Thanks for being readers and friends. Merry Christmas from our family to yours!
Merry Christmas!
12/25/2012
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Family, Family: Jason, Family: Me, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: Christmas | 
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Posted by mahlbrandt
Christmas Gift Ideas for a 17-month-old Girl
12/19/2012
…or at least this one specific 17-month-old (in 2 days) little girl I know.
We adopted a new tradition last year of giving three gifts: something to wear, something to play with and something to read. (Can you call something a tradition if you’ve only done it once before?) I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I LOVE Amazon.com. They sell just about everything and it’s easy to find items with free shipping. I did 40% of my Christmas shopping in less than an hour this year. The other 50% will be at Target and 10% random places. Rabbit trail… Here’s what I ordered our little punkin for this year.
Something to Read:
The Skin You Live In by Michael Tyler, David Lee Csicsko
This book was recommended to me somewhere along the way. It’s a simple book but helpful to start talking about different skin colors whenever Ali starts to notice that we’re all a little different in skin color.
Something to Wear:
CONVERSE Kids’ All Star Ox Tod (Sea Spray 4.0 M)
My baby has small feet! She’s still between a size 3 and a size 4. We only have a couple of options that still fit in the size 3s and only a couple size 4s. These seem like they’ll be quite versatile in a neutral olive green. (The color I got is now sold out so no picture of it.)
Something to Play With:
Frances England’s Mind Of My Own
Ali loves music and pushing buttons so turning on her CD player is one of her favorite things to do everyday. We’ve been enjoying this album a lot on Spotify the past couple of months but I wanted to get her the physical disc so she can play it in her room, the living room, the silver bullet, wherever.
I’m also planning starting a new tradition this year of a Christmas Eve family gift of hot cocoa, a Christmas movie, new PJs and popcorn. And I always end up buying a wad of small things for our stockings: socks, chapstick, underwear, toothbrushes, candy, stickers.
I’m not the least bit concerned about Ali not getting any new toys from us this year. For one, she just got a bunch of “new” toys when we unpacked all of our boxes from storage and for two, her extended family will inevitably shower her with way too many wonderful gifts. 😉 With that in mind, here are some things I put on her Amazon wishlist.
At Ali’s 18-month Half Birthday, I’m planning a little celebration and to introduce her to a potty seat and the concept of potty training. She’s been very curious about the whole process lately. After reading lots of reviews, I decided on this seat:
Prince Lionheart weePOD Basix, Berry Blue
And this book:
Potty (Leslie Patricelli board books)
Because she’s so cute when we ask “What does a cow say?” and she answers, “Mmmmmm…” a bouncy, ride-on cow:
Trumpette Howdy Bouncy Rubber Cow, White
I had the awesome choking hazard FP Little People house, hospital and vacation travel set when I was growing up. (Shh…don’t tell the child-safe police that they’re sitting out at Grandma’s house!). Now they have these short and stubby Little People. I think Ali would like this house:
Fisher-Price Little People Happy Sounds Home
And the airplane, too. She’s good at hearing and spotting airplanes and we plan on taking her on her second plane trip next year. Plus, her daddy frequently travels by airplane for work so Ali’s very familiar with the airport.
Fisher-Price Little People Lil’ Movers Airplane
Ali is pretty into anything with wheels lately. She has a little matchbox car from a cereal box that she LOVES! I’m a big fan of Green Toys (like her tea set) so I put this pink and purple dump truck on her list:
Ali has a couple of small chairs but not a child-size table. I think it would be great to have one in our playroom for coloring and Play-Doh and other activities. This IKEA one would be an option.
IKEA Children’s Kids Table & 2 Chairs Set Furniture
When Grandma asked her what she wants for Christmas this year, she said “Baby,” so I have a feel she might be getting something like this:
Little Mommy Scrub A Dub Dub Baby Doll – New 2012 Version
Ali’s plastic-coated catcher bibs have been getting really worn out. I think I’ll throw a few more up on her wish list in case any relatives still needs ideas. 😉
Bumkins 3 Pack Waterproof SuperBib, Girl G14
Bumkins 3 Pack Waterproof SuperBib
Leave a Comment » | Family, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: Ali, Christmas, gift ideas, precious, toddler | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Letting Go
12/18/2012“Hug your baby tight when you get home,” a well-meaning friend suggested on Friday afternoon, hours after the unspeakable tragedy at Sandy Hook Hill Elementary School.
