January 31 - A Duncan Proof Door

Hooray!! The door is fixed!! (Thank you Dad!) The Door shuts now and the trim is all back in place. Best of all, we have a Duncan proof door knob with a TWIST lock. Now we just need to touch up some paint and we should be pretty much back to normal.
Lainey didn't sleep all that well last night. She normally sleeps through the night without eating but last night she got up 3 times to eat. Then she was cranky most of the day and slept sporadically. She didn't want mommy to put her down but Grammy and Grandpa did get some time in with her before they left to go home. Grandpa also helped Mommy hang the rack to hold the quilt from Grammy.
Grammy and Grandpa left around 2:30 and I finally got Alaina to sleep for a couple of hours in a row but she has been terribly cranky all evening. Speaking of that, Daddy is looking a little helpless so I better cut this short. More tomorrow!! Goodnight!

January 30 - Sick Day for a little Cowgirl

So, Alaina woke up with a fever this morning. Not, that I was feeling the greatest, but, I could have made it through the work day if I had to. She had slept pretty well all night. She woke up a lot due to the stuffy nose. Problem was since she couldn't breathe out of the nose, she would drop her binky out of her mouth to breathe, then she would go to suck and binky was gone, and then she would start crying. I would wake up, put the binky back in, and we started all over. *Sigh* That got old but she never actually "woke up." Well, anyway, can't go to daycare with a fever so I had to call in to work and call in for Alaina at daycare. They were sad to hear she was sick, but, not surprised given how she was Thursday. So, Lainey and I spent the day at home resting. Daddy got home around 2:00 from his trip. He brought Alaina a surprise! Her very own cowgirl hat!!
Obviously it's a little big yet...but, she will grow! The Indian blanket thing is actually a poncho Daddy got when they took all the guys from the conference to the rodeo one night. Daddy did not wear his and I can't say as I blame him!!! Grandpa and Grandma Durfey came out tonight because Grandpa is going to help Mommy fix the garage door Daddy broke down a few weeks ago. They got a little cuddle time in with Lainey in between her being cranky...

January 29 - Darn the Cold and Flu Season...

Since Alaina and I have both been sick I am a little behind on blogging... I got my pictures taken but the actual act of sitting down and writing the blog got put off. Thursday night was no fun. I stopped at HyVee on my way home from work and picked up some medicine for me. Not much Alaina can take other than baby Tylenol and have her nose suctioned, so, just medicine for mom. When I got to the daycare they said she had been pretty fussy the last couple of hours and didn't act like she felt well. They had been suctioning her nose and everything, but, she just wanted her mommy! (Don't we all just want our mommy when we don't feel well??) So Alaina and I ventured home to wallow in our stuffy noses. Needless to say, Thursday night we spent most of the evening snuggling on the couch and trying to feel better and went to bed early! Here is a picture of all our stuff on the coffee table. Looks like fun huh?

January 28 - "It's a happy day, but, kind of sad..."

Today Alaina is 3 months old! Wow - that went by fast! What a big girl she is getting to be! She isn't the tiny cuddly infant I gave birth to three short months ago. Now she is the wiggly, smiley, you-better-entertain-me-or-else baby! This stage is fun too, and thankfully, she still likes to cuddle too. It's a happy day since my little girl is doing so well, but, today was also my grammy's birthday. I had to take a picture of Lainey with the quilt that Grammy bought for her without even knowing who she would be, in fact, Lainey's mommy was still in high school when that quilt was bought. But, the mommy knew when she had a baby someday that she would do her nursery in precious moments noahs ark, and I did. And now this quilt is going to hang in the beautiful nursery that grammy helped complete. And, I know she sees it there. I always thought my grammy would be around to spoil my kids. I know that she would have been the first person at the hospital on October 28, but, I also know she knows Lainy. I think she helped God pick her out! God does know the desires of your heart, but, so do grammys... ;o)

So today... I just want to share some memories for Grammy's birthday. I love you Grammy! And I miss you every day! *Kiss Kiss*

Grammy Always Shared...

She was never too busy to play with you...

She sparked my love of Precious Moments

She lived life to the fullest (age was never a factor!)

She was unpredictable! And hilarious!

And she was beautiful, inside and out!

*!Happy Birthday Grammy!*

January 27 - Mommy is boring...

So tonight I had to get Alaina's bottles washed and dinner made so I took her up in the kitchen with me and strapped her in the high chair which has quickly become a great source of entertainment for her in the kitchen. She watched her toys and talked to them and watched me while I made dinner and started on the dishes. As I was doing the dishes I suddenly noticed the baby chatter had stopped and turned around to see what the deal was. Apparently Alaina got bored and decided sleep was better than watching mom do boring dishes. When she fell asleep in the high chair her nose came to rest on the tray which soon became her forehead before I could put my camera down and get her out. The mark on her chin is from the zipper on her sweater. Awww...poor baby. :O( Sorry I am so boring Lainey!

January 26 - *{Lainey Bug}*

Today was exceptionally boring and there is not much to blog about. I just went to work and it was a typical boring looooooong Monday. I was counting the minutes until it was time to go home. Thankfully, the snow that fell this morning was all cleaned up and people drove like semi-normal people. I got to the day care right after Lainey finished eating and getting her diaper changed so she was in a fantastic mood! She didn't even cry when I stopped at stop lights today! Normally, she gets very aggravated with me when I stop the car, for any reason, including traffic laws. She thinks if she is in her car seat that you should either be carrying her or the car should be moving. If she is in there and one of these two things is not happening, you are in trouble! So anyway, we got home and she was in a great mood so we sat down and had a little talk. He lady bug was lying close by, thanks to Sam dragging it off the shelf, so I picked it up and sat it next to her, which, as you can see, she really enjoyed! :O) So, I thought since there wasn't much to post about tonight I would just post a picture of my Lainey bug with her lady bug! Awwww! Hopefully tomorrow is more eventful!

