Recently...

Sickness has returned.  I knew as soon as I spoke of it, it would be back.  From now on, if you ask how I feel, I think I'll say "Terrible." so as not to jinx it.  Until my 8th month, then I'll be honest.

Yesterday, I had a migraine for most of the afternoon.  Hubby came home and made dinner and did the dishes, thank goodness for him!!  Dinner was meatloaf, so I showed him where the recipe was and he went to town.  Our meatloaf calls for a special sauce to be added in the last 10 minutes of cooking, so after it was shaped and cooked, I asked how it looked.  He said, "Great!" as he prepared the sauce.  I got off the couch to take a peek, and low and behold, in my oven, was a meatloaf...not shaped like a loaf.  Usually, I shape my meatloaf in a ring, so it cooks more evenly.  It was not shaped like a ring.  It was shaped...interestingly.  Let's just say that.  I gasped, and he laughed for about 2 straight minutes.  But wouldn't you know, that darn meatloaf tasted wonderfully!

I have no pictures today, my camera battery is charging. Funny ones are coming though!

Last night I checked on Reilly before I went to bed.  Like I said, I had a migraine, so it was 8 pm. I always go in her room, make sure the temperature is okay, and watch her for a little.  Sometimes she wakes up and looks at me and I run, hoping she'll think it was a dream.  It usually works.  But most times she stays asleep.  Except last night, when I opened the door, and a GIANT spider came running out of her room.  I screamed and cursed and grabbed a shoe.  I tried to kill and it, and it ran in to the linen closet.  So I took a towel, and shoved it under the closet crack, so it would be trapped until Hubby got home to kill it.  Then I heard Reilly crying.  She was standing in her crib, crying at my commotion.  So I picked her up and sat on the bed, where to laid her head down on my chest and I apologized for waking her.  Then she lifted her head, looked at me, sighed, and said "Hi."  So I said Hi, and she laid her head back down and requested an Elmo song.  It was kind of a comical scene. 

Warms My Heart

There are little tiny things, things that other people might not notice, that warm my heart when it comes to my girl. Here are some that come to my mind right away.

1. When she gets hurt, like a little stubbed toe, she immediately holds up the injured area to me and says "mmmmm" giving me a kissy face, which is how she asked for kisses. Even between tears, she will ask me to kiss the area that got hurt. She really thinks it fixes it.

2. Her smile when I pick her up from her nap.

3. When she is sleepy and lays her head down on any soft surface and says "night night".

4. When we get up in the morning and she asked for Daddy. And when we see a pick up truck and she asks for Daddy.  And especially her face when she sees his truck pull in the driveway in the afternoon.

5. The very few times that she actually says "Mama". She prefers saying "Daddy" 35 times a day, which is fine by me, but hearing my name from her mouth is glorious.

6. The moment that Elmo's World comes on, which is the most exciting moment for her, she turns and looks at me.  She looks at me with a giant smile until I realize that she is staring at me, and then have an explosion of excitement for her that Elmo's World is on.  It is not until she sees my excitement, that she then celebrates and dances in glee.  It reminds of children on amusement park rides, that the best part of the ride is waving to Mommy and Daddy.  Their happiness is confirmed and validated when they see that you are happy, too.  It really goes to show you how much children need and learn from every single thing that mommy and daddy do and say.

7.  Watching her sleep so peacefully.  It's enough to make your heart explode, and I don't really know why.

8. When we sit down to eat, or go in for her bedtime, and she claps her hands together and says, "a-MEN!"  She already recognizes Jesus in her life to some extent, and she's only 1.  No better feeling.

Happenings

1. We have had a groundhog, Murray, named after Bill Murray and his famed performance in Groundhog Day, who has lived outside our home for years now. He is fat and wonderful and waddles everywhere. He has since been joined by a bunny family. The matron bunny, we named Griffin, after Peter Griffin, star of Family Guy, a favorite of ours in college. This was a play on "Peter Rabbit". It's a stretch, but it fits. They have recently been living together in beautiful harmony. They graze on our lawn only 10 feet apart, and are always right in front of our door together when I pull in the driveway, then they scurry to opposite directions like they got in trouble. I am wondering if we will see the first bunny-groundhog offspring soon?

