Fat (and naked) and happy

Emily is now 6 months old. She went in for her check up today and here are her stats:

18 lb. 8 oz (90th percentile)
27 in. (90th percentile)

Don't remember the head circumfrence (does anyone even care?) but it was 50th percentile

The doctor said all was good. We got the green light to start veggies and a sippy cup?!!! I don't remember the other two starting it this early. Thankfully she is our third and I don't feel pressured to do everything the pediatrician says. We'll probably wait until 9 mos. She barely cried when she got shots. And the most fun thing is that we walked to the office for her appointment. We're on a new family mission to walk or bike ride as many places as we can. This takes care of both high gas prices and my hips.

Last night, with it being a celebratory evening of the official start to summer for our family, we decided to go out to dinner. Now, going out to dinner used to be a chore because Brian would list the places he wanted to go and I would shoot him down until we usually ended up at Applebee's. We don't really eat at Applebee's anymore because their prices have gone up so much that we don't think it is really worth the money. And now combine that with Brian's new culinary abilities, we have a list of maybe 5 places we are able to dine at without saying, "well, it's pretty good, but you could make it better at home." Now factor in 3 kids with us. Okay, we're down to 2 places we could go to. All that said, we decided to walk to South Street Smoke House. We ran in to the Boutselis family there and had a great time chatting. Brian and Father Deacon Alex decided to go to the shooting range next week, so I guess that was worth the trip right there.

On the way home we decided to walk past Dallas and Bethany's new house. They were home and his parents were over. Elijah didn't want to go in and said, "It looks like they're having a party. Too bad we weren't invited." I said, "We don't need an invitation for Dallas and Bethany's house." (noted that Brian said this is a HUGE step for me, who does not like to drop in on people unannounced.) So we had a nice little visit and headed home, talking about what a fun night this had turned out to be. When we got home I listened to the messages on our machine and there was one from Dallas inviting us over to watch them open their wedding gifts. I laughed. I guess we were invited to the party after all.

I think our yard and garden are coming along nicely. This year it just keeps getting more and more involved, but I really enjoy it so I guess it's okay. We have these pot holder things that I keep buying pretty pots for, and they keep not fitting quite right. However, I don't want to take the pots back because, well, I like them. So, we keep buying more pots and then need things to plant in them, and the cycle continues. I also found some hugely sprouting potatoes in our pantry this morning and I planted them in the garden today to see what will happen.

It's the last day of school

Tomorrow is my last day of this school year. I guess I have mixed emotions. It was incredibly hard to go back today--and I was surprised again by how easy it was for me to shift gears into "stay at home" mode. I think I could've walked out the door on Friday and not gone back, which is funny considering how much I actually like my job. We spent much of the weekend working in the yard planting herbs, a few more vegetable plants for the garden, and some flowers. Brian installed a (much needed and greatly appreciated) screen door on our back porch. We visited our friends Heather and Penelope who live on a hog farm. We got to see baby pigs and feed chickens. We talked again about the pros and cons of moving to the country. Mary and Penelope were dressed up in their heels and peasant skirts walking through the hog barns. Elijah majorly wiped out twice and has scabs covering 20% of his body. We had lunch with Brian's parents and the Johnson's. Today I had kindergarten graduation and since Brian is already done with school he played Mr. Mom, and did a great job! The house was pretty clean when I got home, the kids were calm, and he made these delicious pork carnitas and fresh guacamole for dinner. So, tomorrow will be the end. We will start the next leg of our adventure: summer!!

Cuties!

Elijah is officially a kindergartener

Last night was Elijah's preschool graduation program. They did songs, a couple dances, and got graduation certificates. The place was so crowded! I think he had fun. One of his teacher's is a scrapbooker. She made all of the kids their own scrapbook of the year with pictures from their field trips and small pieces of art work and their handprint art on the pages. What a gift!!! I know how long it takes to do that for my own kids--and she did it for almost 50!! If you know anyone looking for preschool in the Lafayette area I would highly recommend this program. It is a good mix of socialization and kindergarten readiness. The teachers are really patient and kind--no yelling at all from what I've experienced. And it is inexpensive.

