Pinkalicious and sickness

Last Saturday, Pinkalicious was playing at The State Theater in Easton.  While neither Makayla nor I knew anything about it, I had heard it was a cute little show. And with wanting to take her out to see a live performance, I figured why not. So, I called my sister R and invited her and my niece S. I also asked my mom and my cousin Steph if her daughter could go. I knew that they had seen it in NYC and how much they loved it. So I thought I would see if she wanted to see it with us. It turned out to be a girl's day, and Makayla was so excited about going to see it. I know she didn't know what to expect, but since I made a big deal out of the day, I think she knew it was something special. So, since it was Pinkalicious, I HAD to dress her in pink...

When it was time to leave for the performance, my cousin's daughter couldn't wait to read the story of Pinkalicious to Makayla...

...and Makayla LOVED every minute of having her read to her.

Of course...we had a photo session since we got there early...

Just then, the play began...and this is how she sat the ENTIRE time.

until she couldn't see, then she sat on my lap, until I told her she couldn't in fact go up on the stage, and then she sat with my mom. I think she loved it. She loved the clapping, the singing, the dancing. I would say that it was a success. Hmm...now to find more theater for her.

Then, Sunday was the superbowl and well, I didn't take any pictures of that. Monday came and she had a low grade fever but I sent her to day care hoping that it was just a passing thing. At 330 it spiked at day care to 103 and that is where this happy kid has become so sick :( Since Monday afternoon she has been fighting me tooth and nail about taking medicine for her fever. The highest it was was Monday night (and again last night) at 104.4. But, since 230 this morning the highest it was was 103. We are working on a cooling trend. As a matter of fact, at 500 this morning, she was wide awake, laughing, coloring, helping me cook. She seemed like herself again. I won't go into too much detail, but let's just say it all started looking better after she used the bathroom this morning.  About an hour ago, she settled back down...

and is resting comfortably. I am going to check her temperature and then hopefully I will be able to go off to PT. There is a lot of stuff I get to talk to the physical therapist about, but I am only going if she is ok. She is ok...we will get through this. With lots of coffee and lots of faith, she will get better.

Have a great Wednesday...I hope this virus stays clear of you and your loved ones...

Let's Play Catchup

I have been super busy with A LOT on my plate lately. Surprising, my blogging has suffered, not only here but on my fitness blog as well. As a matter of fact, I should be sleeping right now because I am getting up at 430 tomorrow morning to make sure I have time to workout before I go to work at 615. Agh. Anyway, this blog is about my daughter in life and stuff and I know that my sisters want pictures of Makayla, and I promise I will get back to taking some, but I just need time to breathe. We both do. Makayla isn't feeling well, as a matter of fact her cough is a little worse and it concerns me to the point that I am giving her breathing treatments twice a day. If it isn't better by Friday, I am calling the pediatrician. Maybe she needs her other medication refilled, I have no idea. Makayla is a trooper in all of this, she usually does what I ask her too, and lately she has been holding her mask for her breathing treatment herself with only a little confrontation and whine. Whining is how I know she doesn't feel well. Anyway, to try to make things a little better around here, I am hopefully getting our Christmas tree this weekend. I am hoping for Fri so that I can put it up and it can rest and then Saturday we can decorate it, but I am flexible. It is my four day weekend so hopefully I will get some Christmas in my house.
The blogging might start to be a little more vague then usual when it comes to other aspects of my life outside of Makayla because things here are weird. I will leave it at that, but I will ask for some prayers and good vibes. The next couple weeks are going to be really hard here and I am just hoping that God will show his plans to me.

With that being said, I hope to take some pictures tomorrow of Makayla or at least have something good to blog about. Tomorrow I will be in the Operating room working with DaVinci, he really needs a better name, our robot DaVinci, not DaVinci himself. So, hopefully I don't get out too late that I can spend time with Makayla but also blog. Have a good night!

