Saturday, November 29, 2008 7:36 PM

We’ve been working on these all year... Current mood: silly Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities Send your own ElfYourself eCards Send your own ElfYourself eCards Send your own ElfYourself eCards Venily thinks these are HILARIOUS, lol!

November 12, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 4 weeks, 2 days old)

I don't plan on being on this site as often as I used to. I have started another site, but it's not finished yet. I am keeping this one around until I can make Venily's stories into a book! This will take quite some time, lol. So, I will still update her stories and frontpage every so often, but no more pics. I put all my pics on my myspace site though, if you are interested:
mypace.com/jasonjennifer

Venily will be 13 months old tomorrow! She probably says about 75 words now, she can say almost anything!!! It's so funny when she says words you wouldn't expect her to be able to say. The other day she said "backpack". HAHA, more than once! She also says "eyebrow" (she loves to show me where my eyebrows are) and added neck and butt to the body parts she can show (though she thinks her butt is in the front, lol). I have been trying to get her to say "love you" too for awhile. She says something kind of similar and smiles and nods her head when she says it like she's proud of herself, lol!!!

I didn't get her 12 month pics done. I left it to the last minute again, and we had so much going on, it just didn't happen. Oh well, I can still get her "1 year" pics within the next week or two and I will still consider that alright!

I will weigh and measure her again tomorrow, I'll keep that up every month until she's 2 so I can keep filling in her little chart, lol.

Oh my gosh, Venily is SOOOOO FUNNY!!!! She does the silliest, cutest things all day long! Yesterday she brought a book up to the cat and kept saying "book, book" b/c she wanted the cat to read it to her! I was laughing so hard! Then she was trying to put shoes on the cat, that cat has been so patient with her, lol! She also tries to "help" me all the time and I always find it so funny. She'll take the clean laundry, piece by piece and hand it to me to put away (that actually is helpful!), loves to sweep, and helps me unload the dishwasher too, hahahaha, she'll take things out and then put them through the cat door, which leads into the basement (not so helpful!! haha).

Venily and I have been bringing boxes over to our house and unpacking them, it's a lot of work (for me)!! I have to go through my boxes here, put the stuff I know I can find a place to put in our house into new boxes or bags, but not too heavy that I can't bring them up the stairs with one hand, lol. Then I have to load them into the van, bring them to our house, put them all in the garage and then (while holding Venily with one hand) use my other to bring all the boxes up the stairs and then unpack them while keeping Venily entertained at the same time! AHHHH! I have a lot of stuff unpacked and put away in our kitchen and bathroom though, so I feel better about it! I am hopefully painting Venily's room tomorrow and then can start getting her room in order!!!!!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008 12:19 AM

Needing to address some things... Current mood: content Category: Life I was told not to write this. I don't care. I was up until 1:30 this morning thinking and obsessing about it, knowing that if I just wrote it all out, I'd feel better, so that's what I'm doing. Please feel free to stop reading at any time. Myspace, BHP, facebook, I don't care. I should be free to express MY opinions and beliefs here and I'm going to continue to do so. Don't agree? Fine. There are many ways to address that problem. 1.) Delete me! 2.) Don't read it! Nobody is forcing you to! 3.) OR (and I prefer this)- write or talk to me about it! I'm open to many different views. I enjoy adult conversations about controversial topics with educated people. I don't care if your opinions differ from my own, honestly. I can talk about things, even argue my point of view and beliefs (maybe even disagreeing with you wholeheartedly), and at the end of the conversation, agree to disagree and still be friends with someone. I think it's unreal that someone could be ANGRY at me for my own personal beliefs, that someone could say MEAN and HURTFUL things about someone else behind their back all because that person let's say... supports a different political view... The recent campaign for presidency was intense. Emotions were high on all sides. I spent a lot of my own personal time and energy focused on it. It was an endeavor I was passionate and excited about. I am more delighted in the outcome than you could even imagine. However, I know what it's like to be on the other end of that. All too well. The last 2 election cycles have NOT gone in my favor and I was devastated. However, I have never and would never ridicule someone I considered a friend for their beliefs and I respect their need for time in healing hurt pride. Yes, I'm going to celebrate something that I see as a victory for America and the world, but I understand why you might not be celebrating the same way that I am (yet;) ). One of the most attractive qualities I find in the new president-elect is his understanding in that. His ability to be above all of the petty, negative personal attacks throughout the entire campaign (including the primaries) and to never stoop to that level. It's something so rare in politics and even rare in everyday life. It's a quality I've seen admired greatly by all sides of the political spectrum, not just by democrats. I AM a democrat, completely and entirely. I was not raised knowing what the word meant or actually knowing anything about politics whatsoever, but through A LOT of research in the things that are important to me and recognizing what my core beliefs are, I know this is true. That's not to say that I have extreme leftist views on everything, there are many things I tend to be moderate on and even some things (such as abortion) where I even lean a little more to the right. I always listen to all sides though before making up my mind. I do NOT appreciate people making assumptions on my beliefs either just because I identify myself as a democrat. You have a question about one of my beliefs? ASK ME! I will try to explain it the best I can! Don't gossip with other people saying "oh, she thinks this" or "she thinks that". As a matter of fact, don't bring my name up in any conversation with other people period if you don't have anything nice to say! Especially people who don't even know me! Just because you know a couple things about me, doesn't mean you have me all figured out! SOME people aren't that transparent! There is so much anger... and over what? I can't help but to always think of people who have REAL problems when I'm confronted time and time again with people who get angry about every little thing. Think about it and put your problems in perspective. What have I done that makes you angry at me? Really think about it!! Got it? Okay, now TELL ME! Seriously, right now. I know who reads this so if you have a problem with me and are reading this, I will expect a response from you. Send me a message, pick up the phone, drive to my house, I don't care, just tell me, because I would ABSOLUTELY want to hear it. Even if it's not about politics. I can handle it. My hunch is that you can't come up with anything (but if I'm wrong, by all means, please tell me) because you're not really angry at ME or anyone else who voted for a particular candidate, but perhaps you're angry in general because things are beyond your control. My suggestion? Focus your anger on something constructive. Find another way to deal with it than taking it out on your family and friends! For example, if you are truly angry about the current state of the election, join a group of people who support your point of view and get involved! Even if nothing changes for you in the next election cycle, at least you could feel like you did everything in your power to make it happen. And if it doesn't mean that much to you, THAN WHY ARE YOU SO ANGRY ABOUT IT!? I guess that's what frustrates me the most. People who don't really care, yet they still get angry when things don't go their way. That and the inability to separate politics or any personal opinions with the people they represent, and instead be able to look at a person as a whole. There are people who identify themselves as republicans who I am friends with and there are people who are democrats who I am NOT friends with. That does not define who I like or dislike. If you are friends with me BEFORE you know my political views and then, finding out that I'm a democrat, no longer want to be friends with me, even though NOTHING else has changed, I find that really sad. I wish you luck in finding good friends who are exactly like you in each and every way! I know not everyone out there is like this. This isn't for everyone. But, if any of this is true for you, please think about it! This isn't for a particular person out there either, but rather for an entire group of people. And I will be waiting for your messages...

