PINK, PINK, PINK

We were counting down the days for weeks for PINKALICOUS! Ever since Gigi took us to see Pinkalicious on Broadway in Chicago, it has been one of the girls favorite books. We have the soundtrack that we listen to in the car and the Macy and Leah even got "couture" Pinkalicious American Girl Doll dresses. We took Gigi to see the "Wizard of Oz" in March at the Little Theatre on the Square in Sullivan and saw that they would be doing Pinkalicious this summer and knew that we had to get tickets. Actually mom got tickets to all 3 of the Children's summer shows but this was the big kick-off for the season. All three of the girls put on their best pink dresses, and even Colby wore a pink polo shirt. He wanted no part of the girl picture before the show, but I was fortunate enough to snap one of him and Kiersten inside.

The kids loved the show, yes...even Colby. Kiersten and Leah were singing along to a few parts. After the show we waited patiently outside and got Pinkalicious to autograph our program. Gigi bought some pink cupcakes for a special treat and then we headed to Wyman Park for lunch. It's a great park right next to Sullivan Community Center where Mitch had his triathlon. I had packed some pringles, grapes, carrots and juice boxes and Mom and Cynthia ran through McDonald's drive through and grabbed some chicken nuggets and burgers. We enjoyed a beautiful picnic and some playtime in the park followed by the delicious pink cupcakes...to which the kids replied "Just one more???" Thank you for such a fun time, Gigi. We can't wait to go see "How I Became a Pirate" in July and "The Princess and the Frog" in August.

The Potty Pro

I don't mean to brag but my girl is super smart!!! And for some of you this post may be a little bit too much information...after all, it is about potty training. But I have to share. Shortly after Kiersten's 2nd birthday in March we pulled out our little princess potty to start getting her used to the idea. Occasionally, between diaper changes we would encourage her to sit on the potty and what not, but never really pushed potty training on her. I just felt like we were on the go too much. I figured we would start sticking closer to home the closer my due date got and we would give it a go then. May 17th was Leah's final day of preschool for the year. It seemed like as good a time as any, so on May 18th we woke up and went for it. I decided that I was going to put her in summer dresses with nothing on the bottom, that way it would be simple for her starting out. I had no idea it would be SOOO simple. She didn't have any accidents that day. Having Bowel Movements was a little tricky and she was scared at first and would want her diaper on, but we stayed in the bathroom and persevered through it. Of course the sensation was a bit overwhelming for her and she would come and go to the bathroom 4 or 5 times before actually going, but it was a work in progress and she quickly figured it out.  

On Saturday I showed her some of the Elmo underpants that Gigi got her for her birthday and explained that we didn't want to "pee-pee on Elmo" and I think she got it. She kept saying all day long "I no pee-pee on Elmo." and she didn't! I couldn't believe it. Furthermore over the course of the next few days, when I would try to put her in a diaper to run errands or for her nap she would cry and scream "I don't want a baby diaper, I want my Elmo's." So she decided she was done and we went with it. After four days accident free I took her to the store and told her she could pick out new underpants...of course she wanted Dora, and Minnie Mouse and Tinkerbell but finally decided that Tinkerbell was the way to go. Now she looks at her underpants every morning and tells me who she ISN'T going to pee-pee on....whatever works. Way to go Bug!

Colby's Par-TEE!

Wow, I'm seeing a bit of a theme in my posting today...can you say "GOLF FAMILY". Today is my nephew Colby's 3rd birthday. I love that little squirt. He is a handful and then some but he makes me laugh. He has become an avid golfer...well, for 3 anyway. Matt plays with him in the yard at home and takes him to the club often and of course he got a set from Gigi and Papa for his birthday too! So golf seemed like the logical choice. Cynthia did a great job getting all the party decor items on Etsy and I just love his little golf shirt and hat combo. Too Cute! The cupcakes were adorable, with flag pins that had the #3 on them and little pearl "golf balls" on the green icing. It was all so adorable. And not a theme that you see used for little boys too often. The party was on Sunday afternoon at Sister City Park in Charleston. It was a gorgeous day for the kids to play at the park. A few of his little pre-school friends were there and lots of family. Tiffany came with Parker and Brooklyn. Tara came with Jameson and Liam. David and Sanya were there with Amelia and Ryan...what fun, and always good to see all of them. We had a great time and hope that our favorite little golfer did too!

