Water, Baby

Last spring, we signed Nora up for a waterbabies class as soon as she was old enough (minimum age is six months). This year, we debated about whether to do it again, and decided that it would be a good way to gear up Nora for the summer. She hadn't been in a pool since last year, so we wondered what she would think of it--would she like it again? Hate it? We weren't sure what to expect.

The best thing about waterbabies classes? Seeing tiny humans in tiny bathing suits. I DIE. This year's suit is brought to you by Old Navy. They had a lot of cute ones! As it turned out, we had nothing to worry about. Nora loves the water. In fact, she loves it so much that she wishes she could traipse around in it all by herself. Miss Independent here waded out into the water to her waist without assistance. She would've gone further if Michael hadn't been right there to grab her. Sheesh. Singing songs? That's cool with Nora. Playing with toys? That's cool, too. Doing all of that (and more) in the water? AWESOME. The instructor (who is like 12--when did I get so old??) was talking to Nora and I loved the way Nora was looking at her. I've been joking that she was like, "Lady. I've got this!" My little smartypants. Chasing toys in the whirlpool... ...and hopping like frogs ("ribbet... ribbet... ribbet...") across the pool. The only thing that Nora doesn't like about swim class? ...When it's over.

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Up and Down

I'm convinced that toddlers are bipolar.

I don't mean to make light of the actual mental condition--I know it's very real, and very serious--but SO ARE TODDLER MOOD SWINGS. Dear lord.

Nora was such an easy baby. Seriously, she almost never cried. But then she turned one, and went all crazy. The tantrums were moderate at first, but they have slowly progressed to be the most ridiculously dramatic episodes of all time.

On Friday night, things escalated to an all new level. Nora had gone a few days with bad naps at daycare, and had been spending a lot of time outside playing. On both Thursday and Friday, she fell asleep in the car during the 10-minute drive home, which is saying a lot because she NEVER does that. I actually left her in the car to sleep for an extra 15-20 minutes or so once we were home in the hopes that it would hold her over until bedtime.

No such luck.

She was crabby as all hell, didn't want to eat dinner, and just generally seemed exhausted, so Michael and I decided to take her up to bed early. As we were attempting to change her diaper and put her pajamas on--notice I said WE because it was a job for two--it was like wrestling an alligator. And then it was like a crazy switch was turned on, because she was literally screaming her head off and going insane. She had this insane look in her eyes and I actually kind of laughed in disbelief and said to Michael, "I think we need an exorcist!"

It was nuts.

No matter what we did--pick her up, put her down, give her toys, give her milk, give her books--she just kept screaming. We finally got her to calm down by putting on a movie for a few minutes, and then she went to bed without issue.

We went through a similar episode yesterday morning, but without the proposed exorcism. She didn't seem QUITE as crazy, but she did scream and cry and roll around on the family room floor for a good 15 minutes because Michael dared to get her out of bed in the morning. She didn't want to get her diaper changed, didn't want to get dressed, didn't want to eat breakfast. You get the gist.

We've been assured by the pediatrician that this is all normal, especially considering that Nora does not have more than a few words. I've done some reading on "manipulative" tantrums vs. "frustration" tantrums and I am damn sure that I can tell the difference.

Nora's manipulative tantrums occur when something is taken away, or when we won't let her do something she wants to do--like run into the street, or stay outside longer. She's crying because she doesn't get her way. With those, we can distract her, or ignore her, and she just gets over it.

The frustration tantrums are a whole different story. Sometimes, they are easy to solve because she'll come running up to me, arms outstretched, just wanting me to pick her up. And when I do, she calms down. We talked to our pediatrician about this, and she said that in these cases, we SHOULD pick her up, because when she's coming to us like that, it's her way of asking us for help. But there are times when picking her up doesn't help, and she just gets completely out of control. I've been reading about ways to deal with this, too, like holding them tight to help them regain that control. We've tried to just let her cry it out like a manipulative tantrum, but it just doesn't work--that's when we end up with her rolling around on the floor for 15 minutes, or charging at me like a crazy person (and when I pick her up, she just keeps screaming).

There have been days that are just hard. I've come to realize that this is just a part of her development, it's a stage to get through. As all parents say, "This too shall pass," and I know it will.

But today? Today was a good day. We have good days (or at least parts of days) frequently. That's the funny thing: As challenging as she has been lately, she's also been the most fun that she has ever been. As I've mentioned, we've been outside a lot, and she is just eating it up. She loves to swing and play with chalk on the driveway. She walks around aimlessly, and points at all of the dogs in the neighborhood while saying "TESSA!" (Yes, she thinks all dogs are "Tessas.")

