Papa's 60th

My dad's birthday was the 20th, but we had a surprise party for him on the 17th. As for the "Papa," he really wants to be called Papaw, but Adeline can't say that (or chooses to not do so), but she does call him Papa. I think its really cute. And I hope it sticks. : )

The other pics are from post-party. We've been talking about how Adeline needs a table, to sit and do, well, whatever. Mom told Aunt Judy, who in turn found this picnic table! Thanks Aunt Judy! David and Uncle Justin did a fantastic job of assembly, Adeline did a fantastic job of climbing all over it.

Finally able to upload those pics MC sent......

Puppies!

One of Adeline's favorite new words, and favorite new animals. These are Justin's and they are about six weeks old. Perfect for playing with a 16 month old. She really wanted to get the puppy's tail!

Why didn't I know about this before?

I was surfing the net last night, trying to find a "I'm-going-to-be-really-healthy" diet guideline for pregnancy. I stumbled across a pregnancy website called www.babyfit.com. It's fantastic! Not only does it send me the weekly update (like I got when pregnant with Adeline), but it has the coolest nutrition section! You put in your pre-pregnancy weight, and your height, and check any problems you have (high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.), and they come up with daily nutritional and exercise goals for you. But, possibly my favorite thing, there's a Nutrition Table where you type in what you've eaten for the day, and the program calculates how closely you've come to reaching important totals of things like calcium, folate, protein, and (super-important) calories. I love it! For those of you who are pregnant and haven't discovered it yet, I highly recommend it.

As an added bonus, when registering for the site, it gave me the opportunity to register with Pampers.com. After registering, you can enter product codes from Pampers products you buy, you collect points (kind of like credit card reward points) that you can redeem in their rewards catalog! There's all kinds of stuff like books, DVDs, toys, and games. Every time you enter a code, you'll entered in a drawing for a 3-month supply of diapers. I'm probably boring you with all of this, but I think its great! If you don't use Pampers products, then you wouldn't be interested, but I tried every kind of diaper after Adeline was born, and Swaddlers were by far my fave. I've stuck with them through Cruisers, and we'll move to Feel-and-Learn soon. See, this is my life now, I get excited about diaper rewards....but when you buy as many as we do, any reward is appreciated! (By the way, Pampers people, you're welcome for the endorsement, and I'll expect my check any day now :)

I'll try to do another post with the rest of the pics from our Oxford weekend later. BTW, thanks for sending those, MC!

Hey everyone!

I know it's been a long time! I promise new pics soon, I just don't have time today. Been busy lately, and today the weather is much to nice to be staying inside on the computer. I hope you all are experiencing the same sunny and mild that we are.

We're doing great here, Adeline has two new molars (!), and we are having some success in our campaign to get rid of the pacifier.....looking like we'll definitley get it away from her before kindergarten, which, to me, is victory! I had my 4-month check-up recently, and everything appears to be fine. I had put on more weight than I wanted, but Doc wasn't upset (this time) since I hadn't gained any up until that point. We get that ultrasound on April 4th (can't wait!), and the dreaded gestational diabetes screening will be the next month. I'm so NOT looking forward to that. I have a feeling this time I won't barely pass (like last time). I'm trying to go ahead and give up the sweet tea and chocolate now. Might as well be prepared.

David has a B-B-Q fundraiser tomorrow (for the fire department where he volunteers), and then he and Adeline will have a playdate. Because Mom (aka Nana) and I are going to a Viking Cooking School class! Wednesday was her b-day, and this is her present. We'll be cooking Italian food (grilled portobello mushrooms, herbed cheese flan, veal with fennel and tomato sauce, and some kind of almond cake!) I'll let you know how it goes, but we're really looking forward to it!

We heart Mary Carole, Laura and Jenny!

I'm so sad that I didn't take more pictures this weekend. I did end up with this great one of Shane, Laura, and Mary Carole. (Taken at Oxford University Club amidst our trip to dessert heaven, courtesy of Chef Wes). Maybe I can beg Mary Carole to email some of her pictures so I can post (please, please, please!) We had much fun with them. And I'm really happy we got to take a trip to Oxford (which I miss) to see Shane and Amanda (who also are missed). The weather was a little messy, but we didn't let that stop the good time!

In other news, Adeline enjoyed her weekend at my parents. I picked her up yesterday, and I'm not even sure she noticed I had been MIA for three days! I think that's probably a good thing. Also, I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow. I'm looking forward to hearing that little heartbeat again (it's always reassuring), and dreading getting on the scales. The University Club dessert and 208 Lamar scallops (yum!) are probably going to catch up with me : ) Only four more weeks until we get another ultrasound! Those of you who have taken the poll I posted clearly believe we're having a boy. I haven't checked the results in awhile, but last I did, it was something like 80% voting "boy". We'll see, Mary Carole is convinced we're having another girl. I have plenty of clothes if that's the case!