New Blog!

Well, I decided to make a new blog since BHP is getting old. I don't want to have to pay for it any more and I want something that isn't entirely about Venily, something I could write about my life as well! I plan on taking all of the stories on my BHP site (Venily's pregnancy through her first year) and making them into a book. It's going to be a long process and I'm not really sure why I'm taking it on when I already have so much going on! HAHA!

November 1, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 2 weeks, 5 days old)

We FINALLY got our septic put in today!! YAY!!! Venily and I spent a couple of hours at our house yesterday, cleaning things up, washing windows and countertops, vacuuming and sweeping the floors. I'm starting to bring boxes over and want to start unpacking some stuff! We're soooo excited!!!! We're also starting to Venily proof it! I put lots of outlet covers in and Jason put stuff on all of the kitchen and bathroom cabinets that Venily can reach, though she's almost figured them out already, lol! Venily was so cute yesterday. If I was sweeping, she wanted to sweep too! If I was washing windows, she had to have a rag to wash windows! It was too funny!

Venily knows almost all of her body parts now- and shows them to me all the time (she's actually on my lap, doing it right now while I'm trying to get her to sleep!)! She knows where her eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hair, tongue, belly button, hands, and feet are!

Venily has another cold! Her nose is very runny and she is coughing a lot! She is too cute to be sick, it's not fair!!!

I can't believe it's November already! I've been reading Venily Christmas books and singing her Christmas songs already, lol! I'm really not looking forward to the cold though!

October 29, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 2 weeks, 2 days old)

We have been busy! Venily has been having fun doing fall and Halloween things this last week. We went trick-or-treating on Sunday. She was so tired and just completely relaxed the whole time, lol. I did let her eat some teddy grahams, she thought that was pretty cool, lol! Too bad it was cold and windy. She was all bundled up, so you could hardly even see her costume, lol. We might go again Friday, hopefully it's nicer out! On Saturday Jason and I went to a wedding without her! It was the first time we've been out together without her in a long, long time! We were sad and missed her, but she had a lot of fun with her Grandma, her Aunt, Uncle, and cousin Chase!

We have been fighting some sicknesses here. Venily got a virus a couple of weeks ago and had that ear infection, so she was put on antibiotics, which made her diarrhea worse. The antibiotics killed off all of her good bacteria in her digestive system, so we are working on getting that better. I took her to the walk-in again on Monday for a diaper rash caused by the diarrhea that keeps coming back. They told me she has a temporary sensitivity to lactose because I guess antibiotics kills off the bacteria that break down lactose too and the diarrhea is stopping them from being able to build back up to normal levels!! If it's not one thing, it's another! My gosh! Soooooo..... right now she can't have any fruit or dairy still! And I've stopped drinking milk just in case! I had to stop trying to wean her too which sucks because we were doing really good and now we're back to square one!

Venily has unfortunately learned how to throw a pretty good tantrum when she's tired! HAHA! You should see it! She makes her whole body go limp and screams and screams! I need to start putting her to bed earlier, before she gets too tired!

Her vocabulary is contining to grow and grow!!! She amazes me soooo much!!! She's got to be on 50+ words now, but I've lost count! Some new words she says now are "rock, rock", "knock, knock", "boy", "diaper", "chair", "button", "duck".... I'm always shocked when she'll say a word I haven't heard her say before and she knows exactly what it means! She is getting really good at fetching things for me too, lol, isn't that the real reason for having kids?! HAHA! I say "go get mama a ....(book, duck, baby, dinosaur, etc., etc.)" and she'll run and go get it for me!! She will be such a good helper by the time we have another baby! :)

Other than that, things are going pretty good. Our house is coming along slowly but surely. Everything that we have left we need to rely on other people so it is taking some time. We'll be in there soon though!

October 21, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 1 week, 1 day old)

Venily HATES baths!! Hates them, hates them, hates them!!!! It has been getting steadily worse so she bought some cool new bath toys with some of her birthday money, but NO LUCK!!! She was hesitant to get in today, but once she saw her new toys, she was happily playing with them.... until... I poured a little water on her body (NOT her head) and she screamed the whole rest of the time and was standing, clenching onto me, begging me to get her out of there. It is so sad! She just absolutely hates when I pour water over her head and now if she even sees the cup, she starts to freak. I only give her baths like twice a week, lol, but now I don't know what to do!

P.S. I started updating her site. Look at her charts!! HAHA!! 64% for weight (which is pretty good) and she is even MORE off the chart now for height, she is a TALL girl!! Every time I tell someone that she is 1, they say she looks 18m or 2 because of how tall she is! :)

We're looking forward to a fun weekend this weekend, hopefully the weather is nice!


I love this because it's EXACTLY how I feel! :)

October 20, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 1 week old)

Venily officially has 6 teeth now!! She popped those 2 top teeth through a couple of days ago. So that makes 4 on top, 2 on the bottom! My little llama needs some more bottoms now!

She is getting really good at saying "all done". I think it's her first two word combo that she says (well, at least two different words).

I am sick, so I haven't gotten much done on this site. I still need to put up pics, write her 1 yr likes and dislikes and fix up the front page.

October 15, 2008 (Venily is 1 year, 2 days old)

We had a lot of fun on Venily's birthday! We played outside, went to the zoo, went out to eat for dinner, and went to the puppy store!! She loved it- and it was such a nice day out again! I have pictures from her party and her birthday up on myspace. I don't think I'll have enough room to put them all up on here. (I am contemplating getting a new website soon, I'll keep you updated on that). Venily is still a little sick though. And even this morning, she is still sticking her finger in her ear that had the ear infection. She has her 1 year well-check and shots today so I will have the doctor take a look at her ear as well. She will have been on antibiotics a week tomorrow so I hope it is better soon! I am DREADING having her get shots. It will be especially sad this time, because she will know what is going on much more.

I have a list of all Venily's favorite things and such as she turned one year old that I still need to type up and put up on here. I also wrote her a letter. It was very hard to write, let me tell you! :)

I still haven't got Venily's 11 month pics online yet! Hopefully soon. I also need to schedule her 1 year pics very soon and we are going to be getting family pics done as well! I can't wait to not get pictures every month! I think I'll get her 18 month pics, and then every year after that!

October 15, 2008 (con't)

Venily's check-up went really well. The doctor was very impressed with all of the things she can do! Her ear still has pus in it, but it's not red anymore so her ear infection is getting better, though it's still bothering her. Venily's height was 31.5 inches long, her weight was 21 pounds, 12 ounces, and her head circumference was 46.5cm. Her doctor said she looks awesome and that we are doing everything right!!!

She did have to have 3 shots! :( She screamed of course, but as soon as she was done and her Daddy picked her up, she was waving at the nurse again and saying hi to her, lol (with tears all down her face). Then she didn't cry at all after that, I'm hoping it doesn't bother her at all tonight. She got the first half of her flu shot and has to go back in a month to get the other half! Then she has more shots at 15 months.

