*Fancy That

Bed Rest and Baby

2014-01-17T16:27:00.000-06:00

A few of you have been asking about how this pregnancy is going so I thought it was high time I sent out a little update. My due date is still Feb 9th, but this little guy (yes, we're having a boy!!) will be making his debut sometime next week.

I've been on modified bed rest (meaning my activities are restricted and I need to sit/lay down most of the day) since Dec. 12, week 31. It is the same culprit that gave us problems with my pregnancy with Alora: high blood pressure and possible preeclampsia (more on that story here and here.). I've been admitted into Labor and Delivery twice due to the elevated blood pressure but both times I was thankfully discharged the same day once things settled down. And although my test numbers have been getting a little higher and higher, I've managed to stay below what is considered the preeclampsia threshold, which is a very good thing. It seems the bed rest is doing the trick this time around. The longer I can keep my body rested and pregnant, the better chance this little boy has in coming home with us right away, instead of being in the special care nursery where Alora was stuck for two weeks.

I've been seeing a high risk doctor to monitor the baby a few time. So far, everything about him is looking great and on track, however the doctor does not want me to go past 37-38 weeks. That means I will be induced sometime next week. I have an appointment on Monday and if things are still looking stable, they will try to stretch this out until Thursday, however if things are elevating I could be admitted as early as Monday. Only time will tell... There is also a chance I will go into labor on my own. I've been having TONs of braxton hicks contractions but they are very rarely in any sort of pattern. When I was at the hospital earlier this week they were coming every 5-8 minutes, which seems to be my evening routine. However when I wake up in the morning, they are back to maybe 1-3 an hour. So far they aren't painful, but every day they have been getting a little more and more uncomfortable, for lack of a better word. So who knows, maybe this kid will decide on his own he's ready to come out a little early. Again, only time will tell. Either way, I know that by this time next week our little family will be plus one!

Alora has been so sweet about me being on bed rest, too. For a three year old she's seem to grasp what is going on pretty well. She's constantly reminding me to sit down and rest, which is so cute coming from her. When I told her that baby brother is going to be coming next week so got very excited and asked if I would have him behind my back. (She's been really into surprises lately and will hold toys behind her back and yell "surprise!") I told her that I probably wouldn't be holding her baby brother behind my back, but maybe he'll be hiding under a blanket when she comes to visit. She seemed happy with that, haha!

A huge, HUGE factor in helping me keep things stable is the AMAZING support I've had. Since Jake is still working full days he's only able to do so much, and for every extra step he's taken I've been grateful. The rest of the gaps have been filled by various family members and friends. My mom has played a huge roll in keeping our household running smoothly. My dad has stepped in to help tie up some loose end projects and keep Alora occupied. Jake's parents have stepped in when their busy schedules allow, helping for a few stretches at a time. Even Jake's brother came for a few days to play "Mr Mom." I cannot begin to express how grateful I am to have these amazing people in my life. They've cleaned our home, cooked our meals, washed our laundry, entertained Alora, drove her to preschool and dance lessons and me to countless doctor visits. Thank you, thank you, thank you. My heart is so full of gratitude for you all and I will make sure this little boy knows about all the love and support he was given to help him arrive safely.

I've also had a few people asking how I've been spending my days. Although there have been a few long and boring days, for the most part they are flying by. Since I already have a three year old, I'm not exactly able to read a pile of books or get caught up on my movie list. I spend a lot of my days on the couch in her playroom keeping her company or hanging out in the living room while my mom/mother-in-law/brother-in-law cleans and cooks around me. It has been nice to simply sit and talk with them all while they are here. I've also allowed myself a few outings to Target and Babies R Us to pick up a few last minute baby essentials, but I'm sure to check my blood pressure before, during and after each outing.

And I've started sewing again. I've been working on a hand-pieced quilt for about two years now. It's something I'll probably never finish but I like to get it out here and there to work on while I watch TV at night. I also made my first doll, lol. I'm not quite sure what possessed me to do this one. Awhile ago Alora was asking for a Beast doll to go with her Belle doll (from Beauty and the Beast) and I told her maybe someday I would make her one (not sure what I was thinking when that flew out of my mouth) and it dawned on me one day that now would be as good a time as any.

So I dug through my fabric scraps and garage sale clothes and managed to make her a Beast doll. I have to say it turned out way better than I expected! And I really like making it, too. So the past few days I've spent some of my time researching how to make a second doll.

I've also spend a lot of time snuggling with Alora in our big rocking chair while we watch a movie or watching her through the window while she plays out in the snow. Being forced to relax and sit down has definitely helped me to appreciate the little things like this. And the timing could not be more perfect, knowing our little world will be changing again in just a few days.

Moving In: A Very Messy House Tour

2013-10-01T16:41:00.002-05:00

We moved into our new home at the end of April. Since it has been 5 months since the big day I thought I'd give a little tour of our new home. We ended up buying several pieces of furniture from the previous owners, last minute. It was so nice to be able to do that because, one: she gave us a great deal, and two: it gave us some great filler pieces until we can afford/find what we really love. We also have a few plans for the house both within the next year as well as a "five-year-plan." Although the house was kept very clean, the walls and ceilings have a good layer of standard household grime. Every room is getting a scrub and we are repainting room by room, and at some point we will likely have a pro come in to do the ceilings. The five-year-plan calls for fresh carpeting throughout the main levels and refinishing the hardwood floors. Now on to the tour!

You'll have to forgive the lack of detail in these photos. They are not the best angles but they give you an idea. When you walk in the front door you are greeted by the stairs, living room to the right (we use it as a play room) and dining room to the left. At some point we would love to rip out the carpet on the stairs and replace it with darker hardwood and a runner. The paint is currently a yellow/tan on all of the entry and stairway walls, including the ceiling. This will be updated but I'm not sure to what yet.

The dining room needs fresh paint but is otherwise in pretty good shape. I'd love to get a more updated light fixture, too. Unfortunately this room still looks pretty much the same today, with heaps of boxes. It seems to be the place where things go when I don't know what else to do with them. On second thought, maybe I'll just put up a wall and pretend this room (and mess) don't exist....

The playroom has become one of our most used spaces. The red walls were a little intense for the playroom so this was the first room to be repainted and rearranged. I love how it turned out so that will be one of the first updates I share.

The back of the house holds the kitchen and family room. I am LOVING the openness of it all, especially after being cramped into our tiny condo kitchen. It's so nice to be able to get dinner ready while still keeping an eye on Alora or having a conversation with someone in the family room. The kitchen has already received a fresh coat of paint and I have plans of someday refinishing the table and chairs which were purchased from the previous owners.

The same story is true for the family room: its walls are already a different color and the fireplace will soon be getting a makeover. We purchased the couch and love seat from the previous owners for a steal. Although the pattern is a little dated, they are in great shape and fit the space really well. We also didn't have it in our current budget to buy brand new furniture so these work great for now. Oh, and if you occasionally hear cursing in the far distance, that's me. I'm attempting to make my own slipcovers for these bad boys and I am no seamstress. Blood has already been shed.

Probably our favorite room in the house is our three-season porch. We purchased the patio set from the previous owners and have spent countless dinners and evenings out here. You can also see a peak of our back yard (in it's naked springtime state). Since then we have removed a few trees to give us a little more yard space and sunshine, and to prevent a few broken branches from falling onto our house.

Also on the main floor is the laundry room, powder room and hall closet. The second floor holds four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Our master desperately needs a fresh coat of paint and some closet organizing but it's larger size has made it a little easier to take our time with this one.

Alora's room is so much bigger and brighter than our condo. We haven't really touched it as far as decorating (or even organizing) goes because most of the furniture will be moving into the new nursery in the next few months. But a new coat of paint is the first thing out our to-do list. Alora vote is for "dark purple". We'll see...

Bedroom #3 is currently being used as our guest room. We purchased the bedroom set from the previous owners with the plan of moving it into Alora's room when it's time to move the baby stuff out. At that time, this bedroom will become the nursery with the crib and changing table.

The guest room will then be moved to what is currently being used as a guest room/office. It's function will remain the same but it will soon be the only guest room...and will hopefully look a little more inviting.

Unfortunately I didn't take a single photo of the basement before we started in on our first project so I'll share those another day. But it holds a family room, pool table, wet bar, full bath, small storage room and crawl space.

So that's our very (very very very) messy house tour from our first few days of moving in. I'm planning to catch up on the projects we've been doing over the past 5 months so I get to the point where I'm caught up and my posts are a little more current, or at least in the same season!

Big Changes!

2013-08-14T19:37:00.001-05:00

Wow! Where to begin. We have had so many big changes going on since my last post (which was about forty-seven years ago). Since there is a looooot to catch up on, I'll start at the beginning.

Big Change #1:

Back in March I mentioned that we were packing and getting ready for our big move. It was a whirlwind few weeks but we managed to come out ok in the end.

On the first day of the big move our movers loaded up the truck and headed out for the night. We did some cleaning, camped out on the floor, and gave a huge sigh of relief that we were done with packing.

The next day we had our condo closing early in the morning. We didn't attend this closing, but we had to stick around the area until we heard from our attorney that everything went smoothly.

We spent our last few hours in the city at our favorite park. Once we got word that everything was signed, sealed and delivered, we gave another huge sigh of relief. And then we were homeless.

Big Change #2:

A few short hours later, our second big change took place. With misty eyes we said our last goodbye to the city and thanked it for the millions of good memories it was sending with us, and we headed to the suburbs. By the end of the day, we officially became homeowners and residents of a fabulous city called Crystal Lake. We wandered around our partially empty new home (we purchased some furniture from the previous owners so it was there when we unlocked the door) and got to work cleaning. The next morning the movers showed up and by lunch time, our home was once again full of boxes. And we were happy.

Big Change #3:
Ok, this is a big one. Shortly after after moving into our new home and community, I put in a call to work and gave them my notice. It was one of the most difficult things I've ever done. I was leaving a job that I enjoyed, a position that was perfect for me, a workplace that had a great environment, and people that I really truly enjoyed. I few quick weeks later, I said another round of goodbyes and my life changed again.

Big Change #4:

Now you would think with me now being a full time mom that I would have a little more time in my days. I thought that too. Haha, what was I thinking! Clearly by my absence from this blog you know that has not been the case. On most days I honestly can't tell you what I've done all day, but by 9pm I'm wiped out...and covered in some sort of glue, paint and/or peanut butter. But I'm loving every minute of it. And a big change that's occured with Alora is that she is now potty trained! Woo-hoo! I'll go more into that story another day, but for now we're celebrating. She's been going strong for a few months now. We're still working on nights, but that will come in time.

