The Macks

All Smiles

2010-12-07T19:59:00.001-05:00

We've been really busy, and I've been putting my time into other things than blogging. For that, I'm sorry! In the meantime, enjoy some cheesin' from Anabelle. She's growing up so quickly!

Guest Blogger: Josephine May Shaver

2010-08-05T17:38:00.002-04:00

Miss Josephine May Shaver sent us an amazing song when she heard Anabelle's big news. She is the cutest little baby we know in NY, and we are still dying to meet her! Thanks, baby girl, for our new tunes!!

[To the tune of Beyonce's "All the Single Ladies"]

Anabelle:

All the Little Ladies, All the Little Ladies,
All the Little Ladies, All the Little Ladies,
All the Little Ladies, All the Little Ladies,
All the Little Ladies, Now put your hands up!

Up in the crib, baby food on my bib
And my diaper's got its own little thing.
You wanted a kid, I guess you really did
Cuz now another's on the way!

I'll drool on her, she'll drool on me,
Don't pay us no attention.
You can cry your tears: no sleep for years!
But you can't be mad at me.

Mike & Biz:

Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it,
Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it,
Parenthood was tough but now we got the hang of it
Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it!

Uh-oh, ooh, oh-oh. Twenty-two months, oh, uh-oh!

Annabelle:

Got spit-up on my lips, wet diaper on my hips
Leaking onto your maternity jeans
Acting up, spilling my cup,
But you couldn't care less what I think.

Didn't ask my permission, and did I mention:
I don't like to share attention!
But I had my turn, And now I'm gonna learn
What it really means to be a family.

Mike & Biz:

Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it,
Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it,
Parenthood was tough but now we got the hang of it
Yeah, we liked it so we'll take another swing at it!

Uh-oh, ooh, oh-oh. Twenty-two months, oh, uh-oh!

Guest Blogger:

2010-08-02T21:38:00.009-04:00

blog written by guest blogger, Anabelle Mack

Mommy and Daddy have been very busy this summer. Daddy spent a loooot of time reading books for a big exam he took in July. Im happy he took the test because now he has more time to play with me and mommy!

While he studied, mommy packed. She packed and packed and packed some more. My house was full of boxes. It was really fun to climb in the boxes and pull stuff out of the ones she already packed. I was sad, though, because my toys kept disappearing.

The good news is, I found my toys! They put them in a new house. And now my bed is there too! All of our stuff is in a new house. I love being there because there is carpet for us to play on in the living room and so much space to run around in. I even get to climb up and down the stairs to my room. And I love my new room because it's pink, and it has a really pretty light in it!

But the biggest news of all is this...

I'm not really sure what it means to be a big sister. My mommy keeps telling me there's a baby in her belly. I think she's silly. Daddy and mommy seem really happy about this baby she put in her tummy, so I am going to be happy, too. At least, I'll try....

No Time

2010-06-24T19:54:00.004-04:00

I don't have the time to do the things I want to do lately, including blog. Our life is this, in a nutshell:

Walking and signing one year old, sweet as she can be, keeping me busy, napping just 1 hour a day, very astute, soaking life up like a sponge, making everyone she sees stop and smile, filling our hearts with pure joy.

Over-studied husband, amazing and wonderful, plenty busy with work, plus cramming for his CFP exam, joining multiple local civic organizations and managing most house decisions, still making time to love on his girls.

New construction house now with all flooring, A/C, lighting, hardware, etc installed, just gathering finishing touches and waiting to become a home in mid-July.

And a wonderfully happy, yet busy, running til she drops, trying to maintain sweet family and friend relationships and a somewhat clean home momma who needs a better tan and is really ready for life to slow down. (Did I mention wonderfully happy? I am! Just a bit crazy!)

So there you have it. That explains why our blogging existance is sparse. We love sharing our lives with you online, but I much prefer just enjoying life that's happening in person. We praise God for everything He's given us-- even the busy!

A Few of Our Favorite Things

2010-06-16T22:33:00.007-04:00

Play time with daddy...

Peeking down at mommy...

Time with our sweet family...

Precious baby smiles...

Climbing lots of stairs...

WALKING!!!!!!

Making sweet pouty faces....

And precious piggies...

These are a few of my favorite things!

Miscellany

2010-06-05T22:45:00.000-04:00

Isn't she just the cutest? We pulled my old rocking chair out of "storage" (which is pretty much everywhere we look these days). Anabelle loves it! We keep it in the bedroom so she can watch her show in the morning while I get ready. She even taught herself to rock in it and in the big rocking chair. Such a big girl!

Climbing is our favorite thing to do these days. It's pretty common to find her crawling between the kitchen and living room shelves, like this. Today, daddy found her climbing up her rocking chair, trying to get onto our bed. It's only a matter of time before she'll be doing it with ease!

Anabelle loves having Papa living next door! He and mimi are spoiling her like crazy.

Swingin Good Time!

2010-06-04T12:00:00.000-04:00

Anabelle's birthday gift from Papa, Mimi and us was her very own swingset! It has been so much fun to play on it with her. She absolutely loves swinging, as you can tell in the pictures below. She points at it every time she sees it out the window and is happy as can be swinging for as long as we'll let her.

Check out the giant smiles she (and we) have on our faces on her very first time playing on it!

Blogger isn't letting me put comments in the correct places, so you don't get any narratives other than: "Look how much fun this is!!"

Fun Family Photo Shoot

2010-06-02T12:00:00.000-04:00

1st Birthday Bash

2010-05-31T19:39:00.011-04:00

Busy times! But I knew you wouldn't want to miss Anabelle's party photos. We kept it pretty small so she wasn't too overwhelmed (and we weren't either). But she had a blast! She loved the attention, of course, and enjoyed getting to play with her grandparents, aunts and sweet friends. It was the perfect day for a party, and we were thrilled to celebrate the big O-N-E!

These first two photos were from her actual birthday.

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Yummmm! Actually, she just barely ate any icing. Not quite a sweet tooth, yet.

The Abbys

And our best attempt at a family photo. She was too excited to sit still for us.

A pink dump truck? For ME??? :)

And she LOVES her new trike!

So much fun in one day. So many wonderful people who love our baby. Such awesome memories. Thanks to everyone who loves our girl! xo

11 Months

2010-05-12T09:34:00.002-04:00

So many changes happen on a daily basis, it's hard to keep up with this girl. She amazes us. She brings us great joy. And she gives us a thousand reasons to thank God on a daily basis.

Anabelle is 11 months old. We can't believe it! (Actually she's one week away from one at this point!!!) Here is a short list of things she can do at this point:

Cruise along any furniture she can get her hands on
Walk with her walking toy
Walk holding on to just one of our fingers
Sign "More," "All Done," "Thank You," "Please"
Blow Kisses
Play Hide and Seek
Play "So Big"
Wave "Hello" and "Bye bye"
Say "Momma," "Dadda," "Papa," "Meh Meh" (for Mimi), "Bye Bye," and lots of other sounds that mostly sound like "tooka tooka tooka"
Imitate any words we say
Point at everything
Clear out a drawer in 2.5 seconds

I hardly have time to sit down and post these days as we close in on her birthday, birthday party, our house being finished and wanting to be outside more. But I know you want to see her, so I'll do my best to keep this up!

p.s. An addition to milestones is that she has maintained her 25 lbs for the last four + months. No gaining. She is getting taller, though, as a lot of her shirts need to be 2T to cover her torso. Yep, 2T! She's still mainly in 18 month pants. I'm guessing she's still off the charts for height, and probably weight, too. We'll find out soon. My baby turns ONE on Tuesday!

Return of the Macks

2010-05-09T22:33:00.003-04:00

Can you believe it's been a month since I posted last? Now that I have "Return of the Mack" stuck in your head, stay tuned for new pictures this week!

Spring, Time to Sing Vivaldi!

2010-04-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

It's not really time to sing Vivaldi, but that song is stuck in my head thanks to Anabelle's Baby Einstein exersaucer and the Little Einsteins show she loves!

Spring arrived early in Indiana, and we are thrilled! The 75-80 degree days have been so much fun for walks and a trip to the park. On Good Friday, we went to the park as a family and had a little photo shoot with our pretty girl, too.

More of Easter

2010-04-07T12:00:00.000-04:00

Anabelle's first Easter was so wonderful! Her Great-Great-Grandma O'Leary surprised us with a beautiful dress in the mail. It was way too much fun getting her all dolled up and ready to go to church. We also loved shooting photos of her, pretty much all day.

