Libby's 8 Month Checkup

Today was Libby's 8 Month check up with Dr. Norton. Most babies don't have checkups until 9 months, but he needed to see us a month earlier so she could have her final dose of RSV medication. He said all of the things that I wanted to hear! He said that she was growing great (she was 16 1/2 pounds and 27" long), that she was healthy and he even said she was 'advanced' for her age (we all know that he tells all of the mothers that!). He said to start feeding her some table food, so tonight at dinner (after she already had her cereal and jar of baby food) she woofed down green beans, chicken and mashed potatoes. Seems that Mommy & Daddy's food tastes better than Gerber.

While we were at the doctor's office, Mimi came by to wait at our house while they laid carpet in Libby's new playroom. We got some of her toys moved back in and we're beginning to get it all put back together. We are so pleased with the way her Princess Playroom turned out, and we can't wait for all of you to come over and play soon!

"Honey-Do" List

After last weekend, which was jammed-packed with activities, it was so nice to enjoy this weekend getting caught up around the house. Gary and I knocked a few things off of our "Honey-Do" list such as touching up paint and putting together furniture for Libby's new play room, planting grass seed, working in the yard, putting the basement back together from our remodeling, car seat installation, laundry, housework, etc....We also had our roof started and our downstairs bathroom tile laid this weekend...which we have anxiously been awaiting! We even managed to work in several walks around the neighborhood with Libby who enjoyed the sunshine!

The Three Amigos

Tucker & Killians love Libby! They let her climb all over them, pull their hair and steal their toys! What good big brothers they are!

Pomp and Circumstance

Today was the last day of Swimming Lessons at the YMCA. No caps & gowns were worn nor were there diplomas handed out (our cirtificates will be mailed to us next week), but we still were so proud of our little swimmers. This was a great experience for Libby and I am just so glad to get her exposed to water before this summer at the lake.

Libby loves to splash the water!

Apparently, so does TJ!

Lilly & Dena watch TJ go underwater!

Kayla was all smiles today. She didn't seem scared at all!

Can you all keep your splashing and screaming down? Sophia is trying to take another nap!

Allie was laying still as could be during "Twinkle, Twinkle". I wonder what she was thinking!Thanks all of you all for a fun swimming session! Whatever will I blog about, now?

IU Game Night

IU played UCLA in the second round of the NCAA Tourney this evening. We went over to Shannon & Kevin's to watch the game. The game started out very slow, but ended up being an exciting nail-biter towards the end. Unfortunately, IU lost, but Kayla & Libby still looked pretty darn cute in their Cheerleader outfits!

Here, Shannon & Allie take advantage of the slow parts of the game to get a few sets in on the "Ab-Lounger". Quite the workout!

JP & TJ....Such cuties.

Yeah, I think that Lilly needs more sugar! Go ahead, Goob, give it to her!

Libby was playing with the Fisher Price digital camera of Allies. Just what you all fear....She is going to grow up to be just like me!!

Erin Go Braugh

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We went over to Nonna & Pop's house for a quick visit this morning. Gary was on his way down to the camp to work on a remodeling project down there (yes, we have remodeling going on everywhere!) so we stopped off to Mom & Dad's for a visit. Libby was so happy to see them---she got so excited when Nonna got home! She began waving her arms and talking and smiling instantly! She loves to touch Dad's goatee!

Nonna teaching Libby that a train goes "Whoo, Whoo". She thought it was so funny!

It's March Madness, Baby!

Okay, well the title of this blog entry isn't cute unless you say it with your best Dick Vitale impression. Go ahead, try it. Better, isn't it? As you know, IU defeated Gonzaga 70-57 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last night. Gary and I stayed up until 12:00 watching the game, so I am sure that there are other Hoosiers that are fighting to keep their eyes open at their desk today! I snapped this picture of Libby mid-clap. She's a IU fan already!

Another irresistible photo of Libby in her IU Cheerleader uniform. Thanks to Kayla for letting Libby borrow it! She was not able to stay up for the tip off of IU, and amazingly so, slept thru all of the screaming at our house during the Duke vs. VCU game. VCU, who? Yeah, that screwed up all of our brackets, but who cares....DUKE LOST! IU plays again Saturday, but our basement remodeling won't be done to host a party...I guess it doesn't matter, IU always looses when we have people over to watch the game. Go Hoosiers!

A Sick Little Girl

Why am I not surprised? With all of the sick little ones out there, it was just going to be a matter of time before Libby got it. Most of her best friends have been sick this past week, and Libby has been no exception. She had a fever today so I stayed home from work with her. I couldn't resist snapping this photo of her with her Teddy Bear that Uncle Chris brought her from Germany last week. She just looked so sweet and innocent. She got feeling better by mid-day and we got her temperatures under control. Hopefully it was just a bug.

Stand By Your Man

Libby is learning to pull herself up on furniture and stand for a brief period of time. Gary and I are so excited about this milestone, because it seems that the next step will be walking! Here she is standing up next to one of her best buddies, Killians. He is never far from Libby at any given moment of the day. He loves to watch her, kiss her and eat her Cheerios. She does not seem to mind, either.

Brooklyn Turns One!

Betsy's friend's granddaughter, Brooklyn, turned 1 year old today. We were invited to her princess birthday party. Emma, Brooklyn & Libby were playing with the toys while we ate dinner.

They let Brooklyn dig into her own cake and feed herself. I am going to guess that this is not this little girl's first taste of cake! She is just 4 months older than Libby and weighs nearly twice as much!

Emma & Libby wait for their share of the cake & ice cream!


After swimming and a birthday party, Libby was pretty pooped and decided to take a break and let Mimi feed her a bottle. This time change has really thrown her schedule off track...I wonder how she's going to sleep tonight!

