More Michela

A few of Michela....

At the hospital...
On the way home from the hospital

At home...

I am counting the days till I get to see her... it can't come soon enough!!

I never know...

...what pictures I will end up with when I send the camera with Andy. J.T. went to the ranch with Andy a couple days last week and I am just now getting around to putting a few on here.

On their way to feed the calves....

I am not sure if you can tell here or not, but J.T. is dancing...

This one shows it a little better...

J.T.'s favorite thing to do when he is dancing is to say "Shake your booty, uh-huh!" And there he goes, shaking his booty...

I am not sure where he learned that move.... wasn't from me!

Because a couple people asked...

Michela's name is pronounced "ma-kay-la." I believe the spelling that Mary and Jeff chose is the Italian spelling.

Michela went home from the hospital on Saturday and is doing well... I haven't been down to see them yet (which has been hard for me) but I will go this weekend. Be prepared for LOTS of photos when I get back...

New photo of Michela

I finally got a photo with her eyes open! Isn't she totally adorable? I can't wait to meet her and hold her. I am hoping to go down next weekend and it can't come fast enough!

Sounds like things are going well.... will post more later!

She's here!! She's here!!

It's a GIRL!! We are so excited!

Michela Rebecca Barbano arrived at 3:22 am today, September 25. She was 7 lbs, 1 oz and 19 inches long. She and Mary are doing well. More pictures coming soon...

Abigail is very excited to have a girl cousin... J.T. said he can't wait to tease her. And I am SOOO excited to finally be an Auntie!

Another photo....

I think she looks like Jeff, except that she has Mary's mouth...

No news

Sorry I haven't blogged since Saturday. I really don't have anything new or exciting to report. I have some photos that Andy and J.T. took at the ranch yesterday that I will try to get on one of these days..... Other than that, nothing's going on.

Happy Birthday!

to my Mom!! Isn't she cute here?
We were all hoping that she would be doing this (with a different baby, of course) today, but it doesn't look like that will happen.... no pressure Mary, don't worry! :)

Mom, hope you had a very happy birthday....

Today was a "Me Day"

I was lucky enough to have a "Me Day" today. The kids were with Andy's mom (thanks Grandma Pam!) so I was able to have a nice, relaxing day to myself. I had to help Andy put the bulls across the road this morning and then the day was just for me!

I did a little shopping, but didn't really buy anything. Then I wandered around Old Town Eureka. The weather was pretty nice for Eureka too. I grabbed a bagel sandwich at Los Bagels for lunch before I headed to the Spa...

This morning, I made a last-minute spa appointment at Personal Choice for an eyebrow wax (yes, I know that's not technically relaxing, but it was necessary) and anti-stress massage. I had never had this type of massage before and it was great. She used a skin mask, paraffin wax, and hot towels. It was very relaxing.... I could get spoiled by this.

Every once in a while it's good to have a relaxing day to yourself....

Girls

On Friday afternoon, Abigail's two friends, Emily and Amanda, came over to play. They are in Abigail's class this year and live just a couple blocks away. The girls (and J.T.) had a great time playing outside. They really liked driving J.T.'s jeep, which he wasn't too crazy about. The girls barely fit in there, but they had fun anyway.

Emily and Abigail...

Abigail and Amanda... can you see J.T. behind them trying to torture them?

It will be fun for Abigail having some friends so close by. I am sure they will be getting together again soon!

I can't wait....

I am not-so-patiently awaiting the birth of my new niece or nephew. He or she should be making his or her arrival sometime soon, hopefully in the next week. I am sure Mary hopes it's sooner rather than later.... Any of us who have had babies know how uncomfortable the end can get!

They don't know the gender yet, but I think it's a boy. Abigail thinks it's a boy but hopes for a girl. J.T. thinks it's a boy too. However, in our family (on my mom's side anyway) everyone has had a girl as their first baby. I guess we'll have to wait a little while longer to find out....

Buddies

Yesterday Sara and I met in Eureka with J.T. and Connor. Those two get wound up when they are together! We did a little shopping, had lunch at the mall, and then took them to Bounce-A-Palooza (aka Bounce-A-Rama). They had a great time...

Leading up to 10 years

I was inspired by my friend Shelley's blog post remembering the past ten years that she and her hubby have been together. Andy and I will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary next month. I thought it might be kind of fun to put on a few photos of our dating years....

We had been together almost a year at this point. Yes, Andy looks really young. Yes, I know I have very BIG hair!


This was taken at my sorority formal in March 1996. Aren't we cute?

On Memorial weekend of our senior year (May 1997) we went to a nearby lake to camp for the weekend. We were with my roommate, Kristen, her boyfriend, and another friend. We had a great time. If I remember correctly, the weather was strange, but it was fun anyway! I know that Andy and I got majorly sunburned. We had rented a ski boat and had fun with this tube.

This is November 22, 1997, which is the day Andy asked me to marry him. We were down in San Luis Obispo (our college town) for my sorority formal and to visit friends. It was really exciting to be able to share the happy news with our good friends!

This was our first home together. We bought it and closed escrow a few weeks before the wedding, but didn't move in until after we were married.... old-fashioned, I know, but that's the way we wanted it.

That's it for the trip down memory lane today.... you will have to wait until next month for some wedding photos...

Dogs

This was yesterday afternoon... J.T. and Andy with Molly and Shasta...


Our first "baby" Molly... she is 11 now.

And the puppy, Shasta... she's getting big.

Funny

This conversation just happened...

Andy: What did you learn at school today, Abigail?

Abigail: (made a funny face)

J.T.: You should learn something new everyday.

Sarah: Everyone learns something new everyday. What did you learn today, J.T.?

J.T.: Uh, I forgot....

About me

This is a little survey I got from my friend Lilly via email. I thought I would just post my answers here instead of sending out an email...

1. What time did you get up this morning? 6:15 am

2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? no idea

4. What is your favorite TV show? What Not to Wear, CSI

5. What do you usually have for Breakfast? yogurt and granola lately

6. What is your middle name? Elizabeth

7. What food do you dislike? liver

8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Fergie always picks me up

9. What kind of car do you drive? Dodge 2500 diesel 4x4

10. Favorite sandwich? depends on the day

11. Characteristic you despise? dishonesty

12. Favorite item of clothing? jeans

13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? can't pick just one

14. What is your favorite way to pass the time of day? reading or photography

15. Where would you retire to? no idea, probably here

16. What was your most memorable birthday? 30th

17. Furthest place you are sending this? I don't know who will read it, maybe Arkansas or Alabama.

18. Person you expect to send it back first. Probably no one

19. When is your birthday? March 18

20. Morning person or a night person? depends

21. What is your shoe size? 7 1/2

22. Pets? 4 dogs

23. Anything exciting to share? waiting on my niece or nephew to arrive

24. What did you want to be when you were little? don't remember

25. How are you today? good, glad it's Friday!

26. What is your favorite flower? hydrangea

27. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Feb 15 for the girlfriends cruise

28. What are you listening to right now? nothing, it's quiet!

29. What was the last thing you ate? oatmeal

30. Do you wish on stars? nope

31. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? who knows

32. How is the weather right now? overcast and 55 degrees

33. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Andy

34. What is your favorite soft drink? root beer

35. Favorite restaurant? Tomo Japanese restaurant

36. Hair color? red

37. What was your favorite toy as a child? barbie dolls

38. Summer or winter? summer (actually like fall the best)

39. Chocolate or Vanilla? Vanilla

41. Do you want your friends to email you back? always

42. When was the last time you cried? couple weeks ago

43. What is under your bed? extra blankets, books

44. What did you do last night? Back to School Night at Abigail's school

45. Are you afraid of death? not my own, others' death- definitely

46. Salty or sweet? sweet

47. How many keys on your key ring? 4 or 5

48. How many years at your current job? mom (8 years); business owner (10 years)

49. Favorite day of the week? depends

50. Do you make friends easily? sometimes

51. How many people will you send this to? anyone who reads my blog

52. How many will respond? who knows...

Abigail's birthday dinner

Last night we had dinner here to celebrate Abigail's birthday. All the grandparents and great-grandparents came over. She got some really neat gifts. The first thing she opened yesterday morning was a mug that says "Now I am 8" on it and a Borders gift card. That was from Ma and Papa.

