The Virnig Adventures!

One Word

2012-01-16T15:27:00.000-06:00

I'm seeing it pop up everywhere but I first heard this idea from my wonderful sister. Pick one word, just one, to reflect on for the year. I've been contemplating what my word would be since the first of the year and I think I've finally found one. Before I reveal it, a little explanation of my thought process. 2012 is certainly going to be different than 2011. I didn't have a word for 2011 but probably needed one. When I think back to 2011 the words that come mind - chaos, stress, anxiety, unsettled. Certainly not positive words and certainly not ones I would have hung around my neck and reflected on every day. Perhaps my word for 2011 should have been faith or trust. Because those were what I needed to get through and were two powerful words that brought me to 2012. 2011 was a year of change - I graduated, we decided where we wanted to live and raise our family, I got a new job, we bought a new house. In early 2011 I struggled as a mom and student. During the summer I stressed myself out as we had no idea where we'd go, where we'd be, where I'd work. Things calmed down and by the end of 2011, things were clear and those pesky words and feelings began to dissipate. And so when it came to find a word for 2012 I had a lot to choose from - settled, peace, content, family. I've thrown many around in the last few weeks until I settled on one. One that seems to reflect how far we come and will help me celebrate what is still to be. And that word is ...

Grateful for mine, my husband, and my daughter's health.

Grateful that we don't want for anything.

Grateful that we have more than we need and are finding ways to share our excess with others.

Grateful that even when you don't see him or ask for him, God is there.

Grateful that the words I was able to reflect on are positive this year.

And the list could go on and on ... and so this year I give thanks and strive to wake up each day with a grateful heart.

What's your word of the year?

Happy Birthday Brynna!

2012-01-15T22:09:00.002-06:00

2

2012-01-14T23:38:00.000-06:00

Two years ago tonight I went to bed in tears. I was convinced I was going to be pregnant forever and ever and ever. Little did I know just 24 hours later my precious girl would be in my arms. Two years later I go to bed with a huge smile on my face and a love and joy in my heart I never could have fathomed. When Brynna wakes up tomorrow she will be 2, two, TWO!!!!!! Where has the time gone? Brendan and I look at each other every day and say, "Can you really believe she is ours?" I realize it's been awhile since I've done an update on her. Life has caught up to us and between fulltime work and parenting, there just hasn't been the time to get on this blog. But here's what she's up to these days ...

She is learning at every turn. She knows all of her colors, a lot of shapes, can count to 30, knows her ABCs, and is starting to identify letters. She will tell you the "B is for Brynna" and "D is for daddy" and is able to point some of them out. We continue to be amazed at her memory! We tell her or show her something once and she can recall it days or weeks later.

Her vocal skills continue to amaze us and her teachers at school. She speaks in full sentences, can communicate clearly with us, and continues to be Miss Manners. We are so proud of how well she is doing! It's so wonderful to be able to carry on a conversation with her and know exactly what she needs or wants.

This morning she woke up, decided to put on her "special undies" and then spent the rest of the day using the potty! We had a few near misses - small accidents on the way to the toilet. But also lots of successes and she was on her way to the right place, just didn't make it in time, during her 2 accidents. So we'll see how tomorrow goes! We had been tossing around the idea of potty training but she seems to have made the choice for us!

What is she into these days? Elmo, her kitchen set, puzzles, babies (pause so someone can insert the "perhaps you should make her a big sister" comment, ok, moving on), music, singing, coloring, painting ... the list could go on and on. She is also all girl - pink, pink, pink! Singing is a big one. She will randomly burst into song - Five Little Monkeys, ABCs, Moves Like Jagger, you name it, she knows most of the lyrics!

She is also miss stubborn at times. She has decided she needs to pick out her own clothes in the morning. This is one battle we are not willing to take on so we let her. And sometimes she matches. And sometimes she goes to school in 3 shades of pink with a monkey on the butt of her pants and Elmo on her shirt. And then we take photos so we can show them to her when she is 16. But the stubborness comes in handy too because it turns into perseverance, hence the potty training. So we choose our battles, and matching clothes, and pretties in her hair just aren't worth the fight.

I am sure there is much, much more that I am just not thinking of. Right now I need to get to bed so I can wake up with my TWO year old tomorrow to celebrate! Daddy loves to make a big deal about birthdays so I'm sure the whole day will be wonderful. We are so thankful to have such a wonderful, sweet, healthy little girl in our lives. Two years ago tonight I never could have imagined how my life would change. We are so lucky to be your parents, Brynna Evelyn! Happy 2nd Birthday big girl!

Happy Birthday to Meeeeeeee!!!

2012-01-14T23:11:00.000-06:00

Brynna has been singing herself happy birthday for awhile now. And why not? We celebrated Brynna's birthday a week early so this year she got a birthday week, not a day. Just like her daddy insists he gets each year. Her grandma, grandpa, auntie, and cousins were in town for a late Christmas and we wanted to make sure they could join in the celebration. And celebrate we did! We threw her an Elmo party (her favorite!) and she had a blast. The entire morning of she was running around the house yelling "Elmo Party!" We even got a special CD - Elmo sings all of her favorite songs and her name is included! We were so blessed so many of our wonderful friends were able to come help us celebrate. It was amazing to see the difference from her first birthday party to this one. She loved opening presents, talking to everyone, and eating her cupcake. No tears this time around!

Munching on goldfish with cousin Sophie before our friends arrive!

She refused to take a photo with us, this is the best we did. Someone had to help her photo bomb it.

But of course she was all smiles and posing with Uncle Pete!

Tearing into the gifts.

Elmo cupcake cake

"Happy Birthday to you ..."

Yummy!

Happy Birthday to my sweet girl!

We got a great photo of all the kids at her first birthday so I wanted one at her second. And this is what we ended up with. So much easier when they weren't mobile.

Sneak Peek

2011-12-22T18:24:00.000-06:00

I just put the finishing touches on Brynna's Christmas present and I am so excited to share! DIY Play Kitchens have been all the rage on Pinterest and I was happy to jump on the bandwagon. I love that this is something we made by hand and an original! Without further adieu ...

Before - a lovely rolling microwave cart I got for $15 at a resale store. 1970's anyone?

Removed the bottom, added a door and a backsplash.

All ready for the little cook!

Chalkboard to write her weekly menu on!

Storage on the sides and behind the curtain.

Can't wait to get cookin' with her!

Featured!

2011-11-09T08:45:00.002-06:00

My DIY Scrabble Tiles are being featured today on Balancing Home. Make sure to stop by and say hi to Megan. While you are there take a look around. Megan has beautiful ideas and 2 adorable little Badger fans!

101 in 1001

2011-11-07T21:09:00.001-06:00

A while ago (well about 1001 days) my mom, sisters, and I jumped on the "101 in 1001" bandwagon. We each set out 101 goals we wanted to accomplish in the next 1001 days. I am happy to say that I accomplished 71 of my 101 goals! 6 of them were dropped due to logistics (like that we sold the La Crosse house so we didn't need to make updates on some of it). While going over my list I see the biggest place I struggled was my health goals - namely working out. So this is something I need to focus on and be more intentional about. The other areas I need to improve are my volunteering. Brendan and I have always wanted to do Big Brother/Big Sister but over the last few years never knew where we'd be a year from then. They ask for a year commitment at minimum so now that we are settled we can work on that goal. Instead of doing the 101 in 1001 again I think I am going to set new goals for myself but not so many at a time and with a more intentional time line. One of my goals was to donate $3 for every goal I accomplished. So 71 accomplished goals = $213. I have an idea of how/where I want to donate it so I'll update once I am done. And without any futher ado, my goals ...

Success!

Did not accomplish

Didn't accomplish due to logistics

For Health, Well-being, & Sanity
1. Take a pilates class
2. Go to the weight room 2 times a week for 2 months (0/2)
3. Go to the weight room 3 times a week for 2 months (0/2)
4. Walk the dog 3 times a week for 3 months (2/3) - 6 weeks down! Have to start this one over, got to 9 weeks then got too cold/icy to safely walk all the time.
5. Walk the dog 4 times a week for 3 months (0/3)
6. Bike 3 miles with Brendan without complaining/dying
7. Take my vitamin every day for a month (1/1) - has now become a habit!
8. Floss every day for a month (0/1) - Not sure why I never got around to this!
9. Wean off Topamax for migraines
10. Get a diagnosis for my abdominal pain
11. Graduate
12. Don’t drink any soda for 1 month (1/1)
13. Don’t drink any soda for the another month (1/1)

14. Lose 5 pounds (Goal 140) - 138 as of Feb 1, 2009

15. Lose 5 more pounds (Goal 135) - 131.5 as of March 4, 2009
15. Keep the weight off: weigh 140 pounds at the end of 2009 - not going to be under 140 since I'll still be pregnant but am confident I would have been as I am only 150 at 9 months pregnant
16. Keep the weight off: weigh 135 pounds at the end of 2010
17. Get name changed on passport - Easier to wait for it to expire, then do paperwork so not going to be accomplished in time!
18. Make an emergency kit for my car
19. Make an emergency kit for Brendan’s car

20. Organize our bills/files/paperwork
21. Figure out the bus schedule on campus
22. Go to a Theta Alum event or initiation

23. Write in gratitude diary at least every other day for one year

24. Join at least one professional nursing organization

25. Do yoga breathing 4 times a day

26. Take a yoga class

For Fun/Organization
27. Go to a movie outdoors - Was out of town the weekend there was one hosted in a park near us.
28. Make t-shirt quilt with Theta and Wisconsin shirts

29. Organize scrapbook supplies

30. Organize loose pictures

31. Get scrapbooks caught up to date
32. Finish wedding album
33. Go ice skating
34. Go snow skiing
35. Go sledding
36. Read a book for fun once a month (32/32)
37. Participate in www.gimmeyourstuff.blogspot.com - Signed up for this but my post was never put on the website; website appears to no longer be updated (4/4/10)

38. Join paperbackswap (Someone already ordered a book from me so I can send it out and order one myself!) Love this site!

39. Back up my pictures

40. Back up my music

In the Kitchen
41. Perfect a recipe for homemade croutons
42. Learn to make own bread crumbs
43. Learn 10 new recipes (10/10) + more even!!
44. Put together a recipe book
45. For one month use up everything in kitchen and only buy what is necessary - We are working on meal planning and basing our groceries off of what we have in the house already and only buying what we need.
46. Host Thanksgiving one year (make the turkey) - 2012

47. Clean out "bad" foods in kitchen and donate to food pantry - donated 45 pounds of food 2/10/2009

48. Learn to make low-carb carrot cake

49. Learn to make own baby food

50. Start meal-planning to reduce grocery bills and food waste

51. Stick to grocery list and not buy any extras even if we want them/are on good sale (10/10)

With my husband
52. Visit Kruser and Arlene in Boston
53. Be pregnant by the end of 1001 days
54. Visit New York City
55. Go to a Brewer’s series

56. Go to a Badger's game
57. Go on our honeymoon
58. Visit Louisville family
59. Finish living wills and power of attorney for healthcare paperwork
60. Take a completely impulsive spur of the moment roadtrip
61. Send Autumn a letter every other month (14/32)
62. Find a church we are both comfortable going to
63. Go to a wine tasting/winery
64. Try 5 new restaurants (5/5)
65. Complete Phase 1 of the South Beach Diet

66. Complete Phase 2 of the South Beach Diet

67. Figure out where we will be living for Fall 2009 -moved to Cedar Rapids 5/29/09

68. Get another dog so Bailey has a friend - Soon!

69. Get Brendan's ring resized - went from a 13 to a 10.5! He now needs it resized again!

70. Update my resume

71. Update Brendan's resume

72. Save our change for 1001 days

73. Take a cardio class at the rec center

74. Plant tomatoes in pots at the condo this summer - The tomatoes died but we tried!

75. Plant peppers in pots at the condo this summer - 2 pots worth and we also have a blueberry and blackberry tree!

76. Plant a garden once we have the room - Moved too late in the year but will have one next summer!

77. Buy a new car

78. Get Brendan's computer updated so he can start doing freelance projects

79. Name our daughter

80. Be settled - graduate, get a job, buy a house, be in a place we plan on staying for a long time!

81. Spend one month at home - no visiting friends, going to weddings, visiting family (4 whole weekends in a row at home!) - By default because of baby!

