Happy Belated Birthdays

Tasha and Bobby both celebrated their birthdays in November. This is a little late, but I finally got the pictures off my camera.

For Bobby's birthday, we got Philly cheesesteaks at a new place near St. Joseph's University we'd never been to before (going to lunch at a new place has become a birthday tradition). We took our lunch to go and ate them during our walk along the Wissahickon. Luckily, there were still some fall colors left on the trees.


Instead of a traditional birthday cake, I made Bobby (as requested) a pumpkin roll. It didn't turn out too bad for my first try. I promised him a second one, which I haven't made yet (but he's been bugging me for it!). Our neighbor-friends made a cookie message that said "Happy B-day Bobby." The letters got kind of fat and illegible after they baked, but they were still good to eat and they held the candles very well. :)


Later in the day, Lillian helped Daddy do push-ups on the new push-up bars he got from Mommy! (Now, every time Bobby says he's going to do push-ups, Lillian runs into the living room and gets the bars for him. Then she gets on the floor and does her own version of baby push-ups!)




For Tasha's birthday we decorated the whole living room and dining room with balloons and hung up some banners.

Lillian helps us decorate for Tasha's birthday

I made her pancakes for breakfast and she only had a half day at school! A friend brought over lunch when she got home and she opened all of her presents. Then she and a friend from school hung out until dinner (which was a special request for McDonald's...that girl is obsessed!)

Tasha's new, bright pink comforter (it's obviously keeping her warm!)

Tasha went to Young Women's that night, but I brought them birthday cake and ice cream at the end and we all sang Happy Birthday to her. I hope she had as much fun as I did!

Happy Birthday!

Ornament Party

Have you ever been to a Christmas tree ornament party? They're so much fun!

My dear friend Alena, who I met when we lived in Delaware for 2 years, introduced me to the Christmas tradition. I've continued the tradition here in Philly for the past 2 years and I plan on doing it for many years to come.

Here's how it works: You invite people (obviously). Everyone brings one new, wrapped Christmas tree ornament. Then everyone draws a number to see who goes first. The first person picks a wrapped ornament and opens it. The second person can steal the first person's ornament or open a new one. If a person's ornament is stolen, they can either steal someone else's ornament, or they can open a wrapped one. This continues until everyone has taken their turn and all the ornaments are gone. An ornament can only be stolen twice, then it's "safe" with the lucky owner to has it (this rule is debatable. some people have no stealing, others change the number of times it can be stolen, or have no limit at all- it's up to the hostess). It's lots of fun and everyone goes home with a new ornament!

This year I didn't do a very good job of planning, so it was a bit last minute. Next year I'll definitely plan it for earlier in the month before everyone starts packing and leaving for the holiday break.

Thanks, Alena, for introducing me to ornament parties! If anyone else has fun Christmas traditions that you like to do, please share them with me! I'm in the market for some good traditions to start incorporating into our family.

My New Year's Resolution

I usually don't like New Year's resolutions, mostly because I can never think of a good one. But this year I already know exactly what it should be. In 2009 my New Year's resolution will be (drum roll, please) to be a better blogger! (and also to avoid the dollar bins at Target- they always suck me in!- but that's just a secondary resolution) :)

As for blogging, I need to be more dedicated so that friends and family can stay updated on what's going on in our crazy lives. It's also a good way to document our experiences so later on in life we can go back and read it and say, "wow, we had crazy lives." :)

I like blogging, so I'm going to try really, really hard to be better at it. In fact, I've been thinking for some time about starting a blog about teaching my Primary class. I taught the 4 and 5 year-olds this year, and I have lots of funny stories and good teaching ideas (at least I think they're good). Next year I'll teach with wee-little sunbeams (3 and 4 year-olds), which I'm sure will be a unique experience all of its own.

So there you go. My best ever New Year's resolution. Be a better blogger, including starting a Primary blog. And look at me- I'm already starting my resolution! Go me.

