My First Mother's Day

Let me tell you...our baby Dane is a very advanced little guy! He already knows how to sign a card, make breakfast and put flowers in a vase (I'm pretty sure he had help)! On my very first mother's day I woke up at 7:19am to breakfast in bed complete with a mimosa (orange juice & champagne). Dane was even nice enough to make a plate for daddy! We then picked out clothes for Dane's 3 month photo shoot. At the time I booked it, I didn't realize it was Mother's day but I just wanted to get them taken care of so I didn't want to rebook it. Anyway, at 2pm the photographer came to our house to take pictures of our little man. I can't wait to get the proofs back - she did some really cute things and I can't wait to see how they turn out! He slept through the first half hour of pictures then we woke him up. Thankfully, he was his sweet little self but not as smiley as he usually is. I think she still got some great shots. After that Tim & Teresa came over for dinner...Cameron made all of it by himself. He wouldn't allow any help from us mothers!

My breakfast:Dane's little helper:

Happy Mother's Day!

Today means more to me than I ever imagined it would...especially since last Mother's day I wasn't sure I would ever be celebrating it as a mom. What a difference a year makes...little did I know that a short time after last Mother's day I would find out I was expecting a little miracle. Today I would like to give a huge shout out to all the moms! I never realized how hard it was to be a mom and I've only been one for almost 3 months - I'm pretty sure the hardest part is yet to come (teenage years)! Although difficult, being a mom is the most amazing experience and I'm so thankful for the wait we had to become parents - I believe that makes the end result even sweeter! Waking up every morning to a smiling, happy little guy waiting for you in his crib is the best feeling ever! I am also even more thankful for my mom now that I truly understand what she went through to raise me. For the extreme dedication, for the sleepless nights, for putting your children before yourself every day, for such unselfish giving, for all the hugs and kisses, for the fun times & the tears, to the most frustrating yet rewarding job you'll ever have...here's to all mothers!

"The moment a child is born, the mother is also born.
She never existed before.
The woman existed, but the mother, never.
A mother is something absolutely new."
- Rajneesh

Visiting Daddy at Work

So today my mommmy took me to visit my daddy at work. This gave my mommy the chance to play dress up with me. You see, I have tons of really cute clothes from all the nice people that my mommy & daddy know. Although I have nice things to wear mommy usually just has me in sweat pants and tee shirts because she thinks I am comfortable that way, plus sometimes stuff comes out of my diaper and she doesn't want me to ruin my nice clothes. The one time she tried to put me in something nice (Easter) I threw up all over myself. Anyway, today she took the opportunity to put me in this rockin' baby gap tee with a hawaiin print on it and cool navy blue cargo pants. She even put shoes on me! Don't I look snazzy? Of course, as soon as we got home she took me out of my nice outfit and put me pack in sweat pants!
XOXO - Baby Dane

My Christmas Present

I know it might seem strange that I am mentioning a Christmas present in May, but let me explain...my thoughtful husband bought me a series of Christmas gifts that went together like a puzzle. He thought that after 3 months of being cooped up with a baby, I would need a "me" day so my Christmas gift consisted of things like an airbrush tan certificate, gift certificates to a couple of my favorite stores, a starbucks gift card, a spa package, a dress, tickets to a broadway play...all things I was supposed to take an entire day to do. I couldn't stand the thought of being away from Dane for an ENTIRE day so we compromised - we had a really nice date in Chicago. We went to dinner at Sixteen...a fancy schmancy restaurant in the Trump hotel. Dinner was wonderful! Then we went to see Mary Poppins, a broadway play. Needless to say Cameron wasn't really into the play and was checking his cel phone for the Bulls score through most of it, but he was a good sport and went because of me. So...now I have a spa gift certificate and can go shopping at two of my favorite stores on another day, but I still got a night out with my hubby! Dane was in the loving hands of my mom and aunt Janel...thank you for coming to stay with our little man! Here are highlights from the weekend:

While we were away...
Dane:Presley:Andon:Our view from dinner:

Swine Flu - Really?

So the first case of the swine flu has been confirmed in the county we live...Lake County, IL. A six year old girl has been tested and confirmed.

"Tests by the Illinois Department of Public Health found people who likely fell ill from the new flu virus in suburbs and city neighborhoods, including five in Chicago, one in DuPage County, two in Kane County and one in Lake County, ranging in age from 6 to 57."

It's incredibly strange to me that something we were probably exposed to everyday growing up on a farm is creating such havoc! Cameron and I were talking about it last night. A year ago this situation would never have freaked me out or even had me giving it a second thought, but now I'm a parent and I understand that need to protect your child from anything...therefore it freaks me out just a bit. Not so much for Cameron or I but for the little man. No worries, I'm not going to go all crazy and make us all wear surgical masks but it definitely has me paying attention much more to the news than I would have last year at this time. So hopefully they get this situation under control soon so I don't have to worry about it anymore!

3 Amigos

On Saturday we went to visit new little Rocco Mertens. Dane, Rocco & Owen were all born within 10 weeks of each other. So excited to see these 3 grow up together...a bit afraid of what trouble they will cause as teenagers!

Our Little Chatterbox

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

5 Generations

When we were back in Indiana last week Dane had the opportunity to meet his great grandparents and his great great grandfather! I always took for granted that I had 3 great grandparents surviving until about 5 years ago when I lost 2 great grandmothers in the same summer. I know that is incredibly rare, especially when I think about Cameron who doesn't have any surviving grandparents. Here are pictures of Dane, 5th generation:

With Great Grandma Shirley:With Great Great Grandpa Gene: