Just to Keep you on your Toes... Here is another post!

Just a couple of pictures from the weekend. You will see, we didn't do much...but sleep! Here is Lizzie sleeping. I call this picture "Lizzie's World". It is her room with captions.

The rest of these pictures were taken tonight after Lizzie's bath. Her hair kind of looked like "That Girl" !

Long Over Due Update Continued....

Ok, so I left off in March with some Easter pictures. We spent Easter at my parent's house and then went to visit Guy's Mother. We were home early, which was good since we both had to work the next day. Lizzie got candy from everyone, which wasn't too good. We kept some, but most of it went to work with me to give to the masses.

Continuing in March... Lizzie's school had a "Spring Formal". All the children came to school all dressed up for their dance. They had a nice little lunch and then the children did a little dance. Here is a picture of Lizzie and her "boyfriend" who she says she is going to marry and have 14 children. The girls will be named Mommy and the boys after her "boyfriend". I have hidden his face, but he is only 7 months older than Lizzie and he towers over her!

April was a slow month. Guy and I celebrated 15 years of marriage. We actually went out to dinner by ourselves and Lizzie stayed over night with her Aunt Fran and Uncle Lance. No pictures though!

May

Well, May brought us Mother's Day. We hosted our mothers and family on the Saturday before Mother's Day for a brunch. It was very nice and Lisa and I made some great food.

Lizzie, Aunt Lisa and I made some cupcakes and Lizzie really enjoyed icing and decorating them too! Here are the cupcake pictures and of course, more pictures of Lizzie!

Two weeks ago, we took our annual ride to Hazelton, Pennsylvania to visit Guy's relatives. It was a very nice ride and visit.

These pictures of are Lizzie, of course, she is trying on some new dresses and brace yourself, I have also put a picture of me! Yes, I actually do exist. Since my lapband surgery in January, I have lost 44 pounds. I am down a whole size in clothing .. which feels really nice!

We also went to Build-A-Bear for the first time and went to town. We thought Lizzie was going to want a little puppy, because she has been asking for a dog, but she surprised us and went for a cat. The cat is now named Princess Kitty. We got a couple of outfits, one of which being a "Little Mermaid" outfit. Well, it came with a red wig. The pictures speak for themselves!

Well, I hope I have made up for my lack of blogging for the past couple of months. I could promise to update more often, but I just don't know if I can keep that promise!!

Kelly, I miss you!!

Cathy

Ok, Three Months Is A Little Long Between Posts....

Once again, it has been a while since I posted ..... once again, I am sorry. No excuses! Get ready for some updates:

March

Well, in March we our one and only snow fall of Winter 2008. In reality, it could barely be classified as snow. Nevertheless, Guy got out there to shovel and Lizzie was right behind him "helping".

Next, we had our Early Easter....and typical unpredictable weather here in the mid-Atlantic, it was cold...cold enough for Winter coats (with a Spring time hat!!)

Well, it is almost 10:30 and I am tired. I promise I will finish the update tomorrow!! Here is a tidbit... Lizzie had a Spring dance at school...formal!

That's it for now! Cathy

Almost Forgot to Mention....

I had weightloss surgeryon January 17 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The surgery I chose was Lap Band surgery. To date, I have lost 33 pounds! I have found clothes in my closet that still had tags on them. You know, you buy clothes, bring them home and then realize that they don't quite fit. I have gone down a whole size! I am not ready to divulge my starting or current weight yet, maybe in another 50 pounds or so!!

Cathy

Great New Show on Nick Jr.!

This morning we watched this great new show on Nick Jr. It is called Ni Hao, Kai-lan. "Ni hao!" That means "hi" in Chinese--and that's how Kai-lan greets you every day! Kai-lan Chow is an exuberant Chinese-American preschooler, almost 6, who wants you to come play with her and her best friends. Kai-lan's world is infused with Chinese culture and is brimming with magical sights and sounds, and everywhere you turn there's something amazing and beautiful to see. Along the way, she and her bilingual buddies speak in English and Chinese, but they always need kids' help to find creative solutions to the daily dilemmas that come their way!