Laurel Hill Cemetery

Last week my dad and I went to Laurel Hill Cemetery. We thought we would be taking a "Heroes Killed in Action" tour to commemorate Veteran's Day, but when we got there we found out that we already missed the tour on Sunday! Ooops! We grabbed a map instead and decided to go on our own tour. The fall colors were beautiful. It felt more like we were walking through a historic sculpture garden instead of a cemetery.


It was amazing to see all of the old headstones and sepulchers. The oldest one we saw had a death date of 1786. Many sculptures were so worn that they were barely distinguishable, and much of the writing on headstones was washed away. It made me think about the people burried in the cemetery and the lives they must have lived so long ago. To us they're just a headstone with some writing on it, and the only proof of their existence are the few words written about them. When those words become illegible, the only thing remaining is a piece of smooth rock, essentially.


It sounds depressing, but it got me thinking. I don't want to waste time and money on something extravagant that's only going to be destroyed and forgotten over time. So, when I die, deep-etch my name in some granite and bury me under a big, beautiful tree. :)


Here are some more pictures.

General George Meade, Commander of the Union Army during the Civil War. I was surprised at how modest his family plot was.

3 Days & 2 Nights

On Saturday night Lillian decided that we needed to get out of the house for a few days. So we spent the weekend at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia! She had been running a high fever with an ugly cough for a few days, and with her recent diagnosis of asthma I felt like she needed to be checked out.

Lillian was admitted at 5:00 a.m. on Sunday morning after a chest x-ray showed some signs of pneumonia and/or adalectasis (when small areas of the lungs collapse). She had to be hooked up to oxygen because her levels were a little low. She looked so sad with the little tubes in her nose, but she tolerated it quite well. The thing on her right arm is an IV hook-up that they had to put in and secure tightly so she wouldn't pull it out.

After some early-morning tests, the doctors determined that Lillian had the parainfluenza virus and viral pneumonia, which aggravated her asthma (or maybe the asthma aggravated the virus or they both aggravated each other? either way, she got hit with all 3 at once . . . lucky girl!)


The doctors put her on some medications to help her asthma so that her lungs could combat the pneumonia more effectively, since there's nothing we can do to fight the virus directly. They also performed some chest PT every few hours to help break up the mucus and make Lillian's coughs more productive. Everything is easily treatable at home, but the doctors didn't feel comfortable letting her go because her oxygen levels were still a little low on Sunday. The nurses slowly decreased her oxygen to help ween her off.

On Monday morning they took her off the oxygen and her levels stayed high enough while she was awake. The true test was to see her levels while she slept, when levels naturally decrease. When she fell asleep for her first nap I crossed my fingers. Her levels stayed barely high enough to keep her in the safe zone - yay!! The doctor wanted to monitor her for one more nap before letting her go home. It felt like a long afternoon waiting for Lillian to get tired again! She finally went down at about 2:30 p.m. and again her oxygen stayed high enough. I decided to celebrate by taking a nap myself. :) I knew we would be going home when Lillian woke up.

Bobby had to take a big test Monday afternoon, so I stayed with Lillian on Sunday night. We kept ourselves busy with lots of books, toys, and frequent visits from the nurses and the respiratory staff. We were still napping when Bobby arrived on Monday afternoon and it was a nice surprise to see him when we woke up! Soon after, the nurse came in and told us that she had been checking in on us while we were asleep. Since everything was ok, the doctor had already written our discharge papers. An hour later we were in the car on our way home! Lillian didn't realize what was going on until I drove the car out of the parking garage. She looked out the window and said "yay!"

All of the doctors, nurses, and staff at CHOP were fabulous. They were friendly, thorough, and they answered all of our million questions. The facilities were great, too. There was a playroom down the hall with lots of toys, crafts, and computers. I highly recommend it to anyone who lives in the Philly area.

Lillian slept really well last night. She still seems a little tired, and I can tell she doesn't feel 100% because she just wants to be held quietly. Grandma and Grandpa came last night, so she has plenty of people to take care of her! It'll take a few days for the virus to pass and for her to be running at full speed (literally).

