I Don't Stink!!

Conversation between Lexi and me this morning:

Lexi: "Mama, will you read this book to me?"
Me: "Oh, sweetie, I wish I could, but I have to go take a shower."
Lexi: "No, Mama! You don't stink!!"

I tell ya - the compliments that kid comes up with - they just warm the heart. :)

When It Rains It Pours

You know how sometimes you go through periods where you think, "What else could possibly go wrong?" and then you immediately regret asking that because the world tends to respond? Yea, we've had one of those weeks. It all started last weekend when Ahren and I decided that we needed a weekend away. Both of us have been very busy at work, and I've had additional stresses that have really been getting me down, so a weekend in Vermont with my parents and some friends seemed like the perfect cure.
The weekend started on Friday night when we took the three hour ride up. It's a nice ride, and we usually stop halfway for dinner. When we got to the restaurant we very quickly discovered that Lexi was coming down with a cold. This did not bode well for the rest of the weekend...she's a trooper during the day when she's sick, but nighttime is a different story. Luckily there is a natural food store in Waitsfield where I was able to stock up on our usual cold supplies - which I had obviously left at home! The weekend turned out to be okay...it was full of little annoyances (a strange daycare situation, an odd experience at our previously favorite teddy bear store, bad service at a restaurant, and our poor friends having one problem after another in their condo...) but for the most part it was nice, and Lexi did really enjoy getting to spend the whole weekend with Gigi and Poppy.
We hadn't even gotten on the road for home before some work issues immediately handed back any stress that I had managed to shake over the weekend...I really need to turn e-mail off while on vacation.
But it was our return home that things really spun out of control. We walked in our door (with Lexi screaming in tow - she didn't want to come home with us, she wanted to go to Gigi and Poppy's house) and noticed right away that it was FREEZING in the house! We (Ahren) had forgotten to fill the boiler with water and therefore we had no heat for who knows how long! It was 54 degrees and it was very uncomfortable. After a small issue with getting the boiler to come back on, we were finally able to get the house warmed up...5 hours later. Brr.
The next problem was the biggest problem...Peter and Charlie had broken into the trash bag that Ahren was using for the trash from our new blinds. They ate...oh...about 35 elastic bands....and then puked most of them up all around the house. I'd guess we found about 30 of them in little wet piles just about anywhere you could imagine. Elastic bands are like arsenic to cats...if they don't make it through all the way they can cause big trouble, which was immediately our concern with Peter. We spent the next four days cleaning up little piles of puke from all over the house. On Thursday, concerned about a possible blockage, I finally broke down and brought him to the vet. She recommended withholding food and water for 24 hours as she suspected that he simply had an irritation that needed to heal. Now, we have two very different cats. If we tried to take food away from Charlie he would probably just shrug his little kitty shoulders and think, "well, I guess I'm not eating today." This is not the case with Peter. Peter lives to eat. We were back in the house for about 30 seconds before he started searching around for food. After not finding any, he took to following me around crying...begging. When I wouldn't give in, he finally went upstairs and sulked under our bed. Five hours into our torture therapy I gave in and asked Ahren to feed him. Of course I regretted this when he was still puking the next day, and I felt like too much of a tool to call the vet and ask what to do now... So, we waited it out, and on Saturday he was like a new cat! He was purring, meowing, running around the house...he was back. Confident that he was done making icky piles around the house, I spent the morning washing all the floors, and area rugs. It was about a three hour project, but I really wanted to make sure that every last spot was gone. All day Peter was great - eating, drinking, playing...fine. This morning we came down stairs and into the kitchen and what do we find? Peter puke all over the kitchen floor AND the carpet that I had just washed the day before. SLAP! Ugh. I think I'm going to move to Aruba.
Yup, it's just been one of those weeks...one thing after another where it actually makes me feel like I'm being punished for something. But, I'm lucky to have the comic relief of Lexi to lighten the mood. She's actually started to make jokes now...she tries to do knock knock jokes, but only does, "Knock knock...now you say 'who's there'" and then laughs hysterically. I never get to find out who's there... She likes putting funny things on her head (my hat, my credit card, etc.) and then getting my attention with a big goofy grin. The other night in Target she put my credit card on her head and said, "Look mama! Card head!" Yes, she's funny. Funny and observant...sometimes much to my dismay. At that same Target trip we were walking around the store and she says, "Look mama, p.j.s!" "P.J.s?" I replied, not knowing what she was talking about since we were in the grocery section. "Where?" "Right there" she says pointing to a man who was walking towards us wearing...well...p.j.s. Ugh!! I was quite embarrassed and immediately pointed out the exciting display of ice cream down another aisle. A few minutes later we were walking towards that same man. He saw us coming and turned on his heel and went down another aisle. Yes, the days of being completely embarrassed by my extremely observant child are here.
In other good news...Ahren was recently named a "key talent" at State Street. We are not 100% sure what this means other than the fact that he will now be required to attend all sorts of HR workshops. We are hoping that it means that his importance to the company will be accurately reflected at raise and bonus time...our fingers are crossed. Either way, it's certainly an honor, and we are very proud of him. He often tells me about his meetings with the CFO and Treasurer...face to face meetings where they are asking him for information and he is providing it. The other day I asked, "So, when you talk about the CFO and Treasurer, do you mean the CFO and Treasurer of all of State Street?" He gave me that look that husbands give their wives and said, "yes." "Oh..." I said. "That's cool."

