A Memorable Birthday

So if the title didn't give it away, and you were unaware, it was my birthday this past weekend (the 16th). I didn't post about it on the day because, well, it seemed a bit strange to post a "Happy Birthday to Me" entry on my own blog...you know what I mean? So I decided to post about it after the fact. :)

I really had low expectations for my birthday this year. If you know me, I LOVE birthdays and always desire to make sure whoever's birthday it is does not go by without a celebration, and without the person feeling very special on their special day. My birthday is no exception. However, this year I was feeling alright about my birthday being more low-key than ever before. I mean, we live away from everyone who I'm used to celebrating with. We aren't in town for my mom's, grandma's and my "triple birthday party" (family tradition - the three of us have birthdays within 3 days of each other). We really do not have a great deal of money to go blow on expensive material items and fancy dinners. And, we have Maddie now, which adds a different (and wonderful) dynamic to any situation. This did not stop my fabulous husband from making sure I felt celebrated and special on my special day. :)

My birthday, although on Saturday, started on Friday. I came home from work to find a beautiful floral display that had arrived especially for me from my mother-in-law and father-in-law. I love flowers! In the spirit of our upcoming trip to Hawaii, this gorgeous tropical arrangement is now perched on our table, filling the room with wonderfully delicious smells! :) I looked through our mail that afternoon, and had received a special card from my dear friend Kelsie (and her husband, too!), which included a gift card for dinner at the Macaroni Grill. I didn't have dinner figured out for the evening, so I jumped at the chance to use the gift that night. Brant, Maddie and I had a marvelous time at the restaurant, which was an unexpected treat! It was a great way for us to celebrate my birthday over dinner, just the two of us (well, 3 of us! :) ).

Saturday, was a wonderful day. I received so many well wishes in the form of phone calls, cards in the mail and email. I felt remembered and special. The weather was gorgeous on Saturday, reaching 55 degrees! It was beautiful out here. We went to the outlet malls to spend some birthday money I had received, which is always fun! I really haven't changed my wardrobe since before I was pregnant. It was VERY refreshing to try on new clothes! In addition to new clothes, Brant also gave me Snow White, which is newly released out of Disney's Vault. (If you were unaware, we have been collecting the classic Disney movies as they are re-released out of the vault, so this was an important and exciting gift!)

Saturday night I had a birthday party! We invited 7 of our friends to join us for dinner at Red Robin. It really was a lot of fun. I haven't been to Red Robin in close to a year, so it was a fun treat. Here are two pictures of the group. I've included both pictures to be sure everyone was shown, including those who had the camera.
Our friends: Kevin, Meredith and Faith (she's actually sitting just below the bottom of this picture). Josh and Sarah (she's holding Maddie). Kate and Ben. We had a great time!
Red Robin must know I like ice cream! :) I will admit, I thoroughly enjoyed being sung to in public; especially when they give you a prize like this! Maddie was all ready to dive in with me.
We came back to our house, and very much to my surprise, there was a cake waiting for me. I was so happy to have a birthday cake! Usually, my birthday cake comes around when I celebrate with my mom and grandma. We have a big, rich chocolate cake. Mmm. This year, I had resigned myself to thinking I wasn't going to have one, and that was fine with me. But no. Fooled again! Brant made arrangements with our friends, and this beautiful dessert was the outcome. It was delicious!! We also had my favorite cookies and homemade ice-cream to go along with it. Woohoo! Fabulous!
The night ended with a rousing Wii dance party! We pulled out our new "Just Dance" game and everyone stepped out of their comfort zone to give it a shot. We had some pretty good laughs!

I must be in my element, and I am very proud of it! :) I'm dancing solo to "Cotton Eye Joe."

Brant and Ben are dancing to Brant's personal favorite, "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!" Let me tell you, Brant knows how to move those hips!
Meredith and Josh were dancing to something...I just can't remember what it was called. It was pretty funny.

Kate and Sarah were dancing to "I Like To Move It, Move It." So fun!

