pics for days 29, 30, and 31 - a Birthday Weekend

It's been a busy weekend - I have a lot of catching up to do since I posted last Thursday. Thought I would tell about the weekend in pictures (especially since I finally figured out how to add in my pictures, I had the "old editor" option selected. All fixed now).

On Friday, Doug came home and put my present on the table. Made me look at it all Fri night and Sat! Remember, I have no patience. Meanie. Actually, it was fun saving it for Sun morning.

Doug's parents came over on Saturday, so they could watch the baby while Doug and I had a real, live date. I love how Eli looks at books, so had to include this picture. Can't believe that Doug and I went to an early movie and then dinner. We were gone together, on a date, for 5 hours! And I only checked in on the baby once! It was great getting to spend some quality time with my hubby. And boy, did Eli have fun with his grandparents and cousins. The Fossens came over too for cake and to visit.

I love when family comes to vist and play with the baby. They're the only other people that don't mind listening to me drone on and on about Eli because they love him too! They have to, they're related. :)

My yellow cake with chocolate icing, compliments of my mother in law and Treebeard's cookbook.

You know you want a piece. It was as good as it looks.

On Sunday morning, had my favorite chocolate-filled doughnut and sausage and cheese kolache from Shipley's. Chocolate filled doughnuts are simply the best - but only Shipley's will do. I've tried other brands, and nothing compares. Did not take my blood sugar today, was hoping I was covered by the It's Your Birthday Day and You Do Want You Want clause.

My birthday card from Doug. Kind of gross, but really funny. Also got one from Eli that was "to Mother." The "Mother" part made me laugh. Not "mommy," but "Mother." It was a pretty card though.

Here I am with my little man, this morning before church. I love him so much!

Last but not least. When we came back from Bible Study this evening, here was Mom, unloading the dishwasher and talking to my brother on the phone. The image just made me laugh, with Eli on the counter, so I quickly grabbed the camera and snapped. Very sweet of mom to help in the kitchen! I boycotted chores today, being my birthday and all. :) Oh, wondering what was in my box with the red bow? Doug got me a gift certificate to a local spa place for a massage, spa pedicure, and some kind of aeromatherapy steam thing. Don't know what that is, but I'm sure it will be great. Can't wait to use it! Also got the Pioneer Woman's cookbook, that looks really fun! All in all, not a bad way to turn 38!

Pics 27 and 28 - anatomy of a crummy, home-grown photo shoot that just didn't work

Why do I think I can take pictures of my 4.5 month old baby all by myself? Most likely because I the patience of...a flea. Maybe that's a bad analogy, maybe fleas are the most patient bugs in the world, but whatever, I have no patience. I have this idea in my head of a Valentine's Day card with adorable pictures of my adorable (of course) baby. He has a cute valentine onsie, and I bought two different fabrics for backdrops. Of course I want to take my perfect picture NOW, or preferably 5 minutes ago. I'm thinking, ok, we are all set to go, we have the outfit, a backdrop - let's get this show on the road. He can't sit up on his own yet, so that does pose challenges. E can lay on his tummy and hold his head up, but is also such a drool-meister right now, most of those shots have lovely drool and/or spit up running down his chin and stretching to the floor. Mmm-mmm. He has a great smile, but of course I can't get him to smile while I'm behind the camera snapping. Lighting always poses challenges, I am forever trying to find the "perfect" light in the house, or outside. Today was overcast, which is wonderful light for pictures, but that was the only thing I really had going for this shoot (besides my beautiful subject). I even made this 'distractor toy' by tying ribbon onto a long stick, and putting pennies in an old medicine bottle so it would make noise. Thought I could shake that with one hand and take picture with the other. Yeah, it worked about as well as you think it would - which is, not at all. I also tried taking pictures INside yesterday, so will post a couple of those as well, still not satisfied with my end products! I also get frustrated with my limited knowledge of Photoshop elements skills, I do know SOME things in the program, but working with the lighting features is still very challenging for me. So, here I am, showing my not-so-perfect pictures of my very-perfect baby. Hopefully before Valentine's Day I can take a satisfactory enough picture that equals what I see in my mind's eye!

Pic 26 - TV Musings

Staying at home with a little baby, I tend to have the t.v. on a lot. I don't just sit and watch for long periods of time, usually it's on while I'm puttering around. Although, I do have favorites I watch when I AM sitting and nursing the baby. I have several comments that I just felt like sharing, so for your reading entertainment, please continue on:

* I totally could get to the $25,000 level on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." Would probably have to use all my lifelines, but I really think I could.

* I get really happy for people when they win the prize or the showcase on Price is Right.

* I would love to be on the Price is Right. I'm good at guessing those prices.

* I don't miss Paula Abdul on American Idol.

