First Comes Love...

July 15, 2007 marked the beginning of an epic adventure. Here we are 3 years in and we have known more joy, love and excitement than we could have imagined for ourselves. I can't wait to see what our life together will bring! Dana, I love you with all my heart and couldn't imagine this ride with anyone else. You have my heart. My all.

Good Mornin Sunshine!

All I Need Is A Shower Cap

So I am a fish.
I have been since I was a very small baby. I love love love the swimming pool and that's probably where baby girl gets it. Open water - WHOLE other story. Something about creepy crawlies cruising around my toes just doesn't sit well. However, put me in a clean, man-made, chlorine-water filled tub and I am good to go!

This morning I went back to one of my hobbies, water aerobics. Let the snarky comments role. Bring it on. Yes, I'm probably one of the youngest there. Yes, I DID actually see this hat in class this morning. Yes, Gloria Estefan is on the rockin' aerobic music. I LOVE IT ALL!

I got up at 0h-dark-thirty and walked into the gym lookin' a' curly-haired, sleepy-eyed hot mess. But baby, I boogalooed my butt and legs to a good burn this morning, and didn't have to sweat like a pig in the process. I call that a great workout. Mock away my friends. All I have to say - is you are MISSING OUT!!

In light of my renewed love of ridiculous water fun, I found a ridiculous Mr. Bean video to commemorate the occasion. Seems appropriate.

6-7 Months

Can you believe it?! She's already 7 months old!

Penelope has officially mastered sitting up, rolling around, and she is completely into her toes right now. I love seeing how much she is changing right before our eyes. It hardly seems possible...I can't get over it! ECK!

Color me TERRIFIED!!

For my very first mother's day I received some incredibly sweet cards - including one with very special scribble from one very special little girl. In addition to cards and wonderful treats I was given a book called, "Bringing Up Girls". It's a powerful book from Dr. James Dobson. He spent three years studying and pouring over over three thousand pages of research to complete this tool. It is intense, insightful, thoughtful, heart-felt and I am completely petrified to read another page.
The mission of the book is to give parents a practical and encouraging approach for shaping the next generation of women. He and a great team of experts went through thousands of hours of preparation to give us insight into the world of raising girls.

In the four chapters I've gone through I've already learned so much about how society is so anxious, desperate even, to shape our little dolls into creatures who are self-conscious, self-worth lacking, media-manipulated and highly susceptible to the unacceptable. "Not only are toys becoming sexier, they are also undergoing something called 'age compression.' It used to be that girls from six to ten were the prime market for Barbie and other dress-up dolls. Nowadays, Barbie is targeted at three-five-year-olds. As Stacy Weiner wrote, 'it's goodbye to girlhood.' Writer Bruce Kluger commented, 'you've come along way Raggedy Ann.'"

Let me be clear - I plan on finishing this book cover to cover. But I think we're in the 'shock and awe' part of the book where he draws you in with intensely terrifying facts and statistics of raising girls in today's world/society. Yes I'm a parent now so I need to be aware, YES these things are important and I FULLY REALIZE I can't find the nearest pile of sand so I can bury my head. But COME ON MAN!! Where are the butterflies, bunnies and rainbows in this topic of conversation, I'm totally geared up to hear some warm and fuzzy at aaaany moment now!

Ok, ok...so about that 'shock and awe' - I will confess - I am learning a big lesson.
I'm learning what an hugely significant opportunity we have to shape the way Penelope sees this world, and the way this world sees her. We are blessed to be put in a position to protect her by being the first to show her she has worth, and how amazing and truly loved she is! We have the privilege of pointing her to the One who loves her more than life.
We have an opportunity to buck the norm and give her a chance to see the true joys of childhood and experience them fully without the pressures and weight of a grown-up reality.

By golly - come hell or high water I will protect that innocent advantage for her with everything I've got.

With one eye covered, a glass of wine and a cup of ice cream - on to Chapter 5...

I realize I have been horribly negligent with the 'couch' lately, but I have every intention of getting back in the game...soon.

In the mean time, a little snippet of sweet deliciousness...

