tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-126514132012-01-15T20:18:44.819-05:00Journal of a working mom of a preemie princess born at 28 weeks, who happens to be a preemie, born at 30 weeks, herself! Join in as she tries to navigate two very different worlds; the very methodical computer world, as a .NET programmer and the very tumultuous world of parenting.Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.comBlogger3471100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-44824429050456400802010-01-24T11:36:00.002-05:002010-01-24T11:44:55.122-05:00

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-3671912585941958142009-12-08T10:14:00.002-05:002009-12-08T10:17:41.201-05:00

And what post would be complete without some Arianna pictures!To say I'm proud of her would be an understatement, she's amazing to me :)

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-80032063771398724742009-09-04T21:24:00.002-04:002009-09-04T21:38:01.316-04:00

She had a hard time growing When Jennifer DeCesari learned that she was about to deliver her baby at 28 weeks, her first reaction was to say, “I’m a preemie, too. Everything will be OK.” But now, DeCesari sees in her daughter’s struggles reminders of her own painful childhood. And she has found that everything is not OK.DeCesari was born in Boston in 1978 at 30 weeks’ gestation,

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-40405769898971667512009-08-26T22:13:00.002-04:002009-08-26T22:17:11.393-04:00

So... what's new with me?AHH!!! I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off!My photography business is growing and thriving and I'm INSANELY busy! I do alot of my marketing on facebook so you can find me there most days and here almost never as I don't have much time.My photography business site is a blog and you'll see me there nearly every day too. So if you want to check up on me

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-5980693771085121412009-08-26T22:08:00.003-04:002009-08-26T22:13:27.167-04:00

I can't believe she is one year...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-11282237401349059352009-06-12T14:55:00.006-04:002009-06-12T15:07:07.909-04:00

...I'll look back on this shot and want to get this time period back. I'm so glad I have a picture!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-34943224142041092082009-06-09T21:22:00.002-04:002009-06-09T21:32:16.003-04:00

There are days when I am more appreciative of how hard some things are for Arianna. Of course she doesn't know its hard, it's all she's known, but one day she'll realize it.Arianna got a bad stomach bug Sunday. At 3 PM she was running a fever of 103. I was running out the door to photo session so I gave the tylenol to Dad and told him to watch her. I got home and things were ok, fever broke.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-20872776572147636132009-06-02T23:31:00.003-04:002009-06-02T23:40:35.135-04:00

TiSan 1995 - May 27, 2009Last week we had to say goodbye to our dear furry friend TiSan. We've had TiSan for 8 years and, at 14, he was old. He took a stroke Wednesday morning but it was really the last thing to go in a long list of 'problems'. He had high blood pressure, horrible food allergies and was losing weight at an alarming rate. He was so frail when we held him for the last time.He

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-90015990975997418542009-06-02T23:12:00.002-04:002009-06-02T23:28:23.491-04:00

I know, I know... where have I been?I've been busy with life. I had to reorganize my priorities the last few weeks because EVERYTHING was out of control - I'm not kidding. I dropped the majority of those stupid MOMS groups and joined Flylady.net again. The house is clean, the kids are happy and, more importantly, I'm happy.My photography business is booming right now - 8 sessions this month! Wow!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-31165746409290765252009-04-22T23:33:00.002-04:002009-04-22T23:40:05.821-04:00

But I swear she's the cutest 'baby in a pink hat sitting in a swing'. I'm hopelessly addicted to this cute kid!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-84945990223353851052009-03-30T13:43:00.006-04:002009-03-30T14:02:50.808-04:00

Today was another preemie dig at my heart & soul.Arianna had her 3 year pediatrician appointment.She's 36" tall, finally. But lost weight, again. She's 26 lbs. 1 oz. She has a cold, no surprise, but I think we've come to the conclusion she has asthma and will need to be on medicine now. Although this is totally no surprise to me I'm bummed. Being a preemie has hit her hard for being a nearly

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-46135160617821348632009-03-16T13:46:00.007-04:002009-03-30T14:04:59.566-04:00

I was interviewed for an article on pregnancy after having a preemie. The article is here.Unlike Glad, Jennifer D of Cumberland, R.I., knew when she was pregnant with her first child that she was at increased risk of giving birth prematurely. Due to a bout with cervical cancer at age 18, she had already been diagnosed with an incompetent cervix. In addition, she'd been a preemie herself – born

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-83739704176904656292009-03-14T23:45:00.003-04:002009-03-14T23:54:40.041-04:00

I did a workshop today that was lots of fun. Our model was the flaming red head you see below, yes, the female one...Photographers are funny people :P

