Lullaby

For my precious, now 1-year old daughter...This song describes how I feel about you perfectly!!

"They didn't have you where I come from
Never knew the best was yet to come
Life began when I saw your face
And I hear your laugh like a serenade

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up

I slip in bed when you're asleep
To hold you close and feel your breath on me
Tomorrow there'll be so much to do
So tonight I'll drift in a dream with you

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up

As you wander through this troubled world
In search of all things beautiful
You can close your eyes when you're miles away
And hear my voice like a serenade

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up

How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough, is forever enough
How long do you want to be loved
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up
Is forever enough
Cause I'm never, never giving you up"

Such an honor...

Kevin and I have been asked to be godparents for our friends' 6-month old baby. Our soon-to-be goddaughter, Brooke, will be baptized on Christmas Eve. After getting off the phone with my best friend today, I was so honored that we were asked and chosen to serve in this very special role. It's a role that Kevin and I take very seriously as we are making a life-time commitment to Brooke that we will be there to help her grow her faith in the Lord.
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"To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth shall set you free."
—John 8:31-32

Christmastime, shopping and the making of Dummy Shoes

December is by far the best month of the year. Christmastime has always been my favorite time of the year. I love going shopping and working hard to pick out just the perfect gift for everyone on my list. I love anticipating their faces as they unwrap their present to see what they got this year. I'm like a little kid on Christmas morning, as I wake up around 5 a.m. wanting to get everyone up and together to start our day. It used to be about finding out what Santa got me, or what that special present under the tree that had my name on it was, but now it has turned into an excitement for the family time and getting to see those faces behind the wrapping paper that excites me the most.

This past weekend, I got a good portion of our shopping done and got some presents wrapped and under the tree. I love the way the lights on a Christmas tree twinkle at night, and how the bows from the presents glow under the tree. It's such a pretty sight. And, so far, Brooklyn is doing great at not bothering the presents, even though I know she has her eye of a couple!

We started out our shopping extravaganza on Saturday with taking Brooklyn to see Santa Claus. We got into the monster line that wound around Santa's Village in the mall. Brooklyn, who is learning to walk (she can walk about 6 feet and then she falls down), was really interested in the decorations that were along the path (reindeers, trees, lights and fake snow). I finally picked her up, to her dismay, and pointed through the trees to the man sitting in the sleigh all dressed up in a red suit. She pointed at him and said "Ohhh.." By the time it was her turn, and she got a better up-close view of the man she had been watching for the past 20 minutes, she was intrigued. But, the minute that Mommy sat her down on his lap and moved away, her intrigue turned to a scream followed by tears and a runny nose. She was completely terrified. She didn't not want this stranger holding her. She didn't understand what was going on, and even though she is pretty good with other people holding her, she didn't want to have any part of this at all. I immediately grabbed her and she grabbed ahold of me, and the photographer told Kevin and I to sit down next to Santa, and he would take our picture. Brooklyn was still very scared though as she didn't want to wave bye to Santa or even glance in his direction.

As I got in line to pay for the CD we had made with the photos, the man in front of me looked at her and how her face was tear-stained and her nose was red, and he said, "It's okay honey, in the next couple of years, you will like it so much better once you realize what Santa Claus does." But, I don't know. I was never too fond of sitting on Santa's lap and Kevin called Santa "Dummy Shoes." The day after Thanksgiving as my mother-in-law and I were shopping, she explained the meaning of Dummy Shoes. Kevin called anyone who wore a mask of any sort a Dummy. And, after reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and how the illustrations showed Santa standing in the fireplace, the phrase Dummy Shoes came about. So, if liking or not liking to sit on Santa's lap is in the genes, I will say that Brooklyn won't be too fond of him, even as she gets older. Only time will tell.

We got one really cute photo before she got really scared and started crying. We'll end up taking her back next year, I am sure... maybe she'll learn to like the guy.

Date night

Monday night, Kevin and I went on a date! This was quite an event for us as we haven’t been on a date since our anniversary in April. We enjoy spending as much time as we can with our little princess, and we usually do everything with her, but Monday night was our night to reconnect and spend a little alone time. Alone time that is with thousands of other people! We went to the Dixie Chicks concert at the Pepsi Center. The Dixie Chicks are one of my (our) favorite bands, and they will always hold a special place in my heart as the first time we saw them in concert (August 3, 2000) Kevin proposed to me on his front porch after the show.

I had Monday off, as I am only working part time right now, and I took my time (while Brooklyn was napping that is) getting ready for my hot date with my dear husband. After he got home, we drove to my parent’s house to drop off the little one. It made us feel okay about leaving her when we saw how excited my mom was to be able to watch her. She hadn’t had that honor since February….as I said, we don’t like leaving her!

When we got to the Pepsi Center, we made our way inside and found our seats, but not before I bought a really cute shirt with the Chicks on the front. Pretty soon, Pete Yorn, the opening act, began strumming his guitar and singing. As we sat there listening and at times singing along to the music, it was very apparent to me that I had my husband for the whole night just to myself. It was a really good feeling.

When the Dixie Chicks came out to the Hail to the Chief song, we were both on our feet clapping and screaming in excitement. The sound really good live! They played a good variety from their new album as well as from their older ones. When the song “Cowboy Take Me Away” began playing, Kevin grabbed me and held me tight and danced with me. It was so romantic. After he proposed to me in 2000, he told me that he made that choice to have that night be the night that he popped the question because he held me during the same song, and it just felt so right.

Monday night was more than a concert, it was a chance to spend some much needed time alone with my husband. I am so grateful that we had that chance.

Our little princess is going to be a 1 year-old in less than a month. As I said in my very first post when Brooklyn was turning 5 months old...where does the time go? This year has been the fastest year of my life and by far, the year where I learned the most. My sweet, precious daughter has taught me so much: patience is a must; how to get up and have the entire house cleaned by 9 a.m. (after all we were up, so why not!?!); mid-afternoon baths are so much fun; pulling things out of the dishwasher (dirty or not) is a much better game than her new ball popper; nothing is better in life than a wet kiss and little arms stretched around your neck in a hug; how DVDs, video games and books all look much better tossed on the floor as opposed to on the shelf; baby gates are really made for tossing toys and pacifiers over for Mommy and Daddy to chase rather than keep some little person safe; sippy cups are to be tossed on the ground after you are done taking a drink; mirrors are meant to play peek-a-boo with ourselves and see just how cute we really are.