Lizzie absolutely loved the show. She was mesmorized!! I think she like it better than Dora. They teach Mandarin and learn Chinese customs!

Chinese New Year Dinner

Happy Chinese New Year -- The Year of the Rat 2008!

Today our family got together at the Mandarin Court Chinese Restaurant in New Jersey to celebrate the Year of the Rat with a special meal. We all had a wonderful time. Lizzie wore a special chinese outfit and she looked absolutely beautiful!

















The next post will have additional photos from our dinner! Enjoy

It's Been A While.....

Well, it has been a while since I last posted. We have had Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year!! I have a lot to write about.

Thanksgiving: We spent a wonderful Thanksgiving at my sister Lisa's home with her husband Rob. Dinner was, of course, wonderful. My parents were also there and we had a nice quite dinner.

Christmas: After Thanksgiving we started the mad dash to Christmas. My sister Lisa, my mother, Lizzie and me went on our annual shopping day on Saturday, December 8. We had a great time shopping and having lunch!! Lizzie is really fun now and has a definite opinion about everything. We had Lizzie's offical Christmas portrait taken at Sears this year. They did an absolutely outstanding job! Here are some of the pictures in a slide show.

Christmas Eve:

We were fortunate to have my mother-in-law stay with us on Christmas Eve. Guy picked her up from Philadelphia in the early afternoon and then we all started getting ready for church. Lizzie's Aunt Fran and Uncle Lance gave her a beautiful Rothschild coat for Christmas. Of course, it was warm on Christmas Eve, but Lizzie wore the coat anyway!

We went to Mass at my sister Lisa's church. Lisa sang at Mass this year and we wanted to be part of it. Lisa took Lizzie over to the manger and they sang Happy Birthday to Jeasus! After Mass, we went out to dinner at a local diner then came home and started getting Lizzie to bed. We got all ready for bed then went downstairs to put out the cookies and milk for Santa and some carrots for Rudolph. Finally, Lizzie went to bed and Guy and I started putting toys together. We were at it until 1:30 a.m.!! Santa brought Lizzie the Rose Petal Cottage, a really cute little house (that has lots of pieces to put together!) Then, I was wrapping and wrapping and wrapping! We were so tired. Lesson learned... it will not happen again! Here are some Christmas Eve pictures!

Christmas Day:

Christmas Day was what I always dreamed it would be like with a little girl. Lizzie was so into Christmas this year. I think she really understood Santa and toys! She also understood out Jesus too!

She came into our bed at some point during the night, so Christmas morning I woke up about 7:30 and said to her "do you think Santa Claus came?" She looked at me and said, "I don't know" so I told her to go look down the stairs... the baby gate was locked so she couldn't go down! Guy got the video camera and went down first, followed by Mom-Mom, then me, the Lizzie...she practically ran down the stairs and was saying Oh My Word!!! She noticed right away that Santa had drank the milk and ate the cookies, then the tearing of the paper began!

Later in the day, our families came over for Christmas dinner, we had a houseful, but it was really nice! Here are some pictures from Christmas:

I will have more to write about tomorrow! Promise!!!

Cathy

Birthday Pictures

Lizzie simply would not cooperate and therefore would not smile! We got a couple a little smiles, but not the usual Lizzie! Anyway, enjoy the photos.

Lizzie's Third Birthday Pictures

Lizzie's Birthday

Lizzie's Birthday Party

I know, I am bad! It has been two months since my last post. Much has happened. But first here are some pictures from Lizzie's birthday and then her Cinderella Birthday Party two days later.

Happy 3rd Birthday Lizzie!!