Anywho, today I found bunny laying in the lawn like this. It was hilarious, I have never seen a bunny so relaxed. I'm so happy to be such a haven for the woodland creatures.



2. I am making chicken soup. This deserves it's own bullet, because I am THAT excited to be cooking again. And making soup, in the fall. Thank you Lord. Here is the recipe I'm using, from the recipe book I made my sister for her shower. It was from Tastebook, an amazing website, and I put in all our families recipes and took the photos myself. Mama and I loved it so much we got ones for ourselves too. :)

3. We painted our living room! We've been wanting to for a while. It was sponge painted, and we like it enough, but were both getting sick of it and needed a change. It just wasn't "us". I wanted taupe. I needed taupe in my home, all over. So here is the before:

Please don't get my started on the picture cluster and how it is off center. We had rearranged our living room, and then it became glaringly off center. Before, it was offset by other things. Either way, it's gone now, so let's move on. Also, that is Spackle on the walls, not chicken pox.

After going to and from Home Depot 3 days in a row, testing 5 colors, and painting for 3 nights after baby went to bed, we finished! And the first thing I said to Brett was: This color was always meant to live in our home.

I realized the color I was going for was not actually a true "taupe", but more of a taupeish-gray. It looks insane against white trim. We used Martha Stewart's Gray Squirrel. I'm so happy with it!

4. I am working on maybe my favorite project ever, if it ends up looking like it should in my head. It's going to living right above the couch on that wall. More updates to come.

5. My daughter is officially more stylish than me, in her jeggings and leopard ballet flats. I thought I had years before this day would come. Alas, it only took one measly year.
Excuse me miss, just what do you think is so funny about that?

I am obsessed with her. The End.

13 weeks!

I have not written much about my little growing fetus up until this point, and for good reason. Not because little angel is not in my thoughts, because he has been on our thoughts/minds/lips/brains every single day. Mainly, because up until now (crossed fingers) I have been experiencing little else to report besides sickness. Most of the time, I was sick or barely able to eat - and when I was feeling okay, I didn't want to talk about it too much for fear of jinxing it. I know, it sounds silly when I say it out loud. But pregnant mama's would know how I feel. And when you are nauseous, the absolute last thing you want to do is talk about it or reflect on it. But now, since it seems to be behind me (prayers please) I'm ready to talk about what's been happening!


First, I'm slowly but steadily gaining! I have a noticeable belly, which came super quick since there isn't really anywhere for baby to hide. I'm already into maternity pants, which I love and want to marry and live in for the rest of life. Glorious, maternity pants are.

Also, the sailing has not been smooth thus far, besides the sickness. But I don't like complaining because I am a firm believer that someone always has it worse. Yes, I have been nauseous, and at the time it feels like the worst thing ever, but is it really? No. It's much easier to say this in hindsight. But even in the throws of pregnancy problems, and I remember feeling this way when pregnant with Reilly too, I know the real problems that people could and do face during pregnancy (mainly due to the fact that my mama is an obstetric nurse). Things that threaten the lives of baby or mama or both - and nothing I have faced has been that bad, thank God. So I just count my blessings and try to roll as best I could with the infections, and disease scares that I've had thus far. And complain little, except to those in my house who witness it, because in the end, a miracle happens. That's the prize my eye stays on.

So I am starting to feel myself again - starting to cook, starting to feel useful. I always use that word - useless - when I refer to how I feel in the first trimester (and second with Reilly). It sounds harsh, but it's how I feel - useless to those around me, and myself. I can't accomplish things I want to, things I know I need to, things I wish I could - even little things. I need to be waited on even when I don't want to be, even when nobody else has time to either. It's very frustrating, and when that feeling it lifted, it's amazing.

I'll leave your with a first bump pic! This is me at around 12.5 weeks.


And this is me at 12 weeks pregnant with Reilly!

