Ashlyn at 2.

I wanted to remember things that Ashlyn was doing by 2 years old. Enjoy!!


1. Ashlyn's new thing is she likes to pick toe fuzz while sitting on the potty. :)
2. Loves to wrestle with anyone willing. (she says it in a deep drawn out voice)
3. Favorite things to watch are Elmo and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (AKA Hot Dog)
4. Loves to wear her kitty cat slippers.
5. Fully potty trained at 23 months during the day.
6. Sleeps in a twin bed.
7. Loves to tell stories and does so very well.
8. Speaks extremely well and talks a ton. (Just like her mommy)
9. Favorite things to do: Reading books, painting and coloring, playing with her baby doll, singing and dancing.
10. Friends: Kaden and Luke Meunier (BF), Blaine, Lincoln, Alexis
11. Favorite song is E.I.E.I.O
12. Always seems to boss everyone around. She likes things a certain way.
13. Favorite Food: icy ceam (AKA Ice Cream)
14. Favorite thing to do: Put items in something and hall them around.
15. This is my favorite, she always says, "diarrhea" when she poops a lot. :)
16. Loves to see fountains.
17. Had all of her teeth before age 2. (She had no teeth at age 1!)
18. Says prayer before/during eating, "Thank you food, Amen"

New Car!

I am so excited to tell everyone that I have a new vehicle. We have been working on a deal for about a week and finally it all paid off. I am leasing a 2009 silver Honda Pilot. We went in this morning to fill out all the paperwork and pick up the SUV. I love it! My car lease was going to be up soon and when I took my car in to get fixed from the accident we started talking with the dealership about trading in early. We decided with the new baby coming we would need to get a bigger vehicle. It will take me a while to get use to driving something big, but I'm excited!

My 30 week OB appointment.

Today was my 30 week OB appointment! Ashlyn wanted to see Diane (Mamaw) right away, so we went to her desk. When she wasn't there, she asked, "Where Mamaw at?" She had her hands out, palms up when she asked. It was so cute! Diane was in a meeting, but Ashlyn asked everyone she came in contact with because she wanted to see Mamaw. Finally, when Dr. White came in to see me, Mamaw came and got Ashlyn. Carter's heart rate was 148 and I am right on track with my measurements. Carter has been really moving around lately especially in the evening. I will be going to see Dr. White every other week from now until after my 36 week appointment.

Tots open gym in Greenwood.

We started our day off with cycling at the gym. Yesterday was my first time back to the gym since the car accident. After cycling, we met Erika and the kids at the Greenwood Community Center for their tots open gym. Erika had been here before and said it would be a good thing to do once the baby is born. Ashlyn really liked it and I will definitely try it again. We are always looking for fun things to do that are different.

Trip to see Abby and Maddie

Erika, the kids and I went to see Abby and Maddie in West Harrison. Abby was on spring break so we decided to have a playdate. Abby and Scott moved to a new house this year so we were excited to see it. Kaden and Ashlyn had a great time playing with Maddie's new toys. Maddie just turned 1 this month. I think the big kids scared Maddie just a bit. I don't blame her, I mean they are very busy and she isn't walking yet. They all loved playing on the short staircase and snack time. After a tour of the house and lots of playtime, we decided it was time for lunch. We went to Batesville and ate at a pizza place before making our way home. It was a quiet trip home as you can see. I had to take this picture of them almost holding hands. It was so cute!
Ashlyn and Kaden were looking at books on the way.

Having a snack.

Our quiet trip home.

Ashlyn's 2 year old pictures.

What a day!!! Someone came and took my sweet little girl and replaced her with a terrible 2 year old. :) From the time she woke up, I knew we were in trouble. Thank heavens Mike was on call yesterday so he was home today. He was able to get some sleep, so he just caffeinated and didn't take a nap. He couldn't even believe how bad she was acting. We decided to get out of the house and go to Lowe's to get shelving for Carter's closet. We needed a lot more shelving because the closet is not that big to begin with. It's a good thing it's not a girl's closet or we would be in trouble with space. When we finished the closet we had lunch and Ashlyn went down for her nap. I asked her to please wake up on the opposite side of the bed this time. I went to the grocery store and by the time I got back it was time to go to JCPenny's for Ashlyn's 2 year pictures. Mike called on my way home and said that Ashlyn not only woke up on the wrong side of the bed but is even worse than she was earlier today. I thought to myself, "Oh great! Pictures are going to be a disaster." Mike had a dinner meeting so Diane went with me to do pictures. We had a girl named Serena and she was awesome! The pictures turned out great!! I had so many to choose from and I will now be asking for her when I make an appointment. After picking out pictures and eating dinner we made it home in time for bedtime. With the day we had, I'm very glad how it ended.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

