Mia is in this in-between stage with her bathtub and seat right now. She is too long for the Safety First Tub and too skinny for the Safety First Seat. I got to thinking about it and realized I had a bath pillow that I don’t use anymore and that it was small enough to fit behind her when she is in the seat. We tried it out and she had a great time in the tub and didn’t fall over. Success!
After it was dry I took it out of the cover and took a towel of hers and began trying to figure out how to design a supportive pillow that could be removed, but at the same time, stay put. Well here it is! It is perfect. I am sure by using it I am voiding all kinds of warranties, but hopefully she won’t need it that long. I attached elastic bands and velcro to allow for taking it off and putting it on again.
Nichole’s cousin Whitney was married over the weekend. We sat near the back of the church in case Mia had a fit or something. She was great though. Congrats to Whitney and Eric! The reception at the Foundry in St. Charles was great as well!
Mia has now discovered Oatmeal. It is the newest grain on the road to solid foods. It is an understatement when I say she loves it… because SHE LOVES IT !!!! When I have some on the spoon for her she leans as far forward as she can with her mouth open wide. Sometimes I haven’t even been able to refill the spoon and she is still sitting there with her mouth open looking for her next scoop full. I hope she is this eager with all of the healthy foods she will be trying over the years to come and have a firm distaste for the unhealthy. That way this love of eating won’t cause her have high cholesterol at the young age of 7.
It may be after Christmas as I write this, but I’m still feeling the Christmas spirit. Or perhaps just the spirits. Regardless, here is a video of our Christmas this year with the Oldani’s/Lohmann’s. Now I must rest for New Years. And to all a good night.
Mia has learned a new trick. She has become much more vocal over the last week. The random blip and bleep has turned in to, what sound like, full on conversations with her toys. Below are a few clips from her first performance last night.
These are the pictures of my (Nichole) Dad’s accident after he rolled his truck 4 times. He hit some black ice December 6th, 2009 and rolled across all lanes of traffic. We are all so thankful that he not only survived, but that his injuries were few. The most important thing to take away from this is to always wear your seatbelt. My dad didn’t always do that, but this day he did. The emergency personnel all assured him that he would not have survived this accident without it. Needless to say, my dad now knows that seatbelts save lives. One saved his. I hope that you and yours are never faced with an accident like this, but if they are, I hope a seatbelt saves them too.
So my first week as a Domestic Engineer 1 (Stay at Home Mom, Homemaker, Housewife, etc.) has gone pretty well. As I told my father, I will be promoting myself a level each year. By time I return to the paid workforce, I should be a Domestic Engineer 5.
I am still adjusting to home life. I think things will be a lot easier once the holidays are over. Right now any schedule I attempt is immediately sabotaged by Christmas shopping, out of town visitors, Christmas Cards, and so on. Mia and I have decided to just enjoy each other’s company until it is all over and then we will settle into a true routine.
It has been a relief to have the dishwasher unloaded BEFORE I start dinner, and to have laundry done before we need it (though just barely). I am sure there will be plenty of days that get away from me but I know it will still be worth it in the long run. The decision we have made for our daughter and our marriage feels right and warms my heart.
My career has only been paused and I am confident I will still have a future once I return to it. Until then I have to focus on keeping my skills honed while I am home. It is much easier to ride a bike if it hasn’t been that long since you peddled last. That being said, I have an infatuation with data and love to slice and dice it. What better use of my skills than to dissect Mia’s life. Poor child doesn’t even know what she has coming! Now don’t worry, I am not going to use this for harm or to fuel paranoia. I just enjoy “seeing” if there are any patterns out there that might not be immediately evident. My first attempt is her food. I have set up a number of charts and graphs to help me track what she is eating and when. My favorite “slice” is the percentage of ounces consumed during a particular feeding. Who knows, maybe she eats less at 10a more times than not. Anyways, my obsession is yours if you want it. Just contact me and I will share my template. I am currently doing this project in Numbers ‘09 which is a part of the iWork suite for OSX. It will work in Excel as well. I know it will be the first of many.
This is a site that dabbles in doing good and fun. It is an interesting concept: get people to be socially responsible and active by making it fun. I have to admit, I would participate if these types of things were in Saint Louis.
