More MLK

Dirt, dresses, and grand adventure make this princess happy.
Stick and stones...they thrill my bones and make want to smile.
Chance, can you help me find another big stick?
Kenly cooked up a good meal for Papa to try.
True to her most recent form, Kenly tried to fit in a basket.

MLK Weekend

While in Augusta over MLK, Kenly and I had a blast.

Kenly learned that just because you're dressed up doesn't mean that you can't play with sticks or have fun in the yard.

She learned that Nanas and Papas are awesome to have around because they love you so much.
She learned that suckers are really great, but they tasted better when you eat them with a friend.
She learned that Mama will eat enough homemade Brunswick Stew to enable her to hibernate for the rest of the winter.

She learned that tractors are cool, golf carts are scary, and Almond's cabin is utterly gorgeous.

Or maybe a...

...CONTORTIONIST?
When I was just a little girl
I asked my mother
What will I be?
Will I be pretty?
Will I be rich?
Here's what she said to me:

Que sera, sera.
Whatever will be, will be.
The future's not ours to see.
Que sera, sera.
What will be, will be.

A Career in....

...ART, perhaps?

Out of the Mouths of Babes

The other night, I was getting ready to go to a Pampered Chef party. I put on my sexy black boots, a new black shirt, and the only jeans I own. I threw on some jewelry and headed to the bathroom to tell Kenly and Adam goodbye. Kenly was splashing happily in the tub and the conversation went something like this....

Adam: Wow. You look really pretty. I wish I could take you out on a date instead of sending you away to look at cooking stuff.
Me: That would be too nice. I'd love that too.
Adam: Kenly, doesn't mama look pretty? Can you say gorgeous?
Me: doing the princess twirl so Kenly can see me
Adam: What do you think? How does Mama look?
Kenly: Hot

I nearly had to pick myself up off the floor I was laughing so hard. I think she was talking about her bathwater, but who really cares, it made my night.

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In other news, Kenly is having a language explosion. She is quite the little mimic. Adam and I did a word log to see how she is progressing, and we were floored at what she can say. All in all, Kenly can say or use over 200 words correctly at 17 months. Her vocabulary is growing so rapidly that I fully expect to get her out of be one morning and have her say, "Good morning. How are you today?" It wouldn't shock me a bit. With her language explosion has come some erratic sleep patterns. It seems that 2:00-4:00am is the time to tryout new vocabulary. I can hear her through the monitor listing words. It goes something like this.

I hear a bump (typically her head against the bed slats). This wakes her. Then the babbling begins. Nana, Papa, Jason, Paula, Mama, Dada, Mops, Pops, Uncle (which is what she calls Travis), CareCare (Carrie), Dog, woof, woof, bunny, binky,.....and then she'll start singing. She'll say, "A, B, C, D, E, G, O, P" and then she'll merge into "all though the town."

After awhile she bores and starts calling out, "Mama, need. Mama need." This is Kenly-speak for Mama, I need something. By this point, I'm already in the spare bedroom so that Adam can sleep. I roll over, trying to ignore her. The whimpering begins. Then I hear her say, "Binky." If I have a prayer of getting sleep, I must go retrieve the precious binky. When I walk in the room, she announces proudly, "Binky. Threw." She then points to the floor. Then the request for a bottle ensue, and I'm up until she decides otherwise. I wouldn't trade anything for her midnight ramblings. I just hope I'll get some real sleep sometime in the next 2o-something years.

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I was hanging up some clothes our walk-in closet the other day, and Kenly decided to come hang out with me. She's only allowed in there when we are watching because we use cedar balls to keep down the shoe odor. Kenly thinks these are really cool which makes me incredibly nervous because they are horrible choking hazards. Anyways, I digress. I finished my work and shooed her out of the closet only to discover that I forgot to put my hamper away. I open the door, toss the hamper in, and walk to the other side of the house. The eerie silence lets me know that Kenly is not behind me. She loves to hide now, so I start playing the game. I cry, "Kenly, where are you? Are you hiding?" I start looking in her favorite hiding spots. No Kenly. I feel panic rising. How could I have lost her in our own home? I frantically run back to the closet, fling open the door, and find Kenly happily playing with cedar ball while sitting in the dark.

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Things I love.....

1. Kenly putting her head on my shoulder as I dance around singing "You are my Sunshine."
2. Seeing Kenly hide her face with her hands while whispering "hiding." She really believes that she just disappears.
3. The sound of my husband's and child's laughter as they play together.
4. The fact that Kenly always says, "More. More. More." after I sing. No one has ever done that.
5. Kisses from my child.
6. TV time snuggles.
7. The excitement in Kenly's eyes every time she tries a new word on for size.
8. Getting to color every day as part of my job. How cool is that?
9. Watching a naked child running through the house screaming BATH.
10. Hearing Kenly sing songs.

Hair Bows

Normally when I put a hair bow in Kenly's hair, this is the result. A hair bow stays in place for an average of 30 seconds if I am lucky. I should know; I've been trying since Kenly grew enough hair.
So, you can imagine my surprise when Kenly looked up from coloring, discovered her hair bows hanging on a ribbon, and demanded to wear one and then two and then....well, see for yourself....



