swim lessons // week 1

we're back at it again. swim lessons!! it's hard to believe this is addison's 3rd year. let's recap on the past 2 years, shall we?

2011
week 1 - part 1 // part 2 // week 2 // week 3

2012
week 1 - part 1 // part 2 // week 2

it's hard to believe that she's the same child as the one from the first year.

day 1:
i'd be lying if i said i wasn't dreading the first day. we had been talking about swim lessons for a few weeks and she was really excited. we went to my dad's pool and tried to practice once, and addison didn't do great at first. but towards the end she got much better. even so, she started to talk about how she didn't want to go to swim lessons. she would randomly bring it up and would say "i think i'm going to be sick for swim lessons."

so day 1 came and off we went. i talked it up the whole morning and ride there. addison didn't seem too scared or anything, but i wasn't sure. we got there and she went right in without fussing. all the teachers remembered her and gave her hugs and kisses.

for the first part of class, ms. carolyn talked with the parents out on the deck so we couldn't see the kids. after she was done, she told some of us we could go in. even though she said i could, i was still hesitant because i didn't know if addison would get upset. i peaked my head in and addison saw me and smiled and waved, so i took that as my cue that i could go in.

i went in and watched the rest of her class and she did great!! it's so amazing how different she is from the past 2 years.

day 2:
chris and i went to her class the next day. she was awesome. it's fun being able to sit by the pool and watch opposed to hiding and trying to see.

they worked on blowing bubbles and being a "sleeping fish" {just blowing bubbles underwater and not moving}. addison kept moving her arms and legs at first, but she caught on and stayed completely still at the end. and then happily jumped off the diving board.

day 3:
it was pretty uneventful. they just continued to practice blowing bubbles, floating on their backs, and flutter kicking.

day 4:
they started off class with laying on their backs for 15 minutes. they did that last year too, and it always amazes me to see the kids just floating there for so long. they'll float into each other and the teachers will move them apart, but they never flinch.

day 5:
last day! addison was excited to be done. which was kind of funny because she loved it while she was there. they got to dive for rings at the end like usual, and all the kids loved that.

and to make this post even longer, here is a SUPER high quality {not} video of some stuff they did!


addison has another week of lessons at the end of the summer. we're going to go to the pool as much as we can and practice with her. she'll be a little fish in no time!

lately

addison went to the beach with her dad last week. she was gone the entire week. so i had a whole week of no work or addison. i missed her a bunch {but it was kind of nice having me time}. while she was gone, i went to the pool and studied for the next part of the CPA exam i take. relaxing time with a side of being a grown up. oh well. at least i'm not a ghost anymore!

also while she was gone, my mom and i did something we had been talking about doing for a while. we got tattoos! it was the first for both of us. my mom got the symbol for hakuna matata above her right ankle. i wanted to get something for addison but that i could add to if i ever have more kids. so i got her birthday in roman numerals on my right side. i kind of love it. a lot. whenever i see it i have to do a double take because i can't believe i did it. and i kinda like looking at it.

remember when i got hooded? and finished grad school? i finally went by school and picked up my diploma. it feels so official now! NO MORE SCHOOL! i think it will really hit me when summer school starts, and especially when school starts back this fall.

my friends and i are newly obsessed with the game ellen degeneres created called "heads up". i love ellen and pretty much anything she does, so it should've been a given that i would love her game. my friends and i played it this weekend and had so much fun. we even played it at a bar. we may have gotten weird looks but we didn't notice because we were having so much fun.

addison came back late saturday night and i picked her up sunday morning. after i stopped to get her some welcome home donuts. we played at home and ran some errands. and got one of my favorite summer treats - icees! i always get coke and cherry mixed. and i make sure to put cherry on top. i have a feeling we'll be getting a lot of those this summer.

well if that wasn't random, i don't know what is. but that's what's been going on lately. addison has swim lessons this week and has been a rock star. she's so different that the first year she went. i'll update on that at the end of the week :)

puddle jumping // again

such an awesome puddle. how could i say no?

girl can get some air.

mother's day weekend

mother's day weekend started on friday with muffins with mom at addison's school. it was raining that morning and addison has been obsessed with umbrellas lately, so i let her use one to walk to the car.

saturday we had a couple graduation parties to go to. addison was super excited to see everyone.

addison got me a card and painted me a mug for mother's day. i'm a big coffee drinker now, so the mug is perfect. i love it!!

we had a big day with my mom on mother's day. the three of us went to brunch and then went to lion king at TPAC.

it was addison's first time to something like that and she did great! we watched lion king the night before to get her ready for seeing it. she was so into it at the theater! she sat on the edge of her seat and would talk to me about lots of the things that happened.

it was definitely a lot of fun! it's amazing to see how they can make people into animals. and i love all the songs! beauty and the beast will be there this fall, so i'm thinking i'll take addison to see that. i love going to these things just as much as she does. maybe even more.

i'm DONE!!!

NO MORE SCHOOL!!!

my hooding ceremony was 2 weeks. i decided not to walk at graduation since i walked last year for undergrad and i didn't want to go sit through it again. the hooding ceremony was just for graduate students, so it was much shorter. i still have to go get my diploma though since i didn't walk.

i told addison i was graduating and would be done with school forever. she was so excited! and then she asked when i graduated from work so i would be done with work forever. i wish that's how it worked.

we stopped by to see granny before we went to the ceremony. and then we went to chagos for happy hour. it's a mexican restaurant right by school that some of my friends and i would go to for happy hour. a lot. like to the point that they knew us. i'm gonna miss that place.

it's hard to believe that i'm finally done. and that i have my masters degree!!! in accounting, of all things. but i'm a dork and i kinda love it.

now i just need to finish up the CPA exam, which i CANNOT wait to be done with.

i start work full time in june at the firm i've been interning at. i sometimes stop and think "when did this happen? when did i grow up?". and i have no idea when it happened. well, i may have not grown up completely, but i'm definitely getting there.

the color run // round 2

a little while ago addison and i did the color run. ya, i'm a little late blogging about it. oh well.

my mom, amy and i did it back in october and it was so much fun!

this time, my mom, addison and i were going to do it. one of my friends and her mom were going to do it too, so we were all going to meet up. my mom ended up not being able to do it, so amy did it again with us!

this was addison's first time to do the color run. i took the stroller because i figured she'd want to be in it for at least a little while.

the stroller was a waste. addison was in it for about 5 minutes and then she hopped out and ran the rest of the race.

i was really amazed/impressed that she ran so much.




we had a blast! addison especially. she wanted to get right in the middle of the party after the race and cried when it was time to leave.

since the race, she's done a couple 5ks. like ran the whole thing. it's pretty amazing.

we'll definitely be running the color run the next time it comes to town. without the stroller.

tools, tea, and a dance party

last saturday we had a big morning.

my mom has taken addison to the kids workshops at lowes and home depot a lot, but i've never taken her because of school. but since school is over now, i took her to one that was at home depot. when my mom takes her, they come home with complicated looking things {and my mom usually tells me that it was slightly difficult to make}. apparently i went on the day they made the easiest thing ever. and i'm not complaining!

after we finished at home depot, we headed home to change for a tea party. my mom found it and signed addison up. it was in one of the historic houses at the park near our house. addison wore a princess dress. and her rain boots. she's too cool. she took her bitty baby {it was an american girl doll tea party}.

addison had a blast! she got to have tea and snacks. and she got to make a craft. and even play a game! although the game had to be inside since it was a wet mess outside.

and then we went home. and had a dance party in the driveway. i couldn't have thought of a better way to end our fun morning.