we could all use a little extra this xmas season!

Mama’s Holiday Wish List Meme


TodaysMama (link to: http://bit.ly/tmwishlist) and GameStop (link to: http://bit.ly/gamestop10) are giving away a sleighful of gifts this holiday season and to enter I’m sharing this meme with you.


1. What is your holiday wish for your family? health for my daughter with asthma as the flu season is in full swing here!

2. What is your Christmas morning tradition? marley is 3 now, and this year is already so excited about everything christmas. i'm sure there will no longer be any sleepy, lazy christmas mornings . . . and i think that that's wonderful!!

3. If you could ask Santa for one, completely decadent wish for yourself, what would it be? a chevy suburban, more room to lug work stuff around :)

4. How do you make the holidays special without spending any money? we pop some popcorn and watch the christmas movies on tv - just like i did as a kid

5. What games did you play with your family growing up? lots of board games (monopoly, etc), card games, and legos if you wanna count those!

6. What holiday tradition have you carried on from your own childhood? we open one gift christmas eve

7. Where would you go for a Christmas-away-from-home trip? it's a toss up between a beach in the carribean or a ski trip out west.

8. Check out GameStop (link to: http://bit.ly/gamestop10) and tell us, what are the three top items on your GameStop Wish List this year? a dancing and a karaoke game for the Wii, and Wii fit

i love my daughter

brave girl, growing up too fast

today, marley got her ears pierced. we were shopping at the eastwood mall this afternoon and ran into my mom, my aunt and their friends on their annual shopping trip. last night my aunt mary kay asked if i was ever going to get marleys' ears pierced. of course i replied i would like to. then didn't think another thing of it. well, at the mall, my aunt was like "let's go get her ears pierced!" and then my mom and their friends jumped on the band wagon so off we went.

marley started out doing really well, but got a little aprehensive when the lady was taking forever. the lady spent 10 minutes explaining to marley what she was going to do! aagh! we could have already been finished with it. i did have to sit in the chair and hold her, keeping her arms down and her head straight. but they did both ears at once so it only lasted a second. marley was not happy, she did the cry without sound and had some pretty big tears. but when she saw the earrings in the mirror and the presents everyone bought her she was THRILLED!

grandma honey bought her a snowflake necklace (which has already broke twice today) to go with her earrings and now marley thinks she is all that and then some! i can't believe i have a "girly girl"

3 MONTHS!

since i blogged. only cow.

lets see, big news in that marley started a new day care in september. and WE LOVE IT! she has done so well and i am so very proud of her for taking such a tough transition into stride. she comes home with crafts/activities every day, i get a detailed note every day on what she did and how things went, i speak to the same teacher in the morning and the same teacher in the afternoon every day (so none of the "i wasn't here" answers i got at the old center - very frustrating) and marley is so much more appropriately stimulated throughout the day.

we started up with tumbling classes again. it's about 45 minutes every wednesday evening. marley is really growing with these experiences. not only are we learning about physicial activity and promoting good health habits, marley is also learning about taking turns, waiting for turns and follwing a structured routine with specific sets of steps. her favorite part though is the dancing in the warm-ups. my girls loves to dance! and last night she really tried so hard to jump with both feet in the air a number of times in succession on the trampoline, i was so proud! usually she just wants to run to the other end :(

we had a really nice halloween too. marley was harry potter and she LOVED the dressing up and going from house to house for candy concept. she always remembered her "thank you"'s :) and she was very excited when we got home and Honey and Grandpa were waiting for her.

Marley also got new furniture for her bedroom. a new dresser and bookshelf from IKEA (mom's favorite store). we got a twin bed from Honey and Grandpa, but i still need to paint it. then she'll be sleeping in a big big girl bed.

in other "important" news, marley got the swine flu vaccine last week. she is determined at risk because of her young age and her asthma. of course, i will compltete a scrapbook layout about the event b/c it's such a big deal current events wise. it really got me thinking though, and put alot into perspective, about how fragile her health really is due to her asthma. not matter how well the dr and i "manage" the risks and symptoms . . . anything could happen. it's kinda scary if i dwell on it too much. and then it brought back all the frustration/anger i had from when she got RSV in the first place. the 2 other children in her daycare room with RSV were back to daycare the next day - fevers and all. maybe if their parents had kept them home until they were fever free for 24 hours (as the regulations clearly stated) and the daycare inforced that, she might not have ever gotten sick. she might still have, i don't know. she was the last kiddo to get it, that i know of, and i kept her home for the 10 days as my dr instructed. coincidence? don't even get me started on when she got mono!!

on a happier note, we're going to north carolina to visit the bakelaar's (minus dr. ryan) for thanksgiving. marley is going to love playing with kate, and i'm sure luke will be sick of marley always in his face by the time we leave :)

happy fall!!

Marley's Two Year Old Pictures

not sure why they always end up sideways. i just can't figure that out. hope you enjoy :)

and now she's two.

Tomorrow she'll be two. wow. so much has time has passed, but it still seems like yesterday. I can still smell her newborn baby smell, remember how her skin felt so loose on her body before she started chubbin' up. i remembered how my heart stopped at her first smile and how i had to call my mom right away and how i cried a little at it all. And now she's insisiting on unpacking her own Happy Meals. Tonight she asked for 'pretty nails like mama's" so we painted her toes sparkly red for her party tomorrow. And as I carried her to bed, i told her when she woke up she'd be 2 and that i would make her a special breakfast. She put her hand on my cheek, looked right at me and said " and i will eat it all gone". Last week we gave up the binky forever, on monday she argued with me about what clothes and shoes she wanted to wear, and tonight she just almost got her nightgown on all by herself. She says please and thank-you without having to be asked, she calls her grandma "honey", her top lip smirks up like elvis (and her mom!) when she says "orange" and "gross". She discovered strawberry milk tonight, and looks for pictures in the clouds when we ride in the car. She sings songs at random times, just because they must be running through her head. I hope her life always has a soundtrack and that she'll never be afraid to sing it out loud. That's my wish tonight for my two year old.

A day in the 'burgh with Jen

marley had an ENT appointment in the afternoon one day while we were on our "staycation", so we spent the morning at The Children's Museum in Pittsburgh with Aunt Jen. Marley had a blast, and so did Jen and I. She especially liked the ABC windows in Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood, the water play on the 3rd floor, and the Bob the Builder attraction. After we had lunch, we explored the art studio at the museum. Marley enjoyed painting most of all I think. It had been raining that day, but it cleared enough for us to go outside and play in the sand. We stopped in the gift shop, and Marley immediately picked up a stuffed frog and that was all she wanted. I tried to get her to get Mr. Rodgers puppets, but no - only the frog. Aunt Jen was THRILLED because Jen loves and collects frogs. Needless to say, Marley came home with the frog and takes it to bed almost every night. Thanks Aunt Jen :)

Firecookies and Friends

We celebrated the 4th by going to Isabella's 2nd birthday party, coming home and taking a nap, and then joining the Hackers for a neighborhood party. Marley loved the food, loved seeing all the kids. She hated the sparklers and the fireworks. On the way to
the Hackers, we heard some very loud firecrackers. Marley said "oh, I scared", and then called them "firecookies" all night long. Maybe next year :)

Happy Summer!

marley was supposed to go to the ENT for a follow-up from her surgery, but it was cancelled. so we had an unexpected weekday together. we decided to go strawberry picking, and then to a little playground nearby. what fun! i just put marley down for a nap, and then i'm off for a short one as well (actually, i can't remember my last true "nap" so i'm more excited about this than marley is :) ) so i thought i'd post some pictures quickly. we hope everyone's enjoying the start of summer as much as we are!

what we've been up to

trying on mommy's chapstick

the akron zoo

playing at buhl park

"pee pee in potty"

easter morning

Marley gets tubes!

marley had an ear infection in february, in march and in april. so last friday we went to pittsburgh and she got tubes in her ears. she had been struggling with her asthma since the weekend before, so i wasn't sure that they would go ahead with the surgery. but they did, and she did beautifully! she was such a ham in the waiting room, chatting up all the nurses and riding around in that car. and she looked absolutely adorable in her little gown and socks :)

we went to the zoo afterward and had a blast. i think it was the best zoo trip i ever had. the animals were all out and you could see them really well. it wasn't crowded, and it was a nice sunny day.

hello everyone!

my sister informed me that i have not updated my blog since the last prime time presidental new conference! i'm such a slacker.

but in the 6-ish weeks since then we've been dealing with illness. surprise. someone in my house is sick. shocker, i know. marley has had 2 ear infections, something called "atypical pneumonia" and is currently suffering from a mysterious high fever. no other symptoms, just the fever. but i think she's finally on the mend now because she only had to have tylenol once today :) but she's now in her bed doing the whole "i'm so uncomfortable in my skin" whiny thing. i'm trying to see if she'll settle back down on her own.

i've been working on the living room and dining room remodel. i've got just a few boards of trim to stain and then my super wonderful dad and brother can put them up. then i think all i have to do is fill in the nail holes and slap some sealer stuff on and we're good to go! woo-hoo!

then i can move on to the upstairs. yikes. it's never ending. i'm hosting the shipe family christmas party this year, so my goal is to have doors that can be closed (safely closed, remember how i got myself stuck in my bedroom?) by the party. i'm not very good at finishing things, so everyone keep their fingers crossed for me.

i'm also thinking me and the mooster need to be taking a little vaca in the upcoming months. just to get away, see some different scenery, etc. anybody out there have any good suggestions. hali - we will not be coming to see you. that's not a vacation!

our cats are democrats

we love obama!!

here we go!

what an amazing game. marley and carter didn't quite make it the whole way, but aidan and jonah rocked the night :) we had way too much food. we played some wii before the opening kick-off. we yelled (and got yelled at by dad for being too loud). we waved our towels. we drank some beers. we ate some wings and pie (pie?? who has pie at a superbowl party?). and we bit our nails for the last 2 minutes.

thank god nascar starts soon - go tony.

Big Girl Bed

So far so good. Of course, her asthma was pretty bad last night and today so she's drugged!

Beginning of 2009

hello everyone! we hope your holiday season was as fun and restful as ours was. this week is our second week back to work and daycare, and we're finally getting into the swing of things. we had a big snow storm this past weekend . . . marley loved to go outside and play when she could. which was only once because it took about 20 minutes to gather everything up and get her dressed. only to get outside and she could barely moved in the deep snow and "ralphies little brother" snowsuit. which frustrated her alot. she kept falling down and saying "oh stuck" when she couldn't get back up (which was more often than not!) followed by "mommy!"

so we spent the whole weekend inside watching football (she can almost say "polamalu") and playing with all our new toys. we would especially like to thank the dadich's for the finger paints. yes, we'd like to thank them very much. and marley has started to actually talk back to someone on the phone, much to grandma's (or should i say "mah-maw"? marley likes to channel her southern belle self when it pertains to my mother) delight. oh, the things that entertain you when you're homebound.

on a "i'm the mother who's a speech pathologist so i'm allowed to be proud" moment, marley is beginning to say phrases of 3 words that are easily understood. she's popped out quite a few, and it seems i'm noticing more every day. and with this advancing skill, a whole new world opened up to marley . . . she is now the official pet-on-furniture police of the frost household. "peyton/mable/nemo get down!" finger pointed at the floor and total attitude in her voice. she has actually become quite bossy with the pets. poor peyton will get told "no" for absolutely nothing other than being in marley's vicinity, and then marley's trying to pick her up saying "peyton nice" and her version of "i love you". mabel was not at all interested in marley's attempt at introducing more fiber into her diet - - "mable apple eat" as a burger king apple fry is being pointed at her.

pictures soon, i promise!!

Christmas 2008

What a fun time! Marley really enjoyed opening her presents this year, which surprised me. I didn't think she'd show much interest in, but she got really excited. "oh wow" "let me see" "open it" were all squealed out between fits of laughter and clapping. Yes, Marley laughs out loud with her mouth wide open and claps - sound like anyone you know?

i picked up that silly santa hat for $1 at giant eagle on xmas eve getting some last last last minute things. she loves it. has been wearing it all the time. i wish i would have thought to get one sooner because we could have had alot of fun with it!

sunday before christmas, we had the shipe family party at aunt cyndi's house. it was great seeing everyone, and marley got to play with her 2nd cousins and meet the new puppy Biscut. of course, she was tickled to bits to see him. we had a wonderful surprise when our cousins from georgia, colby and ashley, showed up unannounced! i haven't seen them in years :) we all exchanged gifts, and marley received two baby dolls from taylor - -she's been taking such good care of them too. giving them lots of love since we came home. thanks taylor!!

we spent christmas eve at the dadich homestead. marley loves loves loves her cousins and she had a blast! she sat with jonah (who had spent the morning in the ER) on the couch and watched some Dora. She followed aidan around as he pretented to be Santa. she was up baby carter's butt if she could get near him. she tried lots of new foods like a bite of shirmp, briskit and peanut blossom cookies. guess which one was her favorite? can you find the picture? after supper the kids changed into their christmas pj's and we opened gifts from grandma & grandpa, the bakelaars, the dadichs and uncle andrew. then it was off to our house to get into bed and await SANTA!

since we both were sick with the flu/cold, we slept in A LITTLE. but marley noticed the presents under the tree the minute i set her down on the floor. she pointed and said "oh look", and then even took an ornament off the tree. that was the very first time she had touched the tree too! again, she got pretty excited opening presents. but once she got to a book, we had to stop and read it front to back - - LOVE THAT SHE LOVES BOOKS! and the dora toothbrush was never far away. but she really shocked me with the sit and spin. she took one look at it, got really exited and jumped right on it and started to try to spin it correctly!! i didn't even know she'd ever seen one before, let alone ridden on one.

later that day, grandma and grandpa and drew came for christmas dinner. it didn't go as well as i'd hoped because i was so sick, but there was hot food to enjoy with our loved ones and we're thankful for that!! oh, and the rum caked turned out NICELY . . . . grandpa and drew took naps after dinner, and you can see from the one picture marley was trying to get drew to play with her.

we hope that these holidays were as special and as memorable for each of you as they were for us and we wish you all the best in two thousand and nine!!

introducing . . .

marley lou renton. going for the gold in 2020.

it's beginning to look alot like christmas

marley's been pretty busy since thanksgiving. the living room and dining room floors were refinished and it took way longer than mommy thought, so marley had to eat her meals in the playroom. where everything was crammed in to clear out the other rooms! the sycamore center (her daycare) had their christmas program. marley's class sang "away in a manger". we decorated christmas cookies. grandma and grandpa invited us all to their house for tree decorting and pizza. marley played in and ate the snow one afternoon. we went to keon's birthday party at the tumble zone. marley had a blast! she especially liked the trampoline runner and the uneven bars. we visited kraynaks for their christmas tree display. marley cried. alot. she was pretty scared. but she loved standing outside the door dancing to the loud music.

how we spent our thanksgiving

wearing cozy new winter pj's on cold nights (and days!) and fancy new sweater dresses.
smiling for mama's new camera.
loving loving loving baby carter!
learning how to swiffer the floor (and help carry in grocery bags).
"painting" Dora with a fancy water brush - thanks mert!
my new favorite animal is the zebra. seriously.
peyton got her head stuck in a kleenex box.
the new kitten is here to stay, he's guarding his territory from in front of the tv. he's name is Nemo, and marley named him all by herself. i think she was actually trying to say "mabel" but it sounded more like Nemo, so the name stuck.

hope you guys had as much fun as we did :)