For/With Others

82. Volunteer at a soup kitchen
83. Become a Big Sister (BBBS Program)
84. Adopt a child each Christmas (2009, 2010) (2/2)
85. Write to Magatte (my CCF child) at least 10 times (2/10)

86. Save $3 for each goal I complete and donate at the end of 1001 days
87. Send birthday cards to everyone in the family for one year -Got to start this one over! Started it over twice and then missed people! Have a new organization system in place that should help with this.
88. Visit Jen, Ryan, Elicia, and Ian in Eau Claire for a weekend
89. Have a girls’/baby weekend with Marie & Michele
90. Visit Amber, Amalia, and Rori for a weekend
91. Take Laura to a musical - She still needs to pick one!!
92. Babysit Sydney and John for a long weekend so Jen and Rich can get away - they moved :(
93. Take Mom for a day at the spa

94. Donate 100 items I get "free" through couponing (100/100)

95. Go to Homecoming with Jen - moved out of country :(

Around the House
96. Call a realtor in March and get appraisal on La Crosse house
97. Sell the La Crosse house
98. Put window boxes on La Crosse house - did not do on advice of realtor
99. Paint the office in the La Crosse house - did not do on advice of realtor

100. Decorate the baby's nursery on a budget

101. Get the car detailed before baby is here

Goals Accomplished: 71

Goals Not Accomplished: 24

Not Able to be Accomplished due to logistics: 6

My New Way of Cooking

2011-11-06T13:17:00.003-06:00

I always hear a lot about "once a month cooking". I've never done it and really had no intention to give it a try. Yesterday I decided to do some freezer cooking. We are still working on getting into a rhythm with me back at work and have eaten a lot of sandwiches or dinners out the last 2 weeks. So I wanted to get some meals in the freezer to save those, "Oh let's just get a pizza" moments. I made a very ambitious list on Saturday morning and set off to the store. Figured I'd get all the ingredients and finish what I was able to, then do the rest later. I started around 12 noon and had the kitchen cleaned by 8 pm. Now before you think, "8 hours of cooking?? No way!" let me tell you in the 8 hours I also made and fed my family lunch and dinner, put Brynna down for a nap (which was a 45 minute process), took the dogs out twice and played catch (at least 20 minutes each time), talked to my mom on the phone, made a dip for Brendan's poker game, greeted said poker players, got Brynna into bathed and into bed, and did several loads of laundry. Whew, no wonder I crashed by 10 pm. So really it was probably 4 hours of cooking. And the result? 30 meals in my freezer and pantry which will require, max, 5 minutes preparation to get them in the oven or crockpot! So this will easily get us through November! Not have to cook for a month? I'm sold on the Once a Month Cooking!

What I made:

Pantry Meals (ingredients packaged and ready to throw together in the pantry, just add the meat!)

1.Black Bean Salsa Chicken x 2 (salsa, black beans, taco seasoning poured over chicken)
2.Pesto Chicken x 2 (jar of pesto, parm cheese)
3.Spaghetti x 2

Crock Pot
1. Healthy Mama BBQ Chicken x 2
2. Beef Goulash x 2
3. Mexican Goulash x 2
4. Crock Pot Chicken Curry x 2

Oven Meals
1. Feta Spinach Chicken x 2
2. Baked Shrimp Scampi (We ate this for dinner last night ... ah-mazing!)
3. Enchiladas x 2
4. Pesto Chicken Stuffed Shells (modified this a bit, added some spaghetti sauce over it)

Frozen and Ready to Go
1. Taco Beef x 2
2. Spaghetti Beef x 2
3. Taco Chicken x
4. Shredded Chicken
5. Chicken packaged per meal size x 6 (to go with ingredients in pantry)

In the crockpot now:
1. Pork Barbacoa (going to try it with Diet coke instead)

If you're looking for great recipes I just found this blog. Several of the recipes come from that and she has more I want to try. I'll let everyone know how this once a month cooking goes for us! I think next time I will do it a bit differently. Yesterday I just tackled one recipe at a time. Several called for things like chopping sweet potatoes or onions. So next time I might lay all the recipes out and figure out exactly how many of each thing I need and prep each ingredient and not each meal. Should cut down on time. Right now I'm just happy to have a stocked freezer and only need to run to the store for the essentials!

You would have thought she was the one cooking!

My Statement Wall

2011-11-06T12:54:00.002-06:00

I am so excited to finally have a few projects finished up and ready to show off! I saw this post on Pinterest and wanted to try it out. (And then of course a few days later the method was featured on Young House Love so I'm sure this project is going up all over the place!)

So, true confession. I almost gave upon this. Several times. Here's the rundown. I painted the wall and then stenciled it, the whole thing. Halfway through tracing the stencil I thought about giving the painting a try. But since I am usually ADD about projects I decided to do it step by step and traced the entire wall. Too bad my ADD didn't kick in because when I went to start painting I couldn't get the technique down and wanted to quit. Maybe it's a good thing it didn't kick in because I probably would have given up. Instead I took a few days off.

The first attempts, not loving it!

Even tried using a "paint pen" but it was too thin and you couldn't see it unless you were close up!

I mean really, look at those sad attempts. Wouldn't you have taken a few days off? I tried a small stencil that I had (seen above) to see how that worked. I actually purchased a new real stencil (which will now be used in our bedroom) but got the technique down before it arrived. Before I repainted the whole wall and used the new stencil I decided to give it one more try. Glad I did. Of course I originally bought a special $5 paint brush but the lines weren't right. So at the last minute I grabbed one of the brushes that came from a $1.99 pack of ten (that our nieces and nephews had used to paint pumpkins) and low and behold - perfect! So I stenciled away and I LOVE it!!! It's a huge statement wall and we always get lots of nice compliments!

Cozy nook.

Can't wait to fix up the screened in patio next summer! Am picturing willowy white drapes and comfy couches!

Close up.

My tips so you can avoid my frustration:
1. Practice first. Paint a small section and give it a go. This will allow you to get the technique down and find a good paint brush!
2. Make sure you paint on the inside of each pencil line. At first I thought you painted in between but painting on the inside gives the "double line" effect and gives it huge impact.
3. Start in a place that won't be seen (up top, down low) because it takes awhile to get the rhythm down.
4. DON'T GIVE UP! You'll love the end result, trust me!

Introducing ...

2011-11-03T21:07:00.001-05:00

Miller!!

We've talked for awhile about getting another dog. And since our life isn't crazy enough with a new house, new job, new daycare, new schedule, why not now?? Last weekend Brendan woke up and was excited to show me a dog he had found while pursuing the internet after I'd gone to sleep. I decided to humor him and agreed to head to the shelter to check her out. While when we got there the pup had gone home with her new family. There were only 3 dogs that were approved for children Brynna's age. Two of them were breeds we had no interest in. The third was a beagle mix so we decided to check her out. Well she was definitely different than I expected -- all black and looking like a mini Bailey! I don't know much about dogs but I'm not completely convinced on the Beagle. She might be part Beagle but there's definitely something else mixed in! She doesn't look like a Beagle and we haven't heard much noise from her but doesn't sound much like one either. Either way we fell in love and picked her up tonight. We were told by many shelter workers that she was an incredibly sweet dog and we've found that to be true thus far. She and Bailey get along great and have been tearing up the house together. Brynna loves her as well and the feeling seems to be mutual! I'm sure we'll have plenty of adventures and updates!


"What were you thinking?" - Bailey

This the best picture I got with two moving targets.

Crashed.

Fitting right in!

Trick-or-Treat

2011-10-31T21:38:00.000-05:00

We finally got our sugar-high little girl into bed and I wanted to share some pictures of her trick-or-treating experience! We went briefly last year to about 5 neighbors so this was the first year she really got into it and knew what was going on. She was very polite at each house and said "thank you" with each treat. We were amazed at the number of kids in our neighborhood. We ran out of candy with an hour left and dipped into her bucket to be able to give the last few kids some treats. We figured she didn't really need it so we just saved a few snacks. Her BFF Chloe was able to join us as well and they had a blast! We were thrilled Chloe was able to come. These two monkeys have so much fun together. Plus Brynna was refusing to put on her costume (Chloe too it turns out!) but once they saw each other they were all about it and got super excited!


One happy little butterfly all ready to go!

I love this next progression of photos ...

Oooh, candy.

Don't mind if I do.

Hehe, I got one!

Hey, what did you find??

Trick or treat!

Excellent choice!

She got really good at grabbing two at once!

Suckers were a huge hit!

BFFs

My little butterfly!

Checking out her loot.

Excited about their goods.

DIY Scrabble Wall Art

2011-10-19T11:02:00.002-05:00

As soon as I saw this project on Pinterest I knew I had to do it! Brendan and I love Scrabble and it's a unique piece of art. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of the process but wanted to share. It's definitely a popular idea, I've already been repinned 46 times so I imagine there are scrabble boards going up all over the place. The original post is from here.

I'm really excited to show it off since I have about 32529083608 DIY projects started and this is the first one I've completed! So without further ado ...

The process:

1. I scored 4 boards from Joann's that measured 6 inches by 36 inches. Luckily it was Super Coupon week so with coupons they cost me approximately $14.40. I had a gentleman from my mom's church cut them down for me (as we're missing the power tools in this house!) After what was lost in cutting I ended up with 20 6x6 boards and 4 5.5 x6 boards. So 20 tiles.

2. I picked the words I wanted to use - VIRNIG, FAMILY, HOME, and LOVE. (These ended up being the exact words - different last name - from my inspiration but didn't realize it until later)! I then played around with the words on paper until I found an arrangment I like. I wanted to add the word FAITH connecting down to the H but only had 3 more tiles to use!

3. Making the tiles - I stained them with indoor wood stain purchased at Ace. I then printed the letters and numbers, cut them out using an exacto-knife, and modge podge'd them on to the tiles. The original post used letters cut by a Cricuit machine but I don't have one and this worked just fine!

4. Hanging them was the part we weren't sure how to do. My original plan was to put it in the playroom but we decided to put it in the entryway instead. We ended up using 3M Command Strips

Result? WE LOVE IT! It turned out great and fits our love for Scrabble perfectly! Now just need to figure out how to finish off the rest of that area! Suggestions?

The Things They Say ...

2011-10-19T08:35:00.001-05:00

Sometimes I am amazed (and shocked, haha) by the things that come out of Brynna's mouth. She has quite the little silly personality and I want to record a few of them so we don't forget!

Yesterday afternoon she started dancing and yelling something, turns out it was "jump, jump, shake your booty." Thank you Auntie Monica for teaching her that one over the weekend!

This morning I tooted (only time I'll ever admit that, just cause the next part is funny) and, without skipping a beat, Brynna yelled, "It's Daddy!"

