Life at Baylor

Coming to a close

2010-05-26T15:29:00.002-05:00

Ilana and I fly away tomorrow. Paul, with the dog and trailer, leave Friday morning. With these things in mind, Life at Baylor is quickly coming to a close. So, as is our custom, I've created a NEW BLOG. :) It's www.paulandheathermiller.blogspot.com. Check it out!!
Blogger allows you to buy a url so you don't have to use their "blogspot.com" tagline at the end, it's only $10 a year. But, being "frugal" as we are, and knowing that we don't mind letting Blogger get some credit for our blog, we decided against that option. So, read up, visit often, and onto the new blog!
-H
ps-sorry for the lack of pictures. We're down to using Paul's laptop and it doesn't have any pictures loaded onto it. I'll post some new pictures as soon as I can.

the adventure continues...

2010-05-18T22:30:00.003-05:00

A lot of people have offered support and prayers for us in this time and we are so thankful. I cannot explain how "full" life was last week. In the midst of a vomiting toddler, Paul was offered 2 jobs, we were battling some pretty bad head colds and trying desperately to decide what was next on our journey. Well, Ilana is back to normal again, a decision has been made and we are off to Chicago. Paul accepted a job at Loyola University of Chicago as the director of their brand new outdoor adventure program. We are so excited! We know that all of Paul's past outdoor experience in the CCO's OLT and here with Baylor's outdoor adventure program, combined with his education have prepared him perfectly for this.
This decision does not come without grief in leaving our community here in Waco, and it still leaves us with tons of questions. Here is what we know about our future plans: Ilana and I will fly to Maryland on Thursday, May 27, where we'll stay until Paul and Moses (with the trailer) join us in a few days. Our house in Gettysburg is available as of June 6, so we will "move in" and be there until we head out to Chicago for Paul's July 1 start date. Loyola is providing us with temporary housing through mid-August if we need it, to give us time to find a place to live once we get up there.
If you're in TX, we'd love to see you to say good-bye, but these next few days will be hectic. So, please contact us and see when would be a good time.
If you're in MD or PA we'd love to see you while we're there, but as you can imagine, it will be a very busy month - going through our whole house deciding what we want to take and what we want to give away/sell/goodwill...what have you.
If you are in neither of these places, then you are just as important to us and we'd love for you to know what we're up to!
Thank you all, so much, for your support in this time. It has been a crazy month and we are excited to explore a new area of the country. I'll be updating our blog (obviously life at Baylor will be coming to an end), so check back for the upcoming changes.
In the meantime, we're doing our best to continue the packing process that started this past weekend (yes, in the midst of the graduation ceremonies and my birthday celebration), but we're also starting to get really excited about these next few months. Loyola - here we come!
-H

Guess who likes Oreos?

2010-05-13T13:55:00.002-05:00

...when she's healthy of course.

Yes, she's "smiling" in this last one.
Now if we could just get her healthy again...
-H

Baby Update and shower pictures

2010-05-09T20:49:00.006-05:00

So, here I am:
And here are the stats:

How far along: 22 weeks
Baby’s heart rate: in the 160's - exactly where it should be
Total weight gain: 17 pounds
Maternity clothes: nothing else at this point! I can wear my 3 largest non-maternity t-shirts, but everything else has got to be maternity.
Sleep: I have good nights and bad nights, but I always get up at least once a night, usually around 3:45.
Best moment this week: having nothing to do except sit and enjoy feeling this baby boy move all around. He must have tons more room (or he's just more active) than Ilana. It's so fun to notice their differences already.
Movement: uh, yeah! All the time!
Food cravings: ice cream!! I actually haven't had a pickle in quite a long time - crazy.
What I miss: being able to cuddle Ilana really closely, she's running out of space on my lap. :(
Weekly Wisdom: 2 things...

Even if you try to enjoy some freedom, you can't ever lose the responsibility of being a parent. Twenty hours into our weekend celebration get-away to Austin, our overnight babysitter called to tell us that Ilana was throwing up. Needless to say, we were home that afternoon. We knew we made the right decision when she didn't stop smiling and hugging us when she met us outside. She's much better now, but we're still going to the dr's tomorrow.
No matter how much coughing and hacking I do with this 10-day old cold that I have, this little boy seems to think I'm playing with him. According to my nurse mid-wife he's just "as happy as a lark in there!" Everything's already a game for this boy!

Now, for the shower...
A week ago the faculty-in-residence's wife, Hope, threw me the sweetest baby shower here on campus. Here she is dishing out punch for everyone.
We ate - the food was delicious!
We played games, including the "which smooshed/melted candy bar is that?!" Not recommended for the queasy-stomached.
We opened mostly gift cards and a few actual gifts. Due to our unknown future, Paul and I had requested gift cards - we got some great ones!
We generally had a great time.
To her credit, one woman, Beth, was not in this large group picture. Being a mom of 3, she included a small gift for Ilana in her gift. Just as Beth guessed, after seeing all the gifts from the shower, Ilana wanted to open them. So, right on cue, I gave Ilana her gift.
It was a baby doll complete with a backpack. She knew exactly what to do with it right away.
But, she may have enjoyed the ribbon better, I'm not sure.
I never would have imaged this kind of support 2 years ago. It was no small miracle in my mind to look around the room and know that these women are all so important to our family. We definitely found our "place" here in Waco and we are so thankful to the Lord for His faithfulness in helping us find it!
-H

Look what came in Friday's mail!!

2010-04-26T20:36:00.002-05:00

I can hardly believe that 22 months is almost over. But, it's for real - PAUL GRADUATES IN 19 DAYS, PEOPLE!!! He realized just tonight that he is done with 2 of his 3 classes this semester. He has the first part of his law final tomorrow and the second part early next week...and that's IT - CRAZY!!!
...I'm so excited...and proud of him. It's almost time to celebrate...almost.
-H

Highlights from the party

2010-04-24T10:04:00.005-05:00

We decided to do a family party to celebrate Ilana's 2nd birthday. She's not a huge fan of big crowds and we have enough going on these days. So, we decided to try to let her do all her favorite things without diverting or discouraging her.
She spent the day trying to open the door (she's almost got it, it's kind of scary!),
putting on shoes,
doing the buckle on her chair, over and over again,
and reading in her chair (I can't figure out why this picture won't turn sideways for me and sorry it's fuzzy!).
We even gave her a lollipop,
which she graciously shared with her baby doll, she's very conscientious these days.
Then we went to McAlister's for dinner
where she opened some more presents (including these sunglasses that she immediately put on...upside down).
We followed dinner with dessert at Dairy Queen (no homemade cake this year), where she got her very own strawberry sundae with candles. (For some reason the video I uploaded of us singing to her and her blowing out her candles didn't upload correctly. I'll try again later - sorry!) I think it was a pretty sweet day for her!
-H

Ilana at 2

2010-04-18T14:21:00.005-05:00

Ilana is 2 years old today and probably our biggest joy. She is growing up before our very eyes and we love watching her learn. Even just today she started trying to open the door with the door knobs in our apartment. Our "kid-proofing" may need to continue soon.
These days Ilana loves keys, zippers, the Wiggles (a kids music group), taking off her shoes and trying to put on any other pair she can find (even if it's the ones she just took off). She's trying to say a lot of words. The newest words or phrases to add to her collection are: thank you (which sounds more like "zwah too"), monkey (which sounds exactly like "daddy," but that's ok), baby (pronounced really well), and her favorite word, please (pronounced: TSSSSSS! accompanied by a fair amount of spitting).
She's still a very gentle, cautious child, although when she's comfortable with something her feisty-ness starts to show. Like on this day, after awhile she decided to try to make her own potpourri with the bluebonnets and was vigorously ripping apart the flowers:
We know she is going to be a great big sister. She's in a phase right now where I have to "feed" her baby doll or stuffed animal before I feed her. She's already very conscientious.
Although we have a pretty good daily routine down, she can be very flexible with it. She's pretty easy-going. When we were getting our ultrasound the other day she was just sitting on Paul's lap drinking her juice most of the time. The woman even asked if she was "always this calm." She tends to be pretty laid back, unless she's hurt, hungry, tired, cranky or somebody's taken away her toy. But, what toddler isn't upset in those circumstances?
We've been through a lot these past 2 years and these next few months are not going to be much easier, but we are so thankful to have Ilana in our lives. We are blessed because she is ours and we look forward to continuing to watch her grow and learn. She gives us a great perspective on life and continually reminds us of what's really important.
We love you, Ilana!
-H&P

It's a boy!!

2010-04-16T13:08:00.002-05:00

Beautiful profile...
sweet feet...
and even a 3-D pic!!
It was a great morning! Everything is looking fantastic and healthy. This little boy is already much more active than I remember Ilana being inside. How fun! ...sort of. :)
We haven't settled on a name yet, but we'll be letting you know. For right now, we're just excited that this little boy is so healthy and doing great.
-H
ps-I already love his nose.

Blessings in the air

2010-04-12T21:00:00.007-05:00

Imagine this: getting season baseball tickets from one airplane conversation. Makes you want to fly more often, huh? Well, little did we know that's exactly what we'd get on New Year's Eve. We were blessed to have gone through security and been on the same flight as Diana and Dick Bergman. We were flying home, they were flying out to see family in Texas. They were such a blessing that day to us. Little did we know the blessings would continue. They lived in Texas when their son went to and played baseball for Baylor. Although they live in Annapolis now, they still buy season tickets every year. We exchanged emails and were promised tickets to "a couple games."

After many months I finally emailed Diana, giving her our "wish list" for tickets to a game or two (and apologizing profusely for not getting back to her sooner due to our "Christmas gift from Jesus" - #2). A week later, two complete packs of SEASON TICKETS arrive in our mailbox. We couldn't believe it - just in time for the A&M Series this past weekend. We immediately got a babysitter and Saturday night...

We went to our first Baylor baseball game (and first date in way too long).
On our way in, we realized what a blessing this truly was. Diana and Dick have their names engraved at the ballpark! They're 4th from the bottom and I think that's their son right below them.
We found our way to our seats...they were pretty much amazing - the best in the ballpark if you ask me!
Seriously, this is during the game, using no zoom on our camera - we were right behind home plate!
As you can see from the ticket, we were playing A&M - arch rivals!! The Aggies had a pretty good showing...
but in the end it was no help. We KILLED them 13 to 1!!
It was a pretty magical night, complete with a beautiful ballpark, cheesy nachos, onion rings, sweet tea, silly kids races, baseball songs, local restaurant giveaways, thrown t-shirts, local celebrity sitings (the women's basketball coach was there with a few players as well), the 7th inning stretch, and even local "inside joke" cheers. We kept our eyes out, but apparently Bruiser (the Baylor mascot) doesn't come to the games. He should!
The next day the series ended and Baylor won again 2 to 1. It was the first time our seniors had won the A&M series - I was so proud of our guys. We couldn't make Sunday's game, but I don't think it would have topped Saturday night's for us.

