We miss you Mom Mom

We weren't ready to let you go. We still need you. We'll love you forever.

Christmas 2008

We had a terrific Christmas this year. Gracie was old enough to enjoy her presents (for the most part) and Dave and I were able to really get into the Christmas spirit by watching Grace. The morning didn’t start out exactly how we’d planned. My parents arrived around 8:30AM and Gracie was still asleep. We woke her up, brought her downstairs, and she was not happy about the huge pile of gifts that lay before her. Instead, she puked. Right on her new PJ’s and on mine. It was a riot. After helping her open several gifts, none of which she was pleased with, giving her a very bland breakfast, and a three-hour nap, she seemed to be feeling better. That afternoon we went to my parent’s house to exchange gifts with the rest of the crew. Gracie was attached to Mom Mom the whole time but seemed to be in better spirits. We had our turkey and ham, played with some toys, and then came on home.

This year Santa gave me a 2-week vacation. Yes, two whole weeks free from cafeteria duty, 6th graders making fart jokes, and those awkward calls to parents explaining why it’s against the rules for your son to hit another kid, even if we is annoying. Ah freedom. Well, not really. Gracie had accrued “vacation time” from her daycare, two whole weeks to be exact. That meant that if she didn’t go to school, we didn’t have to pay. Normally, weather she’s there or not, your 275 is due every Monday. Well, this meant a pretty nice “Christmas bonus” for us if she stayed with me. Why not? I’m her mother. I can handle this. Right? Right.

We started off with a playdate with some of my co-workers kids making gingerbread houses. It was a blast. Gracie didn’t want to help with the house so Mommy constructed it and then ate it on the way home. The kids interacted with each other and had a pretty fantastic time. Day one, check. Day two, also check. Day three, four, and five Daddy was home and all was well. This full time Mommy stuff is easy. Right? Right.

Week two…hell week. I won’t go on and on with all the details but the week consisted of vomit, tears, whining, kicking, screaming, diarrhea and numerous meltdowns. And that was just me……

But, we all made it out alive. Looking back on the two weeks, I am glad I had Grace all to myself. I got to really watch her play. We got to snuggle. We got to really enjoy each other. And yesterday, I got to take her back to school. Ahhh, motherhood!


Gracie and Mama making the gingerbread house...yummy!


Looking pitiful


Mom Mom making her giggle!


She loves her new car!


Not to worry, she has since warmed up to her new bike!


Feelling better later in the day, playing with a paper towel roll. If I only knew I could have saved some bucks!


The aftermath!

Little Baby T #2

On December 22nd we had our 20 week ultrasound. And Little Baby T #2 wasn't cooperating at all. After two hours of being poked and pushed on, the technician was able to get all the medical information she needed. All the parts were in the right place and the baby looked healthy. And that was the most important part, right?
Of course! But there was one more thing that I wanted to know. Boy or girl? Pink or blue? Baseball or ballerinas? Well folks, the verdict is still out. The technician saw what she thinks may be a penis but she’s not sure. She could have been looking at something else that resembled a penis. What?!?!? Either it’s there or not. But apparently there is more to it than that. She couldn’t determine with 100 percent accuracy the gender of this baby. So, we will wait. But not until May, I don’t have the patience for that. We will wait another month and then do a 3D ultrasound. Hopefully that will be conclusive. I mean a penis in 3D would be pretty hard to mistake for something else!

Finally...

I finally gave in and took the family to Portrait Innovations this past weekend. It honestly wasn't as tramatizing as I thought it be! We were able to get some good ones of Grace and some descent shots of the family. For now, I am only posting the holiday pic as the rest will be given the others as gifts to the fam! I don't want to spoil the surprise. Enjoy!

Gracie's school pictures

I am the worst blogger ever! Some many things happen on a day to day basis around here but between pregnancy, motherhood, and middle schoolers I just can't seem to find the time/energy to blog!!!! I must try however and just do my best.
Here are Gracie's school pictures. These might all look the same but trust me, everyone is a different variation of a frown. I mean she is pitiful!!!!!

Updates...Halloween, High Chairs, Hysterics

Another long awaited update I'm sure. I didn't realize that I hadn't even mentioned Halloween...bad Mommy! Grace goes to bed at 7 so we decided to wait to actual trick or treat until next year. Instead, Gracie helped Mommy pass out candy to some of the other litle kids. Grace enjoyed seeing all of the little ones but, as soon as they left, she stood next to the door and sort of whined until the next group arrived. Too cute.

I have been meaning to mention the funniest thing that Gracie does. As soon as she's done eating and we put her down, Gracie takes her high chair, pushes it back exactly where it belongs and then snaps the seat belt. She has become infatuated with buckles. Hint hint Ssanta Clause. Anyway, it's so cute that she's developing her own little rituals.

