Pictures!

My friend Jenny says I've been slacking with the pictures lately, so here's what we've been doing the past few weeks....

Buckling her buckles (she could seriously do this ALL day!) What is the draw? Is it the sense of accomplishment? Is it the satisfying "click?" I don't know, but she's a buckling fool.
Taking a hike with daddy. This is one of her favorite things to do - that and throw rocks into the little stream at this park.
Having fun with Ava at the gelato store - they have TONS of dairy-free flavors! We like lemon.
What happens at Grandma's, stays at Grandma's. Let's just say this kid can say the word "popsicle" perfectly.

We're going to watch the debate now. I saw a major contradiction today in the Whole Foods parking lot. There was a car with two bumper stickers. The first one said "Overtaxed small business owner." The next one said "Obama/Biden." OOOOOkkkkkkaaaayyy..... Good luck to THAT guy!

Also, I cooked dinner tonight - AND ate it! That is a major accomplishment :)

I had a good post in my head

Yesterday I hit 12 weeks and Madeleine hit 19 months. But I spent most of the day praying to the porcelain god, so the post did not happen! I'm still praying for all your intentions :) And I do see the light at the end of the tunnel now - I know I'll feel great in less than a month. Then I can just start worrying about the election...

I talked to Grace (the 9 year old I watch) about the election today. She asked me who I wanted to win and I said "McCain, of course." She said her mom wanted him too, but she didn't really care. So we had a little discussion. I asked her if she knew what abortion was, and she said yes, it's when moms can kill babies before they are born. (Good Catholic school she goes to.) I told her that McCain wants to stop this, but Obama wants to make sure that anyone can do it. She could not BELIEVE that someone would actually WANT that - or vote for Obama when they knew that. That's right, kid. Then later she asked me if Obama wanted to do anything else. I told her that he wanted to raise our taxes so we have to pay more of our money to the government and not get to keep it and choose how to spend it ourselves. She couldn't believe that either. She said, "WHAT? So we won't have a nice house or nice things?" Well...... we'll see about that. I didn't want to scare the kid TOO much :) I am pretty sure that our kids will be pretty politically savvy early in life, thanks to my husband. That is ok. I've learned a lot from him over the past 8 or 9 years! He seriously knows EVERYTHING about politics. He can recall speeches from many years ago, and he's GREAT at arguing with liberals.

We had our music class today - I take Madeleine and Ava every Monday morning. Madeleine LOVES it, and picks everything up really fast. Ava likes it sometimes, is indifferent sometimes, and doesn't want to be there sometimes. Today I thought we were all going to get kicked out. First of all, there are several autistic kids in the class. One kid basically sits in the corner and cries the whole time, every class. Today, Madeleine was walking around handing out instruments. She tried to hand one to this kid, and he absolutely freaked out. He started screaming and crying and swinging at her. Then he sat in the corner and screamed and cried for the rest of the class. I apologized to the mom, and she said she was just trying to hand him a toy so it was ok. Then she didn't understand why he was crying, so she kept trying to go over to him, and he kept trying to hit her! Finally I had to hold her on my lap and try to distract her, but she was really interested in this kid. Plus, Ava has to sit ON my lap the entire class. Next to me will not do. Then Ava almost kicked a 4 month old baby in the head with her big feet. I was glad when the class was OVER.

I'm going to try to post some pictures and recent videos in the next few days. Right now I'm going to go back to not eating anything and trying to psych myself up to take my vitamin.

Is anyone else impressed by this??

Madeleine drew this ALL BY HERSELF. Does anyone else see a reindeer? Eye in the right place, nose, feet, antlers!!! I couldn't believe it. Now when she wants to draw, she says "Draw Reindeer!"

Just a quick post before the debate

She looks like she could be a girl, don't you think? :) It's really AMAZING how much she's changed in just two weeks. This time we could see her face, eyes, hands, feet, etc. So cute! And just a tiny little miracle.

And Madeleine's new cozy jammies she got today. They are 2T! (And obviously huge on her, but I wanted them to fit her all winter!)
Good luck Sarah Palin!!!! I'm off to watch the debate!

Ultrasound results

Everything looked good! They said they could see where the hemorrage was, but it looked much better and would take some time to heal completely. She said I could resume all normal activities. I got some GREAT pictures but I waited too long in the day to try to take a picture with my camera, so I'll try again tomorrow. It's really AMAZING how much this baby has changed in just two weeks! Now we could see a face, arms, legs, hands, fingers, feet, toes. The baby was moving all around too - they said it's an active one, and about 2 1/2 inches long.

So, my mom and Madeleine came with us, and the regular ultrasound technician was there, and also a new one they had just hired who was learning how to use the machine. She was an experienced technician, just new to the office and the machine. So after they had been looking at the baby for a while, I just jokingly said, "So, does it look like a boy or a girl?" I mean, I thought for sure they couldn't tell at 11 weeks! The first technician said, "If I had to choose, and don't hold me to this, I'd say it was a girl." Right then she decided to spread her legs wide, and they got a good view. The other technician said, "Oh I'd bet money on that baby's sex." WOW! I'm not going to get my hopes up TOO much yet, but I have to say it definitely looked like Madeleine's "girl" ultrasound! We'll have to check for sure at the next one in about 6 weeks or so.

But.... I'd LOVE to have another girl! I never had a sister and always wanted one. I'd love for Madeleine to have a sister close in age. Plus, we'd certainly be all set on clothes. AND, I'd still have some slight hope that a boy pregnancy would be easier than a girl pregnancy! Can you tell I'm just THRILLED?????

Baby's first Blessing

You remember the priest who prayed over us right before we conceived this kid? We love him. I've known him since he was a seminarian, and had the privilege of playing guitar at his first mass. It was one of the most moving experiences I've had. We told him we were pregnant when we found out, and he's been praying for our baby daily. This Sunday at Mass, I carried Madeleine up to communion like I do every week. He gave me communion, blessed Madeleine, then blessed the baby! I was so touched. Afterwards I went up to him and thanked him for blessing both of my kids. That was definitely the highlight of my weekend.

