October= busy, busy, busy!
But, I do have to say that one of the best things about the past month was getting to see both of my sisters for the first time in about 6 months! It was the longest I have ever gone without seeing them. Tara & Gina flew out to Iowa and stayed for a long weekend. We all had so much fun! We talked, went out to eat, took Lina to the Family Museum, walked downtown, and just hung out! Tara & Gina wanted to do something "fall like" since they don't have much of a fall season in Florida, so we also spent an afternoon making pumpkin muffins and apple pie. Yum! Lina had SO much fun with her aunts. She loved having them play with her and all of the extra love and attention she was getting. It was so cute the way she said their names- "TEE" for Aunt T and "Nee-na" for Auntie Gina. When Gina first got here, she was showing Lina her travel bag and pointing out the dot pattern on it. Lina became obsessed with dots from that moment on, and for the following couple weeks has been pointing out everything that has dots or circles. She points to the dots and yells " DOT DOT DOT DOT DOT!" It is pretty funny, especially because she notices dots in such random places! I included a video of Lina playing with Tara & Gina in the photo gallery. You can tell by her shrieks that she is having a blast!
Luckily, Tara & Gina didn't leave until Sunday evening and were here to offer moral support when I took Mike to the airport Sunday morning. He left on a two week trip to China. It was really hard for him to leave and hard for me watching him go. Mike always travels here and there, but has been very fortunate that he hasn't had to do much major traveling since Lina was born. This was the longest he has been away from us! I think I would have pretty much lost my mind being home all day by myself with Lina for 2 weeks, so my dad drove out to Iowa in order to help us drive back to Michigan while Mike was gone. We spent a day at our house so that my dad could take a break before getting back in the car and turning around. "Boppa" even got to come to Lina's last music class while he was here!
Our trip to Michigan was just what the doctor ordered! I got to rest up and Lina had an absolute ball with her Gramme & Boppa. She played outside in the leaves for the first time, rode on the tractor with Boppa, danced and listened to music every night with Gramme, had some special treats (the word cookie is now in her vocabulary!), and just played and ran and played and ran some more!! I don't think she sat still the entire week. There is just way too much fun to be had at Gramme & Boppa's house! We were lucky enough to see some of my aunts, uncles & cousins, too. I miss them so much and it was great getting to spend an afternoon together. Lina also loved playing with Asti, my parents' dog. Asti is a little easier to boss around than our dogs, and boy did she get a kick out of yelling his name ("Ti-Ti!") and pulling him around on his leash. Lina also had fun trying to make poor Asti bark. She would shriek at the top of her lungs, which provoked Asti to bark- and for some reason that just cracked Lina up! I have a really cute video of them in the photo gallery.
While we were back, I took Lina to Toledo for the day so that we could spend some time with Mike's family. We got to spend the day with Grandpa Jeff, Grandma Maggy, Aunt Jenny, Uncle John, Jonah, and Great Grandpa & Grandma Mann. We had such a great visit! Lina loved playing with her cousin Jonah and getting to see all of the fun toys he has at his house!
We got back to Iowa the day before Mike came home. Mike had a great trip and brought back lots of goodies from China! Ladies- China is not a bad place for your husband to visit! Think purses, jewelry, scarves, etc. :) His trip was a very busy one, but Mike still found some time to sightsee. He really enjoyed China! The highlights of his trip were hiking up the Great Wall and eating Peking Duck- he was told that a trip to Beijing would not be complete without experiencing these two things! Mike had some pretty bad jet lag and it took him several days to adjust. Even though he wasn't feeling great, we still had a really fun Halloween weekend. Lina made an adorable lion!! Our friends in Davenport had trick or treating on the 30th, so we took Lina trick or treating for the first time with them. She and her little friends had so much fun! The 4 little girls were too cute- a lion, chicken, pumpkin and witch. They got the hang of it very quickly and were all so excited. We think that Lina just thought being outside when it was dark out was the coolest thing ever. By the end of our 20-30 minute trick or treating stint, she was holding her elmo bucket up to people and saying "Lina! Lina!" She wanted to make sure they didn't forget about giving her candy!
