Peaches and Fuzz

Randoms

2011-04-16T18:12:00.005-04:00

Some random stuff in an attempt to catch up a bit. It's pretty wacky having a 3 year old. Part joy, part absolute frustration, and a whole lot of whining. From everyone.

1. We're getting better at letting Ellie help in the kitchen. She makes a big mess and doesn't listen well, but at least she's enjoying herself.

2. She can make an "E" - for a kid not interested in letters much at all, this is a pretty big deal. This is her first attempt, in February. She can now make them very clearly. She refuses to draw any other letters.

3. After a long hiatus from painting, we pulled them out again. She asked to make a rocket out of her hand print. She made a hand print by painting both her arms up to the elbows, reminding me why we took some time off from painting. Goofy is looking out the window.

4. She's still a funny sleeper.

Oh....The Eleanor Went to the Dentist

2011-03-25T20:01:00.006-04:00

And she sat down in the chair...

Ellie had her first visit with the dentist in January and it was a big success. She was so brave, climbed right up in the chair, and listened really well to the hygienist and the dentist. They counted her teeth, "painted" them pink (which she was super excited about), and showed her all the tools. She wasn't scared one bit!

She looked so big sitting in the chair. We like our dentist alright, but it isn't a good place for kids. So we tried out a new one for her, and LOVED it. Glad we got that first visit out of the way at a place we look forward to going back to!

First Big Snow of 2011

2011-01-28T19:26:00.002-05:00

I'm just going to pretend that I haven't gone missing for months, and that I'm not more than a year behind in what I want to blog about, and just go ahead like you all know what's going on.

It snowed! Our power was out and the house was cold, so we went out and made a snowman. I haven't made a snowman in a long time, it was really fun!

Ellie helped a little bit, but preferred wandering around and being buried.

And tasting the snow, of course.

I think he's the only snowman in the neighborhood, which is kind of sad. But it does make him the most awesome!

{howdy neighbors!}

Crafty Day

2010-09-02T09:17:00.004-04:00

Every once in awhile I see an idea for a simple craft that I think I can handle and I give it a shot, usually with mixed results. This one I figured I could do without too much trouble, and I did! I spray painted some cans and put some art supplies in them. Tada!

{oooooo. ahhhhhh. ohhhhhhh.}

I think they came out pretty cute and will hopefully help us keep these easily strewn supplies contained.

Big Girl Bed Hijinks

2010-07-23T21:16:00.009-04:00

We decided it was time to transition Ellie out of her crib and into a big girl bed around New Years. The whole transition went surprisingly well. After all the worrying we did about what the rules would be and how we'd enforce them, she adjusted almost immediately and we've never had to really lay down the law at all. Kind of a let down, almost. I'm not complaining.

At first we found her in all kinds of crazy positions, but eventually she's settled in to sleeping like a regular human, head on the pillow, blanket on, that sort of thing.

What she does do, though, is sneak out of bed and grab things to take back to bed with her. I've caught her in the act. She must plan out what she's going for before getting out of bed because she quickly runs and grabs what she wants, then runs and jumps back into bed. It's hilarious.

She started just grabbing some stuffed animals and an occasional purse or two.

{Muno, Cat in the Hat, Elmo, Cookie Monster, and Beeker}

Then she went through a long phase of putting shoes on. Flip flops, crocks, slippers, dress shoes, but always matching pairs (not always on the right feet).

Eventually we moved the shoes out of her room. So, she started grabbing books, we'd find 4 or 5 books in there with her some nights. Then things got really quiet for awhile, and we kind of thought she was over getting up and grabbing random things. Then we found her the other night like this:

Not over it.

However, she does seem to be over "ninny." We told her last night ninny was gone. There were some big tears, but they didn't last long. Tonight she asked for ninny, we told her it was gone, and that was that. Kind of sad to see that vestige of her babyhood go. Again, I'm not complaining.

Foofa and DJ Lance Rock

2010-06-22T16:54:00.010-04:00

Last year at Halloween we put off getting Ellie's costume until the last minute. This year I decided to make one! My mom always made costumes for us and they were so cool. Well, I think they were. Anyway, I think my first effort came out pretty good. I wasn't creative enough to come up with my own ideas, I stole from her favorite tv show, Yo Gabba Gabba.

The body was fairly simple to make. I had a pants pattern and I used a sweater that fit her really well as a template for the shirt. The hat I had to make two of. I learned a lot about the way a hat looks when it's flat vs. when it's actually on someone's head.

It took me forever to make, but in the end it was totally worth it. Mostly because she still drags this thing out and asks to be foofa at least once a week. And it still fits!

Pumpkin Carving

2010-06-22T16:30:00.009-04:00

We had a great time last Halloween, so even though it's been awhile I wanted to at least write something official about it.

Our little town (technically a suburb I guess but it doesn't feel like a suburb) had a pumpkin carving event!

They had a bunch of tables set up with carving equipment and a bunch of pumpkins available to carve. You just picked one and tried to find an open spot at a table and carved away. Check out this pumpkin! It's huge!

There were tons of families, they had a little bandstand with local musicians and the kids enjoyed dancing.

Ellie helped decorate, and I used her lines as a guide. I think it turned out pretty cute.

A couple of days later they'd taken all the pumpkins and arranged them along a path in the woods and you could go on a pumpkin hike. It was muddy and a little drizzly and Pete was out of town so I didn't get any pictures and I had to carry Ellie the whole way. But it was so neat to see all the pumpkins and look for ours.

Looking forward to this year!!

Haircut!

2010-05-18T11:22:00.006-04:00

After some deliberation I decided Ellie needed a haircut last Semptember.

{wispy crazy}

{we did pigtails before the big chop}

So, I cut it. Yup, me! Came out pretty cute, too, if I do say so myself.

{we miss Grandma}

I've since trimmed it up a couple of times, and taken her to a real hairstylist to fix my mistakes a couple of times. Sometimes I wonder if she'll want to grow it out or if I made the right choice, but I like her little bob and it sure is easy to keep combed out!

It's kind of funny doing this almost a year later because her hair is so much fuller now. You'll see. I'll get there eventually.

Maui is Heaven

2010-05-10T12:08:00.010-04:00

Pete's parents, who are always very very generous (as are all of our families, we are very fortunate), flew the three of us and Aunt Su Su to Maui to stay at a resort for a week. A WEEK! Holy smokes, that was a fabulous time.

First of all, the resort was gorgeous. Fabulous pool with awesome slides right out our back door. Beach just a few feet away. It even had an adults only pool that served cocktails. IN THE POOL. You looked out over the pool edge to see the coast and ocean and beauty. And typical Maui weather, 80's and dry all. day. long. For a WEEK.

{resort entrance}

{view from our room}

{beach even a 1.75 year old could walk to from our room}

Then, we went on this awesome bike trip down the side of Haleakala after freezing our behinds off to watch the most amazing sunrise I've ever seen. I'm not even sure how to describe it except to say we were above the clouds. And it was really really really cold, and I hate being cold, and it was absolutely worth it.

I did not want to go on this ride by the way. Getting up ridiculously early (I don't care what time it was back home) to freeze for 30 minutes in the dark and then fly down the side of a very tall mountain on a tiny bike did not sound like fun to me. I was wrong. I can admit that.

Then, they have this really amazing aquarium. Really amazing! Ellie was fascinated. The best part was they had basically a tunnel through a tank with a small portion of the floor that was see-through. The reaction from Ellie running down the tunnel then realizing she was about to cross an "open" pit was hilarious. Wish we'd caught that on video.

{the wind is always blowing on this part of the island}

Then, the grandparents took Ellie for the day and Pete and I just explored the island. We hit the little winery, and then we ventured a bit further south and saw the sights.

The story of the black rocks is these are not tiny pebbles and they make the most amazing rumbling sound in the surf. It was impossible to get a recording of it because the wind is always blowing, but it was definitely worth a trip to hear it.

Otherwise, we just had an amazing time hanging out with the grandparents and relaxing and enjoying everything about this entire trip.

Even the plane ride home wasn't too horrific.

Sometimes I Wake Up Crabby

2010-04-01T15:23:00.008-04:00

Sometimes I let her sleep. That's Pete's favorite joke. He's sooooooooooooooooooooo funny. Crab fest at Scruncle and Aunt Julie's marina gave Ellie her first boat ride! An important rite of passage in this family. And resulted in one of my favorite videos of her.

The "wee" is so convincing, don't you think? Anyway, we all had a good time, and overdosed on crabs and old bay.

Yum.

A Wedding

2010-04-01T14:41:00.015-04:00

Next on our cross-country trip, a visit to Portland for my brother's wedding. We had a fabulous time and it was a gorgeous ceremony and reception. Her family was so welcoming, and I haven't seen my brother so happy in a long time.

We had too much fun at the rehearsal dinner to get many pictures but Ellie looked awfully cute in her little dress.

First were pre-wedding pictures, then ceremony, then the obligatory bubble blowing, etc.

{so sweet}

{my favorite picture ever}

{Grandpa Mac did, in fact, wear a tux}

I love these pictures because you can just see how much fun we're all having, everyone's so happy. And now let the wild rumpus start (can you tell what we've been reading lately?).

The reception was truly a blast. It was on the family farm, an amazing piece of property. They had a dance floor set up with tables surrounding, amazing food, everyone just let loose and had fun. Great toasts, yummy cake, good beer, perfect weather. Ellie tore up the dance floor all evening long.

I had a gazillion more pictures I wanted to post, but instead I'll just point you to the flickr group if you want more. Welcome to the family, Aunt Mary!!

You're How Old?

2010-03-24T12:01:00.004-04:00

We took a little side jaunt over to Omaha for Pete's 20th (!) high school reunion. We stayed with some friends and they hired a babysitter to watch their two kids and Ellie so we could go out and enjoy the evening.