More Photos from Chicago

As you know for the end of October we went to Chicago. As you also know, Hurricane Sandy prevented us from coming home which equalled an extra day in Chicago. It was awesome! My sister lives in a beautiful little town, and the accessibility to parks made me jealous. Anyway, the kids all together had all sorts of fun, and seeing them do yard work made me wish I had a yard. Anyway, here are some pictures from the adventures in leave raking...

 

All the kids were excited to help, Makayla preferred to help her Joe-Joe.

 Here, we were trying to encourage the kids to jump in the pile of leaves, instead, they preferred to rake them..

 Makayla saw that Jacob was watching, he became her baby, and she wanted to kiss him ALL.THE.TIME.

 Don't worry, the kids were supervised. I think Jaime loved the fact that they yard was getting raked. I LOVED raking the leaves, it made me wish I had a yard.

Makayla is looking at her work. She loved the rake, maybe for next year, I will get her her own.

 

She tried to be gentle, but really enjoyed kissing Jacob. She really loved him, and misses him. She talks about Jacob, Joe-Joe, Joe-Joe's mama and Joe-Joe's dada all the time. Other than the drive home, I think she enjoyed herself. I know that I miss it and cannot wait until our next trip. Thanks Jaime for having us!

Chicago

Once upon a time there was this trip to Chicago. It seems like so long ago, but really, it was only last week. A lot has changed in the last week, just look at the photos of the Jersey Shore. Anyway, before Sandy hit, we were having a grand ole time in Chicago. Wait, even after Sandy hit and we were temporarily stuck in Chicago we had a grand time. As you know we went there for my nephew's baptism. My sister Rockle was there so go visit her blog for some awesome photos. Anyway, I am not as camera literate as both of my sisters are, but here are some photos from the post-baptism meal.

 I have no idea if he knew I was taking this picture, I think there were others taking photos at the same time.

I just love how Joey is truly enjoying the ice cream! It was as sweet as he is.
Anyway, after the meal, we practically had the entire day left. Since we didn't know yet that our flight was delayed, I am sure the kids were enjoying their last full day together.

 She drives the car with one leg, the other leg is just relaxing...

 Pure joy here in driving the tractor, or was it his Phillies hat?!?!

 Shae is not really used to driving the tractor, this is her concentrating on not getting eaten by that bush

And yet, amongst all the chaos, I found a rose still blooming. Oh Chicago, you never cease to amaze me.
That is is for today, I will post more pictures tomorrow. Happy Monday!

Weekend round up

So, my sister J thought that I should create a blog for my fitness related activities, and leave this one solely for the happenings of M. So, I did just that. Please go to my other blog and follow all my fitness and health related activities. In the meantime... sorry if you follow me on instagram, you have seen this pictures already...

Here, she is flying her airplane around....

Macaroni and cheese is always the best meal

You want me to stop eating just so you can take a picture... yeah right...

I will try to dedicate this blog to everything M and family related. I will try to keep all my fitness related things to PirateBootyFitness,

Have a great week! Hopefully I will be back to post some new photos soon!

Over the river and through the woods...

