Brandon's Eye Injury

Last night at the gym, Brandon put Amelia on his shoulders and started walking before she could get settled in.  She tried to catch herself by grabbing his eye socket...

He was in a lot of pain, but took some ibuprofen that helped a little bit.  He's not in as much pain today, but it's swollen.  Off to the store for an eye patch! 

Ten things from Tuesday

It's been a while!  I'll do a quick ten things from Tuesday to get back into the swing of things.

1.  I've been taking more pictures of Amelia recently.  She's adorable.

2.  She has 16 teeth now.  Yeah, 16.  It's like I have a toddler or something... It also means that we have to take her to the dentist soon for her first appointment...which I'm dreading.  Every time I brush her teeth, she somehow ends up pinned to the ground screaming while I try to get a good 5 swipes in before she either sucks all the toothpaste off or tries to eat the thing.  Not the best part of the day.

3.  This summer I broke both my elbows, got pregnant and injured my tailbone. I think I need another (real) summer break.

On second thought, I'm done with summer.  

4. Amelia talks now.  Her favorite word is more, which comes out sounding like "mow-uh".  It's adorable and hard to resist. 

5.  I'm pregnant and have been sick for almost 2 whole months.  But you don't want to hear about that.  I'll share more about the good parts of pregnancy once I remember them.

6.  Brandon is back in school which sucks.  After having him home all summer I was SO ready for us to be back to a normal schedule.  Well, let me tell you, the grass isn't always greener on the other side.

7.  Amelia makes animal noises.  She's a pro at the elephant, donkey, cow, and monkey noises.  I think she might have to be an elephant for Halloween.  But, I'll probably change my mind 50 times before we get a costume.

8.  This happened a while ago, but is still worth mentioning.  Brandon surprised me for my birthday with a dinner cruise!  It was super fun.  And a little chilly.  Here I am on the Willamette River in front of the Portland Oregon sign (that you can't really see).  I love that sign.

9.  We go to the zoo, OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) and the Portland Children's Museum a lot.  Especially in the rainy winter when outdoor parks and activities aren't feasible.  Here's Amelia on the go at OMSI.  They have a forest area with chipmunk costumes.  So cute!  Maybe she could be a chipmunk for Halloween...

10.  I go to Florida at the end of this month...childless! Well, kind of.  Amelia is staying home with Brandon while I attend Rachel's wedding.  I'm super, super excited.  My mom is flying in from Ohio, too, which is going to be a ton of fun.  I can't wait! 

Memorial Day

Going through security on the way home from Ohio, I cried.  I've been known to cry at some pretty ridiculous things.  Insert incredibly cheesy political ad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7oyDsebJrQ

No joke, I cried my eyes out on the way to work one morning during this commercial.  It was a sight to be seen.  

This time around, I wasn't pregnant and had a little more reason for tearing up.  Here's what happened.  When going through security, an older woman checked our IDs and asked me to wait an extra second.  I obeyed, partly because she asked nicely and partly because I'm super scared of TSA agents and what they're allowed to do.  A few seconds later, she stood up from her chair, looked Brandon in the eye and gave the most heartfelt thank you for the sacrifices he's made for our country I've ever heard.  She then looked at me and "thank you for the supporting this young man and the sacrifices you've made for your family." I couldn't help but tear up a little.  

Here's the funny thing.  I haven't even made any sacrifices.  Not compared to any other military family I know.  But I still cried.  I don't have to explain the kinds of sacrifices others have made.  I think we all know.  Instead, I'd just like to extend the same sincere, heartfelt thank you that the woman in the airport gave to us.  

And share a cute picture, of course.

Summer has arrived here in Portland and at my mom's house here in Loveland, Ohio.  It's been a while since my last post...and I'm just now learning how to used my iPad (thanks, mom!) to blog.

My baby turns 1 tomorrow and I can't believe how the time has flown!  We're in Ohio to spend time with the 'rents and celebrate!  I'll be sure to post pictures of our celebrations :)

In the meantime, here's a review of our trip so far :

Mom and Carl convinced us to stay for two weekends so Carl could teach Brandon how to use all of his fancy tools.  I picked out a few things for them to build, and I can't believe how good everything has turned out!

This was the first night of work.  It's going to be a cheaper, better quality, prettier, more meaningful version of this Potterybarn tree:  http://www.potterybarnkids.com 

Carl printed the picture, drew a grid over it and a huge piece of wood, and then drew it to scale.  Here Brandon is cutting the tree out.

And Carl looking on.

And, of course, no woodworking project could be complete without a little Phil Collins on the radio.  

While the boys have been busy in the garage, the girls have been busy playing and shopping.  Who knew that Plato's Closet actually had cute clothes for cheap? I'm talking super cheap.  This is one of my new favorite photos, and I just happen to be wearing a top from Plato's Closet that only cost $4.80.  No joke.

Needless to say, we've been back to Plato's Closet a few times.  I've also been taking advantage of Chick Fil-A while we're here.  Oh, Chick Fil-A, how I've missed you.  I'm on vacation, so it's ok to eat out every other day, right?  Yeah, right.  Good thing my parents have an elliptical downstairs.  

Til tomorrow!

Ten things from Thursday

1. Amelia and I have crossed the country and made it to Florida!  I was incredibly nervous about traveling with her (typical), but she did great (also typical).  We used a ticket that my mom had and were able to fly first class!  Amelia was happy about this:

 

So, was I.  This was my dinner.  And yes, that's cheesecake at the top left of the tray.

2.  Brandon is very sad that we're not around, but he's got a lot of studying to do.  He pulled an all nighter a few days after we left.  I'm glad we skipped out on that!  He has requested lots of pictures to stay up to date.  Here she is the morning after we flew.  Well rested and happy! 

3.   Grandma got Amelia some boots with the fur. 

 4.  Uncle Braden came to visit.  

5.  Amelia finally got to wear her sunglasses.  On her way to the old person's home to play bridge.  

6.  She had a Ray Charles moment. 

 

 7.  Amelia is eating lots of solid food, everyday.  Her poop smells now.

8. She's also saying (gurgling) "mamamama" and "dadada".  She has no idea what it means, but I love it.  I'm pretty sure she said "Hi!" too, but no one else is convinced. 

9.  She loves the water. Before we flew to Florida I took her to the pool at our gym and she learned how to splash.  Now that she is sitting up on her own she also loves to take baths.  

10. Grandma got her a bouncer too.  She loves it. 

Hair loss and what they don't tell you...

I cannot believe the amount of hair I've lost post-partum.  Just like many other seemingly strange things that accompany pregnancy and mommyhood, this is normal.  While it might be nothing to worry about, it's very disconcerting.

Check this out:

Um, yeah.  My brother has got nothing on me.  Look at that receding hairline!  Thankfully, it's growing back.  See all the little new ones?  Grow fast little ones, grow fast.

Another thing I didn't know about?  Many women have tailbone issues during/after labor.  Some break their tailbone during labor and others just have pain and discomfort post-partum.  Thankfully, I didn't break mine.  Unfortunately, it's not in the same place it used to be which is painful at times.  Here's me waiting for my x-ray.  

It's been a rough road to recovery after Amelia's birth.  My pregnancy was fantastic, but since my delivery, things have proven to be difficult.   I was told after my delivery that it probably would have been better/easier to have had a c-section.  I was told not to walk for 3 to 4 weeks and was in a lot of pain. 

I have had tailbone pain for months, been to the doctor twice, and am now going to try physical therapy. 

I went through all of this to say, I hope my hair beats the odds the same way the rest of my body has.  Grow fast little ones, grow fast.  

Best smoothie ever

Our gym has a peanut butter banana smoothie that totally rocks.  It is light, peanut-y and just the right amount of sweet.  It's perfect.  Except for the fact that it costs $3.50 (for a small!).

After some trial and error, I've created my own (pretty darn good) version.

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

1.5 frozen bananas
3T vanilla yogurt
1/2 c milk (I use whole)
1/3 c peanut butter
1/2 t honey

Put all ingredients in blender and let it do all the work.  Pour and enjoy!