Baby on the Move!

She is going to kill me for this one day, because somehow these pictures will surface when that really hot guy has just asked her to prom, but I couldn't resist. Rachel has been suffering from a fairly bad diaper rash for the last several weeks, and the doctor diagnosed her with a yeast infection. I guess this is pretty common in babies, and I was given some cream to use on her. However, after a couple of days, her rash got so bad that I started leaving her naked in her pack 'n' play for a good two hours a day. This, as you can imagine, can get quite messy at times, but she actually seems to like being in there.

She has learned to occupy herself for up to 2 hours at a time independently. She sits with her toys and books and plays and babbles. Some people are amazed by this, but I am pretty happy with this because it allows me to get my chores done without constant interruption. I am very very proud.

Speaking of proud, Rachel is now a fully funtional crawler. She always managed to get around, because she pulled herself along with her arms. Talk about upper-body strength! However, in the last 3 weeks, she has mastered the full-fledged crawl, and she gets this look of determination on her face whenever she is headed off somewhere. She gets those legs churning and smiles from across the room and just zooms toward whatever she is after. I wish I had it on video here, but vimeo is not cooperating with me.

Rachel now has two official teeth. I spent a good 10 minutes trying to get a good picture of them, because she has a skill for hiding them with her tongue whenever I have the camera out. I think I got a couple good ones here, though not necessarily in a good picture of Rachel overall. We have started her on some more solids, and she will munch on raisins and pretzel rods and various other things we give her. She

uses the sippy cup more regularly and really enjoys yogurt juice -- yogurt and juice mixed together is not a pleasant thought to me, but apparently it is quite tasty because it is the only drink she consistently downs without taking 5 or 6 hours.

But with all of these amazing developments, I think my favorite has to be that Rachel blows kisses now. Granted, she puts more effort into placing the kiss on her hand with force than she gives to sending the kiss to whomever she intends to receive it, but the thought is definitely what counts here. I don't have a good picture or video yet, but I intend to make that my next photojournalistic endeavor. As you can see, her personality continues to thrive, and it makes for lots of fun pictures along the way! :)

Mother's Day Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend in the Wood household. Saturday evening, we celebrated Duane's 30th birthday with my family. Good times all around -- cornhole, cookout, cards, and cake! I am really proud of the job I did on this cake. I have had some bad experiences with my two-layer cakes in the past, but this one remained intact and I even got some good practice on my roses.

We loved the visit with family, but Duane had to work on Sunday, so it was just me and Rachel for our first Mother's Day post partem. We went to church, and then we picked up some bagels and headed to my parents' house for bagels, chicken salad, gardening, and some relaxation.

Then this evening, Duane gave me a lovely note and fed and bathed Rachel so I could relax. I was glad he got to experience what I do every evening with her -- kind of appropriate for a Mother's Day gift.

Rachel also reached a milestone this week -- her first tooth! I will post more on that later, when I can nab a picture.

Overall, the weekend was just lovely. Back to the grind tomorrow...

Beautiful Weekend!

We had a wonderful weekend full of surprises and fun in the sun!

Friday evening, Duane and I were heading out for what he thought was our combination anniversary/his 30th birthday dinner. Actually, his friend Donovan and I had organized a surprise 30th birthday gathering at the restaurant for Duane and his friends. I told everyone to be there at 7 p.m. and our reservation was at 7:30. However, I told Duane our reservation was at 7:15. Knowing Duane, he hates to be late, so it was challenging to stall him without letting him know that we weren't running late. He complained the first 5 minutes of the drive to the restaurant because he thought we were running late. The last 5 minutes of the drive he spent complaining about me taking him in the wrong parking lot. The in-between was pleasant though. =) Once we pulled in the parking lot, I saw everyone standing outside. I knew Duane would soon see them too. As we drove around trying to find a place to park, he saw them all standing together and the jig was up. We had a great meal and I am so thankful everyone could make it on short notice. I think Duane had an excellent time!

On Saturday, we attended Quentin's 1st birthday party. It was blustery but bright and beautiful outside. Rachel got to sit in the grass and soak in some rays with Aiden. After, we listened to the OSU spring game on the radio and some of the NFL draft. Sunday, Rachel and I took part in the March of Dimes March for Babies! We raised $40 personally and $400 as a team and walked a 1-mile trek among thousands of participants. It was wonderful to see so many people taking part in a good cause. Next year, I think we will do the 5-mile walk!

Then we spent the rest of the day relaxing and taking in some rays. Rachel is still a little confused when I sit her in the grass!

Rachel's 1st Plane Ride and Visit to Washington D.C.

This was an interesting decision for me. I have been wanting to visit my dear friend Amy and her daughter Anna for a while now, but they live in Alexandria, VA, and I knew I wouldn't be able to make that kind of a drive with Rachel. So I checked airfares and decided that we would have to fly out. Some people looked at me as though I were crazy, trying to travel alone with an infant. I must admit, it was challenging.

Duane dropped us off at the airport Friday morning. No complaints from Rachel. She was extremely well-behaved. We had a half-hour flight to Cincinnati, and that went extremely well. I had several nice people who offered to help stow my carry-on for me, which was much appreciated. However, the layover was where the challenge arrived. I had to walk about a quarter-mile from my arrival gate to my departure gate, and though that may not seem like a lot to you, try carrying an 18-pound sack of potatoes on your hip and dragging a rolling suitcase, a purse, and a diaper bag with you. Not so easy. I didn't bring a stroller with me because I would have been charged $15 each way to bring it on the plane, and frankly, my umbrella stroller isn't even worth $15.

When I finally boarded the second flight, things went well. Rachel apparently is not fazed by flying whatsoever, so long as the people on the plane understand that she should be given all of their attention. She is a hopeless flirt -- women, men, other kids, it doesn't matter. And people really respond to her flirtations. I know my child is absolutely adorable to me, but I have never had so many random people tell me how precious she is!

But I digress. If I spent all my time telling you how many people stopped to comment on her, I wouldn't get to the rest of the weekend. Rachel fell asleep on the plane about 10 minutes before we landed in Baltimore. By the time we got off the plane, she had been sleeping about a half-hour. I was hoping she would sleep in the car on the way to Alexandria, but this would be the pattern of the weekend. She fell asleep when she was exhausted but was disturbed somehow after 30 minutes or so and would not go back to sleep later.

Once Amy picked us up, we headed to Virginia. We got some lunch at a lovely spot in Old Towne and then headed to her house and spent the day fawning over our girls. I had a yummy dinner (prepared by Scott, Amy's husband & former chef), and then I regrettably fell asleep as we watched a movie. Sorry Ames!

Then Saturday Scott took Anna for the day and Amy, Rachel, and I headed to Washington, D.C. We saw all the big monuments -- The Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Wall, the Korean War memorial... -- and then headed to get some lunch at a beautiful restaurant. Rachel was extremely excited by the whole experience, but we finally found a couple of people who did not appreciate my daughter's personality. She jabbered away while we ate, but the women next to us asked to be moved. It was my first experience of that nature, and Amy was fuming over it. How could anyone not appreciate the sounds of a HAPPY baby? Alas, some people don't feel the same about kids as we do, and we laughed it off and tipped our waiter quite well for the loss of the table.

Saturday evening, Scott again graciously watched the kids (though Rachel was snoozing already) so Amy and I could get out. We went to an Irish bar as a prelude to her trip to Ireland. =) We talked and laughed and had a wonderfully enjoyable time. I didn't realize just how much I missed her until I saw her again.

Sunday, Rachel and I flew back to Columbus. She again found friendly faces on the first flight. The man next to us was wonderful with her -- he entertained her the whole flight back and was very helpful when I was deboarding the plane in Detroit. Rachel fell asleep just as we prepared to board our second flight to Columbus and she slept the entire flight back. It was nice to get home and relax a bit after all that excitement. I then got to spend Monday with Rachel, one-on-one, and we had a lot of fun just hanging out. It makes me wish I could spend more time with her throughout the week. Maybe someday...

Rachel's 1st Easter

I am going to catch up on my blogs now, so I will be posting several at a time. :) My computer, thanks to my husband (who fixed it) and the generous people at Best Buy (who finally stopped holding it hostage), is back in business, but runs very slow. Now I am trying to sort through things and figure out which pictures I have already posted where, etc.

Rachel's 1st Easter couldn't have been much better. We woke up and gave her her first Easter basket, which was filled with a new Dora doll and book, a Curious George Anthology (I absolutely adored Curious George as a child!), a set of her very own keys, and her brand new cell phone! She seemed extremely curious about the whole basket, but was not particularly fond of the fake grass inside.

After church, we headed to Grandma & Grandpa Burkey's and celebrated with the maternal cousins. Rachel got to take part in her first Easter Egg Hunt. She got 5 eggs! The Grand-Easter Bunny filled each with a piece of candy and a coin. However, cousin Owen got a bit restless and started cracking open the eggs and taking the candy. So one of Rachel's eggs only had a coin in it. Not that she noticed; she cared more about the egg itself than its contents!!

Then we headed to Duane's parents' house for the Wood Easter. Rachel got a new toy bunny that she carries everywhere now. It is that bendy material, like a Gumbee. She enjoys chewing on him. =)

Overall, it was a lovely day. The weather cooperated, and I must say that Rachel looked lovely in her Easter dress!