Yesterday was the Quiet Valley Rooster Run. My friend Stef and I signed up for it without really knowing anything about it. Once we got there, we found out that the run benefits Quiet Valley Farm.  Read all about the farm here.  I do have to admit, it was a challenging course.  Let's just say, the course started with a hill that was approximately 1/4 mile long straight through the woods. I admit, I thought I was prepared since I used to run at Jacobsburg, but like I said, "used to."  I really need to look into changing that. Just like Jacobsburg, there were inclines, declines, flat areas, rolling hills, steep pitched hills, even a bridge to run over.  While I was not prepared for the run, I do have to say how beautiful the run itself was.  The race started in a field (not sure if it is associated with the farm) and then traversed over the river and through the woods. Do I have any complaints about this course, no, just that I wish I was more prepared for the hilly terrain.  There were even piles of horse manure you needed to navigate around, all in a days work, right? My friend Stef developed some pain, so when running it became tougher for her, I told her our objective was just to finish it. When she needed to walk, I walked with her. When she could run, I ran with her. I did not and would never leave her behind, that is not what friends do. We signed up together, there is no way we wouldn't finish together.  Would I run this race again, possibly, depending on what races I find this time next year, and what else we have going on. I believe that there was something after the race where we could tour the farm.  Maybe Makayla would be interested in that, but we will see what next year brings.
My sister J and her entire family are in from Chicago. This is a BIG deal to me because yesterday I got to meet my nephew Jacob for the first time. He is absolutely adorable. He is tiny, and I don't ever remember Makayla being that little. He is so long, and so precious, I couldn't wait to hold him. However, Makayla is not yet used to me holding other babies, so I had to wait to hold him.  Later we went to my cousin Kim and Phil's. They were having a meet and greet of their sweet baby girl Stella. Stella was born a month early and she is doing great! Holding her is like holding nothing, but she is so awesome. At this meet and greet, I got to hold Jacob. He is the sweetest little boy with the deepest blue eyes. I am sad that my sister and her family live so far away, but hopefully, now that things are changing around here (the hubs finally got a job after 2 months of not working) M and I will be able to make trips out there. I believe they are doing something around Joey's birthday for both his birthday and Jacob's baptism, so if that stays as planned, we will be going out to Chicago then. And then we will be able to plan trips hopefully more frequently.
Hey...did you see the new badge on my page?!? I am now a Sweat Pink Ambassador. Their mission

"We believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes. We’ve learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we’re also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We’re convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too. We’re all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We’re all for looking great and feeling even better. We’re committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick."

I believe I will be able to live this mission as it is my mission to push myself and yet give myself a break. In the days to come, I will be learning more about what this means and will be sharing that with you.

Things around here are starting to look up, thank you for sticking around, I promise it will be an interesting adventure.

What doesn't kill you...

Makes you stronger.  The Kelly Clarkson song Stronger, while is not about being this kind of strong, fits completely. " What doesn't kill you makes you stronger/ Stand a little taller/ Doesn't mean I'm lonely when I'm alone/ What doesn't kill you makes you fighter" So, today, 2 days later I am finally feeling the affects of the steps.  I am not complaining, it actually feels good to know that something is working on making me a better, stronger runner.   I found this picture today, and thought it was perfect..

http://www.positivequotes.us/

I will have to remember that when I hit the steps again next week.  I know that these steps will help me in the long run and while I was disappointed I couldn't run all of the steps 10 times, I did take that first step and I did run them 10 times. That is huge for me. And crazy me, is looking forward to doing it again next week. I had every intention of going to the gym this morning, but Makayla had other plans. I went to kiss her goodbye and she said "Hi, Mommy!" She wanted nothing to do with me leaving so instead I just held her and we nuzzled and hung out. I made breakfast, she wanted breakfast. She wanted my cereal with milk, so I gave her cereal with milk.  I have to say, I really enjoyed the time we got to spend together this morning even though it meant I didn't get to go to the gym. I am sure there are going to be days when she wants nothing to do with me, so I will hold onto these moments forever.  While I am hoping the pain in my calves is only temporary, since I have a 5K tomorrow. It is the Quiet Valley Rooster Run. From what I read, it is mixed terrain and cross country. I have no idea what to expect tomorrow, but with a name like Quiet Valley Rooster Run, it has to be fun right. Stick around tomorrow, I will sure to tell you all about it.

Speaking of tomorrow, my sister J and her family is coming in from Chicago tonight, er um tomorrow for the weekend. I am finally going to meet my month old nephew for the first time. I am sure the kids are going to be up to no good, and I cannot wait! Have a great Friday!

Happy July 1!

I cannot believe that it is July 1st already! Where has this year gone?!?! This morning I woke up early (well late for me 6am) and decided I wanted to start my day off right with a run. I ran 2 miles and it felt great! I am so excited about how PT might have helped me, but I also know I need to take it slow. I am looking forward to my run on Wednesday, it will be a 4 miler, and I know I will be ready. But, that is not why I am writing. Well, it is, but there will be a blog post about that race. I digress, my revelation for today, Wednesday will be my 6th race of the year, that means that Wednesday I will have run exactly double the number of races as last year! I am so excited to see how many I will run by the end of the year. I need to start running with my phone so that I can take photos to document some things from my run, but the scenary out on the roads is not as scenic as other places.
Oh, today continues my journey of gluten and dairy milk free. I feel like it has helped a lot with the bloating (sorry TMI) and I think it is making me eat cleaner and fresher. I will let you know how this journey continues.

