Aaaahhhhhh!!!.... and...... Eeeewwwwww!!!!

Anslie has a little bit of a diaper rash so I decided to let her run around without a diaper on to let her bum air out. I knew I needed to keep an eye on her to make sure she didn't pee on everything. Well, I in my usual wisdom, didn't listen to my own advice and got distracted doing something on my computer when all of a sudden this stink started permeating throughout the room. I looked down at Anslie who was playing at my feet and saw her lifting a chunk of poo to her mouth! (yes... let the moans and groans and dry heaving commence) She had not just peed all over my carpet, she pooped all over it too and made good and sure she smeared it all over herself. Needless to say I threw her in the bathtub immediately. The poor thing was shocked with cold water, but that's what you get for crapping on my floor! It was pretty gross cleaning up smeared poo from the carpet and her toys...and in between her toes, and her hair, and her legs, and her bottom. That being said, I was pleased to find that it didn't gross me out even half as much as cleaning up dog poop (and I have done A LOT of that in my day). And I thought the days of poop on my carpets were over when we got rid of Penelope... (I didn't include pics to preserve everyone's appetite)

Little Ballerina

Oh, I forgot...

I love taking advantage of all that San Diego has to offer! Since the zoo is so close to home for us, we have a membership and can partake of all that it has to offer for as much, or as little, of the day as we please. We stopped by earlier this month for a couple of hours to have lunch and to take Ans to the petting zoo inside. She wasn't too terribly excited about the goats. She looked, but she didn't want to touch!



This picture is for you, Dad! These turtles (I mean Tortoises...) were HUGE!!!

Anslie really liked the giant tortoises.(I think she belongs here!)

I promise it wasn't trying to bite her butt! Pretty funny looking though, eh? :)

Anslie's favorite part of the day was the last half hour when we let her walk wherever she wanted. We just followed her as she led the way. She was pretty brave when this peacock came by!

We had such a nice day. I love my family!

Preventing Burns and Interesting Eating

Anslie has never been very picky as far as what she will eat. She pretty much likes almost anything. She is, however, extremely picky about how she will eat and where. I don't remember a time when she didn't hate sitting in her high chair. She will tolerate it for a few bites, then needs something to distract her before she will take another bite. Sometimes giving her a drink from her sippy cup moves things along. Sometimes it's a fork that she can dip into whatever she happens to be eating. Other times it's songs, silly noises, or simply a change of menu.

Since she has been sick, she is even pickier about where she will eat. And she isn't completely happy unless she is eating on the run. But the problem with that is that she gets distracted easily and won't finish her meal AND my carpet is getting DESTROYED!!!

After lots of tears of frustration (from both Anslie and I) because she was losing weight (and you all know how important it is to us that she gain weight)from her lack of appetite and refusal to eat in her high chair, a thought came to me. It's the tray on her high chair that she doesn't like. She wants to be at the table with us. She is hungry and wants to eat. There's just something about the tray that really bothers her.

It was literally in the middle of dinner the other night that this thought came to me. Anslie had taken about three bites of food and was screaming at the top of her lungs wanting to get out of her high chair. I took the tray off, and it was like hitting the mute button on the remote for the TV. She immediately started scarfing her food down. We tried this tactic again at dinner tonight and this child ate more in one sitting than I have seen her eat in a long time. I guess she just doesn't want to be contained.

Anyway, this is how Anslie prefers to eat her meals. Whatever works, I guess:) I am just grateful for the inspiration!

Prayers for Anslie

Poor little Anslie has been pretty sick lately. It started as a cold about a week and a half ago. It seemed like she was getting better, but then her fever came back and she got a yucky cough. She was definately not getting any better so after almost 2 weeks of her suffering with a runny nose, cough, no appetite, and fevers, she was finally diagnosed with Atypical Pneumonia. Poor little girl!!! Fortunately this version of pneumonia is a bacterial infection and therefore considered to be less serious. This also means that the doc can treat her with antibiotics. I expect her to be feeling MUCH better within the next day or so, but some extra prayers can't hurt!!!

Tutu's!!!

My friend, Catherine, and I got together yesterday and made THE Cutest little tutu's ever for our little girls! We had so much fun shopping for the fabric and figuring out how to make them. The finished products are adorable!!! It makes me want to make a million for Anslie and have her wear one everyday! I am excited to figure out more "designs" for the tutu's also. I think we just found (yet another) creative outlet.





Keep an eye out on my blog to see come cute portraits we are going to do of the girls together in their tutu's!

Business Website!

Yay! I have my business blog up and running! Well, almost. I have a few more things to add, like prices and fees, but all my pics are up with contact info, etc. I am really excited! For those of you who don't know, I have been working on my photography and finally feel confidant enough to venture out into the world and offer my services to the public. If you would like to take a look at my website, go to:

http://www.shillawnaruffnerphotography.com

There is also a link at the top right corner of this page. I would love to hear what you think! Wish me luck!

Thanks for rubbing off on me, Rachelle! :)

You know how when someone says to you, "Don't smile," that's exactly what you end up doing?

Last week I was in Lancaster helping my sister, Rachelle, out because she had been in a car accident. Every time I spoke with someone about her accident they always said to me, "drive safely" or "no more accidents," or something along those lines. Guess what?! That's exactly what I went out and did! Fortunately it was very minor, almost nothing to really mention.

I was dropping some people off and accidentally pulled into the wrong driveway. As I was backing out of the driveway onto the poorly lit and very narrow street, I hit a parked car on the opposite side. Our bumpers "kissed".

There weren't any witnesses so I could have easily driven off, but I knew that the right thing to do was to fess up and deal with my mistake. The owner of the car, a very nice gentleman in his late 40's or early 50's, answered his door and was really very amiable about everything. His car is a 1985 Toyota pickup and the only damage that was done was a small dent on the rear panel of the driver's side and the driver's side tail light was smashed. My car has a large dent in the bumper and the passenger's side tail light is cracked.

After taking some picture of the damage on both vehicles and exchanging personal information, the owner agreed that I could return in the morning with Kevin to get a better look at the car (it was dark when the accident happened) and then Kevin and I could decide if we would like to pay for the repairs out-of-pocket or go through our insurance.

When we returned the next day, the owner of the other vehicle had decided that one more dent in his 24 year old pickup wouldn't make a difference and that the only repair he would need would be the lens of the tail light to be replaced. That was that. We are picking up the lens today, which will cost us about $20, and then this little ordeal will be over.

I am very grateful that the man was so understanding in a potentially bad situation. You never know what you are going to get from other people. He could have made us pay for much more than he did. Heck, he could have taken a baseball bat to the car and blamed it on me!

I am also grateful that I decided to tell the truth and to take responsibility for my mistake. I think this man was very impressed with my honestly, especially because I had to knock on stranger's doors to find out who the owner of the truck was. He said that he told his grand kids about my honestly and that made me feel really good.

Now, our car is another story. It will be much more expensive to repair the damages for us, but at least we can do it on our terms!