* Monica Pederson or Lisa Laporte could design my house if it needed to sell.

* The designers on "Design on a Dime" would NOT be allowed to design anything in my house, selling or not.

* Although Sophie on the "Unsellables" does not have a very interesting personality, neither does her carpenter, they do get good end results.

* Wish someone would tell that one sales lady on "Say Yes to the Dress" that her lip liner looks AWFUL.

* I wouldn't mind at all being nominated for "What Not to Wear." Would love to spend $5,000 on a new wardrobe.

* That Duggar family just seems like the nicest people. You can tell they are good folk.

* It is not a good idea to watch "Ghost Adventures" or any of the other paranormal t.v. shows when it's time to go to bed, especially if your husband isn't home.

* I wonder why the yard sales on "Clean Sweep" only make like $300, but the yard sales on "Clean House" make like $2,000. Makes me want to have a yard sale either way.

* I would not want to eat one of those cakes on Ace of Cakes or Cake Boss, etc. after seeing the chefs/bakers put their hands all over those little bits and pieces as they make them.

* I think "Chuck" is one of the best shows on t.v. this season.

* I don't like watching women give birth in bathtubs. Or anywhere at all for that matter.

* I can't believe the horrible children on Supernanny; but that Jo sure has some good techniques I want to remember.

* I love sitcom re-runs.

The End.

Pics for day 25 - For the Birds

One of the best parts of being a stay at home mom is being able to take my morning walks with the baby. Can't wait until he's old enough to feed the ducks, get excited to see turtles and squirrels, that kind of thing. I grabbed the camera for our walk, with the long lens, in case I saw something cool in this vast nature reserve called "Cinco Ranch." We usually see this crane (I guess that's what it is? not sure of the technical bird name, I usually say, "that big white bird"). I liked how we could see his reflection. I crept closer, so I could get a better close up. He slowly lifted one leg, ready to bolt in case this strange creature pointing the black thing at him came any closer. Got a cool shot of him flying again. All in all, pleased with my bird pictures!

P. S. Not pleased with how I can't seem to figure out how to put my text under the pictures! I feel like I'm missing something obvious in figuring out how to do it. Someone please email me and let me in on the secret!! thanks!!

pics 24 - men and cleaning!

What is it with men and cleaning? Is it just my husband who doesn't see details, or all men? I tend to think it's a guy thing. Doug cleaned out the lint in the dryer hose this afternoon (for which I am very grateful). He moved the dryer and washer back into place, but had to be...ahem...reminded to finish cleaning up the lint on the floor and put the baskets of dirty/clean laundry back. He was very proud of himself that he initiated using clorox wipes to wipe the lint off the top of the dryer. When I went in the laundry room, the top of the dryer was fine, but right next to it, there was lint all on top of the washer! Really just cracks me up that he didn't 'see' that part, even though it was RIGHT THERE. Ah, my dear husband. I still love him of course! And, am very grateful he did the yucky lint clean out. So there's my main pic of the day, the lint on the washer. And, added in a pic of my precious baby sleeping on my shoulder.

pic 23 - looking towards the future

This late afternoon/early evening, we had a celebration service at the clubhouse near our church's property, where the church is going to be built. Folks could go on a "prayer walk" around the property; we got there late, and it was really windy, so we didn't walk the entire property, but did walk a little and stopped to pray. The church is in the process of voting to move forward with starting the construction on our building, it's exciting times. It's also scary, because that's quite the monetary committment too. Our church right now still meets in a school. It's funny, I never thought I would go to a church that met in a temporary location like a school. Guess I was feeling kind of snobby that way. But Doug and I really like our church - it's the people that make a church, not the building. But once we have the building, we can do so much more ministry-wise. It feels like the people at church have gotten a lot closer during all of this process. In a small church, it's pretty obvious when a family decides to leave, and it always hurts when people choose to leave for whatever reason. So there have been times when people have left, not agreeing (I guess) with the direction the church has been going, or whatever. I don't know. But right now, seems like we are all looking in the same direction, trying to let the Lord lead us!!!