Big Change #5:
Jake's office moved to a new city. Don't worry, we planned our home purchase around his office's move. So now instead of commuting for over an hour each way, he only has about 35 minutes, which gives us a lot more time as a family.

His new office is really nice too, has a full gym with trainers, and a huge cafeteria with everything from sushi to brick oven pizza.

Big Change #6:

Alora turned 3! We had a great weekend with all of Alora's favorite people visiting.

We played, we ate and she got her requested Stripes (the zebra from the movie Racing Stripes) birthday cake. She had a blast! Her favorite present was her swingset (aka her Park).

And now that she is 3 she is acting (most of the time) like the big girl she is. She's taking swimming lessons and will be starting a 2-mornings-a-week pre-school as well as a dance class in a few weeks.

She caught her first fish and she is riding her trike all by herself. She went to her first movie at the theater (and ate popcorn by the fist fulls) and has learned to put her dad in "the sleeper hold!!!!". Life is good for this three year old.

Big Change #7:

And now for our biggest change of all- I'm pregnant! After two heartaches and a year of hoping and waiting, we can now say that Baby #2 should be showing up around February 9th (my grandmother's birthday). So far everything has been right on track. I had terrible morning sickness for about 6 weeks (which explains some of my absence) and I was thanking my lucky stars everyday that I was able to be home and curled up on the couch (or next to the toilet) instead of at an office. Oddly enough mornings were great for me, so Alora and I rushed to get the day's errands and work done by noon. My "morning sickness" would kick in around 2pm every day and progressively get worse through the evening and night. Every night Alora would say "You not feel good? Its okay (with a pat on my leg). You feel better soon." And she was right. I am now in the second trimester and that phase seems to be over for the most part. My biggest issue now is that I am hungry beyond words. All. Of. The. Time. Honestly, I eat enough for a family of four. Four times a day. We told Alora that she was going to be a Big Sister when I was 12 weeks along and after a lot of questions she is now really excited and curious about it all. For awhile she would ask me every morning if the baby had come out yet.

My favorite conversation so far went like this:
Alora: Does the baby come out of a door?
Me: Sure, we'll go with that.

So that's it for big changes. Whew! It's seems life has been SO so busy since we listed our condo in February. I hate to admit it but we still have boxes to unpack and I've just this week started doing a little painting and decorating (photos coming soon). Aside from having a super busy spring/summer I've been trying to take it a little easy with this pregnancy. I keep telling myself that it will all get done in time. And it will; the important things anyway. And that's exactly where we've been able to put our focus this summer.

I'm am so so grateful for the time I've been able to spend with and for my family over the past few months. We have had more home-cooked and healthy meals this summer than we have had over the past 5 years combined. We have had more spur of the moment activities than ever before, like trips to the local beach and traveling with family. We've had simple afternoons that include discovering a new food to try at the store and playing in the yard. We've had weekend adventures as we discover our new community. We have had more evenings where we can just relax and enjoy our time together. I'm so thankful for this sweet spot we are in right now and I am SO excited to see where all of these changes will take us!

Little Talks (and random photos)

2013-05-04T23:03:00.000-05:00

Alora's daycare teacher told me they were trying humus for the first time at school. Alora proudly told them, "I eat humus at home!!"

After a weekend with grandparents, Alora had been acting up quite a bit.
Me, joking: What did Baki do to you?!
Alora: Baki crAAAzy!
(I later learned the story behind this one - Baki kept dropping things and finally said, "Baki is craaazy today!". Apparently it stuck.

While out shopping Alora was eying some red princess dress shoes but in the end we went with the princess tennies. (she has a thing for princesses, can you tell?) The next morning she was so excited to open up her new box of shoes, but looking very confused said, "No, these aren't red... where are my red shoes?" Back to the store they go...

While watching Daniel Tiger on PPS a fundraiser kept repeating during the commercial breaks. Alora finally had enough and said (loudly enough for me to hear from the other room), "Go Away Mercials!". I think the phrase might stick in the Malek household.

When we were waiting to board for Alora's first big plane ride, we were watching our plane through the window.
Me: What do you think? That's our plain right there!
Alora : The plane has yucky horns.
This was clearly one of those times when I had no response.

"waiting for princesses"

Alroa: Rock-a-bye baby, in the teapot...

Alora: "I don't like pizza. It's spicy. It hurts my head."
(She LOVES pizza.)

I was calling for our dog Cosmo and Alora told me, "He's coming. He's scratching his bum."

Alora: Whacha doin' mommy?
Me: We're making a cake for Dad.
Alora: Awesommmmmme!!

This one doesn't really need an explanation: "I went poop! I like poop! It's HAPPY poop!"

While listening to a song about acorns, I asked Alora if she was a nut. She responded, "I'm Crocodile Malek!"

We smelled a skunk while driving home one day.
Me: Peeew! That smells like a skunk!"
Ali" Yeah, Skunk went potty. He needs to change his diaper.