Enjoying the show! (Kevin, Faith, Sarah, Maddie, Josh and Tucker)

I was so very blessed on my birthday this year. Being so far away from everything I'm used to, I was convinced I'd feel a little out of place this year. But much to my surprise, I can honestly say, I felt at home in this place. I had such a fun day and such a fun party with really good friends. It was indeed a memorable birthday!

I like green beans!

Maddie has found her first "food love." Green beans! She was extremely tired yesterday, so these pictures do not show much enthusiasm in her eyes, but she was thoroughly enjoying her food! I am pretty excited that she has started to fondly respond to the spoon. :)

Gimme, gimme, gimme...
Mmmm....these are soo good.
I just love green beans!
I just love them so much, I could sit here and dream about them all night long!

A Week Flown By

I can't believe we have already been back in Princeton for over a week. Time has been flying by!

Brant started his class on Monday, and it is going well. He is taking a course titled, "The German Church Struggle." This is the only course he is taking, as this is a short term - 3 weeks, actually. They call this the January Term and he only has class 4 days a week, but it still keeps him very busy! On top of class, Brant continues to do his T.A. (teacher assistant) work for Ashford University, his R.A. (research assistant) work for a professor of his at Princeton, babysit Maddie each day, read hundreds of pages of homework, and finish up on his PhD applications. This man has a lot going on!

Speaking of applications, since many of you have been inquiring, Brant turned in his Princeton PhD application last Thursday. He is also applying to Fuller, in Pasadena, and that application is due this coming Friday. We will now wait for a few months before hearing anything from either school. To one extent, Brant is now relieved to have these applications (almost) out of the way. It is allowing him to focus more on the day to day requirements that come his way. But it also makes the waiting game that much more real, for both of us. We shall see; only time will tell. :)

Meanwhile, I am back at work myself. While Brant is in this short January term, I am working less hours at the children's center, which is quite nice! :) Although it changes our income just a bit, it means I get to spend more time at home with my baby girl, and more time at home to just take care of "home stuff." I'm taking full advantage! I am also still enjoying my work as a respite care provider for our friends/neighbors across from us. I like the fact that I am still keeping my feet relatively wet in my field of expertise.

Maddie is doing well. Boy, is she growing! Her bottom front teeth have started poking through her gums. Although we don't have full pearly whites out yet, they sure are present!! Ouch! She is rolling right and left, all over whatever floor space you give her. She wants to crawl so badly. You can see her bring either her left or right leg forward, but then she doesn't know what to do with it! She gets frustrated, maybe cries a little, but then a toy (or Tucker) can distract her and keep her happy. She is also starting to sit by herself. More and more each day, we are seeing her sit for longer stretches of time. She loves it! If she starts to fall to her right, she can put her arm out and brace herself to remain sitting, at least momentarily - then she topples over! We are slowly becoming more successful with feeding her "solid" foods. I sure thought it would come fast than this; she never seems thrilled, but she is getting more accustomed to it and not fighting us.

I can't leave Tucker out. He is doing well, too. He loves to go for walks, eat, be petted, played with; you name it, he loves it. He's still our little buddy who loves us very much. :)

I don't know why I felt like writing this type of an update. It almost feels like a mini-Christmas letter. That was not my intent. :) Just a lazy Sunday afternoon, with time to give you an update on us!

I'll post more pictures again soon!

Maddie's Latest Flick!

Here is our latest edition to our video collection of our sweet little girl. I'm pretty proud of this one, and am particularly fond of the piece of music I chose. Thanks to my father, who instilled his love of excellent music in me, I chose "Children's March" for this video. I played this piece of music in
my dad's band, which makes it extra special. Enjoy!!

Maddie's First Christmas!

We had a fabulous Christmas celebration with both sides of the family. It was so wonderful to be together, and for everyone to participate in Maddie's first Christmas. Rather than fill this post with a lot of words, I'll give you what you really want; pictures! Besides, they tell the story much better than I do.

