Happy Anniversary Guh & Guh Pierse

the girl loves her some elmo & some giggler monkey. i don't know why, but i find this adorable...sitting...touching her toes...

and in honor of your anniversary, lil luc learned a new trick! she's now climbing up & down and in & out of furniture all by herself. these attempts are among her first few...she's since perfected her method & is much more efficient. and safe (i think).

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thank you for listening

sweet lil mama feeding her baby...but always with the wrong end of the bottle!

sweet lil mama takin her baby for a stroll...
not so sweet lil mama flinging her stroller under the table...
not so sweet lil mama sittin on her baby!
and thinkin it is HILARIOUS!

-we were at the park last night when amanda pointed out that when luci listens or does something she knows she's supposed to do (like sit on her bottom) she claps for herself....regardless of whether or not i'm watching & respond with the usual, 'thank you for listening, luci.' or 'good listening, luci'. since amanda pointed that out i've noticed about 12 times in last 24 hours where luci claps for herself when she does something she knows she's supposed to do...regardless of my reaction. and when she does something she knows she's not supposed to do she usually shakes her head no while doing it (like pushing buttons on the TV)...regardless of my action (or lack thereof).
-she is really into touching both sides of her pack-n-play (arms stretched as far as they can go), and using both sides of a railing at the park
-she like to close doors. i'm sure the opening part will be happening as soon as she grows another inch.
-she likes to sit on things...it is a sign of affection, really, but it can be painful & silly! she plops right down & the scoots her little booty into us, the cats, or as of yesterday, her baby dolls!
-she somehow figured out what kleenex is for. i grabbed a tissue this morning and she started blowing out of her nose! i put it up to her little nose & she actually blew into the kleenex.
-when her snack or milk is gone she'll come at me wavin the cup in the air as if to say...hey ma...it is empty! i want more! if it is empty & she doesn't want more she just discards the cup at the precise location she was at when the snack/milk was finished.

where, oh where, should the pieeerses move, oh where, oh where should it be?

if you know us very well, you know we are always moving somewhere. sometimes we have 1 houston summer left in us, sometimes we have 3. but never more than 3.

the answer tonight is brunwick, oh. it was recently named #3 on the 2008 parents.com best places for families to live. there is a gymboree music & play 8 minutes away in medina (for Luci & me), and a national park 16 miles away to the west (for Clay). oh, and an airport 16 miles north that clay could be based out of with cal. no commuting. and it is affordable. now it isn't houston affordable...but, then again, it isn't houston*. and no, i'm not basing our future on gymboree music & play locations, but rather using that as a proxy for the number of tot/stay-at-home mom combos to be expected. and clay needs hills & trails to ride that bike of his.

some days we are moving back to chicagoland. in fact in 2 weeks we are headed up early to liz & craig's wedding to look at the 'burbs from crystal lake to channahon for a few days. some days we think we should move to rockford. we even threw out iowa city as a possibility (don't get too excited mom & dad...sadly, it just wouldn't work).

for 4 days 2 weeks ago it was denver, co. then it was albuquerque, nm. then maybe flagstaff, az. and then it was back to chicagoland.

but, for tonight, it is brunswick, oh that has us excited. no; it is not chicago. but i could still make the 5.5 hour drive when the flights don't work out. it is not in the middle of both sets of (grand)parents, but we could one leg fly to each. and we could drive to indy. and my dear husband wouldn't have to commute...and that is a BIG deal. might we have found a winner??!?!!!


*this is in no way a reflection of our overall opinion of the woodlands. if i could plop the woodlands & all of my amazing texan friends down in the north we'd be delighted to stay put forever. i just cannot do the mosquitoes, long summers and lack of snow forever. i need snow in my life. i need to be able to get the mail without wearing bug spray. i think we need to head north. or west. ugh...see...we just can't decide!

Welcome Asher Kishen Jani!!!

Lil Luci wants to say "WELCOME CUZ!" to Brooke & Sunidh's sweet new baby boy. Asher was born on Friday, 10/3, at 3:15p MST. He was 6lbs, 6oz, and a lanky 19 3/4 inches long...and he looks JUST LIKE HIS MAMA!

Asher

one chosen by God to have many abundances

Kishen

(pronounced kee-shun)

the God to whom people turn for abundances

Mama, Baby & Dad are resting at home...all happy & well.