I explained to Alora that her wind breaker helps to keep the wind out. Later that day...
Me: Boy, it's really windy out.
Alora: My coat broke the wind.

Grammie: Ali, what will you do after you move?
Alora: Pack!!!

After packing up Ali's room, the first thing she did was run to her closet and say, "Where's my LOTS of shoes?!?!"

I tried to help Alora while she was having a hard time getting her sandals on.
Alora: Don't touch them. My toes are outrageous!"

Dear Alora

2013-04-25T21:46:00.000-05:00

March 2013

My Sweet Alora,

Lately you have directed a change in your bedtime routine. It is now only rarely that you like to rock in our chair before bed. Sometimes you like to sit on the floor (with daddy) while I sit in the chair and read a story. I'm assuming this idea comes from daycare. Unfortunately, it rarely results in quiet bedtime. You sit for about 2 pages and then take off running in circles or tackling your poor dad (he loves it).

You also like to sleep with "lots of books." Not one, two or three books, but "lots of books." You usually have at least 7 books in bed with you and keep them the whole night. We've tried removing them after you fall asleep, simply to give you more space in your animal and book filled crib, but you will undoubtedly wake up saying, "Where my boooooks? I want me boooooks." We've only had a few nights where you stay up too late "reading" (10:30!). Most nights you'll sit in your dark room (with the closet light on, by your request) and "read" for 10 minutes before you fall asleep.

Sweet dreams my little book worm.

Love,

Mom

Sweet Home Chicago

2013-04-18T12:28:00.000-05:00

Well, our big move is coming up. I can not tell you how much of a bitter-sweet move this will be for us. We love our home and love our neighborhood and have been so happy here. But at the same time we are ready to move on. We love living in Chicago, but we don't take advantage of the city like we used to. And we're really looking forward to things like a garage, a yard, and a garbage disposal (yes, that really is something we've daydreamed about).

This home will always be special to us. It was our first home, where we put up our first Christmas tree, where we brought home our first baby, the first place we really called "home" for our family. Although there is a lot that we are looking forward to in our move, there is a lot we will miss: the morning sunlight in our living room, the creak in the floor right under Alora's rocking chair, the beautiful hardwood floors, the coziness of our family room, the always-perfect temperature of our balcony.

And now, after filling out 1,962 forms and making 1,974 phone calls, we will be moving this weekend. I can hardly believe it. As much as I will miss our condo, this move can't come fast enough. I am ready. We are all ready. This next chapter in our lives will be a big one and we are so eager for it to begin.

An now here's one last look at our first home...

Farewell, Chicago. Thanks for the memories!

A Full Plate

2013-04-08T21:46:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday everyone! I just want to drop in for a quick note to let you all that I haven't forgotten about you or this blog. In fact, it's on my mind all the time. My notebook is filling up with ideas and my "photos to edit" folder is reaching its max capacity. But with our house sale, work, packing, and travels lately, my plate is full. Very full. But stay tuned, I'll have some goodies for you soon!

In The Park, We Can Build A Snowman

2013-03-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

Holy buckets, can you believe it's already almost mid-march? Ok, so maybe I worded that to sound a little closer to spring than it actually is. Wishful thinking? Either way, I wanted to get this post in before we all forgot what snow was for the season (yeah, right).

We had a big snow a few weeks ago so as soon as we were all home from work we raced to the park to play. The park near our house is something I will really miss about living where we do. True, we don't have yard, but we have a giant park with miles of paths, green grass, open spaces, more jungle gyms than a 2 year old could wish for, a swimming pool and a dog park. Yes, this park has been a big part of our lives while living here and it will truly be missed. Anyway, I digress.

Back to the snow.

We helped Alora build her first snowman. The snow was probably some of the best packing snow we've had all winter so it went together pretty quickly.

She helped roll and pack while Cosmo got in some good sniffing.

Once our big guy was assembled we thought we were done, but Alora must have brushed up on her snowman anatomy because she instructed us that he needed a hat, eyes, nose and arms.

We were short of a hat, but we ran off to the trees to get some sticks for arms and a nose...

Chiseled on some eyes, and he was close enough to complete.

Until Cosmo decided to go after his arms.

Look at that guilty face.

Thankfully it was some easy patching.

By that point we were all about frozen and looking like this:

So we gave our new friend a farewell hug and headed home.

Good night snow man.

Good night park.

Cake for Breakfast

2013-03-05T08:00:00.000-06:00

Parenting is hard. Really hard. And raising a child is sometimes like holding a mirror up to your biggest faults. And something I've noticed in myself is that I can bypass fun, just to get the job done, which can lead to a job done, but a crabby family. Since I've set my resolutions for this year (which I still haven't printed out, grrr!) I'm trying to stay true to them and my one little word: choose. So the other day when I was cleaning the house (getting ready for a showing, actually) there was one piece of stale cake left in the pan. I was just about the throw it out so I could wash the pan and get it put away (less counter clutter = bigger looking kitchen), when I remembered my mom telling me that my grandma used to eat left over pie for breakfast. So in honor of my grandma I called Alora into the kitchen and told her I had a surprise. If only you could have seen her eyes when she saw the cake pan sitting on the floor with 2 forks...before breakfast! I might as well have had a circus full of glitter-coated Disney Princesses right behind me. She was tickled! So we started our day with a ~~nutritious~~ delicious breakfast of cake. On the floor. We then spent the rest of our morning in sugar-induced giggles, talking about what fun our breakfast was.

