We had a great weekend meeting my new nephew.  We decided to leave Friday night, as Brian says that I don't "handle it well" when Charlotte gets crabby in the car during a daytime drive.  So, sippy in hand and good book in her lap, Charlotte was happy and so was I.

Saturday morning we were itching for little Solomon to wake up.  Brian entertained Amos and Charlotte with a little story time.  Amos loved Brian - he would always look for him when he left the room.  And boy is he smart!  He just turned 2, but can say the alphabet, count to 15 and speaks in 4-5 word sentences.

Finally little Solomon decided to join the party.  Like any newborn, he was very well behaved.  He quietly let us cuddle him and only gave a peep during a diaper change.  Chris kept him well-fed, and that was probably most of the reason for his contentment.  With her second child she definitely seems more relaxed. She's getting so good at this, maybe she can talk Ben into a third :)

The kids enjoyed a little outdoor play in between rain showers.  We also had a little cake/candle celebration for Amos' birthday.  We had to let him blow it out three times.

I always wish they lived closer because we have such a nice time getting together and the kids grow so fast.   Thanks for the hospitality Chris!

Tulip Time

Tulips are in full bloom in Holland.  Tulip Festival runs May 1-8th, so their arrival is a bit premature.  We can thank our wonderfully warm Spring weather for that.  So, get to Holland while the getting is good.
Last fall I planted an assortment of tulips along our pathway.  It was such a pleasant surprise to see each different color pop up.  Charlotte loves to punch them and walk over them, but those buggers are resilient.

Stay posted for some family Dutch costume pics as soon as we get the chance to head downtown and make fools of ourselves.

Baby on Board!

For those who haven't seen me lately, I'm looking a little different these days.  And no, it isn't because I ate 5 cupcakes in one day!  Baby Burch #2 is on its way, expected arrival November 2nd.  But, with my history, could be more like Thanksgiving (haha).

I feel great, albeit tired.  We had our 12 week check up this morning with all good news.  The heart rate was moving right along at 160 bpm.
Charlotte will be 22 months when the baby is born.  She is so gentle with babies and puppies, I can't wait to see what a great big sister she will be.  Brian and I are putting it out there that we completely believe this is a boy.  So much so that Brian always forgets and tells Charlotte about her "little brother."  We won't really know the sex of the baby until the ultrasound in 2 months.
Another exciting factor is that I share this pregnancy with so many friends and family!  Brian's cousin's wife Ally, my cousins Lacey and Matt's wife Majda, friends Montelle Curtis, Jessie Hessler, Angie Derby, Julie Hoving, Katie Yates and two neighbors on my block.  At least four of these gals are due within the same week as us, Ally is due the same day.  (There is another Junior League friend who I'm not naming because I don't think she's "gone public" yet.)  This baby will have all of the playmates it ever needs!
Please keep us in your prayers that the pregnancy continues to go this well.  We can't wait for another blessing to join our family.

Some birthdays are meant for big parties and spoils, but the in-between years are some of the birthdays I like the best.  They are simple and you don't have to feel fussed over.  They are the years when you have enough time to sit back, relax, and reflect on all of the goodness that surrounds you.  I loved my birthday today.
I woke up to my 1 year old at 7 am crying for a snuggle and the smell of homemade french toast.  Charlotte and I got to enjoy listening to Brian sing at church today.  Brian and I made our very first batch of homemade ice cream together.  I already got to lick the "beater" after I turned off the machine and know that this is going to be the best ice cream I've ever had.  (I'm sure I'll say that for every batch.)  Since the sun graced us with warmth, we took Charlotte and Maggie to a local trail for a nice long walk.  Now, with a belly stuffed with Brian's roasted turkey, I get to sit back and blog while listening to Charlotte giggle with her daddy in the next room.

I know it all sounds rather mushy, but I'm feeling a bit sentimental today.  I'm a lucky girl to be blessed with so much at 31.

Riley Trails

Big Smile!

Check out my stick!

Love this girl so much!

Here is my favorite video of the week - Charlotte playing with a musical card.   Stay til the end to see her signature dance moves.

14 Months

I've come to think of this blog as Charlotte's most detailed baby book.  So please excuse my developmental posts, but I think Charlotte will love to read these back some day.

My princess is 14 months old now and is living up to her nickname.  She is particular and knows what she likes.  At about 5:30 am each morning she bolts away for her bottle and then snuggles off to sleep for another hour or two.  She has gotten so good at soothing herself to sleep now.  I can give her a snuggle and then lie her down for a nap or bed and find her shortly off to sleep.  Of course, she insists on sneaking through as many books as possible before bedtime.  She loves the peek-a-book books and Little Einstein.
Her favorite words are still "ball" and "baby."  She insists on seeing the baby on the side of her Yo-Baby container while she enjoys her yogurt.  Her new tricks are saying "woof woof" and "moo". She's also doing sign language for "all done."  She loves doing finger play for "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and plays along with "Head and Shoulders."
She is such a great walker, much to my dismay, because she moves so fast! It took some getting used to letting her walk on the pavement.  I hovered over her and held onto her hood because she wouldn't let me hold her hand.  Now she likes to run down the driveway to the road.  Stopping her turns into a major tantrum, but she's learning.
She is so friendly.  She waves "hi" and "bye" to all. She cries when we leave daycare.  I know that she has so much fun there and even moreso now that she is in the toddler room doing so many activities.
Food, of course, is still a struggle.  But tofu is working nicely as an additive to anything and everything, so I feel better about her protein intake.  This weekend she discovered Ritz crackers and fruit snacks.  She loves to exclaim "mama" as she asks for more.
Lastly, speaking of "more" - watch her sign "more" for tickling.  What a smartie.

My Picky Eater

For those out there who have ever thought a baby or child with a picky appetite is that way because of their parents, you better stop right there! Charlotte is one of the pickiest eaters and I swear I have done nothing wrong!! It absolutely drives me crazy as I try to give her a balanced diet, yet she eats only a small list of foods, and sometimes will even refuse these.  I pull my hair out at meals while trying to keep a calm and pleasant demeanor for her sake. Foods she likes: waffles, mac n' cheese, grilled cheese, cheesy rice, Cream of Wheat, boxed cereal, applesauce, canned carrots, yogurt, and almost any Gerber snack (yogurt melts, puffs, wheels, crunchies). She'll occasionally eat string cheese and oranges. I've tried so many other things, and a lot of kid classics.  Epic failure.  Without even giving most foods a chance, she will tighten her lips, arch her back, fling back her head and push the food away with both hands. What a pistol!
I worry most about her protein intake. This is such an important nutrient for her development.  For fear of lack of nutrition, she gets toddler formula when she wakes up and again before bed.  I try to mixed canned chicken into a few of her foods and I have been meaning to try tofu. Peanut butter has not gone over well.

Are there any mothers out there who have had picky eaters and can give me some advice? (Mom - I know Meagan wasn't always a good eater.) I'm looking for advice on how to disguise foods or hide nutritious things in other foods. Please help me feed this baby and regain my sanity!

Food, Inc.

We rented Food, Inc. last night. This is a very thoughtful documentary that reminded Brian and I why free range poultry and grass fed beef are really worth their extra expense. A mother spoke of losing her 2 year old son to e.coli from hamburger. The recall on the hamburger wasn't announced until two weeks after her son died. Of course, Charlotte doesn't eat much more than mac n' cheese and cereal these days, but someday she'll love being an omnivore just as much as her parents.
Portions of the documentary picture how the cattle and chickens are contained in tight and dirty living quarters. I really didn't feel so bad for the chickens. I guess I feel their brains are so small and they are only alive for about 30 days. Is that bad? I felt worse for the chicken farmers who take on about $500,000 in debt to own these large chicken houses and follow the standards of companies like Tyson and Purdue...but they only make $18,000 on average/year. The farmers have so many health hazards from being around these antibiotic fed chickens that they tend to become allergic to most antibiotics themselves. They also spoke about how the meat packing companies ship in immigrant farmers, mistreat them, and then allow them to get arrested with no defense.
Brian and I have already looked into the pricing for organic and high quality beef, chicken and pork. In a quick internet search, we found several local farms Liberty Family Farm, Pelican Ranch and Crestwood Farms. They have beef for as little as $3/pound. I'm going to make some freezer space and make a trip out as soon as we can. I'm ready to speak out as a consumer by putting my money into something I can support.

I am now initiated into Holland

Today was the annual sale of Dutch costumes put on by the Holland Newcomer's Association.  There are a variety of new and used costumes to pick from.  I arrived at 5 pm on the dot, but was shocked to see a line around the building!  It was like a true initiation ceremony to have to wait in that line for an hour and then rush in and clamor for the last costume in your size.  Fortunately, I've done enough Black Friday shopping to know my way around a sale crowd.

I chose the Volendam style because this is what Charlotte has.  Charlotte was laughing hysterically when I put it on and tried to steal my hat.  Brian has one too...not a dress.  Now who doesn't want to move to Holland when you see this cuteness?

And when Charlotte outgrows her current costume, I would love to see her in the adorable Isle of Marken costume seen here.

Yesterday we took advantage of the sun and went to visit the butterflies at Frederik Meijer Gardens. We met up with Carl, Jessie and their adorable son, Aaron. He is so great with babies and spent a lot of time chasing Charlotte around for me.


We couldn't help but dress Charlotte up in this butterfly costume in the children's garden. I think she was a butterfly in a prior life.

Here is Aaron spotting a few butterflies drinking their nectar. We were excited to find a lot of blue morphos. Usually they are few and far between, but they really steal the show.




For being so young, I really think Charlotte understood what was going on. She watched the butterflies fly around and reached towards them on the flowers.




I highly recommend anyone with kids make it to FMG for the butterflies this spring.

Hawaii!

Our Hawaii trip was quite the whirlwind tour. We left by 6 am on Thursday morning and arrived to our hotel around 7:30 pm. We spent all 5 nights on the big island in Kona. Despite my knitting projects, books and movies on my iTouch, the long flight was very trying. The hillbilly family eating beef jerky in the next row didn't help matters much. BUT, I did get to fly on a jet with two aisles, that was a first for me.
We stayed in a private bungalow at our B&B, Honu Kai. The entire place was beautiful. We got to eat a delicious breakfast on the lanai each morning and learn from the other travelers. Geckos feasted on jam along the porch rail and birds flocked for seed on the feeder. The owners, Wendi and Dave, went out of their way to make us comfortable and provide us with supplies each day. She even loaned me her socks and tennis shoes for hiking and horsebacking riding. I couldn't believe my big ole' feet fit in the tennis shoes of a former Dallas Cowboy cheerleader. The B&B was the best part of our trip.
We joined up with Dave and Julie the next day for horseback riding in Waipio Valley. The drive down into the valley was almost life threatening, but the views from the bottom were some of the prettiest I have ever seen. Our horses all treated us well. It was Julie's first time on a horse. I think she was pleasantly surprised.
The next day was "Tsunami Saturday." David and Julie were evacuated from their beach front hotel, so we decided to stay on high ground for the day and explore the National Park at the volcano. We found some great hikes along the steam vents with beautiful views of the caldera. There was even a winery at the top of the volcano. We stayed until night to see the lava glow from a far. I've seen tour books where they could walk right up to the lava. Unfortunately, we're at the mercy of nature. We were lucky to see the lava at all.
I haven't said much about the tsunami because there isn't much to say. As you know, it failed to happen, which was a blessing for the Hawaiians. We watched it from a hilltop and basically noticed the bay grow more shallow and then fill back up again. Brian did take advantage of the media blitz, though, and managed to score a live interview on Fox News.
The rest of the trip was spent snorkeling, exploring beaches, and eating lots of fantastic food (Oh, and drinking great Kona coffee).
Although we had a relaxing and memorable trip, I couldn't wait to get home and have Charlotte back in my arms. It really puts meaning into the phrase "Home Sweet Home" when you have someone to come home for. Big thanks to her grandparents for taking such great care of her.
You can find my favorite pictures on this Flickr Slideshow.

13 Months

I am going to overwhelm you with videos because I finally found time to upload a few. Charlotte is 13 months now and learning new things every week. Last weekend she got very good at standing all on her own, then come Monday night, she was walking like a champ! I went to pick her up from daycare and she walked across the long room to me. I was so proud of her. By last night she was doing laps around the house.
I showed her this video on the camera. She was too funny because she nodded like "Yeah, I know I'm awesome." Then when the video was done, she clapped for herself. She's so much like her daddy.



Also, last night, she surprised me by showing me that she's picked up some baby sign language. I signed "more" to her once, and the next thing I knew she was using it. This morning she did it with no instigation from me. That brain is like a sponge.



And now for some overwhelming cuteness.



Her new words this week (as far as I can understand) are apple and bunny. Some of her favorite things to do, listen to her Winnie the Pooh birthday card, play in Maggie's water dish, hand feed Maggie food, and climb the stairs. Her absolute favorite food right now is a grilled cheese sandwich.

This week we leave for Hawaii. I am so excited to relax and explore, but have a nervous spot in my heart to be away from Charlotte. Luckily she has two sets of grandparents who are more than happy to help and to get some bonding time in. I'm sure the vacation will fly by, as most do. Another thing I remind myself is how nurturing our marriage is the best thing for Charlotte because it is important for her to have parents who are happy and in love. So palm trees and mai tai's - here I come!

Fix, Freeze, Feast

Two weeks ago, I joined forces with Jessie and Montelle for an afternoon of freezer meal preparation. We've done this once before, so this time we had a little experience to work off of. We did our best to prep sauces and chop vegetables at home. This time we prepared several recipes out of Jessie's new book, "Fix, Freeze, Feast." What a fantastic book! These recipes are designed to make bulk quantities and, of course, freeze well. They even give recommendations on what size foil pans to buy. However, many recipes are designed to drop into freezer bags. The beginning of the book focuses on tips for saving money with warehouse shopping.
We prepared veggie lasagna, chicken parmiagna, cheesy chilada bake, broccoli chicken bake, and more. The recipes were uncomplicated and inexpensive. Brian and I have eaten a few already and found that there was enough for leftovers.
I haven't ordered my copy of the book yet, but plan to. These days, I don't see the value in spending a lot of time preparing a meal. However, if I could spend just a little more time and end up with one dish to eat then and 2-3 to store in the freezer, I think I'd be the happiest mom on the block.

I will find time to post a blog. I will find time to post a blog. I'll just keep telling myself that.

Today was a big day for a mommy. For months I've been complaining about Charlotte's, for lack of better terms, dietary habits. I longingly watched babies younger than her munching on finger foods while Brian and I struggled to get our baby to eat much more than pureed fruits. And not just any pureed fruits, only store bought baby food because something about my puree skills were not to her liking. She gagged on just about all other foods or else wouldn't even let the food near her lips. I complained to anyone who would listen.
Well, I have to think these ear-tubes have helped her turn over a new leaf. She's now refusing baby foods. Today she was loving her soggy Cheerios in milk for breakfast. At snack time she wolfed down chunks of orange and then said "String cheese? I want that in my mouth!" For dinner, sliced carrots, mashed potato, yogurt, and wait for it...shredded chicken. Damn near brought tears to my eyes. My big girl.

How Depressing...

I happened to catch this story on ABC news today. I was pretty sad about it until I realized that's still in the area of 36,000 eggs. I guess the news story wouldn't have been so impressive had they told me that. Now back to eating Cheeze-Its for dinner.

