Welcome to the Motherhood

2009-12-06T16:58:00.000-08:00

101 Dalmations

We went to see the play 101 Dalmations today. We had a great time, and our little Dalmation really enjoyed it!

2009-11-01T06:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween!

Here is my Ariel. The bear is part of a class project for pre-school. Each student gets to take him home for a weekend and then take pictures and journal about his time with them, like Flat Stanley. Anyway, he went dressed as Ariel too!

2009-10-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

Fashion Show

I just had to post a few pics of Kate modeling a new outfit.

2009-10-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

They're Baa-aaack!!

I am going to pick up Megan and Ben at the airport this afternoon! I am so excited to see them. We haven't seen them since their wedding in April.

2009-09-28T19:10:00.001-07:00

K and Me

My mom took these pics while she was here. There's nothing special to say about them, but I love how vibrant the color is.

2009-09-24T20:52:00.000-07:00

Soccer Girl

We started soccer a few weeks ago. Well, I say we "started" soccer, but really, we had two practices, and then a three-week rainout! The girls had their first game tonight, and it was a trip! They hadn't met in weeks or touched a soccer ball since their second practice, and they had never seen a real goal or field. At least at this age (under-5) all the girls are pretty much in the same boat -- clueless! We don't keep score, and that's a good thing!

See if you can pick out K in the pics below.

2009-09-21T19:04:00.000-07:00

Color Float

K had a project for her pre-school class. The assignment was to cover a box with her favorite color of paper, attach a string to create a float (or more accurately, a "drag"), and affix stickers, buttons, and other 3-D objects. Thankfully Nana was visiting last weekend, and was able to do most of it! It was fun to pick out all the things to put on it. Guess what K's favorite color is?

2009-09-08T14:29:00.000-07:00

First Day of School

It's been awhile. I'll play catch-up when I can.

Today was the first day of pre-school. K is in the "Divers" class, and had a terrific day with all the other 4-year-olds.

2009-06-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

Visit from Nana

My mother came to visit this week, and her birthday gifts to K were a trip to Build-a-Bear, and a princess dress from the Disney store to wear to her princess tea party on Saturday. The "bear" she built is a dog, and she picked an Ariel outfit for it. It's the ugliest thing you've ever seen, and she named it, what else, Princess.

She wanted to be Sleeping Beauty, so not only did she get the dress, but also shoes, tiara, necklace, bracelet, and nightgown!! As you can see, she loves her new outfit, and will eagerly wear them to her birthday party.

2009-06-16T23:31:00.000-07:00

Gifts from Mom and Dad

Tonight we let K open her presents. We kept it pretty simple, since we knew grandparents would inflict Operation Gift Explosion upon us. We just gave K a few books, a bank, and a princess scooter. As you can tell, she was thrilled!!

2009-06-20T20:15:00.000-07:00

Princess Tea Party

K had her princess tea party today.

We had seven other little girls there at the tea room.

I was a bit nervous about how all the girls would behave, but they were good as gold! They all wore their favorite dress-up dresses. The girls got to drink pink "tea" (lemonade) which they poured themselves from ceramic teapots.

They had flower-shaped sandwiches, fruit, and muffins. Then the birthday girl got to open her gifts. She loved everything she got, including lots of Barbie and princess things, a stamp set, and pool toys. Then the girls got to eat cake.

After all were through, they were able to do a craft. They strung foam beads onto a bracelet. They concentrated so carefully, and were all very proud of their creations.

It was a great day, and all the girls had a wonderful time. They all looked so beautiful!

2009-06-16T07:27:00.000-07:00

Birthday Girl

Happy 4th birthday!!

2009-06-15T09:02:00.000-07:00

Ballerina Girl

K has her final ballet class last week. The parents were able to go into the room and watch (usually we stay in the waiting area and watch on a closed-circuit TV). The kids all did a great job! I'll post a video soon. K has loved ballet, and we will sign up again next year.

These are the professional ballet pics they took. I am waiting for my copies to come in, so here are the watermarked ones in the meantime. All photos courtesy B&E Photo.

2009-06-09T20:20:00.000-07:00

Goodbye, Sampson

Today we lost a dear friend. We had Sampson for 8 years, and today we had to say goodbye. He was between 12 and 15 years old, and he was having a very hard time getting up. We could boost him up and he'd be OK for a while, but it was so hard to watch him struggle each time. The vet said we could do x-rays and try a special joint diet, but at his advanced age, I just didn't think it was fair to keep trying things for him that may or may not work.

He was such a handsome boy!

