Me Time

So I actually read a library book the other day. 

It had been a while. 

I did read a few back in the nursing days (multitasking), but I haven't sat down to enjoy a good book in the middle of the day for much too long. The house was a disaster, the dishes piled up and toys everywhere...but Lily was napping and there was this sun soaked spot on the sofa and a brand new library book calling my name. I love inter-library loan by the way - order online, when they come in you get an e-mail and you can drive by and pick up your stack in a matter of minutes. So, I actually cried through 2 or 3 chapters of this book I was reading...and I still loved it. It was still funny with a decent ending and all. Guess I needed a good cry or something, I don't usually cry that easily for books and movies, and certainly never for that long. 

Anyway, if you know me and could have seen the state of the house (sun soaked spot or not) you would be surprised that I chose to read over clean, But I'm glad I did. It had been a super long week and weekend with so much rain, being cooped up inside with an active toddler, and with Mike being sick and mostly sleeping for several days. 

I laughed, I cried, I finished my book, and then zoomed around to clean up as much as I could in as short of time as possible, because I really just feel so much better when it's clean. So it turned out to be such a nice day! I tend to tackle the day to day build up, and tasks that (supposedly) effect more than just myself on my 'To Do' list first, out of a sense of duty. But I think that just relaxing a bit - letting go of some guilt, and making some me-time made me happier and helped the day go better for my family too.

Good thing about the rainy week: Mike sick in bed with a cold could get rest without turning down jobs - because the rain took care of those :)

Good thing about the rainy week number 2: Lily actually went down for a nap in ways other than going for a walk outside in her stroller. I actually pulled out the Children's hymn book I bought when she was born and sang to her from it. (I'm sure she was tired of all my old standbys.)

We've moved!

So we've moved! In a way...

The ward boundaries have been changed, and we've moved back into the church building I went to as a kid. It's so nice to be able to walk to church again, and there's just this good feeling in the building - I guess because everything is so familiar to me. I know I will miss some of our friends who are now in other wards, but hopefully we can connect with them from time to time on other occasions.

Lily went to nursery for the first time. She looked so tall in her long dress, but she clung to me a good deal of the time. Well, not with a death grip or anything...she just stayed close by my side, grabbed my hand for an escort to toys across the room or past other children, and turned to me if another child was getting too close, or she hadn't looked up at me for a minute or two. I'm sure it will get better.

I'm looking forward to getting to know our new ward and feeling at ease once everybody's settled in. It's an adjustment, which is always a bit difficult, but I just have a feeling that it's going to be good. So I'm good.

One going on Two!

My little girl is growing so fast! She is 18 months this January. I took her for her well check-up this past week and she measured:

33 in. Height
Weight 21:08

My tall skinny girl.

Lily was so good and still while the doctor and nurse checked her out, and then got two shots. Mike and I were ready with her milk cup and hugs, but she didn't even cry! I usually give her Tylenol in advance, but the one time I forget it she does better than any other! She just sat there watching curiously as the nurse gave her one shot and then another. She didn't even flinch! I think Mike and I were a little amazed, and more than a little pleased with our brave girl! I still can't believe it. Unfortunately, after her nap she was cranky with a sore leg the rest of the day. I can't believe that next check-up she will be two years old!!!

Mike and I can't imagine our lives without Lily. It is hard to take care of her, but so worth it. She is so beautiful and amazes us every day.

 

Lily walks and climbs all over everything. She climbs up on the piano bench and down on her own and plays some sweet tunes in between.

She's never been a fan of being fed, and gets more coordinated with her fork and spoon by the day - when it's something she wants to eat anyway.

She can count to ten and sings good parts of the ABC song and recognizes at least half of the letters and numbers to name them. She knows all the names of the colors, but doesn't always match them up right.

She knows tons of animals and the sounds they make if they make any. She gives a pretty cute little roar.

 

She gets down on her knees to roll her cars and makes engine noises.

She pretends to talk on the phone and call her cousins Evie and Isaac - and sometimes looks in the pots and pans cupboard for them..?

 

She is starting to try to sing along with songs, and sometimes makes up her own into pretend microphones.

She has a pretty good vocabulary and is starting to put longer sentences together, and seems like she has a pretty good memory. She recently asked to play with the Aquadoodle excitedly, though we hadn't had it out in over a month, and the other morning as I was closing our bedroom door to head to her Dr. appt. she shocked me with: "I see mama get undressed . . . naked . . . dress . . ." !!!? Innocent and observant.

