A Perfectly Pumpkin Day

I have been super busy and have not had time to post anything this week, and yes, I realize this is supposed to be a wordless Wednesday post, but I didn't think I could explain why I haven't posted without actually using words... Basically I'm skipping my WW post because I have time to do a real post now and may not later...

Sunday was a beautiful day and we spent it at the pumpkin patch at Blooms and Berries. We made it a true pumpkin kind of day by starting off with pumpkin pancakes though, which Brianne LOVES!!! She doesn't even need syrup, just a little touch of butter and she is super happy. The farm we went to was really crowded and the line was soooo long for the hayride that we decided to skip that part and just roam around and let Bri play. Which she did, and we did, and we all had a fantastic time. We petted goats, and took pics, picked out pumpkins and I got 2 gorgeous baskets of maroon mums, and ate caramel apples and Bri got to ride around in a little wagon and go through a maze made of bales of hay. Fun fun fun!!! And then to keep in the pumpkin spirit, we finished up the day with a Jack's Pumpkin Ale at home, yumm!

Brianne had so much fun petting the goats!! She didn't want to leave the goats but we finally convinced her there were other fun things to do and see. The outhouse photo op was hilarious too. Mine turned out so realistically that one of the girls I work with saw the pic on my husbands computer and was like "oh my! are her pants pulled down?"

And, because I got busy I am going to leave you in anticipation and post the pictures tomorrow!

A Beautiful Fall Day

And we will be spending it at the pumpkin patch! We are going to Blooms and Berries (as soon as Brianne wakes up from her nap) for a hayride through Pumpkin Town to pick our pumpkins and then to their petting zoo area and the hay maze. So in honor of our pumpkin patch day, I made us pumpkin pancakes this morning, yumm! It's such a pretty day and the leaves are changing colors and I'm loving fall today (but dreading winter).

Since Halloween is so close that means it is scary movie time again! Yesterday we watched The Hitcher, Pet Cemetary and Wrong Turn 2 (I think). Today I watched The Shining and now am watching two tivo'd episodes of American Horror Story (which, if you haven't watched yet, record it and watch it after the sun comes up... trust me).

I have some adorable pics of Bri in her witches hat from today too but I will wait and post tomorrow with our pumpkin patch pics. But I think Princess Pea is waking so for now, that is all.

18 Month Stats (Continued)

Brianne had her 18 month well care visit with her doctor yesterday and everything went great. Bri only had to get one shot and it was a flu shot so that was easy peasy! She still cried and sobbed and was very unhappy about getting a shot, but one is better than four. The doc said that Bri is in the 95th percentile for height, weight and head circumfrence and has give us the okay to put her on 2% milk (since she eats all her fruits, veggies and grains) and that she can have peanuts at the age of 2. She suggested we start doing baths daily to help with the eczema, but only use soap every day, and after bath lotion her up before she is completely dry.

She said she is right on track with her speach and physical milestones and at this point the word preemie no longer applies to her as she has "caught up" in all aspectives of her growth. That makes for one happy mommy. One thing that concerned me though, and I got so distracted when the doctor came in I forgot to mention it was that when we got there, the receptionist gave me a form to fill out that was titled "Pediatric Asthma Patient Care"... What?!?!?! No one has ever said to us that she officially has asthma. The doctor at Children's Hospital told us they don't officially diagnose children with that until they are 4 because children younger than 4 that display asthma symptoms usually outgrow it. I believe they diagnosed her with reactive airway disorder and told us we only needed to use the inhaler when she had a respiratory infection that affected her breathing. But I was an idiot and forgot to ask about it...

So here are the big stats:

Height - 34 1/4 inches tall
Weight - 29 lbs 6 oz
Head Circumfrence - 50.2 mm (cm?)

And we don't have to back until she is 2, can you believe that?!?!? They aren't making us come back in 3 months, we have a whole 6 month hiatus! Although with cold and flu season upon us I am certain we will be in to see the doctor before Bri's second birthday.

So, it's finally Friday! I had my big interview today and it was nearly 2 hours long and I interviewed with 2 different doctors (one was the head of the PICU and the other was the head of the Nephrology dept and the CACN) and a nurse, an HR person and 2 people from the Dialysis clinic, phew! I think they all really liked me and I have a follow up call with the head doctor on Monday. From the sounds of it the benefits are excellent, free parking, daycare at the hospital, tuition reimbursement and discounted tuition at UC (where I graduated from). When I told the doctors that I was considering going to nursing school they thought that was terrific idea and told me that this position would be great at not only getting my foot in the door but would get my whole body in the door. I'm very excited at the chance to work with this doctor too because he is apparently brilliant and was recruited from Texas Children's and now CCH has the only Nephrology dept in the country and it's only about a year old so I would be getting in on the ground floor. They gave me a tour of the dialysis clinic and said that they want me to routinely go through the clinic with rounds and whatnot just to keep a human element to the job, and possibly even participate with the clinical trials which would look great on my resume.

I also went to the eye doctor today and got some new glasses that I am super excited about. I don't actually get them for another 10 days though but the frames are Fendi and were on sale and with my insurance it was super cheap. I'll post a pic when I get them.

As for weekend plans, we are going to the pumpkin patch tomorrow for a hay ride and to pick out our pumpkins. It's supposed to be a beautiful weekend too so we may hit the park again on Sunday. Whatever we do I'm sure I'll have a ton of pics to post on Monday. And we do have a couple DIY and artsy-crafty things planned as well - and I am going to make some sample cakes for Sam as well... ok, enough for today. I will try to post through the weekend but won't make any promises. Being able to post on weekends is totally up to Bri and most of the time, she doesn't allow it...

General Updates and Zoo Pics

I actually typed this post yesterday but never got around to posting it, so here it is, a day late...

So today is Brianne’s 18 month well baby doctor appointment and vaccines… assuming I make it to the doctor’s office on time, and that I go to the right office. I can’t wait to find out how much she weighs and how tall she is now. I have been marking her height on her growth chart at home after every doctor’s appointment because right now she is too young to understand “stand still while I measure you”. I really hope the shots are easy for her and she doesn’t cry too much. She cried last time and it was very intense crying but it only lasted a few minutes (basically once the nurse left the room, she stopped crying). We’ve been lucky so far too in that she doesn’t seem to have much of a reaction to the shots, ie. No high fevers, rashes, side effects etc. so I hope to continue that luck, but if not I planned the appointment at a good time because my parents watch her tomorrow and then she will be home with us Saturday and Sunday.

Couple of cute things I wanted to share: when we dropped her off at daycare the other day she was again the “popular kid” because of her outfit. She was wearing a Sesame Street t-shirt and it had Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Oscar etc. on it. Well as soon as we walked in her little BFF as we like to call her came over to her and was pointing to her shirt, pointing as in touching her shirt. She was very excited saying “big bird!” then all the other kids came running over and had surrounded Bri and were all pointing to her shirt (one boy was shouting elmo and another girl was shouting sesame etc.). Well we of course thought it was hilarious but Bri looked a little frightened. We’re pretty sure Bri was thinking “please mom, never make me wear this shirt again”.

We’ve had a good week though as far as the separation anxiety goes, well, at daycare anyway. Every morning we have taken her to daycare she has willingly ran to her teacher when we put her down. However at home, it has been a different story. At home she has been very clingy to me, to the point that I can’t go to the bathroom or upstairs without her and if I try to she throws a fit. I am under the impression that she may have some more molars coming in though because she has been sucking on her hand a lot lately and tugging on her ears and whenever she doesn’t feel good she becomes mommy’s girl. I will of course be mentioning this to the doc today though so she can check her ears (which she always does anyway).

And while we’re on the daycare subject, she made us some pretty artwork this week, and yesterday when we went to pick her up, she was sitting on the floor with all the other kids playing “kitchen” and she had some plastic food and a little plastic frying pan in her hands and rather than just dropping them and coming to us, she stood up, ran to the toy box and put the toys in it, then ran over to us. I said “wow, she made sure to put her toys away first, that’s great Bri” and we clapped for her. Then her teacher told us that she is always really good about putting her toys away for them. I was so proud of her!

On the sleep front we have been doing well too in that she has been sleeping longer in her crib at night. Several nights this week she slept the entire night in her crib, and over the weekend I even let her take her first nap in her crib, in our bedroom, with the door closed, out of my sight, with the baby monitor turned on though. She slept really well during that nap too so I am going to continue to do naps in the crib from now on so that I can hopefully transition her crib from our room to her own room by her second birthday. Baby steps, that’s what I have to do. I did set this goal before though. I told Jason that we would move her to her own room after her 1st birthday, then I told him I wasn’t ready but that we would move her by the time she was 18 months. Well she will be 19 months old in 4 days and she is still in our room… I can’t help it. I know she will sleep fine in her room (probably better) but I know that I won’t. At least not at first I won’t. But, she can’t sleep in our room forever so I will have to start taking those baby steps I guess…

And now, as promised, here are a few pictures from our trip to the zoo.

When we first got to the zoo, Bri had just woken up (that's why she doesn't look so happy)Me, my mom, Bri as Minnie Mouse and my dad
Brianne looking in at some baby wallabies and a baby ant eater
Bri, me, Jennifer, Olivia and Tara

Brianne's first carousel ride
And at the end of the day, we had two exhausted little girls

Wordless Wednesday

Picture Overload

What a weekend we had! There is so much to say and since I put off posting all weekend, I don't know where to begin!

Saturday we went to the zoo with my sister in law, 2 neices, mother in law, and my parents. The girls (well Bri and Tara) wore their Halloween costumes until it got too hot and then they changed into cooler clothes, but they were so cute while they were dressed up. They did a few of the trick or treat stations that were set up throughout the zoo but then we gave up on them and focused more on the animals. They also rode the carousel and loved it! Bri loved it so much she didn't want to get off and through a fit because we wouldn't let her get back on. But she loved the animals: the gorillas, monkeys, lions, polar bears, penguins, sea lions, big cats, wallabies, lemurs, the bald eagle, the ducks and swans, and the sheep and goats in the petting zoo. The petting zoo may have been her favorite and if I can get the video off the camera I will post it because it was too cute. She was so excited that some lady looking into the petting zoo area was cracking up at her. She was screaming in delight and shouting "Baaaaah!" at the goats. She and Tara had a blast playing with each other too. I have a ton of pics from the zoo but I will have to post them later (long story).

Saturday night Jennifer, Susan, Tara and Olivia all came back to our house and spent the night. The girls were up till well after 10pm, even after our long long day. They had a blast chasing each other around the house and playing peek a boo and jumping on the air matress we blew up (I think they thought it was a trampoline). We finally had to just separate them and take them to bed where it took Bri all of 5 minutes to pass out. We were all so tired though that she fell asleep in our bed and I did too so I didn't move her to the crib. Well at around 2am we were woken to a loud "thud" followed by loud crying... yep, Bri rolled off the bed, the foot of the bed! I'm not a sound sleeper and usually wake up if she so much as breaths too loud so I'm shocked I didn't hear her. But she somehow wiggled her way to the foot of the bed (she was between us). Then I was all worried that she may have injured herself internally or got a concussion so I wasn't able to go back to sleep. And even after all that, staying up late, hard day at the zoo, rolling off the bed, Bri was still up before 7am. With people sleeping all over the house I didn't know what to do because I didn't want to wake anyone so I crept downstairs and got her some milk and a diaper and tried to just quietly watch cartoons in bed. But that didn't happen...

We ended up waking Jason's mom who was on the couch. Bri enjoyed her waking up though and while I was making coffee I left her on the floor with her books and animal flash cards and when I went back to the living room she was showing her grandma all her animal cards. It was really cute since they don't see each other very often. Then we were all up and we made a big breakfast and then headed off to the park to try and do photo shoots of the girls with our DSLRs (Jenn has the same Nikon D3100 as us, but she also has a 55mm-2mm lens that we got to play with). Jason ended up taking well over 500 pics. It was a great day and the girls had more fun at the park then they did at the zoo I think. We went down slides and swung, and petted dogs and fed the fishes and ducks. Here are some of our very professional looking pics.

Brianne petting a big white dog

First we went down the scary tube slide together...Then Brianne went down by herself
This is just about as good as it gets when photographing 3 kids
Bri walking through a bike rack
Love this one for some reason


Look how pretty the leaves are
Notice the single tear in her eye here...

Baby Olivia, eat a leaf
Another fave, but can you see how dirty her face is here?

A little sleepy here, and grumpy (no I'm not just naming dwarves either)

Playing peek-a-boo with Tara

Waiting for Daddy to come down the slide

LOVE this one! My artistic hubby noticed the reflection and captured it so nice!

And there are only about 500 more pics I could post but I will try and show some restraint and stop here. I can't promise that I won't post more of these awesome pics later though.

And then yesterday Bri and I went shopping at the mall and Target. While we were at the mall we hit the little play place and Bri had a blast, as usual. I took a couple crappy cell phone pics while she was playing too but I honestly don't want to upload them now cuz they will look even crappier in comparison to the above pics. But I also got a dress to wear to the bachelorette party that is in 2 weeks yay!

I totally got busy and forgot to do my Monday DIY post yesterday but it was a holiday and we were off and just busy hanging with The Pea. So next Monday I will have a double post (one will be on How to Photograph Your Baby). And I may post some zoo pics later, but if not, I will post them tomorrow (along with some video, hopefully).

Friday Shenanigans

So, we had an appointment for Brianne’s 18 month well baby check up with her doctor this morning. And I should be posting her 18 month stats, but, well, we never actually made it to the doctor. Her doctor’s office only about 5 miles from our house and there are 2 ways to get there, one by interstate (just go down one exit) or one by regular street. I decided to just drive down the main road and avoid the interstate and since it’s Friday, and my parents watch her on Friday’s, they were following me with Bri in their car, that way after the appointment I could just go straight to work. I made the turn onto the street where the doctor’s office is and right before the driveway there was a horrible accident (2 cars and a motorcycle) and the whole road was blocked by 2 fire trucks, 3 ambulances and several cops. We were a little early so I decided rather than waiting it out, to turn around and go back down the street and get on the interstate and come around the other way. We made it around and to the street where the doctor’s office is, but were still stuck in traffic and at this point nearly 15 minutes late. I decided to call the doc to tell them what was going on and let them know we should be there soon. I explained to the receptionist what was going on and she asked which doctor we were coming to see and I told her and she said “oh honey, Dr B is at the Amelia office today”… So that being another 30 mins away (not including the traffic jam we were in) I had to call them and explain what I did and see if we could still come in but that we would be super late. She said that it would be best to reschedule at this point… BLAH! So we go to the doctor next Thursday and next week I’ll make darn sure I go to the right office! This is so not my day!

I guess things happen for a reason though because yesterday I almost called to reschedule her appointment since she has to get shots and as we are going to the zoo tomorrow, I thought it may be best to do it later. I didn’t want her to be fussy or feeling bad from the shots when we were at the zoo, but figured we might as well just go ahead and get it over with. I guess destiny decided for us.

In an effort to cheer myself up and end this post on a high note, I am going to share some Brianne stories now… This week was a really good week at daycare. No crying when we dropped her off and everyday it was easier and easier. When we picked her up Wednesday she was sitting at the big kid table in her big kid chair eating animal crackers and drinking from a real cup! That made me so happy because just a few weeks ago we walked in on snack time and she was sequestered in a high chair on the floor, away from all the other kids because she couldn’t sit in a big kid chair (well she could but it was still dangerous because she still didn’t understand how not to fall out). And yay, we are slowly moving away from sippy cups now too!!! The weather was so nice all week too and so the teacher’s took the kids outside a couple times each day and they said Brianne had a blast and that she is starting to interact with the other kids more now, which is another milestone to check off!

Yesterday when we got home she wanted to play outside more so while dinner was in the oven, she and I played in her sandbox. She likes the sand a lot better when it’s dry and didn’t even fuss when it touched her this time, although she did still want to wipe her hands off on my pants when we were done playing. And, last weekend we got her a new toy, a Little People fire truck (that she picked out) that’s filled with the big legos. Last night, she built mommy a marvelous lego tower, all by herself! Milestone – check! And the highlight of my week… you know how sometimes you can see the moon out during the daylight hours? Yesterday you could just see it in the sky, it was bright out though so I hadn’t even noticed it, but in the car on the way home Brianne was in the back seat pointing and saying what I thought was “moo” and I kept asking her, “where do you see a cow baby” and she just kept pointing and saying “moo”. When we got out of the car, she pointed up to the sky and said “moo!” and only then did we realize she was showing us the Moon!!! My little girl is so observant and just the smartest little girl ever!

And I also want to share a few of my new favorite things - Huggies new Slip On Diapers and Huggies Overnights... both are ingenious! The slip on diapers are the absolute best thing since sliced bread, for reals! Know how much fun it is to change the diaper of a toddler who is always on the go? Ever tried to change a toddler's diaper on a changing table in a public restroom? Well now you can change them super fast! I can't wait to really give them a good test tomorrow at the zoo too. And the overnight diapers, whoa are those things absorbent! Bri has been on this "more" milk thing every night (it's a stalling tactic for her, she thinks if she asks for more milk, she can postpone going to sleep) and so lately her morning diapers have been so full and twice this week we had leaks (one of which she tried to take her own diaper off but only got one side undone, and ended up peeing all over her blankie, pj's and sheets). Got the new overnights yesterday and this morning, the diaper was huge, but Bri was dry and there were no leaks! Yay, score 1 for mom!

Phew! And now my carpal tunnel is acting up so that is all I can type today. I will have tons of zoo pics to post soon though, and we have a couple art projects we want to get to this weekend (including some more cake stuff) so stay tuned for picture posts!

A Sad Thursday

Rather than starting today's post with a quote, I wanted to post this picture of little Lisa Irwin. I do not know her, or her family, but she is a 10 month old that has been abducted and as a mother I can not begin to imagine the pain her parents must be feeling right now. Please keep them in your prayers and pray that she is returned home safely.

Gosh, after starting with that, I'm not sure I can easily flow into a happy topic...

So, I guess I'll make this a short post and end with an RIP Steve Jobs. The world thanks you for your genius and how you have forever changed the world of technology. As I type this, I am listening to my iPod, without which, I would not make it through an 8 hour day at work. Many thoughts go out to the Jobs' family.

Wordless Wednesday

The Weekend Review in Pictures

So as you know, this was a big weekend. Sam's bridal shower was Saturday and it was a great fun time! Here are a few pics from the shower:

Here is the cake and cupcakes I made

That would be me making a toilet paper wedding dress on one of my bosses, Karen.
Here is Brianne trying to help me with the toilet paper dress.
And are the 2 flower girls, Bri and Olivia, playing in the aftermath of the TP dresses.

Here is Brianne helping with the clean up

Brianne all pooped out from a day of partying and no nap.

Sunday we went shopping and I got Brianne's Halloween costume. It came down to Minnie Mouse or Tinker Bell (they didn't have her size in the sailor girl or the Little Red Riding Hood one) and so I held them up and had her pick one. She of course picked the Minnie Mouse one since she is obsessed with all things Mickey now. Here is a picture of it

Then we went down the aisle with all the pumpkin baskets and candy collecting devices on it and I showed her an adorable plush Hello Kitty candy basket but she wanted nothing to do with it. She was eyeballing this hot pink pumpkin pail, which worked out okay for mommy because the one I picked was $8 and the one she picked was only $1. I guess I have a frugal daughter.

I spent way too much money on fall clothes for her at Target too but she needs them so I am trying not to feel too guilty over it... And the rest of Sunday was very laid back and chill. We all seem to be finally over our colds and feeling better so we just played and colored and watched Barney. And it was a pleasant surprise, both today and yesterday, when we dropped Bri off at daycare and she did not cry! She just willingly went to her teacher and looked back at us (with a sad little look though) to say bye. It was super cute yesterday when we picked her up too. We walked in and she was sitting at the big girl table in her little chair drinking from a cup! A real cup! They had just had a snack which consisted of one oreo and a cup of water. She had oreo crumbs everywhere, on her eyelids, in her hair, around her mouth and little black chocolatey teeth too.

We have another big weekend coming with our trip to the zoo on Saturday and possibly our trip to the pumpkin patch Sunday. And I need to clean before the family comes over on Saturday, but where will I find the time to do that? And then on Monday I am going to make 2 sample cakes for Sam so she can choose which one she wants for her wedding cake. Phew! I'm exhausted just typing all that!

And I will close with a random cute pic of Bri being a wild child.

DIY Monday - Pumpkin Rattles

This weekend was very hectic which limited our arts and craft time, so we just did a little project.

What you will need:

2 Paper plates
Orange paint/crayons/markers
Green or brown construction paper
Stapler and staples
Clean dry pumpkin seeds (or rice or dried beans)
Popcicle Stick
Glue

Start off by painting or coloring the back of the paper plate orange. (Since Bri is still a little young, I drew basic jack-0-lantern faces on each of our plates first then handed them to her to decorate with her crayons)

Cut out construction paper shapes for eyes, nose, mouth and a pumpkin stem.

Glue the popcicle stick to the bottom edge of one of the paper plates.

Staple (or glue) the two plates together, but leave an opening at the top.

Fill the plates with your pumpkin seeds or rice.

Staple (or glue) the stem to the top and then staple your plates shut.

Listen to the lovely music your little one can make with her new rattle!

I wasn't able to get a picture of the finished rattle, so instead, enjoy some of Brianne making and decorating her plates (and other things)

And here she is "decorating" baby (above) and the carpet (below). Thankfully it was a color wonder marker so, no worries!