Well it has snowed a few times so far this winter, but I have managed to get lucky and have those be the days that I am working from home. My luck held again last week and since I had gotten a good bit of work done by midday, I bundled Mal up and out in to the snow we went. She loved it!
And on Saturday after I got home from the office (boo to tax season!) Pop Pop and I took her for a quick sled ride around the building. I don't think she was too sure about it at first, but towards the end she kept dragging her hand in the snow so that it would fly up on me.
She doesn't seem to mind the cold and loves playing in the snow; guess I might have a future skiier or snowboarder on my hands!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Happy 1st Birthday Mallory!!!
I can hardly believe it, but my little Peanut is already one! On her birthday, Mike and I took her to Red Robin (figured it was kid friendly and they have a fun happy birthday song). Well, she ended up sleeping through about 90% of the meal, but did wake up with enough time to have the staff sing Happy Birthday...and she just bopped along in her high chair (too cute!).
We had her birthday party the following Sunday. It was a lovely afternoon. We got time to catch up with lots of friends and family that we don't get to see enough, watched Mal squirm as I mashed her hand into her cake (she does not like being messy!!!) and had fun watching her open her presents (she's getting a bit faster at it). Though I tried my best to keep the cards with the gifts, she just was picking up things left and right (So, sincere apologies if you get a thank you for something you didn't get her).
Here's hoping that her 2nd Birthday doesn't creep up as quickly as #1 did!
We had her birthday party the following Sunday. It was a lovely afternoon. We got time to catch up with lots of friends and family that we don't get to see enough, watched Mal squirm as I mashed her hand into her cake (she does not like being messy!!!) and had fun watching her open her presents (she's getting a bit faster at it). Though I tried my best to keep the cards with the gifts, she just was picking up things left and right (So, sincere apologies if you get a thank you for something you didn't get her).
Here's hoping that her 2nd Birthday doesn't creep up as quickly as #1 did!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Farm Show and Sesame Street Live
Mallory and I had a big weekend in PA last weekend. We spent Saturday attending the PA Farm Show and Sunday we saw Sesame Street Live.
It has been a few years since I attended the Farm Show; it not exactly the most exciting thing, but I thought Mallory would really enjoy seeing all the animals. Of course, no Farm Show week is complete without some snow. When we awoke on Saturday there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. At first I thought we weren't going to be able to go, but after an hour or so, the snow was pretty much gone from the roadways.
Our first stop was food. No place can beat the Farm Show when it comes to food. We enjoyed some pork barbeque sandwiches, a milkshake and some potato doughnuts. Surprisingly, I think Mal enjoyed the barbeque the most. We then made our way through the horrible crowds (ugh) and to the other side of the building where all the animals were. We saw cows, alpacas, sheep, horses, goats, pigs, chickens, roosters, rabbits, guinea pigs and little ducklings (though I am sure I missed some of the animals).
We had been there for about 2.5 hours and Mal was getting tired, but Pop Pop was determined to get her a cowgirl hat. Thankfully, they were right on our way back to the car. She got a cute white and purple hat, though I am pretty sure she liked seeing Gummy and Pop Pop wear the hat more than actually keeping it on her head.
We slept in on Sunday (bad mommy for skipping church) and made our way to Hershey for Sesame Street Live. We haven't watched too much Sesame Street (since I have yet to hook up my cable) but she loves music and characters, so I thought she would love this show. And well, I was right. Gummy, Mal and I met Tara, Coop and Ky there and our seats were 5 rows from the front. Mal and Ky were just sooooo attentive during the show. It was wonderful to see them get so excited to see the characters and bopping to the music. I can't wait to do more things like this in the years to come.
It has been a few years since I attended the Farm Show; it not exactly the most exciting thing, but I thought Mallory would really enjoy seeing all the animals. Of course, no Farm Show week is complete without some snow. When we awoke on Saturday there was a light dusting of snow on the ground. At first I thought we weren't going to be able to go, but after an hour or so, the snow was pretty much gone from the roadways.
Our first stop was food. No place can beat the Farm Show when it comes to food. We enjoyed some pork barbeque sandwiches, a milkshake and some potato doughnuts. Surprisingly, I think Mal enjoyed the barbeque the most. We then made our way through the horrible crowds (ugh) and to the other side of the building where all the animals were. We saw cows, alpacas, sheep, horses, goats, pigs, chickens, roosters, rabbits, guinea pigs and little ducklings (though I am sure I missed some of the animals).