So today, on the 1st of July, enjoy yourself. We will probably be spending much of the day by the pool, hanging out with some friends. I will make sure to get lots of photos! Hope no matter what you do you stay hydrated and cool.
Have fun and be safe!

It all happened at the zoo..

Well, or fair, or carnival or where ever else you were this weekend. Welcome back to the work week! I am sure you missed it, I know I did (not!). Anyway, I know I haven't blogged in a while and I want to start again, so I thought I would start with posting pictures from this weekend. Now my sister Rachel, over on her blog, usually ends up posting pictures of my daughter from events.  I have to get better at carrying my camera to capture these moments, but sometimes, I am just living in the moments with her. Anyway, Friday we went to the Nazareth Carnival with her Godmother and her son. Here are some pictures from that.

Let me just tell you, I COULD NOT get her to get off of the Carousel!

Look at how much fun she is having! Last year when we went on vacation, she hated rides...this year...she <3 them.

Saturday, was her Godfather's graduation party from college. Yes, he graduated a while ago, but he wanted to wait until his friends who went to China came home. Anyway, I don't have pictures from there to post, as I am sure my sister took a bazillion pictures, but I do have this one.

Yep, that is my kid and yes, she is cleaning a boat!

Anyway, happy Monday. I better get ready for work, and yes, I was supposed to get up at 4:30 to go to the gym, but I thought sleep was more important. Have a GREAT Monday!



18 months

I cannot believe that my sweet lil lady is 18 months old today! Where did time go?!?! So, while I took an unintended hiatus from blogging (I haven't been able to run, so I didn't feel the need to blog) I did take some pictures of my daughter. I really need to carry my camera around more so that I don't share all of my photos on fb and/or instagram before I post them here. I do have some running updates and will resume blogging normally tomorrow (hopefully) but, in the meantime, here are some pictures of my sleeping pumpkin, and not so sleeping pumpkin.

Yes, she is wearing Philadelphia sports swag, and no I didn't dress her, YES, her FATHER put her in this outift

Bath time is one of her favorite times...

Checking out flowers

This cover-up gets me EVERY single time

The tradition continues....but, I LOVE how she is checking out Uncle "Quack"

My favorite picture from Memorial Day, only MY kid will find a way to eat watermelon even when she is too tired to hold it.

While we are coming on this milestone in birthdays, I wanted to share some of the things that this lil one has begun to do. As we all know she runs around every where, sometimes like a wackaloon. She loves her Shae-Shae, Pop-Pop, and Nana as those are the first 3 people she calls when she wakes up EVERY single morning. She is starting to say Jo-Jo, and now has the meow of a cat down pat. She still loves the game of "What does____ animal say," and now she loves to try to name colors of things. She loves her bubbles, but loves to swim way more. She thinks it is awesome that I run, and every time we try to go somewhere she tries to give me my running shoes NO matter where we are going. She was excited over the potty training potty, but has since lost interest. It's ok, I am just not quite ready to let her grow up yet. She now can name some Disney characters (Daisy, Pete-Pete and Minnie) but while she can say hotdog, she won't say dog (it is a woof woof). She is still the love of my life, and goes nuts whenever she sees me. I have to say that I fall in love with her more and more every day (in a way I never thought was imaginable) and EVERY single things she does, she is growing to be more and more like me. She tries to be as independent as she can be, but when she can't she'll try to let you do as little as possible to assist her. She is growing more and more into a little lady and less and less like a baby.

M, mama loves you! Icontinue to enjoy every moment of our days with you and while I want you to slow down growning up, I am loving EVERY single thing you do and love how excited you get when you are able to do something on your own. I love you today, tomorrow and always! Happy half birthday!