Lexi's First Haircut!!

I have the best hairstylist in the whole world. After years of uneven haircuts by girls who were out drinking until 3am the night before, I made the fantastic discovery that my friend Kelly LeCours is a hairsylist. Kelly is one of the most beloved members of MVS and in her "early" years in the club was affectionately referred to as 5K Kelly, as she never wanted to race more than a 5K...oh how times have changed. :)

Kelly has been cutting my hair for about a year and a half, and I love it. It's great to be able to talk running and parenting with your hairstylist (she's a mom of two lovely girls) rather than drinking and clubbing. I just adore Kelly, can you tell? Today I had an appointment with her and admitted to her that I've known for some time that Lexi needs a haircut, but I've been timid about doing it, and would never trust anyone with her hair besides Kelly. She told me she would be happy to do it, and would even have time today while my color was processing. So, I called Ahren and he brought Lexi right down.

Kelly and Lexi both did a fantastic jobs. Lexi stood very still and didn't fidgit at all. Kelly had her "help" by holding some clips and a hairbrush, jobs which Lexi took very seriously. Kelly took a couple of inches off, immediately making Lexi look years older!! I'm sure I had the hardest time, it's always so hard seeing new evidence of your baby growing up, but I didn't cry!! It was a great day, and Lexi is very proud of her new "do".

Here are some pictures of the big event...

9/19/06 - Our Letter To Thank Children's

September 19, 2006

Dear Doctors, Nurses and Staff of Boston Children’s Hospital,

On July 3, 2006 our family began the hardest journey we have ever taken. That was the day that we took our then 10 ½ month old daughter, Alexandra to see Dr. Peter Raffalli after insisting to her pediatrician that we were sure something was not quite right with her development. She was already in an early intervention program for her gross motor delays, and while we were seeing progress, we were still concerned. Honestly expecting Dr. Raffalli to look her over and tell us she was fine, we were stunned to hear him tell us that the hemangioma on her lower back, the same hemangioma that several doctors had seen and assured us was nothing but a birthmark, could be a marker for spina bifida or tethered cord syndrome. While assuring us that the possibility was rare, he insisted that we do a bit of blood work and send her to Boston for an MRI.

