Jeff, Stacey, Kate, Coal & Cassie

That's it for now, folks!

2009-03-02T09:21:00.000-07:00

It has been over a year and a half in the making and I hate to say it but I'm going to have to take a long sabbatical from updating this website. I just have so little free time on my hands these days (juggling between taking care of Kate, being on the road for work, getting in shape, reading, watching junk on TV, etc.) that I'm going to have to give up on updating our little website for now. As much as it pains me to admit it, most of you can find me on Facebook (if you haven't already) where I'll be posting up current photos of Kate periodically. Thanks for being a loyal reader of this site and I hope to get back to it someday, but that'll be it for now.

Stacey

Here's to '09!

2009-01-12T19:29:00.002-07:00

I apologize for the extended hiatus, I can't say that I haven't had time since I've been in Colorado for the last 3 weeks without work travel. I guess it is the holidays and the relaxation mode that comes with it. I sure hope you had a great holiday and a very Happy New Year!

It's hard to believe that Kate is 16 months old already, while we are aware that it is completely cliche Jeff and I were talking today about how her life is flying by. She's such a dream. She is signing and talking more and more everyday, which is a joy to establish the two-way communication that life is made of.

Christmas time was fantastic, we were up in the mountains with Jeff's parents and brother. We had a very relaxing and enjoyable time. Santa was very good to Kate, she received lots of pull toys, which are her current favorite toys. She's also become a bit addicted to reading. It is book after book in this house. She brings one over and reaches up to you to bring her on your lap and start reading. After that book is done she scrambles off your lap to go find another to read. I have to replace the 10 or so books in our living room with new ones every 3-4 days so that at least we have some variety in the board book marathons!

Now we are back to the routine of things in 2009. I'm leaving for my first business trip of 2009 tomorrow AM, which will entail leaving the house at 5:30 in full business-suit style. It'll be an early morning!

Kissing and Signing!

2008-12-09T19:23:00.002-07:00

Kate's been making all kinds of progress lately that I thought you might be interested in hearing about. She is now hugging us when we ask for a hug. She will also attempt a kiss when we ask for one, but it varies between a lean forward with a wide open mouth and an actual kissing noise that goes along with the lean forward - either way it is too cute!

She also has finally begun to communicate using hand signs! This is a long time coming, as we've been showing her signs for "hungry" and "more" and "done" since she was six months old (that was 9 months ago!). Lo and behold she began to perform the "done" sign when a couple weeks ago and within the last week she's begun doing the sign for "hungry" (mainly when she is really hungry and trying desperately to get her point across) and she also is doing the sign for "more" half way through each meal. It was pretty rewarding for us to see the signs and I think it is thrilling for her to be communicating successfully with us.

The good news too is that she is also talking a bit. The words she can perform with various levels of proficiency are: mama, dada, nana, night night, doggie, coal, bye - I think that's about it.

Our little cutie is coming along and we're thrilled to see the progress.

5 Pounds Happier (and heavier)

2008-12-02T19:48:00.002-07:00

The week of Thanksgiving is officially over and now it's time to get back to life, and the gym. We had a fantastic week-long trip to Milwaukee to visit my parents along with the rest of my sib's and their "lovers". We had a good week and Kate being the only kid in the bunch was spoiled rotten; we've had to endure a few crying fits since our arrival back in Denver to remind her that we don't indulge her as much as when there are grandparents, aunts and uncles at her disposal.

The highlights of the week included a gingerbread house decorating contest, of which the winner has not been determined - if you have a favorite, please vote in the "comments" section! Joe got all of us to pitch in to make firewood, each couple put on a family meal, we were "treated" to venison that was sauntering in the woods the morning before dinner, a 1000 piece puzzle was completed, ping-pong domination, and a cute little under-the-stairs closet for Kate to sleep in (very Harry Potterish).

My folks were nice enough to watch Kate one afternoon while Mike, Kristin, Jeff and I went to the Lakefront Brewery tour in Milwaukee. If you're ever in Milwaukee wondering what to do with an afternoon I highly recommend this tour - it was interesting, hilarious and complete with Kristin and I standing on the conveyer belt leading the group in the Laverne & Shirley theme song as Kristin dropped the rubber glove on a beer bottle - good times.

Have I mentioned the food and wine of the week? There's nothing like a week in Wisconsin full of pies, apple crisp, cinnamon roles, pumpkin bread, and your usual meat and potatoes to put on the couple of extra pounds I'm carrying around with me. Was it worth it, absolutely - I wouldn't trade it for the world. I figure that it took me one week to gain it, I get two weeks to lose it - now I'm headed to the gym! Enjoy the slideshow!

Halloween Tricks!

2008-11-01T13:24:00.002-06:00

This Halloween was a particularly good one at our house, our friends Lisa and Mark teamed up with us to host a Halloween party at our house. A good time was had by all, there was a tie for the "best costume" between Jeff for his Dr. Phil impression and Keith for his Roy Munson getup. Here are some of the photos of the evening!

A Wooden Block and Half a Fry In My Shoe

2008-10-28T14:08:00.002-06:00

Kate's latest and greatest hobby is to move things from one place to another. It can be anything, from toys to food to clothes. She LOVES helping with the laundry: she pulls every piece out of the laundry basket and then either hands it to Jeff or I or it goes on the ground (it never ocurred to me until right now that because they are on the floor they made it to the floor they probably aren't quite as clean...). This is all well and good until I was putting on my tennis shoe to go work out and as my foot smooshed a week-old french fry (which goes to show how long it has been since I worked out) I also bumped up against a wooden block - both were in my shoe. It did make for a good laugh.

Trip to the Pumpkin Patch!

2008-10-25T15:59:00.002-06:00

We went out to the pumpkin patch last weekend and Kate was in HEAVEN! All of the pumpkins were close to her size, so she had tons of fun walking around and checking out all the pumpkins. Now we just have to carve them up!

On The Road!

2008-10-15T19:21:00.003-06:00

There is a reason why I haven't been doing many blog posts, I have been traveling A TON for work. I feel like I've been living the Johnny Cash song: I've been everywhere man, I've been to Newark, Chicago, Kansas City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington DC, Charlotte. I've been everywhere.... It's going well, but my time at home has been cherished so I haven't been able to write on our site very much. It has been very interesting checking out different parts of the company and I have figured out one thing for sure: my favorite time to fly is east to west during the sunset, it makes for a very thoughtful and pretty flight.

The Fruits of Our Labor!

2008-09-21T09:38:00.003-06:00

Our garden has been going strong and it has been so exciting to see all the delicious fruits and veggies coming up! Here's a shot of the loot from one of our big harvest days:

Here we have tomatoes, raspberries, cucumbers, zucchinis, jalapenos, green peppers, and green beans! We also had lettuce and spinach earlier in the summer. We are now nearing the end of the season now, but it's been a good go for the year! I love having a garden :)

Walkin' the Line

2008-09-14T14:18:00.002-06:00

Well, Kate has officially crossed the line from crawling only to walking and crawling. Her record of steps taken without the help of a wall, furniture or an adult is about 10 or 12 steps; that being said she does sometimes just take one or two steps and plop down again. Here's some video footage of some of her first steps

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY KATE!

2008-09-02T10:03:00.002-06:00

Saturday marked the very first birthday of Ms. Katie Harper. We sure had a good time celebrating and Kate LOVED her cake. She had her own cake to do whatever she wanted to with and then I made a different cake for everyone else. We had friends and family here to celebrate with us and she loved seeing everyone and had fun playing with some new toys too. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate, you made it a fun day!

Climbin' On up!

2008-08-16T20:40:00.002-06:00

Well, the latest and greatest on Kate is that she's learning how to climb things. Jeff discovered this the other day when he went to check on her in our one "baby-proof" room and there she was sitting on top of our side-table next to the couch! She's had several more incidences of climbing since that day and I was lucky enough to get on on camera today. Enjoy the footage!

This Old House!

2008-08-08T20:23:00.005-06:00

Well, here we are - Friday night with an hour to myself, unbelievable!! As I think back I am very unclear of what exactly has been keeping me so busy. Oh yeah, maybe it has been the house remodel project, Kate, working, cleaning, laundry, etc.

ANYHOW.... Uncle Matthew just came by for week or so on his way from Portland to State College, PA (I don't envy him that drive, especially in the 1980's minivan he's driving these days). We did have a great time:

And we are making progress on the house remodeling. I keep encouraging Jeff to do a blog post about the project, but I know he's down to less free time than I between working, Kate and the project. Basically Jeff (with VERY minimal help from me) has added new lighting to the kitchen, done some drywall work, textured walls and the ceiling, taken out most of the old flooring, laid down sub-floor planks and now we are finally seeing some of the hardwood floors go in!

