...and bean makes four

TEst Post

2011-08-10T10:57:00.001-04:00

hfidh oi
hfoid yhoieh
\hoi f

A few month delay, but we are back

2011-01-03T12:54:00.002-05:00

Namely because I wanted to complain that the world has a prejudice against poor folk. My sister and Danny all but GAVE us their old 1999 Oldsmobile so Fi and I did not have to freeze our hinnies off at the bus stop anymore - but the modern day car seat does not fit. After much research Matt identified the part we needed from the dealer - who, shockingly has stopped making it. Do poor children not deserve to be safe?

SIGH. Well when I called Buy Buy Baby I learned that we had bought the fancy dancey super safe car seat - and it actually comes with an clip that can safely adjust the car seat for the cars of the 90s . PHEW! Of course, we no longer have said clip, but the kind folks at Buy Buy Baby are giving us one!

So there you have it -- no one may read this blog anymore, but through sheer determination, I will blog again, get tons of readers, and then an endorsement like this, will undoubtedly result in many an invite to BlogHer

Happy 2nd Birthday, Fiona

2010-05-27T15:47:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday to our beautiful girl. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me and your dad. We love more than words could ever possibly express. You blow our minds daily; you are so smart, sweet and hilarious. You have grown from a dear infant, to an amazing baby and into such an extraordinary toddler. I am so grateful I will get to see you become a kid, teen and woman. This world is lucky to have you. And, I am blessed to be your mama.

We had your birthday party in the park again this year - and again it was freezing. No more messing around - your next birthday will be in an indoor place space.

We were so lucky to have Yaya, PopPop, Grandma, Pops and aunt Cassie come to celebrate - and how could i forget - Mr. Adam. As soon as he arrived you screamed "aaaadddaaam" and ran to him. So darn cute.

I love you little lady.

Mommy.

The Best Compliment...ever

2010-03-14T22:35:00.000-04:00

In a meek attempt to start taking caring of myself better, I woke up before Fiona and worked out. When she was napping I got my hair cut and colored.

WHATEVER

When I was putting her to sleep to sleep tonight, she hugged me, and without me saying so first she said,"i love mama." I said "i love you, too." Then she petted my face and said, "mama a good girl."

If only I could bottle that feeling!

Cuddle, plese

2010-01-19T19:23:00.002-05:00

So have not written in forever - and I will do a catch up post, but this was too cute to risk forgetting.

Last night Fiona wakes up, crying and saying: "cooa, please! cooa, please"
I say, "you want to color?!?" (pretty alarmed given it was 4am).
She goes "NO NO NO, no cooa!"
I said, "what do you want?"
She says: "cooa, PLEASE!" (very emphatically)
I say: "you want to cuddle?"
She screams with happiness, "YES! Cooa, please."

Who could resist?

Holiday Dinner with the Solomans!

2009-12-16T11:05:00.005-05:00

Everyone needs a little Adam love

Presents rock

Fiona and Adam going "night night" on the bed RE made for Fiona's babies.

..OK thats it for now, I really have to get better at blogging.

FeFe

2009-12-15T14:17:00.002-05:00

TONS to post, but for now here is a note to myself:

Fiona now calls herself "FeFe."

Random

2009-11-18T12:57:00.001-05:00

Fiona learned how to pick her nose...which is gross of course, but now I don't have to it.
She can put two words together like a champ.

She is still the sweetest thing in the world

Updated

2009-11-03T22:51:00.003-05:00

UGH...am always so far behind updating this thing. I probaly would be ok with that, but I have this vision of printing out this chronicle of Fiona's life and giving it to one day in nice bounded book (lets see if that happens!?!?) I will post pictures soon - but I downloaded them on my work computer and cannot access them from here.

Matt and I have really struggled under the pressure of life these last few weeks, but the Bean is always there to make things amazing. In an effort to catch up on life, we decided not to go to Missy's annual Halloween party. But as Saturday wore on, and we could not resist the urge to dress our lil bean up in her super cute costume and surprise everyone. So we hit the road for the 'burg and trick-or-treated at Missy's house.

It was great to see everyone. Missy fed Fiona a waffle, which we all know she LOVES...and then, when we were getting ready to leave, Fiona was like "bye bye Missy." LOVED that.

At one point in the eve, I said to Fiona: "Its time to change your diaper"..and she leaped onto Yaya as if to say "protect me from my evil mama" and climbed up on her. So lovely!

Unfortunetly, I showed Miss Fiona how a camera works...when we were looking at the picture from this weekend we came to one of Buhba (my bother in law) holding Kayden (Jordan's beutiful daughter) and Fiona looks at it and goes "baby," (no surprise there) and then she point at Chad (aka Buhba) and goes "buhba" and kissed the camera.

I also had a video of Adam on camera. Fiona LOVED it. So that was cute, but then I downloaded everything to my work computer, and deleted it all from my camera. Last night she saw my camera and was like "addam..adamm" and was DEVESTATED when there was no video of him.

Other things:
- Fiona had crazy diaherra last week and I missed a ton of work, so this week has been hell.
- Fiona can now put words together; Matt preteded to sleep on the couch (right before he actutally fell asleep on the couch) and Fiona went up to him and said "night night dada" and put a blanket on him and patted him to sleep.

Incedently, Fiona has been a champ at going to ni-ni lately... NOT to JINX it.

We cannot teach Fiona to say "please" for our lives...ugh...We will keep trying!

She is STILL obbessed with babies

The last two days I have picked up Fiona from daycare she has not wanted to leave (as in, she screems), it breaks my heart and I feel so awkward, but secretly, I am sooo happy she is happy at daycare.

OK..Loves to all,
Ali

Night Night

2009-10-22T15:20:00.002-04:00

Fiona has given up sleeping. Last night I slept on her floor - holding her hand. But - she did not come into our bed.

So here is the question - Am I doing more harm than good by not letting her cry it out? UGH.

Just a note

2009-10-20T09:50:00.002-04:00

OK..I have a ton to write about from this weekend..but think its hilarious that now - when Fiona has to wake up and she is not ready to, she reaches for her crib and cries "night night."

Fall is here

2009-10-13T14:29:00.000-04:00

Basically, if I do not just bang these out they never get posted.
So here is the quick and dirty from the last two weeks.

Oct 3 was "wine weekend" with the girls to get psyched for Cyn's amazing wedding!
Matt and Fiona chilled in the 'burg.

Cyn's bridal party:

The vineyards were very pretty:

And, we had tons of fun

This past weekend, my parents came to town. What a nice, relaxing, lazy time (after staying up till 1am to try and do all the laundry that had accumulated in the guest room, grocery shopping, and cooking in preparation..but whatevs).

Sat night we went to Greyson's 3rd birthday with my folks. (pics to come..)
My dad made pancakes in the morning:

Yum:

Sunday we had dinner with my uncle and aunt and cousin. (did not take pics).
Then, Matt and my dad let Fiona stay up till midnight...which was awesome, because I had taken Monday off to watch her since her daycare was closed.

I now know what it would be like to have a bad baby -- good god! She was CRANKY.
Happy camper:

Some mommy-friends (Adina and Caron) took the day off to be pretend stay-at-home mommies and brought the kids to Butler Orchard (again, thanks to Adina who is all knowing when it comes to baby friendly events).

So - I checked the weather and it SAID it would be warm. It was however, NOT warm.

Avital, Adam and Fiona

Freedom:

Pumpkins are heavy:

Got it:

I'm cold

Adam is not scared of the big kids:

Fiona's favorite slide ever!

Balance

2009-10-02T00:28:00.003-04:00

OK so typically I feel really good about being a working mom.
But every now and then that guilt settles in - and so does that overwhelmed feeling.

When you are at work, you feel guilty for not being at home.
And, when you are home, you are guilty for not being at work.
When you do house work, you feel bad for not being with the baby. And, when you are with the baby, you look around and see all that has to be done (well, for the most part you are just psyched to be with the kiddo..but you know what i mean).

How do the women who do this well, do this?
Deep down - I wonder...Do any of us actually totally rock it - or are some of us are just better at covering it up...

Now, it might sound like I am complaining, but really I am not. It's more like that saying, "an embarrassment of riches:"

I love my job (and am glad I have one), and I worship my family (and am glad I have one).

Sometimes, I guess...you just get tired, ya know? How the H do single moms do this? If i ever win the lotto my mission will be to help them.

