Dick Biondi Sock Hop

John & I had an awesome night out on Saturday (thanks to Mom & Sam for babysitting!) We attended the annual Dick Biondi Sock Hop at Brother Rice High School. My entire family was there along with some friends and I think it's safe to assume we all had a BLAST! To prove it--my husband who NEVER dances was out there for more than one song...and I didn't have to drag him onto the dance floor kicking and screaming! I also got to dance with my dad to "My Girl" again, which is always fun! And of course, Leah & I were one of the first people on the dance floor. 

Dick Biondi is a living legend. I grew up listening to him on 104.3 as a kid--even though "oldies" is my parents music, I feel like it's mine too because it's what I always listened to (that, and I think I was born in the wrong era!). Dick threw in a history tid-bit before he introduced every song which was really cool--like how a nun broke one of his 45's on the way into a school dance because it was "Devil Music"---the 45 she broke was "Twist n Shout". 

Can't wait 'til next year's Hop! 

Pulling up & Playing

I mentioned a few posts ago Lola had figured out how to pull herself up on the baby gate. The next day, she pulled herself up in her crib (which we promptly moved to the lowest setting). John moved her toy box into her playroom yesterday and today she figured out how to pull herself up on that too. She loves banging on it like it's a drum!

Her favorite playtime activity of the moment is for me to stack her soft blocks so she can crawl to them and knock them down. This can keep her entertained forever! She never tires of it and it's fun to watch her crawl from one end of the room to the other as I stack and she demolishes. I figure it's a great activity to increase her coordination and motor skills. And, it tires her out so she sleeps better :)

Our baby girl has changed so much this past month. We can't believe she will be 8 months on Wednesday, can you?!

Silly Face!

These two adore eachother...

That was fast!

Lola has been crawling for the last two weeks now. She moves pretty fast, as those who've seen her live or via Google Video Chat can attest. Well this afternoon while I was in the kitchen and John was out of the room for a second, she managed to pull her self up on the baby gate and when John walked back in the room he found her STANDING! 

Kitchen Pictures!

DISCLAIMER: None of this would have been possible without the help of our Dads or Papa! (Uncle Davey & Uncle Kenny lent a helping hand too with the corner cabinet and sink installation!)

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

We haven't installed the hardware on the doors or the new outlet covers yet, but everything else in the kitchen is finally DONE and we're loving it! There is room for all my kitchen things, so for the most part, the counters can remain clear. I commented that I feel like the countertops are bigger-they're not-I just now have alot more work space. Notice there isn't a garbage can in any of the pictures? That's because my awesome Grandpa installed an under-the-counter garbage can on rails!

Here it is! So in love with the paint color. 

Those carpenters/plumbers/electricians/painters we hired did an amazing job! ;)

Happy girl playing in the kitchen...

Our new side-by-side fridge is huge and I can actually SEE what food we have!

Best new addition to the kitchen--the new wall of cabinets that didn't exist before.

Our new sink is a dream! Big, deep--and has a garbage disposal!

John picked out a pretty awesome faucet too, don't you think?!

Her very own playroom...

This whole remodeling of the kitchen/painting extravaganza we've been doing around here all started with me wanting to turn our dinning room into a safe, spacious play area for Lola. Since we're going to be here awhile, we need to utilize the space we have in the smartest way. Our kitchen is huge, so our dinning set would work in there. And really, who needs more than one dinning set?!

While she had to be in solitary confinement earlier, we've set the gate up differently to create a wall so she now has open space to crawl around and explore. So far, she enjoys it. She'll play for awhile independently but of course loves when you're in there, too, playing with her! She loves to explore and even Dad commented on her good coordination. It's amazing how she's learned to move in just a short amount of time. 