We also had to hit the fabulous Omaha zoo where Ellie got another chance to ride a carousel and got up close and personal with some goats and other pet-able "wildlife."

It was an excellent little side trip. I think I had more fun at his reunion than I had at mine.

I-O-W-A

2010-03-24T11:45:00.009-04:00

Back to Iowa in July as part of another cross-country adventure. We took to the air this time.

It was a little chilly but Ellie still had fun playing in the little pool my mom set up.

{Grandpa Mac is so cute with Ellie}

When I was a kid the best place in the world was City Park, they had tons of playgrounds, the Iowa River ran through, an outdoor pool with a super-tall diving board, and a little amusement park. We did it all, rode the train and the marry-go-round, played on the slides, chased the ducks, had a blast.

Ellie wasn't sure about the merry-go-round at first, but in the end she didn't want to get off.

Camping...Finally

2010-03-23T10:26:00.008-04:00

In August, 2008, I mentioned that we wanted to go camping and mused at how long it would take us to actually get around to it. Almost a full year later we went camping!

We packed up the entire house, threw the two dogs in the trunk (not really), and met up with some great friends, their two younger kids, and their little dog for an excellent weekend enjoying the outdoors.

It rained for part of the first day so we shut the dogs in the tent. Ilow didn't like that at all. Otherwise we enjoyed eating and sitting by the campfire and drawing and the dogs went swimming in the river.

{Sherpa required some rescuing}

Ellie got her first taste of two kid staples; juice boxes and fruit roll-ups. Yum.

She also further honed her beg-like-a-dog skillz. Why eat my hot dog when I can have yours?

It was tons of fun and I hope we get around to another trip this summer.

Baby Jameson

2010-03-19T13:02:00.004-04:00

Pete's cousin had a baby boy at the end of May, and they brought him down to visit Grandma as soon as possible. And who can pass up a visit with a tiny baby? Ellie was pretty fascinated. She was just learning how keys worked, so she tried to start Jameson with Aunt Susu's car key. Other than that relatively mild incident she was very gentle with him.

She wasn't even jealous about sharing Grandma's lap with her new second cousin.

And, by the way, babies grow fast. You'd think that'd be obvious but I'm still amazed when I see recent pictures of him. You will be to, if I get that far.

July 4th

2010-03-18T20:26:00.008-04:00

I wrote down all the things we did over the missing months and there are a TON, so I figured I'd better get to them while I have a free minute. And in this house, Pete doing the dishes while Ellie sings to herself in bed is a free minute, so I give you Ellie's second 4th of July, including her first set of fireworks!

Scruncle invited us up to Baltimore where they had harbored their boat for the holiday to wine and dine with the marina crowd. First, hanging out in the cabin and having a few pre-dinner drinks.

Then it was out to dinner for mussels and other things Ellie refuses to eat. Fortunately she's a good sitter like her mom.

Then it was back to the boat to get settled before the big show.

{cheers}

And, finally, it was fireworks time! Ellie did really well, especially given it was well past her usual bedtime. She seemed to really enjoy watching the explosions. And I really enjoyed her willingness to snuggle on my lap.

Happy very very very very very belated Independence Day!

Summer

2010-03-18T15:21:00.008-04:00

I realized that I missed an entire 6 months of Ellie's life on this here blog *shock*. And it was a busy 6 months. And these were an important 6 months for many reasons, but one really important reason. Pete's grandmother passed away a few weeks ago, making our visits with her over the last 6 months some of our last. And they were great visits. So, I'm going to catch up on the missed months as best I can.

Starting with our visit with Grandma in June. It was a gorgeous weekend so we sat on the front porch at the home and just enjoyed the weather. Aunt SuSu brought yummy strawberries, which Ellie LOVED (as did I).

I, being the brilliant and awesome mom that I am, let Ellie play in a mud puddle. She fell down. Pete was not surprised, nor was he particularly impressed.

And of course we had Ellie sit on Grandma's lap, a ritual that I had them repeat knowing we'd cherish the photos some day.

A Song

2010-03-02T11:29:00.004-05:00

Um hum. Been awhile again. Might have something to do with a crazy toddler giving us a run for our money. Here's a song recorded at her daycare, so fun to have a place that will share stuff like this with us!

Aviation Museum

2009-12-04T14:49:00.006-05:00

While my mom and step-dad were here over Thanksgiving we finally got things together enough to make it out to our little local Aviation Museum.

The College Park airport is the longest continuously operating airport in the country (I think) so there's a lot of history there, including some association with the Wright Brothers. Cool!

Ellie had a good time running around and looking at the different airplanes.

But her favorite thing was the little exhibit they had on air pressure involving two different sized beach balls.

She figured out how to make it work pretty quickly.

{push button}

{pick up ball}

{toss ball gently into air stream}

I don't like to brag but she's obviously brilliant. And beautiful.

Catch up. Again.

2009-12-02T14:25:00.006-05:00

Um, been awhile again. I did get pictures in those empty frames at least.

Ellie started preschool! We have a little daycare here at work that take children over 2, so once she turned two and they had an opening we got her in. It took some adjusting, but she seems to have settled in pretty well. Didn't even notice me leave this morning.

As referenced above, Ellie turned 2. It was another marathon birthday celebration. She's talking and singing nonstop, it's a lot of fun to hear what comes out of her mouth.

She made an adorable Foofa for Halloween. And Pete made a pretty mean DJ Lance Rock.

We had our kitchen completely dismantled last century and it is slowly coming back together.

My dad and step-mom came to visit at the beginning of November, and my mom and step-dad were here for now annual Thanksgiving visit last week. Both visits were a lot of fun, especially since Ellie is starting to learn what "grandma" and "grandpa" mean.

And now we're working on getting in the holiday spirit, welcome to December!

Photo Scavenger Hunt

2009-09-28T16:51:00.013-04:00

Leave it to Emily to get me back here blogging. Shame on me.

As a little welcome-to-fall contest, Emily listed 10 photos to take and we were to pick 8 to blog about. I'm not sure if this will count because I didn't specifically take these photos for the contest, but I needed an excuse to update the blog before September ends. So, here's my list.

#1 Something I need every day Easy. I need coffee. Every day. Black. Hot. Strong. Many cups. I'm sipping one right now. Yum.

#2 Something I've once lost, finally found I used to do all sorts of crazy things back in my younger days. But moving out to the DC area from Colorado, settling into a marriage, buying a house, becoming a mom. Somewhere in there I seem to have lost my sense of adventure. I found it again on our recent trip to Hawaii where I was very reluctantly convinced to take a sunrise bike ride down the side of a volcano. It was awesome.

#3 A happy place in my house I love our house, it has a lot of little happy places for me. But my favorite right now is the floor of Ellie's bedroom where we cuddle and read books before bed.

#4 A picture of a picture I made these little photo cubes for Father's Day this year. Aren't they cute? It's on my list of things to blog about.

#5 A favorite book One of the things that I'm really enjoying these days is the creativity that's inspired in me by some of my on-line mommy friends through various "swaps" that I've participated in. I'm not usually satisfied with my contribution, but I'm amazed at, and in awe of what I have gotten in return. One of those things was a beautiful scrap book of Ellie's first year, artfully crafted by Jennie using the photos I took every Tuesday. It is now one of my most prized possessions.

#6 My favorite color I just love the deep rich color of blue that water imparts on the world. The color of the water and the sky in the tropics contrasted with the white of billowing clouds and breaking waves, it's breathtaking.

#7 Something from my childhood This summer we took a trip to the tiny little amusement park in my home town that has been there forever. It has four or five little rides, most of which have changed since I was a child. But two of them are exactly the same - the merry-go-round and the little train. I have many fond memories of riding the huge (to me) Ferris wheel, picking which animal I wanted to ride on the carousel, eating snow cones and cotton candy, and impatiently waiting for the train to complete it's long, slow loop so I could have a turn. Ahhhh, memories.

#8 Something from my to-do list This is actually rather embarrassing. The blog isn't the only thing I'm hopelessly behind on. I hung this set of picture frames up way, way back in June in anticipation of receiving the beautiful photos that Emily took while she was here (something else on my list of things to blog about. Actually this whole post could be called "something I will blog about some day"). Photos that I still haven't ordered. It's at the very top of my to-do list, and has been for months. I WILL order these photos SOON. I NEED them. My house looks very silly with empty picture frames hanging all over the place.

And there you have it. My entry into the photo scavenger hunt, and a very belated update to the blog containing many previews of entries to come. Hopefully before the end of time.

Because I'm so behind

2009-08-10T21:14:00.004-04:00

I'll add this little video I assembled from a funny afternoon adventure in the yard a few months ago.

More Visits

2009-08-10T21:01:00.006-04:00

The next set of people to come for a visit were my dad and step-mom. This marked the first time they'd had a chance to see Ellie since we went up to the lake house last September. So, she'd changed a bit.

We played in the sandbox...

...and went for a few walks around the neighborhood...

...and attended the fun but very odd "Green Man Festival" at our little downtown area.

Generally, Ellie just enjoyed getting to know another set of grandparents, and I think the feeling was mutual.

Tickle Tickle Tickle

2009-06-07T21:37:00.003-04:00

Another video post. This is from a couple of months ago. Brace yourself, it's pretty cute.

Some Grandparents Pay a Visit

2009-05-28T20:39:00.006-04:00

Still playing catch up. We're getting there.

Pete's folks made it out to visit near the end of April. They were here for about a week and got to spend a lot of time getting to know Ellie, which I think they all really enjoyed.

We finally got her sandbox set up while they were here, and she loves it. She had so much fun playing in the sand and throwing the sand and eating the sand.

Aunt S. was able to come up one afternoon so we had a little bbq and enjoyed the nice weather.