pics for day 21 and 22 -Bible study and laughter

Was feeling sick last night so didn't post! Time to catch up. Yesterday, went to Bible study, my first time to go to a Bible study on a WEEKDAY MORNING. Got there early to drop E off in the nursery. Since we have Bible study at a different church (cuz we don't have a church building yet), I didn't know the nursery workers. Of course they were very nice. And of course everything was very neat, clean looking. And of course when they said, "do you want a pager?" I said, "yes please." I had no idea the feelings I would have when I walked away to go upstairs to Bible study! I seriously almost had tears come to my eyes! I thought, "I'm THAT kind of Mom? the kind that cries when she leaves her kiddo? it can't be!" Well, I didn't actually cry. Just felt funny. I did well in the study, didn't even leave to go check on him. I know it's normal to feel this way. My head knows the baby will be just fine, but my emotions...that's a different story. I'm gonna cry when he goes to Kindergarten, aren't I. Probably for pre-school too. I totally "get it" now. Just means I'm normal I suppose! Oh, and it was totally great to be in a real, live Bible study. Didn't realize how parched I was for hearing God's word. Seriously. Watching and listening to Beth Moore - wow, that woman has a gift! God's words just flow through her and out of her mouth. It's amazing. I am so looking forward to learning again. Not just praying prayers of survival (as in, "help get through this day! help me deal with this crying baby!") but praying more indepth. Trying to figure out what God would have me do now in this new phase of my life. So, the pictures I'm posting with this entry have nothing to do with what I just wrote. Just fun pictures of my baby. Two are from yesterday so I am still technically meeting my goal of a picture a day. Wanted to try to capture how red his hair is in the back! The other ones - well, he was starting to laugh a little today. I would laugh, and he imitated me at least twice. I tried taking his picture. This is what E looks like kind of laughing when you are using the wrong shutter speed on your camera, and moving a lot with that wrong speed because you're laughing, and that baby is moving too because he's kind of laughing. In case you were wondering what that kind of picture would look like, look no further, here it is. That's it for tonight!

Pic 20 - my mail obsession

I don't know when I started becoming obsessed with mail. But for whatever reason, I love mail. I love going to the mailbox, and get my mail pretty much every day. You never know what is going to be in there. A magazine? Invitation to a wedding, or baby shower? a check from Publisher's Clearing House? a thank you note? Some really great 50% off coupons? The list is endless! Last year, I got a letter saying I had "unclaimed money." It was totally legit, too! I was one of THOSE people, name in the newspaper and everything, listed as someone who had unclaimed money. Rather than use the company that contacted me about it, I did a little looking online, and sure enough, someone out there had a check for me for about $750. In the recesses of my memory, I vaguely recall one of the apartment complexes I had lived in sending me two refunds from my deposit (after I moved out), but I thought I had mailed one back, or tore it up, something like that. That's all I can figure, I have no idea where that money came from, but it was for Cheryl Stitzlein, that's me, so there ya go. We now have can lights and a new light fixture in the kitchen because of it. When my identity was stolen back in 2003, I dreaded going to the mailbox for about a month, as I kept getting the forwarded credit cards that the theives had opened in my name, or attempted to open. Still makes me shudder to think about it, that is such a violating feeling, having your identity stolen. On the thankful side, it was good I was getting those credit cards in the mail so I could cancel them and stop the rolling tide those freaks had started. See, even that bad experience did not turn me off from getting my mail! Ah, the mail. Probably why I like stationary products too, because you can MAIL notecards. When I was in the hospital for the week having the baby, Doug would go home periodically to check on things, and one day he came back and said he had a surprise for me - the mail!! He knew that would make me happy. When we first moved in to our house, I met the mailman; I told him how I like to get my mail every day, and he smiled and said, "I like you already." Hee hee!

Pic 19 - and God spoke

One year ago today, the doctor's office confirmed I was pregnant. Three home tests and two blood draws later, I finally believed it! It's a long story, but we had basically been trying for two years to get pregnant; the fertility doctor had said it wasn't impossible for us to conceive, but really unlikely to get pregnant on our own. We had two failed IUI procedures (Intra-uterine Insemination), one in July and one in September, 2008. I really wanted a break from all of the medicines, and emotional rollercoaster that goes with these procedures, so we thought we'd re-visit fertility stuff in January 0f 2009, maybe even look at adoption. We went ahead and planned our vacation to Italy, a country we had always wanted to visit; we thought, we keep talking about going there before having kids, so, let's just do it! So in December we got our trip all planned (and paid for!) to go in February. It was time for my yearly visit to the gyno in January, and I felt like I had a cyst or something; I knew they would ask, are you pregnant?, so I thought I would rule it out by taking a home test the night before my appointment. I still remember my shock at seeing the positive sign. I took the test out to Doug, who was sitting at the table, working on the computer. I showed it to him in disbelief, and he said, "take it again!" So thus started our new journey! I'm glad we had already planned and booked our trip, because I don't know that we would have gone through with it had I known I was pregnant. God really knew what He was doing! I really like how my OB put it; I was telling her our story, saying something like, "and we didn't even think we could get pregnant! and then..." She cut me off, filling in the rest of the thought saying, "and God spoke." Those words frequently floated through my mind during the pregnancy - "and God spoke." So. Very. True. We are so thankful and truly blessed that God spoke and brought Eli into our lives, our true little angel!

