Don't go Daddy!

Turn about is fair play I suppose. After months of me being gone for a few days here and there, it is Ryan's turn. Ryan is off to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament. This is really the only time of year when Ry has to travel for work. The hard part is he is gone for a good chunk of time. Originally he was supposed to be gone for both the women's and the men's tournament but it turns out he doesn't have to go to the men's tourney this time around. He has mixed feelings about it. He loves going and sitting courtside and working the games but they are very, very long days and he misses his family. Here are a few photos of Paige and Ryan soaking up some time before he left.

Don't go Daddy! Maybe if I keep making this sad face, you won't go.

Little Ballerina

Paige has always loved to dance. Lately we have been laughing because she has been instructing Ryan and I on how to dance. "Touch your toes, OK, how kick your feet..." It is actually quite cute. So we decided to give dance class a try again. We tried once before a little before her 2nd birthday. She wasn't very happy about it since there were a lot of kids and I had just returned from my work trip where I was gone for about a week and now I was trying to leave her again. This time she is in a class with only a few other kids and one parent gets to join them. Paige was very excited when she got to put her leotard on and the little skirt that goes with it. Once she saw how the skirt moved when she was twirling, off she went. She was very excited to have cousin Lilly join her in class this time around too. Paige wasn't so sure for about the first 20 minutes of class but all of the sudden she warmed up and realized it was safe to dance. She had a great time, especially checking herself out in the mirror. All the way home in the car she talked about how fun dance class was and how she wants to do it again and again. The cutest part is that she gets to perform in a recital in June. Such a big girl. Both Ryan and I even teared up a bit when she was all dressed up in her dance outfit. Way too precious.
Practicing her twirl

Standing on her tip toes (she didn't have her ballet shoes on yet since she had already out grown her pair from 6 months ago.

Yoga

Paige has a new found love for yoga. Paige does some form of exercise everyday at school which she loves. It is usually the first thing she tells us about when we pick her up from school. They have a variety of different videos they do at school from Elmocize, kickboxing, Barbie workout, and kids yoga. Paige has really fallen for the yoga video and has been asking to do it at home. We were all for it because we can't find anything wrong with encouraging fitness. She has done the Kids ABC Yoga everyday when she comes home from school. We have enjoyed it because it is nice for to come home and unwind a bit doing yoga. We will usually do it with her as well which she just loves. There is nothing cuter than when she gets to the letter "O" and they practice saying "Om". I'll have to video tape it becuase it is so freaking cute. She also likes to sing the Namaste song that teaches them about what that means. Ryan and I really love the part at the end when they lay flat and focus on their breathing. We have never seen her sit so still and and quiet when she wasn't sleeping. It is fantastic!


Doing her yoga moves. We have a yoga mat for her but she prefers using the blanket. (Notice how she even has Woobie doing yoga with her)


Singing the Namaste song.

Happy Valentines Day

Our little Valentine

A year ago today...

Ryan and I were remembering how scary it was a year ago today that Paige was admitted to the hospital for a mystery illness. We knew when the doctor sent us to the hospital for her blood work and told us to wait until she called us before she left, that it couldn't be good; not that her 105.3 fever didn't freak us out enough. Those 3 days she was in the hospital have been the 3 most challenging days of motherhood so far. No one knew what was wrong and my poor baby was just lying there sick in the awful baby cage that they put kids in. We both felt extremely helpless. Luckily though time and lots of antibiotics, she got better. They eventually diagnosed her with having 5 different viruses at once that she just couldn't shake. She has pneumonia, RSV, sinusitis, brochiolitis, and a urinary tract infection. We are so thankful to that she is healthy and it was nothing more serious. I have never seen a child get poked so many times and not fight it. I can still hear her saying "All done Mommy, all done." in her sad little voice and they looking over at the doctor or nurse and saying "thank you" after they just poked and prodded her like crazy. She was our rock in that whole process and we both learned a lot from her. I can't say that I don't panic a little every time she gets sick, but I would rather be cautious than igore it. We love our little girl and we can't wait to enjoy our Valentines Day together as a family this year outside of the hospital.
Paige ready to be put in the CAT scan machine. We had a very little window in which we could do this since they had to sedate her. She coughed right as they were taking her out of the scan. Thank God they were done because I didn't want her to have to go through the sedation again. She fought the medicine for hours before it finally worked.


