It's a Girl!

This delivery was by far the easiest. Maybe because I knew what to expect this time around. Rylie was born on Monday, November 23, 2009 at 3:58a.m. She weighed 5lb 11oz and was 19in long. She came out really awake and alert. Heck! Look at those eye on this photo (she is 2 days old). She is a champion nurser, but that could be because I've done it before. We were discharged from the hospital after she was 24 hours old and I took her in to see the pediatrician the following day, because it was going to be a long weekend (due to Thanksgiving being in a few days) and wanted to establish her with the practice. The pediatrician was concerned about her weight lost as a result of the breastfeeding and suggested that I supplement her with formula. Nevermind the fact that she should know that it takes a few days for your milk to come in and the baby is being fed collostrum until it finally matures. I wasn't going to use the formula , but I did supplement her with additional breastmilk that she didn't manage to get from the breast (this was Jerry's idea) . So, imagine my surprise when we go in for a weigh in and she has gained 8oz over 2 days. That's 1/2 of a pound and simply amazing! I was glad that I didn't listen to the doctor and trusted my gut.

My Big 6th Grader

Dropping her off at the Middle School reminded me of taking her to Kindergarten. I was weepy both times. Both times she said, "Good Bye" and ran along without me. I look at her sometimes and literally wonder where does time go. How can she already be 11 years old and not 2. Makes me want to shut her in the freezer to just slow down the time. Especially since we are on the cusps of the "Dreaded Teenage Years".

Ariel says that she is stuck in the house with Adults and Babies. I thought about that for a long time. And you know what? I agree. So I decided that I would just have to make more time for her and I to hang out or make myself available for her to just hang out more with friends.

On this day, however it was just her and I making a run for ice cream. My camera came along too- he he!

So quiet and thoughtful. She reads alot. She can finish a chapter book in about a week. This is in addition to homework. I never have to tell her to take time to read. Also reflective and conscientious. She's not really a risk taker, she likes to know all her options before ever making a decision. It reminds me of when she started to walk. She would always stand but no amount of coaching would make her walk across the floor without something to hold on to. She comes back and apologizes for acting out. I can hardly believe this, because I certainly wasn't doing that at this age.

Most of the time, she is a really good big sister. She looks out for Cailin- making sure she is safe. However her patience is really short when it comes to Cailin and her room. She rarely allows her into her personal space.

She LOVES chocolate! This is the smile I got when confirming that it was ok to have chocolate ice cream. This child ate at least 40 chocolate bars in two days. She wiped out all the Halloween candy in the house.

She has recently decided that my skills for picking out clothes were inadequate. Over night she has decided that I don't know how to dress her and she can do a much better job.

Which leads us to these shoes. I cringed while her face just lit up over these shoes. I am giving her the space to choose what she wears. My only stipulation is that it is neat and age appropriate.

Love you sweet sweet Ariel!

Halloween 2009

I love Halloween and always start months ahead brainstorming different ideas. Initially, when I was thinking of Ariel's costume, I was thinking Hippie. However it started to morph, while I was shopping around for accessories. I almost brought her a pair of clogs, but didn't think that really meshed with walking around all night Trick-or-treating. As we were leaving, we stopped by my neighbor's house and he said, "Angela Davis"! And I thought, "Bingo" she is dressed like the 1960-70's!

Cailin got to be Minnie Mouse this year. She always give me this smile. It always makes me laugh, so she keeps doing it. She will say, "Momma look at me!" and I turn around and I am greeted with this face. Jerry says she looks mischievous. No farther comment from me!

Notice anything different in the last two photos? She broke my DIY bow and insisted on taking the leggings off. The story of my two year old!

Ariel got a lot of compliments on her costume. This child was a witch like 565 times in a row, until I started making suggestions for different costumes last year.

Doesn't it make you want to sing, "Fight the Power" by Public Enemy?

Cailin was so upset in this photo. She is in the "Can't catch me Phase"- meaning she will just take off running and you running after her only makes her run faster. I have tried everything to get her to stop doing this, but she just thinks it's all a game. On this day she was running straight towards a 4-lane street. She got a few seconds lead on me and with my 8 month belly- well sometimes she is the winner of the race. I send Ariel instead chasing after her and I am yelling at the top of my lungs for her to stop. I'm sure we thoroughly terrorized her in the process, but when I think of the alternative.....

Anyway big sister made her feel better.

In the interest of keeping all things fair around here, Jerry painted belly baby for me!