So funny, such a belly difference! I was carrying so differently with Reilly - I gained so much right away, and had weight all in my back and hips and and face. Now, every ounce that is in my uterus! Maybe boy? Who knows! We'll find out in March! :)

I'll Always Remember

I'll always remember the summer my baby became a toddler.

The summer she started saying "Apple Dada" for applesauce, apples, bananas, and any fruit resembling these.

I'll always remember the summer our baby took her first steps. And at the end, when she got her first pair of big girls shoes.

I'll always remember the summer she learned to do "kick kick kick" in the pool, and fell in love with the water.

The summer she started giving kisses without any prompting, and giving huggies in the morning.

I'll always remember the summer she starting saying "Nigh-Night" and laying down on her soft Kitty.

I'll always remember the summer she started making shopping an exciting and hilarious adventure, as she engaged every human being in conversation.


I'll always remember the summer we visited Daddy at work, and watching both their faces light up every time.

The summer she started associating the sound of a lawn mower or weed whacker with Daddy, pointing in the direction of the sound and yelling "DA-DEE! DA-DEE!" no matter where we were.

I'll never forget the summer she was a flower girl, and said "HI" over and over while her auntie said, "I do."

I'll always remember the summer that hubby would say, "Go see Mama." and she would toddle over with a giant smile and "Hah Mamaaaa!" and fall into me.

I'll always remember the summer her hair was golden, and curled at the bottom of her neck more every day.

I'll always remember the summer she started saying "Ew."

I'll always remember the summer she found her tiny voice, her tiny steps, and her not-so-tiny personality.

I'll always remember the summer she waved at every truck that passed, thinking it was Daddy.

I'll always remember the summer she would point to her own belly, and said "HI BABY!". She knew there was one in Mama's belly, so doesn't everyone have one in there?

I'll always remember the summer she gave us the gift of laughter every single day.

I'll always remember the summer we gave her the gift of a sibling.

I'll always remember this summer. The summer with our little angel of a toddler, bouncing around happily everywhere we went. Our last summer as a little family of three. Soon I won't remember what it was like to be a family of three - what life was like before our new baby. But then again...I think I'll always remember.

Pretty Girl!

Reilly can now say "pretty", "hair", "hat", and "headband". All relating to her prettiest feature, in her opinion. Her "hai-oh". And now she has learned to put her headband on all by herself. She's well on her way to the Ivy League, I tell ya. Either that, or a hairdressing apprenticeship. She'll be cool with either one.

Flinstone Pops!

Why is orange sherbet so much more amazing when it is served in a Flinstone-themed push pop?

Hmm...Reilly, your thoughts?

"More, more, more."

Ah, very interesting point.

Meow!

Somehow, our child who has lived in a house with no pets her whole life (except for the months that we adopted our Penny girl), Reilly has fallen in love with kittens. Kittens, cats, anything that meows. I have no idea how it happened! She would read a book, and get SO excited when she saw a cat. "Meow" was one of the first animal sounds that she ever learned, right after a dog woof. Then it took off I guess in June, when we went to our friends house for vacation, and they had a cat. This cat was completely disinterested in Reilly, ran away from her, and Reilly only ever chased her and saw her from about 6 feet away the whole time - and yet she was in love. She kept chasing, kept giggling, kept meowing.

Then we went to our other friends house, straight from there, and they had 2 cats! Neither of which cared about Reilly at all, once again. And yet the meowing continued, the obsession carried on. Then Mima got Reilly the softest stuffed animal you could imagine, appropriately named "Kitty" by mama and daddy (she also has a baby named "Baby"...we're bad namers). And ever since that Kitty came into our home, her love has grown. No matter what she is doing, if she is sad, mad or otherwise, we can always distract her by saying, "Hey Reilly, where is Kitty?". And she will turn around, and go on a mission to find that Kitty, saying "Meow! Meow!" while she hunts.

So naturally, when our friends got 2 new baby kittens, I immediately asked if Reilly could come over to see them. I knew this would be heaven on earth for her - seeing tiny little kittens in real life. Kittens who, I was hoping, would be too young to know enough to run away from her.