Congratulations! We can't wait to meet you baby Asher!

PS.

poor, poor cubbies. maybe next year. but don't worry lil asher...aunt britt & uncle clay have already purchased 'my first cubs tee' for you...and i promise to pay your daddy back by dressing you in it at the first opportunity!

GO CUBS

Headed to the TV to watch the game...snack in hand, of course. Poor thing...I informed her that she would be in bed at 10:07p when the game starts...
She comes around though, and decides to show her support early by clapping & cheering.

skills

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temper? our child? never ;)

Not sure if you can see...she's starting to stand on her little chair...She listens to me when I say "Luci, please sit on your bottom"...
but she's not happy about it...
She puts this hat on by herself when she finds it within her reach...then walks around the house with it on.
i'll put up with a temper now & then for this sweet, sweet baby.

our sweet girl has...shall we say...a bit of a temper...here are a few standout examples (there are lots of typical remote control & cell phone fits)

-she was working REALLY hard to get her little farm animals with shape bases into their respective little slots...after about the 5th attempt at getting the little pig into the square (she really was trying so very hard) she got mad...and started flailing her arms & kicking her legs...sending the barn & its animals FLYING across the room...

-she's learned to climb in & out of her chicco stroller...at first she was really good about 'sitting on her bottom'...but after a few days the excitement wore off & she started standing & almost jumping on the stroller...so after she ignored my second request to 'sit on her bottom' the stroller went outside....and luci screamed for the next 30 minutes...and once she stopped screaming she walked right up to the tv & pushed the power button. and looked at me as if to say, "ha!" ugh. luckily her dad came in & saved the day by scooping her up & distracting her with something else

savin it all for Mom?

it is 7:53a on Saturday...luc has been up for about an hour. so far she's managed to climb ALL of the stairs & end up in the upstairs bathroom before i realized it, play in the downstairs toilet, and almost pulled my hot coffee down onto herself. am i out of practice after 3 days off or was dear daughter on her bestest behavior for her dad? savin up all the mischief for mom?

i was making coffee as i'm especially tired today for some reason & was sort of not with it yet...and all of the sudden i realize i don't hear the pea...i look over, and i swear, tallulah was looking toward the stairs VERY alarmed. i did a quick scan & realized Luci was no where to be seen. i also realized i did not shut the gate (well...our version of a gate...a very large piece of cardboard)...and tallulah was still looking up...very alarmed. so i quietly ran up the stairs, expecting to encounter her at the second mini flight...nope...then i heard the upstairs bathroom door shut. man oh man i'm a bad, but VERY lucky mama today in that nothing bad happened. thank heaven!

for photos today, see the results of our fancy schmancy photo shoot with the gifted photographer rebecca-linh rodgers. lil luc was having NONE of the photo shoot & although we were there for over an hour the photos you see were taken in during the first 15 minutes of the shoot. luckily rebecca is a seasoned mom herself & understands & works with the fact that 1 year olds are not the best subjects. it was 100 degrees & mosquitoes were everywhere...despite our planning the shoot for 8:30a in an attempt to avoid such complications. ugh. we are trying to work out another follow up shoot at our house where the pea might not be such a stinker. i was really upset after the session as i just felt like lil luc's spirit did not come out...but i think rebecca is talented enough that she did manage to capture the few times it did show through. hopefully we'll have more to come in a few weeks ;)

14 months

At 14 months, sitting still just isn't really an option. Unless she is just up from her nap...then maybe on Mom or Dad's lap, snack in hand, watching some Elmo. Other than that & you can forget about it. A few notes at 14 months...
-She drinks around 18oz whole milk/day from her sippy cup only.
-She just moved up to size 5 diapers
-Her size 5 shoes are rapidly becoming too small.
-Most of her clothing is 12-18mo or 18-24mo.
-Some days she needs 1 nap, some days 2. I thought today was going to be a 2 nap day, but she's been up there just hanging out for about an hour...so who knows. Often she goes down around 10a - 12p, and then sometimes around 3p or 4p. Usually she sleeps 3 hours on average during the day...today she's had only about 1.5 hours of sleep.
-She's trying MUCH harder to imitate sounds & words. Dad, Mom, Cuuu (cup), Caaaa (cat), Caaayyaa (Clara), fffff (frog), Baby (we aren't 100% sure she knows she's saying the word yet), Guuuhhh (Grandma or Grandpa), Oouuuuuwww (out), Shhhhhh (shoe), booo (dog...she's trying to make the dog noise I think...booouuuuf), mmmmm (can be hungry or yummy or what a cat says), ball (anything round), baaa (can be balloon or banana), and bewwweeee (berry).
-She doesn't sit in the stroller for more than about 20 minutes before becoming VERY unhappy.
-She loves to walk around the 'hood in her new car
-She's still really into moving things from one bucket to another...and then back again.
-She's eating pretty much anything & everything we eat...except spicy food & nuts & shellfish.
-I've been really lazy with letting her use a spoon, but I am going to start allowing her to do that next week...maybe ;)
-She can be quite snuggly buggly when she wants to be...and we love it.
-She can reach doorknobs now...and frequently does. Luckily she's not figured out how to open them.

