A City Life For Me

As a FuzziBunz (those are cloth diapers) retailer, I have the opportunity to participate in a photo contest.  The winning photo will be featured on the FuzziBunz company holiday greeting card.  Additionally, the winner receives some free products and a great gift card.  Below are the photos I took of Elaine for my contest entry, and I can’t decide between them! This is where you come in – leave me comment voting for your favorite.  I may decide to attempt another photo shoot.  I don’t have great lighting in this apartment.  I still have some shadows that don’t please me.  The three pictures below are the best out of over 100 shots!  (It’s hard to capture a 1 year old sitting still, smiling, and looking at you!). So here they are… #1 #2 #3 I did my best with touchup and editing.  Any of my readers that are great with photos or Photo Shop (I actually use a different program) are welcome to offer suggestions to make these shots better!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day this year.  This was the first time we were able to travel to Massachusetts to be with Ben’s family for the holiday.  Ben’s brother Evan also came home from Connecticut.  Dad decided to soak the turkey in a brine solution, and then convection cook it.  It was REALLY delicious!  We had all of the fixings of a Thanksgiving feast! Dad did the turkey, made the gravy, and the sweet potatoes.  Mom had green bean casserole and stuffing ready – Hamilton stuffing has sausage and apples in it…mmmmmm good!  I turned the mashed potatoes into a calorie nightmare with my grandma’s recipe, and I also brought the cranberry sauce.        The lovely table – Grandma Kuenzi’s dishes; the beautiful flower arrangement Ben & Elaine snacking on Cheerios while the food was cooking While the meal was still cooking, Dad called us all into the living room.  We each received a card from Grandma Hamilton.  She is getting “up there” in age and not doing so gr

While we were in Massachusetts last week, Elaine received a special surprise!  Grandma Hamilton and Auntie Meredith (and I can’t remember if Grampa helped) constructed a special play house.  Fit for a princess, it even had a name – Lainey’s Lodge ! It’s amazing what you can do with a couple of big boxes.  They even painted bricks on the outside and laid carpet.  There was a mirror on the wall, decorations, and a pop-out window in the private bedroom. Still a little uncertain about this…she just woke up! “Mmmmmm.  There’s Cheerios in here.  I like it!” Peek-a-boo! A couple of days later…enjoying playtime at Lainey’s Lodge with Grandma Hamilton! Inside with Grandma We were trying so hard to get her to look at the camera! Elaine didn’t sleep so great during this visit – it was a different crib, a different room, a different schedule.  Two mornings in a row she was up from 2-4ish.  Ben took her the first morning.  They played with the blocks.  Elai

a great night’s sleep (notice the bed head) + captain crunch cereal + mommy giving me a puddle of milk in my cereal + {mommy} “what’s that slurping sound?” + {elaine} milk all over my face and jammies = {mommy} laughing and {elaine} smiling! (and yes, she really did drink all of the milk out of her bowl, to my surprise!  I was reading something and not paying attention until I heard the slurping!)

Last night we left the Big City and drove into the countryside.  Here are some of the things that amazed me… For the first time since June, I consciously looked up and realized there are stars in the sky. There are open spaces in this world!  I looked at the fields, and the trees, and the desolate highways and realized it has been a long time since I have seen those things! There are many building which do not stretch to the sky When we arrived at my in-laws’, we parked…{gasp} in the driveway!  You know…like a reserved space, waiting – just for us! Vacation is going to be wonderful!

Psalm 34:8 I had a professor in college who used to say, “God is good, all the time.  All the time, God is good.” That statement is so very true, and I always have a lot to thank God for at Thanksgiving.  This year, though, I feel particularly overwhelmed as I think of everything that God has done for us in this past year.  Ben and I were making a list and these are just a few of the things that are on it… God’s leading and direction to New York City An apartment with Christian landlords A washing machine in the apartment The offering from our church in Va. Beach, and gifts from friends to help with moving expenses Lots of people (family and church members) to help us move in A job within two weeks of moving here The successful launch of our home business Health A new computer A new baby on the way A love gift from Ben’s church A new stroller

I know it’s the day before Thanksgiving, but Christmas is right around the corner.  I realize that this holiday is very over-commercialized in the world, but I still look forward to this time of year.  Some of my favorite things of the season include listening to Christmas music, watching the snow come down as everyone’s homes are lit up with twinkle lights, and getting Christmas cards in the mail.  I especially like it if there is a photo included!  I have sent out Christmas photos the last several years.  It has really ended up that I put it off, and then rush into Wal-Mart where I stand in a long line, get frustrated with the machine, and the lack of options.  The photo greeting card selection has gotten pretty slim, and many of them are as generic as “Happy Holidays”. This year will be different.  Since I now live in New York City and it is not as convenient to just run down to the non-existent Wal-Mart on the corner, I have learned the convenience of shopping online.  En

