Tummy Time

Until recently Sarah hasn't enjoyed tummy time. Lately she has been enjoying it more than in the past and I think it's because she is beginning to figure out that it is possibile to move from that position. Here she is trying to move on her belly. It's sheer entertainment!!!

Watch how she buries her head in the blanket, moves her feet (poor thing's running in place), and grunts like it's a lot of work.

fit for a KING and queen

We finally did it; we purchased a new mattress. Before we got married I owned a more than decent queen size mattress and that's what I brought into our marriage--like my dowry! I also brought my many back problems and pregnancy only compounded them by about 100%. I used so many pillows during prenancy that Richard barely had any room to sleep because my pillows and I took up the majority of the bed.

Because we are lucky enough to live in Richard's childhood home since his dad lives in Nashville, we have plenty of rooms and plenty of furniture. In the storage room there was a king size mattress and one day we decided to set it up so that we would have more room. So our bed went into the guest room, making our visitors stays much better, but our sleep only went down hill. The king size mattress we set up was old; older than dirt. It belonged to his grandparents and felt like it! But for space sake we stuck it out. Why, I will never really understand. My back problems increased to the point that a couple of months ago I couldn't move for 4 days...seriously, I was stuck on the couch being waited on hand and foot. (That part wasn't so bad, but when you have a little baby that relies on you, it gets difficult!)

After much discussion and delay, on Saturday we finally went mattress shopping. We spent much more money than Richard was planning on, although I knew it would cost $$$$. Yesterday they delivered to us our KING size, latex (made from the rubbertree), anti-microbial/dustmite free (they can't live in it), coil-less bed!!

2 men came to the door to do the delivering. Sarah and I were in her room playing while they carried, pushed, pulled, and dragged our bed up the stairs all the while grunting like they were in the weight room pumping iron; very heavy iron. When I went to make sure they were alright they were drenched with sweat. I guess this bed won't be the kind that when we need it moved we offer friends pizza to help; we just might have to hire a few good moving men.

They told me that I was going to sleep well on the mattress we had chosen and that when the baby cried I would run get her and bring her quickly back to bed with me. They told me I was going to struggle to get out of bed come morning. Boy were they ever right!

This morning when Richard's alarm went off I intended to get up so that I could get my workout done and out of the way, but I kept falling back asleep almost as quickly as I woke up. Heaven, it's sheer heaven.

I also got a pillow made from the same material. I counted this morning and we have 10 different pillows all of which I used to sleep on at one time or another. It seemed like everyday I was rotating to another, just trying to find one that was comfy--no more of that, I have my one and only pillow now.

Nice bedding, I know. Because we spent so much on the bed itself there's no money left to purchase new bedding yet. (We did get sheets) So until we can afford the rest, we will just live with the new white sheets and old, too small blanket. One day I will have a bedroom that feels like my own...but until then, atleast I have the mattress.

Isn't it bedtime yet?!?!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Richard always catches me saying things like, "She's so cute, I could just eat her up." He thinks she's cute, but just doesn't fully understand when I say things like that, but it's true...there's this feeling I get and that's the best way to describe it.

While reading Nineteen Minutes the other day, there was a part that I fully understood and the author put my feelings into much better words...

(Speaking of her infant son, Sam) "She thought of Sam, how she'd left him sleeping that morning in his crib. During the night he'd kicked off a sock; his toes were plump as early peas; it was all she could do not to taste his caramel skin. So much of the language of love was like that: you devoured someone with your eyes, you drank in the sight of him, you swallowed him whole. Love was sustenance, broken down and beating through your bloodstream."

I LOVE NAP TIME

I love nap time because these precious moments

are followed by these adoreable ones:

• The happiest sounds when you enter the room and she sees your face. This morning Sarah was just talking to herself. When Richard went in to get her, her simple, quiet 'ga' sounds got louder, more high pitched, and filled with happiness. Melts your heart!!


• She is the best stretcher and has been since she was little. Just watching her makes me want to stretch because it looks like it feels sooooo good!



• The sweetest smiles. She just lights up when she sees you.

Fantastic Friday

Last night we had a terrific evening.

WHO WOULDN'T HAVE A TERRIFIC EVENING

WHEN ACCOMPANIED BY THIS SUPER SMILER!

A few weeks back I emailed Richard about a restaurant I wanted to go to sometime between April 21-27 because they had a grilled cheese sandwich I wanted to try. For those of you not in the know; April is National Grilled Cheese Month and we needed to celebrate the blessed sandwich. Clementine is a restaurant here who celebrates it all month long with specialty, ooey, gooey cheesey sandwiches. They offer a different set of selections each week.

