Quick Post

41 Weeks, 1 Day / 9.5 Months / 0.79 Years

I don't have too much to update on. These past few weeks have been rainy and, sorry to say, boring. The most exciting things have been... picking up donations for camp, grocery shopping, and killing the ants that have been eating away at the candy cane decor (which are right above our shelves of DVDs, so they're going in and out of the library's movies...). Ew and oops.
Aldo has been busy at work, growing out his mustache. First time since we've been married. When he asked me about it I told him to "go big or go home" so he's got a soul patch and small beard as well. The beard has a bald splice in the middle to where he could possibly dress like a pirate (braid it in two pieces) and get away with it. Come Memorial Day, it's all going away though. I'll tell you this, I don't mind the soul patch. I'm not very aware of men's fashion/style/etc. so I don't know if it's socially acceptable to have just a soul patch. ??

Luke's last day of school is tomorrow. Then he'll be a first grader. I don't know how I feel about it. I liked him being in Kindergarten. I find older children annoying... You know, when they grow out of the cute phase and into the "know too much" phase... "think they're adults" phase. I just don't want him to be annoying. And he's not right now. He's helpful and sweet and still adorable.

Nightmare of a Day

8 Months, Going on 9... (37.5 Weeks Old)

This has been a day. Actually a week. I thought I'd give you a little taste of life at home now.
Yesterday Aldo and I did nothing all morning (meaning we watched tv and held Mila) because I had to go into work at 3. Well, just because Aldo was being nice, scooting on the couch closer beside him I pointed to my shoulder and asked him to massage it. It wasn't necessarily hurting, but it could use a little love and attention. He didn't do much; not what I wanted him to do anyways, and so a few minutes later I got in the shower and ready to go to work.
When I got out of the shower, it felt like I got a crick in my neck! (And that my dears is why you are supposed to drink water…) There wasn't any issue before though, so why would it do this now? The rest of the night at the library my neck gradually grew more sore to where I couldn't move it, couldn't bend over because that strained it, and couldn't cough even.

So this morning I'm hoping the crick is gone. It's not. Mila still likes to be held. I was dreading holding her, not because I didn't want to… I just didn't want the neck pain. Mila ended up waking up at 7:00 am! Before Luke even LEFT for school! She usually wakes up around 10. Sometimes 12. I guess the sleep schedule is changing again. Ugh. So instead of having a quiet morning, I had to shuffle things, and make it work so I could finish the newsletter, clean the living room, have some quiet time, and still watch her and feed her. I had to pick up Luke's eye patch from the eye doctor (that we've been waiting on for months… and I'm not exaggerating). I had to cash a check today for Aldo so that he has his spending money (and I haven't even gotten my "blow money" in cash this month). And I had to get groceries because I'm out of cereal and almost milk and almost diapers (don't want to run out of those for sure) and baby food. BUT, of course, the other day I went on a field trip with Luke to the Sea Life Aquarium by Crown Center. We had a fun time and by the end I was exhausted. So that I wouldn't have to carry around a purse, etc. I decided to just put my credit card, ID, and health info all in my back pocket in the little insurance holder I keep everything in… and this morning couldn't find it. I distinctly remember it on the green chair, but also in the laundry room on the dryer, and a time when Mila was digging through stuff and I caught her with it, took it away and put it somewhere. So I couldn't find it. How am I going to pay for groceries? I called, and they said they accept checks. Whew, I thought, I can still get some work done, come back and find my cards later. I go shopping. I probably spend 30 minutes to an hour looking at Mother's Day cards only to NOT find anything that describes mom or our relationship, or her taste (sorry that hot pink zebra stripe/cheetah print will not work!) and since she works at Hallmark, I have this inner desire and conviction that I have to pick out the right card. I get the rest of my groceries, and by the end there, Mila is getting fussy and ready to go, so I cut the list short and go to purchase my cart-ful of items.
Checks require an ID. I don't have my ID. Thank goodness I have my ATM card. And thank goodness there's money in the bank. Oh my gosh, what a hassle. So I stood there like a dummy entering and re-entering my 4-digit passcode trying to get money out and it continued to say there's an error. After the 7th or 8th time, I figure out that I don't have a checking account and maybe I should select "savings". Error. Ok, try the numbers flipped. Finally, it works! Hallelujah! I barely bought anything and it cost $128. By that time, I was almost like - forget it. It's the end of the month and I'm spending this much on milk and bread? (No meat in the basket?) That's ridiculous!

