Dancing beauty!

Chloe has been taking dance with the same dance instructor that Bella had throughout Preschool. Honestly, we wouldn't have guessed that dance would be top on Chloe's list of things she wants to do, but evidentally we were wrong. Several months back I found a notice in her cubby at school notifying me that we were late in paying our bill. I was just a bit confused because I hadn't signed Chloe up for dance. Well after a bit of investigation I discovered that Chloe had signed herself up! ;) Yes, you read that right...she decided that she wanted to go to dance so one week when Ms. Katherine came to pick up the kids for dance, Chloe lined up and told her that her mom said she could be in dance now and with that, she was enrolled in dance class! ;)

Once we got the mystery of the late bill figured out, Chloe continued in dance and yesterday she participated in her first recital. The thought of Chloe dolled up in a tutu was a bit hard for me to wrap my mind around, but I thought we'd give it a try and see how she did. Well, she had a few "moments", but overall she really enjoyed it. As long as she was on stage she was happy as could be, but the whole sitting around, waiting really wasn't for her. The longer she sat, the more itchy her costume became, the worse her hair hurt and the more she just wanted her daddy! ;) Never being able to predict Chloe's behavior, we were quite surprised and impressed with her focus on stage. She knew every step of her routine and had a great time on stage!

Here are a few pictures we snapped...


















And here she is, back to the spunky Chloe we love and know so well... ;)

On being a kid...

There are times when against my better judgment regarding the longevity of our furniture, I take a deep breath, walk away, and just let the kids be kids...here's an example of one of those times...

Great American!

For the past couple months Bella has been working on a project for school called "The Great American Project". In a nutshell, the kids chose a "great american" and had to complete 3 parts over the course of 2 months. The first was to create a bust, the second was a written report and the final part was to write and memorize a speech to be presented to the school. In addition to the speech they had to dress up as their great american and bring a food from their time period.

Bella choose Betsy Ross and not only did she learn a great deal about Betsy, but our family now knows more than we ever thought we would about the women who sewed the first American flag! ;) Chloe was even able to recite the majority of Bella's speech and could answer questions, like "what was Betsy Ross' real name?" For those of you who are curious...she was born Elizabeth Griscom! ;)

Of course the "fun" part was speech day and in addition to their presentation to the school, the parents gathered for the potluck and a final presentation of the speeches. All of Bella's classmates did a amazing job and it was so neat to see every dressed up and smiling from ear.

It certainly was a lot of work and a few times I found myself wondering, "if this is what Bella is doing in third grade, what in the world are the next few years going to be like?" but in the end, I am so grateful for a school who takes such pride in the excellence of their education. It has been such a blessing to have Bella where she is and we're grateful for all that she is learning!

And without further ado, our very own Betsy Ross...

Mother's Day...

a day late. ;)

There is so much I could say about Mother's Day, but I'll do my best to keep this short and to the point.

First and foremost, I am blessed with the best mom anyone could ever ask for. She has taught me much of what has made me the woman I am today and has allowed me to learn from not only her successes, but her failures as well. I'm so grateful for the relationship we have and hope that I can demonstrate the same unconditional love she has shown me all of my life to my children!

I am also very lucky to have a wonderful mother-in-law. So many people complain about how meddling and bothersome their in-laws are, but I can say without a doubt that my in-laws are neither of those. They are supportive and loving and are absolutely wonderful grandparents! It's amazing to think that I have known them for 14 years now and while there were some "growing pains" in the beginning, I'm so grateful for the family we have become!

And then there's me. From as early as I can remember, I have always wanted to be a mom and these past 9 years have been more wonderful than I could have ever imagined. Sure, being a parent isn't always easy and I've definitely had my "moments", but when the day is done, I count my title of "mom" as one of my greatest honors and accomplishments in life. I love my girls with every ounce of my being and hope that they know that they will never have a bigger fan in life than they have in me...their mom. I am already falling in love with our baby boy as the days go by and I can't wait to experience the blessing of raising a son. A mother's day doesn't go by that I don't also have a few moments of reflections as I think about our children that aren't here on earth with us. It gives me an even greater appreciation for the blessing of our 2 daughters and the impending arrival of our son. It also reminds me that Mother's Day can be a heartbreaking reminder to many people...those who don't ha

Baby Bargains!

Okay, I know that my blog has become disproportionate in baby related posts, but the truth is, the McMinn household is very excited to welcome this baby boy into our family and we just can't help but share our excitement! The girls are constantly inquiring about what the baby is doing...is he moving? Is he sleeping? Does he have the hiccups? Andy and I are throwing around names, talking about what it will be like with a 3rd child and still stopping every once in a while to shake our heads at the fact that we are actually having a baby boy! So since this is my blog, I won't apologize too much for sharing our excitement, although I will recognize that we talk "baby stuff" a lot...both here and in person! ;)

Okay, without further ado, this weekend proved to be very successful in bargain hunting. As I've mentioned before, we need a new stroller and car seat this time around. I've gotten good use out of my stroller with the girls, but it is literally falling apart and as much as I'd like it to make it through another baby, it's just not going to happen. The carseat is a different story. We are very limited in space with our GTI and while we have the Durango, we try our best to use the GTI whenever we can because of the significant difference in fuel efficiency. While we won't be packing all of 5 of us in the GTI for any long distance trips, we do plan on continuing to use it around town as much as possible. I did some research and found a very safe carseat with great reviews that is specifically made for smaller vehicles. It wasn't the cheapest, but once I found it, my bargain hunting skills kicked in! I've been watching for several months now and on Saturday morning was able to take advantage of several "deals" which added up to a significant savings on the seat. Just to give you an example of how serious I am about my bargains, I even had it shipped to my moms house in California because they added tax to shipping addresses in Nevada. Knowing she would be over soon made saving another $20 a no brainer! :) It has arrived safely at Grandma's and I'm very excited to check it out when it finally makes it's way to our house! Here's a pic of the seat our little guy will be riding in...
As if that wasn't enough, I've also been diligently searching for stroller deals. I've found a few, but none that were just too good to pass up. Until this weekend that is. I was browsing craigslist for a few different brands of strollers I've been looking at and up popped a post that caught my eye right away. After exchanging a few emails and setting up a time to look at the stroller on Sunday, we are the proud new owners of this...

It is in like-new condition, used only a handful of times before they realized that a double stroller would fit the needs of their family much better. It came with an extra cover and a removable attachment that allows an older child to stand at the back of the stroller and ride as it's being pushed. It's absolutely perfect for Chloe who likes to walk just about everywhere, but who also gets tired on occasion and could use a break every once in a while. And at almost a third of the cost new I was thrilled to load it the back of the car and drive away!

It felt so good to mark those 2 items off our list...now it's just the "little" things...diapers, wipes, pacifiers, nursing accessories, etc. Things that are easy to stop by the store and pick up. It's kind of crazy how much changes with each subsequent child. I definitely have a list, but it is nothing compared to what my list looked like with Bella...or Chloe for that matter. As I told someone yesterday, all this little guys is going to need at first is a bassinet, a couple blankets and boobs. ;) Luckily, we have those things taken care of! :)