Diana and Dick - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! It was a blessing to have gotten to know you just a small bit on that New Year's Eve plane ride. In the midst of our unknown future and all the stress that daily life takes, this is one of those truly unexpected blessings. Sic 'em BEARS!!
-H

Baby Update

2010-04-09T10:10:00.002-05:00

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and everything looks great. Here are the details:

How far along: 18 weeks today!
Baby’s heart rate: 153, exactly where it should be
Total weight gain: 12 pounds, not too bad
Maternity clothes? Oh yeah! I tried to wear a medium t-shirt the other day and I won't be doing that again for quite some time :(
Sleep: alright, but I think it's time to break out the extra pillows
Best moment this week: Ilana started kissing my belly. I've been telling her for a couple weeks now that there's a baby growing inside mommy's uterus. I think she was more kissing my belly button that's looking kind of funny these days, but it was still cute.
Movement: every day now! It's so fun and I can't wait for Paul to be able to feel him/her moving around also
Food cravings: pickles (still) and cinnamon sugar, but not together
Gender: we find out next Friday!! Our appointment is at 8:30 in the morning, and I'm sure I'll post it on the blog that morning, so stay tuned
What I miss: being able to roll over in bed; my abs are already being rendered useless
Weekly Wisdom: trying to give myself little bits of "grace" every day to just relax and chill out. I'm slowly learning that I have to take care of myself again.

-H

Easter Camping

2010-04-08T13:19:00.006-05:00

Yes: we took Ilana AND Moses camping and we hope to camp as a whole family again...someday.
No: we did not get much sleep; we are not crazy, we just kind of enjoy this sort of thing. :)

So, a couple days before Maundy Thursday Paul and I decided to finally try to camp with Ilana. We thought about it this time last year and chickened out. We kind of regretted it then, so we didn't want that experience again. We were given some great advice about camping with a toddler:

Don't have an agenda
Sleep whenever your toddler sleeps

So, our expectations were pretty low. We planned great, Ilana-friendly meals, went shopping, packed up all our stuff, and a lot extra (how much STUFF does one 20-pound toddler need?!) and headed out. We got to our first campsite in Fredericksburg, TX around 12:30 - yes, just after midnight. That night was alright...all things considered. We woke up the next morning to an exhausted toddler and rain...yeah. :) Thankfully Andrew (a former student we know who lives there) offered us pancakes, sausage and coffee for breakfast. We couldn't turn him down. With our full bellies and warm bodies we headed down to Lost Maples.

We ate some lunch, got packed up, let a now-rested Ilana run around
and hiked in about a mile to our first campsite, it was lovely. We didn't know how long we'd be there so we got comfortable as quickly as possible. Dogs had to be on leash the whole time, and we weren't too far away from the trail, so Moses did a fair amount of hanging out by the tree:
He had so much fun...can't you tell? Our cook site was right next to the tree, so don't worry we got to hang out with him quite a bit (yes, that's his water hanging on the tree). We made and had a great dinner of mac and cheese with beef stick - YUM!!! The sun continued to set while we enjoyed brownie pancakes for dessert. As we were settling in for the night, I noticed the "default" positioning of our dependents and got a bit worried, but what was I going to do?
Little did I know, this would be the case ALL NIGHT. At the time it seemed sweet, but when you are 17 weeks pregnant and already beginning to feel cramped for space, a toddler who wants to share a pillow and a dog who wants to sleep on your lap don't help. None of us got a lot of sleep that night (that's the nice way of putting it). So, once it got light enough outside and we had stalled the waking up process as long as we could, we knew we needed some "emotional pick-me-ups" before we could talk about our plan for the day.
Emotional pick-me-up #1: HOT CHOCOLATE (especially sharing it with Ilana):
Paul thoroughly enjoyed the Starbucks Via we had brought in for him.
Emotional pick-me-up #2: BLUEBERRY PANCAKES (yes, even in the backcountry!):
I've got to tell you, these were THE BEST blueberry pancakes I think I've ever had.

So after thoroughly enjoying our breakfast we decided to not let the lack of sleep defeat us and stay another night. We wanted to try a different sleeping situation to see if it would be any better. Our only "plan" for the day was to go see an interesting rock formation a guide told us about (a 10-minute hike down the trail):
sterilize some water:
enjoy spring:
and while Ilana and I took a nap that afternoon, Paul and Moses hiked out to take back some excess food to the car and get the tarp we had brought "just in case." By the time Ilana woke up from her very short nap, Paul and Moses were back and Paul got busy setting up the tarp he and Moses would sleep under that night.
You can see our tent site, nestled in the trees in the background.
Ilana even tried it out, but decided she wanted to sleep in the tent with me instead.
We made dinner and settled down a lot earlier than the night before. Ilana and I slept fairly well, especially compared to the previous night. However Paul and Moses...didn't get much sleep from what I understand.
So the next morning we had a quick breakfast, got packed up, and hiked the mile back to our car. Moses slept through lunch,
our poor scrubby child Ilana ate well,
and got all cleaned up
just in time for us to head back home. Needless to say, there was a fair amount of sleeping going on in the car on the way home (by everyone except the driver of course!).

It was an experience, that's for sure. The craziest part about it all is that when Paul and I look back on the whole experience we have great memories and who wouldn't with pictures like this?!
-H & P

Ponytails, buckles and words - oh my!!

2010-03-27T22:15:00.005-05:00

After a 20-minute terrible 2s meltdown this afternoon, I finally got Ilana's hair into an actual ponytail. Please pray for me, because this is going to have to be her summertime hair-do and I'm hoping it doesn't take a 20-minute meltdown every time. But, the result was beautiful. How many 23 month olds do you know that can do this?!

Holy moly! That girl is blessed with HAIR!! We went for a walk over to the Chili's that's in the parking garage that we use (Paul was gone today and I had no motivation to make a dinner, so we got take out). This is her new favorite game: one foot on the sidewalk, one in the grass.
Of course on the way over we had to stop and see the pretty bushes that are in bloom all around the parking garage. Notice the stick in her other hand. Ever since she could walk outside, she's always found a stick and held onto it for the entire time we're outside. I now call them her "walking sticks" and she actually uses them, even if they're too short - it's so cute!
These days Ilana LOVES buckles and keys/keyholes. During dinner, instead of feeding herself from her tray, she insisted that I feed her so she could do this:

She actually ate really well, I was very surprised (even chicken!). Also, usually the camera diverts her attention from anything, but apparently not with a buckle to work on. I'll have to remember this for the next few weeks. Awesome!
Ilana is REALLY becoming verbal very quickly. She was screened by a speech therapist last week and although her auditory comprehension was so high it would have kicked her out of qualification, they still recommended speech therapy for her, just to get her some more words. Her expressive communication scores were actually in the normal range, but she just doesn't say a whole lot. At the time she only had about 10 words, but even just today she's said ball, bush, and car all on her own, without me even prompting her, and they were clear enough that I understood what she was saying. Around 40 seconds into the previous video you'll also hear the word that, just in the past week, has become "please" for her. I know she knows words, she just doesn't say them. I don't think she's going to need much speech therapy before she's off and running and I'll be forever saying "please be quiet, Ilana, please be quiet." She even knows how to say her own name (and even this has become more clear in the past few days):

I have heard person after person say how their kid is growing up so quickly and Ilana took a long time to get here, but I feel like I can truly, FINALLY say, our little girl is growing up so much these days!
Now excuse me, but I've got to go see why she's woken up from bed - poor thing has awful allergies, so I might have to clear out her nose for the umpteenth time today. :(
-H

Let's Go Fly a Kite!

2010-03-26T14:17:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago I spent $5 on an owl kite for Ilana. I figured it would give us a few hours of fun this spring and summer. Yesterday we broke it out. She LOVED it - probably the best $5 I've ever spent! This was her first reaction. The wind is pretty loud in the video, but if you think she's squealing, she is. :)

The kite is small and the wind was gusty, not all that consistent. But thankfully Paul's a master kite flyer (yet another trait that makes him the perfect Dad for Ilana!) so we had a blast.
After awhile she started getting the hang of it...sort of...in her own "Ilana" kind of way. :)

-H

The birds and the ... flowers :)

2010-03-25T18:00:00.005-05:00

Yesterday we had an impromptu dinner picnic. It has been beautiful down here recently, so we decided to take advantage of it. On our way home we stopped to look at some flowers.
Then she decided to "smell" them.
Here she's pointing out the birds.
Recently Ilana has been fascinated with birds. On our walk home we were in a huge field and saw tons of birds, flying, singing, the whole shebang. Ilana got so excited, this was her reaction:

The weather is beautiful and it makes the terrible 2s seem not so bad when you have sweet sweet moments like this in your day also.
Today, we flew a kite. :) I'll post pictures/video of that soon - she LOVED it!
-H

These were from earlier in the day, but I can't help but post them, they're some of my recent favorites! It is most definitely skirt weather down here! These were both taken right outside our building. In this picture she's singing her heart out.
Always the contemplative child.
:)

FINALLY!

2010-03-17T21:02:00.002-05:00

I think it's so cute how proud of herself she is in this video - she should be. She's been working on this one for awhile now.
This was filmed sometime last week. Let's just say that every time she says "Mama" now she gets massive amounts of positive reinforcement, and one very very happy Mama. :)
-H

on the move!

2010-03-15T18:00:00.003-05:00

A few things I had to blog about today:
1. I felt #2 move for the first time today (for sure this time) - crazy!! It's getting more real every day.
2. Ilana is obsessed with The Wiggles (a musical group for kids), we only have 1 video, but she asks to watch it almost every day, by wiggling. :) I let her watch it maybe once or twice a week. A few days ago I turned around from preparing dinner and saw her doing all the motions to one of the songs. She is so musical it's ridiculous! Fortunately I got it on video for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

-H

As if he needed something else to make him just a little bit more unique...

2010-03-14T22:46:00.002-05:00

We've been having some issues (since last summer) with Moses drinking too much water at once and then throwing up. So, we stopped letting him do this. But apparently it wasn't enough. Paul has been tirelessly trying to solve this seemingly-solvable problem. Well, this past weekend we found ourselves at a Tractor Supply Store looking for a mammoth rabbit waterer.
So far, so good. Moses actually drinks from it, drinks multiple multiple ounces from it at once (in drips of course) and doesn't throw up. Paul, you're amazing!
Even Ilana got excited...

