Marysville Christmas

We traveled to Marysville Thursday night to spend Christmas with Rob's family. On Friday, Christmas Eve, we went to church all together. On Christmas morning, Maggie got to open a couple presents when she woke up, but had to wait until after our big breakfast to open the rest. She could hardly wait either!! She loved all of her presents, but seemed pretty partial to all the clothes she got! We spent the rest of the day relaxing before Rob's aunt, uncle, and cousins came over for dinner. Rob had to work today, so we headed home early this morning. Here are some of our Christmas photos:



Best Maggie quotes from this weekend:

• "Oh, my goodness! Thank you Mommy and Daddy. What is it?"
• Me: Maggie, did you have fun this weekend? Maggie: Yes. My favorite part was Nathan. He just cracked me up!

Rudolph Cookies

Maggie and I made Christmas treats and delivered them tonight to our neighbors and friends. She loved putting the noses on all of the Rudolph cookies!

Family Day

Rob, Maggie and I had a great day together today! It was very nice to have the whole day all together since it is so rare that our work schedules coincide with each other. We took Maggie to see Santa and she wasn't even that scared this year! She was a little apprehensive, but then sat down, told him her name and what she wanted for Christmas. She even smiled a little bit for the camera! Afterwards, we went to donate the blanket that we had made together (see previous post). Then, we visited Nana and Papa. Maggie stayed with them for a little while this afternoon, too, so Rob and I could get all of our Christmas shopping done. Needless to say, she was one tired little girl when we got home tonight!

An actual smile!!

Telling Santa what she wants for Christmas.

Life Lessons

I was looking for different things we could do with Maggie this year to help her realize Christmas is about more than just presents and Santa. We have already gone through the house and donated many items including clothes and toys. Tonight, we made a blanket for Project Linus, a charity that gives blankets to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need. Later, we are planning to take her and donate cans of food at a shelter and we will be making Christmas treats for all of our neighbors. I'm hoping these are all things that will become traditions in years to come.

Maggie with the blanket we made for Project Linus

Breakfast with Santa

Yesterday Nana and Papa met Maggie and I for breakfast with Santa at Applebees. Maggie was so excited to see Santa, until we got there! The entire time we were there, she kept a very watchful eye out for wherever Santa was.

"The watchful eye"

Opening the stocking of goodies she got.

Holding on tight to Papa and again "The watchful eye".

"Okay. I'll look at you Mommy, but I'm not smiling and I'm still going to hold onto Papa."

Dancing with Mrs. Clause

Maggie's Christmas Tree

Last week, when Maggie and I had some time off school for Thanksgiving Break, we put up our Christmas decorations. Maggie even has a little tree of her own in her room. She decorated it herself. Some of the ornaments on her tree are ornaments my brother and I helped my mom paint/make when we were little. The other ornaments are ones that Maggie has received each year. Rob and I get her an ornament every Christmas that relates to her somehow. After Maggie was done putting the ornaments on her tree, she put a blanket underneath and put her Nativity set up. She did a great job doing it all by herself and she was quite determined to get everything just right!!

Haircut

Maggie got her haircut tonight, a very much needed haircut if I might add! She has had her hair trimmed once before when she was 2, but nothing since. Well, the longer it got, her curls would just tangle more and more at the ends. It got really bad, especially when it was wet from her baths, the past few weeks. So, we went in for a little trim. Jenny trimmed off about an inch or so and added in some layers, too. She said the layers would help to keep the curls more separated and easier to comb through. I'm just happy the curl stayed! I was so worried that if we cut it, the curl would get cut out. Here are some pictures of before and after:

Before

After

Breaded Green Beans

Tonight at dinner, we had breaded green beans and Maggie said, "What's this green thing in my french fry?". We all had a good laugh at that one!!

Thanksgiving Break

Maggie and I only had school on Monday and Tuesday last week. We started our break with a doctor's appt. on Wednesday. Maggie needed her 2nd dose of her flu shot. Luckily for her, it was the nasal spray! After we got that done, we headed to Nana and Papa's house to spend the day and get some Christmas shopping done. We also got all of our Christmas decorations put up.

For Thanksgiving on Thursday, we spent the day with all of my side of the family at Uncle Brett and Aunt Ana's house. It was nice to have the whole day together to hang out, too, because Brett and Rob actually had the day off!

