Dear Next Door Neighbor's Dog,
Thanks for that fun barking fit. I love when Kate gets a 20-minute morning nap. It puts her in a great mood.
One request: can you SHUT UP for her afternoon nap?
Thanks.
I'm not bitter. Not at all.
Off to get Crabby McGee.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
New lens!
As a birthday gift from my mom and grandpa, I got a sweet new lens for my camera! Woohoo! My mom says it is like giving herself a gift, since she gets the outcome from it.
Matt and I took Kate out to the backyard with our new, big ol' pumpkin to try out this new lens... fun! It was an overcast day, which was actually kind of nice- so many pictures of her end up with "hot spots" from the sun (bright spots on her face). Cloud cover is much appreciated.
I just love this expression- she is such a happy girl!
Matt and I took Kate out to the backyard with our new, big ol' pumpkin to try out this new lens... fun! It was an overcast day, which was actually kind of nice- so many pictures of her end up with "hot spots" from the sun (bright spots on her face). Cloud cover is much appreciated.
I just love this expression- she is such a happy girl!
Friday, October 10, 2008
Pumpkin Patch!
Big changes occur in one year...
OCTOBER 2007:
OCTOBER 2008:
I much prefer the latter image- don't you? =)
We took Kate to her first pumpkin patch today! It was a lot of fun- animals to look at, pumpkins to play with and lots of photo ops. I'm sure it will be a lot more fun for her once she is a bit bigger, but Matt and I had a good time at least. Without further ado, some photo highlights from our day.
OCTOBER 2007:
OCTOBER 2008:
I much prefer the latter image- don't you? =)
We took Kate to her first pumpkin patch today! It was a lot of fun- animals to look at, pumpkins to play with and lots of photo ops. I'm sure it will be a lot more fun for her once she is a bit bigger, but Matt and I had a good time at least. Without further ado, some photo highlights from our day.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
New business!
So I finally figured out how to add crap from our Etsy site to my blog... now you can see my shameless promotion of my mom's and my business! I think maybe I'll skim Etsy for some other stuff I love another time and share a few of things I have found from other sellers there that I adore :) I could spend a lot of money on Etsy. A lot. So much fun, unique stuff!
Now, about Kate- since she is the whole reason this blog ever started. Much to my chagrin (and yes, I loooove the word "chagrin"), Kate is growing up so much each day. Don't get me wrong, I love to see her learn and grow... but it is crazy! My once immobile little pile of baby has turned into a cruising machine. She is no longer satisfied playing with her toys on the floor. Oh no. She is pulling up on EVERYTHING (including unsafe, unanchored things- gosh, Alison... get the babyproofing finished for craps sake...) and walking holding on to furniture like it ain't no thang. Life was so much easier when she couldn't go anywhere. But damned if it ain't sweeter now that she gets that "I'm so proud of myself" look on her face when she is standing up.
She particularly enjoys standing against the mirror and giving her reflection sweet baby kisses. Dang... we made one cute little girl.
Ooh! And! Exciting news! Kate is finally crawling like a real baby! Though she still reverts to the trusty army crawl once in a while, she is finally a crawling machine (mostly because that is the easiest way to pull herself to standing).
I'm in the midst of the 1st birthday party planning. We were just watching Ace of Cakes on the Food Network, and someone had a Charm City Cake made for their daughters' 1st birthday (twin girls). I love my girl with everything I've got, but I'm not going to spend everything I've got on a freaking cake. She'll have to settle for my homemade Duncan Hines variety. If she remembers in her adulthood and struggles with it, then I guess we'll pay for her therapy. Eh.
Busy day tomorrow- church, teaching Sunday School (look out high schoolers because it is going to be fun), then off to T-town to pay a visit to the proudest grandma and great-grandpa this side of Heaven. And the freaking jumpiest weiner dog... but I digress...
Due to this aforementioned busyness, I am sending myself off to bed.
Now, about Kate- since she is the whole reason this blog ever started. Much to my chagrin (and yes, I loooove the word "chagrin"), Kate is growing up so much each day. Don't get me wrong, I love to see her learn and grow... but it is crazy! My once immobile little pile of baby has turned into a cruising machine. She is no longer satisfied playing with her toys on the floor. Oh no. She is pulling up on EVERYTHING (including unsafe, unanchored things- gosh, Alison... get the babyproofing finished for craps sake...) and walking holding on to furniture like it ain't no thang. Life was so much easier when she couldn't go anywhere. But damned if it ain't sweeter now that she gets that "I'm so proud of myself" look on her face when she is standing up.
She particularly enjoys standing against the mirror and giving her reflection sweet baby kisses. Dang... we made one cute little girl.
