hello...anyone out there?

so i really just wonder if anyone but sarah and amy read this thing. sooooooooo if you woudl please indulge me....leave a comment...even just your name...so i know you are reading this. i may need to send out another recruitment blast to lure innocent folks to this site. i just think its nice...especially since we live out here in the boonies....to have grant updates so he isnt just a figment of your imagination...and more like a real growing baby.

dave and i are making progress!!!! he wrote down the first phase of his requests! and you know it is already helping. i told him how excited i was to be truly communicating without all the drama of emotion and tone...and we are planning to continue a written dialogue! yae.

have you heard of flat daddies? dads who over seas in iraq....can have their life size images sent to their kids...and family...and that way the babes still recognize daddy on his return. at first i thought it was strange...strange but cool...and now im totally into it. infact...made me think of my own brand of flat grandmas! why not? have their life size faces in the house so he will quickly recognize them during a brief visit. he already knows my moms voice from the speaker phone..which has helped. this could really work.

grant and i are going to the chiropractor today...ive been putting it off for over a month now..the trip is just a lot of work..at least im not doing it BEFORE work..instead im taking off work to go..much better! so hopefully he can work out our kinks..man i need some help. and grants allergies are on overdrive right now...it would be nice for him to get some relief too. fingers crossed.

btw....grant is officially into everything! he is just all over the place...grabbing, reaching, crawling, scooching, rolling, pulling up, standing, walking....ahhhhhhhhhh....so now the challenge has increased and how has it! he also fights for his right to party...by screaming and crying for a bit. limits are being set...and i realize that i need to stay consistent, calm and loving through it all..which has been going well so far. such as...grant...sit in the tub...no standing...sorry....grant....may i have that? thank you...........grant....i cant continue to walk you around the house bc my back is going to give out...sorry. etc etc. he is something else! wow.

ok back to work. but please let me know if youve been here. THANKS!!!

Happy Earth Day weekend!

yae...its earth day time again...that just reminds me of spring and festivals and FUN..and of course renewing our vows to green up and be better stewards of the earth. just found out theres a nice parade and party in lawrence tomorrow...working now on gathering friends to join me...especially since dave has to work (yuck)

grant is ever so adorable. im in the process of posting brand new pics...but it takes FOREVER to download pics and then upload them to photobucket so that i can post them here....takes a week or so with my harried baby loving schedule. so please be patient with me.the posted pic is maybe just 3 weeks old. by the way...grant is 9 months 2 weeks old!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oh and he said FOOD this morning...it was just a freak accident..but he did it! he loves the "f" sound....fffffffffffff....so i said....fffffffffffood...and he said it right back. too cute! but his mainstays are mom, mama, da da, daddy & dawg. ive noticed though that he says da da constantly in play ...but usually only shouts MOM when he is agitated with me...how is that fair?:)

tonight sarah, ben and princess of the universe miss vivian are coming to our humble abode to eat, drink and be merry. im looking forward to some "parents of babies" socialization time. i really feel drawn to mamas...and papas........and just chillin with others who understand the demands and rewards of living with babes.

happy earth day to you! please take this opportunity to think about the natural world...whose health is directly related to our own....and then do something nice for it.

Bananabeef

Life is spectacular in its never ending twists and turns.......a journey of discovery that continues on and on....beyond what we understand...and how fun it is to wonder about the unknown...and to revel in what we are experiencing right this moment....this day...this week...this year..this life. can you tell im kinda high on life? its not always this way...but i am a bit zapped in the present.

soooo...little bear grant (i tend to call him bear more than anything lately) has been an exceptional specimen as usual. he travelled with mama to the big city that is home to our family...st louis...on the train. ahhh does he love the choo choo. we had perfect trips..even arriving early....met delightful folks on both routes...even meeting new friends and exchanging contacts. grant was the star of the show...playing peek a boo around the seats with ladies acting silly back. by the end of each train he had been walked about by staff and passengers alike. he sure does make them smile.

st louis was wonderful. we had a very nice visit with my parents and brother, sister in law, niece and even 2 cousins and 3 aunts! they all poured on the love and grant just soaked it up like the love sponge he is. it was like he was on stage...bc he was just a social butterfly. he loves it when its all about grant...and when isnt it?:)

coming back to work was hard. grant and i had become so in tune ...being together every second of the trip...for over 3 days...and we didnt want it to end. sending him off to day care was a tear jerker...and i know he felt the same way bc he was grumpy on monday. sometimes i want to be a stay at home mom SOOO very badly. i try to figure a way to make it happen...but come up short each time. sure we could sell the house and rent a tiny apartment...but what about insurance? thats the kicker. my employer pays $10,000 a year for our family insurance! Can you believe it? rediculous.

took bear to the dr this morning...a pediatric immunologist at KU med center. it was a pretty good visit actually. it takes a month and a half to get in there...so we had been anticipating the outcome for quite some time. I was suprised when they decided to do allergy testing..since i had heard its not done on babies. The results were even more suprising....bananas and beef...they said it was a strange combo indeed. The good news is we can easily avoid those..and see if it helps! Pretty exciting stuff. Of course im not considering the test to be the end all...but its interesting in the very least...and who knows it may just be the answers we were looking for! They did say that allergens can cause gerd too...and asthma of course...and exema...everything being connected. Im excited about grant outgrowing all this stuff too! Little man has been through so much already.

I am so thankful to be so blessed.

