What a difference a week makes ...

So I feel like everywhere I have gone the past few months, I have heard people talking about Pure Barre, this exercise class that uses a ballet bar. I still had about 15 pounds to lose to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight, so I figured why not go ahead and try it for a month. I had heard you where sore afterwards, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I went to my first class last Wednesday and came home telling Chris it was the most miserable thing I had ever done. If I hadn't paid money to join for the month, I didn't think I would ever go back. I had to get Chris to get me advil in the middle of the night Wednesday night b/c I couldn't roll over in bed. Trying to get down on the floor to feed Emalyn her cereal or walk up the stairs to put Maddie in was almost impossible. Muscles were sore that I did not even know existed in my body. But it is amazing what a difference one week of doing Pure Barre has made. I am still a little sore after class, but nothing like that first day. And I am already seeing a difference in my body after 5 classes. Everyone says you get addicted to it....we shall see.

Everything on the home front is good. We are enjoying playing outside. Maddie loves helping me water my flowers each day (which usually results in at least one meltdown between the front and backyard b/c she does not like for me to help at ALL, so that is one of the many things we are working on). I am definitely seeing why so many parents say that age 3 is hard than 2. There are so many hard things to learn in this new world. It is amazing to me how much more aware of everything Maddie is and how well she is able to communicate with me. But along with that comes quite a few frustrations. Somehow she has already learned to ask..."Are we there yet?" And asks it over and over and over again. So we are working on only asking it once and then mommy will tell you when we are there, we are working on saying "excuse me" when mommy is in the middle of a conversation instead of continuing to scream "mommy" louder and louder and louder! We are working on how to communicate our emotions instead of just screaming and pushing, we are learning about inside voices (our poor neighbors....she just goes outside and screams instead), and of course we are still working on being gentle with our little sister. I came into the den on Wednesday, and Maddie was pulling Emalyn around the room by her arms. But with all of the hard parts of being almost three, there are so many new fun things that she is able to to...she loves to help me set the table each night, and unload the silverware from the dishwasher (you never know quite where they will end up in the drawer, but none the less the are in the correct drawer), and her all time favorite thing is to help me cook, (making cupcakes being her favorite of course!).

Emalyn is just growing. I can't believe she will be 6 months in 10 days! She has learned to roll to her stomach, but then won't roll back to her back and get SO mad. She has woken up a couple of time the past week furious, face all red, screaming b/c she can't get back to her back. She is still just a sweetheart, but definitely lets her little opinion be known when she is not thrilled with the situation. She still loves Maddie, and actually laughs more at Maddie than she does Chris or I either one. 

Here is the latest creation with my embroidery machine. It is hard to tell from the picture, but it is a pink and green purse. I had a blast yesterday afternoon using my machine, and actually got a few things monogrammed!