Nap Time Explained

Is there truly anything more beautiful than a sleeping baby?

Stuart painted our spare bathroom today (more on that later), so Abby and I hung out in Stu and my's bedroom all afternoon.

Let me just tell you that Abby is an anti-cosleeper. She absolutely will not sleep with us. This is usually a great thing, except for days like today when she needed to nap in the bed with me.

After screaming for 30 minutes, she finally started the "nap time process". She is usually so incredibly quiet that we think she is sleeping. Not so.

Once she decided that she was going to go to sleep, for the next 30 (!!!) minutes, she played with her hands. I am not kidding. She pulled each and every one of her fingers about 10 times each. Then moved on to her arms and rubbed them down for another 10 minutes. I think she forgot that I was laying right beside her, because she just kept rubbing her fingers and arms without making a sound. I just watched her, fascinated by this ritual.

After the nap, she found the floor length mirror and the little girl that lives in it. They talked for awhile. Then sang songs together.

Not a good picture of Abby, but I wanted to get a picture of the way that she destroyed our room.

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So, in watching "Sell That House" 4 times on Saturday morning, I decided that we needed to paint our extra bathroom. When we first moved into the house it was BRIGHT yellow. I actually liked the yellow, but wanted to tone it down. So I painted it a SLIGHTLY TONED DOWN BRIGHT yellow.



Here is Stu painting it a neutral white.

I think it looks much better. We have a great mirror that we got at Kirklands on clearance. Hopefully the people that buy the house will appreciate it!

Verdict: No Snow

Well we got NO snow. None. Just lots of rain.

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I am so sad tonight as I hear the dogs in the neighborhood barking. I really miss my baby Ali. She was my original baby and I feel heartless for letting her stay with my parents. We totally did not plan to let her move in the apartment with us, but I am rethinking it.

Just look at how precious she is. Truly only a face that a mother would love.

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Julie and I went to see "When in Rome" today. I thought it was awesome... Julie said it was OK. I think I am partial to any movie that hottie Josh Duhamal is in.

Are We or Aren't We?

Getting snow that is.....

Part of me wants to say YES, as it will be fun to take Abby outside and see what she thinks of it.

Part of me says NO, as then we will be snowed in our house (and no one will want to show it).

Stay tuned....

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In the meantime, here are pictures of our gal!

This is what I came home to Thursday night. How does Daddy expect me to work with this?

Abby has gotten in the habit of putting things extremely close to her face, then peeking from behind them. It cracks her up every time.

I wasn't home for this Ravioli mess.

Thank goodness (but you have to admit that she is still adorable)!

Not quite sure what she is doing here. But she does enjoy putting the blanket over her head and then pulling it off. Likes doing this to me as well.

Busted!!!! We did give her her own remote though. We figured that would stop her from bothering the "real" ones. It didn't.

Looking for stuff to mess with under the entertainment center.

Phone Pictures

Stuart did not have the camera today as him and Abby roamed the town, so these are all from our phones. Not the best quality, but still good pictures!

My little gal came by to eat lunch with me and got to explore the showroom of the building that I work in.

I hated to tell Julie, but I am pretty sure that she licked a faucet or two!

Then Abby and Daddy went to the park (Isn't he so great?). I think there might have been a little "static" in this tube.

Such an independent little gal!

Chillin' in the swing.

Stuart said that he had to go down the slide with her the first time (Man, I wish I had seen that). But then she was good on her own!

Oh, she is so grown up.

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Stuart is (again) officially a stay at home dad. For now, we have decided that this is the best option for us. Although this dramatically cuts our income down, we will work through it. And I know that Stuart and Abby are loving their Daddy and Daughter time!

Wordless Wednesday (Ha!)

I have always wanted to do "Wordless Wednesday" and just post a good picture of Abby, but, well I could never narrow it down. Plus I really like to hear myself talk/type!

We got some great pajamas for Christmas, but apparently I don't do laundry enough as we are always running out and she has to wear her 9 month ones that squish her toes.

So I went to Babies R Us and got her two new pair. This is one pair and they are very silky (is that a word?) and have ballerinas on them.

We were goofing around taking pictures together last night. When I first looked at this picture, I thought "People are crazy to think we look alike". But I do see it in the chin and the cheekbones. Definitely don't think that we share a nose ;)

Better shot of the new pj's. And the curls in the back.

After taking pictures, I thought I might try and read my new magazine.

Apparently Abby decided that she needed to read it....

VERY CLOSELY!!!

I wanted to take another picture of Abby in her pj's, but she was not a happy camper.

This one says Princess, but I am thinking that it should really say Diva.

In a little bit of a better mood.

Day With Daddy

Oh, it is just a long story. But Stu didn't go to work today. 

Instead, he got to spend the day with Abby. Please note that he called me at 9:30 AM and said, "She has been crying for an hour and a half, I'm dying here". I said, "She is teething, just give her the teething ring and maybe some Tylenol". Never heard from him again.

But he did take some pictures for me:

When Abby wakes up from a nap, she just kinda talks to herself for awhile. Never cries, just talks. When you go in the room to check on her, it scares the crap out of her, like she didn't realize that you knew she was awake.

Then, somehow, she throws her pacy out of the crib, pulls herself up....

Looks for the pacy and says "Uh Oh" because she knows that she threw it....

"Are you going to help me or not?"

On to lunch. I cannot handle ravioli days. I just want to wipe her off. Apparently, Stu does not feel the same.

I am assuming that Daddy Monday was a hit!

I am loving this picture. I took this tonight for bath time. I am so happy that I have a "water" baby that loves baths. It is one of my favorite parts of my days.

The View From Here

Abby woke up at 7 this morning. Actually, probably earlier, but I made her sleep until 7. Can't get in the habit of getting up to early! We played for awhile and then she just wanted to sit in her Momma's lap.

This is the view that I enjoyed this morning. Tell me who has cuter legs?!?!?

Snacking on some crackers!

"Hi Mom" I am loving this warmer weather, as I get to see her cute little legs. That has always been my favorite part of Abby.

We went to lunch with Julie and Mike. Mike got a kick out of putting napkins on her head without her knowing. She was too busy eating to notice.

Then we went to Babies R Us to help them register for their little girl. After the safety aisle ;) Mike was pretty much done, so him and Abby hung out in the gliders.

More Legos

Abby was overjoyed at my return. We ate dinner, had a long bath, and then played hard-core for 2 hours. We are both pooped.

Abby loves to concentrate on her legos that are put together.

Then gets so excited when they come apart.


After that, we always clap to say "Good Job".


Then she wants me to hold her until I can distract her with another Lego.

Quick Post

I am stuck in a hotel room in Raleigh for work. I just went online to see what was playing on TV tonight. Did you know that "Hope for Haiti" is on 22 channels. Yes, 22.

Although this also does mean that I get to watch George Clooney on 22 channels.

If you happen to call, please leave me a message if you actually got to talk to a celeb.

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Abby is much better, thanks for your thoughts and prayers.

Abby's Worse Day Ever (aka One Year Appt)

This poor, precious little girl is teething again! Teething for Abby involves a runny nose, sneezing, can't sleep, nothing makes her happy...you get the point.

I knew this day was not going to be great last night. She sleeps through the night. All the time. But last night I heard her crying in her sleep about 11. Stuart went in and took care of her and she was quiet until about 5 this morning. Then it was on!

She woke up and was not going back to bed. I put on cartoons and laid on the couch, thinking that she would just play beside me. No way, she poked me in the eye, ear, and nose to get my attention. Then she wanted on the couch only to be mad and get back off.

Later, we got dressed to go to the doctor (check out her retro outfit from Jess).

She was so unhappy and only wanted to be held.

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The appointment itself went well. Abby weighs 19.8 pounds (25-50 percentile), is 29 3/4 inches tall (75 percentile) and her head is 18 1/2 inches (95 percentile). Basically, she is thin, tall, and has an enormous head. No wonder she is not walking!

I did ask the doctor about her being so small. He said that she is perfectly healthy (and that Momma and Daddy are doing a great job) and staying in the same growth bracket. But he suggested giving her more calorie rich foods such as lots of cheese, eggs, and starches.

Then on the shots. She got four. She cried so hard that I thought she was going to stop breathing.

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Meg (the sitter) also said that she was fussy all afternoon and when we took her temperature when we got home it was 101. Still managed to put cheese on her head though.

After a good long bath and some milk...she slept on me! You have no idea how rare this is. Really. I made Stu take a picture. I could snuggle with this baby all night.

Abby's Newest Discovery

Abby has discovered that she can splash her mommy that is sitting outside the tub. She finds it absolutely hilarious. Meanwhile, I am usually soaked by the time we are done.

But how can I not love this sweet little face laughing at me?


She is just out-of-control!



Pre-bath, when I went to get the camera. Unwound all of the toilet paper.

Stylin' her 'do

Julie went to the Gap to go shopping for her little gal, and ended up with this shirt for Abby. How freaking cute is this? I miss my Ali so much. I can't wait to see her again.

I tried giving her avocados for dinner...hated them. I also previously discovered that when I give her mixed vegetables, she picks out the peas and only eats those. Last night, she picked out all of the potatoes and threw them on the table.