Within the next two weeks we expect the new cabinets, sink and hopefully counter top to arrive and magically get installed (by Jeffers). I'm really crossing my fingers that we have a functioning kitchen sink for Kate's first birthday party over labor day! I'll let you know how that pans out...

So, I think we have some work ahead of us!! It'll be a busy couple of weeks. Wish us luck!

The Days of Summertime!

2008-07-19T13:56:00.006-06:00

Here we are and Kate's over 10 months old. I'll go ahead and tip my hat to cliches: time is sure flying by! What have we been up to? Well, mostly hangin' out with Kate and working on our house remodel (who am I kidding, mainly Jeff's been working on the remodel...). That and our garden is doing great - we've been eating spinach, lettuce, and radishes and we are looking forward to zucchini, cucumber, peppers, cherry tomatoes and green beans!! I'll take a photo or two for the blog when the garden is at its peak!

Kate's been having a blast hanging out at least once a week with her good friend, Landon. They've been getting along swimmingly, especially because Landon can't yet tell Kate to quit being so overbearing with her enthusiasm for him!:

We also had fun on the Fourth of July with Lulu, Poppy and Andy in Buena Vista, CO. Complete with a flag-style outfit on Kate for the never-ending Fourth of July Parade.

The following weekend we celebrated my birthday by taking Kate to the Cherry Creek Reservoir swim beach for a picnic and a swim. It sure was fun and Kate loved the sand once she figured out that it doesn't taste very good!

And today we gave Kate her 2nd official haircut. Here are two before shots and one after! Before with damp hair which turns into curls:

Before in the highchair as I pulled out the scissors:

After the haircut!

Kate is crawling like crazy and we're expecting her to walk shortly. She walks around the house holding onto walls, etc. and she walks really well when we are holding her hands so we'll let you know when she really goes for it and starts walking on her own. My mom's quote was, "you think she's fast now? Just wait until she's walking" - so we have that to look forward to!!

She's a Performer!

2008-07-06T13:55:00.001-06:00

Here's a video of Kate showcasing her current talents!

It's all shortening up now, well at least until the Winter Solstice...

2008-06-24T20:02:00.003-06:00

Happy Summer Solstice, everyone! You probably know that it was last Friday, and for us it marks the weekend of the summer that we have our annual Celebrate The Solstice party here in Denver.

This year we featured a badminton tournament - we had 8 teams participating and the grand prize went to myself and our good friend Mark Digan! I must say, we made a great team and I was hugely impressed by Mark's badminton skills. It's a good thing that it was the Summer Solstice because the tournament went on until we could barely see the "birdie" as it was flying around. The whole thing was really fun and I think we'll continue on the badminton tournament for years to come! I only wish we had taken some photos to post up!

The party wound down around midnight and I think Jeff made it into the sack around 2:00 - all of which are surefire signs of a good party! Kate stayed up until at least 9:00, which goes to show how much of a partier she is too! Here's a photo of Kate in her Rolling Stones onesie - she's a true "rocker".

Like Sands Through an Hourglass, These are the Days of Summertime...

2008-06-17T18:44:00.006-06:00

Ahhhhhh, here we are - summertime! There's nothing quite like 90 degree weather in June to make you realize that summer is officially here! Kate is a happy camper with her new crawling skill - even though her little knees have rug-burn all over them from cruisin' around... We've had a few more exciting events happening in our house recently, within the last week Kate began successfully pulling herself up which we discovered after a nap one day:

She also has began to hold her own milk bottle, and have I mentioned that her two bottom teeth are coming up now more and more everyday? I also discovered that a top tooth is coming in today! We recently started swimming lessons for her:

And over the weekend it was 90 out, so we made it over to the pool, which Kate did enjoy, but it took a bit for her to get into it. Here are a couple photos of her progression:

So, yes - we are enjoying summer so far and Kate continues to be great fun!! Oh, and did I mention that is always amazes me how well you get to know your neighbors in the heat of the summer (I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing):

A Milestone for Kate!

2008-06-08T17:39:00.002-06:00

Our anticipation has finally been met!! Kate decided to put it all together this morning and crawl in several consecutive motions. For months she's been rolling around and lifting her hands and knees, but today for the first time she used all of her skills in coordination to crawl from point A to point B!!

A big thank you goes out to Papa Joe for the crawling training regime that he and Kate endured when we were recently in Wisconsin - all of that hard work and training has finally come to fruition!! Here's a video of some of the highlights from today:

The only disconcerting part is that the "toy" Kate wanted to crawl to was the TV remote!! She has been practicing her new skill all day and we're realizing how much baby-proofing needs to be done around here and how much busier our lives just became.

The Price is Right Footage

2008-06-01T16:52:00.004-06:00

Finally!! Here is a quick video of The Price is Right episode that I was an audience member for. I am two rows from the back in a dark pink shirt. The second half of this clip shows a guy being "called down" who is sitting just two seats directly in front of me, then he runs right by me and behind me... Enjoy it - I know I did!!!

Photo Update

2008-05-28T20:59:00.004-06:00

Here are some photos of Kate - mostly from our recent vacation to Wisconsin. Enjoy!

We're Ba-ack...

2008-05-26T19:55:00.002-06:00

Greetings! We just got back today from a trip back to the Midwest "homeland". We were there for about 10 days and had an absolutely fabulous time that included 54 holes of golf, several dinners out, two days on our own while Kate hung out with Nana K and Papa Joe, plenty of wine, beer & cheese, the it's "cooler by the lake" weather of Milwaukee, a classic midwest flea market, a nice visit with my Grandma Cash and plenty of late nights. It sure was fun! I did drive through Iowa in the heat of the storms and tornadoes last night, during which we actually had to pull over and take shelter for an hour or so of the drive. So, we were glad to arrive home safe & sound this morning after a bit of a hectic drive back. Not surprisingly, Jeff has now officially sworn off Iowa on the list of places he wouldn't mind residing (I don't think there has been a single time we've drive through Iowa without hitting severe weather).

I'm hoping to load up current pictures and videos of Kate this week and post them up for you to look at. I hope all is well with you!

While We Were Out

2008-05-08T20:44:00.004-06:00

Well, between visitors, sicknesses and traveling for work the last couple weeks have been busy ones! I apologize for the lack of posts - but this is truly the first free night I've had in quite some time.

About two weeks ago we had a long weekend that entailed a Branch invasion (I think I may have written about the anniversary celebration we did while everyone was here). Well, when everyone was here Papa Joe swore that he'd have Kate crawling by the end of the weekend! Here's a video clip of some of the "training" activities that ensued that weekend. Kristin is also in this clip coaching Kate (and Jose!).

The day before they left I came down with a cold that lasted several days. Then the work week took over our lives, as it usually does, and by Friday we were overjoyed as the weekend came into view. Jeff and I had an amazing opportunity to attend the Rockies' game on Saturday night to celebrate of our good friend Matt's 30th birthday. Originally Jeff was going to go and I was going to hang out with Kate, but instead our friend's Jesse and Amy (who gave birth to Landon two months ago) were having Jesse's mother, Kathy, come over to watch Landon for the night and she was SOOOO generous to offer to watch Kate at the same time - what a wonderful woman!!! We couldn't wait!! So - we took Kate over and got her comfy (along with two bottles of milk, a pacifier, portable crib, an extra outfit, diapers, wipes, toys, her bedtime toy and favorite blanket - not to mention a jar of jam and a batch of cookies for Kathy to say THANK YOU!) and we were off!! What a night! 6 whole hours of freedom and adult conversation and an opportunity to relax. It couldn't have been more fun. We returned to their house and found out that Kate behaved herself and Kathy claimed she was "great" - what a success!

The weekend really couldn't have gotten any better, until I woke up in the middle of the night severely ill with what I could only believe was food poisoning from the brat I had at the stadium. It turns out that is was a 24 hour stomach flu, because Jeff was lucky enough to get the same thing Sunday night. I had plans to travel for work on Monday, so when I woke up Monday morning feeling much much better I was incredibly grateful - but Jeff and I were both so worried that Kate would get sick. It turned out that Jeff was feeling almost 100% back to normal by the time I had to leave Monday night and so off I went. We both were crossing our fingers that Kate wouldn't get nearly as sick and Jeff and I did. Sure enough, there is something to that crossing your fingers technique because all she wound up with was a touch of diarrhea - thank you thank you thank you!!!

