BloggingBeth

Tooth

2012-02-05T13:24:00.000-07:00

Lilly got her first tooth a few weeks back. It was actually the same day as she was pronounced "free from dairy free". So, lets see that was back on January 16th. For the record books, that would mean that she was 8 months and 3 days old. We didn't even know she was teething. It just kind of snuck in. It was that night at dinner that I was singing grace and she was smiling up at me, and I noticed a little white cap at her gum line. Sure enough her bottom left tooth had popped thru. I thought that the next one was fast on the heels of the other, but it has yet to make an appearance, and it seems to be giving her a hard time too.

I haven't blogged it till now, because ~~I've been lazy and busy~~ I wanted to make sure I could have a photo of said tooth.

Surgery Went Well

2012-02-01T10:09:00.001-07:00

Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. Chic made it through surgery with flying colors. The doctor did a little bit more work than anticipated, but for the time being, he is good to go. There is a chance that plack will build up in the same area in the future, but we will cross that bridge if we get there.

A huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders for the moment. We learned a lot this week, but had a lot of extra stress due to incomplete/ inaccurate documents. Here is a word of advice to every single one of you: I don't care how old you are, what your family situation looks like, or how healthy you think you are, make sure you have those important documents in order. There are five of them that you should have: living will, medical power of attorney, financial power of attorney, will, and last wishes. If you have these documents already, kudos to you. However, if you haven't looked at them in the last two years, or if your relationships have changed recently, I strongly recommend that you review and update if needed. If you are in Colorado, and you need an attorney to draft these documents for you, I can recommend my Aunt Jenny: The Law Offices of Jennifer S. Gormley. Please, PLEASE, have these things in order, and do it ASAP! Its just plain rude to not have these things taken care of. Oh, and when you get these done, please tell the people that you have named as your agents that they are now responsible for some part of your life and let them know where to find said documents.

Whew, ok, I'm done.

Surgery for Jon's Dad

2012-01-27T14:19:00.001-07:00

Jon's dad, Chic, is going in for surgery on Monday. Any prayers, happy thoughts, positive energy, etc, you could send our way would be appreciated. He is having a blockage removed in his carotid artery. It is a risky surgery because he had radiation therapy in this area ten years ago and this makes the tissue much more difficult to handle during surgery and it may not heal as well as it should. Chic is a fighter, though.

Splash Lilly

2012-01-27T14:02:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot- but I didn't! A loooong looooong time ago, on January 2, 2012, we took the girls swimming at the APEX center. It was Lilly's first time swimming. It took her a while to warm up, but she eventually started to smile and seem to enjoy the water. She was very clingy to Jon and I for the majority of the time. She was so super darn cute in her little tutu swim suit.

Cecilia had a fantastic time. Her confidence with the water and all things slide related is scary really. She has no fear. She had so much fun. There are no photos of this because, two adults + two tiny kids in the water = no free hands. So you're just going to have to trust me on this. She was so excited to go down all of the slides. She was all over the kids jungle-jim water adventure thing. Then we took the girls to the bigger pool and Cecilia and I went down the BIG slide over and over and over again. She had so much fun, until she threw up a tiny bit on the stairs going up to the slide again. I swear it was a tiny bit, and there was enough water on the step to wash it off with. Don't judge. It was really a tiny bit, and we left the pool immediately. I wish I could take the girls swimming more often, but one adult and two girls in the water is a recipe from disaster.

FREE from Dairy-Free

2012-01-16T20:37:00.002-07:00

It has been six months and three weeks since any dairy product has graced my mouth (aside from a few bites a few months ago, but that doesn't really count). We were back in the doctors office today because Cecilia has been throwing up since Friday morning. She will be fine, and is at the tail end of a viral influenza. We got the results back today from the allergy test on Lilly. It came back negative for ALL allergies! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!?!? I can't! I'm still in shock. I was so happy I hugged my doctor. I am so happy to have a healthy baby girl! She is even cuter now! Just kidding. Maybe. So for the constipation issues, we will just be adding prune juice to her diet via oatmeal and sippy-cup (eventually), and that should help to get things moving until her system is mature enough to handle the new foods.

Jon was working a tad late and in a secure area, so I wasn't able to get a hold of him to tell him right away. The first thing I did when we got home was post to FB, because I was THAT EXCITED!!! The second thing I did was order PIZZA. Oh, pizza, how I have missed you! The third thing I did was get the butter that has been mocking me out of the fridge and make my famous chocolate chip cookies! Yep, I made cookies at 6:10pm on a Monday night.

I'm so glad I didn't do the grocery shopping today and decided to wait till tomorrow, because my entire menu has to be changed. That's right people, bring on the lasagna, macaroni and cheese, casseroles, mashed potatoes, and baked goods. Oh my goodness! No more liquid cardboard (soy milk)! Bring on the Italian food! Bring on the lattes! Bring on the cheese! Bring on the butter! Bring on the CHOCOLATE!!! Do you know what this means? This means that I can try any of the delicious recipes from Pioneer Woman and Pinterest! If you notice my weight gain over the next few months, you will know what to blame :)

Ok, I'm a dork, I know. Yes, my baby is trying to jump out of her seat, she is safe now and we have started buckling her in immediately. The bags under my eyes are from Cecilia's weekend of throwing up :)

(SORRY FOR THE CAPS AND OVER USE OF THE !!! I'M JUST TRYING TO CONVEY MY EXCITEMENT!!!!)

I am Catholic, Offended and Sad

2012-01-16T19:51:00.000-07:00

So here's the deal. I'm Catholic from the cradle, and by choice as an adult. I've had my ebbs and flows with the Church, but in the last five or so years, my faith and my understanding of the Church has grown so much. I am humbled every time I go to Mass, and I am so eternally grateful to have the Catholic Church as my compass. I have no intention of turning this blog into a Catholic digest of sorts, but since late last year I have felt the need to be more open about my beliefs and my spiritual life. It is not my intention to turn any of you ten faithful readers away, and if this post is not your cup-o-tea, try back later for a different flavor. I assure you, my girls will continue to be the main focus of the blog- they are just too darn cute!

I got pretty riled up inside last week, and I felt that this was a good place to share more publicly my personal feelings on the matter. I'm sure that several of you saw the video that ambushed You Tube and FaceBook late last week (if not, there is a link below). I couldn't help but feel angry and offended at first. It seemed backhanded and passive-aggressive to me. And then, later I felt so sad for all of the people that whole heartedly liked the video and thought it was a genuine Christian testimony. I felt sad because they do not understand the gifts, tools, grace and beauty that the Catholic Church has to offer them. They mock and criticize what they do not understand. To me it is the saddest and cruelest form of bullying. Protestant or Catholic, we are all Christians, and have Jesus at our core. As a child and teen, I never knew that there were other Christians that had hatred towards Catholics. It has only been in the last three to five years that my eyes have been opened to other Christians that have anti-Catholic feelings, and share those feelings as if they were their religion. I was brought up in the Catholic Church as a Christian and taught to love my neighbor and respect the differences that we might have. How does my way of faith and religion affect your relationship with God? If you do not agree with how I practice my faith, fine. But do not judge and condemn what you do not understand. Ask questions to the source. Study your Bible more closely- I guarantee its all in there.

I am a Catholic, that is my religion. My religion gives me the guidelines and the tools to deepen my relationship with Christ. And my relationship with Jesus, well that's between Jesus and I. But I can tell you this, it wouldn't be what it is without the religion that He gave us. The history and Tradition of Christianity is preserved completely in the Catholic Church, from Jesus to Peter to every pope and priest there after.

To see the video that started it all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY&feature=player_embedded

To see some great responses to the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwetTNAGC44

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dqnfz4y8uA

http://vimeo.com/35046708

To read some great responses:

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/badcatholic/2012/01/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-smackdow.html

http://youngandcatholic.net/2012/01/why-i-love-jesus-and-religion/

http://marysaggies.blogspot.com/2012/01/does-jesus-hate-religion-should-you.html

Like a Rock

2012-01-12T11:01:00.000-07:00

Warning: This post may or may not contain details about bodily functions of a certain small person living in my home. I'm pretty sure she'll forgive me someday for telling the entire internet about her issues, seeing as how she is only 8 months old, and well, I gave birth to her :)

My little Lilly is awfully backed up. She's just been getting worse and worse since we started her on solid food. On Tuesday she was straining so hard that she caused her bum to have sores and start bleeding. My poor baby! I took her into the doctor yesterday, because I've had it, and she is obviously in severe pain trying to do something that everyone else can do without causing blood. The doc was concerned that it could be food allergy related and doesn't want to take any chances with Lil's history. So, she had to have blood drawn. It was terrible to have to hold your baby down so they could stick a needle in her tiny precious arm. AND, they didn't get it on the first arm, so we had to do both! She was trooper though. She didn't even cry on the first arm. She wailed on the second arm- so much so that two other doctors and another nurse checked in on us to see if everything was ok. We are supposed to get results on Friday, but I wouldn't be surprised if I don't hear anything until Monday. I'm so anxious about the results. Of course, my hope is that she has no allergies, and that she is not allergic to dairy any more, and that this is just a simple case of constipation. I have a feeling that this is not the case though. We will have to wait and see. Until then, happy pooping, I hope it comes out alright.

Looking to the New Year

2012-01-03T17:45:00.000-07:00

While 2011 had its high points, I feel like I was in idle for most of the year in areas of my life that should never be idle. For example, the busyness of having two kids and Jon staring a new job made date night, or any quality time, with Jon practically obsolete. Similar things can be said for other areas of my life: spiritually, my business, family time, the house, etc. That being said, I have a lot I want to accomplish this year, and I feel like writing them down will keep me accountable to them.

Personal/Family

Date night once a month, minimum

Use the reusable fabric grocery bags

Spend at least 10 minutes per day in prayer or with scripture

Update the family blog at least once per week

Have a family activity at least once per month

Go on a weekend get-away trip, sans kids, in the Fall

Business

Learn LightRoom

Rebrand Fries the Moment Design

Blog for Fries the Moment Design at least twice a month

Update FaceBook for Fries the Moment Design at least once a week

Get 500 "Likes" on FaceBook by the end of the year

Home

Finish the master bathroom

Update the basement, drywall the ceiling, lighting, doors

Redo the electrical in the house

Replace the furnace

We'll see how far we get on the home section, but at least its a goal, and we can prioritize it. I'm determined to get out of idle and into 2nd gear at least. Here's to 2012!

Sink Bath

2011-12-31T13:35:00.000-07:00

Back on December 16th (FOREVER ago!), I took the girls down to Ma & Pa's for the traditional sink bath for Lilly. You might remember Cecilia doing this when she was pint sized too. This was a first for Ma's sink. It was the first time in all history of the sink bath that two GIRLS were in together. We "helped" set up the tree skirt and the train at the base of the tree too. The girls had a great time, and Lilly enjoyed her bath, and so did Cecilia. I love this tradition (and the adorable photos it produces).

Check out Lilly's new dance moves. She started dancing just a few days before this. Its adorable how she waves her arms and tries to jump out of her sitting spot.

Christmastime 2011

2011-12-30T14:40:00.000-07:00

The girls and I headed up to my parents house on the Monday before Christmas with Pat and Sarah. It was such a treat to spend 6 days up the hill with my family. Jon had to work and met up with us on Wednesday night. My Dad had (minor) surgery on Wednesday afternoon, so Jon and my parents drove up in a convoy, in an awful snow storm together. We had so much fun building puzzles, playing with the girls, baking, cooking, watching movies. There was a gingerbread castle that was constructed by Pat, Sarah, Lizzie and Dan. The final decorating was completed by Megan and Sarah. It turned out beautifully! It looked like the Candy Land Castle. The only down part about the trip was the nasty stomach bug that cycled through just about everybody. I had it first on Sunday, the day before we left. Then Cecilia got it on Tuesday, then it quickly went on to Pat, Petey, Sarah and Mom. YUCK! The good part was that it was a quick bug, and involved throwing up for only a few hours and then a 12-24 hour recovery period.