The next night we had trick or treating in our neighborhood. I stayed home to pass out candy while Mike took Lina around to a few of the neighbor's houses. We weren't sure if she would let us put her costume back on, but she remembered the drill from the night before. She was dying to get out the door! Mike said that she was saying "Elmo" this time she went up to the door, as in, make sure you put that candy in my Elmo bucket! I have a video clip in the album of Lina getting back home after trick or treating with Daddy. She really is the cutest little lion!
November is going to be another busy month! We had to reschedule our trip to Vegas and it is now only 2 weeks away, the week we get home is Thanksgiving, and then it is Mike's 30TH BIRTHDAY! Time is flying.
I added a bunch of pictures and some videos to a new album: Oct. part 2
Pumpkin Patch
Dave Matthews Band Concert
DMB has always been special to Mike & me and reminds us of the good old college days when we first started dating. We went to our first DMB concert together in 2002 (I went to my first one 11 years ago in '98- yikes!!) and have loved seeing him in concert ever since. It was such a fun night that allowed us to just be "Mike & Kristen" and reminded us of how much fun we have together.
Fall has arrived!
In the meantime, we have been trying to keep busy and enjoying our time with Lina. She is our joy! Lina just turned 16 months old this week and she is rambunctious as ever! Wow, that little girls keeps me busy. She is communicating with us more and more, and is happiest when she is free to run and climb all over the place. Lina learned how to climb up her slide (both up the stairs and up the slide) and go down on her own, so she thinks she is pretty cool. I also found our little monkey in the pantry the other day, hanging on the second shelf. She climbed up and got stuck- couldn't go any higher and couldn't get back down. This was after I had already found her sitting on the first shelf. Needless to say, I keep the door closed now!
My favorite thing about her right now is her sense of humor. Even at 16 months old, Lina knows when she is being funny, and LOVES to get a reaction out of us. Lina still loves to boss around her dogs, whom she now calls "Dodo" (Dozer) and "May" (Maizie). If you ask us, she has named Dozer pretty appropriately. This is the time of year when I most want to strangle the dogs- squirrel season.
Some of the other things that Lina is really into right now are: Dora the Explorer, Elmo ("Mo"), tomatoes (she can't get enough!), the vacuum, planes, trains, boats, and tractors, of course. We are convinced that she loves anything with a motor, just like her daddy! A funny tractor story- we were at a friend's house the other week and playing on the driveway. Lina kept pointing to the open garage and telling me "that!!" Finally, I realized that she wanted to see their John Deere tractor. Ever since Lina rode on Grandpa E.'s John Deere tractor, she has been obsessed! As soon as I let her go into the garage, she went over to the tractor and gave it a big kiss. It was hilarious! Mike is very proud. :)
Lina still loves, loves, loves music. She is always dancing or bopping her head ("shaking her coco" as Grandpa calls it) to a song. We bought her a little keyboard that plays music and she just loves it. I am pretty excited because Lina and I just started a toddler music class one morning a week. Getting to do things like this reminds me how lucky I am to stay home with Lina right now!
In other big girls news, Lina gave up her beloved nightly bottle several weeks ago, and it is a little bittersweet for us. We know it was time, but it is still hard to let go of our little baby. I think this was especially tough on Mike, since he does Lina's bedtime routine. As long as she keeps snuggling in his lap for books, I think he will be OK.
Even with Mike back in class, we have really made the most of the time we have had on the weekends this month. We went to the zoo, walked downtown for ice cream along the river, and went to Des Moines for the day (unfortunately, our trip was cut short and we didn't get to see everybody we wanted to!). We finally tried the Davenport Farmer's Market, and were very pleasantly surprised! Last weekend we went to the apple orchard, and Lina had so much fun. She walked right along with us probably the farthest she ever has, went on a hayride, and ate a whole apple for the first time. She also had corn on the cob for the first time this month and absolutely loved it! At first she was having a hard time holding the corn, but I put the little holders on the ends, and she did great. We have also been cheering on our Wolverines and are cautiously optimistic!! We have been practicing with Lina, and she is starting to get "GO BLUE!" down.
