Pizza Party

Tonight we made pizza together for supper and had a great time making a huge mess in the kitchen! Emily and Donald went to the grocery store this afternoon to pick out everything while I went shopping with Mimi. When they got home, we all went to work. Donald and Emily were in charge of the pizza while I manned the camera (most of you know that I am not much help in the kitchen!). She loved rolling out the dough with her "little roller thing" and helping Donald put all the vegetables on top. After they finished up and put the pizza in the oven, she and I worked together to make an apple crisp - one of the few recipes that I'm good at making - while Donald took some pics. Again, there was lots of mess but lots of fun. I think this is going to become a weekly event!

Looking sassy in Daddy's apron

She loved rolling out the dough!

She kept asking for a "cheesy bite"

T.C. helped to clean up any leftover cheesy bites

Ready for the oven!

More olives went on her fingers than on the pizza

Lots of cinnamon and sugar!
Can somebody please wash my hands???


Finished product - finally!

Trip to the Dentist

Today was my day to visit the dentist and Emily was (initially!) excited to join me and have her teeth "counted" by Dr. Tommy and his staff. I thought it might be a nice introductory visit before she has to go for the real deal. She enjoyed playing in the kids' area and had a blast with Donald while I got my cleaning. She came in to sit with me while Dr. Tommy checked me out and that's when her enthusiasm disappeared! She climbed up in my lap, latched on to my neck, and wouldn't look anyone in the eye. He blew up a rubber glove and drew a silly face on it for her, which caused her to thaw out - but only just a little! Aunt Rita gave her lots of stickers and goodies, which ended the visit on a good note, as did the new Cinderella toothbrush our hygienist gave her. As we were leaving in the car, she suddenly said, 'That Dr. Tommy is such a funny guy!" I guess she liked him more than she wanted to let on in the office!

Getting ready to go inside - Bear came along for comfort

Posing with Dr. Tommy's bear

Check out our pearly whites!

Happy Fourth!

Emily celebrated the Fourth of July with lots of family and friends. We had lunch with Mimi, Papa, Amy, Abby, and Nanny in the afternoon. She had fun running around with Abby for a while and then had to go home to take a nap before heading out to Amy and Lane's house off the square in Newnan for supper and fireworks. She's been begging for about a month to go and see the fireworks and the day had finally arrived! She has been too small for the past two years to stay awake late enough to see the fireworks show in Newnan but she was able to stay up late this year to see her first fireworks. Those of you who know Emily know that she hates loud noises, so we didn't know if her expectations of the fireworks would actually hold out. To our surprise, she loved the show and didn't mind the noise at all. She also loved holding her first sparkler. Hope your Fourth of July was full of family and sparklers!

A rare picture of all three of us - usually one of us is behind the camera!

Two sweet girlsPosing with NannyGetting ready for some corn on the cobSnuggling with MimiSparklers!Giving Scrawny some love Scrawny sported a new circus-lion haircut for the Fourth. Emily loved her poofy tail!

So much fun!
Happy Fourth of July!

Arts and Crafts

When Abby was little, she liked to make what she called "craps." This was sometimes a very appropriate name for the things we turned out! Emily also likes to make crafts, so yesterday evening we visited Mimi and Papa's house for some creative activities. We made bead bracelets with the girls first. This caused everyone's blood pressure to rise significantly, so we finished up and moved on to sewing. Emily got two new dresses and a purse out of the evening. Each of the girls got a hair bow for the Fourth of July and a couple of bracelets. While we worked on sewing and hair bow making, the girls made Play Doh art. How times have changed...Amy and I were NEVER allowed to play with Play Doh inside when we were little!

Getting started on a bracelet

Clowning around with Papa
Abby posing with her creation
Fashionista in her new cherry dress. That hat is actually supposed to be a purse!
The girls stole the bandannas for Emily's dress and played dress-up. Rawr!

Visiting the Library

We took Emily for a visit to the library in Peachtree City this week. She had a great time looking at all of the books, playing on the computer, and lying on the big stuffed giraffe. She became kind of territorial about the giraffe and was upset that another kid was on it at one point. We had to have a quick lesson on sharing! Donald and I read to Emily all the time and we have so many books at home that she wasn't so overwhelmed by the number of books available at the library. However, she did like taking a book of her own home with her and wants to go back again soon. As a librarian myself, this makes me very happy!

Bathing Beauty

Just taking a moment to post while Emily is twisting along with Jack's Big Music Show. I snapped this picture of her coming out of the tub yesterday and just fell in love with it. Emily generally loves a bath, especially if bubbles are included and we turn on the jets in the bathtub. Yesterday was beauty shop day, meaning she had to get her fingernails and toenails trimmed along with her other daily beauty requirements, which are extensive because of her curly hair. To make her feel better after cutting her nails and forking through her tangled curls (she hates both!), I let her wear some of my favorite perfumed lotion. She walked around smelling herself the rest of the day!

Just an FYI

I added a few new links to our list tonight, so take a look when you have some free time. You can listen to some great jazz (Stuart White - Donald's cousin), send an email to Santa (Santa Gus), and see new pictures of Baby Jace (The Wileys). Happy surfing! By the way, this is a totally unrelated picture - but I thought it would catch your attention. One of the many faces of Emily.

Fiesta!

Donald, Emily, and I went to a party tonight at the Westbrooks' log cabin out near Carrollton. She was so excited all day and kept saying, "I'm so excited to go to the party tonight!" She asked all day long if it was time to go yet. We all had a great time but she really enjoyed herself. Amy and Adam have lots of great toys and animals for little girls to play with. She especially enjoyed the Chinese checker set, although the Donny Osmond doll came in a close second (maybe it was the skin-tight red pants that did it). Emily and Sam the Dog became fast friends. Sam has a "sad leg" because he was recently bitten by a snake. Emmy gave him lots of love to help him feel better. A great evening with lots of great friends!

It's finally time to go!

Giving Sam a little love.

The sun porch was her favorite hangout - that's where all the games are!

Fun with Chinese checkers - I think they're a few marbles short now!

Too Hot in the Hot Tub!

Abby, Emily, Mimi, and I hopped in the hot tub this evening for a little soaking. There was not much relaxing because two little girls were diving, splashing, and squirting all of us. We had a great time hanging out in the tub while the menfolk went and got pizza for supper. Emily even practiced holding her nose, going under, and blowing bubbles. She's so fearless that it's starting to frighten me!

It's a Boy!

Donald, Emily, Nanny, and I were blessed to visit my cousin Shea and her new son, Baby Jace, today at the Fayette Hospital. He was born yesterday afternoon and is one of the prettiest babies I've ever seen - pride of place going, of course, to my sweet Beanie! He is a lovely round little boy with a beautiful complexion and a dusting of light blonde hair. In fact, he looks almost identical to Shea's baby pictures - and was born weighing exactly the same weight as his Mommy. He slept like an angel while we visited and allowed all of us to hold him, including Emily. She was excited to hold her very first baby and brought him the picture we made together yesterday. Baby Jace will be coming home soon and we can't wait to visit him in very own digs. Hope you enjoy these pictures of our new addition to the family!

Building

One of Emily's favorite activities is building. She took a hiatus from it for a few months, but has regained her interest in building with her block set. She especially likes to make towers. She is surprisingly good at building them really high before they fall over. Here are a few pictures I snapped the other evening of her architectural creations.

Jenga!

Starting Over