A couple of my friends and I scheduled a day of preparing meals to freeze and store for an upcoming Saturday. We did this back in the fall and had so much fun with it. We made stuffed pasta shells, soup, chicken pot pies, chicken enchiladas and lots more. We can't wait to do this again, this time armed with new and improved recipes. Well, it seems we're not the only ones doing this in February. One of my favorite blogs, Money Saving Mom is rallying the troops.
Since we lost our Super Suppers and Main Dish Kitchen in Holland, I have struggled to find the time and creativity to have a cooking marathon. However, if you get together with friends, you can each bring enough ingredients to make your dish multiple times, saving money and creative brain cells. But unlike Super Suppers, we get stuck with the dirty dishes.
Does anyone have any favorite freeze ahead recipes? I know my SIL, Jacqueline, just had a cooking marathon so perhaps she has a favorite Italian recipe to share. I'd love to hear all of your tips!

As many of you know due to the wonderful world of Facebook, Charlotte had tubes put in her ears last Friday. For those with medical curiousity - I'll explain the situation.
The ear is as structured below. When an ear infection develops, it is a result of fluid backing into the open space in the middle ear. Fluid typically comes from an upper respiratory infection (aka "cold") or allergies. The warmth in the ear creates an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. In children, the eustachian tube is almost horizontal, making it difficult for the fluid to drain down into the throat. Ear infections can have serous fluid - a yellow, sticky fluid, or purulent fluid - cloudy/pussy.



Here is a good example of what a provider sees when they look into the ear. On the left you see a normal ear drum. The right is an infected ear with purulent fluid. You can see that the ear drum is bulging, red and pus behind. If you had this, you'd pop Motrin like candy and be up all night complaining of throbbing pain. This is what poor Charlotte had to deal with for two months on end.



So why tubes? Well, if you look back at the first picture you'll see the eustachian tube. If this becomes congested, there is no avenue for the pus to drain. So you can hit the patient with antibiotic after antibiotic and get nowhere. High dose steroids could treat the inflammation, but you have a lot more risks with that. Tubes allow the fluid to drain through the drum and ear canal instead. The tubes are inserted through a small incision. Eventually the body will "spit" the tubes out as the cells on the ear drum regenerate. The hope is that the artificial tubes stay in place long enough for the child to develop better draining eustachian tubes.



Charlotte has a pair of white tubes now. She still seems to be in pain, but not nearly as bad as before. I just hope these are the only tubes she needs, because having to do this procedure multiple times can cause scarring to the ear drum which could eventually affect hearing to a degree. And you know, my future concert pianist needs her hearing ;)

I love my mop

Brian bought me a Shark Steam Mop for Christmas. I'm having so much fun with it. He says I'm just like Stanley Spadowski from UHF.


There are several reasons why I'm infatuated with this appliance. It uses no chemicals, leaving no soap residue. Pure unadulterated heat and steam penetrate the dirt and residue on my floor. I like to imagine it's like running my floor through an autoclave. And that makes me feel much better with Charlotte crawling all over it. It's as fast to mop now as sweep, maybe even faster with very little equipment to mess with. So now I can mop once a week instead of once a month. The floor dries immediately. No more tip-toeing over the wet floors for a 1/2 hour after the chore. I freakin' love it.

Minor downsides are that the mop will not pick up debris or hair, so you really do have to sweep ahead of time. Also, it doesn't rotate or fit under low shelving, so for a perfectly clean floor, once in a while I'll have to get down on my knees with a we rag. I re-iterate, these are minor downsides.

This week I'm in a hurry. Morning and night. Pack the baby bag. Pick up the dry cleaning. Call the vet. Call the doctor. Call daycare. Go to Junior League. Organize event for Junior League. Pay the bills. Balance the budget. Freak about how unbalanced the budget is. Clean out the left overs. Fold the laundry. Buy a greeting card. Get to the gym. Fix my Ebay mistake. Oh yeah, and work.
Nothing special - but this week I can't stop the to-do list from spinning through my mind like a roulette wheel. I know so many of you out there feel the same way. How do you unwind? I usually would say I knit, but doesn't seem I make the time for it. Really what I need is a good dose of perspective, so here it goes. I am lucky to have these responsibilities, it means I have a job, money to pay the bills, clothes to keep me warm, food to nourish me, a wonderful daughter and loving dog. It's not so bad after all, is it.
Alright, now I can go to bed with a quiet mind.