On a sort of related note, the mom of a beautiful little baby at daycare posted this on her Facebook page (And I could not agree more)

Tell Me About It

Carolyn: My best friend has a child. Her: Exhausted, busy, no time for self, no time for me, etc. Me (no kids): Wow. Sorry. What'd you do today? Her: Park, play group . . .

OK. I've done Internet searches; I've talked to parents. I don't get it. What do stay-at-home moms do all day? Please, no lists of library, grocery store, dry cleaners. . . . I do all those things, too, and I don't do them every day.

I guess what I'm asking is: What is a typical day, and why don't moms have time for a call or e-mail?

I work and am away from home nine hours a day (plus a few late work events), and I manage to get it all done. I'm feeling like the kid is an excuse to relax and enjoy — not a bad thing at all — but if so, why won't my friend tell me the truth? Is this a contest ("My life is so much harder than yours")? What's the deal? I've got friends with and without kids, and all us child-free folks get the same story and have the same questions. — Tacoma, Wash.

● Tacoma:
Relax and enjoy. You're funny. Or you're lying about having friends with kids. Or you're taking them at their word that they actually have kids, because you haven't personally been in the same room with them.

Internet searches? I keep wavering between giving you a straight answer and giving my forehead some keyboard.

To claim you want to understand — while in the same breath implying that the only logical conclusions are that your mom friends are either lying or competing with you — is disingenuous indeed. So, since it's validation you seem to want, the real answer is what you get.

In list form. When you have young kids, your typical day is: constant attention, from getting them out of bed, fed, clean, dressed; to keeping them out of harm's way; to answering their coos, cries and questions; to having two arms and carrying one kid, one set of car keys and supplies for even the quickest trips, including the latest-to-be-declared-essential piece of molded plastic gear; to keeping them from unshelving books at the library; to enforcing rest times; to staying one step ahead of them lest they get too hungry, tired or bored, any one of which produces the kind of checkout-line screaming that gets the checkout line shaking its head. It's needing 45 minutes to do what takes others 15. It's constant vigilance, constant touch, constant use of your voice, constant relegation of your needs to the second tier. It's constant scrutiny and second-guessing from family members and friends, well-meaning and otherwise. It's resisting the constant temptation to seek short-term relief at everyone's long-term expense.

It's doing all this while concurrently teaching virtually everything — language, manners, safety, resourcefulness, discipline, curiosity, creativity, empathy. Everything. It's also a choice, yes. And a joy. But if you spent all day, every day, with this brand of joy — and then when you got your first 10 minutes to yourself, you wanted to be alone with your thoughts instead of calling a good friend — a good friend wouldn't judge you, complain about you to mutual friends or marvel at how much more productively she uses her time. Either make a sincere effort to understand, or keep your snit to yourself.
~reprinted without permission

Anyway, I should sign off and hit the sack.
Loves!

Night night sweet girl

2009-09-29T22:00:00.002-04:00

In all Fiona's months, she has never cried as much (all together) as she has since we started making her sleep in her own bed. By steadfast, we are. I remind myself that it will confuse her and make her more upset if we waiver. So she sleeps in her crib...but we have a pretty gentle approach..we stay with her still she is out.

We alternate nights putting her down so she does not become too dependent on one of us (and then that person has to bear the burden for a lifetime).

Tonight was Matt's night and off to sleep she went. I heard her crying about an hour ago and ran upstairs to try and comfort her. I tried and tried. Then, she started crying "dada." I called Matt up and he goes "she just cries for the one that is not with her. she was crying for you when i put her down." But into the nursery he went. She let out a few "dada"s...and then silence. He is upstairs patting her back as I type...

How sweet...our girl just wanted her dada. And, now she is happy.

Weekend Update

2009-09-22T14:08:00.007-04:00

Well it was a long weekend (as in, it started on Thursday!).

Matt and I went to the Outer Banks for Tricia and Tim's wedding!

On Thursday night we met everyone for a pig roast (sorry no pics), but Fiona LOVED the decor:

And then we had time to see the sites..which basically included the hotel room, a nail salon, and lunch at Awful Arthur's Oyster Bar. Oh well.

Then we were off to the wedding! It was so pretty..and they had a sitter for Fiona!

Back to the burg for some quailty time with Yaya and GiGi and crew! We got to meet the adorable Miss. Kayden

She is so tiny - About 5.5 lbs and so sweet. You might note the head band. That was a gift from Fiona - It was her BABY DOLL'S!

Tara and I did some shopping and might have gotten Fiona a baby doll :). We had no IDEA what a hit it would be. It was totally like watching the Discovery Channel or something. She hugged her baby, sat in the "Fiona Chair" (which is a faux leather chair for lil ones that Yaya got for Fiona to sit in when we visit). Then, Fiona rocked and fed her baby for almost AN HOUR. She shared her puffs and even put the baby to bed on the stairs - complete with back patting and all. Heres a little blib of playtime with BaBa (which I think is Baby).

Just another monday night

2009-09-21T21:21:00.002-04:00

Dear Fiona,

Tonight, after dinner we were cleaning the kitchen and your dad turned on the PINK CD we bought you and started dancing you around the kitchen. You laughed and laughed. I joined in, and there we were having a spontaneous dance party though the house - and we were so happy.

There are little, dumb, seemingly, insignificant moments in your life that actually make up your life. And, when you are lucky, you actually notice them while they are happening.

We love you, bean.

Mama

PS Your dad is going to think this post is so lame and call me a "romantic," but I don't care, because I don't want to forget it.

Good morning

2009-09-16T09:42:00.003-04:00

For the last two mornings, Fiona has woken herself up dreaming about waffles.

It begins with a few stretches - a bit of a whimper - and then, the sleep talking begins quietly, "waa-fuuu," a little louder and faster "waa-fuu, waa-fuuu." Eyes open, sits up, "waaa-ffffuuuuuu"

We go to the kitchen "waa-fuu," sit in the high chair, rub eyes. "waa--fffffuuu." Then the magic happens when I open the frezer and show her:

...The biggest smiles ever!

Fiona can be so easy to please.

"The best weekend ever and my mom forgot her camera..."

2009-09-15T12:48:00.009-04:00

...Well, at least that's what I imagine Fiona would say if she knew how to form sentences and knew what a camera was.

The weekend started out well - low key night at home on Friday (well OK I cleaned and cooked all night, but whatever). We were supposed to go to the Renisance Festival in the morning, but that fell through. Thankfully Adam was around - and his mom who is a mad genius knows every kid friendly venue in the city. So, Stan, Adina, Adam, Fiona and I went to the best park!

Like, seriously? How amazing!

Adina's phone has a camera on it, so we were able to capture a few moments.

The buds on a cool sway type ride:

And of course they had swings:

And race cars:

And a Merry-Go-Round.

Adam, who is more familiar with the ride, was crazy excited when he saw it. He started crying out with joy and then cried "no no no" when it ended. Fiona, always more cautious then her playmate was a little skeptical..in fact, she was scared out of her bloddy little mind and I got sick.

Oh well.

Then it was time to go home for a nap (Fiona) and cook (me). Then, the Grindals came over. Oliva went to play tennis with the dads, while Lorianne, Greyson, Fiona and I decided to stay back, eat a block of cheese, drink a bottle of wine and play with a puzzle.

OK Fiona and Greyson really only had a few bites of cheese and basically none of the wine, and Lorianne really did most of the puzzle. But whatever.

The boys came home and BBQed and we had a great eve.

On Sunday we had no plans! WHAT!?!? You know I can't sit still. Matt decided we should invite the Salomons (Adam and fam) to go to the zoo with us.

To be honest with you, I don't really "get" the zoo. I mean its fine and all..but ...

Well this time I was impressed. We went to see the gorillas who were totally playing and eating and a baby was climbing all over her mama. Adina and I took the kids way close so they could see and they were amazed! They stared and laughed and I felt like a good mama, being able to show my little girl all of God's amazing creatures. I really thought she looked like she was enjoying it...and she was...until the she shouted "BALL BALL BALL!" And, I realized that yes...while the gorilla's were cool...My daughter was more impressed by the very large ball in their cage. Alas.

But then the weekend took a turn for the AMAZING...Adina mentioned that the pool in her community was closing for the summer..and on that very day they were letting the dogs go in for a swim.

Its like all of Fiona's life had been building up to this one magnificant moment when all that she loves would come together in a perfect melding of the fates (if only for a half hour).