The storm rolling in over the mountains. It was eerie!

We celebrated Christmas as a family on Christmas Eve morning. Santa(s) came the night before and filled the stockings and left bunches of gifts under the tree. We were so excited to see Cecilia's reaction when she came up the stairs. She didn't even see all the presents at first, instead she came right to me for a hug. That made me melt :). Then se saw the gifts and she quickly took inventory circling the tree base with a very serious and calculating face. It was adorable. We let here tear into her stocking while every one else woke up. Lilly was less than thrilled about the situation. She just wanted to be held and could care less about her stocking. We opened gifts as a family. Santa spoiled us this year! We got lots of things that were on our list, including new chisels for Jon, a new camera strap and bag for me, clothes for Lilly, and lots of books for Cecilia. The girls also got a tent and tunnel from Santa. It is so much fun!

After the gifts were all opened, I was trying to get everything packed up and Cecilia really wanted to throw the ball for the dogs. Someone found her outside shirtless (because it had gotten spilled on) and with Uncle Pete's shoes on. It was hysterical! She didn't care that it was only about 20 degrees outside, she was having a ball!

We all headed down the hill to Ma and Pa's house for the big Christmas Eve gathering. It was packed! We had over 30 adults and countless little ones. My cousin Keeghan and his girlfriend Amanda were in town, and it was great to see them. My girls had so much fun watching the train at the base of the tree. I adore their matching dresses! I really did try to get a picture of my girls and my family that night. It was terrible though, the pics of the girls aren't even worth posting, and this was the best we got of the family. Ha!

I was so happy to be home and able to spend Christmas morning with just my family. Santa came, of course! Cecilia and Lilly each got a kitchen set from Santa. C was thrilled, Lilly just wanted to be held that early in the morning ( are you seeing a trend here??). We headed of to church first thing, and then came home and opened gifts. I did manage to get a decent picture of the girls together Christmas morning. Cecilia was spoiled this year. What can I say, it was so much fun to shop for her this year! A train set, Magna-Doodle, and block set, were all part of her stash this year. They have all been a hit too :) Lilly was thrilled to play with the paper and other packaging, when we let her. She also got new clothes.

We spent the afternoon and evening with Jon's mom. The girls loves playing with Grandma Cheryl!

And the next evening we spent with Jon's dad.

We feel so blessed this year. It was wonderful to be able to celebrate with all of our family, and spend some quality time with each of them. We had such a nice week of celebrating, but I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't pooped by the end of it all. I was definitely ready for some normalcy to return. I loved watching Cecilia experience the magic this year, and I think that next year will be even more exciting for us.

Christmas Card

2011-12-28T19:46:00.003-07:00

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Fries'. Here is our card from this year (designed by yours truly).

If you've followed the blog for the year, you know just about everything on the back of the card. It is our year-in-review. Here is the text in an easier to read format:

We have been so blessed this year! The biggest headline for the Fries family was the addition of Lillian Jeanne. After a very long and eventful labor, she was born safely on May 13, 2011. We keep remarking at how different our girls are, given that they came from the same pantry of ingredients. Lilly is happy, quiet, and overall very content. When she was brand new, she wasn’t keeping any food down. We eventually found out that she has a milk protein allergy. Because of this, I have had no dairy since she was about 6 weeks old. For the record, this is not a diet that I plan to continue after she is done nursing, I miss cheese! She is crawling around, trying to keep up with her big sister.

Cecilia has grown so much this year. Her vocabulary is increasing everyday. She turned two in July, and she is fitting all of the stereotypes for that age perfectly. She is definitely the driving energy in the house. We joke that she has two speeds, sleep and 300 MPH. She started preschool this fall. She goes two mornings a week for four hours and she loves it.

Jon started a new job at the beginning of the year. He was hired on at Ball Aerospace as a Software Engineer. It has been a much better fit for him and our family. He is working on a large project that has the potential to carry him far into his career. Jon went hunting for elk (or as I say, gallivanting in the woods) this fall. He saw several elk, but we will still be frequent shoppers at Costco for next year’s protein.

The girls have been my priority. This year especially I feel so blessed and grateful to be their Mom. I am trying to enjoy every moment, even when Cecilia has cracked a dozen eggs on the floor while I take a five minute shower. I have taken on the MOPS Coordinator role at my church. We have a wonderful group of moms this year, and so far it has been very fulfilling. I have been designing all year with my business, Fries the Moment Design. I enjoy the creativity and the break from the day-to-day routine it provides.

The house has remained largely unchanged this year. Jon and my Dad redid the plumbing in March. The galvanized pipes were rusting through in so many places. The new PEX tubing has made a huge difference. We traveled out to Virginia in July for a Schelke Family reunion and we also had some time with the Shuler relatives. It was nice to get away and to visit with family that we only see every three years. The girls were fantastic travelers. My parents earned big gold stars for helping me with two-under-two get across the country and back!

We hope that you and yours are enjoying the holiday season. We are happy to have you in our circle of family and friends. We wish you many blessings for 2012.

Love,
Jon, Beth, Cecilia, and Lilly Written by Beth Fries, Editor in Chief

Soup is SO the New Casserole, A Recipe for You

2011-12-21T16:08:00.001-07:00

When you are on a dairy free diet, casseroles become obsolete. Just about every casserole recipe I use or want to use has cheese, milk, or Cream of _____ Soup in it. In the colder months, I love making casseroles, but this year, I've learned the value of a good soup. Jon is still adjusting (I think its a man thing- for some reason they don't consider soup to be a main dish). Here is a new favorite at our house: Black Bean Chicken Soup. I like it because it requires absolutely no cutting or chopping. I have to open a few cans and a package of chicken to open and that's it. This also means that I can safely make a full meal with a baby on my hip :) It also freezes and reheats really well.

Here is the recipe:

1 cup salsa
2 cans black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can diced green chilies
2-3 cups chicken broth
2 chicken breasts

Add the salsa into a pan over medium heat, bring to a sizzle. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot, reserving a quarter of the tomatoes chillies. Bring to a boil and let it cook for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts and shred. I've discovered (via Pinterest) the easiest and fastest way to shred the chicken is via Kitchen Aid Mixer. While the chicken is shredding, turn heat off and puree the soup using a hand held emulsion blender, or your food processor. It doesn't have to be completely pureed (I like it a little chunky). Set the Add the chicken, reserved tomatoes and chilies back into the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste. If needed add more broth to bring to desired consistency. Let simmer for at least 5 minutes. Serve with warm tortillas.

Those are baked avocado fries on the left there (YUMMY). Find the recipe for those here.

We have a Crawling Lilly!

2011-12-21T14:54:00.001-07:00

December 7th, just a week shy of 7 months old, Lilly officially began her crawling career. She is all over the place. There is no where she can't get to. She has also has been caught pulling her self up on the couch, and the other day, I caught her trying to stand up on her own! YIKES! I am happy that she is crawling in the typical fashion of left-right, hands and knees. Her sister never mastered that one. Cecilia did this funny monkey crawl/walk thing. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I wont be surprised if she is walking around 9 months. GO LILLY!

Decorating for the Season

2011-12-21T14:18:00.003-07:00

We started our decorating early this year because we knew we were going to be at Grandma and Pops' all weekend. Not much is different this year. The changes include a fourth stocking (I still need to take a picture of that), some new ornaments and a new little person interested in the tree. So far so good. This year, Cecilia got to help Daddy put the angel on top of the tree. She was so cute about it. She was fascinated, and so proud when it was finished.

One of our new ornaments is our "Debt Free Ornament". It was inspired by Dave Ramsey from last Christmas.

Fun at Grandma's over Thanksgiving

2011-12-20T11:15:00.001-07:00

I know we are days away from Christmas, but its never too late to document the fun we had at Grandma's house over Thanksgiving this year. It started with picking up Petey at the airport, and then heading up the hill to join Ma, Pa, and Aunt Jenny for the festivities.

The fun started with Reindeer games on the couch with Ma, Aunt Jenny, and Lilly. And a mischievous toddler with some pennies. And yes, all of the pennies did end up on the floor.

This year we shared our Thanksgiving meal with 50 others from my parents community at the new Community Center. It was open to any and all who wanted to share a meal together. My family contributed 5 turkeys, stuffing, rolls, and I made my butternut squash soup. Everybody else brought a side to share as well. The strangest thing to me was there was no green salad! On five tables full of food, there was nothing green. I guess those mountain folk need the heavier sides to stick to their ribs for the cold winters.

Grandma was pretty whooped the day after the feast. She napped with Ginger until the girls thought she should get on the floor and play with her.

Then there was cookie making, a tea party to be had, and cards to play.

Lilly got to take a bath in Grandma's sink. I just LOVE how these photos turned out!

The girls had so much fun playing with Uncle Pete on this trip. I think Pete had just as much fun.

Neglected Blog

2011-12-16T20:12:00.003-07:00

Hello my poor neglected blog. I still love you. You are still the keeper of my family history. Yes, I know, A lot has happened in the last THREE weeks. I'm sorry. I promise to share it all with you very soon. After the shopping, and wrapping, and card designing, and party throwing, and blanket making, and traveling have all simmered, I promise to share with you all about the last trip to Grandma's house, the crawling and pulling up that the baby is doing, the sick toddler, the decorating that has happened, and the sink bath that the girls had at Ma & Pa's today and much more. Until then, I leave you with these adorable faces.

Photo Challenge Day 30 - You again…

2011-12-03T14:10:00.001-07:00

I'm cheating again on this one. Jon snapped this one of me several weeks ago. I like it well enough though for it to work for this post. He's learning how to use the camera too after all.

Photo Challenge Day 29 - Shoes

2011-12-03T14:08:00.001-07:00

Little shoes are my favorite. These red ones have been featured before. They are Cecilia's favorite. They squeak when she walks- best invention EVER! She likes to make the squeak, and I can always know where she is :) And these little Lilly shoes, they are actually socks, but people think they are shoes all the time.

Photo Challenge Day 28 - Looking In

2011-12-03T14:00:00.001-07:00

I caught Cecilia with the camera washing her hands. She has become obsessed lately with washing her hands. Its a good thing. We are working on just how much soap she really needs though...

Photo Challenge Day 27 - Fill the Frame

2011-12-03T13:59:00.001-07:00

Its beginning to look like Christmas around here. This is part of the wreath on the front door.

Photo Challenge Day 26 - A device that you own but never use/touch

2011-12-03T13:53:00.001-07:00

VC-What???

Cecilia thinks that this device is for storing toys. She has no idea what its purpose actually is. She may never know. The only time it gets used is for Jon to watch Star Wars or Star Trek. And that only happens about once every year and a half, maybe.

Photo Challenge Day 25 - Sunrise, Sunset

2011-12-03T13:03:00.001-07:00

My parents are lucky to see so many beautiful sunsets where they live. The Continental Divide makes for a mighty wonderful scene. Fortunately, I was able to capture this one while we were there. Its pretty, but if I'm being honest, I've seen much more spectacular sunsets from their deck.

Photo Challenge Day 24 - Seeing Red

2011-12-03T12:57:00.001-07:00

And TURKEY!

On Thanksgiving day the boys played pool at the Community Center where we had our feast. Lucky for me the pool table was red.

Photo Challenge Day 23 - Get Low

2011-12-03T12:52:00.001-07:00

I got the wheels on my wagon fixed, so here we go.

We spent about 4 days at my parents house over Thanksgiving. My brother, Pete, grandparents and my aunt were also up for the festivities. Pa loves my Lillian Jeanne. This melted my heart when he got down on the floor to play with her.

Cecilia also thought she would try to sit in a little play chair. The girls fought over grandma when she was laying on the floor with them. Too cute!

