Thank Heaven for Grandma's!

So, I seriously was quite sick for an entire month. Ridiculous. It started with some crazy flu thing when we went to Phoenix. Most of the symptoms went away pretty quickly, but I had a bad cough for a while. We were only back from that trip for about a day when Ian came home feeling sick... totally unusual because the guy doesn't get sick. Naturally, the following day, I was sick, too. Strep this time around and more antibiotics for Mae. After a week of that, I had a terrible GI infection from all of the antibiotics. I get why it happens, but I have to say that I think the entire idea of getting an infection from taking antibiotics is just not fair. So I really just kept getting worse & worse. Blah. We were starting to get a little concerned I might end up in the hospital to sort out everything - not so easy to do with the baby to take care of. SO, baby's Lola (aka Ian's mom) came to save the day.


It has been so, so wonderful and helpful to have her here. It's always hard for me to rest unless I know someone else has the baby. There's always that little part of my brain that's listening for her. So I've finally been able to get some good rest and I'm doing much better. Somehow, I think Lola's managing to make the best of the situation. :) Gosh, she's such a trooper to come spend a week with her granddaughter. Sometimes I've felt a bit guilty about all she's been doing for baby K, but I really think she's happy to do it. A few times, she's told me to go take a nap. I think at least some of the reason has been so she can have some baby-grandma time. I've loved to be in the other room listening to them play together. It has truly been precious.


Lola's going home tomorrow.... sniff. Fortunately, we have more family fun to look forward to. On Thursday, we're heading to Clarksville, TN, to visit about half of my family. We're so excited (although not so excited for the drive...)! Joe, Jill & Grammy haven't seen K since Thanksgiving! K was only a few weeks old then. How crazy is that? She's such a different baby. We also haven't seen Kevin, Mandy, Emma & Hannah since late February, before they moved from Springfield. Hannah wasn't even a month old then. These babies are just growing up WAY TOO fast! We should have some fun pictures and stories to share very soon! So, I'm sorry to have completely fallen off the face of the earth (both physical and virtual). I've missed you all! :) Hopefully, we're back for good now!

Nope, Not Me!

Well, hello there! Are you still here? Well thanks for checking in even though I haven't posted for about a bazillion years a few weeks! I'll update you more on that in a later post. For now, though, it's time for Not Me! Monday courtesy of MckMama... Here are some things I most certainly did not do this week. You can check MckMama's site to see what everyone else has NOT been doing!



I did NOT stay in bed for an extra hour this morning, pretending to still be asleep but really catching up on my blog reading while my mother-in-law took care of my baby. Good thing, too, because that would have been really rude!

I also did NOT breathe a sigh of relief when the tornado sirens went off on Friday evening because I'd previously invited our neighbors to come hang out at our fire pit, but ended up not feeling terribly social that night. I also did not worry that my Kansas neighbors, being the hardened tornado-survivors they are, might come over anyway as soon as the sirens stopped. Who would ever be happy there was a tornado in the area?! That would just be crazy.

Oh, and I also did NOT decide that we should grill for dinner tonight because I don't really feel like cooking and it's WAY easier to get my hubby to grill than cook inside... and I can still put on a good show of being a domestic diva competent homemaker for my MIL. And I totally wouldn't be paranoid about such things in spite of the fact that I basically have the greatest MIL anyone could ever ask for! And I absolutely would not be writing this post while my hubby is grilling said dinner and my MIL is with him on the deck... holding the baby for me. Nope, not me!!