On Friday, we did a little Black Friday shopping, but waited until 10am!! :) We hit Wal-Mart and pretty much finished our Christmas shopping.

On Saturday night, Rob and I went out with friends, so Maggie got to have dinner with Nana and Papa and spend the night at their house. They even drove her around town to check out all the Christmas lights.

It was a great long weekend spent with family and friends!

More Maggie Funnies

When we got home today, Maggie asked if she could have a piece of candy. I said she could have 1 piece. She then got 3 pieces. When I told her she didn't need all 3, and that she was only supposed to get 1, she replied, "But mommy I need 1 for me, 1 for my baby and 1 for my puppy. My baby and puppy aren't real mommy and they can't eat candy." Now that's a nice way to try and get more candy for yourself. Unfortunately for Maggie, it didn't work out. Can't blame a girl for trying though!!

Later tonight, Maggie was playing with her toy computer that talks. She all of a sudden went running across the room yelling, "I'll be right back computer, I've got to go to the bathroom!"

Fun with Grandparents

Maggie was very excited today that Nana and Papa would be picking her up from school and taking her to their house to spend the afternoon together!! In fact, Miss Suzy said that they heard about it from Maggie all morning long at school! After I got off work, Rob and I drove up to meet his parents, my parents and Maggie for dinner. Maggie was in 7th heaven to have all 4 of her grandparents doting on her this evening. She was pretty quick to show off for them, too!

Fashion Diva in Training

Maggie has been on a kick lately of wanting to wear dresses all the time. Yesterday, she picked one and put it on. Well, she later went upstairs because she said she had to get something and this is how she came back down:

She said she didn't want to get cold when she went to play in the basement, so she put on her coat vest, winter hat, and mittens. I'm not so sure how warm crocs are though!!

Girl's Night

Maggie and I had a girl's night Friday night since Daddy was out for the evening. We watched movies, ate popcorn, and snuggled up in a warm, cozy bed together (especially nice since it was rainy and cold outside). It was great fun and I can't wait to do it again and again with her!

Maggie's Funny Face

Last week, one of Maggie's teachers said she kept tapping them to get them to look at her. When they did, she gave them this face. They all laughed and needless to say, Maggie is constantly doing it now since she thinks it's so funny!

Halloween

After heading back home yesterday from Indiana, Maggie got changed into her bunny costume and was ready to trick or treat! It was pretty chilly last night, so we only went to the neighbor's houses and a few other special friends. Here's the cutest bunny ever!

She wouldn't stop "eating" her carrot!

Dustin and Mallory's Wedding

Last Thursday, Maggie and I spent the night at Uncle Brett and Aunt Ana's house because we were leaving for Indiana early Friday morning for my cousin Dustin's wedding. We were all so excited to get on the road to see everyone that we were all awake by 5:00am!! Maggie did great in the car the whole way, despite only sleeping for about an hour! We even got to spend some time with some of our relatives on Friday night.

Saturday was the wedding and Maggie couldn't wait to get dressed and ready to go for it either. She asked me all day, multiple times, if she could change into her dress. During the ceremony and mass, Maggie got lots of attention being passed up and down the pew between all my aunts and uncles and Nana and Papa. Afterwards, at the reception, she was a DANCING QUEEN! She danced all night, whether alone, or with someone. She danced and ran and played until she crashed!

Maggie dancing with Nana and Papa

Caught in the act...we actually got her to slow down long enough for a photo!

Dancing with my cousin, Nikki

More Maggie Funnies

The other day, I caught Maggie bending and stretching when she put on her jeans. I asked her what she was doing and why she was doing that. Her reply, "You do it Mommy". Yikes! She's actually seen me doing that to stretch out my freshly washed jeans!

Maggie Funnies

Last week, when I was giving Maggie her bath, she put one of her bunny bath toys in time out. She later told me he was in time out for saying mean things. When I asked her what he said, she told me he said "dammit". She could obviously see the look of horror on my face because she then said, "What? I didn't say it. My bunny did." What was I supposed to say to that logic?! I just told her I'd hope she wouldn't say that word since she knew it wasn't okay for her to say and that bunny deserved to have a consequence for saying it. Seriously, this girl is too smart for her own good sometimes!!

Last night, we were watching TV and one of the characters whispered to another character, with her hands cupped around her mouth, that she had a secret. So, Maggie proceeded to cup her hands around her mouth and whisper to me, "I have a secret. I like belly buttons." We both had a hearty laugh at that one!