I stenciled part of a wall last night and we were discussing how pretty it was this morning. To which she responded, "Mommy pretty." And then I forgave her for climbing on the kitchen table 3 times.

When we ask her what the Hawkeyes should do, she yells, "No go Hawkeyes!" or "Ucky Hawkeyes". Usually followed by "Go Bucky!" Haha!

On Saturday we asked, "Who's your best friend?" "BUCKY!"

If she sees anything related to the Green Bay Packers or Wisconsin Badgers (Bucky, an emblem, even a red shirt with "Wisconsin" on it) she knows it's "Bucky!" or "Pack-eeers." So proud.

What a goof! Love this little turkey!

The Mompetitors

2011-10-18T20:16:00.000-05:00

I had no intention to follow up my previous post. It was just something I needed to get off my chest and I wanted to do it in a positive light that might help others. The majority of the feedback I got from it was extremely positive. In fact I was shocked to get any feedback because I was pretty sure my sister and one friend were the only people who read this blog! However, one comment (now erased so don't bother going to read it!) was not positive. I have no idea who it was but the person implied that perhaps I was out of line. Normally I wouldn't even bother to address such a comment but I felt the need to follow-up. First of all, any persons mentioned in the previous post don't read my blog and aren't people I consider friends at this point anyway. The majority of the time I feel the mompetition is at music class or meeting random Moms. And if my mompetitors did happen to read it I hope they realize how their comparisons stung. I'm sure at the time they didn't even realize and I was too chicken to say anything. Perhaps I won't be so chicken in the future. I wasn't trying to belittle anyone but express that we all need to think before we speak. And also a personal reminder to take comments lightly and instead relish in my own daughter's triumphs and successes.

I had my 2 best friends read the post (I happened to be with them over the weekend and they don't normally look at the blog). It sparked a great conversation for us and we were able to be open and honest with one another. Conclusion? We're lucky not to have the mompetition between the three of us. Despite having 3 babies within 3 months of one another not one of us could come up with a mompetition moment. Instead we talked about how we feel each others' full support and love. Our children refer to one another as "Auntie" and our husbands as "Uncle". In fact the three of us probably make some parenting choices that aren't so popular. We all cloth diaper, breast fed well beyond 1 year, made our own baby food, and baby wear. We don't know a lot of other people who parent in similar ways so instead of competing, we support. We love, we cherish, we don't mompete. And I love them for that.

And for those who do mompete? Hopefully you can see my message in a positive light.

End rant.

Our Weekend

2011-10-17T22:43:00.001-05:00

This past weekend we went back to La Crosse for a wedding. Almost our entire wedding party is now married (hint, hint, Jeff!) Besides my sister we have been blessed to celebrate the marriages of the other 11 groomsmen and bridesmaids from our wedding! We also had a Packer party at Aunt Annie's house on Sunday afternoon. We got to paint pumpkins, check out QJ's new walking skills, and hang out with almost all the cousins!

Two happy Packer fans!

QJ was so not wanting Brynna's kisses.

Painting pumpkins with the cousins.

Our budding Picasso.

The final creations!

Aunt Annie read a spooky Halloween book!

Such a cutie!! What a little miracle!

The Mompetition

2011-10-14T09:11:00.000-05:00

Mom + Competition = Mompetition

Admit it. You know what I'm talking about. That competition that mothers have amongst one another. The subtle bragging to see who's kid is the smartest, whos sat up the earliest, which one has a basketball scholarship to Duke at age 5. Okay so maybe that last one is a stretch, but you've been there. You've sat in a group of friends, listening to each Mom try to one up the other, wondering why isn't my child that smart, when will mine learn to jump? Our coffee dates are filled with the Mompetition. Blogs list each child's milestones and updates when they accomplish something new.

Brynna is the oldest in a large group of our friends' children. Without trying we started a baby boom and after she arrived 2-3 babies joined her each month. It has been both a blessing and a curse. I was happy to pave the way, regale everyone with my labor and delivery story, and dole out breastfeeding advice. My career prepared me for those things and it felt natural to me. However, it meant she was the oldest. The one everyone compared their children to. I got calls wondering what age I started solids, when did she sit up, when was a good time to transfer the baby from the craddle in their bedroom to his own crib? That's when my mantra started. I found myself telling friends, "I'll tell you what worked for us but they're two different children and what worked for us might not work for you."

It also started my complex.

A Mom with a child five months younger than ours wondered when Brynna started walking because she could swear her 7 month old was about to take off. At 12 months old Brynna was simply crawling and making no effort to take those first steps. Doubt kicked in. Suddenly in my mind, my child was delayed. So while I was lamenting that my 1 year old wasn't walking yet Brendan had to remind me that she said her first word at 6 months old, starting feeding herself at 8 months old, and was an independent and happy little girl. The mompetition had struck again. Instead of celebrating my own child's milestones the green eyed monster had me longing for the few she hadn't hit yet. Was she delayed? No. Did she starting walking just 3 weeks later? Sure did. Did I enjoy those extra few months before having to chase her from room to room? Absolutely!

I also have to remind myself no one brags about the bad stuff. No one wants to admit their 2-year-old still takes a bottle at night or they just can't get their 3-year-old to give up the pacifier. I'll never forget a conversation I had with a childhood friend. Even though we haven't seen each other in years we reconnected after our children were born within a week of each other. I don't even remember what the call was initially about. She was having an issue with her daughter taking a bottle or eating solids, something along those lines. Our conversation progressed and the Mompetition came up. And so instead of starting one ourselves, I shared with her the things we struggled with. How even though I swore I was anti-co-sleeping Brynna slept with me until 3 months old. How I couldn't get her to give up the swaddle until nearly 8 months old. How I doubted myself each and every day. And my friend? She was relieved. She thanked me. She told me everytime she tried to talk to someone else about it the Mompetition struck. Everyone elses' children were perfect. They hit their milestones early, slept through the night straight out of the womb, and never cried. And so now I make an effort to talk about the good and the bad.

No one wants to admit their children aren't perfect. No one wants to admit they worry about their children hitting their milestones. No one wants to admit they don't care that your 13-month-old is potty trained. Not because they don't care but because their 3-year-old isn't and it makes them feel like crap.

And so I do my best to put in the ear plugs. To remind myself that my friend's jumping 15-month-old doesn't mean my non-jumping 21-month-old is delayed. It just means hers hit that milestone on the early side. And so instead I try to celebrate. I celebrate their milestones, cheer on their Moms, and high five their dads. Brynna will jump, she'll dress herself, she'll pee on the potty more consistently. And when she does, I hope those Mom's celebrate with me.

Watch Me Grow - The 21 Month Old Edition

2011-10-14T08:15:00.000-05:00

Wow, 21 months. Brynna is getting so big! When people ask how old she is I have to stop and think! I still usually say 1 1/2 but she's getting to the point where "almost 2" seems appropriate. Almost 2??? Seriously!! The last few weeks I have been blessed to stay home with her while I wait for my job paperwork to come through. I start work in about 10 days and she'll be heading back to daycare. We're excited about her new daycare. Starting at 2 she'll head into more of a preschool setting. Even the younger rooms require the teachers to do a curriculum and have it posted each week so we know what she is up to and what the theme is. We're also able to sign her up for music and tumbling classes during the day. When she's older she can also do soccer and dance. It's great because she is still able to do all those things and we aren't running her around after work each night! We'll probably let her do most of them but I'll want to take her to dance class! They start at 3 around here.

So what's she up to these days? Talking up a storm first of all! We've graduated from words and are now using full sentences and some phrases. I'm actually amazed at her vocabulary and comprehension. The cashier at Target yesterday was shocked at her age because of how well she was conversing with him. He was so into their conversation he forgot to ring up my coupons! She surprises me every day with the things she does and says. A few days ago Brendan hung up some hooks in her room. We are still talking about "Noisy Daddy, hang owl." And this morning she attempted to go downstairs but we installed a new gate. She had to take me over to it to show me that "Daddy block it". Seriously? How did she know that? We also have our manners down pat! She says "thank you", "please", "excuse me" without prompting. She will also remind us to say grace or bedtime prayers if we forget!

She continues to love counting of all things. She does 1-10 all day long and we are working on 11-20, although right now the count seems to go "10, 13, 14". Not sure where 11 and 12 ended up! She likes to count different things and then tell me how many there are. Anytime there is more than 1 I hear that there are, "Two Bucky's!" or "Three babies!" She is also really into colors and can name a few but everything else is "pink!" While she loves counting and colors her absolute favorite thing to do to is SING! She will sing along to any music. She can sing "Happy Birthday", "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Twinkle Twinkle", "Skinamarinkidinkidink", and "Wheels on the Bus" with almost all the words! It is really quite cute and she loves to use it as a stall tactic at bedtime!

She also loves football which Daddy is really sad about! Haha. I have never seen a young child sit and watch football the way that she does! She gets excited when we do, asks for high fives, and runs in circles when she gets pumped up. She also loves to Jump Around while Bucky is on TV, a true Badger!

She has a very fun and silly personality. She is always making funny faces, fishy faces, showing us her muscles, or faking that she is going to hug us and then running and laughing like a a hyena. We are so lucky to have such a happy, healthy little girl. She grows each day and we have to pinch ourselves to remind us that she really is ours!

To Brynna with Love

2011-10-05T18:35:00.002-05:00

I have recently started a new project for Brynna and wanted to share it. Hopefully it will inspire others to do the same for their children.

Dear Friends and Family,

I am starting a new project for Brynna and I would love your help with it! I've set up a new email address for Brynna (not even 2 yet, what a 21st century kid!)

The email is (please comment/email me if you want it, not posting it on the blog for privacy reasons).

Throughout the next (many) years I plan on sending Brynna emails - on birthdays, special events, just because. To let her know I love her, to remind her of her first soccer game, to tell her how proud I am that she didn't cry on her first day of kindergarten (okay, if she takes after her mom she totally will). For now, it's going to be a secret. When she turns 18 I am going to give her the email and password. I am hoping her friends and family will also send emails over the next 16+ years. They don't have to be anything special. A funny ecard, to wish her a happy birthday, remind her of the time mommy got so enthralled in a hockey game she ran into a glass window (not last week, obviously!)? I don't plan on checking the email so if you want to send her a lovely picture of her daddy at the 8th grade dance or a collection of pictures of mommy crying as a child (oh wait, Brendan already has an album, thanks sis) - then go ahead. Other than occasionally making sure it's not filling up with spam I have no intention of looking at the emails.

I have included you all because you are friends and family that make up a significant and special part of her life. I hope the box overflows and on her 18th birthday she has weeks worth of emails to read!

Love,
Mary

Brynna's Gallery Wall

2011-10-04T14:44:00.000-05:00

I love the look of a gallery wall and have a few places in the new house picked out to put some up. I started with Brynna's room!

Overview of the wall (not sure why this picture makes it look crooked - it's not!) Empty space on right will have something soon to balance it all out.

Birth announcement I made

Each piece is something special to fit with the room theme, her name, or family photos.

The photo taped up on the left will get a frame soon - it's pictures of her with my best friends' 2 kiddos. The framed fabrics are the color inspirations for the room and the handsome man on the bottom right is her Grandpa John!

Butterfly art - they look like they are flying out of the frame!

I love how her room is coming together, can't wait to share it once it is all finished!

DIY Colored Jars

2011-10-03T12:10:00.000-05:00

I saw this tutorial on Pinterest and wanted to give it a try. It was so easy and I love how it turned out! I didn't take step by step pictures but here are some. I found a 1 (red) to 5 (yellow) ratio of food coloring worked well to get the orange color. I might try it again with other colors!

