A December to Remember

Here's a slideshow from December. Hope you enjoy it! Elena is a real cutie pie for sure.

-Jason

New Blog Videos!!

I just added a video section to the right hand column of Baby Elena's Blog. Even as I type "Baby Elena's Blog" it feels as though I should probably rename and shorten the blog to just "Elena's Blog". Maybe I'll do this in the near future, but for now she's still our baby - even though more like a toddler.

I will try to add some more videos soon. For now, enjoy as Elena does her sitting interpretive dance while dad plays his drum. And if you haven't seen her play the pot lid "cymbals", that video is there as well.

-Jason

Our visit to Shaw Farms

Here's a slideshow for anyone searching high and low for a slideshow of... well, Elena. I still can't believe this toddler was once our little tiny baby!



More to come!

-Jason

Where's your tongue?

Don't you dare make a face when I take your picture...

ELENA! What did I just say?!?

Have a great weekend everyone. Elena sends her tongue... er, I mean her best.

-Jason

Ein sehr regnerisches Oktoberfest

Translation: A very rainy Octoberfest


Why is Jen the little boy? ha ha

Dad looks kinda scary - maybe he's had too many steins of beer...

Elena was not a fan of the brat with kraut. Cream puffs? ...YES!

We braved the Sunday rain for some beer, brats, Reubens, and pastries. Yum!

I have to admit I was sad at the thought of not attending Oktoberfest this year due to my work schedule. However it worked out that we could go Sunday night for our 3rd out of the last 4 years attendance record. (3 yrs ago we were in Akron). Yes, it was raining quite a bit and yes I had TWO raincoats in my hands before we left yet neither made it into the car before we left so I got a bit more wet than anyone else at the fest. Go figure.

Elena did very well in her stroller even though it was raining most of the time. During a brief hiatus from the showers she held my hand and walked about a quarter of the way holding my hand tight. She's never done that before for more than a minute or so.

After we got enough of the rain and very yummy - albiet wet food, we decided to head back. Thanks to Mike Weller for the company and taking the pics. We hope to extend our attendance streak next year.

Btw, Elena is getting so smart. She's really starting to identify objects and follow commands. Our little girl is growing before our eyes.

-Jason

Fun in the Sun (room)

Mom needed to go out for the morning, so I spent some time with Elena on the sun porch (which we are hoping to get redone soon) and she was being SO cute I had to snap some pictures.

Apparently Jen does not like my fashion sense - I dressed Elena that morning - and she's ashamed of our non-matching porch furniture, but look at Elena's smile. Who can resist it?

Today we took a drive to the west side since Jen has hardly ever been there. We ate Gyros at Sebastian's on Glenway, visited my dad's old house on Epworth Ave, then went back east to Eden Park to visit the art museum. Unfortunately we got there at about 4:30 so they were closing soon. Elena just wanted to wander everywhere so it was kind of a waste trying to look at the art.

We headed out and let her RUN down a bunch of hills (which she couldn't stop giggling as she ran) down to the currently empty reflection pool but then had to hike back to the car... and it was HOT! Elena of course did NOT want to be carried and she threw a fit and both her and I were uncomfortably hot by the time we made it back to the car. Moral of the story, it's fun heading downhill, but upwards can be work.

Toodles everyone.
-Jason

Heading back to the 'Nati

Just wanted to do a quick post to provide a link to some more pictures I took while we visited family in Akron. Some reason I have more free time up here to do blog updates and such. Imagine that. ;-)

Anyway, here's the link...

August visit to Akron

Hope everyone has a great week!
-Jason

Mmm... Barberton Chicken

View inside Millich's kitchen area... good thing we ate first.

So we came back to Akron for the weekend to visit family and see Jen's sister's new house in Stow, OH - near Kent State. It's been a nice trip so far. Elena slept most of the ride up and only "screamed" the last 20 minutes or so.

Kristin and Shane's house is very nice. Spacious and well maintained. Had we found the same size/style house in Cincinnati where we were looking we'd have easily spent double what they had. It's a great house for them and their two kids.

On the way back from our visit even MORE north, we stopped by Millich's Village Inn for some lard-fried Barberton chicken. Yum! and ugh. I mean it's pretty darn good chicken, but you seriously should NOT eat all the breading/skin if you want to make it to age 50 or so.

Here's a cute video I shot in the restaurant.

Elena loves using big girl drinks

So anyway... I should get off to breakfast. Maybe have some cereal or fat-free anything. Elena keeps bringing me shoes and remote controls. SOO cute, that kid.