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-20526609059094468292009-03-13T00:01:00.003-04:002009-03-13T08:19:02.157-04:00

Today my preemie pumpkin turns 3. She amazes me every day - earlier this week she demonstrated to me that she can read the words 'cat', 'hat' and 'bus'. She also deomonstrated what a sassy attitude year 3 carries with it. I'll miss 2 but I'm excited to see what 3 has to offer.I love you my red headed baby big girl :)At the end of year 1 and now:Make an on-line slideshow at

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-60240416066994383812009-03-05T21:33:00.002-05:002009-03-05T21:35:41.490-05:00

Daria was a baby model for a photography workshop I did today. She's so yummy :)

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-23692462620791299892009-02-25T22:55:00.003-05:002009-02-25T23:01:33.927-05:00

My life is moving at hyper speed right now - I've had 9 photography clients this month and 2 workshops - I'm BEYOND swamped so I haven't had any updates. Life (and blogging) will return to its regularly scheduled programming soon.Daria turned 6 months... where did the time go? Seriously, I miss my little baby... now she's my big baby. Last night at dinner I think she ate more than her sister

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-13605460308762114032009-02-12T23:01:00.002-05:002009-02-12T23:02:53.292-05:00

I miss the sky...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-1701180723329728732009-02-01T16:46:00.000-05:002009-02-01T16:45:40.839-05:00

I was at the mall a few days ago when this picture caught my eye on an advertisement display. It's back?! Seriously?! It's back for another season?What's happened to America? I get so sick to my soul when I see this type of stuff advertised as heavily as it is! What happened to the values of yester-year when teenage pregnancy is glamorized like this?!Is this really what the American teenager

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-72564190908367189182009-01-28T21:22:00.002-05:002009-01-28T21:25:39.907-05:00

This was my husbands boss' statement to her staff concerning the 45% increase in benefits cost for the coming year. It's all employee paid with no contribution from the company.It was followed up with... "solve your problem, simply spend less".Ya... this coming from someone married to a doctor and 'childfree'.If this economy wasn't so sucky he'd be working somewhere else me thinks...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-82851619271342283752009-01-25T22:07:00.000-05:002009-01-25T22:08:09.093-05:00

That I'm a 'Mom-With-A-Camera' yet?

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-44853042463883594802009-01-25T01:04:00.000-05:002009-01-25T01:05:18.752-05:00

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-48540177200477891912009-01-24T23:30:00.003-05:002009-01-24T23:46:46.951-05:00

... moms spend so much time taking care of their kids they rarely take care of themselves.I've been extremely neglectful of myself since early last summer really. I've been dieting since I knew what the word meant - always having more than a few pounds to lose. I was heaviest on my wedding day - tipping the scales at 222 lbs. Thank goodness I haven't seen 200+ in more than 6 years now. But I

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-7075022116287199782009-01-24T00:28:00.002-05:002009-01-24T00:30:41.516-05:00

Her beautiful chubby cheeks always make me smile - she's so amazing. At some point during her 4th month her demeanor started to change and I started to like her (*grin*) She was not as whiney anymore and definitely more interactive. I love this phase!She weighed in at 16 lbs. even at her 4 month appointment... for reference Arianna weighed 17 lbs. at one YEAR.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-64635767817578688462009-01-23T17:09:00.003-05:002009-01-23T17:12:02.457-05:00

Early Thursday morning my cousin Kim's sweet baby boy James passed away - he was 2 weeks old.Please keep them in your prayers - everyone is devastated.For anyone that has gone through this please let me know if there is some 'gift' I can get them to acknowledge that he lived and was loved by his family. I'm really at a loss.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-48576575750214076452009-01-11T10:41:00.003-05:002009-01-11T10:46:16.863-05:00

"Mom, I said stop taking my picture!"Enjoying an 'adult' conversation after dinner - when did she get so big?

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-40754631749615015582009-01-05T15:43:00.002-05:002009-01-05T15:45:16.386-05:00

Saturday night my cousin Kim gave birth to boy/girl twins at 27 weeks.Her little girl was 2 lbs. even and the little boy was 2 lbs. 2 oz.They're scared beyond words and I'm waiting to hear more about how everyone is doing.Many of you who read here know what she is going through and prayers are definitely appreciated.Thank you.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-30893834456442547972009-01-01T14:40:00.003-05:002009-01-01T14:44:30.059-05:00

As I've mentioned before I'm starting a photography business this year. I want to enroll in an online business course geared toward photographers but seeing as I don't bring in an income anymore I don't have the money.As luck would have it she is running a contest this month and asked us to submit a picture explaining why we deserve a spot in her contest. Can you help by voting for my picture?

