The Sassy Fleming Girls

Well, well, well, Blog. We meet again. It's been far too long, my friend.

2010-11-02T21:32:00.003-05:00

I have missed you. Really. I know that it wouldn't appear that way since I have not visited you since... hmmm.... maybe last December, the Santa! post I believe. But that's not for lack of love on my part. Life is.... well, we don't really need to get into that right now. It's a long story and I'm sure you don't really care anyhow. The longer it got after our last meeting, the more guilty I felt and the more I procrastinated and the guiltier I felt. You know how that goes. The vicious circle thing. So I have decided to try to start meeting up with you at fairly regular intervals. At least that's my plan now, but I'm not making any promises; no commitments. I also might cheat just a lil' and go back and fill in the past 11 months to make it look like I hadn't deserted you. But, again, no promises on that one either. All I'm sayin is that I'll try to put forth some effort going forward... and really, isn't that enough? Ok then, well I'm glad we had a chance to catch up and throw all that on the table. I do look forward to spending some quality time with you again soon. P.S. The girls are growing like WEEDS! Weeds on serious fertilizer! Not that they are on fertilizer, just a metaphor mind you. I'll post some pic's and video soon. No really, I will.

Sweet Teya-head turns 1

2010-10-19T22:12:00.007-05:00

SWEET JEEBUS!! WHO STOLE MY BABY??? Oh, she's right here! She's just not a baby anymore..... Really?? A year?? Yes, I will use the cliche, thank you... time flies. Really. That was one fast year. Teya is now: speed crawling, taking 4-5 steps at a time, laughing ALL the time, getting her 5th and 6th teeth in, saying "NO!" and "ELLA!", giving smooches, thinking shoes are one of the funniest things she's encountered so far, pointing to her nose, tracking her big sister Ella like an infrared homing device and generally developing into one sassy, opinionated, adorable little gal. I just got finished perusing some photos from a year ago and, my, has she changed! What a great year it's been! Happy birfday, Bubbie. I love you so very much! Sweet baby girl, one year ago....

Tiny Pink Daggers

2010-06-20T23:07:00.004-05:00

So, I guess Ella had had quite enough of me. I mean really, I guess upon reflection I do say "no" quite frequently... and "maybe later", "maybe tomorrow", "not right now"... you get the idea. We were visiting Aunt Michelle, Uncle Spencer and Parker in San Antonio and had been there for a couple of hours and upon the supposed last straw negative Ella turns to me and with (pink princess) daggers in her eyes, and says "I AM TIRED OF YOU." Turns to Michelle and says "Aunt Michelle, can you take care of me FOREVER?" Hmmmm... Out of the mouths of babes?? Or in this case, the mouths of babes going on 15??? If this is what 3 and half is like, I shudder to think what I am in for in approximately 10 years when estrogen surges begin.

Zen and the Art of Keeping Parental Composure

2010-05-18T21:01:00.003-05:00

I really think, ok, I know, I scared Ella this evening. Stressfull day at work + boundry testing, non-dinner eating 3 year old + cranky, sick 7 month old + lasagna everywhere + a snow globe... well, you know where this is going. Mama lost it when the crash occurred. I mean, really? How many snow globes did we go through at Christmas? And, really, am I that stupid to leave another one within her reach? Apparently the answer is yes. I think I yelled so loud that I got horse afterwards for a bit. Now that I am calm and able to (mostly) reflect reasonably, I am not liking my actions. I really don't want to be the parent that rules militantly and through fear, however it's really difficult on occassion to stop and take that deep breath before the wrath just surfaces. So we sat down and had a heart to heart while she was in the tub and I apologized and told her I always love her no matter how loud I'm being. I hope I got the point across. I love you Ellabean and I promise to try really hard to remember that although you act like you're 13 sometimes, you still are only 3 and you're still learning how to navigate this world. Well, I guess we all are.

Suck it, Respiratory Syncytial Virus

2010-05-18T20:59:00.003-05:00

Do you think you perhaps could work on being more symbiotic rather than parasitic? I'm just sayin'.... Seems like evolutionarily that might be more beneficial? But, what do I know. Pobrecito baby girl. She can barely breathe and then sometimes has so much gunk going down her throat she ends up gagging. But somehow manages to continue smiling through it all. Some nights are not so great, but overall she's a toughie and trudges through it like a champ!

Santa!

2009-12-09T15:47:00.002-06:00

3 year well check this morning and then on to see Santa at the mall. Ella is right on target for her little, or should I say big, girl checks. She continues to be right in the middle, percentile-wise. After our EARLY, too early, appointment, we got to the mall a whole 40 minutes before Santa was supposed to arrive. Fun times trying to keep Ella amused during that time, but we were the first in line which then translates to a speedy exit and a clean Santa! HA! So Ella had been SO very excited to visit Santa. I had been priming her for it for a couple of weeks. She was all set ask him for "pink things". She even sang xmas carols with him when he was talking to all the kiddos in the line before pictures started. I was sure this was going to be a great experience this year! But, no. As soon as we got up to him she wouldn't even get close. I had to pretty much physically force her to get up there and then quickly place Teya so we could get one good shot, hopefully. Which we did. Well, if you consider a shot with Ella crying *good*. It is quite comical though, so that's something, right? Then we had to ride the train. 3 times. And even after 3 times I still had to pull her off of it kicking and screaming. Ahhhh, parenthood. And by this time it was only 11am! Who wants an early nap time?? MAMA DOES!!!

Wait For It...

2009-12-02T15:18:00.006-06:00

We got back home from San Antonio to find that the siding was finished and more windows were in and framed! Yippee! It's starting to look like a real house!! The Dyer brothers came in for the rest of the weekend to help Papa roof the addition... yes, in the pouring rain. Not sure that the pouring rain is the most conducive weather for roofing, but I guess as long as it doesn't pour rain inside when it's finished, it'll work! We were all exhausted after the holiday travel, late nights and not sleeping in our own beds, so it was nice to be back at home and back to a sort of, kind of semi-routine. ALSO, Teya smiled for the first time! I did/can not catch it on camera no matter how hard I try! I'm sure I look like a really big jacka** trying to get her to smile on camera and then of course as soon as I turn it off, whaddya know? A smile. Ella just loves to sit and talk to Teya and tell her all sorts of fun things. She sings to her and sometimes gets frighteningly close to face, but Teya's a really good sport about it all and genuinely looks interested in everything Ella has to say. These two are already becoming fast friends and it's pretty endearing to watch their relationship grow every day :)

Holidaze...

2009-11-29T17:12:00.005-06:00

The girlies and I drove into Houston and went straight to meet the newest Aguilar, Miss Sofia. It was great fun hanging out with Ande and Jen, proud new parents! I taught Ande how to use the swaddle blankets and then we had a contest. let's just say that Sofia was out of her swaddle in less than 3 seconds... Practice makes perfect Ande!! Next day, TURKEY TIME! Aunt Mary's studio was transformed into our dining room. Brandy fried up a turkey and all the cousins had a blast running around with each other all afternoon and into the night. Back on the road again, we headed for San Antonio the next day for more turkey and Fleming family pic's. Beautiful Sofia Evyn Aguilar! Swaddle contest. Good work Ande! Cousin Zack with Teya Cousins building Dad carving the turkey Girls in their matching dresses Teya and Greatgramma Fleming

Siding and Windows!

2009-11-23T15:08:00.001-06:00

It's all going so fast.... So far, that is. The siding is almost done and many of the windows are in. Hooray!! Just can't WAIT for more space!! Isn't she stinkin' cute?!

Oh the Pressure....

2009-11-21T16:11:00.005-06:00

Ok, so I have to admit I do cheat a little with the blog. For some odd reason I feel the need to confess. I make it look as though I post regularly, at least every few days, when really, I don't. Sometimes I really do get on here regularly and post (or at least create a post and save the draft to publish later) when I have time (mostly the summer) or need to vent or something funny happens and I need to document it, etc. But, when I get really far behind (like I am now; today is actually December 14th!) I just go back and look at the pictures and fill in the gaps and change the posting date to make it look like I am keeping up. This is not the best route since my memory fails me so much of the time, but, seeing as how this is really the girls' *baby books*, I really am doing this for them so they can get a sort of play by play of our lives while they were little :) So that being said, I am going to really try to do better at keeping up so I can get more of the funny little things that are said and that happen captured before I forget them, which so often happens. SO, going back in history a bit, our cute, old neighborhood, Crestview, has a great little festival every year, the Violet Crown Fest, which took place over the weekend. They block off the parking lot of the neighborhood Mini-max grocery store and have local vendors and bands play and we all eat food and dance and buy stuff. Ok, well I didn't dance, but Ella did, sort of. Well, she really just tried to hula hoop. And it was funny; really funny. That takes coordination and she doesn't quite have it just yet. We both had a great time at any rate and so did Teya, doing what she does best, sleeping in the stroller! Much of the rest of the time is spent just hanging out... Lazy Saturday morning with Sushi... Hula hoopin' Posing with her leaf bouquet Hair PRE-bath Hair POST-bath 4 weeks old today!! Holy cow!! I'm 1 month old today!!!! The addition now has the decking on! And a couple of windows in!

