Thursday night fun

Tonight we went out to a few garage sales. I know what you're thinking, garage sales at night? Well, my friend told me that her neighborhood is going to have sales this weekend, but they were secretly open tonight so we headed over there. It was a gold mine! The first thing we bought was a turtle sandbox. It's sitting on our back porch waiting for some fresh sand. I also picked up several outfits for Abby. The biggest thing for Abby was the Disney Pretty, Pretty Princess game and the new Little Mermaid doll crib.
When we got home Jessie was there with Marissa. They had made chocolate chip cookies and they were still warm! Yum! Here's a picture of the three of them playing with the jewelry from the game. Don't they look great!

Quick picture

Lately Abby's been struggling with completing her dinner and then about 10-15 minutes after the dinner is cleared away, she's STARVING! Hmm...what's a mom to do? So I give her one choice. She can eat a piece of bread. Almost without fail, she jumps up and down and says, "Yes!" So, we're going through bread quickly these days.
Her favorite drink has become V8 Fusion. I had a coupon last week so we bought the new purple flavor and she's loving it! What a great way to make sure she gets her vegetables. It's quite expensive, so I probably won't buy it again unless I have another coupon, but I figure with a piece of bread and a cup full of V8 she's doing alright with her nutrition, right? What do you moms do with your child who doesn't want to eat the dinner, or becomes hungry right afterwards? I'd love to hear your thoughts. :)

Can I get a high kick with that dance?

Today was a great day! My parents called us early this morning and invited us out to breakfast at Steak and Shake. After a few pancakes and several cups of coffee, my mom, Abby and I headed out to do some garage sale-ing. We didn't find much, but there was one nice sale that had some clothes for Abby. We picked up a new purple princess shirt and she's in love with it.

Then we headed home and quickly into the Dutch outfit. She looked ADORABLE!! She also felt beautiful! Then it was off to Dutch village. It's the Queen's birthday celebration and everyone could get in free today. They were also giving away free season passes to every family with admission. So, we got in free and got free season passes. What a deal!

There was so much there for Abby. She loved it all! We ran into my teacher's aide from school. It was fun to see her with her grandkids. :) I posted lots and lots and lots of pictures, but they were all so cute and since I'm the mom, I'm allowed to post as many as I want. :) Here's Abby in her Dutch outfit. Isn't she picture perfect? The apron looks like it's swinging, but it's actually the wind. It was so windy today!

The first stop at Dutch village was the wooden shoe slide. She went on this one several times!

Then we watched the Dutch dancers perform. After they danced, they invited everyone to form a circle and learn parts of the dance. Abby loved it! I posted a video of her dancing. Later in the afternoon I found her dancing in the driveway.

Once we complete the dance we all got Honorary Dutch Dancer stickers. I even got one!

The carousal was next. She took a while to choose her horse and then was perma-grin through the whole ride. She loves riding horses and kept telling me that she was going up and down, up and down.

There were a few animals there too. Here is Abby with some goats. Some kids were able to walk the goats, but the line was long so we'll come back and do this later in the summer.

There were wagons all over and Abby loved climbing up and sitting on top of them. This wagon had a horse statue and reins. She kept saying, "Giddy up!". It was too funny!

Sticking her face through the cutout was a big hit. Here she is in the girl cutout.

Here she is in the boy cutout.

On our way out we went through the gift shop and Abby begged to try on the big wooden shoes. She really wanted me to buy her a pair, but her size was $20! That's just too much for shoes she'll only wear for about 2 weeks!

After our adventure to Dutch Village and a little lunch, we headed outside to play with our neighbors. Abby loves to play with Jake. They blew bubbles, chased each other and played with sidewalk chalk. Then it started to get really dark out and we headed inside just in time. A downpour started and it's basically been raining ever since. We spent the rest of the day cleaning the house, doing laundry and getting groceries. At the grocery store Abby fell asleep in the cart! It was too funny. I was pushing her along and all of the sudden I looked down and she was drooling on the cart handle. I wish I had my camera to take her picture. The funny part is that I can't get her to sleep at home in her bed, yet she'll fall asleep in the middle of the grocery store! She slept through the grocery shopping, the paying and the whole ride home. She must have been extremely tired.

Then it was off to Pizza Hut for dinner. Did you notice that the Dutch outfit got replaced with the new princess shirt. :)

Whoa! What a day!

