Zoo Fun!!!

Catastrophic...that's the only word I can use to describe our week last week. She really wasn't feeling all that great and her behavior was a little out of control. By a little, I mean like nothing I had ever seen and I literally prayed over and over to God about how to handle her. It was pretty bad. We tried every kind of discipline technique in the book and it took about a week but things have finally settled down. I think consistency is key, and giving her options on the little things seems to help too. I try really hard to be firm on the big things and let all the little stuff go. I mean, does she really have to wear pants to play in the backyard? It goes against every fiber in my being to let her play in her pajama top, diaper, and boots but its just not a battle worth fighting at this stage! ( well, at least when we're not in public!) 

Guilty...Thanks to Madeline's behavior I questioned every decision I have made since she was born. Surely I am not the only mom who does this??? I tend to blame myself when she acts out, and as I fought tears grocery shopping through HEB on Friday, I decided that Saturday we would spend the day doing only fun things for her. 

Fun...We headed out to Abilene on Saturday around noon. Terry needed a little down time so he stayed home. Poor guy had the worst of it while I was working at night - I knew he needed a break. Stephanie and her kids came with us and we spent the day at the zoo and then took them to Chuck E Cheese. Saturday night we rented Hotel Transylvania ( so cute!) and Madeline got to sleep in my bed. It really was the perfect day. We had so much fun!

Highlight of the day - feeding the giraffes! One of the giraffes is shorter than the other and at a distinct disadvantage. They were so sweet! 

This little kitten came right up to the fence where we were standing. She looked like she needed a hug and then we made eye contact and I decided she probably didn't want a hug...maybe just a snack! She really was beautiful though! 

You won't see many pictures of Chuck E Cheese because all I did was RUN around chasing my child who was on cloud 9 to be there. She didn't even stop to eat. She was so pumped and it was so cute! 

She was mesmerized by Chuck E - creepy as he is. She liked him and kept telling him to get down. She was completely perplexed when the "real" Chuck E came out. It was so funny. It was fun to see her having such a good time! 

BTW - not so sure about the choice of song that Chuck E was singing.