Wheels

2011-11-30T19:27:00.003-07:00

The wheels on my wagon have fallen off. I feel like I've hit a whole new level of exhaustion. I should be in bed at this moment. Jon even insisted that I not even come down stairs to do the 10 minutes worth of work that I have to do. I have the photos, well, most of them. I will post them when I get the wheels back on and my head is above water again. Does this post even make any sense???

Delay

2011-11-25T18:12:00.001-07:00

We are visiting my parents, and the iPad is not doing my photos the justice they deserve. So, days 23-26 of the photo challenge and a Thanksgiving post will grace the blog on Sunday. Until then, have a blessed weekend.

Photo Challenge Day 22 - Seeing Patterns & Shapes

2011-11-22T19:29:00.001-07:00

Photo Challenge Day 21 - A Bright Idea

2011-11-21T19:32:00.001-07:00

I had SO MUCH FUN with this challenge today! We started decking the halls around here yesterday, so all of the Christmas lights have slowly made it upstairs. I saw an awesome idea on Pinterest, and had to give it a try. I'm pretty happy with how these turned out. It was fun to photograph the girls with the only light source as Christmas lights. There is no way I could get these results with our old camera. I put some of these in black and white, and I don't know what I like better. Thoughts??

Photo Challenge Day 20 - Up!

2011-11-20T20:08:00.001-07:00

My 6 month old must have know the photo assignment was Up! today. She pulled herself up to a standing position in her crib! I was totally shocked and had to do a double take as I was changing Cecilia. Jon snapped a few photos of her, she was so proud. I am so terrified.

This is a photo of our ceiling. It is original to our 1956 house, and it is probably the thing I will miss most about this house when we move someday. You would have to pay a fortune now a days to get your ceilings to be textured like this. When we first moved in, Jon and I would lay on the floor and study the ceiling for what seemed like hours.

Photo Challenge Day 19 - 2 Make a Pair

2011-11-20T19:51:00.001-07:00

My toddler is not very cooperative. I had a brilliant idea of how I wanted today's (yesterday's) photo to turn out. I wanted to do something "shoe" related in her room, but Cecilia did not share the same vision. So, here's what I came up with.

I love how she wears her "dardars" (some how that means glasses??) upside down.

Photo Challenge Day 18 - Your handwriting

2011-11-18T19:05:00.001-07:00

This was difficult. Mainly because I don't write anything by hand anymore. I keep all of my lists on the iPad. I type all correspondence via email, text, or FaceBook. I did have one list to make though. Next week we are headed to my folks for Thanksgiving. It is no easy feat to load the car up with all our gear. I usually make a list for these trips, especially when we are going to be gone for more than one night. So, here is the start of it. Many more items to be added, I'm sure.

Photo Challenge Day 17 - Mission: Purple

2011-11-17T19:30:00.001-07:00

Photo Challenge Day 16 - Something from your bathroom

2011-11-16T19:43:00.001-07:00

I painted this pot at dear old Deer Valley in 2002. (You might remember the post about Deer Valley from my grandparent's 50th, if not, you can read all about the magic here.) It has always resided in my bathroom, at every home I've had since then. It holds the odds and ends that every bathroom has: finger nail clippers, zit cream, nail files, hair sheers, etc. Most recently it has become home to the toilet paper because we have a certain someone (ahem, Cecilia) that likes to make toilet paper art.

Lilly at Half a Year Old

2011-11-15T19:53:00.001-07:00

She is getting SO big. She had her 6 month appointment yesterday. Complete with four shots, poor baby! She has grown one dimensionally. She has only gained one pound since her four month check up, but she has grown 1.5 inches!

Weight: 14 lbs. 40%

Height: 26 Inches 75%

She astounded the doctor by sitting pretty for several minutes and then cruising around the room crawling/army crawling. Dr. Jill was stunned and picked her up as if to prevent her from being mobile. HA! Jill predicts that she'll be walking by 9 months. My mom has said the same thing, and since Jon walked at 9 months, I wouldn't be shocked.

Last week I relaxed slightly with the dairy free. I had a lunch with dairy, that I was unaware of until I had finished. I also had a few cookies made with butter. She started to get a slight rash all over her torso, but I tried to ignore it or blame it on something else. We attempted a milk challenge with her on Sunday night. She did fine and did not throw up. However, that rash got way worse, and the doc said that it looked like eczema, which most likely is from the dairy. boo! Unfortunately this means that I have to continue dairy free till she is at least 9 months old. This is going to make for some very difficult holiday celebrations for me. Ah, the things we do for our kids.

Since she is sitting up so well now, she has learned the art of splashing in the tub. I think she's been watching her sister for the past 6 months, because she's a pro already.

Here's a fun little comparison. Remember the look alike post for Cecilia at 6 months?? Here it is for Lilly. You tell me who she looks like. I think she is Jon's baby for sure. I also did a side by side of Cecilia and Lilly at 6 months in the same spot in our house. The most noticeable difference is the hair. It is starting to come in on Lilly. You can't tell, but I swear it is! They have the same beautiful brown eyes, but I think that's about it. I LOVE THOSE GIRLS!!

Photo Challenge Day 15 - Orange you glad...

2011-11-15T19:45:00.001-07:00

Orange you glad that this little angel is 6 months old!?!?!?

So I'm cheating a little here. I took this photo on Sunday, Lilly's 6 month birthday. We don't have a lot of orange around here. Pink? Oh yes, lots of that, but orange, not so much. I love this little outfit of her's. I'm sad that she's just about out grown it. That was probably the last time she will wear it.

Photo Challenge Day 14 - Something that means a lot to you.

2011-11-14T19:34:00.001-07:00

I don't wear very much jewelry. I used to, before I had another human attached to me for at least 50% of my day. Little humans like to eat, pull, and break pretty jewelry, and watches tend to snag their thin skin in the process of picking them up and setting them down. So, the only jewelry that I wear day in and day out are my wedding rings, and my baby rings. These rings mean so much to me, for obvious reasons. I've been wearing my wedding rings for over 7 years now, and my baby rings were added to my right hand for each of my girls' births. The white gold one was for Cecilia, and the rose gold one was for Lilly.

This was more difficult than I anticipated. Rings are small in comparison to the rest of the world. I feel like I did a decent job, but I know I could have captured them better with a macro lens. I attempted a photo of my rings over 70 times. That's more than any other day so far. My favorite one is the one in the laundry basket (I like a little bling in my weekly mundane chores).

Photo Challenge Day 13 - Reflections on...

2011-11-13T19:38:00.001-07:00

I took this photo this afternoon at my church. There is a theme here. The Baptismal font is reflecting both the crucifix and the large cross that hangs in the worship space. As you enter this space, the way the font reflects back at you forces you to reflect on what your purpose is in that space.

Photo Challenge Day 12 - Wood You...

2011-11-12T19:26:00.001-07:00

Photo Challenge Day 11 - What's Cooking?

2011-11-12T19:15:00.001-07:00

A day late (I know!).

However, yesterday I didn't really cook anything. I reheated the homemade carrot soup and made egg salad sandwiches for lunch, and we went out to dinner to celebrate my brothers' graduation from Paramedic school. Fortunately I took photos of the soup. I also photographed the yummy pumpkin chocolate chip cookies that I made earlier in the week. I also found a picture of the pumpkin seeds (pre-roasting) from before Halloween.

Photo Challenge Day 10 - Power of Three

2011-11-10T19:05:00.001-07:00

The power of three wheels.

As only a two year old could dress. I took this at about 4:00 this afternoon. She had already put her pj's on and put her shoes on backward to play outside. I love the colors!

Photo Challenge Day 9 - Get Vertical

2011-11-09T19:51:00.001-07:00

I didn't get the shot I really wanted to today. It would have been the inside of the first picture. I'll try to get it another day when I don't have two tired baby girls with me. Still, the first image is of the outside of my church. I particularly love the amazing deep blue sky. The second image was my first attempt at a night photo. I had to Photoshop it a bit to make the silhouette from the tree stand out, but it turned out pretty well. Cecilia spotted the moon for me. She's kind of obsessed with the sun and the moon right now.

Muffin on the Move

2011-11-09T19:36:00.001-07:00

Lilly has gone from "perfectly content just lying around" to "motor-muffin" in about a week. She has been sitting for just about a week now. She is still a little wobbly and will occasionally do the face plant to swimmer position move still. This week she has figured out how to army crawl/ scoot where ever she wants to go. She's even starting to pull her knees up under her. OH BOY, am I in trouble now! Two mobile little people! This is a whole new level of baby proofing and insanity.

She is such a happy baby!! I know I keep saying this, but it is SO true. She loves blowing raspberries lately. When she does this, I have to call her my Raspberry Muffin. She is so tactile. She loves to touch and play with her hands. I don't recall Cecilia doing this. Lilly is very deliberate with hand placement and she loves to play in her saucer and intentionally make the toys move and the squeakers squeak. In all the motoring she's been doing, she even found the little piano and was playing me a tune.

Here are some sweet pictures of her with me, her Daddy, her sister, her namesake, Ma, Pa, and with Ma and Aunt Jackie during tea time (not in that order).

I can't believe she is going to be 6 months old on Sunday! Where has the time gone?

Photo Challenge Day 8 - A is for....

2011-11-08T19:51:00.001-07:00

A is for All Precious Children Preschool. I snapped this one dropping Cecilia off at school this morning. It's not the greatest, but its not terrible for finding the right setting on my camera for the light in that hallway while juggling Lilly on my hip and my purse sliding off my shoulder :)

And of course, A is for Apples. They are in season! I bought these beauties at Costco today. I think pork with apples and onions is on the menu. I like the black and white version of this too because it shows so much more of the texture in the color of the apples.

Photo Challenge Day 7 - Shadowy Silhouettes

2011-11-07T19:28:00.001-07:00

This is the tree in our front yard. I caught its shadow right around 12:30. The sun is south of us enough this time of year to cast big shadows in the middle of the day. I played with where to set the focus on this picture. Some of them I set the focus on the tree, and some I set further out in the shadow. This is the one I liked the best.

Thanks for all the comments. I love getting them. For those of you with fancy shmancy cameras that want to take beautiful photos too, here are a few things I've learned:

1. Set your camera to manual and read your camera manual to learn how to set the F-stop, shutter speed, and ISO to make the light work for you. When I get all of these aligned right, the light meter in my camera reads at about a +1.

2. I think that a lot of the pretty blurred backgrounds in my photos have to do with the lens. I bought my camera body separate from my lens, per the recommendation of several photographers. I've heard that kit lenses are a waste of money and will not produce anything close to what you think you should be getting. So, I bought a f/1.8 50mm lens to start with (per the recommendation of several photographers). The photographer I bought the camera body from said that if I could splurge to get the f/1.4 50mm, but I wasn't in a position to splurge. This lens has been a dream so far. I love it! It is a fixed focus lens, so no zooming. I bought the lens on B&H for about $100. For that price it has more than paid for itself with the images I've captured already.

Happy Photo-ing!

Photo Challenge Day 6 - Let's play with...

2011-11-06T19:31:00.003-07:00

Let's play with music!

Let's play with Dad! (Hop on Pop)

So, I'm in love with the first picture of Cecilia spinning around. I love the light and the way I captured the motion. The second picture, I like it, but not necessarily as a good photograph. I quick snapped this in the moment. Totally un-posed, un-provoked. It was what our afternoon looked like. And for that, I love it.

Photo Challenge Day 5 - Touchy Textures

2011-11-06T12:42:00.001-07:00

Rats! I'm a day late. Sorry! I'm blaming the cocktail my husband fixed me after the girls went to bed. After not drinking for um, well, close to 3 years now, one drink is really all it takes to get me into a not so "with it" place. I did take the photos yesterday, so here are the results.

Jon took a few also. He's enjoying the new camera too.

Here is a collage of several favorite touchy textures the girls like. And really, what's not to like? A fuzzy jacket with fuzzy pom poms, super soft dog, soft corduroy, and silky satin.

