Diary of an Oreo Lover

Ellie's Turn

2012-02-01T22:17:00.000-06:00

Just a few pics of the "other" child. We don't yet go on true dates, but we do play around a bit. Enjoy!

Just a bit of light reading at Papa's house

Not to bad a place to be on a cold winters day

Our typical dates right now. We will pick up the pace soon, but this is pretty darn good

With her new found friend, "Lamaze, " previously CJ's from uncle mitch (CJ doesn't know Lamaze has moved on down the line)

A Walk in the Woods

2012-02-01T22:05:00.000-06:00

So this is Daddy. Just wanted share about a little trip Caroline and I took this winter. We decided that Saturday morning is a great time for "dates." We often go to "daddy's store" (Home Depot) where Caroline often recieves a balloon and can drive the "cars" (carts) around and run into things. Playgrounds, schools and neighborhood walks also qualify for dates, but on this particular Saturday we decided to exploring at Radnor Lake. She is currently into animals and so the goal of this date was to find animals, yell at them and let her try to take pictures of them. Here are a few pics of our "date" together. Enjoy!

Out of bounds! Anyone who knows me knows fences don't mean much. Don't worry, a ranger reminded us to stay on the trail and that there is a $185.50 fine for what we were doing. Yes, $185.50 ticket for this barbaric rampage through the woods.

Sticks are cool.

Similar ride to the ferris wheel at the fair

Not bad for a 2 1/4 year old. Pretty good shot if you ask me

Pure Joy

2011-12-05T09:38:00.002-06:00

Dancing with Daddy

2011-11-23T10:52:00.000-06:00

I don't have much time to write at the moment, but you really don't need to hear much from me with this video. It was obviously taken before Dan's surgery, so it's a few weeks old -- but I don't think you'll mind too much.

Post Operative Patient

2011-11-16T17:32:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I uploaded these pictures last week with the intention of getting this post up right away...and now a week later, I still haven't written in it. Oops! Things have been a little busy around our house.

For those of you who didn't know, Dan had surgery on his shoulder almost 2 weeks ago now. He has had issues with his right shoulder since college -- probably an old throwing injury from his quarterback glory days -- and since Miss Ellie helped us meet our health insurance deductible, he decided to go ahead and have an MRI to see what was going on. What they found was a bit of a mess, a torn labrum (the same injury Drew Breeze suffered before his time with the Saints), and surgery would definitely be in order. Long story short, the surgery went very well, and we are thankful to be on this end of things and not have it looming over us any longer. The first few days post surgery would pretty rough as a result of a bad reaction to either the anesthesia or pain meds (or both), but now we're both adjusting to his one-arm-edness :-) It's amazing the simple things that become monumental tasks without the use of your [dominant] arm!

But any of you that know Dan know that he's one of the most capable & determined people you will ever meet, two traits that are serving both of us well right now. He even managed to get socks & tennis shoes on and tied by himself this morning...just think about doing that with only your left arm for a second!

We've also been incredibly blessed to have his wonderful parents living so close. Both stayed with us in the days following the surgery, and his mom has continued to come and go since then. I honestly don't know that we would have survived all intacted without their help. And the girls have both loved having lots of Memaw & Pepaw time!! I don't know how to begin to thank them.

And these two are truckin right along like nothing ever happened. And because of that, let me again say...THANK YOU MEMAW & PEPAW! (We also we're blessed with the company of my dear old Mom this past weekend, giving me yet another break. I'll write more about that in my next post.)

On Tuesday last week, after quite possibly the longest 4 days of Dan's life, he was itching to get out of the house. We had not yet been down the Natchez Trace this year, one of our favorite drives in TN, so he decided he'd like to just sit back and watch the world go by from the window of the van. And of course, do a wee bit of hiking (because Dan can't possibly sit still for that long!). So we loaded up the van & Memaw and headed down the Trace. I'm quickly running out of blogging time at the moment, so I'll just let these pictures speak for themselves:

We had a wonderful time, and I really felt like this was a turning point for Dan in his recovery. God is gracious in the midst of challenging times!

The Doctor is OUT...

2011-10-31T20:53:00.000-05:00

like a light. As in, in bed. And the cute little duck is too, for that matter. But I thought you'd all like to see a few pictures:

Dr. Caroline

She was way into this Dr. business

Ellie...not so much into the duck costume

She has had her eye on this pumpkin for weeks now. A close up was a bit more than she could stand...she literall screamed in excitement when we took this picture!

We did some trick-or-treating for about a block, but handing out candy on our front porch was way more fun.

Caroline took her job very seriously...one piece of candy per kid, and she had to be the one to put it in their bucket. Oh, and she decided it was a good idea to hand out all the candy she didn't like and keep the M&M's for herself.

Ellie decided the duck wasn't so bad afterall. But she still didn't feel much like smiling about it.

Happy Halloween! Hope you all had fun and don't make yourself sick on candy tonight :-)

I try

2011-10-29T19:50:00.000-05:00

I try to take pictures that might be worthy of a frame some day. Heck, even worthy of printing. I have thought so many times, "How hard can it really be to get a good picture? As long as I have a cute subject (which I do), surely I can capture the beautiful picture I see in my mind's eye!" But alas...I can not. Oh every once in a great while I get lucky and the camera magically falls to the right angle to capture the right lighting and the perfect smile, but it's rare.

All that to say, I have to rely on the artistic eye of others (namely my sister) and their wonderful lenses to capture my family when I want a picture worth framing. After several repeated attempts on my part to get some cute pictures of the girls together in their matching dresses (which I'm afraid Ellie has officially outgrown now), I off-handedly asked a friend of mine with one of those magical "eyes" and the use of a great camera if she'd take a few for me. She went above and beyond and even brought her husband for help (because he's got one of those really great eyes, too) for a real-deal photo-shoot of our family this morning! It was an interesting experience as Caroline was up around 5 am and Ellie was not in the best of moods (of course), but I think Amy still managed to get some great shots. I'm so excited to see them! While I wait for those, I thought I'd share a few of my best efforts here. For a good laugh (mostly for my sister who will find many of these quite humorous), and because my girls are cute no matter how poor the photographer's skills.

Fall!!!

2011-10-28T16:37:00.000-05:00

Before Fall passes us by altogether, I thought I'd get up a few pictures from some of our recent Fall activities. And since I'm hopelessly behind on this little blog of mine, we're just going to start with last weekend. We'll see how much updating gets done on what I've already missed!

We have a wonderful pumpkin patch about 5 miles from our house, so with the gorgeous weather, we have already made several trips. Caroline LOVES this place! And I really think the farmer that turned his farm into a childrens autumn paradise must be a genius...because I'm pretty sure he's making a pretty penny. They have hayrides, slides made of giant pvc pipe, a "train" made of plastic tubs pulled by a lawn-mower, hay bales to jump around on, a corn maze and hay maze for the little ones, plenty of farm animals to see up close (imagine...cows right in front of your nose!), and of course pumpkins as far as the eye can see. It's an interesting thing for a former small-town girl who has since lived in the city and now lives in a semi-small town that almost qualifies as the suburbs - people paying for dead corn stalks and a chance to jump on some hay bales. But I guess that's another story for another time.

You may remember a similar picture from last year...but I don't have the time to go look it up and give you a handy dandy little link at the moment :)

This picture is a little blury, but she was moving so fast it was the best I could do! After I crawled through tunnels and hay bales with her a couple of times, she decided she wanted to do this one by herself. And she did...about 5 times!

Daddy & Ellie with the new tree Dan just planted in our back yard. And see those gigantic rocks? He dug those out of our garden (I need pictures of that, too) and moved them across the yard by himself. And he's slated to have shoulder surgery next week...is it any wonder? (I'll explain more about that soon - he's alright)

Then on Sunday we were able to go to an open house at Avan's Farms, a beautiful rural farm about an hour from here where we've stayed a couple of times (Thanksgiving in 2009 for the first time). It was another beautiful October day, and we enjoyed the time outdoors immensely. Here's me and my beautiful girls:

Daddy thought they needed walking sticks for a hike:

Can you see the pigtails??

While we reveled in the beauty of nature, Caroline's highlight seemed to be this little toy train with Elmo as a passenger. Here she is telling him good-bye.

Actually, this was the highlight of the day for everyone...Caroline and Daddy on a horse! I'm not sure who enjoyed it more. I was so proud of her - she wasn't scared at all! She's been talking about that horsey ever since.

Welp, I hear Ellie...that's all for now!

Ellie girl

2011-10-01T17:26:00.001-05:00

My sweet Ellie-girl is growing like a weed these days. A very cute weed though, of course :) I took these pictures about a week ago and I feel like she's already changed some more. She hit the 7 week mark on Tuesday, and this week we have started having some nice long stretches at night - including one that was 10 hours!!! Her schedule isn't nearly as consistent as Caroline's was at this age, but I suppose that's the nature of a second child and the slightly more chaotic circumstances of living with 2 small kiddos.

She seems to be a rather serious baby, studying the world around her as it is slowly coming into focus. She's not as content as Caroline was (few are, I realize now), but as she falls into a more predictible pattern she's also starting to smile often and coo occassionally. I find myself snuggling her whenever I have some quiet one-on-one moments and just propping her up on my lap to "visit." Caroline has always been such a "people person" that she never minded being passed around, but Ellie is already starting to prefer Mama and that's just fine with me. Sometimes I don't really feel like sharing anyway ;-)

Just had a few minutes and thought I'd share. I have lots of fun pictures from Caroline's big birthday bash and our visit from my Dad & Grandparents (which was so wonderful!), but that will have to wait for the moment. Miss Ellie seems to be hungry...

Happy Birthday Caroline Harper!

2011-09-26T09:30:00.000-05:00

CRAZY

ARTICULATE (for a 2-yr-old)

RAMBUNCTIOUS

OBSERVANT

LEADER

INQUISITIVE

NICE (mostly)

ENERGETIC

September 26, 2010:

September 26, 2009:

2 years ago today while I labored for hours towards my prize, I poured over these words from Psalm 139:

"For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place.

When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,

your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be."

My sweet Caroline, you are truly a beautiful creation of God. I count myself incredibly blessed to be your Mommy and have been blown away day after day these past two years as I have watched you grow. You have changed our lives forever, and I cannot wait to see what days ahead the Lord has ordained for you. We love you forever!

My almost-2-year-old

2011-09-23T09:34:00.000-05:00

My sweet Caroline Harper will be turning 2 on Monday. TWO YEARS OLD!!! I still haven't quite wrapped my mind around that. But I'm not here to talk about me, I'm here to talk about this little fire cracker:

She is such a little ball of energy these days. Sleep may be alusive, but energy? No sir-ee. The energy is here to stay! (By the way, THANK YOU all so much for the encouragement on my last blog post. You have no idea how many times I've gone back and re-read them this week. And chanted my cousin Barb's wise words, "It gets better...it gets better..." We're having good days and bad days right now with the sleep. I'm hopeful that she'll settle into more of a normal pattern again soon, but until then I'm just drinking lots of coffee. Sorry Ellie.)

A few days ago she decided she wanted Mommy to take pictures of her in order that she could then see herself on the camera. She did lots of posing:

(hugging her "dobbles" - weeble wobbles from Aunt Kelsey & Uncle Brent)

...and then she'd run over to me to look through the new pictures. Crack me up.

She absolutely LOVES being outdoors. Digging in the garden, playing with sidewalk chalk, going for walks, whatever. The girl is in heaven when she's not contained by walls. Last weekend we hit up a local park and she was about beside herself with happiness. It is so much fun to do stuff like this with her now!

We end up with lots of bumps and bruises, though. She's not the most graceful kid (let's hope this is just a phase and not an inherited trait from her mother!), but she is tough. Skinned up forehead & nose, bloody knees - we've seen it all lately. But she usually bounces back faster than me in these situations.

She also loves animals right now. Yesterday Memaw (Dan's Mom) came over and went to the zoo with us. Ellie slept the whole time snuggled up in my wrap, and Caroline had a BLAST. Here she is checking out one of her favorite exhibits, the mere cats (which if you ask her about the animal at the zoo, she's likely to tell you about the monkeys & the mere cats).

I believe there were leopards in there...and Caroline really wanted to go inside with them. And she wanted to play in the creek. Mommy was firm on both requests.

Memaw even took her on a train ride! I'm not sure who enjoyed it more :)

That's all for now. I need to run and finish cleaning up a little incident involving my 6 week old and lots of poop. Our days are certainly full around here! Full and busy and exhausting...and some of the sweetest I've ever experienced, too. I love my girls so much. And this almost-two-year-old of ours brings more joy and laughter to our lives than we ever thought possible.

[Boring] Bullet Points (mostly about Caroline's sleeping habits)

2011-09-16T16:22:00.000-05:00

I started writing this yesterday morning when I had a few spare moments. I hoped to finish it but am just now getting around to it. This might be the most boring read ever, but for lack of any other inspiration at the moment, I'm posting it anyway. Enjoy :)

Last night was awful. I mean downright pull-your-hair-out A.W.F.U.L. For starters we went to bed too late, which is generally a shoot-yourself-in-the-foot sort of decision anyway. And while we do have a new baby in the house these days, it was not Ellie who was the source of our angst last night. Nope, it was big sister Caroline who pulled out all the stops. We had lots of tears when she went to bed last night (which is very abnormal), then around 1:00 she was up again, crying for Mommy & Daddy. Dan went up and tried to quickly settle her back down to no avail. So around 1:30, I went up when her crying grew loud enough to disturb Ellie. By 2:30 she was in complete hysterics, screaming uncontrollably and running to the door every time I tried to leave the room. I finally caved took her into the guest bed and sort of slept off and on with her until Ellie woke up to nurse around 4:00. I say off and on because I'm about 95% sure that Caroline never once fell asleep during that whole time, although she was finally quiet and [mostly] still laying beside me. (Side note: I did feel God's grace in those wee hours as my girl snuggled in close to me. She's never been much of a snuggler, and we haven't put her in our bed, so I enjoyed those rare moments inspite of everything else!) I went back down and fed Ellie, dealt with some spit-up, changed her 3 times, and finally fell back into my own bed somewhere around the 4:30 mark. She had a hard time going back to sleep because of some congestion and was up until around 5:00, although Dan took that shift as I pretty much hit a wall. We had a few choice words with one another somewhere in there, due to total exhaustion and exasperation. Ellie slept until about 7:30 and Caroline is just now waking up -- it's almost 10:00. Weird, frustrating, exhausting night. Weird, quiet, restful morning. His mercies are new every morning.
Caroline is singing to herself right now in the sweetest little voice as I listen to the monitor. It's difficult to be frustrated when I find her so completely endearing.
The other day, Caroline found my Bible laying open on the table and decided to "read" for a bit. She likes to very carefully flip through the pages, all while jabbering contentedly (aka reading out loud). As she flipped, she came across a card Dan had made me on my first birthday we spent together way back in 2004 (my 20th). She got very excited about something and it took me a few moments to realize it was due to the smiley-face stickers that adorned the inside of the card. She had managed to peel a couple off before I realized what was going on, and I tried to put it back in the card, explaining to her that those were special to me because Daddy had given them to me. She only gathered that they were from Daddy (don't ask why I try to explain things like sentimental value to my not-even 2-year-old) and quickly claimed them as her own. I just found one stuck on the inside of my sandal. I explain all this to you because I think there is something ironic in it all - my saving a silly little card for 7 1/2 years because it was from Dan and special to me, only to have it ripped up by our beloved daughter all these years later. There's something ironic in it, don't you think? I'm just too tired to figure out what that is now. Wow, I feel like I just tried to tell you all a joke and forgot the punchline. Sorry.
After writing this, Caroline proceeded to throw the same hysterical fit at naptime, and after listening to her cry (no, scream is more like it), I stuck both girls in the car hoping that might do the trick. An hour later when we pulled back into the garage, Caroline's baby blues were still WIDE open. Oh well...at least it was a quiet hour for me!
Daddy put her to bed last night and we had a few tears, but they were short lived and she slept soundly through the night - HALLELUJAH.
Naptime today = more tears. More hysterics. More little fists beating against the door. But after about 10 minutes, she must have realized that Mama was real serious and she finally gave it up. She only napped about 1/2 the time she usually does, but that was an hour and a half longer than she napped yesterday, so I'll take it!