It was from that very moment that I truly realized how blessed we are to have Children’s Hospital in our backyard. We did take Lexi to have not only an MRI, but an echocardiogram as well. Both experiences were trying, as parents, but also amazingly comforting. Every doctor, nurse, and staff we met along the way were comforting, patient, kind, and professional. We never felt rushed, pressured into doing things we were not comfortable with, or ignored. Dr. Raffalli called us with the results of the MRI the same day of the test. The results showed that Lexi had a “fatty filum” which was causing her cord to be tethered. Dr. Raffalli spent several minutes on the phone with me, explaining the findings, and what the next steps should be. He then referred us to the best neurosurgeon in the world (at least we think so!), Dr. Edward Smith. Within a few weeks we were in Dr. Smith’s office where he explained to us the risks and benefits of repairing the tethered cord surgically. While no parent wants to send their child into an operating room for any reason, much less neurosurgery, Dr. Smith made us feel incredible comfortable with our decision to go ahead with the surgery. Further diagnostic tests and the surgery were all scheduled within three weeks of our first appointment with Dr. Smith!

The day of Lexi’s surgery was by far the most difficult day of our lives. The nurses in the pre-op area did a fantastic job preparing us for what was ahead, and answering all of our questions. The morning of the surgery, while I was weak with worry, every member of the surgical team came in to introduce themselves to our family…what an INCREDIBLE comfort knowing every person who will be by your child’s side during their operation! I was allowed to carry Lexi into the operating room and hold her as she fell asleep. While that was so hard, I remember how kind the anesthesiologist was as she told me that I did a great job, and was so helpful to them. After we were escorted to the waiting area, I was so thrilled to know that there was yet another team of nurses who had the ability to call the operating room any time I needed an update! I can’t think of a way to make a parent more comfortable!!! I will never forget seeing Dr. Smith’s face peek through the glass of the waiting area, with a great smile on his face. I practically knocked him over when he came in to tell us how the operation went. The surgery was a great success, and before long we were allowed into the PACU to hold Lexi’s hand as she woke up. Not surprising, at this point, the nurses in the PACU were fantastic as well!! They were so kind, asking us about Lexi, helping us to make sure she was comfortable, and getting us to our room as soon as possible.

Once in our room on 9 North, Mary Lynne greeted us warmly, first making sure that Lexi was okay and then making sure we were okay. She told us where we could find things to make us comfortable, and also told us that we could both stay with Lexi during the night, immediately allaying one of my biggest concerns. From that moment on we were surround by fantastic nurses for the rest of our stay – Amerika, Amy, Jodi, Jill and Mary Lynne took such great care of us, that we were almost sad to go…almost. J While we were there for just over 48 hours, we were visited four times by the neurosurgery team, twice by Dr. Smith himself, and twice by the resident neurosurgeon when we had minor concerns. Anytime we had a question or concern the nurses, as well as other staff on the floor, were in our room immediately with a smile on their face, ready to help us. It was truly the best experience I could imagine having in a hospital.

Since the surgery Lexi has been amazing! It was about 48 hours before she was right back to her old tricks of crawling around, laughing, pointing, etc. When I’ve had minor concerns, Dr. Smith has responded immediately with the kindest and most comforting demeanor. We have no doubt that we made the right decision, and we are so thankful to everyone who was there along the way.

While we were waiting for the operation the morning of the surgery, a nun came in and said a prayer for Lexi. Part of her prayer said “...today his hands (referring to Dr. Smith) are Your hands…” I truly feel that all of you, at Children’s Hospital, have been blessed to do incredible work for children. And we, the parents of every child who has set foot inside that hospital, are blessed to be touched by you.

Thank you for everything that you have done, and continue to do for our family. You will forever be in our hearts!!

With love,


Crissy, Ahren and Lexi Lippman, and family

9/10/2006 - Lexi Comes Home!

We were in the hospital for two nights with Lexi - two very uncomfortable nights. We were so happy to be released on Sunday. Lexi was amazingly back in daycare that next week!! Of course, it helped that her Fadia is like a third grandmother to her - we knew she would be in good hands.