What little things have you done lately that remind you stop and enjoy the moment?

Happy Monday!

2013-03-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

Happy Monday everyone!

In case you're new around these parts (welcome!!!), I'll fill you in on Happy Mondays. I started doing these posts a few years ago when Mondays were, well, Mondays. So instead of thinking "ugh, Monday again" I started a (semi-)tradition of listing five or so things that I have to be greateful, things that make me happy, or memories that make me smile from the past few days.

So here are my happy five for the day:

1. We had our first no-plan weekend in ages, maybe months. While I love having company and going places, it was soooo nice to take a breather.
2. We got a bunch of paperwork on our house buying/selling process completed. (So stressful and so relieved to be closer to the finish line!)

3. We had not one, but two painting parties over the weekend. I even came up with a little sumthin' sumthin' myself that I am using as my new phone background. I kind of love it. Who knew crayola water colors could be so fun?

4. We went to our favorite diner for breakfast: pancakes, eggs, coffee, bacon, omelets, sausage... Need I say more?
5. We had a great movie night on Saturday. And we didn't have to watch Toy Story. Love that movie, but we watch it all.the.time. We've ventured on to Ice Age.

6. I gave Jake a haircut. (Gulp) We've been trying to save money here and there and this is one (ridiculous) way we thought we could save money. And while we have saved money, it takes a lot of time. A lot. Since I ~~have no idea what I'm doing~~ am very methodical and precise in my technique, his haircuts can take up to an hour and a half. But has long as Jake has sports on TV and a beer within reach, it all works out.
7. My parents are visiting tonight! Alora ran to the window as soon as I told her the news.

Photo A Day Challenge

2013-03-01T21:07:00.002-06:00

I did! I did it! I accomplished my goal of a photo a day for the full month of February! Woo hoo!

And I loved it! I might even be a little addicted to Instagram, now that I've figured it out. I love having the record of my every day life, of the little details I would have never thought of previously capturing. I actually enjoyed this so much, that I'm extending my goal for another month. Who's with me? You can check out the details at Fat Mum Slim. She provides a new list each month and I've included it for you at the bottom.

Here's the lastest from February:

23. friend, food, fun

24. cloud

25. on my bedside table

26. quiet

27. playing... beauty parlor

28. upside down

Photo a Day Challenge

2013-02-22T22:24:00.000-06:00

I'm doing it! I'm actually doing it! We're almost to the end of February and I haven't missed a day of my photo-a-day challenge. I did miss last week's post somehow, so I'll have to catch up here.

7. my name

8. something orange

9. guilty pleasure

10. 3 o'clock

11. entrance

12. where i ate lunch

13. walking

14. love is...

15. inside my fridge

16. perfect

17. in her hand

18. something I don't like

19. i am

20. where i stood

21. full

22. make me smile

Check out this post for the details, and this post for days 2-6.

Happy Monday!

2013-02-18T07:27:00.000-06:00

Hi everyone! I hope you had a great weekend. We have had yet another busy weekend, so here are my top 5 reasons to be happy today.

1. We had Jake's brother and his girlfriend visit for the weekend. We went to eat at our favorite pizza place, Pizza Art Cafe and introduced them to the best bruschetta in the world. Yup, it's that good.

2. Alora's class had a little Valentine's Day party last week. She was pretty tickled about the whole idea and showed me her "loot" when we got home. She even got her first "tattoo" out of the deal.

3. Alora got Toy Story 3 for Valentine's day so we had a nice family movie night with a new flick. It was pretty cute. Alora loved it (of course) and I bawled for the last 20 minutes. It's likely to become a new staple in our rotation.

4. We made a delicious chocolate cake, complete with purple frosting and stars.

5. We sold our condo! Yup, that's right. We sold our condo and will be moving by the end of April. I can hardly believe it myself but we officially accepted an offer on Sunday while at our favorite diner for breakfast. We've been listed for only 20 days, so we're a little shocked ourselves, but couldn't be more excited. Time to celebrate!

Dear Alora

2013-02-12T20:30:00.000-06:00

My Sweet Alora,

You are 2 1/2 years old now and you continue to amaze us every day. Your current favorite color is purple. You love Cinderella and Rapunzel. Your favorite foods are pancakes, macaroni and cheese, and pizza. You are still tall and thin but your body is finally starting to catch up with the size if your hair. You love taking walks to our park, splashing in puddles, and helping me grocery shop. You love to "play" with your grandparents on the "puter" and at nights, you like to put your daddy "to bed". You've also started to become much more independent, trying to do so many things on your own, tasting new food, kicking us out of your room at night so you can be alone to read your books. You've also started testing us with your attitude and actions...and are giving us a run for our money!

You still have a way with words that causes us to bite our lips to keep from giggling when you talk. You still call Cosmo Bobbo but I think you know better. You've even "slipped" and said Cosmo or something close and you've quickly corrected yourself to say Bobbo. You tell me that he is your buddy and a good boy, and you just squeal when he chases you.

The other day we drove past a cemetery and you exclaimed, "Oooh! Look at all the castles!!" I didn't even begin to explain that one. Castles they are...!

