Crazy McNeill

McNeill is in such a funny stage (I'm pretty sure I say this every time I update the blog). She is so independent. It makes me both laugh and cry. This morning we were walking her to the nursery and she walked back behind the counter, looked up at us, waved and said "bye." Then, she turned and walked to her classroom. Really? She isn't old enough to do that. She has never been one to cry when I drop her off anywhere but I think I'm going to start pinching her when I leave her places.

McNeill's bedtime ritual is pretty simple. We rock for usually about 2 songs and then she is reaching for the crib and prefers to fall asleep on her own. Lately she has been wanting to change things up a little. She walks to our bed and says "night night." We have tried to get her to lay down and sleep with us but she won't. She thinks it is party time and just plays. Well, last night she climbed up in her rocker and looked at me and said "rock." So, I tried to pick her up and she looked up at me and said, "No, me rock." What she was wanting me to do was for her to sit in the rocker and for me to stand up and push the rocker. Really??? I did it for a second to see if that was what she was trying to get me to do and once I caught on I stopped. We are going to have to remedy this. :)

Her new favorite thing is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. She is OBSESSED. She will look at us, say "mote" (for remote) then say "mouse." At the beginning of the show they ask something like "Do you want to go to the clubhouse?" She nods her head yes real big. Then she has an amazing hot dog dance that she does. We need to get her enrolled in dance classes ASAP.

McNeill has always been a big talker. She will say most words and some phrases. She knows her manners (bless you, excuse you, etc.), says love you and here you go. She knows all the names for the kids in her class. She talks about Anna Teal, Colt and Sadie the most. All this is great but she has recently started a new language. I am pretty sure she works at a nail salon part time. I think it's when she tries to make sentences but she says the exact same thing over and over and gets very frustrated if you can't figure out what she is saying. It's pretty funny. For movie, she says "mucu." Don't ask, who knows. For pillow, she says "be-bow."

Almost 18 months...

I am horrible about updating the blog and loading pictures to my computer. While we were on vacation I guess I became all rested because I had all these big plans for what I was going to do at night when I get home from work. At 15 weeks pregnant, after cooking dinner and getting McNeill in bed I am WORN OUT! I was reminded of why I don't do more at night but I'm trying to do better. My morning sickness has gotten a lot better. I am still nauseated at times and still gag some but nothing like it was. Anytime I gag, McNeill tries to make the same sound. It really is funny. I don't feel like I am as sick as I was with McNeill. I don't know if that means it is a boy or if you just have a different perception the second time around.

A lot has been going on over the past few weeks. Drew went to Guatemala for a medical mission trip, we went on a family vacation (just the three of us!), and Drew and McNeill both started school back. We had a wonderful summer with Drew out of school. I was sad to see it end but I know he will never get done if he doesn't go back. McNeill is going to the dayschool at our church 2 days a week and staying at home 2 days a week. I am excited about this combination for her.

Over the past month I have been keeping notes in my phone of funny stuff McNeill does/says. I want to put it on here so I can keep up with it…

-We are off to buy a potty this afternoon. I don't think she is ready to be completely potty trained but she talks about it ALL THE TIME. I thought I should probably have a potty sitting out just so she could get familiar with it and go if she chooses. Yesterday she came up to me and said "poo-poo." I checked her diaper and she was clean. A few minutes later I smelt something. Then today, she brought me a diaper and the box of wipes and said "poo-poo." So, we'll see how this goes.

- I sneezed a few weeks ago and she looked at me and said "Bless You."

- She loves playing Peek-A-Boo. The other day she uncovered her face and said "here she is."

- There was a wooden container at the beach where they stored the chairs/umbrellas. She was convinced it was a barn. She kept walking over to it saying "moo moo." At one point she even patted the sand and said "c'mon cows."

- She constantly pats things (the floor, her leg, etc.) and says "cm' in" or "cm' here."

- Knows all her animal sounds. My favorite is "baaah."

- At first when she saw the sea gulls on the beach she said "cluck cluck." We finally got it across to her that they were not chickens.

- Her new thing lately is nodding. She is so into it. I asked her Wednesday morning if she wanted to go to school and play with Sadie and she nodded a big YES. You can ask her if she is ready for a nap or bedtime and she does it too. For the most part anytime you ask her a question she'll either nod yes or say no.

