January -- lots of pics & clips

Kitty took the SAT this month. In preparation, I signed both of us up for the SAT question of the day emails. In two months, I think I've missed only two English questions and all but two math questions, lol! I know math's never been my forte, but it's rather comical that most of the time I don't even understand the question! It's a good thing I'M not the one applying to college! Last weekend, Kitty went on a pilgrimage to Washington DC with our church youth group. They attended the National Prayer Vigil for Life, our state's Mass for Life, and took part in the March for Life. It was Kitty's third year to participate in the prayerful, peaceful protest against the assault on life in the womb. She's already looking forward to next year's March. Dave has promised to take her and make a weekend of it. Kitty wants to help with the March, attend some of the rallies, and go to the Smithsonian.

Kitty is right in front (khaki pants)

Fatima has been busy planning for her birthday party, which will happen in a few weeks. It yielded a wonderful lesson on budgeting and the choices that requires. Her initial wishlist for party supplies, food, etc. totaled over $200! After our Dave Ramsey course this fall, the girls know we have a budget to stick to for everything. She was crestfallen at the budgeted amount. I helped her create an Excel spreadsheet and find the lowest prices for what she wanted. Then, she whittled down her list. When she got it down close to the target, she had me help her with another spreadsheet to show her chore commissions, snack, dining out and entertainment allocations for January and February. Then, she decided what purchases she could do without, so she could put her own money toward the other party expenses.  I was very proud of how she handled it!

The record cold has continued. And, we had snow and ice that closed school for four days. Day 1 brought smiles, fun in the snow, and joy at the day off. Fatima and I tried to create a "make do sled" using boxes, large plastic lids, pool rafts, etc. But, nothing worked. Later a neighbor came out with a real sled and she had a great time with that. She made a snow dragon and dragon eggs. I think the funniest thing to me was seeing the little mounds of snow from our sand buckets -- surely a sign of a Florida kid playing in snow! Day 2 brought freezing rain and ice, covering the yard, drive and steps. By Day 4, everyone was tired of being cooped up and no one was happy about the school closures because with make-up days, they now only have spring break and Memorial Day off. If we have any more snow days, they'll have to go on Saturday! On the plus side, whenever it does snow again, we're really prepared with the "cold weather survival" package my aunt sent. We now have toasty warm hats and scarves ... and most importantly for snow play -- waterproof gloves!!

Face down?!..A Florida kid snow angel?

We kept Dollbaby inside, since she only has one pair of shoes!

I've started a Game Group with ladies from my newcomer's club. Since my Dollbaby-directed schedule makes going anywhere or committing to outside activities nearly impossible, I asked if anyone wanted to come to my house to play board games once a month. I was thrilled that 14 ladies were interested! We had our first game day a few weeks ago and had great fun playing Scattergories and Last Word. Next time, we're planning Rummikub and Sequence. I've also started a Bible study group. Five ladies will be joining me for Jeff Cavin's Great Bible Adventure Psalm Study. We'll start this week and end just before Holy Week. 

Dollbaby has had an amazing month!

* 1st Outing just for Dollbaby -- our early New Year's Eve together at the science museum

* A fun start to the New Year -- a game of drop & giggle: 

(FYI - the video upload quality is not very good...)

* Understands many words, including: bath, downstairs, upstairs, coat, socks, shoes, outside, diaper, teeth, eyes, ears, nose

Show me your ears...eyes...

* Has "words" for / tried to say: diaper, her sisters' names, peek-a-boo, down

* Clearly says: uh-oh, Daddy, doggy (one time only so far)

* Still loves her Animal Book. Likes the fish page and says "blub, blub" - the text on the page!

* New foods: yogurt (loves), pancakes, cheese pizza, raw apples, tacos, cheeseburger (didn't like), fish, pasta with red sauce (LOVED), craisins, blueberry cereal bars (favorite!)

Dollbaby LOVES blueberry cereal bars!

* Biting into food (pancake, banana). She still wants to bite too much to let her, though. 

* Climbed onto a chair on her own. Two weeks later, climbed on sofa by herself.