Friends and Framing

2009-11-13T22:04:00.009-06:00

Over the weekend Auntie Deanna, Uncle Jason and Auntie Lisa came for a visit after the game. We played on the patio for a long time while watching the house being framed and then we went for a late dinner at Houston's Saturday evening where we got all kinds of snotty looks for bringing a toddler and an infant to a nice dinner that late! Ella had a blast walking around in Lisa's boots and then she and Auntie Deanna sang Yo Gabba Gabba songs at the dinner table, which she also loved as I'm sure the people around us enjoyed as well :) The rest of the week was spent hanging out and watching the progress of the house. Ella had a holiday from school Wednesday, so we played with friends and hung out, just us girls. She's really into dressing herself these days, so starting now you can't blame me totally for what she looks like. There's only so much of a fight I'm going to put up. If she's dressed appropriately for the weather, that's where my responsibility ends. As far as matching and coordinating, well, we'll see what she thinks about her abilities in this area when she looks back at some of these photos in a couple of decades!

In Other News...

2009-11-06T21:39:00.005-06:00

Teya remains the best baby in the world. She is a miracle sleeper, thanks be to the paci and the world's tightest swaddle. Since she can take a bath submerged now, she loves it! Ella is a great big sister and already knows that when Baby Sister is crying that she needs her paci or, conversely, she just tells her to "be quiet, Baby Sister!" She does have to be reminded to be gentle about 2 million times a day, but overall she's doing great! Papa is back to his regular work schedule, so back to 4 nights and 3 days out of every 8 being the all Mama show. Good times. I am very lucky to have the baby that I have to make it that much easier though (not to mention the fact that Ella still goes to "school" daily, hence only 1 child to deal with from about 9am until about 4pm), so I am not complaining in that department! All was well at Teya's 2 week appointment. She is gaining nicely and is in the 50th percentile for all the measurements. We took our first walk around Town Lake in the jogging stroller and a trip to the neighborhood park and she slept the whole time both times! And the foundation for the addition was poured today; framing starts tomorrow...

Halloween and Other Stories

2009-11-02T18:39:00.004-06:00

Friday was Ella's school's Fall Fest (the PC name for the Halloween festivities). Since I have been a cheap Mama and refused to pay $20-30 for a super cheap looking Little Mermaid costume it came down to the wire with no digs for her to wear. I improvised and brought her tutu and matching shirt to wear for the party. She was a bit disappointed, but got over it pretty quick once she started eating cookies and running around with her friends. The good mood soon turned sour when all she wanted to eat was candy and cookies and refused to eat the pizza that was there for dinner. We had to exit the fest fast with a fit throwing Ella on our hands, all the while Teya sleeping soundly in the wrap. Saturday we waited until the last minute (imagine that!) to decide to get in the car and drive to Houston. Miss Teya's official first out of town trip! The Dyers were hosting a kiddos' Halloween party so we drove straight there and got in just in time to trick or treat. Ella was in a much better mood, especially since I had secured a borrowed Little Mermaid costume. She had SO much fun going from house to house and collecting candy! Teya stayed at Auntie Deanna's while we went out. We weren't gone for long, but long enough for Ella to decide that Halloween was her most favorite holiday :) We got back to Gram and Papa2's late, with 2 sleeping girls in the car to unload. The rest of the weekend was spent playing with cousins, Gram and Papa2. Oh, and the plumbing is in for the addition, ready to pour foundation!! Exciting stuff!!

And Another New Addition!

2009-10-29T21:21:00.001-05:00

We've talked about it for as long as we've lived here at this house: the need for more space. This is the cutest little 1950's neighborhood along with the 1959 house design: 1100 square feet-3 bedrooms-1 bathroom-tiny closets-very boxy-once a 1 car carport that Kevin enclosed to make a garage-kinda house. Cute and all, but not fabulously functional for a family of 3, much less 4, PLUS a friend who rents out the other bedroom for the time being, along with guests who stay pretty frequently. Let's just say there has been more than once that Kevin has gone into the backyard to "use the facilities" while the indoor toilet was occupied. Well, we've finally taken the plunge and are adding on. Yup, more than doubling the size of the house. After long battles with the city getting permits (stoopid McMansion ordinances and 7 trips down to the permits office for me over the course of 6 months, to be exact; one of the last in which the person helping me asked if I was going to have the baby right then and there) we have started the process of adding a grand master suite downstairs and 2 bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs. WOO HOO!! All on a shoestring budget... maybe even less than a shoestring, more like a string-around your-finger budget. By the time we get to the finishing touches and decor, Mama's gonna have to get creative! Foundation forms! Sweet sisters Me and my girlies Eyes open!!

Adjusting to Our "New Normal"

2009-10-27T18:13:00.009-05:00

So the days have been filled with diapers and feeding and more feeding and diapers and trying to figure out a sort of schedule. Granny stayed with us a few days to help out with whatever needed to be helped out with. The whole Fleming clan came to visit on Saturday and meet the newest member. And I am still trying to figure out how this pouch of oddly dark colored skin that was once my belly and a crazily shaped navel are ever going to look semi-normal again... hmmmm... Well, Teya's 1st doctor's visit went well. We bathed her for the occasion, which she loathed and screamed bloody murder for the whole time. They measured her and said that the hospital was incorrect in their length measurement and that she is really 20.25 inches and not 19.75. If she's like most women in the world she'll want that extra half an inch. She is right at the 50th percentile for height, weight and head circumference. Oh, and did I mention she's a STELLAR baby?? My policy with Ella was that I would never wake a sleeping baby no matter how long she went without eating, thank you. And with her I never had to. She would sleep for loooong periods, sometimes 6 hours, but never long enough that I felt the need physically to wake her. With Teya.... yes, waking her up is a necessity when my mammary glands feel as though they are going to explode. All this being said, adjusting has not been as difficult as my nervous mind was making it out to be during pregnancy. I remember having a conversation with my step-sister a while back about anticipating #2 and how it seems impossible that there is any room left in your heart to love another; when it seems like the 1st kiddo has totally taken up all the love space. Well, no question now, your heart just doubles in size to accommodate #2. Man, I love this kid :) Throwin' gang signs already.... Bath time... NO LIKEY! Pre-pacifier All is well! Add the swaddle??? Ahhh, the world is perfect! Hmmm.... More hmmmm.... Hanging out with Popo Sweet sisters :) Practicing the "in unison" yell for later....

Goin' Home!

2009-10-21T22:37:00.005-05:00

Thanks St David's for everything; now, we out! So she passed all the necessary tests and I'm movin' around well enough to go home. I have taken all the necessary precautions to avoid a second birth when I get home, if ya know what I mean. Lots of fruit, veggies, water and bran muffins for this gal over the last 36 hours. I guess it'll help this crazy stretched out pouch I have where my belly used to be too. Her second night in the world was a little more eventful than the 1st. We had visitors in and out all day and into the night. She had some crazy fussy time from about 9pm to midnight and Papa just about went crazy with her. Once she was calm, we sent her to the nursery for a few hours to try to get some sleep. Other than that, the second time around is much more peaceful than the first. I think we actually feel like we sort of know what we're doing now :) Once we got home it was a nice afternoon of getting settled in; meeting the cat, hanging out and then spending some time with Big Sister once she got home.

Day 1 With Infant...

2009-10-20T22:26:00.004-05:00

Look at that hair! Just love it! She looks a lot like her sister, but definitely her own person. Ella had a lot of hair, but, wow, Teya has her beat for sure! Night one was ok, just gettin' through it. So far a good eater and not too fussy.... I guess it is a bit early to speculate. Granny let Ella stay home from school today and they came up to spend some time with new little sister. She was much more receptive today and actually got up on the bed with me. Perhaps it was my bloodshot eyes, crazy hair and all the tubes sticking out of me that scared her just after labor. Today I look much more like the mommy she knows :)

Teya's Birfday!!