GO BLUE and bring on Fall!!
August
August 2009 Photo Album
Our beautiful tree...
I decided to share this, because, although it is a very personal thing to go through, it is not something that Mike & I feel we should hide or even can hide. We know that it will take time for us to heal and that this will be something that will always remain with us. We know our families and friends have shared in our pain and have done SO much to help us out in any way they could along the way. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Knowing that we have had the love and support of everyone we care about has meant more than we can explain.
The picture you see here is one of us standing in front of the latest addition to our backyard. Mike & I decided that we would plant a tree as a way to remember and as a way to ease some of our pain. It is a big, beautiful tree that will grow right along with our family for years to come.
Summer Fun!
We have since made two more trips back to Michigan to spend time with family. Lina is such a good little traveler. She gets a little frustrated in the car, but mostly just watches her Dora DVDs. She adjusts really well to being in new places and being around new people, too. Mike & I are really glad that she does so well already. Hopefully this is the beginning of many more trips back to Michigan as a family!
We spent 4th of July weekend in Brighton with my parents. Lina had a blast with her Gramme & Grandpa! She had so much fun riding on the tractor with "Boppa" and swimming in the pool with Gramme. It was so nice having a weekend to relax and spend time with my parents without having an event or having our time scheduled. We were also fortunate to see the Evangelista family for a BBQ on the 4th of July. We hadn't seen anyone since Tara's wedding, so it was great to spend time with my aunts, uncles, and cousins.
Last weekend we went to Devil's Lake to spend a long weekend with Mike's family. We have had a tough and exhausting couple of weeks and it was a much needed weekend to wind down and be with family. It was "Boppa" Jeff's birthday, so we were lucky enough to spend time with both of Mike's sisters & brothers-in-law and our nephew, Jonah. Lina got to ride on a boat for the first time, and had so much fun playing in the water and sand with her cousin Jonah. We hope to make it an annual tradition!
Other than that, we have been busy with playdates and just enjoying the time together as a family. Sometimes we just walk or drive into our little downtown for ice cream in the evening. We walk along the river so that Lina can watch the boats. She just loves pointing to the boats and the birds. Even though we haven't had the best weather, we go outside to play almost every day. Lina LOVES playing in and with water. She plays in her little pool, with her water table, and with her beach ball that sprays water. She will even take the hose and spray herself. The water is freezing, but she could care less- she LOVES it! Lina is also really into bubbles right now. She loves saying the word bubbles over and over. It is too cute!
I am sad that summer is quickly coming to an end. Mike starts back to school in mid August. He kicks off the semester with a week in Iowa City and then goes back to class every week on Fridays or Saturdays. We don't want to think about it! At least we have a really fun September to look forward to. We have weddings, a Dave Matthews Band concert in Des Moines with friends, and a trip to Vegas planned! I'm sure the next two months will fly by just as quickly as these last two did.
For a little picture summary of our June & July, click HERE.
Lina's One Year Pictures
1st Birthday
On the Saturday after her birthday, Lina had her birthday party. Both sets of Grandparents came from Michigan, and we were lucky enough to have GREAT Grandparents Meyers and Mann come from Ohio to share in the occasion. Some of Lina's new Quad City friends and our good friends from Des Moines, Tim & EJ, were also able to make it. The rain held off for the most part and we had a lovely little princess themed party! Lina had a great time playing with her friends and new toys and she ADORED having the attention from all of her grandparents!!
It is amazing to look at what an individual Lina has become in just a year! She is running around everywhere, babbling and talking, and making her opinions known! She even knows when the dogs are misbehaving (many of you know that this is a regular occurence) and shakes her finger at them while saying "NoNoNoNo!" It is too funy! I like to say that Lina might look like her daddy, but she takes after her mama :)
Lina is already having a blast this summer! We have taken several trips to the zoo and Lina loves seeing and petting the animals. She LOVES playing outside and has been known to throw a little fit or two when it is time to come inside. We have already had lots of playdates, wagon and stroller rides, and fun times at the park. Lina even had her first "sleepover" at a friend's house. It was VERY difficult for us to leave her overnight for the first time, but gave Mike & me a much needed night with friends and each other.
