As promised, Little thing A-Z

Grandma M timed her summer visit to coincide with the 4th of July AND my MBA teaching schedule. Once again, a week without many worries. Here's the thing. Cora isn't a sleeper. Never has been. Even now, she sleeps through the night, but any given nap is a toss-up and a minor change to routine usually results in no nap at all. However, Grandma M gets Cora to sleep within minutes (seconds?). I've asked for a specific how-to guide.  I've accused her of giving Cora Benadryl (Ambien?). Landon and I aren't quiet able to match Grandma M's skills.

I usually don't mind, as I take all of the cuddle time with my growing girl I can get. However, given a busy week, it's nice to have bedtime tackled by Grandma M. Plus, Quinn was snuggled all day while I worked, which was nice. And, her days were documented, as Grandma M felt guilty for me at work and snapped a pic or two to send me. Appreciated :)

You can't see her here, but Grandma M was pushing Cora in cirlces around the house. Cora never asks Landon or I to do this - but she ALWAYS convinces grandparents to push her. She knows when she's got someone wrapped around her finger! She's little Thing W!

Cousin Carol sent this bikini... I need to send a note. We love it!

Below, the 4th of July at the Groeber's. It was Sean's bday party. I love these kids, and it's so fun watching them grow up together. Cora, Sean, Gabe, & Adalade. Adalade is about to move to Greenville - we'll miss her!

 A new dress from Grandma M, perfect for July 4th week.

 ANOTHER great thing about having Grandma M in town: I always want a pic of the girls dressed before church. However, every single Sunday we are late for church (we call the 8:00 mass the 8:07 mass; I'm not proud of this, but it is true). When I yell from the bathroom for Landon to take a pic before we go, he ignores and instead chooses to write an offering check (allright, allright, this is the right thing to do, but I COULD do that from the car). However, Grandma M obliges, grabs the camera, and tries to get some sort of quick pic. Plus, she brought these girls these matchy dresses. She's Little Thing Y!

 At the beach for the 4th of July.

 Cora has a new fascination with Frogs since we have had several small ones out front. I admit it. Here, we were all yelling "ribbit" and I was showing her how a frog jumps. Embarassing? OK, maybe just a tad bit embarassing...

 Afternoon cookout for the 4th at the Groeber's

 Happy Quinn!

I'm schocked that she wasn't screaming. She only lasts on her belly for a few minutes.
 

A pic, a la Grandma M, before church the following Sunday. Little Thing Z! (if you aren't up on your Suess reading, you won't think this is funny).

Cora and James were dressed alike, and they were chasing each other. I tried to get a good pic.

One final picture before brunch and good-byes to Grandma M.

A great week for the Messals!

Thing 1 and Thing 2

That's what I call them.

When we're having a busy week at work, or a particularly chaotic week, they show up. Within hours, dinner is on the stove, the house is straightened up, Cora is screaming "AGAIN" over one game or another, and Quinn smells like a tub of pink lotion. Plus, when they leave, the girls' clothes are not only arranged into their outgrown clothes bins, but somehow a magic wand gets waved and new shelves are even built into closets. They are my parents. And I'm not sure how we'd manage without coming to create fun.

The first 5 pics were taken in Kentucky during my April visit. Somehow, in some sort of mommy-blogging-error, I managed to not even document the visit. Since this is our family album, that's crazy. There must be pictures somewhere of Quinn meeting her Great-Grandma Iris for the first time (and Aunt Deb, Aunt Bum, etc). Dad's camera? I've got to correct this. I never ever plan to create a scrapbook beyond this blog, printed annually.
Kevin (Haskell #6) got married in April. The dilemma was that I couldn't travel to DC with Quinn yet, and I couldn't travel without Quinn, and I also couldn't quiet stay home with both girls. Plus, my dear friend Sara got married in Kentucky the next weekend, and I was sick at the thought of missing the event. Long story, but Dad drove from Ky to Charleston, then drove back with Cora, Quinn, and I (Cora slept 45 minutes, Quinn slept every moment the car was in motion). The following weekend, we met Landon in Northern Kentucky for Sara's wedding (Cora slept about 20 minutes of the 3 and 1/2 hour trip; Quinn slept every moment the car was in motion). We spent the weekend at Tim & Jen's, then Landon and I drove the girls back to South Carolina (Cora slept 45 minutes of the 11 hour trip; Quinn slept every moment the car was in motion).