I remember when we first brought her home from the hospital and she slept all day long and at night Daddy would swing her back and forth in her carseat to help her fall into a slumber. I remember when she first learned to hold her own head up and now she has learned and enjoys shaking her head "no" and nodding her head and her whole body "yes." I remember when she first learned to crawl and how she didn't know she could go anywhere she wants and now she leaves the family room and heads up to the living room all by herself. The time really does go by fast. And, seriously, where did our daughter go that just laid there and slept all day!?! She's turning into a toddler - that's where she went - and she's taking Mommy and Daddy along for the ride, and boy, are we glad she is!!

Zoom, zoom, zoom...

Boy, time sure does fly when you're having fun! I had all last week off while I was in transition from my old crummy, far-from-home job to my new fantastic very-close-to-home job. I could not be happier about the change I decided to make and the fact that I got to spend a whole precious week with my beautfiul, loving daughter. We had some really good mommy and daughter time. I got the taste of what it would be like to be a stay-at-home mom, and I loved the taste, but don't mind working now that I found the right job for me. I couldn't be happier now...a beautiful daughter who gives me hugs and kisses all the time, a wonderful husband to share all the ups and downs of life with, very supportive and loving family and friends and a job that I don't have to talk myself into going to. Life is sure amazing when you get a few moments to treasure without having to rush somewhere or meet a deadline that someone else set for you.

Trick or Treat

I'm taking on a tremendous challenge this week as guest blogger for Malisa as she savors a week off before returning to work. She's having a blast and dinner is on the table every night when I get home from work. I know, I know, it sounds chauvinistic but the food has been awesome. We took Brooklyn trick-or-treating the other night at the Aurora Mall where she got to meet up with Grandpa and Grandma, uncle Eric and cousin Kendall. I was really looking forward to trick-or-treating this year because Brooklyn can't have any of the candy. That meant mucho candy for Mommy and Daddy. Alas, we got to the mall a little late and the candy was mainly gone. Nonetheless, we had a great time anyway and Brooklyn was adorable as a little ladybug. Hey, this blogging thing is kinda fun. Malisa will be back next week and I'm sure sharing first impressions from her new job. Bye for now.

Not so perfect after all

So, after finding the perfect pumpkin, it has been gracing our front porch....until yesterday afternoon! When I got home from work and was walking up the stairs to the front door, I started noticing a weird smell. As I looked down at our pumpkins, I realized that our once half green, half orange pumpkin was all orange. On one side, it looked a little sunken in. I went to move it a little and made a shocking discovery...our perfect pumpkin had rotted and was leaking. Yucky! When Kevin came home, he took it to the trash. Our perfect pumpkin that we spent about 20 minutes searching for was not so perfect after all. Lesson learned - don't judge a pumpkin!!

It's good to have friends

On Sunday, we spent the day with my childhood friend and her family. Her house was like my second home growing up and even though we lived nearly 50 miles apart, she was always my confidant and best friend. We would spend many weekends at one house or another, go to each other's birthday parties, celebrate 4th of July with family picnics and fireworks, dream about going to Harvard one day, talked about boys and the list goes on. I have always treasured her friendship.

How did we meet? Our parents were friends for a long time - before they got married. So, we were destined to be friends. In that proud tradition, our daughters only 13 months apart got to spend some time together on Sunday. I only hope they will build a friendship like their mommys have!

They are both such sweet, loving little girls!

Children of the Corn

While at the pumpkin patch on Saturday, we also spent some time wondering through a couple complex corn mazes. My very talented sister-in-law (soon to be photojournalist) took these photos...

Daddy and daugther studying the corn maze map.

Kendall (our niece) following me through the corn maze.
Kevin said the above photo shows how I was bossing everyone around like "nobody quits till I say so!"

Our quest for the perfect pumpkin

Saturday we took Brooklyn to a pumpkin patch. As we entered, we were handing shears and instructions on how to cut a pumpkin off its vine and what the green on the pumpkins meant. When we headed down the bumpy, dirt road avoiding oncoming cars and an extreme amount of dust, we realized how much fun this endeavor would be. There was quite a few people out there. You could see a lot of kiddos running around pointing out pumpkins in different shapes, sizes and colors to their parents.

The minute we hit the ground walking, we were hunting for the perfect pumpkin. What makes a perfect pumpkin? A big one with great shape, perfectly round, a great shade of orange, sits up perfectly without tipping and ready to carve and sit on our front porch. Is this a little materialistic? Maybe, but after all it's our first time doing this and we can be a little picky, right?

About 10 minutes into examining pumpkin by pumpkin, we came to the "perfect" one. It was about 2 feet wide, perfectly round and had a little green on it (should turn orange soon!). To make sure this was the one, Brooklyn and I kept looking while Kevin stood guard by the "perfect" one. After about 5 minutes and looking other pumpkins up one side and down the other, we made the decision to go with the first one. Kevin cut it with our shears, and then gazed back at how far away the car was. We did venture kind of far in our quest. I held our punkin in one arm and a smaller orange pumpkin in the other, and watched as Kevin manuevered our "perfect" 25 pound pumpkin to the car. I wondered who had it the hardest. I had a squirming baby in my arms desparately wanting to kiss the pumpkin I was holding in the other, and Kevin was really only just carrying one pumpkin. That was until I went to pick it up when we got home that I realized, he had it harder. Man, was that pumpkin ever heavy!!

Now, we are faced with picking out the perfect design to carve into our pumpkin. Considering that we neither one have any experience, it should be entertaining figuring it all out. I'm sure that Brooklyn will give us her classic "what is this" look when we let her feel what the insides of a pumpkin feel like. I'll have to post pictures once we get it carved!!

Concentrating...

Working so hard he doesn't even realize it's snowing outside!

Time for a radical change

I’d think we as a society had almost found some sort of resolve in the threat of school shootings.

When I say that, I mean, up until a couple weeks ago, I think we thought we had a handle on the situation.

It was always a familiar pattern, from Littleton to Springfield, Ore., to Edinboro, Penn., a disgruntled or disturbed student decided to bring a weapon to school and kill their classmates.

We could do something about that. We could use an iron fist when it came to bullying. We could study students more closely to make sure they weren’t ready to go off the deep end. We could encourage students to alert adults to any potential threats from other students.

But in the span of one week, we had two individuals randomly walk in to two schools on separate sides of the country and kill students.
Anomaly? Let’s hope so.

But, it’s still time for a new game plan. We learned how to protect kids from each other. How do we protect them from the rest of the world? And with that, I’ve put out the million-dollar question that every parent asks before they lay their head down on their pillow at the night. It’s a question I’m already starting to ask with my own child still four years away from school.

The only solution I can come up with is to fortify our schools – bulletproof windows, armed guards at the door, a barbed-wire perimeter. Students are unloaded from their bus through a secured, covered entrance at 8 a.m., a bus picks them up at the same spot at 3 p.m. No more outdoor recess, no more leaving campus for lunch.

