Monday, December 29, 2008

She's still asleep!

Penelope is still asleep! And it's almost 9:30. When Russell and I went to my Grandparents for Christmas Penelope didn't sleep very good, so I guess she is just catching up. Which is great for me because I have gotten quite a bit done this morning. Normally when Russell and I both have time off we take turns sleeping in or taking naps. If we get a stretch longer then a weekend we are usually able to really get some good zzz's. So I woke up around 7 am wide awake laying in bed, which usually does happen. Normally I wake up around 7 am to a crying baby ready to start her day. So far I've straightened up the bedroom, folded and put away laundry, dusted both the bedroom celling fan and the downstairs celling fan, washed the dinning room walls, started more laundry, canceled my weight watchers plan (don't ask how long I've been paying for it and not using it). I still have to do the laundry from our trip and straighten up the living room and vacuum the house, and it's scrub the kitchen day. Oh....looks like someone is finally moving around for breakfast. Got to go.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Frankly speaking Nelly

To keep record I want to write down all the new words that Penelope is saying. Jen Graham was right when she said her crankiness the other day might be due to a milestone. If you catch Penelope at a good time she will repeat whatever you say.

Here's a list of words she says well:

1. hi
2. bye
3. No (Right now this is cute, she says no to everything. "Do you love mommy?"--"no"... "Do you want a cookie?"--"no"... I know it's only cute now that she really doesn't understand it.
4. mommy or mama
5. daddy or dada
6. mouth
7. nose
8. ear
9. eye
10. Nena (who is Granna)
11. Nana (who is Aunt Nicky)
12. go
13. up
14. apple
15. mine (don't ask me how she learned this) :)
16. baba (which is bottle)
17. keesh (which is suppose to be keekee meaning yucky or dirty)
(I think that is it, but if I remember anything else I will add it to it)

She has said this a couple of times but not fluently
1. banana (this was actually her first word, beside mama and dada but she hasn't said it for a while)
2. Nelly (which is her nickname- it really surprised me when she said this and when we asked her who that was she pointed to herself. It was so cute. I'm going to try to call her by her nickname more often.
3. I know (she has repeated us saying this when we are in conversation. And I know that she already says "eye" and "no". So I guess "I know" doesn't really count. But I think it's cute!

I just looked up online and it said that there is usually a vocabulary explosion at 18 months and she is doing that. They are also suppose to have about 10 to 20 word vocabulary so she is right where she is suppose to be. My smart little girl!

Thursday, December 25, 2008

Family, Food, and Good times

Merry Christmas! Russell and I are having a great time up here. For the most part we have been doing a lot of nothing, which for me is great! We had a great drive down it only took us a little over 4 1/2 hours to make the drive. Not including the about an hour break we took to eat breakfast and let the baby run around a random Starbucks in Barstow. We met my sister and her husband out here. And my Uncle Gary happened to be in town yesterday so he stopped by. He was in town because both of his kids (my cousins) J.R. and Suzy are in a tournament for bowling for a University in Illinois. We will probably be going the day after Christmas to see him play.

But this morning we woke up and had a wonderful breakfast with scrambled eggs with chili peppers, bacon, muffins, English muffins, hash browns, and orange juice. Yummy! We opened presents and then started on Christmas dinner. My grandmother had her sister (my Great Aunt Edith) and her husband (Great Uncle Hugh), one of their sons (Doug) and daughters (Debbie) and their daughters son (Jamie). I see my Great Aunt and Uncle often because they live by my grandmother and we get to see them from time to time. The others I guess I haven't seen since I was in elementary school, or so they told me, because I don't remember. Jaime (my 2nd cousin) actually shook my hand and said "It was nice meeting you" when he left. Huh, I guess not a strong family bond between us. We had a wonderful Christmas dinner. We had turkey (that my sister made), ham, mashed potatoes (that my sister made), stuffing (that I made), salad, bread, green bean casserole (that I made thanks to Linny), stuffed cabbage, cranberry sauce, and candied yams. I'm sooo looking forward to left overs! All the extended family didn't stay too long. I guess I'm use the Stade family clan hanging out until your ready to go to bed. We just had our dessert which included apple pie, pumpkin pie, and cheesecake. You would think my grandmother is feeding an army. But there is something about being over here that just makes my stomach expand and I eat sooo much.

