Summertime Fun

I haven't been very good at keeping up on the blog lately, huh? Work has been crazy busy and home has been about the same. Then, you add in not getting enough sleep (which I'll tell you about in another post).....and you end up with someone that has no time or energy to post.

We've had lots of fun this summer, though. And, I thought I'd update you on a few things that have happened in the last month or so.

I found a local group of mom's (the Hip Momma's) from meetup.com. (If you haven't heard of this and you're looking to make new friends, find people that have common interests, etc., check it out.) Anyway, many of them are stay at home mom's, but some are working momma's, too. I got together with them about a month ago for Mom's Breakfast Out and had quite a nice time. We were at the restaurant (Mom's in the Kitchen...how cute is that?) for over 2 hours.

Anyway........they do weekday play dates and things, too. Well, a few of them were going to a local beach on a day that the girls were home from daycare (since Miss Lisa was closed) and I took a vacation day. I only took Lacey so she could have some time with mommy. Lacey loved it. We really didn't make it to a beach last year, so it's been since our trip to the OBX that she's seen it.

This little find is on the Chesapeake Bay. The water is pretty calm and it's very shallow. (In the picture below, Lacey is kneeling.) The only bad thing is jelly fish, but they didn't seem to be too bad.
Next, was a trip to visit Chuck & Nancy in Pittsburgh. With 2 little ones, it ends up being about a 6-7 hour drive. On the way up, we drove to see Butch's Aunt Janet....just a slight detour. It's a good spot to stop since we get to see her, she sees the girls and we all get a break from the car so the girls can truly run around. (And run around, they did.) I don't know how I don't have pictures of that stop, but I don't. Maybe she does and will send them to us.

The drive went fairly well and Leah slept a nice chunk. However, Lacey didn't sleep one minute. Who doesn't sleep on a long car ride? Even adults do (as long as they aren't driving)! Nope, not my kid.

When we arrived, Lacey found her newest Princess dress waiting for her. It wasn't quite done....but as soon as the pins were out & she could wear it, she did. Love the goofy grin, huh?

On Friday, we headed to the zoo. I'd been wanting to get Lacey to a zoo for a while. It turns out, Nancy had been wanting to go to the Pittsburgh zoo for quite a while. So, of course, Grandma was thrilled to go. We saw lots of animals....although not many were too playful that afternoon. The polar bears were lots of fun - one kept jumping in his water with a red ball and swimming around. And, the sea otters were really cute, too. There were a few minor meltdowns, thanks to a 3 year old with no nap since Wednesday. Not too bad, though.

Getting nice family pictures when you have two little ones proves to be a bit tough....
Oh - this is what happened as soon as we got in the car. No joke. We were still in the parking lot.
On Saturday morning, we headed to Kaelin Farm Market. They are friends of Chuck & Nancy and Grandma was anxious to show off her grandkids. So, we walked around the store, waiting for Mrs. Kaelin to come to work. Just when we were pulling out, she drove in. So, we stayed in the car, but were able to say hello.

Then, off to Soergel's for a visit. They have lots of fun things for the kids, including a petting zoo and a little play area. Grandma was really wanting to go to another park, but the girls needed a rest before our afternoon fun began.

After a brief rest....off to see Wayne & Maria (and kids). Butch went to high school with Wayne. We don't always get to see them when we are in Pittsburgh, but always try. I really like hanging out with them. If we were closer, I'm sure we'd see each other often. They were actually heading to Ohio that evening for an overnight visit at her family's, but they still made time to have us over. There was beer, wine, chips and salsa, blueberry crumble, badmitten (where Butch & Wayne played against Wayne's 6 year old son....no joke). Lacey played with their girls' Sweet Street toys and thoroughly enjoyed her time alone. (She was much to shy to play with the girls.)

Unfortunately, while we were there, Lacey had an 'accident', which I later learned was the start of a stomach virus. Luckily, I had a change of clothes....I don't always have that. Poor kid. (This virus - or whatever - went on for 5 days.)

Chuck's birthday was Sunday! Great timing for a visit! They had a picnic with family over. Lacey was in heaven with Heather & Erin. (Lacey adores girls that are in their teens or so.) Nancy (of course) had tons of yummy food to enjoy. And, it was nice to catch up with everyone that we only see every once in a while.
We headed out Monday morning and were home by around 3:00.

Oh - while we were gone, I had Kyle (my nephew) house sit so that we wouldn't have to board Brady & have a pet sitter for Kramer. It all went fairly well. The only real glitch was that when Kyle arrived on Thursday evening, he couldn't let Brady out of her crate right away. Her hair was standing on end and she was growling. It took 30 minutes for him to feel safe enough to let her out. Then, she peed on the floor because she was so scared. Funny.

I took off the last Friday that Butch was off (and the girls were home) so we could go back to Chesapeake Beach. Both girls loved it. Butch agreed this little beach was a great find (thank you Hip Momma's). And we had a great time. Lacey was ready to go after about 50 min., but that was fine since we were getting tired chasing Leah. Leah had no fear at all. She was just heading straight into the water.
I forgot to mention that there was this butterfly hanging out that wasn't afraid of us at all. We could get really close to it and it didn't budge. In the first picture, you can see it on the left of Lacey.


We head to Dad's every weekend to visit, cookout and swim. Leah loves the pool.
I just realized how few pictures I have of Lacey in the pool this year! Guess I'll have to fix that tomorrow when we go to Dad's to celebrate his 71st birthday!

Swing Sets

Earlier this summer, PaPa (my dad) bought the girls a swing set for his house. It's a big hit. Of course, even at age 3 1/2, Lacey is already "workin' it" with me.

Lacey: "PaPa has a swing set."

Me: "Yep"

Lacey: "Mary Kate has a swing set."

Me: "She does?"

Lacey: "Miss Lisa has a swing set."

Me: "Yep"

Lacey: "But, I don't have one. We need one. I want one like that." (....as we drive past one in the neighborhood.)

Wow. We're in trouble when she gets a little older.

Baby Whale

I've been watching this news story for days and am so sad this morning.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26325489/

Tagged.....