After putting the modge podge in with the food coloring and water mixture.

Post-oven, "dried" them at 175 degrees (10 minutes upside down then flipped them over for about 30 more minutes). Got a bit that collected at the top and looked sticky.

So I added a ribbon!

Someone was eating while I took pictures and wanted in on the action!

On my fall mantle ... finishing that up now!

Big 10 Love

2011-10-02T15:39:00.000-05:00

In case you weren't aware last night the Badgers beat the Huskers in their big 10 debut! I'm sure they were happy to have such a warm welcome to the conference! As Badger fans we were happy to see Bucky playing well and have Big 10 Championship (and maybe National Championship??) dreams this season! Some of our friends came over to watch the game. They are Iowa fans but we let them in anyways! :) We took some pictures of the girls in their rival gear to show even a Wisconsin and an Iowa fan can get along!

Bucky must be about to score!

The Best Feature

2011-10-02T15:33:00.000-05:00

The best part of our new house is definitely the backyard! Brynna loves her new playset, especially the slide!

Showing us her muscles!

WHHHEEEEEEEE!!!!!!

She also thinks the end of the slide is a place to pose!

Our New Home

2011-10-02T15:25:00.002-05:00

We've gotten lots of requests for pictures of the new place so I thought I'd put a few up! These are the pictures from the listing so it's not our furniture or things in them. I'll update more once painting, organizing, and decorating are a bit more complete!

Front View

Dining room

Master Bedroom

Kitchen

Living Room

Basement

Wet Bar

Basement (pool table area is now a playroom)

Backyard

1 ... 2 ... 3 ...

2011-09-24T21:56:00.001-05:00

Here's a video of Brynna showing off her new favorite thing to do! She started counting about 2 months ago and finally has 1 through 10 down (she used to skip four and six)! Auntie Laura also did her hair for her while Mommy, Daddy, and Uncle Pete were packing!

Lambeau Field

2011-09-16T09:51:00.000-05:00

One nice thing about waiting for job details to come through? The ability to get up and go! I found out my best friend had Thursday and Friday off so Brynna and I hopped in the car and drove to Green Bay for a long weekend! We were under strict orders from Daddy to make a stop at Lambeau Field and get Brynna's picture. She was obviously impressed.

For Auntie Lori

2011-08-28T14:44:00.000-05:00

Who is that?

2011-08-26T17:03:00.001-05:00

That's Bucky!!

(At the end she was also coming to show me that Bucky was on my shirt too!)

Miss Manners

2011-08-26T14:56:00.000-05:00

We are working very hard on manners in the Virnig household. We are so proud that Brynna has learned to say please and thank you without prompting! Now we are working on "excuse me" and "you're welcome!" Here is a brief video of her thank you. We think she sounds so cute!

Please Don't Call the Police ...

2011-08-26T12:01:00.000-05:00

... the Fashion Police!

I put up a status on Facebook yesterday regarding Brynna's desire to dress herself. My sister suggested I take some pictures. She had already lost the gold sandals at this point, which truthfully are what made the outfit. You could pretend the dark parts of her pants match the T-shirt. The shirt screamed "sporty", the pants "hippie", and the sandals "fashionista". I'm sure the outfits will only get more interesting as the years go by. However, I'm tricking her this fall because nearly all her pants coordinate with her shirts. Okay, truthfully this is so Daddy can match them easily!

Our Budding Artist

2011-08-26T11:56:00.000-05:00

I have been busy with DIY projects for our new house and I thought Brynna would want to get in on the fun. I was right! She loved making these paintings and kept asking for "more". I originally gave her 2 canvases but then let her have one more. I think they turned out pretty cute and they match the colors in her room. Her first masterpiece! :)

Future Picasso

She kept wanting to show me her hands were "ditty". This is a big step since she usually instantly has to wash them or wipe them off when they are "ditty".

She was really into it!

Her final piece

Dirty Girl Mud Run

2011-08-22T09:27:00.000-05:00

A few months ago my friend Amy sent me a link on facebook and asked me if I ever considered running a 5K. Okay, those of you who know me, take a minute to finish your laughing and then come back. Okay, welcome back. Athletics are definitely not my thing and I'm much more comfortable in a pool than hitting the pavement. But it was for a good cause and I couldn't pass up a chance to play in the mud. So I was in and got my little sis and a few of her friends on board as well. Well I trained hard for the first few weeks then life caught up to me and I was a bit nervous come race day. So I was pretty relieved to get there and see most people were walking! Either way we had a blast, completed my goal (to finish and do all the obstacles at the hardest part), and were glad to support breast cancer research and honor the many wonderful women in my life who are currently courageously battling this terrible cancer.

Centurion Wisconsin

2011-08-07T22:27:00.005-05:00

Brendan participated in his first bike race this weekend. He was biking casually at lunch and 2 months ago a friend asked him to do this particular race with him. It's a Centurion series and one of the events was taking place in Madison. He had the option of doing 25, 50, and 100 miles. He picked the 50 mile race and has been busy preparing the last 2 months. The race was delayed 2 hours due to rain so he was definitely nervous by the time he took off. Brynna and I were there for the finish. We got there about 40 minutes before we expected him. We waited and waited and waited and I was surprised not a single person had finished. We were about 20 minutes from his best time when they announced the top competitors were 5 miles out. We went to the finish and cheered as every started coming in. I got extremely nervous as his best time approached and was trying to keep track of how many competitors had finished. Brynna was clapping and yelling "Yay Daddy!" as each person passed. So when we finally saw him we were both thrilled! He placed 33rd overall and 3rd for his age bracket (25-29). He was hoping to place in the top 100 so we were all excited with his finish. His goal was to get his best time which he did by a few seconds. Considering the course was significantly more hilly than what he is used to, it was a great time! He also had to stop 3 times to fix chains and refill water (which he wasn't planning on having to do). He thinks without those stops he would have shaved about 8 more minutes off his time! After the race a fellow biker came up to him and thanked Brendan for his help during the race. The biker drafted Brendan for part of the race and was able to shave a significant amount of his time. He ended up placing behind Brendan but won his age bracket. When we told him Brendan had only been training for 2 months he was astonished and declared he thinks Brendan could take the whole thing next year!

Waiting for Daddy

Unfortunately I was too excited when I saw him to capture a photo of his finish ... so here is he on the sidewalk afterwards! Luckily there was a professional photographer so we can order a pic of the finish online!

Top 3, age 25-29.

Two hours post naptime, she was obviously over impressed at this point.

Build a Bucky

2011-08-07T22:23:00.001-05:00

This weekend we went to Madison for Brendan's big bike race (more on that later!) I had a chance to catch up with a great friend and her 2 girls. Brendan was awesome and watched the 3 little girls while we went out to lunch and did a little shopping. While out we passed by Build-a-Bear and I saw that they were carrying Bucky Badger! I was so excited! Since he won't be available where we live, we took Brynna back the next day and helped her build her Bucky. Unfortunately it was several hours past her naptime so she didn't want to be put down. But she didn't want to let him go and they took a snooze together on the way home. We even got to pick out a fun outfit for him. Brynna went with the cheerleading outfit so maybe it's Buckette??

Recording a special message, Bucky yells "On Wisconsin! Go Badgers!"

Picking out a heart.

She wasn't into pressing the buttons but she liked watching the cotton!

She was so excited to get to hug and kiss Bucky!

Zonked!

BFFs

2011-07-31T18:17:00.000-05:00

I'd say a high priority on the "must have" list for our new house is a door/window these two can hang out at. They spend a lot of time here together!

August 2010


October 2010

July 2011

Watch Me Grow - The 18 Month Old Edition

2011-07-31T10:09:00.001-05:00

Hard to believe Brynna is now officially "one and a half". She is just up to so much these days it's hard to keep track of it all. Here are some highlights:

Stats: Weighed exactly 23 pounds at a visit on 7/25. Not sure on the height but still growing rapidly. She fits the height requirements for 2T but could technically still wear 9-12 months if they weren't all high waters on her!

Miss Jabber-Mouth: She adds new words every single day and is now starting to put 2-3 of them together! We are amazed at how much she can say. We've tried to keep track but have lost count at well over 100. Her first sentences were "I love shoes" and "I pooped, Mommy." Mommy or Daddy gets added to just about the end of every sentence ... or Bailey. Besides those three her favorite words these days are outside, more, please, poop, shoes, puppy, cow cheese (laughing cow cheese and crackers), "I wa mo" (I want more) and of course "no!" She loves to pick up the phone and blabber into it. She's definitely saying something important. Probably talking to Grammie and tattling on Mommy and Daddy as she disperses those words throughout her convo! Along with talking she does tons of signs and is learning lots of animal signs and noises!

Bitten By a Clean Bug: The girl still loves to clean. If she spills something she is quick to find a rag and wipe it up. Waiters at restaurnts get a kick out of this! She had a blast playing with a pretend vacuum at her cousin Ian's a few weeks ago! She is also great about helping pick up.

Toilet Tails: We are slooooooowly potty training. Right now we are not actively trying although she has all the "ready" signs. She tells us she has to go or has gone, says all the words, tries to get to the toilet, and is very very interested in it. We let her go potty with us and go through the motions. She always wipes herself and loves to wave goodbye as we flush. If she is running around bottomless she tries to get to the potty when she has to go. We have lots of hits and misses. If I can find a few days off we might give it a go. Figure she'll be potty trained by the time she's 12 at the rate we're going!

Photographic Memory: She definitely get this from Auntie Lori! If you saw her playing with something and can't find it, she can usually tell you where it is if you ask. The other day Grammie discovered half of the child lock was missing on the cupboard. She said she looked everywhere and couldn't find it. I was out when she told me this and I told her to ask Brynna. When I got home, it was back together. Sure enough, Brynna led her to exactly where it was! We figure this skill will come in handy since neither of us can keep track of our car keys! She is also great at remembering faces. She can identify all family members in pictures, even ones she hardly ever sees. I just made her a "favorite people" book and when it arrives I think she'll love to look at everyone!

1, 2, 3: So far she has learned to count to 3. She also tries to hold up her fingers while she does it, although her fingers say "1, 2, 5." It's pretty cute. She will count with us or spontaneously and just loves to do it! She also knows 6 and 8 but right now they come right after 3!

Other Fun Things: She loves to dance and Grammie taught her a "happy dance" which she will sometimes do on command. She also really wants to jump but is content to "stomp" instead. She also loves doing the "Up/Down" game which consists of squatting and popping up while saying "up, down, up, down". She is into puzzles these days and can put together her Melissa and Doug puzzles. We can also take apart 2 or 3 of them and match them up correctly. In general she is a very happy loving girl! We might be starting to hit some of the terrible 2's but so far ignoring any melt downs nips them right in the bud and she moves on! We are very lucky to have such a sweet, cuddly little girl!

Why walk when you can run?

All giggles

Loves playing in the water.

Hanging with Auntie Monica

Cuddling with cousin Ian

Graduation!!

2011-07-30T16:06:00.001-05:00

It's hard to believe how quickly 3 years can pass! It seems like only yesterday we packed up the moving van, headed out of state, and started my coursework towards my Master's Degree. Yesterday I graduated!!! I am now officially a Family Nurse Practitioner and also completed the curriculum for the Genetics program. I am still waiting to finalize job details but hope to be working in a Fetal Diagnostic and Treatment center. It will be a great place to combine my nurse practitioner skills and genetics experience. I still have to take the certification exam and have been busy studying. Still in disbelief I am finished!! The best part was having someone in the audience clapping and yelling "Yay Mommy!!"