On an entirely unrelated note, I have yet to cook a meal during the week since Ellie's birth. Not one. Unless you count that frozen pizza I stuck in the oven all by myself the other day. I'm such a big girl! But seriously, I have been blown away by the generosity of our friends and family. And we still have more coming! Thank you Lord for providing for us so abundantly - both friends and food :-)

Thank you for your patience...

2011-09-01T17:26:00.000-05:00

We're alive and well!!! Just a little busier than usual around here these days :) And actually we've been having some internet issues that have made blogging rather tedious lately, so hopefully we'll get those problems resolved soon.

I'm not even sure where to begin catching up on the last 3 weeks, except to say that they have been exceptionally full of a lot of wonderful things. Ellie is such a joy, and watching Caroline fall in love with her sister has been one of my favorite parts of welcoming her into our family. Dan & I are still trying to let our brains catch up with all of the changes, but I think with a little more time and SLEEP, it will come.

We were incredibly blessed to have Nana (my mom) stay with us for 2 whole weeks which allowed us to get our feet under us a bit before we had to try it on our own. Monday was my first day alone with the 2 girls, and I have to say, the week has been pretty successful! We've all been clothed, fed and bathed, and for now I feel pretty good about that. How in the world anything else will get done around here I haven't quite figured out, but I'm guessing once I stop using the few minutes of down time for naps for myself that it will come. Maybe. Today Dan's Mom came over, which allowed me to run to the grocery store kid-free, and then nap while she mopped my floor, cleaned my bathroom, and did laundry. Did I mention that we've been spoiled by our Moms?

Okay, I'm just going to let the pictures speak for themselves about the past weeks. Because my brain can't seem to put together a complete sentence anymore. Here ya go:

She has lots of fabulous expressions. This one was captured just today.

My sweet Caroline

What do you think...red head?

Super Nana & her girls

Sisters!

For a few hours just the day after we came home from the hospital, ALL 4 of our parents were here in our home at the same time. This was the first time they had all been in the same place since our wedding...5 1/2 years ago!

The best Daddy in the world & his girls

We took advantage of having Nana in town and went on a date (with Ellie) before she left, so we thought we'd take a quick family photo. The date was fabulous!

A few more

2011-08-12T20:52:00.000-05:00

We're home and settling in nicely as a family of four. My parents arrived around noon today and we're thrilled to introduce them to our sweet Ellie Kate. Many of you have asked how Caroline is adjusting, and she's doing well -- I'll have to get a post up on the sisters soon. In the meantime, enjoy a few pictures and in the words of Caroline "I'll be right back!"

Ellie's Debut in Pictures

2011-08-10T07:24:00.000-05:00

New Arrival

2011-08-09T22:12:00.000-05:00

Elizabeth "Ellie" Kate Johnston is here. 8 pounds 7 ounces and 19.5 inches. Mom and baby doing well. Dad is going crazy! God is so good. Things went real smooth and everyone is healthy. Ellie has more hair than Caroline does now! All Blond!

Thanks for following along with us tonight, thanks for your prayers and Ill post pics later tonight or tomorrow.

Praise the Lord!

Dan, Kali, CJ and Ellie

9:10

2011-08-09T21:12:00.000-05:00

At a TEN! Nurse getting the Doc. Should start pushing in a few mins! Thank the Lord. Things are going so well. Kali is doing well. Such a trooper she is

Dan

7:30

2011-08-09T19:32:00.002-05:00

Epidural in.
Pain dec.
Life is good :-)

6:05pm

2011-08-09T18:14:00.000-05:00

This is Dan and will be for the next while. I take over the family blogging only when Kali is "busy" and right now she is busy!

We have been admitted to the hospital. We are in our Labor & Delivery room now. Last check Kali was at a "5." We have been doing some walking which has helped a lot. She progressed well over the last 2 hours.

Keep us in your prayers. Ill update as time allows.

Over and out

On your mark....get set....

2011-08-09T12:54:00.000-05:00

(taken last Sunday at 37 1/2 weeks)

I think it's baby time! I've been having strong contractions all morning, along with some other, um, "side effects" that I'll leave out to spare the innocent. Dan came on home from work & we're just getting some last minute things togehter, but I feel like we're pretty well ready to go. We're packing up the computer, so we'll do our best to update you when we have some better info.

Caroline is happily oblivious with "Meemaw" by her side. She has no idea what's going on, other than that she gets to see Meemaw & Peepaw today, and that Nana is coming soon. I hope she likes the surprise we're about to bring home!

We'll be in touch soon. Hopefully this isn't a false alarm...but I'm fairly certain we're on our way to meeting our baby girl in the next day/hours! Please pray with us that all goes smoothly and quickly.

Updates

2011-07-29T16:57:00.000-05:00

My thoughts are all sorts of random right now, but I thought I'd give you a little smattering of updates/recaps today. Here we go:

The big girl bed is going really well (for the most part)! Bless her heart, I think we've scared her into staying in bed...quite often when we get her up in the mornings or from nap time, she wags her little finger and tells us "No no no! No get down!" So for the most part, she's staying in bed when she's supposed to :-)

What's not going so well is that she's been spending extended periods of time awake at night, fussing, crying, talking...whatever she's doing, she's not sleeping. And therefore, neither are we. Some of this started before the transition, so I can't blame it all on the new bed but I do think it's contributing. And we started running up there every time we heard her because we were afraid she'd be out of bed, and now she's expecting Mommy & Daddy to be at her beck & call at all hours of the night. We've tried letting her cry, we've tried discipline (which is awful in the middle of the night), we've rocked, we've sang...Daddy even crawls in that little bed with her from time to time. She has always been such a good sleeper, and we are about at our wits end, especially with the anticipation of being up all night with a newborn again very soon. Any suggestions? Anyone else experience a digression like this? Momma needs all the help she can get at this point!

I hit the 37 week mark today, which means I am officially FULL TERM!!! I realize I'm not actually due for another 3 weeks, but I am embracing the "any day" stage at this point :-) Official word from the doctor today -- I'm about 50% effaced and dialated to a 1, which is something but not really enough to expect an early delivery a this point. I'm feeling pretty good, just very tired. I've had a lot more back pain this go round, but what I haven't had is the swelling or carpal tunnel I experienced with Caroline, and for that I am VERY thankful.

I have a fabulous husband. Not exactly an update, but I just needed to throw that in the mix. He's always been wonderful, but now that I'm at this very pregnant point, the man is truly going above and beyond. Dishes, floors, diapers, baths (Caroline...not me!), foot rubs, back rubs, sleeping on the couch just so I can have a little more room at times...you name it, the guy does it. Just for me. And I'm not sharing him.

My Dad (aka Papa) was able to come visit us for a few days earlier this week! We had a GREAT time, and it is so cool to watch my Dad with my child. They are quite the pair! They swam and drew pictures and played with play dough and went for walks and ate ice cream - they packed a lot in to a short time. Also, I'm pretty sure they had about the same napping/sleeping schedule :-)

We've gotten to spend a lot of good time with Dan's family this summer, having them just an hour away. Because I'm such an awesome daughter-in-law, I never seem to remember to take pictures when we're together, and therefore things get missed on the blog (because who wants a blog without pictures?). But Caroline is totally in love with "Memaw" and "Pepaw" (as she has taken to calling them of her own accord), and really got to know her Aunts this summer when they were in town at various times (JewJew, Manee & Tatee as she refers to them). She talks about them all the time, and I just love that she has gotten to know so much family inspite of our distance. Just today Grandma came over to hang out with Caroline while I went to my Doctor's appointment. As soon as she got here this morning, Caroline turned to me and told me "Bye Momma!" I love how much they enjoy each other :-) And aside from just babysitting, she also did my laundry and dishes, cleaned my bathroom, and brought me a lasagna. Am I spoiled or what? I am SO thankful for my mother-in-law and love having them close!

I think that's about enough for today. I'm off to do some laundry...oh wait, it's done! Spoiled rotten, I tell ya.

Thoughts from a Growing Mother

2011-07-15T14:43:00.000-05:00

I just laid Caroline down for her nap in her crib, just like I have a thousand times before. Except this time is a little different, because you see this time was the last time I'll lay her sweet head down in that crib. Her "big girl" toddler bed is ready and waiting for her tonight. I think she's ready...I'm just not sure that I am.

I'm quite the mix of emotions these days, which I'm sure is to be expected with this whole pregnancy thing, but still. Life is changing all around me - even within me - and sometimes I'm not sure I'm going to be able to keep up. Many of the changes are good, even wonderful, but they are still changes nonetheless...and I've never been the best as dealing with those.

Caroline is growing up before our very eyes it seems. She's talking like crazy these days, repeating anything she hears and trying her darndest to communicate what's going on in her little head. I LOVE this new phase and suddenly feel like I have a true companion with me throughout my days...though I must admit there are times that life with a toddler feels more like having a leech than a companion :) A very very sweet one that I love dearly, but still. There's nothing the girl cannot get into now, given her new-found ability to climb and also use objects/chairs/ etc as step-stools as needed. She's becoming more and more independent, which brings me both joy and a bit of fear.

I guess that's where the new bed comes in. The practical side of me has no problem -- we need the crib for the baby, and we think Caroline will do just fine in the toddler bed. I'm itching to get the baby's room put together, and this move will allow me to get some of the major shuffling taken care of. I'm good with all of this. But there's another part of me that causes the welling up of tears at the thought of my baby being in a "big girl" bed. Because this is the part of me that realizes how quickly she's growing up, and how our life is about to change dramatically with the addition of a new baby. A new baby that will make my first baby seem not so much like a baby anymore. I mean, didn't we just bring her home, and lay that little swaddled bundle in a crib that was MUCH too large for her tiny body?

I think we're all growing up a bit around here. My sweet baby Caroline has truly become a spunky little toddler that fills my days with excitement and laughter, and yes, sometimes tears.

And I guess I'm growing with her as a Mama. My pregnant body reminds me frequently of the literal growing our family is about to experience. Dan & I have been pondering frequently the myriad of thoughts stirring within us concerning becoming parents of TWO. How exactly does God allow our love to multiply in ways that allow for the love of another child? What will my heart feel when I hold this new child, another sweet girl that is fully my daughther and yet is not Caroline? How will I divide my time between two? To be honest, I think the last question is the hardest for me right now -- I have treasured these 22 months with Caroline as my 1-and-only, and I know that a) I will never have that with this child and b) I will never have that again with Caroline. And both of those facts make my heart a bit sad.

Just 5 short weeks until my due date! Just 5 more weeks until our lives our changed forever and we hold a new bundle of pink in our arms. Just 5 more weeks of being Mama to only one daughter. Just 5 more weeks of a normal routine for awhile. Just 5 more weeks until Caroline is a BIG sister. Just 5 more weeks until I can bend over without sound effects. Just 5 more weeks with no night-time/round-the-clock feedings. Just 5 more weeks until we meet our new daughter.

It's amazing how 5 weeks can seem like both an eternity and the blink of an eye.

Happy 4th of July!!

2011-07-04T14:12:00.002-05:00

From the cutest little firecracker on the block :)

Pregnancy update

2011-06-22T18:02:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, this Friday will mark 32 weeks of pregnancy for this lady. I believe it. My toes have disappeared. I realize I haven't mentioned it quite so much on the blog this time around, so I thought it might be time for a good old fashioned update.

For starters, I'm doing pretty well. My doctor's appointments have gone well, I'm measuring right on track, and the baby seems to be growing just like she's supposed to! There's nothing better than hearing that fast, strong little heart beat as soon as my Doc slathers my belly with jelly and sticks the Doppler on. I could listen to that all day long. And the scale has yet to hit that 900 lbs mark like it did in a recent dream of mine, so that's good news :)

One not-so-fun side effect I've been dealing with this time around is varicose veins. Fortunately they aren't really a cause for any concern, but unfortunately they're rather unsightly, not to mention these suckers hurt! So my Doc recommended compression stockings. Awesome. They're terribly hot and uncomfortable (and darn near impossible to get on!), but they do seem to be helping, so it's worth it. Mostly :-)

I had the typical second round of blood work a few weeks ago, where they do a glucose screen. Fortunately my glucose levels were great, but my iron count...not so much. My iron levels were low at the beginning of my pregnancy when they did the first round of blood work, so I've been taking iron supplements since then. Unfortunately my counts had still decreased by a few points, so they upped my iron intake to twice a day. Not a huge concern, but I definitely don't want it to continue dropping. Plus, the iron supplements have some...ahem...side effects that aren't so fun. Side effects which are helped along by lots of extra fiber if you catch my drift (sorry if that's an over-share...I just like to stick to the facts, folks).

A fun and delicious way to get a little extra fiber is through smoothies, so Dan has been helping me in this endeavor by prepping lots of fruit and veggies for me in the mornings.

All I have to do is add a little juice & yogurt and fire up the blender! Isn't he wonderful?

Caroline doesn't seem to mind the new-and-improved diet:

Mmmm.....here's Mama's. I think the baby enjoys it, too!

This glass was much prettier than me in all my morning glory...you're just going to have to take my word on this one.

So there you have it. Only (roughly) 8 more weeks to go before we meet this sweet baby girl. My arms are getting rather anxious to hold her!

A Work of Art

2011-06-14T11:17:00.000-05:00

On Saturday while Dan and I were working in the kitchen, Caroline was working on some art in the living room. After a little while, she proudly came running into the kitchen to show us her beautiful artwork:

It's really something, isn't it?

She decided to share some with Mama, too. Aren't we beautiful?

**The reason she was, umm, less than fully clothed, was because we were doing a little potty training experiment. I've read several approaches that suggest you let your child run around in the buff so they really know when they go. Suffice it to say that I think I either need to read a little more about it or find a new approach :)

Geesh

2011-06-09T10:32:00.001-05:00

So when I said I'd be back soon...it's all relative. I'm not sure what my blogging slump is really all about. Thanks for sticking with me. I'm sure I'll pick up the pace again at some point, although I'm going to just quit making promises about when that's going to be. Sorry folks...life just happens sometimes.

Anyway, back to that fabulous weekend that was now over a week and a half ago! Here are a few more pictures as promised, and a little more about what we did together.

Saturday we got up and going fairly early (for Carrolls anyway), and Kelsey & I decided to do a little shopping so the boys took Caroline to the park. It's always interesting to see pictures from her time with Daddy...which usually involve doing things that would make Mommy slightly nervous if I had been there. But I suppose that's why God made two parents, right? And she generally comes back unscathed, so I trust them...mostly :-)

If you can't tell...this girl is pretty crazy about her Uncle Brent!

