Projects

Ok, I've been wanting to finger paint with Stella for quite sometime now...and simply keep forgetting. So after reading a couple of your blogs I had Tom pick up pudding on his way home. I chose pudding just in case she wasn't a fan of fingerpainting then we'd just eat it.

Here's the artist at work. Stella doesn't really like anything on her hands so she was very hesitant at first.

On another master piece, but not very excited about the project mommy busted out.

So instead of doing mommy's silly project inside we ventured out in the snow again. She's not sure of the snow either, but we managed to have fun and play some soccer.

And tonight I decided to make some snow icecream for Tom and I. It was good, but very sweet. I think I like the "real" stuff better, but hey we have the supplies for this so why not.

PS I'm not showing the final pieces from the artist because she is saving them for both sets of grandparents!!!

Have a great week!

Snow. Lots of Snow.

Stella wanted to go outside so badly, but she did NOT like the snow hitting her face.

Diesel was "attacking" the neighbors headed sledding.

Tom measured the snow when we were out there and it was just below 3 inches. That was around 4:15. It's now 9:30 and STILL snowing.

I had to add this picture because Stella just kept striking a pose on the couch after we came inside. She is quite the DIVA.

And for those of you worried that she was out in the snow...don't worry it was only for 3 minutes so I could snap a couple pictures.

Where's the Beach?

For the past couple days Stella has been wanting to wear her sunglasses. I think she's trying to tell us something...it's time for the beach.

But unfortunately we're not experiencing tropical weather here right now...

Wearing her glasses on her head like mommy.

Lets go mom! But instead of swimsuits, sand and the water...

...this is Stella's reality.

The snow is coming down HEAVY, so we'll see what our totals end up being. Once it's done snowing I hope to go outside and take some pictures, but we'll see.

Happy Winter to you!

Coupons, Skype and Cuteness

This morning Miss Thang decided she'd "help" me organize my coupons. Here she is being silly.

After about 2 minutes there were coupons and trash everywhere.

But it sure was a fun game!

When I went to get Stella up from her nap...she had a blowout, so we took a mid-afternoon nap and then decided to call Gaga. Have I told you how AMAZING skype/technology is? Stella gets to talk/see her Papa and Gaga in Oregon whenever she wants. If you don't have skype...and have family far away you need to research it because it is great. In this picture Stella is patting her head because my mom asked where her head was. Somedays Stella is a crazy women and dances for my parents and other days she'll listen to them read a book...you get the idea.

Sharing her snack with Gaga. Isn't her robe cute?

Stella decided to love on Diesel. Notice he is liking the attention, but I'm pretty sure it's because she has her snack cup in hand.

And since we're expecting winter weather this week Stella and I played a little outside when we got the mail. I had to take a picture of her when we got instead because I think this sweater is the CUTEST!!! I wish I had my own because it is super warm and seems so cozy.

Hope you have a great Thursday. We're praying the ice that is predicted for tomorrow is not bad and we get snow instead. So stay tuned for snow pictures!!! (we hope)

Bread Crumbs

Wow! I'm glad I went to the grocery store yesterday. I stole this picture from a friends facebook page. I think the ice storm of 2009 has a few people panicked about our current forecast!
I wonder what people in Montana, Minnesota, etc think of stories like this? Do you think their store shelves look like this everything there's a chance of snow and ice?
I hope if you're needing bread in NWA you know of a secret location to hit because I've heard this is the scene around the area. CRAZY!

Deja Vu???

Yes, this is a picture of Stella from last year. if you can believe it we're gearing up for the ice/snow storm of 2010. The weather guys are saying between 1/4-1 inche of freezing rain/sleet/ice then 2-6 inches of snow. It's going to be a mess!! These pictures are from Ice Storm 2009. Click here for a refresher. It was a year YESTERDAY since the last BIG ice storm. So as the memories are fresh...we're gearing up for a repeat.

I can't believe it's already been a year. People are still picking up from last year. We lucked out last year and only lost power for a few hours here and there, but some lost it for several days...even weeks.

This year even if we're home-bound for awhile it should be a little easier...I'm not working so I wont have to take Stella to work with me. It was fun taking her last year, but stressful.

If this storm hits like they're predicting...stay warm and safe.

Must Escape NOW

According to a certain morning show (shameless plug, but I think the anchor is cute. ha!) winter weather is on it's way at the end of the week.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Normally I'd be jumping up and down at the thought of several inches of snow, but I was home ALL last week with a sick little one...I want my freedom. But since it's probably coming whether I like it or not I must escape TODAY and do my Walmart run because when there's a threat of weather here people rush to Walmart to stock up. I wouldn't go, but we need food. I have to go today because tomorrow will be even crazier if this weather pattern follows suit. If you live in the area and missed the forecast this morning I posted Jason's note below. Of course, I'll be watching Dan Skoff tonight to see if anything has changed and then I'll watch the morning show again. Until the roads are covered in snow or ice (Lord, please no...not a repeat of last year) I will keep my eyes on the weather.
If you're headed to Walmart...I'll see you there. Happy Tuesday!

