Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my birthday....I am 36. WOW. I am feeling old. But at the same time it is fantastic and great. This is the best birthday ever. It is the first time I am a mommy and I have the best husband. What more can a girl ask for?

The last couple of days, I have been working on a reversible dress for Abigail. I am having quite a few problems with creating it and am being creative in finishing it. Once I figure it out 100% I am going to do a tutorial as it seems all the ones I have read seem to leave out a step.

However, here is my baby girl in her new outfit. It just fits her. Plus she is already reading Mothering Magazine. She is starting early.

Life as we know it...

Yeah...we are back from being sick. 3 weeks is definitely long enough. I think we had a little of everything....cold, pink eye, allergies/sinus, and then bronchitis. I cannot believe how exhausting being sick and having to take care of a baby at the same time. After the first few days Abby was feeling good...so she didn't understand why all mommy and then daddy wanted to do was sleep.

Belowis a predinner photo. Abby wanted to pose with me before I left. I normally don't dress up too much so I dolled myself up.

Nothing much happened these last few weeks. However, now that we are feeling better...life is getting better. I went on a dinner date tonight with my friend T. Sheldon watched Abby but I guess it wasn't a good thing...she cried for 2 hours straight. I guess she is going through the mommy is everything stage. (I have mixed feelings about that...I like being the most important person in her life...but I also like having a few minutes to myself.) Tomorrow, I am going to take a PhotoShop lesson.

Above is a photo of Abby making friends or enemies depending on how you look at it with Oreo. Oreo actually hissed at Abby for the first time. That is probably because Abby has learned how to pull hair...I have a few sore spots on my head from her pulling.

Sheldon has been able to do a little metal detecting. Yesterday, the 3 of us went to the park. Abby and I went walking while Sheldon checked out the ballfields. He found a few quarters, a couple of dimes and some pennies. This is the normal finding load...but every now and then he finds jewelry.

Above is a picture of Abby in the cute dinosaur outfit that Grandma Susan made for her. It is a little big but not too much. I love it. Velcro everything. I actually just finished a rock n roll skull pink/black blanket for Abby. Now I am working on a rubber ducky quilt and I have patterns to make bibs and pinafore. So that is my next projects.

This weekend is my birthday and Mother's Day. We have lots planned. Hopefully it will be fun.

We are home...

Hi

Abby and I are home from visiting cousin Leland and the rest of the gang. He is doing very well. I don't think he likes his shots very much but he is learning to adapt. I think right now it is harder on mom and dad then on him.

I do have to admit though...being around 3 kids for 3 days was way too much for me. Poor Carrie & Dave I was constantly shushing....I like my noise volume a bit lower. But I did try to get some one on one playtime with Caleb as Leland hung out mostly with mommy.

Little Abby watched and watched all the action...she had so much fun. (She is exhausted now.) Though she did get hit in the head twice...once with a remote and then with a ball. She was like what the heck happened. She doesn't get a lot of rowdy play like that at home.

I was supposed to orginally come home on Sunday but I left Saturday instead...I was exhausted too. Abby didn't sleep very well and was up about 4-5 times a night and not napping during the day. Daddy was very happy to see us. We went for a walk on Saturday and went to the library and out to dinner. Here is Abby and Daddy...he is already exhausted from having us back.

Abby in her sweet Easter dress (which is still too big) that grandma Susan and I made.

Then on Easter Sunday we ended up at Memorial Park for a walk. It was very nice and almost relaxing. Abby is off on her sleeping still, so we haven't been getting very much sleep. Plus we both came back with a bit of a cold virus.

WOW...

Is all I can say. See for yourself the difference a professional photgrapher makes on a baby photograph. I have to say I wish I could afford to do this every day. Abby looks amazing and you can actually see her red hair.

We haven't received the actual photos, yet. Just the preview on the Photographer's blog.

So what do you think?

