Monday, April 30, 2007

Pictures from Today

Such a Pretty Smile
She took lots of naps today. On Sundays when we go to House of Mercy it gets to be a long day & night for her since she gets to bed later than usual. She had a good day. Mommy had a good day too; she clocked over 12,000 steps on her pedometer today.

Keep Voting Everyone!
You can vote for me here. When mommy checked tonight at 9:15, I was #9 out of 1100. You need to register to vote, and you can vote every day this week. You can use all 5 votes on one picture - mine!

VOTE THIS WEEK!

Every day you can vote 5 times. You can vote for the same baby 5 times each day. If you search through week 4, she is on page 10 (one of 1100 pictures.) She is entry # 2033600008. Here is the direct link. Unfortunately, you do have to register to vote.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

New Toys

Outta My Way!
When I went to Skye's to pick up a sndbox from her, they gave us this Little Tikes Coupe as well. She loves it. They have a couple similar at House of Mercy in the nursery and she was so excited when she saw them tonight, as if her giggles were saying "Hey, I have one like that."

Checking Her Blind Spot

Good drivers always know where others are.

Hey, You Wanna Ride?

She started to get the hang of moving her own feet to move it. It will take some practice. She did figure out to pick her feet up when I push her around.

So, What Do I Do With This?

She is still figuring out the sand thing. This is the sandbox we got from Skye. Her boys have grown out of these things. Daddy picked up some sand @ Lowe's the other day.

Daddy Shows Her How to Make a Crab in the Sand

After a while we took off her shoes and socks and covered her legs in sand. She had no idea what was going on. After being in there for a while she seemed to get used to the sand, but still not necessarily like it.

We went to House of Mercy tonight and one of the nursery volunteers couldn't make it, so mommy stayed in there. She was great the whole time in there. She would watch the other kids. She seemed very concerned about this boy throwing a tantrum (he wanted daddy.) And she would get all excited when the high school volunteer would read stories. We read a lot of stories here and I think they read a lot at daycare too.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

49 Weeks Old

Fooling Around with Elements
I had a few extra minutes this evening and could fool around with Elements to see some of the things it can do. So, I did a bunch of different things to this photo. Not sure I remember them all, but each time I always learn at least one new thing.

I Love My Bath Toys.
She has toys in her room, but she will crawl out of her room and into the bathroom and play with her bath toys. I think she just likes to dump everything out of the basket.



Maybe it will fit better this way.

Such a funny girl. Today grandma & grandpa came to visit. We walked to the park and played there a bit and then went to Pizza Ranch for lunch, then back home for naps. Daddy & I could have left because they were babysitting, but we just went to bed and took long naps. Isabel was nice and took a good ong nap too, which allowed grandma & grandpa some dozing time too.

3 more weeks and she will be a year old. Amazing. I know people get older everyday, but I am just in amazement with everything about Isabel. She's a great kid.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Thank Goodness It's Friday!

I Love the Weekend.

Don't we all. But for Isabel, she gets to spend lots of time with mommy & daddy on the weekend. This Saturday, grandma & grandpa are coming to visit and taking us out for lunch. We are going to Pizza Ranch. They have a buffet with lots of yummy goodies on it, plus they have a play area on the main level for small children (which is great for entertaining Isabel) and on the upper level they have video games & couches for older kids to hang out.

We took a walk to the park today. She just loves swinging. We'll have to get daddy to hang her swing soon. She really enjoyed going down the slide too (w/mom holding her.) She still doesn't much like the sand, but she loves sitting on mommy's lap and controlling the digging machines. I had her crawl on the grass for the first time ever. She didn't much care for that either. All these new sensations for her. I am sure we'll get to the park once or twice this weekend too.

I Love Puppets.

She has a couple bath puppets and some playtime puppets which I keep in a plastic shoebox. I think what she likes most is taking then out and then putting them back in the box. She tried taking the tiger puppet to daycare. Everyday (lately) she tries to take something to daycare and we hope she sets it down in the car on the way over there, but if not I just need to remember she has it and to bring it home. She is definitly developing a sense of ownership.

Daddy put up the baby gate at the top of the stairs. We acually haven't had to use it to deter Isabel, but the cats hate it. Larry really hates it.