Lulu & Dad made it through the week without me...and aside from a broken thing of Mom's here or there, everything made it through safe & sound & happy. I think lots of 'gonna getcha' was played with Dad...every time I sit on the floor to engage her she takes off running & giggling...turning back every so often just to see how close I am. She usually looks disappointed to see me still sitting, waiting for her to return to the puzzle or book I'm trying to interest her in. She's also traded out the pretend snapping while dancing to pretend piano playing...classical music was Dad's choice & apparently he plays a mean air piano worthy of imitation.

Meanwhile up in Chicago I had a FABULOUS few days with my girls. Lots of livin the old lifestyle while visiting Jen & Liz on Monday & Tuesday...and oh how I miss it. Downtown Chicago will forever have my heart...no matter how impractical for us as a family these days. On Wednesday I headed out to the 'burbs to see my friend Holly...livin the new lifestyle of suburban mom. Unfortunately the Determan family suffered a loss this week & our day was filled of catching up, grieving, and looking forward. My thoughts & prayers are still with them as they recover as a family over the coming days & months.

lucky ducks

luci got another 'new to her' toy last week...the sit & spin zebra i've been coveting on her behalf for a few months now. of course the thing doesn't rock like i thought it did & she's already over it...good thing i bought it used. the kid needed (and still needs cuz i didn't realize mr. zebra doesn't rock) a rocking horse...here i come woodlandsonline.com...maybe i'll find one by Christmas!

checkin out mr. zebra...

we are very blessed to have things quickly returning to normal...heat, mosquitoes & all. we had gorgeous weather sunday - thursday...highs in the 70's and lows in the low 60's with low humidity and, of course, we were only here for a few days of it. today was back to the heat with highs in the 90's & ridiculous humidity, and i just got bit by a mosquito in my house while wearing bug spray, so life in the south is up to its usual tricks. fall here is the WORST because it doesn't exist. have i mentioned we aren't from here?

i sound ungrateful, don't i. we are very lucky ducks in that we have power, the grocery stores are slowly being re-stocked and the trees & debris are being cleaned up. i've got milk, chicken, ice-cream & wine...really, what more could a girl ask for?

well, her husband, for one. i'm missin him...we haven't seen much of each other with the navy taking him away during gustav, us leaving town for ike, and now my trip to chicago next week...all on top of his regular away schedule. i'm going ALL BY MYSELF to hang with my girlfriends for a few days! clay gets home late tomorrow night & i'm leaving early on monday. then i'll be back thursday and he leaves on friday. i'm excited for the trip, but i do wish it didn't mean like 3 weeks without real time with him. such is our life, i guess. the upside is that his october schedule came out today & hopefully it will be a great month for family time.

speaking of the fam, lil luc seems to have come down with the stomach bug that was ailing me last week. she's had some seriously nasty diapers today combined with a slight fever (100.5ish) prompting a call to aunt dr. brooke. dr. brooke wasn't too worried...which is just what i wanted to hear. luc was content to drink her pedialtye and eat mini waffles with a banana & applesauce for dinner so that worked well. she's getting some seriously painful looking diaper rash so hopefully she's feeling better soon & the night brings us both good sleep...or not...there she is now...

far from normal

luci got a 'new to her' car last week...she loves to 'drive' around the neighborhood & wave to everyone & everything... luci is a big fan of cousin mug's new fabric...i'm attempting to make some handcrafted blankets & diapers for brooke & sunidh's little one...
luci has been hanging in her chair much of today....i think she's happy to be home
just sittin.