Now I'm back home from my trip and everything is getting back to normal. That is until next Tuesday when I head our for another work trip to Seattle!

Don't forget!!!

2008-04-29T16:18:00.002-06:00

Don't forget to catch The Price Is Right tomorrow!! I'm sitting about three rows from the back in a dark pink sweater. If you miss it www.cbs.com has the full episodes available for about a week. Let me know if you catch it!!

We got nothin'...

2008-04-27T20:44:00.002-06:00

Sorry for the lack of new posts lately - I can't really say that we have any great excuses. Well, other than the fact that much of my immediate family was visiting for 5 days starting last last Friday (1.5 weeks ago now...) so we were busy hanging out with them and then I came down with a cold the day they left town and started feeling better by last Friday (2 days ago). Otherwise, there just really hasn't been much going on.

We did have a great celebration of our 5 year wedding anniversary last last Saturday - we had a total of 10 adults at our house from our two families over for dinner and we drank a 3-Liter bottle of wine of the same variety that we drank at our wedding (not to mention the four or so other bottles we flew through...) It sure was a good time and a fun party!

What else is new.... um.... not much I guess! We put some seeds in our garden this weekend and I can't wait to see the veggies start growing! Jeff's started working on our "kitchen remodel" project, which amounts to lots of demolition work for now.

Kate's doing great - still not crawling, but she's getting closer and closer everyday! We did finally get a highchair for it and she loves it - I think she thinks she is the queen of the house in her thrown when she's sitting in it! She had so much fun seeing Nana Karen and Papa Joe, Aunt Kristin & Mike and Uncle Mateo over the weekend - thanks to everyone for all the love and help with Kate while you were here! She's woken up at 4:30 AM the last two nights for no apparent reason, so we keep saying that she is obviously teething (that being said, we've been claiming that she's been "teething" for about 6 months now and still there are no teeth in her mouth)!

I now have accounts on both www.linkedin.com and www.facebook.com - maybe that's what I've been doing.... So look me up if you're on those sites at all.

I hope all is well and hopefully some events that are blog-worthy will happen to us so that we have something to write about! But for now, we've got nothin'!

Kate Joins a Swingers Club!

2008-04-16T18:36:00.002-06:00

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Okay so it really isn't a club but she has developed quite a liking to her newest toy, an outdoor swing. While Stacey and I are slaving away breaking our backs tilling soil, moving landscaping rock and just generally getting far too much exercise, there is Kate swinging away and loving every minute of it. Much to Stacey's dismay and chagrin, Daddy dearest really enjoys pushing the limits of the swing (that being said, it is entirely safe). The higher she goes, the smiles and the laughter get bigger and louder. Which is turn only provokes and motivates Daddy dearest to continue pushing the envelope. The older Kate gets, the younger I feel. I can only hope that this trend continues. Enjoy the video, as you can tell Kate certainly enjoyed when the camera started rolling.

(This post contributed by, Well mostly Jeff)

Pedicure, Anyone?

2008-04-12T11:32:00.006-06:00

After years of begging and pleading for Jeff to join me in the absolute joy and fun of getting a pedicure, he finally gave in! We went yesterday after work and sat in the pedicure chairs of the local "NAILS" salon, Kate was very well-behaved and enjoyed her time watching the ladies working on our feet. I happen to believe that a pedicure is one of the more enjoyable treats around and after Jeff got one too, I think he is in agreement!!

When they asked Jeff if he wanted any polish, he said - well, I've come this far I might as well go all-out. "Big Apple Red" was his color of choice and I have to say that he can pull it off much better than I could with his skin tone! Don't our feet look good?

Don't Come on Down, Stacey Harper!

2008-04-03T20:28:00.008-06:00

This week I attended a small team meeting in Los Angeles with the Western 1/2 of the the work team I am a part of. While my job is like most, far from perfect at any given time, they do throw me a bone once in a while to be sure I'm still interested. So, this week we not only went to opening day at the Los Angeles Dodgers game, but we also talked my boss in to a trip to watch a taping of THE PRICE IS RIGHT!!

OHMIGAWD - it was so much fun. We had to wait for several hours amongst the typical Price is Right crowd, which made for some superb people-watching. Once we got in the whole experience was quite surreal. First of all, the Price Is Right set was VERY small, I'm guessing the auditorium only fit about 200 people (which isn't very many for a "theater" sort of setting). Secondly - it was super dingy and not glamorous at all, very 1970's-ish. On the plus side, as we all took our seats they were playing great music to get everyone's energy up. Before ya knew it I found myself dancing next to my dancing boss to "I Will Survive" and the Jackson 5.

Now - as the taping began, let me just say I was so completely convinced that I was going to be called up to be a contestant. Afterall I was looking pretty cute that particular day, the interviewer seemed to be very friendly with me and I am a fairly well-spoken individual with a funny joke to crack once in a while. It was really hard to hear the names being called though, so every time they called a name I was so worried that I didn't hear my name (because of course they were going to call me up!) and that I would look stupid not reacting to my own name being called. Well, lo and behold we made it through the whole hour of taping and they didn't call me up (they didn't realize what they were missing out on with that choice), which is probably a good thing because my knowledge of the Price is Right is very limited and I would've put way too much consideration into the guesses on the pricing of items.

All-in-all the taping was super fun to go to. Our group of 5 was definitely the most conservatively dressed group this show has ever seen in their audience (we were donning business-casual from our meetings earlier in the day). The people-watching was amazing, which included an apparently low-income cross-dresser hugging Drew Carey during one of the commercial brakes. Drew Carey was a great host, he was talking to the crowd during commercial brakes, cracking jokes and singing, etc. He really did seem like a very nice guy.

To cap off the evening we ate at the Maggiano's right across the street from the CBS studios and apparently Queen Latifah stopped by while we were there, but didn't stay for dinner because her dinner companion was a vegan and so they needed to go somewhere else for food. We really didn't have any celebrity spottings, but the inside scoop is that Ryan Seacrest has recently invested in butt implants - I was searching for him everywhere we went so I could check out his new butt!!

Anyways - it did occur to me that it is pretty fun to watch tapings of shows you enjoy (not that The Price is Right is my favorite show), so maybe we'll try to go see Ellen or something the next time we're there! Oh, and I did get a picture or two of me wearing my name tag and in line outside of the studio, but I can't figure out how to get the photos from my cell phone to my computer. If I figure it out I'll edit this post and add them.

PS - The show we attended is being "aired" on April 30th, for those of you that have time to watch game shows during the day (I'm the cute one in the pink shirt towards the back of the audience!)...

Jump! Jump!

2008-03-27T20:03:00.004-06:00

Kate's jumpin' with excitement on her new Johnny Jump Up! I have heard rumors that these exciting toys have been recalled (if that's true it must be a result of user-error), but apparently if you live in a small mountain town you can find it in the local variety store! Thank you, Lucy - Kate loves it!

Kate's Sleepin' at the Table!!

2008-03-20T13:06:00.002-06:00

Here we were bragging about our homemade baby food, at look what kind of response we get...

Truth be told, here's the story. Kate always takes a really good nap in the afternoon. She is pretty much borderline on if she needs one in the morning or not - somedays yes and somedays no. So, yesterday she started getting fussy and it was only about 20 minutes before her normal mealtime of 10:00 AM, so Jeff went ahead and got the meal ready-to-go and started the whole process. Well, apparently she was more tired than hungry - he said she actually feel asleep with the spoon in her mouth!! And we thought she was so excited to be eating solids... ;)

Adventures in Pureeing

2008-03-17T20:15:00.005-06:00

Well - I hate to admit it, but one of my most prominent and current hobbies is making baby food. We started out with Bananas, Avocado and Sweet Potatoes (this picture shows some "glops" of avocado and sweet potatoes just before entry into the freezer):

With Kate getting past the 6 month mark, we've delved into much more variety now! She LOVES apple sauce, she's tried pears and peaches and is in heaven! I've never seen a baby eat with so much gusto! This weekend I blended up both peas and green beans for her. I was really doubting the idea of her liking peas at all (neither Jeff or I are fans), but lo and behold - she's a HUGE fan of the peas!! We'll try green beans later this week and I'm guessing she'll get along really well with those as well. It seems that her all-time favorite is still sweet potatoes, and it sure shows on her pretty little face!

Happy 40th Anniversary!!

