I'm Heeeeeerrrrrre....

Wow...I have been gone a LOOOOOOOONG TIME!!! I can't believe April is almost gone! This whole year (translation: school year) has been such a blur, and my brain is so crowded with stuff. I decided I was long overdue for another blog post, so here goes.

I just HAD to share this picture. This is Little Bit with a family friend of ours from about five years ago.



OH MY WORD, ISN'T SHE ADORABLE???? She was SUCH a cute baby and toddler--she's about four, almost five here. Such a stinker. I always loved her hair like this. She hated it, but I'm pretty sure she was the only one who did. I went through a rather large box of pictures yesterday, dating waaaaaaaaaaaay back before she was even thought about! It was a ton of fun, seeing just how much Baby Bit looks like her big sister.

And speaking of Baby Bit, she will henceforth and forevermore be known as YUMMY. Because she is. Need proof?




Talk about sweet feet!!! Don't you just want to take a nibble? Here's the head-to-toe version:




And a head-shot:





Now you see why we started calling her Yummy. She's Super-Delicious!!! Many thanks to The Daily B for that fabulous--and I do mean FABULOUS!!!!--outfit. She wore it to Little Bit's school on Grandparents Day a couple of weeks ago and was a huge hit with that awesome bow! I love baby bowheads. :-)

And just in case you're wondering, yes, she smiles...quite a bit, in fact. She's incredibly ticklish, and we are merciless about making her laugh. But when it comes to pictures, I just can't catch her doing it with my camera. Argh.

Yummy had her 6-month check-up today (yes, yes, I know she's 7-1/2 months) and came through with flying colors. She is almost 17 pounds and 26-1/2 inches "tall". She is everything Little Bit was...times ten. If Little Bit was happy, Yummy is exuberant. If Little Bit was just a bit curious, Yummy is into everything. To steal a phrase from a favorite author--Deeanne Gist--she is everywhere at once! She isn't crawling yet, but when she starts I'll have to keep my running shoes on. She always wants to be doing something else. When she's sitting in her booster chair to eat, she wants to see what's going on out the window, see what Wonderdog is up to, check on the cat, play with whatever is nearby, watch her sister entertain her...you name it. She'll think about eating eventually. And when she does, it will be LOUD AND CLEAR. Did I mention she's LOUD???? It's funny to listen to her, but it can also get nerve-rattling. If I get to take a nap during the day, I can assure you...it is WELL DESERVED!!! :-) So needless to say, feeding time is interesting.

As for what she likes to eat, her favorites so far are sweet potatoes, squash and bananas. She'll also eat green beans, peas, egg yolks, banana-and-strawberry yogurt, and will try anything. She's at the age where I can puree whatever I'm eating, which is SO EXCITING to not have to make three separate meals for four people. Little Bit is very picky and won't eat what we eat. I'm hoping Yummy is different in that area.

Another first for her was our trip to the coast over Easter. The weather didn't permit much, unfortunately, but we did take the girls to the beach for a couple of hours. While Little Bit was rolling around in the sand and waves, Yummy stuck her feet in the sand and was done pretty quickly. She was ready for a bottle and a nap, which she promptly did. The rest of the weekend was a lot of fun, with the Hoffer's brother and sister plus families meeting us there. It's not often we all get together, but I was so glad we did. Brother lives in southern California with his three kiddos and sister lives in Houston with her two boys. Everyone had a busy life, so this was a treat to get to hang out with them. It was especially nice for me to have several helpers with Yummy, so my arms got to rest some. :-) Sorry, no pictures. The Hoffer packed my camera somewhere and we still haven't found it. It will show up at some point...!

Grandparents Day is a huge undertaking at Little Bit's school. I love it...taking time out of our every-day busyness to honor those very special gray heads full of wisdom. Each class prepares a little something for friends and family to perform on that day. Little Bit's class performed Longfellow's "A Psalm of Life", which became a favorite poem for me while helping Little Bit memorize it. Check this out:

Tell me not, in mournful numbers,
Life is but an empty dream! ?
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world's broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!

Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,--act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o'erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labor and to wait.


I am not big on poetry, but this one just jumped off the page for me from the first line. I plan to have this printed out and framed alongside the two "footprints" Little Bit made. One was for the Hoffer that said "Dear Daddy, I love the way you are funny. HAHA!" The other was for me and said, "Dear Mommy, I love the way you are perfect." (I'm going to have to keep that one handy for ammunition...;-)) She also made one for my mom, who couldn't be there because she is blind. It says "Dear Granny Bob, I'm sorry you can't see this, but I love you." She is so precious.

The Hoffer has been crazy busy expanding our business. He has been traveling a lot as well. I miss seeing him and look forward to our rare and short times together without the girls. In fact, we're going to watch some TV together and eat some super-delicious popcorn here in a few minutes. So let me share one last picture for today so I can go snuggle! This one is also about five years ago, after a race...which should explain the gear.



Okay, here are a couple more:




A contemplative moment. Not sure where this was taken...those aren't my curtains!




And would you trust your financial future to this little guy??? :-)


Ahhhh...it's good to be back in bloggerland!!!