Shopping woes

So, my friend Julie is getting married in Utah in a couple of weeks and I get to go! I'm so excited, and I was even excited about shopping for a new dress. That is, I was excited until I started shopping. I think I hit every clothing store in Goldsboro. Her colors are lime green and eggplant, and I actually was looking forward to finding something lime green to wear. I found a pair of lime shoes for $5, then I found a shirt and jacket to go with a skirt I already have, and then I got a bracelet -- all at different stores. I wasn't very smart at all because I got home and none of the greens matched!! All that shopping took me a whole day and I had to return everything except the shoes were on clearance so I couldn't get a refund for them. I didn't think that would be a problem because I would just find something that matched the shoes. Whatever! After much ado, I finally found a sleeveless green dress that I could just wear a jacket over. I don't really like doing that, but I was getting down to the wire. My next problem -- I couldn't find a cute jacket or sweater to wear with it. So I went back out today and found the perfect white jacket in Belks, and wouldn't you know it came from the Tommy Hilfiger rack and cost $89!!! I was so disappointed. Would it be dishonest to buy it and then return it in a couple of weeks after the wedding? I considered it, but I refrained. I really do want to keep the dress. Anyway, I found a brown sweater in Target, and I think it matches. I would have preferred the white, but they only had XXL and I needed a medium. Now I remember why I don't go shopping and why my clothes are always out of style.

Why do my cute princesses even own this?

This morning I looked into the girls closet, and this got my heart pumping just as much as any cardio workout ever could. Why have I allowed this to remain in my home, and why do the girls protest the idea of throwing it away?

Sweet girls

Our girls are just so sweet. Here are some of the really sweet things they have said lately.

Tonight I was on my way out to church and Hannah said, "Mom, I love your hair." I straightened it today, so that was nice that she noticed. Then she said, "And I love your whole self, too."

In the car the other day Nikki was telling me that her best friends were her cousins Emma, Lexi, Lydia, and Eliza. And I asked her what about Hannah. Her response was, "Yeah, I love her. She's my best sister."

Every morning Nikki asks me what day it is and what we are going to do. If my list isn't good enough for her, she'll say, "Mommy, I want to play with you." I think that one is really sweet, but I must admit that when she says it to me several times throughout the day when she doesn't want to find something to do on her own, it gets a little old. I can only play Chutes and Ladders but so many times a day.

Hannah and Nikki wanted to buy a piggy bank recently, and I haven't been able to find anything cute and cheap whenever I remember to look in the stores. So we went on ebay and Hannah loved this little turtle bank we saw. Since there was only one of them, and Nikki didn't have much money, Hannah said she would buy it and give it to Nikki. She is always giving, which reminds me of how much she shared her treats from school with Nikki this year. She would get a treat almost every afternoon for good behavior and many times she would save her treats for several days either for a family party or to just share with Nikki. -- As a side note, we won the turtle bank but it broke in shipping. Sad, huh? Nate found some cute duck banks online as replacements that haven't arrived yet.

Nikki's preschool graduation

Nikki's preschool graduation was last night. So adorable!

Nikki's class said the Lord's Prayer at the beginning. I was so proud of her. She did the best out of her whole class, if I do say so myself. Although, it may have just seemed that way because she was talking so loud we couldn't hear anyone else. =)

This is the fan club.

This clip is a part of the Hokie Pokie. I hope this posts alright. My videoing skills are pretty minimal, but I think you can see how into it Nikki was. I could usually hear her over everyone else. And then the few times she was quiet, I could hear her cousin Lexi singing out. Must be something in the blood. They were precious.

Recent happenings

We have had a lot going on lately and the batteries in my camera have been dead! Finally I bought some new rechargable batteries and since then have yet to remember to take the camera along with me.

I could have cried when the camera didn't work at the girls' dance recital. I'm still going to just have them dress up again so I can get their picture in their recital costumes. They did such a great job and keep asking me why they can't continue dancing through the summer. Nikki even taught her dance to her cousins this afternoon.

Last week Nikki's preschool had spirit week. Tuesday was pajama day, Wednesday was crazy hat day (Nikki wore a red cowgirl hat), and on Thursday they all played at the park. These are a couple of pictures Alli took that day.

