A Whirlwind of a Holiday--Part 1

To prevent boredom or lulling readers to sleep I will post several entries about Christmas..read as little or as much as you like..consider this Part 1

Wow....since the last time I blogged we have been to a lot of places, have had the chance to see a lot of relatives and friends from home, and have been on a few interesting adventures. Our first adventure began on Tuesday evening when we headed home to southern Indiana despite the icy and nasty weather. We headed south first through Illinois hoping that going south first would keep us out of some of the worst road conditions. We did manage to avoid some of the icy roads, but ended up stretching the usual 5 hour drive into a 7 hour slide & drive. As we drove further south, the road conditions did improve and we made it home without any issues..thank goodness. Addy was very good throughout the trip and slept most of the way. Needless to say, when we arrived at my parents' house at midnight, she was wired and ready to go. My parents were awake and eagerly awaiting the arrival of Addy....they were glad that Derek and I made it too. Since she was so wound up, we let her play for a little while. In that short 45 minutes of play time Adalyn managed to break the shepard from my parents' nativity scence in two. Yes..a clean break that separates that shepard right at the waist. Even though we were very tired from the trip, we had a good laugh at the fact that the nativity set had survived for 28 Christmases without being broken or damaged, yet hadn't managed to survive one Addy Christmas. This may be a sign of things to come.....

We spent Christmas Eve with my family at their house. Grandma Heilers and Derek's mom also joined us for the evening. Before the festivities at my parents house, we exchanged gifts with Derek's mom. Addy emjoyed opening her presents and climbing on all the boxes. At my parents' house we exchanged presents and Addy had a special visit from a man in a red suit. Even though he had a bag full of toys for her, Addy was still a bit leary of Santa. It took a long time for her to warm up to him and after some coaxing and trickery, we finally got her to sit on his lap, but not for very long. She did try to touch his furry suit serveral times and made several reaches for his wire rimmed classes. Addy had a lot of fun playing with her gifts from everyone. Santa gave Adalyn a drum full of instruments, a bounce and spin pony, a balltivity table, and books. She was having so much fun that she didn't want to go to bed and hit a brick wall at about 9:30 and fell sound asleep.

On Christmas morning Addy gave us a very special Christmas gift....she slept until 7:30! We were thrilled! I guess all of the interaction with her family and toys really took its toll and tuckered her out! On Christmas Day we had a big meal at my parents' house and then went to visit Derek's mom. Addy had another fun -filled day of playing with all of her new toys and did her best to a prolong bedtime. Most of Christmas Day was spent playing with toys and spending time with our families. Addy loved going from toy to toy and having so many people to play with her. I am afriad that she got a bit spoiled from all of the attention. Our poor babysitters will be pulling their hair out next week!

On Friday we went to my mom's family Christmas at my Uncle Pat and Aunt Denise's house. It was really great to see all of our relatives on that side. We were unable to make it to their Christmas celebration last year and many people saw Addy for the very first time. It was great visiting and cathcing up with everyone. Once again, Adalyn took full advantage of all of the attention and got very tuckered out from all of the playing!

I will stop here and continue with Christmas part 2 tomorrow....:)

Make a Smilebox slideshow

The Weather Outside is Frightful...

This week has been bitterly cold in central Illinois. We had to deal with ice and snow for most of the week, which made our long commutes a bit longer. Derek's mom was scheduled to head back on Tuesday, but decided stay until Wednesday because of the threat of bad weather. Towards the end of the week, our baby sitter in Rochester and her family were bitten by that awful flu bug that seems to be EVERYWHERE. Luckily our Atlanta sitter was available to watch Addy for part of the day Thursday and Derek took off on Thursday and Friday to stay home with Addy. So, Addy got some extra Daddy time this week.

I survived my last week of school before winter break. Although it seemed like a very long week, the students behaved considerably well considering the circumstances of a whole week of inside recess and holiday hype. I am so excited to be on winter break for 2 weeks!

