Amazing Maisie and Fabulous Friends at the Maize Maze

Last year we had so much fun year meeting up with Lisa, Doug & Briana and Kathy, Matt & Chani at Cagle's Dairy we just knew that we had to do it again this year. We all met first thing Saturday morning for a day of fun getting lost in the Maize Maze, going on a hay ride, taking a dairy tour, feeding goats, pony rides and jumping on the bouncing pillows. Last year we had spectacular warm weather with blue skies but this year we weren't quite as lucky as it was overcast and quite cool but that didn't dampen our spirits.

Our day started with a trek though the maize maze and where last year we chose the easy maze, this year we challenged ourselves and made our way though the more difficult one. We made just a few wrong turns but eventually made our way out.

Towards the end of the Maize maze there is a bridge and the guys and little girls climbed up for a picture and to enjoy the view.

We then headed over for a tour of the dairy where we went on a hayride.

And the cow said, "I spy two little cuties!" I think Maisie may have jumped had she noticed the cow's face being so up close and personal.

After the hayride everyone was given some feed to feed the goats. Last year Maisie had to be coaxed and wasn't too thrilled to be near the animals but this year she had no fear at all and had a blast.

What a difference a year makes. Last year Maisie wanted nothing to do with the ponies not even wanting to get near them to watch Bri and Chani but this year she couldn't wait to ride and the smile on her face shows how much she enjoyed her first ever pony ride.

All the girls pose for a piccie.

The three and four year old children play on the bouncing pillow. Yes, when Eammon and Doug get together it's like having another two children in the mix but it's always fun.

Maisie enjoying some bounce time with Baba.

It was a fun day, both the activities and the company and we're already planning a return visit next year.

Friday Halloween play date...A fun ending to a very long week

This week has felt like one extremely l.o.n.g week. Maisie's birthday party on Saturday was great and Sunday was a quiet day at home with all of us just a bit over tired, recuperating from too much sugar and not feeling 100%, but an okay day.

Monday I awoke with a sore throat but Maisie said she was feeling better even though her nose was streaming, it was running clear so I gave her some allergy meds before taking her to school. When I picked her up though her teacher Miss. Nancy said that Maisie had been dragging, said she was too tired to participate during phys. ed. and just didn't seem to feel well. Maisie barely stayed awake during the drive home and willingly and quickly climbed into bed for a nap so I knew that she was not feeling great. After nap we spent a quiet afternoon at home playing with play-doh and doing puzzles instead of going to ballet. At bedtime Maisie was ready and willing to go straight to bed so an early night it was and she slept through the night.

Tuesday morning Maisie had no desire to get out of bed and asked if she could go back to sleep, a first for her, so we slept in and I kept her home from school. In the afternoon she took a brief nap, said that she was feeling better and wanted to go to gymnastics practice and since she hadn't been running any fever and I thought it just allergies bothering her, we went and she had a good practice.

Wednesday morning Maisie was up early and had a good day at school but was quite tired when I picked her up and she willingly took another good nap. Wednesdays are nice because we have no after-school activities so we spent a quiet afternoon at home together.

Thursday morning Maisie said that her throat hurt a little but it looked okay and I was still thinking that it was just her allergies as there was no fever so after some more allergy meds I took her to school. She had a good day at school and once home really fought nap time, only sleeping for about 35 minutes. When she awoke she said she wanted to go to gymnastics so we headed off to practice. Once at the gym though Maisie did not want to be there and I could tell that she just wasn't into it and didn't want to participate, which is highly unusual, so about 20 minutes into the practice I pulled her and we headed home. She and I had a quick dinner and then she asked if she could get into bed and play her Leapster, which she did and just before 7PM she was fast asleep.

Friday morning Maisie had her four-year-old physical which worked out well as I could also get some advice on her week of not feeling well. I was correct in my assumption that it was allergies bothering Maisie and the doctor has me doubling up on one of her meds for the next week and said that within a week she should be feeling better, and I'm very much looking forward to having her better. The doctor said that Maisie is doing great and growing well. In the past year she gained 4 pounds, now weighing 30.5 pounds (13th percentile) and she grew 3 inches now measuring 39.5 inches tall (43rd percentile). Poor little Maisie though got four injections and the flu mist so not a happy visit for her. On the way out she received a token to get a prize from one of the gumball type machines and she got a little toy dolphin along with a princess sticker and a lollipop so that made her happy.

