tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12157586787430003402024-03-21T12:36:12.455-07:00The SchuchardsSarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.comBlogger176125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-42470962957064189282013-12-14T19:43:00.002-08:002013-12-14T19:48:59.477-08:00New family photosWe finally had some new family photos taken in early November. It had been more than a year since we'd last taken a family photo, so we were long overdue. Here are the best ones of the bunch:<br />
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All four of us....<br />
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Miss Lila-pie, the recent birthday girl (FYI the red dress she's wearing in some of the pics was a dress I wore for a photo shoot when I turned 3 in July of 1984)....<br />
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Mr. Johnny-Cake, almost 5 years old....<br />
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And the two munchkins together -- they really are best buddies most of the time....<br />
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<br />Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-31941550091243081952013-11-22T18:46:00.001-08:002013-11-22T18:51:13.506-08:00Halloween <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
We were so happy that Papa Jeff and Grandma Bonnie could stay with us through Halloween! The kids had been looking forward to it for months. John had originally wanted to be Green Lantern, but we couldn't find a Green Lantern costume at Costco, so he picked Captain America instead. I had bought Lila her Sofia the First princess costume back in July, when Grandma Bonnie and I had been at the Disney store at Tysons' Corner.</div>
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The weather was really warm during the week of Halloween, so we were able to do a lot of outdoor activities. Papa and Grandma and I took the kids to the Burke Nursery pumpkin patch a few days before Halloween. John looks really tired in all these photos since we went there right after school ended, but he was SO excited to be there. Of course Lila was excited too. The "magic carpet ride" was a huge hit with her - she went on it probably 10 times or more. (Thank you to Papa for helping her sit on the correct side of the carpet each time.)</div>
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The kids and I had bought our pumpkins from Burke Nursery at the tail end of September, but we waited to carve them until the afternoon before Halloween to make sure they didn't rot (since it had been so warm outside). Papa helped John cut open and clean out the insides of his pumpkin. Yuck! Then I helped John pick out a stencil (Wolverine) and carve it. We asked Lila when she got up from her nap if she wanted to clean out the insides of her pumpkin, but she had no interest whatsoever. She isn't a big fan of getting messy, so I wasn't too surprised. She did pick out a stencil for it, though (one of the characters from the X-Men….maybe Marvel Girl? It was from John's book of stencils). So Mommy cleaned it the pumpkin, and Daddy carved it for her.<br />
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On the afternoon of Halloween, it was really hard to keep the kids occupied until it was time for trick-or-treating. They couldn't wait to put their costumes on and go outside! We were ready to go at about 4:15, but we had to wait until 6 to start, haha. Here are the two cuties in their get-ups.<br />
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It was a perfect night for trick-or-treating….totally warm enough to go without coats (although it did start drizzling around 7 p.m.). Look at those great photos of Papa and Grandma with their superhero and princess!! We ate pizza for dinner and then went door-to-door in our immediate neighborhood with one of the boys who lives across the street from us, Chris (he's the one holding the orange sign in the last photo). Later, we drove to Fort Belvoir to go trick-or-treating on post with our Army friends who live there.<br />
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When we got home from Fort Belvoir, the kids wanted to dump out their candy bags to see what they got. They each got a Ziploc bag to put their candy in - they were SO proud of them!<br />
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Lila ended up giving most of her candy to John because it wasn't the "right" color (i.e. not purple or green). Then Mommy and Daddy had to get rid of a bunch of candy because it wasn't appropriate for them (i.e. Big League chewing gum, Warheads…remember those?!). The kids still had a lot left, though, mostly chocolate. Every day for the next 10 days, John poured his candy onto the floor and sorted it by color and/or type. (We couldn't believe how much fun he had doing this. He definitely has a future in the professional organization business.) We let him pick out one little piece of candy to have each day for 10 days or so. He was pleased as punch! Lila, on the other hand, forgot about her candy after the first day, haha.<br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-91130185584445949102013-11-12T18:18:00.004-08:002013-11-12T18:22:16.902-08:00Lila's 3rd birthday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lila FINALLY turned 3 on October 26th! I say finally because she's been talking about turning 3 since before she turned 2 1/2. She'd tell anyone and everyone that her birthday was "Ah-tober twinny-six."</div>
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The birthday celebrations kicked off on Thursday the 24th, when Lila was the snack helper for her preschool class. She got to bring the snacks that day and help serve all her classmates their food and water. Earlier in the day, her teachers had helped her decorate her very own birthday crown, and she got to wear it during snack time as everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to her. </div>
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On Friday the 25th, we picked up Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff from the airport! We were so excited that they were able to come for Lila's birthday (and Halloween, since they stayed until November 2nd). <br />
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The morning of her birthday, Lila got to open one of her presents. Not surprisingly, she picked the present wrapped in purple paper (her favorite color), which was from Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff. John offered up his present-opening skills.<br />
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Lila loved her new Sofia the First outfit, purple headbands and temporary tattoos! Also in the box were the Sofia tiara and necklace that go with the Sofia dress Mommy and Daddy had gotten for her to wear on Halloween.<br />
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Here are Grandma and Papa sitting with the birthday girl as she ate her "birthday" waffle.<br />
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We spent the rest of the morning at Arlington National Cemetery, which is about 10 miles from our house. It was absolutely gorgeous outside -- the perfect day for a visit there. Papa had never been before, so we were glad we could take him. Then we drove the short distance to Georgetown, where we had lunch at a BBQ restaurant and picked up some birthday cupcakes for Lila at a famous cupcake bakery called DC Cupcakes.<br />
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After naptime, we had a little gift-opening party for Lila. We were hoping a few of our neighbor friends would be able to stop by to join us for dessert, but they couldn't make it, so we decided to just bring the cupcakes to the restaurant we were going to for dinner. Lila didn't mind too much that she'd have to wait on the cupcakes, since she still got to open presents!<br />
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Before the unwrapping began...John was her helper again.<br />
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Opening the gift from Mommy and Daddy -- the Ariel Duplo castle set! Ariel is her favorite Disney princess (besides Sofia). Look at these smiles!<br />
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Daddy helped Lila open her presents after John was tasked with building the Ariel Duplo castle. She got a Disney princess storybook from her big brother; Snow White and Cinderella Duplo sets from Aunt Katharine and Uncle Jarey; a gift card from Uncle Jesse and Aunt Sarah; and an adorable new Gymboree outfit (in purple, of course) from Grandpa Harry and Grandma Robin. Thank you, everyone, for the great gifts!<br />
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The whole purple-y gang! It's hard to tell, but even Daddy is wearing a (light) purple shirt underneath his sweater. <br />
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Lighting the candles on Lila's mini birthday cake! She had told us she wanted a cake for her birthday, so Mommy and Daddy baked and decorated a tiny one for her (in addition to buying the cupcakes). <br />
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She was so smiley once she had blown out her three candles! I think she felt like she'd finally turned three because she'd blown them out. <br />
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So the sad thing about the cake was that it turned out to be completely undercooked! It had looked strange when I was mixing it, and it had looked REALLY strange when I took it out of the oven, but I figured it was ok and we frosted and decorated it. Then, when I cut pieces for the kids, Daddy and Grandma noticed it looked like dough on the inside, so we had to pitch the whole thing. John and Lila were SO upset and started bawling! In hindsight, I think the problem was that the butter I added to the batter wasn't cooled enough (the directions on the box said to let the butter cool completely). Oh well, at least it looked cute!</div>
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Thankfully, we were able to distract the kids from the cake disaster by telling them we had cupcakes to eat after dinner. We packed up the cupcakes and headed to Ledo Pizza -- our favorite local pizza place -- where we met up with some of our Army friends who are stationed at Fort Belvoir. John and Lila are good buddies with Abby, Matilda and Delaney.</div>
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Lila and Matilda....</div>
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Lila picked a chocolate cupcake for her birthday dessert. She had picked out Disney princess party plates when we were at Target a few days earlier.<br />
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Delaney, Abby and Matilda helped Lila get ready for her big birthday moment. What helpful friends they were! Lila got really shy when we all sang "Happy birthday" to her.<br />
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We all had such a good time at Lila's birthday dinner and were so glad we could celebrate with our friends from our days at Fort Hood! All of the kids did a great job at the restaurant. It helped that we'd brought the iPad for John to play with and that Lila had a new Barbie doll and vehicle to play with (courtesy of Abby, Matilda and Delaney). It was Lila's first-ever Barbie! The three older girls showed Lila how to play with her.<br />
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Our little Lila-pie is such a big girl now. We are especially amazed at what comes out of her mouth these days! Stay tuned for a more detailed post about Lila at age 3. There are some funny sayings that HAVE to be documented, hehe.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-22895580401473777372013-11-05T11:35:00.004-08:002013-11-05T17:19:24.518-08:00Preschool pics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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John and Lila LOVE their new preschool! John goes every morning from 9 until 11:45, and Lila goes Tuesdays and Thursdays for the same amount of time. Here are some photos from their first day of school, which was Thursday, September 5th.</div>
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They were so proud to show off their new Prince of Peace tote bags (Lila's is purple, John's is blue), which they use to bring home their projects and notes from their teachers....</div>
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The kids had fun finding their classrooms by looking at the signs in the front hall of the school. John is in Mrs. Short's Lions class, and Lila is in Mrs. Mulligan's Ducks class.<br />
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On Tuesdays and Thursdays when they both have class, John likes to escort Lila to her classroom first even though his classroom is on the way. He loves to help her take off and hang up her coat, hang up her tote bag, and put on her nametag. Then he holds her hand and hugs her goodbye! I wish he were always this sweet to his sister.<br />
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Yesterday and today were parent-teacher "conversations" (conferences) at school, and I feel obliged to share that both John and Lila got glowing reviews from their respective teachers. Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you two -- keep up the good work!Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-37759468930092729542013-10-17T11:20:00.001-07:002013-10-17T11:20:21.520-07:00Summer 5ksMommy did a few 5ks this summer -- one in Fairfax in July and the other in Leesburg in August. Both events were extremely family friendly, with "fun runs" at the end for the kids (not to mention a ton of yummy food). Honestly, it's a great way to spend a Saturday morning if you've got nothing else planned!<br />
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Mommy and kiddos before the Fairfax race:<br />
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Mommy finishing up....I ended up tying my personal best from last year's Panther Prowl at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (26:52). (In the Leesburg race in August, I ran one only second faster, haha.)<br />
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Lila before her race (the 3 and under set).... she's really excited in the first photo, but you can tell she's gotten a little nervous by the time I took the second. <br />
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Lila with her medal! Mommy held her hand and ran with her the whole way.<br />
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John before his race....he was ALL business. No smiles, no talking.<br />
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Here he is in the thick of it! He was trying so hard.<br />
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John with his medal (and finally, a smile!)<br />
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The champion siblings:<br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-52665368754962584262013-10-11T20:19:00.001-07:002013-10-11T20:19:00.944-07:00Promotion and Fourth of July pics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff came to visit us for the Fourth of July. Ross was officially promoted to Major on July 1st, so we had a little promotion ceremony on July 3rd on Fort Belvoir. Ross' former battalion commander did the oath, and John and Lila and I did the unpinning/pinning.</div>
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The cake: </div>
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John and Lila keeping Dad company before the ceremony:<br />
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Removing the captain bars/pinning on the oak leaf clusters....it took us forever!<br />
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MAJ Schuchard with his parents....<br />
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and with me:<br />
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On July 4th, we went to Mount Vernon for its Independence Day festivities. The kids loved seeing the re-enacters there (Revolutionary War soldiers and George Washington himself!) <br />
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On July 5th, we celebrated Papa Jeff's birthday. We all got to pick out our own desserts from the bakery at Whole Foods! Well, except for John, who picked out a plain bagel (and didn't even want cream cheese on top).<br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-49019054178137192662013-09-11T18:01:00.000-07:002013-09-11T18:01:14.517-07:00First visitors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Our first visitors to Virginia were my sister, Katharine, and her husband, Jarey. They flew here all the way from Oregon to spend their Memorial Day weekend with us! They also spent some time with Jarey's brother and sister-in-law, who live just north of D.C. in Silver Spring, MD. One-stop shopping! We are trying to persuade Katharine and Jarey to move out here next year once he finishes his PhD program.</div>
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Both Katharine and Jarey have been to Washington before, so we didn't do too much sight-seeing. One day we showed them our favorite local park, Hidden Pond Park, and another morning we had a visit from our first cousin, Nikki, who lives in D.C. We did go to Mount Vernon on Saturday, and I took a few photos of John and Lila with their aunt and uncle before we had our picnic lunch there.<br />
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Uncle Jarey is a scientist, so one afternoon when the kids were bored, he showed John and Lila how to do an experiment. I can't remember what kind of experiment it was, but it involved water in our kitchen sink, some plastic baggies and straws. The kids loved it!<br />
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More photos of the kids with their aunt and uncle:<br />
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A few days after Katharine and Jarey left, our longtime Army friends, the Reclas, stayed the night while en route to their new duty station, West Point. We've known 3-year-old Austin Recla since he was born! Austin has a younger sister, Lauren, who is 3 months younger than Lila. The four kiddos get along fabulously well. <br />
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John and Austin:<br />