January 25 - There is nothing better than a Family Dinner

Mmmmm! Is there anything better than a roast cooked in the crock pot all day with potatoes and carrots??? I was so excited to eat it I could hardly take the picture!! And it was delicious! The best part of the whole thing was that we had our FIRST family dinner at the table as Lainey Bug sat in her high chair for the very first time!! What a BIG girl she is getting to be!
Normally, we hurry up and eat while she is asleep or mommy eats with one hand or something and tonight I decided we would try the high chair out. I think she might have too many toys on her tray as she seemed a bit over stimulated. She didn't know what to look at first!! But it was nice because she was content sitting up to the table with Mommy and Daddy while she played and mommy got to eat with both hands!! Hooray!
Overall today was a busy day but we got a lot done. I got the whole kitchen cleaned, had the roast on all day. We did laundry. (Yuck) And I got to spend time with Alaina which was the best part! Also took some time to work on a little project that I can't talk about just yet. (It's a surprise!!) Anyway...not much to tell other than we are really excited for another first to add to the list!

January 24 - Productive Saturday

Saturday was a productive day that, as you can see, wore me and Alaina out! I didn't even get my blog posted last night, so, catching up today. Yesterday morning we got some stuff done around the house and then had to run errands. We had to go to WalMart AND Target. Thankfully, the weather was still nice out. We got everything we needed and went home and then of course had to put it all away. Then it was off to MORE housework. By Saturday evening we were worn out!! I sat down to feed Alaina and she went to sleep so I decided we would just cuddle for awhile and got very comfortable in the chair and just dozed off. Teddy woke my up around 11:30 for bed. Thankfully, Alaina stayed asleep when I put her in bed. :o)

CYCLONES RULE - HAWKEYES DROOL - GO STATE!!!

The Whole Outfit

I love the Cyclones!!

This is what I think of the Hawkeyes!

Like my hoodie?

!!Go State Go!!

(You can't be mad at me Aunt Ashley! I am too cute!!)

January 23 - My Little Roo

Daddy took this picture...not the best one but it will work. ;o) I tried to get him to wear the baby carrier, but, he refused. I think I said the other night when I was talking about going to Babies R Us that I bought one of these. Alaina seems to really like it and it has been really helpful to me. She can be happy because she is getting attention and I am happy because I can get stuff done at the same time. I never thought I would be one of those moms that wore their baby like an accessory, but, now I can see where this is at least helpful around the house! Right now she still has to face forward because of her size but when she gets older she will be able to face out without the neck thing behind her and I think she will like that even more because she will be able to see more of what is going on! It is pretty fun.
Not much happened today. Went to work. Came home. We did do a little shopping tonight at Old Navy and the Mall (Baby Gap - we had gift cards!) and we got Alaina some new clothes. Why do little girls clothes have to be so darn adorable? We are running in to the issue that she has loooooong legs but a tiny waist. Length wise she is easily in 3-6 months but in her waist 0-3 months is still big. So, its fun trying to buy her things sometimes. Teddy is ok with this though because he wants her to play in the WNBA... :OP Nerd.

January 22 - Swimmin' with da Fishes

I didn't get this uploaded last night. There was so much I wanted to say and not enough time to do it in! And, it was a crazy evening that just got away too quickly! You know how those go. So yesterday Teddy went back to work as he was feeling better. It was a busy day for both of us at work so we were glad to get home and relax last night. I had dishes to do, bottles to wash, milk to get ready, etc. Alaina was a tad cranky again. Not as bad as the other night but I think she was just craving some mommy attention. She didn't want daddy - she didn't really want to play - she just wanted me! :O) *Big Smiles* So anyway - on a lap through the living room with her (she was riding in her pouch like a little Roo) we stopped to admire the fish. We made this fish tank with the help of my brother and my dad almost 2 years ago. It is an old console TV that we gutted. My dad and Chad built a stand inside and made the top of the TV hinged so we could open and close it. When we got it back to Omaha we bought a fish tank that would fit in the "screen" area and mounted lights on the inside. I LOVE it. And, you may think we have a gorgeous coral reef in there as well, but alas, that is just a background bought at PetSmart. I know I know - so realistic even the fish don't know. So we bought about five fish to get us started. We have a little bit of turnover in that department, but, for the most part the fish have done well. The cats LOVE the fish tank - especially Maggie. She will sit for hours in front of it just watching the fish swim. It has been a great source of entertainment and is always a conversation piece when people come to visit. So anyway, as we are admiring the fish tank I see a fish is floating...sad day. Well, I won't touch it. #1 I have Alaina in her pouch and #2 YUCK - I don't touch them. I don't like to touch them when they are ALIVE. So I summon Teddy to flush the fish to his wattery grave. (I am sure it is not just water down there but lets not discuss that!) Anyway - it was the algae eater that died. Now we have to get a new one or the tank is going to be DISGUSTING. This one did a really nice job so I hope we get another good one. This one cleaned like a professional - she must have been employed with Merry Maids or something. I say it is a girl because she did all the cleaning and you know a man wouldn't do that. Anyway - I called her Rosie after the robot maid on the Jetson's, and, Rosie is now dead.
My favorite fish, however, is the black striped Angel fish who I named Tony Soprano. He is no angel - he is the mob boss of the fish tank, I'm serious. Nobody messes with Tony. We had a little molly that chased him around all the time when we first got it and it turned up dead pretty quick. I am pretty sure Tony took a hit out on it with the red-finned shark, aka Jaws. Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase swimmin' with da fishes now doesn't it? Anyway - this is Tony Soprano:
Beautiful isn't he? Can't you just imagine him talking in a Jersey accent? So aside, from Tony and Jaws we have this sea dragon thing that I named Jetsam because he looks like one of those eel things that Ursala had on The Little Mermaid. Then we have a little leopard catfish named Leo. We also have this weird little black fish and I don't know what it is but it is spastic. It irritates Tony sometimes because it swims really fast all over the tank and other times it sits in the corner of the tank. I think he does that after Tony has a few of his bottom feeding thugs "deal with him." But, I don't know. He could just be bipolar. We used to have this fun blue and silver shark, but, he also had a little "accident." I used to have this sponge bob square pants in the tank that blew bubbles out of his mouth through an obviously fake bubble wand. Anyway - the blue and silver shark decided one day that he would try to jump/swim through the hoop/bubble wand and he got stuck because he was too big and he later died from his injuries. I don't think Tony had anything to do with this, but, it was sad. Apparently he was an amazingly talented fish who knew how to jump through hoops and I had no idea. We could have had our own little fish circus or something. But, I did not realize his gifts. Either that, or, he was just stupid. Who knows with fish. So...that about covers the fish. I think Rosie was only our third fatality in two years which, with fish, is really not too bad and it would probably be less if it weren't for Tony... And you thought fish tanks were boring huh?