Although Lina spends most of her day with me, I am proud of the fact that she is really good with other people. Whenever we have visitors or Lina meets new people, she is not shy and quickly warms right up to them. She even loves saying HI and waving to most people we encounter at the store or when we go out to eat!
We love our beautiful, funny, smart, spunky one year old!!!
Click HERE to view all of the pictures from Lina's 1st birthday!
Click HERE to view the updated pictures.
Long overdue...
I must start by saying that it has been waaaay too long since my last update! Sorry to those of you who have been checking regularly! It has been about a month and a half, but it feels as if so much has happened already this spring. In March we were lucky to have Mike's mom & dad (Grandpa Jeff & Grandma Maggy) out for a nice visit. Along with Lina's Easter goodies, they brought the adorable little bunny ears you see her wearing in the picture. My mom (Gramme) also came out for a long weekend visit. It was a Saturday class weekend for Mike, so it was wonderful having the company and getting some "girl" time. She also kicked our butts in Wii bowling.
My parents came out to celebrate Easter with us this year. Easter is one holiday that Mike & I have pretty much spent alone since moving to Iowa, so it was really great getting to be with family. It was even more special since it was Lina's first Easter. The weather was actually pretty beautiful on Easter weekend, so Lina got to go on a walk and play with Grandpa & Gramme in the backyard. We decorated eggs on Saturday and it was hilarious! Lina loved the texture of the eggs and was mostly interested in squishing the eggs apart. As you will see by her face in the pictures, she took the egg squishing very seriously. My parents brought their dog, Asti, so it was three dogs circling Lina's high chair and waiting for her to throw some overboard. On Easter Sunday, we went to church and made a nice brunch at home. Lina looked adorable in her Easter dress!
Lina has changed so much in the last month. First of all, she had a major growth spurt and looks like a little toddler. We can't believe how grown up she looks. She absolutely loves Baby Einstein DVDs and will lay on the floor with her big bunny or a pillow and watch her little show. If pointing to the TV and saying "that" doesn't prompt us to put her DVD on for her, she knows to take the remote and point it at the TV, trying to get Baby Einstein to play. It is so funny! Aside from the words "mama" and "dada", Lina's top words have to be "that" and "dog." She loves to point and say those two words all day long! Lina also says "cook" when we are by the stove and she says "kick" when she plays with her ball. It is something about the K sound- she loves to annunciate that K!
Lina has also learned how to drink from her sippy cup and from a straw, but she LOVES drinking out of Mommy's glass. She still doesn't care much for juice, so we stick to water. Her favorite toy right now is her little push cart. She zips around the house with it and tries to run over the dogs. She cracks us up every night by doing it! She screams and laughs and just takes off on that cart full speed.
In big milestone news, Lina took her first steps last week!! Lina didn't know I was watching her, and she just decided to walk from one toy to another like it was no problem! We knew that she was capable of walking on her own, but think she just didn't quite have the confidence up until that point. Since then, she is getting more and more confident in her walking. She still won't walk across the entire room, but she will walk short distances to things or walk to me. It is just really exciting and fun to think about all this summer will hold, especially once she is walking everywhere.
Overall, this has been a good couple of months for our family. I have been getting more involved in my Moms Club and have enjoyed some fun "Mom's Night Out" evenings with the girls. I also joined a book club and have been reminded of how much I love to read. Now that Lina is going to bed smoothly, it has been wonderful to pick up a good book and relax a little. A new German restaurant/bar just opened in LeClaire (this is BIG for our little town!) and Mike has already been able to run up there a few times to have a beer with his buddies. He has been doing a little bit of traveling lately, but luckily hasn't had to leave the country in quite some time. In May, he will be done with his first year of MBA classes and will have a summer break until August. One year down, one to go! Mike can't wait to have more time at home and Lina & I can't wait to have him to ourselves this summer!
It is crazy to realize, but as of the end of March, we have been in our house for one year. A year ago at this time we were expecting a baby any day (yeah, that didn't quite happen the way I thought it would!), trying to move into a new house, and wondering what the heck we were doing here in the Quad Cities. The past year was such a transition in so many ways, but we are are happy with how well we have adjusted and how "at home" we feel here at this point. We are just so thankful to have met some really great friends. It has made all the difference!
Thanks for reading this long and somewhat choppy post!!
If you would like to see the most recent pictures, click here to follow the link: March/April pictures
Go, Tara, Go!!
This past weekend, Lina & I flew to Florida to watch Tara run in the Gasparilla Half Marathon. Mom and Dad also flew in from Michigan to join everybody in cheering Tara on. This was the second year in a row that Tara ran the half marathon and she was awesome! She didn't train as much this year as she did last year, so she worried that her time wouldn't be as good. However, Tara ended up shaving about a minute per mile off of her time!! Her chip time was an incredible 2hrs. 3 minutes and some change. Tara & John's good friend, Greg, also participated by running in the full marathon. Greg is an amazing runner and finished with a time that qualified him for the Boston Marathon. It was really cool watching him run, too.
Our family had so much fun being there for Tara and just being a part of the event in general. All of the runners and supporters were really inspiring and I was caught off guard by how emotional the whole thing was. I think it will be neat for Lina to be able to look back at the pictures and to know she was there, cheering on her Aunt T!
Check out the album Tara's Half Marathon to see pictures from our time in Florida!
And a few more visitors...
Lori & Matt came to visit for a few days and it was great to have them out! Angelina loved having some special time with her Aunt and soon to be Uncle.
We added a few more pictures and pictures from their visit to the album February.
Time for Visitors!
We were lucky enough to have two visitors over the last few weeks. Mike had to travel on business for a week, so Lina's Grandpa E. came out to stay with us while Mike was gone. We had so much fun that Grandpa had to extend his trip an extra couple of days! Then, just this week, Lina's Grandma Maggy came out for a visit. Lina had a great time shopping and playing with her grandma! Click on the album February to see some pictures from the last couple of weeks.
8 Months Old
Our little bean is 8 months old! Unbelievable. Lina is blossoming before our eyes! She is already cruising around the furniture, chairs, her toys, and anything else she can pull herself up with. Whenever I take her to my MOMS Club activities or playdates everyone is shocked that Lina gets around as adeptly as she does for such a young baby (Sorry, another proud mom moment)! It really is adorable seeing that little body go like crazy! I don't think it will be long before she is walking around.
Lina has recently learned to wave and clap and spends a good part of her day waving like crazy to her doggies. She LOVES her doggies- although they probably don't realize it by how much she also likes to hit and pull on them right now.
Lina laughs more and more each day, especially when Daddy gets home from work! She shrieks with excitement and immediately starts waving when he walks in the door. Daddy gets Lina to laugh more than anybody can! One of her favorite things now is being driven around the kitchen in her high chair. She cracks up!
Lina has also started saying MAMA-MAMA-MAMA. Not sure if she is really associating it with me, but I'll take it. It is a welcome addition to her sing-song shrieks and little grunts!
Mike & I are just so in love with our little girl. She gets funnier and more precious every day. We are already really looking forward to the spring and summer. She is going to be at such a great age and we can't wait to get outside and play.
Our silly girl! Look at that hair!
Lina playing with her friends, Mia and Ada. They were all born within a month of each other!
A lazy morning Cuddling with Daddy
Lina & her doggies
I love this picture. My little professor. Help! How did I get in here??
Happy Holidays!
Well, we were a little delayed in getting back to Michigan for the holidays. We weren't able to leave until the Tuesday before Christmas and that turned out to be a terrible day to leave! The roads were icy and the wind was whipping. What should have a been a 7 hour drive turned into a miserable 11 hour drive. Poor Lina! She did as well as can be expected for a 7 month old being confined to her carseat for that long. We were very relieved to finally make it back safely. We celebrated Christmas Eve with the Meyers family and Christmas with the Evangelista family. There is nothing better than being together with our families! Angelina had a wonderful first Christmas. As always, our visit seemed much too short! Luckily, my mom & dad were able to drive out to Iowa and spend New Year's Eve with us here in Le Claire. It was a great way to bring in 2009!
Check out all of our holidays pictures... click on the link below.
http://picasaweb.google.com/MeyersLife/Holidays2008
Big Girl
Lina is just all over the place! It is as if she hit 6 months old and just decided to grow up right before our eyes. She quickly became quite the little pro at crawling and loves the fact that there is life outside of the family room. She takes off into the kitchen, dining room and hall in order to explore and see what she can get herself into (yep- dog bowls on the kitchen floor already had to go!). Not only is Lina crawling everywhere, she is pulling herself up onto everything! I can't take my eyes off of her for a second anymore. She has always been a strong baby, and I guess that paired with an inquisitive baby spells trouble! The other night Mike went to check on Lina in her crib and she was just standing up, holding onto the railing and staring at him. I think it startled him half to death! When we see all of the incredible things she is doing, Mike & I just can't believe she is only 6 months old. On the other hand, we can't believe she is ALREADY 6 months old!
On the move...
Well, Miss Angelina is officially on the move! She started crawling just a few days after her 6 month birthday. Here she is with one of her first crawling attempts. What a big girl!! http://picasaweb.google.com/MeyersLife/Videos
'Tis the Season
We had a really great Thanksgiving weekend this year. We have been so busy lately and it felt good to get some family time with just the three of us. Our actual Thanksgiving was really low key. We enjoyed relaxing, watching the parade, and browsing through the Black Friday ads. Then, on Friday, we were up early to do some shopping!
We also thought we would get a jump on our Christmas decorating this year. We are always in Michigan for the holidays and never get to enjoy our tree for more than 2 weeks. SO, this year we went out and got our tree Thanksgiving weekend. We found a perfect tree farm right here in LeClaire. If we actually stay put for a few years, this will definitely be the start of a family tradition. They have a barn complete with a restored 1800's sleigh, wood burning fireplace, warm drinks, and decorations. Lina loved looking at all of the lights and the fire! After checking out the barn, we headed out to choose our tree. The trees were really beautiful and we were able to cut our own (Mike insists!). It was a great day and a perfect start to the holiday season!
On Sunday, we woke up to a backyard covered in snow! It was beautiful. We were also able to visit our good friend Megan who was in town from D.C. Can't get much better than that!
Angelina's Baptism
Angelina's Baptism was November 22nd- just one day after her 6 month birthday. We asked Tara and John to be Lina's godparents and they fly in from Florida just a few weeks after tying the knot. The entire baptism weekend was a really wonderful time with family and friends. I think at first we were so busy and focused on cleaning, preparing food, hosting overnight guests, etc. that we didn't have time to think about how meaningful the weekend was. It just hit us all of the sudden while sitting in church surrounded by our family. We are SO blessed to have such caring family and friends who came from all over the country to be with us on Angelina's special day. Thank you to everyone who was there and thank you to those who sent their best wishes. We love you all!!
A special thank you also goes to Lina's grandmas. Grandma Maggy came out several days early to help get ready for the weekend. Between Mike's hectic work and school schedule and a teething baby, I never would have been able to be ready without her help. Thank you also to Gramme for making Angelina's beautiful baptism gown with lace from her own wedding dress. It is such a special gift.
If you would like to view pictures from the weekend, click on Angelina's Baptism album.
Lina's 6 month picture proofs- only up until Dec.3rd
We had Angelina's 6 month pictures taken the week before she officially turned 6 months old. They came out beautifully!! Here is the link for the picture proofs: www.Cantbuymemories.com
Click on the “view proofs” link. On that page click on View My Proofs and that should open a new page. Click on “Lina” and your password will be kristen1119.
The photographer also put the pictures together in a slideshow set to music. You can download the slideshow by clicking on www.cantbuymemories.com/Lina6months.exe
Tara & John's Wedding
Tara & John got married on Nov.1st, 2008- Congrats Mr. & Mrs. Woodman!