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The kids on the couch, getting ready to eat some popsicles:<br />
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We've been fortunate enough to see the Reclas three times in one year, despite the fact that we've been stationed across the country from each other. We're hoping to continue this trend now that they're in New York. Not a bad road trip at all!Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-60857636964521058032013-09-07T19:37:00.001-07:002013-09-07T19:37:31.916-07:00Moving to Virginia, part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here are some more photos of our townhouse. I finally took a photo of the outside the other day. I've taken quite a few photos of the 1st and 2nd floors of the house but very few of the 3rd (where the bedrooms are), so that's my next project. </div>
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The front of our house:</div>
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The kitchen/office area, which is on the 2nd floor at the back of the house:<br />
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The family room, which is on the 2nd floor at the front of the house:<br />
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The dining room, which is adjacent to the family room:<br />
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Close-up of my mom's hutch:<br />
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The playroom, which is on the 1st floor at the back of the house:<br />
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Lila showing off the "reading nook." The side table was built by my maternal great-grandfather, Ray Taylor. He was a carpenter, and my mom had quite a few of his pieces at her home. The rocking chair may have belonged to the Taylors, but I'm not sure. It is a really awesome chair, but it's extremely old. I tried to make it a little more comfortable (and fashionable) by adding a few pillows. <br />
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The kids posing at the work/craft table with their masterpieces: <br />
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Posing in front of the "vehicle table," which we got at a garage sale here after we moved. Sometimes the kids set up a showcase of all their vehicles on top of the table. If you take off the top, there's a cool set of tracks for them to use with their Matchbox cars or trains.<br />
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Our back deck. It's huge and it has a really nice view of the wooded area behind our townhouse. We all love to hang out there or eat a meal there at our outdoor table.<br />
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This Step2 slide is one that we move all around our house and yard. When we first moved in, we had it in our "backyard," which is below the deck. We've also used it on our front driveway, on the grassy area in our neighborhood (in conjunction with our inflatable kiddie pool), and in the playroom. <br />
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Our new Weber grill. Daddy was tempted to buy a much cheaper brand, but I was able to convince him to get the one he really wanted. He LOVES it. Every time he uses it, he raves about how perfectly it cooks the meat. Worth every penny.<br />
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The grassy area down the street (literally 3 houses down):<br />
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We play baseball, Frisbee, golf, and soccer here. Here are some pictures of Lila on her favorite (but now deflated) purple bouncy ball and some of John just relaxing in the grass. <br />
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We've even brought our kiddie pool and slide to the grassy area. (Our "backyard" isn't really level enough to be suitable for the pool, plus there were a ton of mosquitoes back there this summer because of all the trees. Our front yard is the size of a postage stamp, so there's not enough room there.)<br />
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And finally, here's the neighborhood playground, which is adjacent to the grassy area. It's small, but it keeps the kids entertained with two "big kid" swings, two balance beams, and a big slide. They love to ride their bikes there. <br />
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All in all, it's a pretty fantastic neighborhood. We are so happy living here! Photos of the 3rd floor to come soon.....<br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-48990630531723830212013-08-25T19:45:00.000-07:002013-08-25T19:54:23.980-07:00The move to Virginia, part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF1TsVc4tZSaTcRCZE5yHJNYSv4HRF9PBC_Lv3ywLzbEnfockJrdf4wnJUD0gNWkTlFZUMonpP9nPqQeA76PEh3hsiNFp5qpNCSMzsIrY7Zivzh2lh9_oEcJi9wFRBkvIzkuk4TQI4COY/s1600/IMG_9125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
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Ross and I drove out to Virginia by ourselves in early April to find a place to live. It was a little tricky figuring out all the logistics of how we were going to do this, but luckily both sets of grandparents were ready to help. While Ross finished his last week of work at Marquette, I took the kids to Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, where we were meeting Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff at Uncle Jesse and Aunt Sarah's house. Grandma and Papa drove the John and Lila back to North Dakota with them for a week-long visit. Meanwhile, Halley, our poodle, was enjoying some quality-time with Grandma Robin and Papa Harry, who also live in Minnesota.</div>
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So, back to the house hunt....Ross and I weren't sure what to expect from the rental search in Virginia. We'd done a lot of looking online at homes and townhomes in Alexandria and Springfield, and we thought we'd found the perfect house to rent in Springfield. We were so nervous that the house would be rented out from under us! </div>
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It was still available when we arrived in Virginia, but we ended up falling in love with a much newer (and newly renovated) 3-story townhouse right down the road from the house instead. The townhouse met all of our needs/wants and more.....3 bedrooms, a large kitchen (especially compared to the small one in Wisconsin), an area for the kids to use as their playroom, and a garage (we have a 2-car garage.....a luxury in this area). And, if you can believe it, we now have 2 full bathrooms and 2 half bathrooms (compared to 1 full bathroom and 1 half bathroom in Wisconsin). We are swimming in bathrooms here.</div>
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Some added perks are the deck right off the kitchen, the huge grassy common area a few doors down where the kids can play, and a playground adjacent to the common area. It's amazing to think that this townhouse has the same square footage as our Wisconsin house (2,000) because we were so sure we'd have to downsize in Virginia to be able to stay within our housing allowance.</div>
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The floorplan is unlike anything we'd seen before, but we love that it's so different. The first floor just has a small entryway and a finished basement-like area with a half bath. But you have to go up a half-flight of stairs and then down another half-flight of stairs to get to the basement from the front door. Interesting, right? The second floor is very open. There's a living room and dining room area at the front of the townhouse, a half-bath and laundry room in the middle, and the kitchen at the back. The third floor has all three bedrooms and two full baths. We are very excited to now have a master bedroom with an ensuite bath, hooray! </div>
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For some reason, we still haven't taken a picture of the outside of our townhouse. And we don't have pictures of every room as they look now, but we have some 2nd-story pictures that we took the day we got the keys back in April. </div>
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So here's the kitchen....refinished cabinetry, brand-new tile floors, stainless-steel appliances, and granite countertops. Disregard the enormous light-bulb hanging from the ceiling....the previous owner must have had her dining table in the kitchen, but the new owner extended the countertop in order to have counter stools instead. We bought counter stools after we moved in, and we now eat breakfast and lunch at the counter every day! </div>
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Here's the room adjacent to the kitchen, which we decided to use as an office/sitting area (with one of our televisions, too). We ended up buying some new furniture to fit the space. </div>
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The dining room/living room combo. We decided to put our kitchen table underneath the chandelier (for obvious reasons), and this is where we eat dinner every night. We would put my mom's large hutch next to this table. The other half of the room would become our living room, with my mom's sectional against the wall at the back.</div>
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Another view of the dining/living space.<br />
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Yet another view of the dining/living space. </div>
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My job this week is to actually photograph the rooms of our townhouse as they look now!! And get a shot of the exterior and our street.</div>
Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-30916949759243108152013-08-22T18:11:00.001-07:002013-08-22T18:37:30.118-07:00Back to the blog, again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's hard to believe it's been 9 months since I last posted on our blog, but it's true!! Time flies when you've got two kids and you're getting ready to sell your house and move across the country. Because I'm so behind, I'm just going to start with a couple photos from the day we closed on our Wisconsin house -- March 29th. That seems like a good transition because these are the last photos we have from Wisconsin.</div>
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John and Lila did a really good job of dealing with all the craziness of putting our house on the market, keeping things tidy for showings, and moving all our stuff out. We'd been talking about the move to Virginia for so long that I think it was no big deal when the time finally came. Here are the kids in the front yard, all ready to go.....</div>
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On the front stoop.....notice that Lila has no socks or coat on in this photo, despite the fact that there's snow everywhere. She was having a 2-year-old moment.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRF5HIYX72EFlGdPFXLSRVmqA3OAa_MAuliPT9bUbCpF25PE8AF846d9AcSzU4SfkZe2VVMyihwyiC2eZDiHSLULJRylgktT-YLCsRtW0p24vdbHxmVHaNdiLzO3ts-4rI9HTLupqr9XU/s1600/IMG_9110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRF5HIYX72EFlGdPFXLSRVmqA3OAa_MAuliPT9bUbCpF25PE8AF846d9AcSzU4SfkZe2VVMyihwyiC2eZDiHSLULJRylgktT-YLCsRtW0p24vdbHxmVHaNdiLzO3ts-4rI9HTLupqr9XU/s320/IMG_9110.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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In front of the "sold" sign.....we were so, so glad that we got a full offer on the house just one week after we started showings. The house has a fantastic location and was completely move-in ready, so it almost sold itself, really.</div>
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Notice the house in the background of this next photo....it's the home of Mr. Cliff and Ms. Linda, the greatest neighbors ever! We all miss them a lot and are so glad we got to visit them about a month ago when we were back in Milwaukee for a wedding. </div>
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The fully-loaded Mercury Milan....it's hard to believe how much stuff we can pack into that car.</div>
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One last look at our house and street before leaving....it was our first home as a family of four! Despite all the many hardships we faced during the 21 months we lived there, we absolutely adored this place. We will always feel blessed to have been the stewards of such a grand old (1941) colonial. And who knows.....we may move back to Wauwatosa some day and fall in love with an even older house! </div>
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-10117315430338068612012-11-14T18:23:00.001-08:002012-11-14T18:23:02.594-08:00Fall pics, continued<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So, speaking of reading in the big playroom chair.....here are a few pics of John and Lila attempting to read together in the chair. They often have a hard time deciding who gets to hold the book, which usually leads to a screaming and/or crying little girl and a frustrated little boy. </div>
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The kids (especially John) like to look at toy catalogs when they come in the mail. Lila is eyeing a Minnie Mouse Bow-tique item in the catalog below. This is a good picture of Lila wearing pigtails! I love pigtails on her.<br />
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These next two pictures of Lila are some of my all-time favorites. She looks so serious! The outfit she's wearing is one of my favorites, too. Aunt Jen made her adorable pink flower clip!</div>
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The complete outfit.....</div>
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And the last two pics for the evening -- John and Lila looking so sweet as they pose in the pajamas we got at Once Upon a Child (Power Rangers for John and Minnie Mouse for Lila). </div>
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-45621197801344745642012-11-12T20:24:00.003-08:002012-11-12T20:24:54.736-08:00Fall pics, part 1 of many<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The first day of school for the kids was Wednesday, September 5th! John and Lila attend the same school at our church in Elm Grove. John has preschool 3 days a week (Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays), and Lila goes to the toddler Mother's Day Out program once a week (Wednesdays). They were so excited! I can't believe how willing they were to pose for these pictures I took that morning..... </div>
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I discovered this really nice park/playground in Brookfield called Wirth Park that we took the kids to in mid-September. The playground equipment there must be at least as old as I am, but the kids loved it! There's one of those metal merry-go-round things there as well as the tallest metal slide you've ever seen and those metal sand diggers -- everything was METAL. Not a very forgiving material for children. I wonder when playground manufacturers decided to start using plastic and/or wood instead!<br />
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Our playroom at its cleanest state ever....it is finally organized enough to be photographed.<br />
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Some new additions to the room are the craft table and four chairs, which I got for $100 at a garage sale in Naperville this summer. They're from Land of Nod and only a couple of years old! (The lady's kids had outgrown them). It would have cost five times that amount to buy them from the store. And notice the kids' artwork above the table.....we've been taping their masterpieces on the wall since the first day of school. I let them decide where they want each piece taped, so that's why everything is so randomly spread out, hehe.<br />
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Also, I put my Grandpa Glenn's globe (from the 1940s) and my mom's alphabet cross-stitch on top of the tall bookcase in the corner. My mom loved that globe and always had it in the office at her house. I like to look at it and think about how different the world looks today. The kids just like to spin it around -- all that geography goes right over their heads, of course. The alphabet cross-stitch was a something my mom had made for her niece in the late 1970s as a baby gift. When John and I lived at her house during Ross' deployment, she spent hours cleaning the background of the cross-stitch with bleach since it had yellowed with age. We had planned to mat and frame it to hang it in the basement play area of her house.<br />
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These alphabet cards were a gift to Lila from our family friend, Wrenne Jakubiak. Lila loves to talk about them while she's getting her diaper changed on the changing pad (which we moved from an actual changing table that we used to have in the room to the storage bench in order to save space). <br />
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Finally, here is the new reading area of the playroom. We didn't really have a reading area before because of the changing table, but when we brought this chair and ottoman home from my mom's house (thinking we'd bring it upstairs to John's room), we literally couldn't get it through the hallway into the rest of the house -- it's huge!! So we had to keep it in the playroom, but I'm really glad we did. It is the perfect place to read to the kids. We can all sit comfortably in it because of how wide it is.</div>
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More pics to come tomorrow night.....I am feeling ambitious about blogging!</div>
Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-14978584129958081292012-11-05T18:00:00.000-08:002012-11-05T18:07:34.260-08:00Lila's birthday weekend<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lila turned 2 on Friday, October 26th!!! Her birthday was very relaxed. As is typical for her these days, Lila slept late that morning, so John and I took the opportunity to prepare a special birthday breakfast for her -- pumpkin muffins (with Minnie Mouse muffin cups). Then we "borrowed" Minnie and Mickey Mouse plates from the stash of birthday party paper products so the food would look even more festive. She was SO excited to see her favorite character at the breakfast table, as you can see below. And notice her birthday outfit, which included the same pink tutu she wore for her 1st birthday party and a pink cupcake t-shirt, which I bought months ago while she was going through a particularly intense cupcake obsession.</div>
