Welcome Summer!

The 80 degree weather has finally come! Luckily, I have today off and get to enjoy this wonderful weather with Reese. We plan on heading to the zoo this afternoon to take full advantage of it.
I started training for my new job yesterday, and so far I am still really excited. Today I did not have to go in becuase the director had a meeting all day and would not be able to train us. I was not complaining, I like to get as much Reese time as I can :)
We celebrated mother's day this past weekend with both grandma's. Saturday Kyle and I met my parents and headed to Cirque de Soleil in Rockford. It was a neat show. They can do some amazing things. On Sunday, we hung out with Kyle's mom before heading back up to Madison. Again, it was a gorgeous day outside, so I got some planting done in the garden. It was a great first mother's day!
I know I have been slacking on pictures, but I can't seem to locate the charger for my camera. Once I find it, more will come :)

Bittersweet

The day has come. My last day at my job is tomorrow. I am so excited to be taking on a new adventure and meeting new kids and families, but I am also so sad to leave behind some great co workers and some fantastic families. After working there for 3 1/2 years, I have become so close with some of the families, treating their children like my own. I have already had 2 parents cry about my departure, which makes me so sad! But, I have to do what is best for my family, and hat means making the move to a new center. Tomorrow will be tough, saying goodbye to my 8 little kiddos. I assured them I would be back to visit before too long!

In other news, Reese is growing and learning each day. She loves to clap at basically anything, shrieks in terror when bath time is over (she LOVES water), and chases the cats around on a daily basis. She has begun "walking" along something while holding on. It is so neat to watch her learn new things, but is a little sad watching her get big SO fast! I am also excited for her to make new "friends" at our new center, and I hope the transition goes smoothly for both of us.

Vacation

I have taken a vacation from the blog, as well as my actual vacation to Florida. Lots of changes have been happening in our lives, thus the blog has been left behind. We purchased a new car, I accepted a new job, took a vacation, celebrated Easter, and Reese turned 9 mo old. All within the last week!!!

My vacation was amazing. Wonderful weather and great girl time. It was nice to catch up with my college friends since we don't get together as often as we would like.

I ended up taking a new position at another center not far from the one I am currently at. With better benefits, and cheaper cost of daycare for Reese, I could not pass it up. I am excited to start a new journey, but sad to be leaving behind some families where I am at now.

We had Reese's 9 mo appt today. She is right on track. Here are her stats:

Height: 28.5" (80%tile)

Weight: 20 lb 6.8 oz (76 %tile)

Head circumference: 44 cm (49%tile)

She is crawling, pulling herself up onto things, talking up a storm, and has started eating table foods (in combination with bottles and baby food). This weekend we plan to have no plans :) Kinda nice for a change!

The Power of 3 (well, actually 4)

Reese has been a busy bee lately, learning new things each and everyday. This week, she started crawling around on Sunday. On Tuesday, she said "Ma, Ma" for the first time, and actually meant it when calling out for me (this melted my heart!) :)On Wednesday, she mastered the skill of clapping, and now applauds at almost anything. And today, she showed us that she knows how to roll her tongue. This little girl is doing so much it is hard to keep up with! 4 new things all in one week. We are both fighting off a cold, it seems as though we have been since November. I hope mine clears up before my Florida trip on Wednesday. Nothing needs to hinder my ability to lay in the sun and sip on cocktails with my girl friends :) Since I won't be around, and will be busy this week, I hope everyone has a happy Easter next weekend!

Crawling

Reese is now crawling. On Sunday, she all of a sudden took off. It is so neat watching her move around, but now it's time to baby proof the house :)

C'Mon already....

Come on spring!! Please get here fast. I say this for many reasons. 1. I am sick and tired of being stuck inside. 2. I love rainy days and flowers blooming. 3. It is my favorite season. 4. But most of all, I am sick and tired of my baby being sick :( Yesterday at daycare, they called my class to tell me to come and check out her eye. When I got in there it was quite goopy, and by the time I had called the dr's office and got back in there, it was pink. UGH! We just got over her 3 day fever last week. So, we got eye drops and are doing them 4 times a day for 7 days. Today, I was able to take her back to work at 10 am (24 hr since starting her drops), and they called me at 1:30 pm. I didn't even want to hear it, now what? Well, she had a fever and had to go home. Here we go again.... This time I feel it might be due to teething, but I have no clue. Just a guess. By 4 pm, she didn't have a fever anymore. Let's hope it stays away. This weekend we are staying in Madison and getting around to things we have neglected the past few weekends. Spring cleaning is in order, as well as car shopping (my car is taking a crap), meeting a new neighbor who has a 3 mo. old boy (Kyle met him through work), and getting Easter pictures taken of Reese through a friend of mine at work who is trying to start a photography business. Should be a fun weekend if we can all stay healthy!

Look out!

Reese is feeling much better finally! Her fever broke on Wednesday night, and she got a stay at home day with me on Thursday to rest up. Back to daycare she went on Friday, and is all healthy now.

This weekend we went home and packed our days full of family. Saturday we went to Great Grandma Montgomery's house and chatted with her and Grandma and Papa Montgomery. It was a nice (but windy) day outside, so we got some fresh air. While we were there, Gary got out one of his pedal cars (he collects old engines and antiques) for Reese to ride in. Each of his grandkids now have a mode of transportation. Maddy (almost 7) has a "Maddy Wagon", Mekenna (3) has a pink and purple tractor, and now Reese has her pedal car.

Look out for this wild driver!

Sunday we headed down to Prophetstown to celebrate my Grandma's 95th birthday. We had good food, good company, and warm weather! It was 79 degrees there (where as it only got to 41 in Madison) We experienced a 38 degree difference within a 2 1/2 hour drive home!