Toodles.

-Jason

My how she is growing...

I'll fix this drawer, daddy. First let me roll up my sleeves!

Future soccer star?

Intentional hand ball! Yellow card!

Why the long (albeit CUTE) face?!

Just wanted to share some more pictures I took this morning. Elena was having fun playing in the "sun room". It's basically our first project of the new house as it's an enclosed porch area that still has the original slat glass windows from the 50's. Our goal is to update it to be a usable room year round.

Elena basically likes to play with anything that's a non-toy; from drawers that need fixing to Swiffer dust mops to rubber mallets. I think we won't bother to buy her any more toys and just let her pick non-dangerous grown-up things for her to play with.

I have a lot to do today such as hang drapes, order drawer slides, and TRY to finish organizing the office. Hope everyone is having a great week!

-Jason

Elena meets iBert

Elena riding up front in her new iBert seat!

So again it's been a while since I've blogged. We JUST moved into our new house 4th of July weekend and really like it! The area is nice (minus the faint background din of I-71) and everything is SO convenient - shopping, food, Trader Joe's!

I wanted to share this picture cause it is super cute and this bike seat has to be the coolest thing going for kids. I highly recommend it (as do 300+ others who commented on Amazon). After a couple of short rides and Elena practically choking herself be rid of the helmet as she hates ANYTHING on her head, she finally didn't mess with her helmet the whole ride. She even had lots to babble about when we got back home - as of yet Jen and I have NO idea what she's saying, but she for sure is a talker! Egad!

We are slowly getting settled in and enjoying all the upgrades of our new house: bigger kitchen, partially finished basement, ATTACHED GARAGE! I could go on, but I won't. Elena seems to be right at home here and we can only imagine when we have to watch our little one get on a school bus for the first time. Fortunately, that's still a few years away. Phew.

So I shall end this short update blog with my usual promise of more to follow. Which of course is code for "don't hold your breath cause it may be a while before I post again". Ha ha.

-Jason

Well overdue cute Elena pictures

Elena taps in to her inner Olivia Newton John

Why did she take the dog's water and dump it over her head? The world may never know...

Somehow Elena claimed the 44oz ICEE as her own

Keeping our girl occupied while we do a little bit of move-in

So it's been MONTHS since I last sent out a blog update. I've had computer ongoing problems recently (no excuse, I know) and we sold our house and moved into a new one JUST this weekend. Ugh. So I hear about the horror stories of moving but I just never thought it was as bad as people say. Well, moving is NO FUN. Yes, we had movers but they didn't move everything - partly our fault for not having everything packed up. Needless to say I had to take about 5 truckloads to the new house (our 8ft bedlength beater F150 comes in handy) and we're exhausted.

The new house is great! I'll have to send another blog update with house pictures and such but for now you'll have to take my word for it. There are a few things in need of update (like the two 50's retro bathrooms upstairs) but the basement and kitchen are both updated and really nice.

I'm due for some breakfast so I'll have to end this for today. More to come soon. For now we are the proverbial "living out of boxes" family.

My Trip to Naples - Part 1

Pretty as a postcard!

No... she's actually screaming! Does NOT like cold water!

In 10 minutes I'll refuse to eat and throw ALL my food on the floor... but aren't I cute right now!

101 meets 1 - Great-grandma gets to visit with Elena again

So we've had a pretty nice time here in Naples, Fl. We flew direct which was a good plan since Elena had never been on a plane before. She did surprisingly well on the flight - sleeping most of the time. Didn't cry when we had a bit of turbulence and only at the end was a little fussy pulling on her ears because they must not have popped as we descended.

Our first day was mostly a wash. Jen and I were both exhausted having got up before 7am with Elena crying the majority of the night being sick with a head cold. We ate some ok Mexican food (Jen hated it, I gave it a 5 or 6) and pretty much hung out in the hotel room.

Day two we walked to the beach along a raised walkway through mangrove trees. There were shuttle golf carts that zipped by but we wanted to enjoy the morning and walk the 8/10 mile at least once. It was very pretty. I'll have to post a Naples gallery later. E must have been tired because the first time we went to put her in the ocean she FREAKED! I don't know if it was the cold or if it was just scary, but she was having none of it.

Jen pretty much just laid with her on the beach as she napped and I walked around taking pictures. Later that day we drove to the Naples Pier which stretches pretty far into the Gulf. There were tons of fishermen and gulls and a few people surfing - a really neat spot just to sit and people-watch.