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After breakfast, we went to a playdate at the home of our new friends, Ollie (Olivia, who's 21 months) and Miss Abbi. (They live just down the road from us in Elm Grove, not too far from John's school.) John and Lila couldn't get enough of Ollie's new toy -- those little plastic balls that are in jumping pits at Chuck E. Cheese. They both climbed into Ollie's plastic infant bathtub (which she now uses as a toy) and then wanted me to put all of the balls in the tub with them. Rub a dub dub, two kiddos in the tub! I wish I had gotten a picture of them with my phone, but of course I forgot. I think I'll get this toy for the kids for Christmas.</div>
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Miss Abbi and I decided to extend the playdate with lunch at Chipotle. It's amazing how many birthdays our family has celebrated at various Chipotles over the years! Then we went home for a "birthday nap." The kids needed to rest so they'd be fresh for the arrival of Papa Harry and Grandma Robin, who were driving down to Milwaukee for a weekend visit! Mommy had to finish cleaning while the kids were sleeping. </div>
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Papa and Grandma arrived in time for us to all go to dinner together. We took them to Marty's Pizza, a really popular local place that's been around forever and that we used to go to more than 20 years ago when Papa and Grandma lived in Waukesha (a suburb of Milwaukee). Lila was a total ham all night. She loved playing with Grandma and wanted Grandma to hold her constantly ("Uppies! Uppies!" she says, meaning, "Up, please!")</div>
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When we got home, it was already so late that it didn't make sense to open any of Lila's birthday presents. Instead, we let the kids play in John's room for a little bit. Papa and Grandma had brought Uncle David's old Texas Longhorns twin-size comforter for John to have, and the kids wanted to play a "sleeping game" with it. Daddy laid the comforter down on the rug along with some pillows, turned off the light, and he and the kids went "night night" together. Hehe, you can imagine that there wasn't much actual sleeping in this game. John and Daddy pretended to snore, and Lila was the enforcer, telling the boys over and over again to "lay down" and "go night night." I got some pictures once we turned the lights back on.....hook 'em!</div>
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The next morning, we went to Jim's Pumpkin Patch in Germantown with the Boenitzes, who just moved to Wisconsin this fall! We wanted to get some pumpkins to carve during Lila and Kael's joint birthday party later that afternoon (Kael turned 2 on October 24th -- he and Lila were born just two days apart)! The kids loved the tractor-pulled hayride out to the pumpkin patch. There were a bunch of other activities to keep them busy, too, which was nice, since we were trying to ensure the kids tired themselves out enough to take good naps.</div>
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Kael napped at our house so we could start the joint birthday party as soon as all the kids woke up. It was a small birthday party -- just Kael and his Mommy and Daddy (Aunt Chiara and Uncle Eric), Kael's grandma (Chiara's mom), the four of us, and Grandpa Harry and Grandma Robin -- but it was nice to have things be so relaxed! We had a very easy Tex-Mex menu of creamy chicken enchiladas, rice, black beans, and chips and salsa, and I can say without any doubt that we all ate WAY too much food. Of course that didn't stop any of us from enjoying dessert -- Mickey and Minnie Mouse cupcakes and vanilla ice cream. Here are some pictures from the evening.....</div>
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Carving the pumpkin....we used trash bags for smocks!</div>
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Lila with Papa Harry....she wasn't too interested in the carving process.</div>
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Kael gets a ride on the train from his grandma!</div>
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Opening presents in the living room......there was a distinct Minnie/Mickey Mouse theme to the gifts for Lila. The rolling duffel bags (see below) were a huge hit, thank you Aunt Chiara and Uncle Eric! The Minnie Mouse Bow-tique fashion set was very popular, too, even with John (he still asks to play with it more than a week later). Papa Harry and Grandma Robin gave Lila the Bow-tique, along with the cutest Minnie Mouse outfit ever (see her wearing it in the photos at the bottom of this post).<br />
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Grandma Robin looking on as Kael and Lila give hugs to Grandma Cynthia.....and Grandma Robin helping the kids take a pony ride on Grandma Cynthia's back!</div>
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Cupcake time! Lila was dainty with her cupcake, whereas Kael was destructive with his (notice all the crumbs on his side). The frosting was their favorite part for sure.</div>
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Finally, here are some pics from Sunday morning, when Lila opened her gifts from Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff and Uncle Jesse and Aunt Sarah. John had fun helping her opening everything. Lila got so many adorable outfits and the cutest pairs of Hello Kitty shoes from Grandma and Papa. </div>
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Lila-Pie, we're so thankful for you! You are such a joy to have in our family. A happy, happy 2nd birthday to you, dear daughter!<br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-35336924752324894712012-10-28T18:23:00.001-07:002012-10-28T18:24:13.396-07:00Back to the blog.....I'll be slowly adding photos of the kiddos from the past 6 months to the blog. I'll start with the photos from Lila's birthday and birthday party. Our darling girl turned 2 on Friday and had a joint Mickey Mouse/Minnie Mouse party yesterday with her buddy Kael Boenitz! Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-63696688249976018792012-03-17T12:09:00.010-07:002012-03-17T13:02:49.117-07:00Mid-month update for Miss PieLila won't be 17 months for another week, but I just HAD to post a mid-month update for her since she's been doing so many new things lately! <br /><br />Her new language abilities are especially exciting. Just before we left for our trip to North Dakota on March 8th, she started imitating a lot more sounds and words that she'd hear us say. Seemingly out of the blue one day, she started saying "co" for "coat." She's obsessed with her coats and always wants to wear them. She points to them hanging on the coat tree in the playroom and says "co, co, co!" until I put one (or sometimes two) on her. Another day, after she'd done something by herself, I told her, "Ta da!," and she says that a lot now, usually after accomplishing some feat. She said that over and over again yesterday while she was putting the cap on a pen -- it sounds more like "da da" than "ta da," but it's obvious what she's saying. <br /><br />Since we've been in North Dakota, she's been imitating almost everything she hears! Our little parrot started saying "Papa" (for her Papa Jeff) earlier this week, and she said "stinky" for the first time on March 15th while I was changing her poopy diaper in the Target bathroom. She has also started copying us when we spell her name or sing the alphabet song, but she's a little off on the actual letters (the inflection is the same, but the letters are different. She usually starts with "e,i..."). And I'm pretty sure she's doing a similar thing when somebody counts out loud -- the intonation is there, but she uses letters instead of numbers.<br /><br />My favorite new word to hear her say is "hee!" (for "here"/"here you go"). She just started saying this yesterday, March 16th, when she was trying to hand her cup back to me in the car. It's a fantastic replacement for the grunt-like noise she makes when she's trying to get my attention! <br /><br />Another thing Lila has started doing is shaking her head "no." So far, I've only seen her do it when I've asked her for a kiss and she doesn't want to oblige me. It's funny to watch how vehemently she shakes her head back and forth -- it makes me dizzy to watch!Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-13242255077228919302012-02-20T09:09:00.000-08:002012-02-20T09:12:26.743-08:00Our 15-month-old<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSw5XWNKrWc_O94-CtOqEGjNGq7b54K_7VwnZ-qmi-CI66jG0otiwyN7deYcD_p0qdxdFjqGlKDIA69UsGUKAidsUls4810C4kqndfrBgIkQO9RIeNmDttud3chJh6uRFE0LLOca-dXE/s1600/IMG_7547.JPG"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708448164376273906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSw5XWNKrWc_O94-CtOqEGjNGq7b54K_7VwnZ-qmi-CI66jG0otiwyN7deYcD_p0qdxdFjqGlKDIA69UsGUKAidsUls4810C4kqndfrBgIkQO9RIeNmDttud3chJh6uRFE0LLOca-dXE/s320/IMG_7547.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div><br />The month of January was HUGE for Lila. In the weeks leading up to her 15-month birthday (January 26th), Lila went on a cross-country trip with Mommy, Daddy and John, nursed for the last time, and started walking on her own. She also developed a love for books! And in the weeks since she turned 15 months, she has added two more signs and one more word to her repertoire and has dropped her morning nap. What a big girl she is now! </div><div> <br /></div><div><strong>Physical stats: </strong></div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila truly is a big girl now. She is finally over the 20-pound mark and is very long for her age. At her 15-month doctor's visit on January 31st, she weighed 20 pounds 11 ounces (40th percentile) and measured 31 inches long (75th percentile). She has a really long torso, which means that most of her 12-18 month shirts and onesies are too tight now. We've been putting her in 18-24 month, 24 month and 2T outfits and pajamas.</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila cut her fourth 1-year molar while we were traveling out east. Now that she has all of her 1-year molars, she looks so much older! The length of her hair makes her look older too. The girl has hair to spare -- up front and in back. It might be time to trim her bangs, since she won't keep bows or clips in for very long anymore. Those were my trick to keep her bangs swept to one side!</div><div> <br />Once we got back from our trip, we finished up the remaining size 3 Pampers Swaddlers we had in the house and changed our Amazon diaper subscription to size 4 Pampers Baby Dry diapers. The size 3 diapers still fit her perfectly, but we figured we might as well move up to the next size, which is quite roomy. It makes me sad to think she won't be wearing the Swaddlers anymore! </div><div> <br /></div><div> <strong>Nursing/eating</strong>:</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila's last day of nursing was January 14th, the day before we came home from our Baltimore trip. She was just past 14.5 months old -- the age at which I'd intended to stop nursing her because that's when I stopped with John. I actually tried nursing her on the 15th while we were on the plane. We had woken up really, really early that morning to take the shuttle to the airport, so I didn't have time to nurse her right away, plus, I figured I should save the nursing for the plane ride in case she got really fussy. But she wouldn't have anything to do with it! She wouldn't even lay down on my arm for me to put the nursing wrap on. So the weaning process was extremely easy, as it had been with John. She was ready.<br /><br /></div><div>Lila has more than made up for the lack of breastmilk. As you might expect from a toddler who gained nearly two pounds in three months' time (she weighed 18 lbs 14 ozs at 12 months), Lila has had a very healthy appetite. It's not at all unusual for her to eat more during a given mealtime than her big brother. She eats a combination of pureed baby foods and finger foods. Also, we started giving her "squeezy packs" back in December, I think, and she does really well with those now. They can be a little messy at times if she squeezes too hard at the wrong time, but the potential spills are totally worth the convenience. They are a good way to get some veggies in.</div><div> <br /></div><div>I would say she's probably a little less picky than her brother was at this age. She likes all fruits in pureed form and nearly all fruits that we cut up for her on her tray (except plums, which she won't eat at all, and grapes, which she'll eat only occasionally). She eats a wider variety of veggies then he did for sure. Peas are one of her favorite veggies, whereas John literally gagged on them (and still does). She'll occasionally eat broccoli, which he wouldn't touch. There are a few veggies she won't eat though, like cauliflower, cucumber, yellow squash and zucchini.</div><div> <br /></div><div>Her favorites finger foods are bananas, blueberries, cereal, cheese, crackers, noodles, peas, pears and sweet potatoes.</div><div> <br /><br /></div><div><strong>Sleeping:</strong> </div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila loves to sleep. She is so easy to put down for naps and at bedtime because she only needs a blanket and two fingers to fall asleep, literally. We started trying to drop her morning nap a week or two ago because she wasn't falling asleep for her afternoon nap anymore. We're still experimenting with the best time to lay her down, but 12 or 12:15 seems to work best. On days that John has preschool, I lay her down for her nap by 11:45 a.m. because I have to wake her up at 2:15 p.m. to go pick him up; we put her to bed those evenings at 6:30 p.m. to make up for the shorter nap. The rest of the week, we put her to bed at 7 p.m. She usually wakes up at 7 a.m., so she's getting a good 12+ hours of sleep each night. If we're at home, she sleeps entirely through the night (yay!). If we're traveling, she tends to wake up.</div><div> <br /></div><div><strong>Walking</strong>:</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila officially started walking unassisted during the week of January 23rd! She had gotten braver about trying to walk while we were traveling out east, and we knew she'd be walking very soon. </div><div> <br /></div><div>On January 25th, Lila took the most steps she'd ever taken during our post-dinner playtime. Daddy and John were on one side of the kitchen and I was standing with her on the other side of the kitchen. She would start taking a few tentative steps toward Daddy and John as if she wanted to go visit them, but then she'd turn around, all wobbly, and walk back towards me. Then she'd do it all over again. It was so cute to watch her go back and forth like that -- her first-ever pivots!</div><div> <br /></div><div>The next evening (her 15-month birthday), while John, Lila and I were at Babies R Us, she walked around the store like she'd been walking for months. She wasn't just taking a few tentative steps here and there anymore -- I could set her down and she could quickly get where she wanted to go. She and John had fun bouncing and chasing a couple of rubber balls around the store. He thought it was hilarious that she was walking like a big kid!</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila being able to walk has made life a little more complicated in some ways. She definitely loves to walk off in her own direction (usually towards a flight of stairs) when an adult sets her down, so we finally had to install two baby gates for the top and bottom of the stairs in our house. We'd been needing to do this anyway, but we'd put it off because we don't really spend much time upstairs unless it's bedtime, and even then, we'd only play inside the bedrooms with the doors shut. The bigger problem was Lila wanting to climb up the stairs while we'd be in the living room.</div><div> <br /></div><div>It took us FOREVER to find a baby gate that worked for the top of the stairs (3 times was the charm). Daddy did a fantastic job of installing the Cardinal Gates Stairway Special Safety Gate, and we absolutely love it. Now the kids can run around upstairs between the bedrooms and in the hallway before bedtime! Then Daddy installed the Summer brand gate we'd initially bought for the top of the stairs at the bottom of the stairs. Lila doesn't even try to pull on it -- she knows she can't get through! It's great to have this peace of mind. Daddy deserves a medal for all his hard work.</div><div> <br /></div><div>Here's a video from February 1st that shows Lila walking around the playroom......<br /><br /><iframe height="299" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/37029282?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" frameborder="0" width="399" mozallowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /><br /><br /></div><div><strong>Talking</strong>:</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila still seems to be a bit quieter than John was at this age. She recently added the word "ball" to her vocabulary, and it has quickly become one of her favorite words. Whenever she sees a ball in a book or around the house, she'll point to it and say "ball." Her other favorite word is "Daddy," which she says constantly. If Daddy's at work and she's saying his name, I'll ask her where he is, and she'll say "Daddy" and put her hands out to indicate that she doesn't know. </div><div> <br /></div><div>She makes a lot of the same noises that John did. She makes roaring noises when she sees pictures of animals (even dogs....she's still working on the barking sound), and she makes vrooming noises when she's playing with John's vehicles. </div><div> <br /></div><div>She does use a wider variety of signs than John ever did, though, including "eat" and "milk." She started signing "eat" on January 30th and "milk" around the same time. It's so nice to have her finally use the "milk" sign so I know when she's thirsty!