Ross Ramblings

I finally posted instead of just visiting my blog to read other blogs. :-)

2011-07-10T16:03:00.010-05:00

So, it's been awhile.... again..... I visit this page everyday to get my list of blogs to read, and every day I think I am going to post a new post... alas, it never happens. BUT, I am going to try AGAIN to post at least once a week. In the mean time, here is what we have been up to....

1. My nephew, Logan William Cox, was born on March 11, 2011. I mean, he's almost four months old now... and we love him. Here are a few shots of the lad...

This picture of him and I is taken less than 10 minutes after he was born. It was amazing.

2. WE WENT TO DISNEY! We did end up driving, and it wasn't that bad! We split it up over two days each way, and we rented a car. It made it a little more fun to be in a car that wasn't ours. Isaac called it "his Mickey Car." We stayed on property in All Star Movies, and it was MAGICAL. I know a lot of people think that 2 1/2 is too young to go to Disney World, but I will say that in our case, it was WORTH .IT. He thought EVERYTHING was Magical. NOTHING was wasted on him. He loved the parades, the characters and the rides. It.Was.Amazing. AND for those of you naysayers that say he won't remember that he was even there, I will tell you that EVERY SINGLE TIME a Disney movie starts, and the castle comes on the screen, he will turn to who ever is in the room and say. "I go there."

We did go to all four parks, but there is just something special and magical about the Magic Kingdom. (Plus it was a BEAUTIFUL day while we were there and the pictures turned out great! ;-)

3. On a very very sad note, we lost our beloved Aunt Dede to Breast Cancer on the same day we were awarded the top raising team at the Relay for life event. My Aunt fought her cancer for 11 years... she never gave up her spunky attitude and her zest for life. She was amazing, and we all miss her terribly. This year, we, the team created in her honor, reached the mark of raising $100,000 through out our 8 year involvement. We know she would be so proud.

4. We went on vacation to Belgium!!!! Well, Belgium Wisconsin that is. The water was C.O.L.D. but it was the best beach we have ever been to and Isaac had a great time hanging out in his "sandbox." It was veeeerrryyy relaxing, and who doesn't like an excuse to have a beer while listening to the water lap up on the beach?

5. And last, but certainly not least, I took a new job! I will no longer be a teacher at an Alternative High School. I will now be the Transition Coordinator for the same cooperative that I have worked for since graduation. God is so good to me friends. I don't have to leave the work family that I love so much, but I am able to take the next step in my career. I feel so blessed, and I can't WAIT to start in August. With this new step, Jeff and I are starting our "serious" search for our home, and we can't wait to begin this new and exciting part of our lives!!!

So, buckle up friends, this is about to get interesting! :-)

(And with any luck, you will hear about it before December! :-D)

Disney Dilemma

2011-01-29T23:05:00.004-06:00

Ok, so Jeff and I are going to be married for 10 years this summer....(Hooray for us!) :-)

Isaac is still two and is "free" at Disney... (HOORAY for crazy Disney rule!)

For the two above reasons, plus Isaac is OBSESSED with all things Disney, we decided that this would be a GREAT year for our first family trip to Disney....

Now here is our dilemma: We have a house rented for the end of June. My mother in law, father in law, and my mom are planning on joining us down there. The problem is: after researching flights and park tickets, plus rental cars, and food... this trip will end up costing a bit more than what we had planned on.. PLUS we are hoping that sometime in June we will be closing on a house and moving on out of here...

SO, we started looking at the end of March... (AKA my spring break) Turns out we could stay for five days and four nights for about 12o0 on property (great in my book)... BUT THE FLIGHTS ARE OUTRAGEOUS... adds about 1000 to our trip... so I thought, not a problem, we will drive...

Here come more dilemmas...

1. Jeff absolutely does NOT want to drive. I know that we have driven long distances in the past, but this one is 20 hours... that is a haul... PLUS both our cars have 100,000 miles + on them, and we don't really want to put the miles on them..

Possible solutions.. Divorce. ( i mean, kind of takes the celebration out of it so I guess it's off the table... ;-)) In all honesty, I think if I could prove we could save a considerable amount of money, Jeff would be ok with driving... AND I guess we could rent a car, but if we split driving into two days and stay the night some where, and rent a car....are we REALLY saving that much money by driving?

2. We can cancel the house and only be out 100 dollars, so that isn't the issue... BUT NO ONE ELSE has the same spring break as I do, so Isaac's grandparents wouldn't be able to go... it would be just the three of us... SO, not that that's a HORRID thing, but it does make me a bit sad.

3. Spring break would be cooler, so I think Isaac would do better... Isaac does NOT do hot well.... BUT does it eliminate water parks for us? Maybe....

4. If we go over spring break, we could stay on property... I mean, that would be amazing.... so that is definitely a plus....

AHAHAHAHAHAAHHHHHH!! I just do NOT know what to do! I NEED HELP! What do you think? Have you driven to Disney? Can it be done with a terrible two? Isaac does travel well, but I mean, this might be pushing it....Oh, and don't forget my SIL is due with Logan on March 14th... 2 weeks before we would like to go to Disney....

I DO wish I was there... HELP ME! :-)

So How has it been going?

2011-01-23T20:56:00.003-06:00

So New Years Resolutions are supposed to have like a 80% fail rate by the third week in January... Let us see how mine are coming...

Lose 40 pounds by our Disney Trip.: Well, I HAVE lost ten pounds so far... so I mean that is going pretty well I would say!
Write on this blog WEEKLY. Three weeks in, three blog posts.... so far, SO GOOD!
When I visit a Blog, COMMENT on said blog. I am doing BETTER at this. I have unfortunately been known to check a blog before work thinking I am going to write a comment later, just to never think of it again... but I am getting BETTER.
Participate in the 365 project: 23 Days in, 23 Pictures... CHECK THEM OUT HERE!
BUY A HOUSE. A work in progress....found a few we like... we are re talking to lenders now since our pre approval has lapsed, since too much time has gone by....
Run a Race. I am training with the couch to 5k program, and I am going to start week three tomorrow!! WOOT!
Learn to say NO. Not so good... working on it...............

How are your resolutions coming a long?!

Getting a Baby Fix with out losing sleep...

2011-01-17T09:15:00.015-06:00

There is nothing better than getting your baby fix and handing the baby back over to the mom... I mean, getting your baby fix and your sleep... it's a beautiful thing... This week, we were all busy getting ready for a baby shower for Kati, Aaron and of course my new NEPHEW Logan...

The invites were made via Shutterfly... I mean, I love that site...
Then, there was LOTS of food to prepare...
The cake was made by good ole Auntie Jewel, but Jessica (Bryan's girlfriend) came through and made these GLORIOUS Trifle desserts... (I am not sure if that is what is called, but it is a party in your mouth...) each one had a little charm and ribbon at the bottom. SO thoughtful and cute!!

Here is the "core four" of us before the party got started....

Of course, there were fun decorations... (the diaper cake I made myself!)

Good company, games, and of course presents....

But, in the end, it was really celebrating two people we love so much, become a family of three...
It is such an exciting time and I can not WAIT to meet this little bundle of joy! Tune in next week friends when we see how those pesky new years resolutions are doing!

The great idea...

2011-01-09T07:27:00.008-06:00

So most of you know, that on Veterans Day, I got the grand idea to start a project. Those of you who know and love me, know that starting projects is not that unusual for me... but what IS unusual is finishing it... ON TIME...

So what is this top secret project I was working on? Well my dear bloggy readers, it was this...
What in Sam Hell is that, you ask? Well, it is a blanket for my FIRST nephew... this little guy...
Log@n Willi@m Cox will be making his debut in March, and I knew as soon as we found out that he was coming this July, that I wanted to MAKE something for him from just ME.
My sister in law, Kati, and I have always been extremely close. (I mean like whoah.) We majored in the same subject, talked daily (I mean she did live two doors away), and worked in the same cooperative. The boys (Jeff and Aaron) worked together and Aaron and I had worked together for a year as well. In 2007, we went on vacation just the four of us to Tybee Island Georgia. We had all talked about how this would be our last "child free" vacation... as we had all decided to start trying to start our families.
In January 2008, I found out that I was pregnant with Isaac...In February 2008, Kati and Aaron found out that,because of medical issues, it would be very difficult for them to conceive a child. It was devestating news to me, so I can only IMAGINE what it must have felt like for them. The following months were difficult; Kati and Aaron were trying to figure out what to do, and Jeff and I were trying to prepare for Isaac. The ONE thing on my mind that I wanted to talk about was the ONE topic that brought heart ache to those I love so much. Jeff and I moved in with my mom, and Kati and Aaron stayed in Diamond (where we all lived)... and things between Kati and I were strained. I KNOW she was happy for me, and I KNOW that she loved me, but we didn't SHARE this, and it was REALLY hard on both of us....
The next years were full of treatments for Kati. They tried a variety of fertility treatments, and after two years of treatments, the second IVF was what finally produced our beautiful nephew. Now we feel is our time to CELEBRATE and SHARE and I could not be more excited!! We are finally getting our groove back, and it feels.so.good.

With every stitch of this blanket, I prayed for a healthy son for Kati and Aaron. That Logan would bring them much joy and remind them that God DOES have a plan... but sometimes, we have to wait to see what that is....
By the expression on their faces...

and the placement in the nursery...

I'd say my mission was accomplished. :-)
I can't wait to meet you Logan. Your Auntie Kate already loves you SO MUCH!

Resoultions for 2011

2011-01-01T12:43:00.002-06:00

I mean the post is pretty well self explanatory. I am infamous for setting these pesky things and not following through, but I am hoping that by writing them down, I will actually accomplish them... so here it goes... in random order.

Lose 40 pounds by our Disney Trip.We are going in June, and I expect to lose much more than that, BUT at the bare minimum, I want to lose 40 pounds.
Write on this blog WEEKLY. I would love to write on here more often, but running after Isaac and working full time doesn't really lend itself to blogging everyday. I think that I can get at least ONE post out a week
When I visit a Blog, COMMENT on said blog. I for one HATE coming to my blog and seeing no love. I can tell by my wee handie people counter that I have had plenty of visitors to said blog, but when no one comments, it is hard to say who is really here. Unfortunately, I am just as bad. I often stop by with out saying hello, so when I visit a blog, I WILL COMMENT.
Participate in the 365 project. Jeff and I will be married 10 years this year.. ( I KNOW it's crazy!!) and I thought it would be fun to do this. Basically you take a picture everyday and post it. (When I get into it, I will post a link) I think it will be neato to see what our tenth year of marriage looked like in 10 years!
BUY A HOUSE. We are actually looking into this now. There are a few options out there that we are considering, so we need to see what works out for us. The ultimate goal is to be in our own house by Isaacs birthday and to have his party there!
Run a Race. I mean for those of you who know me in real life, you realize that this is a hilarious goal because 1. I am in NO shape to be running and 2. I think the only time you should be running is when you are running AWAY from something harmful, or TO something awesome. A few of my friends ran the Hot Chocolate 5k in Chicago this year, and I think that I can get in shape enough to run that race... I mean, running toward chocolate? I'm in.
Learn to say NO. I can not do it all. I want to... I mean I REALLY want to... but I just can't. I find myself saying yes to things when in my head I am thinking, "this is never going to happen! I don't have time for this!" Then, I end up either falling through (which no one likes), doing it half assed, (Which I can't STAND), or doing it full blown while 10 other projects go to the wayside... I just need to learn that sometimes, it's ok to say no... and those who matter won't mind, and those who mind, don't matter. (thank you Dr. Seuss)

I think that about does it. Every month, I will do a quick recap of where I am at, and see if writing it down for the world to see makes a heap of difference! I guess time will tell! I hope you all have a wonderful New Year! See you in a week!! :-)

2010... see ya!