Nora has a sense of humor. She laughs when people burp. She smiles so big that her eyes close.

In short, she is amazing in every sense of the word. Amazingly difficult. Amazingly smart. Amazingly sensitive. Amazingly beautiful, inside and out.

It's a rollercoaster, but it's one that I'm thankful every day to be on.

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Outside

I'm afraid we've created a monster.

We've had pretty great weather this week. Every night after work, we've taken Nora outside to play. The only problem (if you can call it that) is that she LOVES it--a little too much, maybe. The minute we get home, she's whining/reaching for the door/begging to go outside. We happily oblige, but sometimes it's necessary to--I don't know--drop our things off in the house, change our clothes, get dinner started, or pee. God forbid!

It's tough to teach an 18 month old patience, especially when they can't comprehend reason.

Anyway. A couple of nights ago, I finally put away the iPhone and got the real camera out. I also unburied my 50mm f/1.8 lens, which--although my favorite--I haven't used in quite some time. I chased Nora around in the front and back yards, trying desperately to get some good photos of our girl. And then, I edited them! I took a night off from kitchen stuff to enjoy playing around with pics. The results are the photos here in this post. Not perfect (hello, limb chops!), but it was the best I could do with a fixed lens and a never-stops-moving toddler.

This little one enjoys being outside so much that she doesn't even want to sleep. Or bathe. Last night, she threw an absolute FIT when I took her shoes off, took her upstairs, and gave her a quick bath. She normally loves baths, so it was a different experience to have her screaming and fighting me (I even had to call in reinforcements--Michael!) the whole time.

{Reaching for a ball that Daddy threw way up into the sky}

We didn't move into our house until mid-August of last year, and at that point, we were in a mad rush of house projects to make the place liveable. We didn't have much time to be outdoors, and even when we did, it was tough because Nora was not yet walking, but didn't like to be in the grass for extended periods of time. So, this will be our first time to really take advantage of the benefits of having a house. With a yard. And a fence. And a driveway.

{Waving bye-bye to Daddy}

We have big plans for a spring and summer filled with cars/bikes, balls, bubbles, slides, swings, chalk, and a baby pool. And (hopefully) eating things straight out of our soon-to-be little backyard garden.

Yesterday, as I drove home after picking up Nora from daycare, I glanced in the back seat to see her SLEEPING, wisps of her hair gently moving in the breeze flowing in through my half-open window. It's only a 10-minute drive from daycare to our house, which is never enough time for her to fall asleep anymore. The last time that happened? Last summer.

I asked Mary whether Nora had actually napped yesterday, and she said that she did, but only for 45 minutes. She had been furious with Mary when she brought her inside to nap, and when she woke up, all she wanted to do was go back out.

We have an outdoor-loving girl.

And it is still only March. We have 7+ months ahead of us to enjoy the great outdoors.

I can't wait to see how our adventures unfold.

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Delicious

One of the biggest advantages to summer clothes on babies is getting to see their little baby arms.

And even though she's not exactly the definition of "chub," Nora still has the adorable little folds at the wrist. GAH, so cute.

AND... look how curly her hair is these days. Thank you, humidity.

Excuse me while I go *nom* on her a bit. I can't resist.

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87

That was our high temperature today. On April 2. With the same expected for tomorrow.

We slept with the windows open last night, so I woke up to fresh air and birds chirping and sunshine coming through the blinds. I honestly can't think of a better way to begin a Friday.

When I dressed for work, I chose a skirt and a sleeveless top. I had to paint my toes (that haven't been painted all winter). I slipped on flip-flops and walked out of the house without a jacket. There is nothing I love more than not having to wear real shoes or a coat. Ahhhh. Freedom.

Sporting sunglasses, I opened my sunroof and rolled down my window, enjoying every second of my five-minute commute.

During the lunch hour, Michael and I took a two-mile walk, and there was no doubt about it: it was actually HOT out. Whoa.

When I returned to my desk, it was only a few minutes until I received a mass e-mail from one of the big bosses, telling us all that the company would be closing two hours early (at 3:00). It was already 2:00. I was granted an early start to a fabulous weekend.

Yes. This day? Pretty close to perfection.

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Sayonara, March

When the clock strikes midnight tonight, it will be official: I'll have made it through winter.

:::huge sigh::: Oh, thank GOD.

These winter months have felt exceptionally long this year. In fact, I even bitched about it a few times on here! But I was also in the early stages of pregnancy and experiencing the exhaustion that comes with that, so it's hard to say what was really to blame for my funk. I still think the weather is a major culprit, though. I just really do not like winter.

After the holidays were over, I set my sights on April. To get there, I had to take each month at a time--sometimes one day at a time. It was daunting. It seemed endless.

But now? Now, April is here. :::happy dance:::

We'll likely still experience some cold, dreary days, but the nice days will be more abundant, so I can handle it. In fact, we're welcoming April with a bang--80 degree weather is forecasted for Friday and Saturday! The weather report has been making me giddy every night this week.

See you next year, March. I'm through with you.

Here comes the sun.

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Walk it out

It has been so beautiful outside over the last several days.

I got home from work a little later than usual this week, as it was my first on the job and I have a lot to learn! But starting on Wednesday, the weather was so nice that as soon as I was home, I was changing my clothes and grabbing Tessa’s leash. Every night, we’ve been enjoying a long walk route which takes us a little over three miles—which is a long way for little legs like Tess has! In turn, she has been one tired girl, and we’ve been tired, too—that fresh air is good for all of us.

Hopefully nice weather + new job is a worthy excuse for my lack of blogging the last few days?

Thanks to my new job, my husband and I work less than half a mile from each other now. It’s pretty awesome. Yesterday, he came over to my office and we ended up walking a couple of miles on our lunch break. It was nice to get out into the sunshine in the middle of the day like that, and nice to spend some extra time with Michael, too! And we STILL took Tess for a walk after we got home from work, too! Lots and lots of walking for this pregnant lady. :)

This morning, Michael went skiing with his dad while I stayed home and did some spring cleaning. My energy really is coming back (although I do find that I am still quite tired in the evenings!) and I decided to take on some areas of the house that have been seriously neglected throughout the past couple of months. What I really want to do is give this place a good, thorough vacuuming (edges, couch, blinds, ledges, etc.) but our vacuum cleaner is a piece of crap and there is hardly any suction in the hose, making all of the attachments virtually useless. We are getting ready to invest in a Dyson, but have yet to pull the trigger on that. You know you’re an adult when you’re excited about the purchase of a vacuum cleaner.

Anyway, by the time I was done scrub-scrub-scrubbing, it was early afternoon, Michael was home from skiing, and we decided to go on another long walk. Fourth day in a row—it feels nice to be active!

I want to get down on my knees and beg Mother Nature not to take all of this away from us, but it’s no use—the weather is supposed to be back to the “typical March” cold and dreariness early next week. Still, I know it’s only a matter of time now before we get this nice weather more consistently, and I just. can’t. wait.

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Spring Fever

Today was so, so beautiful... from beginning to end. I loved every second of today.

Since yesterday was my last day of work and I don't start my new job until Monday, I have myself a lovely little 4-day weekend here. This morning, Michael woke me up to tell me he was leaving for work a bit before 8:00. After he left, I tried to get back to sleep, but was disturbed by the BRIGHTEST SUNLIGHT EVER shining through our bedroom window. It was shining at just the right angle to render our blinds ineffective. I snuggled with Tess and watched TV for a while to see if I would drift off to sleep again, but alas... I just could not wait to get up and enjoy the day.

I "recorded" my day with a series of cell phone pics. Those of you who follow me on Twitter have probably already seen most of these!

First, I ate breakfast, browsed the web, and then relaxed on the couch and watched some morning television. I opened the blinds for Tessa so that she could look out and enjoy lying in the sunshine. My view:

(Notice my Christmas pajama pants? Awesome.)

After a while, I got up and baked a cake and a batch of cupcakes for Logan's birthday party, which is Saturday. I won't decorate until tomorrow, but I figured I'd get a head start by getting the baking done today. While I did that and a lot of other things around the house, Tess continued to enjoy the sunshine:

She was in her version of heaven, I think. (Notice the doggy nose marks all over the window. A good Windexing is in order. Sheesh.)

After everything was baked and some of my "chores" were done, I threw on some workout pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt. I broke out my iPod and a pair of SUNGLASSES (yessss!) and asked Tessa if she wanted to go for a walk. "Walk" is a magic word in Tessa's world. She totally understands what it means, and when you say it, she will jump all over you like you just told her she won the lottery.