</div><div> <br /></div><div><strong></strong> </div><div><strong>Playing</strong>:</div><div> <br /><br /></div><div>The biggest change in Lila's playtime habits since December is that she now enjoys books! She will happily walk over to the bookshelf in her room or the playroom and pull out book after book until she's sitting in a huge pile of books. She'll turn the pages as if she's actually reading what's on them and then throw the books to the side when she's done with them (she does the same thing with her cups, much to our dismay).</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila definitely prefers the small board books, especially the square-shaped ones with big pictures of animals or household items. (She seems to have something against rectangular-shaped books. I don't think she's ever let me finish reading one.) Her favorite books are <em>Doggies;</em> <em>Moo</em>, <em>baa</em>, <em>lalala;</em> the four books in the Bright Baby series and any touch-and-feel book.</div><div> <br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigclvXhvODF6yTsAbLYtIQk2Wf8qemwmkd9ViMiqWpCafF3qxU7yJQ9GpklB7Q0cAD2l72tFZotErI23MGHTDaKl54CYXi4auktfG_GM3f8Y6EB8KPbzvcvISHNUz5en4bzki873WIwIw/s1600/IMG_7650.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711260356894434642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigclvXhvODF6yTsAbLYtIQk2Wf8qemwmkd9ViMiqWpCafF3qxU7yJQ9GpklB7Q0cAD2l72tFZotErI23MGHTDaKl54CYXi4auktfG_GM3f8Y6EB8KPbzvcvISHNUz5en4bzki873WIwIw/s320/IMG_7650.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711260345588042146" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf6s31tP-jW61suV3p81SEl2djvin1pWOWiJyWBvtPD1jw2B0xWl2BhtqsfB0pOsWZipVMUYT6tvoX4vhLBfSZuPfd3TK-dXUhIb1DZhPGRaMV0vpwWs1d4SKXyGzoxl-e-hOB9mFGh_0/s320/IMG_7654.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711260342125698194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu6wUE67G3QXWd0lER4G1pl-mU-bTAANG8zTCHa5uqkfz5CqV_Cy7z877QSxJ_racSUh4QF5XpVqc2zqbOPQbFjTN-wu4HXFbvmI3xpxrPACQMB2yhzOQ6KmNbtiP9R-z3bGWxLCvz6bg/s320/IMG_7655.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708443886544821186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHSAeLS_8y7clkDhEFVHbZ1aQJBRYqDWikR7rEirZgtDJc0G4ORhcE8-lsefOjCZRMOftkC4gY6BBKj4vPWvigVhGwtTSi-6UdcoSYZ4h_8bDjK6YIpX0ax4BodtPFrMc6lfGLQN6HOwk/s320/IMG_7523.JPG" /><br /><br /><div><div>And here are some more recent photos of our precious 15-month-old.....<br /><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrCyugJ1qDFgld0bf4UFVbnBTTo7YBVm6vI8cQeqC9OXKeu7oCGcq105lXvgPTelxuPyZW0pIA51j38depXZj0H_TSRkhGZ9kF6alP0mvRvi47JyK0iWtiDGWDQh1hWWu7OEWei2B6pQ/s1600/IMG_7533.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708442806218413506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrCyugJ1qDFgld0bf4UFVbnBTTo7YBVm6vI8cQeqC9OXKeu7oCGcq105lXvgPTelxuPyZW0pIA51j38depXZj0H_TSRkhGZ9kF6alP0mvRvi47JyK0iWtiDGWDQh1hWWu7OEWei2B6pQ/s320/IMG_7533.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708442366460335954" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXMkf3AcVg3dKLSwntlMIs4EvscouBCvpg_TYWfVMHtD9AHI08mnRIQao1AkKicIJDGNgO5W7gaKV0KnsTgHGkyCkoQy_IoVp90gmGxQn-_PpeucvVVaUSwIr7htWbIt-j1-_Q5odv4lU/s320/IMG_7534.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708441003448063826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-rDi_zu5oLKOZ2t7Ulo6rtxaTT2XE9NSpdDYet4BEueniccvyGpuueVl8sUncMQB2cDlq0S8HpFzY3UAoZtdPM3NiaoVwnKX0HxfhX7sTGvXVczrE3W_WjbyftxdGzHt0VeNvgssKJU/s320/IMG_7546.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708440542105183346" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLXc6VotYr75cf4DejV23cjSTwZ0nIEJZh3MZoeu-1y0oShfGxxw4ZH8GNujHSUXSS9m3sAdVkEa9Ry4Kbvlxd1FwFeFicQsGfTMqW5KrfDNfgtm-zPB4XrJx67fKjtpaC42WrOV5DdUY/s320/IMG_7551.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708439749712670210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoEcUmRzHbRn0ztIgZuO2lWfGp6nl_Vg83n_Fo0LMlxYtJGYKGhrB4N_nsbh1F7CIhNGKFfAPdBaQ24VPy_ankDJFU0wTqwlAuOjoNkIgVfQWx9AAjVM1iSJ44p6dAfLLeBeIqHYE8JNQ/s320/IMG_7555.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708439301339785522" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnk2BSy7M45bIywopZhr5O3v0Zv2JHm9yXAxDO_mZY5-opzcsGZ3b6h_4jK1bXA_cK91xN2sMLCbXcIwxy35f544n8sTXbm5zoEH9t3YIqG9KthzKk1OBaM0VsMuZD-xfHOQl5lI0bPsc/s320/IMG_7580.JPG" /><div><div><div><div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711263895073124306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXe9GTTfI61oST1OzePp8XtTwd1Z9vUGA-PmV4CDrVDSKeSNrbnoM5e7h4O6JQt6HzPljNEYTt4Y8G0SJbKOCNHe83D-edEUBn8TKYZwZ0g_9dtMi5KxzDPsYGRSaqQ7hoWqB6wA2LlmU/s320/IMG_7615.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711263885734292178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwdou3fGKvttYCCHzCdG07WtgSKQJlUZHE8HJe-SRN9JtsbmJMZlYLz5v-X-YM0i0p_tfOxK4MIEdicY66OyNNnI-l38U_Gkzgk7uZnghbwmYrm70lxKQnW3RtXlZwykBm6A-BMdg_YY/s320/IMG_7625.JPG" /> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwdou3fGKvttYCCHzCdG07WtgSKQJlUZHE8HJe-SRN9JtsbmJMZlYLz5v-X-YM0i0p_tfOxK4MIEdicY66OyNNnI-l38U_Gkzgk7uZnghbwmYrm70lxKQnW3RtXlZwykBm6A-BMdg_YY/s1600/IMG_7625.JPG"></a>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-17681205871275792782012-02-20T08:05:00.000-08:002012-02-20T08:34:45.784-08:00More brother and sister picsJohn often asks if Lila can sit on his lap, but she's usually not interested. Last week, however, when we had taken John's new "big boy" car seat out of its box, she was very interested. She wanted to see what this new seat was all about.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMiP0eeiEV95HGXZCqiZ1CMvEcwjoMBjLvpEbzYeNB9C1vrOiZwpuNjwHbGzdWah1Qt0wKvM4gMIvtmncGZszmb-rpJ2L3ryDb-jE2uXWHxWQxdZOgy310BJs2iDuCxSqORou4bsAhV8E/s1600/IMG_7586.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711252994270104530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMiP0eeiEV95HGXZCqiZ1CMvEcwjoMBjLvpEbzYeNB9C1vrOiZwpuNjwHbGzdWah1Qt0wKvM4gMIvtmncGZszmb-rpJ2L3ryDb-jE2uXWHxWQxdZOgy310BJs2iDuCxSqORou4bsAhV8E/s320/IMG_7586.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711252989654929970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoNFJfazqQWreOh9miiyuXheTREhsN2I013QDvUkvjR1aVdCIEywQ6QxOOwOBbul7EF7PltztN-a2SuDoHDLa5I3I5jrtnQBuIO4xcOtFH5tqzRJyARbqCxPX6M8Y4GbdqXwhU2nnQSh0/s320/IMG_7587.JPG" /><div> </div><div><br />After the novelty of sitting on John's lap wore off, she sat next to him on the seat. I gave each of them some reading material so I could snap some more photos of them together. Cute!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ma-I3wiZO41DbnOwlZyfzqTmsIWd6CEtVcUgy2rL_0rHg7eIx82NYAYcB6nctaZ-T1ApkFC7bRQXhLWytOhnhQrBRyTURKDgZcdFhqOHOlgFr0l9czdbrzUM25-NZkzUzEDyoXRoa6o/s1600/IMG_7595.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711252142091433730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ma-I3wiZO41DbnOwlZyfzqTmsIWd6CEtVcUgy2rL_0rHg7eIx82NYAYcB6nctaZ-T1ApkFC7bRQXhLWytOhnhQrBRyTURKDgZcdFhqOHOlgFr0l9czdbrzUM25-NZkzUzEDyoXRoa6o/s320/IMG_7595.JPG" /></a></div><div><br /><br /></div><div>The kids also like to hang out with each other in the pack n play that we set up in the living room. In the photos below, John is trying to put Lila on his lap -- unsuccessfully. She looks pretty uncomfortable. The second picture makes her look like Gumby with her leg way up by her head.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWyzW17Kl-TnDvk4VATDAUppzvJKcjYpJ9w3aTcEX3-aohkRwvS8_SjTngMF3omD6b8vbNblRcSCIzlwaADu8oJTwZR1dr1unc3t15JjC3JqIwD_PD6LwvgCqNSS4LCQJTKMvDP5_Ie0/s1600/IMG_7632.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711252129773142210" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixWyzW17Kl-TnDvk4VATDAUppzvJKcjYpJ9w3aTcEX3-aohkRwvS8_SjTngMF3omD6b8vbNblRcSCIzlwaADu8oJTwZR1dr1unc3t15JjC3JqIwD_PD6LwvgCqNSS4LCQJTKMvDP5_Ie0/s320/IMG_7632.JPG" /></a></div></div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711256657586924130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH5v8T1xpBqGF4hyphenhyphenpBtGZyf_mtYlEmlc5ygqeq75_ZjVVplcT27pqZUm4jneMij3y_cbcOku3V9eV0AP4QhZODt8VVVpwZkXKOX4EO2nuDm3d-v-0H5wc4ir4YL4zubHgmq-vdHBxHuVk/s320/IMG_7635.JPG" />Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-43636929069077258932012-02-18T09:11:00.003-08:002012-02-18T09:11:27.408-08:00Brother and sister....<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdySSZzhyJBk7YKgGl847TDQZQZXnp_JGV6wpY6sdv4-WoA-gMja_dIMXTjViq4YpO_7fGcqwu-A54CGDrWNZ_3aZeSmgVh8PlSKMCSLNu1kcLVzVwRNpO8enu0p5TqXasyrqez6-KNRg/s1600/IMG_7488.JPG"></a>Just a couple of photos of John and Lila from the other day.....</div><div> </div><div>Lila was riding around the house on the train, and John wanted to join her (of course). It was a tight squeeze, but they both fit on the seat! You can tell from the last photo that Lila eventually grew tired of having her brother behind her. She wanted to ride by herself!</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg39t2J1pZRwEF8DwR2cp71-J0wBYqDApOGeOwdwFwcIjx9j_9XoALCxQjkMlI667AwFlYf5WM0lepdLovZedlNMlZHWe936QwrUw-lA40VGaP_fIaJ25U97H0fk1OVvMvbmzZ-noecVg/s1600/IMG_7489.JPG"></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugnoUlRHRuBEPG3IcgeSQ9dRoDb9DiO3fs-XXOQa1xWBWaasapNdBV6xLoPb4IugZkuVSunWOsG2NjscEdTrNm4r1e9GmcePVylpJwZCu01KKm-ila0FjStjntI3tsQAI4eIAKh2WXE4/s1600/IMG_7528.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708451255947034610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjugnoUlRHRuBEPG3IcgeSQ9dRoDb9DiO3fs-XXOQa1xWBWaasapNdBV6xLoPb4IugZkuVSunWOsG2NjscEdTrNm4r1e9GmcePVylpJwZCu01KKm-ila0FjStjntI3tsQAI4eIAKh2WXE4/s320/IMG_7528.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708451246819090882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7nhyiI6Yjthh71CQjQphJa3TCZn-Fewg4vrnZO4O4Rhow86nmxhUoMp9t21IoFdLNkdTQyXrsQ4KVffJ5zFEtUFPrr6JKRDPCWgv5kroRz-DrFfF9gt4gbp2imdeHfoRxPhAfFUMNSzs/s320/IMG_7530.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708451243461506098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyWaDRZxX0O9zZGYT_YT1pFQ-iqECgUQxGNhaQ_koLehm6mVHMQkPcbr6o0tAmsywRsAz-haJ68c4kL_usruaz2AZ6Q6Nvv5J-jtJNi7l1zQ4TvmK4TZPDi2Et8k03Z-0ka8sJETiulLU/s320/IMG_7531.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708449737328185890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-U900XuqIfZSUl4OLIFoC52HZfh70MpzqvTfnmz38ki8CW9UFwPk4qH6Gr7JrZlqGiePAhy_h4wvSDVK0HXf2JyiPLwFpiR96WKeciWZygDOfJdUJXkzV1ZMuNNz3udif0-5V7k9Q1kM/s320/IMG_7532.JPG" /><div><div><div> </div></div></div></div></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-3953943886716412372012-02-08T18:25:00.001-08:002012-02-10T13:09:02.170-08:00Out East!We had a great time catching up with some of our Army friends during our 10-day trip out east (January 5-15, and don't worry, we flew there). It was totally exhausting traveling with the kids, especially since they didn't start sleeping well at night until right before we returned home, but our friends definitely made it a lot easier with all of their help! We honestly couldn't have done it without them.<br /><br />For the first few days, we stayed with the Powells at their home in suburban Baltimore. John has been bethrothed to Elise Powell since they were four months old, so it was very exciting to see them together again -- it had been nearly 18 months! Of course it was also very exciting to get Lila and Baby Jack acquainted with each other (Baby Jack is Elise's 9-month-old baby brother).<br /><br />It didn't take any of us adults very long to realize that having four children under the same roof is extremely difficult, if not ridiculous. The hardest part was having to juggle the kids' schedules (i.e. mealtimes, naptimes, bedtimes) whenever we made an outing. As soon as Jack and Lila woke up from their morning naps, we had to get going right away so we could be back in time to lay John and Elise down for their naps. And we're pretty sure it would have been hilarious to be a fly on the wall during mealtimes at the house. Stephanie and Mike did such an awesome job of getting us all fed!<br /><br />We took a ton of photos of the kiddos.......the photos of John and Elise with the balloons were taken on the 8th, John's birthday, but it was a joint celebration, since Elise's birthday is the 23rd. They were so funny with the cupcakes! There was no way they were going to be able to wait to eat them until after they decorated them.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6K8fHDaFriFtwGGMC8jFk1DJJ2oC_9eB-JrZF2dd94EFRxUi2shG68d5pwfZATmzCmwd3k9vqXKPdvZl47ilmiXcIgfNG6HZWlwmZbGdwKP79ob8IoCIddLWl52H8OroepdBPL7O7K8/s1600/IMG_7172.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707345267977717058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6K8fHDaFriFtwGGMC8jFk1DJJ2oC_9eB-JrZF2dd94EFRxUi2shG68d5pwfZATmzCmwd3k9vqXKPdvZl47ilmiXcIgfNG6HZWlwmZbGdwKP79ob8IoCIddLWl52H8OroepdBPL7O7K8/s320/IMG_7172.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707345266661845346" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKkejJgBoL23aGDkSJ57YTgkayxQnsbYidPhXauRMEF2VnWtFwVsM2PU0dAXxAO2vshgqCgDjaFkrykMh_Ycys9VJKpGo6CNeNxaRxWpniCrPm_8E7A-DOQU-mgQ1_TJ15h-m1HkMnZA8/s320/IMG_7175.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707343936739627426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgdTXJjN2Dcp8rRYpavOJ89DCjQUO5JD-Spp-twlSygQ-V1FNMdR8ScKCMFR6QIPIb_azd4lHlsuL7fcIMN1z9ksbAurWSmEewkcrg9MXzA5SSglSXk9q9r5ZY-3IPijCf1R2wtbC43-E/s320/IMG_7181.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707343929009577666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDKfsRYhQ8sJKGrTC-RDOLWlHxvPgx6KNIpFsMF8mu9DDfjzRaX8IAYdUevfs5yXnSldkKzKQKV2NLochHhUcJ55EWM3T9NT5ni9eVsDIjGYkzAYkgodzg_Qym_rpJ-uknfmlFK3xiUDE/s320/IMG_7184.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707343038763371682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnCf9Xyf5h7LMP9_lQ3I0pvz3Tc-H38E2iuskcAOwgYVpVGDfvUsw9qZJ9qSRBkwhKZM7j0nw6TCzySwKqiiqUXtylrrZekflluOtVdJ7R2XiaxyP6TJ0s5NZEVBm74-sPdaY0V_Uk05o/s320/IMG_7188.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707342077555051938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-8UB08h0iYATrXPS89t221JSfLCpgZy6vc26NJaSvTVZoozbWJZPNUUYsbKsbIyYzey2en5ylrke5eraU3V9wVtubktf307BPAgG7g6p5gF2dVleN6NAHbnwkkttAF6G2kBCaFeXe4w/s320/IMG_7190.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707342069467559858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixSZteFNfsQyYev7gHEu7xcIyCZ0w1xPM9C840rD1D_bRKjtrQDkvfy2llIJERngIPI1DOTc_g0HJXYL8R7tiK7d14BKcXq_d8jG0SqvIhpd3JkgM0P6RGGmJwLNVSvStsNectbaIguVo/s320/IMG_7191.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5707341212233108050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn02XiLpKj83Bbv-tq6ZjZb291RaHW004kzo0fjUuUOEPYp8A4OESKlOYykaSmHGxcQ_8sZVM-NOiqp3WGU_bjxDM-wjwpg434JhLtCAchwy1ZZe2i6BIh3hII0V0T85m96ebCZ0mYatM/s320/IMG_7195.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; 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width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706958884550513154" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSfuQD6qhLDqf55c91CtGZYfxPTMVRupwnHxi8QTyIdAy5ErQ6yms2bYGQ7R6x_lxz4ivBadh56qw1ppIYuvlNVHPlpze0Nc_cl-cwZ6UbzPzIDRT3EGpokv6vkr6QlgasX_gaIdcEGEQ/s320/IMG_7288.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706958122376373234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTwBuUo1CQsHrCmeAa7VGXX5xUHLO5HqrPtNSECVw-2LGjMKGcbLhFf182IfxSkNvf-jIk2-MJLKq087KvUi2oiKB1XW3eJHQxbsmNus62T5-qjT4ctzYexFMdw5tHFot7UsjtzUtCLXw/s320/IMG_7291.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706958117728726386" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX6QLDIZdtxwGyqwznE1RW9JQ8PImi7HGr9xaAR4LgulR_6X1gYq4SuAPm9le8xsWNmLckdFUNpKzDt_AaqhmLK5ilx6A6ObGcZ6eUyWqIv1wGLQZJg5FqlyW52OvhefevYQcdqsDmSw8/s320/IMG_7294.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706957334020358626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6aoiYL-F3HeU23k26TnZXbgG9VXyNE-ccnNC5DEfwtf50rusDOpePtNEwm_GkJqOdqvZlcnB5otRrtRI59kVTmaleccJCPNPK7ECVc3tMOeDrE2o9oG1exYplkaTfmq95A81Ct54vY7w/s320/IMG_7297.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706957329430491186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsZKixF0KMu3L7ZjURiRedrfNprsbgB_zuvYXaELyPWaJs8qvUNmwC43UZB6GEgRZ7xOUkVU-oxxvuMdYrbJpozl6KGvkF2S3WMVbz2kjlH77gqtqT1K3F3SX7Ttj43NrYXynucAGM7jk/s320/IMG_7298.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706956284727134018" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6jxQtkN534w2F5a3e0emihA0yO4_j91AMvZsFd_sh5POQfuni9Soml8N3Jpw8YqATsZIArqFucRb25zF8IVlZfcw3BQEcK30nWXe5OpXOJoa8Qq_WS_pelFD3cHwrhH9i69YzPkWA7X8/s320/IMG_7305.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706956281198089858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYzKA9H_cdY6AGnZVvMuk40duqjY-3ht_NrCxOKrzsgntx5LVcnp6YDWpVZMsFMBQ3dnS_a6PzN84JsGgk-ZPdAd76BLUyCwvIwptvC3HCG2UPtDb0rPwOHSgohCj7de5iIXCTR2kzCew/s320/IMG_7306.JPG" /><br /><div>On our way down to North Carolina, we stayed for two nights in Charlottesville, VA. That's the home of the University of Virginia, one of the universities Ross is considering for his Master's degree when his new branch allows him to go back to school (ideally he would start in the fall of 2013). The town had a really laid-back feel, and it was obvious that a lot of young families lived in the area. We liked it a lot!<br /><br /><div>Our hotel room in Charlottesville had a mirrored-door closet that Lila was fascinated with (see photos below). She liked pressing her lips up against it and smiling at the baby she saw! It reminded us of the first time John saw his reflection in a full-length mirror, when he was 13 months old and we were staying at the Lakeway Resort in Austin for a marriage retreat (check out this post from February 2010: <a href="http://schuchard.blogspot.com/2010/02/john-and-mirror.html">http://schuchard.blogspot.com/2010/02/john-and-mirror.html</a>)<br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706955437683334290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigZ0qFgi1SJYpq7qF8Vg753KAMfBOq_MTQzJLC7Ta3yEOEJ8PNjm1IRdQ7CC7GLCSfiR88jYHx0wxvy2fd2XjXKp1bmWSTU_cFDjq0rROQUqZjLOzT73Y-lQ9U-uCZLsTxfEKZcD-Ibo/s320/IMG_7314.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706955432271548978" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuswOHqIpwzmCwDlFc2YQ4w3m58RTJd7sSmxexUjahyBN_7q3iKFGohtgH9UQi7rBRPne9v7u4qJ0asfiI6h3J2TTbVV-mqLZ4vvMjOGY0C5BJ-9Qe6KCmtn-TtChBD7nRJSye80OcUio/s320/IMG_7316.JPG" /><br /><div>We arrived in Sanford, NC on January 10th for our stay with the Boenitz family! We had been lucky enough to see the Boenitzes multiple times in 2011, so we got a good start to 2012 with our first-ever visit to their beautiful home near Fort Bragg. Lila was thrilled to be reunited with her bethrothed, Baby Kael, who is just two days older. They played really well together, as they had last year. John, however, distanced himself from both babies. He felt threatened by their ability to take toys that he wanted to play with (no surprise there!). It was especially funny to watch John run around the house with Kael's push toys while Kael chased after him.