Here's a link to some of the best pictures of the beach. We failed to pull out the camera as often as we should have, but we did catch a few cuties!
Beach Pictures
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Monday, September 8, 2008
August Update
I've been putting this post off because so much has happened in the last few weeks, and I haven't had time to give any of the occasions enough blog time. So, I'm going to give a quick update on what's happened so that I can move on to regular blogging again...
Beach Vacation:
Two weeks of perfect sun and perfect days. I don't think we had one bad day while we were there, and it was so much fun for Lexi to get to play with her cousins Peter and Josie (as well as Ben, Cassie, Sophie, Sam and Bobby on the days they visited). I have a few great pictures, but I need to get them uploaded and I'm just not there yet. I'll probably do a web album soon and just post that to make it easier. All in all (with a few small exceptions- and illness here, trip to the ER there, and maybe one or two small casualties - my dad's bike and his cell phone!!) everything was perfect and an absolute blast!
The house:
We are just about done - basically just the small details remain - carpet, blinds, painting the outside, and then moving the furniture around so that we can begin transforming our old bedroom into a nursery. I'm pleased with the progress and results so far, but I don't currently have any great pictures loaded. I'll try to update with pictures soon. The dusty part of the project is done, so we've been spending the last week (since being home from the beach) dusting and vacuuming, and dusting and vacuuming some more. It seems endless, but at least the dusted areas are seeming to stay dust free now.
Lexi:
She turned three and continues to act closer to 30. We had a little kid party for her at the beach, and Ahren was in charge of taking pictures. Not one word of a lie - the man took 417 pictures. Four hundred and seventeen. What do you even do with 417 pictures of a kid's party?? Honestly, if you flip through them quickly it looks like a movie. I'm sure there are a few good ones in there, but I haven't had time to sort through all 417, so you'll just have to wait on those too.
She loooooves her swing set and has now mastered every part of it. I don't think one day has gone by without playing on it, which makes us feel better about the ridiculous cost of it.
Potty training was a success. She's had maybe two accidents in the last month, and both were while she was sleeping (one when she was sick), so I'd say she's trained. The only thing we have to get her to figure out is the preventive potty visit. She doesn't like to use the potty until her tummy tells her it's time, which causes problems for us when we are about to embark on a long car ride, or a trip to somewhere that has no potties. She absolutely refuses to try unless she knows she has to go. However, since the other day she went 20 hours without using the potty (no, I'm not kidding, and yes, we were concerned) I guess we just need to trust that she will go when she needs to.
Baby Lippman:
Tomorrow I will be 28 weeks pregnant - officially into my third trimester. This pregnancy continues to be more difficult than the last in the discomfort department. A bad case of apparent gas sent me to the emergency room during our beach vacation (two days of terrible abdominal pain and difficulty breathing) which ended up being fine, but annoying. The heartburn and other discomforts are frustrating me, though I know that in the grand scheme this pregnancy is going along perfectly. I think part of it is that I'm trying to keep up with my 3 year old this time, so the back pain, exhaustion, etc. are that much more pronounced because I can't just sit and put my feet up. I also officially feel huge. I know my size is normal, and the same as it was with Lexi, but again, trying to be Mommy to a 3 year old gets tough with a huge belly in the way. However, there is nothing cuter than Lexi talking to her little brother - giving him kisses and snuggles and hugs. Sometimes she asks me to sit down so that she can give her "brover" some snuggles, and it just melts my heart. She is going to be the best big sister ever.
The still nameless baby is squirming around a lot these days. This is the fun part of pregnancy when the movement feels more like a baby moving around in there than odd muscle twitches. I can actually put my hand on my belly now and feel arms and legs push by.
Tomorrow I have to get my rhogam shot, and then I think I'm done with testing and injections! My next appointment with my midwife is next week, and from there I will begin going every two weeks instead of every four. This pregnancy is definitely going by faster than the first and it's really amazing to think that in 11 short weeks this baby will be here!! Man...we really need to come up with a name.
Okay, I think that's the basic updating from the last few weeks. Now, off to fall asleep on the couch. :)
Beach Vacation:
Two weeks of perfect sun and perfect days. I don't think we had one bad day while we were there, and it was so much fun for Lexi to get to play with her cousins Peter and Josie (as well as Ben, Cassie, Sophie, Sam and Bobby on the days they visited). I have a few great pictures, but I need to get them uploaded and I'm just not there yet. I'll probably do a web album soon and just post that to make it easier. All in all (with a few small exceptions- and illness here, trip to the ER there, and maybe one or two small casualties - my dad's bike and his cell phone!!) everything was perfect and an absolute blast!
The house:
We are just about done - basically just the small details remain - carpet, blinds, painting the outside, and then moving the furniture around so that we can begin transforming our old bedroom into a nursery. I'm pleased with the progress and results so far, but I don't currently have any great pictures loaded. I'll try to update with pictures soon. The dusty part of the project is done, so we've been spending the last week (since being home from the beach) dusting and vacuuming, and dusting and vacuuming some more. It seems endless, but at least the dusted areas are seeming to stay dust free now.