We set out for our walk and I was even more pleased with the weather than I thought I would be. It was 60 degrees and perfectly sunny and I loved it so much. I kept closing my eyes and just breathing in the fresh air, feeling the sun on my face and the (relatively) warm breeze. Ahhhh. Days like this are just what I need after what has felt like a substantially long winter. Still, I was reminded that winter is not quite over:

There was still plenty of snow to be seen on our walk. And I know this day is just a spring tease, but I DON'T CARE.

We took our extra long walking route, as I really didn't want to go back inside. Like, ever. It felt so good to be out and getting some outdoor exercise. Although she is a complete trooper and will keep walking as long as we do, I could tell little Tess was getting pretty tired after a while. It's a long walk for her little legs!

She stuck it out, though, and we finished our route. When we got home, Tess collapsed into the sunny grass and rolled over for belly rubs.

Unfortunately for her, it was then that I realized just how dirty her belly had gotten from our walk, so it was straight into the bathtub for her. But I did grab one last photo, of Tessa and her mama enjoying the sunshine:

After a bath for Tess and a shower for me, we both were ready to relax for a little while.

Someone was super tired.

In the late afternoon, my sister-in-law, Cristina, came over and we played Super Mario Brothers Wii until Michael got home from work. From there, we walked to a restaurant close to our house to treat her for dinner, since she's home from college on spring break.

I loved today.

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On the Loose

A few weeks ago, we started talking about letting Tessa off of her leash more often. She's older now (3 years old), and tends to be a bit wiser. Also, all she ever wants to do is be with us. We're not really afraid of her running off, since wherever we go, she tends to follow.

She has been off of her leash before, but only when we are in the mountains. We are afraid of her running into traffic, so we would never let her off if we were anywhere near a street. In the Poconos, that's not really a problem as we're always staying at a place that has lots of land. So that was always the only place that we really felt comfortable letting her off the leash.

Until now.


One night after dinner, we took her to a nearby school to walk around. The school is set back pretty far from any roads, and they have huge fields for sports. We figured, hey, we'll let her off her leash and see what she does.

It turns out that she absolutely loves it. The minute I unclip her, it's like she's thinking, "I'm freeeeeeee!" But she's also really good, just as we expected she'd be. Her biggest problem is that she gets easily distracted, sniffing around instead of listening to us. Also, if she sees birds, she'll take off running after them. Luckily, she never goes far before turning around to come back to us, but this behavior reinforces the fact that we'll never let her off anywhere that could pose any type of dangers to her.

Anyway, we've been running her at the school pretty regularly now. We run her up and down the fields, encouraging her to chase us back and forth. And let me tell you--little girl is FAST. She really tears it up, and it's hilarious.

Last weekend, when we got home from visiting Michael's sister, we took her to the school for a bit of running time before it got dark. I decided to bring my camera to capture some action shots of her play. I cropped them quite a bit, so they're not the sharpest photos, but here are a couple of our favorites:

Look: She doesn't even have any legs touching the ground. She's running so fast, all four legs are in the air. And the ears? Straight up. So funny.

Here she is, once again barreling straight toward me. She runs as fast as she possibly can, then runs right in between my legs before slowing down and circling back to me for praise and a little rest. Love her.

We're going to try to take her out this weekend and get some more pics, and perhaps some video. If we get anything good, I'm sure I won't be able to resist sharing it.

Have I mentioned how much I love spring/summer? It is such a joy to be outside.

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The Great Outdoors

Today was all about being outside in the absolutely gorgeous weather we are having. All I have to document it is a few crappy cell phone pictures, but bear with me. :)

First, we went on a 17-mile bike ride. This pic is from about the 8.5-mile mark, where we stopped for a water break and turned around to ride back.

On the way back, we stopped for our first frozen custard of the season. I'm a kid at heart--always gotta go for the rainbow sprinkles!

So delicious. I looooove frozen custard. It was melting quickly, though. Right after taking the photo, I had to work on the sides to get it "under control." It's a difficult job, but someone's gotta do it. :)

Once home, we were on our way back outside as soon as we had our bikes stashed in the garage. Next up was a 3.5-mile walk with little Tessa girl. We couldn't leave her inside all day!

All of this activity left me in dire need of a shower and a little rest. My legs were exhausted. After dinner, though, we hit the pavement again and took Tess out for another little walk. We let her off the leash at a nearby school and ran her around the sports fields. She was in Heaven.

We definitely made the most of the sunshine today, that's for sure. The temperatures were perfect, too. Love, love, love this weather.

And love, love, LOVE three-day weekends.

