Sunday, October 4, 2009

Bouncer, party & tomatoes

Mike came home Friday with an early birthday gift for Izzy: a mini bouncer complete with 150 balls! Izzy immediately fell in love and was giggling all night while jumping & playing. Mike claims that "this is just what daddies do," meaning spoiling their kids with extraordinarily large toys that are loads of fun. I suppose it is. Needless to say, we're transitioning our dining room into a play room for the next year. Not only do we not entertain (who has the time or energy with 2 small children?) but the toys are becoming too big and cumbersome for our living room. Should be a fun place for the girls to play while they are home with the nanny!
Loving her new toy
Static hair...Mike found this hilarious
Catching her breath
Daddy joined the fun
Saturday morning I woke WAY too early (considering I only had 5 hours of sleep) to join Jaime & Lori for some garage sale-ing. I scored by finding a double jogger, ballet shoes for Izzy's dress-up repertoire, and 100 milk storage bags (I paid $6 for these - they retail for $40!!!). I was most excited about the storage bags, and my girlfriends thought I was crazy. Anyway, after that excursion, I returned home just in time to join the family for a birthday party for Max Musgrave (2) and Jude Moosbrugger (1). There was pumpkin painting and cupcake decorating for the kids...while there was pumpkin donuts & chili for the adults. Was so much fun to catch up with the entire Musgrave clan.
Painting
Sunday afternoon Izzy and Mike picked tomatoes from our garden...Izzy ate the entire (large) tomato on the spot!
And finally, we met Luke & Aunt Gi Gi (Jaime) at the park this evening to get the kids some fresh air (and Jaime & I some girl time). How cute are these two?!

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Delaney's namesake

My girlfriend, Jaime, is in her 2nd trimester of her 2nd pregnancy. She just posted on her blog about a song that her husband introduced to her that has moved her to the core. Jaim has an instinct that she is pregnant with a little girl. If this is so, I'm curious if she'll name her Zoe (the song's title)? Also, I hope our girls grow up together and become as close as Luke and Izzy have. Anyway, her blog posting inspired me to share where we got the name for Delaney.

As most of you know, Mike and I have been long time fans of Jimmy Buffett. We've gone to his concerts every summer since we met (and sometimes twice!). Mike has a favorite song that Jimmy sings called "Delaney Talks to Statues" that is about a father's love for his daughter, Delaney.
Delaney talks to statues
As she dances 'round the pool
She chases cats through roman ruins
And stomps on big toadstools
She speaks a language all her own
That I cannot discover
But she knows I love her so
When I tuck her 'neath the covers

Father, daughter
Down by the water
Shells sink, dreams float
Life's good on our boat

Delaney draws me pictures
She finger paints the sand
We chase the dogs and hop like frogs
Then I do my bad handstand
She's growing up too fast for me
And asking lots of questions
Some I know the answers to
And some I'm looking for suggestions

Father, daughter
Born by the water
Surf's up, sun's down
Life in a beach town

And some of the things I've seen
Maybe she won't have to see
But there's a lot I want to pass along
That was handed down to me

Delaney talks to statues
As she dances 'round the pool
She chases cats through Roman ruins
And stomps on big toadstools
She speaks a language all her own
Just a little like her mother
And she knows I love her so
When I tuck her 'neath the covers

Father, daughter
Down by the water
Shells sink, dreams float
Life's good on our boat

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Museum & Art Fair

This weekend Mike went out of town for a wedding, so I asked his dad & step mom to come down for some extra hands with the girls. Was SO nice to have them here to both entertain Izzy and to allow me to sleep in both mornings! Saturday we kept very busy: museum in the morning, shopping during nap time (Bob stayed home with the girls) and the Carmel Arts Festival in the evening. I ran into countless friends at the Fair - I just love living in Carmel! So much fun...
The Children's Museum was offering free bicycle helmets & fittings. We didn't think she'd be big enough to fit into a helmet...
...but we were wrong!!! Should have known with her big noggin!
A little ride in the race car
Water play
Endless carousel rides with Grandpa
Strolling through the Fair
Mommy and the girls...sorry that Izzy is showing her food, this was the best picture she'd give us.
ps- Today is Delaney's 1 month birthday...we're surviving!!!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Sisters, picture day & creative gifts