4 Places I go over and over

1. To the office
2. To Target
3. To my dad's
4. To Cosi

4 People who email me the most

1. My brother, Rick
2. Aunt Annie
3. My sister
4. Meetup

4 of my favorite foods

1. Pizza
2. Pasta (almost any kind)
3. Blue Crabs (or crab cakes or crab dip)
4. Ice cream

4 Places I'd rather be

1. Sleeping in my bed - for a solid 8 hours
2. Hawaii
3. Napa Valley
4. Right here

4 movies I can watch over and over
(I rarely watch movies over & over)
1. Elf
2. Harry Potter (any)
3. When Harry Met Sally
4. You've Got Mail

4 Places I have worked

1. Roy Rogers
2. Eye Care Center
3. Pic n Pay Shoes
4. Marsh (who has changed names at least 4x)

4 Places I have lived

1. Charlotte Hall, MD
2. Salisbury, MD
3. Fairfax, VA
4. Hughesville, MD

4 TV Shows I like

1. Lost
2. 24
3. So You Think You Can Dance
4. Tori & Dean, Home Sweet Hollywood

4 Places I have Vacationed/Holidayed

1. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
2. Hawaii
3. Napa Valley
4. OBX

4 of my favorite dishes

1. Mexican Casserole
2. Lasagna
3. Crab Cakes
4. Mango Chicken

4 sites I visit daily

1. February Sweethearts 2005
2. Baby Center
3. msnbc.com
4. Facebook

I've been Tagged.....Thanks Bink!

Here are the directions:
1. Link back to the person who tagged you
2. Mention the rules on your blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Here are my 6 unspectacular quirks.

1. I like to have a fountain diet coke every day. Not just any diet coke. Not a bottle. Not a can. A fountain drink. The taste is so much better. Yes, I drive about 10 min. out to WaWa to get one when I'm at home. Yes, I still run out at the office if it's raining to get one. (My brother has this same quirk.)

2. I don't like to have water in my face. If I'm in the pool, I need to wipe my face off. In the shower, I wipe my face a dozen times with a wash cloth to get water from my face. My lovely 3 year old has this quirk as well. Leah doesn't care.

3. I'm a bit of a control freak. Yes, me. (LOL). I've had to really get better at letting go over the last 3.5 years since Lacey was born.

4. I put my make up on in my car most mornings. Before you yell at me - I do this at stop lights. However, I've had trouble lately with this since the 1st stop light hasn't had much traffic lately (which will change once kids are in school next week). And, the next light I usually have time at is no longer there. Rather than entering the beltway through a light, I now have a quick onramp. So, this morning, I put my make up on at home. Gasp!

5. I hate to watch live TV. Ever since being introduced to the world of Tivo and DVRs, I just can't stand to deal with commercials. It is a rare occassion when I actually sit to watch a live TV show.

6. ???
Because I'm exhausted after 6 nights of fragmented sleep (nothing longer than 2 hours straight), I just can't get my brain to think of #6. So, dear readers, I ask you......what is another quirk of mine?

Now to tag 6 fellow bloggers.....
Gretchen
Melissa
Carol
Shannon
Rachael
Dana

Visit from Chuck & Nancy and Business Travel

We didn't do anything for the 4th of July. We thought about going to the fairgrounds since they had kids activities (face painting, etc.), but they were calling for storms that evening and Chuck & Nancy were due in the next day. So, we stayed home to get the guest room ready and clean up a bit. I'm glad we did since storms came through around 6:00 and we would have been caught in it. And, we were able to get just about everything done that we wanted to that day. I feel a bit like a "lame" mom for not doing something for the kids, but there is always next year.

Chuck & Nancy arrived around 3:30 or so on Sat., the 5th. Lacey was quite excited to see them. Leah was a little unsure. We had a yummy (if I do say so myself) meatloaf dinner and relaxed for the evening.

Sunday was Leah's birthday party, so we were at Dad's all day.

Then, it was off to work for me on Monday while Butch got to deal with bagworms. Yep. Disgusting. We had noticed on the 4th that our spruce seemed to be dying. Nancy noticed that there were "things" hanging from it and they were.....moving. Yuck. So, Butch headed to the nursery on Monday morning to find out more about getting rid of them. He had the fun job of picking/knocking them off the tree....then burning them. Gross. Then, he sprayed the tree (and others around the house) with the stuff he bought at the nursery. (Yesterday, I realized there are still some alive, so he gets to have fun with this again, too.)

Wednesday, I headed to New York for a short business trip -- just lunch with a client, so I was up & back pretty quick.

I took Thursday off so we could enjoy some time with C&N. We went to Solomon's Island for lunch.
On our way home, we stopped at Bruster's for ice cream. Yum-o. I'd never heard of it, but it started in PA, so Nancy knew it and when she saw it told us how good it is.

After heading home, to drop off C&N and Leah, we headed up to Waldorf to pick up my rental car for my business trip to Philly.

I left for Philly on Friday morning. The first night or 2 was okay. Having "me" time isn't something that I really get. And...the ability to sleep through an entire night isn't something I get either. So, that was nice. I had a nice dinner on Friday evening and a good night of sleep. Then, I got to work 9:00 to 6:00 standing/sitting in a booth all day. By myself. Blah. They brought in food/drinks at 4:30, so I had a nice glass of wine. Then headed to my room for PJ's, dinner, 1 more glass of wine and a movie (Made of Honor). I did the same thing on Sunday night, too. This time the movie was 27 Dresses. By now, I was ready to come home. But, I still had to work Monday (9:00-6:30) and Tuesday (7:30-1:00).

C&N stayed until Monday morning to help Butch as needed. He did pretty well, though. Leah was good and slept pretty well. She woke up once each night and he gave her a bottle. She should be fine all night without eating, but I usually nurse her at some point in the middle of the night, so it was only fair for her to expect something while I was gone. We'll need to fix that soon.

As soon as I could jump in the car, I ran. :-) Made it home in a little more than 3 hours -- plenty of time to go with Butch to pick up the girls from Miss Lisa's. They were both as happy to see me as I was to see them. It was a little tough getting Lacey to sleep last night. She didn't want me to leave, so I caved and fell asleep in her room for a few min.

And, today....I'm working from home - mainly so I can return the rental car. Back to the office tomorrow.

Leah's B-day Party

Look out...this one is full of pictures. :-)

July 6 was Leah's party at Dad's. We combined it with Kristina's celebration (her birthday is the 9th), too, so in addition to the "regular" group, Kristina's parents, sister, BIL and niece were all there.

I made a chocolate cake for Leah in the shape of a number 1.



Leah was not a fan. Guess I just have a daughter that doesn't like cake. (Huh?)
Then, we opened some gifts.

Not only did Kristina's mom (Heidi) and sister (Karin) get gifts for Leah (which was unnecessary & I didn't expect), but they got Lacey some things, too. Very sweet.