These two are some favorites around here. Cecilia's absolute favorite touchy texture: blankie. I also love her soft and silky hair. And Lilly down there, I could touch her soft soft skin, especially that cheek, all day. She also has the sweetest smelling and soft baby fuzz on her head.

Day 6 will be up later today (I PROMISE!).

Photo Challenge Day 4 - Your pet

2011-11-04T21:34:00.000-06:00

First there was Audrey, but she's a princess and moved down the street. Then there was Bogart (as in Humphrey Bogart). He is 4 years old, and we've had him since he was a kitten. His name fits him perfectly. He's a lover. He's spunky, and he likes to nap on top of the couch. If he could talk he would say "Moww Moww" in the swankiest voice you've ever heard, and if he could drink from a martini glass he would have his shaken, not stirred.

Then we got Stella. She's 4 years old too, and we got her as a puppy. She is a pure bread yellow lab with a case of the dudley's. Dudley labs have light eyes and pink noses and paws. She's a lab alright! She's still way hyper and gets way to excited when we have visitors. She's a good dog though, and she protects the house like a good dog does.

The newest pet member of the family is River. We call River a "he" even though he has a pink shell, but there is something about a hermit crab that exudes a male persona. He's technically Cecilia's pet, but lets be real here, who has to take care of him?? Yep, me. We got him out today to stretch his claws.

These photos were fun today. I tried to play with the rule of thirds for Bogart, and play with the light from the window. I like the profile of Stella, and the difference in settings from inside to outside on my camera. For River, even though I don't have a macro lens, it was neat to see what my lens could do for focusing on such a tiny creature.

Photo Challenge Day 3 - Smiles

2011-11-03T20:59:00.000-06:00

Smiles can be hard to catch on camera around here. Cecilia never stops moving to catch a sincere and non- cheese-ball smile, and Lilly is still unsure about the big black box hiding Mom's face when I want her to smile. I love these photos of C. Her smile in the first one is so natural and playful. There is nothing cheesy about it. It is what she looks like when she is truly happy. The second photo is another natural happy expression from her. She has the look of excitement and wonder without overdoing it. I particularly love the focus on it, and how it so boldly and perfectly captures her big beautiful dark brown eyes. They draw me in and make me want to see what she sees.

Photo Challenge Day 2 - It's all a BLUR!

2011-11-02T19:34:00.002-06:00

There is something about how this turned out that I really like. I think its the colors and the vertical pattern. I like that you can tell that it is books, but that you can't see the titles. These blurry books have been {at least partially} read in our home by either Jon or I at some point in time. There are books here that span all the way back to high school and through college and then into married life, and parenthood. Sometimes it seems that it all blurs together.

I would love any feedback that you care to share throughout this photo journey; likes, dislikes, suggestions, ideas, etc. I'm already having so much fun with it, and learning a ton!

Photo Challenge Day 1 - We want to see You....

2011-11-01T17:06:00.001-06:00

Pumpkin Patch

2011-11-01T09:36:00.002-06:00

We had our own little pumpkin patch at the Fries house last night. My girls were adorable little pumpkins. Cecilia got to go to school in the morning for a Halloween party. Bonus for her, and bonus for me. Jon got home and we promptly took the girls to a few neighbors houses to Trick-or-Treat. Cecilia didn't really get it. She understood more than last year, but didn't quite understand completely. She says "tirck treat" oh so cutely though. She wanted to go into every house that we stopped at. Fortunately, we only went to the homes that we knew the neighbors at, so it wasn't a big deal.

I kept count of the kids we handed candy to this year. We had 56 total trick-or-treaters. 39 said "Thank you" and 17 had bad manners, which means that this year, the kids were only 69.6% grateful. That's down 2% from last year. I gently called it out to the rude ones this year. As they would walk away without saying "thank you", I would say "don't forget to say thank you at the next house". Hehehe.

Happy Halloween!

Self imposed photo challenge

2011-10-31T14:54:00.000-06:00

I got a new camera! I am so excited about this! I've had my eye on a digital SLR camera for some time now (like since Cecilia was born). One of my photographer friends was selling the body of an entry level SLR for a steal of a deal. It was her old back-up camera that she only used once. I claimed it within 20 minutes of the FB post. I ordered a lens online for it, and it came in on Friday. Now its time to learn how to use it. Of course, I could just set it on auto and go, but that is really no fun. I'm so excited to learn how to use this camera to its full potential. YAY!

Already I can see a huge difference in the quality of the photos from my old point and shoot to this camera. The way it captures the light is so much more accurate to what I actually see. One thing that will take some adjusting is the lens. I bought a fixed lens at 50mm, so it has no zoom, and it is a considerably tighter crop than what I am used to. I did some comparison testing from old to new with the girls. Its pretty remarkable!

So, because I have this awesome new camera, I am imposing a 30 day photo challenge on myself. In addition to the usual Fries family life logging that I do, I'll be posting a photo a day to go with my photo challenge. I'm counting on all 10 of you, my faithful blog readers, to keep me accountable : ) I've looked through several challenge lists and decided to pick and choose to make my own. Here's what I came up with:

Day 1 - We wantto see You....

Day 2 - It'sall a BLUR!

Day 3 - smiles

Day 4 - Yourpet.

Day 5 - TouchyTextures

Day 6 - Let'splay with...

Day 7 - ShadowySilhouettes

Day 8 - A isfor....

Day 9 - GetVertical

Day 10 - Powerof Three

Day 11 - What'sCooking?

Day 12 - WoodYou...

Day 13 - Reflections on...

Day 14 - Something that means a lot to you.

Day 15 - Orangeyou glad...

Day 16 - Something from your bathroom.

Day 17 - Mission: Purple

Day 18 - Yourhandwriting

Day 19 - 2 Makea Pair

Day 20 - Up!

Day 21 - ABright Idea

Day 22 - SeeingPatterns & Shapes

Day 23 - GetLow

Day 24 - SeeingRed

Day 25 - Sunrise, Sunset

Day 26 - Adevice that you own but never use/touch.

Day 27 - Fillthe Frame

Day 28 - Looking In

Day 29 - Shoes

Day 30 - You again…

Day 1 is tomorrow. See you then :)

First Snow

2011-10-27T09:49:00.002-06:00

The snow came in yesterday. It was less than they weather people thought, thank goodness! But, it was enough to pile on the lawn and make it a fun winter wonderland for the day. I think we got about 5-6 inches total. It will most likely be mostly gone by the end of today. Gotta love Colorado!

When Cecilia woke up and looked out the front window, she told me that it was "messy". She was very insistent about it and kept moving her arm in a big circle as if to say "its all messy all around out there". I corrected her and explained that it was snow. She said "OOooOOOhh" like she does when the light bulb in her little head turns on. She calls the snow, "nows".

We had MOPS in the morning (thank goodness- I've been going crazy Jon being gone hunting all week, but that's for another post). After the girls napped we got all bundled up and headed out to the nows, er I mean snow. Cecilia was so excited!

I realize that Cecilia is wearing two different gloves. Actually, the one on her right is not even a glove, its two socks :) It is on the list to get her appropriate winter accessories. To be fair, this is really the first time that Cecilia has played in the snow. She was too little last year, and we didn't really get snow last year. She didn't seem to care at all.

I tried to teach her how to make a snow angel, but I couldn't get down there with her because I had Lilly and a camera. She was so cute. I would show her how to move her arms, but she would just put them out in front of her and then back in the snow. She cracks me up!

Cecilia played for a solid 30 minutes in the snow. She loved tasting, marching and throwing the snow.

When she was finished we had hot chocolate. Another first for her. She loved it! She kept telling me over and over "Mom, nows shun!", which translates to: "Mom, snow fun!"

Like Father Like Daugher

2011-10-25T14:03:00.000-06:00

There is no doubt, Lilly is Jon's kid. They have the same complexion, smile, eyes, and hairline. In fact, Jon still has more hair than Lilly! The smile is the give away. The both have the same a-symmetrical bend in their bottom lip. I love it! And the thumb sucking. Yep, she got that from her Daddy, too.

E-I-E-I-O

2011-10-25T11:47:00.001-06:00

We went to a farm! (Okay, so it wasn't necessarily and e-i-e-e-o kind of farm, but I thought the title would be appropriate since we are teaching Cecilia that song.) A few weekends ago we headed up to Miller Farms for the day. It was beautiful weather! The girls did great, and it was nothing short of the perfect family outing.

Cecilia loved climbing up the big hay stack, jumping on a big pillow, playing on the train, feeding the goats and picking produce. Mostly, she loved to play in the dirt. Lilly was so good. She hung out in her stroller before we got on the trailers to head out to the fields, and then she fell asleep in my arms for a nap while Jon and Cecilia picked most of the veggies. I wish I had brought the baby holster (baby Bjorn) with to the fields, because 14.5lbs gets really heavy after a bit.

We picked onions, cabbage, kohlrabi, corn, potatoes, pumpkins, and carrots. Corn was Cecilia's favorite because the ears were right at her level. Jon took her into the corn field and came out with three bags of corn because she just couldn't help herself. Good thing it freezes! We also bought a few big pumpkins and a watermelon.

By the time we got to the car, Cecilia was so tired. I tried to keep her awake with lunch in the car, but she fell fast asleep with a piece of ham in her hand.

Z-Packs All Around

2011-10-14T15:18:00.000-06:00

I think we are finally on the mend around here. I ended up taking both girls back into the doctor on Monday morning because we were still fighting the sicky battle around here and my mother's intuition was telling me that they were not well. When Dr. Jill walked in I told her that I probably should have made it a 3 for 1 appointment, because my ears were still bugging me and I still felt icky too. She checked us all out, and sure enough all of 3 of us had ear infections. Cecilia took first place though. She had two very red ears. Some of the worst Jill has seen on her. Poor baby! Z-Packs all around and I think we are all feeling better. YAY!!

Last weekend we were able to have dinner with Grandma Katy and Papa Jim and my parents and Nick and Megan. It was great to see family, and go out to dinner. The girls did great too!

On Tuesday when I was putting the laundry away, Cecilia found all of her panties in her drawer. She decided she would try them on. All of them. At the same time. It was adorable, and she was so proud of her self. It reminded me of Joey and Chandler on Friends: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q--6wtCPHg8.

She is showing more and more interest in using the potty. I'm still not pushing the issue. I figure when she is really ready, she will go and it won't be a big deal. I found her in the bathroom teaching her dolly to go on the potty.

Lilly is really starting to come out of her shell. She has been showing so many more emotions this week. She has been gasping and squealing when she gets excited, and she has been laughing at random things too. She is so cute! She has been a terrific sleeper, still. The other night she slept for 10 hours! It was amazing. Although I must admit, I love nursing my baby, especially in the middle of the night, when it is quite and it is just her and I. I wish I could record those moments and DVR it forever.

Sicky-Sicky-Sick-Sick

2011-10-04T14:53:00.002-06:00

That's the technical term for the reason the blog has been neglected: Sicky Sicky Sick Sick. At least that what the doctor told me was the official medical term to describe my family's state of being the last two weeks. Jon had it first. And he had it bad. We think he had some version of a flu. He had a fever that topped out at 102.7 for days, night sweats, chills, sore throat, coughing, runny noes, you get the picture. He even stayed home for a day and a half from work and went to the doctor. It was "just a virus" though. Darn! I was hoping for the treatable kind of Sicky-Sick.