2010-12-31T22:57:00.028-06:00

Hey ya friends! Tis the season to recap our year, and discuss what my "resolutions" are for next year...

WELL.. I mean, lucky for you my year was SUPER BORING. I mean, of COURSE we did amazing things with Isaac... his year was AWESOME.

January:

Headed to IOWA to watch his FAVORITE real life GLEE show Choir, MANTENO MAGIC. My sister Kassy is the director there, and let me tell you, if you are wanting to see some high school kids doing amazing things, go to a Show Choir competition... I mean, it really is amazing.February:
Isaac turned 18 months old. I mean, HOW DID HE GET SO OLD? This was the first time we went to Cathy Whalen for our pictures, and let me tell you, we will NEVER go anywhere else.

Also, my sister turned twenty something... and my sister in law celebrated the big 30!!

March:
I had a birthday, but the best part of this month was the FREAKISHLY warm weather! It was so nice, we were able to go outside quite a bit which is a GODSEND for a toddler who just wants to run around!
April:
The nice weather continued and we were able to head out to the zoo and outside some more! OH and don't forget... WHITE SOX SEASON started!
May:
My brother turned the big 30 so we headed out to Nebraska to help him celebrate in style!
While we were there, we also headed out to a nearby waterpark which Isaac LOVED. This kid is a FISH!

June:
Was my mom's 60th birthday and we celebrated with a bash in her honor. Isaac had his first set of swim lessons, and just like we thought, he LOVED them! We also had our family vacation in the Ozarks. It was a lot of fun!

July
In July, we went and visited our family in Ohio and Isaac rode his VERY FIRST Jet Ski. Just for the record, Isaac and I had our first ride on a jet ski on the very same day. When we got back, we also had fun hanging out with various family members at the water.... but the most EXCITING news was that Isaac was going to have a cousin... Kati and Aaron were PREGNANT!

August:
Isaac celebrated his second birthday FOUR TIMES in August. Because of family circumstances, we were just a celebrating machine! Now Isaac thinks EVERYONE gets an Nelmo cake for their birthday... even Jesus on Christmas...

September:
Over Labor Day weekend, Isaac saw his first movie in the movie theater.. Toy Story 3! He did AMAZING. He loved seeing "HIS Woody and Buzz" on the screen! Chris and Jackie were married on 9.18.10. It was a really nice wedding and we had a ball! We also made our annual trip to Dollingers Farm and got our pumpkins!
WOW this post is getting SO LONG... so I will leave you with the last few months in pictures only... I think you can fill in the blanks!
The resoultions will have to wait until next post... and don't worry... the surprise gift that I FINALLY got done for Christmas will soon be revealed as well! I wish all of you a peaceful new year full of the laughter and love!

It is a Christmas Miracle!

2010-12-11T14:08:00.004-06:00

This may look like an ordinary Christmas tree to you.....

But to ME?!?

It is a Christmas Miracle!!

For underneath that wee tree, lies a present for someone very special... that was made by these two hands...AND WAS COMPLETED BEFORE CHRISTMAS!! ::insert Hallelujah! Song here::

I mean, really what else is there to say? :-)

It was a REALLY good idea when I started...

2010-12-01T21:18:00.002-06:00

I mean, have you ever started a project, only to be half way in and think..

WHY THE *#(*$ did I start this DARN THING?

Well, insert my beautiful mug here cause I am FRUSTRATED. I am in the middle of this project thing that I started for some one I love very much.. (and may or may not be reading this blog so I can not disclose who or what it is...)

I started it over Veterans Day when I had no school, no distractions (Isaac went to Day care) and I was super motivated...

NOW I am in school, Isaac is home when I am working on it, and I feel like it is NEVER GOING TO END...

When I am at work I find myself thinking: "Self, when you get home, you are going to work on that awesome project. It will be fun, relaxing, and you will be so satisfied when it gets done." I get ultra motivated and find myself actually LOOKING FORWARD to working on it...
cut to five hours later when I actually get home when I find myself thinking: "Self, you are a crazy fool to think this was a good idea. Now go get that crazy toddler having a meltdown a freaking glass of water, and be happy that bed time is a mere 3 hours away!!"

Now, I would like to get this wonderful project done by Christmas... I mean that is the goal... but if I don't, well, I guess it would make a great Birthday/Anniversary/Happy fourth of July gift as well.

Oye. It was such a GREAT idea on Veterans Day.

Naughty Watch

2010-11-29T21:04:00.004-06:00

I mean, there isn't much to say expect that Isaac is fully engrossed into his terrible twos. He LOVES the word NO, and tells me on a daily basis to "go away". While part of me thinks it's cute, I would be totally lying if it didn't hurt just a wee bit...

Of course what is a mamma to do? I mean, I'm just a mommma! Oh, see this is where you would be wrong my friends. Not only am I a momma, I am a momma that has friends with cool ideas... and I steal them ALL.THE.TIME.

Enter in Santa.

This little gem of a website let's you enter in all types of fun things about your kids and creates a fun little video just for your wee one.

Today, Santa warned Sir Isaac that he better start listening to his parents or he might end up on the Naughty list!!! When Isaac watched it, he was SO EXCITED to hear Santa say his name (which he does twice) that when Santa got to the part where he told Isaac he was on the Naughty watch list, Isaac promptly pointed to the screen and said "NO TANTA!"

I mean, at least Santa and I are in the same boat.

A hoobie on a whatie?!?

2010-11-27T23:23:00.004-06:00

SO, as everyone knows, or most know, I am addicted to Christmas. Everything Christmas actually. I love the music, the lights, the gift giving, the family togetherness, but most of all I love the TRADITION of it all. I was blessed to have a wonderful childhood, and I carry most of the traditions forward to Isaac, with a little Ross flair... hence this little guy...
He is the newest addition to our Ross Family tradition. For those of you who may not know what this little guy is, he is a little magical elf that comes to your house around Thanksgiving and hangs out on a shelf, or other hidden area, to watch said children and report to Santa. Every morning, then, (of COURSE) he is in a new spot resting from his night time of travel. I mean, I can't even WAIT to see what Isaac thinks of this guy! Santa left the kit (complete with book and Elf) under Isaac's tree tonight, so tomorrow should be a fun morning!
Has anyone else out there done this tradition? I am trying to think of ways to make it more "ours" as well... like taking a picture of his hiding place every day, or perhaps creating a scrap book... I am just not sure yet.
Isaac makes this time so magical, and it lasts for so short of a time... I want to savor each second I have!
So what are your family traditions?

Oh Christmas Card... Oh Christmas Card!

2010-11-17T20:00:00.007-06:00

Christmas is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER... well, maybe not that close, but IT.IS.COMING! And with the holidays lurking , it's time for the Christmas Card design of fun! Jeff and I have done photo cards from Shutterfly our entire married life, but in the past, it has just been him and I... then, in 2008, we had a new addition...

Then, the next year Shutterfly started carrying some fun whimsical designs so we went with one of those!
Now this year, we had a TONS of photos taken with our friend Cathy at Photography by Cathy, but the wedding pictures that she took from my brother in laws wedding seemed to fit best with this card...
BUT is that what we chose?!!? Could we possible leave out all the other great pictures BEHIND?!
Stay tuned to a mailbox near you!!!

PS. For sure check out all the cards Shutterfly has to offer along with all the other fun things... and bloggers, check out a chance to win 50 Free Cards!

Two Years later...

2010-08-06T12:19:00.012-05:00

So last week, I posted about how we were preparing a space for Isaac in his beautiful little nursery.... Well... two years later, this is what life has turned into...

The crib has been transformed into a toddler bed, and his cute swing has been exchanged for a toy organizer which is
1. Never organized
2. Hardly ever full since the toys are on the ground.

The super organized closet has flew the coop as well. If you look, there are tags everywhere! He grows so fast that I can't keep up! I was going to organize this better before I took the picture, but in reality, the books would have been back on the floor before I could have taken the picture.
His changing area has stayed pretty much the same with the exception that we added his puzzle rack to the area since when it was in his reach all the puzzle pieces went EVERY WHERE so that was no bueno. Also if I could go back in time, I would tell my self that the cute antique plane is great until about three months ago... when now he wants to play with ...now it's a WEAPON. So instead of being cute, it is now a reason for a crying fit. Oye.

When Jeff and I found out we were pregnant with a boy, we went around looking for the perfect nursery theme for our little guy. We finally decided on airplanes, and piece mealed a design that met our needs...(cheap and cute) I shopped Pottery Barn Kids CLEARANCE and found a mobile that set the whole theme in motion. So, when we painted, we had blue for the sky and rolling light green hills on the bottom....My sister added hand painted airplanes to the sky that "flew" around the custom quote I had made from Upper Case living. The quote goes around his room and says
"Let me sing for joy, let me play in the sunshine, let me grow in the light, let me dance in the rain, and remember the days of childhood forever."

The quote and airplanes are still there, but the hills have come alive with none other than Thomas the Tank engine!
Although Isaac's room has undergone quite the transformation... wait until you see the transformation that has come over Isaac himself!!!

A walk down memory lane.....

2010-07-23T22:44:00.009-05:00

Since Isaac was born (two years ago) each time we pass this time of year, (once before) I find myself remembering the excitement and anticipation of becoming a first time mom...

Having our first shower...

My father in law and I at our shower... one of the ONLY pregnant pictures of me that is out there...

Getting the nursery ready...

We went for blue and light green as colors... and airplanes as a theme....

Washing and organizing all the little clothes...

All organized by size, not a tag in sight! (because they were all pre-washed in Dreft of course!)

All to prepare for this little guys arrival....

Ready to come home...

Stay tuned... because two years later.... you won't recognize the place!

Test Test... is this thing on?

2010-07-20T14:19:00.002-05:00

Ok, ok ok....

I know I have been gone a lllllllllllllooooooonnnngggg time. Is any one out there still reading this? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

Would it help if I had a give away? Or perhaps a BLOG SALE?!? I mean, I have about 20 Seasons of things I would like to purge... hummmmmmm......

Are you out there? What do you think?

I told you he loved that guy..... :-)

The Birthday Countdown!

2010-07-17T19:16:00.006-05:00

That's right everyone.... our little guy is going to turn TWO in a few short weeks! We aren't having a big blow out this year... just a quiet day with mommy and daddy... we are going to have dinner that night with Auntie KK and Grammy and a special celebrations later with Papa and Grandma.... AND a fun day with Grandpa Krause ... I mean, he's a spoiled kid! :-) But now, it's what to get the lil dude... Any ideas?

We were thinking maybe a train set...

Or a fun new bike

Or his own car...
Any ideas? I need some help friends!!! What do you think? (For additional info, he is also IN LOVE with this guy....

Until the next time friends! HELP! :-)

COHEN.

2010-07-01T08:29:00.002-05:00

Blog Silence for Cohen..

Bad Mommy Blogger... BAD!

2010-07-01T08:00:00.006-05:00

Hello out there! (If anyone is left out there!)

Sorry that we have been MIA for soooooooo long. It seems as though life gets ahead of you, and before you know it, its been ohhhhh three or so months since your last post... OOPS!

Anyhoo, life around our parts has been BUSY!!! Isaac is talking, running, and swimming his little heart out, and us? Well, we are chasing him ALL THE TIME.

Here are some highlights:

We took Isaac to Omaha Nebraska to celebrate Uncle Kent's 30th Birthday. We went to a fountain park, a water park and the Omaha Zoo. If you have never been to the Omaha zoo, I HIGHLY recommend it. I mean Brookfield Zoo is nice, but the Omaha Zoo is AMAZING. Here is photographic evidence of the amazingness...
Anyways, after our trip to the Omaha Zoo, we came home to get ready for Relay for Life! This year our team hit a new fundraising goal of over $21,000... it was AMAZING. Although the weather started off rough, it cleared up in the end and was a great experience as always...