At some point every parent will come to a point when she realizes she doesn’t own her child, the child is not an extension of her but an independent creature and as a parent it’s impossible to protect our babies from every danger in the world. There is a risk of putting our children on such a high pedestal that we make them idols, treasured above the Life-Giver Himself. Abraham was guilty of such and God pushed him to the extreme to force first-born Isaac out of the god status Abraham had put him in. Let him go and entrust him to Me, or I will take him away.
As painful as it was, I’m thankful for the experience we had of almost losing Ali over a year ago in a bizarre placement battle through DCS. When we thought we had lost her, I buckled under the incredible pain. I broke for her, thinking she was about to lose her family a second time and her second chance of growing up with a father. I had no choice but to let go of my maternal grip of her… she was not mine. She did not belong to any person. She belongs to Creator Father God.
By a miracle, she was placed back into our arms and we walked out of courtroom with custody, dumbfounded. We let go of her because we had to, and God saw fit to give her back to us. I pray that I never forget that she is not MINE. I don’t own her. I’m entrusted with the responsibility and incredible blessing of being her mother. My love for her is deep and wide and it goes on forever. Everyday is a gift and tomorrow should never be taken for granted.
I will hug her a little tighter. Snuggle a little longer. And then I’ll let her go, take a deep breath, and trust the One who made her.
…
My heart is broken for the families in Newtown, CT who lost their loved ones. I’m praying specifically for the families of two of the children that God brought to my attention. Reading through the names of the victims, the name Olivia caught my eye, and then Benjamin. One of my best friends has two precious children named Olivia and Ben (who are thankfully safe and well) and when I thought about them, my heart crumbled. So, everyday I’m lifting up the Engel and Wheeler families as they’re walking through this dark and horrible tragedy. May the Prince of Peace, the Comforter, wrap them up in His arms this week and in the days to come.
4 Comments | Faith, Family, Family: Me, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: babies, children, hugging, letting go, love, parenting, sandy hook elementary | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
The First Play-Doh
12/17/2012Among the many toys unpacked from storage was a box of play-doh. When Ali pulled it off the shelf in the playroom, I decided it was time to introduce her to the squishy, doughy goodness. She’s not putting things in her mouth quite so much anymore so I figured she’d get to enjoy it for at least a minute or two before I had to take it away.
I was right.
“Ali, if you taste it again, Mommy is going to have to take it away.”
Oh, this age of budding independence is interesting… Every time I give her an ultimatum, she tests it. If nothing else, she is learning that Mommy means what she says.
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: crafts, Family, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: independence, parenting, play-doh, precious, toddler | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
We’re Home!
12/11/2012
Friday was moving day. It felt so different than when we’ve bought houses in the past…we would close at a title company, get our keys and let ourselves into our new, empty house. This time we’ve been in and out of the house almost daily for the past 6 months while it was constructed. On Friday Jason was cleaning the windows while I moved a few things over from my parents house. Then the last inspector from the city came and we paced around nervously while he walked through the house. Our site supervisor Scott put the last of 4 final inspection approval tags on the kitchen counter as he walked the inspector out. And that was it: we’re allowed to move in! Jason and I looked at the 4 final inspection tags on last time and gave each other a high five. Go time.
We met the movers at our storage unit and spent the rest of the day—the rest of the next several days, really—slinging boxes, moving furniture and unpacking. We are physically exhausted but oh-so-happy to be finally in our new home. I had hoped to sneak over early Friday morning and take final photos of a clean, empty house before we started moving in but it didn’t happen. Why? Because early Friday morning the tile guy, Peanut, was finishing grouting the fireplace and the bathroom; John, the painter, was doing touch-ups and Scott, our site supervisor/problem solver extraordinaire was putting the final touches on our front porch railings. In other words, the house was not clean or empty.
When we arrived back to our house, my mom had set up sloppy joes in her crock pot for us, as well as dropped off a bunch of food to get us through the first couple of days. She’s the best!
After her afternoon nap, my parents brought Ali down to check out her new room. She hasn’t seen most of this stuff since she was 7 month old…so basically, she’s seeing it all for the first time. Who needs Christmas gifts!
She was so excited about all the “new” toys that she climbed into her toy box.
…and assembled:
The first morning in our new house!
On Day 2, my sister-in-law Ginger came over to help while my niece Eliza played with Ali. After they left, my parents and Jason’s parents helped us unpack and move more things from my parents’ house all day. It’s so wonderful to have such an awesome family to help us! I was too preoccupied to take many pictures on Saturday but I did snap this one of Ali. Nana (Jason’s mom) was unpacking a box with Ali and found some of my sunglasses…
Day 3 in our new house: Sunday.
Ali seems to really like her new room. It’s one of the most complete rooms in the house. All that’s missing are things that hang on the wall: pictures, book ledges, curtain rod, etc.
