Cherry Blossom Festival

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.

Big Day

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.

Regularly Scheduled Programing

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.}

Day 13 - Garden of the Gods

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.

A Stroll

Daycare provider took a much needed vacation day, which meant a half-day in the office showing the baby off and an afternoon to play. Made a leisurely dash to the library before the storm rolled in. Stopped to take a few pictures on the way.

Learned the hard way why back-lighting is not the best for portraits. You can read something again and again, but until you see it for yourself...

Don't know if you can see, but she's sporting a new hairdo - tufts of hair over the ears. Very stylish.

Got a few fun things at the library.

More importantly, Ellie got a nap in the stroller on the way home. And we made it back before the rain. Bonus.