Sunday, December 19, 2010

Quick vocabulary update, since I probably won't be posting again for awhile...

Santa Claus - 'Coz

Belly - beddy (Hollie looooves Momma's belly these days)

Mommy and Daddy - she has started calling us this instead of momma and dada (I don't know why, but this makes me kind of sad)

Blanket - mankie

Milk - moke (rhymes with poke) (she's finally developed a taste for it!)

Crackers - her new favorite snack and most-used word.  My response, usually, "Hollie, you're crackers."

Elmo - Ummo (she loves her Elmo doll.  Cookie Monster made an appearance on SNL last night, and when she saw him (yes, she was up that late) she got very excited and said "Ummo!")

Yogurt - gogee

Spoon - moose (I have no. idea.)

I think that's all the new ones for now.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone!

Saturday, December 18, 2010

The snowsuit




Don't know what happened here...  :(





Thursday, December 16, 2010

Two heartbeats!

Heart attack?  Sorry, we're not having twins (I wish).

We got to hear the heartbeat twice!  Daniel ran late and showed up five minutes after the first time.  I would have asked the nurse to wait for him, but I was anxious!  164 bpm both times...perfect.

I am 12 weeks pregnant today!  We celebrated with a trip to Dr. J, the OB.

I have actually dropped a pound since my last appointment, which puts me three pounds below where I was when we found out about the pregnancy.  I was really surprised to hear that, because my appetite has been improving lately, food aversions are dying down, and I've been eating much better (i.e. more) than before.  I try to snack all day, but occasionally we have a really busy day and I sit down and realize I'm starving.  I'm going to make more of a conscious effort from now on.

Anyways, the doc's not worried about it, and neither am I.  I remember that with Hollie, during the last month or so, I was hungry literally 24/7.  Could not get enough.  Tried to eat healthy, but boy did I pack on the pounds in the last few weeks!  So yeah.  It'll happen.  :)

At my next appointment, in six weeks, we get an ultrasound!  Can't wait.             

-------------------------------------------------------

Hollie is so silly.  And SO smart. 

Yesterday, I was running around the house trying to get Christmas gifts together and wrapped...and leaving Hollie pretty much unsupervised.

I think toddlers have a sixth sense for when they're not being watched.

She's recently discovered this drawer in the kitchen that has various utensils in it, like the can opener and the corkscrew wine bottle opener and and the vegetable peeler and other things that aren't really dangerous but become dangerous in little hands.   

So rather than install another lock (our cabinets are going to look like Swiss cheese), we've just been trying to steer her back toward her own drawer, with the towels and oven mitts (which she loves to wear...it's adorable) and other boring stuff.

Of course, yesterday, while I was running around, I heard Hollie get into the drawer (because I think moms have a sixth sense for when their kids know that they aren't being watched).  I peeked into the kitchen to see her sitting on the floor playing with the harmless measuring cups.

I debated for about two seconds.  This would easily keep her for busy for the last few minutes of stuff I needed to do, but then there's the whole now-I've let-the-rule-be-broken-under-my-nose... which could come back to bite us...

...so I let her play, and got everything done that I needed to do.  Then it was time for a trip to the grocery store, so I asked Hollie, "Wanna got to the store?"  She knows what this means, and got all excited as we hunted up socks and shoes and jackets.

As we were heading for the door, she suddenly stopped like she had forgotten something, turned around, and ran back into the kitchen...
picked up the measuring cups...
opened up the drawer that isn't hers...
and put them back in.

I was somewhere between blown away by the sweetness and blown away by the fact that she remembered.

That's all for now!  I'd better go see what she's up to...

Friday, December 10, 2010

Our little pick-pocket

So Daniel's parents, aka Abuelita and Pepère, came to see us for Thanksgiving.  So much fun!

Great story- Abuelita, Hollie, and I were at Target one day and Abuelita was pushing the cart and making faces and being goofy with Hollie while I shopped.  Apparently (I didn't see it happen), while making eyes, Hollie reached into Abuelita's purse and snagged her cell phone!  Out from under her nose, what a pick-pocket!  Abuelita found me and told me what happened, and we decided we'd have to keep an eye on her...but not long after, Hollie did the same thing and got her wallet!  By that point I'm thinking, okay, maybe this is a way to boost our income?  We've always said it, but this further proves what a sneaky, sneaky girl she is.  She's all smiles, but there's always a plan in the works.

