mia's story

Big Sis To Be

2010-08-26T21:36:00.006-04:00

It's been an eventful summer - swimming lessons, trips to the beach and the lake, ballet, etc. (more to come on all of this; I have some cute pics I need to post) - but the BIGGEST thing that has rocked our world the past few months has been my growing belly. That's right, we're adding a second child to the Bowen brood, and our baby Mia is about to become a big sister.

She takes this role very seriously. She's constantly telling us what she will be able to do once she's a big sister, like ride the bus to school (still have two years), and drink Diet Coke and wine (not kidding). For the most part, she's been very loving, giving my belly kisses and hugs and talking to the baby through my belly button. Issues arise when she tries to give it a "high five" and literally slaps my belly. She's also become very attached to me. She's all to aware that the baby goes everywhere with me, so I guess she feels a little left out. And, when I say attached, I mean that I haven't showered by myself in three weeks. "I want to shower with you and the baby!"
We told Mia she was going to be a big sister when I was 10 weeks pregnant. I couldn't wait any longer; knowing her love of babies, I knew that she was going to be so excited. Her initial reaction? "But, we don't have a Bumbo!" (A Bumbo is a baby seat. We had just come back from the lake with our friends who have an infant, and Mia took it upon herself to be the "Bumbo carrier" that weekend. She carried the Bumbo on the boat, to the restaurant, around the house, etc.) We cracked up at the fact that this was the first thing out of her mouth. She's just so unpredictable.

As part of her Big Sister surprise, we gave her this t-shirt, which I had made on Etsy.

My due date is Feb. 21. I'm 14 weeks at this point (looking like 20 weeks - it's crazy how fast I've popped out with the second one). We're all very excited, and at the same time, a little sad at the fact that our first baby is about to be the big sis. Kind of reminds me of that song, "Don't Blink..."

Turning Three and Looking Back

2010-04-27T22:23:00.006-04:00

We had Mia's third birthday party at The Little Gym this year. She's been in TLG since she was 18 months and loves it. She invited all of her friends, and they had a blast running around, playing with the parachute, walking on the balance beam, doing forward rolls, hanging from the bars, etc. There were 15 of them total. Mia was on cloud 9. After an hour in the gym, we served pizza and a cupcake "cake" and ice cream. I found these cute little candles that spelled "Mia." And, again experienced one of those "my-child-is-growing-up" moments when she didn't need our help for ANYTHING. She stood up in front of the room as everyone sang "happy birthday" and then turned around like a pro and blew out the candles.

Mia's birthday has me thinking about some of my favorite memories of her over the past three years. Here are some favs:

Kitty - Called "Key" by Mia, Kitty is one of those little blanket things with a kitty head. I remember getting a few of these at my baby showers and thinking, "What are these things?" Now I know. Kitty is our security. There was a tragic accident at a hotel in Williamsburg two years ago when we think the maid accidentally took Kitty, so we're on our second. But, I researched and found the exact replica (bought two just in case), which has been with us every day since. I wash Kitty every week, but she still has a distinct smell - a mix of urine, drool and Mia's baby lotion. Sounds awful - but I've grown to like it. I always thought if Mia ever gave up Kitty how I would have to put her in an air-tight bag so she wouldn't lose her smell. Weird, I know. But, you have to savor childhood somehow, I guess.

The Motrin Bottle - For about six months and maybe longer - somewhere between one and two-years-old - Mia carried around empty infant Motrin bottles. She took them everywhere - to bed, to the store, in the bath, to the pool, etc. Our friends even made her a t-shirt which read, "I Love Motrin." Everyone commented on her infatuation with them. How often do you see a barely-walking toddler carrying around medicine bottles?

Baby Ava - A cousin gave me Baby Ava at my baby shower, so Mia has had her since birth. She named her after our good friends' baby (Ava). Baby Ava is a member of our family. We're as attached to her as Mia is. And, I was so glad when Mia got her second doll that she still favored Baby Ava. I was sad thinking she might be replaced. But, five dolls later, and she still gets priority seating in the strollers and grocery cart and gets to sleep in Mia's bed.

Her enthusiasm - Even as a baby, she has always been so enthusiastic about everything, which makes doing things with her that much more fun. You truly enjoy life more when looking at it through the eyes of your little one.

Her love of music - We started her in Kindermusik at four months. She was moving to music and carrying a tune before she could crawl/talk. She's going to be our singing star, I just know it.

Her first day of pre-school - After AGONIZING over whether to send her at two, the first day of school finally came, and I was so proud of her. Her little lip quivered, and she looked at me and said "mommy, stay a yittle while," but there was no loud crying or gripping me begging me not to leave. I was the one who was a mess - bawled all the way home. But, best decision yet; she loves school.

Ok, so some of these are more "now" than memories, but these are the things that come to mind and warm my heart when I think of Mia. Interestingly enough, the first three things that came to mind are the things that she's loved the most.

Big Girl Room = Big Girl

2010-04-27T21:51:00.005-04:00

So, here comes the part where I have to admit that our child was in a crib until her third birthday. (Hey, why fix it if it isn't broken?) We finally took off the front railings of the crib two months ago so she could climb in and out. So, guess what she wanted for her birthday? A big girl room. And, feeling a little guilty that she was still in a nursery, that's what we gave her. We painted it purple - her favorite color if you didn't know that already (which means you've never met her because she's borderline obsessed with purple). And, gave her a big girl bed. My next project is to upholster a headboard for her. There was no way I was tackling that PLUS re-decorating her entire room PLUS planning her birthday party in one week. I do have my limits. So, we have a makeshift headboard in there now (actually part of her crib - just couldn't let that thing go, could I? ha).

Her first reaction? Took off ALL of her clothes and jumped under the covers. I guess that meant she liked it? Actually, she loved it. She wouldn't leave it - played in it all the next day and even ate breakfast AND lunch there. I love that she has her own space where she can now go play. And, it was almost as if the big-girl room sparked some big-girl mannerisms. The night we surprised her with the room, we put her to bed and went to check on her an hour later to find her "reading" in bed. We thought she was asleep but found her quietly getting out of bed, grabbing books, crawling back in bed and flipping through the pages. She had a pile of 30+ books that she'd crawled in and out of bed to get. It was one of those parenting "moments" for us watching her do this - realizing she was no longer a baby.

Pre-School Spring Concert

2010-04-27T21:40:00.005-04:00

Mia's pre-school Spring concert was held the evening of her actual birthday. Her 2-year-old class sang two songs - a counting/number song and the Itsy Bitsy Spider - and then played instruments for the third song. She was so cute - walked right up on stage, found us right away and kept giving us huge smiles and waves. You can tell she loves the spotlight; I think she would've stayed and sang with the older kids if they would've let her. After the concert, we took her out for a birthday ice cream.

Here's a picture of Mia with her class. She's at the top right with the pigtails. Check out her friend, Jack, in the front row - the one with the socks and his hands in his pockets. How cute is he?

Mia "Ham"

2010-04-20T22:01:00.006-04:00

We signed Mia up for our community soccer league (in our neighborhood). My favorite line during the first practice was from the coordinator, "This is a free league, and you pay for what you get." It's actually perfect for three-to-five-year-olds. Very laid back, just teaching them the basics.

Mia showed up at the first practice dressed in her new pink soccer socks. At least, I think they're soccer socks. Actually, someone said she would be perfect for roller derby, which cracked me up (my friend Robin, a roller derby girl, would be proud). We don't really have athletic apparel, so we had to settle for a "skort." She looked adorable if I may say so. And, she really surprised me. She listened to the coach, did all of the exercises and just acted like an independent "big girl."

This past Sunday, just about everyone in our [local] family showed up. Mia had a huge cheering section - nine of us total - and completely performed for the crowd. She was the first one to complete the exercises, kick the ball in the net, etc. It's funny because she acts shy sometimes but then gets in these situations where she's a complete ham. At one point, she dramatically fell to the ground while giving all of us this "I'm just exhausted" look, and one little 3-year-old teammate ran up to her and was like, "What are you doing? Yoga?" Then pointed to the coach exclaiming, "She's doing Yoga!" Hilarious. Mia has no idea what Yoga is but thought it was funny because we were all laughing. I'm loving soccer...and my Mia "Ham."

Here's a picture of her warming up with her team.

Here's her trying to be "one of the guys" with the "older" boys before practice. Just thought this was a cute picture.

Easter

2010-04-09T13:34:00.005-04:00

Every holiday gets better as Mia gets older. For Easter this year, we got to do "big girl" stuff together like color eggs. Mia's eggs turned out much better than mine did. Instead of dipping the eggs in just 1-2 colors (my way), she put them in an empty bowl and spooned all of the colors on top of them, making them multi-colored. How long have I been coloring eggs? And, I've never thought of that.

The Easter Bunny brought lots of goodies - gardening tools, a watering can, charm bracelet, movies, markers, etc. But, when asked, the only thing I would hear her tell people was that the Easter Bunny brought her candy. Of course, the entire weekend was filled with candy eating. We had four egg hunts that included candy-filled egg surprises (one of which she got about 20 eggs), so I can see why she had candy on the brain.

I took her to the mall one day, and the Easter Bunny was there. Still wouldn't sit on his lap. But, she did yell to him over the fence that she wanted a charm bracelet (which she had seen in Gap two minutes before). Must've worked - she got the bracelet :)

This last picture is one of my favorites from the weekend. This is Granny ("mum" as she's known to Mia) pushing Mia on her walker. This is what they do when they see each other now. Too funny.

Annie

2010-04-03T21:42:00.002-04:00

Mia's favorite movie for the past six-plus months has been "Annie." She could sing "Tomorrow" a few months after she turned two and can now sing every song, so when I heard that the Broadway show was coming to Charlottesville, I quickly booked tickets. And, when I say "quickly," I mean I must have been one of the first to book because we got front row seats. We made it a girls' night with some of our friends (and check out the little one front and center who came dressed as Annie - too cute).

The show started at 7:30, which is Mia's bedtime. I was a little concerned about her making it through, but she held up like a trooper (being so close to the stage and literally next to the orchestra helped - so did the sugar and popcorn she consumed). We didn't get home until 11 p.m., and she was one of the last ones standing.

We saw this show in March. Since then, she's not so into the movie anymore - I think it pales in comparison to watching it live - but she now likes to act like she's Annie. She goes running around the house yelling for Sandy (and outside, which is a little embarrassing when she opens the door and stands on the front porch yelling for a non-existing Sandy at the top of her lungs). And, guess who she tells me to be? Miss Hannigan :(

Here's a video of her singing "Tomorrow" in the car. Caught it with my new Flip video camera, which I love.

Baby Abby

2010-04-01T20:02:00.002-04:00

It's been four months since I last posted. Where has the time gone? I'm reading a book about taking time to do the things that make you happiest. This blog is one of them because I know Mia will one day enjoy reading about her life. So, time to play catch up.

The biggest thing that's happened to us since my last post is the adoption of my niece. My sister and her husband went through the LONG adoption process and were approved in December. On January 21, they got a call that a baby girl had been born and the birth mother selected them as parents. If they accepted (which, of course they did), the little girl would be placed in foster care for 10 days. On February 1, we went to Fredericksburg for the adoption ceremony; Abigail Marie, or "Baby Abby" as she's known in our house, was brought in the room by her completely wonderful foster parents (below) to meet her new mommy and daddy. It was one of the most moving moments of my life.