Ice Cream Euphoria

Tonight we did something for the first time. Abby and I went out to dinner all by ourselves! We've never done this before. We hardly ever go out for dinner and when we do, we have family and friends with us. Tonight it was just the two of us. It was great. Halfway through the meal Abby looked at me and asked why papa and nana weren't with us. Even she was used to eating dinner with family. :)

When we came home Abby indulged in ice cream with M&M's. She wanted to put the M&M's on the ice cream herself. She was so deliberate in the placement of each M&M. She LOVES ice cream and sat there so still while eating. There was a perma-grin on her face the whole time!

Tea Party Anyone?

Tonight Abby was a doll! She was so lovable and so agreeable. When we got home from work she immediately set her little table for her tea party and gathered her stuffed animals and dolls to join her. The telephone was there as well and she had several "conversations" with Nana and her cousin Lauren. What an imagination! After dinner we did a quick trip to Walgreens and Target. I got another great deal!! Just look at my pile of goodies!

Here's the breakdown: 15 fruit snack bags, 4 Pringle cans, 1 snickers bar, 1 M&M bag, 1 chapstick, 1 shaving cream, some dog food, 1 Reese Pieces bag and 2 boxes of Teddy Grahams. All of this for only $3.73! Yeah, my stockpile is getting bigger and bigger. :)

Meet the New Family Members

No, it's not THE referral. We have 2 new fish!! Today we were out at our church garage sale and I found a small fish tank for Abby. It was something that I had thought about getting for her. She's mentioned wanting fish and I used to have a 30 gallon tank so I'm a "fish-friendly" person.

We got 2 small goldfish to start. We'll see how long they last. Abby is thrilled! She's named them Julie and Flower. I'm not sure which one is which, but Abby can apparently tell the difference.

Now I'm a single mom to a beautiful daughter, an energetic dog and 2 slimy fish. Ahh...life is good.

All nestled in

We're all settled in for the night. Abby's talking to herself in her bed and I've got my bowl of popcorn and my movie. It's going to be a great night!
Before Abby can settle down for the night she always talks to herself and holds a conversation with her doll. It's so cute to hear her talk through her day and role play with her doll.
I went to Blockbuster and got the movie Marley and Me. I've never seen it, but I've heard it's cute and that I'm going to cry. I'll keep you updated... :)
Tomorrow we're going to get up early and go out for breakfast with my parents. Then it's the usual Saturday routine, but in the afternoon we're going to head out for dinner with my brother and his family and my sister and her family. I'm so excited to see them again.
I hope you all have a great Friday night!

Window cling fun

It's so nice to have a student teacher! I've been able to get so much done at school during the last three weeks. She's been teaching full time and I've been cleaning cupboards and organizing file cabinets. The other day I was going through some old posters and came across a chicken window cling that deals with the weather. We don't use it at school so I thought I would bring it home for Abby. She absolutely loved it! We put it on our back door just low enough for her. She's been dressing it for all kinds of weather. I'm not sure how long it will stay "cling-able" to the window, but for now it's a fun new toy.

Pictures from the weekend

On Saturday night we had dinner with a GREAT family!!! They came over for dinner and then a bonfire at my parent's house. I forgot my camera, but our Jessie brought hers and then emailed me. Thanks Jessie!

In Christ Alone

In Christ alone my hope is found,

He is my light, my strength, my song;

this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,

firm through the fiercest drought and storm.

What heights of love, what depths of peace,

when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!

My Comforter, my All in All,

here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone! who took on flesh

Fullness of God in helpless babe!

This gift of love and righteousness

Scorned by the ones he came to save:

Till on that cross as Jesus died,

The wrath of God was satisfied -

For every sin on Him was laid;

Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay

Light of the world by darkness slain:

Then bursting forth in glorious Day

Up from the grave he rose again!

And as He stands in victory

Sin's curse has lost its grip on me,

For I am His and He is mine -

Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death,

This is the power of Christ in me;

From life's first cry to final breath.

Jesus commands my destiny.

No power of hell, no scheme of man,

Can ever pluck me from His hand;

Till He returns or calls me home,

Here in the power of Christ I'll stand.

This is the song that opened our worship service today and it's one of my favorites. It was wonderful to sing this today on Easter. It was a great worship service and I felt the love of Christ throughout our worship. Glory be to God!