So, hopefully we have a solution. Now that the weather's getting nice, we'll have to see how it works. Moses has given it a good "breaking in" these past few days. Here's hoping for the best!
-H

Baby Update

2010-03-11T20:53:00.004-06:00

I saw my nurse mid-wife today. She is FABULOUS!! Here's the update (I've totally stolen this "list" from another friend of a friend's blog that I stumbled upon one day):

How far along? 14 weeks
Total weight gain: 8 pounds, not too bad
Maternity clothes? a few here and there (thanks Erika!), on days when pre-pregnancy clothes aren't comfortable (and those days are beginning); I mostly still just fit in my larger clothes that I got right after Ilana was born
Sleep: getting better (especially now that Paul's home)
Best moment this week: hearing the baby's heart beat today; sometimes I forget that I'm pregnant until I'm super hungry or clothes aren't comfortable
Movement: maybe a little bit here and there...or it might just be gas...hard to tell; BUT my nurse mid-wife said that in the next few weeks I'll probably start to really feel the baby move - I'm so excited!
Food cravings: last night I had this snack: cheese, apples and a PICKLE!! I'm still craving red meat, anything salty, sugary or that will quench my thirst
Gender: we'll find out next month!
What I miss: a good glass of wine
Weekly Wisdom: I sleep better and go to bed earlier when Paul's home, so I'm glad he got home last night :) and use all 3 washers and dryers while you can, my weeks here are numbered!

Here is a belly shot from tonight. Yes, Moses was wrapping himself around me as tightly as he could (can you say over protective?).
When he wasn't busy "protecting" me from the evil camera, he was ... unamused by the whole photo session.

Crazy dog!
-H

Catching up...again

2010-03-09T16:54:00.004-06:00

Ok, well I'm glad my new year's resolution this year wasn't to blog more often, because I'd be failing miserably. :) So, around here...
Ilana desperately needed some new shoes (and a new blog picture inserter apparently!).
So we got her some...new shoes that is.
My favorite part is the bottoms.
You know you're a parent when you go to an amazing conference (Jubilee) and all you have to show for it are a few pictures of your amazingly adorable daughter. We borrowed a rolling backpack for the flights (new toys are GOLD for toddlers!! and borrowed toys are GOLD for parents!! A definite win-win.). She insisted on wearing the backpack, although it was a bit big on her and she could only walk backwards because it was a bit too heavy for her. Poor thing. So, of course, we took pictures! :)

Paul put her to bed on Saturday night, so I could stay in the big session. This was her right before bed - what a bathing beauty!
Spring has definitely sprung here in Waco. Our temps are in the 60s almost every day. Today it got to the low 70s - absolutely beautiful. We had a picnic lunch. Yesterday we had a huge thunderstorm roll through and right after it, right outside my window I saw this...

It was absolutely beautiful. As the sun continued to set you could see the whole arc, but of course I was too close so I couldn't get a picture of the whole thing. Happy Spring!
Paul's at the NASPA conference, and gets home tomorrow. I'm going to have him get some belly pics for the blog. Yes, there is already a small belly - crazy!!! I have a Dr's appointment on Thursday so I'm excited to hear how our little one is doing. I'm feeling great, just tired still. I have a feeling that won't be going away any time soon!
-H

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-14T20:43:00.002-06:00

-H&P! :)

a picture...already!!

2010-02-13T09:43:00.003-06:00

I had my first appointment on Thursday with the local nurse mid-wife, Christy Miller. She is AMAZING!!! The appointment was going great, then they made my day by letting me know I was going to get a sonogram!! I couldn't believe it...already???!!! They wanted to confirm a due date with a size measurement, etc. So, without further delay...may I introduce #2!!
When they first found this little one he/she was moving around like CRAZY. I said "great, active already!" Eventually #2 calmed down and we were able to get a good picture. I'm measuring right on time for an early to mid-September due date. I needed a little help interpreting the picture (when they're bigger it's easier, but they're still so little at 10 weeks!): the head is on the right, the spine goes around the top and the feet are in the bottom center of the picture. You could see the heart beating. It was amazing.

So, #2's picture hangs proudly on our fridge and I go back to Christy on March 11. We are going to find out what we're having this time around, so we'll be letting you all know!
-H

"Low-profile, noise-canceling headphones" anyone?

2010-02-10T21:03:00.004-06:00

So, right before Christmas I had Paul make a wish list. This is typical for us. Among other things, this list included "low-profile, noise-canceling headphones." I thought: that makes sense; his office doubles as our bedroom and Ilana, Moses and I aren't always the quietest beings to try to study to. So, after some investigating, I just decided to let him collect money for them over Christmas. So, we advertised what the money was going towards and Paul spent the holidays rolling in the dough.

Thanks to EVERYONE who gave us money, because a couple weeks ago Paul bought himself...

A NEW MOUNTAIN BIKE!!!

The mountain bike we brought down here, although it was too small for Paul because he got it when he was younger, served perfectly for 2 weeks as a campus commuter bike...until it was stolen. Since then, Paul's been making due with his rode bike, which has been getting a lot of needless wear and tear. It doesn't help that one of Paul's co-workers has been trying to get Paul into mountain biking since he was hired last summer. So when Paul found this bike on eBay for a GREAT price I didn't feel like I could say no when I knew how life-giving this Christmas present would be - and much more fun, and useful long-term - than low-profile noise-canceling headphones. So, of course I said YES!

Thanks to Mark for helping him put it together. (Yes, he's the same one who's been trying to get him into mountain biking since last summer.) Can you tell he's excited to have someone to ride with? :)

This is what it looks like. Pretty, huh?

And I hear that this is a pretty sweet part, but I have no clue...and it really doesn't do anything for me. But, I'm super excited that Paul likes it.

And might I add...HE LOVES IT!!
This was 2 seconds after the first time he rode it across campus. It was SPRINKLING outside. The poor bike! He better wipe it down.

Since then he's been to the mountain bike trails in Cameron Park a couple times and he loves his bike even more, and it's much more filthy now. He sees why it's a great bike and he's really excited to use it more. He, of course, LOVES mountain biking and apparently Cameron Park is THE place in all of Texas to ride, so I'm fully expecting to be a semi-mountain-bike widow. He's assured me that this won't cut into family time, but of course I want to give him a little bit of extra freedom to enjoy the trails while we're here. Who knows where we'll be in 15 weeks?! (Graduation is 13 weeks from this Saturday!!!)

So, thanks again to everyone who gave Paul money over Christmas. He's really enjoying his low-profile, noise-canceling headphones...I mean new mountain bike! :)
-H

WE'RE...

2010-02-05T09:44:00.002-06:00

PREGNANT!!!
I know. It's crazy. And we feel a little bit confused about God's timing with all of this, but we're starting to get excited all the same. I'm about 9 weeks along, which makes me due in mid-September. Who knows where we're going to be, or if Paul will get any time off, but we're confident that the Lord will work out those details. We also have great families. ;)
Belly pictures will be coming. It's weird, though, because I already feel like this poor child has "2nd Child's Syndrome" where not many pictures are taken. I remember taking pictures as soon as we found out we were pregnant with Ilana. Oh well.
I do already have a small belly - your body just seems to know what's going on the second time around. I'm not as nauseated, I already know what and how often to eat, but I do have a good case of fatigue coupled with insomnia. Which means that I'm just constantly exhausted. Not so good with a toddler, but thankfully Ilana is pretty low-maintenance...most of the time.
Speaking of Ilana, she's been begging me to read to her for about 20 minutes so I better get going! Happy Friday!!
-H

The Devil Face

2010-02-04T09:29:00.002-06:00

From a few mornings ago...enjoy! :)

-H

Ilana lately

2010-01-28T20:11:00.003-06:00

Lately Ilana LOVES to climb on our sweet puppy dog, and he lets her...as often as she likes...which is almost all the time, every day...sweet, sweet puppy dog!
She also LOVES sitting in her chair and reading. I find her like this about once a day, patiently waiting for me to finish whatever I'm working on, usually a meal. Thanks Nonni and PopPop!
Short story, but super cute:
Last semester during a bouldering competition at the rock (that Paul manages here at Baylor), a student dressed up as Spiderman at the end and rappelled down from the second story balcony. At first Ilana was FREAKED OUT. I'm talking screaming, pointing and running straight to me. Poor thing. But, once she settled down and realized he wasn't going to hurt her, she became enamored with "Spiderman." Even as we were walking out the door she was pointing and "aahhhh"-ing with fascination. Well, the event must be marked in her memory forever, because a few weeks ago we were in the medicine aisle of our grocery store and of course all the kids bandaids are prominently displayed right at their eye level, about 2 or 3 rows up from the floor. So, while I was looking for something else Ilana started eying up the kids bandaid selection. They had everything: Hello Kitty, Barbie, Winnie the Pooh, every action hero you can think of, etc, etc, etc. What was the one that we couldn't leave without? SPIDERMAN!! Now, I find Spiderman bandaids in the oddest places. Ilana's never actually needed a bandaid - cautious child I have! - so, she finds other things to do with them, like...put the box in her stroller and stroll them around the apartment:
or put them on her pants:
or even on her fleeces:
What are we going to do with her?!
-H

Mosey's Christmas

2010-01-12T20:50:00.004-06:00

A few days after we got home we received Moses' Christmas present in the mail. Even Ilana's been enjoying it from day one.
Then we filled it and he really started getting the hang of it.
Thanks Millers and Rabucks! It's perfect. Yes, it says "Always Kiss Me Goodnight." What a sweet puppy. :)
-H

The many looks of Ilana

2010-01-12T09:39:00.004-06:00

Since we've been home Ilana has taken many forms.
The "Thug Ballerina:"
The "I'm so cute you can't ever be mad at me:"
She really does love her lady bug outfit!
The "Helper:"
She wears her purple hat almost all the time. What are we going to do with her? (More about all the cardboard in a few blogs.)
"Fierce, really fierce:"
Whatever look Ilana takes in a day, we just make the most of it. She's a total toddler now - temper tantrums, opinions, the works. There will never be another time like this, so we're just trying to enjoy her!
-H

CHRISTMAS!

2010-01-11T20:06:00.007-06:00

This Christmas was crazy fun. We stayed at 3 homes in 20 days - phew! Were we glad when we finally set foot in our little apartment in Waco?! Here's our Christmas in pictures:

Before we left Waco, Mark let Ilana play the guitar a bit with him at the Outdoor Adventure Christmas party.
We arrived in Philly on December 11. Gigi got the privilege of reading to Ilana almost as often as Ilana wanted. Ilana also discovered a new love for rocking chairs.
We all enjoyed a shower for Erika that Sunday. (Yes, she's smelling a diaper. No, it's not dirtied by a baby - it had chocolate in it. It was a game!)
That Monday afternoon we made our way to Hanover where Ilana found yet another rocking chair and continued practicing her new talent.
After a few days of screams, she eventually warmed up to Pepe (or was it that he warmed up to her?). By the end of our time in Hanover she was having a blast with Pepe all the time!
The day before we celebrated Christmas with the Millers it snowed 12 inches! The guys worked all day clearing the driveway, but we had to take Ilana out for a little bit. So, we all took a break and played for about 20 minutes. We put Ilana in the Miller's big orange bowl...
and ran her in circles all around the back yard...
we played for 30 seconds longer, then she realized how cold she was (poor Texas toddler!). So we went inside for some hot chocolate.
After celebrating Christmas at the Rabuck's I think it's pretty easy to tell who's the boss:
The next day we made our way down to Annapolis where Ilana met another cat, who, although he usually runs from toddlers, decided to give Ilana a try.
She LOVES playing on the steps when we're away from home.
In Annapolis she also deepened her love of rocking chairs...
and chairs in general.
Paul and I were able to get away for an Ilana-free over-night in DC. We actually left the hotel room at 7, which is normally bath time and bed time for Ilana. It was wonderful!
The next day we went to the National Geographic Society Museum, the Natural History Museum (with everyone else in DC) and ended the day at the Library of Congress. It was a blast...and very bright!
We had a great Christmas, but there really is no place like home. Let the last semester of grad school begin!
-H

She can put a hat on!