2008-03-13T19:37:00.003-06:00

To my wonderful parents, Happy 40th Anniversary!

My lovely parents, Joe & Karen, aka Jose & Mom, aka Papa Joe & Nana K, recently celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary - how about that, huh?!? I couldn't have grown up with a better example of two people who truly love, respect and care for each other and they drive each other nuts for only a small percentage of the time! Not only that, but they're fun too! They are always doing fun things including extensive travel (ie a trip to Afghanistan about two years ago - yes, some people do call them crazy!). So, what did they do to celebrate their 40th, you ask, - they went to the Galapagos Islands!! Who does that???? Apparently my folks do. Not only were they celebrating their 40th anniversary, but it was the first vacation since my dad's full retirement. Apparently he spent the entire trip reciting the line "I'm a recovering lawyer" when anyone asked him what he "does"!!!!! Here are the only two pictures I've seen from the trip - pretty cute!!

6 Months!!

2008-03-10T19:36:00.002-06:00

Here we are - 6 months after the day Kate made her grand appearance. Boy, has she come a long way since that time. In this time she's gone from sleeping for 3 hours at a time to doing 12 hours a night(thank goodness), more than doubled her size (evidenced by her pediatrician calling her "roley poley"), and her little personality is sure making its debut - sense of humor and everything. She laughs more than she cries and we smile with her more than we console her. She marked her 6 months with the new ability to sit up without our support, which is exciting to see her become a bit more independent. Look how far she's come!

Kate's Very First "Ladies Luncheon"

2008-03-07T16:42:00.003-07:00

Last week Kate went to her very first "Ladies Luncheon" - dressed to the hilt!! She and I met up with some of my colleagues for lunch and one of them brought her 8 month old. Kate and Alli had fun looking at each other and being held by some of the other ladies. It was fun and she sure got plenty of attention for being so cute!

It's The End of a Lambeau Era

2008-03-05T19:24:00.008-07:00

May all cheeseheads unite in our grief and sorrow to see Mr. Brett Favre make the decision to end his career with the Packers. To say that there is a depression amongst Packer-lovers everywhere is an understatement. I'm not going to list off all of Favre's stats, records, amazing accomplishments, etc - those are being broad-casted across most airwaves and frequencies to a point at which we should all know them by heart.

I was reading the USA Today this morning and it mentioned that most high-schoolers in Wisconsin know of no other quarterback. Quite honestly, I haven't seen another quarterback start for the Packers since I was a sophomore in high school (god, that was a long time ago). I really have no recollection of any other quarterback at good ol' Lambeau Field. His energy and excitement for the game will surely be missed throughout Green Bay and Wisconsin.

It is clear that the Packers, Favre and Wisconsin were a menageatois made in heaven and it will be some time before Wisconsinites everywhere feel anywhere close to "normal" again. I do know that many of you think that the Wisconsin "normal" is not the same "normal" that the rest of the country identifies with, and you're probably right, but believe me - I'm proud to be a part of that group.

I did have the pleasure to grieve a bit with a fellow cheesehead this week and I did hear grumblings of a small Wisconsin town in which a funeral home is planning to partner up with a local bar to host a memorial service for our dear "Favre who art in heaven".

Kate was even upset to hear the news. Here are some before and after the news pictures:

Rest in peace, my friend, you will be missed.

Oh, and Brett - in case you're reading this, I haven't forgotten when you and I met at the Milwaukee Country Club in the summer of '97 and if you'd still like to "hang out later" just let me know!

The Madness is Almost Upon Us!

2008-03-03T18:34:00.003-07:00

It's that time of year and if you want to get into the March Madness bracket pool that Jeff and I always participate in you're more than welcome! Mark Wetherell sent the password and links below and I told him I'd do a blog post on it in case anyone would like to join it. If you'd like to join you'll want to sign up with http://sportsline.com/ and then come back to this email, click the links and go from there. The brackets are all filled in online, etc.

It's a winner takes all pool with a $10 entry. Mark is the coordinator of it, so please send him your $10 by 3/19/2008!! This should be ample time!! He plans to remove your bracket if he doesn't have your cash by the stated deadline. His contact info is below.

Mark Wetherell
7495 E. Quincy Ave #305
Denver, CO 80237

The pool's link is:
http://tdm.mayhem.sportsline.com/e

Our Group password is: ncaa64

Good Luck!

Welcome To The World, Landon Jay Berchem!

2008-03-01T19:46:00.003-07:00

Our new friend, Landon Berchem, made his grand entrance into this world on Monday, February 25th and he is so lucky to have chosen our good friends to be his parents, Jesse and Amy Berchem! Congratulations to all three of you! We stopped by to see him today and he's a cute little munchkin! I know it sounds cliche, but I don't remember Kate being that little!!!

A WII Bit O' Fun!

2008-02-29T20:03:00.005-07:00

We decided that we'd spend the $$$ we won from the "Losers" NFL pool we participated in and invest in some good old video-gaming fun(after all we need to do our part to keep the economy on the up & up). After weeks of searching, we got a hold of Costco on a morning that they had just received a new shipment, ran right over and put our money down!! Matthew happened to be in town the day we got it, which was an added bonus and fun in getting to try out our new gaming system. We're pretty psyched about it - the gaming system we've been using is a Nintendo 64 that is nearing its 10 year anniversary with us! Don't worry, there's no way we're getting rid of the 64, after all it still offers us MarioKart, Diddy Kong and Dr. Mario!

Anyhow - it's been fun so far, but I absolutely HAD to put up this video of Jeff and Matthew in one of the very first boxing matches on our WII. Enjoy!

Kate's First Haircut

2008-02-25T19:58:00.003-07:00

It was time. We were trying to let it just grow and be "natural", but it just got to be too much.

Let me just say that this was a very difficult decision. It was pretty much one of our very first parental decisions that embodies a basic value. Should we just let it go and she can be "all-natural" or do we cut it and attempt a more maintained and possibly cuter look? We wrestled with the decision for quite some time and it recently got to the point where she had become a decent representation of a mix between a 1970s rocker, a hippie with dreadlocks (the back of her head we affectionately call the "rat's nest"), and the quintessential mullet sporting kid. While we generally pride ourselves in doing our best go all-natural whenever possible (which inevitably turns into spending way too much money on organic and all-natural food), we caved on this one and administered the very first haircut (or should I say I caved, Jeff was hoping for the "natural" look).

Jeff and I both agree, the cut is pretty cute - although I have done some refining after this video was taking... I guess a cute haircut is a work-in-progress, much like current trends in haircuts. The mullet is probably coming back "in" soon and I'll regret having cut it!

Uncie Mafflew is a Runnin' Fool!

2008-02-19T19:39:00.002-07:00

Hi everyone, this is Uncie Mafflew guest blogging again. I'd like to write some funny things, and maybe I will, but this blog entry is actually about a very serious topic. About a month ago, I signed up to run a half-marathon in Portland's Race for the Roses, which is in early April. While I am excited to be training again (as long as my Branch feet hold up) the main reason why I did it is to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I've pledged to raise $1310 (which is $100/mile that I run... yikes!) in order for them to help fund research for cures to blood cancer and other problems. I decided to attempt to raise more than the minimum ask in order to lower their overhead so that more money can go to research.

But I need help. Well I need lots of help in a lot of ways actually, but for this I mostly need your monetary help. A donation would be most helpful to the cause. You can donate a set amount or by the mile (but you'll have to do the math, it would be whatever amount you'd like to donate per mile X 13.1). If you are at all interested, I suggest checking out my fund raising page at:

http://www.active.com/donate/tntor/MattBranch

If you are more comfortable sending money the old fashioned way, please feel free to drop me a line at mjbranch@yahoo.com and we can discuss your options. Remember that this is a tax-deductible donation and you will receive a receipt from Team in Training.

And just so there is no confusion, this race for the cure thing is not the type where the winner gets the cure, its a benefit to try to find the cure. It took me a couple of weeks to figure that part out.

So on behalf of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, thank you for taking the time to read about this, and any donation would be greatly appreciated. And I too, would appreciate it, because if I don't raise the money they said they were going to take me out back, which does not sound positive at all.

Warmly,
Uncie Mafflew

ps. feel free to tell your friends!

Maui Wowie!