BBQ's typically mean food on people's laps or carried around. This means there's a lot of potential for food to be dropped, of which the dogs are keenly aware. Our dogs are pretty typical dogs in that anything that looks like something you might eat they want, and anything you drop on the floor they will eat. Now I guess we have to add Ellie to the list of beggars who won't be choosers. If the dogs want it, she wants it. And if the dogs will eat it, so will she.

Yum. So, why doesn't she eat what's on her plate? I really don't know. It's one of the many great mysteries of toddlerhood.

Once Upon A Time on Easter

2009-05-25T21:04:00.008-04:00

We had a pretty laid back Easter this year, probably our last as Ellie will know what candy and chocolate and hidden eggs are next year (she already knows what "cookie" is, as we discovered today). So, we took advantage of it by dying some eggs and having some people over.

Ellie "helped" us dye the eggs, it was a lot of fun. She really enjoyed it once she figured out what all the glasses were for (not drinking). She made a mess, of course, but it was worth it.

{finished product}

Later that afternoon a couple friends and their two dogs came over, and Aunt S. joined us as well. It was a really nice day out, our first of the season really, so we enjoyed hanging out in the yard all afternoon.

{our dogs being lazy}

Hmmm, no pictures of the adults. We just hung out on the porch and ate too many chocolate bunny brownies (made by Aunt S. Aren't they cute?). It was nice.

Nightlife

2009-05-20T21:06:00.003-04:00

Another oldish video for your enjoyment. Isn't she so cute? I'm lovin' my nightlife these days.

A Shower

2009-05-20T17:28:00.007-04:00

Ellie absolutely hates getting her hair wet these days. I have no idea what happened. But it's made bath time unbearable. So, instead of sad showers that end with "no mommy no!" let's talk happy ones.

Pete's cousin is having a baby. Any day now. I'm surprised he hasn't arrived yet. But he hasn't. Which means this isn't as out-of-date as it could have been.

His aunt and uncle held a nice little baby shower for her right before Easter.

It ended up being a little surprising for us because I decided to make a diaper cake at the last minute, having never made one before, and it actually came out kind of cute (if I do say so myself). And because Ellie suddenly decided that maybe Scruncle (Scruncle = Scary+Uncle) isn't so scary after all.

{awwwwwwwww}

She still doesn't like sitting on Grandma's lap. Sorry, Grandma.

Cherry Blossom Festival

2009-05-14T19:14:00.007-04:00

One of the advantages of living near D.C. is that, even when they predict the wrong date for the peak blooms of the cherry blossoms, we can still pop down and see them. Which is just what we did the first weekend in April.

What I would have preferred doing was skip out on work and go down during the week when it isn't so crowded. But we didn't do that. So, it was very crowded. Very crowded. It sure was beautiful though, and the weather was perfect for walking around all afternoon. Ellie was content to ride in her stroller the whole time. Because she fell asleep. But a sleeping baby is much better than a screaming baby.

After walking around the entire tidal basin, stopping at the Roosevelt and Jefferson Memorials along the way, we made our way over to museum row, grabbed a couple of hot dogs, and sat in the grass behind the American History Museum to eat and let Ellie run around a bit and enjoy the sunshine.

Ellie was surprisingly not too impressed with the hot dogs (she has since changed her mind on that), but she was happy just chewing on the bun. She also made a new friend, as kids this age are want to do.

I'm really glad Pete convinced my curmudgeonly self to get out of the house and brave the crowds, it was a beautiful afternoon and fun to get downtown again. Starting to feel like spring.

Rapid Run

2009-05-12T22:30:00.003-04:00

A video from a couple of months ago.

Our Big Airplane Trip

2009-05-10T23:02:00.012-04:00

Hello? hello? hello? hello? Anybody here? ere? ere? ere?

A couple of things have finally been removed from my plate so I have some time to catch up on this here blog. We're going to start where we left off, way back in March, and I'll be interspersing some older video here and there as we go.

On March 17, 2009, Ellie finally got to take her first airplane trip! Being the daughter of a pilot I've always loved to fly, but with the crazy things the airlines have been doing lately I'd kind of been boycotting. But a trip to visit my best friend and her family was way way way overdue. So, I sucked it up and braved the airport with a toddler, and everything went swimmingly. It would have still been worth it even if it hadn't.

From the second we arrived Jo's kids took Ellie under their wings and showed just how much fun being a big kid (and gosh have they gotten big) can be.

They read and read ...

And read and read some more....

We spent a whole lot of time enjoying the outdoors, even though it was a little chilly for us (although Jo claimed it was "warm." Whatever.)

Ellie had a strange obsession with "Mr. Slow," the yellow slow sign they would set in the street when the kids were out. She wanted to ride him around. He isn't really ridable, but you try explaining that to a 15 month old.

{up please}

And on the days when it was either too cold (even for them) or too rainy to go out, we made due with staying inside.

And when we couldn't take being inside any more, we went to this indoor gym where the kids could just run and play and be crazy.

There was a whole lot of screaming and running and wrestling and sharing and stair climbing and bike riding. Best trip ever. It was way too short, and we miss them dearly.

Fun With Yogurt

2009-03-26T21:18:00.004-04:00

It's been awhile so I thought I'd just let you all see how much fun yogurt can be with a 15 month old before I get to the good stuff - Ellie's first plane trip. That's a longer one that will take me a bit to get together.

Yum.

Big Day

2009-03-02T20:37:00.008-05:00

Way back in October we went in to the pediatrician to have a cold and cough checked out. We came home with a prescription for antibiotics to cure a double ear infection. She's been on and off of them ever since. Finally we were referred to the Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist to be evaluated and, sure enough, tubes were recommended.

Tubes are basically a tiny hole in the ear drum that allows fluid to drain when the usual outlet, the Eustachian tubes, are swollen shut. This hopefully keeps a bacterial breeding ground from building up.

Surgery was scheduled for this morning, the morning of the biggest snow storm of the year.

We got up an hour early to make sure we had plenty of time. It was really snowing and there was some slipping and sliding but we made it.

{in the waiting area}

We had to hang out in the waiting area while paperwork got done and everything got lined up. Then we were taken back to a prep area where we did some more waiting and she got all her vitals taken and charmed the nurse with her calm demeanor.

Then it was time to get weighed. Sitting on the scale she spied something she wanted on the counter amongst a small pile of stuffed animals. We weren't sure what she saw, so we brought her over and she quickly snatched up the "be be" which they let her keep.

Then it was back to the prep area and more waiting.

Like her nose? She did that last night, her first visible scrape and she has a bruise on her forehead. Her timing is impeccable. They were a little worried it would be aggravated by the anesthesia mask but it seems fine.

Now for the hard part. Because they gave her the anesthesia in the OR, we couldn't be in there with her. So, we walked down the hall together and then the nurses took her to the right and we went to the left. The harmonica playing nurse did his best, but there was still some crying. Ellie cried, too.

Then we headed to the cafeteria, sat for a bit and stared out the window, and headed back. As we were walking down the hall we were paged, Ellie was done!

{waiting for my new friend to return}

This was all before 9:00, and our surgery wasn't even scheduled until 9:30. They were very efficient. After some monitoring of her vitals and a bottle of apple juice in a small, dark recovery room, we were sent on our way with some instructions and some ear drops (that'll be fun).

By then it had mostly stopped snowing and the roads had been cleared, so the drive home was a breeze. We got home, hung out, she took a nap, and then she spent the afternoon tearing around the house as usual.

Mommy and Daddy, however, are exhausted and hope they can sleep tonight now that this is behind us.

Helping Hands

2009-02-22T23:31:00.007-05:00

Ellie has been helping out around the house lately. Either that or the shoe gnomes are back.

{all in a row}

{the helper at work}

Good thing she's so cute, especially in her new suit.

Thank you Grandma C!

A Stroll

2009-02-15T21:05:00.011-05:00

The cold weather this weekend has me reminiscing all the way back to...last weekend. It was so nice Ellie and I went for a walk outside without a coat on! It was her first real outdoor adventure on her own two feet.

I thought we'd just go past the drive and down the street a bit, but when she got to the corner and kept on going Pete grabbed the dogs and away we went.

The impetus for our walk were these adorable new shoes my mom sent her, mini Merrells! I love Merrells. And in miniature, just too cute.

Ellie did really great and walked a little more than a full block, and that included a daring climb up a neighbor's steep drive and the harrowing descent.

Pretty good for her first outing. It was really just nice to get out and not be bundled up for once. A wonderful taste of spring and what's to come. I can't wait!

Bad Hare Day

2009-02-08T17:01:00.003-05:00

{when moms attack}

Bedside Table Philosophy

2009-02-06T09:26:00.010-05:00

A fabulously creative friend of mine did this a few weeks ago and I'd been meaning to join the fun, if just to have an excuse to finally straighten and dust my bedside mess. In so doing, I realized that the stuff collecting on my bedside table is part who I am and part who I'd like to be. And that the state of said table is mostly who I am, and not so much who I'd like to be. Someone could do a Ph.D. thesis on what collects at people's bedside and what it says about them.

Here are the reads collecting on my bedside table (straightened for the purpose of the photo).

First, the table itself is a garage sale find that I love. I got it with the intention of refinishing it right away. I still intend to, right away, 10 years later. It's the prefect size, with a little drawer and a shelf that allows me three tiers of books. The little drawer is perfect for holding bookmarks since I always lose the one I'm using. I've thought many times of replacing it with something more matchy with our other furniture, but I can't part with it.

Tier 1: Books I am intending on starting/finishing as soon as I'm in the mood to pick them up again.