Things I love to hear her say and would love to have recorded to remember her sweet voice forever:

"Yes" - she says it so serious and cute, and only when she means it. (She used to only say no or repeat the word of something she wanted.)
"I love you" - again only said when she means it and it melts my heart every time! I especially love: "I love you, Mom, I love you. AND I love you, Dad."
"Sit?" - A question, but an insistent one as she points to the floor beside her. She is not such a fan of playing alone.
“Here you go” - All run together like one word, and sometimes used when she wants us to give something to her.
“Thank you”
"Happy Birthday, baby Jesus" - garbled, but adorable.
"To market to market to buy a pig"
Anything she tries to sing!

 

Lily is barely starting to color, but she started telling us what she is drawing sometimes. Ocean, fish, grass, a face. Totally unrecognizable, but I guess that's what they were :)

She puts her toys and crayons away really well, sometimes she enjoys getting them in and out of their containers more than actually playing with them.

 

She still hates being put in her crib, but she usually sleeps though the night once we've made the transfer, though lately she is waking a wee bit early for my taste. We got a crib tent to keep her from climbing out and getting hurt. In the morning she calls out for dad and mom, but recently she was saying something else we didn't recognize. Mike realized it was 'Rainbow' - the zipper to her tent (though white) is arched like a rainbow, and she wants us to 'Open, open' it.

Lily really loves baths, playing at the park, climbing on furniture, hiding in the pillows on our bed, being chased and swung around, cuddling and chewing on her pal Lamby.

Her favorite foods right now are mac and cheese, cheerios, fresh fruit, yogurt, and cereal bars.

Her favorite bedtime story is I Love you, Stinky face, her favorite show is Little Bear, and the song she falls asleep best to me singing is "Part of Your World."

I love my little angel, our own baby, girly girl, sweet cheeks, Lily!

Saturday Night Dance Party

Matching outfits and everything. Maybe we should get these girls an agent.

 

Lily has picked up a few sweet new moves. Evie seems to have been born with them. 

They are too cute. I think we will just keep them around.

Quick, Easy, Yummy!

I was looking for quick and easy dinner ideas one day and came across this one. It was so good I had to share. We've already made it twice. I substituted Monterrey jack for the provolone cheese, used slightly less dried parsley, and the only thing I don't usually already have on hand is the fresh grated Parmesan. I did double the amount of that, and put a little less vinegar the second time around, but it was delish both ways.

Enjoy!

Herbed Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients

1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided

1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon salt, divided

1 large egg white, lightly beaten

1 pound chicken breast tenders

1 tablespoon butter

1 1/2 cups bottled tomato-basil pasta sauce

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) shredded provolone cheese

Preparation

Preheat broiler. (and start your pasta water boiling, that actually takes the longest!)

Combine 2 tablespoons of Parmesan, breadcrumbs, parsley, basil, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a shallow dish. Place egg white in a shallow dish. Dip each chicken tender in egg white; dredge in the breadcrumb mixture. Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Set aside.

Combine 1/8 teaspoon salt, pasta sauce, vinegar, and pepper in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap; vent. Microwave sauce mixture at HIGH 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Pour the sauce over chicken in pan. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining Parmesan and provolone cheese. Wrap handle of pan with foil, and broil 2 minutes or until the cheese melts.

Serve with Orzo or angel hair pasta.

Mmm, mmm. Gonna go eat my leftovers!

Rain Rain Here to Stay

At least for the week so the Weather People say.

Rain means vacation for Mike - can't exactly wash windows in a downpour. I certainly wouldn't want him to anyway. Not that Mike really considers it vacation. He updated our books and did taxes most of yesterday. So relaxing. :)

He did spend most of the morning playing with Lily, and then found some time before bed to build a fort for her with the cushions of my parent's couch. Her first fort! Mike is such a good dad.

 

 

 

I loved building forts on rainy days when I was a kid. And on nice days too, but then it was outdoor forts. We so rarely get rain here - it's kind of a treat even if it does put a damper on business.