Dentist Appt.

Maggie had her 6 month checkup with Dr. Cobb today. Rob took her, and once again, she did great! They even took x-rays this time and she only gagged once! Dr. Cobb said her teeth looked great and that we are doing a good job keeping them clean. He also said she doesn't really have a whole lot of space between her teeth right now, but it's not really anything to think about until she's around age 8, once most of her permanent teeth are in. Let's hope she doesn't take after her mother in that respect, because I didn't have room in my mouth either and needed to have teeth removed before I could even get my braces put on! After they were done with the cleaning, she got to pick out a couple toys as usual. She even got to pick out and keep the Cinderella toothbrush they used on her today!

Mag's Pie

We visited Nana and Papa tonight since we needed to do some shopping in the city. Maggie requested an apple pie (I'm sure it's no coincidence their theme in school right now is apples) and this is what Nana made for her!

Book Fair Photos

Last week was also our school's book fair. There were different activities all week long. One day, Maggie and I went to a biscuits and gravy breakfast and another day, Clifford even came to visit her class!

Delicious!!

High five for Clifford!

Grandparent's Day

As promised, here are some photos from Grandparent's Day in Maggie's class last week:

Getting the scavenger hunt directions

Reading with Nana and Papa

Latest Preschool Update

Maggie has still had a couple rough patches at school and when she's gone to Baily's, but they are definitely not as severe! She cried a little at school yesterday. Baily said she teared up when she started walking out to her, but as soon as Baily pulled out the lollipop, Maggie dried it right up!! (Baily said she'd give Maggie a lollipop each day she didn't cry and Rob and I are all for using whatever works!!) Today, not a tear was shed at school or at Baily's!!!! Needless to say, she got another lollipop from Baily and a double high five from Mommy!

On another note, she is sharing more and more about her day when I ask her now, too. I used to have to initiate all of it with the questions, etc. Now, I still have to ask some questions, but she will actually volunteer some of her own information, too!! She's also remembering and naming some of her classmates. Before, she would say she didn't remember their names. She even sang a portion of one of the songs they learned in class with me yesterday! Tomorrow is Grandparent's Day in her classroom and she is very excited!

Rob's Grandpa

Rob's grandpa took a turn for the worse last week and passed away on Wednesday. We drove up to Marysville for the services this past weekend. We were there Sat., Sun., and Mon. It was a fast, emotionally tiring visit, but we were glad to have some time with Rob's family. Maggie absolutely loved all the outside playtime with the other great grandchildren, especially her cousin, Nathan! It reminded me of when I was a child and how all the grandkids would go off and play all day! It was great to see everyone and was very heartwarming to see everyone come together to celebrate such a great man.

Still a Fan of the Dryer

When Maggie was younger, she would climb into the dryer whenever I was doing laundry. In fact, she would take the clothes out, when I was folding them, just so she could get in! Well, the other day, she did it again! This time she even made sure to take a pillow along to make it more comfortable!!

Then (October 2008)

and now

Going on a Date with Grandpa

Yesterday, Rob was out of town for the day, so my parents came down and picked Maggie up from school. She wanted to play with her dress-up clothes. She kept changing into different things and coming out to show us. Well, she decided on her Minnie Mouse skirt, her pink, feather boa, her white Easter shoes, and her Minnie Mouse ears. We all commented on how fancy she looked and Papa even asked her out on a "date". She accepted and when he asked her where she wanted to go on their date, she said Wal-Mart (keep in mind pretend Wal-Mart is in our bedroom). Papa decided he needed to dress up, too, so I had to get a picture!!

Notice the pad of paper in her hand-

that's her grocery list for Wal-Mart!

Preschool Update

Maggie did great last week with school! She got a little upset on Friday after she went to Baily's, saying she missed Rob and I though. I figured it was probably because she was overly tired since she woke up a few times throughout the night.

Yesterday, she did fine again. Rob was out of town for the day, so my parents came down and picked Maggie up from school, which I think definitely helped.

Today, not so good! She had tears in her eyes when I dropped her off at school, Miss Suzy said she cried on and off all morning, and Baily said she cried pretty much all afternoon, too. When I asked Maggie about it tonight, she said she wants me and misses me. Talk about breaking my heart!

