tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28183439373699632092024-03-05T00:31:03.870-07:00Tortes, Torts, and ToddlersKeeping the Love Alive in Law SchoolCheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-86435532566138561172015-08-25T13:47:00.001-06:002015-08-25T13:47:16.348-06:00Wendy's Birth Story<div class="MsoNormal">
Being pregnant with our third child, and third girl, was a
fairly smooth experience. It started off rough with a bout of giardia, but that
made morning sickness seem like a breeze. I struggled mostly in the beginning
because I felt like I was gaining weight REALLY quickly. It didn’t help when a
gas station attendant asked if I was pregnant with twins when I was barely 30
weeks along (seriously, who <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">does </i>that?
Don’t even assume someone is pregnant just to be safe!). But things evened out fairly
quickly. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I decided to use the certified nurse midwives at our local
hospital after having such a great experience with them when I had Cora. I
really liked all the midwives on staff, but was bummed when one left right at
the end of my pregnancy. They were planning on hiring two new CNMs<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the month after I was due, but I wouldn’t
have access to them. That left just one midwife who delivered babies, making my
chances of actually delivering with her pretty slim. That didn’t make me too
anxious since I’d had babies before, but when I tested positive for group B
strep, that’s when the nerves came in. Group b strep really isn’t a big deal,
but once you’re in labor you need to get IV antibiotics so that you won’t pass
it on the the baby. Typically they want you to have 2 rounds of the antibiotics
over 8 hours, so that meant getting to the hospital with enough time. Since I
planned on having her naturally, I would much rather have labored at home for
as long as possible, but the strep through a wrench in that. <o:p></o:p></div>
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My due date came and went, just like I expected it would. In
fact, I told everyone I expected to have her on August 10, a week after my due
date, just so I wouldn’t get my hopes up. When I went to my midwife appointment
that week, I was hoping that my body had at least made some progress in the
dilation department, and it had, but I was only dilated 1 cm. I made some
tentative plans with my midwife about getting induced the next Monday (when I’d
be 41 weeks), went on home and scrounged around for things to do. I’d really finished
all of my nesting the week before so I was just bored. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Thursday and Friday were fun – James decided to begin his
paternity leave those days so we did some family errands, had fun at the
library, went out to eat, and watched lots of movies. I read two books (haven’t
done that in a while) and tried to relax and not cry too much about still being
pregnant. Saturday evening my Mom flew in and I also started having some
contractions. We spent the evening timing them and talking. I figured I’d get
some sleep, and then wake up when they got to be too much and we’d head to the
hospital in the early morning. I had a couple good contractions around 4:30am,
but fell back asleep only to wake up with them gone. I was so disappointed. I
figured I’d labor the same way that I did with Cora, but I guess it really is
true that every pregnancy is different.<o:p></o:p></div>
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James and I went on a long walk Sunday morning, hoping to
get contractions started and move this labor forward. We walked and walked, and
I contracted, but the timing was really irregular. I kept contracting all day,
but never seemed to be consistent. I was exhausted and so frustrated, so we
skipped church, took the girls to the park, went on another walk, then came
home for naps. A couple strong contractions woke me up and pretty soon I was 5
minutes apart. We called the on call doctor who suggested we come in since I
would need to get on an antibiotic as soon as possible. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As soon as we got to the hospital my contractions slowed
down and got irregular again. They checked my cervix and told me I was still only
a 1 or 2. I was heartbroken. The nurse and resident Doctor were sweet and tried
to reassure me, but I just couldn’t believe that I’d been laboring all that day
and there was barely any change. We talked to the doctor and decided that it
would be best if I went home and got some sleep, then call in the morning to
find out when to come in for an induction. We got some blizzards at DQ on the
way home (yes, it was still Sunday, but I NEEDED ice cream after that), and
then I settled into bed around 10:30. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’d maybe slept for 20 minutes when I felt some intense low
pressure, a pop, then a gush of fluid. My water broke! I’ve never had my water
break before so I was completely shocked and a little freaked out. It felt like
I was constantly wetting myself – labor sure isn’t the most comfy thing in the
world, and it’s really messy! James and I hopped out of bed and ran back to the
hospital, laughing about how we just left. Our nurse and doctor thought it was
pretty funny to see us again so quickly and got us started with the IV for my
antibiotic. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve always thought it was ridiculous how in TV shows a
woman’s water breaks and then she’s all of a sudden in full on, hard labor. I
figured it just didn’t really happen that way, but like they always say, every
pregnancy, baby, and labor is different. We were checked into the hospital by
11:20 and I was having very intense and very close together contractions.
Because I was excited and stressed and full of adrenaline, I couldn’t stop my
body from shaking. I kept trying to use my relaxation techniques but felt like
I couldn’t hold it together. My well meaning, but I think in-experienced nurse
struggled to get my IV in and so I had to sit through quite a few contractions
in a lot of pain. After 2 unsuccessful attempts, she finally got my medicine
flowing and I was able to get out of the hospital bed. It got a little easier
when I could start moving, but I couldn’t find a comfortable spot to labor. My
legs were shaking too much and I wasn’t mentally prepared for such intense
contractions so quickly. At this point I was asking about pain meds and had
decided I was going to ask for something to take the edge off (which was hard
for me emotionally because I had hoped to do it naturally again). My nurse
suggested we check my cervix first because I’d probably be farther along than I
thought. Well, in that one hour I’d been at the hospital, I’d gone from a 1 to
a 6. There wasn’t time for any pain meds, which made me feel good birth-plan
wise, but terrified pain-wise.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Each contraction after that was incredibly painful, and full
of crazy low pressure. It took all I could not to push too early. My body just
wanted to get the baby out! We tried a different position with each contraction
– standing and rocking over the bed, birth ball, hands and knees, leaning over
the bed, then finally on my side using a “birth peanut” between my legs. At
this point, they checked me again and I was completely dilated. They gave me the
green light to push and I PUSHED. With Cora I had this whole plan with how I
wanted to push – what position I wanted, how I wanted to do it timing wise,
etc. Well, this time I just went for it and followed the resident’s guidance.
She actually had midwifery training and had me pushing while laying on my side
and panting after pushing – I felt like I was on “Call the Midwife” sans the
British accents. Two contractions, and a lot of yelling later (which James will
testify to), our Wendy Rose was born. We’d come back and checked into the
hospital at 11:20pm and delivered at 1:51am – a very fast and furious birth!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Although I was disappointed that I couldn’t deliver with my
midwife that night, the resident on call was a huge help. I think her guidance
kept me from tearing this time, which I didn’t think I could even hope for
since I had an episiotomy with Grace and then tore with Cora. My recovery has
been so much easier this time around because of that. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I continue to be overwhelmed with how blessed I am to have
this little miracle in my life. Wendy is sweet, beautiful, and a perfect
addition to our family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gracie seems to
have grown up overnight – she’s helping out more and even asks for chores to
do. She is loves to “play” with her and just held her for the first time today.
Cora wants to hold her and kiss her a lot, but has struggled a bit with not
being the baby anymore. I know it will get easier overtime, especially if I can
make it a priority to give her the one on one time she needs. James had two
weeks of paternity leave, which was an incredible blessing. My Mom helped us so
we could all get rest and slowly adjust into being a family of five. Woah, a
family of five! Crazy!<o:p></o:p></div>
Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-39341151623954785202012-08-04T07:47:00.003-06:002012-08-04T07:47:49.798-06:002 Years Old<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy birthday sweet girl! I can't believe how much you have grown. You're a big girl now, and a big sister! I'm so glad that you still love to cuddle with me and give me kisses. We've definitely hit the "terrible twos", but those kisses and hugs make it all worth it. </div>
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You're my little firecracker! I love watching you play and run and I love hearing you talk and sing. I love how every night we ask you what song you want to sing and it's always "temple"-- both verses! You love playing with your Daddy and would have him swing you around all day. I can't believe how much you learn all the time, and I am excited to keep watching you grow. </div>
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<br />Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-76610537548192443102012-07-13T21:05:00.000-06:002012-07-13T21:05:34.079-06:00Peanut's Birth StoryWhen we found out that we were pregnant with our second child, Big Papa and I knew that we wanted to approach the labor and delivery differently than we did with Goober. Goobie's birthday, as beautiful as it was, was a bit scary. My body reacted poorly to the epidural--causing my already low blood pressure to drop to dangerous levels. I also felt a lot of painful contractions -- something I hadn't prepared for. I just assumed that I would be numb and did very minimal labor prep. Big Papa and I both felt a little helpless in how to deal with what was going on. In the end, Goober was delivered safely and healthfully -- but after that day we knew we wanted to try something differently for our next child.<br />