2009-10-19T22:06:00.003-05:00

So that labor was mighty tough. With Ella, no drugs, no epidural; tons of pain. With Teya, epidural, but over 4 hours of pushing with all my might to get her out; all kind of exhausting. I was/am extremely happy that I did not have to have a C-section though, so thanks to my OB, the nurses, my step-mom (Teresa aka Gram) and Kevin for sticking it out with me during those labor intensive (literally!) hours. I'm not sure why little Miss Thang decided she would turn herself sunny side up at the last minute, but that really jacked things up. When she came out she had a bright red forehead (that I mistakenly thought was a birthmark) from being continually jammed into my pelvis bone for over 4 hours. Despite all of this, it was such a joy to finally meet her! She had TONS of hair and was perfect, of course :) The nurse that took her to clean her up in the nursery brought her back with the most awesome mohawk on a newborn I have ever seen! Granny and Popo brought the new big sister up to meet her that evening just a bit after the birth, but she was mostly afraid of the whole hospital ordeal. She wouldn't come close enough to the bed to give me a hug, but cried when she had to leave.

Teya Ann Fleming

2009-10-19T21:51:00.001-05:00

After over 4 hours of intense pushing Miss Teya Ann was born at 7:17pm weighing in at 8lbs, 19.75inches long with a full head of beautiful, thick, dark hair! We love you so very much already sweet girl!
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On the Eve of Your Arrival

2009-10-18T21:41:00.000-05:00

So, the induction got moved up to tomorrow, Monday, October 19 at 6am. I suppose, if all goes well, this will be your birthday! I have to admit I am having second thoughts about induction now, not for any other reason than it is kind of fun and exciting to anticipate the moment that labor starts to happen and be thrown into a frenzie getting things figured out and to the hospital. Since your Papa says this is our last kiddo, that means this will probably be the last time I am pregnant. I did have every intention of letting you arrive on your own, however at this point I am pretty uncomfortable and ready for you to be here, not to mention everyone now has a plan of when and where they are going to be in order to help us and be here for your entry into the world. I am SO very excited to meet you and bring you home to start another chapter of our lives with another baby girl in the house! Your sister, Ella, is so excited to be a big sister! We love you and are looking forward to a family of 4. xoxo, Mama Here's one last shot of the family of 3....

Fixin' Stuff

2009-10-18T17:12:00.003-05:00

Ella helping Papa fix the broken sink this afternoon... Too cute!

Birth Smirth: Letter to My Unborn Daughter

2009-10-14T16:22:00.003-05:00

Ok, Baby Girl. Seriously, you are tearing apart Mama's insides at this point (well, not really, I hate to give you a complex before you're even out of the womb), BUT really, let's talk about your debut. I just came from the doctor's office and it seems as though you are mighty happy in there and are not making any current plans to bust out at the moment. I know, I know, you're technically not due until Sunday the 18th (Uncle Trey's birthday), but I, and so many others, would REALLY appreciate it if you all of the sudden got the urge and started making things happen. Today would be great, tomorrow fine, whatever, the sooner the better. I have no patience, I can't sleep, it's difficult to walk around, my ankles are extremely large, my lower back is all outta whack; OH, and there's also the fact that I would REALLY like to meet you! So, please, if I can convey anything through my thoughts and wishes to you in there, it's that I'd really like for you to just go ahead and get going. Oh yeah, and if you're not here by Tuesday morning at 6am, we're forcing you out. Yup, that's right. I went ahead and scheduled the induction for Tuesday. I tried for Friday, but the hospital was booked, so lucky you got another few days of blissful womb-land. Alright, that's really all for now. I love you and can't wait to meet you. Really, the sooner the better :) xoxo, Mama

To the Theater

2009-10-10T16:19:00.002-05:00

Went to see Charlotte's Web with friend Eva on Saturday morning at the One World Theater (very cool place, I might add!). Eva's attention span: super fabulously awesome! Ella's attention span: not so great. At all. I hope this is not a sign of things to come... But they had a blast running like banshees around the patio once it was over! They were going so fast they had to take their shoes off. Here's Ella putting Eva's shoes back on prior to leaving. They are too cute!

Working Preggo and Not Going Insane

2009-10-09T17:00:00.008-05:00

Hmmm... I know women have worked pregnant and had babies for thousands of years now so I probably shouldn't be complaining, and it's not really that I'm complaining, I'm not; just commenting on my state, but I am freakin' TIRED. I'm talking I am dead-tired-all-the-time. Being really pregnant and trying to work and still make life fun and enjoyable for a toddler is pretty exhausting. Not that having the new baby around won't be, but, jeez. Here are some (possibly disturbing) images of what my belly looks like in the 38th-39th weeks of pregnancy. Even more frightening is the video of what I see at night when I lie down and am still. This baby girl is pretty active, to say the least. And what's even better is that it's mostly between the hours of 9:30pm to 11:30pm. This little night owl should be fun! Seriously, look at this crazy belly?!?! I can't even believe this is actually my body right now. How the heck is my stomach ever going to return to normal?? Am I going to have to "redefine" normal after this? Now THIS is crazy.... There's another human in my belly moving, moving, moving!

Headed to SA

2009-10-05T15:39:00.005-05:00

We packed up and headed to San Antonio to hang with the fam and to celebrate great Grandpa Fleming's 93rd birthday. Ella had a blast doing what she does best, hoarding attention and being rowdy! But the best part was kisses and hugs for great Grandpa and great Grandma before we left! YUM! Chocolate birthday cake!! Like father, like son.... Papa and PoPo cat napping Ella hanging out with Papa, who's "resting his eyes"....

San Antonio Visitors

2009-09-27T15:32:00.003-05:00

After the Fleming clan came in for lunch on Saturday to celebrate Papa's birthday, the Vandebergs arrived to spend the night, cook dinner and hang out. Kayla and Ella are lifelong friends now and Ella looks forward to seeing Kayla. Within the next couple of months both Ella and Kayla will be big sisters and our brood of 2 will increase to 4! How fun over the years to have this fearsome foursome grow up together all so close in age! Again, not too stellar with the picture taking, but here's one of the big sisters at lunch on Sunday.

First Illness of the School Year

2009-09-19T20:57:00.001-05:00

So, tired, lazy, very pregnant Mama took Ella and headed to Luby's for dinner (per her request) after picking her up from school. Ummm, yeah. I don't know if my patience has lessened with pregnancy or she was already feeling ill, or maybe a bit of both, but the two of us completely lost it in Luby's. It all started with the Jello. They were out of red, which of course was the color she wanted, and then the cupcake I wouldn't put on the tray... Hell hath no fury like a little girl who's been refused red Jello and a cupcake! The child started screaming and crying like I was physically torturing her. I really tried (and succeeded for a little bit) to keep my composure and ignore her until the screaming and crying subsided. Well, since Plan A didn't work (she NEVER quit screaming and crying), I had to resort to Plan B, which was to get the heck outta Dodge, and fast. I really was almost on the verge of tears and everyone around us could not stop sneaking glances at us as I'm sure we looked like some scene out of a comedic parenthood movie, and were annoying to boot. No amount of reasoning or begging was getting me anywhere. I packed up our food and literally drug her out of the restaurant. I made eye contact with another mom while putting Ella into the car and I'm not sure if the look was "Oh-I've-been-there-before-and-I-feel-for-you" or "Jeez-Lady-you've-totally-lost-it-and-need-to-calm-down". It took a good 20 minutes before my adrenaline levels went back to normal and we finally sat down at the kitchen table and resumed dinner and an early night for the both of us. All that to say that when she woke up the next morning she had a fever of 104+. Awesome. I just lost it and almost killed the both of us and it was all because the child probably felt like complete poo. Apologies Ella, I guess you could say Mama's have their days too! This is what she looked like ALL day Thursday and Friday until the fever let up. Poor girl :(

Labor Day Lake Fun!

2009-09-08T17:06:00.003-05:00

A mini-getaway to Lake Placid (in Seguin, TX, that is) for a long weekend of boating, swimming, eating and trying to relax was all good. Since I was too busy waddling around after Ella I neglected to take more than 5 pictures and none of them turned out. To go from taking about 5,000 photos a day during my first child's first 2 years, to taking 5 pictures of nothing during an entire trip is pretty bad. Hopefully for Baby girl #2's sake my love of the camera will return so at least her first couple of years will be as documented as her older sister's. Did I mention I was tired? Oh yeah, it must be this 19lb moving bowling ball in my belly :) Here's some fun pic's of Saucy with her helmet and tutu on pretending to talk on the phone and dance...

3rd Annual GG's Beach Trip!