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-17874535660601241322008-12-31T23:28:00.005-05:002008-12-31T23:32:06.951-05:00

2008 was amazing!* Daria arrived* Arianna thrived and learned so much* I left my job* Hubby got a new job* We paid off lots of debt* We saw family we don't see often (hubby's family came to visit after dd was born)I can't wait to see what 2009 has in store for us!This is my favorite part of 2008!Happy New Year everyone!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-5822971795702839582008-12-31T18:33:00.002-05:002008-12-31T18:35:45.547-05:00

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-70597674469383697062008-12-28T22:44:00.004-05:002008-12-30T16:12:03.063-05:00

Before Arianna came along and before I was skydiving I always told myself I wanted to be 'done' with kids by 30 - that way they were out of the house (hopefully) by the time I was 50/55 and I'd have freedom and still be young enough to enjoy life.This year I'm 30. I'm not 'done' with kids - but hubby says he is. I'm working on him...A few weeks back I went to one of my great aunt's 80th

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-64320394421286719022008-12-28T22:33:00.003-05:002008-12-28T22:43:51.372-05:00

Its pretty strange not working anymore. I no longer end my day with the dread of another day at the office. Now I end my day with the dread of another day at home... just kidding!I love being home with my girls - seriously. It's much harder than I thought it would be, but I'm really really enjoying it. I love working on all sorts of things with Arianna and I LOVE LOVE LOVE being able to nurse

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-85040764895260050872008-12-28T21:32:00.003-05:002008-12-28T22:11:14.684-05:00

Tonight I had the opportunity to see "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" with my mother. It's a really fabulous movie and I can see why its up for so many awards. I enjoyed it thoroughly and cried earnestly on the ride home (even though its not a sad movie).What struck me was the mood the movie left you with. At the end he summarized all the people he'd met in his life and the type of impact

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-24496050093936065552008-12-23T14:42:00.002-05:002008-12-23T14:45:42.207-05:00

Loop 2 Loop belt bucklesArianna is tiny - no denying that. She easily wore her sisters size 2 diapers in a 'potty training emergency' last month. Even elastic waist sized 18 month pants fall down. 12 month pants fit her pretty well but the bottoms hit just below her knees... its frustrating! She's definitely "Ms. NoButtAtAll".Trying to find belts for a toddler is impossible, and comfortable

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-56825238566630522832008-12-18T22:30:00.000-05:002008-12-18T22:31:32.398-05:00

...sly grin.Funny and worth the time it takes to download/watch.http://adage.com/brightcove/single.php?bcpid=1370868150&bctid=3130509001

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-16946052109507949622008-12-14T22:24:00.009-05:002010-03-04T21:29:59.395-05:00

Today I ordered $175 worth of photography prints from the lab. These include the fabulous pictures you see below. Problem is that when I edited them they weren't edited using the colorscape for my newly calibrated computer monitor. So the color will be ALL WRONG (such as the Arianna picture below, its way too blue). What's even worse is that this includes our 'christmas card' picture that goes

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-22380641117767662852008-12-13T00:37:00.002-05:002008-12-13T00:41:25.833-05:00

I'm not going to look...I'm not going to look...I'm not going to look...I'm not going to look...I'm not going to look...I'm not going to look...I used Arianna as my 'model' as I calibrated the studio lights for our christmas picture photo session... She was less than enthused.Results soon!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-5409484376293431322008-12-10T11:28:00.004-05:002008-12-10T11:41:15.847-05:00

I'm a hypocrite.Last week I brought Misty, my beautiful cat, to the animal rescue league. I had snapped. She's a beautiful cat and very affectionate, but she has a bad habit. She urinates on blankets, clothes, fabric when she feels her litter box isn't perfect. We just bought new litter boxes and she hated them. Last Wednesday afternoon I'm working with Daria on some tummy time and Misty

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-41396880633188763512008-12-01T15:29:00.008-05:002008-12-01T15:44:33.229-05:00

Lots of pictures to share but no time to type up a full synopsis - so pictures will have to 'hold you over' until then! :)

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-22872753346553048512008-11-21T14:36:00.004-05:002008-11-21T14:38:19.586-05:00

Go ahead, wish me a happy birthday (cause my hubby hasn't yet), I'm crazily celebrating it by driving down to KY for 16+ hours tonight... just the way to spend a birthday!See you December 1 when we return!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-16678300068933559992008-11-13T21:02:00.002-05:002008-11-13T21:20:11.263-05:00