Debbie, Abby's foster mom, was the first to let Mia hold Baby Abby. And, it was love at first sight for Mia - for all of us really. Mia talks about her constantly - picks up her toys around the house and says, "I'm giving this to Baby Abby." She tells everyone who will listen about her new cousin Abby. (Funny story: During the 10-day wait before my sister and her husband got Abby, Mia was telling everyone she was getting a new SISTER. Her teachers asked my mom if I was pregnant because they heard Mia was getting a sister. Hilarious. But, we finally got her to say cousin.) The true test of Mia's adoration for Abby came when she got a new doll and named her "Baby Abby." We are all so happy to have Abby in our lives. We get to go to the beach with her for a week in 45 days (who's counting?). I'm so excited. My sister called tonight to say that she'd bought Mia and Abby matching nightgowns. And, Nana bought Mia and Abby matching dresses. They are going to be so cute together.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

2009-12-20T08:29:00.003-05:00

It's day 2 of being snowed in. I can't remember the last time we got this much snow. It started on Friday evening. I think we got somewhere around 2 feet - too much for Mia to even stand up in. Andrew shoveled the drive-way yesterday so she had a place to play. I use the term "play" loosely. I'm not sure she knows what to do with all of this white stuff; she mainly just stands and eats it. Andrew attempted the 2-feet-deep snow angels; I made a snowman; and Mia just watched and ate :) Below are some pics. I've also included a video of her singing a snowflake song she learned at pre-school. It's our current favorite.

I'm a little snowflake, I seem round;

I fall from the sky and I don't make a sound;

When it's cold I stay all day;

When it's warm (but Mia says cold again) I melt away.

Typical snow day fun... Mia's own version of a sno-cone.

Best Christmas Pageant Ever - Literally

2009-12-07T22:14:00.004-05:00

Remember that book, "Best Christmas Pageant Ever?" I hadn't thought of it until I typed the title of this post. Well, Mia had her first Christmas pageant tonight. And, I'm happy to say the kids were nothing like those in the book; the 2-year-olds did a fabulous job standing up there in front of 100+ people and singing and smiling. They were just too cute for words.

I had no expectations going into this. I was a tiny bit worried that she might see us and come running off stage. But, then I thought about pre-school and how I thought she'd scream the first day and she completely proved me wrong. The minute I saw her walk in behind her teacher leading the rest of the class to the stage and then smiling this hilarious smile as she stood up there waiting for the first song (because the teacher was telling them all to smile), I knew she was good to go. And, I was just so proud of her singing all three songs looking into the faces of a sea of strangers. It wasn't until the very last song that she found us - and she gave us a little wave.

Afterwards, we took her to Wendy's for an M&M frosty. She sat down and told the guy sitting at the table next to us, "I'm two and I was singing!" She then proceeded to sing Annie's "Tomorrow" and the little snowflake song that was part of the show tonight REALLY loud - several times. I think she enjoyed the little taste of fame that she got tonight.

Here are several pictures and a video we took of her last performance tonight:

Mia pre-show:

"Jingle Bells"

Mia and her friend from school. They ran up on stage and gave each other a huge hug after the show. It was just so cute. The hug below was re-enacted for the photo opp.

Mia enjoying her frosty post-pageant.

Mamma Mia

2009-11-13T08:37:00.004-05:00

It's funny to watch little girls with their dolls. They (or at least this one) really do have a nurturing instinct. Mia's favorite doll is Baby Ava. She feeds her; walks her in the stroller; wraps her in a blanket and rocks her to sleep; holds her and kisses her; sings to her; soothes her when she's "crying;" and puts her to bed every night (Baby Ava has a crib in Mia's room). As I'm writing this, Mia has Baby Ava in her stroller doing loops around the first floor pretending they're at the grocery store. She keeps stopping by to tell me she needs to "check out."

The funniest thing happened the other morning. Mia was bringing Baby Ava down the stairs and accidentally dropped her (no, that's not the funny part). Baby Ava took quite a tumble all the way down the stairs. I thought Mia was going to cry. Once she got down the stairs, she picked up Baby Ava and was kissing her and asking if she was ok. I said "Poor Baby Ava. Is she alright?" And, Mia said, "Yea. She's just had a really crappy morning." I cracked up and then thought to myself that "crappy" was Mia's first "bad word." And, she totally got that from me. At least, I'll take this one and Andrew can take the next :)

Here's a video we shot of Mia and Baby Ava a few weeks ago. She told us she was going to sing her a song, but instead, you get to see a bit of Mamma Mia in action.

I Love You; You Love Me

2009-10-31T21:40:00.003-04:00

It's Halloween! And, guess what Mia wanted to be? Not a princess. Not a fairy. Not even a VT cheerleader (believe me, I tried). She wanted to be Barney - her favorite "person" other than mommy, daddy and the grandparents. I don't think I've talked about Mia's love of Barney on the blog. That's literally the only show on TV that she's watched since she was one. We've tried introducing other shows - but up until a month ago, it was the only thing she'd watch. We know every Barney song, every character that's been on that show for the past 18 years, and have a pretty hefty collection of Barney DVDs.

Every holiday gets better as Mia gets older. We even were able to paint pumpkins with her this year (see below). She loved going trick-or-treating (we went twice - to the UVA Lawn last night and then tonight in our neighborhood). Although, I have to say, I think she had even more fun when we got back to the house tonight and she got to answer the doorbell and hand out candy to the trick-or-treaters. I was trying to feed her dinner, and the doorbell rang every two minutes. She'd jump down off the bar stool and she and her friend Trudy would race to the door to open it and give the trick-or-treaters candy. Very cute. Now, what to do with all of this candy...

First Day of Pre-School

2009-09-08T11:58:00.003-04:00

The moment I've been worrying about for months has finally come and gone. And, I was so proud of how Mia handled herself. She did much better than I did. Here she is before we got in the car to go to school. Her toys of choice for the trip? Kitty (of course - we don't go anywhere without Kitty) and my (purple) tanning bed glasses from years ago, which she found in a drawer this morning. Which also stayed in the car once we got to school. Can you imagine her walking in with those? Talk about embarrassing.

When she woke up this morning, I asked her if she knew what today was, and she said, "school!" (We've been prepping her for this for a while now.) She was excited and kept talking about how she'd get to play with markers and Play-Doh and even got dressed with absolutely no fussing - a rare occurance these days. Once we got close to school, she started asking "what u doing? where we going?" I guess she noticed we got off Interstate much too quickly to be going to nana's house. When we pulled up at school, she asked again where we were and once I told her, the tears started followed by, "I don't want school. I want Mia's house." So, I gave her a little pep talk in the car and off we went. We walked in the classroom. I knelt beside her and we watched some of the kids play. Her teacher came and sat down beside us and started asking about Kitty, which she was still holding. The teacher asked if Kitty was coming with her to school today and Mia said "yes," so the teacher talked about how that was so great, and Mia and Kitty were going to have so much fun, etc. This was nice because the pre-school literature said "no personal toys" because of sharing issues, etc. So, I was worried about having to take Kitty away as I was leaving. The fact that Kitty could stay relieved my anxiety quite a bit.

I tried to leave a few minutes after we arrived, but this was followed by tears and Mia grabbing me saying, "mommy don't go. mommy watch just a little bit." How can you say no to that? So, the teacher recommended that we go over and see the baby dolls. Another little girl followed us and she and Mia started playing. After 15 minutes and a few more pep talks, I told her it was time for me to go - that none of the other mommies were there and school was just for little kids and teachers. So, she started crying again and the teacher asked if I wanted her to take Mia. I reluctantly said "yes." And, much to my surprise, Mia went to her. She cried for maybe 10 seconds and had quit as I reached the door.

Once I got out in the hallway, I realized I left my car keys in the room somewhere but knew I couldn't go back in to get them. Luckily, one of the teachers came out and saw me standing there. Her first reaction was, "She's not crying. She's already playing with some of the little girls." I felt like one of those overly attached parents. Here I was the only mommy to hang out for 15 minutes in the room, and then the teacher catches me in the hallway like I couldn't bear to leave or something. I explained I was standing there because I left my key in the room, so she went back and found it for me. I swear I didn't do it on purpose!

I accomplished my goal: didn't cry until I reached the car. And, then I cried way more than Mia did :)

When I walked back in school, the teacher was holding her at the door and said, "Look Mia! There she is!" I guess a few of the other parents had come to pick up their kids and Mia was wondering where I was - even though I was five minutes early. Looks like I wasn't the only parent anxious about how the morning went :) The teacher said she did great - no tears whatsoever after I left. When I asked Mia about her morning, she said, "Where's mommy? And. Mommy coming soon." She was re-capping her conversation with her teacher. I'm hoping it was her latest conversation and not what occurred all morning. But, that's pretty much all she told me about it. After that, she was ready to go to nana's house for the afternoon.

First major hurdle accomplished. I'm already nervous for Thursday - day 2 of pre-school. Hoping it goes as well as today did. Looking forward to putting week one behind us.

Pre-school Anxiety - Mommy's, That Is

2009-08-25T13:54:00.003-04:00

Today is the first day of school in Albemarle. All of this talk about the first day of school has my anxiety levels about sending Mia to pre-school going from "yellow" to "red." We decided a few weeks ago to send her to pre-school - they just started a class for 2.5-year olds. It was a big decision for me; one that I thought about for months.

Since then, lots of things have been running through my mind. I'm worried about the first few weeks dropping her off with complete strangers and her being upset at me for leaving her there. She's a mommy's girl and especially wants me around people she doesn't know. I worry about someone being mean to her and her looking to me for comfort and me not being there; wanting something, e.g. kitty (her lovey) for comfort, and new teachers not being able to understand her; not having her needs met because teachers are dealing with eight other children; not having an adult with her 100% of the time to teach her right from wrong; etc. Up until this point, she's stayed with grandmas while I worked, so none of this crossed my mind. And, losing that little bit of control and not having me or one of the grandmas with her all of the time is causing me, you guessed it, some anxiety. (Do I sound like I need a Xanax?)

But, then I have to remind myself that it's only two mornings a week. And, that she's pretty outgoing and will do well once she adjusts. It will be good for her to be a little more independent and to learn how to fight her own battles. Still...it's a little scary.

I'm just trying to prep her for what's to come; to talk about school and how much fun it is and how it's just for kids - no mommies, no nanas, no mimis and no daddies. She starts on the 8th - I'll let you know how it goes. Until then, I might get that Xanax prescription filled :)

No Fear

2009-08-16T12:01:00.002-04:00

Mia and I went to the pool yesterday and watched in amazement as this 2-year-old girl jumped off the diving board - again and again. It was so funny to watch. She looked so tiny getting up on the diving board. And, then she'd do this grand belly flop as her dad scooped her up and swam her to the ladder.