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After doing some research on various natural birthing methods, Big Papa and I decided to take a <a href="http://www.bradleybirth.com/">Bradley Method</a> birthing class. We liked how it focused on a husband coached child-birth approach, making Big Papa not a spectator in the birth, but my partner and coach. We spent the six months leading up to Peanut's birth in "training": tracking my diet, going to classes, and doing all sorts of exercises to get my body ready to deliver. I think that the most valuable thing we gained during this process though was confidence -- confidence in our knowledge of what would/could happen when I began labor, and confidence that my body could do it naturally. Neither of us felt scared in the days leading up to delivery, in fact I think both of us were ready and excited to use our training for the "big game" (Big Papa got really into the athlete analogy that Dr. Bradley liked to use).<br />
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At around 39 weeks pregnant, I started having one or two real contractions a day. I had been telling myself not to focus on my due date because realistically I could have the baby any time + or - 2 weeks around it, but on July 1st I still mourned the passing of my due date with no baby. That week I continued to have a contraction or two and started feeling more and more "done". We spent the week (the hottest week of the summer) walking the mall and Costco, trying to convince baby to come. I was super hot, uncomfortable, tired, and ready to have that baby!<br />
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My mom came into town on July 4th and the next day I had my midwife appointment. She checked me (2 cm) and swept my membranes, telling me that there was a 50/50 chance this could start something. I felt a little cramping that evening, but nothing more. My mom treated me to a luxurious pedicure the next morning and the pedicurist even showed us where to massage to start labor. Saturday morning I cried and cried -- why was I not having my baby? Honestly, I think the thing I was so frustrated with was the idea of having to go to church the next day at 41 weeks pregnant and tell everyone that yes, I was indeed still pregnant.<br />
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But around 2:00 pm that day, I started having contractions. They were far apart, but happening regularly (yay!) Big Papa and I decided to take a trip to Costco and Hyvee to get some walking in and get some last minute groceries (because hopefully, this was the real thing). I continued contracting throughout our trip, making me happy that yes, this was real, early labor!!! When we went to bed that night at around 10:00 pm, the contractions were about 10-12 minutes apart. We both got some pretty good sleep in and at around 3:00 am I had a contraction that really woke me up. They were still about 8-10 minutes apart, but they were picking up in intensity. Big Papa quickly turned into my coach and we worked on really relaxing during contractions. I ate some cottage cheese on toast, we both had a shower, and finished packing our hospital bag between contractions.<br />
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At 5:00 am, I was starting to get a little frustrated and confused, because although they were picking up in intensity, the contractions were still 8 minutes apart. Big Papa had me call labor and delivery to tell them what was going on, and they told me to wait until they were 3-5 minutes apart -- I could come earlier but I might be sent home, and since I wanted a natural and intervention free birth, I should probably stay home as long as possible (unless my water broke, etc.)<br />
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The next two hours I spent laboring on my bed, with Big Papa helping me relax through the contractions, telling me to breathe deeply while he massaged my back with his palms, fists, fingers, and a tennis ball (SO GOOD). At around 6:40 am, our little Goober woke up, and trotted into our bedroom like she usually does with a "Hi Momma! Hi Dadda!". She tried to jump into bed with me, but being mid-contraction, I wouldn't let her. I felt bad when my mom had to come get her and pull her from our room (Goober was pretty upset), but she was ok as soon as Disney Jr. got turned on :)<br />
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At that point, Big Papa and I decided it was time to get up and get moving, so we took a walk around our apartment complex. The heat wave that had been plaguing us all week had finally broken, and so the walk was incredibly refreshing and relaxing (well, the contractions weren't but between contractions I enjoyed it :)). During these contractions I leaned my head into Big Papa's chest and we did the "labor dance", just swaying back and forth. It was around this point in my labor that I realized I needed him to be with me through every contraction. When he wasn't there, I had a hard time relaxing, making the contractions really hard to get through.<br />
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Pretty quickly, my contractions went from 8 minutes apart to 4-5 minutes. We went back into the apartment so that Big Papa could grab something to eat (I could only eat one lone frosted mini wheat at that point). I had a really powerful contraction and it was decided that it was time for us to head to the hospital. We waved bye-bye to our sweet girl and grandma, then headed out!<br />
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We parked in the ramp, and then realized we didn't know how to get to labor and delivery from there. Luckily, a woman who must have worked at the hospital noticed my laboring state and got us to the correct elevator. We met up with a L/D nurse there and she walked us right into triage, saying that she remembered seeing that I'd called that morning and that they were expecting me. I got hooked up to some monitors to see how baby was doing and to time the contractions, which had decided to slow back down to 8 minutes apart. We both couldn't believe it, and really hoped they would pick back up or that I would be far enough along dilation-wise that they wouldn't send me home. I had some whoppers of contractions during that point (the hardest ones I'd had so far), so I was pretty sure we were there to stay. It was nice to see how well baby was handling the contractions. Goober's heart rate had dropped dramatically during each one, but our Peanut was thriving. After about 30-45 minutes in triage one of my midwives, Liz, came to see how I was doing. I was dilated to 4-5 cm and my contractions were back to 4 minutes apart. She said that I could stay at the hospital or even go home if I wanted to, but knowing that my toddler was awake I decided that I'd much rather get checked in and continue to labor in a quiet hospital room.<br />
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I think it was around 9:00 am when we got into our L/D room. Big Papa and I were really impressed with the hospital facilities there -- nice big, open room with windows that brought in some soothing natural light. The bathrooms had GIANT jacuzzi tubs, which I was excited to use. I hopped in the shower while Big Papa ordered me some italian ice. It was such a relief to get off that triage bed as I was not handling the contractions super well laying down anymore. We continued to do our labor dance around the room, with Liz and Rita (my nurse) popping in and out to make sure we were doing ok. Rita would check the baby's heart rate every half hour or so, but other than intermittent monitoring, I wasn't hooked up to anything, allowing me a lot of freedom to move. Liz brought me a birthing ball to try out and I sat on it while leaning against the raised hospital bed. That birthing ball was my saving grace. I'd used it in Bradley class during labor practice, but didn't really get the point until then. Big Papa would come around and massage my back during contractions and I could do pelvic rocks between them to help ease my back pain. I fell asleep between contractions a couple times while on the ball too.<br />
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I didn't really notice the time much at that point, except for the fact that my contractions just kept getting closer and closer together. I had started vocalizing through them, making some good cavewoman sounds (that's for you Dr. Reich!). When I wasn't as focused or relaxed during a contraction, I would start doing much higher sounds and then Big Papa and Liz would encourage me to lower my voice. It was really interesting to see how just grounding my voice helped to manage the pain.<br />
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Time passed, I guess (I really wasn't paying any attention to it), and the contractions kept getting harder and harder. I really didn't think I could do it for much longer, but Big Papa and Liz kept encouraging me. I decided that I wanted to get in the tub, so Liz checked me to make sure I was progressing well enough. She told me that I was at 7 cm -- transition time! I knew that I might not have a ton of time in the tub, but I still wanted to get in. The warm water relaxed me just enough, and about 2 minutes later I felt like my body was getting ready to push. In Iowa, it is against the law to do a water birth in the hospital, so I frantically asked Liz and James to help me out. Liz checked me again and told me that things were changing fast, so we moved over to the hospital bed where they had set up the squat bar for me. I had a few more contractions using the squat bar and then the urge to push really came. It was the craziest feeling because my body just <i>needed</i> to push and I couldn't stop it.<br />
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So with Big Papa at my side, Liz, Rita, and the resident who was observing (it was his first natural birth), I began pushing up at the bar. It was hard to understand how to do it at first, but my body started working for me and I heard Liz say, "Rita, we're going to have a baby" signaling her to get another nurse or two. Hearing this gave me the drive I needed. I started to really push, vocalizing pretty loudly. The nurses kept telling me to keep my voice low -- Big Papa said it was crazy to hear me make so many different sounds: the higher pitched ones were more frantic, but the lower ones almost operatic (I've gotta use my training somewhere ;)).<br />
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Then, Liz said to me, "let's have a baby with this next one" and I gave it everything I could. I never thought I'd be a yeller, but... well... I yelled! I really can't describe how it felt in words, but the relief I felt as I pushed our little girl out was the most incredible relief I have ever felt. After just three minutes of pushing, at 1:08 pm, our sweet little Peanut was born and placed right on my chest.<br />
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We spent the next 45 minutes or so delivering the placenta and stitching me up (I tore a bit where my episiotomy was last time), while Big Papa and I stared at our sweet girl. Eventually, the pediatrician came in to check her out clean her up a little -- she was perfect. I breast-fed her and then we went to our room in mother/baby and got settled in.<br />
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Looking back, I am still amazed that I did it. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life. I know that without my incredible husband, I could never have done it. He was the best couch and partner and allowed me to bring our daughter into the world so safely and so healthfully. I feel so blessed that I was healthy enough and had such a low risk pregnancy that I was able to do it in such a private, personal way. It really was amazing and awesome and just incredible.<br />