So I've been delving into the SRA reading system with Arianna through this book.I'm really encouraged by her willingness to learn. All the time, everywhere we are, she asks me "What does that say Mama?", "Can you read that to me Mama?". She loves to sit down and 'read' books to her sister and loves nothing more than to have her face buried in a book. She's so proud of herself for knowing all

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-25733776570664238892008-11-11T13:34:00.004-05:002008-11-11T13:55:44.133-05:00

Today I took the girls to our first playdate with a local moms group I found. The meeting location was only around the corner at a local farm. The lady that owns it puts on a story time/craft time every tuesday morning at 9:30 AM (I, of course, thought it was 9 AM so we had to wait 15 min. for anyone to even show up). Best part was it was free. Since Arianna loves nothing more than to read

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-89236549591216155822008-11-10T15:41:00.002-05:002008-11-10T15:46:00.024-05:00

someone else...I didn't win anything in the photo contest but two of my photos were disqualified due to a technicality. I forgot to set the time in my camera when I first got it (only care about the date anyway), well as it turns out, not setting the time set some of my pictures date data back to the previous day. So the pictures I took early on October 4th actually read as having been taken on

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-1328133439436945232008-11-07T14:17:00.004-05:002008-11-07T14:50:16.717-05:00

Wednesday was Arianna's day at daycare.When we made the decision for me to stay home with the girls we agreed that Arianna should continue to have interaction with the boys at daycare because we saw it to be so good for her. She got along fabulously with all of them and when she was around them she did things she would never do at home - she would eat better, she would do more boy-ish things

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-56908547258990840772008-11-07T14:05:00.006-05:002008-11-07T14:16:42.857-05:00

Isn't she the cutest?It's been fun trying to adjust to having a full term kiddo. It really is like starting over in so many ways.At this weight/ height Arianna was sitting up, laughing, rolling over etc. I find myself sometimes getting annoyed that Daria still can't even reliably hold her head up when I carry her. I have to keep reminding myself that at 10 weeks she doesn't have to have it

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-22215763427671389462008-11-05T11:42:00.003-05:002008-11-05T11:55:51.574-05:00

Supposadly in two more weeks Daria should be out of the 'colic phase'.I can't even tell you how over due this is. I don't get even an hours break during the day...I feel bad that I just have to let her scream much of the time - if I didn't I wouldn't get anything done! I just hope she holds true to what the doctors say and starts calming down at 3 months of age!Next is sleeping through the

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-54818024276156025812008-11-05T11:31:00.004-05:002008-11-05T11:41:48.406-05:00

A few weeks ago Arianna really surprised me. We were sitting down reading one of her many books and focused on an alphabet book. She's known her ABCs for a long time now so reading these books is a bit boring for me...Until she started telling me what the letters were AND the sounds they make (including doubles, like G - Gah and Jah sounds)! I was floored... really. We didn't teach her this -

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-6710396533983173172008-11-01T16:20:00.008-04:002008-11-01T16:38:41.869-04:00

Last night I took the girls to my parents house to do some 'trick or treat'ing in their neighborhood (which is easier to walk than our neighborhood). Coincidently we had tons of trick or treaters in our neighborhood hubby said, but Arianna would be the only one that would visit my parents and their neighbors homes.Anyway, here's some pictures for your viewing pleasure :)Daria, as a peapodThe 'Ok,

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-18537951512001138962008-10-28T12:51:00.003-04:002008-10-28T13:06:25.752-04:00

I'm not sure if it's the fact that its raining and windy outside (throwing millions of leaves on my lawn that I'll have to spend alot of time cleaning up this weekend), the fact that Daria was up 5 times last night, the fact that Arianna didn't get a great sleep last night either or what... but today is an unusually hard day for me.Daria was so lovely yesterday - it was so nice. My parents

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-30328153483771824042008-10-24T22:51:00.002-04:002008-10-24T22:59:08.429-04:00

I firmly believe she wouldn't be here if it wasn't for this wonderful lady. Thank you.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-15595066000220398272008-10-24T13:03:00.004-04:002008-10-24T13:23:29.858-04:00

Daria hit 2 months this week. She weighs in at 12 lbs. 8 oz. and growing - don't know how long she is but I suspect she's not in the 85th percentile for her height like she is for weight. The 6th month clothes she fits into are too long.She's nearly got the 'holding my head up' thing going on and is smiling and cooing at us when she's not screaming... which is often.Tuesday we went to the GI

