Monday, November 30, 2009

Black Friday and other joys

I did it! I got up and went to the stores at 4 a.m.!!!!! Ok I need to deflate my head a little bit -- I did not pull a Joyce -- my sister-in-law does this marathon day starting with the earliest store she can get to and does the whole Walmart/Target/ToysRUs thing plus more. No, I only went to Kohl's and Belk and THe Children's Place in the mall. THere was a line at Kohl's but I was still in and out in half an hour and I got what I wanted at a killer price! The Children's Place was only supposed to be pajamas but I broke down and bought the cutest cutest skirt for Megan to wear for Christmas -- pictures to come in a few weeks!! But how can you resist when it's on clearance plus an additional 40% off PLUS %25 off the total purchase? You can't. Ok I can't. So my first BF experience was actually quite tame probably because I did avoid all of the crazy areas.

Chopper and I and my brother Jeff did hit Target on Saturday though just looking for basics like curling ribbon and wrapping paper. They have a ton there that is really cute but we got better deals at Joann Fabrics so I probably won't hit up Target for wrapping paper again until after Christmas. I did get one of those large spools of curling ribbon -- the cylinders -- and of course handed it to Megan because she likes to examine our purchases before we buy them -- presumably to check the quality and defects. She then spent the next 10 minutes putting the spool on her head and yelling "unicorn!" That surprised me a little because, well, we don't have a lot of exposure to unicorns but she apparently knows it and it was hilarious.

I love the holiday season with a nearly-2 year old. Of course our electricity bill is going to be atrocious because the Christmas tree lights have to be on ALL THE TIME and she repeats over and over "Chris tree, Chris tree star, Chris tree lights" and kisses it constantly. She doesn't bother the presents (no tree is complete without presents underneath, even if they are already from Santa) but we had to move them back because she falls over them when she leans in to kiss the tree. She LOVES LOVES LOVES Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas music. We've been watching a lot of their performances on YouTube and listening to it in the car and after every song she claps and says "yay! Again?" But when Chopper and I try to sing it's "no no no!!" Apparently she has a better ear for music than either of us do . . .

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

More Books Please

The other day in Goodwill I had two older women stop and stare at Megan sitting on the floor reading books while I combed through the stacks. They couldn't believe that she was a) turning the pages (of a regular book) and not tearing them, and b) actually "reading" the book. I take no credit other than loving books myself and letting her at them from day 1 but really, she is not a normal child. So we get books from the library every week too and there are some that are her favorites. Right now one of them is Lunch by Denise Fleming. It's pretty simple but really cute and Megan now knows the story well enough that she reads it along with Chopper or I. That's what the video is and it's pretty good!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

My new addiction

I am completely addicted to Goodwill! We now have two in our area now and Chopper and I have scored big time on children's books and videos. Today it was Dr. Seuss and Berenstein Bears 25 cents a piece! Plus Sesame Street videos for a buck. Who can beat that? And if they get ruined, no big deal! Last week we found Fisher Price Little People sets for an awesome price. I'm not kidding people -- I know they're not all spectacular but I highly encourage some digging! Unless you live by us and then I need you stay away from my new treasure chest . . .

Thursday, November 12, 2009

I Love Virginia!

We had amazing weather the past two weeks culminating in 74 degrees and clear skies on Monday. I'm not kidding that we were out in short sleeves in November! Of course the past two days have been cold and rainy but it was a beautiful spurt that we definitely took advantage of!

Last Tuesday after voting we drove out to James Madison's house Montpelier and celebrated our voting rights by learning more about the architect of the Constitution. The house is still under restoration but the grounds are very nice and the Blue Ridge Mountains were very blue!






Sunday I was so excited because Megan fits into this adorable dress I got on sale ages ago at The Children's Place (I LOVE LOVE LOVE their clothes). That's really one thing I love about having a girl (soon to be 2!!!) is that they are so fun to dress up! Of course she wouldn't really hold still until she had the apple and then she looks like she needs a cape or something to be a fairytale character!



Then Monday, the most gorgeous day of all, we went to Williamsburg, Virginia and had a wonderful time! We toured the capitol and the Governer's Mansion and wandered the town and Megan was sooooo good! I think it's because we kind've went at her pace and let her do a lot. I can't post all the pictures Chopper took -- he took a lot of architecture and things that he was just excited about how neat it was and yet all done by hand. We did not get a cheese slicer at the cheese shop if you can believe it (sorry Alicia) but we had a great time!





You can kind've see the baby bump in the picture of Megan and I -- she's growing! And kicking! Still no name -- we have a list of about 7 that we're talking about and it's still growing even so I think it will be a while before we decide.

I love Virginia and the history opportunities!!!