Wedding pictures!

On Sunday our good friends, Dallas and Bethany, got married. Here are a few pictures.

Anybody reconize this dress?

a couple of firsts

Emily is growing up. It is a sad fact. I think I would keep her a baby forever. I know Elijah would. Brian keeps reminding him, er... me, that if she didn't grow up we wouldn't ever find out what a cool person she is going to be. So, keeping that in mind. Her two firsts this week are:

eating rice cereal.



and ROLLING OVER! Unfortunately, no picture. She has been close for weeks and I knew it would happen soon. Yesterday at work I got an e-mail from my friend Annie, who is watching Emily, to let me know that it finally happened. So, I guess she is almost 6 months old and it isn't unrealistic to expect that she is going to be growing up. Plus, Elijah told me the other day that he has been, "praying that the Lord would bless us with another child." (I am not kidding about the quotes.) So, if Emily can't stay little, I guess we might get another shot!!!

I know it's been a long time since I've posted

when I start typing in the blogger website and it doesn't pop right up.

I haven't been out to visit my garden lately due to all the rain and cold weather. So, when I went out today I was surprised to see my first blunder. I somehow planted two things in the same row!!! I've got lettuce and green beans popping up on top of each other. I guess that goes to show you that when you think you should label the rows and then think, "nah, I'll remember." You should remember that you remember nothing right now. I got out and took a few shots of my blossoming yard. One wonderful thing is that our lilacs are so fragrant that you can smell them as soon as you walk out our back door. I remember when we moved in here (in April) 5 years ago, how taken I was with everything that was growing and how there were new things every few weeks. We have taken out a lot of things and moved things around since then. Last summer we didn't do a lot and I feel like it really shows this year. Everything looks neglected to me right now. My wonderful mom came over this weekend and did some work in our front yard which sadly is even more neglected than the back because we don't spend a lot of time there. She was even out in the pouring rain on Sunday moving rocks and pulling weeds. It was quite a sight to come home to!

I had a great Mother's day weekend. My brother and sister in law sent me flowers. My husband and kids treated me really well. They helped clean the house and bought me a new pair of Chaco sandals. We got to spend time with both of our mom's and we got to go for a long motorcycle ride. It was a very fun weekend. This week we are preparing for the end of the school year and Dallas and Bethany's wedding on Sunday.

The sky is growing dark

And I fear that the 30% chance of rain is going to indeed come to fruition. I have been working in the yard, which I think could become a full time job, and I decided that when my camera (oh yeah, and my husband) comes home from Tennessee I will take some pictures of the growing beauty in my yard to share. The deep purple lilacs are now in full bloom. My guess is that the bush is at least 25 years old, based on how thick some of the branches are. I also noticed lily of the valley that wasn't there last weekend. My poppies should open next week (It's like clockwork--always on Purdue graduation weekend) and the beginnings of our garden are starting to poke through. Today I finally started the indoor seeds (should have been done 2 months ago, whoops!) for basil, mint, and some perennial flowers I'd like to add to my perennial garden. They might not bloom until next summer. I also put another row of green beans in the garden and some broccoli, too. I think I decided today that I'm going to call TruGreen to come and kill the weeds in my yard. It drives me crazy every year and I end up spending more time and energy than I would like to admit stewing over a lawn that doesn't look good to me. So, I am just going to do it.

Well, I'm off to drink my cup of "Mother's Milk" tea. It is supposed to help improve lactation. I am still pumping every day while I am at work and it's been getting a little harder. So I'm going to try it.

My son, the tatoo artist

Tonight Elijah comes into the room with a sheepish look on his face. The kind that says, ask me what I just did. So, I took the bait. "What's up Elijah?" He holds out his arm that has an ink pen drawing of a face and a giant M. He says, "It's you, mommy. To remind me that I love you so much."