Sounds like bathtime is done. I need to go now.


Thursday, April 26, 2007

Just Thursday.

A Little Girl
Even though mommy put her pig tails in crooked, she still looks like such a little girl, not a baby anymore. *sniff, sniff* She loves digging in her box of hair pieces. If I want to try to put pig tails in I have to preoccupy her with something that will keep her relatively still. It's hard to get those pigtails even sometimes. Before work I don't have much time, so that doesn't help either.

Sweetie
I like taking these pictures when she is looking down; she looks so sweet and serene.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Bath Time Photos

Big Blue Eyes and Cute Pursed Lips
Not really too much new. I took her for a walk with my friend Linda and her little boy Nick tonight again. We walk to the park and Nick runs around & plays and I push Isabel in the baby swing. She just starts laughing when I push her because it's so much fun.

She's adjusted her bedtime on her own now, maybe the daylight savings finally caught up with her. Now she goes to bed around 7/7:15 instead of 6:30. Although, the last few weeks she has taken a 30-45 minute nap after we get home and play (usually around 4pm). That nap is probably what gets her the extra 30-45 minutes at bedtime.

Swimming & Drinking
She likes to practice swimming in the bathtub....scares daddy when she tries to do that. She also likes to try to drink the water, like it's one big cup of water. Silly girl.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Pouty in Pink


Yes, yes, yes......I know you have seen this picture before......I took it on our trip to Texas. Well, you are seeing it now again because I entered this picture into Babytalk.com's Cool Hat, Baby Photo Contest. This is entered for Week 4. PLEASE VOTE HERE! Remember it is for Week 4. You won't actually be able to enter until after this weekend. People can enter pictures all this week for Week 4. But take a look at week 3 while you look at the page.

Free Hand/Foot Print Event

It's at Creative Kidstuff this Saturday from 11-1pm. We can't go because we have lunch plans with grandma & grandpa that day. Besides, someone gave us a handprint kit that is we do one every year from age 1-5. But I thought I would post it in case there are others out there that are interested. They are doing it at all 6 locations.

Free Waterpark Passes

I never did recieve my passes from Momtalk.com, (Correction - I just receieved them into today's mail) but there is another website out there offering them as well, Parent Companion. So, we'll see if they come. The waterparks are in Bloomington or Brooklyn Center.

We thought that one day we would go up to the waterpark by grandma & grandpa's house and have some fun there and then go visit them. The passes are actually good for a year, which is great!

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Earth Day

Daddy, there are fun toys here.
We went to River Bend Nature Center today for their pancake brunch. Actually, we went late enough that it was lunch for us. And then we went for a walk on the trails and finally went into the interpretive center. They have a little play area for kids. Once Isabel warmed up to the area she was excited to play with the toys. They have a whole bunch of puppets there as well & a puppet theater too. Daddy liked all the puppets.

What Kind of Forest Did Daddy Make?
We had a good time. Mommy has been there several times,but this was daddy's & Isabel's first time there. I think we may visit here other times this summer. to play in the interpretive center and go for walk on the trails.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

48 Weeks Old

Crawling Around
She is all over the place now and into everything. She's pretty proud of herself that she can crawl and do things herself.

And....Action!

I was videotaping her this morning (so you might see that on here soo) so that gramps could see her crawling rather than just looking at still pictures. She has to explore everything and I figure it is better to let her explore and teach her how to be nice to things than try to keep everything away from her. Start young.

How Precious

I don't have enough time to fool around with pictures any more, but I took some time today. The only thing I did to this top one was turn it black & white. The bottom one I did a stamp effect on it. I use Photoshop Elements and if I ever get into it I know I can do some pretty neat things with pictures & layering, but I don't have a lot of time to teach myself. I just learn bit of things at a time. I love how detailed her eyelashes are in the bottom picture.


Long Lashes

11 Month Charts

Tall Girl
It is interesting that she has never once even been within the "rainbow" percentiles for length. She is generally just a tall girl. She is now 31.5" long. I also took her waist & head measurements so I can make her birthday props. Her waist is 19.5" and her head circumference is 18.125".