We had been there for about 2.5 hours and Mal was getting tired, but Pop Pop was determined to get her a cowgirl hat. Thankfully, they were right on our way back to the car. She got a cute white and purple hat, though I am pretty sure she liked seeing Gummy and Pop Pop wear the hat more than actually keeping it on her head.
We slept in on Sunday (bad mommy for skipping church) and made our way to Hershey for Sesame Street Live. We haven't watched too much Sesame Street (since I have yet to hook up my cable) but she loves music and characters, so I thought she would love this show. And well, I was right. Gummy, Mal and I met Tara, Coop and Ky there and our seats were 5 rows from the front. Mal and Ky were just sooooo attentive during the show. It was wonderful to see them get so excited to see the characters and bopping to the music. I can't wait to do more things like this in the years to come.
New Years!
Mallory and I didn't celebrate in a very grand fashion, in fact, neither one of us made it to midnight (she was out at 8, like clockwork and I might have made it to 9:30, and that's pushing it).
The office was closed on the 31st, so we headed up to PA early to help Gummy prepare for our big party on the 1st. Our plans changed drastically as we heard of the passing of my Godfather, Bob Swift, a few days earlier. He was a wonderful christian man and it was very difficult to learn of his passing, but we gain comfort in knowing that he is no longer suffering and is in heaven with our Lord. We spent time on the 31st with his family and celebrated his life the following day.
Mom and I spent much of that evening chopping and cooking away while Pop Pop entertained Miss Mallory. I think we had 23 appetizers in all and they were all pretty much gone by the end of the day. It was a wonderful time to share with the neighbors, friends and family. It's amazing how we don't get to see everyone very often, but the conversation never seem to miss a beat. Mallory loved seeing everyone and thankfully, she was perfectly fine with everyone holding her (even Beth!).
Happy New Year! I hope 2011 brings you all happiness and love!
The office was closed on the 31st, so we headed up to PA early to help Gummy prepare for our big party on the 1st. Our plans changed drastically as we heard of the passing of my Godfather, Bob Swift, a few days earlier. He was a wonderful christian man and it was very difficult to learn of his passing, but we gain comfort in knowing that he is no longer suffering and is in heaven with our Lord. We spent time on the 31st with his family and celebrated his life the following day.
Mom and I spent much of that evening chopping and cooking away while Pop Pop entertained Miss Mallory. I think we had 23 appetizers in all and they were all pretty much gone by the end of the day. It was a wonderful time to share with the neighbors, friends and family. It's amazing how we don't get to see everyone very often, but the conversation never seem to miss a beat. Mallory loved seeing everyone and thankfully, she was perfectly fine with everyone holding her (even Beth!).
Happy New Year! I hope 2011 brings you all happiness and love!
Mallory's First Christmas
It is so hard to believe that Mallory is 1 (well almost one year old) and that we have already celebrated her first Christmas.
We tried visiting Santa about a week after we came back from Disney World. I was so overconfident because she had done so well with all the characters there. The minute I put her down on Santa's lap, she just screamed. We tried for about 15 seconds to see if she would warm up to him or we could distract her enough to get a good picture, but nope. Here's hoping next year will go a little bit better!
Our Christmas celebrations began a week before the actual holiday. We had Christmas with Lauren (Aunt Lala), Mark and Madison and also with Uncle Tom and Aunt Marilyn and the rest of the Miller side of the family. Mallory got a beautful dress (stay tuned as it will appear in her 1 year pictures!) and some other adobrable clothes from Aunt Lala, Mark and Madison and some fun, noisemaking toys from Cindy, Beth and Aunt Marilyn. I am wondering if this is payback from Cindy and Beth for all of the loud, obnoxious toys I bought their kids just a few years ago (lol).
I had my Christmas with Mallory on Christmas Eve. We lugged (too many presents) her presents to Gummy and Pop Pop's, so they could take pictures of all the fun. She got cute clothes, books, stuffed animals, toys and movies from Mommy, though I am pretty sure she like playing with the paper and boxes, just as much (ok, probably more) than her actual presents.
We went to Harris Street for Christmas Eve service and Mallory was asked to be a sheep in the Nativity scene. She was just perfect; though I wonder how many sheep back then had green pacifiers?