Well, today is Lizzie's 3rd Birthday! She is a big girl now. She sleeps in her big girl bed and uses the potty all the time now. Here are some pictures from today, Lizzie just before we woke her up this morning and once we got to school...more on Saturday when we have her Cinderella Party!

Cathy

Play Kitchen, French Fries and Thomas the Doggie!

Now here is a story. On Monday, we were so excited that she had a good day potty training we told her we could go to Wendy's for dinner. We got take out and she had a cheeseburger, french fries (which we never let her have) and chocolate milk. So we go home and she starts to eat. She ate a portion of her burger and then some fries and went into the living room to watch what she calls "her shows" (honestly, she is like a little old lady watching soap operas). Her shows are Sagwa The Chinese Cat, Kipper, Dragon Tales, Thomas the Tank Engine and Noddy (all can be found on PBS Sprout's Goodnight Show). Anyway, she wanted to take her fries into the livingroom. We, being the absolutely suckers that we are, said okay. We didn't give it another thought.

Last night we were cleaning up the kitchen after dinner and she started playing with her Dora the Explorer Kitchen and got real quiet. Guy went into the dining room to see what she was doing and started to crack up. She was feeding Thomas the Doggie. She had him in her play highchair, buckled in with the tray and there were french fries on the tray. We asked her, where did you get the french fries. She said "from my kitchen". She must have put them in her kitchen on Monday for use at a later date! I told her, that they were yucky and that she can't do that anymore and not to put food in her kitchen. By the way, the fries were like rock pellets! We then searched her kitchen for anymore contraban. Luckly, there was nothing in there.

Here are some picture from my cell phone of the parties involved.

So, We Bought A King-Sized Bed, Why?????

Ok. Lizzie has been in a big girl bed now for about 2 weeks. She loves it. Twin-sized bed, Cinderella sheets and pillow. She has never come out of her room at night that is until now. The last couple of nights she started coming out of her room for one thing or another. Finally I told her, big girls stay in their room and in their beds at night and go to sleep. Don't get out of your bed or come out of your room. Well, she doesn't exactly come out of her room, she opens the door, lines up all of her peeps (we call Kitty Kat, Baby Cathy, and Thomas the Doggie her peeps) just inside the door, so she is technically in her room. She then begins to call Mommy, Mommy, ever so softly at first and then it gets gradually louder. Anyway, each time, we take her back to her room and put her back to bed. Last night, this went on for 2 hours finally at 9:30 she went to sleep. We thought, good. Until 2:30 a.m. this morning. She actually came into our room on Guy's side of the bed, all of her peeps in her arms, and she started crying. We broke our first and foremost cardinal rule, never in our bed. We were exhausted and put her into bed with us.

Now, I am smart. I learned from taking naps with her to "mark my territory" because she will take over the entire bed if you let her. I spread out on my side of the bed. Unfortunately, poor Guy has not yet learned this. He was literally hanging off the side of the bed. When I got up this morning it was pitch dark, I just had to take a picture. Enjoy.

Major Events At Our House!

We have had a major breakthrough out our house this weekend!! Our little monkey has decided she is finally a big girl and is going to the potty by herself! It was a rough start. She had her big girl panties on (Cinderella and Dora) and had to go. She started crying that she wanted a Pull Up (if I had to do it all again, I would not use Pull Ups). We told her that big girls don't need Pull Ups and that she should go in the potty! She cried more. (I felt like we were psychologically damaging her). Anyway, we had a few accidents, when all of a sudden, she had to go again, she went into the powder room, pulled her panties down and went on the potty (we gave her a choice of toilet or potty chair; she chose potty chair). There was great rejoicing in our house!! Mommy and Daddy cheering and clapping our hands. The princess was quite amused! Now the fun started. She went (I kid you not) at least 20 times in the next hour -- I think she wanted us to continue to make a big deal, which we did!

Today, she went to school in her big girl panties. When I called a little while ago, they said she was doing great! Now to the next big event.. poopy in the potty!