87th Percentile
Apparently she went through a little growth spurt in the last 2 weeks, which would explain all the sleepiness (previously she was taking 2 long naps a day for a short while.) Both her weight and length have gained at relatively the same rate. Her length has been a little more steady and her weight increase flucuates a little -- guess she' like the rets of us. :)

Friday, April 20, 2007

11 Months Old

Where has the time gone?
She is 11 months old and weighs exactly 23 pounds. I have to check her length again because last time was a week ago. Today she had pictures with daddy at Wal-Mart. Isabel turned 11 months today and daddy turned 31 years old. She is almost getting herself pulled up to standing by herself now.

A Little Devilish
I even left the red in her eyes. Her grimis very devilish. She was beating up her book. She was in a very good mood after she took her short nap after her pictures this afternoon w/ daddy.

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

Supper Time

Mmmmmmm....Mac-n-Cheese!

Hey mom, watch what I can do.

Tada!

Boy, what a mess, I better clean this up.

What mess? I don't see a mess.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Just Stuff.....

Isabel spent the day home with daddy because her daycare was closed today. We weren't sure how she would do for taking a nap for him and she did great, no fusses either. And she took a super long nap too.

She passed on her runny nose and congestion to me.....what fun.

Tomorrow I plan to bring her to the faily clinic after work for her 11 month weight.

I put in the request for the library to order Happiest Toddler on the Block and they are going to. Excellent. I have actaully exchanged some very nice email with the woman who runs the children's section of the library. They are going to order the book and let me know when it comes in and may even order the DVD.

The Great Serengeti Waterpark has changed their rates and now they only charge $5 a person on Mondays & $6 on Thursdays. That's cool.

Earth Day is Sunday. Our plan that day is to enjoy some real maple syrup at the Pancake Brunch at Riverbend Nature Center. I think going to the Nature Center is a good plan for Earth Day. Grandma is coming to babysit that day too. Neighbor Cindy is babysitting on Friday (Daddy's birthday) so that we can go see a play.

Skye sent me some links for ideas for photos for Isabel's one year pictures. They look fun. I am excited for those pictures. I think I am going to make a birthday hat for her for some of the pictures. I read an article in Wonder Time magazine about making your own birthday hats because they can be pricey and you don't always need as many that come in a package (which is wasteful.) So, I'll make a hat for her. And we're planning on doing cake eating pictures. So, I will make a simple cake with frosting that she can dig into. I think those pictures could turn out hilarious because she loves squishing soft stuff in her fingers and if I give her a whole cake to dig in; it could prove to be very funny.

Monday, April 16, 2007

Summer Events

Well, I decided to make a calendar of summer events. If you want to view it, you need to enter in the password, which is isabel .

Anyways, I was gathering information on things to do, which does not mean we are doing all these things. I thought if I have all our options in one location to view I can just check out the calendar and pick something to do if Isabel & I want to get out of the house during the summer.

And FYI for those who may be interested....the kiddie pool in our town is 14 inches deep and costs $1 for admission. The big pool ranges from 3ft.-9ft. and costs $3 for admission for a single session (or $5 for add day). There are also weekly and full summer rates.

I'll continue to add things as I find out about more events, but I thought since I was putting forth the effort there might be some friends who would be interested in knowing this information as well.

At the Park

Push Me Daddy.
We took turns pushing her in the swing, then we went on the slide, then she rode on mom's lap on a big girl swing and then we watched daddy dig in the sand. She's still not too sure about sand. I don't think she likes the texture that much. I had my camera phone with, so these are pictures from that.

Weeeeeeeee!

She absolutly loves swinging. She enjoyed going down the slide on mom's lap too, but more so if dad was at the end of the slide to watch her.

Sunday, April 15, 2007

I Don't Want to Work......

I Just Want to Bang on My Drum All Day! Well, and pee on the blanket - which she did when she was standing against the rail earlier.





She just loves pounding on this drum. She laughs everytime she does and it makes a sound. She is really getting into electronic toys that make sound lately, but she still loves her old favorites. She is just at the stage where she has figured out the cause & effect of the electronic toys.

It looks like a beautiful day out today. I think I will try to get out for a walk while Isabel is sleeping. She's going to start going on walks with me often now that the weather is finally nice. It will be fun to walk to the park. She loves to swing. We'll see how she likes going down the slides with mom.