Tomorrow morning is my ultrasound, and hopefully everything will be fine and I'll get the "all clear" to resume normal activities. Please say a little prayer if you get the chance! I've been praying for all of your intentions and will continue to do so.

I just wanted to watch Baby Mama

So we watched the first half of it last night - so far it is HILARIOUS! This is the first movie I've actually been interested in in who knows how long. So right in the middle of the movie, our DVD player died. Have you ever heard of such a thing? At least wait until the movie's over!

So Ken just went to Goodwill and bought us one for $15 bucks. I hope it works.

I had kind of a rough day today. Ken had to leave at 7am to play guitar at a men's conference all day, and didn't get home until 6. I pretty much threw up everything I ate all day long. It was hard to take care of Madeleine all day by myself. My mom did take us out for lunch but throwing up in a crowded bathroom at the restaurant was not all that fun. Then she only took an hour nap. Otherwise she was a pretty good girl though. Besides pouring an entire scoopful of sand right on top of her freshly wet-down hair after nap. That took about 3 shampoos to get out.

Since I'm puking my guts out every single day, I decided to take this opportunity to offer up this "suffering" for some special intention. (I put suffering in quotes because, while it feels awful at the time, I do realize it is a privilege and a gift to have morning sickness and I wouldn't trade it for anything.) So if anyone would like me to pray for a special intention, email me or leave a comment. There's plenty of puking to go around :)

Wow, it appears that the $15 DVD player is working, so we are going to watch the rest of the movie. The night is looking up!

Fun, stay at home day.

Today was a good, normal, day. Well, my "new normal." The kind of day that doesn't begin with getting up at 7am and getting Madeleine up and out the door by 8. The kind of day when I sleep in until 7:45 and Madeleine sleeps until 8:30. Those extra 45 minutes sure make a big difference. Then we read some books, had some breakfast, met my mom at Starbucks. This is the first time I've been to Starbucks in a while. Coffee and the first trimester just do not mix for me. My mom bought me a drink and I couldn't even finish 1/4 of it. But we had fun. And I am officially down 10 pounds. I look good :)

Then we went to Mom's house for a little while - she kept Madeleine busy while I sat around :) We talked to her next door neighbor. It was the first time I had met her, but she told us that she was getting divorced and moving out, and that the judge gave them joint custody of their 9 year old daughter - one week at Mom's, one week at Dad's. She acted like this was no big deal and that little girls only need their mom all the time when they're little. So we were pretty sad about that. I am SO glad that this will never even be an option for us. We will never have to worry about this. I cannot IMAGINE not seeing my daughter for two weeks a month. I can't even stand to be away from her for 3 hours.

When I got home, Madeleine (of course) wanted to "play leaves," which means play in the front yard in the leaves and all her toys in the garage. She did get a spankin' today for running towards the street. I think if I'm consistent she will get it. She did pretty well today, both times we played in the yard.

I had a great conversation with my next door neighbor. He's the only normal one around us. We both have McCain signs in our front yard and he was talking about his run-ins with our crazy, hillbilly, Obama supporting neighbors across the street. I was just cracking up at his stories. I swear there's like 20 people living in that rental house. They have a dog named Oatmeal who roams the neighborhood. Their car does not go in reverse so they just drive straight through the yard. No one wears shirts ever. Where do they go when they're driving around with no shirt?!

Anyway, Madeleine was really tired after this, so we ate lunch and I took her upstairs. I read her a few books, and she said she wanted to rock-a-baby. She laid on my chest and I sang her a few songs in the rocking chair. She started dozing off - I was so surprised! She hasn't fallen asleep on me probably for a year. So I just held her and sang to her a while as she laid on my chest. She sucked her thumb and held onto her silky, and I kissed her head over and over. It was a little foretaste of heaven.

She took a great nap after that and then my friend Susan brought us a WONDERFUL dinner! It was SO good - a delicious sausage and zucchini pasta, deviled eggs, texas toast and delicious cookies! Thank you so much Susan - you are awesome :)

Alright, guys!

That's Madeleine's new favorite phrase - she says it multiple times a day :) When we leave somewhere she says "Bye guys! See ya later!" I love that kid.

Say a little prayer for Ken, the best dad ever. He had a rough night. Madeleine's been having some, let's say, tummy troubles. We bought some disposable diapers but since she went once today I thought we were ok. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Ken had to take a cloth diaper outside and spray it out with the hose! Then, she had another little incident in the bathtub. That was even worse. Poor Ken had to deal with a lot of crap today :) He hates poop too, but he didn't even complain.

We've been having some good days - yesterday we went to the playground, fed the ducks and fish, and also rosary group. Today we went to Story hour at Barnes and Nobles. It was just getting too boring sitting around here, so most of these things I can mostly sit around. Madeleine LOVES story hour. She knows all the songs they sing and all the hand motions. Mother Goose reads the story and Goosey Goose visits every week. That is her FAVORITE part. I have another ultrasound in one week - next Wednesday - and hopefully I'll get the all clear.

Oh, by the way, does anyone have any ideas on how to get a toddler to actually listen? She loves to play outside in the front yard but she thinks it's really funny to try to run toward the street. She doesn't stop when I say stop, so I have to run after her. Then I take her inside immediately and tell her we can't play outside if she won't listen and stop running toward the street. She doesn't care. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

I'm not above a public apology

Well, the mystery of the missing Rocky Road is solved. Apparently, Ken did NOT eat it. My MOM ate it when she was babysitting on Friday night. (Which is fine, since a little rocky road is a pretty good deal for free, loving babysitting!)

So, sorry I blamed it on you, Ken :) Now go get me some more!! And some oreos. And some milk to dunk them in. Love you!

Jenny is AWESOME!!