For the rest of the afternoon I've been looking for this stupid card packet. It's not in the green chair. Not in the new couch. Not in the Franken-couch. Not in the laundry room. Not in my pockets, purses, library bag, dresser, clothes pile… where did it go?

Mila likes to pull stuff out of her diaper bag and out of my purse, and today she kindly helped me by emptying out one of the grocery bags. (There's a trail, showing where she's been.) Right now the dishes are clean, so I'm thinking it's about time for me to get my life together….!
And to start - let's catch up on some blogging, some likes/dislikes, some pictures!!

• Dad (PaPa) came over to visit - Mila still takes a while to warm up to him - and he mentioned that when I was little, I liked to climb up his belly to his neck and shoulders. Literally, the very next day, Mila started doing the same thing. She loves to walk up my belly to my shoulders and jump on my neck. It doesn't help the crick. It's the cutest thing though when her smile is from ear to ear and you see her big "toofers" popping out because her feet are in your face.
• Mila eats baby food now. Stage 2: Sitter. Even though she's crawling and pulling up, she likes Stage 2 best, too many chunks to gag on in the Stage 3, and Stage 1 is too soupy. Best flavors are in Stage 2 also. She likes the "calm" fruity things (apples, pears, bananas, sweet potato). But, she enjoys a little cinnamon added. Or a sip from my Gatorade or Horchata. (Now that I think about it, I'm not as stickler about things with her as I was with Luke. Darn! I said I wouldn't be THAT parent. The one that lets the second child get away with everything and is more harsh on the first and expects more out of the first… They're the first child - how are they supposed to know what to do?! They don't have an older example! …rant over.) Macaroni and cheese flavor is out of the question. And so is anything green. Hey, and can finally suck on those first baby cereal snacks without choking! But if she gets two or more in her mouth, she'll gag. Lesson learned. 
• I got her this cow toy that you can put balls in. She likes the balls. She likes blocks. She likes things that shake, light up, make noise, or shine. She likes bracelets. She likes brushes (hair or tooth). She looooooves remotes. She likes anything that I want and say she can't have.
• She can pull up on things and she's beginning to walk along the couch, etc. It won't be long until she's walking on her own. 
• She recognizes Elmo. She recognizes Peppa Pig.
• She knows sign language!! She's been tugging on her shirts for the longest time and finally we got it… she's saying please!!! I thought she had it switched with "ta da", but she didn't. She was doing the tug without me knowing. Momma wasn't getting it. Aldo figured it out the other day. So for future reference, when you teach your child something, the next step is to be aware when they use it!
• We're still working on the sleeping in her crib and out of a bottle. And teaching her "no" or "ouch" means stop what she's doing. And also, "night night" or "lay down" because lately she's been staying up wayyy past what a little baby should. We get in bed and instantly she wants to crawl around, blow on mommy's belly, look adorable in front of daddy, look at the touch light between our headboard, and climb around the headboard. Being sick these last few days has put a hiccup in our weaning off of mommy and out of our bed. First, I am exhausted. Second, Mucinex lowers your milk supply, as well as do a lot of other things. I'm trying to stay away from formula… it's just so expensive. And if I have the milk supply… well then, I guess I can bear the bites a bit longer.