I had forgotten about wanting to go until Richard called me yesterday wanting to know if I wanted to go in the evening. What? HE remembered? I guess he kept it in his email so that he wouldn't forget...bonus points for him! We decided we would go right when he got home so that we could still get Sarah home and in bed before she became overly tired and impossible.

Off we went to Clementine. I had an Aspauragus Grilled cheese sandwich with grilled aspauragus sandwiched between ricotta, mozzarella, and paramesan cheese served on olive, basil bread. YUMMO! Richard had a chili and sharp cheddar sandwich on country white. Also YUMMO! What "deli" sandwich would be complete without a pickle, right? Well, they serve fresh, homemade pickles. They were more like cucumbers; which I realize are pickles, but they weren't quite to pickle stage yet...Richard doesn't like pickles and so I got 2 servings. LUCKY, LUCKY me!!!

On our way home we decided to stop at the temple to walk around the grounds because it was such a lovely evening. We ran into a friend of mine I use to work with at the temple and we explained to Sarah that this is where Richard goes every Tuesday night and that that's why he doesn't come home until late. We love being outside and luckily Sarah enjoys it as well. She kept busy looking around at all of the palm trees and flowers they have all over the temple grounds.

How glad we are to have a Forever Family!!

Girl's Night Out

What a much needed break girl's night out is.

How grateful I am to have a husband who encourages me to go and do things and has no problem watching Sarah on his own. The first time I wanted to go out with the girls I called and asked if he would mind babysitting. He asked who and I thought that was one silly question. "Duh, Sarah" I replied. "Kim, that's not babysitting, that's parenting and of course I will" was his quick response!

So this Wednesday I went to Bunco for the second month in a row and had a blast. It's wonderful to leave the house in my real clothes; meaning not stretchy and comfy cozy. It's nice to chat with adults. Even though most of the time the conversation leads back to our chicklets, I am always glad for girl talk. It's nice to eat food I didn't have to quickly grab from the cubbard inbetween feedings and naps. And, yes, it's always the nicest part of my evening to return home!

Here we are having our pregame treats. We had to get our energy up to toss those dice: it's a game that requires much thought and strategy, you know...not!

Lindsi and I started the game at the lowest table and worked our way up together to the top table. In the end she ended up beating me.

Here's the gang...Kate, Maurine, Jackie, Me, Julieann, Taryn, Jasmine, Cindy, Sarah, Allison, Marlene, Lindsi, & Nicolle

Backyard Fun

Yesterday after we returned from our walk I just couldn't bare the thought of being indoors and so out we went. Sarah and I enjoyed ourselves, basking on a blankey in the backyard. We giggled, stared at geraniums, blue jays, and our very green grass...it was such a wonderful, simple way to spend a sunny, Santa Monica afternoon.

She'll Be How Big?

This summer we have an Atchley family reunion planned in Heber, Utah. Aunt Suzanne sent Sarah Jane some purple polka dot shorts to wear when we are there. Her cousins, Lauren and Jessica have matching ones. They are all excited to have the same shorts. Well the shorts are a size 12 months. I look at them and they look SO LARGE and I can't imagine her that big, ever; let alone in 7 short months. This summer they will still be large on her but she'll wear them anyway because it's always fun to be twinners with those you love!

Belated Quote of the Week

I had planned on doing my quote on Tuesday this week instead of Monday because I wanted to celebrate Earth Day. However, I threw a bridal shower at my house on Tuesday that kept me very busy and thus, you are getting my very simple thoughts belated...

"REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE"

Each of us should take this opportunity to think about the little changes we can make in our lives to help accomplish this and to take better care of Mother Earth. The bridal shower on Tuesday was for my girlfriend Whitney who wastes nothing...and so we gave out reusable shopping bags as favors. It was a big hit.

So maybe the changes we can make are taking our own bags with us when we go shopping, using reusable Nalgenes or some other brand instead of disposable, one time use plasic bottles, or we can recycle at home. Think of one thing and make it happen!

GOING MOBILE

The time has come when we can no longer leave Sarah in one place and expect her to stay there.

Here's an example when Richard had her in the clerk's office last week. He's kind enough to take her with him on Wednesday evenings so I can do other things. She started on the blanket two minutes before this picture was taken.
When she got to this point she couldn't move anymore, as she was stuck in the corner; otherwise she would have kept on going. She is beginning to maneuver around things so maybe next Wednesday she'll end up all the way in the hall. Notice that she's on her back with her arms outstretched in the air; that's how she does her "crawling". We like to call it the crab walk on her head. Looks like she won't be losing that bald spot on her head anytime soon.

