Mrs. Buddy and Little Buddies

Welcome William Henry

2012-01-21T12:34:00.006-05:00

We welcomed our latest addition, William Henry on January 8, 2012. My water broke on Sunday morning around 9:00am and got to the hospital around 11:00am with my contractions starting to get pretty good. We had to stop 4 times before we made it up to labor & delivery. People were staring at me and one lady cheered me on:) Yes, I made Adam park in the parking deck and refused to let him get me a wheel chain. I was only in labor not an invalid:) I was approved for a v-back so since I was quit far along in labor already, I decided to try. A few quick hours later (yeah epidural) and little Will arrived at 4:48pm. He weighed 6lb 15oz and 19.75 inches. I can not say how happy I am to have been able to do a v-back. I was out and about the day after we got home from the hospital and Adam and I went for a walk this week. It is like night and day how great I feel compaired to Izzie's c-section.

Izzie is adjusting very well to her new brother. She gets excited when he is awake, which is not much right now though. He is sleeping about 7 hours a night!!! Loves his sleep just like his dad. Below are a few pictures but there are more on our flickr page.

Potty Training

2012-01-03T22:45:00.007-05:00

Well 1 week into potty training and things are coming along pretty good. Last Monday after Christmas we decided to get up that morning and be done with diapers and go straight to underwear on Izzie. We read a 3 day potty training guide and kind of followed it for the most part. But potty training a strong willed child is not going to happen in 3 days. I wanted to quit towards the end of last week, but the past few days have been a lot better. She pooped on her little froggy potty the other night and got super excited because there was corn in her poop! Ahhh, the joys of being a parent.

Birthday Rooster

2011-12-24T13:46:00.004-05:00

As I am backing out of my driveway yesterday morning at 7:30 for work I noticed something odd in my front yard. As I get closer I realize it is a huge cement rooster! Yes, you read right. A solid cement rooster that weighs hundreds of pounds. I knew right away who the guilty party was due to a conversation a few months ago. Scott, Mel, and Clay got it for Adam for his birthday. Adam decided to give it some Christmas cheer with a Santa hat, wreath, lights, and spotlights. If you are in the area, you have to drive by and see this thing. It is so awesome!!!

2011-12-21T10:48:00.005-05:00

My sister watched Izzie a few weeks ago for date night and did a photo shoot for our Christmas card picture. When it comes to taking pictures Izzie is usually good for my sister, but this time even bribing with candy did not work so well.

Elf Yourself

2011-12-07T22:31:00.006-05:00

My co-worker did a silly "Elf Yourself" for our office.
Click on the "Elf Yourself" above to check it out.
Izzie loves it!

Fall Kick Off

2011-09-27T16:30:00.006-04:00

We made the trip again this year to pick apples at Bauman Orchards. Izzie did more eating then picking this year. I think the highlights for Adam every year are the donuts, cider, and hotdogs. I will have to admit the donuts were extra good this year:)

My sister got Izzie the funnest sunglasses recently. They are just like the super big, bug eye ones she always wears. Izzie is our little diva in the making.

It's a...

2011-09-07T21:21:00.002-04:00

Boy!!!

We had our ultrasound today and found out Izzie is going to have a little brother. Super excited!!!

Summer Happenings

2011-08-23T09:54:00.030-04:00

I have not posted in a while. Lets just say chasing after a 2 year old while prego can be pretty tiring sometimes. Here are a few fun highlights of what we have been up to this summer. I have tried to come up with fun things for Izzie and I to do on my days off. One day I took her to the Beech Creek Gardens where they have a butterfly house. As you can see she enjoyed the outing.

Any opportunity Izzie has to get in the water, she jumps right in.

A few weeks ago we took a trip to New York to visit Adam's family. One day we took the kids to a state park where they have a few big waterfalls you can swim in. Izzie was fearless and jumped right in.

On that same visit in New York, Izzie got her first haircut ever! Yes, I know you must be thinking she is 2 and just got her first haircut? Her aunt Abbie got to give her the haircut. On the topic of firsts, Izzie peed on the potty for the first time in July. We have not had any luck since though, but lots of trying. We are hoping to have her out of diapers by the time baby #2 arrives. Might be trying the weekend potty training method sometime soon. We have some big goals we need to get done with Izzie before baby #2. Potty training, no more binky during naps/at night, and moving her into a big girl bed.

Adam was pretty busy this summer, taking two classes. He did manage to plant/grow another crazy garden! He planted early this year so we have been picking veggies forever. I have already cooked down 2 big pots of tomatoes for soup bases in the winter. I made eggplant parmesan last Sunday with some of our eggplant. And Adam made super crazy hot sauce with the habanero and jalapeno peppers. Those are just a few of the things we have made with items from the garden. This is a typical days pick.

Adam got an A!!!

2011-06-17T14:37:00.006-04:00

Adam just took his final exam for differential equations today and he got an A in the class!!! He is so pumped right now and the 3-4 hours a night he has been studying has payed off. Way to go buddy! Now on to Organic Chemistry II this next five weeks. 2015 here we come:)

Vacation

2011-04-08T15:03:00.020-04:00

We went on vacation a few weeks ago to Saint Helena, SC. Weather was not so good but we still had a great time. My dad ended up coming with us to recover from being sick (see previous post). It is a pretty quiet area, Beaufort was the closest big town. Nice to get away from the craziness of everyday life. My favorite part was Hunting Island State Park. Imagine the movie Jurassic Park, driving through the jungle, just waiting for a dinosaur to jump out and eat you. Ok, minus the dinosaur part and that is Hunting Island. However we did tell Izzie to look out for dinosaurs every time we were there. You drive through the forest and all of a sudden it ends and there is this amazing beach right in front of you. It is a rare thing that I have never seen before. The park has a ton to do if you like hiking, biking, and outdoor activities. Izzie enjoyed going to the beach and playing in the water, even though it was still pretty cold. Adam was able to try clamming for the first time at the beach near our house. He made New England clam chowder with his find. All in all it was a pretty fun vacation:) For more pictures check out my flickr page.

Crazy Week

2011-03-24T13:56:00.004-04:00

So this week started off pretty crazy!!! Last Thursday my dad got sick and then my mom started getting sick Friday. They were sick with flu like symptoms all weekend and finally went to the doctor on Monday afternoon, separate doctors though. My dad barely made it home from the doctor and when my mom was driving home from her appointment she passed out at the wheel and crossed over 2 lanes of oncoming traffic, jumped the curb, went right between a pine tree and a telephone pole, and ran over someones light post. All this while still passed out. She was amazingly ok when she came too. Her car is another story. She hit another car crossing over both lanes but all she did was scratch their side mirror. While my mom was getting in her accident, my dad was at home passing out too! He was in bad shape so my brother (thank goodness he is home on spring break) and their neighbor Bob took my dad to the ER. I stayed with my mom and took care of getting the car towed because it was not drivable. Adam picked Izzie up from the accident and took care of her the rest of the evening while I rush around getting prescriptions filled for my mom and making sure she was ok at home. She tested positive for Influenza A. When my dad first got to the ER they thought he might have had a stroke because he had signs and barely passed the stroke test. So they did a cat scan to make sure and that came back ok. Then they did not like his heart rate or EKG. His resting heart rate was 40 (normal for him since he is a runner) but they did not know that at the time. He has an inverted t-wave as well. When I showed up in the ER that evening he was still pretty out of it. They kept him overnight and ran some more tests on Tuesday morning but the cardiologist was happy with the test results and they sent him home that afternoon. They said he has a really bad virus. They are both still feeling sick today but slowly getting better.

In the middle of all of this happening my mom mentioned something was really wrong with their other car. So I drove it Monday night before I went to the hospital and it sounded like the car was going to fall apart every time I would hit a bump. I took it over to our friend Scott and right away he showed me the back 2 shocks were completely rusted through and done for. So he took it that night and had it fixed on Tuesday morning:) Thanks Scott and Mel (Gearheads Garage). Tuesday morning I took care of the insurance claim and my dad at the hospital.

I was pretty impressed with how I handled everything. I have really never had anything like this happen before and I just calmly took charge of the situation. My parents are really missing Izzie since they have not been able to see her due to being sick. So I recorded Izzie singing Jesus love me and posted it on our flickr page for them to see.