I am starting to try to break her from nursing, I'd like to be done by the time she's 13 months. It is not going to be easy, but we were able to get her to take a sippy cup of warm whole milk instead of me last night, even though she kept insisting on me. She gave up and drank the milk though, so that gives me hope. We're going to substitute one feeding a day w/ whole milk every 4 days or so and see if that works for us!

This past week she has gone back to taking 2 naps a day!! YES!!! BUT.... she rarely takes them in her crib. Most of the time I have to either hold her or she sleeps on our bed. In either case, I can't get much done. I think it has a lot to do with her ear hurting her so I'm hoping she will go back to taking her naps in her crib when she is all better.

A letter to my daughter:

Dear Venily, my sweet, darling, baby girl,

You are a year old now and I can't believe how fast this year has gone.

I was elated when I found out I was pregnant with you. It's hard to explain, but I needed you. I felt so empty. I wanted a baby girl more than anything in the world and I finally had you. Your Daddy was everything to me, but I still felt like there was something more I was missing out on. Your pregnancy had its ups and downs but I was always so happy. There was life inside of me and I would protect it with my own. But I was scared.... scared something would go wrong, scared to hold the one thing I wanted more than anything and have it taken away from me. My whole world was inside of me and it seemed so fragile.

You were born on a Saturday afternoon, just as I asked you to be! I wasn't even sure I was in labor with you but your Dad raced us to the hospital and I asked the people at the front desk what I should do. "Umm... I think I might be in labor. What should I do?" haha. I had to stop every couple of minutes as I was having contractions, but I still couldn't believe it was really happening. Less than 2 hours later you were here! You were SOOOO perfect. It went so fast. It was almost painless. I couldn't even comprehend it at first. Where were the hours of screaming and eating ice chips and yelling at my husband that I hated him? Where was the gooey, smashed up face, bald-headed, screaming baby? As I held the most perfect little girl in all the world I couldn't understand how I could be so lucky. You were perfect. Just perfect. And you were mine. I couldn't sleep at all the first night. I just stared at you and held you all night long.

We've learned so much this last year. Your Dad learned what a onesie was and how to hold you so that you'd fall right to sleep. I learned how to nurse and change a diaper at the same time! That has come in very handy. And YOU learned how to smile, sit, talk, walk, and get every person who lays eyes on you to fall instantly in love with you. I'm so proud of every little thing you do. Your Dad and I used to fight about who got to push you in the stroller when we'd go grocery shopping and who had to push the grocery cart because we each wanted the "credit" for you. HAHA! You are so cute. You have to wave and say "hi" to every person you see. Everyone adores you!

You know when you have those moments where you stop and say that you want to remember it forever, so you try to take a picture of it with your mind? Remember each and every detail and exactly how it made you feel? You memorize the sights, the smells, the sounds, the overwhelming emotion? Well, there were so many times I wanted to freeze moments in your first year!! I never want to forget!! You did the cutest thing with your lips. They were so precious. We called it being "sghettoey" and only your father and I could truly understand and appreciate what that word meant! :) You'd giggle and laugh at the silliest things. There were entire days when we'd just stick out our tongues at each other and laugh. I remember times when you were so sleepy and I'd hold you in my arms, rocking you, singing some silly made up song about how much I loved you and you'd give me the sweetest kiss after every line I sang and you'd have the cutest little smirk on your face as your eyes were getting more and more tired. I have never felt so loved and my heart would physically hurt knowing how much I loved you back. There were trips to the museum, park, lake, zoo, hiking, and everywhere else we'd go. I wanted you to see everything. You loved new experiences and meeting new people.

The smell of lavender hand sanitizer brings me right back to our duplex, holding my newborn baby who slept ALL of the time as long as we were holding her. You were so content to do anything as long as it was with us. Your Daddy and I would literally be shocked each and every morning at how big you'd grown over night. We would never say that you couldn't do something because the next chance you'd get, you'd prove us wrong. People said that it would go fast, to enjoy it while we could, but we never dreamed it would go THIS fast. That in an instant, you'd go from a tiny, helpless baby to our little girl!

You have grown into the most adorable, gorgeous, smart little girl with the sweetest personality ever! Every month you'd grow, I'd remember thinking "this is my favorite month, please stop growing" and of course, you never listened! But, each month I'd say the same thing again and it would continue to get better and better. You have little conversations with me now. You always want to show me things that you think are cool. You get frustrated when you don't get your way. You pretend you are doing something else when we catch you do something naughty. You dance and sing and try to jump. You love to imitate us. You love to share. You say 35-40 words and your Daddy and I are convinced you're a genius! :) You love your family so much.

You are playing right now on the floor around me and you keep coming up to me to give me a kiss and you keep bringing me books to read you. I just read "Mr. Brown Can Moo Can You" for the 5th time today. You love it.

Thank you for letting me be your Mommy for this last year, it has been the best year of my life. I have taken my job very seriously and have always tried to do my best. I wanted you to have the best possible start and I think I've done a pretty good job! I want you to know that you are loved sooo much. I look forward to watching you grow and change more in this next year. I love you Venily! Happy Birthday love!!!!! XOXOXO

OCTOBER 13, 2008 (VENILY IS 1 YEAR OLD!!!!)

Happy 1st BIRTHDAY sweet baby girl!!! I love you so much!!!!

Man, I was doing so good with not crying but now I'm ready to lose it again, lol!

Venily's birthday party yesterday was awesome!!! Thank you so much to everyone who came, we couldn't have asked for a nicer day! Venily had so much fun seeing everyone. And I have NEVER seen her eat ANYTHING the way she devoured her cake and ice cream, lol! HAHA, that was too funny! We are so happy so many people helped us celebrate her big day! I will have more to write later... it is hard to write while she is napping on me, lol!

I can't believe my baby girl is a year old already!!!!

October 10, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 3 weeks, and 6 days old)

CONVERSATION WITH AN ALMOST ONE YEAR OLD:

Venily: "Mom?" (while sitting on my lap, looking up at me)
Mommy: "What?"
Venily: "Mom?"
Mommy: "Yes, hunny...?"
Venily: (huge smile) "HI!"

I love her so much!

October 9, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 3 weeks, and 5 days old)

4 days until Venily's 1st birthday!!! 3 until her party!!! I got a lot of RSVPs yesterday for Venily's party, she can't wait!!

Well, we took Venily in yesterday to the walk-in and she has her first ear infection! I figured as much because every time I try to lay her down while she fell asleep, she'd start screaming. She is asleep right now in my arms and it looks like I'll just have to hold her here for an hour or so. She is on antibiotics right now for the first time. I hope she is feeling all better by her party. Even though she is sick, she is still in a fairly good mood (when she has Tylenol or Mortrin). The doctor said that she was the happiest child with an ear infection that she had ever seen! :) The only problem is she won't nap and then she gets crabby because she is so tired. That is why I'm just going to hold her while she sleeps now. Hopefully that will be good enough!

October 8, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 3 weeks, and 4 days old)

5 days until Venily's 1st birthday!!! 4 until her party!!! I am soooo freaking out right now! I have soooo much to do! AND I can't get it done! First of all, Venily is sick and getting her next 2 top teeth in. She had a 101 fever yesterday and her nose won't stop running. I really hope she starts feeling better before her party!