Knee-jerk reaction? You bet.

Completely crazy? Sure.

Crazy because sending our children to school in virtual prisons is unnerving to you? Or crazy because that whole idea of civil rights and freedom is rearing its ugly head again? You know – the same idea that allowed us to stand in long airport security lines for maybe a week after Sept. 11 before we started complaining about it? We want to be protected, we want our kids to be safe but we’d really rather not deal with the inconveniences that come with it.

We have a problem in our society, it’s called short-term memory. We weep for those lives cut way too short but when it comes to action, we tend to be a little shortsighted.“Our children can’t learn like that – locked up in a building like felons. Let’s just put up some metal detectors and then we can sleep at night.”

So once this problem fades from the media’s front page, we’ll move on to something else. It’s the “cross your fingers and hope it doesn’t happen again” mentality. I believe school districts do all they can to protect students. But if we believe the need for an ID badge will stop a homicidal maniac, we’d be better off strategically posting an army of cardboard cutout police officers around school grounds.

It’s time for an honest discussion about how we protect our kids. Uncomfortable to talk about? That’s too bad.

I’d rather talk about this now then talk about how we bury our kids later.

"Sounds like someone has a case of the Mondays."

In this case, the "someone" is me. Yesterday marks the first time since my daughter was born that I had to work on a Monday.

While I didn't enjoy a minute of it, and I cried almost the entire way to a meeting I had before work, my relief was having my co-worker (who for lack of time and space I absolutely cannot stand) out of the office and going to lunch with a friend of mine. If it weren't for those two things, I don't think I could have gotten through the day without more tears.

Today feels like Wednesday and it's only Tuesday. I will be in for a big wake-up call come Friday, when I think it's Saturday. The new schedule will take some time getting used to. But, the end of the workday has always given me great relief in that I will get to see my sweet baby's toothy smile as I pull into the garage every night!

Patience anyone?

As was recently pointed out by one of my good friends and then reiterated by my husband - "Good things come to those who wait." And, as a Christian, I know that life doesn't happen according to my schedule, but according to God's plan for me and my life. While I know that both of these things are true, it doesn't make the waiting any easier. I am not a patient person, I never have been and the jury is still out on if I ever will be. I've been waiting for a response from someone since Monday (Friday in my mind though). While the answer is out of that person's hands now, the waiting is driving me mad crazy.

As I was showering this morning, I thought about what Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 teaches us:
For everything there is a season,
And a time for every matter under heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die;
A time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
A time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
A time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
A time to keep, and a time to throw away;
A time to tear, and a time to sew;
A time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate,
A time for war, and a time for peace.

I will get an answer, but I need to remember it's not going to be on my time, it will be on God's time. In 1 Peter 5:6-7 God instructs people to: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God … casting all your cares upon Him, because He cares for you.”

Blog redesign?

Susie over at Bluebird Blogs is offering two lucky winners a completely customized blog design, all for the love of fall. Her designs are fun and creative! Check out her gallery here. Email her if you are interested in entering the drawing. Deadline is Friday, September 22nd.

Exciting news!

After selling their home in July less than three weeks after being on the market, my Dad and Mom are set to close on their new home (which they are having built just for them!) on October 26th!!!!

Standing on their front porch

When they first decided to build a home, and signed the contract, the completion date was slotted for late November, early December. They received news on Wednesday that the date had been moved up! And, on Tuesday, they found out that the base price of their home had been lowered $10,000! The Lord really has opened doors for them during this whole process, which has been very amazing for them - and for me as well to watch. It's amazing to see and hear how excited my parents are about every step. My dad is so cute...he takes his camcorder out each time they go out to get new footage of their home.

Photo of the kitchen-to-be:

We all went out to see the house on Saturday. On Saturday, they had all the drywall up. And my mom said when they went out last night, the builders had the rounded corners finished meaning they are ready to paint, a temporary garage door was up, the tops of the front columns are in, the back stoop is poured and the stone is almost all mortared.

Photo looking from patio door into family room, over 1/2 wall living room:

My parents even got a couple unique touches added to their home. The builder doesn't offer custom touches; however, after their pre-drywall meeting, the contractor said he would "make a mistake" on their half wall (see photo) to make it taller than usual. They recently bought a 52" TV for there, and now you won't be able to see the TV from the living room, or from the front entryway.

I know that when Brooklyn goes to visit Grandpa and Grammy, she'll have a blast. She'll be able to see out all the windows because they start out pretty low - and she'll even have her own corner of the kitchen where they plan to buy a table and chairs small enough for the lil' princess.

We all had so much fun wandering through their house on Saturday, and I can't wait to see the finished product!

Popsicle night

Last night, we shared a cherry popsicle with Brooklyn. She really liked it so much in fact that she grabbed it by the frozen part, not the stick, and put it in her mouth, as her puppy looked on in horror. After all, aren't all popsicles supposed to be for him!?!

She sat there enjoying her popsicle with this lil' smile spreading across her face. I think she was surprised we didn't grab the popsicle out of her grip. The fun came to an end when she bit off the tip of the popsicle and got a little chunk. She had this look on her face, like "whoa, brain freeze" and "what am I going to do with this?"

Her puppy anxiously watching all this, jumped down off the bed, and began begging for the rest of the popsicle, which he got!

These days crawling doesn't seem so bad

My daughter started crawling a couple weeks ago.

This means a couple of things.

First off, our house looks like we are preparing for a flood. Our shelves are stripped of all items at the very bottom. Anything within grabbing reach has sought higher ground. She likes to pull herself up on to our furniture, then grab something, preferably fragile, and swing back it back and forth with one hand as she holds on with the other hand – think Fay Wray and King Kong on the Empire State Building.

And, after my daughter gets through strewing her toys around the house, it looks like the flood has already come and looters have rummaged through in an effort to find any valuables they can pawn.

But crawling also means we are quickly approaching another important phase – toddlerism. I’m not sure I can, grammatically, put an ism on the end of that word. It almost sounds like something you go to a weekly group meeting for.

“I’m Stan and I have a toddler.”

“Hi, Stan.”

Toddler is Greek for “two-legged terror.” I’m new to this but I’ve heard it can include anything from shaving the dog to using permanent marker on the car door. I’ll be sure to provide the Beagle a comb.

But it is also a time to be amazed. I am stunned by the different paces my daughter and I live our lives. When I’m usually ready to sit down, she’s ready to crawl away or remove the DVD player from the entertainment center.

When I’m looking for the last couple minutes of sleep in the morning, she’s smacking me in the face.

Then at night, she’s sleeping so still in her bed. Usually it’s too still and she gets an obligatory body shake. It’s amazing to see this ball of energy completely at peace. Because I know the next morning, she’ll be re-energized and raring to go.

