Mama's Little Helper

Probably the biggest hurdle of motherhood yet is trying to figure out how I can get everything on my "to-do" list done. I have finally figured out that if I just let her help me, it might take longer (and I might have to re-do some stuff) but I can usually get it done. Chores are a little more fun now.

Moving Forward

After a month or so of going, going, going, along with sickness and an emotional roller-coaster we are finally moving forward. Aydin for one is constantly on the go now, and has started walking (well if old people can call this walking then so can she). She will crawl right up to her alligator walker, pull herself up and take off. She can't really turn yet so she just pushes until it stops and then waits for us to turn her around. It is so much fun to watch her grow and develop. I am such a lucky mom!

And on the house front... here is a picture of the front of our new house.

We are finally under contract on a house that we love. It is a cozy 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house with a kitchen to die for ( : and fireplaces in the living room and master bedroom! I can't wait to move in. The only bummer about the place is that it is painted like the inside of Casa Bonita (red, orange, blue, purple, and yellow) Oh well, I would have wanted to paint anyway, now I just have a REALLY good excuse. Now we wait. It is a longer closing process for this house (45-60 days), but as long as we hang in there it's ours!

And here's one more video, just because I think this is so cute! He is such a great dog. We do love him (especially Aydin)! He got lots of praise and treats after this. (P.S. She likes to touch foreheads as a sign of affection. I don't know why, but she has been doing it since she was about 4 months old.)

P.P.S. Grandma and Grandpa Carlson: We are trying to think of a good time to take a trip up there to see you. We'll keep you posted ( :

"Sigh"

Trying to keep my head above water.  That's pretty much how I feel right now.  Aydin's been sick for the past three weeks from pink-eye, to a head cold, to the flu.  Jesse and I have been sick. Abel too.  We put a bid on a house yesterday.  We were supposed to find out today if we got it. Today was crazy. Couldn't sleep last night... anticipating the call ... 4 chickens dead in their new "predator proof" pen this morning... crying, apologizing to them, cleaning up the mess... trying to work... Aydin's throwing up... all over... forget work... extra cuddle time with a sick baby, mmmm... Abe to the vet (with Aydin in tow) ahhh... Aydin's throwing up again... ALL OVER... cleaning the couch cushions ("crap is that bleach or couch cleaning solution in that bottle?  We'll know soon enough")... yada, yada, yada... more throwing up... lost the bid... whatever... exhausted!

After a day like today this is what can still make me smile:

Mommy & Me @ the Cozy Cow Dairy

We have started a mommy & me group at my church.  There are about five moms so far, and we all meet every other Monday for some socializing for us and the kiddos.  Today we went to a dairy in Windsor to watch the cows being milked and pet the calves and goats.  The kids all had a great time! It was pretty fun, even for a 9 month old.  I stood her up on the gate and she reached out right away to pet one of the calves. She loved the calves.  She was also a big fan of the goats who were trying to eat her shoe laces.  She actually started whining when I pulled her away from them.  After seeing the milking process though, I have to say that it might be a while before I drink milk again.  Something about it just rubbed me the wrong way (maybe it's because I'm a nursing mom, I don't know.)

9 Months

9 months old now!  Wow... that's all I can say.  She is amazing.  She has really taken off this past month.  She is crawling all over the place now, and she'll even do it the "right way" if she's motivated.  She pulls herself up onto EVERYTHING, and she is starting to walk a little with assistance.  I think she looks like a drunken zombie when she walks (that's the first thing that came to mind when I saw her spaghetti jointed , wobbly walk.  I don't even know if zombies can get drunk.)  I think the biggest step we took last month was baby-proofing our living room.  She hasn't quite figured out how to scale our one massive step yet so our living room is our safe place for her for now.  I don't think it'll be to long before we have to get out the baby gate though, because she has figured out how to get up Grandma and Grandpa Hamilton's steps.  And I think her new favorite thing might be swimming.  She has so much fun at the pool.  We have taken her a couple of times.  She splashes and tries to stick her face in to drink the water.  We got her a little "raft" thing and she just sits in there and kicks and laughs.  I enrolled her in swimming lessons for this summer. I think she'll have so much fun with all of the other babies! 

 As hard as it can be sometimes to keep track of her now, we are enjoying every minute!  I get a little sad when I think of how fast this has flown by, but the older she gets the more fun we have together and I love it!

Oh, and I have to say something about the picture above.  Aydin LOVES Abe.  Loves him!  Abe TOLERATES Aydin.  Tolerate is the best word for it.  He does not love her, might not even like her, but he lets her do anything.  She crawls all over him now, licks his fur (when mom's not looking), tries to touch his eyes and nose.  He just lays there and pleads with us with his eyes.  Sorry Abe!  Someday they really will be best friends.

Sunny Day

Easter Sunday

What a wonderful Easter Sunday!  We had so much to celebrate:  the resurrection of our Lord, my sister's engagement, and her and her fiancé's baptism.  We celebrated accordingly.  After Easter morning services we headed over to my parent's house for lunch.  Michelle had a couple of friends over, and Ryan's (her fiance) mom came over as well to meet our family.  We had such a good time.  

Grandma Hamilton put together Aydin's 1st Easter basket.  Mom and dad stole a lot of the goodies (chocolate) but she had a fun time pulling everything out.

She is moving around like crazy now!  She pulls herself up on EVERYTHING, she can sit herself up, and she crawls so fast.  She still just drags herself along like a wounded soldier though.  

This is her smoochy face.  She was doing this non-stop the whole way through JoAnn$ Fabrics the other day.  So funny!

We helped out with Easter Marketplace at our church again this year.  My sister helped at our booth too so we could do some stuff with Aydin.  

Her first Easter egg hunt was a little sketchy.  She was in the 0-3 year old section and was by far the youngest.  One kid came over and sneaked an egg out from under her, and there was a clown who she was terrified of, but she got a few stuffed toys and stickers out of the deal.

And of course Grandma Williams got an Elvis impersonating Easter bunny who dances for her.  It's ears move like crazy, it is super loud, and she LOVES it.  When it's not "singing" and "dancing"  she moves its ears herself.

P.S. I think I'm going to start a shop on ETSY and try to sell some owls.  I figure I might as well make a couple and see if they sell.  If not, Aydin will just have an owl family to play with (  : We'll see!