Then Saturday evening we packed a picnic and headed out to a local vineyard where you can hang out for free and enjoy the beauty of the Tennessee countryside. The boys spent lots of time throwing around a football, playing botchi (sp?) ball, and other such active things after a full afternoon of golfing together in the hot sun. Kelsey & I, on the other hand, enjoyed lounging around eating the snacks we brought and encouraging Caroline's modeling techniques. I'm pretty sure it was a good time had by all!

Sunday morning we were up and at 'em for church, and when we got home Caroline & Aunt Kelsey had another brief modeling session:

After which we promptly put the young talent down for a nap, and us big kids headed outside for some sun. We were generously given this pool by a dear family friend of Dan's - Roz - and we put it to good use during the HOT extended weekend. The 4 of us lounged around in and out of the water, soaking up the rays and just enjoying the sweet company. I can't say it enough how blessed we feel to have family that we enjoy so very much. Dan and Brent simply refer to one another as "brother," and Kelsey & I could not be happier to have husbands who enjoy one anothers' company so very much. And husbands who "play" so well together...allowing us to lounge around like bums rather than entertaining them :)

Anyway, back to the recap. Caroline eventually woke up and joined us, and she's much cuter in a bathing suit so here's another picture:

At some point on Monday, Kelsey & I ventured out again and again left Caroline to fend for herself with the boys. And I'm not sure what transpired while we were gone, but this is what we came home to:

That afternoon/evening, the boys did some grilling in the smokin' hot weather, and we enjoyed a little more adult time in the kiddie pool...complete with kiddie floats and everything.

Kelsey & I were feeling a bit redneck after all of this, so we tried to compensate by creating some hors d'oeuvres: bruschetta! Yum. And I can't really take much credit - it was really Kelsey's creation:

Tuesday morning they had to hit the road. The time went much too quickly, and we try not to think about how long it might be before we're all together again. Most likely there will be another little bundle of joy in the mix by then :)

Brent & Kelsey, we love you guys and are so glad you made the trip down here to hang out for a few days! Please come again...anytime. We'll just keep your room ready for you.

A Fabulous Weekend

2011-05-31T21:03:00.000-05:00

Dan & I are a little down tonight after nearly 4 wonderful days together my sister and Dan's brother (as they call one another - brothers). Brent & Kelsey drove in late Friday night and just left before noon today. It was our own version of a "staycation" I suppose you could say - and we loved every minute of it. Kels brought her camera and literally took hundreds of pictures, so I need some time to sort through. I'll write more and share more pictures soon, but in the mean time, here are a few of my favorites. I'll be back with more details soon!

We're still here!

2011-05-25T16:59:00.000-05:00

Betcha thought the new house was holding me hostage, huh? While it has been taking a good amount of my time & energy lately, there have been a few other things going on this past month. I thought I'd share a few pictures to kind of catch up - although a bit too much time has passed and I haven't taken enough pictures to really capture it all. It's been busy 'round these parts! Here's a brief recap:

My wonderful Mom & Aunt Linda came in a couple of days before the move, which literally set everything in motion. They were a 2-woman cleaning/packing/unpacking/organizing force of nature. Seriously. I think I'd still be cleaning my other house if they hadn't been here. Pathetically, this is the only picture I got of the two of them - out in our new front "yard" (culd-a-sac) with Caroline and her new friends. Mom & Aunt Linda - THANK YOU!!!! We really couldn't have done it without you. Also, please come again and I promise I won't make you work the whole time you're here.

Caroline has been getting acquainted with lots of new friends in the neighborhood these last few weeks, and she has been quite the little socialite. We are thrilled to be surrounded by lots of kids and sweet families who all like to hang out outside, and Caroline is nearly convinced that the "tids" (kids) actually live out on the pavement of the cul-da-sac. We just can't convince her that inside the house is just as much fun as outside :)

She's also become a big fan of sidewalk chalk.

Inside, she has become quite the little Mama lately, diapering, swaddling, feeding, rocking, and dragging baby around everywhere she goes. It's pretty cute, and it makes this Mama hopeful that she'll be eager for her role of big sister come August.

I've been breaking in my new kitchen (which I LOVE), and Caroline is my ever-present (except during blessed naptimes) sidekick. She's quite the little baker!

One of our recent creations - yummy cupcakes!

Last week (well, a week and a half ago now), we headed back to Missouri for Paige's high school graduation. I know, I know - I can't believe it either. But it happened. She's become quite the young lady, and I was very grateful to be a part of her big day. I told her that she is officially the first graduate to make me feel old (it was one of those "but-I-rocked-you-as-a-baby-and-you-can't-possibly-be-this-old!" moments for me).

Me and the beautiful grad - and my 6-month baby bump!

Paige's lovely sister, Torri. While I was there, I also got to watch her qualify for state track in 3 different events -- which she went on to medal in 2 of this past weekend! No big deal - she's just a stud like that.

Caroline also enjoyed LOTS of time outdoors. Here she is feeding the birds at Great-Grandpa & Grandma's house.

4 Generations (minus the 3rd generation, who was taking the picture) - Great-Grandpa AJ, Great Grandma Ann, Papa & Caroline.

Great-Grandpa AJ, Papa & Caroline roaming around in the beautiful weather - it was PERFECT while we were there.

Love this picture - Great Grandpa & Caroline throwing rocks in the pond. This just makes my heart happy.

Of course, we also spent lots of time with Nana, Aunt Kelsey, Uncle Brent, and even Daddy got to come along this time! I just didn't take very many pictures, unfortunately.

So there is a quick recap, with lots of missing pieces. Whew. Now that I'm a bit caught up, I'll try not to stay away so long!

We did it!!!

2011-04-26T22:28:00.000-05:00

We bought a house!!!

We just closed today, and everything went as smoothly as it possibly could. Dan and I were a bundle of nerves driving over to the attorney's office, but we signed our lives away and left with a set of keys! Dan's Mom was gracious enough to come spend the afternoon with Caroline, and once we finished with the paperwork, we picked up some delicious pizza & headed to our new castle.

(This picture cracks me up, so I just had to include it.)

Dan insisted on carrying me over the threshold - 5 months pregnant & all. What a man :-) **Side note: I had a dream the other night in which I went to my regular OB check-up and stepped on the scales only to find I weighed 900 pounds!!! I guess I've been a little paranoid about all the extra sweets I've been consuming lately. All that to say, I was relieved to know that Dan could still pick me up without throwing his back out :-)

Party in the new kitchen! We were so thankful to have Grandma with us to celebrate tonight. (and to babysit...and to clean tomorrow...)

You may not hear from me much these next few days as we get moved, but I promise to update as soon as I can. If you think of it, feel free to pray for us these next few days...we have a lot to do to get from here to there.

Our first pony tail (sorta)

2011-04-22T09:58:00.000-05:00

Just thought I'd give you an assortment of pictures from our first pony tail experience. I bought the tiniest rubber bands I could find (they remind me of the ones you have to use with braces), and I managed to get it wrapped around her little sprig of hair 3 times. I love it :)

Bubbles!

2011-04-19T16:08:00.000-05:00

We have found a new and exciting activity at our house: BUBBLES! Now that the weather is turning warmer, I'm trying to find things to do outside for Caroline while I finish dinner, wash dishes, etc. This is how she feels about that:

She certainly hasn't mastered the art yet, but it is not for lack of trying. This girl is determined. And not just about bubbles.

I love to watch that look of concentration take over as she focuses on a "project." Sometimes it's taking care of her baby doll, sometimes it's trying to maneuver something out of a tight spot, sometimes it's trying to maneuver herself out of a tight spot.

She occasionally gets frustrated and wants help, but most of the time, I get the impression that Mama just needs to stay out of the way.

And she usually figures it out eventually. Not every time...but these small successes seem to keep her motivated.

Daddy was trying to help her today, and after having had control of the bubble jar yesterday, she was not so sure about him holding it for her. But they figured something out.

She held the wand while Daddy tried really hard to convince her not to put it actually on her mouth. I just sat back and took pictures. I figure the child has eaten worse things.

It's so fun to watch her discover the world around her. It makes me very excited to think about her little sister tagging along behind.

P.S. I realize the poor girl needs a new hat, but I just haven't gotten out to look for one yet. I suppose I was hoping that either A) the 12-24 mo hat she has would still fit or B) she would have more hair by now. But alas, our sweet girl still looks a little like Charlie Brown these days. I'm hoping there's enough for a bow by the time she goes to Kindergarten.

Celebrations

2011-04-11T10:09:00.000-05:00

Geesh...I just can't seem to keep up with this thing these days. I suppose keeping up with Caroline has something to do with that. Anyway, I have some real posts rolling around in my head, but while I wait to get those from head to keyboard, I'll just share another cute video. With a few notes, of course:

1) She fell again last week and sustained a pretty good "boo boo" on the old nose. She's been telling everyone who will listen about it, with lots of emotion, too. This video was a taken a few days ago, and it's looking MUCH better today. It's amazing how fast they heal!

2) She's sort of a finicky eater, much to her Mama's shagrin. I swore I would never had a picky eater...which I'm learning is the quickest way to get whatever it is that you "swear" you'll never have in a child. Anyway, we resort to anything we can think of to get her to eat new things, especially veggies (hence the celebrating, etc.). By some weird fluke the other night, she was eating ASPARAGUS! Dan threw some on her plate, and when she started eating them, he looked at me and said "Don't say anything to her! She might figure out that she's not supposed to like that!"

3) I realize she's almost always in her high chair in these videos I post. I'll try and branch out...but have you ever tried to chase an 18-mo-old around with a video camera? It's interesting, to say the least.

Okay, I'll shut up and let you watch. Here she is:

A Video Message

2011-04-01T14:49:00.000-05:00

When Caroline heard that Great-Grandma Fedorka wasn't feeling very well, she wanted to send her a short video message to say hello. Hope you're feeling better soon Grandma! We love you!

Drumroll please........

2011-03-30T10:53:00.000-05:00

The results are in! And while your poll was fun and all, it was a little less than overwhelming this time - when I checked yesterday the vote was a dead even 50/50 split. So thanks for the help, but I think I'll go with the ultrasound :)

Oh, you wanted to know what the ultrasound revealed?? Oooohhhhh. Okay. Now I get it. Sorry 'bout that.

Que the drumroll.......

Come August, Caroline will welcome a baby SISTER!!! That's right - we're having another girl! Dan & I are simply thrilled. To be honest, I was having a hard time even picturing myself with a son. Not that I wouldn't love to have one someday, but for now I am revelling in the thought of holding another precious bundle of pink. I love picturing two curly-headed girls running around my house (assuming my children will someday have hair), sharing secrets and clothes and occasionally driving each other crazy. For some reason that's pretty easy for me to imagine :-) There's nothing better than sisters, whether you're 2 or 22 or 62. I hope Caroline and Baby J #2 agree!

2 Things

2011-03-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

1) I'm leaving home today and going home. I don't know how else to say that. I'm heading back to Nashville this evening. Sad to leave my family here, but ready to be back together with Dan.

2) Leaving is made a little easier this time as I go home to something quite exciting...we have our 20-week ultrasound tomorrow and hope to find out what this little one is! He or she has been squirming away lately, and this Mama is enjoying that immensly. I can't WAIT to know if Caroline will have a sister or brother joining her ever-expanding world, but either way I'm pretty sure she will be up to the challenge of being the big sister -- at least by August.

Anyway, I just put up a quick poll and would love to see what you all are thinking out there. Boy or girl?? Cast your vote right up there in the right-hand corner of the screen. And do it quickly -- I'll be revealing the mystery soon enough!

Home

2011-03-25T14:59:00.000-05:00

This word has taken on different meanings over the years. Dorm rooms, apartments, small town, city, friends, family, Dan & Caroline. But there is one sense of the word that has remained constant for as long as I can remember - and that's where I am now. HOME. Mom & Dad. Home cooked meals. Peace & quiet, filled with bird chirps and frog songs and little else. Curling up on the couch under a warm blanket, listening to my Dad tell a story and laughing with my sister (at Dad's story). Rubbing my Mom's feet -- and then switching.

Sure, parts of "home" have changed over the years -- but mostly just good parts. A husband to share my family with. A brother-in-law to round us out. A Caroline to capture the hearts and attentions of everyone. But no matter how old I get, nothing can transport me back to my childhood faster than waking up to the morning sounds of Mom & Dad downstairs. It's almost enough to make me forget that my own daughter is sleeping in a crib across the room...almost.

Of course, home is also now in Nashville with my Dan & CJ. A home we're creating for our own children, one which I can only pray will someday bring the same sense of peace to them that this place still holds for me.

Just thought you all should know where I was while away from blog land for a few days :)

5 Years

2011-03-19T10:06:00.002-05:00

Dan & I celebrated 5 incredible years together yesterday. I still can't wrap my head around that - 5 years seems like a long time. But I guess a lot has transpired in the course of 5 years, considering where we were when we got started. I still had about a month & a half left of college, Dan was working construction, and we were given the opportunity to live in a cute little "cottage" on our college campus for the time being, given that I still had RA duties to fulfill. Since then, we have moved hundreds of miles away to an unseen 450 sq. ft apartment in TN, Dan started & completed PA school plus rotations, we found a church we loved and got plugged in, I found and worked a job I loved in the Christian music business for nearly 3 years, Dan found a great job in dermatology, we moved to a lovely town home (MUCH larger than our first place), we got pregnant, Dan found another job and I lost mine, we had a baby, settled into our role as parents, continued leading our small group with church, got pregnant again, and decided to buy a home. WOW. When you look at it that way, I guess you can pack a lot into 5 short years!!!

As I've mentioned before on this little blog of mine, I've got a pretty incredible man. There's no one else in this big wide world I would want to be with on this big adventure called life. I'm so thankful for the blessings - and challenges - God has seen us through in these first 5 years of our lives together, and I pray that He will see us through many more together for many more years to come.

Happy Anniversary Dan! I love you with all that I am.

Updates

2011-03-15T17:36:00.001-05:00

Wow, it's been busy around these parts lately. But today I woke up with some sort of stomach bug, so I've had very good reason to sit on the couch and do nothing (well, once Dan got home from work at noon anyway...praise God it was his half day!). At the moment, I am laying on the couch enjoying a very quiet house as Dan took Caroline out for awhile to give me the chance to rest -- he really is the best.

Anyhoo, I thought I'd take advantage of the opportunity to catch my little blog up to speed on our busy life as of late. Forgive the lack of pictures...I'm really comfy and don't feel like dragging myself across the room to fetch the camera. Here goes:

1. Pregnancy Update: I'm truckin right along! I'm a little past 17 weeks now and am FINALLY past the gross-nauseaus-can't-eat-anything-tired-all-the-time first trimester. HALLELUJAH! This time around is proving to go about exactly like the last time, with the morning sickness stuff lasting through about 16 weeks. The similarities make me think we might be having another girl...but who really knows. My ultrasound is set for March 29th, and if all goes well, we'll know if this is little brother or sister then! Any predictions from the peanut gallery? Daddy's bet is on boy (of course)...guess we'll find out soon enough. Perhaps I'll put up one of those polls if I can remember how to do that again.

