ya'll should already know what "t.f.t.p." means... if not, please reference this post. lol. now that we have that out of the way, let's talk Memorial Day weekend! all 6 of us Wilson kids [if you include Gee] had some fun in the sun as we swam Monday morning away. Gee was only out there for 30 minutes, and she got browner than i've ever gotten in my life! don't believe me? see for yourself:
this weekend was one not only of brown-ness, but also of some major milestones [in my eyes, anyway]. sweet baby Gee no longer uses a pacifier OR drinks formula!! let me tell you, the latter development was a much easier transition than the former. story time! because i know ya'll love my stories...lol :) Saturday, Gee and i went over to Old Ben Ivery's [my grandpa's] house to pick up some things for my apartment [*insert excited squeal here*]. when i got home, i realized that i had left Gee's pacifier over there. seeing as i was already settled in at the house and had no intentions of leaving again that night, i figured that must have been a sign for me to try and get Gee to go to sleep without it. that was the only thing she was using it for, anyways; she was rarely using the pacifier during the day anymore. so when bedtime rolled around, about 9:30ish pm, Gee sat in the recliner with her PawPaw, screaming in sleep delirium. she'd had her dinner and her bedtime cup of milk; there wasn't much else we could do but rock her and listen to her scream. she kept twisting around trying to look at me, so i figured she needed her mommy to put her to sleep [lol]. i took her in the kitchen, fixed her a cup of water, and sat on the couch in the den where it was cool and quiet. she calmed down and drank the water, and i could tell she was full, but she still kept sucking on the cup, as if it were a paci. when i tried to take it from her, she started screaming again, so i gave it back to her, and she stopped. but she didn't put it back in her mouth. so i took her in our room and sat in the rocking chair. she kept a tight grip on the cup, but as i rocked and talked and sang and shushed, she eventually drifted off into dreamland. she finally relaxed her grip on the cup enough for me to take it out of her hands. i figured it was finally safe to put her in her crib. however, when i did, she promptly woke up and started screaming again. i picked her back up and swayed and shushed and sang some more until she calmed down. then i put her back in the crib and rocked her and rubbed her belly. voila! sleeping baby with no pacifier. was it difficult? yeah duh!!! but it was time. if there's one thing i can't stand, it's an older toddler [18-36 months] walking around with a paci in their mouth. while i was still pregnant, i was determined that my baby would NOT be one of those kids. mission accomplished :D
ok, story time is over! now enjoy some more Memorial Day pics:
mommy, baby, and auntie :)
Uncle Caleb
the Wilson kiddos!
us again! :)
coming up soon: a reflection on what i've learned while working with 1st and 2nd graders for the past two weeks, and how i can apply it to my planned career path...sounds interesting, right? :) until next time!
yes, i was hooked on RHOA the first couple of seasons [WHO GON' CHECK ME, BOO!?], and i am still perplexed as to how this song even came into existence. however, i am super tardy on a couple of things, and this song came to mind. listen and enjoy. or cringe. :)
...aaaand we're back. here's what yours truly is "tardy to the party" for:
[not another] manic monday! --- it is clearly Wednesday. but honestly, i'm doing good to get it in before the end of the week! i'm back working regularly again for a couple of weeks [with 1st and 2nd graders, not the jr. high heathens, thank GOD], and i'm still trying to get back in the swing of it after hardly subbing at all for a few weeks [due to other important duties, like getting out of this place so i can QUIT subbing. lol]. it's boring as i don't know what, but i can't complain when i'm getting paid! anyways, here's this week's list, which should actually be "weekly rituals," but aside from church, i don't really have any...so here we go!
list#THIRTEEN: "DIYs i want to try"
--> website design, from scratch. back in my MySpace days, i self-taught myself a lot of HTML, which i've mostly forgotten, but would love to re-learn. i also fancied myself a fledgling graphic designer, as evidenced by this album of embarrassing MySpace background paraphernalia and my major in Advertising and Public Relations. please keep in mind i was, like, 14 or 15 when i made these. "yung & sexxii"? really??? -_-
---> sewing dresses for G, and myself, for that matter. i've known some sewing women in my day, and i love the whole idea of making my own clothes. did i ever tell ya'll that i thought it would be supercool to be a fashion designer in 8th grade? only because i was taking Home Ec, and we had to draw three different clothing designs. i thought mine were awesome, so i drew little mannequins with slutty clothes for the rest of the semester. they really weren't that great. and i have no clue why all of them were half-clothed. whatever.