Russell and I were sitting around with the baby. I am already wearing a pajama shirt that says "DREAM" on it with rhinestones. Penelope likes pointing to the letters and I tell her "M", "R" , "D". Sometimes she says it back. Well we were all sitting around and she started pointing at "M". So I proceeded to say "m". She got so passionate about it! It was hilarious. She started saying, "mmmmmm...Ma". And as she is saying "mmm" her pitch is getting higher and higher. Each time she starts over she gets more passionate about it. Until she is sitting with her hands in fists, with a serious face, straight lipped, slightly shaking her head, as loud as she can. It sent Russell and I in hilarious laughing. We laughed so hard, we scared her. Poor thing. But you should have been there it was sooo funny. I so wish I had my camera and we could have recorded it. But I forgot my camera at home and so we went to the grocery store and bought a disposable camera yesterday. Hopefully she'll do it again when we get back.

Well...I hope everyone is having a great Christmas. We are missing everyone from our home town. I hope you all had a great time today.

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Although it's been said many times, many ways, "Merry Christmas to you"

I just want to wish Merry Christmas to everyone! I hope everyone has a memorable Christmas this year. I pray that your Christmas is filled with family, togetherness, joyfulness, blessedness, and remembrance of what this season is all about.

Russell and I will be leaving first thing in the morning to Nevada to visit my Grandparents for Christmas. It will be great visiting with them all again. My sister and her husband went out there today. Pray for a memorable Christmas time, safe journey, and a well behaved child.

I'll sum up my day today by this little story. I was at my wits end with Penelope. She has been unexplainable fussy all day long. By the time I made it home from finally getting out the door to do my last minute errands Russell was incharge of Penelope until she went to bed. Seeing how I got home at 6 pm and she is now going to bed at 7:30, it isn't too bad. After ten minutes of me being upstairs packing for the baby while he feed her dinner down stairs, Russell proceeded to tell me, "She is being incredibly annoying right now.".....Your telling me.

So pray for a well tempered baby tomorrow during a trek out of town.

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Random Christmas facts

I feel so far behind on my blog stuff. So sorry I haven't posted anything recently.

Here is some random info about me and Christmas. I guess "I've been tagged" is the saying....

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Egg nog....because you can't get it any other time of the year. Plus it is really yummy. I like drinking it with a little Cinnamon on top. Or I make a wonderful egg nog cookie.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Well when I grew up Santa wrapped presents and set them under the tree. My mother had some presents that wrote very nicely were from "Mom and Dad". And most of them she wrote from "Santa". With Penelope I think I'm not going to write any presents are from Santa. I'm going to try to walk to fine line, if that is do able. I want to tell her about Santa, because I like the idea of fairy tales. Just like as a little girl I'll probably tell her that stories about Cinderella can really come true just like they do in Disney. But I don't want Santa to be the reason for the Season. So I will mention it but I want Jesus to be emphasized profoundly. Wish me good luck in figuring that out.

3. Colored lights or white? White and then add colored lights. He he he

4. Do you hang a mistletoe? I actually have a fake mistletoe ornament. I meant to hang it up but I think it accidentally got put back away when I was done decorating this year. Don't tell Russell, he would be disappointed.

5. When do you get out your decorations? In the perfect world I would put them up the day after Thanksgiving. But now being a working mother that's not do able. Oh well...as long as they go up for a while before Christmas is over.

6. Favorite holiday dish, excluding dessert? I would have to say potatoes. I love potatoes any way that you make them.

7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? One Christmas I got up in my parents house before everyone else. And it was a pretty sad Christmas that year financially. And I decided to go to the grocery store and buy some egg nog for everyone. I was so happy running to the store before everyone else woke up and surprising everyone with egg nog.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't remember how and I really don't remember when either. I remember a time when I was in 4th grade and a couple of my classmates were talking about it. And there was a person there who really believed there was still a Santa. And there were some kids that thought there was and there were some kids that thought there wasn't. And I knew there wasn't, but I acted like three was, because it was just nicer to live in fantasy.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Sometimes....depending on what activities are happening.

10. How do you decorate your trees? This year I decorated with white and blue ornaments...kinda like a Christmas frost :)

11. Snow, love it or hate it? I love it...but I only get it if I travel far and try to chase it. I live in So Cal. The closest man made snow is still about 1 hour ?? away with no traffic.

