Easter Pics

Hi all ~ Happy Belated Easter! We are actually in CA right now tagging along with Jeremy on a business trip. And since she is on spring break, Mom is with us. Mom, Tessa and I have been having a great time while Jeremy works. Today Tess had her first trip to a Children's Museum where she hung out in a special crawling room for babies. Stay tuned next week for lots of pictures from our trip. For now, lots of pictures from Easter!


These were all taken at Mamaw's farm where we had a big dinner and egg hunt for the kiddos. In the morning we went to church and Jeremy sang. After a full week of being sick, it was great to finally have a beautiful day out!....then later that night it snowed!

The kids out hunting eggs

Tess loves making funny faces with Mommy

...and eating Peeps with Dad

Our Family on Easter. If I were on my home computer I would dig up our Easter pic from last year when I was 37 wks pregnant!

Spilt eggs...the aftermath of running with a full basket

Tessa was happy to the let the big kids fight over eggs. She had two eggs and a Papaw, all that a girl really needs.

4 generations

Two girls in pretty dresses hunting eggs

She was really happy about putting the eggs in a basket. She's really into putting things in containers.

The tribe preparing for a big hunt

By special request from my friend Rachel...more pictures of Bob!

And let's not forget baby David...coming in two months

Diaper Rash Tips

Poor Tessa got a diaper rash last week and while the rash is gone she has one little blister that's hanging on and looks sore. So I'm looking for tips from you veteran mommies on killing the blister.

We've been trying to let her go diaper free occasionally (she actually napped diaper free on a towel in her crib today!), and slathering her with A&D, neosporin or anti-fungal cream. I read online to lay off of the ointment like neosporin cause they are so thick that the blister can't breathe, so we'll see if that helps.

I'm open to your remedies! If we weren't on our way out of town I would take her to the doc, definitely if it's not gone when we get back.

A (sorta) Good Friday

Happy Good Friday all!

Well I am on day four of the stomach flu and finally went to urgent care this morning...who weren't very helpful. But my regular doc finally hooked me up with some meds I could take while nursing. I took them several hours ago and am finally feeling better and was able to eat.

A BIG THANKS to Mom who took her day off to come up and take care of me and Tessa. She certainly has a way with those crackers.

Poor Tessa has been cooped up since Monday but has been hanging out with Jer alot which she likes. We missed her first library storytime class and our play date with baby Abbey but she didn't seem to mind and was happy to occupy herself with her push car, toys and Yo Gabba Gabba. Since no one has been cooking around here she also discovered some new treats that she likes like mac and cheese and Arby's roast beef.

Back to normal life soon I hope. Looking forward to a nice Easter complete with Mamaw's cooking!

Evidence

Evidence of Spring....

Evidence that your curiosity has gotten the best of you...

Happy 5th Anniversary

5 Years Later....

Showing off her new sippy cup with a straw
Do I look relaxed here...this is shortly after my massage and mani/pedi :)

Well yesterday was a wonderful day....our 5 year anniversary, can you believe it?...and Jeremy cooked up some nice plans for us. In the morning he dropped me off at Robert's salon and day spa and I didn't know what for. He had given me a gift card for my birthday back in June but I never made time to use it. But yesterday he scheduled me for a massage and mani/pedi. I was there for three hours!

It was very very nice. The masseuse noted which side she thought I carried Tessa on (and she was right) and worked out all kinds of kinks. Also my toes are all ready for spring- yay! On the way home we picked up salads at Chili's and Mom was at our house ready to babysit. We hung out at home and Jeremy worked on the garden, preparing for our mulch delivery this week. He readied the area for his grapevines (which we can't plant until May) and planted our garlic and asparagus bulbs, as well as pansies in the flower pots.

We took off again at 5 for a quick stop at Kahn's wine store. Since we don't get there much Jeremy bought three cases of wine, while I was happy with my $9 bottle of Cinzano! I didn't know where we were going to for dinner but when we landed in the trendy neighborhood of Broad Ripple I knew it would be good.

Jeremy had found a cute little restaurant called L'Explorateur tucked away in an old house. Long story short it was AMAZING, probably the best meal I've had since our little NYC dining tour last Feb. I'm sure Jeremy will write about it on his food blog.

At the end of our night we were too late for the comedy club down the street, but too tired anyway so we came home. What a wonderful day!! And Mom reports that Tessa was a good babe and ate dinner well and went to bed on time. When we got home she was fast asleep.