What a beautiful day! The temperature was 75 today so I tried to do things outside so we could enjoy the weather. I found out this morning that there was a St. Patrick's Day parade downtown today at 11:30. I had a meeting with a lady from progressive at 10 am here at the house but it didn't last that long, so I decided to take Ashlyn down to the parade. This will be her first parade. Brian was going to be in the parade so I called him before going downtown to get directions. Ashlyn was able to see Papaw before the parade started. Warren had their old antique fire engine in the parade and some of the guys asked if we wanted to ride in the parade. I wasn't sure how Ashlyn would do so I told them maybe next time. They gave her a green necklace to put on and she loved that! I took her up and we got a spot to stand by some of the firefighters on duty. I think she had a great time. Papaw was riding in the bucket of the firetruck with the police chief. Ashlyn kept asking for papaw and finally she saw him. She was so excited and waved when he came by in the firetruck. After the parade, we went to lunch with Papaw at a BBQ restaurant. By the end of lunch it was 1:30 pm and she was ready for her nap. She fell asleep on the way home and when she got up Mike was home. She told him all about what she saw at the parade and showed him her green necklace. I need to take advantage of fun things like this because these are free and they make memories.
Papaw Sanford on the fire truck.

We found a leprechaun!

Ashlyn, Brian and I.

Ashlyn's 2 year check up

This morning we went to see Dr. Stein for Ashlyn's 2 year check up. Where has time gone??? She did awesome at her check up. I guess playing doctor at home made her more relaxed with what he was doing. Dr. Stein was very impressed at how well she behaved, how well she was talking and that she was potty trained and in a big girl bed. I told him that we wanted to accomplish these before the new baby came. Ashlyn's height was 34 1/2 in. and her weight was 25 lbs, she is in the 75% for height and 25% for weight. She kept saying his name during the visit and when he was getting ready to leave she said,"Bye Dr. Stein."

Garyn and Gianna's birthday party

We are all trying to recoperate from our big day yesterday but we still had a busy day today. We went to the late service at church so we could sleep in but with Ashlyn we don't really get to sleep in. She woke up at 2 am last night, not sure why but I put her back in bed and she went right to sleep. She came into our bedroom again this morning at 7 am and we all slept till almost 8 am in our bed. Off to church at 11 and then we went out to eat at El Rodeo. We had a few hours for her to take a nap before we left again. Today, we celebrated Garyn and Gianna's birthday's together. Garyn turned 3 on Feb. 23rd and Gianna will turn 1 on March 17th. The kids had a wonderful time playing with all the new toys and it was such a beautiful day that they were able to go outside and play on the swingset. We are officially done with the birthday parties for this year all in one weekend. Our next party will be when Carter's born and that isn't very far off.

Ashlyn's 2nd birthday party!

Today we celebrated Ashlyn's 2nd birthday party with the family. The day started off with me trying to get the cake made. I decided that I wanted to make Ashlyn's cake this year and well, I should have made it the day before. It took all morning to get it done and I still had other things to do. Mike was running around for me picking up things and my parents showed up just in time to help me decorate. Ashlyn wanted to watch me decorate her Elmo cake but also wanted to just get her fingers in the icing so I had to keep my eyes on her. I really enjoyed making the cake and the only problem I had was with the eyes because the icing didn't want to stick to the cake. I finally finished the cake, got Ashlyn a bath, lunch and to bed for her nap. Mike came home during her bath and his dad came by to see what he could do to help me. We all had lunch and I sent them to go get the balloons and just before they left my parents showed up. My mom and I got everything decorated and then mom started cleaning up my BIG mess in the kitchen while I got out of my p.j's and got ready for the party. Ashlyn was up from her nap when I got out of the shower so Mike got her dressed and took her in to see the decorations and balloons. She was really excited! By 3:30 we were ready to Party! Our guests included Great Papaw and Mamaw Sanford; Great Papaw Kennedy; my parents; Mike's parents; Ryan, Natalie, Garyn and Gianna; Mark and Lori. We started off opening gifts. Ashlyn remembered who brought in what gift and started to hand out the gifts back to the people who brought them. It was so funny! After telling her to just open the gifts, she finally did. After the gifts we sang Happy Birthday and cut the cake. I had a short game for Ashlyn and Garyn to play, Pin the nose on Elmo. I blind folded them for one round and then let them do it without the blind fold for another. Other than that we just hung out talking and playing.