This weekend was a very busy one for us. On Friday we visited our friends Kelley and Ray and their 18 month old daughter Evelyn. Kelley is due to have their second child any day now and we wanted to see them before we headed home to Indiana. We had a great time visiting with them and we enjoyed watching Adalyn and Evelyn interact with each other.

On Saturday Addy and I ran errands at the mall, which was an absolute NUT HOUSE, while Derek went to the office to catch up on some work. Later that evening our friend Kim watched Adalyn while Derek and I went to dinner and ran a few more errands. Kim gave Addy an interactive easel for Christmas that she loves to play with. Addy had a great time with Kim and Olive and we are so thankful that Kim is so willing to watch her when we are in need of a sitter.

On Sunday the temperature dropped significantly. So, we decided to stay inside all day. We had an early Christmas morning and exchanged presents with each other. We decided to open gifts early so that Adalyn (and her mommy and daddy) had time to play with her gifts and so we wouldn't have to tote all of the gifts to Indiana. Adalyn had a good time opening her gifts and loved the wrapping paper. Her favorite parts of the gifts were the wrapping paper and boxes. We also straightened the house and I made a batch of sugar cookies to take to Derek's office for a lunch on Tuesday. It was a wonderful early Christmas celebration. I am glad that we stayed home and didn't brave the -1 degree weather!

This week we are headed to the Hoosier state. Due to turtle-like internet access at our parents' houses, the blog will not be updated until sometime after we return on the 30th. We would like to wish our friends and family a safe and wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

Counting down the days...

Yes, we are counting down the days until Christmas break! I can't wait to spend Adalyn's first Christmas with our families. The second graders are getting awfully squirrely and with each day that we cross off of the December calendar we get less and less accomplished in the classroom. At this point in second grade, its all about SURVIVAL! This week was kind of a blur. On Tuesday I was scheduled to have my last college class of the semester only to drive all the way to Bloomington to discover that it was cancelled..grrrr! Oh well, at least I am done until January!

Derek's mom came to visit this week and watched Addy for a few days because our sitters needed off. On Friday Derek and his mom took Adalyn for her 9 month appointment. As we know..Addy is a growing girl. She weighed 23 lbs 13 oz and measured at 30.5 inches long. She was greater than 97th percentile for height and weight. She can now begin to eat table foods and her sixth tooth appears to finally be breaking through on the top of her mouth.

As for the rest of the weekend. Derek and I went to his work Christmas party on Friday evening. It was a wonderful time and it was good to get some much needed quality adult time. On Saturday we piled into the car and headed to Shedd aquarium in Chicago. Adalyn enjoyed her time at the aquarium and loved looking at all the colorful fish. She bumped her head on the glass several times as she tried getting a closer look. We also make a quick stop at IKEA on the way home. Addy enjoyed riding in the cart and waving and talking to all of the shoppers. We purchased a tent at IKEA for Addy and got it out when we got home. She loves crawling through it and playing in it. On Sunday I finished shopping, and addressed Christmas cards. We also did some much needed straightening of the house and loads of laundry.

Lights...Camera...and Olive the other reindeer

This weekend was quite eventful and full of holiday fun. On Saturday I headed out early in the morning to do some Christmas shopping. In the evening we took Addy to the East Peoria Festival of Lights. It is a really neat festival that takes place all around the city, but the highlight is the Christmas light display in the park. Addy got to meet Santa, which was not a happy time for her. She was crying before she hit the lap. The only pictures we managed to take were all of her being held by Derek and crying. After the Santa visit we headed to the park to see the lights. It was great! We had never seen so many neat light displays. The line was VERY long and we crept in the car through the park. Since we were going so slowly, I was able to hold Addy in the back seat on my lap. She loved looking at all of the light displays. She did a lot of oohhing and awwing and dancing to the Christmas music on the radio. She got a little cranky toward the end due to the late night and the need for her bedtime bottle, but all in all it was a great success! I see it becoming a holiday tradition for the Freihaut family in the future!

