Thursday, August 13, 2009

Nap

I DID IT!  I got both of my babies down for a nap at the SAME TIME and each in their respective bed.  This is a major milestone.  :)

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

First day

Today was my first day back to school - a productive morning. Jose was a tremendous help this morning getting the kids ready and helping load up the Suburban so we could get going on time to Blanca's by 8:00. Dropping the kiddos off at Blanca's was surprisingly unemotional, and it felt good to be at work again, even if away from my babies. When I called at 10:30 to see how things were going, all was well. Francesca had just woken up from a nap, and Mateo was playing happily. When I picked them up at 12:45, Francesca was in her Bumbo with her sad face on, eyes were red around the edges, and Blanca told me she had been missing her Mommy and her house. The second Francesca saw me her eyes lit up and she started waving her arms around with a big smile. Mateo had greeted me happily at the door and told me about the books they were reading. He reportedly had a good morning and ate a super lunch (arroz con carne sudada), which he thanked me for. So it was a good first day back, but I'm sure glad to be home... Of course, I could have lived without watching Chester attack the baby bunnies he found in our front yard when we did get home. That incident left me slightly traumatized wondering what to do with the newly injured bunny on our lawn, but it sure has given Mateo a great story to tell!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Last Day of "Summer"

Tomorrow I go back to work.  We have had such an amazing summer!  I feel sad about going back to work even if it is just part of the day.  I have loved waking up each morning to the smiles of my two babies and the lazy start to our days.  I know they will be in great hands with Blanca, but they are not my hands... I am so grateful for the these 2+ months in Colombia, at the cabin, here at home.  It has been incredible, joy-filled, better than I imagined.  I love being Mommy to Mateo and Francesca.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

The Cabin

Last week we took a last minute trip up to the cabin - just the four of us for the first time. We had a really nice time at the lake fishing, taking walks, playing together and relaxing. On Sunday, we went to the Taste of Dorset, an annual event in the "Restaurant Capital of the World." The town of Dorset consists of one street with 5 restaurants and 1 church - that's it. We had fun sampling food from the different restaurants. Mateo liked the monkey tails (chocolate covered frozen banana rolled in Oreo) and the pork chop on a stick.

On the way back to Omaha, we stopped to see Tricia and Ben Arndt. Not only was it fun to see Trish, but it was also wonderful to meet their newest little one, Landon, for them to meet Francesca and for Mateo and Owen to play together.


At the cabin

The Taste of Dorset

Pork chop on a stick


Daddy and Mateo proud of their catch
Francesca was very curious about the fish

Giggles

Fish Kisses
Mateo and Owen


Tricia, Jaimie and Francesca

Landon checks out Francesca in her Bumbo

Tricia and Landon (almost 1 year)

On Francesca's 8 month birthday

We went swimming at my friend Traci Fierro's mother's house and Francesca and Mateo both loved being in the water. Mateo was fearless, jumping in with his lifejacket on and swimminng after the huge rubber ducky. Francesca was relaxed in the floating ladybug under the shade. It was a hot August afternoon, so the pool felt great.



At 8 months, Francesca loves to be on her tummy. She is content to play with her toys for long stretches of time (up to 30 minutes) and she has beee known to roll all the way across the family room if no obstacles are in her way. Her eyes light up when she sees her older brother, Mateo, and she giggles when he plays with her. Francesca is very persistent about getting something she wants and will patiently attempt to grab at a toy just out of her reach. Now she even pushes up on her back legs and scoots her body forward. I am so proud of the progress she is making. We started feeding her solid foods in mid-July; so far she has had green beans, carrots, sweet potato, egg yolk and a spoonful of avocado. Her favorite has been the carrots.