What's new with Gracie

Grace is EIGHT-TEEN MONTHS old already=(

How can that be seems like yesterday that I had her.

What is new with my little girl:

She is saying three words at a time

Has a more extensive vocabulary

Can play in a group with other kids her age

Can climb on the coffee table like a champ!!

Stays in her bed, she isn't even attempting to climb out yet

Drinks out of a cup all the time, no baby bottles for her

Counts to 6 skipping 4, says A-B-C

Loves "El-bow" and "Ab-ise" which are Elmo and Abby Caddaby more than life itself

She can and will at times sit and watch a segment of a show if it is "Sesame Street" without getting up

She loves to give kisses

Loves my mom and sister- sometimes so much that it makes my heart jealous. She can say their names and calls out for them frequently. "Maw Maw and Sar-ah", she calls for them in the car, in her bed at bedtime, and even goes to the front door calling them. It is very cute and some what annoying- Ha ha ha!!

Loves books, loves them, loves them!!!

She is so beautiful. Her smile and energy is contagious. She has started throwing fits- she does it all throws her body down on the ground, screams, kicks, and even pulls hair. I am asking God for guidance on how to deal with this! I don't know what my life would be like without my precious baby.

New Year's 2009

What an outstanding year I have had. I don't know how they can get any better. I am so blessed beyond belief. I have such an amazing husband and daughter. I have the best parents one could ever ask for.

Things I want for us this year:

1) I pray for a healthy year for my friends and family

2) To continue to try to spend every possible moment I can with my daughter. These years are going by fast and she will be grown before I know it. I love being a mother more than anything, and want to give Grace the world. I want to teach her about God, and help her grow into a wonderful child.

3) To be a better wife and friend to Jamie- He is my heart!! I couldn't make it without him and feel so fortunate that he is my best friend. I could be better and know in my heart that I can try.

4) I would like to lose some weight and get into shape. I have a goal of losing 30 pounds and then I might try to do something special.

5) Continue to pay off debt. Jamie and I have worked so hard the last two years and paid off every credit card that we own but now were working on paying off our vehicles and student loans. Wish us luck.

6) Being a better daughter. My parents are so good to us and we wouldn't be able to make it with Grace if it wasn't for all the help they have given us, I would like to continue to do nice things for them to show them how appreciative we are for them.

7) Be a better person in general. I consider myself a good person, I am considerate and caring but I could always be better. I want to do more random acts of kindness. Give more to my church. Become a better christian.

So I have big plans for us, and hope that I can do all of these things!!!

Christmas 2009

I am so sad, Christmas has come and gone. We had a wonderful Christmas. We went to my parents house on Christmas Eve and had a yummy dinner- Ham, potato casserole, green bean casserole, shrimp, pasta, rolls, cupcakes, and rice krispie treats. It was so laid back and low key. We ate dinner, opened presents, and sat around and watched Grace play. My parents got Grace tons of new clothes, a Elmo robe, and a new book. My Mom and Dad got Jamie and I a new stove for when we re due our kitchen. I love Christmas Eve it is so much fun being with my family and just spending time together.

Christmas day was awesome. I loved playing Santa for Grace. After she went to bed on Christmas Eve, Jamie and I got all her little presents out and finished doing all the little things we needed to do. When she woke up on Christmas we walked her out to the tree and at first she was crabby because it was early but then when we started helping her open the presents she started having fun. She got tons from Santa. Her favorite present was a little purse. I have attached a video of her opening her gifts. Christmas with Jamie's family got cancelled due to the weather so we stayed home all day and relaxed as a family. Grace played with her new toys and we watched movies. Being a parent is the best!!! I couldn't of had more fun watching her face and seeing the excitement in her eyes. I think she is the best gift from God!! I can't wait for Christmas's to come.

FYI- The picture of her in the red was her eating a red cupcake after doing such a great job eating Christmas Eve dinner. Bath time was next!!

Play and Pray

Grace attended her first play and pray this evening. Jamie and I had planned on taking her but our condo association had a emergency meeting this evening at the same time so we couldn't go. Grace was going to have to skip it but my sister took her and my dad picked them up and took them home and watched Grace for the rest of the evening.



