Father's Day

So I totally meant to post this on Sunday and now it's Wednesday.  Better late than never, I suppose.  I just wanted to share what the girls and I made for Walker for Father's Day.
Of course my idea came from Pinterest. 






This is the picture I pinned about 1 month ago (so cute right?) and unfortunately, about 2 weeks ago when I actually clicked on the pin itself it took me to a different pin on Pinterest by some girl that I don't even know and I'm pretty sure was not the original pinner of this.  Clearly there are people out there who still don't understand how to correctly pin things on Pinterest.  So I was pretty bummed because I didn't know where to find the original site.  I figured I could make something in photoshop but I wasn't sure how it would turn out.
Then, about a week before Father's Day, I was randomly looking through pins (not of people I follow) and I found it again!  And it linked to the correct site!  Eureka!  This is the blog that has not only the "how-to" but also ALL sorts of free files to customize your own Father's Day collage (seriously, any name you have for a male father-figure in your life, this lady has it). 
So I had the correct site, now I needed the pictures.  This was interesting.  Taylor was a challenge because when I put the chalkboard next to her she just wanted to name all the letters on it.  I actually managed to get a few good ones of her though.  I quickly checked the photos on my camera and realized that stupidly I had paid so much attention to Taylor through the lens that I forgot to look at the chalkboard.  And there was a nice ray of sunlight hitting the chalkboard that obscured part of a few words.  D'oh!  So I repositioned Taylor (checked the chalkboard through the lens) and tried to get a few more but by this point, Taylor was done.  So I stupidly thought "well I can somehow merge the good chalkboard image onto one with a bad chalkboard image."  I continued on with Lucy's pictures; she did great of course (and no random sunlight glares either!). 
So I opened the images in Lightroom and fixed some basic things and then I sent them over to Photoshop to try and place the "good" chalkboard over the "bad chalkboard.  Ummmmm yeah that didn't happen.  ::sigh::  So I hauled Taylor outside and sat her on the porch and thankfully she hammed it up and I got some good shots to choose from.  The anal side of me was irritated that the background of the pictures wouldn't be the same but oh well. 

So, with pictures edited and ready, it was time to make a collage with the file I got from the site.  Now I had another problem....the file says "Daddy, we love you because...." and on the chalkboard I wrote "he" instead of "you."  UGH!  I was not about to reshoot the pictures!  So I opened Photoshop again and luckily was able to copy and paste and make my own file (and yes I totally color-coordinated it with the girls' outfits).  Phew!  So after all that (are you bored yet?  Sorry...) here is the final product:

I actually like my version better because it uses hot pink ;)

Happy (late) Father's Day to all the dads out there! 

15 Months for Lucy

I guess being 15 months old isn't as major as turning 1 but I feel the need to write a post because she did have a doctor's appointment (I guess in my mind well check=blog post).

Weight: 19 lbs, 6.5 oz (she's only gained 5.5 oz in 3 months??)
Height: 29.25 inches (ah but she grew almost 2 inches)

As the pediatrician said today "well someone has to be at the bottom of the charts."  And it's not like Lucy is at the very bottom, 6th percentile for weight and 17th for height.  We're not really worried because she is pretty steady in her growth curve (although I have noticed her thighs have lost a bit of their chunk...::sniff sniff::)

As for physical milestones, well she obviously is walking now and like I predicted she's getting quite good at it.  It's funny to watch her try and actually go faster.  I think she's trying to run like Taylor does.  That's just what I need...another kid running away from me.
Lucy has been experimenting with using a spoon to eat.  She definitely gets the concept; it's just getting her hands to do the right thing in a coordinated way that doesn't end with mash potato in the hair (and on the face, highchair, clothes, dog, etc.)
Coloring is another activity that has sparked her interest lately that also requires a little refinement on the coordination.  Again, Lucy understands what she is supposed to do with the crayon (other than nibble on it), she just needs to adjust her pencil grip.

Language-wise I am not worried about this girl at all!  I'm not sure I could even list all of the words she says on her own in context.  And then there's all the words she repeats!  We definitely have to watch what we say around her.  I'm so relieved that Lucy is not having the same speech delays that Taylor has.
And let me tell you, this little one is a smart cookie.  Lucy sings the ABC's (minus a few letters), she can count (again, minus a few numbers- she's better at providing the next number if someone else is counting) and she is starting to recognize and name some letters, colors, and shapes.  And she'll say words sometimes and I just look at her and think "where in the world did you pick up on that?"  I tell you, Lucy is a little sponge- she just soaks it all in.  And I couldn't be prouder.
Not to say Taylor isn't smart; clearly she is a genius as well but this post is all about Lucy.....