The whole urgency for sleeping in a crib and going to bottle is because in June we have the Awaken Camp with the church youth again. And this year they want me to come even though I'll have Mila. (They're breaking their "no kids" rule for me!) And even though I'll be completely distracted with her and won't be able to do much. I don't know if they understand how clingy to momma she is…

Speaking of clingyness - She is still clingy, but she'll go to a few people. Amber Springer during our On Pointe classes on Tuesday nights. It was an easy thing to do. Probably because she's in the nursery with all the toys and Luke is in there too. Sheri Smith. I have no idea why. Ricky Skaggs. These last few times at Bible study he's held her and she just stares at him. (He is a bit strange, isn't he? Ha!) And there are people she hasn't warmed up to yet, that you think she would… Maecy and Ember for instance. 

And here are some major pictures I have missed.

Big Girl's First Bath

Mateo Came to Visit!

Early April - We Like to Watch Brother Play Soccer

Go Great White Sharks! Go #2! (P.S. Spring Soccer is freezing)

Happy Easter!

* Favorite: April - First Teeth on Top *

(Middle Right, Gap, Next to Middle Left)

On/Off Schedule

I could pull my hair out.. Thank goodness it's the end of the day. This morning we slept in a little; Luke's game wasn't until noon but he had pictures so he did have to look good-ish. I woke up at 8 and started on drying the laundry and washing some dishes. We've run out of bowls and spoons and pans and pots so many times... I hate dishes. I'd really like to just go buy more bowls and silverware, but I know if I did that then out dirty pile would become a mound and start molding if it hasn't already. Anyway, Luke had a pretty good game (he had a nice save as goalie, laying down to block the ball, and even though they lost 6-3, he didn't seem disappointed or wanting to give up completely). Note to self for future kids: spring sports that are outside are going to be cold. I use my Mommy wrap thing and snuggle her in there and then wear one of Aldo's jackets and zip us up together. We look weird I'm sure, but at least she's warm. I hope. Luke went with Grammy and Mila and I headed home.

She fell asleep in the car seat (I should've done something productive now that I think about it) and so I played Cooking Fever on my phone, waiting forever for Luke to come home. When he didn't and Mila had finally woken up, I took her out and let her play with her basket of toys while I watched an episode of Falling Skies. By the end, I had layed down, across our new couch, telling myself I can't fall asleep because Mila can't be alone without someone watching her constantly. She pulls on cords, she eats paper, she'll crawl under tables and get stuck, she pull up things and get stuck because she'll bop her head if she falls down. I ended up falling asleep. When I closed my eyes I know she was playing with the microphoned robot that's out of batteries on one side of her car seat, when I snapped awake realizing what I had done, she was on the other side of the car seat. Did I only snooze for 15 minutes, was it an hour? I don't know because it honestly felt like 4 hours. I don't know where the time went.... 

For the rest of the day Mila has been high-pitched yelling at me. Feed me. Change me. Watch me. Entertain me, monkey. You're not getting it. I'm tired. But I don't want to sleep. Figure it out. 

The problem is, she has no set schedule like Luke did. I could tell you within 15 minutes Luke's nap time and eating time, etc. Mila wakes up at noon. Mila wakes 8:00 am. Mila wakes up at 10:00 am. Mila has 3 naps. Mila has no naps. Mila goes right to sleep when we go to bed. Mila wants to stay up and play, look at the light on the wall, play with Daddy, take Mommy's glasses. I know she has some form of schedule there... Maybe right now she's going through a growth spurt or something and so it's changing, but goodness... I would really like to know what it is. 

Success story of the day: tonight putting her in bed was difficult. So I thought, we're going to quiet down and get prepped for this night night time... Make the atmosphere. I out a movie in my computer for us to watch in bed. It was Peppa Pig playing with bubbles. And Mila laughed at it! She giggles and tried to hit the keyboard. Finally! Something she enjoys!!!

As I'm laying here in bed typing this out, I feel wonderful. Dang, I'm a good mom. Pat yourself on the back cause you is awesome!

Mila Unchained

34 Weeks.

I'm not doing very well on my blogging. Let's just say March was utter madness, mainly because we were all sick and it went around in this vicious circle. But we are all better now. No more breathing treatments, no more kleenex boxes, no more pink medicine.