I wanted to share this great video. Our friend Traci lent us this little push behind car that her daughter doesn't play with anymore. Tessa loves it...look at her walk!

Tessa Look-alike Meter

I don't know why I'm doing this instead of getting to bed to catch up on sleep, but oh well. Everyone says Tess looks like Jeremy...looks like you're right (by a little)

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebrities - Collage - Morph

I remember that I once used this website to see what celeb I looked like and it list a few, including Mother Teresa. Seriously.

Oy...Sleepy

I don't what has happened to my good 12hr sleeping baby, but last night was horrible. I'm blaming that top tooth. But the bad part is that she's figured out how to stand in her crib, so she stands up and cries and can't figure out how to lay back down.

I know she's tired cause when we come and lay her down and cover her with her blanky she instantly goes back to sleep. This happened about 5 times last night. I think more than anything she is disoreinted and confused about why she's standing up....

Any tips?...should we ignore her and assume she will figure out how to lay back down? Or help her out every two hours?

We haven't had a night like last night in many months. All I have to say is ZZZZZzzzzzz.....

Boo Boos

Here you can clearly see her three bottom teeth as well as a tiny white dot on the top. Also note the fading green bruise on her forhead from when she bonked the entertainment center :-(

I think we've officially entered the phase of the accident prone toddler. Tessa loves pulling herself up on anything and everything, and getting into drawers etc. So at least twice a day she bonks her head, falls down, drops a toy on her head or something like. I guess that's just part of it....her face gets all red and the tears start flowing. Poor babe, I'll have to learn to get used to this as she learns to walk.

We also now have to officially lock the dogs out of the kitchen when she's eating. They have always begged for her food, but now she's started dropping it for them or worse, taunting them with it. Yesterday Hayden jumped up and got something out of her hand and I think nipped her finger a bit, scaring the crap out of her which resulted in BIG tears. So that's the end of that....when she's done eating we let the dogs back in the kitchen to clean up the floor.

Check Out Our Chia Pet!

Look what we made in MOPS today! Actually I wasn't going to make one because I knew Tessa wouldn't care about it...but then I really wanted one for me! He is stuffed with dirt and grass seeds so he will grow 'hair' we can 'cut'. I think he needs a name....any ideas?




Once again Tessa screamed for at least half of her two hour stay in the nursey. Oy. Oh well, I'm hoping this clingy phase will pass eventually.

oh yeah!...

...I forgot to mention that Tessa cut through her first top tooth this weekend. So she has a total of four.

Down on the Farm

Well no not the farm, as in Mamaw's farm, but today we went and visited a farm. We went to Apple Family Farm in McCordsville to check out their store that Jeremy's been interested in. It was way cool. They sell all locally raised pasture fed organic meats in a little house that they have converted into a store (and lending library!) on their farm property.

I was concerned that it would be expensive but was happy to see it wasn't too bad. They also have local cheeses and things, but were unfortunately out of eggs today, which is too bad.

We've been paying a little extra dough to try organic milk and I'm surprised to say it's worth the price (I was skeptical and too cheap). The flavor really is amazing, and I don't think that's just in my head. Anyway, I'm sure Jeremy has alot to say about it on his food blog, but folks local to Indy might want to check them out: http://www.applefamilyfarm.com/

While at the farm Tessa was really taken my a cat with no tail who greeted us in the driveway. I think she was trying to figure out what was wrong with this particular puppy.

To complete our country experience we had lunch at Cracker Barrel where Tessa chowed on pieces of roast beef, green beans, mushrooms and biscuit. Well and I guess Mommy chowed on those things too :)

The icing on Tessa's day was the purchase of her new sippy cup that has a straw. She was happier than a pig in...well you know. I have a cup with a straw I drink water out of and she loves it and is always begging to suck on it. So now she has her own! Unfortunately it made for some fussiness at dinner as I had to take it away from her so she would eat, but we'll adjust.

Sorry there are no pics. The farm folks would have thought we were real city folk weirdos had we pulled up with camera. Only Mom would do that.

Updates...

Hi all! Well I just have a couple of updates on recent happenings here.

Yes Jeremy does in fact have food poisoning in Korea so keep the good thoughts and prayers coming for him! I haven't talked to him since yesterday but hopefully that means he is resting. A hotel doctor came and gave him a shot and lots of meds.

What did he eat? No not squid or anything, just some pizza with ham on it. He is flying home tomorrow and will be home in time to sing with me in the church talent show. He'll have to muster up that ol' PMO 'the show will go on' mentality cause we're singing!