She's now becoming well known for her walk. She was "crawling" under chairs on Sunday. Some people have told me that she was making them laugh and others have said they have heard about her mobility skills and that they need to see for themselves.

Storytime

Look at our little bookworm...

Swaddled in Love

So it's been HOT here.

I know you must be thinking how hot can it get in Santa Monica with that nice ocean breeze? Well, it's been unseasonally hot the past few days and that poses a problem. You see, we don't have air conditioning and the upstairs turns into a sauna. Every room upstairs has a ceiling fan except for Sarah's and her room gets the most direct, hottest part of the day sun. It's a scorcher.

The problem is this, she still has to be swaddled TIGHTLY inorder to go to sleep and most of her swaddling blankies are 2 layers of flannel and keep her warm enough, without the sun's help. She does however have 2 blankies that have come in handy the past few evenings and I have my Great Grandma, Sarah's Great, Great Grandma Esther Weldon to thank for that.

Technically I owe Grandma Weldon (Marcella) a thank you. For my shower she gave Sarah 2 blankets she made from Esther Weldon's bedsheets. These blankets are not too thick and not too thin, they're just right! So you see, she's swaddled in love from all of her Great Grandmas and I think she can feel that love.

Quote of the Week

Lisa has a quote on her blog that has been there since the beginning and I love it. It's inspiring and reminds me of what I am capable of if I only believe it. I have wanted to steal if and post it so that those who don't read her blog can be inspired, but I didn't know about whether the stealing would be appropriate.

Well, now I am not stealing... :)

Last week I was watching the movie Akeelah and the Bee; a new favorite. I must have cried a hundred times. This quote was a running theme throughout the movie and I was enthralled when I heard it. At one point in the movie Akeelah's spelling coach has her go over and read a quote he has hanging on his livingroom wall. I thought to myself, "Oh, maybe this will be a good one I can use on my blog." Lo and behold, it was THE ONE!!! So here it is, and feel free to steal it from me, who sortof stole it from Lisa's blog!

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

2020 Summer Olympics Here We Come

We've Created A Monster

About a month ago when Sarah Jane and I were visiting the grandparents in Boise, my mom thought she ought to try to teach Sarah a trick. My mom figured she was 3 months old and her cousin Meggers learned the trick from grandma when she was 3 months old. So off my mom went trying to get her to do it; stick her tongue out and make that little noise while spitting; you all know the one I am talking about. Well, she didn't accomplish it then so occasionally I have shown her how and we have watched her attempt it numerous times. We can see her working that tongue, figuring out exactly what it will do.

Richard thinks she is already slobbery enough and so he has been trying to teach her a different trick: the same thing, except using just her lips and keeping her tongue in her mouth; again, you all know what I am talking about. (These "tricks" are difficult to describe)

Well, on Thursday after Sarah woke up from her nap, she and I were laying on the floor playing and all of a sudden, she did the first mouth trick, then immediately switched and did the one Rich had been teaching her. She layed there for about 15 minutes, alternating her new skills. It was adorable and very messy. There was baby drool everywhere. I tried to take a video/picture but you know how my daughter is--the camera comes out and she stops whatever it is she was doing that you thought was so cute.

Well, ever since accomplishing this feit, this is all she does. As a matter of fact, as I have been typing she has been making those noises. At 4:00 a.m. when I am trying to put her back to bed after her early morning snack, she lays in her crib and does it.

Uh-oh, I think we've created a monster!

Last night we were able to get a little of it on video. Look closely and you'll see her doing one of the tricks. Enjoy and don't get too close to the computer or you might get a little wet! :)

P.S.--After rewatching the video this morning, I noticed a few things:

1. I am coaching Sarah, because again, the camera is out and she stops when she sees it. Usually she does it spontaneously.
2. My noises are loud, hers are the soft ones. Sorry you have to listen to me make the noises. I am learning that as a mother you sacrifice looking good and not sounding silly, so your little girl can shine!
3. I sound JUST LIKE my mom when I laugh. Genetics are scary!

Let's Play Bag Tag

I've been tagged; bag tagged that is!

Here's what I had to do:

• Take a picture of the bag I use


• Then take a picture of all of it's contents


• Tag 5 others

Here it is, the Columbia Diaper bag that has quickly become my go everywhere, match every outfit, daily use bag. UGH! So sad for all of those cute bags (I hate the pur #@, word) hanging in the hall closet. Maybe in 10 years they'll still be in style and can come out of retirement then.