Here she is devouring her basket.

Hunting for eggs in the front yard. After her cousins hunted, she made it away with two eggs: one for each hand!

The Campbell/Mack family, minus Rachie, on Easter. We were so thankful for the beautiful and warm day!

Papa & Mimi spoiled the little miss with an Easter basket filled with her favorite things, including these hot purple sunglasses. She also got a fabulous pair of pink sparkly sneaks to show off her walking skills with this summer.

Easter Weekend With the Macks

2010-04-06T12:00:00.000-04:00

Easter weekend brought Mike's family to town to spend time with us and celebrate Jesus' resurrection! It was a whirlwind of fun, catching up and trying to coordinate activities for 11 of us. Breakfast went a little like this:

Saturday was spent at the Children's Museum. Between the 11 of us and Abby, we had 2 vehicles, 3 children, 2 wheelchairs, 1 stroller, 1 baby carrier, about 6 cameras and a partridge in a pear tree.

Connor loved checking out the dinosaurs and Bob the Builder! Chelsie patiently chased him around the entire museum.

Grandpa and Grandma were great sports, watching the kids explore each area from their luxury rides.

Abby spent most of her day with Hailey, showing her the cool stuff and distracting her from the scary dinosaurs.

Sunday morning we all put on our Easter best and went to church together. In the midst of the chaos of planning the weekend, I found myself continually trying to refocus on why we were celebrating Easter. The sacrifice of Christ dying on the cross for us is so unbelievable, I find it challenging to appreciate the meaning of it sometimes. As a mom, I feel I may grasp a tiny bit of what it meant for God to send His Son to die for us. I am thankful for Easter weekend to celebrate Good Friday when Christ dies and then Easter Sunday when he miraculously rose!

It seems silly to exchange candy and baskets in light of what we're really celebrating. But it's a tradition anyways, and it is fun to celebrate new life that spring brings!

There was no chance of getting the three kids to sit still with their Easter baskets, so here is our best shot in front of the mantle.

Little Easter bunny, Connor.

And the whole Mack/Lee clan!

Happy Easter!

2010-04-05T21:51:00.002-04:00

Papa Love

2010-04-01T14:23:00.000-04:00

Playing with Daddy

2010-03-30T14:01:00.001-04:00

Anabelle is a true daddy's girl. Whatever he does or wherever he is, she wants to be right there with him. He can always get her to smile. She absolutely adores him.

It's only fitting that she try to be like him in the gym...
And on the ping pong table...

Next on her list of "to-dos" is walking! She loves to walk with someone holding her hands. She can pull herself up on any of the furniture and has started to cruise a little bit along the couch. It's amazing how quickly that happened.

Go, girly, go.

Ten Months!

2010-03-26T14:00:00.004-04:00

Anabelle turned 10 months old last week. We can't believe we're already planning a birthday party for her! This month has brought an incredible amount of changes for all of us. Anabelle is crawling everywhere, pulling up on anything she can, standing at the couch, her toybox, her playtable, etc, and even beginning to walk along the side of the furniture. Yikes!

She is so bubbly and full of life. We love listening to her jabber nonstop! She has most of the consonants down, loves to say "dada" and has just started saying "ticka ticka." It's precious to hear her little voice. My favorite is to watch her in her carseat. She raises her eyebrows and moves her mouth like she's talking, but no sound comes out. I'm pretty sure she has imaginary friends!

She's eating every food imaginable. Although, lately, she won't eat much at any meal. She's still super "healthy" and plenty happy, so we aren't concerned. She has been through 5 rounds of antibiotics for ear infections since Christmas so we met with an ENT finally. After an evaluation, we decided she needs tubes in her ears. April 1st is the date, and we're hoping for a little girl who feels great all of the time and one who naps like an angel!! (Wishful thinking??)

On top of ear infections, she's popped out tooth #7 this month, and #8 is bursting at the seams. That makes four on the bottom and almost four on top. No wonder she can eat anything! I'm afraid we're about done with cereal and baby food because she much prefers feeding herself whole food. But that's perfectly okay, and usually much easier on me.

We are having so much fun with sweet Anabelle; which makes us so excited for whatever comes next. We're hoping to buy a bike seat and a swingset soon to teach her how fun spring can be! A baby pool and swimmies for the big pool are in store for her birthday because summer will be amazing with our little toddler!

Right now, we will just enjoy our quick crawling sweetie at 10 months old!

On The Move

2010-03-25T13:51:00.002-04:00

Just after Anabelle turned 9 months old, she started scooting on her belly, which quickly led to full out hands and knees crawling. It's been so much fun (and work) to watch as she progresses. She's learned how much there is to explore in the new house. Fortunately, she hasn't found the stairs yet!

And, she's off!

Our ottoman has made for a great barrier between her and all of the fun electronics on our TV. It was a grand idea to think she'd hear "no" and stay away, but even with an ottoman and pillows surrounding it, she still manages to find her way to the Wii every now and then.

The glass shelves, dividing our family and living room, that once held family photos and candles now hold hard books and baby toys. But Anabelle loves pulling herself onto the lowest shelf and watching me work in the kitchen.
And the bathroom is a world of wonders! All of her bath toys are strewn about, and when she gets bored with them, she discovers mommy & daddy's fun bathroom toys.

I think the caption for this picture is "Busted!"

mommaEmack's Boutique

2010-03-12T13:38:00.006-05:00

I've been working hard these past two months to "start a business." I have been making and selling nursing covers and burp cloths for about 8 months now. My nursing cover was my favorite baby gift that I was surprised with by my friend and sorority daughter, Katie. I have been able to nurse in every imaginable place thanks to it: baseball games, restaurants, the mall, by the pool, any place we go. It's been a huge blessing! As a result, I decided that others needed to experience this fantastic item. So I started making and selling them.

Next came these incredibly cute and amazingly absorbent burp cloths another dear friend and sorority sister, Karla, made me. I loved having cute prints on my shoulder when burping Anabelle, or pulling out a trendy cloth to wipe up the million spills and "urps" that are unavoidable with a little one.

And finally, hair bows! I think Anabelle's pictures speak for themselves. I. Love. Bows. And now I love selling them! Thanks to yet another wonderful sorority sister, Lindsey, for referring me my biggest piece of business in February!! It gave me the boost I needed to launch my business.

So, without further adieu, I introduce you to mommaEmack's Boutique. The site isn't perfectly finished, but it's out there. I still prefer to sell my items off the internet, to avoid the restrictions and costs involved with the website, but you can easily refer someone to my site to see what I can do!

Stay tuned for ruffled socks to make their appearance in the shop next.

She is on the Move!

2010-03-02T20:23:00.004-05:00

It's not much of a video, but I captured a few seconds of Anabelle's latest achievements on my cell phone while in our bathroom. She is crawling! She has been scooting on her tummy for a few weeks, but as of Monday, she is a full out crawler. She still doesn't go far. I don't know if it's because she doesn't know she can, or because there's nothing really interesting outside of our living room. Either way, I'm okay with keeping her contained for now.

It's amazing to see the transformation of her from an immobile baby to a grown up little crawler. She gets so excited, too, when she is on her hands and knees. It's a whole new world from her new perspective, and it is a great one!

Nine Months Old!

2010-02-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

Anabelle's caption: "I can't believe I am NINE MONTHS OLD!!!"

We can't believe it either, baby. But you sure are pretty! And growing so quickly.
And mommy & daddy finally got smart. We put the sign in a plastic display holder so you can't crumble it up and eat it.

Miss Anabelle turned 9 months old last week. At her well baby visit (this week), she weight 24.6 lbs and was 30 inches long. We asked where that put her on the charts, and she is off of them. Dr. Miles said "above 95th percentile" and showed us the chart where her dot was nowhere near the shaded area.

She's a big girl! People tell us that all the time... "Wow, she's a healthy girl!" "She doesn't miss a meal, does she?" "Look at those cheeks!" "What are you feeding her, mom?" The list goes on. She started off big (almost 9.5lbs) and has maintained a healthy gain. Her pjs are now 18 months. But she is awesome. We wouldn't ask for anything different. She makes our faces and our hearts smile on a daily, usually hourly, basis. We love her laugh, her smile, her silly faces, her intelligence, her squeals, her chubby baby thighs, her kisses and on and on. Happy nine months, baby, to all of us!

