Tuesday had other plans...

so tired, december 07

Isabella....
You really put me through the paces yesterday! WOW.
Our day started out much like all the others do. In between morning sleeps and yawns in our bed...you flashed me that happy grin that makes my heart skip a beat every time. You enjoyed your breakfast and kicked away on the changing table. You seemed perfectly delightful despite it being the kind of day that is so dreary the house remains evening dark throughout the afternoon. As much as I hated to do it, I loaded you into the car and ran an errand or two. On the way home I was on the phone telling your aunt Libby how good you were(in my best braggy-mom voice). Even as I was saying the words, I felt a little like I shouldn't jinx your good behavior...but I went ahead and kept right on bragging about how good you are. I think I even used the word "predictable," saying that we are able to make plans ahead of time now and know that you will be just fine no matter where we take you. Shame on me. I had no idea what you had planned for the hours to come. Your dad had a business dinner so it was just the two of us. We got home and the party started. You were mad when I took you out of the car...but I chalked it up to hunger. I put you in your bouncy seat long enough to bring the groceries in and let the dogs out. You became even more upset. I was singing and talking to you as I put a few freezer items away and began to let the dogs in. You hated my singing (which isn't entirely your fault, most people would probably agree with you on that one). I let Abby in and was aggrivated to find that she was very muddy. I grabbed a clean towel and wiped off every single muddy paw...all the while singing "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands" at the top of my lungs. At this point my patience began to wear thin. You see, you have been so very good...only maybe two big meltdowns in your life, that my patience had been sitting around gathering dust. I hadn't really had to use my patience much at all since, say about 3 weeks old when I made the devastating choice to eat McDonald's and then breastfeed you and you cried for 15 hours because your tummy was very gassy...and I swore to your dad that I would never even so much as LOOK at another McDonald's for the rest of my life. We were both forced to muster up all of our patience that night! Anyway, back to the present. You were sitting in your bouncy seat...red-faced and screaming. I knew you were hungry(not starving, mind you...you were merely 20 minutes past you regular feeding time) and I was hurrying as fast as I could. I'm sorry to admit it but I abruptly cut "If you're happy and you know it" short and began semi-lecturing you (in a very sweet voice) about how there were other things that had to be taken care of around here and that you would just have to hold your horses. You hated my lecture and cried even harder. I can understand...I felt the same way about my mom's lectures...but still...
Abby's paws were clean and I quickly washed my hands to come and get you. I happened to glance out the back door at Pepper who was nearly getting blown off the deck by the driving rain and wind. I put your pacifier in your mouth and kissed you and went to let Pepper in. You are still screaming and American Idol has now come on and is way too loud. I am not surprised to find that Pepper is far more muddy than Abby was. I send him back outside and do a fake throwing motion to get him to run out into the grass in the hopes that some of the mud will come off. I fill two large bowls with water and get more towels and start in on a VERY loud version of "Jesus Loves Me" for your listening pleasure. You continue to scream and the idiot who waited in line for 56 hours to make a fool of himself on national television belts out the lyrics to an old AC/DC number. Pepper adds to the fun by trying to escape while I am cleaning him off. His paws and entire underbelly are covered in mud flecks and his back is soaked from the rain. I am "up to here" (as my mom used to say) with frustration. I finally get him cleaned off and wash my hands again. I pick you up to feed you and still, you do not calm down. You are crying and crying even though the food is right at your lips. I am talking to you, promising not to sing if you'll promise to eat. I turn off the TV, shoving the power button, much harder than necessary, into the remote. Deep breaths...
I remember your dad telling me a few days ago that you are just like me in that once your feelings are hurt...you continue to cry---just because---even know the problem is fixed, or the apology has been sincerely issued. I am not able to turn off my tears quickly and apparently, you aren't either. And apparently, I had obviously hurt your feelings bigtime!
Just when I thought I couldn't take anymore, the lights flickered. The wind was howling outside and the house was rattling. As a small gift to me, you calmed down long enough to eat just a little. "YES! Keep eating...see....now you're all better," I said. You hated my talking and began to scream again. Then I had the thought that you might need your diaper changed and that I should definitely take care of that lest I wanted to change you pioneer-style by the light of a Yankee candle if the electricity decided to go completely out. On the changing table you quickly spit up what little you had just eaten. I stopped singing and talking.... and started crying with you. Then I was mad at your dad for having a meeting. How rude of him to do this to me! I changed you and put on a new, clean sleeper. I picked you up and hugged you. You continued to cry and then I started wondering (read:obsessing) if there was something seriously wrong with you. Afterall, I had never seen you cry for such an extended period of time (with the exception of the McDonald's night.) You cried intermittently all through your feeding. I tried to burp you and you insisted on bobbing your little head around all stiff bodied. At one point, you bobbed your head into my lips and I had to check in the mirror to see if either of us were bleeding. I love that you are holding your head up now, love bug, but I need to keep my front teeth in tact in case I ever decide to go back to work.
I tried to put you in your swing. You love your swing. But, not last night. Hey, how about your kick and play mat....looks fun, right? Tried that. You hated it. "Well, I'm starving, Ella," I say to you as if you care. "I need to pee! I need to eat! I need to be able to put you down for ONE MINUTE!!!" How about a little tummy time on the ottoman like daddy does? You buried your head in the blanket and refused to turn to the side so you could breathe. I tried the bouncy seat again...even turned on the fancy vibrating feature. More crying, on both of our parts.
I listened to you cry as I fixed myself a stiff drink, I mean a quick sandwhich and then held you and ate and got a crick in my neck from holding the phone with my shoulder all at the same time. You were happy though. Perfectly content to watch me eat and chat on the phone.....so quiet I might have forgotten you were there if it weren't for you grabbing the sensitive baby hairs around my neck and locking them into your little fists. But by this time see, MY feelings were hurt and I still felt like crying. I looked at the clock and saw that 4 long hours had passed since the circus had started. I was exhausted. The phone rang and it was your dad calling to say he was on his way home. "Good!" I said....and I kept my other thoughts to myself. I put you in your seat while I put my dishes away and changed into my pajamas. I expected more crying but was relieved to find you happily sucking on your paci when I came to get you. I carried you over and we both stretched out on the couch. Your eyes got heavy in an instant and soon you were fast asleep, paci hanging out of the side of your mouth like a cuban cigar. "I bet you are tired," I whispered. "I know I am."
Looking at you from the side I noticed, as I have so many times before, that your little profile is still exactly the same as it was at our 20 week ultrasound. The same curl of your nose, the same bottom lip sucked inward. I traced the outline of your face and listened as your chest rose and fell. I picked up your feather-soft hand and compared your fingers to mine and I thought to myself....
it's a good thing I think you are so darn cute.