2009-08-24T16:51:00.004-05:00

This is the 3rd year that our group of girlfriends have gotten together and rented a beach house in Galveston during the summer. Every year our group grows bigger with the addition of more baby girls! Ella was the first baby girl to attend in year 1 and Auntie Shelly was prego with Lauren then. Year 2 it was Ella and Lauren and Auntie Deanna prego with Elyse. This year it was Ella, Lauren & Elyse, me prego with baby girl #2, Auntie Shelly prego with baby #2 and Auntie Jen prego with Sofia (along with first timers Julie and baby Lila). Next year we might just need a condo complex to rent. We had such a great time hangin' on the beach and hangin' out together as our ever-increasing group of little divas gets more sassy each year. Ella is still not super excited about the water, but she's getting there. Maybe by year 5 she'll actually step foot in it without me forcing her to kicking and screaming...

Back to School Ella

2009-08-10T16:42:00.001-05:00

So she said she was excited about going back to school... When we actually showed up, she was less than excited to go in and even more distraught when she found out that she was going to be in a different class this year. Yay for crying toddlers who won't let go of Mom's leg and cry and scream "Don't leave me, Mommy!" It made me feel like a million bucks! Mommy of the year award type emotions. Oh well, I started her a week earlier than I had to go back so that I could pick her up early and make the transition easier on her. Not sure if it made a difference or not, but it's a good theory. This is how excited she was to be home that afternoon...

Summer's Coming to a Close...

2009-08-09T18:41:00.000-05:00

Another breeze by summer, almost time for Mom to go back to work and Ella to go back to school. A few more play dates with friends, more swim time, lots of lying around the house while Mama grows bigger by the second and dreads going back to work in the hundred+ degree heat (it is now officially the 2nd hottest summer in recorded Austin history; what a super summer to be pregnant!). Ahhh.... I think I'm already ready for summer 2010... I guess I'll have to wait on that one!

Family Vacay

2009-07-24T18:36:00.000-05:00

We went and stayed for a few days on Lake Dunlap and had a great relaxing weekend with the whole Fleming clan. Boating and jet skiing and swimming with all of Ella's favorite people, especially her cousin, Parker. We were sad to leave, but look forward to next year's family vacay with yet another addition to the fam :)

Meltdown Mania!!

2009-07-19T18:14:00.002-05:00

Today started out with a meltdown and did not seem to improve significantly through the course of the afternoon. I guess we all have our days. I thought a lovely little tricycle ride down the street might be fun since she is getting so proficient at riding, but God forbid we ever have to turn around and go back towards home. Now that, my friends, is terrible. SO terrible, in fact, that she felt the need to get off the tricycle, throw herself on the ground screaming "I don't want to turn around! I don't want to go home!" in someone's front yard as cars raced past (probably wondering what the hell I did to the child to make her so upset) and refuse to get up for a good 3 minutes. I decided to start walking away, which backfired and made her cry and scream even louder. Hmmm... what's a mom to do in this situation? Well, I probably didn't make the wisest choice in grabbing her under one arm, the tricycle under the other and start walking home. I bet this was an even better sight to see driving by! I kid you not, she did not stop crying and screaming ALL THE WAY HOME and then continue the meltdown once inside (as evidenced by the video). This post was all for you, Miss Ella, so you would never have to wonder as a grown woman if you had your "moments" (read: days) too. I adore you!

Krause Springs

2009-07-17T20:47:00.006-05:00

If you haven't been to Krause Springs in Spicewood, you really need to go (except not while 6 months pregnant and with no ability to heft yourself out of the water without assistance; thanks random guy who felt sorry for me and all but carried me out of the water after watching me attempt, many times, to get myself out!). It is just beautiful! Maybe next time we'll try going on a not so crowded day, but even with the crowds we had a great time in the water and enjoying the views.

Fly By July

2009-07-16T20:14:00.004-05:00

Summers always go fast and this one's no exception. We swim, we have no schedule, we see friends a bunch, Mama's belly continues to grow rounder... Pic's with the Reus kiddos and the Robb twins With old friend Eva We've mastered the art of tricycle riding Mama's belly at 26 weeks Playing drums and dancing with Papa Ballet dancing Tricycle

Bathing Beauty

2009-07-06T20:12:00.000-05:00

Taking a bath, lookin' real cute!

4th of July Fun!

2009-07-04T17:06:00.003-05:00

Ella and I headed straight from Houston to San Antonio to celebrate America's Independence at the Fleming ranch on Lake Medina. Swimming was scarce due to the 40+ foot shortage of water in the lake, but hanging out with family, eating a bunch and watching fireworks was fun! It was another very long, napless day! The water would normally be almost up to the pavillion at the top of the picture! Wading through the muddy water with Aunt Michelle Playing with cousin Shane Popo, Great Grandma Fleming and Saucy Loving time with her Aunt Michelle!

Houston

2009-07-03T17:00:00.003-05:00

We took a trip to Houston to do some visiting. Played with cousins and friends and had a big family dinner. I wish I had visual evidence to show, but again, laziness with the camera = not a whole lot of fun pics. But, I did happen to catch this one, which just might indicate the issues our household could possibly be facing come October with a new baby sister in the house...

Blue Hole

2009-06-14T16:49:00.005-05:00

We had such a great time at Blue Hole creek/spring in Wimberly. What a beautiful place! The water was crystal clear, the shade trees were amazing and Ella and Eva just relaxed together; even Papa had a great time on the rope swing. I don't think I can say this enough, but I really do love you summer :)

Ahhhhh... Summer!

2009-06-13T16:37:00.005-05:00

Summer haiku: summer I love you - you make my brain free and clear - summer's end brings dread *Random summer happenings... swimming, watching too much tv, time to work out, relishing our garden's production, loose (read: no) schedule. Napping? HA! Set bedtime? HAHAHA! Mama is big and lazy this year!

Sea World!

2009-06-09T16:26:00.001-05:00

The summer has officially started! Monday was my last day of work for the next 9 weeks and I am ready to do, well, pretty much nothing aside from growing this belly of mine. Ella stayed with Granny and Popo Thursday and Friday and then again on Monday while I finished up work. Then we got an early start on Tuesday at Sea World. What was going to be a quick few hour endeavour turned into an all day affair. We were there from 9:30 until almost 6 that evening. We were all pretty beat by the time we made it back to Granny's. Since I felt like I was melting the whole time in the 100 degree weather, we have very few pic's to share, but suffice it to say we made the rounds with Shamu and all his friends!

Fountain Fun

2009-06-06T16:17:00.004-05:00

We had a great morning meeting old friends at the sprinkler park. The kiddos had fun playing in the sand and then heading over to beat the heat in the water for a bit longer before it got unbearably hot. It was pretty difficult getting a pic of all of them together, but we managed a couple of good ones before crankiness got the better of them! Later, we had fun on the boat for a couple of hours before going home to bbq and collapse exhausted from a busy day in the sun!

20 Week Ultrasound

2009-06-04T21:34:00.005-05:00

Bean 2 is right on target. Due date remains 10/18. She has 10 fingers and 10 toes, 4 chambers in her heart, 2 kidneys, a bladder, a stomach, the appropriate sized head and no cleft lip. AND, she's still a girl!

Ahhhh, the Weekend

2009-05-31T21:07:00.005-05:00

If the school year doesn't end soon, Mama's going to have to start taking Xanax. I am not kidding. These past few weeks have been hell. It is no fun to be pregnant, mothering a toddler and working 9 hour days. This is why schools have summer. District employees would start hurting themselves or others if made to work more than 10 months a year. At least we have the weekends, right? This one was nice. Papa2 was in town Friday night and we went and had a yummy dinner at Outback. A lot of lounging on Saturday morning followed by a birthday party for a cousin in San Antonio and spending the night with Granny and Popo, which translates to Mama gets to sleep in on Sunday morning! Then back to Austin for a lazy afternoon in the plastic pool with popsicles.

Just Thought I'd Document...

2009-05-27T21:27:00.002-05:00

one of those meltdown moments :) This one's for you my little Sweet pea!

Memorial Day Weekend!

2009-05-26T20:39:00.009-05:00

What a great long weekend of R&R! We rented a fun house on Lake Placid and joined some friends for good times. We ate fabulous food (thanks to chef JV!) and had a great time on the lake. Ella and Kayla splashed in the pool and rode on the boat and this time next year, Elyse, who was still too small to join in the toddler fun, will be able to hang with the ever growing group of divas! Ella still had a difficult time adjusting to the lake and the boat again, but I am still not giving up hope that she will one day LOVE the water like her parents :) "Hollywood" as Jeremy called her~ Learning to play football with Uncle Joe. We're gonna need A LOT of practice with hand-eye coordination... All 3 girls in the pool! Here's Ella and Kayla splashing around... Then Kayla decided that swimsuits were "wet" and wanted no part of hers any longer, so Ella followed suit (or should I say NO suit!) I couldn't resist... Sorry girls!! Ella and Kayla having great fun in the bounce house..... until it started to collapse due to a faulty connection and then never again did either one of them want anything to do with that thing! Papa in the bouncer trying to convince Ella that it would be fun. Not a chance, Papa. The gals taking a bath together One last shot of the babes. Next year, add 2!

