Bright eyes and on the move

I thought it was time we took some more pictures of Nessa this week (this was Wednesday)and since Shawn was home with her in the morning he attempted to take some first and then I managed to get a few more later that afternoon (I wanted a nice one of her in this outfit). While trying to get the photos Shawn learned that Nessa doesn't really understand the "still" part of still photography!

I finally got Nessa to hold still for a minute by giving her blanket to her. I then was trying to quickly snap the photo before she moved and got a bit close, but I still like it.

Unfortunately we can't even come close to sharing Nessa's best moments. There are so many sweet, funny, giggly, sly, cute or just plain adorable looks that Nessa has as she interacts with us that we're never able to capture on film. Nessa's personality continues to emerge as she becomes more and more expressive -- and most of it is good. :-)

Awww...

isn't that sweet...

Nessa's chocolate bunny

A few more Easter pics

The afternoon was spent with family and here are a few pics of the kids having fun after the Easter Egg hunt.

A few Easter pics

It has been raining ALL day here so it's a wet and muddy Easter ... it's a good thing Nessa has such a cute rain poncho (thank you G &G Brooks!). I tried to get a picture of the girls dressed up after church but Nessa was ready for a nap as you can tell from the one pic I did get. Megan is wearing a special dress that Grandma Karen got her that matches the one her American Girl doll, Molly is wearing.

Glorious spring!!!

We've had a beautiful week here for the most part with lots of warm sunshine. Since today is also beautiful, Nessa and I are going out for a long walk as soon as I post these photos. These are from when Nessa and I played out in the backyard Wednesday afternoon.

Do not bite the hand that feeds you!

Do not bite the hand that feeds you!

This is what I told Nessa today after she bit my finger (hard!!!) while we were sharing an impromptu snack of cheese and crackers! She had stuffed too much in her mouth (mommy's opinion) and I was reaching in to check (bad idea) ... I yelled ouch which did not even faze her much to my surprise ... I was even bleeding ... so if you see a bandaid on my finger...

Overheard this week

Hoping to start regular postings of such snippets...

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Mommy to Nessa: "Chew, chew, chew."
Daddy: "Nessa -- it's the train theory on eating..."

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Shawn at about 3:50 a.m. "I think she's awake."
... All is quiet...
Tami: "I think you're hearing things."
...All is quiet...
Nessa shrieks loudly at about 4 a.m....
Tami gets up to spend some "quality" time with Nessa...

Shawn admits later that morning that he was glad Nessa was awake and he wasn't hearing things and then in response to Tami's disapproving look says: "it's easier to be honest than kind at 4 a.m."

Tami still laughs when thinking about this...

:-) True AND funny!

So how big is "So Big"?

I'm finally catching up with a few things...

Well our almost one year stats for Nessa from her one year well check done the week before her actual birthday are as follows:

Weight: just shy of 21 pounds (plus she was wearing her diaper which even dry weighs a few ounces, but apparently they're afraid of her getting the scale wet or something)

Length: 28.5 inches

Head circumference: 17.8 inches

For those that keep track of those things this puts her in the 50th percentile for weight and Head circumference and in the 25th percentile for length.

For anyone interested in comparing Nessa's size at a year to Megan's size at a year -- well, we're out of luck (I was wondering) as her baby book does not have 12 months listed (I must have lost that note prior to starting her baby book when she was 2). For some comparison we have to go back to 6 months when Megan was 19 lbs 1 oz and 26 inches long and at that age Nessa was 18 pounds 7.5 ounces and 26.56 inches long. I think Nessa is still a little longer and slimmer than Megan was at that age. Nessa is wearing the same clothing and shoe size as Megan was wearing at one year though (one note I did make in the baby book -- go figure).

We think our "So Big" girl is just right!

Now if only Nessa's hair was in the 50th percentile!!

The new Monday night routine

So much for snappy titles (sorry Shawn)...

Monday nights used sometimes consist of a Yoga class (if I was lucky) along with a family supper, homework time with Megan and stories before bedtime if we succeeded at time management. As of last week we had to add an additional task to the list -- getting Nessa's bag ready for daycare and Tami organized for the next day.

Last Tuesday, April 4, I started a new, part-time job as a technical writer at La Crosse Management Systems (LMS). LMS is a small software company in downtown La Crosse with only one other (full time) technical writer. It's exactly the kind of company I have missed working for in recent years which is why I was attracted to the position while casually job searching for something part time to get out of the house and earn a little money to put toward travel and other expenses.

I work 20 hours a week and currently those 20 hours are done Tuesday through Friday starting at 7:30 or 7:45 a.m. as Megan's schedule allows. It has been even more of a transition than I expected so I'm reserving any real comments for another month or so as we all continue to transition to our new schedule. My time at work has always gone by very quickly though so I take that as a good sign that the place is, at the very least, interesting.

And a public thank you to my wonderful husband for keeping this blog interesting this past week (I still can only say WOW to his wonderful post 'To my daughter...' ... either that or get leaky eyes with sweet happiness) and a huge thank you for helping me and our family with this transition!!! Shawn, my love, I couldn't do it without you!

