Allison's Life

Ansley – 3 years old

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:36:41 +0000

Sweet Ansley,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! You are 3!!!! We have been celebrating your big day since Friday. The fun started with your birthday party at Ms. Katrina’s house. Your friends Drew, Evan, JoeJoe, and Ben were there to help you celebrate. Then, Sunday, we had a Princess Party with your friends and family. All of your family (including your cousins) were there plus your friends Laura Brown, and Fern, Rosa, and Lily Schroder. We started the party by making tiaras, of course. Your castle cake was beautiful and was perfect for our little princess. Today, we continued to celebrate your birthday by taking a “special trip” to the Aquarium in Chattanooga. Your favorite thing seemed to be the jellyfish.

Wow, THREE! What a year this has been! You have grown so much this year. You now weigh 32.4 pounds and are 38.5 inches tall. Your hair is getting longer and thicker. (You have had 2 hair cuts this year.) It is golden blonde and still curly.

You are a very smart, articulate, and opinionated little lady. I love to listen to you talk. You never know what will come out of your mouth these days. You are always quick to tell us that you love us, that Mommy is a “great girl” and Daddy is a “great boy”. You have such a big heart. You usually use your manners well by saying “please” and “thank you” when appropriate.

This year has been filled with quite a few changes and milestones that could have been challenging for you, but you have handled them very well considering. One of the biggest changes was finding out that you would be a “big stister”.

In September, your bedroom got a makeover and you got a new “big girl bed”! You were SO excited about it. You transitioned without any trouble (as you have with everything so far). You do a great job staying in your bed when it is time to sleep.

You became a big sister on November 3rd and what a great big sister you are. I could not ask for a better big sister for Chloe than you. You love her so much and she LOVES you. You have told me on many occasions that “Chloe’s my best friend”. I pray that will always be true. You have not shown a bit of jealousy with Chloe even though she takes a good bit of our time and attention. You have been very patient, understanding, and loving toward her. You hate for Chloe to be sad and always want me to “get her” if she is upset or crying. You are so sweet to share your “buddies” with her or to get her a “blanky” if you think she is cold. She has always enjoyed looking at you and no one can make her smile like you can. I know that she feels like you are her best friend too.

We have been working on potty training too this year. Of all of your transitions, this one seems to be the most challenging. You have made significant improvement lately, though.

You love to play! One of the sweetest things is when you look up at me with those big, blue eyes and say, “You wanna play with me?” You love books–always have–and we read two every night. You also love to work puzzles and are very good at them. This year, you have started to understand the concept of “pretend” and make believe. You love to play with your dollhouse and your kitchen set. You love to “watch a show” and movies. Some of your favorite shows include Imagination Movers and Charlie and Lola, and favorite movies include Finding Nemo, Barbie and the Twelve Dancing Princesses, and most recently Veggie Tales. You enjoy putting on your “ballet skirt” and dancing with Daddy. Watching you play, dance, and sing is so much fun!

I love you SO much, Princess! Happy 3rd Birthday!

Love, Mommy

Ansley and Chloe

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 04:08:29 +0000

One of the most common questions that I have had since Chloe has been born is what Ansley thinks about it. She has been a big sister for 2 days now and has been amazing with her new sister. She is already very protective of her. When Chloe has her eyes closed, Ansley makes sure that we are all quiet because “Chloe sleeping”. She is beginning to learn that Chloe communicates by crying and tries to help me figure out what might be wrong with her. She told me yesterday that Chloe was hungry and I should “give her you pizza”. She has held her both days and seems to be very proud of the fact that she is a big sister. Chloe has taken to her sister pretty well. She has held on to Ansley finger and has not cried when she is holding her. She appeared to be looking at her a few times as well. I can not wait to see how their relationship grows and changes over the days and years to come. I truly hope that they are best friends…they are off to a pretty good start if you ask me.

Happy Birth Day Chloe!

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:54:26 +0000

Today, we welcomed Miss Chloe Elise Miller into the world at 7:13 am. She weighed 9 pounds 11 ounces and was 21 inches long. She looks a lot like her big sister. Her hair seems to be a little lighter than Ansley’s was when she was born but is very dark and straight right now. I am so thankful that God has given us another beautiful and healthy little girl.