Watching her at almost 8 months amazes us--just 8 months ago she was still in my tummy and now she can do so much! Her expressions of emotion-both joy and frustration-are clearly communicated to us as well, with very interesting new sounds! For the most part, she's still a very happy baby with just a tad of fuss for good measure! When Mom & I were shopping for her Easter dress on Saturday, and later when I took her to the Frankfort Children's Museum, she was smiling at complete strangers--one of my favorite traits of hers. She continues to bring joy to everyone she comes across--but brings the most joy to John and I, of course. 

Random cuteness from this week...

Solitary Confinement

Dad is already hard at work so that means Lola needs to be seriously confined! The little squirt is trying to figure out how to break out of jail. I'm hoping the industrial strength plastic can withstand her!

Models of St. Joseph

Today is St. Joesph's Day. Joseph was Jesus' earthly father. He was a hard worker, day in and day out, who never complained about the demanding physical labor that consumed his days, let alone taking a woman as his wife who was carrying someone else's child! 

I have a few St. Joseph's in my life. My Papa, my Dad and my husband. They all worked so hard on our stunning new kitchen (pictures of the finished project coming soon, I promise!). It was quite a bit of work to say the least, but not once did they complain. They were meticulous, as usual, and now it looks amazing! But like St. Joseph, they work hard at their other jobs every day, without complaining. And they are ALL amazing fathers, just like St. Joseph was to Jesus. Lola and I are lucky ladies to have the love of these 3 special guys in our lives. 

And to top it off, another great father, John's dad, is coming in this weekend to help us finish things off by painting our place and fixing some dry wall issues we have. I can't wait to see Lola and him together. Unfortunately they haven't spent much time together since we're so far from one another, but I really think there's a sweet, special bond between the two of them. Personally, I think it stems from her napping so peacefully on her Papa's chest the first week of her life!

Irish Cooking

It's hard to believe that this is the first year this Irish girl has ever made her own corned beef and cabbage! For the first time making it, I think it turned out pretty damn good! I cooked it in the crocked pot on low since 6 am this morning and served it with boiled potatoes and carrots. It was so pretty I had to snap a pic! 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Missing Ireland...

St. Patrick's Day makes us miss Ireland something awful! I don't think a day goes by that our hearts don't ache to be back there. We're seriously nuts about it and can't wait to get back! Target date for our next vacation there is September 2011. It will be our 5 year anniversary. 

Until then, I'll just post a few of my favorite pics. The first two are of us enjoying our first pints on the Emerald Isle (at The White House in Kinsale) and the third is of God's sun gleaming off the blue coasts above the lush green that engulfs the island.

Our baby girl is starting to crawl!

Watch how she moves a few feet, on her own, to get to her baby doll.

Kitchen Remodel-Day 2

On Sunday, the guys were able to get the microwave and dishwasher installed. They had planned on doing the counter tops as well, but it was raining all day long so we couldn't pick them up for fear of getting them wet--thus ruining them! So instead Dad and I picked up some odds and ends so he could run the electrical for the garbage disposal (yeah!!!). Papa installed all the side panels on the exposed ends of the wall and base cabinets as well as cutting and securing little blocks of wood to the sides of the bases so they can attach the counter tops with L brackets.

All in all, a very productive afternoon!

I'm very happy with the way the appliances look with the cabinets...

Kitchen Remodel-Day 1

Dad, John & Papa started hanging our new cabinets at 8:00 o'clock this morning. They worked straight through until 5:00 o'clock in the afternoon, not taking a single break! Lola and I peaked our heads in a few times. It was hard not to be in there with them--I used to LOVE helping my dad with projects when I was younger. Even without my help though, they did a pretty awesome job. We are SO LUCKY to have a Dad & Grandpa that can do everything that needs to be done to completely redo our kitchen. 

(You'll notice a few pics down there is a open space in the corner--yeah, brilliant Home Depot ordered us a straight 24" cabinet, even though we told them we needed a diagonal 24" cabinet. Thankfully it was an end cabinet and didn't hold up the entire project and it will be here in about two weeks.)

Dad & John got started hanging the cabinets on the open wall...

The wall of cabinets they started on. 

The wall I'm completely in love with!

What a difference!