1. "Projects for Community Knitting" pub. by Cottage Creations
2. "The Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula K. le Guin
3. "The Creative Family" by Amanda Blake Soule
4. "The Best American Essays - 2001" edited by Kathleen Norris (yes, 2001, I know)
5. "Why We Garden" by Jim Nollman
6. The September 2007 issue of "Smithsonian" (again, I know, but there it is)

Tier 2: Crosswords and other fun things I do when I don't want to read

1. Sudoku puzzles
2." The New York Times Crossword Omnibus, Vol. 10" edited by Eugene T. Maleska
3. "The New York Times Big Book of Holiday Crosswords" edited by Will Shortz
4. My fabulous crossword puzzle dictionary
5. "The Daring Book for Girls" by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz

Tier 3: Books I'm actually reading because it's easier to set them on the floor as I'm falling asleep

1. "What to Expect: The Toddler Years" by Eisenberg, Murkoff, and Hathaway
2. "Complete Book of Women's Running" by Dagny Scott Barrios
3. "Mother Nurture" by Hanson, Hanson, and Pollycove
4. Barnes and Noble's "The Complete Book of Woodworking" (I'm not actually reading this)

Some of these books have been sitting on my table untouched for well over a year, that also probably says something about me.

I thought I'd do this for my husband, too, since he's a better reader than I am and he always has an interesting collection going. I did not straighten his side.

1. An issue of "The Planetary Report"
2. An issue of "Cooks Illustrated"
3. A journal
4. "Bloom County: Babylon" by Berke Breathed
5. "The Rough Guide to Climate Change" by Robert Henson
6. "The Blind Watchmaker" by Richard Dawkins
7. "The Dangerous Book for Boys" by Iggulden and Iggulden
8. "Dark Sun" by Richard Rhodes
9. "Tales from the Brother's Grimm" compiled by Cooper Edens
10. "Rolling Stone Album Guide"
11. An issue of "Newsweek"
12. "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien (always has one of these going)

See? A Ph.D. thesis in the making.

The Adventure of the New Crib

2009-01-28T15:05:00.010-05:00

Ellie's crib, the one she's slept in every night since she out-grew her cradle, was recalled. New furniture usually makes me giddy, but this time the idea of getting something new was kind of bitter-sweet.

Like most expectant parents, we spent quite a bit of time agonizing over what crib to get. And there were about a million options. Expensive or cheap? Fancy or simple? Light or dark wood? Or painted? Drop side or not? Just a crib or convertible to a toddler bed? We decided on middle of the road, simple and understated, not expensive but not the cheapest we could find. And we loved it.

{her first night in the crib}

The first time she smiled when I came in to get her in the morning was in this crib. She found her feet, went from a back-sleeper to a belly-sleeper, and discovered she could sit up, then stand up, in this crib.

Even though the recall was for something silly, we decided it wasn't worth keeping a potentially (no matter how slight) dangerous crib. So, it was off to Babies 'R Us to look for a suitable replacement. After a second round of agonizing, a selection was made. They didn't have the one we wanted in stock so it was back to BRU a week later to pick it up.

{such a helpful child}

Things we like: the darker wood and more modern design fits in a little better with the furniture we've shoved into her room. The lowest setting is a little lower making that much harder for her to climb out should she ever try this. Things we don't like: It sits lower to the ground and so we can't store the pack 'n play and other things under it. Despite costing more the mattress support isn't as nice. The bolt placement made it hard to assemble. Also, this one doesn't have a drop side. We didn't use the drop side much in the other crib so I don't think we'll miss it, but it was nice to have the option.

[babyroom1.jpg]

{old crib, newly assembled}

{new crib, newly assembled}

Her old crib is sadly now part of the local landfill. Except for the bolts, which were painstakingly removed and sent back to the original crib company in order to receive the voucher that we will then take back to BRU to be refunded most of the cost of the new crib. The voucher should arrive in 1-2 weeks. Don't get me started.

Cuddling With Daddy

2009-01-25T22:50:00.004-05:00

It doesn't happen very often, but every once in awhile the stars align. The sun is out, Ellie is in a cuddly mood, we don't have a million things to do, and the couch isn't buried under a pile of...stuff. And then you get moments like these.

It used to be that Ellie would fall asleep in our laps all the time. Then the day came when we wondered if it would ever happen again. And then it does.

And it is good.

Grandma Gets A Visit

2009-01-25T22:25:00.005-05:00

We try to make it up to see Pete's Grandma about once a month. These visits have been a fun way to track Ellie's growth since Grandma moved down by us about 2 days before Ellie was born. In the month since we last saw her Ellie has gotten really good at both walking and communicating. She doesn't have a lot of words, but she points and has a few signs, and definitely has a way of getting her point across. It made this visit particularly fun.

She played peekaboo and touched pointer fingers for a bit, then sat down and rolled the exercise balls around with Scruncle.

And she practiced the piano. Got to get her started early.

She also noticed some birds hanging out in the trees by the feeder (this was our first measurable snowfall of the year, by the way). She called them "kitty" as she does with all animals except dogs which she calls "woof".

We usually stop by Starbucks on the way and pick up Grandma's favorite treat...and we might as well get something for us while we're there, you know.

{Grandma sneaks a frappuchino break}

Ellie didn't really want to sit on Grandma's lap for the obligatory "sit on Grandma's lap" shot. This isn't saying much because she doesn't like sitting anywhere for long. I got one tolerant picture of them.

And then it was time to say good bye until next time.

New Year's Day

2009-01-20T10:39:00.005-05:00

This year we spent New Year's at a sports bar watching the Iowa Hawkeyes beat up on whomever they were playing. It doesn't matter.

The local chapter of the alumni association always collects at this particular sports pub to watch Iowa games, it's a lot of fun usually. We had a good time, but it was too crowded to sit with the rest of the fans so we had to sit out on the heated porch. It wasn't quite the same not being surrounded by rabid cheering. So, we stuck it out through half-time and then went back to Aunt S's to "watch" the rest. I think we all fell asleep.

The Day After

2009-01-20T09:44:00.007-05:00

The day after Christmas is always cause for big celebration as it is Grandma's birthday! She turned 92 this year. We all got together for brunch at this very nice converted farm house/inn that had the perfect set-up for a large group of people.

[DSC_0120.JPG]

After that we hung out and enjoyed our new gifties. Ellie enjoyed her new chair and her little hippo family while looking particularly adorable in this beautiful sweater my dad and step-mom sent.

We watched some of our new movies while eating popcorn and drinking beer from our new mugs.

{Ilow does not like beer}

Ilow guarded her new bones, Dragnet wrestled with his new fox squeaky. And Sammy finally got a new dangly toy since Dragnet ate her last one, and a moth!

Oh joy!

Christmas Part 2

2009-01-16T21:07:00.011-05:00

The symphony I'm playing with uses a local church for their performances, and as a trade they ask for a couple of musicians to perform during their larger Christmas and Easter masses. This works out really well for us because Pete is Catholic and I'm not and this gives us a good reason to all go to Mass together. So, after opening gifts at home we all headed out for Christmas Mass.

After that it was off to Scruncle and J's house for Second Christmas. One of Pete's other aunts and her 3 kids came down as well. And of course Grandma (a.k.a. Queen Dorothy) was able to come over. One of Pete's cousins is expecting her first baby in May! So, she was excited to get some practice at the whole "Mom" thing.

Grandma picked this outfit out special for Ellie and she looked adorable in it. Again, I think the hat makes the outfit. She also spent a lot of time showing off her newly honed walking skills. Everyone was very impressed.

Santa had come to Scruncle's too! So, another round of gifts to be opened.

[DSC_0099.JPG]

All the grown-up women got fuzzy socks.

After gifts, we had a marvelous dinner that Ellie napped through, and really enjoyed a wonderful evening with family.

Christmas Part 1

2009-01-14T10:05:00.008-05:00

People often ask if this was our first Christmas with Ellie and I have to catch myself before I say "Why, yes!" Last year was such a blur I really don't remember much about it. I know people were here, I know gifts were exchanged, I have the pictures to prove it. But this really felt like our first Christmas to me, so I was pretty excited. I had way too much fun picking out gifts for Ellie. I also didn't anticipate the generosity of our families, although I should have because they've always been very generous with us. The result was way too much stuff under the tree after Santa came.

[DSC_0013.JPG]

When I was little, Santa always wrapped his gifts in white tissue paper or comics. I was so excited to see that he kept up that tradition with Ellie.

This wasn't a traditional Christmas in that Mom and Dad got up before Ellie and were getting anxious for her to awake. Finally, we heard her stirring in her crib, so we got her up and she dove right in.

Aunt S. came by to help us, and thank goodness she did because we would have been there all day if we left it up to Ellie. She sat in a chair as any reasonable adult would, so that means of course that her head got chopped off in about 50% of the photos I took.

Fortunately, I realized the mistake and was able to get some good ones.

{new favorite chair}

The funniest part of the morning came when we opened the gift from our daycare provider, a baby doll. Once she laid eyes on that baby, everything else was forgotten. I didn't know that a one year old could insist on anything, but insist she did. She wanted that baby out of the package, and NOW wasn't soon enough.

{Daddy trying to get her to notice the beautiful "Quillow" from G. Grandma B}

After the initial obsession wore off she actually did go back to playing with her other toys, but we were all a little shocked at the vehemence with which she pursued that baby at first.

After breakfast, she got all dressed up to go to Christmas Mass and enjoyed her new chair and books for a bit before we headed out the door to start Christmas Part 2.

To be continued...

Merry (belated) Christmas

2009-01-09T10:33:00.008-05:00

I hope everyone's holiday was wonderful and the weather didn't hit anyone too hard. I will be back to recap on our crazy holiday adventures soon.

{this is the best you get on a timer}

Little Girl Walking

2008-12-22T12:58:00.003-05:00

Regularly Scheduled Programing

2008-12-21T18:41:00.017-05:00

Okay, most of my holiday shopping is done, most of the decorations are set out, the tree is up, and now I'm ready to start blogging again. I think I'll have to divide this into several sections.