2009-12-11T00:15:00.002-06:00

-H
ps-I will have the cell phone with me while I travel today. :)

Fasten your seat belts...

2009-12-06T20:59:00.008-06:00

Here's the update you've been patiently waiting for...
My best friend got married in mid-October. Thanks to my mother-in-law I was able to go to Nashville for 3 nights ALL BY MYSELF. It was my first overnight trip without Ilana since she was born. It was fabulous!
Homecoming weekend was pretty fun. We went to the parade where Ilana enjoyed a great view from Paul's shoulders. Even Baylor's live bear mascots marched in the parade. Ilana really enjoyed that!
Halloween was pretty fun. The plan was for Ilana to go as a superhero (thanks to her amazing superhero cape she got about a year ago from her best friend Ada), but when trick-or-treating time came around she did not want to wear the cape - the wings won out. So, she went as a fairy princess. She was pretty cute all the same. Our good friend Robin walked around with us and in general made the whole thing possible. Thanks, Robin!
This was her in the beginning of the night, She wasn't a huge fan of walking around after a few minutes of this, so I ended up carrying her most of the time...poor thing, she's just so little!
If there weren't a lot of people around she enjoyed walking the halls with Robin.
We're starting to be really silly in the tub.
I could tell it was getting cool when I saw this pile of socks.
On Thanksgiving Day we set up the Christmas tree. She LOVES it!
She also loved the sweet potatoes at dinner that night.
We had a great dinner with friends!
The next day Ilana and I went down to visit the Cogliandro's in Houston for a few days. Besides it being a great time to see great friends, I think something might be starting with Ilana and Makani...

(Sorry this last one is sideways and from a different angle, it was way too cute!)
December has been lots of fun so far. Ilana and I have spent a lot of time in the kitchen (baking with a toddler is...fun!).
Then we bundled Ilana up in her long johns and went to Christmas on 5th Street, Baylor's huge Christmas block party.
She had no fear of the animals in the petting zoo. I actually don't think she knew what the big deal was. They were all smaller than Moses!
Then we saw the pretty lights.
After that Ilana had had just enough partying, so Paul took her home for bed, but I stayed and watched Jon McLaughlin. It was a great concert!
Dad, I think you would have even enjoyed it...

I wish I could have gotten a longer video. I thought it was awesome!
Since then we've been busy in the kitchen. Can you guess what we've been doing?

We've spent the weekend delivering cookie trays. We have some more to deliver to offices tomorrow, then we've got to get packing to head home for Christmas!
Ok, I think you're all caught up. :) Hope you enjoyed our semester. Nothing like drinking from a fire hose, huh? We can't wait to see everyone on the east coast...real soon! Love to you all!!
-H

Another walk around the North Village

2009-10-24T19:47:00.003-05:00

This walk actually happened a few weeks ago, before we had days upon days of rain. So, the ground was dry and Ilana was way too cute. We had a good time outside...as always.
She sticks her tongue out all the time now!
One of my recent favorites...
Conquering Moses...
Ilana: 1,864; Moses: 0 (what a good dog!)
And now for your viewing pleasure:

I absolutely LOVE this outfit on her. I've just decided she's going to wear it to church again tomorrow. :)
-H

A Walk Around North Village

2009-10-10T22:16:00.002-05:00

I actually did it...I took Ilana outside just to play (without the dog so I could enjoy it too), and it had recently rained, so I figured there would be a little bit of mud involved, so I put her in "play clothes" so I wouldn't freak out if she got a little bit muddy. She had a BLAST!

She was especially enamored by the little girl she saw in the window...

We had such a good time! We've done it a few more times since this...more pictures to come.
The weather has cooled off a bit. Today's high was only in the low 60s. But, we're supposed to get back into the mid-80s by this week...crazy Texas "fall!!"
-H

Baylor Football!!

2009-10-03T20:32:00.005-05:00

Well, these pictures are 2 weeks old, but it's still a fun memory. We took Ilana to her second Baylor football game. Last year she went to one, but only made it halfway through the second quarter. This year we made it the whole game. This was Baylor's home season opener. It was hot, but super fun.
We sat at the very top of the visitor's side - it has the best breeze in the whole place. So, this was part of how we kept her cool...
This was the other part of how we kept her cool...
Eventually it was so hot and the game hadn't even started so Paul walked around the concourse with Ilana. Here they are right before the game started, walking back to our seats. We love this view of the field - it's a hike up, but it's worth it!
We had a great time!
It would have been more fun if Baylor had won, but we were still all smiles. SIC 'EM BEARS!!
-H

2 firsts in 1

2009-09-25T17:08:00.004-05:00

1. Ilana vomited this afternoon
2. I got thrown up onto today - projectile style

...awesome. :) It'll be awhile before I feed her mandarin oranges again.

This picture was taken a few weeks ago, and has nothing to do with either of these firsts, but isn't it cute?!
Have a great weekend.
-H

A girl and her dog

2009-09-25T12:35:00.004-05:00

Ilana LOVES Moses.
I've noticed that she always seems to find him when she's upset or tired...

but lately she finds him when she just wants to hang out...
She's even found it fascinating to watch him eat (which completely grossed me out, so after this one time I've always stopped her - no one likes to be watched while they're eating).
I just turned my head to check on her and she was trying to put her shoes onto Moses' paws. For the most part he takes it just fine. I think he likes the attention. Once he's had enough he'll go to the back room and lay down, but for the most part he's the perfect toddler entertainer. I can't wait for the day that she wants to paint his nails. I'll definitely take pictures of that!
-H

Temper Tantrums

2009-09-23T09:40:00.002-05:00

Are we in the terrible 2's already or what?! Here is Ilana in the throws of a typical temper tantrum. Thankfully we haven't had any "public" ones yet, but I'm sure they're coming soon.
I don't even remember what this one was about...I almost never do. I've adopted the "ignore and smile" tactic to deal with these. It works well so far and the tantrums end fairly quickly. Then she gets a hug and kiss from me, as well as a reminder that I love her.
Paul and I are still feeling a bit sick today. I skipped MOPS (DANGIT!!), but we're going to run some errands to get me some Sudafed and get Ilana a potty...I'm starting to think in that direction. She's VERY curious in the bathroom these days. :) :) :) Hopefully the Sudafed will help, and a good nap.
-H

You know you're in Texas when...

2009-09-22T08:29:00.002-05:00

1. you wake up and this little guy is hanging out in your bathroom...
He was only about 1 1/2 inches long, but I did see him leave the bathroom and I haven't been able to find him since. :) Maybe he'll show up again one day, big and green...!

2. your marching band goes into a state-shaped formation at the beginning of every football game to play the official state song.
Yes, this shot is upside down, but you can see the shape a lot easier. We were on the wrong side of the stadium apparently.

More pictures to come. It's been crazy here lately. Paul and I are both sick, we're doing our best to keep Ilana healthy. Maybe after I get a nap today I'll blog a bit more. :)
-H

ps-I wish the rain would go away. You also know you're in Texas when it floods every time it rains. It makes taking the dog out a little more...adventurous.

Toddler-hood here we come!

2009-09-11T15:54:00.004-05:00

Well, ever since Ilana started walking life around here has drastically changed. It's a good thing Ilana's super cute, because there are some days (i.e. EVERY) that are a real challenge. Apparently, for Ilana, walking has made her a true toddler and with toddler-hood comes OPINIONS. Ilana is making her opinions known...very clearly. However, she still doesn't have words, but they are coming any day now - she babbles all the time. The one word she has completely down is "bye-bye." She says is anytime a door closes (even the oven door), the phone is hung up, we finish reading a book. She even says it in place of "night-night." She has that one down - any time anything ends or we're done using it, it's "bye-bye." She understands a lot, but doesn't say much. So, the challenges of raising a toddler begin.
On this day we were trying out pig-tails. I'd say they work! My word, she's way too cute!
We finally have an excuse to wear a rain jacket - we've hit the rainy season here in TX (which means the temps are also going down!!). I might just have to put it on her for no reason some days - SUPER CUTE!
We give her proper utensils at every meal now. She knows she's supposed to do something with them, but she hasn't quite gotten it all down yet. Still, she's on her way.
On this particular day she picked out her outfit - she pointed to it incessantly one morning with her "ah!" that she uses whenever she wants something. Later that day she proceeded to eat the crayons we were using to color.
Then when we took the dog out, she decided to take her sunglasses.
She's pure trouble, but growing up every day. She's such a sponge, absorbing everything I do, my reactions, my faces. It's kind of scary because I catch her "practicing" my faces - AH!! It's a good thing she's super cute!
-H

The most beautiful thing

2009-09-08T21:54:00.003-05:00

Ah, perspective is EVERYTHING! I know that to some people this might seem crazy, but yes, one of the most beautiful things I have seen in almost 13 months is a half-sized portable dishwasher hooked up to our kitchen faucet...
It even works! Well, it disinfects, but it disinfects WELL!
It's on the small side, but so is our space and our plate and bowl selection.
Paul has made me a happy happy wife. :)
-H

Family Picnic

2009-09-02T10:32:00.006-05:00

The weather has finally gotten down to the mid-90's (it's in the 60's at night!!) - SO BEAUTIFUL!! We had no choice but to have a family picnic last Sunday night out at Baylor's challenge course - one of the only places we can let Moses roam off-leash...
while we enjoyed our feast!
The homemade bread was delicious!
Ilana thoroughly enjoyed playing in (covering herself with) the mulch.
After about 30 minutes of pure sniffing, Moses finally sat down.
We went on a short family walk.
Ilana found a stick to chew on.
We had such a great time we might just have to make this a Sunday night Miller family tradition!
-H

What are we doing??