<br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706851884978629650" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiXnZnPWN5YSKWwMzYHAX8B8oEdcs4kVYvpGq9NlSFr8lKqWK60F-vjn9FrL6VEyE2GjrREOTv8GREDmkwQ9Q_1SFXwQrGW9acCvEZEdT-H4vm1xHR-LHr9OWj_cSn2fk0E05IvIvPZ3E/s320/IMG_7332.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706851881279164434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg1UOUQJ5oXuqY8aL0nxZv6z_gE6YdHmEMpUk9cDn-J9rEKD8STcBcGWLSpai44Lt0Jnv-sE_fDqTXvU3FpGZBnWepObkTVyjDzkr0clJSVmyHjLDs_CvKAVoSaCO2IY8rycUk4vCFDXY/s320/IMG_7335.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706850891085216082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS0SdyBQojNf_mQZAbQ_8RLrpe4FzgMagFGUBXvTJ26XV7_Mz1quntm-48gh0evc_7TH6v7Scz00aMEtt9fxwkLvdG7VCu1v_pnTHFNbTXg5DzhA7LDq3U-szIF-facP1dXRtEc5MqMN4/s320/IMG_7344.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706850449806000626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX0Shk0Sg3d1nfn3hufK6EgYuJMHL6bm8Mo6_INrf2BontFoeL0xtvUSl2jSAODxL5BdpVNkUYK7g1atFUbBIHJb_GfPsE696eYBjM2RGUWwvb5lu5wKvY51UyiZucJt2cM1gRb7lqBy8/s320/IMG_7350.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706845211351678914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgir6XW0L-oQayFfiEY6kkUVVXHlmKlPrZbSLzo3_cpyDZAAybb6DnrQIlJ42ShRHRSuQaOOcC8KU7IVq1dFOSG1zNzLf3MH1LUKLcJ39TtP5HFO-11Z0uR0oMV-YXAL5yobpkB7kXV_gw/s320/IMG_7360.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706844606696172466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnmfgL5HxzRyh03yNhwRQgZcf483BPTTTXyBYpba8DF4jfpRZQCxwZ7aRyFmWs6hYo4FK6zLegS-itNU4pTKXoHwumh9wuIdJ5gk-d2qyVD5-zdTI41qdFHcM5gvmGTwJerF5OVAJEWXU/s320/IMG_7380.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706844105748741746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixagxSF_G5YY1oXu3KVLqebybMOO2Hqw7f2DFXCaiufbPHofw8WqgZUKGIfFWAcuKZMZPxeXy30RpI9SJ8QRFMnf_d1BYbpZfsxwUb2VH5dsm2ZjhXojo9RaZEhNknkADFuUOM7m1N_uQ/s320/IMG_7397.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706836773338848178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfIbSjLFDisaiMAj3WwisjemHOBC7VC6fpxgN6JnqYb6Z2tIKqyopKmHB6E8T5D9Z7byQAV4y02Np21oocYtEBv7FzQ-CABtb-5u38J8djnCjZxkLEp5WSQ6xr30S40gQsjBBocAG1-No/s320/IMG_7403.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706834116100575922" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd1FT9b2HYlIGRp3FSHAiZeSGIgFPa8G_GM6JEbCZZUpejF7-HveCZEnyH2CS_J-0gOrtAJpoVo5pJuJ7z5ohZxABb43o3CBzhmCvN9HvUlTtuUK2hJoZ4n6XF-vNSvlsnD9KokvxfjKA/s320/IMG_7406.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706833336527814354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieVO-ErNodA9Vc-rZfFhtSB57zTmLguTVgw_oDg4Jem9myg53HvV5wKWk5AuZb7d8yqNhcrSG-WqZEpjiBcid8SJOmWBIUfWldm07nDtQU2hdnObACC12iCg2BuyZp8CbJKO26Pq4-wS4/s320/IMG_7414.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706833328080475330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgISbPQTZNl8jT8A_OKrYbYOW7QmjbBPNmlmMWQ98ZD4rNaMqjMw6fkAGUwMFfI7o68eXQymc02ioCDoTmalk8Mk29iFGksUz1OAnZgWt1p04VCLA76g9V4jwzRKvdqyAGZeIdKntVqXhY/s320/IMG_7426.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706831941936453298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoXJXc064IyOgf_c1NaiNmkUpc-fCgnJTEHFQ3L7Ch5BXqhQShDxEv_H_AdxDckac2cjbDBfYFor4202AM8Ep8RZtYUjrMW2xMhNU8E1Uf3MtdmJwDWpFo6C2CKq23MYI2oqq4SxzCCgY/s320/IMG_7430.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706831510279881730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOfyXA9R_z7UlefH8GyAZ9ehr8iMrF5NXM1mQ7n3rCEhImbCVKZxF_yj-FdJ0hPJyuiy0QzHcCJ6Qagy7BiHjvSRdvJxv042gYLhIlxOk7zWgTasUuOym2kSJI5lv0Ko_wBeKGGNEF-gs/s320/IMG_7434.JPG" /><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>Our trip out east was wonderful, and we hope we can see our friends again very soon -- wherever we may be!</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-12266102252722851602012-01-26T18:45:00.001-08:002012-01-26T18:57:14.443-08:00Finally.....Christmas pics!<div><div><div><div>We had a wonderfully full house for Christmas. Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff drove down to Milwaukee and stayed with us December 22-29. On the 23rd, our family friends Ruthanne and Steve drove Grandma Kay Ellen up from Lisle for a 3-day visit. Aunt Katharine and Uncle Jarey drove up on Christmas morning. <br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>Papa Jeff and Daddy entertained John and Lila with a little "chicken fighting" the night that Papa and Grandma Bonnie arrived.....<br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglvw54FUi60Xbut044jiP2aJkn1mTIz_I44CQXdyrG9qbm_6zU6ECHeBUA-QVrNthHjlCyC7kTeAFHNFAyqTAOoe7TXEKcHuUWHdGudjRx-nIA7_6lrjOMjuykGGYBHUmTvux78gpuErY/s1600/IMG_7012.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701754701842427730" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglvw54FUi60Xbut044jiP2aJkn1mTIz_I44CQXdyrG9qbm_6zU6ECHeBUA-QVrNthHjlCyC7kTeAFHNFAyqTAOoe7TXEKcHuUWHdGudjRx-nIA7_6lrjOMjuykGGYBHUmTvux78gpuErY/s320/IMG_7012.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>On Christmas Eve, Lila wasn't feeling very well. She had a slight fever and was acting very lethargic, so she stayed home with Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff while Mommy, Daddy, John and Grandma Kay Ellen went to the 4:00 church service. Here's Lila hanging out with Grandma and Papa.....</div><div> </div><div> <img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702035429384263714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8sNxuXVOVxnoqx2IjRTBwQ7pYxeNgzerA24ZuuBLlgTE0VWIvUnM6s_XGzeiGjQf0m2x9QgffawsejVzR2cvh0g5CSKSqNzVykF1aIkK2EweZH4unz-oFXzkY13oJ-1y9N8SBJAUY5N4/s320/IMG_7020.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div>For Christmas Eve dinner, we had chicken parmesan, rice and mixed vegetables. For dessert, there was a huge selection of cookies. (We are very lucky that Grandma Bonnie bakes a lot during the holidays!) Grandma Kay Ellen was very excited to see such a spread and enjoyed a peanut butter cookie.</div><div> </div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701752191053690770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0a1s4dtGnCJS7VHmP9DSw9iwkZAKKdn8CMNps_Jnqk-QQzes8tfF9y8SZkpkhVjOrJrNxXFsF-BjkD1BDgE4jtCGyEPAd3UoD0WymDm14bc4gFPdtBgGph-x5Yc_XkqWspSFStk6RLc/s320/IMG_7044.JPG" /><br />Ruthanne and Steve had brought the kids two of the most delicious-looking snowman cookies you could imagine from a really good bakery near where they live. John and Lila were completely infatuated with them.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJidFT0LETne2EFiDsb5eYDZl5GH9d0G6JAuM8EgsfDgJzm2PBuWyJLZ44C_lOusR2sCyzyoGysX9Ir1JT91f8eyv9vi4yryPgBUqi6BRb7Eh7oQdXLt6urt__RfFT4xFceg_PxpXWX_w/s1600/IMG_7042.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702037458329005778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJidFT0LETne2EFiDsb5eYDZl5GH9d0G6JAuM8EgsfDgJzm2PBuWyJLZ44C_lOusR2sCyzyoGysX9Ir1JT91f8eyv9vi4yryPgBUqi6BRb7Eh7oQdXLt6urt__RfFT4xFceg_PxpXWX_w/s320/IMG_7042.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702037453562708178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO_mo_JOnzR1mgEN-PlNiYa-J1W7RltZ23lhaPH4JCvehYm3STKXITAKPPWjSDhsq7HoWYv_sDPKeQdPzhdHgVLpZ4arlvODS_6drNYgeE9WjRRqbKq0zNgawLkpsv8IzmNiaWvIGdpz8/s320/IMG_7041.JPG" /><br /></div><div>Before bedtime on Christmas Eve, Daddy helped John put out a plate of cookies and a cup of milk for Santa. Daddy also helped him write a little note to Santa telling Santa to enjoy his snack. I forgot to take a picture of this -- whoops! </div><div> <br /></div><div>On Christmas morning, we let each of the kiddos open their one "Santa gift" (wrapped with paper that was different from all the other papers, since John always notices every detail), and they would have been content to play with those gifts for the rest of the morning. It was then that we realized we had all gone way overboard with the presents.....we still had a million presents under the tree for them! </div><div> <br /></div><div>Some photos from the morning.....my favorites are the ones of John playing with Lila's baby doll, which was a gift from Grandma and Papa. He fed the baby and then promptly took it upstairs to lay her down in Lila's crib. He even remembered to give the baby a blanket and turn on the fan! </div><div> </div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701694686085113170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb8YJv3MbfCJ_gCpMxapkZ0wE6zAeE5CRjbsbyEu2Uq9sZuOnp1tQny5bX10f2cYfRL0YyL67Rpub1RoNn2eSjrfPFsltiIGHgABb7LaL5ZK9CdTwo60x6-_pn50AwG8ybHaVlqUgq97g/s320/IMG_7065.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701694682188284722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg5N8wGx0-YkG9pT1Sp10LGy-BDa823N2739Vw5RXkYAQjbIqCTOEtsx7D2PptqUFoLYS1eZJpn5aMQGkhFFlbvvytxHJyWiAk4NYKoh9lC692B3amWMgp93mgGMGtGlQD8vLRgyVu3RU/s320/IMG_7069.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701693728670351218" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYik6ItGhtexOe3rfw3gWda4L10heEgdTDKPAtLYDQi2R5bOZBu4_gsdk3RVkJXGDnh00HUw3nWB7uzN4SglUl6fqWqMhLYMVn3Kf4ZW8FAeAtWXKmPAvTAcfNsfL9HFehT4vueXUJHtk/s320/IMG_7077.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701693722527018866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbH6xztUmbSFx4IAGdgi0dgX5KrmuyM2zNqguZED_ejCUjc9-zJ4xX6A2Pz_NOmmdn6F09GkCN_62Wo1zvYRpkuVn5nsWWF_yc3-IG7b1sDmS1RAsF4KmtsRnRWLQKALeQgJCb3caHw_Q/s320/IMG_7079.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701692066164717874" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizhpLIir0Rghj4yiSgX1rIN22LsbDl-t_WvFqSNQdWaa1AV8Lz3LuP-7hFzC6rEkneRtk-tlYAElX2pGF402JedJDGWmpvai4O22o529zj8S6zuLR_DbLiZNlZ9vFUMfnjINIJ3jc7l1I/s320/IMG_7083.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701692059254237826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirONgExR90mkNYzzwoZtA06JfMExudPN7EQacK-EDkTvIYlOn2lSamkUuavIEG8wse2RPC3VB0mF6kBDmAO9bX56RXlmGShY5wQBxoGgD6FMxDKdkEqXoLyhxz95incrv9yW89i_ZpkeA/s320/IMG_7084.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701691014005970738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC7bLIrmSYw8ou9lrq7gGEGwJhE_VukoWuPu-yMM9zxfxVXE8Ehmx52PAAc1usPan7xruMPLSOgfGINnxh7LEyUUGdVFZ6Hlu2A8gOavWXRh-vySLOVbGlC3m1OnIM9cFqOyNKIPs5rz8/s320/IMG_7090.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701691008604559938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6G65wvu8MvqB2CxfS_qrPg2x6bcFbvtan7r2dJWdCP6TzRunARlhatL_spl-K3tC749OH3lsUCNT9oDMnGP1rJvWHEOc7vSLHDlT5l55WwHrrXzxM2HC8GvUNjJu7RglZmhoJFFtM-4k/s320/IMG_7095.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701689468453014034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix5JsPiz8kh3LuUf9nHxKTAXok3Yd89m3KZeN5xox65I3HsspQiUPHC68HB0MGc7d70qGnM7nRJuuygpoFwgdZ51x0VsKG8khj_vJ5KrhAjEshp_YCZAFNCODiWvTn7z6qXGDJ93ffyN4/s320/IMG_7097.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701689464392692658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_fxR8QkyiiPxHxVuxIQYY-Qllt-E-Ay9dXmenVPEfVTXkeclwkyY9Nv4B0RYXbMtZShh2IVN2iGkf22aFtrqXqzk3x5IXM7899mcLjCDS4Vg-WkjIe_4oo6IDglMK2cOw0R_wY3wmVCU/s320/IMG_7101.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701688545787785314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJuVwHqKk0hJOm5wlvzoxhNaNMTwzu-XfsCxWLXMiHYhBYqJTCHz2ob7C2yP5s_69xqYCtB8WlpPNUnCFokCNU7-ZGKICehdS4dNzNWbKFtIIgLruXqL7LqgRe_xiSO6dkfttynq3CHjg/s320/IMG_7105.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701688545498051186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyBNgeitVSiWGkNewHwYQc43751kEPBTYhyUX3uIx6aQEoFOXO9ymAjIhNbuKo9r2lDpQIfZeuhvejXouoPbFmf4IMQTei8qzpcL_zp0DdcI-2WrCMx8QOvygaUD3keVpIzN2hPFWHI2U/s320/IMG_7107.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701686352201868466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2irYzcKJr5pWt8AqP-R8j6XDm3_KkdAILusMWUnby0Vm08fHX6yK7YfItJxyxveLx-WydGidzY7FVIymYUijtglwYyQd74oVl_wt1badtvRB6_r30DfypTyeq3l5rZoVNC_RE-lenvks/s320/IMG_7113.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div>Around 11 a.m., Aunt Katharine and Uncle Jarey arrived from Naperville. Then Ruthanne, Steve and Grandma Kay Ellen arrived from their hotel in downtown Milwaukee, and we had another marathon gift-opening session. Our living room was busting at the seams with all the people and presents!<br /><div> </div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5701686349080403426" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY-hO_ueb685tarQmJKuaHHs7YKphqjHgmkboLTC8co8HoGdWfKyj_s9t85Qy1EA5SGQuqqvOmNlx2sRfUtYpKom2n2oor5FwmNKE3g-UOTU0W7BWvVSDmbYaE634wQUwFxG5KcHo6F34/s320/IMG_7114.JPG" /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div> </div><div>Aunt Katharine and Uncle Jarey.....<br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k8Y2_H7Rjh6goq68qlaUCdz6HXuWkRj7uDKDwEId2erjoaLLbaWMmk8THvHLYSpj1mrWOxVAO5cNN8BBmiYG59nF-rhl4ekGr1NzfrCKNN67FjLfOTmWR68J3DCr0TWAjjzRQXlOr8Q/s1600/IMG_7115.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693626074046442818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k8Y2_H7Rjh6goq68qlaUCdz6HXuWkRj7uDKDwEId2erjoaLLbaWMmk8THvHLYSpj1mrWOxVAO5cNN8BBmiYG59nF-rhl4ekGr1NzfrCKNN67FjLfOTmWR68J3DCr0TWAjjzRQXlOr8Q/s320/IMG_7115.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Grandma Kay Ellen.....<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsQM4BctuOeqvofOfZiuUvUwJ-kyZ-6oZqIMB3TCdE2lZFfxyzhXS04Czlg_97xXXH4MtkNzf30BCyoL1iRSSxxkR6tkEZ-HIyNFK5_l_7F-tbGcSOBZ_lTu92J8ltgWb5RTRk4hKGLU/s1600/IMG_7116.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693625630526502434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsQM4BctuOeqvofOfZiuUvUwJ-kyZ-6oZqIMB3TCdE2lZFfxyzhXS04Czlg_97xXXH4MtkNzf30BCyoL1iRSSxxkR6tkEZ-HIyNFK5_l_7F-tbGcSOBZ_lTu92J8ltgWb5RTRk4hKGLU/s320/IMG_7116.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Little Lila-pie.....<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSQHerrNE5bJXkh6TlLK96IIKn_FevErkCjtmFHU5fwxsTgR5S1FFj0zSw2sARdKNhg6iazzEsY-MFhwk0IhJvGREtNHSUASdsPzrM8kava3Rw3ZMbpgZTO7_utpoySLTDsMU7aNaQUQ/s1600/IMG_7119.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693625185109113586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSQHerrNE5bJXkh6TlLK96IIKn_FevErkCjtmFHU5fwxsTgR5S1FFj0zSw2sARdKNhg6iazzEsY-MFhwk0IhJvGREtNHSUASdsPzrM8kava3Rw3ZMbpgZTO7_utpoySLTDsMU7aNaQUQ/s320/IMG_7119.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Little Johnny-cake.....<br /><div> </div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ89awm5aLOhYsK7cVBIeKubJzodHFE3gUBtv3IrJZfMwNFX25BqLA0WgvtpV5kE6wwrbA6pGIx78neQHGFVGExD2gfzQBT3TqK3pI97okELybP1eUUq_0Upa5x-omkzsEK0w9bkesAVs/s1600/IMG_7120.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693623501113475090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ89awm5aLOhYsK7cVBIeKubJzodHFE3gUBtv3IrJZfMwNFX25BqLA0WgvtpV5kE6wwrbA6pGIx78neQHGFVGExD2gfzQBT3TqK3pI97okELybP1eUUq_0Upa5x-omkzsEK0w9bkesAVs/s320/IMG_7120.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Ruthanne and Steve......nice neck scarf, Uncle Steve!<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5_hbulm7X9CfBqqHKYMvkiK2QMgnS3Slo6Yf2NzZfNe3uTNy7u57ajH2XJIxTgVjEm8bbh7Z5atJUNsEqukTP9n-9Hmhw9KVKisDYTJHLvBqcPb6J3WFv1noYhB45_9HkuVlK7Kanuw/s1600/IMG_7122.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693622991202136818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi5_hbulm7X9CfBqqHKYMvkiK2QMgnS3Slo6Yf2NzZfNe3uTNy7u57ajH2XJIxTgVjEm8bbh7Z5atJUNsEqukTP9n-9Hmhw9KVKisDYTJHLvBqcPb6J3WFv1noYhB45_9HkuVlK7Kanuw/s320/IMG_7122.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Lila pushing her new baby stroller with her auntie K.....<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvhgGfkcL3nFW_iq4jauoXQXU6DuXTiUzagxzTGEMoiWTptYzM43Tcj3M9xCwI76cxUB1ZCUFAaR1-wQeNc5Dh1ExF0x9bOpkuQOtwaaJu_BRc4UlVKaqQGa8f_gGX8uLJff0m4q7i3w/s1600/IMG_7124.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693620957681302098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSvhgGfkcL3nFW_iq4jauoXQXU6DuXTiUzagxzTGEMoiWTptYzM43Tcj3M9xCwI76cxUB1ZCUFAaR1-wQeNc5Dh1ExF0x9bOpkuQOtwaaJu_BRc4UlVKaqQGa8f_gGX8uLJff0m4q7i3w/s320/IMG_7124.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693620510339528994" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmT1HB5aaP-8x_A9e40gawiXmpFjmnT1ybF0S6Qvb9kqvNidafTprLajbkdfhdMK6g-UXPHacMJkS_w7cwI-T7JobzBDaCGjhzp0fpfYMKG6BOqpAVgqOh6919piaWJinJ6Z2pyJBuCZQ/s320/IMG_7126.JPG" /></div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693620041947116450" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNMGOQ5gDhu5vZp_j4Uu8f2mspBQAywFfwPby_31u5gANlea-CeeHWGSU4C6husNnEKi-OfUdV4OxSgO6vy5DHGeEsFf_4PBpoWCP7pa8uRnv4M4fmOTlS-oUoGBvRrwAm_MDdd30NjtE/s320/IMG_7129.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div>John enjoyed helping Lila open and play with all of her presents -- it was like a double Christmas for him!<br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693618362509516818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBLZ5DnPZwzjl0R-y00c3cN1Mrjouw7XyAamXTHmn5Fq2JtTVRls6yiHOSeJSYbheqQFEvuRdY65AtxfCihGscD4e5K7tAr1Kg4E0StzofZQ33QSgFkc9Y__paKPTlgMmnvJLd8PhpK9s/s320/IMG_7127.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div>Lila-pie lounging with her namesake, Grandma Kay Ellen.....<br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693617294292738434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPM2tYO3DaPIzY2NX6ht06oQ1JSVggojRIvTHoXQXAXipLp-B6_0B4LQ-OVp0xku28GxxEjIsquy3wbSFHHjK9l_ek-Qf76xoKbiR1a9YjiFmsCgZPix6bPrIHmy-QZ8eXolXtXagL2aE/s320/IMG_7131.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693615589115160338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih00Neuh_mTkUY2a8JqOk-9h4mh1kgHcXuMUH3nVd3q1Gi_WEfNKE2ZIGzGRAirbILHsg92sNSznQjEldodvPsZ85DobF4I620uA-d9e1t6P2bsQ0h6XfSeNOn-DaKFD-63Rl5L_qNw-0/s320/IMG_7135.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div>Lila with Grandma Bonnie.....<br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693614310849608066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiogaXssF-psLLjKL_okSfuCZej6CeRFbBvzP9F1i83SBWP_VcD3xwq0rZG9NGUff4dAKEsBbkqu53dVXuZzay3EW05Z1ZP32KxAkO9vg8BcEZ7y_7gTXreHNEv9fEIIh_bi-Gq0WILjlo/s320/IMG_7137.