1. Grandma and Grandpa Come to Visit

My mom and step-dad made their second annual Thanksgiving trip out from Iowa. It was a wonderful visit. We made the trip down to DC to check out a new ocean exhibit at the Natural History museum and see the newly revamped American History museum.

My step-dad made an amazing Thanksgiving spread.

And otherwise we pretty much just hung out.

2. Grandma Comes to Visit

Pete's mom came out for a quick visit shortly after that. She happened to time her visit to coincide with a concert by the symphony I'm playing with, so we got all dressed up for that.

We also got to visit Great-Grandma again briefly, and Ellie got to meet Pete's mom's cousin and his wife. It was so nice to catch up with them.

3. Ellie Learns to Explore

Ellie is probably the most cautious baby I've ever seen, not that I've been around a lot of babies. Generally, she spends more time watching than trying new things. I'm more than fine with that. Recently, however, she's getting more daring. She's discovered, for example, she can actually climb into the cabinets. So, she spends quite a bit of time going between her two favorites.

{here....there.....back again}

She's also learned to climb the stairs.

And, most exciting of all, she's taken the plunge and starting to walk! It started with a single tentative step while my parents were here. Then she started walking between two people while Pete's mom was here.

And over the last couple of days she's really started taking off and just walking whenever she feels like it. I wouldn't call her a walker yet, but she's getting dangerously close. It occurred to me the other day that, while I'm very excited for this milestone, it means she's turning into a more independent person who will soon be wandering off while our backs are turned. I'm not sure I'm ready for that, but there's no stopping her now.

4. Beauty

Finally, I just can't help showing off my beautiful little girl.

Her personality is really starting to shine, her laugh is horribly contagious, and best of all, she thinks her dad and I are hysterically funny. I've heard that doesn't last, so we're getting in as many bad jokes as possible.

{Three men walk into a bar. The fourth one ducks.}

Kids Cancer Crusade Needs A Little Help

2008-12-11T10:02:00.006-05:00

I know it's been awhile, I'm sure you're all anxiously awaiting an update. It's coming and it will be grand as it's been a busy busy busy couple of weeks. For now, you'll have to wait because I wanted to get the word out on something I think deserves a little visibility.

If you've spent any time at all on the blogosphere, you'll know that upping the visibility of your blog and increasing the number of comments is the name of the game, and people do all sorts of things to get your help. My favorite is give-aways, people give a prize to a random commenter or hold a little contest. You also see people asking you to advertise a give-away on your blog for an extra chance to win (this is kind of like shooting yourself in the foot, of course, since it means more entries). There are also all sorts of awards floating around, which are also a lot of fun. I received one and never did anything about it, thank you so much, Bug, for thinking of me (I love your new holiday look, by the way)! Maybe once I catch up on baby stuff I will follow through with that.

Up until now I've refrained from doing any solicitations on my blog and I'm kind of proud of myself for that as the temptation is very large. After this I will no longer be able to say that, but I think it's worth it. This is a really simple little thing, and I don't get much traffic here. But my hope is people who do get more traffic will pick up on it and repeat it and maybe this little organization will get the support they need.

Here's the dealeo (copied and pasted from their petition site):

To: Kids Cancer Crusade Supporters

For two years the purchase of the domain http://www.kidscancercrusade.org was kindly donated to Kids Cancer Crusade, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization by the owner of NgiNeThemba Designs & Domains. The company was recently sold and the new owner felt that since the company purchased the domain for the organization, Kids Cancer Crusade should be required to purchase it from him for $2000 (matching another offer he had received for the domain) in order to continue its use.

However, the new owner agreed to the terms that if Kids Cancer Crusade could supply a petition obtaining 1500 signatures declaring that, although not illegal, what he has demanded of the organization was unfair and hurts the organization and the services they provide, a judge can rule that he must repay the $2000. He agreed to the terms because he doesn't feel Kids Cancer Crusade has the support. Please help us to not only show him he is wrong but to get the money back so it can go to where it should - to our children and their families.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

To sign this petition please follow this link http://www.petitiononline.com/kcc08/petition.html
Here is some information on what Kids Cancer Crusade is http://www.kidscancercrusade.org/
And a link to a blog where they track kids' progress http://www.crusadingforacure.blogspot.com/
And finally a link to the petition site's FAQ page so you can see exactly what this is. I've signed one other petition and have never received any junk mail resulting from it. http://www.petitiononline.com/petition_FAQ.html

I understand this new owner doesn't have a responsibility to donate the domain, and I suppose a better way would be for them to find a new donor. But something about the way the new owner appears to have treated them makes me want to show him they can get the support they need.

Thanks for reading this! A baby update is coming soon, I promise.

We have a cat?!?

2008-11-27T10:02:00.005-05:00

That's right. In addition to the two very in-your-face dogs, we have a laid back and somewhat shy cat.

The cat has been getting neglected lately, and not just on the blog. She's such a sweet and special kitty, putting up with a cross country move that ended with the addition of a full-time dog instead of an occasional visitor, then a second and very annoying dog, and now a baby. Thanksgiving seems like the appropriate time to remember her and how thankful we are to have her in our little family. We love you Sammy.

Yesterday she got the joy of going to the vet for her checkup and she came back all clear, just gaining a little weight. So we instructed Ellie to chase her around some more. She happily obliged.

This is a new thing for us, coming home from the vet with no new things to monitor or worry about, no new pills to try to force down a throat. Deserves special mention.

Birthweek Part 5: A Grown-up Party

2008-11-16T23:16:00.006-05:00

To round up the event marathon, we had a party for our local friends and family Sunday afternoon. We had a great turnout and so much fun celebrating with everyone.

[DSC_0027]

Aunt S made an amazing cake, with sparkly "ribbon" and everything.

Ellie was running her first fever for the party (we're thinking it was from her 1 year shots), so she wasn't the best hostess but did really well given how poorly she must have felt.

She managed to have some intermittent fun when the Tylenol kicked in, and a couple of our guests took advantage of a clingy baby to get in some cuddle time.

Pete did all of the food, including making cookies, and most of the cleaning - both before and after. He's amazing.

Phew. What a week!

Birthweek Part 4: A Baby Party

2008-11-16T23:00:00.007-05:00

Are you tired yet? I am. Saturday was the much anticipated group birthday party for my online mom's group. There are 7 of us, really 8 but our 8th moved too far to make it. It was total chaos and a lot of fun. We did a little gift exchange and gabbed and watched the babies go crazy.

As if that wasn't crazy enough, we set them all on a sheet and gave them each a cupcake.

Birthweek Part 3: Cake

2008-11-16T22:49:00.007-05:00

Friday we hauled out the cake. It was getting late and she'd already had a bath, but if we didn't do it then we weren't going to get around to it. So, we sang "Happy Birthday", blew out the candle, gave her the cake, and stood back and watched.

I think she actually got a little bit of cake, but it was mostly all about the frosting. Then it was another quick bath to get it out of her eyes and hair, and she and Daddy read a couple of her new books before bed.

Birthweek Part 2: The Actual Day

2008-11-16T21:52:00.009-05:00

November 13th, 2008, was pretty quiet, uneventful, and nice. Ellie woke up as usual, happy and ready to start her day.

{good morning birthday girl}

We went out to dinner to celebrate but Daddy forgot the camera. Then home to open some pressies. I've never bought one of those balloons before, I think Pete thought I was a little crazy but I couldn't resist. She only turns one once after all.

{getting good at that standing thing}

We were going to give her a little cake to play with but it was getting late and she was running out of steam.

Birthweek Part 1: Remembering

2008-11-16T21:06:00.008-05:00

Remember when birthdays were on one day? Yeah, that doesn't happen here. We managed to stretch Ellie's first birthday over 4 days.

Before we get into that, I think I'll reminisce for a bit. One year ago we were asking our OB if we could go home before heading to the hospital for my surprise induction and he was recommending, given morning beltway traffic, that we didn't. At least we had an inkling that this would be the case and Pete had thought to load our hospital bag into the car. The whole thing was rather surreal, that we had left the house as two and would be returning with a third. I hadn't quite accepted this whole baby thing - 9 months is too long for some, not long enough for me. So I sit in blissful denial.

[image]

I was trying to remember why in the world I wore my glasses - I think it was because I wanted to see the t.v. And then she was here and we were parents!

And now here we are a year later. I think in some ways we're still in denial, wondering when her real parents will be coming by to pick her up. But mostly we're really enjoying the new monikers and all that comes with them.

The Stand

2008-11-11T15:26:00.005-05:00

I was trying to get a picture of the beautiful sweater Ellie's great aunt sent for her birthday when she let go of her little walker toy and just stood there. She stood long enough for me to get 5 pictures taken before she quite gracefully sat down.

No big deal, not a problem, could do this all day.

Fall Has Arrived

2008-11-09T10:28:00.004-05:00

It's officially fall around here. I LOVE fall.

Go Hawks!

2008-11-08T10:09:00.003-05:00

Turned on some football for background noise yesterday and was very surprised to see our favorite team, the Iowa Hawkeyes, being broadcast out here!!! That never happens. We were very excited to get to watch them, and man what a game! So we quick put on our Hawkeye gear and popped some popcorn and planted ourselves in front of the tv for the afternoon.

{touchdown!}

I can't believe the Hawks actually pulled out a win against #3 ranked Penn State. We're still all in a tizzy over it. Hawkeyes Rule!

Dogs Dogs Everywhere

2008-11-07T23:01:00.009-05:00

Having two dogs sometimes feels like having 10. They seem to be everywhere at once, and with Ellie always getting in their faces or them getting in hers. It's enough to drive a person crazy, and it's easy to see why Ellie's first word is "NO." But recently it seems they've figured some things out that makes having dogs and babies living together more fun. Or less painful.

