MIA

Sorry I have been missing in action lately... been busy around here. Anabelle and I have been filling our days with running errands, getting ready for spring and having fun with friends. We joined a play group a couple of weeks ago. In the past I have tried a few times to join a mommy group and it has never been the right fit. Either they were too large and therefore their playgroups filled up too fast, or they just didn't fit well with Anabelle's nap schedule, or they were just not a good match friendship-wise. Well we finally found a group of moms that seem normal, nice, and have playgroups during the hours that Anabelle is awake =) I found them on meetup.com, which is a website where you can find any kind of group, for example book clubs. So far we have been to 3 events and tomorrow we are going to another one. I'd like to try to attend at least 1-2 events per week, depending on what we have going on. Anabelle acts the same way around the playgroup kids that she acts around everybody; sometimes she's interested in you and sometimes she wants to do her own thing. I think over time she'll get to know some of the other kids better and will hopefully form some friendships. For me it is nice to have some other moms to talk to, share stories with, and ask questions. They also have events like moms night out and a book club, which is great because sometimes it is really hard to carry on a conversation while keeping tabs on your children. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

I have also been working on some sewing projects. I made some new curtains for our dining room. We used to have a long scarf that hung as a window treatment, but I didn't really like it and Anabelle liked to pull on it.

So I decided to take the material and make some little valances. I like how light and airy they are-perfect for Spring/Summer.

I also finished working on a onesie and 2 tee-shirts that were gifts for some friends. They have a set of 2-year old twins and now they have just welcomed a new little baby, so I thought they could use some coordinating shirts.

I still have 2 more onesies that I am working on; one will have a monkey applique and I'm not sure about the other one. Any suggestions? I don't know the gender of the baby, so it has to be neutral.

I have also been getting prepared to go on a cruise. I leave in one week to go on a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas! My big brother is getting married-yay! I am excited to go on my 1st cruise and enjoy some warm weather (it has been pretty cold around here for the last few weeks). John is going to stay home with Anabelle while I go on the cruise, and Grandma Sue and Grandpa Ken are going to come in from Texas to visit and help out. I am going to miss my little girl but I know she'll be in good hands and having fun with Daddy, and Grandma and Grandpa. I know she'll love getting to see her Daddy all day, and it will be good for both of them.

I was doing some gardening today and I accidentally disturbed these little bunnies. They hopped out of the area I was raking. There were 4 of them total and they were so cute. I hope they are ok and go back to living in that spot. I managed to get pictures of 2 of them, I love the zoom on my new camera!

Anabelle and I practicing our self portrait- I think we still need to practice. I have not yet mastered looking fabulous while taking a picture with one arm and holding a squirming toddler with the other arm

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So that is what we have been up to.... what have you been up to? (I love to hear from my readers hint, hint)

Me-ow!

We have 2 furry children, Merlin and Morgan. Merlin acts like an old man at almost 12 years old, whining and complaining everywhere he goes. Uncaring about the activities of most people, however, he has a devotion to John that cannot be rivaled. Morgan thinks he is still a kitten at 7 years old. "Tubby" is his nickname. He appears to be unaware of his girth and also gravity, therefore he often falls off tables when he rolls over. Morgan loves to be pet by all and has only ever been devoted to food and water.

Once upon a time they were the kings of their castle; getting new toys, treats, catnip, tons of love and cuddles, hours of naps together on the couch and petting whenever they desired. Since the arrival of Anabelle, our poor kitties have been lowered on the priority list around here. They have coped with it well, and are slowly learning to accept Anabelle. They must be realizing that after 18 months she isn't going back to wherever she came from and therefore they should learn to love (ok really just live with) her.

Merlin doesn't even allow me to pet him, unless John is gone for an extended period of time. At which point Merlin bitches and moans about it for the first 3 days and usually by day 4 comes to me begrudgingly and permits me to pet him. But don't worry he is very quick to let John know upon his return that he didn't like it. So Merlin has learned to cope with Anabelle by running away from her very quickly. She of course thinks this is a fantastic game and chases him even more, repeatedly saying "Me-ow" while pointing at him.

Morgan who used to be fearless in his youth, has become a scaredy cat in his older age. He loves to be pet, but can be slow to emerge from under the bed. Once he is used to you, he'll be your best friend. Morgan, thinking about his future survival and care, has decided that is could be beneficial to befriend Anabelle. Also given that he is so tubby he really can't move fast enough to get away from her, so he decided to give it. He will often allow her to pet him, and has been pretty patient with her throughout the learning process of the proper petting technique. Past the stage of fur pulling, she is now able to pet him gently.

Anabelle loves the kitties and anytime one darts through the room she immediately gets up and follows them around. She helps me feed them every day and is very intrigued by their food and water. "Me-ow" was one of her first words, and she says it often. I am sure as time goes by and Anabelle gets older, their friendship will grow. For now it is wonderful entertainment to watch her chase them around and attempt to pet them.

Ooohh, a kittie! "ME-OW!"

Wait a minute, slow down! I want to pet you!

Let me just crouch down...

Gotcha!