Nurse Practitioner Class of 2011

Getting my degree!

SO HAPPY!!!!!!

My motivation!

A huge part of my support system.

I Wish They All Could Be California Girls ...

2011-07-30T15:52:00.001-05:00

In mid July we went to California to see Nana, Uncle Rich, and Sydney. Uncle Rich and Sydney came over from Australia to visit so we were definitely happy to see them! We celebrated my birthday with the whole family and spent lots of time on the beach!

We read books with our cousin ...

... learned how to feed Jonathan and friends ...

... wrote our name in the sand ...

... learned to use chopsticks ....

... felt blessed all 4 generations could be together ...

... celebrate Mommy's birthday ...

... wore ourselves out ...

... cuddled with Auntie Lori ...

... modeled our Pumas ...

... giggled with Grammie ...

... and played in the sand.

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-07T13:32:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. I got back from a week at diabetes camp and was greeted by a very happy and excited little girl. We hung out with our friends Pete and Laura that afternoon and evening. Sunday was family time. After Daddy got back from a 50 mile bike ride we played outside and had a relaxing day. On the 4th we went over to our friend Jared and Cara's. Brynna had a blast playing with their little girl Chloe (or "CoCo" as she calls her)! Pete and Laura also joined us. We played some outdoor games, grilled out, and were entertained by the two water monkies!

One very excited American girl!

They had a blast transferring water from the table to the pool.

The two of them would have polished off an entire Watermelon if we let them!

Monkey see, monkey do - anything Chloe did, Brynna had to do too, including cuddling with Chloe's Daddy!

The adults had funny playing bags until the girls turned it into their personal dance floor! Chloe may have been signing Justin Beiber at this point.

Brynna seems to have forgiven her boyfriend Pete after he got married a few weeks ago. She was happy to cuddle with him all evening.

What We've Been Up To ...

2011-07-07T13:24:00.000-05:00

Well I am officially finished with my clinic hours so now it's just the wait until they hand me my diploma on July 29. Oh and finishing up job details, buying a house, settling down. You know, small things. I am now home and should be studying for boards but am updating my blog instead! Our summer is just flying by. Brynna is getting bigger, funnier, and sassier by the day (I just realized I am a few months behind on her "Watch Me Grow" posts - will probably just put up an 18 month post next week and go from there!) We are so blessed to have such a healthy and happy little girl. She surprises us each day with her new words and what she is capable of. I daresay she has her Auntie Lori's photographic memory. She hide something and when we can't find it hours later, she knows exactly where it is! She also has Auntie Lori's fashion sense. She blessed us with her first sentence the other night - "I love shoes." While I have no doubt she doesn't fully understand the meaning, I also have no doubt that it's not true. The girl loves shoes! So along with slacking on blog updates, I haven't been great about taking pictures either. We have spent a lot of time at the park, outside, back in La Crosse visiting family, and hanging out with friends here. But I have no pictures of any of those events! Instead I leave you with a video of Brynna and daddy being silly ...

Happy 3 Years!

2011-06-21T16:05:00.000-05:00

Today Brendan and I are celebrating 3 years of marriage! It's amazing how much has happened in 3 years - we live in a different state, Brendan started and continues at his first post-college job, we welcomed Brynna and continue to be amazed by her every day, I am almost done with my 2 degrees, and over 100 pounds lost between the 2 of us! What a wonderful 3 years it's been!

Just like mommy ...

2011-06-17T11:04:00.001-05:00

... the child can sleep anywhere! This is how we found her the other evening ...

Splash Pad

2011-06-17T11:02:00.000-05:00

Our town has a splash pad at nearly every park. They are always packed during the summer and kids have a great time running in and out of the water. We took Brynna for the first time a few weeks ago. We met up with some friends of ours and their little girl was there as well. Brynna loved it and had a blast running through the water with Daddy. Chloe wasn't so sure but they both had a great time collecting water in cups and pouring it on our feet!

My New Backpack

2011-06-17T10:57:00.000-05:00

Brynna's friend, Macey, had a super cute penguin backpack that Brynna loved. So we got her a similar one and she loves it. She wears it around the house, wants to put it on when she's going in and out of daycare, and loves packing and unpacking it.

Big Girl Bed

2011-05-21T20:42:00.000-05:00

Well we just put Brynna to bed in her newly converted toddler bed! The last few nights she has started out in the twin bed in her room with Mommy moving her after a few hours (the bed was a bit high for me to leave her there all night, just in case). We were going to wait to move her into it until we moved (sometime in the next few months, not sure when or where yet)! But once I started reading up on making the switch everything said not to do it at the same time as another big transition (such as a move). Since she is quickly nearing the recommended 36 inch limit on the crib we thought we'd do it now. So today we made the big move and converted her crib to a toddler bed. We went to Target after dinner and picked out a big girl pillow which she held on to all through the store. Then Daddy switched the bed over while she was in the tubby and surprised her once she was ready for bed. We took some pictures when she saw it for the first time. After we read her a book she went right to sleep. Will be interesting to see where we find her in the morning!

Climbed right in!

Daddy's getting used to having such a big girl!

So happy!

Reading Daddy a night-night story.

Goodnight!

Mommy snuck around the corner to take a picture of her big girl!

Monkey See Monkey Do

2011-05-20T17:11:00.000-05:00

Brynna's First Haircut

2011-05-20T12:39:00.000-05:00

I just took Brynna in for her first haircut! Her hair was looking a bit scraggly and since she refuses to put it in ponies, I thought it was time. It's amazing how taking off such a small amount can make her look like such a big girl! She did pretty well considering she hates having her hair played with - or at least hates Mommy trying to put pretties in it. She didn't want the cape on but she did sit nicely in the frog chair. The sucker probably helped.

Snip! Snip!

Such a big girl!

Veggie tales and a sucker did the trick!

Even got it "styled"!

Going to be curly??

Our big girl after her first haircut!

New Blog - Community Kitchen!!

2011-05-18T21:30:00.000-05:00

I am so excited about a new blog that I am starting! I'm not great about keeping this blog updated but hoping I can get better and also keep up posting on the new blog. The new blog is called Community Kitchen. Right now there are 4 of us signed up as authors - myself, my sister, my friend Amy from church, and my friend Erica. We're going to be updating the blog with new recipes and some of our favorites. I'm setting it up so you'll be able to click on a main component of the meal (chicken, beef, vegetarian, etc) and get the recipes that include that ingredient. Hopefully it will be a great way to find some new recipes and add some varieties to our dinners!

Check it out - Community Kitchen

We'd love to include anyone else that wants to participate, just contact me!

Watch Me Grow - The 16 Month Old Edition

2011-05-18T21:16:00.003-05:00

How it is possible another 1/4 of a year has passed since Brynna's 1st birthday? Crazy!! As usual our little girl is keeping us busy these days!

Here is what she's up to these days ...

Adding new words every day! At this point we've lost count! We are estimating at least 50 and she also tries to repeat a lot of them. Last night she added "Jeff" to her vocab. Along with John, it's the first family member's name she can say. Today she was trying to repeat everything I've been saying. She constantly babbles and then looks at you as if to say, "Well aren't you going to do what I just told you to do?"

Along with new words she's into animal sounds. So far she knows monkey, dog, cat, and lion. Lion is the cutest. Her lion is even softer than her cat! So cute! We're working on duck and sheep now as well. She can say "baa" but hasn't connected it to sheep yet.

She's also adding tons of new signs and also using them outside of the house. Daycare has requested some resources as a lot of the times they don't know what she is trying to tell them! She is very consistent with more, food, milk, please, cheese, banana, all done, and help. She uses several others as well and is starting to say sentences such as "More cheese please" in sign!

Her favorite activity these days is being outside! We try to go to the park every night or at least play outside. She loves to scribble with chalk, blow bubbles, and run with Bailey. Sometimes Bay gets a bit over excited and so we're working on not knocking the baby over!

She is just becoming such a big girl! Her hair is a crazy mess and she refuses to let me put it in a pony. I am considering getting it cut soon in hopes of containing the craziness! Maybe they'll have some advice on how to get her to let me put some pretties in it! Overall we are busy, busy, busy these days. I am finishing my internship and will be interviewing for a job at the end of this month. Hoping to know where we'll be soon so we can buy a house and get settled! We are looking forward to having a big yard to run in!

Watch Me Grow - The 14 & 15 Month Old Editions

2011-04-20T11:39:00.001-05:00

Our little girl is now 15 months old! She had her well child visit yesterday and she weighs in at 21 pounds, 5 ounces (26%) and is 33.5 inches tall - still the 99%! She is definitely our string bean! We were asked at the appointment how many words she had. We had counted the night before and came up with 26 that she uses consistently along with 7 signs. Well at the appointment she busted out a "good job". After her nap yesterday she insisted on putting her coat on and when I asked her where we were going she said, "Outside!" So we were up to 29 by the end of the day. She then graced us with "book" at 1 am. And while we were impressed to get to 30, we weren't so impressed she was up and running around at 1 am! We have been dealing with a nighttime cough for a few months now. She is finally being treated and if that doesn't work then we're supposed to start on some allergy medications. Hoping it is just an underlying infection that we can get rid of. Mommy and Daddy need their sleep!!

Along with her every expanding vocabulary Brynna is picking up new skills everyday. She is into climbing, starting to run, and attempting to jump off things! She loves to dance and will stop everything to bust a move if she hears music - even just the cell phone ring gets her boogeying. She is starting to walk up and down stairs (with help) instead of crawling. She is up to stacking 3 blocks at a time and loves to put things in and out of cups. She does great feeding herself with a fork and spoon but is starting to get a bit picky. We have been sneaking in veggies where we can (shh!!) She has also started doing small puzzles and can identify a lot of her body parts. She surprised us at the park a few weeks ago by climbing right up and going down the slide all by herself. She must be practicing at daycare! She is also getting very interested in sitting on the potty and tells us when she has pooped. Not much progress pooping on the potty but we're not pressing the issue and hoping she'll tell us when she's ready.

Brynna is also a total girlie girl! She LOVES shoes. Some mornings she won't do anything until we put her shoes on in the morning. She will also put Mommy's shoes on and walk around in them. We're pretty impressed that she can walk in a woman's size 8! She loves to get dressed and will hold out her feet to help put her socks on. She also brings us clothes that she wants us to put on and loves to wear her BabyLegs. Unfortunately the only girlie girl thing she doesn't like is having her hair done. She screams if I try to do a pony. We're going to have to figure out something soon as her hair is starting to grow into her eyes!

So there's a little bit on our big girl. We are looking forward to a fun summer playing at the park, swimming in the pool, and running around in the grass. I graduate in July and we are working on jobs and hoping to figure out where we'll be soon!

Girlie Girl

2011-04-12T10:41:00.000-05:00

How I Know She's Mine ...

2011-04-04T22:17:00.000-05:00

Whenever she finds a kleenex, washcloth, spare napkin, paper towel ...

... she cleans. Last weekend she spent 30 minutes cleaning her Grandma Patti's house ... either I clean too much or I have a mini-me neat freak on my hands!

Sick Day

2011-04-04T22:15:00.000-05:00

Brynna has been battling the stomach flu since Saturday. It hasn't been a ton of fun but we have gotten lots of good cuddles and hugs. It started Saturday evening and didn't pick up speed until Sunday. In true Brynna fashion her energy was as high as ever despite an ill tummy. Unfortunately we didn't get to enjoy the beautiful 78 degree weather we had on Sunday except for a few minutes out on the back deck (and today it was back to 45!) Here are some pictures from our last 3 days cooped up at home.

