Better eat your Wheaties

Harper attempts cereal WITH milk for the first time... Oh, the little things.

Please disregard Jeff's emphysema and Harper's bedhead.

Clean up on aisle four

Thursday morning, approximately 8:40 a.m.

Mom: Harper, it's time to go to school. Let's go - grab your backpack, please.

(Shouts from the kitchen towards the other side of the house.)

Harper: .....

Mom: Harper, c'mon, we need to get in Mommy's car.

(Heads towards Harper's room to corral her towards the front door.)

Mom: What in the?! Really? All the food from your room?

(Watches in disbelief as Harper shuffles her feet through the plastic food.)

Harper: Hi!

(Smiles. Picks up new measuring spoons and heads for the front door.)

Kiss and tell...

It's no secret that Harper loves her friend, Carson. He lives on our street, and we are friends with his parents, so the thought of Carson stays fresh on her mind at all times. I can bribe her with the chance of seeing "Car-Car," and once I even convinced her to take a nap because she could be sure that Carson was napping at his house, too! You can only imagine how excited she was on Sunday when she learned that we were going to the zoo with him later that afternoon...IF she took a nap, of course!

We headed out to the Cameron Park Zoo, and it could not have been a more beautiful day. Sunny, close to 70 degrees - hard to imagine we received several inches of snow only two days later! We are so lucky that we can drive ten minutes and spend as little or as much time as we want at a pretty nifty zoo. Not too many cities can boast of such a thing! Anyhoo, fun was had by all...and maybe even a love connection! Somebody call Chuck Woolery!

Possibly ammo to use in a senior yearbook? Class of 20__?

We approached the bear as he finished pooping...awkward!

Somehow we never discovered this great slide during our previous zoo trips!

Loved it!

And one fun ride for Dad!

Ahhhh - holding hands! This is where it starts!

Carson goes in for the kiss...

...and Harper comes at him with tongue. Really, Harper?? Sheesh!

Tiger Woods & Toilet Bowl XLIV

Super Bowl weekend did not go exactly as planned for the Peel household. Just be glad that we did not show up at any of your game-watching parties! Jeff dubbed the weekend "Toilet Bowl XLIV," because our family spent most of our time in the bathroom instead of in front of the television like most of America. Seriously, who loses weight on Super Bowl weekend?! It is meant to be a weekend of indulgence and glutton, if you will, but not at the Peelton. We subsisted on a steady diet of Gatorade and saltine crackers.

Speaking of Gatorade, I must say thank you to Tiger Woods and his numerous infidelities. I can think of no other reason as to why Walgreens has clearanced out his line of Gatorade drinks for a mere 50 cents when all of the other flavors sell for $1.99. I have seen the same cashier every day for the last three days, and I finally bought the last four bottles this morning. She seemed somewhat concerned, yet impressed with my savvy shopping. Thanks, Ti-gee, as Harper would say.

I fell victim to the bug when I woke up on Saturday morning. Jeff had to man Harper all day while I was bedridden. Then she got sick shortly after bedtime on Saturday night, and threw up for the next several hours. Jeff took another one for the team helping Harper christen each and every toilet bowl in our house. You know, holding her hair back and such. ;) Our laundry pile more than doubled that night, and of course, we were out of detergent. (This girl bought a Thor-sized bottle at Target last week, which somehow did NOT make it into my car? Go figure!)

I woke up feeling much better on Sunday, and we waited patiently to see if Jeff would get sick or not. Harper didn't throw up and had normal diapers, but she didn't eat much and acted rather sluggish. I wasn't surprised because I knew she had to have been exhausted from lack of sleep that night. Jeff made it through the day without any major incidents. Until this morning...

Jeff woke up with a case of "tummy sticks," as we like to call it. Harper seemed to be better, and without thinking, I gave her her usual cup of morning milk. Unfortunately, she had a few sips before I wised up and remembered that she should avoid dairy for a little while longer. I gave her Gatorade instead and didn't think much more about it. We then headed out to pick up the mail for Jeff's office and take care of a few other quick errands when it happened. Revenge of the milk! Out of nowhere, Harper spewed curdled milk ALL OVER MY CAR. I want to puke now just thinking about it! I am shuddering at the thought of it...

After rushing home to clean up my sweet girl, I had to grab the cottage cheese-covered car seat from my car and figure out how to clean that disgusting mess. Trust me, if you can avoid it, you never ever want to have to try and take apart and clean a Britax car seat. It may qualify as one of the most difficult tasks I have ever attempted. Aside from having to get way too close to the offensive puke, I barely managed to get the seat and cover cleaned....please cross your fingers that I can get it all back together in its intended fashion!

Well, Harps finally fell back asleep on her pull out couch, wearing her adorable Strawberry Shortcake robe made by Grammy, and Jeff is asleep in bed. I think I may have to take a nap myself for I suspect I may have a looooooooong day ahead of me!