I was bound and determined not to get it. I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned. Then I felt that all too telling pang of yuck in the back of my throat. I cleaned some more. It didn't work though. But I am sure that I had something different than Jon. My ears hurt. My ears never hurt. I brushed it off for a few days. Then I had a slight fever, cough, runny nose, and no energy. I decided I might as well have it checked out because 1. my ears never hurt, and they really were hurting now, and 2. I've already hit my out of pocket max for the year on insurance, so it doesn't cost us anything for me to go to the doctor :) The good news is that my sicky-sick was treatable (YAY!) The bad news, is that I had a double ear infection. The last time I had an ear infection, I was three years old. I confirmed this with my mom. Mom said "you probably don't remember". Oh yes, I remember. It is probably one of my earliest memories. I remember the pain. I remember lying in my parents room and watching The Price is Right. I remember the blue carpet and the brown chevron patterned bed spread. I remember the sunlight streaming in the windows that were very tiny at the top of the walls. I remember being sad because Papa Jay just died, or was going to die. I remember.

Lilly and Cecilia both have the yucks too. Bad coughs, runny noses. Lilly had a slight infection that the doc said she would not treat because she is getting some of the antibiotic that I am taking through the breast milk. I haven't taken C in yet, but if she is really not doing any better by tomorrow, she gets her turn at the doctors office.

Last Friday, in an effort to rid my house of the sicky-sick bug I got the bleach out. I bleached every single surface in my kitchen and bathroom. I bleached all of the door knobs, window sills, light switches, drawer pulls, etc. I cleaned some more. I think it is helping, but it is hard to say. I'm sure that some of this is from Cecilia being at school. I'm sure she is bringing it home with her. I just hope the entire fall and winter season is not like this. I can't afford that much kleenex.

Even though we've been sick around here, life goes on. It's been busy around here. While Jon was sick, the alternator in his car went out. So it was kind-of good timing that he wasn't going in to work anyway because we were able to get his car fixed ($$$) and not have to worry about barrowing a car.

The girls and I went to the Butterfly Pavilion with my Mom, Ma, and the wild boys. It was so much fun! I got the annual family membership earlier this year via Groupon, and I think it will be the perfect rainy day activity for us. Cecilia even held Rosie, the tarantula!

The firefighters came to visit the MOPS group last week. This is the third year in a row Cecilia has gotten the tour of the fire truck.

Grandma went to school with Cecilia for a few hours last week. She said that Cecilia is very affectionate with her classmates and that it was a side of her that she hadn't seen before. I guess Cecilia would bring kleenex to whom ever sneezed. Gently put her arm around someone who was crying, and give hugs all the time. So sweet!

Lilly is officially rolling! She has now mastered front to back and back to front. She still thinks her thumb is gourmet, and she is loving her rice cereal. Cecilia loves to play "Little Mommy" she likes to pretend to feed and change her baby dolls all the time.

I've been picking up speed with Fries the Moment Design (check out the blog here). I've just completed a few more senior albums and have more albums, websites, and branding concepts on the horizon. I found Pinterest, I like it so much I added a link to the blog so you can find me there :). It is so much fun, and a brilliant idea! I frequent that site daily. I also started back at Weight Watchers. I have just a few pounds left to get back to goal and its still free until Lilly is 6 months old. It will be nice to fit into my skinny jeans for the winter :)

It's Gourmet

2011-09-26T14:36:00.001-06:00

My happy baby, Lilly, is even happier now. Why you ask? Because she found something gourmet. She found her thumb. I wasn't sure if she was ever going to find it. She's been sucking on her hands and fingers for months now. But last Wednesday, she found her thumb. Now she's in heaven. It's gourmet - she told me so.

Released

2011-09-22T11:16:00.002-06:00

Lilly and I went to see Dr. Rosensweig, the Pediatric Gastroenterologist on Monday. Lilly has been doing so well with me being on a dairy free diet, that I can't even remember the last time she threw up. Dr. R was so pleased with her health that he said there was really no reason that we would need to come back to see him. YA -and- HOO! The plan as of now is to start a "Milk Challenge" with her at 6 months old. So we will give her some regular formula with her rice cereal then and see how she does. If she starts showing symptoms like before (throwing up, rash, uncomfortableness, etc.) then we will wait another two months and try again. If she does well with the milk, then we keep going and give her milk again and wait to see what happens. Dr. R said that she could grow out of this at any point between 6 months & 1 year. I vote for the 6 month mark, but I realize that my vote doesn't count in this case. For now, I'm thrilled that she is doing so well, and that nursing is going so well. Its nice to be able to nurse on the go and not worry about what might come back up. Its also nice to be able to enjoy nursing my baby girl without worrying about if what I'm feeding her is causing her pain.

As of recently, she has taken after her sister when it comes to sleeping habits at a young age. She is NOT sleeping well at a night at all, and this Mama is getting to be one crabby tired lady. I'll be hitting my favorite book for sleep issues, "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child", later to see what I can do better to help this situation.

Just Like Riding A Bike

2011-09-21T09:27:00.001-06:00

My MOPS group has a book club that is loosely associated with it. I haven't participated in the past because, honestly, reading is not really my thing. I used to enjoy reading before I had kids and had two 25 minute bus rides each day. But all that block of time, suddenly disappeared about two years ago. I've made it a new goal of mine to read more, and so I thought that by getting into the book club would be a perfect way to do that. So, a few weeks ago, I bought the book for this months club, "The Boy In the Stripped Pajamas", and I finished it on Saturday night. It was very good, by the way.

On Sunday, I was telling Jon that I might walk to the book club meeting because it was just about a mile from the house. He suggested that I could ride my bike. This small suggestion made my heart go pitter patter, in an excited nervous kind of way. I think the last time I rode my bike was the summer of 2008. Not joking. So, I did. I rode my bike. To a book club for a book I had completed.

Now, this might not sound too exciting, or all that newsworthy to some of you, but for me it is. This meant getting back some of the things that I used to do before kids. It meant that I was getting back a balance of "Beth in Mommy-hood" and "Beth as Beth". It was nice to get that sense of individuality back just by turning a page and peddling a bike. And these things came to me with such ease, just like riding a bike.

Blog Style Updated

2011-09-15T10:40:00.001-06:00

For those of you that read me exclusively on Google Reader (I love Google Reader), just thought I would let you know that I recently updated the look of the blog for your eyes to enjoy.

Lillian Jeanne at 4 Months

2011-09-15T10:34:00.001-06:00

I can't believe she is 4 months old already! She has brought an unexplainable amount of joy and love to our family. I can't imagine our lives without her! Lilly is so sweet and easy going. She is a happy baby (unless she's hungry), and will tolerate so much before getting mad.

At four months old, Lilly has several nicknames. Cecilia calls her "Iwwy". My go to nickname for her is "Muffin". Jon tends to lean towards "Lil's". She has also been affectionately called: Lillykins, Little, Little's, Lilly Pad, Lil, Hungry Monkey, Sister, Little Sister. Her great grandpa, Pa, always calls her Lillian Jeanne, and it melts my heart every time :)

At four months old she talks ALL THE TIME! She is constantly humming, squealing, practicing her raspberries, sighing, singing, giggling, and grunting.

At four months old, Lilly smiles all the time, and loves to be interacted with. Often times she will smile at you, and then turn her face away all bashful like. Its adorable.

At four months old, she will roll from her tummy to back on occasion and has yet to roll from back to tummy. She's pretty happy and content and not in a rush to go anywhere yet.

At four months old, she will explore your face with her hands if you let her. Its the sweetest thing ever.

At four months old, she has 9 hairs on the top of her head. I think its still less than when she was born.

At four months old, her eye color has solidified to big beautiful brown eyes.

At four months old, Lilly is drooling and gnawing on things all the time. I think this might mean teeth, and soon.

At four months old, she is just about out grown her 0-3 month clothes. She is wearing a size 2 diaper, and is ready for the medium size gDiapers (the same size Cecilia is wearing!).

At four months old, Lilly weighs 13.0 pounds (50th percentile), and is 24.5 inches long (50th percentile).

She has a firm hold on my heart. And my hair, my face, and sometimes even my neck. Yes, that girl loves to hang on to what ever she can, and hair is her favorite. She loves to suck on her fingers, my fingers or knuckles, my chin, my cheek. The other day, I let her get a little to close to my neck, while I was wiping Cecilia's face, and she gave me a hickey! Little vampire.

Being 4 months old means getting new play spaces.

Being 4 months old means trying new food. Rice cereal was a huge hit (the bib appetizer wasn't so bad either)! I think more actually ended up in than out.

Being four months old means being loved very much!

Sisters

2011-09-11T12:45:00.000-06:00

This might be my current all time favorite photo of my girls.

I'm lucky that this love shown to Lilly by Cecilia resulted in such a cute photo, because it just as easily could have resulted in tears. You see that mat they are sitting in? Lilly was laying on it, face up, when Cecilia decided she needed to hold her sister. I was out of the room for no more than 10 seconds when I heard Cecilia grunting and hoisting. I came back into the room to find this, luckily.

First Day of School

2011-09-10T12:43:00.000-06:00

Cecilia started school on Tuesday. Ohmygosh, she was so cute! Jon went to work late so that he could take her to school with me. Cecilia was so excited to go to "sool". She has the cutest little backpack- and so did 4 other kids in her 6 kid class. At least her preschool accessories are fashionable. She walked right in to the classroom and started playing. She barely even waved goodbye to us. I was the one who got a little verklempt. But it was only for half of a second.

The FOUR hour break was perfect. It was just long enough for me to get caught up on lots of stuff, and not so long that I missed her terribly. I must admit though, it was a little strange to not know what my toddler was up to for four hours, and without anyone to document her experience in photos. This is such a big thing- her going to school and all- and like everything else that is new, I usually take lots of pictures. But this school thing is different.

I got so much done this week. I had two client meetings, I got caught up on some house work, I got Cecilia's wardrobe changed out, I wrapped up a bunch of MOPS stuff, and best of all, I had some quality one-on-one time with my sweet Lilly, without that big sister looming around. Lilly is going to be 4 months old on Tuesday. Can you believe it?!?! I think the clock started moving three times as fast the moment she was born.

Lilly-Roll

2011-09-01T13:50:00.000-06:00

She did it! She rolled over this morning. Jon was there to witness it too. I think she scared herself though. She went from tummy to back in one quick flip and then had a very puzzled look on her face. I didn't catch it on camera, but it was priceless. When I tried to coax her along to do it again, Cecilia wanted to play too, and Lilly got shy.

You can see the attempt- she is pushed way up high, and then her butt is way up in the air too. SO CUTE!

Pre-School Supplies

2011-09-01T13:39:00.001-06:00

Cecilia starts preschool next week. I can't wait! Don't get me wrong, I love my child more than anything, but there are times, when I may not like her very much. I feel like those moments have increased ten-fold since she turned 2. I think two mornings a week away from each other will do the trick. She wants to do, and go, and learn, so much right now, and I haven't been able to provide her with all the fun and time that she needs. And school will be the perfect place for her to be Cecilia with out Mommy.

We have all of her school supplies ready to go. Its a little insane how much she needs for preschool, I can't imagine what elementary school will be like.

Summer Park Fun

2011-09-01T13:33:00.000-06:00

We have had so much fun visiting different parks in the area this summer. It has been so fun to watch Cecilia learn how to climb and maneuver up and through different playgrounds. She has become so brave and eager to try new and bigger ladders and slides.

Aunt Sarah visited earlier this summer and she got to play with C too. Several of the parks we have visited have had "spray-grounds". The first time C discovered the fountains of cool water springing from the ground, well I think she peed her pants. But we'll never know because she was drenched in the fountain within 2.42 seconds. I did not know that this park had water which resulted in a very wet ride home.

Another park we learned about was awesome fun! It was a great park with several different types of structures. It too had water, but I came prepared this time.

This park is just a short walk from our home. I remember thinking before Lilly was born that this would be a great park for C next year. HA! She was such a pro climbing and sliding here. This was just a few weeks ago. It is a favorite now.

See those slides? Yes, they are that tall, and yes, Cecilia went down them like a champ, and then did them again and again.

We also went to a park up near my parents house at Camp Como. It was the biggest play ground I've ever seen! I think it had every piece of playground equipment ever made.

It's been a ...