This is how Elaine walked around the house all morning yesterday – a balloon in one hand, and a glasses case in the other. She loved her birthday balloon, but her Daddy popped it when it started losing its helium.  Our Hallmark store is going out of business, so I got Elaine another balloon.  She never let go of it!  She hijacked the glasses case from Ben’s dresser drawer (which he left hanging open ).  It was really a telephone to Elaine… She talked and talked and talked as she walked around jerking her balloon!  Oh the imagination she has already! As I was washing the supper dishes, Elaine joined me in the kitchen.  She found the box of clementines within her reach (I think that was Daddy again).  “Wow, it’s my day.  Mommy left these for me to play with,” she thought.  One was hidden away safely in my pots & pans cupboard.  Some became balls.   Then I heard it.  Plop, plop, plop .  I spun around to discover what I had been afraid of…Elaine was efficiently transfe

So…I thought this picture needed a little explanation.  Elaine was being really cute with Rocky (the cat).  “I need a Wordless Wednesday picture,” I thought to myself as I pulled out the camera.  Elaine saw the camera and decided to pose, so she started to lay down on the kitty.  Neither she, nor I realized how close she was to the edge of the bed.  Just as I snapped the picture, I practically threw the camera in an attempt to catch her as she went over the edge.  Yes…that funny blur on the right side of the picture is Elaine’s feet as she tumbled off the bed. Yesterday I was finally able to get some good shots of Elaine with Rocky… As you can see, she loves the kitty, especially his tail.  She gets very excited when he comes upstairs.  Rocky is good to tolerate Elaine.  Most of the time he escapes to the bed, but sometimes Mommy allows Elaine to follow him there!

I thought you might enjoy this video from our family play time last night!

“I can do it myself.” Though she isn’t talking, sometimes Elaine communicates this phrase to me.  Lately it with anything food.  She doesn’t want Mommy to feed her, she wants to do it herself!  She’s also been teething and hasn’t had a very good appetite.  So last night when Elaine wanted the whole pizza slice, rather than the cut up bits, I decided to let her go at it. There she was.  Little Elaine.  Big slice of pizza.  Trying desperately to make her teeth tear off a bite.  What ended up happening is that she buried her whole face in the slice, pulling off the topping and leaving the crust.  “ Mmmm.  That was fun.  I’m done now.” Then Daddy introduced the ranch dressing.  Suddenly the crust was very fun.  She would dip, lick, and dip again (never eating the crust, but enjoying the ranch!). Elaine is so much fun to watch as she learns and discovers new things.  Even though she was a mess, she was very entertaining at the dinner table.  Who needs a TV?  We have an Elai

I did something weird this week.  Okay, so maybe that is not an eye-opening statement.  I don’t exactly fit in the “normal” mold.  But this is something that I never thought I would do. I purchased toilet paper online.  Doesn’t that just sound crazy?  Amazon.com had a great deal.  As an Amazon Mom member, I get free 2-day shipping.  By signing up with Subscribe & Save, I received an additional discount.  So…I got super soft Cottonelle toilet paper for less than $5 for 12 double rolls. Elaine had a great time knocking over my packages! Amazon.com has come to the rescue several times recently.  I prefer Baby Magic lotion (it smells sooooo much better than Johnson’s!), and I can’t find it here in New York City.  I ordered six bottles on Amazon (enough to last through the next baby, I think!) for under $2 a bottle.  When I couldn’t find canning lids, I got them on Amazon.  Free shipping and great prices…you can’t beat it! I have been looking at a postal scale to help i

Here in NYC they sweep the streets every week.  There is a schedule posted, and on cleaning day you have to move your car.  Usually we just double park on the other side of the street until the cleaning hours end, and then we move it back.  On our street they clean between 8:30 and 10:00 a.m. on Mondays.  If you don’t move your car you can get a ticket.  You might not get caught.   But…there is another punishment, and shame is the name of the game!  They stick this sign on your car window.  I think it must be hard to get off because I have seen several half-removed stickers.  The glue must be pretty strong!  They really want to shame you into following the rules! That’s right…it’s all this guy’s fault.  The street is still dirty, and we know who to blame!

I know that Veteran’s Day was yesterday, but I still want to add my post to the sentiment’s already expressed in appreciation for our soldiers.  Ben pointed out to me yesterday that most of our holidays commemorate the dead.  Veteran’s Day honors and remembers the living. Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines a veteran as “an old soldier of long service; a former member of the armed forces.”  Veterans Day was originally called Armistice Day, and it celebrated the end of the war in 1918.  It is now a legal holiday in the United States to honor the members of the armed forces. My dad served in the US Air Force for eight and a half years.  I was born in England while he was stationed there.  My Grandpa Paul served in the Army during the Korean War, though he was never deployed.  My Uncle Lewis also served in the Army.  Ben’s Grandpa Hamilton served in the US Air Force, and his Grandpa Kuenzi served in the Swiss service. I am grateful for the men in my family, and those who are my

Elaine thoroughly enjoyed her birthday cake.  We followed tradition and let her dig into her own cake.    After stripping her down to the diaper, we lit one lonely candle on her bunny cake and sang happy birthday.  Elaine loves to lick the beaters when we bake cookies or cake, so she was not afraid to dig into this cake. “Mmmmmm.  This is really good, Mom!” Not bashful at all…she gets her manners from Ben’s side of the family (Hahaha!) “Do you like my beard?” “This pink stuff makes me thirsty!” The end product.  We dunked her in a quick bath so that she could gets hugs and kisses from Grandma & Grampa Hamilton before they left to return home.