Lexi:
She turned three and continues to act closer to 30. We had a little kid party for her at the beach, and Ahren was in charge of taking pictures. Not one word of a lie - the man took 417 pictures. Four hundred and seventeen. What do you even do with 417 pictures of a kid's party?? Honestly, if you flip through them quickly it looks like a movie. I'm sure there are a few good ones in there, but I haven't had time to sort through all 417, so you'll just have to wait on those too.
She loooooves her swing set and has now mastered every part of it. I don't think one day has gone by without playing on it, which makes us feel better about the ridiculous cost of it.
Potty training was a success. She's had maybe two accidents in the last month, and both were while she was sleeping (one when she was sick), so I'd say she's trained. The only thing we have to get her to figure out is the preventive potty visit. She doesn't like to use the potty until her tummy tells her it's time, which causes problems for us when we are about to embark on a long car ride, or a trip to somewhere that has no potties. She absolutely refuses to try unless she knows she has to go. However, since the other day she went 20 hours without using the potty (no, I'm not kidding, and yes, we were concerned) I guess we just need to trust that she will go when she needs to.
Baby Lippman:
Tomorrow I will be 28 weeks pregnant - officially into my third trimester. This pregnancy continues to be more difficult than the last in the discomfort department. A bad case of apparent gas sent me to the emergency room during our beach vacation (two days of terrible abdominal pain and difficulty breathing) which ended up being fine, but annoying. The heartburn and other discomforts are frustrating me, though I know that in the grand scheme this pregnancy is going along perfectly. I think part of it is that I'm trying to keep up with my 3 year old this time, so the back pain, exhaustion, etc. are that much more pronounced because I can't just sit and put my feet up. I also officially feel huge. I know my size is normal, and the same as it was with Lexi, but again, trying to be Mommy to a 3 year old gets tough with a huge belly in the way. However, there is nothing cuter than Lexi talking to her little brother - giving him kisses and snuggles and hugs. Sometimes she asks me to sit down so that she can give her "brover" some snuggles, and it just melts my heart. She is going to be the best big sister ever.
The still nameless baby is squirming around a lot these days. This is the fun part of pregnancy when the movement feels more like a baby moving around in there than odd muscle twitches. I can actually put my hand on my belly now and feel arms and legs push by.
Tomorrow I have to get my rhogam shot, and then I think I'm done with testing and injections! My next appointment with my midwife is next week, and from there I will begin going every two weeks instead of every four. This pregnancy is definitely going by faster than the first and it's really amazing to think that in 11 short weeks this baby will be here!! Man...we really need to come up with a name.
Okay, I think that's the basic updating from the last few weeks. Now, off to fall asleep on the couch. :)
Thursday, August 21, 2008
YAHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
I'm only home from vacation for a few minutes, but I cannot let another day pass without posting this exciting news:
AHREN PASSED HIS CFA III EXAM!!! He has now fulfilled all of the requirements to earn his CFA, so we are just waiting for the big honkin' certificate to arrive so that we can display it proudly over our front door. :)
Of course, we all knew he could do it, but it was extremely hard work and he put many, many hours into studying for this exam. Anyone who knows Ahren knows that he always gets what he sets his mind to, and while this was certainly no easy feat, there was never a doubt he would be successful.
The other exciting news: DEVAN AND JEN ARE ENGAGED!!! Devan finally proposed yesterday, on Jen's birthday. We are all very excited, and I am thrilled to be getting yet another fantastic sister-in-law!! We've been hoping for this for a long time, so we're thrilled that they've decided to take this step.
So, great news is coming from all over this week, and we couldn't be happier. Now, I have to get back to the beach. It's way to nice to be sitting at home today! :)
AHREN PASSED HIS CFA III EXAM!!! He has now fulfilled all of the requirements to earn his CFA, so we are just waiting for the big honkin' certificate to arrive so that we can display it proudly over our front door. :)
Of course, we all knew he could do it, but it was extremely hard work and he put many, many hours into studying for this exam. Anyone who knows Ahren knows that he always gets what he sets his mind to, and while this was certainly no easy feat, there was never a doubt he would be successful.
The other exciting news: DEVAN AND JEN ARE ENGAGED!!! Devan finally proposed yesterday, on Jen's birthday. We are all very excited, and I am thrilled to be getting yet another fantastic sister-in-law!! We've been hoping for this for a long time, so we're thrilled that they've decided to take this step.