monday

Here are a few excerpts from my pregnancy journal. I am attempting to show my cousin, who is expecting her first, (hi jen) that while it was the best one I found for us, I still had to add my own pictures and journaling, etc in areas that weren't designed particularly for that. I still need to finish it by adding the story of her birth at the end...which overlaps just slightly with her baby book...hoping to get that done soon before any more of the little details slip away. You should be able to click on all of these images to see them larger.

cover (in case someone reading this is pregnant and might want to buy it)
first two pages...just plain yellow with the same image from the cover. I (obviously) added all my own pictures to this area.
journaling right on the picture
Tommy wrote in it a couple of times in the spot that is has lined pages to journal in. I just dated each entry and crammed them in as close as possible

This picture is adhered to one of then chapter divider pages (hence the quote box peeking out from underneath.) It is a photo of how we told our parents the news.

Pretty sure I used the last couple of "My progress" (How I am feeling...How I'm looking...etc) pages to add photos. These are all about the nursery.

Same thing here....nursery photos and journaling.

I think I added the next few pages of pictures on the last few doctor visit record pages because I knew I only had two appointments left and there were extras.

I used half of one of the journaling pages for the ultrasound predictions.

I forget what this page was meant for...but I covered it in pictures.

This area was designed for "well wishes" for baby. Not sure if people were supposed to sign it or if they meant for you to adhere cards, etc. to the pages. In any event, I kept all the cards in a memory box and used the space, instead, for my own "wishes" for her. Don't know if you can see it or not...but the paint swatch is her furniture color and it is called "Wishes."

More journaling....

Other half of ultrasound page...I took a picture of a onesie that we received for a gift and journaled on the picture...which is, as you might have noticed, one of my favorite things to do.