The only similarity we share is that I occasionally crawl to the shower.

She’s so eager to go, ready to taste every bit of life, fuzzy shreds of carpet not excluded. And I spend most of my life trying to find a way to slow down.

That’s when I catch myself envying her. I can’t even remember now when life had such simple rules – eat, play with my toys, sleep, repeat as needed. Not a care in the world, except when she has to get her face washed and her pajamas on for the night. Then we get a little glimpse of that temper that I can only guess means a bedroom door will have to be temporarily removed from its hinges somewhere down the road.

I’m a lost cause – caught up in bills, work and everything in between. I don’t know where I lost it, the ability to just play, to be free. It was probably somewhere between getting my first job and determining I wanted big things like cars and a house. Will I ever get it back? Probably not.

Will I protect it for her as long as I can?

You bet.

Zzzzzzzzz......
I took Brooklyn swimming yesterday, and after two hours of kicking, laughing, screaming, talking, floating, splashing, playing....she crashed in the pool! We were swimming around in the circular wave pool. She had her head on my shoulder and was floating on her back. Within a few minutes, as I glanced down at her, her eyes were shut, and she was snoring just every so lightly. I took her around a few more times before we got out. As I headed for our towels, some old men (the only people in the pool area besides the lifeguards) said "Oh, what a tuckered out baby!"

15 days and counting...

SEPTEMBER 23rd

15 days and counting until the beginning of the autumn season - one of my favorite times of the year. Autumn brings cooler temperatures, leaves changing from green to red to orange to yellow, cool crisp mornings where you need a sweater, cuddling up next to the fireplace, pumpkin patches, the home welcoming smells of Thanksgiving dinner....

I went for a walk on my lunch hour with one of my good friends and I felt that cool crisp air. 15 days and counting...

nudge, nudge..
"The babe's awake. I'm gonna get her in a minute."
groan and roll over...
[Alarm clock reads: 4:20 a.m.]
"She's awake? She doesn't sound upset, sounds like she's just talking to herself - give her a few minutes."
2 minutes pass...
get out of bed and head down the hall
"Don't get her up yet. She's having fun talking to herself."
angry groan
"Just making sure she isn't standing up. You can get her!"
laying there silently listening to the sounds coming over the baby monitor, suddenly I hear "wahwahwah..."
[Alarm clocks reads: 4:39 a.m.]
She wants to be fed!
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Waking up every morning (weekend or not) at 4:30 a.m. isn't something I am accustomed to and this will be the fourth month of it. But, this morning was different. Brooklyn woke up and didn't want us right away - she wanted to play and talk to herself. How sweet it was to hear!

** ** ** NEWS FLASH ** ** **

Brooklyn Marie has taken to her hands and knees!! Yes, that's right, she is crawling!! When she sees a toy, or air conditioning/heating vent, she wants she goes after it. She gets her motor running (blowing bubbles and making a razzing sound) and off she goes across the floor. She might make a couple stops along the way to investigate the carpet or to check to make sure we are watching her, then she's off again. When she finally reaches her destination, she grabs whatever she was after, sits up, looks at us, smiles, starts making the razzing sounds and does her happy dance - moving her little body up and down, side to side, like she is dancing.

She hasn't quite figured out that she can crawl wherever, but we're sure that will come real soon and we have to be prepared so what did we do last night? We went baby gate shopping. Now that our lil' punkin' is mobile, there's no telling what she will try to get in to. She's just growing up SO fast!

How can I protect her from this?

You want to know my biggest fear - raising my daughter in a world full of hate.

Even though my daughter will only be 8 months, the thought of sending her to school terrifies me simply because I can't be there to protect her from the violence, the hateful words and the bullying. In 2000, a first-grade boy in Michigan fatally shot his 6 year-old classmate after the two children had a verbal spat. He was only in first-grade, but he brought a gun to school that he took from his uncle's home where he was living. How can I protect her from this?

When I was in eighth grade, I was made the target of a nasty rumor started by the popular girls. What was the reason? To this day, I still don't know. But, I remember the first part of my eighth grade year sucked simply because I ate lunch in the bathroom behind a stall and had no real friends because everyone was so engrossed in the rumor. From that moment on, I tried to follow what my parents told me "who cares what others think of you." Mid-year, I made friends and the rumor died down and eventually went away, but the memory didn't. How can I protect her from this?

When people attack a person for who they are and what they believe, instead of having a heated discussion about their opinions, it makes me wonder what this world is coming to. I whole-heartedly believe it's okay to disagree with a person's point of view and to discuss the topic at hand. But, I do not agree with taking someone down by personally attacking them through words or actions. Every one has feelings and no matter how strong they seem on the outside, words can hurt. How can I protect her from this?

I don't have the answers. I don't know who does. What I do know is it's my responsiblity to protect her the best way I can by helping her have high self-esteem and self worth. By setting an example for her, I can only hope that this world's hate won't get her down. I would kid myself if I said that it won't from time to time, but I simply have to trust in the Lord that He will protect her when I am unable.

Pucker up!

My lil' girl has learned to give kisses. If you have ever been kissed by a baby, then you know what I mean when I say - it's the sweetest thing in the world! I ask for a kiss and she leans forward with her mouth open - she doesn't have the puckering motion figured out - and plants one on me. Ahhh... the sweeter moments in life!

Wordless Wednesday

As inspired by Jess over at O Mama Mia...

Brooklyn, our precious daughter, was born six days before Christmas. Talk about the BEST present ever!

A job?!?

Okay. I have to vent. One question: "How in the world can watching my lil' girl, the most precious girl to grace this Earth, be a JOB?" I am befuddled at the mere thought. What I would give to spend every day - all day long - with my lil' girl watching her grow, watching her learn new things while she's playing, watching as her puppy fascinates her, comforting her when she's upset, feeding her, taking her for walks, changing her diapers, putting her down for naps...and the list goes on. I would love to do it all every day. I love being her Mama - nothing in the world is more satisfying and rewarding. But, I have to work. That's not necessarily a bad thing, because it's something I am doing with Kevin to support our family and give Brooklyn all that she ever needs, and usually more. And, as Kevin pointed out to me as I was crying and crying at home before I had to return to work after my maternity leave, I worked hard to get to where I am at, and he didn't want to see me loose that. I respect that I have to work and that my lil' girl's care has to be in the hands of another, but when I hear day after day that it's a job - that's simply more than I can take. Caring for my lil' girl cranky or happy, is NOT a JOB, it's a GIFT!

The good wife's guide...

This "guide" below appeared in the May 13, 1955 issue of Good Housekeeping.
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Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favorite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed.

Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives.

Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. and then run a dust cloth over the tables.
Over the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.

Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash the children's hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part. Minimize all the noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet.

Be happy to see him.

Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first – remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.

Make the evening his. Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner, or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure and his very real need to be at home and relax.

Your goal: Try to make sure your home is a place of peace, order and tranquillity where your husband can renew himself in body and spirit.

Don't greet him with complaints and problems.

Don't complain if he's late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that day.

Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or have him lie down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.

Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.

A good wife always knows her place.
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It's a real eye-opener and a true testimony to how the times have changed. I treasure and love my husband dearly, but being that we both have full-time jobs as well as a family, house and dog to take care of, we both share the responsibilities. I believe I am a good wife even if I don't take off his shoes when he comes home or offer him a drink the minute he enters the house. I am most definitely happy to see him at the end of my work day, share in our day's stories, play and spend time with our lil' girl, and then end the night with a goodnight kiss before we snuggle together under the covers. These are the moments of my life I would not want to change for anything.

My dear husband hard at work...

Yes, he's the one on the floor!!!

ALL READY FOR HER MORNING WALK!

Does this house look familiar??

Curiousity got the best of me yesterday. I knew the address, I knew about where it was, so on my lunch hour, I found it - the Ramsey house. Morbid? Maybe. It really shouldn't be something that is a point of interest for tourists because after all a little girl was murdered in this house, but nevertheless, I found myself outside it wanting to know more.

The house itself was smaller than I had imagined. After all, the TV coverage showed a wide spiral staircase and 6-7 Christmas trees - one in each room. I was expecting a mansion, but what I got was a large house. Part of me wanted to get out of my car, and walk around the house, trying to see inside. Luckily, there was a 6-foot metal fence surrounding the property. I drove forward a little and saw the basement windows, which are very visible from ground level. I drove around back and headed down the alley. I was hoping for a better view, maybe an open blind. All I got was a view of the pinkish stucco that looked like an add-on to the house, the 2-car garage and trashcans. My next thought: Does someone really live here?

I headed back to the front of the house, and saw a "For Sale" sign in the yard. A couple thoughts ran through my mind: "How much is this place going for?" "Who in their right mind would buy this house - a house where a little girl was murdered?"

When I got back to my office, I looked up this property and found out the asking price is $1.7 million. This 4-level (plus the infamous basement) house has 5 bedrooms, 7 bathrooms and nearly 7000 square feet. As I scanned the listing, I was looking for something that said "great basement for stashing kids." I didn't find that, but I did notice that the address had been changed from 755 to 749. At first, I thought the listing agent was trying to pull one over on the public by changing the address to hide the history. However, one of my co-workers told me that after friends of the Ramseys bought the house, they changed the address. My next thought was I need to schedule a showing because I want to see the inside. But, as Kevin pointed out when I recapped my story to him, the listing agent probably pre-screens people to avoid showing the house to people purely interested in the history, not actually buying the house.

This year marks the 10-year anniversary of that little girl's death, and the case of her killer still hasn't been solved. Stories like this make me so sad. What could this little girl have done that outraged someone enough to murder her? My answer: NOTHING!

Lil' Casanova makes his move...

I took Brooklyn swimming yesterday. She's learned a new move we call "the hammer." She holds her hands together, raises them above her head and very quickly slams her hands into the water and the water goes flying. Her face lights up as she awaits your reaction. She has become very talented at splashing not only me and her, but other kids as well, but most of them didn't seem to mind.

As we made it to the edge of the pool - where she loves to hold on and hang kicking her legs, talking, all the while trying to get a taste of the chlorine water - a little boy approaches us. Brooklyn being very fond of other kids, always wanting to get her hands on them reaches out for this little boy. He gets excited and reaches out for her too, but instead of touching her arm or hand, he grabs her face. Now, this isn't a mean grab, but a very delicate one - one that you only see in movies before a big kiss. My immediate reaction was to pull Brooklyn back a little. I don't want this boy making a move on my lil' girl! He looks at me and says "This is the most beautiful baby girl I have ever seen!" I say "Thank you" but I immediately begin looking around for his father, mother, someone that is watching him. I finally see a man that is watching the kids' interaction, nodding and smiling. Soon, the little boy's friend comes and sweeps him off to go dive for quarters on another end of the pool. The man comes over to me and says "I'm just his Grandad. I had no idea that he loved babies this much!" I'm thinking, great, what am I going to do if this 5 year-old boy tries to kiss her again!?!

Brooklyn and I head to the very shallow (1 foot) part of the pool where she can play with this red steering wheel that is low enough for her to be able to hold onto and stand up in the pool like a big girl. Before long, I feel a touch on my arm, and Lil' Casanova is back and this time he is calling himself "her boyfriend." He goes for her face again. She gets excited, starts squealing and moving her head toward his. She does this when she gets excited, and she loves to chew on your shoulder, face, neck whatever she can get in her mouth. But, I can see the look in his eyes, and he thinks she wants a kiss so he puckers up. I pull her back and say, "No kissing!" She then notices that he is wearing a pair of goggles on his head, and she reaches for him again, and it starts all over. Finally his friend comes to get him again, and Lil' Casanova tries to get his friend interested in the baby, but his friend just wants to go dive for quarters, so they take off. Finally, the lifeguards blow the whistle signalling time for adult swim, so we get out, get dried off and head to the locker room.

On the way home, I call Daddy and tell him the story. His response: "I don't want to hear that! She's too young to be having boyfriends and to start kissing." I couldn't agree more!

A special time

"What do you want for your birthday?"
"Clothes."
"When do you want to go shopping?"
"Monday works for me. How about you?"
"That should work, but in the afternoon. Or, I could just give you money to go out and get what you want yourself."
"I'd rather you go with me."
"Okay. Maybe we could grab a bite of dinner afterward."
"Sounds like a plan!"

This is an exchange that I have with my Grandma almost every year around my birthday. She is a big believer in taking people out and letting them choose what they would like for birthdays, Christmas and anniversaries. It does make sense, because then you aren't stuck digging for a receipt, having to stand in line to return the item and pick something new out. But, it's always been more than that to me. We've been going shopping for my birthday since I was three years old, and even though the dynamics have changed, I have always seen it as a special time to spend with my Grandma.

This used to be a whole day event - usually on a Saturday - including eating lunch in the midst of shopping, eating dinner afterward at TrailDust and ending the day by going home and showing Mom and Dad what I got. When I was a pre-teen and even a teen, we would hit Westminster Mall (which used to be super-cool!) look around the entire mall before decididng to go to stores such as 5-7-9, Express, Joslins Juniors, etc. I would load Grandma's arms up with so many clothes that it took over an hour to try everything on and decide what looked good and what didn't. There was always a "Maybe" pile, a "No" pile and a "Definitely Yes" pile. Grandma was always good at making sure to ask "Now are you sure that you are going to wear this?" or "Do you have something to wear this with?" I remember getting a couple shirts where I said, "Oh yeah sure I will wear this all the time with such and such" but I never did, I just had to have them.