And, this pic is here just because I love it so much!

Leah - 12 Months Old!

I never did get around to uploading the comparison pics last month. So, I'll post 10, 11 and 12 months here. Well........and how about her very first pic in the chair?

One Month

10 Months

11 Months

1 Year Old!

Leah's First Birthday

We started off the day with Lacey singing Happy Birthday to her sister and HUGE smiles from Leah. (She adores Lacey if you didn't know.)

We had pizza for dinner (which Leah decided she wanted no part of today) and cupcakes (which Leah didn't want any part of. Yes, that's right. She didn't like the cupcakes. Whose kid is this?

Lacey "helped" open up Leah's gifts from Aunt Annie and Miss Lisa. Then, we headed outside for them to see Leah's big birthday gift.....a playhouse.


Needless to say, Leah (and Lacey) were quite happy. I'm sure we'll be spending lots of time in the yard.

Dancin' Machine 2

Leah has started dancing recently and I finally managed to get it on video. We were watching So You Think You Can Dance (again) and she was feeling the music. I had to stop recording because she climbed too high up on the bean bag.

Girlfriends

Now that Leah is getting a bit older, I really want to find some good girlfriends who live around here! You know, someone you can call and say "let's go to a movie"! My friends are all thrown about the country and it's a bit depressing at times. My very best friends each live a few hours from here. Tonya is in SC and Agnes is in upstate NY. If either of them lived within an hour, I'd be a happy camper.

Others are in IA, CA, NV, FL, MO.....you get the picture. It's annoying. I do have some girlfriends that live in other parts of MD, but they are all at least an hour away. And, when everyone has kids, it's tough to get together. Especially since their kids are older and involved in so many activities.

Dee always tells me (and I know it's true) that once Lacey and Leah get older and involved in activities, we'll find friends down here easily. That's how they met many of their friends. It's just crazy because I grew up here. I knew lots of people around here 20 years ago. But, you lose touch with people and it's tough to reconnect again.

Anyway, I thought about all of this again because last week I went to see Sex & the City with Dee, Brianna (Dee's SIL, who I also happened to go to high school with) and Bri's sister, Holly. It was just nice to get out with the girls. Not like I have tons of time to do it, but it would be nice to be able to. ;-)

Leah's Birthday, Work, A Visit from Chuck & Nancy

It's hard to believe that Leah will be a year old in a few short days. Wow. She's going to have multiple parties like Lacey did, too. We're going to have birthday cupcakes on her actual birthday - just Butch, Lacey, Leah and me. The next day, I'll send cupcakes to Miss Lisa's. Yes, it's a day late, but I don't want her to dive into cake for her first time away from me. :-) Then, Sunday we are having her party at my dad's house. I'm going to attempt a #1 shaped cake. We'll see how it goes. For those of you that don't know, or don't remember, I made a caterpillar (from Baby Einstein) for Lacey's first birthday. I was quite proud of myself. I'm not exactly Betty Crocker.

This week is going to be a bit hectic. I have to work at a convention in DC and smile at a booth for a couple of days. Fun stuff. It's actually a very busy convention, so the time goes by somewhat quick. And, since there are several of us, we are able to take turns and not work super long days. I also have a cocktail hour on Monday night at late dinner on Wednesday night with this client.

Chuck & Nancy are coming into town on Saturday. We've been telling Lacey for so long that Grandma & Poppy are coming for Leah's birthday that she is probably starting to wonder if they are ever coming. Hehe. You know how a 3 year old brain works.

They are actually going to stay for over a week to help out while I'm on business travel. I have to leave on Friday, July 11 to head to Philadelphia for another convention. I'm not so lucky with this one. It's only me working our booth, so the days will be long. And, from what I hear (this is my first time at this one), it's not super busy since the attendees are in session quite a bit. The days are 9:00-5:30 for 3 days, then 7:30-1:00 the last day. Yuck. But, I will have the chance to sleep while I am there....you know....without Leah or Lacey waking me up. I plan to take full advantage of that. No late nights for me! (Not that I'll know anyone, anyway.)

I'm sort of a lame traveler on my own. When I go by myself, I'm happy to hang out in the hotel room, watching TV, reading and ordering room service. I'm not big on experiencing a new city by myself. Well....sometimes I do. I remember doing that when I was younger, anyway. It's just not as fun by yourself.

Back to C/N's visit. Since I'll be gone for several days, they are going to stay for a bit and help Butch out some. It will be nice to have some extra hands to entertain the girls and help out a bit. If nothing else, having adult conversation will be nice. I think that is the hardest part - for me - about staying home with them for a couple of days on my own. I'm dying for adult speak.

Anywho......let's practice....."Happy Birthday to you...." I'll make sure and post some pics from Leah's party when the time comes.

Update on the girls

Thought I'd do a quick separate post to update you on how the kids are doing.Lacey loves to play with her "dolly dolls" and lately wants us to play with her. It's hard when you are an adult to remember how to play. :-) She's learning more at Miss Lisa's. They focus on a couple of letters, a number, a shape and a color each month. She's known her colors for awhile now. Lately she is started to recognize the letters and numbers they are working with. Butch & I are trying to be better at focusing on what Lisa is working on so they we are consistant.

Leah hasn't been sleeping well. Teething is truly a frustration. I think that is a big part of her sleep issues lately. It's tiring. She's been cruising around for a while and is now taking 3-4 steps by herself sometimes. (We'll see if it leads to anything soon. Lacey was doing the same around this age, but didn't walk until 15 months.) Leah isn't much of a fan of being spoon fed anymore, so it's getting difficult. She's still learning to chew and learning to like certain foods, so it can be tough to get enough food in her. She loves cheese, cheerios and peas. :-)

Starting next week, Miss Lisa is closed on Thursdays and Fridays, so Butch will be with them those days. They are a handful, so I know he'll be worn out from chasing them by the time I get home. I'd like to be able to work from home on Friday's and take 1/2 day off. But, I can't figure out where I'd work and be left alone. I'm still thinking that one through.

Random Update

It’s been ages (or so it seems) since I’ve done much of a post. I’ve just felt overwhelmed with everything there is to do on a weekly basis - in all areas of life. How is there really time for everything? I actually realized tonight that I have started a few posts here & there and never finished them! Oh well. Here are a few random updates:

An Evening Out

A few weeks ago, we went to a dinner/dance with my family. Dad treated us all (very sweet). So, it was Dad, Frankie, Dee, Buck, Rick, Kristina, Butch & me. Jessica babysat for us and things went smoothly for her. We didn't leave until around 7:00 and Leah goes to bed shortly after that. So, that meant she really only had Lacey to watch for most of the time.