2. House update: Oh yeah, I've never really posted anything about this. Well let me catch you up to speed...we decided to start looking at houses in late February. It took us a whole whopping week to find one we loved and put an offer on it...and a few days later, we were in business! Now, if you know me very well you know that I am NOT a fast mover when it comes to decisions like this. Heck, I'm not a fast mover when it comes to choosing a pair of jeans (true story: the day we got the official contract, my mom called to congratulate us and then proceeded to offer her apologies to Dan assuming that I was just about a complete wreck at that point. She was pretty much exactly correct. She then told Dan a lovely story about taking me shopping for a homecoming dress once, an experience which took endless hours of patience, and after finally choosing one, I sent Dad back to the city to get the other finalist because I changed my mind. I know, I know...poor Dan.)

Anyway, we are now "in contract" on a home in the small town of Nolensville, TN, which is just down the road about 6 miles from where we live now. We absolutely LOVE the town and are quite excited to be moving out of the city. As much as we have enjoyed Nashville (and will continue to...from a little further out), we're just not city people. And with baby #2 on the way, we have pretty much outgrown our current residence. I can't even believe that we've been blessed to a) find a house that we loved so quickly b) find it in our price range and c) have all the pieces fall together so quickly and easily. This has been a very big decision for us on a lot of levels (I may write more on that process later), and we feel very much at peace with God's leading in all of it. I'm still nervous and rather overwhelmed at times, but on the whole, I'm very excited to have a house of our own with plenty of space to have all the family & friends over we can stand! So please...come visit! I'll feed you in my beautiful new kitchen and even give you a real bed to sleep on :)

**I needed to remove the link to pictures for now - sorry! I'll post new ones as soon as we take possession at the end of April.

3. Visitors: We've had some lovely visitors lately, which has also kept us busy. Last weekend, my friend Rebecca (from college), plus her husband, plus her brother, plus his girlfriend all crashed at our place for a quick over-night on their way through to Florida. It was brief, but so much fun to catch up with an old friend and get the 411 on what's going on at NWC these days. (Rebecca is now the RD of the dorm we once shared back in the day - crazy.)

Then Tuesday my Dad came!! He was just here through Thursday, but we made the most of the time and had a great visit. Caroline and Papa reconnected very quickly (her squeals in the airport when she spotted him gave evidence to that), and they made some great memories. We went to the zoo on Wednesday, which we all 3 thoroughly enjoyed (Caroline even got pooped on in the Lorikeet exhibit...but it really only phased Mama), Papa taught her all about garbage trucks via YouTube after she was frightened by one outside our house, and he taught her a new game we're still trying to help her forget...one that involves running outside every time she hears an airplane. This might work well at Papa's house, but at our house we hear a plane roughly every 5.23 minutes. Thanks Papa :) I have to add that he even kept her while I went to work at my childcare job at church for several hours on Thursday morning. Everyone survived and was dressed & fed when I got home at noon (well, Dad hadn't really eaten much...). Thanks for making the trip, Dad! It was so much fun!

Finally, my dear friend Megan from my college days came to stay with us over the weekend. I don't think we had seen each other since graduation back in May of 2006 (almost 5 years!), so it was long overdue. We had the best time catching up. No one can make me laugh like that girl, and it was quite refreshing to just laugh for about 3 days. Plus it was very fun to finally introduce her to our sweet Caroline. She told me her goal was to meet her before she got hair. Perhaps that's what Caroline has been waiting for :) Coming again soon, Megan! Thanks for going out of your way to make this work.

Phew! I think I'm going to have to stop there. My computer battery is almost dead and I don't really feel like getting up to plug it in. I'm recharging my own batter, okay? And I'm pretty sure this post is quite long enough. I'll check in again soon. Promise.

Happy Happy Birthdays!!!

2011-03-02T09:16:00.000-06:00

When I told Caroline that we had TWO major birthdays to celebrate, she was very excited to send some birthday wishes out to Grandma Karee (who's birthday was yesterday) and Aunt Jewel (who's birthday is tomorrow). So I asked Caroline what exactly she wanted to do for them, and this is what she expressed:

First, she said she wanted to make sure to give them both a great big bear hug (complete with growl).

Then she'd give them each a big ol' smooch (or blow kisses if necessary).

When I told her we'll actually get to see both of them, she was so happy...

she just couldn't help but laugh & slap her knee. This will be pretty wonderful!

"Here Mama, take a picture of me in my pretty chair. I'll say CHEESE!"

"Wasn't that hilarious?"

"Are you catching all of this, Grandma?" (she's doing the sign for Grandma - hard to capture)

"Come on Mom, keep up here."

"Oh! I should make them some tea!"

"I think I'll sit and try some out first."

"Hmmm...this could be tricky to keep warm until they get here. Any ideas?"

"Okay, now I'll just stand here and look cute & you take a picture."

Happy (belated) birthday, Grandma! We love you and are so thankful to have you close!

And happy (early) birthday Aunt Jewel! We've missed you and can't wait to see you soon!

Atlanta!

2011-02-24T19:13:00.000-06:00

This past weekend, we had the opportunity to go to Atlanta for a few days, and boy did we have a GREAT time! Dan had a PA conference, so Caroline & I decided to tag along for the ride and do our own thing during the day while Daddy was in classes. We walked all over downtown Atlanta, enjoying Olympic Park, The Children's Museum, a fabulous playground we found for little ones, and also just roaming around our hotel (in fact, that may very well have been Caroline's favorite part!). In the evenings, we got to do a few things with Daddy, too, and enjoyed eating out at several...interesting...restaurants. I thought you all might enjoy a few pictures, so here you go! (By the way, I updated some things on blogger and it has completely changed the way I upload pictures...so this time they all showed up in reverse order. I'll get this figured out eventually)

Enjoying the decor at Pitty Pat's Porch, the oldest restaurant in all of Atlanta (let's just say, I believe that)

Caroline had a BALL at the Children's Museum. Here she is sculpting some sand.

Showing off her fabulous rhythm.

Just like Papa!

She fell in love with this fishing pond. After we had done this, nothing else seemed quite as interesting.

My little ladybug, ready to fish!

Quite the architect

She probably would have spent the entire time in this kitchen area if I had let her. She washed dishes, cooked food in the microwave & oven, put things in and out of the refrigerator...the girl was in heaven. You know, if I had a kitchen this large in comparison to myself, I'd probably be in heaven too!

A little grocery shopping before she got started with her cooking.

This was one evening at another restaurant. She was very serious about the coloring.

Just us girls.

She's recently learned how to give real hugs, and we just can't get enough! She has lots of squeezes for Dadden.

A thoughtful lady offered to snap this picture of all 3 of us in Olympic Park - can't remember the last picture we have of all of us!

Caroline & the fountains dancing to the music

If you look closely, the fountains shoot out of the Olympic rings. Very cool!

Just hanging out in our hotel room. We had very cool, large windows with a little window seat/ledge that CJ thoroughly enjoyed.

My big girl having a snack in the lounge. She even drank her juice right out of a real glass - she's very classy.

All in all, it was so much fun and quite exhausting for Mama. I had brought several things to do during nap times since I knew I'd be stuck in the room with her for awhile, but instead I just took some nice naps myself. Just what this pregnant girl needed :) I was very grateful that the nausea seemed to let up for me as well, and I was able to enjoy the eating out. So glad we got to go, and hopefully we can do it again sometime!

Things I've been meaning to do lately...

2011-02-21T15:11:00.000-06:00

Blog. And upload pictures. And blog some more. The past couple of months have just sort of escaped me.
Cook dinner. Not just tonight, but most nights lately...I've been meaning to, but it just hasn't gotten done as often as I'd like.
Clean my bathroom. And my floors.
Read a new book.
Keep up with my e-mail. And text messages. And phone calls.
Reorganize my kitchen.

I could really keep going with this list, but it just seems that all my spare time lately has been taken up with growing this little baby inside me. Yep, that's right – Baby J #2 is on the way! I just passed the 14 week mark on Friday and am due August 19th. It's not that I meant to keep it a secret it quite this long, but I just haven't gotten around to writing this blog in the last few weeks – along with my growing list of things I haven't gotten around to during this first trimester blah-ness. BUT, here's hoping I'm almost out of the woods! It took about 16 weeks the last go round, so I'm optimistic.

Dan & I are completely thrilled and feel so very blessed that the Lord has decided to grow our little family. It will certainly be a transition, but we're excited to see what this next chapter has in store!

(A couple pics from my first OB appt. back in January)

Hangin with Dadden

2011-02-02T22:55:00.000-06:00

Here's a quick peek at our never-boring lives. Caroline & "Dadden" (as she calls him) were playing together tonight while I cleaned up after supper. They're quite the pair, don't you think? Oh, and please excuse the random Christmas music...I haven't taken the time to update my playlist and an occassional Christmas song still pops up every now and then when I'm listening to certain playlists. It's only February, people...give me a break!

Anyway, enjoy the video:

Part III

2011-01-28T15:59:00.002-06:00

If you missed parts I & II, you can click here - just scroll to the bottom to start.

I made the drive North with a girl on the Freshman retreat team. When we got there, I felt very torn that I couldn't stay to enjoy the fruits of my labor. I helped my team set up and was there just long enough to welcome the Freshman bus before it was time to head South. I had a long drive ahead of me yet, and it was already dark. Fortunately, my friend Megan would be meeting me just outside of Orange City. That was certain to help the time pass quickly, and I was more than anxious to finally be at my destination in Omaha – for several reasons.

First, I was eager to get to know the rest of the team. I felt a bit intimidated by being one of only a few sophomores (similar to the campus ministries team), and I was hoping to feel a bit more at ease after this weekend. Secondly, I was very excited about my upcoming summer overseas. I had just decided before Christmas that I would be spending it in Sarajevo, Bosnia, and I was anxious/nervous/excited to learn more about what to expect and how to prepare.

Finally (although it didn't really seem like the last point in my mind), Dan Johnston would be there. All weekend. And he said he'd be waiting for me when I arrived. I mulled over that last thought as the miles past, looking at it from every angle, over-analyzing until I could hardly remember what the original conversation had been. And while my mind spun in a million different directions, I was leery to make anything of it in reality – as in, to acknowledge the thoughts out loud. Besides, wasn't this weekend suppose to be about, you know, GOD?? Lord, please keep me from distractions, I prayed silently as I pulled in to pick up my friend.

Megan kept me laughing the whole time she was with me, as she had a tendency to do. I appreciated the distraction and decided to keep my illogical thoughts to myself. After I dropped her off, I still had about an hour to go before I made it to my destination, so I decided it was a good time to call my leader and let her know where I was at.

“Hello?” a man's voice answered on the other end.

My heart raced a little as I was totally caught off guard. “Umm, is this Jill's phone? I'm trying to get in touch with her.”

“Yep – hey, is this Kali?” came the male voice again. I tried frantically to search my brain for who it belonged to. I thought I knew...but it couldn't be.

“Uhh....yeah,” It was all I could muster, my heart turning into a drum-line in my ears. He didn't have to tell me who it was at this point.

“Well hey! It's Dan. I just heard Jill's phone ring and thought it might be you checking in; where are you at?”

Don't read into that...just concentrate. He asked you a question! “Uhhh...just south of Sioux City. I should be there in about an hour.” My conversation skills were obviously brilliant.

“Great! Well I'll see you when you get here! Do you need directions?”

“No, I think I'm good. I guess I'll see you after bit,” I said, ending yet another conversation much too abruptly. Why did I suddenly feel like a mute?

The next hour past quickly as I had even more food for thought now. He said I'll be waiting, didn't he? And was he waiting for my call? Why did he have Jill's phone if he wasn't? He's just trying to be a helpful leader – he knows Jill has a lot going on with everything and he's just trying to make sure I'm not an added burden. That must be it. He knows this is just one more thing for her to deal with and he's trying to be helpful. After all, I am the ONLY team member that didn't ride with everyone else. Argh...why did I have to make things complicated?

Before I knew it, I had arrived at the church where we would be staying. I gathered my things quickly, trying to avoid the frigid temps as much as possible, and quietly let myself in. There was no one waiting at the doors. I felt a twinge of disappointment, but brushed it off quickly. After all – no one was expected to come rushing out at midnight. And that phone call had just been an older, responsible leader checking on the young college girl driving all alone at night in an unfamiliar place. It was a nice gesture – and that was all. I put the thoughts out of my mind and headed down the hallway to find out where to plop my stuff.

It didn't take long to settle in. People were still up hanging out and playing games, so I joined in. I interjected questions amidst a few frantic games of nerts and gathered some details of what I had missed that night. I learned some new names and began to figure out who was going where for the summer. I talked and laughed and was glad to feel welcomed by the group, and I tried to keep my thoughts focused on those things rather than the guy that just kept popping up. As I watched him easily move from one group to the next, I couldn't help but be drawn to his outgoing personality that seemed to make it so natural for him to visit with anyone in the room. Everyone seemed to know Dan – and everyone seemed to enjoy his company. I decided right then and there to put the thoughts out of my mind completely. This was just a really nice guy who treated everyone this way. I had absolutely no reason to believe otherwise.

The weekend passed more quickly than I had anticipated, being packed full of different “cross-cultural” experiences, particularly for a small-town girl who found the city to be a bit overwhelming. We dined at an Indian restaurant and ate with our hands (because apparently that's how they do it in India), took part in a market-place experience where we actually had to barter for our supper, and were dropped off in pairs at various locations of the city with a scavenger-hunt type list of tasks that we had to accomplish before we could meet back up with everyone for an evening worship service. I was rather unprepared for that last experience.

I was paired up with a fun-loving, sweet upperclassmen who had just about as much experience with public transportation as myself...nada. After being dropped off at a mall, we finally figured out the bus schedule and made our way on a city bus. We somehow managed to accomplish the things on our list, but as the gray gloom of the winter day began to turn dark, we quickly began to realize that we were not in the best part of town, and furthermore, that we had absolutely no idea how to get to where we needed to be. Decked out in my purple marshmallow coat (complete with complimenting purple gloves, scarf and ear band), I stuck out like a sore thumb. One lady even stopped us to tell us we had no business being where we were and needed to get out of there before it got dark. Gee, thanks lady...like I wasn't already completely freaked out!

By the grace of God, we finally managed to find the University campus where we were supposed to be meeting the group at the chapel. We snuck in the back, doing our best to be completely silent, only to find the building empty. My heart sank once again. What were we going to do?!? By this time it was dark, and the campus felt overwhelmingly huge. I was trying to be brave for this girl I had just met, but my courage was quickly failing. And that's when we saw him. Dan, walking straight towards us, with no one else in sight.

I watched relief wash over his face. We relayed the story of the day to him, trying to make it humorous, as he led us to the correct building where everyone was waiting. Apparently we had already missed the chapel service. As our trio walked and talked, I realized that my fear had completely subsided and somehow, in the matter of a few brief, confusing moments, I suddenly felt completely and unequivocally safe.

Sleepyhead

2011-01-26T11:33:00.004-06:00

Caroline just fell asleep in my arms.

Now I realize that may not seem like that craziest thing you've ever heard, but I'm still laughing about it. This NEVER.EVER happens. NEVER. Even when we rock at night, even when we occassionally have to get up with her in the night and rock some more, even when she's exhausted at the end of the day and we snuggle up on the couch to read books...even under the circumstances where a child would typically fall asleep in her mother's arms, it never happens for us.