This week we will a little busy. Mommy has a friend coming over a couple times to go for a walk, and then we have swim class, and then she will go to the County Family Clinic to get her 11-month weight, and then we are getting her picture taken. I was going to wait until her 1 year to get her next pictures taken. We are having Skye take her 1 year photos. But she turns 11 months on daddy's birthday and Wal-Mart has a cheap package (around $6) this month, so I thought why not. So, she'll get the package of a picture of just her and we'll also get an 8x10 of her & daddy together (usually it is her with mommy - but we can change it up.)

Pictures from Yesterday


I took some other pictures at the end of the day and just didn't have time to post any, so here you go.

She is pretty stuffed up. Can you tell by looking at the picture? I can.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

47 Weeks Old

Let me Out of My Cage!
She has got some bad diaper rash, so she was was getting some diaper free time this morning. It her crib or the pack-n-play is the best way to contain her in case she pees (which it never fails that she will) when she needs some air time to help with her diaper rash.

What You Looking'At?

We're looking at a baby girl with such big blue eyes. She was a good napper today. Great for mommy & daddy & Isabel, bad for all the guests that came to mommy's belated birthday party. Everyone wanted to see her, but only those few who came early got to see her, otherwise she went to sleep and took a 2.5 hour nap and woke up once everyone left.

Haha.


She is working on learning how to pull herself up to standing. She can't quite do it herself yet. She gets all the way up on her knees and then gets one foot out from under her and can't quite pull herself up all the way; she needs a little push. But now that we were working with her on it she is determined to try & stand and practices it on the couch, the ottoman, and the tv stand.

Friday, April 13, 2007

Such a Cutie!


Isn't she just a sweetheart? I think so.

Friday the 13th

So Happy.
She was slow to wake up in the morning. She wakes up like her daddy, but once she wakes up she's ready to go and was chatty. She was telling daddy all about her dreams as he changed her out of her jammies.

Should I be Worried about Friday the 13th?
She was trying to figure out how to convince me to give her the camera.
You're So Tall Daddy.
I think this is a great picture.
Crawling After Lucy Lucy has a shot to get away, but Larry is just toast. Every day she gets a little faster.

Mommy & Isabel
Mommy & her sweet baby. We just got done taking a 40 minute nap together before I typed this up.

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Happy Thursday!


It just means that we are one more day closer to the weekend. Woohoo!

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

New Swim Classes

Well, tonight was the first night of swim classes at a different location than previously.

Isabel couldn't wait to get into the water. She kept trying to leap out of my arms into the water. She was so excited to be swimming again.

So, here are my thoughts of pros & cons of the old location and new location:

New Location (AmericInn)
Pros:
* Easier registration process
* I like that we sing songs that you can incorporate swimming into
* Professional appearance to swim instructor
Cons:
* Higher class #
* Very poor accomodations for changing
Middle of the Road:
* Cost
* Water Temperature (so far it was ok, a little chilly, but not too bad)
* Time of class
* Location of facilities

Old Location (Holiday Inn)
Pros:
* Can use the waterpark before or after class
* Small class size
* Snacks/beverages available for purchase (if desired)
* 2 miles from our house
* Likes the use of water toys to encourage swimming
Cons:
* Less than ideal accomodations for changing, but better than new location
* Noisy & can be crowded from other kids using waterpark
* Hard to get a hold of the manager to register
* Swim instructors that had hickeys all over them
* Inconsistent water temperature, sometimes was chilly
Middle of the Road:
* Cost
* Time of Class

Monday, April 09, 2007

CrAzY Hair!

I took out her hair tie and we were playing around and her hair got all staticky. It made me laugh hysterically and then she would laugh too and then I would laugh because she was in essence laughing at herself.

So Long, Farewel.

I'm Gonna Getcha.
Uncle J would make her laugh a lot and she was trying to chase him; she's not fast enough yet.
Isabel & Auntie Phanie (aka Auntie Funny)

Auntie Phanie would make lots of silly faces and Isabel couldn't help but laugh at her.


So.....I Grab Here?

Auntie Phanie taught Isabel how to pull on Uncle J's beard. I have a feeling they might regret that in the future.


Isabel w/ Grams

"You wear buttons on your shirt like mama does. I love buttons!"