So, great news is coming from all over this week, and we couldn't be happier. Now, I have to get back to the beach. It's way to nice to be sitting at home today! :)
Monday, August 11, 2008
Our Garden
This year, for the first time, we decided to plant a very small vegetable garden. Granted, the year that we werehaving major construction done, and I was pregnant may not have been the best year to try, but I was feeling motivated and Lexi was old enough to help and enjoy it, so we went for it. It is by no means the most successful garden ever planted, but we have gotten a few cukes and tomatoes out of it, and one summer squash. So, it was certainly worth it, but next year we'll work harder to make it bigger and better.
Here is Lexi with our very first garden veggies. It was an exciting night!
Lexi Helping Daddy
Lexi helping Daddy put some tree limbs in our dumpster (making room for her new swingset):
"Daddy, can you lift me up so I can throw these in? I'm not very tall, you know."
"Daddy, can you lift me up so I can throw these in? I'm not very tall, you know."
Monday, August 4, 2008
Well...It's August...
...And I have to say that Operation: "bye bye pull-ups" has been going exceptionally well. On Saturday morning she woke up with her last dry pull-up. She cried, no, sobbed when I took it off, begging me not to take her pull-up off. But I calmly explained that it was August, and time to get rid of all the diapers and pull-ups, and when that didn't calm her down, I plopped her in front of Caillou and she forgot what she was so upset about. Since then, her pee has made it into the potty every single time. The only exception was the first night when she woke up with dry, yet pee smelling sheets. This does not count as an accident, and we didn't even tell her (since she didn't wake up) because I am really asking a lot expecting her to stay dry at night too. But, I don't want to confuse the whole "there are no more diapers or pull-ups" with odd exceptions like, "well, except for when we go to bed." So, out of almost three full days and two nights, she had one wet bed...not bad at all in my book!
The only real problem we had was with the poop. Now, I've read lots of stories of people potty training their children (it's amazing what we find to be interesting reading as parents), and I know that poop is a common problem. The kids just don't seem to want to "let go". But Lexi had pooped many times in the potty, so I was feeling relatively confident that she would be fine...except for the small concern about her recent hiding when she poops...she must always hide either on the stairs or behind her bed to poop. So, Day 1: No poop at all. Day 2: I gave her prunes and crossed my fingers. After lunch I suggested she watch an entire episode of Caillou on the potty, hoping that she would relax and poop...nope. No dice. She did, however, wake up from her nap in a panic, get her clothes off, run around her room a bit, and poop in the corner. That was upsetting to her, though we were happy that she at least got it out! Day 3: Problems began. I could tell that she needed to poop, no three year old paces and cries that much if they do not have to poop, but she refused to try and continued to deny her need to go. After an entire morning and early afternoon of pacing (hers) and worrying (mine) she suggested that using the potty and Gigi and Poppy's would be fun. So, we dashed over there and hung out for about an hour while she and Poppy played on the porch. I don't know exactly what it is that Poppy said to her (or made the dolly say to her) but after almost an hour she agreed to try to poop on the potty if Poppy would come in with her dolly. After ten minutes she came out proudly and said to me, "So Mama, what's the big idea??" I replied, "I don't know. Did you poop?" To which she replied, "Yup" as though she's been doing this for months. I was beyond thrilled. I should have known Poppy was the key to success. Ever since she was an infant Poppy has always seemed to make her poop.
I'm sure the saga will continue, but this is such amazing progress for three days of potty training. I guess it's true what they say - "When they're ready, they're ready!"
The only real problem we had was with the poop. Now, I've read lots of stories of people potty training their children (it's amazing what we find to be interesting reading as parents), and I know that poop is a common problem. The kids just don't seem to want to "let go". But Lexi had pooped many times in the potty, so I was feeling relatively confident that she would be fine...except for the small concern about her recent hiding when she poops...she must always hide either on the stairs or behind her bed to poop. So, Day 1: No poop at all. Day 2: I gave her prunes and crossed my fingers. After lunch I suggested she watch an entire episode of Caillou on the potty, hoping that she would relax and poop...nope. No dice. She did, however, wake up from her nap in a panic, get her clothes off, run around her room a bit, and poop in the corner. That was upsetting to her, though we were happy that she at least got it out! Day 3: Problems began. I could tell that she needed to poop, no three year old paces and cries that much if they do not have to poop, but she refused to try and continued to deny her need to go. After an entire morning and early afternoon of pacing (hers) and worrying (mine) she suggested that using the potty and Gigi and Poppy's would be fun. So, we dashed over there and hung out for about an hour while she and Poppy played on the porch. I don't know exactly what it is that Poppy said to her (or made the dolly say to her) but after almost an hour she agreed to try to poop on the potty if Poppy would come in with her dolly. After ten minutes she came out proudly and said to me, "So Mama, what's the big idea??" I replied, "I don't know. Did you poop?" To which she replied, "Yup" as though she's been doing this for months. I was beyond thrilled. I should have known Poppy was the key to success. Ever since she was an infant Poppy has always seemed to make her poop.
I'm sure the saga will continue, but this is such amazing progress for three days of potty training. I guess it's true what they say - "When they're ready, they're ready!"
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