AND.... VENILY GAVE UP HER MORNING NAP!!!!!! I don't even know what to do!! She hasn't taken it in a week! I can not get a single thing done anymore! I'm lucky if I get a shower in before noon. Right now it is 1:36pm and I am still in my pajamas.... I need to come up with a new system and I need it FAST!! It was so nice before. I'd take a shower, get ready for the day and start getting things done during her 1st nap and then I'd clean/organize/fold laundry/do dishes, etc/etc. during her second!

I got Venily's 11 month pics taken yesterday. She wore her Halloween costume, she looked absolutely precious! She is a princess fairy... very, very cute!! She loves wearing it too! We went to JCPenney's and I should get them online within a week. Despite being sick, she was VERY happy and running around like crazy (which made it hard to get pictures, lol). She was so cute too. The photographer gave her a flower to play with and she kept smelling it and making the woman, Jason, and I take turns smelling it too! :)

Venily learned a new animal sound! When you ask her what sound an elephant makes or show her a picture of an elephant, she blows with her lips!! That makes four animal sounds she does! Bears, kitties, sheep, and elephants!!! I'm so proud of her! She LOVES when I sing EIEIO to her and if I stop she always says "more" and I have to keep going! HAHA!

Our basement floor got poured this morning, Jason got all of the radiant heating done last weekend! The drywall in the loft and ceiling is all done and getting primed today. They are probably going to start painting it for real tomorrow. Jason and I need to come up with a color(s) today! Probably tanish, we thought about doing the front wall a different color, but we're not sure. Then on Saturday all of our appliances and furniture (including couches!) are coming (they're been waiting for us for a week). Venily's room is primed, but not yet painted (it's hard to find someone to watch Venily for that long). Our house WOULD be ready for Venily's party except that we do not yet have our septic done. The guy who was supposed to do it weeks ago refuses to call Jason back (the story of our life).

Sunday, October 05, 2008 6:45 PM

♥ Proud Mommy Current mood: loved Category: Life ARE YOU A PROUD MOMMY? Child's name? Venily Autumn Age you had your child? 23 Are/were you married? Yes, we wanted to be married before we started trying! When did you find out you were pregnant: February 15th, the day after Valentine's day Who did you tell first about the pregnancy: Jason! Then Jacki! What was the father's reaction? A little stunned at first, I had just woken him up and it was still pretty early in the morning. But by the end of the day he was calling people and saying "guess what, I'm going to be a dad!" :) How did you feel about the pregnancy? I was soooo excited, but so scared too! I didn't believe it was real for a long time. Date of Conception: Sometime in January.... I think it was the 20th or 23rd or something like that Due Date: October 18th Was the pregnancy planned: Sure was! We tried for 6 months!! Did you find out what you were having? Yes! I couldn't take the suspense! What did you hope for? I wanted a little girl more than anything else in this world!!! And our dream came true! :) Did the baby move a lot? Oh yeah, she was a kicker, and I loved it! Did you take a birthing class? No, I read a LOT of books and knew everything anyway! How long did labor last? not sure, I didn't know if I was really in labor.... less than 2 hours at the hospital though! When I got to the hospital I was already 8 cm! Did you get an epidural? Yes, but I definitely think I could have done it w/out it. I'm glad I took it though- I have nothing but positive memories from that day! How long did you push? 18 minutes, but it felt like less Was it as bad as you thought it was going to be? No, I was SHOCKED at how easy it was! Did you have any complications? Nope! Weight of baby? 7lbs 8oz Length? 20in ANY HAIR? yep, dark hair.... totally unexpected! What was your prepregnancy weight? 126 Be honest...how much weight did you gain while pregnant? 23 pounds Did you lose it all? yes, plus 8 pounds (w/out trying!) I've been trying to gain some back while breastfeeding, and it's not working for me! Was baby early or late? 5 days early Did you breastfeed? If so, how long? Yes... so far 11months, 3 weeks! Who drove you home from the hospital? Jason How did you pick the name? We made it up! Jason liked the name Vena and I wanted something longer Did you go home or somewhere else when you left the hospital? home, of course Where was the baby born? Aurora in Kenosha Did you video tape the birth? Sure did!! Speaking of that, I want to watch it again! :) Who was in the room with you? Jason, Jacki, my doctor, Cathy, and another nurse Who keeps your baby the most? haha, me, I don't let her out of my sight! :) Did you have any postpartum depression? No, I would just get really emotional if I didn't get enough sleep! Did your baby have colic? No, she was a very happy baby! Who does the baby look like most? Definitely Jason, though I can see myself in her when she smiles Do you want to have another? Most definitely How is your baby's father? AMAZING! Venily is the luckiest little girl. Her Daddy loves her so much! Seriously...did you get stretch marks? No, thank goodness! Just some small ones on my boobs after the fact (they're gone now) How old is your baby now? She will be 1 in 8 days!!!! What has been your favorite thing about being a Mommy? I love EVERY minute of it!! Especially watching Venily learn new things! She is so smart! REPOST IT AS : Are you a proud Mommy

October 1, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 2 weeks, 4 days old)

I can't believe it's October already!!

I haven't been able to write any stories lately because for one, I am busy and Venily likes my undivided attention and for two, any time I start writing something, I start crying!!! My baby is going to be 1 in less than 2 weeks. You can not even imagine how cute she is either! She is so smart and sooooo cute, I've been getting really emotional lately! I'd say about 10 times a day I am actually moved to tears.... she is amazing!..... Okay, I actually just had to take a break b/c I almost started crying again! I should probably see a doctor or something, lol!

We went to an Obama party a couple of days ago in Burlington. It was a lot of fun. There were a lot of kids there, so Venily was just in heaven and there was so much positive energy there. Very exciting! Venily was dancing and clapping and having a great time! Then on Sunday we went to the Bear Den Petting Zoo. Venily had so much fun!! She LOVES animals. She really does. Especially bears and cats. Here's a video of her there. HAHA. You can't hear her say "bear" very well, but you can hear her growl! :) She LOVES to growl!

(For some reason it won't let me paste videos... you'll have to go here if you are interested!
http://s52.photobucket.com/albums/g30/jennifer_reyer/Venily%20Videos/ )

I sent out Venily's birthday party invitations today. *Sigh*. Despite my best efforts, she really is growing up... and I am crying again...haha. All of her friends and family will be there having fun and celebrating her big day and I will be in the bathroom crying hysterically! I am so proud of what a beautiful, intelligent little girl she is becoming though! She literally surprises me each and every day with all of the new things she can do! She has to be up to at least 30 words she can say... "hot" (as she touches the stove), "bug" (she loves bugs), "book" (oh my gosh, she brings me a 1,000 books a day and makes me read them over and over and over again, lol), "bubble" (so much funner to play with now that she can run around after them!), and "cup" are just some of the new words she has added to her list. She can do the motions to "ittsy, bittsy, spider"...I would take a video, but you'd have to watch it on mute b/c I CAN'T sing, haha. She can "jump". LOL, she moves her arms up and down as she goes up on her tippy toes! SOOOO CUTE!!!! And the list goes on and on and on!!!! I am just in awe of her. She is just my whole world (and yes, I am crying agian!)!