Over Thanksgiving dinner, we tried to decide on what our new baby's nickname will be for the next seven months or so.  After heated discussion, Pepère had the winner with...

Cletus the Fetus.

Haha!  I love it!  It goes without saying, but this will not be our baby's name if it's a boy, so please please please DON'T get this embroidered on anything!  It is the best antenatal nickname I've ever heard, though.  And antenatal is the coolest new word I've heard in awhile.  I'm going to start using it more often.

Another cute story- This afternoon Hollie got out her wipes, a bear, and a doll.  She opened the wipes and started wiping them both between the legs while telling me that they "poopoo"-ed.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Details

So...we're pregnant!  It feels great!

When we were pregnant with Hollie...wow...is there any bigger shock than a surprise first pregnancy two seconds after you get home from the honeymoon?  Looking back, I think we were pretty much in that state of shock until the moment she was born, and then we said well okay, here we go, and slid easily into parent life.  Maybe we got a little excited about it toward the end of the pregnancy, but in the back of your mind is still this horrifying sense of your life being turned upside-down and saying goodbye, at twenty-one, to all the fun and freedom of young adulthood.

Sorry, I shouldn't talk about it like that (we obviously fell head-over-heels for Hollie and haven't looked back).  It's just that the contrast between that pregnancy and this one could not be greater.  We're excited to be excited about this!  We're a family now and it's working for us, and we can't wait to add to the mix.

So...it feels great.  Except for a few things...

Morning sickness.  I got up to about week 7 or so without feeling sick at all, until BOOM, I'm suddenly losing my dinner.  Prescription zofran in helping, and my appetite is coming back.  I still have this slight queasiness that's pretty much constant, but at least I can function.

I am tired.  Wiped out.  All the time.  Poor Hollie is has been so patient but I know sometimes she gets bored to tears, and then this happens...



Occasionally I get these little bursts of energy, and I run to the store for some groceries and get Hollie out for a walk and put away some laundry and some dishes and clean the house up a little, and then collapse.
 
I know everyone always wants to know what pregnancy women are craving, so here you go:
Buffalo wings (just took a break to go get some...I'm back now, and typing with my pinkies)
Cheetos
Ice cream
Onion rings

That's pretty much it.  Can't wait to get some energy (and appetite for healthy foods) back in the second trimester... 

I don't know if Hollie senses what's happening or what, but she has become very interested in my belly.  She always wants to lift my shirt to see it, and touch it, and even kiss it.  Daniel tried to tell her that there's a baby in there, so sometimes she points to it and says "baby!" but I don't know if she really understands.  She will, soon enough.

Daniel has been incredibly helpful.  When Hollie wakes up early, he makes breakfast for her before he leaves for work, to give me time to shower, because I cannot do anything in the morning until I shower.  So far he's been obliging my cravings for really unhealthy dinners.  He's the best.  :)

We went to see our new OB, Dr. J., at 8 weeks.  He didn't want to try and get a heartbeat yet (it might still be too early), but after a quick feel of my belly he said, "Well, something's growing in there!"  He is an older guy, pretty laid-back, and he flat-out told me that he won't induce my unless he sees a real need to, and I'll be in control of my labor.  He said (more or less), "Heck, you can run laps, get in the bath, squat in a corner and meditate, or you can get an epidural and watch TV, whatever you want."  He's a little strange, but I like him.

That's all for now!  We go back to the OB at 12 weeks, so we'll update then, if not sooner.  

Also, see this edit to my last post...

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Vocabulary and other updates...

I haven't been in the mood for creative titles lately.  We have been going a mile-a-minute around here lately and my creativity is way past running on fumes.  I do want to update you on a few more words that Hollie is saying...

Water - Woggy (rhymes with froggy)

Fish - 'ish.  She only recognizes the fish that are still alive.  I get the blank stare when I try to tell her that it's also fish we're eating.