Pic 18 - soup of the day

It's 5:00 in the evening. Doug is at the dentist, odd time for a dentist appointment, but that's where he is. I pre-heat the oven, pull out the ingredients for dinner. Baby is sitting in bouncy seat on kitchen table, crying and fussing. My nerves are a little thin, as they usually are this time of day. Well, crap. I don't have a can of cream of chicken soup, need it for the recepie. Look out window, neighbor is not home. Contemplate going in her house and borrowing a can, as I know the garage door code, but decide that's stealing. Call Doug's phone to have him get some on way home from dentist, it goes straight to voicemail. Come on, baby, in your car seat you go. Why is he only wearing one sock? Throw blanket over him to hide his feet; not so much because I think his feet - I mean, foot - will get cold, more so I don't look like a loser bringing my baby out with only one sock on. It's 70 degrees outside, he'll be fine. Quicker to throw the blanket on him than to search for missing sock. Baby still crying, where is that paci? Got paci, on way to store, baby is quiet. Carrying baby across parking lot; nice man in store pushes a grocery cart towards me. Wonder if I look as harried as I feel. Where is that soup aisle? I left the oven on at the house, gotta find that soup...Wait, this is the seasonal aisle, ergh. WAIT - are those Reece's Peanut Butter Hearts? My kryptonite! Hurry, soup aisle is next one over. Glance down, what is that white stuff on my shoulder...oh. How long has that spit up been there?! Grab baby blanket and wipe off. Sorry baby, here's your blanket back. Score, soup is on sale! Ten cans for ten dollars! Feel like I'm playing the grocery game but I'm not! Put 8 cans in basket. Why only 8, I don't know. Check out at store, get home. House has not burned down. Baby has fallen asleep in car seat. I get back to fixing dinner. Doug comes in. I sigh and tell him how I had to go get soup. Pull wishbone from the chicken, ask if he wants to make a wish and pull. I can't think of a wish! Pull anyway. I get bigger piece, go figure. Told Doug he could have the wish since I didn't think of one. Ask him what he wished for. He said Less Frazzled Wife. It worked! Thank you honey. Ended evening with a good dinner, even better since it had the required can of soup in it.

P.S. That Reece's Peanut Butter heart I devoured in the car on the way home sure was good.

P.P.S. Ok, ok, I ate two! they were awesome.

Pic 17 - Daddy's home!

Daddy's Home! Daddy's Home! Daddy's Home!

Pic 16 - W is for Walk

Since Shutterfly is giving me a free 8x8 book, I'm going to make E an "ABC" book, using pictures from the first four months of his life. You know, like, "A" is for "Aunt" and I'll have pictures of his Aunt Laura(s), "B" is going to be for "Bath time," things like that. Decided "W" would be for "Walk." I have always loved taking walks, growing up I used to walk our neighborhood all the time. Walked the "Bear Trail" during the college years, during single adult days used to take Shelby out to the bike trails of Hershey Park without her leash, had a great path I walked when I lived in the Woodlands. During his first 8 weeks, when the baby would be fussy and we were trying to extend the time between feedings, we would walk him around the lake in the stroller. There have been many times during these past months that I have just been craving to be outside, no matter the weather, and have taken baby E on a walk. At least today there was sunshine when we went! Tried to make my picture for today show the sidewalk around the lake; have to admit, I could have been more creative with my picture, but that's how it goes today. I am so used to saying to the dogs, "wanna go for a walk?" and watching them become giddy with delight at that word "walk." Kind of disappointed E doesn't give me the same response when I tell him we're going on a walk! When he gets a little older I think he will really enjoy being outside and seeing all the interesting things on our walks, like the ducks, turtles, squirrels, that kind of thing. If the big dog was better behaved on her leash, I would bring the dogs with us, but Maggie is a pain to walk. So today's picture is all about taking a walk, the best stress reliever in the world!

Pics day 15 - for the love of print

Ok, so today's picture of E is totally staged. But it's still cute! Even though it kind of looks like he's sitting on a toilet. But whatever. I hope and pray that Eli will inherit my love for reading. I am amazed that at this young age (four months!) he enjoys looking at books. Doug likes to read too, he's just....slower at it than I am. I used to devour books when I was young. I remember in early elementary school, my teacher looking at me doubtfully when I told her I had read a chapter book (Superfudge, I think). But I guess she believed me, because I also remember being allowed to go to the "older" section in the school library to check out chapter books before others in my class were allowed to - wish I could remember what grade that was. I would read whatever my older sister was reading at the time, even Animal Farm, a book I had already read before being required to in high school. Also read all of the Laura Ingels Wilder books, more than once! I still love to read, including magazines. Weird Cheryl factoid (fact is weird, not me...ahem...) is that I read magazines like a book; I start on page one and read straight through, looking at every page. If I stop, I place a bookmark and come back to it to finish. In my other posted picture here, I have a stack of current "to read" books/magazines. I also periodically go back to the baby books I've been reading, such as what to expect when the baby is this many months old kind of thing. Both of my parents like(d) to read; mom has always been more of a magazine kind of gal, until lately; since she retired, she has gotten back into reading novels. Now dad, he loved to read. Nothing fiction either. He would much rather read about math or how to fix something. I love that I have that in common with him (reading, but not the love of math!) It was hard for me to "know" dad, since the progressive M.S. stole most of him away from us, but I do know he loved books. Even when he couldn't turn pages, we would leave a large book open on his table in front of him when we left the house, so he had something to look at. In the den area were the encyclopedias, and lots of Bible commentaries, books on math (Shaum's outlines! eek!!), and other titles and types I can't remember. I love feeling connected to dad through the love of reading. I plan on reading to E a lot; hopefully this will instill in him a love of books too!