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So, would I do it again? Ask me in a year or two ;) because it was HARD. It hurt a ton. But it was worth it.<br />
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<br />Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-146037756351475032012-07-12T21:40:00.000-06:002012-07-12T21:40:06.234-06:00Our Little Peanut<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white;">Born at 1:08 pm on Sunday, July 8th 2012, we welcomed our new little girl, our little Peanut, into our family! She was 8 lbs 9 oz and we are so grateful that she's healthy and happy. </span></div>
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It's been really interesting to see the how different our two daughters are. Our new little peanut loves to be cuddled up in blankets and swaddled. She'll tolerate being out and stretched out for a little while, but then starts to fuss until she's swaddled or picked up. Goober liked to be swaddled, but not nearly as much and I could leave her out on a blanket for ever, letting her kick her legs and stretch. Also, as loud and energetic as Goober is now, Peanut has got a much louder set of pipes. She's such a sweetie, but when she's uncomfortable (like when her diaper is getting changed, or she's hungry) she lets it out!!! <div>
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</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-64028596018338847442012-05-26T15:39:00.000-06:002012-05-26T15:39:16.034-06:00Kansas City!!!So lest you think we hated our experience here, here's a (relatively) drama free recap of our time in Kansas City -- which I think we might refer to as our brief working vacation...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_BFBMplT3KOX7rJSrMlnBjW9Y3anPtzzTgi16F7Zb_7vsHUhIqXAUKkWOoUbstJ9CrTnQ281m3nogAuSr0E39tNQMexz80ppjoRo3bP3oZEGayh7Qfty4yLm-xFoy2_sHYZpUtBgc-1c/s1600/IMG_0437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_BFBMplT3KOX7rJSrMlnBjW9Y3anPtzzTgi16F7Zb_7vsHUhIqXAUKkWOoUbstJ9CrTnQ281m3nogAuSr0E39tNQMexz80ppjoRo3bP3oZEGayh7Qfty4yLm-xFoy2_sHYZpUtBgc-1c/s200/IMG_0437.jpg" width="149" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The blinds when I was half done cleaning them.</td></tr>
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Our apartment: When we first moved into our apartment, I thought I was going to cry -- it stank of cigarette smoke and was just plain filthy. I'm eternally grateful to my mother for teaching me how to keep a home, but it might have been nice to have slightly lower standards for this experience. I spent the next couple days cleaning -- wiping down baseboards and windows, vacuuming carpets 3-4 times (still hearing the vacuum picking up dirt), and spraying every chemical I could into the bathtub and then scrubbing for a minute and retreating from the fumes so I wouldn't kill my unborn child. Oh, and the blinds. Barf.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj26x4ib6AbBoY0CMSHPA0qzOJcA5j3nkccwLsKkDV6jbvxf0BU2ZSx1Jecc-dhSiaM3H8kvAOBKytTJA_t9JnIFQz5ZiRRBpNU6tcldZlZmygJVD2X5z5ocXEg_UHW85vBtsP1gMn1x5g/s1600/IMG_0413.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj26x4ib6AbBoY0CMSHPA0qzOJcA5j3nkccwLsKkDV6jbvxf0BU2ZSx1Jecc-dhSiaM3H8kvAOBKytTJA_t9JnIFQz5ZiRRBpNU6tcldZlZmygJVD2X5z5ocXEg_UHW85vBtsP1gMn1x5g/s320/IMG_0413.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goobie's "bedroom" -- don't you love my ghetto fabulous design?</td></tr>
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Aside from the cleanliness, the design of the apartment is quirky to say the least. There are three different kinds of tile used in both the bathroom and kitchen. Big Papa describes the one on the floors and counter tops as "locker room tile", which is such a joy to try and wipe crumbs off of. The rest of the tile is basic bathroom stuff, but is used as a kitchen back splash -- I guess you could call the look 'eclectic'. Since this place is old, there are some fun spots throughout where you can feel the floorboards shift. It makes life exciting, especially in my many night-time bathroom runs.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DxMyd9PdnAx0YtHqvSSMuk_H_xQ0QOcFQx75Q-y2eIKf5Z1AYSxY6Qe3teYLS-MBs_9TG0EBAgYx_kaa0kR6V5pNEI_ApYJgkPCyxu-WQfXwqMjj-ATBuMCY4wuUnUffZ2gIxbbpacA/s1600/IMG_0422.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5DxMyd9PdnAx0YtHqvSSMuk_H_xQ0QOcFQx75Q-y2eIKf5Z1AYSxY6Qe3teYLS-MBs_9TG0EBAgYx_kaa0kR6V5pNEI_ApYJgkPCyxu-WQfXwqMjj-ATBuMCY4wuUnUffZ2gIxbbpacA/s320/IMG_0422.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Papa likes his BBQ from Oklahoma Joes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTahzPdnqvFPn2rfmLhmXi4myRgqrlrSXXGRVch6ZDREmAVs7NF9H7QQobPibp-eZExqPgc9E1DgjFv0MVUlc_kZjR_WYJ1UvNfPy65QhFD_JSRh6qzjew749hLjkYtjommvjk1bTzLs/s1600/IMG_0425.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLTahzPdnqvFPn2rfmLhmXi4myRgqrlrSXXGRVch6ZDREmAVs7NF9H7QQobPibp-eZExqPgc9E1DgjFv0MVUlc_kZjR_WYJ1UvNfPy65QhFD_JSRh6qzjew749hLjkYtjommvjk1bTzLs/s320/IMG_0425.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mmm... brisket!</td></tr>
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Our neighborhood: As bad as our apartment is, it is safe and in an INCREDIBLE neighborhood (there is a reason we had a sub-letter in less than an hour and received 12 e-mails from interested individuals). We live right between an area known as Westport and the Plaza. Westport has lots of hip bars and restaurants and is really close to an art school. Big Papa and I both feel very square when we walk around here with our Polo shirts and stroller. The Plaza is a 15 minute walk from our apartment and has tons of expensive and amazing stores and restaurants. There are gorgeous fountains everywhere and a large park with a running track. We've loved being so close and Goobie has woken up every morning wanting to go on walks. It's been fun pretending to be city dwellers and enjoying all sorts of things within walking distance.<br />
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Kansas City in general: We really like the area. There are some beautiful houses and neighborhoods and so many green trees and parks. The BBQ is incredible. It's been fun to explore and get to know a new place. Goober and I even went to the zoo today!<br />
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So, all in all, Kansas City was a fun working vacation for all of us (but maybe next time we'll stay somewhere a little nicer :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfsu24ptr7s_QFMk6ls7wl_HyCerFCaE2_nLawZZmSpJuoxlAL0WFqW5CG2y-0As1Noc43SJDuAU6Pw4YhInbQdl1xT4f3h9u-B9Gh8PLOdulFwYhvYhi84P-TSvoYnsHErG8poAs-fbQ/s1600/IMG_0468.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfsu24ptr7s_QFMk6ls7wl_HyCerFCaE2_nLawZZmSpJuoxlAL0WFqW5CG2y-0As1Noc43SJDuAU6Pw4YhInbQdl1xT4f3h9u-B9Gh8PLOdulFwYhvYhi84P-TSvoYnsHErG8poAs-fbQ/s320/IMG_0468.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goober enjoying one of the may parks in the area.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-69405362986978095752012-05-26T15:04:00.000-06:002012-05-26T15:07:36.498-06:00Our Summer in Kansas City, or the 3 weeks we spent here...Our plans for this summer have drastically changed this last week. Our original plan was to spend it all in Kansas City with Big Papa working at an internship with the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office. We got here just fine and got started with things: Big Papa with his internship and me with the task of making sure my insurance was in tact so we could be covered and have this baby. I'd spent some time before we left clarifying what I'd need to do to switch from Iowa Medicaid to Missouri, and was given a lot of confidence that it should all work out. I worked with a wonderful woman, Ms. Gilmore, at the Missouri office to make sure that all of the papers/forms that needed to be turned it were done correctly and in order. We spent almost two weeks doing this -- trading phone calls back and forth with me heading to Office Depot to fax all the necessary papers, all the while getting positive feedback that my case would definitely be approved. Then, on Tuesday of this week I got another call.<br />
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Ms. Gilmore had found out that there was an option for me to stay on Iowa medicaid since I'd only be in Missouri temporarily. I had called Iowa months before to see if there was something like that, but was told that I should cancel my Iowa coverage and get on Missouri's, so I figured nothing existed. But Ms. Gilmore told me to call anyway and I did, giving them the dates that I'd be in MO. I needed to be in MO less than 90 days to qualify, and we'd only be here 85. At this point, I started to get a sinking feeling, like something was going to go wrong, but I kept on going to see what providers would be available to me in Kansas City. </div>
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A quick search on their website revealed that there was only one OBGYN in the whole city who had Iowa reciprocity for title 9 patients (or something like that). I quickly called his office to see if he would take me, but was told that his office works as a medical team and the chances of me being able to see just him were slim to none. At this point I decided that I needed to continue with my original plan of going on MO medicaid and called Ms. Gilmore to tell her. Normally, my calls with her go well, she's very reassuring and honest, but this one did not. Since I was only going to be in MO for 85 days I would no longer qualify for medicaid here. They needed 90 days. My heart dropped. I told her that we could stay 90 days -- it wouldn't be a problem to stay in the state for an extra week, but she told me that since I had "declared" my original intent, her supervisor would not go for it. She was extremely apologetic and kind, so I just thanked her for her help and hung up, immediately redialing the number for the woman in Iowa I had talked to earlier that day. We worked together to see if there were <i>any</i> other providers in MO who could help me out -- no OBs, no CNMs, no birthing centers. All that was available were a couple of Nurse Practitioners in Kirksville -- 3 hours away. </div>
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Throughout all these phone calls, I'm desperately trying to keep from crying, but I couldn't hold it in any longer. Everyone I had talked to was so sympathetic and kind to me, but none of them knew what I should do. So, I just asked the woman from Iowa to please reopen my Medicaid case there as soon as possible and I would figure out what to do. Big Papa had come home from work at that very moment and recognized that something was seriously wrong. I crumpled. All of that planning and confidence was for nothing. We had moved our family here with the belief that this would work and now, here I was 34 weeks pregnant with no insurance. </div>
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Big Papa (thank goodness) remained calm and focused and we thought out some options:</div>
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1. Goobie and I go back to IA while he stays here to do the internship. He'd come home on weekends and then as soon as I got wind of being in labor, he would come.</div>
