Happy 2nd Birthday, Little D!

Our first glimpse at her darling face.

The day our sweet Dakota was born.

Pensive

Sweet

You just want to cuddle her right up!

One of the perfect newborn poses.

My goofy, little giggle-box (at 9 months).

15 months and she was, finally, fully in walking mode.

My little Christmas beauty.

Almost 2 here.

"Gotta keep up with those sisters!"

Wonderful, darling Dakota,  Happy Birthday!  Our lives were all blessed and made that much richer when you came into the world as part of our family.  We thank God for you every day and your sisters always say that they can't imagine our family without their littlest sister.  You are so special to us and we can't wait to watch you each step of the way as you grow up.  We love you!
Your family

#MarchPhotoADay - 4 : Bedside

Yep, I'm still at that stage with my youngest.  The items I most likely have close at hand at my bedside are for my almost-2-year-old.  Baby powder for bad diapers and Orajel for middle-of-the-night 

screaming from teething.

Almost 2

I can't believe my baby will be 2 in April, but there it is.  Then, she'll actually be a "toddler", so to speak.  But, she'll always be Mommy's baby (even when the idea of that completely embarrasses her :-)  Here are a few magical moments with her over Christmas that were just about perfect . . . except for the missing hand in the picture which was covered up by her coat sleeve. 

The Climber

Literally overnight, #5 (the baby of the family) figured out how to climb up on a chair and from there climb up onto the table.  And this is how I found her, very pleased with her new accomplishment.  So, now not only is she even more closely supervised, but I am pulling chairs away from the craft table in the play room to discourage this type of adventure.  Not that I don't appreciate her adventurous spirit, but I would prefer to keep the climbing to hiking around our yard outdoors.  It is amazing the things babies learn and so quickly, too, especially with older siblings as models.  And, yes, my kids are the type that like to stand on the couch, etc., when Mom isn't looking (I admit it).

By the way, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!  May your day be blessed and joyful as you celebrate with friends and family on this day.

Wordless Wednesday 11-23-11

Any one want to hazard a guess as to the baby's new trick?

Wordless Wednesday 10-26-11

30 day photo challenge: days 28, 29, & 30

And a drumroll, please . . . thank you, thank you very much!  I've finally finished with my 30 day photo challenge, albeit taking much longer than 30 days and improvising here and there.  But, it has been fun and defnitely kept my blogging from getting rut.  So, here are the last 3 days.

day 28  -  daily routine
It is hard to remember a time when I wasn't doing this activity on a daily basis.  Once you have kids and they are small, changing diapers is just part of the daily routine, like it or not (pretty much not liking it).  Now that the baby of our family is 1 1/2, I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  I'm definitely not anxious for her to grow up and quicker, but I certainly won't be sorry to see the diaper duties go "bye-bye".  

Little D happy with a clean diaper.

  day 29  -  purchased

This actually is another of my daily routines, too.  A must-have!

 Recently, we purchased a new cappuccino maker and, wow, does that ever make my mornings 10X better! 

day 30  -  in motion

Me, taken out hiking w/my hubby recently.

 

30 day photo challenge: day 12 - close up

I was wishing for some National Geographic-like inspiration and that zoom lens my hubby has his eye on buying, but alas nothing that dramatic came out of today's challenge.  Although,some things that are part of my enjoyment are also some of the simplest.  So here they are, up close.

My sweet baby.

Morning light coming in the kitchen window.

Lilah's nose.

My hubby's pumpkin growing in the garden.

17-Month-Old Fun

If you can believe it, eating black beans is one of Little D's favorite activites.  She loves the beans and making a mess with the bean juice, too.  The only downside is changing her diaper the next morning.  :-)

Wordless Wednesday 8-17-11

A Product that Really Works in a Pinch

For any of you out there that are still changing diapers (many of you remember this quite well, too, I'm sure) out there, as I am, here is a little tip that I picked up from a friend of mine many years ago and saves me in a pinch.  On occasion, one of my girls has gotten/still gets a really bad poopie in their diaper that either seems really sour or just plain burns their poor, little bottom due to whatever combination of food they had recently.  And as is apt to happen, I from time to time and caught without my favorite diaper rash cream, ointment, or baby powder.  In this bad diaper situation, I give a loud yell to whomever is within earshot to run for the box of cornstarch.  After a good clean-up, I liberally dump cornstarch into the diaper and close it up quickly.  The cornstarch really seems to quickly absorb whatever "bad stuff" is hurting the poor, little tushy.  Not that it will completely clear up a problem area every time, but it definitely helps and is a life-saver in a pinch. 
Thanks, Rachel Antrim, for this great tip so many years ago when we both had our first babies around the same time; I've learned a lot from you and you are an inspiration as a mother and woman!