As for Tessa's bday present, thanks for all your awesome input! I have decided we will get her the fish for her bday, and save the kitchen for next Christmas. I think outside stuff is the way to go for this summer.

Thanks to RI Steph (as opposed to CA Steph or IN Steph) for turning me onto freecycle. How cool! Have you guys heard about this? It's basically like an online garage sale except no money is exchanged...you give away some stuff you don't want, and take others stuff for free. Awesome! Just google freecycle and you can find your town/county. Now I'm looking for stuff to give away...

Lastly I thought you'd like this video of Tess eating dinner. Note that about 50% of her food lands in her mouth. She is eating pasta tossed up with parsley and olive oil. The black specks are olives, the white specks are cheese.

I Can't Watch this Stupid Show....

....A Baby Story without crying like an idiot. And y'all know I'm not a crier right? I didn't even cry at our wedding or Tessa's birth. It's a delayed reaction I think. Stupid show.

Decisions Decisions

...no I'm not talking about politics (although Jeremy has finally decided he's backing a certain candidate..but that's his business to share not mine)

I'm trying to decide what to get Tessa for her birthday. I already bought her a bracelet with her name on it. It's sized for 12-24 months so she can wear it now, but also more for a keepsake as she gets older. It should arrive in the mail any day now!

So since I bought that I have $60 left to buy her a new toy with. Here are my options. I need expertise from you veteran Mommies:

This would be a little under budget and I'm thinking a great outdoor toy for this summer. She has the slide our neighbor gave us but we need somethings small enough to fit into our little fenced in area. I have a feeling we are going to spend alot of time outside this summer, and if she can run free inside the fence that would be great.

I love love love this kitchen set but it would put us about $40 over budget, and also I'm not sure if she'd be into it just yet. Although my decision was swayed when I saw her playing with her little friend Maddie's kitchen set this morning. She was really into it....so maybe she's not too little for this? I'm thinking this might be better for next Christmas and we can save up for it.

Thoughts? I've never had a 'toddler' before...what do they like?

Tessa Talk

People ask me alot if Tess is talking yet. The answer is of course yes! In conventional English?...no. She has her own language though, which I've become quite versed in. I guess my fluency comes from being around her 24/7.

Her most commonly used 'words':

Da Da or Dee Dee= happy noises, letting your know she's having fun or likes what you're doing, likes the toy she's playing with, etc

Shoosh or Sheesh= usually wispered to herself I think this means she's thinking or exploring. I'd like to think that this is her making mental notes to herself tracking the movement of the dogs, the function of her toys, new things she's sees while in the walker

Huh-Dye= I'm not sure but I think this is her way of saying 'hello'...she says this alot when I pick her up, and every day when we say good morning to the dogs

Nay Nay Nay= This is reserved exclusively for being upset or mad....like being strapped in the carseat, put down for a nap, having something cool like a webcam pried out of her hand. The nay is usually accompanied with crying, and often only a step away from a scream

Napping Update

I posted a couple of weeks ago how I was going to start sleep training Tessa during naptime cause she was a horrible napper. Well I'm happy to say that afternoons around here are now a happy nappy time!

Like I said before I decided she will spend at least one hour in her crib every afternoon, no matter what. The first few days she cried when I put her in her crib (eventhough had been asleep) but I'm thoroughly surprised at how quickly she caught on. She is now napping everyday for at least 1.5 hrs, sometimes more.

I'm impressed at how responsive she was to this and how much she seems to understand, even at her age. I guess these kind of things just take patience, on the part of the parent that is. I can't even say how nice it is to have a guaranteed break every afternoon to use as I please...sometimes for chores, sometimes for napping or tv time of my own! What a nice relief.

A Tiny Taste of Spring

Guess what? Instead of doing our normal post nap routine (Tessa watched 30min of baby einstein while I ride my stanionary bike)...we went for a walk! Yes a walk outside!

It's a beautiful day today, probably in the 50's, so we seized the opportunity. It was so nice. I know it won't stay this nice for long, but it was just enough of a taste to tide me over a couple weeks.

Below is a video of Tessa babbling to herself. She's figured out that this little space in the entertainment center makes a cool echo. We used to have vases there but now there's some books she can play with which are much more baby friendly and maybe someday educational?

I thought this was pretty cute...she will stand there and babble like this forever. As always, sorry for the poor camera operation.

Getting Close...

...To walking that is. Tessa can definitely walk with a little help and I think she's not to far off from the real thing. Below are a couple of pics from our visit to the farm yesterday. Tessa loved Mamaw's bbq chicken and potatos, and pigged out!