This is a card that Abigail received from Auntie Mary and Uncle Jeff. When you open it, it plays "Girls Just Wanna Have fun." She said she's heard the song on the radio before, but it was definitely a song more from my era.

She has been interested in all the election stuff, so Grandpa Chet and Granny Karen got her a couple of books about Presidents and Elections.

She was very excited to get this sparkly pink art box from Grandma Pam and Grandpa Charlie.

It's a family tradition to have this singing birthday bear at all the birthdays.

She got all the candles out in the first try...

It felt like we celebrated for days. She had a great birthday! I think she's a little disappointed that it's over though.

Happy 8th Birthday Abigail!

Today is my baby's 8th birthday!! I can't believe how fast time has flown by...

This is right before we brought her home from the hospital. Don't we look young?

Here's Abigail at about a week old...

She's about 3 months old here....

And about 7 months here...

Here's her 1 year old pictures...

She still looks pretty cute in pink!! Can you believe that she's 8 years old already? She's halfway to being old enough to drive... now that's crazy!

Happy 8th Birthday Abigail Joy!

This weekend

It was a busy weekend! We had Abigail's birthday party on Friday night. On Saturday the kids went to Ferndale to have a lemonade stand at the Bargain Lovers Weekend celebration. Thanks to the grandparents for helping out with that.

Abigail has been wanting to do a lemonade stand all summer, but we don't have a good spot near our house. I think it was a good experience for her because she learned about customer service and money. She made over $18. She decided to spend part and save part so that's good.

On Saturday night, the kids stayed with Grandpa Chet and Granny Karen so we could head south to go to a party. The kids had a great time. Thanks Grandpa and Granny!!

We went to a great party at the Egans' place in Redway. They have a beautiful spot (sorry I left my camera at home!) that's nicely shaded. That was a real bonus considering that it was 104 degrees at 5 pm. We met up with Clint and Christina at Dean Creek Resort, which is where the four of us stayed. It was a funky, rustic little place, but it worked out great. We stayed up way too late and had way too much fun!

On Sunday morning, the four of us went to breakfast in Garberville. Then Christina and I came back to Fortuna; Andy and Clint headed south to a Cattlemens field day. Overall, it was a fabulous weekend!

Now, it's Monday again....

Birthday party

Last night we had a birthday party for Abigail. Her birthday isn't until Tuesday but we wanted to have it on a weekend. We had the party at Parasol Arts in Ferndale. The kids each picked a piece of pottery to paint and decorate. The kids all seemed to have a great time!

Abigail chose a princess crown box...

This project kept the kids (and the moms and grandmas) busy for a while...

Evan watched from his stroller...

After they were done, Connor and J.T. went to the coloring table...

After they were done with their creations, it was time for gifts. Here Abigail is very happy because she got a pink princess toss pillow from J.T.

And we had to use the number 8 candle in her cupcake...

I really like taking a group shot at the kids' parties. From left to right, (top) Caleb, Isaac, Emily, Abigail, Nolan, Hannah, and Connor; (bottom) Evan, Caleb, J.T., Amy, Cole and Amanda.

Here's Abigail and two new friends from her class...Emily and Amanda.

Nolan and Abigail...

And friends since birth, Abigail and Hannah.

I think all the kids had a great time. Abigail said it was the best party ever! I liked it a lot too because I didn't have to clean up!

Fall!

I think Fall is upon us. The last couple mornings have been about 40 degrees when I got up. Brrrr! The days warm up to about 70, but it sure is chilly in the mornings. The kids actually wore jackets today, rather than just a sweatshirt, for school. Thanks to Grandpa Chet and Granny Karen for the kids' new school jackets!! Aren't they cute?

She loves it!

Good news.... Abigail LOVES her new room! You should've seen the look on her face when she saw it! I wanted to get a picture of her in her new bed.

And that reminded me of the last time we re-did her room. It was when she went from her crib to a big girl bed in 2003. Check out the hair!!

She wasn't quite sure about being in a big bed at first...

It's hard to believe that was 5 years ago!