---> calligraphy art. my Granny Annie was a calligraphy artiste. she took bible verses, quotes, poems, and made them pop off of the page with her beautiful writing. why wouldn't i want to learn how to do that?
---> diaper cakes. they look easy, and people pay for them. need i say more? :)
---> quilting. see "sewing dresses".
the other item for which i am "tardy for the party": my baby's G*DAY!!!! i am over a week late with my G*DAY report, not to mention that i didn't even remember G*DAY until the day after G*DAY...shame on me. but anyways, here it is: the 11-month G*DAY report!
*Gee can now stand up without pulling up. she also can almost run when someone holds her hands; just waiting for her to be ready to step out solo! :) did i mention that she is a dancing machine? in case you didn't see it on Facebook, check her out:
*she's discovered how ticklish i am on my feet!! she was playing on the floor and grabbed my foot. i am ridiculously ticklish everywhere, but especially on my feet, so i started laughing. what did Gee do? attacked my foot! it was all i could do not to kick her in the face - my normal defense against tickle monsters. mama and i just laughed and looked at each other in amazement of how perceptive Gee is...aren't babies amazing?
*she drools. All. The. Time. i'm still waiting on her to have more than two teeth, though...
*the baby food days are LONG gone. i gotta say, i used to feel bad about serving her Chef Boyardee and green beans or carrots almost everyday...up until yesterday, when i talked some sense into myself: if she likes it AND it's easy? what's the problem? i promise, that's one thing i can't stand about myself. if something seems too easy, it must be too good to be true, so i must make it harder on myself. motherhood is helping me break myself of that mentality, thank God!
*Gee is soooo affectionate, i love it! she hugs and slobber-kisses and gives back-pats... just the sweetest baby ever :)
yesterday, i sent Gee off with her Auntie Toots to go to our Grandpa's house so i could finish some things [SN: hope to have an update on grad school status soon...things seem to be falling into place!]. i fully intended to go to the post office, then bank, then Stage to see if i could find a last-minute Easter dress. so tell me why i thought of none of this until WELL after 12pm (when the bank closes)??? no new Easter dress for me, but i'm sure it's for the best. plus, my mama found Gee a gorgeous dress to wear, with not a trace of pink in sight:
not that i don't like pink...well, actually, i don't care for it too much. lol. i love it when i [or others] find beautiful baby girl clothes in non-traditional baby girl colors [i.e.: pink], just because i don't really want Gee to be a girly-girl princessy type. i don't think i'll have to worry too much about that, though...:
lol! the Uncle Cs each got a sports ball in their Easter baskets, and guess who wanted to play with all of them? i suppose i could deal with a tomboy. :) see more pictures from our fabulous homemade Easter photoshoot here.
in other news, i have fallen in love with yet another iPhone app: Zapd. it basically lets you make mini-websites with photos, text, and links straight from your iPhone. there are a surprising number of theme options, and it takes less than 5 minutes to put together something cute like this or this. Love it! who's an iPhone junkie? *raises hand slowly while looking around to see if others are doing the same* i know i'm not alone, people. oh, and did i mention that the app is F-R-E-E free? just thought i'd throw that out there...
oh yeah, to answer a question you may [or may not] have: no, i did not get Gee an Easter basket. she got one at the church Easter egg hunt, so i felt that to get her another one would have been wasteful, especially with all of the toys and things she doesn't play with, as it is. score one for mama Elle and practicality! :D her Easter basket was filled to overflowing with love from her family and friends, and i'm pretty sure that was enough for her. hope you all had as blessed an Easter Day as we did!
[title courtesy of "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai. love that song!]
well, not tonight, but rather a few nights ago. definitely got a little boogie on with some of my lovely LSs; yes, i left my punkin with the babysitter overnight TWO nights in a row! it was my first time ever leaving her overnight. she cried when i left, but the first night, the babysitter sent me a pic of Gee sound asleep just ten minutes after i'd left her house, so i felt MUCH better. plus, it worked out for both of us: i got to hang out with my friends, and Gee got to hang out with her BFF, G2 -
precious girls! and here's mama, trying to work a lil' somethin' somethin' [LOL] -
and, of course, had to rep my Crimson & Cream while i was there :)
Gee & i also did a "mommy & me" photoshoot, which you can see here if you're not my Facebook friend. i'll let Gee tell you how it went down...