Lessons I'm Learning From My Kids: Many of the Sweetest Moments are the Simple Times Together . . .

. . . such as a few days ago when I was holding my freshly bathed baby all wrapped up in a towel, smelling of baby soap, and giggling because she was so thrilled to have been playing while getting clean.  Those are the moments where I pause, hold my child close, take a deep breath, and just savor the moment knowing that these simple times together are sweet and precious - moments that I need not take for granted. 

It doesn't get much cuter than that!

Dakota's Second 1st Birthday Party

Little D with her godmother, Marsha.

The second party was held a few days later, on the weekend right after Little D's birthday.  We celebrated with a small group of friends and family and it was a lot of fun.  Dakota had a little practice from our family party #1, so she was more willing to dive into some cake and get messy this time around. 

Loving the cake.

Playing with a friend.  Notice Dakota isn't the gentle one.

Dakota's First 1st Birthday Party

From the time we had our first child until present, my hubby has remained firm in his belief that birthdays should be celebrated on the actual day of one's birth (even if a party will be held at a earlier or later date to celebrate with others).  So, it is tradition for us to have, at the very least, a small family party with cake and ice cream on the actual birthday of each family member - a tradition that has come to be very special to us as a family.  Each family member, no matter how young or old is acknowledged and celebrated each year on the anniversary of their birth (and hopefully we also do this for each other throughout the year, as well).  So, #5's birthday fell on a very busy weekday a few weeks ago on a day in which we were uncertain if my hubby would even make it home before she had to go to bed.  Nonetheless, #2 and I baked a fast fudge cake and improvised with our ingredients to make a glaze/ganache frosting; it turned out to be delicious.  Papi ("Daddy") surprised us all and arrived home early so we were able to have dinner, birthday cake and celebrating, and a big family dance party in the livingroom before bedtime.  I wouldn't have had it any other way!

Our littlest princess on her birthday.

"What do they expect me to do with this cake?"

"O.K., I think I'm getting the idea.  And it tastes pretty good, too!"

Dancing with Mommy before bed.

Happy 1st Birthday, Little D! Wordless Wednesday 4-6-11

Lessons I'm Learning From My Kids: If you don't laugh about it, you'll cry :-)

Today in the parking lot of Target was an absolute blow-out diaper moment, one of those that if you don't laugh about it and its comical nature, you might break down about instead.  Dakota was sick exactly a week ago on Sunday morning and it started with vomiting which ended soon thereafter.  But, the recurring diarrhea persisted the entire week.  I thought we were about done with it until we swung by Target to buy diapers, of all things (the irony!).  My hubby ran in with the older girls who needed to stop by the restroom and then shop for just a few items.  I immediately began to smell a strong, terrible odor after they left and got #5 out of her carseat to check out the situation.  Little D was wearing a cute light pink Anne Geddes T-shirt and a pair of jean overalls with pink rose buds all over them - quite cute, at least until I looked inside and saw what a disgusting sight it was to behold.  Needless to say, she was a mess; in fact, I had to take the diaper off by undoing it while still in the pants and using the pants to pull off the diaper and overalls as one unit because they were both so covered in poop.  I proceeded to drop them on the blacktop parking lot and then use about 5 more baby wipes to clean her up, dropping those on the blacktop as well.  Thankfully, I had the foresight to bring an extra outfit for the just-in-case bad poopy situation (learned from many a situation in the past in which I had not been quite so prepared and the baby rode home in just a diaper covered in a blanket in her carseat until she got home).  I managed to get #5 as clean as possible under the circumstances, re-dressed, and back in her carseat, and then found one spare plastic bag in the van in which to wrap up the offending diaper for the ride home.  The overalls and shirt are presently in the washing machine soaking up a liberal dose of Shout stain spray before receiving a good wash.  I'm sure I was a sight to behold while cleaning up the baby and people were wondering what in the world I was doing.  These are some of those situations that I will remember for a long time to come and laugh about how funny it really was (even if it didn't seem so at the time). 

Already 11 Months! Where has the time gone?

It seems like just yesterday that #5 was born, but then again it seems not that long ago that #1 was born and now she is 7 1/2.  And yet, here we are with less than a month until Little D's 1st birthday and I feel mentally and emotionally unprepared for the baby of the family to be reaching this big milestone, one of many that will feel a little too soon for Mommy.  The days go by so quickly and as often as I can I put my cheeks up to hers, breath in her sweet baby smells, kiss her, tickle her, and listen to her giggles because there is such a je ne sais quois quality about babies that captures my heart and emotions.  This is a good reminder to me to live in the present, be present with those that I love, and to not let thinking about the future get in the way of living each day to the fullest. 

