4!

Yesterday Matt and I had our 4 year anniversary. We took a few pictures to mark the day of me and AB.  Looking back I think the picture maybe should have been of me and Matt?? 

 AB's newest things this week is she loves her baby rattles. She has three little silver ones, 2 of which were mine and matts with chew marks all over them and one of her own. She seems to like that one the best because it is the closet resembelence to her fist - which in its entirety is often in her mouth.

Fast forward, 4 years from 3.31.11 I hope for the following:
-The 3 of us are all still big boned and healthy.
-AB is riding/walking on a pony-but not her own thanks to Rebecca! Hooray!
-AB will have another sibling
-George will have a Standard Poodle sister named "Miss Joyce"

Lauren's Weddding and "Sassy-O-So-Fun-Day" x 3!

This weekend I made a major accomplishment! I left AB with Matt alone for a night and Matt and I left her for two nights to each go to a wedding out of town! I went to Lauren and Jimmy's and Matt went to Brennan and Meli's.

I must say, Matt totally excedded my expectations with her when they were alone together Thursday night! She went to bed - slept great - and then he dropped her off with Miss Anna to be picked up by Sassy on Friday afternoon.  We call days with Sassy "Sassy-O-So-Fun-Day" because it originally was a day when she picked up K and B from school and they got to spend the day with her until bed time.  However; what was designed to be "fun" for Sassy and Dale turned out to be a weekend with AB!!  But she insists it was no problem!!

Matt did great - packing up her things (although I had already packed her a bag with 9 outfits, 2 dresses, diapers, formula etc. BUT he managed to not see it in her room).  So Dad made his own bag for her for three days with mom and dale with the following items (love you matt):
video monitor, sleep sack, lovey, bottles, pacifier, ONE one-z, ONE pair of pants; ONE night suit, ONE long sleeve shirt, and TWO pairs of socks. SCORE! When I look back at that list I wouldnt trade anything about it because he remembered all the big stuff! Who cares about the clothes!! 

Major Milestones in the last week: Welcome to the world BUMBO chair!

Maya Wrap - Best Invention ever!

Mom and Dale did great- AB slept through the night the first night and only got up for 1 hour during the night on Saturday night!!  While mom was watching her, I was up celebrating Miss Molen's Wedding in Sea Island.  Boy does absense make my heart beat faster! I wouldnt have traded anythign though to get to see all my friends who I hadnt seen in so long! Miss Molen the Bride, Mel, Poppell, Wes, Spegal, Hagen, Suzanne and Spike!  Morgan was there too and it was so nice having all of our friends together in once place like that.  I wish AB could have been able to meet everyone but that time will come! Here are some pics from that awesome wedding weekend!

Spike and Poppell

 Mel

 View from the back of the Cloister

 Poppell, Me, Mel

 Katie, Me, Suz, Poppell

 Spegal

 Wes

 I love this picture - I leaned over everyone to snap the grooms face when he say one of the PRETTIEST brides coming around the corner!!

There it is! Jimmy and Lauren Adams!!  Congratulations!

Peanuts

I can't believe I haven't written on here since the 28th! So many little details that I am going to forget miss Allie Boone!!  The anticipation of going back to work and being away from Allie Boone was much scarier than how it really ended up being.  Last Friday was my first day back.  I spent Thursday night laying in bed with my pearly whites wide open all night just thinking about how I could possibly go back into the grove and be good at it.  Now that I am there I realize that is time I could have let my tired fanny sleep because it has been fine. And, I am also convinced that AB likes being around kids as much as she loves being with myself and Senor George. Here are some snapshots of things we have done over the last two weeks.  Matt's cousin came into town and spent last weekened her and we had a great time spending family time together, We went to Red Hills Horse Trials, and you are so close to rolling over!

Cabel

AB and Aunt Jacque

AB and Uncle Mitchell

Senor

 

Looking at her G-Ma!

  Kenley came over to "babysit" AB with me after Red Hill had lots of fun can you tell?

Avery came over and gave AB a bath with me and helped me put her down for bed

Lu and George after a long brisk walk.

