Visit with Santa

We went to the Christmas party at my company's Red Rock office. Ella seemed to like Santa just fine. Max was not enthused, but at least sat on Santa's lap. He does have fun saying, "Santa says 'HO HO HO'!"

Getting ready for Christmas

Wow, so much is going on in preparation for Chrismas, and the New year to follow. I'm still off work & do not have to go back until January 4th, but that time is so quickly approaching! Anyway... here are some updated pictures. These are ones I took when I was trying to get the "perfect" pictures for the Christmas cards:

I thought this one was so funny - they both have the same expression on their faces!

Max is helping me make hutzlebrot:

Max helping to decorate the tree

Max loves to "drink coffee". He pretends that his closed play dough container is a travel mug & we have to pretent to fill it with coffee. Here is a picture of him imitating Chris, sitting with his coffee, reading the paper.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We've had a great day. The weather was beautiful, the turkey delicious & we have enjoyed having Sue here with us.

Quick update

Well, we have been having computer problems & therefore can't upload pictures from the camera to post on the site. I have taken some in the last few weeks with my phone though & thought I'd share them. The kids are growing and changing so much, and so quickly!
Max is a real rock-n-roll toddler - he loves pretending to play guitar and entertains us regularly with songs sung at the top of his lungs. The kid has a good set of pipes on him for sure! He loves to watch the Biscuit Brothers, Thomas the Train, Sesame Street and Austin City Limits! He also loves doing anything he sees us doing. He likes to sit near the stove with a bowl & spatula and tells us he is "cooking". When asked what he is cooking, his reply is "pizza". He also is a big helper, putting clothes in the washer & dryer, helping to put the clean dishes away, and letting Zooey in and out of the back door.
Ella is working very hard at holding her head up and practices on a regular basis. She will be moving into her own room (as soon as she gets over her cold). She has also been practicing taking the bottle from Daddy. She seems unfazed by the commotion when Max gets home from daycare & enjoys when he holds her.

Halloween

We had a wonderful Halloween. My cousin Steve, his daughter Colleen and her 6 and 3/4 years daughter Meredith (aka cousin bugs) were in San Antonio and came up with my Mom to see Ella and Max and do some trick or treating. Despite the age difference Max and Meredith got along famously. She was very good and patience with him. He enjoyed meeting one of his cousins very much. After an afternoon of playing we all set out for some trick or treating, he as a pumpkin and she as a cheerleader. Ella was not impressed with any of it and slept through the whole affair.

Ella is 3 weeks old

Doesn't seem possible but she's 3 weeks today. Her 2 week well check was last week and she's gained a little weight 9.10 oz and grown a .5 inch to 20". Here's the latest pics from the last week or so.

Ella's first weekend home

This was Ella's first weekend at home. Here are a few shots from the weekend.

Bill and Elaine's Ella pictures

Here are the pics from Bill and Elaine during Ella's arrival and their stay.

At least we'll have a good story

So, last Friday, Chris and I spent the evening getting the finishing touches done on the house - preparing for baby & house guests. I should have known labor was immenint when I was on my hands & knees scrubbing the tile in the shower & using the little motorized brush to get to the grout.

Saturday we did the usual running around. I was feeling huge & oh-so-pretty with my elephant sized feet & ankles and enormous belly. The day was pretty uneventful, but I was tired - figured I had overdone it once again. Sue arrived that evening and we had a really nice dinner - Central Mkt had lobster tails on sale. I started feeling a bit uncomfortable, but dismissed everything as just being tired from a long day. Of course I didn't have a hospital bag packed - I still had another day before we had to go - but I had the foresight to set some things out just in case I didn't feel any better during the night.

12:45am & I woke up to a contraction. Then another, and another. By 5am I had not had any sleep and decided it was time to call the doctor. They said to come on in to the hospital, so Chris and I threw stuff into a bag, woke up Sue to tell her we were leaving & headed to the hospital.