Thanks for visiting our blog!

hott bunny

so being the easter bunny isnt all that fun.......only bc its hotter than Hades in there! i was almost passing out and it had only been 15 minutes! i plan on giving our real easter bunny ( the one at the hunt) a major pay raise! of course the preschool party this morning was a big success though and we had a record turn out of 38 peeps total....20 kids!

i love days that break the mold. this morning i was outta the house by 8:30 and off to lawrence...where i ran around searching for premium coffee without the premium price..and managed to find it at wheatfields...1.75 for a large and it was very delicious. i also picked up some fresh made bread at great harvest (does not sell coffee...they give it away which of course i sneered at :) )...no i just needed a lid...so anyhoo after finding my way through the matrix i arrived at sarah and vivan's abode where i had a lovely breakfast danish and we chatted a good bit while princess vivian and i developed our relationship (she let me play with her!). it was a great quickie special outta the ordinary kinda morning.

so now i sit at my desk and need to get started on all the easter egg hunt logistics that i have been putting off. its really not that much but we do need to get all the stuff to the park and just make sure all my ducks are in a row. or bunnies whatever.

so pray for sun and minimal wind...kansas doesn't play that im afraid. happy weekend to ya!

SUSHITASTIC

My 34th birthday was wednesday, april 4th......and it was a good one. Not merely because I get a number 4 this year.....but bc my people gathered around me and gave me love. I am so blessed. The day started off with a beautiful poem from Dave. We always exchange the same card...going back and forth between us over the years...and its nice to flip back and read the entries from the past. I considered posting the poem here...and still may...but he is so intensely private that I fear it may hurt him...so I am going to get clearance first. Then off to work we went...........and i must say that i was bummed out. Just not in my usually super hyper birthday glee. It could be bc my mother put me to sleep the night before on the sick story about a couple in st louis that just made headlines bc the man had been molesting her day care children for 30 years( grandma neal has been in day care here in town for 30 years)....ages 6 months on up!!!!!!!! It sickened and stressed me OF COURSE (prolly serves her right that she was up all night revisiting her labor and delivery of me!...isnt that wild that 34 years later it still has that much of an impact?) Or it could be that winter is revisiting us with a vengeance and is taking all my pretty flowers and it just plains sucks. Or maybe its bc grant has been tossing and turning again for 3 nights and the exhaustion is setting in. But its prolly hormones in combo with all the above said self pity. Anyhoo....i made an appt for a massage as 11am.....and it was GREAT. Very nice bday present to myself. So after that i was very relaxed...but almost asleep. Sharon the Librarian popped in with a lovely present...what else a book!! That was very sweet and made me smile..things were looking up. My boss took me out for lunch ...and then all of a sudden its time to pick up grant. Well he cheered me up! And then after work I came home to a twinkie scavenger hunt. Dave and grant had hid them all over the house for the gift that keeps on giving. I loved it...and there is still a few to find! I also had bday cards that had come in the mail...and they were SUPER DOOPER mushy....from my mom..and a separate card from my dad (he is getting very emotional in his old age) and from my MIL and godmother. Im saying...they were very very veyr very sweet and touching and i cried. Next we went out for sushi with my boss and his wife (who is a friend of mine). This dinner has been 2 years in the making. We have wanted to try sushi with experienced sushi connoisseurs. SO they ordered a dozen trays or so..and we munched hard......and we LOVE SUSHI! seriously...it was divine. so now i have another expensive bad habit ...GREAT :) Sarah and Ben wanna go?

Possibly the highlight of the day was when grant decided he knew how to clap. Yes he has been pattycaking for months....but not making the clap sound with open palms. Well now he is a clapper and is so proud of himself. Its adorable! Oh and he is mobile......although without crawling or walking. It takes him about 40 minutes to go 10 feet...by wiggling, rolling, leaning etc. Any minute my baby will be gone and a toddler will have replaced him...........whoa...im not ready.

Happy April!

Sweet Success

Ahh the sweet smell of victory....this morning I found the baby walker of my dreams....just down the street and a mere $2! I was amazed to find that they no longer sell them new (dangerous)..and that Good will isnt allowed to sell them anymore. It was quite the treasure hunt...and it felt kinda good to be exhibiting risky behavior hehe. Luckily the Tongie thrift shop hasnt caught up with 21st century extreme safety precaution culture....which albeit has good intentions but does take some fun outta life. Example B: teetertotters. I giggle with delight when i see one of them and trot over briskly to do the deed. Grant will be so pleased upon finding that this afternoon he gets to cruise the office..hopefully the commercial carpet wont slow him down too much.

Had a wonderful weekend! Our house guests were so sweet and we had a delightful time. Managed to get in some serious clothes shopping...and im telling you the stars were alighned because i found a whole bunch of cute stuff that not only fit in the budget but also fit my voluptious figure. The shopping spree started off my Birthday week....yes week....with Wednesday, april 4th (4/4) being the actual day i transformed from a amniotic fluid inhaling alien to an oxygen breathing baby. LOVE FOURS. So anyhoo...the visit was great and I got to know aunt mary rita a lot better and she is precious. with a tender heart and a great since of humor. Grant enjoyed getting to know his grandma burkemper again - and likewise she ate him up.

Sunday was spectacular. Not only did dave and i feel extra mushy for some reason (spring maybe?) but we had lots of outdoor time in lawrence...where we walked the river for a good while and introduced grant to the river up close.......then visited with sarah, ben & vivian. Together we walked their adorable old neighborhood with its vintage charm and gardens whose original gardener passed many many decades ago....and up to Mass street where we partook in ice cream splurges. The trek was fabulous! Good company...and god company (nature)...its a great combo. The kids loved it...especially in their baby carriers. Grant seems to really enjoy the new ergo...and we are getting the hang of it. The visit left me feeling optimistic, hopefuly & inspired. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. I am thankful our paths crossed at the birth center...and we can now support each other in the great adventure of parenting.

So here we are at monday again...the ritual of survival.,....the routine of habit...the awesome life we have created for ourselves....its a mixed bag...but its darn good. ITs birthday week....i love birthday week.

Peace out.