Euchre Nights

2010-02-25T09:51:00.004-05:00

Once a month for we get together with our friends, the Harberts, Lands and Jameses to play Euchre. We look forward to it each month even though we have only gotten to play Euchre about 1/4 of the time in the past year. It's mostly because we have added four babies to the crew since May. There are now six kids to look after, under the age of 2 1/2! It's a wonder we even have played one game of Euchre.

It's also funny to realize that throughout our foursome friendship, at least one of us has been pregnant or nursing the entire time. At one point, we all were!

While the girls and I got food set up and were standing around chatting, here's what the daddies were doing...

And this photo was so exciting to get! All six kids ready for bed, all sitting still, all happy, all looking at the camera. I don't know when it will happen again, but it is priceless!

Left to Right: Abby (4mos), Sarah (2yrs), Anabelle (9mos), Lily (2yrs), Violet (6wks), Connor (5mos)

...After reading Heather's blog, I realized ages would be nice to add...

Life with my Baby

2010-02-25T08:26:00.002-05:00

Our nap times are so short, as you already now. And a fourth ear infection has increased Anabelle's need for me to be near her right now. My mom reminded Katie and me of this sweet poem. And now it's my life theme:

I hope my child looks back on today
and remembers a Mom who had time to play
There will be years for cleaning and cooking
But children grow up when we are not looking
Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
Cuz babies grow fast, we learn to our sorrow
So settle down cobwebs, dust go to sleep
I'm cuddling my baby, and babies don't keep

I'm off to cuddle, play and love on my girl.

If you give a baby a toy...

2010-02-24T16:00:00.001-05:00

she'll play for 5 minutes.

If you give a baby and entire toy box, she'll play by herself forever.

Well, maybe not forever, but for a much longer time! Since she doesn't nap well, I've been trying to figure out ways for her to stay entertained for longer so I can get things done during the day. She's also going through a clingy phase, so I need to be in sight often. I could keep her occupied for a while with different toys or a video, but after 5-10 minutes she needed interaction.

After watching her continually crawl to our "toy box" (or wire cubby thing we're using temporarily) multiple times, I decided to bring the toy box to her. I set it on its side so she could get to every toy inside and VOILA, she was happy for an hour! I was in and out, hanging nearby, but she loved having access to so many fun things. And I was happy to have extra freedom.

These PJs Were Made for Walkin

2010-02-23T12:00:00.000-05:00

and that's just what they'll do.

Not Just for Kids

2010-02-22T12:30:00.000-05:00

We snuck in a few minutes of play time in the snow, too.

Baseball...

And snow angels...

Snowy Day

2010-02-22T12:00:00.000-05:00

We were so thankful to be home together on Presidents' Day! Mike, being a kid at heart, could not resist staying out of the snow any longer. So, we made it a play day and introduced Anabelle to the fun that can be had in the snow.

Daddy sat her down in the snow first. She really wasn't sure what to think.
Checkin out the cold stuff while nobody was looking...

All in all, she had a good snow day. If we could just get a sled, we know we, I mean she, would have even more fun!

Jump and Giggle

2010-02-20T12:00:00.000-05:00

This is a few weeks old, but I am so slow to download my videos. Just watch and enjoy. This girls brings us SO MUCH JOY!!!

Progression

2010-02-19T12:00:00.000-05:00

Our house is [finally] coming along. As Mike likes to say, we're four weeks in and three and a half weeks behind. Snow and ice have been major contributors to the delay, but what's a few weeks in light of a lifetime of a solid foundation?

We drive by our lot almost on a daily basis, and for a while it was a bit depressing. But this week we have seen major progression. The basement floor has been poured, walls built and filled, and the first floor is completely framed out. Tomorrow, the second level floor should be built, and the basement stairs should be started soon. We are *SO* excited. Here's our sweet little home so far.
And in the meantime, while we wait for our home to be built, we are living awfully close to Papa & Mimi. It has been a blessing for all of us to be near eachother. Papa is continuing to teach Anabelle new tricks. One of his new favorites is blowing in her face. She giggles so sweetly when he does it.

NINE?

2010-02-18T19:24:00.002-05:00

I just got an e-mail from Babycenter.com saying "Your baby is 9 months old." NINE? I have no words, just a few mommy tears...

Bubbly Girly

2010-02-18T15:22:00.004-05:00

Splashing in the "new" jacuzzi tub has made Anabelle's bath times so much fun. She especially likes the massive amount of toys that fit in there and how many bubbles are produced when the jets are turned on. Its purpose has officially progressed from cleaning to entertainment. Fingers and toes get pruny. Hair gets bubbly. And toys get a workout!

She especially enjoys the big bath without the bath seat. But after five or ten minutes of bending over the side of the tub, we quickly feel the aches of being "old." And then we're thankful for the bath seat.

After-bath is just as fun. She loves reading her Nemo book, and we love lotioning her all up.

Date Night

2010-02-15T08:26:00.004-05:00

Saturday night, we had a grown-ups' night out as we attended a Rotary dinner and auction to raise money for life saving surgeries for children internationally. Fabulous. Sweet Auntie Abby came to stay with Anabelle so Mike and I could enjoy a wonderful evening out, even getting to dress ourselves up.

We traveled in an entourage that included Papa and Mimi, who invited us to the auction.
Tio was in charge of the evening, so Tia went with us to the event.

The evening was amazing. Not only did we get to dress up and enjoy dinner and drinks with movers and shakers of the area, we also were able to support the efforts of Rotary. Two little girls, one from Afghanistan and one from Haiti, were there to thank the club for their surgeries, which afforded them their lives. It was moving, to say the least. We were thrilled to be part of such an honorable event.

My Valentines

2010-02-14T17:54:00.004-05:00

I am so thankful for and so blessed by my Valentines!

Rubber Ducky, You're the One

2010-02-10T10:23:00.001-05:00

A sneak peek at how much fun bath time is!

Laundry Help

2010-02-02T11:20:00.002-05:00

Anabelle's nap times have gradually decreased from 45 minutes to 35 minutes to now 25 minutes per nap. It drives me crazy because I can't do anything productive, really, in 25 minutes! So, I put her to work helping me with laundry yesterday. She seemed to enjoy it!

As long as she's happy and sleeping 12 hours at night, I refuse to complain too often about her lack of napping.

Attn: OLD NAVY shoppers!

2010-02-01T16:22:00.003-05:00

Thanks to Money Saving Mom, I found a great deal at Old Navy that's good through February 4th. Had to pass it on to you!

If you go to Ebates.com, search for Old Navy. Click through to the Old Navy Site.

Fill your shopping cart and check out using coupon code ONSAVEBIG, which will give you 15% off, plus free shipping.

Within 30 days, you get 20% cashback from Ebates, on top of the 15% you saved at Old Navy!

**When you sign up for your Ebates account, please tell them we referred you with Mike's e-mail address: mack04ej@hotmail.com. That will give you $5 extra cash back, and it gives us a referral bonus.

If I haven't posted about it before, we LOVE Ebates! You can get cash back for almost every single online purchase you ever make if you go through Ebates.com to your online store. No strings attached, they just send a check out once a quarter with your cash back. Amazing! Let me know if you have any questions about it.

Smiles

2010-01-28T12:00:00.002-05:00

Anabelle's big cheesin' smiles haven't been quite as frequent, especially in photos, lately. She's toughed out two ear infections, a yucky cold and now is cutting both top teeth. She gives us plenty of smiles and giggles and belly laughs, still, but when the camera comes out they disappear.

Thankfully, though, I've learned to play peek-a-boo behind my camera to get her to smile. Here is my sweetie loving her Cheerios.

It's been 3 months since she started cereal. (Please note she is wearing the same top three months ago! She might be starting to average out now.) These days, her meal options are endless. Mike made delicious guacamole for the Colts' game Sunday, which may just be Anabelle's favorite food! She loves flavor, just like her daddy. She also loves chicken, cheese, yogurt, bananas, whole wheat tortillas and any other food she can feed herself. It's so much fun!