The dr's office

Anabelle had her 18 month check up this past Monday. For the first time she got to stand on the big scale and it made me realize just how big she is getting. Here are her stats:

Weight-27.4 lbs 88th %ile

Height-31.5 in. 40th %ile

Head circumference 42 cm. 90th %ile

She is doing great with everything else; they checked out her ears which frequently give her trouble and said that they look great. They also asked about a million developmental checklist questions and she appears to be great-which of course we knew!

We are hearing lots of new words and phrases from Anabelle, but I think we are the only ones who might understand them. Often we say something and right after I hear her try to mimic the words. Hmmm... might be time for us to stop swearing? This is what she says lately:

"Uh-oh"

"Ding-dong" (she loves to ring the doorbell)

"Meow" (she loves the cats and chases them all over to try and pet them. Merlin doesn't usually let her, but Morgan is a good sport and usually will let her pet him)

"woof-woof" (any time she sees a dog or something she thinks is a dog)

"get down"

"done"

"da" (daddy)

"mama"

"store"

Some people were surprised to learn that Anabelle still slept without anything in her crib; no pillow, no lovey, no blanket. It started when she was little when it wasn't safe to give her anything, and we just never started. Anabelle is a thumb sucker and hair twirler at bed time so she never really seemed to want or need a lovey or blanket. The other day we decided to start laying her down with a blanket at nap and bedtime. Well now she is hooked on her blankie and it goes many places with her. She will cry if you forget and leave it in her crib in the morning, and if its not there at night she cries. The other night she had a mini meltdown because she couldn't take her blankie in the bathtub with her. Part of me likes that she has something that can comfort her and make her feel cozy, and the other part of me feels like *why did we introduce something that we now have to drag around everywhere, clean, and not loose? Are we crazy??!!* I think we need to find a smaller lovey to get her hooked on so that her larger blankie can stay in her crib, we'll see how that goes.

YUM!

Between thunderstorms today Anabelle and I got outside for a bit of fresh air, it was actually quite nice out and everyone in the neighborhood seemed to have the same idea. Anabelle discovered a little puddle in our driveway and had lots of fun touching, and splashing in the water. It's funny because John and I frequently find that little hole in the driveway annoying, especially when shoveling snow. But now that I see how much fun it can be when filled with water I may not curse it as much.

She even liked tasting the puddle water. That's right, I said tasting. I promise I do give my child drinks and she is not severely dehydrated and dying of thirst despite what it may seem in this video clip!

"When Irish eyes are smiling...they steal your heart away."

One year ago today

Our little leprechaun turned 1 and a half today! How fun that Anabelle will always be able to celebrate her half birthday on St. Patrick's Day. Anabelle and I drove home today leaving Daddy to have some fun with the guys, while we enjoy some girl time. Today we had beautiful weather here in Chicago; high of 65. After getting back home, and having some lunch, I tried to snap a few 18 month old photos of Anabelle. We started out fine, and then she tripped on the sidewalk and smacked her for head on the concrete. She didn't even cry, and after a few minutes of struggling to hold an ice pack on her head I gave up. Of course she was left with a huge mark in the middle of her head. So I didn't get as many pics as I usually do.

Love her little facial expressions

Had to share this one last picture taken while at the lake house. We were thinking about getting Anabelle a wagon this summer, but who needs that when you have a cooler?

Same shit, different day- but in a good way

It seems that even on vacation you can't escape some of the basic toddler activities...

Stealing remotes and obsessing over them

Pointing out facial features on Mommy and Daddy

Looking out the windows, although this view is much better than what we have at home

Going to the park

Drive-thru popcorn shop.

What's that you say? Drive-thru popcorn shop? Now wait a minute, that's something new! In Portage, a nearby town, we saw this shop and HAD to go. The lady who ran the place got a kick out of our request for caramel mixed with cheese popcorn. Immediately asking if we were from Chicago? Well of course we are, and just so you know -it is the best combo of popcorn flavors!

While in Portage we decided to stop for some dinner at a very colorful Mexican restaurant. Anabelle had her first taste of chips and salsa and she liked it. Dinner was great, quite an upgrade from the night before.

Anabelle and I both had fried ice cream for the first time, and we both loved it! YUM!!

This morning we got up and headed into Wisconsin Dells to look around. We had thought about going into Madison, but with all of the hub-bub going on at the capital we thought it might be a little crazy. So we settled for the Dells, and found it to be pretty quiet, being the off-season. We did enjoy a nice walk along the riverwalk, even when we're not in Naperville we still manage to find a riverwalk. Although this one had a much bigger river.

Walking around the downtown area, we spotted this old Zoltar fortune telling machine just like the one from the movie Big. Hopefully Anabelle didn't wish to be big.

Even though lots of the activities are the same here on vacation, it's nice to experience a new place and enjoy it together just the 3 of us.

Heading home tomorrow, back to the burbs.