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-37148212442360966042008-10-22T14:48:00.002-04:002008-10-22T14:53:21.019-04:00

It's hard to have adult conversation when you're a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) so I welcome the chance often, when it comes.Daria loves the supermarket - I think it's the lights. It's one of the only times that she actually awake and not screaming.Since Arianna is at daycare on Wednesdays I usually do my grocery shopping then. I spent 90 minutes at the grocery store today - I don't think I've ever

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-47537904895669083222008-10-22T12:17:00.005-04:002008-10-22T12:45:54.485-04:00

I think mice are super cute... when being eaten by a snake that is.I don't, however, think mice are cute in my basement... and we seem to have a big problem.When we purchased this house and had the inspection, the inspector told us "You have mice. All houses have mice. I don't see any damage so its probably just a seasonal problem.". When I had the house exterminated for carpenter ants this

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-37038629356082572782008-10-19T21:07:00.007-04:002008-10-19T21:11:56.794-04:00

Here are the pictures I submitted for the photo contest - I'll find out in 2 weeks if any of them won. From what I've seen of others pictures, I have a good chance!Daria, on the couchWildflowers in my drivewayMini pumpkins in a barrelMy cat MistyCheckboard and rocking chairs outside Cracker Barrel(yes, I took many pictures inside and outside of CB and yes they thought I was strange)

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-35730785806073574612008-10-19T21:04:00.002-04:002008-10-19T21:34:00.244-04:00

I don't remember giving her permission to 'grow up'...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-6052649984110228452008-10-19T20:59:00.004-04:002008-10-19T21:12:57.389-04:00

I don't believe the type of bonding Arianna and Daria are doing now (and yes, there is alot of 'playing' together) would happen if they were in daycare. I'm so glad to be able to provide an environment for them to allow their relationship to exclusively flourish - its wonderful to watch.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-84627919351547466232008-10-17T15:15:00.002-04:002008-10-17T15:18:41.211-04:00

For the last 4 days Arianna hasn't wanted to eat much at all.Perhaps a toddler thing? Perhaps a 'getting another cold' thing? Dunno but its quite annoying. Today she is wearing an outfit she wore LAST fall. Yes, its shorter, but otherwise still fits great. She's 31 months and wearing clothes that are sized 18 months. Why does this still bother me? I don't know... but it does and today I'm

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-17932309661506816582008-10-16T12:35:00.004-04:002008-10-16T12:37:15.322-04:00

I did a mini-photo shoot with Daria yesterday in the living room - got some good shots out of the 500 pictures I took. I love this one in Black and White - still needs some tweaking to really pop though... I'll get to it eventually

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-83567118086706254002008-10-15T10:55:00.002-04:002008-10-15T11:00:36.894-04:00

Saturday we went to an autumn festival near out home and had a great time. Somewhere between getting in the car to go home and actually getting into the house we lost Arianna's glasses.Ya!Yes, it sounds strange to be excited about that but in reality I really hate those glasses. For anyone that may have a toddler expected to wear glasses - these ones pictured are not the best if your child

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-28600371769621766592008-10-15T10:47:00.004-04:002008-10-15T10:54:44.109-04:00

Prevacid didn't seem to be working for Daria so we started her on Pepcid last week.In reality I think the Prevacid would have worked fine if we got proper dosing but the pediatrician had us cutting the 15 mg. solutab in half, dissolving that half in 5 ccs of water and then giving her 1 cc twice a day. For anyone that has ever used this solutabs you'll know that the 'pellets' sit in the water,

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-58077285468404237192008-10-11T21:21:00.005-04:002008-10-11T21:24:52.063-04:00

Here's one photo of my cat Misty going into the contest:Before:After:It's framing funny on blogger, but you get the idea. I must say, I love photoshop!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-6005257578790504412008-10-11T14:30:00.001-04:002008-10-11T14:31:29.136-04:00

*wink*

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-40538311675026970182008-10-11T13:50:00.005-04:002008-10-11T13:55:24.015-04:00

I'm trying to narrow down my submission photos for the photo contest I'm in and one of the categories is 'people' - so of course I had to submit photos of one of my darlings, so I took some shots of Daria on her tummy on my couch.Which one do you think is more 'contest worthy'? And what can I do to make it even better?