Mia has always been great in the water - she'll go under, jump off the side, etc. But the diving board? No way would she do that - or so I thought. The next thing I know, Mia's saying "I do that!" and wiggling out of my arms to get out of the pool. She walks up to the diving board and climbs up. I asked the dad of the other 2-year-old girl if he would catch Mia since he was already in the deep end. (In hindsignt, I had no idea who he was so it probably wasn't a good idea to trust him with my baby jumping in 11 feet of water, but he seemed to be doing a good job with his daughter. I think I was still in shock that Mia wanted to do this; my brain was clouded.) Mia gave her usual "no, mommy do it." So I got in and started treading water in front of the diving board hoping I could catch her and swim to the side. The skills I learned as a lifeguard were rushing through my mind just as she walked up to the end of the board and jumped. Just like that. No hesitation. I couldn't believe it. I was in awe. As we were swimming to the side, she said she wanted to go again. So, she went a few times. Of course, when I wanted her to do it later so I could have a friend take a picture for me, she stood on the board crying about how she wanted to get down. So, that's what we got on film :) Figures.

Little Love Bug

2009-08-05T11:15:00.008-04:00

Tuesday night, Mia was outside playing with neighbors/friends who ranged in age from one to seven. We were hanging out with the other parents in our driveway keeping a close eye on the kids (because Mia had a few near-death experiences with one of the neighbors pushing her in her car - none of which phased her). I heard some of the older girls asking Mia if M., our 3-year-old neighbor, was her boyfriend. Her natural reaction was "yea," which the girls thought was just hilarious. Of course, Mia has no idea what that means. So, she kept saying "yea" and laughing with everyone every time they asked. Then, the kids decided to go next door and play in the sand box. Five minutes later, the older girls came running up to us saying how Mia kissed M. Now, I'm sure someone put her up to it having heard the boyfriend/girlfriend conversations earlier. On the other hand, maybe she was just doing it to be nice; she does like M. and she likes to give kisses. My first reaction was to laugh. But, then as I was laughing, I had this sense of dread/fear run through me - that feeling of "ohhh no." I can't quite explain it. I think it has to do with the fact that I already see her growing up so fast, and now, even though she had no idea what she'd gotten herself into, she's in the middle of this "Mia kissed M." situation. The stuff that happens when you're in elementary school. And, she's TWO! Oh Lord...

The "Not All Terrible" Twos

2009-08-03T21:02:00.003-04:00

I have been feeling so terribly guilty about not blogging, I've decided I need to get back into the swing of things. I'm going to take a different approach and truly blog - not just about the fun things we take pictures of, but to try to capture all of the cute and not-so-cute moments that aren't necessarily on film. With that said, I'll do my best to quickly re-cap the past few months.

The week following Mia's birthday, my friend Megan asked if I'd noticed a change in her behavior. She noticed it with her son, and I told her I hadn't noticed it with Mia - "it" being what a lot of you know as the "terrible twos." THE VERY NEXT DAY following that conversation - no joke - "it" came crawling out from wherever "it" had been hiding. I'm talking a major shift in behavior. Tantrums, "NO," "I do it!," "Mine!" - we heard it all. And, so did perfect strangers. People in the mall or in the grocery store would say, "hi there, aren't you cute!" only to be met with "NO! MY MOMMY!" Which made no sense - it wasn't like they were trying to take her from me. But, that's what she'd say. I'd just give a red-faced apology. It got to the point where I didn't want to take her out in public because I didn't know how she'd react to people. And, it wasn't just out in public. She was screaming in Little Gym, at play dates, etc. Now during all of this, she was cutting her two bottom 2-year molars. And, just when I'd had it and felt myself losing control of my toddler, the teeth came in and her personality switched back. Which begs the question - are the "terrible 2" behaviors related to teeth? In her case, it seems so. I just dread the top two teeth coming in.

This past month, she's been on her best behavior. She has a huge personality and is so much fun to be around. She gets excited about everything - especially swimming. I take her to the pool several times a week - she's even going completely under water now with me - and she's been at the lake house 4-5 times. She's even been tubing with me (yes, behind the boat - she sits in my lap and gives daddy the thumbs-up to make the boat go faster). We also went to the Isle of Palms with my family. It's 20 minutes outside of Charleston - one of my favorite cities. We had a house with a pool, which is key if you have a little one who naps because you can hang out at the pool while they sleep.

Mia is very affectionate. She loves to give hugs/kisses. And, she's very nurturing. She has a doll - Baby Ava, who she named after one of our neighbor's babies - and she feeds her, wraps her in her blanket, puts her to bed at night, walks her in her stroller, etc. She also likes to brush her teeth with real toothpaste and feed her food when we're not watching, so Baby Ava is constantly getting her face washed :)

Perhaps the biggest hurdle we crossed was POTTY TRAINING!!! After months of peeing in the car seat, in restaurant seats, at the playground, etc., she finally decided to go to the potty full-time. And, yes, it was a matter of her deciding. She got the potty thing the first week. But, if she was playing, or eating, or riding in the car/stroller and didn't want to get out, she'd just go in her pants. Finally, I threw in the flag and put diapers back on her. I calmly explained that if she was going to act like a baby and go in her pants, she'd have to wear diapers like a baby. And, I swear, I went to change her diaper three hours after I put it on her (we were in Richmond visiting friends), and it was completely dry. I said, "Mia! Your diaper is dry!" And, she said, "yea - I hold it. I go potty." And, off we went to the potty. It hasn't been a problem since. So, at 26 months, Mia was potty trained - and I was relieved (and proud - you go girl).

Purple Passion Party

2009-05-22T14:05:00.005-04:00

Mia's sleeping, and I'm supposed to be packing - we leave for the beach tomorrow morning. But, I can't let myself go on vacation without posting about Mia's birthday. It's been almost a month since Mia turned two, and I feel completely guilty for not writing about it, yet! What kind of a blogging mommy am I?

We threw her a "purple passion" party. I didn't know until AFTER the invites were sent that "purple passion" is actually the name of a mixed drink. Oops! Purple is Mia's favorite color. If you put 100 pieces of candy in front of Mia, she won't be happy until she finds the purple one - that's how much she loves the color. So, we decorated with purple streamers, purple plates, purple cupcakes, purple balloons, and of course, the birthday girl's purple outfit (and purple ribbons in her pigtails). I was especially impressed when a few friends also showed up in purple!

The morning started with Mia's first present - a sand and water table from mommy and daddy. She was sooo excited. This was the first time I've seen her get really excited about receiving presents.

It was supposed to be 90+ degrees - unusually hot for this time of year. We had 30 people coming to our house, so we decided to have the party outside. The day started out sunny and beautiful. Andrew and I worked in the yard all morning - mowing, pulling weeds, setting up all of the activities, decorating, setting up the borrowed tent and umbrellas for shade, etc. Everything was ready - and then it decided to POUR rain 30 minutes before everyone was supposed to be here. The streamers outside started leaking purple all over our bushes and patio - it was a mess! Which meant I was a mess. I had to quickly get over it - after all, it was Mia's party and she didn't seem to care (but all of that hard work - ugghhh!). So, people arrived in the pouring rain, and it continued pouring for the next hour. I'm not kidding when I say that you could see blue sky everywhere - it was just one rain cloud that lingered over our house. But, then the sun decided to make an appearance and the rest of the party was perfect. We went outside and dried off all of the chairs and toys. The sand and water table was a hit (a messy one, at that) - as was the little roller coaster. We also had sidewalk chalk, Mia's Barbie jeep and a super fun bubble machine (a present from Mia's friend, Davis). Mia had the best time. Can't believe our little girl is two already.

Easter Weekend

2009-04-12T21:06:00.008-04:00

Easter weekend started with a special present from the waitresses at a little Italian restaurant that mom and dad take Mia to at least once a week. She knows the entire staff. Even the chef, who takes her into the kitchen, I'm told. They even have a fish in the restaurant named after Mia. The waitresses gave her an easter basket filled with a hot pink apron, bunny slippers (in the picture), crayons and more. Isn't that so sweet? They also have given her presents for Valentine's Day and Christmas.

On Friday, we went to SML with Andrew's parents and Uncle Chris. We took Mia to the arcade where she rode rides with her new friend (who she met there) - they ended up holding hands and walking through the arcade together - ahaha. She also went to an Easter Egg Hunt, which was hosted by Mimi and Papa's friends, The Pfosts. Several of their grandchildren were there and Mia had the best time. Every egg was filled with candy. So, she'd get an egg and take it to someone and say "open" and then would be so interested in the candy, she'd forget about (or lose interest in) finding the rest of the eggs. The weekned ended with a visit from the Easter Bunny this morning, who gave her bubbles, a musical book and sidewalk chalk. And, then a ride on Mimi and Papa's boat. As Uncle Chris put it, "She was so excited, I thought she was going to explode!" She loved going fast - we have a little daredevil on our hands.

Welcome to the World, Baby Colin

2009-04-12T20:45:00.003-04:00

Our friends Jeremy and Christina had a baby boy (their first) on Thursday - Colin James O'Hara. 8 lbs. 2 oz. and little blonde peach fuzz on top. We're so excited for them. Mia saw them a few weeks ago and continues to talk about "Tina's baby in tummy." We explained how she was once in Mommy's tummy. Actually, I made the mistake of showing her my c-section scar and now she CONSTANTLY wants to see where Mia came out of Mommy's tummy - not so appropriate in public places :) Here's a message for Jeremy, Tina and Baby Colin from our family. Love you guys!

Cinnamon Toast Gone Bad

2009-04-05T21:25:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite breakfasts as a child was Cinnamon toast. I started making it recently for Mia, and she loves it, too. I buy the Cinnamon and Sugar spice (already pre-mixed unlike the "old days" when you had to actually mix the two) and sprinkle it on the bread on top of a little butter before toasting it in the toaster oven. It's so yummy. This morning, Daddy got up with Mia and decided to make her some Cinnamon toast - only he didn't look at the label on the spice and sprinkled CAYENNE PEPPER on the toast instead. You'd think he would've noticed how RED it was. But, no. And, so he toasted it and gave it to Mia to eat. She took a bite and turned to him and said, "This yucky!" He must not have had much Cayenne Pepper on the edges of the bread - thank goodness - because that was the only reaction she gave. And, he quickly recovered from his sleepy state and realized what he'd done. Of course I can "out" him without feeling too guilty because I've written about LOTS of not-so-great parenting moments that I've had (you know, like letting her fall on her head twice in one week). Note to self for parents - read the labels!

Invitations...As Important as the Party Itself

2009-04-02T13:31:00.007-04:00

Mia's second birthday is coming soon. Two! Can you believe it? I ordered her birthday invitations last week. We're throwing her a "purple passion" party because, well...purple is her passion. She loves EVERYTHING purple. I just didn't realize how tough it would be to find a purple birthday invitation. Everything for girls is pink! I've searched around town and online for the past three weeks. Yes, three weeks. I love stationary - it's one area where I can't just settle. I found one that I really liked, but it cost $65 for 25 invites - and, this was for blank invites. To print them cost an extra $20! (Another reason I need to get into the stationary business.) I finally found one that was cute and within my price range - purple with white polka dots (which Mia calls bubbles). It was on www.invitingsmiles.com. And, they had an amazingly quick turnaround time. They had my proof to me in 12 hours.

If you're ever looking for invitations, birth announcements or holiday cards, two of my other favorite sites are www.tinyprints.com and www.polkadotdesign.com. Unfortunately, they didn't have purple invites that I liked, but they have LOTS of other cute ones.