2008-02-15T21:30:00.007-07:00

In the year 2007, Jeff's mom turned 60, his dad 65, Jeff and I both 30, Jeff's brother 25 and Kate was born - so Lucy decided it was a great opportunity to do a family trip to Maui to celebrate. As such, a little over a week ago we found ourselves enduring a 12 hour travel day to get to the beautiful island of Maui. Despite the fact that Kate caught her very first cold just one day before we departed, she Jeff and I all survived the two flights to get there.

The main lesson learned on this little excursion was that it is no longer necessary to pack any reading material for flights - we were 100% busy feeding, holding, and playing with our little travel companion. The good news is that Kate did receive her flying "wings":

The 72 degree difference between Denver and Maui was a bit rough on the little tyke, Kate was down to her diaper when we got off the airport and hot and sweaty even still! That poor little thing had never felt air so warm in her entire life!! The good news is that after a day or two she settled right into the heat and went back to being her happy little self:

All-in-all the trip was a good one: Kate did great, we got to swim, boogie board, snorkel, watch the whales, play tennis, hang out on the porch and just generally relax. Here are a couple shots from the trip:

Sending you Valentine's Kisses!

2008-02-14T15:37:00.004-07:00

I bet you thought I dropped off the face of cyber-space!! Well, we've been both busy and on vacation - so more to come on that. I'm hoping to do a lengthy update on all we've been up to this weekend. But in the meantime, Kate wanted to send along some Valentine's kisses!!

Too PC?

2008-02-02T22:08:00.000-07:00

I love having this website. It's a great avenue for self-expression as well as to share fun ideas and photos with friends and relatives who see us more on the internet than in person. One of the dilemmas with it is the fact that I often feel inhibited in writing exactly what I'd like to write about because of the small possibility that a certain somebody might be reading the blog (even though the chances are that very few people actually read this blog!) and maybe they might be offended by something I'm writing.

In general I know that I am far too sensitive about these sort of things, although you never would have guessed that when I told the host of a recent party I went to that she had the same name as a friend of mine's pet parakeet (or some other brand of bird-in-a-cage...). Anywhooo - I guess I am going to try and put aside my overly-sensitive self and begin to be more "myself" in my writing and posts, after all if I do offend someone they'll have to admit to reading my blog if they want to discuss the issue further!

So, yes I do go to parties that you aren't invited too, I enjoy my time alone, I like both of my dogs more than most people, I think home-made food is generally better than anything you can get at a restaurant (okay, most of the time that's true), making crafty gifts is better than buying junk, romantic comedies are better than any action-packed war movie (full disclosure: the credits just started rolling on my #2 romantic comedy of the evening), sometimes I won't answer the phone when you're calling (but I usually will call you back!), there's no way I'm ever going to vote for Romney McCain or Huckabee, and yes we are going to caucus on Tuesday. That's all the controversial or interesting things I can think of for now...

Crackin' on Colorado!

2008-02-02T15:51:00.000-07:00

Apparently these were written by Jeff Foxworthy on Colorado - it's pretty funny & true! You are a Coloradoan if .............

1. You switch from "Heat" to "A/C" in one day.
2. You know what the " Peoples Republic of Boulder" means.
3. Your sense of direction is: towards the mountains and away from the mountains.
4. You're a meat-eating vegetarian.
5. The bike on your car is worth more than your car and you have your own special bike lane.
6. You're able to drive 65 miles per hour through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without even flinching.
7. You take your out-of-town guests to Casa Bonita even though you would never go there otherwise.
8. You think your major food groups are granola bars,tofu and Fat Tire Beer.
9. You design your kid's Halloween costumes to fit over a snowsuit.
10. You think that sexy lingerie is wool socks and flannel PJs.
11. You know all 4 seasons "almost winter, winter, still winter and spring blizzards
12. You've been tear gassed in a riot to celebrate a CU/CSU victory.
13. You can never figure out why your out-of-town guests faint from altitude sickness on a picnic to the mountains.
14. You can drive over a 12,000-foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow.
15. You know the 'correct' pronunciation of Buena Vista
16. When you visit friends at sea level, you can drink a case of beer and not get a buzz.
17. Your car insurance costs more than your car.
18. You have surge protectors on every outlet.
19. April showers bring May blizzards.
20. 'Timberline' is someplace you have actually been.
21. You know what a 'Chinook' is
22. You know what a ' Rocky Mountain Oyster' is.
23. You know what a "fourteener" is.
24. .But you don't know what a "turn signal" is.
25. A bear on your front porch doesn't bother you nearly as much as a Democrat in Congress does.
26. Your golf bag has a 9-iron, a 3-wood and a lightning rod.
27. People from out of state breathe 5 times as often as you do.
28. Having a Senator named Nighthorse doesn't seem strange.
29. Thunder has set off your car alarm.
30. You have an $800 stereo in your $300 truck.
31. You think a red light means 3 more cars can go.
32. Where we're going, we don't need roads!!
33. You know where the real " South Park " is.
34. You can recognize the license plates of all 50 states on sight.
35. Driving directions usually include 'Go over_________ Pass. '
36. You've 'checked for ticks.
37. You've dressed in shorts, sandals, and a parka with a hood.
38. You've gone snow skiing in July and.........
39. You've played golf in January and.......
40. They were in the same year!
41. You've urinated on the Continental Divide just so it could run into both oceans.
42. You know what a down slope and an up slope weather pattern is.
43. And the most important: You get a certain feeling of satisfaction from knowing that California and Texas are both down stream.

Just because!

2008-01-27T20:39:00.000-07:00

I had to post up this photo - I don't know about anyone else, but we think Kate is just the "Bees Knees"!

Oh, and, here's a photo of our good friend, Mr. Gavin Goin! He REALLY enjoyed the chocolate fountain at Jesse and Amy's baby shower!

Pampering, Eating & Rolling

2008-01-25T19:58:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we are going to attend our very first "Pampered Chef" party. Not only is it our first "Pampered Chef" party, but it might be the very first party of this ilk to be hosted by a straight guy! A friend of ours decided to host one, and I believe that he largely decided to do so on my recommendation. I spent a large portion of a recent evening trying to convince him to host this party, after all we do need a gravy boat for next Thanksgiving!

Kate's doing great. In the last couple of days she has almost doubled the amount of milk she drinks before bed. We had to graduate from the small bottles to a big bottle and tonight after 7 ounces she's still hungry!

BIG NEWS: Kate rolled over all on her own for the first time today!! Go figure, we were videotaping for a couple minutes while she was working on it, but then after we turned off the camera there she went - rolled right over!! She didn't replicate it after the first time, but something tells me she'll be doing it more and more as time goes on.

Oh - I can't believe I haven't written about this yet - I made what I consider to quite possibly be the best purchase of my adult life! I bought our very own Roomba, the vacuuming Robot! We've been calling her Rosie, and she is just amazing. Turn her on, go run an errand and by the time you get home your room is vacuumed and she's parked herself back in her "dock" charging up for the next room! Not to mention that she picks up dog hair like a charm! The funny thing is that I think I might have to sue for "idea infringement". I'm only half kidding - I was recently going through a container of stuff my mom had saved from my elementary school days and one of my school projects was a story about an invention idea. My story was about a robot that would clean for you!! Voila - here we have it! LOVE IT.

No more feeling guilty that Jeff vacuums more than I do (o.k., I'll be honest - he's the only one who used to vacuum). Thank god for Rosie!

Something "Solid"

2008-01-19T19:54:00.000-07:00

It's been a landmark day for us, here in the Harper household - Kate got the opportunity to try out some "solid" food! First of all there really is nothing "solid" about it, but at least it was something other than milk! We are so excited to be doing something other than milk in this house. Despite the fact that baby food comes with its own complexities and messiness, at least is also comes with some variety! So we mashed up a banana and gave it a whirl, and boy did Kate love it. Although it probably was more entertaining for Jeff and I than it was for Kate.

So, here is a video with the highlights of the event. We started out using a sort of "baby feeder" tool that is basically a cloth mesh container where you insert some mushed up food and then the baby sucks out the food. You'll see how successful that was! Then we just did the traditional spoon-in mouth technique which worked well.

Enjoy the clip!

Packer Prayer

2008-01-17T19:26:00.000-07:00

Compliments of a good friend of mine, Kelly Schneider:

Our Favre,

who are in Lambeau,

Hallowed be thy arm.

The bowl will come,

it will be won,

in Phoenix as it is in Lambeau.

Give us this Sunday,

our weekly win,

and give us many touchdown passes,

but do not let others pass against us.

Lead us not into frustration,

but deliver us to the valley of the sun.

For thine is the MVP, the best of the NFC,

and glory of the Cheeseheads,

now and forever.