But just now, I let Caroline have part of a cookie from Grandma to try and perk her up a little and buy a little more time before lunch (I know, I know...I was spoiling her lunch. It was just a special treat on a snowy day. And I wanted one). And as soon as the cookie was gone, she continued sitting on my lap, looking at pictures on the computer like she loves to do whilst listening to Wee Sing Bible Songs...and the poor little thing just couldn't keep her eyes open for one more second. Bless her heart. I guess nap time starts a little early today!

I can't really say that I blame her. It's the perfect day for an early/extra/extra long nap. I woke up to more snow this morning and a fire already glowing from my fire place. Caroline has enjoyed blowing on the fire periodically (to keep it stoked, of course), and warming up her hands (I know this picture is blurry...it's the best I could get of our always-moving toddler).

We stayed in jammies for awhile, then put on comfy sweats to keep us snuggly and warm all day. I love days like this.

So anyway, here I sit with cookie crumbs surrounding my feet and "Father Abraham" still singing from my stereo. I should probably get up and do something with this time. I hope you all find something to make you smile today, wherever you are.

Also, Grandma Johnston...what exactly did you put in those cookies?? I think I need the recipe :)

**(Side note: For some reason, I can't seem to upload any pictures at all right now. Is anyone else having trouble with blogger? Not sure what's going on. I'll post new pictures as soon as I have this resolved - I know it's been awhile.)

***New side note: I figured something out, but this is going to take awhile to get used to - yikes!

Part II: Making Plans

2011-01-26T10:13:00.003-06:00

“Well I think he finally put that together,” Shelby interrupted my thoughts, allowing the blush to pass quickly. “Anyway, I have to run to Walmart, but I couldn't stand to be this close and not at least say hello to my roomie! But I guess we'll have to catch up when you get back tomorrow. Looks like people are clearing out, so I better do the same. See ya!”

My fun-loving roommate had become my one of my dearest friends over the course of the 3 previous semesters. We made a rather odd pair at times, her 6-foot frame towering over my stubby self, but we had become like sisters, knowing each others deepest thoughts and most annoying quirks. It was so good to see her after the long break, even for a quick moment, and since she didn't seem to make anything of the more-than-brief encounter that had just happened, I decided to likewise let it pass without giving it much more thought.

The rest of the retreat passed with the usual balance of “meetings” and social time (which always seemed to blur together in the best of ways). I was surprised to find myself sharing a booth with Dan and several others at the local ice cream parlor prior to one of our brainstorming sessions that evening. We all chattered on about our trips home, and I was intrigued by his tales from California. It was such a foreign place to me and seemed like a warm, tropical paradise compared to my cold, snowy Missouri home. He talked about trips to the beach with his little sisters, both of which he seemed to be missing dearly now that he was back in frozen farmland. I'm sure the others sitting at the table had plenty of conversation to contribute, but my head seemed a little foggy that night. Why did I find this guy so fascinating?

The next day, we all headed back to campus, ready to begin a new semester. I was eager to make it back to the dorm to see Megan & Lori, two of my other dear friends that lived just across the hall from Shelby and me. The four of us were rather inseparable, and having friends like that was exactly why leaving home got a little easier each time.

Before we knew it, we had our first week of classes under our belts. As the weekend approached, I prepared for yet another busy one. Part of my role on the campus ministries team was to plan a Freshman retreat, which I had spent a good deal of time on. It would be taking place at a camp ground up in Spirit Lake, IA, a little over an hour from school. The problem was, I was required to be at another retreat about 3 hours south in Omaha, NE for my upcoming summer missions trip. The logistics were going to be tricky, but I had figured out a way to make it work.

So by Friday afternoon, I had packed my bags and my trunk. I headed over to the vans where the rest of the SOS team (Summer of Service – the missions team) was gathering to head south. I needed to talk to our leader one more time to make sure I had all the details and directions correct, but when I couldn't find Jill, I bumped into Dan once again. He was the student leader for SOS, having spent the summer before in Africa, and he wanted to make sure I had all the information. He double checked that I had the right phone number and address, and verified at least twice what time I thought I'd be arriving.

“I'm really sorry this is such a hassle for your guys,” I began to apologize. I hated making things complicated.

“It's really no big deal. I just wanted to make sure you feel good about everything. I know that's a long drive. Just be sure and check in when you're on your way. I'll be waiting for you when you get there...to make sure you get in alright and everything.”

He'll be waiting for me?? I wondered to myself. That was awfully nice. But he was probably just trying to be a good leader. I'm sure if it was anyone else, he'd do the same thing. Right?

“Well we'll see you later! Hope everything goes well with your retreat, too,” he said, turning to head back towards the group. “And – be careful, okay?” he added.

“Yeah, of course. See you guys later,” I said, puzzling at his concern. And with that, the SOS team piled into the vans, and I fired up my trusty old car to head in the opposite direction.

Apologies & A New Venture

2011-01-22T09:56:00.004-06:00

Okay, so I'm mostly going to skip over the fact that I have blogged about 2 whole times in the last month in a half. I just haven't been feeling it, you know? That, and I've tried to upload Christmas pictures FOUR TIMES (literally), spending far too much time each time, and each time Blogger has refused to cooperate. So at this point, I think I'm going to skip Christmas pictures...or post them sporadically throughout the next few weeks...and just move on with my blogging life. I do hope you'll understand. If I don't, I may never blog again.

Secondly, I have obviously been searching for some blogging inspiration as of late. The photo challenge just didn't get me quite as excited as I had hoped. So I'm moving on to something else.

This time of year always makes me a bit nostalgic for another January in a snowier place, back when the Caf was in charge of my meal-planning and someone else scrubbed my bathroom for me. The year was 2004, and I was a sophomore at a small Christian college in NW Iowa. Life was good, but that semester, it suddenly and surprisingly became even better.

Over the next "while" (because I don't know how long this will take), I will be posting my very own love story in numerous installments for your reading pleasure. I promise to still do "normal" posts with pictures of Caroline and everyday life here in TN, but meanwhile, find yourself a comfy spot and a good cup of coffee...because this could take awhile :)

Part I: Introductions...again

Gazing into the trunk of my 1990 Honda Accord, I carefully examined the contents my Dad had just helped load. Suitcase full of clean clothes – check. Newly acquired snow boots from Christmas – check. Extra blanket, coveralls, and emergency pop-out shovel – check. I was ready for my post-Christmas wintry trek back to Iowa.

Slamming the trunk closed, I turned back to the house for one last good-bye. Leaving home was still hard, even though I was entering my 4th semester of college. I hugged my sister, now a senior in high school, who lamented my pile of clothes leaving nearly as much as me. My Dad rattled off some more safety instructions for my 5 hour drive North as he squeezed me, and Mom's eyes glistened as she said again what a wonderful Christmas it had been. By the time I made it to the driver's seat, my car was toasty warm and ready to go. It was hard to leave home, but it would be good to get back to my friends and my dorm at college.

I loved college. Every last bit of it. I mean, what's not to love about living with your best friends with lots of freedom and very little responsibility? Okay so there was class to attend and papers to write, but being the nerd that I was, I actually liked that part, too. So the fact that I had to return a few days early for this semester was no big deal for me. I was part of the Campus Ministries Team that year and our winter planning retreat was scheduled for the weekend before classes resumed, so as soon as I made it back to my dorm room and unpacked my suitcase, I repacked a smaller duffel bag and headed right back out into the frozen tundra of Iowa. Little did I know that a simple weekend retreat was just about to change the course of my life entirely.

My friends and I chatted easily as we made our way to the hotel, catching up on Christmas break. There were a couple other sophomore girls on the Campus Ministries Team, and we tended to stick together for these events. Most of the team was comprised of upperclassmen, and I was still prone to a little intimidation in such company. Once we checked in and found our room, we quickly changed to join the rest of the group in the pool. I loved to swim, but I was not exactly looking forward to donning a bathing suit in January with my pasty-white, not-so-in-shape body.

As we walked into the pool room, I surveyed the group to see who was there and who wasn't. It looked like it was mostly guys at the moment. Great. The other girls must have felt the same way I did about the bathing suit situation. Then I realized the hot-tub was filled with girls, so I started making my way over. Except...oh, there was one guy in there.

“Hey, is that Dan Johnston in the hot tub? What's he doing here? I don't remember him being on the team last semester,” my friend questioned as we continued that direction.

“Oh yeah, I forgot he was joining at semester. I think he had to wait until football season was over or something. My roommate had mentioned that to me. He seems like a nice guy.”

My roommate, Shelby, had mentioned that to me, among other things about this guy. They were both biology majors and had spent a lot of time together in the fall as study partners. She was convinced I needed to meet him, he was so great, blah blah blah. I mean, it wasn't that I didn't believe her – in fact, I totally believed every word she said. He seemed to be every bit as wonderful as she made him out to be. But he also seemed a bit (or a lot, depending on the day) “out of my league” so to speak.

It was also the fact that I had spent the Fall semester in a Sunday school class with him every week, and he had introduced himself – several times – never remembering me from the time before. “Hey, I'm Dan. I don't think we've met – what was your name?” “Kali. I'm Shelby's roommate – she's mentioned that you guys study together,” and so it went each time. Maybe the guy just wasn't good with names. Whatever the case, I didn't give it much thought after that. Or at least I tried not to.

By the time we made it to the hot tub, Dan had jumped out to join the rest of the guys in the pool. The girls seemed disappointed he left, but I was glad at least this small piece of the room was not co-ed at the moment. I slipped out of my towel and into the warm water. Pretty soon, there was a knock at the outdoor entrance to the pool room. I glanced up and realized with surprise that it was Shelby (who was not in Campus Ministries) and quickly grabbed my towel. I ran over to let her in and was nearly knocked over when Dan beat me to the door.

“I'm so sorry!” he turned to me after he had let Shelby in. “What are you doing here, Shelb? And how do you two know each other?” he said with confusion on his face.

“We're roommates” we said in unison, I with a bit of exasperation in my voice I'm sure. Hadn't we been over this before?

“And I just got into town and wanted to say hello since I knew you guys would be here. Most people won't get back to campus until tomorrow-” Shelby continued until Dan cut in again.

“Oooooh. You're Shelby's roommate,” he interrupted, with sudden understanding registering on his face. “You're on the summer mission team, too, aren't you?”

I gave a sideways glance to Shelby, wondering what all she had told this guy and why it was just now clicking for him. “Yep, that's me. I'm headed to Bosnia in May.”

“Gotcha! Well, it's nice to officially meet you. Shelb, it's great to see you girl! See you in Advanced Chem!” and with that, he ran back towards the pool and jumped in, making sure to splash as many of the surrounding guys as possible.

I considered my dripping-wet self for a second, and felt my cheeks flush. Of all the times for Dan Johnston to actually take notice of me, did this really have to be it?

Wiggle Wiggle

2011-01-12T13:59:00.003-06:00

Okay, so I've been working on a REAL LIVE POST all day today - seriously, for hours - and for some reason blogger is not cooperating. Do you think it's been so long since I last posted that it's trying to get back at me or something? It feels that way. Anyway, enough complaining. While I attempt to figure out what the problem is and why it won't upload my pictures, I will share with you a new video.

Caroline has just recently become interested in the television for brief periods of time and with the appropriate programming. Basically, she has one video that she has fallen in LOVE with. It's called "Miss Patty Cake's Wiggle Giggle Sing a long Songs," and let's just say it lives up to its name. Mommy gets about 20 minutes to get something done without litte feet underneath my own, and Caroline gets some time to get funky. I caught her in action a few days ago and thought you might enjoy seeing some of her new moves.

Happy Birthday Dan!

2011-01-03T20:57:00.002-06:00

I'm so glad you were born :-)

Thanks for being generous enough to share your family even on your birthday. I hate being away from you today, but I am so thankful for another opportunity to be with my family. Caroline misses you and talks about "Dadden" all the time! See you in two short days.

And I promise we'll celebrate your birthday again when we get home!

Just Because

2010-12-18T09:21:00.002-06:00

Here's a recent video of Caroline - just a typical morning at home, just the two of us. I have the best job in the world!

new post

2010-12-17T10:21:00.003-06:00

There has been some concern expressed in my lack of blogging lately...oops! No need to worry about me, it's just been busy around here. That, and I've been feeling terribly uncreative -- even a step down from my typically uncreative self. Perhaps I used up all of the creative juices decorating my house for Christmas. Perhaps keeping up with a toddler just does that to a person. Perhaps I've just been lazy. Whatever.

So I've decided to try and do several days worth of the "photo challenge" all at once. And maybe that will jumpstart my creativity. Maybe not...but it's worth a try! Here goes:

Day 8: A photo of your favorite band or musician -

Sara Groves! Love her voice, love her style, love her lyrics, etc etc etc. I've recently been enjoying her Christmas album - over and over and over. Because that's usually how I listen to her music.

Day 9: A photo of your family

This is my entire family when we were all together at Thanksgiving. Even though we're not exceptionally great in number, it is more challenging than you would think to get us all together in one place, and then to also remember to take a picture. I love my family dearly, and I am so thankful that we all truly enjoy spending time together. I also love that Dan and Brent (my sister's husband) refer to each other simply as "brother," and that my parents love having the guys around just as much (if not more sometimes!) as Kelsey and me. And of course Caroline. But she's always the star of the show when she's around :)

I don't have a picture of all of the Johnstons all together, but I promise to try and take one over Christmas since we'll all be together!! We're so excited to have a Tennessee Johnston Christmas next week!

Day 10: A photo of you as a baby:

There I am - all dressed up for church with my beautiful Mama. And just in case you were wondering, yes, I was every bit as bald as Caroline. Thank goodness for bonnets and hats and headbands!

Pumpkins

2010-12-03T08:49:00.002-06:00

Since I skipped Day 6, here it is - a photo that makes you laugh:

Not hard to explain why this makes me laugh - it's pretty ridiculous. But it also makes me laugh to remember so many fun times growing up with my sister. It really didn't take much to entertain us most of the time, thanks largely in part to my parents requiring us to go outside and just play. Also thanks largely in part to my sister & father's crazy imaginations. Kelsey always accused me of having no imagination (I preferred to play with my chemistry set, while she was outside playing follow the leader by herself - there was probably some truth to the accusations), so I relied on them for our games of make-believe. But if carving pumpkins didn't take much creativity, it did take some thought to try and make the same face as the one we had carved. I think I came pretty close, don't you?

blah - and I love my husband

2010-11-28T18:07:00.004-06:00

We made it home last night around 1:00 AM, just in time for the stomach bug to hit me full force. Awesome. Fortunately, we had absolutely nothing to do today so I have spent the day on the couch alternating between sleeping and reading my book. I still haven't eaten much, except for the chicken noodle soup Dan made me work on a bit, but I think I've turned a corner anyway.

Speaking of Dan, it just seems appropriate to skip to day 7 for today - a photo of someone you love:

While it's true that I am beyond blessed to have many people in my life who easily fall into this category, my husband really belongs in a category of his own here. I love him for so many reasons that I can't even begin to name them all on here. One of those many reasons is pretty apparent in both of these photos - he is an incredible Daddy.

