1st Birthday.

                     

She's one.

Elanor was born at 4:16 pm on December 10th, 2010 at Augusta Hospital in Virginia. I feel like it was only yesterday... She is already one. How did that happen? When? A whole year? Really?( To see how it happened keep reading...)

Thanksgiving.

We had a pretty awesome Thanksgiving this year. Tyler's mom, Kim, and step-dad, Kenny, came down and visited us. It was the first time I had made a Thanksgiving dinner. Of course, I have helped my mom make one, but being the one in charge was something new. I had to do all of the shopping (as Tyler's parents did not get here until the night before), pick the recipes, create the menu, make the pies, etc. I got our turkey at Whole Foods. It was a decent price considering it was a free-range turkey grown on a family-owned farm without any added hormones, water, etc. I really wanted to make a tasty turkey and for me quality is more important than quantity (meaning a cheap turkey, with over large pumped up breasts, and a sad life in a cage). Call me a hippie, but I really just want to eat real food that does not harm me, anyone else and most especially Elanor. Sorry for that rant.  Our turkey was delicious. I soaked it in an apple cider brine (recipe from a  book from my aunt)  for 24 hours. They day before I also made three pies, pumpkin, blueberry-cranberry, and Chocolate -Peanut Butter. 

 "Give Thanks" banner that I found here.

Just one more month...

...until Elanor turns one.

School...this might be long...

I have been thinking of what to do about school (as in when Elanor and other future kids go) for a long time. I was an Education and a Dance major when I was at Western Oregon University. I took only one education class while I was there, as I left halfway through my sophomore year. That one class changed a lot of my ideas about public school. We learned about the history of the public school system and who we (Americans) modeled our system after. Unfortunately, the U.S. government sent officials over to Prussia (which no longer exists, but is in the Northern Germany/Poland area) in the 1800s. Prussia was a military state. Their whole school system was designed to create better citizen-soldiers. They wanted everyone essentially the same as one unified militaristic people. For some reason, these American officials thought this system was great and brought it back here. Thus, the standardized tests, etc.

I feel like kids today are over tested and over worked. My brothers had so much more homework and stress then I ever did in grade school.  I personally don't think everything should be based on tests because some people don't test well, some do better at different types of tests (I prefer written tests over multiple choice tests for example) and the list goes on. We are all different and I don't feel like the public school system does a good job at addressing children's individual needs. I also feel like kids naturally ask so many questions but it seems like that once they start school the questions stop, the love of reading, learning, etc all stops.

I love to read, but I know so many people that really don't like it, or just have not read much of anything. Reading is one of the best ways to learn, but it does not stop there. Imagination, creativity, exploration, fantasy, history, and most importantly we learn about people and how we work, why we do things through books. So many kids when they first learn to read love it. It gives them freedom to go anywhere. However, schools somehow drive that love out. It is all those tests. We had to do that really quite ridiculous thing when I was in 2nd grade where we read some silly story or boring piece of nonfiction and then answer questions about it and we were all supposed to get to a certain level. I was a good reader and did well at it, but did not enjoy it. Thankfully, my parents taught me how to read before I started school and I was also read to a lot, so I had a firm foundation in my love of reading. But what about the kids who only read what was on those tests? Of course one would not like to read if that was the case.

In this same class, the professor told us that if we wanted to be teachers it would be very difficult because teachers have to follow a curriculum and do not have much freedom outside of the curriculum. Also, since teachers are so poorly paid you do not always get the best people doing the job. There are some wonderful teachers out there (I had a few I absolutely loved), but they did it for the kids, not really the money. Teachers have to have a masters degree (even grade school teachers after 10 years of teaching), yet their starting pay is around 30,000 (literally almost poverty level). How many people are going to work for that little if they have a family? How can they pay off all of their school loans on that salary? Point is, teachers need to be paid more and given more freedom to teach and then we will get better teachers and better results.

There are some things I love about public school. I love the diversity. I love that every kid has the opportunity to get an education. I love that you have to learn to get along with people. BUT---don't you think the kids deserve better? So many of the more affluent children have been taken from the city schools and put in private, charter, or suburb schools and leave the minority groups alone in the city. Often the minority kids are more poor, both parents work (so not as much parent involvement ins schools), and honestly school is way too long of a day and too boring to really educate anyone. Why is it that the school day is so long??? Seven hours, really??? Home-schooled kids get more stuff done and are finished before lunch. In Sweden, they have the shortest school days, shortest actual school time( ages 7-16), but the smartest kids in Europe. Why can't we do that?