Get to be outside? CHECK

Surrounded by dogs? CHECK

I can splash? CHECK

Is Adam around? YEP!

I through in a juice box for good messure and we were off.

FIONA FLIPPED OUT! She could not stop laughing and screaming. Its was "dog! dog! Wadder! dog! wadder! ball! dog! wadder! adam! dog! dog! dog!"

Here are some pics:

Off to the happiest place on earth in Adam's little car (what a good sharer):

Heaven on earth (if you are a 15-month old who happens to be in love with dogs, Adam, pools and balls).

And, yes..I let her get in. I debated it..I mean it could be pretty gross and unsanitary..but if you could have seen and heard her..you would have too (well OK maybe not), but I could not resist the oppertunity to let her little baby dreams come true..Bad Mama.

And there we have it..the perfect weekend for the Armentrout Family!

Family time, friends, food, animals and wine (well that was just me -- WHATEVER)!

Off to see the 'Burg Family tomorrow night and meet the beautiful Kayden

And go to OBX for Tricia's wedding.

Life is good.

One of those recap posts

2009-09-09T22:15:00.005-04:00

Been a while again, so this post is more so I don't forget the little things, then actually informative.

Jordan is having her baby tomorrow and we are so excited for Fiona to have another little second cousin---ahh! INFANTS..YAY!
Matt is working out (and so am I, but i do it at work, Matt does it at home), and when Fiona knows he is down in the basement and not with her, she hangs on to the banister, pokes her lil head through the rails and yells "dada!' She never dares go the stairs on her own, which I love.
She invented a new word.."dama" or "mada" which she cries out with joy when she is with one of us, but misses the other
She says oh-wr - for flower - and says "bubbles" like she invented the word.
She amazes me with her brilliance; we went on a walk today and she found a pine cone. I told her they came from trees - and for the rest of the walk, whenever she found a pine cone laying on the ground, she tried to put it on the limb of a tree
Incendently, whenever she saw a leaf on the side walk she tried to move it to someone's lawn...cause she is a crazy, insane neat freak...fall might just kill her..so many many leaves out of place
She started to hate the bathtub, but with a little love and tenderness, it seems to be growning on her again
And, OMG - HOW IS THIS #8....She is in her own crib. EVERYONE gave us a hard time about the fact that she slept in bed with me and Matt...But one day Tara said: "Look, you said you would stop breast feeding at 12 months and you did...you say she will be in her own bed at 18 months and I totally belive you. You will do it" And.... we did it. Thanks for the confidence Tara! We did do it, and she is champ! We read about 7000 stories rocking in the chair my mom so generousliy got us when I was prego...and then we put her in her crib (again, thanks Mom and Dad). She is so sweet..she whipers and whimpers..but Matt or I will just rub and pat her back (Mom, it reminds me of my childhood when i was upset and you would sit by bed and pat my back..I love those little moments with her - remembering what a great Mom I have). Then we sit there for a few amazing, precious-- hope they will never end moments -- she'll open her eyes and then she whimpers...sees we are still there and goes fast to sleep. She is such a doll...I was so scared of leaving her in a room by herself...and she is champ..of course.
So, not to be whatever -- but Fiona is now in the Toddlers room (one week down), but since its new...I stay and watch her for a while. I see little kids steal her toys and watch her reaction. She gets so mad, for a second...and then walks away. Which I think is great, but secrectly hope is not breaking her little spirit.
I am now reading a new baby book, which i have not done in forever - but Fiona is getting bigger and i have stuff to learn.
Last night, she really wanted a "Waa-aul" (waffle) -- so she walked over to the frezer, hit it, and then walked to her to highchair. Only problem...we had no waa-uals...try explaing that to one 15 month old who is looking at you like you dont speak English.
Missed Obama's speach, because prime time also happens to be bedtime..Bummer.

At any rate -- things are really good in the Armentrout household ...
And, that is THAT...

Loves to all!

August Update

2009-09-02T11:56:00.016-04:00

WOW - Its been a while since we have posted.

So here we go:

We headed to NJ (book on CD and all) to see my family. We had a great time with God-mommy and daddy. Then, Matt and I went to Journie's wedding in NJ on Aug 22. My mom and dad babysat Fee and we had a blast with Hburg crew! The wedding was simply amazing and I am still thinking about all the yummy food.

Fiona had fun with Grandma:

And grandpa:

And just being a Jersey girl

Then it was off to RI to visit my Grandpa (but those pics are on Matt's camera).

We took Fiona to the beach for the 2nd time in her life and she HATED it. She loathed the sand and thought it was "dirdy." She hated when it touched her feet or got anywhere on her.

Here are some misleading pics from our adventure -

She may be smiling:

But its only because she is running off the sand

We had much better luck with the pool:

Time to dry off:

We visited one of Newport's Mansions - The Elms

Of course the highlight was sailing (breaking news: my folks got a new boat -- this is the old one)

Safety first:

Me and Fee chillin while grandpa sails

Grandma mans the ropes:

And, sexy daddy works:

But we also had tons of time to relax and eat all the yummy food I have been missing all year - from lobster rolls to clam cakes...mmmmmm was the word of the trip! Fee says that every time she sees food and is hungry.

Then it was time to head home so I could prepare for Cyn's shower and bachelorette party!

But no kid could stand the whole drive from RI to DC (and neither could I to be honest), so we stopped and went to the Mystic Aquarium where we saw a sea lion show and learned all about the cute little buggers. Fiona was sure they were "dooos" (which means dog, but now realize applies to any animal that is not a "birrr" - or bird).

I met up with girls to cook and bake and plan the shower and party:

And, Matt took Fiona to the 'burg to hang out with Yaya, Paw Paw and the gang.

But, of course -- I do not have pics from that because (drum roll please)..they are on Matt's camera. I found this on Missy's facebook though :)

PS...thats not the outfit I picked out for her to wear to the graduation party...oh daddy!

Was sorry to miss the h'burg clan but was happy to the NJ/RI family and get time with my ladies.

Thats all for now!

Loves,

Your Baby Is Smarter Than You Think

2009-08-17T09:39:00.001-04:00

By ALISON GOPNIK

GENERATIONS of psychologists and philosophers have believed that babies and young children were basically defective adults — irrational, egocentric and unable to think logically. The philosopher John Locke saw a baby’s mind as a blank slate, and the psychologist William James thought they lived in a “blooming, buzzing confusion.” Even today, a cursory look at babies and young children leads many to conclude that there is not much going on.

New studies, however, demonstrate that babies and very young children know, observe, explore, imagine and learn more than we would ever have thought possible. In some ways, they are smarter than adults.

Three recent experiments show that even the youngest children have sophisticated and powerful learning abilities. Last year, Fei Xu and Vashti Garcia at the University of British Columbia proved that babies could understand probabilities. Eight-month-old babies were shown a box full of mixed-up Ping-Pong balls: mostly white but with some red ones mixed in. The babies were more surprised, and looked longer and more intently at the experimenter when four red balls and one white ball out of the box — a possible, yet improbable outcome — than when four white balls and a red one were produced.

In 2007, Laura Schulz and Elizabeth Baraff Bonawitz at M.I.T. demonstrated that when young children play, they are also exploring cause and effect. Preschoolers were introduced to a toy that had two levers and a duck and a puppet that popped up. One group was shown that when you pressed one lever, the duck appeared and when you pressed the other, the puppet popped up. The second group observed that when you pressed both levers at once, both objects popped up, but they never got a chance to see what the levers did separately, which left mysterious the causal relation between the levers and the pop-up objects. Then the experimenter gave the children the toys to play with. The children in the first group played with the toy much less than the children in the second group did. When the children already knew how the toy worked, they were less interested in exploring it. But the children in the second group spontaneously played with the toy, and just by playing around, they figured out how it worked.

In 2007 in my lab at Berkeley, Tamar Kushnir and I discovered that preschoolers can use probabilities to learn how things work and that this lets them imagine new possibilities. We put a yellow block and a blue block on a machine repeatedly. The blocks were likely but not certain to make the machine light up. The yellow block made the machine light up two out of three times; the blue block made it light up only two out of six times.

Then we gave the children the blocks and asked them to light up the machine. These children, who couldn’t yet add or subtract, were more likely to put the high-probability yellow block, rather than the blue one, on the machine.