Little Gym

I don't know why some of these are so blurry. Maybe Adeline has gotten my camera again and put smudges all over the lens. Has certainly happened before. But, anyway, these are a few pictures from our trip to Little Gym with Casey, Bethany, and Harper on Saturday morning. Adeline didn't feel super (she caught another cold at Mother's Day Out, imagine that), so she wasn't in the best mood to begin with. Despite that, she was still game for the first 10 minutes or so....then they brought out the parachute (that's the big multi-colored piece of fabric she and Harper are sitting on). That was the end of the road for Adeline, it scared her to death. She wouldn't have anything to do with any activity after that. But it was still fun to see Harper! Harper had a fantastic time, but she was a little apprehensive about the parachute too!

I don't know if I've mentioned this yet, but we have out of town visitors this weekend! Our law school friends, Laura, Jenny, and Mary Carole are coming to see us! We've been trying to organize this forever, and finally decided on this weekend. We can't wait to see them. Only Mary Carole has met Adeline, and she was only a few weeks old then, so it will be fun to introduce her to Jenny and Laura. I know she'll love them as much as David and I do!

Cast your vote!

I added a little poll over to the side. (I hope it works like it's supposed to). So, let us know whether you think we should be buying (more) pink or blue! I have a little less than 6 weeks until we will find out....

Wondering what we've been up to?

Probably not really, but I'll tell you anyway : )

1. David had a birthday recently! I didn't get a chance to post about it, but Nana (my mom) watched Adeline for us last Saturday and we got to go out and have an "adult meal". That's always a good thing. I gave him tickets to the Cardinals/Redbirds game in Memphis, (at the end of March)...which means he'd better take me with him! (Just kidding, I'm probably not the most fun ballgame date, "How many people does this place hold?" "How many innings are there?" Those are the kind of Qs I ask).

2. Adeline had her 15 month check-up last Friday. She threw four kinds of fits. I had to literally pin her to the table, and she cried so hard she almost threw up twice. I was so embarrassed, but it did get worse. I asked good ole Doc if there was any way I could make that go more smoothly. His answer? "Well, yes, having a strong-willed child can be a gift from God, but....." On then to a 15 minute lecture on strong-willed children. I was MORTIFIED. I think it had something to do with us being the very last appointment of the day, and his patience wearing thin. I tried not to be too hard on Adeline, because, who LIKES getting shots? Anyway, her stats put her in the "tall and skinny" category, which is a change from the short, round stage we've been in for awhile : ) For the record, I liked the short, round stage.

Height: 31 3/4 inches - this puts her in the 90th percentile for height
Weight: a mere 21 lbs. - this puts her in the 25th percentile for weight

Random note: I met the sweetest mom in the waiting room (you know how you meet people and know you like them immediately?). She was there with her two-week-old...I had forgotten how tiny they could be...who hadn't stopped crying all day. I felt instant bonding when she said, "She's cried all day, and all I can do is cry with her." Boy, do I remember that feeling. Anyway, the baby's name was Layla (cute, huh?) and I think they figured out it was reflux.

3. As for the littlest Slocum, I think I can feel him/her moving already. I know with Adeline, I wasn't sure what I felt was a baby moving until around 20 or so weeks. I'm only 14 weeks now, but this time, I know a little more about what baby-moving feels like. Only two more appointments until we get another ultrasound! I'm really looking forward to that, not only to find out the sex, but to check and make sure the little one is developing okay.

4. We get to make our first trip to Little Gym next Saturday! Casey, Bethany and Harper invited us to Buddy Day! Adeline is quite the monkey, so this will probably be her kind of thing. I'll try and remember my camera so we can take pictures. We were excited to get to meet Bethany and Harper for lunch this week. We hardly ever get to do that, and we enjoyed every minute!

5. Shout out to my little brother! Justin completed his first half-marathon today! For those of you who are exercise-challenged, like myself, that's 13 MILES! He did it in a little over an hour! I can't imagine. I would take me an hour to run around the block. Who am I kidding? I can't run, make that WALK around the block. He informs me the Boston Marathon is on his to-do list. Go for it little brother. He gained instant notoriety during my law school days by coming to run in the Jean Jones Run/Walk for Cancer and taking first prize in his age group! He's my hero : )

Whew! Okay, that's a lot of info, likely more than you needed. I'm still waiting on some more of you to start blogs of your own! I need to know what's going on with all of you! I love checking Keesha's!

Teeth-brushing, cupcakes....just a bunch of stuff.

Lots of new pics, I'm overdue....again. Hope you're all having a great week.

One thing, because of an unfortunate credit card incident my mother had earlier in the week, I am now thinking about making our blog private (she's got me all worried about online security), so this would mean I would collect your email addresses, send you an email inviting you to be an "authorized viewer, and then I think you would have to use your email address to create a Google account. Which you would log into to view our site. So, leave me a comment (a) to let me know you visit us, so I can get your email address somehow (note: DON'T leave your email address in your comment, I'll get it another way) and (b) to let me know what you think about this. Love to all!