Trying hard to walk with help from Mom and Dad

She has no trouble pulling up to standing, and can do it very easily nowadays

A 'vintage' toy that used to be Andy and I's, cleaned up especially for Tess

Playing with Ashley

And finally so sleepy after a big day

I saw some pics today that were sent from Jeremy's sister in Seattle and they were outside playing at a park with no coats on!! I'm so jealous. Don't get me wrong, I do like winter more than most people but I think we are getting a little cabin fever around here, especially since Jeremy's been gone. I would love to go to the park!...but 5 degree weather isn't condusive to that.

We did buy some seeds at Menards on sale this weekend and are going to go ahead and start some pots of herbs inside (to be moved out in the spring)...so that's kinda fun. In honor of our 5 year anniversary we are going to plant a couple of grapevines outside and Jeremy's pretty happy about that. We won't get much off of it but enough to make a little wine and jelly hopefully.

The other exciting news around here is the anticipation of our new stove. You know how Bush wants to stimulate the economy by giving us money? Well even though Jeremy insists he is against the stimulus program, he is like a schoolboy waiting for his new stove. Our current one is electric but we had enough money left over to plumb it for gas, so there are a couple guys here today finishing that up. I don't really have a preference, but Jeremy couldn't be happier about finally cooking with gas again. Why not wait until May when we get the check from the prez?...15% of president's day sale at Sears!

Oompa Loompa...

...doopity doo, I've got a sweet potato for you

Self Soothing, Daytime Style

Tessa is notorious for being a bad napper or anti-napper. Our problem lately has been that I rock her to sleep in the afternoon, she falls asleep and as soon as I lay her in her crib she wakes up and cries at me....and eventually I end up holding her. I KNOW she's tired. When I hold her or nap with her (like when I was sick last week), she'll sleep for 2+ hrs.

So I decided it was time to bite the bullet and let her cry. We did this at bedtime several months ago and it worked well. She is now such a great sleeper, but for whatever reason it never translated into daytime.

So I have decided that every day she will lay in her crib in the afternoon for one hour, no matter what happens. If she sleeps more than an hour, even better. Yesterday she was asleep, I laid her down and of course she woke up and I walked away.

She screamed, she yelled, she banged her head against the crib. She had an epic meltdown. BUT...after 30 mins she decided to take a nap. Yay! We did it again today and there was only 7 minutes of meltdown.

I'm so excited about having a guaranteed hour break every afternoon...it will be so much easier to get things done knowing that I have some arms free time. Wow! I haven't used my time very well today, I should take the opportunity to dust!

10 Month Birthday

Can you believe we're thinking about a 1st brithday party coming up soon? Wow. Tess turned 10 months yesterday. Below are a couple of pics.

According to the weekly email I receive from babycenter, at 10 months Tessa will start understanding alot more words, even if she can't talk. So it suggests talking to her alot more during the day and using descriptive words like... would you like your blue sippy cup with water in it? I like talking to her during the day when Jer's not here, helps with the lonlieness. But I've been pretty inconsistent with the baby sign language. Oh well, I think she'll still be brilliant.

Also on our horizon is the start of weaning from nursing, which we'll do at around a year. I need to whip out my breastfeeding book so I can learn the best way it should be done. I'm not really sure. Any tips?? Right now she still nurses 4-5 times a day, and nurses to sleep at night. I assume that bedtime feeding will be the hardest to cut out since it's such a comfort thing.

I will actually be sad to give it up, even after all this time, you'd think I would be sick of it. But it's nice, it's really the only time all day she sits quietly on my lap without squirming. But alas she can't stay on tap all her life. Boo hoo my little baby is growing up.

So THAT'S what's in that box!

Needless to say every day something new happens around here, even if it's small. I certainly didn't know Tess could do this, and judging by her excitement neither did she.

The toybox was cracked open but the rest she did herself...pulling herself up from crawling to standing, opening the lid, throwing the toys on the floor. Wow.

Happy Valentines!

Well Tessa and I are having a low key Valentines day, which is okay cause we don't really celebrate it around here. Jeremy is in Switzerland right now and I am recovering from a cold, so I was just happy to get out of the house for the first time all week and go to WW and walmart (yes Jeremy has lifted his walmart boycott by the way, don't ask me why).

I just have a little cold but just like when I was pregnant it is impossible to shake because I can't take very many drugs while breastfeeding. I can't wait for the day I can take a decongestant- woohoo!