Next up on this summer's agenda was a party for my mom's 60th BIRTHDAY! That's right 60!! IT was cleaning and organizing central, as my mom just had hardwood floors put in, and as most people know, one project NEVER goes the way you think it will... however, much fun was had by all!

Father's day was next on the agenda. We spent the morning at the All Aboard Diner in Downers Grove. I mean it was Isaac's DREAM COME TRUE. HE LOVED it. The food comes on a train, and there is a train up above you and basically trains EVERYWHERE. The food was great, and the company even better! We had a great time and we will be going back AGAIN!

After a nice brunch, we headed over to my dads for some bonding time. We were supposed to go swimming, but the weather did NOT cooperate. SO it was a good thing we got some swim time in earlier in the week. I mean this kid is a FISH.

Well my friends, that brings us up to date! I can't wait to post about our vacation to the Ozarks... stay tuned~ I promise, it won't be another long wait! ;-)

Wordless What have we been up to?

2010-03-25T10:59:00.008-05:00

I believe in Magic!

2010-01-25T11:48:00.001-06:00

So this past weekend, we all packed up the car and headed to beautiful ole Davenport Iowa...
Kent and Christa drove there to meet us, so we were all there, and it was really nice. We of course were there to support my sister and the Manteno Magic in their competition at the Big Dance!

We all stayed at the same hotel, so it was easy to spend a lot of quality time together. One of the funniest thing about Isaac is that he is DEATHLY afraid of elevators. So much in fact, that he doesn't even want to go NEAR them. The picture below is him standing right before the elevator door waiting for us to go get him. He wouldn't even walk past them unless we were right next to him or holding him.... (forgive the picture, we didn't stay in the same hotel as the shining, my flash didn't go off...)

We went swimming of course, because Isaac LOVES the water! I can hardly WAIT for the summer! He is going to be one happy baby!
After some hotel fun, we were off to the competition! I was really nervous about how Isaac was going to handle all the commotion, as well as all the time sitting and not running around, but he did AWESOME! He loved all the choirs, and really got into the spirit of the thing and started clapping when the kids were clapping, it was SO CUTE. Of course Auntie KK made him a new shirt for the occasion which read: Future of Manteno Magic: 2023...

He did so well, and made it ALLLLLLLL the way to midnight to see that Manteno had won fourth place in the competition!
We had such a wonderful time spending time with Family... (and adopting Michael of course) That we now want to see EVERY Magic competition... I mean, it's like living out our very own version of Glee...

.

I'm a big Kid now

2010-01-22T09:21:00.002-06:00

So big news round theses parts....
Isaac is sleeping in his toddler bed. So far, it hasn't been awful. He does come to the gate and cry Momma! But, it is getting better, especially after the baby boot camp that my friends at work gave me.... apparently, I have to let Isaac cry more and get him less... makes my heart sad, but last night, HE SLEPT TILL 6:30am... WHICH is a huge improvement from the 4:30 am wake up call we were normally getting. This weekend we are going on a family trip to Davenport Iowa to watch the Manteno Magic perform! Can't wait! Stay tuned for pictures and a recap!

Two Years...

2010-01-04T20:38:00.005-06:00

So what is two years really? I mean, at the beginning of our marriage, two years went by in a flash, and nothing really changed for us.

We were still living in our first apartment
We were working our first "real people" jobs
And we enjoying our time as newly weds...

Well, in the past two years LOTS of things have changed... because two years ago today I found out Isaac was on his way!

It was the first time I ever wanted to puke and celebrate at the first time. I remember having the thought that I couldn't believe I was actually going to be a mother, followed almost immediately by the thought that this baby was going to have to come out of me some how... (gulp)..

Some people say that you become a mother when you hold your baby in your arms; I would have to respectfully disagree. On January 4th, 2008, I became a mom. I will never forget it... the responsibility, the amazement, and the love... ahhhh the love! Isaac was but a wee peanut but my heart did not understand that. He was my baby, and on January 4th, I fell in love. I love you Isaac Robert.... and today is our anniversary. The day I found out about you, and the day that "I" became a we.

Talking talking talking

2010-01-03T15:50:00.006-06:00

Look at me friends!! Two days in a row!

ANY HOO..... one thing I forgot to mention yesterday was that Isaac is beginning to talk. Here is a run down of what he can say so far...

Toot Toot
Momma
Dadda
Cracker
Car
Down
Done
Chicken Nuggets (well he can't really say "Chicken Nugget" as much as make the voice inflection)
AND
Grandpa....Now at home, and (according to Grammy) in the car, Isaac says Grandpa alot. NOW when you ASK him to say it, he will NOT do it... that is until I tricked him one December day... listen closely to the first part of the video...(and ignore the mess in the background...we had all been sick...)

I love that he is growing up into such a fun kid, but part of me misses my wee babe... where does the time go?!?!

Well friends, until next time... take care!

2010... are you sure?!

2010-01-02T11:23:00.010-06:00

Hello friends and family!
I am so sorry that there has been such a lull in postings! I hadn't realized how behind I had been until my Aunt Chrissie said something yesterday that there hadn't been a real post since his birthday! Ooopsie... hopefully I will get better this year!

So what's going on with the Ross's? Well, let's see....

Isaac is walking and CONSTANTLY on the go. Much like Forest Gump, if he is going some where he is runnin....

He loves the snow. I mean LOVES it. He loves looking at it and being in it. The other day, it had snowed quite a bit, and we took him sledding, and OH MY, I thought we were going to have to leave him there!
Of course Christmas this year was a HUGE success. Isaac has a very limited understanding of what everything is about, but he LOVES the Christmas tree, and of course getting presents....
This Christmas was full of love and laughter as Isaac was able to meet his Great Grandma and Grandpa Downing...

And visit his Great Grandma and Grandpap Ross
Isaac was supposed to be able to visit all his great grandparents this year at Christmas, but GG died unexpectedly a week before Christmas. Although very sudden, I know she is happy spending Christmas with Great Grandpa Krause this year...
So, that brings us to the new year! We are so excited to see what this year brings... Jeff and I will begin searching for our dream home, and hopefully with prayers and guidance we will find it AND be able to afford it! :-)
I promise to be better about updating so bookmark us and let the new year BEGIN!

What a difference a year makes...

2009-09-08T22:04:00.010-05:00

I know we have been MIA for a while...

But we have been BUSY!

After Isaac's first birthday party, it was time to get ready for Isaac's first day of Day care!
Isaac goes to the same place where Daddy works... I think Daddy was more nervous than Isaac... Daddy doesn't deal well when Isaac is upset....BUT no worries, Isaac LOVES day care and he is FINALLY starting to NAP well there too!

We also took some time and went to The DuPage Children's Museum, which Isaac also loved. I wasn't sure what to expect, you know since Isaac is only one and all, but there was SO much to do there, and he TRIED IT ALL! He really loved it. AND we loved letting him play knowing that he could explore everything there!

Of course since Isaac turned one, he had his one year check up, and here are his stats as of now...

Height: 32" (97 percentile)
Weight: 22 pounds 10 ounces (47th percentile)
Doctor Hart was very pleased with everything and gave us a clean bill of health! He did fairly well with shots this time, and only had a minor meltdown!
Of course we had one year pictures taken, and they all turned out cute (although I may be biased) this is one of my favorites!!

But what has REALLY been eating my time, well besides a walking Isaac, is SLIDE TRANSFERRING. OYE. I have been taking our old family slides and converting them to digital images for our family. It takes SO much time, but it has been such a blessing. I found pictures of my grandparents, our family, cousins, and so much more. I will leave you with a sampling here.

Well, hopefully this finds you all happy and healthy! As for us, we will hopefully be on here soon to update you on all our fall adventures!

A few birthday photo's of fun!

2009-08-09T20:27:00.010-05:00

On Saturday we had a wonderful first birthday on Isaac's ACTUAL first birthday... It was at Isaac's Grandma and Grandpap Ross's house and it COULD NOT have been any nicer. Auntie Kati and Uncle Aaron put in ALOT of extra work too, to make it nice for our lil guy. It is ridiculous how wonderful our family is. Isaac, Jeff and I are so lucky to have people who love us so much to go OUT of their way to make the day special for Isaac...Here are some highlights...

Here is Isaac in the house that Mommy and Daddy got him!

Mommy and Isaac on the big day!

Our photo shoot went hay wire...

He hung out with family...

We opened presents...

And of COURSE we had CAKE!

It was a wonderful day, and a blessing to share it with those we love. My cup runneth over.

Seriously!?

2009-08-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

So let's review..

I was pregnant
Everyone knew
I had complications in the first trimester
and don't forget about the crappy strike
We were having a boy
The umbilical cord only had one artery instead of two
I had a SLEW of tests..
My water broke while eating a snack size kit kat... five weeks early.

PHEW! That's a lot!

OK

So, by the time we got to the hospital, it was like 2:00am. They hooked me up, and checked me and I was already FOUR CENTIMETERS dilated and 100% effaced. The nurse said, "I bet you we have a baby by seven am...oh, from her lips to God's ears!

I was monitored, and Jeff, my mom, sister and I tried to relax. My cousin, who had been at the Bears game with my sister, also decided to join us... and was ditching work to be there... she arrived at 4am.

Well, at five am, I was checked and I was only at like a 4.5, so they decided to start Pitocin. I also didn't think I was having any contractions. I mean, I was crampy, but nothing awful. So they hooked up a monitor thingie to see how strong my contractions were... apparently I was having VERY strong contractions, and my "farts and sunshine" doctor SHOCKED! He told me that I would certainly deliver THAT DAY, and that because I was five weeks early, that the baby might need to be air lifted to Loyola where they could monitor him further...This panicked me on three levels... first, we didn't even DRIVE to the hospital, so how could we follow if this happened, two, I was SO worried that if this happened I wouldn't be able to go right away. and THREE this is my HAPPY GO LUCKY doctor, and he was not happy NOR go lucky... he was ALL business..I tried not to think about it...

So, the day goes on... seven am comes and goes... and still no baby. At this point the Pitocin had for SURE started I was having some pretty severe contractions... the actual contractions weren't awful, but they were coming RIGHT on top of each other... so at nine am after 8 hours of labor, I had the GLORIOUS epidural. I mean, I am really amazed at people who can go with out it... but I don't know why you would... it makes the experience so much nicer...SO even MORE time goes by ...eleven am comes and goes, two pm, three, four, I mean we were getting anxious!

My sister passed the time by trying to "make me over"... she thought I looked great... I was NOT as certain...

We also watched all the coverage of the opening of the Olympics which were happening THAT night....

So it was six o'clock, and I would NOT dilate to ten cm. I was STUCK at nine. The doctor decided that I could try pushing anyway since he thought that the baby would probably make it through, and since he was early, it was better to have a vaginal birth to "stimulate" the babies breathing.

So, everyone but Jeff left, and I was ready to push. I pushed for three sets of pushes with just my nurse Carrie (who was SO NICE) and then she went and got the rest of the crew...

I started to get nervous because when I was actually ready for delivery, there were ALOT of people in the room. It was Dr. Toussaint, (my doctor) two nurses for me, and THREE nurses for Isaac... they explained to me that once he was delivered, if he was stable enough, they would show him to me after they evaluated him.... talk about stressful.

