the sweetest thing

So Logan and Camryn had their first day of school this morning.  As you can see, they were absolutely thrilled.

And, I just want to show y’all the evidence of the Houston humidity.  This is what happens to my camera when I first go outside.  Nice.

Despite the glum face, Logan had a really great day.  I love that he has his same teachers from last year.  This is Logan’s third year at the school, so he’s really comfortable there and had tons of fun today.

Camryn did well, too.  She cried when I dropped her off, which I totally expected, but it was short lived.  According to her teachers, she had a really good day, and the only other time she cried was during a diaper change.  That didn’t surprise me at all…she hates having her diaper changed!

As for me…it was weird having no kids at home!  I went to breakfast with a few friends, went to Sams (where at one point I totally panicked for a split second wondering where Cami was), and then I went home.  That was when it was weird…it was just so quiet!  I did a bit of cleaning, but I also read a magazine, watched some tv, started a sewing project, and caught up on blogs and stuff.  It was nice!  I was so ready to see my babies when 2:00 rolled around, and it was the perfect little break I needed.  Especially since Derek has been gone this week.

It feels so good to be getting back into our fall routine, although it’s definitely been an adjustment.  As a kid, I always liked the start of the school year, and even as a grown up, that has not changed at all.  It makes me want to go school supply shopping and stock up on notebooks and pens and make lists and get a nice, fresh start.  I love it.

It may not be as important as the first Christmas or the first steps or the first tooth or the first day of school. But it’s still a rite of passage, at least for my kids! On Wednesday, I introduced Camryn to the fun found in the tupperware cabinet.

Just like her predecessors, she took to it right away.

And even when things got a little perilous…

She didn’t let that stop her fun.  Or her smiles.

I love my tupperware cabinet.  It has served me well for many years.

(And if you want tupperware organizing tips, clearly you need to read a different blog.)

Right now, the house is completely quiet.  Derek and the boys are at chuch and I’m home with Miss Cami who is fast asleep.  She has been working hard on her top two teeth the past few days and is pretty much an unhappy mess.  She hasn’t been napping well (and the HUGE storms we had yesterday definitely did not help matters), and she’s got a Super Snot Nose.  She was fast asleep when it was church time, and I just didn’t have the heart to wake her up.  Plus I wouldn’t put her in the nursery with all the snot, just in case it’s from more than just teething.  Which means I end up sitting out in the foyer all of service with a cranky baby who needs a nap.  So we stayed home.  I should really do something more productive, but that’s what Mondays are for in Megan World.  However I just finished my second espresso drink of the day (I have NO idea what made me do that!  It just tasted so good!)  So I’m not going to be sitting still for long!  Maybe I’ll organize my tupperware cabinet.

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

I present to you The Chair.

(and you can see the new tile on the fireplace!)

I really should have taken a picture of the original fabric.  It was a delightful 70s brown and orange plaid.  Three years ago, I recovered it in a bit more modern red plaid.  But, as it turns out, I really just don’t like plaid in my home very much.  Can’t go wrong with a neutral fabric with fun pillows.  I really like how it turned out!  And, I didn’t have one single sewing meltdown, much to Derek’s relief.

Camryn likes the chair, too.  She was more than happy to model on it for me.

Today, she is 9 months old.  Seriously, 9 months already??  She’s been out in the world as long as she was in my belly.  Just like any proud mama, I think she is pretty amazing.  She is so sweet, so fun, so cuddly, and pretty much rocks our world.  The other day I was thinking about how for awhile I wasn’t sure if I wanted to have any more kids after the boys.  And now that she is here, I can’t even imagine what it would be like without her.  She has brought so much joy to our family! She is getting better and better at crawling.  This morning I looked over at the rocking chair and saw her standing up, holding onto it.  That’s only the second time I’ve seen her pull up by herself.  She says “da da da da da da” all day long, and it cracks me up because Logan is constantly telling her in a somewhat frustrated voice that “daddy is not here!  He is at work!”  One of her happiest places to hang out is right in front of the windows facing the backyard.  She loves to watch the boys play out there, and every once in awhile, she gets a little visit from Dallas.  She loves Dallas.  If he’s in room, her eyes are locked on him.