Here is the e-mail I sent when we got home:
Hi Everyone,

I wanted to send along a note to let you all know that Lexi came home from the hospital today!! She did very well during the surgery, and all went completely as planned. She had no trouble staying flat for about 22 hours (the morphine helped!) and once she was able to move about she was fairly mobile within a few hours. By last night she was crawling all over her crib, laughing, talking, pointing to her balloons and dolls, etc. She did very well during the night, and there was no question that she was ready to come home today. Right now she's just taking Tylenol for the pain, and seems to be doing fine - although we do have codeine just in case.

Thank you all so much for the e-mails, phone calls, balloons, flowers, stuffed animals, etc. It really made our stay much more enjoyable, and Lexi much happier.

It's so amazing for Ahren and me to imagine that this entire year of worry may finally be over. We found the problem, fixed it, and now we can finally move on. We are really thrilled about that. Thank you all for being such a fantastic support team through everything!

Hopefully we'll be seeing all of you very soon!

Love,
Crissy, Ahren and Lexi :)

9/8/06 - The Day of The Surgery Finally Arrives...

I can't explain the emotions of the days leading up to Lexi's surgery, or that day itself. The morning of her surgery, Ahren, my mom and I drove Lexi to Boston. Everything moved along as it was supposed to. While we were waiting in pre-op I wondered if I would have the strength to take her into the operating room. They were very strict about only one parent going in, and I could only stay until she was asleep. Dr. Smith came by to talk to us, and I remember joking around with him. When it was time to take her in, I carried her. When we entered the operating room I remember thinking how massive and sterile it seemed. Lexi immediately started crying when the nurses touched her. They asked me to sing her a song, and how I got through an entire verse of "You are my sunshine" is completely beyond me. By the time I got to the end of the song she was asleep. They told me to give her a kiss, and then I was escorted out. The nurse who escorted me kept telling me how amazed she was that I was keeping my composure. The moment I saw Ahren I burst into tear, and again when we met my mom in the waiting room. Children's is fantastic - they have aids who can call into the operating room and ask for updates anytime you want them too! Of course, we didn't bother them, but we did get messages from time to time that everything was going well. When I saw Dr. Smith turn the corner and walk into the room I think I nearly tackled him. He brought us to another room where he told us that everything went perfectly well, and that the surgery was a success.

Ahren and I were allowed to sit with her in recovery, and about two hours later we were brought to her room where my parents joined us. My dad was the only one who thought to take a picture...with his cell phone:

We were in the hospital for two nights. Ahren "slept" on a chair, and I "slept" in Lexi's crib with her. We shared a room with another couple and their child who'd had surgery to allow his skull to grow (he'd been born with his skull plates fused, I think?). They had no family or visitors and I know they had a harder time than we were having. Being with them, and walking around the floor seeing the other children and their families made me so thankful for such a "small" problem that could be fixed with such great results.

The next two posts are the e-mail we sent when we got home, and then the letter we sent to Children's Hospital a few days later...

August 14th - A Visit With Our Neurosurgeon

Lexi's Neurosurgeon was like our very own McDreamy. He looked like he was about 15, but I quickly fell in love with him. He was kind, clear, and just the best doctor I've ever worked with. We felt very confident (well, as confident as we could have been) putting our daughter's life in his hands.

"So, here is today’s update… The information that we were given from the neurosurgeon (VERY nice, by the way) was not too different from what we have been told. He did explain the “tethered” and “attached” thing to us so that we finally understand it. He said that people use the term tethered to mean two different things… While her filum IS attached (which many people refer to as being “tethered”) it is not pulling the cord below where it should be. He said it’s like on a sailboat…you can have the boom tethered to the boat loosely so that it can still swing back and forth, or tightly so that it can’t move at all. Right now the spinal cord can still move up and down the spinal column, but, because the spinal column (the bones) grows faster than the cord, any time she has a growth spurt it could cause the cord to become too tight…which could then, in turn, cause all sorts of neurological damage. So, he highly recommended (and we agreed) that surgery is the way to go…

He did show us the images from the MRI (which was pretty cool) and he showed us where you can see the fatty filum and how it is attached… Well…he showed us a white speck on the screen and told us that was what it was…but it was still interesting. Also, when he looked at the hemangioma on her spine he said he wished he had medical students in that day because it was a textbook marker for tethered cord.