After church I had to serve in the nursery and then I drove quickly home in order to get dinner ready. I was hosting my parents and my grandparents today. It was so much fun to finally be on the hosting side. We had a great meal. Last year my grandma had given me some of her china and we used that to eat on today. It looked beautiful! Here are a few pictures of our day. Here's Abby in all of her finery. She looked so beautiful! She even had a hat and gloves to go with the outfit, but they didn't last until dinner.
Grandpa and Grandma came bearing gifts. They brought a small Dutch windmill for Abby. She loved it and kept twirling it during dinner.
Then Grandma gave me a great gift too! She came with a beautiful glass pitcher. She told me that it had been a gift from her wedding. It was given to her by her aunt and uncle. It's 63 years old! I absolutely LOVE it!

Abby was even allowed to use the beautiful china during dinner.

Here are Abby's photography skills at work again taking a picture of me and my dad.

Here is my beloved mom and grandma. They are truly women on God. I am so blessed to learn from them. When you read Proverbs 31, you are reading about these two women!!

Here are my dad and my grandpa. These are two of the strongest men of faith I've ever had the privilege to know. I am a blessed woman.

The last picture is of Abby's new shoes. She got to pick her shoes and these were the winners. They made her feet sparkle!

Our day in a nutshell of pictures and video

I got a package in the mail and it came with some bubble wrap. Abby loves bubble wrap. She immediately climbed inside it and began to jump up and down popping the bubbles. It was hilarious. This is Abby trying her "teacher" look. We were having her try the snap and point along with the teacher look with the eyes. She has it down!
Flying high on mommy's legs is so much fun!

Jessie came over for dinner and a movie tonight. We just love spending time with her!

Here's a video of Abby singing a song she made up. It's now one of my favorites. :)

Shopping and Front Yard Fun

Today was another great day. I spent four hours shopping at the mall!! I haven't been to the mall in decades. It felt good to just walk the stores, try on different clothes and see the new spring colors. I picked up a few things and got Abby some new Easter shoes. It was just all around awesome.
When we got home we headed outside. I worked on vacuuming out the car and sweeping out the garage. Abby worked on digging in her garden, riding her Dora trike, and blowing bubbles. It was a little chilly, but the sun was shining which puts everyone in a better mood. Here are a few pictures of our afternoon. Here's Abby digging in her "garden". I told her to stay away from my tulips, which are just popping above the surface. However, one or two got trampled on. Oh well. She had fun all decked out in her Dora visor, Dora gloves and using her Dora gardening tools. Can you tell which character she adores?

Abby loved pushing her doll Susie on her trike. They went around and around me as I swept out the garage. It was fun to watch her be so patient with her doll.

Blowing bubbles is one of Abby's favorite things to do. I think we have somewhere between 10-20 bubble wands. She can blow bubbles or chase the bubbles for hours. It was windy enough today that we didn't need to actually blow the bubbles. The wind did the work for us.

Here we are blowing bubbles and being mom and daughter together. And yes, I'm wearing the Dora visor. The sun was in my face, and it was available. :)

Friends are Wonderful!

Tonight Abby and I again had a play date. Miss Trisha and Ellie came over to play and have dinner. It seems as though its been forever since we've seen them and it felt good to have them over again. Even though its been several months, both the girls (and the moms) settled into our normal play and routine as though it had only been yesterday since we'd seen each other.
We had a low key day and this is the first day that I truly feel relaxed and on vacation. We slept in until 7:30 (this is LATE for us!) then headed off to McDonalds for breakfast. The rest of the day was spent at home calling on new refinancing loans, making lunch, attempting to take naps (this didn't quite happen) and then playing with Miss Trisha and Ellie. Ahh...a day filled with relaxation and friends. We serve a good God!

Oh, one more thing. Some of you have asked for the website were I found all the Target deals. Check out the sidebar of the blogs I follow. I found the Target coupons listed on the one titled Good or Free Deals. This is a great site and has links to lots of printable coupons. Enjoy!

Yep, it's official...I'm DUTCH

This is how our day started. Abby's been begging to feed the ducks in our backyard. We haven't been home enough to actually catch them in the yard, but this morning there was one lone duck out there. So, we headed out and Abby shredded her bread for the duck. She loved it! There are usually 5-6 ducks out there, along with quite a few bunnies, a few deer and every once in a while a muskrat or opossum. I guess you could say we live in a wildlife preserve.
We had some friends over for a play date later that morning. The three girls played and played. They dined on strawberries with sugar and then played again. It was fun for both Abby and me. I got to have adult conversation while they played. This picture is the highlight of my day! This is the one that prompted the title of today's blog. I have officially become the epitome of the Dutch girl, always searching for a new deal. While Abby was napping today I was searching blogs and found one that had coupon deals at Target. So, I printed off some coupons and ventured to Target with Abby. We got 10 bags of fruit snacks, one vitamin water bottle and a chutes and ladders game....a $16 deal for only....are you ready???? For only $3.90!!! That's right folks. I had $1 coupons for each fruit snack and they only cost 89cents so they credited me 11 cents for all 10! Then I had another coupon to get the water free. The game was originally $5 (on sale this week) but with my savings I only paid $3.90! What a deal!! I'm going to check this website again tomorrow. Who knows what great deals I'll find there.

Here's Abby playing the chutes and ladders game. We played together quite a few times and then while I made dinner, she played with her doll. Then the game came out again when Jessie came over. What fun!

Sunday Happenings

It was another full Sunday! After church we headed over to Soe's to help celebrate Dumha's birthday. The Soe's are the refugee family that my parents are helping. Their daughter turned one so we celebrated! We had lunch at a Chinese buffet. I'm NOT a fan of Chinese food...so I wasn't too overly excited about the destination. But, it was a big buffet and there were even a few "American" entrees. We all came away stuffed, especially after the birthday cake.
This afternoon we've just been at home playing with our toys. I read the newspaper and Abby played house. We read books together, played pretend school, and ate imaginary food. We've got a couple of playdates set for later this week. I'm looking forward to having a slower pace this week.

This picture is from yesterday. Abby was playing outside in the yard with her sidewalk chalk and bubbles. We didn't get outside today. It was much too cold and it started to rain. We're supposed to get quite a few inches of snow. What a great way to start Spring Break.

Spring Break has begun

Yesterday was the start of our spring break vacation. I was excited to sleep in and be lazy. We didn't get out of bed until 6:45 and that's a whole hour and 15 minutes later than usual. I was excited! I told Abby that I wasn't going into work and I would be home with her all day, she hugged and hugged me. While we did start the morning slow, we were up and dressed by 8. I started to read the newspaper and Abby played with a new toy. We even had cake for breakfast. Yeah, it's spring break.
Then I discovered..a GARAGE SALE! If you know me in real life, you know that I'm always up for a great deal. I've been waiting for garage sale season to start, so I was a little giddy. We didn't get much. Abby did find a Strawberry Shortcake nightgown that she was excited about. Then it was off to Meijer, then Target and finally home.
After lunch I did another spring break thing....I took a nap! It felt great and I woke up refreshed and much more relaxed. All morning I had a headache, I think it was the release of stress from work, but the nap took it away.
Later that afternoon I watched Facing the Giants. I know, I'm behind the times and it's been out for a while..but I don't get to watch too many of my movies. Case in point, as I'm typing this I'm watching Special Agent Oso on the Disney channel. Anyway, I really liked it!! What a great message...Nothing is IMPOSSIBLE with GOD! I needed to hear that again, right now in the midst of my depression about receiving my adoption referral. The other message I received from the movie was the fact that we need to praise our God in the wins and the losses. It's a decision we make. So with that said, I'm starting my Saturday morning with the decision to praise my God in everything! Here's Abby playing the new Rush Hour game. It's so fun. She's not playing it the right way, instead she's trying to match up the cars to the pattern. She's good at it!! And yeah, that's her breakfast of cake next to her. And it only got worse, when we left for the garage sale, we each grabbed a piece of cold pizza to eat on the way...and then she got a Hershey's kiss from the garage sale. Good thing we're going to try and eat healthy today. But hey, you need to do something special for spring break. :)

Here's Abby this morning. She always sits in the big green chair with her doll, sippie of milk and bowl of cereal. She usually needs about 10-20 minutes to really wake up and then she's busy running through the house and dancing with the music.

Abby's photography debut

Tonight Abby wanted to try her hand at taking pictures. Usually she just pretends to take one, but tonight she actually pushed the button. So here is a picture of me. I usually don't post pictures of myself, but I wanted to let everyone know that I am still here! :)
When I got the camera back, I quickly took a picture of Abby. She looked adorable. She was putting on all the necklaces and bracelets she could find in the toy box. The headband on her head is actually a necklace that is too small for her and it got stuck on her head. She even shared the necklaces with me. Doesn't the green one look so great with my pink sweater?
On other news, I'm officially on spring break!! WOOHOO! I have the next 10 days to stay home and be a mom during the day. I'm excited to focus on Abby. We don't have any big plans, but I do have a big to-do list. We'll see how much actually gets done. :)