This was another chapter divider page. I took a picture of a little gift I got for Tommy one date night (at about 38 weeks, I think) and stuck it here.

Yet another chapter divider page...

more journaling...

I followed the directions on this one and placed our couple's shower invite here.

Another spot to add cards from people...I added this instead and put the cards in her memory box.

Pictures and journaling about the shower.

Can't recall what this page was for but I added a photo of the stamps and baby stationery that we used for shower thank you notes..

I'm off to have a cup of coffee, rock my baby, and read a little of the Three Martini Play Date. (Thanks, Blake!)
Happy Monday...

#%&@$#moms...Blake outed you over beverages on Friday night....I know you are out there.....wink, wink!

If you entered the design mom giveaway...don't forget to check back today to see if you won. She doesn't email you...she just announces it on her site and then you email her. Check back often....she always has great stuff to give away!

back to dreaming, a day at work, and other randomness

dreaming with daddy, december 07

*I am a big dreamer...unfortunately my dreams are usually bad. I have gone for several months with no dreams at all. I think I was so tired near the end of pregnancy that I slept hard and needless to say, I've been very tired since her birth and have been sleeping even harder. I guess it may be a sign that life is returning to normal because I had a dream last night that Isabella could count to twenty! There she was...in my dream in the very same pajamas that we put her to bed in...just counting away. In the interest of full disclosure, she did skip 19...but for a 9 week old I'm willing to let that omission slide.

*Also, last night, I went to bed with my hair in a ponytail and woke up at about 3am with sore hair. Literally, my hair was sore to the touch! And the ponytail was not a tight one at all. I must have slept wierd or something. I had to get up and take an advil it was bothering me so much. I looked on the back of the bottle...there was no indication for sore hair but it worked anyway.

*I finally talked Tommy into renting "Running With Scissors" last night. I have wanted to see it ever since my bookclub read it back in August. Wow...I was super disappointed. I couldn't even stay awake to finish it. The book was interesting albeit very dark and twisted....but the movie was slow, I thought.

* The sub that took over for me when I left to have the baby had an appointment this week and needed a sub on Wednesday. I told her back in early December that I would do it...thinking to myself that January 23rd seemed like forever away. Well, it snuck right up! My mother in law babysat for us. It was good to see my class. I saw them all with the fresh perspective that each one of them is someone's precious baby. Clearly I knew that before...but having my own now really made me see them with a mother's eye. While it was very good to be there...it was hard to be away. I missed her lots and skipped all errands and went straight to pick her up instead.

*I bought some pajama sleepers on sale at The Children's Place. They have a zipper as opposed to the 40 plus snaps that baby gap sleepers have. They might not be as cute...but they are so much easier. I can zip in the dark in the middle of the night...but to snap, the lights must come on full blast and still I usually manage to skip one and end up with a lopsided job.

*Tommy caught me talking baby talk to Ella this morning. (We promised each other we wouldn't do this!) "But it makes her smile," I said. "And," I added, "You talk to her like she is a business associate and she doesn't like that!" He came over and leaned down to her and said, "Are you ready to close some deals today?" She replied with a huge grin (which he got a huge kick out of!) Obviously, she likes baby talk AND business talk.

*I am so looking forward to Spring. I'd like to be on the beach right now, sipping on an iced mimosa, looking through the February issue of Martha, Ella under the umbrELLA taking a nap, Tommy sitting next to me drinking a beer....the sun shining in the middle of a big, blue sky. Now that sounds good. Instead, I am about to put on my NorthFace and head out into the subzero temperature.

*Glad it's Friday. Thanks for all the feedback on the doctor gifts. Any thank you gift is better than no thank you gift, right?

insignificant gifts...

This just in... click here ASAP. I think it is Design Mom's very best giveaway ever. A ton of boutique baby stuff. All you have to do is leave a comment on the post. Good luck! Would you not love to move to wherever this lady lives and be her best friend??


for Dr.C, January 08

for Dr.G, January 08

On the morning of my six week checkup....which, in my case, was an eight week checkup (Surprised, no?) I scrambled around, restless. I silently argued with myself about the fact that I was slipping back into my old doctor-anxiety routine. How in the world, I thought to myself, can you possibly be scared to go to a checkup when you just recently delivered a baby? (Cue mental lecture about how I absolutely must NOT pass on my headcase-ness to my daughter!) I also acknowledged that part of my uneasy, panic-y feeling was coming from my need to thank the two doctors who were instrumental in our pregnancy/delivery journey. Just the night before, I had rested in bed, wide-eyed, both comforted and equally annoyed by the rhythmic snoring of Tommy and our Weimaraner, Abby...my mind jumping from place to place...trying to drum up a creative way to convey our thanks to two women who deliver hundreds of babies each year. To them...it was all in a day's work. To us, though, it was the world.

