Cute Pics Lately

Ari is such a sweet girl. And now that she's walking and running all over, I have to chase her around to take pictures. Its not easy being pregnant and chasing an almost 17-month old!

The red shoes Ari is wearing in this picture above are my favorite.

Heres the most recent 'family' photo we have. Ari was ready to leap out of our laps in her pre-bed-time hyper mode!

Who doesn't love a little baby smocking?

Proud in her little bathing suit... She is so tall and walks upright. No more baby... all toddler!

Aunt Katie and Baba Visit!

Dan's sister and mom were here visiting for a few days and it was fun! Ari was well loved and photographed. Windows and blinds were dusted and food was eaten. I appreciate all the help I can get around here waddling at 35 weeks...

We set up Ari's little outdoor pool and they sat out all three days! Ari loves to say 'waee' for water and plays well in it. She also is very interested and helpful in the garden. So sweet.

Ari has a new baby that she's learning to care for; to hopefully help transition our life with a new one. Though she drags it around and pokes it in the eyes, she does kiss and pet her head! Ha.
Baba and Aunt Katie got to see how Ari eats spaghetti. Girl makes a mess but its worth it!

Ari and Barb colored with some crayons. Ari still thinks they should be eaten but for the most part, loves to scribble.

Thanks for coming you two and for your help!

Plecia nearctica (the Love Bug)

This past week, Ari and I took a mini mini vacay to Florida to see her cousin Ella, Aunt Shell and of course, Grammy and Grandpa!

The beach is gorgeous 99% of the time in this town. There are cold days and hot days but really, the waves and the blue green water fills me with such joy and peace. This May however, was the 1% disgusting time to go to the beach. Literally, it made me gag.

What you see here in PILES for MILES are DEAD LOVEBUGS. In this wikipedia article, it states that love bugs are not a favorable food for insectavores, therefore, their abundance. Their presence was a black snowfall that smelled horrendous.

If you're back from vomiting, here are some much better pictures from the week:

Windy sunset on the beach with my Aricakes.

Walking with Grandpa and Grammy.

Ari was super brave in the swimming pool! Brave meaning: has no depth perception! We tried to teach her to sit on the edge but she would just walk right in. So cute!

Early morning bird feeding with Grandpa. Ari talked so much about birds, bugs and babies and even learned some new words including 'tomorrow' which sounds like 'rowrow'.

Baby Ella caused quite a stir for Miss Ari. There were moments of jealousy but overall, Ari kissed and loved on Ella's head and repeated "Baby" a lot during the week. She was cute.

Thanks Mom and Dad for hosting me and Raschelle and our babies (and my crazy appetite). I appreciate the plane tickets and the mini vacation before our chaotic summer!

The Beautiful Lawn Sprinkler

The Beautiful Lawn Sprinkler

by Howard Nemerov

What gives it power makes it change its mind

At each extreme, and lean its rising rain

Down low, first one and then the other way;
In which exchange humility and pride

Reverse, forgive, arise, and die again

Wherefore it holds at both ends of the day

The rainbow in its scattering grains of spray.

(Normally, I don't do poems or artistic posts but we enjoyed a late afternoon play time with Daddy in the sprinkler and I think the poem is gorgeous-as are the photos. I love to see their love.)

Spring Visiting

Well, I briefly mentioned in my last post about birds chirping in my dryer. It seems to me that a starling darling decided to open some real estate in my vent. First, she built her own nest and harvested 4 beautiful blue eggs. Then, she proceeded to fill the vent of my dryer and all the way out of the house with enough debris to build 4 more nests. Unfortunately, we had to take some action to save MY motherly duties and prayerfully, the nest we placed in the bushes will survive to save HER motherly duties. Thankfully, my parents came to my rescue.

Zach, Allie and Rebecca came to visit too for my baby shower and naturally, had to take some family pics with Grammy.

We had three children and three adults trying to get them to smile/look normal... we obviously got some crazy shots like this one:

Grandpa took the kids on a little nature hike/exploration to catch some bugs and see the sights. Ari walked and acted like one of the big kids following Z & A everywhere. She loves her cousins and its adorable how excited she gets when they are here.