Go - Gogogogogo!

Up 

Aaaaaa-men! - This one needs explaining.  We have this little book with a short kid's prayer, and a button that will play a kid's voice reciting it, and at the end Hollie chimes in with the long, drawn-out aaaaaa-men!    

She's also fine-tuning (i.e. expanding) her use of no.  Hello, toddlerhood, we've arrived.

I love getting to record all these tiny details of what Hollie's doing and learning, and I have a great fear that I won't do the same for our future children because we'll have seen it all before.  I guess this has been weighing on my mind a little, and I've been convincing myself that I will record just as many of the the tiny details of our next child's life because I got one of these the other day...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

...


Tomorrow I will be 9 weeks, and due June 30th, 2011!

I promise my next post will have all the details.  :)

Post-publication edit (11/30/10): I have another equally great fear, which is that when the next baby is born I will stop updating you on Hollie.  Being a mother of two will certainly be the balancing act of all time!  

Friday, November 19, 2010

Ladybug

Lately, my camera has actually been in a good mood (knock on wood) and I've gotten some great photos of Hollie doing various silly things.







Okay Mom, get it off now please!


Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Blurry

 As promised, here are some of those photos that capture the blur of toddlerhood.

Disclaimer: These might give you a headache.



Trying on Momma's underwear.  As in, finding out how many pairs can be worn at once...


Hope you enjoyed them!

-----------------------------------------------------

 You know, while I'm at it, here are some other - less blurry - pictures I've been meaning to post...

I hope you guys aren't getting tired of food pics.  'Cuz I'm not. :)


 
 

 Revamping her Halloween costume (with one glove, plus hat from last year's costume, minus ballerina shoes)...

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Can I use the same excuse as last time?

We've been busy?

Daniel has been having a crazy time at work (he had to work this past weekend, and one day earlier this week he worked like eleven hours).

So, if I were to fill you in on life, it would be the little things like...

...Hollie's new fascination with armpits.

...Hollie's unwavering conviction that if her teeth have to get brushed at bedtime, so do Mommy's.

...Hollie chasing the ducks at the park yelling, "Quack-quack-quack!" and doing the sign for "duck" with both hands.

...Hollie moving all of her dinner from her plate to the table, smiling, and signing "all done".

...Hollie bringing me her cup to hold while she drinks out of it.

...Our new hole in the basement ceiling.  The ceiling (which we put up ourselves just a few months ago) was sagging a little, so rather than wait a few years until it's sagging a lot and there's furniture and stuff in there, Daniel decided to just fix it now...by removing a big ol' chunk, installing reinforcements, and putting it back up.

A work in progress

...The new Panda Express, the first in Wichita, will be opening right near our house.  That's one of those places we miss from Arizona.  Bye-bye, healthy eating.  :(

...Hollie's growing vocabulary.  She says doggie really well, and she sometimes calls me Mommy (which came out of the blue...I didn't teach her that!), and also
    shoes - shoosh
    juice - 'oosh
    snack - 'nack
    cheese - random consonant followed by -eesh
No sentences yet.  And she still just babbles a lot.   Even with all the new words she's learning I still only understand about 2% of what she says. 

...Hollie tempting fate and raising Mommy's heart rate by learning to jump on her bed. 

...Mommy-daughter dance parties.

...Hollie laying a diaper out on the floor, sitting on it, and trying to put it on herself.

...Hollie pulling her arm into the sleeve of her long-sleeved shirt and saying "Uh-oh!"

...Hollie locking the bathroom door from the inside.  She wasn't inside herself (thank goodness), which makes it all the more baffling because that door swings inward, so she had to pull it closed from the outside.  Never would have thought she could do that.  Then the next day she does it again with her bedroom door.

--------------------------------

I think there may have been one or two things in there that didn't have to do with her.  That's good, right?

Not to mention, we just got back from a trip to see my family in Phoenix for our ASU homecoming game, and also Halloween!