Let's pray for a speedy recovery for all of our friends and family feeling under the weather! Oh, and how 'bout them Saints?!

While the cat's away...

...the mice will play, but they won't sleep very well. Jeff headed to San Antonio yesterday for a continuing education course, and he won't be home until late Saturday afternoon. If all goes as planned, he will pass his test on Saturday and add a few more initials to the end of his name. You can just call him "Jeff Peel, CIC, CISR, CRM." Or just "Jeff." Take your pick.

He hasn't been out of town for an extended period of town in several months. He took a few courses in the first half of 2009, but this fifth and final course wasn't offered in Texas until now. So, basically, he hasn't been away from home for very long since Harper really started to care about "momma" and "dada." She actually realizes he is gone this time, and she doesn't much care for it. She talked about her daddy ALL DAY yesterday. His name was the first word out of her mouth this morning. She didn't want to sleep last night, and while I can't be sure of the reason, I'll attribute it to Jeff's absence to make him feel good about it. I have my fingers crossed that we'll sleep well tonight.

So, study up, Dad, and hurry home! Harper misses you, as well as her Uncle K-K who is on a quick trip of his own. Apparently, Mom is dirt this week!

Move over, Gatorade.

There is a new thirst-quencher in town. It's called Chuy's salsa, and Harper is here to drink it all up.

Step 1: Drink salsa.

Step 2: Cry uncontrollably because you caught a little twist of heat on your tongue.

Step 3: Tame the heat with a quick swipe of the lollipop.

Step 4: Repeat steps 1-3 as many times as you can possibly handle.

Sweet ol' Piper takes the safer route and drinks melted ice cream instead. Smart kid!

(s)He moves in mysterious ways...

We went to church yesterday, and I can't explain what came over me as we walked into the worship service. Lemme tell ya, the folks at Highland Baptist like to sing their little hearts out. We quickly sat down and started to join in on the current song. Or rather, I tried to join in on the song. I opened my mouth, and suddenly, a wave of emotion rolled over me. I squeezed half of a note out before my lips started quivering. I couldn't sing. I wanted to cry. I stood through the entire praise portion fighting back tears in an attempt to regain my composure.

It was the weirdest thing. I was so happy to be there, but I couldn't stop thinking of all the people - friends, family and complete strangers - that are leaning on the Lord right now (and always, for that matter). Think of all the prayers that go up to Him on a daily basis for His strength and guidance. It was an overwhelming reminder that He moves in such mysterious ways.

Think of Haiti. Think of the destruction, the devastation, the deaths and the unimaginable needs of the survivors to make it through the day, much less what they need to rebuild their lives. Then think of the young man rescued after spending eleven days in the rubble of a hotel grocery store who survived by eating cookies and drinking soda and beer. Amazing.

I was also thinking of a little girl born at a mere 25 gestational weeks. Her mother is a fellow provisional member of the Junior League of Waco. Baby Maya was born incredibly early, but she has forged ahead with unbelievable might over the past four weeks. I could not even fathom a guess as to how many people are praying for Maya and her family. The daily updates via Facebook are so encouraging, so uplifting. Each day that Maya lives has been a miracle. Hers has been a heart-wrenching yet amazing journey. She is living proof that God is good.

God is so good. My family has so many things for which to be grateful: we are all healthy, we have a home, Jeff has a good job, we can pay our bills, we have strong minds and are able-bodied, we are really, really ridiculously good-looking, and we have the best English Bulldog in all of the land. (Ok, so maybe I exaggerated with those last two...) But you catch my drift, right? There may come a time when we really need your prayers, but for now I am more than happy to give you mine.

Forever and ever, Amen.

A little Randy Travis and U2 to start your morning... ;) You can thank me later.

An interruption of your regularly scheduled programming

Extra, extra, read all about it! (Pitcher can't pitch, and there's no doubt about it!) Ahem. Excuse my cheerleader flashback...wait, I was never a cheerleader! So....what I was sayin' was...

Get ready for another Mini Peel! Yes, this is the official confirmation of the rumors you've heard or the pictures you've seen on Facebook of Harper wearing her "big sister" shirt. Please don't take it personally if you found out through Facebook or through another friend, and not from us directly. The news started seeping out of tiny holes in the proverbial dam, and before I knew it, it was out. Moving on!

I'll be 12 weeks along tomorrow. Mini Peel is due on August 6, 2010. I'm feeling a boy vibe this time around, but we'll have another two months or so before we find out the gender. What do you think? Will Harper have a little brother or a little seester?

The pregnancy definitely feels differently. Well, in a sense. Physically, it is the same as the first pregnancy. I haven't been sick, just a little tired here and there. I haven't gained any weight yet either. I don't know how to say this without sounding insensitive or cold, but the difference with this pregnancy is in my head. Brace yourself: it just doesn't seem as earth-shattering or life-changing as it did when I found out I was pregnant with Harper. Sounds terrible, doesn't it? I can't possibly tell you how excited we are or how much we are looking forward to this baby. It's unfathomable. But at the same time, it doesn't seem like it is as big of a deal once you've already had one kid.