Potty Incentives

2009-03-17T12:12:00.003-04:00

Mia is now 90% potty trained. She still has small accidents when she's preoccupied, so I usually put a Pull-Up on her when we're out and about, but overall she's doing really well. I'm constantly thinking of new incentives to keep her motivated - especially when we have to use a public potty. I think the loud flushes scare her - especially with the ones that flush automatically and sound like they're going to suck the toilet down with the water. Or, maybe she's just a germaphobe like me. So, I sometimes have to bribe her to use them. That has gotten better, though. She used to have a fear of all potties outside of our house - even at the grandparents'.

We've used just about every incentive in the book - stickers, M&Ms, gum (yes, she loves sugarfree Orbitz gum - we give her 1/2 piece, which she chews and then spits out when she's finished), dum dums - and my latest - pretty toes. I told her since she's a big girl and goes potty now, she can have pretty painted toes like mommy. So, I painted her toes pink. She was so cute. She sat perfectly still on my lap while I painted them and then helped me fan them dry. It was a very exciting moment for her. She couldn't wait to show daddy when he got home.

Snow Day - Finally!!!

2009-03-02T21:04:00.011-05:00

We finally got a good snow day. I bundled Mia up this morning and we went out to play with some of her friends in the neighborhood. Mia lasted all of 10 minutes. She's like her mommy and much prefers the warmer weather. Her favorite part was her little friend D, who kept falling and couldn't get up - that elicited belly laughs from Mia.

Drug Allergy Part 4

2009-02-22T13:08:00.004-05:00

Our poor baby has had yet another reaction to medicine - and it's the worst by far. This one was caused by Amoxicillin, which she was taking for an ear infection. What started as little red dots the size of a pin point have exploded into this horrible looking (and feeling, I'm sure) body rash. It looks like an amoeba or something you'd see under a microscope in 7th grade Science class. Her face is swollen - to the point where I saw her at 5 a.m. this morning and went into a state of panic. We rushed her to the ER and they put her on some steroids, which actually have helped A LOT (these pics were taken a few hours after the steroids, so you can only imagine what she looked like early this morning). It's been a rough few months (and a rough 24-hours judging by how I look in these pics:)...

Funny Videos

2009-02-18T10:24:00.006-05:00

We were videotaping Mia the other night trying to get her to sing her ABCs. She can sing the entire song, and it's just adorable. But, for some reason, whenever the video camera is on, she just won't do it! What we did catch on camera was her "showing off" a bit and trying to act funny as she was singing and then throwing a little temper tantrum as she tried to wrestle the camera out of my hands. You can hear her yelling "Daddy!" This is because whenever one person won't give her something, she yells the other person's name to let you know that she didn't want it for herself - she actually wanted to give it to the other person (yeah right). This shows another side to Mia that I haven't highlighted on the blog, yet. It's not all peaches 'n cream, as you parents know all too well :) Oh - and it looks like she's going to hit me at the end. She actually went for the camera but I was ready for her the second time. (Although we've been through the hitting phase - not fun.)

This second video makes me laugh, too. She runs up to Andrew, who must have had something sharp in his pocket because she then says, "Owww - my back!" I'm not sure why I find this one funny - I think it's because she just reminds me of a little old lady or a pregnant lady complaining about her back. And, Andrew just seems completely oblivious.

Nose, Keys and Wings

2009-02-18T09:53:00.004-05:00

We took Mia to Wintergreen the weekend before last. Andrew was there all weekend celebrating his brother's birthday, so Mia and I joined everyone for the day on Saturday. It was the perfect day - 60s and sunny with lots of snow (they got 5 inches two days before). You didn't even need a jacket. We planned to take Mia to a little ice park they have for toddlers, but it was all booked. (Note - you have to get tickets online in advance - and it is the cutest park with a little innertube ride that pulls the kids in a circle on the ice. Kind of like the hobby horse ride, but they're in individual tubes.) So, we just hung out at the top of the slopes. Mia walked out of the lodge and announced, "Look! It's Nose!" She speaks her version of Pig Latin sometimes, where she takes the first letter and puts it on the end of the word - so "snow" becomes "nose" and "ski" becomes "keys." Her favorite part was the lifts. She thought they were swings and was completely fixated on them. There really is no "out of sight, out of mind" with her. Once she sets her mind to something, she'll mention it 100 times - even as we were eating lunch, we kept hearing about the swing ("wings"). And, Mia got to ride her first bus, which we had to catch to get back to our car. She LOVED that. People were laughing at her because she yelled "bus!" the entire time we were on it and would then cover her mouth and laugh, like "I can't believe I'm finally on a bus!"

Happy Birthday Aunt Sarah!

2009-02-14T07:43:00.003-05:00

A little birthday wish for Aunt Sarah. We forgot to mail your card (sorry!). We hope you have a good day!

kkkkkiigffggggggggggggtttttttyyyynnnnnnnnybbbybbynynyybbybybybyby (That's a note from Mia - kind of funny how the last part looks like bye-bye.)

Note for all other viewers: Excuse the cheesiness; I had to keep Mia interested :)

Dancing Machine

2009-02-11T09:47:00.003-05:00

Mia loves to dance. Last week, we were listening to Black Eyed Peas, and I showed her how to shake her hiney while dancing. It was even funnier that the song was "My Humps." She was dancing so hard, she couldn't keep her balance. Here's a bit of what we caught on camera. And, take a look at her shirt - she's wearing it with one shoulder exposed - like she's in Flashdance or something.

Ballerina Kitty Boots

2009-02-03T12:58:00.004-05:00

Our friend Katie gave Mia this adorable skirt for Christmas. Mia calls it her tutu and wants to wear it everywhere. Mimi and Papa kept her last Thursday night and said she even wanted to wear it to bed. Here's a picture of her with the outfit she picked out to wear to Nana and Poppy's house a few weekends ago. She HAD to wear the "tutu," so I paired it with a black leotard and tights. I was going to put her little black shoes on with it, but she insisted on wearing her kitty rain boots instead (even though it was perfectly sunny out). I also love the way she pulls it up to her chest - it actually looks cute that way. We have a little Sarah Jessica Parker on our hands, I think.

On the Mend

2009-02-03T12:54:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last post. We've been extremely busy this month - especially with my work. An update on Mia - we had our appointment at UVA Friday before last. We got a pretty good report. Her kidneys look good - that was our major concern. There are two minor things they think are causing these infections. It's a little too TMI to post on the blog, but she is on medicine for both. One of the medicines is working very well. The other seems to be working - but if it doesn't totally fix the problem in 3-4 weeks, Mia might have to have minor outpatient surgery. Let's keep our fingers crossed that doesn't have to happen. I can say that for the first time since October, she's feeling much better. We had our first negative culture in three months - so things are really looking up.

Potty Troubles

2009-01-13T10:26:00.003-05:00

Most of you already know this because I have a habit of telling EVERYONE everything :) but Mia has had a series of UTIs, bladder infections and other various bacteria infections (five total) since November. Oh - not to mention three drug allergies, which caused hives and total body rashes (we just had two in a row - ugghh). We decided it was time to see a specialist because the infections never seem to go away. We made an appointment with UVA's pediatric urology department. They're going to do an ultrasound on Mia Friday, Jan. 23, to check her kidneys and bladder. At this point, we don't think it's anything serious. But, please keep her in your thoughts. Poor thing probably doesn't even remember what it feels like to feel normal; if it isn't the painful uriniation, it's stomach issues or rashes from all of the drugs :( I'm just hoping we can get it all resolved soon.

Christmas Cheer

2009-01-01T19:27:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year! Hope everyone had a good holiday. We certainly did. It almost turned into a disaster because Andrew got a stomach bug on the 23rd, which spread to me on the 24th, but I didn't have it as bad as he did, thank goodness. And, we were all feeling fine on Christmas day.

On Christmas Eve, we spent the day at my parents' house. Mia was in great spirits - although she wasn't into the presents as much as I would've thought. She really didn't care about opening them. Her two favorite presents that night were a purple horse and a chair from "Mum," who is Granny, but Mia calls her Mum. She also got a doll and stoller and other toys that used to be mine that Nana cleaned and gave to her and then a drum and other musical instruments, which she loves to play.

On Christmas morning, Mia got up around 7ish and we went downstairs to see what Santa brought. Her big gift was a kitchen. I was sooo excited about the kitchen - much more excited than Mia was, apparently. We had the kitchen all set up when we got downstairs and all she said was "Barney!" because she saw her new Barney doll beside the kitchen. She really wouldn't even play with it until after breakfast - and even then she wasn't that into it. Certainly not as into this kitchen as the one in the toy store that she'll play with for 30 minutes straight - the reason I got her this kitchen in the first place. Oh well. Actually, her favorite present that morning was a little $2 ladybug wind-up toy - of course :)

The grandparents and my sister and her husband came over for brunch on Christmas morning, and then we went to Mimi and Papa's house for dinner. Mia got the American Girl "Mia" doll; she is so adorable. I'm going to keep her in the box for another year or so - she's just too pretty to give to a 20-month-old. She also got some pots and pans for her new kitchen. Oh - and a new Barney DVD (which we've watched EVERY DAY!). She actually wakes up in the morning saying "Barney." I think I know what this year's birthday theme is going to be - as much as I would rather have something cute or girly. Speaking of...Mia turned 20 months on the 26th. Hard to believe she'll be two in four months!

Here's a cute video of her playing with her new musical instruments (a little dark, but you can still see her). Her band mates are Aunt Sue and Meghan.

Circus Fun

2008-12-22T11:22:00.008-05:00

Last weekend, we took Mia to the Barnum & Bailey Circus at JPJ. We got there early and they let us walk around on the floor where some of the performers were jumping rope, etc. She got her picture taken with one of them - and Mia wouldn't take her eyes off of the lady.

During the show, she got to see tigers, elephants, dogs, trapeze artists and funny people riding bikes. (But, no clowns! Maybe because so many people - even adults - find clowns creepy?) I think her favorite part was during the half-time break when she found some confetti on the floor. Kids were throwing it in the air and Mia joined in on the fun.

We went with some of our neighbors - luckily. It was a two-hour show; that's two full hours sitting in assigned seats with a busy 19-month-old. She was great for the first 30 minutes. And, then all she wanted to do was go sit with Brian and Jeanie (our neighbors). I held her off for about 15 minutes because they have an infant and a 3-year-old, so it wasn't like they needed a 19-month-old on their laps. But, Mia insisted and eventually screamed out, which caused the lady in front of us to give us a dirty look. So, I let her crawl across a couple sitting between us to get to Brian and Jeanie. And, what do you know, she was perfectly content for the rest of the show. I mean, didn't move or anything! I would glance down and see her pointing to the elephants or tigers. And, she would look down at us and wave from time to time. But, I'd motion for her to come back and sit with us, and she'd shake her head "no." So, I just gave up trying. (In the one picture, you can see her sitting on Brian's lap. Brian's poor 3-year old is sitting beside him - couldn't sit on daddy's lap because of Mia!)

