We need an upgrade

Veda had a playdate today and it made me realize that these kids' toys are much cooler than the poor man toys I have her playing with at home. She loves the ball pit and the door. Who would think of making a child sized front door as a toy? Genius really. She could have spent all day going back and forth through it and shutting the door and ringing the bell. Maybe when/if we move next year we'll get a place big enough for a play room and I'll be forced to fill it. Maybe I'll actually buy her xmas gifts this year?

Barbie

Todd brought Veda home a couple of Barbie's from his trip to Ohio last week. Veda has really bonded with her new friends - she might be a girly girl after all! She insisted on carrying this one around on a pillow. She could hardly lift the pillow but insisted that the Barbie was not to move unless she was on her princess pillow. She even tried to take the pillow outside to her new play area and when we objected she through a fit.

V will stand at the door trying to open it when she wants to go outside. I finally figured out that I could gate the porch and just leave the door open so she can come and go as she pleases. A win win for everyone.

Creative Styling

Nana Sayre gave Veda this "shirt" last week - it's actually a 3 to 6 month baby dress but works perfectly as a shirt - good thinking Mom. I'm going to dig through her old dresses and see if I can find any others that I can make work this way.

Green Thumb

I figured out how to upload the photos! Veda helping me water plants yesterday...

We're back - sort of...

I can't upload photos;( So you are stuck with story telling. I am still without my own laptop. I'm using a loner with limited capabilities. Our home computer crashed this weekend providing a perfect ending to a less than stellar week. Another $300 down the drain and it was only 10 months old. ho hum.

The trip home last week had me swearing I wouldn't travel with Veda again but of course we have another trip to the Midwest scheduled in a couple of weeks. She came down with a cold and I couldn't contain the snot - that was the worse part about the travel - forget the four hour delay and stroller the airline broke (yes I spent the day pushing her around with one handle). I just couldn't keep her clean - I was worried the other travelers would freak out but I think they thought it was drool - it looked like drool.

We made it to Iowa only 5 hours late - which is why I always travel in the morning - less risk of missing your connections and getting stuck somewhere over night! My luggage didn't come until the next day and that is when I realized my lap top was gone. Oh well - I'm over it.

We are glad to be home. We are watching the neighbor's dog - Veda is chasing him around and he probably wishes he had a rock to climb under. I'll have lots of pics to post when I can figure out why this computer won't let me upload!

Offline

My laptop has been stolen. So... I will be offline for awhile and unable to post. Sorry folks. I can't wait to get back to blogging so I can tell you about the crappy last three days I've had!

Veda's First Birthday Invite

Our friends Jonathan and Christina had the party of the century for their twins Jacob and Alexander. It was over the top. Everything was coordinated to the monkey theme including their bathing suits and party attire. They hired a life guard (so smart) and had a full bar with a bartender (and yes - Megan came with us and had the bartender's number by the end of the night). They had a catered Taco bar which was AMAZING and the cake was just adorable - and delicious. There were close to 100 people at the pool party including plenty of children for Veda to play with. Because of the pool Veda was forced to wear her monkey leash which came in quite handy for me because she was ALL over the place. Veda gave Jacob and Alexander their own leashes for their birthday;)

Go Hawks!

I get to title the blog since I'm out numbered in the sporting gear department. However, Veda doesn't look too happy about supporting the losing team. I'm wearing my beat state shirt as we celebrate that we actually get to watch the game today! I guess something good has come out of the Direct TV investment.

Thief

I left the grocery bag a little too close to Veda in her car seat. I was wondering why she was so quiet on our way back from the grocery store. She swiped a banana from the bag, ate through the peel, and was sucking out the insides when I discovered the mess when we got home. The other day we went to the farmer's market with our neighbor and babysitter - Kathy. Kathy gave Veda a wedge of watermelon and we left her alone with it while we shopped - only to later discover that she was eating the rind.

Take Veda to Work Day

We had our first ultrasound on Friday morning. So Todd went in late to work after the appointment. We tried to get some work done before we left and Veda was happy to help. The ultrasound went well. The baby wasn't cooperating so we couldn't find out the sex - Oct 27th will be the big day. It was neat to see the baby jumping around and good to get a positive report that everything looks as it should.

Potatoes on the Counter

It's the simple things in life...sometimes you just need to sit on the counter naked with potatoes. That's all it takes to go from screaming tantrum, to happy baby.