After the doctor we headed over to Lisa & Briana's house for a Halloween play date. Lisa went all out having her house decked out for the holiday, crafts for the girls to do and even goodie bags for the girls to take home. Everyone brought food for lunch but Lisa and Angela really went with the Halloween theme with Lisa making ghost and pumpkin shaped sandwiches for the little girls and Angela made an adorable veggie plate skeleton. I on the other hand didn't do anything that cute but I contributed pumpkin blondies which were quite delish even if I do say so myself. I feel as if I haven't done a play date in ages so it was fun to be with all the girls and the Moms.

After the play date Maisie and I headed over to the gym as they were having team pictures taken. By this time though she was really tired and her injection sites were hurting so she was less than happy. She did sleep in the car for about 20 minutes but was just so uncomfortable. She was good for the photographer but kept asking when we could go home. Once home she only wanted to get into bed but I made her eat a little dinner, gave her some ibuprofen and her allergy meds then we both climbed into bed and we both were asleep before 7PM.

I'm glad that it's only allergies that have been bothering her and I do hope that the increased allergy meds help her feel better, and soon! We have only one thing planned over the weekend and as it's supposed to be quite cold it will be good to stay in, get some extra rest and hopefully start the week on a healthier note.

Briana & Mary Lin working on their crafts.
Liene helping Emilija with her craft.
Halee and Laney working on their crafts.
Maisie showing off her craft.
Angela's veggie skeleton.
Lisa's adorable ghost & pumpkin PBJ sandwiches for the little girls.
Maisie & Briana enjoying the computer together.

First report card

Maisie absolutely adores school and looks forward to attending each morning. Her teacher Miss Nancy says that Maisie is a wonderful child and a joy in the classroom and that she loves being Maisie's teacher. I'm so proud of Maisie and trilled that she's doing so well and that it's such a good fit for her. I hope that her love of learning and school continues for many years to come.

Happy birthday girl

Today our sweet little Maisie Miao Miao is four years old! Happy birthday sweetheart, your Mama & Baba love you more than words can say.

This afternoon we celebrated Maisie's birthday with some of her friends at her favorite place, the gym. All the children had fun playing on the trampoline, bars, rings, balance beam & in the foam pit. After the gymnastics fun each child received a medal and then we headed upstairs for pizza and cake. Poor little Maisie still wasn't feeling great and still a bit lethargic but she still managed to have a good time. Thank you to everyone who helped Maisie celebrate her special day.

To see how much our little sweetie has changed, check out Maisie on her third and second birthdays.

Pajama day

Maisie hasn't been feeling 100% and she had a rough night last night so I decided to keep her home today, cancel all our plans and spend a quiet day together. We stayed in our pajamas all day, did puzzles, played games, did some crafts, watched a little television and even a little school work for good measure. I'm keeping everything crossed and hoping that Maisie has a good night and feels great tomorrow as it's her birthday and her party.

Field trip

On Tuesday Maisie's class along with the 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th graders went on a field trip to a little local theater to see The Library Dragon. Maisie delighted in the idea of a field trip and enjoyed the play. She was especially happy that she was seated between me and her best pal Jonathan...well at least until he got frightened and ended up sitting in my lap for 90% of the performance. After the play the actors came out to speak to the children and the children were allowed to ask questions. Before leaving the theater all the children gathered on the set for a group photo.

The funniest part of the day for me was in the morning when Maisie's teacher Miss Nancy was letting me know which students I'd be taking in my car. She said of course Maisie and also Jonathan and Leah. That's when Jonathan said "oh I wanted it to just be me and Maisie, I wanted some private time with just her." Well Miss Nancy and I shot each other a wide-eyed look of o-kay, guess those older brothers of his are teaching him something! Needless to say he didn't get private time especially as Leah did ride with us and well I guess he forgot I'd be in the car too. Driving the three of them was fun, listening to them each talk about their favorite parts of the play and getting silly. It was a fun morning and Maisie's looking forward to her next field trip and I of course will be there to chaperon and keep my eye on that Jonathan and his desire for private time with my little girl!

Glorious days on the Glory

Eammon, Maisie and I just returned from an absolutely wonderful week long cruise which included perfect weather, total rest and relaxation, obscene amounts of good food and lots of family time. This was the first cruise that any of us have been on and I think it was maybe two days into the cruise when Eammon and I were already discussing when we would be taking our next one.

The day before our cruise we drove down to Florida and spent a night with my parents. Maisie was spoiled with numerous gifts & treats and the two people who brought her got a good dinner and a bed but we know who rates in Grandma & Grandpa's eyes! The following morning we drove to the port and Maisie spent the entire drive playing her new Kai-lan Leapster game that my parents gave to her...So I guess we did get a gift too, an engaged, happy and quiet passenger.

Our trip was absolutely perfect as we couldn't have asked for better weather, better service or a more relaxing trip. It was so nice being totally disconnected, no phone, no Internet and I didn't even watch television. Our ports of call included Cozumel, Belize, Costa Maya & Nassau and I hope to one day make it back to all of them...well maybe not Nassau...but definitely Belize. Eammon and I were interested in doing a canopy zip-line excursion which included five zip-lines and two repels but I didn't feel secure in leaving Maisie on board ship at the camp for six+ hours so we opted not to do it but next time it is first on our list. In Belize Eammon went scuba diving for the first time and loved it. Most mornings Maisie went to camp after breakfast and then we picked her up so that we could have lunch together, then a nap and our afternoons were spent together in the pool which was Maisie's favorite part of the trip. Another favorite part of the trip for Maisie was returning to our cabin after dinner to see the towel creation and get the chocolates that our cabin steward Fery had left for us. Once we left Port Canaveral, other than taking a nightly piccie of Maisie and the towel creation I didn't pull out my camera so this is about it for pictures. There were two formal dinner nights but Maisie and I enjoyed dressing-up pretty each night and Maisie loved helping me zip up my dresses and picking out and putting on my jewelery, she's such a girly-girl. I think one of my favorite parts of the trip was that every time we left the cabin we'd return to a straightened up bed and a clean bathroom stocked with only fresh towels and big fluffy robes. For Eammon the relaxation, time away from work and the exhilaration of his first dive had to be the highlights.

We had a really easy 9 hour drive home thanks in part to an early birthday gift for Maisie which my parents had given to me, to give to her for the drive home, another Leapster game, Disney Fairies. Maisie loves this game too and played on and off almost the entire ride. It's good to be home, rain and all and back to our usual schedule but trust me, I'm already looking at deals and options for our next cruise.

We of course have a busy week ahead and I have to prepare for Maisie's birthday and party this coming Saturday. Can you believe that my little baby will be four, where has the time gone, she's such a big girl now!!

Swing of life

I've been so neglectful in posting to my blogs and my only excuse is that life has gotten in the way and when the day finally winds down I just haven't had it in me to sit down and write a post. Nothing bad, all is good, we're just busy with life and life with a busy almost 4 year old is extra hectic. For now just a quick bullet post.

* We're heading off for a week-long Western Caribbean cruise and hopefully when we return I'll have lots of wonderful pictures and the motivation and time to resume more regular posting.

* In 16 days Maisie will turn four!! Oh my gosh, how did she get so old and where has the time gone? Maisie's excited for her birthday party which is being held at her favorite place in the world, her gym. I love parties at the gym, no clean-up for me before or after and a very tired little girl at the end of the party.

* I have a shiny new laptop, woohoo! Eammon hasn't loaded my camera software onto the new computer yet so I still have to use the old clunker if I want to add pictures. This too may be part of why I haven't posted because in my mind, every post needs a picture.

* Maisie loves, loves, loves school and the teacher reports and her papers thus far have all been good. Her first report card will be sent home the middle of this month, it should be interesting to see what it says.

* Maisie has learned to snap her fingers and loves showing me her new found talent hundreds of times each day.

* Maisie adores recess and the swings. She has no difficulty getting herself up onto the swings, even the high ones which on her are chest high. She no longer needs anyone to push her as she'll let you know, because she's a big girl who knows how to pump and pump she does, getting herself higher than I care for her to swing.

* Sleep is still a major issue as Maisie just doesn't want to sleep in her own bed all night and wakes anywhere between 10PM and 1am crying that she wants to sleep with me. No matter what I try she will not go back to sleep in her own bed so in with me she climbs so that we both can get some sleep. She's also been super clingy and attached to me lately so maybe this is all part of the same thing. I'm just giving her all the attention she craves and hopefully whatever is going on with her will pass. Honestly though I'm not sure how she functions most day as she averages about 10 hours of interrupted sleep a day. Is that really enough? Readers, how long do your children sleep?

* Eammon continues to work crazy hours arriving home most nights after 8 or 9PM so a week with no work, computer, phone or responsibilities will be a welcome change.

* Well I need to finish packing so posts and piccies when we return. Have a great week.