The Harvest, con't...

On that same note of 'backyard news', we are continuing to eat the spoils of our garden (Adam insists we call it our FARM, but with less than 10 total plants, I think "Garden" really is more appropriate!). Anyway, this weekend we ate chives and two bell peppers straight from the yard- that was fun. Just DAYS after I blogged about our HUGE, yet not productive, Watermelon plant, we saw some small fruit growth hidden within the vines...in just 3 weeks, the watermelon have gone from the size of a green bean to a full-sized watermelon! unreal. We have at least 5 that are this size. Elise runs to the window several times a day and reminds us, "The watermelons are growing, mommy...look! They so big!". I love it and we'll let you know when we actually pick them and eat. The best part is that three of them have grown on the actual deck! We didn't want to damage the melons, so we let them grow right there. it's pretty funny.

A new resident

Although I a definitely consider myself a biologist and was a science teacher with SNAKES in my classroom, I DO NOT LIKE the little slitherers....so when we heard from neighbors that there have been at least two 'incidents' with RATTLESNAKES in our neighborhood, I wasn't happy. Apparently, they're pretty rare around here, but two confirmed sightings- one of them just 2 houses away...I shudder just thinking about it! Gross.
The biggest issue is just that I'm scared of letting Elise and Gus out in the backyard without my being right next to them. We love our backyard garden, great fenced in green area, good shade to play in, etc...I used to let Elise run around and play while I sat on the deck (within 20 feet of her!) feeding Ainsley or whatever. Now I won't do it. If she pays attention to her favorite cartoon characters Dora and Diego, she thinks it's ok to play with snakes, pick them up, put them around your neck, etc...but we've been practicing better snake "handling". I ask her "What do you do if you see a real snake outside?" "Run away and yell 'No snake, no snake'". Nice.
On that same note, Adam's mom has been here all weekend (a Great visit-more on it later!), and she was outside for a few minutes at one point and came running in quickly to tell me there was a SNAKE in the backyard. AUGH. My curiosity overtakes my jitters, so I grab a camera and run outside. It was about 3 feet long and, according to neighbors, it was a non-poisonous Black Snake. I still didn't like it. Here are a couple pictures. We followed him around the yard for about 10 minutes and then he slithered out under the fence. I'm VERY concerned now about another little (or not so little) guy getting in, but we won't give up. We'll continue to play in the backyard, but make a lot of noise when we go out and my eyes scan the fence and sunny spots as soon as I step outside...we'll see.

Us 4 vs. Ainsley 1

If you aren't a fan of the parenting strategy of "let them cry it out", you may not want to keep reading this....
Ainsley is 6 months old as of yesterday and earlier this week we decided that her waking up in the middle of the night to eat still just HAD TO END! I'd had enough of it and knew she had the ability to make it through the night without food. So we just had to wait it out during some middle of the night crying. It's so hard! Over the course of the week, I've sat in bed and listened to her crying for several HOURS, only caving once to go in and feed her (Monday overnight 4am). Other than that, she's gone between 10-12 hours each night without food. My little one has done it! Waking up at 7am this morning and knowing I just got 8 1/2 hours of sleep STRAIGHT is almost unbelievable....so great! I'm so thankful for Adam telling me to 'tough it out' (as he rolled back over the sleep all night long). Although I know I'll miss that one-on-one peaceful time with Ainsley, I can't wait to have more energy during the day to chase around Miss "I never stop running, and talking" Elise. =)

Mmmmmm...goodness

Way back in the day....circa 1993-ish, Erica F and I were on a competition dance team. Several times a year we travelled for competitions and would often room together in hotels in exotic locations around Ohio, Indianapolis, Pigeon Forge, Niagara Falls, etc...our STAPLE meal on these trips included a GIGANTIC Cinnamon Bun from Cinnabon. (those huge, gooey cinnamon buns that you find at malls and airports that pack about 4000 calories per bun!). So, I haven't had one for about 10 years, but when Erica F was here a few weeks ago she introduced me to the greatest ice cream ever- Ben and Jerry's CINNAMON BUNN!!! It is the closest thing to the real cinnamon buns you can imagine and I loved every bite of the pint she brought. So, when my sister-in-law Amanda was here, I passed on the new knowledge to her...but we didn't eat any. Here's a link to her blog that just made mention of the same yummy goodness that Erica F re-introduced into my life. Apparently she liked it, too! (ok, I don't know how to do the active-link thing, so cut and paste from this or just follow the link to Amanda's blog from our main page....
http://amandahmoseley.blogspot.com/2008/08/cinnamon-bunn-ice-cream.html

More potty humor...

I'm sure most of you are sick of hearing about potty-training, but Elise cracked me up (once again!) just moments ago. I was putting her in her highchair for lunch and did a quick potty check:

"Elise, do you need to use the potty before lunch?"
"No, mommy, I good"
"Ok, are you sure? You don't need to go tinkle?"
"No, mommy, my wittle bottom all empty."

7 YEARS...

Wow....7 years ago RIGHT NOW (3:15pm), I was hanging out at St. Barnabas Church in Cincinnati with my best girl friends, getting dressed, giggling a lot, fighting off a little nervousness, and waiting for MY WEDDING to begin! Unreal how that sometimes seems like that was yesterday and sometimes it seems like FIFTEEN YEARS ago...in a good way, of course! right!?! Seriously, I couldn't ask for anyone better to share my life with and I LOVE seeing where God has led us over the past 2,555 days. We NEVER would've planned our first few years of marriage to take us from Ohio to Florida, then ACROSS THE WORLD and back, 2 kids, a dog, 2 houses, 14 months of separation, and now together in another "new house" and celebrating our first anniversary in three years TOGETHER in the SAME COUNTRY! I love it. What an adventure...and, with Amanda here visiting last week, we had our second date in 6 months! She kept the girls on Friday and we hit a dirty little Mexican joint for dinner and then saw the new Batman movie. It was so fun to get out for a few hours totally 'kid free' and see a cool (but super creepy! ) movie. Here's to the next 2,555 days! =)

"Aunt Manda"

lots of books were shared
The newly decorated Fairy Wings!
Ainsley seemed happy to meet Amanda for the first time!
Adam and his sister with Elise- showing off her Big-girl panties!

Last week, Adam's sister Amanda visited us for 5 days and it was soooo fun to have her around! Adam had to travel for work for a couple of those days, so it was perfect to have Amanda here to help with the girls, too. Amanda arrived with a TRUNKLOAD of presents for her nieces, so Elise warmed up to her aunt immediately! The gifts included books, clothes, a Care Bear, a set of decorate-your-own fairy wings, Play-Doh, several pairs of 'big girl panties', etc...it was like Christmas! Elise really loved Amanda, played HOURS of Hide-n-Seek, read tons of books together, took a shopping trip together to Target, and shared many more activities in the five days together. =) It's so fun for me to see Elise enjoy all the visitors we've had lately and to share our little family with other people we love. Ainsley also did well with Aunt Manda around- she took two bottles from her, which was so nice for me, too! Here are a couple pics...