1. Dogs play with toys too.

2. Babies hand out food.

{I know it looks like Ilow wants to eat the baby, but really she just wants a pretzel}

3. Treats come from Daddy and they're usually tasty.

p.s. I'm watching the news and they're doing a story on the future first dog. I love how this has become a big story, it's a nice break from all the crud going on. I also love that they want a shelter dog. We love our 10 shelter dogs. I mean two, two shelter dogs. Really, just two?

History In the Making

2008-11-05T21:39:00.007-05:00

Whether you are happy or sad today, I think we can all agree that yesterday was a momentous day in this country. I hope we can all set politics aside for a second and remember that less than one generation ago people with the color of Barak Obama's skin were thought so little of that they were denied, not just not allowed but denied, the right to vote. And now, such a relatively short time later and thanks to some very hard-fought battles, someone of that ethnic background is President-Elect of the United States. That's huge, people. Huge.

{Thanks Aunt A for the cozy jammies, we couldn't help ourselves and already opened them}

If the Sweater Fits...

2008-11-01T17:41:00.007-04:00

Way back when I was pregnant with a mystery baby, my mom knitted the most beautiful sweater. I was so excited to have a baby to wear it, but I had to wait for her to grow into it. Patience. Finally in February, with the sleeves rolled a few times, she was big enough.

[image]

Oh, how I loved that sweater. The detailing is amazing, down to the beautiful buttons on the shoulders. And it looked fabulous on her. But before I knew it, the weather was getting warm and it was time to put the sweater away. So sad.

Now that the weather is getting cooler I thought I'd see if it still fits as it still seemed a little big for her at the beginning of the warm weather. And lo and behold, it does!! Hooray!

So, we're going to get a few more months of use out of this fabulous thing before we have to pack it away for good. There's a matching hat that still fits, too.

{yay}

Happy Halloween

2008-10-31T17:25:00.003-04:00

In keeping with our usual MO, we waited until the last minute to find a costume for Ellie on her first Halloween. Pete found something he thought would work at Target for fairly cheap so he brought it home. I wasn't so sure about it, but since we were basically out of time to find something else, we went with it. Turns out, as an ensemble it looks pretty cute! The hat makes the outfit though. So, without further ado, some snap shots from Ellie's first Halloween.

{Ellie and PJ being twins}

And the Oscar Goes To...

2008-10-18T11:10:00.004-04:00

While we've been discussing whether Ellie will win the Nobel prize in physics or chemistry, turns out she's been studying acting. I guess an Oscar would be fine.

As a bit of back story, we've been telling her "no" when she heads for the dog bowls. Also, because it's fun and she thinks it's funny, I grab her by the waist of her pants and drag her backwards when she gets too close. I may be crazy, but here's what I see as her reenactment of this scenario:

Oh, the drama!

I've also left in the spinning at the end since that's what I was trying to capture when I hauled out the video camera to begin with.

The Games, Part Deux

2008-10-18T10:21:00.004-04:00

Several weeks ago I did a post on the game that is babyproofing, I thought I would update on the score.

I moved my sewing stuff out of the little wooden sewing box about a month ago and replaced it with little toys. She discovered the sewing box several weeks ago, but just this week learned how to open the lid. One point for Mommy.

We lowered the crib on her 10 month birthday, the day she learned to sit up in her crib. She started pulling up last week and last night stood up in her crib for the first time. Score another one for Mommy.

The stairs were hard. We needed to give the cat access to her food and her litter box, both in the basement. If we put the gate right up against the stairs she wouldn't be able to jump over it without tumbling down them, but a doorway into the kitchen kept us from putting it further back on the landing. We finally decided on two gates, one to close off the little side room and one to close off the rest of the house. It seems to work pretty well. As far as I know the cat hasn't jumped the gate yet, preferring to hang out where she is until it opens. But the dog can jump it, so that's...um...good? After hemming and hawing over it for weeks, one morning Ellie decided she wanted to follow Kitty down the stairs and, while we caught her in time, it was close enough to get us to Babies 'R Us that afternoon. So, I call that one a heart attack inducing draw.

That makes the score 4:2 in Mommy's favor. Go Mommy. And Daddy, who put up the gates with minimal swearing and no broken tools, gates, or giant holes in the wall. Go Daddy.

Hi Yay So Big

2008-10-12T22:27:00.006-04:00

A little video of Ellie's current three best tricks.

She clasps her hands together when she does "so big." I have no idea why she does this, but I love it.

This would be followed up by a video of her very latest trick, pulling up to standing, but she seems to do it when I'm not looking. As in, I look at her and she's sitting, I leave the room or turn away, come back and she's standing. Tricksy she is, yes.

Aquatots

2008-10-11T22:02:00.005-04:00

Pete started swimming lessons with Ellie last weekend. I went this weekend to get a couple of pictures. It's meant for 1-2 year olds so most of the kids are quite a bit older than she is, but since she turns 1 during the class they let her in. She seems to be having a good time, and I think Daddy's really enjoying sharing this with her. They sure are cute together anyway.

They kick their legs, sing some songs, "jump" into the pool from the side, ride around on these giant mats, and play with beach balls and noodles. I'm a little jealous.

We also went to the National Arboretum in the afternoon because the weather was just too good to waste inside doing chores.

You CAN Take It With You

2008-10-10T22:43:00.007-04:00

Turns out, you can take things with you where ever you want to go if you're creative enough.

Also, Mommy maybe enjoys bath time a little too much.

A Trip

2008-10-09T21:36:00.010-04:00

We'd put off our annual trip up to the lake and summer was almost over, so a couple weeks ago we loaded up the car and planned a nice long weekend trip up to Sodus Bay, NY.

This would be our first long car trip with the dogs and the baby. During earlier trial runs we learned that putting both dogs in the backseat on either side of the carseat doesn't work. Ilow does not like Dragnet right next to her, Dragnet does not like not being right next to Ilow, and they were constantly jumping over the baby to get next to and then away from each other. So, I rode in the back with Ilow and Ellie, and Dragnet rode in style in the front seat. It wasn't the most comfortable thing ever but it worked.

Ellie had a pretty runny nose so we were hoping it didn't turn into anything too bad. We arrived late Friday night, my dad was waiting for us. Got a good night sleep. My step-mom picked my brother and his fiance up from the airport early the next morning. By now Pete and I aren't feeling particularly spectacular, but we manage to enjoy the day.

Then the sickness set in. I haven't felt that bad in a long long long long time. Pete wasn't doing a whole lot better. Ellie seemed fine beyond a runny nose and cough, thankfully. So, Sunday was a complete black hole. And we headed back home Monday.

A quick and not particularly successful trip, although it was nice to be able to relax in a beautiful setting even if we didn't feel well. Hopefully next time we can stay longer and not feel like death.

Bigger Little Girl

2008-09-24T22:48:00.008-04:00

I'm sure some of you will remember this post from way back in June, it was one of your favorites judging by the number of comments it generated. It was all about how grown up Ellie was starting to look. I've been thinking about that post a lot lately because it doesn't seem like all that long ago I was putting that post together, and I know how much she's changed since even then. But then again, it was 16 weeks ago and 16 weeks in baby-time is a long time. For babies. Not for Mommies.

[image]

I just realized if I had taken the picture before she gotten her bath and her p.j.s on she might have been wearing the same outfit in both pictures. That would have been clever.

10 Months Young

2008-09-13T21:17:00.007-04:00

Today is Ellie's 10 month birthday, and it was a pretty monumental day for her. I went in get her up this morning and found her like this.

{mad because I went and got my camera instead of getting her up}

Sitting up in the crib means standing up in the crib won't be far behind, so it's finally time to remove the mobile and lower the mattress. Check.

She discovered the dog's water dishes (oh joy) a few days ago, but today she learned she can get to them from anywhere in the house, even if it means going under the kitchen table.

And today, for the first time, she came to find me after I disappeared around a corner.

She hasn't quite figured out that step yet, but as quickly as she picked up her other new crawling skills this can't be far behind.

And it seems today she's decided she's a belly sleeper, although it looks kind of like she just collapsed this way from her new sitting position.

I can't believe I have a 10 month old.

And Away She Goes

2008-09-06T13:00:00.006-04:00

Well, hurricane Hanna is on her way and it's pouring down rain here, accidents all over, and the worst is yet to come. All our plans for the day have been ruined. Doggy swim day at the pool, our first year we were actually going to be in town for it, obviously not happening. A trip down to Aunt S.'s for a barbecue, roads too dangerous and who knows what it will be like later when the real storm and high winds roll in. So, we're hanging out at home.

The point of this post isn't the hurricane though. After practicing for weeks and getting closer and closer, Ellie learned how to crawl yesterday. It was a few tentative forward moves with her knees in the morning, and by the evening she had gotten pretty good at it (see video). Today it's pretty clear she's figured it out and there's no stopping her.

Let The Games Begin

2008-08-31T23:22:00.008-04:00

And by games, I mean baby-proofing. It's a game because the trick is to baby-proof before she figures out what she can get into that she shouldn't. So far we're tied, one-one.

Here's a picture of our living room, it's a little old (the cradle is gone now) but you get the gist. The key things to note here are the shelf under the coffee table and the bookcase.

[image]

The coffee table shelf is where we'd been storing games with tiny pieces, like scrabble and dominoes. This is where I lost. She figured out how to break into the games before we figured out we needed to move them (remember she's not crawling yet, supposedly). So, the games have been replaced with a shoebox full of booties, hats, other smallish clothing articles, a box of large Brio blocks, and a couple other more baby-friendly items. I figured she might like opening up the boxes and dumping out the clothing and blocks, since she enjoyed it so much with the games. I was right.

{poor Dragnet, I just noticed his forlorn face in the background}

The lowest shelf of the bookcase, on the other hand, she hadn't discovered yet. This is good because it was chock full of stamps. Stamps in bags, in books, in cigar boxes, in tins, individual stamps floating around, tiny bundles of stamps stacked up and wrapped with twine. In other words, baby heaven. This is the collection Pete inherited from his great-aunt. I have no idea if it's worth anything beyond the shear volume of stamps, but in that it is amazing.