From the moment we brought K home from the hospital, Sampson watched over her like a hawk. He was so patient with her, even as she learned to climb and walk, and pulled all over him. He never minded a bit.

K told us that God has a new dog now. I love that.

He was a truly special dog, and he will be sorely missed. Our remaining lab, Montana, had been a little clingy lately, but secretly I think she is glad to be an only dog.

2009-06-03T04:35:00.000-07:00

Still Trying

We get asked the question a lot, "Is she your only child?" When we say yes, the next question inevitably is, "Do you think you'll have another?" We can only answer that with a wistful, "I hope so."

I never dreamed I would have an only child, or children separated by five years. But I have learned, as much as a planner as I am, that I cannot plan everything. Some things are apparently not up to me (this was news to me). We are currently in month 25 of trying. We know we have two issues to deal with: infertility and recurring pregnancy loss. We really don't know the reason for the infertility. I am on my third and final month of Clomid to see if that can stimulate something, but beyond that, we don't know what the answer is.

I do know that once I do get pregnant, I will have to take a daily heparin shot. For some reason, I have a crazy clotting issue, and my body starts to clot around the embryo and chokes it off, resulting in a miscarriage. We hope that heparin injections will counteract that.

They always say you conceive when you "stop trying." We'll see if that's the plan. We'll give it a few more months, but we are not going to go to heroic lengths to have another baby. We just can't afford it, and I just don't feel right about going through all of that for something that may not even work. I know lots of people that have been through IV and other procedures successfully, but it's just not for us. We also have a bit of a timeline. Gary just turned 40, which I know is not old for a father by any means, but we are looking ahead at retirement, and we do not want to retire with a child in college. So, if this is going to happen, it needs to happen fairly soon.

I am so grateful for K, and am amazed that I was even able to have her at all. If she is an only child, I'll be very happy with my small family. But I don't want to give up yet.

2009-06-02T16:11:00.000-07:00

Swimming Lessons

K started this year's swimming lessons yesterday. She did very well, and was not scared to put her face in the water. She even went all the way to the bottom to retrieve diving rings. We have lessons this week and next week, and then we're all set for summer!

Modeling her new swim gear:

with cover-up

and without

K talked the instructor's ear off during the lesson! The instructor asked, "Is she always like this?" and I had to honestly reply, "Yes! 24 hours a day!" It's one thing to think your own kid talks a lot, but when other people start to mention it, it really hits home!

2009-06-02T20:26:00.000-07:00

Swimming Kudos

A few quotes from K's swimming instructor tonight. I'm so proud!

"She's such a good listener."

"You just say something and she does it."

"She's a great student!"

"She's so likeable!"

2009-05-25T19:42:00.000-07:00

Home Again, Home Again

K and I went home this weekend. It was Memorial weekend, but it was also my mom's birthday, so it was a good reason to visit.

K loves to use the bay window in my mom's dining room as a stage. She closes the curtains, says "Ladies and Gentleman, now the show will begin!" and then does some improv-interpretive dance-singing entertainment. This time she dragged out some baby toys for added excitement. Mom is doing some renovations, and she had planned to remove the bay window, but K loves it so much that she is keeping it!

We decided to go to the local zoo. They've done a lot of work on it, and for a medium-sized town, it's actually a very nice zoo. The last time we went, K wasn't quite two, so you can see how much she's grown. She got a lot out of it. We saw the most beautiful peacock, she got to feed the giraffe again, and she posed like a loon whenever the camera was out.

I snapped this picture in a friend's backyard. I was trying to get landscaping ideas, but K just made herself at home, so of course I had to take her picture.

This last picture is back home. K made herself a little fort in front of the TV. She was quite cozy in there!

2009-05-22T23:34:00.000-07:00

Banquet Girl

G's high school orchestra had their banquet tonight. It was a semi-formal affair, so K wore her flower girl dress (might as well get another use out of it)! She could not wait for the DJ to begin! She remembered the dancing from last year! The banquet had a Hawaiian theme, since the orchestra traveled there on Spring Break this year. It was a lot of fun, but of course no one had more fun than K!!

2009-05-07T19:28:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day Tea

K's pre-school had a Mother's Day this morning. I took a half-day at school so I could attend. It was also Kindergarten's Field Day this afternoon, so you can see what I wore. It was very sweet -- they had juice for the kids, and water and coffee for the moms. They had yogurt and danishes, and each child had made gifts for the moms. K had made a little tote bag that has a plastic pocket, in which her teachers had placed a picture of her. K decorated the bag with all kinds of animal stamps. She had also made a paper corsage for me and one for her. You can tell they put a lot of time into this, and I'm so grateful I was able to go.

