I've Been Thinking...

I'm so tired I don't think I'll ever get up. Dinner's in the oven and I don't even know what it is. Graham keeps calling and asking what we're having and all I can tell him is that "I think it's Italian." (I had some freezer meals saved up for nights like this--but this one just happened to not be labeled). :o)

It's been a bit of a rough week in the Crozier household. Isla's been under-the-weather with some nasty virus and just looks miserable with her watery eyes, cough and sneezes. Graham was either food poisoned (no, it WASN'T from my cooking!) or picked up some horrid GI bug from one of his patients that has completely wiped him out cold. Meanwhile, I think Isla passed her little ick to me and so I'm walking around with plugged ears, one runny nose and a constant headache (unfortunately I had to work the last two days in the midst of all this). We are all quite the sight, I must say! I will also say that it's gonna be another lively Friday night at our place. I just hope it tops last Friday (when we finally went on our first date without Isla in over a month and ended up coming home only 20 minutes later after I had to pull the car over so Graham could puke...)

Anyway, back to tonight. Graham just called on his way home from work and I think he's bringing me a "treat" (which is always either frozen yogurt or ice cream for those are you who are not in-the-know). A "treat," some Italian? food, the Olympics, baby sleeping, my hubby home...sounds quite nice.

But more importantly, about what I'd been thinking. As I've been caring for a sick Isla over the past few days, I've spent some time trying to hold her close and cuddle her. Sometimes she's completely willing. But there have been other times when she is beyond exhausted but absolutely refuses to rest her head on my shoulder and I'm left thinking "If only you realized it be so much easier if you just gave in!"

It all of a sudden hit me yesterday morning. This must be a lot like what God feels with me. He must spend so much time trying to hold me, get me to let go of my control (or really only my perception of control), get me to rest and let Him handle my worries and concerns. And I waste so much time fighting it. Sigh. What a great illustration these last couple days have been for me. I'm grateful for the lessons learned in my day-to-day life with Isla. Tonight, I'm going to hand it all over and rest!

Rattlesnake Ledge

On Sunday afternoon, we scurried up Rattlesnake Ledge for a quick initiation hike for Isla. Graham and I did this hike a couple months after we got married, took some fun photos and then proceeded to have our place broken into and both the camera and laptop stolen (and so lost the photos). It was an absolutely perfect day to recapture the view on camera. This time we went with our friends Jeremy and Rachel and their dog Clover. I carried Isla on my back on the way up and then on my front on the way down so she could snooze. She did great! Sure felt like summer...

Happy Half Birthday Isla!

Somehow 6 months has passed and it is Isla's very first half birthday. Where did the time go? We celebrated a bit early (yesterday) by starting her first solid food: AVOCADO! (More on that later...) I had meant to give her a candle or something in her avocado dinner today but we just didn't get to it. Oh well. Instead, in honor of her 6 months of life, I present to you 26 weeks of Isla (and Snowball, my childhood teddy bear)--she sure has changed!

26 Weeks

Our poor little Isla has caught something. She's had a runny nose for the past week and a half but then started coughing on Sunday. It sounds so miserable but she remains in fairly good spirits, if not a wee bit subdued. She stopped cuddling with me a long while ago and so I'm hopeful I will have the chance to snuggle her in the next couple days and NOT have her fight and pull her head off my shoulder.

This seems to be the week of new sounds. Isla's latest include a very high puppy-whining or cat meowing sound she makes with her mouth closed. She does it when she is unhappy and the pitch of it also makes her mamma unhappy. Graham has a key-finder contraption that is supposed to beep when you whistle for it. It has been going off when Isla whines--her new sound is that high!

Isla has started making humming sounds when she is excited or enjoying herself. I've noticed that she especially begins humming when I take her outside in the frontpack. It's like she's absorbing everything around her and the humming is the sound effect of her brain processing.

Isla went on her first hike on Sunday afternoon. We hiked up to Rattlesnake Ledge with our friends Jeremey and Rachel and their dog Clover. I carried Isla on my back on the way up and on my front so she could nap on the way down. It was a 1.9 mile hike each way so it was on the easier end to break us in. It was actually quite steep but certainly doable. She loved it and hummed pretty much the whole way up.

My mom discovered that Isla likes it when you hold your pointer and thumb together and make buzzing sounds, pretending it is a bee flying around. Talk about cheap entertainment! She will literally track your fingers as they "fly" around and tries to bat at them. Crack up!

Isla is doing really well with her sit up practice. She's probably sat up for a minute straight once or twice but then there are also times when she falls after two seconds. I can tell she's really building muscle in her core though.

I think our little baby is ready to be a big girl. She saw her Daddy's empty drinking glass and literally almost threw herself out of his arms to try and grab it. When he finally gave in and handed it to her, she grabbed it with both hands, immediately brought it to her lips and tipped her head back to "drink." Whoa. She's been watching us!

This may sort of go along with the bee thing. I accidently discovered that Isla seems to like to sound of the letter "B" this week. I was reading her a book of "Baby's First Words" with picture on each page. Watch and see. She doesn't find any other word to be funny except for the ones that start with "B." Oh and notice her extra special grin when I say the word "Boy." :o)

My Garden 2010

Some girls can't be trusted in shoe stores. Other can't be trusted in the handbag section. Still others can't even go to the mall unsupervised. I guess I'm not the stereotypical girl because my secret indulgence is the garden store. I realized on Friday that I should never be allowed to go alone! It's kind of like the "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" story...then he'll want milk etc etc. If you send me to the garden store to pick up some beet seeds, then I'll want to buy lettuce seeds and pepper seeds and herb seeds and oh maybe a hunk of rhubarb root. But wait, what about more dahlia bulbs? I think I'm running low. Watermelon seeds? I'm sure I need that too. You get the idea. Yesterday I was pretty responsible with my purchases and tried to stick to only the "essentials." I left Molbaks after spending a mere $17 (Graham will be so proud, especially we'd only discussed my buying beet seeds).

Anyway, so like the rest of the world, this sunshine tease has really got me thinking about my little garden patch. I was a good girl this year and asked permission from my home owners association to fill one of the empty beds that borders the outside of our townhome (yes, I already sinned and planted in some of the other beds but thought I should ask this year. I don't know what I was so afraid of. Everyone gave me an unanimous "Yes!" as it will be for the beautification of the property.) So, as my Christmas/Half Birthday/Valentines Day/Groudhog Day (did I get them all this time, Mom?) present, I got to order some perennials. I perused my Bluestone Perennial catalog and picked out some favorites that supposedly grow in part shade (this bed has never grown much successfully as I think it is more shady than I thought). Come spring, the following should arrive at my doorstep:

Hosta Blue Cadet

Astilbe Red Sentinel

Aquilegia Canadensis

Dicentra Spectablis Rosea

Viola Chantreyland

I can't wait! As for my purchases on Friday, I picked up seeds for both red and golden beets which I planted in a planter (so we can have plenty to make our favorite Beet Salad many times throughout the summer. I also grabbed some romaine lettuce, mixed greens, cilantro and basil seeds for my pots. I was even swayed into buying a rhubarb starter (which I have actually been wanting to a long time) but the kicker is that I'm going to try and grow it in a large pot since I don't have the dirt real estate for it in my meager garden space. The Molbak lady said it was worth a shot trying it in a large pot. I'm bound and determined to try to grow at least enough to make my husband's favorite pie, the famous Crozier Rhubarb Custard!

France?

Graham told me yesterday that I'm all over the place. It's probably true. As Isla's passport photos indicated (which by the way, we didn't even get to use because they said her head was too big!!), we are toying with the idea of doing a wee bit of traveling either next month or in June during Graham's school breaks. I have the itch. At first we were thinking of running off to Mexico for 4-5 nights in March if we could find a cheap, all-inclusive deal in a touristy area (SOOOOO not like me to eat all my meals in one place and to go a touristy local). But, I was dying for sunshine. And a beach. And some time away. It is going to be our 3rd anniversary after all.

Then Graham suggested that we fly to France instead during his 3 week break in June. Sounds nice, huh? What's even more shocking is that he suggested we go in HIGH season when everything is EXPENSIVE. What happened to my thrifty man? (He told me, that as of Sunday, he's no longer cheap...) How on earth would we afford this you ask? Good question! I'm not quite sure, to be honest. After doing a little research, it's looking more pricey than I'd hoped. Thankfully, Uncle Sam is being very good to us this year and our tax return is looking lovely so there still is a sliver of a chance...My logical side says "Put it in savings for a down payment on a house" but when you think about it, is it ever really going to be cheaper to do this? I mean, right now we could fly with Isla FOR FREE. We could still stay in rooms that sleep two. It's pretty much go now or wait 15 years until our yet-to-be-determined number of children are all weaned and safe to leave with the grandparents.

Anyway, so I've spent numerous hours on cheaptickets, travelzoo, expedia, rick steves etc etc, looking for deals. I keep looking at Mexico in March and then change my mind and look at France in June. Then go back. Hence Graham's accusation that I'm all over the place. I'm having a hard time being willing to pay the high season prices in France. But it'd be so fun...

I took a brief survey at work. Of all two people I surveyed, the concensus was unanimous that we should blow our entire tax return and JUST DO IT! So, a question: have you traveled to France? What itinerary might you recommend? Any favorite places to stay? Tips? Maybe you can help sway me...

25 Weeks

I think we're in trouble. Isla LOVES boys. Of any age. Girls/women/ladies will try to make her smile with or without much luck. But when a boy walks in the room, she's all grins.

Isla attended her first basketball game last Thursday (her Uncle Ben's). She startled every time the buzzer went off but did not cry. However, she screams and begins crying when the congregation at church claps or laughs collectively....go figure.

