Happy Birthday Grandmother!

October 31st is not Halloween in my house. 

We still buy candy, yes, we wear our orange and black, and we may carve a pumpkin or too...
but it isn't Halloween.

 October 31st is Grandmother's Birthday!

And tonight we celebrated with cheesecake and candles.

And we thanked God for giving us another year together.

Happy Halloween from Pippy & the Pups!

Currently working on my Plans B, C, and D

My irons are in the fire. 

As much as I say I like things to be calm and restful, to stay the same, and just enjoy the simplicity of life. The real truth is I am always looking at the mountain wondering what is on the other side. 

Three cheers for trying something new and embracing the scary.

Pip Pip Hooray!

Family is forever

We have had an amazing visit with Mr. R.'s parents. For us it was a chance to slow down and enjoy afternoon strolls, family dinners, homemade dessert and show off all the little things that Piper can do. Grandmom and Pop-pop Republican watched Pip for us Monday & Tuesday and they got their share of slobbery kisses, raspberries, giggles, growls, and Elmo. 

They say a mother becomes a true grandmother the day she stops noticing the things her children do because she is so enchanted with the wonderful things her grandchildren do. We never thought we would enjoy playing second fiddle so much!

Happy Birthday!

October 25th is a very special day for someone we love very very much.

Happy Birthday to YOU Granny Faye!

We hope there was celebrating, singing, and sweet treats. 

We are so glad that you have adopted us into your family and we look forward to celebrating many more birthday with you!

Someone got a knuckle sandwich at bath time.

 She loves to chew on knuckles and fingers now! And as usual Sophie has to get in on the action. She is not  a fan of her own bath time, but she is more than happy to hang out with Pip while she squeal and splashes. 

Pippy and the straw

You know those crazy tales about how kids prefer the box to their Christmas presents. Well tonight, our daughter ignored all the toys in her diaper bag in favor of my glass of water and plastic straw. 

It's amazing how babies can find magic in the littlest things that we never think about. She was amazed that water comes out of a straw and after one sip she couldn't get enough. I think we created a monster. From now on we will be the couple that splits an entree and asks for 20 straws. 

Hello? Hello? Can you hear me now?

Miss Pip has her first cell phone. It says hello and goodbye, plays music, beeps when you press the keys and rings. On the way to dinner tonight Pip opened her phone and was babbling away. She doesn't know she is supposed to hold it to her ear yet, but she is a pro at dialing and hanging up. Perhaps she will stop trying to steal/eat our phones now :)

Cookie Dough Fondue

 I can't take credit for this amazing recipe, but I can tell you to run to the store buy the ingredients and make it very very soon. It tastes just like cookie dough, but it doesn't contain egg so you don't have to feel guilty about eating it... unless you eat more than your daily caloric intake in cookie dough fondue. (And that is totally possible, trust me. This dip in dangerous!)

Date Night, oh how I have missed you!

Last night Mr. R. and I had date night. It involved make-up, drinks, a trip downtown and... as Barney would say, we SUITED UP! Piper has been in our lives for 5.5 months and this was our first night away from our little one. She cried just a bit when we left the house and I almost took off my heels and called it a night. But she was in the capable hands of my in-laws and Mr. R. insisted that tonight was a now or never kind of date. 

 It wasn't until we arrived downtown, that I realized how much I needed a date night. I needed that time to reconnected with my husband. I needed to have night that was not dictated by a feeding schedule. I needed to have a conversation that didn't revolve around Piper. Don't get me wrong, I love Piper more than life itself, but I also need to miss her every once in a while. 

Elmo Rocks! (No, seriously)

Elmo landed on our doorstep this week, thanks to Mr. R.'s parents and Target.com, and he is not just any old Elmo. Our Elmo comes with drums, a microphone, and a tambourine. 

Who knew Elmo was in a band? I am seriously out of the Sesame Street loop! 

 Pip seems to be entranced by our little red friend so I am pretty sure we will ALL be singing Elmo's songs and saying his phrases very very soon!

She also loves his tambourine. 

It makes a great chew toy!

The Republicans are HERE!

Mr. R's parents arrived in Florida yesterday and Miss Pip is VERY excited. There has been laughing, squealing, lots of playtime. and Elmo even made an appearance. Piper is loving showing off her new skills, such as sticking out her tongue, pulling up her shirt, and making raspberries. I also have competition in the first word department. Mr. R's dad is insisting she say Pop-pop. I am still betting that Mama will be her first word, but it looks like I might have my work cut out for me :) 

 I know it isn't quite holiday season, but with our family gathered around it feels a little bit like Thanksgiving and Christmas rolled into one. Our table looks so much better when all the chairs are full. Our house seems more cheerful and we feel a little more connected to "home". We just love having family here!

Going and going and going

This morning at 5:00 the alarm went off and now at 8:25 I am sitting down and having my first moment of alone time. I am so ready for this weekend! This weekend brings family from far away, a BBQ, two date nights, a three day weekend, and hopefully a haircut. VIVA LA FIN DE SEMANA!

And it was Wednesday.