Playdate

2010-01-27T09:00:00.000-05:00

Last week Anabelle and I had our first play date to the Children's Museum. I was so excited to take her there because I remember my mom taking us there many, many times growing up. The day started off with much entertainment because I drove the Land girls. Three carseats in my back seat. As Katie said, we now know that we can have twins next and we'll be able to easily fit them in the backseat. *cough, cough LOUDER, Ain't. Gonna. Happen.* But the girls were pretty cute squished together, and they did very well back there.
(The next day, however, we rode together to MOPS. Afterwards, the girls sang us a beautiful symphony of cry, whine, chat. It was a bit overwhelming to imagine that as a normal event.)

Back to the Museum. The Barbie exhibit is in town, and Sarah loves it. She must get it honestly, because this is how I found the mommy/daughters...

Sonya and Connor went with us, too. Sonya has been a bit concerned about Connor getting a girl-complex, because he is the only boy in a baby boom of girl babies. While we were in the Barbie complex, she made sure he had the manly job of mixing the music while the girls walked down the runway.

Anabelle appreciated DJ Connor's work, while she worked the Barbie runway.

Then we hit baby playland. Jackpot! She loved it. Everything was just her size, just her height and just perfect to chew on. Her bathtime friend (from the mirror) was even there.

I loved playing in the water with her. It was even more special when my mom said she has this same picture with me, in the same type of smock, playing in the water. Anabelle loves water. We may need one of these at home.

And the girl has a sporty side, just like her daddy. In fact, Mike has this same picture of him at 5 years old, driving the Indy car. (We also took one of him two years ago in the same position... wish I could find it!)

I had to get in, too. It looked like so much fun.

Success! Our playdate at the Children's Museum was great. The mommies, I mean kids, had so much fun and were wonderful for us. Can't wait to go back!

Love to Love You Baby

2010-01-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

We can't get enough of our sweet girl these days. It's so hard to believe she's been here for eight months! The amount of change that happens in 8 months is incredible, and we are continuing to cherish every second of it. Pretty soon, she's going to take off on her little hands and knees, and we are going to be in a whole other world. We enjoy every second, but we also look forward to each stage that is to come. As Mike looked back on my blog posts of late, the song "When God Made You" was playing. It was the song for our first dance at our wedding reception. I wonder what God was thinking, when He created you. I wonder if He knew everything I would need, because He made all my dreams come true. When God made you, He must have been thinking about me. That song still resonates with me about my incredible husband. But it also has another special meaning that relates to our amazing daughter. I know God created her specifically with us in mind. And I will pray for the next 25+ years that her future husband will feel the exact same way.

LET'S GO COLTS!

2010-01-24T12:00:00.000-05:00

8 Months Old

2010-01-23T20:53:00.004-05:00

The girl is SO busy, this is the best we could get without her eating or annihilating the paper. The bunny is below her shoulder! Remember seven months ago....

Tutus

2010-01-23T20:44:00.003-05:00

A friend from high school and I have reconnected since we moved back to Greenfield. She
brought her 10 month old over for a play date and asked if she could shoot some photos of
Anabelle. This tutu was a gift from Papa & Mimi for Christmas and was still sitting out in our
front room. Amy asked if she could use it, and look at these amazing shots she got!

Stunning! I can't wait to have a house of our own to frame these on our walls.

If You're a Mom...

2010-01-12T13:52:00.002-05:00

If you're a mom, you MUST check out www.diapers.com. I love it! I compared the price I could pay in any store for diapers and wipes in bulk, and this site comes within $2 of my wipes and matches the price of my diapers. Plus, they often have a few dollars off. Plus, you can send in any manufacturers' coupons to apply to your orders. Plus, you get ten bucks off your first order, which is huge! PLUS, free shipping when you spend $49 or more.

Diapers.com has every possible child-related item you can think of. I've shopped for diapers, wipes, food, toothbrushes, creams, clothes, toys and more. I just love it. And your order will arrive in less than 48 hours. Beats a trip to the store any day!

If you do order, I would love for you to use my referral number. It is BIZ0518. When you do, you'll get $10 off your first order. I'm amazed by how much I love ordering from this place. Check it out!! www.diapers.com

p.s. It's also fun to look back at your order history, if you're buying diapers, to watch how your little one grew. Anabelle grew SO quickly at the beginning, she has been in the same size diapers now since August!

Giggly Girl

2010-01-11T09:28:00.000-05:00

Our sweetie is full of smiles and laughs. She's even discovered a toothy smile that doesn't show off her tonsils. Some are accompanied with her signature nose scrunch, and then your heart just melts. One of her favorite games for a while has been Peek A Boo. It entertains her to no end! Even more entertaining is when the "Peek a Boo-er" is extra dramatic with the game. If you watch, after 25 seconds, I got more dramatic (which you can't see) and she started cracking up more (which you will thoroughly enjoy).

We do just about anything we can think of to make her smile and laugh!

Snow Week

2010-01-09T19:01:00.000-05:00

It's been a long week. Anabelle is feeling much better, thankfully. Her tummy is still battling the second round of antibiotics, so she's not 100%, but she is close. Her test results all came back normal, too, so it was just ear infections! We got a lot of snuggle time in the past two weeks, and she has become quite close to her carseat, having slept in it every night since before Christmas. I think she really likes the comfort and closeness it provides.

The week has been long, though, because we've been snowed in! It has been far too cold, and my baby has been too sick to even think about going outside. By Friday, I needed new activities. So, I shot some photos. The sun cooperated. So did Anabelle. And I give you these. You can tell she isn't up to par because there are no smiles. But I love the serious faces. She's very serious a lot of the time!

Our House, is a Very Very Very Fine House

2010-01-09T06:52:00.003-05:00

... well, not quite. But here's our lot (to the right of the lamp post)! We will be living HERE in the not-so-distant future!
We will be breaking ground on ... (drum roll, please) ... Thursday!! Praise God!

Christmas Excitement

2010-01-08T10:30:00.000-05:00

I am on an uploading videos kick, so bear with me. Here is the reason why Christmas morning was so wonderful. She got so excited over her gifts, and especially this book we got her! So precious...

Shakin Things Up

2010-01-06T22:15:00.003-05:00

Anabelle has learned to shake her head "no," and it is hilarious when she does so. It started mid-November, when Mike was shaking his head no, and she mimicked him. Since then, she mimics it often and even more often just starts shaking her head back and forth. We can't help but laugh out loud, which I'm sure just encourages her more. It's been a challenge to actually capture it on camera, since she becomes so enamored with the camera and forgets everything else. But I caught it! Laugh along with us!

Our Christmas

2010-01-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

Christmas was SO MUCH FUN this year! Anabelle could open her presents, get excited about them and enjoy her new toys. She was the perfect age to add an incredible amount of joy and excitement to our day. Just look at how much she loved tearing into her gifts:
We started the morning out by waking up in our own beds for the first time since I've known Mike. A wonderful thing! We had a mix of traditional Campbell & Mack Christmas morning breakfasts, and Anabelle enjoyed some yummy rice cereal and applesauce. Since we live next door to my parents right now, they came over with Auntie Abby to watch Anabelle open her gifts. She loved it! She got a few books, which she went crazy over! Hope to share video of that soon.
And her big gift from daddy and mommy was a LeapFrog musical learning table. It was fun to open and so much more fun to play with!
I think she would agree, it was a good morning!That afternoon, we went to my parents' for our Christmas celebration, and Aunt Rachie and Shaun joined us. We, of course, sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus first and read the Christmas story in the Bible. We look forward to teaching Anabelle about the real reason for Christmas!

Then, it was gift time. Mimi and Papa got her a leopard purse. (I may have helped pick it out.) She is ready to shop!And, of course, she had to have her own remote control. She tries to eat them whenever she sees one, so now she has her own to chew on.

Lots of other thoughtful and wonderful gifts were exchanged, but we tried to enjoy the moments rather than take pictures of all of them.

I think this sums up our Christmas this year:

Wonderful, amazing and a miracle from God!

Not Just Sleepy

2010-01-04T21:49:00.002-05:00

Sleepiness is a result of sickness. We are now on round #2 of antibiotics for this ear infection (or a second one). Her fever spiked at 104.5 today. She was extremely lethargic and slept in my arms most of the day.

The doctor thinks everything checks out fine, other than fever and feeling bad, but after her illness this summer, we aren't taking any chances. They're going to have some tests run on her urine to check for infection. Please pray that Anabelle's body can fight these infections to a point of non-existance. She needs comfort from the pain and fever, as well as strength to fight whatever it is that is attacking her!