Ooh! And! Exciting news! Kate is finally crawling like a real baby! Though she still reverts to the trusty army crawl once in a while, she is finally a crawling machine (mostly because that is the easiest way to pull herself to standing).
I'm in the midst of the 1st birthday party planning. We were just watching Ace of Cakes on the Food Network, and someone had a Charm City Cake made for their daughters' 1st birthday (twin girls). I love my girl with everything I've got, but I'm not going to spend everything I've got on a freaking cake. She'll have to settle for my homemade Duncan Hines variety. If she remembers in her adulthood and struggles with it, then I guess we'll pay for her therapy. Eh.
Busy day tomorrow- church, teaching Sunday School (look out high schoolers because it is going to be fun), then off to T-town to pay a visit to the proudest grandma and great-grandpa this side of Heaven. And the freaking jumpiest weiner dog... but I digress...
Due to this aforementioned busyness, I am sending myself off to bed.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Double Digits.
10 months old- what gives? That is only two months away from 1-year old and that, my friends, is impossible. There is no way my sweet baby girl could possibly be approaching one year old. No way! The 10 month monkey picture was a failure... I couldn't get my camera to work with me, and I definitely couldn't keep my squirmy wormy daughter to sit still. The result? A horribly blurry picture- but check out that heart melting "I think I'm so funny" smile behind that blur :) Truth is, I'm probably going to cheat and try to take a better one tomorrow. What?
I'll be honest... with all the new babies I see around, I get to thinking. Thinking how neat it was to be pregnant, thinking how unbelievably wonderful it is to get the first glimpse of your baby on the ultrasound, thinking how amazing it is to hold your new baby for the first time and the love you feel all at once. Sometimes I have to remind myself not to blurt out, "Matt- I'm ready for another one!" because there is a slight chance he might say, "Yeah!"
I have to remind myself that Kate isn't even one yet. That I love a glass of wine here and there. That I can sleep for 8 hours at night if I so choose. That my body just became my own again a few short months ago. That the night sweats and emotions after having a new baby could ONLY be amplified by another little one running around.
Yes. I think we will wait. Phew.
I'll be honest... with all the new babies I see around, I get to thinking. Thinking how neat it was to be pregnant, thinking how unbelievably wonderful it is to get the first glimpse of your baby on the ultrasound, thinking how amazing it is to hold your new baby for the first time and the love you feel all at once. Sometimes I have to remind myself not to blurt out, "Matt- I'm ready for another one!" because there is a slight chance he might say, "Yeah!"
I have to remind myself that Kate isn't even one yet. That I love a glass of wine here and there. That I can sleep for 8 hours at night if I so choose. That my body just became my own again a few short months ago. That the night sweats and emotions after having a new baby could ONLY be amplified by another little one running around.
Yes. I think we will wait. Phew.
Friday, August 22, 2008
9 Months In, 9 Months Out...
I wonder why the nine months of pregnancy felt so much different than the nine months of motherhood... aside from the obvious. While I really did enjoy my pregnancy, in hindsight it feels like I was pregnant for a long, long time when I compare it to the nine months we've had with Kate. The nine months since she has joined us has flown by.
In Babies R Us today, I was buying Kate's new carseat (since she has grown out of the infant seat) and a mom was commenting on how cute Kate was... she asked how old, and I told her nine months. She went on to tell me about her 3-month old and that her mom tells her that they should not always hold the baby so much so she won't get spoiled, blah-blah-blah. It made me kind of sad... I wanted to yell, "hold her"! Hold her for as long as you can! Because soon she'll be squiggling and squirming and trying to explore the world around her and cuddles will be fewer. Just sayin'.
As I finished my purchase and wished her a good day, she noticed the carseat in out cart. "Oh, she gets a big girl carseat now!" Yep... that made me kinda sad too.
Taking the nine month monkey pic was an adventure. Most of them turned out like this:
We did manage to at least get this one, to show the comparison:
I've become slightly obsessed with remembering the little things... we're all so focused on 'milestones', that I think sometimes the little things get lost. I took Kate to the park last week for her first time on the swing- she loved it! She giggled every time I pushed her, then she'd come back, I'd tickle her feet and she'd squeal with laughter. It was too precious.
Another 'little thing' was last Sunday. She woke up earlier than usual and seemed just as happy as could be. She had her bottle, we played for a while, watched some Baby Einstein "First Signs" for a while... then time came for her oatmeal and fruit. She started yawning in her highchair before I ever had her food ready, and was visibly getting tired. A fun Kate fact: her comfort habit is pulling her hair. Not hard... just kind of like you might twirl your hair through your fingers. So I step over to the counter to grab her cup, turn back around, and sticky-oatmeal-applesauce fingers are running through her sweet, just bathed the night before hair. I almost wanted to be frustrated, because she'd need to have a bath before church now, but I had to laugh. Look at this face...