Mila got her third tooth on March 21. It isn't the typical middle one on top, it is one next to the middle one (to her, left side). Days later she got the middle one (right top). Grammy and I were joking that she'll look like a hill billy (Aldo's "I eat dirt" face comes to mind), but yesterday I saw that her other middle tooth is showing, not popped through yet, but showing. She gets on her knees and can inch forward on them, but she's faster army crawling with her left arm strength and left toes pushing. Over the weekend I caught her sitting on her knees looking into her car seat, playing with the seat belts. On Tuesday, I was on the phone with mom for maybe 20 seconds searching for a recipe, I came into the living room and found her STANDING, holding onto her walker. Now she pulls up on it every day. Last night she pulled up on the side of her crib.

Speaking of crib - this is the newest thing we have going on - we're trying to get Mila sleeping in her crib. She has slept with us every night since she was born, and I will admit, I don't mind her sleeping with us, except that eventually she'll need to sleep on her own. And, I believe that the marriage bed is a sacred place. Kids are welcome every now and then, but that time has come to an end for Mila. So, with this change, I have to get her on the bottle. Easier said than done. We've done it for two days and I've found she doesn't have a problem with the bottle or even drinking formula, although you can totally tell by her face that it's not her favorite. (Score for Mommy!) The difficult part is getting her to take a nap or go to bed with the bottle. It's one step at a time. Literally one step. First, we got her used to the bottle rather than me. Then formula. Then sitting in her crib for maybe 5 minutes with me there holding her bottle. She may be scared of the crib, I'm not really sure. Because last night while I was doing my 5 minutes, pushing it type-of-thing, I showed her the big pink paper balls that I hung as decoration from the baby shower. She wouldn't touch them. She would look at them, turn away and shake her head like she had the jitters. I took them down, but when we went back in, she looked for them still, and still shook her head. It was kind of cute, kind of sad that she's already maybe scared of something. I have breastfed every day for 8 months strictly from myself. They say sometimes moms get sad when then stop breast-feeding because it's like the baby no longer depends on you. I can see that. Mila bites, and she bites hard. I'm proud of myself for sticking with it, for continuing to breastfeed when it hurt, for continuing when it seemed tough like my milk was going low during growth spurts, for continuing when my milk was low through sickness. It's not an easy thing. Once you do it, it's like this huge accomplishment. And so it's kind of surreal that it's ending. I'll let you know how it goes. And maybe my body will go back to normal. (You know how when I was pregnant, everything was because I was pregnant? Now that I'm not pregnant, everything is because I'm breastfeeding. Examples: not touchy-feely physically or emotionally, dehydrated, and not on a cycle.)

I looked up the development for 34-week-olds the other day and it said that they'll start reaching up for things, and pulling themselves up. (Mila's ahead of the game.) But it also said that now is the time to start "labeling". They're learning the words, even if they may not speak them right away, they're learning them and remembering them. So you just repeat, repeat, repeat. We were playing with her toys, so I showed her BALL, PUPPY, BOOK, TOYS. She tried to feed me her BALL. It was so cute. I said, "Yum yum" and she kept feeding it to me, like it was play food. Do I remember when Luke used to do that? No. Sad face. I'm also teaching her KISS KISS. I always kiss her on the hand. I don't know why… it's just a thing. She always reaches out her hands wide open to me and so I kiss them I guess. I say, "Mommy kisses Mila's hand. Mommy kisses Mila's feet. Mommy kisses MILA!" and I finish by kissing her on the belly or in the crevices of her neck. She loves when I kiss her. She's been kissing us!! She'll kiss me near the inside of my elbow by falling forward with her mouth open and wait a few seconds and then laugh. Repeat. Slobber seeping out until my arm is covered because she's teething. Oh, my 8-month-old girl - you are adorable.