Daily Recommended Allowance

Here's V eating my rollers. Her daily routine while Dad is getting ready in the morning consists of opening all the bathroom drawers, pulling everything out, and making sure that all the rooms on the second floor have an even distribution of Mom and Dad's bathroom items. Every time I want to curl my hair I have to go on a treasure hunt;)

It's a disappointing morning. Todd called to say that someone hit him while he was driving to work this morning. I thought this was going to be a real inconvenience because he has to turn in his lease next week. How in the world would we (most likely I) get in fixed in time? Then he reminded me that he drove my car to work - oh joy!

At my Doctor's appointment yesterday with my Urologist he informed me that the test results have identified the culprit responsible for my Kidney Stones... Salt. I have "way too much" sodium in my system. I laughed out loud because I am always giving Todd a hard time about eating too much salt and I'm the one with the problem. So this morning I started reading all the nutritional panels on our food in search for something healthy to eat. Ughhhhh!!! Everything has tons of sodium. This is going to be a serious chore to cut down on salt and it doesn't just mean staying away from the salt shaker.

So Long

Kel and Chris left yesterday and boy is it quiet around here;( I did spend the day with the Direct TV guy who spent 6 hours at the house installing Todd's birthday present. The good news is that we now have two less TVs in our house because they couldn't connect all of them - the bad news is that Todd now has a reason to stay glued to the couch ALL day on Sunday with NFL Sunday ticket.

Bun in the Oven Just Like Mom

This is Todd and Chris' way of teaching Veda about the birds and the bees. Cute huh?

Our House is a Sand Box

We had a sunset dinner on the beach Saturday night with the Ehlers. Veda LOVES the sand. I suppose it will be much like her love affair with snow the first time she experiences it. The sand is everywhere in our house. I wonder how people who LIVE on the beach deal with this nuisance?

Mummmmm Mussels

Aunt Kel made the best dinner ever. Giada's seafood pasta. Veda feasted on her milk. Today the ladies head to the spa while Chris and Todd watch football and hopefully, Veda.

No new material...

I've been so busy juggling work and baby that I haven't given my camera much attention this week. Here's a pic from the archives that I don't think I've shared. Big day today. Aunt Kel and Uncle Chris are coming to visit. I'm thinking that I wish I had maid service. I've never thought I was too busy to clean myself but now I'm thinking I'm just too tired - that's a good excuse right?!

Playmate

If you don't have this toy then you should get it. Veda loves it - we had some great Video but I couldn't get it loaded. Thanks Brooke - Veda picked this out with her birthday money;))

Boo boo

Todd travelled to KC this weekend for a live fantasy football draft with his friends. Veda and I were lucky enough to have Megan visit for the weekend. It was like having my parents come to visit - she cooked, cleaned, and babysat - ahhhhhhh! She even played doctor. Veda took a bad spill and we had a bleeder so Meg gave her a Bandaid - which she kept pulling off of course. I'm going to have to stock up on those - she's getting more brave and having more accidents. This morning I came out of the bathroom and found her standing on the coffee table;)

Just a Little Bit of Veda to Brighten Your Day

Leg Lifts

So in this picture Veda is attempting to climb on to the coffee table to gain access to Dad's dinner. She also pulls this in the bathroom while I'm getting her bath ready. She stands at the edge of the tub with her leg up on the ledge as if she can really get over if she tries hard enough. She's ambitious.

Medium Rare

I made Todd prime rib for his birthday dinner and it was amazing and amazingly easy. I have never made it before and figured people don't eat it often because it's hard to make but no, it's expensive - that's why. I went to the Butcher shop and asked for a few ribs worth of prime rib having no idea how much that really was - just following the recipe I looked up online. Good thing the butcher asked how many people I was feeding because he suggested I go home with two ribs worth. That was almost 6 lbs of meat and was about 4 times more expensive than I had guessed. Gulp. Happy Birthday Dear!

Mile Marker

Veda had her one year check-up on Monday. She made it out without shots - whew. She weighed in at 25.03 lbs (95%). Her head was 90% and her height 90%. Her height to weight percentile is 90% so that means she's going on a diet;) Just a move from Whole milk to 1% for the time being.

The Dr. was impressed with her mobility, her language, and her ability to immitate. He was talking to her with his hands and she started to do the same - that gave him a good laugh.