One good thing I can say about being sick and alone with a baby is that Tessa is a good sleeper so I can go to bed early! Lately she's been going to bed at about 7:15ish and waking up at 5-6 to nurse, snoozing some more until 7:30 or so when she really wakes up. I really can't complain about that!

Tessa and I did pick up a Valentine's feast while we were out, the boneless buffalo chicken salad from Chili's. Well Tessa just at the blue cheese crumbles, I ate the rest. Mmmm.... We got a break in the cabin fever yesterday when Mom spent the day with us. They had an early flight this morning to FL for a conference so stayed at my house, but Mom also had a snow day so she started her vacation early by spending the day with us!

And we are also dogsitting Maggie and Moose. It didn't take them very long to figure out who drops the cheerios around here

And lastly I thought I'd share this little video. Moosie is, well, special and he likes to howl at himself alot. Tessa and Hayden were apparently stumped by this behavior

He's Live!

Jeremy has finally started his food blog with his first post today! Check it out at: www.eatagainwithbennington.blogspot.com

Yes I know the title is corny but I set it up for him and went through about 100 options, all of which were already taken. So "Eat Again with Bennington" it is. Enjoy!

Playing with the Pups on a Sunday Afternoon

Cruisin the Kitchen

It's been a while since I captured some good video, so here ya go. This is what Tessa does every day while I'm cooking or cleaning in the kitchen. Don't worry, we are now fully baby proofed!

ps- please excuse the poor camera work, hope I don't make you sick

Food For Thought

Yesterday my Father in Law sent me this article, which you may have also heard all over the news, about babies being harmed by the chemicals in baby soaps and shampoos:http://health.msn.com/kids-health/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100190606&GT1=10914. This came on the same day that Jeremy told me about the dangers of drinking hot liquids out of plastic containers and that Canada is considering outlawing plastic baby bottles, to replace them with the old fashioned glass ones.

I guess this all serves as evidence of the theory I've been cooking up for some time now, that the dangers posed by the mass produced conveinence items purchased by our generation of mothers may ultimately lead us to renew the more natural parenting lifestyles of our grandmothers. Meaning maybe they had it right all along? I guess there's no way to guage which is better (and our grandmothers might certainly say that we have it better, shearly for conveinence products like disposable diapers if nothing else)....but I'm tempted to ask the question, what would Mamaw have done?

I try and use that perspective when shopping for both food and cleaning products nowadays. You may know that Jeremy and I consider ourselves wannabe green hippies, meaning we are trying very hard to make our home 'green' but we aren't perfect on all counts (like my overuse of hairspray for example). We adopted this attitude a couple of years ago and it's been a slow process. Mostly I have just always wondered about the overuse of household chemicals like bleach and what the long term affects are.

Regarding groceries, Michael Pollan has a new book out called "In Defense of Food" which basically utilizes the theory I used above.....if your grandmother would not have recognized at your age, don't eat it. I haven't read this book yet but like the idea of it. With the start of this year and joining the 'core' program in WW Jeremy and I have been trying to adopt that attitude and abandon our former dependence on processed foods.

On both counts, eating and cleaning/toiletry supplies, purchasing earth friendly and chemically 'safe' items is not easy. It involves scoping out the more abandoned aisles of the grocery store and sometimes simply being creative, but maybe this newly released article about baby shampoos proves it's worth it after all??

You could say that these kind of articles are just people being paranoid, which it very well may be. But I guess I'd rather play on the safe side. Chemicals just seem a little scary to me (except for hairspray....show me a good 'green' alternative that will keep my hair looking good and I'll try it! :)

Like I said before I'm not a perfect environmentalist or anything but here are some of my fave products: kiss my face brand soaps, 365 shampoos and soaps (purchased at whole foods and cheap!), Body Shop lotions (mostly organic and fair trade), Trader Joe's dishwasher detergent OR a mix of Borax and Baking Soda, Ecos, Method or Meijer brand natural laundry detergents, Alan's Naturals laundry detergent (strong enough for cloth dipes!), Apple cider vinegar in place of liquid fabric softener, Borax and Simple Green for kitchen and bathroom cleaning (simple green is also great for mopping!), Earth's Friend furniture polish (olive oil and orange oil, amazing shine!)

And I cannot say enough awesome things about the cost saving and shining ability of my favorite household cleaner....white vinegar! If you doubt me, mix a spray bottle with half white vinegar and half water and do your windows. It's amazing and SO cheap!

