Happy Anniversary

Today was our 2nd wedding anniversary. We had such a great day. We enjoyed time at the park with Loryn and my Aunt Cinda and then went out to lunch to a great little bakery called Edgars. We finished off hte evening at a great restaurant called 26. We highly recommend this restaurant. On Wednesday nights they do wine tasting, so we had a great time.

Here is our menu from dinner. When I say YUM, it doesn't even begin to describe this meal.

We started out with thier house made potato chips with a bacon ranch dip and their chicken satay with a sesame peanut sauce. For dinner we enjoyed the Gulf Coast Shrimp, George’s Bank Sea ScallopsProscuitto Ham, Shiitake Mushrooms, Sweet Peas Handmade Strozzapretti Pasta, Sage White Wine Cream and the Citrus Braised Short Ribs with a Spicy Ham Cheese Grits Cipollini Onions, Summer Squash Natural Jus. The food was so good and so filling and rich. We ended up bringing back half of the meal for my Aunt and Uncle to try.

First Hanukkah Present

Last night we went and had dinner with Eric's brother Brian and his wife Karen. I should have taken pictures of the nursery and completely forgot. Our nephew Gabriel is due at the end of March and his room is perfect-it is decorated in a sports theme and the walls are just a very pretty blue. We had a great time hanging out, having dinner and opening presents. Uncle Brian and Aunt Karen bought Loryn a ball pit. She had so much fun dancing and jumping up and down on the box. We can't wait to set it up in the house and invite Brian and Karen over here.

Please check out some fun pictures of Loryn opening her present with her Uncle Brian.

Take me to the Zoo

Loryn and I went to the zoo yesterday with our friend Jeff Reese. Since he and I are both not working right now, we thought it would be fun to get out and go visit the zoo. Loryn had so much fun. She got to see the giraffes, pet a giant 700 pound pig, go on a private tour and check out some really neat birds and a giant giant porcupine. We had such a great day. It was a nice trip to hang out with a good friend and let Loryn experience the zoo.

Here are some great pictures from our little adventure...
Arriving at the zoo and checking out all the animals
Not sure if you can see it, but there is a tiny new baby gorilla. It was half the size Loryn was when she was born. Just tiny.
At Starbucks after the zoo. She loved being able to walk around. And she was given a free scone
Jeff holding the owl
Me holding the owl, and Loryn checking it all out.
It is amazing that the owl only weighed 4 pounds, but it seemed like a heavy 4 pounds when it all rested on your hand
Susie taking Loryn into see the giant pig. We each got to pet the pig. It was a really cool experience.
Loryn checking out the giraffe.

Happy Thanksgiving 2009

Thanksgiving at Eric's mom's house was a whole lot of fun. There were lots of people there. Eric and Loryn and I (of course), Eric's mom and stepdad, Eric's grandmother, Marshall's parents, Eric's step brothers Jonathan and Eric, and Eric's wife Heather. Loryn loved the sweetpotatoes, the turkey and gravy and carrots. She especially loved her cupcake. Enjoy some pictures below from the festivities of the day.

Happy Halloween!

Loryn's second Halloween was a whole lot of fun. We went down to Siesta Beach with Eric's mom and step dad. We spent the day at the beach and then got Loryn dressed in her ladybug outfit (minus the wings) and went trick-or-treating. Siesta Key does trick-or-treating a little differently. The stores all open up and we went there. She got a lot of candy and a cookie from one of the shops. She fell asleep right after she finished the cookie. Trick-or-treating was a lot of fun for us too. There was one location where they were doing wine tastings and had bottles of water. It was a great day. And we finished it up at a Japanese steakhouse with Aunt Karen and Uncle Brian.

Here are some pictures of the great day...

I guess I spoke to soon

Tonight Loryn started having a reaction to the MMR vaccine. I am watching her carefully since she developed a high fever (103.1). Everything else with her is completely normal. She is playing and laughing and eating and doing everything else she normally does.

So now, I will be watching her carefully to see how she does with the fever. I called her doctor's office, and they said this is normal. But just to keep an eye on her incase something develops that isn't a side effect.

Trip to the Mall

Eric and I took Loryn to the mall yesterday to go shopping. We went to the Children's Place and bought Loryn a new outfit from her Aunt Evette and then walked around the mall. Loryn loves when she can get out and play in the kids area. She is getting better not getting into other kid's personal space. (She doesn't get that she just can't go up and touch some other kid). Eric got so mad when this kid walked over to Loryn and just pushed her down. Loryn looked so stunned and couldn't figure out what happened. Loryn also took a liking to one of the dad's that was there, we had to stay next to her the whole time, because she kept going up to this guy and trying to talk to him. (Talking in her own little way). The guy was very friendly and Eric sat down next to him and chatted for a few minutes about all the kids. The guy had like 4 kids there. Very friendly with Loryn. They were patient with her when she kinda got in their way and even played peek-a-boo with her in one of the fun tunnels. The kids had won toys in the the arcade that was there and offered Loryn one of their new care bears (probably because Loryn kept trying to take it-she hasn't gotten the hang of how not everything is hers).

We left the play area to go to Macy's and Eric had her up on his shoulders. It was so cute. She thinks it is just so much fun to treat her Daddy's head like a drum and pull on his ears. All of a sudden Loryn leaned down and gave the biggest burp or something. It sounded like she was about to throw-up on Eric's head. I started laughing so hard (I almost cried). The look of shear horror in Eric's face was just so priceless. Loryn just had a big smile. She knew she wasn't going to get sick. And it kinda looked like she enjoyed causing her daddy to almost have a heart attack. I wish I could have gotten it on tape (it really was that funny).

I did post mobile pictures up on Facebook of the fun adventure to the mall.

Update to the Doctor's Visit

Loryn had absolutely no reaction to the TB test. Her poor arm is very bruised where she had the TB test, but nothing ever raised up or got red. Just like we thought, but the Doctor was adament on giving her the test. Loryn has not had a reaction yet to the MMR vaccine, but she can still have one. Just watching her carefully. The silly reactions to the MMR happen to 1 in 5 kids and can show up between 5 and 12 days.

Loryn has also been eating pretty well. She has added a few new foods to her diet:
Cottage Cheese (only if mixed with fruit)
String Cheese
Smooth Peanut Butter with Strawberry Jelly
Chicken (when combined with Apple Sauce)
Pizza (thin crust, cheese only)

If anyone has any fun food suggestions, please let me know. I do have a kinda picky kid right now. It is all about textures with this one.

12 Month Check-up

Today was Loryn's 12 month check-up. She weighs 18 lb 11.5 oz and is 30 in tall. That puts her in the 75% for height and 10% for weight.

Loryn is now allowed to have cheese, yogurt, peanut butter, and cottage cheese. No milk just yet. She is also still supposed to be on 3 bottles a day until she starts eating better. Before when she wouldn't eat we would just supplement with a bottle. We were told not to do this anymore. If Loryn decides not to eat, then she doesn't get anything else until her next meal time. Loryn also doesn't get her fun snacks when she doesn't eat. A small cookie or a few goldfish are now her treats for good eating behavior.

For dinner tonight, Loryn had 3 bites of pb&j and 2 bites of string cheese.

At the Doctor, Loryn had a great visit, her vitals are good and she is a perfectly healthy kid. She had her first round of MMR, Chicken Pox, and Hepatitis A Vaccines. On top of those very fun vaccines, Loryn had to get tested for TB. Not a fun test and I think that bothered her the most.

Loryn's 1st Birthday Party

Loryn had a great birthday party. There were lots of friends that came and lots of little babies too. We went to Al Lopez Park and had pizza and chips and of course cake. Loryn had such a fun time playing with everyone and Susan and Brian's dog Einstein. It was such a very special day. Please enjoy some of my favorite pictures from the day. Also, we do have video, but we have not uploaded any videos on to the computer yet. Also, for all the pictures of Loryn's birthday and party, please visit my Facebook Page.

Thank you everyone for making this such a very special day for our daughter.

Happy 1st Birthday Loryn

I can't believe it has already been a whole year. Well, today is Loryn's 1st birthday and it is going to be a fun day for her. This morning her godmother is coming to spend time with her while I go on an interview. When I get back her Grandma Lisa and Marshall will be here and we are all going out to lunch. At 5pm, Loryn's godmother Lindsey, Uncle Jeff, Grandma Lisa and Marshall and Eric and I will be here to open presents with her (it will be video taped) and then we are all going out to dinner to celebrate her birthday. My mom will join us at dinner and maybe Loryn's Uncle Brian and Aunt Karen too. From there, it is back home to get a bath and go to bed. She is going to need some rest for her big birthday party on Saturday.

Happy 1st Birthday Loryn!!!!! You are growing into such a beautiful little girl.

Quick Update

Loryn started walking today. Loryn was playing in her play area and stood up and took two wobbly steps. Later in the evening, I took Loryn to the Dojo to go and visit her Uncle Jeffy and Daddy and Loryn got to show her daddy how she can walk all by herself. The most I have seen is about 4 maybe 5 steps. After that, she either sits down or falls. She is going to get the hang of this soon and then we will be in trouble.

Will have a video up soon.

Meeting the newest addition to the Gilmore Clan

Okay, so maybe this is just a little over due. But, to be fair my friends live over 3 hours away from us. This is baby Liam. He is the cutest little baby. He is just like his daddy, but with Mommy's nose and ears. Sorry there are no pictures of Loryn and Liam together, Loryn was sick when we met up with them so we kept the kids separate. Here are some pictures of our lunch with the Gilmores.

Loryn is on Daddy's shoulders. Gotta love how she wanted to wear her slippers.

Clayton and Liam

Newest and Greatest

Loryn is learning things left and right. This past week she has learned how to clap and will clap all the time and now she says "YAY" when she does it, because that is what I say when she claps. Loryn also climbed up stairs. Not sure how she learned how to do it, but while Eric and I were looking at a model house, Loryn started to climb up the stairs. Don't worry, Grandma Lisa was right behind her. Loryn is also getting in another tooth. She will soon have both her bottom teeth. Loryn knows what a monkey says and when you ask her, she says "ooh ooh ooh", Eric also is claiming he heard her say "monkey". Loryn loves to throw her toys down and say "uh oh".

Well, I think those her her newest from this past week. Will post a new update soon.

10 months old

Loryn is now 10 months old and growing like a weed. She is now 29 1/2 inches which puts her in between the 75th and 90th percentile for height. She is weighing in at 18 pounds with puts her in the 10th percentile for weight.

Loryn never stops moving. She is always on the go and always into everything. She is always talking or screaming. Not always sure what she is saying because most of it sounds like baby chinese. She has learned a few new words in the last month, like uh-oh, and maamaw (grandma), buddy, boy, and a few others.

Loryn is now going through a little bit of separation anxiety. Loryn is fine when Eric and I are around, but when she is left with other people with out us, she gets just a little upset. And by a little, she is pretty much throwing a temper tantrum.

Loryn also is walking if she is holding on to something. She would still much rather crawl though if it is for any distance. Loryn can stand up all by herself too. She gives kisses too, they are still wet kisses, but she loves to give kisses.

Mini Family Reunion

Last weekend Eric, Loryn and I headed down to Delray Beach to visit Eric's mom and his cousins. There were a ton of people there for it only being 4 families. Eric's Aunt and Uncle were there and three of his Aunt's kids with their kids and Eric and our group and his mom. All in all there were 22 of us, 12 adults and 10 kids. We had a great time. We went to the pool and hung out pool side with everyone. Grabbed drinks and lunch and then hung out upstairs in the lounge room area. Then met everyone up later for dinner, drinks and ice cream. It was a real treat to be able to see everyone, especially because Eric's family lives all over the place.

This was the first time I got to meet Eric's cousin Bruce and his family and Eric hadn't seen them since his bar mitzvah. And I haven't seen Eric's cousins Suzanne and Michael since 2006 when Eric and I first started dating. I met them on my first trip down to Delray. And it was the first time Eric and I got to meet Michael's girls. They are all just too cute. Especially little Julia. She kept pulling Eric's arm hair and eating it. It was too funny.

Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

This was taken at dinner on Saturday night. Loryn was trying to give her cousin Julia a kiss. And Julia didn't want Loryn to touch her. Loryn is 2 months older than Julia.

This was taken at the hotel in the lounge area. Loryn was playing with the girls.

Loryn just kicking back and relaxing out by the pool.

Loryn was being fed by the girls. One is 7 and the other is 4. More food landed on Loryn and the stroller than in her mouth, but the girls had a blast.

With all the girls, the guys had to stick together. There were only 6 guys out of the 22 people there. And all of the kids were girls.