How To Clean A Car, Fan Letter To Jon Lovitz, and More Sprinkler Park

What's the easiest way to clean up all the food your kid drops in the car?




I dropped my car off to be detailed this morning. I was ashamed to let them see all the old french fries and crumbs in the back seat, so I let Kallie and Vita have a go at it before we left. We should have named Kallie "Hoover"!

This afternoon we went back to the sprinkler park. Suzy, Abby, and Zoey went with us today. They loved it just as much as Savy does.

Here are Abby and Zoey in their cute little bikinis. They were all over the place! Poor Suzy...I don't know how she does it!



Savy was all over the place, too....luckily, there is only one of her to keep up with.








As usual, I had to chase Savy when it was time to go. I wasn't paying attention and ran under one of the buckets just as it tipped over. Fortunately, I wore my swimsuit today, and I actually remembered to bring towels.

I also wrote a fan letter to Jon Lovitz today...actually more like a fan e-mail. Except, it wasn't actually an e-mail; I messaged him on MySpace (it's hard to get a celebrity's e-mail address). So I guess I should say I sent him a fan message....
Anyway, I hope he responds! That would be awsome!

Sprinkler Park

A few weeks ago, my friend Samantha told me about a sprinkler park in Collierville where she took her little boy, and I've been planning to take Savy. There are actually two sprinkler parks in Collierville...Suggs Park and WC Johnson Park. Today I had to run some errands. I was only going to drive by to see exactly where they are located. I was planning to take Savy tomorrow and invite Suzy and the twins to go with us. Savy saw it, though, and begged to stop and play. Since I try to be a fun and spontaneous mom, I told her we'd stop for just a little while. Luckily, I still had her swimsuit in the car from our last trip to Glen Allan. I did not, however, have a towel...wish I'd thought about that before she got soaking wet.

We went to WC Johnson Park. There are two separate areas; this is the larger one.



This is the smaller one.



Savy jumped right in with all the other kids like she's known them all her life!



Every structure is a sprinkler, and water also shoots up suddenly from fountains in the ground.

This one surprised her. I love the look on her face...click on the photo to enlarge it (in case you didn't already know that).




This one fills the buckets at the top, then dumps the water out.



Both the parks are free. They're open 7 days a week from 8am to 8pm. I think we'll go back tomorrow and stay longer this time. I intend to wear my swimsuit tomorrow so I can join in the fun!

Christmas In July

Last week I ordered Savy a sit-n-spin (now called a spin-around), and it was delivered today. She figured it out right away, and seemed to really enjoy it....



...until Jon came home with this.



The spin-around was quickly forgotten as Savy rushed to help him put it together.



Here's a rare occurrence...a man reading the instructions!



Savy got very impatient and frustrated because Jon wasn't working fast enough...she has quite a temper!



She felt much better when he was finished.






She gave him a "thank you" hug...I guess that means he's the favorite (because I did not get a hug for my present).



Vita thanks him, too...now maybe Savy will stop trying to ride her like a horse!

Excellent Shopping Day

Ahhh, another 7 days off. We spent the day shopping, and Savy was in a great mood today! It's so much more fun shopping when she isn't fussing and crying the whole time. I was mostly hitting the end of season sales....making sure that Savy has plenty of cool and comfy clothes for DisneyWorld.

After we finished shopping, I took Savy to play in the children's area at the mall. She had a ball! I took some photos while I was watching her play.

She climbed around like a monkey



She made lots of friends




And she jumped off this pig about a hundred times



She kept giving a thumbs up every time she jumped off the pig...I'm not sure where she got that.

Savy is so confident and outgoing. She loves playing with other children...I'm glad she isn't shy like I was as a kid.

She definitely did not want to leave. I had to chase her around the play area (much to the amusement of the other parents) when it was time to go. She's very quick and hard to catch when there are all kinds of obstacles in the way.

Braden Station

Tonight we went to Braden Station for dinner with a couple of friends. It was my first time eating there. I thought it was really good, and I ate way too much. Savy even ate well for a change! I didn't get any pics since David told me they would only go if I left the camera at home...he's still miffed about the pic I posted of him. To make it up to him (somewhat), I'll post ANOTHER goofy pic of myself.



I did get a few photos before we left. I actually caught Savy and Jon cuddling.



And (if anyone cares) this is what I wore.



I'm still working on the posing, and I hate (fake) smiling for the camera. Maybe I should start cropping my head off.
I noticed a few people staring in the restaurant...I kept looking down to see if I was exposing myself or something. According to Jon, "people don't dress like that in the country;" Braden Station is a very casual place. I can't help it....I get excited when I have an excuse to put on real clothes!

Our Little Performer

Savy was just full of energy tonight! She started out being silly by wearing her deflated ball (yes, Vita popped another one) as a helmet. Then, Vita and I got to wear it.





When she got tired of the helmet, she rode her unicorn. She really gets into it!





She turned a bucket upside down and used it as a stage. Here's a video of her singing "Yo, yo, way" (she wrote it herself). She's so cute saying "Thank you, thank you" at the end when she takes a bow.




We ended the night with a dance to her favorite song. Thankfully, she didn't want me to dance with her tonight....she wanted the spotlight all to herself. She's watching the video while she dances. In case you can't hear what she says at the end, here's the translation: "Oh, no! You stopped the video. That's not nice! Oh, guys...." then some muttering that I couldn't understand.

Product Reviews

My friend Jennifer did a couple of product reviews a while back in an attempt to spice up her blog. I thought that was a great idea, so I'll try it, too. Actually, Jen's just so awsome and cool that I copy everything she does....hope you don't mind, Jen!
Here are a couple of products/brands that I love. Maybe someone will find this helpful.



Oooh, I could go on about this one for days! Paula's Choice skin care line is absolutely wonderful! I love every single one of her products and will not use anything else. They are reasonable priced, highly effective, and Paula's Choice products are not tested on animals. You can order samples of almost every product to try it out, or you can return any full-size product you don't like within 30 days for a full refund. The customer service is excellent, and I always receive my order in 2-3 days even with standard shipping.


I use the weightless sunscreen spray on Savy's ears...it gets into all the crevices and gives great protection but is not greasy at all.


This one is a clothing brand that I love....Eddie Bauer. Their clothes in the past were too "outdoorsy" for my taste, but I have ordered a lot from Eddie Bauer this year. I have these linen/cotton shorts in olive and white, and they are the most comfortable and cool (temperature-wise) shorts that I have. These are definitely going to Disneyworld with me!




They have great sales, you can order any item in petite or tall (online), and you can make returns for free to any Eddie Bauer store. Something else you may not know about Eddie Bauer is this (copied directly from the website):


If, at any time, you are not completely satisfied with your purchase, simply exchange it or return it to us for a refund. Your purchase is guaranteed for the lifetime of the product under normal wear and tear and/or defects in original workmanship.

I decided to test this a couple of months ago. A top I'd bought almost 2 years ago developed a small hole at the shoulder seam. I didn't have the receipt, so I didn't get my hopes up. I took it to the nearest EB store, and they gave me store credit for the price for which it was last listed! In fact, if I remember correctly, I came out a few bucks ahead! So if you buy from EB, keep your receipt...they will reimburse for full price if you have a receipt.

I hope you guys didn't find this post too boring!

Visitors

Saturday, we went car shopping. Jon really wants a Flex, but there are absolutely no incentives right now. We'll be waiting for some sort of rebate or no interest financing before we buy, but Jon test drove one anyway. Since I didn't want to deal with transferring a carseat from vehicle to vehicle, Savy and I waited in the truck (with the air conditioner on of course) while he was driving it. She entertained herself by pretending to call Mimi on one of our cellphone chargers.



Lesa and Rose stopped to visit us on their way to St Louis yesterday. We ate dinner at Carrabba's last night. Savy said she wanted chicken fingers, but Rose wound up having to share her pizza when the food was served. Savy enjoys eating out and is usally pretty well-behaved, especially if there are crayons or balloons.



Of course we had to stop at Sheridan's for frozen custard on the way home!

All Dressed Up and No Place To Go

I was supposed to go into the office today to sign a contract for my new position. I got dressed and ready. Then I called my supervisor to make sure she'd be there. It seems that corporate sent over the wrong paperwork and couldn't get the right papers until next week, so there was no reason for me to go after all. I'll bore you guys with another outfit post so my efforts will not go unappreciated. Plus, it's a cute pic with Savy.



See how she's posing....just like Mommy! Jon calls this my "sexy secretary" look; crisp white shirt, cardigan, pencil skirt. Maybe I should get some nerdy glasses (I really do need some for reading).

Jen, I know the lighting sucks and it's a little blurry. You need to come teach me some tricks!

The Zoo

Yesterday, we went to the zoo with our neighbors. It has changed so much since I was there last! Savy liked Cat Country a lot, but the polar bear exhibit was her favorite. It was hot, but we had a great time.

The butterfly house:



Random shots:







Snow-cone break..."blue" is Savy's favorite flavor




Savy LOVED the carousel! I let her pick which animal to ride...she wanted the cheetah. I know what we'll be doing in Dollywood, Mimi!



Savy found a boyfriend in the seal exhibit. She is very outgoing and not a bit shy. They were so cute....I see trouble ahead!




Thank you for inviting us, Suzy! And thanks for footing the bill for the snow-cone and the carousel ride....I'm a bad mommy for forgetting to bring cash to the zoo.

It is so nice being able to go new places with Savy. She has been so patient staying home with me all these months while I've been working. I intend to make it up to her now!