Dancing Queen

Anyone who knows me, knows I love to dance. I am thrilled to pass on this love to Esther. We often have dance parties, as you've seen in previous posts. Here are a couple of videos of her dancing. The 'shimmy' is pretty awesome. She scrunches up her shoulders and shakes her whole body, very awkwardly - Hilarious! She is a bit shy about dancing in front of the camera. As soon as I get it out, she shuts down the dance-machine. With a little encouragement, I managed to get a bit of it on tape.

A break from the cold

This past weekend was unseasonably warm and we took advantage of it. We had another weekend of nothingness and enjoyed every minute of it. We spent the weekend cleaning and organizing (pre-preparation for the move), playing, cooking, and enjoying the sunshine. Esther played dress-up a lot, especially sporting her boots and other rain gear and mix-matching outfit.
I've recently taken up hula-hooping. There is a whole dance-fitness movement right now. Ben bought me a hoop for my birthday last year and I have been playing around with it, but no real tricks. I took a class a few weeks ago and have another one this coming weekend. It is really fun! Here are a few pics of me hooping in the yard while Ben read and E played.
The rest of the pics are just cuties of Esther playing - her Elmo slippers, Cheese-face, and wearing baby in my/her sling. She was in that sling many a waking and sleeping moments for the first year or so. I miss it...

Tea Party

Esther's imagination is so fun. It's like she just hit the creative step in her development and is letting it run wild. We love it! We've been having a lot of tea parties, with accompaniment of cookies and lots of 'friends'. Esther tells them all where to sit, how to eat, and to make sure the tea cools down before drinking.
The life-like doll is from Ben's Granny and PawPaw. It talks, moves it's mouth to eat, drinks a bottle, and other things we won't allow it to do (pee/poop). Esther loves her. We don't turn her on very often, but E plays with her just the same. She even wears Esther's cloth diapers from when she was a newborn. I loved pulling them out and reminiscing. Not that I miss diapers, but the tiny baby that E once was.
Some of the kids at E's school still nurse and she remembers that time of her life fondly, as do I. She still asks to nurse sometimes. I tell her that the milk is long gone, but we can still cuddle. I'm so glad that I was able to nourish her and nurture the bond with my sweet girl through nursing. Esther also 'nurses' her baby when she's 'hungry' or 'crying'. I think that it is so sweet!
And we cannot forget the beloved fairy wings. Of course, I still love fairies, so am totally loving (and maybe pushing) her love for fairies and all things whimsical.
And this a gratuitous cute outfit picture. Ben went on a shopping spree a couple of weeks ago. They were having an incredible sale (75% off). These fleece lined jeans and hoodie are so fabo! She loves wearing hoodies like Papa (which is pretty much all Ben wears during the winter). We also go these rockin' orange crocs. One of E's classmates has some orange shoes and she's been begging for some of her own. It isn't that easy to find orange shoes for little girls, but I got quite a deal on ebay. Esther loves them! Ben keeps saying her orange phase is going to end soon, but so far, it is going strong. (Oh, and please ignore the looks of a tornado having gone through our house. It's just a toddler and exhausted parents...)

Wishing you and yours a good weekend!

Family weekend

Oh, it was so good to be home this weekend with Esther and Ben, with absolutely nothing to do. We enjoyed a visit with a sweet friend on Saturday, but otherwise did not leave the house or get out of our jammies.

Esther played with our old coffee maker (we got a new one for Christmas). Our little barista!
Reading on an extra mattress we have that has served for many places in E's imagination. One day it is the beach, another a pool, sometimes the park, and often just a bed.

I made Esther some new orange pants today. She asked for some for Christmas, but orange pants are hard to find, especially for little girls. I used some of the leftover fabric from her birthday outfit and some old orange batik I had laying around. It has been quite a while since I made pants, so I had to rip them out way too many times, but they finally turned out.

She hates posing.

A declaration of love for the color orange!

Ben has had a wonderful day of cooking (have I mentioned how much I LOVE his new interest in the culinary arts). He started off the day with a large batch of red beans and rice. Yum! and just finished off some pralines. Thanks, Mom, for the recipe books for Christmas. I am surely reaping the benefits.

She picked out the airplane, boat, car, and train apron over the flower or swirly one.

Winter days

We are settling back in to being home and enjoying time together as a family. Here are a few random pictures from the new year.

Zerbert

Lounging on the couch

Playing with blocks (Christmas present from Aunt Courtney and Uncle Boo Boo) - she was making a playground

Her new Cinderella castle and carriage (passed on from Ben's friend at work). It has lots of tiny figurines. Esther loves singing, "Cinderelli" and playing like a princess.

Winter walk

Tricycle - she's almost got the hang of it

Sunshine peaking through

The sunshine has peaked through the clouds the last few days. We lost another loved one, but this time were more prepared. My 'uncle' passed away after a long battle with cancer. We were lucky to have known him and spent so many happy times together. His wife and children were able to spend time with him in his last days and he passed without pain at home.
With all of this loss in the new year, I've gone through a range of emotions: utter sadness, disbelief, heartache, peace that passes understanding, comfort, anger, and gratefulness for my many blessings. I am blessed with my amazing family and friends that have prayed, listened and comforted me over these last couple of weeks. I know my sadness does not compare to those who were closer to those who passed, and my prayers continue for them, knowing that is the best thing we can do.
This year holds a lot of change as we will be moving, Ben starting school, Esther beginning a new school/daycare, and me looking for a new job. I am focusing on the many things I have to be thankful for. Some words that remind me of my blessings...

In the midst of winter, I discovered within me an invincible summer. ~Camus

Barn's burnt down - now I can see the moon. ~Masahide

Pray not for a lighter load, but for stronger shoulders. ~St. Augustine

What is to give light, must endure burning. ~Victor Frankl

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials. ~Confucius

I cried because I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet. ~Persian saying

Star soul will soon be back to pictures and stories of how our lovely daughter is filling our lives with joy and laughter.

Russell, you will be missed!

In an attempt to stop the heartache for our dear friends, I'm asking for prayer and kind thoughts. We lost a good friend, Russell Hays, January 1st in a car accident. He was an amazing father, kind husband, wonderful musician, and sincere friend. He leaves behind a wife, 7 year old son, and 4 year old daughter. Please raise prayers and send healing thoughts to his family and friends. He will surely be missed beyond the numbness of this moment, the reoccurring tears, and the smiles of fond memories.

I'm not sure how many locals read this, but Russell's band, the Buzzards, will be doing a memorial show for him in February (information below). We are hoping that it will be a fundraiser for his family. A memorial fund has also been set up at Regions Bank under the Hays family. If you are able and inclined, his family will need help and support.

There will be a memorial show by some of his band members (The Buzzards) on February 6th at the Fieldhouse in Dacula. Please tell all your friends and come show support for Russell's family and our dear friend who left this earth way to soon.

Buzzards bulletin: COME SEE SLIM AND MATT ALONG WITH OTHER FRIENDS DO AN ACOUSTIC SHOW AT THE FIELDHOUSE ON FEB 6 IN MEMORY OF OUR FALLEN BUZZARD, RUSSEL HAYS.