Sleepyhead

2010-01-04T08:26:00.004-05:00

We're wondering if Anabelle is going through a growth spurt or if she is still recovering from the ear infection... Two nights in a row, now, she has gone to bed before 7 PM, without her usual nighttime feeding, and slept straight through until almost 8 AM! The girl is a sleeper, there is no denying that.

Santa, Baby

2009-12-23T21:25:00.001-05:00

As you can tell, Anabelle's first visit with Santa went very well. The girl has never met a stranger! She loved him. Memories were made. I cried... She is SO MUCH FUN!

Biter Biscuits

2009-12-22T14:00:00.000-05:00

Among many other first tries of foods, including peas, green beans, sweet potatoes and peaches, Anabelle had her very first "biter biscuit." Her sweet friend, Addie, shared them with her since Addie has all of her teeth now. I must preface the pictures by telling you that Anabelle has never smiled, not once, while eating. She is a serious girl a lot of the time, and eating is definitely one of those times. We can tell when she likes her food by the speed with which she eats it. Smiles are not even a consideration.

If you watch the pictures, you can see she loves this. No smiles, but she demolished it in minutes. So fun to watch!

Sprinkle, Shower and Bath

2009-12-20T14:30:00.001-05:00

One of my dear friends, Heather, is expecting her second baby any day now. Well, mid-January, really. We threw a surprise "Sprinkle" for her a few weekends ago. What's a Sprinkle, you ask? It's smaller than a shower, since showers aren't typically held for second babies. It was food, friends and pampering for the mommy. Here are a few of us with the glowing Heather.

One of my other very dear friends, Amy, is expecting her first just before Heather. We don't get to see her very often, living in different states, but it's always a wonderful reunion when we do. The Groves and we decided to have our own shower for the Domingos in the form of a weekend reunion. It was so relaxing, fun to catch up and filled with delicious food! Here are the three mommas and our babies (with baby D giving Amy that beautiful mommy-to-be glow).
And speaking of showers, Anabelle loves them! It's a good thing, because we don't have a bath seat that fits the tubs in our temporary house. She either gets to take a shower, when possible, or a bath in this fabulous kitchen sink, surrounded by granite countertops. I keep telling her not to get used to it. ;)

Christmas with Grandpa Mack

2009-12-19T14:00:00.000-05:00

After Christmas celebrations with Mike's mom and grandparents, we met his dad for a little QT. Anabelle was in a terrificly smiley mood, as you can see! And check out her beautiful new hot pink scarf that Aunt Chelsie diligently crocheted for her.
We may need to sell this photo to Starbucks. I'm sure it would increase their business at least two-fold.

Grandpa Ron is an incredible wood worker. He made Anabelle a beautiful toy chest that is in her room, with her name carved in it. For Christmas, he made her this gorgeous rocking horse. She loves to sit on it and rock back and forth. I am amazed by his talent and thrilled to have a piece of furniture like this to pass on through the generations.

Christmas at Grandma Mack's

2009-12-18T14:00:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Christmas with Mike's family last weekend so we can wake up in our own house this year for Christmas and celebrate just the three of us!

Saturday night, we ventured out into the cold to take a stroll through Auburn's park that was decorated with lights and Christmas attractions. It was very pretty, and Anabelle loved all of the lights!
We managed to get a photo of the whole crew... barely. The kids also saw Santa, but the photos turned out pretty terribly between the two older kids wanting nothing to do with him. Anabelle, on the other hand, was happy just to be there.

And thrilled to be Rudolph, as you can tell.

She opened her very first Christmas presents while we were there! She loved unwrapping them. In fact, we may just wrap up paper and boxes for Christmas. It was so exciting to think about what Christmas morning will be like. Here she is checking out her gift.

And here she is being a little mommy to both of her new baby dolls. She has a hand on both of their bellies. Patting them, probably, because that's what she does to things she likes.

6 Months!

2009-12-17T21:48:00.001-05:00

Anabelle turns 7 months old tomorrow, so I figured I should post her 6 month bunny picture. It's the last one against pink walls. *sniff*

Chatty Cathy

2009-12-15T11:19:00.002-05:00

Apparently I have become quite the "Chatty Cathy" this past month because I went way over on my minutes! Since we don't have a house phone, I'm guessing a lot of those minutes came from setting up our new accounts and cancelling old accounts as we moved. Regardless, texting will be my new best friend this month while I try to limit my talk time before 9 PM. If you're on Verizon, we can talk all day! Otherwise, I may have to be selective in my talking time for a while.

This has been a public service announcement by Biz Mack. Sponsored by a grateful husband, I'm sure.

Snow & Shopping

2009-12-10T09:57:00.003-05:00

Photos have been tough to come by with our busyness, but my (camera)phone is always handy! Here is a summary of our week this week thanks to Verizon:

First, Sonya and Connor came to our new house to visit! We ate lunch at Chicago's Pizza - SO thankful to still have one nearby. Connor was smitten by Anabelle. See him checking her out! Anabelle saw her first snow this week! It was beautiful to wake up to, even if it was just a dusting. Here is how excited she was to watch it fall from the sky!

And then she went Christmas shopping with Mimi and me. We went on the coldest, iciest, 60 mph windiest day, but she still loved it! Here's proof:
So that's our week, plus organizing and such.

And More of the Beauty

2009-12-03T12:00:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas from our little sweetie! Her mimi has made her a hat like this in girly pink, Colts blue and now Christmas red with jingle bells on the little pigtails. It's darling! (She makes them with shorter tails for boys, if anyone is interested). We are so excited for Christmas with Anabelle this year! She will be so much fun!

By the time Mike got home, Anabelle was pretty tired of being the beautiful model. We got a few family photos in, but she kept her game face on. Abby still captured a few cute ones. We may try again another day for three smiles!

That's it for the photo shoot! I've already "hired" Aunt Abby for her 9 month and 12 month photos. She was so generous to do these for us, and we are very thankful to have her, plus Mimi and Auntie Rachie to help! I imagine more Christmas photos will be taken when the aunts are home for break.

Speaking of Christmas, we actually get to decorate for Christmas since we are moved in to the rental house now! I am thrilled for that. It will make this house seem even more homey, even though we know we're moving out in about six months. Anabelle may get tired of watching Elf and White Christmas since they will surely be on repeat this week as I unpack our stuff!

Contact Mack

2009-12-02T12:45:00.003-05:00

Dear Friends, Family and Blogging World,

We have temporarily relocated. We would LOVE to get mail from you, especially at Christmas! Please send us lots of letters and your family photos to:

PO Box 122
Greenfield, IN 46140.

We can safely advertise our temporary address since it's a small metal box in a US Postal Office. If you want to come visit, we will give you our physical address. Just ask!

Love,
The Macks

6 Month Photos Continued

2009-12-01T10:00:00.000-05:00

More of Aunt Abby's fabulous photo work. Anabelle was a terrific model. We just love the smiles... and those chubby cheeks/thighs/etc.

Our Baby is 6 Months Old

2009-11-29T12:00:00.001-05:00

Our sweet princess is 6 months old! Where has the time gone?

At her 6 month appt, she was stretching out the charts at 21 lbs, 4 oz and 28 inches long! She does not miss a meal and is coming close to maxing out the length on her twelve month sleepers. Yes, my adorable six month Christmas outfits that I bought in my pregnant excitement are still in packages in the closet (er, boxes). But we love her so, so, so very much, and I don't care what size she is wearing!

This past month she has continued her rolling and rolling and rolling. She still prefers the right, with an occasional nod to the left roll. It's probably 99 to 1. She is also sitting up, almost completely on her own. Padding around her is preferred for the quick turn and tumble. But she loves to sit and play now. She is also quite the daddy's girl. No matter what she is doing, if daddy comes near, she is all smiles and giggles. She will even stop nursing to arch herself upside down to take a peek at her handsome dad sitting beside me.

Speaking of eating, she tried her first vegetable in time for Thanksgiving! She is loving sweet potatoes and will start peas this week. I am pretty sure she said "It's about time" when we fed them to her.

To capture Anabelle in all of her 6 month adorableness, Auntie Abby, Auntie Rachie, Mimi and I spent an entire day in a photo shoot of the little miss. Abby has a fabulous camera that we bought a great lens for just to capture our baby girl on. And Abby did AMAZINGLY! The pictures were better than we could have hoped for. In fact, all 495 pictures were beautiful. Here are the princess ones of our 21 pound sweetheart:

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-28T21:34:00.001-05:00

From our little pumpkin.