Amen.

To be Green or not to be Green...

2008-01-11T16:49:00.000-07:00

We are getting ready to do some remodeling in our home and we are weighing the positives and negatives of "going green" on some of the choices we need to make. Since we don't have too much experience in this area, I'm asking for your comments/opinions/suggestions.

Today we came upon an option for hardwood floors that is a "green" option. It is stranded woven bamboo from North China, which is supposed to be a renewable resource and more eco-friendly than other hardwood floor options. Bamboo does have a reputation of being very "soft", but apparently this stranded & woven version is "harder than oak". We did get a sample, and yes it is VERY hard and durable wood, which does bode well for us seeing as we have two 50lb dogs and a child .

Here are the downsides/questions we have:
Is this sort of bamboo actually durable?
We are unsure if it can be sanded & refinished...
Are there any other "green" options out there that are mainstream enough to increase the value of our home? We really would like to do hardwoods, though.

Any advice or ideas you have are welcome! Thanks!

This bear's pretty lucky!

2008-01-10T19:47:00.000-07:00

We had to do it, there was no alternative. The same bear rug that I was exposed to as a naked infant has now been the welcome recipient of a naked Kate Harper!

It's fun to stay at the Y-M-C-A

2008-01-03T19:30:00.000-07:00

There's nowhere quite like the Y, right? We LOVE the Y. The best benefit of the Y is that the folks who work out there aren't wearing those "cute" and skimpy workout clothes that make you feel sloppy in your sweats and tee-shirt... As long as we can steer clear of the occasional hairy, sweaty, creepy guy lurking in the sauna we'll have a great time at the Y. Nothing says it better than the tried and true lyrics:

You can get yourself cleaned, you can have a good meal, You can do whatever you feel...

I went today to join up and one of the biggest benefits is that they offer a childcare area and adult caretakers included in the membership costs. So we're planning to take one of the first plunges of parenthood, we are going to start having Kate hang out in the YMCA daycare while we get to work out!! It'll be the first time we are leaving her with someone other than immediate family members.

I gotta tell you, I can't wait! It will feel so good to work out again and the ladies who work at the day care seem very nice and capable. On the plus side, there are always two adults in the day care area and they can always come and find us in case she is really unhappy or something. As far as I can tell the benefits are great - Jeff can get some "sanity" time during the day and I can go work out at night after work. Maybe we'll get into shape in the mean time (that would be a shocker, wouldn't it!?!)! Kate will also get used to strangers and some socialization with other children will probably be healthy too. I'm sure she'll be exposed to some new germs and with that will come some challenges, but her immune system will probably be stronger in the end, right? I'm sure we'll have to remind ourselves of that when she has her first cold.

So, wish us luck - I'm planning to hit the gym either tomorrow or Saturday!!
After all, It's fun to stay at the y-m-c-a.

Christmas 2007 De-Briefing

2007-12-31T13:44:00.000-07:00

Well, we are back in Denver - safe & sound. Christmas this year sure was great fun. It was Kate's first and her best yet! We spent about 9 days in Wisconsin at the "Branch Ranch". The week included many great events & activities. To start the week my folks hosted a Cash Family Christmas Party (including extended relatives from my mom's side of the family). Complete with a White Elephant gift exchange and Kate having the pleasure of meeting her Great Grandmother Cash. We did take the quintessential 4-generation picture:

We went on to celebrate Christmas, in which Santa did make an appearance (see the previous post for a photo of Santa & Kate). The day after Christmas Kristin's boyfriend Mike and Greg's girlfriend, Amanda joined the party to get a taste of the Branches. Both Mike and Amanda were great additions to the trip, including gifts from "The Kingdom of Tonga" (where Amanda is the Deputy Country Director of the Peace Corps) as well as plenty of baby time with Kate from both of them. Mike is particularly fond of babies, which was EXTREMELY well-received by both Kristin and Kate! The day after Mike and Amanda arrived we all participated in a very "Faulker-esc" round of paddle-tennis games. It was tons of fun to get out and play some paddle-tennis outdoors and Jeff really enjoyed it. Matthew and Jeff were "Team Testosterone", complete with an overly aggressive move by Jeff which ended up in an extensive injury to his hands. He wound up with much of the skin on his fingers gone as well as scrapes on his shoulders, knees, and elbows. Here's a shot of his hands, post-injury:

The remainder of the week included plenty of snow, which was great for cross-country skiing and a couple different puzzles. Mike and I became geeky puzzle buddies.

All in all it was a great trip to Wisconsin and we were reminded of why people endure the cold winters in the Mid West - they make for warm fires, plenty of wine and good family time!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T11:33:00.001-07:00

We wish a very Merry Christmas to you and your families! Kate LOVED meeting Santa!!

We're gettin' in the spirit!

2007-12-20T14:07:00.001-07:00

We've been a bit light on the pictures lately, so I figured we'd better post some up so that everyone doesn't get too bored with our blog. So, the question is what's been going on... hmm... Well - Uncle Matthew came to town which was fun. The best part of that trip (from our standpoint, but probably not from Mateo's) was that at one point Matthew offered to change the next diaper and sure enough Kate did not disappoint - her bowels decided that was the best time for them to completely empty themselves for the day, to the point of which her clothing being completely soaked and dirty for uncle Matthew to change! Matthew thought diaper-changing was no problem, until now!!

What else... We've discovered that Kate has curls - at least when her hair is wet - check out this picture!

Other than that we've just been getting in the spirit of Christmas!!

We hope you all are well!

10 Years for 3 Hours!

2007-12-15T21:22:00.000-07:00

Boy what a night! 10 years to the day from our first lip-locked embrace we had an amazing night out full of laughs. Whew - ten years is a long time, most days we say time has flown by and on some we say it's been an eternity!

Anyways, Uncle Matthew's in town, so we decided to take full advantage of his offer to babysit and we went out for a night on the town, or should I say a night out in Aurora. The hilarity of our evening began as we mingled around a shopping center and entered into the oasis of mediocre quality merchandise and cheap prices that only Ross Department Store can offer. Walking through the aisles of Ross was an experience that quite possibly may have led to a serious case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The hoards of people and eclectic group of shoppers in addition to the wild disorganization of the merchandise strewn on the floor very closely resembled what we think a Baghdad bazaar would be like on a Saturday afternoon. As we strolled through the store and got closer to an actual exit strategy, we couldn't help but pick up more and more crap that we didn't need just because it was all so cheap! Ah, the joys of holiday shopping.

A quick stop at a "dollar store" for movie candy opened our eyes to the vast array of junk you can buy for $1. Maybe Ross isn't that cheap after all, Ross does charge more than $1 for quite a few things...

Then we went over to get dinner and a movie at one of those movie theaters that serves food and drinks while you watch a movie. As we jumped into the restroom before the show I coudn't help but to have the thought in my head: if we make it outta here without food poisoning we'll have had a great night. These restrooms left quite a bit to be desired and certainly brought a couple questions up in regards to the quality of location we had decided to spend our evening. Despite the questionable facilities we had a GREAT time and food wasn't half bad - just don't let it touch the table-top before you eat it!!

All-in-all it sure was nice to have a night out with just-the-two-of-us (I love that song, we can make it if we try....). The simple joys of being able to hold hands because neither of us is pushing a stroller and being able to watch the whole movie because we don't have to stop half way to feed Kate or change a diaper, etc. It sure was nice. Thank you, Matthew for the time - we couldn't be more grateful. I can't wait for our next trip to Ross...

First Time Away...

2007-12-08T12:28:00.000-07:00

Greetings! Well, I officially survived my first business trip away from Kate. I was away from the house from Tuesday night through Friday night, and it was an interesting experience - it was difficult when I left the house, but once I was gone it really wasn't that bad! Oh, I did enjoy the pleasure of adult conversation, no diapers, caffeine in the mornings, wine in the evenings - what a good time! It wasn't until the plane ride home that I found myself anticipating seeing Kate with huge excitement and impatience. (It probably didn't help that on the plane ride home I read Jenny McCarthy's book about her son having autism, of which the main theme is her dedication to do absolutely anything for her son to help him to get well...)

When I finally pulled up to the house I couldn't get inside soon enough and after a quick hand-washing I held our little bundle of joy and I couldn't have been more pleased to be right there at that moment. The happiness that came over me as we looked into each other's eyes again was emotionally overwhelming - I love her with all my heart and it felt so good to hold her again. And she actually remembered me too! I was worried she wouldn't remember me since she's so young but boy, she was smiling and squirming around in happiness when I was holding her with tears in my eyes. I didn't put her down all night long and even contemplated letting her sleep with us (which was quickly ruled out, as we only have a queen-sized bed and when it is the three of us no one sleeps well...) It sure is good to be home!