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2. We all go back to IA, leaving the internship.</div>
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3. We try and find a birthing center that will give us a discount for paying cash (cash we don't really have)</div>
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I didn't want Big Papa to give up his internship for me, but I couldn't bare the thought of not having him with me when the baby was coming so soon. We've been planning on a natural birth, and I needed him there as my coach. Not only that, but the idea of him coming home every night to an empty apartment just sounded awful. So, Big Papa made some calls and told his internship that we'd have to leave.</div>
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That night I battled so much guilt and frustration -- how could I not have seen this coming? what was Big Papa going to do this summer now? how would this affect his future jobs? I should have done this, I should have done that... But Big Papa reassured me that we needed to go back, that none of this was my fault, just a really unfortunate thing we couldn't control. </div>
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The next day, we witnessed so many miracles. Our good friends were going to be leaving their apartment June 1st until mid August, without any plans of finding sub-letters. We called them, just hoping that they might be in to having us pay their rent and utilities for that time so we could stay there -- and they were. We also were able to find a sub-letter for our Kansas City apartment in about an hour (thank you craigslist). Now I would be able to deliver my baby with the CNM's that I'd come to like to so much, in an amazing hospital. Goobie would have so many people who could watch her while we had the baby too, people who I trusted and had known for more than a month.</div>
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Even though we felt (and feel) super crazy for moving here and leaving so fast, we know that we are being watched over. It is truly amazing to me that we are being so blessed, even when I know we didn't do everything we could to make sure moving here in the first place was the best decision. Our church congregation back in IA has reached out to us, offering food, places to stay, and moving help for when we get home. </div>
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So, overwhelmed with gratitude, we are coming home. We have learned so much from this experience and are just so grateful for all the blessings that have come from it. Sure, it would have been nice to learn this lesson without going through the stress and expense of moving, but at least we are all healthy, happy, and together.</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-42185363810584268642012-02-05T19:55:00.000-07:002012-02-05T19:55:41.625-07:00And now for the updatesSo what have we been doing since October when I last posted?<br />
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-Making a baby! Our little Goob is going to be a big sister in July! I felt pretty awful all of November with morning sickness and fatigue, but am feeling a lot better now. We're finding out the gender tomorrow morning, so look for more updates!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNRdYqDa438u4k6Gt-4sR8KzPrxRULmrYFIVHiBCWpecPxSewP7ov5AAq5kuLQTN_4I_2Lizctnk6GXl0ilYAuMzF5oMEAFx9aYhlCy0-PmxskOdLKaOvZgGrSjg1JONDtTjQfC96QXA/s1600/IMG_0175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNRdYqDa438u4k6Gt-4sR8KzPrxRULmrYFIVHiBCWpecPxSewP7ov5AAq5kuLQTN_4I_2Lizctnk6GXl0ilYAuMzF5oMEAFx9aYhlCy0-PmxskOdLKaOvZgGrSjg1JONDtTjQfC96QXA/s320/IMG_0175.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having a fun break with Daddy!</td></tr>
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-Big Papa's working hard! School, school, school. It's not always fun, but he's doing well! He's enjoying his classes a lot more this semester and always has fun stories to tell about his professors.<br />
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-We spent three weeks in Utah for Christmas break! We also decided that next time, we'll be spending just two weeks on vacation. Three is just a little long to be living out of a suitcase and having our 18 month old sleep in a pack n' play. BUT we had so much fun seeing our families and eating cafe rio :) I could do a whole bunch of posts about what we did on our break... we'll see if that happens since it's already February.<br />
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-Cheesecake Mama started... and ended a music group! I was really excited to start a community children's singing group in January but just couldn't get the word out enough to get enough participants. In the end though, it's a blessing it didn't work out. I would have had to stay in town until early June to finish up the group's performances, while Big Papa would have already had to leave for his internship. By then I would be almost 8 and a half months pregnant making traveling to be with him a little tricky. Now that the group isn't going to happen yet, I can go be with him the whole summer (major relief!).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9rxWuPFBtuIylufyL6J_aZ_UlmLKjLfXeQGk0rwn1pR6pVV3ZBhD-owfUyzryNYY2fr4dVIMcMHoaWHQ1Nxi18y8zzEpQkVivG1iRhxhm0vvYAmBoWrapml7-4cMsP94MI5IEr2_M7k/s1600/IMG_0212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx9rxWuPFBtuIylufyL6J_aZ_UlmLKjLfXeQGk0rwn1pR6pVV3ZBhD-owfUyzryNYY2fr4dVIMcMHoaWHQ1Nxi18y8zzEpQkVivG1iRhxhm0vvYAmBoWrapml7-4cMsP94MI5IEr2_M7k/s320/IMG_0212.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking a little nervous...</td></tr>
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-Getting an internship! Big Papa got a summer internship with the Jackson county prosecutor's office in Kansas City, MO! We are really excited to go explore a new place and Big Papa's excited to be working at their office. Now we just need to find an affordable short-term, preferably furnished, apartment. The nice thing though is the woman who hired him told him all of the places we should <b>not</b> move to (it's handy having the county prosecutor on your side for that stuff).<br />
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-Goobie got her first hair cut! I was really sad to do it, but her hair had turned into a legitimate mullet, so off it went. It's still cute! I'm just sad I can't do pig-tails anymore :(<br />
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-Learning! Our Goober is starting to talk! Right now she doesn't say a lot that's intelligible, but she says "cheese" and started saying "coat" so we're making progress! She's also starting to throw tantrums... that's fun.<br />
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Well, that's enough for now. Life is pretty good and now we just need to keep on moving through it!!!Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-56683370541696732002012-02-05T18:40:00.003-07:002012-02-06T09:38:00.213-07:0018 months old!It has definitely been awhile since we last posted, but here are two cute videos of our very cute 18 month old. We couldn't help celebrate a little with cupcakes on our Goober's half birthday!<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/yBx3sc48eRo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZuRVqJ8kG30?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-56132300640833553062011-10-25T08:31:00.000-06:002011-10-25T08:31:04.335-06:00Tortes: Our "Eating In" experiment so farWe're almost three months into our year of "Eating In" and we're finally in a good groove. The first month I craved fast food and going to restaurants, but now I don't even think about it. I definitely feel like I need to start preparing some meals to keep frozen for those nights I don't want to cook, but so far I've really enjoyed cooking something different every night and playing with new recipes.<br />
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One new thing I've been trying to implement in our dinners is having more vegetarian meals. I always struggled cooking without some sort of meat because I worried that Big Papa wouldn't be satisfied without it. I'd hate to see him still hungry after dinner. But deep down I knew that it would be healthier for both our bodies and our budget if we only had meat 3-4 times a week. The first few weeks into this I struggled to find recipes that looked filling and delicious. Tofu just isn't my favorite and fresh produce can cost so much. But now, and mostly thanks to the wonders of beans, we've got quite a few recipes that we want to become staples in our cooking.<br />
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Here are some of our new favorite vegetarian meals (see Mom, I posted the links for you so you don't need to search for them yourself :) ) -- oh and did you know that chickpeas and garbanzo beans are the same thing? What a concept!<br />
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<a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/falafel-pitas-with-cucumber-yogurt-dressing-10000001571454/">Falafel pitas with cucumber-yogurt dressing</a><br />
I've never had falafel until this, but we ALL loved it, even Goober. I always am intimidated by recipes that involve making patties and cooking them in some oil, but these were really easy to make.<br />
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<a href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/corn-potato-chowder-10000001142037/">Corn and potato chowder</a><br />
Warm and delicious for fall evenings!<br />
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<a href="http://www.health.com/health/recipe/0,,10000001665256,00.html">Pasta with chickpeas and broccoli rabe</a><br />
Nice, light pasta dish. We just used regular broccoli florets.<br />
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<a href="http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/2007/07/of-eggplants-and-angels.html">Pasta with eggplant-tomato sauce</a><br />
The eggplant gives a really yummy texture to it.<br />
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<a href="http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2011/07/skillet-summer-vegetable-lasagna.html">Skillet summer vegetable lasagna</a><br />
So good, but a little pricy with all the veggies and ricotta. Still though, so yummy.<br />
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<a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/pasta-with-chickpeas-and-garlic-sauce-152052">Pasta with chickpeas and garlic sauce</a><br />
We had this last night. You blend the chickpeas after cooking them and so they make a sauce for your pasta. We had broccoli in it instead of tomatoes because it's what we had on hand. It was delicious!<br />
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<br /></div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-2025916563154532552011-10-19T11:17:00.001-06:002011-10-19T11:17:54.177-06:00Tortes: The first post!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well, I didn't make a torte, but I made a DELICIOUS apple pie. We had Big Papa's Mom visiting us this weekend, and so I thought it would be fun to have a special treat. I used my favorite cookbook (allrecipes.com) and found the top rated recipe for <a href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/apple-pie-by-grandma-ople/detail.aspx">apple pie</a>. Instead of coating each apple with cinnamon sugar, you pour some caramely goodness over the crust and apples. The caramel on the crust added just a little crunch to each bite and really brought out that great, rich flavor. It was ooey-gooey and oh so yummy! I'll definitely make it again!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFdH8AYgD_KxE5kXkNRSVCDx_u_5RWH-xa_v2giAmrJulErpFxDwbtZ8f89RZrEGQ9L2xIFpwDrn7E5J-8FCdCCXDiaUSccERwhTT0y6xqjiULkLDtAJZswBgLNrLadAjQW1EFP93HhE0/s1600/IMG_0110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFdH8AYgD_KxE5kXkNRSVCDx_u_5RWH-xa_v2giAmrJulErpFxDwbtZ8f89RZrEGQ9L2xIFpwDrn7E5J-8FCdCCXDiaUSccERwhTT0y6xqjiULkLDtAJZswBgLNrLadAjQW1EFP93HhE0/s320/IMG_0110.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma and Goober reading books! Thanks for visiting!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-46171858356809055092011-09-25T20:56:00.000-06:002011-09-26T20:46:43.270-06:00What we've been doing!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgStbBU6beieG8C7yXxBePV0rPoCviiCfVFe-47Smgb3S_C3ZuIFSABsh61DEEXkvyZ8XRbezTTjGDUy1f9iekVvPHuTljJOdJc8cBuUecAiOn6NagBIxVii_FQRR9NpHAEJzP0-2orWUQ/s1600/DSCN0634.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgStbBU6beieG8C7yXxBePV0rPoCviiCfVFe-47Smgb3S_C3ZuIFSABsh61DEEXkvyZ8XRbezTTjGDUy1f9iekVvPHuTljJOdJc8cBuUecAiOn6NagBIxVii_FQRR9NpHAEJzP0-2orWUQ/s320/DSCN0634.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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Lots of playing!<br />
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Since the weather's started cooling off, we've been enjoying exploring the local parks. Our little Goob loves the tunnels, slides, and swings. She also likes the eat the sand and the wood chips, so that makes life interesting.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy took my wood chip friend :(</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA4BCukbr5bQ_E86VgBGLTHt9IIbcAqcq9HTdMVO7STaJoT9sFKCAw_t7HmlMTgPTgHauhczKvhUnx_XOYG7fl-e3ubCosMFPmf6g1MYv8_7MhABlZ1WfaF38UZGPf084XKLAcxEO2_zc/s1600/DSCN0649.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA4BCukbr5bQ_E86VgBGLTHt9IIbcAqcq9HTdMVO7STaJoT9sFKCAw_t7HmlMTgPTgHauhczKvhUnx_XOYG7fl-e3ubCosMFPmf6g1MYv8_7MhABlZ1WfaF38UZGPf084XKLAcxEO2_zc/s320/DSCN0649.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting ready!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUPyzIbQPRPZ_PjIBcsTbeg77mccDCKACcsvWVuyglrsjHkALXmlHiBig6q4pyDWzj9FDWZPXeJZBbx9RqDfpdYOqCcKqgVzHuha2KZSHyR9NIydryHUgZbm2gz75qFIeQwUPqjixw8A/s1600/DSCN0650.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIUPyzIbQPRPZ_PjIBcsTbeg77mccDCKACcsvWVuyglrsjHkALXmlHiBig6q4pyDWzj9FDWZPXeJZBbx9RqDfpdYOqCcKqgVzHuha2KZSHyR9NIydryHUgZbm2gz75qFIeQwUPqjixw8A/s320/DSCN0650.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crazy post slide face.</td></tr>
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Lots of dancing!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDx1t4mXIw4b_VK8DiUgQRicXY12VQ7UD3miZMAXaYXDSMhF6Du1c8caHmKQGZpDXR9V6x6Ji6w9NzoDyFhahbOjlpZ0tvoWGfFqArHjURYhzOIFjCozXO1hQez96e1vssTxN9BBw5vA/s1600/DSCN0628.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuDx1t4mXIw4b_VK8DiUgQRicXY12VQ7UD3miZMAXaYXDSMhF6Du1c8caHmKQGZpDXR9V6x6Ji6w9NzoDyFhahbOjlpZ0tvoWGfFqArHjURYhzOIFjCozXO1hQez96e1vssTxN9BBw5vA/s320/DSCN0628.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
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Lots of cooking!<br />
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Our "Eating In" challenge is going very well. I've been playing with new recipes and baking a lot more bread which, thanks to my beautiful kitchen-aid, is much easier to do (thanks Mom!)<br />
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Lots of learning!<br />
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Big Papa is busy learning the law while Goobie is busy learning... well... everything! She says "Hi", [da] (for dog), [ba] (for ball), and [An:n] (for food-- yeah, that's a stretch). She isn't super chatty, but we catch her "reading" out loud to herself, playing with sounds, and starting to sing. She's getting really good at mimicking actions and knows how to pat her head, touch her ear and nose, and rub her tummy when we ask her too. It's pretty incredible to watch how quickly she learns.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Her crib after her "nap"</td></tr>
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She's also learning how to be a little trouble maker. One day she seemed to be having a hard time going down for her nap, but she eventually quieted down so I didn't think anything of it. When she woke up I found that she had figured out how to pull her toys from her toy box into her crib. We've since moved the toy box further away so that nap time really is <i>nap time</i>.<br />
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She's also climbing. Yikes. I walked into her room to see that she had climbed from her chair on top of the AC vent, pulling pictures off the wall! This girl has no fear!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking at the plants and flowers!</td></tr>
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<br />Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-15041289238007652022011-09-05T07:12:00.002-06:002011-09-05T07:20:23.647-06:00Three Tips of the DayTorte tip:<br /><br />When your wife makes a delectable cheesecake for her birthday celebration, be sure to have company over, soon, or consequences could be disastrous.<br /><br />Tort tip:<br /><br />Don't let your five-year-old move a plastic chair at an outdoor dinner party that may or may not be soon-to-be-sat-upon by an older gentlewoman with a brittle hip. That's potential Battery, baby! Also, don't leave Torts case readings till the third day of a three day weekend...<br /><br />Toddler tip:<br /><br />If your toddler is bored, resist the temptation to let her play with an opened bag of fish sticks - no matter how secure the twist tie seems. Your vacuum will smell like sea-food.Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08224026095997035118noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-50293388454052551772011-08-15T20:30:00.000-06:002011-08-15T20:30:00.815-06:00Just pictures this time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">(because I know there would be some very unhappy grandparents if I didn't put some pictures up of the Goob after posting such a long, wordy post)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">At the Children's Museum</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flying! Maybe she'll be a pilot like her uncle!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Or maybe a dentist?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No, no, gardener!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loving all the new toys to play with.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having fun!</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;">The Splash Pad</div><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Watching the other kids playing.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOczYyGlv8Ba3olrX_AsWFwsQmcckCr4zRzp4z_1VsC2OsTOojE8q9ZI1Au7mIBl6hH1ThN64_cFe9ft9Vli__JzFhYNmdYlw1xONQmiBnyld-aK-syZj3AYQzT_YN7h9w3kkEKEzE7OI/s1600/DSCN0583.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOczYyGlv8Ba3olrX_AsWFwsQmcckCr4zRzp4z_1VsC2OsTOojE8q9ZI1Au7mIBl6hH1ThN64_cFe9ft9Vli__JzFhYNmdYlw1xONQmiBnyld-aK-syZj3AYQzT_YN7h9w3kkEKEzE7OI/s320/DSCN0583.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She's all smiles!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiI325Zya1anxoYqgKZY7OM23JdIzE5xmIMb-WDd8BeLO717JBQaSE3cCqIYX_gnCta3EB6ENpUK-vsjM4Z0NXl-y824akfIRldo-xd2bQ7ier6E3OdZ8b46vai9rBT_xAUUiIMlCAqpg/s1600/DSCN0585.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiI325Zya1anxoYqgKZY7OM23JdIzE5xmIMb-WDd8BeLO717JBQaSE3cCqIYX_gnCta3EB6ENpUK-vsjM4Z0NXl-y824akfIRldo-xd2bQ7ier6E3OdZ8b46vai9rBT_xAUUiIMlCAqpg/s320/DSCN0585.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting wet is so funny!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvnzbVUlomYUeIh-N8qdRDHCQuf8UNMtJlSbcRZdXEk89jGi8UII9-zCwdHbY7liszw7NbVD7b8YE7CiFyMNxUbGPD3tLnv-3zTkxkbz7kbNrEm7I36vhujBwbpdknspIZnkYsZp_Ulo/s1600/DSCN0586.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhvnzbVUlomYUeIh-N8qdRDHCQuf8UNMtJlSbcRZdXEk89jGi8UII9-zCwdHbY7liszw7NbVD7b8YE7CiFyMNxUbGPD3tLnv-3zTkxkbz7kbNrEm7I36vhujBwbpdknspIZnkYsZp_Ulo/s320/DSCN0586.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">She's our brave little baby!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-86297923461789057792011-08-15T20:14:00.000-06:002011-08-15T20:14:02.151-06:00Beginnings and ListsYesterday afternoon Big Papa headed out the door and began his life as a law school student! Orientation is all this week which includes a pass/fail introduction to law class. He enjoyed the first meeting, but was mortified when he told me that his phone went off during the President of the Iowa State Bar's remarks. "I can't believe I'm <i>that guy!" </i>he kept saying. Oh well, everyone needs to have an embarrassing moment like that now and again :)<br />
<br />
Today was my first day trying out my new life as the wife of a law school student and I have to say, I did pretty well for myself. I've organized my cleaning schedule and set some goals to help myself stay productive and happy. I'm doing things like:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Zone cleaning: Everyday I clean a different "zone" in the apartment -- one day is the bathroom, while another is dusting and vacuuming, etc. Rather than cleaning the whole apartment in one day and getting frustrated doing it by myself or feeling guilty when I don't finish it all, I only have to clean one zone each day. Once my chores are done, I'm done! It only takes about 20 minutes each day and the house stays clean and neat = happy me.</li>
<li>Menu planning: We've set a goal this year to "Eat in" meaning, we won't be eating out at restaurants for a year. I'll blog about this later (and our reasoning behind it) but it requires me to plan, plan, plan! We brainstormed tons of recipes together last month so I can pick meals off of a spreadsheet each week. So far things are going great and I'm enjoying planning healthy meals for our family (though I did make this brownie thing yesterday with sweetened condensed milk that's already gone, oops)</li>
<li>Exercising: Eventually I'm planning on getting a pass to the University gym so that I can go in the evenings while Big Papa does some studying at home, but today I did a yoga video and went on a long walk with Goobie. If I've learned anything about my personality this past year is that if I stay inside all day and don't do much, I get grumpy. I need to exercise for my own sanity and for my husband and daughters sake. Plus, exercising is apparently really good for your body -- what a concept! :)</li>
<li>Singing: After my senior recital, I pretty much stopped practicing. We moved cross country, had to get settled in with my folks, then moved again. I kind of lost the motivation to keep trying. Once we got settled here in Iowa, I realized that I was really missing that side of me. Now I've made a goal to sing everyday -- I love doing it, and my sweet Goober loves it to (she particularly loves lip buzzing with me). I feel so much better about myself when I keep music in my life because it is a huge part of who I am.</li>
</ul><div><br />