We have decided that it will be best to have Venily's party at Grandma and Grandpa Lodarek's house instead of our new house. I am heartbroken about this, but realize that there are more important things! If by some chance we are able to get our new house party-ready in time, we will have a sign up saying to go to our new house.



I can't wait to celebrate my daughter's first year!!

September 23, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 1 week, 3 days old)

20 Days left until Venily's first Birthday!!!! 19 until her party! I'm having some serious doubts about how along our house will be for her party, but we shall see! The drywall should get started sometime this week. But we still need plumbing, the garage floor to be poured, stairs, electricity, septic!! Ahh!

My newest favorite thing that Venily does: Blow kisses!!! She opens up her hand and kisses the middle! I LOVE it! Still doesn't "blow" them, but I don't care!

I took Venily into the doctor today. She has been sick with a cold for like a week and woke up really fussy this morning, which is really out of character for her. She has a cough, runny nose, and is really congested. The doctor said she is fine though! She just has an upper respiratory virus. Nothing I can do about it! Her ears have some fluid in them, but it's not an ear infection, it's just from all of her congestion. She said that Venily is really lucky not to have any ear infections yet. Most kids her age have already had a couple, but since I'm still breastfeeding, that's probably why she hasn't gotten any. Venily was 20lbs, 10oz. when they weighed her! Wow, I was off by 2 pounds! I don't think she's lost that much in such a short period of time!

September 19, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 6 days old)

I'm trying to fix up all of my stories because I want to print them all once Venily turns one year and put them all together in a book for her! I went through and put through how old she was on each date and how far along I was in my pregnancy on each day, as well as added some pictures! I'll probably do more at a later time. I'd also like to add the couple of stories and things I have on Myspace onto this page.

A couple of updates I forgot to add about Venily!

She loves to pretend that she is talking on the phone now. She'll take a phone (or actually any toy), put it up to her ear and say "hi...hi...hi"!!! She loves actually talking to her Daddy on the phone too! She just smiles and smiles when she hears him on the line! Then she tells him "hi" or waves, lol! But then she gets really sad when I take the phone back.

She likes to copy us with other things too. She'll take the remote, put it up to the t.v. and start pushing buttons like she knows what she is doing! LOL! If we're like both eating cereal or something and I mix mine around with my spoon then she'll do the same thing and if I take a drink, then she has to take a drink too! It's funny!

Venily also loves reading!!! She's always liked reading books. When I read them to her or just reading them herself, but now she actually will take a book and bring it to you to read! And when you are done with a book and give it to her, she'll hand it back to you to read again! HAHA! I LOVE it!

She is definitely turning into a Daddy's girl!! When he gets home she gets SOOOO excited! And if he's just stopping by to get something and has to leave again right away, she gets really, really sad! When he picks her up she'll hug and kiss him and won't let him go if I try to get her back!

She's also been really interested lately in putting things INSIDE of other things. Like if I have her toy off her highchair, there is a hole in there. And she finds it fun to take all of her food and put it in the hole... which in turn goes all over the floor, lol. She also likes to put little toys in canisters/ cups/ or boxes. She hasn't figured out yet though how to dump things out. She just puts her hand back in there and grabs them out again or if she can't do that she shakes it until they fly out!

Venily GOES CRAZY FOR THE Areva commercial!!! OH MY GOSH!! Jason says it's the "Funky Town" song. It goes "talk about it, talk about it, talk about it" ahahahaha. You should see her! She gets the BIGGEST smile on her face and INSTANTLY breaks out dancing! And if I'm nursing her when the song comes on, she'll take one of her hands and keep putting it up and down in the air to the beat!

I tried to teach Venily how to blow out candles the other day. I figured I'd better start now! She just wanted to touch it so badly. Then when I tried to get her to blow it... she kept sucking in instead of blowing out, lol. We still need some more practice!

I'm giving Venily one sippy cup of whole milk a day and so far so good! She loves it even more than she likes juice or water!

September 16, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 3 days old)

I finally updated Venily's front page! YAY!

Venily's 11 month stats: 23 pounds, 30.75 inches long!!! WOW, she had a growth spurt this month!

She tried real milk last night and LOVED it!

September 15, 2008 (Venily is 11 months, 2 days old)

Venily turned 11 months on the 13th!!!! There is less than a month left now until her first birthday!!!! I'm so excited!! And there are so many cool things that she can do when she turns one!! Like turn her car seat front facing (!!!!!), drink whole milk, eat peanut butter and egg whites.... haha, I can't wait!!

People keep asking me what Venily wants for her birthday... really she doesn't care! She loves everything! Some things she needs though are big crayons (or the ones that are for toddlers) , finger paint, bath toys, little farm animals... stuff like that! She also loves anything with buttons that you can press to make it do things. Oh, and ANYTHING that you can put pictures in. She's in mostly 18m for clothes, though if you ask her Daddy, she has too many! Venily and I know that you can never have too many clothes! She still needs snow pants and boots for the winter (she has a jacket, it's black, pink, and white), but I don't know if they are even selling that stuff yet!

I can't believe that Venily is already 11 months! She was still inside of me this time last year! :) She is doing great with everything! She is walking more than she crawls now and can turn around, bend over and do other tricks while walking too!

She's still taking great naps... 2 a day. 1 1/2- 2 hours each. And she will play down in her crib for like 30 minutes after she wakes up, completely happy! I'll go get her and she'll have turned the light on and just be sitting there, reading a book or playing with a toy when I come in, it's soooo cute! She's doing better at night too. Sometimes she'll sleep all through the night in her crib... though most nights she's up 1-2 times. When her top teeth were coming in, she was up like every hour though!

At 11 months, she has 4 teeth (see pics). Two on top, two on bottom, just like a little llama! Her top teeth though look pretty gapped, lol! We're already saying that she might need braces, lol, but they are really cute!

Venily eats FANTASTIC!! There is NOTHING she won't eat! She loves all kinds of crazy food. Onions, tomatoes, peppers, I'm so surprised because up until I was pregnant with her, I didn't like ANYTHING except if it was plain. Now I love all sorts of different things too... it's so weird! I still severely limit her eating "bad" foods though. And I think I've found a compromise for her birthday cake... I'm going to see if my mom will make it for her. Low fat angel food cake with whip cream and strawberries? We'll see if my mom already has different ideas though... I think she might still be pushing for a real cake...

Venily says a lot of different words! Probably at least 20. Her favorites are Mama, hi/ bye, more, Matt, Daddy, milk (meh- as she points to me and lifts up my shirt, oh boy!), bear and dog!!! And when you ask her what sound a bear makes, she's growl and if you ask her what sound a kitty makes she meows!! It's so cute! I'm going have to get it on video to show you!

Here's a video too of her walking last week... right before I started the video I asked her where her train was... so she is going to find it, lol. I love when she bends over to see it!