So, Dr. Toussiant came in and set down his coffee... I pushed for three sets of pushes, and at seven PM, only after an hour of pushing ... and really only 18 pushes total.... Isaac Robert Ross was born... he cried AS SOON as he was born, which was a HUGE relief... but he was having some issues breathing. He was stable enough for me to hold his bundled butt for just a minute... and I was IN LOVE. Dr. Toussaint congratulated us, picked up his coffee and left...(well of course after cleaning up up in and around there... )

They whisked Isaac down to the special care nursery to monitor him further... but he was here, and he was breathing on his own... we were parents. I was a mom... I couldn't believe it.
Isaac had to spend more time in the hospital (Five total days) because he was early. He was 6 pounds 4 ounces at birth and 21.5 inches long. He had some initial problems with breathing because his lungs weren't fully developed, so he was given surfactant that night. (a lubricating thing to help his lungs inflate) He was also given some oxygen to keep his lungs inflated, and an IV to keep the kid hydrated! But, there were NO major problems, and NONE caused by his dual vessel cord! (hooray!)
He was only on oxygen for 12 hours, the surfactant worked, and after about 36 hours, they officially said that he was out of the woods... what actually kept us there was darn JAUNDICE...Morris Hospital was AMAZING though, and because they were slow,they let us stay IN OUR ROOM until Isaac was released. I can't say enough good things about them. They were/are truly amazing, and I am so grateful they didn't make us leave with out our baby...
He spent all day Sunday, Monday and Tuesday under the lights. The nurses called him Malibu Ken! But August 13th, at noon, Isaac's doctor, Dr. Hart, came in and said to us, "You're ready to go home aren't you?" AND WE WERE... at 2:13pm, we started the trek home..

So that's the WHOLE STORY! It was QUITE a journey...and one that tried my faith in ways I didn't know were possible... I don't know why God gave us all these obstacles, and I don't know why so many wonderful people loose their beautiful babies and I didn't... I try not to question it, and I just THANK GOD for him EVERY DAY.
And today on his First Birthday, I feel so blessed to call this little peanut; who gave us all these crazy scares, my beautiful son...he was worth it all.

I was just sittin around...

2009-08-04T11:05:00.003-05:00

So as I was saying...

On August 8th, I was supposed to meet my sister in law in Diamond to finish up shopping for the boys 30th birthday bash on Saturday...

Well, Thursday night, August 7th, Jeff was not feeling very well. I was sitting up with him making sure that he was feeling ok. We were living at my Mom's house, and we were sleeping in the basement, because even with the air conditioning on, I was H O T... I was sitting on my mom's new couch in the basement finishing off a snack size Kit Kat about ready to go to bed when I heard a pop and felt a woosh of water....

I was not as panicked as I thought I might be FIVE WEEKS before this little bean was supposed to make his arrival. I went up stairs, and sure enough, there was NO doubt... my water had broken...(Ok maybe a little panic started at this point....)

I went up to my mom's room at 1:00am, knocked on her door, and told her that I was pretty sure my water had broken. I called the hospital, and they connected me to the labor and delievery nurse... she answered the phone and said, "Nurse!" so of course I said "Nurse, this is Kate Ross, I am a patient of Dr. Toussaint, and I am pretty sure my water just broke..." She told me to get the heck in there!

I went down to wake up Jeff and tell him it was time.... now remember he had been sick all night... hence why I was still UP at 1:00am on Thursday... I woke him up, said, "honey my water broke, we have to go to the hospital!" He looked at me and said, "Awesome!".... Boys.

My sister had just gotten home maybe twenty minutes before... she had gone to a preseason Bears game that night with my cousin. I went to wake her up just to let her know that I was going to the hospital. She said, in true Kassy form, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" She then preceeded to tell me how much pain she was in from wearing new sandals to the game and walking too far in them. IN fact, as we were walking to the car, she was bent over in pain, and I was walking normally... it was HILARIOUS.

My sister and cousin... maybe not in the best state of mind at said Bears Preseason game!

I was pretty much in denial that I was really in labor. I wasn't in any pain, and I was still FIVE FRIGGIN WEEKS away from my due date... so I was waiting patiently by the door... IN LABOR... while my mom curled her hair, my sister put on make up, and Jeff got dressed.... such is my life...

Before we left, Jeff wanted to see the "evidence" of my water breaking... I guess he wanted to make sure I wasn't going crazy....... so after he was satisfied, he continued to get ready. My mom was about ready to go, and she asked if I had everything... I didn't have ANYTHING... I didn't think I would REALLY be having a baby anytime soon...

She convinced me I should grab my hospital bag which of course was only half packed, because I wasn't supposed to be having a baby for FIVE FRIGGIN WEEKS ... of course Jeff had already grabbed the cameras... I mean come on, he is Mr. Video for goodness sakes...

We piled in the car, and began our trek for Morris Hospital. My Mom had plans to meet with her siblings that morning, because it was her mother's 86th birthday... of course that wasn't going to happen, but when I texted Kati to let her know I wouldn't be meeting her in Diamond for that liquor run; that's the first time I realized that I was going to have a baby on my Grandma's 86th birthday, which just happend to be 08/08/08....

PS... Today Jeff and I are celebrating 8 YEARS OF MARRIAGE!!! Can you believe that on our 8th married 08/08 we had our first baby in the year 2008? I mean THATS ALOT OF 8's!!!

Us on our wedding day 08/04/01
. This was BEFORE digital pictures, so this is a random one that I found ONLINE!
Can you tell it was a LITTLE hot?!?

What a RACKET!

2009-08-03T09:08:00.004-05:00

Ok friends, we are getting down to it...

I was pregnant,

Everyone knew,

I had a slew of complications in the first trimester,

I knew I was having a boy.... with a dual vessel cord...

Perfect

So, on recommendation of my Loyola doctor, I made an appointment at the Loyola in Maywood for a fetal echo..

The actual ultrasound took about an hour. The tech said that she wasn't able to get very many detailed pictures as he was not cooperating, but everything she saw looked great. She went and got the doctor, who reiterated that what they could see looked great, but they wanted to get a better detailed picture... SO they wanted me to come back in two weeks to have ANOTHER one done. I wasn't quite sure about this.... There hadn't been any sign of ANYTHING wrong. They have seen all four vessels of the heart, measured them, they all looked normal. They saw all the major arteries of the heart and they all looked and are functioning normal, AND they measured his heart to chest ratio and THAT was normal. I just don't know what else they could see that could do us much more good at this point. (they also took pictures and listened to the heart for rhythms and all that and that was normal as well..) I just was DOCTORED OUT by this point, and I was already going to start going to the doctor every week for stress tests... I was just DONE.... but the more I prayed about it, the more I thought I should probably go and just have it checked AGAIN...

So on July 26th, after two AMAZING baby showers, I went BACK to Loyola, (which made for two doctor appointments that week) and had ANOTHER fetal echo done. This time, the head hancho doctor just came in and did the echo. It took another hour, and they still couldn't see everything they wanted to see... but the doctor said she had looked at all the major stuff and said with 90% certainty that this little boy didn't have an"fatal" heart defects... well great.....I mean, I was glad for the 90%, but with the way this pregnancy was going, I would have preferred 100... but whatev....

Jeff was going to turn 30 on August 18th, so our family was planning a huge joint birthday party for him and Aaron, who was going to turn 30 on the 26th, on August 9th. Kati and I discussing details on the phone... Kati and my mother in law had done all the shopping and we were ready to go.

On August 8th, I was going to meet Kati in Diamond at our favorite liquor store to get the booze for the partay.... except Isaac, who was NOT DUE until September 10th had other plans...

Are you freaking kidding me!?

2009-08-02T16:32:00.001-05:00

Installment four...

So to catch you up,

* I found out I was pregnant
* Everyone knew
* I had ALOT of complications in the first trimester.

Oye.

Ok, so I was enjoying a drama free second trimester. I was excitedly looking at everything baby related. We decided to save money that we would move in with my mom (who happened to have a very large empty house that needed some commotion... ;-)

So, I went to my May appointment (I was 21 weeks) to find out if the wee babe was a boy or a girl. I KNEW it was a boy. I unfortunately was the only one that thought so. I think because I love the color pink, everyone figured I would have a girl! So Jeff met me there after work. The ultra sound tech there is SO NICE. (Julie) She asked if we wanted to know, and of course we did. As soon as the image came up on the screen, I said, "That looks like a penis to me!" and she laughed and said... that's your son alright!

The "money" shot!

Now, if you remember, I was having a wonderful second trimester, so I never thought in a million years I would hear, "there seems to be something wrong here" ....Perfect.

Apparently, when you are pregnant, you are supposed to have 2 arteries and one vein in your umbilical cord... well, the umbilical cord that my body grew had only ONE artery and ONE vein. This can lead to a slew of problems. Julie continued to look around in there and said everything else looked perfect. Even so, the doctors wanted to send me to Loyola for a second opinion and a level 2 ultra sound....

So we called everyone with the news that they were going to have a grandson or nephew... my sister was SHOCKED as she had already bought many dresses for this baby...one of which she made him wear any way...Isaac wearing the Christmas Dress from Auntie KK

So, in June I went to Loyola extension in New Lenox... Everyone there was SO nice, and professional..... it made me feel at ease immediately!
The ultra sound lasted about 50 minutes and the doctors were able to see everything they needed and gave peanut a clean bill of health! The doctor came in and said that everything looked great! It was such a relief to hear that after a million worries about what "could" be wrong! The doctor was of course careful to say that of course they could never be 100 percent certain that everything was perfect, but as far as they could see it looked GREAT! So we were so happy and blessed and basically dancing on air!
The doctor told me that they will probably monitor me a little more closely when we get closer to the due date, just to make sure that he is still growing appropriately, but she seemed to think that it wouldn't be a problem... she then said... you WILL need to go get a fetal echocardiogram so we can see the heart a little closer, because we can't always see heart issues on this machine... ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! Didn't they just tell me everything was FINE?!?
SO I made ANOTHER appointment at Loyola in Maywood for a fetal echo... Lordie...

Isaac on June 4th, the date of our Level 2 Ultrasound..

Stay tuned for the journey of the Maywood Loyola visit! The Merry Go Round of emotions continue!

The crazy ride...

2009-07-24T19:00:00.000-05:00

The third installment...

SO I found out I was pregnant
Everyone knew...

Ok, you are all caught up!

So, Christmas break was over and on Monday January 6th, I went back to work. While I was getting ready, I noticed that I was spotting. I was a little freaked, but it wasn't awful, so I just made a mental note to tell my doctor when I called.
When I got to work, I knew I had to tell my boss right away that I was pregnant because I work at a school where we are trained in physical restraint and I was on the response team. Of course, she was so excited and supportive.

I called my Doctor's office, to make an appointment and to tell them about the spotting. They told me that spotting "could be" completely normal and just to watch it and call them if it got worse. My first appointment was made for January 18th.

The first week of me knowing I was pregnant was great. The spotting stopped by Tuesday morning, and Jeff and I were just giddy with the "what could be's". On Saturday, Kati and Aaron had some friends over, and invited Jeff and I to tag along for Karoke. Since the bars were smoke free as of January 1st, I was IN!

The night was a lot of fun, and we got back around 11:30. I woke up around 2am and went to the bathroom only to notice that I was bleeding... BAD. I woke up Jeff and after about a five minute debate, Jeff convinced me we needed to go to the ER. The ER doctor did an exam, and said that everything looked ok. He took my HCG levels and told me that I was on bedrest for at least a week. Perfect. One week in and I am already on bedrest for a week.

I had to go back to the doctor on Tuesday to get my counts retested. If they went up, the pregnancy would continue, if not, well... we tried not to think of the other. The bleeding had stopped by Monday night, and I never felt crampy. SO many people were so kind to us. Bringing us dinner, calling me, just trying to make us feel better. I went back to the doctor on Tuesday, and had my bloodwork drawn, and I went home. Wednesday I got up and went to the bathroom and noticed a big clot...I thought for SURE that I had miscarried. I cried, called Jeff at work, and then called my doctor. Jeff came home and my doctor scheduled me for an ultrasound at the hosiptal that day. The doctor did tell us that the counts HAD gone up on Tuesday, so we knew there was some hope, but we weren't very optimistic.

On the way to the hosiptal, Jeff and I cried. I called my mom at work and told her that I thought for SURE that I miscarried. We talked, and scheduled a drink fest for Friday night. I went to the hospital and when we were called back to the room, I told the technician that we weren't expecting to hear good news, and we were already prepared for that. She told us that she would be as honest as she could be and turned on the little monitor.