</div><div>I know that things will probably need to be tweaked every once in a while since we can't completely plan our future, but so far I am really enjoying the goals that we've set as a family. We love our life here and are so grateful to have the chance to be where we are. We love:</div><div><ul><li>Our apartment: not only does the layout and space rock, we have an assigned parking spot, laundry just down the stairs, central air, and in house maintenance that love our cute Goober. Oh and I'm kind of in love with our new shower curtain.</li>
<li>Our new ward: In our <a href="http://mormon.org/">church</a> the congregation we attend every Sunday is called a "ward". Ours is made up of all the married students going to the University. There are probably about 50 families, most of them with at least one member of their family in grad school. They are some smart cookies! We have felt so welcomed and have already been invited to dinner multiple times. Not only does Big Papa have quite a few built in mentors to guide him through law school, I have quite a few built in friends to do play groups, go shopping, or just spend time with while our hubbies study. Hooray for support groups!</li>
<li>The downtown area: Lots of fun shops, a great public library, and a splash pad that Goobie has already really taken too. Who knew Iowa City was such a cool town!</li>
<li>The Children's Museum: So stinkin' cute. We'll definitely be back!</li>
<li>The parks: It seems like the park district and community take great pride in their public areas because every park we've been to so far has been gorgeous. The playground equipment all looks fresh and new and the landscaping is beautiful and very well cared for. We've gone for quite a few walks around here and still can't get enough of the parks!</li>
<li>Hyvee: I worried that I wouldn't find a replacement for my favorite grocery store (what can I say, there really is a family feeling at Macey's), but Hyvee did it! It's pretty old school since all of workers are dressed in black slacks and white shirts with name tags (yes, they kind of look like Mormon missionaries), and everyone is helpful and friendly. It is more pricey so today I went to Walmart for most of my things and then hit up the Hyvee for my produce. I do love Hyvee...</li>
</ul><div>My list of things I'm not loving so far is very short:</div></div><div><ul><li>The flies: They are everywhere. It's gross.</li>
<li>Milk: $3.50 for a gallon. Oh 3 for $5 creamery milk, where did you go?!</li>
</ul><div>So yeah, we're happy and alive! Well, we'll see if Big Papa is still alive tomorrow after his first big study session, but I'm pretty sure he'll survive.</div><div><br />
</div><div>More posts to come including:</div><div><ul><li>Eating In: brilliant or crazy?</li>
<li>Torts: where Big Papa learns lots of new words</li>
<li>Apartment Safari: observing the wild Goober in her natural habitat</li>
</ul></div><div><br />
</div></div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-62668677711498731532011-08-09T15:06:00.000-06:002011-08-09T15:06:48.864-06:00Happy Birthday Goobie!!!We made it safely to Iowa! Along with all the craziness that comes with moving into a new apartment (post on that later), we celebrated a big birthday. Our little Goob turned 1! I can't believe that she is that old, it's too weird. It's been fun to watch her develop into a sweet, but very feisty little girl. We love having her in our lives and are so grateful that she's such a goober!<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMDY8FVZBYAveXEvGcSbjFCMsjGlVeMLYIwH0Ld3nBas070KEAlseEBCYSsINsCVKxfpb2njDmpofHFhIJQHO1Jh15Mzx5UIGidlwxM9yEILg7jdHwZU6KGHC9ayHuadMnAg6Yz7KkKs/s1600/IMG_6352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMDY8FVZBYAveXEvGcSbjFCMsjGlVeMLYIwH0Ld3nBas070KEAlseEBCYSsINsCVKxfpb2njDmpofHFhIJQHO1Jh15Mzx5UIGidlwxM9yEILg7jdHwZU6KGHC9ayHuadMnAg6Yz7KkKs/s320/IMG_6352.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just a few hours old.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtOtZgZSZl8Yz48hD4HZ0B-u3RSbhrWqWA6UMuRK7uWVAzEfA9RGTVuUYlRxMovauDFA6Q8bROA5Kdkv2uBsuMIVoJqiKubzdd07mHyR5CYOkjcwl-3BoHDB_t2iWbijTSZCnPX6yaRIE/s1600/DSCN0545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtOtZgZSZl8Yz48hD4HZ0B-u3RSbhrWqWA6UMuRK7uWVAzEfA9RGTVuUYlRxMovauDFA6Q8bROA5Kdkv2uBsuMIVoJqiKubzdd07mHyR5CYOkjcwl-3BoHDB_t2iWbijTSZCnPX6yaRIE/s320/DSCN0545.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now a silly toddler!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>My parents helped us move into our new place and decided to stay until her birthday. We had cake and Goobie had fun playing with the frosting on her mini cake. It was a fun little party with all of us, including Big Papa's family via Skype, watching her enjoy her special day!<div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/nOSfqhQbdMY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div><br />
</div></div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-36215531813786628072011-07-17T21:13:00.001-06:002011-07-17T21:16:17.633-06:00St. Louis and BIG news<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Last weekend we took a quick trip down to St. Louis for my cousin and his wife's wedding reception. We didn't see the arch or even go into the city, but we did do some pretty great things!</div><div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Goober tried out a baby rocking chair at Cracker Barrel and loved it.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">She also slid down the slide and learned how to climb up it.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-picasa-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg4s8tbcXMPRD5uu86iuX_SkELjLSsWzMULewEsxs2skIup0ESiQCJFmLou1ryFtpRsM_aPsAuo50WRMbeDcAkI-yvtlI-WYlEGXGdnjsmL8QzkmF6dBv8_c88_Rsly26ZmyOHpkrIVFA/s1600/DSCN0520.AVI" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?videoUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fv20.nonxt2.googlevideo.com%2Fvideoplayback%3Fid%3D5d212688eb7e0e8c%26itag%3D18%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1310978837%26sparams%3Did%2Citag%2Cip%2Cipbits%2Cexpire%26signature%3D7628C00D6A45876FCBB0DDF2824FD992B33D8D1A.5B82929E8F4EF04FF24C437387206FAF5E3150B8%26key%3Dlh1" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?videoUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fv20.nonxt2.googlevideo.com%2Fvideoplayback%3Fid%3D5d212688eb7e0e8c%26itag%3D18%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1310978837%26sparams%3Did%2Citag%2Cip%2Cipbits%2Cexpire%26signature%3D7628C00D6A45876FCBB0DDF2824FD992B33D8D1A.5B82929E8F4EF04FF24C437387206FAF5E3150B8%26key%3Dlh1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-picasa-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_a7gOQuuUbGv3PYOW2WJvEbbdp-ewMwCLokovQf19Et5B8QdF5HvgrBki0uUsQBLO9yWewlv7kTXx3DxchH5FfDwOFPyMMQyEsQXER9lSsartJI25wgDRHDoa1O8Cob52gdXmmhWyayw/s1600/DSCN0521.AVI" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?videoUrl=http://v22.nonxt4.googlevideo.com/videoplayback?id%3D53cfd4b0c318fdee%26itag%3D5%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1310979374%26sparams%3Did,itag,ip,ipbits,expire%26signature%3DBBDD1A29DA5D93B2565D913A6D4E7D816687D19A.2C3315994B4C0FE24B4AA23658F9E7BF2D02EFA1%26key%3Dlh1" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?videoUrl=http://v22.nonxt4.googlevideo.com/videoplayback?id%3D53cfd4b0c318fdee%26itag%3D5%26ip%3D0.0.0.0%26ipbits%3D0%26expire%3D1310979374%26sparams%3Did,itag,ip,ipbits,expire%26signature%3DBBDD1A29DA5D93B2565D913A6D4E7D816687D19A.2C3315994B4C0FE24B4AA23658F9E7BF2D02EFA1%26key%3Dlh1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div><div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">We gave our child a sugar high by giving her a lollipop, ice cream, and a piece of cake at the reception (don't worry, not all at the same time)</div><div><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">But the big news is... our little Goobie has enough hair for pigtails!!! Yup, she's adorable.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Our next blog post will probably be in IOWA!!! This summer really has flown by.</div><div><br />
</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-10221995987301367892011-06-10T10:48:00.002-06:002011-06-10T10:54:40.434-06:00Garage Sale, Tissues, Cell Phones, and Beach Boys<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeQ3C5NO3CVqGMFIWj0bLIJHqFMXjgKMkx6uGbZUHyh82cSNjmRbLkGgLlmla3v377m9L7Lo2OeCcACBZEE6DCFrXZEGonuz3McJQqkeIkTSu-dG-u1F1DbNSMrBiCg1bcupqn3SNlPw/s1600/DSCN0490.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmeQ3C5NO3CVqGMFIWj0bLIJHqFMXjgKMkx6uGbZUHyh82cSNjmRbLkGgLlmla3v377m9L7Lo2OeCcACBZEE6DCFrXZEGonuz3McJQqkeIkTSu-dG-u1F1DbNSMrBiCg1bcupqn3SNlPw/s320/DSCN0490.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking a little nervous surrounded by so many animals!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Part of the deal we made with my folks when they offered to let us stay with them this summer was that we would be in charge of a few garage sales.We had a smaller garage sale last month and sold a lot, but were hoping to sell the majority of the things at the neighborhood garage sale this past weekend. After having three kids, two wedding receptions, and moving a few times, there was a lot of stuff to sell. Tons of books, piles of stuffed animals, and lots and lots of vases. I think the only truly shocking thing we discovered amid our sorting was how many candles and candle holders my mom owned -- and she can't even smell, she just LOVES candles.<br />
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Now that the sale is over and pretty much everything left has been donated, we've been able to relax a bit more. Our Goober has been doing some cute new tricks and dazzling us with her spunky personality. It's fun to see her go down to the basement with me and start playing with my old dolls. When she sees them after not playing with them for awhile she gasps and gets a big smile on her face. She's too cute.</div><div><br />
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Although she does love her dolls, Goobie prefers another toy. Sometimes we forget to close the doors to this big cabinet/wardrobe thing (we call it a shrank -- it's German), and so the little Goober explores what's inside. Instead of looking at different things though, she always goes for the little travel packs of kleenex. She carries them around and plays with them. Big Papa even wrote a song called "Me and My Pack of Tissues," though we can't remember it now -- so sad, it could have been big. I didn't worry about her eating them until I discovered the remains of one of her tissue friends all over her crib. Poor little pack of tissues! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div>And now, for your viewing pleasure: Two short films.</div><div><br />
</div><div>1. Singing along.</div><div><br />
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</div><div>2. Chatting on her "phone".</div><div><br />