So, the Colts blew it and Ken ate all my Rocky Road. I was REALLY looking forward to that Rocky Road ice cream after I put Madeleine to bed. But when I looked in the freezer, IT WASN'T THERE. And I NEEDED it! Then I was talking to Jenny and she was telling me about these awesome cupcakes she had got at the Farmer's market. They were red velvet with delicious homemade frosting. So after just a little begging, she got out of bed and brought me her last one! (I would have sent Ken over, but he was gone and I'm sure I wouldn't have gotten the WHOLE cupcake.)

I LOVE HER!!!!! Her birthday is on election day, so let's all pray REALLY hard that she has a good birthday, if you know what I mean..

Thanks Jenny!

Biggest loser

What can I say - I love that show :) I think the people on there have to work SO hard - harder than anything I've ever done in my life. They are inspirational. Anyway... I could be on that show in the first trimester, apparently. I'm closing in on losing 10 lbs. With Madeleine I lost 15, gained it all back plus another 15, then lost the entire 30 two weeks after she was born. I'm trying to look at the bright side of all this puking. Maybe that will happen again? And maybe I'll be able to keep it all off this time.

Although I really don't LIKE feeling horrible, it's not all bad. Because it gives me hope that everything is ok, and it gives me something really good to offer up for this kid. Last time I was sick all morning, this time I am sick all evening. It's pretty much a waste for me to eat anything after 3pm. I still try, just to get a little nutrition, but it's not really worth it! Every night I have to psych myself up to swallow that big old vitamin.

Anyway, it's all worth it, and hopefully this part will be over (or at least significantly reduced) in two or three weeks.....

My days on partial bedrest

So, I've been hanging out on the couch, reading books, watching Sesame Street, eating cookies. After two days I was so bored so we went to my mom's house this morning, and then went to the playground where Madeleine played and I sat on the bench and watched. We also fed the ducks and fish. Then when we got home she played outside for about another 45 minutes, in attempt to get her to nap longer. Seriously, that kid and her naps!!! Today she went down at 1:34 and was up by 2:17. THAT IS NOT EVEN AN HOUR!! What is up with her? She slept about an hour yesterday too. Come on, kid! I need a two hour nap!

So I am supposed to take it easy for two weeks and then I have to go back for another ultrasound on Oct. 1. I'm really hoping to get the all clear to resume normal activities. I'm really sad that it's been SO nice outside and I can't even take Madeleine for a walk. We've been sitting outside but it's not the same.

I have gotten to see this tiny, squirmy little baby twice now, and I especially like seeing the little heartbeat. That is always such a treat. Whenever I see the pictures, I'm reminded that all of this is worth it. We'll get a new little soul to love in April. Madeleine will have a brother or sister. We'll have a little family of four. I get to do all the fun newborn things again.

Thank you all so much for your prayers, and sharing your stories. They really helped me feel better. I do have to say, I have a new respect for mothers of large families. I always thought that I could handle a lot of kids - and I still do, with God's help, of course. However, it is HARD to be pregnant and sick and on partial bedrest with an active toddler and a house to take care of. It's a lot harder than I thought. I'm worried about not doing enough with Madeleine. Then I'm worried about doing too much physical activity. Then I'm throwing up in the sink randomly (sorry, TMI, I know.) I'm looking forward to the second trimester!

A little scary

We had a little scare last night. I was at the grocery store around 5:00 with Madeleine and started bleeding. I left my cart with all my groceries in it in the aisle, put Madeleine in the car, dropped her off at Grandma's house and went straight to the ER. I'll spare you the details, but our ultrasound a little hematoma in the placenta - a tiny one. That is what caused the bleeding. The baby is fine, growing and has a heartrate of 164. I am supposed to stay off my feet as much as possible, do no exercise or heavy lifting, and come back for another ultrasound in 2 weeks. Everyone is positive and I feel pretty good about it now (yeah, now that the random crying spells are over - it was scary at the time!!)

So please say a little prayer for us, and if you have any stories like this (with good outcomes!), please share.

Thank you!

Thank you so much for all the congratulations! We are, of course, thrilled. This baby, like Madeleine and the St. Anthony novena, already has a special story. It had been almost a year since my cycle returned and nothing was happening, so at my one year gyno appointment I just casually mentioned to the doctor that we had been trying and nothing was happening. He told me I needed to just quit nursing and deal with the screaming for several days while she "forgot about it" and that I needed to get on the Pill for 3 months to "restore my fertility." Yes, you read that right. I was SHOCKED. I told him that I didn't parent that way, and to just write in my chart to never ask me to go on the Pill ever again. He basically said Ok, well just come back in 6 months and if nothing happens we'll do some tests. WHATEVER. This was in June. Then in July I decided to go to Dr. Gentry, the doc who did my two surgeries for endo and just see what he said. I didn't mention I was nursing my 15 month old at that appointment. He took a different, more aggressive approach. He told me I needed to be on Letrozole, an ovulation inducing drug, then ultrasound monitoring, an hcg shot on day 12, then progesterone starting on day 18. Well, when I got home I called the La Leche League and asked if I could take any of these drugs while I was nursing. They said no on the letrozole, yes on the progesterone. So then I had to make a REALLY tough decision. Should I wean her? I agonized over this. I tried to cut out her night time feeding and she was NOT having it. I thought, should I wean her before she's ready for the selfish reason that I thought I was ready to be pregnant again? I cried about it and after several days I decided I would not force her to wean when she wasn't ready, so I would not take the drugs. So on cycle day 1, July 18, I called Dr. Gentry's office and told them I was still nursing and wouldn't be taking the drugs. They said to just call back when I was ready. Then, a few weeks later we went to the Frassati Conference. Our good friends were there and told their story of dealing with infertility. Our priest offered to pray over them in the Our Lady of Guadelupe chapel. They asked us to come and pray with them too. Then he prayed over us in the same way, asking specifically for the blessing of more children. Two weeks later, we got our Positive test. We didn't need the drugs after all. We had decided to let God decide, and He did. And we are so grateful.

