said, "momma, we both have
bracelets and now when we are away from one
another, we can look at our bracelets and think
of one another."
IS THIS KID JUST TWO!!??

One Sunday in the nursery restroom
at church, the last week in May,
she looked so cute,
in the dress I made her and her baseball cap...
I just had to take her picture.

(She had a few bug bites and wanted
band-aids that matched her dress!)

Anyhow, I was glad I had taken these
pictures, because later in the day her
James Avery bracelet was missing!
I noticed when we got home from the
birthday party.
I had been coaching her on checking on it
throughout the day, but this was Liam's
birthday and it was hectic, and even I couldn't
remember when I had last seen it. I was a
wreck! I didn't want her first bracelet lost
because of the sweet thing she'd said about
us being able to think about one
another when we were apart.....

So, since I knew she'd had it in the church
restroom, because of the picture in the camera,
I went back to the building.
I backtracked and spent two
hours vainly searching for it. The hallway, the
lobby, outside the auditorium, up the sidewalk......
NO LUCK!

I called mom and asked her to help. She
looked all over their house, the driveway,
the backyard, the dining room, bedrooms,
EVERYWHERE! NO LUCK!

It was a sad day......

Then, eight days later Kay called and said
she found it behind the couch at her house!
I took Royanne over there and let Kay tell
her she'd found it. Annie was SO HAPPY!!!!

:) !!!!!

Pedicure, Anyone?

2010-07-06T19:32:00.000-05:00

So, we were at Kay's. Abby and Royanne
wanted to paint nails. I said NO WAY! because
there was already a small area
in the TV room where Annie had gotten
some of Abby's polish on the rug......Mimi got
most of it out with some kind of cleaner. I don't
think Uncle Craig was too thrilled about Annie
getting in Abby's make-up.

After I said NO WAY! Kay said OK and put
down an old shower curtain. Perfect!

Don't you eat cheese puffs when you pedicure?

Hand stained with cheese puffs and polish!

Professional (2 year old) job !! :)
(I took this in the car as we left to go home.....
I finally got her to be still).