Waste Land

2011-03-18T16:18:00.009-04:00

If you are looking for an amazing documentary to watch this weekend, check out Waste Land. It follows the famous artist Vik Muniz and people who pick recyclable material out of the largest landfill in the world. The stories of the people who the movie follows are amazing. You would think that people who pick through trash are the lowest of the low, poorest, and uneducated. But this movie is a real eye opener. I think the comment/conversation that stuck with me the most was one of the woman talking about how people look at her when she gets on the bus, how bad she smells after working at the landfill all day. Side note:prostitution and drugs are a very big issue in this area. She said she can go home after work and wash off all the smell and dirt and get clean. She said if she worked the streets she could never go home a get clean. The other mind blowing thing was how much material they actually remove from the landfill on a daily basis. Netflix currently has this movie on instant view. I highly recommend it.

Felt Play Food

2011-02-03T16:41:00.007-05:00

Last week I started making Izzie felt play food. It is pretty easy and cheap to make, just kind of time consuming. I think if I had a sewing machine some of the food would be easier to make. So far I have made an egg, carrots, strawberries, broccoli, mushrooms, an orange slice, and a kiwi.

Snow Bunny

2011-01-18T12:02:00.004-05:00

We have had a ton of snow this year and Izzie really loves to play outside in it. Papa got her a new sled and she loves to be pulled around the yard. We have not gone sledding yet, but I am sure that will happen soon. I know...she looks like she can not move with all her snow attire on, but she sure stays warm!

2010-12-25T11:29:00.002-05:00

Christmas Shiner and Santa

2010-12-04T16:00:00.009-05:00

Well a year has gone by and Izzie just got her annual Christmas shiner yesterday. This time last year she fell at my parents house and got her first black eye. Yesterday she fell off her rocking horse and landed on the wheel of her shopping cart:( Looks worse this year, but a lot less crying.

Izzie and I went to visit Santa today. Rice's nursery brings Santa in on a firetruck and we went for the festivities. She loved it and walked right up to Santa for a hug. My mom and I have been warming her up to Santa for a few weeks now and it has payed off. The first time she saw Santa at the mall she pulled her hat over her eyes and was scared.

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T13:50:00.000-05:00

Apple Picking

2010-09-27T21:38:00.006-04:00

I have been wanting to go to an apple orchard and pick our own apples for a while now. So last Saturday Adam, Izzie, and I went to Bauman Orchards and picked our own apples. They have a fall festival every year with food, animals, hayrides, etc. We started out looking at the horses for a while because Izzie is really into horses right now. She walks around saying "nah, nah, nah" all day. We moved on to the pick your own apples which was a ton of fun. Izzie really enjoyed picking the apples and sampling them. We got a huge bag of apples for $10, which was crazy cheap if you could see how many we got. We picked golden delicious, jonagold, and mutsu, which tastes like a cross between a golden delicious and granny smith. I think Adam liked the Lerch's donuts, hot dog, and hot apple cider the best! We had a really great time and decided to make it a Babcock tradition every year.

Barney and Other Stuff

2010-09-09T16:01:00.010-04:00

Barney, Barney, Barney, that is all Izzie runs around the house saying. She is obsessed with Barney everything. Movies, music, stickers, you get the idea. My sister had a Dino the dinosaur from The Flintstones and she brought it down for Izzie last weekend. He is purple just like Barney but not shaped the same at all. Izzie was not fooled! She said not Barney!

Izzie has taken to eating thing whole lately, like peaches, apples, and bananas. It can be pretty messy but if she is eating something I am happy.

Update

2010-08-27T15:05:00.005-04:00

Izzie has become a real "Chatty Cathy" lately. She is trying so hard to talk and seems to pick up new words everyday. She really likes to repeat what you say or do! Watch what you say Adam! If you need any yard clean-up done give her a call. Her newest thing is picking up leaves, acorns, and crabapples from our yard and what seems like everyone else's. I will not have to rack any leaves this fall if she keeps this up! Our garden is in full swing with a ton of tomatoes, squash, beans, eggplant, and peppers. In about a month we will have a ton of carrots too and one gray pumpkin. We have so much stuff I am not sure what to do with it all. I have been cooking the tomatoes down and freezing the sauce to make soup in the winter.

Work is crazy busy right now for me because of how low interest rates are. Give me a call if you need to refinance or purchase a home:) Adam started back to school yesterday. This semester he is taking three classes at three different schools (Malone, Kent Stark, and Akron U). Bring on the craziness!

Vacation

2010-07-06T15:34:00.006-04:00

We went on vacation last week to Wild Dunes, SC. It is a gated community on the Isle of Palms with lots of private beach, biking/walking paths, and a very laid back atmosphere. Plus it is close to Charleston, which we always love to go visit. We went with Clay, Adam's brother and family, sister and family, and my parents came down for a few days too. This was Izzie's first trip to the ocean and she seemed to enjoy it for the most part. I preferred to keep her at the pool that was at our house though. Have you every tried to get lots of sand out of a babies butt crack? Not so fun. We visited our favorite ice cream/fudge shop in Charleston and hit up the candy shop as usual. I felt bad for Clay everyday at about 4:00pm. My nephew Malachi is 10 months, Izzie is 15 months, and my niece Maya is 2 1/2 years old. At about that time everyday all three kids lost it. Sometimes I just had to laugh. Vacationing with a little one is very different but still really fun at the same time. You get to experience new things with them all over again. Here are a few pictures from the trip. For more pictures check out my flickr link on the right side of the page. There is also a cute video of Izzie's first ocean experience.

(Our nieces Belle, Julia, and Maya)

First Pick of the Season

2010-06-13T15:44:00.006-04:00

I picked our first crop of the season yesterday, red currants. This year we got 3 cups, which is a lot for being such a tiny berry. Adam requested I make the same strawberry currant jelly I made last year. If you have never made jelly or jam before it is so easy. All you need is fresh fruit, sugar, and pectin. I like to use the freezer jelly recipes that come in the pectin package.

Dancing

2010-05-13T12:36:00.003-04:00

Pandora is Izzie's new favorite thing. She loves to dance all day long. When I bring her downstairs in the morning she runs over to the computer and points at it for me to turn on the music. It is so cute. She has some really greats moves and changes things up depending on the beat. I posted a few videos on my Flickr Page for your viewing pleasure. Stick with the videos because you will see her change things up. The second one towards the middle is great...she pulls out her stomping move.

Izzie is One

2010-04-08T19:27:00.025-04:00

I can not believe Izzie turned 1 last week! I feel like we just brought her home from the hospital. It is crazy how fast time flies. She went for her 1 year check-up yesterday and weighs 18lb 4oz and is 28 inches tall. She has been so silly and playful lately, I wish she could stay at this stage forever.

We had a birthday party for her two weekends ago. It was a lot of fun with friends and family helping us celebrate her birthday.
1 small cupcake+Izzie=big mess!!!

Our friend Nicole took a ton of amazing pictures at the party.
Here is a link to her Flickr page to see all of them.

Crazy Morning

2010-03-08T20:10:00.003-05:00

"Welcome to parenthood" is what my mom said to me this morning as I told her what my morning was like. Izzie must have pooped in the middle of the night (which she never does) because when I got her up this morning it was dried and stuck to her butt! It was so bad I had to give her a bath and scrub her butt over and over to get the poop to come off. The poop in her pants all night caused her to get horrible diaper rash. Izzie never gets diaper rash due to the fact that I put a whole tube of butt paste on her every time I change her diaper. Once she was done in the bath, I moved on to her room. Her diaper leaked too so I had to take her sheets/mattress pad off her bed and start a load of laundry. They smelled too bad to let them sit in the laundry hamper all day. We then moved downstairs and started eating breakfast. Sometime during breakfast she pooped her pants again and it came out the side of her diaper!!! This never happens, Pampers are usually the best. Good thing she only had a diaper on and there was no other clothes that needed washed. Her highchair pad was another story. The laundry was too far into the cycle to add it so on my lunch break I had to come home and clean up that mess. All of this happened before 8:00am! Good thing I had an easy day at work. I guess I can not complain though. She is almost 1 and this is the first time anything like this has happened.

