Lana was in her very first beauty pageant this past Sunday. This was a natural beauty pageant so Lana just had to get up there on the stage and be her normal beautiful self. And she did great and was crowned 1st Runner-Up! Horay Lana!! Prepare for picture overload but I just couldn't narrow them down. Way too many cute ones! Thanks again to Armando for so many great pictures! We started the evening with Landen taking a pony ride... And here's Lana scoping out her competition... ...and being silly with daddy... Her cheering section: And time for her runway walk! "I shake my little tush on the carwalk..." ;) When the judges announced the finalists Lana was busy playing with her new toys... And then wandered toward the end of the runway just as they called her name for 1st runner-up. The timing on her part was so funny! Yay Lana! She was so proud of her crown and trophy! She then headed straight to feed the ducks, because as we all know, first rule of being a princess is Be Kind to Animals! Great job, Lana! We are so proud of you!
"I'm so glad that she's my little girl." The Beatles
Where do I even begin? I'm not even really sure when this began. I know it was a few gray hairs ago, and a few wrinkles ago, as well as a couple of under-eye dark circles ago, when my little girl went from being sweet and silly to a 2 year-old, twenty pound tyrant. One fully capable of coming undone in a matter of moments for any reason and no reason at all. It is awful. Lana has taken her "once in a while tantrum" to a "couple of times a day tantrum." So it begins...with something making her unhappy. What exactly I have no clue because she is in a heap on the ground crying. Hysterically. To the point of being unable to talk. If any words do manage to squeeze through the sobs, I can not understand them. Maybe I should take some foreign language classes. I wonder if the local community college offers "The 2 Year-Old's Meltdown: Understanding What the Heck She Just Said." I'd pay big money to take that. So these outbursts, they come regardless of where we are...the park, home, the car, a birthday party, and with or without an audience to give me the stink-eye and proclaim me a terrible mother. Because surely, only terrible mothers teach their daughters to behave like that..."always say please and thank you and if all else fails come completely unglued." She yells, then screams, then cries more. If we are out and I have to resort to the "football hold" to get her in the van, she kicks, flails her arms and does angry back bends so it becomes impossible to get her in her seat. At home, if I try to hug her she shoves me away and screams more. And the glass around us breaks, and the neighborhood dogs howl, and Leya wakes up and adds her cries, and Landen covers his ears, and sometimes I cry, and people outside wonder if that is possibly the tornado siren going off, and she becomes a soggy-faced pile of Lana while I call on Jesus to give me the patience to get through this stage without a break down of my own. And then I use my best defense. I walk away. I leave her crying. While every fiber of my soul wants nothing more than to hug her and offer her anything and everything to make her be less sad...A cookie? Some candy? A puppy? A pony? A new princess doll? Time alone with Mommy's make-up bag? Anything to make her stop crying. But I know better. So I walk away. Usually shaking and on the brink of tears, if not crying, desperately punching in Neil's phone number for some much needed moral support. And then silence. And my little girl approaches with her face covered in tear stains and her hair stuck to her sweaty face. "Sowwy, Mama." She hugs me and gives me one of her signature super ginormous face-mushing kisses and skips off as if the last 15 minutes didn't happen. I exhale quietly, afraid that if I am too loud I might set her off again. But she is fine. The storm has passed. Mommy-1, Tantrum-0. And I'm not dumb. I know this isn't over and the battle will begin at another time. There will be more tears, and more meltdowns. She is two. And stubborn. And high-spirited. And smart. Very smart. And I'm ready for her, all the while praying for this stage to pass. I love her. All the time. No matter what. Even when she's unglued. But these, folks, are trying times.
Lana began ballet lessons last week and I must say there is nothing cuter in this entire world than our little girl dancing. Lana is the youngest in the class and one of two new students but has caught on rather quickly. She loves it and I love watching her. I love how focused she becomes and how proud of herself she is when she does well. I love seeing her in her dance clothes and ballet slippers. And I love to hear her counting in French with her class. As you can guess, I'm beaming with pride!
