Too fast

I love how much Sloane is changing but the milestones seem to be coming and going so quickly these days. While out to dinner tonight Sloane sat in the high chair for the first time at a restaurant. No more trying to figure out the safest way to place the carseat at the table or holding her on our lap. It made me smile but also made me sad...where did my baby go?





Now we have to remember to keep a wide circle on the table clear around her. The girl grabs for everything and she is fast. I'm also going to need to get the high chair cover in the car ASAP. The thought of the germs on those bad boys grosses me out. I know, first time mom.

Girls weekend

John was away this weekend for his annual guy's trip in the snow, so Sloane and I were looking forward to some gal time. Unfortunately, I found out Friday morning (when I finally went to the doctor) that I have a nasty sinus infection. Luckily, I got some antibiotics and finally feel like I am on the mend. It was the perfect excuse to have a snuggle in, mellow weekend.

On Friday night, Nicole came over to kick it. We were too busy chatting to take any photos so here's one of Nicole and Sloane Nicole from the archives.


On Saturday we slept in and snuggled in bed.


We spent some time bouncing, sitting, and rolling over.



We had a fun visit with Aimee and gorgeous Cash (another future boyfriend of Sloane's). He is seriously the smiliest baby I have ever met.


We made silly videos to send to daddy

We had a rough night on Saturday - Sloane decided to wake up and cry from 11 pm until 1 pm and nothing would soothe her (hence the dark circles under my eyes in the next photo). It's what I get for telling Aimee what a good sleeper Sloane is. When am I going to learn my lesson?

Snuggling with mama - please ignore my morning hair

We broke out the tutu and the owl hat for some photos








We had a wonderful weekend but are so glad to have John home!

Hallelujah!

Remember this?



Now it looks like this!



As Clark W. Griswold would say, “Hallelujah! Holy sh*t! Where’s the Tylenol?” We are so happy it is done and ready for a nice long nap. We still have a few finishes touches to complete (hence the blue tape around the tile waiting for caulking and grout), but we are all moved in and functional. 119 days without a kitchen. We took the whole room down to the studs, added and moved windows, knocked out a wall to open up the entry, replaced all of the plumbing in the house, built a pantry, and put in new cabinets, countertops, appliances, etc. Of course by “we” I mean John. I tried to be a good cheerleader but might have taken on an annoying project manager persona a time or two – it was not welcome. We got to know the delivery drivers from Snappy D, Pags, and our local Thai joint well. I have an abnormally friendly relationship with the lady at the QFC deli counter because when we got sick of takeout, sandwiches were one easy, reasonably healthy thing we could make at home that didn’t require any dishes. BTW – they have a Cajun turkey there that will rock your world.

I wish we would have taken more photos along the way, but the before and after show just how far we’ve come. HUGE thanks to all of our family and friends who helped out – working on the kitchen, having us over for dinner, providing babysitting services so we could work, etc. My mom brought us a home cooked meal once a week – heaven.

John – I am so impressed by and proud of you. Every time I look at the kitchen I want to make out with you. Thanks to you those nasty yellow and brown tiles are now only a distant memory. I know just how hard you worked. I know how many evenings and weekends were devoted to this project instead of hanging out with Sloane and me. More than just doing the work, thank you for so gently guiding me through this process. You knew when I needed you to give me a hug and agree that going without a kitchen sucked, and you knew when to tell me I needed to buck up because, compared to how most of the rest of the world lives, having to clean the baby’s bottles in the bathroom sink wasn’t really all that bad. You are so incredibly talented. And I’m so glad that this is over. Now relax, crack a beer, and put your feet up...I promise to give you a few weeks off before I start talking about tackling the bathroom. :)

Let the dinner parties begin!

Parenting is scary

Dear Sloane,

You terrify me. Honestly, you scare the crap out me. Every time I look at you or think of you, an overwhelming wave of love rushes over me. When I was pregnant with you my mom told me that she never new how much her parents loved her until she had kids of her own. It's true. I never knew how much my parents loved me/worried about me/obsessed over my every action or decision until I met you. It’s the most indescribable kind of love. For better or worse, that wave of love is followed by an equally strong sense of total terror. Your dad has long joked that I would be tempted to send you walking into the world in a bike helmet. And as much as I hate to admit it, it’s true. I want to wrap you in bubble wrap and strap a pink helmet on your head until you reach age 13 (or 23). I want to protect you from all of the normal harm that will come your way. I know it’s coming, it’s inevitable. You will scrape your knees, get bruises, and knock your noggin hard enough for a goose egg to swell. You’ll break a bone, probably injure yourself on our stone fireplace, get knocked over by Cooper in her clumsy attempt to show you just how much she loves you. You will run too fast and trip, you’ll get scratched by another kid at daycare, and get pushed around by your future siblings. But that’s part of life. So I’ll try to resist picking up that pink bike helmet at Target until it’s time to test out your new training wheels.

It’s the other stuff that terrifies me most. Give me too much time to think and I realize that someday I will have to put you in time out, someday you will tell me you hate me, someday you will get your heart broken, someday you’ll tell me that when you have kids you’ll parent differently. Someday you will fall in love…which reminds me that someday we’ll have to have the talk about the birds and bees. Someday you’ll get to choose your friends. I hope you’ll choose wisely. Hopefully your dad and I will be able to keep you safe while teaching you to be bold and try new things. You’ll make some bad decisions, it's part of life. Hopefully those bad decisions don’t result in an unplanned pregnancy or a stint in rehab. See, I get ahead of myself too easily.

So I’ll try to focus on the now’s…the smiles that come so easy, the snuggles, the fact that you think a funny face, a goofy dance, or my off-key rendition of Yankee Doodle is just about the funniest thing around. And, maybe, I’ll keep my eye out for a pink bike helmet.

Cousins

One of the best reasons (there are so many) of living near our families is that Sloane will get to grow up with her cousins. I love it. Currently, she has 8 (soon to be 9) cousins that all live within a few miles of us.

Last weekend, while I had a work event and John was working on the kitchen, Sloane got to spend the afternoon with Mayson and Max. Nikka did a fun photo shoot with the kiddos.











Finally! This is the only photo (of many) where everyone managed to keep their hands to themselves and look toward camera (sort of).

Happy New Year

I wish I had some fun New Year's photos to share of us celebrating the start of 2011 with friends, of John and I kissing and wearing funny hats. But I had a cough that shook the rafters so we rung in the new year at home, on the couch. I was ready to head to bed at about 9:30, but couldn't bear the thought of leaving John alone to watch the countdown. So I bucked up. At midnight I kissed my hubby, took two sips of the champagne he had popped, and hit the hay. Happy New Year?!

2010 was such an incredible year for us...I can only imagine what 2011 will bring!

Welcome Miles

We are so excited that Sloane's future boyfriend is here! Dave and Colleen welcomed Miles Daly Knight on December 15. Unfortunately, that was right around the time that Sloane brought the plague into our house. Once John recovered, he hightailed it over to the DalyKnight household to meet the little guy. He is beautiful and it is killing me that I haven't gotten to snuggle him yet. Go away cold!

Congratulations Dave and Colleen and welcome Miles!





Papa Dave shows off his swaddling skills


Already a pro!