So, my big question is: What do I do with Elanor? I have already decided that sending her to school at 5 is just too early. I am the mom, not the public school system. My professor at Western said that we are having generations of kids raised by the public school system and not their parents. I agree, I mean if you only see your kids from 4-8pm every day or if both parents work 6-8pm (or later a I suppose since bedtimes are not what they should be anymore) how much influence do you really have on them?  I enjoyed my public school experience for the most part. I was half-day home schooled in 5th grade because my teacher was not very good and also my mom was super involved and set up an advanced group in many of my classes where we learned more and did fun projects, also we did not have school on Fridays staring in 4th grade and I was in my mom's theatre troupe. I have thought about sending my kids to school in 3rd grade, I have thought about home-schooling all the way through, I have thought about doing home-school, but with tutors too, I have thought of every option. I feel like I don't want to leave all of the kids behind who don't have anyone to help them, but is is worth it to sacrifice my kid's education and possibly more? I just wish the school day was not so long, tests and AP were not so important, and kids were allowed to pursue their own interests.

Where do your kids go to school?--or-- If your kids are not in school yet what are your plans? I need suggestions, because I really don't know what to do. Thoughts please!!

Elanor's 1st Halloween

I love fairies and I especially love Cicely Mary Barker's illustrations and poems of her flower fairies.  So, pretty early on I decided Elanor would be one of her fairies. As I already said I love her depiction of fairies because they are not too mystical and weird and also are not all fairy princess-y. They look like flowers or trees. We did the Forget-Me-Not fairy costume as it is one of the few baby fairies. The costume we made is not completely like this one, because we were using material we already had.

This is the Forget-Me-Not Fairy by Cicely Mary Barker. 

This is our interpretation. We did not have any pink for the sash, so everything is blue.

Autumn

Thou comest, Autumn, heralded by the rain,

With banners, by great gales incessant fanned,

Brighter than brightest silks of Samarcand,
And stately oxen harnessed to thy wain!

So lately I have been thinking about food...

Food keeps coming into the forefront of mind and I keep thinking of things I want to say about food and therefore this post came into existence.

Yum. These are the best cupcakes I have ever made. Toasted Marshmallow-Cookie dough-Chocolate cupcakes from the Joythebaker website. 

I love cooking, baking and especially eating food. We need food to survive, but really it is so much more than that. I am not by any means an incredible chef, but I can make some tasty meals. I have been thinking about what it takes to make food taste good and I came up with a list of important things. They are:

Feelin' Fallish

I love pumpkins! ( i just used a pot I found out in our yard for that stand) I do not have any Halloween/Fall decorations so I got all of these pumpkins at the pumpkin patch a few weeks ago and tried to be creative with them.

Ten.

Elanor turned 10 months in the tenth month and on the tenth day, so here are ten things I love about Elanor and ten new things she can do:

Our Trip(s) to the (3) Pumpkin Patch(es)

On Saturday, we decided to go to a pumpkin patch.  Tyler and I both really wanted to go to a real pumpkin patch, not a place that sells pumpkins. This proved to be a little difficult. We looked  up some pumpkin patches online and found that there were quite a few in Salt Lake County.  Most of them were down in South and West Jordan and thus a thirty minute drive. We found a few that were a little closer. We first went to the Historic Wheeler farm (only maybe 10-15 minutes away).

Elanor and Tyler at the Historic Wheeler Farm

Of sunny afternoons...

Playing in the grass,

Just a thought...backed up by fiction.

All day I have been thinking about how important the first year is for a baby. They learn so many things in that first year, but most importantly they develop relationships---close relationships--with their parents. I have been pondering on how a baby clings to its parents, especially its mother, for security, love, entertainment, etc. This got me thinking about some of literature's most famous orphans. There are several, but Anne Shirley (of Anne of Green Gables and the rest of the series by L.M. Montgomery) and Harry Potter came to mind. Both of these orphans were born to good parents who loved them and took care of them for the first year or so. I believe this made all the difference. Anne and Harry are very similar in many ways. They both lost their parents when they were babies, were both handed off to families who did not love them, and then around the age of eleven both found a place (Hogwarts for Harry and Avonlea with the Cuthberts for Anne) where they belonged and people loved them. They both had some insecurities associated with their backgrounds. However, despite the fact that no one in their memory before the age of eleven or twelve had ever loved them, they both had the incredible capacity to love very deeply. How could they possibly love others when they had never felt it themselves? I believe they had. That first year of babyhood (even if not in their memory) taught them how to love and trust because they formed that bond with their parents.

