Rich and Kath’s Weblog

I have been woefully lazy about keeping up to date on this blog. With grad school and Alison being more active, it’s been hard to find time. Of couse there has been much activity since the last blog – Alison’s first Christmas, she’s now rolling, trying to crawl, and blabbing all the time. Following is her 7 month birthday pic, and pics from her 7th month. Hopefully someone is still paying attention to this blog!

Snuggle time:

Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow… I took Alison to the Macy’s Christmas light show 3 times, she loved it so much. This time Uncle Richie came along. This is something I did when I was a child, and I was happy to share it with Alison.

At Home

Alison loves sitting in her Svan high chair, and we love how it’s easy to use, adorable, and has a small footprint. Now we just need to get a table and chairs to sit it at!

Play Time

Alison spends lots of time playing on the floor. She loves to sit up and see everything happening around her, and one of her new favorite past times is looking through magazines.

Ali’s getting pretty good at standing:

Christmas time is here

Alison had a wonderful first Christmas. We went for walks through Rittenhouse Square on both Christmas Eve and Christmas day, Ali hung an ornament on the tree in the park, she got lots and lots of presents, she went to her cousins Bob and Liz’s for Christmas and loved spending time with her family so much she stayed up way past her bedtime on Christmas.

Alison looking at her first ornament on Christmas Eve - a Waterford chrystal baby bottle (it was a splurge):

Alison trying to steal daddy’s coffee:

Alison trying to hanging an ornament on the tree in Rittenhouse Square on Christmas Eve:

Christmas Eve at Grandmom and Grandpop’s:

Alison buried amoung all the booty from her first time grandparents:

What a difference a year makes:

 (Last year – I thought I had a stomach then, ha!)      

Christmas Day

Christmas morning:

Opening the pretty dress Grandma and Grandpa sent:

Sporting the hat from grandma and grandpa:

A stroll through Rittenhouse Square:

All dressed up and ready for the Christmas party:

Alison was a very happy girl on Christmas:

Alison always tries to take our drinks, so we thought it was time to let her have a drink. Here’s her first drink from a cup, apple juice. Of course, she loved it. Check out our Buddha baby!

A sit by the Christmas tree on New Year’s Day:

Having fun with daddy:

Hanging out in her pretty dress from Grandma and Grandpa after a lunch date:

Ali loves to swing at the park:

On her 7 month birthday, she had lots of fun:

Everyone told us to cherish every moment, that you won’t believe how fast it goes. Of course logically we knew this, but nothing can prepare you for it until you experience the time flying first hand. I still feel like I was just pregnant, that she was a helpless newborn only yesterday, and here she is six months old. It’s the age that everyone tells you to look forward to. It’s when she will be at her cutest, most fun. This age came so quickly, it makes me fear how quickly she we will be starting kindergarten, high school… college! Okay, lets not get ahead of ourselves. Here she is on her six month birthday and following that are her images from the last month – there’s been lots of activity! On her six month birthday she weighed 22lbs 9oz – the size of an average 12 month old baby. Like I said, she’s growing up way to quickly.

On her Six month birthday:

Solid Foods
Alison was watching us eat and drink with facination and no longer seemed to be satisfied with just her bottle. At the beginning of 5 months we started her on solid food and she loved it! We started with rice cereal and oatmeal and then moved on to sweet potatoes and beyond. At this point she has tried several foods and she loves them all.

Her first bite of solid food:

Trying sweet potatoes – the picture lies, she loves them

Around the House
Ali loves running around the house on daddy’s shoulders, chasing the gwinny cat, and sitting up whenever she can.

She hasn’t completely gotten the hang of the sitting thing yet:

“Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we go…”
When I announced to my family on Thanksgiving last year that I was pregnant, I had an image of bringing a baby girl in a brown cordory dress to Thanksgiving dinner this year. A few months ago I started searching for that dress, and I found the perfect dress in early September. I thought I was safe buying 6-9 month size, but she just fit into it! Alison had sweet potatoes for her first Thanksgiving, and she enjoyed seeing her family and visiting Grandmom and Grandpop’s house for the first time.