Izzie is Walking

2010-02-27T09:32:00.003-05:00

Izzie took her first steps all by herself two weeks ago. I can not believe how fast she is growing up. She still prefers to crawl from here to there, but is taking more and more steps every day. She also stood up yesterday without pulling up or holding onto anything. Adam and I started cheering and she got all excited.

My mom, Izzie, and I went grocery shopping last weekend. To keep Izzie happy on the way home I found a travel pack of Kleenex. It was sealed and seemed to make her happy right away. Quite baby + pack of Kleenex = big mess!

Long Overdue Update

2010-01-07T13:53:00.010-05:00

Well the holidays have come and gone and I can relax again. We had a very busy holiday season this year and Izzie is not even the reason. Here is a rundown of the past few weeks and holiday festivities. Had a surprise 30th birthday party for Adam, had friends over on the 23rd, meet friends for breakfast to celebrate Adam's 30th birthday, went over to my parents to celebrate Adam's birthday/Christmas eve dinner, went back to my parents Christmas day, left for Maine at 1:00am on the 26th, hung out in Maine with Adam's family until the 30th, came back home and got stuck on the highway for 2 extra hours, yes it took us 2 hours to go 4 miles at one point, had friends over for New Years, went back to my parent's for sauerkraut on New Year's day, done. Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed ever bit of it. It is just nice to be able to relax again and not have any plans.

Izzie was pretty funny opening presents on Christmas. She was able to tear the paper, but was more interested in eating it then the actual gift. Between both sides of the family she was very spoiled this year. I think we enjoyed her gifts more then she did. Just look at my sister with Izzie's new rocking horse.

Izzie had her 9 month check-up this morning. She is still our little peanut weighing in at 16lbs 8oz and is 26 inches long. She is a crawling machine now and is standing up holding onto everything and anything she can. My dad made the mistake of showing her the stairs and now she is able to climb those too.
Yeah baby gates!!!

Lots more pictures of the holiday festivities on my flickr page.

Christmas Picture

2009-12-18T15:20:00.005-05:00

For Izzie's Christmas picture I decided to not have her sit on Santa's lap because of all the germs out there. Why risk having her getting sick if she does not know or understand the whole Santa thing yet. We took her picture at my parents house and my sister worked her magic on the picture. I think it turned out super cute!!! We used the picture for our Christmas cards too.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Secret Operation

2009-12-14T18:29:00.002-05:00

My mom is not a fan of tacky Christmas decorations and that includes inflatables. We always joke around about putting an inflatable up in my parents yard. Well, this year it happened. Adam and I took advantage of them being gone at a Cavs game on Friday night and borrowed an inflatable that my work was not using this year. So when my parents got home from the game jolly old Saint Nick was in the front yard!!! The best part is he is still up, just moved to a different spot in the yard. I think my dad secretly likes it.

Crawling and Standing

2009-12-10T14:42:00.005-05:00

Izzie turned 8 months last week and started crawling and standing!!! I am not ready for this. She was all over the house this morning. She seems to be very interested in things she can not have, like the fireplace poker and now the bottom of the Christmas tree. She is pulling herself up on anything she can and standing pretty good now.

Izzie's First Halloween

2009-11-03T14:13:00.004-05:00

For Halloween we dressed Izzie up in a pea pod costume and took her out for our usual Sunday walk during trick-or-treat. She slept the whole walk! I am sure in a few years that will not be the case when there is candy involved.My sister watched Izzie last Friday night and Adam and I went out on a date. When my sister watches her she love to do photo shoots. This time she had her out in the yard with all the leaves. She could not get a good pictures because Izzie kept looking down and eating all the leaves. If you need leaf clean-up give us a call and Izzie can come over and take care of them!

30th Birthday

2009-10-18T13:17:00.002-04:00

So I turned the big 30 on Tuesday and celebrated my birthday last night with a surprise party. Adam had me thinking we were going out to dinner for our 5th wedding anniversary (which was on Friday) but when I walked into Wolf Creek Winery there were friends and family to surprise me. I really had no idea. My mom was so proud of herself for not spilling the beans to me! We were outside on the patio which was a little chilly but had lots of great food and drinks. They do not have a restaurant there so you get to bring in your own food which was fun. My sister knocked herself out again with all kinds of treats. It was a great 30th birthday. Now I have to come up with something really good for Adam's 30th birthday in December. Any ideas...

Izzie Is 6 Months

2009-10-06T13:23:00.010-04:00

Izzie is 6 months old now (as of last Wednesday) and boy does time fly. She had her check-up and shots today at the doctor. She is up to 14lbs even and 24 1/2 inches long. Still in the 20% range for weight and height. She has been sitting up on her own for about a month now grabbing everything in sight to put in her mouth. We started feeding her baby food about 2 weeks ago and she is starting to get the hang of it now. I am making all of her food which I am really enjoying. I have made sweet potatoes, squash, pears, peaches, and bananas so far. It saves a ton of money and I like knowing what she is eating.
Below are a few pictures of our little buddy.

Aunt Mimi watched Izzie a few weeks ago and did a photo shoot with her. Here are a few of the pictures she took that night.
Look out ANTM.

Cold and Other Stuff

2009-09-14T21:30:00.007-04:00

Izzie has her first cold:( She has not been herself today because of it. I think she is also teething, so that just adds to her fussiness.

My grandma's 80th birthday was yesterday so we all went down to Coshocton for her party. We meet for lunch at Ravens Glen Winery and then went back to her house for cake and ice cream. 9 out of her 10 kids were able to make it plus a bunch of grandkids and great grandkids. Below are some pictures from the day.

The garden just started slowing down the other day. I have been a canning machine the past few weeks. Adam even made salsa and canned it on Saturday. Tomorrow I am going to start making Izzie her baby food and freezing it. I bought some sweet potatoes and a butternut squash to start with. We are going to start feeding her food sometime soon.

Izzie got a new jumper that the Battles were done using. She is hysterical in it and loves it. Thanks Grace and Lydia.

Check out my flickr page to see a video of her in action!

I other news...Adam's sister Sarah and brother-in-law Troy had their first baby on Tuesday. Welcome Malachi Troy Sonnleitner!!! He is the first grandson on Adam's side of the family. The picture is of Grandpa Ed and Malachi.

Dumb and Annoying Products

2009-08-28T15:56:00.014-04:00

My sister sent me a forward yesterday, which I typically do not read, but this one was great. It was from a lady writing to Always (monthly friend pads) in regards to the marketing campaign "Have a Happy Period." Whoever came up with that slogan must have been a man. The last thing a girl wants to see when using a monthly friend product is it to say on the package "Have a Happy Period." There is nothing happy about your monthly friend. WTF marketing people, dumb!

For those of you who have made formula bottles, you know about the little measuring scoop that comes with each container. Well, how annoying is it when they bury the scoop almost all of the way at the bottom of the container, WTF. Lucky I have outsmarted them and saved a scoop from a previous container, annoying!

Long Time

2009-08-13T16:00:00.011-04:00

A lot has been going on since my last post, so here is a run down of a few things. Adam went on a fishing trip to Canada the last week of July. He went with a bunch of guys from his family and had a ton of fun relaxing and fishing all day. I have a new respect for single parents!!!

While Adam was on his trip I spent one of the weekends in New York for his sister Sarah's baby shower. Adam's brother Jerry and family got to see Izzie for the first time. The drive up was not bad and we only had to stop once to feed Izzie. The drive home by myself was another story. It is about a 5 hour drive and I had to stop 6 times before the half way point.

Right after Adam got back from his trip, my cousin Rebecca got married in Columbus. We spent Saturday and Sunday there hanging out with my dad's side of the family.

I know this is gross, but I could not resist posting this picture of Izzie. I call it "oops I crapped my pants." Last night while Adam was at his last softball game, Izzie had a blowout in her pants! She has done this one other time and it is a 2 person job to clean her up. However Adam was not home so I had to take a picture of what he missed. More respect for single parents!

Izzie started to roll over a little last week! I can not believe how fast she is growing. At her four month check-up two weeks ago she was 23 inches and 11lb 8oz. She is looking more and more like Adam everyday!

