Bella photo dump...

Playing around with some B&W photography. Loved these first two photos (with a special nod to Tracy and Sean, for letting us borrow their Bumbo, which is an amazing item for baby):







This was Friday night, with my parents and Trish's too. We had buffalo steaks from Lone Star Lake Bison (catch them at the farmer's market!) which were super delicious. The sexy cook/photographer was behind the lens here, which explains the overall quality of the photo:



Lunch at Free State on Sunday, before softball:



Dad's "two Free State beers" smile:




Often times, people ask me what Bella and I do all day. Well, lately we've been taking photos. Some are silly, others more artsy and a few are form our recent weekend with my parents. Hope you enjoy!

Susan and Max!

We recently made a connection with our old friend Susan and her dear son Max. Here's a few photos from the day:

Doctor's apointment Update

On Wednesday we had our four month Dr's appointment and Isabella is doing great! She's still average in head size and height, while itsy bitsy on weight weighing in at 11 pounds 10oz. The Doctor and us parents aren't worried though because she is growing and developing great. Dr. Murphy tested out her motor skills and was really impressed to hear that she is rolling over already. We have the world's best baby! Bella also got her four months shots which were a little more difficult to handle this time around. She didn't cry much at the Dr's office but was much fussier last night then after her two month shots. I hope this isn't a trend that each set of shots will be more difficult than the last!

We are still keeping up with a busy and exciting schedule. We got to see Susan and her new baby Max on Tuesday (pictures to follow soon) and the Neutebooms are coming to town this weekend. On Saturday we're taking Bella to her FIRST ROYALS GAME!!!! We are so excited to see our boys in blue and the improved stadium features. I'll post with pics after all our weekend adventures come to a close.

Bye for Now!

Trish

4 Months Old!

Hey All, Bella turned 4 months old on the 14th but it's been such a hectic couple of weeks that I've only just now had the chance to blog. We have her four month appointment and shots this Wednesday so I'll post an update soon. but for now we're excited about Bella's progress, this past week she started rolling over, no more Tummy Time for our girl, as soon as you put her on her stomach she just rolls right back over to her back.

Last week I put up the spring production at Southwest and it went great. We had two stellar shows Thursday and Friday night. The kids did a fantastic job and with some parental help we were able to strike the set in a half an hour it was amazing. It also made for a pretty long week for mom but Bella was a trooper. She came to the show all three nights and was a pretty good audience member. I also had Friday off and we met up with Jaq and Joe for lunch at Free State After lunch we headed over to check out our future Daycare. It is a really nice home daycare where we know a lot of the parents and kids. Although I can't imagine having to take my baby to daycare I'm really happy with our choice and looking forward to Bella making some new friends in August. Then we got a chance to enjoy the beautiful weather walking downtown.

Saturday we headed to the Farmer's Market for a stroll in between the rain. It was Bella's first trip to the market and we met up with Nanna and Poppie for some sausage biscuits and fresh produce. Eric and I enjoyed a Bison Steak dinner Sunday night. We are planning to head to the market on a weekly basis, It's good exercise for all of us.
That evening Eric and I headed out for a much needed date night. We got dressed up (in 20's gear) and headed over to the Jones house for a murder mystery party. We were so lucky to have Tracy come over to hang with Bella for the evening.

Sunday: Softball Season has begun! The Bad News Bears are back and better than ever (well maybe not better....) We had our first game this Sunday and although we lost it was great to hang with friends. I was exhausted from such a crazy week (many 13-14hour days)that I didn't make it out to the Ballpark until the end of the game. Bella and I went over to Nanna's and she got to cuddle with her Grandma while I got a nap. I'm so lucky to have my folks so close by, I feel gratefully spoiled! After we were both well rested, Bella and I headed out to the ballpark to see the team, we caught the end of the game and a bit of parking lot time until it got too cold and we headed home. It was a fantastic weekend. Come cheer us on sometime here's a link to our schedule http://www.lawrenceks.org/lprd/_adultsports/schedules/softball/spring09/coedsundaycred

See you next week.

Trish

Neuteboom Madness

March Madness has quickly made way for Neuteboom Madness. We have been crazy busy since spring break with a wide variety of events.

Our Spring Break came to a close with the Colorado Neutebooms and sadly we didn't get many fun pictures of that weekend. It was a lovely weekend spent fixing up the condo, eating great meals and hanging out Mimi and Pappa Boom. One exciting event was our epic fight with Bedmart. Reasons to boycott Bedmart will follow in a later post.

Mommy went back to work on Monday which Bella was not too happy about. Poor Daddy needed a break when I got home that day! However, Bella and Daddy have been having a blast hanging out together during the day. Here are a few shots of their daily lives.



As we all know, our boys in Crimson and Blue lost to Michigan St. But we had a blast watching the game over at Grandma and Grandpa Averill's. Eric made a mean french onion soup and we enjoyed the fire and basketball.


We kicked off last weekend with a Family Dinner. I have recently graduated from the Teaching Program I have been in for the past three years, so we went out to dinner with our Friend Family, the Jones Fam and the Dernings. We have lots of great friends but something about this group really clicked. It was truly like having a family dinner and a total blast. I'm pushing for family dinners once a month! Evey got a kick out of hanging with Bella, but wasn't too sure about Keegan flirting with her. I loved getting to cuddle with my buddy Keegan. Somehow Tracy, Sean and Eric got out of getting their picture taken. We'll get them next time!






Well that about sums up the current adventures. We have many more to come with Softball season beginning, family dinners (the real kind in Topeka) and much, much more.

As Mr. Doper would say "See Ya Later Kids"

Spring Break Update #3 Happy Birthday Grady!

On Wednesday of Spring Break we headed off to Topeka to spend the evening at Aunt Libby's and to celebrate Grandma Averill's Birthday. Grandma Averill is better known to her great grandchildren as Grady. In addition to Grandma's birthday it was also Aunt Lauren's birthday and she and Uncle Tim were in town to celebrate. Libby invited Eric and I to join the party and help cook. We headed out early picking up Liliana on the way and arrived in Topeka to a warm welcome. This was the first time Bella met Grady, Aunt Lauren and Uncle Tim as well as many of Grady's friends.

Bella in her awesome new outfit mommy bought (One that Connie bought for her too. Great minds thing alike)


Here's some tummy time with Grady


Liliana practicing her big sister skills




3 Generations of Averill Women


4 Generations of Averill Women


Talking with Aunt Lauren


Only one more installment of Spring Break left. Here come the Colorado Neutebooms!
~Trish

Spring Break Update #2: March Madness!!

The Neuteboom Family has been ready for March Madness for quite some time now and have had no disappointments thus far; ROCK CHALK JAYHAWK GO KU!!! We watched the first game at home while awaiting the arrival of Grandma and Grandpa Boom and the second game at Slow Ride in North Lawrence. Yes, I did take my baby to a bar and a biker bar no less! They have awesome burgers and not many people on game days so it's actually pretty chill. Plus they sell a particular beverage Emily can't get enough of there so ALL the Neutebooms met up with Emily and Gaus to watch the game.

While we were in our KU gear Eric and I decided to get some family portraits. Here Bella and I get ready to watch the game.


Joey moved back in this week and has a rockin KU T-shirt, we wanted to include him in the photo shoot. We would have included the cats as well if they had cool KU shirts....and weren't at war with the dog.


Hooray, another rare photo of the three of us!



Bella and Joey ready to watch the game.



It was such a good game that Bella and I were pretty sleepy, Daddy let us take a nap for a bit on the couch.


Okay, I've taken KU all the way in my bracket and I'm totally convinced they can do it. So here we go KU #1 AGAIN!!!!

~Trish

Spring Break Update #1: Happy St. Patty's Day

Saint Patrick's Day has taken on a whole new meaning this year. No longer is it the get wasted all day holiday I once knew. It is now filled with a traditional meal, a parade and an adorable baby in a "Kiss Me I'm Irish" onsie. At this point in my life I think I actually like that better.



We had a wonderful Spring Break and the big event kick off was the St. Patricks' Day Parade. I don't remember the last time I went to the parade which is a bummer because it was SOOOO much fun! I can't wait to go back again next year. Isabella seemed to enjoy it until she got hungry and sleepy at the same time and was in no mood to try and nurse with all that noise. After we ducked into Z's (a great place to nurse by the way, I know my new mommy friends will appreciate that bit of info) to refresh, Bella fell asleep and we walked downtown for the rest of the parade. It was a beautiful day with all kinds of fun floats to appreciate. Including the County Fair Pool which is really close to our house, And the Kennedy Glass float that Richie's Folks helped build which was really cool.

After the Parade we went back home where I made a Black and White Guinness Mousse and checked the crock pot full of a beautiful Corned Beef Brisket along with Potatoes and carrots. I also whipped up Irish Beer Bread and Mom came over to enjoy our traditional Irish feast (An idea I stole from my Aunt Pat when we went to visit them in Ohio a few years back)



The evening ended with sitting on the patio enjoying the Chiminea with Eric, Bella and my Mom. What a fantastic Day.
~Trish

Movie Star Baby

I'm ready for my close up Mr. Deville

The following are some of the great expressions of Miss Bella Boom.

"Good Point Daddy, you are however totally wrong"


Thoughtful



"Why I oughta!"




Goofy Laugh



This girl has got something to say



"Awwww, Mom"



"Now just wait a minute"


Pensive



"Say Awww"


~Trish

Oscar Night and Beyond!

The gowns, the movies, the glamour. Oscar night is a fave of the Neuteboom family and Eric and I have started a tradition. We make a fancy meal and watch the Oscars. Then as movies we want to see come up we make a list and add it to our Netflix cue the next day so we can get updated. In the past, we've usually known a bit about the 5 best picture nominees but this year we were in the dark on a lot of things. It was definitely not the best Oscars ever but the tradition was still a blast. Here is Bella in her Oscar Night outfit (we had just happened to go shopping earlier that day) In the second picture she is showing you how she feels about watching the speeches, none of us were too thrilled with the set up this year.




We were however, very thrilled with the dinner Daddy made. Filet's with asparagus, potato pancakes and a Bearnaise sauce (Actually I think it ended up being Hollandais because we were out of the Bearnaise packets). Doesn't it look like this meal could be on Top Chef, check out the presentation. The meal was worth a thousand Oscar nights.




So I know It's been a while since I posted, it sure is hard to pin down this once a week thing. But I've got some great pictures to get you updated. Here Bella and I catch a nap one night as Daddy cooks dinner.




Also, as much as I want Spring I was really excited for the super cold day we got last week, Bella was able to wear her Pink Bear outfit again and I got some great shots.




We also had a chance to snap a quick family portrait, We even got the cats in on this one. Sadly there will never be a family portrait with the three of us, both cats and the dog. The dog would try to eat the cats and no one would be willing to freeze for a picture.



NO DADDY! You can't have the remote!






And last but not least, Bella has been cooing up a storm, If she knew words we'd have epic monologues from her. Here's a great shot of her talking to Daddy in the mirror.




Our Baby girl grows more beautiful by the day. I've got a great post I'm planning to construct in the next couple of days to prove that point.

Stay Tuned

~Trish