Now, I am no doctor... but as soon as she turned on the machine, I could see something.... and then when she zoomed in, I could see that that something HAD A HEARTBEAT. I.WAS.FLOORED. Jeff and I looked at the screen in disbelief! She told us that everything looked perfect for little peanut. She couldn't see any reason for the bleeding. She sent the results to the doctor and we had to wait to talk to him via phone. While we waited, the ultrasound tech printed out this first picture for us...

I called my mom and cancelled our little drink fest. She was also shocked. I was placed on bedrest for another week. My doctor's explanation? "Sometimes these things happen, and all they do is scare the hell out of us." Um, if that isn't the understatement of the year. I went back to the doctor on Tuesday January 22nd, and was given the all clear to return to normal duty. Baby looked good, I looked good, and I was given the due date of September 10th. Phew!

Everything went fairly well until my next appointment, which was February 22nd, 2008. Now, it should be known that a few VERY stressful things happend in this month.

1. We found out my Dad had a girlfriend.
2. My school had voted to go on strike.

So, I went to my appointment and everything was totally fine! They found the heartbeat, life was good, and I went to go home. When I stopped to go to the bathroom, I noticed I was bleeding AGAIN and ALOT. I went right back in the exam room and he did an internal exam. The cervix was still closed, and looked good, but I had a clot ( a big one) and he took it out and sent it off for examination. He then said he wanted me to have an ultrasound.. So I went off and had an ultrasound.. The baby looked GREAT. It had a great heartbeat, and was moving freely around in there. The uterus looks normal and they had NO idea why I kept bleeding. I was put on bedrest AGAIN and was told that if we did go on strike that I was to ABSOLUTELY NOT go outside and pickett. They wanted me at home in as little stress as possible. Well, we did go on strike...

But, I stayed home. I was HEARTBROKEN over the strike. I cried when I had to leave my classroom. People I cared about were pissed, it was A W F U L. I was still spotting here and there, but for the most part the bleeding had stopped. After three days on strike, the union called a meeting. We ratified a contract. We went back to work... and wouldn't you know it, I NEVER had another problem with bleeding...

The next few appointments were fine! The doctors were really pleased with everything that was going on. I had lost three pounds in the first trimester....and was only up two by April.

On May 7th we would find out if we were having a boy or girl... and also get the news that we had a whole NEW set of problems...

Guess what everyone?!?

2009-07-23T19:00:00.001-05:00

And now the Second installment of Isaac's journey.....

I had just found out I was pregnant, and I magically arrived at Babies R Us...

So while at Babies R Us, I picked up a few things that were on SUPER clearance from Christmas. I was SO proud of myself, because it had been about an HOUR and I hadn't told ANYONE my HUGE secret!!! I bought Jeff a book, and I bought about four about expecting for myself, and then headed to the car. Before I drove back to Diamond, I returned to Target and bought two more tests (different brands of course) just to take and make sure.....
When I got back to Diamond, I took one of the tests... yup, still pregnant, and got Jeff's surprise ready. I wrapped up a present with the test (in a Ziploc) and the book I had bought him,

and a couple of burp clothes that said, "I love my Daddy." I then hunkered down and waited for Jeff to get home. (Now remember, one of my best friends, AKA my sister in law Kati, lived LITERALLY three doors away from my apartment.... it was an EXTREME test of wills to not go over immediately and share the news...)
Finally Jeff came home, and I gave him his present, which I told him was a Christmas gift that I had forgotten about. He opened the present, and in true Jeff form said with NO enthusiasm, "oh, you bought me a book, Thanks." I told him to look further... (MEN) when he finally realized what I was telling him, he FREAKED. OUT. He ran over to me and kept saying "really? really? I mean you are REALLY Pregnant?" So, into the bathroom I went, and I took ANOTHER pregnancy test....yup. Still pregnant. He then immediately congratulated his "man parts" for working... Lordie.
We talked for about twenty minutes about when we thought I might be due, and then discussed who were we going to tell next. We decided that we HAD to go tell SOMEONE right then! Knowing we wanted to tell as many people as possible in person, we went over to Kati and Aarons and shared the news with them.
Jeff brought over the gift I had given him and told Kati to look what I had gotten him... when she saw, she FREAKED OUT. She was so excited! Aaron congratulated Jeff and we had some champagne.... I kept telling Kati I couldn't believe that it finally turned positive! I just was in shock....so in true Kati form, she pulled out a test that she had and told me to go take it! (this one was digital, so there was no denying it... and wouldn't you know it....
The next day, we set off to tell the parents. First was my mom. We went to the house under the same guise... "We found a Christmas Present." When she opened it up, she saw a sign that read..

Mothers and daughters become closer when daughters become mothers.

We put a post it note on the bottom that said, "Baby Ross EDD 08/29/08" My mom cried, and my sister said, "SHUT UP!?! ARE YOU KIDDING?!" She freaked out... perfect reaction. My sister didn't believe me, which I KNEW she wouldn't, so I had come prepared with a test... we told them all the story from yesterday and my mom was shocked I hadn't told her....we then went to Jeff's parents house to share the news. On the way, I tried to get a hold of my Dad... but he wasn't at his house. He called and he knew right away that something was up... so I told him on the phone... not exactly what I had in mind, but he was none the less excited!!

For Mom and Dad Ross, we bought them a sign that said,

When my mother in law opened it, it also had a post it announcing Baby Ross' arrival. She told us later that at first she thought we were buying another "fur baby"... um, no. :-) She was of course happy, and my father in law was THRILLED. Jeff had to film, but Kati, mom and dad and I all went out to Panera to celebrate. We drove separately because of course the women were going to go shopping after. We were told that the whole way to dinner my father in law cried. He was so happy... he was finally going to be a grandpap!

So all the future grandparents knew, and of course they were spreading the news to anyone who would listen! (so much for waiting till the second trimester!) It was so exciting! But, I didn't realize that it was just the beginning of a very long 40 weeks....

Isaac's Birth Story Part One...we are what?

2009-07-22T20:27:00.011-05:00

It is so hard to believe that in a few short weeks Isaac is going to be a year old. I used to think that when people said that, that they were crazy, but it is SO TRUE. It REALLY DOES seem like yesterday that Isaac was not even here... that we were living in Diamond, and that we were just living our normal day to day lives. I thought that this would be a good time to document what Isaac's journey has been!

Part One... What?

So Jeff and I decided that we were going to try to get pregnant. I had finished my graduate degree the year before, we had banked some money away, and we felt like we were ready! We thought it might take some time to get pregnant, (well since they say to give yourself a year), and we decided that while we were on our Vacation to Tybee Island Georgia we would start trying....

Us on Tybee Island (actually in Savannah in this photo) July 2007

Well... that didn't work out so well as my "monthly gift" came early that month. Needless to say, that ended that.... so it was on to the next month.
In August, I found a great website, fertility friend. I thought I would try it out.... I had NO idea there was so much you could do to find out when you were going to ovulate, and at the time, I was none too concerned... but since my monthly gift was so crazy, I thought I might try out the website. I entered in my info, and when it generated our prime "baby making time" it had already past.... Damn... I was not too good at this.... on to the next month...
September came and went, and when we the "time" came, Jeff was filming two weddings in a row AND we had MANY family trips to get to as evidence below....

Trips with the fam... part of the September distraction...

October came and there was a family party to contend with...and I KNEW there would be "partaking" so we thought, eh, we'll just wait to November...

Our October party... SO FUN

November our "prime time" happend to fall on the same weekend we were throwing a BIG 60th birthday party for my father in law.

My father in laws 60th!

December, as always, is crazy, and our "power hour" was right in the middle of EVERY school program in our area.... Jeff and I talked about our crazy timing, and we made it our New Years resolution to REALLY start trying in the new year. I was going to take my temp, see the spike and REALLY make it work! I mean what is REALLY going on in January and February? It seemed like the perfect time.
My monthly gift was a little wierd in December. It never really got to full force, and my boobs
H U R T!! I didn't really have a whole lot of time to think about it though because the holiday festivites were upon us. I took a pregnancy test just to be sure on December 22nd, because my mom was having a caroling party that night, and I wanted to make sure I could partake with out worrying. The test came back negative, and I didn't really give it another thought.

And partake I did....yikes....my last drink for nine months... if I had only known...

On New Years Eve, we went to my Brother and Sister in laws house to celebrate. I was SO tired, I barely made it to midnight. I think at 12:30, I had crashed on the couch. I thought that the Holidays had just taken it's toll...

This was at like nine o clock.. I was ready for bed ALREADY!

By Thursday, the boobs STILL were hurting. I went to bed that night and said to God, "listen, if my boobs still hurt in the morning, I will take another test... just to be sure... so if I am pregnant God, you need to give me a sign."
Well, God was listening because on Friday, January 4th, I woke up with AWFUL naseau and a REALLY hurtful... well pair of melons. I had some errands to run in Joliet, so I went to Target and bought another pregnancy test. On the way back to Diamond, my mom called and asked if I could help take down the Christmas tree. I agreed and headed over.
I knew that my mom would want me to stay and have a glass of wine with her, so I brought the test in with me. I helped my mom take down the tree, and down to the basement. On my way up, I grabbed my purse with the test in it and headed to the bathroom. I went in the bathroom and peed on the glorious generic pregnancy test and set it on the back of the toliet. As I was washing my hands, I glanced at the test and it looked like there were TWO pink lines. I thought I was seeing things! I already HAD a negative test almost two weeks ago... I had a quasi period... but there it was plain as day TWO pink lines... a little "+" in the test window... I WAS PREGNANT!!!

Not the "original" test, but one I took that day.. more on that later... but for sure POSITIVE!

I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT!. Here I am, in my mom's house, and I have a positive pregnancy test.... I didn't know what to do. I wanted to cry, vomit, and tell my mom.... BUT I knew I really wanted to tell Jeff first. So I put the test in my pocket, made a mental note to wash the jeans right away.. I mean yuk.... and earned my academy award by getting myself OUT of my moms house with out ...
A. Drinking a glass of wine
B. Making her suspicious that something was up and
C. Without telling her!!!

I put the test on the center counsel of the car and just looked at it. I couldn't believe it... we had DONE IT! I didn't even understand how it happened! We were so bad at trying! We had made it our resolution to REALLY start trying THIS MONTH! I was charting my temp, I mean HOLY HELL! While all these thoughts were racing through my head, my car accidently drove to Babies R Us... and I don't think you would be surprised.... I parked in expecatant mother parking....

My first act as a new mother... shop of course!

Stay Tuned to next time when I tell you how we told everyone we were expecting!!!

Edisto Beach

2009-07-06T20:49:00.014-05:00

Ahhhhhhh.... Friends, I have a confession... I belong in the South. EVERY time I go there, I long to stay. Since Jeff is from the South, he is NO help in this department. For the last eight days, Jeff, Isaac, my Mom, sister, brother, sister in law and I went to Edisto Beach South Carolina. Before I tell you anything, let me show you a few things...
This is our beach.... I mean COME ON....
Nestled among all these trees is our house we stayed in....
This is Isaac's first time on the beach... he was SO EXCITED to touch EVERYTHING. We had to let him down to explore the sand...(Note:This was BEFORE we even made it to our house.)

