The Wedding

Bree and I were invited to a wedding on Saturday. I was very excited. It was the first "party" thing I'd been invited to in years. Or maybe it's better to say it's the first "party" thing I've wanted to go to in years.

Thanks to SophieKat and the amazing 2T collection, Bree had a party dress already!


The wedding was at a horse farm, and it was a gorgeous day. I was hoping that I'd get a lot of pictures of Bree. For the most part, I did!

Bree was very excited to see the horses, especially since they seemed to be so friendly!

The horses were beautiful and friendly.

The story of our wedding experience is actually quite short. The ceremony started after 5pm and it was beautiful. Also a bit chilly, as it was outdoors and when the sun went down, the temperature dropped quickly. Bree is still mastering the art of whispering so it was quite the effort to keep her quiet. The promise of cake worked suprisingly well, actually. Plus, she was enchanted by the sight of the bride in her princess dress.

Once the ceremony was over, it was time for cocktails and hor d'oerves. But alas, I didn't get to have either one. Bree was so wound up that in the middle of running around, she came up behind me, wrapped her hands around my waist. and bit me on the butt. With enough excitement that it actually hurt. Since bad behavior is not rewarded with a party and cake, we left.

Once Bree realized that we were really leaving, she started screaming for all she was worth. "I'm DONE CRYING NOW!" followed by "I don't WANNA LEAVE the PAAAARRRRTTTTYYY!" and then came my favorite: "BUT WHAT ABOUT MAH CAAAAKKKE?!"

I should have known better. Really. Too much Halloween candy, no nap, and a party - just a little too much for her to handle. Or at least handle well. She hasn't bitten anyone (me) in months - and I think she was just too excited. But clearly she was a disaster waiting to happen. I never even got to congratulate the bride and goom.

I'm hoping that 3 for her will be better than 2 was. Otherwise, I might not make it until she's 4!

Halloween 2009

This year, preparing for Halloween was fun for us. But Bree is also at the age where things are starting to scare her, so there was a limit to how much Halloween "fun" we had this year. We did carve a pumpkin, though. I ended up waiting until Halloween day, because every time I tried to do it in the evening, it just ended up being the wrong time. Bree selected the design for the pumpkin - nothing too scary, we ended up with a kitty cat. You can see that in some of the pictures below.




On Friday night, the Little Gym had a Halloween party for the kids and parents. I wasn't sure how Bree would do with such a mix of big kids and little kids, but she did great. We won two door prizes (YAY!) and stayed almost to the end. It was Bree's first "party" of any kind and I was really worried about how she would act when it was time to leave. She has been known to scream and throw fits if she's not ready to leave. She was actually pretty good this time, and she got a balloon on the way out, so that's always a great bribe for good behavior.

On Saturday, we did "Boo at the Zoo" this year and we'll definitely do it again next year because it was a lot of fun. We met Sophia and her family and we had a great time. We left the zoo when it closed at 3pm (they were preparing for the night time event, which was more for big kids and adults). Bree slept for about 15 minutes in the car on the way home, and that was all she was going to get for the day. I plied her with candy to give her enough energy to last through trick-or-treating.

We started our trick-or-treating early, around 5:45. We did go to more houses this year than last year, but we didn't do the whole neighborhood. There were some houses that Bree refused to go up to, because the people were dressed up and looked scary. It was a fantastic night for trick-or-treating, it was quite mild and everyone was out in their driveways having fun.

We went back home around 6:30 to pass out candy at our house. Bree had a great time seeing all the kids in their costumes. She did get scared by a few of the big kids, who felt bad when she cried and showed her it was just a mask. She wasn't sure about the whole "mask" concept, but I suspect she'll get it next year.

Also? Thanks again, Uncle Shaun, for the costume! We got TWO years out of it. :)

A New Friend

Bree isn't really all that social at Little Gym. I mean, come on, she's two. She'd be just as happy if she were the only kid there. But, she's not. And we've made friends with Sophie and her mom Andi.

We met them at a local park one Sunday morning to let the girls run around. Bree did most of the running, and Sophie did her best to keep up. Sophie just turned two, so Bree is happy to show her the ropes as far as being a new member of the Terrible Two club.