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693613845329722530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKGgn63irs_rvQknqvsOjEcT5orqWXpl3ztl_9WjHBQhmJgxYLP3PE_xwG-rvHl5MHCXjGAEPEixJNnH2toWrT2bSzxWCGFX60P_uXHU7N-M_tWFk9fSvSZmr-yF02v7qxwY9vOQFTfZM/s320/IMG_7141.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5693613393367280898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC13Wh7gSECPsRQd9FJF67H4mVLVOtCDuVOgauMX6ywb2afqXKadE4U1AgRDEdAQjHcifwHSHDmeBC-yfLX2wv5gEIVbZ7Mn6b62FkonotMSg0NS0WufjNDpCL8uItLt7v9iahk0694ZU/s320/IMG_7146.JPG" /><div><div><div><div> </div><div>We were so sad to see all our guests leave :( We were so happy to have you all with us for Christmas (our first Christmas together as a family of four!), and we miss you all so much! </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-58461719037644718782011-12-29T18:02:00.001-08:002012-01-03T18:59:17.095-08:0013-14 months for Lila<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgobilcLmhzukC2rQdVW_PwDAp9eiJnbOy2T3OwJz1YsK0w-DD6kP03g6H83qQrWM0MFuWlK6hlJsf3UW8SOFbd__5Utua69YUS_TjpQwD3fvbCQlrk6S9HwmY6m14-PkdYTpD5duvV-NA/s1600/IMG_6950.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691664859216016738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgobilcLmhzukC2rQdVW_PwDAp9eiJnbOy2T3OwJz1YsK0w-DD6kP03g6H83qQrWM0MFuWlK6hlJsf3UW8SOFbd__5Utua69YUS_TjpQwD3fvbCQlrk6S9HwmY6m14-PkdYTpD5duvV-NA/s320/IMG_6950.JPG" /></a><br /><br />Miss Lila-pie has had a whirlwind couple of months. Where has the time gone?? I guess that's what happens when your birthday is at the start of the fall/winter holiday season. Lila turned 13 months old while we were in Minnesota for Thanksgiving, and she turned 14 months the day after Christmas.<br /><br /><div><div>I've been pretty good about marking down on my calendar the most notable things she's been doing. These include:</div><div><br /></div><div>November 19th - Drinks cow's milk from her cup<br /></div><div>November 20th - Lets go of what she's standing against to get to me<br /></div><div>Week of December 5th - Stands alone for long periods of time<br /></div><div>December 9th - Takes a few steps on her own<br /></div><div>December 11th - Stands up on her own without holding onto anything </div><div> </div><div>December 17th - Signs "please"</div><div><br /></div><div><strong>Other mentionables</strong>:</div><div><br /><br /></div><div><strong>Nursing</strong>:</div><div><br /><br /></div><div>A big change during this time has been her gradual weaning from breastmilk. The same weekend she started actually drinking from her cup as opposed to just playing with it and/or throwing it on the floor (November 19-20), I came down with an absolutely HORRIBLE case of the stomach flu. Thank goodness she was able to get enough cow's milk from her cup that weekend, since I wasn't able to eat or drink much at all and thus couldn't keep my milk production up as high. Luckily, I had been planning to go down to 3 nursings a day anyway -- the illness just speeded things up a little.<br /><br /></div><div>The 3 nursings a day schedule only lasted a short time. By the first week of December, I already had her down to 2 nursings a day, and about a week after that, she was down to nursing once a day in the morning. The weaning process was especially easy, since Lila had already decided she didn't want to sit still for any nursing other than the morning one. I still nurse her once a day in the morning and will continue doing so until we get back from our East Coast trip in mid-January, when she'll be 14.5 months old. John also nursed until he was 14.5 months old.</div><div><br /><br /></div><div>I'm a little sad about the end of nursing, but mostly I'm really excited! It's been SO much easier to be able to give her cups of milk and water -- I don't have to nurse in public anymore (it can be a hassle), I don't have to figure out how to keep John occupied while I'm nursing, and I don't have to wrestle with a baby who was always easily distracted at the breast. Plus, I get my body back! I feel like I haven't had it all to myself since before I got pregnant with John, since when I stopped nursing John, I was already pregnant with Lila. </div><div><br /><br /><strong>Walking:</strong><br /><br />Lila will take up to 5 or 6 steps at a time now! She has mastered the components of walking -- standing up on her own, keeping her balance, lifting her feet -- but she doesn't always have the will to execute because she knows she can still get around faster if she crawls. Another issue is that she takes her steps too quickly. If she'd slow down a bit, she'd already be zipping around the house! John started walking on his own at 13 months, so Lila is a little behind her brother in terms of this milestone.<br /></div><div>We bought Lila her first pair of "walkers" in mid-November -- a pair of silver size-4 Stride Rite sneakers with velcro straps. I love them! You can see them a little bit in the photo of her with her Radio Flyer wagon.<br /><br /><strong>Eating:</strong></div><div><br /><br /></div><div>Lila is a total chow-hound. Nobody can believe how much food this girl eats! She has gotten a little pickier the past couple of months, but it's hard to predict which foods she will or won't eat. Sometimes she'll eat chicken, but sometimes she won't. The same goes for broccoli, bananas, grapes and strawberries. In general, though, she's less pickier about food than John was at this age. We still give her jars of baby food so that she gets some of the fruits and veggies that she's picky about.</div><div><br />In the past month, Lila has become seriously stubborn about feeding herself. She wants to hold a fork and spoon like John does, and she does a really good job of getting food into her mouth! It's especially impressive how well she wields a spoon, dipping it into a jar of baby food and turning it around to bring to her lips. I don't remember John at this age showing much interest at all in using utensils!<br /></div><div>She is still obsessed with her snack catchers. Even when she's already eaten all of the food out of one, she still wants to hold onto it. It's another comfort object for her -- like her blankets and her two middle fingers!<br /><br /></div><div><strong>Reading/playing</strong>:</div><div><br /></div><div>Lila is not a big fan of books yet. She won't sit still for them! Tonight she let me read three board books in a row, which I think is a record for her. Her favorite book by far is <em>Doggies, </em>but this also happens to be my least favorite book, and anyone who has read it understands why -- it's all dog sounds!<br /><br /></div><div>Lila still loves to push her walkers around the house. For Christmas, she got a shopping cart and a baby doll stroller, so she now has even more options to choose from when she wants to take a spin! She recently figured out how to get onto the ride-on toys we have (i.e. Chicco train and Radio Flyer rocket ship), and she'll push herself around that way, too (albeit very slowly). Around the same time, she also figured out how to climb onto the little <em>Toy Story </em>folding chair John has. I totally remember (like it was yesterday!) when John started doing this!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlvkhoD2yj-fxbsyct6l-qT5OH7rSIQ_3zmsF6qw_ORBrJXrZjgIzbL1VpUiRs1zpsgGfFzxq81I47v0bxSPS7FeYP1M5mHB5Jz_CbVaarGyNR8OiBdmO-7EDT7KL0nv3-j14d8TpTb8Q/s1600/IMG_6925.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691748044279793698" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlvkhoD2yj-fxbsyct6l-qT5OH7rSIQ_3zmsF6qw_ORBrJXrZjgIzbL1VpUiRs1zpsgGfFzxq81I47v0bxSPS7FeYP1M5mHB5Jz_CbVaarGyNR8OiBdmO-7EDT7KL0nv3-j14d8TpTb8Q/s320/IMG_6925.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691745425234127938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZTJNYMPI3M80qsNwdw2iSfBMPrvlHe1tKAv2OhBOMM4QQ56YjuKLSyFoBbDil_DvOmePtspkXjKTuHgY2MvZQ__ILuTc7qXkSk3VHTqPStiM9V3MCl_GS5wDUXt6KnWKiu_QBzY5tOw/s320/IMG_6933.JPG" /></div><div> <img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691752945405443858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif6IeJfvYuFXSSyZEHU5ahVJCCXOGjgBCoZLwWi0NrMqBAOdAwUcJ2ZVw6FKjHe8cLG3-UBHZOjDf4KQ4DHSBIm4j4u4eKozna4zpObMst-UyZavau73rOxqSwtH-FEflSXjn-oN6M1ys/s320/IMG_6918.JPG" /></div><div><br /></div>Apart from pushing her walkers, Lila's favorite activity is rolling balls back and forth or picking them up and bouncing and/or throwing them. She is an athlete in training!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKvITWLA3-QnMtFI2fFwIxWnrGoXraUvO-pNoiwqDOZO3wUZQtaN5-Y2WSi42hAxhbCwHI5wQx1DGVF0vqdSLWG1JdDl2kQaeLHzTZ9Q7xdhY3R-TxKyTBjbC9y3ySQewqxyXQr9W0tA/s1600/IMG_6887.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691750360702973538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKvITWLA3-QnMtFI2fFwIxWnrGoXraUvO-pNoiwqDOZO3wUZQtaN5-Y2WSi42hAxhbCwHI5wQx1DGVF0vqdSLWG1JdDl2kQaeLHzTZ9Q7xdhY3R-TxKyTBjbC9y3ySQewqxyXQr9W0tA/s320/IMG_6887.JPG" /></a><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691750035399712642" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPDS48nDnDCYGZqshYGGviZ-xzsvo2F3XPnLfdtxSfC_Z95LzD25JQqjtn8cYPHbb7ubH8s3zsZLzUjcfZoT7l6vc-wdi94oO8x_yYH7m3S0Tl5ZVGUjtA97JbaxE8BJAA_PbqoLI6ND0/s320/IMG_6886.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691747291450963522" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiebB8gfXDBX4x5D5DZx5tZBAY-pbGaxTr4kBAZAunSjgvI8eJXu3YDtywPoIEMX_Vacz9oLi9L3joqu_-s-3vB1gM6E_nwJ8MWoA-ybTRfQwHFRrCXOZ4DAIYiziBN8s5_yC3MbBExMRA/s320/IMG_6877.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691747286059936098" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil8R0G8YitMchC1pCRaVlr7GhHTT4VDNr-csT2MY-CwR6CkIs43Nvug7VwCQ6o2LcEeAGJos4y00rRy0eg7Gls47a2m6DIeqQmHHHjQq00TNTMlveUthkeL8V8ftx0yCXR0GiTR9BenFc/s320/IMG_6876.JPG" /><br /><br /><strong>Talking</strong>:</div><div> </div><div>Lila is definitely quieter than John was at this age -- she takes after her Daddy! Her favorite words are "Daddy," "uh-oh," and "wow." She also likes to say "uh dat," which she uses for "that." If she wants something or wants to know what something is, she'll point to the object and say "uh dat." Before naptime and bedtime, she'll often play the "uh dat" game, asking what all the different objects in her room are (but especially the ceiling light, the window, and the pictures on her wall). </div><div> </div><div>I'm not certain, but I think she may have started saying "ba" for ball. I think I've heard her say it a couple of times.<br /><br />She has been signing for about a month now. She signs for "please," "help," and "more." It's cute because she does the same sign for "help" and "more" -- it looks a lot like a clap! I've been trying to teach her "all done" so she doesn't feel the need to throw her spoon off the highchair tray, but I haven't been successful with that yet. Hopefully soon.<br /><br /><strong><br /></strong><strong>Handedness</strong>:</div><div> </div><div>I've been watching Lila very carefully lately to see which hand she uses most frequently when she's eating and playing, and based on these observations, I think we may have another lefty in our family! Papa Jeff and Uncle Jesse are also lefties. Interestingly, Papa Jeff and Uncle Jesse are also the only other people in our immediate families who have blue eyes like Lila.</div><br /><br /><strong>Teething</strong>:<br /><br />Lila now has six teeth on top and six on bottom. Her fourth one-year molar has been taking forever to cut through. It is the first tooth that has really seemed to cause her a lot of trouble -- she's been much fussier than normal the past few weeks.<br /><br /><strong>Personality</strong>:<br /><br />Everyone says it -- Lila is the most smiley, happy baby. She is such a joy to be around! She loves to be held, which Grandma Bonnie has told me was the way Daddy was when he was a baby. Although she prefers to be held by Mommy, she doesn't mind being held by other people, even people she's never met before. And compared to John at this age, Lila is much better about being separated from me. We have never had a single problem at the child care center at the gym. <br /><br />Little Lila-pie, we love you to pieces and can't wait to see what you'll be doing next!Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-82548476408663218942011-12-06T18:24:00.000-08:002011-12-12T08:48:39.298-08:00Minnesota pics from September and November trips<div><div>We've been able to visit Grandpa Harry, Grandma Robin and Uncles Mike and Dave several times since we moved to Milwaukee. In mid-September, the kids and I drove up to their house in Minnesota while Daddy was in the field for a training weekend. We had great weather and made the most of it by taking the kids to a nearby apple orchard. John loved the tractor-pulled "train" ride.</div><div> <br />Lila snacking at the kitchen table.....</div><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYS0eUb3J4RFISoJATjLpR5SvqvqSK3OdNawXBtPIlfHtr_tizxrscTbImw33N2wH_5lOXMY8KyrT0-wILfXQ9hgCf7Vnpk1coYvjPjEPaN5Kk7t1ORXLBmoWOhfO10sWkwVycj59NL40/s1600/IMG_6604.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683223761005994162" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYS0eUb3J4RFISoJATjLpR5SvqvqSK3OdNawXBtPIlfHtr_tizxrscTbImw33N2wH_5lOXMY8KyrT0-wILfXQ9hgCf7Vnpk1coYvjPjEPaN5Kk7t1ORXLBmoWOhfO10sWkwVycj59NL40/s320/IMG_6604.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Relaxing in the swivel chair.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisK5nNtm6UpuCmckU5DFql6V0yR258sjXYaZeYev3UDqpgPEi2uXlb9gHL7WlE6PfndfRrXxNJOpXmiAZrNs67rcNaH3wGxsZJ2TEVIPCHQXQVjwRu6_ut8QU4rNt-FW17TabqurEIWu4/s1600/IMG_6608.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683223758251339554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisK5nNtm6UpuCmckU5DFql6V0yR258sjXYaZeYev3UDqpgPEi2uXlb9gHL7WlE6PfndfRrXxNJOpXmiAZrNs67rcNaH3wGxsZJ2TEVIPCHQXQVjwRu6_ut8QU4rNt-FW17TabqurEIWu4/s320/IMG_6608.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>John heading into the orchard's haybale maze with Uncle Mike, who had just returned home from basic training at Fort Benning!<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0TD8UD9IS2Xu9tkOqFYP_1kjswzyDT4qXkeEvjigoiKeRsMvTVL9ICz3HE82-i0tiW8bI4rdfS8vXu8XuBoaAuA7mNYNn41UI5_NTTrl6dJyckSdXMZG5qos9zZM7QLtP3eargU6VsE/s1600/IMG_6610.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683222917075169138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC0TD8UD9IS2Xu9tkOqFYP_1kjswzyDT4qXkeEvjigoiKeRsMvTVL9ICz3HE82-i0tiW8bI4rdfS8vXu8XuBoaAuA7mNYNn41UI5_NTTrl6dJyckSdXMZG5qos9zZM7QLtP3eargU6VsE/s320/IMG_6610.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Happy boys.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMfrUGW74eApssjGjx2-lhsqsSTxWVhwtjHukTQqYC-hqnYgBjO9FJa2vxsqGPulVJiFQ-WwzDrUf-5Me0w8DueXvnIb6nTEKnb9qqkMeFdUxx7dpVb7GNhcPqawgN_U6qhyw4uxWOgQ/s1600/IMG_6613.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683222905661828562" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigMfrUGW74eApssjGjx2-lhsqsSTxWVhwtjHukTQqYC-hqnYgBjO9FJa2vxsqGPulVJiFQ-WwzDrUf-5Me0w8DueXvnIb6nTEKnb9qqkMeFdUxx7dpVb7GNhcPqawgN_U6qhyw4uxWOgQ/s320/IMG_6613.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Posing in his "train" car.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJTMB991eUCV3MlTQ0hNrEGPdNNDXQ6Zb_6nTNIpRxalu8XrvtINfXAhnRCCMWb1Vdkx_jAvwimY69I5m2BrwV4zCIsEQbPM0eP2puL9k7xv_-LHKch3C88sV4fh2uEFra9DXBLBloGoA/s1600/IMG_6616.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683222902316951394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJTMB991eUCV3MlTQ0hNrEGPdNNDXQ6Zb_6nTNIpRxalu8XrvtINfXAhnRCCMWb1Vdkx_jAvwimY69I5m2BrwV4zCIsEQbPM0eP2puL9k7xv_-LHKch3C88sV4fh2uEFra9DXBLBloGoA/s320/IMG_6616.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Trying out the bikes in the John Deere kids section.....<br /><div><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvojT2d4EQqhKRuJnNu0v2zBlJPIFyzYjSWCcvud3yv-CQDKo350IIwTUvLnXhcCl3z6vZd8eV1nvWXs-rDTU-Jz-BrQoiNyL99RipvNqb0ac5GE7ydl-XzMkdPT-Udpr5jJ5c7F70rdw/s1600/IMG_6628.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683218219640886562" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvojT2d4EQqhKRuJnNu0v2zBlJPIFyzYjSWCcvud3yv-CQDKo350IIwTUvLnXhcCl3z6vZd8eV1nvWXs-rDTU-Jz-BrQoiNyL99RipvNqb0ac5GE7ydl-XzMkdPT-Udpr5jJ5c7F70rdw/s320/IMG_6628.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>While John rode around on trikes, Lila sat in the Joovy (a recent purchase at that time) and snacked on Puffs.<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX10CFCN1Q3RIxKCYObM_8FPyBOcJQCTDxb0QPYtyYxRFsv3UKrYH3ewqTN2MTh8UEOQtXyhUElFIYoZJ-CkpA8lz6uRpVpl8nHpTWReT8-v2L5a0xam2fhB5aZpdoXNbBVIS5NcryYUw/s1600/IMG_6635.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683218214779407602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX10CFCN1Q3RIxKCYObM_8FPyBOcJQCTDxb0QPYtyYxRFsv3UKrYH3ewqTN2MTh8UEOQtXyhUElFIYoZJ-CkpA8lz6uRpVpl8nHpTWReT8-v2L5a0xam2fhB5aZpdoXNbBVIS5NcryYUw/s320/IMG_6635.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>For Thanksgiving, we drove up to Minnesota in Daddy's truck (a much more comfortable ride for four people). It was pretty cold out, but there was no snow, so the trip went very smoothly. Aunt Katharine and Uncle Jarey were there, as were Aunt Andrea, Uncle Randy and Cousins Jillian and Jordan, who live in Massachusetts. How wonderful to have the whole family there at the same time!</div><div> </div><div><br />Grandma Robin feeding Lila.....<br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFR7MUmQ7Jk3Uneq7jPuMYZy0bJXG6QK4rN_kQq-SRWTqpdd4UbwFWHIbBtviWfnOPMF-eMPLgy2rrY4RBrACz3Si-ezGOjmhI6AIYhgBzFYfJ0X-xE-QbD-h0TisXXZgh0zAROabfSD0/s1600/IMG_6895.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683218206528710114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFR7MUmQ7Jk3Uneq7jPuMYZy0bJXG6QK4rN_kQq-SRWTqpdd4UbwFWHIbBtviWfnOPMF-eMPLgy2rrY4RBrACz3Si-ezGOjmhI6AIYhgBzFYfJ0X-xE-QbD-h0TisXXZgh0zAROabfSD0/s320/IMG_6895.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Uncle Mike helping John decorate his gingerbread train (these next photos are a little blurry because the camera was cold from having been in Daddy's truck for awhile).....</div><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuN7KH_3FJc9fC9K_loIACdJSM-agshBbpicDGUk3Lbmv_bBKMhqgK3JoU7erezosUo4oEjgg4BaPap_3OTGdMEPwrn_WY8LzUSahexD3efPDTwlcz2lrNYupBW99Vgy-jmtkicuY7WfM/s1600/IMG_6896.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683215988054962626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuN7KH_3FJc9fC9K_loIACdJSM-agshBbpicDGUk3Lbmv_bBKMhqgK3JoU7erezosUo4oEjgg4BaPap_3OTGdMEPwrn_WY8LzUSahexD3efPDTwlcz2lrNYupBW99Vgy-jmtkicuY7WfM/s320/IMG_6896.