And now...she only wants to wear the purple and yellow hair bows. With everything. Only Kenly can pull off that color coordination. Just for proof, here are a few more bow shots. I can hardly believe my eyes.

Boy am I Behind

I think I have to give myself the title of slacker. It is nearly February, and I'm just now posting the rest of our Christmas pictures. I guess chasing a 17 month old and dealing with yet another computer virus gives some some excuse, but...

We went to Tampa to hang out at Pops's time share for a week. Kenly was a trooper on the flight down there, and she loved her new "home" and the new box of toys we rented from Traveling Baby. She slept in the lock-off with us, and she was not a very good roommate. She would wake up at all hours, stand up in her crib, and say, "Mama. Dada." If we ignored her, she would ask for Paula, Jason, Mops, or Pops. I had to take her on a tour of the condo on several occasions to prove to her that she was not missing a thing. This backfired on a few occasion. Once we bumped into Mops on her way to the potty. And on another occasion she wanted to play with the "baboons" and streamers that were hanging for Paula's surprise birthday party. Oh well.


Kenly loved taking walks on the beach. She lead the charge every time, and she wasn't out for a slow stroll either. She was moving.
We went to a rescue aquarium to see Winter the dolphin. Kenly had fun looking at the fish. She's giving forehead love to the turtle.
The Brand girls watching the dolphins performing.
Uncle Jason showing Kenly a starfish.
Swimming in the pool is fun, especially with yellow and purple.
I think Kenly would have lived on the balcony if we would have let her.
Pops bought Kenly a cool tunnel to play in. It was a huge hit.
Look Mama....a new hiding place.
Snuggling with Mops is great.
Dada and I loved racing my "new-borrowed" toys down a ramp.

Wordless Wednesday--A Basket full of Blessings

You prepare a feast for me
right in front of my enemies.
You pour oil on my head.
My cup (or basket) runs over.
Psalms 23:5

Wordless Wednesday--All Smiles

Finding treasure by the ocean is great, even if you can't play in the water.

**Side Note** Someone took my baby and replaced her with this beautiful big girl. She's so grown up in this picture.

Wordless Wednesday--Sandy Toes

"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever."
~Jacques Cousteau

Burkett Christmas 2009 (for your viewing pleasure)

While we were in Augusta, we braved the cold and the long lines to experience The Lights of the South. Adam and I love this tradition. We have a Rudolph spotting competition during the hayride every year. Last year we did not go to The Lights of the South. The last time we experienced the lights was when I was pregnant with Kenly and trying to hide it for the big reveal after The Light of the South. I remember the diesel fumes making me so nauseous. I just wanted to puke or lay down or both. This year was so special because we got to experience the wonder through Kenly's eyes. I don't think she stopped bouncing the entire time we were on the hayride. I got to watch her ooh and aah and point and squeal because Nana held her the whole time. It was magic.



This picture is from the hayride. She never stopped smiling.

Perspective

Last night Kenly had one of those nights, the kind that leave me sleep deprived and slurring words the next day. She cried out at 11:30, but managed to find "the trinity"--blanket, binky, and Benny--and put herself back to sleep. At 1:00 she started calling for Mama and sounding rather pitiful. I changed her soaking wet diaper and helped find "the trinity" and decided to try to put her to bed without a bottle. (Yes, she is still taking a bottle in the middle of the night.) Thus began the stubborn off. For over an hour, Kenly lay in bed making a sing-songy noise that nearly drove me bonkers. She had a 10 ounce bottle before bed, so there was no way she was hungry. I tried to bury my head. I tried to ignore her, but she won. I got up, with my blood just below boiling, and fixed her a bottle. She ate and then refused to go back to sleep. She cried for Mama. When I was just about to lose my patience, Erin and Salem popped into my head. I remembered that on Tuesday morning that precious baby (13 months old) died of complication related to croup. The detail have not been discovered yet. Only God knows what went wrong. My heart hurt, and I gained a heavy dose of perspective. Erin was probably up, sleepless and praying for just one more night of sleeplessness with Salem. She was probably bargaining....God, I'll never sleep again. I'll give my own life. Just give her back. So, I had an attitude change. I listened to the gentle grunts of Kenly taking a bottle, and they sounded like sweet music. I held tightly to my restless child who needed her mama to settle. I rocked and sang and thanked God for the precious gift he is allowing me to keep. I prayed to never have to feel the hurt that Erin is feeling right now. I told God that I'd love every sleepless night. I'd cherish the moments I have with Kenly. I'd relish in feeling her body slowly relax and drift into sleep. I'd store up every sleepy noise because these moments are fleeting.

Dance Fever

Kenly got a laptop computer from Grandma for Christmas. It plays music when you hit the space bar, and Kenly loves to dance to all of the songs. Last night she had a 20 minute dance session that left her winded and wobbly.


She also likes to "stand on her head" these days so that she can do somersaults. She'll be doing them by herself before long, but for now she needs a little push.



Look out...I think we should sign her up for So You Think You Can Dance?



As this video ends, I ask Kenly where she is going. The video cuts off before she answers. She yells rather loudly, "Juice...Juice." I guess all that dancing and somersaulting made her thirst.