So long, February!

Oh man, am I glad it's Friday, and the last day of February at that! While most people look at the end of the work week as a chance to get away from people, I look at it as my chance to finally socialize, shower and sometimes even drive the car! A life full of excitement, that's what I lead. In any case, tonight we're headed down to Brunswick to help one of my two favorite aunts move (on). As a result, I'm sorry to say there won't be a blog post tomorrow, and maybe even Sunday. I know, it's torture.
To hold you over, here are a few candids of the sweet little girl:


Today has been a little more interesting than yesterday, although I will say that after I posted I went on to sweep the basement, do a load of laundry, vacuum the upstairs, do the dishes and start dinner. I tell you, knowing that someone is reading this makes me so much more motivated! Still, today wasn't an incredibly eventful day, as reflected in this blog. I promise, next week will bring posts full of humor, cherished moments, exciting prizes and sarcasm. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Good morning! Uh, I mean afternoon. I definitely did not fall asleep with Nora during her morning nap today, no sir, not me. But what can I say? It is still February, just barely, so I can overlook my lack of energy. (And I did go to Pilates last night. That counts for something, right?)
But anyway, back to everyone's favorite topic:

This little bundle of energy decided just playing with her toys wasn't enough for her. She needed to become one with her toys, to really bond with them. So while I was distractedly talking on the phone with Tara, she decided to move ahead with her plans. And move she did, right into the toy basket:

Yup, all by herself she managed to crawl in and settle herself atop her favorite Christmas Book.
Getting out was a little more difficult and required the help of Mama, but all in all, a pretty productive day. Now if only I could accomplish that much...
For now I'll post a taste of the Nora to come:

She refused to hold my hands and wasn't too keen on my having to steady her. I can just hear her sounding out the syllables like Rudolph- 'In-de-pen-dent!'
Have a great day, everyone!

Yesterday, out of boredom, I decided to give Nora a bath on her own in the tub. This doesn't seem so out of the ordinary, but it is actually a rare occurrence in this household. Not to imply that we have a dirty baby, by any means, but I usually just take her in the shower with me. It's quick and easy, and saves water, too. Yesterday, however, I thought Nora deserved the pleasure of a nice warm bath. (Okay, and yes, it had been awhile since her last shower.)
As soon as I began drawing the bath water her ears perked. She hitched herself over to the edge of the tub and proceeded to thoroughly impress me. Case in point:


I couldn't have been more proud. Of course, as soon as she noticed me she immediately fell on her bottom, leaned back and whacked her head on the scale in the background. That will teach me to stop fiddling with the camera during important moments such as this one...

For all the Nora-obsessed fans out there, one more picture of her bath time fun:

And finally, a quick note to my newly tech-savvy Dad (and everyone else who is fed up with the cold, snow and plowing costs), spring and summer are coming, I promise, and when they arrive it will be wonderful.



Have a wonderful day, everyone!

So this is Barkley.

And this is Nora.

I think we all know this. It fact, it seems like pretty general knowledge, right? Not to everyone, apparently. Last night, as I was nursing Nora around one a.m., Barkley, who had been lying at the end of the bed, decided to move to the floor. As he stood up and walked across the end of the bed, Shane bolted upright, crying, "whoa, whoa, oh my God!"
This didn't actually surprise me, as Shane is notorious for making loud remarks in his sleep.
"What's the matter?" I calmly asked.
"Oh my God, oh my God! I thought that was Nora crawling off the bed!"
I gently patted his arm and said, "Shh, lay down and go to sleep." After which he promptly did. Obviously it was a very traumatic event for him.

On a different note, after posting here yesterday, I realized that we really should go outside, so we bundled up and took Bark for a walk. I am so glad we did. The weather was amazing; warm and brilliantly sunny. It really was just what we needed. Here are a few pictures to help you forget about the impending (or already arrived!) storm.

Have a great day, everyone!

Winter in Maine

Welcome to the new blog, everyone. I'm going to attempt to update this a few times a week with new posts and pictures of Nora for everyone who doesn't live in or around the area. Enjoy!

These days Nora and I (well, just me, actually) are busy fighting off a case of the winter blahs. It's February, it's cold, and it's dark. Fortunately, the days are already beginning to lengthen, giving us the little bit of hope we need to make it through March (yuck!) and eventually April (yay!).
Most of our days are spent indoors. On the rare occasion that we do make it out, Nora is bundled to within an inch of her life, then somehow I manage to strap her into the ergo and we're off. Once outside, we always enjoy ourselves. In fact, I often come inside thinking, "why don't we do this more often?" Really, it's the motivation I'm lacking. Poor Nora, stuck in a house all winter with her lazy mom! We manage, though, and we always find things to occupy ourselves. I've taken up sewing, and if my machine is ever returned from the service center, I may begin turning out some nice projects. Nora has really started moving around, and seems very close to crawling. She hitches herself everywhere and can now pull herself up onto her knees against the laundry basket. Honestly, it seems like just a few weeks ago that we were constantly rocking/bouncing/carrying her around to calm her...