2009-08-30T16:29:00.005-05:00

a) Practicing our moving skills
b) Getting rid of our ant infestation
c) Creating a BIG run-around area for Ilana
d) Getting our living room carpet cleaned
...
...
...
The correct answer is: D!! We have THE BEST housekeeping staff in the North Village. They spent 3 hours in our apartment last week steam-cleaning our nasty carpet. I didn't realize how smelly our apartment was until about 30 minutes into Miss Sonya's work. Our carpets are officially the cleanest they've been since we moved in, and now we're moving back into our living room. :)
And of course, here's a video of Ilana enjoying the fan we used to help the drying process along...

As far as the other options go, we haven't had any ant infestations what-so-ever this summer (YEAH!!) and as much as I'd love Ilana to have a big area to run around in, we also need a living room. Maybe some day. But I have a feeling we'll need to practice our moving skills before that day comes along. :)
-H

a confession

2009-08-30T16:03:00.006-05:00

Well, I must confess that now that I have a Facebook account and my internet time is divided between it and blog-land, recently Facebook has been winning out. Sorry...I'm back...I'll try to be better in the future. So for those who still don't have a Facebook account, for whatever good reason, here is an update...
We are completely back to normal, or at least the "new normal" now that Ilana is walking. She is being very... "helpful" around the house these days. She loves to help unload the groceries...
unload the paper shredder...
help me keep the pictures on our computer organized...
and even sort the laundry!
Who knows, in a few weeks, she might even be doing the dishes. Now THAT would be a miracle!
Here's a recent video, so you can see her in "full action." Yes, this activity was her idea, don't worry the diaper is clean. Enjoy. :)

-H

Paul Bunyan

2009-08-14T13:26:00.004-05:00

Paul decided to keep his 3-week beard for me to "experience it in all its glory." I wasn't a huge fan...So he started shaving it off. I (maybe) could have handled this...but definitely NOT this...He's back to his "old" Paul again. I forgot to get a "finished product" picture. He says he misses his beard, but I must admit, I'm glad it's gone. :)
-H

SHE'S WALKING

2009-08-13T20:00:00.004-05:00

Apparently Ilana was waiting to walk for Paul because tonight...

and a few minutes later she added the laugh...

and just after that...

It happened just like THAT! It was crazy. I can't believe it. I have a feeling I know what the next few days will be full of - SLEEP! She's going to wear herself out in no time at all. Let the good times roll, I mean WALK. :)
-H

Annapolis, MD

2009-08-10T19:24:00.005-05:00

Wow! This past week has flown by. We have had so much fun playing with Gigi...

re-organizing Nonni's tea collection...
seeing old friends...
swinging...

(she seriously did NOT want to get out)

playing with bubbles...
swimming in the pool...

pestering Simon the cat...

eating more corn on the cob...

playing with cousins Sami and Caroline...
and learning about all sorts of animals...

but we are SO ready to be home in Texas (crazy, I never thought I'd be saying that!). Paul, we'll be home soon, I promise. We can't wait to see your 3-week beard!

-H

100th POST!

2009-07-30T20:53:00.004-05:00

Well, this is officially our 100th post. It is nothing special, just another update, but a fun milestone none the less. We are in Hanover, Pennsylvania. We arrived Tuesday night with our carry-on and carseat. Our luggage arrived Wednesday night. :)
So far, Ilana has discovered her nostrils... discovered that she enjoys pickles with her burgers... and gotten a hair cut (don't worry we just trimmed her bangs)... We went to JCPenney to visit friends today and are off to Gettysburg tomorrow. This is definitely the way to go when Paul's away for 3 weeks! I heard from Paul today. He's doing well - traveling 17 hours tomorrow down to New Mexico to pick up in-coming first year students to take them into the backcountry for 9 more days. He's having a great time, but ready to be home and see us. We're getting there, too.
-H

3 things

2009-07-29T15:10:00.002-05:00

I recently read that you can tell a lot about a person by how they handle these 3 things: a rainy day, lost luggage and tangled Christmas tree lights. Well, I've officially dealt with all 3. Rainy days come once in a blue moon in Waco. I think I handled them pretty well. Paul and I happily de-tangled our friend's Christmas tree lights for them last Thanksgiving.
Today I'm dealing with lost luggage for the first time. It's no fun. When I travel with Ilana I only carry what is absolutely necessary to keep her happy, which means no deodrant, no clothing for me, not even my camera. According to Delta's on-line service (and the woman who called us) our luggage is on route to us, but it could be another 2-4 hours. Apparently there are a lot of other people dealing with lost luggage today, too.
Thankfully my mother-in-law is gracious enough to lend me anything I need. We're making the most of it! I'll never be more thankful to see my luggage again. But, I must say, I think I took it pretty well last night. It wasn't worth getting stressed over. Ilana and I had safey made it to Harrisburg and we were relatively happy, and a bit tired. I'm currently enjoying the hummingbird outside the window. I'm about to take a shower. What could be better? :)
-H

Astoria, Part 3

2009-07-28T00:35:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow we say "goodbye" to Astoria and the Oregon coast and I am really going to miss it! To any of our mutual friends: Zach and Carolyn are AMAZING hosts and I'd highly recommend coming to visit. :)

Today we went to Cannon Beach again to try to see Haystack Rock up close, during low tide (the world revolves around the tides here). It was really foggy. As we were walking there this was what the beach looked like behind us: zombies, it was actually a bit creepy...

but once you got a little bit closer the rock was beautiful...

And we did get to walk right up to it and see all sorts of starfish and other sea creatures around it...

but the tide was coming in so we couldn't stay for too long. We were hoping to stay at this beach all day, but it was too cold. So we went 20 minutes up the road to Indian Beach and it was beautiful! We stayed there the rest of the day...

I'll really miss Oregon. It's beautiful here, but the weather is really wild. It can be super foggy in one place and beautiful, clear and sunny just 20 minutes up the road. Enjoy your time here, Zach, Carolyn and Ada! And thanks again for being amazing hosts.

-H

Astoria, Part 2

2009-07-26T22:23:00.005-05:00

As promised, here is the carousel picture. Ilana didn't seem too enthused, but when it stopped and we got off she SCREAMED...I guess that means she had fun.
We drove down to Cannon Beach, where Haystack Rock is out in the ocean. It's one of the most photographed places in Oregon. You can see why! It was BEAUTIFUL and we couldn't even get close.
The next day (Saturday) we drove over the big bridge to Washington State. The tide was so low in this picture that you can see the sand on either side if you enlarge it.
In addition to going to a local fair and a local market we drove all the way down to Cape Disappointment. Unfortunately it lived up to its name.
We came home and that evening we drove to the local beach, about a mile down the road to pick fresh, wild strawberries. The one in the picture is the average size. These things are as tasty and sugary as the big, normal strawberries, but in this pint-sized (about the size of your pinkie finger nail - seriously!) berry. They are SWEET and SO GOOD!!
Today we had a BEACH DAY!!! We drove down to Oswald West and sat on the beach like bums for 3 or 4 hours. This is Ilana at the PACIFIC Ocean (she was at the Atlantic Ocean in May - I'm so proud of her, the true American Traveler).
Ilana actually wore her hat all day. She amused herself by throwing sand over her shoulders and playing with the rocks she found. She was obviously sucking on a few too many sandy rocks... she got a sand-stache!
Then we drove down to see Manzanita. This is an overlook along the way. The fog is amazing down here.
The girls are really getting along wonderfully. They're pros at sleeping in their car seats, and we're really learning a lot about sharing this week. :) They're still swapping habits and "tricks." I think Ada is teaching Ilana how to talk. Ilana's babbling tons more than she did a week ago.
Tomorrow's our last full day here. I'm not sure what we're doing. We're really excited to see family out east (not excited about changing time zones again, but Ilana seems to do alright with it). Alicia we miss you like crazy too! Wish you could've been here. We'll have to plan a time to all get together again...soon.

-H

Astoria, Part 1

2009-07-24T11:50:00.008-05:00

Well, I wasn't sure I was on vacation until I heard Carolyn's unforgettable laugh in baggage claim at the Portland Airport. It had been a rough day, but I was instantly in vacation mode when I saw her. We are having a wonderful time! LOTS of firsts and I'm sure more to come. Here's a glimpse thus far.

Our first night here Ilana had corn on the cob for the first time. She LOVED it.

The next morning we walked all around downtown Astoria. We stopped at Bowpicker for lunch. It was THE BEST fish & chips I've ever had. The fish here is amazing.

Ilana discovered ketchup. Again, she loved it! I think Carolyn's secretly trying to make her a "messy" baby while we're here.
The next day we went to the Lewis & Clark National Historic Park and walked through Fort Clatsop (this is where Zach works). Ilana slept the whole walk out...
but woke up for our picnic lunch and enjoyed the ride back - especially the fresh blackberries and huckleberries along the path we picked for her.
We came home and the sun was out - a rarity for this area. So, while Ada took a nap, the 3 of us played in the sandbox (yet another first for Ilana). It took her awhile to warm up to the idea, but eventually she really enjoyed it. I think she's doing a sic 'em in this picture. :)
After 2 short days here Ilana's caught on to getting up the stairs. She screams when she's at the top because she can't get down, but wow! she's really catching on.

We've had a wonderful time and both Ilana and Ada are swapping habits and "tricks." I'm so glad our week isn't even half over yet. We're off to the carousel today!

-H

Email forwards

2009-07-19T16:21:00.004-05:00

I received a forward from another mom. The subject of the email was "FW: Warning about "cafe" outdoor tables!!!!!! Please read!" My initial thought was "ugh, not another silly forward, some kind of warning to make me second guess another area of my life." But I read on. I was so happy I did, here's the whole thing...

Ladies, Be cautious!! Don’t ignore this one, please read it.
THIS COULD HAPPEN TO YOU...IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOUR MOTHER, YOUR SISTER OR YOUR DAUGHTER...
The strangest thing happened to me this weekend. I was sitting at a local outdoor cafe having lunch by myself and two men came and sat down at my table. I gave them the death look, but they just casually stayed at my table and wouldn't leave me alone. I shined up my ring on my married finger, and then placed my hand on the table and I hinted to them that I was married and that I was not interested in them.
Luckily for me they got the hint and left, but thankfully the whole thing was captured on the Cafe's camera. I'm sending you this picture as a warning, just in case they try and pick you up too.
Honestly, some men think they are God's gift to women.
...(scroll down a bit)...
Then I fell out of bed and woke up!!! How did YOUR day start?

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Sweet dreams. :)
-H

Family Day!

2009-07-18T21:36:00.011-05:00

In anticipation of the family being separated for 3 weeks in a few days, we decided to make today FAMILY DAY! This morning we went to the...
After walking all over, and thoroughly enjoying the inside exhibits...
it was snack time...
then we saw Paul's favorite display, the giraffes...
then we saw mine, the flamingos...
We had such a fun time. Ilana did a fair amount of pushing the stroller (yes, this was uphill)...