Paige with her new doctor toys that she got from Auntie Mimi when she returned home.

On the road again...

In my job, I find that my travel schedule goes in cycles. I am either at home all the time or I am on the road all the time. I am currently on the road and there seems to be quite a bit in the near future as well. I was most recently in Little Rock, AR for our all-staff offsite. It was a great opportunity to spend time face-to-face with my colleagues. Working from a home office, I do miss the human interaction with each other. The downside to this is that I end up away from my family. I am finding that it is getting harder to leave my Paigey. Now that she is older, she is starting to understand what is happening. The hard part is that she still can't comprehend the why part. I am away because I need to work, not because I don't want to be with her. We talked on the phone every night and she told me about her day. That I just loved. I would tear up every night when she would squeal in excitement just to hear my voice and then tear up again when she would say ni-nights and tell me that she loved me. Ryan and Paige had a great time together. As much as Ryan complains about having to handle it alone, he does a fantastic job and they enjoy their time together. Of course the day after I left, Paige ended up with her first ear infection. So off to see Dr. Shah they went to get a check up. Luckily the medicine kicked in pretty quick and her ears are great. The last night I was gone, Ryan rolled over at about 6am to find Paige in my side of the bed tucked in and snoring away. Neither of them can tell you how long she was there but she was quite comfy. She has never slept in our bed before so Ryan was shocked. He was also so in love with his little girl that he didn't wake her. Was she missing Mommy or wanting to snuggle with Daddy? Regardless of the answer, it was too cute.

At the very end of that trip, I received news that one of my schools was chosen by ESPN for an interview on the state of physical education in schools. This is such an honor for this school and I am very excited about the recognition they will be receiving. I am not thrilled about the fact that I was asked to join her and be interviewed as well. The thought of being interviewed by a reporter for a national story makes me very, very nervous! I never have had a desire to be in TV and I am just hoping that my interview doesn't make the final cut. They are spending a whole day with 3 different schools and then condensing it down to a 30 special. My chances of being cut are great. Plus, they story should be about the school, not about what I am doing with the schools. We shall see. Needless to say, I am homesick and I can't wait to get back to my hubbie and baby. Luckily I am only gone for the day. The Mom Guilt is definitely setting in. I am happy that I did get the opportunity to enjoy the weekend with them.

Weekend of Birthday Fun

So I'm 31 now and I'm not sure when that all happened. The good news is that I have made it this far and I hope to have many more birthdays. Most of you know, I LOVE my birthday and the countdown begins on Christmas day. I decided that this year I wanted to go and do something for my birthday. Ryan and I had a date night on Friday. We sent Paige off to my parents and we headed downtown to have dinner and then to see Monty Pythons Spamalot. We had a great time even though our walk from dinner to the show was a bit colder than either of us had anticipated. The next day we had a family bowling night and my parents and siblings were there with their families. We had a great time. After bowling we headed back to my parents to enjoy the birthday cake that Paige and Grandma made for me. It was very yummy! Today is my actual birthday and I have nothing planned. I may even stay in my PJ's all day because I can.

Mandy and Ryan waiting for Spamalot to start

Here we are at Pinstripes. We were excited to learn that their bowling shoes came in toddler sizes and that they had ramps for the little kids to use to help their game. Paige was insistent on carrying her own bowling ball. After many tries of trying to lift the pink ball (10 lbs), she finally gave in and used the 6 lb blue one because she could carry it. The really sad part is that I am so bad at bowling, my 2 year old almost beat me; I beat her by one point. I'm a sad sack bowler.


Throwing her whole body into it.

Paige and Milagro enjoying the hair blower...I mean hand blower. Paige and Lilly really thought it was quite fantastic.

Waiting to see how many pins she knocks down. When the pins fall down, Paige does a dramatic fall to the ground as well.

Uncle Adam showing Paige an alternate use for the ramp. She thought using it as a slide was a much better idea. That Uncle Adam, so creative.