I had no idea how she would be with them, what with the fact that she has not actually been within 5 feet of a cat for very long at all. But their kitten Maggie was just precious with Reilly, and Reilly was just as precious back. She was gentle and playful with the kitty, and seemed to know exactly how she liked to play. Here she is pouncing like the kitty, and meowing in her face. She really enjoyed being nose-to-nose with that kitty.

Then kitten laid down, and Reilly kissed her. The kissing was constant. And there was lots of laughing - random hysterical laughter, but I missed it on my camera.

Then Reilly laid down with kitty, and said "Nigh-Night", as they both pretended to sleep.

And here she is puckering up to steal some more kisses from kitty.

Of course I was terrified the whole time -that kitty would suddenly get annoyed with her and scratch or that Reilly would suddenly decide it was appropriate to grasp the kittens little face. But neither of those things happened! Reilly instinctively knew how to act, and it really seemed like this young kitten could sense that she was a baby and was having some hardcore patience. All around, it was just precious to see them together, and how happy babygirl was.

In conclusion, Hubby and I both do not care for cats very much in general. We have friends that we LOVE who have cats that we LOVE, but they basically make us very uneasy. We have no problem being around them, but we have a hard time trusting them, or wrapping our heads around the whole "litter box" ordeal.

So who knows where this intense love came from in our little pumpkin? In our house, kittens will remain a novelty that we get to play with at other people's houses. Hopefully she will move on to love other creatures instead...like babies. I like human babies - I'll tell her we can keep having more of those. :)

La La La La

If you have a child between the ages of 1 and 5, you probably know what song starts with very distinct "La-La-La-La". Or maybe it's just in our house that we sing the song on a daily, or rather hourly, basis.

Allow me to explain. Reilly is obsessed with Elmo.

Well, that was the understatement of the year. Reilly loves Elmo so much, that she wishes we would adopt him. Reilly asks to sing the Elmo song all the time. She literally bounces and claps and giggle whenever she sees him on TV, in a store, on the tiny emblem of a child's diaper (true story). If we hear her say "Emmo", we know that she sees him somewhere...even if we don't see him, she does. She has a tiny Elmo doll that she sleeps with, and she asks for him as soon as we lie her down at night. We ask her what song she wants to sing before bed, and if it isn't "Skiddamarink", the request is always "Emmo". She can even sing the words of his song with me, which cracked me up one day when she started doing it. My mom bought juice with Elmo's picture on the front, and every time I opened the fridge, she would run to it yelling "EMMO! EMMO!" because she knew he was in there. It's quite a hilarious little infatuation, and I have no idea where it came from. I did not encourage or foster it in any, until the love was full-fledged and we started getting her merchandise and singing the song. But that wasn't until after the obsession was in full swing.

Does anyone know why children are so in love with this creature? There is a documentary called "Being Elmo" about the puppeteer, and I'm dying to see it. I'm convinced this guy could sell anything. He must have a secret.

Anyway, recently Reilly got to meet her Number 1 love.


We walked in, and she saw him from across the room. She started saying "Emmo!" We were curious as to how the encounter would pan out.

At first, it was going well. She was leery at first, a little shy, and not as excited as one might expect when meeting one's BFF. But then Elmo offered a high five, and Reilly reciprocated with her little hand.


And just as soon, as they touched, Reilly recoiled like she had just come in contact with a burning stove. She burst into tears faster than I had ever seen, and grabbed onto Daddy for dear life. Of course we could do nothing but laugh and console her. I mean, look at that pathetic little face! Could you just die?

So meeting Elmo was not the epic event that we would have expected. Still a little too young to enjoy those giant frighteningly stiff characters that don't speak and always look distorted. Then again, what is a good age to enjoy these creatures? The window is small, if you ask me.

So it's decided - Reilly prefers Elmo on the small screen. And from far away. When we walked to the other side of the room, she reached and said, "Emmo! Emmo!" as if she wanted to be near him again. So we have two options: take her to the actual Sesame Street to meet a teeny Elmo, or Sesame Street live. OH, the possibilities...