This is what we were told about the surgery:
It will take about 45 minutes. They will make about a one inch incision in her lower back and put a little microscope in there to see the filum. They will then snip the part of the fat that is attached, put two stitches in the cord, two stitches in her back, and send her off to recovery where we will be waiting. She will have to stay in the hospital for one or two days (depending on how well she is doing) where she will have to lay flat on her back. Then, once we bring her home, she can pretty much go back to regular activities!! (Which, by the way, includes CRAWLING now!!) The risks are VERY low, and the biggest risk – neurological damage – is the very same risk we are trying to avoid with the surgery. So, we all feel VERY confident in our decision.

Before the surgery we will have a urodynamics test to check her bladder function. This is really just to see if it is normal or not. If not, it will be good to see if the surgery improves the bladder functions. If it’s normal, it will be a nice baseline for the future – if she has trouble potty training, we can test her again to see if the function has gotten worse. If so, it’s a sign that the filum has re-attached.

The urodynamics test will likely be scheduled in the next three or four weeks, and then the surgery will be about a week later. We will have actual dates by Friday, we’re told.

Here is a link to the Children’s website that explains what I just wrote in a much clearer way. http://www.childrenshospital.org/clinicalservices/Site2163/mainpageS2163P0.html

Aside from all the craziness, Lexi continues to do so well. She is crawling, talking up a storm, and just the happiest baby on earth. We’ll be very happy when all of this is behind us."

After Weeks of Waiting, Answers and More Questions

On July 26, 2006 Lexi had her MRI. It was another scary day that gave us answers which prompted more questions... Interestingly, a lot of this information is wrong...it took the neurosurgeon to finally explain it to us...her cord was technically tethered.

July 26th
"Lexi had her MRI today. This was a bit of a last minute surprise, but a good thing in the end. She did GREAT!! She was able to be sedated orally rather than with an IV, and came out of her little nap pretty much on her own, smiling and talking up a storm. We were at Children’s for several hours, but the actual MRI only took about 20 minutes.

Tonight we got a call from Dr. Raffalli, who is the Neurologist who ordered the MRI. He told us that while the results did rule out all of the really awful things we were looking for, they did find something funny. Lexi has a fatty filum, which is basically a part of her spinal cord that should be thin, but instead is thick. This is often a cause of tethered cord which means that the cord is pulled down below where it should be and causes neurological problems, however her cord is not tethered (and I think they are unclear about whether it could become tethered in the future, but I can’t really remember what he told me about that). But, we have to meet with a Neurosurgeon (appt. yet to be scheduled) to discuss our options. From what I understand, there has been some recent debate about whether it makes more sense to wait and see if the child has problems before doing surgery or if they should just do the surgery right away. From what I gather, *if* this at some point caused some neurological problems, they may not be able to fix the problems with surgery, so I guess some feel that it’s safer to just do the surgery. Also, apparently of all the tethered cord surgeries, this is the easiest and least invasive to do. I guess they just go in and clip it, and since the filum has no neurological function, there are no side effects to cutting it.

So, obviously this is really disjointed information. I forgot about 90% of what Dr. Raffalli told me 30 seconds after hanging up the phone, and then tried to do some research of my own to figure things out. We won’t know much more until we meet with the surgeon, and I’m very unclear about how quickly that appointment will be scheduled.

It’s scary, and now, of course, we’re going to be faced with some really tough decisions, but I’m glad that in the grand scheme, this is actually quite minor. I will keep you all updated as we get more information, but I don’t know when that will be.

Interestingly, Lexi saw a fantastic physical therapist yesterday who gave us some really great tips on how to help her to get crawling and walking. She is really motivated now, and hardly ever sits still… This poor kid is such a trooper…I feel so bad that she has to go through all of this. I was so hoping that we were saying goodbye to Children’s for the last time today…but I do realize how lucky we are to have such a fantastic hospital in our backyard."