I just found a few pics on my I-Phone. Still, given that Quinn met a lot of important people, I've got to find better pics. Stay tuned. Until then, here's a few. Most of these I think are quick ones I took to send Landon since we were away from him.

With Cousin Ruth while visiting Aunt Wondaline (Quinn's 90+ year old Great Great Aunt who is the spunkiest thing I ever met... how do I NOT have a picture of this!!!) (Ruth's pretty darn spunky, too)

Cora found my stash of hairbows in the luggage, and started insisting I stick them in her hair.

 I had Cora dressed, with plans to put on pink shoes. As we were leaving Matt's old bedroom, she slammed on the brakes as she noticed these cowboy boots on the night stand. Matt's cowboy boots. A perfect fit, and she got to borrow them while we were home.

 My old baby doll carriage.

With Aunt Jen (this one must have been taken to text to Heather and Sharon)

 At wedding - pretty pretty Sara and her sweet hubby Chris.

On our way to Charleston, we made a quick stop through Knoxville. It was Sunday morning, and we decided to brunch in Market Square. On our way into town we were regretting not planning better so that we could plan to see friends. As we were circling the square to find a parking spot, I saw a familiar stride up ahead. Karen Lacey!!! I almost dove out the window! Karen was my running partner for my final years in Knoxville. I ran with her through her pregnancy with Jaimes (above, with Cora), and she was my running partner when Landon and I met. In fact, the weekend when Landon and I really started being "cheesy" about each other, we ran and did brunch with Karen and Eric, then joined them for Smores later at their house. They are very dear to us, and here they were (sans Eric) randomly on the streets of Knoxville.

Then, as we were jumping around and hugging on the Square, Dani Huff came strolling up with her dog.

We love Knoxville.

And Cora loves Jaimes. Fast friends.

Market Square is the kind of place where you can grab some food, do some shopping, and plop down on a blanket.

The following pics were from Thing 1 and Thing 2's most recnet trip to Charleston.

This pic was dark because of the glare off of Dad's head (it had been a while since I've gotten in a bald shot, Dad).

Popsicle!!!

Notice that Cora is trying to ride mom's leg while mom changes Quinn's diaper. Chaos!

Next up: A visit from Little Thing(s) A-Z (A.K.A. Grandma M!)

Official "I'd better write it down so I don't forget it" moment #3

Last night Landon, Cora, and I sat down for dinner (Quinn, too, of course!).

I had a 24-hour bug on Friday, and was still in recovery. Quinn had a very mild version, and we weren't sure if Cora and Landon were also experiencing some mild symptoms. Cora wasn't very interested in food.

We were having pork chops, salad, and baked potato for dinner. On our potatos, Landon and I had added sour cream and butter. Cora insisted on having some, too. On my pork chop I had added A1 Sauce. Cora insisted on having some too. On his pork chop, Landon had added JFM salt. Cora insisted on having some, too.

Then, Cora insisted on more sour cream. We really wanted her to eat (she hadn't really eaten all day), and we had been coaxing her all through dinner. Landon obliged, and gave her a real spoonful of sour cream (not just the faking-it drop of sour cream that we'd normally give her when she insists on sauces). As he heaped it into her bowl, he said sternly but half jokingly, "Now Eat!"

Cora didn't miss a beat.

She looked up at Landon and stared him in the eye.

She gave him an unvocalized "Ummmm" (you could see it in her facial expression) and then adamently said "No".

We shouldn't have laughed, or we should have as her parents at least had the decency to dive under the table to cackle, but instead... encouraing her behavior... we both started cackling.

And Cora did the cute head-ducked-to-one-side-with-an-eye-bat thing that she does when she knows that she is funny.

This one is going to be a challenge as a teenager. Mark my words.

Stinking sneaky squirrels

Today at the pool a squirrel stole C's raisins. She chased the squirrel down. She pointed and lectured the squirrel. She stomped and swung her arms. She accused every squirrel she encountered (squirrel stereotyping?). She tried to tell everyone she met.

New Perspective

And Quinn sure is happy about it.