May, the Busy Month

2009-05-21T19:48:00.002-05:00

Mama is always busy with work in May, however this year it seems worse than the ending of any other school year to date. That being said, the first 3 of weeks of May flew by. The Fleming clan came in for Mother's day and just hung out around the house. We ate ourselves silly and watched Ella dance around in a tutu. The following weekend my lifelong friend, Marisa, was in Houston from Canada so we headed to Htown for some fun! Friday night dinner with Deanna and Elyse; Saturday a little play time with cousins Gus and Ethan before heading out to the Aguilar's in Spring for an afternoon of swimming and hanging (and no nap!). Later that evening we made it to the Rodriguez house for a fun get together and to spend some time with Auntie Marisa. Ella had a blast and stayed up until almost midnight running around and playing the piano with Lauren; what a trooper! I am very lucky to have a child that is not routine dependant :) Meanwhile, my belly and bean 2 continue to grow. Looking forward to a long, hot huge summer.... Here is my little artiste, who's favorite thing to do now is watercolor, and why stick to paper when you can just use your body as the canvas? Way to think outside the box girl!

Bean 2 is a......

2009-04-30T22:39:00.004-05:00

GIRL! Yup, went in to have a sonogram yesterday and according to the pictures Ella is going to have a little sister come October. All looks well in there; she's right on target. I have to admit I was a little taken aback when the gender was announced since I was so sure we were going to have a boy, but now that I've had a chance to mull it over and visualize little sisters together, it's sinking in and makes me smile :)

Trip to Houston

2009-04-26T22:20:00.003-05:00

Ella and I made a somewhat unexpected trip to Houston for the weekend. My stepmother's mom passed away and so I wanted to be there for her since she did the same for me 12 years ago in her position :) Since much of the time she was tied up with out of town family and her father, we had some time to do some visiting in between family functions. We stopped by our friend Jack's 1st birthday party on Saturday and Sunday hung out with cousins Gus and Ethan, Uncle David and Uncle Trey. We took a long walk through the U of Houston campus and let the kids feed the squirrels and explore. Monday night we went over and had dinner at Auntie Deanna, Uncle Jason and Elyse's house. Ella was pretty interested in Elyse's toys and really wanted to give her things to play with. We headed home on Tuesday morning after the flooding subsided in Houston.

Out of the Mouths of Babes...

2009-04-21T22:00:00.003-05:00

After scooping Ella up, we headed straight from the school to pick up the pizza (yes, still being a lazy prego!). When she realized that I was passing our street she asked "are we not going to Ella's house?", I told her no, we were going to get the pizza and then we were going to meet Auntie Sarah at home so she could have dinner with us. She then said, "oh, we're not going to Target?" Hmmmm.... Later that evening as we were sitting a the table eating Sarah asked Ella what she wanted to be when she grew up. After Sarah named a few choices, you know the usual, doctor, teacher, firefighter, etc. we waited for Ella to answer. After a few seconds she replies "I want to drink wine". Hmmmm.... So I go to Target a lot and drink wine quite frequently. Should I be at all alarmed by these responses? Do I need to have a period of intense self and parenting reflection? Again, hmmmm..... Oh well, I'm too lazy to think right now. But here she is in her mostest favoritest possession of the moment, the Dora the Explorer "dressing gown", as she calls it, that Granny gave her for Easter :)

Birthday Party Weekend!

2009-04-19T21:48:00.004-05:00

Saturday we had our friend Mason's 1st birthday at Gymboree. Ella had a great time running around and, once again, eating more sugar! Later on in the evening we sat outside in the front yard and blew bubbles with our cool new bubble blower. Sunday was Eva's 2nd birthday party at her neighborhood's park. Ella missed most of it since all she really wanted to do was swing, so she and Papa took off not to return for a really long time. Once she decided to join us again, she took an interest in all of Eva's new digs, so much so that we were the parents that left with a not wanting to leave, grumpy little girl...

Mama's Day Off

2009-04-13T21:28:00.006-05:00

I had a holiday today, but Miss Ella went to school. I got a whole bunch done and felt so accomplished! Grocery shopping, working out, planting all the veggies in the garden and then a trip to the doctor to check on bean #2. In the afternoon I picked Ella up and we headed over to Auntie Brandy's to visit her and the twins, Matthew and Lillian, and Auntie Dana, Noah and Vivian. The kiddos had fun running after each other and eating cookies Dana had baked. It's so fun to think about when we all met 7 years ago and talked about the day when we would be having play dates and watching our kids grow up together and now look at us :) Starting to pop at 13 weeks! They weren't kidding when they say that #2 shows A LOT earlier! Our newly planted veggie garden... YAY!

Easter Weekend

2009-04-12T20:59:00.005-05:00

Thursday we headed to San Antonio to hang out with Granny and Popo and the whole Fleming fam. The Easter bunny came a little early to Granny's house so we hunted eggs on Saturday morning before Easter lunch. Ella was much more interested this year, mostly in what was inside of the eggs since the Easter bunny stuffs eggs at Granny's house with candy and coins :) Sunday we were invited to a picnic with Auntie Sarah at her friend, Ian's, parents' house. It was the neatest spring party! For the 29th year in row they had a big potluck lunch and a huge egg hunt for all the kids. It's even separated into a hunt for the little ones and another for the not so little kids. She had such a blast eating all kinds of goodies and breaking cascarones all over the place! It was a great sunny weekend!

Just Hangin' Around

2009-04-01T20:41:00.003-05:00

Uncle Trey came in town for a few days and was very good spirited about the activites he was asked to participate in! Shouldn't everyone work like this??

Growing Up Sassy

2009-03-30T20:33:00.004-05:00

So, we're at the Olive Garden (mmmm... salad and breadsticks!) this evening (yes, my uncontrollable pregnancy appetite is out of hand, thereby making my daughter my newest dinner date as of late), we're done eating and I put my credit card on the table so the waitress will pick it up next time she comes and we can make a quick exit as Sassy was getting a bit impatient. Waitress finally comes by and picks up the card and Ella furrows her brow and says "Hey, that's not yours, that's Jennie's", as she points to me. I seriously about fell out of my chair. It's the little things :)

Love the Weekends!

2009-03-29T20:44:00.003-05:00

She comes home on Friday with a 102 fever. Big plans for the weekend down the drain: no going to Houston to play with cousins and Elyse and the art festival. Wakes up Saturday morning with 99.3, not really even a fever, but you never know what could happen during the course of the day, so I still decide to play it safe and stay home. NO FEVER THE REST OF THE WEEKEND. I believe my daughter feigned illness in order to avoid a busy weekend. Oh well, we both probably needed it. We got all sorts of yard work done: planted flowers, watermelon seeds, sweet peas and bought all sorts of other veggie seeds in preparation for the garden. Sunday afternoon we shared popsicles in the front yard admiring our new colorful and de-weeded flower beds!

Relaxation Station

2009-03-20T21:18:00.003-05:00

Ok, so this is what a true spring break is supposed to be like... hanging out in the sun at the pool for hours. The water was a tad too chilly for me to get in, but Ella was all over it. She walked around and chatted with people all afternoon. I guess the "stranger danger" talk is going to have to come sooner rather than later, although it was endearing to watch. She gets more fun by the day :) BTW, we had a great night #2 in the big bed; ran her hiney off at the Austin Zoo with Eva yesterday morning, more of that wearing her down theory in action!

Big Girl Bed!

2009-03-19T17:27:00.008-05:00

So I have been talking about getting the big girl bed for a long while now. We finally broke down and did it. I was a bit apprehensive about it, but I guess it's a good thing it's spring break and we have a few days to adjust to the change. We had to say goodbye to the the crib and the "baby's room" before breaking it down and setting up the new twin digs. It turned out really well and Ella seemed pleased once it was all changed. She actually did fabulously her first night too, which MAY be due to the fact she hadn't figured out she could actually get herself out of this bed and not have to wait to be retrieved. I'm saving my praises.... Maybe some of it had to do with running non-stop at the bounce place yesterday with Brooke and Natalie. Mama likes to wear her out. Makes for a better night's sleep :)

Happy St Patty's Day!