Here's what it contained:

• A changing pad
• container of wipes
• 3 diapers
• 2 packages of Shot Bloks I purchased at Top to Top and forgot to take out
• a mismatched outfit incase we encounter one of those dangerous blowouts in public
• 5 rattle toys...5?!?
• 2 receipts: one dated, 3-22-08 and the other 4-8-08
• 9 Wet One singles
• Natural Butter Lip Shimmer
• travel size Johnson's baby lotion
• Better Butt(er) Cream
• Sacrament Meeting Program from SM2, dated 3-30-08
• a gum wrapper
• my wallet (this occasionally gets removed when I take my rare solo outings)
• animals book
• points finder
• Sarah's health record that I take to her doctor's appointments

When we picked this diaperbag out, we couldn't imagine ever being able to fill it up. Now, I am constantly on the lookout for a bigger and better bag. A friend at church has an adorable BIG BAG, come to find out, it's luggage. I might have to go that route one day soon myself.

• Stephanie: Because I would like to see what a mommy who practically takes her kids on vacation everyday because of all the fun things they do, I want to see what's in your bag!
• Ashley: What fits in that fluffy, pink Juicy Couture bag? I bet it makes diapers look good! :)
• Cindy: I want to see a cute, non diaperbag, single person bag...oh, the good old days! I bet your bag's adorable and trendy! Plus, let me be honest, I miss your blogposts.
• Annie: Does it look different when it's full of boy things?
• Nicolle: I imagine your bag is adorable and full of FUN, FUN things?!

TAG LADIES...YOU'RE IT!

FINALLY...

A day where there was not just 1 comic I liked and could relate to, but 2--count 'em, 2!!

Growing up, I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED Sunday mornings because as my dad read the newspaper I liked to sit next to him and read the comics. I always had my favorites, For Better or For Worse, Blondie, Fa mily Circus, Dennis the Menace, and Cathy. I would read the others and often like them, but I always liked these.

Now on Sundays I only read the funnypapers when Richard thinks there is one I would like. It's a rare moment it seems, and I miss it.

This morning, Richard brought me 2 comics from yesterday's newspaper that I thought were cute and I could relate to...and it wasn't even a Sunday!

Enjoy and hopefully they'll make you giggle a little as well.

This comic obviously made me laugh since sadly I can relate. All I can say is that atleast I waited almost 3 years before I did this.

I am so excited for the day when Sarah Jane can go riding with us. Long ago I informed Rich that the one thing that our kiddos WILL HAVE are bicycles! As soon as they can ride, this momma will be making a purchase. What a fun day that will be!

All During Grandma Bigelow's Visit

I learned a new acrobatic trick. Mommy got out of the shower to hear Grandma and daddy laughing and me crying. I can lay on my tummy, balance on my face and arms, and lift my legs and bum high into the air. They say it's pretty entertaining to watch.

We went for a drive up the coast to see all of the wildflowers. It was a beautiful day and we decided to have lunch at Malibu Seafood on their outdoor patio. It was windy there so they had me sheltered under a blanket since mommy forgot my sweatshirt. At one point daddy decided to keep me company.

I had my 4 month doctors appointment. I received 3 shots and barely cried. Mommy and Grandma were super proud of me. I weigh 12 pounds, 2 ounces now and am 2 feet long. My head also grew and is 41 centimeters. That's pretty large, but I come by that honestly. Both mommy and daddy have big noggins. The doctors were VERY pleased with my progress. This is the most weight I have gained inbetween visits; just one ounce shy of 2 pounds and in only 3 1/2 weeks. I guess the eating regimine I am on now is working it's magic. We walked to my appointment and afterwards we went to lunch and Bread and Porridge, and place mom's been wanting to go to. Again, because we live in sunny California, we ate outside.

It was a great visit and I wish she'd come back soon...there's nothing better than Grandma!!

(P.S. This picture was actually taken in January when she was visiting and so I am bigger now, but it's still one of my favorites!)

The Moral of the Story is...

• It really IS important to know both sides of a story.
  
  Richard and I had date night on Wednesday. For Christmas Sarah purchased us tickets to Wicked and it was just that!
  
  ***Slang definition of wicked: Strikingly good, effective, or skillful
  
  I loved it; everything about it! Everyone says it and I will too, it’s a must see musical if you have the opportunity.

You too will then be reminded of the importance of knowing not just one, but both sides of a story. I will never watch The Wizard of Oz in the same light again.

You Know You're A Mommy When...

• Your husband is eating his breakfast,
  
• you come in to chat,


• you put your finger in his nose to pick a booger,
• and it is THEN, AND NOT SOONER, that you realize what you have just done!!!!!!
  

"Uh, I just picked your nose and I had no idea I was doing it until it was too late, and my finger was already up there." Husband looks and laughs in disbelief.

Guess my profile is right, "Mommy with baby on the brain!"