Little Miss Violet Mai

Sorry about that!

2008-02-22T07:36:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone.

I have been told that I have been slacking with my Violet blog and I'm sorry!! :) Chasing after a 21 month old, working and keeping up a house pretty much takes all the free time out of the day! But here I go.

Violet Mai is like I said 21 months! She's picking up more and more words for her vocabulary daily. She's able to identify people by there names which puts a smile on everyones face. Her newest name is Aimee.. I think she had the hardest time with Jordan so she just calls her "JoJo". Probably one of my favorites is when she picks up one of our cellphones or just heres one ring and she automatically says "hello" in the cutest voice I've ever heard. She also likes to add "my" in front of our names. Like My Dada, My Nana. Cute!

The last few months she took 2 classes at the community center. She took "messy arts" with momma and "twist tumble & twirl" with dada. We decided that we think she likes the open gym there the best but it was fun having her in some classes. She loves to paint and draw. She calls it "blue". And she scribbles away. I'm constantly washing walls, floors, toilets, doors whatever she thinks is her "canvas" Thank god for washable markers and crayons...

So I just had to take a break because Violet thought it was a good idea to poor her glass of milk down the heat vent. Fun stuff!!! And who says the terrible 2's start at 2? I beg to differ. :)

Violet is finally sleeping better! John and I went to Hawaii in January and Violet stayed home with her Nana. During that week Violet finally slept THROUGH THE NIGHT! She's still doing pretty good with it. With the exceptions of stomach flu, ear infections & teething she's sleeping great. We usually have 1 wake up around 1am and she just needs a little rub on her back.

She almost has all of her teeth. All except her 2 year molars. What a cute little mouth! :) Violet got her 1st and hopefully last set of stitches last month. We were at Grandma Pat's and Vi fell and hit her eye on the corner of a coffee table. OUCH! We took her to the emergency room (well I had to wait in the car) and she got 2 stitches. Poor little lady. As soon as we got home she was up and running/climbing instantly! What a tough little bird.

Alright well she's out of her highchair tormenting the kitties, time for me to sign off. Sorry for the delay in posts.

xoxoxoxo

End of Summer!

2007-09-02T07:48:00.000-07:00

Well we've done it! 2 wonderful summers with our darling daughter! Boy was this years different than last!!! Here are a few things that we accomplished!

Crawling is so "baby like". Miss Violet ONLY walks now!
Not only does she walk, she rides her rocking horse and her radio flyer car all by herself!!
We went from 3 teeth to 10! Including 3 molars. (No sleep for mommy or baby!!)
John's dreams have come true. It seems that Violet's favorite band to dance to is.... THE RAMONES!
Violet and John have their very own reading group at the library!
Violet is older than someone in her family. Uncle Mike & Aunt Stacey had their beautiful daughter Addison. We can't wait to meet her. Violet loves cousins!!
John has shown Violet that you can live on Rice Crispie treats & cookies. Hehehehee! And yes, he will be paying the dentist bill. :)
John and Violet have spent a lot of their time on two wheels! John on the bike and Violet in the trailer behind!!
Violet has mastered many, many crazy new faces to pull!
Violet has started to build her own vocabulary: mama, dada, dad, mom, cat, jack, dog, that, this, baba, nana... and probably some more we just don't recognize yet.

I'm sure there has been more going on... but this is all I got for now. We're all looking forward to the fall. Sweaters, socks, cozy nights by the fire, showing Vi the leaves changing colors, lattes in the morning and yes.. even the rain sounds nice. Hope to see y'all around the holidays.

1 YEAR OLD!

2007-06-07T10:44:00.001-07:00

I really can't believe Violet Mai is 1 year old! And what an amazing year it has been. We had a birthday party for her that was a lot of fun. She had her first experience with chocolate cake and boy did she love it! She sat in her highchair just staring at her cupcake smiling. I don't think she knew what to do with it... but she quickly figured it out.

We think she'll be taking her first step without our help any day now. I think she could walk around the backyard holding my hands for hours. But my back won't let that happen! She had her first bloody fall a few days ago. She was standing up by the couch.. I turned around and boom! She was on the ground with a bloody mouth. It turns out that she bit her tongue pretty bad. I tell you what, I never want to see that much blood come out of her mouth ever again. It was awful. She's recovered fine but I do think she's a little bit nervous about standing up now.

She has reached her screeching phase. Please tell me it's a phase... :) If she wants something she screams, if she doesn't want something.. she screams! Now I wish we would've done sign language!

Daycare starts next week! She'll be going to see Anna 2 days a week. I'm really excited and nervous at the same time. I think it's great that she'll get interaction with other adults and children... but at the same time I can't figure out how she'll nap and what if she starts crying and doesn't stop. Typical mom. But I guess that's something that Anna and Violet will figure out.