Maybe Next Year

2008-12-16T20:31:00.009-05:00

Mia went to see Santa twice last week. Both visits turned out pretty much how we expected. The week before the first visit, I tried to prep her by continuously showing her the picture from last year of her sitting on Santa's lap. And, we really talked him up on the car ride to the mall. She was completely fine with him standing in line. And, when I walked her up to him, she was waving her hand back and forth telling him a big 'ol story. But, then I asked her if she wanted to sit on his lap so I could take a picture and she said, "NO!" I didn't push her - I think it's mean when parents throw a screaming child in Santa's lap just to get a picture. (For those of you who have done this, you're MEAN :) So, I sat on Santa's lap with her. Must admit - felt a little weird. And, also felt like we were there forever because the mall picture ladies kept trying to get Mia to smile, but she just kept giving them the stone cold stare.

This past Saturday, Santa visited our neighborhood clubhouse. We decided to take Mia to see him again - plus, they had hot chocolate and cookies, so who could resist? I thought she'd be more willing to go up to him this time seeing how she and mommy survived the last visit, but as soon as we walked in the room, she clung to my neck and wouldn't even look at him. I did talk her into going up with me - AGAIN. We took a quick picture (not posted because I'm making a face that looks like I have no neck) and then Santa gave Mia a candy cane, so she warmed up to him a bit and would actually stand alone in the room with him as long as she was 50 feet away. We decided to go get some cookies and hot chocolate in the other room, but Mia kept wanting to peek in on Santa. Some lady took it upon herself to try to get Mia to sit on Santa's lap (apparently the lady didn't see the first attempt), although none of her tricks worked. The lady even gave the coveted "kitty" blanket to Santa. Santa hugged kitty and put kitty on his lap (see pics above), but Mia stuck to her guns. She'd just stand back and point and wave to him. Probably saying, "hey! he has kitty!" Despite giving Santa her kitty, Mia really liked the lady. She even gave her a big hug when we left and got a big "awww" from the room.

I bet she likes Santa on Christmas morning when she sees the new kitchen he's bringing her! Maybe she'll remember the toys and sit on his lap next year...

Stroller Ride

2008-12-09T21:13:00.004-05:00

I love this picture of Mia and her friend. This is Mia's doll stroller but the kids thought it would be great fun to take turns pushing each other in it. Actually, they weren't really taking turns - we would physically have to remove Mia from the stroller so her friend could have a turn riding in it. She only wanted to ride - not push. So, we ended up hiding the stroller eventually because it was causing major tantrums. Of course, Mia is extremely happy in this picture because she was riding!

I'm A Big Kid Now

2008-12-09T20:43:00.002-05:00

Mia surprises us with something new every day, it seems. She's growing up so fast. She's still pretty good about going potty. When she does go in her diaper, she says "I peed." I'm always impressed with her use of past tense. Yesterday I asked where her baby was, and she said "Ummmm, I don't know." She has started doing that now - saying "ummm" when you ask her something. "Mia, do you want milk or juice?" "Ummm...juice." Like she has to take a moment to think about it. She sings every song on her Kindermusik CDs and her Barney DVD. She may not get every word, but she'll mouth them and sing the words she does know - right on beat. I've got to get a video of her doing this - it's so funny. When we take her to the store, she has to hold the money/debit card and give it to the sales clerk. At bathtime, she makes a beard on her face out of her bath bubbles and even closes her mouth so I don't have to get on her for eating bubbles anymore. Today, I picked her up from Nana's house and my hands were full. So, I asked if she could walk with me to the car. And she did! Didn't veer off and try to eat mulch or anything! She looked like such a big girl doing that. And, the latest is that she wants to sit in a regular chair - not her high chair - for meals. Here's a pic of her at our house. The only thing is that she's not quite an expert on getting food from her plate to her mouth without spilling, so it makes an even bigger mess without the tray there. But I certainly don't want to hinder the independent spirit, so I let her win that battle - except with cereal or yogurt. As I re-read what I've wrote, the "it's the small things..." cliche comes to mind. Which is totally true at this age.

Thanksgiving Festivities

2008-11-30T08:01:00.007-05:00

The hives faded just in time for the holiday weekend, thank goodness. We spent Thanksgiving morning at nana and poppy's house with Mia entertaining everyone (as usual). In the picture above, she's licking the lipstick candy nana gave her. We left there at Mia's naptime hoping she would go to sleep in the car on the way to mimi and papa's house. But, we ended up feeding her lunch in the car. I think she's decided she's no longer eating if there are more than three people in the room - food has become a lower priority. She also never took a nap that day; this was a first. We tried to put her down but gave up after 35 minutes. I was actually a little scared of her that afternoon. She was really good for not having a nap, but the slightest thing would set her off. Wanting to avoid a major meltdown in front of the entire fam, we pretty much did whatever we could to keep her happy. The cousins also helped entertain her (pictured above). She went to bed at 6:30 that night and slept until 8 the next morning. And, I think Andrew and I both were asleep by 8 p.m.

On Friday, I took Mia to her first parade. She loved the cars honking their horns and the high school bands and dancers. It was a small parade - but we did get to see Elmo (another favorite) and Santa. She also scored a piece of bubble gum - another first. I wouldn't let her put the whole thing in her mouth, so she held the wrapper and sucked the bubble gum juices through it. She seemed completely happy doing this - the fun lasted about an hour.

Last night, I decorated the Christmas tree. I left some fun, non-breakable ornaments for Mia to decorate the bottom half of the tree this morning and was excited for her to wake up and see the lights. Note to self - feed child before engaging in what's-supposed-to-be-a-fun-activity. She liked the lights but wasn't interested in decorating the tree. She hung one ornament - one! But, to her credit, she was starving and ate a HUGE breakfast. Apparently Christmas decorations are lower on the totem pole than food. (And, don't ask why it looks like Mia has the Michael Jackson kind of skin disorder in these pics - must be my camera settings.)

Oh - and we also started the full-blown potty training yesterday. I bought some training pants. We went to Andrew's parents' house last night for dinner, and she went through three pairs of them in a matter of an hour. One accident was in the car seat (always pleasant); one on mimi and papa's bedroom floor (sorry guys) and one on Aunt Lisa's lap (an all caps SORRY). Why is it that Mia tells us she has to go potty in her diaper but not in the training pants? I'm giving this one week. After that, I'm throwing in the towel - and the training pants.

Spots, Spots Go Away

2008-11-24T19:43:00.003-05:00

We woke up this morning to Mia COVERED in red bumps (double-click on the pics to see why we were alarmed). I thought she had the Chicken Pox. Mom mentioned it might be the Measles. Either way, it didn't look good. The bumps seemed to grow in a matter of a few hours. The thing was, they didn't seem to bother Mia. She wasn't running a fever and wasn't picking or scratching at them. I called the doctor's office when they opened, and they were able to fit Mia in pretty quickly. Poor thing - I felt like I had a little leper in the waiting room. It was completely crowded and all of the parents kept staring at her (because the bumps are also on her face, ears, hands, etc. so it's not like you can just cover them up). I stood in the middle of the room because I knew what the parents were thinking - don't let her near my child and don't let her touch anything in the room. So, we went back to see the doctor, who brought in another doctor just to make sure her diagnosis was correct. Turns out, Mia had an allergic reaction to the UTI drug she's been on for 10 days. I know - it's weird this happened after she finished the medicine and not while she was taking it. But, the doctor said allergies build up over time and that's why it took so long. The good news is the bumps should go away in the next 72 hours. And, she's not too uncomfortable. She scratches every now and then and we're allowed to give her Benedryl, but it seems like it looks a lot worse than it feels. Thank goodness.

Potty Time!

2008-11-18T10:08:00.004-05:00

Last week was rough. Mia got a UTI, which made it very painful when she had to go to the bathroom. On top of that, she's not old enough to go in a cup, so the doctor had to catherize her to get a sample. (Which, BTW, did not end up working. So, if you're given the option to do the bag instead of the catheter - TAKE THE BAG!).

On the positive side, she's fully aware now of when she has to go potty. She tells us all the time - and anyone else who will listen. Her new favorite word is pee pee because she gets a reaction (mostly laughing) from every one when she says it. So, upon my mom's request, who's been saying for a while now that Mia might be ready for potty training, I got her a potty. And, guess what? She went pee pee in it! We were getting ready to give her a bath last night and she said "pee pee." So, I put her on the big toilet upstairs (not her little one), and she went right away! And, then this morning, she finished breakfast and said "pee pee" again, so I put her on her little potty, and she went again! I couldn't believe it. She also likes to take the toilet paper and stuff it between her legs - it's what she does to pass the time until she goes :) Here are a few cute pics of her on her new potty with a pacifier that she found in a toy box that she thinks is funny to suck on (I know, she'll kill me in 10 years when she sees these). I just can't believe this is happening. I'm not sure if I should go full-force into potty training (she's 18-months-old) or if we should just take it slow. Any advice?

Halloween Fun Part 2

2008-11-03T21:18:00.005-05:00

We got invited to a Halloween party on Saturday by one of Andrew's high school friends who has a little boy the same age as Mia. The only catch was we had to dress up, too. (Well, that's what we were told. But, once we got to the party, only the relatives of the hosts were dressed along with us.) We're not the dress-up kind of people, but I have to admit it was fun. Andrew borrowed a mullet wig from one of our neighbors. It was priceless. Mia was scared to touch it - it looked like road kill when we first got it. I had to "style" it a bit. I went as a cowgirl. Or "preppy" cowgirl as my sister said when I told her what I was wearing. I have to agree. My Nordstrom cowboy boots and skinny jeans don't exactly scream "down on the farm." But, I'm glad I went preppy and not hideous since WE WERE SOME OF THE ONLY ADULTS DRESSED UP AT THE PARTY. (did i already mention that?)

Mia wore her cute little ballerina outfit again (with a new onesie because the orange lollipop she sucked on for two hours on Halloween stained the first one). They had a moon bounce, which she loved. (At least once I got in with her. And, that was quite a feat getting that big hat through the little opening in the moon bounce.) And, she got to eat all kinds of fun, healthy treats like corn dogs, a gummy ear and bread that looked like fingers.

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-01T20:33:00.007-04:00

Mia had the best Halloween. This was the first holiday where I felt like she really got it. She was so excited by the end of the night - it could've been the candy, but I'm pretty sure it was authentic.

First, we had a pumpkin carving with our neighborhood friends. You'll notice our pumpkin looks a lot like Gonzo from The Muppets (you were right, Sarah). It actually was supposed to look like a witch. Stick figures are about the extent of our artistic abilities - and it shows.

Then came Halloween. Mia was a ballerina - or "tiny dancer" as our neighbors called her. I know she's mine - but she was pretty darn cute. She had a tutu and leg warmers and I put her hair up in pigtails for the first time.

She was a little timid during the first few trick-or-treats. But, she quickly caught on and soon knocked on doors all by herself. She got a tootsie pop at the third house we visited, and it lasted more than two hours. She also had her first candy bar - a Kit Kat. And, she loves Sweet Tarts. I actually used those tonight so I could do her hair again in pigtails. She's not a fan of that process - she hardly has any hair so I have to pull it tight to get it all up in the rubberband. So, I put Sweet Tarts on the vanity, and she ate them while I did her hair.

Tonight, we went to another Halloween party. I have a hilarious picture of Andrew because we had to dress up. I haven't downloaded them yet - stay tuned.

