a day in the life.

most of the people that i take care of in the suites are from some level of corporate america. because i'm with them for such an extended period of time, a certain amount of small talk is unavoidable. without fail, one of the first questions that i'm always asked is if i have a 'real' job. (is cleaning up garbage and dirty dishes recreational?) how great, they'll say, that i get to have the whole day off and then get paid to watch bulls games.

i am quite aware that nobody intends to be rude when their asking, but after so many years of waitressing the question still rubs me the wrong way.  i'm sure that there is a tiny part of them that's envious - imagining mimosas for breakfast and long afternoon naps on the couch. how great, they'll say, that i don't have a 'real job'. all of the experts say that being at home with a kid is a whole lot of work - the toughest kind. i'm not sure that very many people believe that though(moms being the exception!).  it may not be a 'real' job, but it's a really consuming one. rest assured that there are no mimosas for breakfast or long afternoon naps! i've got more work at home than i know what to do with. if only those bank presidents and executives could see what i do all day long...they'd tip me more!  

millie lets bako out of his crate and he scoots across the kitchen, leaving a trail of pee behind him. (did you know that bako is paralyzed?) i get out the mop and start the washing machine.

 

getting herself into situations that she can't get out of is the norm these days... the kitchen bar stools are a particularly appealing attraction lately. she crawls in or under and i get her out. over and over and over.

she's also learning how to take things out. putting them back isn't actually going so well just yet...

(i swear that i only turned by back for a minute!)

and then there's just the actual cleaning of her. it doesn't matter what she's eating, it somehow ends up smooshed and smeared all over her face. it truly never ends.  

she's learning to feed herself, which in some ways actually makes meal times a little bit less hands-on than when she was smaller. but then on the flip side, there's this...

lovely, huh? the mop comes out again.

i would be lying if i said that i loved every minute of it. but truth be told, i would rather be at home with her than in any 'real' job. i love her, messes and all.

i like to eat

millie has always been a pretty happy eater. i think it's an inherited trait - jason is exactly the same way. i don't think i've ever cooked anything that he didn't eat. ever. this is in no way to imply that i've got crazy kitchen skills, he just genuinely really likes food.

miss millie still approaches her meals with gusto, but she's starting to get a little bit particular about how the food actually makes it into her mouth. she's much more likely to eat something if she's the one holding the spoon or fork... which makes for quite a messy little girl (and a messy kitchen too!). 

i shared my blueberry smoothie with her... not really sure how much of it actually made it into her mouth! 

                                                        (i love her dirty little mustache in this picture!)

warm toast with aunt lolly's homemade jam.

 mmmm.... pure delight. she enjoyed every single bite.

a full belly = happy baby.

be mine.

poppa and amma sent me a valentine that plays music when i open it, and daddy brought me my first balloon. i got lots of hugs and kisses... this was a good day.

the big snow!

we had a blizzard in chicago... it was all that the tv news stations said it would be. jason shut down the warehouse early and came home from work. we settled in for the storm... it was quite cozy from where we were sitting. snow is especially pretty when you're watching from the windows.

my pictures don't do it justice - it's difficult to see how high the snow really was. we put millie in her snowsuit and took the dogs outside to check out the situation - they weren't impressed with the beautiful white wonderland in our backyard. it was untouched and so quiet... beautiful.
i thought it would be really fun to take pictures of the winter
fun - millie begged to differ. 

this is our street... the view from our front door.  

how thankful i am to have a garage!

these were taken before we went outside... she was pretty confused by the "mitten" function of her snowsuit - fingers were inacessible because of mittens. this made pushing buttons on the remote control impossible. awesome.

even jake was intimidated by the mounds of fluff...

we were literally snowed in!