Tee it Up!

Just what every girl dreams of, right?!?! Well, we knew the time would come eventually, and this year for birthday gifts Gigi and Papa did not disappoint. Gigi always gets the kids ALL their summer clothes and swimsuits and shoes for their birthday's. It works out perfect since they have March, May and June birthday's. My girls actually get REALLY excited for new clothes, especially dresses. But this year there was a bit of an added bonus. Mother's Day Weekend we went to Charleston to have lunch and Papa busted out the golf bag. Leah was super excited. She's been giving them a little bit of a work out in our backyard, but it took us a while to get there. At first she kept telling me "NO, Papa is going to come teach me." Well, she finally let Mitch start helping her out a little.

This past Sunday was my birthday, and let me tell you...the greatest gift is having Gigi and Papa close by to take the kids for the weekend. Although the hematite and DIAMOND earrings from my husband are pretty awesome too! Anyway, my mom took the girls on Saturday morning, so Mitch and I could have a break. We had to go to Charleston on Sunday for Colby's birthday party so it was the perfect arrangement. Since Leah was going to Charleston we packed up her clubs (one driver, one iron and a putter) so maybe Papa could take her out to the club. She told me all about it on Sunday when we got to town. Papa drover her in the cart that goes really fast, Papa showed her how to use the funny club (putter) and it was really hard. And Colby was being naughty at the golf club, throwing golf balls...oh yes, have to tell on someone a little bit :)
Overall, it was a success. She had fun with Papa and her clubs. Now we just have to keep working on it here at home. Hopefully someday she will be able to Hit'em Straight!

My Beloved...

From Song of Solomon in the Bible: "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine."

This weekend my baby cousin Melissa got married to her Prince Charming...Josh. My pregnancy hormones were in overdrive. I can remember when they brought her home from the hospital. Tara and I were 8 years old, in 3rd grade and we swore up and down that they brought home the wrong baby. She was so dark complected and had such thick BLACK hair. But she quickly turned into our Miss, and in no time we knew she was all Myerscough and the spitting image of her older sister. I was thinking about that day as I went to the church dressing room to see her before the ceremony. I had intentions of getting all these wonderful pictures and of course we got half-way there and I realized my camera had no SD Card in it. Darn the luck! So all I have are these cell phone shots, oh well! I know I can snag some from other family members eventually.
During the ceremony, I was a reader. Colossians 3: 12-17 was the scripture I read... "Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony." Colossians 3:14 was the verse that stood out to me the most, I had to put a lot of effort into not crying while I was reading and of course teared up the minute I sat down. One of Josh's family members read from Song of Solomon, the Beloved verses. Now, you might not know it but Amy means "Beloved" and as a child I always associated those verses with my own name. I even had Mitch's wedding ring engraved with "My Beloved is Mine." So that part of the ceremony was especially touching.

Melissa was gorgeous, she has always been beautiful on the inside as much as the out. But yesterday at her wedding she was radiant...glowing. And I know it can only be because she found her one true love, her soul mate. Welcome to the family Josh! We were so happy that we could be there to help you celebrate your special day and the beginning of what we hope will be a very fulfilling and exciting journey for you both, Cheers to the bride and groom!

Did I Mention...

Although summer technically hasn't arrived, it has arrived here at the Schultz house. This weekend we had temperatures in the 90's so it seemed like the right time to bust out the sprinklers and popsicles. And the girls LOVED it. They played in the water for over an hour on both Saturday and Sunday and with temperatures expected to be in the 90's starting Thursday and through the weekend I am sure this will become a regular occurrence.

It didn't take long before Leah got pretty inventive. She was quick to get her buckets from the sand table...she started filling them and was tossing them in the general direction of her sister. Kiersten had another type of fun in mind. In no time, there were mud puddles forming and she thought they were the best thing ever. She would stomp and play in them like it was no big deal. Leah on the other hand would go over give it a try and then quickly head back to the sprinkler to get cleaned off. 