The hat was water-soaked in an effort to keep her cool. It worked really well. We can't believe she's actually steering her stroller! By the time we got home for lunch we had one tired baby on our hands. So, you might ask "What did Paul and Heather do while Ilana took a nap?" CLIMBED OF COURSE!! Ilana slept really well in the Student Life Center's conference room for 2 hours, and we climbed! (We checked on her about every 20 minutes, don't worry.) It was loads of fun.
Yep that's me at the top and Paul's belaying. We each climbed 3 routes and then bouldered a bit.
We just ended our day by watching the Tour de France highlights on TV. (Go Lance!) It was a really fun day.
-H

The only safe place

2009-07-16T14:20:00.005-05:00

As you can see below, we've flexed a bit on our rules with Moses...
But at least we have a good reason - Speed Demon Ilana!
Ilana RUNS all over the apartment with her alphabet train and poor Moses gets chased off his rug every time she comes through. So the only safe place is the couch. Poor dog. He makes himself right at home...

and eventually Ilana comes over and pets him. I think she's trying to apologize or maybe just practice talking (what is she doing with her mouth?).

But I don't think he quite understands. His life will never be the same either.
-H
ps-No, we don't make a habit of watching TV unless it's Sunday morning. We can't seem to quit our 6-year addiction to CBS Sunday Morning!

A Facebook Divorce

2009-07-13T10:13:00.004-05:00

Lately I have heard "Are you on Facebook?" more times than I can count. So when a climbing (stranger) new friend said "I'll find you on Facebook," I thought THAT'S IT!! Paul and I have shared a Facebook account for a few years now, but I knew it was time for me to venture out on my own. So, as soon as we got our feet back under us yesterday from another climbing weekend in Austin, I set myself up my own Facebook account.

***CRAZY***

Paul and I have officially gotten a Facebook divorce. So, come find me - just me. I'm using my old email: polkadot99@hotmail.com. I can't stand when my personal email is cluttered, so I use that one for anything "public." Also, don't be annoyed if I don't check it every day. I've got a few other things going on.

-H

Fun Fact: my first "friend" was my Dad!!

Something finally clicked

2009-07-04T15:36:00.003-05:00

and Ilana can finally steer her walking toy!

She's been a lot less frustrated since she finally figured this out yesterday afternoon. She'll be walking in no time at all!
-H

Size: 9

2009-07-04T15:32:00.003-05:00

Think...

road-sign green (we're talking GREEN people!)
4 1/2" heels
silver-accented toe
my trendy best friend's wedding in October

and you'll have...
Yep! These are my newly-purchased shoes for Emily's wedding in October. Let's just say that I'm going to have to wear them almost every day to get my feet used to them, and build my endurance for the wedding. If I can build up my stamina to wear them long enough for the ceremony and pictures I'll be ecstatic! :)
-H

"Playing" with Moses

2009-06-30T09:53:00.006-05:00

Lately Ilana has become much more attached to Moses than I think he'd like...
Yes, she's still climbing on him (see that right knee, right in the ribs!)...
She's even begun standing on him...
But I really do think that she just loves him TONS, even though he still looks like he thinks his life is over...
Here they are in action (again, don't worry, no one gets hurt)...

He's such a good dog!
-H

Blueberries

2009-06-28T20:59:00.004-05:00

We've been feeding Ilana mixed berries for multiple months, but never just plain blueberries. I think it's safe to say she LOVES them. As you can see, she's "singing" with glee...

At first it was just a few for dessert (her hair looks gorgeous in this picture!)...
But then she seemed to enjoy them so much, I thought I'd just give her a few more...
Pretty soon, I think she had a "blueberry coma..."
Needless to say, the next morning her system was...really cleaned out. :) The girl loves blueberries!
-H

When I die...

2009-06-26T11:37:00.003-05:00

With all the hype today about Micheal Jackson's death, I have my own mortality on my mind (I know, this is not like any other blog thus far, but go with me for just a little bit).
When I die the news will probably not make a big deal about it, hopefully, no one will worry about what will happen with my children, NBC will probably not have a special report all morning on the last hours, the top 10 moments, or how I've changed culture, the world will not come to the myriad of places I've lived and leave flowers.
But I do hope that a few people will remember the impact I've had on their lives. I hope that Ilana (and any other children we may have) remembers me as a loving, gentle, self-sacrificing Mom. I hope that Paul remembers me as a supportive, loving and gracious wife. I hope that my family remembers me as a committed person - committed to our family and committed to our Lord. I hope my friends remember my smiles, my laugh and all the joy I have in life.
All these things make me want to live a better life, to live for today, to show those that I love how special they are to me. So, thank you, Michael Jackson. Thanks for reminding me to LIVE today and each day. Thanks for reminding me of what's important in life.

-H

11 months

2009-06-24T21:12:00.017-05:00

WOW!! Exactly 11 months ago our small family arrived here at Baylor. Click here to see some pictures and read about the journey. It's a real trip down memory lane!
I never thought I'd feel so at home down here. It is hot (we set a new record today: 106 degrees!), but it is good. I recently wrote an update to my aunt:

"Yes, the 'mushkin' is really growing these days. Today we got her a push toy, in hopes to encourage her to walk. She had only been playing with it for a few minutes and sure enough, she pulled herself right up to her feet and started walking with it - CRAZY!!! So, life is wild around here. Paul and I went out to dinner last night. We actually got a wonderful babysitter to come over, play with Ilana, feed her dinner, bathe her and put her to bed. It was a first for us, and it was wonderful!!! We're definitely going to be doing that again! We realized last night that these are probably the best days of our lives. Ilana is (almost) always happy. I have freely chosen to stay home, and I'm loving it. We have a super cool dog. We're living right on campus - which is fun almost all the time. We love our church. We actually have some great friends here. Paul's loving what he's studying and he's loving his work with the outdoor adventure program. Life is GREAT!! This first year has had many challenges, but those challenges have been overshadowed by enormous amounts of joy, peace and grace. We're excited about this next year - to watch Ilana grow, to study and learn more, and for relationships to grow. We know that there will always be gaps in where we'd like to be and where we are, but all in all, we're doing great. We're already starting to get anxious about the 'next step.' This whole school year Paul and I will really be focused on 'where do we go next?' But, we're trying to live in the moment, see what our options are, and hopefully the Lord will answer the rest of the questions. We're really excited to see where we might go next. But for now, we're just trying to make it through the day and enjoy it as much as we can."

So, to celebrate our time here, I thought it would be appropriate to post some pictures of...you guessed it - ILANA!! She is super cute these days. I took her to Cameron Park and just enjoyed watching her explore and begin the road to walking. Cra-zy!
So, here's to a wonderful 11 months, Waco! Thanks for the ride. We're halfway there!

So, besides her diaper showing, this is an absolute favorite. I love that face!
She would do this all day if I'd let her.
She loves it!
But she'll still crawl when Mommy's back has had enough.
JELLIES!! She wears these shoes almost every day. Thanks, Lizzie!
Her name does mean "tree" in Hebrew after all...
Unfortunately my favorite from the day won't load. So, stay tuned and I'll try to get it loaded soon.
-H

Lady Bear

2009-06-17T23:27:00.003-05:00

Some children have blankets, some children have teddy bears, our Ilana has...both...a "blankie bear" that we have named Lady Bear. It is a dis-embodied bear head and arms, in the middle of a blanket (see above for details). It is the best of both worlds - the side with the half bear on it is fuzzy soft, while the other side is silky soft. Aunt Valerie got it for her when she was only 3 months old and it has become her comfort. These days we don't go anywhere or do anything without Lady Bear. It's the only way we could get her to sleep through the night.

So you can imagine how distraught we all were when it was time to put her down tonight and Lady Bear was nowhere to be found. After 3 and a half hours of tipping our small apartment upside down I had resigned to the fact that, although Moses had never shown prior interest in Lady Bear, he had destroyed it, eaten it in its entirety and not left any evidence (something Moses would NEVER do). I happened to be walking down the hallway to our bedroom when I saw the folded up shade cover on her stroller, and although Paul and I had "checked the stroller" a hundred times already, I looked in the folds and sure enough...there she was. My heart leaped back to life and with huge smiles we delivered Lady Bear back to our still very upset, not asleep at all little girl. She responded with an enormous grin (one that I will NEVER forget) and immediately rolled over as if to say "I'm tired now, can I go to sleep?" So, we left her and her Lady Bear in peace. We haven't heard a peep from her since (about an hour ago).

The above picture was taken last week (she didn't even want to go into the pool without Lady Bear!), but the picture below was just taken this morning. I'm not sure we could have survived tonight if we had not found Lady Bear. Ah, the apartment is quiet, Ilana has Lady Bear and all is good in the world.
-H

How big is Ilana?

2009-06-17T16:00:00.004-05:00

SO BIG!! (It's her new party trick.) :)

She looks a little weird in this picture, but if you blow it up you can see all 5 of her teeth.
Oh yeah, and we eat meals with no bib and no shirt these days, too. She screams and pulls them off anyway. It's a fight we're just not going to win. If Ilana likes to eat topless, let it be! :)
-H

To prove my point further

2009-06-14T20:51:00.004-05:00

A couple mornings ago, I was just finishing up the dishes and I heard Ilana making a ruckus in the living room, going on and on "da da da da da!!" I turned around and this is what I saw...

She loves her Dada...and she loves that pool! Maybe we'll leave it inside for awhile. This is way too cute.
-H

Morning Swim

2009-06-12T10:28:00.007-05:00

Well, summer has officially hit and in Texas that means one thing: POOL TIME!!! The Pounders bought Ilana her first kiddie pool. So, I blew it up in our living room, not thinking that she would have this much fun with it inside...
Ilana's hair was full of static all morning...
"Fierce Ilana..."
I'm convinced she would have taken her nap in here if I had let her...
She LOVES the pool, if she only knew that soon it will have water in it!!
-H

Catching up

2009-05-31T15:33:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I'm obviously not so good with New Year's resolutions. But, once again, here's a series of blogs to update you on everything. Enjoy.
-H

Belly button!

2009-05-31T15:22:00.005-05:00

Among other things (like her love for peek-a-book, her obsession with her "Lady Bear," her cackle when she's being silly and her temper tantrums - yes at the ripe old age of 13 1/2 months!) Ilana has recently found her belly button!
We were sorting clothes one afternoon and I peeked over my shoulder to check on her, only to find her hunched over with her finger sunk, completely mesmerized. ("What IS that thing? How did THAT get there?")
Of course I quickly grabbed the camera to get a few snapshots...
and, of course, a video...