It was a nice relaxing mothers day and I was blessed to have Rebecca and my mom here to celebrate it. We missed Raschelle and wished her a happy FIRST mother's day!

32 week update

According to the web, my baby probably weighs in at 3 1/2 pounds and I should be gaining about a pound a week. If only I had the Biggest Loser scale to 'beepbeepbeep' my weigh-ins each Friday... Often, about an hour after a meal, I'll state that I am hungry again... which is up from my usual 3 hour mark. My baby will gain a third of her weight in the next 7 weeks. Pass the burgers, please.

• Heartburn: if the myth were true that heartburn indicates lots of hair, then Ari should have had an afro and this baby will be Rapunzel. My heartburn is nearly unbearable and lasts all day. I loathe it.
• Movement: Baby H2 moves a lot! She's had the hiccups recently too which makes me laugh. She kicks, squirms and practices her gymnastics most of the day and especially before bedtime.
• Tailbone pain: not as bad as a few weeks ago; yoga and stretching has helped
• Sleeping: as long as I fall asleep before Dan, who snores like a bear in hibernation, I am golden. Unless there is the threat of tornadoes or the baby birds in the dryer are chirping, I sleep fairly well. And pregnancy dreams are freaking me out. Jeesh. I also take a nap almost everyday; thankful to Dan for working so hard that I can be home most of the week to nap and care for Ari.
• Cravings: salt and vinegar chips (specifically: Kettle brand), ice cold water; lemonade, raspberries, (seeing a trend in sour-ish things), red meat, spicy habanero wraps from TJ's filled with spinach and tuna (I hear Rebecca gagging), and an occasional chocolate.

We are really excited and are talking over baby names almost daily. We cannot agree on one but have some close calls; we'll probably wait until we see her face to face before we finalize it; its more meaningful for us that way.

And a post wouldn't be worth it if there wasn't a picture of Ari Taylor (in one of my favorite outfits):

16 Months...and oh, a Toddler

Bath time Edition: 16 months.

Stats: Tall and lanky, like her rents, with a belly, like her mom! She's around 24.5lbs. Still has brown eyes; they're staying I think. Blondish Brown hair. Three birth marks on her face and a little tan line on her neck from all the outside playing we've been doing. She has strong thighs and triceps and her tiny little neck is my favorite.

I was sitting painting my toes outside and Ari was playing. She came to watch me and proceeded to communicate what SHE wanted. She removed her shoes and socks, reached for a bottle of polish and said "eh eh eh" and pointed to her toes. So, I did it! I painted my daughter's toes. I suppose many may gasp but Dan and I like it; its cute and funny. She loves it and shows as many people as possible.

Yep, same little butt and partially bald head! She's walking and talking all over; saying many many words and usually repeating whatever we say to her. She loves to sit and read books and loves to carry buckets or baskets or boxes around. For example: she emptied a tissue box, put her snacks, a camera lens cap, a small toy and easter egg in it; she carried and pushed it around for an entire day. Her own purse/collection of goods. So adorable.

She can name or point to a few body parts and will do the above face if you ask her where her tongue is. She names ears, nose, head, hair, hat, eyes, belly, toes, feet, hands, clap, and more. She also pats my belly when I ask "Where's your sister?" Sometimes, I'll ask her to kiss her sister and she'll kiss my belly. She loves to give kisses and makes a sweet "mmuuahh" sound when she does. Super Cute.

Here is a hair update: business in the front, party in the back: a toddler mullet. Its cute and I like it.

Ari is beginning to show a spirited temper and Dan and are I learning to tame it the best we can and we laugh at when she acts all sweet and tender afterwards say "Hi" and loving on us trying to make up for being naughty. If she knows she is somewhere off-limits, she'll sing a "No, No, No" song and open the cupboards and remove the contents. She'll look at me and sing "No!" I can't help but laugh but still remain firm in my discipline. She's a smart one already.