January 21 - Big Girl in her Bumbo!!

Alaina has been doing so well holding her head up lately that I thought I would try putting her in the bumbo. She likes to sit up and look around as it is and she LOVED it. She talked to me while she was sitting in it and she was soooo smiley!
Today was an interesting day. Unfortunately, Teddy stayed home with the stomach flu. His parents had it on Monday, and today Teddy and my dad both came down with it. Ick. I am really hoping and praying that Alaina and I can both escape it! Alaina still went to day care and I still went to work. I picked her up this afternoon and she was in a great mood so we did a little shopping and had some girl time. Fun! I also bought one of those baby carrier things that you wear and the baby can either face you or away from you. We tried that out tonight too and she really enjoyed being able to walk around with me while I did things in the kitchen! Anyway...not much else to talk about today. I better go because LOST is on and I have been waiting for this to start all year!! Woo hoo! Talk to you tomorrow! :O)

January 20 - Watch out for dryer elves and spiders!!

Wow...what a day! The historical inauguration of our first African-American president! I missed most of the coverage due to the fact I was at work but I did catch a good portion of his speech during my lunch break. I am praying for a new direction in our country and it sounds like we are on our way! However, no matter how historic the day, when I got home there was still a bunch of laundry to be folded! We do laundry on Sunday afternoons for the week and because of all the crankiness last night with Alaina it did not get folded or put away. *Sigh* Does anyone hate laundry as much as I do?? I am really good about getting it washed and dried but after that...blah. The ironing, the folding, the hanging...I despise it. Yet - it has to be done. So I came home feeling all motivated and decided I wanted to fold in the family room since Alaina was playing and it is too cold downstairs for her. Therefore, I had to carry all the laundry up. I piled it on the love seat and set about getting it folded. Alaina was entertained as she was playing on her activity mat as I folded. I piled the socks down next to her and set out getting all the t-shirts and pants folded and other things put on hangers. Alaina happily played. After all the clothes were done I started on the massive pile of socks. Okay, #1 people always joke about the dryer elves that steel your socks. I don't think it is a joke. I put pairs of socks in and I get one brown, one black and a couple different white back out. What the heck?? And baby socks are even WORSE! They are so tiny!! #2 How does my husband manage to get holes in brand new socks? Does he walk around with nails in his shoes? It takes me months to get a hole in my socks. I just don't get it. I must have thrown out 8 socks today. (Yes, an even number. I get irritated when he throws out ONE sock because then I am forever looking for his mate. I have to buy you a new PAIR anyway - throw two out.) So anyway - this is not the point at all. The point is, while folding the socks, a spider suddenly comes FLYING out of the pile. Yes, a SPIDER. I HATE spiders. I am horribly, deathly, allergic. I carry around a epinephrine shot just in case one bites me. (It has happened - I will dig out the pictures from the archive and post at a later date!) So anyway, the sock pile is right next to Alaina. (see picture above taken PRIOR to the spider incident.) I would like to say I was mother of the year and reached down to scoop up my child as the massive 8-legged freak was flying across the floor, but, I didn't. I jumped up, screamed, did the heebie jeebie dance, screamed some more, more heebie jeebies and then scanned the room for anything worthy of smashing that thing. At this point, I thought of my defenseless daughter lying on the ground and scooped her up and set her in the swing. The only thing I could find to smash the spider with close by was a plastic snowman toy Duncan got in his stocking at Christmas. I wish I could say I thought to take a picture of the carnage that ensued. In fact, I am sure you wish I had video taped it. Me, smashing a spider with a plastic snowman squeaky toy, the spider not cooperating with dying, me screaming at it to die, I think it's dead, nope, still twitching. Beat it some more. Listening to the toy squeak each time it hits the floor. Ugh...finally I smashed it enough that I was satisfied it wasn't going to run and I grabbed 10 kleenexes to pick it up (So I don't have to feel it through the kleenex) and I smashed it the rest of the way. Ugh. I hate hate hate hate hate spiders. Thankfully, Teddy missed my show, Alaina found it entertaining, and most importantly, the spider is dead. After that, I was very careful as I picked through the remainder of the socks and I am happy to report the rest of the socks got folded or rolled without incident. ( I roll my socks and Teddy likes his folded - ah, the sacrifices we make for each other...) Although three socks are still without mates... Stupid dryer elves...

January 19 - Better late then never...

So...I didn't get this posted last night. Alaina was amazingly very cranky. I was lucky to get the 10 minutes I got to scarf down my dinner! I am still not sure what the problem was, it must have just been one of those nights?? Anyway...my picture is one of the few moments she was actually calm and happy last night. We took a bath and she is always very happy when she is in her tub and for awhile afterward. So, I took advantage of the short-lived good mood for a few pictures!! I love this one because I love her little "duck hair" after her bath! Around 9:15 she decided she was hungry so we laid down on the couch to nurse and we both fell asleep!! Maybe we were both just a little tired...