She's way too cute...sometimes. :)
-H

Moses loves chili too

2009-05-31T15:13:00.005-05:00

One night we had chili for dinner. It was really great. As usual, we let the left-overs cool on our counter top before putting them in the fridge. Paul and I were in our bedroom when we heard a strange sound. We turned the corner, looked down the hall and realized that Moses loved the chili too! We had to laugh.
All the dark orange specks on Moses' face are the chili...He seemed to be pretty happy with his "help" in cleaning up the left-overs ("What's wrong guys? Why are you laughing? I'm just helping to clean up the left-overs.)...But boy, it was a really sticky mess!!What you can't see in this picture are the spots of chili on the floor and on the ceiling right under the cabinets. It was a total mess!! We were gently reminded again that Moses can get to a lot more on these counters than we think he can. Where there's a will, there's a way, especially when it comes to chili!
-H

The dirt on dishes

2009-05-31T14:57:00.008-05:00

While laundry has not been much of a problem these past 10 months, another thing that has drastically changed since moving to Baylor is our dish-washing situation. We used to have a wonderful detached-made-permanent dishwasher that was given to us (for FREE!!) in our house in Gettysburg. I loved that thing. It was more of a "dish disinfecter," but I didn't mind pre-cleaning and rinsing our dishes before it was loaded. It was a minor inconvenience for the all the time it saved me. We knew all the kinks and quirks about it. I got the most satisfaction in loading the thing up, waiting for it to reach the dry cycle, then turning it off and just letting the dishes air-dry. What a wonderful way to end an evening!
Our story is not so joyous here at Baylor, for the dishwasher is currently typing this blog. Dishes have become...a major chore. So, after about 10 months of doing dishes, I decided to document how long it takes me, on average, to clean the kitchen every day. The findings were quite eye-opening to me. On average, I am cleaning the kitchen and doing dishes about 2 to 2 1/2 hours every day. Now I know that I am a little OCD about the cleanliness of our dishes and kitchen, but WOAH!!! Oh dishwasher, where art thou?
Then I decided to take some pictures, just for old time's sake. One day I'll hopefully see these pictures and just smile, remembering how many hours I must have spent in our college apartment, not-really-designed-for-every-day-cooking kitchen. These were all taken after an hour of doing the dishes and cleaning the kitchen one night (this is fairly normal).
Not only did they not completely fit in the drying rack...nor did they completely fit in the sink...but we had piles of clean and drying dishes all the way to our countertop...When you stepped back, it was an amazing sight to behold, lots of work, but beautiful...Yes, the clock says 11:08 and that's also normal.
Paul promises me that whatever our next living situation is, we will have a dishwasher (and it won't be the human kind). :) I'm banking on that.
-H

A girl and her balloons

2009-05-31T14:48:00.006-05:00

Ilana LOVES balloons.
I think it started at her birthday...But now it's just become an obsession...
She likes to have balloons with her no matter what she's doing. Whether it's investigating her high chair...or eating...having a balloon always makes Ilana a happy camper...So, don't let the balloons fly unless it's to our home!
-H

A1A Beachfront Avenue!

2009-05-31T14:27:00.011-05:00

We spent a lovely week on Florida's Singer Island (off the coast of West Palm Beach, just north of Miami) with Paul's family.
Ilana flew first class and loved looking out the window, the snacks weren't bad either...
This is the sun setting overlooking the east coast on our flight down...
This is where we stayed...Ilana was mostly great (especially once we figured out a good sleeping arrangement). It was wonderful to get a break from her every once in a while. She loved playing cards with the family...She LOVED the pool (wasn't too crazy about the beach, but loved the pool), apparently she didn't even want to get out of her floatie inside...But I think one of her most favorite things was to sit on Grammy's slippers and look out over the edge of the porch onto what was going on below (she has no fear at all)...Our rooms were on the top floor, the 3 porches and the windows in between were all 3 of our rooms combined...Whenever we'd go anywhere we'd have to drive along A1A, so we sang Vanilla Ice all week. :) Thanks Mom and Dad Miller, Aunt Erika and Uncle Timmy - it was a great time! I'll post more pictures when I get a chance to see everyone's and edit a few.
-H

Happy Birthday Daddy (Paul)!

2009-05-08T14:16:00.007-05:00

Paul's birthday was two days ago, and we had a very fun day. I made banana chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. After we cleaned that up, I embarked on doing something I had never had to do before (since we lived so close to Mom Miller) - I made his favorite cake (yellow cake with chocolate frosting). I must say I was pretty proud of how it turned out...all it needed was the birthday boy's approval, and of course he added one final touch...Perfect!! No candles needed. :)
It gave Paul motivation to finish the paper he was working on. In between meals and my interruptions, this is what he looked like all day (poor guy)...
But by 4:30 he was done with his paper. We went to the mail room where his surprise gift was waiting for us (it was just a knife sharpener - we're to the age where birthday presents become practical). Then we met some of our favorite students from the Rock Staff for their "Wasabi Wednesday" tradition at the local Chinese place. (I forgot to get a picture during dinner!)
We ended the day with giving Ilana a bath and after she was down we watched a movie. It was a fun day (except for the whole paper part).
Oh, and this is what Ilana did for Paul's birthday...

Happy Birthday, Daddy! Ilana's quickly caught on to what this means and she's using it more and more every day. She's becoming very opinionated. Happy Birthday, Paul! :)
-H

Size: 3

2009-05-05T09:46:00.004-05:00

Ilana has really been pulling up, trying to stand on her own and trying to walk more these days, so I figured it would help her to have some shoes...you know, stability is always a good thing when you're learning to walk, right?
So, while we were out running errands yesterday I picked up a pair, but was overwhelmed by trying to figure out what size to get her. The size 1s were way too small, the size 2s were tight around the sides, so size 3 it was. They're a little big on her still, but she's got some room to grow (hopefully they'll last more than a few weeks!), and they seem to add a bit of support to her mobility efforts.
Here they are in action...
And here are our family's shoes at the end of the day...Her feet are so tiny! :)
-H

Where did April go??

2009-05-01T14:34:00.015-05:00

So much has happened in April that I haven't been able to blog about until now...

The 4 of us went to Austin for Good Friday. We LOVED it and will gladly go back any time. We began the day at a dog park and ended it with a 5-mile walk around the river in Zilker Park. It was a blast! We had such a happy dog that day. Unfortunately, this is the only picture we have of our adventure.

Ilana wore my first Easter dress for her first Easter. This was after church, and it took a baster to keep her happy, but she was really cute.

We hosted an Easter luncheon in our apartment. It was a fun way to spend the afternoon and the food was delicious!

Then a few days after Easter, Ilana and I flew to Annapolis to celebrate her birthday with family and friends up there (Paul was super busy with projects and events, so he couldn't make it). We had a great time visiting friends and family...

being thoroughly gifted - thank you all for just giving money or gift certificates...
eating cake...(or getting over sugar comas)...and generally just having a great time!Thanks again, Nonni and PopPop for making the trip possible. We had a great time!

Then we got back and decided it was time to introduce Ilana to one of our family traditions, pancake breakfasts. Needless to say, she loves them!! (Doesn't she look so grown up in this picture?)
Ilana is growing up so quickly, it's crazy. She's definitely becoming opinionated these days and wants things her way. The only problem is she's not talking yet, so there are a fair amount of temper tantrums when I don't understand what that way is. It's been crazy around here recently! It's a good thing she's cute. :)
-H

Does this count as "cruising?"

2009-05-01T11:28:00.003-05:00

I know it's slow and wobbly...but maybe she's starting to get the hang of it...?

-H

Happy Birthday Ilana!!

2009-04-18T19:53:00.004-05:00

What were YOU doing a year ago??

This is what was keeping us busy...

And she's still keeping us busy today...

I can't believe Ilana is one year old. Happy Birthday, Sweetie!!

-H

First haircut

2009-04-13T16:02:00.004-05:00

We've had a lot of firsts recently, and Paul and I thought it was about time to add to the list with her first haircut. She really needed one, the top kept coming into her eyes, and bothering her. So, here's the before...And here's the after...She did pretty well, we tried to give her a toy she hadn't seen for awhile. The tears weren't from pain, just from frustration from...who knows what (we have a lot of "frustration tears" shed these days). We ended up trimming the top and cutting about half the length off the back. Paul wanted to cut all the length off, but I wouldn't let him.

Yes, we saved all the hair we cut off.
Yes, I already miss the length she had in the back - but I know it's just hair and it will grow back...someday.
Yes, I can't believe we made it this long without cutting her hair!

-H

this became that

2009-04-09T10:16:00.009-05:00

Ilana's newest thing is pulling herself up. I started to notice when this...became that...

You think I'd really catch on when this...became THAT...

But, I think it finally sunk in when this...

became that...

She is a wild child - crawling on Moses! This morning Paul and I could barely eat our breakfast because she was everywhere; it took two of us to keep up with her! Needless to say, every moment is an adventure with Little Miss Ilana..and she sleeps really well because she's so tired. :) Speaking of sleeping well, I better go clean my kitchen while she's taking a nap!
-H

BLUEBONNETS!!!

2009-04-06T21:03:00.010-05:00

So, the bluebonnet is the Texas state flower and if you were to come to Waco today you'd know why - they are out in full force and the fields along the highways are beautiful! So, when Paul's mom was in town last week we found a pretty field for Ilana to sit in - far away from the highway, don't worry - and took a few pictures of our own...is eight pictures too many for one blog?? I can't pick, they're all my favorites.

For those of you who may not know, this is what a bluebonnet looks like (the blue-ish, purple-y flowers in this picture), and there are usually a few of these pretty orange flowers in the fields of them as well...
The wind was blowing on this day and this is what Ilana does in the wind...or this...Does her index finger look double-jointed to you? It does to me, especially in this picture...Oh my word, she's just way too cute, and we had way too much fun just watching her explore these flowers...
Pensive, as always...
Ok, I think these last two are my favorites from the day, but only because the sun was shining perfectly so you can see every fat roll on her arms... :)

She was so delicate with the flowers until the very end when she picked one - which, by the way is illegal to do in Texas, but she's a baby. All we'd have to do is show the officer how cute she is and we know she'd be pardoned.
-H

Brussel Sprouts

2009-04-05T20:34:00.006-05:00

Paul and I are generally pretty adventurous with our food. So, when my running partner said "I have this GREAT brussel sprout recipe!" We thought..we might actually like brussel sprouts, they're one of those "good for you" foods. So, we tried it and it was actually pretty good!

Here they are, all fresh and everything, funny looking little cabbage things...
All you do is cut them in half (and cut out any nasty parts you might find). They're even funnier looking once you cut into them, really cabbage-esque...
Throw them all into a plastic bag with 2-ish tablespoons of olive oil, some minced garlic, salt and pepper. Coat the sprouts well and spread on a cookie sheet...
Cook at 400 degrees for 10-20 minutes or until some of the leaves are brown and crispy.
Then comes my favorite part: toss in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of LEMON JUICE and enjoy!!
The lemon juice really makes them taste fresh and amazing. The only thing we're changing next time is we're actually going to cook them a little bit longer - the slightly burnt and crispy leaves were better than we thought they'd be. Thanks for the recipe, Brandi! Add brussel sprouts to our menu!
-H

Searching

2009-04-04T15:18:00.005-05:00

It's often now that I'll look around a room and not see Ilana, so I have to go searching. After calling for her, she'll peek her head around a corner somewhere...... and I'll have to tell her to be careful, or my favorite "no, thank you, Ilana." On this day, though, she proceeded to smile at me, just to show me how cute she can be and to get herself out of trouble...it worked...who can resist this face...
Oh, she's trouble, and she's usually getting into a lot of trouble, especially when she pulls this little grin out.