Normally I end these posts with some pictures....but I haven't taken any "good" pictures of her lately.  I do have some black and white ones posted on Facebook from last week.  Hopefully this weekend I can get her outside to do more 'formal' pictures

Keep it in the Bathroom, Please!

*WARNING* This post might offend, annoy, hurt, etc. some people but I have just GOT to say this!
We all know it's a magical time when your toddler is potty training. However, posting Facebook statuses (statii?) about how many times your little angel peed or pooped in the potty that day is completely unnecessary.  Yes, I understand it is terribly exciting and how proud you are (believe me, when Taylor decides to go in the potty I will probably cry tears of joy, but I think that has more to do with the fact that diapers will be vacating our house) but simply said, I don't care.  I really don't!  And I don't care to read about it either.  I certainly don't have a problem with posts like "_____ can now use the potty!" or "____ spent all day in big girl undies!"  or even "no accidents today!" but posts like "5 pees and 2 poops in the potty today!" are just too much.  And yes I will admit, I have even removed certain people from my news feed because of their need to provide such detailed and constant updates.  Do you post updates on how much you've gone to the bathroom?  Hopefully, not.  So don't put your kid through that.  Yay for potty training, but please, keep it in the bathroom.  :)

PS- don't worry- when Taylor (and eventually Lucy) are potty trained, the most you will hear from me is that they are potty trained.  I promise no details will be shared (not even on here).  :)

Sing, Sing, Sing!

I think most of you saw the video of  Taylor singing along to "We Are Young" by Fun on Facebook (I'll post it below in case you didn't) but that is not the only song in Taylor's repertoire.  Apparently, Taylor pays much more attention to the radio than I thought.  And it's just random parts too.  For example, Rihanna's "We Fell in Love" (or whatever it's called) was playing and after the main chorus, the music picks up and has a repetitive beat that builds and builds (and makes me want to lace up my running shoes).  Well all of a sudden from the backseat, I hear a "dah, dah, dah, dah, dah" in perfect time to the music. I thought I was the only one who sang along to the instrumental parts!  And then last week, Christina Perry's "One Thousand Years" came on and Taylor started singing "one step cloooser."  The best was last night when "Moves like Jagger" came on and Taylor, while not able to nail the words of the chorus down, was able to provide the background "uh" at the exact right moments.  I see many Willis sing-a-longs in the future!!

We Have Take-Off!

Lucy took her first steps a few weeks ago.  Getting her to repeat them has been a huge challenge.  Most of the time she'll just stand there and look at us.  Or she'll sink down to her knees to crawl.  Or she'll just whine and fuss until we pick her up or hold out our hand for her to hold. 
Or I should say that's what she used to do.  The other night we were eating dinner and Lucy was crawling around on the floor.  Then all of a sudden she put her hands down, and pushed herself up to standing. She took a few steps, fell down, but promptly pushed herself up again.  She did this over and over.  And yesterday I believe Lucy walked more than she crawled.  Now she walks verrrry slowly still but I bet in a few weeks she will be quite speedy.  Here is a video of her pokey walking.

Body by Vi

Okay so if you're friends with me on Facebook you probably know that 2 weeks ago I started the 90 Day Challenge from Body by Vi.
When I first looked into it, I was a little skeptical.  To me it seemed like another program that promises a quick fix but doesn't deliver.  But I decided to go to my friend's shake tasting party anyway.  I do admit that hearing about my cousin-in-law's success with it did encourage me a little- at least I knew someone in real life that it's working for.
At the party I was convinced to give it a try.  After all, I can do anything for 90 days right?  I placed my order and got my first shipment 2 weeks ago.  I was actually pretty excited when it came.  I weighed and measured myself and took my "before" picture (yikes).
The program itself is easy: replace 2 meals a day with a shake, eat a sensible 3rd meal, and healthy snacks in between.  For women you're supposed to aim for 1200-1400 cals a day.  This sounds exactly Slimfast doesn't it?  Well it's very similar but the Body by Vi shakes are nutritionally better for you and there are SO many different kinds you can make.  I literally have over 100 recipes and often I just make up my own.  Last night for dinner I had a "Cinnamon Bun" shake.  It tasted just like a cinnamon bun!  
I'm happy to report that in 2 weeks I have lost 4.5 pounds which doesn't sound like a ton right?  Especially when my other cousin-in-law (who started the same time I did) has already lost 9 pounds.  But I have to remind myself that experts say normal weight loss is about 1-2 pounds a week.  And I did "cheat" on one or 2 days with my 3rd meal.  So I guess I could have potentially lost more but at the same time having a little "cheat" meal helps satisfy my cravings.
But I also have lost a total of 3.5 inches from all over.  That is exciting as well.  Interestingly almost half of that has come from my chest which just goes to show where women lose weight first (rather unfortunate if you ask me...haha!).
So maybe by now you're thinking "hmm I'd like to try that....how much does it cost?"  I know, I know there's always a catch right?  Well I'm not going to lie- it's $99 a month.  Sounds like a lot right but I think of it as $25 a week and considering I'm not buying food for breakfast and lunches I really don't feel that we're spending that much more money for me to be doing this program.  But here's the best part (do I sound like an infomercial yet?):  you can get it for free.  Yep, FREE.  You will have to pay for your 1st month but if you can get 3 people to sign up "underneath" you then your next shipment is free.  And it will keep being free as long as there are 3 people ordering every month from underneath you (can be the same 3 or different 3).
And now we've reached the real reason I've blogged about this- sign up under me!  LOL!  No, that's not the real reason.  I seriously am very excited about this program and I already have one person at school trying it with me (along with my cousins-in-law) and I think the more people doing something together, the more support you have and then you will be more successful.
So here is the website where you can get more info and sign up if you want.  And if you're interested in those recipes I have, let me know and I can email them to you (well you have to give me your email address if I don't already have it).  C'mon people- you can do ANYTHING for 90 days!  What do you have to lose?  (except weight?)