Just when we thought our lives could not get any more exciting....

Our first two stay at home days

They were fantastic. We slept late, ate breakfast together, played with Grandma, took walks, went to the playground, played outside, went to story hour, took long naps, read lots of books, cooked dinner. The laundry is done, the house is relatively clean, we are enjoying this thoroughly!!

'Tis the season.....

Go Colts!

Speaking of my little tough girl....

Today she was stung by a bee! I was upstairs, and my mom was walking her dog and stopped over. She picked up Madeleine and a bee was buzzing around. Then Madeleine started saying "Shirt off." and pulling at her shirt. Then she picked up the bee and handed it to my mom, who handed it to Ken. Ken brought her upstairs and she was touching her neck. I looked and saw the stinger so I pulled it out. She did not cry ONE BIT. We brought her downstairs and kept a close eye on her. Ken put some baking soda paste on it. I gave her some tylenol. She kept saying, very matter-of-factly, "Neck hurts. Mama kiss it." or "Daddy kiss it." or "Monkey kiss it." Then Mickey Mouse and Blue had to kiss it too. It didn't swell at all, and she was acting perfectly normal. In fact she was dancing around, reading books, and jumping on pillows. I can't BELIEVE how tough she is! I think I would have cried if I got stung on the neck!

My 18 month old girl

At 18 months, Madeleine is pretty amazing. She's talking in complete sentences. She can pretty much get across any idea she is thinking. She remembers things from earlier in the day and tells me or her dad about them later. It's really just amazing how much she talks. She is getting an independent streak and frequently says "Mannet do dit!" (Madeleine do it!) She has a great sense of humor and loves to make us laugh. She is sweet and loving. She is smiley and loves to play with other kids - and their toys. She LOVES animals. She loves our morning walks with Grandma. Speaking of Grandma, I think she is her favorite person in the whole world.

One of her favorite activities is buckling things. That's a whole different post! She loves to be outside, in the sandbox or on the playground. She loves to play in the yard, and to pick up leaves. Every time she sees a leaf she says, "Leaf! No bite!" because once she put a leaf in her mouth and that is what Grandma told her. She has a great memory!
Daddy was making her laugh on the changing table. She has the greatest giggle! I just now switched her over to 18 month clothes, even though she still fits into most of her 12 month stuff. I just bought her new shoes, size 4 1/2. They are still a tad big on her. She has all 4 of her molars, as you can see in this picture!
She is usually a good eater, but sometimes is frustrating at meal times when she refuses to eat anything! She also STILL throws food. When is she going to outgrow this?! I don't even put the vaccuum away anymore, just leave it by the table. I can't complain too much, because she really is a good eater. She loves vegetables, fruits, chicken, spaghetti with meat sauce, pretty much anything we give her. She loves these fruit leather bars that Daddy gets her from Trader Joes. I think pickles and olives are still her favorite foods!
We are very blessed, and these 18 months have gone by way too fast~ We officially have a toddler on our hands! She is a tough little thing - clumsy, but tough. She falls ALL time time. She loves to climb up on a chair or the couch and she falls off. She falls when she is just walking. She trips over everything. But she hardly EVER cries.
We love you, Little Angel!!

Our Father and Hail Mary at 17 months

Election Novena

This is from priestsforlife.org, and we're supposed to say it for nine weeks - from today until election day, November 4. Please pray with us!

O God, we acknowledge you today as Lord,
Not only of individuals, but of nations and governments.
We thank you for the privilege
Of being able to organize ourselves politically
And of knowing that political loyalty
Does not have to mean disloyalty to you.
We thank you for your law,
Which our Founding Fathers acknowledged
And recognized as higher than any human law.
We thank you for the opportunity that this election year puts before us,
To exercise our solemn duty not only to vote
,But to influence countless others to vote,
And to vote correctly.
Lord, we pray that your people may be awakened.
Let them realize that while politics is not their salvation,
Their response to you requires that they be politically active.
Awaken your people to know that they are not called to be a sect fleeing the world
But rather a community of faith renewing the world.
Awaken them that the same hands lifted up to you in prayer
Are the hands that pull the lever in the voting booth;
That the same eyes that read your Word
Are the eyes that read the names on the ballot,
And that they do not cease to be Christians
When they enter the voting booth.
Awaken your people to a commitment to justice
To the sanctity of marriage and the family,
To the dignity of each individual human life,
And to the truth that human rights begin when human lives begin,
And not one moment later.
Lord, we rejoice today
That we are citizens of your kingdom.
May that make us all the more committed
To being faithful citizens on earth.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

OH come on!!

Leave the poor girl alone!!!

Sorry, but a 17 year old pregnant girl is NOT all day national news. She is making the right choice!!! She's letting her little baby live. Her parents are doing the right thing. I just heard something on Fox News that made a lot of sense. Feminists were never for WOMEN, they were for LIBERAL WOMEN. If this girl was having an abortion, the media would say, "Good for her! She's making the right choice." Can you imagine - this poor 17 year old girl plastered all over the national news. I think we should pray for her and her baby. This makes me respect John McCain more - for knowing about this before and still choosing her.

Oh this election makes me so nervous.

WOOHOO!!!!

PTA to VP.

Prolife, mother of 5, her oldest son fighting for his country in Iraq, her youngest son a 6 month old with Downs. LOVE HER!!!

Louie Armstrong would be proud

Ken has been singing "What a Wonderful World" to Madeleine since she was born. The other day she started singing it with him!! My little Angel.

Big fat problem

Not that anyone wants to hear about this. When I got pregnant, I weighed the same as I do now. I lost 15 lbs in my first trimester, gained it back by Thanksgiving, then gained another 15. 2 weeks after Madeleine was born I had lost the entire 30 lbs and was THRILLED with my weight. Now I'm back up 15 lbs. My mom and I have been taking about 3 mile walks on the Monon trail most days. I really hope that helps get me back where I was!

