Some Final February Photos

Here are some recent photos from our affairs.

Abby is wearing an outfit from my sister. You cannot really see the shoes here, but they are supper cool. They are a pain to get on, but she can run all over inside and out with them.

After the dry run, Jen & Natalie eat ice cream and prep for the big show in Flagstaff; afterward Abby cuddles up to Jen. In this concert Jen directed her Arizona Desert Choir and the St. Marie's Choir with an orchestra. It was pretty cool, but under attended. We need to get more groupies for her choir.

Abby's favorite toy is now the stroller. She pushes and pulls it all over the house.

The baby laptop is toy #2. She totes that around too, and can be briefly entertained by the flashing lights and sounds.

Here Abby chills with an old friend: Jonah. His parents (Josh & Kim) lived next to us but moved away a few months back. He is getting big, but I think she can still take him.

Abby's Birthday Party

So, Abby's party was a week late but she didnt know the difference. She's been much healthier and happier these past few days, though last night at the party she was a bit fussy. She skipped her afternoon nap and was grouchy at the party, but everybody still had a great time. Thank you to everybody who helped out, especially the Andersens, Lopes', and Natalie.

Here Mellisa and Jessica help prep some food for the hamburgers.

Kieth Kendall puts Abby up in a cheer-leading chair sit.

Tiffany (and son Tommy) sits by Tina and Andina. Tina watches Abby for a few hours each week as Jen finishes her last class. Tina is great to Abby, and is teaching her Indonesian. Niel (Tina's husband) looks over the fouton at the camera as an hour-long "this is your life" video runs on the TV. In this shot you can see Amanda (Abby's birth mom).

Here is our good friend Chelsea. She worked with Jen at the university but now she stays at home with her daughter, Carma, while Dusty fights fires and saves lives. We miss them.
My two cute girls

Cake's can be very scary, especially if you're one year old and already in a bad mood.
After eating cake we stripped Abby down to the diaper and sho opened gifts. Here is a puzzle from the Kendalls.

Abby even got a big box of gifts from her her birth father's family. She has many grandma's who care about her--7 by my count.
And here are a couple of videos so that you can get a good feel for the night.

I noticed we dont have anything showing how well Abby moves around right now, so here is a photo of Abby just walking around the front room, followed by a video.

Health Issues

So, my last post explained that Abby had the cold, the flu, and an ear infection. She is starting to feel better now, though she still has nasty diarrhea. Generally, her tummy feels better and she is eating. Jen, on the other hand, now has pneumonia. She visited the doctor this morning, who told her she could come home as long as she stayed in bed. If she chooses to go do things, he will admit her. So now I need to swing by someplace and get some handcuffs. I think my parents are driving out tonight to offer extra help, so things should move along fine. Hopefully my girls will be back to normal in a little while. We'll probably get lots of pampering.

Abby's Birthday

Well, yesterday was Abby's birthday. Unfortunately, she was sick sick sick. After she threw up all weekend we took her into the doctor who said she had the lucky combination of a cold, an ear infection, and the flu virus. She was miserable. She had to be held all the time, and mostly squirmed around in pain. We felt so bad for her. Today she is feeling a little better. Last night she started eating rice puffs, and this morning she drank 3 ounces of Gatorade and apple juice, and 2 ounces of watered down formula. A few minutes ago I fed her a full meal serving of sweet potatoes, and I think we're going to try a full bottle of watered down formula in another hour.

As if Abby being sick wasnt enough, Jen had the flu as well, plus a flare up of other sorts. Jen was unable to get around and do much, and I had to step it up a little (which was hard because whenever I was home I was holding Abby). Still, Jen suprised me by cleaning up the house while I was at work yesterday. Abby was starting to feel a little better then, but house cleaning wiped out Jen pretty well.

All things considered, we had to postpone Abby's birthday party, and since she doesn't know the difference, we're just postponing her entire birthday until next Tuesday. So, she has not opened any gifts yet, nor eaten any cake. We'll get those photos up next week. Hopefully it will warm up a little by then, since we dont have enough space in the house to host a huge party.