We've also been working with you on potty training. You aren't too excited about it yet, but the concept is starting to sink in. After your bath the other day you were walking around in the buff. I noticed you were keeping one hand on your behind the whole time. When I asked what you were doing you told me that you were "holding it", a line I've used with you many times, that you've seemed to take quite literally. Another time you were sitting on the bed while I was changing clothes. You kindly reminded me, "don't poop on the floor." Thanks, love.

My new favorite thing to do with you is watching you with your daddy. It absolutely melts my heart. It is so true how they say a girl's fist love is her father. Your eyes just light up when he comes home. All of the crabbiness you might have had with me during the day just melts away as soon has he enters the door. To you, he is magic. You've even started calling him your Prince and request nightly dances with your Prince. The other day when we were out getting groceries I lost my mitten somewhere in the store. I was clearly frustrated but you calmly told me from the backseat that it would be ok, because your Prince would find it.

Sweet dreams, my love.
Mom

Happy Monday

2013-02-11T18:00:00.000-06:00

I haven't done a Happy Monday post for ages, so I thought I'd try bringing it back. Here are my 5 reasons to be happy:

1. We had a great (and exhausting) weekend with Jake's family from MN.
2. We have our Turkey and Bobbo home again.
3. Alora had a great weekend with her Baki (that's what she calls Jake's mom) and Grandpa Steve.
4. We have frozen chocolate chip cookies in the freezer (our favorite).
5. Our house is very clean (a rarity) and it feels so nice.

How about you? What are some of your top reasons to be happy today?

A Fairytale Night to Remember

2013-02-08T19:00:00.000-06:00

My sweet-as-can-be cousin Jolene came to visit us with her friend Kristin last weekend. They are both huge Disney buffs, and both have even worked at the park. During their stay, we all went to see Disney On Ice at the United Center. It was a great show and Alora loooooooved it. As soon as we got there I treated her to a Rapunzel doll (who has not left her side since) and lots of goodies. Unfortunately the $12 (eeesh!) flavored ice was "too cold" but the $10 popcorn was a hit. And we got a sweet souvenir cup and bucket out of the deal (I'm trying to make the crazy prices sound a little more worth it in my head).

While I was out on the town with our guests, Jake got Alora dressed and ready for the show. He said he let her pick out her outfit. Her dress of choice was her purple cheerleader dress-up costume (also a "requirement" for 50% of our dance parties). I asked her if she wanted to change and she firmly said No. "I wear my princess dress!" And so she did.

By the end of the show, we had sleepy, runny-nosed girl trying to keep her eyes open to soak up every bit of princess magic she could. Watching her amazement and wonder was my favorite part of the show.

Thanks for introducing us to a great memory, Jolene and Kristin! This night goes down in the books!

Life Lately: January 2013

2013-02-07T18:38:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you, but I'm still trying to write 2012 on everything. I don't know why this new year won't stick! Anyways, I mentioned awhile ago that I wanted to start sharing more of our day-to-day photos and stories so I'm going to try to do a little recap at the end of each month. We'll have some of the highlights along with some of our photos that I want to share that may not be worthy of an entire post. So here is January!

1 - So. Much. To. Pack. Jake and I spend the morning packing the car with all our holiday loot. Sad to leave our families but it's so nice to get home. A quick grocery run for necessities, then we watched the Rose Bowl (whomp whomp)
3 - Busybusybusy still trying to make a dent into my work from the past week.
9 - Tried out some new recipes: twice baked potatoes and garlic-brown sugar chicken. Awesome!
*12 - met friends (Phil and Heather) for dinner
14 - Monday=groceries
15 - first night of no paci!!! yay!! It only took 2 hours for her to fall asleep.
16 - I baked a cake!
17 - went to the Chicago Market, then wandered around the streets. Love being downtown with no plans. I stopped by Blick art supplies and found some pens. Mom and dad are visiting.
18 - my parents babysat. I went I to the office for a day of meetings. We ordered from our favorite Thai place for dinner.
19 - Mom and I cleaned like maniacs and Jake and my dad re-caulked the shower.
21 - Ikea! We walked around for an extra 20 minutes looking for a coveted car-cart.
23 - Dried up pot roast for dinner and curious George movie with popcorn. Ali's favorite.
*24 - Ali and I had a dance party.
*26 - After a morning of cleaning we took a break to play at the park. Ali and Cosmo splashed in the puddles. Alora started calling Jake her prince. I want to dance with my prince

So that's January. We packed in a lot this month and topped it with even more dance parties held in our ~~dinning room~~ ballroom. Life is good. Life is happy.

Photo A Day

2013-02-06T21:29:00.001-06:00

The photo-a-day challenge has been going strong! And now that I am a little more familiar with Instagram, it's even more fun! I've even tried my hand at hashtags, woot woot. #ihavenoideahowthesethingswork
If you want to see more photos, just click on the Instagram link to the right.

2. pattern

3. something beginning with "e"

4. hope


5. something you smelled today

6. soft

Photo A Day is Back!

2013-02-01T21:33:00.002-06:00

That's right! I'm giving it another try. Last year, right around this time, I tried out the photo a day challenge. I really enjoyed it and love looking back at the photos. You can read more about it here. I actually stuck with it for close to a month. This year's goal is to make it the full month of February.