It was a lot of fun, but I think I was so excited to be OUT that I drank too much. I honestly planned on limiting myself to 3 glasses of wine and know that it all that I asked for/went to get. But, I think Butch and/or Rick and/or Buck brought back another glass or 2 at other times. I felt horrible the next day!

Anyway, there was a lottery type thing at the dance. Everyone had a number and if your number was called, they you were eliminated. It was fun, but it interupted the dancing. And, each time they did it, they turned the lights all the way up for all of us to read our tickets.

The band was pretty good. Dee & I danced a ton. Dad, too. I've said it before........when I'm 70, I sure hope I'm moving like that on the dance floor!

Last Weekend

Kristina's parents both turned 70 in recent weeks, so she & her sister hosted a pool party to celebrate on Saturday. It was the hottest weekend so far. Bad for being outside, but at least there was a pool! It was Lacey's first time in this year and Leah's first time ever. Both had a ball. This is Jessica (Steckita) with the girls:

On Sunday, we went to Dad's to cookout. The week before, he bought a swingset and had it all set up for Lacey (and Leah) when we got there. He put on a baby swing that we'd bought for Lacey when she was an infant. Lacey never liked it, but Leah loved it!

Lacey loved the pool at PaPa's house, too. She can touch the bottom now, so she feels like a big girl.

Air Conditioning

Well, our a/c broke again. Yes, you read that right. This is the 3rd time in a year. Last year - literally while I was at the hospital in labor - a new inside unit was being installed for our upstairs a/c. A few months ago, a new inside unit was installed for our downstairs a/c. And now....we've had a new outside unit installed for upstairs. We were without for about a week. This just happened to be the week that we had our first heatwave. Lovely. It was about 90* in Leah's room when she went to bed for 3 nights. And, humid. On the last night, we decided to try putting fans in the foyer and direct them toward the balcony to bring cold air upstairs and this helped a bit. I'm just happy that it's fixed now. We are all sleeping better.

Commute

For some reason....that I've yet to figure out....my morning commute has gotten worse lately. It used to take about 90 min. pretty regularly. The last 2 weeks, it's been about 2 hours. I know part of the problem is they have a road closed in DC that is causing others to take my route. But, that isn't the entire issue. Considering metro and commuter bus numbers are so high (thank you to gas prices), you would think my commute would be shorter. Makes no sense to me and it's making me crazy. Before kids, I was in the office by 7:30. After Lacey, it was about 8:00. After Leah it was about 8:30. With this recent issue, I'm lucky to make it in by 8:45. This is yet another reason why I love my work @ home days.

Father's Day

We're going to the Optimist Club picnic tomorrow. Dad is a member and they have this annual cookout/picnic that we started going to a few years ago. Last year, I was 9 months pregnant and it was HOT. This year, we'll have 2 of them to chase around, but the weather is expected to be much nicer. They have a nice little playground for the kids. And, last year, they had buggies pulled by horses. Lacey loved it. We're hoping for more of the same this year.

I struggled with what to get Butch. I can't really post anything here in case he reads this before tomorrow. :-)

Well, I'd better run. After much time away, I feel like I've written a book. Hehe.

I've been tagged!

I feel bad! Allison tagged me a while ago, but because I've been so bad at keeping up with blogs lately, I didn't see it until today!

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?
Hmmm. That would have been 1998. I had left KVI and was working at Seabury. But, at that point, I believe the companies had completely merged. So, I was probably working in Old Town Alexandria. I believe this was the timing of when I decided to move back in with Mom & Dad for a bit, too. The dad of the roomie I was living with owned the house and she really wanted to live by herself, so I was without a place to live and really wanted to save to buy something of my own. And, the timing was also good because it got me away from the boyfriend that I really needed to get away from. Leaving Northern VA gave me the space to move on from him permanently.

2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):Well today is almost over so I'd better give you a hybrid of today/tomorrow--
1. Watch Juno with Butch tonight.
2. Go to the Father’s Day picnic that the Optomist Club has.
3. Go to the grocery store.
4. Put away laundry.
5. Walk on the treadmill!

3) Snacks I enjoy:Cheese, cookies, M&Ms, peanut butter crackers

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:Set aside an entire college fund for our kids.
Set aside our retirement fund.
Make sure my entire family was taken care of (paid off houses, college for the kids, etc.)
Share the money with Best Friends.
Share the money with organizations that take care of children.

5) Places I have lived:Southern MD (Charlotte Hall and Hughesville)
VA (Alexandria, Springfield, Annandale, Arlington, Fairfax)
Salisbury, MD

Dancin' Machine

Need I say more?

A New(ish) Playhouse

I had been keeping my eyes out for some fun outdoor play equipment and found a playhouse through Craig's List locally. We want one for our house, too, but since we spend a good deal of time at Dad's during the summer and he doesn't have many toys around for the girls, I thought we'd set this playhouse up at his house.

On Sunday, we took the play house to Dad's to set up and let the girls play in it for awhile.

I'm keeping my eyes out for another local deal, too.

Daycare "Book"

The daycare/preschool theme from April was "Around the World" and the kids learned about different countries, the cultures, food, etc. It was cute. Well, Miss Lisa also helps them put together daycare books -- each child has a page of their own. Then, when it is complete, it's sent home to each family for a quick peak before sending it on to the next family. The most recent book that I've seen is on travel.....to go along with the Around the World theme.

Here is Lacey's page.

I can see Nancy's smile all the way from Pittsburgh!

Start of my Weekend

My weekend didn't exactly get off to a great start. I left the office around 3:30 in hopes of getting home by 4:45 and walking on the treadmill before dinner. Instead, I walked down to the garage to find glass all over the floor next to my car. It took a few seconds for it to settle in. Someone had busted my drivers side window. All they took was my iPod. The only other things worth anything were my sunglasses and my bluetooth, but both were still in the car. I was just going to get the glass cleaned up, call the car insurance and go home.

But, the property manager and garage manager had other plans. They wanted me to stay until the cops got there. Turns out that one other car had the same thing happen -- and they only took her iPod, too. By the way, our iPods were both out of sight. I think the jerk(s) just saw the power cords and took a chance.

