Beese Bliss and Joy

And finally...what everyone has been begging to see...

2009-03-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

the size of my ever-expanding girth has been the curiousity of many, many people, and though they have begged to see pics, I have hesitated...only because I didn't have too many pics, we lost the memory card they were on, we found the card, and then lost it again, aaaaand I have been pretty busy! Maybe it was my subconconscious way of attempting to protect you from the disturbing images! :-) I feel huge!

Notice the glee on my child's face above....I had given her pennies out of my purse to throw in the fountain to keep her occupied while RT took pictures....I purposely zipped up my purse so she wouldn't find other things out of it to throw in, totally something she would do! When instead, we suddenly noticed her immersing the entire purse! Thankfully, we snatched it out fast enough that nothing inside got wet!

These are of me at 25 weeks...almost 6 and 1/2 months. Baby boy, still nameless yes, has been practicing his hockey checks already and is quite strong for such a little guy! Daddy is staying on my tail about vitamins and anything else that will make his boy strong. Hopefully this kid will have his build more than mine if he is to survive hockey academy! Thankfully, they don't make ice-skates too tiny and he won't be able to start until he is at least 3 or 4!

I'm also throwing in some pics of Ivy at this same park, that were too cute to leave out...She loves being outside!

Birthday girl!

2009-03-15T07:38:00.000-07:00

Two years old!

We can hardly believe that our baby girl is two now. She has been such a blessing and joy from birth, not to mention the easiest child ever to care for! She is very well-behaved and loves to cuddle mom and dad, which we of course LOVE! It hasn't always been this way with our little Ivy. Though loving, she wasn't much of a cuddler at first, and the drastic change has been so sweet! We thank the Lord for her sweet spirit and beautiful smile every day! She truly lights up our lives!

She turned two in January. And we celebrated out at Uncle Tommy and Auntie Karen's with all the cousins, Aunt's, Uncles, Grand and Great-parents, and Even Grandpa Steve, and Grandma Kim came up!

I made Ivy's cake this year, a castle cake...or what was supposed to be a castle cake, though it looked more like the leaning tower of Pisa with extra spires. :-) I was discouraged at the way it came out, though everyone tried to reassure me that it was beautiful. But my little princess knew just what to do to make me feel better about it, and totally melted my heart when she walked into the kitchen and saw it....Her immediate response was 'ooooooh! preeeetty!' as she pointed at it. From there on, I didn't care that it wasn't perfect, my little girl was happy!

Christmas Continued...

2009-03-14T18:27:00.001-07:00

Christmas continued at home with our own gift exchange and opening all our shipped-in gifts from various family members. Ivy's count was at least 5 times more than ours. And she was definitely a pro at opening them by the time it all ended! Her biggest gift from mommy and daddy was a brand new little kitchen, complete with dishes, pots, pans, utensils, and hot pads. She promptly started serving us 'meals'. It's been fun to see how quickly her imagination has grown with this little set! She even knows how to properly use a hot pad! I guess she's been watching me more than I realized!

Then! it was off to Grandma and Grandpa's house in Boca! Cousin Griffin had traveled down, all the way from Virginia and boy! did he and Ivy have some catching up to do! They did everthing in pairs! from assisting each other with the opening of gifts, to jumping on the trundle bed in Grandma's guest room. That was fun to watch, since Griff was twice Ivy's size and discovered that the higher he jumped, the higher Ivy would bounce. She LOVED it!

The two of them were quite spoiled between having Grandma, Grandpa, Honey, Duke, Grandma Gen (great-grandparents), and Uncle Brad and Aunt Manda to cater to them! Mommy and Daddy had fun too!

Before coming home, Grandma treated us to the zoo, which Ivy and Griffin were huge fans of! We hung out for several hours visiting monkeys, panthers, tigers, and all kinds of animals! They loved it!

Christmas! with Cousins Cooper and Cole!

2009-03-14T17:37:00.001-07:00

We were spoiled this year with 4 separate Christmas affairs! The first, at RT's cousin Megan's home, with her hubby Clay, their two adorable boys Cooper and Cole, and all the Webers. We spent Christmas Eve opening the traditional 'jammies-only' gifts, which is something the Weber clan does every Christmas Eve. We gorged on yummies, dressed the kids in their cute new jammies, and attempted to get pics of the three of them all sitting and smiling at the same time...With all of them under 2, that was just not possible! and as you can see from the top pic, they were tired of us trying!

Then it was off to Uncle Tommy and Auntie Karen's home in Groveland, where they live in a beautiful house on a beautiful lake! We had a wonderful time! and it seemed that we were either eating, or opening presents the entire day! With each new wave of guests, more food was served, and more gifts appeared. Ivy loved it! She, Cooper, and Cole enjoyed helping everyone else open their gifts too, and as you can see from one of the pictures below, they didn't care what was meant for who! they were enjoying everyone's gifts! :-)

We are truly blessed with the family we've been given! Through all the fun, it was never forgotten, the true meaning of Christmas, and we loved being a part of all the Weber traditions and the way they brought God into the center of it all! The love and closeness of this family is indescribable!

Odds and ends....catching up!

2009-03-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

I know i'ts been waaaaaay too long since we've posted...things have been pretty crazy around here! And enough people have been trying to kick my butt into gear about this blog, SO! here are a few shots that just couldn't be left behind....Over the next few days, I'll be attempting to post some Christmas pics, 2nd birthday pics, randomness, and then the latest and greatest of my ever-expanding girth!

baby boy!

2009-01-22T11:55:00.000-08:00

Ivy is going to have a little brother! and she is very excited! So are mommy and daddy. :-) In fact, daddy is already shopping for hockey gear for his future all-star hockey player. :-)

Our little boy will be the first grandson on mommy's side and the second on daddy's! For now, it looks like he will be our nameless child, since we can't think of a single boy name that we both like! Thankfully, we still have 5 months to figure that out! We will keep you posted!

Our little elf...

2008-12-23T18:45:00.000-08:00

You'd never guess it, but Ivy cried pretty much the entire time we were trying to get these pictures taken. Such a stinkuh! :-) She will never be a model, that's for sure!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! AND LOVE TO ALL!

momma's girl

2008-12-23T18:32:00.001-08:00

she is her momma's world...

THANKS sooooo much Uncle Josh for taking these pictures for us! Ivy sends hugs to you and Aunt Randi!

Words don't describe...

2008-12-23T18:27:00.000-08:00

Our baby girl....total sweetness!

More typical Nay-Nayness

2008-12-13T10:57:00.000-08:00

Though not evidenced by these pictures, Ivy does wear clothes!...Most the time anyway. The last picture above, is of her completely bare in her crib, and looking like a captive I must say. She has found that a 'good' way to get out of taking her naps, is to undress, diaper and all, and yell for us. Once we've redressed her, plopped her back in her crib, and left the room...she starts stripping all over again. Sigh. :-)

Gone are the days...

2008-10-06T05:07:00.000-07:00

Once again!

Gone are the days of feeling real tiny.
I'll feel like a whale real soon.
Cause as much as we'd hoped
and prayed it'd happen.
Ivy's sibling should be here by June! (we think....if we are calculating right)

We tested on Sunday and it still wasn't clear
so we tested again today.
And this time the little blue lines popped right up
and said that a baby is near!

Sooooo, as Mom's tummy gets bigger,
and rounder and queazier,
prepare to give her some space.
She won't fit through the doors or into her clothes
and will soon have another to chase!

Surprise Grandma and Grandpa! Love from the new little one!

Over the river and through the woods...

2008-10-02T07:17:00.000-07:00

We LOVE going to Grandma and Grandpa's house in Boca, and got to do so last weekend! Ivy's great grandparents Honey, Duke, and Gen, and Uncle Brad and Aunt Amanda all came over to see us while we were there. Needless to say, Ivy got totally spoiled with nonstop attention the entire time!

Aunt Manda thought it would be cool if Ivy were to walk around randomly saying "'Bless you dude" so she and Uncle Brad worked on teaching her this and waddaya know! Ivy now walks around saying "shoo shoo dude!" It is sooo funny! and if you say "shoo shoo dude" to her, she will fake a sneeze! It has kept us laughing, thats for sure!

Grandma and Grandpa live right off a beautiful golf course that has some awesome hills. The video I'm posting doesn't do those hills justice! Ivy loved running up and down them with Grandma! I'm also posting a pic of the awesome Ficus tree in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard. I think it is so beautiful.

On Saturday, RT and I got to go out on a date for the first time in a long time, while Grandma kept Ivy. We had a lot of fun! We first went to the Panther's Training Camp for a few hours and hung out with a bunch of our other hockey-crazy friends. Look how good he looks in full gear!Then we got to go to a really fun Mexican restaurant and actually ate our food while it was hot and at the same time! This doesn't happen when you have an almost 2 year old with you! Thanks Grandma!

Beautimous!

2008-09-12T17:02:00.000-07:00

The Laws of Ivy

2008-09-09T18:15:00.000-07:00

#1. Never turn off the light when leaving a room...that's her job.

#2. If she goes to bed, then so does her Pooh bear. He is her hostage.

#3. If you are going to spend time in front of a computer, then she gets to sit in your lap and control the mouse, which in TuRrn tends to
deterrrr you fRoM spending time on yUr computer and mOre time witH her. It took us 3 days to
write this.

#4. When given a phone, never expect her to say more than "Hi". This is all the phone time her hectic schedule allows for and she will immediately give the phone back.

#5. The tv belongs to her...which is why Mom and Dad know the theme songs to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Lilo and Stitch, My friends Tigger and Pooh, etc. etc. etc.

#6. Books aren't meant to be read from front to back. Random is so much more interesting.

#7. If she puts her forehead to your lips, that means kiss it...even if you now have a busted lip.

bitty baby bows and a naughty little model

2008-09-05T09:46:00.001-07:00

I've enjoyed a little extra time on my hands, while waiting for my final exam results and have taken up bowmaking! After making one for a friend's first birthday gift, I recieved orders to make more! I tried to get Ivy to sit still long enough for me to take pictures of them in her hair, but noooooooo way was she going to do that! She thinks it's funny to make me run after her and try to shoot while midair, which is why most pics of her are blurry. I have to literally sit down indian-style, wrap my legs around her waist and hold her down to get a somewhat decent picture! I guess we've ruled out that she will ever be a model. :-)

more of our waterbug

2008-09-03T16:53:00.000-07:00

Home away from home...Sea World

2008-09-02T07:14:00.000-07:00

It's pretty cool living within 10 minutes of all the parks in Orlando! And it's been fun having unlimited access to Sea World whenever we want. Ivy LOVES Shamu and especially Uncle Tommy's ski show! She is mesmerized by all the action, music, kites, and fireworks that are happening nonstop! We went yesterday with RT's uncle Tommy (who heads up the ski shows at our Sea World and San Antonio's Sea World), Aunt Karen, and all the cousins, and cousin's kids and had a blast! Sadly, yesterday was the last showing of the ski show for the summer and we will have to wait till next year to see it again. But we had a lot of fun hanging with everyone and especially Cooper and Cole who looked absolutely adorable as always!

Whitney, thanks sooo much for spending another weekend with us! Ivy was so sad to come home without you! and, just as I thought we would, we've got our hands full trying to keep her as entertained as you do! :-) You are such an awesome help!

and Whitney...CONGRATS on passing your big test! So proud of you!

Like a fish...almost.

2008-08-30T07:01:00.000-07:00

We are soooo proud of her and her progress in the pool! She is as calm as can be under water and most times comes up smiling! These are shots from her first session of swimming, which was 8 classes, 1/2 hour each. She graduated to tadpole and begins her next session Sept. 3rd. She and I also spend a lot of time in our local pool practicing, which she loves even more. (she is only timid of her instructor because she knows she has to try new things and she'd rather be in mom's arms!)

About time...

2008-08-28T19:44:00.000-07:00

Well, we've gone and done it! Finally started a family blog! Not that we haven't already started many a tribute to our cute little chica, but this is one that ALL our friends can view, since some of you don't have access to myspace, or facebook, or yahoo. (you know who you are!)

And Ivy can't be left behind when it comes to blogging! Since cousin Griff has such an awesome possie of bloggers at his disposal, she has become quite jealous! and has made demands that we 'get with the program already!'.

Soooo, to briefly catch you up on our angel: She is now 19 precious months old, says 'juice, puppy, hi, momma, dadda, one-twoooo-phree', and loves puppies! She is frequently called 'hurricane Ivy' because of her amazing speed at destroying the home front and she delights in baths, animals, books, and being chased. She is currently taking swimming classes, can hold her breath under water, and loves to float on her back!

We recently went through a big scare with our baby girl, when her doctor decided that the swelling on her chest (which has been present for about 4 months) had definitely grown and should finally be tested. It had never been a cause for concern before, with him, so naturally we were freaking! THANKFULLY, after a number of sonograms were done, we were told that it was simply a lipoma, which after researching, we learned is a benign tumor consisting of mostly fatty tissue. It will never be at risk for being cancerous, which was our number 1 concern. Her doctor has been very reassuring, though he will continue to watch it. We learned that it can be heridetary and recently found out that another family member also has one. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for her!

Well, we have lots more picture to post and will work on this over the next few days. And thank you to all who have an interest enough to read our little blog!