Tummy time for Laney means playtime for Izzy!
Love that they are staring at each other
Picture day at school...
My very talented girlfriend, Lori, made this frame for Laney. Can you stand how beautiful it is?! She's the same friend that made Izzy's butterfly mural for her bedroom. I swear Lori needs to start a business! P.S. - those are Laney's feet in the frame!
And Jaime got Laney these uber cute bloomers - now I want a pair for Izzy!!! So stinkin' cute!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Little of this, little of that...

Izzy has been very interested in what's going on in the kitchen (she must get this interest from her father, clearly!) and has helped Mike bake a cake and me bake brownies this past week! She loves watching them bake through the oven window!
This pic is from the Monon, when we went to meet Molly for lunch at Bazbeaux's.
Tummy time for Delaney...
She's a rock star already!
Smiling at daddy...
...and snoozing on daddy!

Sunday, September 20, 2009

She just can't hide it...

Izzy's "excited face." She's so excited, she just can't hide it! This face NEVER gets old. You simply ask her to show us her excited face and without fail, this is what you get. She holds her breath and squeezes so hard, I swear she's going to give herself a hernia one of these days!
This is Izzy's sad face. We're working on her emotions and expressing them with her face. Her most recent is HAPPY! She runs around the house yelling HAPPY and smiling. Then we switch to SAD, then EXCITED. It's a roller coaster around here, folks.
ps-Thank you to MOLLY CONNOR (www.mollyconnor.com) for taking these pics. She's my personal photographer and Izzy just so happens to LOVE HER. So do I :) If you are even THINKING about getting newborn or family portraits done for your holiday cards, you should book with her NOW! She has amazingly special rates right now and does phenomenal work. Trust me, she's profesh.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Mid-week Adventure

As most of you know I have a hard time sitting still. Being home on maternity leave is a bit of a challenge for me, as I'm not the biggest fan of just "being" at home. I have to find daily outings...walks to the park, library, etc. I am on an endless pursuit to fill my calendar with daily events to look forward to and make the days fun for us all.

My dear friend, Meg, has Wednesdays off and she graciously invited the McCulloch girls to play with her and her boys today. YAY! A fun outing and a change of venue (for some reason I just had to get out of Carmel today)! So we loaded up and made the trek down to Broadripple for some quality time with the Moosbruggers.
This is not the best picture (sorry Meg!), but I had to show you what Meg carried the bambinos in: a garden wagon! Meg put a blanket down and we loaded Izzy, Jude & Oscar into the wagon with some snacks and we were OFF! We first fed the ducks (and geese) on the canal and then went to a park for playtime.
Izzy thought this was so funny...she kept quacking at the ducks and then was blowing them kisses as we left! We had SO MUCH fun with the Mooses...a very big thanks to Megan for entertaining us all and for a yummy lunch. BOTH girls are fast asleep as I type this, so we may have to have more outings with this crew!
Delaney continues to be a great sleeper and eater. She is spending more and more time awake, even following us with her eyes and becoming more social. Still a champion sleeper at night, allowing me about 7 hours of sleep total (which I'm more than ok with). However, she has just started having a fussy time in the evenings...where Mike and I have to take turns trying to soothe her. Walking outside with her and bringing her into the "panic room" (downstairs bathroom with an exhaust fan the strength of a jet engine) are ways that we're coping.

As for Isabelle, she's been protesting her naps the last few days. From the sounds of many friends, toddlers tend to do this when a new baby enters their home. They don't want to miss a thing and therefore remain awake. I really can't complain too much, as Izzy simply reads her books in her bed, doesn't cry or yell out, and has yet to get out of her bed on her own. We simply give her the quiet time that she needs. However, after 1.5 hours of her reading in her bed this afternoon, she FINALLY tuckered out and succumbed to a much-needed nap. Phew. Hope she's back on track now.