***MAN, mama was tripping the morning of our photoshoot!! She knew it was time for my morning nap, yet she was steady trying to do something cutesy to my hair. She already had me in this cute and un-comfy dress; I suppose I have to start learning the trials and tribulations of being a girl at the tender age of 10 months old... Anyways, she finally gets the both of us together, and as we step out of the door, I'm expecting it to be at least 50-something degrees outside (after all, it was basically summertime when we left southeast Arkansas). It was 4-freaking-2 degrees Fahrenheit! And my mommy, lover of all things cutesy, wanted us to take the photos OUTSIDE!? It was just too much for me to stand, so I promptly fell asleep in my car seat. I wake up to this little girl poking and prodding me. "HI!" Well, hello to you, too! Definitely wasn't what I was expecting to wake up to, but eventually I warmed up to "T.T.", and she prevented the post-nap meltdown I'd been planning. Lucky you, mother dear. :) As stated earlier, it's pretty durn cold outside, and my nose is doing all kinds of reacting, and by that, I mean running like someone forgot to turn the faucet off in my nose. Yep, that bad. However, I put on my best model faces and rocked that photoshoot...if I say so myself. Hehe. We only had to go inside to warm up once, and that mother of mine STAID on nose-wiping patrol [BLAH], but my photographers - that's right, with an S, as in TWO cameras, baby, POW! - did an excellent job catching all of my good sides AND editing out the snot. And drool. Et cetera. The proof is in the pudding, er, pictures -
And if you want to see more of mommy's and my foray on the Old Main Lawn, check us out here! Gee*Baby, Baby Gee, over and out!***
jeez, tell me how ya really feel, why don't ya?? i know she can't wait until i can understand the words she says...and i can't wait either, honestly. hold up, that means potential talking back, doesn't it? ok, nevermind. stick with the babbling, Gee. lol. just kidding... sort of... ;) until next time!
-love elle&gee-
PS: the lists will pop up again in the near future...let's say, before the month of April is over. sound good? good. :)
we'll get back to the lists tomorrow (err, later today). this one is ALLLL for Baby Gee, who seems to be acting less and less like a baby these days! the only baby food she'll let me feed her is fruits and yogurt; no veggies unless she's eating them with her fingers, so it looks like i'm going to have to start microwaving & chopping up some green beans for that child of mine. she eats chicken, beef, bread (LOVES bread), bananas, watermelon... it's looking like it's almost time to say "bye-bye" to baby food (woot woot!). now, if only she'd start feeding herself with a spoon, there'd be one happy mama over here :D
as far as that hair of hers, she has her days when she still fights it, but mornings have been made SO much easier by my plaiting her hair at night:
shoot, now all she needs is a stocking cap! and believe me, i'm *this* close to making her one; she does have a few pairs of stockings that are a little snug... lol. anyway, the plaits make morning detangling a breeze. she still doesn't always want to stay still for styling, but brushing the plaits out makes a pretty cute baby 'fro (which i completely messed up this morning, but got it right a couple of days ago, as shown here:)
as if i haven't said it enough, that girl has A. Lot. Of. HAIR!!! but we're getting better with it, especially since i don't have to worry about my own hair anymore :D
and to wrap up this G*DAY update, we gotta talk about Gee's new nickname: "Thunder & Lightning". LOL! She has those thunder thighs fo' sho, and when she crawls, i promise she's fast as lightning. corny? yes. applicable? totally. i'll have to try to catch her on the iPhone cam and give ya'll a peek. it's crazy, i'm telling you!
i think that's it for the 10-month G*DAY report. i can't believe there are only TWO MORE MONTHS until her first birthday! which means that, if she's gonna have any type of party, i better get to work, huh? we'll see how that goes... :)
-love elle&gee-
PS: here's the G*DAY girl, in her full -grown- glory. :)
before we get started, let's have an "awww" moment at how precious Gee looked today:
rock that outfit, girl! and i promise, i won't make you wear that bow anymore this week...LOL!