Update on Leland

Hi,

Thank you everyone for your prayers. Leland is home and is definitely learning to adjust to his new life. His mom has done an update on her blog with a ton of pics. So if you are interested in finding out a bit more than please check it out. http://sullivanfamily4.wordpress.com/


Abigail and I will be going for several days this week to hang out and hopefully help out a little. I told Carrie that I hope I can be of a help as I am still more tired than anything at home.

Crabby Abby & Grumpy Gertie

We had Abby's pictures taken the other day with Grumpy Gertie. I am shocked that I already have them framed. I just framed her newborn pics. We are going to hang them up probably in the bedroom over her changing table.

I don't know if you can tell by the picture but she was crying in this one. She has a tear on her chin and a little puddle on her chest. She looks so serious. The mother's group that I go to had a professional photographer come into her store yesterday and I had her pics taken then too. I want to look and see the difference.

What does Belguim Waffle Look Like?

Well....it looks like this. We have our living room and back room painted and all laid out. Now it is about readding items without making them look too cluttered. I am curious how that will happen with a 5 month old and 3 spoiled cats.

As you can see I have a totally clean slate to work with in my back room...which is my crafting area. I am thinking of changing out the linens on the bed and making it more of a cozy hangout couch than a bed. Plus, since I cannot add a lot of pictures to the walls...I am going to have to find anothe way to personalize without over personalizing.

By the way, if you know anyone looking to buy a home in Athens, Georgia...then please email me.

Abby is a celebrity...

Kinda of, sort of...

The owner of the parent support group that we go to had an article in the paper and Abby and I are in one of the pics. It is a great article and a wonderful place to visit.

Please check it out.....

Full Bloom Article

Abby Pics & Sewing

Hi,

We decided to take a picture of Abby in her new Exersaucer...we bought it off of craigslist. It was really nice not to pay full price. Abby is still a little small for it but she really enjoys it for about 10 minutes at a time.

Today, I decided to finally try to make some pillowcases. I had 2 pillows that Sheldon and I bought when we went to Italy 2 years ago. They were just travel pillows so we were going to toss them. So this is what I came up with....

I am pretty excited. They came out pretty good. Sheldon said they look pretty professional. I made them so that they can open and be washed.

TFL

Please include my nephew Leland in your prayers.

My 16 month old nephew, Leland was diagnosed with diabetes on Saturday. He was admitted to ICU after going to the ER. My nephew,Leland it is out of IC. He had been sick and not eating for the last few days

My sil said now that she knows the signs...he definitely was exhibiting them. If you have any kids in your life please keep an eye out. The most obvious signs I think for an infant.are: excessive urination....peeing through a diaper in less than half an hour. Increased thirst and loss of appetite...and being dehydrated besides all of that. Sudden loss of weight. He last 4 pounds. Flu like symptoms--irritability, throughing up, etc. Which of course is the hard part. If you think they have the flu...then you wouldn't suspect the diabetes.

I found out from my mommy's group that the doctor's don't do blood tests to check for this when kids come in. It would be a simple blood draw....so I am not sure why they don't. They only do it if there are symptoms or if it runs in the family.

So please keep Leland and his family in your prayers. Their names are Dave, Carrie & Caleb.

Thank you.

Spring Wedding

Sheldon, Abby & I were invited to our friend Adam's wedding. He and his bride, Whitney, met at UGA a few years ago. I had the opportunity to meet her once when the two of them just started dating. I asked him if it was serious...and I guess it was.
Since we were unsure of how Abby would actually handle a wedding we ended up going just to the reception. I am a bit disappointed that we weren't able to go to the actual ceremony. However, the reception was a lot of fun and Abby received a lot of attention....though she didn't steal the bride's attention. Whitney looked gorgeous in her dress.
We weren't quite sure where to go for the reception as the wedding was held at the Day Chapel which is at the Botanical Gardens. I figured it was in the Conservatory as that is were a lot of receptions are held at. So we went there first and ended up crashing another party. It was stressful at the time but I told Abby that it was pretty funny.

Oh by the way, Abby is a party animal. She was laughing and loved dancing...plus she loved the attention from all the guys.

Grumpy Gertie...

Need I say anything more....