After a morning punctuated by feedings, I finally decided that I would bring them both a bottle of wine. Lame? Yes, probably. Afterall, I had no idea if they even liked wine. Or maybe, I obsessed, they might even be offended by such a gift. But, in the end...it was all I had time to do. I decided to add picture tags...to personalize it a bit. I got too engrossed in the tag-making process and left myself barely any time at all to get ready. At 30 minutes prior to the appointment...I packed the car and headed for the building that I last saw when I looked in the rearview mirror as we left with our brand new baby. I wasn't ready for the flood of emotions that hit me as I got off the exit. Immediately, my mind recalled getting off this same exit just eight weeks prior...gripping the console and the door handle with each contraction...stealing glances at my driver...scrutinizing him for any sign of fear. "Babe, I'm scared!" I kept repeating it over and over. He smiled his smile and said, "But aren't you so excited, too?" Indeed I was...but fear was chief. Excitement was in the background craning it's neck for my attention. I recalled the phone calls Tommy made as we made our way to the hospital. We were all "it might be a false alarm--sit tight--we'll call back." I imagined my parents...at home in their beds. No way could they get any sleep after a phone call like that. Their baby was about to have a baby. I thought of my dad's patients and my mom's students and of how the next day would be a chaotic one for many people. At each traffic light, now, I looked in the backseat at the product of that trip to the hospital. I thought of how we were so ignorant to what was about to happen. We didn't even have the capacity to imagine joy, eight weeks ago, as big as we feel now. If we had only known, I kept thinking....
I pulled in the parking lot and unpacked...slightly embarrassed at the amount of baggage I now travel with...and at how un-smooth I am at carrying all of it. This time I have two bottles of red wine that pose a serious threat to all of my oxy-baby-white-monogrammed baby gear. I made my way up to the office with my heart in my throat as the elevator dinged past the labor and delivery floor. I signed in and went to the seat that I sat in as I waited for every single prenatal visit. (I know what you're thinking. What would I have done if someone had been sitting in my chair, right? Tommy asked me that each time. My answer was always the same....I would have stood.) Actually, this time we took up two seats...and then three when Tommy arrived. I drug him down memory lane with me....with all my usual prying. "Babe, do you remember what we were both wearing when we came here that night? Remember that guy in the waiting room? What was that nurse's name? The one with the short hair. You have to remember her!....and so on...
I saw our delivery doctor....the one who seamlessly put Ella safely in my arms.... for my checkup. Turns out, she likes wine and seemed to really appreciate the gesture.
The doctor who put up with my crazy-off-the-wall-I-read-it-on-the-internet questions for an entire 38 weeks and who laughed and comforted both Tommy and me at every visit, and who quickly found the heartbeat of our little lovey....she was one floor below...delivering a baby. I left the gift with her nurse.
A bottle of wine is certainly an insignificant gift for two people who did so much, so well. I hope they know, though....how hard we prayed for skilled, yet compassionate doctors...and how impressed we were with what God provided.

two months

after your bath, january 08

Ella...You are growing up so fast. Already I feel as though we are not as careful with you as we used to be. When we brought you home, we were afraid you would break in a million pieces if we even kissed you too hard. But now....now you are bigger and you seem more sturdy. Who knew that there was such a difference between 6 pounds and 10? At 6 pounds, you seemed to me like a hollow eggshell. I was afraid to try to put your arms in their sleeves because I thought sure they'd break. Your whole head fit inside daddy's hand. Though you are still a tiny little thing, it gives me great pleasure to have to wash inside the little fat rolls on your wrists and legs. We are still careful with you, very careful to be exact, but we are less worried about "breaking" you! We put you in bed with us in the mornings and we are speechless at the sheer length of you. Our preemie is long gone. In her place is a cooing, smiling, chubby baby girl.