Busy, busy....

Hi all. Here are pictures from earlier today. Just as it gets more difficult to get Adeline to be still for a picture, it becomes increasingly difficult to get a picture WITHOUT the pacifier. We're going to have to package that thing up and ship it to Siberia. You'll notice the mess of toys in the background, for those of you with kids, I'm sure you can relate, for those of you without them or expecting them....oh, you just wait. I fight a battle with the house daily, and the house usually wins : )

We have finally won the battle with the cold though. That means a full night's sleep, and a houseful of happier people. I'm thnking of taking Adeline back to the Mother's Day Out program we were going to at the end of last year, so that will likely mean exposure to new and fun germs. But I feel it's important too for her to have interaction with other children....David's dad says to think of it as an investment in her immune system. It certainly qualifies as an investment in the Memphis Children's Clinic!

To those of you who have been so sweet to ask how I'm feeling, the answer is good. What little nausea I've had this time is almost gone, and the bigger problem, the exhaustion, is getting better too. Althought the Dr.'s scales say I've weighed the same since the beginning of December, the clothes are starting to get tight. I need to take a couple of those side profile pics, and in a hurry too! I'm really looking forward to week 20 or so, when we get to find out if Adeline is getting a brother or sister. And I'm equally dreading week 24 or so, which means time for the glucose test....some of you may remember I failed this test with Adeline (in addition to it making me sick, sick all day). So, until then, (hopefully) news will be a little boring!

Oh, one more thing! I'm so excited to welcome the Truloves to the wonderful world of blogging! They have the cutest girls, and I can't wait to see all the pictures! Keesha, you'll have to let me know whether or not it's okay to add your link to my list. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Before and after the haircut.

I finally took Adeline yesterday and got the much, much needed haircut. I posted some pictures from Sunday morning before church. She looks so pitiful with the sour face and that hair in her eyes. (But observe the cute dress from Nana). The striped-bunny-shirt picture is from today, post haircut, and noticeably better mood. I thought I would go ahead and put these up while she's napping. She had a fun day because we went to eat lunch with David, which means she got to run wild all over his office and get attention from all the ladies that work there!

Well, not much else to report, and I had better finish this up during the 5 minutes I have left before she wakes up. Oh, there is one thing I've been meaning to take up with my dear readers.....I think some of YOU need blogs too! I know most all of you, and you're incredibly interesting folks, and it's not hard to set up! If I can do it anyone can. And you can even make it private too (meaning you add the email addresses of people you want to be able to see it). I've thought about making this one "private" but I've had it long enough that I have no idea what friends of friends of friends keep up with us this way, and I don't want to leave anyone out. But, c'mon folks! Create a blog for me! I need more distractions! Okay, that's all for today! Hope everyone's doing great!

For Mary Carole.....

I am behind with the posts, I do admit. I think Adeline kind of has a Mary Carole thing going on in the pics below, don't you think? Both of you look cute in your glasses : )

These are actually my Mom's new reading glasses. Adeline was fascinated with my Mom in them, so we thought we would let her try them on. Then, of course, we had to go to the mirror for her to have a look. (Note ugly pink bathroom tiles in the background...someday, someday we will be able to leave the ugly pink bathroom tile behind, keep the faith). My Mom and Aunt Haz came to see us today, and it's always so great when we get to spend time with them. Adeline has ANOTHER cold, so we couldn't get out much, but we still had fun. Sidenote: do you other mommys out there give vitamins? Pediatrician said it was not necessary, but I think Adeline would benefit from them. Leave a comment and let me know.

I don't know if I've mentioned that we've been going to a new church lately. Since about September, I guess. We really like it, lots more young couples and kids Adeline's age. Last night we had dinner with our Sunday school class at Mark & Brooke Howell's (they teach our class, and, additionally, David's sister Andrea is married to Brooke's brother Frank). We had so much fun and met even more great couples. Kiddies were more than welcome, but since Adeline has the cold we thought it best not to infect the other kids. Anyway, I say all this to ask for your prayers as David and I consider joining this church. More on this later.

Feel like I should give a pregnancy update also. If I had been blogging the first time, I'm sure I would have given a much more interesting running commentary, but since I've kind of been-there-done-that, I won't be nearly as much fun. (And, also Mary Carole, I KNEW you would be the one to want belly pics, and I just don't think I can do it. BUT I do promise pics of moi periodically so you can gauge just how GI-normous I'm getting.)

Harper's Birthday Party!

Harper's Birthday Party!

Harper taking a bite out of the monkey!

Harper's cake.

Lizzie Beth trying to make an escape.

Harper's Birthday Party!

Adeline & Ms. Sandra with one of the "Monkeys".

Harper and Sam catching up.

Harper's Birthday Party!

Adeline warming up to Casey's niece.


The birthday girl, Harper, getting ready for cake!