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</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-73462219589908998402011-06-05T12:38:00.002-06:002011-06-05T13:49:28.884-06:00Prologue to 1LGetting ready for law school is much like getting ready for marriage or a baby: nearly everyone who's done it has loads of advice to give, and they look back on their experiences with either fondness or shuddering whispers. It's taken me nearly a year of asking attorneys about law school to keep from plunging into either self-doubt or ballooning overconfidence after every conversation with a Juris Doctor. Law school is what you make of it, I've decided, and I want to enjoy the learning experience as much as possible and not waste my time worrying about all the million things I don't know. Still, I think a good deal of the practical advice I received is worth following, but some of it still doesn't make sense. The following is a list of most common mentionings of law school grads that'll probably make more sense once I'm in the thick of it:<br /><br />1. Start studying for the final during the first week of classes. In fact, worry more about the final than being prepared for class every day. <br /><br />This concept blows my mind. I'm so used to class preparation as the very best way to be prepared for finals, as it seems reasonable that a teacher would test students primarily on information at least somewhat linked to classroom discussion. Apparently there is so much material for which law students are accountable that the professor can't hope to cover it all in class.<br /><br />2. Buy class supplements (the right ones) as soon as possible.<br /><br />Since when aren't $500 textbooks fat enough to have all the stuff you need to do well on exams? Here, I did a little homework. So law school texts aren't written like traditional textbooks with analytical/historical breakdowns of topics written by the author. From what I understand, the books, at least first year books, are filled with case after case argued at the the highest courts in the land, with very little in the way of explanations or indications of why the case is important or what lines of argument deserve the most study. The point, I believe, is to learn the law by studying how its been interpreted more than simply memorizing statutes, and to learn how to pick out important stuff by...well...reading a lot of stuff and trying to find the important bits. And I guess this is where the supplements come in--they outline what you should be learning from big cases and provide explanations and stuff. But a professor may agree or disagree with what's written in those commercial supplements, or may expect more detailed knowledge on this or that, so either the teacher or his/her past students should know which supplements are best. <br /><br />3. Be prepared to spend all day and night at school.<br /><br />This rather unpleasant bit of advice is fairly straightforward, but I've never had to study that much before, so I have a hard time imagining the need to keep a sleeping bag in the library. <br /><br />I'm curious to see how actually being in law school will change the way I think about the above-mentioned advice. The next few lines are the pieces of advice that I think will be the most important for a guy like me:<br /><br />1. Try to maintain a balanced lifestyle. <br /><br />Since I'm really doing this for my family, I think it would be awful of me to ignore them for the next three years in the name of better grades. Besides, I think I'd go nuts without spending time with them--I really do need my dear wife and a daily dose of adorable daughter--and they need me, too. Furthermore, if I don't make myself exercise, study the scriptures, eat healthy foods, and relax once in a while, I'll turn into a fat law zombie that no one will want to hire, anyway. <br /><br />2. Have fun.<br /><br />Honestly, if I can't find some way to make learning to think like a lawyer fun, I'm probably in the wrong place. The trick will be to avoid comparing myself to other students (your final grade is determined by how you measure up to your classmates), going to get help often at the study center, meeting with professors, and keeping in school in balance with the rest of my life. I think finding good study buddies will help, too.<br /><br />3. Stay organized.<br /><br />I think my wife will have to get me started on the right track here...I'm kind of a mess. <br /><br />So there you have it. We're T-minus 2 months or so till we start student orientation at Iowa. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying working for a software start-up in downtown Chicago doing pretty stress-free work in a fun office. It's fun carpooling with the CEO and VP of Sales, neighbors of my wife's parents who got me the job, and really great guys. <br /><br />Next post from Big Papa will probably be about the Alumni/Networking dinner in a few weeks--hobnobbing with U Iowa Law Grads who made it big in Chicago.Jameshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08224026095997035118noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-64234917666853799592011-05-29T14:29:00.000-06:002011-05-29T14:29:52.975-06:00The Goob can Move!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/jNS8g5mf5BI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-2564440347549463812011-05-29T13:34:00.000-06:002011-05-29T13:34:27.849-06:00So it's root, root, root for the Cubbies!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>On Friday we went to see the Cubs play at Wrigley Field. It was a first for both Big Papa and our little Goober. We had a great time riding the train into the city, taking the Subway (or the EL when it gets out of the ground), and watching some baseball. Even though they didn't win, we still had lots of fun!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOqDfLnJIxObRzPtgrvpCe4blUbxCAtp5QSS-0TpycSKK4bHwB72bQxI0KQ01H8Q76lWulWWzkf1uLOIaflLcQeU9fIn7HpEx9QQVRTW1vB8tqk81kuq_IuVyaQZdiDSRSP_Sj2rOc0fU/s1600/DSCN0475.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOqDfLnJIxObRzPtgrvpCe4blUbxCAtp5QSS-0TpycSKK4bHwB72bQxI0KQ01H8Q76lWulWWzkf1uLOIaflLcQeU9fIn7HpEx9QQVRTW1vB8tqk81kuq_IuVyaQZdiDSRSP_Sj2rOc0fU/s320/DSCN0475.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Happy Meal!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZlSqrLJWW7cUgEW2BXQxj5eRCF-2pDNB6Hv-U5pT2Z2jKac5DrB6K7fGx5Htbm4kU2HyZBHr2bnBin8D0UHwdRmKuC5EcsssPgIrmiHkr6klZRbhHSllJzH07U7s5sovWoHzWTFuYGZY/s1600/DSCN0479.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZlSqrLJWW7cUgEW2BXQxj5eRCF-2pDNB6Hv-U5pT2Z2jKac5DrB6K7fGx5Htbm4kU2HyZBHr2bnBin8D0UHwdRmKuC5EcsssPgIrmiHkr6klZRbhHSllJzH07U7s5sovWoHzWTFuYGZY/s320/DSCN0479.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to take the Subway</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPDNvGaPLuZRWIrcOwKRn-UV9c7Gjmgazp_zodC7fnup-h-1HUpsZ5Q9vNtGKbraD0rC0xc3hpWPJ_xmZBPA9h5U_fwYy1TjAb90SSxN6mL8H_xwACixB9M8RfZ2ZY2KmTEOzSpCZmsLQ/s1600/DSCN0480.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPDNvGaPLuZRWIrcOwKRn-UV9c7Gjmgazp_zodC7fnup-h-1HUpsZ5Q9vNtGKbraD0rC0xc3hpWPJ_xmZBPA9h5U_fwYy1TjAb90SSxN6mL8H_xwACixB9M8RfZ2ZY2KmTEOzSpCZmsLQ/s320/DSCN0480.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing seats! Thanks!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-iaIgX1u2CZqKKwqbAdpBW4hMKKkxAXY5WoIC_RjpDzY3IiGzWWIDhLy7nN4N97SyYGAaPEmz0dAFJUmkVJdN_LrtLhR1M-cxZtMQO27-2uKQTJs2ytDxQujtA_-VC9hcePi3dDJycU/s1600/DSCN0482.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8-iaIgX1u2CZqKKwqbAdpBW4hMKKkxAXY5WoIC_RjpDzY3IiGzWWIDhLy7nN4N97SyYGAaPEmz0dAFJUmkVJdN_LrtLhR1M-cxZtMQO27-2uKQTJs2ytDxQujtA_-VC9hcePi3dDJycU/s320/DSCN0482.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our little family ready to watch the game!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXI1YMyzD8EpEGmDjzPedBO139WAgZE1uW-RETy44wgVkBmF3OlTYQHzRUSCUv_Br29AHHhqP6SYjzkBldM51EJGzHlWS_-8OW2kw3bUb7vowK5uOe-wFA5N4c8YOstZrM6TYo9AyCEs/s1600/DSCN0487.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXI1YMyzD8EpEGmDjzPedBO139WAgZE1uW-RETy44wgVkBmF3OlTYQHzRUSCUv_Br29AHHhqP6SYjzkBldM51EJGzHlWS_-8OW2kw3bUb7vowK5uOe-wFA5N4c8YOstZrM6TYo9AyCEs/s320/DSCN0487.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exhausted!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-17308330378911344652011-05-18T16:37:00.000-06:002011-05-18T16:37:26.377-06:00Hungry, Hungry, Goober<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaymy5Sd5H2DscEXN9OsKQSkfmu4bXDlByml0_7PlqebE5s4N3afY1GqKA_T8bGSp0NCIERFwMQgEoDFG1zQQUKMV5e5i_32gJqPx4j6AJiIcfcL88kJ4tJuzKJP5WES4lGAFjyxu-cLc/s1600/IMG_8134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaymy5Sd5H2DscEXN9OsKQSkfmu4bXDlByml0_7PlqebE5s4N3afY1GqKA_T8bGSp0NCIERFwMQgEoDFG1zQQUKMV5e5i_32gJqPx4j6AJiIcfcL88kJ4tJuzKJP5WES4lGAFjyxu-cLc/s320/IMG_8134.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lovin' dinner time!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Our little Goober loves to eat. I've known that about her since she was just two days old, which for me, a new to nursing mommy, meant a really long night of soreness and pinching pain. But we figured that whole thing out and she became a nursing champion. For her first six months of life she only had breast milk and would eat every two hours during the day. She gained weight super well and would get lots of compliments on her "comfy" physique.<br />
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Once we added solids, I worried because she just wasn't interested. Rice cereal -- yuck! Pureed peas -- blech. But, we eventually got her eating sweet potatoes, green beans, and yummy pureed fruits to great success. Now, as a nine, almost ten month old, she won't touch the pre-mashed baby food, preferring to eat "big-girl foods". This is just fine with me -- she has eight teeth and can handle a little chew/mash action, and saves us money not having to buy all those jars! Some of her favorite foods are:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNReeL4qFjTJIh8AvEoqPYME46cSk9EXXdgU76gGy7g6buuckxWjb7_JKeZJAVWmh5ZZpN4pJASZWkDl5PTjWFtnHYemxd-NvrPFljie_MFJ5AbmDnKBR6rTjljtCclhnxZ6XtPFM448/s1600/IMG_8112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNReeL4qFjTJIh8AvEoqPYME46cSk9EXXdgU76gGy7g6buuckxWjb7_JKeZJAVWmh5ZZpN4pJASZWkDl5PTjWFtnHYemxd-NvrPFljie_MFJ5AbmDnKBR6rTjljtCclhnxZ6XtPFM448/s320/IMG_8112.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oh, and did I mention she loves mashed potatoes?</td></tr>
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-- frozen peas<br />
-- cooked carrots<br />
-- cottage cheese<br />
-- yogurt<br />
-- turkey<br />
-- oatmeal with cinnamon-sugar<br />
-- bananas<br />
-- popsicles<br />
-- animal crackers<br />
-- and of course: cheerios<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZdCk_NBd6QJ1ygCAJQXrIPhcCZMsBkHw9XbUt8jQf9yux8WJXVb-aNMdB-hK2jzWzfGISvBDZ-K-zYLX5dg4kSrkmS7FspJf_jGBWNR_IvM8Y964-o28B9Yz-c0TxFF4OJ8u08PJcsMU/s1600/IMG_8121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZdCk_NBd6QJ1ygCAJQXrIPhcCZMsBkHw9XbUt8jQf9yux8WJXVb-aNMdB-hK2jzWzfGISvBDZ-K-zYLX5dg4kSrkmS7FspJf_jGBWNR_IvM8Y964-o28B9Yz-c0TxFF4OJ8u08PJcsMU/s320/IMG_8121.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finger lickin' good!</td></tr>
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Today was a particularly adventurous food day. I made a blackberry and blueberry smoothie for a mid-morning snack and thought I'd give her a taste. I used my straw to ladle some of it into her mouth, but she just latched right on to it and sucked it all out. At that point Goobie and I just took turns sipping our yummy smoothie from the straw (so cute). Then for lunch, Grandma spoiled us with a trip to Panera Bread. I figured I'd just get her some bread or give her pieces of the meat from my sandwich, but we decided to be brave and order her some mac n' cheese. She LOVED it.<br />