Scenes from the Festival of Lights--East Peoria, IL

This weekend we also had Addy's Christmas pictures taken. You can certainly tell that she is beginning to be leary of strangers because the photographers had a terrible time trying to get her to crack a smile. They had to work very hard. In the end, they were able to get several good poses. Adalyn also got her first visit from St. Nick this weekend. She wasn't quite sure why there were toys put in front of her in a bright red stocking, but she enjoyed them once she figured out how to get them out. She took a liking to the new walker toy she got and was walking around the house and pushing it in no time. She hasn't mastered steering yet, but she's working on it!

We also had a very special visitor this weekend--our friend Kim's dog--Olive. She stayed with us from Friday until Sunday evening. Although Addy really likes Olive and thinks she is really neat, Olive spent most of the time running away from a tail pulling, poking, hitting, bone stealing nine month old. Addy kept pointing and laughing at Olive and at one point tried to give her a kiss on the nose.
We had a wonderful weekend! It is so much fun watching Adalyn experience her first holiday season! I wish that we could have a few more days in the weekend to spend together! Oh well only 2 more weeks until Winter Break! That is if I survive the crazy month of December with 24 second graders..please pray for me:)

Adalyn's First Turkey Day

This weekend we headed home to celebrate Thanksgiving with our families in Indiana. We went home on Wednesday evening and got to Indiana late. Addy did very well on the long drive and slept most of the way. On Thursday we spent the day at Grandma and Grandpa Schum's house. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving meal. Unfortunately we didn't get to give Addy many tastes because she was still getting over her sickness. The weather was beautiful, so we decided to take Addy outside to enjoy it. She took a wagon ride around her grandma and grandpa's yard--which she loved! We spent the rest of the day watching football and relaxing.

On Friday my mom, sister, and I braved the crazies and set out on a Black Friday shopping excursion. We encountered a few crazy long lines and only saw one irrate shopper. We spent a long time shopping and came home with a car load full of goodies. On Friday night, our families were hit by the flu bug, which was probably brought home by us. It was crazy--my whole family and Derek's mom all got sick at some point on Friday night or Saturday morning. Since, everyone in the two households was sick and we didn't want Addy to get sick again, we decided to cut our visit short and head home to Illinois early Saturday. We hated to infect and run, but we didn't want to experience another weekend like we had already had the previous weekend!

So we had all Sunday to get back in to the routine of things and do some things around the house. Sunday morning I woke up to the pitter patter of little feet and hands coming up our stairs. Addy climbed up our entire staircase to come see me (of course Daddy was close behind). The stairs are her new discovery and she loves to crawl to them and climb on them. She is certainly a dare devil! Teething has really hit Addy with full force. She is working on two more top teeth, which would make six in all. Saturday night was a tough night for her because she was in a lot of pain from her teeth coming through. We also had our first snowfall of the year, which made Addy very excited! In the evening we decorated our Christmas tree. It was certainly a busy and eventful weekend full of lots of family time and relaxing. We are also happy that our famliies are feeling better and that the sickness didn't keep them down for too long.

Chicken soup, sprite, and lots of rest

Okay...so I missed my Sunday night deadline--AGAIN! However, I had a good reason this time. This weekend our family was bit by the dreaded flu bug. It started with Addy waking up feeling not so good and after a few days of feeling yucky, she decided to show us how well she can share and gave it to us on Saturday evening. On Sunday Addy was feeling much better and wanted to crawl all over the place, while her mommy and daddy were feeling not so hot on the couch and setting up furniture barriers within our family room to keep her confined and slow her down. I was still feeling yucky today, so I stayed home with Adalyn today. Tommorrow our schedule will return to normal--thank goodness!

On the tooth front, Addy is working on her second tooth on the top. It is poking through. It also looks like a third one on the top is on its way. Addy has started to wave and give kisses. This evening we worked with her on rolling the ball back and forth with Daddy. She really enjoyed the game, but needs more work on her aim!

This week we will be heading home to Indiana to celebrate Thanksgiving with our families. While Mommy is very excited about shopping on Black Friday, Daddy has decided that Addy is the perfect excuse to stay home in bed. Sorry this post is SO boring! There are no pictures worthy of posting from our flu filled weekend. I'm sure our visit home will supply lots of material for the next post!

A day (or two) late and a dollar short...

Okay...so I broke my streak of consecutive Sunday night posts...but better late than never I guess! I have been catching flak from a few regular readers (KIM!) so here is a short entry to hold you over until the weekend. Last week is a bit of a blur....Derek returned home from Buffalo on Wednesday and brought Addy this cute stuffed teddy bear refrigerator magnet, which she loves and grabs off the fridge all of the time. Of course Addy got a spiffy souvenir from Daddy, but Mommy came up empty handed...can you say--Daddy's girl?

Addy has been teething like a champ. Her first top tooth started to break through last week, which made her want to chew on everything in sight. We also weighed Addy over the weekend and measured her at a whopping 25 pounds. We're very curious to see what her"official" weight is at her Doctor appointment in early December.

This weekend I spent a lot of time working on various papers for my grad class. I have 2 papers due very soon. I spent most of Sunday at the ISU library with my research partner working on a paper that is due the first week of December. As we were working, I couldn't help but glance around at all the other students with all of their high-tech gadgets and feel very OLD! Just more motivation for me to finally finish my Masters! Yes, the end is in sight! Needless to say, Derek and Addy had a great time at home playing, watching the Colts, and napping, napping, and napping. From the pictures I posted you can tell that it was a very stressful day for Derek! Although I have fallen off the wagon and was late to post this week...I promise to do better next Sunday!

Lots of Visitors and an Early Thanksgiving

This week has been very crazy. On Tuesday Addy went in with Derek to the booth to vote. Although she had no idea what was going on...she loved to play with the curtain while her daddy attempted to fill out his ballot with one hand while holding his very active daughter in the other. She even got an official "I voted" sticker. This week I also checked parent teacher conferences off of my list of things to do. On Thursday and Friday I held 21 conferences with parents. That amounts to a whole lot of talking! I am so glad to have them out of the way!

This weekend Addy's Grandma Freihaut, Uncle Cory and Aunt Courtney came to visit for an early Thanksgiving celebration. We were really glad to see all of them! It had been quite a while since Addy had seen her aunt and uncle and she gave them a warm welcome. She certainly enjoyed all of the attention! Cory even gave Addy her lunch. However, Addy didn't give him the opportunity to change a dirty diaper, which really disappointed us!

Adalyn is really becoming a mover and a shaker. She is crawling at alarming speeds and is getting into everything and anything. Recently she has taken a liking to an empty diaper box, which has caused me to consider taking back all of those Christmas gifts to exchange them for a large refrigerator box! She is also pulling up on anything. She recently started standing up against flat surfaces and she no longer needs anything to latch on to in order to pull herself to a standing position. On Saturday she began to pay more attention to her baby basketball goal that her mom has been faithfully placing in front of her for months now. She made her first unassisted basket (with her left hand!) and them proceeded to make many more over the weekend. I'm not sure that I have ever cheered so loudly:) It was a proud mommy moment! I have a attached a video of one of the baskets below. Note: it is not the very first basket as I was not prepared and did not have the camera out at the time.

I do have Monday off of school. Derek will be leaving for a business trip to Buffalo. He will be gone until Wednesday. Derek's mom has been nice enough to stay until Wednesday and watch Addy while I work on several papers and attend class on Tuesday. Thank goodness for all of our visiting family members and close friends who have helped us out during our crazy busy schedules! I don't think that we would survive without them!

AIR ADDY!

Addy and her Aunt and Uncle

Lunch with Uncle Cory

Addy's fancy new toy!

Happy Halloween!