Meet My Husband

For those of you that know Dana, you KNOW he loves him some Toyota or Honda automobiles. He takes exceptional care of his cars and its safe to say that when he is elbow deep in motor oil and engine goop he is in his version of man-heaven.
He has taken a special liking to the newest Sienna. Weirdo. I saw this commercial today and realized I was looking at the future interaction of my husband and our daughter. I seriously believe their bonding time will happen over 4 wheels someday.

5 Months and then some...

Beautiful, amazing baby girl. This little bundle of giggles and drool continues to keep us running a million miles a minute. We are just on the cusp of the dreadful teething phase - but that smile makes every rough moment worth it.

Chatty Kathy

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7 Stages of My New Butt

A little tid bit from this month's "Parents" Magazine...

7 STAGES OF MY NEW BUTT

Stage 1 - DENIAL
This isn't a new butt. It's the same awesome butt you had the day you got married.

Stage 2 - SHOCK
Well, it's technically the same butt, but for some reason it doesn't fit into the pants you wore last year - before you got pregnant. But there's no way your butt could be so drastically altered by having a baby. Could it? OMG!

Stage 3 - ANGER
Fine. It's not the same butt. It has curves and divots and new places that sweat. It follows you wherever you go. Stupid, annoying butt and its stupid, annoying cellulite! Is it possible to get a restraining order to prevent it from stalking you?

Stage 4 - DEPRESSION
No dice. It turns out you can't get a restraining order against your own body. And if you inquire about it people laugh at you. And that makes you cry. As do the elastic-waist pants you just bought, even though you are nine months postpartum. Those lying liars who said "nine months on, nine months off" must have gotten to keep their original cute butt.

Stage 5 - GUILT
You are a grown woman. You know that women should be - and are - more than just hot bodies. You know objectification is cruel. You've read the magazine articles that tell you how awesome you are. You created life. And yet...this butt. IT WON'T GO AWAY.

Stage 6 - FEAR
You probably have Flesh Expanding Butt Disease. It's very rare, but if you get FEBD your butt will eventually consume your entire body, preventing you from leading a normal life. There is no cure for this horrible ailment. Best to just go buy a bunch of sweatpants.

Stage 7 - ACCEPTANCE
Right. So it isn't that bad, really. Your new butt does come with some nice features. It's easier to close the car door now. Your kids have something to hang on when you're at the grocery store. And your husband likes it. A lot. In fact, your new butt is kind of growing on you...

That's What He Said...

A friend of ours 'noted' (facebook) a phone conversation he had with an insurance agent. If you know the guy, you will laugh hysterically - but even if you don't you can appreciate the humor.

We will call him Jim.

Caller: Hi Jim, this is Meredith calling on behalf of Hoopdy Insurance regarding the quote you requested. So are you related to Pam? I had her name down here in my notes as well requesting a quote.

Jim: Pam is my wife.

Caller: Oh okay. I wasn't sure if you were husband and wife or brother and sister or something...

Jim: Actually, we're both.

(Long Pause)

Caller: Oh!....ok....

Jim: I'm just messing with you! We're still not allowed to get married.

Sunshine On My Shoulder Makes Me Happy!

Today was a good day.

I mean any day where there is uninterrupted sunshine in the NW is a good day - but today was exceptionally rad.

We started the day out by sleeping in till 8 (our version of bliss), took our time eating a healthy breakfast, got a few little chores done around the house and headed out for a few errands. In the afternoon, we snagged our lunch and found ourselves lounging on the blanket in the sunshine at the waterfront park. That was one happenin' place!! Everyone and their dog (literally) crawled out from the depths of their water-proof, warm homes to soak up this rare occasion that is SUNLIGHT IN MARCH in the Pac NW. Frisbees were thrown, picnics were made, walks were taken and I'm sure somewhere there was a stand with two little boys trying to make a buck per dixie cup of lemonade. Like I said...this was a GOOD DAY.

The view from our blanket was made up of the incredible Mt. Hood in all its glory, the Columbia River adorned with sailboats and fishing boats, and a beautiful lush, green park with new blossoms everywhere reaching for the sun to soak up every ray.

I found myself thinking about how much my life has changed - and how incredibly blessed I have been. I have a great life.
I have seen a lot of brokenness and a whole lot of discouraging circumstances, but in the end, I can look back at it and truly see the hand of God shaping me into who I am and where I am now. I have an amazing family who lets me be exactly who I am. I have a husband who choses to rally through life with me in good and bad. He encourages me and keeps my eyes on things above. His love makes me better, stronger. He still makes my heart skip a beat. And, oh Penelope. My precious and divine gift. She makes my rockin' world go round. She makes my heart beat faster and her smile shows me what true, amazingly pure joy is.

Today was a good day.

I was reminded of God's irreplaceable position in my life and I was reminded that his plan for me far exceeds what I could have dreamt up for myself. Not bad for a Saturday if I do say so myself.

From Bath Time To Bathing Suit

This baby LOVES water!
We have always marveled at her love of bath time - it really is a time of complete relaxation for all involved.
She all but goes into a trans when we hit bath time wind down.

With that in mind - we did the daring thing - we introduced her to a swimming pool! Needless to say it was a HIT. People all around us were amazed at how laid back she was and how much she seemed to enjoy herself.

Maybe she will be swimming by 9 months like her mama did. Go little guppy go!

"Plump Plump Penelope"

Well - I am two weeks late on this one, but here are pics of our puddin' peanut butter at 4 months and 15lbs. That's right, this girl appreciates a good meal and she's not ashamed of it!
She has been such a riot to watch the last month - the world around her seems to have grown immensely and she is constantly enthralled with the new sights and sounds she discovers each and every day. She is intentionally expressive when she comes upon new sights. First her eyes light up like little saucers and then she raises her eyebrows as if to say "that is BRAND NEW to me!" What a delight!

The last time Penelope's Grandpa Shell got to smooch and snuggle on her, he dubbed her "Plump Plump Penelope". So much to love on in such a little babe! I recently found out that growing up, my Dad liked to call me "Chunk Chunk Andrea". I personally think "Plump" is a little cuter than "Chunk", but hey - who's keeping track? :)

This little Plump of rolls and giggles makes our hearts beat a little faster and brings more joy than we could have hoped for. There have been challenging moments, and there are certainly times where we still struggle to remember our own names, but that little face makes it all quite bearable.

Five months old is right around the corner - don't blink - you might miss it!

Long Time Gone

I'm SORRY for being so lax in posting in oh...two weeks. Whoooeee...it has been a whirlwind adventure in our sweet lil home. Everything from combating illness, keeping up with work, catching up on spring cleaning and that whole task of raising an infant has had us dashing from task to task so quickly that our heads are spinning.

I owe you some serious catch up, so in the mean time I'll show you what's to come.

Dum da dum! Here we go...a recap of the last two weeks in future blog titles!

1: "Plump Plump Penelope"
2: From Bath Time to Bathing Suit
3: Chatty Kathy
4: Thrifty or GENIUS?
5: Bedroom Makeover!!
6: Adventures in Machismo
7: Blossom: Adventures and Discovery

Could I be more vague? Just stay posted. I'll keep you entertained with this here Griswold-esque story that is our life.

My Sweet Valentine

One year ago today we were given the news that our lives would no longer be the same.
Four positive pregnancy tests told us that Penelope was on her way!

Since that day we have been on a thrill ride and even in our toughest moments we have been blessed beyond measure.
Every year on this day when I look in the face of my beautiful baby girl, I will know that I was given the best Valentine a person could possibly get. I truly could not imagine a better gift.

Such joy and such love - I gotta say, I'm kinda loving Valentine's Day!

"Sexy" Defined

Waking up with tissue stuck to your nose, drool on the pillow, cotton mouth and chapped lips because you've been breathing through your mouth for the last 24 hours...

Frizzy hair beyond managing because the idea of pushing a brush through it is terrorizing...

Mascara smudged under your eyes because the idea of applying the pressure of a cleansing cloth to your skin makes you wonder if your flesh would then light on fire and fall off...

A pool of used tissues and cough drop wrappers nearly spewing out of the garbage can...

Dry skin from the 5 showers and 2 baths you've taken in 6 hours...

These things folks, these little gems that come with the cold bug define SEXY.
Bet my man can't wait to come home and greet the sassy ogre waiting for him! :)

Hey..we've all been there...just admit it!

State of Confusion?

So last night, with a very sleepy baby in my arms, I found myself watching President Obama give his State of the Union address. It was at least 15 minutes into his address that I noticed I had been watching the whole time and didn't hear a word he was saying. I watched his lips move, I saw him raise his hands in emphasis, I saw Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi jump to their feet every 2.3 minutes, but I literally did not hear a WORD he said.
At some point toward the end of my day, a gnarly energy annihilator crept through my brain and killed off every major mental faculty one at a time. Hearing; check. Balance; check. Communication; check check.
I realized quickly that I should get a few things done around the house before it killed off my ability to walk or see!

On my commute to work this morning I followed my normal routine and ended up at a stop sign close to my office. After a minute or so I realized I was still in front of an empty street with my right turn signal on waiting for the SIGN to turn GREEN so I could go LEFT and get to work. Yep, you read that right. I was waiting at a STOP SIGN with my right signal on for the non-existent STOP LIGHT to turn green so I could turn left.

So. THIS is what exhaustion feels like? Riiight. Kill me now.

3 Months!!!

I'm totally late in posting this, but here is Penelope's 3 month picture. I can't believe she will be 15 weeks tomorrow - that just trips me out!
The joy she has added to our lives is indescribable and we couldn't be more in love with this little munchkin.

Fit For Dreaming

We are three months late, but we finally rallied and put all of our effort into finishing Penelope's nursery. We are so happy to see how it turned out. It has been SUCH a joy to see her discover the world of wonder and light around her!

I Could Eat Her RIGHT Up!

I mean really...can you stand the cuteness?

Grunts, callouses, jocks...an all around good time.

So Dana has really wanted to find a good/hardcore workout program. I happen to think he's a total hottie as is, but he really wants something that will stretch him and get him in the lean shape he was in when he lived in SOCal. Seek and you shall find, he found a program called Crossfit and on Monday he will be starting the intense, boot-camp like workout. It is nothing like a gym membership. You won't find an elliptical machine, a treadmill or a swimming pool..oh no. They do it old school - free weights, bands, a pipe hung in a warehouse used for pull-ups, and a lot of space to run your butt off. 95% of the clients are male and they definitely kick each other's butt to get the beefy/lean/machismo/(enter word of choice here) look that the girls just eat up.
I have this image of guys yelling at each other - or trainers degrading their clients to make them look and feel weak or small. You know...run of the mill "bootcamp" stereotype right? Dana assures me that's not the case. They just 'encourage' each other to check their internal 'wuss' at the door, man up and get the job done. I guess guys work well that way.

I'm pretty content doing the water aerobics with people twice my age. You know, the folks that cheer when they've reached rep number ten.

Day #2

I made it to the car before melting down. I call that progress.

...what a boob...

Right after they peeled me off the floor...

Today was Penelope's first day at daycare and my first day back to work. Fortunately, we took the 'break in' approach and I'm only working 1/2 days this week.

Peanut was the first little one to arrive bright and early in the morning. I found myself explaining her schedule to the care giver and the more I talked, the more my eyes welled up. The poor gal kept putting her hands out to take Penelope and I couldn't bring myself to hand her over. I covered her face with a million kisses and told her over and over how much I love her. By the time I was finally able to put her in very capable hands, I was a pretty amazing mess. I never in a million years would have imagined that this step would be as hard as it was. There was a pretty large puddle of tears, but we made it! PHEW!

Long story short, she was a champ. At my day's mid-point, I received several picture texts from my very dear friend Anna. She was able to stop by the daycare, visit with Penelope and take a few pictures for the mommy who was desperately missing her baby. Every picture was smiley and happy. She did great today, and got along very well.

Those pictures meant the world to me.

The first day back to reality...done and done.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

This one is for the ladies, sorry guys.

Last night I had the sublime opportunity to go to happy hour with some of my girlfriends. This wasn't just any other night out with the girls...this particular gathering had a very special purpose. We were coming together to celebrate our dear friend and the life of the beautiful baby boy she will be bringing into this world VERY soon!