Nikki and Lexi

Today was Memorial Day, and Mike and Sherrie invited us to come spend the day with them on their boat. It was so much fun. The girls loved riding in the tube, and we even convinced Nate to ride in it with me. He doesn't care for the water, so that was pretty big. I tried water skiing for the first time ever. I was so excited that I actually stood up! I never lasted long, but I was still happy that I could do it even a little bit. It was really hard to keep my balance once I got up. It will be fun to go and try again sometime. It was a perfect day to be out on the lake, and we all came home exhausted. A great day!

Bedtime

The girls have had a hard time getting to sleep for the past couple of nights, maybe because it is still so light outside at bedtime. As frustrating as that is, Nikki has just cracked us up. One night this week, the girls were jumping around in their bed making all kinds of noise. As we were debating how long to let it go before interfering, they came out to tell on each other. Hannah said Nikki had put her feet on her side of the bed, and then Nikki said, "But Hannah ... Hannah ... well, Hannah almost hurt me."

Then last night after bedtime we heard Hannah have a really big sneeze. Next thing we know she comes darting out of her room running for some tissue in the bathroom. Then Nikki comes walking out trying to copy her, but it was a terrible fake. "Shoo. Shoo. I need to blow my nose." Nate and I couldn't help but laugh at her.

Mother's Day

Today was a wonderful Mother's Day. Nate was just amazing, and he didn't even act like it was a lot of work for him to do everything he did for me. I got breakfast in bed, and he helped the girls pick out their dresses and get ready for church. I only had to do their hair this morning. Then he did all the dishes all day long. He cooked supper and even invited JW & Alli over to eat with us. He made brownies from scratch for dessert and they were really good. I have to speak in church next Sunday, and I while I was working on my talk this afternoon he took care of whatever the girls needed so I wouldn't be interrupted. He was just sweet, and I think the part of it that meant the most to me was that he never made a big deal out of his service. It felt like he was really happy to do anything he could. I married a wonderful man.

Of course everyone thinks about their mother on Mother's Day. My mom was just the greatest person. It's hard to even find the words to describe how I feel about her. I really don't know anyone that I look up to more than Mom. A child doesn't really understand that their mother is a person with a life and dreams of her own outside of her position as mother. When Mom died, I think I was just beginning to grasp the fact that she was her own person, and I was just beginning to see that she could be my friend. Sometimes I feel a little jealous of my brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, anyone who knew her longer than I did. I think that's why I love it so much to hear other people's memories because I feel like I can learn a little more about her. What words describe Mom? Service. Fun. Devotion. Strength. Integrity. Love. She was just everything I hope to become.

Haircut

Hannah has loved having long hair, so I was surprised today when she said she wanted a haircut. I jumped right on it, though, because it is always a mess even after I just finish brushing it.

This is almost a before shot. In the middle of cutting it, I realized what a drastic change this would be and wanted a picture of it.

Here's the after shot. It actually got cuter as she played around tonight and it fell into a good shape.

Tonight she came running through the kitchen swishing her hair around saying, "I love my hair! I love it! I just love my short hair!" I'm glad she likes it. I remember always being on the verge of tears when my mom cut my hair. Maybe I still have a few more years before we get there.

Bikers

My camera is running low on batteries, so I didn't get many pictures of Nikki's birthday party. I think Alli took a couple for me. The cousins came over and swam and had lots of fun. It's pouring rain outside right now, but it was perfect weather this morning. Nikki loved her new purple bike and Sherrie got her a Dora helmet. Alli got her a sleeping bag that came with a tent and a blow up chair and flash light. It is really cute, and she thinks they are great. A really fun day. It's hard to believe our baby is four years old!

Nikki's swimming pool cake

For me, the birthday cake is really the biggest part of the birthday party. I thought this was a really cute cake and should have been pretty easy to make, but nothing I do ever turns out simple. I ended up making two cakes. The first one broke when I was putting the top layer on, and then when I added the jello to the middle it pushed the sides of the cake out. I thought if I propped it up and refrigerated it then maybe it would harden enough to stay together. That's what the bananas and apples are for. It didn't work, though. I even stuck it with about half a box of toothpicks. The second time worked much better. Nikki loved it.