Ali also seems to love her playroom (AKA the den) and it’s nice to have 2 rooms in the house that are mostly kid-safe.
The hall bathroom is for Ali and guests:
The living room is pretty much a big mess because the two couch pieces of our sectional and an armchair are being used in a home staging project. They’ll be back in a few weeks. I’ve been meaning to write about that. I’ll do that soon…
Meanwhile, this is our makeshift couch: a pile of old blankets and pillows on the floor. Lucy approves.
LuLu can be a very anxious dog but she seems to be adjusting really well. To my knowledge she hasn’t peed on anything or had any seizures so that says a lot for her.
The kitchen is almost mostly complete, however it’s still a big mess because it’s the heart of the house. (Note the tool box and cleaning supplies on the counter, the step ladder in the dining room.)
I really, really love how the kitcehn came together.
We’re planning to add a tile backsplash at a later date.
The coffee and tea bar is pretty much my favorite thing ever.
After three days of hard work, we decided to use our last bit of energy on Sunday night to set up the TV so we could properly relax. It involved a mount that fixes to the concrete fireplace with a floating shelf below the TV. I’ll tell you about that later. We don’t have cable or internet yet, but we could use the DVD player so we found our box full of Seinfeld DVDs.
Random: Any Nashvillites interested in a beautiful, big, heavy gold vinyl sleeper sofa? I was planning to use it in the den but it’s too big for that room so we’re selling it. It’s on craigslist for $100. Sold! Thank you to Mark and his wife. I hope you enjoy it!
8 Comments | Art, Art: house tour, Art: mcm thrift store find, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design, Art: new home build, Art: new home nursery, Family: Lucy, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: construction, house, mid-century modern, modern, moving, new home | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Alianna at 16 Months
12/10/2012
“What’s your name?”
“Awbi!” you answer with a giggle.
This age is so much fun. You’re walking with confidence now, sometimes even running. The sound of your feet pattering around is beautiful music. Your personality is continuing to blossom and every day we’re more amazed at your radiance. You are so friendly and now not only smiling, waving and saying hi, but also blowing kisses to kind old ladies at Target and patting your head and saying “hat” to the subcontractor at our house whose hat you’d like to compliment. Walking means independence and exploration. You love to run all around our new house, checking out each room, slipping and sliding along the sawdusty hardwoods, rolling around in the dirt when you fall down. You have a wild and adventurous spirit. You are passionate and easy-going at the same time. You are an adrenaline junky – you love to be tossed up in the air, to belly flop off the step between the kitchen and den at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, or to roll off of the sofa into anyone’s arms. I think you’re going to be my roller coaster buddy, if I can keep up with you, that is. You’re also super tough, much more than your mama. Your play stove has tipped over on you two times and neither time evoked any tears from you. The other day you were climbing the front steps as Daddy was doing some landscaping and you slipped and busted your lip. He said it bled quite a bit but you didn’t cry very long then either.
One funny thing you do: You’ve said “Mama” before. Enough times that I know you’re capable but you refuse to call me that. Daddy is “Daddy” and everyone else is “Dada” (except your favorite girl cousins “Ice” and “Eyza”). I can get you to say “Mmmmmmaaaaaa” (since it’s a bit like “Mooo” which you say) but if I try to get your to say “Maa – Maa” you pause and then say, “Daddy!” It’s adorable and also annoying. My name is Mama, girl. Mama. And speaking of sounds, you’re totally into animal sounds lately. Some of these you’ve mastered and some you’ll only do occasionally:
Dog: woof woof
Cat: eow
Turkey: gobba gobba
Rooster: doo
Lamb/Sheep: ba
Cow: Mmmmm (sometimes Moo)
Lion: rrrr
Monkey/Gorilla: ooh ooh
Chick: beep beep
Horse: nay
At your recent doctor’s appointment you weighed 23 lbs and were 30″ tall. Aunt Jessica looked it up online and says you’re in the 42% for weight and 20% for height. You were a big, deliciously chunky baby but you’re turning out to be a pretty petite little girl. It’s too soon to say what size of an adult you’ll be. You’re healthy and happy and that’s all that really matters. You continue to bring so much joy to us and everyone else around you. I’m looking forward to all the adventures we’ll have in our new home. 2013 is sure to be a banner year. I love you, Ali!
6 Comments | Family, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: 16 months, Ali, alianna, baby, daughter, monthly update, toddler | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Thanksgiving 2012
11/28/2012I had a really nice Thanksgiving, partly because my sister and her family visited for 3 days and partly because I was forced to take a 4-day break from work during a busy deadline period because I had no place or time to work. And of course, also because of all the time with family, friends and delicious food!