This is Isaac in his really awesome stroller about two hours before it got ran over... (with out him in it of course) Poor beautiful stroller. RIP.
This is Isaac and I on the beach in his baby pool. The surf was a bit rough a few days, so we bought a baby pool so he could still enjoy the ocean, and be cool since the temp was over 90 degrees and sunny EVERYDAY we were there!
This is our family of three in Charleston where Isaac got a tad over heated and FREAKED MOMMY OUT. But, alas, a cool car ride, LOTS of water and a glass a wine for Mommy and all was better.
This is our little guy, too cool for school. I don't know why, but I LOVE this picture!
We wanted to have Isaac try a lemon.. he got one taste and thought OH HECK NO... too cute.
This is all of us on the last day... we were all sad to leave. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the South. I love the history, the scenery, the BEACH... I mean, I just love it. We both want to move so badly, but none of us want to tell our parents that we are leaving with their only grandbaby....I mean, I am pretty sure Papa Ross would have heart failure!
This is Isaac's newest face. He makes it and snorts his little nose...it's too cute.

What is not cute....sleep training. Stay tuned.

Wordless Week in review...

2009-06-22T22:48:00.008-05:00

A party, a pool, and we are pooped! Vacation, HERE WE COME!

Relay Baby!

2009-06-14T10:36:00.007-05:00

Yesterday, Isaac participated in his first Relay for Life. The Ross clan was sponsored in our walk by, my dad, Erik and Missy Enervold, Jan Mueller, Chrissie Meyers, and my Aunt Nan. Thank you SO MUCH for your generous donations! Isaac didn't quite know what to think of all the commotion, but he was happy as a clam in the pack in play.
Isaac was also able to play with his Uncle Kent, Steven, Jenny, Kendal, Auntie KK, DJ, Kevin and a whole other slew of relatives...

We were the talk of the Relay with our new banner and shirts... designed by Erik. They were a HUGE hit. People were asking us to BUY our team shirts and hoodies! It was awesome. In honor of our awesome decor, we took our new team picture!
Thank you all for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers as we walked another Relay in honor of all those that have fought the battle of cancer! We will continue to walk until there is a CURE!

Oh Savannah.....

2009-06-10T20:52:00.003-05:00

Back in our BI (before Isaac) days, Jeff and I went on vacation to Tybee Island Georgia with my sister and brother in law. We had an AMAZING time. We stayed on the beach, drank (sometimes ALOT), went on a haunted bar crawl, and toured Savannah Georgia. Jeff and I LOVE the Savannah area and we are trying DESPERATELY to move there. However, we also want Isaac to be close to his grandparents, so we are working on relocating an entire family. My mom is in so far, but we are still working on Grandma and Grandpa Ross....but I digress.... when we went, we took one suitcase containing our swimsuits and a few items of clothing. Kati and Aaron also took one suitcase. The biggest problem was how we were going to get the cooler of beer down there so it would 1. still be cold and 2. easily accessible once arriving.

This summer Jeff, Isaac and I are packing up and taking a trip to Edisto Island. My mom, sister, brother and sister in law will also be going. This will be Isaac's first trip to the ocean, and BOY have our packing issues changed! Isaac's stroller, pack and play, clothes, beach items, food items, and toys are now invading our once precious cooler space. The cooler isn't even going, and any booze that will be consumed will be on a monitored and rotating basis, since SOMEONE has to stay coherent to watch the wee babe.... oye!

Our lives have forever been changed, and although the cooler was amazing, this trip will hold some of the most precious memories of my life and I couldn't be more excited!

Deep Thoughts... by Mamma Ross

2009-06-09T20:48:00.002-05:00

Um, it's June Mother Nature....

KICK IT IN GEAR PLEASE!

I have been on break for almost two weeks and I have not done any

Sunbathing
Swimming in my WONDERFUL in-laws pool
Sweating in my sleep ( although this is gross, it is something that happens IN SUMMER!)

I mean look at what is happening! I am using alliteration! AHHAHHHHAHAHA

Isaac HAS started to shake his head no... although he has NO idea what it means, it's darn cute. Also, whenever you say "YEAH" he will stop what ever he is doing and clap... it so cute it's ridiculous. (Please note, I am 100% biased.)

So, in conclusion, SUMMER START................................NOW!

Love,
Kate, Jeff and Isaac

Auntie KK is BRILLIANT!!

2009-06-08T13:51:00.002-05:00

Auntie KK taught Isaac how to high five!

Thanks Best Auntie KK! We love you!

Relay

2009-06-07T10:33:00.003-05:00

As many of you know, my Aunt Dede was diagnosed with Breast Cancer 10 years ago. At that time, the doctors gave her a five year survival rate. Because of research done by the American Cancer Society, my Aunt has lived far above the doctors original expectation. Although I would love to tell you that her fight is over, she is still battling this awful disease. She has had brain surgery, cyber-knife surgery to remove cancer from her lungs and has had a mastectomy. She continues to go through Chemo and fight for her life.
In this day and age, it is hard to find ANYONE who's life hasn't been touched by cancer. That's why our family participates in the American Cancer Society's Relay for life. This is our sixth year walking in the Relay. Through out our time, we have been able to raise and donate over 50,000 dollars to the American Cancer Society.

Our Relay Team
(My Aunt Ded is the one in front with the purple shirt)

Having Isaac has given Jeff and I renewed sense of purpose to fund this cause. Our hope is that Isaac will never have to endure the burden of cancer. I humbly ask you, if you are able, to donate to our team. If you would like, please comment and let me know who you are walking in honor of or in memory of and our team will honor them at our Relay Site. If you are unable to donate, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we walk to raise money to fight this disease. Thank you for letting me get on my soap box a wee bit. :-)
If you would like to donate, please just click on this link (Our Relay Site) and then click donate.

Thanks so much for reading!

A Narration by Mommy

2009-05-24T20:37:00.006-05:00

Today was my first day in my own pool....

Grammy put me in....
and I wasn't sure what to do. Then I thought, I know, I CAN SPLASH.... so I did... A LOT.
I love the water!

The. End.

What do you want?! He's nine months!!

:-)

Mommy needs a nap!

2009-05-17T18:18:00.003-05:00

Hello out there in blog land! Sorry it has been yet ANOTHER week with no post. I promise to do better real soon... (like in 9 school days, but who is counting)! This week has flown by, but here is our recap...

I had my first REAL mothers day! Last year I was pregnant with Sir Isaac and some gave me cards and Jeffie gave me a mani and a pedi, but this year, Isaac was here and it was GLORIOUS! The night before was Kassy, Kent, and Christa's graduation, so because we were so darn tired, we didn't get up for mass and instead had mass for the shut ins... (aka. watching church on TV in our pajamas) Then it was breakfast and hanging out with my mom and brother and sister and sister in law...after hanging out with my side of the fam, we went over to spend time with Jeff's mom and dad and sister and brother and brother... I think you get the idea.... we had great food and a fun time! Unfortunately my camera ran out of batteries, so this is one of the only pictures of the day... and it's from my handy MAC computer, but you get the idea...

Of course on Monday everyone was beat, but to work we went! On Tuesday, Kassy sang the National Anthem at an ISU vs. Norte Dame game held at Silver Cross Stadium! It was Isaac's first taste of baseball, and he really seemed to like it... well tolerate it at least. There wasn't a whole lot of room for the lil booger to roam, and he wants to be on the move... but it was a beautiful night and we had a wonderful time. We will be going to Silver Cross field MANY more times this year for SURE.

Well, that's about it for now. Isaac is at Grandma and Grandpap Ross' house now, and I have some "real" things to do before he gets home, like laundry and cook and bathe, and if I am lucky, a real quick nap!

uh oh BOOM

2009-05-08T21:34:00.003-05:00

Oh my friends in Blog World, I am sorry that I have been MIA for so long, but something CRAZY has happened in the Ross Family... ISAAC HAS LEARNED TO MOVE. I know this day was coming, and I looked forward to it since he was born, HOWEVER, now that he is mobile, he is INTO EVERYTHING. He is very observant and I swear on everything holy, he is thinking, I will touch that, and that, and put that in my mouth, and that, and then I will try to climb up the stairs... well you get the point. So it the new phrase around these parts is "uh-oh Boom!" This is mommy's desperate attempt to NOT smother him and make sure every follicle of hair is ok on him body... ho hum...

Today Isaac turned nine months old. I do not know WHERE the time went. He is looking more and more like a boy and less and less like a wee babe. It makes me sad. He is so precious. He laughs ALL the time, and is ALMOST sleeping through the night. He is wearing 12 month clothes because he is SO LONG. I haven't taken him to the doctor yet. She asked us to wait a week for the piggie flu craze to calm down... (at nine months he just gets weighed and measured. He doesn't have any shots, but his iron level will be checked, so it's not as imperative to get him in ON the day).

In unrelated Isaac news, my sister, brother, and sister in law are ALL graduating from Illinois State tomorrow. Kassy will graduate with her BA in Music Ed and she JUST GOT A JOB at Manteno Junior High as the Choir director/general music teacher. She also student taught there, so she is going to help direct the Manteno Magic, their very very good show choir. This ain't no Mr. Benware show choir. I mean there is a make up artist involved people. It's crazy.

Kent and Christa are graduating with their masters in Music performance. Christa is going on to Nebraska to get her doctorate in performance. OF COURSE Kent is going with, but he is DONE being a student now. He is looking for a teaching position, and actually has an interview on Thursday in Omaha. ..So think good thoughts!

Ok friends, my wonderful Hubby just came home with my PORTILLOS!! Yummmmmm

Here is a picture of our wee one on his nine month birthday... Happy Mothers Day all!!

Hello, my name is Kate and I am a blog stalker....

2009-04-17T21:06:00.003-05:00

Yes my dear friends, I have finally come to the step of acceptance. I am a blog stalker. I read random blogs ALL THE TIME... so much in fact that I talk about many of you as if I see you every day and know of your daily happenings. My husband has looked at me like I am crazy and my friends that I DO see in every day life have told me that the first step in knowing you have a problem is to admit it... so here it is for all to see.

Now, don't get me wrong, I mean I do have an eight month old baby for goodness sakes, so I am involved in more than just the blog world, but I have to say that reading other mommy blogs talking about what we all go through every day has in fact MADE the every day a little more bearable.

So now that I have admitted that I have a problem, I guess the next question is, where do I go from here... WELL if you think that I am going to quit cold turkey, you would be SO WRONG... HOWEVER

What I do plan on doing is actually FOLLOWING the people that I visit almost daily. Some of the blogs I have already done that... but instead of being creepy creeperston in the corner, (how about that for alliteration!) I will announce to the world that YES! I am reading your blog! (and of course if you are reading me, go ahead follow me... I won't mind a bit!!) :-)

Although I know it won't stop the insanity... it will at least be out in the open!

And now for the gratuitous ( I can NOT decide if that is the right word... if it is not, ignore it... if it is, I am relieved.) Isaac shot of the day...

Here is the cute bugger in his new pajamas! We are a big boy now friends... these here Pajamas are not only BRAND NAME (Paul Frank) But they are TWO PIECES! Oye... where does the time go...

Also, CONGRATS ANDREA from A Daily Dose of the Wiettings for welcoming your new Baby Boy... Austin Phillip into the world. May the Lord bless you and keep you all under His care.

Opening Day!

2009-04-07T17:45:00.004-05:00

Well friends we have waited six frosty months for this, but Isaac has done his reading....

and he is READY for his FIRST White Sox opening day!!! Let's go Sox!!! Here's to another World Champion year!!!

Let's Go Go GO GO WHITE SOX!

My life...in a tree...

2009-04-03T20:05:00.003-05:00

So... I am addicted to something (besides scrapblog and my son)... I am ADDICTED to genealogy! I am not sure how it started really... I think it was a third grade project done by my FAVORITE TEACHER Mrs. Winters, we had to do just our wee little tree, you know us, parents and grandparents... and since that day, I have thought that my history is FACINATING! And now with Sir Isaac, I think it's uber important to record as much as possible for him. I mean, Isaac has MORE GREAT Grandparents than Grandparents alive, so he is a pretty lucky kid! So, I have been researching, printing and rewriting cenus facts, records, and pictures that go back as far as 1590.. I mean, thats almost older than dirt! :-) I even found Jeff's great grandpas (note: Isaac's great great grandpa's) Draft card from the first world war! I mean, it's AMAZING. So in the next few weeks, if I am not updating this blog like I should, please forgive me... I am exploring my past and scanning a million pictures into my computer so that when Isaac's grandchildren want to see a picture of their great great great great grandparent's wedding day, (MAN that's alot of greats!) he can pull it up on his new computer and say... weren't they beautiful....