The temperature has dropped and that means the windows are open, the porch is our new hangout spot, and dinners are eaten outside. I find myself running out of work excitedly anticipating our next family adventure. Today our family of five, (the pups totally count as family members), took off for a two mile jaunt around the big lake. 

 We returned home for book time. (Where books are read and sometimes eaten). And finally we settled in for chicken curry (with eggplant, sweet potatoes, onion, and peppers) and carrots for the Pippy.

Today wasn't particularly exciting, but it was wonderfully predictable.The entire nine months I was pregnant I could not imagine what life with Pip would be like and now that she is here I can't remember what we used to do before her arrival. I feel like we used to be always on the run, playing catch up, and planning for the next big event. And now, I am learning this new phase of my life is not about where we are going or who are are seeing or trying to impress. This new stage is going to be filled with stories, giggles, bedtime rituals, family dinners, and family strolls. I think I like this new stage very much. 

Paleo is the new black.

In the past two weeks it seems like everyone everywhere is going Paleo. Sharon, Darby, the girls at my gym... are all giving the Paleolithic diet a try. I have to admit it peaked my interest, so I researched and read and tossed a few more blogs into my reader.

And this weekend I meal planned, grocery shopped the produce aisle, threw on my apron, and entered my kitchen with much excitement.

 On Sunday I made egg cupcakes. Eggs, zucchini, onion, and spinach with bacon. Easy recipe. And the result resembles Sam I Am's green eggs and ham. I like these a lot and have been eating two daily for breakfast. Mr. R. is pretending he doesn't see them when he looks in the fridge.

 I also made ribs on Sunday. I followed John McCain's seasoning rub (garlic, salt, pepper, and lemons) and placed them in the crock for 7 hours. We ate ours with sweet potatoes with butter and honey.

Monday night brought curried chicken salad over romaine. (I loosely followed this recipe from Paula Deen and this recipe from PW. I used one tablespoon of curry, one apple, one pear, 1/3 cup of craisins, and no mayo).

 Tonight I made steak with smashed broccoli. The steak was actually a freezer find from when my in-laws visited in June. It too was made in the crock-pot and seasoned with white wine, A1 steak sauce, and dijon mustard.  I used this recipe from Stephanie O'Dea as a guide. The smashed broccoli comes from the brain of Tyler Florence and it is definitely worth trying. 

I can't say we are full blown Paleo, but I am trying and the benefit of following a high protein, high veg, low carb diet as that I am getting in ALL of my healthy guidelines for weight watchers. Paleo has me eating more often but I am still under my 31 daily weightwatcher points. I have my weekly weigh in on Saturday so I can fill you in on any pounds lost/gained/or maintained later this week. 

WHOOOOOs ready for fall?

Pip received a few knit hats from my favorite girls back when she was just a tiny bean in my belly. We have been waiting and waiting for these hats to make their debut. And now at 5 months her noggin is big enough to sport her first knit hat. 

And I think she is the cutest little owl in town.

All we need is some cooler weather. 

Come on Mother Nature, my little girl has a new hat to wear!

Friday Night Dinner

with a baby who loves to squeal and sing

with Lisa Loeb and Elizabeth Mitchell singing nursery rhymes in the background

with two dogs underfoot

with pureed sweet potatoes being accepted and rejected and smeared and wiped

with fried rice, General Tso's shrimp, and dumplings

with speaker phone conversations with Grandmom & Grandpop Republican

with tummy time & the letter P

  TGIF!

Happy First Halloween! (from Aunt Nicole)

My BFF sent Pip the most adorable package today!

She wanted to make sure Pip's first Halloween was stellar and she DID NOT disappoint.

Pip was most excited about the pop-up book. As I type this, Pip is still holding onto her book, 4 hours after we first opened it! She is also a fan of the teething ring and baby ora-jel. (I am a sucker for advertising and I love that one was labeled "license to drool".)

Nicole lives almost 800 miles away, but we stay in touch through texts and blogging. She wrote me/Pip the sweetest card and mentioned that she had read we were trying to make our own baby food. In an effort to keep Pippy healthy and organic she also included a BABY MAGIC BULLET. 

I am so grateful to my sweet friend! And I promise we will be going to the farmer's market ASAP and making you proud with all of our healthy choices!

We LOVE you and MISS you Nicole!

Someone is 5 months old!

This little girl is a drama queen!

 She is a smiler, a squealer, and a screamer.

She LOVES attention and will flirt, smile, and coo until she gets your FULL attention.

Piper has officially learned to roll over and today she scooted forward across our bed inchworm style.

Her hair is starting to come in lighter and her eyes continue to change from green to brown to grey. 

Piper loves music and dancing. We often have baby dance parties to nursery rhymes and 80s music before bathtime. 

I am back to running and Pip is a willing participant for my 2.5-3 miler. She loves when the wind goes through her hair and even though we aren't going very fast she loves the ride. It also puts her to sleep for about 20 minutes.

This month has been my favorite thus far. Pip is simply amazing. Her smiles make my day each morning and I literally run out work so I can get home to read her stories, play on the mat, and listen to her babble about her day. Parenting is hard and scary and crazy and most days I think I am doing everything wrong, but then, I look at how perfect and amazing she is and I know now matter what it is worth it.