Garden

2009-07-17T15:12:00.004-04:00

Last night we got to enjoy the fruits or should I say "veggies of our labor." I made a stir-fry with the broccoli and sugar snap peas from our garden. There is nothing like just picked fresh veggies. We have also been enjoying lettuce and cucumbers. I am really excited for my gray pumpkins this year. I have one growing so far that is about as big as my fist. Yah for gardens and a husband who enjoys to garden (he does 99% of the work).

July 4th Weekend

2009-07-07T11:31:00.009-04:00

July 4th weekend was busy but a lot of fun. We started the weekend early and had people over for dinner and a fire on Thursday night. My parents watched Izzie on Friday while Adam and I headed up to The West Side Market and Legacy Village for the afternoon/evening. The West Side Market was crazy busy!!! Adam was looking for some ribs to cook for the 4th but had no luck. The prices were outrageous. I think all the vendors conspired together because of the holiday weekend. We did get some good prices on some produce. I wish we had a market like that in Canton to shop at. We headed over to Beachwood Mall to do some shopping but that was disappointing because everything is over priced there. I love getting a good deal on the clearance rack, but the prices there were even outrageous. We went into this tiny baby boutique and left laughing at the prices, $85 for an outfit that costs 2 cents to make. We ended up eating a really good dinner at the Cheesecake factory.

On Saturday we went over to my parents house for the 4th. My mom bought Izzie a cute 1st 4th of July outfit to wear. The boys did not end up shooting off the usual fireworks because my parent's neighbor sucks and called the cops on us last year!!!

On Sunday we meet up with Joel and Sarah Decker, Brandon, and Amy for lunch. It was a very nice relaxing weekend with friends and family. Here are a few pictures of Izzie from the 4th.

Skelley Reunion

2009-06-25T14:36:00.010-04:00

This past weekend was my dad's side of the family reunion in South Carolina. My aunt and uncle live right on Lake Murray so the weekend consists of jet skiing, swimming, and fishing. They have a pool too, which is nice if you are not a lake swimmer. Izzie had all the essentials for a day in the sun. When we got her in the pool she was not sure what to do. She was ok if I kept her close.

Great Grandma Hilde and Izzie

Adam did some fishing but had no luck catching anything

It was great to get away and relax for the weekend and see all my relatives.

Sad Day

2009-05-28T12:50:00.007-04:00

Today was a very sad day. Izzie got 4 shots at her doctors visit. She was almost asleep when the nurses gave her the rude awakening. Lets just say the whole doctors office could hear her scream. At least we know she has good lungs! I wanted to cry too, but stayed strong. Below is a picture of her with her Dora the Explorer and Barbie bandages.

On a more happy note, we went to New York over Memorial Day weekend to visit Adams' sisters and brother-in-laws. It was our first road trip and Izzie did great. She slept almost the whole 5 hours there. Everyone was right when they tell you you pack more stuff for the baby then yourself. We hung out and relaxed for the weekend. Adam did some mountain biking and we went for a hike on Saturday afternoon. The weather was perfect all weekend long. Below are a few pictures from the weekend.

Sarah and Troy are expecting their first baby in the beginning of September. He will be the first boy on Adam's side of the family.

Reaction to the Cavs

2009-05-28T10:00:00.000-04:00

Yes I know the Cavs are down 3-1 in the series...But this video clip is so funny. News Channel 5 was wrapping up their 11:30 news cast and the Cavs were down with 1 second left on the clock. Watch the whole clip of the reaction of the news guys. Remember they are still on the air. It is hilarious!!!

Where did the weather guy go??? And check out the random guy in the back of the newsroom jumping up and down!

What Izzie Loves

2009-05-14T10:58:00.006-04:00

There are a few things Izzie loves to do so far. The first is sleep. She will sleep just about 5-6 hours a night which means I only have to get up once to feed her. Last week she slept 8 1/2 hours one night!!! She loves to cuddle and take a nap with her uncle Alex.She also loves to take a bath in her "Whale of a Tub". She just sits there and kicks around in the water. It is the cutest thing. She has not cried yet when we give her a bath. "Tummy time" is something she is starting to like too, well only for a little bit though. She is getting really good at holding her head up.

Garden Time

2009-05-05T14:25:00.010-04:00

Adam has started his spring ritual this year with a bang. I guess I should say he started a few months ago. Our friend Clay is a science teacher and he was getting rid of a grow light station from his classroom. Adam jumped at the opportunity to take it and now it is in our basement. He started a bunch of seeds weeks ago and is having luck with his tomatoes for the first time this year. We also have lots of basil growing which I am excited about!!!

Adam's plant growing station

He has also built a new fence around the garden which has expanded even more this year. Hopefully this fence will keep out all the animals and keep Adam from wanting to kill all the bunnies in our back yard.

Adam with his nail gun building the fence

The other addition this year is a new compost bin. We do a ton of composting and Adam built a larger bin for all our yard and food waste.

Izzie is 4 Weeks Old

2009-04-27T20:50:00.009-04:00

Izzie is 4 weeks old now. Boy does time fly by. She is doing good and is up to 7lb 11oz. Her happy play time is in the morning after she wakes up where she loves to kick her legs and dance to music. She is a lot more wide eyed looking around at things and her eyes are getting more blue every day. Last week she got to meet the Elek family and her Grandma and Grandpa Babcock.

Izzie's First Easter

2009-04-12T22:40:00.003-04:00

Doctors Visit

2009-04-07T19:47:00.009-04:00

Elizabeth had her first doctors visit this morning and boy do I wish I had it on video. When we first got there they had me take off all her clothes including her diaper. I knew she would pee once she was naked for more than a minute. She did pee a little while on the scale (she weighs 6lb 4oz now). The nurse had me hold her upright to measure her head and she let everything go!!! She starting peeing all over the table and then she pooped!!! That's my girl. I know people just want to see pictures so here are a few new ones.

Going to visit dad at work

Got to love the cross-eyed look

Introducing Elizabeth Catherine

2009-04-04T22:47:00.007-04:00

On March 30th at 7:45am Adam and I officially became parents. Elizabeth Catherine weighed 6lb 8oz and was 17.5 inches long. My water broke around 12:15am and we headed to the hospital where I labored for 5 hours before they realized she was breech. So I had to have a c-section, which I cried about because I really wanted to try to go natural without drugs and the thought of major surgery scared the hell out of me. Once they realized she was breech everything moved so fast with doctors and nurses running in and out of the room prepping me and Adam for surgery. Adam should be a doctor because he looks really hot in scrubs! Once all was said and done we had ourselves a health little girl with 10 fingers and toes. I think she looks more like me then Adam. We brought her home on Thursday and everything is going great, besides the lack of sleep. Adam slept in til 12:30 on Friday. Below are a few pictures of Izzie. To see more pictures check out our Flickr page.

Because of the way she sat in the womb, she has the signature breech legs that make her look like a little frog.

Rumpus, Rumpus, Rumpus

2009-03-25T19:06:00.004-04:00

My favorite children's book growing up was Where the Wild Things Are. I just found out today that they are making a movie of the book that will be released this October!!! I am so excited, Let the rumpus begin.

Diapers

2009-03-16T20:30:00.006-04:00

Adam and I have decided to use this brand of diapers.
This is so funny (SNL Commercial)

Surprise Baby Shower

2009-03-05T12:41:00.003-05:00

Yesterday my office had a surprise baby shower for Adam and I. My boss said we were going to lunch to talk about all his files before he leaves for a week, so I did not think anything of it. We went to Papa Bears and instead of sitting at a normal table we went to a party room full of my co-workers, Adam, my parents, a few lender reps and appraisers we work with. It was awesome!!! We ate lunch and had ice cream cake. Adam and I got lots of gifts from everyone. We got the baby swing, lots of super cute outfits, and gift cards. It was a great day!!!

Bat in the House

2009-02-28T09:33:00.003-05:00

Last night Adam and I had just finished watching a movie when we both saw something fly around the corner upstairs. I knew right away what it was, a bat!!! Adam moved slowly towards the stairs and it flew right towards me chasing me into the kitchen. I was screaming the whole time and ended up tripping and falling down. We lost the little fellow for a few minutes. Adam went into the kitchen and closed the door because we thought he was in there. When he closed the door the little fellow was on the floor in the dining room facing the wall like he was in time out or something. Great I ended up in the room with the thing. Adam came back with a towel, grabbed it, and ran out of the house to let it go free. I could hear the bat making a high pitch scream the whole time Adam had it. This is the second time this has happened in our house. We forget to close the flue to the fireplace and that is how the bat gets in the house. The first time it happened Adam accidentally killed the bat with one hit with the Swiffer handle. Josh Elek was here to experience that fun!

