We had a really great, but always-too-short, visit with my Aunt Gerry last weekend! Whitney LOVES Aunt Gerry (almost as much as *I* do!) and it was so fun to see Whitney interact and play
with someone I love. 
Aunt Gerry is notorious for sending care packages. She doesnt go out and drop $400 on a new Spring wardrobe for Whitney, or buy the newest gadget and ship it to her favorite great niece. She does something even BETTER. Aunt Gerry grabs tons of small gifts, gathered carefully and thoughtfully as she is shopping or garage saleing or hitting outlets. These almost monthly packages from Aunt Gerry are, quite simply, some of Whitney's FAVORITE things in the world. She LOVES opening the box to see what Aunt Ger found or what made Aunt Gerry think of us.
Eric and I spent $13 on a toy at Disney World two weeks ago. It was money well-spent, as Whitney loooved her new "Nemo guys" (figurines) and she slept with them, carried them everywhere, brought them in the pool, etc. We were happy with our purchase and justified it when we saw our girl light up when carrying Dory around the kitchen. In a care package from Aunt Gerry, less than 48 hours later, arrived the same exact toy, PLUS approximately 17 extra figurines/guys/friends for Whitney....all in a bag with a sticker reading, "$.50". Aunt Ger knew our girl is in a Nemo stage, saw the Nemo guys at a garage sale mixed in with a ton of other cool "guys", and shipped them from Ohio. We were thrilled with $13.....until Aunt Gerry's $.50 care package blew OUR Nemo guys outta the water.
Dont get me wrong...Aunt Gerry doesnt ONLY send $.50 gifts...Im just trying to prove that it doesnt matter how much money you spend on a child or someone you love. Its all about letting them know you are thinking of them and that, even though you arent close enough to see everyday, you still love them. My grandma Mac (mom's mom) was that way, and I LOVE that Whitney has someone like that in her life now. My Gramma Mac would send us postcards to let us know she was thinking of us. She would send us comics from the Sunday paper if she thought we'd get a kick out of them. She didnt send checks or cash or elaborate gifts. She sent stuff that was much better. Like a bag of "nemo guys" that made our girl's face light up like a Christmas tree.
It was so fun watching Aunt Gerry and Whitney play and laugh and get to know each other. I cant WAIT for Aunt Ger to move here for good, and I KNOW she and Whitney will be great friends.
We all went to Epcot to have lunch with some princesses and walk "around the world."
My back was not in good shape the week before Aunt Ger arrived, and after many anti-inflammatories and pain killers and muscle relaxers, I was over it. My mom and Aunt Ger came to the rescue and babysat Whitney while I got some rest. Im not sure who had more fun! By the time we were headed to Epcot, I was feeling a little better, but Whitney wasnt done playing with two of her favorite girlfriends :)
Mac and Gramps bought Whitney's Halloween costume and she was thrilled to wear it to meet her princess friends for lunch! (She hasnt seen the dress since this day, as it sheds glitter EVERYYYWHERE, and needs to last another 8 weeks, at LEAST!)
This kid LOVES her Gramps!
After going home, getting some showers and a quick nap, we all headed over to my parents' best friends' home to see their kids and grandkids who were visiting from Texas. We always have such a nice time with Janice and David, and our girls are only 4 months apart and get along great, so we are always left wishing their visits were longer. It was nice to see the kids playing happily while all the parents and grandparents got to catch up. :)
We had one more full day of fun with Aunt Ger before she had to head back to Ohio, and Whitney was determined to suck every ounce of energy from Aunt Ger :) They were soooo cute looking at one of Whitney's baby albums at my mom's house.
Aunt Gerry gave Whitney a change purse that Whitney instantly called her "wah-wet" (wallet). In the tradition of Gramma Mac, Aunt Gerry put a one dollar bill in the wallet for Whitney, who declared herself "rich!" We casually mentioned that the man on the dollar bill was named George Washington. Im not sure why any of us were surprised when Whitney randomly told us "dat guy's name is George Washington!" when looking at a dollar bill the next day. (She STILL remembers his name and points him out now, a full week later.) CRAZY what a two year old mind can manage to retain.
We love you, Aunt Ger, and cant WAIT for your next visit!!
Some of the new, funny things Whitney is saying:
"Wet's check dis out, Mommy!" (while walking down an aisle at the store.)
Whitney got some vaccines last week. She was adamant that she did NOT want Bandaids. She mentioned it several times before we went to the doctor's office, and again when the nurse came in the room. She said, "I dont want bandaids, pweas. Thank you." The nurses "double-teamed" her, sticking needles into both arms simultaneously. When one nurse went to put a bandaid on the blood trickling down Whitney's arm, Whitney jerked back and said, "NO! No Thank You! I dont wike bandaids." (Sooo, she didnt even bat an eyelash at three needles puncturing her arms....but she wasnt a fan of bandaids?? Weird.)
Whitney was excited to start coloring at school last week, and the teachers told her to go take a seat and get started. Leave it to my girl to climb her way behind the the desk to sit in the teacher's seat. Like she runs the joint.
Last week I was getting dressed in the bathroom and Whitney was playing in my closet. I dont think my back was turned for more than 1 full minute, and when I turned back around, she had every single bracelet I own on her right arm. They went all the way up to her shoulder, and she was sooo proud :)
Whitney has been really into coloring lately. And singing. So one of my favorite recent memories is a day last week when Whitney woke up from her nap and I brought in her crayons and coloring books, and we laid on her bedroom floor, coloring as she sang and sang and sang. SOOO fun.
As I type this, she is singing the theme song to "Tangled", as she met Rapunzel at the Magic Kingdom today. She was very excited to spend the day at the Happiest Place on Earth, and I am not ashamed to admit that I tear up almost every time I watch her watching the "Dreams Come True" parade. ("Celebrate the dream inside of you.....a dream that just came truuuuue!!!"...gah!)
TONS of cute pics from today and the last week :) Im thinking I might need to steal Kelle Hampton's idea and do a "Friday Phone Dump" and dump my cell phone pics from the week onto my blog each Friday. I take sooooo many pics on my blackberry, and so few with the "real" camera lately. Hmm...something to consider.
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