I know these are fictitious characters, but I think they are a great example. The Harry Potter books give us another example of another orphan,Voldemort/Tom Riddle. In many respects, he was very similar to Harry. He grew up in a place where no one loved him and when he turned eleven he made Hogwarts his home. However, Voldemort was born in an orphanage and his mother died soon after. His genes were not all that great either (crazy grandfather and uncle), but his mother did love. I think, that if Voldemort's mother had survived (even for a year) he may not have turned out quite so bad and not underestimated the power of love. Instead , he was brought up in an orphanage, where he was cared for, but not loved and became not only evil, but callous. Of course this is all completely made up. None of these people exist, but there is something to learn here. I never thought about before, but Harry and Anne are perfect examples of why we should be great parents--because that first year makes all the difference.

Babies need hugs, kisses, cuddles, your time and your love. I am so glad I am a stay-at-home mom. I know there are many people that have to work, go to school, etc. but if you have the chance to be a stay-at-home mom (even for the first year) take it. I think it makes all the difference. It did in the imaginary world for Anne and Harry. Babies need to learn how to love. We have to be the ones to teach them.

Is it that time already?

Yep. Elanor is 9 months as of September 10th. I can't believe how fast it has gone. She is developing her personality and I am so excited to see who she is becoming, but at the same time want her to stay my little, cuddly, baby forever.

 This picture was rather difficult to get, as she kept getting down and crawling towards me (she wanted the camera). My mom got this dress for her in Bath, England---I love it!

Sneak Peak.

Some people, namely my brother, Ian, have been wanting to see our new house. Here is a photo of the outside and I'm sorry to say but I'm only posting pictures of the outside. 
 Here is our little 50's house! Unfortunately, we are in the basement. It is a fairly bright basement though! It was built by Marion G. Romney for his son---he was an apostle of the LDS church in 70s and 80s.

Family Pictures

Leigh Stoddard took these pictures for us back in May(when we were still in Virginia). We got the cd with all the pictures yesterday. I love them! I forgot how much littler, less tan, and bald Elanor looked at 5 months old. She has changed so much in 3 months! There are so many good ones, even though Elanor was being a little difficult during this session. She wanted to look everywhere but the camera! I'm am trying to figure out which ones to blow up. Any suggestions? Here they are:

8 months--2 weeks late...

Elanor turned 8 months on August 10th, but with the move, and no internet for 2 weeks, I am sorry to say I have not been a very good blogger. We finally got her into the doctor on the 16th for her 6 month shots (she really despises getting her shots) and general checkup.

Elanor's stats:
weight: 16.69 lbs--24%
height: 26 1/4 in.--22%
head: 16.9 in--32%

Update

Whats going on:

We found a place to live and are moving in this coming Saturday! We are way excited as we have a washer and dryer, a yard, and it is in a good area by the U. More info about this next week! It has been fun living with the  McKees and we could not be more grateful that we have family here. Thank you so much for everything!

 

100th Post!!!

For my 100th post, here are some funny videos of Elanor:

Enjoy!

7 months.

Elanor turned 7 months on the 10th of July, so I am a little late in posting this... People always tell you how fast it all goes, and I believed them, but never understood. I cannot believe Elanor is already 7 months old and is changing and growing up so fast. We absolutely love her.

 How could you not?

Harry Potter 7, plus a little rant about movies in 3D

The Harry Potter movies are over, finished, done. I am a huge Harry Potter fan, fan of the books that is. I have always been disappointed by the movies. I know movies are never as good as the books, but I still don't know why they have to change the story. I know things have to be left out, but changing the story...it just does not make sense. I think they should have waited at least until the 7th book was out to make the movies.Then, they would have known the whole story and not added characters last minute that should have been there the whole time (Bill and Mundungus come to mind). I have constantly been let down by the Harry Potter movies, so much so that I did not have very high expectations for this one. However, I did go to the midnight showing. How could I not? It is the last movie. It sort of represents the end of an era.