Her hair lays down. :(

Now for Luke, he is playing with her more and more - more rough too. He really gets her laughing, because he's willing to be loud and do crazy things. Mommy and Daddy aren't that loud. And we don't have the energy to jump up and down from squatting position. Especially for more than 5 minutes.

Luke started soccer at the end of March. He had his first game this past Saturday. He's good about staying in the game, not getting bored. He gets excited though and hops around on the field, galloping on his right side, so it gives away what leg he's going to kick with. And also he'll hesitate before his kick because he wasn't ready because he was galloping! Haha. I remember when Maecy played soccer she would get the ball and laugh, and wouldn't be able to keep it or control it. Luke is actually really good about kicking the ball down the field. During his game he assisted in many attempts at goal. The other thing he does really well, in Aldo's words, is "read the play" - so while every Kindergartener and First grader is in a huddle chasing the ball, he goes where no one else and is at the ready. "It's the mind of a defender." He still needs to work on the position of goalie and also shooting the ball in the goal, but in the that one game, I saw him improve so much. Yes, he let one ball pass him, giving the other team one point, but after that he dove for the ball! He saved two out of three shots. I couldn't be more proud. It was kind of tough because I didn't want him to feel disappointment for that shot - it tied up the game. I could imagine in that moment the other team winning later and him blaming himself. I reminded myself that I would cheer for him and the team the whole game, win or lose. Not let them lose heart. And also, that the point (agreed by other parents and the coach) was for the kids to have fun and learn some soccer basics. We're succeeding in that. Luke will walk around the house with his soccer ball. Whenever the weather is warm…. -ish…. Luke will ask if we can play soccer outside. He loves it! It was just an idea that we wanted him to get involved in a sport, whatever it may be, and he's embraced it. And Mila enjoys watching too! Oh, and I forgot to say, first game score 3-2… we won! And it was freezing! Never. Again.

Don't Turn Around

7 Months!

Can you believe it? Seven months... Where did the baby time go? I thought there were so many stages or markers in this first year. I've been with her this whole time and I feel like I've missed them all! Here's what I have caught:

• She can say "mama" and "dada". She has for a while now and it actually surprised Dr. Riffel at her last appointment when we said she could say "mama" and then near the end made us out to be truth-tellers when she did it right in front of her.
• She can crawl. It started off as a left-arm strong army crawl, but she's using both sides now and even gets up on her knees now and rocks. Grammy and I think she'll be crawling easy by this next weekend.
• She's 17lbs 8oz. I know this because I've been in and out of the doctors' office for three weeks. First for a check up and first portion of her flu shot. Then cough and ear infection. Luke also had a cough and ear infection at the same time (but the doctor didn't catch hers.... Ugh.) Then I took Mila back the next week at the urging of Aldo.. She had an ear infection in both ears. Then this past week I took her for her second portion of the flu shot with a check up because she was still coughing at night with a rattle sound in her chest and goopy eyes. The doctor confirmed what I thought - she had/has a cough that medicine won't help (breathing treatments won't help). It will take weeks for it to go away. She also had an ear infection again. And in showing me how to "massage", which was more of jamming her finger in the eye, her for the tear duct to open, the doctor ended up popping it open and goopy came out. Poor Mila is on medicine for her ear infection, medicine for her goopy eye to clear up finally, and medicine for the side effects that will show up in her diaper. With all that said - why have I never heard of breathing treatments and then now with this generation of kids (Luke, Mila, Asher, Ava) I am?
• Don't turn around.... She rolled off the bed. And on my watch. I felt so bad. I was in the living room and I heard her wake up, never heard her cry... So I took my time going to the bedroom and when I got there she was looking up from me on her belly on the floor. What was strange was that I had blocked the side with the largest pillow we have, so she must have inched her way to the end.
• She cries over small spankins. And then goes on to do it again.
• She no longer spits baby food out. Unless she is adamant about not liking it (prunes, peas, things I would agree are gross). She also clamps her mouth shut if I'm trying to give her something in a medicine dropper or by hand. She's been on so much medication, I don't blame her. But it was funny when I attempted the Easter egg chocolate and she wouldn't have it. I forced it in, and she quickly went after the bag. What have I done?? She still isn't up for the melt away cereal snacks. She'll play with them in her fingers, but hasn't tried to eat them yet. 
• She would rather eat shoe strings. Hoodie strings. TV cords. Pump cords. Key jangles. 
• She still bites once in a while. Yes, she's still mainly breastfed. She'll take a bottle now and it's kind of a must on Thursdays while Aldo is watching her and I'm going into the library for a few hours. I am her preference though. It's kind of an honor. It's a lot tiring. Remember back when everything was related to pregnancy? Now everything is related to breastfeeding: lack of energy, over-eating, toothache, drive, etc.