Daniel and I were in the ASU marching band (that's how we met! Cue: awww), so along with 100 or so other band alums we participated in the pregame show alongside the current band.  Always a good time.  Getting free tickets to the game doesn't hurt either, even if they are nose-bleeds and we're technically "on the clock" and have to play occasionally throughout the game.

Hollie-bear tagged along to the rehearsal...

She's checking out my mellophone (Daniel played trombone).

Also, as I mentioned, Halloween!  Hollie was a ballerina.  It was the only thing we could do without buying anything (even though I ended up buying some ballet shoes) and also because she loves wearing this tutu that she got from Daniel's parents for her birthday (eight-ish months ago?  Can't believe it still fits), so we didn't have to worry about her taking it off.

Unfortunately I didn't get any good pictures except these, of her eating dinner and faithful old Duke waiting patiently for the inevitable fistfuls of broccoli to come down at his feet.   


I do have some other great photos that I've taken since we've been back, but this post has gotten too long already, so I'll get those up later.  Hopefully this week.

Happy Friday-eve!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

The tables are turned

This afternoon I was lying on the floor in Hollie's room, reading her some books, thinking she might be getting sleepy...when I started feeling drowsy myself. 

So I pretended to be asleep. 

She leaned over and gave me some kisses, 

found a stuffed animal and laid it next to me,

and left the room, closing the door behind her,

...and I realized that I had just been put down for a nap.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

New video

So, that was a nice little hiatus.  We haven't even been particularly busy.  Maybe just recovering from a few weeks of being really busy...is that a real excuse?  We just haven't had much going on worth talking about.  Daniel had a major hell-week (or two) at work, and things have since slowed down but he's still catching up on sleep and down-time.

Hollie is still jibber-jabbering away.  She is pronouncing "book" much better.  I love that she refers to herself, and to all her stuffed animals and dolls as "baby".  She gives them kisses and then makes me kiss them too.  She has gotten sooo loving and affectionate.

It is really tough to get good pictures of her these days.  She is always moving.  Really fast.  So I have a bunch of very cute but very blurry pictures.  Now that I've remembered that I have a blog, I might post them all together soon.

In the meantime, a new video.  One morning a few weeks ago I caught Hollie reading a book to herself, and it was so adorable I had to break out the video camera (which I know I need to do more often).  From the moment I turned the viewing window around so that we could see ourselves while filming, it quickly escalated from book-reading, to nose-picking, to camera-grabbing...and, well, you'll see.


When I played back the video for us to watch, Hollie thought it was the coolest thing ever...she signed "more" and demanded

Mo' bebe!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

More "Speaking of..."

I have a few more words to add to the little bear's vocabulary:

Up
'Mote - for the tv remote (this makes me cry a little inside)
Yummy
Cat - sometimes gat! or ack! or even gack!
Nose and toes - hard to tell the difference (both are usually bows or doze)

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Speaking of...

...everything.

Hollie's been a little talking machine!  It has happened very gradually, but over a fairly short time (a couple of weeks or so).  The first few were...

Baby - pronounced correctly now (as opposed to then) but with the most unbelievably cute inflection.
More - just mo.  Still accompanied by her sign language.
Bath - her most favorite activity lately, especially since we started using the shower at the end to rinse her hair (the cup of water over the head routine was just not cool).  Pronounced bah or bass.
Uh-oh - when she or anyone else drops something, also adorable (and with spot-on pronunciation)

Some others are...
Plane - she is always on the look-out for planes when we're outside, and there are plenty to see, what with a few aircraft companies plus an air force base practically in our backyard.  Pronounced bay or bane
Birds - always watching for birds too!  Abuelita helped figure this one out...it sounds like bus.
Bye-bye - always with a little wave.  So cute!
Ducks - quack
Eyes -  oz
Belly/belly button, Book, and Bear - all of these are generally just a "b" sound followed by a random syllable.  Hard to distinguish from baby, bath, bird, and bye-bye (I think she likes b words). 

and our favorite...
No - nonononononononono!

I love it!
And I promise to try to get some of these on video soon.

Also, Daniel and I started dating five years ago today.  <3

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Feeling artsy

So, both of Daniel's parents have come and gone.  We already miss them.
:(
We miss the free babysitting.
Hollie misses Abuelita's lotion - perfect for window painting...