So long old friend...

2009-03-29T19:50:00.003-05:00

So today, I was downstairs eating breakfast when I realized Sir Isaac was in desperate need for an early morning nap. I thought about bringing him upstairs to lay in him in his oh so fabulous crib, but then I thought... HEY! I will just put him in our handy dandy little swing...

You see, this swing has been my BEST FRIEND and GREATEST SAVIOR during those early months when I needed a minute to finish my breakfast, and Isaac needed to be comforted... Oh this swing, it made my heart melt...we called it the silencer... but I digress..

So today, I put him in the said swing and... HE SITS STRAIGHT UP almost toppling the thing over. I pulled him out immediately and was SHOCKED to see how big he had gotten! I called Jeff down in a state of panic, he raced downstairs, and I described what I saw... he grabbed the camera, and we put him back in for a few shots... (because of course, we couldn't let this moment go by undocumented!)
So, as you can see, the swing is NO Longer an option, and has found itself packed away with our bassinet and other "baby" items...

Loved by many... used by one...
The Rainforest Swing
08/08/08 to 03/29/09

We will never forget you.
:-)

A prayer request

2009-03-25T11:03:00.002-05:00

If it is in your heart to pray, I ask with every fiber of my being that you take a second and pray for MckMamma's little boy Stellan. He was diagnosed with a heart defect when he was in his Mother's womb, but was born with no outward sign of heart trouble. In the past few days, Stellan has experienced again the trouble he was having before he was born. Please pray that God will grant peace to this family, and that He would wrap his loving arms around them while they are on this journey....

Thanks all...

MIA

2009-03-24T10:56:00.006-05:00

Sorry for the delay friends. It seems as thought I have been missing in action for some time... well let me tell you what has happened to me... I found the website known as scrapblog, and my life has been totally turned upside down!
For those of you who have known me a long time, you know that I used to scrapbook... HECK! I had even been a Creative Memories consultant for a time in college. But, when digital pictures took over the ole 35 mm, I kinda gave up the ole scrap book... well UNTIL NOW! Just please take a look at this page I made for Isaac's first year scrap book...
This is Isaac's IMMEDIATE family tree with the first picture taken of that particular person holding Isaac... (or pretty darn close to the first picture). I love this website... and I think I might need a 12 step program...
While I was gone, my friend Jen over at A Daily Dose of Davis gave me a Kreative Blogger award! If you haven't linked up to her blog from here before, I HIGHLY suggest you go there now... she is an amazing writer and her updates are both refreshing and entertaining!!! (plus she is an old friend of mine, and I think she is pretty swell) :-)

Apparently along with any great accomplishment comes work... and the "work" that has to be done now is...

List 7 things that you love, and then pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you love! Be sure to tag them and let them know they have won. You can copy the picture of the award and paste it on your sideboard letting the whole world know...you are Kreativ!!

1. Obviously, I love my son... he is amazing and reminds me on a daily basis that God is real and he is here with us all the time.
2. I love that I actually have a reason to go into Babies R Us...
3. I love the beach... specifically Tybee Island Georgia and Savannah... I want to move there now.
4. I love reading books. I am always reading at least 2 books at a time. Currently I am reading I was a Really Good Mom before I had Kids. and the new Jodi Piccoult book Handle with Care.
5. I love summer and I am so glad that I am a teacher so I can ENJOY it!
6. I love my friends, and I am so thankful for the Blog world and facebook so I can reconnect with people that I care about!
7. I love my husband, even though he drives me crazy some times, I have no idea where I would be with out him, and I am so thankful to be his wife and be sharing this life journey with him... (insert vomit here)

NOW I nominate the following for the Kreativ Blogger award:
1.Cutsie Tootsie
2. A day in the Life
3. Postcards From Insanity
4. Peanut's Page
5. Memories and More
6. Becoming Emily Beal
7. Kelly's Korner

Whew! This blog post took me over three hours to post!! Thank you teething fairy! :-( I hope everyone out there in blog land has a wonderful day!

Seven Months old!

2009-03-09T20:21:00.002-05:00

As you can see by the beautiful seven months picture at the top of the page, our wee lil babe is now seven months old, and I thought, (for prosterity sake) I would give a quick up date on what the lil guy is doing...

1. Putting EVERYTHING in his mouth... he already has two teeth and his top left tooth is cutting right now!
2. He is ready to crawl, but just hasn't quite figured the whole thing out... most of the time he looks like a fish out of water!
3. He is babbling up a storm! LOTS of Mamamamamama and Dadadadadadadad and aaaaaaahhhhh.... he doesn't attach mamma or dadda to us quite yet, but he does say it!
4. He is recognizing his name and realizes that when we say it we mean him! Thats very cool...
5. Isaac is actually calmed by my singing... we have a special song that I sing to him with his name in it, and when I sing it quietly in his ear, he calms right down and I melt! :-)
6. He loves the Wiggles.... if you have ever seen the Wiggles you understand when I say Holy Hell.... that's all I can say about that.

He is growing up so fast... I am starting to get the baby itch again... better get some calamine for that!

Music to our ears!

2009-03-06T21:13:00.003-06:00

As most of you know, my family is what you would call "musical." My mom and dad both graduated from Bradley with degrees in Music Education, and my brother AND sister both went into music Education at the good ole Illinois State University... so it shouldn't surprise you that my brother married a fellow "musical" person... and MAN is she musical!!! On Thursday Jeff, Isaac and I along with my mom and dad went to go hear Christa play in a Concerto (for those of you who have NO idea what that means, Christa played a song by herself accompanied by the Illinois State Orchestra.) SHE WAS AMAZING. I literally had tears in my eyes as we watched and listened to her play. I feel so blessed to call her my sister... it was an amazing experience, and Isaac made it through the whole song... THANK GOODNESS there wasn't a lot of tympani in her piece! This picture was taken before Christa played... can you tell that the concert was passed Isaac's bedtime?
A few days ago, I asked my mom if I would be a failure as a parent if I didn't get Isaac's six month pictures taken professionally. With out a moments pause she said YES... now, in her defense she said she was kidding, but just in case, I made an appointment. Isaac's three month pictures did NOT go as well as we had hoped... AKA.. he didn't smile ONCE and each time we tried, he looked at us like he had never smiled in his whole life. So this time, Jeff and I were DETERMINED to get it right... he got up at normal time, ate his ceral, took a good poop, had a bottle, took a nap, had a bath, and got dressed to go to his pictures! We got there and wouldn't you know it... HE WAS ALL SMILES! HOORAY! All the pictures turned out so cute, but I thought I would post my favorite one here... if you want to see more pictures of Isaac, you can visit his share site... there you can basically see a flip book of his development... what can I say... I mean I am married to Mr. Video Productions... it's in our blood! :-)

Bits and pieces of a great weekend!

2009-03-01T23:00:00.006-06:00

This weekend was wonderful! First, I have a three day weekend which means even though it is Sunday, I still have one more day off... and that my friends makes my life grand! But I digress...
On Saturday, we went for game night at Mom and Dad Ross's! It was very fun! Auntie Kati and Uncle Aaron were a little bit late because they were getting back from BUYING A HOUSE!!! HOORAY!!! Actually, they are having it built, so it will be some time before it is all done, but they made the first steps on Saturday!!! We are all so excited for them!! I kept meaning to get a picture of them with Isaac, but everytime I thought of it, it looked like they were going to hurl... so I thought maybe when the process is over we would take a picture.. so stay tuned on that one!

Isaac also got to meet Uncle Bryan's new girl friend! Her name is Jessica, and he took to her like a fish to water. She even saved him from dumping Sweet Potatoes on his head... now THAT'S a keeper!
Then today, Jeff, Isaac and I were going to try to get Isaac's six month photos done... BUT they were booked up for the WEEK, so I thought, hummm how could we better spend a Sunday.. sleeping, nah...cleaning double no.. I KNOW... let's go to the Outlet Mall! So, with about a five minute search on Jeff's Iphone, and an entry into Garmin, we were off... Let me tell you, it was NOT as warm out as it looked. In fact, it was DOWN RIGHT COLD. However, we made it through and got some pretty good deals... I mean, there were about FIVE racks of clothes at Children's Place Outlet that were $2.99... I mean COME ON!
Because it was so cold out, Jeff and I had Isaac in his red Elmo snowsuit from GG... the hood comes down really far so it can shield his face from the cold... In fact the first time he wore it for any amount of time, this is how we found him in his car seat...

Well, we knew it was only a matter of time before Sir Isaac found out how to see what was going on...and let me tell you it is HILARIOUS... when we would look at him, he would leave his hood down, but if he thought we weren't looking, he would lift it up and peek out.... Let's face it, he is a genius... ok or a stinker, but he is all ours and I couldn't love him more!

Oye!

2009-02-24T22:48:00.003-06:00

I have to admit... I have NO idea what I am doing on here. I thought one day I would just blog about Isaac's everyday life... people seemed to like it, so here I am... doing it. Now, I REALLY LIKE IT! Oye vey... so I thought I would try to update the blog just a tad, and blech, I realized I have no idea what the heck I am doing.... I got half of it right, but when I tried to put on the new header, the computer said NICE TRY MORON!... Ok maybe not exactly that, but it was close.... so after an hour in photoshop, I have a beautiful header for my blog... on my desk top...perfect.

In other news, Isaac is so happy lately! He seems to have found his "lovie"... it's a blanket that a woman I used to work with made... he sleeps like a ROCK with it, and as much as I thought I would never let him sleep with ANY type of blanket, I caved when I realized he can move it off his face on his own, not to mention it gets mommy and daddy about 7 hours of consecutive shut eye...
The other day I woke up to hear Isaac laughing on the monitor... and when I walked into his room, he had his blanket over his face... LAUGHING... then, when I moved the blanket and said peek aboo... you would have thought I told the kid he won a MILLION DOLLARS. He laughed and giggled and almost made me late to work, because of course I had to play about ten rounds of this game with him. He is learning new things every day and he is getting SO FUN. I am so lucky... and I will try to remember this always... even when the beautiful new header is sitting perfectly on my desktop! :-)

I would like to thank the academy...

2009-02-23T16:53:00.004-06:00

Listen up Ross fans, I WON A GIVEAWAY!

Can you even believe this wonderfulness?

God must have known I needed a pick me up and boy did this ever work!

If you look just few posts down there.. you will see the giveaway posted.... well let me tell you, Ms. Addie picked my name out of the basket and I WON! HOORAY!

Seriously, I can't wait to get my lil notebook cover! I am so happy! Maybe this will help this first time mom in the ways of organization... maybe.... :-)

In other news....

How about the Oscars? I really enjoyed the musical movie tribute! I thought it was awesome! Here it is if you missed it....

That's all for now friends... I feel a giveaway of my own coming on... stay tuned!

Sleeping

2009-02-21T22:57:00.004-06:00

Now I knew, as any new parent would, that when I had a baby, sleeping in until 9am was just not going to be in the cards any longer. HOWEVER, I did think that six months in, I would be at least getting six to seven STRAIGHT hours of sleep... oh silly silly me. Jeff and I are still trying to get Isaac on a schedule. Isaac is still taking two naps a day, and we have a pretty good bedtime routine going.. he gets a bath, we lotion him up, we read him a story, he gets a bottle, and to bed he goes...except this is what we see in the crib as SOON as he is laid down...
Now, I realize that some crying is inevitable... the only problem is, God did not give me the ability to listen to my son cry for any amount of time... so I end up getting up or making Jeff get up and get him. Now not all days are awful, but oye... Jeff and I both long for the day where we can get a solid six! My friend Jen gave me advice about another sleep training method, where you sit next to them and try to soothe them, and then little by little you move further and further away... kinda like a nicotine patch for babies and their mothers... We are going to be trying this one out tomorrow... because as my mom's friend said, "There is only one letter difference between Mother and smother...." Let's hope I can be on the right end of that one...