Wisconsin

John, Anabelle, and I are up in Poynette, Wisconsin for a few days, about a half-hour north of Madison. John makes an annual trip up here with his guy friends from high school to watch the March Madness games and this year we decided to rent the "cabin" for a whole week and Anabelle and I would come up for the beginning of the week, leaving on Thursday when the guys arrive. I use the word cabin in quotes because really even though we call it a cabin, it's not. It is really a lake house, located on Lake Wisconsin. The house is pretty nice, and the only thing rustic about it is the wood paneling all over. They have a large hot tub on the deck, a fireplace, flat screen TVs in every room, and all new appliances in the kitchen. It is owned by an older couple, and I think the wife is my kindred spirit. She has EVERYTHING labeled and also has typed out instructions for anything you might possibly have even the slightest question about!!! (I wonder if she is a teacher?) The house is spotless, well organized, and has pretty much everything you could ever need. She even had a highchair for Anabelle. So we are enjoying a few days of R&R.

We arrived yesterday evening and we were surprised to see that they still had snow on the ground up here. The temps have been around 40 for a high, and the lake looks like it is beginning to get a little slushy. We unpacked and decided to head to the local place for some dinner. It was about 1 mile down the road and pretty much the only place around that served food. Even though we are pretty close to Madison, you get 25 miles out and it's like you're in the boonies. The restaurant was definitely the townie bar, and we felt a little out of place, especially with a baby in tow. Oh well, the food was edible and hot, but definitely not gourmet. We will be trying out a Mexican restaurant tonight that is a short drive away. After dinner last night we came back and let Anabelle run around for a while. She wasted no time in making herself at home. Unpacking all of her toys and making sure to feed her stuffed animals.

Soon it was bedtime for all little girls, and hot tub time for all big girls =) Add in a glass of wine and I was totally relaxed. I tried to convince John that we need a hot tub at home. He said they are too expensive, I am going to be doing a little research. I know how much he loves hot tubs too, something tells me it won't take too much convincing to get one eventually. =)

This morning we got up and headed into town to the grocery store to pick up a few things. Of course the only grocery store was a Piggly Wiggly, love that name!

On the way back to the house we passed a McDonald's and we decided we needed to stop for shakes. Now, I used to be a HUGE fan of Shamrock Shakes, and would be giddy like a kid when they started selling them each year. But then I had one while pregnant with Anabelle and it made me really feel sick. So I thought *OK, no more Shamrock Shakes while pregnant* But then, last year I tried to have one and it made me nauseous. I tried again today and it still tasted yucky. I think that pregnancy ruined Shamrock shakes for me. Well at least it didn't ruin bacon. So back to the shakes, John got a Shamrock shake and I got a vanilla one and we let Anabelle have a taste of her 1st Shamrock Shake. It was a big hit and she kept wanting more, glad to see that she can enjoy them =)

So now we've all had lunch and Anabelle is down for her nap, which sounds like a pretty good idea...

Odds & Ends part 2

After some much needed sleep last night, here I am again late in the evening typing away on my laptop.

I want to share with you two easy crafts I have been working on. I have been trying to come up with some things to entertain Anabelle during the 5:30-6:15 dinner making hour. Often she is cranky, hungry, and wanting to be held. This is challenging when you are trying to get dinner on the table, so I needed a fun activity that I could give her to keep her happy and busy. I was going to buy some refrigerator magnets the other day, you know the alphabet ones that every kid has. Well I was thinking that the alphabet isn't really that exciting to an 18 month old, and that they should make animal or people magnets. A few days later I was at Hobby Lobby and I saw these painted wooded animals and thought *hey that would make a great magnet*

So I bought 10 different animals at $0.67 each and 2 packs of magnets at $1.99 each and for a total of $10.68 Anabelle has a new set of animal magnets. All I did was use super glue to secure the magnet to the wooden animal.

She played with them today and they were a hit! Check it out I got my video up and running again-yay!

My next craft has to do with Easter decorations. I know just a couple of weeks ago I was so excited to be done with holiday decorations, but now I am bored with my plain decor and I am ready for Easter stuff-lol! Last year I took Anabelle to see the Easter Bunny and get her picture taken. I was thinking how cute it would be to have an Easter themed picture frame that I could put her bunny picture in each year. So I bought an inexpensive 8x10 frame with a plain mat to fit a 5x7 photo and also 1 sheet of Easter themed scrapbook paper. Then I took out the mat, covered it in glue, and then covered it with the Easter paper,

folding the extra over the edges.

Just an easy way to dress up a plain mat and make a cute frame for my Easter cutie!

Today Anabelle and I went to Hobby Lobby to get mini shades for our new chandelier. We found some cute ones for $3.99 each, we needed 6 total. Then after we left the store I thought *I wonder if Garden Ridge has them for less?* So we decided to stop and check. They had mini shades in 3 packs for $6.99 each. So we bought 2 of those, next week I will be returning the Hobby Lobby shades. I love a good deal! So the total for the project is :

$10 for the chandelier

$15 for parts and bulbs

$15 for shades

Total $40 Not too bad!

Here is the old light:

and here is the new light, big improvement right?!

Here is my best buy of the week.

We got them at Trader Joe's on Monday and they have been cheerfully greeting me every day since. I bought some daffodils last week and they died pretty quickly, but these hyacinths still look great after 5 days. They smell heavenly and remind me that spring is just around the corner!