My car was in a "safe" place of the garage, too. It wasn't in a corner or way in the back. It was close to the front and didn't really have any other cars around it. (I park it in the same spot each day - it's a parallel space.) Ugh.

Today, I learned that someone else had an iPod and a GPS taken. Her car was unlocked, though.

So, we waited for the cops and had a report written. The garage company wants to pay for the damages, which is fine, but it would just have been easier to go through my insurance. Instead of leaving at 3:30, I left at 6:00 and got home at 7:15 - just in time to get Leah to bed.

Oh - and driving home with no window wasn't very pleasant since it wasn't very warm out. I had a rain coat, so that helped. And the heat helped when I finally thought to turn it on .... 20 min. before getting home.

Leah is 10 Months Old!

Wow...before you know it, I'll be planning her birthday party!

This is what we went through to get the 10 Month Pic!

Okay, here are the comparison pics.

9 Months

10 Months

Landscaping

Butch had a "free" day off work a couple of weeks ago because the Pope was in town and half of the student body was going to Mass. So, he did a lot of landscaping. The side of the house (the side that is seen as you drive up) had nothing.


And, now it has lots of shrubs and flowers. They are all fairly small right now, but it is such an improvement!

A Wedding = Adult Time

It's been a while since I've really had time to do any posts!


A few weekends ago, Butch and I got an afternoon out.....without kids.....for my cousin, Chet's wedding. The wedding (2:00) was full Catholic Mass and even though we aren't Catholic, the homily was pretty good. The reception (3:00) was at Olde Breton Inn (the same place we had our reception). When we came in, heavy hors d'ouevres were already being set out. Unfortunately, it seems they should not have been set out yet. The reception didn't include dinner, so really everyone should have waited for the bridal party before digging in. However....the wait staff was telling people to eat. We were still holding off at our table, but had decided (finally) since we were being told to eat, we should. While in line, the bridal party arrived....and I thought "this is silly, how can we see them be announced if we're standing in line". This is when I heard someone say "well they shouldn't be eating". So, the staff at Olde Breton Inn seems to have messed up. Oh well. There was plenty of food and the bridal party absolutely had enough to eat! By the way, we sat down after we heard the "well they shouldn't be eating" comment so we could see them walking in.


We didn't have a lot of time to really enjoy things since I wanted to get home to nurse Leah and get her ready for bed. We were initially trying to get home around 5:30, but ended up getting home around 6:30 or 6:45. (Kristin babysat.) There was a little time for drinks and dancing. Quite amazing watching Dad gettin' down. I hope I'm doing that at age 70!

Lacey & Leah's Well Visits

I took Lacey and Leah in for well visits a couple of weeks ago (April 1, actually). Lots of fun (sarcasm, sarcasm.....)! Lacey is quite afraid of stepping on a scale. No clue why. But, she won't do it at home either, so it isn't just the doctor's office. I finally convinced her to sit on the baby scale. Yes, she is 3 and she sat on the baby scale. I also had to really work to get her height. But....alas we did. She weighs 33 pounds and is 39 inches tall. Tall and skinny.

Leah was 19.5 pounds and 27.5 inches. She was also much easier to weigh. :-)

No shots for either of them...thankfully. However, I have lab slips (somewhere) for both girls...urine for Lacey and blood for Leah. I'm not rushing since I know how much fun both of those will be. (again....sarcasm, sarcasm.)

Of course, even though it was a "well visit" for both of them, they both had colds. Lacey walked out with a prescription for a boo-boo she had on her face. She had fallen face first into Miss Lisa's driveway a few days before and busted her lip and nose. The nose was starting to look pretty bad, so Dr. Jill fixed her up. After 1 application of the cream, the difference was noticable. After a couple of days, it was almost gone.

Maybe I won't need to go back to see the doc again until Leah is a year? Cross your fingers for me....

Kramer

Kramer (14 years old) has been losing weight. Yes, I have been thinking "here we go again". He used to be about 15-16 pounds. We noticed the weight loss couple of months ago, but since he was holding at about 10-11 pounds, I hadn't rushed him to the vet. There were way too many things on my to-do list. But, I finally got him in last Wednesday. They took blood and urine to run some tests. On Saturday, we found out he has hyperthyroidism. I was so relieved to here it is something treatable and that he doesn't have kidney disease. I've had enough of that.

They prescribed meds for him and since he doesn't do pills, it was called into our local pharmacy to be "compounded" into a liquid that tastes like chicken. :-) Of course, it's not like he'll drink it, but I feel better holding him down and squirting it in his mouth.

In 2 weeks, we have to go back for more blood work to make sure the doseage is okay. Sometimes they need to adjust it a bit.

A Dog on a Rainy Day

Yes, she got a bath. Need I say more?

Spring Break and Easter

Butch had a nice long spring break. He was off the Thursday & Friday before Easter and the whole week after Easter. Nice. We left for Pittsburgh on Thursday morning. What should be a 5 1/2 hour drive is more like 7 hours with 2 kids. Not bad, though.

Once we got into Pittsburgh, we stopped at Becky's house for a visit. Becky is someone from my February Sweethearts group. (We met online at Baby Center over 3 years ago.) Becky has 2 little ones under age 2 and is pregnant with her 3rd. I don't know where she gets the energy! Anyway, it was nice to meet her in person after all this time. Lacey was a bit quiet and shy around Cristian and Emma, but that's typical for her. She didn't want to leave their house, though.

After we left Becky's we drove another 45 min. to get to Chuck & Nancy's. Lacey fell asleep on the drive (when we were nearly there) and stayed in the car for a bit longer snoozing. It was a good visit, even though it was short. On Friday, we went to Shakespeare's for lunch since Lacey is obsessed with princesses at the moment. There aren't any princesses there, but she loved the castle.

We were back home for Easter. Lacey was excited about the Easter Bunny's visit and thrilled to discover the baskets left for her and Leah. We headed to Dee & Bucky's for "linner" (late lunch/early dinner.....the name comes from my friend, Tonya). Before Linner, Lacey got to hunt eggs in the yard. She loved it this year.

I took off Tuesday & Wednesday to use up some vacation from 2007. I wish I'd taken the entire week. It was good to get things done. I organized and packed away baby/kids clothing, we took lots of it and other things (bouncy seats, play mat, etc.) to the consignment shop (and made $165) and organized the basement a little. We also took time each day to watch a movie. Day 1 was Knocked Up and day 2 was Atonement. Two extremely different flicks, but they were both really good. I think I'm going to take 2 back to back days off in April, too. Unfortunately, Butch won't be off to help with bigger things, but it will still be good.