   Tyler and I at the Scholastic headquarters in NYC 

Temple Square

This past Saturday, we spent some time in downtown Salt Lake City, mostly around Temple Square. It was hot, but we had a great time.We went to the Church History museum and walked around the temple grounds. There is still a lot more to see, but we had a great time!

Preview

6 months

Elanor actually turned 6 months a week ago, but you all still need an update (well, whoever cares about that sort of thing). We have not been to a doctor this month as we just moved here and have not figured that out yet. However, we measured her and weighed her ourselves, so here are her stats:

Height: 24in.-- below 5%
Weight: 14.5 lbs--between 10-25%
Head: 16.5 in--25%

Backpacking with Baby

We went on a little backpacking trip with Elanor on Friday and honestly it was so much fun. The hike was beautiful. The initial ascent was a little tough as I had Elanor in the front pack and a backpack on my back. Once we got up out of the trees the trail became flat and wrapped around the mountain. It was nice and easy and had gorgeous views the whole way. Elanor was happy and talkative, which made it even better. We continued to the end of the Pipeline trail and then went a little further up the mountain and found the perfect camping spot. Tyler set up the tent while Elanor and I explored. We got up there a little after 8, so as soon as the tent was up I put Elanor to bed. Tyler made a fire and we roasted marshmallows and had a lovely time. It was not the most comfortable sleep I have ever had, but it could have been worse. In the future, I am going to bring Elanor her own sleeping bag and pad, as it was not particularly comfortable to sleep with her in my little sleeping bag. All in all, it was a great experience finished off with strawberries and bagels toasted over the fire and smothered in cream cheese for breakfast. It was quite delectable. 

 Our first view as we came around the mountain

Dear Elanor,

You were born in Buena Vista, Virginia (pronounced Bew-na--it really is.), well technically Fishersville, but we lived in BV. You lived there for five months and will thus not remember it. I figured it would be nice to write a little letter and tell you about your birthplace.

Buena Vista has its faults and drawbacks, but it is a place worth getting to know. The scenery is beautiful. Virginia is one of the most gorgeous states (of course Oregon is up there too!). There are rolling grassy hills of farm land and steep fluffy (yes, they do look fluffy when all the trees are covered with leaves) mountains. Sometimes the mountains look like the mountainous jungles in South America when the clouds are low and mist is caught up in the crevices.Your father and I loved driving around the countryside and hiking. We only wished we would have hiked and explored more. I will miss the vibrant falls, the sunny, but cold winters, and even the humid summers (as long as we were swimming in the river or jumping off the footbridge).

Finally.

It has been a very long time since I last posted and quite a bit has happened. We moved to Salt Lake, then promptly (2 days later), headed up to Oregon to visit with our families for 10 days. We are now back in Utah and are settling in. We are staying with my Aunt and Uncle until Tyler gets work and we find a place to live. It has been great staying with the McKees and they have been so generous.

Some pictures from Oregon:

Elanor on stage, oh, and a little hike...

I teach ballet at the Shenandoah Academy of Dance and was recently in their production of Sleeping Beauty as the Queen, Princess Aurora's mother. The prologue of the ballet is essentially baby Aurora's party in honor of her birth. All of the fairies present her with gifts and of course the evil fairy, Carabosse (same as Maleficent in the Disney movie), was not invited, but shows up unexpectedly and curses the baby Princess that she will prick her finger on a spindle and die on her 16th birthday. I had to take Elanor with me to dress rehearsal on Friday night and decided to take her on stage with me. She did really well, so I thought I would have her do the matinée performance on Saturday, which she did. Elanor was so perfect. There is a cradle on stage that I'm supposed to put the baby in and she just played and cooed in there. I held her when she started to get bored (it is quite a long prologue), and when Carabosse came in she began to cry and calmed right down when the fairies reassured us that she would sleep instead of dying. It was very cute and everyone commented on how good of an actor she was. It probably had more to do with the music and lighting changes, but still she did a great job!

On stage: King and Queen are worried about their daughter...

So we've figured it out...

We are moving to Salt Lake City, Utah!

Graduated.

{I know I probably change the blog background way too often, but I get a little bored with it every now and then.}

On April 30th, Tyler and I (also Jess and Ricky) graduated from Southern Virginia University. The whole graduation ceremony was really well done and all the speakers were really good. The commencement speaker was Elder Nolan D. Archibald. 

Easter

Did everyone have a lovely Easter? We sure did and it was a lot of fun having Elanor for Easter. Holidays are so much more fun with kids!

 

 On Easter morning, I got up and hid the Easter eggs (we had to since we dyed them!). First Elanor looked through her Easter basket to see what the Easter Bunny brought. Most of it was from Gran, but we got her a cup and this food thing for when she starts eating solids in a month or so. We got her a cup because she is always wanting to drink out of our cups for some reason. She loved it!









                                                
               Good Morning!                                                                                        Looking at her gifts!

Colored Eggs

I love Easter. Dying eggs, baking, tasty food, family, and most importantly taking time to remember Christ.

We began our Easter festivities today with the dying of eggs. It was quite fun and Elanor seemed to enjoy it as well (she liked watching and grabbing!).

 Elanor and I with the 'Elanor' egg I made for her.

 A close-up--- I did this with water colors--

 It takes a lot of concentration.                                           Tyler made her a pink egg...

I am looking forward to going to church tomorrow. I always love church, but I love Easter Sunday's message.   Christ died for our us, so that we can, if we choose, have the capability to return to our Father in Heaven. Christ has given us that chance to repent. The most glorious thing about Easter is that Christ lives, because after death comes life! He was resurrected, and because of Him we will all be resurrected as well. I am so thankful for my (and everyone else's) Savior and for a Heavenly Father that loves me. Isn't Easter wonderful? We have so much to celebrate. Life! That is what we have and life after death because of him! Spring is the most wonderful time to celebrate this because all of those dead trees are coming to life with blossoms and leaves! Winter is over and the promise of summer is in the air--very symbolic of our own journey.

For your Easter Sunday, watch this beautiful video made by the LDS church: http://lds.org/pages/his-sacred-name-an-easter-declaration?lang=eng

Happy Easter everyone!

More pictures coming after Easter... Oh, here's another video of Elanor: http://www.youtube.com/user/elizasolveig She's just talking to herself :)

This little lady just rolled over!

Here is the video link to watch all the action: http://www.youtube.com/user/elizasolveig . Tyler did not want me to put this on because he said his voice sounded silly... It is the best video we have so far of her rolling though! Enjoy!

Four Months

Elanor turned four months old on April 10th (my brother, Ian's birthday!). I cannot believe that it has already been four months! Elanor is a lot of fun and we are loving parenthood. She had her doctor's appointment today and is a healthy little baby!

Her stats:
weight: 12lbs 14oz--50th %
height: 24 3/4 in.-- 75th%
head: 15 3/4in.--30th%

A little bit about this four month old:

Elanor is a very social baby. She talks all day to herself or to anyone who will listen. She also likes experimenting with her voice and makes some very high pitched noises. She laughs when I squeeze her legs or kiss her cheeks. It is a pretty funny little laugh. I have tried to record it, but have been unsuccessful thus far. Elanor loves to play on the ground and can roll onto her side, lift her head and chest up pretty high, grab and hold toys, when on her tummy she tries to crawl (she can't go anywhere yet cause she can't lift her upper body), and she can sit up by herself for a little bit (if she is in the right mood) and if on my lap can sit up really well. She has not yet rolled completely over, but has tried to do so unsuccessfully. Elanor is a pretty good sleeper and sleeps for about 12 hours each night, she does tend to wake up a few times but goes right back to sleep. She also loves being outside. If she is upset we go outside and she calms right down. She loves looking at everything outside and touching flowers, leaves and bark. We have a lot of fun on our outdoor adventures. She is a lovely baby and so much fun. We love Elanor.

The doctor gave me an article about feeding babies solids (we are not starting until she is 6 months) and it was very interesting and I felt that it made sense to me. Basically, feed the baby what you eat. It is an interesting article and you can read it here.

Tyler and I are doing great, but the future is a little foggy for us right now. We have graduation on the April 30th and then we are unsure. Tyler has applied to so many jobs. He wants to go to grad school in fisheries or wildlife sciences, but it is pretty difficult to get in and much different than most programs. For one, a professor has to accept you into the program before you can even apply to the school. Which means, there has to be a spot available, the professor has to have enough funding to take on a student, and you somehow have to get to know professors so they will accept you. It has been difficult and we may have been a bit naive to assume we would get into a school on the West Coast. We are now looking at the West in general and Utah might be an option as there are two schools there with programs and it is a fairly central location for the other schools (if he needs to go there for interviews), also Utah has the lowest unemployment in the nation. We still have no idea where we will be going, but preferably a little closer to home.

 We will let you all know our plans as soon as we find out (which will hopefully be soon...)!

Lovely sun, fixed computers and a cute baby

First things first, my computer (that fell off the couch last semester, which resulted in a destroyed drive) is now fixed! I finally bought a new hard drive and David Taylor (one of our home teachers) kindly fixed it for us. So now I can upload pictures (Tyler's computer could not), which means I can blog much more often. I am so excited!!! It is almost like getting a new computer!

We have been having some lovely sun here the past few days (except today). Tyler, Elanor and I went on a hike the other day on the Appalachian Trail. The hike started out great, but Elanor cried for a good portion of it. Her nap was not as long as it should have been and she might not have been quite ready to go in the backpack as her head was bobbing a lot. Next hike, we will take her in the front pack.

Spring has come.

Musings

Lately, I have been really trying to think of something to write about. I want to write something clever and intelligent and get several lovely comments.That is really quite vain of me... However, I have been quite busy with Elanor and really don't have anything to write. I used to spend so much more time writing stories, but since college I have found my life a busy blur. After having Elanor and graduating, I have had quite a bit more time on my hands--if Elanor cooperates. [The trip to Oregon was a lot of fun, but a little difficult for Elanor coming back to Virginia (with the 3 hour difference and she caught a cold). So lately, she has been a little fussy and difficult to get to sleep---but I have done my reading (Babywise and many online articles) and we are starting fresh tomorrow and will wake up, eat, have wake time and nap time all at the right times.] Alright back on topic--where was I? Writing. Yes, I would love to write something lovely and pretty or interesting and entertaining. As I said before, I used to enjoy writing stories. I had and probably still do a terrible habit of never finishing any of them. When I was 8 or 9, I came up with this great story (I thought it was at least) about a rather spoiled and rude princess whose parents wanted her to get married. A prince offered and  presented her with a beautiful crown. Once she put it on, the crown made her look like how she acted--ugly. Eventually, with the help of the prince she repents of her ways, becomes kind and loving and marries the prince and they live happily ever after. Unfortunately, I only wrote maybe half of it. My other writing weakness is writing too much--as I have already done. The point is, I am going to try and write again and hopefully it will be decent...

If you would like to read something worth reading, my sister was recently published in the Deseret News, (click here) for reviewing the kids TV show Wishbone. It is really quite exciting that she is published--even for something as simple as reviewing a show.

I know this is really getting long----but--- I would like to apologize for my past terribly written posts. I would usually just describe the pictures and mutter something about being too busy. I really was too busy (2-3 jobs, school, and usually in a play or ballet) and uploading pictures takes way too long, so I sacrificed my writing. I apologize and hopefully my posts will be better written, more worth your time, insightful and someday I would love to write something clever (like my sister or brother Erik).

Here's to a better blogging future!

Un Bebe Classique

To put it frankly, I like a well dressed baby. I also like it when babies look and dress like babies. If there is one thing that bothers me it is a baby dressed like a teenager or adult. Baby clothes are so cute, so why dress them in clothes they will wear for the rest of their life? I love smocking, peter pan collars, light colors (but also purple), and cotton tights.

Give me this:

Isn't this outfit adorable! It was actually mine and has survived these 22 years.

Don't you just want to squeeze those cheeks?!?!

A baby is so cuddly and kissable (especially Elanor!), so why not dress them in clothes to match?

On another note, Elanor and I have been having a grand old time in Oregon. We had Elanor's baby shower today hosted by Caitlin and Mallory (thank you!). It was wonderful to see so many good friends, eat tasty food, open up some really great gifts, and Elanor decided to be well behaved, which was the icing on the cake. All in all, a wonderful afternoon!

At the shower, we played a game to guess who said what quote about childhood. I loved this one and will end with this:

"If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."

~Albert Einstein