She is starting to eat more and more little finger foods.  Yesterday I gave her fresh cantaloupe, and she ate and ate and ate it.  She absolutely loved it!  She could also eat her weight in Cheerio’s or those little fruity Gerber puffs.  She makes a face at me when I feed her green veggies, but she eats them anyway even if they aren’t her favorite.  My girl loves to eat, that’s for sure!

I could go on and on about how fun and special she is and about how much I love her.  But I’ll stop for now.  I think you get the picture. Happy 9 month birthday, baby girl!

If you were to open Camryn’s closet right now, you would find a good number of dresses.  Over the past 9 months, she’s aquired quite the little dress collection.  She’s got sundresses, jumpers, knit dresses, sweater dresses, smocked dresses, and more.  But she needed I wanted to get her a special Easter dress.  After much searching, I found the perfect one a few weeks ago.  When it arrived in the mail, I literally squealed with delight over the perfection of the springy color, the simpleness of the embroidered flowers, and the sweetness of the little scalloped edge.  When I tried it on her, I’ll admit that I felt a little giddy.  It seems so silly that I get this excited over girly clothes, but I really do love it.

Last night was a beautiful night, and since there is a good chance that our Easter Sunday will be rainy, I decided to take Camryn down to our neighborhood park for a photo shoot.  Unlike our backyard, our park has really nice landscaping.  (It’s good to know that our homeowners association dues are put to good use.)  I took about 150 pictures.  I would say at least 50 of them had some variation of this face, aka her “scrunchy nose face” (I just realized that when I say “scrunchy” in my head, I actually say “scwunchy” as if I were a little kid yet to learn my r sound.)

There were also a lot that were out of focus, or her eyes were closed, or she was turned around checking out what was behind her.  There were a few where instead of Camryn, I got Logan’s blurry legs as he scampered in between us.

She must be conscious that bathing suit season is just around the corner, so she worked on her downward facing dog yoga pose.

And she refined her sprinkler dance.  She knows it’s a skill that will take her far in life, and she must start working on it now.

There were also some really cute ones.  (I love how the flowers match her dress.  So perfect.)

And then, my favorite.  This next picture is probably one of my favorites of all time.  I guarantee you it will be enlarged and in a frame by next week.  It embodies everything that I love about having a baby girl.  I could hardly believe it when she struck this pose for a split second in between wobbles and scrunchy faces and gummy smiles and, not only that, I managed to capture it.  I showed it to Logan right away, and he declared it her Princess picture.

Sweet princess Camryn in all her Easter dress glory.  I love it.

Really, I just think this is going to be a great year. My first day of being 29 has been great so far.
–It’s a gorgeous 75 degrees outside right now.
–Camryn and Logan are both napping. That never happens, because, you know, Logan doesn’t really nap anymore. But since I have a hot birthday date with my husband tonight, and the kids are going to have a blast with their cousin’s house, I know it’s going to be a late night, and mean mommy made him lay down for a nap. He’ll thank me tonight. (And so will my sister-in-law.)
–I’ve had lots and lots of birthday wishes, which being the attention loving middle child that I am, I love.
–Connor got ready for school without any hubbub today.
–I met some friends at the gym for a Zumba class, during which I looked like a complete dork, but it was pretty fun and got my heart rate going and my thighs burning.
–I enjoyed some time at the park with playgroup. They brought me cupcakes. I love cupcakes.
And now I’m enjoying the total peace and quiet, except for the soothing sounds of Jack Johnson and the washing machine, and I’m blogging at my new table! Oh, how I love my new table!

And those are some beautiful flowers Derek gave me yesterday.

Now I’m off to scrap with some of Paper Trunk’s newest papers!

Happy Birthday to me!  I hope all of your Friday’s are as great as mine is today.

Oh, and thanks for all the comments on my video!  Another one will be coming soon…