- She is big on saying thank you. We were eating at the Great Southern Cafe at the beach (yum!) and the waitress came and refilled the thing of forks on the table. McNeill looked up at her and said "thank you."

- She says "mercy" and "oh boy." She must have gotten those from her Nana. Who she currently calls Nanny. :)

- She had her first nose bleed at the beach. She hit me so Drew had put her down off the couch and was getting on to her. As soon as she started to walk off she tripped and face planted.

- She has been trying to snap. Unsuccessfully I should add. It is funny to watch.

- The other day I forgot what she did but she looked up at me and said "good girl."

- Loves saying her name. She says it "McMeill." Mom and I were shopping a few weeks ago and people would ask her name. We would say it and then McNeill would repeat it for us.

I have pictures and videos to post but that will come in another post another day. We had a great vacation. They would have different activities in the amphitheater at Seaside- children's play, concert, family movie, etc. We were at the concert and it was the first time we've taken McNeill to something that I could tell she really enjoyed it. She had a blast! They had those light toys so of course she had to have one of those. She ran around with the big kids screaming and twirling. Her little sweaty head and red cheeks were adorable.

Silly Girl

Long time, no post. We have been going non stop since Drew got out of school for the summer. We have had a great summer thus far, savoring the next few weeks before he starts back to school. McNeill is a wild woman these days! She is full of personality, busy and sweet. I wanted to post some of the funny things she has done lately so I wouldn't forget. At 16 months, she…

- Runs everywhere.
- Says most things. The other day she even said "Mortimer." So funny.
- Understands everything we say. If I say "Lucy, do you want to go for a walk?" McNeill goes and gets Lucy's leash. If I say "McNeill, do you want a snack?" She goes and stands by her highchair.
- LOVES books. Favorite one this week is Brown Bear, Bear Bear, What Do You See? We read this about 40 times a day.
- Tries to sing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." The only words she usually gets out are "row," and "merrily." (I don't think anyone else would know she is saying "merrily" except her momma).
- About a month ago if you asked her if she loved her daddy, she would say momma. Should have gotten it on video because she won't do it anymore.
- Obsessed with telling Lucy "NO-NO." She points her finger very aggressively and intently says "NO-NO." This is normally the first thing she says in the morning and then repeats it a few hundred times throughout the day.
- A few weeks ago she was obsessed with having her babies swaddled. She would bring you a baby and blanket for you to swaddle. Then, she would go sit in her chair and rock the baby. Her baby has a pacifier that she sucks on. The other day I said "McNeill, feed your baby." She took the pacifier out of the baby's mouth and put her sippy cup beside the baby's mouth.

These are just some of the funny things she has done lately. At her 15 month appointment (at almost 16 months), she weighed 27 lbs and was 33 inches tall. She hardly gained any weight from her 12 month appointment to her 15 month appointment but grew 3 inches. She is in the 90th percentile for weight, height, and head circumference.

This and That…

McNeill is funny. I know all parents think their kids are funny. But we spend so much time just laughing at her. Last week she and Drew were playing in her room. She got her bulb suction, squeezed it and stuck it up her bunny's nose. I haven't suctioned her nose in months. It's amazing how things stick. Then, she went and got her toenail clippers, came and sat by Drew and started trying to clip her toenails. She is too little to know how to do that! And, she is obsessed with bananas. We have to hide them. She has a problem. Anytime she sees one she has to eat it. She calls them "na-nan-as."

This picture was taken over a month ago. This little girl loves being outside. This was right before we went to dinner at Cocina and said we were never going to a restaurant again. Guess what? We did.

And, someone got a big girl car seat. Can you tell she enjoys the extra space??

Happy Easter!

Easter Weekend was a busy one for us. Our friends, Aidan and Jinna Anne, got married in Chattanooga. So, Drew and I were there and our parents had McNeill. We came back to Arab Saturday night after the wedding. Not only was Sunday Easter, but it was my birthday!

Yes, that is a candy cigarette in Drew's mouth.

I love watching her toddle around. Such a fun stage.