Checking out Uncle Richie:

All ready for Thanksgiving dinner:

Snow and Santa!!
We got together with our friends Susan and Scott and their son Roman for a Santa parade. It was great to get out with other parents and have our little ones meet. Although Roman is 3 months older than Alison, 2 people asked us if they were twins! Alison met Santa for the first time, and she loved him. She loved him so much, we took her to see Santa again at Macy’s downtown, and she loooved him! As soon as she saw him, she started laughing – of course I forgot my camera, so all we have here is the shot we had to pay for. The pictures are still great.

Ali is happy wearing the poncho mommy made her:

Hanging out with Daddy after her big day of seeing Santa:

This is our girl on the last day of her fifth month. Her cheeks have never been so full and her eyes never so blue.

What a month it has been! A new president was elected (and the one I wanted for a change), the Phillies won the world series, Alison had her first Halloween, she’s sleeping in her own crib without a swaddle, she’s grabbing her feet, she’s trying to sit up like her life depends on it, and this weekend she starts on solid foods! She had her 5 month appointment today and she weighs 20lbs 12oz and is 28 inches long. We were told she’s the size of a 10 month old baby – that’s our girl! So, as you can imagine, with so much happening this month, there are lots and lots of great pictures, and unfortunately I can only post so many here. Above is a picture of her, as you might have guessed, right after we voted on Tuesday, the day before she turned 5 months. Following are some more of out favorite pics:

Baby Legs and Pumpkins

We got babylegs for Alison, and they are just adorable and so convenient. Then we took her to the pumpkin patch at Linvilla Orchards – a place where my family used to go every year when I was kid. One thing I did not remember was the enormous crowds there.

Milestones

This month Alison shed the swaddle and moved to sleeping in her crib in her own room. I must say, it was bitter sweet. She also acheived a very fun milestone, she’s now grabbing her feet, or should I say foot, she really only grabs her left foot with her left hand, could she be left-handed? Hmmm…

2 Million Strong

For the first time in 25 years, Philadelphia won a championship. When I was a kid I loved the Phillies, I remember the 1980 world series win quite well and with great affection. Over the years I have lost interest in baseball, and with that, the Phillies and all of my interest and love has gone to the Eagles. But I have to say, this win has brought some of the love back. After watching the Phillies win on the big screen TVs at the Comcast Center, I decided I needed to march to Broad St. with the thousands of other people on the streets. For those not from Philly, Broad St. is a major street that runs through the entire city. For years, all we have heard is “I’ll see you at the parade on Broad St.” whenever we think we have a winner. After so many teases, it was hard to believe it finally happened. People couldn’t wait for the parade, and minutes after the win, thousands of people gathered in the middle of the street. I went to Broad St. more as an observer, and what I saw was an incredible mass of people celebrating in complete joy. It was infectious. As I walked away towards my home, I saw smile after smile, and heard cheer after cheer. It was hard for me to not feel a lump in my throat and remember how I felt when I was 9 years old when the Phillies last won, or to imagine how I would be jumping up and down in the middle of the street if it was the Eagles. I decided I needed to go to the parade with Alison. This was something that I needed to be a part of. So me, Alison, and my brother Rich marched down to Broad St. on Halloween afternoon and witnessed a moment of true human kindness. There was an estimated 2 million people at the parade and every person I encountered was incredibly nice. There was not even a hint of anything negative. Person after person cleared the way for me as they said, “here comes a little baby, get out of the way.” People were shaking hands, hugging, and laughing, and I never felt so proud to be a Philadelphia sports fan. It made me even more frustrated by the national reputation Philadelphia fans have. For those who say we are “fare weather” or “obnoxious” or “mean”. Or the laziest of all reporters who say ”we booed Santa Clause.” Sure, we have our moments, and we have a few individuals who really mess things up for us all. But overall, we are passionate fans who are always there. And when you bring us a championship, the best of all of us comes out. I never really believed that sports can bring people together until now. And dare I say it, a Phillies fan may have been reborn. And so, after my diatribe, here are some pictures of the event…

Getting ready to go to the parade:

Halloween

Two years ago, I realized the neighborhood we live in is Halloween central. Kids from all over the city come here, and the neighbors really get into it. Small streets close off and decorate with music, candy and celebration. It’s an amazing atmosphere. Two years ago I said I hoped we would have a baby in this neighborhood so we could take her/him out in this wonderful celebration. This Halloween I got my wish. After taking Alison to the Phillies parade, we dressed her up like a witch (and we dressed to match her costume) and took her out to see the trick or treaters. She was a huge hit. After her big day, she fell asleep in Rich’s arms as we walked around. Next year I’m sure she will take it all in a little more.

