Not Really Wordless Wednesday

This is what has been going on in our house for the past HOUR. Not kidding. An HOUR. 

Happy Heart Day to Us

Seriously, when I really think about it, it is ridiculous how much we are loved. Really. I think Bella and I must be the two luckiest girls alive. But what's even more ridiculous than how much I, in particular, am loved, is how much the Princess is adored. I don't think I have ever seen a love like Daddy has for her, and like she has for him, ever before in my life. It's the most heartbreakingly beautiful thing I have ever seen, and I feel so blessed to be a witness to it.
The mere mention of him spreads a smile across her face. And every day when he gets home from work, it's like the second coming of Christ or something-you've never seen a person so excited to see another!
Her day was really made on Valentine's Day when Daddy walked in from work. He didn't just come home, oh no; he came home with a real, grown up bouquet of flowers for his baby girl.

And they were all as pink as pink could be. 

I thought she might explode from happiness; it was a real possibility. The human body can only take so much excitement. I'm pretty sure hers was seriously close to it's limit. Daddy home + pink flowers= pure elation for this little girl.
We had already had a great Valentine's Day together, she and I, doing crafts and having a picnic out front in our jammies,

but nothing I could ever do could compare to Daddy simply walking in the door. And that's just the way it should be.

Friday Fluff

Looking too cute in her new sun hat; can't wait to use it at the river this summer!

 Headed to "Tuesday School" for the Valentine's Party

 So maybe basketball isn't really her thing. . . .

 YIKES! That's high!

 Handing out Valentine's. Man, I love that girl!

 Skating Party in the gym!

 Random selection for the day: practicing our State capitals while snuggling up on the couch. Have I said I love homeschooling??

HAPPY WEEKEND EVERYONE!

From the Mouths of Babes

This morning, I was informed by my ever-so-observant daughter that we must have a magic baby, because it is making my booty grow bigger just like my tummy.
Thank goodness she's cute; otherwise she might not make it to 6.

WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T CUT THE CHEESE!

This Saturday, we took Brother into town to get a haircut. Instead of dying from boredom sitting in the glamorous SuperCuts lobby, the Princess and I decided to dawdle around in PetSmart. BIG MISTAKE. I really should have known better. It seems like every time we go to a pet store, we leave with some new creature. I can't help it. Furry things are my weakness. My kryptonite.
This time proved to be no different.
When we got there, one of the workers had a ferret out. Don't worry. That's not what we brought home. But we did spend a while petting the nasty little rodents. After that, we moved on to check out the Guinea Pigs.
Fatal Mistake.
As we made our way over, she immediately spotted her victim. A solid white little boy pig (not the kind with the creepy red eyes though. Eww!) The PetSmart guy was very sweet and obliged her when she asked to hold the little creature. He even sat on the floor with her for over 30 minutes as she held it, teaching her all about guinea pigs and how to care for them. Then it happened. He mentioned that there was a white little girl guinea pig with one pink ear. What?! What did he just say?! A pink ear?! She was sold. And the begging began. As she sat there forever, holding the sweet little thing, I could feel myself weakening.
I've been kind of considering getting one for her for a few months now. I've read that they are pretty great pets for little kids, since they are docile and easy to take care of.  I thought since Brother does most of the feeding and watering of the dogs, this would be a good way for her to learn to care for and nurture another living creature. BUT I wasn't thinking about right now. Not today. Not now. No way. Especially not after seeing the cost of a cage for this glorified tailless rat. A decent sized cage for one costs over $100! Plus food, bedding, chew toys, etc. Oh, and don't forget the cost of the pig itself!
But there is something about baby girl's little face. Her eyes. It all just sucks you right in. It even worked on the PetSmart guy! Seriously! He heard her begging and heard our answer: "Sweeti, we don't have $100 for a cage right now. Maybe for you birthday."
"But I really like this guinea pig, mommy. She is SO sweet!"
And she was.
But sweetness still didn't make us any richer.
Every adult within earshot was sucked in to her trap. We were almost out of the store safely, when our dedicated PetSmart guy said, "You know, I just thought about it; I have one of those cages just sitting up in my attic. I'll give it to you for free, if you'll just come pick it up."
What?! GIVE it to us?! Now what excuse did we have? None.

