Time to breathe

Short week for me this week. I took the day off on Tues to hang with Molly and Marsha and then also had the day off today. Since Molly and I spent a quality day together on Tues, I did not feel bad at all about dropping her off at daycare this morning for a few hours so I could have some time to myself. So rare...so glorious!

I started out the morning by watching part of the Murray/Djokovic Australian Open match - in peace - and then went over to Midtown for a free pilates class - with the reformer! It was such a good workout. I think if I did it consistently, I would actually be in shape for once in my life. Something to think about.... I just don't know if I can realistically add another class to my schedule.

Anyway, I picked up Molls at noon, we played for a couple of hours, and now she's sleeping peacefully while I catch up on email, blog, and watch the first episode of Alcatraz on demand. My old LOST group is thinking about taking it up as our new show, so I need to catch up.

Speaking of catching up, I sometimes feel like that's all I do. Scramble to get Molly where she needs to be, get where I need to be, and get our house in order. Always a few minutes late and one step behind. So to have time today to just BE and to breathe has been wonderful. Jason is playing poker tonight, so the "me" time will continue :)

Dancing queen

Molly has a new dance move:

It made us think of Elaine from Seinfeld. What do you think?

Actually, we think Molly is probably trying to jump, but it's still funny/cute to watch.

Since I haven't posted pics in a while, here are 2 recent favorites.

 Molly in her Daddy's hat

Cooking up some banana pudding with Grandma and Mom. We thought if she stirred the pot, she'd take more of an interest in eating. Unfortunately, as fun as it was to make, the banana pudding was not a hit...

We had a great Sunday, hanging out with Grandma Marsha and Aunt B. Molly has started a crazy little babble that makes her sound like a robot. We also discovered that she knows her Daddy is "Jason" and her Mommy is "Maggie." Ha!

Smarty pants

I don't have any new pictures of Molly to post, but my girl has brains as well as beauty, so I will spend some time talking (bragging) about how smart she is! Molly can...

• Grab whatever color block you ask for, as long as it is red, yellow, or blue
• Do the trunk motion with her arm when she makes the elephant sound (I can't even describe how cute this is)
• Say the words "shoes" and "cheese." Who needs more? 
• Correctly identify all of the farm animals and make most of the noises
• Also identify slightly more obscure things like "kites" and "bumblebees" and "ladybugs" (they do flashcards at daycare)
• Call her Uncle Joe-Joe by name
• Eat a few bites with a spoon without spilling (well, maybe just 1 or 2 bites, but it's progress!)

Unfortunately, my brilliant little girl will not say "Mama" even though we know she can make the "M" sound. We hear it every day when she says her favorite word: "MORE!"

Reality musings...

Project Runway All Stars:

• I miss Heidi (a lot) and Tim Gunn (even more), but am kind of liking the array of fashion icons they have had judging the episodes so far. Fingers crossed they have Nina and Michael Kors make a guest appearance at some point.
• Michael Costello is incredibly annoying, but man, can he make a dress! I think I liked his the best this episode; however... 
• I was so happy to see Austin Scarlett take home a win. I can't see him making it too far in the competition, but I love his personality and was glad that he won a challenge that meant a lot to him.
• Rami, where is the draping?! It's like he doesn't want to be known as a 'draper,' so he's specifically avoiding it and letting Michael Costello fill the role for the season. 
• Mondo has had a bit of a slow start. Nothing bad, but nothing amazing. I think that's how he started out Season 8, so hopefully he will start to dazzle us soon. 

Top Chef Texas:

• I am liking Hugh Acheson more as a judge than as a contestant, but I have mixed feelings about Emeril. He seems to be a pretty tough critic, like Bourdain, but where Bourdain was kind of funny about everything, Emeril just seems grumpy. And, I liked the chemistry between Anthony, Tom, and Padma. Oh well, at least we still have Tom and Padma!
• The girls are SO nasty, it bums me out. Lindsay is whiny and awful and Sarah is just a straight up bully. The way they treated Bev in the last episode was painful to watch. Sweet justice that Bev took home the prize!
• Sarah, Sarah, Sarah... I could go on and on about how much I hate her. It's actually making me NOT want to go to Spiaggia, a restaurant that has been on my list for years. Unfortunately, I think she is going to make it to the end. The judges love her food. 
• If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be Paul. I have a soft spot for Beverly, and I think Ed is also really good, even though he's a little petty and has an odd way of talking. 

We'll see what happens! I'm watching, are you? 

The calm before the storm

My poor girl. The ear infection I thought was no big deal yesterday has reared its ugly head today. Molls woke up coughing this morning, and it's been all downhill from there!

She had a great morning at daycare, but I thought it would be a good idea to get her at lunch and let her nap in her own crib. I'm glad I did. By the time we got home, I could tell she was really feeling under the weather. She even asked to change into her PJs before her nap :(

The rest of the afternoon was a pathetic cuddle fest and now I'm listening to her cough in her sleep. Waaah!

The pediatrician said that the antibiotics can take a few days to kick in, so poor Molls might still be feeling it tomorrow. Fingers crossed she wakes up happy, but I am mentally preparing myself for another day at home. Good thing I still have a small amount of vacation time left from 2011!

Ear infection! What ear infection?

I took the Molls in for her 18-month appointment today, only to find out that my healthy happy girl has a raging ear infection. Who knew? Jason thought he saw her rubbing her ear a few days ago, but that was pretty much the only sign she gave us. And this is how she looked this evening when we had friends over for BBQ brisket:

Loving the chaos! Other than that, she is doing everything an 18-month toddler should be doing -- saying no, rejecting meals, throwing tantrums, and having fun. As for stats, she's 31 and 3/4 inches (50th percentile) and 21 lb 4 oz (10th percentile). A little skinny, but we'll work on bulking her up with leftover brisket and mac and cheese. Mmmmmm.... another successful meal cooked on the big green egg!

I love this picture

And Molly loves her new hat. Thanks for all the knitting Mom!

Happy Happy New Year!

My mom and Molly were both feeling a little under last night, so the rest of us rung in 2012 at the clubhouse bar. It had a decent crowd, a band, and an assortment of hats and noisemakers, so we were happy.

This photo was actually posed -- not an action shot :) But it sure does look like we're having fun!

Archie and B

Our New Year's crew!

It wasn't a super late night, and I'm glad for that, because we returned home to a crying Molly. She has been fighting a cold and was too congested to sleep. Poor kid! I hope she kicks this before the flight home. Otherwise, it might be a long 3 hours. For us and everyone else one the plane. 

Speaking of  flights, I can't believe this trip is almost over. It's the longest vacation Jason and I have had since our honeymoon. And the longest we've spent with Molly since my maternity leave! We've had a grand time running up and down the street and splashing around in the hot tub. Molly has enjoyed the weather as much as we have. More, in fact. It's been hard to keep her indoors!

Every time Molly sees her navy blue sweatshirt, she wants to put it on and go out. Her favorite new game is to do this:

Kind of boring for the one overseeing the activity, but a blast for little Molly

We've also started to hear more "no no no's" from our girl. Someone is starting to test her boundaries. Or maybe she's just had too much attention this week. I hope that's the case because I am not ready for the terrible twos!!