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts, prayers, concerns, visits, and meals!! You are much loved and appreciated. I'll keep you updated!

A Good Time to Be in Philly

In case you haven't heard, Philly has had some pretty exciting things happen recently. A couple of weeks ago the Phillies won the World Series! The entire city shut down for the "Championship Parade" through the city. I don't think anyone went to work, and hardly any kids went to school. Less than 30 showed up at Tasha's school! (We were mean, and we made her stay at school, but we tried to convince her teachers to give her extra credit for her. See, we're pulling for you, Tash).

The other exciting news was announced by President Monson, the prophet of my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in early October during General Conference. Philly is getting a Temple!! It will be right downtown, on Broad Street between Hamilton Street and Noble Street (look it up on Google Maps!). Right now it's just an ugly parking lot, but in a couple of years it will be one of the most beautiful landmarks in the city (that's what I think, at least).

So even though Philly has one of the highest homicide rates in the country, it's a pretty cool place to live! :)

Impressive

Wow, I actually have 2 comments on my last post! I'm impressed that you still check in on me, even though I've been the worst blogger ever. Thanks for not giving up on me! (that's why we're friends) ;)

Back on the Blog, Baby

Ok, so two more months have gone by since my last post. What can I say? I'm all out of excuses. So I'm just going to jump in right in where I left off!

The biggest news is that our family grew over the summer! We now have a fifteen year old foster girl living with us. Her name is Tasha and we know her from church. She had some unfortunate things happen during the summer and she needed a place to stay. One event led to another, and Bobby and I decided to offer ourselves as foster parents. It's been quite a learning experience and a huge life adjustment, but things are going well and we enjoy having Tasha with us. She and Lillian get along great and I enjoy the extra company when Bobby is away for late study nights. Tasha turns 16 in a couple of weeks (November 19!), so if you have any good party ideas, let me know!

Lillian is just as adorable as ever. She started walking a few days before her first birthday in July. I'll never forget the first Sunday that she was walking. We had a Munch and Mingle (this is when everyone gets together in the cultural hall to chow down on food and talk) and I felt like a chicken with its head cut off trying to keep track of Lillian. It was a new experience to have to watch where she was going!! One dear little boy in my Primary class tried to help me out by "carrying" her across the room to me, but it turned out to me more of a head-lock drag that Lillian didn't like very much! He was just trying to help, bless his little heart.

Now Lillian is babbling away and trying to tell us everything she's thinking. With the exception of a few words, we still have no idea what she's saying. We're waiting for the "baby talk" edition of the Rosetta Stone to come out. :) Her favorite word is baby (which she signs and says all day long). She also says mommy, mama, bath, bubble, night night, Paul (our neighbor friend), ball, bye, hi, wow, uh-oh, and owie. She refuses to say daddy or dada, but she says Bobby very clearly, and when you ask her "Where's Bobby?" she always points at him (she does the same thing when you ask "Where's Daddy," but she just won't say daddy!!).

The big news in Lillian's life is that she's almost 20 pounds (we're working on one pound per month), and she has two molars coming in!! Bobby noticed them today, which explains the fever she's had the last two days.

Bobby is almost done this semester. He has an OB/GYN test on Monday, then the new semester on the endocrine system starts on Tuesday- nice of them to give him a break, eh?? As always, he's doing well but always stressed. Fortunately, he's been able to spend more time at home studying than he did last year. We just decided to apply for an OMM fellowship at PCOM that would take place between his third and fourth year of school, adding on an extra year. We're ready to be done with med school and move into residency, but the fellowship would be a great experience and it would pay for 2 of the 5 years' tuition (plus a stipend for one year); it would also make him more competitive for residency applications. We should know some time in January if he's accepted. Cross your fingers and say your prayers for us!