Happy Spring!

Spring has sprung. What did you do today? Me, I ran 4.66 miles. It was supposed to be 4.5 miles, but once I got going, it just ended up being 4.66 miles. And let me just tell you, it was not quite spring out there for the run. It felt more like summer. I also realized I need to find other options for running, and it might just mean I have to drive to a destination (bike path, down by the canal). Running around where I live gets old quick. But, what a beautiful day! I couldn't have asked for anything better. Don't forget, today as the first day of spring you can go to Rita's and get your free Rita's. I myself might just go there and get one. I think I deserve one. Besides, who can say no to Rita's? Doesn't Rita's go hand in hand with springtime/summer? I know that at the end of my half marathon, there are 2 things I asked for. An Auntie Anne's gourmet pretzel in Almond, and a Rita's gelati. Anyway, here are some more pictures from the trip to Pittsburgh.

Happy Spring!

Happy Halloweenie Birthday

Today is my nephew's third birthday. Yes, I know it is also Halloween, but it is more importantly his birthday. This year, my folks are there celebrating it with him. In 2 short months our daughter's first birthday will be here and then the grandkids are 1, 3, 5. Good numbers huh? Anyway, this is about him. I love how much Joey loves my daughter. He calls her His Kayla. He loves on her so much. He hugs her and kisses her, it makes my heart melt. Well, this is how he is with Shae too, but there is something about how he loves on my daughter that makes any day better. Whenever we miss him, I think about how much love he has for her, our trip to the Shore, for example when he never wanted to see her go. It is exciting to see how much their loves grow as they get older. Anyway, since my daughter is not able to sing it to you yet, here is a HAPPY BIRTHDAY video for you Joey. Hope you have a great birthday! Hopefully next year we will be there with you!

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go

Today, we leave for our family vacation. But, the "fun" of packing started yesterday. Makayla wanted to make sure I didn't leave her behind...

So, whatever your holiday travels, have fun and be safe! I might not be blogging a lot because of vacation, but I will try to so you can at least see how much fun we are having! Stay safe and Happy travels!

Crawling

I finally figured out how to get this video off of my smart phone. Maybe, I will save and get a flip videocamera and then you won't have to see anymore videos sideways. But, my sister J said that a week without seeing my babes makes one weak, I thought I would post something. Really, I have no reason for not posting, I just need to organize my day better. Like now, now is a great time because it is nap time. AM nap time. Finally, the babes is back on a schedule where she at least naps in the am. The afternoon one is hit or miss depending on how long the am nap is. But I am working on it, and she loves sleeping. Anyway, on with the show.

Wordless Wednesday: Off to see Pop-Pop

MIA

Soo sorry. I haven't posted in a while. It's not that I didn't want too, it's just, who wants to read about a walk that I took my daughter on? There are a lot of more interesting stuff going on in the world and it seems like my little corner of the world is insignificant. I did however find some pictures from when my sister J came to visit from Chicago. It was great to see her, I know Makayla enjoyed the visit.


Now that I am 3-11 at work, I will try to do my best to take more photos. The weather is starting to get nicer out, so we will definitely be outside more. Here's to a great week!

Her mother's child

While the debate still stands with who the babes looks like...my mom insists she looks like me when I was born, and my sister R insists that she looks more and more like my mom, she is definitely my daughter. See..when I sleep no matter how hot or cold it is, I must always have a foot or something outside of the covers. Even when I was pregnant, something had to stick out. Even after the hubs covered me back up, the unexposed extremity would be exposed again. Babes does the same thing. Today, while taking a nap, I had her pjs covering her up all the way to her piggies, and then put a blanket on her...apparently, she didn't like it either...


And, just for good measure, here is a picture of the sweet babes with her Nana.

And just because...her cousin Shae...
I promise the babes is not crying because Shae is holding her. She's crying because I believe it was time to eat. Notice the cabbage patch kid..not really sure where that came from, but I started noticing it at Nana and Pop-Pop's when the babes was born.