She and I had a big discussion tonight about how to handle this. We talked about the main things I figured were probably causing this and how we could fix them. I think part of the problem is she is overly tired. So, we will be making bedtime earlier. Another part is that she has a cold and isn't feeling the best. So, we are giving her medicine. Another part of the problem is that she is used to having me around from this summer. I tried to tell her that I get to drop her off everyday at school, I get to pick her up when she goes to Baily's house, and we get every evening together. Hopefully that helps. The last thing is that she is probably still adjusting to the 2 big changes (school and daycare). There is not really anything I can do with that other than reassure her and give it time.

For her sake, and mine, I hope she gets through this quickly!!

Maggie's First Day of Preschool

Maggie's first day of school went really well! Her teacher said she was one of the few that did not cry (Mommy, on the other hand, cried twice). She even got the coveted job of getting all the milk from the cafeteria for their class snack. Of course, the first thing she told Rob and I about her day was "I didn't get to do Play-Doh"! Oh well, there's always tomorrow!

Maggie is ready for school!

Maggie and her teacher, Ms. Suzy

General Update

Since we got back from our trip to Texas, Maggie has gone to Baily's multiple times. She does really well and loves going! I started back to school last week, so she went all day some of the days. It was great for her because then she could really get used to going to Baily's before her preschool started.

Last Tuesday, Rob took Maggie to our school's Sneak Peek night. It's a time for the students to meet their teacher, see their classroom, and drop off their school supplies before school starts. Since I had to meet my own students, Rob took Maggie to her classroom to meet Ms. Suzy, her teacher. She didn't want to leave when it was time to go either!

Tomorrow will be Maggie's first day of preschool. She is pretty excited! I'm excited and nervous. My goal is to drop her off at her classroom and then go cry if I need to! Thankfully, Rob has tomorrow off, so he'll be able to pick her up after her first day. I will be taking lots of photos, so look for those to be coming soon!

Texas/Oklahoma Trip

We had a great week in Texas visiting our friends Fred and Claire. While we were there, we went to the Dallas Aquarium and the Grassy Knoll. We also went to the planetarium. Let me just say the most exciting part of that visit was right before the show started. The lights dimmed, the crowd got quiet, and Maggie yells out for all to hear, "I have a crusty booger!". Needless to say, I was just a little embarrassed, and yet proud of her descriptive language! :) Every night we were there, we went to the pool that was in Fred and Claire's subdivision. It was a great end to each day and was something Maggie definitely looked forward to.



We left Texas a day early so we could break up the drive home and stop in Oklahoma City. Also, we wanted to stop at the Oklahoma City Memorial for the federal building that was bombed. The museum and memorial were very emotional and powerful.

Maggie's First Day of Daycare

Maggie had her first day of daycare today and did great! Rob said she was kind of bashful at first and then jumped right in and played with the others. They all played really well together, too. Baily said she ate great, but of course was the last one done. The other kids even asked if they could get down and play since they were already done!! Maggie will go again next week after we get back from our trip to Texas.

I also enrolled my baby in preschool today. Lots of new things coming our way and I'm sure Maggie will be just fine, it's me I'm worried about!!

Maggie and Baily

Swimming Lessons

Maggie had 2 weeks of swimming lessons and finished last Thursday. She loved going everyday! She also enjoyed getting out everyday for a short bathroom break. :) One of the instructors and I figured out she really liked the Nemo toy in the bathroom, so we're not sure if she really needed to go or not, but she did!! Nana and Papa came and watched her one day, too. Her instructor was really impressed with how far she came in such a little time. On the last day, the kids got to ride inflatables and have popsicles. They even gave us a progress report to show what Maggie is capable of. She was able to:

• kick while holding onto her instructor
• float on her back while holding onto her instructor
• float on her fin while holding onto her instructor
• float on a kickboard held by her instructor
• lie on a kickboard and kick with her instructor
• glide on a kickboard from push-off
• enter water from a sitting position
• execute a sitting dive with her instructor

Alisha, her instructor, wants us to have Maggie practice doing bubbles with her mouth in the water. Also, Maggie will put her face in the water, but it usually takes some convincing. It was hilarious each day when her instructor would have Maggie do a sitting dive into the water and Maggie would have no problems with it. She would just make sure she poked her head up like a turtle bobbing their head out of the water!