well we are thrilled to be home (to a home with power), but things are far from normal. the local tv channels are still 24/7 coverage...only now instead of 'surviving ike' the new tag line is 'overcoming ike'. trees are down everywhere, but roads are for the most part clear. seeing it 5 days after the fact in this shape really makes me wonder what it must have looked like the morning after. some trees broke in half up at the top of the tree, some trees broke in half down low by the ground, some were blown completely out of the ground, root structure & all. some were tall, some short, some wide, some skinny. no obvious rhyme or reason to any of it. and what really blows my mind is that most trees managed to hold onto thier leaves, and some even have flowers still! how is that that two trees right next to each other can have such different outcomes with the same wind? and why aren't all of the leaves blown off everywhere? i'm guessing that if my handsome husband was here to ask he'd have an answer, but he's off with the navy again for a few days.

we are really, really lucky that we have power...most homes are still without...I think we were among the first to get it back up. cell phones only work sometimes. our fridge/freezer has only been this clean & empty once...when we bought it. grocery stores have only non-perishable items...no meat, cheese, milk, eggs, butter, etc. made me realize how lucky we are to just be able to go the store whenever we want & buy whatever we want. i went to walmart today and did find milk, but no trash bags. funny enough there are odor removing products displayed everywhere! ha! good to know my house wasn't the only stinky one!

luci & i have been chillin most of the day. we attempted to do brunch at IHOP with the lawrence family, but luci wanted to nap. i also was hoping to make it out to dinner at 5p with the lawrence & oswick families, but again luci thought it best to nap. so instead, i sit here blogging. guess i'll catch up with everybody tomorrow when luci is more rested.

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Hot Dog!

Luci & her "Guuh" Luci & her other "Guhh"
stopping to smell the flowers
likin those flowers
sittin with Dad

Hot dog...we have power! Got a text from our friend last night at 11p EST. All three of us are headed back this afternoon...I can't wait to get home & see the kitkats! Clay joined us yesterday here in Indy after 48 hours in San Fran over the weekend and it has been lovely to be together as a family again. All said & done 4 days without power is not a big deal, but somehow it seemed much longer. We left Friday AM and will be getting back Wednesday PM...I can't really complain. We are very lucky!

Yesterday after we picked up Clay we all went to the Indianapolis Zoo. It was Luci's first trip to the zoo and I think she enjoyed it....all except for the smell at the pony area...she wrinkled her little nose & kept almost trying to blow it, like there was something stinky stuck in her nose and she wanted it out! It was hilarious!

And finally, we want to send out a monster THANK YOU to Grandma & Grandpa Pierse. They were (and are always) lovely to stay & spend time with. Thanks again!

Happy Anniversary

to Luci's Grammy & Grandpa Rosonke. 33 years...holy moly that is a long time to be married to either one of you...how do you do it?!?!? ;) just kiddin...love you both lots & lots!! Luci says congratulations!!

Our home & feline friends weathered the storm just fine. A few neighbors had minimal damage but everyone is safe. Power went off for all homes in our area about 6:30a - there are some trees down & water was getting a bit close to one street of homes, but that for the most part we came out okay. The power company seems to still be in its 'damage assessment' stage because no restoration information has been added at all today to its website. Power lines in the residential areas of our town are buried, so I'm hoping that once they get the big dogs up & running we'll be good to go. Until then we'll be hanging in the 'burgh. Edinburgh, Indiana, that is.

I leave you now with a photo I found on Don's computer that he took during their visit just a week ago! Luci LOVES that cat!

safe in indiana

lil luska (clara's latest name for luci...and i think it is rather catchy) and i are safe & sound in indiana with the in-laws. we caught what was one of the last few airplanes to leave houston. clay is also safe in newark for the night, and is headed to san fran tomorrow morning. he is scheduled to head home on sunday so we'll see if that happens. our feline friends are home alone, but have plenty of water & food and we have friends checking in on them, so hopefully they'll be fine. scared, i'm sure, but fine.