January 18 - On the Road Again

Ahhh....more driving today on the way back to Nebraska. I think we could easily do this drive in our sleep by now, but, oh well. It was a fun weekend and well worth the trip! Alaina woke up around 7:15 this morning and wanted breakfast and then we went upstairs to see Grandpa and Aunt Ashely before they left for church. Lainey and Grandpa had another fun conversation of "Ooo's and Ahhh's" and then Grammy snatched her away for some cuddling! When Daddy got up we got everything loaded and headed over to Grandpa and Grandma Hutchinson's to see them before we left. We got on the road around 1:00 but stopped in Stuart to drop off maternity clothes for Laura! She had let me borrow her clothes when I was pregnant with Alaina and so I was returning them plus returning the favor! (Maternity clothes are so expensive! If you can share it is so worth it!!) Alaina had never met Eric, Laura or Owen so we went inside for a short visit. Owen is going to be a GREAT big brother! He tried to entertain Alaina, didn't want her to cry, and he even shared his blankies and a lot of his toys!! It was so sweet!! I sooooo wish I would have thought to take my camera in... :O( It was packed in the car and I didn't even think about it but, they are coming out to Omaha sometime here soon and I will have to take pictures then! After that we made the rest of the trip home and unpacked the car. By then Alaina was more then ready to eat and we were getting laundry started, dishes done, stuff set out for dinner, etc. Where did the evening go?? Sorry for the short post tonight, but, it is after 10:00. Alaina is ready for her bedtime snack and some sleepy time so I better go. My picture for the day today is Alaina very proud of herself for sitting in Grandpa's lazy boy this morning with her cowgirl boots on. Enjoy!!

January 17 - Family Game Night!!

Alaina slept until 8:15 this morning! I actually had to wake her up to eat because I was worried about her!! Apparently the trip to Grandma's house was quite tiring! We had some breakfast and then went upstairs to see Grammy. After some cuddle time it was time to get ready for the day! I changed Lainey's diaper and she was in her happy baby mood so grammy took some pictures since she was being so cute!! (Don't look at mommy!)
Mommy and Alaina had a lunch date to plan a baby shower with some of Mommy's friends. Alaina slept through lunch but woke up at the end just in time to say hello to my friends before we left. We stopped by Aunt GG's house to say hello and update her photo frame we gave her for Christmas with new pictures! She loved it and she helped get Lainey back to sleep! Then it was time to head home and get ready for the evening. Alaina was going to go over to Grandpa and Grandma Hutchinson's house while Mommy, Daddy, Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Chad, Erin, Aunt Ashley and Marcus went out! I set out getting Alaina ready to go to her other Grandpa and Grandma's by dressing her in the camo outfit Grandpa Norman bought her at her baby shower with the matching camo booties. She looked pretty cute - see for yourself.
I like the ruffles on the back...

So we are all dressed up and of course take pictures and then Great Grandpa Wayne comes to see Alaina. She was happy and talkative when he was there.

Then all of a sudden she was cranky. There was a rumbling...and then suddenly a blowout. The jeans, camo onesie, everything was off to the washing machine and Alaina had to wear a new outfit! Sorry Grandpa Norman! We will try again sometime!!

The plan for the evening after dropping off Alaina was to go bowling but when the wind picked up and the roads turned a little treacherous we decided to have a family game night instead. First we all went to dinner in town at the Mexican restaurant which was a lot of fun and then after stopping to pick up some soda and snacks at WalMart we made our way out to the Durfey household to play games! I got Pictionary man as a belated Christmas gift from Teddy's mom. At Christmas time you could not find that game ANYWHERE but she was able to find it at the WalMart in Osceola after Christmas. Hooray! So we played that (even though my mom said it looked stupid originally! Change your mind did you mom??) It was a lot of fun! If you have the chance to play it, do! We found out Teddy and my dad have some weird connected wave length in their brains where only they get each other's pictures. We now know that Chad would rather build a bicycle with the pieces than draw one, and we know that jigelow (sp??) is extremely hard to get people to guess without being a little naughty. (Yeah...I got that one and my dad made me do it! Thanks dad!) We also played Apples to Apples which is a fun game but I think some of the judges were a little biased... Ha ha! J/K!! Overall it was a fun night with family and friends! I hope everyone else had as much fun as me!

January 16 - Over the river and down I80 to Grandmother's (and Grandfather's) house we go!

Ahhh - Friday. The last day of the work week!! Daddy got home from Phoenix late Thursday night, well, actually early Friday morning. He got to the house around 12:30!! Alaina was fast asleep but I woke up long enough to mutter hello and then I was off to dreamy land again! Friday morning I woke up and fed Alaina and got ready. She had a Dr's appt at 9:30 for a re-check on the ear infection and Teddy decided to just keep her home until then, so, baby and Daddy slept in! I went to work early because I had to leave for a Dr's appointment for myself and I wanted to make sure I got all my time in for the day. My appointment went okay and so did Alaina's. The ear infection is gone! Hooray! I got off work at 3:30 and went home to meet Teddy and Alaina to get ready to go back to Iowa to visit everyone. (Aunt Ashley was getting ready to go back to college!) The cable man had come to run cable up to our bedroom as I do not want to wait for some stupid coupon to go buy a converter box. It cost $25.00 to run the cable and now I have cable upstairs! Better than a box as it is! Unfortunately, when Teddy went to get the keys to the back gate so the cable man could get his ladder through, he hit the outlet next to the workbench and jiggled something loose and we lost electricity in both outlets out there, hence, no garage door opener. Ugh. Teddy did his best to "look at it" but as he knows pretty much nothing about electricity we thought it was best to leave it alone...until Sunday. So we packed up and off we went to Iowa. When we arrived grammy had dinner all ready for us and we were able to eat and talk. Then Grandpa and Grammy wanted their cuddle time!! Lainey was really talkative, especially with Grandpa as pictured above! A little later aunt Michelle stopped by on her way home from town. Unfortunately, Lainey had decided she was getting sleepy so she was a tad cranky but Duncan was geared up to play!!! He brought aunt Michelle his rope to play tug not knowing aunt Michelle is not used to puppy dogs! Now, in this picture she looks terrified (which she may have been at least partially?) but the tears I am pretty sure are from laughing so hard as it was pretty funny! I am only sorry I wasn't a little faster at whipping my camera out and getting more!! Thank you for being such a good sport and playing Aunt Michelle! Duncan had a lot of fun! Aunt Michelle left and Alaina was down for the count! I ended up just taking her down to bed and she slept through the night!

January 15 - Replacing Kanga and Her "Life Partner"

Well, if you know me, or my mother, you know how much we enjoy shopping on eBay. Early this week we had ordered a couple of things for Alaina and they both came today! Hooray!! I love to get things in the mail! The first thing to come was a set of kangaroos to go with Alaina’s Fisher Price Ark. My mom had tried to order Alaina a set of kangaroos prior to this set and she received the set on the right in the picture above. See anything wrong with this set of kangaroos? Like, oh, I don’t know, perhaps the fact they both have pink bows? They both have a baby? They are both GIRLS? Now, without offending anyone who might be reading this, there is a problem with these ladies joining my ark. You see, Noah collected animals two by two, one of each gender, for a reason. So that after the earth flooded, they could repopulate. Unfortunately for “Kanga” and her life partner, they don’t have the ability to do this. (I’m not sure how they got those Joey’s in their pouches – perhaps they adopted?) My main issue with this is having to eventually explain this to my daughter at what I know will be far too early of an age why both of the Kangaroos are girls. Kids are very perceptive as you know and I am not quite ready to go out and buy the book “Heather has Two Mommies.” (I could probably write the book “My Joey has Two Mommies” Ha ha! Get it?!?) Anyway – don’t you ever remember questioning things like this when you were young? Keeping on the subject of Kangaroos – did you ever wonder while watching Winnie the Pooh where Roo’s father was? I mean, Kanga was a perfectly good mother to Roo, but seriously…are we to believe Roo was a product of immaculate conception? I think not. These are the questions I wish to avoid for as long as possible. Therefore, here came the new set of Kangaroos, one of each gender, for the ark.
The second thing that came was a set of peek-a-boo blocks that I had wanted for Alaina before she was born, didn’t buy, they quit making them, and the price jumped through the roof on eBay. I got a set of gently used ones for a pretty decent price so, I was happy with that. So, I had these big dreams of setting up this nice pyramid of the blocks and photographing Alaina with them for the blog. Well, you know kids, and you know what happens with the best of intentions. I set them up the first time and my cat ran behind them and knocked the whole thing over. I move the blanket where it wouldn’t get bumped and set it up again. Now Alaina wasn’t really interested in cooperating. This is the best picture I could get of her trying to look at them (and Duncan walked through)…

So I tried to sit Alaina up and before I got one picture she threw a fit and knocked all the blocks down…as seen here.

By now I was tired of the stupid pyramid so I just laid her down amongst the remnants of my beautiful pyramid. Probably the best one…

So yeah – those are the highlights of the day. I went back to work today and Alaina went to daycare and we are very excited that Daddy is FINALLY coming home from Phoenix TONIGHT!! Hooray Daddy! We missed you!

On a side note I won’t be posting Friday and Saturdays blogs until Sunday as my only internet access will be dial-up and I just can’t deal with that. Ha ha! See ya Sunday!

January 14 - Jesus Juice

I have mentioned in a blog prior to this that I have no idea what I would do without Alaina's swing. Sometimes it is the only way I can get her to go to sleep! Last night around 9:30 I put her in it to swing for awhile so I could get my blog uploaded and then I was hoping to get her to sleep for the night because my head was killing me and my stomach was still upset. Unfortunately, not too long after I put her in, she became a little fussy so I decided to turn on her music and make the lambs spin for her to keep her entertained. Oh no... the batteries were dying. I decided to let the lambs just hang there and just play the music for awhile and thankfully that worked, but, she went to sleep. By now it is after 10:00 and I am ready to just lie down and sleep. Do I risk moving her and waking her up?? I decided that sleeping on the couch was fine with me, as long as I could sleep. But what about the batteries?? There is no way they would last all night and I didn't have any more to put in. I decided to say a prayer for the batteries. "Lord, you know how much I need to sleep because of this headache. If you can just let these batteries last a little longer, I would be so happy." I fell asleep without much hesitation and the next thing I know my alarm is going off at 5 a.m. and Alaina is still happily swinging, sound asleep. Hooray for the Jesus juice in my batteries! The Lord listens to even the smallest of requests...
Even with all the sleep, I still stayed home from work today with a bad headache. It was bad enough this morning I didn't even feel like taking Alaina to daycare so she stayed home with me. We had some mommy and baby cuddle time. Finally, this evening, my headache began to break and I was able to get a few things done. Thank you Lord! I should be able to go to work tomorrow. Well, time to give Alaina a bath! Everyone stay warm! It is FREEZING outside!

January 13 - Life Lessons = A Margarine Bowl

Odd picture for the day. Truth is I have felt horrible all day. I got up this morning and I knew something was up. My stomach was upset. I felt sluggish. But, I thought maybe I just had a little drainage during the night or something. It should go away. I got myself and Alaina all ready for the day. The drive was MUCH better today. However, the nauseous feeling hung on. I got to work and made it to my desk but had to sit there for about 10 minutes telling myself I wasn't going to be sick. My friend Jen came over and asked if I wanted to go downstairs for breakfast. I knew I didn't want to eat but decided I would get some sprite and maybe some crackers to get something in my stomach. It seemed to help a little. I felt better. Then the nausea came back around. Ugh. The waves started coming faster each time and I figured I was probably going to be in trouble if I didn't go home, plus, my head had started to pound. I left work and headed home. (On the way I stopped to pick up a new pair of windshield wipers - ha ha!) I decided to leave Alaina at daycare so I could sleep and hopefully feel better. So, that is what I did. Went home and went to sleep. But first, I had to retrieve the two things my mom always taught me someone with an upset stomach needs. #1 7-up and #2 a margarine bowl. A margarine bowl you say? Or maybe your mom did this too, I don't know. Some mom's give their kids garbage bags/a can or maybe a Wal-Mart sack. At our house, we got a margarine bowl (occasionally cool whip). I am not sure when this originated, all I know is when you got an upset stomach, those were the two things you got. I remember keeping a margarine bowl permanently in my bed after a certain incident... Ashley and I started sharing a room and we got bunk beds. They were the cool bunk beds where the bottom bunk stuck out from underneath the top bunk. We loved them and of course since I was the oldest I got the top bunk and Ashley was on the bottom. This worked out great but one night I awoke feeling a little queasy and sleepily just hung my head over the side of the bed. Needless to say without much detail, Ashley got a bath in the middle of the night and so did our bedding. After that, the margarine bowl became a permanent fixture in my bunk, and came in handy a few times after that. I am sure my dad wishes I would have had the margarine bowl the time we were coming home from visiting Ashley at the hospital. I told him I didn't feel well and he asked if I could make it out of town. I said "I'll try." I tried, I really did, but, I didn't make it out of town. I got myself, Chad, the pocket in the door, the vents on the dash and, worst of all, my open back-pack. My poor poor dad. Sitting up that night unloading my back pack on a garbage bag and trying to salvage whatever he could, let alone, his truck. He couldn't turn on the air for awhile...