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-7500407805458455092008-10-09T15:47:00.000-04:002008-10-09T19:30:29.791-04:00

Our house is entirely electric - electric heat, electric appliances etc. The only non-electric item is our hot water, which is propane.Our monthly budget for electric is now $350. It has gone up $200/month in the 2 years we've lived here.This has to be wrong. The electric company says no. I call today to get us back on the monthly payment plan so we don't get socked when we turn on the heat

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-20790457626610560202008-10-08T15:43:00.005-04:002008-10-08T15:47:14.773-04:00

I can dream that she'll eventually sleep there at night right? 7 long long weeks of cosleeping is really getting to me - if she slept well at night I'd have no problem with it, but she doesn't unfortunately.Yes, I know the whole 'sleep on their backs' thing - but trust me... this child doesn't sleep well anyway (grunting and groaning all night long), and the only way she'll sleep at all is

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-58935637405450761012008-10-08T15:13:00.003-04:002008-10-08T15:15:41.078-04:00

Ya know what happens when you wash a pair of jeans in which your beloved Razr V3 cell phone was in the pocket?The phone stops working......imagine that!$107 later I should have a phone by next weekend. Minus all my phone numbers and all my pictures of course *Jen sobs loudly*

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-68339206523213326682008-10-08T15:05:00.004-04:002008-10-08T15:12:03.071-04:00

...the debate last night?Did you hear McCain's plan for the homes being forclosed on?He said he would advocate for the government to buy up those loans and sell them back to the homeowners for what the current value of their homes is.Really? That's fabulous... for them.What about those of us who didn't get in over our heads on a house and have been working hard to ensure we make our payments on

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-6697171854384558542008-10-06T20:57:00.013-04:002008-10-06T21:27:20.462-04:00

Yes, the past week has been sparse for posts but I have a good reason. We had Daria's "sip n' see" on Sunday - it was an 'open house' style party where all our friends and family who hadn't met her yet could come by and meet her and share in some food (really good food too...like canoli's... yum!). We sent out invitations with the birth announcements about a month ago.It was in place of the '

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-27143845071316022662008-10-06T20:54:00.003-04:002008-10-06T20:57:16.153-04:00

Goosey Goosey Gander,Whither shall I wander?Upstairs and downstairsAnd in my Lady's chamber.There I met an old manWho wouldn't say his prayers,So I took him by his left legAnd threw him down the stairs.I had never actually heard the entire rhyme until this weekend.Wow, that's pretty twisted...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-38968054841288949182008-10-03T11:55:00.002-04:002008-10-03T11:59:38.309-04:00

So I've made the decision to get more serious about my photography. I actually made the decision last year but I couldn't decide what the best avenue would be.So last night I attended my first camera club meeting with a local camera club. It was the second time in 6 weeks I'd actually left the house without my babies... it was awesome! heheAlthough everyone is an amateur they are all really

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-17339575241020947122008-10-02T15:03:00.002-04:002008-10-02T15:07:22.845-04:00

Please consider voting to pass Proposition 2 and end animal cruelty.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-91585693057889115142008-10-01T10:42:00.005-04:002008-10-01T10:53:33.824-04:00

So I called the GI group at the children's hospital to try and get us in ASAP. No can do - at least a month out.I called the pediatrician to see if they could get us in sooner. No can do - even the Boston groups are months out for new appointments.DeeDee can't be cranky like this for another month - just can't.The pediatrician was sympathetic and gave us Prevacid anyway - the only reason I

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-57548305944365422712008-09-27T21:48:00.004-04:002008-09-27T21:53:53.672-04:00

Waking up at 2:30 AM and not allowing mommy to go back to sleep until 6 AM (and even then mommy still has to get up at 7:30 for a stupid dentist appointment) is completely erased when just one day later you smile for the first time! I'm such a sucker for this little doll.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-29402920592386216152008-09-27T21:34:00.013-04:002008-09-27T21:48:18.832-04:00

Last weekend we got to meet Jess and her cute kids at her twins birthday party! It was so much fun and I loved getting to meet her incredible family and friends.Arianna had tons of fun with the ball pit!Daria enjoyed... um... sleeping.Birthday Girls - Morgan and Riley, riding the kids train!Jess and Aiden - I just love this picture!Riley, enjoying lunch... until...Mom found her to plant a kiss!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-12555279229311927542008-09-24T23:10:00.001-04:002008-09-24T23:12:57.574-04:00

Um, ya... even PETA thinks so!Sorry, but I highly doubt the rest of the US agrees but I wonder how much I could get paid for my breast milk?