We also did the same experiment, but instead of putting the high-probability block on the machine, we held it up over the machine and the machine lit up. Children had never seen a block act this way, and at the start of the experiment, they didn’t think it could. But after seeing good evidence, they were able to imagine the peculiar possibility that blocks have remote powers. These astonishing capacities for statistical reasoning, experimental discovery and probabilistic logic allow babies to rapidly learn all about the particular objects and people surrounding them.

Sadly, some parents are likely to take the wrong lessons from these experiments and conclude that they need programs and products that will make their babies even smarter. Many think that babies, like adults, should learn in a focused, planned way. So parents put their young children in academic-enrichment classes or use flashcards to get them to recognize the alphabet. Government programs like No Child Left Behind urge preschools to be more like schools, with instruction in specific skills.

But babies’ intelligence, the research shows, is very different from that of adults and from the kind of intelligence we usually cultivate in school. Schoolwork revolves around focus and planning. We set objectives and goals for children, with an emphasis on skills they should acquire or information they should know. Children take tests to prove that they have absorbed a specific set of skills and facts and have not been distracted by other possibilities.

This approach may work for children over the age of 5 or so. But babies and very young children are terrible at planning and aiming for precise goals. When we say that preschoolers can’t pay attention, we really mean that they can’t not pay attention: they have trouble focusing on just one event and shutting out all the rest. This has led us to underestimate babies in the past. But the new research tells us that babies can be rational without being goal-oriented.

Babies are captivated by the most unexpected events. Adults, on the other hand, focus on the outcomes that are the most relevant to their goals. In a well-known experiment, adults saw a video of several people tossing a ball to one another. The experimenter told them to count how many passes particular people made. In the midst of this, a person in a gorilla suit walked slowly through the middle of the video. A surprising number of adults, intent on counting, didn’t even seem to notice the unexpected gorilla.

Adults focus on objects that will be most useful to them. But as the lever study demonstrated, children play with the objects that will teach them the most. In our study, 4-year-olds imagined new possibilities based on just a little data. Adults rely more on what they already know. Babies aren’t trying to learn one particular skill or set of facts; instead, they are drawn to anything new, unexpected or informative.

Part of the explanation for these differing approaches can be found in the brain. The young brain is remarkably plastic and flexible. Brains work because neurons are connected to one another, allowing them to communicate. Baby brains have many more neural connections than adult brains. But they are much less efficient. Over time, we prune away the connections we don’t use, and the remaining ones become faster and more automatic. Moreover, the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that controls the directed, planned, focused kind of intelligence, is exceptionally late to mature, and may not take its final shape until our early 20s.

In fact, our mature brain seems to be programmed by our childhood experiences — we plan based on what we’ve learned as children. Very young children imagine and explore a vast array of possibilities. As they grow older and absorb more evidence, certain possibilities become much more likely and more useful. They then make decisions based on this selective information and become increasingly reluctant to give those ideas up and try something new. Computer scientists talk about the difference between exploring and exploiting — a system will learn more if it explores many possibilities, but it will be more effective if it simply acts on the most likely one. Babies explore; adults exploit.

Each kind of intelligence has benefits and drawbacks. Focus and planning get you to your goal more quickly but may also lock in what you already know, closing you off to alternative possibilities. We need both blue-sky speculation and hard-nosed planning. Babies and young children are designed to explore, and they should be encouraged to do so.

The learning that babies and young children do on their own, when they carefully watch an unexpected outcome and draw new conclusions from it, ceaselessly manipulate a new toy or imagine different ways that the world might be, is very different from schoolwork. Babies and young children can learn about the world around them through all sorts of real-world objects and safe replicas, from dolls to cardboard boxes to mixing bowls, and even toy cellphones and computers. Babies can learn a great deal just by exploring the ways bowls fit together or by imitating a parent talking on the phone. (Imagine how much money we can save on “enriching” toys and DVDs!)

But what children observe most closely, explore most obsessively and imagine most vividly are the people around them. There are no perfect toys; there is no magic formula. Parents and other caregivers teach young children by paying attention and interacting with them naturally and, most of all, by just allowing them to play.

Alison Gopnik is a professor of psychology at Berkeley and the author of “The Philosophical Baby.”

Chuck E. Cheese

2009-08-14T08:53:00.006-04:00

Yesterday was offically the happiest I have ever seen Miss. Thing. Matt, Adina, Stan and I brought the kids to Chuck E. Cheese! Adam has moved from Fiona's class to the Toddler Room at FAOB, so they have not seen each other all week - and they were thrilled to reunite!

They ran around the dining room of Chuck E. Cheese holding hands! It was literally the cutest thing I have ever seen any babies do in my entire life. Adina and I just trailed behind them -- dying laughing. When Fiona moved ahead of Adam, he grabbed on to the back of her shirt and followed her like follow the leader. Every now and agian they would stop to kiss. But that was not even the best of it...

After we ate our $50 pizza and moz sticks (thats right, $50 for some of the worst food on earth), we went to play in toddler section. Adam and Fiona were BESIDE themselves with giddy happiness. They literally would get so excited to go on a new "ride" they would bounce around laughing - but they had so much excitment in them, that realease was unsatifactory, so they would tense up their little bodies and SQUEL (scream?) with joy.

Chuck E. Cheese has this little slide (that sort of looked like this, but much bigger and cooler):

The kids crawled up the steps on one end and the slid down the other. Fiona tried to go head first EVERYTIME..and ADAM WOULD TAKE A RUNNING LEAP OFF THE PLATFOM AND FLY DOWN (over?) THE SLIDE. Fiona was very impressed, but did not follow his lead.

When Adam started climbing UP the slide (instead of using the stairs) Fiona was in awe..so she watched him twice and then did it herself. I think Matt was more impressed with her than she was with herself - little carabiners flashed in eyes.

This morning, in a rare occorance, Matt and I woke up on time for work (so no rushing around) and Fiona and I had mad snugle love time in bed together. That ubber lame song "these are the moments" went through my head...swear to God.

After getting us ready, I went to put on a necklace -- BAD MOVE. (Yaya..what have you done to my daughter? :)) She WOULD NOT CHILL OUT until I gave her necklace of her own - Which she lovingly adored the whole drive to daycare.

We walked in and, with pride, she showed everyone how fancy she was - I had to sneak the necklace off of her when I left. Hopefully she has forgotten about it.

I am leaving work early today to check out the Toddler Room at FAOB...but to be honest I snuck in yesterday for a few and that place was INSNAE. The music was blasting, the kids were like wild people and the whole thing was just over stimulating. That said - I hated the infant room at first, then the jr toddlers room...and Fiona has had mad love for both.

She has learned soooo much thanks to the ladies there, and I hear the teachers in the big kid room are amazing - they help pottey train, and then kids sleep on cots..not in cribs. But no binkis at naptime. Poor bean.

Anyway, we have a low key weekend! HOLLA

A toddler

2009-08-12T14:27:00.001-04:00

Miss Aimee just called. They have an opening for Fiona is in the toddler class on Aug 31! She was not going to move until after Labor Day, but Miss Aimee said "all her friends would be there next week" and she would "be alone with the babies" in the jr. toddler class. So I bucked up and said she could move on - 3 weeks ahead of schedule.

Jeez this letting go is really hard (and she is just going to class next door). Pre-school will surely be a killer.

Anyway, we had a great weekend in Hburg but have not posted about it yet since I don't have the pictures on this computer - will try to get to it tonight after Miss Thing hits the sack.

Silly things...

2009-08-06T13:53:00.004-04:00

I am meeting the girls after work to plan Cyn's shower..so fun, but am sad I will not see the bean tonight. I was sitting here thinking about her and little things that I never want to forget ran through my mind. So while they are seemingly insignificant, I thought I would log them:

Fiona points at her butt when she farts
Having "mastered" walking, she has taken to running. She yellls "ahhhh" the whole time and then cracks up at how fast she went
Sometimes, when she poops, she squeezes her bum so hard, she cries
We were lazy about getting up this morning, so Matt, Fiona and I snuggled in bed for a while. Fiona insisted that either Matt or I also lay down - but only with a binki in our mouths. She is such a good sharer.

I love her.

Random updates

2009-08-04T09:57:00.002-04:00

Fiona now says Bath.
When she saw Tara at the baby the shower..she opened her arms and yelled "hi yaya."
Her "hi" is more like "hiiiii" and super high pitched.
Love it.
And she "marches"
Loves to play in my man-made puddles...

