Before Too Long

Before too long, Nina will be able to proudly wear this shirt. This was a gift from her buddies, Lauren and Katelyn Campbell, and we hope that she'll be wearing it one of these days in the next week. Since Mark got home yesterday, we are starting to get things around the house ready for the new baby to come (better late than never), so we'll keep you posted with any news!

20 Months

Nina is 20 months old right now, but will turn 21 months at the end of this week. She and her new brother or sister will be almost exactly the same age difference as Shenley and I, so we think that is going to be a lot of fun for them as they get older. In the video, she's dancing around to her new favorite song. She runs in circles in front of the fireplace because she likes seeing her reflection in the glass.

Hanging Out

Yesterday evening, my mom, dad, and Bo stopped over to have dinner and hang out with Nina and I. Nina spent most of the evening pretty wound up and wanting to run and get chased, but she did get pretty tired out after her bath and relaxed for a few minutes with "Apple Bo" (what she calls him instead of Uncle Bo) on the couch before bed time.

Daddy's Home and Bad Hair Day

Mark had two days home in between trips, and Nina and I were very happy to have him home. It will be sad for us all that he has to leave again tomorrow morning, but Nina has been making the most of his time home and getting in lots of "daddy style" playing (which include all the things her 9 months pregnant mother can't do).

We let her to go bed last night after her bath with wet hair. This lovely style is what resulted.
Believe it or not, this actually is the back of her head. Thankfully, it wasn't as hard to get a brush through as it looks.

Valentine's Day Party

Nina and Emme were treated to quite the party today. The girls were invited to my parents' house where they had a great time at a Valentine's Day party. They made some crafts...

They got flowers, balloons, treat bags, and pink feathered boas...
They got to ice, decorate, and eat their own cupcakes...
Then they changed into "beautiful dresses"...

They put on some finishing touches of high heels and glittery antenna...

Then it was time to say goodbye to the hostess and head home! It was a great party!!!

You've Got to Love an Artist in the Family

My mom spent a lot of time with Nina and I this week, and one of the things she did while she was here was to do some painting in the nursery and in Nina's room. Since Nina is 100% in her new room now for almost a week, we wanted to put some cute touches in there to make it more special. The butterflies and flowers were a perfect combination. As some of you remember, the monkey painting was originally done in our townhouse when Nina was a newborn, but I asked my mom to do it again for the new baby because the nursery just wasn't as cute without our monkey. The video and pictures hardly do justice to how cute the paintings are in person, but I took them to give a general idea of what the rooms are like.

Princess

When Nina and I were over at Shenley and Garland's house for the Super Bowl yesterday, Nina became infatuated with Emme's princess shoes. Shenley was kind enough to send us home with a pair, and Nina doesn't want to take them off. In addition to the shoes, I picked up a princess doll from Target's $1 bin, thinking it would be a cute toy if she liked it and not a waste of money if she didn't. Nina did like the princess doll, however, I know now why it was in the $1 section. The doll becomes dismembered very easily. Nina is constantly saying, "oh no!" and I look and the doll is missing a leg, an arm, or both. Lesson learned: Don't buy dolls from the $1 bin!

Big Girl

Well, she's done it. She's officially in her big girl room now, and we've had two straight days of successful night and nap sleeps. The nap was a big more challenging than night time (which was actually very easy), but I've been proud of her for adapting so easily. She loves her new room, and I'll take some more pictures when I finish getting things decorated.

You Know What They Say About Imitation...

...it is the sincerest form of flattery, and it certainly fits in this case. As I've stated in posts before, Nina loves Cobi. While the love isn't always mutual, Cobi is patient and tolerant with the chasing, loud squealing, etc. My mom captured a cute moment on camera where Nina was imitating Cobi. Their expressions almost seem to match each other!

Equal Treatment - Kind Of

A person doesn't have to know me well to know that I am a die hard U2 fan. I have gone to every concert of theirs in the DC area since I was 15 (that's four concerts), and each has been amazing. The last concert I went to was when I was pregnant with Nina, so as far as I'm concerned, she's been to a concert also. I didn't want this baby to be left out, so when we heard about the U2 3D movie that opened this week, we had to go. This afternoon, Mark and I went to the IMAX Theater downtown and got to experience the show. It was awesome! So, while this baby didn't actually get to experience a live concert, the 3D movie (which is taken from a concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina), was definitely the next best thing!

Baby Boom

The end of February and beginning of March is shaping up to be an interesting time for myself and two friends. My good friend, Jill, who I've known since high school is due with her second child a week before my due date, and my good friend, Kristin, who I've known since JMU, is due with her first child nine days after my due date. Here are Kristin and I at her baby shower that was this weekend.

Where in the World is Mark?

This time of year can be a hard time to track down Mark. With the pre-season getting ready to start, travels are the name of the game. He started his travels with a trip to Ft. Lauderdale, FL for the college combine, stopped home for two days then went to Baltimore, MD for the draft. He had 24 hours home, and since flying out on Saturday and arriving on Sunday, Mark has been in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
He got to experience Brazilian soccer in one of the world's largest stadiums, Estádio do Maracanã.
Just in time for him to polish off learning a few Portugese phrases, he'll be back on his way to the states where he'll be home for a few days then back to Florida for a couple weeks. He'll have one more trip to take before the baby's due date, then if all goes as planned, he'll get to stay home at the beginning of March to be here for the baby's arrival. So, you'll have to understand if he's missing from pictures for awhile, but 'tis the season for travelling.

The Real Thing

Contrary to my last post that involved a little snowfall, today we got the real thing. Nina kept standing by the door and saying, "outside" so I felt like we should get bundled up and enjoy the snow. We walked down the street to see a neighbor's snowman, and she helped me clear some of the driveway (she used a hand spade). We stayed out until the snow turned into freezing rain, and then it was time to come in. We had a good time though.

Snowing

Early this afternoon, the weirdest thing happened. Out of nowhere it started snowing really hard, then it slowed down, stopped, and within an hour the whole thing was done and the sun was brightly shining as if it never snowed. We went out on the deck to experience a little of the fun, and Nina really liked the snow. She was saying "snowing bubbles" which I thought was cute.

19 Months

At 19 months, Nina is really changing a lot. I was just telling my mom yesterday that sometimes she seems so grown up and sometimes she still seems like a baby. I'm still undecided about who she resembles. Some people say she looks like Mark while others say she looks like me. She still loves her blankie, and she also is really into Play Doh, markers, playing with rocks, dogs, and she loves to get chased. We're enjoying this little bit of time left with her before the second one arrives, but we know it will be a good learning experience for Nina to realize she's not always going to be the center of attention!

More Family Pictures

Nina is glad to have her Uncle Bo around a little more these days (we all are), and she was more than happy to try to occupy his attention.

Nina loves to go visit Mousey and Poppy's house!
Seeing Cobi is a huge highlight of my mom and dad's house (although seeing Nina is probably NOT one of Cobi's highlights). At the end of the evening, Nina decided to lay down with Cobi and get some rest.

Family

During the times that Mark is travelling a lot, I am especially glad to have family who are close by. It's great for Nina and I to get a change of scenery (from our house), and she and I both enjoy hanging out with the family.

It's clear why Emme is Nina's favorite playmate. What could not be fascinating about a little girl that dresses in outfits like this?

It was also very clear, as you can see from their faces, that Garland and Poppy were not the least bit distracted by the girls while trying to watch playoff football!

Star Head

The past two days here have been unseasonably warm which is a real treat for us in January. We've spent the past two days maximizing our outdoor time as much as possible. Last evening, Mark was out on the deck cooking dinner on the grill, and Nina was out there with him. She went into the deck box and found some of her pool stars from the summer and decided to wear one on her head. I guess the warm weather causes everyone to feel a little light hearted!

New Year's Realizations

I don't make New Year's resolutions, however, this year I guess I had some realizations (some rather insignificant and some rather significant). As for the insignificant - I realized Nina's hair is now long enough to fit into a pony tail, and when she wears her hair in a pony tail, we think she looks so much different - much more grown up. As one who wears pony tails a lot, realizing that my daughter and I can now wear the same hair style struck me as a bit funny. As for the more significant realization - our second child is due to arrive two months from today, and with Feb. being a short calendar month, things are coming around pretty quickly now. I went for my dr. appt. yesterday, and they reminded me that they'll now be seeing me every two weeks and to be sure I had registered with the hospital for the birth. Yikes! Where has the time gone? Anyway, we've got much to do before baby #2 arrives, both in preparing #1 for #2 and in preparing our home and ourselves for a newborn again, so I guess it's a good thing this year that the New Year's realizations hit when they did! Hopefully 2008 will be a great year for all!!!

Dog Walker

Nina is getting plenty of practice walking a dog (in slippers, by the way) in hopes to have a real one some day. She LOVES dogs, but it might be awhile before we get one as a pet. Until then, the doggie house that she got for Christmas will have to do.