2009-03-17T17:05:00.004-05:00

So much for the very relaxing break from work... Monday and Tuesday Ella's school was open so we decided to take her (she requested to go anyways, yay!) and get some stuff done around the house. We had such grand plans: cleaning the garage, cleaning the spare bedroom and closet, Goodwill trips, insulating the attic, building and planting a raised bed vegetable garden in the backyard. Hmpf... How is it that one ALWAYS underestimates the time it is going to take to complete things like this? Did we really think 2 days was going to do it? Well, let's just say that the only things that got done over the course of both Monday and Tuesday is insulating the attic (which I VEHEMENTLY do NOT recommend doing yourself, no matter what the monetary savings are) and getting the garden structure half up; not the planting part, mind you, ONLY most of the structure. Yep, that's it. Oh well, we had good intentions. We did get to go out for an absurdly expensive authentic Irish dinner with our friend's, the Oliver's, to celebrate St Patrick's Day though - Éirinn go brách! (means "Ireland forever" in Gaelic)

Bean #2!

2009-03-16T17:21:00.004-05:00

Had a doctor's appointment today and bean #2 is doing well in there so far! The heartbeat was fast and strong and the sonogram revealed that there are 2 arm buds and 2 leg buds, hooray!! Adjusted due date is October 18th, my brother Trey's birthday, which he reminded me was a day that "badasses are born" :)

Spring Break '09!!!

2009-03-15T16:56:00.004-05:00

Yes, this week is Spring Break; so ready for the break! I actually had to come home early from work Wednesday of last week because I was so incredibly tired I couldn't keep my eyes open. I came home, slept for 3 hours, then went and picked Ella up and still managed to be back in bed and sleep soundly the whole night through at my normal bedtime. This pregnancy fatigue is really getting old.... So yippee for the break and some down time! Today was a fun family day. Ella started the morning by deciding she was going to wear just socks, undies and her winter hat and mittens. She really did want to just hang out in this outfit. Later we went shopping for a bit and she ended up with some super cool new sun specks that she picked out herself. I figured maybe if I let her pick them out this time she may just actually wear them. She did. All the rest of the afternoon :)

First Big Owie

2009-03-08T16:47:00.004-05:00

So I will spare myself the embarrassment of explaining just exactly what happened to cause my child's face to look like she got in a bar room brawl last night, but suffice it to say it was one of those evenings of feeling like THE WORST parents in the world; riddled with grief and the "what if"s Kevin and I really had to work ourselves out of the funk. There were even a few tears shed from Mama at the sight of the blood coming out of her split open lip. Let's just say unattended, falling on asphalt and call it a post!

Visiting Friends

2009-02-27T16:34:00.004-06:00

We packed pj's and headed over to our friend's, the Largent's, house so I could participate in book club and Ella could play with Eva for a bit before hitting the hay. They had a great time together after Eva warmed up to having Ella talking incessantly in her face and continuously requesting to hold her hand. Hadn't intended to stay long, but ended up waking Ella up at 1am to load her in the car and head home... at least I know she's ok with transition, but gonna be a long drive to Houston in the morning :(

Hoorah for Tomato Sauce!

2009-02-26T12:58:00.003-06:00

Mama's been SO incredibly tired and lazy lately; frozen pizza for dinner it is.... AGAIN!! I can't wait to be back to normal energy levels.

Mama's Losing It!

2009-02-24T21:15:00.004-06:00

Today I had one of those moments of having to remind myself that my kid's childhood is going to pass so quickly and I need to savor every moment and not let the little things drag me down.... Ahhh. So easy to tell myself when I am calm and things seem to be going ok at the moment. After asking sweet, sweet, sweet Ella 5,000 times to please not brush the dropped spaghetti onto the floor from the table, scraping dried Cheerios off the floor from breakfast, the cat knocking down an entire glass of water onto all the spaghetti and Cheerios and then hearing Ella in the background yelling "Mama! It's for my booty! Mama! It's for my booty!" and realizing she has an open bottle of baby powder in her hand and is slinging it every which way while walking around the house I literally had to close my eyes, take a few deep breaths and remind myself that going catatonic is always a viable option. JUST KIDDING!!! But it really was a trying evening. I had to just leave the Cheerios, spaghetti, water and baby powder on the floor, go out into the backyard in the lovely 70 degree whether with the sun setting and water the plants while zoning out for a good half hour while Ella buzzed around me talking to the dogs. Parenthood, it's what's for dinner.

Goin' to the Store

2009-02-22T21:07:00.000-06:00

Just had to share... While attempting to potty train she's been hanging out around the house a lot in just underwear for the easy access when needed. Today she decided that she needed to "go to the store". She headed to her room, threw on her shoes (on the wrong feet, no less), grabbed my travel toiletries bag and the keys on the counter and proceeded to go out the door and get into the car. When I followed her out and asked her what she was going to the store for she replied "milk and banilla"; she thought some more and added "candy" as well.

Here We Go Again!

2009-02-20T15:18:00.005-06:00

We have been trying to get pregnant since September and now it's happened!! I have had a weird feeling in my stomach for about a week now and had decided before heading out to dinner and drinks that I might want to just go ahead and take a test even though I had taken one a couple of weeks ago that was negative.... just a hunch. Kevin had loaded Ella in the car and was waiting, so I hurredly took care of business and got 2 positives from 2 different tests immediately. I was SO excited I ran out of the house and to the driver's side window to a very confused husband. I told him the news upon which he looked even more confused at the thought that I had randomly decided to take the test while trying to leave for dinner. None the less, he was excited (and a bit shocked) and we had a nice celebratory dinner with Auntie Sarah. YAY!! I know it's still early on (I'm only at about 5 weeks), and this time around it will be a little difficult to maintain calm until we've made it through the first trimester "critical" period, but I definitely have a perma-smile on my face at the moment :)

Another Week of Sick Ella

2009-02-13T14:56:00.002-06:00

So in a mini-repeat performance of her December never ending sickness she came home from daycare early on Monday with a 102 fever. Woke up Tuesday with the same. Trip to doctor revealed no flu, no strep, probably respiratory virus, nothing we can do. Wednesday no significant fever, but a really cranky baby who can't go to school. Thursday, ditto. Thursday evening, round 2 doctor's appointment; negative on urinalysis, no definitive answers. Awesome. Saturday drove to San Antonio to drop Ella off to spent a couple of nights with Granny and Popo for a parental reprieve. Granny reports very cranky, clingy baby for 2 days. Pick her up Monday afternoon and she is crying non-stop. Straight from San Antonio to the doctor's, this time a real diagnosis!! Ear infection. From doctor's to pharmacy, before even leaving pharmacy, shot for Ella of drugs, home to bed with Mama pleading to the powers that be to please let this child be ok when she wakes up! Trying to cram in 40 hours of work week into 25 hours and tag teaming with husband in care of sick child is KILLING ME! Voila! Tuesday morning Miss Ella greeted me upon walking into her room with a huge smile and a request for "cereal and panties". SHEW!!! Back to normal?? Here is a face that was very familiar throughout the week. If looks could kill.... Moment of feeling a bit better, so we were graced with a smile! While the good mood lasted Papa took his girls out for an early Valentine's dinner and got us some flowers. We love you Papa!

Fun Times

2009-02-10T14:49:00.004-06:00

She is so funny to me! While we've been working on potty training I have a stack of books in the bathroom next to her potty to entice her to sit longer. There's one that has animals and all the sounds they make, so after I make the sound, she attempts to imitate. It cracks me up when she gets so frustrated when she can't make the sound the same way I do, especially the elephant. Some of the time she'll frown, slam the book closed and yell "NO!" when she's particularly agitated; I just can't help but giggle when she does this. Already showing signs of perfectionism? Ayos Mio!

Busy Sunday

2009-02-08T14:43:00.003-06:00

We met Aunt Jennifer, Uncle David and the cousins at the Zoo for a bit in the morning, then after lunch headed over to Deanna and Jason's to celebrate Elyse's first whole week in the world. Ella gave Elyse some sweet kisses and really wanted to pick "Eleeese" (as she calls her) up. Later that evening we headed home to get ready for the week.

Meeting Olivia

2009-02-07T14:26:00.002-06:00

Saturday Papa and Ella headed to Houston in the afternoon. It was Papa's very first extended car ride with Ella by himself! I was nice and loaded all the necessities of a long car ride with a toddler (pretzels, cereal, raisins, water, books, toys, CD of annoying kid's songs that must be played over and over and over again in order to maintain happy toddler status) before I left on Friday so that I could minimize the occurrence of said Papa losing it :) They did very well and Ella was back in Mama's hands safe and sound! While I was waiting on them to arrive I went and spent a while at Aunt Jennifer's so I could love on Olivia before my little monster arrived. What a sweet baby girl she is as well. How can you go wrong with a child that sleeps 23 out of 24 hours a day?! Later in the evening I brought Ella back so we could play with the cousins and have some dinner. They had a great time in the bouncy, which is wonderful since this was the first time Ella actually got in one and enjoyed herself. One more fear conquered! Later after Olivia woke up Ella got to meet her for the first time and was enamoured with "baby liv ya".