Don't get me wrong here...not saying there is anything wrong with folks choosing traditional cleaners. I'm just offering a perspective on some alternatives. Food for thought.

Clean Baby

mmmm Olives!

Another finger food to add to the list, kalmata olives. I thought it would be fun to see her reaction, then she happily ate 4 olives! She has good taste I think :)

It's A.....

......BOY! Andy and Becky's baby of course. Looks like Sargent and Sons Farm is still a go!

I have two rubbermaid tubs of girl clothes I was ready to give Becky. Oh well, they will stay in storage for now.

9 Month Pics (better late than never!)

Yeah yeah I know we are over a week late but here are some pics of Tessa at 9 months. Taking her 'portrait' on the couch used to be easier, but now is nearly impossible as she wants to crawl off the couch, grab the camera and eat it. But I got a couple of good shots!

Sorry for the red eyes. Jeremy moved things around on my computer and I can't find Picassa to fix it (I blame him for all technical malfunctions in the house). By the way he has agreed to a food blog, so stay tuned!

A Weekend Visit

We had a very nice weekend. On Friday we drove up to Elkhart in Northern, IN to have a little visit with my Gramaw and Grampaw Sargent (Tessa's great grandparents). It was great to see them, and I think they were thoroughly entertained by Tessa's babbling and playfulness. Jeremy cooked a nice lunch for us all and we headed back Saturday evening.

The best part about the 3 hr car ride was using my new Ipod. Yes it's true, I've finally entered the 21st century and got my first Ipod for Christmas...thanks Clay! Using Jeremy's music library and my Itunes gift card I have a very nice playlist, so that's fun. Here are some pics from our weekend...

Tessa wanted to show off the little pink bug shoes my Mom got her. They are shoes but she thinks that they are just cool new toys that she can pull off of her feet and chew on. (I'm not sure why her face is covered in food in this pic...it always is) I got called out of the church service for the first time because Tessa was having an epic meltdown in the nursery. When I was there she was fine. I think after all this time she if finally starting to figure out that when she's in there I'm not. This seperation anxiety thing is a phase I know but exhausting for me, especially when we're just here at home and I just go into the bathroom and she loses it. We play peekabo all the time, that's supposed to help, but we'll see. When she's in the nursery on Wed. I'm just going to tell them she may cry, come get me if she screams. I guess it's good to be needed :-)

Permission to Harass

I've been telling Jeremy he should start a food blog chronicling all of his experiments in the kitchen as well as the fun and fancy food he gets to eat while travelling. Plus he's all into reading foodie books nowadays and thinks he's a culinary expert. But he's ignoring me.

So I think we should start an email writing campaing. Send Jeremy an email if you'd like him to author a foodie blog. Harass him!

:-)

9 Month Check Up

Today Tessa and I went to the doc's for her 9 month well check. Doc says she looks perfect and is right on track developementally. Her stats were:
-- 19.9lb (60 %tile)
-- 29.5in (95% tile)
head circumference in 95 %tile as well. So once again she is tall and skinny with a giant head. No shots today, not until her 12 month checkup. And that was that!

Tessa's 9 month old life is pretty good. She enjoys:
-- scooting around on her arms and touching everything she can reach, eating carpet fuzz and 'chasing' the dogs
-- cruising the kitchen in her walker and tugging towels off the stove, playing with spatulas and measuring cups and again 'chasing' the dogs (I've tried over and over to catch this on video..one of these days)
-- babbling to everyone and everything, mostly saying 'da da' or 'ba ba' or 'nay nay nay' when she's mad. Ocassionally I'll catch her whispering to a toy like she's telling it secrets
-- finger feeding herself little pieces of bread, cheese, soft carrots, etc. About 50% actually lands her in her mouth. She also loves getting drinks from her sippy eventhought again not much liquid actually gets swallowed.
-- going out to stores and restaurants where she can look around and meet new people, especially if they fuss over her.
-- screaming bloody murder when I put her in her carseat or even worse when I leave the room and she can't see me. She's got a scream that will make your ears bleed but oh well...hopefully it's just a phase.

I haven't yet taken her 9 month 'portrait' but here's a good pic from the OTP party the other day. Of course she had her party headband on!

Ralphie!....

....I can't move my arms Ralphieeeeee!!

ps- I'm happy to brag that I got this snowsuit for $10 on ebay

We Cleaned House

Well not the actual house- the actual house is still recovering from the OTP post Christmas party on Friday night. We cleaned house at the MLK Day sales at Kohls and Old Navy yesterday.

