So I’m away from home for 4 or 5 days and when I get back, Violet and daddy have a whole new routine going. For instance, I’m quietly eating breakfast with her and all the sudden she breaks out into, “I’m winning, mommy. I’m winning.” and starts shoveling food into her little mouth as fast as she can. Then, we are heading back upstairs and she starts racing her pregnant mom up the stairs winning at that too.
Finally, it’s bedtime and apparently she’s learned to count her blessings, which is a good thing, right? So, we are going down the list and I figure 5 blessings is a lot for a little girl for one day. So I’m listing out all the blessings and she lifts one of her little fingers at a time… 1) fun day at the beach, 2) getting to go bye bye in the car, 3) getting an ice cream… and so on. Then, I’m done, but not Violet. She wants to keep going and going and going. Now, I’m really struggling. I’m doubling up on blessings and getting desperate for something that can be considered a blessing. After many attempts at distraction, I finally put my foot down and tell her, it’s bed time. Blessings are done. She breaks into tears. Hmmm… is this how it’s supposed to go?
I knew I couldn’t make it through all these fall birthdays without messing up. 
Sorry, Jason. I DO love you and wish you a very Happy birthday! I hope you had fun and that someone was able to think of one thing that could make this brother blush. 
Hard to do.
Sorry again about missing your birthday. I was reunited with Violet for “her day off” (and ours) and she had a lot of plans which included watching… Oh, only the best movie ever made… the little mermaid — or at least the suitable/toddler friendly parts. She was pretty tickled by that and had a blast. She is crazy about mermaids. I’ve tried the princess thing, the ballerina thing… anything to diversify her interest a little, but no… it all comes back to mermaids, or Oriel to be specific.
Anyways. That’s my excuse for missing the deadline, Jason. I love you though and it was nice to see you flash by while you were out here.
and missing my honeys… I heard Violet’s doing well, but I wonder if she’s more excited about me coming back or the mermaid I promised to give her for being good. (BTW, she doesn’t normally wear all these funny hair styles. She usually has pretty curls.) My baby love.
thanks for the pic, Connie.
Happy Birthday, little sis! You thought I’d forget, didn’t you?
Have a wonderful year ahead. It’s weird having my baby sister turn teen on me. Makes me feel old. Maybe I AM old! I will really try not to be jealous of all the perks of being the baby of the family — mom’s undivided attention, the horseback riding lessons, the music lessons, AND… the braces. Grrrrr. Ah, well… Happy new year. I hope it’s a blast! Love ya!
And she misses you too. She gets all happy when we talk about you.
Post about Violet
Grandpa comes tonight and will spend a week with us at the Beachhouse. Yeay! We’re excited! See you soon, dad. We almost got to see uncle Jason Wells too, but he’s got a busy schedule and a lot of prior engagements. Grrr….
If you live in this part of the world, you may be interested in the upcoming Parent Connection Family Swap Meet that happens twice a year that’s coming up in about 6 weeks. It’s probably 100-200 stalls of families selling their used children’s toys, books and equipment, furniture, education stuff, but the advice is… get there early. Its got a lot of stuff for younger children in particular, but you’ll find all sorts of things there. Here’s the info:
Family Swap Meet
Sunday, September 28, 2008
9:00am – 1:00pm
Canyon Crest Academy (Carmel Valley)
5951 Village Center Loop Rd., San Diego, CA 92130
Families with infants, young children & parents with a baby on the way will find something special at The Family Swap Meet.
Admission $2/person and 12 and under free. Sponsored by The Parent Connection.
Violet got her glasses in today. She likes them so far… Keep that part in your prayers. She’s even got a special smile she flashes anytime someone comes to check them out. And, if you ask her who picked them out… “Me did!” (flashy smile)
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Violet got a check up today. Her eyes seem to be showing signs of strain and turning in a little — or one is at least. The verdict… she needs to wear glasses all the time. That’s going to be a fun job, maybe for Justin. Nyahaha. She was miserable today after getting her eye dilated, but she survived and we survived and will continue to survive, Lord willing, through the coming weeks/months of learning to like wearing glasses full time. I’ll post a picture of her first pair of glasses once we pick them up.
We also got to spend a wonderful day off with Angela and FCF. We ate at Ali Baba’s Middle Eastern Restaurant, which was excellent. We didn’t get to eat under the tent, but there was a rockin’ Turkish party going on in the next room which kept Violet bobbing up and down to the rhythm all throughout dinner. We had fun. Thank you, Angela. You’re the best and so is your team. Muah!
It’s been, um, 35 good years so far? Or is it 36? I’m proud of you both for all the love and sacrifices its taken to make it this far and I pray this year is a very special one! Love you.