Meeting Elyse

2009-02-06T14:09:00.003-06:00

While Ella stayed at home with Papa for the night I headed to Houston to meet my new psuedo-niece, Elyse, daughter of one of my oldest friends and one of Kevin's oldest friends, Deanna and Jason, who also happen to be married! What a beautiful baby girl. I had such a great time with them on their first day/night home from the hospital. Aunt Jen and Aunt Lisa joined the baby adoration session when they got off work. We got some take out and just stared at the baby most of the evening and into the night (wine included, of course!). I ended up staying over and taking one baby shift so new Mommy and Daddy could get some sleep. What a treasured time that was! I fell asleep with her on my chest and we were happy and content until the next 4am feeding. We love you baby Elyse!

Dancin' and Eatin', What Life's All About!

2009-02-04T14:03:00.001-06:00

Sorry about the poor quality, it didn't occur to me to turn on more lights during the dance-a-thon in the living room!

Meeting the Twins!

2009-02-03T20:41:00.001-06:00

At the first sign that the Robb family was open for visitors, I took the opportunity to steal away for an hour or so to see sweet Brandy, Lillian and Matthew. What a treat! They are still SO tiny, but very healthy as well. The new family is doing wonderfully and adjusting to life with 2 babies. I went while Ella was still at school so I could make the most of baby holding time without having to run around after Miss Thang. I am in love, love, love with those cuties and can't wait to watch them grow up!

Elyse Caroline is Here!!

2009-02-02T08:15:00.004-06:00

Auntie Deanna and Uncle Jason welcomed Miss Ely into the world this evening, weighing in at 6.5lbs and also with a head full of dark hair and beautiful dark eyes! Another play mate and future Gourmet Goddess to add to the group!! We can't wait to meet and love on you baby Elyse!! Along the same lines, baby Elyse's cousin, Lila Jane, was born last week on the 28th. Congrats Julie and Major! At 9.9lbs you gotta lotta baby girl ;)

Mama and Ella Day

2009-02-01T08:05:00.005-06:00

What a fabulous city to live in!! We just had to spend the day outdoors since it just happened to be over 70 degrees and sunny without a cloud in the sky today in grand old Austin, Texas! We woke up and headed to Town Lake (now called Lady Bird Lake, but I can't seem to adopt the new name) for a stroll and duck feeding and then decided to veer off to Zilker Park to ride the Zephyr and play on the amazing play scape. What a great way to spend a Sunday! Later in the afternoon post lunch and nap time, we went for a bike ride and stopped at the neighborhood playground to swing a little before calling it a day. I heart you Austin!

Sweet Hair!

2009-01-28T07:47:00.005-06:00

Uncle Trey came into town for a few days to hang out. Since graduating from the fire Academy in Houston he has been stationed, of all possibilities in a city of well over 2 million people, at the very same station and same shift (51 B) as Kevin! Which also means that they now have the very same schedule. So for the bulk of their 5 days in between tours Uncle Trey and Papa worked and played together here in Austin. I have made it clear that upon arriving at a fire they are to immediately decide who is going in and who is staying out since they cannot possibly both enter and risk me having to worry about both of them. They politely smile and go about their business when I voice my command. Hmpf... Anywho, this is a photo of Ella after Uncle Trey decided to "fix" her hair this morning. Nice bow placement.

Olivia Marie is Here!

2009-01-27T07:58:00.002-06:00

Our new cousin was born today in Houston!! Weighing in at 7.3lbs and 19 and a quarter inches long, she has a head full of dark hair and beautiful olive skin. Now the family is complete: a red head, a blondie and a baby girl exhibiting her Italian heritage with the dark hair :) We are so excited to welcome her to the family and cannot wait to meet her soon!

Brandy, James & The New Twins

2009-01-25T00:00:00.004-06:00

My sweet friend Brandy Robb and her husband, James, tried for so very long to get pregnant. After exhausting all other methods they decided to try In vitro fertilization . After much thought they determined that implanting 2 embryos was a good start in hopes that at least one would make it. Well, both of them decided Brandy and James were the right parents for them! They were pregnant with twins; a boy and a girl. Brandy's pregnancy went well, she was very healthy and really took care of herself. Aside from a few headaches and nausea to begin with and some faint episodes, it seemed like it was the picture perfect pregnancy. The family, and Brandy, had a major emotional setback when her sister, Debra, and her son, Shay, were in a car accident on Thanksgiving Day and Debra was killed. Like the trooper she is, Brandy tried to stay upbeat and believe that Debra would want her to go on in a positive light, but nevertheless, it was (and still is) a difficult road. Doctor's were hoping that Brandy would make it until the babies were strong enough to live life outside the womb and they did. At 8:27 and 8:28pm January 15th (her 35th week) the twins made their debut through an emergency C-section due to Brandy's pre-eclampsia . Shortly thereafter Brandy's body started to go downhill and shutdown; her kidneys and liver went into failure, blood pressure could not be stabilized and was within stroke range... very scary stuff considering this can be fatal if not kept under control. Just when she seemed to be turning a corner, something else seemed to set her back. She had 2 blood transfusions and emergency surgery to stop some internal bleeding. She was not even able to spend much time with her babies until they were 4 days old; short visits since she remained in such a weakened state. At this point she really has turned a good corner and although she is still very weak and has a lot of physical recovery to endure as well as bonding time with the babies she has not gotten a chance to be with as much as she would like, she gets to go home now and start creating memories with her new family of four :) All this to say that I appreciate what I have that much more and realize that even through the worst events, the best things can emerge. To one of the most sincere, compassionate and empathetic people I have ever known, you have been so much on my mind lately and will continue to be as I stand from afar and watch your strength and faith empower you, not only to be a wonderful mother, but a wonderful human being. Welcome into the world Lillian Claire and Matthew James Robb! You are already so loved! www.caringbridge.org/visit/brandyrobb

Dinner Party

2009-01-24T23:50:00.004-06:00

The VandeBergs were in town and staying with David and Michelle so Ella and I were invited to a dinner party this evening. Ella and Kayla had fun hanging out with eachother, trading shoes and jackets and eating cheese and crackers. It's been so much fun to see these two grow up together! On the car ride over Ella practiced over and over "Hi Kayla, hi alicia, hi JV" and then when we walked in went completely silent. Of course she did.

'Bout time!

2009-01-20T21:12:00.001-06:00

1.20.09 What a swell day! Here's to at least 4 years of sanity :)

Deanna & Elyse's Final Shower!

2009-01-17T23:38:00.003-06:00

Ok, one more trip to Houston and then we're calling it quits; at least for a couple of weeks until the babies arrive! The Gourmet Goddesses hosted one final shower for Auntie Deanna and baby Elyse. It was such a great turn out! Baba Yega's is the perfect place to throw a swank shower: great scenery, delicious food, yummy mimosas, and best of all, very little work on the part of the hostesses! It was really a great time and Elyse raked in the loot. I think the Dyer household is ready for a baby; at least the house is, don't know if parents are yet ;)

"Um... probalee....."

2009-01-14T17:08:00.002-06:00

Not sure where she learned this, but all of a sudden it's a part of her everyday vocabulary. If you ask her a question she doens't know the answer to she pauses, rolls her eyes up a little and says "um.... probalee...." and then just looks at me blankly or attempts to divert my attention to something completely unrelated.

San Antonio for Deanna's Shower

2009-01-10T16:58:00.005-06:00

We came back from Houston on Friday and then headed to San Antonio Saturday morning to celebrate Elyse's upcoming arrival. What a great shower! Ella had such a great time playing with the other little girls and helping Auntie Deanna open gifts. After the shower we stopped by to visit with Granny, Aunt Michelle and Parker (one of Ella's all time favorite people). We had left "blankie" at Granny's the week before, so the trip was imperative to a smoother bedtime routine. Every night since leaving blankie at Granny and Popo's she has asked for it as soon as she gets in the bed. And every night I told her the same thing "we'll have to get it when we go back to visit Granny". I am happy this no longer has to be a part of our bedtime routine :)

Uncle Trey Graduates!

