Happy.

Yesterday was a hard day here. It seems that walking may not agree with ZuZu. She's been clingy and irritable the last couple days, I think her newfound independence is intimidating to her. Anyway, yesterday was the worst day we've had in a while. ZuZu has always been a pretty high-needs (aka, I need mom all the time, sleep none of the time) baby, but never to the extent she was yesterday. She wanted to be held non-stop, refused to nap, and was just one sad cranky little person.

So I bailed.

J got home from work and I gladly handed her off for a much needed solo run to Costco. After an hour away I walked in the door feeling a bit refreshed but less than excited to see ZuZu. I reluctantly went about getting her ready for bed. We grabbed the nighttime diaper and pj's, her book and pacifier and headed for our room. I crankily got her dressed for bed, read to her, and sidled up next to her so she could have her evening nursing session.

And then she made all the work of the last 11 months totally worth it.

With a big grin she stopped nursing. She looked me right in the eye and signed "happy".

I'm happy too, sweet girl.

Crafty momma nurtures new momma's soul.

I love this blog. Love, love love. It makes me want to clean less, worry less, stress less, and instead craft more, play more, just be more.

Hope you love it as much as I do.

My how she's grown...

Sweet ZuZu is now ten (yes 10!) months old. Sad. And happy. Here's a little update on what my pumpkin has been up to.

Weighs: 21 lbs.
Measures: 28 inches
Says: Banana, DaDa, MaMa, and many many other things as yet indistinguishable to my ears.
Signs: More, please, dog (this sign doubles as her sign for excitement), tree, water, all done. I think there are a few I am forgetting, it seems she is signing all over the place these days!
Does: Smells things, claps, points incessantly, brushes her hair, pulls daddy's beard, pulls Cowboy's toes, makes silly faces, pushes purees away, laughs a lot, back-arches a lot (this girl knows what she wants!), crawls, pulls up, stands alone, and - drumroll please - takes steps!!

My baby girl took her first step on Saturday and has pushed the number to three consecutive steps now. So proud of you big girl!!

Here's a video of her "silly face" (it was a weekend morning, hence the ragamuffin appearance). I'll try to post a video of her taking steps later.

The last couple months...

... in pictures!! Yay!




We have fun. I love my girl. (Please excuse the quality of the photos. I've been using my iPhone and ignoring my much better, but harder-to-remember-to-bring real camera. I'll fix that.)

Have I mentioned I'm a procastinator ... yeah.

You may have noticed my prolonged absence over the last, what, 4 months? Hmmm. Yeah. The thing is I've been meaning to write. Planning on posting some updates on what ZuZu has been up to lately. Thinking about posts I could write. But then, inevitably, I would pour myself another cup of coffee, sit on the couch with the dog, and watch my nap time window "to get things done" slipping through my fingers. oops.

But, I'm back!

I decided to close my Facebook account. I thought this a wise decision for numerous reasons, not the least of which being to have more time to blog. I find this a much nicer way to keep people up on our lives. From here on out, I hope to update at least once a week.

See you all soon!

Delinquincy

So sorry it has taken me forever to update! We've been busy busy busy. Gardening, yard tidying, clapping, brushing hair, learning to point and wave, laughing and laughing some more. I love being the mom of an almost seven month old! I have video and pictures to post ... hopefully soon!  

5's

Yesterday was the Day of 5. Not only was it the fifth day of the fifth month, it was also my 25 birthday and ZuZu's 5 month birthday. Add to that Cinco de Mayo and you've got yourself one fine festive day. 

J totally spoiled me with lots of new goodies from one of my all time fave stores. We then got delicious Little Ceasar's pizza (so bad but good!) and watched "P.S. I love you". What a sweet hubby for sitting through such a chick flick!

Perhaps I'm experiencing my quarter-life crisis or maybe I'm sentimental that my little baby is quickly turning into a big baby, but I found myself thinking a lot yesterday about where I'm at, who I am, and how it all stacks up against what I thought this time would be like. Here's what I came up with:

1. When it came to parenting, I always thought I would be the one teaching.  Turns out, little ZuZu has taught me more in last 5 months than I could have imagined. What, you may ask? She has taught me: patience, kindness, open-mindedness, that a perfect house means nothing, that being in control is totally overrated, that mirrors are way fun, and being with your family is as good as it gets. 