The trip to Florida could not have been any better and the wedding could not have been any more beautiful.
It was Lina's first time on a plane and going into the trip we were so worried that she would have a hard time sitting still. Lina completely surprised us and did great! She entertained all of the passengers and slept for each leg of the trip. In addition to flying for the first time, it was Lina's first time at the beach and first time in the water. She LOVED the water! It was so precious watching how much fun she had "swimming" and splashing around.
We stayed at a hotel with lots of family and friends on Longboat Key. It was amazing to see how many people made it to Florida for the wedding. Even Mike's parents (Grandpa Jeff & Grandma Maggy) came to enjoy the wedding weekend and help with Lina. The beach was gorgeous and we were lucky to have some time just to relax, enjoy the setting, and hang out with everybody before and after the wedding.
The wedding itself was at Selby Gardens in Sarasota. It was a beautiful day and the ceremony was perfect- personal and meaningful. Tara and John just looked so happy and Tara was a truly stunning bride!
Since I was in the wedding, Mike had the job of getting Lina ready for the big day. He did a great job and Miss Lina looked like a little doll! After the ceremony, a trolley took us to Michael's on East for the reception. Everybody had such a great night and Gina & I made it through our speeches just fine (whew!). Mike & I were even able to get some time to ourselves at the reception thanks to family and friends!
Click on Tara & John's Wedding Album to see all of our pictures from the trip.
Pumpkin Carving
Here are some pictures from pumpkin carving the other night. We will be in Florida on Halloween, but we still wanted to get in the Halloween spirit a little bit! The highlight (or should I say lowlight?) of the pumpkin carving experience was thanks to Maizie. After we were done with our carving, I put all three of our pumpkins on the ground in front of the fireplace. Mike took Lina up for a bath and I left the room for about three minutes to clean up. When I came back into the family room, Maizie had stolen the top off of Lina's pumpkin and eaten it. TYPICAL BEAGLES!!! The last two pictures are of Mike holding what is left of the top of Lina's poor little pumpkin and of the bite marks on the rest of the pumpkin.
October
Lina & I started off the month by heading back to Michigan for about 10 days. Mike couldn't come due to his work and school schedule, and it is still too difficult to drive back alone with Lina for such a long trip... soooo...my dad drove all of the way out to Iowa, left his car here, and drove back with Lina and me. Then he came back out with us and drove himself home. What a dad!
The trip to Michigan was great, but busy as always! I had my 10 year high school reunion the first weekend back and Tara's bachelorette party the next weekend. The night of Tara's bachelorette party was the first night Lina has ever spent away from both Mike and me. Even though she was in great hands with Grandpa and Gramme, it was still hard leaving her overnight! The week in between was filled mostly with visiting friends and family and bachelorette party planning with Gina We also took Lina in to visit Gramme's work, Gina & I had our bridesmaid dress fitting (thank goodness it fit!), we took a trip to Kensington with Grandpa, went shopping with Mom & Gina for the dress Lina will wear to Tara's wedding, and got to go with Tara for her final dress fitting!! We missed Mike like crazy, but we were able to chat and he was able to see Lina on the webcam.
Right before we headed back to Iowa, Lina got her first bad cold. Poor little thing! We took her to the doctor for her second round of shots the day after we got back to Iowa, but she couldn't get them because she was sick. I have to admit that I was a little relieved that Lina's shots were postponed! I am not looking forward to doing that again! Other than the cold, Lina is doing great. She can already sit up on her own and weighs 15 pounds, 1 oz. The last couple of weeks she has been really into Row Row Row Your Boat. It is the funniest thing! As soon as we start rowing she breaks into the biggest smile. She also knows to look when you call her name and has just started to squeal and laugh when Mike & I laugh really hard. Her reaction just makes us laugh harder, then Lina gets more excited, then we laugh, etc. etc. So cute! The other thing Lina has been into is making this little grunting sound (not very ladylike and greatly encouraged by Grandpa because he thinks it is hilarious). I don't know where it came from, but Lina has discovered that it gets a reaction out of us.