The sun cast this golden glow through the grayness as it set yesterday, illuminating the world in a magical light. The world smells so fresh and good, I would just throw all the windows open if it wasn't so cold! We definitely find ourselves looking out of them often. The sound of the rain and the wind is so soothing, just like the sounds of the womb to a baby. It makes me feel like baking and filling the house with warmth, delicious smells, and (of course) yummy things to eat! I would go crazy with baking if I didn't have this little one to chase after. We don't need a lot of cookies and stuff around here anyway, but stew and homemade rolls is definitely on the agenda. For now, family time! On to the next rainy day adventure!

Christmas Dress

I never did post pictures of Lily's dressy Christmas dress. (I probably meant to try for better ones...Oh well.) Lily picked this dress out herself. I made her little jacket at the spur of the moment out of some black velvet we had for taking art slides. It was a chilly morning and I hadn't gotten her a sweater to match. I scrounged in my mom's button box and used a black shoe lace for the clasp. Quite elegant despite. Won't be able to do that kind of thing with 9:00 church, but I am still glad. I love morning church. Hopefully we get to keep it...the ward boundaries are changing again and we find out what's up this Sunday! Anticipation!!! 

Here's Lily in her dress:

 

She almost ate one of those flowers, twice.

Don't you love little girls in black shoes with white stockings?

Straight Up

So I didn't make any resolutions this year, can't remember the last time I did that actually... but Mike and I made some family goals and personal goals recently - unrelated to the start of the new year - but just because we wanted to do some things better. ( I know I write horrible run-on sentences, but I'm trying to keep it conversational)  Anyway, I made a goal to read my scriptures before getting on my computer. I set my scriptures next to my keyboard as a visual reminder, and it's working pretty good so far.

So Wednesday this scripture just stood out to me in the chapter I was reading. I thought about blogging about it, but didn't. I always put my bookmark facing the page I should start reading on next time, and I usually try to make it to the end of a chapter. I forgot my goal on Thursday, but today began again. I remember having finished my chapter last time at the beginning of a new page, but somehow my bookmark was back on the page before, and I read that same scripture over again, and it just kind of made me think...and laugh - so I will share.

The chapter is about Adam and Eve, free agency and opposition. This verse struck me:

 23 And they would have had no children; wherefore they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.

Now...just looking at this verse by itself...Doesn't that kinda sound like:

You don't know misery until you have children! Or joy either, of course.

It did to me. Ha Ha, but seriously... I have known more joy and misery since having a child. Yes, labor is miserable, but I'm not just talking about when children physically hurt you or bring trouble to your door... it's just that...whenever you love someone that much - you share in their pain and sorrows. I heard this quote once that says, "Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." So well-expressed.

But it's not all misery, of course. It's so fun to watch a child grow and share in their joys and triumphs - to see how beautiful and magical the world is when you see it again through a child's eyes. It's no surprise to me that the Savior asks us to be more like little children, and I think it's easier for us to follow that counsel when we are surrounded by them.

I also think having a child makes you more mature and responsible, and makes you do more good, at least when you care to take it seriously. No, I am not saying you have to have a child to be mature or responsible. I was a responsible person before, and thought I was fairly mature. ::Ahem-hem:: Well, I have certainly become more so with being a mother. There are just extra challenges and things required of you with being a parent that change your outlook and your priorities.

So for people out there who say it's better not to have kids... I say bosh! It's hard, it's life-changing, it can bring you to your knees. But it brings great blessings into your life and greater joy than you have ever experienced - and I'm not being sappy. That's the straight truth. Now go thank your parents.

Royal Ascension

The Princess Throne

Tiny Tails

Lily's hair is finally long enough to do real pony tails!!! 

Yeah, they're a bit lopsided, and I did not show you a back shot for good reason, but I don't really think I could have done better with the way this girl whips her head about when you're trying to do her hair. Plus her hair is still fine and silky as a baby's so it's hard to hold in place.

 

So cute anyway! 

 

Too bad they only lasted about 10 minutes before she realized something odd was stuck to the side of her head and she yanked 'em. I'll try again after it gets a little bit longer.

Toothy Grin

This girl cracks me up.

It's crazy the range of emotions she can go through in just a few minutes. And how dramatic she can be at only 18 months old! Maybe she'll grow up to be an actor. I've seen her practicing, though I can tell it's acting, but she's young yet.

Here are a couple of roles in one small photo shoot.

The saddest Cheerio eater:

Such raw emotion.

Uncle Sam

I want you...to take me to the park.

Pretty convincing.

Saturday

Saturday found us at the Wild Animal Park. We almost didn't make it, what with errands and a little girl in desperate need of a nap. Instead of getting there early (as originally planned) Lily fell asleep in the car after our run around town, so we headed home and all rested and then went in the afternoon. My sister and her family met up with us there and we enjoyed the lovely San Diego winter. It was too seriously too hot for long sleeves.

Lily and I...both smiling...not blurry...miracle.

Miss grumpy face with her Dad.

 

Love this little prim pose. Maybe holding her own hand gave her comfort? She was definitely nervous in the petting zoo.

 

  

 

Can't believe how big she is getting. Almost 18 months old. Lily had a blast just running around, especially when we met up with her cousin Isaac. She could care less about wild animals, unless you mean her cousins and other little kids - they're way more interesting. Honestly, I have to agree.

The good life. Riding in style with my buddy by my side.

 

Gotta include adorable miss Audrey. Lily's littlest cousin, can't believe only a year ago Lily was this age!

 

Gorgeous sunset.

 

Pretending to sleep on the way home. Fun times.

You make bath time so much fun...

I love this picture. Yes, I know it is blurry, and I am sitting next to a toilet, but I don't care. It has a nice quality to it anyway, and Mike took it - all his own idea. Plus my baby girl is so dang cute.

Lily loves her bath time (even though my inclination is all business). I resist the urge to just wash and drag her out and try to make it fun by singing songs and just letting her splash and play. Don't want her to stop liking it! Here's a shot with her favorite bath time pal...

Mr. Squeakums is his official title. He's actually been in the family longer than Lily.

He was originally purchased to appear in Mike's paintings...

...and was also the inspiration for Mike's Window Washing business Squeaky Clean.

He even became the theme for Lily's first birthday party.

Nowadays he just enjoys splashing around with Lily in the tub, though I'm not certain how he feels about hanging by his beak from her teeth... And that was not the first time. Poor ol' duck.

Kodak moment

Sometimes I wish I had a photographer following me around to capture some of those awesome 'mom moments' that happen all the time. Instead, I actually have few pictures of Lily and I, because I'm more of the picture taker in the family. I've tons of daddy daughter photos caught when the moment was just too cute not to run for the camera, but Mike does not think the same way even when he's around. And I usually don't like to ask for my picture to be taken. So I'll just write it down so I won't forget it.

Today it was just Lily and I in the backyard. I was raking up the little debris that was still left from our pine tree that fell, and Lily ran over and hugged my legs because she always gets nervous when our neighbors dog starts barking. Both of us were covered in colored chalk.

Those leg hugging episodes are pretty typical...sometimes it is frustrating when you're trying to get something done, but I know someday I will miss it terribly.

I drew a slice of watermelon on the sidewalk for Lily. My art degree is not totally unused. It must have been good because she said, "I like it!" swiped her fingers through the chalk and licked them. Then she went back for more.

Lily has been saying more and more, and forming longer sentences. She told Mike 'I love you' last night for the first time with absolutely no prompting. She cracks us up with her timing sometimes, and her serious way of saying yes lately. I love her sweet little voice...especially when she says 'kiss, kiss' while coming at me when I'm putting her to bed at night. She's my little cuddle monster. Seriously monster... I've gotta watch it or we'll be head banging. Love my girl.

Backyard Shenanigans

Lily and her cousin Evie with Grandpa as the host.

So far SO good.

So far the new year has been lovely for me. Nothing particularly spectacular has happened. No major change has occurred. I'm actually still getting over a cold I've had since Christmas. Yet, for some reason I just feel happier. You know how sometimes you just have one of those lovely days where it just feels like a good combination of getting things done and just enjoying yourself? It's been like that. I've just been enjoying my time, spending more quality time with Mike and Lily and not feeling so much pressure to get things done. Maybe being a little sick is a good thing because I feel like I should just relax a little more until I get over it, and I definitely needed that. If this feeling lasts it's going to be a very good year.

Here's some fun pictures from the other day at the park.

 

Isn't my darling gorgeous!?

 

Rockin' her new sunglasses.

 

My two favorite people.

 

 

 

 

Lily wanted to play with the big boys.

But they all made way when she stepped on board.

 

 Wouldn't you - if you saw this cool creature coming through?

 

Mike decided to climb a tree.

 

 

Lily had never seen anything like it.

 

I love my little family.