Raising the most beautiful girls in the world…
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Lil'M.
Jul 29th
Lil’ M has grown so much these past few weeks. Seems like milestone city around here. She started eating solid food. Her first meal was mushy avocados, which her sisters helped stuff down her. And, she started really rolling over. We got a few rolls here and there for a couple weeks, but now the instant you lay her down she pops over. This is problem at night, because once she rolls over she can’t get back onto her back. Poor babe.
Yummy! Welcome to the world of food glorious food.
Playing with sister.
Donald Trump called… he wants his comb over back.
Roll, baby, roll.
Here's what we've been up to. Part two.
Jul 29th
Ava had her first friends-invited birthday party this year (yes, I am posting this almost a month after her party). Several of her preschool friends had their parties at one of those bouncing places, so of course she wanted to have her party there. We threw out some other suggestions, but bouncer place won out. Her cake was made by Grandma again this year (four for four so far). And given that it was the middle of summer, most of her little friends were there. It was tons of fun, totally made her year… as evidenced by the final picture of our ride home.
Here's what we've been up to. Part one.
Jul 29th
We did swimming lessons this year. We went for the shotgun approach. One week, straight into the pool, first day “swim-to-me”, and it worked great. Ava really wanted to learn to swim, which was the main reason we did it. That, and my never ending fear of my children falling into a body water (including our bathtub) and NOT-KNOWING-HOW-TO-SWIM. So, really our goals were for her to enjoy her first experience in the water and for her to be able to rescue herself from the water should she need to. Goal accomplished (video to come soon).
guess who is FOUR YEARS old?
Jul 7th
Four years ago we started this little blog so that family and friends who lived far away could see pictures and hear tidbits about our latest project, baby Ava Elliot. I can’t believe that four years have zoomed by, or that this little girl blowing out the candles on her My Little Pony cupcakes is the same baby they handed me in that Ohio hospital who changed my life forever. Since then, our family has grown (and grown). We have moved twice and both changed jobs. Our lives are in full swing, and this birthday thing is another reminder of how fast she is growing up. Someday she will look back on the little blog and be able to read the story of her life from our point of view. This year:
- She is still a little old soul. Intense and fully absorbed in whatever she is into. This year we have added some silliness to the intensity. Knock-knock jokes are a regular.
- She still loves bugs and knows the names of more than I do.
- She loves anything animal and her favorite game to play is some kind of pretend animal story which is usually very detailed and must be followed exactly as outlined…. “You be the Mama polar bear and I’m the baby polar bear and Olivia is the cub. This crawl space under my bed is our ice cave and you need to climb under here to protect your cubs. Here, this stuffed animal is a fish. Now, rip the head off the fish and eat it, and then feed the pieces to your baby bear cubs. Now, paw at the sea lion that is climbing into our ice cave. Oh no, your polar bear cub is escaping, better catch her.”
- Her favorite show is Word Girl, and this includes listening to the CD in the car OVER and OVER and OVER while she tries to memorize the theme song (which is incredibly fast and difficult).
- She loves most vegetables, including salads and will ask for them regularly.
- She is a great big sister (most of the time) and I love to watch her try to teach Olivia how to say a certain word or how to play a game with her. She is also smart about this, and uses it to her advantage to get what she wants at times.
- She is a good mix of confidence and reservation in public. We used to worry about the reservation, only because we wanted her to feel confident enough to stick up for herself and be able to have a conversation with people without being so painfully shy. Those days are over. Whether it is just getting older, or going to school, or having younger sisters to compete with… she has emerged from her shell. I love to see her feel comfortable talking with people without looking down at the ground and then clinging to me waiting for me to answer for her.
- In our household she is BOSSY, in a very matter-of-fact-I’m-four-and-I-know-what-I’m-talking-about-so-you-should-listen-way! We are working on balancing this out… not easy since she comes by it naturally I’m told.
- She loves being outside.
- She loves her cat Oliver.
- She has an incredibly high pain tolerance and never cries when hurt.
- She HATES having her hair washed or brushed.
- She is really a very sweet, sensitive, and intuitive little creature, although I don’t think you get this from her until you are in her inner circle.
- She is not a hugger, or a lovey-dovey-er. She doesn’t really like fawning and doesn’t always answer when you say “I love you”. But, when she does… you know she means it. One of my favorite times of day is the early morning when she crawls into bed with us and says, “Mama, I need to snuggle.” I always just wrap my arms around her and breath her in. Happy Birthday little lady. We love you!
4th of July weekend.
Jul 7th
Train ride in record breaking heat wave (102 degrees). H.O.T!!!!!
Carousel rides in the same heat (what were we thinking???)
Feeding the sting-rays at the aquarium. So cool, both because it was indoors and because it was amazing.
Pony rides on Aunt Sara and Uncle Jeff.
Chillin’ in her Ray Bans.
Big sis reading time.
Biking down to our neighborhood 4th of July parade!
Time for some zone defense.
Love me those chubby cheeks (hers, not mine). 
Olivia signaling the parade for more candy!
We had a wonderful, albeit HOT weekend. I love 4th of July!!! I think I say this every holiday, but I really do love this one. It is such a great reminder of this wonderful country that we live in. I am so thankful to be a citizen of the United States, even living in the state that constantly tries to talk about seceding… I am thankful to have been born a woman in this country. To be allowed each day to speak my mind and raise my voice for any opinion I might have (I have a lot). To read the books I want to read, to learn the things I choose in school, to teach others the information I wish, to form groups with whomever I wish, to marry who I wish (and divorce him if I chose), to have the career I chose (or not), to worship as I see fit. To fall asleep at night without fear for myself or my family. It is a great day to remember all those who make this country what it is. The service men and women of the present and the past, our founders who had such great vision, and the citizens of the country who contribute everyday in millions of ways to make our country work. With all our warts, there is no better place. Now I wish I had a gorgeous picture of fireworks to cap off the post but I don’t, maybe next year?
It is such a great reminder of this wonderful country that we live in. I am so thankful to be a citizen of the United States, even living in the state that constantly tries to talk about seceding… I am thankful to have been born a woman in this country. To be allowed each day to speak my mind and raise my voice for any opinion I might have (I have a lot). To read the books I want to read, to learn the things I choose in school, to teach others the information I wish, to form groups with whomever I wish, to marry who I wish (and divorce him if I chose), to have the career I chose (or not), to worship as I see fit. To fall asleep at night without fear for myself or my family. It is a great day to remember all those who make this country what it is. The service men and women of the present and the past, our founders who had such great vision, and the citizens of the country who contribute everyday in millions of ways to make our country work. With all our warts, there is no better place. Now I wish I had a gorgeous picture of fireworks to cap off the post but I don’t, maybe next year?
Happy Father's Day, to one man in particular.
Jun 21st
Several years ago (pre-children) I attended a meeting for women scientists and they had a panel of successful women who had made names for themselves in the scientific community. The forum was answering questions about how to succeed as a woman in science. How do you balance the rigors of lab science with kids and life in general? I remember clearly one woman said, “The number one most important career decision you can make… is who you marry. The smartest decision I ever made was to marry my husband.” Now, marrying Dave was a decision I made out of young and unadulterated love! But it turns out, it was also the smartest decision I ever made mainly because of the kind of partner he has been in raising our three girls.
These days, women get a lot of support and recognition of the difficulties that come with trying to balance motherhood and work. This doesn’t make the job of being a mother any easier, nor does it make the juggling act that comes with trying to work outside the home while being a good mother any easier. But, at least we women are getting some recognition for the decisions we are having to make and the roles we are taking on. I actually think the Dads are getting a little shafted in this department.
As women have taken on more outside the home, Dads have taken on more inside. It’s not enough anymore for them to come home spent from the day at the office and plop into the lazy-boy with beer in hand. They need to be ready to help with the car pool, the homework, the laundry, the cooking and cleaning, the dirty diapers and potty training, and on and on and on. Dave (and lots more of our friends who are fathers) regularly hops into the mix and tackles whatever job needs to be done. He can change a diaper with one hand, dole out juice and snacks while avoiding arguments, swaddle like a mean-mo-fo, play princess and animal kingdom, build a bad-ass fort, give bubble baths, and even fix pretty good pigtails… all before or after being at the office for 8 hours.
I think our world is a better place due to this general shift in the caretaker roles. I see our own girls growing up loving their father, not only because he commands respect, but because he gives it too. He truly shares their lives with them in the small little moments that he makes time for them and participates fully in their upbringing. What an amazing gift from an amazing father.
Recipes and food!
Jun 18th
Well, its clear that everyone loves tomatoes and olives. I had 4 people email me or request Sara’s yummy tomato & olive salad recipe (pictured below). She posted it in the comments section, but in case people don’t visit there, I will post it here too. Thanks Sara!
Italian Tomato and Olive Salad
Sliced ripe tomatoes (garden variety or store bought ‘on the vine’ is best)
1 small jar of capers
Olives (I used olive bar style kalamata pitted black olives and garlic/red pepper green olives)
Olive Oil
Balsamic vinegar
1 small jar of capers
Olives (I used olive bar style kalamata pitted black olives and garlic/red pepper green olives)
Olive Oil
Balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper
Tomato and basil feta cheese (crumbled)
Curly leaf parsely
Fresh basil
Tomato and basil feta cheese (crumbled)
Curly leaf parsely
Fresh basil
Slice tomatoes and arrange on a plate. Rough chop the olives and mix with feta and chopped parsely and olive oil and capers. Sprinkle mixture over tomatoes and top with salt and pepper and basil. Can also add green onions and garlic to taste. Reduce balsamic vinegar for 20 minutes or until syrupy, cool and pour over salad. Just sprinkle with balsamic vinegar if you don’t want to do this step.
And here is the awesome recipe for a cilantro cream spread that she also served. It was great on my hamburger, but you could also pair it with pitas/chips/brushetta… you name it.
Cilantro Cream Spread
1 block of 1/3 fat cream cheese
3-4 TBSP of light sour cream
Juice of 2 limes
2 garlic cloves
1 bunch of cilantro
green onions
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes or jalopenos (optional)
3-4 TBSP of light sour cream
Juice of 2 limes
2 garlic cloves
1 bunch of cilantro
green onions
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes or jalopenos (optional)
Soften cream cheese and mix with sour cream. Mix lime juice (I scoop out some of the pulp too), garlic cloves, cilantro, and green onions in food processor. Once lime/cilantro mixture is chopped well, add to cream cheese mixture. Add salt and pepper and red pepper or jalopeno if desired. Best when refrigerated for a few hours, then served. Can also be mixed with spinach and more sour cream to make a nice dip. Original recipe also called for one small can of tomatilla salsa and cumin.
YUM!
I’ve started going to a holistic health lady to help get me back on track after all these babies and nursing and so on. She is really great and has opened my eyes about my eating habits. I always thought that we ate really healthy since we eat lots of fruits and vegetables and lean meats… but I have learned lots of ways to improve our diets. First, just by getting real and keeping track of what I was really eating (instead of what I thought I was eating). EYE OPENING! Starting with how much cheese I was eating. I knew I loved it, but I was just kind of throwing it into anything and everything thinking “yeah, that’s healthy and has some protein”…. oh, cheese how I’ll miss you. The other thing was how little greens we were really getting into our meals. Greens are soooooo healthy and are really easy to cook with and incorporate into your diet. I thought we did a pretty good job since everyone in our family likes salads and spinach and even some swiss chard. But again, once I really paid attention by food journaling I realized that we don’t get as many greens as I thought. We have been working to add dark leafy greens into our meals at least once everyday. And, here is one way that we do it (without having to bust out a single saute pan)….
Spinach & blueberry smoothie
(You can make this lots of different ways, but here is an example that we made this morning)
1/4 c old-fashioned oatmeal
1 container (about a cup) Greek style plain yogurt
1/2 c soy milk
1/2 c OJ
1/2 banana
3/4 c blueberries
2 big hand
fuls of spinach (see all that yummy spinach in there)
fuls of spinach (see all that yummy spinach in there)
Blend, blend, blend. And then you get this tasty purple smoothie that the kids LOVE!
It has lots of protein, fiber, and phytonutrients from the spinach and blueberries. It is super fast, which we need around here. The kids and I split this one and even Dave likes them.Try it out! Let me know what you think.
4 months old.
Jun 18th
Soooo cute, I could just eat her. Seriously, are mothers the only ones who physically feel the need to bury our faces into those chubby little baby necks and kiss, kiss, kiss? I guess so because I have never seen Dave behave in this way. But, how can you not want to kiss those adorable little cheeks?
At four months old she is really changing so fast. She is:
* almost rolling over… gets to her side but stops there
* laughing
* smiling and interacting with her people. (We love being her people.)
* almost sleeping through the night (we are going to be working on this one)
* waking up in the best mood in the morning. Total morning girl. (Why wasn’t I given this gift?)
* loves her mobile, her bounceroo, and anything musical
* just being the cutest thing on the planet
Photog Ava.
Jun 16th
I had an old Canon Powershot that was busted (as evidenced by the pink hue in all the photos and several menu functions that don’t work anymore) but rather than throw it out, I gave it to Ava. She loved the fact that she has a real camera that is hers, and has taken to toting it around and taking photos. It is kind of fun to download them and see what’s going on from her perspective. Here are a couple from our recent trip… Ava style.
Fort Hood trip.
Jun 16th
We made the trip to Fort Hood recently to welcome Jeff back from Iraq. It was so great to see him, and we had a good time visiting and eating yummy food with everyone. Sara made an amazing dinner (check out the tomatoes and olive salad below). We stayed in a hotel with a pool and the kids loved that. We made the 4+ hr drive without any problems, although at one point we did have all three kids crying! What’s a road trip without a little crying, right?