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFY0mwY6PIGcTyZ0y89tNouGn5c76B4ld82ZSpfV5CpVtjbk33JV_1Dqdqq-j_qmko6fFpRIKO5NY6Me16OBbH7aEJQLxXBWeWkO6RpXlYpgmGZepulq7EH_pRMuOeV1Gtwu1z_OxNvgw/s1600/IMG_6897.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683215972513412706" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFY0mwY6PIGcTyZ0y89tNouGn5c76B4ld82ZSpfV5CpVtjbk33JV_1Dqdqq-j_qmko6fFpRIKO5NY6Me16OBbH7aEJQLxXBWeWkO6RpXlYpgmGZepulq7EH_pRMuOeV1Gtwu1z_OxNvgw/s320/IMG_6897.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Aunt Katharine and Aunt Andrea (Mommy's two sisters) -- don't they look alike?!<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9GSiu7eKiiUCeLpCw5uOpe-ojFml4IVsd9uOr4LYOqPlK8fqoICgYlh4ELAIHz8DPBxK8bhT0UFuY45L4Ait5IkWpxlnd258xfrnIVRMvm8yHLK5pE_Sj8AmJ0t606aoAEtrPt-dINsg/s1600/IMG_6899.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683215971922145506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9GSiu7eKiiUCeLpCw5uOpe-ojFml4IVsd9uOr4LYOqPlK8fqoICgYlh4ELAIHz8DPBxK8bhT0UFuY45L4Ait5IkWpxlnd258xfrnIVRMvm8yHLK5pE_Sj8AmJ0t606aoAEtrPt-dINsg/s320/IMG_6899.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Uncle Randy, Grandpa Harry and Uncle Jarey drinking coffee out of their matching Christmas mugs -- how cute!<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheWjLq6YxeL5hoT3kvHBnAErXjNYlwojWzPyeBUnnkYeivKTESajnB7hY3CwhVf1qWCgVLlikE9qQFU9tcCP1-lBoSyvGUQ8tIwpH7Au6jRHtBiT4sfstFolBOBGFnrT1-mNzCjU_2ITE/s1600/IMG_6900.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683214816222746738" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheWjLq6YxeL5hoT3kvHBnAErXjNYlwojWzPyeBUnnkYeivKTESajnB7hY3CwhVf1qWCgVLlikE9qQFU9tcCP1-lBoSyvGUQ8tIwpH7Au6jRHtBiT4sfstFolBOBGFnrT1-mNzCjU_2ITE/s320/IMG_6900.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Jordan and Jillian watching some tv -- Jordan and John were little buddies, as were Jillian and Lila! It was great to finally meet the two of them.<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdb5WoG0UyGcxGC_0lMEtQAkH1ebj8tdWnHWYVSK9v3lEr5PxU3XiKdv72AVpGifOVTeWFEzd7WKKGAEGkQKYfAVqsgeo_r0Y6oXbeMaEOwE3lxLbt0LoPenmn63CY3Sn1CuUaQ8sDUMA/s1600/IMG_6901.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683214808815375938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdb5WoG0UyGcxGC_0lMEtQAkH1ebj8tdWnHWYVSK9v3lEr5PxU3XiKdv72AVpGifOVTeWFEzd7WKKGAEGkQKYfAVqsgeo_r0Y6oXbeMaEOwE3lxLbt0LoPenmn63CY3Sn1CuUaQ8sDUMA/s320/IMG_6901.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>John giving his best Zoolander impression in front of his gingerbread train.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJBbNGU9OJlxhgCRhChjs2SkQBlA57JdGwc0v2l55KVQqTqCQGD0woxGkNQYKmJri4PalCMOyygrt8bqzoOvVsqwiJzWi9PQ872UeUtzLkxjfjHfrccEwsorka1AmOGGvf4pn9wNcIVmE/s1600/IMG_6902.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683214801264651298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJBbNGU9OJlxhgCRhChjs2SkQBlA57JdGwc0v2l55KVQqTqCQGD0woxGkNQYKmJri4PalCMOyygrt8bqzoOvVsqwiJzWi9PQ872UeUtzLkxjfjHfrccEwsorka1AmOGGvf4pn9wNcIVmE/s320/IMG_6902.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>A photo for the ages --- Aunt Katharine and Grandpa Harry trying to clean out the sink drain.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDx9usDGCZkZKmDHQO6756AJ7wEjpr1AfFhE5ipnZiBT3YK_3Dzr58agMGYco7EM72xnZf-SQ1C15pOzwIKeFGBiU_go2KL7h0U_Y3-I5Ao6E2GHP0BHHiBXCeW25u3-v0G_o9_QTOvIE/s1600/IMG_6904.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683213506212156530" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDx9usDGCZkZKmDHQO6756AJ7wEjpr1AfFhE5ipnZiBT3YK_3Dzr58agMGYco7EM72xnZf-SQ1C15pOzwIKeFGBiU_go2KL7h0U_Y3-I5Ao6E2GHP0BHHiBXCeW25u3-v0G_o9_QTOvIE/s320/IMG_6904.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Another shot of Lila eating her banana.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SKcQ3KIxuFYd8QqmCMW7moOR5hnJbIM9vXUDRS8iGWPNybjuwaPo5auKMuOxvekADWrZRYrrQENMAbKRLyEaW1O82GgF-KweN1DfxjNshNgfYocnQOyqEPnwWxQOwXFMZGsWrcNm2rE/s1600/IMG_6905.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683213502235239314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SKcQ3KIxuFYd8QqmCMW7moOR5hnJbIM9vXUDRS8iGWPNybjuwaPo5auKMuOxvekADWrZRYrrQENMAbKRLyEaW1O82GgF-KweN1DfxjNshNgfYocnQOyqEPnwWxQOwXFMZGsWrcNm2rE/s320/IMG_6905.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>John sampling some icing.....<br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhx4xW2611Fl55xSHSRaMsf7OepDmizrHcfv0tSadFWLpEiTMLl6bR4wXSmUV57nHcQWCDrQ_-9iqVhoC2Ud0HwL835H-FvTW61nlOGqAXpyXu2SxccRx9hv8hMEHRRnS1Mtvhk65c6Y/s1600/IMG_6908.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683213490787184226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhx4xW2611Fl55xSHSRaMsf7OepDmizrHcfv0tSadFWLpEiTMLl6bR4wXSmUV57nHcQWCDrQ_-9iqVhoC2Ud0HwL835H-FvTW61nlOGqAXpyXu2SxccRx9hv8hMEHRRnS1Mtvhk65c6Y/s320/IMG_6908.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Now it's Uncle David's turn to help with the decorating.....<br /><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgRi9a5TIhqQpjSgZqb49lsN655sLLshzAjBsSBp-B9Tto-1DGSz7KFJvyh7nPeu_XQ7eeiy_2_iIcifz9BKPj3nYDN9YboM2wxDzgZxT0CywfBxapG8cTs6UcoZkdSV6C4Qc3e2ew3bY/s1600/IMG_6909.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683211726278579602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgRi9a5TIhqQpjSgZqb49lsN655sLLshzAjBsSBp-B9Tto-1DGSz7KFJvyh7nPeu_XQ7eeiy_2_iIcifz9BKPj3nYDN9YboM2wxDzgZxT0CywfBxapG8cTs6UcoZkdSV6C4Qc3e2ew3bY/s320/IMG_6909.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Lila found a new toy -- the computer mouse!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2i1xUzlNbpJPNGhwYowobkY4yW0H1Nw0SWSNzaLt0WjteZNF6_bEpPnWlMutZslT7QtbHTCq9BT37TUrVIJ2ShV-XIH3zbOFAH12psfm22J1z6UZ_-1gl1Eg0Shvqca5NDbry38yF5Q/s1600/IMG_6911.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683211722816569394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2i1xUzlNbpJPNGhwYowobkY4yW0H1Nw0SWSNzaLt0WjteZNF6_bEpPnWlMutZslT7QtbHTCq9BT37TUrVIJ2ShV-XIH3zbOFAH12psfm22J1z6UZ_-1gl1Eg0Shvqca5NDbry38yF5Q/s320/IMG_6911.JPG" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCaxa6yHaloJWektM_1dTMG01eChyphenhyphenMcttfO5bwuoSit7IgXvt1OVYWn7h6edXBCPR6nKf2GgCksKqu3j87WfOsbY7A031OawB4nzOX-qGJ5QkckU1YXWYoNZJ6e6vWcT8wFM0YhQSyzu8/s1600/IMG_6912.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5683211717676296786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCaxa6yHaloJWektM_1dTMG01eChyphenhyphenMcttfO5bwuoSit7IgXvt1OVYWn7h6edXBCPR6nKf2GgCksKqu3j87WfOsbY7A031OawB4nzOX-qGJ5QkckU1YXWYoNZJ6e6vWcT8wFM0YhQSyzu8/s320/IMG_6912.JPG" /></a></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-49891460007425527882011-11-30T20:18:00.000-08:002011-11-30T20:33:44.900-08:0033-34 months for John<div><div><div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLSVtPA91cLblh93PSYHUOpJU75QGT8QVE9tzgcUHxl44hsEZoS9FYDEmJBYWNYVH8Fhk1-V__k6Tkg3UuMHpnMmxQiOFqUg4i3dxTzauGg1hrJaWEvC_PUD7uz7g2EW7ylWp7OdAcMzY/s1600/IMG_6641.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664283444359546786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLSVtPA91cLblh93PSYHUOpJU75QGT8QVE9tzgcUHxl44hsEZoS9FYDEmJBYWNYVH8Fhk1-V__k6Tkg3UuMHpnMmxQiOFqUg4i3dxTzauGg1hrJaWEvC_PUD7uz7g2EW7ylWp7OdAcMzY/s320/IMG_6641.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div>Another few months have already passed for John! Our little dude always corrects us when we say he's "our little boy." He'll say, "No, I'm a big boy!" or "No, I'm a big man!" </div><div> </div><div><br />John has settled into a good routine now. He has preschool every Monday and Wednesday from 9:30 until 2:30, and he LOVES it! He has quite a few "buddies" from school, and he talks about them constantly, especially Raffa (short for Raphael), Danny and Julian. One of John's favorite parts of the school day -- besides hanging with his buddies -- is art time. It's so nice for him to bring home an adorable piece of art at the end of the day! His teachers say that he takes art time very seriously, and I believe it, since we're constantly doing crafts at home (coloring, painting, etc.). I bought a corkboard strip on sale at Pottery Barn Kids that we're going to put up in the playroom to display his many projects. </div><div> </div><div><br />On Tuesday and Thursday mornings we go to the YMCA, which is just about a mile from our house. I try to get us out the door by 8:40 so I can go to a 9:00 class, and then we try to leave again around 10:15 so we can get home in time for Lila's first nap. The Y is totally awesome -- and since we have a free military family membership that includes free unlimited childcare for one child (Lila), we only end up paying $15 a month for John's (unlimited) childcare! John loves playing with the other kids in the childcare center. He always looks forward to meeting new buddies. Last Tuesday, he was having so much fun there that he didn't want to leave and he started to cry! He had been coloring a picture of Spiderman with one of the teachers. </div><div> </div><div><br />Fridays are our "wildcard" days. Since we've been doing so much traveling lately, we like to keep that day open. If we have to go to Illinois that week, we leave Thursday morning after Lila wakes up from her first nap, which means we spend Friday in Illinois. This winter, I plan to make Friday morning our "swimming" day at the Y -- I'll drop Lila off at the childcare center and take John with me to the pool area. (He's been asking about the pool there ever since we took a tour of the gym back in August.) On the weekends, Daddy can come with us to the Y and we can take both kids to the pool!</div><div> </div><div><br />So what do we do the rest of the day during the week? On Monday and Wednesday afternoons, Lila and I pick John up from school and do a short outing before we have to go back to the house for Lila's second nap. This is something we've just started doing in the last few weeks -- now that Lila's older and doesn't need her second nap as early, we have time to go somewhere for a little while. This past Monday afternoon, for example, we went to the Brookfield mall for an hour. Today, we went to the library in Wauwatosa. Later, while Lila is taking her second nap, John and I play together (preferably outside if it's not freezing cold) or do some chores -- he loves to do chores (cleaning the downstairs bathroom, washing dishes, cooking or baking, raking leaves). Occasionally, if I can tell John is really tired (i.e. if he didn't nap during naptime at school), I'll put on a short program for him to watch on his "special 'puter" (portable DVD player). </div><div> </div><div><br />On Tuesdays and Thursdays after we get home from the gym, I try to have a project for John to do while Lila's sleeping if it's too cold to play outside. It might be an art project, or it might be a project like bringing up all the Christmas decorations from the basement and deciding where to put them in the house. I like to involve him in as many household tasks/decisions as possible because it makes him feel grown-up. If I can't think of anything for him to do and I can tell he's getting really bored (which can cause him to act out), I put on an episode of Sesame Street, which is on PBS Kids from 11 to noon. I figure it's better for him to sit and watch an educational program than to get so bored that he starts misbehaving.</div><div> </div><div><br />After lunch, we start the wind-down process. John still has "naptime" around 1 or 1:30 p.m., although he hasn't consistently fallen asleep during naptime for at least a couple of weeks. (He falls asleep during school naptime about 50% of the time.) If he is acting especially tired and I think it's possible he might sleep, I'll close the shades in his room. Usually, though, he won't be tired enough to fall asleep and he'll get bored after awhile, so I'll go back in to open the shades and bring him some books to read or toys to play with (it's so dark in his room with the shades closed that he can't see to read/play unless I open them). I give him about 45 minutes to an hour for "naptime" if he hasn't fallen asleep before I go to get him.</div><div> </div><div><br />The transition to no nap has been a bit difficult. John usually can't fall asleep for a nap, but most days he could still use one. It's strange because he always seems to be ready to go to sleep when we head upstairs for naptime, but he just can't fall asleep. I've tried moving naptime around to different times, too (as early as 12:45 and as late as 2), but nothing works on a regular basis. To make up for the lost nap, we've been putting him to bed earlier -- around 7 p.m., but sometimes earlier if he's especially tired. Tonight we put him down at 6:30 because he was having a really hard time at dinner. He'll probably be up at 7 tomorrow morning (his usual wake-up time), so at least he's getting 12+ hours of total sleep. One of my sleep books says that 11.5-11.75 hours of total sleep is the average for this age.</div><div> </div><div><br />But enough with the mundane stuff and on to a couple of fun facts about John! </div><div> </div><div><br />- John has become very finnicky about pajamas. If it's not bath night, he often asks to sleep in his clothes. If it is bath night and his clothes are already off, he'll usually be o.k. with putting pajamas on if he can pick them out. He always picks out a pair of his summer pajamas, so we end up putting a pair of warm fleece pajamas on underneath so he doesn't freeze. Some of the combinations he has been wearing lately are pretty interesting! In the morning, John wants to put on his clothes right away. It is the rare occasion that he still has his pajamas on at breakfast.</div><div> </div><div><br />- John wants to be just like his little sister. If Lila is holding one of her blankets, he wants to hold one too. If Lila is eating Cheerios out of her snack cup, he wants to eat Cheerios out of a snack cup too. If Lila is playing with a certain toy, he wants to play with it too. It is exhausting for Mommy to keep up with all the ways in which John wants to copy Lila!</div><div> </div><div><br />- John LOVES sports -- playing them, talking about them and/or listening to their radio broadcasts. Baseball and football are his favorites. Daddy has done a great job of playing catch with John in the front yard and teaching him about tackling in football (John thought tackling meant going up to an opponent and tickling him, hehe). It's been really fun this fall to be in Wisconsin, since all the major sports teams here have had great seasons! We followed the Brewers very closely, and John still wears the Brewers hat Daddy had gotten for him at a June game at Miller Park. Now we're well into the Packers' season.</div><div> </div><div> <br />-I keep forgetting to post about how John is progressing with his German, but he is still doing amazingly well. When I speak to him in German, he understands almost everything I say -- it's unbelievable. And he responds to me -- correctly -- in English. I'm especially amazed because I haven't been as diligent about speaking to him in German as I was when we still lived in Illinois. But I do still play a lot of German music in the car. That's helped him learn a bunch of traditional German children's songs (his favorites are "Backe, backe Kuchen" and "Bruderchen, komm tanz mit mir") and the German alphabet. I'm still so impressed that he can keep the two alphabets separate!</div><div> </div><div><br />And some photos.....<br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVApMKmK2f23_sWRWM_nY65MmH2um1gfOpDq5dh6ILgZ0XNkQqCxL8e07AfQ4FU31nOq2xK56QcPXMFBcPzwpzAMxy0UXpTAFGMqgv3LB7z1Qr1BrSmfkSyK8IT7xMsLn0PxLsPqLA6M/s1600/IMG_6674.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664282538808852962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLVApMKmK2f23_sWRWM_nY65MmH2um1gfOpDq5dh6ILgZ0XNkQqCxL8e07AfQ4FU31nOq2xK56QcPXMFBcPzwpzAMxy0UXpTAFGMqgv3LB7z1Qr1BrSmfkSyK8IT7xMsLn0PxLsPqLA6M/s320/IMG_6674.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664281174120317858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizdTvv13dmYYKN4-I9VInYV6bfUm981uY_F3ZeXTW4fRBjRvvP7OVJ2pFIe_eoAMB1ZHbSsHIzeIYpRvh0ZpFypUTXPG3UHsuSQvOfsV4xwqJ1n5HSTLmxVGn20FYzvUeU5Uowp-cBPUI/s320/IMG_6679.JPG" /></div><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoUz66eCbw1zIXF6NQ_3Vn9Td70D1ApwEYv8FgqJu6AjHfp2QU6cExZxQYVmAfWDiqqL0tyFOnqqJcF_esbFz21JjEokB9ZKkyL0jAy43Gmosybgk3x-0rB8r2AhglFpWH7vh5SKDodF8/s1600/IMG_6685.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5664281174153337858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoUz66eCbw1zIXF6NQ_3Vn9Td70D1ApwEYv8FgqJu6AjHfp2QU6cExZxQYVmAfWDiqqL0tyFOnqqJcF_esbFz21JjEokB9ZKkyL0jAy43Gmosybgk3x-0rB8r2AhglFpWH7vh5SKDodF8/s320/IMG_6685.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680918667354966594" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeh4byUzY9rrYp6-BgmqqNAtezWR_41cOxT7MDL-ARLrHM4kv6qmNEdyfof9N7fAjpjgMdZCPZFnyXGfIkMPZwqjO5vtDjvz6syji26Jl661Tv6HIRaMza1tw77ADsY215wOTu7amF4yc/s320/IMG_6710.JPG" /><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680918662169980898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg07-_iJnLCINd9gEepGKXK9ROkBmrzJlzgHp7EQHKDSiMH3EI6TaNTszBF8Caf8WOe1aPwoj-VySfSnnkNnaRHZ4HGizXMPpDsweUMt2mEOY8gHh6gQOfwXgVDRUaEPXmY36o1UQRY3cI/s320/IMG_6723.JPG" /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVaoiizTu9YVr0Atp731pf-AOxJ4eZOHr87hXabz6rQcDju5MPNtVvYMSPCegpFOd8XmckjgV6bc-huK9LMC2QS5a6Y95bzYzwRWFlRyGcmPn1Kz23kjODayGrq0eCRWtk2GWWxnrwXpU/s1600/IMG_6780.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680997555276481330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVaoiizTu9YVr0Atp731pf-AOxJ4eZOHr87hXabz6rQcDju5MPNtVvYMSPCegpFOd8XmckjgV6bc-huK9LMC2QS5a6Y95bzYzwRWFlRyGcmPn1Kz23kjODayGrq0eCRWtk2GWWxnrwXpU/s320/IMG_6780.JPG" /></a><br /></div></div></div></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy-XA_vs261oKsCshfMa5J3jsTMi3wPooZ-S5GDgImsAZD-0D_eYI7OzMLGhLn9AksYr0XwPKOkLT4xv2PHj0nJXARVWQSc2nuMbQfVN2OPbIaGOA5Bn_Z8TtJbUDZzcRaIPEDQ1H74c8/s1600/IMG_6749.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680997550729663826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy-XA_vs261oKsCshfMa5J3jsTMi3wPooZ-S5GDgImsAZD-0D_eYI7OzMLGhLn9AksYr0XwPKOkLT4xv2PHj0nJXARVWQSc2nuMbQfVN2OPbIaGOA5Bn_Z8TtJbUDZzcRaIPEDQ1H74c8/s320/IMG_6749.JPG" /></a></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AcFp4bvH3JIhVa2feDpKnxiLU-_lK0TJAqJEPyCVCSpG39cFgJrs-k9MN29zj-yrJA5wCf2NzwsAsSbGaNPQLXVTA5nYAxqj3J7sbjpOEs9vOYZ9whtNKxJnygpEMC-EmK4Cd7_O0MM/s1600/IMG_6857.