I think when I started drinking milk again (after giving it up for a year) I started porking up again :) Maybe I should give it back up and see what happens.... or maybe I should just make sure I eat as healthy as I feed my kid!

Actually I think my big problem is that I drink my extra calories - iced chais and vanilla frappuccinos. I eat pretty healthy besides that. But I enjoy those drinks SO much....

Random fun summer day

This weekend Ken has been playing guitar with Sarah Bauer at a high school conference, so Madeleine and I have been on our own the past two nights. This morning we went to the 9am Mass at the conference to hear them play. We got there and they were playing some fast praise and worship songs to get the kids moving. Madeleine was loving it and kept pointing up to the stage and saying "Daddy!" and "Where Daddy go?" She was dancing in her stroller. Then she was great for most of mass. Of course they played my favorite song, Blessed be Your Name. I LOVE that song. Then they played Madeleine's favorite song from Sarah's second CD - it's called Psalm 125 and they played that for the responsorial psalm. She calls it "Joy joy joy." When it was over she said (very loudly), "Again!"

On our way home we called my mom, who was out shopping. We decided to meet her and I bought two new pairs of jeans - my very favorite article of clothing. I think fall is my favorite season too. As much as I love summer and spring, I just LOVE jeans and sweater weather.

We got home, Madeleine took a good long nap, and Ken brought me a sandwich and sweet tea from McAllisters, which is pretty much our staple weekend lunch restaurant.

Then we went to swim at Mom and Dad's pool for awhile - we didn't stay in too long since it was really hot - well into the 90s. My mom and dad's water heater is broken, and my dad is scared of cold showers. So I'd say the highlight of the day was watching him take a shower with the hose in his bathing suit! He used shampoo and soap and everything! He laid the hose all out on the deck so the sun would warm up the water. It was pretty hilarious. We called it the "Alabama shower."

Then my friend called and said she had had her baby girl last night! So after supper Ken had to go back to play for Eucharistic Adoration, and Madeleine and I went to visit her. She also has a two year old son who Madeleine LOVES. She was excited about the baby (who is beautiful, by the way), but equally excited about seeing her friend Michael. He was pretty thrilled to see her too :) They kissed and hugged each other goodbye - it was pretty darn cute.

Now I'm just washing diapers, watching the Olympics, and waiting for Ken to come home. It was definitely a nice, relaxing day after my long full week at work!

Every night is bath night

Madeleine LOVES the sandbox these days. She likes to pour sand on her head. It gets all in her hair, her clothes, her shoes. She really likes me to spray her feet and hands off with the hose before we go inside, but somehow she manages to get sand everywhere, in the house, in her carseat, everywhere. That's ok. I'm glad she likes to play outside and she is enjoying this summer. I hope she always loves to play outside.

Lucas Oil Stadium

This stadium was BIG and very impressive! We got there a half hour before we could get in so we stayed outside just taking it all in.

Madeleine (and Eli, her cousin) were all decked out in their Colts Blue.
Grandma spent a lot of time holding her grandkids. Papa too.
The whole thing is open - from the top levels you can see the field from wherever you are. It also has a retractable roof. People in Indiana love their football!
Well, MOST people anyway.....

No pictures and cloth diapers

For some reason, blogger will not let me upload pictures. I was trying to write about going to the grand opening of Lucas Oil Stadium, the new home of the Indianapolis Colts! I'll try again tomorrow.

For now, let me just tell me about the GREAT trade I just made. No one else is going to be excited about this, except me!! Well, this mom had these 18 Under the Nile fitted diapers in size medium for sale for $100. They were used but in excellent condition. That was a great price, but I am banned from buying any more cloth diapers for a while! So I asked her if I could make her something instead, and offered to knit her two year old daughter a wool diaper cover skirt. She graciously accepted my offer! So I made her a beautiful brown and pink alpaca and wool skirt, and I'll be sending it off tomorrow. I got the diapers on Friday, and they are AWESOME. They are by far my favorite. She even threw in an extra fitted diaper and 2 covers! So I think I might throw in an extra skirt tomorrow - it was my first one and I made the rise too big for Madeleine. I think it would fit her daughter. Can I just tell you that I LOVE cloth diapering?? I LOVE it. I love putting nice soft cloth diapers on her bum. I love washing them and they come out of the dryer smelling so good and are so soft! We never have leaks. It's a piece of cake. I never have to worry about running out, and I never have to worry about buying diapers (well, once every 6 months or so!) I can't imagine going back to disposables and I really hope I have a newborn someday so I can start from the very beginning.

SQUIRREL!!!!

What movie is THAT from? Yeah you all know. It was Christmas Vacation around here today! I came home from running a few errands and sat down on my chair to leave a message for my friend. I was minding my own business, and suddenly a CHIPMUNK ran from behind the chair, right next to my foot, and across the room!!! Yes, our house is a wildlife preserve. We also have raccoons and some kind of gopher or groundhog or something in our backyard. Good thing THEY didn't get in!!

Someone might have accidently left the screen porch door open while she was running her errands.....

Anyway, we blocked it in the room with the gates and got the heck out of there! Then we just had to wait for Ken to come home. There was no way I was going back in there! He tried moving the furniture to find it.
He was trying to catch it with a cardboard box. Then my dad came over with his rodent trap. (Don't ask me why he has one of these....)
We decided to set it right by the bookshelf where he preferred to run.
Mom was too scared to come in the house, so she just watched from the window!!
Eventually, Ken chased it out from behind the furniture straight into the trap!!! Way to go, Ken! Then he set it free in the backyard. After all, it may have a family out there :)

I will NOT be leaving that door open anymore!!