The collection has now been safely moved to an upper shelf of a closet. Phew. It has been replaced with a few bins of toys and stuffed animals, and a few photo albums. I figure by the time she's learned how to pull the albums out she'll be ready to flip through them instead of eat them.

I don't know if moving her toys to the shelf drew her attention or if we were mere seconds away from a baby-stamp fiasco, but I moved the stamps last night and I'd captured this image by mid-afternoon today.

Disaster averted. We'll see what the next round holds.

Teeth

2008-08-31T22:59:00.007-04:00

Ellie has two bottom teeth, as I've mentioned in a previous post. I'd been trying but so far hadn't had much luck capturing them on film. Or so I thought. Turns out, thanks to my 10 mpx camera, I actually have several accidental pictures of them if I just choose to look closely enough. Here's the best of them so far.

{original image}

{close-up}

So, there you have it. Evidence of teeth.

Peek-A-Boo

2008-08-26T23:12:00.002-04:00

Pete and I have a schedule arranged where he goes into work early and leaves early to pick Ellie up from daycare. I go in late and stay late, which means it's just the two of us (me and Ellie) in the mornings. And I'm almost always running behind. It can be a challenge to keep her occupied some mornings while I get things together. And, if I'm being honest, she's just too much fun. We could probably get out of the house on time most mornings, no problem, but I'm too busy watching her or playing games with her. Like my new favorite, peek-a-boo behind the refrigerator.

{boo! tee hee}

Mirrors

2008-08-17T22:57:00.005-04:00

Ellie, like most babies, has long been a fan of the baby in the mirror. She smiles and laughs and tries to grab the baby through the glass. Our best mirror is the full length one that is our closet door, and she learned, fairly early on, what was coming when the door was hidden and would start giggling as we pulled the mirror over so she could see herself in it.

Today, for the first time, she looked at me in the mirror, then turned around and looked at me sitting behind her. This is a big deal to me because, while I'm pretty sure she doesn't understand that the baby is her, she's beginning to understand what must be an incredibly complex and bizarre thing to a new mind, a reflection.

I'm fascinated by this, how babies pick up abstract notions. Learning the complexities of language, understanding that objects exist even when you can't see them, figuring out not just how but even that it's possible to propel yourself forward on those tiny, wobbly sticks. The reflection in a mirror, I think, is one of the most abstract of these. How do you comprehend a reflection? How do you learn that the baby you see is actually you? You have to match what you see in the mirror to what's going on around you, and that takes quite a bit of awareness, both of yourself and your surroundings. So, figuring out that I exist both in the mirror and behind her, amazing. Another synapse has connected in her mind. Next up, gravity!

Surprise Visitor

2008-08-13T22:45:00.004-04:00

Tuesday afternoon I get an email from a cousin I hadn't heard from in awhile. In fact, I'm so bad at keeping in touch, he learned we were pregnant from my dad's Christmas card this year...a month after Ellie was born. He was in the area for work and wanted to come up, meet the baby, and catch up a bit. So he did!

It was a wonderful, if very short, visit. Turns out he was at the baseball game on Tuesday as well. Funny.

Go Nationals!

2008-08-12T23:35:00.006-04:00

We made it to our first baseball game of the season finally Tuesday night.

His aunt and her kids are big Mets fans (it was Nationals v. Mets) and wanted to check out the new stadium, so we tagged along (thanks Sue!!)...as did Pete's mother, other aunt and uncle, and sister. We were quite the crew, especially when we passed Ellie down the line. She got a little tired of this I think.

And eventually she just got a little tired.

[image]

The Nationals ended up losing after a brief meltdown by a relief pitcher. Oh well. It was a lot of fun, and it was nice to get that big "first baseball game" milestone behind us.

The most exciting point of the evening was when Aunt S. discovered Ellie's two bottom teeth had finally broken through! Boy did we feel a little, uh, out of the loop. Who knows how long they'd been there. You check and you check, and she drools and drools and chews on everything, and eventually you kind of stop thinking about it. Sure enough, there they were!

I was semi-successful at getting a picture of them. They're *right* along her lower lip line, very tiny grey lines. You kind of have to see them in person and then look at the picture. But they are there! Good thing she likes yelling right now or I wouldn't have had a prayer of getting a picture of them.

We're Ba-Ack

2008-08-02T12:22:00.004-04:00

I think it's a little funny in an ironic kind of way that the title of my previous post was "The End." It wasn't intended to actually be The End, though for you the reader (hi loyal readers!) it may have seemed like it. Sorry for the long, long wait. Now is time for to catch up.

The next weekend after being back from our big trip, we decided to go for a hike with Aunt S. at Great Falls National Park. It couldn't have been a more perfect day.

[image]

We walked around for a bit, sat and had some lunch, walked some more.

[image]

Got to use our nifty backpack for what it was intended, actual hiking.

[image]

True to fashion, Ellie proved yet again she can sleep pretty much anywhere.

[image]

We had a great time so I'm hoping we do more of this type of thing soon. It seems that we always put off doing these things until the end of the summer when there are only a few weekends left to fit everything in, then enjoy them so much we swear we're going to do more next year...then put it off until the end of the summer. We still want to go camping, anyone want to start taking bets as to whether that will actually happen?

Day 16 - The End

2008-07-27T20:48:00.002-04:00

{the full gps track of our trip}

We're home at last. The last day was a rough one, but they usually are. Ellie was a little more fussy than usual, and the train was running very late. We got stopped outside of Cumberland, MD, for over an hour waiting for freight traffic to clear. Made for a long, long day.

Ellie was better at standing at the window in the lounge car on our way back, didn't really need anyone holding her. But she was more into the goings-on around her so she wasn't that interested in standing for long.

Also the East is very tree-y. Makes it hard to get a good picture where there's always trees flashing by the window!

It was a lot of fun seeing the different landscapes go by as we moved from East Coast to Midwest to West and back again, especially going to bed in one region and waking up in another.

It was an amazing two weeks and I can't say I am quite ready to head back to work or anything, but it is nice to be home. Most people probably really like being in their own bed, but my favorite part of being home is taking a shower in my own shower. I don't know why, there's nothing special about our bathroom, it badly needs some updating. But I love it. No matter how nice and fancy and clean their shower is, it's never quite as good as the one at home.

Day 15 - Connections

2008-07-26T18:12:00.004-04:00

Today was spent basically watching the clock and counting the hours waiting to see if we'll get to Chicago on time. Our connecting train is scheduled to leave at 7:00. I don't even know what time we were supposed to get there, but by mid-afternoon we were scheduled to arrive at 7:00. That meant any more delays and we're toast. They missed the connection on the two previous days. We're not feeling hopeful.

Woke up, grabbed breakfast, and back to our car in time to watch Omaha go by, along with Offut Air Force Base where they store the extra Air Force One 747s.

Got a bunch more farm shots.

The flooding in Illinois wasn't much different than it was two weeks ago. Not sure where I expected the water to go, but it hasn't gone anywhere yet. We were the last car on the train so it was kind of fun looking out the back window.

Otherwise, we really did spend the time watching the clock, listening for announcements, and tracking our progress on the schedule. If we missed the connection it would mean an overnight in Chicago, which they would pay for, and the next leg of our trip (another overnight) most likely in coach, they would refund our accommodation charge. None of this sounds like fun to us, we like Chicago but we kinda just want to get home.

We roll into the station at 7:00 and find our connecting train right next door. So, off one train and onto another. They'd already made dinner reservations for us and everything. It couldn't have gone more smoothly. Big phew and a nice relaxing evening on the train.

{right = old train, left = new train}

So, we head to dinner. It's community seating so we sit across from a nice older couple who just made same harried train connection. We start chatting and discover that the woman is none other than pioneering astronaut John Glenn's sister-in-law! Wow! They were returning from his grandson's wedding in San Fransisco. She is the only sister of Annie, wife to John Glenn, who has no siblings himself. So, being the only close family, she was there for all the exciting goings-on during those earliest days of the space program. How cool must that have been?!? An interesting end to a crazy day.

Day 14 - Heading Home

2008-07-25T18:01:00.004-04:00

Well, we're nearing the end of our big adventure. Now all that's left is to take the train all the way back to Maryland. We weren't scheduled to leave until about 7:00 that evening so we had quite a bit of time to hang out and pack things up before heading back to Denver.

We arrived and found out the train was to be about 30 minutes late. Okay, no problem. Checked out bags, went to a nice dinner across the street from the station, grabbed the rest of our stuff out of the car and checked on the ETA again. 1 hr 30 minutes late. Ugh. We didn't actually get on the train until about 10:00 pm, that's almost 3 hours late. This wouldn't be too much of a problem except we have to make a connection in Chicago tomorrow. We have a 4 hr window...it's not looking good already and we haven't even gotten started. Also, there was no airconditioning in the station.

Day 13 - Garden of the Gods

2008-07-24T16:40:00.007-04:00

We spent the morning out at the Garden of the Gods, an amazing rock park in Colorado Springs. The sky was a deep blue and the moon was out, that along with the red of the rock formations made for some neat photo opportunities.

{Pike's Peak}

This also gave us a chance to use the nifty backpack. There are paved paths throughout the park so we didn't really need the pack, but it was nice to have. We thought we'd be more ambitious than we were and get in some real hikes, but at least it came in handy on the train and in the terminals.

Then back to the house. The rain the day before really cooled things down, but it was still hot in the sun. But, eventually the afternoon clouds had rolled back in. Pete and Ellie hung out on the lawn for as long as they could before another cooling rain.

After a week of hot hot hot, unusual for the Colorado I remember, we got to pull out the pants and long-sleeved shirts that I brought just in case.