Today I am letting her sleep on me as I sit in the rocking chair. I look at her lay there with her foot up, her hand stroking back and forth making sure that Mommy's skin is there, sweet closed eyes, a beautiful baby girl. The time will come when she'll drive me crazy (I expect those teen years), but God knew exactly what I needed when He made you, Mila Rose. <3

For Aldo too. He's such a caver when it comes to her. They all warned us- she'll have him wrapped around her little finger. He is so protective. Don't be messing with Daddy's girl.

Luke is as fantastic as ever. He had off last week for spring break. We didn't do anything fancy, but he did have his first soccer practice. They are the Great White Sharks. 

How Does She Do It?

Really? How does she?
The stay-at-home mom. The work-from-home, part-time employee. The church leader. The cook. The cleaner. The baby calmer-downer and baby milk-machine. The teacher. The entertainer. The disciplinarian. The comforter. The encourager. The animal sitter. The chauffeur. The school-activities attendee. The walking schedule/calendar AKA the planner. The mom. The sister. The daughter. The wife. The woman.

This morning I was thinking while I was taking care of the animals about women in the past, growing up on the prairie without a stove (or microwave), without a hot shower, without vehicles. They woke up at the crack of dawn and took care of animals and farm and gardens, then slaved away all day at meals for the family, and taught there gazillion children. I'm like - I've been watching Jerad and mom's animals and I couldn't do this every day forever. And people want to go back to self-sustainable living? That's crazy. I was thinking of an instance if ever I could, and honestly you would have to do it with the entire family. Every member would have to be part and have a job.
Anyway, here's what I've been doing: wake up as early as 6:00 am to go over to Jerad's, break water for four outdoor water troughs (I've thought I've had frostbite several times), feed cats, feed dogs (letting them in and out of barn), giving 1 scoop grain to Jerad's horses and 2 scoops to mom's picky and impatient horse, giving 3-4 flakes (or sections) of hay to each horse, making sure the little horse is eating, making sure each horse has water, and if I water them wrap the hose and faucet in a t-shirt so that the pipes don't freeze as well as preserving any water left in the hose so not to waste it (and by the way, the t-shirt was frozen the first day), then going back home to mom's to take care of Bullet, the two roosters in the garage, the chickens and turkies in the coop, breaking the pond for the horses in the field, taking care of Jenna's brand new guinea pig, and finally watering Luke's one hermit crab that I'm just waiting for to die. I know that sounds cruel, but he honestly needs a warm-blooded animal. These past animals as pets haven't taught him an ounce of responsibility. Anyway, that whole shpeal I've gotten down to about 30-45 minutes. You can give me a pat on the back any time.

So yesterday, just to give you a little more background, I did all the chores, signed Luke up for soccer and made sure bills were paid, visited Stacia, went to Kari's to tutor the girls, worked on church course material, locked up animals, and went to a game night at the church (staying out until midnight). So what did I do today? I got up again to do the chores, cleaned the living room, did laundry, cooked several meals, watched tv with Luke, planned our Branson trip with Luke, worked on  church flyers, browsed Pinterest for new meals, locked up the animals, played with Mila (a lot), made all the family take showers before bed, and blogged. My days are pretty full. And honestly I think if anyone else were in my shoes, they would get so bogged down with "to-do's" and overwhelmed with sticky notes and lists that they couldn't function. So... How does she do it?