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The Adventures of Heather & Tessa: Downpour

It started off well. I skipped the gym today in favor of enjoying time outside, opting instead to take Tessa for a long walk. When we left the house, it was really nice out. Warm, and even a little bit sunny.

But just as we reached our halfway point, just as we were the furthest away from home we could possibly be while on our route, the skies decided to open up.

At first, it was just a few drops. I didn't think much of it.

Then it started to sprinkle. It actually felt refreshing.

Then? Pretty steady rain. I thought, well, we'll probably be pretty wet by the time we get home. But I continued to listen to my iPod, and figured we'd be fine.

But then things suddenly changed. The wind picked up, and all of a sudden, it started pouring. I was getting pelted in the face with rain, and I had to continually wipe my eyes because I was getting to a point where I was dripping wet.

When we were a little more than half a mile from home, I started to worry about my iPod and BlackBerry. I took out my earbuds and stuffed everything deep down into the pockets of my shorts. And then? We made a run for it.

Part of a shortcut to get home cuts across a school's property, and when we were running down past the school, I started to hear thunder and saw small flashes of lightning. (Oh, and in case you're wondering, it was still teeming rain.) I decided that it probably wasn't a good time to go running across an open field, so I made a quick decision to bolt down toward the school and seek cover under a small overhang by one of the doors.

We waited it out for about 5 minutes, at which point I wasn't hearing much thunder anymore. The rain was still coming down, but not quite as badly as before. And so we ran. And RAN. We took the quickest, most direct route we could, splashing through ginormous puddles and cutting across muddy grass. Don't forget--my little dog is 11 lbs. and has approximately 6-inch legs. But she was a trooper.

When we got home, I couldn't resist taking a few photos and a little video of just how wet we actually were. SOAKED! Completely and utterly soaked (including my knickers!). I actually wringed an impressive amount of water out of my socks, shorts, and t-shirt.

But in the end, my iPod and BlackBerry survived (thankfully!), and we made it home safely. So it was actually kinda fun. It was quite the adventure.

Oh, and for the record? It's no longer raining. And of course it isn't. Why would it be, now that we're inside?

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Sunbathing

It is 80+ degrees here today. We are all taking advantage, including little Tessa girl. This is her favorite thing to do on a sunny day.

When we take her outside, she immediately flops over into the grass, to feel the sunshine on her belly. She also expects us to give her belly rubs (we always oblige).

It is one of her little quirks; one of the many things that makes her our little Tess.

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

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It's a sign.

Summer is coming.

Last night, we dragged the grill out of the garage for the first time this season. We sipped a couple of beers, and I pulled weeds while Michael grilled our burgers. I could not have been happier.

Friday + warm temperatures + sunshine + grilling + hamburgers + beer = EXCELLENCE.

And this is just the beginning. It puts me in such a good mood!

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April (Snow) Showers

**rubbing eyes**

When I look at the date at the top of this post, I could swear it says April 7. And HA! That's just funny.

What?

Oh. So, wait... it does say April 7?

How can that be? Surely, if it was really April 7, I wouldn't have seen all of this when I was going into work this morning:

I mean, look at that. It can't be April. Plus, I was rudely awakened by the sounds of a neighbor scraping ice off of his windshield this morning. That doesn't happen in April.

Alright, alright... so it IS April, and we DID have snow and blustery cold this morning. I'm just choosing to live in denial half of the time, and the other half of the time, I'm being a bitter betty. Because frankly? This sucks. Unfortunately, it's a reality here in Western New York.

People around these parts often talk about a legendary Mother's Day snowstorm. (Yes, Mother's Day. You know, that holiday that happens to take place in the middle of MAY.) I have no memory of such a thing, but they swear it happened. It's possible that it was so traumatic, my brain has suppressed the memory to protect my sanity.

This past winter was particularly awful, so I'm trying not to complain about the seemingly-moody spring we are having. Anything is better than the winter we just had. But I'm having trouble here. I want warm weather so badly, it's hard to focus on anything BUT the weather.

We've enjoyed occasional 60 degree, beautiful, sunny days for which I have been tremendously grateful. The problem is that more often than not, that weather is gone in an instant (literally overnight in some cases), and then we are blasted with another 30 degree, dreary, rainy/snowy day. NOT COOL, Mother Nature. NOT COOL.

Years ago, I was forwarded an e-mail titled, "You Know You're in Western New York When..." One of the items that--according to the list--lets you know you're in Western New York?

You can get sunburn and frostbite in the same day.

And I'm here to let you know that it's true. SO true.

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