This weekend was full of visitors and fun outings. Addy's Grandma Freihaut left on Wednesday after being here for a week. Late Thursday night, Addy's Grandma and Grandpa Schum arrived for an extended weekend visit. Addy got to stay home with grandma and grandpa all day Friday. They even took her to the grocery store in a nearby town. Adalyn certainly had changed since the last time my parents got to see her. They found her very entertaining! I think Addy, grandma, and grandpa all enjoyed their time together on Friday.

We had beautiful weather for Addy's first Halloween. We ended up putting her in her bumble bee costume and taking her out in the neighborhood and around town to a few houses. She suprinsingly kept the antennae on for most of the evening with little protest. We didn't stay out too long because we wanted to get home to see all the trick-or-treaters. We get quite a few in our neighborhood! Addy loved greeting all of the kids and laughed, smiled and pointed at them. Addy didn't get to taste any of the candy that she collected, but she enjoyed playing with it and looking at the shiny wrappers. By the end of the night she was really worn out and had had enough Halloween.

Saturday we went to Bloomington with grandma and grandpa to run some errands. We went to a chinese restaurant and Addy certainly made her presence known. She is much more of a challenge to take to restaurants now. Gone are the days of the sleeping baby in the infant carrier...that's for sure!

We had a great weekend are are so glad that Addy's grandparents could come up for a visit. We are looking forward to seeing more family as we travel home to Indiana over the Thankgiving and Christmas holidays.

Addy and her friend Sarah

Addy and Grandma Schum

Trick-or-treating in our neighborhood

Little Miss Personality

Since Addy had been crawling she has really developed quite a personality! It seems as though she is much happier now that she is mobile and can take herself where she wants to go. She is always smiling and laughing and loves getting into things that she's not supposed to get into! She has mastered that sheepish grin when she's doing something she's not supposed to and loves to keep her mommy and daddy on their toes! This week seemed to fly by because we were so busy. Derek was out of town on business at the beginning of the week, which proved to be especially challenging in the mornings. Addy and I were both so happy when he returned! Adalyn's Grandma Freihaut came up for a weekend visit and watched Addy all day Friday while we went to work. It was great for Addy to have time with her grandma. She will also be staying a few days this week to help us out with watching Addy when Derek has a meeting out of town and I have class. We are so thankful to have her here to help us out during our Crazy October! This week I handed out reports cards to my second graders....check that off of my long list of things to accomplish during the next few weeks. This week I will be working on preparing for parent-teacher conferences and writing papers for my grad class.

This past weekend we visited the Peoria Zoo. The zoo is preparing to open a brand new section called Africa in the summer. We were able to take a tour of the facilities before the animals arrived, which was really neat. We even got to go into the lion exhibit. While visiting the petting zoo, Addy took a liking to the pony they had there. She just kept laughing at him and pointing. It was so cute! Maybe she would like a pony for Christmas! This weekend we also made our jack-o-lantern for our front porch. I really wanted to take a few pictures of Addy with it outside, but the hurricane like winds in Central Illinois prevented us from attempting that. We had to settle with a few pictures on our kitchen table!

Papers to grade + research + report cards = a lack luster blog entry

Ok..this week's entry is going to be short and sweet because things are beginning to get a bit crazy around here. This weekend we ran many errands that needed to be completed in Bloomington. Addy was quite the well-behaved shopper and is beginning to love her rides in shopping carts! We managed to find time to stop for lunch at Culver's so Addy could eat and enjoy the great aquarium they have in the dining area. I have included a few pics of her checking out the fish. On Sunday we did a lot of work around the house. I graded papers, started on report cards, and did a few hours of research for my paper for my grad class. In between chores we got lots of Addy time in. She has become a super-crawler in a matter of a week. She is getting into anything and everything and had started to pull up on furniture and anything else that will support her. Today while I was folding laundry she pulled herself up on the laundry basket and then tried to dive in...head first. I know that I really encouraged Addy to be mobile and couldn't wait for her to crawl.....wow....I really didn't know just what we were in for!