My mom almost ran out of margarine bowls one time when all three of us got the flu within a few hours of each other. Isn't it funny the things you remember from your childhood and the things you carry on to your own families? Ever since I got married, I have saved my margarine bowls. Rinsed them and sent them through the dishwasher and stored them under the sink. So, today, when I needed one "just in case," it was there.

I am still feeling pretty tough tonight and I am not sure yet if I will be making the trek to work tomorrow. I probably won't know until the morning. Thankfully, Alaina has been very good this evening. I hope it continues through the night so mommy can sleep. Hopefully, I can sleep well and the nausea will go away, but if it doesn't, at least I have my trusty margarine bowl close by!

January 12 - "Oh the weather outside is frightfull...I hate snow! I hate snow! I hate snow!"

Ugh. I hate winter. If it weren’t for my family I would be living somewhere warm and snow free! Maybe some palm trees or cactus hanging around… But no, I am here in the Midwest. The land of crazy weather.
Today I woke up to snow on the ground. No big deal, it’s winter in Nebraska. I thought I started my day off in plenty of time. Got Alaina all packed up and ready for daycare which is outside of my routine because Teddy normally does this, but, we managed. I even remembered to write out the check! So we set off toward daycare and that leg of the trip went fine. I arrived exactly when I had planned, took her in and got her settled and then left to go to work. Apparently sometime, in those few precious minutes, everything went to heck outside. The snow kicked up again and people turned into 80 year old women drivers. We were going about 15 mph tops. At this time, I notice that Teddy has left my SUV with no gas in it. So I have to take a side street over the nearest gas station I know of to get gas. This short trip takes almost 20 minutes… I am going to be late and I am getting a little irritated. I get the gas and jump back in my car to take advantage of a picture opportunity for my blog. (See above...the snow didn't photograph that well...) At this time…I had no idea how much I was going to have to write about. So off I set again. Traffic seems to be a little better until I get to the main road. Holy backed up cars batman!! I was lucky to get on from the ramp. We creeped along at 10 mph most of the time and at other times were at a complete standstill. I never saw an accident so who knows what was wrong. All of a sudden, in the middle of my irritation, my passenger side windshield wiper just goes nuts – it flips over and makes this horrible noise and proceeds to not do it’s job and wipe my windshield! It’s broke. UGH! On top of all that, Teddy calls. “Hey, can you believe it is already 65 degrees here? How is your morning?” Have you ever wished you could reach your arm halfway across the country and just strangle someone?! Yeah, you know that feeling. The drive was horrible. I was 45 minutes late to work with a half clean windshield and I was so relieved to get there. I tried to fix the windshield wiper, to no avail. Work itself was not that bad today. I was busy and the day went by quickly. I had to work my lunch to make up time for being late so I could still leave on time at 4:00, but, that was even ok. End of the day comes and I am headed for the door. I get to my car and realize I hadn’t bothered to look outside and it is snowing AGAIN. Double Ugh! Well, I have to pick up Alaina and I have to go home. I have no choice but to set out. So off I go. At first it isn’t too bad. About like it is on a normal snowy day – people going slow and being careful. I maneuver my way in to the lane I will need eventually. Wow. This isn’t so bad. Then, the wind comes. 55+mph winds. White out conditions. We are barely moving. (Note in this picture you can see my broken wiper as well - hooray - no mom I was not driving when I took this picture!)
I think I could have ran home faster then we were driving. Creeping…creeping…creeping… At first I am being very nice. If a car is trying to turn on to the street, I let them in. I always think about that Collin Raye song “What if Jesus Came Back Like That.” I don’t know if you listen to country but way back when it first came out it made me think about everything I said or did to another person, stranger or not. I still think about that. If I am letting in car in I am thinking, hey, you never know, it could be. It is basically just the idea that you need to be nice to people. Well…by the time I am in traffic for over an hour I am apologizing to Jesus for telling him he is on his own. Now, something I should have mentioned before. I am a very patient person in most circumstances, however, driving is NOT one of those circumstances. I mean, it isn’t to the point that I am dangerous by any means. Mostly, I just yell at people in other cars…who cannot hear me. This, is why I should not live where it snows. So now I am yelling at people, and then praying because I feel bad for yelling, because, you know, what if? As I wait my mind wonders, would Jesus even drive a car? If he did, what kind of car would he drive? If he is in the Midwest he better have an SUV. I am glad I have an SUV… Wow, my car has a lot of miles! I need a new SUV. How long till Teddy’s car is paid off? Maybe we can put our tax return on bills. I wonder when my W2 comes? W2? How did my mind get here? Okay seriously – boredom induces thoughts like this which we call rabbit trails. Sit there and try to trace one back sometime. It is HARD. One time I got from tomato soup to Cruella Devil in like three minutes. Try it. It’s like playing the Kevin Bacon game. More creeping… Windshield wiper still broken. I finally got to the daycare an hour late and by the time I left there and got home I had been on the road for an hour and 45 minutes. I am never driving again…until tomorrow.