Nursery Pictures

2009-02-23T18:23:00.006-05:00

Below are a few pictures of the nursery we put together yesterday. We still need to get a small rug for the room along with a few pictures/shelves on the walls. But for the most part everything is done and ready for Baby Babcock.

The extra space in the corner is where the rocker is going to go.

What's In a Name

2009-02-21T14:14:00.003-05:00

So Adam and I are on crunch time with picking a name. Sorry to disappoint you all but we will not be naming her Pepper. However, I think that no matter what we name her, she will have the nickname Pepper for life. We have it narrowed down to the following: Catherine Elizabeth or Elizabeth Catherine (I like the nickname Izzie for this name). Not sure which way we will end up choosing. We still have 5 more weeks to figure it out. Oh crap, writing 5 more weeks to go just made me really nervous!!!

The nursery painting is done and the molding/chair rail are finished too! We are going to put the crib together this weekend and I have already organized most of her things in the closet. I will post some pictures once we are done.

Baby Shower

2009-02-16T19:27:00.016-05:00

Last weekend we had our baby shower with friends and family. We got spoiled with tons of wonderful gifts for Pepper (not her actual name). It was great to have so many of our friends and family come into town to be a part of our big day. My mom and sister were the planners/designers of the shower and my sister really went all out. The theme was "pea in a pod" and she did not stray from that one bit. Here are a few pictures of what she made for the decorations and food. Below is a picture of me with my big belly Sarah Drenik, Sarah Lantz, and Lydia (one of the Battles twins)Rachel Elek made a super cute hat for the baby and we gave it a test run on Grace (the other Battles twin) Thanks to all who came and spent the afternoon celebrating the Babcock baby and for all the wonderful gifts everyone gave us!!! I have a ton more pictures that I am going to put on my Flickr page.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T10:21:00.007-05:00

Adam and I decided to skip gifts for Valentine's Day this year. I asked him last night if we were still skipping gifts and he said yes, so to my surprise when I got up this morning and came downstairs there was a gift on the table with a card addressed to "mom". Adam was still sleeping so I thought I should wait to open it. But I was only able to wait for about an hour before I had to open it. I am now the proud owner of an ipod Nano!!!! We talked about getting one for a while now (I wanted one for when I am in labor). I am just picturing my labor mix right now: a little Enya with some Lord of the Rings soundtrack, mixed in with some Metallica so Adam does not fall asleep. This has been a great Valentine's Day and it is only 10:30am. Hope you all have a Happy Valentine's Day too!

Groundhog Day

2009-02-02T15:46:00.003-05:00

Looks like we are going to have 6 more weeks of winter. By this weeks weather forecast that seems to be right on, more snow and lows around zero.

Weather

2009-01-14T13:06:00.001-05:00

It would not be an Ohio winter without a week like this!!!

What's Happening

2009-01-11T11:08:00.005-05:00

We have been busy, busy, busy lately. Even though the kitchen is done (yes, the kitchen is done) we have still been pretty busy the past few weeks. Adam's whole family came into town the day after Christmas and stayed at our house for the weekend. It was pretty crazy having 13 people in one house, but it was nice to spend some time with everyone. We spent New Years hanging out and playing games with friends. Flippin Frogs was the game of the evening.

As for the start of the new year, I am so busy at work that I am bringing home files to work on in the evening. Interest rates are really low right now so everyone wants to refinance to take advantage of the savings. I can not complain though because so many offices have closed this past year due to the troubled mortgage industry. I am just glad I still have a job.

Adam started a new work out/diet with a friend Clay. They are doing the P90X. They started week 2 today and Adam seems to really be enjoying it. Even though he could barely move last week, he feels a ton better with more energy already. It is a 3 month work out series, so he will be finished right in time for Pepper to arrive.

Adam also starts back to school tomorrow. He is taking 2 classes this semester and working towards his Bachelor in Engineering degree (he currently has an Associates in Engineering). Not sure how he is going to manage 40 hours at work, classes in the evening, and then work outs 6 days a week.

We have Lamaze classes next weekend. Adam is so excited to go to the class (not so much). I am not sure how we are going to keep from laughing at each other. Adam worked on the nursery yesterday since we were pretty much snowed in with 6+ inches of snow. He got all the walls prepped for painting and painted the ceiling. Now all I need to do is pick out paint colors once I get the bedding set shipped to us. Because we have been so busy, time is flying by and I only have 79 more days to go. That is a little scary and exciting at the same time.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-25T14:44:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was Adam's birthday and we went to breakfast with a bunch of friends. Sarah, Wendy, and Jay put together a stocking for Pepper and there was a few treats for all of us in it. Thanks guys, it was so cute. I came home and hung it over the fireplace with our other stockings. Then we went back to work on the kitchen which is just about done. Just putting a few more finishing touches on it before Adam's family comes into town Friday afternoon. For dinner we went over to my parents and made pizza. Adam's pizza was amazing as it always is. He opened a few birthday gifts and we had an ice cream cake that I made. To finish the evening off we watched Christmas Vacation. This morning Adam and I opened up presents. He even got Pepper a few presents! We made pancakes on his new cast iron griddle that he was so excited about getting. Right now we are finishing up the kitchen and then heading over to my parents for dinner and presents.

"The stockings all hung by the chimney with care"

Almost Done

2008-12-16T10:45:00.002-05:00

The kitchen counter tops are being installed as we speak. I am so excited to go home and start organizing everything! And to be able to entertain again. That is one thing I really missed while doing the kitchen update, was having people over. We still have a bunch of minor details left to do, but things are coming together. Some of the important stuff left is to finish wood work, the sink and dishwasher need installed, and the bathroom door needs stained and hung. I have a lot of cleaning and organizing to do in the next week to get everything ready for Christmas. Adam's family comes into town on the 26th so I am really excited for all of them to see what an awesome job he did on the kitchen update. I am going to wait to post some pictures until the kitchen is totally done. So check back for the before and after pictures.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T10:57:00.005-05:00

Boxing in My Belly

2008-11-26T09:08:00.003-05:00

The baby has been a lot more active in my belly these days. When I am sitting at work or relaxing in the evening is when she has her boxing matches in my belly. If you pay attention you can see my belly move, it is so weird. Adam got to see her boxing skills last night for the first time! I have another ultrasound in a few weeks, so I am excited to see her again!

The name game has begun. Adam and I do not agree on any names yet. Most of you know that Adam loves the name Pepper. I think it is cute for a dog, just not a person. If you have any serious name suggestions, I am all ears.

It's a.....

2008-11-11T10:13:00.004-05:00

It's a Girl!!!
Below is a picture from the ultrasound we had this morning.

Introducing baby Babcock (no name picked out yet).

Wedding Weekend

2008-11-10T12:28:00.021-05:00

This past weekend Adam's sister Abbie got married. We headed up to New York on Thursday afternoon for the weekend festivities. We rented a house in Letchworth State Park with Adam's brother Jerry, his wife, and three girls . It was absolutely beautiful there and when we pulled up to the house there were 3 deer in the front yard. It was nice to relax in such a beautiful setting with no TV or computer the whole weekend. There was lots of playing card games with the girls and a game of Settlers that Adam won as usual. Below are a few pictures from the hike we took. The wedding was on Saturday and it was nice to see all of Adam's family. I was the program/quest book girl for the wedding. Adam helped with food prep and was an usher. Our little niece Maya who is 10 months old did the funniest thing at the beginning of the wedding. Once Abbie got down the aisle there was a small second of silence and Maya let our a loud burp because she just got done with her bottle. We all got a good laugh out of it. She is the cutest thing!!! Congrats to Abbie and Adam (yes, her new husband's name is Adam too). Below are a few pictures from the wedding day.

For more pictures from the weekend check out my flickr account.

