Birthday and ramblings - long post

So much to do so little time!! I’m sure I’ve written before that I use this blog as my journal so the following are just ramblings and tid-bits on what’s been going-on around our household:

My external hard drive crashed and it really sucks. I guess it couldn't handle a little minor fall to the ground. I’ve spent a good portion of this past week recovering and organizing files. All is good now and much to my DH’s dismay I am now backing up my back up files and then some. Can you believe we do not have pics of Sean and me prior to our wedding? Yup that was due to data loss on his laptop caused by a leak at his work office. Somehow I’m overacting because it doesn’t seem to bother him any. So I’ll be hitting up family and friends for pics of us from 10yrs ago now that I have a better grasp of this whole digital picture, filing, backing up and scanning system thingy.

Kylie got her big girl bed a week before her 3rd birthday. She lu-uh-uvs it!
Kylie started her new class in daycare. Loves it!
Kylie is talking TONS!! Nothing within ear shot gets by her. She repeats everything and I do mean everything. Sean and I have fun trying to figure out where she got certain phrases. We often look and call out to each other “school, you or me”. A couple of months ago we were riding in the car and Sean and I were talking to each other as we usually do. Kylie yelled out to us “Be Quiet”! Sean and I just looked at each other and she said it again. This time she said it with a little southern accent “BE Quiet”!! I want quiet up in hea”. (not a typo) We tried to not laugh too hard so as not to seem like we are approving that little behavior. Sean and I knew immediately that she got that little phrase from her teacher Ms. Sharonda. Kylie often mimic’s and pretends to be Ms. Sharonda when she wants to play being the teacher. We like the teacher too as we often observe her giving Kylie big hugs and seems to be very attentive towards her as much as she can. Kylie usually runs to her and that is usually enough to tell my heart that she is going to be just fine for the day.

Kylie likes to be the leader. When we take our walks around the neighborhood or even play in our house, she wants/must be the leader. If our dog Bruiser ‘gawd forbid’ gets in front of her, she gets upset. She got to be the line leader in school for a week for being such a good listener and I think it kinda got to her head:-) She has become quite competitive. She still doesn’t like to go to sleep although she is now finally acknowledging and letting us know when she is tired. But silly us if we think it means that maybe she should take a nap. She would often get upset with me if I even hinted, suggested or asked if she was tired. Once she is in bed though, she usually sleeps thru the night. Occasionally she’ll show up to our bedroom in the middle of the night at least once or twice a week. It hasn’t really been an issue as it doesn’t happen very often. Last week we had a little Tropical Storm named Fay and I just assumed the winds were a bit noisy against her window and it may have woken her up once or twice. Heck it woke me up a few times but that doesn’t mean much as I am a very light sleeper.

Our girl is quite sassy but very reserved outside of our presence. I would describe her as the little Warner-Bros frog (still trying to find a clip of it). Very shy and gentle around others but quiet Sassy in the comfort of her home. I believe the word the Chinese officials used to describe her was “obstinate”. I can’t imagine why…sarcastic grin:-) Not to be misinterpreted as if I’m complaining. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we wouldn’t have it any other way. We are so thrilled that she is able to communicate and convey such a wave of emotions. After all, that is what makes us all the uniquely wonderful human beings that we are.

Now for some tidbits on the birthday party: The day started of partly cloudy but still fair enough to be able to enjoy the park and splash area. After hanging the balloons, bringing out a few chips here and there, we all went to the splash area for the kids to enjoy. Pizza arrived and within minutes it started to rain. No sooner had we gathered around the pavilion when the skies opened up and a monsoon came over us. Everyone held on to their kids and each other for dear life. Tropical bursts of wind gusts with rain made it difficult to see a few feet in front of us. I called out to whoever was listening that we are taking the event to our house. Luckily we are just minutes in fact we live right outside of the park area. Everyone scattered and the women and children headed towards their cars first. The wonderful men in the group came back after settling their families in their cars to help pack up despite face pelting rain. Our friend Joe grabbed the pizzas and cake, and the men help take balloons (which meant the world to Kylie) and whatever they could to help Sean get the stuff back into the car. I remember seeing mini marshmallows, chips and stuff splattered all over the ground. I’ll never forget my sweet baby whining “my birthday, my birthday, my birthday” as we tried to make our way back to towards the car. It made my heart sink. We reassured her that her friends were coming to her house to sing happy birthday. In her sweet little sad voice she said what she always says to us “okay”. Back at the house we dumped clothes and towels into the dryer, everyone settled into a spot with their families, enjoyed pizza, beverages and beer. We sang the Birthday song, served up some cupcakes, Sean poured Lauren and I an 'appletini' and all was right with the world. Everyone was such troopers and helped make Kylie’s 3rd birthday special. Despite the minor storm, we had a memorable celebration and we have the best friends 'evah'.