"Look here - I don't know why you're laughing at me, but do you know who I am?!? I'm Lila! Nobody laughs at LILA!" 

Here she is enjoying her first finger foods (not counting the times we tried to choke her). It's little niblets of whole wheat bread and she loves them! 

Literary Lila - She's enjoying a book called 'I Love You Because You're You'.  

Lila has gotten her first two teeth! The first one broke the surface on Monday and the second one came through yesterday. They are still just little nubs right now, so they are hard to see. If she's smiling or crying you can catch a glimpse of them. I've tried pulling her lip down a bit to look at them, but as soon as you do that the tongue comes out and you can't see anything else!

Doug and I have officially paid off our house and are now debt free! Woah! This is a huge *huge* blessing from God. Doug felt challenged five years ago to pay off his house early and was able to throw a lot of extra money at it for a while (roommates' rent went to the loan). Once we got married, and then I got laid off, that changed. But God really worked things in an amazing way to allow us to pay it off in just under 5 years anyway! Go God! :)

When I joined the gym recently, I got 5 free sessions with a personal trainer (well, not FREE really, but included). I had my first real work-out with her today and that woman ain't messing around. By the time she was done with me, I felt like I was going to collapse just trying to carry Lila out to the car. I was very glad that it was time for her to take a nap when we got home so that my arms could recuperate!

Last week was a busy one around here. By Friday, I was completely brain fried and needed a "day off". We were supposed to go to MOPS (Mothers of PreSchoolers) on Friday morning, but I decided that morning that we would stay home instead. I did not feel like starting my day by getting up early and being away from the house for 3-4 hours. The restful morning did help my attitude toward life as we entered the weekend.

I'm pleased to announce that I've already got Doug's birthday plans worked out, for the most part. I can't say more than that, though, in case he actually reads my blog today!

Lila thwarted most of our efforts at socialization this weekend. She and I went to a baby shower on Saturday (doug had to work that afternoon - very unusual) and only got to stay for 30 minutes. She was due for a nap just as the party was starting and she got tired and whiny pretty quickly. Sometimes we can stretch out the times between naps without a problem - somtimes we can't. Yesterday she slept through most of a birthday party that we were planning on going to. Oh well, it was nice to have a weekend at home too! :)

Here's a Lila Development Update:

First of all, she's 8 months old today! I took her by the pediatrician's office for a weight and length check this afternoon. She's up to 18 lbs. 13 oz. (only 5 oz. more than Charlie) and 26.5 inches. Big girl! She's totally a pro at sitting these days. She's not crawling yet, but she does travel by rolling and scootching a long on her bottom.

She got her first bruise this week when she toppled over backward onto a hard bumpy plastic ring. :( I was so sad to see the little red bumps and then the fading bruise, but I know it won't be the last time! She's also become very grabby and she explores life with her index fingers - it's really very cute. Yesterday she experienced her first finger food (little niblets of toast) and did great!

She's a very opinionated little girl, but still very laid-back. Also, she's started doing her first trick: fake coughing to make us laugh! :)

For those who don't already know, I'm about to start facilitating (with another person, initially) a new small group. It will be a part of the Support & Recovery ministry at the church, which "provides a 'safe & supportive place' for individuals that want to deal with their own issues of depression, divorce, substance abuse, domestic violence, and sexual abuse." I'm very excited! Please pray for our group!

This week got off to a rather slow start, but it's picking up. I just woke up on Monday with a total "blah" feeling and it stuck with me all day. I have a theory that it might be related to an above average consumption of caffiene/sugar the day before, but it's just a theory. Anyway, I was feeling much better by yesterday, which is good since it was a *busy* day!

The month of birthdays has begun for our family. My mother's birthday was on Monday - Happy Birthday Mama! And my sister-in-law's birthday was yesterday - Happy Birthday Megan! There is another person you know with a birthday this month, but she, in all her glorious wonderfulness, shall remain nameless...

A bird pooped on my baby this weekend. A friend was watching her while Doug and I went on a date (more about that later) and a bird pooped on her arm! Eww! And, as if she hasn't had enough drama lately, we were hanging out on the back porch on Saturday evening and the mosquitos decided to have a Lila feast! They didn't touch us, but she's got half a dozen bites on her legs and some of them are quite big and red. Poor girl! :( Not that she seems to be at all bothered by them...

But about that date! On Saturday, we went out for lunch and then painted ceramics. I had never done that before and wanted to try. It was so fun! I painted a pillar candle holder and Doug did a vase. I'm so excited to see how they turned out! They are being glazed and fired and we get to pick them up on Wednesday afternoon. That is, if I have time to drive down there to get them. The place was about 20 minutes away. There are probably places closer where we could have done it, but we had a coupon for this one. Well, I'd better go give this Chicken some milk! :)

Lila is already looking at life through rose colored glasses...You can't tell from this photo, but her outfit says, "Mommy's Little Girl!" :) 

Playing in our Easter clothes. She was really hammin' it up for the camera! 

Cute baby with Daddy. Lila loves to roll around on the bed. 

Lila has been a *pill* for the past few days! She's just been SO fussy and for no apparent reason, I now know. I took her to the pediatrician this morning who said that her ears look great (has been on antibiotics for an ear infection for a week) and there's no sign of active teething or any other problem. She's just a Crazy Chicken!

Actually, one theory is that she's getting bored during the day with only me to play with. Doug was home with us for the better part of two weeks due to his kidney stone trouble. Now that he's gone back to work, maybe she's jonesing for her Daddy? Her mood does improve dramatically once he gets home from work... She also had four days of grandparents toward the end of last week. My little social butterfly. :)

She and I went out to lunch with a friend and her daughters on Wednesday and Lila got her first teething biscuit while we were there. She loved it! It kept her totally entertained until she dropped it on the floor and I couldn't give it back to her. I also learned that I need to keep a bib in her bag for these occasions because those things are messy!

Warning: This is a poop story.

Earlier today, I had just finished giving Lila her morning cereal and carrots and was cleaning up. We were just about to walk out the door to meet a friend for lunch and we were actually on time so far. Then I glanced at Lila and noticed that she was making Poop Face. "Okay, no problem," I said out loud. "How long does it take to change a diaper?"

I think Lila took that as a challenge. I checked and she did, in fact, have a poopie diaper, so we headed for the changing table. I got her laid down, socks off, and shirt pulled up to her armpits to avoid getting anything on her clothes. I took off her diaper and in the blink of an eye, she stuck her foot in the poop. [sigh] Okay, now I have her hog-tied, trying to get a wipie under her dirty tushie so I can focus on her dirty foot.

I get that done and as I'm grabbing another wipie to work on her foot with, she starts peeing! This just keeps getting worse! And, on top of that, I ran out of wipes halfway through the clean-up and had to grab some more. Thankfully, I have the back-ups in a convenient location and nothing major happened while I was re-stocking. And the most amazing part is that after we got everyone and everything all cleaned up and put her clothes back on - we still made it to lunch on time!!! :)

Doug finally passed Stone on Saturday. He had that procedure on Friday morning that was supposed to break the stone down into tiny pieces and it wasn't too bad. He felt pretty good for most of Friday, but was having some pain again by Friday night. On Saturday morning he passed (without pain!) what would appear to be almost the entire stone and then another small piece later on. It may have broken down some, but certainly not into little pieces like sand, which is what they told him would happen. Whatever, the point is that it is finally *out*!!!

Poor Lila decided to have her own medical drama on Friday afternoon. She was in the backyard early in the day and had her feet in the grass for approximately 20 seconds. Apparently that was long enough for her to find something she's allergic to. She ended up with an angry-looking red streak across the bottom of her foot that has a bunch of tiny little bumps and is a bit swollen. I took her to the pediatrician who said it looked like a reaction to SOMETHING and to give her Benadryl for a couple of days. That really did nothing for her foot, but as of this morning it is starting to look a little better. The sad part is that we also found out that she has fluid in one ear and an infection in the other ear and we had no idea! She had no symptoms of being sick except for a little extra fussiness and sleep wierdness, but that happens periodically anyway. Sheesh!

Me and my *first* baby. He doesn't look like he's enjoying this, but he really is... 

Frolicking in the back yard. Doug and I went to a semi-formal dinner on Thursday and I felt like we were about to go to prom! 

Happy Babies are fun! And look, we just noticed that Lila finally has a chin! :) 

Doug had his second, and hopefully last, kidney stone procedure this morning. He's supposed to rest today and eat blandish foods, but he's feeling pretty well. Tomorrow he is free to do whatever he feels like doing! He ws in much less pain after this procedure and is really only sore on his side, where they zapped him. Now he'll be passing the stone in tiny bits (and it could take 2-3 months!). :)

As you can see in the photos below, I bought an Easter dress for Lila. Isn't it pretty?!? I love to buy clothes for her, though I don't do it very often (because she's been given so much). I do buy things when I have the opportunity though because I figure I'd better enjoy dressing her now - before she develops an opinion on style! Of course, *I* think my choices are great, but she might have other ideas.

Doug's mom, Irene, came to town yesterday to help out. She watched Lila last night while we went out to a Dell Inventors' Dinner and this morning while I went to the medical center with Doug. Lila certainly enjoyed her Grammie Time, but it was nice to see her wanting to spend time with ME this afternoon. Usually, we spend all day together, so I become old news! :o)~

This was Lila's way of letting me know that she no longer wanted to sit and look pretty and have her photograph taken. Too bad for her! :) 

She is, clearly, the cutest child ever! God used all the high-end parts when he was putting this one together! 

This child has a very sneaky look about her. I wonder what she's up to... 

Yesterday morning, I had been feeding Lila her breakfast (cereal with tofu and sweet potatoes) and we were winding down. She had gone from eating to playing with the spoon and the food. I finally determined that she was not going to eat any more, so I tried to take the spoon away from her. I was trying to pull it out of her hand, but she had a pretty good grip on it and wasn't letting go. Then she suddenly threw her head forward and rested her forehead on the highchair tray. It was like she was utterly dejected and just giving up. Oh the drama... :)

Doug is still doing alright. He's now taking the approach of only going in to the office if he has a meeting to attend. Otherwise, he's working from home. Only two more days until the lithotripsy and then that stupid stone should come out in a bunch of tiny pieces! We will *all* be glad when this ordeal is over!

I have been using my new gym membership this week. I've worked out the past two nights and am planning on going again sometime today. It's too soon to notice any real difference in my strength or endurance, but it's already had a huge mental impact. It just feels so good to know that I'm doing something good for my body!

Doug's pain pretty much went away over the weekend. He went to work this morning like usual... and came home by 10:45 because the pain had come back in earnest. He hadn't done anything strenuous, so who knows why it started again. He took his pain medication and rested for a while and he's feeling better now. He's not going back in to work today though. I wish this dumb stone would just come out!

Lila and I went to MOPS on Friday. That was a nice time to be out of the house for a while and Lila, of course, made the nursery (Moppets) workers love her even more than they do already. :) That afternoon, we had an unexpected visit from Megan, Hope, and Olivia (our sister-in-law and nieces)! They had been visiting family south of Austin and stopped by to hang out for a bit on their way back to Dallas. :)

Lila decided to be nuts yesterday and refuse to take any naps! We did finally get her to sleep twice, but it was not easy. I think the time change was throwing her off. We started her bedtime routine a half-hour later than usual so that her body wouldn't be saying, "What the heck?!? It's *so* not time for bed!"