2011-08-19T13:10:00.002-06:00

Why are you up at 5:30?
Gosh you are cranky!
Darn eye tooth.
Tylenol before 7
Sesame Street and Word World
Stop!
Don't!
Sit down!
Eat your cereal!
No!
Keep your milk in the kitchen.
Why are you spilling your milk on the carpet?!
Go to time out!
Stop screaming, you're going to wake the baby.
You woke the baby!
I'm mad at you!
Is it too early for a glass of wine?
I must get into public so I don't hurt you.
Stay in your car seat!
Please don't take your shoes off.
Why are you screaming at your sister? She's sleeping.
I wish I felt more confident and less rushed with this purchase. I hope it will be the right size.
Go play! Jump, run, be free!
It's time to go home.
Please don't tantrum here. You are making a scene!
Good thing it's just a bunch of moms and their toddlers.
Is it nap time yet?
Eat your lunch.
Please don't use your ketchup as paint.
Stop!
Where is that wine? Seriously.
More Tylenol.
Sleep well. Stay in your bed.
Get back in your bed!

... kind of morning.

Lilly is 3 Months

2011-08-17T12:48:00.007-06:00

Last weekend Lilly turned 3 months old. I swear time goes faster with the second. Looking back, the first 3 months of Cecilia's life seemed so long. But with Lilly, I feel like we just came home from the hospital. It makes me sad. It makes me wonder if I'll remember anything about her as a baby.

She is doing so SO good with the reflux issue. I have stayed with the dairy free diet, and she is only throwing up maybe once per day. I have also stopped the Prevacid. It seemed to make her gag and then throw up, so it wasn't really getting into her system anyway.She is such and easy going baby. She naps well during the day, and sleeps pretty well at night. She will sleep from about 7:30-8ish till 1:30ish, and then get up at least one more time before morning. This is way ahead of how Cecilia slept (from what I remember). She will fall asleep just about anywhere too. Another trait C was never good at.
She has met just about all of her extended family on both sides - thanks to weddings, funerals, family reunions, and 87th birthday parties.
She has cheeks that I could kiss all.day.long. And I do. I love them. They are so sweet, and soft, and usually right there for me to smooch on.She loves to be held. She has a mighty little grip. If she is being held she will hang on to my hair or my shirt very tightly. I have lost several strands of hair to those little hands. She also likes to sit in the bumbo and play on her mat. She recently found her feet and is starting to rock and roll on her back and arch up really tall when she is on her tummy. Its only a matter of time before she rolls over.
She bathes with her sister now. It is a quick bath, and Jon and I tag team with her, but it sure does save time that way.Cecilia loves her more and more everyday. She will lay down next to her if she is on her mat, and she will talk to her and love on her if she is in her bumbo.

Her eye color is solidifying. I am 98% sure they will be identical to Cecilia's big beautiful brown eyes. They sure are a pretty contrast to her buddy Taven's blue eyes :)

Little Kleptomaniac

2011-08-17T12:18:00.003-06:00

In the past four days Cecilia has stolen two pair of sunglasses, two packs of batteries, and a gallon of milk. Good thing she's cute.

We went to the mall on Friday and while I was rapidly choosing a new pair of sunglasses at one of those kiosk things, (because my last pair has fallen into the great unknown), I gave Cecilia the bag to hold from the last store we were at last. This was in an effort to keep her little hands busy, and give her something to focus on. In a matter of two minutes I selected and purchased a new pair. All the while, attempting to keep Cecilia's hands off of the rest of the sunglasses. On Saturday morning when I finally got around to opening the bag, I was perplexed when I found sunglasses... she snuck two pairs into the bag. This resulted in a return trip to the mall on Saturday to return the stolen glasses. The reaction from the girls manning the booth was interesting. They really didn't say anything. They just gave us this strange look, It was a combination of confused, upset, annoyed, and grateful. I guess they don't cover what to do if an "honest citizen returns something their child didn't intend to steal" in training.

On Monday, we did the grocery shopping. At King Soopers, Cecilia was riding in the basket seat, and as I was checking out, she was in arms length of the kiosk with all of the impulse buy items right there. As the checker bagged my groceries, she put the bags back in the cart. Cecilia then took batteries off the kiosk and put them in the bags. As I was putting the groceries away, I mysteriously found two packs of batteries! At this point I was starting to get nervous that the cops were going to show up at the door. I returned the batteries to Kings, and the clerks reaction was just as interesting as the sun glass girls. I handed her the batteries and explained that my two year old accidentally stole these when I was checking out. All she heard was that I was returning them and began to scan the barcodes and open the cash drawer. I had to explain again that she stole them. The clerk gave me this confused look (I had seen it before), and then the light bulb went on. She said "she stole them?" I said "yes". She said "Oh, thank you, you are a good person".

The milk, well that was mostly me, but partly Cecilia. We went to Target. Lilly rode in the buggy part of the cart because C insisted on sitting in the seat. Fine (there are some battles that are not worth it). The milk would not fit in the buggy with Lilly in there, so it went to the bottom of the cart. It never got paid for, and it never got loaded into the car. I don't know how long it sat in the Target parking lot, but my gut tells me that they were not able to return it to the shelves.

From now on, I will be checking my bags, and all parts of the cart, before I leave the store. Better yet- C starts school in a few weeks, I'll do my shopping without her :)

We have a TWO year old

2011-08-06T13:29:00.008-06:00

Wait... How did that happen?? Two, 2, dos, 1+1, 24 months. STOP THE CLOCKS. Please!

Cecilia turned two on vacation in Virginia. She will probably spend many birthdays on vacation growing up, just like I did. Its one of the perks of a summer birthday. We are not having a big party for her this year. Frankly, I'm too tired and I don't think that she really knows the difference. Her Great Aunt Jenny brought over a beautiful homemade lady bug cake. She loved it!
We did get her a new trike for her birthday. I bought it before we went out of town, but we finally got around to giving it to her yesterday. Again, she doesn't know the difference, so we can get away with it. This will probably be the last year though. Jon put it together the night before and we had it ready for her in the kitchen when she got up. She was so excited. Jon carried her out of her room and she saw it and pointed to it and said " A BIKE!"

Her two year old check up was on Wednesday. Jill was impressed with how many words she had, and is not concerned about anything. The best part was that she didn't need any shots. I had forgotten that at her 18 month visit, Jill said that she wouldn't need shots until she goes to kindergarten (I'm sure pregnancy brain had nothing to do with that). She is holding her line very well:
Weight: 24.4 lbs. - 25th Percentile
Height: 34 inches - 60th Percentile
Head: 48 cm. - 60th Percentile

Here are some noteworthy things about Cecilia at age TWO:

She loves "Word World"- She only gets to watch 1-2 episodes/ day, but she gets awfully demanding to watch "duck".
Talks constantly. We don't always know what she is saying, but she knows.
She is all about what things belong to whom. For example, right now, my brother Pete is visiting. His car, my car, and Jon's car are all out front. She will stand at the front door and point to each car and say "Mama, Daddy, Pete" over and over again. She does this with drinks, food, clothes, shoes, keys, cell phones, books, computers, etc.
She loves the water. Bathtubs, pools, sprinklers, sinks, fountains. If its wet, she wants to play in it.
She is still a great eater. She will eat most everything we give her.
She will ask for olives if she sees them in the fridge.
Her favorite books are "Jamberry", "Big Kid Elmo", "Llama Llama Misses Mama". I have all of these memorized.
She loves her little sister, most of the time. She is learning how to be gentle around her, and will give her kisses, and will try to share with her. She has also started to try and pick her up- yikes!
Playing tea party is her favorite inside activity. She has two play tea sets and will set them out and pour tea and bring it to who ever is home. I've had countless cups of Cecilia Tea :)
She is so affectionate. She will wave and say "Hi" to perfect strangers wherever we go. She will blow kisses if you are too far away to actually give you a kiss, in which case you will receive a kiss or two. If you are a Cecilia sized person, she will most likely give you a hug good-bye.
She has perfected the tantrum. I've learned to ignore them.
She has all but one last eye-tooth to come it.
She recently learned how to jump. She loves to practice getting both feet off the ground, says "JUMP!" when she does it.
She loves to sing, and it melts my heart when she turns into a little song bird.
She is a little monkey and a dare devil, and likes to try new things. Big slides, and monkey bars, swings that go really high, water slides, etc.
She likes to talk on the phone. She will talk on my phone, and when that is not available, she will pretend and hold her hand to her ear and have a conversation.
She is most certainly a Type A personality. When she starts to get particular about how things should be, or when she gets a little attitude, we call her "our little type-A".
She plays very well by herself. She is good at keeping herself busy with her toys, colors, and books.
She likes to "help" me cook. She will pull a chair over to the counter and supervise.

We love you so much, Cecilia!

Virginia, Part 2

2011-08-05T20:28:00.017-06:00

The remainder of our trip was hot, humid, and full of bugs. It was also full of fun and family. We spent the entire week at Westmoreland State Park, near Colonial Town, VA, on the Potomac River. The Schelke Family Reunion is held every three years and we always choose a different state to visit. The reunion is comprised of the three Schelke sisters, Ann, Jane, and Katy, and their families.

Mom and I were able to escape and go on a kayak trip on the Potomac River on Sunday morning. We saw about 6-7 bald eagles, one of them was a baby. We also saw Osprey, and other incredible birds. They were stunning! We kayaked over to fossil beach, where sediment from 15+ million years ago lands as it washes off the cliffs. We searched for sharks teeth and other fossils. I didn't risk bringing my camera on this adventure. My mom has been known to capsize boats of all shapes and sizes ;)

Our accommodations were decent for the week. We stayed in a 2 bedroom, cinder-block cabin with air conditioning (THANK GOD!). The girls slept in the same room as Jon and I each in their own spaces. We borrowed a pack-n-play from Aunt Jackie, and I brought a little bed for Lilly. It was the perfect little portable drawer, essentially. It folded up and zipped together to about the size of a small briefcase. It was perfect for traveling with an infant.

On Monday, my Dad went fishing with several of the family members. They caught dinner for that night. Mom and I stayed back with the girls and had a mellow day.

Photo credit: http://crabbescharterfishing.wordpress.com/2011/07/25/happy-family-reunion-july-25/

We did go swimming several times throughout the week. The park had an Olympic size pool with a big slide and diving boards. Grandma bought C her first set of water wings. (Awesome invention!) The slide was one-story tall tube slide with a loop-de-loop in it. My mom got a pic of the whole pool and you can only see part of the slide. We forgot to get a photo of the actual slide, so you'll have to trust me on this. Anyway, Cecilia LOVED the slide she did it by herself over and over and over again. I would walk her up the stairs, lay her on her back and PUSH her down the slide. If I didn't push her, she would get stuck and have to scootch her self down to the bottom where Pops was there to catch her. She also learned how to jump into the pool off the side. She was so cute, and totally unafraid of anything.
Jon arrived at the cabin at about 4AM on Tuesday morning. I was so happy to see him. He was tired from all of the traveling, but glad to be at his destination with his girls. On Tuesday, Jon my Dad, and Cecilia walked down to Fossil Beach to see if they could find a sharks tooth. Mom, Lilly and I, headed into Fredericksburg for the Ladies Lunch. It was delicious food, and a cute little town to do some window shopping in. I even found dairy-free chocolate!

