Life - Using It Up, Wearing It Out

We spent this past weekend at Honey's house in Cooper, and it was just fabulous. Cooper (sounds like cooker, not ku-per) is one of those small towns where everybody knows your name. Whenever we visit and bump into people at Ronnie and Marylin's store, Red Door Antiques, or Miller's old fashioned soda fountain, the first question we get is "Who do you belong to?" I say, Leo and Dorothy Millard are my grandparents, and their daughter, Melissa, is my mom. This question might seem strange to people who have no connection to a small town, but Cooper is just one of those towns you are unlikely to visit if you aren't related to a resident. That fact bothers Poppa Leo. He has always wanted Cooper to attract more tourists.

Leo Millard knows everything there is to know about Cooper. He is the President of the Cooper Museum and he is devoted to his town. I got to tour the museum with him this weekend, just the two of us. He took me there in his golf cart, opened the museum on Sunday, when it is usually closed, and gave me the grand tour. He pointed out the things he thinks are the most interesting and told me the story behind them. I have written here before about the value of time and how we choose to spend it. Well, hearing my granddad's stories, learning a tiny fraction of what he knows and what is important to him, was probably the most precious thing I could have purchased with my time.

One little quote he passed on to me as we honored history together was something his Momma used to say to him when he was growing up - "Use it up. Wear it out. Make do, or do without." Turns out, that simple saying was something people of her, and then his, generations lived by. As I look for a full time job in a tough economy, I think it will serve me well to "make do" with what I have - which, I am very grateful, is A LOT.

Aurelia got to spend some priceless time this weekend with her Honey, her great-grandparents, Poppa Leo and Granny and my Aunt Marylin and Uncle Ronnie. She also got to see my cousins Amanda and her brother Brad and Brad's daughter Lily. We had so much fun. Let's do it again! (But not before we go to Odessa to visit Grumps and Grandma Becky. That is our next trip, I promise!) Here are some pictures from our visit to Cooper.

Four generations:

Reli with Poppa Leo and Granny:

"I just love being the center of attention!"

Here is Reli enjoying her teething "popsicle" and showing off her smacking skills for cousin Amanda and Aunt Marylin.

Hanging out with Momma and Dadda:

Trying on hats with Uncle Ronnie at the Red Door:

Looking up to her cousin Lily

Here is a video of Aurelia at home making her pterodactyl sounds in the "Day Spa". Music to my ears . . .

And last, but not least, to all of you Koruna fans out there who are in desperate need of a fix, here are the cousins and their daddies playing with the beloved birdies on the toy from Grandma Marcia.

Bye-Bye!

Wow

In the 10 days since my last post Aurelia has done so much. On Father's Day she cut her second tooth. Now she has two tiny teeth peeking out from her gorgeous grin.

A couple of days later she started to sit up on her own. Now she is sitting up like a big girl! Here is a video of her playing with her birdies on the toy she got from her Grandma Marcia. She loves those little birdies!

We went to visit Brant, Joanie and their little boy, Oliver, in Northern California over the weekend and Reli had her first swimming pool experience. She loved being in the water and we all enjoyed the respite from the already very hot days here in Texas. It was wonderful being with our friends and spending some much needed down time as a family. Here is a video of Aurelia swimming and some photos of our time in Cotati.

Poolside Family Time

Her most recent "accomplishment" started happening just last night. Several times throughout the night she turned over onto her stomach. As some of you know, Reli has not historically been a big fan of tummy time. As a result, she has ALWAYS slept on her back or her side. When she turned herself onto her tummy last night she strenuously objected and requested immediate assistance to rectify the unpleasant situation, to which I responded with swift action. Although she learned many weeks ago how to turn herself from her stomach to her back, with all of her recent developments, she seems to have forgotten that skill. Well, when she went down to sleep tonight she again turned herself to her stomach and after a few minutes of objection, she actually fell asleep. That was 2 and a half hours ago! (Yes, she is still breathing). I think that this is all part of her body telling her it is time to prepare to crawl. Wow. And Yikes! On that note here are some photos of our girl from the past 10 days.

Here she is playing in the ball pool her friend Elijah has at home, lucky boy!

And here she is "swimming in our backyard where we had a little fun with her hair. Her swim mohawk is awesome.

In addition, here is a video of Koruna on her first birthday, saying "Hi" to her cousin Reli - Melts my heart.

Love to you all,

Momma.

Happy Father's Day - Part 2

Aurelia's birth made Jonathan a father and the time he has spent with her has made him an incredible dad. They have such a beautiful, pure love for each other that has just blown Jonathan away from day one. Watching him with her, I know just how lucky Aurelia really is to have a dad who cares about her the way Jonathan does. One day, she will realize her good fortune as well.

The two of them have a morning ritual that involved Jonathan bending down into her crib for some face to face snuggling. She reaches out to him, touches his face and says words she saved all night just for him. Those moments are almost sacred. I captured some of that precious time this very special morning.

After their morning snuggle, Jonathan danced with his daughter. What a beautiful thing.

Reli sang a song earlier today, just for her Daddy. He wasn't here so I recorded it for him.

Happy Father's Day, Jonathan. You are a wonderful father.

Happy Father's Day - Part 1

There is nothing quite like a girl's relationship with her father. It is, I think, mutually reverential and awe-inspiring. Fathers and daughters take turns watching each other with wonder and admiration. They are equally amazed at the other's strength and probably equally befuddled at times at each other's way of thinking. I know that I have grown up watching my father become the man he is today. I have gone from looking up at him, to looking up to him. I have gone from just having his eyes, to seeing the world differently because he taught me what to look for. I cannot imagine who I would be today without my father.