See previous post. Isla went in a pool for the very first time! She also attended her first baby shower this week for a good childhood friend who is also expecting her firstborn, a girl.

Isla spent her first full day in the care of her Daddy on Thursday while I worked (this will be an every other week occurrence in the future). They had a good day together.

Isla is really into other babies. If one is nearby, she reaches out for them, smiles and "talks." It is so adorable. Usually, the other baby of interest is a boy (of course) and in most cases is not thrilled by her attention and begins to cry. I'm guessing this situation will repeat itself over. And over. And over. Pretty much until middle school or after with the same story: boys running from her attention until they finally decide it's ok to admit that girls do not have cooties.

Our beautiful daughter is sporting quite bald spot along with a lovely the mullet. Please, do not use the following picture as blackmail in the future. I'm posting it because I feel it needs to be documented. Unfortunately, her outfit is covering up the mullet but you can see her bald spot. Thankfully, her hair is actually growing back everywhere except for here. (Of note, see what she's watching? An interview with Apolo Ono!)

Creative Valentines

Valentine’s Day this year looked a little different than years’ previous. I am currently perched on the 29th floor of the downtown Seattle Sheraton. I’ve got a cup of Starbucks, a hubby reading USA Today in the sunshine by the window, and a baby napping in the crib next to me. We had a few airline miles that were expiring (not enough to get a plane ticket) so we decided to “spend” them on a hotel and so got a free (sort of) night here. I thought about trying to find someone to take Isla for the night, but then decided a family “date” might be more fun.


Before checking into our hotel, we enjoyed brunch after church with our good friends, Jeremy and Rachel, at the new South Lake Union Portage Bay Café. Graham had dungeness crab cakes benedict and I had fried eggs, chicken sausage and brioche French toast with berries, almonds and whipped cream-yum! Part of the reason I was SO EXCITED about coming here was to take Isla SWIMMING for the very first time. The hotel’s website boasted a heated pool but it turned out only to be “heated” if you were comparing it to water coming from a garden hose. But we put Isla in her ADORABLE swimsuit anyway, took lots of pictures, and then she “swam” for a total of about one minute and thirty seconds before she started to cry. Oh well. I’m convinced that she really will love it when we find a pool that is actually heated (which will have to be soon because I have 11 more swim diapers to use!)

For our romantic dinner, we walked to grab some Thai takeout, put Isla down in the hotel crib, turned on the Olympics, popped a bottle of Champagne and ate Pineapple Curry and Pad Thai on our bed. Honestly, I don’t think I could have dreamed up anything better! Oh and I’d packed a bar of dark chocolate with sea salt that we enjoyed for dessert. Seriously, a great evening.

This morning, Isla woke us up and so we let her hang out with us in bed before walking to Starbucks for some breakfast. After Isla’s done napping, I think we are going to do a little shopping...

We kinda worked the system for this overnight date and somehow managed to do it and only forked over about $40. Beats restaurant prices on V Day, doesn't it?

24 Weeks

Isla is learning new tricks everyday. I know I will probably say this many times again in the future, but THIS is my favorite stage so far! Isla is so interactive, her curiousity is developing and another biggie in my books, she's found a really good routine.

One thing that I keep forgetting to mention is that she's learned how to put her binkie in all by herself. If the binkie is in sight and in reach, it will end up in her mouth! If only she could figure out how to find it in the dark in the middle of the night....sigh.

Isla has started touching, feeling and grabbing people's faces and mouths this past week or two. It's pretty cute! On Sunday (which was a complete melt down day), I decided to lay on the bed with her in hopes we both could take a nap. I tried to sleep. She didn't seem to be trying very hard and spent pretty much the whole time playing with my face while I tried to keep my eyes closed. Too adorable.

Our doctor was SO RIGHT about sleep! She told us Isla's morning nap would be the most essential and that we should plan our day around it to make sure she gets a good one. And it's true! There have only been a few days when she has missed this nap and they have been HORRID, crank fests! In general though, if we keep to our schedule, she goes down now without even fussing-it's so great.

Isla has been waking consistantly at 1 or 2 AM each night. She doesn't need to eat (she's still going from about 6 PM to 4 or 5 AM without feeding) and usually just wants her binkie and then falls right back asleep. Unfortunately, we are not down with this middle-of-the-night-binkie-giving activity and so are working on nipping it in the bud this week. This means turning off the monitor and trying to "ignore" her until she goes back asleep. :o( 

We're saving a lot of $$$ on diapers and wipes these days because Isla's digestive system seems to have slowed over the past month. This may be TMI for some, but she only poos once or twice a week now and you have to be READY when it happens. If you catch her in time and stand her up during the process, you can save her clothes from stainage. I'll admit I have heard the action through the monitor during one of her naps and literally dropped everything and RAN to hold her upright to avoid a huge mess. On that note, I'm out! :o)