Then there are some days when I'm cooking dinner and I find her completely in my way at my feet...
It's easy to say Ilana is getting into everything these days and really testing the boundaries. Search away!
-H

ps-this is her new bathing suit, how adorable!!!
We took her into the pool here at Baylor (and completely forgot to get any pictures of her in her suit - sorry!) - she was totally relaxed about the whole experience. Towards the end she finally started playing in the pool. We're looking forward to many more fun days in the water!

Happy dog...sometimes; good dog...ALWAYS

2009-04-02T08:59:00.007-05:00

Paul and I watched Marley & Me last night and cried our eyeballs out. It really made us appreciate our crazy dog. A "Moses" update...

When he's not being climbed on, you'll generally find him at the window...
Sometimes even just standing and looking out the window can make a dog tired, though...And when he gets really tired, he generally looks like this (I call this "Fake Smile")...
But, as everyone knows, Moses is happiest around people, so when he gets really down, and looks like he could use some cheering up, we just take him into the hallway...
We have found that when people love Moses they LOVE him. The lighter brown marks on the floor are actually his hair. These students absolutely spoiled Moses this night. He was LOVING it!! Just look at that face.

So, although Moses may not always enjoy living in this apartment, he is mostly a happy dog, and he is always good.
-H

13.1

2009-03-30T10:54:00.003-05:00

Well, Paul and I ran the Bearathon this past weekend and we both finished!!! It's the half marathon put on by Baylor's Student Foundation. It runs out to/through Cameron Park and back. Cameron Park is intense - really hilly. It was a great run.

His time: 1:53:40
Her time: 2:27:40

Weather forecast for the beginning of the run:
cloudy and windy, 40 degrees (felt like 30!!); winds from WNW at 21 mph

IT WAS COLD!! By the time we were done, the temps had only gone up by 6 or 7 degrees and the winds had picked up by 7 more mph. It was crazy weather for Waco. The very next day it was back in the 70s - we're so spoiled.

Sorry for the crazy hair in the picture. I obviously was not too concerned about how I looked.

Thanks to everyone for their good wishes. I guess we're runners now.
-H

A Seamstress in the Making

2009-03-26T21:12:00.006-05:00

The other night Paul was measuring his back for a new pack and Ilana decided she found a new toy...

I think we have a seamstress in the making!
(So that's why she had a measuring tape around her ankles the first night she pulled herself up to her feet on her own.)
-H

SUPERHERO ILANA!!

2009-03-25T14:11:00.007-05:00

Well, Ilana is officially a superhero. It's obvious: she can crawl, she has a tooth, she screams, "conquers" Moses, and loves to destroy all the bad DVD and book collections she comes across (phew, what would we do without all this protection?). So, it only makes sense that she needed a cape...although we didn't realize it until we got it how much she fits the superhero "type"...
Yes, it has an "I" on the back and it still drags on the floor when she's standing or crawling - how adorable is that??!!
Here she is checking out the cape. It's perfect.
Then we added the sunglasses. WOAH!! That might be a bit much for now, but I'm sure she'll "need" them someday...
Carolyn, the cape is perfect. Thank you so much!! Ilana loves to wear it around. She really feels like an official superhero now.-H

Baby jail

2009-03-25T14:08:00.003-05:00

I actually used the baby gate the other day for its intended purpose (instead of for the dog). I was doing laundry, going in and out of the apartment a lot and I didn't want to take her with me, but I knew she'd scream if she couldn't at least hear me. So the baby gate was the best option. She wasn't crazy about it, but it worked. She kind of looked like she was in jail...so I took a picture. :)
-H

it happened...

2009-03-24T09:38:00.005-05:00

Last week Paul and I were eating dinner, we looked down and saw this...
Ilana was actually standing on both feet! She had pulled herself up all by herself. Aunt Valerie, you were right, pets are great motivation. :)
-H

looking out the window

2009-03-18T16:40:00.002-05:00

Ilana's new thing is she loves to stand on the window sill (I hold her there, don't worry) and look out the window at the people playing basketball. She bangs and bangs on the window. We've even had a few players look up at our window wondering what's going on.
She still loves the camera the most, though...
-H

BUBBLES!

2009-03-17T13:26:00.006-05:00

Robin and her friend came up recently and brought their bubbles! At first Ilana wasn't sure what to think...
Then she started to get the hang of it...
Finally by the end I think she was really starting to love it...
Here's a video so you can get the full effect...

-H

Right on cue

2009-03-16T09:40:00.007-05:00

Last week Paul was on an Outdoor Adventure spring break trip to the Rio Grande. Although he said it was the worst weather he'd ever had on a trip, it sounds like he had a good time. While he was away, Ilana learned how to do a few things on cue, like wave...

You might not be able to tell, but this is a Baby Einstein video. She loves the little bee that comes out in the beginning (hence all the arm waving and screaming in the beginning), then they go through saying "hello" in all sorts of languages and waving (hence all the waving back).

She was also learning how to smile for the camera on cue...
What a ham! Now I get out the camera and she's all smiles.

She spent the week pulling up on the dog, poor Moses...

He must be the perfect height for her or something. She's already trying to pull up onto her feet. She'll be there before I know it, I'm sure.

We have the greatest dog

2009-03-08T20:49:00.003-05:00

Don't worry Great Grandmom (and others who might),
Ilana was in no way harmed in the making of this video. :)
I'd say their relationship is off to a great start! ...we have the greatest dog.
-H

Make a silly face!! ...and more

2009-03-08T20:38:00.007-05:00

I can't figure out what it is, but this has been Ilana's face recently...
Maybe she likes the way it feels on her incoming tooth...?

We've come a long way with her "playing" set-up. Now we just dump the whole basket of toys onto the floor...
so by the end of the day, this is what our living room floor looks like (sleeping dog included!)...
Even with all the toys, she still loves her books the most, and knocks them off the shelf (along with our DVD collection) almost every day...

The other "new thing?" I've put some stuffed animals in her crib. She plays and talks to them when she wakes up - it's adorable. I did have some criteria for these: above all, they had to be soft and they could not make any noise. So, these are the "friends" she sleeps with... :)
-H

FIRST TOOTH!!

2009-03-04T13:53:00.003-06:00

I just put Ilana down for her afternoon nap and, as I've been doing recently, I felt her gums (she was really fussy). TA-DAH!!! There were bumps on her bottom gums. Her first tooth is finally making an appearance. Her toothless grin will be no more.
I know, I know, she's not really grinning in this picture. It wasn't even taken today. It's just one of my recent favorites.
-H

CRAWLING!...finally I got a video to load :)

2009-03-04T13:15:00.005-06:00

Look at that smile around 37 or 38 seconds. She is so satisfied with herself, and happy to be independently mobile. :)
-H

A baby day

2009-03-04T13:05:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I went in to pick her up from her afternoon nap and this is what I saw...
Time to move the mattress down! After I took this picture she proceeded to pull herself up onto her knees using the side of the crib. YIKES!! She's getting so big these days. One thing that hasn't changed a bit: the wildness of her hair...
Poor thing. I don't have the heart to cut it so on our trip to the grocery store yesterday I bought some clips to try to control it. They work well! I'll get some pictures and post them. She looks so cute with her hair all done.
Later on last night I was cleaning the kitchen and she was crawling and babbling all over the living room floor. I turned around and this is what I saw...
Apparently her and Moses are getting along well. Or maybe it's safer to say that Moses has conceded to her "whims." It was an all-around baby day!
-H

A weekend of firsts

2009-03-03T21:33:00.006-06:00

Erika and Tim came to visit us this past weekend and we had SO much fun (and ate way too much food)!! It was most certainly a weekend of firsts.
It was the first time...

Ilana crawled (and got into our DVDs!!) (still working on video, it's very frustrating!)

Paul and I went to Waco Hall (to see Sing! - very very fun)
Paul and I went to a Baylor basketball game (in the Ferrell Center - also very very fun!)
we ate Tony's barbeque - AMAZING!!! The side of the building is charred from the barbeque-ing process, you know it's good when... :)
we saw one of Baylor's live bears, Joy, outside of her habitat (we were sitting on this bench less than 10 minutes before this picture was taken!)

we had outside visitors besides our parents

It was a blast!! Tim and Erika - thanks for making the trek down. Y'all come back now, ya hear. :)
-H

Making friends

2009-03-02T22:25:00.004-06:00

These past few weeks, Ilana has been making a real effort to become friends with Moses. She reads to him...

but he never seems all that amused by a book. So, she "pets" him...
Sometimes he likes this, but even if he's not feeling it at the moment, he's still completely gentle and puts up with it. It's so cute!
-H

Laundry Lessons

2009-02-23T09:37:00.003-06:00

This was the pile of laundry I had to fold the night before we left for Jubilee.
I've learned a few things about laundry since we've been here...

I want 3 washer and dryers for the rest of my life!
Guys don't really know how to do laundry.
Guys aren't willing to read directions (clearly posted on the walls) about how to do laundry.
If there are holes from the drum of the dryer directly to the outside, it's no big deal. It just makes the hallway and apartments really humid.
If you leave your clothes in a washer or dryer too long and someone wants to use them, they'll continue your laundry for you. :)
Guys don't check their pockets for gum before putting their clothes in the washer or dryer.
Don't over think the red hair you find in the lint collector, especially because you don't think there's a red-head who lives on your floor.
Sharing 3 washer and 3 dryers with a hallway of undergraduate men is not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.

-H

Christmas Re-lived

2009-02-20T20:45:00.004-06:00

I finally found some time to go through my family's Christmas pictures and found some favorites.
This was her reaction to her singing stocking (she was waving her hands and "singing" with it)...
She was starting to get the concept of "unwrapping." Now if we could only get her to understand that the wrapping paper isn't food...
This was at Great Grandmom's house. She was good as gold and happy as a lark playing on the floor...
We're already looking forward to Christmas this year!
-H

Raspberries anyone?

2009-02-19T18:43:00.003-06:00

A couple nights ago, Ilana was blowing raspberries and babbling like crazy. It was hilarious. I love this girl so much!!!

She had blown raspberries for so long that her lips were covered with spit. We had spit everywhere!
-H

Standing...definitely

2009-02-19T18:32:00.002-06:00

This girl loves to "sing." I laugh all day long!
-H