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-10224324224213907222008-09-24T20:09:00.004-04:002008-09-24T20:20:12.590-04:00

A child who is otherwise well, who cries or is fussy several hours a day, especially from 6 pm to 10 pm, with no apparent reason, may have colic. Also, babies with colic may burp frequently or pass a significant amount of gas, but this is thought to be due to swallowing air while crying, and is not a cause of colic.I'm so glad to know it has a name! How wonderful its been studied!Someone want to

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-50671095543605029902008-09-23T15:36:00.001-04:002008-09-23T15:39:02.599-04:00

Today my father came to the house to use our computer to check a few things online. He stayed much longer than I thought he would and we talked about lots of things. Somehow the subject got to homeschooling and he surprised me with his support of the concept. I was so excited I immediately started talking about what we're doing with Arianna and how we were thinking about continuing it past

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-84762202753300625252008-09-23T15:18:00.005-04:002008-09-23T15:41:27.473-04:00

This week we are starting our homeschool preschool again after taking the summer off. This poster shows what we are learning about this week - the letter E, counting and the number 5, the shape Octagon, the nursery rhyme "Bobby Shaftoe" and lighthouses and beacons. We'll be taking a trip down to Beavertail Lighthouse near Newport, RI later this week or this weekend as the special trip

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-10139381336007562422008-09-22T09:58:00.004-04:002008-09-22T10:49:04.365-04:00

The unfolding events in the financial markets have me sick.Despite having visitors from Wednesday to Saturday I was glued to the television to see what the government was about to screw up... again. It's no secret that the Bush administration is not my favorite - as a matter of fact I'll go as far to say that this administration has ruined much of what America stands for and fixing it will take

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-73059368771333559012008-09-20T21:03:00.003-04:002008-09-20T22:14:36.497-04:00

Daria is a month old now and I brought her to the pediatrician for her 1 month appointment and......drum roll please...... she's weighing in at 10 lbs. 5 oz.! What a moose! She's sitting in at the 90th percentile! I love it!! Obviously nothing is going wrong with breastfeeding as far as weight gain is concerned. She still has reflux (duh), but we'll be doubling her Zantac dose as she's

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-63897838250954915572008-09-19T00:15:00.002-04:002008-09-19T00:22:22.942-04:00

Saw that you guys were looking to homeschool pre-school which we are also doing with Arianna.Wanted to give you the link to a curriculum we're using (free too!) that has worked really well for us and even allows us to set up unit studies every week. I order all the books from the library 2 weeks in advance to ensure we get them in time. Arianna's idea of 'playing toys' is reading books, so this

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-75763651032679807212008-09-18T20:31:00.003-04:002008-09-18T20:55:31.627-04:00

I did it. I gave in.In wanting to preserve our great breastfeeding relationship I vowed to not give Daria a pacifier.Unfortunately Daria will not escape all the problems of being slightly early. She has reflux and has been on Zantac since 2 weeks of age. Some of you may remember this post I made about Arianna nearly a year ago when she started on Prevacid. The change was nearly

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-40226452377267585432008-09-17T15:05:00.003-04:002008-09-17T15:06:25.420-04:00

I'm forgetting what it's like and need a reminder really badly...

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-60188350888189898912008-09-15T10:03:00.003-04:002008-09-15T10:17:56.005-04:00

My mom is still in the hospital. The PICC line went bad and now her entire arm looks like one big bruise. What should have been day surgery has turned into a week in the hospital. To top it all off, if they can't place the PICC line she'll end up going to a rehab facility for 3 months.Take care of your teeth folks - don't let this happen to you!Anyway... I couldn't let an entire week go by

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-85008332510420298612008-09-15T10:02:00.001-04:002008-09-15T10:02:54.337-04:00

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-65582015254664199282008-09-15T10:00:00.003-04:002008-09-15T10:01:53.795-04:00

My apologies to everyone that has emailed me... I will eventually get a moment to sit down and answer emails - I promise!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-16750329574888538802008-09-13T14:28:00.009-04:002008-09-13T14:31:35.092-04:00

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-74933503395986553062008-09-12T17:00:00.003-04:002008-09-12T17:21:59.699-04:00

Last week Arianna got a cold - nothing new for her and it turned out to be not that bad. She was coughing alot (par for the course) and had alot of nasal congestion.Getting a 2.5 year old to watch where she coughs is no small feat and as 'luck' would have it Daria caught it this week. You can imagine any parents scare when a newborn gets a cold. When it happened to Arianna just 2 weeks after

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-11831531276438920632008-09-10T14:00:00.002-04:002008-09-10T14:26:25.566-04:00

Since Arianna is enjoying her day with her friends at daycare, I decided to take advantage and get some 'Daria' things done.First I stopped off at my office to show off the little cherub. Of course she was a big hit - how can she not be?After we left there we drove into the city for an appointment with a lactation consultant. The last two nights Daria has fed about 8 times between 6 and 11 and

