Happy 1st Birthday!

ONE!  Logan is one!  I just can't believe that our big guy is a full year old.  We've had the most wonderful time watching him grow and learn and change over the course of the last 12 months.  Of course SB and I have learned and grown and changed right along with him.  I say it every month, but in some ways it feels like we were driving to the hospital just yesterday - and in others, it feels like years and years ago!

This past weekend we were fortunate enough to celebrate Logan's 1st birthday with my family and our wonderful neighbors.  We had a fun basketball-themed party at our house.

The party was from 4-6pm.  When kids arrived, I had cut out big jerseys (paper) and they could color on them -- draw their age, their name, etc.  In the first hour we played games -- I structured them as the 4 quarters of a basketball game.  In the first quarter we played pin the ball on the backboard.  We had kids ranging from 1 to 11, so based on their ages, they had some added challenges (from nothing to blindfolds to obstacles while blindfolded!)  In the second quarter we played "how many baskets can you make in 30 seconds" with a Little Tike basketball hoop, which was one of our presents to him.  I was hoping to do something fun for the halftime entertainment but totally forgot to do it!  In the 3rd quarter we played "Sports Charades" aka "Guess that sport."  I wrote tons of sports on little pieces of paper, and a kid acted out as many as they could while their team  of adults & kids guessed the sport.  And then as the grand finale, in the 4th quarter we had a little Easter egg hunt in the front yard.  The goal was for all of the kids to find all 40 eggs, and then we divided them up and put them in their goodie bags.  Everything went over really well!  It was a great help to have my parents there to watch Logan as Scott grilled and I led games.  The littlest kids were just happy to be playing outside and watching the older ones.

At 5pm we turned on the Final 4 game (UK v. Louisville), and served food.  We had grilled burgers, hot dogs, homemade mac & cheese, fruit salad, a really yummy spinach salad (I'll have to post the recipe - it is sooooo good), and my sister made iced sugar cookies that looked like basketballs.  Kids and adults were all happy with the spread!  Logan ate a full hot dog, 2 servings of mac & cheese and lots of fruit salad.  The boy likes to eat!

Then we watched some of the game and opened presents.  Our family and friends were so generous.  Logan has so many fun things to play with now!!  (just when I thought we had no more room for toys - haha!)  After presents we did cake.  I bought a little tiny cake for Logan's smash cake.  It was totally worth it.  He loved diving into it.  At first he was very tentative with it -- but once he got a taste of the frosting, it was quickly all over his hands and face!!

You can't win them all....

....but it sure is a lot more fun when you make it out of the first round of the tourney!!

Ah well.  I suppose I should focus on the lessons here....like anybody can do anything on any given day....try your hardest and sometimes you'll surprise yourself.......never give up....  I do love a good Cinderella story, just not when my team is involved on the losing end.  For now, I'll drown my basketball sorrows in some freshly baked brownies.  It is Friday night afterall, so I'll perk up and remind myself that there's always next year!!

Our cute little Dukie recently wore a hand-me-down uniform from his cousin Luke:

Wishing your team the best of luck for the rest of the tourney!!

11 months old!! 3-2-12

Milestones:
Sleeping: We are so extraordinarily lucky that you've had another month of really great sleeping.  7pm - 7am....like clockwork! (knock on wood!)
Eating:  In the last few weeks you have really started to want only finger foods, or foods that you can feed yourself.  I had been trying to continue with a little cereal because it helps you get a little more milk (formula) in your system.  But there's also been good news on that front in that you're drinking a little more formula -- at least close to 12oz/day, which was the minimum the doc recommended, and you love lots of dairy foods (cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt).  We have 1 month left till you can drink cow's milk!  
Clothing Size: 12-18 mo. (or bigger, depending)
Diapers: Size 4
Teeth:  2!  You have 2 of the lower middle teeth.  Looks like you have one next to those 2 coming in, and a slight bud on the top is peeking through.
Language:  This month you are clearly saying Dada, Mama, and even "Dog!"  You will also snort like a pig when we ask you what a pig says.  You and your dad have a game where you stick your tongues out at each other, and then giggle about it.
Etc: You are really exploring these days.  We installed gates on our stairs, which gives me a bit more comfort without hovering right over you 24/7 (though it sure feels like I'm doing that these days, especially when we play outside!  This summer will be tiring trying to keep up with you when we play with all the neighbors in the culdesac).  You're opening cabinet doors and drawers, so we are very careful about what is in your reach, and tomorrow we are installing the child locks on the cabinets.  You've been a little "hit or miss" with meals at restaurants.  Sometimes you are an angel (ie: today's lunch)....other times there's no amount of food, toys, or walking that will pacify you (ie: dinner with family in WI).  We've had another wonderful month, and I can't believe we only have one onesie sticker left this year!  Time is seriously flying!!  (and I just sent out the invites for your birthday party!)  Pretty soon we will need to get your hair cut.  It's still short enough in front, but you are rocking some serious sideburns and it's getting long-ish in the back.  It will be interesting to see how you handle a haircut.