If you can't tell, he's pretty crazy about that precious little girl of ours. He knows how to make her laugh, but he also knows how to care for her most basic of needs. I've laid on the couch all day long today, without needing to lift a finger. Dan has fed Caroline 3 meals, gotten her up and down for 2 naps, dressed her, changed her, bathed her, picked up her toys, done some laundry, taken her out for a walk, ran to the grocery store during nap time (after unloading the van), snuggled with her, disciplined her, changed her several more times, etc etc etc. He even made some baby food for her to make room in the freezer for some frozen berries he bought to make me smoothies. And that's not to mention a single thing he did for me - which was an equally long list including keeping a fire going for me all day, keeping my drink cup filled up, and even holding my hair back when necessary (sorry if that's TMI).

There are things you know about a person when you wed, and there are things you cannot possibly know about that same person until you are years down the road. I loved Dan with all my heart when we said our vows nearly five years ago. I trusted him wholeheartedly. I expected the best. But I couldn't even think to ask for someone cabable enough to care for our child when I was ill, or someone compassionate enough to slip a headband in my hair and get me a wet wash cloth while I lay on the bathroom floor. I'm not sure I ever wanted anyone besides my mother to see me in such a state. But marriage has ways of surprising us along the way. Dan has surprised me time and time again since March 18, 2006. And with every surprise, I manage to love him a little bit more.

hello again

2010-11-27T09:48:00.003-06:00

As you've probably guessed by now, Dan & I headed home to Missouri last Friday and have enjoyed a full week here in the heartland. I brought my laptop home this time with good intentions of blogging more often while I was here...and you can see how well that went. There is just too much going on with family and friends all around, and I can't stand the thought of missing a minute to be on this silly computer!

Anyway, here I am today, loading pictures before we hit the road again this afternoon and high-tail it back to the [much warmer] South. We have had such a sweet time with family, and I promise to share some pictures when I have a little more time. In between all of the family time, we also got to see some dear friends, my life-long friend Kandi and some of Dan's Cali friends who now live in KS, Travis & Jenny and their sweet little Bella. We are so blessed to have so many dear friends in our lives.

For now, I'll get back to my little photo challenge. For Day 5, I'm supposed to post a picture of myself, so here you go:

I'm certainly no beauty queen here (as opposed to all of my other photos - ha!), but Dan snapped this when we were hiking along the Natchez Trace back in early October. There aren't many things I enjoy more than being out in the woods with Dan (and now Caroline, too) and no one else, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life, away from the noise of the city, with nothing around me except God's beautiful, peaceful creation. We were hiking along a creek in this picture, and Dan is always amused when we have to climb over a fallen tree or hop our way across some rocks to avoid getting wet. After all this time, he still forgets that I'm kind of a nature girl at heart until he sees me again in my element, and I think he snapped this picture as proof. This will probably manage to resurface the next time Dan tries to convince me to go stomp around in the woods again. I will then point out that I am wearing shorts and a tank top here, and that this totally and completely loses its appeal when I have to wear 32 layers to keep my toes from falling off. I'm just sayin.

Day 4 - plus some new videos

2010-11-18T19:21:00.003-06:00

Day 4 - a photo of the last place you went on holiday

I'm not sure if this counts as a "holiday" or vacation or whatever you might call it, but the last trip we took was to Jamestown, North Dakota for a friend's wedding. (No, it was not a destination wedding, believe it or not.) Some friends snapped a few pictures for us before the beautiful outdoor ceremony, and I was so grateful to have a few shots of all three of us dressed up for a moment in time! It was a good trip, but a bit stressful at times. Caroline decided sleeping in a hotel room was not exactly her cup of tea.

Now these have absolutely nothing to do with the photo challenge, but I thought you all might enjoy seeing them anyway. The first video is of Caroline playing with Grandma & Grandpa Johnston and her new kitchen. Grandma is officially moved to Tennessee, and we could not be more excited to have them just an hour away! In fact, we even met Grandma for lunch today and a little afternoon shopping - such a treat! We are embracing the blessing of having family so close after being hundreds and thousands of miles apart all of our married life.

And this video is from yesterday morning -- Caroline's new favorite game seems to be crawling underneath anything she can possibly squeeze her little body under. And as you can see, she can squeeze into some pretty small spaces!! Crazy kid.

Day 3 - a photo that makes you happy

2010-11-17T10:03:00.005-06:00

This was a tough one to narrow down to one photo. I have so many that make me smile! I've been looking through the challenge a little more, and most of these are supposed to be photos of yourself. Goodness knows you all have seen a bazillion Caroline pictures here in the last year, so I'm going to try and stick with the challenge of posting photos of myself. (But don't worry, Caroline will still pop up all over the place, I'm quite sure!)

Moving along, here is the photo I went with for Day 3:

There are so many things about this photo that makes me happy. I'll start with the obvious - we look so completely ridiculous! This was taken my junior year of college (Dan's senior year) at an event we had each spring called "Lamrof" ('formal' spelled backwards). It was basically a dance with a ridiculous theme that called for some imaginative costumes and some good, old-fashioned, small-town fun.

The year was 2005, and the theme of that Lamrof was "My Big Fat Dutch Wedding," a play off of the popular movie about a Greek wedding and the local Dutch population/heritage in our college town. We actually had a campus-wide vote for the bride and groom, and one of my closest friends ended up being selected as the bride, and therefore asking me to be one of her bridesmaids...hence the dutch costume each of the bridesmaids donned that night. I will never forget getting ready in Rebecca's dorm room, fluffing her thrift-store, over-sized 80's wedding gown, applying too much make-up, and laughing until our sides nearly burst. We even had a wedding procession from our dorm, where the groom and groomsmen came to escort us over to the cafeteria/reception hall.

After the wedding party was released from our duties, I met my date, who was dressed as my "cousin from Missouri" in an outfit courtesy of my cousin Barb. I think everyone else was supposed to dress as wedding guests, and people really used their imaginations :-)

Aside from all of the craziness of the event itself, Dan and I were just weeks away from becoming engaged and blissfully, head-over-heels in love. Looking at this picture brings back so many wonderful memories in an instant - walks around our quiet college town, staying up way too late to finish homework because I had spent too much time with this boy, being surrounded by my best friends, random nights like this where we had no cares in the world (except maybe hoping that somehow I could pull-off looking cute in a dutch costume to impress my "cousin from Missouri" with the mullet).

Those were definitely some good times. Do you think Northwestern would take us back?

Day 2 - A Photo From a Year Ago

2010-11-16T15:36:00.002-06:00

This picture makes me happy :) This was my Mom's first trip back to Nashville after Caroline's birth, and I can remember so many details so clearly. It was a sweet time as we enjoyed a 6-week-old Caroline, and she and Nana spent lots of time just "visiting."

I remember dressing Caroline that day with the intent of getting some good pictures of the 3 of us. This was one of the first full outfits that I bought for her, and I absolutely loved this little sweater. I had no idea that it would only fit for a handful of weeks! My little chunky monkey was packing on the pounds (well, ounces is more like it) back in these days!

Inspiration

2010-11-15T09:36:00.003-06:00

As you've probably noticed, I've been lacking a little blogging inspiration as of late. Things are great around here, but I just can't seem to pull together a blog post to save my life. Last week, my friend Jenny (who is a fabulous blogger - you should check out her page if you never have) started this 30 day photo challenge. I think it's just the inspiration I need to get out of my little slump! Being the un-creative type that I am, I love having a formula to follow - I love recipes and directions and rules and step-by-step instructions that take the guess work out of things. Call me boring, but I'm just embracing who I am :-)

Anyway, we'll start with the photo for Day 1: your facebook profile picture

I've already posted this one here, but I'm just following the rules, ok? Besides, I think this picture is worth seeing twice - isn't she beautiful? When my Mom visited last month, she brought with her an entire suitcase full of "new" clothes for Caroline that she had picked up at a local garage sale. She knew the people holding the sale had especially good taste in clothing and a little girl who is just a couple years older than Caroline, so she made a point of being there when they opened. This is one of the little outfits she snagged - and it also has a long, peach-colored angora wool sweater to match the hat. Great find, Nana! I'm pretty sure no one would suspect this little fashionista wears hand-me-downs, but my wallet is grateful.

It's Official

2010-11-04T19:16:00.002-05:00

I officially have a walker on my hands. She has been making lots of progress and basically walking for about a month now, but just yesterday she suddenly stood up in the middle of the floor for the first time - and she hasn't looked back! Today the little munchkin was practically doing laps around the house. And she is so very proud of her accomplishment, too. She jabbers happily as she goes along, more content than ever to play by herself, bringing me various treasures from time to time. It's a joy to watch her discover this new skill, even if it means everything just became slightly more chaotic around here :-)

So does walker=toddler? I'm not sure I'm ready to totally let go of the baby stage quite yet, but I'm realizing I don't exactly have that option. Ready or not, here we go!

Here's a little video of her stomping around my disaster of a kitchen. It's a little long, but she was so cute, I just couldn't turn of the camera :)

Go Colts!

2010-11-01T18:28:00.004-05:00

Here are my Colts fans getting ready for a little grill-out before the big game tonight. Caroline is quite the little helper these days!

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T20:47:00.003-05:00

Sneek Peek

2010-10-30T19:57:00.006-05:00

I have a lot of new pictures to share, but not much time this evening. Just thought I'd give you a sneek peek while you wait :)

Dan, Dan the Mountain Man

2010-10-20T11:26:00.002-05:00

Caroline seems to have turned a corner today, for which I am very grateful. Ear infections are no fun, sir. She currently waking up from her nap, so I need to keep this short.

Last night Dan was working on transferring some firewood from his truck to the back of our house, which is a process that requires some serious work since our townhome doesn't allow for a way to get a vehicle behind the house. As he was making his trips through the house, he said to me, "You should really take a video of this to post on your blog and call it Dan Dan the mountain man."

I won't keep you waiting any longer.

Visit to Daddy's Office

2010-10-18T22:18:00.002-05:00

Caroline and I had a date scheduled today - lunch with daddy. Unfortunately, she woke up from her nap feeling a little feverish. I called Dan to let him know and we decided I should bring her on over to his office anyway and he'd check her out. It just took a quick look in her little ears to discover the problem - her first ear infection :(

Daddy thought she was a good patient, especially considering the circumstances. We drove through the pharmacy on the way home and picked up her first antibiotics. Sad day :(

Tonight all she really wanted to do was snuggle - which is very out of character for our busy girl. Daddy didn't mind though. The two of them snuggled down on the couch for some Monday night football.

I'm praying she feels better in the morning. Those sad little eyes are just about enough to do me in.

Happy and she knows it!

2010-10-14T12:45:00.002-05:00

My Big ONE Year Old!

2010-10-13T13:05:00.002-05:00

On Monday Caroline had her official 1-year check-up. The Doctor gave her an A+, said she is healthy and growing right on track, and was especially impressed with her communication skills (Caroline was quite chatty that morning and even showed off some of her sign-language she's been learning). I thought I'd share with you her official stats, as well as a few of my own notes on what my big one-year-old is up to these days:

28 1/8 inches tall, 25th percentile (she started at 20 1/4")
19 lbs. 5 oz., 25th percentile (she started at 8lbs even)
I didn't write down her head circumference, but it is in the 75th percentile...and still perfectly round :-)
She currently only has 3 teeth and is working on a 4th - 2 bottom, and 2 top, but not in the middle. She might look a little like a vampire, just in time for halloween. Perhaps there is a Twighlight character she could dress up as?
She knows sign-language for about 7-8 words now, including more, all done, please, milk, drink, eat, bye-bye, and almost has thank-you.
She is so close to walking. I feel like I've been saying this for awhile now, but it's been true for awhile it seems! She has taken about 8 steps clear across our living room and often takes 3-4 steps between furniture to get to where she wants to be. She just hasn't quite figured out how to "take off."
Her favorite toys are containers that can be emptied and filled over and over and over again. She has a couple of purses she got for her birthday (complete with a real wallet and fake credit cards - her favorite thing to take apart) that she plays with a lot. She also loves music and "dances" quite often when it's on.
She's happiest when she is with her Daddy, and especially when they are outside. She'll sit quite still and listen for birds (her Papa even taught her about crows) and airplanes (a very frequent sound at our house), pointing excitedly when she hears or spots one.
She is a great sleeper (do I dare say that out loud?). She goes to bed around 7:30-8:00 and typically sleeps until about 7am. She still takes a nice, long morning nap (between 2-3 hours!), and then another afternoon nap of about 1 1/2 - 2 hours. It's going to be a sad day for me when she drops down to 1 nap!
She's becoming a better eater. Some of her favorite foods include yogurt, oatmeal, cheese, sweet potatoes, any type of fruit, and yogurt melts.
She is officially weaned, as of this week. I could probably write a whole post on this as there are a lot of mixed feelings for me, but mostly it's been a smooth transition and I'm (mostly) relieved to be done. She has been a little hesititant to drink whole milk, but with a little encouragement and formula mixed in, we're making progress. As previously noted, her love for cheese & yogurt helps me not worry too much about her getting an adequate amount in this department!

I could go on and on, but you all are probably bored by this point. I realize that I am totally biased, but Caroline really has such a sweet spirit and loveable little personality. It didn't even take close to 12 months, but at this point I can say with full confidence that she has totally and completely stolen our hearts this past year. It is one of the greatest joys of my life to watch her grow each day.

Picture Perfect Day

2010-10-09T22:43:00.006-05:00

Today was just about as perfect as they come. Dan and I decided some time ago that this was the weekend we would set aside to go camping. Well, I was a bit hesitant with the whole tent camping thing with Caroline (even though I love it ordinarily), and after our recent crazy travel schedule we decided that just a day of hiking, exploring, picnicking, and adventuring would do just fine. And just fine it did!

We headed out this morning in time for Caroline's morning nap and were able to get all the way to our destination while she snoozed. A couple of years ago around the same time of year, we camped and explored the historic Natchez Trace and fell in love, so we headed back for this same gorgeous stretch of land. When Caroline woke up, we got her out and let her stretch for a bit before we hit the trails.
She was a little unsure at first...

But with a little encouragement from Daddy, she was ready to go!

Our little naturalist investigating one of her specimens from her perch on Daddy's back.

She spent most of the hike in Daddy's backpack, but then decided she needed to do a little hiking herself.

We soon learned that this is actually Caroline's idea of hiking:

"What's the problem, guys?"

We drove a bit further down the Trace, then stopped for a nice picnic lunch. Caroline was parched after her long hike.

Our picnic site was conveniently located right next to another trail that followed a creek, so we were off again after our lunch.

Caroline was plum wore out by the end of that hike and took another nap in her new big-girl carseat while Mommy & Daddy enjoyed the time to just drive and talk and take in the gorgeous scenery.

We even did a little "off-roading" (as Dan likes to call it) on portions of the original Trace. It doesn't get much better than this!

We lingered a little too long at an old cemetary we happened upon, and Caroline decided nap time was over. So we decided to stop for one more quick hike at a waterfall and do a little more exploring.

These two...they have so much fun together. And in case you were wondering, yes, Caroline did come back wet from this little excursion. (But considering the 85* weather, it wasn't a problem)

She really can't get enough of the great-outdoors.

A quick self-[family] portrait. (At least we're all looking at the camera)

Here's a peek at our drive home - GORGEOUS.

At the end of a wonderful day, we stopped in a small town South of Nashville and ate a delicious, Southern-style meat-and-three dinner, complete with sweet potato fries. Then we walked just a little bit more and took a few last pictures to end the evening.

Being in God's creation is so refreshing for my soul. It's even more refreshing to take in the beauty of Fall with my husband and daughter by my side. I'm so thankful that God gives us days like these, days that create precious memories that I will carry with me forever.