Fun Day

I've had to work the past few days - the last few days before school starts on Monday. We had some fun times with the girls - we walked to Bubs (a GREAT hamburger place) for lunch and played at the playground. We spent the days playing in the sandbox and when the little girls went to bed Grace and I watched some of the Olympics - another reason I haven't been on the computer - gotta love that Michael Phelps! Not to mention the gymnastics :)

Anyway, today I did not have to work, so Mom and I took Madeleine to the fair again. There was hardly anyone there, so we walked around and saw (and pet) all the animals again. We ate a corn dog and got some sort of fruit smoothie, we saw the quilts and paintings and other 4H projects. We even saw the Tiger show! Madeleine had a great time and we did too. Last time it was so crowded. Note to self: go on a weekday morning next year too! The rides weren't open, but we didn't care about that.

Then, we went out to my very favorite Chinese restaurant for dinner with some friends. Madeleine's Godparents are moving to Florida tomorrow and we are very sad! Hopefully we'll get to see them a little bit tomorrow too. Tomorrow is my last day off for 2 weeks - I'm not used to working all that much anymore! We are going to enjoy it :)

The Indiana State Fair

I LOVE the State Fair. I love the food, the people watching, the rides, the 4H exhibits, the animals, everything! But this year it was better than ever, because Madeleine got to see all these animals for the very first time. She loves animals, knows all the sounds, can point out all the different kinds. But she had never actually seen these kinds of real animals. She was absolutely THRILLED. Every time we saw a different animal, she'd say "Pet her!" And she did.

The sheep were her favorite (and mine!) I love wool :) I didn't see any alpacas this year, those are my VERY favorite!


She didn't pet this duck though, isn't it the ugliest thing you ever saw??
The fair runs all week - I might take her back later this week in the morning so she can see the animals again (and I can have another corn dog :) It really was so much fun seeing her reaction to seeing and petting these animals for the first time!

25 random things

Brenda and Angela did this one and they had great random things, so I'm going to give it a shot. Mind you it's 10:15pm and I'm getting pretty tired, so these might be VERY random.

1. I absolutely HAVE to sleep with a sheet and comforter on me at night. I think it has something to do with my cat McGee attacking my feet (or any other part of my body that came out of the covers) when I was growing up. This leads to lots of arguments about the temperature at night. I like it COLD so I can cuddle up under the blankets.

2. Speaking of McGee, she was my first pet. She was a Siamese cat we got when I was 4 and she died when I was 21, just after I graduated from college. It was sad.

3. I love that Madeleine has curly hair and blue eyes.

4. On our first date I told Ken I wanted 10 kids.

5. One year I had a great time at the Indianapolis 500. It was my senior year in high school and I went with a few friends. It got rained out and we were sitting in the infield. We ended up sliding down this huge hill on our rain ponchos - it was a great time. I won't say if there was any alcohol involved.

6. I am not a big fan of movies. I just don't like sitting through them. I have to be doing something else - either knitting or on the computer.

7. Pat Conroy is my favorite author, and I've read every one of his books multiple times.

8. I love The Office, especially Dwight and Jim. I also love Lost and American Idol.

9. I've NEVER done illegal drugs, and never will. Even if I go to Amsterdam and it's legal.

10. I would love at least one son who is called to be a priest.

11. I used to teach abstinence education to inner city kids. Hopefully it got through to a few of them.

12. When I was little, we lived in a neighborhood with a forest behind it. We would go out in the forest and play for hours every single day, building forts, finding bugs and animals, and imagining all kinds of fun scenarios. I hardly remember watching TV when we lived in that house. (Except He-man, that was my brother's favorite!)

13. I wasn't really a big sweets person before I got pregnant. Now.... yeah it's bad.

14. My favorite drink is an iced chai. Whenever we drive up to the drive thru, Madeleine yells, Um! Iced Chai please! Thank you! I don't know WHERE she gets this stuff.

15. I don't like pastel colors.

16. When I was little, I never liked to play with dolls or dress them up or anything. I'm making up for it now because I LOVE to dress Madeleine up and can't wait until she has enough hair to actually DO every day.

17. I really want to take Madeleine to Tijuana to introduce her to all "my" Sisters. One of these days I will. And when she is older, we'll be going on LOTS of mission trips there. My 10 or so mission trips that I went on changed my life. Not to mention the two Habitat for Humanity weeks. Great memories.

18. Ken and I both feel called to adopt some children someday.

19. I used to speak Spanish pretty fluently. I think I've lost a lot of it now. I also learned how to box when I worked at the Hispanic Center. I loved it.

20. I used to love to play guitar, especially performing with Sarah Bauer. I haven't really touched it for over a year.

21. I want to be on What not to wear. Just for the 5000 bucks and shopping with Stacy and Clinton. I would SO give away all my clothes for that.

22. I only want one TV in our house... indefinitely. I NEVER want one in any bedroom, including my own.

23. I'm pretty uncoordinated, and unfortunately it is looking like Madeleine inherited this characteristic!

24. I wish I had spent more time at college, especially on weekends, and hadn't dated and visited boyfriends or home as much (not you Ken, of course!) I think I missed out on a lot by leaving a lot of weekends.

25. I had mono my sophomore year of high school. I wasn't too bummed about it because I really hated that school and didn't mind missing a bunch of days :) My mom and I watched a lot of movies. (That was back when I liked movies.)

I'm tagging my sis in law!! And All You Who Hope. And Fuzz and Heather because they need to update their blogs. And anyone else who wants to do it. I'd like Ma Beck to do it, because I really miss her blog!

I have a silly, silly girl

Guess what her new favorite phrase is? Anyone?

Let me give you the story. The other day when we were at Costco, there was a huge flock of Canadian Geese in the big field by the parking lot. The whole parking lot was COVERED with you-know-what. So I told my mom - "Don't step in the goose poop!" Madeleine repeated "Goose Poop!" several times before we got into the store, and she has NOT forgotten it yet.

So several times during the day, whether we are in the car, at the store, having coffee with a friend, she yells, "Goose Poop!" and starts giggling uncontrollably. I can only hope it doesn't happen during church.....

God knew what he was doing

When he made toddlers need an afternoon nap. Sometimes you just need a BREAK.

Can I get an AMEN??? :)

Oh the cuteness!

So cute I can hardly STAND IT!!!! Baby's first pigtails.