Once again I'm using the photo prompts from Fat Mum Slim. She puts out a new list each month. Here is her full list, and you can read all of the "rules" here. Like last year, I'll also be adding all of my photo-a-days to Instagram.

source

Today's prompt was "fork". We had one of our family favorites for dinner tonight: open face BBQ sandwiches, french fries and green beans. Delish!

day 1: fork

We also have a sicky on our hands. She's been sneezing and coughing all day, poor sweetie.

Our plan is to go to the Disney on Ice show tomorrow so hopefully she's feeling a little better. I actually heard her talking in her sleep this afternoon, "I want to go see Merida" (I told her Merida would be there). I think she might love it!

Look Out June Cleaver

2013-01-30T21:29:00.000-06:00

That's right. Look out June Cleaver. This girl just made a quilt. Booyah.

( I use the word "just" loosely since it took me almost a year. )

Another title I considered for this post was "World's Worst Seamstress Makes World's Worst Quilt." But I thought I'd give June a run for her money.

I started it last Christmas when Jake got me a sewing machine. And let's just say it was a learning experience. Even with the help of my trusty Scrap Manager (see below), things did not always go smoothly.

Alora playing the role of Scrap Manager, January 2012

I didn't really follow a pattern, but was inspired by a quilt I saw awhile ago on Pinterest.

Since I'm new to sewing, I made pretty much every mistake possible when sewing or quilting. My great grandmothers, a few of whom were quilters, must have been watching over me, because somehow this bad boy turned out alright in the end.

It's big enough for a throw on the sofa and so far has held up to our day-to-day use.

I machine pieced the top and machine quilted the lines across. The binding was hand stitched while watching the entire first season of Dowton Abbey on a very late Friday night when Jake was out of town. That's how I roll.

I know... my awesomeness is blowing your mind. :0)

Little Words

2013-01-29T21:23:00.000-06:00

Alora: Cat gave a present to the Big Bad Wolf.
Me: Oh? What was it?
Alora: Bobbo (Alora's way to say Cosmo)

Reading the very hungry caterpillar~
Me: "...that night he had a stomachache."
Alora: He sad? His tummy hurt?
Me: Yes, he had a tummy ache.
Alora: He should go potty.

After showing me that her nail polish was missing on 2 nails~
Alora: I ate it!!!!

And my favorite~
Alora talking about Jake: That's my prince. I want to dance with my prince.

And so they did.

Hellooooo 2013!

2013-01-27T22:11:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!!!

Oops, I guess I'm a little late for the party. Nevertheless, I'm here to reminisce, resolute and of course, celebrate.

2012 was a great year for a lot of reasons. We got to see lots of our old friends and family, we took a trip to the Grand Canyon, and had many more firsts with Alora. I also made some changes in my professional life mid-year that allowed me to have a little more time at home with my family. I can not tell you how grateful I am to have this flexibility in my workplace. I can tell you that I go through a lot more coffee and under-eye concealer but the added ~~stress~~ challenges of my crazy schedule have been ok. Somehow I actually feel more balanced, more centered and much happier. The challenges that have come with this crazy schedule have also helped me to find out more of what makes me happy and what motivates me.

2012 was a busy year and with it came its share of hiccups. We had Alora's second hospital stay with RSV and a water damaged house and far more than our share of fender-benders. But at the end of the year, we can look back and mark 2012 down as a good year.

I haven't made resolutions for quite a few years (at least none that I've looked at after January) so I thought I'd give it a try this year.

1. My first resolution is to pick a word for the year. Maybe you've heard of this, maybe you haven't. I first discovered this idea through Ali Edward's site and I've always liked the idea, so this year I thought I'd try it out for myself. Initially I was thinking my one little word should be "eeeee!" or "yipeeee!" because I have so much to be excited for. I do have lots of things that I'm wishing for (more on that another day) but I'm also so excited about so much that I have going on right now. Alora is at such a fun age. She's my little buddy and I couldn't be more proud of her. Her excitement over the little things in life is so contagious. I find myself squealing right along with her as we open a new jar of peanut butter (there's nothing like that first scoop!) or when we spy an airplane in the sky, when we get to stop at the tracks to watch the train go by... But after I little more thought I've decided to go with choose for my one little word. Although it doesn't sound like it, it really goes hand in hand with my first word idea. I do have a lot to be excited for, but I need to make a lot of choices to stay happy and excited. I can choose to get off my butt and exercise. I can choose to eat better. I can choose not to raise my voice or get snappy (me? never!). I can choose the right things/people/activities to make priorities. Do I need to vacuum or do I need to rest? What will make me feel best, in turn making my home the happiest and my family feel the most loved. And visa verse. What will make my family feel best because a happy family equals a happy mom and wife.

This one little word will hopefully guide be in the rest of my resolutions. So in no particular order, here are the rest of my goals and resolutions for 2013:

2. Be healthy.

3. Take more time, or time-outs to simply play.

4. Take charge of my home. Just do it or fix it already(!) instead of staring at it.

5. Spend less.

6. Lighten my load. This one is two-part. First, I always over pack. It doesn't matter if it's my purse or luggage for a trip, I. pack. too. much. Secondly, I'm a saver and I hang on to waaaay to much stuff. And the crazy part is, it's things like boxes and string. Things with zero sentimental value. In my head I'll say, "Oh I might be able to use that someday when I'm making a project..." Unfortunately I don't have the time for lots of extra projects now, so there's no point in hanging on to all the extra. When I do have the time, then I can start "hoarding" again (right?). But it won't be hoarding because I'll actually be using stuff! But for now, just let it go.