Here's the latest from Jason Dollard:

***WINTER STORM WATCH ISSUED FOR THE AREA THURSDAY MORNING UNTIL FRIDAY MORNING***



Just like our Monday, the weather this morning is starting off COLD and BLUSTERY! Temperatures are in the low to middle 20's and wind chill values are in the teens! The one big difference from yesterday to today is that we will see more sun. Skies will be mainly sunny today and thanks to that sun, as well as the gusty winds dying down some, our temperatures will be a little warmer, with highs today ending up in the low to middle 40's.

High temperatures will be near 50 on Wednesday but then ANOTHER cold front will move in later Wednesday evening. We are going to have to watch this cold front closely because it will lead to some significantly colder weather for the end of the work week, as well as the upcoming weekend! Along with that colder weather will be some winter weather that looks to start up on Thursday and stick with us through the first half of Friday!

Before that winter weather starts up on Thursday we will see some light rain and drizzle from Wednesday evening's cold front. After that cold front swings through the colder weather will gradually start to move back in for Thursday.

At the same time the cold weather starts to move back in we will see an area of low pressure move in from the west on Thursday. Thanks to this low pressure system moving in we will see the rain and drizzle change over to a winter mix of sleet and/or freezing rain on our Thursday. Sleet and/or freezing rain will continue for part of Thursday but eventually the temperatures will get cold enough that we change over to accumulating snow! The snow looks to continue for us through Thursday evening and into the first half of Friday. Later Friday morning/early Friday afternoon the snow should wrap up and then high pressure will move in and keep us quiet for the upcoming weekend.

This forecast scenario is VERY TENTATIVE because the low pressure system that we are watching is still sitting offshore of CA this morning. The ultimate path of this low will determine how much sleet, freezing rain and snow we get, so we need to keep a close eye on this low as it makes its way east. Right now the computer models keep the low far enough to the south of us that Benton county will deal with more sleet than freezing rain. Washington county and Crawford county look like the likeliest locations for accumulating freezing rain, with more of a rain/freezing rain mix down in the River Valley.

If the low decides to move further south then we will see rain that changes over to sleet and then some light snow as we go through the day on Thursday. If the low stays closer to us we will see some rain that changes over to freezing rain and then eventually some light snow later Thursday. The long shot forecast at this point is a scenario where the low decides to stay way to the south of us. If this happened then we would just see some light snow on our Thursday, but this forecast does not look likely! Needless to say a lot is up in the air right now and it is something that we will be keeping a close eye on in the coming days!

It's still a little too early to talk specifics on accumulation amounts, because this all depends on how quickly we change over to sleet/freezing rain and then over to snow. Early indications are that a quarter to half inch of ice is possible and then anywhere from 4 to 8 inches of sleet/snow accumulation. AGAIN, this ALL depends on how fast we change over and the track of this low. Essentially, the longer we see the sleet and/or freezing rain, the lower the snow totals will be. The quicker we change over to snow, the more snow we will see.

Beyond Friday it looks like our weather will stay quiet for Saturday and Sunday, with cold high pressure settling into the area. This high pressure system will stay with us for the weekend before yet another cold front swings through the area early next week!

Overall, the weather pattern certainly remains a busy one! We will see quiet weather for today and some of Wednesday; but that quiet weather will get busy and pretty interesting for Thursday and Friday, depending on where that low pressure system decides to go. We will keep a close eye on things for you and keep you updated as the newest computer model information comes into us here in the Power Doppler Forecast Center, so make sure you keep checking back for updates! Have good day! – Jason Dollard

16 Months

Let me start by saying I had intended on taking several pictures of Stella for her 16 month post!!!! but the camera battery died, so this is the only picture I have. So as you can see Stella is starting to "try" to feed herself. We only try this when we're home...if you witnessed this---you'd understand :)

Ok, Stella is a busy busy girl. Here is what she is up to at 16 months...

Food: I think she went through a growth spurt a couple weeks ago because we could not keep enough food in front of her. She will eat ANYTHING and EVERYTHING, except cottage cheese. She really does LOVE food. Don't worry her appetite has slowed down, but that could be the stomach bug she is just now getting over. As far as drink..she only likes water and milk. She doesn't want anything to do with gatorade, pedialyte, sprite (she only tried these when she was sick). Stella loves her "cookies" (they're really gerber granola bars), cheerios and gold fish.

Sizes: She is still in size 3 diaper. She weighed 22 pounds 14 ounces when we took her to the dr the other day. Stella is wearing size 12-18 month in her clothes and is finally wearing a "normal" size shoe...size four, but it depends on the shoe. She has tiny feet.