Despite being really tired, I felt good & really began to doubt whether or not I was overreacting. We figured that even if they made us turn around and go back home, we'd have a good story to tell Ella one day. We both hated having to leave without telling Max bye - and a part of me really hoped we would be told to come home so I could spend one more day with him as the only child.

We got to the hospital & all hooked up to monitors - which confirmed that I was, indeed, having real contractions & they were not all in my mind (thank goodness!). So, they prepped me for surgery & Ella was born - approximately 26 hours earlier than we had anticipated.
She is beautiful, and we still have a good story to tell her.

Ella is Home

Ella and Jen got to come home yesterday. We are all starting to settle into life with baby sister, especially Max. He's had a few rough moments but is doing incredibly well with her and is already becoming a great big brother. He wants to sit with her when she's feeding and today he held her for the first time.

Mommy and Ella are both doing great. Ella has her first check up with the doctor tomorrow.


We'll post more about the delivery and the return home later.

Ella Katherine

Ella has arrived, a day early in fact! She was born Sunday 10-11-09 at 8:23 AM, 9lbs 2oz, 20.5 inches long. Mom and baby are doing great. Max is very happy baby sister is finally here.

More details to follow. Both of us are too tired and in the new parent haze to be very coherent right now. In the meantime here are the first round of pics from the last 36 hours.

Max's first concert

Last Sunday was a special day. Max went to his first concert to see The Biscuit Brothers. We watch their show regularly and were very excited to see them. Max was a little overwhelmed by the kids and noise but still had a good time.

Max is riding bicycle!!!

Now that we're having better weather we're actually getting to play outside more. Max is loving that and is getting to ride his bike (actually a tricycle) more and more. He is finally getting the leg strength to turn the pedals himself.

Jen's Shower

A few weeks ago some of Jen's friend threw a shower for her, complete with ladybug cupcakes. Fun was had by all especially a little man who got to lick icing.

September

Sorry it's been so long since we posted. Here are our latest pics.


T minus 29 days to baby girl, yikes!

Thoughts on today

When I woke up this morning & got to work, the events of 8 yrs ago did not occur to me. Then, when I realized the significance of the date, I felt a little guilty - but should I have?

We were all affected by the events of 9/11. Everyone has their story of "where they were". Many unfortunate few were more affected than the rest of us, either through a loss of their life, or the loss of a loved one - or maybe even just the loss of someone they knew through their grandmother's 2nd cousin. No one can deny, however, that we all felt it, and continue to feel it.

But at what point do we cross the chasm between Remembrance and Reopening Wounds? As with any significant loss in one's life, for the most part, the pain gradually ebbs and the living takes over. For those who have tried to get busy living over the last 8 years, if you wake up on a significant anniversary & don't immediately remember, is that a good thing?

August so far

Here's our latest pics from the domicile, enjoy. Max is starting to say and sing his ABC's. He's also into making music with Daddy's guitar. And he is still completely obsessed with the washer and dryer.

Trip to PA

I got to visit with Dude, Mel & Jess last week during a business trip to PA. We had a great time & it was so nice to get to hang out with them for a little bit. Here are a few pictures I took!

July pictures

Hi everyone. We've had some internet issues at the house so it's been a while since I've been able to upload photos. Here's some recent pics of Max enjoying some of his b-day gifts and just growing into the little man he's becoming.

Max's 2nd Birthday

Well Max turned 2 yesterday. How can a period of time seem so long and so short simultaneously? He had a good birthday although he ran a slight fever most of the day so it wasn't quiet the day we had planned but a good one none the less. Nannie and Aunt "Happy" aka Kathy came up for a visit. Max got all kinds of good stuff; a play phone, a car/truck set, a set of emergency vehicles, a bubble lawnmower, a construction sandbox, complete with digger, a yet to be inflated pool , bath toys (boats and an Elmo propeller boat) and lots of other things that I can't remember off the top of my head. Plus a yummy strawberry cake that Jen made. All in all a great day in spite of the slight fever.

Pictures at last

It's pretty sad to realize we haven't posted pictures in over a month. Not quite as bad as the rate Dude and Mel post, sorry it's been so long.

We've had a busy past month. Just to recap we bought a new dishwasher, refrigerator and washer and dryer over Memorial Day weekend. Also got a new 40" flat screen that same weekend. Then we went to Port Arthur for a visit. We were schmoe's and didn't bring our camera but Roy got some great pics of Max and Sam playing, click the link if you haven't seen them yet. We also got a new car for Jen, a black Mazda 5. Her Santa Fe's seat belt and airbag system aka SRS thought the vehicle was in a wreck and locked up the seat belt and fortunately the airbag didn't deploy. When she took it to the dealer to see what could be done they said they whole SRS would need to be replace and it would be around 2k. So we decided it was time to move on. We love the new car. It's more like a sleek station wagon, can seat six with the back row seats up and has plenty of room for our growing family. Somewhere in there we went to see the NINJA (Nine Inch Nails / Jane's Addiction) tour, which was really great. And this past weekend we finally replaced the carpet in the master and half baths with tile! So yeah, we've been super busy and have a 2 year birthday to plan, yikes. Enjoy the pics.

Happy Father's Day

I've chosen to write a father's day greeting on our blog today because I know Dad always checks it when he's at work. I know we don't have any new pictures up - sorry folks - but, if I get it up in time, he will at least have something new to read.

I always have a hard time deciding what to do for Dad for Father's day & more often than not, I'm late getting it out anyway. I hope he doensn't take that as a sign that I appreciate him any less - it's more of a general commentary on my organizational skills. Anyway, this year was no different. What do you get the man who has everything? I don't really know that father's day is about giving per say, but more about showing dad what he has given you - for me, that could take a while.......

When I was a kid, I remember riding in the car with dad. I don't remember where we were going, or where we had been, or where my mom & dan were - I just remember being in the car with dad. He always had the radio on WAKY - they wacky oldies station in Louisville, and it was there that I committed to memory a lot of the songs that were WAY before my time, but enjoyable nonetheless. I specifically remember two particular instances: One night we were driving toward home & the song "Horse with No name" came on. Imagine dad trying to explain THAT one to an 8 yr old. I remember another night, we did't even have the radio on. We were driving back from the farm & dad and I were singing. Now, my father didn't have the best singing voice, but it was a lot better than he ever let on. He taught me the song "Old Mill Stream", and we sang away the trip home.

Dad liked to spend time in the shop. I always like to think that if I ever had to build a cabinet, I could figure out how to do it simply from my memories of watching dad measure, saw, glue, nail & sand a piece of furniture he was working on for mom. As crafty as he is in the shop, he taught me even more in the kitchen. I never had an Easy Bake Oven - I didn't need one. I had a grown up kitchen & lots of cookbooks & dad had instilled in me the way to do things right. You can't teach the feel of a ball of bread dough, or the right way to knead a ton of fruit into hutzlebrot simply by reading a cookbook. Dad spent time with me, showing me the chemistry of the kitchen , and sharing parts of our family's heritage. I remember Dad telling me that yeast is made up of tiny little animals - like in the circus - and when they get warm and eat some sugar, they start to grow and grow. To this day, I can't look at proofing yeast without thinking of elephants.

From doing a tag team rendition of Wicked John, to simultaneously raising an eyebrow, I have always felt a close connection with my dad, and as I grow in life & wisdom, I continue to gain a greater appreciation for the many lessons he has taught me. It means so much to me when Dad says he is proud of the way Chris interacts with our son. I can imagine that feeling is akin to how the understudy felt when he received a compliment from Michaelangelo.

So, thanks Dad. I love you. I miss you. And, as always, I look forward to the next time we get to share our time together.

Love,
Jen

Mother's Day 2009

We had a nice Mother's Day this year. My mom came up so it was a double celebration.

Max makes a basket

It wasn't his first or last, just the only one we've managed to catch. Let the family discussion on which shade of blue (or burnt orange) he will wear should he prove to have actual skills.

