Meeting up with Kelsey and Amanda

We had a mini reunion with Kelsey and Amanda when they came into town for Jennie's Labor Day weekend wedding. We were soo excited to see them. We initially met up at the International Mall in Tampa where we snacked on goodies and sipped some coffee.


Notice that those are my legs in the picture. Who is she holding her arms out for? It's for Kelsey! Chick magnet! Amanda had to kindly remind Violet that he is officially a married man.

Baby V sure does love her men.

Dim Sum is great...

...especially if your toddler falls into such a deep food coma that she falls asleep right at the table.

Awesome. Push toddler away from table. Must take pictures.

Violet is going to be a big sister!!

YEY!! Joe and I are 16 weeks pregnant and are VERY excited. We decided to wait a while before we posted anything because there was a possibility that our pregnancy could have a hiccup. Long story short, Violet contracted the coxsackie virus, who then passed it to me. I talked to my ob/gyn and he recommended more testing and talking to a geneticist. We saw the geneticist last week and he thinks that the baby is doing great and we shouldn't have anything to worry about. But, since "we've already come half way down the road, we're going to finish the journey," and have a follow-up visit with him at the end of November. Baby is developing well and is big...

That's right. Baby is going to be HUGE! Okay, I'm exaggerating a little bit but you may remember that Violet was a bigger sized baby (8lbs, 10 ounces) and I attributed my large baby to my weight gain. I gained 65 lbs with her. This time around, I haven't gained any weight BUT my baby still measured 16 weeks when I was only 14 weeks along. Maybe my ob/gyn will have me deliver the baby sooner?

So when's the due date? The baby is due around April 1st (Joe is REALLY hoping for an April Fool's baby). :) The kids will be almost exactly 2 years apart. Hopefully Violet won't be ringing in her 2nd birthday at Winnie Palmer Hospital. ha ha.

I'll post belly pictures and more updates soon!

Coxsackie Virus

One August morning, Violet sticks out her bottom lip and I see it-- one lone canker sore smack dab in the middle of her bottom lip. It was her first canker sore. I did some research online and found out that baby's first canker sores are accompanied with a low grade fever. The pain should last around 4 days even though the sore will still be visible.

Words I use to cheer her up are, "Suck it up kid, it's one of many that you'll have in your life," or, one of my personal favorites, "Just eat through it, I know you're hungry."

Needless to say, the next few days were miserable!! By the beginning of the second day, she stopped taking her bottle and eating food. She drank only water and would "try" different foods just to spit it out just as fast and cry. The pain was too much for her. She wasn't sleeping through the night and I actually brought her into bed with Joe and I for the first time in her life. She still woke up every hour but was comforted enough that Joe and I were there to hold her.

By the 4th day, I notice that my daughter has turned red. That's right, she has a full body rash. I decide to call the doctor and we bring her in first thing in the next morning.

Violet contracted the coxsackie virus. It was not just ONE canker sore that she had on her lip but SEVERAL in her mouth, on her tongue, AND down her throat. OH NO! The rash was another added side effect.

We had to ride out the wave and just let the virus run it's course. According to our pediatrician. hopefully she'll never get it again. Kinda like the chicken pox-- once you get it, your body develops antibodies to fight it off in the future.

Things I've learned from this experience:

1. Violet is a much tougher girl that I could possibly have ever thought!

2. If your kid stops eating food, it's probably more than just a canker sore.

3. Don't ever take your happy kid for granted.

She Stacks.

She's trying to master her motor skills!


She stacks them up, then knocks them down. It's a fun game.

Indu's Having a Baby!

We are so excited that little Indu is going to have a little baby of her own!! :) Here are pictures from her baby shower. You can see Joe chugging away on a bottle at one of the games.


Indu is thinking to herself, "I'm going to have one of those?! I guess it could look like fun."


Hume Hall Reunion!! Sheenu, Indu, and I all lived on the same floor our freshman year of college. Karen, you should have been there!!

Violet gets a slide!

She can climb on it!


She can slide off of it!


She can be the monkey, eer, APE that she was always born to be!!


"Is it nighttime Violet?"


"No, no." There is no stopping the unstoppable.

Too much food makes for a drowsy toddler...

Violet has a bad hair day.

'Nuff said.

Pick me up Mommy...

...too bad your mommy needed to take a picture first.