Just a sneak peek at Anabelle's 6 month photos. More to come!

So Sorry

2009-11-24T08:30:00.002-05:00

Anabelle wanted to tell you we are so sorry for the delay in postings! It's been a busy month in the Mack house. We put our house up for sale by owner, sold it 17 days later. We have packed up the whole house and are in the midst of signing an agreement to build our new house. Mike has packed up his whole house and begins working in Greenfield on the 30th. We have found a house to rent in Greenfield and will be very close to Papa & Mimi. We hope to break ground on our new house in the next 30 days and be settled in it by the summer!

That's our life in a tiny, tiny nutshell. I feel like we are in a constant, ever growing whirlwind. Our minds are continuously racing, and my to-do list is growing by the minute. I appreciate your patience through this all as my friend or blog reader. We're busy, but we still need our friends!

Until the next free minute...

Belated Birthday Love!

2009-11-09T13:41:00.002-05:00

It's a week late, but Mike's birthday was last Sunday. We celebrated both his and my dad's birthdays Friday night in Greenfield with my family. It was, in true Campbell/Mack fashion, at El Rodeo. Nothing says "Happy Birthday" like a burrito and margarita! And an adorable baby girl in a sombrero!

We celebrated his birthday by spending it at home, as a family, and eating a LOT! Biscuits and Gravy for breakfast, Buffalo Chicken dip for a Colts game snack, and lasagna for dinner. I think he needs more birthdays! Happy Birthday, honey! We love you lots!

And today is actually my dad's birthday! His celebrations have been going on for about two weeks. And Anabelle's ribs last night were part of his birthday dinner from Tia & Tio. So, here's to her sweet Papa... Happy Birthday, dad! We love you, too!

Are We Sure?

2009-11-08T22:52:00.003-05:00

Are we SURE we want our 5 month old staying with her grandparents when we get pictures texted to us of this?

Mike and I dropped Anabelle off at Papa & Mimi's last night for another overnight so we could tailgate and go to the Colts' game today. We had a wonderful day (with beautiful weather!), but we are afraid she might have had too good of a day. Tio and Tia (Tony & Joy) brought ribs to celebrate my dad's birthday, and everyone there thought it'd be funny to stage Anabelle like she'd eaten some.

This picture makes me laugh every time I see it. After laughing, I then feel bad for Anabelle who was probably dying to lick that BBQ sauce off of her cheeks. She would have given anything to have a taste of the goodness. (No, she did not eat any of it! Don't go calling our doctor...)

Silly Hat Day

2009-11-08T08:00:00.001-05:00

Remember silly hat day during Homecoming weeks in high school? Anabelle has one that now will rival for both silly and most adorable hat day. Mimi made Anabelle this precious little thing that makes her look like she has pigtails in! It is a riot to see it on her.

Look out, cold weather, here comes more cuteness!

p.s. It was a very exciting weekend this weekend to get to see Aunt Rachie! She hasn't seen Anabelle for two months! A long time for such a tiny girl. Anabelle loved getting to play and snuggle with her and can't wait for Thanksgiving to do it again!

Pretty Baby

2009-11-06T08:00:00.001-05:00

As I mentioned before, Aunt Abby came to take some great pictures of Anabelle. Turned out that her camera was dead, so I took some great pictures while Aunt Abby played with her! Check out the most beautiful baby model there is...
(I photoshopped out the background of this for Mimi)

When you enlarge this picture, you can see her two bottom teeth that are in and the mountain of gums next to it where a third tooth was coming up. The third tooth, praise God, has now broken through! Hopefully her pain is over, too....

Sugar Baby

2009-11-04T07:27:00.006-05:00

If you recall, last year Mike and I were Sugar Daddy and Sugar Babies for Halloween. This year, with our very own Sugar Baby, we had to enhance the ensemble! We didn't have anywhere to be, but we did have a photographer (Aunt Abby) on hand to shoot some photos. So, we did.

I must say that she might be the cutest Sugar Baby, ever! She is already asking for me to make her a bigger one for next year.

That evening, Lily stopped by with her mommy and daddy to show off her princess bumblebee costume, and to score some candy! She was darling in her outfit, but Anabelle wanted her antennae! You can almost see the conversation happening, Anabelle says "Give me those sparkly things!" and Lily is saying "Get away from me crazy baby!" But really, they love each other.

Aunt Abby spent the night with us afterwards and took some great pictures of Anabelle. Here she is feeding her some yummy cereal! Thanks, Abs, for everything this weekend!

How We're Feeling

2009-10-23T10:27:00.003-04:00

If this smile says anything, it's how we're feeling this morning!! After daddy fed her a later meal of cereal, we also gave her some Tylenol for the third(!) tooth that's coming in. She then slept for almost 11.5 hours last night! BIG smiles on all of our faces this morning!

She's presently squealing with delight at her exersaucer. It's a wonderful start to the day.

Laughter, the Best Medicine

2009-10-23T10:11:00.000-04:00

More Celebrations (Overdue)

2009-10-21T13:00:00.001-04:00

(Somehow the publishing this got overlooked) Anabelle welcomed another friend to the world last week! On October 4th, Abigail Chapman Land was born to some of our best friends, Katie and Cam Land. It wasn't that long ago that we welcomed their first daughter, Sarah. Abigail is just precious! She was born with a full head of thick hair, with sweet little blonde highlights. Already a girly girl! Anabelle is excited to have a girlfriend to go shopping and do her nails with.

We also celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary last week! To celebrate, we try to get away for a weekend somewhere in Indiana each year. This year was Corydon, IN. We stayed at a sweet B&B there, visited a few wineries, toured the Marengo Caves and treated ourselves to massages.

It was a lovely weekend, but it was missing someone! Anabelle stayed with Papa & Mimi while we were gone. They all had a wonderful time, which made Mike and me feel much better about being away. We still managed to talk about her most of the time we were gone!

Rice, Rice, Baby

2009-10-20T18:22:00.001-04:00

Approximately (OK, exactly) 15 days ago, Anabelle stopped sleeping through the night. I know, I know, "Quit complaining!" Something had to be up, though, because it has been 4 1/2 months of peaceful bliss at night, and now she wants to eat once, twice or three times a night. Not. Cool.

Although our doctor wanted her to wait until 6 months to start on cereal, the girl did not agree. After getting his approval, I immediately went to the store to get rice cereal. After her nap, we tried it out. It was a huge success! It's clear the girl likes to eat [see cheeks below], and cereal was no different for her. She gobbled down three tablespoons right away. She loved it!! Evidence below:

NOTE: Video is a few minutes of her eating and eating and eating. Twenty seconds may be sufficient viewing time :)

And following lunch time was nap time, which leads me to my next update. BNTBC is a success! Today is day six, and each day has been better! We've had naps on the go, which have been perfectly fine, and her naps in the crib are wonderful! She isn't a long napper, never has been, but within 10 minutes or so of laying her down, she is going to sleep! Momma is thrilled!

Here is my sweet sleeper, conked out after a delicious belly filling of rice cereal. Let's hope we don't see eachother in the middle of the night tonight...

Rollin' With My Homies

2009-10-19T17:00:00.002-04:00

Of course, when the camera came out, the rolls slowed down. But you get the idea. (Don't forget to pause the music to listen to this)

Time Flies, When You're Having Fun!

2009-10-19T09:44:00.005-04:00

Our baby girl turned five months old yesterday! Unbelievable! She is now a SUPER roller! She went from rolling over on her 4 month birthday to rolling across the entire living room on the day before her 5 month birthday. She rolls. And rolls. And rolls. But only to the right. She hasn't discovered there's a left. So, we pick her up, turn her around and let her roll back to the other end of the room!

And when she gets too tired, she forgets she can roll at all. That usually happens on her tummy, and she gets mad. This mad:

And as I stare at that open mouth, I am reminded that she has two teeth that just poked through! They're sharp to the touch but still a little hard to find with your eyes. Thankfully they're through, and she doesn't seem to be in as much pain!

Five months. Where have you gone? And how can we love each day more than the one before?

We continue to praise God for the incredible joy Anabelle is!

Weekend Highlights

2009-10-17T17:07:00.001-04:00

She IS our weekend highlight.