At first, Bree was not all that interested in playing with Sophie. But then as time went by, Bree would stop and wait for Sophie (and call COME ON, SOPHIE!).

We met Sophie and Andi at the zoo yesterday for "Boo at the Zoo." Here are the girls in their costumes. Bree was a flower (again - yes, the benefits of a slow growing child) and Sophie was Tinkerbell.

It is interesting to me that Bree will allow Andi to guide her in ways that she won't allow me to do. For example, (and not a big deal, just an interesting example) before yesterday, Bree wouldn't go near the prairie dog exhibit from the inside/underneath. I have tried, oh, I have tried. She never wanted anything to do with it. But when Andi took Sophie inside/underneath, Bree wanted to try it. (Peer pressure?) Bree, of course, loved it. It's the prairie dog's eye view of the prairie dogs. And they were all out enjoying some pumpkins as a halloween treat. (Incidentally, Bree was a bit disturbed that the animals were eating pumpkins. Until that point, she thought that pumpkins were just things that sat on the porch step.)

Fun fact! Bree is 2 1/2 and weighs 23 pounds. Sophie is 2 and weighs 34 pounds! I think Bree has an inch of height on Sophie, though.

So this next picture is hilarious because it clearly illustrates what it's like when two 2 year olds get together - it is totally like herding cats. Their combined attention span is 25 seconds and they are always on the go, go, go. But it's fun. And they had a blast together yesterday at Boo at the Zoo.

Is That My Shaun?

A conversation that took place last month. I was on the telephone with a coworker.

Bree: Is that my Daddy?
Me: No.
Bree: Is that my Grandma?
Me: No.
Bree: Is that my Papa?
Me: No.
Bree: Is that my Shaun?
Me: No.
Bree: Is that my Amy?
Me: No.
Bree: Oh. (walks away)

Weight Check (from September)

I think I may have mentioned a time or two before that Bree loves going to the doctor. LOVES. We're talking big puffy red heart love, here. When Bree gets a boo boo, it's not uncommon for her to say, "I gotta go to the doctor!" or she'll say, "Doctor gonna look at my boo boo!"

For Bree, there are three things that are the BEST THINGS EVER at the doctor's office. One: the doctor's stool that spins. Two: being able to wash your hands in the same room, OMG! Three: the doctor who Bree adores.

We're back on six-week weight checks. This started from the digestive issues Bree had earlier this summer, which have since been resolved, but Bree's growth chart is no longer the curve that she had been on. At the last weight check, Bree had only gained 4 ounces in 6 weeks. That's not really indicative of growth, although she did get taller. So we're back on the periodic weight checks. Our next one is November 9th, so I've got Halloween working in my favor. My evil plan is to make sure that ALL of her candy gets eaten by then. This plan, though, is a double edged sword because I will be the person dealing with her bouncing off the walls, unable to sleep. My plan may be changed drastically by November 3rd. I'll try to keep you posted.

But I think that these benign weight checks are the reason why Bree loves the doctor. She gets weighed, measured and checked out and then she gets a sticker. So yeah, the doctor's office isn't a place that she associates with pain. I'm okay with that. At some point, this unholy love of the doctor will change. I'll be sad when it does, to be honest.

The doctor that we've had here has been wonderful. When I was pregnant, the idea of "auditioning" a pediatric practice was so foreign to me. I had to attend an orientation for the practice (which does actually make a lot of sense) and I really enjoyed the pediatricians who saw Bree right after she was born and being treated for jaundice. We only saw them for four months before moving here. I did as much research as I could do, but eventually went with a recommendation from a co-worker. This practice has been wonderful and I think we've seen three of the six doctors that they have at the practice.

Bree's doctor does remain convinced that there is nothing medically wrong, that Bree will just always be a small kid. BUT, a gain of only 4 ounces in six weeks isn't a good sign. I'm really hoping that we'll see at least a gain of a pound at our next visit. But even if we don't, we'll be back to the doctor in another six weeks, giving Bree an opportunity to twirl on the doctor's stool, charm the staff and get another sticker.