Catching Up

2010-10-08T09:06:00.002-05:00

I realize that I never exactly filled you all in as to where exactly we were these past couple of weeks. It's been crazy, to say the least. I know this is quite boring, but I'll enjoy looking back at it a year from now, so here's a quick run-down of our travels:

We left Thursday, Sept. 23. Flew to Fargo, ND via Minneapolis. Arrived late, couldn't fit in the miniature Yaris they gave us and got upgraded to a Tahoo instead. Awesome. I could see my breath upon arrival, after leaving 95* weather in Nashville. Not awesome. Drove 90 miles to Jamestown late that night and checked in to our hotel.
Friday morning we got up and Dan took Caroline to meet Iver (we were there for Iver's wedding...and because we had always wanted to visit North Dakota...or not). Had breakfast at a local grocery store deli. Caroline smiled at everyone. Wedding fun all day, some girl time for Caroline & me in the pool. Rehearsal and dinner that night. Good times catching up with old friends from college.
Saturday more wedding fun. The boys golfed and played football, then had lunch at Pizza Ranch (AMAZING). I decided that guys do weddings totally differently that us girls. Dan had a blast - all of the groomsmen & the groom went to college & played football together, so it was a bonus that the whole wedding party knew each other. I enjoyed catching up with other friends from school, meeting knew babies, etc. The wedding was beautiful, Caroline did great (until she spotted Daddy...), and the reception was a lot of fun. Headed back to hotel and packed very quietly after she fell asleep.
Sunday, Sept. 26 - Left at 3:30 AM (not a typo). Made it to Fargo by 5:00 for our 6:30 flight. Quite a way to kick of Caroline's birthday! Flew to Minneapolis, had breakfast in the airport, Daddy and Caroline played hard until it was time to say good-bye. Daddy headed to Boston for a medical conference, and we boarded a plane for Missouri. It was very hard to say good-bye :(
Still Sunday (this was a very long day) - arrived in Omaha, NE by 10:30am, met Aunt Linda, Ali & Keaton at the airport. Had a lovely brunch in the Old Market and enjoyed the visit very much. Headed South to Missouri with Aunt Linda. Caroline was in 5 states by 3:00 on her birthday - ND, MN, NE, IA, and MO!
STILL Sunday - Arrived at Nana & Papa's! Spent the evening exploring and celebrating her big day. Nana made a smash cake that night, Kelsey, Brent, and the Blythes all came over to celebrate and watch her partake. She picked off the sprinkles one at a time until I helped her dig in :-) And finally, we CRASHED.
Monday - Birthday party day! Aunt Linda and I worked on the cake and other preparations that day. We had the big bash at Aunt Kelsey's, but unfortunately a softball game had been rescheduled and she and Brent couldn't come until late. I'll try and get a whole post up about the party, but in short, it was great! Caroline had her own "baby bug" cupcake to eat , but mostly just enjoyed the frosting. She enjoyed every moment of her big night!
Tuesday - went to Jamesport with Aunt Linda & Nana (mom). Took Caroline for a wagon ride and got some great pictures at a pumpkin stand. Stocked up on Amish goods. Enjoyed the time very much.
Wednesday - Stayed home for most of the day so Caroline could get caught up on some rest. Visited Aunt Kelsey at her classroom at school. Went to a softball game that night in Hamilton to watch Kelsey coach and Paige & Torri play.
Thursday - Aunt Linda headed back to Iowa. Went to a funeral and saw some dear friends. Back home, back to a softball game in Maysville that night.
Friday - Spent some time at my Grandparents. Caroline explored everything. Grandpa got out a rocking horse, they explored the garden, Grandma fixed a delicious lunch. Good times :) Then spent the evening with Nana, Kelsey, Brent, Paige & Torri. Caroline played and played in her house that was custom built by Uncle Brent & Aunt Kels. Gave her a bath at their house. She peed on the counter. Everyone laughed. Nana brought her home for bed, I stayed and spent some time with Kels & Brent. It was quit refreshing.
Saturday - headed into St. Joe with Nana. Went to Piper's 1st birthday party for a bit. Watched some more softball. Did a little shopping. Headed back to Nana's.
Sunday - church. Visited with lots of friends there. Spent lots of time outside with Papa (one of her favorite things). Hung out with Paige & Torri. Delicious dinner at Grandma & Grandpa's. Said good-bye to Papa, Brent & Kelsey.
Monday - packed up. Said another hard good-bye to Nana. Grandma & Grandpa picked us up and brought us to the airport. Flew back to Nashville. Caroline completed a crazy travel cycle without incident (she really is the best baby ever) and was greeted by a very excited Daddy at the gate. Those two didn't let go of each other until we got to the car, then Caroline fell fast asleep before we made it home. Everyone crashed, happy to be back in our own beds.

So ends the longest 11 days in quite some time. Whew! They were crazy and full, but very very wonderful. We're glad we made it happen, even though we had our doubts at times. We know that some people think we're crazy for traveling as much as we do, but we've realized there is simply no other way to spend time with dear family and friends that live so far away. It's worth every dime and every moment.

But I'm also very glad to be home :-)

P.S. Again, I apologize for the lack of pictures. We misplaced our camera and didn't have it on the trip. The pictures I took with other cameras haven't made it to my computer quite yet. I'll hopefully have some to share soon!

Caroline's Visit to Missouri (slideshow)

2010-10-06T10:32:00.004-05:00

I took about a bazillion photos while I was home last week. Right now I only have access to them through snapfish since I used Kelsey's camera and couldn't manage to get a disc burned before I left. Here's a link where you can go and view a slideshow if you'd like to see a few (or all 254 of them!). Click on the picture above, then it will take you to my snapfish album. You'll see a button just above the pictures that says "view slideshow" - just click on that and it will flip through them for you. I'll try and get a post up of her birthday festivities soon.
Click here to view photos

Happy Birthday Caroline!

2010-09-26T22:28:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday to my precious 1-year-old baby girl! On this date just one short year ago, you came into this world and changed my life forever. How you managed to steal my heart so instantly and completely I will never totally understand, but I do know that this world is a happier place with you in it. Thank you for making us smile every day for an entire year, for wrapping our hearts around your chubby little baby fingers and melting us with the sweetest smile in the world. As those same fingers become more and more curious each day and you find your way into the big wide world of toddlerhood, I just want you to know one thing...

I'll love you forever and always, to the moon and back....
times a million.

Happy birthday, sweet Caroline!

Date Night

2010-09-22T09:24:00.003-05:00

Dan & I had the chance to go on a real live date this past Friday. It was splendid! We went out to a nice Italian dinner, roamed around the quaint downtown of Franklin, had some delicious frozen yogurt (at a place where you pay by the ounce...that turned out to be a little dangerous!), walked off our frozen yogurt and decided we just didn't have room for coffee. We felt so free without a stroller or carseat or diaper bag or high chair!

My dear friend Jessica was gracious enough to watch our sweet girl (in addition to her own two) while we were out. It's such a blessing to have friends with whom you are completely comfortable leaving your baby for awhile. And Caroline has an abosolute ball with Mally (10 months) and Caralena (2 1/2)!

Jessica & I had a good laugh over the fact that we had both taken advantage of a recent sale on gap.com and purchased the same jammies for our girls (I think I paid $4!). She somehow managed to get a picture of all three sitting still and looking at the camera. Apparently whatever she was doing was holding their attention!

Thanks again, Jessica! We so appreciate it. Caroline can't wait to come back and play again soon.

Oh Monday

2010-09-20T09:21:00.003-05:00

I really dread Monday mornings. In a different way than when I used to work, but I still dread them. Weekends are so fun these days, and it's hard to tell who enjoys the time with Daddy home more - Caroline or me! And Dan can't wait to walk through the door on Friday evening at the end of a long, busy week. He gets quite the reception.

Just the opposite is true of Monday mornings. Dan drags his feet as he prepares for another work week. I lay in bed as long as humanly possible (okay, so maybe that's every morning...), and Caroline doesn't let Daddy out of her sight. She really picks up on when one of us is getting ready to leave, especially when Daddy is getting ready for work.

Eventually he's ready to go, I've drug myself out of bed, fed Caroline, and we make our way to the front door to say good-bye. Then I sit back and watch this heart-breaking scene unfold:

If you look closely, you'll see Daddy standing on the sidewalk. These two gaze longingly at one another for some time.

Inevitibly, Dan makes his way to the truck

and pulls out, with one last wave out the window.

Caroline waves and blows kisses like a crazy person, even after Daddy is long-gone.

Still waving. I evenutally drag her away from the door and we carry on with our morning. But we both miss Daddy terribly and wave to him and blow some more kisses periodically throughout the day.

Come back soon, Daddy! We miss you terribly.

Rotten Mondays.

(Side note: Please excuse the mismatched jammies. Daddy dressed her for bed last night. He claims she picks out her own clothes now. Those two - quite the pair!)

So Close

2010-09-16T14:05:00.002-05:00

I am so very close to having a true toddler on my hands it's not even funny. Caroline has been taking 2 or 3 steps at a time for the past several days and standing for extended amounts of time...that is, until she realizes what she's doing. As soon as it registers in her sweet little [bald] head that she's standing without any help, she promptly sits herself down. Even though it saddens me to realize that my baby is growing up, it is so fun to watch her discover the world around her a little more each day. Lately, she's really started to recognize objects and their particular uses. For instance, she recently picked up my hair pick and began combing her own "hair," which cracked me up because I had never combed her hair at that point (if you can imagine that!). I have since gotten her a baby brush which she has learned to use correctly (most of the time). The other day I watched as she pulled a washcloth off the shelf and began "cleaning" the fronts of my cabinets. She alo often tries to put Daddy's socks and shoes on her own little feet, too. It's really best when they're clean :)

One of her favorite objects is my cell phone. She's even figured out how to put it up to her ear to listen and talk. Dan dug around and found one of our old phones that no longer works and it has quickly became her new favorite toy.

I used it as a means of distraction yesterday to snap a few pictures of her standing like a big girl.

She's so proud of herself!

Hmm...who's calling me?
Excuse me Mommy, I think I need to take this one.

Why I Stay Home

2010-09-11T08:17:00.002-05:00

I had a good conversation the other day with a friend of mine who is expecting her first and planning to make the switch from working full time to being a stay-at-home mom. She shared with me some of her [very legitimate] concerns, from the loss of a second income to living up to the pressures often felt from other moms who seem to have it more together than we do. It is truly a completely different world than the working world that most of society lives in from 8 to 5 (or whatever combination of hours happen to pull them to the office), and I truly admire moms (and dads) that find a way to juggle both. I honestly don't know how you do it!

But this conversation was a fresh reminder for me of why Dan and I made the decision for me to stay home, and why I am thankful daily for the opportunity. Sometimes the mundane tasks and chores that are done and re-done day-in and day-out can cloud up the simple, and yet precious moments that I also have each and every day with Caroline. Often times I thank God for the simple blessings, like when I put Caroline back down for her morning nap (usually around 8:30 or 9:00 already) with both of us often still in our jammies. There has been no need to rush, and I relish the slow mornings that allow us to just enjoy one another.

Yesterday I stepped outside for a few minutes just before lunch time and realized that the weather was suddenly and surprisingly cool! So I grabbed a blanket, heated up some leftovers, and Caroline and I had an impromptu picnic on our tiny piece of grass out back. She had an absolute ball! She spent most of the time standing up next to me, leaning on my shoulder, and a couple of times she even leaned in for a snuggle or a kiss which totally and completely melted this mommy's heart. In between bites, she eagerly looked around, taking it all in. Several times a breeze gently pushed at her sweet little face and I watched her eyes get bigger and a smile spread across her face as she let out squeals and giggles. A breeze is something that has been sorely lacking here in the suffocating heat and humidity of middle Tennessee since maybe April...apparently this was a new phenomenon for her :)

The rain moved in soon, so I quickly gathered our things and headed back in. But the fresh air was just so wonderful that we moved to the front porch instead where we could be dry but watch the storm pass at the same time. Caroline sat very still and very quietly on my lap for some time, something my squirmy 11-mo-old is not prone to do at all these days. I just sat back in my rocking chair and enjoyed the moment, quietly giving thanks to God for the opportunity to just sit and hold my growing baby and watch her take in the great big world around her.

The moment passed quickly, as they always do, and before long we were back inside doing our normal thing. There was more laundry and ironing, dishes and cooking, tears and dirty diapers, just like there were the day before and just like there will be again today. But if I had missed a few extra dirty diapers yesterday, I also would have missed a picnic and a nice long rock on the front porch. I wouldn't have seen her face light up in the breeze or her serious expression as she tried to understand the passing storm. I wouldn't have seen her learning to play by herself with my tupperware and a few mismatched blocks, like in this video from yesterday morning.

Everyone tells you, "they grow up so fast!" I believe everyone. This year has absolutely flown by! I realize that no matter how hard I try, I'll never be able to stop time. But today I am grateful for the few extra minutes I am blessed with as a "stay-at-home mom," and for the simple opportunities that those minutes afford me. I may not get much in the form of a paycheck, but I feel like I have the best job in the world!

Good times

2010-09-10T11:30:00.002-05:00

We had a great time visiting Shelby & Mitch in their beautiful new home down in Biloxi, MS last weekend. The drive was long, but it was worth every minute of it! I've been slacking with the pictures lately, which has contributed to my blog slacking (who wants to read blogs with no pictures?), and I'm sad to say that I don't have any pictures of our time with our friends. I'm still not sure how that happened! I know Shelby took a few with her camera, so if I get those I'll try and share them with you. In the meantime, I did take some video...so here is a bit of Caroline's playtime with her honorary Aunt Shelby. As you can see, it didn't take long for them to warm up to each other again!

"God's Little Creatures"

2010-09-03T09:24:00.002-05:00

I'd like to tell you a little story this morning. A true story of a battle of epic porportions that has raged on and on for month upon month. A story of victories and defeats...but mostly defeats.

This is a story about ants.

Yes, you heard me correctly. This battle began sometime after the flood of early summer and came to a critical moment this morning around 7:30am. But first, a little background.

We're leaving this afternoon to go visit my dearest friend, Shelby. She just finished Dental school a few months ago (she assured me I wouldn't have to refer to her as "Doctor" all the time), then went through officer training last month and is now stationed at the Airforce base in Biloxi, MS with her husband. It's still an 8 hour drive, but hey, it's closer than Nebraska!!! I'm SO excited to spend the weekend with her :)

Except that it means I have a LOT to do today. Like packing, cleaning, running a few errands, and figuring out what all is necessary to bring for an 11-month old for 3 days (probably less than I think, right?). So last night, instead of doing a few of those things before bed and helping ourselves out, Dan & I decided to pretend like we weren't grown-ups and stuck in a movie around 9:45, just for kicks. We were in denial, I'm pretty sure.

So this morning, he slept through his alarm. Somehow, mine went off (even though I was pretty sure I had turned it off yesterday), but he was still late getting around. Which meant he couldn't really help out much this morning with a few of those details.

"But I thought this was a story about ants," you say? I'm getting there, I promise.

So as Dan was grabbing his things and running out the door while I was trying to prompt Caroline to EAT (as always), he kicked the diaper bag and exposed a busy little pile of our favorite friends. He came over and gave us each a kiss, and said in his sweetest voice:

"Ummm....I'm really sorry, but there are ants all over in the corner by the diaper bag." Then, sensing my rapidly growing rage, he added, "Don't get frustrated. Just think of them as God's little creatures!"