April

The whole month of April slipped away for us. Apologies to the grandparents et. al. for not keeping up with the pictures. April had a few firsts for him. he got his first basketball goal, and make his first basket! He had his first trip to Lake Travis as well. He's been keeping us busy with his improved motor skills and coordination. He can now catch the ball as well as shoot it. He's also starting to make sentences, stringing words together like Mama Max water, meaning mama and max are drinking water together. He's getting better at asking for what he wants, drink, bite, up please etc. A new favorite is pulling himself up on the couch and patting the spot next him and saying "Mama/Dada sit, book please". Enjoy the pics.

Something new

Well, my wise friend Stephanie said that Max was having melt-downs because he was about to do something new. She was right.

Max can now make baskets when playing basketball (on the 4 ft goal)
and he's starting to learn how to catch the ball. We'll post some pictueres & maybe a video in the near future.

very exciting stuff

Very frustrating

In the evenings when we get home, Max has taken to melting down. Full blown, crocodile tears, red face, snotty nose, kicking and screaming melt down. I'm sure it is that he is just tired and worn out from a busy day at school, but man is it getting old.
Tonight, we had at least three different episodes - and that doesn't even include the 25 minute cry fest he just put on when I put him to bed (and that he just started back up again).
I don't know what the solution is. Short of strong medication - for us, not him - we are at an impasse.

Brief observations

• The closer to Dallas you get, the more sparkly the billboards become
• The American Airlines Training & Conference center smells oddly like an airplane
• "Under the Tuscan Sun" is a beautiful movie.

Away from home

As Chris mentioned, we went to KY last week. I always tend to get a bit anxious prior to travel, and this last trip was no exception. While I did not actually start packing until until the night before we left, I was making lists in my head for weeks.
My anxiety was for nought, however. Max did fabulous on the plane trips. The only time he got really fussy was in the last 45 minutes of the final leg home - and I was tired enough I was about to have a melt-down myself, so who could blame him! Poor little guy, we spent a lot of time traveling - between the round trip airplane rides, and the drive to Mom & Dad's, the Farm & TN, Max spent a lot of time in his car seat. The parts outside of the car were really nice though & it was great to have so many members of the family together in various locations. I especially enjoyed meeting baby Jessica!

Now, I'm away from home again - this time, all by myself - and it's very strange. It's not very often I am completely by myself - even when I go to the quarterly off-site meeting for work, I'm with at least one other person.
Today, I drove to Ft. Worth by myself (BTW, thank heavens for the GPS in my phone - I had to find an alternate route & had NO IDEA where I was going), ate dinner by myself, and am in a tiny galley room all by myself (which is a good thing, more than one person in here & you'd have to go outside to change your mind). I've learned as I've gotten older that I am most comfortable when surrounded by my "pack"; close friends or family. If surrounded by strangers, or totally by myself, I feel completely out of my element & don't like it very much.
This is the first time since Max was born that I have been away from home for more than one night. Max is much more aware of when things at home are different, so hopefully he will settle ok & won't give Chris a hard time. *sniff*

KY Trip

It's been ages since our last post, sorry. At least there's a sort of excuse, we went to KY last week! We had a great visit with Gramma and Chief, Uncle Dude and Aunt Mel and the newborn Jessica. The kids did great together. We also got to go to the farm for some authentic home cooked fried chicken, and got to visit with all the farm folk. Then took a quick jaunt down to TN for Jen's cousin Heather's wedding. I'm sure Jen will post a little something about the trip later. Meanwhile enjoy the pics.

Pt Arthur trip plus Feb pics

We went to Pt A last weekend for a visit. Max got to see his buddy Sam and they had a grand time playing on various vehicles of self propulsion, namely a plasma chair and tricycle. We shall have to have one I'm sure. The rest of the pics are from this month so far.

Weekend fun

We went to visit Nannie this weekend & Max got to play on the playground at the mall after lunch. We'll post more pictures from the weekend later, but here are a couple of Max climing on a big duck.

