11 Months Old

Unfortunately Gretchen was pretty sick on the day she turned 11 months old. The picture above shows how she spent most of the day. We have been blessed with a very healthy baby. We can seriously count on one hand the number of times she has been sick. However this past week has been crazy. She had a fever of a 104 and we had some pretty rough nights. I am happy to report that her fever has broken and we are sleeping better.

She was still a pretty happy camper considering how sick she was. I think you can tell she is missing quite a bit of color from her cheeks in this photo. Maybe we will take another 11 month picture in a few days when she is feeling all better.

On the Move

I wish this was the blog post announcing we sold our place and are moving, but it is not. Insteed we have video of Gretchen cruising around the coffee table. Just more evidence that Gretchen is going to skip crawling and go straight to walking.

Our Townhome Is For Sale!

We have officially put our 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath townhouse on the market. It is right near I294 and I55. We also have a Metra stop in our subdivision. It is a perfect location for someone who has to commute to work. Please help us spread the word about our place being on the market. Forward this blog link to anyone you know who might be in the market for their first place in the Chicagoland area. Thanks for your help.

A couple of randome tips

I recently had a terribly cold. All three of us did actually. While blowing my nose a million and one times we made a new discovery, Puffs Tissues with Vicks. They gave a nice few seconds of relief and I will definitely buy them again next time I am sick. However, Nathan found an article on CNN that said you should not blow your nose when you are sick. The pressure is bad for you sinuses. I do not think I could have a stuffy nose and not use a tissue.

My next tip is a cleaning one. No matter how often I cleaned the windows on our front door they were always streaked. It drove me crazy. Today I tried a vinegar based cleaner and some newspaper in stead of paper towels and it works wonderfully. I am happy to say my window is streak free!

Uh Oh

Gretchen is learning new tricks everyday. This is her latest little thing.

New carpet, paint, and backsplash

We replaced the carpet everywhere in our home except the bedrooms. We also had the main body of the house repainted. I would recommend both companies we used. If you are looking to do some home repairs please give R & R painting a call or California Flooring.

California Flooring also did our tile backsplash. Both companies had good prices, were honest, showed when when they said they would, and finished when promised.

Nieces' Birthday party

This past weekend was our nieces' Anna and Laurens' birthday party. Here is a shot of Gretchen at the party trying out one of Lauren's toys.

Here are Gretchen and Birthday Girl Anna enjoying the 60 degree weather !

Here is a shot of Gretchen and both birthday girls.

Gretchen is trying to girl Lauren a kiss for her birthday.

Here is Anna as we sing Happy Birthday to her. I cannot believe she is four already.

Here is Lauren enjoying her 1st birthday cake.

Here is a nice family shot.

Here is Gretchen with Grandma and Grandpa the next morning.