Baby Nap Time Boot Camp

2009-10-15T13:12:00.003-04:00

This week is Baby Nap Time Boot Camp week! Anabelle isn't the greatest napper. She has slept 9 hours plus at night since she was 3 weeks old, so I haven't minded. Basically, she just needs to be moving to sleep well. So naptime has always been in her swing, in the car, or me carrying her in the sling. For the first few months of her life, nap time was snuggle time. I had zero desire to put her down when she slept. I loved holding her and lovin on her while she slept. As she got a little older, we transitioned to swing naps, which she enjoyed. But once she turned four months old, she started fighting naps in her swing, too. She just fussed, which often turned into screaming, when trying to fall asleep in her swing. We're thinking it's because she's becoming more aware of her surroundings and not wanting to miss anything.

Additionally, I have been losing productivity in the day because I would sit beside her in her swing for up to an hour, trying to get her to fall asleep. She would eventually, but I was wasting so much time! And then I had to be careful not to be too noisy during nap time. All of this madness made me realize this girl needs to start napping in her crib. It may be a tough transition, but it'll be beneficial to both of us. Thus, BNTBC.

Yesterday was day 1. Nap #1 was awesome. I laid her down, and within five minutes she was out. Nap #2 was a tough one. She cried for an hour, with me calming her down every so often, before crashing. Not fun, but somewhat expected. Nap #3 went pretty well, just about 15 minutes of fussing before falling asleep. And the evening nap, we won't even go there. She's teething. 'Nuff said.

Today, day 2, is going relatively well. Nap #1 took about 30 minutes to happen, but I only had to go in twice to soothe her. Nap #2 was super, within 10 minutes she was out. Nap #3 is yet to come. But I'm hopeful. I'm pretty excited and somewhat proud of both of us for the way things are going. And I'm getting so much done! The length of her naps are longer, since she's in a quiet room, and I am not sitting, waiting on her to fall asleep. It's challenging and exciting at the same time!

Visit to Butler

2009-10-11T12:00:00.002-04:00

The last weekend in September was Mike's cousin's wedding in Butler, IN. We made the 3 hour trek up there to spend some quality time with the in-laws. Grandma Judy was thrilled to get her hands on Anabelle! And Anabelle was equally excited to see her again.
Great Grandma loves her grandbabies! We didn't get a great shot of Anabelle with her, but you can see how much her great-grandma adores her.
We had a great time getting to celebrate Jimmy and Emily, as well as introducing Anabelle to all of the Vanovers. Here is another rare family photo!

Family Fun

2009-10-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

There aren't many mommy & Anabelle photos. This one is a keeper, though! I just adore that girl. Mimi went with us to the outlet mall last week to stock up on some clothes for the growing girl. She is 4.5 months old, and we had to buy her 12 month sleepers!! 9 months would work, but she'll be out of those soon, too. So, we found some adorable fall clothes for her in 9mos and great sleepers in 12mos. The ironic thing is that her sleepers have rubber grips on the feet, because most children wearing these should be walking. We love all 18 pounds, 26 inches of her!

Daddy lunch dates will forever be part of our weeks. We both adore that time with him!

And a rare family photo. Thanks to Mimi for this one!

New Friends

2009-10-07T20:00:00.004-04:00

Anabelle made new friends this month!! On September 19th, Connor Alan James was born to our dear friends, Mark & Sonya. We were excited to meet the little guy in the hospital and introduce Anabelle to her new playmate. It won't be long, and they'll be running all over the place together. Here's the proud new mommy and her baby boy.

Anabelle isn't so sure about the new baby that daddy is holding. She was happy to check him out, though.The next week, we made a trip up to Muncie for Anabelle to meet my friend, Phyllis, from BSU. I was awarded a scholarship to college in honor of Phyllis' late husband, Bob. Ever since, we've kept in touch and get to see eachother occasionally. This week was Anabelle's first visit to meet her. Since I am one of Phyllis' "kids," Anabelle is now one of her "grandkids."

Of course, while we were in Muncie, we spent time with Aunt Abby. We wish Aunt Rachie lived just as close!

4 months old!

2009-10-06T20:00:00.004-04:00

Our princess turned four months old on Sept 18th! She's growing up so quickly!! At her 4 month appt, she weight 17 lbs, 13 oz and was 26 inches long. She's in the 95th percentile for height and "above the 97th percentile" in height.

On the 18th, she rolled over for the first time. Since then, she has rolled and rolled and rolled. Primarily, she rolls back to tummy, but she has rolled back a few times. She laughs a lot, smiles continually and squeals with happiness. People comment a lot that she smiles with her whole face.
Here is her starting a smile. Whole mouth and all. It ended with her eating the bunny. That's another favorite of hers, eating anything and everything that comes her way.

Anabelle uses her hands so well now. She holds objects, reaches for toys and loves holding her feet. This week, her feet became a new chew toy, too. Of course, she loves the Colts, too! She's a great little cheerleader.

The exersaucer is one of her favorites, as I'm sure most other four month olds would agree. One Saturday last month, Mike and I tackled the task of painting our garage-- walls and ceilings. It was a LONG day. Mike worked really hard while I balanced caring for her and helping him. You know the line, "You might be a redneck if..." Well, we think we might be rednecks because of the following picture:

It's our hillbilly tent protecting Anabelle from the sun, while she played in the driveway so we could paint. We just might be rednecks!

Playing Catch up!

2009-10-05T21:00:00.008-04:00

I'm a month behind, so there will be a post each day for several days! Enjoy our September fun and excitement!

On the 7th, Aunt Abby came down for a visit. We spent a bit catching up, and then we went to the Anderson Orchard for some apple picking and a photo shoot by our favorite photographer!

Aunt Abby did a great job capturing Anabelle's first trip to the orchard!

She loves to stand and apparently loves apples, too.

Papa and Mimi were in town and ended up meeting us at the orchard, too.

Three years ago, Mike and I had our photo taken here. We've added a sweet little apple to our tree!

And she sure loved the watermelons! Look how excited she is. :)

And the hat, which didn't make it to the photo shoot.

That's it for orchard fun day with Aunt Abby & co.

Three Years Ago...

2009-09-30T09:29:00.002-04:00

I'm still behind on blogging. I'll get there. Other things are more important right now!

And today's is celebrating three wonderful years of being married to Michael Mack, my incredible, thoughtful, loving, handsome husband. Here's to us, my love...

Assortment

2009-09-17T15:30:00.002-04:00

I don't have an organized post yet, but I wanted to put up some of the latest pictures of our baby girl! On September 6th, we went over to the Harberts' house to celebrate Lily's 2nd birthday! Here's Sonya and me with Anabelle (and Connor). Anabelle doing her new favorite thing, eating her hand!

And again! These are her two favorite fingers. She stopped taking a pacifier at about 2 months, but recently with the discovery of her hands and grabbing objects, she has also learned to find these fingers.

And, of course, Colts season started!! There's a very significant event that happened that weekend, but I'll post about it later. For now, here's our little cheerleader with her Mimi.

A Hawk??

2009-08-31T12:00:00.000-04:00

Last week, after my morning routine of breakfast, e-mail checking and making Mike's lunch before Anabelle wakes up, I saw something strange on our front porch. I did a double take when I saw THIS:

There was a hawk eating a small bird on my front porch!!! I quickly got Mike to watch as this bird of prey devoured his breakfast. It was pretty disgusting, especially what was left on the porch floor, but it was also incredible to watch nature at its finest in such close proximity.

Seriously, people, I'm becoming a bird lady.

Tummy Time

2009-08-30T12:00:00.000-04:00

It was a rainy afternoon on Friday, so Anabelle and I changed into our comfy clothes to wait for daddy to get home. While we waited, we had some fun floor time. I sang her lots of songs about her duck ("Billings") and then watched as she smiled away.
Then we tried out tummy time. She seems to go a few seconds longer each time before she gets really ticked at me! Here is her happiness in the first few minutes.

She's okay as long as her mouth lands on top of her hand...

But this is how tummy time ends. Face flat on floor. Legs kicking away. Screams muffled by said floor.

But she's so cute even when she's mad!

Getting to See Grandma!

2009-08-28T21:14:00.002-04:00

Anabelle hasn't gotten to see her Grandma Judy or Aunt Amber since she was born, and she hasn't been able to meet Aunt Chelsie yet! So, we were thrilled when they finally made the move back from Pennsylvania to northern Indiana this week! That means we'll get to see them much more often, and Anabelle will have cousins nearby. This week, we met them in Anderson to finally see them and to celebrate Chelsie's birthday.