Your voice! I do not mean to get so sappy...but your voice is the very sweetest thing I've ever heard. I can tell you have handfuls of laughs that are just waiting to come out. Your little mouth forms an oval and out comes a string of "oooooooooss" and bubbles, too. Your dad and I have both seen you do this many times now...but that doesn't stop us from saying, "Hurry up! Come over here! You have to see this!"
Each new morning is like meeting you for the very first time. You are new and different each day. It is so neat, for lack of a better term, to see your little personality emerging. You will look up at me, when you are just playing around instead of eating, and smile a very sly grin. You will hold that pose for a moment and then play shy and bury your head so no one can see you. I wonder what is going through your head during those times. It seems to me that your most lively and happy time is in the early morning. (Which, if you weren't a clone of your dad, would lead me to believe you were switched at birth! Your parents are the farthest thing from morning people!) I cherish my mornings with you. Your eyes are so bright and clear. You smell like a combination of sweet milk and daddy's cologne from where he holds you before he leaves for work. I look forward to the half hour or so that we spend....playing on our bed in the day's first light. Thank you, baby girl, for how my days begin now.

The craziest thing is...we keep loving you more. We would drive an outsider crazy with our constant "can you believe how great she is?" so we generally try to keep it to just the two of us. It's hard though...because our hearts are simply full to bursting. We love you so incredibly much. You have added so much to our lives and to our love.

having a nap in front of the space heater after a bath, january 08

Thursday...

baby present, january 08

I am a total sucker for pretty packaging! And I love polka dots. This one gift inspired me to go on a hunt for b/w polka dot wrapping paper. Of course, online you can only find it in a roll big enough to wrap the house in! I love ribbon, too.
Ordered some baby pictures today. I went with the color for the great room since we will have so many black and whites downstairs. Normally I always go with b&w....but this will work out well because the maternity picture (thanks, Allison & Linda) in the middle of the array is color...so color will probably flow best.
On a blue note....we are very sad that Libby had to cancel her flight in this weekend due to the flu and a fever. Tommy and I were so looking forward to your visit, Lib. We must reschedule soon. Give me another month and I might be brave enough to fly out to Chesapeake to stay with you! Anyway, we're bummed you can't be here this weekend. We will miss you.
It is supposed to be veeeery cold here this weekend. It snowed some last night...but only a dusting that quickly melted with the sunrise. Pop pop and Angie are coming in to visit....we plan to visit a winery and possibly take a tour at a local whiskey distillery. These both sound very baby friendly, no? Also, Max Lucado is speaking at church on Sunday which we are both very excited about.
Also...the nursery is CLEAN! Woooo-hooooo! It took the better part of an afternoon to accomplish... I had to take a small break when I got to the part where I was to store away the preemie clothes she came home in. So, so tiny. I will save them for aways. I ordered her baby spoon today, too. Can't wait to get it. Fun mail!!
photo via L.L. handstamped jewelery


Not that you care, but our very favorite show, Prison Break, started again this week and we missed it! We forgot to continue the tivo season pass for the show from last season and we were playing with the baby and completely missed it. Does anyone else watch it? I bet the season opener was good!

something funny

the last of the Christmas decor, december 07

The other day I took a load of darks out of the washer and started sorting them into "dryer" and "hang dry" piles. About one or two items into my sorting process, I noticed that they smelled TERRIBLE! Not the I-left-them-wet-in-the-washer-for-two-days-mildew smell...no, it was something way worse. In particular, it smelled very much like fish. Though I love hot summer days on the lake...I am not fond of fishy smells at all. I started sniffing all the garmets and they all smelled equally disgusting and fish-y. My mind was racing as to what this could possibly be?? Neither Tommy or I even eat fish (as if eating it would explain the smell? what? don't you ever put a fish stick in your coat pocket for later?) I was totally perplexed...and mad! The smell was so strong that I fully believed the entire load was ruined. And my ONLY pair of jeans that fit me, post pregnancy, were there in the fishy pile. Just as I was ready to carry a smelly shirt out into the living room for Tommy to sniff (you're welcome, babe) I saw a mysterious little purple piece of mush and immediately recognized it! AH-HAH! I had washed a prenatal vitamin that I had put in my jeans pocket to take when we went out to lunch the day before (which I clearly forgot to do.)
I can now assume that the pills are just as full of fish oil as the bottle says they are.
I'm happy to report that the whole load smelled delightful after two more washes and a generous amount of fabric softener!

ella, 1 hour old, 11-20




Which Parent Will I Be?