tonight, Gee decided that, instead of doing all of that writing, she'd rather show you what she's been up to lately [with narration by me, of course]. the oldest Uncle C is the videographer, and all three of the uncles co-star in this video tid-bit which all five of us find quite hilarious!
and, in an effort to just do one list a day [instead of five], here's list number 4:
somebody PLEASE tell me why my daughter is trying to stand by herself now!? i mean, she just got the hang of crawling; i thought that, perhaps, she'd be satisfied with that for a while, but nooooo. she hasn't forgotten her original goal of walking [rather, running around with her uncles, i'm sure]. my Grandmother will be visiting for Easter. during a phone call with my mama, she said that Gee would probably be walking by the time she gets here. looks like Grandmother just might be right! i'm. in. HUGE. trouble. where's the childproofing stuff again? oh yeah, and the next G*DAY is only a week away... <flava flav> woooOOOooow </flava flav>. #EnoughSaid.
so as i mentioned here, i'm challenging myself to do 30 journaling lists in 30 days; meaning, i have to actually put some effort into the look & design of the lists, not just jot a few things down every day. mind you, every list won't be some fantabulous scrapbook page, but there'll be some element of my sparkling personality in each one [LOL]. procrastinator that i am, i'm just now starting today, so here are my first 3 lists (and captions, in case you can't read my lovely handwriting; click to enlarge):
List #UNO: "a few things about yourself"
1. height: 5'0"
2. current obsessions: daughter :); grad school [hopeful] acceptance :-O; blogging/social media; scrapbooking/crafting; iPHONE!! (and photography apps on the iPHONE!
3. my eyes are really big, but my glasses press prescription is so strong, they make my eyes look small...
4. i'm usually an AWESOME speller [in re: the strikeout in #3] LOL!
5. i HATE writing in print; cursive = <3
List #TRES
I AM Looking Forward to...
1| Getting my own place!
2| Getting a REAL job!
3| Moving back to Fayetteville!
4| Being in somebody's wedding/being an auntie (in the not-so-near future)!!
5| Being an Official Grownup! [MAYBE...]
note: i placed the lists on my zebra print planner to give them a not-so-blah background. so now, after my first three entries into my 30 Days of Lists, you probably know more about me than necessary. prepare for more. :D
also, i promised the result of my finished hair bow holder today. i mean, i think it's pretty freakin' cute, but of course i do...i made it! lol, here it is:
you'll have to excuse the dirty mirror; just look around it :) i still have to figure out a cute and functional way to hang it up on the wall, but for all intents and purposes, it's finished! my next project: decorating wooden initials for Gee. gotta get stuff like this done before i don't have time for it anymore... o_O
-love elle&gee-
PS: another "Day in the Life" is coming soon, promise! here's a pic of my punkin to hold you over :)
i got a pretty drastic hair cut today. i've been natural for 2.5 years now, but i've still been harboring an obsession with having long hair. however, i don't have the patience to comb through the hair jungle on top of my head, so i finally freed myself of the "long hair don't care" mentality and cut it all off. again. lol, here's before:
to think, i used to have a bigger 'fro than that! terrible. anyways, here's how it looks after a chop, wash, and a good eyebrow arching (first time since last March...wow, that sounds really bad. wait, that is really bad!):
not only low-maintenance, but NO maintenance. truly get up and go. sure, it's short...and?? i may let it grow out a little bit, but as i told my beautician when she got finished: "i could keep this hairstyle for the rest of my life!!" especially after i've been told that it slims my face. *high-five-ing myself* now, while i'm over here feeling all free and liberated, i'm sure you're wondering what Miss Gee's take on mommy's new 'do is...
...she barely recognized me when i picked her up from daycare today. i know, "OMGee!" right? she usually gives me a huge smile when i walk in the door, but today she looked at me like "who are YOU?" it wasn't until she heard my voice that she thought i *might* be her mommy. even then, she looked at my hair (or lack thereof), then at my face. then back at my hair, and back at my face. and finally, gave me a sliver of a smile. one perceptive baby, that girl of mine. :) but i was just in disbelief! i guess i shouldn't have been; it is a pretty drastic change, but after the daycare thing, i kind of felt bad just springing my new hairstyle on Gee without warning her first. yes, that is crazy talk, because how in the heck do you "warn" a 9-month-old that you're switching up your hairstyle? exactly... anywho, she got over it by the time we got home, and gave me her customary "hurry up and free me from this carseat!" grin when i opened her car door. i'm still amazed by the fact that she actually looked at my hair, then at my face. not once, but twice. they say babies don't understand a lot of things at this age, but i beg to differ. nothing gets by miss Gee!