Two years!

448 posts later, I can't believe I've been blogging for two years! It started on a whim, and now this blog holds the most treasured memories of my life. I started it just to keep a few friends updated on my pregnancy, even though I hardly told anyone about it! I continued when Madeleine was born, and I'm SO glad I have all of this recorded. I hope I never lose it and can share it with her someday. Reading my old posts takes me right back to the specific memory.

Here's how it all started.

Blessed

Today I didn't get to sit down.

My Grandma and several Aunts and cousins are coming to town on Saturday. My mom and I went to Costco this morning to buy a bunch of food, then we went to mom's house for lunch, and I came home to put Madeleine down for a nap.

After she went to sleep, I got busy. I had to bake a cake for Saturday. I had to look through all my dairy-free/vegan cookbooks so that Madeleine could have a piece. I settled on a recipe and got to work. If it tastes half as good as my kitchen smelled, I think we're in for a treat! While the cake was baking, I cleaned up the kitchen, did two loads of dishes, three loads of laundry, folded diapers and put them away, put all the clothes away, and vacuumed underneath the table where food was thrown from breakfast. Then I steamed and pureed some carrots and cut up some sweet potatoes fries for dinner. I heated up a snack and ate it while I cooked. I picked up a sippy cup to move it out of my way and it hit me. Not too long ago I wasn't sure I'd ever have a baby. Ken was always optimistic, but sometimes I wasn't sure. (He likes to point this out to me now too!) I get to move sippy cups out of the way. I am privileged to have to bake dairy free cakes and cookies for my daughter. I get to stay home a lot now so I can cook and clean and help out my mom. Wow.

After all of this, I was just about to sit down on the couch when I heard a sweet little voice through the monitor. "Mama! Mama!" the voice said. And she was calling for ME. I am so blessed.

Hail Mary at 16 months

She sure impressed everyone with this this weekend!

Frassati Conference 2008

This past weekend was the Frassati Conference. We had a great time! I decided to bring Madeleine for the day on Saturday and then leave her with my mom on Sunday. I was a little nervous about bringing her, but she did GREAT! I did have lots of help though. Two very good friends of mine came - one of them was a speaker at the conference and one of the best! Madeleine just loves them. She also loves my friend Jenny. She gets so excited when she sees her! Of course she always lets Madeleine wear her jewelry - that could be part of it. Jenny was in charge of the whole conference but still found time to spend with Madeleine :) Jenny especially loves showing off her "Catholic tricks" which I'm trying to get on video! She loved Father Dan too.

If you ever have a chance to hear Deacon John Lozano speak - don't miss it. He was really great. I felt renewed after hearing him. It was so much fun seeing all the Seminarians and new priests.

This is Dominic - he's one of our favorite Seminarians, who has been praying for Madeleine since before she was born!

I did not get many good pictures but I enjoyed this one. She kind of yapped through some of the talks but when I gave her the sunglasses it kept her quiet for a while!

I was a little worried about her nap on Saturday, but it turned out that I didn't have to be. I had to introduce one of the speakers after lunch, so about 15 minutes before his talk, I decided to lay her down in her stroller with her silky and walk her around the block. She was fast asleep before I got halfway across the parking lot! So I just parked her in the corner of the room and got to listen to his talk in peace. She slept there for about an hour and a half!

I made her a shirt that said "Frassati girl" and it was a hit, but unfortunately I did not get a picture! Anyway, we had a great weekend, especially spending time with our friends after the conference was over. Thanks for hanging out with us!

Madeleine demonstrating her kissing skills

This is her friend Kallyn from Atlanta. We went to Sakura (sushi restaurant) where we learned that Madeleine loves miso soup with rice, AND edamame. You might remember the last time we went to this restaurant with Kallyn. Madeleine is a kissin' fool. Whenever we leave anywhere and say "bye," she wants to give a kiss. The financial guy at the car place, the checkout girl at Michael's today, the cat, the frightening froggy, the toilet. The kid is free with her kisses!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

32 years! Pretty good so far :)

Hello

Here's the new ride. I really like it! Of course we had to see how it worked through the drive thru Starbucks today, and how my iced chai fit in the cupholder. I'm happy to report that it passed both tests! Also, I do have to report that whenever we go through the Starbucks drive thru (more than we need to, I know), we pull up and Madeleine yells "Iced Chai!!!" She is hilarious!

Yes, it was snowing in that last van picture! We had it "on the market" since January. It finally sold for what we wanted - so we were free and clear to buy this one with no negative equity! Woohoo!

My good friend asked to see the "frightening froggy." One day this froggy, which is supposed to protect little heads from falls on the faucet, got wet in the tub. I put it up in the window to dry out. Madeleine saw it later and freaked out like I've never seen. She was actually shaking she was so scared of that froggy. So we had to give it LOTS of kisses and hugs and show her how "nice" it is. Now she's half scared/ half obsessed with it. She likes it to be in the window at all times, and every time we go up or down the stairs she has to give it a kiss and hug. She does NOT like it to be in the tub when she's taking a bath. She asks for it, I get it down and then she says "Window! Window! Please!" Weird kid. I think he looks pretty friendly, myself.

So long.....

It's been nice knowin' ya! Unfortunately, you were bleeding us dry, so we had to get rid of you! :)

Ken picked me out a great used Chrysler Town and Country. We picked it up tonight and it drives really nicely! I think I'm going to like it a lot. It'll fit both carseats and a single and double stroller, which was a requirement. It also has automatic doors, which is a definite plus! The VERY best part.... we cut our payment by over $250/month!!! Oh yes, Dave Ramsay would be proud.

Another phrase

To add to the list of things I never thought I'd EVER say before I had a kid.

Last night, Madeleine went to the potty, and then followed Ken into the bathroom while he was pouring it out. As they walked into the bathroom, this is what came out of my mouth,

"Don't let her kiss the toilet!"