The Beginning of The Answers...7/3/06

July 3, 2006 was the first day that we started getting some answers to the big question, "What is wrong with Lexi??" July 3rd was a very hard day. We had convinced ourselves that maybe nothing was "wrong" and Lexi was just "low tone", but our neurologist suggested that this might not be the case. I sound very confident and brave in this e-mail to my mother-in-law, but I can tell you that we were scared to death.

July 6, 2006

"The poor angel has been through the ringer this weekend!! She had her neurology appointment on Monday and it was quite a day!! He wants to run some additional tests to make sure she's a-okay...apparently there is a very small concern that the hemangioma on her back could be a sign of Spina Bifida Occulta which sounds MUCH worse than it is...(from WebMD) Spina bifida occulta is the mildest and most common form. The spinal defect is hidden under the skin and does not usually cause problems or need treatment. Doctors estimate that 10% to 24% of the general population unknowingly have this spinal defect.2, 3 In some cases, a dimple, depression, birthmark, or hairy patch forms over the skin where more than one vertebrae is affected. This is referred to as occult spinal dysraphism (OSD).
In order to check for that, he wants to do an MRI, which means she has to go to Children's in Boston as she needs to be sedated for the MRI. This meant that she needed to have some blood tests, an EKG, and they tried (very unsuccessfully) to obtain a urine sample. Needless to say she was one unhappy kid on Monday. Then, to top it all off, she now has conjunctivitis, and Mommy has to struggle with her three times a day to get the darn goop in her eye.
So, it's been tough for the poor kid, but she's a toughy and handling it well. We will, of course, keep you updated on the MRI, etc. I'm sure everything is fine, but I'll be happy to have the results back soon."

Remembering The Past

I'm sure you all remember the difficult time we went through during Lexi's first year. I know that it was the most difficult time that Ahren and I went through, and people often say to me, "I'm sure you want to just forget that." but I absolutely do not. Anytime things get hard, I think back to that time, take a look around and think, "My little girl is happy and healthy. She can run and play, and stand up from a sitting position...things that I often thought she might never do. Things might be hard, but things are good." When we had our first snow this year Lexi begged me to buy her some boots so that she could go play in the snow. The morning after I finally got her those boots I let her trudge in the snow around while I was warming up the car. She walked back and forth through the snow with this huge grin on her face, while I stood there watching and sobbing. She's come so far... Sometime progress feels slow, but there is always progress and we couldn't ask for anything more.
I have some old e-mails (and old pictures) that I wrote when we were going through those tough times. So that they don't get lost to the e-mail eating monster, I'm going to post some of them on here.

"So, what do we do now, Mama?"

I try hard to come up with fun and creative things to do with Lexi when we're home together. Sometimes we finish an activity and I think, "Man, I am a genius!" Other days, like Monday, I think, "Oh man...I need to hire a nanny." After PT on Monday, Lexi and I did our grocery shopping, and then she took a nice nap. When she woke up there was still lots of time before dinner, so I thought I'd need to come up with something that would keep us entertained for awhile. I remembered that Auntie Kae bought Lexi a big trunk full of dress up clothes, so I suggested that we play dress up. Lexi was thrilled! I grabbed the trunk, whipped it open, and started dressing her up. We giggled, changed her outfit a few times, took a million pictures, and then...just stared at each other. After a minute Lexi said to me, "So, now what do we do, Mama?" to which I replied, "I have no idea." Lexi spent the rest of the afternoon in her pretty dress, doing puzzles, and I spent the rest of the afternoon realizing that she needed some friends. :)

(hmm, I need to figure out how to rotate pictures!)

Fortunately, the thrill of dress up did not wear off, as she asked to play again last night and just finds the whole idea hysterical. If it makes Lexi laugh, I'll play all day. Last night we kept the dress on while she helped me make dinner. While I was preparing something off to the side, Lexi was playing with the phone. She turned it on and left it on long enough to get the operator who says, "If you'd like to make a call...." I thought she would panic and hang up, but no...she starts talking to the operator. "Oh, hi. It's Lexi. Oh, I'm just helping my mama make supper...." Had I not been right in the middle of preparing dinner I would have run for the video camera. Although, like most funny things she does, I probably would have missed it anyway.