[whatcha think, mama?]


 In unrelated news, we got the mirror installed in our newly-themed maroon and gold bathroom in the basement.  It's not all done yet, but here's a sneak peek...

 [ps - go devils]

Saturday, October 2, 2010

'Lita's here!

Geez, has it been two weeks(ish)?  Somebody better talk to the management.

We've been busy.  And sick.  But mostly busy.  Just this past week, when Hollie and I were both on the tail-end of a little viral infection, Abuelita (Daniel's mom) came to town for a visit!


It was so great to see her.  It's been a few months (with one 16-hour exception), and we've been starved for some good extended family time (not to mention a date).

Unfortunately, her week-long stay coincided with a crazy work week for Daniel, so he hardly saw her.  We did get to use an Outback gift certificate that's been burning a hole in our pockets, though.  AND we saw a movie - "Easy A".  It was actually pretty good.  I don't think I'd see it again, but it did surpass my expectations.

So yeah, we were busy.  It's finally cooled off, and the weather is gorgeous.  There was a trip to the zoo (best moment: Hollie coming nose to nose with a meerkat and nearly hyper-ventilating with excitement) and many walks to the park.

These are from Day 1 - Hollie helps Abuelita unpack...


Shortly after Abuelita left, Pepere (Daniel's dad) arrived!  These two...they both really wanted to visit, but their crazy schedules didn't allow them to be here at the same time!  So we settled for seeing one, and then the other.  Whatever works, right?     

More to come!  Stay tuned...

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Also...

Hollie had her hearing checked yesterday.  They had to stick these little things in her ears that shot out a puff of air, and then measured how her eardrum reacted, or something like that.  And then they stuck different little things in that tested something else.  She sat in my lap the whole time, and did great.

Everything looked fine.

Phew!  :)

You Capture - MY Choice!


Wiped.

Out.


 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------

This was the best challenge ever.  :)
Go see everyone else's choice of photo at
You Capture by Beth

Monday, September 13, 2010

A day in the life...


[cracker + cream cheese...pressed against the mouth]


[new measures required for keeping devious little monkeys out of the recycling bin]

(I can hardly get it open) 

[freshly chewed board book]

(regression, anyone?) 

Friday, September 10, 2010

18 months

22 lbs, 14 oz.
31 inches

Hollie's doing great, physically and developmentally.  The only thing is that she isn't using any words consistently yet, so just as a precaution we are going to have her hearing tested.  She's only had that one ear infection, but even just excess fluid can delay speech.

Our doc is admittedly not expecting to find a problem.  Hollie understands sooo much of what we say, there's no way she's got a hearing issue, but we're going to have the test just to be absolutely, beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt sure.

So, that will be sometime soon.  We'll keep you posted...

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

"It sounds like she's counting in French"


It's hard to hear, but that's what Daniel says from the other room at about 17 seconds.  

United States map place-mat = endless entertainment at dinnertime.

Also, you'll notice she's not eating at her little table.  Not long after we swapped out the high chair for her own little table and chair, she started always wanting to be in my lap during dinner.

She enjoyed using the little table all day for her meals and snacks, but you could tell that at dinner, when Daniel and I sat up at the big table, she was just feeling a little left out.

So, we decided to swap back.  Since she's too big now for the high chair, we went with one of those little chairs that straps to a dining room chair...and I gotta say, I love it.  It's so good to have her up at the table with us!

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Quick reunion

The cousins had a quick reunion last week, as Daniel's brother and his wife, and their daughter Juliet and their newest addition, Levi, stayed with us for a night on their way from New Orleans up to their new home in Oregon (check them out here).

For the total of about 16 hours that they were at our house, we were too busy catching up and chasing kids to take very many pictures...but I did happen to have the camera handy while Hollie and Juliet shared a bowl of yogurt (and a chair). 

They are getting so grown up!


I'm pretty sure having that bright light coming through the blinds behind them breaks some sort of photography rule, but I don't care.  I think it looks amazing.

 


This one (below)...all-time favorite.


And, of course, Levi, aka El Borracho!