2. I thought I'd be something by now. Famous, or rich, or stylish, or I don't know, just something. I never realized I wouldn't care by 25. I've realized happiness and contentment aren't measured in those terms. I'm definitely not famous, babies are expensive, and I'm lucky if I brush my teeth these days. But I don't care. I'm happier than ever. 

3. Every day I love J more. Seeing him as a father, changing from teenagers to adults together, has been a wonderful adventure. 

4. I miss my dad. It makes me sad that he won't be here to see me come into my own or to see ZuZu grow up. 

5. I'm tired of doing things for other people. Such as: getting dressed in the morning when I want to stay in my pajamas, maintaining a lawn and landscaping, saying I agree when I don't, pretending to believe things I don't. At this monumental quarter-century mark, I want to make a decision to start doing things for me. I still want to be kind and loving, of course, but I also want to be me. I like who I am and I don't think I want to waste any more of my life on people who don't. 

6. I'm really really happy to be right where I am in life. 

I hope each of you had a fantastic 5/5. 

Doggie Jowlers (and a shout out to No-No)

J and I are goofy. Or maybe just bored too frequently. Either way, J has for years taken pictures while shaking his head, creating what he calls Jowlers. Try it ... you'll find it funny. You'll also end up with a photo somewhat like this (not my husband, by the way, although he is a handsome devil)

Last week, we decided to find out what Doggie Jowlers would look like. This is what we got:

Hilarious.

On another note, No-No, my nephew, turns 5 today. So Happy Birthday No-No! Hope you had a great day! 

EARTH DAY! Woot Woot!

Two of my fave websites to help you celebrate our beautiful planet:

Local Harvest 

Eat Wild

By supporting your local farmer you are directly helping to support the earth! Sustainable agriculture maintains diversity, improves soil and water conditions, and grows healthier plants and animals ... which grows healthier people! Check out our Harvest Box from our local farm.

 

For more inspiration, listen to this, or read this.

Go dig in the dirt, hug a tree, build a birdhouse, or a take a walk. Whatever you do today remember to give a little love to Mother Earth.

Have a great day!

ZuZu, meet Spike

Sad story: J's childhood dog, Buff, had to be put down last week. He was a loyal and sweet old guy and we will miss him. One who particularly felt the loss was my 8 year old brother-in-law, The Logician. Not wanting him to suffer too much, my parents-in-law headed out last weekend to find a new puppy. 

So Sunday we all headed up to meet the little guy, Spike. It was a gorgeous day, evident in this photo of one of the West's finest mountains ... 

ZuZu was especially thrilled to hang out with NiNi and Pop-Pop. 

The sweetest part of the day was when she and Spike realized they are each little versions of their respective species. 

After a few hours of playing, we headed home to finish the day with a bath and bedtime. J and I enjoyed the rest of the evening over some beverages while hanging out on our newly chair-ed front porch (pic to come later). Ahhhh ... spring. 

The Basics

1. My name is Liz. I am currently a stay-at-home mom. I am in the process of applying for a 2nd Bachelor's Degree in hopes of continuing on to a PhD program in Psychology. I would eventually like to teach college level Psych. courses. I love my life right now, but can't help looking forward to what the future holds. I am a Taurus: a fact that would normally mean nothing to me but I read a description on the web recently ... it was dead on. Fascinating. 

2. I am married to my best friend. I'll call him J. We met when I was 18 and a freshman in college. We were in love two months into our relationship and have never looked back. We've been together for 6 and a half years and married for three. J is sincere, kind, goofy, and wise. My life is better, every day, because of him.

3. J and I had a daughter, let's call her ZuZu, on December 5, 2008. Her personality is really starting to emerge; she is goofy like her parents, happy like her daddy, and high-maintenance like her momma :-). Every day with her is so exciting and fulfilling. 

4. We have a crazy Boxer dog, Cowboy, who just turned a year old. He loves attention, food, and ZuZu. Having a dog reminds me what unconditional love looks like. I'm thankful to have him in our lives.

That's pretty much it in a nutshell. We're a happy little family.