12. Can you ice skate? Yep but I don't go anymore. Russell really hurt himself on skates. And so it probably wont happen until I take Penelope. Who can blame him, he has 6 screws in his ankle because of that accident.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? One year we talked my mom into setting out some Christmas gifts under the tree early (before Christmas morning) and open a gift on Christmas eve. So she set out 3 boxes and told us that they were all the same thing. The first box was really small and light as a feather. The second box was 10'' x 16'' and you could barely lift it off the table it was so heavy. And the third box, which was mine, was a big box but pretty thin and it would rattle if you moved it. They sat there for a week under the tree and my mom said if anyone could guess what was in each box, and they were all the same thing we could open them early. So we guessed and my poor mother, I was a really sensitive child, and I came to her crying one night explaining how frustrated I was and told her that I couldn't handle it if it was a trick. We ended up opening them on Christmas eve. The small light box, which was my brothers, it was an empty small box with a one hundred dollar bill tapped on it. On the heavy box, which was my sisters, was a cinder block with a one hundred dollar bill tapped on it. And mine was a box with a bunch of stones in it, with a one hundred dollar bill tapped on it. I think I like that present more because of the memory it has in my mind. But if anyone is wondering I went out and bought a keyboard at Circuit City.

14. What is the most important thing about the holidays for you? Family!

15. Favorite Holiday dessert? It's a toss between egg nog cookies and peppermint bark

16. Favorite Christmas Tradition? I love filling up the Christmas stockings. It's something that I do every year. It's as much a necessity as any other holiday. We have to have stocking on Christmas morning filled with little inexpensive gifts.

17. What tops your tree? This year I have a glowing star at the top of my tree. And each year it is either some kind of glowing star or a angel. I like the idea of the star better this year.

18. What's better giving or receiving? Giving, I go Christmas shopping nuts during the holidays. But I do have to admit I did a lot of Christmas shopping online. It is so much easier with a toddler who desperately needs her naps in her own crib.

19. Favorite Christmas song? The song that's my favorite is actually titled "Christmas song". And it goes something like this...

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack frost nipping at your nose
Yuletide carols being song by a choir
and folks dress up like Eskimos
Every body needs some turkey and some mistletoe
Helps to make the seasons bright
tiny tots with their eyes all a glow
will find it hard to sleep tonight

They know that Santa's on his way
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh
and every mother's child is going to spy
to see if reindeer really know how to fly

And so I'm offering this simple phrase
from kids from one to ninety-two
although it's been said many times, many ways
merry Christmas to you.

I love it! Especially the ninety-two party! Is it sad that I did it all from memory?

20. Candy canes, yummy or yucky? Yummy! Especially in peppermint bark

21. What do you want for Christmas? There are little things that I would like for Christmas. But not to sound corny, but I would really like just a memorable Christmas time with friends and family. Really get to understand the season not the mayhem.

22. Do you attend an annual Christmas party? I actually use to throw an annual Christmas party. And each year there are still a couple of people who ask me if I'm going to have it again this year. And I said no at least for this year. Maybe next year. But this year we were invited to 5 Christmas parties! So we were pretty booked.

23. Do you dress up for Christmas eve? No...maybe Christmas day, depending on where we are going. But this year I'm going out to Grandma's so I think it is going to be pretty laid back.

24. Do you own a Santa Hat? Yep and it hangs on my wall next to the stockings. I've had that hat since I was 16 years old at least. I use to go Christmas shopping, wearing that hat, driving around town in my car, blaring Christmas music and sings along with it on the top of my lungs. LOL

25. Who do you normally spend Christmas with? Russell and I are making a tradition of going to my grandmother's for Christmas. She use to do these huge Christmas' when she lived in California. But since she moved to Nevada she is kinda left alone, which is really sad. So Russell and I promised we would be there and at least she wouldn't be alone.

Has anyone not gotten tagged yet? I don't really know....so if you see this and you want to give it a try...then I tag you.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

foggy head



I have a headache and it's leaving me kinda bla and foggy headed. I don't like taking medicine for a headache I usually like to figure out what is causing it. Maybe I'm hungry. I just tried eating, with a less then fullfilling lunch, and that didn't help. Maybe I need sleep. Have I been drinking too much coffee lately? Am I going through coffee withdraws? I've been working on my christmas decorations since monday. And I really want to get it done so I can get 10 other things done off my list. Maybe it's that? Oh well.....maybe I should just take tylenol this time....

I'm totally decorating my house this year. At least I felt up to the challenge on Monday. Right now I still have to hang garland over the windows in the bedrooms. Get out the nativity scene and the little village. Get out some of the big figurines from underneath my mother-in-laws house. And geeze after all that is done. I seriously have to vaccuum my house. Then figure out what is for dinner. Here are glimpse of what I have so far...

The top of the Christmas tree.




the tree. I'll have to take another picture when night falls. You might be able to see all the details better. I'll be sure to take pictures of the whole house once it is all up. I do love Christmas, I just want my headache gone. Maybe chocolate would help?