Cuddled on her couch watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

Snuggling Daddy

Back to the couch. You can also see her "road rash" from an attempt to run outside on the sidewalk.

Still feeling good enough for her favorite activity - tickling Daddy's toes. Her head is thrown back as she has recently perfected her fake laugh. She may have learned that from me!

Happy 1st Birthday Macey!

2011-04-04T22:07:00.000-05:00

On March 27th, my best friend's little girl celebrated her 1st birthday! It has been wonderful to share in the experience of having our first children together. We celebrated at Macey's party on Sunday afternoon.

Macey's cake

Such a little lady with her fork.

She was just as dainty and careful as Brynna was on her 1st birthday!

With her mommy and daddy.

Our little girl waiting patiently for permission to help her friend eat her cake.


Digging in. Thanks for sharing Macey!

Happy 1st Birthday Macey Mae! It has been so fun to watch her grow in her first year! I know she and Brynna will be great friends for years to come!

Yum!

2011-03-14T21:12:00.001-05:00

I just downloaded recent pictures of Brynna and realized of the last 5 sets we have taken - she is eating in 4 of them. What can I say? The kid loves to eat! We are lucky she is still a great eater although she'll certainly let us know what she doesn't want. She is also great at asking for "more" when she wants something more or even pointing to what she wants. Enjoy pictures of our little piggy!

Enjoying a parfait - strawberries and yogurt!

I just love this kid!

More yogurt - a fave!

Eating a Mum-Mum in her fort.


What Daddy lets her do while Mommy is getting her haircut

Okay, not eating this but feeding it to Bailey!

Watch Me Grow - The 13 Month Old Edition

2011-02-16T20:41:00.000-06:00

Brynna had her 13 month "birthday" yesterday. It included a quick trip to the NP for a nasty cough she has so we know she wears 21 pounds fully clothed. Not sure on the height but she is obviously still growing. Even the sleepsacks her Grammie made "extra long" for her are quickly being outgrown. This month has brought exciting changes - she took her first steps and is walking more and more every day! She is now standing up in the middle of the room and walking to things and between furniture. Last night she attempted running for the first time. It resulted in a spill into the ottoman. She is also talking more and more as well as picking up new signs. And making her own! She has invented her own "sign" that she uses (along with saying ma-ma mil) to indicate she wants to nurse. She babbles all day long and says the words for anything she recognizes and knows the word for. We are quickly losing track of how many words she says. As you can see from the previous posts we were in California with my mom, Nana, brother-in-law, and nephew this past week. She and John had a great time - playing, hugging, tickling, wrestling. It was fun to watch and hilarious to see her try to copy everything her big cousin did! I haven't downloaded the pictures I took of her yesterday (feeding the dog!) Here are some more from our time in California.

She and John would stand up, give each other big hugs, and then topple over!

4 Generations

2011-02-16T15:07:00.000-06:00

Our trip to California marked the first time that my grandma, mom, Brynna, and I were all together. So we had a chance to included all 4 generations in a picture!

More from the Beach

2011-02-14T14:24:00.000-06:00

A few more pictures from our last morning here. On our way home to Daddy now!

The Best Place in the Whole Wide World

2011-02-13T19:20:00.000-06:00

Brynna and I are in California for a few days. We came to visit Nana and also see Uncle Rich and cousin John who are in from Australia. Grammie has joined us as well and we are all staying at the beach house. We've had fun running on the beach and splashing in the water. The two little monkeys are having a blast chasing one another and wrestling. It's all smiles and giggles around here!

Playing with my Cousin

2011-02-13T10:43:00.000-06:00

The Fort

2011-01-26T12:23:00.000-06:00

Brynna's new favorite play place is under and behind the side table in our living room. She crawls back there and brings her stuffed animals and toys. The other night we threw a blanket over it and had a tea party. She thought it was awesome! As you can see from multiple outfit changes, we play back there a lot!

One

2011-01-26T12:13:00.000-06:00

Brynna turned 1 year old on January 15! We celebrated with a big party at her Aunt and Uncle's house in La Crosse. The theme was butterflies and dragonflies and I made the decorations over my winter break from school. The majority of her family was able to come as well as lots of friends! She had a great time playing with all the kids and opening her presents. Her cake was not such a big hit, she burst into tears at one point and just took tiny pieces of it. Daddy made up for the lack of mess by smashing part of it in Mommy's face. Then her cousins helped her destroy it and ate a lot of it themselves!

She had her 12 month appointment today. She weighs in at exactly 20 pounds and is 32 inches long! She continues to be off the chart for height and was down to 30% for weight (mostly due to an illness she just got over). She is learning more and doing more things each day! In the last few days she has added the words "duck", "look", and "no" - and is also shaking her head no, oh joy! She will point out ducks everywhere, in books, on her toys, and in her tub. She is not walking yet and her pediatrician said it might still be a bit before she does as her hips were still pretty loose when she was checked over. She also said that her height is definitely working against her but nothing to worry about. She was pleased with her development and cognitive skills and said that it's great she's ahead in verbal skills and the physical ones will catch up. She is cruising everywhere and standing for longer periods of time. She is also becoming quite silly! She likes to give big "cheesefaces' and also does a funny "fake laugh" when she hears other people laughing or thinks she has done something funny. She has also made the side table in the living room into a "fort" by dragging toys and stuffed animals back there. She climbs in and has a great time playing and jabbering.

Here are some pics from her 1st birthday:

With Grammie

I'm not sure we've ever taken a decent family photo!

Hanging with cousin QJ

Kisses from mommy!

With one of her faves, Uncle Jeff

Opening presents with Daddy

With her friends and cousins at her party. She loved it when everyone sang "Happy Birthday!"

Marie & Macey, Mommy & Brynna, Michele & Jackson

So proper - she ate more once she has utensils.

Post party with Macey and Jackson

2010 in Review

2010-12-31T11:53:00.000-06:00

Here is quick recap of a great year (from Brynna's viewpoint)!

January - I arrived January 15 at 11:22 pm. I barely made my timeline of arriving on Great-Nana and Great-Gramp's 66th wedding anniversary! But I knew it was important so I arrived 8 days early just like Nana predicted!

February - Mommy and I spent a lot of time at home this month! It's cold in Iowa plus we were getting to know each other! I did make a trip to La Crosse to meet my aunts, uncles, and cousins. And also had lots of visitors!

March - We had our first girls' weekend in Racine where I got to meet my Auntie Jen and cousin Sydney! Grammie threw me a baby shower and I met lots of important people in Mommy's life! I made mommy and daddy's day by laughing for the first time this month!

April - Mommy went back to her practicum this month. I missed her but my Grammie came and took very good care of me! I started rolling over this month! We went back to La Crosse and I met Uncle Ryan, Auntie Elicia, and Ian. I also had my first Easter!

May - We celebrated Mommy's first mother's day! At the end of May we went to California to meet my Great-Nana! I met my friends Jackson and Macey this month.

June - We left California and headed to Texas to see Auntie Jen, Uncle Rich, Sydney and John, Daddy turned 28, man is he old! Mommy and Daddy celebrated their 2nd wedding anniversary! We also celebrate Father's Day and I was baptized! I also got my first taste of solids this month!

July - Mommy turned 27, she's old too! I gave her a great present - I said my first word "Hi!" on the way home! Auntie Jen, Sydney and John came to visit and we had a special dedication at church. I went to Maine with Mommy and Grammie!

August - We hung out a lot at home this month. I went swimming in my pool and played with my puppy! Mommy went back to school and I started daycare.

September - Uncle Ryan and Auntie Elicia got married! My new cousin QJ was born.

October - I was a supercute pumpkin for Halloween! The Badgers beat Iowa and we had a party to watch the game!

November - I went to Racine with mommy and daddy! We had both Christmas and Thanksgiving with Auntie Lori, Uncle Jeff, and Grammie!

December - Mommy finally has some time off school and I get to hang out with her all day! I played in snow for the first time! We went to La Crosse to celebrate my first Christmas with daddy's family!

Mommy says we did a lot more this year but we just don't have the room to write about it all! I hope everyone had a great 2010 and a great start to 2011!!

Brynna's First Christmas

2010-12-31T10:57:00.002-06:00

We enjoyed Brynna's first Christmas back in La Crosse with the Virnig Family. We arrived Thursday evening and were thrilled Grammie was able to spend the night with us before heading to Auntie Lori's house. We had a delicious dinner and then snoozed at the hotel. Marie and Macey stopped by but Miss Brynna was already in bed! On Thursday we had lunch with friends (see below) and then our Christmas Eve Celebration began! The Virnigs celebrate on Christmas Eve - church, dinner, lots of presents and a Santa drops off gifts! Brynna just went and went and went - she stayed up until 10:30 playing with her cousins! She enjoyed ripping open gifts - lots of books especially! On Christmas we had a low key day at Auntie Andrea's. We played with our new toys and wrestled with the cousins. Auntie Elicia and Uncle Ryan joined us on Sunday for more presents and more family time! We had a great first Christmas. It was wonderful to have three relaxing days with family. We loved seeing Brynna play with her cousins. After watching them she has really gotten into walking. Mostly she holds onto our hands or a toy. But she did take 3 steps towards her Grandma on Christmas and 2 towards Grandpa the next day!

This is as good as it gets with all the kids!

Opening the first present!

Uncle Aaron

The best Christmas present we got this year!

Giggles and kisses with cousin Sophie!

Santa brought me a stocking!

Grandma Mary Ann sent her grandkids and great-grandkids Louisville T-shirts! Here we all are sporting our new gear!

She thinks her cousin QJ is pretty cute!

The 4 Boys and Their Babies

2010-12-31T10:45:00.000-06:00

Along with Brynna we welcomed lots of new babies this year! My (twin) best friends and I welcomed our little ones within just 3 months of one another. Another group of friends all welcomed babies as well. Brendan went to high school with Marc, Eric, and Bob. Strangely enough we were all born and raised in Wisconsin and moved to Iowa after college. Marc and Erica welcomed Emilee in February. Eric and Amanda welcomed Jackson in August. Bob and Danielle welcomed Lainey in October. It's amazing all of us had our first children so close together. Since there are now 12 of us getting everyone together has been quite a task! We were able to meet up for a quick lunch on Christmas Eve. Of course we all live in Iowa but had to be back in the boys' hometown in Wisconsin to meet up!!

Of course Uncle Brendan had to get his hands on each of the babies!

Jackson

Emilee

Lainey

We were on the upper level. Brynna and Emilee enjoyed peeking and yelling at everyone below!

Boys and their babies!

With Auntie Amanda

Girls and their babies!