Words: There are so many, but the latest is NO and she says it with attitude. Oh Lord help us! :)
But she is saying Daddy now instead of Dada and sometimes I get a Mommy.

Favorites: Books, baby dolls, other kids, Little People, dancing. OH MY GOSH...Stella LOVES Yo Gabba Gabba. I mean loves it. That's a whole post in itself.

Stella, we love you more than you will ever know. Thank you for entertaining us and loving us despite our sillyness. We can't wait to see what the next month brings, but SLOW down because time is going too fast! Love you...Daddy and Mama/Mommy

Please Let Me Out

I'm pretty sure this peanut would break loose if she could. Poor thing is acting normal, but her diapers tell a different story. So instead of going to church today we stayed in (again) and played.

Stella woke up early today, so as you can see she was ready for her nap a little early. Poor thing.

And this is Stella after her nap and bath. We normally don't take baths in the middle of the afternoon, but she needed one, so I let her play in her robe a little after bathtime.

Tom thinks she looks like a little wrestler.

There is good news...doc says Stella's not contagious so we are hoping to venture out tomorrow!!! Of course we'll go armed with extra wipes and diapers if you know what I mean. Poor girl!

A Real Ponytail...well, kind of

I know we've got a long way to go before I can claim this as an official ponytail, but I just think this picture is too cute!!!!

I promise I would try to make it look better, but she wasn't that excited about me putting her hair in a ponytail. I still think it's cute!

I thought I'd share Stella's new favorite thing...climbing up and down the couch. She loves this game! This is our old couch that is in her playroom...she just laughs when she goes in there because she knows if she gets up we'll follow. She is a hoot.

I don't think she was happy that I was catching this on camera.

She has her water and baby doll in tow.

Ok, so you know we've had a stomach bug in our house the past SEVERAL days. Well, today we thought we had defeated the beast, but WRONG...it's lingering. SO far I've escaped the worst of it, but Tom and Stella are still dealing ith the effects. I just pray we can get this out of here SOON (like NOW). Until then I'll continue to the load of laundry and disinfect the entire house every few minutes :)

No Thank You

Well, Stella likes what she likes and definitely hates things she dislikes. Since she is getting over this bug the doctor said to make sure she is drinking plenty of fluids. Well, we tried Pedialyte (grape flavored) and at first it looked like she was going to love it...WRONG. She wont even go near the sippy that has the grape greatness in it once she sees me pour it. So We tried Sprite with water.

No thank you to Sprite. I don't think she likes carbonation. I guess she takes after her GaGa. Anyway, she is drinking water and her appetite is returning, so things are looking up. And she is back to her normal sleeping routine--she slept 13 hours last night straight.

BUT there is some bad news...now daddy is sick. He was up from 12:45-5:30 with an upset stomach. Needless to say, I slept on the couch and now he is quarantined to the bedroom (well, really he's finally sleeping).

My new Bible Study started this am, but I had to skip out because I didn't want to expose other kids to it by putting Stella in the nursery and Tom was going to stay with her while I went...well, he got the bug. So I'll just have to wait until next week.

Thanks to those of you with tips on how to get little ones to drink pedialyte.

On the Mend...We Hope

We're hoping someone is feeling better today. She is acting more like herself this morning, but we'll see later. She woke up a couple times last night, but went right back to sleep and is taking a morning nap...which she NEVER does.

But so far, cheerios are her favorite and we've started the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, apples, and toast)...if she keeps that stuff down...she is good to go. So far, so good.

Stella danced with the characters from Yo Gabba Gabba this am (I'm amazed that so many kids love that show)...Stella loves to dance to the songs!

And of course, Little People make EVERYONE feel better! Stella and I are going to take it easy today. We might get out of our PJ's, we might not.

But one thing is for sure...we'll play, read, dance, and snuggle until we get over this bug.

Stomach Bug = No Fun!

If you know my child then you know this is not normal...she never stays still. Well, today we had a first. Stella threw up for the first time...and then of course several more times. It just hit her. We went to Walmart this am, came home, did some chores and then whammo..I had one sick little girl. It is heartbreaking as a mom to watch your little one feel SOOOO aweful. The good news is she kept down some cheerios and liquids before bed, so hopefully tomorrow is a new day. Oh yeah, and she danced with Daddy before bed so we were starting to see our Stella again.

Just to give you an idea of how lovely today was...this was the third load of laundry. Stella went through 4 outfits today...and I had a few myself.

And just so you don't think I'm a bad mother for taking pictures of my baby when she was sick...these were taken when I thought she was starting to feel better.

Oh yeah, the doctor says this is going around and since I was the target of some of her "sickness" she said I should expect to get sick too. Yeah---something to look forward to!

But I'll take being sick ANY day if it means Stella is NOT!