Asleep in daddy’s arms after her long day:

Election Day

I never felt so good going to the polls. As I closed the curtains and pushed on Obama’s name with Alison in my arms, I actually felt optimistic and excited – something I haven’t felt on election day in 8 years. Lets hope it’s not the last time!

Time is flying, and it’s really hard to keep up with this blog. With being in grad school and entertaining Alison all day, it’s hard for much more. Again I will say, I hope we still have someone out there checking out our blog. Alison turned 4 months today. She changes every day, and she is such a joy, so happy, and so much fun. She smiles constantly at everyone, she laughs, she talks and talks, she blows raspberries all the time, and she is just so cute! She will have her four month appointment on Tuesday, so we’ll get to see how much she’s grown. She seems to have had a big growth spurt recently, and I am guessing she is way off the charts now. Following are pictures from her last month, it was really hard to narrow down to our favorites, there are so many great pics of her.

Here she is today, on her 4 month birthday:

Here are pics from the last 3 weeks:

First cool day:

Beach Trip to Aunt Elaine’s house in Ocean City, NJ:

A walk on the river path:

Alison is 3 months old today. These 3 months have flown by, and she (as well as her mom and dad) have changed so much over those 3 months. She had her 3 month appointment yesterday and she is HUGE! She is off the chart on height and weight (15lbs 6oz and 25 1/4 inches long). According to her doctor, she is the average size of a 5 1/2 month old baby. She’s growing up too fast!

Here she is, on her 3 month birthday (wearing her Grateful Dead onesie that we bought in New Hope during our babymoon in March. It’s 6-12 month size and it’s just a little big on her at 3 months):

Here are some shots from the last week:

Alison loves her new mobile:

In her stroller after her dr’s appointment. She had two shots which was traumatic for both baby and mom. You will see she has almost outgrown her bassinett which is supposed to be good until 6 months.

Another successful tummy time:

Ali loves her dad:

She’s pretty happy with her mom too:

Things have been pretty busy the last few weeks, so I wasn’t able to update the blog for a while. So, I hope we still have an audience out there. Lets see, over the last 4 weeks Rich started a new job at Boeing, Kath started grad classes again, Alison has full head control, has outgrown almost all of her 0-3 month onsies, and today she rolled over from her stomach (apparently she did that earlier than is usual). We can not believe she is already 3 months old (well, she will be on 9/5, so she still has a few days). The time is already flying by, it’s scary. Below are some of our favorite pics from the last few weeks:

Alison and her bunny:

She looks like she’s getting a little sick of her picture being taken:

Picnic in Rittenhouse Square:

Hanging on the floor with daddy:

Silly face:

We finally found a carrier that Alison likes:

Sunday brunch with friends:

I don’t even know what to say about this pic, but’s it’s pretty funny:

A successful tummy time:

We took Ali on her first beach trip to Ocean City, NJ. Unfortunately we picked a very hot and humid day on top of it being really crowded. So our trip didn’t last long; just enough to walk her along the beach, dip her feet in the ocean and get ice cream on the boardwalk. Luckily there was no traffic and it only took a little over an hour each way. She seemed to really like the ocean, she’s a beach baby just like her mom.

All set for her first long car ride, she looks like she is cooperating but she’s not happy about it.

Crashed out after her big day

Some shots from the last few weeks:

Alison met her Uncle Bill and Uncle A.J. last weekend. Unfortunately she was having a bit of a cranky day, but she perked up a little bit for part of their visit. Perhaps one day Uncle Bill will direct her in a play with Uncle A.J. playing her, um, older brother Following the pics of their visit are some random cute shots from the last couple weeks.

Some pics from the last couple weeks:

Ali loves her baths.

Rich and Ali love to play running/bicycle

Saturday was my first birthday as a mommy. Our Doula, Lorra, came over so Rich and I could go out to dinner. We went to a BYOB called Roberto’s, and then Alison was kind enough to sleep for 8 hours straight!  I’ve always liked to wear a pretty dress on my birthday, and I decided that Alison should also wear a pretty dress on her mommy’s birthday. This was her first time wearing a dress, of course we had to take a million pictures because she looked absolutely adorable.

Alison loves to stare at the Monet painting above her changing table.