Adalyn's personality is shining through more and more everyday. She loves to point out things and get excited about them. She has started to pay more attention to books..which makes her mommy very excited! Every day with her is a new adventure and we are really enjoying being her mommy and daddy. Derek is going to be traveling a lot over the next few weeks and I am going to start getting really busy with school and my grad class. Even though our schedules will be hectic we will always be looking forward to Addy time! She certainly helps us keep everything into perspective!

I have posted a few pictures of Addy and the fish below. If I have time this week I will post additional pics! Happy Fall!!

A weekend of firsts.....pumpkin patch, weenie roast..and CRAWLING!

Yes.....Addy is officially crawling! It all started on Friday night after we returned from a fun afternoon at Tanner's Orchard. We were playing with Addy and winding down for the night and she decided go travel across the room to get to a small pumpkin that her babysitter had bought her. It was a very proud moment for mom and dad! We thought that we had already started to babyproof the house, but we learned alot this weekend! Addy seems to have an attraction for all things electronic! I have included a video from her crawling on Monday evening.

This weekend Addy and I enjoyed a four day weekend! It was wonderful. On Friday Addy and I went to the portrait place to get Addy's picture taken in her halloween costume. I am going to wait to post those pictures closer to halloween to keep you in suspense! Derek took a half-day on Friday and went with us to Tanner's apple orchard and pumpkin patch. It was a beautiful afternoon. We made the trip out to the patch to choose three pumpkins and checked out all of the funs things to do. Addy's made faces at the llamas, sat on a tractor, got her first taste of a frozen cider slush (yum yum!) and played on the giant pumpkins with her friend Charli. By the end of the day we were all worn out!

On Saturday we went to another fall festival--Spoon River. Addy had a great time cruising in her stroller. We actually managed to not buy Addy anything from the festival, which was unintentional and unusual!

On Sunday we went to Adalyn's first weenie roast at Mel and Bob's house. Many of our Rochester friends were there to take part in the festivities! Angie managed to give Addy a few tastes of icing, which I blamed for her being very energetic later in the evening!

We ended the weekend with a restful Monday. However, Addy did get her first of two flu shots. She took is like a pro and didn't even cry! She's much better at taking shots than her mom. We ended the weekend feeling rested, but wishing every weekend was a four days long!

Enough of Dada already..what about Mama?

This week Adalyn turned 7 months old. This week she has really started talking. Everything and enveryone is Da da. I have been working hard to get her to say Mama, but she isn't having it. She continues to get up on her knees as if she is going to crawl and then proceeds to dive forward at the object in her radar. She has the motions of the knees and hands down, now all she has to do is get them to function together. This weekend we began the process of baby proofing, but still have a ways to go.

On Friday after school Addy and I made another big purchase for her (one of many). We bought her a new carseat because she is quickly outgrowing her infant carrier and will soon exceed its weight and heigth limitations. Addy and I managed to walk out of Babies-R-Us with only the carseat, which was a monumental occasion for me. Usually the clothes or accessories always get me!

On Saturday we went to Bloomington to run errands. Derek had a few things to take care of at the office, so Addy spent some time there with him as I went to a few stores. Addy enjoyed her time at the office with daddy. She checked out the unfamiliar surroundings and liked sitting in her daddy's chair. It was a pretty uneventful week as far as outings go. We spent a lot of time playing with Adalyn and working in the house. We are looking forward to next week because Addy and Mommy have a four day weekend (sorry Daddy)!

Hello Tooth and Baby-Proofing!

This week was another busy week in the Freihaut house. Addy's bottom tooth is almost all the way through and she continues to chew on everything in sight. Addy and I played a lot of Peek-a-Boo this week. She loves to cover her face up with a blanket and wait for me to ask "Where's Addy?" It has become one of our favorite pastimes!