Silly girl!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 21:11:20 +0000

Ansley never ceases to make me laugh. Today, she had one of those moments that I just had to laugh. We were in the car running errands and the baby kicked me pretty hard. I said, “Ouch, that hurt my belly.” Ansley replied, “My belly hurts too.” I inquired as to where her’s hurt and the cause. Her response was, “Sydney’s in my belly button!” (Sydney was the other name we were discussing using for “baby sister”.) I asked her who was in my tummy and she said “Chloe’s in your belly button.” So funny!

We have made a decision…

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 21:11:24 +0000

After much deliberation, we have decided on a name for our new little girl. Both my grandmother and great-grandmother’s middle names were Cloe. My other great-grandmother’s middle name was Elizabeth. Scott had a grandmother named Alice. So, we kind of stuck with family names this time and tweaked them just a bit and have decided to name her Chloe Elise.

Perplexed by Potty Training

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:22:50 +0000

Most of the things that I have had to face as a new parent have not been that overwhelming or frightening to me because I have had some kind of exposure to it. Potty training, however, is a different thing altogether. Ansley got a potty for Christmas from Santa. She began playing with it and liked to sit on it (backward at first…like a motorcycle). It is one that talks and sings. When we thought it might be time to start working on potty training, it did not go as well as we would have liked. She liked to sit on it with her diaper on, but trying to take it off, well…that was not okay. I have tried to get her to sit on the potty, but she is just not interested if it involves not having a diaper on. I succeeded once by getting her ready for a bath and asking her to sit on the potty and take off her shoes and socks. She sat there that time, but even that has not worked again.

We decided that we really need to start making a more purposeful effort to encourage her interest in the potty. So, Friday, Ansley and I went out to get new potty things. We got the seat that just goes on the big potty (in case she is afraid of messing up her “toy”), pull-ups, potty treats, etc. We talked about all of the new things we were buying, but since we were going to be gone for the weekend, decided not to try anything until today.

It has become very clear that this will be a very long process. Baby steps! The first one to overcome will be sitting on a potty without a diaper on. Wish us luck!

The ZOO…!!

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:14:12 +0000

We spent the day yesterday in Nashville. The highlight of the trip had to be taking Ansley to the Nashville Zoo. She loved the animals that she saw. Here are a few pictures from our trip:

My best friend…

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 09:05:46 +0000

Eight years ago today, I married my best friend. I am so thankful that the Lord gave me Scott. He really is a gift from God and fits me perfectly. He has been my constant supporter, encourager, confidant, and friend. He calls me out when I am being unreasonable or irrational and makes me look at all sides of a situation. He is a wonderful husband to me and a wonderful father to our Ansley. I can not wait to see him be “Daddy” to our new little girl too.

I love you, Scott. Thank you for the last eight years. I look forward to spending the rest of my life with you!

Ansley is going to have a…

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:39:29 +0000

baby “STISTER”, as she says it. I am not sure she really understands what that means, exactly.

I am really excited about having another girl. I hope that Ansley and the new baby will grow up being the best of friends. I am not naive enough to think that they will never fight and will always get along, but there is just a special bond between sisters that is so fun and I am excited that Ansley gets to have that.

Our Family is Growing

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:21:24 +0000

For just over 5 years, it was just Scott and me. I loved the time that we had to spend together just us and wouldn’t trade that time for anything. Then, in March 2007, we welcomed our sweet Ansley into the world and our lives changed forever. It is amazing how quickly you fall in love with such a little person. Scott was head-over-heels in love at first sight! I was blessed with being able to stay home with her for the first 17 months of her life. Then, sometime after that, I blinked and she turned into a 2-year-old who is independent, able to express her likes and dislikes clearly, loving, and absolutely precious. Now, here we are in 2009 and we have another precious little one on the way. It is so exciting to watch as our family grows and to see how much God has truly blessed us. It also reminds me to not take any moment for granted.