Additionally, Jeffers did an amazing job of taking care of Kate while I was away. Kudos and thanks to our good friend, Brian Ross, who came over two different nights to help out and hang out with Jeff and Kate. Rumor has it that Brian had his first bottle-feeding experience (and I don't mean that Jeff fed him a bottle!!)!! Back to Jeff, though - not only was Kate alive and well when I arrived home, but she was recently bathed and happy as a clam in her holiday outfit looking cute as ever and enjoying watching our Christmas tree that Jeff had put up while I was away! I couldn't be more pleased - it really has been amazing to watch Jeff grow into fatherhood, he makes me proud!

Apparently I'm feeling a bit sentimental, but here you have it! I hope everyone is enjoying the magic of the holiday season.

Peace!

Kate at 3 months!

2007-12-02T14:57:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest video of Kate. You even get to see both of our dogs in it too!! They're all soooo cute!

Back to Work...

2007-12-02T14:01:00.000-07:00

Well, the hard work and flexible time of my maternity leave is officially over. I've actually been back to work for about 3 weeks now. We're pretty lucky, because Jeff is watching Kate during the day and doing his Mountain Organics business on the side. It has been an adjustment for all three of us, but all in all everything is going quite well. We do feel very lucky to have taken 10 weeks of just family time for the three of us - it was an extremely special time.

Kate is doing quite well - officially into her 3-6 months clothes and her 0-3 are in storage. She really is coming along. She smiles all the time and has actually let out a couple bona fide laughs, which was super fun to see. She is also beginning to hold onto toys when she is playing with them.

She is very much looking forward to our trip to Wisconsin for Christmas. That will be our first trip with her in an airplane - wish us luck!
Now that it is winter time she is sporting this Columbia outfit quite a bit as we take walks in our ever-lasting quest to get into shape!!

Sorry we've had a bit of a hiatus on posts - just so busy with work and stuff. And our newest pictures weren't accessible for some reason...

I hope all is well with you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-23T20:32:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,
I hope all of you had a GREAT Thanksgiving. We had dinner here with Jeff's family, Lucy, Dean and Andy and also Kim, Colin and Cameron Cash. It was a good time and good food was had by all. The turkey sandwiches and the turkey noodle soup today was a reminder of why the leftovers are one of the best parts of Thanksgiving too!

My crazy folks are currently visiting Bhutan for the Thanksgiving Holiday - they ate Dal Bhat and Yak's milk for dinner! Don't know where Bhutan is? Neither do I! I think it is somewhere close to Nepal...

Kristin is having dinner with her Boyfriend, Mike and meeting his entire extended family in the process. The early word is that they had some sort of "welcome to the family" tradition that was bestowed upon her!

Mateo did Thanksgiving dinner with some friends in Portlant which may or my not have included some Tofurkey.

Gregorio celebrated with some fellow Americans in Panama, which was especially fun because the Packers won!

Today I began to stow away some of the clothes that Kate has outgrown, already! I guess it is to be expected, as she is about a week away from being 3 months old. It is sad to see those tiny clothes go, though!
That's what current with us! Here's a photo too...

Sleepin' on the Job!

2007-11-20T10:32:00.000-07:00

We haven't been the best at updating our blog lately. A combination of my getting back to work and our computer being a bit fritzy (is that a word?) has gotten in the way. Here's a quick post to tide you over and we'll post more soon!

The Grandpas Sure Love Kate!

2007-11-11T19:31:00.001-07:00

Then again, who wouldn't right?

Bathtime Pics!

2007-11-11T17:09:00.001-07:00

Just to give Kate something to be embarrassed about when she is a teenager, here are some bathtime shots! Parenthood is great, isn't it!???! Now I know why my parents got such a "kick" out of embarrassing me when I was a teen!

Kate's Current Favorite Toy Video

2007-11-07T20:10:00.001-07:00

Okay, we just recently figured out how to upload our videos to Youtube, so here's a video I took today of Kate on her favorite toy. She's getting pretty fun and smiling more and more!

Vote for your Favorite Halloween Costume!

2007-11-04T19:51:00.000-07:00

Well, we had several different options for a costume for Kate, so we decided to put her in each of them throughout the day, which actually worked quite well because she tends to go through that many outfits in one day anyways! Which one is your favorite: The "Baby's First Boo", The Cow or the Monkey?

Happy Birthday to Jeff, Happy Birthday to Jeff!!

2007-11-03T15:53:00.000-06:00

Yes, it's true. Jeff is officially as old as I am - 30! Happy Birthday, Jeff - we all love you!

Kate's a Dancer!

2007-11-02T13:02:00.000-06:00

Thanks to the Grandmothers for All Your Babysitting!

2007-10-31T12:04:00.000-06:00

Grandma Lulu and Nana Karen came to do some sitting lately. Jeff and I've been able to get out and play both tennis and golf! Thank you both so much for the time and for loving Kate so much!

Kate's Two Months Old!

2007-10-31T11:57:00.000-06:00

Here's the update:
She's making more and more "cooing" noises
She actually is smiling at us when we interact with her
She is sleeping 6-8 hours in a row at night (now we just have to train her to go down before midnight!)
She's starting to move her arms and legs more with deliberation
She's responding to voices now more than ever
She's figured out where her food comes from!!
She's starting to grow out of her 0-3 clothes (weighing in at almost 12 pounds last week!)
She's just a joy to have around...

Peanuts & Cracker Jacks!

2007-10-22T18:09:00.000-06:00

The Rockies made it to the World Series! The Rocks vs. the Sox!!! Kate couldn't be more excited! Go Rockies!!

To Vaccinate or Not To Vaccinate, That is the Question

2007-10-19T14:42:00.000-06:00

Here we are one week away from Kate's Dr.'s appt. where she is supposed to get her first round of vaccination shots. I'm sure you know that this is currently a very hot topic, as vaccines are suspected to be linked more and more to Autism and many autoimmune disorders such as Diabetes & MS, etc.

Did you know that now 1 in every 180 kids has Autism and also that the amount of vaccinations suggested for children by the CDC has hugely increased in the last ten years (I think it has increased by 300%, but I'm not sure on that stat)?

There generally are two sides to this argument: The pro-vaccination medical community oriented people, and the anti-vaccination folks who for the most part believe that their lives or lives of their children have been negatively affected (or is it effected) by vaccinations.

If you happen to have information or an opinion on this matter please feel free to post a comment here, as I am a firm believer that the more information we have, the better.

Kate's First Vacation!

2007-10-18T19:34:00.001-06:00

We spent a couple days and went to Steamboat Springs, CO for a taste of vacation with Kate. As you might imagine we learned very quickly that vacationing with a newborn is quite a bit different than vacationing before we were blessed with her presence. We did spend the majority of our time changing diapers and feeding her, but in the mean time we were able to see some great scenery, take a hike by Steamboat Lake and eat a few meals out. All in all it was a nice time, but with every vacation we were glad to get home! Here are some shots of our hike...

Matthew's Domestic Partner Visits Kate!

2007-10-14T15:02:00.000-06:00

Justin came to town for work and stayed with us for a night. He loved Kate and she thought he was pretty cool too!

Kate's First Trip Away From Home!

2007-10-09T14:48:00.001-06:00

We took some time last week to head up to Buena Vista where Jeff's parents live. The trip was a great time and Jeff's mom was nice enough to watch Kate while Jeff and I both got to go golfing (twice!) with Jeff's dad - Thanks Lulu!

Cassie & Coal Get Some "Alone Time" with Kate...

2007-10-09T14:44:00.000-06:00

Everybody loves each other!
Yes, that's Kate in the background...

Kate's first Hike in the Hills!

2007-10-09T14:38:00.000-06:00

Well, cabin-fever got the best of us, so we headed up the hills into Pike Nat'l Forest to take our first hike, con bebe. Gotta love the fresh mountain air!

Go Rockies!

2007-10-01T19:17:00.000-06:00

The Colorado Rockies are currently playing off to get into the MLB Playoffs. It is currently 5 to 5, the top of the 6th inning. Go Rockies!

4 Week Shot!!

2007-10-01T19:14:00.000-06:00

Happy 1 Month Birthday to Kate!!!

