Cutest Ballerina Ever.

I recognize that this is not the best picture of my little sweetie that you've ever seen, but she isn't a morning person, and this morning she got up and went to her first ballet class! She is taking the "creative movements" class at the dance studio down the street from our house. It is the cutest and funniest thing I've ever seen before... five two-year-olds dancing for an hour on Friday mornings. They do the chicken dance, hokey pokey, a variety of disney dances, dance with musical instruments, dance with ribbons, learn to walk with beanbags balanced on their heads, and jump over blocks. Savannah had the best time! The girls dance in a studio, and the parents wait in a room off to the side where they can watch through a one-way-window type of thing. I think it'll be really good for Savannah because not only did she enjoy it and run off a lot of energy, but she is also learning to listen to the teacher (who is a stickler about listening and obeying!) and interact with other kids. They learned to take turns, follow instructions, and "use their listening ears but not their talking mouths." Anyway, besides all of the benefits, shes just plain cute in this outfit, don't you think?! But don't worry, I will try to get better pictures next time. :)

Toddler Talk

Savannah: I want baby sister.
Momma: But baby brother would be okay too, right?
Savannah: No. Baby sister.
Momma: Well, you'll have to talk to Jesus about that.
Savannah: Jesus! Baby sister!


Savannah: Momma! Where are you?
Momma: I'm in the bathroom. Hold on a minute.
Savannah: Momma! Going potty?
Momma: Yes, I'm going potty.
Savannah: Momma! I can't see you! Where are you?! Come here a minute!
Momma: I'm just using the potty. You need to wait a minute.
Savannah: No, YOU need to come here a minute.


Momma: Who are you cheering for on Saturday? Virginia Tech or Alabama?
Savannah: Roll tide!! Go Hokies! Roll tide! Gooo Hokies!


Sigh.

Party Animal

Who let this kid have a chocolate doughnut and chocolate milk for breakfast? It must have been her birthday or something.

Why would we need this much pizza, you ask? Well, because we were expecting several toddlers and their families. 22 people means a lot of pizza!

I don't know whats with her face. She really was happy, I promise!

Daddy's girl...

Savannah loooves her Mimi!

And what girl wouldn't be lucky to have this many aunts?!

Savannah was so excited about "ice cream cake!"

Audrey preferred to just eat lots of pizza.

Kylie was a fan of the cake though.

And I think the cake got Emma's vote too, don't you?!

I have absolutely no idea where this kid gets her facial expressions. No idea.

Out of all of her presents, I think her favorite was the card that sang, "Happy Birthday, Savannah!"

She did get quite a few really cool gifts though! Thank you, everyone! She even got presents from far away... like... Pennsylvania.... and Puerto Rico! (Thank you, Grammy, Pop-pop, Aunt Kathy, Bill, Mary, and Grandma Julia!)

And Kylie taught her a little crash course on being a big sister.

And Savannah got in some snuggle time with Gram-B!

We were so glad Ethan was brave enough to be the man of the party!

I think everyone had a fun time!

Although... some were exhausted by... 8:30pm...

Kinda reminds you of this day two years ago... when I was in labor and he was... doing this...



Oh yes, the de ja vu... :)

We sure enjoyed this girl's birthday! Looking forward to many more!

Two Years Ago Today...

Remember that sappy post I promised? Here you go. :)

"I was never alive until the day I was blessed with you..." -Richard Marx

"From the first breath she breathed, when she first smiled at me...

Someday you might know what I'm going through, when a miracle smiles up at you..." -Heartland

"With all that I've done wrong, I must have donesomething right to deserve her love every morning and butterfly kisses at night." - Bob Carlisle



"And now he's wrapped around her finger, she's the center of his whole world. And his heart belongs to that sweet little beautiful, wonderful, perfect All-American Girl." - Carrie Underwood



"I remember I thought you looked like an angel wrapped in pink so soft and warm. You've had me wrapped around your finger since the day you were born." -Tim McGraw



"In the sunlight or the rain, brightest nights or darkest days...I'll always feel the same way. Whatever road you may be on, know you're never too far gone... my love is there wherever you may be...just remember that you'll always be my baby." -Sara Evans



"It won’t be like this for long. One day soon we'll look back laughing at the week we brought her home. This phase is gonna fly by, so baby just hold on. It won't be like this for long." - Darius Rucker



"She is somebody's hero - the hero to her baby with a skinned up knee, a little kiss is all she needs. The keeper of the cheerios, the voice that brings Snow White to life, bedtime stories every night..." - Jamie O'Neal

"You're gonna miss this. You're gonna want this back. You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast. These are some good times, so take a good look around. You may not know it now, but you're gonna miss this..." -Trace Adkins

"So tell me how to stop the years from racing...is there a secret someone knows? I’ll never catch all the memories I’m chasing...I’ll never be ready to let go." -Richard Marx

News Flash!

News flash!

Did we tell you that Aunt Becca moved to Virginia to live with Mimi and Grandad?! We're so excited to have her here! And Savannah is a very big fan of "Aunt Bubba."



And... in other news...

I need to introduce you all to...

Savannah Beckner, Young Miss New River Valley Supreme Queen
Winner, Most Beautiful Hair
Winner, Most Beautiful Smile
Winner, Best Dressed
Winner, Schoolwear
Winner, Evening gown

[Wow, I think she grew two feet taller in the past month. Look how short her gown has gotten! Ooops!]

[Can I just say that she is adorable in this outfit?!]

This afternoon, she competed in the Tiny Miss New River Valley Pageant. It was her first time in the "baby" age division (2-4 year olds)...she's graduated from Wee Baby! She competed in photo, schoolwear, and evening gown. It was a lot of work for a little girl and we were just trying it to see how she would do... and she surprised us all once again by winning the high point title (she had the single highest combined scores of any contestant in any age division, 0-18 years old). We are so proud of our little highpoint queen!

Savannah also started Puggles, which is the Awana club for two-year-olds. I meant to take a picture of her in her little uniform, and I forgot. I'll have to work on that. Puggles has been such a blessing! For the first quarter, they work on one concept: "God made everything." Each week, they review what they've learned and talk about things that God has made. This week, she came home with a cute little craft... blue paper with cotton balls glued on it. It took me a minute (or... maybe an hour) to figure it out, but it was blue sky and clouds! (Because, of course, if God made everything, that includes the sky and clouds!) She also has started to sing her own version of Jesus loves me. Its very cute and goes about like this:

"Jesus love me. I know. Bible say so. Yaaaay!"

At the end of the year, the kids will have an awards ceremony where they will sing songs and recite the Bible verses they've learned. I can't believe she is this big!

I sure do love this little girl. I can't believe she will be two tomorrow! You should probably prepare yourself. I'm sure there will sappy, sentimental posts with tons of pictures.

Like you'd have it any other way.

Praying for Winter

Will you join us in prayer for a little girl named Winter? She is the seven-year-old niece of a fellow alum from Lauren's high school. She was diagnosed this week with leukemia, and began an aggressive chemotherapy regimen. Over the next 28 weeks, she will undergo several painful procedures and lots and lots of chemo. Please pray for her...that is a lot for any little one to deal with, and she will have to be very strong and fight the cancer.

We appreciate your prayers, and we know Winter and her family does too!

Look!

Look! No diaper!

Don't freak out yet. I'm still peeing all over tarnation. My mom is just trying to make the consequences worse by making me wear panties. But really, all its getting her is a bigger pile of laundry to wash. Ha.