January 11 - I am Blessed

Today was a very fun and rewarding day with Alaina, but, also kind of sad for mommy as today was the day mommy officially packed up the newborn clothes that no longer fit. Of course, being me, I had to commemorate the event with pictures of the clothes and close ups of each outfit.
The outfit on the right is the jean jumper Alaina wore when we brought her home the 2nd weekend after she was born to meet both the Hunerdosse and Durfey sides of the family. She was so cute with her bow in her hair and the tights that weren't "tight" on a single inch of her little chicken legs.
The next outfit is the "Somebunny Loves Me" outfit from Aunt Ashley that Alaina wore for her pictures at the hospital and multiple times after she was born. Ashley also bought Alaina her first 'bunny bunny' along with this outfit. I remember taking pics at the hospital of her in the outfit with the bunny and the bunny was almost as big as Alaina!!
Following that is the "I'll always be daddy's little girl" outfit that I bought at Carter's outlet when I was still pregnant. I knew that daddy would really like that one, and he did.
Then comes her princess outfit that I thought was really cute. She wore this on her first visit to daycare.
The Teddy Bear sleeper with the little hat with ears is next. Alaina wore this the day after we came home from the hospital to her first pediatricians appointment and multiple times after that. This was also the first outfit Alaina ever had a "blow out" in.
Then the "Lovable" jammies from Shelley with the little bear feet. She was sooo snuggly in these.
Moving to the top row on the left is the burgundy outfit Alaina wore for her first Thanksgiving with the fun "Baby's First Thanksgiving" bib that grammy got her.
Another bunny outfit from Aunt Ashley! This is what Alaina wore home from the hospital and received many compliments from the nurses!
There is the little pink striped hoodie she wore with her hot pink pants. She wore this when mommy took her up to visit work and everyone thought she was so beautiful with her hot pink bow in her hair.
Now, the little fleece bear outfit that I also bought at Carters. We took many pictures in this outfit as she was just mommy's little sweet bear.
Last but not least is a little purple sleeper with a butterfly on it. Seems a little insignificant to most but the day I found out I was having a girl we were running an errand to Wal-Mart and I saw this little sleeper and just had to have it, so, it was the first thing I ever bought for Alaina. The little baby we prayed so hard for. She was worth every minute of crying and praying. Worth every mile and minute for countless trips to my Dr. and the surgery that followed. Even the times when I was sure God couldn't possibly be listening to me anymore...he was. He knew exactly what my heart wanted and prayed for and, I like to think, Grammy Carolyn had a hand in it too.
So, as I sit her bawling and writing this, after bawling photographing and packing it up, I realize it is not just sad tears but happy ones. I have a healthy baby who is getting bigger every day and learning new things. I am blessed. :O)

January 10 - "Takin down...the Christmas Trees...No more Holidays!"

So after all the 'fun' with Alaina getting her shots and having ear infection last weekend we did not get any of our Christmas taken down, so, that was the task for this weekend! Today, the trees came down. Yes, I said trees, plural. I am my mother's daughter...and I am afraid I have inherited her love of decorating, or at least she made me inherit part of it by buying me stuff I have to find a place for, ha ha! (Just kidding mom...maybe...) So the picture above is the pile of ornament boxes after I put all of the ornaments off one tree away. I don't know if everyone keeps all the boxes, I do. It keeps them safe. :O)

We normally have a large tree in the basement but, much to Teddy's delight, I let that one go this year. It is normally decorated in "The Simpsons." In most people's minds, Teddy = Homer. Think about it, he works at a nuclear power plant, he bowls, he is bald and if you look carefully you will notice they have a similar shape...probably due to their similar love of donuts. So, Teddy's mom joined this ornament club where they sent her three Simpson's ornaments each time and that was like...two years ago. I have never counted but we must have 50+ ornaments and these things are BIG. So big, they require their own tree. We also normally hang our "family" ornaments on this tree but this year they shared a place on the other tree I will mention now.

The second tree is the "Penguin" Tree. This, I thank my mother for because three years ago she spent most of the year collecting penguin ornaments off eBay for Teddy for Christmas. Teddy is a fan of the Penguins hockey team and, over the years, this has translated into Teddy loves penguins. And if you know my family, they get a theme and they run with it. (Come see my run over totes of Apple stuff from the kitchen and rubber duck stuff from my bathroom...) So anyway, we had a few ornaments with penguins and suddenly we had enough they required their own tree. And, it keeps growing, because we have two collections with Hallmark that make new ornaments each year.

The third tree is actually mine. If you know me, you know I love precious moments and I have a decent collection of precious moments porcelain ornaments. I have the 12 days of Christmas and the nativity and then some random ones including the "Our First Christmas 2004" ornament and new to the collection this year, "Baby's First Christmas 2008." However, this is the smallest tree and if I get very many more ornaments it is going to have to be replaced with a larger tree. I think I hear Teddy crying in the background right now...

So as you can see, and as I remind my husband who grumbles every time I talk about our multiple Christmas trees, only one tree is "my fault." :O) And, these are just the trees. We also decorate the kitchen in gingerbread men, the fireplace with the nativity and stockings, the front hall with various snowmen and penguins. It is exhausting just to think about taking this all down. But, I enjoy it when it is up. And sadly, I will probably pass this obsession down to my daughter when I overdecorate, errrr, decorate her home. Ha ha! (Thanks mom!)

So, goodbye Christmas 2008! Goodbye trees and stockings and lights. Only 11 more months until I get to drag you all out again... I can't wait!

January 9 - *Ashes - Ashes - We break the door down!*

So, today I am going to break the rules a bit. It would be hard to describe this day with just one picture so for your viewing pleasure you get some freebies! The day started off a bit sluggish. Alaina's cough came back and she was very restless during the night last night because she would wake up coughing, lose the binky, I would have to reach into the bassinet and pop it back in and hope she went back to sleep. She was never really fully awake but, you could never really get into a deep sleep because this happened frequently. Regardless, up at 5:00 to get me ready, her fed, changed and dressed, get my stuff together and out the door. The schedule has been that Teddy takes her in to daycare and I pick her up. So this morning is trash day. We had collected all the trash in the house last night and got all of the recycling ready but it was getting late and Teddy decided he would just run it down to the curb in the morning. So after I left this morning Alaina was sleeping in her swing and Teddy decides he will just run out really quick and throw the garbage down next to the mailbox and then finish getting ready and leave for work. None of the animals will bother Alaina while she is in her swing because they don't like the motion of it. So off he goes to the garage, grabs the trash can and recycling bin, quickly takes them down the drive and comes back up to the garage to go back in the house. The door is locked. Duncan has this bad habit of jumping up at the door and locking it when he is excited you are home. It has happened in the past but of course never with a baby on the other side of the door. At this point the panic sat in a little. He goes over to the workbench and grabs some things he thinks might help pick the lock and sets to work. Suddenly Duncan starts barking on the other side of the door. Now, he was probably just barking because he knows someone is messing with the door knob but Teddy decides with Alaina in there this is no time to mess around. So, he puts his shoulder into the door... Here are the results...

Doors don't tend to stand up well to that kind of abuse. So Teddy gets back inside and of course Alaina is still sound asleep just swinging away. Everyone gets ready and thankfully the door will still shut, so they leave. Teddy emails me from work and tells me about his morning so that when I arrive home I don't jump to the conclusion that someone tried to break in. (I appreciate that) His summation of the situation was that "the door might need a little repair." Without seeing the damage, I take him at his word. He starts talking about what materials we might need and I offered the suggestion of a door knob with a TURN lock because unless Duncan suddenly sprouts aposable thumbs, he will not be able to lock us out anymore. Wow! What an idea! So you would think that would be enough drama for one day. NO! We are just getting started my friends. After a long day of work I can't wait to leave and as soon as the clock strikes 3:30 - I am out. I spent most of the drive to the daycare speaking with Ashley and my mom and I notice all the plows are out laying down treatment on the roads. I pick up Alaina and thankfully they say not only did she poo today (ha ha) but she didn't cough very much and she slept well which I was glad to hear. We leave and as we walk out it has started to freezing rain. Ugh. I get Alaina all secured and call Teddy to make sure he is leaving work. He promises he is leaving and Alaina and I set off for home. We pull up the street and find the nice garbage men left both the trash can and recycling bin right in the middle of the driveway... I can get around it but I decide since it is freezing rain I should probably drag them up the driveway before the drive gets too slick. If you have been to our house, you know why you don't go down the driveway when it is icy. Teddy did it last week and took a little ride. So I get Alaina out of the car and open the door where the trim promptly dislodges itself from the door and falls from it's abuse this morning. I set Alaina down and take her out of the car seat and set her in the swing in her snowsuit while I run out to grab the trash can where it is now SLEETING and pelting me in the face. (I had no fear of being locked out obviously...) I come back in and take my coat off to go tend to Alaina but from somewhere in the house I am hearing a very frantic "Meow, meow, MEOW! MEEEEEOOOOOW!!" Oh Lord... Alaina is still swinging so I go to investigate and trace the noise to the upstairs bathroom. Sam is lying in FRONT of the door looking at me. It is obviously Maggie... I open the door and she comes bounding out and proceeds to wind around my legs to thank me for saving her. Yae...she left us a little a present to clean up after her all day adventure. I took a picture but now I am deciding against posting it... You get the "picture." I just shut the door. I don't know how she got in there... Sam is like Houdini when it comes to doors. He somehow gets them open and I guess Maggie is just good at getting shut in. Meanwhile, I remember Alaina is still swinging... Poor thing. I rush downstairs and she has managed to fall asleep, snowsuit and all.
Cute little pink bear. I take her out of the swing and un-bundle her and feed her and in the meantime daddy gets home. Ha ha - I am otherwise engaged with the baby. "Hey honey - there is a mess upstairs that needs cleaned up." Teddy cleans up the mess and takes the rugs down to the wash and cleans the floor so that part is cleaned up but the door still stands in shambles and we won't be going to Lowes tonight! The ice turned sleet has now turned to snow. Big fluffy beautiful flakes that make you forget about, at least partially, the troubles from the day. *Sigh* Well...time to make dinner and try to enjoy the rest of the evening. I hope everyone else's days were better, but if not, thank the Lord it is the weekend! Time to recoup!

January 8 - Poo(h)

This picture seemed highly appropriate for todays blog. If you have kids, you will get this. If you don't...read at your own risk! This is my day! It is seemingly just a cute picture of Alaina and her Pooh Bear but little do you know, over the last two days we have been on a "Poo Watch." Nope, not some fun new spin-off with a David Hasselhoff and some busty blondes... We have literally been waiting for a dirty diaper. At first I didn't think much about it. Yesterday the day care mentioned they didn't have a dirty diaper all day. Hmmmm...okay. She just saved it for mommy. But when Alaina woke up this morning after sleeping all night and we were still waiting I was a little more concerned. I called the daycare once during the day to see if they had any "luck." Nope, not yet. By the time I picked her up I was debating calling the pediatrician or at the very least going home and reading my "What to Expect: The First Year" book about how long you wait before you worry. Especially when your child normally has 5+ dirtys a day! We got home and the cable guy was coming so I popped Alaina in her swing to take advantage of a few minutes to do a quick sweep of the house to make sure it was in order. After the cable guy left it was finally time for Alaina to eat and she was ready!! So we get settled on the couch and she starts to eat and then suddenly stops. I tried again and she appeared to not be hungry anymore. Suddenly...there was a rumble and just like that, the poo strike was over! (I will spare you the details here) Hooray!

Other then that, not much happened today. Did I mention how much I love being a parent? Seriously - no sarcasm there. :O) Love you Alaina and your poo(h) too!