A Pooka Post

Did you know that we have two cats? When we looked ahead to how life would be after the Kumquat's arrival, we knew it would be a hard adjustment for Connor Cat because he is such a baby. We knew there would be a lot of resentment and rivalry from baby K's big brother. BUT, I also knew that he would make sure to get his affection needs met because, well, that's what the Big Kitty is all about. I honestly was a little more worried about my sweet Pooka kitty.
Little Pooka is our secret cat. She runs for cover any time someone comes over, so it's quite possible that you could spend a fair bit of time in our house and never know we had 2 cats. This was true even when we lived in a 500 sq. ft. apartment. :) The Pooka has always been a pretty self-sufficient kitty cat. Don't get me wrong... she loves her people and lets us know that all of the time. She's just much better at entertaining herself than a certain Big Kitty we know. She's out and about quite a lot and is very fierce when the need arises - usually when there's something on the hardwood floor that requires immediate pouncing. She is a very proper lady cat and generally sits with her feet just so to make sure the stripes on her legs line up. The rare Pooka Belly sighting is rewarded with a glimpse of the Pooka Dots that speckle her belly (and the roof of her mouth). She's always been my girly ally. Like a true girlfriend, she rushes to my side any time I'm crying and purrs and purrs to help me feel better. Connor and Ian tend to run for the hills. Boys. :) So, we have tried to make sure that we still give The Pooka the love and attention she needs. We have special Pooka Time each night when we go to bed. Pooka usually starts nudging us to go to bed by 10. Once there, she purrs like crazy and climbs all over us. She also loves to dig tunnels in the covers and attack the viscious blanket monsters that sometimes masquerade as our feet.

So, why this tribute to The Pooka? Well, yesterday we celebrated Pooka Day. The 8th anniversary of the day Pooka took a crazy run through the St. Louis airport with me, was a perfect angel on the plane, and came to Houston to join Connor Cat, who instantly feel in love with her. Is it excessive to celebrate such a day? Not to me. The kittens kept me company for YEARS when Ian was working 120 hour weeks and went through three moves to new cities where we didn't know anyone. They've taken good care of me over the years, so I think they deserve to be honored a bit.

One of my very first posts was written shortly after our move to Charlotte, when I was still looking for a job and had time to answer one of life's great mysteries... what do the cats do all day? Since I've shut down the old blog, I've pasted that post below... just in case you're interested in the daily goings-on in the world of a very Fierce Pooka.

---

"No fairy is more feared in Ireland than the pooka. This may be because it is always out and about after nightfall, creating harm and mischief, and because it can assume a variety of terrifying forms."www.irelandseye.com

Since we've moved to Charlotte and my most important job has been the monotonous unpacking of boxes, I've had the opportunity to learn more about something that has always made me curious... what do the cats do all day? I've learned that I was right about Connor Cat. He eats and sleeps, which explains why he wants me to stay awake all night. The Pooka, on the other hand, is quite busy. Here is a sampling of her activities yesterday... a day in the life of a Pooka:

1. Wake up VERY early to give Ian plenty of hugs before he goes back to work.
2. Go back to sleep.
3. Eat breakfast.
4. Sit in the shower and get wet.
5. Use the box.
6. Wonder why I smell like poo.
7. Sleep.
8. Accidentally lock self in bathroom.
9. Engage in a very fierce battle with Carpet Fuzzy.
10. Keep an eye on The Kingdom from the window.
11. Try to figure out what the deal is with mirrors. Is that another cat or what?
12. Accidentally lock self in bathroom again.
13. Eat lunch.
14. Pounce Big Kitty.
15. Check on The Kingdom.
16. Try to figure out why bathroom door won't open anymore.
17. Walk up the stairs on the wrong side of the railing (and make Mae very glad the railing only goes up 5 stairs) before jumping down from the top step.
18. Sleep.
    
19. Go outside on patio.
20. Go back inside after about 20 seconds.
21. Eat dinner.
22. Check on The Kingdom.
23. Clean Big Kitty’s head.
24. Chase (toy) Mouse up and down the stairs.
25. Sing in the hallway.
    
26. Check on The Kingdom.
27. Sleep.
28. Build a tunnel in the bed sheets next to Mae.
29. Get hot and leave the tunnel.
30. Sleep.

Time Flies

It doesn't seem possible, but today, this little baby...


is SIX MONTHS OLD!

Can you believe it?