The thought of that really bothered me for awhile, but then it occurred to me why it seems that way. It's because I have a kid! It's because I have a crazy, hilarious, couch-climbing, windowsill-perching, dancing queen of a little kid! I don't have the TIME to sit around and think about how wonderful it is to be pregnant. Our family is BUSY being a family. The fairy tale portion of a pregnancy is not present this time around. And you know what, I'm not sad about that. Instead, now I know how flippin' cool it is to be a parent to an awesome little kid (even on the bad days) with such a unique personality -- I am much more grounded in the reality of it all. We're going to have another neat little kid with his or her own personality that will contribute to and round out our family. How nifty is that?!

So there you have it - by the end of the summer, four will be the official count at the FalconPeel household. You read it here first, folks! (Or you already knew, and you can just pretend!)

Calling to share her big news!

Warm up

No, this post is not dedicated to the weather. I only wish it were warming up outside -- 20 degrees is too cold for this born-again Texan! Speaking of Texas....

Check out the chair Uncle Kevin got Harper for Jeff's birthday. (Did you follow that?)

All set for the National Championship on Thursday! Just keeping the seat warm for now with a little DJ Lance and the Yo Gabba Gabba gang. By the way, I don't really know what to think of that show, but Harper loves to dance along with it and it buys me twenty minutes of freedom per day. I think I'm sold!

When she isn't allowed to watch an extra episode of YGG, Harper can often be found reading her YGG book or lugging all five of her YGG stuffed toys around the house. Can we say "obsessed?" Jeff hates DJ Lance, and his is ready for Harper to move past this obsession. We'll just have to see how long it lasts!

On a side note, we took back the den and breakfast nook from Harper. No more kiddie land in our living room! Our breakfast table can finally return to it's proper spot. Life can go on... Harper still has a few things tucked away in the space, but now the room finally looks like adults live here, too. Proper staging can't hurt when potential home buyers come a-knockin' either! Oh, and she was not crying in this photo because I tore down her play-prison. She was mad about something else at the time, but she did throw her hands to her face with a look of shock when she first saw the pile of plastic!

And in closing, a random moment between Harper and myself. Neither of us are known to snuggle, but we sat that way for a good 15 minutes yesterday morning. She needed to be held, and who am I to not oblige her? This doesn't occur often, but I've learned to stop myself and enjoy the moment. They seem to be going by all too fast these days...

Back to business

The holiday indulgences are over, the decorations are resigned to spending the next eleven months in the garage, and five-day work weeks are again considered the norm. What else does the new year mean for the Peel family, you ask? Well, for starters, school is back in full swing for me (though to be honest, there was never any hint of a break between fall and spring), and Harper is back at Mother's Day Out! Hallelujah!

I knew the five hours every Tuesday and Thursday were valuable to me and important to Harper's socialization and development. However, the true extent of how much we both needed that time apart did not become evident until last week. Harper and I were both at our wits' end. Luckily, Grammy scooped up Harper on NYE and granted us a 48 hour reprieve. I should have used that time to complete my prospectus, but instead I indulged in some much needed relaxation with friends. (Shout out to Alyssa and Spencer - GREAT to see y'all!)

Yesterday, we all got back to business. Jeff was eager to get back to work and get in gear this year. Right, babe? :) (Here's to hoping he writes and renews LOTS of insurance in 2010!) Today was Harper's first day back at MDO. I was afraid that should be clingy and uncooperative when I dropped her off. In fact, that couldn't have been farther from the truth. She had a rocky start at home this morning, but she couldn't have been happier when we walked into her classroom at the church. We are truly blessed to have found such a wonderful place for her!

I was slightly saddened by the fact that Harper's favorite teacher, Miss Cassie, did not return this "semester." She had an opportunity to teach three-year-olds in an Montessori class at another church. Tears nearly spilled down my cheeks when she told me the news on the last day of MDO before Christmas break. The second teacher in Harper's class had been a floater the entire fall, so the kids really came to count on Cassie as their consistent and trusted leader. She was so good with all of the kids, and I always took notice of how much she worked with Harper on her words, manners, etc. It was nice to know HP was spending time with an adult that took time to teach her and not simply "watch" her. We'll miss Cassie, and we'll pray that another wonderful teacher will land in that class. It is also possible that her class may be combined with the two-year-olds. That could get interesting!

So, MDO is back on, and life is back to "normal." (Whatever that means!) My Tuesdays and Thursdays shall once again be filled with school work, Junior League meetings and the occasional lunch date! Oh, and playgroup is back in session tomorrow, too! We have sure missed those kids (and moms)! OK, now back to that prospectus....