Social Butterfly

Jill was quite the social butterfly this weekend! She visited with Mark and Ali Friday night; Aunt Jess and Uncle Scott, Granna and Ethan on Saturday (I had to ration Jill time Saturday night between Ethan and Jess); and Laurel and Matt and Granna on Sunday. She loves all the attention and definitely puts on a show for the camera now!

Jill experienced the Silver City Galleria on Saturday. My Mom and I took her to the mall in her stroller. She was taking it all in and even had a bottle at Bertucci's while we had a late lunch. She was a very good girl!

Teething has begun. Jill has been fighting naps more often than not and put up a stink before bed last night. She was still asleep around 8 and slept through the night but I have a feeling that may change shortly. She passed out tonight but maybe that means she'll be up around midnight ... we'll see! Poor kid. Can't be fun cutting teeth!

I Love Exercise

This is how Mom and Dad have me burn all my energy!!

A Day to Catch Up

A day to myself? I'll take it. I haven't had one in more than 6 months, probably closer to 8 or 9 months. I woke up this morning with a sore throat and stomach pains that prompted me to lay down halfway through getting Jill dressed for "school." I have a bunch of sick time that I never end up using so I should stay home, right? So I helped Tony and Jill get out of the door and I went back to bed, for 2.5 hours! That was the #1 best thing that I did for myself today. The other fantastic things that I had time to do today included:

* sorting through a ridiculous pile of mail and separating the straight recycles from the shredables

* putting away Jill's growing wardrobe

* flossing and taking my time doing it

* polishing my wedding rings

* updating my blog with the help of Sara's site (see Family of Five under Our Buddies)

* taking a hot bath and shaving my legs without rushing

* vegging on the couch with a cup of tea (love tea with a sore throat)

Feeling guilty for sending Jill to day care? A little bit, I'll admit. But that extra sleep did a world of wonder for me. I feel like a different person! Today showed me the importance of taking care of myself and how it helps you take better care of others. Of course you've heard that plenty of times but it really is true. Take a load off!!

A Special First Mother's Day

A month late, but a Mother's Day recap:

I'd like to say I slept in and lounged in bed half the day, but that wasn't the case. Tony actually took Jill and let me sleep until 8 (that's late!) on Saturday though, which was very nice ... So my first Mother's Day as a Mom was very special. The three of us drove to Melrose in the cold and windy weather (oh New England) so that I could run in a road race with some friends from work. It was 3.5 miles and I finished with a better time than I had hoped! My running buddy's husband said we ran about 9.34 min miles. Not too shabby; I'm just happy I made it through the finish line running!

We did a family run to Hannaford's, always fun with Jill in the carrier. It was her first time in the carrier facing forward. She loved it! She didn't want anything to do with us though. She was too busy looking around at everyone else, taking in all the sounds, colors and smells of the grocery store. Must be sensory overload! Jill also tried rice cereal for the first time this weekend. She was skeptical at first but seemed to like it. I think she liked making a mess more. She also chose this weekend to finally roll over for us. She rolled for my Mom weeks earlier but we hadn't witnessed it yet. Well on Mother's Day, Jill rolled over and wouldn't stop! What a showoff - ha!

Jill also got to visit her Aunt Jess and Uncle Scott and to play with Cadence, Hesper and Tim onh Saturday. I think Jill gets a kick out of watching Cadence eat bananas and try to walk. What a grown up, she must think. It's amazing to see the difference in Cadence's development compared to Jill's. It's just a few months away and Jill will be walking and eating human food like Cadence!

Tony made a special Mother's Day dinner for me and my Mom - lobster! It was delish!!

We made a photo book for a belated gift for my Mom. She brought it to work to show off and she looks at it all the time. Here's the link:

http://www2.snapfish.com/snapfish/projectshareewelcome/l=9312324007/p=815101276191883887/g=35381315/cobrandOid=1000/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/otsc=SYE/otsi=SPBKlink/

Beachin' It!

I'm hoping to somehow win the lottery that I don't play so that I can stay home more often. I'd like to work part-time and have more days like today! We had a great time!

Happy Half-Birthday to Jill

Six months ago today I sat on a blue tarp in my living room watching the Patriots (lose). I did most of the labor at home, yelled my way to the hospital and had a baby in a span of less than 12 hours from start to finish. It was a wild and crazy day to say the least, but it was a memorable day. It was the day that Jill came into our lives.

Much has changed in the last 6 months. Jill has grown a ton and has developed a bit of a diva personality. She is a becoming more of a social butterfly every day. She is a happy baby, a "joy to have" in class at day care, according to her progress report. No, I'm not lying. She came home this week with her first progress report. Reminds me of the days of elementary school and the notes home about how I couldn't seem to keep to myself. I'm getting the feeling Jill will be very similar. A chatterbox for sure. She started making new noises this week. She yells. She squeals. She screeches. I could do without the yelling but the other noises are hysterical. She looks surprised every time she makes them too. She puts on a show!

We were out and about this weekend, as usual. Jill got to play with her Auntie Jess on Saturday for a chunk of the day. Sunday we went to Hannaford's, Babies R Us, Sports Authority and Home Depot (not all in one trip). She loves facing outward in her carrier. Totally forgets about Mom and wants to socialize with everyone else.

Today in the Hannaford's parking lot, an older woman was parked near us with a clear view of the truck. She must've been watching us as we talked and got Jill ready for the carrier. She stopped as she walked past the truck to tell us we were the cutest couple she'd ever seen. How nice, I thought. I guess we are very sweet to each other. We're gentle and thoughtful. It was nice to hear a stranger's observations.