Half Way to a Year

This post is rediculously late- ah, the joys of being a working mom- but I wanted to post it now that I have M's pro photos uploaded to our computer AND considering she turns 7 months old tomorrow!

Happy Belated 1/2 birthday to my baby girl! It's hard to believe that 6 months ago you were kicking my bladder from the inside and now you just kick and grab everything. You are such a happy baby and bring joy to everyone who meets you. When we are out in public we get no less than three comments about how happy/beautiful/smiley you are from strangers every. single. time. A few people have even thanked us for letting them interact with you as you brightened their days. One older woman still sticks out to me...we ran into her at Target while I had you in the Baby Bjorn facing outward. She saw you kicking and smiling as we did our shopping and started talking to you, so I stopped to indulge her (if I stop to indulge every person- we'd never get our errands done!). You hammed it up for her and she thanked me for taking the time to let her talk to you. She said she had been having a bad day until she saw your beautiful smile and you cheered her up. I hope you always make people smile and brighten their day.

At six months you can roll both ways, but prefer to be sitting up or on your back, so you can play lying on your side. Right now we have to sit you up as you can't do it yourself and you whine if you don't get your way! You hate to be on your stomach and loathe tummy time. I make you do tummy time anyway, so hopefully someday you'll learn to crawl! When you are reclined or on your back you ALWAYS cross your ankles. So dainty. You've started on solid foods and really love sweet potatoes and pumpkin. When I put you in your highchair and put your bib on you get excited and wave your arms in the air and open your mouth like a little birdy for your food. :)

Your favorite toy is your Sophie the Giraffe. Everytime you see her, you smile. You also like tags...as in the tags on every single toy/blanket/bib/doll you own. Sometimes, I think you like the tags more than the toy itself! You'll suck on them and rub them for hours. At night you sleep with a silkie and prefer to have it touching your cheek. Hopefully, someday it will make weaning you from your pacifier easier. At your 6 month appointment you weighed 16 lb 11 oz and were 27 1/4 inches...long and lean like your Papa. Your height is off the charts!

Your Dad and I are completely in love with you and are so thankful to have you in our lives. Not a day goes by that we don't stare at you in awe. We can't imagine our lives without you and look forward to watching you grow, learn, and develop into a young women. Take your time baby girl...the world will be there waiting.

Two Years Into Forever

It's hard to believe that A.R. and I have been married two years now. It's been a month since we celebrated our second wedding anniversary (September 6th) and it always amazes me to look back and see how far we've come since our wedding day. We now live in the house we built together in the middle of wedding planning, grad school, and working full time. I graduated with my MBA and A.R. will finish his MS in Computer Science in 2011 (he's in his last official semester now and then it's thesis time- you rock, Babe!). We found out we were pregnant and welcomed our baby daughter into the world. We lost a pet (RIP Sebastian) and we gained a new fur baby to add to our family (I love you Lily "monster"!). We've both lost family members (RIP to my Grandmother, A.R's Aunt, and his Uncle) and gained two more nephews (Benjamin born in March 2009 and Christian born in September 2010).

On our wedding day :) I think our love has grown stronger and I can see our bond continuing to develop as we adjust to life as husband and wife and now as new parents. I hope we continue to build a strong foundation in our marriage and love one another like we did on the day when we looked into each other's eyes and said, "I do". I know our marriage will have its peaks and valleys, but in the end we should always have each other. Its sad for me to admit that sometimes I take my husband for granted and it took a friend of mine going through a rough patch in her marriage for me to realize that. I should be thankful for him everyday. It isn't good enough to just be thankful, though. He needs to know I need him, love him, and appreciate him. A.R, if you're reading this I promise to be better at telling you how much I care, how much I love you, and how much I love being able to call myself your wife. Motherhood has consumed me, but I would not be a mother if it weren't for you, my husband and my best friend. Our family would not be complete without you. Know that I love you and always will...even with baby cereal in my hair, a half undone ponytail, day #3 of sweats and an old t-shirt, and another sleepless night. I look forward to watching our daughter grow up with you, to Saturday morning family cuddle times, to adding more children to our family, to growing old with you, and to experiencing our lives together as husband and wife. I truly am the luckiest girl alive to have you.

To celebrate our 2nd anniversary, A.R. and I went out on a date for the evening. We had dinner on the Essex Steam Train and then hit up the Clinton Outlets. It was nice to get away as just the two of us and spend time talking, bonding, and catching up. The steam train was a fun experience and the food was delicious! The views along the CT river were quite beautiful, too. I think we'll do it again someday for sure. I think next time we'll do the sight-seeing tour and bring Mariela (and maybe her cousins) along.

The inside of our dining car

My meal was cranberry glazed stuffed chicken- YUMMY!

Corn & Blueberry Salad

I found this recipe in my June 2010 Better Homes & Gardens magazine and it came at just the perfect time. We had fresh blueberries from a local farm and the corn and cucumbers in our garden had just finished ripening. It's a little late in the season for it now, but bookmark it for next summer and enjoy!

Prep: 25 minutes then chill overnight

6 ears fresh sweet corn, husked
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 small cucumber, sliced
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp. lime juice
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. honey
1/2 Tsp. ground cumin

1. In Dutch oven bring salted water to boiling. Add corn. Cook, covered, 5 minutes, or until tender. When cool enough to handle, cut corn from cobs.

2. In serving bowl combine corn, blueberries, cucumber, red onion, cilantro, and jalapeno. For dressing, in a screw-top jar combine lime juice, oil, honey, cumin, and 1/2 tsp. salt. Cover; shake well to combine. Add to salad; toss.

3. Cover and refrigerate overnight (up to 24 hours).

Makes 6-8 servings