All Encompassing...

We spent a loooooong (yet fun) day in Philadelphia, walking quite a distance in the warm (I think of it as hot!) weather, and then driving around a bit before heading home. (More about the weekend as a whole later.)

On our way back, Casey finally woke up and decided that she was hungry. I was in the back seat next to her (Tee's sister was up front - wow, this post has a lot of side notes, eh?), and so I did my best to soothe. She wasn't really pleased with my efforts, wanting the real stuff!, and therefore cried for a good 20 minutes. By the end of the ride, I was nearly as much of a mess as she, getting emotional and worrying that I was going to lose my 3-month-old's trust (read Dr. Sears, y'all). I had a headache, felt sick to my stomach, and was plaintively calling from the back, "I'm getting sick!"

We pulled into the driveway and instead of taking Casey's car seat into the house, I just unstrapped her, grabbed her from the car, and literally ran inside so that she could nurse.

As she was eating, my tension and "illnesses" gradually subsided. When she looked up at me after a few moments, caught my eye, and broke out into a huge smile (forgetting the she was nursing - which, let me tell you, can make for a mess!), I felt such an amazing delight and laughed back at Casey, realizing that being a Mommy is truly all-encompassing.

Yes, our schedules and our wallets (and sometimes our patience!) are all stretched a little thinner. Our emotions are heightened. And today, it was clear that we are even affected physically by having this little bundle of joy in our lives.

It's pretty cool to know that our hearts aren't the only things in this.

A Real Beauty...

Special photos for her 3-Month "Birthday"...

And What a Three Months It's Been...

I just went back through PhillyBou to check out Casey's 1- and 2-month photos to ensure that I was posting a 3-month one that was similar enough.

What I noticed was that I used to write GOBS of stuff on here. I know that some of you loved reading my endless paragraphs - and for those of you who didn't, skip ahead to see the 3-month picture, because... I've got a keyboard tonight and I'm not afraid to use it!!

I chalk up the lack of recent long posts to these three things:

1) Casey's growth! As she gets older, this little "cherub" (people actually laugh that I call her that!) also gets more active. And as I've healed from surgery and settled into my Mommy role, I too have gotten busy!

Basically, we're into a pretty steady routine now (with just a few days where we're "off" a bit). Casey wakes up somewhere around 8:30AM, and after I feed her, she plays for nearly an hour by kicking her legs, flailing her arms, talking to me, and cooing at either our ceiling fan or the little animals hanging on her activity gym. When the hour nears an end, she starts some quiet whimpering, so I take my cue and get her in a fresh diaper and a new outfit for the day. I feed her again and then she takes a nap in her swing.

Casey's morning nap usually lasts about three hours (WOW!), and like I said, I've gotten more active, too! So, the second she's in that swing, I go racing through the house to shower, do laundry, prepare meals, pay bills, you name it. The time usually flies on by, and then Casey's awake and ready to eat again. During the rest of the afternoon, she may take a quick 30-minute nap or so, but I don't have much time where she's not happiest in my arms.

Tee Jay arrives home around 4:30PM, and he usually gets Casey in his own arms right away. (If he needs to run upstairs for a bathroom break or change of clothes first, she watches him go and waits for his return - it's the cutest thing.) I start dinner, and our evening has begun. This time usually consists of several more-clustered feedings, lots of spit up, and our new routine of getting Case in her PJs, Teej reading her a story, our saying prayers together, and then laying her down in the co-sleeper to learn how to fall asleep on her own (instead of in our arms).

So, as she gets older, I find I have less time to write.


2) TV! Yes, I'm going to blame our 'little' addiction on not posting as much. When we're juggling dinner, nursing, and a fussy spit-monster during the early-evening, Tee Jay and I sometimes manage to catch Jeopardy but not much else. So around 9:00PM when we really settle in on the couch, we've got to watch Medium, American Idol, House, Survivor, Brothers & Sisters, Amazing Race, Hell's Kitchen, and goodness knows what else. It's soooooo terrible, but yes, we're TV nuts.


3) Lastly, (and this is as bad as #2), Facebook! I used to be on Myspace, and people kept telling me that I needed to check out Facebook... and that maybe my maternity leave would be a good time to do it. I was a naysayer, but then when my sister Tree came to help out a week after Casey was born, I learned that even she and my brother-in-law were on Facebook. And that they were 'friends' with my Mom on the site. And that Tee's Mom was on there. And his grandmother. And a million other people.