And then he promptly ran out the front door.

Seriously?!?! God's little creatures?!? Because I'm pretty sure they're the spawn of Satan himself, sent for the single purpose of making me LOSE.MY.MIND!!!!!!!

I finished feeding Caroline and put her to bed. Then I attacked with ant spray. Then I cleaned up the ant spray with paper towels. Then I vacumed up the dead ants. Then I cleaned the area with Lysol. Then I swept the rest of my floors (AGAIN) and mopped the entire thing (AGAIN). I think they punish me for being lazy and watching a movie instead of sweeping -- they know things. But I'm pretty sure they don't really even prefer a dirty floor to a clean one. Which is even more maddening because it means I'm really not in control of this war.

But right now I'm making myself feel better by enjoying a freshly mopped floor and a cold cup of coffee, and praying that Caroline's nap lasts a little longer so I can actually take a shower and start packing.

I won the battle this morning. But I have a pretty good feeling that this war is not over.

Tidbits

2010-08-27T14:58:00.005-05:00

I have several random odds & ends I've thought about sharing on the blog lately and just haven't gotten around to doing it. So here are a few tidbits from my life lately, in no particular order:

1) Katie & I had so much fun when she and Piper came to visit for a few days at the beginning of the month. Katie is one of those precious life-long friends who, regardless of time and life that happens between visits, is always comfortable to just pick up wherever we last left off. We grew up across the street from one another and our parents practically raised us and our 2 sisters all together. It is CRAZY that we're now raising our own little girls together, who are just 6 days apart in age. We had such a good time together, spent way too much time shopping with two babies, and both decided that we could never handle twins :-)

Just before we walked out the door to go back to the airport, we realized we didn't have a single picture of the two of us - so here's our one and only attempt. There is just too much else to think about with these two yahoos!

Piper shared one of her bows with Caroline. She just can't quite pull if off like Piper, though!

Thanks for making the trip, ladies! We had so much fun and can't wait for our next visit!

Tidbit #2: Caroline's favorite pastime these days seems to be making big messes! She LOVES to pull things out of containers, so we try to keep things accordingly accessible/inaccessible.

This is what my house ends up looking like most days. This was before 8am!

Another example - emptying Papa's magazines & newspapers on our last trip to Missouri. She doesn't stop until she reaches the bottom!

3) Last week, we trecked over to the largest county fair in Tennessee. Dan has a particular fondness for county fairs, and I have come to enjoy them myself over the years. He was especially excited to bring Caroline to her first ever, so we had the date on the calendar for weeks. We had a great time, Caroline got to see lots of animals up close and personal (which she had very mixed feelings about), and Mommy & Daddy were able to take in enough fried food to sufficiently clog our arteries for quite some time. All were happy and exhausted at the end of the evening!

4) We're working on the transition to table food these days. It's quite exciting for Caroline, and rather stressful for mom. I'm struggling with ideas of what to feed the kid (who is quite finicky, inspite of my greatest efforts to make her eat or at least try a little bit of everything), and the process just seems to take F.O.R.E.V.E.R.. Does it really take 30 minutes to eat one little scrambled egg? But there are good parts, like when I can throw a handful of cheerios on her tray and let her go at them while I make dinner. I do like that.

One thing we are especially working on right now is learning not to throw food on the floor. Why is it that they learn to throw the food so naturally, but learning the opposite...not coming quite so easily. Any tips from you veteran moms out there? I've taught her the sign language for "all done," which seems to be helping, but I'm very open to other ideas :)

Perhaps it would help if she wasn't so darn cute while getting her bald little self into trouble!

Yogurt

2010-08-24T13:53:00.002-05:00

I think I've created a monster. I try not to share my food too often so that she doesn't start to "beg" from others, but I might have slipped up a little here. And yogurt is a particular favorite...what was I thinking? Oh well, at least she's cute while begging, right?

Coupon Day

2010-08-23T08:31:00.002-05:00

Caroline looooves coupon day around here. And since the mess keeps her thoroughly entertained while I get my couponing done, I'm happy to oblige her.

"Here Mommy....I think this one is expired."

family time...extended....

2010-08-17T09:06:00.002-05:00

Sorry to keep you all in suspense like that. I'm sure it was torturous.

My big news? Well, if you didn't happen to know who that was in the picture on the last post, let me fill you in. That was Dan's Dad - AKA Grandpa J. And the big news? Well, he's here in Tennessee! And the even bigger news? He's staying! And even bigger news than that? Grandma (AKA Mom) is moving here, too! MOVING!!!!!! From California to Tennessee!!!!

If you can't tell from all of my exclamation points, we're rather excited :-)

Long story short, Dennis accepted a promotion within the company he's been with for several years now, which landed him a job in a smaller town just outside of Nashville. Can you even BELIEVE it?? So he arrived late last week and began work yesterday. Karee is still at home in Cali, seeing Amanda off to France (crazy kid), and wrapping things up with her job, house, friends, life...before she joins Dennis here in a couple months. If you think of them, would you please pray that God would clearly direct them in this crazy, hectic time apart? They have some big decisions to make, lots to do, and a LOT of miles between them.

So there you have it...for the first time in our married lives, we're going to have family living in the same state! Less than an hour away. CRAZINESS. Really, really great craziness.

Family Time

2010-08-14T20:02:00.003-05:00

Inspite of the circumstances, I was blessed with a wonderful time at home and in Iowa these past few days. It was a bit hectic, but we made it work. Monday morning I flew into KC, then drove up to Iowa on Tuesday, drove back Wednesday evening, hung out at home Thursday, and flew back to Nashville on Friday. Shwew! Caroline was a champion traveler, so to whomever was specifically praying that she would do well with that, I say THANK YOU!! You must have a direct line :-)

I was especially blessed to be able to see so much extended family in our short time there. 7 of the 8 of Grandma's children were there (with their spouses), 18 out of the 20 grandchildren were there (many with their spouses), 25 of the 31great-grandchildren were there (including Caroline!), and even the 1 great-great grandson was in attendance. Just that in itself speaks volumes of the legacy my Grandmother leaves behind. We are quite the bunch!

Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. I'm so thankful I was able to be there, but I am now very grateful to be back home. Also, we have some very exciting changes that are already in the works here in TN...but I'm going to leave you hanging with that for right now. There is, however, a very big hint in this picture I took this evening...

goodbye

2010-08-08T14:26:00.002-05:00

My Grandma Schoon got to go HOME yesterday morning and finally meet her sweet Jesus face to face. Her once blind eyes could see Him, and her previously frail body was able to dance & sing in His presence.

I don't know exactly how it all works, but I like to imagine that Grandpa was there waiting for her with a hug & a smile, welcoming her to the place she has longed for all her earthly life.

It's hard to imagine this world without my Grandma in it. It's hard to watch my mom say goodbye to her own mom. It's hard for me to accept the fact that Caroline will never really know her like I did, or that any other children God chooses to bless us with will never be held in her arms.

It's hard to say goodbye to someone who has loved me all of my life.

But while it's difficult on so many levels, I can truly say that I'm not even a little bit sad for Grandma. She is so incredibly happy now. She's healthy and whole.

And I know I'll see her again someday. Thank you, Jesus, for that amazing promise. It is the only way I can face this life, and death.

Girl Time!

2010-08-03T10:42:00.002-05:00

Pardon my lull in blogging this week, but I am quite busy enjoy some girl time with these two ladies and miss Piper's mama. Caroline & Piper were born just 6 days apart, so Katie & I are getting a good feel for what it would be like to have twins. And I think we've both decided it would be a LOT of work!

I'll be back in a few days - with lots more adorable pictures of the girls I'm sure! Does it get any better than TWO bald baby girls?

just because

2010-07-30T09:28:00.002-05:00

Here's another video just because. A little peek into what goes on around here every day. Life is good :-)

home

2010-07-29T08:37:00.006-05:00

I had another great trip to Missouri last week. It's always difficult to put into words what it means to me to spend time with my family, to sit back and watch them love on my daughter, knowing that these very same people have been loving me in the same way all of my life. It's overwhelming, really. And even though there is always too much time and distance between our visits, I'm so grateful that God allows me to fill up my storehouses of love and joy and peace when we are together. Now I'm back in Tennessee, praying that those storehouses will hold out once again until next time.

her new best friend - Scout

P.S. Mom...how in the world did you manage to evade the camera the whole time? I can't find a single picture of you from this trip!! I blame Kelsey.

My 10-month-old

2010-07-27T13:22:00.002-05:00

What did we ever do for entertainment before her?

Sweet Corn!

2010-07-26T20:09:00.008-05:00

I've been a bad bad blogger. But perhaps these photos will allow you to find it within your heart to forgive me. While I was home last week (yes, I went home to Missouri...so now I owe you the second half of our Cali pictures plus the bazillion-and-two that my sister took plus at least a little commentary to explain it all...and that's why I haven't blogged lately), Nana thought it was time for Caroline to experience one of the finer things in life - sweet corn! Apparently one of my Grandpa Schoon's favorite things to do with babies was to give them a buttery cob once someone had finished the corn (we're all family, right?), so my Mom decided to carry on the tradition. I'll let you decide from the pictures whether or not Caroline found this to be enjoyable.

It was obviously pure torture.

As a bonus, here is a picture of my Dad's plate. Yes, he ate all of that by himself. And yes, we had a full meal apart from the sweet corn. And I'm pretty sure he's eating ice cream in this picture. Perhaps now Dan will understand why I simply cannot bring myself to only make two ears of corn for a meal.

a couple more

2010-07-12T14:47:00.000-05:00

Caroline's first trip to the beach

2010-07-12T13:22:00.004-05:00

As promised, here is a video of Caroline's first trip to the beach. My apologies to Grandma for my poor camera skills and cutting her head off...geesh. Anyway, you get a good taste of just how much Caroline enjoyed playing in the sand.

Going back to Cali (part 1)

2010-07-10T10:44:00.017-05:00

Is it really Saturday already?? Geesh. It always seems to take me longer than I anticipate to really get back into the swing of normal life after a trip to California. For one, the 2 hour time change, though seemingly insignificant, totally throws me for a loop every time...and apparently Caroline agrees with me on this point. Secondly, I look forward to the trip for so long that it's always a bit of a let-down when we arrive home and are forced to carry on with life as usual. And of course there is the fact that I hate unpacking and the bags usually sit for some time before they are completely empty and everything is back in its rightful place. Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this?

Anyway, on with the good stuff!

If you've never spent time in the central coast of California in July (or March or December or, you get my point), I highly recommend it. Particularly if you live in oppressive humidity much of the year like we do here in Tennessee (90% humidity people...are you kidding me?). Suffice it to say that every time I step off the place into the crisp, clean California air completely devoid of humidity and bugs (seriously...how is this possible?), I fall in love all over again. With Dan, with California, with his wonderful family, with life in general. I think the hippies had something figured out when they all made their pilgrimages West. As my Dad said, you certainly don't find many of them in North Dakota (although that probably has something to do with the fact that they wouldn't have survived long). I digress.

We arrived in the LA area and spent the night at Aunt Jeanne, Uncle Mitch & Grandma's house. We were a bit groggy when we woke up the next morning after only a few hours of sleep (did I mention the time change kills me?), but we were able to spend a few precious hours there, even taking a dip in the pool out back. Caroline was able to meet her Great Aunt Dolly & Uncle Joe, spend some time on Great-Grandma's lap, and show off some of her new skills to Great-Aunt Jeanne. We even saw some cousins in the short time we were there. Apparently I didn't drink enough coffee that morning and didn't get any decent pictures of Caroline with family, but here is a quick one of Grandma & Great-Grandma together:

Just before noon, we loaded up and hit the road for SLO. Even time spent together in the van was sweet as we caught up with two of Dan's sisters who made the trip - Jewel & Katee - and of course with his mom. In typical Grandma fashion, she eventually crawled all the way in the backseat just to watch the baby sleep for awhile :-) We made it home in time that night to hit the local farmer's market, which is unlike anything I've ever seen growing up in the Midwest. The fresh fruit ranges from strawberries to peaches to mangoes, all hand-picked that day, with more veggies and herbs and even fresh flowers that I've ever seen in one place (probably including my local grocery store). It was a very nice "welcome-to-California" evening.

We knew the time would go fast, so we decided to pack as much in as we could, knowing Grandma was more than happy to help with our girl at any time. So that next morning, we got up and headed for Jewel's "office," a kayak shop at the beach. She served as our tour guide on an amazing kayaking adventure that included seals, caves, and even a dolphins that literally swam right underneath us! It was absolutely incredible. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera then either, but I think Katee got some pictures (if you wouldn't mind sending those my dear, I'll put some up!).

Afterwards we headed back to the house, picked up Caroline & Grandma, and headed back to the beach to introduce our Tennessee girl to the beach! I did get some video that day that I'll try and post soon (I'm making lots of promises, huh?), but let me just say that Caroline fell in L.O.V.E. with the sand! I was a nervous wreck, assuming she would simply try and make a snack out of everything she found, but shockingly she was more than thrilled to bury her hands, pick up a couple fist-fulls, and let the fine granules run through her chubby little fingers. It was adorable. Grandma & Grandpa also provided a bucket and shovel which kept her entertained for quite some time.

That night, we decided to take full advantage of the eager baby-sitters and went on a lovely date. We decided on a restaurant we had eaten at 5 years ago (almost to the day!) when we had our engagement pictures taken at Shell Beach, a local Italian place called Guiseppe's. It was every bit as delicious as I had remembered, and it was so fun to reminisce about some of the sweet memories we have shared in that beautiful place. We almost forgot for a few minutes that we are all grown-up with a baby now :-)

The next morning we headed out once again to do some exploring. There is a stretch of coast nearby that has just recently been opened to the public, so we decided to go for a little hike and check it out. Oh my goodness...it is the definition of breathtaking! Caroline was a happy camper with the nice breeze tickling her face and lots of pretty flowers and birds to check out. I'll just let these pictures speak for themselves:

My California man

A quick family picture (I was so proud of this one - EVERYONE looking at the camera and smiling!)

This makes me happy :)

Beauty
California poppies! Oh Jewel - we love you!

Ummm...Grandpa, I think you were suppose to stay on the trail...

Happy cows come from California (talk about some ocean-front property!)

Jewel & I were pretty sure there must have been buried pirate treasure here.

It was a long hike!

I'm going to pause here as this post is getting incredibly long as it is. I'll pick up with part 2 next time!

beach bums

2010-07-07T13:36:00.004-05:00

We're back! We had an absolutely fabulous time in California with Dan's family. Caroline got LOTS of love from her Grandma, Grandpa, Aunts, and some dear extended family as well. I have tons of pictures that I will be sorting through and promise to put up a "real" post soon, but for now I thought I'd offer a few of our little family at the beach. As you can tell, Caroline thoroughly enjoyed herself :)

Leavin on a jet plane...

2010-06-30T16:31:00.002-05:00

I know, lame title. But we're headed out in about 30 minutes to catch our plane to California!! Wish us luck! Well, wish me luck...I'm a little nervous about traveling with a 9-month old. I'll post lots and lots of pictures when we return!

The best toys...

2010-06-29T08:54:00.002-05:00

are always the free ones :-)