Pictures 13 and 14 - Dumb Stress

Yesterday and today were so very busy. Since I had a meeting a church late on Wednesday evening, and Doug is still out of town, I thought it would be fun to have a sleep-over at Grandma's house Wed evening, so she could feed and put E to bed. Since I wanted to go up to my old work for a baby shower on Thurs at noon, and it's closer to get there from her house than mine, it seemed like it was all going to work out great. So on Wednesday, I think my stress started with packing up everything to take to mom's house. My clothes, his clothes. Make sure the diaper bag is packed. the dogs. their beds. their food. the baby shower gift. my camera. brought the computer to show mom some pictures but guess I could have left it at home. his bouncy seat. the bottle and milk so mom could feed him Wed night. Snapped a picture of the packed car for yesterday's picture! (Looks like E doesn't have any feet, his pants were kinda long). The meeting went until after 10 p.m.; I ran home to pump (sorry if that is gross to anyone, but that's reality) and get my cell phone charger, than back to mom's house. Didn't bring Maggie's crate, as it's way too big and heavy for me to get into the car and it wouldn't have fit anyway. Well, she just couldn't settle down, and whined and tried to wander around the bedroom all night! Around 2:30 a.m. I let her and Lucy out in the back yard, and when I brought them back into my bedroom, I barricaded her bed by placing whatever objects I could find in the room (my duffel bag, a folding chair, a basket, etc.) Didn't keep her from whining. So frustrating. Didn't trust her to be in the rest of the house on her own, as she can be mischevious and would probably find something to chew on, so couldn't kick her out of the bedroom. So on Thursday, I was feeling tired, cranky, and a little stressed from the night before. Timing for feeding E wasn't working out right, so I ended up nursing him in my car in the parking lot of work before going into the shower. After the shower, I was so tired and had a huge headache. Back to mom's house to feed him, he didn't want to eat (probably was feeling my tense self), or apparently take a nap, as he kept crying on mom as she so sweetly offered to watch him while I laid down. So we finally get back to our own house, and he is sound asleep in his carrier. As I laid down on the couch and got somewhat comfortable, thinking whew, I will take whatever rest I can get, I hear the familiar "crinkle crinkle" sound of one of toys hooked on the carrier. He's awake. Sigh. Pulled myself off the couch. Well, we managed to work out the rest of the evening, he and I, and I survived enough to sit down and write on the blog. There's a new show they keep advertising on TLC titled, "What I Hate About Me." To be honest, I hate that title, because it makes me start thinking about things I don't like about myself, and I really don't think those kinds of thoughts encourage the fruits of the Spirit! But today, I kept thinking, I hate how I get so stressed! A trait about myself that is so very hard to change. (There are times when I am not actually feeling stressed about a particular situation, but people in my life will comment that I need to "calm down," so apparently even non-stressed I still give out that vibe!) Everyone talks about how babies thrive on routine, which is totally true; however these past two days re-emphasized to me how I thrive on routine too! Pre-baby, yesterday and today's activities would have been nothing (it boils down to a church meeting and a baby shower; how difficult is that to handle?!) Having this little critter that depends entirely on me makes every task so much more...different. I hate to say "complicated" or "difficult," because it's not his fault that he needs to be fed, changed, etc. It's all just part of my new life now. I pray that I will continue to learn how to "go with the flow" a little easier, because this is only the beginning.....

picture 12 - a sad sign

The for sale sign went up on Marie and Edwin's house today. They've been good neighbors, and even better friends! I was thinking that if I see potential buyers out side, I might just have to break the news to them that the house is haunted. And, now is a good time to go ahead and start that stinky compost pile right next to our adjoining fence. It's not like I don't want them to move or something.....On to the other picture posted. Just a picture of a tiny itty-bitty bird I saw when E and I were out on our walk today. I wanted to get closer but was afraid he would fly away. Was also using that pesky manual focus lens that I am forcing myself to use so I can get better at focusing quickly. He was just so cute, kept jumping in the water and back out, but was so fast I just couldn't catch him. Looks like in this pic I just barely got part of a wing extending. Better luck next time!

Picture 11 - what a (normal) day

So today, I:

• got the baby out of his crib at 7:20, woke up to the sounds of him cooing and talking


• dusted the den and dining room


• vacuumed


• vacuumed and mopped kitchen floor


• did the Wii workout, during 'rest' times entertained the baby, I'm sure that would have been a sight to see


• read 3 books with baby


• paid the water bill


• got the exterminator bill straightened out


• showered and brushed my teeth


• nursed the baby 5 times, mom gave him one bottle


• had the oil changed and car washed


• had teeth cleaned at the dentist


• read 78 pages of cheesy grocery store novel while waiting for car and at dentist


• avoided buying any fast food


• fed dogs twice


• took out trash and recycling to curb


• went for short walk around the lake with baby


• took a picture for today's blog of baby in his new bumbo chair


• washed and dried one load of the baby's clothes


• watched the new episode of Chuck, managing to keep baby content/quiet during that hour


• put baby to bed


• updated blog


• would love to have a big 'ol glass of wine but would feel guilty since I'm still nursing the baby


• truly felt like a MOM and loving every minute of it!

Pictures 9 and 10: single parent and shoes

Left the camera at mom's house last night, so couldn't download yesterday's picture until today. Yesterday, Doug left for Aberdeen, Scotland. He goes there about 2 times a year for work. This tag on the suitcase was leftover from a previous trip. I was fortunate enough to meet him over there in October of 2007, it was such an awesome trip! I still love looking through those pictures in the scrapbook. I am so very glad we just paid the money and enjoyed traveling pre-baby. Feel very fortunate and blessed we were able to do that; being able to travel has always been a dream of mine, and it's so incredible to me that I've been able to travel to five different countries, all with the love of my life!!! (Peru in 2005, Jamaica in 2006, Scotland and the Netherlands in 2007, and Italy in 2009) The downside to his travel this time however is that I'm a single parent for the week! It's just been a day and a half but I'm exhausted, and don't know how those single parents of babies survive. Mom babysat yesterday while I went to a baby shower, and she came over today for dinner (and to give me back the forgotten camera). I am so blessed, truly blessed, to have my family close by. Having mom for company tonight was great! Speaking of my mom, that leads to my second picture. The shoes. Mom just insisted that baby E needs shoes! I have to admit I was rolling my eyes at her in the store. I mean really, shoes for a four month old? But I have to admit, they are so stinkin' cute I can't stand it. He wore them to church this morning and I had to show people as they went by - "look, he's wearing shoes today!" Thankfully the folks at church are used to me by now. So they obliged by looking and making the appropriate oohing and ahhing. I didn't get a good pic of the shoes on the baby - by the time I was taking pictures, he was in a bad mood and crying. When he's more up for it, will have to take another pic of him wearing his new footwear. Will be neat to hold on to his First Pair of Shoes - I'm sure in the not too distant future I will be marveling at how small they are and can't believe he actually wore those!! Thank you mom!

Picture 8: baby friends

Today was soooo cold, especially for south Texas! I thought E looked so cute since his pajamas matched the blanket, so just had to take this picture of him looking all so cute and cuddly. Plus, I'm having a good time playing with my portrait lens that is manual focus. (It's auto focus on my film Nikon camera, but can only be in manual on my digital Nikon, which is a big bummer. So gotta practice with focusing). Marie next door invited us over to make cookies with Sean Carlos, Ciana, and Giselle. Giselle is just a few days older than E! Since this was Marie's third baby, she was my "Pregnancy Mentor" during my pregnancy. It was great being able to ask her questions and get her advice during those 37 weeks. She even came with me to Babies R Us to explain to me what all the baby gadgets were for and give insight about what we might need vs. what Babies R Us lets you think you need. So, back to today. I took a lot of pictures of the "big" kids making cookies, and several of sweet Giselle sleeping. Aren't these the sweetest babies you ever did see?! Oh, and it's good I took that picture this morning. E had his four month check up today and got shots, I have never seen his face get so red or see him so mad as he was after those shots. Poor little thing!! He's recovering though and I know will be back to his regular smiley self tomorrow. That's life for today!