She's actually walking even better than this now... every day she gets a little more used to it! And she can walk around good in her Robeez shoes too! But any other shoes, no way! They are too cluncky and she takes them off right away. She can't take the Robeez shoes off- I LOVE them!! :)

I still need to weigh and measure her for this month! I will do that in a bit!

Here are her likes and dislikes at 11 months:

Venily's LIKES:
* walking around by her self!
* pointing at all the pictures and decorations at Grandma and Grandpa's house and having people tell her what or who they are! She could SERIOUSLY do this all day long!
* Bears, dogs, and kitties!
* Growling! She growls for her bear noise and anything else that sounds similar... motorcycles, drills... etc.
* Figuring new things out- she is SO smart!


Venily DISLIKES:
* When Mommy yells at her for biting or pulling hair
* Shopping for any extended period of time! (I have to be prepared w/ lots of distractions! Snacks, toys, random items off the shelves...)

September 12, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 4 weeks, 1 day old)

Yeah, the new picture place in Kenosha is seriously awesome!! I would go there every time if they put the pics online, but they don't! :( Venily loved the girl taking the pictures and she seriously took A MILLION pictures! They have really cute backgrounds and props and things too! And we could have had a couple of different outfit changes too. I felt bad for all of the work she did for me only to order the one picture! There was one where she was sitting on the ground and I was throwing green petals on her that turned out absolutely adorable and there was one where she was kissing a GIANT stuffed bear (you should have seen how excited she was when she saw that, lol) and one where she was at the beach... and so many others that were just too cute! And I'm so sad that no one else will see how cute all of the pictures turned out! The girl said she was going to keep some for her portfolio though, so that is good! They have a promotion going on right now... $10 for a TON of pictures and 6 free greeting cards too (all in the same pose)! I don't know how long it's going to last for... but I would definitely give them a try if you are interested! They don't have any sitting fees and they print the pictures right there for you when you are done at no extra cost so you don't have to wait forever for your pictures!

Maybe if we get a group together again for like Xmas we could go there. Because you can get 3 different picture sets plus the cd with ALL of the pictures on it for $80. Then we could each get a set and then print off any other pics we wanted w/ the cd? That might be worth it!

So Venily has outgrown all of the tons of shoes that she has never worn and I was looking today for shoes for her at the store since she is walking so much now and she will need to wear them for walking outside soon. I didn't decide to get any, but when I got home I had a package from my Aunt and she sent me a TON of clothes and 10 pairs of shoes (sizes 4 & 5), including 3 pairs of Robeez, which is what I really wanted, and is what I've heard is the best for babies her age who are starting to walk!!! I am SO excited!! I love when things work out like that! :)

September 11, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 4 weeks old)

Well, our house is finally here!!!! It came on the 9th and we spent all day watching them put it together. It was really cool! The whole neighborhood came out to see it, lol! Venily and I met a lot of our new neighbors. People kept telling me it was the most exciting thing that had happened in Lily Lake in years, lol! Design homes just finished it all up yesterday. And OH MY GOSH, I just love it!! The first time I looked around in it, I never wanted to leave, haha, and I think I said "it's just perfect" at least 100 times! And it is. It's just perfect for us. It is so cool to see something that we designed all come together. We designed the floor plan, we picked out all of the colors, and now it's really real! It still has a lot of work before we can move in, but I just can't wait! It is small, but it is bigger than our duplex and it seems so big because of the high ceilings and loft. It's very open, which I love. And I LOVE the kitchen, I love the bedrooms, I love the bathroom, and I love all of the closet space!! :) I can't wait to go pick out paint for our bedrooms and bathroom. (At least I can paint while Jason is finishing up the loft/ceiling and basement! I'm thinking a beigeish color for our room and I wanted pink for Venily's room but Jason is trying to dissuade me from that idea, lol. AND, NO MATTER WHAT, WE ARE HAVING VENILY'S BIRTHDAY PARTY THERE!!! YAY!!! Occupancy or no occupancy, haha!

Venily is doing good. She's just getting over a cold right now that her father gave her. It's so sad when she gets sick, I hate it! She has learned how to crawl up on the bed now, so that's another thing I have to watch her on, lol! I have lost count on how many steps she can walk in a row now, she is doing so good with it! She can even walk, bend over to pick something up, and keep on walking!!! She is still wobbly for sure, but she doesn't care! She is so fearless, it's amazing.

I made an appointment today to get her pictures taken (the last minute as always!! I can't wait for these monthly pics to be over, lol- I had no idea what I was getting myself into!). We're getting them at the new place in Kenosha, so that will be fun. The only problem is they don't put them online at all, so that sucks! They said they take 40-60 pictures and you guys will only be able to see the one that I end up choosing! :( Oh well, I wanted to give them a try any way. I get so sick of going to the same places! Well, I better start getting ready! I have lots to do before her appointment!

September 5, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 3 weeks, 2 days old)

Well, Venily's top two teeth officially came in today!! I can really feel them now! They aren't ready for pictures yet, lol, but as soon as they are, I'll have to take some! :) I'll update her tooth chart (and everything else) when I get some time.

OUR HOUSE IS COMING ON TUESDAY!!! WE'RE SO EXCITED!!!! But that means Venily and I are going to be without her Daddy for like a month while he hurries to finish it up in time for her party! Actually as soon as we have stairs, we'll probably just hang out there all day, bringing things over and hanging out in the bedrooms while Daddy works on everything! :) Oh, and we found out everything EXCEPT the couches will be shipped before Venily's party! The couches will probably be there a couple days after her birthday, haha, so you'll probably have to bring your own chair! OH WELL!

Venily is a little walking machine now! She's really getting the hang of it. I took a couple more videos and I put all of her videos up on photobucket (they are really out of order though!). Here's a couple of her walking and one of her eating her cereal like a big girl! :) Gosh I love her!!!

Those bowls are the best invention EVER, lol. They don't usually come up like that though!

September 3, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 3 weeks old)

VENILY BEAT HER WALKING RECORD TODAY!!!! She took 12 steps.

Then... just now she beat it again and took 14!!
She is walking so much too!! I can't wait until she is walking more than crawling! Though I'm sure I'll regret wishing that once it happens- it's just so fun to watch her toddle around on those cute little legs with such determination on her face! I love watching her learn new things each and every day! :)

September 3 (continued) (Venily is 10 months, 3 weeks old)

OH MY GOSH, MAKE THAT 20 STEPS!!!!!!!!

September 2, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 2 weeks, 6 days old)

41 Days left until Venily's first birthday and counting!!!!

Venily is getting her top right tooth in! I just noticed it yesterday. It hasn't poked through yet, but there is a bump and you can see the red line. Any day now I should feel that sharp little tooth! Her left tooth looks like it's coming in too! Yay, top teeth, lol! Maybe they will be in in time for her birthday?! haha. I KNEW she was teething, some days they really seem to bother her. She has also been biting a lot again lately while nursing (and not). I'm glad she got teeth in late so I could nurse the whole year, otherwise that would have been REALLY hard!!! If these teeth come in like the last ones did I might have to start pumping at 11 months! I'm thinking I should maybe start pumping any way to transition her from me to a sippy cup of milk any way. I have a feeling it's going to be SOOOO hard! I'm not looking forward to it.