Grace had her 18 month appt at the doctors and she's right on track, weighing in at 25lbs. Her speech development is also right on track which has been a concern for Dave and I given her ear issues. Right now she is saying: Mama, Papa, Joe, no, night nights, ball, uh-oh, up, cracker, banana (it sounds like nana), baby, and book. She repeats what she hears us say, a challenge for me to keep it clean!

I am almost 15 weeks pregnant with number 2 and finally feeling much better. The second time around has its challenges but one good thing is that I'm not as concerned when I feel a little cramp or just don't feel right...all these things are normal...I can't wait to see Grace as a big sis. They will be right about 2 years apart so I'm hoping they will be best friends!!!!!!!!!!!



Grace and her high chair



She can see the trick or treaters coming!


Our little fairy princess!


"I love Halloween even though I didn't get any candy:("

Little Baby T #2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is the latest of the new baby (13weeks 5 days, EDD 5-15-09)! Went to the doctors and everything looks good. Mommy has been feeling better but it's much tougher the second time around. Gracie doesn't understand, "Ok honey, Mommy's gotta hurl!" but Daddy has been a real help. Here's the new baby...just two years younger than Grace! (On our old entry under Nov. 2006 we have a ultrasound of Gracie that was done 11-6, this one was done today, 11-10!)

Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend we journeyed to a beautiful farm in Bluemont to pick pumpkins. This farm is great for kids; they have a playground, animals, terrific food and even a live band. It was a beautiful day and Gracie had a blast. As you can see by the pictures, we did not pick any pumpkins. That would entail a long hayride and the actual physical exertion of ripping a pumpkin from the ground. Um, no thanks. There were plenty of perfect pumpkins sitting by the gift shop for purchase. So that it what we did.


The slide was a huge hit!


What we think was her first time ever on a swing! She loved it!


The light by the barn was so great so we tried to get a good picture. Trust me, this one was the best! The rest involved squirming and even some tears!


Gracie and Daddy on the cow train. She wasn't too impressed!

Grace's first political rally

Our candidate visited Leesburg, Virginia last week and after many hours of “how can we take an 19 month old to a political rally at 5:30, in the cold, with 30,000 other people” we said to hell with it and bundled her up and went to Ida Lee Park. The weather was chilly but bearable. The crowd was huge but in good spirits (except for the Supporters from the “other side” who insisted on pissing me off with “excuse me ma’am but that bus is trying to turn. You aren’t going to let a school bus full of children out? You O*ama people are all the same”) and Grace maintained her cool for the 4 hours we were camped out in line. Although we never made it past the security gates, we were there. Apart of history. It was an awesome feeling and although Gracie will never remember it she can always say she was there.


The sea of people




Gracie and Daddy at the fence trying to get a better look


Ok, you can kind of see him...under the metal gate!

Words of Wisdom

by Gracie T and her mother who has no idea how to hold a camera. Sorry. If you have a laptop, you may be in luck. The rest of you may just want to go ahead and turn your head to the left for about a minute and 29 seconds! Enjoy

All I have to say is

HAIL TO THE REDSKINS!!!!

Photo Update (with details to follow shortly)

Having a great time!


Not quite sure what she was doing here but it was funny!


"Good Mommy!"


"Crayon, anyone?"

The batteries in the camera

are dead once again. I have been back to work for a couple of weeks and Dave's work is stressful and he has started another class. I know that isn't an excuse. I need to be a better Mama and get to work on this blog!

Grace has been doing great. She has cut in both her bottom and top set of molars and we are all glad that is over. She is saying mama and papa and some variation of Joe. She is mimicking the faces that Dave makes and it is hilarious. She will make the funny face and then pause to see how we react. When we laugh she is soo pleased with herself. She's a ham, just like her papa. I need to post a video, it's to die for.

I do miss those lazy summer days. Having only a couple of hours a day with her to play breaks my heart. But, that's our life. I do know that the time we spend together during the week is precious and therefore we make it special. I'm kinda hoping she starts to go to bed later so we can play!

Ok, it's almost 10. I'm sure I'll read this tomorrow and edit it. Right now, I"m just rambling.

Oh, and Nana, I will post those great pics from your visit APAP! I promise!

Happy 30th birthday Daddy!!!!!

Today is Dave's 30th birthday!

We are celebrating today as a family but Dave and I went to Jamacia for a "real" celebration at the beginning of the month. Here are some highlights!

Reston Zoo

This weekend we took Grace to the Reston Zoo. She really enjoyed the animals; I'm sure they all looked like big urry Joey dogs to her! We had a blast!

If my satellite tv ever craps out...

I can use my daughter for an antenna.




Oh, David took Gracie to her doctor's appt Friday for her 15 month check up. She is doing very well and developing right on track!

Weight: 23.6lbs--25-50 percentile
Height: 30inches--25-50 precentile
Head Circum: 19.75--97 percentile (whoah!!!)

And we have pigtails

One of the many joys of having a little girl is the ability to accessorize them. This can be done through charming clothes, shoes, and the one I’m having oodles of fun with now, hair! Gracie’s hair is getting longer and thicker and the hair possibilities are endless. We’ve been using barrettes on her for some time now but she easily pulls them out during her “fits of divaness”. The elastics, not so easy for her to ruin. Enjoy the pictures of Gracie with her pigtails, her Mom Mom, and her Pop Pop.

Gracie's first boo-boo

Poor baby. I was making our traditional Saturday big breakfast and David was helping me in the kitchen. Gracie was safely "corralled" in the living room when we heard a thud followed by, our course, her wailing. David and I ran into the living room and saw her laying on her back, crying and looking especially pitiful. David picked her up and there was a small speck of blood on her chin. Her first blood spill. I, of course, checked her face, inside her mouth, and all over her body to make sure she was ok. David held her while she cried and we cleaned up her chin without a problem. 5 minutes after it happened, Gracie was playing again.

Now that she is so mobile, these kinds of accidents are inevitable. She toddles around ALL DAY, no longer happy with sitting or being held. It’s especially hysterical when she’s tired and takes two steps, falls sideways(she does this very gracefully), and then tries to get back up. A riot. So today I will make another stop at Target, for band-aides, Neosporin, and perhaps the baby leash!

Rings and things

Gracie has a fascination with her ring toys. She will walk around with them on her wrist for hours.



In other news, Dave and I have decided to return to the world of the hip and adventurous! Hmm, returning denotes that we were once there…not sure if we could classified as hip or in any way adventurous but I digress… we have decided that it’s time to HIRE A REAL LIFE BABYSITTER! Sure we have left Gracie for an evening or two but it has always been in the care of my parents or my sister; never with anyone unrelated. As we fall into a constant routine, Dave and I find that, while there is comfort in the routine, it also leads to extreme boredom and monotony. We find ourselves longing to go to dinner, visit a friend, or just have some time to ourselves. Although Jen and Mom and Dad are great, we decided that we need to have a babysitter who lives close by that we can call on when we need to get out. I searched on Criagslist and even went to babysitters.com (who, by the way, wanted $119 to join to view their sitters) but I wasn’t happy with what I found. I mean, this person is going to be alone in my house with my child, this is a huge responsibility not to be trusted to just anyone, right?!?! Then, it hit me.
About 10 years ago, my sister started to babysat a little girl, Lilly. Jen and I took turns watching her and then, while I was in college, I was a nanny for her all summer. I ran into her and her mother at Giant Food a couple of months back and Lilly is, (gasp!) 14!!! I couldn’t believe it, she is taller than me. So this morning I emailed her mother and asked if Lilly babysat. She was thrilled that I sent the email and Lilly and Grace are going to finally meet! The kicker? Lilly lives one block away!! Yippee!!! Salvation!!! Dinner and drinks with my husband, playdates for Mommy and Daddy. I’m thrilled!

Lazy Summer Days...

Gracie has been enjoying her relaxed summer schedule. Although Mommy is still working, our morning don’t seem nearly as hectic. Traffic is so much lighter in the morning and we don’t have to be out of the house until 7. I get off work around 1, run errands (aka shop!) and then pick Gracie up after her nap. We then try to do some fun mother daughter bonding, like our trip to Aunt Sissy’s pool on Monday. Grace loves the water, unlike her mother at that age. My dad still teases me about my nail marks being embedded on the side of Vienna Woods Swim Club’s baby pool, my parents coaxing me to just come out of the safety of my little corner in the 2 feet! But I digress…Grace loves the water. She splashes and kicks and even just chills in her inter tube while Mommy sunbathes (in the pool with her of course).

Grace is walking faster than ever. I can’t believe that in just two weeks she’s gone from barely being able to stand to full out hauling ass across the family room! It definitely makes our job as parents more challenge but it is so rewarding to see her run to me when I pick her up from school. She is so proud of herself.

All the advances, however, aren’t good ones. Whenever Dave or I tell Grace no (no you can’t smack the dog, no you can’t stomp on Daddy’s DVD’s, no you cannot throw your food on the ground) she laughs. I’m talkin’ stares at you and exudes this full on belly laugh. At first I thought it was just when I told her no. Certainly she would listen to Dave’s deep bellowing voice. No, she doesn’t. I think she even laughs and little louder! Oh, and last night she bite Dave, twice. Great. I believe we’re going to start allocating the high chair for time outs. We have to do something.

Despite these two “challenges”, we’ve decided to keep her. I’m taking her “baby free to a good home” ad off CraigsList.


She loves splashing in the water!

I know my face is a bit creepy in this one but she looks so cute...excuse my creepiness