Picture 7: furry love

I am cheating today and including TWO pictures. You know how hard it is to try to get two dogs to pose together?! So, two pictures it is since there are two dogs. Just wanted to showcase my furry children. We bought Lucy (lab/german sheperd mix) from some lady on the side of the road back in June of 2007; she was 8 weeks old. We bought Maggie (bloodhound) from a breeder up in Canton in March of 2008; she was 12 weeks old. Of course they have been removed from their doggie pedestals since the baby came along, but we still very much love our pups. They have torn up the back yard, they track dirt into the kitchen and living room every day, and have jumped on my bed with dirty feet too many times to count. But nothing can beat seeing the love they have for their owners in their eyes! We've been proud of how they have behaved around Eli. Maggie chewed on only one of E's toys (although has destroyed at least 2 pacifiers). For the most part, they leave his stuff alone, as though they know those particular items belong to the newest member of the pack, and the Alpha Dogs are very protective of that new little guy! I hope they continue to be patient with Eli once he becomes mobile and a little more interested in them. These two furry loves are definitely a part of our every-day life!
P.S. After broadcasting to the entire blog world about my dirty shower and stairs earlier in the week, just wanted to make sure I let all know that I did clean both of those areas and now they are *sparkling*
P.P.S. I am making a concentrated effort to post pictures of a variety of things in our everyday life - it's hard because I could just take a picture every day of the baby and be perfectly content, but figured that might bore the readers!

Picture 6: Full what?

I almost didn't use this picture for today's post. It is pretty gross looking after all. But, let me explain. We bought this new vacuum cleaner when E was about 2 and a half weeks old. He had developed congestion, and I was worried that the dog hair in the house was a contributing factor, and went out and bought a good, dog-hair picking up vacuum. So, started using this around mid-September of last year. Flash forward to today. We are not using maid service anymore, trying to work out the stay-at-home-mom budget, so I am slowly getting back into the swing of things in how to clean my house. We had started using the maids back in the summer, before I went on bed rest, because I was so swollen and had carpal tunnel so bad, and was working, I just couldn't do stuff at home. Having the maids was fabulous. In fact, as I cleaned the master bath today, I realized I haven't thoroughly cleaned that bathroom in months, didn't have to because someone else was doing it. I was also struck with the realization that it is nice to have energy back, and the full use of my hands! (the carpal tunnel is pretty much gone, still have this weird stiffness in my right hand but that's another story). I hated being on bed rest, being limited in my daily activities, having to be dependent on others to help me. It was hard even when I first came home from the hospital, having to depend on others to help, but it was easier to make myself back then, especially recovering from the c-section. Today it hit me as I was cleaning upstairs, I feel like I have been living in a cave and am finally coming out fully for air, the fog is lifting. And truly, it is - this fog of Having a New Baby and Staying Home as a Job is slowly but surely starting to fade. Oh sure, I've been to church, to holiday events, running errands - but still haven't felt fully myself. Which brings me back to the vacuum cleaner (believe it or not, I hadn't forgotten that I have not yet explained the picture). So I thought to myself today, Wow, I really should clean out the vacuum. It sure does look full. As I sat with it outside, I was able to remove the bottom cup portion and dump out the gross dirt, dog hair, and who knows what else. The top part wouldn't come off though. I couldn't figure out how to get the gobs of grossness out of the top portion, so I finally got a spoon and managed to dig it out. As I sat there outside, digging dirt and doghair out of my vacuum with a SPOON, thinking someone at Bissell needs to know that this is the most ineffecient way to clean out a vacuum and how on earth did they expect consumers to clean this thing, when something caught my eye on the removable portion laying on the ground. The word "Full" and a line. Ohhhhhhhhhh. (I even circled the word on the picture for you, my dear blog readers.) I was supposed to have cleaned it out when the vacuum ickies reached that line? I just giggled at myself - I thought I was acting relatively normal, but realizing tonight that I had never even looked at the vacuum in terms of when to clean it out, was just vacuuming because I knew I needed to and it's part of the old routine - made me realize that I still have been living in some "I have a new baby fogginess," even up till today. Well, I do need to add that really one would think the vacuum could hold a lot more than where the full line is located, but oh well. Seriously, I think the vacuum was probably full by the first week in October, and here I've been just vacuuming away...hmmm actually that vacuum must have pretty good suction to have kept it up so far! So, that's my image for today's life posting. A way too full vacuum cleaner, and a new mom slowly but surely getting back her handle on life.

Picture 5 - Confessions of a Rocker

I have a confession to make. Today, I rocked my baby until he fell asleep. Yes I did. All of the baby experts (the ones I've read anyway) say, "don't let the baby fall asleep in your arms, put him in the crib drowsy," etc. I know this is so the baby will learn to soothe himself and fall asleep on his own and all that. And E is really good at falling asleep on his own when I put him down at night in his crib; I really have tried to "follow the rules" when it comes to sleeping. When I would first talk to friends when E was only a few weeks old, I even had a couple of friends say, "you put him down while he's still awake, right?" and other similar comments. So apparently it's the cardinal sin to actually let your baby fall asleep in your arms these days. I have to tell the voices in my head (who are these voices anyway?!) that it's ok if sometimes, just sometimes, it's ok for E to fall asleep while I rock him. While I hold him I think how beautiful he is. I lay my cheek on his cheek, or on top of his head. I nuzzle his hair. I press my lips on the back of his little baby hand. And just drink him in. After I get my fill of loving on my little boy, I gently get up and place him in his crib, or bassinet. There is some little ditty out there, something like, "cobwebs settle down, dust go to sleep, I'm rocking my baby, and babies don't keep." My own version would probably be more like, "the funk in the shower hasn't killed us yet, the dog hair on the stairs isn't going anywhere; right now, I'm rocking my baby - so there." I know the day will come when I will be watching him play soccer when he's 6 years old, and walk across the graduation stage at age 18; I don't want to look back and wonder why I didn't just sometimes listen to ME and rock the baby to sleep. Sleep tight, my little angel.....

