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!!!!

Baby's First Halloween

We celebrated Halloween with Becca and it went well. She was, of course, the cutest thing out there...well, we didn't actually trick or treat, but we handed out candy to all the children in the neighborhood as they came around. Becca was a little overwhelmed at times, but did great! Here are some pictures, and I have to apologize for the fuzziness--Becca does not stop moving and we're still trying to figure out how to set the camera to capture her in a split second!

Scared to Death, check, Pediatric ER, check

Chris and I were able to check a few things off our parent list Monday night: scared to death and going to the emergency room at Children's Memorial Hospital. Nothing like checking things off a list to make you feel like you've been productive! So here's a shortened version of the story (okay maybe not so shortened)...Monday night we put Becca down at 8:40p, she was a bit disagreeable, but sometimes she is. At 9:40p the monitor went on and we heard her moving a bit. She made a sound like she was clearing her throat and it was a bit weird, so Chris and I went up to check on her--Thank God!!! Chris went in and found her with her face soaked in vomit. It was on her face, sleeper and all over the sheet. We quickly swooped her up and began cleaning up her face with a warm wash cloth. It scared me so much in light of the recent tragedy of my friend and I was so glad that Becca was on her tummy. As we were cleaning her up, she started to throw up again. I've never seen a small baby throwing up and it was scary. Her whole body shuttered and up can more of her stomach contents and a bunch of mucus. We began to clean her again and changed her sleeper. I was holding her and she started to vomit again; I could feel it come up from the bottom of her stomach. There was no milk left in her tummy, just mucus. After this vomitting, he eyes started to droop and her body was more limp. I just about had a panic attack as my heart pounded, and I was the most frightened I'd ever been. Chris was right there, we threw on the radio and talked loudly to Becca. She stayed awake and I had Chris call the pediatrician. Becca vomitted again and the doctor called us back. She said to go to the ER because Becca had thrown up so much in such a short time, it had been about 20 minutes. We hurriedly got her into the car and off we went. The ER at Children's was PACKED!!! Chris dropped us off and parked the car. We stood in line to check in with the nurse and the little boy in front of us, who was crying, starting throwing up pink/orange chunks (hey, it's just words, at least you didn't smell it!). I was thinking to myself, what am I doing?! Becca is being exposed to more germs right this minute than she has been her whole life...but, I was too rattled to leave. Becca's color was still not back. She was so pale and she was very lethargic (granted she just puked her guts out and my abs were killing just from watching her) but I wanted to make sure nothing underlying was going on. We were sent down around the corner to the Urgent Care area and were seen 2 hours later. Becca had nursed briefly and kept it down, took a 45 minute nap (which Chris assured me she needed--I was a bit frightened to let her sleep) plus her color was back and she started smiling again. When the doctor came in to see us, Becca was all smiles and was curiously looking all over the exam room. Everything checked out okay and she had not vomitted since we left home, so we were sent away with a thumbs up and told to keep our eyes on her. Chris and I slept on the floor in the nursery when we got home, of course, and all was well...She's fine, aside from a little drippy nose and some congestion that's clearing up well...Mom and Dad are slowly recovering: Chris insisted on sleeping by himself on the nursery floor Tuesday night, and I have 6(!) canker sores...

Here we are leaving the exam room after getting the thumbs up (notice how one of them looks a little better than the other) :)

Back to it!

It's Monday again, and here I am!



We have had a busy and exciting last few weeks (minus the previously blogged about tragedy). Chris and I have bought a beautiful big house in northwest Indiana--Chesterton, to be specific. It's wonderful! It's on a full acre with a garden and apple tree, red brick facade, 3 1/2 car garage, full unfinished basement, 4 bedroom, 2 1/2 bathrooms...2600 sq ft NOT including the 1500 sq ft of basement!!!! We should be moving in around the beginning of December and will need visitors to help us fill the big ol' house! (Go ahead a bring your own bedroom set please.) We won't be filling the house before January, but we have started to put together our 10 year plan. Chris will have an hour commute, which is a bummer, but a reality when moving out of the city of Chicago whether it be to a western, northern, southern, or northwest Indiana suburb. I did the hour-ish commute for the last 3 years and though not pleasant, is definately survive-able. Chesterton has great schools and we hope to be able to stay for 20+ years! :) Someone is definitely looking out for us because yesterday we secured renters to take over the lease of our townhouse!!! We are so lucky...


Becca continues to grow and shine! Our crush on that little girl gets bigger every day! She's pushing onto extended arms while on her tummy, grabbing her toes when on her back, and belly laughed for the first time on Friday night!



We visited the Joneses 2 weeks ago and had a great family getaway. Becca warmed up to Mamaw, Papaw and Aunt Sarah well (after the Mamaw scare of Friday night, that is) :)

We took our first lone girls trip to see the Monaghans this last weekend. Becca and I rode the Amtrak train without trouble. We loved seeing Gramma and Granddad plus Great Gramma, Great Aunt Joanne and Cousin Katie. Becca was certainly the star (speaking of which, all those planning to see and spend time with our daughter, please brush up on your Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star singing because as of now it's a magical tune that calms an upset Becca).

Halloween is coming up and we are getting our camera ready. The Jones Family will have its very own ladybug come Saturday so be on the look out for pictures but until those, here are a few new snap shots of our beauty...

Tragedy

Sorry I've been a bit MIA. Two weeks ago tonight, my girlfriend lost her 6 month old daughter, Gabriella. The story is unbelievably tragic and Gabi leaves behind her mother, father, 2 year old sister and fraternal twin. It all hits too close to home. There are no answers from the autopsy leaving SIDS as the unsettling and unfullfilling explanation (not that any explanation would be "fulfilling"). The memorial service was as nice as it could've been given the unthinkable situation and there was not a dry eye in the house. I sobbed for days, as did Chris, and our hearts and prayers go out to the family. Let this be a reminder to all of us to be thankful for what we have as it could be taken without notice or warning in an instant. We are so blessed and lucky for all we have...Rest in peace Gabi....

Apple picking and the pumpkin patch (well actually just the pumpkin lot)

We had an excuse this year to go to the apple orchard, now that we have a child; well, I guess we did, she didn't exactly pick any apples or run through the corn maze... It was excuse enough for me (not that I need one, since Chris and I have gone the past 2 years). We had an unbelievably beautiful day for it. Here are a few pictures. There were great sunflowers planted too!



In our efforts to ease into night time, we've been taking daily baths and Becca loves it (usually). She's a ham about it. She loves to suck on a wash cloth and kick her legs up. My favorite part is when she gets wrapped up in her towel after the bath and then peeks out...

Not too much going on...

Well, no news is good news! Nothing too exciting is going on. I worked again on Saturday and Becca actually took 2 ounces by bottle from Chris. Aside from that she ate before I left at 7:15am and when I got home around 3:30pm; she wasn't upset about it either, so all were happy!

We've gone to another playdate and talked with more moms and tots, so that's good. Got together last night with all the old Weiss girls and their kiddos. It was so great to see everyone and amazing to see how much the kids have grown!

Here are a couple new pictures...

This is what she does when Chris or I come in after her nap and say hello!

Becca is ready for the playoffs...Go Cards!

Such a big help in the kitchen

Becca's first visit to Taco Bell....she likes it!

Oh yea, Becca continues to lose hair! We don't know yet what color is coming in next!