Election, Gas Prices, and Trip to DC

2008-11-03T20:02:00.003-05:00

This is a very random post. A lot has been going in the Babcock household lately. First off can I just say that I am so glad the election is almost over. I am so sick and tired of all the negative ads out there. I think the worst ads and commercials are for our local people/issues on the ballot. Adam and I voted absentee ballot last week in our pj's.

I was coming home from work today and saw that gas prices are at $1.99 in the Canton area. I could not believe my eyes. I never thought we would see the $1 number appear ever again.

Adam took a trip to Washington DC last Wednesday - Friday for school/work. He went to speak/show what they have done with grant money at Stark State, which has to do with Rolls Royce too, I think. Just a bunch of nerds gathering together I think. He got to visit with our friend Cris and did a little site seeing during his down time. He took some pictures so if you are interested, they are on our Flickr page.

While Adam was in DC, I thought I was going to die. I had severe abdominal pain starting late Wednesday night. It got so bad in the middle of the night I was having trouble breathing. I called my on-call doctor and he acted like it was just the baby bothering my insides or my stomach stretching and to just take some Tylonol. Adam was gone, so I had to drive myself to Walmart on 62 and buy the stupid drugs because we were all out at home. I ended up getting in trouble from my parents and Adam for driving there in the middle of the night (not the safest place to be after dark in Canton). I ended up at my doctors office early the next morning. They concluded that I had a bad infection that was affecting my abdoninal area, but the baby was safe. They gave me an antibiotic and sent me home to rest. I missed work Thursday and Friday and pretty much layed around all weekend very uncomfortable. I am still having some pain, but it has gotten better and I went back to work today.

The kitchen is still coming along. Adam put down the subfloor today so the tile guy can come this weekend and put all the tile down. We have all the lighting now and the last set of cabinets went in a week ago. If all goes well with the tile, we will be able to put the appliances back in the kitchen next week!!!

Snow and Other Stuff

2008-10-27T09:35:00.004-04:00

Our server is down so I can not do much right now at work. I just looked out the window and it is snowing right now!!! This is crazy, snow in October.

Adam got the last section of kitchen cabinets in this weekend. I think they look awesome and the color we picked for the walls looks great with them. We have the counter top guys coming to measure today. My dad and Adam are going to install the 4 new lights we bought this weekend tonight. I feel like we are on track to have everything done by Thanksgiving.

Not sure if I posted earlier about this, but my ultrasound is scheduled for November 11th!!! I added a spot to my blog in the right column where you can vote for if you think it is a boy or a girl. My mom thinks we are having a boy.

What politicians do in their spare time

2008-10-23T16:46:00.008-04:00

What politicians do in their spare time you ask...

I could not stop laughing when I saw this!!!

Kitchen Update

2008-10-20T12:50:00.005-04:00

Here is a kitchen update for those of you who were asking. Before vacation Adam and a friend of ours Jarrod painted one coat on the walls. Then my dad helped Adam install the cabinets in two different sections in the kitchen. He has one more section to go and then the cabinets are for the most part done. There is just a few moldings that need to go up and the handles put on. It is finally coming together. The goal is to have everything completely done by Thanksgiving.

(The refrigerator will go in the open space)

(The stove will go in the open space)

Vacation - Outer Banks

2008-10-19T11:41:00.012-04:00

Adam and I just got back from vacation yesterday in the Outer Banks. We stayed in a really nice 7 bedroom beach house in Southern Shores. My parents, sister, JR, Sean, Julie, and Lucy all came down and stayed for most of the week. We really lucked out with some amazing weather. The highs in October are usually around 70 degrees. But for most of the week the temps were in the low 80's!!! It was great beach weather and even though the water so cold the hot sun made it a little easier to venture in. The highlight of the week (besides relaxing on the beach) was catching crabs. My parents and sister went for a beach walk one night and came back informing us of the crazy amount of big crabs out on the beach. So the guys (Adam, JR, and Sean) decided to go down and catch them. I went along with my sister to watch the craziness that was about to happen. The crabs were very fast and watching 3 big guys try to catch them was the funniest thing ever. Sean had a shovel, Adam had the bucket, and JR the net. I seemed to always end up in the middle of the catch (I had the flashlight) screaming and trying to get out of the way. Once they had enough in the bucket we headed back to the house where they decided to cook them. They cooked one but decided it was not worth it to cook the rest because there was not that much meat on them to eat. Adam let them all go and I assume they all made it back to the beach safely, all except one little guy who decided to go for a swim in our pool. Below are some pictures of the adventure.

It was a really great vacation with lots of much needed relaxing. Now that we are back Adam is back to working on the kitchen. I am going to post an update with pictures soon. For more vacation pictures check out my flickr page.

Cravings

2008-10-08T12:44:00.003-04:00

Most of you know that I am a health nut. People always thought that I would crave a big, juicy steak when I was pregnant (since I do not eat red meat). They always thought that would be really funny. Not so sure about that because I have no idea what a steak or red meat for that matter tastes like. However I do have 1 craving so far that I have indulged in a little. I think it has to do more with the fact that it is a salty food. French fries!!! I got an order of sweet potatoes fries at dinner last week (which are a little better for you) and I also tried some fries from Wendy's last week. I have refused my urges so far when driving past all of the fast food joints in town. Lets see how long that holds up. Adam might have to make some late night trips out for some fries.

Feeling Better

2008-10-03T12:23:00.003-04:00

I started feeling better the other day!!! I still have a few times during the day that I do not feel so good, but for the most part it is a ton better. I had another doctors appointment the other day and all sounds good. They did a bunch of tests and blood work (the usual) and I got to hear the babies heart beat again. Doc says it sounds great. I can not wait until my ultrasound in November!

Adam made a fire last night for the first time this season because it is so cold out. They said it is going to be in the 30's tonight. I am not ready for this weather just yet. And I can not bring myself to turn on the heat just yet. It seems too early to me to be doing that.

Kitchen update: Adam is almost doing with the plaster and sanding. He is going to be doing some painting this weekend if all goes well. It is finally starting to come together. Next after painting is the cabinets!

Expanding Waist and Shrinking Fingers

2008-09-23T12:41:00.004-04:00

Today I am officially 13 weeks pregnant. I am starting to feel a little better, but the morning sickness thing is still there (morning and evenings suck). My pants are starting to get a little tight in the waist now and my fingers are shrinking. I thought you were suppose to retain water during pregnancy that causes swelling, but my wedding ring has almost fallen off more than a few times. The side effects of pregnancy are so weird. I have also been having crazy dreams. Sometimes I will wake up in the middle of the night (mostly to pee) and my heart is racing so fast from my dream that I have a heck of a time falling back to sleep.

Congrats to the Battles family!!!
They welcomed Lydia and Grace to their family last week. Ryan is now officially outnumbered 5 to 1.

Holy Ike

2008-09-16T12:36:00.007-04:00

What was known as hurricane Ike rolled into Canton on Sunday evening. I have never experienced wind like that before, it was crazy. There was some gusts clocked as high as 72 mph. There were trees and power lines down everywhere, along with some electrical fires. We never lost power, however the rest of the neighborhood did and so did my mom. My dad is currently on his way home from fixing the power outages from hurricane Gustav. That is why it is taking so long to restore power, lots of workers out of the state fixing outages from the hurricanes. They say some people could be out of power until Friday. Yesterday my mom and I took most of her freezer stuff to my work to try and salvage what we could. Adam, Jay, and Clay fixed a tree in my parents yard that had fallen over. They also brought the Oldaker's chest freezer over to our house and plugged it in in the garage. I drove around the neighborhood yesterday and took a few pictures of the many trees that were blown over.

Run for Cover

2008-09-12T10:50:00.003-04:00

I have been following hurricane Ike very closely the past few days. My dad is down in the area right now, but in a safe location. He works for Ohio Power and left on September 2nd to fix the power outages from hurricane Gustav. He has been working crazy hours and has been sleeping in army tents and showering in semi-trucks. They have semi trucks that have showers and laundry service in them, that is crazy! At first he was working in New Orleans in the lower 9th Ward. If you know anything about that area, that is not the place you want to be. It is still a mess from hurricane Katrina and not the safest place to be either. My dad said it still smells real bad down there. Ike is now heading towards the Gulf coast and the flooding has already started with Ike still hundreds of miles off shore. Even though Ike is only a 2, they are saying the water surge is going to be more like a category 4 hurricane. Man the gulf coast can never get a break!

