Emotions

This is me at my wit's end...I really don't know how to spell wit, witt, whit... My middle child, Shelby Lynn is so very full of emotion. She laughs loud belly laughs, she cries in a ridiculous screams, she loves to bare all when it comes to her feelings. She also loves to be held. I am not exaggerating when I say that I really believe she would be held all day if someone was willing to do so. Those of you who know Shelby, please comment and vouch for me on this one. I am very serious about this. Anyway...my point of the matter is. I can hold Shelby lots of times. In fact I try to say yes as much as possible. I hold her until she falls asleep at nap time, I also hold her while she falls asleep for bed. If I can't she is willing, with a good attitude, to fall asleep by herself if need-be. But I am beside myself for her attitude when she wakes up from nap. I mean, I dread it. From about 3-4 in the afternoon (after nap time) until bedtime, she is a whiny mess. So frustrating! She wants me to hold her the whole time, she speaks in a whiny voice and cries over every little thing. She is not willing to treat her sisters kindly, or help out when asked. But only after her nap. She is a pure delight in the morning... So part of me says, hold her, love on her, she NEEDS the attention and care. I am still willing to hold her when I can, but I am not willing to allow whining, disobedience and a bad attitude in our home. So question for all who have advice to give, how do I help Shelby wake up rested, happy and ready to enjoy the rest of the day? Ready...go...

Peter Pan Party

We had a Peter Pan Party last night, well, me and six kids. My brave father also stopped by for an egg sandwich and a piece of apple pie for his "birthday party." My mom had to head out of town last minute so I invited him over for a birthday bash, but forgot Shane was going to be in Richmond all night, and I had also agreed to babysit for three other kids. Oh well, He was great about it and the kids we super easy. They dressed up in their Peter Pan costumes (with a few Snow Whites and and Sleeping Beauty in there, too) and watched the flick. It was a great night and lots of fun for the kids. Try is sometime!

Winter Walk

This is us headed out for our little walk... Beautiful happy girls.

This is us about 20 min. later. Annalee walking with her snow boots and scrunched down socks "They hurt my feet, Mommy!", Shelby stealing Avery's covers all nice and toasty curled up in a ball, and then there is Avery who seems OK with the 20 degree air on her high-water exposed legs, hmmm.. maybe we will walk faster next time.

I love Sunday's at our house. It is the one day a week where we do nothing but rest and have family fun. Shane can't stand to sit still for more than a couple of hours so we often "do" something on that day as well. A typical Sunday at our house may include: A big breakfast of apple pancakes with home made whipped cream, or muffins from the oven and fresh fruit, then it is off to church where we are guaranteed to meet God and friends in an incredibly refreshing time of worship. Then it is home for a simple lunch with or without guests and then a wonderful nap time for all family members. After that is when Shane's gets bored and we are off "doing" something. Lots of times we head to my parents house or to the park. Last Sunday we bundled up and walked the mile down the road to the grocery store to pick up a last minute dinner idea. It was super cold and got dark before we returned, but we enjoyed the fresh air and exercise. I love Sundays!!!!!!!!

Christmas at our House

Please excuse the blurry and bad-lighting pictures. One day I will have a decent camera, but you get the idea...

Ballerinas

Dressing seems to evolve a lot at our house. It has been mostly ballerina-themed these days. This means the girls put on some sort of dancing gear, possibly accessorised with a cape or princess crown, and proceed to twirl for hours wether the TV is on or off. I usually only let them have it on for music purposes. At least it has helped them developed an appreciation for classical music. I wonder what this little brother is going to think of all this?

Halloween

Ok, so I know Halloween was two months ago. My sister has a new fancy camera and it makes my pictures seem horrible. So I had given up on trying to take a decent shot with my little point-and-shoot, but have decided I will resume using it and post pictures anyway. All that to say... I stopped taking my own pictures for a while and waited for Liz to come around and provide me with great memories. After a lot of whining I finally got her to burn me a DVD of all her Miller girl pictures. I have several batches to post, but here are the adorable Halloween shots. Shane and I weren't there and Liz and my mom obviously had a blast playing dress up with the girls before they headed down to the fair grounds for the Fall Festival put on by a local church. They played a bunch of carnival games and won candy prizes. What fun!

As promised...

Family

My sister did a big photo shoot for us during Thanksgiving. We all went our to Pufferbelly Park in Ashland for the afternoon. We got a lot of really great photos and she promised the CD is in the mail, but these were posted on her blog yesterday, so here is a sneak peek. I will post more pictures when I get that CD!

P.S. The top picture is of my sister, brother and I...

Birthdays!!

Shelby turned 3 and I turned 30. Baking, playing, cake-eating, dining, present-opening and lots of thanking...what a great day. Tammy and Mia treated me to a wonderful ladies night at Bonefish Grille! I have to say a special thank you to Shane's mom, Pattie for the most creative birthday present for Shelby. Along with a Peter Pan movie, she made a Wendy, Peter Pan, Tinkerbell and 3 indian costumes for the girls. They slept in them and are looking forward to our movie/dress-up night with some friends this evening.

My new favorite...

I really love the Fall, but I really, really love this Fall drink from Starbucks...Carmel Apple Cider, oh yeah!

Snead's Farm

My Dad and sister loving the kettle corn

My beautiful Mom

Soy Avery

Shelby, Shelby, Shelby

"Higher Daddy!"

Avery and me

Pretty girls!

We spent the evening with my family at Snead's farm. So quaint and non-commercialized. I loved it. They had a chicken coop and the girls loved feeding the 100's of chickens. We roamed around petting horses and cows and picking out pumkins. So much fun! Liz brought her new camera and we got some great shots. Upon leaving, Annalee announced that she wanted a camera just like Liz's with a long front and a BIG flash! Big dreamer...Enjoy!

King Georege Fall Festival

I was shooting a wedding with my sister on Sat, so I sent Shane and the girls to my old stomping grounds for the Fall Festival. Don't worry, they were escorted by my parents as to not be attacked by the roving mullets.

Washing the Car