I'm trying to think about what's new and exciting in my life. As I was in Target today I realized that I'm capable of steering a fully loaded shopping cart with one arm while holding a squirming child in the other- I consider that an accomplishment. :) On a more serious note, the most exciting thing I've been a part of recently is Obama's election this week as 44th president of our country. I was hesitant to be hopeful for his election (for fear of disappointment), but as we watched the results come in on Tuesday night I felt more and more relief wash over me. For the first time in a long time I am very proud of my country and the decision that it has made. I'm excited for our future, but especially for Lillian's, because this historic election has taken place so early in her life and it will surely set the precedent for more historic elections (and events) to come.

And on that note, I'll end this long-winded post!

Oh My Gosh!!

It's been 4 months to the day since I made my last posting! I knew that it had been a long time, but I would've bet my life that it hadn't been more than 2 months at the most. Holy smokes, where did all that time go?? I have tons of catching up to do. I sincerely apologize to anyone who might be anxiously waiting for an update....although I'm sure at this point everyone has given up and no longer checks my blog!! So if anyone is still out there, let me know!

SO MUCH has happened in the last four months. I wish I could start explaining it all now, but here's my dilemma- I promised myself that I would get to bed early tonight, and I'm already 18 minutes past-due my 10pm goal. So I will have to leave you waiting once again- sorry! But don't worry, I'll start writing the next blog entry in my head as I fall asleep. (I swear I've written about a million blog entries in my head, I just can't seem to get them down in writing...ah well). And I promise that I'll be back online manana to put my "mind blog" into my real blog! Buenas noches!

It feels good to be BACK!

Counting Calories

Whenever Lillian takes me out with her friend Caleb and his mommy (also named Amanda), everyone thinks they're twins! Despite the fact that they look nothing alike (except that they're both babies), this became a little concerning to me. Reason being: Caleb is 5 months (well, really 4 months and 29 days...but who's counting?) YOUNGER than Lillian. Granted, Caleb weighs more than Lillian does, but so do most 4 (and some 3) month olds. In fact, at Lillian's 6-month check-up in January she was "barely approaching" the 5th percentile, according to her doctor. So we have a small baby. Yay for me, who thinks the car seat alone is heavy enough!

At Lillian's 9-month check-up two weeks ago I was sure she was at least 13 pounds, maybe 14 pounds, but I knew that was probably wishful thinking. When the nurse put Lil on the scale (she wasn't very happy about it, by the way) Bobby and I were shocked to see that she was only 12 pounds, 11 ounces. "Bad Mommy Syndrome" hit me for a few minutes, but the pediatrician and Bobby reassured me not to worry about it. We were instructed to hike up Lillian's caloric intake to 1,000 calories per day (that's as much as a 1 year-old should have!) and to come back in 2 weeks for a weigh-in.

I went into Mommy On A Mission Super-drive. I stocked up on Lactose Free formula, oatmeal, and baby food. I made "Calorie Intake" charts and "Daily Summary" logs to record every single calorie that entered Lillian's little (but expanding!) tummy. Getting her to take the formula from a sippy cup was hard at first, but now she prefers that over me! (Don't worry, Lillian, I'll get over it). There were several nights that Bobby would be feeding her as she was falling asleep, but we kept spooning the calories in, determined to get her weight up. We spiked her food with mashed avocado and butter (sounds like a real Doran, huh?) and we snuck extra ounces of formula into every meal. Slowly but surely, we started to notice her belly pudge out a little bit. Caleb's mommy said Lillian finally had some "fat leg wrinkles" like Caleb (but not quite so many).

Yesterday was the big weigh-in day. I marched into the pediatrician's office with final exam-like anxiety- would I pass the test? Bobby and I eagerly watched on as Lil was lowered onto the baby scale. What would it be? Did all of our hard work pay off? When we saw the weight we practically jumped for joy- 14 pounds, 4 ounces! Little Lil gained nearly 2 pounds in 2 weeks. Now that's packing it in! Give her 2 more weeks and she just might catch up with Caleb! :)

Mommy and Daddy are relieved that Lillian is capable of gaining the weight she needs. We'll continue her diet (but I am resigning my efforts to record everything) until her 12-month check-up. This summer she just might fit into all those cute 9 and 12-month old dresses after all!

Round of Applause!

Lillian is a fast learner. Bobby and I taught her how to clap this morning, and now she's doing it all the time! It's so cute to see her two little hands hit together and make a soft clapping sound. She likes to hear other people clap, do it herself, then wait for encouragement (usually a "yay!" and more clapping from her audience), before doing it again. I captured her in action during lunch this afternoon. I'll try to catch her waving next time!

Lapse-i-dazy

Sorry for the lapse in postings! We had our big moving day last week and we're still working on getting everything settled in. Not to mention, our car needs major work, we bought a couch (I love craigslist!), and we're in the market for a portable dishwasher. Busy, busy. I can just see the $$ flying out of our banking account. *Sigh*

Despite the stress, this past week has been great. We love our new little home. It's cozy and cute. We wake up to the birds chirping every morning! My mom came to help us move on Wednesday, then my dad and sister arrived on Friday for a weekend visit. Of course, Lillian kept them entertained and "goo-goo ga-ing" the whole time! On Saturday we went for a walk around the Horticulture Center in Fairmount Park. Grandpa B carried Lillian around while she kicked her legs and waved her arms in delight. The grounds were beautiful! Everyone left on Sunday afternoon, but our friend Amanda (another Amanda!!) came Monday night. Lillian couldn't have been happier- more guests to adore her! :) We went back to the Horticulture Center on Tuesday and got to walk around the grounds at the Japanese House. I'm ready to move to Japan!

Now that things are settling back down and getting into a routine, I'm taking measurements for window blinds and pantry shelves. Finding a place to put everything is such a chore! Can't we just keep it all in boxes? ;)

These are some pictures from Amanda's visit. Pictures of our new place will be up soon!

You can see the BIG goldfish in the lower left corner.

Japanese House

All the petals made a pink, powdery blanket on the ground! They "rained" down on us while we were taking these pictures.

Amanda has such an artistic eye!

Lillian is at one with Mother Nature. :)

Little Lilly Lizzard . . .

. . . as Grandpa B now calls her! She is crawling around everywhere! When she's not crawling, she likes to stand up against chairs, her walker (she refuses to actually sit inside of it and wheel around), and all of the boxes that I'm packing. She'll hold on with one hand and squat down to pick stuff up, and she likes to shake her exersaucer to hear all of the toys rattle. Her favorite thing to do is to "walk" from her exersaucer, to the wall, to the refrigerator, to the dishwasher. I won't be surprised if she's walking soon- she seems ready for it!!

Temple Trip

On Saturday Bobby, Lillian and I went to the Washington, DC Temple. Four members from our ward went through for their own endowment. We gave one of them a ride, and given that it's a nice two hour trip there and back, we got to know him really well! The weather was beautiful and sunny (even a little hot!) and the session was wonderful. Some other members and their families went, too, including a few ladies who hadn't been in many years. Friends watched Lillian for us (along with about 10 other kids, all under the age of 6- they're angels!!) so Bobby and I could go in together. We haven't been able to do that since last June, right before we moved to Philly and Lillian was born. Afterwards we went to Neisha, our favorite DC restaurant near AU, with two of the families. We got home late and tired, but it was a great day. Now we're talking about setting up a monthly rotation group so there's always someone available to babysit while Mom and Dad can go to the temple together!

Lillian's Pearly Whites

I finally got a good picture of Lillian's two little teeth that are coming in!!

She put them to good use this afternoon and tore into a juicy pear (which is sticking to her nose in the picture). She had fun making a big mess all over the table and I had fun taking a million pictures of her!

My Testimony

I'm so grateful to be a woman, and to be a mom. I'm grateful for my husband who loves me. I'm grateful for the leaders of my church who value women and recognize the crucial role they play in society. I'm grateful for the women in my church who know who they are and how important they are. I'm grateful for my Savior and Heavenly Father who gave me a divine heritage and who want me to be happy.

I'm grateful for General Conference that we had last weekend and the opportunity to listen to the prophet and apostles of the Lord. You can hear their words, too (in 76 languages!); click here.

Reason to Celebrate

We finally got out of our lease! Yay! We'll be moving at the end of the month. Don't worry- we're not going far! The new place will be smaller, but cheaper and with a much more pleasant living environment. Fairmount Park will be our backyard (literally) and I hear that there's a family of deer that often come to visit. (Lillian will get to meet Bambi in the city!) :) I'm excited about moving, but not about packing. In fact, I think I should be more excited about the change, but I feel so stressed from the process of moving that it's taking away from this joyful occasion. I need to find a way to celebrate. Maybe tomorrow I'll take Lillian out for some ice cream, or we'll make a yummy dessert together (of course, I'll help her out by eating her share for her!) :) More details to come about the move . . .

Pink Lint

Every time I do Lillian's laundry, it makes pink lint. It's the cutest thing ever! I've never loved doing laundry so much!

Here's a cute picture just for the fun of it!



BTW, Danica Nelson took this photo about one month ago. You can see more photos on her website, DanicaPhotography.

A Leftie Among Us?

I just got done feeding Lillian a mid-afternoon snack of prunes and rice cereal, and now I'm sitting at the table giving her her favorite snack- peach puffs! I hand them to her one at a time so she can practice grabbing them with her fingertips (instead of clenching them in her fist, where they ultimately get lost and soggy, never to be eaten). I've noticed that she grabs most of the tiny, sweet, air-puffed treats with her left hand! Is she a leftie?? My dad is the only left-handed person I know of in my family. We might have to recruit him to teach her how to write her name and throw a baseball, as I am not very ambidextrous. Although I do remember my dad teaching me how to throw a ball when I was younger. He was my "mirror image"- I guess that turned out alright, because everyone said I could throw like a boy. Maybe there's hope after all for a left-handed daughter and a right-handed mom. :)

How to survive a sinking car

I had a dream last night that I was riding in a car that drove off a bridge and landed in the water. I woke up just as the water inside the car was rising and was about to cover my head. Drowning in a car that plunges off the side of a bridge is one of my biggest fears- just thinking about it makes me feel like I need to take a deep breath. However, I have no fear of bridges or water by themselves, and I have no problem driving over bridges. In fact, I love the water- it's beautiful! I grew up near the water and I want to live near the water. I just don't want to drown because I'm stuck in a car that's sinking!

So, due to this fear, I decided to look up some survival tactics in case I ever find myself in this situation. Basically, the best thing to do is to stay calm and break the window to get out. Here are some links with some more tips (in case you ever find yourself in this unlucky situation- which I hope you don't!):

How to survive a sinking car

Myth Busters video

BTW, the photo above is the sunrise on December 30, 2004 at Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware, where the mouth of the Delaware Bay feeds into the Atlantic Ocean. Bobby (my then-fiance, now-husband!) and I have a tradition of watching the last (or near last) sunrise of the year, preferably at the beach. It was absolutely freezing cold that morning, but one of the most beautiful and peaceful sunrises I've ever seen.

My Daughter's Eyes

Martina McBride has a song called "In My Daughter's Eyes" which says:

In my daughter's eyes I can see the future
A reflection of who I am and what will be
Though she'll grow and someday leave
Maybe raise a family
When I'm gone I hope you see how happy
she made me . . .

Although Lillian is crying her eyes out right now because she wants to be held and rocked to sleep (we're trying to break her of that habit), she makes me happier than I thought I could ever be. I love her more than I thought I was capable of loving. When I look into her eyes I see little "twinkling lights" and "blue stars," as her Grandpa B said when she was born. She is my life and my future, and I hope that some day when she grows up and looks into my eyes she will see them smiling back at her- telling her how special and loved she is.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

We took our first trip to the zoo on Thursday!! We got in for free with our friends' year pass (the best way to go!) There was hardly anyone there, so we got to see lots of animals up close. It was sunny and warm until the sun went down, but even then it wasn't too cold for early March.