Red Hills

And thank you for this Adorable pix Garrett!

Sleep Training

Well today was the first day back! Thank you for calling Comcast! I made it on time only to forget my blackberry at home.  I have been feeling stir crazy at home the last few weeks but the anticipation of being away from her so long is what has had me so unraveled.  Anticipation can and has always gotten the best of me.  Once I got there and sat back in my chair (and blew the dust off my desk) I slowly started to feel better and feeling my grove.  Until I looked up and saw a piece of gold ribbon that was pinned and running across the top of my cubicle.  It took me a second, then I remembered that the last day I was at Comcast before I went on maternity leave I had unwrapped a box of chocoloate for a client that had tons of ribbon and I wrapped the ribbon around the stomach and cut it.  I dated the ribbon so I could remember just how big I really got but I am not sure why in the world I wanted to run that ribbon all along the top of my cubicle but it gave me a good chuckle because I really don't remember this...

Sleep Training:
We are day 4 into the "putting her to bed awake" part of the sleep training. Let me just say that the "Baby Coach" tells you how it is.  At the very beginning of her book she described certain steps we would experience as colors....
Day 1  - Black (there is no way we can do this)
Day 2 - Gray (maybe we can do this)
Day 3 - White (we WILL do this)
Since we started putting AB to bed awake, the first day my spirits felt black  then on day 2 they felt a little bit better - Gray!  Day three I was feeling " White!"

Last night she made it all the way through her typical midnight feeding so when she started stirring at 3am, I waited three minutes then went into her room to find her laying on her side on the edge of her crib with her mouth on the crib slat of wood!  Other than that little bit of chaos she made it almost 10.5 hours on her own last night! Matt and I are betting right now if that was just an isolated incident or if we really are that close to getting her to sleep/self soothe on her own!

Boo/Lu

With today approaching steadly as my first day back at work I came home yesterday afternoon to meet Matt when he got home from work and demonstrated quite impressive and poised waterworks display for him.   Just the anticipation of today was starting to wear on me quite hard.  Perfect to the par, in the midst of my blubbering - Uncle Will showed up for a visit and it was perfect timing because I needed to snap out of it! AB got to spend some good quality time with Uncle Willy and Aunt Jo!

Aunt Lu also came over to hang out with AB for the evening and eat some grub.   She did a stoic job of giving AB her dinner - and even getting a good "Homer Simpson" Burp out of her.

George drank from the bathtub in the midst of her dinner

When the "SAINT" Came Marching In....

So this sleep training thing.... It is so easy for me to want to give up and say to myself "people have been doing this for years without books just throw it away."  Morgan was in town yesterday and we were going to meet for a quick nibble at some point that afternoon when I called her to bail because Allie Boone hadn't wanted to take a nap.  I would put her down and she would wake up and cry so I would pick her back up again.

Over "SAINT" Morgan came, with lunch I might add, and she sat down and made ME a little plate of treats and in my Stoic, Hungry and Pregnant friend went to soothe my baby to bed.   That's correct, I sat on the couch and ate while I watched my sweet friend intervene via video monitor and take control of my chaos.  Even when I was feeling discouraged last night I sent Morgan a text message, secretly wanting her to write me back telling me it would be ok to give up, SAINT Morgan even knew how to encourage me via electronically! 

Mistake Number 1 I have made:
Since she was born I have rocked her to sleep or held her till she has fallen asleep. Part of that was me just always wanting to hold her and because I love to rock her.  Little did I think that as she got bigger and was getting older she wouldn't know what to do with herself when she wakes up in the middle of the night to get herself back to sleep.

We will get there!! We are heading in the right direction!! 

Thank you SAINT MORGAN!

Snap

I have been reading and taking quizes galore online to learn to take pictures. I am still terrible but I am trying harder!!  I have to catch up to Garrett but indeed I have a long way to go.

George has been having a rough last 24 hours -he ripped a nail / claw off his poor paw and he has been pitiful.

On a POSITIVE NOTE - AB stood up today on her elbows!!!

Cousin Katie came in town and I got to meet her - loved her!

So much for flat hair - George is sulking