* New tooth -- looks like a molar. I've been watching the buds next to the front teeth for weeks, but this one just popped up one day!

* Opened latch on safety gate and let herself out of the family room!

* Climbed from my lap onto the table to get to my food!

* Climbed on top of overturned laundry basket & file box

The camera was acting up, so it's in two parts.

* Removed hinge pin from pantry door

* I found her secret stash of socks behind her crib!

* Clicks her tongue

* Signed book/read

* High-fived Kitty

* Sleeping through the night for over a month now! Turning off the monitor sound worked wonders. I always sleep through. If she wakes up, she puts herself back to sleep.

* Pretends to talk on the phone. Sometimes when it rings, she puts her hand to her ear and starts babbling! I've tried to catch it on video, but no luck so far.

* 15 mo check up - 30.5", 18.2# (50th & 5th percentiles) -- gave fact sheet on tantrums, apropo as she's had more than a few lately! So far, we're all pretty good about ignoring them. Although her sign language words are few, communicating hunger avoids a lot of problems. I'm looking forward to her learning more.

* 1st drawing!

More Pictures

Insisting on sitting at table like a big girl ~ looks like "kilroy!"

loves to grab the keyboard, mouse, papers...

opens her drawers & empties them!

Fatima at the circus (she & Dave went)

a beautiful 70 degree day!

And, some videos!

The cousins brought their Wii when they visited. Dollbaby took over the balance board and led everyone in her usual "squat dance"

Fatima took this clip, so it's a little bouncy, but the ending's worth it!

 Bye-Bye!!

Merry Christmas!

Today's the 4th Day of Christmas... 4 Calling Birds, which stands for the 4 Gospels.

Dollbaby went with me to my newcomers' group annual Christmas Cookie Exchange. She was a big hit, although she wouldn't let anyone hold her.  Her fun seemed to be finding the electrical sockets and the trash on the floor. Thankfully, she now usually hands trash to me instead of trying to eat it!  During the event, the fire alarm sounded. I thought she'd scream, but she didn't cry at all! She didn't care for standing out in the cold, though. So, we waited in the car until the "all clear." (BTW, it was legitimately cold that day, 15-23!) Kitty and Fatima love the cookie exchange... eating the cookies, that is. We always cut them into smaller pieces, so we can each try lots of varieties. It reminds me of when my Dad would pick up doughnuts for his sales meetings and bring home the baker's dozen for us. Since we were only allowed two doughnuts, we'd cut them in half, or even fourths, so we could have more kinds!

The girls painted Christmas ornaments, a tradition we started in Florida. We used to go to a wonderful little studio open house where we could paint plaster ornaments for 75 cents each! We went every year and the girls each have dozens of ornaments they painted. I love decorating the tree with their homemade items. Since moving here, we buy small plaster ornaments and paint them at home. The girls make some for their collections and some for gifts.

Dave and Fatima set up the tree and strung the lights, as they've done together since my arm surgery years ago.

We love to make Christmas cookies. We have favorites we always make like Spritz, cut-outs, buckeyes, bark and sugar cookies. I enjoy trying new recipes each year, too. This year's new ones included shortbread thumbprints, Andes mint chocolate chip cookies, double chocolate m&m cookies, pretzel/Rolo turtles and pretzel/kiss/m&m treats. Unfortunately, I overdid it and discovered the limits of my recovery from Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Both arms had been hurting, but I thought I could finish. While making our last recipe (Spritz), my left arm just gave up. Dave took over and finished the cookies with Fatima. It's been two weeks and the arm still really hurts, even after a few massage and physical therapy treatments. But, the cookies were delicious! And, Dave saw how pathetic my mixer was, so guess what I got for Christmas... a new mixer :-) Before next Christmas, I'll have to investigate if there's a cookie press designed for weak people!! (Or, recruit Dave to make the Spritz again.)