Old Navy had alot of kids clearance that was an additional 50% off so we're talking cute tops for $4! So Tessa has all of her clothes for spring and summer as well as new pjs, shoes and jeans. In theory there should be no more baby clothes shopping for long time...if I can resist the cuteness!

Both sales run through tomorrow so don't miss out! (do I sound like a commercial?)

Below is a good picture of Tess and if you squint and look at her bottom gums you can see that tiny white tooth. The one right next to it is coming in too.

A Warning....

...to my fellow baby girls out there. Head bow + stocking cap= possible temporary blindness while snoozing in the car. Beware ~ Tessa

Better Health All Around

Well I am happy to report that everyone in our household is very healthy for the moment, including Rosie who had her own digestive issues directly following Tessa's (Jeremy tried to play Dr. House and see a corelation but there was none).

Tessa saw the doctor on Monday morning to follow up on the fever she ran all weekend and everything was fine. She had actually gained two pounds from her puny weight at the ER so she's eating and nursing alot better and is reported to be on the mend. Whew!

I'm happy to report that Jeremy and I are feeling pretty good too, thanks to our new eating habits on the 'core' program of Weight Watchers. It really focuses on eating fruits and veg, whole grains and lean meats and I can definitely say both of us have felt the difference in energy eating those foods. I really believe that there's some truth to the idea of processed packaged foods dragging down your energy, at least in my experience.

So all is well. I realize that our posts recently have been text heavy and picture lacking so here is a pic of Tess with her favorite new Christmas toy..it plays songs and lights up!

And lastly I just have to say yay! that American Idol is back on the air. Finally something to watch and no writers to strike! :)

You Know You're From Indiana When...

I don't normally pass along joke things like this but I really liked this one because I could relate to almost every item listed, either from growing up in IN or living here now. For our out of state readers and family, I'm hoping this will shed a little light on why we are the way we are ....

• You think the state Bird is Larry.
• You can say "French Lick" without laughing out loud.
• There's actually a college near you named " Ball State ."
• You know Batesville is the casket-making capital of the worldand you're proud of it.
• Your feelings get hurt whenever someone points out the acronymfor Purdue University is PU.
• You know several people who have hit a deer.
  Down south to you means Kentucky .
• You have no problem spelling or pronouncing Terre Haute .
• Your school classes were canceled because of cold.
• Your school classes were canceled because of heat.
• You know what the phr ase "knee-high by the Fourth of July"means.
• You've heard of Euchre, you know how to play Euchre, and you are a master of Euchre.
• You've seen a running car, with nobody in it, in the parkinglot of the grocery store, no matter what time of year it is.
• Detassling was your first job. Bailing hay, your second. Or you could stack hay, swim in the pond to clean off and then have the
  strength to play a couple of games of hoops, all in the same barn lot onthe same day.
• You say things like catty-wampus and kitty corner and know what they mean.
• You install security lights on your house and garage, thenleave them both unlocked.
• You carry jumper cables in your car regularly.
• You drink pop.
• You catch frogs at the crick.
• If you want someone to hear you, you holler at 'em.
• You know that baling wire was the predecessor to duct tape.
• You know that strangers are the only ones who come to your front door.
• Kids and dogs ride in the passenger seats of cars and thebacks of pickups.
• You think nothing of driving on the roads and being stuckbehind a farm implement in spring and fall. You just hope it's not a hog truck or a manure spreader.
• High school basketball games draw bigger crowds on the weekendthan movie theaters, IF you have a movie theater.
• Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
• The local paper covers national and international headlines onone page but requires six for local sports.
• You can repeat the scores of the last eight NBA games, but unless the MVP is a Hoosier, you are not sure who he is.
• You can see at least two basketball hoops from your yard.
  You can name every one of Bobby Knight's exploits over the last fewyears.
• The biggest question of your youth was IU or Purdue.
• Indianapolis is the BIG CITY.
• Getting stuck by a train is a legitimate excuse for beinglate to school or work.
• Everyone knows who the town cops are, where they live, andwhether they're at home or on duty.
• You've been to the Covered Bridge Festival. And you took backroads to get there. Why sit in traffic?
• To you, tenderloin is not an expensive cut of beef, but a big,salty, breaded, & fried piece of pork served on a bun with pickle and onion.

Since When Do I Have a Picky Baby?

While we were travelling in December Tessa experienced alot more table food and this stomach flu has thrown off her appetite too and now I'm having a hard time getting her to eat her baby food! She's even refusing some of her favorite things like avocados and bread.