Milestones to Celebrate

2007-09-28T11:46:00.000-06:00

These are the things parenthood is made of that none of the books warn you about:

1) We have been pooped on.
2) We have been peed on.
3) We have been spit up on.
4) We have both changed up to three diapers in a matter of minutes.
5) Kate sometimes looks at us with the most skeptical of expressions.
6) Dinner time is her favorite time to cry/eat/poop.
7) We love every minute of it (well, almost every minute!).

Thank you, Poppy Harper!

2007-09-24T20:46:00.000-06:00

Jeff's father made Kate the most beautiful piece of furniture in our entire home - a baby bassinette! We are so proud to have it and we show it off every chance we get! Kate just loves it too.

1 & 2 Week Pictures!

2007-09-24T20:28:00.000-06:00

Kate has quickly become our little "Monkey" (we call her "Monkey" with the utmost of affection). We're taking weekly photos of her with her stuffed monkey friend to show her growth. Here is the one-week shot along with the two-week shot. Sure enough, she's getting bigger!

Bronco Sundays in Denver!

2007-09-24T20:25:00.000-06:00

Jeff has a new partner to watch Bronco games with him!

She's Smiling!

2007-09-15T17:18:00.001-06:00

Some claim it is a result of gas, but either way - she's starting to smile more and more! We think she's as "cute as a bug's ear"!!

The Branch Family Visits Kate!

2007-09-10T19:58:00.001-06:00

We have had several installments of the Branch family here in Denver since Kate's birth (which was only about 10 days ago!).

First Kristin came for Labor Day weekend, 1/2 of which we were in the hospital for. Having Kristin here was great - she did everything from keeping us company in the hospital to bringing us meals while we were there. She also videotaped Kate's first trip home as we left the hospital and helped us get settled in the first day here at our house. Here's a picture of Kristin and Kate!

Then Karen (a.k.a Nana Branch) came to help Jeff, Kate and I get settled in to our new lives. She is going to be here for just over two weeks and we couldn't be more grateful. She has proven to be a complete expert in baby care and quieting a fussy baby as well as laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc. She has been such a blessing to have here in this time as we adjust to the demands of a newborn.

Joe (a.k.a Papa Joe) showed up for a day or two later in the week and thoroughly enjoyed holding Kate as she slept and cooed at her grandpa. His claim after being here is that Kate really doesn't cry when he's holding her!

Uncle Matthew then came along (see the post below for his words of wisdom!) to spend time with Kate. Mateo's favorite pasttime while he was here became carrying Kate in the Kelty carrier - he spent much of the weekend wearing Kate whenever she woud fuss or would like to be held. We had a great time hanging out and Matthew was sure a big help - including taking over two late-night feedings & changings so that Jeff and I could sleep more!

That's about it for now, but I'm sure there will be more visits from this social family! Enjoy the pictures!

guest blogger: Uncie Mafflew

2007-09-10T11:06:00.000-06:00

10 things I learned upon meeting my neice:

1) Little Katie, although only 10 days old, is already as smart as a three week old.
2) Gentle swaying is much better than violent shaking, but is not as immediately effective
3) Babies generally don't even know how to play tic-tac-toe until much later in life
4) Although really cute, babies aren't ready to ride on the back of dogs until at least the 5th week
5) Katie loves farting so much, its the only thing that she smiles about thus far
6) Babies are made of meat
7) Newborns can't talk, no matter how much chocolate you promise to give them
8) Baby powder does not actually turn babies into powder
9) Babies' livers aren't fully developed and cannot process alcohol like an adult, so NEVER allow a baby to drive after drinking, even after only one beer.
10) The privledge of helping raise a child is a wonderful, fufilling gift. I am truly excited to have little Katie in my life, and am looking forward to being an influence on hers.

For photos, copy and paste into your browser:
http://flickr.com/photos/7123649@N05/sets/72157600232619491/

Poppy and Lulu Harper Visit the Hospital!

2007-09-09T14:09:00.001-06:00

Lucy & Dean Harper (aka Grandma & Grampa Harper, aka Poppy & Lulu) as well as Uncle Andy came to the hospital to visit Kate. It was so nice to see them and have them be a part of our birth experience. Here are some pictures of their time with us!

The Big Day at the Hospital!

2007-09-08T17:22:00.001-06:00

So, here's the scoop. We ended up having to have a cesarean birth, and the end result was a perfectly healthy little baby girl! Jeff and I both had a great experience at Rose Hospital in Denver and we couldn't have been happier with the whole thing. Here are some picture of how the day went.

Look Out World, Here's Kate!!!

2007-09-08T16:56:00.000-06:00

Name: Katherine Nicole Harper
Born: Thursday, August 30th
Weight: 8 Lbs, 1 Oz.
Length: 20.5"
Remarks: Plenty of hair on this newborn!

Congratulations, Brian & Jeff - 60 Miles!!!

2007-08-27T13:50:00.000-06:00

Here's a shout-out to Jeff and Brian who both completed a 63 mile bike ride this weekend to benefit Diabetes research. They joined up with the Tour Du Cure here in Colorado to do the ride and support diabetes research. Unfortunately, I (Stacey) wasn't able to do the ride this year (being that I'm weighing more than 30 pounds heavier than normal!), so Jeff and Brian partnered up for the big event without me. Unfortunately we don't have any pictures to post up (I'm usually the picture-pusher), but I'm certain that the ride was completed because when Jeff came home he was certainly walking as if he had been on the bike for 60+ miles!!! Aside from sore knees and a desire to take a short break from the bikes the guys are doing well after the ride. Way to go you two - 63 miles is quite an accomplishment and I'm sure it was an event you'll not forget anytime soon. Together they were able to raise around $1000 for the cause!

The Big Stick Classic

2007-08-25T09:07:00.000-06:00

Every year we participate in the Denver "Big Stick Classic". It is a charity golf tournament put on by our good friends, Travis George and Jesse Berchem. So, this year Jeff and our friend Brian decided to mix it up a bit and sport some old school gear. I think the quote of the night was "We're bringin' knickers back"!

The Name Game!

2007-08-15T11:36:00.000-06:00

So - we do have some names that we really like, and we're planning to meet our little lady before making our final decision on her name. BUT, Ciara had the great idea to use this blog as a way to open it up to suggestions. If you think we really ought to consider a certain name or if you just want to throw out an idea for fun - here's your chance. The most intriguing suggestion we've gotten so far is "Sacajowea"!!! I told that suggester that we'd consider it, but not to get his hopes up! I'm excited to see if anyone makes any suggestions!

Over-Under

2007-08-15T11:32:00.000-06:00

We've decided that the early line on the over-under on when our new baby will be coming into this world is Wednesday, August 22nd. Our official due date is Sept. 3rd, but we think she may be making an early appearance. What do you think - over or under?

Jeff's Words to live by:

2007-08-10T11:36:00.001-06:00

Dance like no one is watching
Sing like no one is listening
Fart like no one is smelling

There you have it. The definitve words of wisdom. These words have helped to make my life better, and certainly more comfortable

What's wrong with this picture??

2007-07-30T16:38:00.000-06:00

So, here's some artwork I did of Cassie(on the left) and Coal(on the right). We're satisfied with Coal, she looks great. But something is missing with Cassie, any ideas?

To be or not to be...

2007-07-30T16:37:00.001-06:00

Rumor has it that Jeff is thinking about becoming a swimsuit model. What do you think?

Baby Shower & Birthday Party

2007-07-30T15:28:00.000-06:00

So Jeff threw a surprise 30th Birthday Party / Baby Shower for me - what a guy!!! It was so much fun, many of my family and friends were there. It started around 2:00 in the afternoon and the last partiers didn't leave until about 2:00 AM - there's no doubt about it, we all had a great time.
The day was filled with badmitten, BBQ, Baby gifts & fun.
Here are some pictures!

Pregnancy Info

2007-07-30T15:13:00.001-06:00

Okay, so here are a few pics that have been taken throughout the pregnancy. We're currently have 4 weeks to go, so I'm getting bigger and bigger every day! It is a girl, she's growing like a champ and we can't wait to meet her!

HELLO!!

2007-07-30T09:03:00.001-06:00

Hi Everyone!
Jeff and I are starting this blog to keep you up to date on everything going on with our family in Denver. You can expect that we will be using this forum to post what's new with us, pictures of our new baby, our dogs as well as links to video clips of both. While I'm sure this will be most entertaining for us, we're hoping that you enjoy it too and keep in touch with us via this blog. More posts to come!