This week Addy really started to move all around the house to get to things. I think that she managed to scoot or roll herself within reach of every plant in the house. She also readily goes from laying on the floor to sitting on her own now. She loves to make her way for the remote control and our lap tops. Needless to say, Derek and I need to get to work baby-proofing the house! We certainly aren't ready for a mobile Adalyn! But I guess we really don't get to choose when she begins moving! :)

This week was homecoming week at Rochester. Addy and I went to the homecoming parade on Friday with all of the second grade teachers. Addy and her friend Charli had matching Rochester shirts for homecoming. They looked very cute in their Rocket gear. Both of the girls really enjoyed the parade. They didn't even get upset at the fire engine sirens. After the parade we headed to the varsity boys' soccer game. Addy spent a long time on a blanket enjoying the beautiful weather and playing with her friends--Charli, Landon, and Sam. It was a great day! By the end I think I was more exhausted than Addy!

On Saturday Derek, Adalyn, and I continued our festival going ways and went to a nearby fall festival. The weather was beautiful and Addy loves to spend time in her stroller watching all of the action going on around her. I think that this weekend was officially the final festival for the season. We are planning an upcoming trip to the pumpkin patch, which we are very excited about!

Addy (on right) and Charli (on left) hanging out at the boys' soccer game. Their buddy Sam (in back) loves to keep an eye on them!

The girls traded this Gatorade bottle back and forth for a very long time! Who needs to buy all the toys when empty bottles do the trick!

Teething!!

Earlier this week we discovered that Addy's first tooth is breaking through. Her front tooth on the bottom has started to show, which explains her fussy temperment as of late. She has been chewing on anything and everything she can get her hands on! She has transformed into a gnawing and drooling machine! We are so excited that she is getting teeth. However, it is just another sign that our little girl is getting big way faster than we would like her to!

Adalyn is also itching to be mobile. She will sit up and dive at things beyond her reach. She often somehow manages to manuever to whatever object that is in her sight. During the past few days she has started to push herself up on her hands and knees into a crawling position. She has become much more observant of sounds and is becoming more and more of a challenge to feed because she is so curious about what is going on around her. She has also started to hold her bottle, although I think she still prefers having it held for her.

This week was a very busy one. Derek and I had meetings on various days and I had my usual class on Tuesday night. Our busy schdules certainly make picking up and dropping off Adalyn very intresting. Although our schedules are hectic and it seems like our heads are spinning, it seems as though Addy is getting comfortable with her routine of going to the two sitters.

This weekend was a rather uneventful one. We spent a great deal of our time at home tying up odds and ends around the house. We rearranged some of the rooms to create a designated toy area in our living room. Our house now looks more like a home again and less like a giant toy box. Addy stayed home with her dad on Sunday morning while I ran a few errands. He dressed her in a Colts onesie in preparation for the game agains Jackonsonville. Unfortuntely the onesie didn't bring the Colts luck, as they lost AGAIN!

We had a pretty low key week, which we found particularly low stress and relaxing. We are really enjoying the beautiful fall weather and look forward to many fall outings with Adalyn!

Addy loves bathtime!

Fall weather is here...hopefully to stay!

This weekend the weather was beautiful. I don't think it got into the eighties all weekend. I just love fall and look forward to taking Addy to all of the area fall festivals and parades. We started the festival season by attending the small festival in our town. Addy attended her first parade. She loved watching all of the floats and people pass by. She also raked in lots of candy because the parade participants couldn't resist such a cute little girl!:) It's too bad she couldn't eat any of the candy she earned with all of her cuteness.

On Sunday we stayed home and did some much needed work around the house. Addy wore her Peyton Manning jersey in preparation for the Colts' first game, which wasn't pretty! Addy was very fussy all weekend. She wouldn't allow us to put her down very much for independent time. Everytime we put her down she started the full out waterworks..tears and all. We think it is a combination of shots from last week and teething. I know that she was like this for the sitters last week as well. Hopefully this week will be a bit happier for Adalyn!

Gearing up for the BIG parade!
Look at this cool new teether mom!
How many licks does it take when the wrapper is left on?

My mom is very proud of these new hairbows!