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5680998322992898722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8AcFp4bvH3JIhVa2feDpKnxiLU-_lK0TJAqJEPyCVCSpG39cFgJrs-k9MN29zj-yrJA5wCf2NzwsAsSbGaNPQLXVTA5nYAxqj3J7sbjpOEs9vOYZ9whtNKxJnygpEMC-EmK4Cd7_O0MM/s320/IMG_6857.JPG" /></a>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-4557529428370125572011-11-13T19:36:00.000-08:002011-11-13T20:40:04.495-08:00Pumpkin Party pics / HalloweenThanks to Aunt Ruthanne and Uncle Steve, we attended the Pumpkin Patch Party at Ruth Lake again this year. It was on the Sunday before Halloween. (Last year, this was our last family outing before Lila was born two days later!)<br /><br />Lila wore her kitty costume and John wore most of his pirate costume. (For some reason, John didn't want to wear the pirate-y shirt I had brought for him to wear to the party, so he wore a blue striped shirt. But he had his hat, eye patch, hook and sword.) It was an absolutely gorgeous afternoon -- warm enough to forego the coats.<br /><br />We did the tractor-led hay ride out to the "pumpkin patch" to select our pumpkins. While Lila, Mommy, Daddy, Aunt Ruthanne and Aunt Beverly hung out in the patch, Uncle Steve and John went joy-riding in a golf cart. Uncle Steve came all the way over from his hospital (where he was on call) to hang out with his little buddy John.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUQPZuV5AqFBDRsxJr_9YFpzR6RHPKOu2iVS7_XVj0lhD-mKfg9nZUDeHpDwD0XvQ9u3lubLmFjfc3mLZ6OEgcurAwV2E76_dNRmNQMmzX5EUNSVCA0qxDz0OOevYMF1DNvFjGHEvjtAc/s1600/IMG_6791.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674698502868290658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUQPZuV5AqFBDRsxJr_9YFpzR6RHPKOu2iVS7_XVj0lhD-mKfg9nZUDeHpDwD0XvQ9u3lubLmFjfc3mLZ6OEgcurAwV2E76_dNRmNQMmzX5EUNSVCA0qxDz0OOevYMF1DNvFjGHEvjtAc/s320/IMG_6791.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dgc_kIsuYCjtSf6dMDU7m7LJvtDkaDV1RByLlLCRXiCS3FdRtkrB4jFy-3YMgbyI_1AhAUzsKlPWyezyeHkOGz4AP_UkjPy5KSjGO9brDb9lZ6CR2mdzb0FFaFU45usO9Cd3amJjYPg/s1600/IMG_6793.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674698238134626354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-dgc_kIsuYCjtSf6dMDU7m7LJvtDkaDV1RByLlLCRXiCS3FdRtkrB4jFy-3YMgbyI_1AhAUzsKlPWyezyeHkOGz4AP_UkjPy5KSjGO9brDb9lZ6CR2mdzb0FFaFU45usO9Cd3amJjYPg/s320/IMG_6793.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFyW_ViIivr4iYopMXaa5y005LUrQ1_susx6Gya6avtXVQzy1E9g_h-DhwMPnCNugm3xIN6jRqezQGpERo7aA6BaKCGrLY_fSocWK57pNw3BtSYD34mXtSaiQR7quegC2B4yrPrJ2vNJg/s1600/IMG_6804.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674697521851690786" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFyW_ViIivr4iYopMXaa5y005LUrQ1_susx6Gya6avtXVQzy1E9g_h-DhwMPnCNugm3xIN6jRqezQGpERo7aA6BaKCGrLY_fSocWK57pNw3BtSYD34mXtSaiQR7quegC2B4yrPrJ2vNJg/s320/IMG_6804.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcwGfGJ-1x0SWthqjQh_8GXfEewebilRl4F4TA-WrCueKumvqpqKq6ZKYUCtH30YFd8dedFTERgyxVXaYDCyfrj6l5XC6Q3PoREibZxChFgTLQ0qsVRRPsw0MjS6KwRBfkgY_Xn341R-I/s1600/IMG_6805.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674697515227725586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcwGfGJ-1x0SWthqjQh_8GXfEewebilRl4F4TA-WrCueKumvqpqKq6ZKYUCtH30YFd8dedFTERgyxVXaYDCyfrj6l5XC6Q3PoREibZxChFgTLQ0qsVRRPsw0MjS6KwRBfkgY_Xn341R-I/s320/IMG_6805.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1AUtZVpW5fjApAf4953AKVHpmd_q3mOHTpm46LsNpfO3bMCwzaiHT-KaArF9lwsW0O5GUYK_8utIXI9OYBpx10b59F7GQi1t6oIjFjITA0XwzcZSjw_vrLX2GdsaZFgVBRusH4mqkHo/s1600/IMG_6812.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674696654402535202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1AUtZVpW5fjApAf4953AKVHpmd_q3mOHTpm46LsNpfO3bMCwzaiHT-KaArF9lwsW0O5GUYK_8utIXI9OYBpx10b59F7GQi1t6oIjFjITA0XwzcZSjw_vrLX2GdsaZFgVBRusH4mqkHo/s320/IMG_6812.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLNLvVxNM3eFI28TijamsNimEp7vEQXyae60F-dJtwKID2PcdZ1RqRZd2AGP0MzKioLnCpXSRzMY0oTmc_wdbEf6a-W80-jEPL_aJV8UWn1eTnNBE3zC9mdlrtgguGissZbr_kNo2ST0/s1600/IMG_6815.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674696069722994434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLNLvVxNM3eFI28TijamsNimEp7vEQXyae60F-dJtwKID2PcdZ1RqRZd2AGP0MzKioLnCpXSRzMY0oTmc_wdbEf6a-W80-jEPL_aJV8UWn1eTnNBE3zC9mdlrtgguGissZbr_kNo2ST0/s320/IMG_6815.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfd5wdQmRctKHKXqxPSC597DmebkdMGYaxBelveuPdFMF37fh_toR2v1KjTkb1ue6o36A1HCd6Vacx1kww3vctgRXDcBgR8otyQjZcdvhHXqcMPCSkqncTi1salJzok789wbPsaxvnuDs/s1600/IMG_6817.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674694879360110914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfd5wdQmRctKHKXqxPSC597DmebkdMGYaxBelveuPdFMF37fh_toR2v1KjTkb1ue6o36A1HCd6Vacx1kww3vctgRXDcBgR8otyQjZcdvhHXqcMPCSkqncTi1salJzok789wbPsaxvnuDs/s320/IMG_6817.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBeiq-LLpKLlBNwDAC8pqakAB0GjfIb_96Rr09Teb_oOUFAl18Z72TTkyu-k69RXITnFupXE-H0PItKCbrT3jlXyDbIxK6mHUUDkhoI9RDhAvuYrlsmfsBjZSSAszu1hxomAPnIbBkKX0/s1600/IMG_6818.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674693264683792114" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBeiq-LLpKLlBNwDAC8pqakAB0GjfIb_96Rr09Teb_oOUFAl18Z72TTkyu-k69RXITnFupXE-H0PItKCbrT3jlXyDbIxK6mHUUDkhoI9RDhAvuYrlsmfsBjZSSAszu1hxomAPnIbBkKX0/s320/IMG_6818.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVBETN4J9zefczIk7x44nYUe5qDoWSJonGgzi_S591qBGhkeCLFxNUQ_gCRq5UNDwhNOq5pa292SNjb21yPLN_mSajMIOn6rfsm9RiqQvHXhBoJSWlFGhV_K_aOuOJRcJm_JcT_EtSfY/s1600/IMG_6832.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674692478682469330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVBETN4J9zefczIk7x44nYUe5qDoWSJonGgzi_S591qBGhkeCLFxNUQ_gCRq5UNDwhNOq5pa292SNjb21yPLN_mSajMIOn6rfsm9RiqQvHXhBoJSWlFGhV_K_aOuOJRcJm_JcT_EtSfY/s320/IMG_6832.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLEusmpDSF5Ftr6Gn8qHduOo7z1h_PuYnA8V1TcDrRyoPaar8ENBfKg4YiQ3Kh55W2hbvGfU4v2B_uwqKJOYI9monpO-520PjTH2WqQu8VGKmuXq2IjaJrUDlTlk2Ii5T08Teg5PMIM68/s1600/IMG_6837.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674691740186781554" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLEusmpDSF5Ftr6Gn8qHduOo7z1h_PuYnA8V1TcDrRyoPaar8ENBfKg4YiQ3Kh55W2hbvGfU4v2B_uwqKJOYI9monpO-520PjTH2WqQu8VGKmuXq2IjaJrUDlTlk2Ii5T08Teg5PMIM68/s320/IMG_6837.JPG" /></a><br /><br />John had his face painted like a pirate before dinner. The face painting lady did an incredible job! Here he is eating his hotdog. (I should mention that John LOVES pirates. He has this book about pirates that is personalized for him, and I think that's what got him on his pirate kick. A couple of months ago, he started pretending that our turkey baster was a telescope, saying things like "Aye, matey" or "Ahoy matey!" We meant to make the turkey baster part of his costume, but we forgot.)<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59rxFaQEi0Pc0Rp3B7tiHejomtbYDJO_wwFLLRnMxbx7sTatZdcP9NS2uryndlz83MjzQQ7dqglS8yWv9-xMwYpLR6FdFBBhwxVAbZ9C6GPzwviCU96l326fOhz0vavqLA0VycGd49fg/s1600/IMG_6839.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674691274875975890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi59rxFaQEi0Pc0Rp3B7tiHejomtbYDJO_wwFLLRnMxbx7sTatZdcP9NS2uryndlz83MjzQQ7dqglS8yWv9-xMwYpLR6FdFBBhwxVAbZ9C6GPzwviCU96l326fOhz0vavqLA0VycGd49fg/s320/IMG_6839.JPG" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XfyyFB4IdOdN-6s594mb7m93dO2LyE_R0nns_-SV6nMQpQjoxrYcq_stYE4cTyuWV3W43PgMMJPqeYKryhS_zb9X0tGMkkaakhllQYzQu-1lBlVKqMTMs5OjoidPIPN9JY4TD9WyMTI/s1600/IMG_6840.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 320px; height: 214px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674691271384098338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2XfyyFB4IdOdN-6s594mb7m93dO2LyE_R0nns_-SV6nMQpQjoxrYcq_stYE4cTyuWV3W43PgMMJPqeYKryhS_zb9X0tGMkkaakhllQYzQu-1lBlVKqMTMs5OjoidPIPN9JY4TD9WyMTI/s320/IMG_6840.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div><br />For the actual day of Halloween, we were in Illinois because Grandma Kay Ellen had been hospitalized again. I had forgotten to bring our camera with us, so the only photos I have from that day are on Daddy's iPhone. Aunt Katharine was kind enough to stay back at Grandma's house to hand out candy and prepare our spaghetti dinner for us so we could take the kids trick-or-treating in the neighborhood.<br /></div><div> </div><div><br />It was really nice to see all the neighbors again -- John knows them so well from having lived at Grandma's for a whole year. This year, John definitely knew what trick-or-treating was about. We had forgotten his plastic trick-or-treating pumpkin, so he used the pail we had gotten him for Easter. He loved filling it up with candy and sorting through it, but he only got one or two pieces of it!</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1215758678743000340.post-46048470809427920252011-11-10T18:23:00.000-08:002011-11-13T19:32:44.211-08:00Lila at 12 months<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxD5KqACiozOELU4rJG93EEU0ZPLAQNXhym0qLVjZ4zEyWUF_sKvcWU6R7YMEhSQ2CUjDdSfi3DuUXM9mYblS2sTuVTvvlL6MQFxMm9pF6FJbwA_cn8EJo9KmbpVMvvEBYRPBDYh_Ccao/s1600/IMG_6728.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; width: 214px; height: 320px; text-align: center; display: block; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673570964145691506" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxD5KqACiozOELU4rJG93EEU0ZPLAQNXhym0qLVjZ4zEyWUF_sKvcWU6R7YMEhSQ2CUjDdSfi3DuUXM9mYblS2sTuVTvvlL6MQFxMm9pF6FJbwA_cn8EJo9KmbpVMvvEBYRPBDYh_Ccao/s320/IMG_6728.JPG" /></a><br /><div>Before time completely gets away from me, here are a few things to know about Lila at 12 months:<br /><br /><strong>Measurements:</strong> At her 12-month doctor's visit on October 27th, she weighed 18 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 29.5 inches long. I wasn't surprised by either measurement. I've always thought she felt a lot lighter than John did at this age, and my hunch proved to be true. John weighed 20 pounds, 11 ounces at his 12-month appointment -- nearly two pounds more than Lila! He was also an entire inch longer than her (30.5 inches). Lila is still very long for a baby girl her age, though. She's above the 75th percentile for height and is between the 25th and 40th percentile for weight.</div><div> </div><div><br /><strong>Teething: </strong>Right after she turned 11 months old (while we were visiting Grandma Bonnie and Papa Jeff), Lila cut her 6th tooth. Her 7th and 8th teeth (the ones on either side of her bottom middle teeth) came in before she turned 12 months. Her first one-year molar broke through the skin this past Monday, November 7th. She was chewing like crazy on her fingers that day, so I got out the teething biscuits again for her. Those were a big help.</div><div> <br /><br /></div><div><strong>Nursing/Eating: </strong>I am still nursing Lila and will continue to nurse her at least another month (I nursed John until he was 14.5 months old). She nurses four times a day: first thing in the morning, after her first nap, after her second nap and before bed. I now only nurse her from one side at the last two feedings because she is eating so much more and because she's learning how to drink from a cup. </div><div> <br /></div><div>Speaking of drinking from a cup, I was very lazy about starting this (and being consistent with it). I've really only started regularly giving her a cup at her meals in the past week or two, but luckily she seems to be catching on to the whole drinking thing pretty quickly. She has two cups with spouts and one straw cup. On Thursday (November 10th) I gave Lila her first cup of cow's milk. As soon as I can be sure she's drinking well from a cup, I plan on cutting out the third nursing in the afternoon and replacing it with cow's milk.</div><div> <br /></div><div>Lila loves food. Since she started eating more "real food" than pureed baby food (which happened around 11 months), she has only disliked broccoli. I can't get her to eat it at all. She is a huge fan fruits, veggies and grains, but she doesn't seem to be as wild about meat. She'll eat it just fine, but she doesn't usually want seconds. </div><div><br /></div><div><strong>Sleeping/Schedule: </strong>We are playing around with Lila's schedule a little, especially since Daylight Savings Time ended last week. She definitely needs two naps still, but she sleeps less time at each one. This past week, she has slept really, really well at night, which has been a tremendous help to her tired Mommy. I think she slept through the night three times.</div><div> </div><div><br />This is her new schedule:<br /></div><div> </div><div>7 a.m. - Wake up and nurse</div><div>8 a.m. - Breakfast</div><div>around 9:30 or 10 a.m. - 1st nap (about 90 mins.)</div><div>around 11 or 11:30 a.m. - Wake up and nurse</div><div>12:30 p.m. - Lunch</div><div>around 2:30 or 3 p.m. - 2nd nap (about 90 mins.)</div><div>around 4 or 4:30 p.m. - Wake up and nurse (one side only)</div><div>5:30 pm. - Dinner</div><div>7 p.m. - Nurse/Bedtime (one side only)</div><div> <br /></div><div>Since Daylight Savings Time ended, I've started putting Lila down for her morning nap before our first outing of the day. She has been so tired by 9:30 that there's been no way we could do an outing anywhere. </div><div><br /><br /><strong>Walking/Standing:</strong> Lila started letting us walk her around the house in early October. (Before then, she'd just bend over really far to let us know that she wanted to get down and crawl.) At first, her walking looked a lot like marching -- she would lift her legs (especially the left one) ridiculously high. Here's a video of it from October 16th!<br /><br /><iframe height="300" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/31884131?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" frameborder="0" width="400" allowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen=""></iframe><br /></div><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/31884131">Goose stepper</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3077423">Sarah Schuchard</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p><div><br />In mid-October, she started getting interested in her walkers and could push the Chicco activity walker around with very little assistance from Mommy or Daddy. During a few stays at Grandma Kay Ellen's house, she got acquainted with John's old Chicco push train that we had left there when we moved. That quickly became a favorite for her. Now she's obsessed with the Radio Flyer push wagon that John got for his 1st birthday. As of Monday (November 7th), she can push it on her own (no easy feat, since it's extremely heavy and difficult to steer). She does lap after lap after lap around the house with the wagon. It's a great pre-bedtime routine!<br /><br /></div><div>Lila stood alone for about 8-10 seconds on Tuesday (November 8th). Since then, she has let go several times of things she's holding onto and stood for a few seconds at a time. I love seeing the look of surprise on her face!</div><div><br /><br /><strong>Climbing: </strong>We have a climber on our hands. Lila can't get enough of climbing the stairs at our house and at Grandma Kay Ellen's house. Once she gets to the top, she wants to go right back down on her own, regardless of the fact that she doesn't know how. Our house doesn't have carpeted stairs, so it might be a while before we teach her -- she's too little still. Lila also enjoys trying to climb on and off riding toys. </div><div> </div><div><br /><br /><strong>First words: </strong>Lila's first "real" word was "uh-oh"!!! She said it the first time on October 17th while she was sitting in her highchair during lunch. She had dropped her spoon or a piece of food on the floor, and out it came! Grandma Bonnie and I could not believe our ears. I grabbed the video camera as fast as I could, and luckily, she obliged me by saying it again on camera another half dozen times or so.<br /><br /><br /><iframe height="300" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/31885753?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" frameborder="0" width="400" allowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen=""></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/31885753">"Uh-oh" girl</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3077423">Sarah Schuchard</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p><br /></div><div>Lila also says "wow" a lot now. If you say "wow" to her, she'll repeat it over and over again. We did this last week on the way to pick John up from school. </div><div><br />Although she can say "ma ma" and "da da" (and a bunch of other syllables), I can't be sure yet that she is actually referring to me or her Daddy when she says them. She did say "da da da da" a whole bunch of times the other day when Daddy went to get her from her nap.</div><div> <br /></div><div>She also "talks" a lot in everyday situations. For instance, if you give her a phone (or something that looks a bit like a phone), she'll say something that sounds like "hi." If she's trying to give you something, she'll say something that sounds like "here you go."<br /><br /><strong>Funny things: </strong>The week of October 17th, Lila figured out that when she was sitting on something soft like a bed or the couch, she could fall backwards and throw her legs in the air and it would be fun. She loves to play this game with Mommy, who tickles her like crazy once she has fallen over.</div><div> <br /><br /></div><div>For at least the past month, Lila has put her elbow up to ear to simulate talking on the phone. When she does it, we tell her to call Papa Jeff.<br /><br />Lila got her first Munchkin "snack catchers" a couple of weeks ago, and they have been inseparable ever since. Even when she has finished the snack inside, Lila continues her death grip on the catcher. Sometimes she even naps with it! Hey, it's easier than trying to pry it out of her hands. John also likes to use the catchers for snacks.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lila now gives kisses! We first noticed she could give kisses the other night when Daddy was reading a book to her about Elmo. Daddy asked her to give Elmo a kiss, and she bent down and kissed the page! She gives Mommy and Daddy kisses too. Tonight she gave Daddy open-mouthed kisses and Mommy closed-mouth kisses.</div><div> </div><div>That's all for now!</div><div> </div><div> </div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13101134066466806900noreply@blogger.com0