My sister Lisa bought Lizzie's Baby Cathy some new clothes. I personally think the doll looks like she belongs in Folsom Prison... you decide! (FYI. the picture is fuzzy because I took it with my cell phone!)

Many Updates!

Hi. A lot has been going on since the last update. My surgery date for the lapband surgery. My original surgery date was this Thursday, August 23. Unfortunately, it needed to be changed to October 4, 2007. Let me explain: when you start your journey for weight loss surgery, you have to undergo several tests. I had to get a cardiac clearance. This entailed having a nuclear stress test. The test itself wasn't too bad. Anyway, when the cardiologist called me with results, he said that "there may be something". Well, you an imagine what I thought! He said my EKG was very good and that showed that I had a strong heart. The echocardiogram was also very good, which shows how strong the heart valves are. The actual nuclear part of the stress test showed a potential blockage! My cardiologist said he didn't think it was anything, but that the doctor that read it said it could be a blockage. Anyway, I had to have a cardiac catherization on Thursday, August 17. Thank God that everything was clear. The doctor said I have a very strong heart. Well, enough about me.

Lizzie is officially in her big girl bed now. It is a twin bed with Cinderella sheets, comforter and pillow. She absolutely loves it. No one can sit on the bed except Mommy and Daddy and Aunt Lisa and Aunt Fran. She even told her Mom-Mom to move to a chair. The first day we had it set up she was up and down the stairs at least 20 times checking on it! Our baby will be three years old on September 20. I simply cannot believe it!

Here are some random pictures for you to enjoy!

New Give-Away at 5 Minutes for Mom!

One of my favorite blogs to visit is 5 Minutes for Mom. The have weekly contests for great items. This week it is a 32" flat screen TV courtesy of Best Buy. Go on over to 5 Minutes for Mom and enter the contest!

Long, Long, Long Overdue Update

Okay, so flog me with a wet noodle because I haven't updated for two months! A lot has happened in my life so here is my attempt to bring you up-to-date.

Starting in June, my father went into the hospital for a double-bypass and valve replacement. He went in on June 8 and didn't get out until June 22. He had to have another surgery for an infection that set in under his breast bone and then had to have his breast bone reset because it broke in a different place than where they did the surgery! He is thankfully on the mend now at home.

At the end of June, my brother-in-law, was in a serious car accident when he was only 5 minutes away from home. He was driving north on 295 and a car travelling south on 295 came across six lanes of the highway and hit him headon. Rob broke his thigh bone, chipped his tibula, broke bones in his ankle and has a chipped vertebra at the belly-button level. God was with him because he could have been killed. He has been in the hospital since June 28 and is coming home this Friday or Saturday.

So you can see why an update hasn't been done in a while!

Lizzie is growing like a weed and chatting up a storm. She has become the Great Negotiator when she wants something. We are also enjoying the lively conversation she has at night when we put her to bed talking to Baby Cathy (her doll) and Kitty Cat. Some nights she goes on for an hour or more!

I finally have a surgery date for my LapBand surgery. August 23rd. I am a little nervous but know this is the best thing for both me and my family.

I don't have many pictures, but here are some of Lizzie on 4th of July. We took a nap and when I tried to wake her up, she laid right back down and feel asleep. Ah, the exciting life we lead!

Guess What Our Princess Did This Time.....

The other afternoon/early evening, Lizzie was running around and grabbed the phone from me. Before I could get it from her, I heard a voice on the other end. I quick took the phone back and discovered she had dialed 911. Lovely! I told the man on the other end that she was two and did it by mistake. He said I would have to tell the township police and he transferred me over to them. I then explained to the police and they said they still had to send someone out to investigate. The officer came to the door about 5 minutes later. (Side Note: Young and very cute!! -- End Side note) Anyway, he said that they always have to investigate just to be sure. I thanked him and he was on his way. The lesson for today is...keep the phone away from your ambitious 2 1/2 year old!