January pics

I can't believe January is already over, and yet it felt the month dragged on. Here are our pics from the rest of the month. Max got a fire hat from Grandma and Chief and wore it with the appropriate excitement and we got some cute ones of him showing off. I've been trying to play guitar more and Max, being the good son that he is, is excited to hear my awkward chords and pseudo-picking. He will ask me to play "gcar" and will sit in my lap and take it all in. If I'm playing something a little more uptempo he'll get up and dance. We love how responsive he is to music.

He's at such a fun age right now. He really wants to be in the middle of everything and helping. We had to get a gate to keep Zooey out of the kitchen. Long story short, she is misbehaving in her old age. Max had to help us put it up though. He and Jen manned the screwdriver to help put it together. As he was holding it and turning he had a gleam in his eye. Soon he'll be playing with the power tools.

There are also some good shots of baking experience #2. Max loves helping in the kitchen. Enjoy the pics.

Amen and Amen

What a great day to be an American.

Honestly, I think that pretty much sums it up, and yet, I feel like I need to say more.

I was listening to NPR's coverage of the inaugural celebration this morning & it was mentioned several times how this is a peaceful transition of power. This is a special day for many reasons - the swearing in of the first African American President, the end of the Bush era, a fresh beginning and a challenge to the American people to wake up and get busy. With all of that going on, and all of us swimming in history, it's easy to loose sight of what today really is - a PEACEFUL transition. We are so blessed to live in a country where our new President was elected democratically, rather than through a military take over of the White House. We are blessed to live in a country where we are united in hope for the new administration & a new day in American politics, rather than united in fear of a new ruler. We are blessed to live in a country where we can wave a flag, say a prayer, and join together as people of all color and creed - as Americans.

Amen......

Hallelujah......

Close enough.

Additional pictures

We had a nice visit with Aunt Sandi, Uncle George, Grandma, Franklin & Clinton on Saturday. Here are a few additional pictures to commemorate the event

Sandi, Max & Grandma

Max wearing Clinton's hat

Sandi, Max & Grandma (again)

Max loves Guerro's beans & rice!

Sandi & Max at the Capital

Max grooving under the rotunda

First pictures of the New Year

Here are our first pics for the new year. Max got his first hair cut last Friday and you'll be able to tell how short it is. Jen said he did fabulous for it, didn't fuss or wail at all. It's already growing back quickly. We also got some good pics of him baking with Jen this morning. What started as him helping her make biscuits quickly degenerated to him and the floor being covered in flour.

Happy New Year!

Well, we made it through another year relatively unscathed. I mean, the world seems to be falling down around us, but what else is new, right?
Anway, I thought I would sit down and take a look at the goals I set at the beginning of last year, and see how well I did. Let's see......

• We are going to create a will - um, no - but we are closer to getting this done than we were this time last year
• We are going to establish Max's college fund - ditto the answer from above
• We expect to start working on child #2 (yep, I think I am officially certifiable at this point for even thinking about it) check
• We are either going to go to Arizona or to a wedding in Florida to see family members who have not yet met Max - well, this didn't happen in 2008, but I'm planning a family reunion for this year
• We will get some official/professional pictures taken of Max - check, and check.
• Plant a "Max tree" in the back yard - We didn't really plant a "Max" tree, but we did plant a fig tree that we've had for a while
• I'd like to start and finish two books (just two - that's all I ask!) check! I actually manged to read 5 or 6 books this year - and that doesn't count the ones that Max wants to read
• I'd like to get some stuff in the house organized - book shelves, wall shelves, storage containers etc. - that's a negatory
• I'd like to get the garage set up so that it's functional - sort of check. We can get one car in the garage, but still need some more organization to it
• I'd like to set the garden for the spring & build a large compost bin . Half check. I did build a garden bed, but did not get the compost bin built - I do have a very large pile though.

Other things we did accomplish this year that we didn't set out to do:

• Max is completely weaned off the bottle now (still has his pacifier, but we'll work on that this year).
• We have helped Max develop an appreciation for reading and music. He has even started to sing
• Chris got a new and better job
• I know there is more, but I can't think of it right now....

Now on to 2009. What do I want to do this year? I have no idea! I'll get back to you on that. In the mean time Prospero Ano mi amigos!