In the monkey house, Lillian and I posed for a quick picture. She makes such a cute little monkey! One of the mama monkeys just had a baby, and we got to see her carrying around her little one, too.

After the monkeys, we saw hippos, rhinos and elephants. Then it was on to the big cats. There were lots of lions prowling about and we saw a beautiful black jaguar up close- he was pacing on the other side of the see-through wall directly in front of us! He was literally only inches away!



We saw three tall giraffes, and then Mommy's favorite safari animal- zebras! By the look on Lillian's face in the photo, she didn't seem too impressed (or maybe the sun was in her eyes).


After the fun afternoon, Lillian and her friend Caleb played on the couch together. Lillian was very interested in touching Caleb's hair and she continually tried to suck on his head. She even put her arm around him as he leaned into her. We'll have to keep an eye on those two! :)

Some recent pics of Lillian

I finally got a picture of Lillian sleeping in her crib.  My friend Alena made the quilt.  What a sleeping sweetie!

    This was taken one morning a few weeks ago.  She was playing on our bed, reaching for her chupie (aka binkie).  She's such a morning person!

 Lillian LOVED playing with this ball of yarn.  Maybe she'll be an early knitter or chrocheter!

 This was taken on my birthday when we had friends over for cake and ice cream.

   When Lillian turned 6 months old on January 23, we had a cupcake party.  She clearly isn't excited about growing up!

 Grandpa Barker and Aunt Audrey kept Lillian entertained during my surprise birthday party last month.

When we got home from church, Lillian fell asleep while I was feeding her.  When I stood up to put her in her crib, Bobby noticed her little hand making the I Love You sign! I think all my baby sign language is starting to pay off!

Lillian practices her social skills with her new friend Caleb Knickerbocker.

Daddy's little girl (who has him wrapped around her finger)!

Courage & Faith

Berit Price is the most amazing woman I know.  Her husband passed away on Friday, February 8.  They were only married a little over three years.  He was the bishop of our ward.  We quickly became friends after we moved to Philly and found out that they lived only half a mile from us.  

 A little over two weeks ago Berit revealed the severity of Rob's health condition to us.  He had been in and out of the hospital a lot over the past couple of  months, but we weren't really sure what was going on.  Doctors weren't hopeful about his condition, but Berit was.  Listening to her talk that night was humbling.  She knew her husband was close to death, but she was optimistic and her strong spirit was carrying her through.  She had the faith to make a miracle happen, but at the same time she knew Rob was on Heavenly Father's schedule and she was ready to accept whatever His plan might be.  As I watched Berit over the next couple of days, not knowing what the outcome might be, I was inspired by her positive attitude and the strong relationship she was developing with the Lord.  She was at peace, free from fear or resentment.

Over dinner later that night Berit told us some stories about their last day together.  She said it was the most joyous day a married couple could have had as their final time on earth.  She was holding him when he slipped away, telling him it was ok for him to go because they were sealed together.

At Rob's funeral his father-in-law told us that he and his wife had some concerns about Rob's health when Berit told them that they were getting married.  Her response was, "I would rather have one day with him than an eternity without him."  Their mortal days together may have been limited, but now she truly has an eternal life with him to look forward to.  

Berit's courage inspires me.  She is facing my greatest fear with astounding strength and unfailing faith.  I will always treasure the example that she is to me.

Free photo session and photos

A lady I go to church with is developing her photography talent.  She's offering free photo sessions and digital photos until spring.  So, if you live in the Philly area (or even if you don't), check her out at http://www.danicaphotograpy.blogspot.com.  Her work is beautiful!

We're paranoid parents!

I realized today that Bobby and I are typical paranoid first-time parents.  Last night Lillian developed a terribly congested nose which later turned into a nasty sounding cough.  She woke up more than usual during the night and stayed awake for more than two hours, not wanting me to put her down.  Pneumonia!  Bronchitis!  Or maybe (if we're lucky), it's just the flu!  We made an emergency appointment with her new pediatrician first thing in the morning.  Her doctor was great.  She looked Lillian over, then smiled at us and said, "It's just a little cold."  A few salt water nose drops and some good sleep would clear it right up.  The paranoid parents were relieved.  We let Lillian flirt with the third year med student for a few minutes (she was all giggles and dimples for him!) then we headed back home.