And hey, I think Mila is getting her other middle bottom tooth. And she'll also probably crawl sometime this month. She says "mama" distinctly but on her own terms. Eating first foods is going well (more often, but she still sucks it down like she's drinking milk). We're trying to get her to sit by herself, but she still slowly falls over and if she's in the bumbo, she arches her back. I'm trying to teach her the meaning of "ow" or "no", but she just thinks it's funny, which is frustrating when I'm the one getting pinched, hair pulled, bitten in a tender area or hurt in some other way. Other things that are funny: When I blow on her hair, growling, throwing up noises, and Luke in general. She knows Patty Cake. She knows what it means when I say "hungry" and make sucking noises. I know she knows what "no" means, but I think she refuses to respond to it the correct way, as well as when I say her name. It's a hit or miss. I'm trying to teach her "dada" and "Luke" also. They would love that. Actually now that I think of it, Aldo thought she said "no" the other day. I'm trying to teach her sign language for "please" or "more" because it was so helpful and showed good manners when Luke learned it in Nursery. But I think she's gotten it confused with high-fives. Also teaching her "ta-da!" Because wouldn't that be cute after eating her cake at her first birthday? I can now get her to laugh. Bury my face in her ribs and she'll laugh. And now, her feet and underarms are ticklish too. Yay! I have to go, she is growling and forceful grunting/squealing/mumbling and I'm pretty sure when I lay down next to her, she'll pull down my shirt and do her thing. Have you ever read Boss Baby? it might be time for a review... Everything is hers. Everything is on her time. Period and The End.

Friends

These past few weeks have been a roller coaster of emotions. I've really appreciated the friends I have, and realized how important maintaining and pouring into the "friend" relationship is.

It started with Dani DeRuse. I was disappointed at a get together Aldo and I went to and later prayed for a God-believing and -following friend to hang out with. Days later Dani called and asked if I wanted to go shopping. Duh?! (Now normally I wouldn't say "yes" because I'm naturally shy and anti/social. It's taken a lot of work to get to where I am. And I definitely wouldn't say "yes" to Dani because first off, she is so dang gorgeous, and second, I wouldn't think she would shop at the same places I would. But for some reason I said "yes".) The timing was right - the  weather was beautiful, we both like the same type of stores, I got my long-needed conversation on, we even bought the clothes we needed. (And I found out later, she was pregnant. And I even mentioned something too! She said it was so hard keeping the secret from me.)

Then, Sunday, January 31st, our friend Danny Cubbage had a stroke. He's was in the hospital for days trying to get brain swelling down. And on February 4th he passed away. Aldo was able to stay at the hospital a lot of the time, whereas I was driving kids or watching kids or getting food. Or awkwardly spending the 3rd celebrating Maecy's 21st birthday (watching babies at the salon while she got her hair done, and also all of us getting manicures).

So it's been up and down. I'm so excited for Dani and you wouldn't believe how timely our visit was. (I was reading a book on Prayer at the time). But then watching the Cubbages and realizing it won't be the same, and how much Danny touched our hearts, and not having prayer answered the way we want has - the words are even now hard to choose - sunken our spirits, like a gut-wrenching feeling. And then having a celebration in the middle of all the chaos was difficult. How do you respond?  No wonder I felt like I hit a brick wall. I might have shut my emotions of, so not to hurt others or be hurt myself. 

And in the middle of all that, Mila got her first tooth. It's the bottom, middle right (when looking at her). She didn't need teething medicine. Didn't sound or look sick. The only things noticeable to me were her wanting to be held (normal), slobbering (normal), chewing on her hand or nipples of bottles or even binky (that's new), and rubbing her ear (sure sign!). Mark your baby book - Mila's first tooth popped through on February 3rd.