"I Pledge Allegiance...."

Leah - 9 Months Old!

How did this happen? My little baby is 9 months old! She started crawling about a week ago and has been nonstop ever since. Last night, she pulled herself up to a standing position for the first time! She's doing GREAT! I couldn't get her to sit still for pictures this month! :-)

9 Months

8 Months

Doc Visit, Pictures, Etc.

I finally got in to a doctor (from my slip/fall in the bathroom) on Wednesday. He didn't think I really had a head injury, but did think I was fighting a virus. Since I "had 2 things going on at once" (fall and virus), he wanted to do a CT Scan to be safe. That was done on Thursday and by then, my head-aches were completely gone. Seemed stupid to go, but oh well. Anyway, all must have been well since I didn't hear from him and I feel fine.

Saturday, we took the girls for pictures at Portrait Innovations. They do a great job and I wanted some of Lacey at age 3.....and some more of them together now that Leah is more active. Leah was difficult, though, because she didn't want to sit still. :-) She was all over the place. There were some great pics, though. Unfortunately, their printer was down, so we are waiting for them. They have this great package where you get TONS of pictures for a reasonable price (when you consider the number of pics). But, who needs all those pictures? We did that in the fall and it was fine since Christmas was coming & we sent a bunch out in New Year's cards. So, I decided we'd just buy what we needed. We probably have 30% (or less) of what we had in November and spent the same. Ugh. Oh well. I sort of wish we'd just bought the whole package now. I think this summer, I'm going to have a friend from work come out to do pics. She has a side business of photography and does an awesome job. She has a "sitting fee" plus the cost of the pictures, so I know it will be pricey. But, we'll probably only do it once a year from then on and she can do them at our house, with our pets, and has the benefit of really getting the kids in action.

Today, I took Lacey to Target to spend some of her birthday money. She (of course) picked out little Barbie's (Mariposa). And, they were naked in no time. Do all little girls do this? Sometimes she'll dress them again, but often, her dolls will be naked. Strange girl.

Thursday, we'll be leaving for Pittsburgh. We're taking Brady to a kennel the night before and a neighbor/student at Butch's school is going to cat sit. We're piling the girls in the van early on Thursday (7:30ish) and once we get into the Pittsburgh area, we'll be stopping to see Becky. She is one of the girls on my February Sweethearts board. (These are the women that I met online over 3.5 years ago. We were all pregnant and due to be first time moms in February 2005. Amazing how close we've stayed after all this time.) Anyway, I'll get to meet Becky and her two kiddos. After a visit there, we'll head to Grandma and Poppy's house for a couple of nights. Should be fun. I'm just hoping that Leah deals with the long drive well. Pray for me. :-) I know Lacey will be fine. She's got the DVD player and I've started a little stash of new treats for the car (magna doodle, paper, Easter Bunny is Comin' to Town DVD, etc.).

Leah is waking.......bye!

Leah - 8 months!

Well....I'm a little late this month getting this post up! But, here is Leah's 8 month picture.

8 Months

7 Months

She's doing great! She hasn't mastered crawling, yet. But, she is on her hands and knees a lot now. If she falls down to her chest, she scoots backwards pretty quickly. These days, it seems like she just wants to stand all the time......which means we spend a good deal of time on the floor, helping her stand.

This past week, she has been pretty cranky and it seems to be her teeth. She has 3 now, but evidently, another one (or more) is trying to come in. Last week at Miss Lisa's, she barely napped. One day, she napped 45 min. in the morning and that was it. Poor Miss Lisa.

Nighttime sleep has improved, though! I decided to be a little more of a hard ass and not go to her unless she'd been down for at least 6 hours. For the last 8 nights, we've had 4-5 that she's slept through completely. I actually got 7.5 hours of sleep one night and was amazingly rested. I don't think that's happened since very early pregnancy with Leah.

Binky....Pacifier.....

Lacey still loves her "binks". I'm considering going cold turkey and saying that we forgot them at Grandma and Poppy's house in Pittsburgh. That way, when we come back, oh well. I'm afraid, though!

Here is a post from a message board that I visit. It was quite funny and I hope she doesn't mind that I'm sharing. She titled it "Pacifier Throwdown". :-)

My daughter is a finger sucker. Not a thumb sucker or a pacifier user. She sucks her middle two fingers; I find it endearing.

For her first two weeks of life she took a pacifier, then gave it up forever. For a while, she would suck her wrists at night. From the bassinette it made a hilarious smacking sound. Finally she settled with the fingers.

The pacifier went into the memory box and it's been there for three years. Last night she found it. She recognized what it was and thought it was for her baby dolls. I explained that it was hers when she was a little baby. She put it into her mouth and gave it a try.

Instant addiction. I could see it in her eyes. I told her to put it back into the box and she was compliant, but then she took it out again.

Back into the box. Box on shelf. She suggested we keep the box in her bedroom instead. Knowing her for three years, I could spot that ruse a mile away. "You just want the box so you can use the pacifier." Deny, deny, deny.

She found a stepstool and got the box. Dug out the pacifier and popped it in her mouth. This time when I told her to put it back, she used slight of hand - she only pantomimed putting the pacifier back in the box. It was in her pocket.

Prestidigitation aside, and I do appreciate her effort, that pacifier was not going to be hers. I took it from her pocket and she snatched it off of me. Back into the mouth it went and she scrambled under the bed.

Always under the bed. Always, always. I'm going to attach a mop head to that child and make like it's medicine time... turn spring cleaning into a thing of the past.

So I fish the child out from under the bed but she takes off. She's quick. Wiley. And I'm a little bit stuck under the bed, so I had that slowing me down. I finally tracked her down; she was hiding in a closet happily sucking on that dang pacifier. I did the only thing a mean, evil mommy would do in my situation. I pulled it out of her mouth and put it too high for her to reach.

Left with no other option, she resorted to the final weapon of threedom. Screaming, crying, shaking, clawing and writhing on the ground. The sound of a parents' job well done. (Commonly heard only moments before my very own heart rips in two.)

Past Couple of Weeks

Well, the week after the girls' illnesses was somewhat normal. Chuck & Nancy came into town that Thursday for a visit. We had a bit of a wintry mix that Friday (which is the reason they came in a day sooner). Butch was off and we kept the girls home from daycare to avoid the icy roads.