To My Daughter As She Turns One

Nessa,

Now that we've had our first year together, you should know how much you mean to me, and how much I love you. I hope you feel it every day when I hold you, play with you, feed you, sing to you or do anything else with you, but I want to write it down, too.

I was always scared of babies until you came along, little girl. I didn't think I would ever have children, and I wasn't around them much. I thought I would have no idea what to do with a baby--how to hold it, how to interact with it, how to help it when it was hurting. But when you were born all my fear went away. Holding you is the most natural thing in the world. Playing with you is more fun than I ever imagined, and I found I can sit for hours if that's what it takes to help you feel better. You have brought out things in me that I don't think anyone (except maybe your mother) thought existed.

The joy I feel when I see you smile is so intense it's physical. The pain I feel when you are hurting is so great it scares me. The wonder I experience as I watch you discover the world seems greater than any I've ever experienced on my own. You and your mother have taken my world and wrapped it firmly around the two of you, never to be unwound. My most solemn responsibility now is to provide for my family, and I embrace that responsibility willingly and with love.

I'm looking forward to watching you grow, Nessa Boo. This is an exciting time. It seems like each day you learn something new about what you can do, and it's so much fun to watch you learn. Soon you'll be walking, and then talking, and the world will become a bigger, more exciting place for you to explore. I'm looking forward to that, but I know I'll miss these days, too--something will be lost when your world is no longer just our house and family. I'm sure that your delight in all the new things you find will make it bearable for me, but I will be a little sad. Some day the world will pull you away even more, but I don't have to think about that right now. For today you are my peanut girl, and I'm your dad, and that's all we need to be for each other.

I love your mother very much too, little girl--she is my best friend and my greatest joy. I hope you see that whenever you watch us together. But you are my greatest treasure. I had no idea that you would affect me so, but I'm so glad you have. I hope you always realize how much you mean to me, and how much I love you.

Happy Birthday, Nessa Rose!

Love, Dad

Business (Objects) As Usual

Shawn here. Well, it's official: I'm no longer employed by Firstlogic. Neither is anyone else, as Firstlogic no longer exists. I am now an employee of Business Objects, a publicly traded firm with thousands of employees worldwide and over a billion dollars in annual sales.

The good news is that I will continue to be an employee of Business Objects for the foreseeable future. Some of my co-workers (up to 60 by one estimate, out of about 400 total Firstlogic employees) were not so lucky: they were told that their services are only required through the end of April, or in some cases the end of June. Although I am happy to have my job, it still sucks to know that people you like to work with will soon be gone (especially when people you think should have been let go somehow kept their jobs).

Days like this are never much fun. The remnants of our "Last Day of Firstlogic" party on Friday were still in the office, so walking into work was like waking up on New Year's Day with a bit of a hangover and seeing all the mess from the New Year's Eve party still in the living room. You spend the day trying to find out who will be gone and who will still be around, while trying to act like you're not trying to find out. Not much work gets done, and you're not quite sure what to do. It's a very dysfunctional day trying to pretend that "Nothing's wrong--I'm just like every other day!"

My record (since becoming a programmer) now stands at Shawn 7, Lay Offs 0. My personal best for the longest time with a single employer, which had been growing daily through last Friday, has now settled at 4 years, 10 months, 3 days. Today was Day 1 of working towards a new mark. I hope there will be many more.

Forward--Ride!

Shawn here. Although there are many wonderful things associated with Nessa turning one, the one that I've been most eagerly anticipating was turning her car seat around so that she faces forward. I did it Saturday night after we were sure Nessa was home for good, so that it would be all set for Sunday morning. At last--no more car seat digging into my shoulder when I twist in the driver's seat! I can put my arm behind the passenger seat again when backing up! The only bad thing is that, since we moved the car seat from the middle of the back seat to behind the driver's seat, I can no longer see my little girl without moving the mirror, since she tends to lean toward the door when she's just sitting there.

Nessa seems to like the change as well. The sun isn't in her eyes nearly as much any more, and now she can see where we're going as she rides along. I'm sure Megan appreciates the extra room as well. It takes away a convenient space to stash the diaper bag and other items for short trips, but I'm sure we'll adjust to that very quickly.

One Year Old!

Shawn here. Nessa turned one year old today! Mom and Dad got her a pretty new dress to wear.

At church everyone sang "Happy Birthday", which Nessa thought was fun. At noon, lots of people came over for her birthday party. Her Grandpas and Grandmas were here, and several aunts and uncles and cousins, and some family friends, too. She got to open presents...

...which were fun, but the wrapping was better...

...and she got frustrated because she couldn't just play with her cool new stuff.

Nessa had her very own birthday cake with a big candle.

There was another cake for everyone else.

At first Nessa wasn't sure about her cake (that other one looked much more interesting)...

...but once she tasted it, Nessa decided that her cake was pretty good!

It was a great party. The only problem was that, in all the excitement, Mom and Dad forgot to get out the ice cream!