Last Week...

Mommy: What sound does a sheep make?

Adeline: Ba, Ba

Mommy: What sound does a cow make?

Adeline: MOOOOOOO

We continue to go down the list all the way to a lion who goes ROOOAAAARRRR!

THIS WEEK.....

Mommy: What sound does a sheep make?

Adeline: Shakes her head no while sometimes saying "na"

Mommy: What sound does a cow make?

Adeline: Shakes her head no while sometimes saying "na"

Mommy: Adeline, are you going to respond to everything I ask by shaking your head and saying "Na"

Adeline: Shakes her head while saying "Na"

A night with the Rudd boys....

We were surprised with a special visit with all three Rudd boys. Daniel, Isaac and Will showed up at our house tonight with pizza and bread sticks. The truth is they did call before coming, but who could turn down these guys and pizza? Adeline was very excited when they came in through the door and was on her best behavior all night. We were very impressed and proud of Adeline for how well she played with the boys and shared her toys. Maybe some of her aggressiveness is wearing off?:)

Here Adeline is reading to Isaac
Here all three kids are sitting on Adeline's pull out couch.
A fun shot of a three Rudds. What I love is Will's tattoo on his head. Tattoo's are an incentive for using the "big" potty. I think the boys are getting pretty good at using the potty because when they were getting changed for bed they each had tattoo's ALL OVER their bodies:) It is so cute:)

We ended the night with Will and Adeline playing musical pipes. (Isaac was upstairs using the potty)

Thanks for coming boys. We had a great time!

Our Entertainer

Last night when everyone was arriving for our home community Adeline was ready. She greeted everyone at the door with a "Hi" and a sweet smile. She proceeded to make sure that everyone was paying attention to her and if they weren't we would hear a LOUD squeal(meaning....look at me right now).

We always put her on display with her most recent tricks that we go through one after another. Sweet eyes, high five, clap(to the song If You're Happy And You Know It...), scary voice....and the list goes on. She knows all of the Disney princesses by name all the way down to Mrs. Potts the coffee pot from Beauty and the Beast. Who would have thought that a purchase at Meijer for a Disney collection of books would bring so much joy.

By the end of the night she was pretty tired from running around, jumping on her couch and entertaining. After turning literally every page of my bible in my lap she closed it frustrated, stood up, and started to cry uncontrollably. Nothing happened. She just started to cry. The type of cry where you stop breathing for a couple seconds. With a lot of tears. It was really, really sad. Thankfully, with a big hug from Mom (and an animal cracker from the cupboard) she stopped just as fast as she started.

Dressed for bed (in her new princess pj's), hugs and kisses to Daddy, special "ba-byes" with a wave to everyone else Adeline and I went upstairs for bed. Our bedtime book for the night was one from my childhood "The House In The Hole In The Side Of The Tree". We said our prayers, gave each other Eskimo kisses, and rocked for awhile. Adeline was soon asleep.

She is so much fun. Our Entertainer. I love her.

P.S. We don't just watch Adeline all night I promise. We do read some scripture and have discussions too:)

Sweet Eyes

Adeline's New Couch

After having dinner with the Morse family Adeline thoroughly enjoyed sitting and climbing on Anna and Matthias' fun personalized chairs. So...when we left I told James that I wanted to get Adeline a chair of her own. We stopped at Meijer and found this fun couch on sale. It also pulls out into a bed.

She loves it!!!!

A day with Anna and Matthias

Tuesday I had the honor of watching Anna and Matthias Morse for the day. The more I thought about it I realized that I had three kids not much more than a year apart. Anna 28 months, Adeline 17 months, and Matthias 13 months.

We had a lot of fun playing with toys, fighting over toys, watching Sesame Street, reading books, playing tea time, and Anna and I enjoyed a special showing of Cinderella. And a bonus for me was that all three kids took a nap.

We had a great time together and Adeline is already talking about their next visit.

Go Michigan!!!!

Elmo Returns

Christmas

Comparing this years Christmas with last years I would have to say that this time was MUCH better. With Adeline happy, healthy and sleeping through the night I was able to thoroughly enjoy the holiday. James got out of work early on Christmas Eve and had the day after Christmas off which allowed us to travel together.
We went to Grandpa and Grandma Forte's house for Christmas Eve. This year it was especially nice because we had a full house. Uncle Steve was there, cousin Adam with his girlfriend Lana and their daughter Cadence(who is just 5 days older than Adeline), cousin Katy with her boyfriend Isaac and his son Danny, John and his NEW girlfriend Candy, and of course my Dad. We had a huge dinner, spent time talking, laughing and enjoyed watching the girls interact. Adeline was dressed in a very special dress that Uncle John purchased for her. She looked SOOOO CUTE!!!
Christmas day was spent with the Bean family in Olivet. We enjoyed a relaxing morning with coffee cake and an entertaining Adeline. Once Josh and Bethany arrived in the afternoon we sat around the fireplace, listened to a reading of Jesus birth(one from Luke and another special version with Adeline), and opened presents. Adeline did great. She especially liked Uncle Josh and Aunt Bethany's presents that had balloons all over them. They kept her busy. Four hours later we enjoyed a wonderful dinner that Adeline devoured and finished with a family movie.
The day after James, Adeline and I went back to my Grand Parents house to see them, John and my sister Aleisha with Michael. Michael is so cute. (I really think he should be in some contest) He was sure to watch over Adeline (or as he calls her "baby") and make sure she wasn't doing anything she shouldn't. Michael also instructed her to sit down (which she did) and read a story with him. Story time didn't last long but Michael was persistent. They also got in a couple of tug-of-war fights over toys or keys. Two strong-willed personalities in the same room kept Aleisha and I very busy.
I was also able to enjoy some quality time with a few friends. There are many parts of back home that I really miss. When we all get together it is hard not to look back and think of how it used to be. I miss it. BUT (Muskegon friends), I am also encouraged by the many relationships James and I have been able to invest in here. We have been very blessed with good friendships.
Friday evening James drove back to Olivet for a Christmas dinner with Aunt Bobbie and Aunt Bev. We met at the Olive Garden (my earthly heaven, isn't your mouth watering now), enjoyed a wonderful dinner and great conversation. We had a whole section to ourselves that we blocked off so Adeline could run around . Adeline after already eating dinner before we left, ate 2 bread sticks, some Manacotti, and a lemon.
All in all it was a wonderful Christmas. We got to see and spend quality time with all of our family and also some time with great friends. Good Memories.