2009-01-08T16:43:00.003-06:00

We made yet another trip to H-town for Uncle Trey's graduation from the Houston Fire Academy. He is now an official Houston Firefighter! Ella went with us to the graduation and was very entertaining to the family and those around us. She got really into clapping for each badge that got pinned on and eventually started yelling "FIREFIGHTER!" every time the next person came onstage. She was not any too happy when I had to leave her to go pin Uncle Trey's badge on him and Papa had to take her out of the room for a couple of minutes until she could hold it together :) Unfortunately after the ceremony she was so wound up and ready to leave that I didn't get any pic's of her and Trey (or anyone else for that matter). After we took her back to Gram and Papa2's house for bed we went out on the town and celebrated for a bit!

Go Horns!!

2009-01-05T16:40:00.004-06:00

Had to wear this today in honor of the Horns! Her hook 'em Horns hand gesture is not quite perfected yet, she just waves her hand up and down and yells "go horns!", but I feel sure that with intensive practice she'll get it soon~

Snow Day!

2009-01-03T16:32:00.003-06:00

We had such a fun time with the "snow day" that we had at the house! The "snow" wasn't super fabulous, but the kid's had fun with it. It really just turned out to be a big old play date with kids running amuck everywhere, all over the yard. What a great way to start out 2009, with 80 degree weather, fake snow, good friends and tasty beverages for all :)

Last Day of 2008

2008-12-31T22:01:00.006-06:00

Just a few pic's to savor the very last day of 2008 before heading to San Antonio to drop little miss thang off for a 2 night stay with Granny and Popo. What a great year it's been! A small note to my doll faced little diva: I have enjoyed so very much watching you grow up into a saucy, loving, assertive, talkative, stubborn, smart, inquisitive, and fun little gal this year! You are the joy of my life and I just adore being along for your journey through childhood. I am fascinated by how quickly you learn and everything that you absorb on a daily basis. You are constantly coming up with new ways to look at the world as you figure out yet another piece of the puzzle. I am looking forward to yet another year of learning, exploring and laughing with you! I love you Goose - aka Goosey Maroo, Baby Goose, Ella Beaner Halloweener ;) Later on, Mama and Papa went out for an evening on the town with some friends to ring in the new year while Miss Ella was fast asleep...

Random Dizziness with Ella Fleming

2008-12-30T21:57:00.001-06:00

Just some spinning until dizzy. Love love love her....

Houston Zoo

2008-12-28T21:35:00.002-06:00

Although it was cold and rainy we made a quick trip to the zoo with Aunt Jennifer, Uncle David, Gus and Ethan and some of their friends. We tried to stay inside as much as possible, but the inside animals and activities just aren't as entertaining as the ones found outside and it proved pretty difficult to entice the kiddos to stick to the reptile house, bird atrium and aquarium. Like I said, it was a pretty short trip! Ella ended up taking an almost 4 hour nap when we got back to Gram and Papa2's, so I got a lot of reading done :)

First "REAL" Haircut & More Traveling

2008-12-27T21:16:00.007-06:00

So Mama's been cutting the bangs now since they've needed to be cut and I'm no cosmotologist, so today I decided we need a real, professional haircut. She was so good! Although she doesn't look any too happy, she cooperated and tilted her head just the way she was asked to. She even got to sit in a car while the cutting was being done. She gets an A+ for her first haircut experience! Later that afternoon we headed back to Houston to celebrate Christmas with the whole family. I was too tired (read: lazy) to take any pictures of the gift opening or any other festivities that evening, so just imagine two 2 year olds, a 3 year old, 3 pre-teens and a bunch of adults in about 800 square feet eating, drinking, talking, yelling, playing games and running around and pretty much whatever chaos comes to your mind probably ensued during that time period. Cheers to the holidays! Here she is singing in the car on the way to Houston...

San Antonio Zoo

2008-12-26T15:21:00.003-06:00

We met friends at the San Antonio Zoo and had such a great time with Kayla, Noah and Jack (and their parents too, of course!). The weather was perfect and the crowds were non-existent. Ella's favorite part was laughing hysterically while running away from me as I ran after her yelling "ELLA, STOP RIGHT NOW!". That wasn't so much my favorite part. I rather enjoyed the hippos.

Christmas Day

2008-12-25T15:00:00.004-06:00

What another whirlwind of travel. After hanging out with our friends Heather and Natalie at Chuck E Cheese on Monday we picked up Papa2 (as we now call my dad) from work and headed to Houston. We played with cousins the following evening as well as Christmas Eve night. Christmas morning we awoke bright and early and went over to Aunt Jennifer, Uncle David, Gus and Ethan's house with Gram and Papa2 to open a few presents while waiting on Papa to get off work and then heading to San Antonio. The kiddos had a blast tearing into gifts and then arguing over who got to play with what and what was "MINE"! Good times with a 3 year old and two 2 year olds! Later on after arriving at Granny and Popo's house in San Antonio more gifts to open, another big meal to eat and then off we were out to Great Grandpa and Grandma Fleming's ranch at Lake Medina. It was good to see the whole Fleming clan together and yet another big meal, some more playing with cousins, Shane and Parker, and then finally calling it a day and heading back to Granny and Popo's to go to bed!

Attempting to Tie her Shoe

2008-12-22T14:55:00.004-06:00

I love the fact that she believes all she has to do to tie a shoe is to grab the strings, move her hands around quickly and sporadically and then let go. Voila! Why did that not work?!?

Trail of Lights

2008-12-20T14:43:00.002-06:00

I begrudgingly convinced Papa to take a trip down to see the Trail of Lights before it got cold again. What a big mistake it was to try to go on a nice weathered Friday night! Geebus! It was more than a little frustrating to have to park about 6 blocks away and then feel like one in a herd of cattle for the next couple of hours. Also, it's always fun to push an annoying stroller the whole time that Ella not even once would actually sit in. I really don't even think she was that interested in the actual lights. We were so ready to get out of that mess we didn't even get to go spin underneath the Zilker tree. Oh well, lesson learned. Mental note to self for next year: go on a week night when kids are going to school the next day; park and ride the shuttle and get dropped off at the gate; ditch the stroller and perhaps invest in a small human leash instead. Here she is playing Ring Around the Rosey with her Papa.

A Day with Mama

2008-12-19T14:31:00.009-06:00

I took today off and we went and had some holiday pictures taken. She was pretty good this time around considering the last time we tried to do this a couple of weeks ago we had to leave after about 15 minutes since she was SO incredibly crabby there wasn't a smile to be had that day. I snapped a shot of her while we were waiting for the photos to be processed. She's turning into a real little girl these days! We stopped by to see one of our old friends Kaitlin after the photo shoot. Kaitlin was pretty hip on dancing, but Ella was a party pooper. Later on that evening she turned into a "froggy" in the tub. I laugh so hard when I look at her imitating what a frog does... What the heck is that move anyway?!? It looks like she's trying to do some heart chakra cleansing or perhaps some spiritual balancing gesture :)

Houston Birthday Party

2008-12-14T21:05:00.004-06:00

Well, this one was smoother for Ella due to her feeling better, but now Mama has a sinus infection. Despite this fact, she had a blast opening presents and eating her all time favorite food, cupcakes, yet again. Mama had a hard time driving back home Sunday evening since all I really wanted to do was lie still, but we made it!

Birthday Party

2008-12-13T20:59:00.003-06:00

Probably not the best decision in my lifetime, but I packed us up and Ella and I headed to Houston on Saturday afternoon. We stopped by Lauren's 1st birthday party for a little bit until Ella just lost her emotional cookies and then on to Gram and Papa's for dinner and an early bedtime after playing with cousins for a bit.

Dr. Ella & Miss Hyde

2008-12-12T20:54:00.003-06:00

These pretty much sum up how the week has gone. Dose of Tylenol: all is well; Tylenol wears off: the beast rears it's ugly head. But a cute new coat to boot! (Thanks Auntie Dana!)

BIRTHDAY GIRL!!

2008-12-11T20:34:00.006-06:00

This is pretty much what she looked like all week. Super duper couch potato. I say this so much it's silly to even hear it anymore, BUT time goes by SO darn fast!!! I cannot believe that Miss Ella is already 2! Seems like just yesterday I was writhing in labor pain and screaming "JUST GET HER OUT!!!"; flash forward 2 lightening fast years and here we are celebrating her second birthday. She stayed home sick again today (3rd day in a row. joy!) and started leaking green stuff out of the nose. Another call to the dr and now she's on antibiotics for a sinus infection. No school tomorrow either since we woke up with a fever. What a super week! Despite her not feeling so hot, and watching Elmo's Potty Time for, and I'm barely exaggerating, the 48th time this week, we still snuck in some mini-celebrations today :) Above is the the miracle of Tylenol! Example of Tylenol wearing off: