A lot to Say...

I have so many things that I have been planning to blog about but the fact that I haven't had any videos or pictures to upload with them has kept me from doing so and now I am overwhelmed with the catch up that needs to happen!
First of all, I think I have this disease when it comes to videoing my child. I start videoing to catch a certain scene and then if she is cooperating I think, why not try and get a video with all her tricks in one. So I proceed to ask her to do this or that and she doesn't and I keep trying and the video gets longer and more boring and longer and longer and I don't know how to edit them to be concise. So, with that disclaimer out there for all to read... I will post the following videos. Each one has a segment of action and the rest is boring pleas for action. haha. Enjoy!

The other night I was whistling while feeding Stella and this is what she started doing...

whistling from Lindsey Lewis on Vimeo.

Take II on the tricks

tricks from Lindsey Lewis on Vimeo.

Starting to walk... sort of

Walker from Lindsey Lewis on Vimeo.

As you can see, our little SJ is growing up quickly!! People comment all the time about how much she has grown just in the weeks that they haven't seen her. It's true. I notice on a regular basis that her hair is thicker, her face looks older and she is looking more and more like a toddler. At 11 months, Stella weighed 23lbs and I can't believe we have only two weeks until she is a year old. Up to this month I have been eagerly peeking ahead at that one year mark. At one year the allergies are not such an issue with foods. The nursing will taper and stop... but even if we are still nursing, there's no pressure b/c I know there are other things for her to eat. At a year I feel like there are so many fears that just melt away. However, now that I am staring that year smack in the face, I'm okay with walking slowly for the next two weeks and enjoying the baby in Stella Jane. I think she is enjoying the baby too b/c she has wanted to be held and started waking up at all hours of the morning lately for no real reason. I think it might be teething again or maybe those darn allergies that won't leave her be.
Stella is pulling up and cruising around the house on everything. Her favorite thing seems to be to get right under me while I am cooking or cleaning and hang on to my legs. It's not convenient but it sure is cute. She has figured out how to open cabinets and push chairs and boxes around the house. She is still taking two naps but usually one of them isn't that great, so I see what's coming.
Drew and I celebrated our Four Year Anniversary a couple of weeks ago! We didn't do much since we already took our vacation to Tahoe but we did close on our new house on our anniversary. A friend was keeping Stella during the signing b/c it was her nap time and Drew was so awesome and called her and asked her in advance if he could take me out to lunch afterwards. So we went to Macaroni Grill, which we never do, and gorged ourselves on bread and pasta. YUM! I was so excited about our lunch date I was okay with not having much more celebration. However, when I arrived to pick up Stella there was an edible arrangement on the table... for me! Drew had it sent to her house knowing I would be there. I have ALWAYS wanted one of these!!! It was so great. That night I made pizza and apple crisp (with blue bell!), which are two of his "favorites" (aka he likes them a lot but doesn't really have favorites). It was a really sweet day.
Since then we have been working on the house and we went on a road trip to southern TN for a wedding and Stella did amazing in the car. She took a nap on both of the long legs, which was unexpected and amazing! We got a great deal on a hotel and got a lot of unexpected friend hang out time while we were there... so it was a great weekend too! Then this week we went to a local farm and picked apples... a first for Stella. I made some amazing apple streusel muffins and have a few more apple tricks up my sleeve!
Now we are in high gear to get this house fixed up, have Stella's Fabulous Fall Festival birthday party and move in!
You can also be praying for me, I have some nose issues again and they are pretty severe it seems this time and I am trying a new natural remedy that I am really hoping works out! Thanks!!
Apple picking pictures to come!
Blessings

Don't Feed the Wildlife...

He couldn't resist... and that little bird followed us around the rest of the trip beggin' for more... at least she is sooo cute!

More Vaca...the boys and SJ

Back Again!

This summer has been a whirlwind of travel for this family, especially SJ and myself. Drew and I were hoping to get away on a post-weaning trip just the two of us but the more we thought about it, the more we realized that the timing wasn't going to really work out and we might as well wait to go until after his vacation days renew in the winter. So, what to do with those set aside days? FAMILY VACATION!
I don't know what we were thinking but in a crazy instant we booked tickets to Lake Tahoe, NV. It was a whim and a lark and it turned into our first ever family vacation (at least first with just us three). Drew's bff and his lovely wife and son (same age as SJ) live on the lake and so we stayed with them for a week.
Vacation is a little different when you are traveling with a baby. I thought I had prepared my expectations but you can never be fully prepared for being woken up at 1am, 4am and 6am on a regular basis on your VACATION. Vacations are supposed to be restful! It took almost the entire week to get SJ to nap well and sleep through the night but that aside.. it was a flawless trip. SJ did amazingly well on our long flights and she was a trooper through out the trip.
Some of the highlights for me were (yes most of them involve food): roasting marshmallows for a breakfast appetizer, finding a bunch of Jamba Juice stores, In and Out Burger for the first and second time ever, hiking around the Emerald Bay area and putting the babes in the lake, kayaking on Lake Tahoe, dinner with the camp director and his wife (real tex mex for dinner too), talking about babies and laughing. Even though we didn't sleep a lot, we did get to rest a lot. It was chilly the first few days and so we just stayed indoors and chatted and then spend the last few days hiking, walking and hittin up the beach!
I might go into more detail later but for now, just enjoy the pictures.
Also... we are closing on the house this month! woo hoo!

THE House....

We had an inspection today on a new (to us) house... there were a few unexpected issues (read: huge leak coming out of the dining room fan when the water was turned on) but nothing that our handy plumber and handyman husband couldn't/can't handle!
The pictures are no longer posted online so I snapped a few to give you an idea.
We are planning to paint to door (color still in debate), paint the shutters black, paint all the walls a neutral shade (including the upstairs wood panelling) and do a deep clean in the bathrooms.
There's also a pic of SJ in her new big girl seat... she comes with the house too!

When you walk in the front door you are in the living room and can walk straight into the dining room and to the left of that is the kitchen. Off the immediate right are the stairs leading to the second floor.





Off the right side of the living room/dining room area there are two bedrooms and a full bathroom. They basically only need a good clean and some fresh paint




This is the upstairs... two rooms with wood panelling and a full bathroom. The rooms need paint but are really cute with large closets, attic space and built in drawers, shelves and desks.




This is the median/cul de sac and pictures of the back "yard"

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9.....10!!

We made it to 10 months! We are on the final dash to the one year marker.
This month has been so eventful. A trip to Duxbury, MA and a trip to Texas and a vacation to Lake Tahoe! Stella is truly one of the most traveling babies I have ever met. She does fairly well but with increased mobility comes increased agitation on plane rides, which is not much fun.
Before we went to Texas, SJ had some sort of cold/allergies and after a week they cleared up and all was well. The day after we got back from Texas she started up with it again. It's been over a week and the little babe is a cranky, snotty mess!! I'm not really sure what I should do at this point? If I go to the doctor I am pretty sure I will be wasting $20 for him to tell me to wait it out or he will give me some drug that I am not too keen on giving to my little one. I'm just hoping it will clear up soon. Because of the allergies and a very busy schedule naps have been more often a miss than a hit. I don't think that helps her cranky disposition one bit either!
Stella is SUPER mobile these days. She can reach the kitchen counter on her tip toes and the piano and highchair and just about anything else she really sets her mind on. She isn't afraid of falling or rolling (and has the bumps and bruises to prove it)... as long as mommy is near. Remove the mommy and remove all sanity. Same song, 10th verse.
Stella is getting lots of hair and in general assuming a much more big girl look. It's crazy to see her growing from day to day. She is so interested in having a conversation (with lots of hand motions) and looking into every little detail of every little thing. She is into everything!
Because she is still crawling and pulling up on anything she can, I don't have any pictures of her...I am constantly in motion with her and have no time to grab a camera and by the time I do, she is on to something else.
We are inspecting a new house today and so hopefully I'll bring you pictures of the babe and house soon!
Happy 10 Months SJ!

Miscellaneous

There is nothing much to note about SJ but I just felt like giving you a little update on our normal day to day...



This week has been a little bumpier than usual because SJ has had some sort of cold or allergies. I don't know which I would prefer. If it's a cold, it's sad because she is contagious and thus we have to stay pretty quarantined (which we mostly have). However, if it's allergies, it could last months and months or off and on for her entire life. I don't want her to have to go through what I have gone through.... isn't that the main point of nursing for a year and delaying this food and that etc etc...? Either way, it was just another test of my motherhood skills (which are still being refined to say the least). I always feel like this will last forever and then am ashamed of myself when it is over in a mere week or two. SJ stopped taking naps and started waking up earlier and earlier in the mornings and was the fussiest I have seen her in six months or more... I was becoming frazzled. Then today, she slept like normal and has taken two great naps! Oh mommy, when will you learn to chill out!
In a week or so we are traveling back to Texas to hang out with Drew's Gran and the rest of our families. We are hoping to go swimming a lot while we are there. SJ had her first dip in the ocean when we went to Duxbury recently and she liked it. It was so cold and thus we thought she would dislike it but she seemed really pleased the whole time. Can't wait to see her in the pool again.
Last week SJ started pulling up on everything and has become really sturdy on her feet. Today, for the first time, she even let go of what she was holding and stood on her own for a few seconds.
I can't believe that the summer is basically over. Seminary classes start online in a little over a week. I am still very excited but also a little sobered by the amount of work in the syllabus. It's never as bad as it seems right at first. I think I will miss seeing my favorite professor in person and hearing his asides but I'm thankful for the online option at this stage in our lives.
I'm also going to be a teacher's assistant for my good friend and mentor as she homeschools her four children. I am so excited to be able to help her out and also to be able to learn along side her as she teaches, disciplines and loves on her kiddos. I know SJ will also benefit from being around other children so often, especially as she develops more and more... and from being in a more structured play time several times a week. We are going to work with the little girls while the boys are getting more formal schooling. I can't wait.
Then before you know it, SJ will be ONE! I am already planning her party in my head and trying to learn all about this new stage that is fast approaching. I have no idea how to wean or what to feed a one year old or what to occupy her time with etc etc... it's going to be fun!
Here are some pictures from our day to day lately...

sitting on the a/c vent on our hottest day of the year so far... in fact I think the hottest day I've seen in four years here!


teething and standing up at the same time... what talent!



We had to say goodbye to some of our closest friends... Jane and SJ hanging out for lunch/tea one last time