[/end of annoying cheerleader-like infomercial blog :P)]

Update to Allergies

So I finally have an update to what's going on with Miss Lucy and her allergies.  Oh yes, allergiesssss....plural...as in more than one.
Okay so after Lucy had that reaction I called the allergy department first.  They weren't interested in talking to me.  Okay fine.  So I called our pediatrician's office.  Can I say I love my pediatrician's nurse?  I don't think I've ever met her in person (a different nurse always gets the girls' measurements and I know it's a different person than the one on the phone b/c she's a parent of 2 former students of mine) but whenever I call on the phone she is SO nice and SO helpful.  Anyway, she said to bring Lucy in for bloodwork and they would test for allergies that way.  That is a LOT easier than what I had been imagining.  So I made Walker take her (hey, I had to deal with the blood draw at her 1 year check up).  That was 2 weeks ago.  The nurse called me the next Wednesday and told me what came up.  Are you ready?
walnuts? check
egg whites? check
mold? check
peanuts? check
milk? check
wheat? check
cat and dog dander? check and check

That is quite a list.  I was floored.  Walker and I do not have allergies other than seasonal ones which are usually very mild.  Walker is actually allergic to cats and dogs but somehow he's kind of grown out of it and if he's around the animal for long enough, he gets kind of immune.
So based on all of that the nurse said they were faxing her labs to the pediatric allergist at Carle and they were giving us a prescription for epi pens (one for us, one for daycare).  I didn't understand the wheat and milk allergies at. all.  Lucy has been drinking milk since February and eating cheerios like they were going out of style.  The nurse did say those were low to moderate allergies so we didn't need to do anything drastic until we met with the allergist. 
Cut to the next day when the nurse calls me again to say the allergist doesn't want to see Lucy because she is so young and most of her allergies were not that severe.  Our pediatrician recommended we "feed through" the food allergies and she will most likely outgrow them.  I agreed with the nurse on that except for the peanuts.  I told the nurse I didn't feel comfortable doing peanuts given the reaction she had (even though the peanut allergy only came up as moderate).  The nurse agreed with me.  She also said our pediatrician wanted us to see a dermatologist to see if there was a connection between Lucy's allergies and her eczema.  And the allergies that came up high were cat and dog dander.  Well where does Lucy spend most of her time?  Crawling on the floor amidst all the invisible hair we can't seem to control.  So could this be why her eczema has never gone away?  I didn't know but I wanted to see what the dermatologist thought.  So we went in last week and he said it could be causing it but he's not sure.  And really the only way to know for sure is to get rid of the animals and do a massive cleaning job.  But he didn't want us to go to that step yet.  First he gave us a stronger prescription cream.  We are to try it for a month and then we go back to see him and decide if it's working.  If it's not, more drastic measures may have to be taken such as becoming a pet-free house.  I have to be honest, this would make me pretty sad.  I've always had animals in my house (seriously the only time I did not have an animal living with me was when I lived in the dorms) and I can't imagine not having a furry friend to cuddle up to (and no, Walker does not count.  I said furry, not hairy).  And then there's the issue of where would our pets go?  I can NOT send them to the animal shelter.  I just can't.  My sister has volunteered to take the cat which is great.  But I'm not as worried about her as I am the dog.  Sadie needs a very particular type of house to live in.  And I'd want her to go to someone I know or someone my brother knows since she is his dog.  But you know we have another month before we have to make a decision like that.  I'm really hoping this cream will make a difference. 
So that is my rather lengthy update on the allergies.  And just for being so nice to read all of that here is a picture you've probably already seen on Facebook  :P