Saturday, Nancy & I headed to the Crossing at Casey Jones for the Royal British Tradition Tea. We met Dee and Kristina there. It's such a nice time just going to relax. (Of course, this could be because with a 3 year old and an 8 month old, I don't get to do that much.)

The next week was a bit crazy. Miss Lisa's dad died on Monday afternoon. He'd been suffering from Alzheimer's for a couple of years and over the past several months began having other health issues. I know how sad and hard it is to lose a parent, so I thought about her a lot that week.

Of course, with daycare being closed, the girls were home again. Chuck & Nancy were still in town, but Nancy was still using a cane due to having knee surgery in January. So, I didn't think it would be good to leave them alone with both girls. (One being a 19 pound baby that needs to be carried around and up and down stairs.) It was a help having them around, though. I was able to work most of Tuesday, including conference calls, without much interruption. In fact, I headed into the office with Lacey, to pick up some papers. Butch took off on Wednesday so I could go to a client meeting. Then, I was home on Thursday & Friday. Chuck & Nancy actually left on Thursday after my morning meeting. And, Butch took off Friday morning so I could work and do a conference call. I gave up on work that afternoon and just took the afternoon off! I was too tired from balancing it all.

That weekend, Kristin had her House Warming party. She's about an hour away - in Northern VA. It was nice and we loved her place. Lots of yummy food. But, the girls weren't happy being on the floor by themselves and it started to get crowded, so we left. Leah cried from Waldorf to our house (about 20-25 min.) nonstop. Ugh. This makes me quite worried about the 5-6 hour drive to Pittsburgh.

Let's see......where are we?

The next week was pretty normal. And, last weekend was quiet. Butch had to work on Sunday at an open house for school. That was just a few hours, though.

And, now we are back into a work week. Today I was only in the office for a couple of hours before heading to Gaithersburg for a lunch and meeting. Tomorrow I'm working at home. That's good since I'm thinking I may need to see a doctor for this concussion (?). I hate to bother going when there is most likely nothing to be done, but I think I'll feel better about it.

A Concussion???

On Saturday, I was getting out of the shower and heard the phone ringing. I wasn't "rushing", but thought I'd try to get it. (I was waiting for a call back from the kennel to get an estimate on boarding Brady and they are tough to get in touch with.) My first step was on the bath mat. The second step on the linoleum. And, my foot went right out from under me. My head hit the wall really hard. I sat there for a few seconds taking stock of how I was and decided I'd be sore, but was otherwise okay. I had a bruise on my ankle and a knot, plus some swelling and a scrape on my arm. Today.....2 days later, I'm thinking I have a concussion. I keep having dizzy spells. I think I'll be calling the doctor tomorrow.

Lacey's 3rd Birthday

Lacey turned 3 on February 23! Wow! The celebrations actually started the Monday before. We were closed for President's Day and the girls were home with Butch & me. Lacey & I went to Build a Bear for some fun. She made a stuffed cat named.....are you ready?......Kitty. :-) And, we dressed her in Snow White attire. After Build a Bear, we headed to The Children's Place for a bit of shopping, then off to lunch at Red Robin.

Saturday was her actual birthday. Even though her party was planned for Sunday, we couldn't *not* celebrate on Saturday, right? So, it was pizza for dinner and some chocolate cake with ice cream for dessert. We also let her have a couple of gifts that night. Nancy made her a Sleeping Beauty dress, which she (of course) had to immediately put on. Butch & I gave her an easel (chalk board, white board, art paper, etc.) and Sleeping Beauty had to get right to her art work.


Day 3 of celebrations was Sunday. Everyone came over for Chick Fil A. Yum-o. Lacey was thrilled with all of her gifts. She got lots of Princess things (including a nightgown which she changed into) and books, etc. Dad got her (okay, I got it from him) a Princess Scooter. She was quite pleased with it, too. Then, on to the GOOD stuff. Carvel Ice Cream Cake. With Barbie the Island Princess on it. (Yes, she is wearing the nightgown she got.....)

Monday was the daycare party. Yep. Another party. Chuck, Nancy & I headed to Miss Lisa's for lunch and also brought a cupcake cake with little Disney Princesses on it. Lacey, Logan & Mary Kate were all happy.So, Lacey had a great birthday. It's just amazing to me that she is 3.

Momnesia?

Dee sent me a link to an article a few days ago. Many of you may already have seen the story since I've heard it on a few radio shows, etc. Many things associated with having a baby (sleep deprivation, hormone changes and stress to name a few) can reduce memory. Interesting, but certainly not surprising! As I read on another blog yesterday "amazingly enough I can usually remember where every single miscellaneous item is in my house for whenever my kids (and husband) whine “moooommm… where is the (fill in the blank)?”

I know that I lost a lot of sleep when Lacey was born....and have lost a lot in these past 8 months. But, wow. A mom loses between 450-700 hours of sleep in the baby's first year alone. Gulp. No wonder I can't stay up past 9:00 most nights.

As poor as a new momma's memory might be, and as much in a 'fog' as she may seem to be, a mother tends to have increased awareness for the health and safety of their child. Well, at least that becomes the complete focus.

Take me, for example. I'll fess up to something I did when Leah was about 10 weeks old. It was the week before she started daycare and I need to boil all the new bottle nipples I'd bought. So, I put them on the stove while she was napping. Then, she cried. And, I went to her. And completely forgot that the stove had water on with nipples getting ready to boil. I was focused entirely on getting her back to sleep..........and the smoke detector went off.

We have smoke detectors that have cried wolf many times. So, I was *sure* it was acting up. I called Butch to complain and ask how to fix it. But, when I walked back in the house (I'd stepped out with Leah because of the noise), I smelled smoke. When I came into the kitchen, the flames were a few feet high. Yes. That's right. I about freaked. Set Leah on the deck in her bouncy, put out the fire and aired the house out.

So, it is of no surprise to me that there is something labeled Momnesia.

This Past Week

Last Friday I attended the gala I had mentioned before. It was nice and (happily) went by more quickly than usual. It seems like they gave fewer awards. Tiki Barber was the guest speaker. And, Lindsay Czarniak was the MC. I like her, so that was cool. I got home around 11:00ish.

Saturday, Agnes & Trampas arrived around noon. We just hung out all afternoon....tending to sick kids. Dee & Kristin came over around 5:00ish to babysit for us while we went to dinner at The Tides. Mmmmm. It's expensive, but good. And, since we rarely go to out to eat, we deserve it. :-) Ag & Tramp left on Sunday morning around 10:00 since it's about a 7 hour drive and he had to get up for work at 3:30 a.m. Monday morning.