It was a beautiful sunny, warm day so we took a walk down to our new house to show my sister’s family. Ali and her cousin Iris rode in the red wagon.
Jason and his brother Daniel finally had an opportunity to deep fry a turkey this year. They used a Cajun Butter injection. Oh my goodness…it was so good!
Both of Ali’s girl cousins were there for Thanksgiving. That’s Eliza on the left and her mom Aunt Ginger (Daniel’s wife) and Iris on the right. Iris and Eliza look like they could be cousins too, but they’re not related.
My mom also roasted a turkey in the oven with stuffing. My dad and sister Jessica carved it.
Clearly Jason was very excited about how the fried turkey turned out.
Papa (Jason’s dad) and Ali were intrigued by the turkey, too.
I didn’t take any pictures of everyone at the table this year. Boo. We had a diverse group of my family, Jason’s family and some friends … 18 people I think. After dinner, Ali and Eliza took a bath in the living room. (Not really.)
Self-portrait mode on the iPhone = a good trick to get a low quality picture of a toddler looking at the camera…
…and maybe even smiling at her cute self! Hi Eliza
Jason’s mom/Nana/Grandma K made Iris an owlie hat just like Ali’s but with shut eyes. So cute!
Piddling around behind a record store on Black Friday.
We tried a new hairstyle for Ali: pigtails! She looks so different!
Her hair looked absolutely hilarious when we took the piggies out.
After dinner my early Christmas present from Jason arrived in the mail. A NEW CAMERA!!! I’m so excited to start getting better quality pictures. I have a lot of learning to do but the good news is that I’ll be practicing a lot which means lots of pictures to share with you here.
My very first picture of the most easy going subject. A little dark but I was quite impressed that it could capture her tongue mid lip-lick without a flash in low light.
Cousins in matching PJs horsing around on the couch also made willing subjects. (Testing out the external flash on these ones.)
Ali giving Iris a big smacker kiss.
It was a wonderful, fun weekend! I’m already looking forward to Christmas break now, which will be spent at our new house. Yay!
1 Comment | Family, Family: Extended Family and Friends, Family: Jason, Family: Me, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: blessings, cousins, Family, food, fun, holiday, thankfulness, thanksgiving | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Secret Projects and Randomness
11/20/2012I probably won’t get around to doing a full New Home Update this week because of all that’s going on with Thanksgiving, family visiting and a boat load of graphic design work I need to do this week, but here are a couple of shots of our new wood floors in the great room.
There is still a lot of slippery sawdust on the floors. Ali looked like she was at a skating rink.
I moved/helped move a huge amount of furniture this weekend (no… we’re not moving into our new house for another couple weeks) including this sofa (with hide-a-bed), desk, wall cabinet and a large media cabinet (not pictured because it’s for my parents) from an estate sale…
And also all this furniture for a secret project that has been in the works for many, many months… Here’s a sneak peek at our first home staging job. Much more about that coming soon… including the official launch of our new business, more photos and hopefully a video tour of this house:
This goober is 16 months old today! I’ve been looking forward to 16 months for a long time because that’s how old Ladybug was when we parented her. Oh, 16 months! I have experience with that age! Of course, the two girls are very different.
1 Comment | Art, Art: home staging, Art: mcm thrift store find, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design, Family, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: estate sales, furniture, mid-century modern, new home, precious, staging, vintage, wood floors | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
Cheekwood Autumn Beauty
11/19/2012My parents and I took Ali to Cheekwood Botanical Garden on a lovely Sunday afternoon (while Jason was on his way home from an 11-day tour). It was absolutely gorgeous in the park. Combine that with my beautiful daughter and I couldn’t stop taking photos! Ali’s grandparents couldn’t stop breaking the rules and picking flowers for her. Here are a few of my favorites photos:
1 Comment | Art, Art: gardening, Art: God's creation, Family, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: autumn, beauty, botanical, fall, flowers, garden | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
I Believe in Miracles
11/14/2012Do you remember this story? One year ago tomorrow, a miracle happened while were in court feeling hopeless, thinking that we were about to say goodbye to our sweet baby girl after two months of fostering and falling in love with her. But, to our surprise she was taken out of state custody and put back into our arms so we could become her forever parents! We are so blessed, so thankful that we get to be this precious little girl’s parents!
November 10, 2011
November 11, 2012
4 Comments | Family, Family: Adoption, Family: Foster Parenting, Family: Precious/Ali | Tagged: adoption, anniversary, custody, foster care, precious | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
myMCMlife.com 