Fun sunglasses were found in Maddie's stocking in preparation for our upcoming trip to Hawaii with the Himes family!
Happy on my 1st Christmas!
I'm really good at playing Santa's Little Helper!
Packaging is so pretty!
Cousins, Adalie (7), Kylia (5), Zoie (3) and Maddie, with Auntie April and Auntie Amber.
Uncle Brant with Ellie (1) and her little red chair.
Grandma Kris with her two granddaughters. What a happy day!
Aunt Sarah and Uncle Justin gave Maddie this special puzzle.
Grandpa Pat and his special little gift.
Grandpa Pat, passing on his love for the OSU Beavers to his granddaughters.
Grandma and Grandpa Vandehey gave Maddie a super fun jumper! She loved it, as much as they did!
Christmas was SOO MUCH FUN!!

Just To Be Clear...

My dear family and friends,

Thank you for such a marvelous Christmas vacation in Oregon. I am still reliving every moment and cherishing every memory we had with each of you. Brant and I really felt like we made the very best of every day, filling them up with fun activities, each different from the last. The time, of course, went much too quickly, but was well spent.

Many of you asked me personally, "How do you like it over there?" My response was generally the same: "It is not home. It is fast paced and busy. There are rude cashiers at the stores and the drivers are no better. I do not like New Jersey. My job is mundane and not stimulating. This is a season, and I know we are supposed to be here, but that doesn't make it any easier."

I've been thinking over this response I gave you for a few days, now. We are back in Princeton. We have unpacked our suitcases and packed up our Christmas decorations. We have filled our cupboards with food once again. Brant started his new class this morning, and I will be going to work in a little bit. We are back.

But you know what? I am disappointed in my response up above. I know I gave that response from my heart, and out of emotion of finally being home in the NW, surrounded by everyone and everything I love, during the most sentimental and nostalgic time of year. However, those are all just really good excuses. Princeton isn't that bad.
~I have already seen a few of my friends out here since we returned and I am remembering why I have started to call them "friend."
~My apartment is super cute and I really like how I have decorated it.
~I missed Tucker more than I realized and am thrilled to be with him again. He is cuter than I remembered!
~I am *slightly* looking forward to going to work today, to have some conversations with a few colleagues about our vacation.
~Brant is making his way through the school year in excellent fashion and stride and I am excited to continue watching him succeed.
~We were invited to our friends' house for dinner this coming weekend.
~Downtown Princeton is always fun to walk through, even when it is 5 degrees outside!
~Our home is cozy with so many pretty candles lit up, making it warm and inviting to be in.
~I'm excited for the possibility of more great snow, now that our cross-country traveling has past for awhile. Apparently, our neighborhood was covered in well over 12 inches when we were gone!
~Our car is awesome. It is red. It is safe. It is red. Lots of things! I just love it and I missed it.

Princeton isn't that bad.

I just wanted to clear my mind of what I've been thinking the past few days. I miss the NW greatly, and I miss all of you even more. Its already January and time is moving along! Meanwhile, I need to keep my chin up and truly enjoy what I have here now.

Just to be clear. :)

Peacock Lane

We had many Christmas adventures while we were visiting family in Oregon. On the night of the 23rd, the Himes' family was together, we bundled ourselves up real good and headed to the city-famous Peacock Lane. The street was as busy as you'd expect it to be, that close to Christmas, and the lights were shining in all their glory. After a fun walk through Peacock Lane, we went out to dinner at the German restaurant, "The Rheinlander", courtesy of my in-laws (thanks Dale and Martha!). It was such a fun night, and a great way to spend time together.

This was the emotion of the evening:
If you know me well, you know why I might find this picture to be fun. But just in case you don't know, it is a leg lamp, from a favorite movie of mine, "A Christmas Story." :)
The family together (minus Amber, who was still at work).
Our cute little family!
Me and April enjoying the accordion player at The Rheinlander.
Such yummy food!
Stay tuned for more fun Christmas posts!