We got all of our appliances and furniture for our new house!!!! We were at Colder's on Sunday FOREVER but now it's all done! And I'm really happy with everything that we got. We got a refrigerator, stove, washer & dryer (both front loading so we can stack them!), sofa & love seat (in sage), coffee table, 2 end tables, and 3 rugs!! Our house comes with a dishwasher and microwave, so we're all set. That's a huge thing crossed off our list! The only thing we have left to buy is a dining room table and chairs, but we need to wait for our house any way to check the size. I just want them to bring us our house now!!!

OH!! And I let Venily have her first taste of chocolate today!! SO NOW EVERYBODY CAN LEAVE ME ALONE, LOL! I was eating this chocolate yogurt thing with my lunch while Venily was eating her lunch and she kept pointing at it and saying "more". Well, I tried giving her EVERYTHING else, but she was very persistant and kept pointing at it and saying "MORE, MORE". LOL! So I ate most of it and there was only a tiny bit left in there and I gave her the container with a spoon. She was scrapping it around, and getting little bits of it. At first she didn't know what to think of it, but then she was going crazy for it and by the end I had to give her a bath because she had it ALL over her face! HAHA! So.... I ruined her forever and she's doomed to be just like her Mommy! :) I STRONGLY dislike giving her anything like that and still don't want her to have a real birthday cake, but will probably cave in and get her one anyway! She is SUCH a great eater though and I don't want to ruin that. She LOVES everything that I give her (tomatoes, onions, zuchinni, green beans, peas, carrots, just EVERYTHING), so why would I want to mess that up? I have turned into such a health freak since having her and don't even like her eating white bread! She is getting way too smart for me.... pretty soon if I don't want her eating anything bad, I'm going to have to completely cut it out of my diet as well!

August 29, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 2 weeks, 2 days old)

Wow, I always feel so behind on this page. Venily grows and changes and learns so much each day that there is no way to keep up with her or write about all the cute things she does!

Venily said "Grandma" for the first time last night. No lie! She ACTUALLY said "Grandma"! Not "gra" or "gram" or "nana" or anything like that.... "grandma"! It's definitely been the most compex word she has ever said! Jason was holding her and she was fussy (she's teething badly) and Lauren was sitting on the couch and I was sitting on the floor and she turns, looks right at her, points, and says "grandma"! HAHA! We couldn't believe it! I was just reading how most babies are just starting to learn their first word right now, and some won't say their first word for another couple of months.... Venily already knows and says over 15 words that I can think of! She is a little chatterbox!

ALSO, SHE IS SAYING "MOM" NOW ALL OF THE TIME!!!!!! :) It's her new favorite word and I couldn't be happier! :) HAHA! If I leave the room, I hear a very persistant little voice say "MOMMMMM- OMMMMM-OMMMMM"!!! I ABSOLUTELY love it!

Her walking is going well. Her record is 10 steps in a row, which she took at Grandpa Rick's house, walking towards the baby on the t.v. She won't walk for me if I try to get her to, but she does frequently walk all on her own. Usually when she is standing, she will take the first couple of steps towards something and then drop or fall down and then crawl the rest of the way, but she is doing really good!

If it was even possible, she has been getting into more and more things lately. She is way too smart for her own good and has figured out ways to get past every single barricade I can come up with! I really can't wait to get into our new house and super Venily-proof the whole thing so she can go wherever she wants and not get into anything! Oh and I caught her playing with a beetle today and a spider the other day! What kind of girl did I get?! HAHA!

Speaking of our house, it is all finished and has been for over a week, just sitting there waiting until it is time to be delivered to our foundation. Jason has been SLAVING every second of his time trying to get everything in order. He is doing an AMAZING job seeing as he frequently is all by himself doing it. He has more drive than any person I know! We don't know exactly when it will be delivered but it's projected for the 9th. I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!! We are hoping to look around for appliances and furniture this weekend because of all of the Labor Day sales. I am very excited!

Last weekend we went to the Kansasville picnic, a hippie music festival (lol), and the Milwaukee Zoo. Venily had so much fun at all of them! I'm very sad that summer is coming to an end. It's already way too cold for me in the mornings and it's still 80+ degrees during the day!

Last night we watched Barack Obama make his presidential nomination acceptance speech at the DNC! Venily watched it too! Even she was captivated by him... and that is not easy to get the attention of my hyperactive baby, lol! She kept clapping for him too! I was moved to tears several times thinking that right then we were a part of something so much bigger than ourselves, a part of history that will be looked back on years and years from now, a complete turning point for our future. When she is older I can tell her where she was when he made his speech and you can be sure that she will be with us in November when we mark down his name as the next president of the United States! Ever since having my own child I think it is so much more important to make sure that her future, the future of the United States, and the world is looked after and improved upon for her sake! I'm so happy Venily can be a part of it! I haven't felt this optimistic in so long! Here is the speech in case you missed it!



I got a bunch of stuff already for Venily's 1st birthday party... now I just need my house to have it in!! I'm guessing that we will have it ready (or as ready as it can be) just in time... at LEAST I HOPE!!!!!

August 19, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 6 days old)

Venily learned a new word!! "More!" Yay, that's a useful one!!! She says it like... "moo-bore". It's sooo adorable! She says it when she's eating and wants more of something. She gets all serious and points at whatever I have that she wants and says "moo-bore, moo-bore". HAHA!! She never ceases to amaze me!

August 17, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 4 days old)

WATCH HER GO!!!!

I'm so proud of her!!!!!

August 16, 2008 (Venily is 10 months, 3 days old)



Venily has been getting more and more daring, taking steps to get to things the last 2 days!! This morning she took a couple of steps to Grandma! I thought I was ready for this... now I'm not too sure!

August 16, 2008 (cont) (Venily is 10 months, 3 days old)

Took 3 more steps for Aunt Jacki today!! (Mommy doesn't seem to be interesting enough to walk to!)

August 13, 2008 (Venily is 10 months old)


Well, Venily is 10 months old already!!! I can't believe it! Do you even know what comes after 10 months?! 11 months, then a year! OH MY GOSH!!! I can't see how it's even possible!

I measured her and weighed her today and she was 20 pounds, 29.5inches long. I updated her charts!

Venily is doing good. I'm pretty sure she is TEETHING big time! She's been moody and drooly and bossy lately, lol! She is currently on a yelling and whining phase. When she wants something she yells... LOUDLY!!! HAHA, at home, in the store, in a room full of people... doesn't matter, she always has to be the loudest one! The other day she was yelling so much the day before that her voice was all hoarse and low, it was really funny. I've been trying to ignore her when she does it so she knows that yelling doesn't get her what she wants, and I think it's starting to work! I will be very happy when these teeth finally cut through!

Venily isn't walking yet, but I have no doubt that she will start within a month. She stands all by herself ALL the time and will take a step towards something and grab on (she likes to hold onto the table, take a step towards the couch and then grab onto the couch).

