SuperBowl Sunday!

We are dressed and ready to cheer on our Colts (okay, so Becca's ready to go; I'm still working on it--those pictures will be in a different post).I took Becca to Chesterton High School last week to go swimming. At first she didn't know what to think. She was super clingy and then kept looking at me with a look that said "What the heck is going on? Am I okay?" but then she warmed up to it a bit (especially when I started to blow bubbles!). We didn't stay in too long though because the pool was a bit chilly.

Also, Becca officially turned 8 months old...time goes so fast! She's laughing more, and I was able to capture it in this next photo. Please notice the "wings" in her hair--it's a tribute to my brother Scott (though his were called "horns")

Here are some videos:

This was last night at El Salto

This was actually at Great-Gramma's place on October 24th. Becca was 4 1/2 months old and very bald. It was the first time she really gave a hearty laugh. Thank goodness for the iPhone video camera!

Eating more foods!

Becca's been eating more solids. She does not like to eat from a Mom or Dad-guided spoon, but prefers to be the leader (ahh, budding independence). I've been making an effort to prepare foods that can be cut up into bit size pieces and it's been going well. We've tried lots of new things. Still no big favorites--Becca's not a foodie, yet--eating is not a sought out activity. She's good about trying everything and will always try it more than once. Only a couple of times have I gotten a "good" reaction (and by "good" I mean, funny); I managed to catch this one on video, enjoy!

p.s. I just learned how to load videos so I think I'll post a couple old ones that are fun to watch!

Keep on Truckin

Well, life keeps moving and Becca and I are cruising right along. We're trying to find our groove during the days. I went to a Mothers & More meeting locally last week--it's a local mom's group. It was so nice to get out and meet some new people. Becca had four shots on Monday (2 flu boosters and 2 vaccines) and did good that day. She started with a fever that evening and it finally broke yesterday or today; it didn't seem to bug her much. She is cutting her top two middle teeth and they were actually bleeding a few hours ago. Needless to say, she has been enjoying her sweet Tylenol treat most nights. She's been pulling up like crazy and continues to be super duper cute....

The Snow Belt Comes Alive!!!

The snow is in!! We have moved to the snow belt and have been getting lots of snow. We are currently undergoing a nice "dusting"--10-14 inches by tomorrow!!! Becca and I love it (as we don't have anywhere to go or any place to be), Chris, on the otherhand, is not quite as excited for his daily commute. He took the train today avoiding the 3-4 hour commute times. Here's the manly man working his new Christmas toy. (The picture is from Sunday so imagine another 10 inches of snow!)

We also had a visit from friends! Bun, Carly and Shayla stopped by on their way home to Chicago. They are planning to spend a night with us in a couple weeks, but had their first preview on Sunday. Shayla is an amazingly active and energetic girl who won't sit still and hasn't for a couple months at this point. She is 2 weeks older than Becca and has about as much hair as me!

Christmas Time

Becca had her first Christmas (x2). She was super excited about all the wrapping paper to put in her mouth, oh and she got some new toys too. The family loved to see Miss Becca (aka Ms. Claus, see pics below) and being together is always such a treat. We went to Michigan first and then headed to Franklin.


While we were gone, Chesterton got some great snow (about 4 inches) and it looks beautiful. Chris was out last night using our new snow blower with the headlight! What a manly man! We're home again and it's like we have a new kiddo because Becca is crawling everywhere...watch out!! Here are some pictures of the last few days...enjoy...

Back Home Again, in Indiana....

Hello to all from our new home in Chesterton, Indiana. We closed and moved on November 23rd. We are slowly getting settled. We also got a new car: a Ford Escape. What else...Chris is commuting for the first time in his life; it's 60-75 minutes regardless and he's tolerating it well thus far. Also, some of our biggest news, Chris is now a coffee drinker!!! Welcome to the club :) it's about time :) And....drum roll please...Becca is crawling! She is not yet crawling all over like a maniac, but when appropriately motivated can crawl 4+ feet. We can't believe it. She's cuter than ever and seems to be liking her new home. Both my parents and Chris' parents have been extremely generous with their time, sweat and money helping us out getting set up: painting, cleaning, de-wall papering, organizing, lighting, programming, etc. We would be light years behind where we are without their help (we love you). I have some before pictures of the house I will post, but realized I don't really have any after pics yet, so those will be coming. Also, as usual, pictures of Becca. I will be back blogging on Mondays, so stay tuned!

front room/den
formal dining room (yikes!)

front hall

kitchen
eat-in kitchen

Nursery

Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom

A Busy Month of November

I'm behind, I know!

Becca is now 5 1/2 months, so I've included some of her 5 month pictures. She's getting so big and strong; we're so proud!

November is a very social month for us. Sheri, Paul and Aaron were in for the first weekend and got to meet Miss Becca for the first time. It was fabulous. We're are so bummed that we don't live closer to each other. Sheri and Paul are magnificent parents and I feel lucky to have such good parenting resources!! Aaron is so precious and does not stop moving (ahh, the things to look forward to). We spent part of Saturday at a park and it was wonderful. Indian summer was in full swing (no pun intended).

Ashley was in for the second weekend in November to meet our little one (and to visit us). It was so great to catch up. I'm so excited for her; she is in such a good place with a wonderful man at her side and a beautiful home!!

The rest of our calendar of events includes going to the Joneses tonight, heading to Chris' Grandmother's Thanksgiving tomorrow, loading a moving truck on Sunday, closing on our house and unloading the moving truck on Monday, painting, cleaning and then off to Michigan on Thursday for Thanksgiving at the Monaghans' with guest appearances by the Joneses and the Fells! So, needless to say, I've been a bit busy and am breaking the rules by blogging right now--but, I just couldn't pack up the computer without a final update. We're not sure when we'll get the internet up and running, but be assured that when we do, the Jones family will be in our new home!!!!