Physical Therapy and My Funny Monkey

Lexi had physical therapy this morning, and she worked really hard. Mary Ellen had her doing a puzzle on her belly, but she had to prop herself up with her hands, and then reach with one hand to get the puzzle piece and put it in the puzzle. I could see that she was trying really hard, and working a lot to do it right. I was so proud of her because I often think that she "can't" do things because she doesn't want to try hard enough. Mary Ellen was also very pleased with her effort this morning. It was a very good visit. She'll have her one year evaluation on January 25th. She has to be six months behind to qualify for services, so I'm not sure if that will happen, but I know that Mary Ellen will do a professional appeal to keep her in until she's three. She can do the stuff she's supposed to do, but the quality of what she is doing is not at a level that we are happy with yet.

As usual, she's been making us laugh a lot over the past few days. Yesterday I was making some tea and when the kettle whistled Ahren said, "Oh, what's that? Is it a train??" Lexi replied, "No, Dada, that's not a train. It's....ummmm....hmmm...Mama, I can't think of the word." I told her it was called a tea kettle, so she goes on, "Yes. Dada, it's not a train, it's just Mama's tea kettle, okay?" You kind of have to hear the tone to get the full appreciation, but she's just a funny kid all around.

Last night we had dinner with Gigi, Poppy and Great Gram. Lexi impressed everyone with her ability to down spoonfuls of sour cream. :) She also really enjoyed riding around on Poppy like a horse, and gave Poppy quite a workout in the process. It was a nice night and a yummy meal as always.

Daddy begins his CFA course again tonight, so Lexi and I are going to be bachelorettes on Monday nights for a few months. I'm trying to come up with something special to do together. I asked Lexi if she had any ideas, but she couldn't come up with anything. I'm sure we'll think of something - otherwise we'll be invading Gigi and Poppy's house every week for entertainment!

Is it too early to start Lexi on chores??

Lexi has been helping around the house since about as long as she could walk. She helps us set the table at dinner time, helps to clean up her own toys, and helps wiping the tables, chairs, etc...whatever I happen to be washing at the time. She loves it and always wants to help Mama, especially in the kitchen!

The other night Ahren was doing dishes and she said that she wanted to do some dishes. Ahren told her that when she was tall enough to reach the sink he'd be more than happy to let her do some dishes. So, never to be told she can't do something, off Lexi went to find her stool. She carried it over to the sink and said, "Dada, I have a stool so I can reach!" Ahren helped her up and let her wash her bowl. She was very thorough and had a great time. :)

Christmas 2007

We had the pleasure of having two Christmases - one with my family, and one with Ahren's family. It's safe to say that Lexi is pretty darn fond of this holiday, and it sure was fun for us this year too.

On Christmas Eve we went to my parent's (Gigi and Poppy) house for our traditional Christmas Eve Party. Santa came, as always, and while Lexi was not interested in sitting on his lap, she did get a burst of courage when he held out a gift for her. It was wonderful to see all of our friends and relatives that night.

Christmas Day was slightly less crazy, and we spent it at my parent's house along with my sister Amy, her husband Scott, and Ben and Cassie. In the afternoon Great-Gram came along with Cousin Jim, Aunt DJ and Uncle Jack and Uncle Jay. We had a fantastic afternoon, and an amazing dinner!

The following Friday we headed down to RI for the Lippman Family Party. There we got to see Ahren's parents (Grammy and Grampy), Uncle Devan and Aunt Jen, Auntie Kae, and then got the special treat of Aunt Laurie (who I had never even met!!), Cousin Jere, Uncle Doug, Aunt Petie, Cousin Drew, and many other family friends. It was a fantastic day, and Lexi truly enjoyed being spoiled rotten by her Grammy.