Watch Me Grow - The 11 Month Old Edition

2010-12-16T21:04:00.000-06:00

Wow! The last "Watch me grow" post before Brynna is officially 1 year old! We are planning her first birthday!! Where has the time gone? I know I say that every month but it is truly unbelievable how fast she is growing! This is the last month before she is considered a "toddler" but she'll always be my little baby! This month her language skills continued to really develop. Along with "Hi!", "Bye", "Yay", "mama" and "dada" she added "go" "baby" and "Hi Dada!" to her repertoire. She likes to crawl up to Bailey, hit her on the bum, and yell "go!" Guess we tell the dog to go upstairs every once in awhile! :) She occasionally says "Bay" but we're not sure if she's referring to Bailey or just making a noise since the "b" sound is her new favorite. She is constantly jabbering and trying to copy everything we say to her. She will attempt to repeat most words that we tell her but they don't always come out completely legible! We are always greeted with a great big "Hi!" (except for daddy who will get a big "Hi dada!", she rarely says mama, figures) and she says "Bye!" whenever someone leaves. Along with her new language skills she is walking more and more around furniture and starting to get brave and let go. She doesn't seem to interested in walking. We thought she'd walk early since she crawled at 7 months but we were told to expect her to walk a little later as she's a bit taller than, well, everyone, her age and might have a little more trouble coordinating those long limbs! She will walk holding on to our hands or behind her dinosaur push toy but if she sees something that really interests her she drops down and crawls to it. She often attempts to crawl so fast she is literally falling face forward as her arms can't keep up with her legs! She also loves to climb the stairs or step up them with Daddy's help. She climbs up each night for her bath where we then chase her around and get lots of giggles. She also recently started giving "kisses". She must have learned from Bailey because when you ask for one she gives you a big wide open kiss and then licks you! We'll have to work on that one! She also continues to do "How big is Brynna?" and will also throw her arms up for "touchdown". That will come in handy when the Badgers play in the Rose Bowl Jan 1! This month she also got 4 teeth - over a period of about 10 days! She handled it like a champ but mommy is happy for her to be back to sleeping through the night!

Along with her 11 month birthday, the 15th marked my last final of the semester. We are changing daycares so she will be home with me for my Christmas break. In mid-January she will start up at a daycare center. She'll be in a room with 3 other kids her age so it will be great interaction for her.

She has been such a joy in our lives and we are so lucky to be her parents. We are really looking forward to heading back to La Crosse for her first Christmas. We are hoping to get to see Grammie on her way to Minnesota and then spend a few days with Brendan's family. Should be interesting to see how she likes opening presents!

Here are her 11 month pictures. This was my favorite photo shoot yet. She was of course grabbing the blocks but then whipping them over the side of the chair! She then had to check to see where they were. Once they were all gone she wanted to try to climb into her crib. Our little monkey!

Those blocks spell "eleven" - promise.

Cheese face!

Dropping the blocks over the side!

Oh! There they are!

Capturing "eleven" perfectly - loves to climb!!

Sneaky mommy got one picture with it all spelled out!

Snow Day

2010-12-16T20:36:00.001-06:00

We took Brynna out for her first romp in the snow last weekend. She looked a bit like the younger brother from A Christmas Story. Despite 5 layers she did manage to crawl a bit and get around. A few days later we got about 5 inches but haven't put her out in that quite yet!

Maybe next year

2010-11-27T22:25:00.000-06:00

We attempted to take Brynna to see Santa. Maybe right in the middle of stranger anxiety wasn't the best time. I've never felt her hang on so tight!

How big is Brynna?

2010-11-27T22:22:00.000-06:00

So big!

Applauding herself

Christmas ... then Thanksgiving?

2010-11-27T22:08:00.002-06:00

Since we are going to be in La Crosse for Christmas we decided to celebrate with Mom and Lori over Thanksgiving break. So we got to enjoy our traditional Scherer family Christmas and then Thanksgiving the next day! Luckily the stomach flu hit Monday in time for me to recover for two delicious meals in a row. We had a great time hanging out with Grammie, Auntie Lori, and Uncle Jeff. As usual Auntie Lori spoiled the crap out of Brynna!

Enjoying her first Christmas meal.

We opened presents via Skype with Auntie Jen, Sydney and John.


She got a new band with a tamborine, drum, and xylophone from Grammie.

Watch Me Grow - The 10 Month Old Edition

2010-11-27T21:41:00.003-06:00

Brynna is 10 months old! Wow! I am already starting to think about her 1st birthday party. That is just crazy to me. She continues to be such a joy and so much fun. She definitely keeps us busy! In just the last few days she has picked up so many new things including "How big is Brynna?", clapping, and the sign for "more". It was pretty cute as she kept asking for more while mooching an apple off of Daddy!

Here are her 10 month old pictures. It was a bit hard to keep her in one place! I love how these pictures show the exact stage that she is at and what we're up to these days.

Climbing the stairs is a new favorite activity.

She has become very affectionate and cuddly lately!

Our little monkey!

Watch Me Grow - The 9 Month Old Edition

2010-10-27T22:01:00.002-05:00

UPDATED!!! We finally took her 9 month pictures. The photo session was quite entertaining and most of them didn't turn out since she was mostly wrestling with daddy or attempting to throw herself off the bed. I think the ones that turned out are a perfect reflection of her at 9 months - bump on the head, tongue hanging out (how she makes the "smacking" kiss sound), attempting to knock over her blocks!

Confession: I still haven't taken Brynna's 9 month pictures. We were in La Crosse on her actual 9 month "birthday" and did have her 9 month professional pics and family pics taken that day. Once we get those back I'll post some. I was going to take the 9 month pics when we got back but the next day she went to daycare and came home that day with a sizeable bump and bruise on her head. Little turkey managed to pull a chair onto herself and gave herself her first head injury and mommy her first anxiety attack! :) Okay, not really but I wasn't thrilled about it. I've since calmed down. So I've waited for the swelling to go down and plan on taking them tomorrow. The bruise is still there but I love that the pics show exactly where she is this month. And this month it's all about moving as fast as we can and taking some tumbles along the way!

At her 9 month appointment (late last week) she tipped the scales at 18 pounds, 13 ounces, putting her back up in the 50%. She's still slightly down but doing well. She also measured 30 inches. She has gained one inch a month since she was born and is still off the scale. Tonight I put some hand-me-down PJs from her cousin John John on her, I believe size 12 months. We have pics of John in them around 16 months old. At 9 months they are bit baggy on her but just barely long enough! Oh well.

Brynna continues to be a happy go lucky girl but has recently gotten into the separation/stranger anxiety stage. She is all smiles at home and daycare but is shy around people she doesn't know. She cuddles up to us when she sees someone she isn't familiar with. She will still wave at them though! We hadn't thought much about it until we hung out with some friends for the Wisconsin/Iowa football game. Instead of running around like crazy, she hung back, was pretty quiet, and basically refused to crack a smile. We thought she was just tired and not feeling well but as soon as everyone left she was crawling circles around the breakfast bar and screaming her head off. We realized that apparently she's just shy! We think it's probably just a phase. She is talking and blabbing and giggling all the time, pulling up on everything (even the walls!), and cruising around the furniture. She loves to sit and read books and will sit in our laps, looking at the books, and pointing at the pages. We also started swim lessons a few days ago and she even went under the water for the first time.

Here are some pictures from the last month and I'll update the traditional ones soon!

Where's Brynna?

2010-09-25T18:52:00.000-05:00

Here's a short video of Brynna's new favorite game ... interrupted by her favorite puppy! Anytime she gets a towel, blanket, bib, etc near her - we play!

Watch Me Grow - The 8 Month Old Edition

2010-09-21T08:48:00.001-05:00

Brynna is 8 months old!! It seems crazy to already be able to say that. She is growing so fast and it feels like her first birthday will be here before we know it. She is the happiest little girl and we have been told by a lot of people that they have never seen a happier baby. We agree! . The only time she really cries is during diaper changes - because she has to stop what she's doing! Otherwise she is happy, playing, giggling and making tons of squealing noises! This month brought a lot of changes. I went back to school and Brynna started daycare. It's now week 5 and I feel like we are starting to get into a good routine. She has been very happy at daycare. Always greeting her provider with big smiles and excited to play. When we pick her up the provider's 2 daughters are typically home from school and playing with her. Since it's just her and one other infant right now she gets a lot of one on one attention! Another baby will be joining them in November but that will be it. It's been a great fit for us and we're very happy with the arrangement! We started out September at Uncle Ryan and Auntie Elicia's wedding and came home with a family stomach bug. Brynna has been sick the last couple of weeks but we finally have it figured out and she is on the mend! Even though she hasn't felt great she's been in great spirits, eating well, and mostly sleeping well. Took a long time but she is typically sleeping from 730-8 pm until 630-730 am. It's amazing what a goodnight sleep can do for mommy!! She has a 4 am wakeup but typically yells out and resettles herself. She is also loving to eat. At daycare, she'll take a few purees but at home she HAS to feed herself! We have been doing a lot of experimenting and she had tried tons of new things. She loves pretty much everything but bananas are definitely her favorite. She actually does a happy dance when she sees us start to peel one! Guess she is our little monkey. She also says "mmm" or "yummy" the whole time that she eats. We are working on the "more" and "all done" signs. She doesn't do them yet but she recognizes "more" and gets excited when we do it. If she doesn't get excited we know she's full! She continues to use the "milk" sign and also waves hello and bye-bye to everyone. Along with "yummy" she is saying "mama", "hi" "yeah" and "yay". She is also working on high fives and will usually give you one if you ask. Daddy loves this during football games. She makes tons of other noises and sounds including on that Brendan is convinced is "I love you". She's pretty verbal but I don't think she's gotten that one down yet! We are working on using "dada" correctly. She's starting to figure it out. Little stinker is probably just playing a game with him. She is also getting more mobile and a lot faster. She does the traditional crawl on ocassion but prefers to scoot or army crawl. Apparently that gets here there a lot faster! When she sees something she wants she is there immediately. She is also great at transferring from sitting to crawling and vice versa. She loves to stand and hold on to furniture or daddy if he's on the floor with her. She is starting to move but mostly loves to just let go and attempt to stand. The child has no fear! She definitely doesn't like to do things traditionally! I for one could use a few more months without her walking and running around! She attempts to reach for toys while standing and loves to turn from holding on to daddy to the sofa to the coffee table. It's interesting to watch her. She seems to study how things are done and make sure she knows how to do it before she tries. We are obviously having tons of fun with her and are so blessed to have her in our lives! Everyday is a new adventure!

I love to feed myself!

Best toy ever!

What We've Been Up To

2010-08-27T09:19:00.001-05:00

Okay, so professional blogging or even successfully maintaining a personal blog and updating regularly are not in my future (although I do update more than every 3 months, JEN). We've been very busy lately! I started back to school on the 25th. I have three classes - a peds/adolescence class, an adult/gero class, and a practicum which includes 180+ hours in the clinic with a Family Nurse Practitioner. It has been a bit of an adjustment. Besides a final presentation, I have been home for the last 7 weeks. It's been wonderful to concentrate on being mommy and not mommy and student. I think we were both a little spoiled. Luckily Brynna is doing much better than I am. She has settled right into daycare and is always happy as can be when we drop her off, pick her up, or Brendan stops by at lunch. We were very lucky to find a daycare that is just at the end of our block. It is currently just Brynna and one other infant. Another infant will be added in November but she's not even born yet! So there is lots of one on one attention and the provider is great about following her schedule. I am still working on adjusting. It's hard to know I can't be around at every second and to depend on someone else to watch my daughter. But I am working on it and finding a balance between being a mommy, wife, and student. Luckily my professors are great about letting me leave class to pump and my practicum preceptor seems understanding to the fact that I have a child that is my first priority. I start in the clinic on Monday and hope to be able to get a set schedule to help coordinate things. Okay, enough about school. Here are some pictures from the last few weeks. We've mostly hung around the house (too hot to go anywhere) but have also gone on a few hikes, walks, taken a bath in the driveway, gone on playdates and went back to Wisconsin.

Helping Mommy do laundry

Hanging out with my best friend

I love to read!

Daddy was so excited to give me yogurt for the first time!

