Julie's First Day of Pre-School

Today, Julie went to Building Blocks for the first time. When we got there, she could not get out of the car fast enough. She carried in her own lunch and put it in her cubby. Then, when she saw the kids playing play dough, she stopped mid run to glance back and say bye to me, and off she went. When I picked her up, they said she did great. The other kids were already going down for naps, so the teachers couldn't really talk, but I am sure Julie will do great there.

Memories of Memere

Just 4 1/2 months after Pepere passed away, my Memere went to join him. You hear so often how when one person dies after so long of being together, the other one is not far behind. I think I knew all along that this would be the case with Memere and Pepere.

When Pepere passed away, it never really sank in. I had just had Andy and life was so wonderful with my new perfect baby boy that I wasn't as heartbroken as I probably would have been. With my Memere passing, it is safe to say that my heart is shattered right now.

I remember when Memere and Pepere would come visit, I would be so excited for weeks before. Memere would always cook us yummy things and buy us toys and souvenirs everywhere we went (even if they were places that we went all the time).

She would rearrange our kitchen cabinets so that they made sense to her. It would drive my mom crazy. One time, she cleaned our water heater and showed my mom the dirty rag at 5 am after my mom had been up all night with me (I was only a few months old) and said "I don't think this has been cleaned since last time I was here!" Good guess Memere!

She used to sit at our house, in 100 degree weather and knit mittens for underprivileged children out of the ugliest yarn anyone has ever seen.

When she laughed really hard, she didn't make noise, her whole body just shook. We all try to imitate it, but it can not be done.

Memere taught me how to cross stitch and embroider (yes, I know how to cross stitch and embroider). She made me doll blankets (some Julie still uses for her dolls). She did puzzles with us and read books with us and let us do whatever we want. She always got the same enormous ice cream cone from Hodgies that we got. In fact, sometimes I think she wanted to ice cream more than we did! She always had something sweet to give us after each meal.

When we woke up in the morning, the cereal, bowls and milk were waiting out on the table for us. The milk was usually warm by this point, but we didn't seem to mind. Over breakfast we would discuss what we wanted for lunch :)

As we got older, if she wanted us to not sleep til noon, she would play ragtime tunes on the piano at the bottom of the stairs and pretend like she wasn't trying to wake us.

One time my cousin Keith and I walked up to the pizza shop up the street and bought a HUGE cheese pizza. We brought it home and Pepere sat and watched as Keith, Memere and I devoured the whole thing.

Memere and Pepere were a huge part of my life even though they lived so far away. We got a card and a dollar on every holiday (even the obscure ones) and they called almost every weekend. I was always excited to see them, no matter if they came here or we went there. They supported everything that we ever did.

I will miss my grandparents every day. I will miss seeing Pepere without his teeth and miss Memere coming up randomly, patting my arm, telling me she is so happy I was there. I hope that I am able to be half the strong, intelligent woman that my Memere was, and raise my children to be successful and independent as she did hers.

Julie's Party

Sunday was a beautiful day for a backyard birthday complete with hot dogs and cupcakes. Most of the pictures are self explanatory, so enjoy. :)

And one of Andy for good measure.

Happy Birthday Julie Bess!

Today my little girl turns two years old (well, tonight at 10:08, but you get the idea). I can't believe how amazing she has made our lives in just 2 short years. Seems like just yesterday she was born, but honestly, I can't remember what our lives were like before she came along.

We did have a party for her today, and as soon as we recover, I will post some of the great pictures of her and her friends. :)

Bittersweet

Today was Julie's last day at Apple Valley Day Care. Next week she will be starting Pre-school. I know that she is ready, but I am starting to question if I am! I will miss seeing my old friend Beth every Wednesday and Thursday. Having that little bit of girl time in the middle of the week was always something that I looked forward to and I know I will truly miss. I will miss our catch up time and miss picking Beth's brain on how to handle Julie's tantrums or whatever misbehavior she is into that week. I have always looked up to Beth as a mom, and am thankful that she shared a little of her wisdom with me in the last couple years.

Beth has watched Julie since she was just 3 months old. Julie learned to smile, sit, crawl, walk and talk all in that time. I look at the pictures of Julie when she started playing with Anabelle and I can't believe where the time has gone.

At lunch today I brought pizza and cupcakes to "celebrate" her last day. The kids were thrilled, but there was more than one time where I thought I would lose it. Beth got her a big girl backpack to take to school. Julie loves it because she is just like Anabelle now.

Julie talks about her day care friends all the time when she is not there, so I will be bringing her by to say hello often. Anabelle will still be coming with us to gymnastics every week, so I am glad that friendship will be able to continue to grow.

I know that this is the right move for Julie, but I think I will have to wait until next week to feel the sweet part of this bittersweet event.

Andy's 4 Month Checkup

Andy did great at his Dr apt, he was happy and smiling the whole time (except when he got his shots of course). He weighed in at a whopping 16 lbs (78 Percentile) and was 26.5 Inches long (93 Percentile). The Dr was very happy with him, his eye movement, head control and he even laughed at the Dr (showoff).

So all in all, he’s perfect….but we already knew that!

4 Months and His First Beach Trip

For Andy's 4 month birthday, we went to the beach and he LOVED it! It was the most beautiful day, about 75 degrees, sunny, clear, no wind. We were running around in shorts and t-shirts (or no shirt in Julie's case). Andy was so happy in the sun and sand. He is getting more and more smiley and giggling too. He is still really trying to turn over, but alas, I think he is just too heavy for his skills. He is a happy boy though and I can't even remember what it was like before he was here.

While we were at the beach, we took his picture, and Julie wanted to show him the water. We had him standing up, he is so strong, so she thought he was able to walk! It was so funny, she took his hand and said "come on Brother!" She will be ecstatic when he can crawl or walk with her.

We go to the Dr for Andy's 4 month shots :( on Wednesday. I will update you all then on his stats.