Doing her silly squinty eyes.

Happy Dakota girl!

Mommy's littlest princess.

Paris on my Mind, Part 3 (and the last, at least for a while . . . )

Well, I couldn't conclude my reminiscing about Paris without sharing some of our better travel decisions that we made which greatly enhanced out time there.

1.  I loved that we rented an apartment for the week and didn't have to bother with hotel issues, maybe getting a cheaper hotel that didn't have a bathroom in our room, or not having a kitchen in which to cook.  We originally were going to rent an apartment in the St.-Germain-des-Pres area of Paris off of VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) which was all good and well until 1 week before our departure, the owner e-mailed, very apologetically I might add, to say that the last guest had broken the toilet and there was flooding and no repair person was available to fix it that quickly.  So, at the last minute, we had to rearrange our plans and find a new apartment, which we did with a vacation rental company in Paris.  The studio was located on Ile St. Louis in an area with a less vibrant nightlife scene than St.-Germain-des-Pres, but definitely not boring by any stretch of the imagination.  We were a 3 block walk from Notre Dame and I couldn't imagine a better location for my hubby and I to have stayed.  It was lovely to be able to walk past the Cathedral on a daily basis, and over the bridges to the lovely little island on which we were staying.  It was also great that we were able to grocery shop and cook many of our meals in our own apartment, thereby staying within budget on our travel plans and not having the pressure of looking for a place to eat out at every moment of the day (especially with a 12-month-old baby in tow).  The studio, like many apartments in Paris, was very small, but sufficient for our needs.  We had a bed, bathroom, kitchen, and dinette set which is all a tourist really needs when spending the majority of the day out and about sightseeing.  I would recommend this idea to anyone and will look for similar accomodations in the future on other vacations. 

Enjoying a morning cup of French press before heading out for the day.

2.  Buying the Paris museum pass (not online before we left which may cost more or be the wrong one, etc.) in the Louvre (and for sale at other sites, as well) was great!  It allowed us entrance into almost all of the major museums, sites, and monuments.  Because we already had it in hand, we were able to bypass some lines because we didn't need to purchase tickets and also revisit favorite locations at our convenience (such as the Louvre, which is too huge to even get a small glimpse of in a day - we went back 3 times).  It was nice that place such as the Arc de Triomphe and Versailles (absolutely worth the trip & worth of many pages of blogging on its own) were included on the pass, too.  Of course, the Eiffel Tower was not included in this because it is such a major tourist money-maker, I'm sure. 

In the gardens of the Rodin museum.

Me and #4 in front of the Arc de Triomphe.

The Petit Trianon, given to Marie Antoinette by Louis XVI.

3.  It is very tempting while in Paris for a limited amount of time to try and do as much as possible, see as much as possible, etc.  And in some ways, we did do this because we wanted to immerse ourselves in the Paris experience as much as possible.  But, I am glad that we also were able to give ourselves permission to leave Paris for a few and very worthy side-trips.  The first was to Versaille which is absolutely decadent and amazing in its size and furnishings; just being in the building brings images of the time period to life very vividly in my imagination.  This trip can also include seeing the Trianon (a summer house for kings), the Petit Trianon (Marie Antoinette's special house), and all the surrounding gardens and re-created buildings from this time period that are equally as beautiful and breathtaking in their simplicity.  The second day trip we took was out to Chartres to see the spectacular stained-glass windows in the Chartres Cathedral.  It was delightful to ride on the train through the French countryside, visit a smaller French town that is not connected to Paris, and slowly meander our way through the Cathedral and gaze at the intricate windows through which centuries of Christians received instruction of the Biblical narrative. 

Livia watching the world go by on the train to Chartres.

#4 in front of the Trianon.

One of the many beautiful windows in the Chartres Cathedral.

The Chartres Cathedral in the town of Chartres.

4.  And lastly, I was glad that we did not buy an expensive train ticket for the Metro because we ended up doing so much walking anyway that it probalby wouldn't have made much sense for us.  Rather, we just purchased a 10 pack of tickets (twice over) and used them when we wanted, either on the Metro or the bus when we were either tired of walking or wanted to go somewhere that was quite a long ways away (the Sacre-Coeur Basilica, Montparnasse Cemetary).

Being in Paris for a week in 2009 was an incredible gift and as you can see, I am still enjoying my memories of it as we speak.  Thanks for coming along for the ride.