All morning I tried to get her to eat pieces of banana, applesauce or wheat bread and she refused. So I sit down with my lunch- a whole wheat pasta tossed up with mushrooms and onions- and she starts begging. She just wanted my food! So she had mushrooms and tiny pieces of pasta for lunch. It was super garlicy so I hope that doesn't bother her tum!

I think it's great she's eating table food so easily but it's hard for a couple of reasons...first off she has no teeth yet (one is on the way!) so things like meat and some veg still need to be pureed eventhough she doesn't care for pureed stuff anymore...and also we use alot of garlic and spices in our cooking that I don't think she can have yet. Hmmm

I think I need to be more creative in make her some more grownup food that's not too grownup. Any suggestions?

To follow up on my last post- Tessa is doing alot better but still on the mend. She seems to be feeling okay but has been running a temp all weekend so we are going to visit the doc in about an hour to make sure everything is okay. I'll keep you posted!

A Long Couple of Days

Well Tessa and I are tired after an adventuresome couple of days. To keep this blog from rambling on I'll keep our events to a little timeline here:

--Wed morning we went to stroller aerobics and Tess had a major puke all over herself, her stroller and the community center carpet. It was pretty massive and projectile, and the nice ladies in my class helped clean her up even though I told them they didn't have to.

--I figured she had just eaten too much breakfast but she perplexed me by throwing up her lunch. She was telling me was hungry (she has perfected the pulling on my shirt technique) so I fed her again she barfed again that night. Uh oh...sick baby

--So I called the doc who said we needed pedialyte. Jeremy is out of town so we ran up to Walgreens in the rain to get some. So she drank some that night, dry heaved in the night and slept restlessly. Can I take a moment to ask- why does Pedialyte come in grape flavor if there's a good chance the kid will ralph it all over the carpet? Just curious....we chose apple.

-- Yesterday morning she seemed okay so I nursed her. Big puke. Called the doctor and they couldn't get us in so we went to Prompt Med clinic. She puked all over the clinic office. The doc there said of course she had a stomach virus, there were no drugs for it and just make sure she drinks something, that's the most important.

-- So all day yesterday I tried to get her to drink pedialyte, water, or nurse but she wasn't having any of it. For those of you who have witnessed her love affair with her sippy cup you might be surpised by her adament refusal to put it in her mouth.

--The nurse had told me if she hadn't drank any liquid by 5pm to go to the ER for an IV. 5 oclock came and not a single drink. Oh boy. I packed up snacks for me, toothbrush etc and pedialtye knowing I would be there a long time.....and boy were we!

--Our ER visit was LONG and tiresome and in the end maybe not neccesary. We waited 3.5 hrs to get back to a room, 1 more hour to see nurses, and 1 more hour to see the real doctor. In the waiting room she slept and I kept trying to get her to drink thinking maybe we could leave but she wouldn't. I just hate that impatient feeling of 'maybe they will call us next'...and it's another hour. Luckily Dad stopped by on his way home from work and hung out with us in the waiting room...it was nice to not be alone (Jer's out of town). Thanks Dad!

-- In the hour we were waiting in a room Tessa decided she was ready to nurse and went for a full feeding, wet her diaper for the first time all afternoon and promptly started smiling and being happy. So by the time the nurse came in all was well. Of course.

--They waited a while to make sure she didn't puke up that milk and determined she wasn't dehydrated after all and we could go home. That was 5.5 hrs after we first got there. When we got home she nursed again and twice already this morning...so apparently she's over it. She's happily playing with her toys now and oblivious that anything happened.

The End :)

Finally That Ticker is Movin' Again

My weight loss ticker that is. I guess it was a little stalled during the holidays but we are back on track around here. I switched to Weight Watchers "core" program and really like it so far. Basically you don't count the calories ('points') but focus more on whole grains, veggies and low sugar lifestlye. There is so much produce in our house it's unreal. We are like a farm fresh produce stand here...but that's good. Jeremy and I both feel we have more energy already and we like cooking with fresh ingredients.

The main reason I switched programs is because my weight loss has been a little stalled as Tessa is nursing less and it's hard to figure out how to adjust the calories. My WW leader said there is no hard and fast rule on how many extra 'points' you get as they nurse less. Anyway, just seemed to complicated to figure out so no more points for now.

We've been experimenting with new recipes and have discoved some weird couscous like grains like Quinoa. It's actually really good. Jeremy made polenta pizza the other night which was also surprisingly tasty. I'm impressed.