A 'Grape' day to swim!

We had swimming lessons again today for Spring Break reasons. If you are not a teacher, a student or have a child in school, it is simply just another week, but we happily made our way to the YMCA so the kiddos could splash & swim! Before lessons started, TJ & Libby took a moment to review yesterday's lesson.

We blew bubbles from the side of the pool to teach the older kids how to blow bubbles in the water. I think this was the first time Libby had seen bubbles...she was very interested in watching them float. She was trying to catch them and clapping her hands! Oh yeah, thanks, Nonna for the grape swimsuit! It was so cute!

I love this picture Gary took (he is our weekly photographer). We sang the "Motor Boat" song and blew bubbles in the water. Libby likes them splashing her face. She took a moment to pose for the camera.

The noodles were a big hit again. We tied them around the little ones and let them float and "swim". Libby really has the kicking reflex to swim to get toys. The instructor told us today that with little ones that cannot walk yet have that instinct because they are used to kicking their legs to craw to get around. Makes since, doesn't it?

I was so proud of Allie this week! She seemed to love the water and is seen here floating with Kevin! Next week is our last lesson and Libby has her first graduation. Stay tuned!

Water Logged

Libby had her 4th Swimming Lesson today! She really enjoys it and I can tell that she is actually learning how to kick her feet and move her arms to swim! It won't be long until she can practice her new skills this summer on the lake!

We let the kids play with toys in the water. It teaches them to reach and work to get the toys. The adults think it is great fun to squirt an unsuspecting parent with a animal toy. Sometimes I have to ask myself who is having more fun in the pool!

We continued to practice going under the water. Libby is a really good sport about it and does not cry. During one song, we place them on the side of the pool and let them jump to us. Libby is always the last to get in because she likes to watch the other kids jump to their parents, and then she closes her eyes and leans forward to me. She is quite the little dare-devil.

Warm Weather Walk

For those of you reading this blog from different parts of the country, we had such a beautiful day of warm weather and sunshine today! It was about 65 degrees, and the people in our neighborhood were itching to get outside. We took Libby and the dogs for a walk. She decided that the sunglasses tasted pretty good, and she chewed on them the entire time. I love this hat we have! She looks just like her Uncle Chris and Daddy wearing this tan ball cap, doesn't she?

Patty Cake

Just a quick video clip of Libby playing Patty-Cake (well, sort of). She got pretty distracted by her big lamb chair, and really didn't want to wave bye-bye...but overall, she is doing pretty good. Hopefully, she'll have it mastered before long.

Derek Turns One!

Our friends, Paul & Victoria's youngest son, Derek, turned 1 year old earlier this week. We celebrated with a "Circus Animal" birthday party, complete with Animal Crackers and lots of balloons! In this picture, big brother, Caleb, checks out Derek's "Lightning McQueen" ride-on toy from JP, Jill & Kayla! Cool!

Libby playing with the boy's Circus train toy. Libby loved it so much that her daddy had to get her one, too! Check out those fur lined boots from Mimi! Every gal needs a pair!

The balloons were quite the hit with the girls! Kayla was making her hair stand on end!

What birthday party is complete without a baby covered in cake? Little Derek looked like a Smurf after it was all over! Happy Birthday, little guy!

Ring Around the Rosie

We learned how to sing "Ring around the Rosie" and then let the little ones go under the water at the end. They taught us to blow in their faces, so their natural reflex would be to hold their breath (that's why it looks so funny). Libby was such a great sport and didn't as much as whimper when I dunked her. I guess she's too little to know it's coming like the bigger kids. What mean thing will they make us do next week?

Catch a Wave

Libby had her second "official" swim lesson today (remember, we messed up on the time for the 1st week). She wore her Polka-Dot Bikini and seemed to like it even more this time. Here were were sitting on the side of the pool doing the "this is the way we wash our arms" song. She was really getting into it and clapping along.

Our lesson for the day was to learn how to go under water. The trick, they told us, was to blow in their face really hard, which would make them hold their breath, then dunk them. We practiced getting just our mouths under the water, first. Libby liked to lick up the water like a puppy. I guess she gets that from Killians & Tucker!

We sang "The Wheels on the Bus go Round & Round" to practice what we were going to do in the water with our arms. Kayla was really getting into it!

Allie waiting to jump into the pool to her daddy, Goob, during the "Alligator" song.

Libby learning to float on her two fish. She liked to kick her "wee-wee's" out of the water. We really enjoyed having our own class to ourselves this week!

Friday night Fun

We went to the K of C Fish Fry on Friday. It doesn't take much arm twisting to convince us to drink beer and eat something fried. Libby enjoyed her peas (and heart glasses, complements of Lilly's 2nd Birthday party) before we left.

During dinner, Allie asked us to come over to her house and play for a while. We all love going to Allie's because she has more toys than Toys R Us! The bigger girls thought it was big fun to sit in the blow up jumper while it was filling with air.

Shannon got out Allie's "TJ BearyTales" doll. This is like a "Teddy Rumpkins" that many of you may remember from our generation. It is a talking, moving teddy bear that tells a story. Libby was talking back to it and was so entertained! She made this animal-like "ohhh" while it was reading to her!

Shannon got in on the action by bringing out her "Teddy Rumpkins". She was entertained, too, but didn't make any sort of fun noise.

Allie and Kayla spent a big part of the evening playing with the Dry Erase Marker Board. Libby couldn't understand why she was too little for this toy.

Now we know! Blue marker on the nose! Check out those two bottom teeth!

Maybe they are just pointing to their noses, too.
Thanks for a fun evening!