We got up bright and early and drove back to Maryland in the morning so she could have Christmas with Mike and his family. I spent the day putting away her presents, cleaning, laundry, etc. Not exactly how I invisioned my first Christmas Day with Mallory, but you gotta do what you gotta do. I picked her up in the afternoon and we trekked back to Gummy and Pop Pop's, so we could have Christmas with them, Uncle Ry, Aunt T, Coop, Ky and Aunt Val. Mallory got so many wonderful presents (again, though she was much more interested in the paper and boxes) and we shared a lot of joy spending time with one another. I feel truly blessed to have such a wonderful, loving and caring family. I know Mallory will grow up surrounded by so much love and support. Merry Christmas!
We tried visiting Santa about a week after we came back from Disney World. I was so overconfident because she had done so well with all the characters there. The minute I put her down on Santa's lap, she just screamed. We tried for about 15 seconds to see if she would warm up to him or we could distract her enough to get a good picture, but nope. Here's hoping next year will go a little bit better!
Our Christmas celebrations began a week before the actual holiday. We had Christmas with Lauren (Aunt Lala), Mark and Madison and also with Uncle Tom and Aunt Marilyn and the rest of the Miller side of the family. Mallory got a beautful dress (stay tuned as it will appear in her 1 year pictures!) and some other adobrable clothes from Aunt Lala, Mark and Madison and some fun, noisemaking toys from Cindy, Beth and Aunt Marilyn. I am wondering if this is payback from Cindy and Beth for all of the loud, obnoxious toys I bought their kids just a few years ago (lol).
I had my Christmas with Mallory on Christmas Eve. We lugged (too many presents) her presents to Gummy and Pop Pop's, so they could take pictures of all the fun. She got cute clothes, books, stuffed animals, toys and movies from Mommy, though I am pretty sure she like playing with the paper and boxes, just as much (ok, probably more) than her actual presents.
We went to Harris Street for Christmas Eve service and Mallory was asked to be a sheep in the Nativity scene. She was just perfect; though I wonder how many sheep back then had green pacifiers?
We got up bright and early and drove back to Maryland in the morning so she could have Christmas with Mike and his family. I spent the day putting away her presents, cleaning, laundry, etc. Not exactly how I invisioned my first Christmas Day with Mallory, but you gotta do what you gotta do. I picked her up in the afternoon and we trekked back to Gummy and Pop Pop's, so we could have Christmas with them, Uncle Ry, Aunt T, Coop, Ky and Aunt Val. Mallory got so many wonderful presents (again, though she was much more interested in the paper and boxes) and we shared a lot of joy spending time with one another. I feel truly blessed to have such a wonderful, loving and caring family. I know Mallory will grow up surrounded by so much love and support. Merry Christmas!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Mallory's First Trip to Disney World
Disney World is one of my favorite places, so I could hardly wait to share the Disney experience with Mal. We decided to couple our Disney trip with a day trip to Sarasota to visit Uncle Harold and Aunt Jean.
We began our excursion the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I know, I know...why would I ever fly on the worst travel day of the year with a 10 month old. So of course, I left for BWI about 4 hours before our flight. Well, let me just say that there was zero traffic driving to the airport and about a 10 second wait to get through security.
We had about a 2.5 hour wait before our flight, but Mal was a total angel. We played and read and have some dinner and she fell asleep about 10 minutes before we boarded. She slept the whole way, including our trip on the Magical Express.
We got up bright and early on Thursday and made the 2 hour drive to Sarasota and had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with Uncle Harold, Aunt Jean and some of their friends. Mallory had some real sweet potatoes (not baby food!) and turkey and some pumpkin pie (yuck!). She really enjoyed crawling around on their terrace outside and getting dirty.
We began our Disney trip at Epcot, my favorite park. We met Mal's Godmother, Amie there. We spent the morning going through the Finding Nemo attraction; she really enjoyed looking at all the fish. We had lunch at the Coral Reef restaurant, which of course she loved. She was just amazed by all the fish. We went to see my favorite little guy Figment. We walked around the countries in the afternoon and she got to meet Mulan. Then, we encountered a bit of rain, so we ducked into the Character Photo Spot, where we got our picture taken with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Pluto and Goofy.
We spent Saturday at Magic Kingdom. First, we got to have breakfast with Pooh and Friends. Mallory was soooo funny. She got so excited when the characters came around! We got to meet the Fairy Godmother and went through Snow White's Ride, Peter Pan's Flight, Pirates of the Caribbean and Dumbo. We also got to see the Country Bear Jamboree and the Celebration parade. Mal had such a busy morning that she just conked out in line for It's a Small World. We tried to keep her awake, but she just snuggled up on her Godmomma. We have some dinner at Casey Jones' and then headed back. We all had a big day and were tired (though I somehow managed to watch a 5 eposide marathon of Criminal Minds).