Day 12 - Quiet time

2008-07-23T16:24:00.003-04:00

A quiet day at last. Just spent the day relaxing and enjoying the scenery and being in one place for a few days. Ellie took a walk with Grandma around the neighborhood then sat on the front porch for awhile watching the clouds roll in.

Eventually it rained, really cooling things off (finally).

So nice to just sit. Nowhere to be, no one to see, nothing to do. Ahhhhhh.

Day 11 - Par-tay

2008-07-22T16:09:00.002-04:00

Sheeee's ba-ack.

I was really nervous that we'd pushed Ellie too far over the previous week and our reward would be a crabby baby for the remainder of the trip. But after a good night's sleep and a nice morning nap she was back to her chipper self. Phew.

Just in time for a party! The in-laws held an open house similar to the one my mom and step-dad had, inviting all their friends over for an afternoon to socialize and meet the grandbaby. It was a delightful afternoon and evening. Ellie did great being passed around again.

{with Grandpa}

She had a great time watching all the other kids playing, and they helped out a lot by keeping her entertained. Even the older folks got in on the fun. It was nice to see some people that we hadn't seen in awhile and meet some new friends. Party started about 4:00 and most stayed until well past 8:00. Good times had by all. And even though this wasn't intended as a gift-giving thing, I guess people can't resist shopping for baby so we got a few new fun toys, some adorable outfits, and a few new books. Suitcases are filling up.

Day 10 - The Springs

2008-07-21T21:54:00.001-04:00

Man, did we have a crabby baby today. One nap in the living room does not a happy baby make. Lesson learned. Will my angel baby ever return?

Day 9 - South

2008-07-20T19:13:00.004-04:00

We (maybe it was just me) were slow to get moving today so we didn't hike like we had been planning. Instead, we killed time until our lunch with my old adviser, her husband, and another old friend who was actually in Maryland with us for awhile before moving back west. It was fun to catch up with them. Lots of catching up to do it seems.

After lunch, we visited the favorite coffee shop for a bit, then walked along the creek path and watched people blissfully flowing down the creek on innertubes, even saw someone we knew and chatted with him for a bit. Small town Boulder can be. Sat in the grass and discussed why it was we left Boulder to begin with. Then it was time to get in the car and drive down to Colorado Springs for the next leg of our adventure.

A few gratuitous mountain shots on the way out of Boulder.

{NCAR - where weather gets made}

Day 8 - Boulder

2008-07-19T14:24:00.001-04:00

Our busiest day of the trip, we crammed a whole heck of a lot in to our one full day in one of my favorite places. We decided to splurge and get a fancy room at a fancy hotel right downtown Boulder, the Boulderado.

{our room}

{the view}

Up early and off to breakfast at my favorite place. This was Ellie's first time in a restaurant highchair, which she enjoyed. Yummy Creole food with the best biscuits I've ever had.

Then we hung out on the Pearl Street mall, and went to the best toy and kite shop ever. Couldn't resist buying a few things, but they fold flat so it's okay.

Then to a favorite old hangout to meet up with a new friend and her daughter for lunch and a beer and more mall walking. In case you're reading this, I was so very not underwhelmed and had a great time chatting "IRL." We apparently chose the hottest weekend of the year to visit so our mall walking was limited but still fun.

Then back to the hotel for a quick nap and to get all dressed up for the wedding that evening. The wedding was perfect, very laid back, perfect weather, perfect size. The bride looked lovely, the groom couldn't stop smiling, and both glowed. It was a beautiful outdoor setting, an absolutely wonderful jazz quartet playing. Really, a very, very classy and fun evening. The wedding also gave us a chance to catch up with a bunch of old friends that we hadn't seen in quite awhile, including my old roommate and her husband who I wish we lived closer to. We chose opposite coasts and it's been hard to keep in touch.

{the happy couple}

Thanks to Nat for taking what I think is our first family portrait since Christmas.

Day 7 - Heading West

2008-07-18T13:56:00.001-04:00

Traded crops for cows.

The train ride this time was mostly overnight so just hung out in our tiny sleeper and played some peekaboo.

Arrived in Denver the next morning, and that was enough for us. Time to decompress before our whirlwind couple days in Boulder.

Day 6 - Goodbyes

2008-07-17T13:45:00.001-04:00

Quiet time with Grandma.

A few hugs from Aunt and Uncle.

A last goodbye from the train.

Day 5 - Family

2008-07-16T12:51:00.003-04:00

The second of the Open Houses, this one was a joint celebration - meeting Ellie and my aunts making it through their 50th year. Ellie got a bunch of new adorable outfits and some new toys to play with. It's a good thing we left some room in our bags for extra stuff just in case!

It was especially fun to see one of my cousins all grown up and hearing about what she's doing now. I remember when she was Ellie's age, doesn't seem that long ago.

I just like this picture.

Day 4 - Famiy and Friends

2008-07-15T12:24:00.002-04:00

Today was a day of getting to know family and spending time with old friends. Ellie's grandparents have been out to visit us several times, but this is the first time we've been able to visit them. She's enjoyed hanging out with Grandpa Mac and getting tours of the garden with Grandma.

This was also the first time meeting her Uncle Jeremy and (future) Aunt Mary, and she's delighted with both.

We also got a chance to catch up with two of my oldest friends and their families (4 girls between us) for a little while. A delightful evening spent with their beautiful girls and seeing what's in store for us.

Day 3 - Home

2008-07-14T11:44:00.003-04:00

The weather here is so nice, very cool in the mornings and evenings, hot but not too humid in the afternoons. We had a day to just enjoy being back. Ellie got a sink bath to wash off the train goo.

Then we walked downtown and visited a few of the things that haven't changed and a few of the things that have. Seems like the area is starting to settle into a nice balance between bars and shops finally.

We stopped by Van Allen Hall and saw the tree planted to remember the victims of the 1991 shootings. It shows how deeply this event marked our little town, flowers still being left almost 17 years later.

Not much evidence of the floods up in this area, but down by the river there's still sandbags, a lot of silt and litter, and giant machines running non-stop to dry out the buildings.

Stopped by George's gyro stand, yum, then to Iowa Book and Supply to pick up some Hawkeye gear for the future fan.

Then to the Java House for a cup of coffee. The Java House wasn't here during either of our "glory days" but I wish it was. It's a great place to hang out, one of the best of the "new."

Then it was time for the first of two Open Houses my mom arranged so we didn't have to travel all over God's green state of Iowa to see everyone, a pure stroke of genius. People just stopped by when they had a chance, grabbed the baby, gabbed, ate, drank. A great mix of my old high school friends and my parents' friends. The best part was, because my 15 year (gasp) class reunion was a couple weeks before, a connection with an old friend was made and she was able to stop by for a little bit to catch up. It was so great to see her.

Ellie did great being past around, but eventually even the best of us need a little break.

Day 2 - The California Zephyr

2008-07-13T10:05:00.004-04:00

Woke up in the midwest.

I forget how green the crops are, and how blue the sky is. After a nice breakfast we went back to the viewing car and watched downtown Chicago approach.

Had a few hours to kill in Union Station in Chicago before getting on the California Zephyr for the next leg of our trip. Mostly just camped out in the beautiful main lobby. Ellie napped, yay.

We just rode coach this time, and it was very comfortable (once we got all our junk situated, babies require a lot of stuff). Nearing the Iowa border we got a good view of some of the flooding. The water was literally right up to the tracks in some areas. If it wasn't for the submerged barns, houses, silos, and irrigation equipment in the middle you might have thought it was a very pretty lake.

Crossed the Mississippi into Iowa and arrived in Mount Pleasant only about 40 minutes late.

Pete downloaded the track from the GPS so we could see how far we've come so far. Cool.

Day 1 - The Capital Limited

2008-07-12T09:37:00.001-04:00

And we're off! We started out at Union Station in DC. Departure time on the ticket was 4:05. Train left at 4:05 on the dot. We got settled in our tiny sleeper where Pete got the GPS going so we could track our trip.

Then it was off to the viewing car where we got a nice view of downtown Silver Spring on our way out of town.

The rail along the window was the perfect height for Ellie to hold on to, so she had a good time standing up by the window. She did pretty good, but it will be interesting to see if she's any better at this on the way home in two weeks.

Then it was time for a very pleasant (and tasty) dinner in the dining car, where Ellie quickly passed out.

Back to our sleeper car for the night. We played a few games of Yahtzee, watched an X-files episode, and headed to bed, Ellie in her carseat on the bottom bunk with Daddy and me in the top. She slept the entire night.

Google Tag

2008-07-10T21:47:00.013-04:00

Another fun idea from Emily. How to play:

* Do a Google image search on the answer to each question
* Choose your favorite from the first page of the results
* Leave a comment here so I can come see what you came up with

{my age}

{where I'd like to travel}

{my favorite place}

{my favorite object}

{my favorite food}

{my favorite animal}

{my favorite color}

{where i was born}

{where i live}

{a past pet}

{a past love}

{my best friend's nickname}

{my screen name}

{my first name}

{my middle name}

{my last name}

{a bad habit}

{my first job}

{my grandma's name}

{my college degree}

{what i'm doing now}

You're it!

Big Baby, Little Baby

2008-07-08T22:12:00.003-04:00

It's amazing what 8 months will do for a person.

I swore I would never forget those early foggy days, the days when I thought (very seriously) "Why would anyone ever do this again?" I've forgotten. Not even 8 months and I really can't remember what it was that made me so adamant about being done at one. Oh well, that's probably a good thing. Pain? Lack of sleep? It couldn't have been *that* bad. But it was. I just don't remember why.

Anyway, two of our closest friends had their baby, he's absolutely beautiful. And his parents, well lets just say *they* had *us* over for dinner. I won't post a comparison, but I did not look this together after just a few days.