 the one above is mid-cough...you have a touch of a cough and runny nose right now :(

  Let's take a look back, shall we....(I cannot believe how much you've changed!!  eeek!!)

Family Rules

I love this.....from here:

Doggy Birthdays!

Everyone says that when a baby is welcomed into a family, the 4-legged family members take a back seat.  Of course, our focus shifted when we brought Logan home, but I must say that Daisy and Lilly still get lots of love and belly rubs around here.  They should also be pretty happy that Logan's 3rd official word is "Dog"  ("Dada" was first, "Mama" was second).  Our sweet dogs both celebrated birthdays in the last month, and I didn't properly celebrate them on here.  So without further ado, allow me to love on my sweet dogs:

Happy 5th Birthday, Daisy!!  SB surprised me on my bday 5 years ago with one of the best birthday presents a girl could wish for.  I was working an event that night, and came home late to find a warm, wriggly little chocolate puppy on a pillow on our bedroom floor.  She was cute beyond belief, and I just couldn't believe she was ours.  I was so, so, so happy and excited, but also so overwhelmed as I'd never owned a dog and just didn't know where to start.  SB, thankfully, was a veteran with dogs - and taught me all I needed to know.  She has a funny, persnickety personality.  She doesn't love to be pet, and sometimes likes to do her own thing - but she will be right by my side if I'm not feeling well, and she loves, loves, loves to go running or for walks.  Here's our little Daiser in her first month with us:

And, a very happy birthday to our little Lilly (aka: Willy, Wilbur, or Pickles)!  In planning for our family, we thought Daisy might enjoy a puppy companion.  Caring for Lilly as a puppy was exhausting.  I had forgotten just how high-maintenance puppies were!!  However, nowadays she is such a sweet, loyal (though still unbelievably energetic!!) little thing.  She gives big hugs, loves to be pet, loves to sit on our feet, sit outside the shower, loves to play with Logan (and is amazingly patient with him), and basically will follow me anywhere and everywhere.  We were lucky that we were able to visit her litter just 10 days after she was born.....we literally had our pick of the litter!

 

It took Daisy awhile to warm up to Lilly, but Lilly was a big fan of Daisy from the very beginning!  Now they are the best of friends, and I seriously cannot imagine life without these two:

 

HAPPY, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR SWEET GIRLS!

The carrot.....

Body permitting.....I hope to get back into running soon.  My back started feeling much better yesterday in the late afternoon, so I'm hopeful again.  It's like an hour by hour thing today.  I'm so excited for spring, and I'd love to enter a few races to try to keep the motivation high.  Another good way to stay motivated....cute workout clothes! (double bonus for moms.....cute + easy to wear while chasing little ones!  Totally ok if you wear them with the hope of running, but never end up getting in motion!)  But seriously, the perk of feeling good in what you're wearing is a big one!  Here are a few cute little ditties:

No Room For Error

I called my Mom this morning, the way I normally do when life is feeling chaotic and I need a dose of rational, caring Mom advice.  As you likely know, I work from home and I also keep Logan here.  That means that from wake-up to bedtime, I am balancing my work duties, making sure Logan is fed, clean, dressed, and has plenty of playtime and mama attention all at once (oh and I try to workout whenever I can too...which basically means taking Logan for a jog in the jogging stroller b/c I haven't reactivated our gym membership yet -- and thankfully he likes our little adventures too).  Impossible?  Surprisingly, I've made it work well in these first 10.5 months.  I have had a handful of days when work was really busy, and Logan didn't nap well, and I just felt overwhelmed, and tears may have been shed.....but for the most part, everything has fallen into place and I've loved it.  But right now, I'm going to PT appointments for my shoulder 2 mornings a week before work, and now my back is really bothering me.  It started last Thursday after a run, and got worse after I ran on Friday (dumb move).  I had major back pain in high school, and I get so nervous when I am seriously hurting that it won't just go away.  I just wish that my body would cooperate right now to allow me to do everything, and be everywhere.  My mom reminded me that my current arrangement leaves me "no room for error."  She is right.  SB has a demanding job, and can't just come home and watch Logan while I go to a dr appt at any time.  I'm trying to develop a babysitter list so that I have a handful of people who could watch Logan if I need to go to a doctor appointment, or something like that during the day.  (and I'm even struggling to get girls to call or email back)  So, for now, it is what it is. (SB's least favorite saying). I really wish we lived closer to one of our families.  I know I have friends I could call, but it just seems like such a big imposition even if I know I would do the same for them. 

Do you ever feel that the weight of the world is on your shoulders, and that you have no room for error?  How do you make it work? 

Tips for a Happy Marriage...

My dad has a thing for the United States Postal Service.  He loves to find and share news articles with his children.  I can pretty much expect something from him in our mailbox on a weekly basis, and it always makes me smile.  One of the more recent articles was sent to our dog, Daisy.  It was about a chocolate lab who saved her owner when he had an accident on the family farm.  He thought Daisy would be especially proud to know of her accomplished brethren...and of course she was ;) 

This week (in honor of Valentine's Day) my dad sent my siblings and me (+ spouses) an article about marriage, and what it takes to keep a marriage happy and healthy.  The article was from the "Dear Amy" column in their local newspaper (Dad also has a thing for the tried-and-true paper version...no online news for him).  The advice came from a survey of 1,200+ Americans who had been married 40, 50, and even 60 or more years.  My own parents have been married for 47.5 years (side note...need to start planning for the big 5-0!)!

Here are the top 5 tips for people striving for a long and happy marriage, courtesy of "Dear Amy" (I tried to find the article online, but couldn't...so here's the gist):

1.  Marry someone a lot like you:  Similarity in core values in particular is the key to a happy marriage.
2.  Friendship is as important as romantic love:  Heart-thumping passion has to undergo a metamorphosis in lifelong relationships.  Marry someone for whom you feel deep friendship as well as love.
3.  Don't keep score:  Don't take the attitude that marriage must always be a 50-50 proposition; you can't get out exactly what you put in.  The key to success is having both partners try to give more than they get out of the relationship.
4.  Talk to each other:  Marriage to the strong, silent type can be deadly to a relationship.  Long-term married partners are talkers (at least to one another, and about things that count).
5.  Don't just commit to your partner, commit to marriage itself:  Make a commitment to the institution of marriage and take it seriously.  Seeing the marriage as bigger than the immediate needs of each partner helps people work together to overcome inevitable rough patches.

Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose

My heart is feeling very full this Valentine's Day.  It is a wonderful way to feel, and I am surrounding my boys with lots of love today!

This little guy has been running around the house all morning carrying one of the dogs' balls, with the dogs hot on his heels.  He giggles the whole time, and it seems as if Daisy and Lilly are in on the game, and play gently with him. 

We had a yummy breakfast of heart-shaped pancakes, and fruit & spinach smoothies.  SB will be bringing home dinner tonight from a local Italian place.  Sometimes it's just easier to do a date night at home.  Wishing all of you a very happy Valentine's Day, and lots of full hearts :)

A BIG win with a last second threeeeeeee!!!

(Let's keep it real here.....I was asleep just after tip-off.  It was a looooong day!  BUT this alum is very happy to read about the amazing game last night.  Go Duke!)