Over the past month, we had our hard wood floors refinished (they're BEa-u-ti-ful) and Dave replaced the disposal and dishwasher. I LOVE having a quiet dishwasher again. He also updated our half-bath. Gone is the dated faux painting. The walls are now "Prairie Dance," a sort of cafe au lait color, which really makes the white trim pop. He also replaced the polished brass fixtures, accessories and light with brushed nickle ones. Now, I just have to find a new mirror and art work, and maybe a window treatment... We also refinanced the house this month - at 4.5%, which I think is about the same rate my parents had in 1967!

The girls are happy to be on Christmas break. Kitty operated the light board for a community theatre production of A Christmas Carol, which Fatima and I got to see with her comp tickets. We also attended the Improv theatre night at Kitty's school. We all went to Fatima's chorus concert. They've both enjoyed a few Christmas parties.

Some favorite Christmas gifts:

Stuffed puppy from Fatima

How to Train Your Dragon "Toothless" action figure

from Grandma & Grandpa

Scrapbooking supplies from Grandma & Grandpa

We've been having record cold. This week, we have snow. Each year we've lived here, it's snowed at least one day. But, this is the first time it didn't melt quickly. We're on Day 3. Fatima was so excited and has had a great time playing in it. Kitty was not happy as it spoiled her plans since we wouldn't let her go with her teen-driver friends. I'm looking forward to the weekend, when we're expecting 60 degrees! That's much more to my liking.

Now, for Dollbaby's latest:

* 1st fat lip :-( She fell face-first on the wood leg of the ottoman

* climbed down the stairs (on her tummy, feet first)

* wants finger foods! She loves crackers, cheddar cheese, bread, puffs, and cheerios. She also loves grapes, but I try not to let her see them, because then I have to peel and dice them. Have you ever tried to peel a grape?! not an easy task!

cornbread & cheese - yum!

* grabs and reaches for our food. She likes chicken pot pie and chicken alfredo and loved Dave's chicken and gnocchi soup and my lasagne rollata al forno when we went to Olive Garden!

* puts the phone to her ear and "talks." This week, she has done the same with a remote and her sock! I remember when Fatima was about 2.5yo, her speech therapist said pretending that way was unusual at her age. So, maybe we have another creative soul :-)

* stacks 4 blocks! She giggled with each success the first time :-)

* waves and says "bye-bye." Although it sounds a lot like daddy (da-da), we can tell the difference. Plus, the wave is a dead give-away!

* puckers and smacks her lips to kiss (although at first, it looked more like a fish face!). Sometimes, she'll even do it on my cheek when I ask for a kiss - SO sweet!

* scrambled onto the box springs and laughed when I was flipping the mattresses :-)

* turned on Kitty's iPOD and danced! (I didn't know how to turn it off, so Kitty ended up with a drained battery, lol)

* is extremely active, much more so than her sisters were. This is especially trying at Mass, where she won't stay in the pew. She and I end up walking the back aisle, while I try to keep her from running toward the altar and getting into the offertory baskets and holy water fonts! Fortunately, the people in the last row and the ushers seem to be amused and not irritated by her.

* has not been sleeping through the night since our Thanksgiving trip. Sometimes, she's reverted to getting up 2-3 times. This week, I decided enough was enough. I had resisted the doctor's and books' advice to let her cry and put herself back to sleep (they said to do that at 6 months!). But, at 14mo, I know she doesn't need to nurse during the night. So, I've turned the monitor down so I can't hear her. I'm not sure how her night went, but I got 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep, aaahhh!

* climbs into my old rocking chair

* 1st drink from a sippy cup

And, some more memories from our month:

Why'd you stop reading, Mommy?

Wishing you all a very Blessed Christmas season!

Fall Fun

Highlights from the past few weeks:

Kitty and I went to a community theatre performance of 1776 The Musical.  I thought it was funny and very well done.  Kitty liked it, but discovered she can no longer just be an audience member, as she sees it all through theatre eyes.  Her observations and comments afterwards were interesting.  Although I was involved in drama in my high school days, I'm blissfully unaware of all the marks, cues, lighting, and other elements whose theatrical terms I don't even know.  Kitty's school production of Jungle Book (the play, not the musical) was wonderful.  The sets and costumes she designed were impressive.  It was something to see her creations brought to life.  And, I think the monkeys (of which she was one) had the most fun of all the characters!  We're so proud of her!