My dad made me want to be stronger, tougher and braver than anyone else and he made me believe I am. He told me that you have to work hard, and then he showed me what hard work really means. Because of his lessons, I always thought working hard meant working as hard as you possibly can while making it seem like an absolute pleasure. Because of my dad I believe that challenges are something to meet with excitement and confidence. He taught me to enjoy work; that work is, and should be, a part of a balanced life. He also showed me that work isn't always something you get paid for. He spends countless hours toiling and tinkering on an endless list of "challenges" for me and my sisters and his mom and his sisters and his neighbors and his employees, etc. The man stays BUSY helping people. He gives and gives and gives of his time, his talents and his energy, which even after 58 years, still seems boundless.

My dad also showed me that you can fix almost anything. Because of my dad, I have little doubt about my ability to do anything I put my mind to. I don't think my dad has ever faced a problem that he couldn't tackle. All my life he has been a carpenter, a plumber, an hvac guru, an engineer, a manager and a mechanic. He has also been a pony, a shoulder to ride on or cry on, a basketball coach, a swimming and diving instructor, a willing audience for countless homespun productions, and one first class swing pusher. I do not know anyone busier or harder working than my dad and that makes me so proud. I want to be just like him.

Thank you Dad, for being YOU.

My dad is also an amazing grandfather. He came here this weekend and spent some pretty magical moments with Aurelia. I love that he takes so much joy in the little things. She is so lucky to have such an awesome grandfather! Here is a video of dad feeding Aurelia. Priceless. . .

Some Big Firsts

The last few days have brought about some exciting "firsts" in Aurelia's life. On Saturday, Aunt Whitney, Honey, Aurelia and I were sitting in a high school auditorium waiting to see our niece/granddaughter/cousin Simone dance in her first recital. Aurelia was chewing on my hand when I felt a little something sharp scraping my skin. I felt along her gums and just a few days shy of turning 5 months old, Aurelia cut her first tooth! It is her left front tooth on the bottom. I think she is proud of herself. Her smile seems a little bigger now that she has something to show off. Here she is grinning ear to ear with Poppa Jake and Gamma Pamma Lamma.

While Honey was here over the weekend, she and Aurelia had some fantastic time together. Honey brought her a new toy and a cute monogrammed toy keeper strap. She babysat for us one night and she spent every minute she could showering Aurelia with love and attention. What an awesome grandma! Here are the two of them making each other laugh and I think this might just count as Aurelia's first "No".

Here are Aurelia's first pigtails.

Koruna and Reli - first time at the barre together and first conga line.

Yesterday was another first for Aurelia. Her night sleep has been a lot less consistent lately which I have simply chalked up to teething. Jonathan convinced me to call the doctor's office and she suggested that maybe she is waking up because she is hungrier than before. Her next suggestion - start her on solids. So we did! Last night Aurelia had her first bites of rice cereal. I actually had to put her high chair together yesterday so she would have a place to eat her first meal. She took really well to being fed and she seemed to enjoy the cereal. And so begins a whole new world of "firsts" . . .

Wah - Wah - Whitney! Is Amazing

As though there were any doubt as to who the best nanny in the world is for Aurelia and Koruna, Aunt Whitney takes the cake. She is wonderful with the girls every single day, but some days she really just outdoes herself, like today.

First of all, she spent the last two days here with Aurelia (even though we were all pretty sickly) while the Ingrams were in Mexico, so today and tomorrow she gets to spend entirely with Koruna. I had not seen Koruna in WAY too many days and Whitney knew I was missing my soon to be 1 year old niece very badly. This afternoon, Whitney brought that little angel over here for a cousin play date.

It was beautiful. Seeing my sister interact with my daughter and niece with such sincere love just made me fall in love with her all over again. Ah, Whit. You are amazing. Thank you for all that you do.

These girls LOVE their Aunt Nitney. Here she is with both girls.

Here are some pictures of the girls playing together. What big girls!

Aurelia has learned a few new things lately. For one, she discovered her feet! It only took a few more days for her to figure out that she could get them to her mouth. Success!

She is also starting to drink water. Here is a video of her first few sips. She's not sure she likes it yet, but she is really good at using the cup already!

We bought Reli a little swimming pool the other day and she took her first "swim" in the back yard.

Finally, a few pictures of Reli when I dressed her up as Little Bo Peep for her Aunt Nitney.

Long Beach with the Kaplans

Last weekend was Ben Kaplan's bar mitzvah and his 13th birthday so we went to Long Beach to celebrate with him. Aurelia did pretty well on the flights, but the highlight of her trips was meeting her cousins and aunts and uncles for the first time. She was reveling in the attention and I am sure she will want to see everyone again soon. I did not get enough pictures or video, but here is what I got.

The man of the hour and the woman who made the whole weekend come off without a hitch: Ben and Stefanie.

Here is a video of Reli with her cousins Noah, Micheal and Ella (the San Diego Kaplans) and some pictures of her with her Aunt Lyn. It was love at first sight.

"Aunt Lyn, have you seen my belly button? It is really cute."

Because Reli is the youngest baby, we got the guest room of honor at the Long Beach Kaplan's house, which meant we got extra special time with Josh, Stefanie, Kayla and Ben. Thank you all for putting up with a little screaming and a little less sleep. Hope it was worth it! We certainly enjoyed staying with you.

Some morning time with Uncle Josh:

Here is Reli with her cousins Ben and Kayla, and another shot of her with me and Kayla (no, that is not an optical illusion, Kayla is taller than me!). They were both awesome with her. She misses you already!

Ben went with Aurelia, Jonathan and I to the beach on Saturday (his birthday). It was Aurelia's first time to see the ocean! Wow.

Happy birthday Ben!