It really seems like yesterday that we were anxiously anticipating her arrival. These have absolutely been the best six months of my life, in spite of the fact that I can't remember what it's like to feel rested. :) She continues to amaze us all the time. Some of her big achievements lately are learning to screech sing (just in time for one of our recent flights), rolling over both back-to-belly and belly-to-back, sitting up unassisted, and eating solid foods like a champ. She's actually incredibly mobile and keeping me on my toes. In the past day or so, she's discovered she can scoot on her back pretty effectively and has been using that plus her mad rolling skills to go after lots of interesting objects... mostly Connor Cat. She seems to be working on waving, clapping and playing peek-a-boo. I swear, in the past two weeks, she's had an explosion of development. I can't even keep up with all of the new things she's doing.

I had high hopes of including a video in this post of my Kumquat rolling around, but I never seem able to get blogger and my videos to cooperate. One problem is that I think I'm incapable of keeping a video to 100 mb. Blurgh. Maybe someday I'll figure it out. Until then, here's a little one of her sitting up with her elephant.



Baby girl, I can't believe six months have gone by already. At the same time, your daddy and I don't know what we did without you! You continually amaze us and light up our lives with your smile. We say prayers of thanksgiving every day for being blessed with the privilege of being your parents and we are excited to continue to watch you grow. Love you, little Kumquat!

Great Give-Away!

I'm planning to post more about our trip to Phoenix, but I'm currently drowning in piles of laundry, general chaos of having 2 trips in about 2 weeks, and one VERY annoying needy affectionate kitty cat.
So, for now, please check out the blog of my friend, Heather, over at Sweet Peas & Sassafrass who is doing a sweet give-away to celebrate her 200th post! Yay!

Happy Day!

Wonderful news from Boston... Baby Stellan is going home to the Rainy Tundra! We are so, so happy for MckMama & her whole Charming Family! Many prayers that they will be blessed with easy travels, a smooth transition home, and - most importantly - GOOD HEALTH for all of them!

Happy Friday, Phun in Phoenix, & Orange for Stellan

Happy Friday, everyone! This is coming to you from sunny, SUNNY Phoenix! Ian came for a conference and the Kumquat and I are freeloading keeping him company on his trip. We've been having a great time (packing/traveling fatigue & killer virus aside). So, here are a few Happy Friday à la Noob Mommy, notes for you!

1. K finally got to meet her buddy, Double D. His parents went to college with us, but the daddies didn't know each other. Double D's mommy and I were friends in school, but lost touch after graduating and moving away. Imagine our surprise & delight when we discovered her husband matched to the same residency program in Chicago as Ian! It was lovely to get back in touch with her and Ian & DD's daddy became great pals, too. Naturally, our kids would love each other. And they do. We've had lots of fun hanging out with him, including...
2. We spent a fun afternoon yesterday at the McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park, thanks to a great recommendation from Tita Naomi. DD is going to be 2 this June and, seriously, what is better for a little guy than a train park? He was so excited he was running around in circles. Sweet boy! We followed that up with a tastee margarita dinner at a local place called Tee Pee, also recommended by Tita Naomi. It was delicioso!
3. Oh, and while we were at the park, K got to swing outside for the first time! She has some pretty sweet shades, huh? The Phoenix sun is intense!(And I promise I was right next to her, in spite of how it looks in the pictures! Daddy's fancy trick photography...)
4. Last night, K and I had dinner with a couple friends from Chicago that I haven't seen for FOUR YEARS! Who knew? I honestly would have said it's been 2. I can't even believe it's been that long! Anyway, they are expecting a little kumquat of their own to arrive around the end of May. Besides the fact that it was wonderful, they were so attentive to all of my endless stories of my baby helpful tips for life with a kumquat. Sadly, I forgot to take a picture with them! This is extra-sad because the silly girl has yet to post any belly shots on FB and, naturally, there are rumors that the pregnancy may not be true. :) I promise I saw the belly! It's legit!

---

In other news, we did our best to participate in the Orange for Stellan Day. It was a little tough since we were traveling, but apparently, like MckMama, I love the color orange. I never thought about it specifically, but once I was thinking about orange, I noticed that the stroller AND diaper bag both are orange! Anyway, here are a few pics of our orange travels...