My cousin Byron and his wife Andrea bought Veda baby crayons for her birthday - I wouldn't have ever thought of it and I certainly wouldn't have thought she could pick it up. But she did and she loves coloring! I also tried to let her feed herself with a spoon because I read somewhere she should be using one herself now - which I think is insane. I'm surprised that she can actually get the spoon to her mouth (with food) without a disaster. I guess I shouldn't underestimate her abilities!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Another year closer to 40;) We love you. Kathy and Veda!

My new favorite place to party!

In our attempts to appease Miss Veda, we are always looking at new "play locations." Kathy found this rather clever new location...our jacuzzi in our bathroom. She loves it in there (even without water). The ledge is just her size and you can fill it with toys instead of water. We've seen her play in there for up to 30 min, which is the equivalent of 3 days in grown up time.

Does Disneyland Sell Stamps?

I swear that this is a true story...it was towards the end of the day at Disneyland and we decided to enter into Toon Town with Veda. As we were walking up the hill, Kathy says..."hey look, a Post Office...great, I need to buy some stamps!" She got all the way in the door before she realized what she was actually doing. The 5 yr old behind the counter was probably a good hint that this wasn't your normal Post Office. (I made her take this picture to "capture the moment.")

Happy Anniversary Nana and Bull

Here's to another great year. You've taught us about caring, respect and patience for one another. We love you lots - Todd, Kathy & Veda

Hey There's a Monkey on Your Back

I found this little backpack and bought it up because it has a leash! This will be perfect for public places - especially because Veda doesn't like being confined to her stroller now that she can walk. She likes wearing her monkey and carrying the leash around herself. She spins in circles trying to get to the monkey - funny.

Thanks Mom!

I haven't propoerly given credit to my Mother for slaving over the sewing machine for four days! She made this car seat cover for a car seat that was gifted to us by friends. $5 of fabric and lots of her time or I could have bought one online for $80! It fits perfectly and is excellent in every detail. The picture just doesn't to it justice. Thanks Mom!

I'm cute

I just love this picture!

Where's the Magic?

Well I will tell you where the Magic is not... We took Veda to Disneyland for her first birthday. We walked from our hotel. We went through security where they looked through our bags and then came into a large open space. We looked left to the turnstiles and right to the turnstiles and took the one with shorter lines. An hour and a half later after a muppet 3-D movie and a sub-par lunch we realized that we were not at Disneyland. No no. We were at Disneyland's California Adventure Park. Veda was grumpy and I give credit to her knowing the entire time that this was not the Disneyland Magic we had promised her.

Apparently we choose wrong and took the wrong set of turnstiles. Apparently our ticket worked at either part for one day (but not both). Lucky for us that we were not the first to be totally confused by the lack of signage and the staff was accomodating and made arrangements for us to go across the way to Disneyland. So finally we reached our destination just in time for Veda's afternoon nap. We took the first ride with the shortest lines. Mr. Toad's Wild Adventure. A little too wild for Veda - dark, fast, and people jumping out at you. Not the best choice.

We headed back to the hotel for a long nap and returned at 5pm hoping that most would be headed home and the lines would be shorter. We should have known better - August on a Saturday. We did get in a couple of rides on It's a Small World. First Veda didn't know what to think - sensory overload. By the second ride she was clapping along and we had found the Magic!

We took a trip to Mickey's Toonland where Veda could run around with the other kids and were able to catch some of the parade. Overall it was a fun day despite the detour and we can't wait to come back next year (off summer and during the week;).

Mr. Seal & the Park Ranger

Hi Mr. Seal, is that you poking your head through the wall?

Love at First Sight

Veda, meet Mr. Potato Head. Thanks Aunt Kel and Uncle Chris - I think he's funny.

Birthday Fun

First I swept. Then I walked Heather's dog. Then I went shopping with my babysitter and Kiki. Then I went to my cousin's soccor practice. Aunt Melissa made me cupcakes and my cousin Savannah and I had a feeding frenzie. I had frosting everywhere imaginable - kind of like sand in your swimsuit when you get home from the beach. Then the neighbors came over and showered me with gifts and THEN Dad came home and gave me a bath. Definatly my best birthday so far! Oh and thanks Auntie Betsi for my super cool Birthday Tshirt - I got lots of birthday greetings!