THANK YOU to all of my favorite texans who helped me decide whether or not to leave, and for all of the invitations to slumber party. i feel so blessed to have made such great friends in the short 2.5 years we've lived there. my thoughts and prayers are with you all, as well as everyone in the path of ike.

we hope to be home soon!

heading out now!?! maybe?

okay...it looks like with all of the flight shuffling we just might make it to indy now on a 12:45p flight today...so i think luci & i are going to try for it. as of now anyway.

i'm pretty sure i have the stomach flu...achy, fever, chills...ugh. no fun to travel alone with a child or stay home alone in the heat (assuming the power goes out). but at least when i get up there luci will be very entertained by gguhhh (as she calls her grandparents ;)

ugh...

hunkered down

so the northerners are staying. at least luci & i are staying. clay flies out to start a trip tomorrow...flight leaving at 8:57a. he's headed to phoenix & then newark so he'll be fine. all of our friends/neighbors are staying so i'm not too worried. we might slumber party somewhere because it looks like the storm will be at its worst in the middle of the night on friday...we've had lots of generous offers (as clara would say, love 'ya'llguys') and may be taking up one lucky family on their offer.

clay has moved all of our 'projectiles' into the garage, and we've got enough canned peas, canned corn, granola bars, canned tuna, canned salmon, water & chef boyardee to last for days. we even have enough to share ;)

the worst news for today is that i have ridiculously painful stomach ache...so birthday dinner take 2 had to be postponed. boo.

i leave you with a shot of luci that uncle sunidh took with his fancy schmancy camera...he titled it 'lucirunway'.


and i'll keep you posted until my internet inevitably goes down!

ugh...

i was gonna go...then i was gonna stay....then i was gonna go...and now it might be too late. everyone in the greater houston area who has flight privileges has already decided to get the heck out of town...today...not lookin so good to get to anywhere that i know anyone either tonight or tomorrow morning...

should i stay or should i go now?

hurricane ike is coming...should i hunker down or use my flight privileges to get the heck out of town?

thirty one years

Luci has so many teeth coming in at once that she's always sticking that hand in her mouth & down her throat to the point that she starts gagging! Brave Grandma Pierse discovered molars coming in on both sides, on the top & on the bottom (Luci bites HARD). And she's also getting an incisor or canine tooth in on the bottom (can't remember which one).
The best toys are often not really toys at all....




Not Luci this time...but me! I turned 31 yesterday & it was a GREAT day. My sweet husband and his parents pampered me & catered to me ALL day. I did not touch ONE dirty dish! Maybe not even a clean dish! It's likely that not all of you can appreciate the significance of this...but for me it was a BIG BIG deal!

Grandma & Grandpa Pierse stayed with Luci while Clay & I went out for breakfast complete with a latte! After a fun playgroup Clay made lunch, and then his parents made the most delicious standing rib roast with twice baked potatoes, baby peas, sweet apples & home-made dinner rolls & bread for my birthday dinner. And then we had ice cream cake! And then they did ALL of the dishes!! It doesn't get any better than that!

My handsome husband bought me an attractive monogrammed tote bag (designed by me ;) so that I can keep the beach bag for the beach instead of dragging it along everywhere Luci goes, and then surprised me by dressing up our front porch with 3 gorgeous ferns. I've been pining for ferns to put on our front porch for about a year now, so it was a perfect gift. I'll be getting a pedicure here soon thanks to my fabulous in-laws, and my mom & dad got me a great piece of canvas art. And to make sure I had something to unwrap at dinner, my in-laws got me a few more 'bread & butter' items as they call them...a tea ball & a baster!


Birthday fun will continue on Thursday as my girlfriends & I take 2 on the birthday dinner. Our first try was interrupted by sweet baby Wally deciding he was ready to come out & play...and what a blessing that he'll hopefully be home with his mama today! I can't wait to meet this little fella!

Back from Tucson

Congratulations Aunt Brooke! We can't wait to meet Mug!

We headed to Tucson last Thursday to hang with Brooke & Sunidh before Brooke's baby shower on Saturday. We had a great time visiting with them, Grammy Rosonke & Aunt Baylee, as well as Sunidh's family. I'd love to post all of the photos from Brooke's shower, but she might not speak to me for months (if you know Brookie Nae you get this...) so instead I'll just post one with her in front of the most delicious cakes I've ever had.

Dad & Luci trying to climb the 'wall' of the parking lot! Tucson is a great city in late August/early September...maybe cuz it is monsoon season & it actually felt cooler than Houston. I left with a little crush on the Catalina Foothills area. I'm starting to detest Houston...or at least Houston summers.

And here are some other photos just cuz I think they are cute...last week we played with Clara and I tried really, really hard to get some good photos. Their little bodies just don't sit still for long!