We spent our last day at Disney in Hollywood Studios. We saw the Beauty and the Beast show, Little Mermaid Show and the Disney Playhouse show...We also had lunch with Little Einsteins and Handy Manny. She was in heaven! What was really funny was that she was super excited seeing the character and the 3 year old at the table next to us was absolutely petrified of them. Mommy did get a few free minutes with Amie to go in the Tower and Terror and the Rockin' Roller Coaster.
Our trip came to a close way to quickly and Monday morning we had our last breakfast at Old Key West and took a little walk around the grounds. We rode the Magical Express to the airport and boarded our plane. Mal was awake the whole trip home, which was more exhausting for me since I had to try to keep her in our little personal space.
The only downside to the trip was Air Tran lost her carseat on the way home. Thankfully the did have extra ones for me to use and within an hour of getting home, they had already called and said they were brining the car seat back that night. (Props to AirTran for that).
Well, the computer battery is dying, so I had better post this before I lose it. Can't wait to take Mal back to Disney sometime soon!
We began our excursion the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. I know, I know...why would I ever fly on the worst travel day of the year with a 10 month old. So of course, I left for BWI about 4 hours before our flight. Well, let me just say that there was zero traffic driving to the airport and about a 10 second wait to get through security.
We had about a 2.5 hour wait before our flight, but Mal was a total angel. We played and read and have some dinner and she fell asleep about 10 minutes before we boarded. She slept the whole way, including our trip on the Magical Express.
We got up bright and early on Thursday and made the 2 hour drive to Sarasota and had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with Uncle Harold, Aunt Jean and some of their friends. Mallory had some real sweet potatoes (not baby food!) and turkey and some pumpkin pie (yuck!). She really enjoyed crawling around on their terrace outside and getting dirty.
We began our Disney trip at Epcot, my favorite park. We met Mal's Godmother, Amie there. We spent the morning going through the Finding Nemo attraction; she really enjoyed looking at all the fish. We had lunch at the Coral Reef restaurant, which of course she loved. She was just amazed by all the fish. We went to see my favorite little guy Figment. We walked around the countries in the afternoon and she got to meet Mulan. Then, we encountered a bit of rain, so we ducked into the Character Photo Spot, where we got our picture taken with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Pluto and Goofy.
We spent Saturday at Magic Kingdom. First, we got to have breakfast with Pooh and Friends. Mallory was soooo funny. She got so excited when the characters came around! We got to meet the Fairy Godmother and went through Snow White's Ride, Peter Pan's Flight, Pirates of the Caribbean and Dumbo. We also got to see the Country Bear Jamboree and the Celebration parade. Mal had such a busy morning that she just conked out in line for It's a Small World. We tried to keep her awake, but she just snuggled up on her Godmomma. We have some dinner at Casey Jones' and then headed back. We all had a big day and were tired (though I somehow managed to watch a 5 eposide marathon of Criminal Minds).
We spent our last day at Disney in Hollywood Studios. We saw the Beauty and the Beast show, Little Mermaid Show and the Disney Playhouse show...We also had lunch with Little Einsteins and Handy Manny. She was in heaven! What was really funny was that she was super excited seeing the character and the 3 year old at the table next to us was absolutely petrified of them. Mommy did get a few free minutes with Amie to go in the Tower and Terror and the Rockin' Roller Coaster.
Our trip came to a close way to quickly and Monday morning we had our last breakfast at Old Key West and took a little walk around the grounds. We rode the Magical Express to the airport and boarded our plane. Mal was awake the whole trip home, which was more exhausting for me since I had to try to keep her in our little personal space.
The only downside to the trip was Air Tran lost her carseat on the way home. Thankfully the did have extra ones for me to use and within an hour of getting home, they had already called and said they were brining the car seat back that night. (Props to AirTran for that).
Well, the computer battery is dying, so I had better post this before I lose it. Can't wait to take Mal back to Disney sometime soon!
Catching Up
Ok, so I have been sooooo lazy when it comes to my blog for the last 6 weeks or so. I have a few hours here (well, while I am watching Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice) so I am going to do my best to catch everyone up on what's been going on with me and Miss M.
Please bear with me as I attempt a major brain dump....
Please bear with me as I attempt a major brain dump....
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