I have read a few articles and seen a few news reports about the Red Cross and their financial trouble right now due to all the storms. This is the main reason for my post. They are projected to be 40 million in debt by the time all is said and done with hurricane Gustav and Ike is going to be even worse. Not as many people have been donating to the Red Cross, I think due to the economic state of this country. The thing that makes me really mad is that we can spend millions a day in Iraq supposedly helping the Iraq people (not why I think we are there, but that is another conversation). And we can not even help the people or organizations in our own country. That is the beauty of the good old USA!

"Lipstick on a Pig"

2008-09-11T07:21:00.002-04:00

Lipstick on a pig - "It's a phrase common in the car sales industry, used to describe taking a hunk of junk, brushing on a fresh coat of paint and selling it for full price."

Ok, is anyone else really annoyed at all the political slamming back and forth. I am can not wait until this election is done and over with. The latest slam was done by McCain's camp over a comment that has been used in politics as early as 1985. Below is what Obama said the other day and for some reason McCain's camp said he called Palin a pig.

"You can put lipstick on a pig. It's still a pig. You can wrap up an old fish in a piece of paper and call it change. It's still going to stink after eight years. We've had enough,"

"While campaigning in Iowa in October 2007, Senator John McCain used the popular expression to criticize Hillary Clinton's revamped health care plan, arguing that it wasn't much different from the one she unsuccessfully pushed in 1993. "I think they put some lipstick on the pig, but it's still a pig," he said. McCain brought up the phrase again in May of this year to describe Clinton's health care plan at a town hall in Denver: "I don't like to use this term, but the latest proposal I see is putting lipstick on a pig," he said."

Oh, I see how it is. It is ok for McCain to say the phrase about a democrat female but not for the other way around. People are really starting to stretch for ways to make the other candidate look bad. Can we just have a nice peaceful election that focuses about on all the big issues that this country is facing!

Oh I also included a video of McCain saying the comment for a few of you out there who deny, deny, deny, that McCain can do no wrong.

Kitchen Update and More

2008-09-08T12:26:00.012-04:00

People have been requesting that I post some new pictures of the kitchen progress, so here they are. The electrical and plumbing are finished, and all the drywall is up. We also had the new windows installed last weekend. Adam is working on taping and plastering the drywall right now.
(New window and drywall)

(Back part of kitchen with new window)

(New window in bathroom that is twice the size of the old one)

(Bathroom with finished drywall)

I feel really bad that I am not able to help him, due to all the chemicals and dust in the air because I am PREGNANT!!! Yep, that is the "and more" news. The same weekend we did all the kitchen demo, we found out we were pregnant. I am 11 weeks and feeling like crap most of the time. Mornings and evenings are really bad for me. The highlight so far with being sick has been throwing up in the driveway after work one evening! Thanks Adam for hosing it down the driveway for me! Last week I got to hear the baby's heart beat for the first time. It was awesome and weird at the same time. Look for more baby blogging in the future!

Republican VP

2008-08-29T14:59:00.005-04:00

I read today on the Internet that John McCain has selected Sarah Palin to be his VP. I did a little reading on the Internet about who this lady is and she sounds nice, but not someone I would want running this country. I find the republican choice actually very funny! One of the republican party's attack on Obama's campaign is his lack of experience. Lets face it, John McCain is not getting any younger and he very well may kick the bucket while in office, and who did he choose...Someone who has only been a Governor for 20 months and before that a two-term mayor of a town with a population of 6,500. Talk about lack of experience, let alone any experience with foreign policy or national affairs!!! Not sure this was a wise move for the republicans. With the combination of this and Obama's excellent speech last night, I think it is looking up for him.

I.O.U.S.A.

2008-08-19T16:22:00.002-04:00

This documentary about the United States debt looks very interesting. Glad to see someone is calling the government out on all the debt they have caused.

Paris For President

2008-08-06T21:34:00.007-04:00

Paris Hilton just made a video in retaliation to the commercial John McCain came out with recently. Below is a video clip of John McCain's commercial about Obama's "celebrity status." The commercial in my mind is so stupid. What does his status have anything to do with the problems this country is facing. I think the commercial makes John McCain look stupid for stamping it with his approval.

The next video is so hilarious!!! Maybe McCain should hire her people to do his next commercial. At least it would be funny!

Kitchen Update

2008-07-31T12:30:00.013-04:00

We started the kitchen demo this past weekend with the help of Adam's sister Sarah and her husband Troy. We are just finishing up the final few things and then the demo will be all done. Adam's goal is to have the plumbing and electric finished this weekend/early next week. Once that is done everything else should go pretty quick. Here are a few pictures of what it looks like right now. Yes, it is a little scary!!!

Ceiling and wall in back part of the kitchen

Space where the sink use to be

Ceiling in the kitchen - Pipes that we are re-doing

Where the bathroom use to be with the wall torn out

Funny Parents

2008-07-30T15:41:00.001-04:00

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Harry Potter

2008-07-30T13:14:00.002-04:00

If you are a Harry Potter fan, here you go.

Hail Storm

2008-07-27T22:29:00.006-04:00

We had the craziest hail storm yesterday. All of a sudden the wind picked up and it started to hail golf ball size pieces. Adam's sister and brother-in-law were in town for the weekend to help with demo on the kitchen (more on that later). All our cars have big dents all over them. We have a few holes in our siding on the house too. Adam did some quick thinking and got the camera out to film this crazy weather.

Here is a picture of how big the hail was

Burn After Reading

2008-07-23T12:38:00.002-04:00

This movie looks awesome! This movie is written and directed by the Coen brothers, who did No Country for Old Men. It has a great cast, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton. The best part is Brad Pitt's hair. I think the Coen brothers have a thing for weird hair.

The Tree is Done!!!

2008-07-15T12:15:00.012-04:00

The tree is finally done. Tree guy came yesterday and took the rest of the wood, hung the cable/phone line back on the house, and patched the holes in the drieway. All we need to do now is put some grass seed down where the stump was.

We also finished another summer project over the weekend. We paint the columns on the house and the floor to the porch. It was due for a painting a few years ago. The picture does not do it justice. The columns are super white and you can tell by just driving by that the house looks so much better!

We are starting the big summer project in a few weeks. The kitchen/bathroom remodel is getting underway at the end of the month. Our brother-in-law Troy would like to come and do some demo for his birthday, so we are starting the remodel the weekend they are here to visit. I am a little nervous about the whole thing though. I just hope I am not without a kitchen for more than a few weeks. Cross your fingers everything goes well! I will make sure to take some before and after pictures of the project.

So You Think You Can Dance

2008-07-11T12:56:00.003-04:00

I love the show So You Think You Can Dance. The dancers on the show have to have such talent because they have to learn 2 dances a week, not usually in their normal style of dance. Usually once a season there is an amazing performance, and this season it happened the other night. It is very interesting how they have incorporated other cultural dances into the program.
Below is the clip of Wednesday nights dance.

Tree

2008-07-09T13:26:00.006-04:00

The tree is finally cut down!!! They cut it down last week and now we are waiting for them to come back and cut up the rest of the tree trunk. Not sure how long that will take, but at least it is down. My flower garden is looking better with all the sun it is getting.

Babcock Weekend

2008-07-07T12:37:00.026-04:00

For the 4th of July weekend we headed up to New York to hang out with the Babcock clan. The weather was perfect for the fireworks on Thursday night. On Friday we had a family picnic at his aunt and uncle's house. It was nice to see everyone and catch up and see how big all the kids are getting. Our niece Maya is almost 6 months old and she is the cutest thing!!!

We got to play in the pool with our other nieces Julia and Belle on Friday and Saturday. They love to make silly faces for the camera!

Adam taught the girls how to play Marco-Polo.
Below is a video clip of it.

We had a great time visiting with his family!!!

Bond Is Back

2008-07-01T07:34:00.003-04:00

It's here, the new James Bond trailer. Enjoy!!! Oh and James was at my office yesterday. Well maybe not him, but his Aston Martin was in my parking lot!