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I love that my little Goob loves to eat, but it's hard to tell when she's full. She swallows her food then opens up her little mouth like a baby bird ready for the next bite. Today, I knew that she shouldn't be eating the whole bowl of macaroni since it's portioned for a 3-4 year old, but she just kept asking for more! Her eyes are definitely bigger than her stomach.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Mom! Do you like see food?"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-52283583582701782092011-05-11T13:24:00.000-06:002011-05-13T14:30:02.362-06:00Wordless Wednesday -- First day of Summer weather<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0YSr81gU4idVUtqmV_wHrRTgmIBkAqXiupPJpFRtOsttlwk6KuEeZO_qytsQDg04hHLm8FMtZg83um2HPzP3uXUvxEniaXy5pjxO9ON_NlbVpE6YxrJSzmmJNgj4uQ12Nvdlurn8OTWA/s1600/IMG_8071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0YSr81gU4idVUtqmV_wHrRTgmIBkAqXiupPJpFRtOsttlwk6KuEeZO_qytsQDg04hHLm8FMtZg83um2HPzP3uXUvxEniaXy5pjxO9ON_NlbVpE6YxrJSzmmJNgj4uQ12Nvdlurn8OTWA/s320/IMG_8071.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHHUYxZep62OYOAmr_EUUWYS0CmQ2XnBjZPt_Ehq0B9OQLIYLUAnk4L44CE6gvbOGwlQzGI17gerhDavcPgBokodxdNwe6mZ9_RgHgFdBl4d3LnRsUSZSyAvJneNCSi9ENw3sipyVRg5o/s1600/IMG_8080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHHUYxZep62OYOAmr_EUUWYS0CmQ2XnBjZPt_Ehq0B9OQLIYLUAnk4L44CE6gvbOGwlQzGI17gerhDavcPgBokodxdNwe6mZ9_RgHgFdBl4d3LnRsUSZSyAvJneNCSi9ENw3sipyVRg5o/s320/IMG_8080.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4pnen2UCAIJ_t22y4y42UOlOg0TzNO6c5JlfsWG9EgtQFyIklfmyqhy4vYCqh53y8G_Yr9EfeiTPKHU3lO_UGwF1UIjaYJ26wptlVuXTbcd_fKLiCyoRBSKAC5V_ag-deBwrRZl0fqU/s1600/IMG_8082.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4pnen2UCAIJ_t22y4y42UOlOg0TzNO6c5JlfsWG9EgtQFyIklfmyqhy4vYCqh53y8G_Yr9EfeiTPKHU3lO_UGwF1UIjaYJ26wptlVuXTbcd_fKLiCyoRBSKAC5V_ag-deBwrRZl0fqU/s320/IMG_8082.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRt02leOB7nrYOPKUUUPuJSZXNEM82k9EsHwul47XO7WycFJIdJgrcXa4Qs88JLfg4M1CUUoZBdI9lMczD169bJx0SbTjXIBGyv3UsNjh7hNQ0AZCTie710pUwXVSxEwXDz6nsC5mwnU/s1600/IMG_8086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRt02leOB7nrYOPKUUUPuJSZXNEM82k9EsHwul47XO7WycFJIdJgrcXa4Qs88JLfg4M1CUUoZBdI9lMczD169bJx0SbTjXIBGyv3UsNjh7hNQ0AZCTie710pUwXVSxEwXDz6nsC5mwnU/s320/IMG_8086.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgErt6FDvrfBA9bmDS2HaPKPjB_Of_lUHgfvkbVvOpw5sBxlQUrn6HTfJX2kNduUIckK0WmiEHj2dJfBIPQlJMGEm2zsx04ZWy49v1_3eooTpCG7KtbrPaVJcRT2UKF2cVE36qX7n-JgMc/s1600/IMG_8089.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgErt6FDvrfBA9bmDS2HaPKPjB_Of_lUHgfvkbVvOpw5sBxlQUrn6HTfJX2kNduUIckK0WmiEHj2dJfBIPQlJMGEm2zsx04ZWy49v1_3eooTpCG7KtbrPaVJcRT2UKF2cVE36qX7n-JgMc/s320/IMG_8089.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqSnKhOwbBoLE80f5EF7nmiiEfy2LQhU9NGu6GZsrbLz67rorPeSd-X1d0rcNKU65fFKWXoeEpIEaQlA-lHQqdiMdrVB2nI-YccgFX66uDWdY416gH5C6F9IesisMQjkcfSJJ14K3e9jU/s1600/IMG_8101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqSnKhOwbBoLE80f5EF7nmiiEfy2LQhU9NGu6GZsrbLz67rorPeSd-X1d0rcNKU65fFKWXoeEpIEaQlA-lHQqdiMdrVB2nI-YccgFX66uDWdY416gH5C6F9IesisMQjkcfSJJ14K3e9jU/s320/IMG_8101.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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</a></div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-45296531703270599442011-05-05T11:54:00.000-06:002011-05-05T11:54:29.371-06:00Hello there!<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">When we started this blog, I vowed I would never let it go stagnant. But, life happens, and our lives have been very busy! Ready for an update?</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">- Our Goober is mobile! She crawls all over the place at lightening speeds and loves walking around when holding onto hands. She has taken some steps but nothing too major (whew, I'm not ready for a walker yet!). She seems much happier now that she can get around, though it's made me realize just how non-baby-proof the world is.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHRg68F9xvb6vWDzPOBDwxf2Z3VJMj73kpw0UiQ0fmWXemCPuqgCfZD46OGCdt1O6krklN3C1KjiKRqs9b1t5c5mLi4ZbYUJi3jqjIxUJCuu-RwQe5F4b_41psVktYi3_S87AW_YU_BCk/s1600/IMG_7630.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHRg68F9xvb6vWDzPOBDwxf2Z3VJMj73kpw0UiQ0fmWXemCPuqgCfZD46OGCdt1O6krklN3C1KjiKRqs9b1t5c5mLi4ZbYUJi3jqjIxUJCuu-RwQe5F4b_41psVktYi3_S87AW_YU_BCk/s200/IMG_7630.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With my AMAZING teacher</td></tr>
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- I had my senior recital. A lot of hard work, long hours, and tears went into its preparation, and I was thrilled with the results. I loved being on that stage in front of my friends, family, and teachers, singing some of the most beautiful music in the world. I also was grateful to sing two duets with my handsome hubby (he's such a rock star!). <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTrAVf95gafhJ78pcqIid7b1CGmtMhBs4tOChF_X4OQLl5tbvZvqCsDeCK0S2222GJEI6b2cnVXyYQV-m7tn4VREmc8hr2A3pny56_LWIqRW20XskoiZsI4GW0TFy3dePyoq0rQwbEbDo/s1600/IMG_7819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZuJOoFiAVu1HB2dTr8Hp2CsDA1HnuFxeiy5snOm9RM6zKLtkUo7b0FmkP8eESj0v8sBtj9vOvkvcljOXr6Ef44l1Jo0eRt1CqH1m_IyD1onPJZMkg88afywDW0BtcOxkRksNwhdYp7Ic/s1600/IMG_7826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" j8="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZuJOoFiAVu1HB2dTr8Hp2CsDA1HnuFxeiy5snOm9RM6zKLtkUo7b0FmkP8eESj0v8sBtj9vOvkvcljOXr6Ef44l1Jo0eRt1CqH1m_IyD1onPJZMkg88afywDW0BtcOxkRksNwhdYp7Ic/s320/IMG_7826.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Cheesecake Mama's parents</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">- Big Papa and I have graduated! After five years of hours and hours of practicing, studying, and stressing out, we both received our BM's in Vocal Performance (isn't it funny how our lives seem to center around poop jokes, even when our baby isn't involved?). </div> <div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Sorry, I had to do a BM joke. When Big Papa was filling out all of his applications for law school, he could never remember what degree he was getting. I think that most of his applications say that he was getting a BFA (bachelors of fine arts). But I always reminded him about our poop degree!!!</div><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Big Papa's family</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Anyway, graduation was wonderful. Big Papa and I both got a bit emotional during convocation when we sang "Because I Have Been Given Much." We truly have been blessed and given so much during our time at Brigham Young University. We've had incredible teachers who've cared deeply about our progress and personal lives. We've had classes that have inspired us to be forever learning. And having had all of these things, we're excited to share what we've learned and what we've become with those around us wherever we go.<br />
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- We moved! An hour after graduation, we were feverishly packing and cleaning up our old apartment with a tight deadline hanging over our heads. With a lot of help and sweat from both our families, we were able to pass our check out appointment with flying colors -- she said ours was the best one all day. <br />
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We spent that next weekend at Big Papa's parent's house and had a nice time celebrating Easter and getting a few last minute things done. We didn't realize how many loose ends needed to be tied up before we could leave the state. Monday morning was spent running errands all over town. As soon as we finished, we said a teary goodbye to Big Papa's family.<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Then, we left.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">It was surreal seeing the mountains disappear, knowing that we wouldn't be back for a good long while. But there wasn't a lot of time to ponder with an almost 9 month old in the back seat, obviously equally traumatized at leaving her mountain home. She had one good day of travel, when she slept all day, but whenever she was awake she would howl. We're grateful the trip is over and we don't have to do that again (at least not for a while). </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">- Now we're all settled into our summer home, living with my parents in the Midwest. Goober has loved exploring the new house (much bigger than the old apartment) though we have to watch her closely as she's discovered both stairs and the pebbles in the fireplace (yum!). Big Papa and I have enjoyed jogging together every morning around a lake. I had to jog around that lake during high school, but it's a lot more fun doing it now with my husband.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">That's all for now! </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-52321998279316276862011-03-04T14:18:00.002-07:002011-03-04T14:21:25.724-07:00It's High Chair TimeWe started Goobie on solid foods one month ago, but didn't have a high chair. We tried feeding her on laps, on paper towel covered carpet, on the linoleum in the kitchen, and even on the kitchen table. She sits up really well, but her curiosity about everything around her makes it difficult to keep her focused. Usually she finds a way to get back onto her tummy, getting sweet potatoes everywhere. We decided it was time to buy a high chair.<br />
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So today, I loaded up the Goober into the car and ventured to one of my favorite stores, IKEA. They have a high chair that's very affordable and compact -- perfect for our little apartment. But to get to the high chairs we had to walk through the whole store. Pretty soon I had decorated our entire apartment a la IKEA. It took all I could to not sort through the window treatments to find the perfect fit for our new place. But, I walked away and only left with the high chair and some plastic bowls and plates for Goobie. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lookin' good!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I've got my own chair, Mommy!</td></tr>
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In other news, it's T-minus 7 weeks until graduation. I can't believe it's finally here! It's weird to think we'll be leaving this place that has been our first home as a little family. But, we're excited and ready to take that first step in our next adventure!Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2818343937369963209.post-83907103617936486062011-02-23T09:36:00.001-07:002011-02-23T14:34:34.691-07:00My baby likes to burrowOur little Goobie is figuring out how to move. She can turn herself around in circles and roll really well, but when she tries to move forward, she just scoots herself backwards.<br />
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Well, yesterday morning Big Papa went in to go check on her in her crib and almost had a heart attack -- where was Goobie? All he could see were blankets! He quickly lifted them up to find that she had scooted herself all the way under her covers. She was totally happy, comfy, and warm in her blanket burrow. I couldn't get a picture of her all the way in it without waking her up, but I did get this one. I'd say it's still pretty cute.<br />
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</tbody></table>Cheesecake Mommahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07174586976646463902noreply@blogger.com4