First Tooth!

Rowena has her first tooth. YEA! I didn't think about posting about it, but Grammie mentioned that those are things that people like to hear about. So, she has her first tooth...it's her bottom middle-left. The middle-right is also coming in, but you can't really feel it yet.

Also, she is sitting up so well unassisted. She's not yet getting to that postion on her own yet, nor is she crawling. She loves to sit and play with her toys; to make sure that Riggs can't move too quickly and accidently hurt her, we set up the pack-n-play in the family room as a little 'safe' play area for her. She loves it! She'll sit in there for quite a while, just playing with all of her little toys.

She is on Stage 2 Foods right now, but loves to actually chew. We're giving her the little 'cereal' puffs for her to practice chewing. I'm thinking she'll be ready for table foods by the time we see the doctor in just three weeks.

A little game she likes to play: I place her blanket on her head (not over her face) and she just smiles and pulls it off. If you do it a few times, she starts to giggle out loud. So freakin' adorable!

Happy Labor Day

We had a GREAT Labor Day Weekend--Visiting friends, picnic and hiking, and now a day of relaxation. Last night as I put Delaney to bed, she says to me:

"I think it's great that they have a special holiday for Mommys and Daddys that work hard like you and Daddy."

So...HAPPY LABOR DAY to everyone--especially all the hardworking parents.

Family Picnic

We ventured to Starved Rock today to enjoy a fun family day. We had so much fun the first time we went (a few months ago) we couldn't wait to go back! The girls got their wish...a "true" picnic...on the ground. Last time we found a secluded picnic table, this time, there were no tables in sight (we parked in a different lot/area). We walked away from the parking lot and toward the cabins and woods...and found a great spot. We enjoyed some sammies, yogurt, string cheese, gatorade, and fruit snacks, while Rowena enjoyed a bottle. Then, once we were done, washed up, and our stuff was packed back in the car, we were onto hiking!

Hiking at Starved Rock

We ventured to Starved Rock for another hiking expedition today. We had a wondeful time, depsite how packed the park was. It might have been due to the fact that it's a holiday weekend...and the last one of the season. Last time we were here...just three or four months ago, we were the only ones in the park! Seriously--there were only 3-4 other cars in the lot. It was fantastic. Today, all the parking lots were FULL!

Today...Instead of parking at the Visitor Center, we headed toward the Lodge. We tried a new trail today: French Canyon. It was a long hike, with lots of stairs. I think it was about .5 miles total (not too bad). I think Kate was carried for a total of three minutes (whereas the last time, both girls were carried the majority of the time).

The girls did GREAT! Rowena loved the hike, and didn't dare fall asleep at all. Kate was a good sport hiking all that way with those little, skinny legs and was quite brave. And, well, Delaney is just our little dare-devil! Not only did she hike the whole time, without complaining, but she also tried some rock climbing, jumping, and running ahead. We had a great time...

Ice Cream after Starved Rock

There's a cute little shop inside the Welcome Center at Starved Rock. They have a lot of little things, like fudge, Webkinz, postcards, and some food. Last time we were there, we stopped in for some yummy soft-serve ice cream. Well, since the Lodge didn't have much of an ice cream selection and the Welcome Center was beyond packed (parking was insane), we decided to just hit Sonny Delight on the way home (which is right near our house). As we were heading out of town, we saw a cute little Ice Cream Parlor and decided to stop there. The ice cream was delish and a nice way to end our awesome family day!

Fun with The Mackeys

We usually do an annual trip to Brookfield Zoo with the Mackeys, but this year, we kept putting it off, and then the summer got away from us. So, since we haven't been to visit them since Cannon's first birthday (over 3 years ago) we decided to head to Normal for a visit. We enjoyed playing at their house and out on their trampoline, then we went to McDonalds for lunch and to play in the playarea. On the way down the girls were deciding who would play with who, and since Chase is 5 days younger than Delaney and Cannon is about four months older than Kate, they decided that was the way they should split up. Chase and Cannon didn't have that idea in mind at all. For a while, they were both kinda shy around the girls, so they just made themselves at home and played with all of their cool toys. After a while, Chase and Cannon warmed up, and they all had a blast. Hopefully we won't go 13 months until the next visit! THANKS MACKEY FAMILY for your hospitality!!!

Fun with The Dillinghams

A couple Saturdays ago, we headed to the Dillinghams for dinner and a night of fun. The girls enjoyed playing in the basement, playing dress-up, having a blanket picnic, and making S'mores. The adults enjoyed some tasty margaritas, an awesome steak dinner, and making S'mores. Pete and Ryan had a rough time getting the fire started because most of the wood was pretty damp...but once it was started, we enjoye a nice night on their patio. THANKS DILLYS for a great night!

Are We There Yet?

Yep...the dreaded question by any and all who ever travel with children. Kate is notorious for asking one of the three following questions before we even get to the interstate:

1. "Are we almost there?"
2. "How much longer until we're there?
3. "Are we there yet?"

So, today, as we leave at 9 a.m. to visit a good friend and her two sons (pics to come later), Kate of course asks...several times. Pete and I try to talk to the kids in times of movies. Yeah...no comments please (ahahah). We'll tell them about how many movies they'll have to watch before we get somewhere, and then tell them that they can't ask any of those three questions until after a movie finishes.

Well, today the tables turned a little. As we're driving, the girls were watching "Empire Strikes Back." I haven't watched that movie enough to know the music and dialogue that is close to the end. So, I asked about three different times if it was almost done and Delaney responds:

"You know Mom, you've asked that about three times now and it's starting to get irritating. We'll let you know when the movie is over. Now stop asking that, okay?"

Well--she got me on that one! I just started laughing, and didn't ask that question again!

My Fall Trimester

Well, this is my last trimester before my internship begins. Yep, that's right...I CAN SEE THE LIGHT! However, after my first night of classes tonight, the tunnel still is pretty darn long. (in unison now...."awwwwwwwwwwwww").

There are many things I'm looking forward to this term. I'm doing a group practicum class. There are so many groups I want to do: a Men's Support, Women's Support, Gottman-7 Principles (Couple's Psychoeducational), and Parenting Support. Since I can only do one, I hope I can incorporate some of these groups at my future internship site. I'm also helping teach (for the second trimester in a row) a Family Systems (counseling class). I absolutely loved this class when I took it last summer, and love it even more now on the teaching side. I am also continuing to grad assist for the Department (of Psychology and Counseling) Chair, Dr. Dermer. I'm learning so much from her, and really enjoy her humor. Not a day goes by without her making me laugh and think about something. I'm going to miss so much when I graduate--but I'll save that for another post; there's no need to get too sappy with 11 months left. I am also hoping to be published a couple times before the end next summer and will be presenting at a conference this November. I gotta say, I really love that I have found my niche in life. I love counseling, especially couples, and have discovered that I want to teach--at the university level. Governors State University is trying to start a doctoral program, which is something I look forward to applying for in the near future. It will add on another 3-4 years to my educational process, but it will be so worth it. This way I can practice counseling (as Dr. Henderson) and teach a couple classes.

My schedule is quite crazy right now. I grad assist on Mondays and Thursdays from 9-4 and have class from 4:30-7:30. I co-teach the class on Wednesdays, and am at school from 5-10:30. Pete is on-call on Tuesday nights, which happens to be the night that Delaney and Katie have dance (they are currently in the same class together through December). And, Pete works on Saturdays. So, if you can imagine a little weekly schedule in your head, you can see that Pete and I basically see one another on Friday night, Saturday night, and Sundays. And, since I need my time with Pete to feel sane, secure, and comfortable, this term might be extremely difficult for me. Not to mention that on one of those nights/day that we do have together, I have to slip in an hour and a half group counseling session. Yikes!

Pete and I are good about spending quality time together, so hopefully that will be useful with our limited time together for the next four months. I am really going to try to not procrastinate this trimester, so on the days/nights we have together, we can lay around and watch T.V. and do some fun family activities. We're looking forward to going to Bengston's Pumpkin Farm again and to Wisconsin Dells. We have no plans yet for Thanksgiving--which is a first for us. It depends on whether or not the Henderson Uncles come to town.

So, after going over my schedule for the next four months, I have exhausted myself. Time for me to sign off and head to bed...for tomorrow is another day with a lot of plans.

Katie's Wish

At bedtime tonight, after Pete tells the girls he has to work tomorrow, Katie says to Peter:

"I wish you were a kid, Daddy...because then you could just play all day."