This video is from her 2nd class. She was trying so hard! I think she did wonderfully! Side note...excuse the finger in the nose part but even ballerinas get an itch. ;)
Waiting for class to begin...so pretty! Posing for mommy at the drinking fountain... "Before this dance is through, I think I'll love you too..." The Beatles
What Makes a Dad God took the strength of a mountain, The majesty of a tree, The warmth of a summer sun, The calm of a quiet sea, The generous soul of nature, The comforting arm of night, The wisdom of the ages, The power of the eagle's flight, The joy of a morning in spring, The faith of a mustard seed, The patience of eternity, The depth of a family need, Then God combined these qualities, When there was nothing more to add, He knew His masterpiece was complete, And so, He called it ... Dad Author Unknown
Around here we call him daddy!And we love him so much! We are forever grateful for everything he does for our family!
"Keep all my love forever...P.S. I love you!" The Beatles
It has been 4 months since you completed our family, sweetest littlest love! Four fast months that have flown by. And I can not imagine life without you, nor would I ever want to. You have changed so much this month. You went from a little sack of potatoes who made us work hard for a smile to a super smiley little wiggle worm. You giggled for the first time at 3 1/2 months old and then about 15 minutes later rolled over for the first time from your back to your belly. Already you are my little over-achiever! Love it!
Two days later you rolled from your belly to your back, but I'm almost certain it was accidental. We are getting giggles from you more often now. Last night you thought it was really funny to hear me count in French. Not sure why but I definitely kept counting for you just to hear that giggle. It is heaven to hear! You hold onto your toys and try to shove them into your mouth, though you need to work on your aim. You always have your hands and fingers in your mouth. I'm also sure you love wearing dresses because you can grab the fabric and shove that in your mouth too. It's the cutest to see you do this because it leaves your big belly showing and who doesn't love a baby tummy? You love love love your big brother and watch him whenever he is near. You love Lana too. She sometimes hugs you too much and her hair gets in your face which you don't like, but she is the first to come running when we ask for a diaper, the wipes, or for someone to entertain you when we are making dinner. You will grow to love her more when you find out how many cool girl toys she has, plus she can't wait to share them all with you. She already tries to share as much as we let her. Your little tiny baby feet are almost always clammy or cold, even if we are outside on a warm day. Not sure why this is...it's just one of your quirks. You still wake up a couple of times a night. I wake up to hear you making little baby sounds, you nurse, and go right back down. Easy enough for me. You love bath time and just kick and wiggle the whole time in amusement. Your eyes are still bluish-gray and your hair is still dark. Your skin is darker than your brother and sister's. I think it will end up more olive like mine. You are my tiniest baby yet. Here we were thinking you were going to be much bigger than your sister! I went back through her old records and you are even smaller than she was at this age! I can't believe it. Another teeny tiny princess! And that's what you are...a princess. My Baby Princess Leya to join my Pinky Princess Lana and my Handsome Prince Landen. This is our fairytale and it wasn't complete until we had you. Happy 4 month birthday, Leya!
Leya had her 4 month well-baby visit yesterday. Her official stats are...
Weight: 10 lbs 10 oz, 5th percentile Length: 23.25 in, 25th percentile Head size in 40th percentile
Her pediatrician says she is perfectly healthy and he is sure she will be as dainty and petite as her big sister. So I've passed my genes onto my girls. You're welcome sweet baby! Enjoy never having to deal with dieting or checking labels for "low fat." That stuff tastes bad.
So, many of you may remember this post. We were originally told Leya was in the 50th percentile at her 2 month well-baby visit. By some glitch in the office's new computer system, her percentile was miscalculated. She was never in the 50th percentile, she was really in the 20th percentile at 2 months old. So she didn't drop way down on the charts, she was just always on the small side. :)
Long story short...she's perfect! "I know I'm gonna love you any old way." The Beatles
Landen and Lana's best friends are also brother and sister. This makes for fun play dates and cute photo ops.
It turns out getting a picture of two 4 year-old boys and two 2 year-old girls all looking and smiling isn't easy. They lost interest after the first flash...oh well, they are still super sweet! "I'll get you anything, my friend, if it makes you feel alright." The Beatles