So, I tried it out. And now I am ashamed to say that when Tee Jay and I are taking care of the TV addiction, I've also got the laptop on (like right now, as we watch the American Idol finale and I type away).


Whew. Three reasons for my apparent "absence" from this blog - and only ONE of them is good!!

And, if you've lasted this long, thanks for reading...

Three Months Old...

The Mean Mommy...

When Casey was just over a week old, Tee Jay cut her fingernails for the first time. And the inevitable (and much feared for) happened - he accidentally nicked a little bit of her skin. Casey hadn't even noticed the injury, but I teased Tee and took photos of the "carnage" with his mom looking on and laughing.

We've never had a similar incident again... until tonight.

I was the culprit this time, and I didn't just "nick" Casey's fingertip. No, I really heard and felt the cut occur - I cringed instantly, and it took her only a split second to realize the pain and burst out crying (the real kind with tears). I followed Casey's cue and began crying, too, but she thankfully has a level-headed Daddy who picked her up and soothed her.

We were able to get her down for bed pretty soon thereafter without a problem - but I still feel like the meanest Mommy there is. Ahhhhh...

Here are some happier moments:

(We got her wrist and foot rattles after she began flailing her legs and arms happily for about an hour every morning.)


(Happily displaying a picture her big cousin Jamie made and mailed to her.)


(A nekkid baby is something we don't get to see a lot and decided to photograph - and kiss!!)

In One Word: AWESOME...

We took Casey to Philly's North Bowl tonight with some of Tee Jay's work friends. (She wore her Mysterio t-shirt, of course.)

The place was lounge-y, hip, and lots of fun. Oh, and AWESOME. Did I mention that??

For instance, they don't have any French fries on their menu - just tater tots. (Hey, Napoleon, give me some of your tots...) And when I passed by the vending machine, I couldn't believe my eyes - can you believe yours? Yes, inside the machine were a comb-knife ('Delinquents with Combs') and a set of stick-on mustaches. Also up for sale were candy cigarettes, astronaut ice cream, corn dog air fresheners, gummy bacon, and more!

As you can see, I chose a book ('How to Make Love: Secrets of Wooing from the 1930s') and gummy t-bone steak from IGA. Best yet, two t-bone steaks dropped from the vending machine, so it was practically like a Buy One-Get One sale at the grocery store!!! (We already started eating a steak, of course.)

Tee Jay's coworkers were awesome and loved Casey. At one point, several were even dancing for her! I could comfortably nurse her at the lanes, we scored Memorial Day plans, and overall had a rockin' good time.

It was AWESOME.

Learning How To Speak...

This video may be a little dark, but we love "talking" to Casey and having her "talk" back.

A Special Thank You...

... to not only "Grandma" who is listed on Casey's shirt here...

but instead to all of the mothers in her life who support us, care for us, and deserve our love in return!

Happy Mother's Day to Casey's Grandmas, Grania, Great-Grandmas, Great-Granny, Nana, Aunties, Great-Aunts, and Godmother!

Ole!...

Happy Cinco de Mayo, Amigos!

We hope you enjoyed a Mexican fiesta like we did! (Or a simple meal of tacos and Goya soda, that is...)

What We Left Out...

I'm embarrassed to say that I've been slacking on the blog... photos, updates, and more!

See, in between Easter and Casey's Baptism, we had some other fun times that I should mention.

First of all, Casey's Great-Gogron and Great-Granny came to visit from West Virginia, which was super exciting. But, if I thought I was embarrassed before, just imagine how I feel with this being the only photo I grabbed of the three of them together!


The following weekend, Tee's mom and stepdad made another visit here, and we had our first post-baby date night! (We ventured out to the Verizon store, Walmart, and Outback Steakhouse - and yes, I handled it well... though I was jealous that I wasn't home for when her Grandma Sue and Papa Grant gave her a bath.) She was a smiley girl all weekend.


And then, during her Baptismal weekend, we had guests here from Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Missouri, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Baltimore! So, we were obviously busy with more than just Sunday's festivities. A big highlight was seeing Casey and Violet next to each other again. The last time we got pictures of the two side-by-side, Casey was just one week old (with Violet being five weeks old). They've both "grown up" so much already, and looking at them practically holding hands!

And Some Pics of the Little One...

Overheard In Our Home...

(referring to a contestant on reality TV's Survivor: Tocantins)

"Coach looks like my old dog Princess...

IDENTICAL!!

Or... maybe Ambrosia from The Labyrinth."