The Park

I went to city hall today.

After paying the water bill, the very nice lady said to me, "Welcome to "the Park."

It made me smile, because it reminded me of one of my guilty pleasures...

watching this.

Something Familiar and Pretty Pictures

Leah has been a little bit sensitive the last few days as we packed up and moved. The boxes, long car rides, and unfamiliar scenery were starting to get to her.

So, naturally she was very happy to see her friends, Alex and Annie on Tuesday.

My friend, Penny has been watching Leah a couple of times a week since I started working part-time. I go into the office two days for meetings and work the rest of the time from home. On my first day back to the office, I was so surprised to recieve an e-mail from Penny with an update and pictures! It was so unexpected and wonderful.

These are some of the pictures she's taken in April. I love them all.

The only problem is now the pictures I take on our digital camera don't seem to look as good!

7-Eleven

We successfully moved to Manassas Park, VA on Saturday.

It was the hottest day of the year.

The main reason we wanted to live here: 10 minute walk to the Virginia Railway Express (VRE)

Added Bonus: More 7-Elevens than we've ever seen in one place. The nicest 7-Eleven ever (even nicer than the one in Kaysville) is walking distance away.

People must take their slurpees very seriously out here.

Cousins

Leah's cousins from Ithaca, NY and Richmond, VA came to visit for Easter this year. It wouldn't be a holiday without trying to get a picture of the kids. These are a few of my favorites.





We missed our cousins in Utah. We are looking forward to introducing Leah to Drew, Emma, and Jacob.

Lee! Lee!

All of Leah's cousins were so excited to hold and play with her. However, Aaron was by far the most interested. He would always be looking for her, and when he would find her he would point, smile, and say, "Lee, Lee!" It was so cute.

This is when Aaron and Leah first met in February. Leah was a month old. Aaron would get so concerned when she would cry. He tried to soothe her by rocking her car seat.


Leah was much happier to see everyone in April. I wasn't able to capture it on film, but Aaron had just finished giving Leah a huge hug. Jenny is expecting another baby boy in May. Aaron will be a wonderful big brother.

Easter

Easter was very nice this year. David's sisters, Melanie and Jenny, came to visit with their families. It was so fun for Leah to meet her cousins. Barbara made a delicious dinner, and Lisa came back from traveling just in time to join us.

Carrier Easter Egg Hunt

Emily started the adult Easter egg hunt a few years ago. It's become a family tradition along with a delicious Easter dinner. I'm looking forward to taking part in it one day.

The whole Carrier clan.

Grandma Carrier looking for eggs.

Grandma Sides and her friend Mary. Grandma looks pretty serious about her Easter treats.


Emily bought 250 plastic eggs and hid all sort of things in them, including cash. It looks like Kristi was lucky to find the egg inside the egg. Also, note my Grandma and her friend checking out their findings in the background.

The great party orchestrator, Emily, with another one of her favorite things...babies! This is baby Caleb.

PS: For those of you who wonder where Leah gets all of her hair, check out Emily's gorgeous thick locks. Leah also started sucking her tongue a few days ago just like Emily did when she was a baby.

Tweeterz

Does anyone know where I can find these?

Tweeterz are David's favorite Easter candy.
We didn't see them anywhere this year. It's probably too late...or, maybe they've been discontinued. Last year, we couldn't find them either so we settled for these.

Twerpz aren't nearly as good as Tweeterz.

Three-Months Old

In celebration, she gave one small chuckle.

We're looking forward to more giggling in the months to come.

Thanks to my friend Penny for taking such great pictures of Leah!

Painting

...has pretty much consumed our lives this week. David's Dad, Steve, has been so extremely helpful. We don't know what we would have done without him. Well, I imagine we would both still be at Home Depot trying to decide what supplies to buy.

He spent two long, full days painting the living/dining room and the kitchen, patching up several holes, and repairing some water damaged walls in the kitchen. In addition to being an extremely hard worker, he's a fabulous painter. He would encourage us by saying, "It's all in the wrist" and "Use the brush to your advantage." The walls look beautiful. It's amazing what some paint and a lot of time will do to a place. Thank you Steve and Barbara for all your help! We really, really appreciate it.

Steve in the living room


Kitchen before shot


Kitchen after shot: David learning some tips from his Dad.


Leah resting peacefully with her bum in the air, while the rest of us paint. She's been very patient, tolerating the numerous trips in the car back and forth from the new place to our apartment.

Spring

The cherry blossoms are in full bloom here. Normally, we go into DC to enjoy breathtaking views of the monuments surrounded in pink and white blossoms.

This year we weren't able to make it to DC so we enjoyed the blossoms in our own neighborhood.

Happy Birthday Mom

Happy Birthday, Mom! You are as beautiful as ever. Thank you for loving me always, teaching me so many things (I never thought I would master your cinnamon rolls), and always being there to support me as I go through life. I've learned so much from your triumphs and challenges. You inspired me as you battled breast cancer and won, all while earning your masters degree.

We love you!

Me and my Mom 28 years ago. She's so beautiful.


A daughter never grows too old for her Mom.

A Few of Her Favorite Things...

Now that she is almost three-months old, Leah's personality is starting to show. These are a few of her favorite things.

Her Daddy: As soon as David gets home, Leah follows him around with her eyes. I often catch her smiling at David when he isn't looking. He also can get her smile instantly, coo incessantly, and squeal with delight. A few weekends ago, David was watching Leah in another room, while Lisa, her roommate, and I were watching a movie. Within minutes, we could hear her excitedly talking with Daddy. Lisa looked at me and said, "She must having a great time!"



The Sleepy Wrap: At first I wasn't sure if it was going to work. It's one long piece of stretchy material that you wrap around your body. It can be a bit awkward at first, but once I got the hang of it, I loved it! Usually, I wrap Leah with her face towards my chest, and she will quickly fall asleep. This time, I decided to wrap her facing out so she could see things. I had to go in front of a mirror to make sure I got her legs in the right places. As soon as I finished, I smiled at her in the mirror, she looked at me, she looked at herself, and then she went crazy kicking her legs, smiling, and making funny faces.



The Swing: We decided not to buy a swing at first because of space issues, and bought a vibrating chair instead. We knew from the time she was a few days old that she would have probably liked a swing better. A friend picked up this swing for us at a thrift store last week. We were right. Leah loves to swing. She stays content for much longer than she does in the vibrating chair.

A Few More of Her Favorite Things...

For some reason blogger would only let me post three pictures at time. Leah has more than just three favorite things so here is the continuation of the previous post.

The Stripped Zebra: My sister-in-law Melanie and her three girls were so generous in giving Leah their old clothes and some toys. This stripped Zebra was one of the items they sent. Leah loves it! It goes with her on the swing, in the car seat, and in her vibrating chair. We discovered she liked it when she wouldn't pay attention to the Red Chickadee (also from Melanie and the girls) that was always right next to the Zebra hanging from her vibrating chair. Poor Mr. Chickadee had to standby and watch as Leah grabbed, cooed, and stared at the Zebra.


Sleeping on Her Stomach While Taking a Nap: Don't worry. Our pediatrician said it was okay for her to sleep on her stomach as long as we are nearby to check on her occasionally. This is easy for us to do, because in our one-bedroom apartment she is always a few feet away. We may need to readjust once we move. We found she slept much more soundly on her stomach during the day. I think it's because she can keep the pacifier in her mouth or easily get to her hands. At night, we always put her "back to sleep."


Car Rides or Walks in the Stroller: She rarely fusses in the car. In fact, if she is fussy the car or a walk generally soothe her. It's been nice for us, because we've had to take her on numerous long drives as we've been going through the process of buying our townhouse. The new place is about 40 minutes each way from where we live right now. We also live close to a shopping center. I take Leah there in the stroller at least a couple of times a week to pick up a few things.

Things She Tolerates

There are also a few things that she used to really dislike. Now, she tolerates them and hopefully will soon learn to enjoy them.

Tummy Time: I know most babies don't like tummy time. Leah didn't mind it too much, but she also didn't like either.

Three weeks ago:


This week:


Bath time: My Mom said my siblings and I all loved bath time. Maybe, Leah will begin to enjoy it more. Right now she doesn't cry every time so we're moving in the right direction.

Almost two months ago after taking her bath.


This week