Giveaway! Not mine, but fun!

2009-02-17T17:45:00.005-06:00

Hey there friends and family, (and anyone else out there in blog land following this thing)... I just wanted to let you know about a GREAT giveaway from my friends Blog... Check this out: You can win this really great notebook cover! It's made by Jen's mom and it has room for your pad of paper, pen and a pocket.. perfect for grocery shopping or whatever... I know I can think of a million different uses for this thing!

If you go to Jen's blog, she has all the details about how to enter.

You can also check out her mom's Esty site... her stuff is like Vera Bradley, but instead of just LOOKING hand made, it actually IS! So go there friends, you won't be disappointed!

Magic!

2009-02-16T16:34:00.003-06:00

Those of you who know me would not be surprised that Isaac attended his first show choir competition this weekend.... what might surprise you is that 1. It was in Manteno where my sister is doing her student teaching and 2. HE HATED IT. We weren't in there for five minutes before he had a total melt down and we had to leave... oye. Auntie KK made him a fun onesie that said "Future Manteno Magic Member" puffy painted on there... don't hold your breath Auntie KK, if this is any indication, there will be NO jazz hands in this kids future!
This is Isaac with some of the Manteno Magic... he is jjjjjuuuuusssttt about to lose it. Hopefully his first Sox game will be better. :-)

Celebrations and Immunizations!

2009-02-13T22:41:00.006-06:00

Little Isaac had his first birthday celebration of 2009! On February 7th, Christa and Kent came up from ISU so we could celebrate together Auntie Christa's birthday! They even brought up a train toy to celebrate Isaac's six month birthday!
Then, just three days later, we went to Red Robin to celebrate Auntie KK's birthday! Here we are getting ready to walk out the door...
Then of course we had to order the freckled lemonade and had WONDERFUL burgers. But poor little Isaac couldn't join in at all... he had to make his own fun, so he spent time trying to stand up in his stroller...
HE is getting SO BIG which was confirmed by Dr. Hart at Isaac's six month Doctor appointment.. his official STATS at six months are: Weight: 17 pounds 7 ounces and he is 27.5 inches long. He is in the 50th percentile for weight and 70th for height... looks like we have a tall skinny guy on our hands... I wonder where he gets that from? :-)

Isaac is SIX MONTHS OLD!

2009-02-08T22:39:00.003-06:00

I can NOT even believe that Isaac is six months old. It makes a girl sad to think that he is growing up soooooo fast! It seems like yesterday I was eating that Kit Kat when my water broke... but I digress... I thought I would update ya'll on Isaac's stats..

Weight: Birth: 6lbs 4 ounces Today: 18 poundsish

Height: Birth: 20 1/2 inches Today: 28 1/2 inches

We go to the doctor on Thursday, so our "unofficial" results will be confirmed then!

So far Isaac is:

Eating Level 2 foods... his FAVORITES are sweet potatoes and carrots.
Sitting up unassisted for about a minutes... but he can sit supported by the boppy for a long time.
Playing in his Jumperoo.. he LOVES his Jumperoo!
He can roll both ways, but only rolls from his back to his tummy consistently. He only rolls from his tummy to his back every once in a while!
He recognizes our voices and turns to see where we are, or where we are going.
He can laugh and smile and does them both ALOT... which is good because.....
HE IS NOT SLEEPING CONSISTENTLY THROUGH THE NIGHT (ugh) Isaac still gets up around 1am or 4am for a feed or a cuddle... which has lost some of its cuteness since I went back to work...
Of course he has two teeth, and he loves to use them to chew on his feet!

I just feel so blessed to have the little guy and it makes me a little teary just thinking that he really isn't a baby anymore... almost makes me want to have another one... ALMOST.

Movin on up...

2009-02-06T22:06:00.005-06:00

When I first became pregnant, I was so excited to start looking at the things at Babies R Us. Before I was pregnant, I felt like it was a forbidden land that I didn't have the membership to; but as soon as I got those two pink lines, it was like my membership had come in the mail, and I couldn't get enough! I was on bedrest for two weeks during my pregnancy, and during those two weeks, I ordered consumerreports.org and began working on my registry. The very first item on my list was the car seat. I mean come on! It's the very first thing you are going to put your trust in (besides a human being of course) to keep this little one safe from harm... so after MUCH research and price comparisons, we agreed on the Chicco Keyfit 30. It got RAVE safety reviews, and my brother in laws sister had one and LOVED it... so we put it on our registry, and we recieved it from Jeff's parents a few months later... Now fastforward six months... ISAAC IS HUGE. He is over 30 inches long and does NOT fit well in his infant car seat, not to mention that the friggin thing is HEAVY... so armed with the same consumer reports subscription, Jeff and I set out to buy our new CONVERTIBLE car seat.

Now let me say there is not NEARLY as much information out there on convertible car seats... I found some helpful links at Baby Cheapskate, and also from fellow bloggers, but consumer reports was a bust! So we went into babies R us, and looked around. Let me tell you...if you want to spend alot of money on a convertible car seat, this is the place to go... I mean, I know Britax is supposed to be the best, but over 300 buckeroos? Come on, who are we kidding here? Jeff and I ended up going with the Alpha Omega Elite, which I must say is a best buy for us! We eneded up paying a little under 100 dollars for this car seat which lists for 170. ( I do love those Babies R Us Coupons!) I promise to get a picture of Isaac in it, but right now, he is faaaaaaassst asleep! But for now, here is a picture of the seat... wait till you see what a difference the seat makes!

Teething and Bathing and Sleeping OH MY!

2009-02-04T22:03:00.005-06:00

So for the past few nights, Isaac has been what I would classify as G.R.U.M.P.Y.! The poor lil dude just isn't liking the whole teething thing... and wouldn't you know it, he wasn't just breaking in one new tooth, but TWO TEETH! That's right folks, we have confirmation of PLURAL TEETH!
Tonight we gave him some baby Tylenol, and he seems to be resting a bit more comfortably... ahhhh...
In other news, since he is sitting up almost on his own, we got Isaac a wee bathtub for himself. He seems to LOVE IT. Normally Jeff or I would be in the tub with him, and I think he is really digging being in the bath by himself! The bath tub itself is actually a GIANT rubber duckie that quacks, which Isaac thinks is HILARIOUS. It has been VERY entertaining!
On top of everything elso going on in the little mans life, we are ATTEMPTING to get Isaac on a schedule. One of my friends from work, whom I would say is a very intelligent person, loaned me the book, Good Night, Sleep Tight The Sleep Lady's Gentle Guide to Helping your Child Go to Sleep, Stay Asleep and Wake up Happy. Um.... so far all I can say is YEAH RIGHT! We are working on it of course, but I am not sure who is training who. On top of that, he has mastered his crying which sounds JUST LIKE MAAA MAAAA!!! I don't think I was made to listen to Isaac cry, and I don't think that's going to change... unfortunately, I don't think Jeff was made for it either. So I guess we will continue to give it the ole college try... but we might need the ole college stiff drink after he finally falls asleep!

Oh yeah! Isaac loved his first superbowl... although I think he really liked all the attention he recieved from his Aunts, Uncles and Grandparents. He was especially happy when Mommy won 100 buckeroos for having the right numbers in the third quarter! Hooray! New car seat here we come!
Aunt Kati, Uncle Aaron and I during the Superbowl Party!

A day in the life...

2009-02-01T11:54:00.002-06:00

I know we will be posting more later... I mean come on, it's Isaac's first SUPERBOWL! But I wanted to get this video on here of Isaac and Daddy playing... it melts my heart!

Silly Momma, Tricks are for Kids!

2009-01-29T20:20:00.008-06:00

So today I looked into Isaac's mouth and realized that you could ACTUALLY SEE the tooth that was causing so called teething problems... being the novice momma that I am, I thought, I am going to get a picture of this here tooth and get it up on the blog! My equally naive husband, said, that it was a great idea! Please see the results....
Obviously, Isaac had some other ideas as to what this photo shoot was going to be about for these are only FOUR of the 22 ATTEMPTS to get the picture! If you look REEEEEEEAAALLLLLYYYY close in the last photo you can see the tooth on the bottom right a wee bit..oye... maybe next time... however, I will leave you with a cute picture of the little guy! Didn't want you to think he didn't like pictures all the time! :-)

Tuesdays with Isaac

2009-01-27T16:54:00.004-06:00

Today I was able to just sit and enjoy Sir Isaac. He is really an interesting fella. He has a vocal range of about eight octaves, the strength of a bull and the ideas of a genius! It is amazing to see how much he has learned in just one day! I feel like every time I go to work and come back he is bigger and he has learned about three new things! At this point, Isaac is turning from his back to his stomach with no issue, however, he only turns from his stomach to his back once in a while. We think he has done it about ten times total.... but whatever, we enjoy his squeals of delight when he figures it out! However his newest trick is putting whatever he can in his mouth... including...

Isaac has still had some issues teething, but thanks to my girls on the Babycenter board, I found the MIRACLE that is Hylands teething tablets. I don't know what's in those tablets, but it has got to be the equivalent of a HUGE glass of wine to babies. Its not medicine, so I don't have to worry about over medicating him, it's also NOT alcohol! (A HUGE PLUS), but it has something in it that takes the edge off so the lil guy can S L E E P. (enter a huge cheering section from the biggest sporting event ever here) Ahhh... the joys of a almost six month old!

Teething Monster

2009-01-25T20:59:00.005-06:00

So if you read my last post, you know that my sister has been fighting off a nasty cold. Well, today little Isaac was a MONSTER. He didn't want to be left alone, he wanted to be held and HOLY HECK did the kid have an appetite! I thought FOR SURE that all my crazy cleaning had done nothing and the little guy ended up with Kassy's cold... BUT...As we were feeding him his evening meal (pureed pears ;-) Jeff said, hey come look at this... and low and behold, on the bottom of his lower gum is a wee ice cap of a new TOOTH!
I have NEVER been more excited to see such a site! Now that we know where the discomfort is coming from, we feel a little better giving the lil guy some Tylenol. Here is a picture of him today getting ready for his bath... of course, this is POST Tylenol! I am excited to see what a big boy he is going to look like when his teeth come in, and I can't wait for the teething monster to leave and my sweet baby to return... here's hoping to some fast teething!

In 5,4,3,2,1....

2009-01-24T11:50:00.004-06:00

And we're off! Hello out there in blog land! After being a lurker on many people's blogs and praying for more people than I ever knew, I thought I would try my hand at the whole blog thing... because hey what's one more thing when you are the Mom of an almost 6 month old?! Speaking of which, here is the little fella...
He was born on 08/08/08.... five weeks before his due date, but as you can see, no one told him he was supposed to be a weak lil guy. He came out fighting and has been doing so ever since. I love being a mom so far. Although there are many things about motherhood that were a surprise to me, and have made me almost a crazy person... for example:
My sister, whom we live with, has come down with a horrible cold. Normal me would try and make her as comfortable as possible, getting her tea, blankets, or whatever she needed. However, super crazy mom me, banished her to a ring of 50 feet away from the baby, made her close her door when her vicks vapor rub humidifier was spewing what I could only describe as toxic levels of the menthol smell into the air, and topped it all off by using Clorox wipes to clean any surface she may have come in contact with in the last 24 hours. If someone would have told me I would be doing this, I would have told them, that I would not become this crazy person.... turns out motherhood brings out the crazy in you... until next time friends!