Ashlyn turns 2!!

I can't believe my little girl is 2 years old today! The past 2 years have just flown by and I am so glad I have been able to spend every moment with her. I wanted to make today special for her and I asked her yesterday evening what she wanted to do for her birthday? She said, "Kaden,Luke." So, I called Erika to see what their plans were for today.
We started the morning off with breakfast at Chick-fil-a with Erika, Kaden and Luke and then we went downtown to the Children's Museum. We brought lunch and Erika brought mini cupcakes for the kids to eat. Ashlyn also got to open gifts from them as well. We all left after lunch and she fell asleep on the way home. I planned dinner and invited Mike's parents over to help us celebrate. I bought Ashlyn a giant Elmo at the baby sale last weekend to give her for her birthday. I knew she would love it and her face was priceless when she saw it. It is actually the same size as she is now. We had a wonderful day and I can't wait for her party on Saturday.

My 28 week OB appointment!

Today was my 28 week OB appointment. I started my visit off with having to drink the orange stuff for my gluecose test. Then off to see Dr. White for the 2nd time this week. Carter's heartrate was 146 and she said that everything looks good. I just have to hang in for about 10 more weeks. With Mike's schedule and Dr. White moving, I am going to be induced on May 22, 2009 if I haven't gone before then. I would love to go on my own but we will just have to see how things go. Please keep me in your prayers that things will happen as they should.
I have been on the phone with progressive again today. We are finally making some progress. I was able to take my car into the Honda shop this evening and get my rental. Since Mike was with us, we decided to talk to Honda about our lease ending in July and maybe moving into a Pilot. The new Pilots are awesome!! After we left the car dealership we went to get dinner and I had to run into Toys R Us and get some birthday gifts for Ashlyn and my neice. It was a very busy day but a very productive day as well.

Car Accident

Today was a bit crazy for us. I started the day with a phone call at 7:40 from the delivery guy that he would be at my Inlaws in 10-15 minutes to drop off a playhouse. He was suppose to come between 9-2 and give me 30 minutes notice but that wasn't what happened. I threw on some clothes, stuck Ashlyn in the car and went over to their house. Since he came so early I was able to go to the gym for cycle class. We came home, changed clothes, and I called Erika to tell her we were coming. I was stopped to turn into the gym and I was rearended by a big pickup truck. This was my first accident ever and I had no clue what to do. Thank goodness two cops were there in minutes. Ashlyn was upset and I was fine at first and then I got upset thinking about the baby and just being overwelmed. When we finished the paperwork I went into the gym to talk with Erika and called Diane to see if I should come to see Dr. White. Erika ended up taking me to the hospital to make sure everything was okay with the baby. They did an ultrasound, blood work and kept me on a monitor for 2 hours to make sure I wasn't contracting. Ashlyn went home with Erika and Mike left work and came to the hospital. Everything checked out okay so we went home. Mike and Brian went to get my car and pick up Ashlyn around 3:30. I was on the couch the rest of the evening. My neck and back are really soar and it hurts if I pick up Ashlyn. Everyone keeps telling me tomorrow will probably be even worse.
I had a lot of weird things happen today that I just want to remember.
Mike left me a note that said, "Be careful going to the store today and that he loved me." When I got up and read the note I was like WHAT and had to reread the note. I was planning on being extra careful at the grocery after that note but we didn't make it to the store. I wasn't going to go to the gym because I was going to wait on the delivery guy but he came early so I decided to go. I didn't call the cops to come to the crash but they were there within minutes to help me through all this. When I got home from the hospital I had a message on my machine from Marte McCloud my prayer partner saying she was thinking and praying for me today. My bible study would call a lot of these things God Winks! I know God was watching over us today.