Wednesday was so much fun! I had been looking forward to this day in particular for several weeks now. We visited the Westmoreland Berry Farm! It was a blast picking fresh blackberries in their orchards. Cecilia learned quickly that the blackberries were easy to pick and easy to eat. Her picking strategy was simple: eat more berries, so I don't have to carry as many. I think she was thinking, "...two for me, one in the bucket. Three for me, one in the bucket...". YUM! The black berry orchard was beautiful and full of color. It was so lush, and it was very peaceful in the middle of a row of blackberry vines. Lilly liked it too- she napped the entire time. They had goats on the farm too. The goats were quite the attraction! They had this plank walkway that went up and over the road to a landing where you could pay to use a pulley and bring food up to the goats. It was pretty neat.
On Thursday, Jon, Lilly, and I went to two different winery's nearby with a bunch of the family. My cousin Leslie watched C for us- THANKS LESLIE!!! We visited Ingleside and Oak Crest. Jon enjoyed a full tasting at each place, and I sipped off of his. We bought more wine than we've ever bought before at one time, but it was well worth it. I'm looking forward to enjoying a glass here and there after Lilly goes to bed.
My parents went to Colonial Beach on Thursday afternoon, and upon their return they brought Cecilia her first pet for her birthday. River, the hermit crab has now joined our family. I am doing my best to keep him/her alive. Cecilia was not to sure about her new pet, but she did think that he needed some milk.Friday was history day! The George Washington Birthplace and Stratford hall were within 10 minutes of the park. We visited the GW birthplace first. The grounds were beautiful, and it was very peaceful. The home that GW was born in burned to the ground on Christmas Day 1779. The foundation of the original house was found in the 1930's and can be found on the grounds. It was a little disappointing because in an effort to memorialize the place, a Memorial House was built in the 1930's. It is much grander than anything GW was born in. In my opinion, if they were to build anything, they should have built something close to what he was born in to show where he came from. The Memorial House did contain artifacts that were from GW's original home, like a table and a wine bottle. There were other original buildings that were set with period pieces like a kitchen building, and a blacksmith.

We also visited Stratford Hall- the birthplace of Robert E. Lee. For those of you that need a history lesson (like I did), Robert E. Lee is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia (that's the south side) in the American Civil War. The Estate is huge and beautiful! The grounds of the estate were beautifully manicured. Gardens, large lawns, and three magnificent magnolia trees on the west side of the house. The trees were planted in 1945, and I have never seen anything like them. (They reminded me of a certain blogger- you know who you are- I said a little prayer for you when I was amongst them).Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take photos inside the main house. The main house was over 10,000 square feet with 18 rooms and 16 fireplaces. Each room was decorated and set as though the Lee family was still living there. We could only go a few feet into each room before being barricaded by a gate. The room that was Robert's nursery was set up so perfectly. Cecilia thought that his room was just her size. We had all turned our head for a few seconds, and the next thing we knew, she was having tea with Robert! She had snuck through the gate and was sitting down at the little table with a beautiful (and I'm sure expensive) tea set. It was a moment of panic for all of us. My Dad and Jon wrestled with the gate to remove it so we could catch her before anything was broken, or slobbered on. She was awfully cute though. And she had no idea that she had done anything wrong. She was having tea with Robert. I found a photo of the room on this website. You can see the little table I'm referring too at the bottom of the image.
Friday night was our last night with the family. We had crab and shrimp brought in from a local eatery. YUM YUM! Being in a land locked state, we have to take advantage of these things when we can. It was also C's 2nd birthday on Friday. I baked cupcakes to share with everyone, and we sang to her (twice).The travel home day was successful- although long. It was one of those day's where I wished I could snap my fingers and we could be home. Cecilia was admittedly a little more unruly on the flights, but overall she still did well. She fought her nap the entire first flight, until the wheels hit the ground in Dallas. She was out! Fortunately, we didn't have to change planes. I was able to stay put with her and she got about an hour nap before we had to move her again. It was so good to be home, where its hot, but not humid :)

Virginia

2011-07-25T12:11:00.002-06:00

Were in Virginia, and it's hot and sticky icky here! The girls and I arrived last Wednesday and stayed with my Mom's Aunt Jackie for a few days before heading south for a family union on my Dad's side of the family.

I flew out with the my parents and the girls did great on the a plane rides. We decided to invest in an iPad just before I left. It was promptly loaded up with Sesame Street and Word World to make the flights bearable for Cecilia, therefore making the flights bearable for all of us.

Grammy Auntie Jackie lives in the DC area where they were having a heat wave. 106* and 77% humidity should not be allowed. It was so hot, which made visiting inside one of the only options. We did manage to get out to Arlington one day to visit Uncle Mike's grave. I had never been to Arlington before and it was so moving to be there. Uncle mike has been gone for 12 years now, and he is still so loved and missed.

We got to meet several new family members, including Cousin Michael. He is only a year older than C, and they had so much fun playing together and practicing the word "mine!".

Cecilia also played in the pool and Grandma helped her cool off.

Lilly has been a great little traveler. She has been so easy going, and since her throwing up is under control, it has been a relatively easy trip.

We made it through the traffic on Saturday to the reunion site. Jon will join us tomorrow. I can't wait to see him!

Lilly at 2 months old

2011-07-19T17:26:00.000-06:00

I took Lilly to see our primary care doctor on Friday for her two month check up. Jill (our PA) was so excited to see Lilly! I was so excited to be able to tell Jill that it had been over 24 hours since Lilly had lost her lunch :). Lilly has checked out perfect and big. She weighed in at 11 pounds 3 oz., that's the 90th percentile! She is 22.5 inches long, the 75th percentile, and her head is 39cm, the 90th percentile.

She got a round of shots. I had to endure this pain by myself because Jon stayed home with Cecilia. For the record, unlike many things, shots are NOT easier with kid #2. They are still just as hard on Mama. That scream of pain coming from your tiny precious child is heartbreaking.

Over the weekend, Lilly set a new record. She went 67 hours, almost 3 whole days, with out throwing up. I was so excited! This dairy free diet of mine is really showing progress. Since then she has gone another 24 hours, and then two 12 hour stretches. At this rate, she might not have to ride around like this anymore:
It's amazing how easy it is to change your diet, when you are doing it for someone else. I find myself way less tempted to cheat because I know how it will affect Lilly. If I were doing this for my own benefit...
well, I wouldn't be doing this "diet" for my own benefit, but lets pretend. I would be cheating all over the place. Starting with chocolate. In large quantities. And ice cream. Straight from the tub. Just kidding (maybe).

4th of July

2011-07-19T12:27:00.004-06:00

I know this post is extremely overdue, but it was an emotionally eventful weekend and I've only now found myself ready to blog about it.

We spent the holiday weekend with my parents. We love to get away to their house. Its so peaceful and beautiful. There were BBQ's and picnic's throughout the weekend. We also got to see the newly completed Indian Mountain Community Center. My Dad just finished building it, and it was beautiful. (Excuse my silly husband on the right.)
We were very well fed. Cecilia enjoyed playing with Grandma and Lilly enjoyed flirting with Pops.On Sunday afternoon we were given the wonderful news that my cousin Stephanie had her baby girl! Little Eva Sophia was born on Sunday afternoon. I am so excited for all of the baby girls in this family. Its about time we have an influx of PINK :) We were able to get to see her and the baby on Tuesday, and little Eva is so beautiful!
Shortly (very shortly) after we heard the news about Eva, we got a devastating call from my Uncle. He informed us that my Mom's cousin, Jackie, found her son Alex dead in his bed. This shook us all to the core. I think I am still in shock sometimes. Alex was just 22 years old. Alex and Oliver are twins, and Chris is his older brother, and Cynthia is his younger sister. My family, being as close as we are, rallied to support. It was very emotional to get this news so soon after the news of a new baby. It was another reminder that life is fragile, and should not be taken for granted. It was a reminder that we are not immortal. Alex's viewing was on Wednesday night, and the funeral was on Thursday of that week. I hate funerals, especially for people that are young. It was a beautiful service, and Alex's family did a wonderful job sharing about him. He was described many times as a competitor, prankster, and full of life and passion. At the end of the service, the casket was taken outside where we all gathered and dove's were released. My Aunt Jackie released the last dove as a representation of Alex's spirit to join the other dove's in flight. It was breathtakingly beautiful and almost unbearably sad. I find myself sympathizing with my Aunt Jackie as a parent, but more with Alex's siblings- especially Chris. I am the oldest of four too, and I can't imagine what it would be like to loose one of my brothers. My heart is still breaking for all of them, and they are in my prayers constantly. If you think about it, say a prayer for all of them too. Rest in Peace, Alex. You are loved and missed.

Jackie, ALEX, Oliver, Cynthia, Chris
Christmas 2010

Dairy Free

2011-07-15T12:30:00.000-06:00

We had another appointment with the GI doc back on June 28. Lilly was showing some improvement on the Prevacid, but she was still throwing up. Lots. Despite her continual vomiting, my little tank weighed in at 10 lbs, 6 oz, at 6 weeks old! The new plan was for me to go on a dairy free diet. It's been two and a half weeks now, and its not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I miss chocolate SO badly, and cheese is right up there too. It is all worth it though because Lilly is finally starting to show improvement. On Monday to Tuesday this week, she made it 26 hours without throwing up. This was the longest she went since birth! And, if we make it to 1PM today, it will be another 24 hours. Her skin is also showing so much improvement. What I thought was just a bad case of baby acne was in fact a rash that was most likely caused by the protein in the dairy that I was consuming. I am so glad to see that she is doing better. I will continue to be dairy free for as long as needed. The good news is that she will grow out of this by her first birthday. So, for Lilly's 1st Birthday, I am having chocolate cake and ice cream :)

I love this little muffin so much! She is such and easy going, good sleeping, smiley little baby.

Newborn Lilly Photos

2011-07-03T18:52:00.008-06:00

When Lilly was just one week old we had newborn photos taken of her and some family shots too by the lovely and talented Kaela Green of Kaela Green Photography. She also did Cecilia's 6 month portraits. We LOVE her work! If you are in the Denver area, seriously- look her up and get your family photographed, you won't be disappointed. I was able to create Lilly's birth announcement from these photos, and I was thrilled with how it turned out. Stop over at my business blog post for more info on getting your own custom greeting cards and announcements.

In no particular order, here are just a few of my favorites from the shoot.

Crash

2011-07-02T14:38:00.005-06:00

Last Saturday, Jon was catching up on yard work in the back yard when a baby hawk fell out of the tree in our neighbors yard and landed in our other neighbors yard just about 10-12 feet from the fence. He must have fallen about 3-4 stories from the nest. This baby Red Tailed Hawk was huge! He was certainly bigger than our cat, but we couldn't tell how big he was until he got up. He stayed in a heap for about two hours before getting up. We named him Crash when he showed some signs of life. When he finally got up we determined that he was about 18 inches tall, and looked like he could weigh 10 lbs, but we knew he would be lighter due to being a bird and all. Our neighbors put out some water for him. In the afternoon he found a snake for supper. He made it through the night, and on Sunday we went across the street to tell our other neighbors about him. They rushed over to check it out, and then quickly made a call to the Raptor Rescue people. They said to bring him in right away, because Mama Hawk would not be coming down for him. So, Jon and the neighbor kid picked him up and took him to the rescue place. The lady at the rescue said that Crash had a parasite, and that they should be able to get him back to good health and release him back to the wild. She also said that he would not have made it another night had he been left there.

Baptized in Christ

2011-06-29T12:49:00.006-06:00

Father's Day was a very special day around here. We baptized Lillian Jeanne surrounded by our church community, family and friends. Lilly is very lucky to have her Uncle Petey as her Godfather, and her Aunt Chelsea as her Godmother. Lilly wore the same baptismal gown that Cecilia wore. Lilly is baby #53 to wear the gown on their baptismal day. The hankie on her head was my grandma's (Jeanne) wedding hankie. It was added to the ensemble with Cecilia, and it completes the gown perfectly.

Jon rode in the back of the car with Lilly on the way home (just in case she threw-up) and she gave him her first smiles. She was being a little ham. I guess the combination of it being Father's Day and her being baptized made her smiley. She continued with the smiles when we got home, and Ma captured the first one on pixels.

We celebrated Lilly's baptism and Father's Day with brunch at our home. It was a beautiful day, and Lilly was happy to be passed around to anyone that would hold her and let her sleep.

Nick & Megan: Married!