At noon we brought the girls in to get them ready for lunch. We dried off, changed clothes and were set. We told them that maybe we could play in the water more later and they seemed happy with that. After lunch they went back out to play while Mitch and I got to work on other things. He worked in the garden a bit, I was dusting, we FINALLY started getting the nursery organized. And DID I MENTION in the previous post that Bug has a new nickname??? We took a peek outside and Kiersten was covered in head to toe mud...yep, Pigpen! She was so happy and having so much fun. It was hard to get upset with her. She kept using her new catch phrase. "That's okay Mommy, No harm done." Such a little stinker, but so cute. So needless to say on Sunday after playing in the water, we moved one of our little tikes play structures over the mud puddle.

My Funny Girl

My little bug, just keeps me laughing. She is such a funny girl! It's amazing that the more time I spend with my girls, the more I have flashbacks to my childhood with images of Little Amy and Laura. Leah is JUST like me and Kiersten is the spitting image of Laura...well, maybe not in looks, but definitely in action. Even my mom comments how much of "Laura" is in Kiersten. She says the darndest things...you never know what is going to come out of her mouth. She keeps my mom and dad laughing too! I love it when she says "That's disgusting" at the top of her lungs. She is definitely getting good at exhibiting her independence. She will tell you how it is. And if things aren't the way she wants them, she will let you know that too! Her favorite new phrase is "that's okay, no harm done." It's pretty sweet!

My girl LOVES being outside. I think she would be out there 24/7 if I would let her! Her outside play has quickly earned her the nickname "PIGPEN". I know, like the girl isn't already set with a nickname. She comes in with dirty hands, dirty feet, dirty face, sand in the hair...she gets down and dirty. Big surprise, my mom says that Laura was the same way. Mom even shared stories about Laura with potty training and how Laura would just strip off her pants and go in the bushes and then mom would find her underwear all over the yard (sorry Laura, too much information???) And I know that is going to be Kiersten. I've started putting her in dresses so it will be easy for her to come inside and go to the bathroom. HENCE, the princess gown out at the sandbox. I tried and tried to get her to put shorts on that day, but Sissy was wearing a dress so Bug had to have one as well. And any old dress wouldn't do, it had to be the pink princess dress!!! Now it's sitting down in the laundry covered in Shout stain remover. Oh well, at least she had fun, and aren't the rain boots a nice touch? LOL!

The End of 3P

Yesterday, May 17th, was Leah's last day in 3 preschool!!! I almost cried. Why does it have to go so fast??? She has had such a great year and has learned so many things. She surprises us all the time with the new things that she says and does. Seriously, my girl is smart. I met with Mrs. Koch(Preschool director) this week to talk about what to do with this girl. The four-year-old class works on writing their name, learning their address and phone number and she already knows all that. She is starting to write additional 3 letter words now too! Basically she may be a little bored next year, but she really needs to work on sitting still, waiting her turn, all those social elements that come along with preschool. I have no doubt she will get there. But anyway, for the last day of school yesterday they had a Luau/Hawaiian themed party/performance to celebrate the end of the year and 4's graduation. 

My girls were picture perfect in their Hawaiian themed dresses, and Leah was super excited. I have been listening to Leah practice the songs all week long "Hula, Hula, Jesus is a ROCK!" She has had them down and loves singing them when we are outside on the swing set. After we got to the church, Daddy took Leah down to her classroom and Kiersten and I went and found seats. It wasn't long before the show started. The 2 year old class was adorable singing their songs, quickly followed by the 3's. Leah was so cute and kept waving to us in the audience. They sang the song about Zaccheus, and another bible song. Then the 4's were up for their song and receiving of diploma's. Afterwards the whole group sang two more songs and the night was done. Before we left Leah had to go give her teacher, Mrs. York a hug goodbye. I think Leah will miss her. She was her teacher last year for April and May when we first got here and then all of this year. But I know Leah will adjust easily to the 4's...she's a go with the flow kind of girl when it comes to socializing! Good job last night, Leah! I loved watching you do your thing up on stage.