Happy 17th Birthday, Chelsie!!

Love from Aunt Amber and cousins Connor and Hailey.

Grandma Judy couldn't keep her hands off of her! Anabelle gave her BIG smiles!

Hailey wanted to hold her all night. As you can see, Anabelle wasn't so sure it was a good idea.

Three Months Old in August!

2009-08-26T11:54:00.003-04:00

Anabelle turned three months old last week! Time has flown by. She fills every single day with such joy, love and cheer. We are amazed by God's generosity in our lives and are so thankful for her!! Here she is with her bunny "measuring stick."

She no longer wants to sit when we're holding her on our laps, she tries to stand herself up. So, our entire photo shoot was her scooching her bottom down as she tried to get some traction with her legs. It was a bit challenging, but we did our best!

Anabelle still loves grabbing her dress to show off her tummy. If her dresses are as delicious as they are adorable, I'm sure they are mighty tasty. Daddy thought he'd try it out, too.
My favorite boppy shot... We've decided that because we're always opening our mouths really wide to say hi or smile at her, she thinks it's the proper greeting now. When she's giving us big gummy grins, they begin with a wide open mouth. So sweet!

We just can't get enough of that sweet face and precious smile. Her Tio & Tia gave her this sweet outfit, and Rebecca sent her the most beautiful pink mary jane shoes. She was able to wear the whole ensemble to church this week and was probably the best dressed girl there (definitely better than mommy!)

Such a big girl!! She has incredible head/neck control and loves looking around. We just love watching her grow!

It's been a wonderful summer, especially because our schedules have slowed down quite a bit from pre-baby. We've even been home a few weekends! As Mike tells people, our new favorite hobby is staring at her. Lately it's been playing with her, getting giant gummy grins, introducing her to new surroundings and kissing her constantly!

We also get to have lots of daddy lunch dates, which we all love! We are able to have daddy lunch dates each week because I am now officially a Stay at Home Mommy! We tried to work out an arrangement with my work to allow me to hold on to something part-time, but they need someone full time and can't accommodate both. So, as of August 18th, I am officially employed as Anabelle's mom and Mike's wife. I am so thankful to God and to Mike for allowing us this opportunity! I love every second I am making this house a home and interacting with Anabelle. I know it will only get better!

Campbell Photos

2009-08-20T13:52:00.012-04:00

Thanks to Joel Cookston for an awesome photo shoot!

More Pictures!

2009-08-17T12:00:00.000-04:00

More pictures!! Papa and Anabelle in her Florida dress (from Great Grandpa & Grandma Schuler)
Her adorable new swimsuit that Mimi and Auntie Abby got her. She loves it and looks so cute in it!

Showin off her dress from Mexico (sans hairbow). She looks pretty stinkin cute in it, even if it is a tube top!

I bought the front to back carrier so daddy can also enjoy having her snuggled up against him. He thinks it's similar to being pregnant... he has no idea! (Can I get an "Amen?") He loved having her so close, and clearly she loved being there! Plus, the view... who doesn't love that?

Mommy and Anabelle at the beach. While we were down there, we saw a momma dolphin and her baby. We named it Anabelle! She had her very own dolphin come to greet us.

All of us out to dinner... the sunset was gorgeous but not very well captured.

I'm sure there will be more photos to come. She may be the most photographed child, EVER! We tell her every single day that she's the cutest baby EVER MADE. :)

Florida Pictures

2009-08-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

It's been a fun vacation!! Anabelle has loved it, and Papa & Mimi have loved it even more! We've been pretty relaxed the whole time and have gotten in a little sun time, too. It is so wonderful to spend time as a family and get good quality time with my parents.

The Macks and our sunglasses!
Daddy & Anabelle checking out the beautiful view from the condo.

Daddy gave Anabelle a bottle for the first time by the pool. She did great! And he absolutely loved doing it. I've gotten extra freedom this week as a result.

Me and my love.

Baby bottoms!

Anabelle's first dip in the pool. Toes only! No sun or chlorine on that skin! But she LOVED it!

Anabelle is changing so much, right before our eyes! She loves going from laying down to sitting to standing up! She does it all the time now (with our help, of course). She holds her head up all of the time and tries to sit up when she's laying down. She's smiling constantly, giggle often and just making our lives so wonderfully sweet. She also took her first shower this week! After us swimming and holding her with sunscreen and chlorine, I decided a bath before dinner would be best. I took her in the shower with me, and she loved it! She enjoyed being under the water and didn't mind splashes on her face at all. It's going to be fun to begin those with her... daddy's turn is next.

Stay tuned for more pictures

Trying to Sit

2009-08-14T12:00:00.000-04:00

Our newest things started in the hospital, and that's Anabelle trying to sit up. She no longer likes to lay back against our knees when we prop her up on them. Instead, she wants to sit forward. She does the same thing sitting in her boppy. She's working out those abs already!

I tried to capture her smiles on video. I got a little bit, but mostly, here is her trying to sit up. She wants it so badly!

And here she is doing one of her favorite sit up exercises with Papa. I think she likes him doing it because of how high he makes his voice go when doing it. :)

MARCO... POLO!

2009-08-13T14:00:00.000-04:00

We are in Marco Island, Florida, taking Anabelle on her very first vacation! It's hot, hot, hot! But it's wonderful! We've spent a few hours in the sun, a lot of time laying around and even more time doting on Anabelle. We're down here with her Mimi & Papa (my parents), enjoying our alternative to a Jones trip this time around.

Here is one of the greatest moments of the week, and perhaps the last 12 weeks... Anabelle giggling! If you listen closely, she laughs after each time Mimi tickles her. Such an incredibly sweet sound!

Stay tuned for more pictures of the trip...

Mini Photo-Shoot

2009-08-10T12:00:00.000-04:00

One night, in the middle of feeding Anabelle at bedtime, she fell asleep. I mean HARD asleep. We wondered if she was done for the night, but it would have been highly unusual! Especially to keep up her 9 - 11 hour sleep pattern.

Instead of putting her to bed, Mike and I decided to take pictures of her sleeping so sweetly. They turned out pretty beautifully!

Just as we decided to try to get her hand print done, since she was so soundly asleep, she decided to wake up. We didn't get the hand print kit done, but Mike did capture a mini version of her dramatic wake up routine. If we have to wake her up in the morning, it takes a good 3 minutes of stretching, moaning, twisting, turning, etc. This is a nap version, but it's still precious (and hilarious)!

And this would be her, post-wake up. A little personality showing through with that tongue sticking out??

August Fun

2009-08-07T12:00:00.000-04:00

The not-so-fun part of August was saying goodbye to Auntie Rachie who headed back to school in Tennessee last week. It was SO wonderful having her nearby for the summer! She spent an afternoon with us last week...

Anabelle has been a non-stop smiler since the hospital! She is so happy and warms our hearts with her giant, toothless grins. They are frequently accompanied with gurgles, coos and laughs. Her favorite thing is when we tell her she's pretty. It always gets a smile.

And Anabelle's latest discovery is grasping things... mostly her dresses. And, yes, she wears a dress pretty much every day. She is so long that most of her dresses don't make it much past her hands anyway. Regardless, she loves to grab her dress and show off her belly! Here's proof!! It's post-diaper changing, which is why her little bottoms are missing. She just loves showing off that tummy.

This is Daddy, Multi-Tasking

2009-08-05T21:01:00.000-04:00

Catching up on July

2009-08-05T20:13:00.002-04:00

Few things we missed posting on because of the hospital... Anabelle turned 2 months old!!

And we celebrated Mimi's birthday. Anabelle wore a special shirt made just for her Mimi.

Happy Birthday, Mimi! We love you!

We're Home!

2009-07-26T20:18:00.003-04:00

And SO very thankful to be! Bags are unpacked. Laundry is in motion. Dishwasher is unloaded and reloaded. Fridge has been emptied. Baby has been loved on and loved on some more. We are so glad to be home! And we're very thankful to the Lands and Jameses for making delicious dinners to come home to and to the Harberts for mowing our yard! What a relief to not have to worry about those things!

Our bed and Anabelle's will be little bits of heaven tonight. Thanks for all of your prayers!