7. Host and entertain more.

8. Photography - take.more.photos. With my camera or phone. Oh, and edit them. Delete the bad and edit the good so they look as beautiful as the subjects in them. I do know how to use photoshop, after all so why not put my skills to use on our photos? And also, to maybe try to learn a little more about my camera. I say that every year so I threw it in for good measure. Maybe one of these years it will actually catch on.

9. Start a list of rules (more on that one later).

10. Re-read The Happiness Project and The Power of Now. Both of these books had a big impact on my attitude and happiness and I'm due for a refresh. I'd also like to read Gretchin Rubin's new book, Happier at Home.

11. Go to thrift stores. I've actually only done this a few times but whenever I take the time to go to a thrift store, I have SO much fun. So I'm adding this one to my list just as a reminder.

12. Do some more DYI projects - refinish furniture, sewing etc.

13. Fill my calendar with dates. Instead of saying "Oh, that would be so fun..." and then never following though, I want to make a point of scheduling dates. Make it happen.

14. Organize - My home and this blog could both use a little love in the organizing area. There just doesn't seem to be enough time (or time paired with functioning energy) to do it all but my hope is to do a little better this year.

15. Do more projects with Alora. Pull out the craft supplies and let the glitter fly!

16. Continue guiding Ali's transition to a big girl - potty train, move to a big girl bed, and get.rid.of.the.paci.

16 goals! Yes, that's a lot for a year, but I have to at least give it a try, right? And to keep these fresh in my mind, I'm going to print these out and keep them in my calendar for a daily reminder. I also have a few ideas for this little blog.

Blog Goals

1. Share more of my little accomplishments. After all, that's really what life is about and what fills my day.

2. Share more of my passions. I love design and home decor and I love shopping for home decor. Unless it's for myself. Then I get overwhelmed and curl up in a ball. Partially because there is just so much amazing stuff out there but even more so because of a little thing called the budget. As much as I'd love to say the opposite, I don't have boat loads to spend on decorating. But that doesn't mean I can't have fun daydreaming. I love going out and treasure hunting, being inspired, and seeing new ideas so what better place to share them than here?

3. Organize it! That's right, this little blog could use a little love.
4. Find ways to interact with my readers.

5. To be real on this blog. I can't compare myself to other bloggers out there, especially the ones with kajillions of followers. I'm a normal girl with normal stories. So I'm going to try for more of a "what you see is what you get" approach. I ramble. I'm a little goofy. I'm a terrible speller and an even worse proofreader. I don't use commas correctly. And I start sentences with "so" and but"...and "and". I just need to remember to be me and have faith that the reason you are all here is because there must be something you like about my stories (... or something you like to make fun of!).

You might have noticed that I did not mention anything along the lines of "create x new posts per week or month". Anyone who's been reading this for a while knows that it just doesn't work that way for me. I wish it did, but this is me. At least for now...

How about you? Do you have any great resolutions to share? Or One Little Word that you're working?

Merry Christmas!

2012-12-24T14:02:00.003-06:00

Today is December 24th. The last day of our countdown to Christmas. I know Christmas comes so fast each year, but this year it flew! We had so much fun doing our activities this year. I think our countdown will definitely have to become a tradition.

Today and tomorrow we will be spending time with family, reminiscing about all the fun we've had this month and celebrating Christmas. We wish you all a very merry Christmas full of peace, love and joy!

Tis the Season to by Jolly

2012-12-24T13:42:00.001-06:00

We started off day 23 with a little more sledding and even a mini snow fight.

Once we got warmed up again, we met up with some of my hometown friends. I've know most of these lovely ladies and guys since I was Alora's age and now that we're all starting to have kiddos of our own it's so much fun to get them together.

After we had the kiddos tucked into bed with the grandparents, we all met back out for a night on the town. Is this a good looking crew or what?!

Melissa, Beast, Matt, Nay, Todd, Scoles, Cokes, Brotha Ben, Cristin, Trav, EZ, T, Kyle, Jake, and several brandy old fashions

Thanks to everyone for a fun night!

Oh What Fun: Sledding!

2012-12-23T15:17:00.003-06:00

For day 22 we headed north to visit family. Our car was SO full that we had to rethink our packing strategy. Since we could fit more in the front seat, we ended up putting a bunch of bags up front so I was stuck in the back between Ali's seat and a ~~moose~~ our dog Cosmo. It was "cozy."Here's Alora's face when we told her where we were going:

We pulled into my parents house just seconds before our cousins, Luke, Katie and their girls Haddie and Libbie. Once we all got buddled up, we headed to the sledding hill. It was Alora's first time sledding and she loved it! She even got brave enough to go down the hill by herself.

Once we all had enough of the snow we headed back to my parents' house to warm up with some hot chocolate, candy canes and, just like last time, several squealing laps around the house.

After a full day of running, playing, squealing and sledding, these girls were wiped out and they all snuggled up together for a bedtime story.