Night night

2009-07-30T22:30:00.001-04:00

Matt fell asleep on the couch with Fiona. They are totally KNOCKED out, but every time she moves even the tiniest bit, he grabs on, and holds her tight so she does not fall.

Sound asleep, he watches out for her.

Love that.

Congrats Jordan!

2009-07-27T12:29:00.011-04:00

OK OK...I am sick and tired and way too busy, but could not resist posting some pictures from this weekend.

We spent the weekend in Harrisonburg at a beautiful country baby shower for Jordan - and we got lots of Yaya and Paw Paw time in too:

Tara got Fiona the cutest peal bracelet ever made:

It was so pretty, but no one could have anticipated how it would make our girl would fall in love with pearls:

On Sunday we went to the amazing shower that Kelly threw for her daughter, Jordan.
To say is was lovely would be an understatement.

(Fiona showed off her bracelet and her dress from Aunti Lyndsey to Sandra, and anyone who would say how pretty she looked :) )

Kelly lives in an old farm house on the prettiest property Fiona and I have ever had the chance to play in.

Of couse the decorations were above and beyond:

And Tara made an amazing cake:

The highlight for Miss Fiona was hanging with the fams:

But especially with her adorable second-cousin, Ryan!

They ran around and it was sooo cute. Fiona tried her best to keep up :)

A ton more happend -- but I have to get back to work.

Loves to all,
Matt and Ali

Shoes

2009-07-24T13:45:00.002-04:00

Our girl has a shoe fetish.
We went to the mall yesterday afternoon to kill sometime and run some errands.
I took Fiona out of her stroller to let her hold my hand and walk around bit.

We were having fun, moving slower than a snail as we windowed shopped. Then she pulled away from me and RAN to Payless, BANGING on the window and laughing as she turned to look at me. She was so exited!

She was in HEAVEN when we walked in. Pulling the brightest, sparklest (I know thats not a real word btw) shoes from the rack. She had a particular affinity for one pair of sandals that were a plaid pink - very cute, but too small for our big girl (which made me sad).

But Payless? Really, Fiona? Well I guess if she is going to love shoes this much it is good that she is a bargin shopper.

Incedently, she was equally excited by these large stuffed Hippo rides they had at the mall...to be honest, they were just weird.

Off to Harrisonburg for the weekend for fun times with Aunt Missy, GAK, Yaya and PawPaw.

Single Mom

2009-07-22T09:43:00.002-04:00

OK OK...we all know I give Matt a hard time for not helping out around the house. Matt of course thinks I just don't appreciate what he does do.

Well the Gods have intervened. Matt has to work on the Eastern Shore all week, which means I am going to get first hand experience of what its like NOT to have an extra set of hands.

Will keep you posted.

PS Fiona pooped in her bath the other day.

AWESOME.

Loves!

Fun fun fun

2009-07-20T12:17:00.009-04:00

Another busy Armentrout Family Weekend!
With Matt feeling better, we were all out and about.

The weekend began on Thursday when Auntie Lynds came for a visit..its worth nothing that she is the one who set Matt and I up back in 2001.

We played in the sprinkler, did some shopping and walking and eating...and a ton of catching up. It was amazing how quickly Fiona took to her. YAY.

On Sat it was off to Annapolis to for Jamie Kohlenstien (?)'s baby shower! The Morrisons were there and gave Jamie and her baby a birthday table cloth like she gave us. Best idea ever -- you bring out the same white table cloth year after year and people who come to celebrate your baby's birthday sign it and leave nice messages or funny memories.

Finally, we brought our camera to one of our hang outs with the Solomans!
Welcome to Adam and Fiona show:

Lesson: Think before you encourage your kid to "fall down" in the baby pool - Is her fear worth the minute long video clip? Adina and I think, yes!

There was swimming time:

And Daddy time:

Relaxing time:

And playing time:

And then it was going home time:

Working late

2009-07-14T23:01:00.004-04:00

...and missing my baby. So I logged on to look at her...
And then I remembered I forgot to tell you her new words - she has added "out" and "apple" to her growing vocab...so now we are at:

Maaaa (I picked her from daycare yesterday, and Adam had just tugged too hard on her and i heard her crying..."maaa mamama moma moma" and she crawled to the door) Enough to kill you -- or stop at the store on the way to work today and buy a lotto ticket ;)
Daaaa (which she uses interchangeably with Maaa)
Pup Pup (though its been a while since we've heard it)
Apple which is said Appp
Out which is "oooot"
And, shoe which is said... "shoe"
She also points and says "eh eh eh" whenever she wants anything.

I wonder what a shrink would make of her psychological profile given that info? We've got a love of food, going out, people and desire to get what she wants and well.... shoes. Hmmmm...

Spinkler

2009-07-14T11:08:00.001-04:00

Oh, and we got a sprinkler during our excursion to Buy Buy Baby...this picture isn't the best, but needless to say...Fiona really really liked it.

Long Weekend

2009-07-13T09:07:00.009-04:00

There are many a health issue plaguing our family these days.

Grandpa had to get his kidney removed last weekend, so we figured what better way to make him feel better than to spend sometime with his amazing granddaughter. But, then Matt got really sick and could not come. So the bean and I took off for our first solo road trip (with Matt freaking out the whole time making sure I was driving safely).

The trip up was great! Fiona slept the whole way. But then I was confronted with my first hurtle - i had to pee (reminiscent of our first train ride together alone). Do I wake up a sleeping baby 1/2 through a five hour drive just so I can pee?

I can't very well leave her in the car while I run in. Stress. Had to pee. Sleeping baby. I kept on keeping on. Then I noticed I needed gas. We pulled off. Gas. Check. Still have to pee. Bathrooms sooo very close. Sleeping baby.

Then I did what any good mother would do..I found a corner of the parking lot (that was lighted, but vacant) and dropped my drawers. Sleeping baby. Check. Within my eyeshot...check. Pee. Check.

And we were back on the road.

Even though we were supposed to go to NJ to help out, we actually ended up having a great time!

Grandpa played with his darling grandbaby (to the best of his ability)

We had a busy day on Sat, we began by playing with water on the deck with breakfast:

Then it was off the coolest park I have ever been to. Grandma said she used to bring me there when I was little. They have all these play grounds that age appropriate, so they had a baby one (which Fiona thought was lame), one for two to four year olds (where we played) and one for big kids (where Fiona liked to stand at the bottom of the slide and watch the big kids come down).

They had a rock wall for the big kids (Daddy would have been proud to have witnessed Fiona's interest in it). Indecently, Matt stopped at a baby store the Friday prior (all by himself) and picked out the outfit Fiona is wearing in these pics).

Then we went to the zoo (sorry no pics) that was at the same park. Which, obviously Fiona loved.

Then we went on a train ride.

Sunday it was back in the car for the marathon drive home. I tried to leave during Fiona's nap time, but 2 hours in she woke up. We took a pit stop at a Buy Buy Baby we found so Miss Thing could run around for a bit, managed to spend $100 and then got back on the road again.

Fiona entertained herself by learning to put her feet on her head, in her ears and nose. I mean for hours..she cracked herself up at the absurdity of putting her feet where they did not belong. ADORABLE.

Oh how you've grown

2009-07-09T09:44:00.002-04:00

Last night Fiona and I took a stroll down the street. When it was time to turn around, Fiona wanted nothing to do with it. So, I did what I've seen tons of moms do, and I turned around and started walking away. I looked back and said "bye bye."

She looked at me, waved "bye bye" and then blew me a kiss and kept on her merry way.
Hhahaah..my baby is getting so independent.

Getting Caught up

2009-07-06T11:12:00.015-04:00

OK So I've slaked again.
But we lost our camera for a while.

So here is what we have been up to:

Fiona had her birthday party, and I never posted pics, here you go:

She got lots of presents (thanks everyone!)

Yaya made her some yummie cakes:

We were so lucky to have so many friends and family there. The Grandparents, the Fallons, Missy, GAK...it was really awesome.

She loves to brush her teeth. Also she tries to put on my makeup when i get ready in the morning. Its so sweet:

We love to go swimming with Adam:

Fiona has gotten way more picky about eating, but she loves corn on the cob

We made a trip home to NJ to help find Grandpa who was lost at sea - but we found him

And Fiona got to go swimming with Grandma at the local Y:

And we also went to Harrisonburg a couple times (Father's day pics to come) and Fiona got to play with YaYa and Co.

Now, I have to download the pics from Matt's big camera, 4th of July weekend, and we will be up and running again.

Phew

Wastin Time

2009-06-25T10:00:00.002-04:00

OK -- We have a ton to update on here, but I left the camera in my car so it will have to wait.
I will just mention that whenever I give Fiona a bath -- the thought of water boarding swims through my mind.

She is always like "what did you do that for, dude!?"

A picture?

2009-06-15T09:41:00.000-04:00

OK Matt just sent me this - he took it with his phone.

Fiona this weekend:

No pictures :(

2009-06-15T08:47:00.004-04:00

Well I would love to post some pictures of our super fun weekend - but it seems we have lost yet another camera. I am having a hard time coming to terms with this and I am convinced it must be somewhere. I am worried that it may have gotten stolen though. I have a pretty clear memory of bringing it to work the Monday following Fiona's birthday and I have not seen it since. But no one here would steal a camera - so that makes no sense.

Anyway, words will have to do for now.

Fiona is sooo cute! She has taken to RUNNING towards us with her arms out stretched and a huge smile on her face and she pummels us with hugs. In a word..its AWESOME.

OK so this weekend.

Our friends Miranna and Charlie are moving to Benin with the Peace Corps so we went to their going away party - great to see the CIP girls. Wish one of em would have a kid soon though ;)
Fiona got filthy playing in the dirt and there was another little girl there about her age so I got in tons of "How is she sleeping?" "What is she eating?" time (which I love).

Saturday was great. We went to Baltimore with the Salomons (Adams family) and the kids had an awesome time playing together and looking at the fish. They LOVED the dolphin show, though Fiona got annoyed at points because she could not pet/kiss them. She was like "let me go, woman! I have LOVE to share with these fishes."

In other news - I just saw the pic of me and the girls from CIP. I am sooo on my health kick. GROSS FAT MAMA...ick.

Awards

2009-06-10T14:02:00.004-04:00

Today is less about Fiona and more about Matt who won 2 Maryland-National Capital Building Industry Association awards.

Don't believe me -- we have the picture to prove it.

Now if only he has aspirations to be an award winning home cleaner and builder.

Fun at the Fairfax Fest

2009-06-08T11:04:00.012-04:00

All and all it was a low key weekend. Matt spent Sat going to the movies and playing golf. Fiona and I hung out with Adam and Adina. Fiona has turned into a kissing machine (and has not bitten since our "talk") and I love it! She kisses and blows kisses. So cute. When Adam and Fiona saw each other on Sat they walked up to one another and open mouthed kissed! Thank goodness Matt was not there ;)
People literally stopped to "oooo and ahhh." It was precious.

Sunday the fams got into the car and we went to the carnival. Fiona loves her some animals - she had a blast. Fearless child!

We were not there 5 seconds when she saw the ponies and Matt shelled out the $5 for her first pony ride! Grannie W would be so proud (I tried to call you ;)

I know this sounds ridic - but literally Fiona is the happiest when she is with both of us. She giggles and laughs when we hug or kiss each other -- She loves the love!

We found our new favorite band - even bought the CD. Lets here it for Rocknocerus (you can hear their music by clicking on the link).

The band had me sold with their new song called "Pink" and its lyrics "There's a color known all around the world. Its OK by the boys, but its loved by girls...Its PINK! Its PINK! Its PINK!"

Fiona danced and bobbed her little head-- Matt the other hand was a little curious as to what would motivate 3 grown men to get up on stage, dressed up like characters, and belt out kids songs. I assured him - they were fathers themselves (well at least one of them is).

Fiona was getting a little sleepy, so we knew we had to hi-tail it to the petting zoo area. And boy, did she perk up. She saw, pet and fed a camel..

She was less taken by the bunny:

And wanted to hang with the sheep.

She fell asleep as soon as she was in my arms on the way back to the car.
WHAT A DAY!

Weekdays

2009-06-05T15:03:00.004-04:00

The other day Fiona really wanted to go outside:

She was bored inside:

So we got her ready:

To go on her first bike ride..ever!

The biting saga

2009-06-03T11:44:00.005-04:00

Fiona finally bit me. I gave her a firm talking to. She cried. We made up.

So I go into daycare today confident that the problem will now be resolved. I caught her in the act and firmly handled the situation! The teachers all but laughed at me. Apparently, Fiona knows biting is bad. They said when a baby takes her toy, she bites him/her. But then, as soon as her victim cries she gets upset and cries or pouts too and tries to kiss the baby better (isn't that incredibly sweet of my wee demon? She feels bad...ach-I love her)! Anyway, daycare does not seem to think its that big of a deal.

They said she is incredibly sweet (sans the biting) and is easy-going. They are chucking this up to teething -- which makes no sense to me seeing as its prompted by not getting what she wants -- but whatever -- her 8th tooth is breaking through her gums.

Skinny Mommy

2009-06-02T12:19:00.003-04:00

Lots of folks call tabloid magazines like US Weekly and People garbage. But I whole heartily disagree. Melissa Jone Heart has motivated me!

Waiting in line at the grocery store (of all places), I saw the headline of this week's People, "How I Lost 42 lbs" and the caption read, "I realized I don't have to be heavy just because I have kids." The headline was enough -- I did not even have to read the article and I was enlighted.

Melisa, dear: You are deep, inspirational and revolutionary. Thank you for provocative insights.

OK whatever: But it did motivate me -- and I went back to the gym for one of the first times since I found out I pregnant and subsequently learned I (apparently) have an insashable appetite for ice cream with snickers mixed in and like to binge eat in the wee hours of the night.

Mark my words internet -- I will be thin again!

Comments

2009-06-01T11:52:00.001-04:00

Hey,
I think I updated the blog so that anyone can leave comments :) Sorry about that.

We love good weather

2009-06-01T10:21:00.007-04:00

What a weekend! It was nice to lay low.

We spent time with Mary and Chris before they head off to Cali and spent a ton of time outside playing!

Matt and I love festivals of all kinds - and this weekend there was one in a park right by our house. Fiona's 1st one!! When she was first born last year we used to talk about all the places we would bring her so it great to actually get out there and do it.

They had a "musical petting zoo" where kids (and Matt) could play with a bunch of instruments:

There was a playground - and Fiona loves to swing:

And of course tons of music and dance time for me and the babe:

(she looks like she wants to get away, but I promise, she was having fun :))

Other big Fiona updates: She now kisses..all open mouthed and slobbery, but so cute.

My Sweet Girl .... BITES!

2009-05-29T11:11:00.002-04:00

OK so Fiona is quite possibly the nicest kid in the world. But last week, so got bit by a baby at daycare. And, now...she bites other babies. Like, everyday. Her teachers say she only does it when someone is trying to take her food or a toy she is playing with...but really!? What do I do!? I have never seen her bite in my life, so its not like I can discipline her.

In other news we hit day 2 of weaning part 2. Its so hard. She cries and cries with her eyes closed tightly, then she gives up and just looks at me, like "why, mama?"

In an effort to not give in, I drank too much wine last night. Opps. Bear with me, there was some logic to it. I figured if I had booze in my system, I could not feed her (or she would get drunky)...and it worked. I did not give in.

Anyway, she did really well. Matt was out for night (winning awards for being an awesome home builder) so it was just me and her. She cried for a full five minutes before giving in, and then we just cuddled big time.

We are one day closer to no more nursing. I feel kind of sad...We went to the docs and Nurse Nancy said it was time, and then I just never gave her the boob again. Wish I had known that morning's feeding was going to be our last.

Pout.

Weaning Part 2, Day 1

2009-05-28T09:01:00.003-04:00

Poor Fiona screamed last night! All she wanted was to nurse. Sorry mouse.
But Matt and I stood strong and rocked her back to sleep...twice.

Happy Birthday, love bug!

2009-05-27T11:56:00.004-04:00

Happy Birthday Fiona!
I cannot believe you have been here for a year! That said, I can hardly remember what it was like not to be your mom.

You literally fill our days with the most absolute joy. Your smile could melt an iceberg.
You are a doll!
You are so sweet and so lovely. You have been such an easy baby.
We could not be more grateful for having been blessed with you (someone was not paying attention when they gave us such an amazing little life to care for)!

OK we just got back from your one year old check up with with Nurse Nancy -- and shocker -- she says you are perfect - in fact, she said she has been impressed with you since you were born (What?!??! Its not like I said you were perfect, SHE DID. Its not bragging if you are just reporting what a medical professional said - all I am saying is I was not surprised by her medical opinion).

You are super tall (98th percentile), and somewhere in the 80th for weight. You weigh 23 lbs. She says its TIME for you to get off the boob (100%) and get used to sleeping alone (another shocker, I know!). So Dad and I are going to have to buck up and get it done. Its going to be a tough week for you and I am super sorry. But, its for the best (or thats what they tell me :))

Nurse Nancy wants to watch your little ears because of your recent ear infections. She says they look OK now, but given that your ear drum ruptured and Dad had such problems with his ears, she wants to watch it.

We talked about your disdain for milk - and Nurse Nancy gave me a ton of ticks to make sure you are getting the calcium you need! So YAY!

You got your shots and you looked at the nurse as if she was crazy for hurting you, but you really only cried for a second. You are so tough.

OK..I need to get back to work.

I love you. Happy Birthday!
You are a star.

Love, Mama and Daaaaaaaaaad

Pre School

2009-05-26T14:57:00.002-04:00

It was about 45 seconds ago that I was like an hour pregnant and apparently LATE to the game to find a daycare...now Fiona is 1, and I it seems I need to get my game face on to find a pre school...
DUDE!

and we are back

2009-05-26T13:06:00.004-04:00

OK -- really want to start actually using this thing. Its been way to long to get caught up..so I am going to just use a few bullets.

We had a great memorial day weekend. Great Grandma Whelan came for a BBQ with the O'Connors and MacNameras (sans Finn).

Last weekend we finally had Fee baptized and had a huge birthday celebration. She had an ear infection and her ear drum ruptured, but she kept on smiling. The whole fams was in town.

Getting fancy here -- I going to try and add a few pics:

And another,

Fiona has her one year old check up, so I am going to post again tomorrow. Blog I will!

The Crib

2008-10-22T12:51:00.002-04:00

Fiona is 5 months old...and its time for her to sleep in her own crib in her own room (which I am not sure I am totally on board with because I love snuggle time -- but everyone tells me this needs to happen). And, if I really put some thought into it, I know they are right. I mean it has to happen sometime - she cant very well sleep with us until she is a teenager..I mean even I know thats weird... and the switch to the big girl room only gets harder.

So last night was our first go at putting her to sleep in her crib, in her room. As you can imagine, I was an emo mess listening to her cry. And Matt fell asleep - on the couch - at 8.20pm. So, I was on my own (not bitter as you can likely tell). I put her down 8.15 - she wailed until 8.20. I wanted to throw up. I checked in on her and she she smiled. I left, and she cried from 8.25-8.30. I picked her up and fed her again. She cried from 8.35-8.40. I picked her up and cuddled her and she feel asleep. Put her down and she was golden until midnight -- not that I could sleep because I was on pins and needles looking at her monitor. Matt began to snore and I moved him up to bed too.

Then all he!L broke lose and Fiona cried every hour on the hour. I would snuggle/feed/comfort her back to sleep, and put her back in her crib. I STAYED strong, she stayed in her crib but it broke my heart.

So this morning at 5am -- I had enough and called Matt to duty. Fiona PRETENDED like she was ok...but once she got to daycare she turned on the water works and has refused to eat all day.

I know I am supposed to let her work this out herself, but its killing me. I have to try to remember that ... Sh!t I dont even know what I am supposed to remember...I just hate this.

So thats all for now....

Chug-a-chug-a-choo-choo

2008-09-29T09:54:00.003-04:00

You know how everything is "harder" when you have a baby? From getting into the car and running errands to finding time shower? Well, for the most part this is true. Two things I wish I had thought of before Fiona and I got on a train to New Jersey without Matt this weekend: How is one supposed to pee, on a bumpy train ride, with an infant? And...after you wait on that long line in cafe car to a get microwaved burger, bottle of water and chips...how are you supposed to get back to your seat with the food and an infant in tow? Alas. We spent a lovely weekend with my family in New Jersey. Fiona was amazing on the train. Not a peep. People commented on how good she was...and i must say I was aglow with pride. What a bean!

Matt sent out some pics of the baby this weekend while we were out of town (i think he missed us). This one is from Fiona's first trip to the beach in New Port, RI - Labor Day 2008.

A Letter to Grandma A

2008-09-12T09:21:00.004-04:00

Matt gets Fiona ready for daycare in the mornings and sent me this picture from his phone on Tuesday, Sept 9.

I have been meaning and meaning to write...but alas...anyway, I just wrote an email to Tara and realized it had lots of updates in it, so I thought I would paste it here...and have a bit more of a chronicle of Fiona's life to glance back on in the years to come. So here it is:

OMG Tara!

You are going to die when you see her next weekend. She has transformed from a new born into a little baby this week. She even has favorite toys! And you should see grab for things and put them in her mouth. Its so cute…it takes all of her concentration and she focus so hard her little arms and head shake.

When Matt comes in – and she hears his voice she LIGHTS UP and looks for him. And, then SMILES AND SMILES when he talks to her. I think she is turning into a Daddy’s girl.

Matt and I officially lost our first battle as parents: She is still refusing the bottle – so now she basically does not eat all day, and wakes me up at 4am to binge eat for 2 hours before I get in the shower. I wish she would take the bottle..but its whatever. I do not really mind. I mean it can only really last another 3-6 months and then she will be eating real food (though I am a little concerned about how we will get her to drink water…but I guess we will just figure it out when the time comes).

Things have been going really well lately…I have come to terms with working and really kind of feel like I have the best of both worlds and would not want it any other way. I get to be an adult at work and then really appreciate the time I have with her from 3 when I leave till 9 when she goes to bed. (The housekeeping as gone by the weigh side..but something had to slip and I would rather spend my afternoons bringing her to the park or something than cleaning)…but I will have to figure out how to juggle a little better, I guess it will come with time.

Anyway, you are just going to melt when see her play with Matt (don’t tell Matt but I think he might be her favorite parent at the moment…I LOVE IT!)

She is literally the best thing ever!

We cant wait to see you all (in our very messy house).

competitive mommies?

2008-08-15T14:04:00.001-04:00

So a baby at my mommy and me and class learned to roll over. Fiona has no idea how. So begins the "my baby can do this, can yours?"

I shot back -- well Fiona knows where her hands are (which is almost true...she has begun to suck on them, but in order to accomplish this goal she must first wack herself in the eye and move her head up to meet her hand). Its super cute.

boobie juice

2008-08-12T13:41:00.003-04:00

They say there is a chemical release in your body during labor that makes you fall madly in love with your baby the second she is born. I would say that's true, but what you are not prepared for is how much more you love your baby each day. You love your child with such umuff you think you might explode -and then the next day, you love her even more. It freaking crazy.

Anyway, thats not what I logged on to write about -

Matt, Fiona and I are going to a wedding on Sat. and i wanted to find out if I could squeeze my fat arse into a dress i already owned. (Conveniently enough, I gained a ton of weight just before I got preggo, so I have a cute, though be it large, dress in my closet). Anyway, it fit. I was excited. Then, just as I was taking it off, my boobs shot out about a half gallon of boobie milk all over it.

FIOLDED.

Fiona updates: The little bean is trying to sit up even though she is much too little. She ends up doing these little baby ab-crunches - struggling with all her might. Its soo cute, until she starts crying cause her belly muscles ache. Perhaps i would empathize a little more if i ever managed to try and do a sit up myself. Alas...

She also smiles like a champ.

Still no luck on getting the kid to take bottle -- though she is making some progress and does not cry when we show it to her. Baby steps!

The Grandmas and Grandpas (and even a great Aunt) have been visiting the last few weeks -- now that Fee and I are on own again, we really miss their compainsionship...

I will add some new pics once we download them (please lodge complaints with Matt).

Muah,
Ali

Gymborie!

2008-07-08T15:53:00.003-04:00

Today Fiona and I went to a trial Gymborie class for infants. OMG it was so fun. The teacher was mighty impressed with Fiona's development - and she should know, she is a Gymborie teacher after all. I mean I am not sayin, I am just sayin.

But really, I always breathe a sigh of relieve when someone comments on Fee's development...I am like "phew...I have not f-ed her up yet! 6 weeks down - 17-odd years to go!"

While we were there, we played "tummy time" with a huge mirror. So basically they lay a big mirror on the floor and you play games with your little bean as they look at the reflections in the mirror.

