Big Birthday Bash

Yes, it's the much anticipated Birthday Bash Blog!! What a crazy couple of weeks it has been. A little overshadowed by the death of our dear Linus, but amidst our tragedy we did have a fantastic time celebrating Mia's big milestone with friends and family.

Her birthday party was a blast! Despite the late season blizzard that hit on the very day of her party, everyone still came out to celebrate. Thankfully, the Denverites and other travelers all made it ahead of the storm. We had all the grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and friends there. About 30 people. It was standing room only in our house.

Mia did wonderfully. She totally loved being the center of attention. Never getting overwhelmed with all the people and goings on.

Check out the pictorial review:

Mia had a little butterfly smash cake all to herself. The girl hardly made a mess of her cake. So dainty....

Then it was time for presents...

And oh.....were there presents....

Even Cheyenne wanted in on the action...

Took a little time for Grandpa...

Yep, Mia is one lucky little girl! So many people love her dearly. We cannot express our thanks to everyone who braved the weather to be with us on that special day.

It was so much fun!

Maybe next year the sun will be out.

In Memoriam

Yesterday, we lost a dear member of our family. A freak accident took the life of our young and loving cat Linus.

What happened is a mystery. My mother and I were on our way to run a quick errand. We were driving down our dirt road out to the highway. As we made it around the last bend about a mile from our house, I noticed a dead cat on the side of the road. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual sight in this part of the world. Nevertheless, I always notice them and say a little prayer. On this day, however, I noticed the cat looked a lot like our Linus, but I knew it couldn't be since he never strayed far from our house, and he NEVER would be anywhere near where cars were. But as we passed this cat, that is when I saw the red collar and there was no question.

Our cats always wear collars so that people will know they are not strays. I never imagined it would serve the purpose it did yesterday. To identify beyond a shadow of a doubt that this was my cat. He was just 4 years old.

The question will always remain. What happened?? I can't believe he was hit by a car even though his location would lend itself to that explanation. But what was he doing that far from the house? Did he chase something there? Was he chased there? Was he killed by a dog and carried there? Could he have gotten into some poison somehow and wandered there disoriented?

We will never know. All we know is that we lost a wonderful pet, friend, and companion to us all. We are all heart-broken.

Rest in Peace, my Linus-bubba....

Surviving the First Year

Our little munchkin is about to turn one! 1! Yes, I will say it again. ONE YEAR OLD!

I just can't believe it. It seems like ages ago that I gave birth to that beautiful child, but at the same time it seems just like yesterday.

As the big day approaches, and as I plan the big Happy-Birthday-Mia-We-Made-It-And-We-Are-Still-Alive party, I have been reflecting on the last year and thinking about the things that made our lives easier and kept us from losing our minds. The first year is certainly a huge learning experience.

So, I thought I would share a list of the things we couldn't have made it without:

SwaddleMe blankets - These things were awesome. Mia always broke out of her regular blanket swaddles through the night and these things stayed in place. We never had to worry about loose blankets and suffocation. Plus, they kept her nice and cozy and secure.

( sorry for the model baby. For some reason, I don't have a picture of Mia in her swaddle)

Itz-Been - This little gadget makes an awesome gift especially for the breastfeeding mother. Even though I couldn't breast feed like I planned, this sucker was a sanity saver in those early days when you are so sleep deprived you couldn't remember your own name, let alone the last time the baby was fed. This thing give you the time between feedings, diaper changes, naps, and meds. Plus, if you are breast feeding, it has a switch that lets you know which side you used last feeding.

This Book - Hands down, this little book was the best thing we used all year. I kid you not, during those awful colic months, the strategies in this book were the cure. As soon as we applied them, it was like a switch was flipped. After a couple of weeks of poor Mia's wails and our stress increasing by the day, we couldn't get this book fast enough. As soon as it came in the mail, we ripped it open and, while Mia wailed, Gabe quickly skimmed though the book and read all the important stuff. We followed each step and within minutes we found instant relief. GET THIS BOOK for anyone having a baby. Trust me. They will love you forever.

Baby Bjorn - Probably the second biggest help to us was this thing. Actually, it was more of a help for Gabe than me. For months, he would put Mia in it every night during her fussiest time (right before bed). He would pace the basement for an hour every night and Mia was happy as a clam. It allowed all of us to relax a bit after a long day. To this day, Gabe will pull it out in an emergency despite the fact that she is so heavy I think it is going to bust at the seams.
Bumbo - Many, many days, the Bumbo allowed me to get things done around the house while keeping Mia happy. It really helped her gain strength to be able to sit on her own too. We definitely got a lot of use out of this puppy. Again, a great gift.

Mesh bags - Oh boy, don't leave home without them! It's all about pacifying the kiddo, and these things do the job. Before they are able to eat solid foods, you can stick different kinds of food in these little mesh bags (apples, bananas, pears...etc) and they can mash it up with their gums and suck out the pulp through the mesh. These are a big help when you want to go out to eat or have long drives in the car. It keeps them busy and feels good on their teething gums. Now that she is older, she doesn't have much interest in them anymore, but they were great while they lasted.

Binkies - These need no explanation. Love 'em. Some people are against these suckers (no pun intended), but they are life savers to us.
Pooh Blankies - Oh how Mia loves her Pooh blankies. We got one as a gift and she loved it so much we went and bought three more. She can't go to sleep without snuggling with it. It is definitely her "woobie". Now, one has a permanent home at her daycare. In fact, just today, her sitter told me that she cannot live without it. And don't even think of trying to a look-alike. She knows her woobies. I know we will have the "woobie" talk someday (a little throw back to an 80's flick - can you remember?).

Halo SleepSacks - once Mia outgrew her swaddle blankets around 3 months, I still didn't feel comfortable using loose blankets on her. These are the perfect solution. They provide the warmth of the blanket, without the worry of suffocation. I never have to worry about it coming loose and inadvertently getting around her face. The fleece one is plenty warm enough on a cold night and the organic cotton ones are nice and cool for the hot days. We still use these today and probably will for a while. They are a little pricey, but definitely worth the money for the peace of mind.

Binkie + Sleepsack + Pooh Blankie = Trifecta

(she looks kinda weird here. She just woke up from her nap and wasn't happy about a camera in her face.)

And finally,

My Husband - I thank God everyday for this man. He is my best friend, my soul mate, and my savior over the last 12 months. He stepped up and took the reins the first six weeks while I was so sick from the terrible rash I got from my epidural. He stayed up through the night with Mia so I could get some sleep and heal. He suffered through the majority of Mia's colic episodes while I was a blubbering, hormonal mess. He takes over every week night so I can get dinner ready and take a break, and makes sure I can sleep in on the weekends and refuel for the next week. I couldn't have asked for a better husband/father. I certainly have a new respect for single mom's. I don't know how they do it and keep their sanity.

And there you have it! Our must-have list for baby's first year. Whew.

Home Improvement

Ever since we moved into this house in the Spring of 2006, our living room has been sparsely furnished. In a way, I kind of liked it. It looked nice and clean and big, but not very functional. As time has gone by, and we continue to host lots of guests each year, we became increasingly aware that we have little seating space. When people come over, we usually gather in the kitchen where there is a table and chairs. Or we lean on the kitchen counters for hours and talk. Our feet get a little tired when that happens. But, we could never justify the expense of more furniture, so we just dealt with it.

Now, with Mia's first birthday (wow!) coming up, we began to realize that with all the family coming for the big celebration, we had major problem. No seating! That is when we decided to go ahead and make the plunge, contribute again to the economy, and buy furniture. But this time, it wouldn't be the warehouse furniture we have purchased in the past (and regretted it). This time, we were determined to buy good, by-golly, last-twenty-lifetimes furniture.

So about 6 weeks ago, we found what we were looking for and after two weeks of agonizing (well, I agonized) over upholstery choices we purchased a love seat, chair and ottoman from a local manufacturer. I have to say, the whole order was a bit nerve racking for me. What if we didn't like the upholstery or the other details? I didn't like purchasing without seeng it first, but I had faith it would turn out great. We couldn't WAIT to get them. 6 weeks seemed forever away. We both had been daydreaming of this for years.

Yesterday was delivery day. It couldn't have worked out more perfectly. Mia was at daycare so I could get everything ready and clean. I was so excited I could have jumped out of my skin! All morning I flitted around, cleaning and cleaning, trying to keep myself busy to make the time move a bit faster.

Finally, they called to say they were 30 minutes out. It was the longest 30 minutes of my life. And the most productive. I hadn't been this excited since we bought our house!! (other than my daughter, but that was a different kind of excitement).

After what seemed like ages, we heard the rumble of the delivery truck.
I am jumping up at down at this point!
They're here! They're here!


Oh boy! Oh Boy! OH BOY!


If my hands were not full with the camera, I probably would have been jumping and clapping and embarrassing my husband. It's GORGEOUS!!!


I think Gabe is pretty happy too. The look on his face says he is daydreaming of all the reading he will do on this couch. Yea right. Who has time for leisurely reading?

This is when I really went to work. I had to put the room together and make all my dreams come true.

Viola!

Now I can't stop staring at it. I walk into the room just to stare for a few minutes. Is it weird to be so obsessed with furniture?

I need to get out more.

Sunday Best

A couple of Sunday's ago, Gabe and I vowed to make it to church. See, we have had a New Year's resolution to go to church more. But having a baby sort of puts a kink into those plans since her nap time always seems to fall right when church is supposed to start. And, being total saps, we cannot bring ourselves to wake that slumbering angel out of a peaceful sleep to drag her to a church nursery where she will torture the attendant to death with her crankiness.

But that Sunday, we had a plan. We would get up early enough to make it to the early service that was before her nap. Well, we got up, got dressed in our Sunday best. However, somehow, we were running too late to make it to the 8:30 service at our normal church.
Darn it!
"Well, the Lutheran church has a 9am service", I offered. We have been thinking about trying out different churches ever since the pastor that we loved got transferred.

So off we go to the Lutheran church. But we get there and things just don't feel right. It was a very small church with a sanctuary the size of my living room. The people there were not very friendly or welcoming. It just felt wrong. So we turned around and went back to the car feeling a bit defeated.

As we drove out of the parking lot, we looked at each other and thought the same thing.
"We got up early, and got dressed up for this. We are going to church, I don't care where it is!!"

So, we went to Mass.