I hope my feet are never this big!

She LOVES the Grandpa John blanket!

Taking a tubby in the front yard

Watch Me Grow - The 7 Month Old Edition

2010-08-27T09:03:00.001-05:00

Brynna continues to grow and amaze us everyday. She weighed 16 pounds, 12 ounces at an appointment we had on the 16th. They didn't do a length but from doing one at home, she's about 29 inches. She continues to worker harder on adding the height than the weight! She has been sitting well on her own for quite sometime and has recently figured out how to get down to her belly/back from a sitting position without conking her head. This has been an exciting accomplishment for everyone! She's getting a little frustrated at not being able to go back to the sitting position but that will come with time. She is also working very hard on crawling. She spends most of her time rocking on her knees. When she goes to move forward she pushes herself into a downward facing dog position. She looks pretty cute with her butt high in the air but it's not really conducive to moving. We're not entirely convinced she won't just skip the crawling phase and head right for standing/cruising. Right now she seems content with scooting or using her arms to move in circles and rolling to get around. It's amazing how fast she can whip around and grab what she wants. She is really wanting to pull herself up. She has tried several times to grab the front of her tub and stand up. We also have to be careful when she's on our laps because she'll thrust herself forward to stand or even stand right up if we're on the ground! If we put her by the ottoman she will grab on, stand there, and even attempt to let go to grab things around her. She is also becoming a lot more verbal. She says "Hi!" to anyone and everything. She loves to see herself in the bathroom mirror and scream "Hi!" over and over. She is working hard on the mama, dada, nigh nigh sounds but has only used "mama" correctly once. Other than that we spend our days exploring, learning new things like how to empty our toy bin, how to bang on everything, and even how to give a high five (we're still working on that!) Here are some pictures from the 15th (when she turned 7 months, just a little late!)

Maine

2010-08-04T21:47:00.000-05:00

At the end of July Brynna and I joined my mom on a trip to Maine. Mom was taking a photography class so we went along. We spent the first 2 days in Brunswick where my dad went to college. We had fun exploring his old campus and visiting some of my parent's favorite places including Este's lobster house. Then we went up to Belfast where the class was. Brynna and I didn't do too much but did explore the town and also worked on her first set of teeth! She was up a lot at night and very crabby so we took lots of naps! It was wonderful to just be able to relax and not feel like I had to do housework or homework while she was sleeping.


In front of the Bowdoin polar bear


My little lobster!


Dipping her toes in the Atlantic! 2 oceans by 6 months old!


Loves "walking" everywhere! We're just not ready for her to be that mobile yet!


She was so enthralled by the water we finally just let her sit down and play!

Enjoying the grass! Can't believe my little baby is sitting up and exploring the world all by herself! Time goes way to fast!

Watch Me Grow - The 6 Month Old Edition

2010-07-28T12:23:00.001-05:00

It is hard to believe that it has already been half a year since Brynna was born! She had her 6-month check up on July 22 and weighed in at 16 pounds, 7 ounces (61%). She is 28 inches (>99%) - the average height of a 1 year old! Definitely takes after her daddy in that department! The last month has brought a lot of changes. She is doing great at sitting up by herself. She can sit up for a long time but if she's aware that she's doing it she typically topples over after 15 seconds! She is always scooting around a lot and using her scooting and rolling skills to get where she wants and what she wants! She has put herself into a great day schedule with naps, eating, etc and is enjoying try new foods all the time. We are still working on sleeping through the night - she was able to do it when she was much younger so we're hoping to get back to that! There are just so many fun things to do, who wants to sleep?

Happy 4th of July!

2010-07-05T20:09:00.002-05:00

We spent the 4th of July weekend at home. It was great to be home and spend some quiet time together. Our summer has been busy and will only get busier as we have visits back to La Crosse and Racine coming up as well as a vacation to Maine with Grammie.

Our all American girl.

On the 4th we went to the "downtown". This was the first time they had moved the 4th of July celebration back downtown after the flooding 2 years ago. Brendan has always wanted to go down to see the "cauliflower" (it's the symbol of the town but we fondly call it that). We finally made it down there and got some pictures!

Yummy!!

2010-06-25T15:30:00.000-05:00

I had every intention of waiting until 6 months to start Brynna on solids but that just didn't happen! A few weeks ago she started waking up every 2 hours at night to eat, poor bub was hungry!! In the last month she has also been very into watching us eat and mimicing us along with trying to get to our plates. So we decided we were close enough and started her off on a few solids. The details are boring but the pictures are hilarious. Enjoy!

Baptism

2010-06-25T15:20:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday we celebrated Brynna's baptism. Her grammie, grandma and grandpa Virnig, Auntie Andrea, Uncle Jimmy, cousins Autumn, Steven, & Sophie, and great-grandma and grandpa Pertzsch came to town for the celebration. We squeezed a lot of people in our little place! It was a great day as it was also Brendan's first father's day. The following day was our wedding anniversary! We squeezed in a lot of celebration in just a few days. The baptism was great. We were able to use some water that Grammie had brought back from a trip to the Jordan River several years ago. The pastor also invited the kids up so Steven and Autumn were able to get a front row view of the action!

Watch Me Grow - The 5 Month Old Edition

2010-06-25T15:12:00.001-05:00

I think this month we have seen the biggest changes with Brynna. She seems to discover something new every day. In mid-May she discovered she can flip from her back to her front. She figured it out one morning and hasn't stopped since! She knows she can roll both ways but prefers to have someone come "rescue" her from her tummy so she can then flip right back! We often greet her after her naps on her belly, staring at her music or mobile. She is also working very hard on sitting up. She loves to sit in her Bumbo and play or sit with mommy and daddy. She can sit by herself for a few seconds before she tips right over! Whenever you lay her down ... to play or change her diaper, she does "sit ups" like she is attempting to get into an upright position. When we're all lounging she uses our fingers to pull herself right up! She has also discovered that she has a voice this month. She babbles all day long and makes a variety of different noises. She will hold quite a long conversation with you! We haven't had her weighed or measured in awhile so not sure what those stats currently are! She is definitely getting much bigger though! Was just under 15 pounds at the beginning of June so would imagine she's just over that at this point.

I think these pictures show the changes ... she had to be sitting up or on her belly while taking them! I also included a few from throughout the month.

Put her on her back and flips right over!

Filling out the onesie but still plenty of room to grow! I also love this picture because it sums up the month perfectly ... must be sitting up with my fingers in my mouth at all times!!

Is so curious about everything we are doing and is always involved. Here she was helping open the mail ... pulling the letters out for mommy!

Pictures from Texas

2010-06-25T15:03:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to Texas. My sister and I always say we're going to get lots of pictures of everyone together and we never do!! I think a lot of them are on her camera as well!

This was John's first time meeting Brynna. Sydney had come to visit in Wisconsin earlier but John wasn't able to join us. I think he thought she was pretty cool even though he was convinced she was a "he". (He also thought I was Auntie Lori! :) Oh well!)

The three munchkins shortly after our arrival.

Brynna got to wear a crown and be a princess!

With Auntie Jen trying on Berlin Glove bootsocks!

First time in a big swimming pool!

She loved floating around!

I'm going to miss these kiddos!!

Looks like we could have taken John home ... he fits!

Our First Family Vacation

2010-06-25T14:53:00.000-05:00

At the beginning of June we took our first family vacation! First we travelled to California where Brynna met her great-nana for the first time. We lounged at the beach and she even got to stick her toes in the Pacific Ocean for the first time. After a few days there we flew to Texas where we spent some time with my sister and her family. It was great to get to see them, especially since we just found out there will be heading back to Australia soon. Unfortunately when we left Brendan wasn't feeling well. A few days into the trip Brynna got a fever and we spent a good amount of time in the ER. We thought we wouldn't even make it to Texas but were able to get there ... where I spent a day in bed sick! Wasn't the ideal vacation but it was great to see everyone. We are looking forward to many family vacations to the beach house in the future!

On our way!

Hanging out at the beach house before we go to meet my Nana!

Meeting Nana for the first time ... love at first sight for both of them!

Had lots of fun giggling with Nana and playing "Mousey".

Sticking my toes in the ocean for the first time! It was cold!

Teaching her to make the sea anenome squirt!

I love the beach!

Not feeling so good at this point ... lots of naps on Nana!

Hoping the sea air will make her feel better!

Our last night

Best Friends Forever

2010-06-25T14:37:00.001-05:00

In high school, my best friends were a set of twins, Marie and Michele. Even though time (has it really been 9 years since we graduated?), jobs, husbands, school, etc. have moved us all far away from one another, we continue to remain close. It wasn't planned but we have all had the wonderful experience of welcoming our first children within just a few months of one another. Brynna arrived first in January followed closely by Macey on March 27 and Jackson on May 1. It has been a wonderful experience to be able to enter into mommyhood with my best friends! At the end of May, we met up in La Crosse and got the babies together for the first time. Right now they hardly notice one another but I hope one day they grow up to be great friends!

I couldn't resist getting them coordinating outfits!!

Mary & Brynna, Michele & Jackson, Marie & Macey

Macey and Brynna took a nap together in Macey's crib. Two little burritos!

At this time Brynna had just discovered how wonderful it was to stick everything she could in her mouth ... including Jackson's arm. He didn't seem to mind!

Watch Me Grow - The 4 Month Old Edition

2010-05-18T14:21:00.001-05:00

It is hard to believe that Brynna is 4 months old already!! That's 1/3 of a year! I can still remember sitting on the couch in early January just begging her to come out already. Now I'm mostly just begging her to take a nap for more than 45 minutes at a time! :) We go to the doctor tomorrow for her 4 month visit so no updates on her weight and length yet. We did a rough estimate a few weeks ago and she was about 25.5 inches!! Definitely a tall one considering the average 1 year old is 28-29 inches! Her little body certainly spends more time working on the height than the weight. We wouldn't be surprised at all to see her drop a little on the growth chart with regards to her weight. Nothing to worry about at this point but she's definitely a skinny girl, especially compared to how tall she is! I think we were both expecting to have a much chunkier baby at this point so we're always commenting on how skinny she seems to us. Guess she gets her height from daddy and weight from mommy - she's going to be a bean pole! Here are some pictures from her 4 month "photo shoot". Her little personality is really starting to shine. She can be very serious at times but is typically full of smiles. She has blessed us with a few chuckles over the last couple of months but lately has started bursting into full out giggle sessions. Last night she and daddy were keeping each other going for several minutes. She had a giant blow out in her diaper and had to be carried up stairs very carefully by mommy and daddy to be put in the tub. For some reason she thought that was hilarious and she and daddy laid on the bathroom floor and laughed together before tub time!

This is a picture of her with "Sophie the Giraffe". She's not teething yet but has recently discovered her fingers and how wonderful they are to put in her mouth! She'll grab anything she can find and shove it in her mouth!

Mr. Bobo

2010-05-06T20:35:00.000-05:00

When we found out we were having a little girl Brendan decided he wanted to go out and buy her a special present. I was expecting him to pick up something very pink and girly as everything we had so far was neutral. So imagine when my shock when he picked up a brown monkey! Totally girlie of course! :) We have affectionately named him "Mr. Bobo" and are doing our best to make him her comfort object. So far Mr. Bobo goes with us most places and she has discovered that he is great to suck on! These days everything goes in her mouth and Mr. Bobo is no exception. Mr. Bobo even has his only family including Bitty Bobo (a matching rattle) and Millie, his giraffe wife. Can you tell Mommy and Daddy get bored and create stories about the baby's toys?