~Author Unknown~

"I got two A's," the small boy cried.
His voice was filled with glee.
His father very bluntly asked,
"Why didn't you get three?"

"Mom, I've got the dishes done,"
The girl called from the door.
Her mother very calmly said,
"Did you sweep the floor?"

"I've mowed the grass," the tall boy said,
"And put the mower away."
His father asked him, with a shrug,
"Did you clean off the clay?"

The children in the house next door
seem happy and content.
The same thing happened over there,
And this is how it went:

"I got two A's,"
the small boy cried,
His voice was filled with glee.
His father very proudly said,
"That's great, I'm glad you belong to me."

"Mom, I've got the dishes done,"
The girl called from the door.
Her mother smiled and softly said,
"Each day I love you more."

"I've mowed the grass," the tall boy said,
"And put the mower away."
His father answered with much joy,
"You've completely made my day."

Children deserve a little praise
For tasks they're asked to do.
If they're to lead a happy life,
So much depends on you.

me, hormonal? no!

angel face, december 07


Case in point:
This morning I got up and opened all the blinds in the whole house so we could enjoy the snowfall. After breakfast, I put Isabella in her swing..but I decided to put her in backwards (facing the other way) so she would be able to see the leaves and birds on the mobile better. (Note: this may sound dangerous, but it isn't. The swing is like a little bowl and it really doesn't differ from one end to the other.) Anyway, I turned it on and started the mobile. Within just a few minutes she was going crazy...smiling, moving her arms in wild motions, kicking her feet...I swear, at times it sounded like she was laughing! I grabbed my cell phone and snapped a picture to send to Tommy. I text him and said look at this! You wouldn't believe this! She is so cute right now. He quickly text back and said "Get the video camera and record her--I don't want to miss this!" Oh yeah, I thought! Great idea! What was I thinking! I ran to get the camera, the whole time trying to remember how to turn it on and what button is "record". Found it, got it, running back to the scene of the excitement...hurry...hurry!
I arrived just in time to find her fast asleep. No more laughing, kicking, smiling baby! She was sleeping peacefully, her pacifier moving in and out, in and out.

My tears just came out of nowhere...with no warning at all.
The show was over....and I missed the chance to document it.
I'm missing things all the time it seems....and I'm right here. Trying to be as "in the moment" as life allows. But, still, I'm missing moments and time is passing with a crazy pace.
She is bigger today than she was last night when I tucked her in.
Yesterday I put on a small variety show with me as the main character right in front of her bouncy seat....trying so hard to get a big smile or a tiny laugh....nothing. Then today--she does both and I missed the chance to preserve it. To show it to her daddy. To share it with her grandparents.
I have yet to document a single item from the past 7 weeks. And it makes me so sad. I'm forgetting. I am forgetting exactly what Tommy and I said the moment we saw her for the first time. I am forgetting all the teeny tiny moments that made up that first night we spent with her in the hospital. I am forgetting. And the irony is..if I take the time right now to record our story...I'll be missing the chapter of our story that is unfolding this minute. I'd like to do both.
Maybe I'll set aside 10 minutes each evening for this??
See, I'm not hormonal. Not at all.

Planning to post pictures of my pregnancy journal later on (for you, cousin!)

If you were going to hang it in your great room, would you choose color or black and white?

isabella, january 07, in daddy's hands

Wish us luck. We are headed out...just the two of us...to do some shopping while Tommy is at work. Who knew it would be such a process to go shopping? I used to just quick get ready...grab my purse, and go. That is not the case these days. I have to pack a crazy amount of "supplies." I almost always forget something of great importance. I seriously throw my back out trying to get the stroller in and out of the back of the truck. The mirror we bought so that we can check on her from the front seat is absolutely useless...so I practically climb in the back at every red light to make sure she is fine. I use 30+ anti-bacterial wipes to ward of all those germs that lurk on every surface, handle, etc. All in all, not a whole lot of shopping gets accomplished!
Also, I am taking her to school to meet my class. I think I will have to implement a "no touch the baby" rule for my own sanity!
ETA: Hurry on over to www.designmom.com and scroll down a few posts. She is giving away 5 Lands End Diaper bags (I think you could use them as a regular bag, too.) and all you have to do is leave a comment on the post...any comment at all! If you win one, I will need you to send it to me since I told you about it! haha

aunt libby & uncle justin

j&l, august '07

We miss you guys so much and we are so proud of you for the work you are doing.
Isabella is sending you a little treat in the mail. Be on the lookout for it.
xxoo

my work cut out for me...