Shrine Circus comes to Indy

We took Ashlyn to the Circus at the Indiana State Fair Grounds. This is her first circus experience and I haven't been in ages. I wasn't sure how she would do but I thought it would be fun to try. When we first arrived we went down on the floor where all the action was. Our seats were opposit where we came in so we were also heading to our seats. We stopped to watch the elephants, which were giving rides and they asked us to please be seated so the show could begin. On our way out of the main floor we were almost run over by 2 giagantic elephants. (I'm not joking) We were trying to get out of the way but those elephants move very quickly because of their size. I have never been that close to one and for Ashlyn it was too close for comfort. She was tramatized! She was crying and wanted to go home. I thought, "Oh great!" So we decided to take her to get some popcorn and just stay back so she could calm down before going back out to see the show. She finally took to the popcorn and was good to go. She really liked it all but when it was intermission and the elephants came back out to give rides she got scared again but calmed down quicker. By the end of the show, she was ready to go. When we got back in the car I asked her what her favorite part was and she said, "Elephants!!!" I couldn't believe that. I think it was because she was terrified by them so it made a lasting impression. Oh well, I'm just glad she stayed and ended up liking it.

Trip to Petersburg

Friday, Feb. 27- Erika watched Stokley for today because Mike is on call 24 hours. I had to drop him off at her house before bible study and then we all went to bible study. After bible study we went back to Erika's to eat lunch before taking off on our trip. We left about 12:30 from Indy and went to meet my mom in Vincenness before we went to Illinois to visit my Grandma and some other family members. We got to spend time with my Grandma and Aunt Cindy the most. We also went to see Charity, Parker and Presley for a short visit. Everyone was getting ready to go to the boys basketball game. My cousin Brian is the coach for Red Hill and they were in their 2nd game of the Regionals. It was a short visit but it was getting late and we were getting hungry. Mom ordered pizza on our way home so we could eat as soon as we got there. My mom almost hit a deer on the way home from Vincennes and I told Ashlyn she would have to tell Papaw about it when we got home and she did. She said, "Mamaw hit(she slapped her face)deer(pointed to her ear)!! It was so cute! Since Ashlyn is in a big girl bed I had to come up with something for her to sleep on at my parents. I found a princess sleeping bag/blow up bed at Meijer and thought we would try it. I wasn't sure how she would do with it. I found out at 2am that she was out of the bed and stuck under the end of the futon where I was sleeping. I pulled her out and put her back in the sleeping bag but she still didn't sleep good.


Saturday, Feb. 28- We got up and ready to go see Jill and Blaine for a play date. We didn't leave there until close to 12:30. The kids didn't seem to play very well this time. They usually have a great time together but it was a bit more challenging this time. After the visit we came home, ate lunch, Ashlyn played with Papaw for awhile before going down for her nap. I was really tired today from such a busy day yesterday. Gram came up to visit and we just relaxed at home for the evening.


Sunday, March 1- We started with church in the morning at my mom's church. Ashlyn kept everyone entertained behind us. She did make it through without leaving the service but it was pretty comical. Here are a few things she did. She clapped and said yea after we finished singing a song, she made faces at the people behind us, she said "amen" after a prayer, our preacher was doing a message before communion and he put out his arms like Jesus on the cross and Ashlyn was standing up holding on to me and she did the exact same thing he did with her arms, when our preacher coughed a couple of times Ashlyn acted like she was coughing and to top it all off, the message was almost over and she told me that she had to go pee pee! Let me remind you that none of this was done quietly. :) We came home and got lunch ready. Gram came up and had lunch with us and brought me dad and I 2 buttermilk pies. I was very excited. After Ashlyn's nap we went to visit my brother and then we made a stop at CVS before heading home. We spent the evening at home and got things ready to go back to Indy. Ashlyn had a really bad night in her sleeping bag bed. When I went to bed she was mostly on the floor with her legs in the bed so I moved her back into the bed. I ended up moving her 3 times during the night because she wasn't in her bed. I'm glad I got a bed rail for her bed at home because it makes me think she must be all over her own bed during the night.

Monday, March 2- Ashlyn woke up at 6 am this morning! The good news to this is that we got to visit with my parents before they went to work. We had a wonderful time visiting with everyone and it was a very entertaining weekend.