Merry Christmas Eve!

I have been behind in my blogging. Christmastime, working full time, and the general craziness that an almost 2-year old (how can that be???) causes has kept me busy. But, I wanted to slow down (while my cookies are baking) and make sure that I kept you all up-to-date. We had the wonderful pleasure of going to Delaney's Christmas program that her daycare put on. My sister was in it also and so it was a full family affair. Delaney's little group sang two short songs during which the majority of the kids cried. Not my Delaney though, she was busy trying to pick her nose (which, luckily, she never quite succeeded in) and trying not to fall asleep (it was getting close to bedtime). I did take some video, but you can only hear the kids crying and a little boy kept standing in front of Delaney, so it really isn't worth posting. But this was something I've looked forward to for months, so it was still wonderful to see my child take part in a celebration of the birth of Jesus and get dressed up nice for her little minute on stage. Here is a picture of her during one of the songs. Angus has settled in now as well. He is finally over the respiratory infection he brought home from the shelter and is now in full force destruction mode. When he isn't climbing the tree or trying to walk on the stove while I am cooking dinner, he is jumping in the shower when it is on, attacking Maisy nonstop, and generally causing havoc and mayhem every waking minute. But, last night, he and Delaney played for over half an hour and she was giggling until she was falling over. And that makes it all worthwhile. (I think).
Here he is being a good sport while Delaney piled movies on top of him. And yes, those are all Elmo DVD's. It is the only thing Delaney remotely cares to watch.

OOOOOOO, it's Christmas!

Our poor little bug came down with the stomach flu a few weeks ago. I had been in the dentist chair for 2 hours that morning and got to work with a TON of stuff to do and got a call a half hour later that Delaney was throwing up. Poor little thing got sick on pajama day at school. So, we were home for two days with her down and out. She did nothing that first day but lay on the floor with all her blankets. Luckily, little Angus was there to keep her company and he curled up next to her most of the day.

So, Merry Christmas Eve! We will be busy with all the family festivities the next few days so there will be plenty more pictures. Until then, we wish you and your families a very Merry Christmas!

Our very cold weekend

The temperatures have dropped here in Washington and this weekend the temps maxed out in the 30's. Our drafty little house has definitely felt the effects and even Maisy and Angus have been forced to cuddle. But not Delaney. Our little mover and shaker gets cabin fever way too easy and has to get out of the house for some fun, freezing or not. So, we braved the cold and took her to one of the parks near our house on Saturday for a little bit. We bundled up, but it still took hours for my feet to warm back up again. Delaney had a blast. Here the sun has decided to cancel out Dan, but Delaney was all ready for her trip down the slide. They had one just her size at the park.

She wasn't quite as prepared for her trip down the bigger slide.

Swings are awesome. She would have stayed on them all day. They even had the little kid kind that you can strap them into.

Delaney and I enjoying our swinging.

Sunday night we had a lovely dinner with Jon and Melissa. Delaney loved spending some time with her auntie and uncle and we had a great Thanksgiving dinner (several days after the fact).

Delaney enjoying all of her Thanksgiving grub. Thanks for a great time guys!!

Simply having a wonderful Christmastime

First of all, I hate that Christmas song. Ok, hate is a strong word, strongly dislike. Moving on, I love the holiday season: decorating the Christmas tree, listening to Christmas music, watching Christmas movies, drinking hot cocoa and peppermint mochas, and all of the other fun things that winter and the holiday season bring about. We have a busy season ahead of us with all of the families, but we are adding some new things to our activities. I am looking forward to Delaney's Christmas program through her daycare. I went to it back when Maddie was young and in it and I loved seeing all the little kids sing their songs about baby Jesus. I will make sure to catch it on video if possible for you all to see. Anyway, that is about all for this post. I just had to say aloud how much I enjoy this season: family, traditions, giving, and celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Delaney posing in front of our tree.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a last minute change of plans this year and we stayed home from the Thanksgiving festivities due to Delaney having a nasty cold which also made her a major grumpy pants. I did happen to buy most things for a Thanksgiving dinner just in case when I noticed her getting a little stuffy early on in the week, but since we didn't decide until late morning that we were staying home, it was too late to start the turkey. We will just have turkey this weekend. We did have the rest of the fixings and even homemade pumpkin pie. Anyway, here she is wishing you all a happy Thanksgiving.

Meet Angus!

This is Angus. He is the newest member of our family. We adopted him from the Humane society this last Saturday as a new playmate for both Maisy (our other cat) and Delaney. He has adjusted quite well and I don't think we could have asked for a better introduction. He and Maisy get along just fine, which is a stark contrast to when we got Maisy and couldn't leave her alone with Max for over a month because he attacked her. And as for Delaney, she LOVES her new kitty. When she says his name it almost comes out as "ernie" because she can't quite say the "g". So, she goes around calling him "baby angi". It is adorable. They chase each other all over the house and she has been giggling since we got him. He curls up next to her whenever she sits still (which is not very often) and he is the first thing she asks about when we get home or when she wakes up. All in all, it is a great match for our little family. So, here he is: Meeting Maisy. He is only 3 pounds and 2 months old, so he is a tiny little thing.

Delaney is already teaching him the wonderfulness that is Elmo.

Some reading time with Daddy, Delaney and Angus.

He climbed up here next to her on his own accord. We'll see how long that lasts...

We are so glad to have little Angus.

100!!

100 posts! This blog has actually made it to 100. It has seen pregnancy, birth, loss, joy, injuries and everything else that life throws at us. As I looked back over the last 2 years of posts, it brings back all of the memories and experiences that we have been through. Our life has changed so dramatically throughout this blog and I love having this to remind me. Hopefully you have enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoy making it (and let's face it, showing off my little one). I can't wait to see what happens over the next 100 posts!

Halloween pics

Delaney had a good time this Halloween as a little garden gnome. I think she was surprised that people just gave her treats for no reason. She kept taking them out of her basket one at a time, examining them until every one was out of her bucket, put them all back in and start over again. We just went to a few family members houses and a couple neighbors that know her and that was our evening. She even got to enjoy a sucker when we got home that could not be pried away for any pictures, so that is why there is a sucker in all pictures at the end. Since she is not too much of a sweets eater (except for the sucker and a few other things she likes), Dan and I have been enjoying her candy loot. Thanks to all who contributed to our sweet tooth! Here is our little gnome. She counted her candy her at one stop no less than three times.

With the hat on and everything.

Enjoying her post trick-or-treating sucker. Here she didn't care about the hat as long as she got the candy.

The end result in an Elmo bucket (of course).

A video of the wee one

Here is Delaney saying her name, that she is one year old and since I had promised it many blogs ago, the way she says watermelon. It has actually evolved slightly since her vocab is getting better, but still cute nonetheless. Enjoy!

The pumpkin patch

We took our annual trip to the pumpkin patch today. We headed off to Scholz Farms in Orting again and this year Delaney was able to run around by herself. I will readily admit right now that I have included way too many photos, but I couldn't seem to narrow it down, so tough. You're stuck looking at all of them. We had a great time. Here she is checking out the donkeys. It is far away, but these two dwarfs never made it into the Snow White story.

Checking out the corn maze. We made our way without getting lost.

Picking out the right one.

She is a little bigger in the wheelbarrow this year than she was last year.

One again, there was not one family photo where she was looking at the camera.

Hmmmm, how will I choose just one??

Daddy and Delaney

Off to find the Great Pumpkin

Grammie Charlene and Delaney way out trying to find the perfect pumpkin.

I've got better things to be doing, mom.

I love her little look in this one. She looks bored and angelic at the same time.

Still not willing to look at the camera.

She is jumping. She just figured it out and it is her new favorite thing to do.

Picking out squash for great grandpa.

Daddy and Delaney off wandering.

Of course we had to have some corn on the cob. It has been well documented on this blog how much she loves corn on the cob. Well, today was no exception. She ate the entire thing all by herself.

Enjoying our treats at the end of the outing.

One last shot of our little family on the tractor. We were able to get a good break in weather for our little trip this year and Delaney had even more fun this year now that she could run around. She loved seeing the animals again, even little lambs that were just born last week, and being able to run around outside always makes her day. Another fun trip to the pumpkin patch.

Making Strides for Breast Cancer

I participated in the Making Strides for Breast Cancer walk this past weekend. It is a 5k walk with proceeds going to the American Cancer Society. As most of you know, both of my biological grandmother's battled this disease. Both were later in life when it was found, but both had mastectomys as the treatment. One lost her battle when Delaney was 10 weeks old. So I walked in honor of one and in memory of another. It was inspiring to see how many people turned out and even more inspiring to see how many women were wearing Survivor sashes. To see women with no hair from chemo with their Survivor sashes on, in the midst of battling this monster, it puts a face to why we do this. I hope by supporting this cause, it helps other women and families who are going through this, that it helps spread awareness and preventative testing, and may prevent future generations, like Delaney, from going through it. It was a great time and was worth every step and much more.
My own little cheerleader decked out in pink, just like me. Getting ready to start.

Crossing through the starting line.

These are just some pictures from along the route. It wound around old town Tacoma and was actually a really pretty walk with views of the water and Stadium bowl.

Almost done, right at mile 3.

And crossing through the finish line. We made it!

My mom watched Delaney while I walked and they were waiting with a picnic lunch for me when we got done. Delaney was wearing her new pink kitty hat (since it was not warm) and we had a nice lunch in the park before heading home.

My registered walker sticker. See, I was official!

The three of us after the walk. It was a good morning out making a difference.