She hasn't been eating as much as she used to since she got sick and is now teething, but she still eats pretty good. She also used to eat anything and everything, but is starting to get a bit more picky. If she doesn't like something she will just take one piece by one piece and drop them off the side of her highchair, haha. She also does that when she is full! I wish I could get her to stop! :) She is still eating all real food too and has been for a long time, which when we met with her pediatrician, she was surprised and impressed by that!

Nighttime sleeping is pretty much hit or miss. Sometimes she only gets up once or twice and will sleep in her crib all night. Other nights she's up every hour and has to sleep in our bed. I really think having her own room will help her out tremendously!!! BUT, on the plus side, she is taking AWESOME naps during the day!! (She is taking one as I type this!) And she is ALWAYS on schedule with them, so that makes things so much easier to get things done. She is down to 2 naps a day and has been for several weeks. She takes her first nap at about 9:00am and her second at 1:00pm (give or take an hour). And they are both usually about 2 hours long each!!!! It's SOOOO nice. And when she wakes up, she usually plays nicely all by herself in her crib for like 20 minutes, lol.... as long as I'm not in there!!

At 10 months...

Venily's LIKES:
*DOGS and all animals
* KIDS
* climbing up on things (she's a little mountain goat!)
* Daddy horsey rides
* silly sounds
* making music (she has a xylophone, piano, drum and tambourine! And Mommy has learned how to play Twinkle, Twinkle little star, Pop goes the Weasel, The Farmer in the Dell, and London Bridges!!!!! I'm so proud of myself, haha! (her piano taught me how to play them, lol, I have 4 more songs to learn!!)
* BOOKS- definitely her current favorite toys


Venily DISLIKES:
* Not getting what she wants
* Being told "NO"
* Being restrained in any way!

August 8, 2008 (Venily is 9 months, 3 weeks, 5 days old)

We met Venily's new pediatrician on Wednesday and LOVED her!! I feel really confident in her and she made me feel like I could call her for anything, which is really important. Also, she has 4 children and the youngest is 10 months! How awesome is that? She knows EXACTLY what I am going through! We're VERY happy with her!

Venily's rash is almost completely gone now. But she was really sick yesterday with a fever (which is going around). It broke our hearts to see her sick! I kept giving her Tylenol yesterday and she was still burning up. We even tried giving her a cool bath (saddest thing ever- she had sad, tired eyes and was shaking so bad she couldn't even play with her cups), dressing her really lightly, popsicles, etc. and nothing was working. We finally called her doctor but since it was after hours, we got the on-call doctor (which happened to have been my pediatrician as a kid). He told us to give her motrin since her temp was over 100 and that really did the trick! Her fever went down completely and I checked her a couple times during the night and again this morning and she is all good now! Sick babies are the saddest!!!

On a happier note, I got Venily's birthday dress, LOL!! It's soooo cute! I got it in a 12m though, so I'm hoping it will still fit her on her birthday. They only had it in 12m and 24m. But Venily is already wearing 12m and even some 18m (actually right now she is wearing a 2T shirt that fits her great, lol)! If she starts to outgrow it maybe I will turn it into her 10 or 11 month picture dress! It's red and white gingham with cherries on it.... but I think we're going with a pink and girly theme for her party... so maybe I will have to get her another dress anyway! HAHA! They have the CUTEST stuff for a 1 year old birthday party at Factory Card Outlet! ONLY ABOUT 2 MORE MONTHS!!!

Our house is coming along great! Jason almost has the entire basement formed up. He's just working on making sure it is absolutely square (a must for modular houses) and then we'll be ready to pour the rest! It's starting to look like it's going to be an actual house!!!!

July 31, 2008 (Venily is 9 months, 2 weeks, 4 days old)

So, after much procrastinating, I decided to finally give Venily a bowl with cereal in it and a spoon to eat it all by herself! It was messy, but she did a lot better with it than I would have thought! I haven't given her ANY baby food in weeks and still have a bunch that she won't eat if I try to feed it to her, so I decided it was time for her to learn how to eat it herself. I wanted to do it a lot earlier, but didn't b/c I didn't want to have to deal with the mess! I want her to start learning how to use silverware, and you have to start somewhere!!! :)

Last night Venily was being SOOOO cute!!! We were watching "So You Think You Can Dance" (one of the only shows we EVER watch right now) and Venily was laying on the bed with us. Well, LL Cool J was rapping and Venily just bust out dancing so funny, HAHAHAHAHA!!!! And he would say "put your hands in the air" and Venily would start taking her hand and putting it up in the air, Jason and I were laughing so hard! She was dancing to all of the other songs too and would dance slower to the slow songs and crazier to the fast songs! HAHA, and of course, every time the audience would clap, little Venily would drop what she was doing as absolutely fast as she could so that she could clap too!! :)

July 30, 2008 (Venily is 9 months, 2 weeks, 3 days old)

Can't believe it's almost AUGUST already!!! The summer is going by WAY too fast.... yet our house is not coming along fast enough, haha! It's getting there though! We have a nice big hole in our yard and Jason is working on getting the footings and stuff up today, hopefully we'll be able to pour it tomorrow!!! Forms are coming on Friday, YAY!!!

Sunday we went to the Racine fair. It was a lot of fun! Venily didn't care for the demo too much... she's not one for sitting still. We made it through round one and that was it. Then later on she luckily fell asleep during it, haha! She ABSOLUTELY LOVED SEEING THE ANIMALS THOUGH!!!! OH MY!!! I was sure she'd start hyperventilating, she was getting so excited, lol! I'm surprised she didn't sprain her pointer finger either! :) She was pointing at every animal, and breathing heavy and going nuts! I love it! Maybe she'll be a vet some day since she loves animals so much! She also loved watching the bike trials guy. We had her stroller parked next to another little boy's stroller and we were watching the guy and then Jason and I looked down at her and she was holding hands with the boy, HAHAHAHA! Look out Landen and Bryant, Venily has a new boyfriend! :)

On Monday Venily got her 9 month pics taken (I'm not too happy with them though but oh well) and we also got cousin pics with Kaitlyn, Landen, and Bryant! HAHA! Trying to get 4 kids to cooperate at once was interesting, especially with 3 under 1! But we got a good pic of them, so it was worth it!

Yesterday I took Venily to the walk-in finally. She's had a diaper rash for a week, and it was the worst I've ever seen. She had diahrea and then got the rash. I had tried a bunch of stuff on it, but nothing was getting rid of it. So I took her in, and it turned out to be a yeast infection, YUCK!! The doctor gave her Nystalin, though, so it should clear up soon, it already looks a lot better! Venily had so much fun at the doctor's office though! Everyone... the receptionist, nurse, doctor, pharmacist, people walking by.... every one kept saying what a happy baby she was and how cute she was and how pretty her big, beautiful eyes are! :) LOL! She loved the nurse and didn't even mind getting her temp taking rectally (she even laid still for once!). When she was weighed she was 20 pounds even!! And the doctor just loved her too, though she wasn't too sure about him... he was kind of scary looking and had snake-eyes, lol. But he kept saying how beautiful and sweet she was and how he wanted to take her home with him, LOL!!! Sorry, she's my little beautiful sweetie pie and I'm not giving her up!!!! :)