Andrina's Vote

Tonight as Andrina and I were cuddling before bed she told me, "you're the best mommy in the whole world". AAAAWWWWWWWWWW! Now if only Mommy could get back on track with blogging...

Swim Lessons

Andrina had her first swim lesson this morning. Just 3 days after the L O N G drive back from Orlando. I hope she will know how to swim by the end of the summer!

Georgia to Flordia...wait, that's it?

We are finally in Florida! I think I felt over-accomplished the first day of driving. We were able to make it from Illinois all way through Indiana and halfway through Kentucky. Then the next day all the way through the mountains of Tennessee and about 120 miles into Georgia. Today felt somewhat like a downer. Georgia is such a big state to drive all the way though. It felt so good to finally be out of there. No offense to Georgia, I am just feeling relieved that being done with driving though it feels like so much more has been accomplished. So nice and HOT here in Flordia. Again, an outdoor pool which Andrina and I enjoyed! Tomorrow it will be DISNEY WORLD!

Kentucky to Georgia

Our second day of driving. We are stopped for the night just south of Atlanta. It is so nice and HOT here! You know you are really far from Chicago when the hotel pool is an outdoor one instead of an indoor one! Andrina is, of course, very excited, to be on the way to Disney World but after the long day of driving, she was happy to just play in the pool with Momma. We were actually the only ones in it too which was nice.

Our Road Trip Begins!

The 3 of us left for our first family vacation today. Which is also our first road trip. 1208 from Chicago to Orlando! We drove over 400 miles today and are stopped for the night in Kentucky. I don't think I will be taking any pictures until we get to, or are much closer to, our final destination in Disney World. It is not easy driving so far with a small child with 2 weeks worth of luggage!

A Little Irish

Happy St. Patty's Day 2011

Tom says that Andrina looks like a Celtic dancer in the picture.  I think he's right!

Buzz Lightyear

Andrina dressed up as her favorite character--Buzz Lightyear!!!

Well Rounded Child

In the first two photos, Andrina looks like a stereotypical girl, playing with some dolls.  Anyone who really knows her though, knows that she's much more into toys and themes that are more traditionally associated with boys.  Much like the last photo.  Which was my Valentine's Day present to her, since she also really likes Superman lately.

Toy Story 3 On Ice

Andrina is into everything Toy Story lately.  So we took her to see it on ice.  The quality of the photos are horrible, as you can see, but she had a wonderful time!

Maharet

Maharet is my 16 year old kitty. I adopted her as a kitten from a shelter. Maharet is a sweet cat. As she's gotten older she has become more affectionate. Now she is so affectionate she is content to be petted and held constantly while purring all the while. A few days ago I noticed a huge lump at the top of the bridge of her nose. It seemed to develop overnight. I took her to the vet and it was biopsied. Unfortunately, it is cancer. The vet says it is a very rapidly advancing form. But Maharet is still as sweet and affectionate as ever. So we have an appointment with a vet oncologist and I've bought some alternative cancer treatment supplements. As long as Maharet is not in pain and is having a good quality of life, we will continue to treat her and try to kill the cancer.

Summary of an Act from a Movie According to Andrina

"I want to tell you something Mommy. In the dinosaur movie there was a baby dinosaur in the egg. He was a very nice dinosaur and he came out of the egg and he yawned like this"...

That was just what Andrina said to me when we were cuddling before she went to bed tonight. After I tucked her in and we said our goodnights, I immediately came to the computer to blog this so I would get her words verbatim. I'm so impressed with her!

How Time Flies

I'm getting ready to turn off my computer for the night when this photo:

comes up as my wall paper. Wow. Andrina was only 4 and 1/2 months old. A little over 3 years ago. I remember how little she was, still all baby. Chubby belly, chubby cheeks, even chubby little feet! She was always so beautiful. Just so much smaller here. I remember holding her for the longest time and drinking in her sweet baby sent. Holding her, breathing her in and knowing that I must have done something right for God to give me this baby. I am so lucky, so incredibly blessed to have this child. I could never ask for anything more. How could I? Thank you God. Thank you so much. Again. Everyday since she was born I have expressed my gratitude for her. And I will continue to do so.

Gingerbread Train

Tom & I bought a gingerbread train kit to make with Andrina as a Christmas activity. We originally planned to make it on Christmas Eve-Eve (or December 23rd), but since there was a death in the family and funeral sevices to attend to that week, it didn't happen. But I knew we'd get it done eventually and it didn't matter that we did it after Christmas, Andrina loved it and it was an enjoyable family activity. Which was the point! Here's some pictures from the construction & decoration process.:

Happy New Year 2011!

Since Tom & I didn't do anything last New Year's Eve, I really wanted to do something, go somewhere, this year. So we went to a party downtown. The real downtown, as in Chicago on Michigan Avenue. I love living in the suburbs because it is perfect for having a child in, but I do miss the city! Sometimes I get lucky and I get to go there with some girlfriends but not too often. I think I was in Chicago a total of one time in 2010! It is such a welcome change to dress up and do full hair & makeup, wear heels & sip champagne all night! The party we were at even had gambling (Chicago only allows this one day a year with all the proceeds going to charity and very low betting & winning limits). This was fine by me because I have no desire to really gamble but it was nice to do something very different for a change. So Tom & I played 21. I learned with quite a buzz going on but I won a whole $80! This was pretty good considering I only bought $60 worth of chips!

Overall, it was a very fun night! So nice to be out with my husband, Andrina dreaming away at home with a sitter, and staying out until the party was officially over and we all had to leave! I think I want to go to this party next year too.

55

and raining on New Year's Eve. If only it was 55 degrees all winter long...

spring clothes in December!