Sarah said that Grace did great. She said she kept to herself the majority of the time, but tried to color with the rest of the kids. They made a craft which was a bracelet with a jingle bell on it. My mom came over to visit Grace and she said that Grace was just showing off the bracelet and shaking it, that it was cracking everyone up. I hope that we are able to attend more of the events in the future.

Adopt a child

Sunday at church, Jamie and I decided to each pick a needy child to donate a Christmas gift to this year. I picked a nine year old girl, and Jamie picked a nine year old boy. We plan on going shopping for the gift this evening. I can't wait, I think it is going to be fun picking something out that you know someone is going to be so excited and grateful to receive. Any ideas on what nine year-olds like would be appreciated!!!

Our Lady of the Snow Shrine

We took Grace to see the Christmas lights last weekend. She was in utter amazement. It was such a neat feeling watching her see and be so excited about something for the first time. She pretty much screamed her head off and pointed the entire time.



We got out of the car and let her ride on a donkey. She pretty much wasn't to sure about it, but the amazing dad that Jamie is walked right next to her the entire time. He said that she giggled once. After the donkey experience, we fed the goats some carrots. It was soooooo cold that evening so we hurried up and got back in the car to see the rest of the lights. We plan on taking her somewhere each weekend to see the lights. Hooray for the holidays!!

Bounce House

The day after Thanksgiving I bought Grace a bounce house that was on sale. I thought well we better open it up and test it out to make sure it works. I took it over to my moms to let her try it out. I had to stand right by her the entire time and she mainly just wanted to play on the slide.



It took less than a minute to put it up, and was pretty easy to put back in the box. Here are a few pictures of her playing in it.

Times a Ticking

I still haven't put my Christmas decorations up. I had to work over the weekend, and I plan on putting them up this afternoon. I am very nervous about Grace getting into my tree. She has already broke several of my moms ornaments at her house. I LOVE decorating the tree and house and told Jamie last night that I was said that I wanted to get started putting it up asap, because Christmas is such a special time of the year and comes and goes before you know it.

Last night when we were driving home from the babysitters it was dark out and Grace, just had her finger pointing and saying "Ahw Ohw". It is super exciting just knowing that your child is seeing something new for the first time. I love every moment that I get to spend with Grace and she makes everyday of life so exciting. As soon as I get my Christmas decorations put up I will post some pictures of them.

Bye Bye Weekend Option

Today is a great day, for the fact that I worked my last shift as a weekend option shift nurse.

Oh weekend option shift you were good to me while it lasted, but it is time for me to move on. Sadly to say, I will not miss you. Thanks for the good times and I will never forget you!!!!

In all seriousness, it worked out great when I had a little baby. I never had to pay for daycare, kept Grace home with us, and made fantastic money. I just want to have a more normal life and be able to spend time with my husband and family.

Starting this week I will be a CSN on my nursing division. A CSN stands for clinical support nurse. Fancy title for a charge nurse. The majority of the time that I will work, I won't take patients, just be the support person for the floor. Make assignments for the floor, help the other nurses, etc. I am EXTREMELY nervous about the position because it is very stressful because at times you have to be the bad guy and they're all types of random things that come up that have to be dealt with. It will be a challenging new role but very exciting.

Wish me luck I will need it!!!

Black Friday

I had to work Thanksgiving night so when I got off work at 730 in the morning, I stopped in at Toys R Us. I did find some really good deals. I was able to finish all my Christmas shopping for Gracie and my nephews and nieces.

After Toys R Us, I stopped by my mom's house, Grace had stayed the night with my family after Thanksgiving dinner and I just wanted to see her face before I went to sleep for the day. On my way over there I passed Target and noticed that the parking lot didn't look that bad. I talked my mom into going with me, and we packed up Grace and headed over there.

We got some GREAT deals. While I was there I phoned Jamie and we discussed getting a small TV for our bedroom and he agreed that it would be a good time to buy it. We ended up getting it that afternoon at Sears.

All in all, we had fun shopping and didn't think that the crowds were too bad.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!