harper is determined to learn all of the songs that our band is playing. amy and I both have a practice cd in our cars, so she will often request certain songs so she can learn them. I have to say that she is doing a pretty good job. it only takes her about a week to almost learn the words to the songs. right now she knows about 5 of our songs. granted, she is singing a lot of it phonetically, it is quite impressive. when we get together for band practice, she has her own microphone and stand. we tease kris that she is trying to squeeze her way into being the lead singer. it is so fun to see her enjoy music. she loves to dance and sing. lately, she will just bust into song at the top of her lungs. her new favorite is katy perry's song, firework. i have to say that she has great rhythm and she usually sings in tune too.

first dental visit

i took h to the dentist yesterday. she was awesome! the people there were so wonderful with her, taking the time to explain every instrument they used and what was coming up next. harper was so calm and polite, answering every question they asked her. of course they asked her who she liked better, elsa or anna. she told them, elsa. they told her they were going to make her teeth sparkle like elsa's. her sunglasses they gave her to protect her eyes from the light even matched her outfit. they cleaned, rinsed and even flossed her teeth. as a reward, she got to pick 2 prizes out of the bins and even get to put her name in the fishbowl for a chance to win movie passes. everyone was so nice there, it was a wonderful practice. i look forward to taking her there over the years. pretty sure she will want to go back...for now.

i'm behind!

yikes. last time I wrote was in april? shame on me. well, this blog is just to keep up with when things happened. not even sure anyone even reads this.


it is official. we have gotten rid of the naptime pull up. she was awesome during our road trip to west texas. when she napped in the car, we usually had to put one on her, but she did great and held it the entire time. after having 2 accidents while on vacation in Georgia (in a row), she seems to have it down and is able to hold it much better now. so much easier to have her tell us when she needs to go instead of fighting her. now if we can only get the overnight pull up out of here. just when you think you have everything under control, it is time to tackle a new adventure.


we have had 2 wonderful vacations since I've last written. in june we flew into Wilmington, NC to visit with Gran. the condo was in a perfect location with just a short walk to the beach, shops and places to eat. we all had a good time swimming, building sandcastles and finding shells. spend a few days there before driving to Madison, Georgia to visit with Meme and Grandpa Bill. It took us about 8 hours to get there, but H was a good passenger and the road trip was easy. Gran stayed with us for a home cooked meal before she headed off to visit with a friend. the rest of the week was spent by the pool. it was very hot and humid, but the pool cooled us right off. h was happy and I even think her swimming improved while we were there. had a nice visit with Robert and jan too. they were able to come up for the day to celebrate bill's 70th bday. we had a fun celebration with lots of greek food and music. andy, Jennifer and the twins arrived that day too so h was happy to see her cousins. it was a nice relaxing long vacation.


three weeks later, we headed out to west texas. I had never been previously, most likely due to the long long drive out there. had an entire week to fill up and we did. started on a sat, drove to fort davis. lee came out to hang out with us for a few days too. h was so happy to have her daddy there. stayed one night over an old drugstore in town. it was interesting to say the least, but kinda nice to walk downstairs to have breakfast. star party at the observatory was pretty cool. haven't seen that many stars in a long time. it was late for h but I think (maybe) she liked it for a little while. all of us had the chance to see Saturn in the big telescope too!  hiked and swam while staying a few nights  at the indian lodge. we were really proud of harper hiking with us and being a trooper. especially on the sunset hike up the mountain in which she was the line leader of. needless to say, she was done hiking for the rest of the trip. she kept asking, "are we going up a mountain again?" headed over to Marfa after fort davis, staying at el piasano. wonderful hotel with a nice pool and outdoor seating area. our room even had a little seating area with a fireplace. I have to say that I didn't quite get Marfa and how everyone goes crazy over it. modern art from Donald judd? yeah, I don't get that either. however I did enjoy the Mexican restaurant down the road and our hotel. we then drove to marathon. another quiet little town with not much going on. this is ok! we enjoyed it a lot. the gage was a lovely hotel and my favorite. rooms were nice, pool was wonderful and the food at the restaurant and bar was really good. h was pretty happy the entire trip due to being able to swim everyday. there was even live music one night. house margaritas were tasty. the weather the entre time was nice too. hot, but still good. drove into big bend. I was amazed by the change in the landscape. we avoided a roadrunner every second while driving into the park. amy was happy with all of the birds she was able to see over the week. lots of them she has never seen. h wasn't into getting out into the heat, so we drove around more than being able to hike. our last night was spent in the chisos mountain lodge. minus the gnats and flies that buzzed around us, it was 10 degrees cooler up there and beautiful. the long drive back home on sunday wasn't so bad. very, very thankful for h being such a good travel companion. she would play games, watch a movie, nap and was all around awesome in the car.


our next vacation isn't until October. Italy. is it October yet?

tall and skinny

harper is getting taller and skinnier by the minute. i wish i could say the same thing for myself. we measured her recently and she grew 3 inches since her bday. ok, ok, i know that her daddy is tall but she is has been average height...for now. she has certainly changed over the past few months. a lot of people have noticed, saying she looks so skinny. i think it is more noticeable when she wears leggings and a short sleeve shirt. don't get me wrong. i hope she is tall. you know, about 5'9. tall enough to spike the volleyball but not too tall to scare off the boys. although someone commented that it may not be a bad idea that she scares the boys off so we will not have to worry about her dating. very good point!

my snuggle bug

h: when i grow up i will be able to drive a car
me: oh yeah?
h: yeah, like george did in that movie
me: do you think you will be taller than me when you grow up?
h: maybe. but don't worry mama, i will still snuggle with you
me: you promise? no matter how big or old you get?
h: sure!

i said ice cream

harper asked if she could have a cookie. she said please and was very polite. i told her that she needed to finish up some of her dinner before dessert. she said ok and proceeded to eat more peas and blueberries. about 10 mins after she gobbled down the thin mint, she looked over at me and said, "oh i said ice cream, not cookie." i couldn't believe what was happening. my daughter was trying to trick me over dessert! more like a con if you ask me. she repeated it again and said that she said ice cream. i told her that she definitely did not ask for ice cream and asked for a cookie and ATE it! pretty much told her that what she was trying to do was not cool. she gave me a certain look and smile. she knew exactly what she asked for. she didn't cry or even argue and went about playing.

that girl! she is one sneaky 3 and 1/2 year old.

random thoughts

- H loved the beach again. this time we went with daddy and papa.
- she is still doing so well with using the big girl potty
- she makes me laugh so much
- i miss her when she is at school
- had 2 bday parties in one morning and had so much fun!
- had a good visit with meme (amy's mom)
- is addicted to the movie and music of frozen. we don't go a day without singing or seeing the movie
- enjoying working in the garden with mommy. picking strawberries and tomatoes.