Fiona is still too little to really hold her head and look into the mirror, so she had to lay on a little pillow that propped her up... as soon as she could gaze in the mirror she caught sight of an adorable 4-month old's reflection and went nuts trying to wiggle over to her (which of course she can't do yet), but it was really cute. I have not seen our baby express so much interest in anything else to date.

I think we may join Gymborie on a regular basis.

Lets see: the basics...Fiona is 11 pounds! The doctor says that's huge, but great!
She likes to be held 24-7 and loves anyone who will oblige her, so it was great to have my sister in town with her husband all weekend. We had a blast and they loved holding the baby -- which i also loved. I could shower whenever I wanted...it was amazing.

Matt and I have been soo lucky with friends and family all willing to drop everything and come out to MD to hang out with us and visit our kiddo. And yes everyone...I have figured out how to drink wine and breastfeed -- Steve F even hooked me up with these little test strips so I can test the boobie milk and ensure its booze-free before Fiona eats.

The Fur Ball is doing great, if feeling a little neglected. Poor Furry Murry.

Loves to you all...and I will try to write more -- its literally hard to find time. (The stunning, beautiful, amazing Miss Fiona can be a tad demanding).

Muah!

Week 2

2008-06-16T10:01:00.006-04:00

I am actually leaning over a breast feeding baby to type. Normal.
Lets see -- my mom was here all last week (which was so great). She helped with everything - which was so amazing. From cleaning to cooking and running errands with me.
Fiona had a her 2 week check up...she gained a pound (sounds like her mama).
I went to the doc ( i lost 30 lbs and have 30 left to go...can you say Big Mama).

We celebrated our first Father's Day by driving down to the burg to hang out with Matt's side of family. Fiona was a dream in the car.Slept the whole way --both ways. She is basically the best baby in the world. She is 20 days old and has cried for no reason --- twice. Rumor has it that may be in part because i never put her down. (either me or someone else is always holding her) . At any rate, she gets cuter and cuter everyday and she loved hanging with the Armentrouts.

Fiona is super coordinated (the docs were impressed) and really strong. She can already lift her head and she plays with her hands (very advanced..she should not be able to do that until next month). With her great disposition and inclination towards intelligence, Matt and I can help but wonder if they gave us the wrong kid.

oh yea -- her little belly button thang fell off.

We settled on a daycare -- which basically sent me into a crying frenzy all week. I love and miss Edelman, but I do not think there is anything in the world that can prepare you for the thought of leaving your bean at a daycare...And well, I will just leave it at that.

I think she is developing a little personality already as well...and she may be a bit of a diva. Her little ass will explode with a poo and she demands her diaper get changed RIGHT AWAY...I mean she gives you two seconds to get that dirty old thing off her. I would not want poo in my pants either...but I mean..come on!

I am sure that she smiles and has coo-ed (at least 3 times :))

I cannot believe how many of you guys read this blog. Now that Matt got the computer fixed I promise we will write more. Thanks so much for all your comments.

Miss Fiona and I are off to get an oil change. Our big trip for the day. Incedently -- this is my first day 100% on my own. eeek...

Loves,
Ali

Stormy Stormy Night

2008-06-04T22:05:00.006-04:00

We are obviously behind in updating the blog seeing as Fiona is already 8 days old. But I was so crazy today, I could not resist getting online to share it with you all.

There were MAJOR storms in the area tonight -- normally I love storms as I view it as time to be lazy, snuggle on the couch and drink copious amounts of red wine -- seems that has all changed since Fe got here.

So its raining and Matt comes home to work from here (whoohoo yay! -- or so I thought, he actually WORKED all day-- so he really only gets a 'yay!'). Anyway the power goes out and the house gets really hot -- too hot for Fee -- so we decide to get dinner OUT. But Fiona is too little go out in public. I start to freak out. We go in Noodles and Company and I start CRYING because i am concerned about the germs and other people's rug rats running around with boggies hanging out of their noises. I make Matt swear to forcefully remove anyone who comes to close to our babe.

I begin to plead and beg -- we need to leave, NOW, no he cannot finish his dinner, we need to go to a hotel -- but just then the radio guy says the tornado warning was just been upped to a tornado watch and recommends everyone go their basement. What a pediment! Matt comes up with a plan (genius!)...we will go home (were there are no germs), sleep in the basement (which is cool). He will run to Target and get lights and life will be ok. Confident in the man I married, I stop crying -- He brings me and Fiona home, sets us up w some flash lights -- And takes off to get supplies. What a guy.

Before he gets to the end of the road, I call him..tell him to come back..the power is on. And incidentaly -- the storm is pretty much over.

Murry however, did take advantage of us being out of the house and ripped all our garages apart That was cool.

So I will write more regularly moving forward (well as soon as I get a power cord for our lap top) but here are little highlights of Fee's life I do not want to forget:

Being Fiona's mom is the best best thing in the world -- everyone says there are no words to describe it -- but there really are none.

I am a hormonal basket case and cry at least 5 times a day -- namely because i am so happy to be Matt's wife and Fee's mom. Matt just looks at me like i have 6 heads when I tell him how happy I am. He recognizes I am still his crazy wife but seems to be confused that my "fiery" expressions of emotion are positive and not negative.

Matt is in love with Fiona...he is holding her right now and has said "babe..babe...look at her...look at her."at least 6 times

Fiona projectile pooded on Matt today.

Her doc said she is very "intact" which matt and i take to mean as "very advanced."
Our princess eats like a beast and farts louder than Matt -- but even that is exceptionaly cute on her.

Oh yah .. and labor...well that deserves a post of its own for sure...so i will write more later (lucky you Daves).

Thats all for now...Will try to upload some new photos tomorrow

Its not like Christmas morning around here....

2008-05-13T17:12:00.004-04:00

I think one of things I want to remember most about this pregnancy (besides all the amazing fattening food I have stuffed in my mouth, and how nice random strangers are to preggo chicks) is how Matt has handled the last few days. He literally whines that he wants the baby NOW NOW NOW. I sorta feel like I am letting down - keeping the baby all to myself to spite him. Ha!

Every morning he asks me, "are you sure you should go to work today, babe? Maybe you should stay home and get some sleep...you know...in case the baby comes tonight, you want to be well rested...." Then he pauses and says, "Do you think maybe the baby will come tonight?"

I reply, "No, Matt -- I do not think so."

And, he just looks at me like I just ruined Christmas or something.

Its like he goes to bed every night hoping tomorrow will be the big day! And every morning he is a little more disappointed.

Awww...

We are going on another walk tonight...so I will let you know if anything happens.

Our Weekend Window Shopping Extravaganza

2008-05-12T11:36:00.006-04:00

As many of you may know -- the docs encourage expectant moms to walk a lot -- apparently it helps bring on labor.

So last night, Matt and I (still 2 weeks shy of our due date) come to the totally un-substantiated, un-validated conclusion that I am in stage one labor. Obviously. But how can a couple encourage their bean to make her debut when its already late in the evening on a rainy Sunday night?

Well, we can't bring the Fur on a walk because its cold, and Murry hates the rain...And, for the matter, I hate the rain. FOILED.

Just then, my darling, involved, supportive, loving, problem solving husband gets an idea-- WE WILL WALK, YES WE WILL!! And, we did...we took marathon laps around a closed mall in White Flint on the coldest, darkest, rainiest day of the month.

THE RESULT!?!??!?!

Nadda.
No labor...no baby...did do some good window shopping however.
Oh well, Fiona is still sung as a bug in a rug.

:)

OMG

2008-05-08T17:41:00.002-04:00

OMG I am blogging! WHOA.

Love,
Ali (and Steve...who is actually doing the "blogging" part of this...but at least he is teaching me).

One last thing before you leave.

2008-05-07T15:58:00.000-04:00

Dear Alison,

Nine months ago when you stopped smoking, drinking, partying and going to the gym we were worried. Ever since we found out that "the bean" was the cause for your reformed ways, we've been reveling in your irreproachable behavior and preggers' glow.

From the first (alien-esque) sonogram to your (gigantic) baby shower, we have been lucky to be a part of the ripening of the bean.

Your stories never cease to spread wonder, amazement and often, knee-slapping laughter. Three months without you will inevitably be quieter, and a lot less fun.

To keep a little bit of you with us, and to start off a journal you'll be able to look back on years from now....

We present your blog, ...And The Bean Makes Four.

Here's to all the joy that Fiona will bring to your lives and ours.

Love Always,

Your Digital Public Affairs Team