How times have changed! This year when we went shopping, Brooklyn was hanging in her stroller making the very cool new sound she just learned "DaDaDaDaDa," I knew exactly where I wanted to go and instead of loading Grandma's arms up with my selection to try on, I used the stroller. We spent less than a half-hour in the dressing room trying on the same amount of clothes that I always tried on. Grandma kept telling me that I didn't have to go so fast and to slow down. But, as any mom knows, trying on clothes with a baby that is almost ready to nurse, doesn't really work, especially if you take your time. And, I'm not a mom that will let my kiddo cry and cry while I'm selfishly trying on clothes. It worked. I picked out a selection of clothes that I liked, we made the three separate piles of yes, no and maybe and Brooklyn was satisfied playing with her keys and her baby cloth Bible. After all the shopping the three of us sat down and had a nice dinner, and then headed home to show Kevin what I picked out.

The dynamics and the amount of time we spend might have changed, but I wouldn't trade this time with my Grandma for the world. And, some might say that it's because she's buying me clothes that I want to spend time with her, but it's really not. I would spend time with my Grandma even if we were just hanging out at my house or hers.

On her way to Yale

"A told B and B told C, I'll beat you to the top of the coconut tree. Whee said D to E, F, G, I'll beat you to the top of the coconut tree. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom..."

As we lay on our bed, and I began to read one of Brooklyn's favorite books, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, she begins to kick her legs, move her arms up and down and make a soft squealing noise. Within a few seconds, a smile lights up her face and melts my heart. Reading is a big part of her bedtime routine. After she is snug in her feety pajamas, the three of us lay down, or on occasion we sit up, and read several books. We always pick something new and fresh to start off with, and of course there are books like Chicka Chicka Boom Boom that we read more often because they're fun and she really enjoys them, but we always end with two stories: Wynken, Blynken and Nod and Baby's Bedtime. By the time the words "Wynken, Blynken and Nod one night sailed off in a wooden shoe. Sailed on a river of crystal light into a sea of dew..." roll off Daddy's tongue, she starts yawning and her once flalling arms and legs are still, but she's still excited to go on the nighttime journey to sleepyland with Wynken, Blynken and Nod.

Many reports and books about infant development say that long before your baby is ready to hold a book, they'll start learning about reading and language through their relationship with you. Talking and reading to your infant or toddler provides the building blocks they'll need to develop language and reading skills of their own. There has been many debates on when to start reading to your baby. Some have said to start when they are newborns because a baby will be picking up on the rhythm of language -- rather than the content -- as he hears you speak. Others have suggested starting at six months because a baby will be more interested in touching, looking at the bright pictures and will get more out of it.

In the long run, reading helps build your child's vocabulary, stimulate her imagination, and improve her communication skills. Studies have shown that language skills -- and even intelligence -- can depend on an infant's daily exposure to a large vocabulary. In one such study, babies who heard an average of 2,100 words an hour scored higher on standard tests when they reached age 3 than did children whose parents hadn't been as verbal.

We've been reading to Brooklyn since she was a few weeks old, and we talk to her all the time - starting the first second she was born. We hope that all we are doing is helping her develop into an itelligent woman who will achieve anything her heart desires. After all, I told her when we were at the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock during our vacation, that she can be the first female president if she wanted to be.

As if almost a concidence about a month ago, she received an invitation from Yale University (where US President have graduated from) inviting her to meet with an admissions counselor who was going to be in the neighborhood. On Monday, she got a viewbook from Yale providing her with an overview, history and admission information of the prestigious Ivy League university. My first reaction was "Do they realize she's only 6 months old?" My husband joked that they sent it to let us, her parents, because we need 18 years to save that amount of money - which is almost the same as what we paid for our home! Regardless, it was fun sitting on the family room floor going page by page reading and looking through the viewbook with Brooklyn. She seemed excited as she hit and talked to the pages. Who knows, maybe this is a sign that she'll be going to Yale in 18 years!

Can't we just transport her room?

We're about to embark on a journey, and we'll be adding a new first to Brooklyn's list. We will be flying the friendly skies heading down south to Arkansas for a week and we're very excited. We got all the plans in place for who will take us to the airport, who will watch our house and who will puppysit our beagle. I talked to our friends last night who we will be visiting and we have a couple tentative plans in place as to what our days will look like. Sounds like everything is all in place, right? WRONG!

We still have to finish our packing. Let me just say that I make a list of what to bring and then check them off as I packed them. A little obsessive some might say, but it has worked and I never left anything essential behind. When we went to Hawaii last year, we had everything we needed, even an extra set of clothes if our bags got lost - which mine did. Packing for Kevin and I is a cinch. But, let me just say that packing for Brooklyn has added a new challenge for me. How do you pack all her toys, her books, her CDs, her clothes & shoes, blankets, stuffed animals and exersaucer? Simple answer: You can't.

You have to make choices and decisions. And, since she's not old enough to say "Mommy, can I bring Glow Pooh Bear?" I have to make that choice for her, so I have been watching the past few weeks the toys that make her the happiest. But, in the back of my mind, I keep asking myself "Will this toy fit on the airplane or in the suitcase okay without taking up too much room?" Sad? Yes. Her books I have covered: get her favorite ones (ones that we read to her nightly) along with a selection of others. Her clothes: this little girl has so many clothes (thanks Grammy!) so it was pretty easy to figure out what to bring. If an outsider was watching though as I did this, they might have laughed. I put her to bed and then snuck in there with a flashlight in hand to select those favorite outfits and loaded Kevin's arms up with them. We brought the selected into our room and took them off the hanger. There were a few extra shirts (5 or 6) that we had to make decisions on. I held two out at a time and had Kevin pick his favorite, sometimes I wouldn't agree and we would go with my choice!

As I was talking to my friend last night, she reminded me that she has toys, books, high chair, crib, extra girl clothes, and a washer and a dryer - after all she does have two kids! So, if all else fails, we'll have back-up. But, just for my sake, I'm starting to make that list. Let's just hope I don't forget my curling iron in the freezer like I did on our honeymoon!