We tried another restaurant with "good" reviews called Buzz's Lighthouse and even though we spent a bunch we didn't get a very decent meal. I had a grouper Reuben which was actually decent (prob cause I couldn't taste the grouper over the rather good coleslaw) and Jen had the grouper dinner - which seemed very fishy and not fresh but processed. Elena's hot dog kids meal was also bad - just as well cause she wasn't hungry anyway. So our current tally on picking good restaurants was 0 for 2.

Today (Wed) we met my 101 year old grandmother for lunch in North Naples and got to see where she lives and spend some time with her. She told us about a nice cafe near our hotel so we backtracked and the food was the best we've had since we got here. Jen and I have decided we must be food snobs or else Naples has a LOT of mediocre to bad eateries.

After taking my Gma back home we finally hit the resort pool and both Jen and I went down the waterslide (I went more than once) and Elena got to swim in a pool for the first time. We tried both an infant lifevest and floaties. While she didn't seem to like either very much, however the floaties seemed to work best for her. More pictures of this to come.

Now we are lazily relaxing in the hotel room while E naps getting ready to explore another restaurant hoping we don't pick another lemon. Could we just get a gem for a change. Are all these reviewers just not educated how good food SHOULD taste? We ponder this and more as we debate just how we became food snobs living in a city like Cincinnati.

-Jason

Easter in Akron

Elena and Jen smile pretty on Easter day

Isabella loves having a cousin

Lucas, Isabella, and Elena

Jason, Jen and Elena makes 3

We had a nice Easter weekend up in Akron with the Wenners and Springers. We had an Easter egg hunt in Nana's backyard for Lucas and Isabella and had a yummy Easter lunch. Elena was SO cute in her easter dress with sweater - she didn't survive more than a few minutes at the Easter service, however.

We spent some of Saturday at the neighborhood park where Jen and Elena swung and I was able to get a kite going for 10-15 (total) minutes - spending >20 minutes untangling and winding the string afterwards!

E is just about walking on her own but prefers to crawl cause she's more confident and faster that way. It was a rough rough ride up and back since E is cutting a bunch of her molars according to Jen as well as her pediatrician.

All in all it was a good short turn-around trip with what felt like days in the car. Alas we'll do it again someday soon I'm sure.

-Jason

Pictures of Elena's 1st Birthday Party now online!

I do believe this is the fastest I've *ever* posted pictures to the blog! Hope you enjoy them.

We had a great time celebrating our little girl's first birthday. Even though Lanie didn't really get a good nap prior to the party and was pretty grumpy most of the time, she seemed to have fun, loved the presents (especially her new tunnel toy) and apparently likes cake... surprise, surprise.

Thanks to everyone who could make it!!

-Jason

Click the picture below for the Picasa Album link...


Elena's First Birthday

Elena's 1st B-Day

This is a picture of E's first birthday cake. Yes it's a real cake under that dress! Her party is Sunday and hopefully I'll have pictures to post of all the festivities. She may not understand what's going on, but I KNOW she'll soon know what cake is.

Until later,

-Jason

Elena Fix

Yes, it's been a long time since I've updated the blog. Our little baby is quickly becoming a toddler and is nearly a YEAR old. Can you believe?!?

Anyway, here are a few cute pics to satisfy those in need of their "fix". Take care!

-Jason

Exhausted after a trip to the park

I can eat my own ravioli thank you very much!

Look how cute I am!

Me and momma

Elena's First Sled Ride

Mom gets Elena all bundled up for sledding (yes, we don't have baby boots)

Dad is obviously more excited than Elena in the big tube (sled)

Mom holds baby close to keep her nice and warm

Elena looks a bit cold here - good thing we're heading home soon

I wasn't sure if Elena would "get" the whole concept of sledding, but we took a chance anyway. I decided to blow up our boating tube and take her to our nearby sledding hill. She didn't know what to make of being pulled to the hill. (Jen decided to put a pillow into the "donut" hole cause she just sort of falls into the middle - it's a pretty large tube.)

When we got to the hill we carried her and the tube to the top and voila... the blue nylon cover wouldn't slide WHAT-SO-EVER so... I took it off and it worked just fine.

I went down with Elena once, Jen went with her the second time, we BOTH went with her the third time (and spun backwards a bit... scary-ish), then I went with her one more time by myself.

All in all it was fun and I *think* she enjoyed it. We found that when we got home her feet and hands especially were quite cold but she didn't cry or complain. She's such a great baby. She's even getting better at sleeping through the night since we started "cry it out".

But THAT'S another story for another blog entry.

-Jason