Three

It is so hard to believe that Blair is three (or free as she calls it). She is just growing up so fast right before my eyes. We had a really rough summer at home with all the change we went through. She was used to daycare and constant entertainment 5 days a week. I was used to being at work and having someone else do all the teaching and discipline. It seems over the past few months we have really found our groove, and things are coming around quite nicely. Well, until baby sister gets here at least ;)

I like to post about what all Blair is doing at each of her birthdays because it is so fun to look back on. I already find myself looking back at her newborn posts so I can see what our life is about to be like all over again. We went to Blair's 3yr appt last Wednesday, and Dr. Pip was so pleased with how healthy she is. Blair weighs 32 lbs (75th percentile) and she is 36.5 inches tall (50th percentile). We are well aware that she is a thumb sucker. But, we have decided that now is not the best time for us to work on that since we are about to have a new baby in the house. Both the dentist and the pediatrician think we should wait until she is closer to 4 to deal with it. Daddy already knows she is an orthodontist's dream come true, so we will just start saving our pennies ;) Blair also LOVES to walk on her tip-toes. I swear she has the strongest calves in Atlanta. This, we are going to work on and try to correct in order to avoid physical therapy. Dr. Pip hopes we can correct this at home by the summer, or we will then have to take the next step. I feel so sorry for her because at ballet she is asked to be on her tip toes, and at home we tell her not to. It's just so tough growing up! We also went to the dentist last week. Blair has bumped one of her top front teeth and it has started to turn grey. The dentist x-rayed the tooth and said it is not dead yet, and hopefully will stay healthy. However, we have to keep an eye out on it, and hopefully we can prevent from having it pulled. She did such a great job during her cleaning though, and went back all by herself like a big girl!

Blair is still a great sleeper. She goes to bed at 7:30 at night and wakes up around 7:30 every morning. She is completely over taking naps during the day, but she does have rest time in her bed every day for about 2 hours. She reads her books and plays with her dolls. She is done with her pull-ups at nap and at night now, and I have been so impressed with how well she did. So, I will get about a 2 month break before we have to start buying diapers again in March! Blair LOVES her school and her teachers. She goes to preschool 2 days a week, and then goes to Spanish school for a 3rd day. She is also enrolled in ballet, and this is another favorite of hers. We never have a problem getting out of the door in the mornings because she loves all of her activities and the friends associated with them.

Some of her favorite things to do are ride her bike, play with her arts and crafts, take care of her babies, and play in her kitchen. She is such an OCD little thing, and gets so worked up if I don't leave her toys right where she left them. We are working on trying to clean up after ourselves and keeping our things organized ;) Blair loves Olivia, Hello Kitty, anything Princess-related, and lately Barbie dolls. Her favorite shows to watch are Olivia, Backyardigans, Dora, and Fresh Beat Band. I have to say that I don't mind the Fresh Beat Band myself ;)

Blair is such a hilarious child and surprises me each day with something new. Between having her new imaginary friend named Katherine or crying because she didn't turn pink overnight like Pinkalicious, she is definitely keeping me on my toes. She is always so concerned anytime we are out of our routine or something out of the ordinary happens. She is super inquisitive and will ask a million questions until she gets the answer she is satisfied with. We definitely have our trying times when things are just like she expects them to be. We are working on being a little more laid-back and sharing with others. I think the sharing may take me to my grave ;) Blair is doing great with putting her clothes on, and putting her socks and shoes on. On most occasions, Mommy has to intervene because our pants are backwards or our shoes are on the wrong feet, but we will get there.

Blair is just such a joy, and I can't believe I am lucky enough to be her Mommy. She is smart enough to know when I need to be put in my place or reminded of how blessed I am, and she will say something to put my feet back on the ground. I know she is going to be a wonderful big sister, and I am so excited for her to have something I never had. So, we are going to cherish these next 7 weeks of having only one child and soak up every single minute of our big girl, which will always be my baby!

The Big Day

Blair loves her some Olivia (or that d*mn pig as some of our relatives call it). So, Blair's Aunt TT let us borrow some of her Olivia gear, since her daughter, Cate, also has an obsession. I figured with a cute shirt (also courtesy of Aunt TT) and a few balloons, I could make Blair's 3rd birthday a little special at home since it fell on a holiday. Nonna and Aunt June came to help celebrate. We started off the day with none other than PRESENTS!! Please pardon my messy kitchen...