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-70866576923841496842008-09-09T15:08:00.001-04:002008-09-09T15:09:58.820-04:00

The 'soft of' big stretch

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-84073760004275908942008-09-09T13:10:00.005-04:002008-09-09T13:13:42.364-04:00

She'll be a Picasso wannabe by 4 - cause I do tons of laundry! ha!PS. Laura - these are nifty fifty photos - I love that lens!!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-3640046377014060182008-09-08T14:47:00.003-04:002008-09-08T15:00:15.504-04:00

Yesterday we went to a friends little girls birthday party. Samantha was turning 4 and we've been to all of her parties and every year they have a giant inflatable jump house for all the kids to play in. Last year was the first year Arianna could actually use it (was finally walking well etc.) but she was too timid scared.She's still timid and scared but I got her to go into the jump house with

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-91131001878676461432008-09-06T15:29:00.004-04:002008-09-06T15:40:56.659-04:00

Last week I ventured out with both of the girls to a maternity shop near the house. Last Sunday we had taken a trip to Edaville Railroad and I realized how much easier the entire day would have been if I could have found my Maya sling I had used with Arianna. But alas, its gone into the abyss that is our basement.Well I needed another one. I had alot of 'issues' with the Maya sling and wanted

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-27487996029896485252008-09-06T15:12:00.002-04:002008-09-06T15:26:20.628-04:00

Daria was a surprise to us - my 'mommy intuition' told me she was a boy. Her ultrasound pictures showed a very different baby (facial features TOTALLY different from her sisters) and she was in the 90th+ percentile for growth starting at 24 weeks - it had to be a boy right? You can imagine my surprise when hubby announced "It's a girl!" in the delivery room - I think I actually said "Really?"

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-91224473799470623912008-09-05T14:59:00.003-04:002008-09-05T15:11:47.555-04:00

This blog totally fell by the wayside during my pregnancy so I haven't been able to share with you all the joys of being a mom to Arianna... aka primadonna, aka dramaqueenI joke with my Dad that we have to 'save' Daria from the primadonna effect that has so engulfed her sister.Arianna is very needy and I'm not sure where it came from. My pregnancy had very little effect on her until I was put on

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-48717903215409080672008-09-05T14:53:00.002-04:002008-09-05T14:59:39.988-04:00

I'm so blessed.In addition to my wonderful 'take home kid', she is breastfeeding well. Her latch still needs some work but I'm hoping its something she will learn on her own in the next week or so (if not, then I'll be taking a trip to the LC again).What's nice about having a kid that breastfeeds normally is that... I DON'T NEED THE DANM BREAST PUMP.And the nice side effect of that is that I'm

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-86573568047497893302008-09-02T13:52:00.008-04:002008-09-02T14:33:25.572-04:00

Phew - it feels nice to be settling into a routine and getting 'back to normal' - something we haven't known for 9 months now. Of course, 'normal' has changed now that a new baby is in the picture, but its nice to get back into a routine for Arianna's sake.Sunday we decided to treat her to a 'day out with Thomas (the tank engine)' at Edaville Railroad in Carver, MA. Grandma and Grandpa came too

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-4296459825870071632008-08-25T10:42:00.003-04:002008-08-25T10:47:42.091-04:00

Daria MichelleAugust 19th, 20086:03 PM7lbs. 14 oz. and 20" longborn at 36 weeks 5 days - the 'take home kid'!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-89943392116566284062008-08-02T19:13:00.003-04:002008-08-02T19:16:37.704-04:00

...before everything changes!

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-33558996969080689502008-07-24T11:36:00.003-04:002008-07-24T11:46:21.438-04:00

ahh... I don't know if we'll ever get passed this.Arianna's latest weigh in, at 28 months actual, 25 adjusted ... 24 lbs. 2 oz. or 10th percentile for her adjusted age. She hasn't been on the weight charts for her actual age since 12 months.She eats really well but is having some behavioral problems at meal times and its a hard line to walk regarding teaching her proper meal time behavior vs.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12651413.post-43841034525698325782008-07-10T12:42:00.003-04:002008-07-10T12:45:16.863-04:00

Arianna: Daddy, I've got a boo boo!!!Dad: You got a boo boo honey?Arianna: Ya, it really sucks DaddyLovely... Almost as good as "I don't like it!!" Or the new answer to "did you wet your pants?... "I don't know...". um, ya.

Jenniferhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13866020541016760651noreply@blogger.com1