Dora the Explore

Amelia took the neighborhood by storm trick-or-treating tonight...if you count wearing a costume that 50% of the people don't recognize (including one woman who thought she was a little boy) "taking the neighborhood by storm"

Carved with Love

Amelia put in her first work as a pumpkin carver...


She was very happy with her progress...


Once the candle was lit, she started vibrating with excitement...

Bar Work

With all the times Amelia's dance teacher has to tell her to stop hanging on the ballet bars, I'm beginning to think our regimen of extreme tree pull-ups is not the best idea.

Nap Battle pt. 2

As an update to my earlier story about Amelia refusing to nap...when I finally went upstairs to let her out of prison, she opened with "I had sweet baby dreams, Daddy". So, I asked her if she was SURE she went to sleep and she said "I had a good nappy". And there you have it...my daughter, the liar.

Nap Battle

I am currently in the middle of a two hour nap battle with Amelia. Getting Amelia to fall asleep without her pacifier is about as easy as getting Sophie not to bark if there was a cat eating a steak in our front yard. So, while I know she needs a nap or she is going to be absolutely foul this evening, she does not seem to agree. So far, she has left her room 3 times, pulled out every book she owns and read it to her dolls, and has had her piano removed from the room after putting on a concert. Additionally, she has jumped on the bed, fallen off the bed, and found an old pair of shoes that "she needed to bring to her daddy". Essentially, she has done everything she can think of other than put her head on her pillow and close her eyes.

As I type this, I believe she is now doing yoga exercises to stay awake. Here is her down dog pose...

Know When You've Lost

Amelia has picked the same exact bedtime story (Go, Dog. Go!)for over a week straight. I know some people love this story, but to me it is over 50 pages long, makes no sense, and has virtually no redeeming qualities. So, tonight, I asked Amelia what she wanted to read and she predictably said Go, Dog. Go!. That is when I thought I had struck fatherly brilliance. I told Amelia that we were going to let Kanga (her newest doll that sleeps with her) pick the book tonight. She agreed that was a good idea. So, I asked "Does Kanga want to read PJ FunnyBunny?" In my tiny little dad brain, Amelia was going to go for this and I would be set free from my Go, Dog. Go! prison. However, to my surprise, she is far smarter than I am...she simply took her little hand and shook Kanga's head in a "no" motion. She then continued to do this for any book I mentioned...until I got to Go, Dog. Go!. At that point, Kanga miraculously started shaking her head "yes". So much for outsmarting my 2 year-old.

Sure Sign

Each day when we pick Amelia up from school, we go through a rundown of the day's events. Inevitably, she tells us she played with Mackenzie in Home Living. She almost always tells us she had a great day. On good days, she leads with Daddy(or Mommy), I missed you so much. Even though it is all expected, it is still a nice start to the evening. Additionally, we recently added a potty breakdown in which she tells us each day if she used the potty. This is great because she is so very proud to tell us what a big girl she is. However, the last few times I picked her up, she adamantly has claimed she didn't have any accidents. As much as I'd love to believe my daughter and as much as I'd love to think she was fully potty trained, I can't help but notice a strange thing... if she isn't having accidents...and we dress her nicely for school...why does she keep coming home in silly, clown-like, tights...