Boo Boo - and not the Halloween kind

2008-10-27T15:12:00.003-04:00

Poor Mia fell off the couch on Saturday night and injured her elbow :( This is the THIRD TIME she's taken a tumble off of furniture. And, for the THIRD TIME, I was sitting RIGHT BESIDE HER! I'm not sure how it happened; she was actually sitting down beside me and I looked over to tell Andrew something and next thing we know, she hit the ground. When I picked her up, she was crying in a way that I hadn't heard before. It was a "ok mom and dad - this really hurts" cry. I stripped her down to look for bruises or red areas but didn't see any. And, then we noticed she wasn't using her right arm. So, I started doing some exercises with it and when I bent it back toward her body, she started screaming. We called the doctor. To make a long story a little shorter, the doctor thinks she dislocated her elbow and I popped it back in when doing the exercises. Ouch!!!!!!!!! The good news is that she healed quickly. She already was feeling much better when we got to the doctor's office. It was still a little sore yesterday - but only when I moved it in funny ways to see if it still hurt. Today, she's back to hanging off the counters and tables. We go to The Little Gym with one of our pediatricians whose little boy has been in classes with Mia since they were about 8 months old. Her husband was teasing us last Thursday saying how Mia was not afraid of anything, and we were going to have to put his wife on speed dial. I don't think he was thinking this soon, though!

Tu Cute

2008-10-27T13:45:00.003-04:00

For Halloween, Mia is going to dress up as a ballerina. I bought her a tutu a month ago, and she wears it all the time. She puts it on and does a little twirl - it's so cute. In fact, she's worn it so much, I had to go buy another one because the original one got ink and food on it and the threads starting coming out the bottom (Ok. Ok. So it could've been cleaned. And I could've cut the threads off the bottom. But, I actually found one I like better :) Stay tuned for Mia in her full costume later this week.

Cheers Daddy!

2008-10-21T11:51:00.003-04:00

Andrew just accepted a position at UVA Medical Center working for the CFO and the Chief Environmental Care Officer (the guy in charge of the new construction for the hospital and the medical school). The day that Andrew got the call, we had a little champagne toast to celebrate the occasion. We included Mia, who's enjoying juice on the rocks in, yes, a crystal champagne glass. It was a bittersweet moment for me. I was so relieved that he got a job so soon but also sad that he had to go back to work. Mia and I have really enjoyed having him around. (Note: This is a horrible picture of me but the only one we got at this moment, so please disregard my sweaty face.)

Carter's Mountain

2008-10-15T09:23:00.005-04:00

A few weekends ago, we met our friends at Carter's Mountain. I'd heard it was a great place to take the kids, and the weekend that we went was the annual Apple Festival. We picked apples, rode on a hayride, ate some yummy apple cinnamon doughnuts and danced to a bluegrass band. Mia had her first hot dog - wasn't quite sure what to think of it. She's not big on meat these days. But, she kept full by eating apples. I think we went through four of them. She'd eat part of the apple and then throw it on the ground. And, then she'd want another one. She had apple juice everywhere - including Andrew's hair because she was sitting on his shoulders for the apple picking/eating and kept spitting the skin out in his hair :)

Look Who's Talking II

2008-10-10T08:45:00.003-04:00

Here's a little video I took of Mia this morning. She's repeating a few words. She never repeats this many all at once - she usually gets tired of this game pretty quickly. So, we were lucky to capture it on camera.

Look Who's Talking

2008-10-01T15:10:00.002-04:00

Mia is really expanding her vocabulary these days - I counted and it's about 30 words. And, she's learning new words every day. It seemed to happen out of nowhere. She'll repeat what we ask her to say, which is a fun game. Although, it's about a 50 percent chance she'll get it right. For example, I'll ask her to say chicken, and she'll say "chicken," but then I'll ask her to say couch and she'll say "teet." Ahaha - cracks me up.

I was most excited when she put two words together last weekend - "more apple." She loves apples - and it's her favorite word. (Side note - that's what she's eating here in this picture. It's the only way I can get her through the entire grocery store without her wanting out of the cart :)

This past weekend at the lake, she said "boat," "fish" and "pizza." She also learned how to say her friend Davis' name - it sounds like "Dsss" - and she now calls her cousins Baba (Bobby) and JoJo (Joey). Very cute moment - Bobby and Joey taught her how to say their names at the lake two weekends ago. The next morning, I went to get her from her crib and she was laying there saying, "baba jojo baba jojo" over and over. It made them very happy to hear that.

Mama Mia

2008-09-24T20:48:00.004-04:00

Mia has really been into dolls recently. We went to visit our friends Krissy and Brad - who just had another baby girl, Ellie, BTW - and Mia loved their daughter's dolls and accessories. She actually threw a fit when she had to let go of a doll so we could go home. This was new to us because she had dolls at home but never played with them like she did at Krissy and Brad's house. I decided it must have been the fun accessories. So, a few days later, I was in the toy store and decided to get her some bottles and a stroller for her dolls. Jack pot! She pushes the stroller around the house and gives her babies milk and juice bottles. She also burps them and puts them night-night. I didn't really think she was a girly-girl until this stage. She's always been into dirt and rocks and things. But, she loves her dolls and is a good little mommy.

Final Myrtle Beach

2008-09-24T19:41:00.010-04:00

Ok - final Myrtle Beach posting (since we did go there a month ago and the moment has passed). But, I couldn't leave out all of the fun activities we did with Mia because many of them were firsts for her...first amusement park rides, first acquarium visit, first trip to the Disney store! Here's a re-cap...

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Myrtle Beach closed its famous Pavilion and moved the flagship rides to Broadway at the Beach. So, we took Mia one night to ride her first rides. Her very first ride was the boat that goes back and forth. She didn't quite know what to think and had a very serious face the entire time, but once it was over, she wanted on every ride in the park. Even the swings that go 50 feet in the air! She loved the carousel (rode twice), teacups (although I think she got dizzy because she had a funny look on her face half-way through) and the train.

Here's Mia trying to climb Pooh at the Disney store (have no idea what's going on with the formatting).

We also took Mia to the acquarium. Myrtle Beach has a great one at Broadway. She liked the fish, but was into the moving floor even more :) And, she was not afraid of the touch tanks. In the picture below, she's trying to grab a horseshoe crab. And, then the jellyfish - although they were behind a glass case. Oh - speaking of fish and things...my friend just went to the beach in Emerald Isle, N.C. and saw three sharks, each about 4 feet long, in knee-deep water. Scary! And, Andrew and my mom make fun of me for being a little skiddish about swimming in the ocean...

Last but not least, Mia had her first taste of Mexican food - my family's favorite. What is funny is we learned she likes sour cream and guacamole - and spicy salsa! She now eats these things at least once a week at our house. I didn't get pictures of the sour cream, but I did want to share the picture of Aunt Sarah and Nana, one of my favs from the trip. Looks like I was the DD that night :)

Myrtle Beach Part III: Horsen' Around

2008-09-10T15:53:00.007-04:00

I think these pictures are hilarious of us, so I wanted to share. These were taken at Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle. We went and had dinner at one of our favorite spots - the House of Blues. And, then we hit the shops and took Mia to see the baby tigers and monkeys. We found this little photo station along the way.

Myrtle Beach Part 2: Pool Time

2008-09-08T14:48:00.006-04:00

The resort where we stay in Myrtle has the most amazing pool area. It has an entire water park just for kids; the water is only about 1.5 feet deep. Mia loved going down the water slides, riding on the lazy river and playing in the water falls. She went completely under a few times - didn't seem to phase her except for the time she sucked in a bunch of water. But even then she just got right back in after coughing violently for a few minutes. She made a grand entrance to the pool each day in her little red car - that always captures people's attention. She also met some friends and borrowed their rafts and beach ball. I think I'm going to enlist her in swimming lessons next year. She's already kicking her feet. Oh, and I'm also going to invent some new swimmer diapers. They do absolutely nothing for containing the pee pee. We had multiple accidents. And, it totally grosses me out because you know everyone's diapers are leaking in the baby pool. Ugghh. I guess the good thing is that it's not #2. But, still!

Myrtle Beach Part 1

2008-09-04T20:04:00.004-04:00

A friend of mine recently told me that you don't actually get a vacation again until your child is four. Until then, it's called a "trip." Completely true. My mom, sister, Mia and I took a "trip" to Myrtle Beach last week. And, we were completely exhausted by week's end. Mia wore all of us out. We were at the beach, the pool, the Aquarium, the amusement park...and Mia had a blast. The downside was she ended up getting a double ear infection on the "trip," so when we weren't doing something extremely fun (i.e. - eating dinner in a restaurant or hanging out at the condo), she was Cranky McCranky. We're talking tantrums - major tantrums. Screaming so loud we think the people next door asked to be moved :) But, as long as we were out and about, she had the time of her life. My sister was the photographer on the trip. We have so many good pics, I don't even know which ones to share. Here are a few of Mia at the beach - eating bananas, collecting shells with nana, touching a dead crab (freaked me out!)...I'll post more later.

Bye Bye Bottle

2008-09-04T19:20:00.004-04:00

On Monday, we went to the doctor for Mia's 15-month check-up (we're a month late for that appointment). The doctor asked if we were still giving her a bottle. We embarrassingly said "yes, she still gets a bottle at night." (Note: They told us to give up the bottle at 12 months, which we did...for two of the day bottles...completely cold turkey I might add.) After a small lecture from the doctor, we figured it was time. So, Tuesday night (couldn't do it Monday after she'd had three shots - I know, I know), we gave her a sippy cup of milk instead. The amazing thing was she didn't even seem to mind. Wednesday night, I was putting her pajamas on and she kept pointing to the sippy cup saying, "ba ba ba ba." So, I thought, "oh great - she wants the bottle instead of the sippy." But, when I gave her the sippy and said, "here's your milk," she looked at it funny but then drank it. No biggie.

But it is a big deal to me! I'm the reason we didn't give up the nighttime bottle four months ago. I like giving her that bottle before she goes to bed. It's our quiet time - one of the only times during the day she'll snuggle with me. So, Tuesday was a sad day :( And, to make things even sadder for me, here's a picture of Mia with her FIRST bottle. She was four days old. My milk hadn't come in and as a result, she'd lost too much weight and her jaundice levels were way up. So, the nurse popped open a tiny 2-oz. bottle and Mia drank it in 2 seconds flat. That day is so vivid in my mind because I knew she was starving. I was so thankful that she was finally getting some milk.

First Haircut

2008-08-19T10:31:00.003-04:00

Mia got her first haircut yesterday. I'm trying to let it grow out, but the back got so long, it started looking like a mullet. So, we took her to a stylist who trimmed the top and cut about an inch off the back (you can see the new cut in the third picture - so much better). I was a little nervous about how she'd react, but she did so well. She kept wiggling around trying to see the scissors, but there were no tears. Probably because we got to hold her the entire time. I kept a lock for her baby book, which is officially finished, now.

Sold!

2008-08-12T15:00:00.003-04:00

Andrew and I (but mostly Andrew) built a second house in our neighborhood. We put it up for sale, as well as our personal house, and decided we'd move/stay in whichever one didn't sell. Turns out, the new house sold! Because of the awful housing market, we were very blessed to have closed on it last month. However, I couldn't help but be a little sad - it was a beautiful house with a screened-in porch that would have been great for Mia. Here are some pictures of it - with Andrew and Mia on the front porch (you can see them better if you double-click on the pictures).