Now Lillian is trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in.  As I've been writing this she's woken up three times, all teary-eyed and coughing...poor thing.  She's finally settled on her side, which I hope will carry her comfortably through the rest of the night (or at least until the early morning hours when she wakes up for a feeding).

Some thoughts on death

I know it sounds grim, but I've been thinking about death a lot lately. Many of our friends have recently lost loved ones...a mother, a husband, an infant, a grandmother...just to name a few. I was thinking about this last night as I wrote in my journal. Here's a little bit of what I jotted down:

...there have been quite a few tragic, unexpected deaths in the past few months. [Our old ward in Delaware] is going to have a special Enrichment night entitled "I wasn't ready to say goodbye." I'm not sure there's anything you can do to be absolutely ready for the death of a loved one- and there's no way you can really know if you are in fact ready for it, unless it actually happens. There just aren't any "practice runs" to help you prepare. The only thing you can do is remind yourself that we're all here for a short time and that we're all going to die at some point along the way. It's part of Heavenly Father's plan; it has to be part of his plan- it wouldn't work without it. I know I would be stricken with unbelievable grief if anything were to happen to Bobby or Lillian. The only thing that would ultimately and completely help me through it would be my testimony and the gospel- nothing else would be strong enough to make me hold on. I hope I don't have to experience it any time soon, but I hope even more that I could bear it well if it were to happen.

Baby Coos & Poos

So here's the very first posting of my very first blog. This is inspired by my friends the Astons and the Knickerbockers (who are both much technologically cooler because they already have their own blogs), as well as by my dad. My dad always reads us entries from his journals during Christmas time. The stories about us are quite entertaining (much more humorous in retrospect than at the time, I'm sure). I asked my dad how and why he kept such a good record of our childhood, and he said he always wrote for an audience, whether for his own parents or for us kids to read some day. I hand write in my journal every night, which I enjoy, but it takes time- I don't have nearly enough time to sit down and write every great story that happens in my life. So this is my compromise. I will blog all of our interesting stories to share with you- my family and friends. And I will continue to write the boring, every day things in my journal at night. So here goes.... (and by the way, if you have any witty ideas for a blog name, by all means, please let me know.)

This is my story about baby coos and baby poos. Lillian (who will be 6 months old next week!) is developing her vocal strings and has come up with a new, high-pitched squealish type of noise. I'm not sure if it's a noise to express delight or frustrations- she seems to use it for both. But it's darn cute every time she belts it out. If I can figure out a way to post sound recordings on this thing I might give it a try so you can hear it too.

Now as for the poos....with the way things have been going the past couple of days, I'm not sure why we're spending money on diapers. A couple days ago Lillian piddled on the bathroom rug when Bobby was undressing her to get ready for a bath. This morning she piddled all over the changing table after Bobby took off her wet diaper and before he put the new one on. Poor Bobby, he was getting all the bad luck. But Lillian would not let it go unfair for long, as she evened the playing field later in the morning. She was sitting in her johnny jump-up (well actually she was dangling because she hasn't figured out how to jump yet) while I was taking my shower. When I got out she began to fuss a little. Upon picking her up and out of the johnny jump-up I felt something wet on my arm. At first I thought it must be my wet towel. But upon closer examination I noticed that Lillian's pj's were also wet...and smelly...and a little brownish. Oh joy! It was a yucky diaper with runny residue all over the place (probably the result of all the sweet potatoes she's been eating lately). Needless to say, I rushed her off to get wiped up and to take a bath. I had to hurry and wash off her toes before she stuck the defiled things in her mouth to vigorously suck on. Miraculously nothing got on the johnny jump-up. I guess babies have a way of making the poo stick to them, just like diapers have a way of not catching it all!