Makes it look like she has an abundance of hair, hehe. Using a little product always adds volume, right? So, we took a quick bath and she took a fantastic nap before church.
After church, we headed up to Torrance to visit my mom and grandpa. Kate is the light of their lives these days. She has so many people who love her.
I think she has made my grandpa so much more positive in his attitude recently. In May, he broke his neck and has been fitted in a halo for over 3 months now... I don't think I'd be very positive, but he is hanging in there like a trooper and I just know Kate has so much to do with that. Poor guy... he looks like he's been through the ringer, but he is being so upbeat about it. Plus, he can tell all the ladies he was in a motorcycle accident, or something cool like that ;-) That will make up for the fact he hasn't had a haircut in months!
Yep. I love my family.
In Babies R Us today, I was buying Kate's new carseat (since she has grown out of the infant seat) and a mom was commenting on how cute Kate was... she asked how old, and I told her nine months. She went on to tell me about her 3-month old and that her mom tells her that they should not always hold the baby so much so she won't get spoiled, blah-blah-blah. It made me kind of sad... I wanted to yell, "hold her"! Hold her for as long as you can! Because soon she'll be squiggling and squirming and trying to explore the world around her and cuddles will be fewer. Just sayin'.
As I finished my purchase and wished her a good day, she noticed the carseat in out cart. "Oh, she gets a big girl carseat now!" Yep... that made me kinda sad too.
Taking the nine month monkey pic was an adventure. Most of them turned out like this:
We did manage to at least get this one, to show the comparison:
I've become slightly obsessed with remembering the little things... we're all so focused on 'milestones', that I think sometimes the little things get lost. I took Kate to the park last week for her first time on the swing- she loved it! She giggled every time I pushed her, then she'd come back, I'd tickle her feet and she'd squeal with laughter. It was too precious.
Another 'little thing' was last Sunday. She woke up earlier than usual and seemed just as happy as could be. She had her bottle, we played for a while, watched some Baby Einstein "First Signs" for a while... then time came for her oatmeal and fruit. She started yawning in her highchair before I ever had her food ready, and was visibly getting tired. A fun Kate fact: her comfort habit is pulling her hair. Not hard... just kind of like you might twirl your hair through your fingers. So I step over to the counter to grab her cup, turn back around, and sticky-oatmeal-applesauce fingers are running through her sweet, just bathed the night before hair. I almost wanted to be frustrated, because she'd need to have a bath before church now, but I had to laugh. Look at this face...
Makes it look like she has an abundance of hair, hehe. Using a little product always adds volume, right? So, we took a quick bath and she took a fantastic nap before church.
After church, we headed up to Torrance to visit my mom and grandpa. Kate is the light of their lives these days. She has so many people who love her.
I think she has made my grandpa so much more positive in his attitude recently. In May, he broke his neck and has been fitted in a halo for over 3 months now... I don't think I'd be very positive, but he is hanging in there like a trooper and I just know Kate has so much to do with that. Poor guy... he looks like he's been through the ringer, but he is being so upbeat about it. Plus, he can tell all the ladies he was in a motorcycle accident, or something cool like that ;-) That will make up for the fact he hasn't had a haircut in months!
Yep. I love my family.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
I miss Matt!
I've realized this week that I often take my fantastic husband for granted. He has been gone since Friday on a fishing trip with his brothers and it has been just Kate and I. As much as I have really enjoyed the time for the two of us, I miss seeing them together. There is just something about watching my husband and our daughter interact that makes everything alright in the world. Yeah... cheeseball, I know. Mushy, indeed. But what can you do- I'm a sap. Lucky for me, he'll be home tomorrow.
In an attempt to not be a fatty-fatty-fat-fat any longer, I've been working with a trainer in hopes of becoming a toned, shapely, hot young mom. This last time I worked out with her, I got my butt kicked. My quads hurt SO bad afterward, that getting down on the floor to play with Kate had to be a hilarious site. I've seriously been having to hold onto furniture to lower myself onto chairs... it is out of control. But the burn is good, right? Hopefully it means something is working.
Well, before I curl up with my trashy magazine and celebrities and fashion, here are a couple more pictures... because what blog post is complete with out some Kate pics?
In an attempt to not be a fatty-fatty-fat-fat any longer, I've been working with a trainer in hopes of becoming a toned, shapely, hot young mom. This last time I worked out with her, I got my butt kicked. My quads hurt SO bad afterward, that getting down on the floor to play with Kate had to be a hilarious site. I've seriously been having to hold onto furniture to lower myself onto chairs... it is out of control. But the burn is good, right? Hopefully it means something is working.
Well, before I curl up with my trashy magazine and celebrities and fashion, here are a couple more pictures... because what blog post is complete with out some Kate pics?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)