2009-04-25T14:15:00.000-07:00

Megan's Wedding

I've looked at the pictures dozens of times, summarized the weekend for friends, relived it in my mind, and I still can't get over how perfect everything was. Megan looked absolutely gorgeous, like a retro Hollywood star. The weather, which all week had been forecasted to rain on Sunday, turned out to be perfect! Megan and Ben had every little detail planned out to the minute, so they were able to relax and enjoy the day.

They are so amazingly suited for each other, and I couldn't be any happier for them. I wish them lots of luck on their travels. They are quitting their jobs next week, and plan to leave May 1st for an Around the World tour. They hope to be back by November 1st. I can't to see where their travels take them!

Here are some pictures from the big weekend.

2007-02-03T11:14:00.000-08:00

Sunflower Girl

It was so nice out today, we had to take a few pictures. Notice the ever-present babydoll. She is obsessed with babies, and won't put it down. She says "Baby" all the time. Is she trying to tell us something?

2007-03-07T07:06:00.000-08:00

Body Worlds

On Monday, I went with a friend to the Body Worlds exhibit. If you have not heard of this, it is actual bodies that have been injected with this plasticine stuff, and it preserves them. The bodies are displayed in ways that showcase different organs and systems. You can really see the muscles and the blood vessels. It is absolutely fascinating. It was not gross or sensationalistic or exploitive. It is strictly an anatomy lesson. I loved it!

I had K with me. I thought she would sit contentedly in her stroller. Ha! She is at the age (she'll be 2 in June) when she just wants to GO! She wanted out of her stroller, and then she wanted to push the stroller! I couldn't let her do that, because it was crowded and I knew she would bash into people. I tried to hold her, but she just screamed. I was getting dirty looks from other people that had paid $23 to get in, and they didn't want to listen to a screaming toddler. I can't blame them. If I had been by myself, I probably would have just left. My friend wanted to read every sign. She really got her money's worth. I can't blame her, either. K and I ended up playing in a stairwell for awhile, letting my friend catch up to us, whisking around the next room quickly to see the next exhibits, going back to the stairwell, etc.

That doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement, but it truly is. It is awesome, and you really should go if you get the chance. http://www.bodyworlds.com Just leave the young 'uns at home.

2007-03-26T19:08:00.000-07:00

Black and Blue

I am a battered woman. Now, before you direct me to the nearest shelter, it's not from my husband. It's from my 21-month-old.

On Saturday, she was sitting on the floor in front of me, and reared back with such force, I felt her skull hit my kneecap. We were both practically in tears, but we both recovered our composure quickly. I just have a nice bruise to show for it. Her head seems to have no lasting effects.

Yesterday, she was sitting on my lap on the couch, and she brought her head back directly into my lip. I had two very fat lips for the remainder of the evening. The seem to have disappeared by this morning, but I am now very gun-shy around that noggin of hers.

My daughter, the battering ram:

2007-03-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

I Don't Think We're in Kansas Anymore.

A tornado hit our street last night at 9:15. We never heard sirens go off. We heard a loud wind, but didn't think anything about it. I saw emergency vehicles a few houses down, and thought a house had been hit by lightning, but I didn't smell any smoke. About 10 minutes later, a firefighter knocked on our door and asked it everyone was OK. I said we were fine, and asked what had happened. He said, "A tornado touched down about 100 yards from your house."

Kate was asleep, so we walked down the street to see what had happened. It was pretty bad. A car was flipped on its roof in the middle of the street. Our babysitter's house was at Ground Zero. They lost their chimney, and pickets from their fence came shooting through their windows. Glass was everywhere. All the upstairs bedroom ceilings were leaking from the holes in the roof. Their patio roof collapsed. Their trampoline and patio furniture were gone. The house was not safe and the kids were scared, so the kids spent the night with us.

As far as our house, it seems to be OK. I think we lost some shingles, but we gained a trampoline! It is bent, but it landed right-side-up in our backyard, perfectly placed between our trees! An inspector will come out later and check our roof, but we're way down the priority list. I walked around today, and everyone is pitching in to help each other. It's a gorgeous day, so it's a good day to take care of everything that needs to be done. The Red Cross is here, and some people have been driving around handing out water and Rice Krispy treats.

No one was injured, although 5 homes are currently uninhabitable. We were all very lucky. My side of the street sustained the least damage, while the other side of the street and down the block had quite a bit.

This link shows the scene from last night: http://wyliephotos.com/fire/2007/070330/index.htm and I have also attached some pictures I took this morning. The trampoline is our yard, and the other houses are down the block.