The Word for sale...only $4.99

I am still working on what to think about the apparently growing popularity of commercializing christianity. First it was TV and radio "evangelists" seeking money donations in exchange for audio tapes, books, and other "gifts." Now it's Jesus is my homeboy t-shirts and I saw a button that matched this graphic above during my lunch hour today. Over the weekend, I saw a Jesus action figure in a game store. And, I have seen a website that allows you to "dress Jesus up" as a clown, a German solider, Darth Vader, Oscar the Grouch pretending to be part of the KKK, TinkyWinky from Teletubbies. This website claims that "Now you can finally crucify some of the most hated villians of our time. Simply drag the items to Him with your mouse and they'll snap into place. Then you'll have your favorite bad guy crucified, print him out and display him anywhere as a reminder that even the worst sins of man are forgiven...thanks to Jesus."

The commercializing of Christianity is an enormous problem today, as blatantly evidenced by the numerous items for sale. Jesus tried to remedy the commercializing of religion by driving the merchants and money-changers from the temple. Quite frankly, I find it objectionable that modern Christianity has become so overrun by commercial hucksters who feel they have the right to convert the sharing of God's word into nothing more than another worldly business venture.

In my view, to put a price on the word of God is to say that the only ones who are worthy of hearing it are those who are willing to pay for it. This is in direct contradiction to the whole Spirit of the Bible. This is NOT the method which Jesus and His followers practiced. It is simply a matter of greed, trying to make a profit from the word of God.

You made me sick!!

It's the only place I know that you go in feeling good and leave feeling bad. It's the doctor's office. Brooklyn had her 6-month check-up a couple days ago. She went in being her usual happy self, except for a few fussy moments here and there. We learned that she is progressing beautifully in both her weight/height/head circumference and developmental skills. The doctor was quite impressed that she can pull herself up to a standing position! We listed our concerns/questions and the doctor answered them - we have such an amazingly caring doctor - and gave us the run down on what solid foods we should start trying and when. Then, the doctor said her goodbyes and wished us all well, but before heading out the door, she turned around and said, "I'll send it the nurse to administer the shots."

Okay, we knew they were coming. In fact, we were told at her 4-month check-up to give her Infant Tylenol BEFORE coming to the appointment, which we did. The nurse comes in with the needles and shot solution and asks me to lay Brooklyn down on the table. I was all prepared to hold her in my lap as I was already sitting on the examining table. But, the nurse was insistent on having her lay down on the table. Brooklyn, with Pappy (her pacifier) in her mouth, lay on the table and her eyes were getting bigger and bigger by the second. I was holding one hand and Daddy was holding the other when the first needle was shoved into her little thigh. She looked up at us in shock, and within a few seconds she started crying. Two more pricks, and she was done. The nurse quickly washed her hands, and told us to watch her temperature and dose her accordingly with Tylenol, and then she rushed out of the room leaving us with our poor, upset baby. We got her calmed down, dressed and heading out of the room ourselves.

She fell asleep on the ride home. When she awoke, she was okay, very playful. We had dinner, went for a little walk and watered our flowers - that's when she started whimpering with her eyes half open and her little lips and checks all red. I brought her in the house and took her temperature - 101.4! I carefully changed her into her PJs and we read some books. The whole time she was whimpering, not crying, but whimpering. She kept trying to crack a smile for us, but it was just more than she could handle. And, let me say this, I would much rather have her cry than whimper, it's such a sad noise and look that comes across her face. With crying, we've gotten pretty good at distinguishing the hungry cry from the tired cry, but with whimpering, you just know that she isn't feeling good. She wasn't hungry, she really wasn't into her bedtime stories, she just simply wanted to be held. After a couple hours of rocking her in the chair, we laid her down for the night half expecting her to be up. (We were deciding which one of us wanted to sleep in the chair with her.) She slept through the night only waking when Pappy fell out of her mouth, but over the monitor, you could hear a moan every time she breathed.

It's been a couple days now. This morning she was whimpering a little, but after a couple rounds of Peek-A-Boo, she turned that whimpering into laughing. There is nothing better than hearing her laugh. I'm just glad that we don't have to take her to the doctor's office until she's a year-old!

Welcome to the world, Brooke!

Welcome to the world, Brooke Kailah!

My best friend Jessica gave birth to her second child, Brooke Kailah June 9 at 4:26pm. Brooke is pretty tiny weighing at 6 lbs, 2 oz and 19 inches long. She has a full head of blonde hair and blue eyes. Isn't she precious!?!

Jessica and her husband, Todd along with their 3 1/2 year old son Landon moved from Colorado to Little Rock, Arkansas December 2004. Jessica and I have been friends since sixth grade. We miss them so much since they have moved, but we're going out to see them in a few weeks and we'll get to meet their new little bundle of joy!

Landon and Brooke

Todd and Brooke

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE NEW FAMILY!

First Swim Class

Brooklyn had her first (of many, I'm sure) swim class Saturday. The instructor told us parents that this class was all about introducing our little ones to the water. She said it was key to get their ears wet because if they can handle that, chances are they won't be scared of the water. She also suggested encouraging them how to splash and kick in the water, and to show them how if they didn't know. Well, I have said this before, but my lil' girl is so advanced. The minute she hit the water she was so excited splashing and kicking like crazy. All those bathtime splashing sessions really paid off!

One thing that she tried, that like most people thought was bad, was the chlorine water. She used to love to try and see if Mommy would let her try a taste of her bath water, which she did with little success. I tried really hard to stop her in the pool, but when she turns her head to the side and sticks her tongue out to let the water in, there's really nothing I could do. So, she got a sample followed by a nasty look as she was gagging and spitting out what she wanted to have in her mouth so badly! I think she learned her lesson because she wasn't about to try that again.

It was so much fun to watch the excitement beam across her face and to hear her "talk" to you the whole time you were swimming and know that she is loving every second. I cannot wait for this Saturday's class!!

Some things are just priceless...

It's insane to me that different media entities are in the midst of a bidding war to get photos of Brad Pitt and Angelina "Big Lips" Jolie's new baby, Shiloh. I read a report that mentioned Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' baby hasn't been seen by the public, and Suri's already almost two months old. And, what about Moses (Gwenyth Paltrow's new son) and Grier (Brooke Sheilds' new daughter)? Does anyone have their photos yet? How much are they going for??

Now, to be fair, as part of a media conglomerate, I can understand why the media wants to obtain the first photo of a new celebrity-baby, but it makes me wonder, why it's so important? People have babies everyday and not every baby gets his/her picture published in a magazine or splashed across Entertainment Tonight. Only those of celebrities qualify - not that I'm complaining. While I realize that this is part of the celebrity lifestyle, I sometimes find myself feeling sorry for celebrities as I open a celebrity gossip magazine and see Cameron Diaz being just like me because she is tying her shoes on a sidewalk outside of a mall. I mean celebrities literally have cameras photographing their every move. But, when celebrities attract the sort of attention by basically having bidding wars to publish photos of their newly born baby, it's makes me cringe and all sympathy I felt for them is completely gone.