You see, whenever we say "Bye bye pee, or bye bye poo," she says "Kiss" and "Hug" and tries to kiss the hug the toilet, making that phrase a necessity at our house.

Wordless Wednesday

TMI warning

OK, remember how you all encouraged me to "encourage" my 16 month old on the potty? "Go for it" you said. Well, here's what happened today.

We went to the grocery store and when we got home, I put my groceries on the floor in the kitchen and then Madeleine said "Poo poo Mama!" So I sat her on the potty and read her a book, and nothing happened. So I let her run around without a diaper for just a FEW minutes while I put the groceries away. Then I gated her in the family room with me - with the potty and just a shirt on. A few minutes later a friend called me and I answered the phone - still in the same room with little naked girl. All of a sudden, she comes over and HANDS me a little piece of POOP. I hang up the phone immediately and survey the scene. She has poop on her shoe and a little on her dress, but I couldn't find the rest of it. So I sat her on the potty and stripped her down. Nothing happened so I cleaned her up, put a diaper on her and went on a poop hunt. Yes this is what my life is like these days. Remember it was on her shoe, so all I had to do was follow the POOP footprints. Yes you read that right. Little footprints from the family room, through the dining room, through the kitchen, through the living room, where I found the offending pile, next to the garage door, IN MY SHOE.

There will be no more "naked time" for a while.

Could she BE any more excited?

We went to a friend's wedding last night. She was up past her bedtime - can you tell?

However, she was VERY good. She kept running after the little boys and girls and trying to kiss and hug them! One little boy was running away from her unwanted advances! I hope this is not a sign of things to come....

It's Saturday Morning

Around 7:30. Everyone is still asleep. Madeleine went on the potty 3 times yesterday. It's raining outside and so I think we won't make it to the Farmer's market. Maybe we'll hit Confession instead.

Could you all please pray for my Grandma Irene? She fell and broke her hip on Wednesday and she had surgery yesterday. Her heart is really weak but they said risking the surgery was better than NOT doing it. Anyway the surgeon said that she did well. I'm not sure the recovery time or anything, but I do know they said she'd have to use a walker for 6 months and she's already giving them a hard time about that!

Day of firsts

Today Madeleine tried to make the Sign of the Cross for the first time. It was SO cute. She also tried to say our prayer before meals. She always says "Amen" but this was the first time she's tried to say the prayer.

Today, every time I handed her something, she said, "Thank you Mommy." She always says Thank you, and she usually calls me Mama. I thought this was so endearing that I just wanted to grab her and hug and kiss her whenever she said that today!

We went to Story hour today, then over to Grandma's house for lunch. On the way home, she said Poo poo. I said, "Try to wait until we get home and you can sit on the potty and go poo poo." She said Okay! And when we got home, she went on the potty!!! Sorry if this is TMI, but I of course made a huge deal out of it, and we carried the little bowl into the bathroom, dumped it in the toilet and said "Bye Bye Poo poo!" And because the purpose of this blog is to record my memories of this time with my baby, I'll tell you what she said next.

"Kiss."

(This is what she says when we say Bye Bye to anything or anyone. She wants to give them/it a kiss.)

I called Ken and told him, and he was wondering what the purpose of getting her to go on the potty was... he said he thought dealing with poop on a diaper was better than dealing with it in the potty. Plus he wasn't too happy that I just ordered a dozen more diapers. Oh well!

So, should I really try to potty train her? I mean, I didn't even know a 16 month old COULD be potty trained! She's interested though.

Again!

She did it again! I took pictures. She'll thank me later :)

As you can see, she enjoys reading books on the potty. Like someone else in our family - I won't mention WHO.

I can't believe it.

Today, Madeleine told me she had to go potty. So I took off her diaper, sat her on the potty, and she WENT!!!!

16 months old. Pretty darn good if you ask me :)

16 months old!

I can't believe it, but my baby is 16 months old today! This kid gets cuter and and funnier every day! Here are some new things she is doing. She has a little table next to her crib - between her crib and our rocking chair. We keep a pile of books on the table to read before bed (and when she gets up too!) She has been getting books into her crib somehow. So last night I watched her through the crack in the door. She reaches through the slats as far as she can, uses her fingers to pull the book closer, picks it up and then has to turn it a certain way to get it through the slats. She read them all, then when she was ready to go to bed she put each one back on the table!

She can say SO many words. She especially loves animals. I bought her a Little People jungle with an animal for each letter of the alphabet. She can say elephant, giraffe, flamingo, rhino, hippo, penguin, yak, zebra, etc. It's just amazing.

She loves to hug and kiss everything - when we tell her something is nice, she kisses and hugs it and then says "Aw!" Sometimes if she really loves a book she likes to kiss every page as we're reading it! Reading books is still her favorite thing in the world. She'd read books all day.

She finally graduated to facing forward in the car today! Surely she's over 20 lbs now? If not, close enough.
She loves to talk on the phone, well, at least have pretend conversations! She'll pick up my phone and say "Hello?" and then proceed to have an entire conversation. Whenever I ask her who she's talking to, she usually says Ava or Grace!
We went to McAllisters today. They have the BEST sweet tea, although I wouldn't go THIS far....

This year

Sorry, didn't get any good ones today! But it's funny, I think her face in the first one looks just like the one in the last post :)

Happy 4th!!!

We're doing compare and contrast today. This was last year, and we're going to a little festival tonight so later you'll get a picture from today! Hope everyone has a great day!

Madeleine made a new friend

Well, it looks like my kid knows a good guy when she sees one! My cousin Nick stayed with us for the past few days, and Madeleine LOVED him. She learned quickly how to say his name, and it seems to be her new favorite word. Last night she gave him all her little animals and you can see what he did with them! She was fascinated by him and asked for him all day today. Nick says he doesn't want kids - we're hoping to change his mind! He'd be a great dad. You can see my kid working her magic!


She does NOT go to just anyone - especially someone she's just met. She knows you're special, Nick!! He looks a little more comfortable here than he did here, doesn't he? :)