2011-06-20T10:29:00.007-06:00

Congratulations to the tallest of my little brothers! He married Megan on July 11, 2011. There wedding was here in the Denver area at Stonebrook Manor.

Cecilia had a great time with her buddy and cousin Andrew before the ceremony. These two are so cute together. She had a complete and total melt down during the ceremony. Probably because it was bed time for her. Jon spent the ceremony in the back with C, trying to keep her quiet and out of the ponds.
The ceremony was nice. Nick and Megan exchanged vows in front of about 200 family and friends. Then they shared their first kiss (ever)! It was a well executed spectacular dip.

The wedding party rocked back down the isle, and my Dad celebrated that he now had 3 married kids.

Here is the new Ambrose family. I would like to point out that for the first time ever, the female's out number the male's in the family.

The reception was very nice. The food was delicious! I even had seconds. We arranged for Cecilia to be picked up by a sitter so she could get to bed. Lilly slept through the entire reception in various sets of arms. Lots of friends and family got their baby fix, and I got a little break and was able to enjoy dancing with the crowd.

In keeping with tradition, Nick and Megan slipped away in this car:
This car was the get away car for both Jon & I, and Pat & Sarah.

July 2005

August 2010

So, the four of us greeted Nick & Megan as they came out to the Dart.

Congrats Nick & Megan! We love you!

Upper GI Results

2011-06-20T10:05:00.004-06:00

The Upper GI Series was not as difficult as I had anticipated. In fact it was pretty easy. Lilly drank her barium cocktail like a pro, once she figured out the bottle thing. The results came back showing that her anatomy is totally and completely normal. Thank goodness! It did show the reflux in full force too.

She started on Prevacid last Tuesday and I was really amazed at first by how fast it was working. She went from throwing up 5-6 times per day to only 1-2 times on both Tuesday and Wednesday. But, by Thursday we were back up to par. So, we are still assuming this position after she eats (notice Lilly and I with the puke cup. Jon looks like this most of the time):
I fear that next week I will be changing my diet to see if that helps. I've been preparing myself and I've started taking note of what I can and cannot consume. I think I will miss my ice cream the most. On the bright side, I'm sure to drop the extra baby weight in no time if I have to eliminate milk and soy.

Lilly at 4 weeks

2011-06-12T14:20:00.004-06:00

We had our follow up appointment with the gastroenterologist on Thursday. ... I think I forgot to blog that we met with him the first time, so I better catch you all up.

Back on May 24th we met with Dr. Rosensweig, a pediatric gastroenterologist. This came on the heels of a follow up appointment with my primary care doc where Lilly had showed no improvement. We were sent to see the specialist. But not before getting an X-ray of Lilly's belly. That was so traumatizing for me, thank goodness Lilly won't remember. Dr. R was very attentive to us, he listened to me and checked Lilly out. I feed Lilly while we were there, and of course, that was one of the only feedings she kept down that day. At this point Lilly was throwing up (and let me emphasize throwing up not just spitting up) just about every meal within 0-15 minutes of eating. He recommended that we either stop the Zantac that my primary care prescribed or increase the dosage to triple what it was. We decided to go with the increase of the dosage to see if it would help and then follow up in a couple of weeks. Dr. R seemed to think that Lilly most likely had a moderate to severe case of reflux that she will grow out of. It was at this point that I had to accept the fact that it was going to be a messy few months. This is when I implemented the baby puke cup. So now when I feed her, I am prepared with a burp cloth and a cup to catch what ever might come back up. It has worked great and cut down on my laundry loads dramatically. I also like the fact that I can quantify how much she is throwing up.

We had our follow up appointment with the gastroenterologist on Thursday. Lilly weighed in at 9 lbs, 8oz, and 21.5 inches. She is gaining weight, despite the amount she is vomiting. This was a good sign. The doctor was not thrilled with her reflux progress though. I explained that she was still throwing up often and I showed him how much she has been throwing up. She has also been getting more irritated after eating. She will get so visibly uncomfortable, and it was so hard for me to see her like that. Fortunately, she "performed" for the doctor at the appointment. I fed her, she got irritated and uncomfortable. I fed her the other side and then she threw up. I was quick on the draw with the puke cup, so Dr. R was able to see the full cycle of what she was going through. He was also very impressed with my puke catching skills.

At this point we are checking a few other options. Dr. R is not convinced that it is not a physiological issue, so tomorrow I have to take her in to have an upper GI series done. I am so not looking forward to this appointment. I just keep reminding myself that she won't remember this. Dr. R also instructed us to stop the Zantac for three days to see if there was any improvement, if not, then she will start on Prevacid on Monday. There has been no improvement, so Prevacid tomorrow it is. Hopefully the Prevacid works because if it doesn't the next step is to remove milk and soy from my diet. Apparently there is a protein in milk and soy that can cause the muscle to reflux. If it is not an acid issue and a muscle issue, then my diet could be the culprit. I really hope that this is not the case, because I'm not sure how well I will handle the stress of newborn, toddler, and a very limited diet (especially without ice cream). I will do what it takes though.

Other than the vomit issue, Lilly has been a wonderful baby. She is sleeping well. She is very patient and tolerant of her big sister. I've gotten a few first smirks out of her in the last few days and I can't wait for more smiles. She is a very content little soul. She loves to be in the Baby Bjorn, aka the "baby holster". She does have a bad case of baby acne right now, worse than I ever remember with Cecilia. She is a sweet heart and I am cherishing every moment with her.

Congrats!!

2011-06-08T15:00:00.003-06:00

My very good friend, Amanda, had her second baby boy yesterday. Lilly and I went to visit them today and Lilly and Taven had their first of many play dates. Amanda and I have been friends since we were 14 and we are so lucky to be able to raise our babies at the same time. Our oldest kids are 3 months apart, and Lilly and Taven are just 3 weeks apart. Love you, friend! Welcome to the world Taven Eriksen!!

What are the Chances??

2011-06-08T14:37:00.005-06:00

Over the Memorial Day weekend there was some out of town family in town for various parties. On the Monday holiday, the guys got together to go shoot things that go bang out in Elizabeth (about 1.25 hours away). I reluctantly sent Jon on his way with his promise that he would be home by 3 so that we could have some family time together. I didn't want to be "that" wife that says her husband has to stay home. I did want him to go and have some guy time, but selfishly I wanted him to be home with me too.

I called him at 2:15 to make sure he was on his way. No answer. I started to get mad.
He called me at 2:30 and said that he was on his way, but there was a little problem and he was in bad cell area and would have to call me back. I was almost boiling now.
He called me back at 2:45 and the first words were "I'm OK. But, there was an accident." WHAT!!! An accident with things that go bang! Start talking Mr. Fries!

He assured me he was fine, but there was some splash back from one of the bullets when it hit the steel target at 50 yards and it hit him in the neck. They had already removed the piece of shrapnel and had been to the Elizabeth Fire Department to have them evaluate it. The paramedics cleaned it out with saline and called the Parker Hospital, which of course had him come in to the ER to get an X-Ray to make sure that there was nothing else in there and that there was no other damage. The bullet fragment hit him about an inch to the left of his Adam's Apple.

I could tell he was fine on the phone, and it didn't really hit me as to what he was saying until my Aunt called and then my Grandpa, and then my Uncle. They all called to check on me- to see how I was doing. When I was talking to all of them, I was upset on the phone, but I was still upset that Jon wasn't home yet. Then it hit me that this could have been a really big deal, and that a 1/2 inch in any direction and Jon could have been in way, way, way worse shape.

Jon was seen immediately at the hospital. There was nothing else wrong with him. He was given 1 stitch and sent on his way. My grandpa, Pa, showed up at my door to stay with me until my uncle drove Jon home. Pa was the one who shot the gun, so you can imagine how he felt. I'm so glad that Jon was not hurt any more than he was. Jon had some awesome guardian angels with him.

Garage Sale Find

2011-06-06T14:18:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday, I escaped all by myself to get a bang trim and go to the bank. (I know- it sounds so thrilling!) The salon I go to is in a very nice newer neighborhood and they were having the neighborhood garage sale. I was on a mission to find a play house for C. She loves them, and there is one at Costco that I purposely avoid because she would play in it for hours if I let her. So, I drove around until I spotted it. It was at the end of a cul-de-sac already taken apart, but I would know those Little Tikes plastic pieces anywhere. I pulled up and claimed it even before I got out of the car. They were only asking $25 for it! AND they helped me get it in to my car, which was no small task. Those houses are bigger than they look. Anyway, I was so proud of myself. I'm not sure who was more excited about it- me or Cecilia. Jon put it together right away for her, and it was almost traumatic for her to have to leave it to go down for her nap. I foresee hours of fun in the future.

Take Her Back

2011-06-03T14:09:00.001-06:00

Some of us (eh-em Cecilia) are still adjusting to this precious little child.

Cecilia has become very protective of her time on the changing table. Whenever we take Lilly to be changed, C will strip her pants and her diaper off almost immediately and want to be changed too. She has also realized that the baby has certain places in the house where she goes. For example. If I am nursing Lilly and Cecilia wants me to put the baby down, she will point and/or hit the swing and yell "Baby" to have me put her in there.

The best one is the car seat. We have to hide the car seat now because Cecilia will drag it out, and become annoyingly insistent that the baby get in it and go out the front door. C will point/hit the car seat and then say "Baby, GO!" over and over again. It's quite comical really. I'm sure in time C will appreciate Lilly, but for now I better hide the car keys.

My Girls

2011-06-01T16:09:00.005-06:00

Growing up, I always wanted to have girls but I never actually thought I would be blessed to have one girl, let alone two. This is mostly due to the fact that boys run in our family. On my Mom's side of the family, I am the oldest of 17 grandchildren, of which their are only three girls. To boot- of all of my Mom's cousins (too many for me to count), there is only one set of sisters from their offspring. All of the other cousins either have one or no girls. So, the blessing that I have of TWO girls is wonderful! I must admit though, I am a little jealous of my girls. They are sisters, and I never had a sister. I am so excited to see the adventures and friendship they find as they grow up.

Family Outing

2011-05-30T14:02:00.001-06:00

We had a first major family outing to "the Zoo" this weekend. I also had some returns and exchanges so we went out to the Stapleton area to go to the Bass Pro Shop, aka "the Zoo". Cecilia and Jon had so much fun. There are all kinds of taxidermy animals all over the place and a huge aquarium with gigantic fish. Not to mention all of the camo and hunting gear for Jon to drool over. We almost lost Cecilia in the camo, good thing she was not wearing her camo ;)

Cecilia is ready for shooting practice. I think we'll wait until she's a little older though.

Red Like Elmo

2011-05-27T15:47:00.000-06:00

I got a pedicure on May 1st, thinking that my toes would be pretty for the delivery. I was wrong. by the time Lilly was delivered, it had been 13 days, and my pedicure was about done for. The other day when I realized that I could finally bend over to touch my toes again, I decided that a fresh coat of paint was in order. I got out the polish, and Cecilia took one look at the pretty red bottle and exclaimed "ELMO!". After watching me apply the color to my toes, she pulled her chair over to me, climbed up and pointed to her toes and told me "Elmo!" in a very demanding voice. Alas, we both have toes that are red like Elmo. She shows everyone her toes, and if hers are hidden, she will show them mine, of course with the assertion that they are red- like Elmo.

Bath Duckies

2011-05-27T14:30:00.000-06:00

Its hard not to compare your kids to each other. We love this duck towel and bath time. I finally caught Lilly at a happy moment, before her bath. So on the left, we have Cecilia at 3 days old, and on the right we have Lilly at 13 days old. They are both so sweet. So cute. So different, yet so similar. LOVE them!

Proud Daddy

2011-05-23T13:58:00.001-06:00

Jon went back to work. Leaving me with the two little humans all by myself. (I. CAN. DO. IT.) He didn't leave with out his girls on his heart though.