We are definitely proud of her and how well she did!!

Swimming Lessons Day 1

Today, Maggie had her first day of swimming lessons for this summer. This year we decided to try somewhere different than the Paola Pool. So, we ended up at McCracken's Gym in Olathe. Only day 1, but I was so impressed with what they were doing!!

Maggie jumped right in the pool with her instructor and never looked back! This girl loves the water! For the first 2 days, they just assess where each child is at and then get them matched up appropriately into groups. So far, Maggie blew bubbles underwater, practiced kicks, used the board to float on her stomach and her back, and even had to put her face in the water enough to get the ring that was underwater.

Too cute for words!!

Patiently waiting her turn! :)

Floating on her stomach

Floating on her back

Fritz's and Union Station

Maggie and I had a great day with Papa, Uncle Brett, and Izzy today! We went to Fritz's for the first time. Maggie was pretty impressed that a little train car brought her her food! We also went to Union Station and saw the Dinosaurs Unearthed exhibit. Some pics from the day:

Maggie working the engineer's hat at Fritz's!

At Union Station

Maggie's as tall as a 3 ft. dinosaur!

Trying to find dinosaur tracks

Checking out the dinosaurs with Izzy!

Hemonc. checkup and MRI

So, Maggie had her 6 month checkup at the hemonc. clinic yesterday. The nurses and her doctor were very excited to see her since it had been so long. They couldn't believe how much she had grown! Luckily, when they needed to draw labs, they went ahead and put in the IV they knew she would need for her MRI. Also, they had this very cool new tool they used to help them find a good vein for Maggie. It looked like a hand scanner and when they held it over Maggie's skin, they could easily tell which veins would work and which of them wouldn't. It worked so well, they only had to stick her once. She did really well with it, too. She wanted to sit up while they did it and only cried a little when they actually put the needle in. Dr. Lewing also did a physical exam and said her liver felt like a normal size.

After we finished in hemonc., we headed to radiology for her MRI. The waiting room was so packed, I wasn't sure we'd even find a seat!! Once they called us back, they only had to do the whole discussion of the procedure and the medicines they'd be using to put her to sleep since the IV was already in for them. The MRI took about an hour and a half. In fact, when they came and got me, Maggie was still asleep! She woke up within a few minutes though. She was very talkative, floppy, and wobbly, too!! She was able to keep some Sprite down and ate a whole snack bag of Teddy grahams (that girl was hungry by 3:00 because she hadn't eaten anything since the night before), so we were able to leave.

The one thing Maggie really wanted to do, that I had promised her we would do, is go to Nana and Papa's house afterwards. So, we did. Needless to say, she was still pretty groggy and wobbly. She fought us on it, but she finally took a nap to help the medicine wear off a little bit. She slept for 2 1/2 hours. When she woke up, she was still wobbly! I wanted to videotape her so bad because she looked like she had been drinking, but I thought that might be a little cruel! :) After her nap, she was also very hungry!! She ate ham, green beans, bread, chips, and 2 bowls of watermelon!

While we were at Nana and Papa's house, Dr. Lewing called to let us know the test results. She said, "Good news. Everything is normal." At first I wasn't sure if she meant the lab results or the MRI. She said she meant both. Then, I thought she meant that there weren't any new lesions on Maggie's liver and that it was stable. I was wrong. She told me that Maggie's liver is completely normal and that she has absolutely no lesions left on it at all!!!!! I couldn't believe my ears! We knew they'd go away eventually, but we thought it would take years yet. I've never been so happy to be wrong! These results mean we do not need to go back to hemonc. or have any other MRI's done!!

God has blessed our family and our Maggie! Thank you all so much for every prayer!

4th of July

Maggie loved the fireworks once again this year and did not want them to end! She kept saying, "Oh, that's a pretty one!". It was absolutely adorable!

Lounging in the car with Daddy, waiting for the fireworks to start.

Cuddling with Mommy, watching the fireworks.

Deanna Rose

Maggie and I met up with 2 of my friends and their children today to go to Deanna Rose Farmstead. We had a great time! Here are some of the photos from today:

Shelley helping Maggie pump the water

Wagon Ride with Maggie, Emma, Keaton, Taylor, and Addison

Maggie dropped the food as soon as the goats came near her,

but had no problems petting them!

Cheeeese!
This popsicle made her look like she had a green goatee!