Annie & The Rosary

Annie has always been enthralled by The Rosary, she even took her very first steps towards our dangling Rosary beads during our nightly Bible reading and prayer together. Well, we are still continuing that tradition, and these days Annie is very interested that she is on the "right bead" as we are saying our decade per day. Here she is, dressed appropriately (LOL), and holding the glow-in-the-dark Rosary which was the first one I ever received. An Easter Bunny saying the Sorrowful Mysteries during Lent as preparation for Jesus' resurrection. What a photo!

More Poopy Milestones!

I just had to record this milestone with this precious bare-bottomed picture: Annie can now go to the bathroom totally herself, . . . including wiping and washing her hands! I am so proud of her!!! (Granted we're still at the point where I like to "check" that she has gotten it all, but she is doing very, very well. Potty from the front, poopy from the back, . . . everything!)

Poor Grandma!

Today we made an unexpected visit to the hospital in Newberry because, after a few days of abdominal pain, Grandma had to have her appendix removed. We brought some flowers, lots of pictures drawn by the girls, and a special card . . . when Leia Rose saw this card in Cracker Barrel this morning, she said, "Look! It's Grandma!" Ha! The reason why she said that is because Grandma always floats on a raft when we swim in the lake during the summer, . . . she's always wearing sunglasses and relaxing just like this. Well, we figured Grandma could use a laugh today, so this became her get-well card. : ) This little trip was also evidence that Annie still needs a nap every day. ; )

Cheerleading Sleepover

Tonight PharmAgra had their company party at HobNob, so the girls got to have their second sleepover with Oma and Papa! These are such special times for the girls, . . . who just adored putting on a cheerleading show for Oma and Papa this time! And, you know what? It's not the girls who miss ME, . . . it's Mamma who misses THEM! Tonight I started going up the stairs to kiss them before I went to bed, . . . and then realized they weren't there! : ( The next night, I loved on them extra long while they were asleep, . . . and even took pictures. Oh, I just miss them so much when they are away even for one evening!

Meeting Oliver Fox

Oh, we have been waiting for this for SO long!!! Today we finally got to meet little Oliver Fox McCade!!! Sarah has been such a good friend of ours since she taught Leia Rose at Artgarden, . . . and us moving to the mountains hasn't stopped our friendship! Luckily, Sarah's in-laws live in Celo, so today we met Sarah and Oliver in Asheville at a little, quaint restaurant called The Early Girl Eatery. It was so much fun to hold little Oliver, . . . SUCH a good baby at four months! : ) Meanwhile, the girls drew their own versions of Cowgirl Jesse and Bullseye. ; )

Olympic "Figure" Skating

Well, the Winter Olympics are in full swing, and I was very excited to share some of them with the girls, . . . especially the figure skating. Leia LOVED cheering on Mao Asada from Japan (even more than the Americans!), knowing that her friend Yukino was cheering for the same young lady, . . . from halfway across the world. Of course, when I first asked the girls if they wanted to see some "figure skating," they both immediately thought we were going to get out figures and have them skate along the wood floor. Ha! So, yeah, there was some disappointment involved. LOL

Learning-Is-Fun Progress

Well, in preparation for Montessori School for Annie next year, Mamma has been working tirelessly with Annie to improve her letter recognition during Learning-Is-Fun Time. Annie can sing the alphabet song, . . . and today learned to recognize exactly half of the capital letters. Of course, numbers is Annie's thing, so this is hard for her. Today I let her take the numbers she recognized and make a train with the Strawberry Shortcake figures that corresponded with those letters, . . . and then some.

Picnic in the Treehouse

When there is a warm day this winter, we HAVE to take advantage of it! Today, the girls suggested a picnic in our treehouse. WE DID IT! : )

A Visit from Grandma & Grandpa

It was wonderful to explore Pisgah National Forest (including Looking Glass Falls) with Grandma and Grandpa on an oddly warm day this winter! The girls had fun gathering sticks down by the French Broad River, . . . and Daddy surprised them saying, "That's not a stick, THIS is a stick." I love the expression on their faces when they noticed. : ) Grandma even came bearing early-Easter lollipops! : )

Batman & Robin (and other Lego Wii Games)

Leia has been really into making little figures out of clay these days. They are so good that I end up putting them in my curio cabinet! Here is the most recent: Batman & Robin, . . . in honor of Leia's and Daddy's newest Lego Wii Game: Lego Batman. I have such wonderful memories of playing Intellivision with my own Dad, . . . and now the girls are having the same kind of experience with their Daddy! : )

A Valentine Visit with Shenan

This visit was more than just a birthday party and a park! The girls had so much fun together (and so did the Moms and Dads)! Leia got to cheer on Shenandoah as she played a basketball game, there were puppet shows in the new playroom, valentine candy, and so much more, . . . before the school bus pulled up on Monday and it was time to say "goodbye" until next time.

Maymont with Shenan

Maymont is a spectacular park in Richmond, Virginia.We all went there together this Sunday, and it was SO much fun! A petting zoo, a great hike, stepping stones, piking up algae (otherwise known as "allergy") with sticks, lots of snow-eating on the part of Annie, . . . even a surprise film done by film school students (which was quite surreal)!

Special Sleepovers (Annie's First!)

It was especially wonderful to see Annie truly be able to interact with Armelle and the other big girls this time, . . . so it was high time for another big first: Annie's First Sleepover! Sleepovers are always the highlights of a visit to the Worrels. My girls never have so much fun with friends!

Shenan's Chuck E Cheese Birthday Party

Just as it was a blessing to have Shenan and Armelle join us for Leia's birthday in October, it was a blessing for us to be able to attend Shenan's in February! Hooray for the Virginia version of Chuck E Cheese (which Leia still insists on calling Chunky Cheese). A lot of great memories came to the forefront during this party, . . . in that Leia and Shenan, Laura and I used to frequent Chuck E Cheese in Chapel Hill, . . . on early weekday mornings LONG ago. Well, that was a far cry from the chaos of a busy weekend there. LOL. But Chucky really does do a great job making the birthday girl feel VERY special! The party was a blast all around, . . . and it was a crazy feeling to let Leia go off with her friends instead of accompanying her on every single activity. And you know who really loved it, . . . as she had never really visited many times before? ANNIE! She did everything from clapping to the songs, singing and dancing, playing games, riding on the most perfect toddler ride ever (the big rocking horse), eating pizza, climbing in the tunnels above the fray (and not being able to get out again), winning tickets, to redeeming those tokens for her coveted "fishies"! In addition, we got to meet Shenan's boyfriend Jeremy. (Laura wrote on her blog a few weeks ago that Shenan mentioned she liked him "the kissy-kissy kind.") LOL.

Valentine Preparation

Leia Rose and I have been working hard on her original valentines this year. We got this idea from one of Leia's friends from Artgarden Montessori: Jessica. One year she made simple playdough hearts as a kind of valentine ornament. This year, we did the same! We used really cool stamps to make designs and even stamp Leia's name as well as her classmates'. It was hard work, but it turned out a great set of valentines!