It's good that they left that early since Leah was so sick. As soon as they were gone, I packed up the diaper bag and took her to the After Hours place. They diagnosed her with bronchiolitis and said she might even have pneumonia, but without a chest x-ray (which couldn't be done on Sunday), they didn't know. So, they put her on 4 meds. Yes. 4. Cefdinir (antibiotic), Albuterol, Prednisolone and over the counter Claritin. She slept horribly that night.

Since they suggested she see her regular ped on Monday, we went to see Dr. Jill. Thankfully, Dr. Jill took her off Prednisolone and Claritin. She said that they had either overreacted or that Leah had improved quickly. Then, I read more about Albuterol and was amazed at the side effects. I'd read them all the day before, but since they'd said "possibly pneumonia", I wasn't messing with it. After Jill's more relaxed view, I decided to take her off the Albuterol (it was for "as needed" anyway). Good decision. She (and I) slept SO MUCH BETTER Monday night.

Lacey has been fighting a cold for a couple of weeks now. I kept her & Leah home Monday & Tuesday. At daycare, they go outside at around noon to get one girl on the preK bus. I wasn't crazy about 2 little ones with lung and cold issues being outside since we were having a cold snap.

On Tuesday, Lacey started with a low-grade fever. But, she wasn't letting me check her temp in her left ear (ear infection?), so I took her to the After Hours place that night. During the rain/ice. Blah. Ears were clear. "Just a cold". But, we at least got an Rx for a nice decongestant/cough med that allowed her to sleep much better.

Since Lacey was still dealing with a fever, we kept her home again on Wed. Butch stayed home that day and I went to the office. Leah went to daycare.

This morning, I was really thinking everyone would be back in daycare. But, it wasn't meant to be. Lacey had eye discharge. Pink-eye. Back to the pediatrician at 10:00 where he confirmed pink-eye and wrote an Rx for an antibiotic. Hooray! Kill those germs! He said he thinks she's had a sinus infection, which lead to the pink-eye. She's been given the okay to go back to Miss Lisa's tomorrow.

Whew. What a week.

Butch has today off due to "snow". This is a joke since it was barely an inch. He went into the office this a.m. to do a few things, but has been home this afternoon so I can work more easily. He's running the veggies and dip to Miss Lisa's for their afternoon Valentine's Party that Lacey can't even be at. And, I've promised her that we'll make cupcakes.

Tonya will be in town for work on Friday and was planning to stay the night with us. But, now her parents are coming for a somewhat unexpected visit and she is trying to get home Friday night.

Butch was supposed to go to DE to play in a volleyball tourny, but (thankfully) volunteered to stay home since we've had such a rough week and the kids aren't really better yet.

I don't think we'll be doing much of anything this weekend other than catching our breath.

Nursing in Public

Okay, when I have nursed Leah in public (even at the Charles County Fair....), I always have used a blanket. And, there is no way I could do it now because she is way too interested in everything around her.

But, this comic is great!

February is here!

What the heck happened to January? It really flew by for me.

We got a new computer armoire and set it up in our sunroom. It's much nicer to have the computer in our living area rather than in a guest bedroom upstairs. It makes it nicer for me with working from home, too. I use the laptop, but it's nice to have a "workspace" downstairs where I usually work.

I took Friday off to try to get some things checked off my to-do list. I didn't get nearly as much done as I wanted to, but that's okay. I knew I had too much on the list. I did get some things (summer baby and summer maternity) taken to the Just for Kids consignment shop down the street. Rather than getting a portion of whatever they sell, they just buy your stuff upfront. So, they have the big bin and will call me once they've gone through it all and I'll pick up a check plus anything they "couldn't take".

Then, I went to the mall to look for something to wear to the gala that I have to go to Feb. 8. I found a glittery red top that I can wear with a black skirt that was borrowed from my boss. No way am I spending $100+ on something that (a) I won't wear again (most likely) and (b) is a size bigger than where I would like to be. So, I'm glad I was able to get something to work without spending a ton.

I went to Target, too. Lately, I can't get out without spending $175 or so. This is mainly b/c I stock up on diapers when I go. Anyway, it was raining so hard that I heard it in the store .... on the roof. Ugh. I had no umbrella. I bought a new one.

Lacey is doing pretty well. She has a cold, but is starting to recover from that. She's doing well sleeping in her big girl bed. We still have the crib up just because I don't want to deal with taking it down yet. :-) I'm hoping we can sell it on craig's list for $100 or so. She has been doing really well with using the potty at Miss Lisa's, but won't use it at home at all. I have no clue why that is. She'll be going in for her well visit in a few weeks, so I'll see what Dr. Jill thinks. I have lots of friends that haven't had their kids trained until 3+, so I'm not "worried", but I would love to be done with buying diapers for her.

We aren't doing much this weekend. The weather is warm (50's), but it poured yesterday, so it's really muddy out. Blah. We need to do some straightening up and cleaning and organizing the guest room since Agnes & Trampas will be here next weekend. Hopefully we will make it to church tomorrow morning, too.

Can't remember if I mentioned it before, but I am going to NY on Tuesday for a client meeting. I'll be leaving the house at 6:15 a.m. and not getting home until 7:00 p.m. or later. Not normally a bad thing, but with Leah still nursing and me having to pump during that time, it's a pain to travel even for a day. Oh well. My flight gets in early enough that I should be able to pump at the airport before going to the meeting. And my contacts for this client are both women, so if I need to use an office to pump there, it won't be too weird.

Then, on Friday I have the client gala I mentioned earlier. It's at 6:30 (I think) downtown. I'm going to work remote that day and pick Leah up earlier than normal so that I can at least nurse her before going downtown. I won't be home until 11:00 or so, so Butch is on his own that evening. I'll be ducking out of the gala about 5 min. before it's done so I can be one of the first to get my car from the valet....otherwise, I'll be waiting forever and getting home that much later. It's a nice event, but they give way too many awards and speeches, so by the end it's boring.

Lacey's calling me......

Leah - 7 months old!

Yes, I'm going to do this every month until she is a year! :-)

7 Months Old

6 Months Old

I can't believe she is 7 months old. She's so much fun. There are a few songs that she loves. When we sing them, she kicks like crazy (or jumps if she's in a standing position). One of them is Itsy Bitsy Spider. She hasn't figured out how to get on her hands & knees, yet. But, she scoots while on her butt like crazy. If you put her down, she'll be several feet away within a few minutes.