Let me set up the scene for you. We are from all stages of life; three of us are nursing mothers, two gals have kids under seven and put us to SHAME in terms of beauty and style, one is on the dating scene, and one is ready to pop with her first! We are all the entertainment we needed, truly. :) The scene of the crime was a local lounge that seconds as a movie theater. We go there often enough, and occupy a large table for several hours at a time. They serve excellent nachos, delicious desserts and have the snazziest glasses to drink from! (It's all in the details, right girls?)

The last time we were there we exchanged Christmas gifts. One very sweet girl in the group gave us the wonderful idea to go around the table and as each girl opened her present, we would each share something we love about her. It took a matter of minutes and we were all in tears. Remember the 'nursing mothers' part? Throw that in with just being girls and that spells HORMONES! What a great time..sometimes girls just need to love on each other like that! Our waiter quietly went around the tables keeping the water glasses full, he even brought us extra napkins to dab our drenched faces. He was a total stud and handled us with care, but you KNOW he went home to his buddies like "DDUUUDEEESS, I had the CRAZIEST table tonight!"

Last night was no exception to our routine. We laughed a lot, we shared stories from our week, we talked about our kids/boys/homes and then conversation took a deliciously dirty turn to everything about child birth/labor. Given that two of us are FRESH off the labor circuit and one is going in, we had stories to tell and boy did we laugh. Sadly, I think our waiter was far from prepared to hear the conversation floating from our table. Yes, we women talk about the gory delivery details, tearing and fluids, boobies and body changes. It's one of those things we can share and while we laugh through it, we walk away relieved that we in fact, are NOT cuckoo for cocoa cocoa puffs and that some things really do happen to other people.

It is a treasure; a group of girls you can come to, hash out your dirty details with and walk away feeling saner for having done so. We challenge each other to be better wives/mothers/friends/sisters in significant ways, most of the time without using words. Sometimes the things unspoken make the most powerful impact.

Needless to say, I anticipate many more shell-shocked waiters and many more happy hour happenings. :) Cheers to you beautiful babes.

Granted, we're looking at the back of her head most of the time..but come ON, look at those toes!
See the toes, love the toes, dream about those twirly toes!

Have you ever seen a sweeter cupcake?! Thank you for the delicious warm wear Aunt Debbie!! You couldn't have found a cuter model. :)


Mama Love! We're both a bit fair eyed so that sunshine makes us super squinty!


Popo Johnson - Penelope's Great Grandpa

Simply THE BEST

There is nothing in this world that compares to the first giggle of your first baby.

I was changing a diaper today while Penelope and I were chatting it up about her newest lovie "Bananas". She was telling me how they bonded at nap time. In the midst of her story telling, she got so excited mid-sentence that she let our her first ever giggle and I melted then and there.

Color me tickled...

Bubye 2009!

It is simply impossible to put into words the craziness and excitement of the last two weeks, so I thought I would try a different route.

SO - in no particular order...the highlights of our 2009 holiday season were...

Watching Penelope discover Christmas lights. Her eyes danced across the holiday trimmings with such wonder and delight!

Seeing A LOT of family on BOTH sides. We were fortunate to see schedules come together and a lot of family reunite.

Giving gifts - even if they were mostly homemade.

Feeling like distant cousins of the Griswolds as we darted through the Airport doing the "traveling with a newborn 100 yard dash". SO much stuff for someone so small! And who they tested breastmilk for anthrax!?

The cranky lady on the plane give us stink eye when we boarded, then continued to inform us that traveling with babies is basically foolish because all babies are miserable travelers. Little did she know she would be eating crow 2 hours later when we landed and Penelope had yet to make a single peep that wasn't in the form of a coo or gurgle.
She was a saint the entire trip...take that crankypants!

ARIZONA SUN!!!

Awesome miniature golf - still not athletically inclined..even if it's hitting a ball through the slowly turning windmill. Dang.

Great food - all of the stuff Mom knows we love. She pulled out all the stops.

Discovery Channel - mmmm...Dirtiest Jobs, Deadliest Catch, DC Health...oh my!


Christmas 2009 was one for the books and we are so fortunate to have been able to experience it through the eyes of our beautiful baby girl. She provides all the wonder and delight these hearts needs this side of heaven.