Praying for Stellan in Kansas...

In the air...

And in Phoenix.

Thankfully, Stellan made it safely through his surgery on Tuesday. Unfortunately, the ablation seems not to have been successful, so we are still praying for sweet Stellan and his MckMama.

My Kumquat seems to be waking from her morning? afternoon? (Pacific Time is confusing us!) nap. We've had a great time here, but we're looking forward to heading home tomorrow. I think we've both had enough jet-setting for just now. :)

Happy Earth Day... a bit late

In honor of Earth Day, I'd like to encourage all of you to look into ways to increase the amount of recycling you can do in your life. In January, our waste management company started a new recycling program, so now we can track how much we recycle. They have a little widget that shows the total accumulation of your recycling, so I thought I'd post it as a reminder of how much of a difference we can make!

A Thousand Words Thursday

I agree with The Mom Jen that a picture is worth a thousand words. This was one of my favorites from Easter. What does it say to you?

Mega Post

Ha - I thought of that title because I'm going to try to combine about 18 posts into one, but that was also the name of a product we sold back in the day at Careerbuilder. Oh, the memories... :)

Anywho...

So this is my mega-catching-up post. Please forgive the insanity. I don't know where the past month has gone, but I've written so many posts in my head that I thought I'd at least try to share a few of them with you. :)

---

♥ 5 Months! ♥
So the Kumquat is already 5 months old! Can you believe how big she looks with her elephant? Since I've been taking monthly pictures, I added a little slideshow at right that just has those, so you can really see how much she's growing.

Some 5 month highlights include rolling over like a pro, starting solid foods, making friends with the Big Kitty and taking her first flight. She's been rolling back-to-belly for ages, but has had a lot of trouble figuring out belly-to-back. Thank heaven, she finally worked it out when we were in Midland! She's become more mobile and rolls ALL OVER now, which is not so great for her mama's life of leisure, but I'll happily take that over the continuous screaming when she was stuck on her belly. :) The girl ♥ solids! I wasn't sure about starting them so early, but she really seemed like she was ready. I'm sure now that she was. I remember my SIL, Mandy, talking about how my niece would eat but didn't seem to initially associate solid food with alleviating hunger. K didn't really seem to do that. From the first try, she eagerly ate her rice cereal (good Asian baby!) and now gets really fussy if I try to give her a bottle instead of solids at her usual mealtime. I've been following this great book called Super Baby Food, which was recommended by a couple of mama friends. Making her food has been a really nice thing for me. I've still had some residual guilt that the whole breastfeeding thing didn't work out so well, but it's helped to know that I can do things now to make sure her food is as natural and healthy as possible.

---

♥ Crazy Weather & Zoo ♥
At the end of March (yep, blogs are THAT backlogged!) we had some crazy weather! One day it was a beautiful day in the high 70's and this is what it looked like here just a day later...



So that was on Friday & Saturday. On Monday, we went to the zoo. It was a gorgeous day! Nuts. Ian got finished with his day early, so we headed out to enjoy the nice weather.
It was a lot of fun. It was the first day the baby really paid attention to some of the animals.
She enjoyed the birds most of all. Interesting... I liked the chimp snacking on a chunk of snow!
It was neat to see the little green plants still holding their own in the middle of the melting snow.
I'm glad Spring wasn't giving in! Naturally, the beautiful, sunny day was followed by a day of Spring showers.

---

♥ Naked Baby! ♥
So, she'll probably hate me for this later, but isn't K too cute??

---

♥ Our 5 Year Anniversary! ♥
So, by request, I'm posting a couple more pics from our wedding. (Like it, Sarah??)

Mostly, I'm posting these because I want you to notice the flowers and then look at the lovely flowers my husband gave me for our anniversary. See any resemblance? So sweet!

---

♥ Easter, II ♥
I uploaded the rest of our Easter pics. You can see them here!

---

OK, so that's it for now. Not quite caught up, but the baby and my to do list both say that's enough blogging for one day. Tomorrow, we're going on another trip (yay & blah), so I have a lot of cleaning and packing to do!