We're really proud of Fatima, too.  She received a Terrific Kid award this month!  Her classmates voted to honor her for the character trait of uniqueness. Each Terrific Kid's teacher wrote a letter praising them, which was read at the ceremony.  Her teacher said she "is a terrific kid who definitely showcases the core essential of uniqueness.  She shows her uniqueness in countless ways including designing and making clothes, pillows, scarves, and mending items.  Her artwork is extraordinary, as she demonstrates an innate talent.  She solves problesm in diverse and constructive ways, always sharing her ideas.  She is a unique leader and role model for others; clearly one terrific kid!"

We traveled to Atlanta for Thanksgiving, spending the holiday with Dave's sisters and their families.  

 
We got to see - and hold :-)  our great-niece Mackenzie.  

                          Dollbaby wasn't so sure about sharing Mommy.

Kitty enjoyed the virtually unlimited computer time she has when we're there. 

As usual, we barely saw Fatima between our arrival and departure, as she was off with her cousins having fun, fun, fun!  

 

Alas, Dollbaby did not do so well.  She only slept an hour on the way there.  Worse, she absolutely hated the port-a-crib.  We could not lay her down to sleep if she was awake - she would just scream.  And, if I waited until she fell asleep, she would wake up as we tried to lay her in the port-a-crib and scream.  When we finally did get her down, she woke up in the middle of the night and we'd go through it all again.  Two nights, Dave had to take her for a long drive.  Once, he slept in the car for an hour waiting for her to fall asleep.  Those times, we just left her sleeping in the carseat.  The other night, he ended up walking her around the house for quite a while.  Nap times were the same.  The first night we were back home, she started to fight going to sleep, then seemed to realize she was home and in her own bed.  She just relaxed, melted into the mattress and slept for 10 hours!  Needless to say, she and I will be staying home for the foreseeable future.

Dollbaby has had several firsts these past few weeks:

* stacked two blocks - for the first few days, each time she smiled, giggled, clapped and looked at me to cheer her on :-)

* played peek-a-boo by moving my hands in front of and away from my face

* played hide-n-seek!  She put my hands in front of my face for peek-a-boo, then hid around the corner -- 4 times!  I "looked" for her in the other direction, then "found" her and she boy did she laugh - each time!  She's SO fun!

* followed a direction... I asked her to get her little green ball and she went two rooms over, got it and brought it to me, smiling big!  Lots of praise, claps, hugs and kisses ... which made her smile even more.

* put the phone to my ear and smiled.  She does this a lot now - and she wants me to talk into the phone!

* laughs when everyone else does, which makes us laugh harder, so she does too!

* made her first phone call ~ she was playing with the phone and must have pushed redial.  I heard Dave's voice and realized it was coming from the phone she'd left on the floor!

* communicated in sign language -- "eat" and "more."  She uses "eat" all the time.  She's signed "more" twice so far.  We just received the Baby Signing Time program and watched the first dvd yesterday.  She was glued to it.  When Kitty and Fatima came in, they watched it with us.  Hopefully, we'll all learn together and be able to avoid the grunting and pointing stage that lasted SO long with Fatima!!

* Dave heard her say "bye-bye."  I haven't heard it, yet.

* switched to wanting her food room temperature instead of cold.

* decided Daddy must hold her on his right side and Mommy must hold her on her left side.  If we try the opposite, she pulls and wiggles and fusses until we position her on the "correct" side.  oooh, another sign of high maintenance things to come...

* played in leaves :-)

A few more snapshots of our November:

Dollbaby's use for my hand exercise ball :-)

Dollbaby really liked playing with the swords I left out after CCD.

(from the kids acting out the Fall of the Angels battle)

 

Our Dollbaby - A Wish Come True

She likes to put the lens cover on my camera - while I'm using it!

 

"Helping" me make the bed :-)

Another form of hide-n-seek...closing doors  

 

Wishing you all a Blessed Advent!