I have some work to do this week...

first item on the to do list is this...

Isabella's nursery before Christmas...

And...after Christmas...

If any time remains after this job is done...
Other things I'd like to get accomplished include...
starting a baby book
cleaning floors
starting a mondo beyondo list for 08
(i did the uber list for 07 ((a list of 107 things to accomplish in the new year)) and really liked it. Hopefully the mondo beyondo list will be as good. I will post about this soon.
getting my 08 calendar set up (one of my favorite things to do)
dinner with blake and tex
take the Christmas tree and various other pieces of Christmas down...
I procrastinated with this because I was waiting for my new Sterling Pear ornament storage organizer to arrive. It is here so now I have no excuse.
(I actually won this item from a website called Design Mom..she has fabulous give aways from different companies (some for kids, some for their mommas) almost every single week. All you have to do is enter your name. It is a great website. Google 'design mom blog' and I am sure you'll find it. If not, leave me a comment and I'll try to remember to post the actual web address) Hurry on over...I think she has a give away going on right now. She has hundreds of readers -- so I can't promise that you'll win...but I enter all the ones that I like....and I finally won one...so you might too!
Clean bathrooms (sick--i hate this job!)
finish ALL birthday, baby, Christmas thank you notes!
thaw several dinners (thanks to dad and janae for getting us 24 meals from dinners by design as a baby welcome present. What a help they have been! And they are delicious, too)
Go through baby clothes to see if Ella has grown enough to wear any of them
make some plans for my sister-in-law's visit (can't wait to see you lib)
read some of my book (A Thousand Splendid Suns)
take baby for a walk if weather holds out
tidy up my car (this, I have trouble with!)
order some pictures for basement frames
etc etc etc


We had a great visit with Jack&Company. We got to have lunch at the Cheesecake Factory along with a quick visit to Janie and Jack for some baby shopping. (Jack got to throw $100 in change in the fountain while we shopped! haha)
We played C L R (fun dice game with dollars)
We watched the games.
We did some more shopping.
We just visited--which is always the best part.
Now I will have to plan a trip to Michigan for Ella and me in March to visit after baby thompson is born.
Thanks for coming guys. As always--it was a great time.

ten things i love about you...

isabella, december 07


1 the way your sweet breath smells
2 how cute you look in the sleep sack that pop pop and gramma angie got you
3 the way your lip quivers when you are sad or hungry (it's powerful...and i hope you don't plan to use it as a weapon against your dad and me for your whole life! i'm afraid we'll cave every single time.)

4 the tiny laundry you produce (i often find myself in the laundry room just marveling at the itsy-bitsy-ness of your garmets.)
5 the way you look in our dimly lit bedroom in the middle of the night (your eyes are wide open but have that sleepy look that lingers for the first few minutes of your feeding)
6 your little hands that seem to grip onto everything now
7 the way you smile in your sleep (it's always worth the wait, you never disappoint)
8 the peace and contentment that holding you gives me
9 the way your movements are still exactly like they were in my belly
10 how you are just the right mix of momma and daddy

************

We are kicking off January 08 with Chris, Allison, Jack and baby t. The guys are having fun watching a never ending string of bowl games and we girls are having fun talking, eating, and shopping. We had our little Christmas last night and I can now take the tree down. Oddly enough, I am ready to take it down this year. Could be that we put it up so early because we wanted it up and done before she arrived...or it could be that we have what seems like endless baby stuff in the great room...swings, boppies, bouncy seats, play gyms, etc. This year I will gladly store away the decor and get my furniture moved back into place. Will my tree need security guards next year? Maybe. All of the ornies might have to be placed out of the reach of Ella Grace. She already loves the lights.
Off to bed now. Looking forward to the weekend...some relaxing, some hanging out, some staying warm.