Blair made it clear that she wanted her birthday lunch to be at Zoe's. That is her favorite restaurant, and I don't complain since it could be MUCH worse. After lunch, we came home to a special visitor waiting on Blair. She loves her RaRa.

And now she has to learn to love the fact that RaRa has a baby ;)

It was a very special day for a very special 3 year old. I can't seem to get enough of this little ham.

One final post coming all about my Blair bear and her 3 year old stats!

Hear Ye, Hear Ye

Okay, the birthday celebrating has been out of control the past week. We have had a Princess party, an Olivia party at home, and we are STILL celebrating today with a party at school! It sure is exhausting, but I am just thankful we have so many wonderful people to share Blair's birthday with :-).

So, first up is the Princess Party. Blair is in love with ballet and especially where she takes ballet, so we decided to have her party there this year. She has just as many boyfriends as girlfriends, so we incorporated Super Heroes into our theme! We started off the day with a fun lunch, and then let Blair open her new princess dress for her party.

So many of Blair's friends came to her party, and by the looks on their faces, it appears everyone had a great time! Other than me running around trying to take pictures, it was really no stress at all.

Blair could not contain her excitement. Her feet were literally off the floor the entire time!

I think she just didn't know what to do with herself with so many of her favorite people in the same room at the same time!

And, I love that my girl still gets all shy when you sing the birthday song to her. That definitely didn't come from the Verdigets side of the family ;)

Mrs. Lindsey did a great job coordinating the party, and keeping all these wild animals in line! We are so thankful for all of Blair's friends who came to make her day extra special. But, our celebrating did not stop here! Next up is Blair's actual birthday and Olivia!

Broke Santa

Well, we survived our 8.5 hour car ride to Baton Rouge this past weekend to have Christmas with Felix's family. Blair was not the issue. It was me. Between bathroom stops, swelling, and back pain, I have decided that my maximum car ride will be 30 minutes between now and March! We did have a wonderful visit though, and Blair loved seeing her grandparents and playing with her cousins.

It is a Verdigets' tradition that cousin Chris (Crypto) dresses up like Santa every year. Jason normally acts as his elf and brings some very special gifts for some very special people. Well, this year due to the poor economy, Santa was a little low on funds. Broke Santa studied everyone's wish list and attempted to deliver. In a garbage bag.

Cousin Jenny asked Santa for an iPad this year.

Shelby really wanted the iPad 2. He was amazed that he could flip it to the side.

Cousin Nick was in love with his new X Box.

Uncle Yaaaj (George) was very suspicious about his gift since he didn't have a wish list this year. Much to his surprise, he got a new Wii!

And the remains of Aunt Eunice!!

Finally, Wall Street Santa showed up and put an end to all of this turmoil with the very popular red envelopes. Cousin Will was praising Jesus because he still had some Christmas to pay off!

Wall Street Santa repossessed Santa's sleigh and they were all sent on their merry way. Next up on the agenda was a little dirty Santa. Jenny was thrilled with her new Obama chia pet. She plans on watering it every single day.

Paw Paw got a more desirable gift. He knew he wouldn't be keeping that too long!

And Uncle Paul thought he was getting a precious American Girl Doll as his gift. Much to his surprise he found a bottle of vodka swaddled in a bath towel :-)

All while Uncle George was secretly scheming up a deal with Shelby to steal the vodka in exchange for cash.

I can't even explain the noise level in this room. Blair was terrified and may never be the same. But, let's not forget to show our respect for the person who bred all of this craziness. Poor Gigi. He said all he wanted for Christmas was to go home! LOL! And at 94 years old, I think I would have wanted to go home too ;)

To add to the excitement, Harrison got to attend his first Saints game while we were in town. Paw Paw, Felix, Jason, and Harrison all got tickets from Santa Claus to attend the New Year's Day game. Harrison and Jason were all decked out in their Saints gear. Felix was all ready to go in his Ole Miss colors. Don't tease because it is a sensitive subject ;)

The girls were still pooped from all the excitement, so we stayed in for the day and played. Blair wrecked Harper's room a couple more times, pretended to not be tired, and then played outside while enjoying the 70 degree weather! And Baby Hayes just sat back and watched all the drama unfold!

Now that we are home, it is time to get into baby mode! The nursery is being painted as we speak, and I'm ready to start nesting. We will have a 3 year old in 10 days and then a 36 year old a few days after that! Once the partying is over, we will be ready for March 16th!!