This past weekend we had some friends over for the first time since moving to LeClaire (YAY!!) and took Lina to the pumpkin patch on Sunday. Now it is only a week and a half until we pack up and fly to Florida for Tara & John's wedding!!!
Instead of posting the latest batch of pictures here, I put them all in an album. Just click on the link October 2008 to see more pictures.
Our lazy Sunday
The weather was beautiful here this past Sunday! There are not too many days this time of the year when we don't have something going on, so we took advantage of it. We went on a nice little walk and played out in the backyard. Lina loves being outside and especially loves when she gets to spend all day with Daddy!
Sitting up!
Cereal, here I come!
Lina tried rice cereal for the first time today. She actually did a good job of not pushing it back out of her mouth, but we don't think she liked it too much. We will have to wait a few days and try again!
4 months old
Our beautiful daughter is just getting cuter and more entertaining by the day! She is such a smiley baby who loves to play and be a part of the action. One of her favorite things to do right now is try out each new sound and noise she discovers that she can make. Once she figures out a new noise, she uses it like crazy (those of you who have heard her in the background during phone conversations know what I am talking about!). She likes to have mini "conversations" where we talk to her and she responds back by babbling or screeching as loud as she can. It is so funny!! The other precious thing that she has started to do is laugh- it is the best sound in the world!
It just really seems like Lina has grown up this month. She is starting her rice cereal, sooooo close to scooting around on the floor (she has an inchworm thing going right now), and can keep herself propped up in a sitting position. We have really been working on the nap/sleep thing, and Lina is slowly starting to get more used to her crib. It seems that the more comfortable she gets with her crib, the better she sleeps. The challenge right now is getting her used to falling asleep on her own while laying in the crib. She only likes to fall asleep in Mommy's arms! Things are slowly improving, though, and hopefully next month at this time we will have a good little sleeper! All in all, it has been a really good month for our little family. Lina is such a joy and we are starting to feel more at home here.
Lina making her screeching noises- you can tell by her face that she knows she is being silly!
Visit from Grandpa & Grandma
Angelina had a GREAT time with her Grandpa Jeff and Grandma Maggy this week! They took her shopping, had lots of fun playing, and even gave Mike & me a chance to go to dinner alone! Dozer and Maizie also had a great time since their golden retriever buddy, Kody, came, too.
Getting ready for Florida in my new water goggles from Grandpa and Grandma!
First "Playdate"
Lina had her first official playdate last Sunday. Her new friend Payton lives right across the street and is just 10 days younger than Lina! It was so cute watching them interact. Payton was babbling away at Lina and Lina's main objective was to grab onto Payton. The two of them mostly just wanted to stare at each other. It was too funny!
Our little Wolverine!
As you can tell in the first picture, Angelina was very excited to watch her first Michigan football game. By the end of the game, Lina's excitement had turned to disappointment and disbelief!! Even though it doesn't look like it will be much of a season in which to introduce Lina to Michigan football, we are convinced she will still be a true blue fan!!
That did NOT just happen, did it???
Des Moines Visit
Mike had to work in Des Moines this past week, so we made a mini trip out of it. We were able to spend a little time with friends and spent Sunday afternoon at Prairie Moon Winery (what used to be our fave Sunday activity!) with Megan, Rob and Miles. While visiting Megan & Rob, we peeked in on our old (first) house next door...the new owners have definitely done some interesting things to the backyard. Let's just say they have electric blue and orange chairs on the patio. I think Megan really loves looking at them. ;)
While Mike was working Monday, Lina & I stopped into the Attorney General's office and were able to visit with my old co-workers and friends. It was so good seeing everybody! I actually miss work, believe it or not! OK, maybe it is more the people and socialization I miss!
Speaking of socialization, Mike & I are finally starting to meet a few people here- it has been very difficult so far! I have met a couple of women through my new Stroller Strides class, we went to dinner with Mike's co-worker & wife, and hung out with some of our neighbors. It was SO nice to finally get out and have some adult company!!