Computer Nightmare

2008-06-30T22:48:00.002-04:00

About a month ago our hard drive got fried during a big storm and we had to get a new one for the computer. It took over a week to get the right part from Dell (they sent the wrong part) and the computer back up and running. All was working fine until last Thursday night, we had a terrible storm. We turned the computer off this time before the storm hit. When we turned the computer back on the internet would not work. So on my lunch break on Friday I was on the phone with Time Warner trying to fix the problem. They transferred me to someone in India who told me that the problem was with my computer. So on Saturday I spent another hour on the phone with Dell (someone from India) and they told me that my internet card was bad on the computer. I went out and bought a USB cord to bypass the card and it did not work because I needed the proper software from Time Warner first. I call Time Warner on Sunday to ask about the software and I was on the phone for another hour with tech support. They had me test my internet card and it said it worked fine. So the guy told me to bring in our modem and exchange it for a new one, that it was probably fried during the storm. I went and made the exchange today and Adam spent the better part of the evening on the phone with Time Warner trying to get it to work. What was the conclusion you ask...The internet will only work with the USB cord and if you have to talk to tech support for Dell or Time Warner good luck.

Maxed Out

2008-06-25T07:25:00.005-04:00

I watched another really good documentary the other night, Maxed Out. It is about consumer debt and credit cards. I was a little frustrated after watching it though.

Being in the mortgage industry, we get criticized on a regular basis for the current mortgage/foreclosure problem in this country. I understand that there were some really shady loan officers out there that knowingly put people in loans they could not afford. But what about holding the consumer accountable for there spending habits. It seems like there are articles and news reports everyday about the problem and I have never once heard someone comment on the consumers spending habits that have put them in their situation. It is not my fault that a person bought a really big house and then 2 big SUVs to go in their over-sized garage, and now they can not afford their house payment. It is not the mortgage industries fault that this country has the "keeping up with the Jone's" mentality. I think it is time people stop blaming someone else for their problems and look in the mirror and take responsibility. Ok, I am done venting now. Below is the trailer.

The Business of Being Born

2008-06-24T11:06:00.006-04:00

I watched a new documentary the other day called The Business of Being Born. If you are thinking about having a baby or are already pregnant, I suggest you watch this film. It is about the current situation of having a baby in the US. I know you can not believe everything you hear, read, or see, so I did some research and the information and statistics given in the documentary are right on.

The medical community and the media has made women feel that they are not capable of doing something we were born to do, give birth. Women have been giving birth naturally and healthy for thousands of years. Why since the 1900's have we entrusted this process to an astronomical amount of drugs and doctors who do not even know what a natural birth is actually like? I myself have never had a child, so I can not say that I know how bad the pain is, but my mom gave birth 3 times naturally and I would like to try it too. This documentary did not make me necessarily want to have a child at home, just to be more educated about my options.

Blood Pressure

2008-06-13T10:11:00.003-04:00

My blood pressure has finally gone down this week. It has been a better week than last week. My car got fixed from the accident and Adam spent the better part of the evening on the phone with Dell getting our computer up and running. Next time we buy a computer it will probably not be a Dell. Their customer service is horrible! The tree guy finally called us back and they are suppose to come today. Yes, the tree is still not finished!!! So hopefully they finish up this weekend so we can start the garden before it is too late. The best part is it is Friday and we have nothing planned for this weekend!!!

Bad Week

2008-06-06T16:05:00.006-04:00

Boy, I am glad it is Friday!!! This week has been a little crazy.

1. On Saturday I was mountain biking with some friends at Quail Hollow (Jay's 30th birthday fun) and bit it really bad. I fell onto a rock with all of my weight and bike on my elbow. It hurt so bad I thought it might be broken, but luckily I am ok now. Wendy if you read this, thanks for getting my bike off of me and letting me cry in front of you.

2.We had a power surge early Saturday morning and it fried our computers hard drive. I lost all of my pictures, which I did NOT have saved anywhere else! We ordered a new hard drive from Dell and got it yesterday, but they sent us the wrong one. The hard drive they sent us is about 1/3 the size of our current one and would not fit properly in the computer. So we had to send it back and wait for the right one to arrive.

3. On Tuesday morning I was stopped at a traffic light and a lady hit my back bumper. There was a little damage, so I filed a police report. The cop was a complete ass!!! Adam took the car into the shop and it will only cost about $80 to get it fixed (we do not have to pay to get it fixed though).

So as you can see I am very glad it is Friday!!!

Eco Friendly Purchase

2008-05-28T19:58:00.001-04:00

Adam sold our lawn mower a few weeks ago in hopes of buying an old fashion push mower. Well he got one this past Saturday. It cost a lot less than a regular gas mower. It is also better for the environment and we do not have to buy gas anymore to mow the lawn. Adam likes it because you can get a pretty good work-out using it. I tried it and it is not as hard to push as I thought.

Crazy Fun

2008-05-27T21:42:00.011-04:00

This past weekend was a very busy but very fun holiday weekend! On Friday night I went to my brother Alex's 3 hour choir concert. It was actually really good. More of a play/musical then a bunch of kids in choir robs. Adam's flight was delayed so I did not get to see him until around 11:00 that night once I got home. That night we had people over for some drinks/Settlers. Josh, Rachel, and Norah stayed at our house over the weekend to say goodbye to the Malone gang before they move to Chicago.
-Norah eating avocado for the first time-

-Riding in a baby jogger for the first time-

-This is Josh's doing-

Adam's sister Sarah and her husband Troy also came into town for the weekend. They brought their bikes and we went mountain biking at Quail Hollow. I was scared at first but once I got the hang of it, I had a blast! I can not wait to go again. On Sunday night my parents watched Norah so Josh, Rachel, Troy, Sarah, Adam, and I could go out to eat. I think it was more the other way around though. My mom wanted to watch Norah so we found something to do so she could. She really has grandma fever!!! We had the rest of the Malone gang over for a fire that night too. We just hung out and said our goodbyes on Monday morning/afternoon. Norah had a few diaper blowouts over the weekend so she helped me fold her clothes that needed cleaned.

It was a great weekend hanging out with friends and family!!!

Wipeout

2008-05-23T10:48:00.003-04:00

I saw a commercial last night for Wipeout, a new show on ABC coming in June. This show looks so funny.

Tree

2008-05-21T16:17:00.013-04:00

For those of you who have been to our house, you will know that we have a very very large tree that covers pretty much our whole back yard. We have been kicking around the idea of having it cut down for a few years now, and decided to finally do it. I know it is bad to cut down trees, but here are a few reasons:

1. Very old and might just fall on our house,
garage or the cars one of these days.
2. Pain in the butt in the spring with helicopters
and those stringy things that fall.
3. Pain in the butt in the fall with
tons and tons of leaves and acorns.
4. Too shady for Adam's garden.
5. The tree roots are growing up into the garden from all the watering over the past few years.

The tree guys came yesterday to start the project. A guy that Adam had class with at Stark State has his own tree business, so we decided to go with him. I went home for lunch and watched a little of their process and wanted to stay home for the rest of the day. Because the tree covers a little of the house, the whole garage, and the powers lines, they have to climb the tree and hang from ropes to cut each branch down individually. There seems to be a real science to it. They have to also tie up each branch before the make the cut and slowly direct it to the ground away from power lines, etc. I came home for lunch today and they have not done any work today so here are a few pictures so far. You are probably wondering why I am writing so much about a stupid tree and posting pictures? Well this is the highlight of my week with Adam gone in England right now.

Tree Before They Started

Tree After Wednesdays Work

the office

2008-05-16T16:34:00.005-04:00

All I have to say is how awesome was the ending of the office last night!!!! I was baking cookies last night so I missed most of it, but heard Adam laughing the whole time. He could not stop laughing at the end and would not tell me what happened. So, I went online to NBC and watched the ending. I will not spoil it for you but it has to be the best ending ever.

Click here to watch or re-live the episode.

Exciting News

2008-05-07T09:00:00.000-04:00

It is official!!! Adam finally got the official job offer today from Rolls Royce!!! He gets to go to England for training, I am so jealous. Do not ask me exactly what he will be doing for the company. When I tell people he is working for RR they say "he sells cars", no not cars...something to do with fuel cell processors. We are so excited that he is done with school and has gone right into a job he will enjoy/actually use his degree for this time around. Thanks for your prayers and support over the past two years!