Queen of the Court

2008-08-03T11:32:00.003-04:00

Our house in Hilton Head had a lifesize chess board in the backyard. Mia entertained herself one morning playing queen of the court and eliminating all of the pawns and knights.

First Bike Ride

2008-07-25T21:28:00.003-04:00

Mia had her first bike ride in Hilton Head. We rented bikes with the baby seats on the back and rode around the neighborhood and to the beach every day. She loved it. We'd say, "Mia, do you want to go ride the bicycle?" and she'd go to the front door. I was a little worried about it at first, but our neighborhood in HH was nice and flat and there weren't a lot of cars. The thing she didn't like was the helmet, which looked totally hilarious on her. It was too big and would fall down in her face. So, by the end of the week, we let her ride around without it (gasp!). I'm thinking of getting a bike to ride around here. I want the granny kind with the wide handle bars - like the one in these pictures. But, I need gears. Any suggestions? I know nothing about bikes.

Starfish Snatcher

2008-07-23T11:30:00.004-04:00

Our cousins, Kate & Mackenzie, found a starfish and sand dollar on the beach one day. The starfish sort of became their little pet for a few hours; they made sure it had water and would hold it and pet it and we all took pictures of it. Mia, of course, wanted in on the fun, so Kate (pictured above with Mia), let her touch it. Then, in a flash, Mia grabbed it out of Kate's hand and threw it on the ground. In the process, the starfish lost a leg. The girls started screaming - it was complete chaos for a few minutes as we yelled and laughed over the horrible (but funny) situation. We ended up and put it back in the ocean so it could work on growing a new leg. A little later, Mackenzie was like, "I miss our little starfish." Poor thing. Note to self: Never let a toddler play with a live creature - at least this toddler.

Hilton Head

2008-07-22T12:36:00.004-04:00

We're back from a fabulous family vacation at Hilton Head, which is my new favorite beach. It's very pretty and quaint there, but there's lots to do. We stayed in an amazing house with many cousins around to entertain Mia. And, Mia experienced many "firsts," so it was a special vacation for us - first time swimming in the ocean, first bike ride, first 11-hour car trip :) I took lots of pictures, so my next few posts will be about our trip. Stay tuned...

Beach Bound

2008-07-10T10:23:00.001-04:00

We're off to Hilton Head on Saturday for a week. Can't wait - I know Mia will love the beach and ocean and I'm so excited to take her there. We'll be sure to share some pics when we return. Have a good week!

Water Baby

2008-07-10T10:06:00.005-04:00

I've mentioned a few times how Mia loves the big mushroom waterfall at our pool. I finally got some pictures (thanks, Aunt Sarah). In the first one, she's standing under the mushroom with nana. The second is nana passing her through the waterfall to daddy. And, in the third picture, you can see the mushroom in the background to give you an idea of how much water pours down. She loves it and takes off running for it as soon as we put her in the pool (it's really shallow there). She threw a little tantrum the other day when we had to get out of the big pool (with the mushroom) for adult swim and go into the baby pool. One lady said, "awww- she wants to go back to the mushroom!."

Happy Birthday, Daddy...And America

2008-07-08T12:35:00.003-04:00

Andrew's birthday is on the 4th of July, so we're usually at the lake celebrating with family. This year, our celebration started a day late. Poor Mia caught a virus that caused her to have a fever of 102-103 for three days, her worst day (and last, thank goodness) being the 4th. She pepped up long enough for me to put her in her July 4th outfit mimi gave her and snap a few pictures of her playing outside. The one picture is her trying to catch bubbles in her mouth :) Luckily, she woke up Saturday fever free, so we were able to make it to the lake for one night. We took her to see one of our favorite bands, The Worx, play (Richmond gang - we missed you). She liked them, but not as much as she liked picking up and throwing the rocks on the ground. She did dance, though. And, we got a point and a wave from the lead singer (which Andrew does not believe, but it's completely true)!

Mia's Motrin

2008-07-02T09:52:00.003-04:00

It wouldn't be right blogging about Mia's life without mentioning her Motrin. Yes, as in the medicine. Mia carries around a Motrin bottle with her all the time. I'm not exaggerating. She takes it to the pool, Kindermusik, Nana's house, the lake - and even sleeps with it. It's quite embarrassing - everyone comments on it. This lady at the pool last week was like, "oh, that's the little girl who carries the Motrin everywhere." What's funnier is her little friend Davis, who is 19-months-old, will find her bottle on the floor somewhere, and will bring it to her. He knows it's Mia's. I'm not sure when this started - or even how she got it in the first place. I remember rocking her to sleep a few months ago, and she had "the bottle" in her hand. I took it from her and put it on top of her dresser, and she threw a little (big) fit. I guess I gave in and let her have it - and that was the beginning of this addiction. But, it fits perfectly in her tiny hands - that's why she likes it. I'm on the search for another bottle of the same size so she's not carrying around drugs all the time. If you double-click on the picture, you can see it in her left hand. And, in the right is the little dropper thing - she likes that, too. All I can say is "thank goodness for child-proof caps!"

New Office Assistant

2008-06-24T09:16:00.005-04:00

Mia's new infatuation is my desk drawer. I think she thinks she's my new office assistant. Yesterday, I was checking email and looked back to find her in a ball of ribbon with rubber cement glue (hellooo...safety hazard) and one of those large paper clips. She's a busy little assistant. And, one that constantly has me cleaning out my drawer removing sharp objects and other choking hazards (I'll add rubber cement to that list, now).

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T20:32:00.006-04:00

Hope all the daddies out there had a good weekend! We had a super busy one - but lots of fun. On Friday, I surprised Andrew with a date night (sans child). We went to Friday's After Five for a few drinks and then to this new restaurant called The Local, which was really yummy. After dinner, we noticed the bar across the street had live music, so we went in - only to find out that it was a private party. It would've been fine had I not walked in and made a big production by singing and dancing to the music. Everyone was staring, and I just kept singing - for like 10 minutes! Embarrassing!

On Saturday, we spent the day with the entire Ellinger clan at our community pool. Mia was going under the big mushroom that has water pouring off it - not intimidated at all. My sister got some really cute pictures that I'll post as soon as I get them from her. That night, Andrew and I fixed a dinner for my parents because it's mom's birthday today, as well (Happy Birthday, Nana!).

Today, Mia and I fixed breakfast in bed for daddy (I got some hilarious, bed-head pictures of this, but have been forbidden to post them on the blog). After Mia's nap, we went to this local man-made beach that we just found out about, which is about 5 minutes from our house (we really need to venture out more). And, then we went to a local orchard for ice cream and peaches. Whew! We're exhausted, as you can imagine. Mia's really exhausted. We had to wake her from her afternoon nap because she had slept more than 2 hours and it was 5:00. And, then she went to bed again around 8:00. Fun in the sun is tiring!

Froggy Pool...Not So Much

2008-06-13T09:35:00.003-04:00

We got Mia this little froggy pool for her birthday. It's really cute and I thought she'd love it - but she doesn't quite know what to think of it. She's not so sure about the head part - or the big eyes at the top. And, I think she gets bored with it quickly. She'd much rather be in our community pool running around with water up to her chest and trying to go under the large mushroom with water cascading off in sheets (like it hurts your head to stand under it). But, until we can convince daddy to put in a real pool (which will be never), Froggy Pool will have to do.

Big Girl...Almost

2008-06-08T20:54:00.002-04:00

The other night, Mia walked into the pantry and came out carrying her bag of Gold Fish. She unfolded the bag, grabbed it with one hand and reached in with the other hand and pulled out some fish. Andrew and I looked at each other like, "Oh my gosh - she's such a big girl now. She can get her own snacks!" I ran to get the camera thinking it was a "blog moment." And, as soon as I turned around, Mia dumped the entire bag on the floor.

So, yes, she's getting to be a big girl. Not quite there yet, though. But, we're fine with that.

The Healing Power of Popsicles

2008-06-04T21:35:00.006-04:00

Mia was sick this past week. At first, we thought she had the Hand, Foot and Mouth virus (or, as my neighbor Brian calls it, Mad Cow) because she was exposed to it. This starts with a high fever, followed by blisters in the mouth and ends with a rash on the hands and feet. It's pretty common in babies. On Wednesday, she had a high fever. Her little cheeks were red all day because she was so hot and she just laid around and slept. On Friday, she woke up with red bumps in the back of her throat and could barely eat anything all day. Her strep test was negative, so the doctor said it definitely looked like the Hand, Foot and Mouth virus. But, she never broke out in the rash. Instead, she got a bad cold over the weekend. So, I'm not so sure that's what it was.
With her not eating much, I bought her some popsicles thinking they would feel good on her throat. And, since her friends couldn't come in the house to play because she was sick, we invited them to sit outside and have popsicles. At first, Mia couldn't quite figure out the concept of the popsicle. She had it turned upside down and was biting on the stick. After some help, she figured out how to get the sweet stuff without freezing her teeth. The crazy thing is the next day, she woke up feeling completely back to normal - her appetite was back, there was no runny nose, no coughing, sneezing, etc. It was the popsicles!

First Boat Ride

2008-05-30T09:32:00.004-04:00

Not only did Mia swim in the lake for the first time last weekend, but she also took her first boat ride. And, loved it. She's definitely an outdoors girl. We thought she'd get annoyed by the big life jacket, but she didn't seem to mind it. Uncle Chris was blasting the music on the way home in the boat, so in the picture with me, Mia is bouncing to Kid Rock. Lullabies are for babies :)

Polar Bear Swim

2008-05-27T22:19:00.008-04:00

We went to Smith Mountain Lake with Andrew's family for Memorial Day Weekend. Mimi and Papa have a house, boat and jet ski there, and we're there a lot during the summer (who wouldn't be?). The water was FREEZING this past weekend - we're talking people-skiing-in-wet-suits cold. You'd think a 22-pound baby would be deterred from those temperatures. But, not Mia (or her crazy cousins). She braved the water all three days, splashing and playing until her lips were blue and her whole body was shaking (and mommy couldn't take watching her anymore, which was about 10 minutes at a time). Seeing how much she loves the water, I'm really looking forward to this summer with her. We joined our community pool and have a few trips planned to the beach. Should be so much fun.

Fun with Friends

2008-05-21T11:37:00.002-04:00

Our college friends - Robin, Krissy & Brad - visited us this past weekend with their kids. Mia had a blast playing with the older girls. Now that she's walking, it's easier for her to keep up with them. They take very good care of her - making sure she has toys, pushing her in her car, holding her hand while she's walking, etc. I tried to get a picture with all three of them in it, but some of them (eh hmm, Mia and Greta) weren't cooperating. Not pictured is baby Colette, who is 7 weeks old and was so good all day. Thanks for coming to visit you guys! (By the way - my friend Robin drove to Virginia from NY by herself with a 3.5 year-old and a 7-week-old. She's a fearless mommy.) And, I must add how our lives have changed. A few years ago, we would've spent the day at the Downtown Mall enjoying drinks outside or visiting some local wineries. Now, we have pizza and chocolate chip cookies and spend the afternoon on the playground :)

Cracking Up

2008-05-18T18:02:00.003-04:00

Babies laughing is one of my favorite sounds. You can't help but laugh with them. Here Mia is cracking up at her dad, who is blowing air in her face with this syringe-type thing the hospital gave me when I was having trouble feeding her. Who knows where she found it. I have a tupperware container in the kitchen cabinet that she plays with that has all of her baby bottle stuff in it - I guess that's where it was. Anyhoo - she thinks it's the funniest thing.