- needing to go to bed, especially since Gee woke up from her sleep so her mommy could pick her up and put her in bed with her, but since mommy felt the need to post this "real quick", Gee is sleeping in her mommy's lap...at least she's sleep! ok, we're going to bed riiiiiight....NOW! - ELLE :D
This past weekend, Gee and I traveled to Fayetteville, AR, to visit friends. The last time we went, Gee was only 4 months old. I had to stop an hour and a half in to feed her, and she couldn't even sit up yet. This time, I only had to stop an hour and a half in to change her diaper. HOWEVER, she cried for 30 minutes before we got to our checkpoint in Russellville. In those 30 minutes, I stopped about 4 times to give her acetaminophen, give her orajel, fix her some milk, give her some apple juice, readjust her toys, ANYTHING to get her to stop crying. None of it worked. So the last 10 miles, after trying to soothe her with my voice (to no avail), I drove in silence as Gee got louder and louder. We finally made it to the campus of Arkansas Tech, where we picked up my sister Toots. I hopped out of the car and checked on Gee; as soon as she saw my face, the crying ceased. I figured she was just glad to be still for awhile. I told Toots to get in the back with Gee, and as soon as I closed the door, the crying resumed. I scurried to get in the back and ordered my sister to drive while I sat next to Gee and let her play with my fingers. Mama's poor baby just wanted to see my face. Talk about feeling loved :) We had a nice lunch with Toots and her boo, and Gee had a first taste of French fries (which she loved, of course). Then, it was time to get back in the road. I prayed that Gee would sleep for the remaining hour and a half of the trip; she was knocked out not even 10 minutes after leaving Russellville, and she didn't wake up until I turned onto the Razorback Road exit; who says God doesn't answer prayers? And did I mention that Gee has one of her bottom teeth coming in? Hence the acetaminophen and orajel; I promise I wasn't giving her drugs just for the heck of it...
Anyways, we arrived safely in Fay. We visited some friends on campus first, then went to our weekend residence: a house occupied by 2 of my line sisters. Gee and I spent more time at the house this time, just relaxing and napping. A teething baby especially needs her rest, and Gee is so busy checking out her surroundings most of the time that she can no longer sleep with a lot of people around. That being said, though, we still got in a lot of quality time with people we haven't seen in a while. I was especially excited about seeing A & G2. A had G2 in November, and after Facebook stalking each other, we became FB BFFs, therefore making Gee (G1) and G2 BFFs by default. They just had to meet. So Gee and I went over to A's house, where we stayed for almost 2 hours, swapping stories of young single mommyhood and marveling over how precious each others babies were. Before we left, of course we had to get pics of the new friends. Cutest thing ever. The weekend ended with church, sushi and a highly motivating conversation with one of my LSs. We hit the road Monday morning and made it safely home.
How motivating was that convo, you ask? Today at work, while the kiddos watched videos, I handwrote 10.5 pages of the first draft of my personal statement as part of my application to the M.Ed. in Student Affairs program at the University of Arkansas. I feel comfortable enough to speak it out loud, write it down, and say it proud because I now KNOW in what direction I want my life to go, and I got the mojo to get Gee and me there. It is now officially grind time for this mama, mostly thanks to our road trip. So watch me work! :D
-love elle&gee
PS: here's a picture taken right before we left Fay. can you say fro'TASTIC!? the hair is crazy, people! [caption id="attachment_66" align="aligncenter" width="224" caption="who ever heard of an 8-month-old with this much hair? "][/caption]
yep, before i know it, little Gee is gonna be taking after Ms. Willow and whipping her hair here, there, and some of EVERYWHERE! tell me why i can get her not-quite-yet-8-months-old head of hair into a crazy legit ponytail? the proof is in the pudding, err, picture: [caption id="attachment_45" align="aligncenter" width="224" caption="ridiculous thickness"][/caption]
and, as a bonus, here's my baby and that ridiculous chicken bone: [caption id="attachment_46" align="aligncenter" width="224" caption="mmm, chicken."][/caption]
just a little bonus post. toodles! love -elle&gee-