And now we own a guinea pig.
And her name is Cheese.
Cheese Carrot Rainbow.
Rob says Bella doesn't get to name anything else ever again. I think it's hilarious.
So now, I'd like to introduce you to Cheese.
AKA CheeseWhiz, Cheezit, Parmesan. . .Cheese.

"As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again!"

A couple of weeks ago, Bella started a few enrichment classes at a church in town. The original schedule of classes was  geography, creative writing, and a spanish class. They offered a drama class, which I thought would be perfect for her, but unfortunately, she was too young to enroll in it. But God helped us out a little with that. . . 

On the first day of classes, my little Scarlett O'Hara was accidentally put into drama instead of spanish! Shout out to God for the assistance on that one! The only problem was, no one knew it was a mistake, so no one let me know. I was already a little  a lot nervous about her going to the classes, they are in a huge church, and she has to change classrooms. I kept having these visions of going to pick her up from her last class and her not being there because she was wondering the hallways scared and alone, crying for me. Everyone assured me she would be fine. High schoolers were assigned to help the little ones get to their classes for the first few weeks. 

Ok. Great. 

So on the very first day, when classes were over, I excitedly rushed over to her last classroom to get her. The class was still going on, so I peeked into the window, anxious to get a glance at my baby girl in big school. 

I peeked in.

No Bella. 

I stepped back. Took a deep breath. Assured myself that I just overlooked her, and peeked again.

No Bella.

I look again.

Now I am on the verge of full blown freaking out. I shoved all the other moms out of the way of the window and plastered my whole face to it, making sure I could see every inch of the inside of that room. 

My little girl was not in there!

I frantically start telling random people that my 5 YEAR OLD CHILD was supposed to be in there but she isn't, and I have no clue where she is! They all just sort of looked at me like I was nuts. No one, no one at all, offered any assistance! Had I not been in such a state of panic, I probably would have punched a few of these women for just blowing me off. Finally, someone suggested that I look in a room down the hall because there were a couple of small children in there. So, off I sprint down the hall, begging God to please let my baby be in that classroom and not wandering the gargantuan halls of this church, or worse.

As I flung myself through the door of the room, I saw her. Smiling ear to ear. "MOMMY! I'M IN ACTING CLASS! AND I LOVE IT!" are the first words I hear. Quickly I compose myself and try to act like I care, and like I was not just behaving like some sort of lunatic nutcase. "Thats great honey! But  (then glaring at the teacher) why are you in acting class when you are supposed to be in spanish class?!" The teacher explained that the rolls hadn't been passed out yet, so even though she know Bella was too young to be in the class, she wasn't positive where she was supposed to be. Bella told her she was supposed to go to spanish, but asked if she could stay in drama instead. The teacher said that since she was able to read so well, it was completely fine with her, and just let her stay. 

And now my child has been bitten by the acting bug. 

After just her second week in "acting class" she in formed me, "Mommy, one day I am going to move to New York and go to college and be an actress there." 

I almost drove off the road. No you don't honey! New York is dangerous and scary! Not to mention 1067.02 miles away! *I know, I mapquested it*

But what do I say? How do I reply? Do I pretend to be the ever supportive mommy, and say, "That is wonderful honey! If you work hard, you can do anything you want to do!"

Or do I tell her how I really feel? "Honey, if you ever move that far away from Mommy, my heart will break, and then I will die. Literally die, of a broken heart."

Or there is always option number 3: "Sure Sweetheart, Daddy will start applying for jobs in New York right away and I will start packing the house for the big move." 

Because she sure isn't going without me. 

And she's not taking anymore acting classes!