Picture 4 - visit from the cousins

I have very cool nieces and nephews (on both sides of course!). Laura F. brought Rachel and Aaron down to see baby E on their last day of Christmas break. Wasn't that sweet? They wanted to see their little cousin since it had been a while (they were out of town over Christmas). They are so cute to watch with him - they're fascinated with him, and want to watch him "play." Of course, Eli's play right now consists of wacking at items in front of him - with great intent, of course. Aaron wanted to know if Eli had liked his Christmas presents - unfortunately he can't play with them all yet, but he has shown interest in hitting the buttons on this steering wheel thingy Doug's parents got him. We also rolled his 'giggle' ball to him, and he hit it with his feet, or hands, whatever is handy at the time, or whatever appendage the ball happens to roll into. We took him on a walk to the park across the street, thankfully he fell asleep (since afternoon naps are come and go these days). R and A had fun playing on the playground, and I of course enjoyed catching up with my sis-in-law. I am so glad over the past few months to have gotten a chance to spend more time with Laura F. She came down (from Cypress) several times in the early weeks when I was here with Eli, desperately needing a nap (me, not Eli), or needing to run errands without the baby. We would talk, and she would (and still does) encourage me in my new journey of motherhood. There are millions of opinions out on there on how you should raise your baby - when to feed them, how to get them to sleep, all that stuff. I've been doing the best I can, and feel ok in general about it all (at this point, anyway!), but in the beginning, it sure was great to hear someone say, "you're doing a great job," or give compassion saying that those first weeks are the hardest and it will get better. And it has. During this huge transition in my life, of becoming a mother, quitting my job, transitioning to this new job of mom at home, I've really enjoyed that one of my new perks is getting to spend more time with family!

Picture 3 - a song

We sang this song in church this morning, Revelation song by Philips, Craig and Dean. I absolutely love this song. I first heard it on KSBJ, when I was in the car driving a LOT with my commute to work this past year. I can't explain how this song affects me! It's like instant calm; in my heart and mind, I am dropping to my knees immediately when I hear it, head bowed, hands in the air, humbled by being in God's awesome presence - even while driving. Since I was pregnant when I first heard it, I would crank it up in the car and wonder if the baby could tell a difference in how his mamma felt listening to it. Have since bought the cd, so I can have my instant calm and praise-ness anytime. Although, since I don't drive around nearly as much anymore since I'm staying home with the baby, I don't play it very often. So that makes it even better that we get to sing it on Sundays sometimes. So today's picture is in honor of that awesome song!!!!

Days One and Two!

So now I'm blogging! Quite exciting. I set up this blog yesterday, and discovered that I had mispelled (am I miss-spelling mispelled?) the name of the blog in the URL portion!! Ergh!! so deleted that blog, and am starting over. Thankfully was able to get my same title by putting dashes between the words. So, here is my place to just type and babble and post pictures and talk about them! yippee! I decided to do the "Project 365" and take a picture every day. Well, most days I take lots of pictures, but will pick just one to highlight per day. Will post yesterday's and today's on this post. Day One: took a picture of my most recent project, a simple cross-stitch I picked up in the clearance bin at Michael's. I used to cross-stitch all the time several years ago and really enjoyed it, I find it relaxing. and like the end product. Now, I just cross-stitch occasionally, usually something simple I think I can put in my house somewhere. This one is a dove holding a boquet of flowers. Most cross-stitch things are not "in vogue" but I still like them. this one really doesn't "go" anywhere in the house but guess I'll figure it out when I'm finished. Day Two: took E to the dog park today for the first time. Trip wasn't a total Fail, as Maggie and Lucy ran and had a great time. Even saw another bloodhound that looked VERY much like Maggie. E didn't seem to be as comfortable, riding around in the baby bjorn carrier - maybe he was cold? (sorry mom - but he did have on a jacket! with a hood! and socks!) Doug took this picture of E, I like it because you can see the reflection of Doug taking the picture in E's eyes. So even though technically I didn't take the picture, I am letting it still count in my project 365.