Worst Mommy Of The Week Award Goes To...

2008-05-16T19:52:00.002-04:00

ME!!!!!!!!! I let my baby fall on her head - not once, but twice this week! On Monday, I was checking email and Mia wanted to sit with me. So, I lifted her up and put her in the office chair behind me. She was playing with one of her toys (or so I thought). The next thing I know, I hear this loud thud on the floor and I look over and Mia has fallen off the side of the chair flat onto her back and head. She actually didn't cry that hard. What scared me most was she laid her head on my shoulder and stayed there for about 10 minutes. This might seem normal for some of you parents, but Mia is not a snuggler. So, I called the doctor, and they told me some warning signs to look for. Thankfully, she was fine. Then, on Thursday morning, we were playing on the couch. I was eating my bagel and breaking off small pieces for her (one of our morning rituals - and, yes, she also has a healthier breakfast for those appalled that i feed her a bagel every morning :). I saw her crawling away from me, so I said "Mia" in that "you better come back here" tone. And, as she looked back at me, she lost her balance, fell off the couch and landed in a headstand position on the floor. Then, her neck did this twisty thing and she completely flipped over. But, the worst part was she landed directly on top of her head - I can't get that visual out of my mind. This time, I took her to the doctor (they told me to come in since this was the SECOND time that week). Again, we lucked out and she's fine. Turns out, the "goose egg" that I thought was on her head is the soft spot closing (oops). So, now I have her on a leash. Kidding (kind of). But, just in case this happens to you, here are some signs of head trauma/concussion: 1) not crying right away 2) dilated pupils 3) persistant vomiting 4) very sleepy for hours at a time.

Corn on the Cob is Good!

2008-05-15T14:31:00.002-04:00

Mia decided she wanted to try our corn on the cob the other night for dinner. I put it in her mouth thinking she either wouldn't like it (because corn is the thing she spits out when she gets a spoonful of vegetables), or she would lick off the butter and leave the corn. But, she actually ate it off the cob! She even has a mouthful to prove it :)

Happy Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T20:01:00.002-04:00

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! Don't you just love this day? It's almost like a birthday. At least, in my house it is. But, that's also because I start talking about it weeks in advance. So, everyone knows it's a big day for mommy and mommy can do whatever she wants on that day :)

I had a great day. It started with a card from Mia and Andrew telling me that my gift is a cleaning lady. Woo hoo! Then, we went to brunch with my parents, Andrew's parents and my grandmother. Mia did not want to eat and only wanted to walk around the restaurant (and do her cute beauty queen wave to people at each table), so brunch wasn't extremely relaxing. But, the food was delicious and we all came home and took a nap.

Here are a few pictures of us at brunch - Mill Street Grill in Staunton. The group picture includes Mia's two grandmas (Nana and Mimi) and her great-grandma (Granny Ross).

What's in that Sippy Cup?

2008-05-08T19:29:00.003-04:00

Mia after a little too much "juice." Her facial expressions are priceless - I had to share.

Look! No Hands!

2008-05-08T18:30:00.003-04:00

Mia has come a long way in a few weeks! Check her out walking around the house (excuse the mess - the big box is from her new car seat that arrived today). This is probably the farthest she's walked by herself - plus she turned around and headed back to me, which she never does. Maybe she saw her friend Kelsey walking around today and decided that she finally needed to let go of mommy and daddy's hands?

Kindermusik

2008-05-08T08:11:00.004-04:00

Mia has been in Kindermusik since she was four-months-old. I've tried to sign her up for other classes but keep coming back to this one because she loves it so much. Here is a picture of Mia with some of her Kindermusik friends. We got together for a picnic after class. (Katie's Will is on the far left, looking very proud of himself for whatever it is that he just accomplished.)

Save Me, Daddy!

2008-05-01T16:00:00.003-04:00

Mia loves to play outside. She's like a little puppy and goes to the door when she wants to go out. Here, she's tapping on the window trying to get Andrew's attention while he's mowing the lawn. In the second picture, she's upset because daddy wasn't listening and mommy told her that she couldn't go outside because it was dinnertime.

Wild Thing

2008-05-01T15:16:00.005-04:00

"Wild Thing" having a blast in the bathtub a few nights ago.

Birthday Girl

2008-04-28T09:13:00.003-04:00

Mia had a fabulous first birthday. Since her kitty blanket is her favorite thing in the world, we threw her a Hello Kitty party. Her grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins came out to celebrate the big day. Mia was in the best mood - she loves to be the center of attention. And, this was a captive audience! Here she is in her birthday outfit from Mimi, with her cousins, and enjoying her cake. Stay tuned...we might have a video to share.

Cupcakes Are Good!

2008-04-23T23:12:00.006-04:00

We celebrated Mia's first birthday a little early with her best friends from the neighborhood. As you can see, the cupcakes were a hit. Apparently not too filling, though, because after eating, Mia went outside and decided to chew on some mulch, and grass and dirt and whatever else she could find lurking in the yard.

First Steps

2008-04-23T22:53:00.004-04:00

Mia took her first steps! She's been taking a few steps walking to/from Andrew and I. But, she always knew someone was behind her (and thinking we were holding her). Last night was the first time she knowingly walked by herself - she went from the ottoman to Andrew. And, then later today, she walked all the way across her room - about 10 steps. She pulled up on me sitting on the floor and just took off toward the iPod playing her music. Unfortunately, we didn't get a shot of that one. But, here's a peek of her walking to me this morning (turn the volume down - we're yelling pretty loud).

Redneck Pool

2008-04-18T22:25:00.004-04:00

It was hot outside today - too hot to play on the playground or walk. So, I blew up an inflatable bathtub that we take with us on vacations and made Mia a little swimming pool. I guess you could call it the redneck pool. But, Mia loved it. She embraces her redneck-ness :) In fact, she was waving to our neighbors as if to say "hey! look at me! i'm in my bathtub in the backyard!"

Thanks, Nana!

2008-04-18T22:06:00.003-04:00

A month or so ago, my mom (nana) taught Mia to drink from a straw. Now whenever anyone is drinking from a straw, Mia wants in on the fun. I don't let her have my sodas, but she was feeling extra sneaky yesterday. When I went to the kitchen to get something, she pulled up on the ottoman, grabbed my Diet Pepsi and took a sip - all in a matter of five seconds! So glad you taught her this little trick, nana!

Spring Break Vacation

2008-04-16T10:12:00.004-04:00

Our nephews had Spring Break last week, so Andrew's parents took all of us to Williamsburg for the weekend. If you haven't been to Busch Gardens in a while, I highly recommend it. It's super nice there, and they have the best roller coasters! Mia's highlight of the trip was swimming in the hotel pool. She's going to be a ton of fun this summer; she loves the water.

Look What I Can Do!

2008-04-16T09:55:00.003-04:00

For the past few months, Mia has done everything BUT crawl. She's been pulling herself across the floor on her tummy; pulling herself sitting up; and doing something that looks like the worm dance from the '80s. A few weeks ago, she started walking with our assistance and pulling up on furniture. So, we just figured she'd never crawl and would go straight to walking. But, FINALLY...she crawled on her hands and knees. Last Wednesday, she just decided to take off. And, now she looks like a pro! Check her out in the video.

Flower Child - 10 months

2008-04-10T22:57:00.002-04:00

My neighbor started her own professional photography business and took some pictures of Mia to include in her portfolio (which is amazing, by the way). This one just makes me smile. How cute is that hat?

Angie specializes in taking pictures of children. Check out her blog: www.brements.blogspot.com.

Mia's Surgery

2008-04-10T22:21:00.005-04:00

Mia had surgery on Jan. 18, 2008, to remove a dermoid cyst above her right eye. It was basically a little hard cyst under the skin. The surgeon made a small incision on her eyebrow line and scooped it out. I, of course, was a nervous wreck. They made us give Mia medicine to sedate her so she would go with the anesthesiologist to the operating room. I just remember him walking down the hall with her in his arms - he was singing the "Itsy Bitsy Spider." And, the tears were flowing (until the nurses kicked us out of our little room and told us to go to the waiting room, so I quickly had to gain my composure). But, she exceeded all of our expectations and did extremely well. She was very groggy all day - not to mention sore. But, by day three, she was completely off her pain medication. This is a picture of her in her little hospital gown and socks before the surgery. You can see she's in a great mood and has no idea what's coming - I think that's what bothered me most!

First Christmas

2008-04-10T22:09:00.003-04:00

Mia's first Christmas wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. She was a bit overwhelmed by all of the commotion. And, it's no wonder. That night after she went to bed, Andrew and I watched the Christmas video, and it was like she had the paparazzi swarming her all day. Flashbulbs were going off every second; someone (and by that, I'm including me and Andrew) was always in her face trying to get her to open a new present or play with a new toy. She was just too young to understand how much fun it is! Next year...

Smile!

2008-04-10T22:00:00.003-04:00

At six months, we had Fran, our wedding photographer, take some professional pictures of Mia. They all turned out great - it was hard to decide which ones we wanted to enlarge. This one, however, was my favorite of the bunch. It really captures her smile, which she does quite often. If anyone is looking for a photographer, I highly recommend Fran Fevrier. You can check out her Web site at http://www.fransimages.com.

Yummy!

2008-04-10T21:50:00.003-04:00

At four months, we were given the ok by the pediatrician to start Mia on baby food. Here she is after her first meal - bananas (which is one food she now refuses to eat). She didn't get much down - mostly pushed it out with her tongue. But, in a week or so she figured it out. And, hasn't quit eating since. I swear sometimes I have no idea how she eats as much as she does with a tummy the size of a quarter.

The World Traveler - 3 Months

2008-04-10T21:42:00.003-04:00

At three months, we took Mia to Maine for a week to visit Andrew's aunt and uncle. Here she is asleep in her baby Bjorn getting ready to take her first flight. She slept the entire way - and most of the connecting flight which ended up being 5 hours due to thunderstorms. Our fellow passengers were quite pleased with that.

Beach Bum - 8 Weeks

2008-04-10T15:50:00.001-04:00

This is another one of my favorites. We took Mia to Myrtle Beach when she was 8 weeks old, and my sister bought those hilarious sunglasses for her. Apparently, she didn't mind. She's asleep in this picture.

Mia - 3 Days Old

2008-04-10T15:23:00.000-04:00

Since I just got around to starting a blog - and now Mia is 11 months old - I thought I'd catch everyone up and post some pics of her during the past year.

This is one of my favorites. Mia is three days old and sleeping in Andrew's hands (no, they're not my hands - people have asked and Andrew now thinks he has feminine hands).

My First Time

2008-04-10T14:54:00.000-04:00

For the most part, I started this blog for Mia. She's growing up so fast - too fast. I'm finishing up her baby book, which covers the first 12 months, and it made me sad to think that I'd no longer be able to capture all of the cute little things she's doing on a weekly/monthly basis. I go back and read how she was just learning to sit up at five months and can't believe how far she's come. So, I thought I'd give blogging a try. And, I have to say, forget scrapbooking (Krissy). This is so much better - and easier! Plus, you can share it with everyone!