My Little Pumpkin

Oh yes I did!  I just had to do it!  Allie was very content inside the pumpkin (yes, it was a real pumpkin).  This day happened to be an 80 degree October afternoon...very unusual for Michigan weather.  I stripped Allies clothes off and put her in the pumpkin with just a diaper on.  At first she just stood there, probably wondering what the mushy, gooey goop was beneath her feet.  Finally I managed to get her to squat down and she then started eating the pumpkin.  From then on, she was as happy as a clam inside that pumpkin.  I put one of the these pictures in a frame on my fireplace mantle.  I'm going to put it our every Halloween and Thanksgiving.  It is so adorable!

10 Months Old

Allie is 10 months old this month and her Boston buddy Adele is 6 months old.  Adele and Allie are exactly 4 months apart...they were both born on the 1st (Allie in December and Adele in April).  For the most part, Allie and Adele cooperated pretty well for their mommy's photo session.  Allie was very intrigued with Adele's mouth.  She kept poking her little finger in there.  Luckily Adele was a good sport and didn't mind too much when a mysterious little finger was poking around in there.

"No, Allie...I don't have any teeth yet."

Awww...sweet hugs

Tooth number two grew in this month.  Allie didn't seem to notice.  Allie became very mobile...scooting all over the place.  She can transition from her belly to sitting very well.  Allie is beginning to pull up to stand and is so proud of herself.  She is a little investigator.  She crawls all over finding anything to get her hands on and get into.  Allie started going to day care when I went back to work.  She seems to be happy and continues to nap and eat pretty well while there.  Allie is learning how to drink from a straw quickly.  She loves drinking water from her cup with the built in straw.  Allie and I flew back to Boston for a week to visit Todd.  She does pretty well at the beginning of the flights, but by the end, she is ready to get off the plane...and so am I!

9 Month Photo Shoot

Here are a few of my favorite's from Allie's 9 month photo shoot.  It was difficult to get photos of her sitting still.  She was on the move!  Thanks Denise for some great pics!

Back To School

Every Memorial Day I get the same jittery feeling..."Summer is almost here!" 

Every mid-June I get the same relieving feeling..."School's out for summer!" 

Every 4th of July I get the same feeling of disbelief when I walk into Target..."NOOOOO!!!!  Why are they school supplies out?  Summer JUST started!" 

Every August I get the same sad feeling..."Summer is almost over." 

And...every September I get the same in denial feeling..."Back-to-school."



With every summer vacation, comes a back-to-school.  It's that time again.  It's my 10th back-to-school.  Yep!  This will be my 10th year teaching.  After I complete this school year, my pension will be vested within the state of Michigan.  I can collect retirement (if I'm still around to get it...and if there's any to get) whenever I get to the age you collect retirement at.

This back-to-school is a lot different than my past 9.  This year I have Allie.  I spent all summer with my little pal.  We were buddies.  We did everything together.  We napped, we shopped, we played, we exercised.  We were basically inseparable (mostly due to the fact that we don't have a babysitter in Boston).  Regardless, this year going back to school is going to be a little more difficult. 

I'm not sure how I'm going to make it alone?  It's me...and only me...taking care of EVERYTHING!  I know I can do it...I would just rather be doing it a different way.  I'm also a little nervous about leaving my Allie at day care. She has never been to day care.  I know she will be fine and I feel good about having her in day care.  She'll get to be away from me and around other people and kids.  This is a good thing.  But, I would just like to be a fly the wall all day and watch her.  Not that I don't trust my day care ladies (they are great!) But I just don't want to miss out on anything in Allie's life.  I made her, now I want to see her at all times.  Some parents would feel differently about this, but I guess because of my struggles to have her, I don't want to miss a thing.  I want to be a part of everything and I want her around me. 

How many days till summer?

9 Months Old

Allie learned how to click her tongue this month.  She would watch Todd and I and then do it herself.  Allie began to roll all over also.  She would start at one end of the room and roll to the other.  Todd called it her tactical roll.  Allie has a bit of separation anxiety.  When Todd or I lave her alone in the room, she cries.  Allie FINALLY got her first tooth!  It didn't seem to bother her too much.  Some new foods she's beginning to like are peanut butter, chili, and spaghetti.  Allie is improving at drinking from her sippy cup.  She's beginning to reach for Todd and I when she wants to be picked up or held.  Allie continues to babble and giggle often.  At the end of the month, Allie and I traveled back to MI so I could go back to work.



Hurricane Irene

Hurricane Irene is both bitter sweet to me.  As she plows her way through New England, she caused my plane to delay it's flight.  In a way I'm bothered and annoyed by this.  I probably should be back home getting Allie adjusted to her mommy's new "work schedule."  I should be getting my classroom ready for the new school year.  I should be cleaning my house after month of being away.  But, deep down I'm also a little glad because now I get to spend a couple extra days with Todd here in Boston.  This seemed like a great thing!  However, I'm all packed up, my computer is broke, and I have nothing to do.  I'm bored!  That doesn't happen very often.  I don't know if I should be thankful or annoyed.  Hurricane Irene is both bitter sweet.

Mom and Baby Class

When I came out to Boston during my maternity leave, I was desperate to make some friends.  Preferably some mommy friends.  Todd found out through some buddies at work, that Isis is the place to go.  Isis is a Boston thing...I really wish there was something in Michigan similar.  There are classes for mom's (dad's too) and babies to attend.  You learn about your baby at different stages of development depending on which class you sign up for.  During my maternity leave, I signed Allie and I up for a class called Great Beginnings.  It was a class for mom's with newborns that took place once a week in the morning for 7 weeks.  I was a little excited to learn some new things about being a mom or caring for my baby.  What I learned mostly came from discussions brought up by other moms, not so much the topics of each class.  I made a couple friends along the way...and that was my goal: to get out of the house and make some mom friends.

This summer I signed up again for another class called Social Butterflies.  This class was a bit different in the fact that it was more child centered as opposed to mom centered.  During each class Allie and I played with new toys, sang new songs and played with the parachute.  Allie LOVED the parachute!  A big smile and giggle every time!  We did talk about topics each class, but the time frame was very limited and I became annoyed when some moms would jeopardize the entire conversation.  Let others have a turn to talk...geeze!

This week we had our last class and to celebrate we had a pool party!  Check it out below.