I never once thought about seeing how much money I could get for the photo of Brooklyn's first bite of rice cereal; the photo of her laying in front of all our Christmas presents representing our best Christmas present ever; the photo of her really upset and crying because her puppy looked away from her; or the photo of our new family moments after she was born. There are some things that are just priceless!

Splish Splash I sat up in my bath...

Brooklyn had what I consider a huge milestone last night... she sat up all by herself in her the big bathtub last night for her bath!! We had been bathing her in the infant bathtub, but since she's growing so fast, sitting up all by herself and so intrigued by the idea of splashing, I thought I would try letting her take a big girl bath. She absolutely loved it. She started splashing and playing with her toys right away. The cutest part came when she started grabbing the side of the tub, hitting it and smiling at me. It's incredible how much fun a night can be just simply by giving your lil' one a bath!

For Sale...

My parents are selling their house. The For Sale sign went in the yard yesterday. As my mom told me this yesterday, tears started welling up in my eyes.

I remember the day we moved into this house 17 years ago. I was 9 and my sister was 2. We were too small to really help with much of the moving, so we went to a carnival at my new elementary school. It's funny how things work out. If it had not been for us living in this house and my going to a different elementary school, I wouldn't have met my husband, who lived 2 blocks away.

This house is filled with so many memories: my lavender walls, my sister's Precious Moments paintings my mom did on her walls, my old puppy Courtney, our old shag carpet, copper cabinets, yellow & green linoleum floors, playing "HORSE" with my Dad, slumber parties in the basement, the smell of bacon on a Sunday morning, sleeping on my parent's floor while my sister slept in their closet, playing house with my sister, laying on the dining room floor comforting my husband (at that time - my ex-boyfriend) as he got back from a date that didn't go so well as my mom as ready to dial 911 because he was so upset, getting ready for proms, graduation parties, learning to pitch in the front yard, and the list goes on...

My parents who are the most thoughtful, loving and giving people I will ever meet are giving themselves a gift - a new home. So, even though I'm sad that they're selling their house, I am very excited that they are doing something just for them! My mom stated it best in an email we shared, when she wrote "No matter where I am physically, you will always have a home in my heart. I think a home is not necessarily a structure but more what is between hearts."

Daddy's Little Girl

There's something to be said of a father/daughter relationship. It's one of those relationships that as a daughter you treasure. When you're young, your Daddy is your hero, he's the only man that you have eyes for. He'll fix your bike when the tire is flat. He'll carry you on his shoulders in a crowd so you can see what is going on. He'll teach you how to play a sport you've never played before a week before the season starts, just so you'll have some of the fundamentals. He'll teach you how to drive in the snow. And, the list goes on...

As you grow older and venture out in the world, and find a special man that you fall in love with, you measure this man to your father. And, even though, you have eyes for another man, your father still holds a very, very special place in your heart, at least my Daddy does. He's an incredibly loving, sensitive man that I'm proud to know and I am so glad I'm his daughter.

Now, that I have a daughter, I get the joy of watching my husband, Kevin interact with Brooklyn. It's priceless. You can see the mutual love they have for one another, and how Kevin would do anything for his little girl. Sometimes, I find myself just sitting back and watching as they laugh and play. They are truly building an amazing relationship and I can't wait to see how much it will continue to blossom over the years.

Kevin is a reporter for a local newspaper. Here's a column that he wrote when Brooklyn was only a few weeks old. It is so clear how much he loves our lil' princess...

Diapers, diapers and other bundles of joy
Call it a whole new level of last-minute shopping.
But at 10 p.m. on Christmas night, I was standing in a line at an astonishingly busy Walgreens buying a pack of pampers for the cutest girl I’ve ever met.Leave it to me to find something gently romantic about buying diapers. Because anyone who has changed one smelly diaper knows its contents are hardly the substance of Shakespearean sonnets.
But no one needed to tell me these were no ordinary diapers, these were for the precious heinie of the 7-pound, 7-ounce, 19 ½ inch princess who entered my life on a Monday afternoon six days before Christmas – forever changing a day that had always been swept up in the busy hubbub of the holiday season.
Just hours earlier, I had scoffed at a Walgreens TV commercial advertising they would be open Christmas Eve and Christmas Day for those “last-minute shopping needs.”
“Who goes to Walgreens on Christmas?” I bellowed.
“Let your picked-upon employees have the day off, you heartless Scrooges,” I screamed at the TV.
But there I stood, gratefully buying Pampers from a picked-upon employee. See, we had a pail full of diapers, how were we supposed to know that only one specific brand would fit?
I’ve been learning a lot of new things in the past few weeks. Things that all other parents already knew and tried to warn me about.
I’ve been introduced to times that I hardly knew existed.
What does 2:08 a.m. look like? It looks really similar to 3:49 a.m. or 5:55 a.m. These aren’t times of the day when human beings are supposed to function, these look more like prices at Wal-Mart.
And babies give no A’s for effort, either.
I can’t count how many times I’ve proudly walked down the stairs after changing a diaper only to hear that woosh of putrid air and ensuing gurgle – back up the stairs to do it all over again. I’m beginning to wonder if I’m being secretly filmed as part of a training video.
It’s then I realize this is probably the closest I’ll ever get to being part of an Indy 500 pit crew. Throw on the spare diaper, gas her up and send her out there to poop again.
She cries, she cries, she cries indiscriminately. I haven’t seen this much wailing since the last time I was temporarily transfixed by one of those TV evangelists. We’ve even thought about getting earplugs for the dog.
And the craziest part of all?
I wouldn’t miss any of it for the world. Because, when I look into those rich, blue eyes, I’m transfixed by something greater than any bawling or breaking of wind.
Are the chances of me making another late night store run sometime soon really good?
You bet. And for this little girl, I’d go to the moon.
Just hopefully not at 2:08 a.m.

Where has the time gone?

My lil' princess, Brooklyn Marie, is going to be 5 months old Friday. I'm in shock. How can this little girl whom I've loved since the day I found out I was pregnant be 5 months old in a few days? Where has the time gone?

While it feels like she has been apart of our family forever, I still vividly remember the day she was born. I'll never forget the first time I held this precious bundle in my arms and as she cried, I kept saying "It's alright, Mommy's here." And, I will never forget my husband's face when he first saw this little girl that we created. That smile and look still lingers on his face.

I remember when she struggled to hold her own head up, and now she is learning to sit all by herself. She's given up on rolling over. Even though she can roll both from her back to her tummy and her tummy to her back, she's not interested. Rolling over doesn't prove to be worthwhile, where as sitting up has its advantages.

Brooklyn has got such an independent spirit. It's such a joy to be able to call myself her Mommy!