Kent, thanks for the car! She loves it. I thought she might be a little too young for a cozy coupe, but she is obsessed with it! It makes her mad that it doesn't have 2 doors so instead of walking around to the other side she just climbs through the window. Such a mess.

McNeill's First Birthday!

McNeill's first birthday party was on March 10th. It was such a beautiful day. The weather was perfect. And, we had so much fun.












Her birthday hat that she wouldn't wear…


Sweet James singing "Happy Birthday."












I'm sad I didn't get all the kids picture with the sign.

Check up

McNeill finally had her 12 month check up. She weighs almost 26 lbs (95%) and is 30 inches tall (75-90%). She is wild and so much fun. I have tons of pictures to upload. Promise to do that soon. Have a good week!

A Year of Pictures

A year of pictures- starting at newborn and going through 12 Months. What a wonderful year…





























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12 Months!

It is so hard to believe that McNeill is one! The past year has been wonderful. It makes me sad thinking about how fast it has gone by. McNeill is definitely no longer a "baby". She is walking and into everything. She is so persistent in trying to figure out how things work. She loves feeding her babies...isn't it weird how she knows how to do that??? She did fine with the transition to whole milk and we are working on transitioning to only sippy cups. We are down to 3 bottles a day and she'll use the sippy cup in between. She has 6 teeth. She still takes 2 long naps each day and sleeps around 11 hours at night.





On McNeill's birthday the plan was for us to go to breakfast at the Pancake House before daycare/school/work. Needless to say that didn't happen and we ended up at McDonald's. McNeill loved her some hot cakes!



McNeill in her birthday outfit before leaving the house...



Sweet Anna Scott came by to see McNeill on her birthday and bring her a happy.



Coming soon...birthday party pics!

More Teeth!

Well, it appears McNeill is cutting a mouthful of teeth. I think she is getting 3 more. So, we may go from having 2 teeth to 6 in less than a week!

Drew and I went to Highlands Bar and Grill last Thursday for date night. We had a wonderful time and the food was delicious!! Our menu consisted of crawfish etouffee for an appetizer, beef tenderloin for my dinner and pheasant for Drew. For dessert we had strawberry tarts...yum yum yum. Matt and Andrea..we wish y'all were there with us!!

Happy Wednesday!!

11 Months!

Let me go ahead and apologize for the picture overload!

This month has been busy. Drew has a test almost every 2 weeks and I have helped throw two showers. Our friends Blake and Holly Beth are expecting Jack in March (unless he decides to come sooner!). Now for McNeill news...she has taken her first steps this month. She has started standing up a lot and her balance gets better each time. It is so hard to believe that I have a little girl who is walking! She refuses to eat out of a spoon. If you try to feed her something she just shakes her head no and keeps her mouth closed tight. Little "Miss Independent" only wants to feed herself. She prefers things she can just pick up but she'll attempt to use a spoon. It is hilarious. She can get it in her mouth but it may end up everywhere else first. And, she refuses to leave a bow in!

This picture cracks me up. I guess I need to put these play clothes up as it appears they no longer fit. She loves her chair and spends a ton of time sitting in her chair and then standing up. Then back down again. And, the scratch on McNeill's face is from herself. She was fighting having her diaper changed and ended up scratching herself.






We had brunch a few weeks ago at Kinnery and Luke's. This picture is of the 4 babies. 3 of them were born in March and one in June. We are so blessed to have friends with children the same age. Quinn looks like quite the player in this picture. His head is leaning over on Hadley and he and McNeill are holding hands.



McNeill's favorite thing is bath time. She would stay in there all day if you would let her. She loves to kick and splash. I can't wait to see her in the pool this summer.







She loves her baby dolls. In this picture she is trying to get the baby to suck its thumb. Always makes me laugh. She spent 30 minutes the other night putting her baby doll in and out of the seat of her elmo airplane.



This picture was from a shower at our house last weekend. DA and Charlie showed up with the same shirt on and Drew had the same shirt upstairs so he put it on for a picture...



This was her before school on Valentine's Day. Look at those sleepy eyes!!



She has gotten really hard to photograph...none of these are that good of a picture but I think they are funny....especially if you knew what I had to go through to get these.









And, McNeill is finally getting another tooth! It is the one beside her left front tooth. Maybe that is why she slept til 8:30 this morning.