Sorry

I'm sorry it's been so long since we have blogged. Mike accidentally knocked the laptop off of the dresser and it broke. It only occasionally works. Today is one of those good days so I thought I would give everyone an update.

Loren is such a joy! She is growing so quickly. Today she got really quiet while playing. Of course that sends a "DANGER-DANGER" warning to mom. So I went running to find her. She was sitting in her rocker with her Max (from the Grinch Who Stole Christmas) and was naming his facial features. "Eyeeeee (eye), No-no (nose), eeeel (ear)." I was dumbfounded! I had to be sure so I asked her, "Where is the puppies ear?" Sure enough, she knew all of the parts! Big girl! Loren also has a boyfriend at my gym. I went to go pick her up and she had HUGE RED EYES from crying and was sitting in the director's lap. I asked the director what was wrong. She told me that one of the little boys wouldn't leave Loren alone. He kept trying to hug her. My good girl told him NO NO and ran to the director and wouldn't leave her! How sweet is that?? Other than that we are just dealing with a rather bad cold. She has some fluid on her ears and is generally miserable.

Mike and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary this past weekend. We went to the Embassy Suites downtown and went to the Fox Theater to watch the Christmas Carol. We had a great time getting away for a bit. Mike bought me a new phone for our anniversary. I got him a big booty Flat panel T.V. that will mount on the wall. We bought eachother a fire-place (only because they were on clearance at Lowes). I can't wait until our basement is put back together! It is going to be so cozy!

Mike finished his Second Masters on Friday. What a smarty! We are very proud of him and his accomplishment! So he has a Masters of Engineering and a Masters of Engineering management.

So, that means it is my turn!! After much debate I decided on what I want to be when I grow up :)! I am going to get my Diagnostic Medical Sonography in OBGYN/Abdominal study. I'm so excited! I have about 4 semesters of prerequisites to take and then it's off to the races! I think I'm going to get it in OB/Abdominal studies but I may get it in vascular studies. I don't have to decide that for a little bit yet. Anyway, it'll be hard work but worth it! I'm so excited!

Well, it's time to have Mommy/Loren time! I'm off to put her down for the night. Good night kisses to all!

Daddy's girl!

I realized today how much Loren craves attention from her "Dah" (dad). This morning when Mike left for work Loren cried and cried and cried. She kept saying, "Dah bee-bee Dah!" (dad, baby, dad). It made me cry to hear her so upset that her daddy left for the day! Well then you can imagine what happened when her Dah got home! She was in the kitchen and heard the door lock. She started running (as fast as her little leggers would go) towards the door yelling "Dah! Dah! Dah!" He picked her up and she immediately put her feet on his nose so he would say "Pewwww! Stinky Feet!" Which of course sends her into hysterical giggles! So Dah has now been home for 30 minutes and she has not left him alone! She keeps giving him bites of her fake food (thank you Great Grandma Burgess), sticking her "stinkey feet" in his nose, and bringing him books to read. I'm so dang lucky! Grandma Helen even commented the other day how lucky I am to have such a "good man." I totally agree. . .sorry for all of you other women, I got the best one! ;)

Here's a flashback to the time mom said, "When the baby gets up go ahead and give her a bath." Being stupid parents, here is her 3:00 am bath! Poor Mikee but what a good "Dah!"

Growing up

It always amazes me when you have those "Ohh My Baby Is Growing Up" moments. Today I was watching Loren closely as she interacted and played. I was shocked! I always knew she understood me and understood things that were going on but today I realized just how much she knows! For instance: Whenever I gave her a toy she "jabbered" at me. Suddenly today I realized that she said the same thing whenever I gave her something. She says "Thatch tea-yow" My baby is thanking me every time I do something for her! I mean you know that someday your child is going to do XY and Z. . .But when they actually do it! WOW! What else did she do today. . Oh yes! I remember. She walked up to Aunt Helen's Christmas tree, pointed to the ornaments and went "No, no, no!" and walked away. I also saw that every time she gets a stuffed animal she pats it on the rear just like I do to her. Wow. . .She is getting so big.


Sorry I haven't posted much lately. Our power went out on Wednesday night of last week and we've been living with Grandma Helen (my Aunt Helen). I think poor Grandma Helen was about to go insane with a 1 year old and an extremely noisy cat living there! She was so gracious though to let us stay for the week. Supposedly close to 500,000 residents in the St. Louis area were without power. Close to 100,000 are still without power. We had a horrible ice storm last week and frozen tree limbs crashed into powerlines and viola, blackout! It was so freaking cold as well! I left Gabby here for the first night thinking that the power surely wouldn't take more than a day to turn back on. YEAH RIGHT! Poor cat nearly froze to death. . .Well. . .Mike wanted to leave her because he grew up with Barn cats in the frozen Tundra. However, I knew my princess kitty would not have survived. What do men know anyway? Nevertheless, I won and Gabby had a warm place to sleep.

Well, I have to go do laundry now. Loren had a blowout that ended up in the feet of her jammies. Also, she just puked everywhere and had to get another new pair of jammies. . .I hope she isn't sick. She seemed fine after her . . .ummm. . .issues. She fell asleep. . . Poor girl. Ohhhh the joys of children!

Thanksgiving at Grandma Lou's

We had a blast at Grandma's over the last 2 weeks! Lorén has grown so much! Lorén has learned to walk. She is very good! She also got four new teeth. She has begun to eat "big girl" food as well. She really likes spaghetti, mac-and-cheese, and Great Grandma Burgess' roast. How amazing.

We had such a blast! Aunt Kelly took us to see her "Pakka's" Frisian horses. Lorén completly amazed! She was giggling up a storm. I think Aunt Kelly was proud. Pakka also gave Lorén a beautiful stool that he hand-made.

Grandma Lou also had a 2nd birthday party for Lorén. It was awesome! She spoiled Lorén like crazy! She bought Lorén a kitchen! Great Grandma and Grandpa Burgess got Lorén a shopping cart and a bunch of food for her new kitchen. She also got an adorable stuffed puppy, a Michigan sweat-outfit from Uncle Josh and Aunt Kelly, and tons of adorable clothes! I'm not sure but I think Miss Michelle got spoiled these past two weeks. I will post pictures of the party and absolutely cute cake Grandma Lou got Lorén when I get them.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was a fantastic dinner. I didn't get to see my Bunny all night. She played with all of her cousins all day long! She didn't get a nap at all. That made for a cranky Boo Bear :). Mike and I got to golf with Bonnie and Bob and about 6 of their friends. It was so much fun. Even though Mike and I lost (embarrassing) and had to play the best couple. . .well then we won (not so embarrassing!). I drove the ball 200 yards on one hole! That's not too shabby!

We also got Lorén's 1 year pictures done. I decided not to do traditional pictures! I am so happy with them! Here are three of our favorites!

All in a Day's work

I got mad at the fact that Mom made me be dressed! I was rocking backwards. ALSO, I climbed on top of the coffee table and took apart the diaper bag! Sheesh, I'm pooped!

WALKING!

My baby girl is walking! Can you believe it?? She will simply let go of things and walk to where she wants to go. She is starting to do more walking than crawling. She is so cute because when she gets to where she's going she has to stop and applaud accomplishment. So sweet!

I walked to Walgreens today because I had to pick up a prescription. While there I remembered that I had an appointment at my house with my Parents As Teachers Guide. It was in 30 minutes. I started to BOOK it home! Somehow I made it home in 35 minutes. As I turned onto my street I saw my PATG driving past me. DANG IT! So I called her and she was able to come back later today. I am so sore now!

Jessie brought Kaylee over to play today. The girls always have a good time interacting together. I saw that L is a bit of a show-off! She had to "one up" Kaylee in whatever she was doing. If Kaylee stood up, Loren had to stand up and take a step. If Kaylee got praised for putting her toy away, Loren had to put two away. In a way it was so sweet!! Loren really looks for approval from people. She has has to sit in adults laps and hug them. She wouldn't leave our PATG or Jessie alone. She had to climb all over them. Good thing Loren is so cute! They loved her attention.

Happy Halloween!

ISN'T SHE PRECIOUS??

She had a blast! She really had a hard time with kids coming to the door and then LEAVING her! How dare they :) Oh and if you're wondering why she doesn't have that adorable pinafore on while trick-or-treating. . .it's because she spit up her dinner all over it. . .goof! :) The best part was the end when she got to raid the trick-or-treat left-overs!

Pumpkin Patch

Mike, Lorén, and I went to the Pumpkin patch with my best friend from High School. Eckerts Apple Orchard was having a Dress Up Day. We thought it would be a great time and it would give the girls a chance to wear their halloween costumes! We had such a great time with Jessie and Jeff. Kaylee and Lorén had such a good time together! They act just like sisters! The girls played with the pumpkins (they both threw fits when we pulled them out of the pumpkin pile), played with grass (again, threw fits when we wouldn't let them eat the grass, and pet the animals (threw fits when the goats tried to eat their clothes :) ). Anyway, here are some pictures of our GREAT day! Can't wait to carve these pumpkins!

Go Card!

Last night was awesome! I really enjoyed watching the St. Louis Cards kick some Tigers booooootie! Mike and I had a great time trying to get Lorén to say, "Go Cardinals/Tigers". Nothing like some friendly banter :) BTW Uncle Joshie . . . Niner Niner Boo Boo! ;)! (Come on Cards, don't make me eat that ;) )

We have had a fortunate opportunity! Grandpa Dean is coming down with a couple of his guys to help Mike rip up our basement! YIPEE! We have so much to get done and this isdefinitelyy going to be a blessing. What will I be doing during this time? I will be with Grandma Lou SHOPPING of course! Lorén and I will keep Bon from buying anything toooooooo extravagant!

Lorén is very proud of herself these days. It won't be long before my girl is WALKING! She takes huge steps between objects these days. She will take up to 8 steps between objects! She also has learned the word "MOM". She thinks it's cute to be across the room and yell "Mom, Mom, Mom" until I respond to her! If she wasn't so cute. . . . :)

I start Physical Therapy tonight. I'm really nervous about it. I heard it hurts like a bear! I'm having trouble with swelling and lack of range of motion since my surgery. Hopefully this takes care of it. I am sick of my knee hurting.

Okay, off to change poop factories 3rd dirty diaper of the day!

A Great Day S-H-O-P-P-I-N-G!

Ohhh Boy! What could be better than a day designated entirely to family fun. Mike took Lorén and I shopping at Old Town St. Charles. We had such a good day walking the length of the strip. Everyone made over Lorén! She was wearing her adorable pumpkin hat (see other entry). Anyway, she looked so sweet! She also thought it was her duty to wave "hello" to everyone she saw. Her daddy however was very mean! ;) He wouldn't let her mommy buy anything! Although, Mike did let me try out the newest store! He did allow me to buy a Starbucks coffee at the new DRIVE THROUGH Starbucks!

Lorén has begun an adorable new trick! She will drop things on the floor and say "Ohhh ohhhh!" It is very cute the first 100 times she drops the object. However when mommy or daddy gets tired of fetching it for her, she will protest quiadamantlytly :)!

This afternoon however, was no fun at all! We had to send Bunny to her Aunt Debbies so we could get a bunch of our boxes unpacked. It was no fun! Lorén had a blast at Aunt Debbies though. Aunt Debbie and Lorén wouldn't let Aunt Debbie go potty, she pulled everything out of her cabinets, and refused to eat! Somehow Aunt Debbie thinks this is "cute"! Aunt Debbie said Lorén was working very hard to say "tickle"! So sweet! Thank you Aunt Debbie! Lorén loves spending time with you! :)

Whoa there Walmart!

So today Loren and I went to Walmart to get some things. We stopped first at Babies R Us. I put L in her shopping cart cozy, got her buckled in, had her toys all attached and we wandered BRU. Well next I went to Walmart to get some things (right next door). Rather than take her out, carry her things to the next cart, and get her buckled back in (believe me, this is a process) I kept her in the BRU cart. The Walmart Greeter Person "patrolling" door turned me away saying that I was "not allowed to bring a different cart into Walmart." WHAT???? I asked him to repeat himself just to be sure that I had actually heard right. He said, "It is our policy that we do not allow carts from other stores into Walmart." I was so peeved and flabbergasted! I simply left with my jaw dragging on the ground. I got home and started thinking about it. I called that Walmart and asked them to send me a copy of this so-called-cart-policy IN WRITING. The manager couldn't find it. He was really apologetic and he said that it would never happen again. WOW! I sincerely couldn't believe it! Imagine, turning away a mother and her 11 month old baby and MAKING UP A POLICY just because I had a BRU cart instead of a Walmart cart. Amazing. What has happened to customer service? Why does it seem that so many people are on ridiculous power trips?

Lorén’s First Birthday and Dedication

Thank you to everyone who made this day so special for Lorén! A special thanks to grandparents and aunt's/uncles who travled so far to celebrate with us! Isn't her cake sooooo cute? Anyway, she had a blast! It wore her out so well that she slept through the night! YIPEE! Lorén loves her new toys, blanket, clothes and especially wrapping paper. . .

. . .and it just keeps getting better. . .

Well, what turned out to be a big financial loss keeps getting deeper and deeper. We decided to pull our house off of the market until after the new year. Maybe the new year will bring some luck. We are pretty disappointed but we are hanging in there. Okay, we are really disappointed. . .but such is life. . .I just can't bring myself to unpack all of those boxes yet. I will do it after this weekend. Sigh. . . .

Well. . . Shoot!

The woman who was buying our house had to back out of our contract. Why? Why with 2 weeks until we have to be out of our house? BECAUSE THE JERK WHO HAD A CONTRACT ON HER HOUSE JUST DECIDED, "I DON'T WANT YOUR HOUSE." The lady who purchased our house had sold all of her furniture and her house is 100% packed. Our house is 50% packed, and the woman who we were purchasing a home from had her contracts ready to move to join her husband and children in a different state. This woman who backed out has really upset the lives of 3 families. We are pretty sick about the whole thing. We are just. . .Sick. . .Disappointed. . .Frustrated. . .Angry. . .and hurt. Thank God for our little Bunny. If it weren't for her and her accomplishments and snuggles, we'd be pretty bummed.

Speaking of our little Rabbit, she took huge steps between daddy and I yesterday! She would walk inbetween us up to 5 steps at a time. We would praise her every time she would walk between us. However, a couple of times she dropped and crawled to one of us. We didn't praise her that time. She looked at her daddy, looked at her mommy, started clapping and yelling "YAY!!" It was like, "Hello I made it from point A to B, praise me no matter what my method!" She is so freaking adorable!

Okay, well I'm off to UNPACK my home. >:(

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE

HOLY COW! We have a new home! I can't believe it! We have had our house sold "contingent" since July '06. We got a call 2 days ago at 10:00 pm saying that we had sold our house and needed to be out in 23 days! HOLY COW! Is that possible? So we went out looking for homes yesterday and found this:

It is an amazing two story home with 4 bedrooms, a walkout basement, a double bayed back, a HUGE kitchen with an island, breakfast area, and main floor laundry. The Master bedroom has French doors that enter into a room with a four panel bay window, a master bathroom with a HUGE soaker tub, double sink and separate shower. It has an octagonal deck and professional landscaping. I mean this house is BEYOND our wildest dreams! We cannot believe it! Here are a LOT of pictures from our new home! (did I mention the window seat)

Fun with Grandma Sue

You would think that Grandma has worn out Lorén. However, it is 8:30 and Lorén is wide awake and Grandma is conkeded out in bed. We did have fun today though! Grandma took Lorén shopping for her birthday presents! Shhhhh! I can't tell you what she got her yet! Grandma also bought her a dress for her Dedication next Sunday. It is so beautiful! I had bought her one 4 months ago and wouldn't you know it, IT'S TOO SMALL! Little booger has grown up on me! I just can't believe it.

Speaking of growing, let's talk about her feet! Lorén looks like a puppy who hasn't grown into her paws yet! She went from a size 3 shoe to a size 5!!!!!!!!!!! Size 5 shoes are so heavy. I broke down and bought her 2 pair of Robeez shoes. Her Grandma Lou had bought her a pair that she finally grew out of. I LOVE them! I wish I could get her at least one more pair. Those suckers are expensive. However, for a shoe she can't take off, is machine washable, and will promote walking, I will pay for it! Plus they are like moccasins. The leather stretches. The size 3-6 month pair Grandma Lou bought her has lasted until now. I'm hoping these will last her at least to next spring.

I can't wait to post pictures of Lorén's Halloween costume! Grandma Sue made it by hand. It is THE most adorable costume EVER! I am getting her 11 month pictures taken in it so you'll just have to wait a week or so to find out what she is going to be!

Georgie

I thought it would never happen. Lorén has become attached to a stuffed animal. Here is Lorén with Georgie at 3 months

She is so cute. She will go into her room and pull her Georgie through the slats in her crib just so she can play with him. She will roll around on the floor, laugh and giggle with her Georgie. She will even try to say Georgie. It comes out sounding a bit like "Kitty." Whenever I take Lorén to MDO I bring her Georgie. She gets giddy when I hand her Georgie. Whenever I tell her to "Love Georgie" she will hug him tight to her neck. It really is precious.

PJ Day

It was a great day today! We had so much fun just hanging out today as a family. There was nothing too exciting to report. Lorén still is pretty miserable. No new teeth yet. I was hoping that those little teeth would pop through. No dice though.

Well, nothing else to do tonight except let Mike watch his Bears game!

Let's Go Bears!

What a Great Day!

Today was a blast for the Rozema family! We ended up searching for homes out in Wentzville. We found an awesome home to build that is right in our price range! It was a 2 story home with a walk out basement. 3 bedrooms with an optional 4th in the basement. 3 bathrooms with an optional 1/2 bathroom in the basement. It is so exciting. Now if only our house would sell! Please be in prayer about that.

Poor Lorén is pretty sick. We are PRAYING that it is teethers coming through. Lorén has a runny nose, upset tummy and a horrible diaper rash. Poor girl screams bloody murder when we go to change her diaper. We feel so bad for her! On the flip side, if she's going to be sick, she can at least look cute! Here is the outfit she wore today


















How cute is that? She is Momma's little pun'kin! I got that little outfit for $3 on clearance! I just HAD to have it. . .wouldn't you agree?

Mike finished his Take Home Exam today. He still has a lot of catching up on Homework to do. He's pretty tired but hanging tough :).

I have a bit of a sinus thing going on. It stinks but it's nothing that nyquil won't cure! I'm also pretty worn out! Yesterday I got a call at 6:30 that Sheri's (my best friend) water broke! She asked me to come get her two sons and care for them for the day. Of course it was my pleasure! Cooper and Nelson were so excited! Maddox Carl was born at 10:44 am. He was 7lbs 4oz and 19 inches long. He is just ADORABLE! I miss those itty bitty days so much! I can't wait to have another. . .oh wait, yes I can :)! As soon as I have a picture, I will post it.

10 Month Pictures

The BEST part about this picture session was that she LOVED holding onto the apple. It made her pictures that much more "sweet!"

Lorén is 10 Months Old

I can't believe it! My baby is growing up so fast! She is getting so independent! Her favorite thing is to pull all of her toys off of her shelf. She is quite a "talker." Her new favorite noise is "Gotchagotchagoow." She will occasionally say "Up" along with "Mom" and "Da." She is getting good at feeding herself. Mommy is a bit anxious about her choking. I wonder if she will be eating jarred baby foods when she is 16? She goes to Moms Day Out on Mondays. She does so well there! Although they can't get her to eat or nap. There is just too many other things to be doing in a day.

Mike is busy with classes. He is taking 2 this fall. It's really tough on him. Not only does he have a lot of homework but he also has a lot of travel time and work stress. Sometimes it's overwhelming. He has an exam coming up this week so please pray for him. He struggles with finding ways to balance his work-load and his desire to be with his family.

I have been taking an amazing Bible Study this Fall. It's called Seeking Him it's been really hard as the first 4 weeks have been about personal confession. I can't wait for next week when we begin talking about Grace! Besides that, I keep busy around the house. Keeping up with a babies laundry is tough! I love playing with Lorén all day long! Being a Stay at Home Mother is an amazing blessing. If time and money allow, I will begin my masters this Spring. I'm pretty excited about that.

Well, here are some pictures from our family outing the other day. We went to Grant's Farm.

Petting Goats with mommy

All smiles after a good bottle!

She loved this camel! Dancing with Daddy