Well she's been napping for a little over an hour now, and I still have a few things to get done before she wakes. We love and miss you all tons.

11 months old

2007-04-22T07:33:00.000-07:00

Uncle Mike & VI

Teeth!
Baby Disco with Miles
Violet's New Motorcycle PJ'S
Yummy
Vi & Sniffer
Hooray for Aunt Selena!
Baby Central

life has been incredibly busy around the thering household. we spent a month at the lang's while waiting for our old house to sell and to buy our new one! now that we're in our new house there is little time for "blogging"! violet definitely keeps us on our toes.

lets see... violet got 4 new teeth in the month of march. making it 6 total so far. she loves her "da da" and can't quit talking about him! he's on a motorcycle trip this weekend, and she's not very happy about it! she whines and says "da da". poor little lady. now if only she'd say ma ma. we'' she did.. once. and never again! ahahahaha

violet got to meet her new friend declan and play with lucia a whole bunch. we went to visit uncle mike and aunt stacey up in washington for a weekend! and yesterday we went to "baby disco".

i'm out of soy milk for my coffee! so i think the 2 of us are going to take a walk up to the store this morning. it'll be nice to get out of the house while it's not raining! love and miss you all!!

9 months old!!

2007-02-24T18:05:00.000-08:00

9 months old and cute as pie!! Violet is on the MOVE!! She's crawling like a champ and standing every chance she gets! It's great! And exhausting at the same time. She has 2 bottom teeth and the top 2 are on their way. We went to her 9 month check up this week and she weighs 18 lb. 1 oz and is 29" tall. She had to have blood drawn :( John took her in and I waited in the waiting room... I thought I'd be safe there, but I could hear her screaming all the way out there! It was awful. My mother bear instincts kicked in and I wanted to tackle whoever was making her cry like that. But we all survived. PHEW!

Violet is at Grandma Pat's right now! She has been there all day while I have been home getting our house ready to sell! That's right! We're moving!! We bought a house that's 2x the size of our current one! YAY!! No more tripping on Violets toys! It's been really weird being home all day without Violet here. It's definitely a lot more fun when she's around.

We taught Violet how to wave. It's so cute... Everytime someone walks in the room she waves at them. hehehe.. Cutie Pie. Lets see.. Violet's favorite new foods are: tofu, boca burgers, banana chunks, cheerios, avocados & of course sweet potatoes. She has her dad's appetite. I swear she can out eat us any day.

Alright, I'm off to more cleaning! BOO!

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T07:31:00.000-08:00

2007 is here! We celebrated last night with Amber, Nana Ellen, Lola & Nico by watching Superman Returns. The 3 of us returned home around 10 and put Miss Vi into bed. And do you think John and I stayed up until 12?? OF COURSE NOT! hehhehee We were asleep by 11. Lame I know, but when you have a 7 MONTH OLD you take all the sleep you can get!

Violet is absolutely amazing! She's such a cheery, happy little girl. Her 1st Christmas was fantastic. She had no clue what was going on, but boy did she love to tear the paper off the presents. (And try to eat it) We now figured out why the board book was created!!! She's getting so big! It's almost time for us to go get a new car seat. She's bursting at the seams in the one shes in.

Lets see... Violet loves to sit up and play with her toys, we got a play pen and I think if it were up to her she'd be in it all day long. Yesterday she picked up two rattle balls and started hitting them together and giggling! That was super cute. I think she's just about ready to crawl. She's gotten the motion down.... just hasn't taken off yet. She LOVES the cats and the dogs. I think they alone are going to get her to crawl. That way she can pull their hair all she wants. Speaking of pulling hair, it's Violets favorite past time. Lucky us! OH MY GOSH I ALMOST FORGOT!!!.. She has a TOOTH! It arrived December 12th! The bottom right front tooth. :) The one next to it is trying to come through now. Woohoo! Gotta love teething. Why didn't any seasoned mothers warn us about the teething!?! Poor little lady, it's just awful.

We are all so excited for this New Year. So much to look forward too. We hope all of you out there are doing well. xoxoxoxo

6 Months Old!

2006-11-24T09:10:00.000-08:00

So the little lady is 6 months old! Yesterday was Thanksgiving and we had a great time. We went up to Kalama for breakfast with Grandma Pat & Grandpa Mike! The food was delicious. Afterwards we went back down to Portland for Dinner at Aunt Ambers house! Grandpa Dane & Grandpa Kent are here from SLC! A lot of action for one day. Needless to say Violet had an incredibly restLESS night! Gassy & uncomfortable. Poor little lady and parents! :)

Here are Violet's stats at her last doctor appointment: 15lb. 14oz. & 26" long! Her hair is finally growing in! The other night she woke up and when John brought her out to the living room her hair was actually messed up! SO CUTE! She's rolling over like a champ back to front & front to back. She's also able it sit up for a short amount of time with no help. She's so much fun! Always wanting to play and she's so curious about everything. So curious infact that she thinks naps are optional! :)

We hope everyone had a great holiday. Bye bye from Violetland!

violet is 5 MONTHS old!

2006-10-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

our little lady is 5 months old!!! as a celebration last night she got her first taste of butternut squash and she ate it all up! she's had rice cereal and oatmeal as well. i think she prefers the rice over the oats.. they give her gas!!! infact she's laying in her crib right now tootin' up a storm! :)

she's also been sitting in her stroller rather than riding in her carseat in the stroller. it's so funny how a few days even make a difference in her ability to try new things. she goes back and forth from her exersaucer to the johnny jump up. she hasn't quite gotten the hang of the jump up... she just leans back and sways around! but it's cute none the less.

johns work schedule has been very good lately. he's been able to keep violet home while i go to work! and with this new cereal eating business she gets some food too! oh yeah, she's been using a sippy cup for milk. yippeeeeeee!!!

today we're taking her and her cousin lola to the pumpkin patch! should be a good time. my sister amber is expecting her 2nd baby on the 26th! so there'll be another baby in town!

alright, violet is grunting and that will soon turn into a scream. love to you all.

Violet is Sick!!

2006-09-30T10:09:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! We haven't updated this blog in awhile!! SORRY!! I guess I've just been busy with work & violet! Well, Violet is now over 4 months old. When we went to the doctor she weighed 13 lbs 14oz. And is now 25 inches long! She's gonna be tall and skinny! Dr. Lydia also told us that we can start feeding her rice cereal. We've tried a few times and she actually likes it!

Violet has caught her 2nd cold! It's been a rough few nights. She's fine during the day, but as soon as the sun sets she's a monster! A very cute sick and sad monster. :) Anyway, she's up most of the night choking, coughing and crying. Poor little lady. Hopefully she'll start to feel better soon. Two of the pics are of her in the midst of the sickness. I'm sure you can pick out which ones.

The pink dress violet has on is one that I used to wear as a baby. I guess my moms friend crocheted it for me! How cute!

Work, by the way has been fantastic with Violet. She's a perfect little angel.

Alright, well the baby is fussing... I am off!

First Day of Work... & Fun Guests!

2006-08-25T17:36:00.000-07:00

Violet & I had our first day of work on Thursday! I don't think she liked that fact that I actually had to wake her up to get ready to go. But she was a perfect little angel! So far we've worked 2 days and everything has gone great. Phew!! Amber let us borrow her new "take-along swing" until her little man arrives (October 25th!!!!) so Violet alternates between the swing and her bouncy seat. What great inventions.

We had some fantastic visitors this past week!! Cousin Cassie came with her mom and friend Matt! It was the first time any of them have met her. And of course she won them over! Uncle Zack also is here on leave from Afghanistan. He couldn't believe how much she's grown since the first time he met her. He also brought her a teddy bear all the way from Ireland.

Life is good. Love & Hugs.

3 months old!!

2006-08-20T09:35:00.000-07:00

hooray! violet is 3 months old today! so far we've celebrated it with a nap in the bouncy seat, some dancing with dad, breakfast, and a ride in her swing. life couldn't get any better! (and it's only 9:30am) i start back at work next week and violet gets to come with me! we've been trying to get her to take a bottle for the last month or so... but she won't take one. so, she'll be with me at work until we can get her to take a bottle.. or drink from a cup. cross your fingers please that she'll take one soon. john and i could use a date! :)

too cute!

2006-08-11T16:30:00.000-07:00

violets aunt aimee sent us these 3 pictures from her cameraphone! we spent the day together running errands. violet is only in the front seat because she had just eaten, no... i'm not pulling a brittney spears!

we went to lunch today with corie and liam and had a great time! liam even let violet borrow his bumbo seat. now she can sit up like the rest of us. she has also discovered that her hands belong to her. she's grabbing at toys and constantly sticking her fist in her mouth! hooray!!!

i've been off work for 3 months already! i can't believe how fast it's gone by. i should be going back to work in the next 3 weeks sometime. i'm a little nervous because as of now violet won't take a bottle! so, hopefully we'll get that problem solved.

off to bake some cookies. what a good wife i am :)

the beach

2006-08-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

we took violet for her first trip to the beach.. or coast rather. it was an absolutely beautiful day. we took the dogs too! they LOVE the beach. we walked in the sand for awhile and then went and had lunch. we couldn't find violets sun hat so we settled for a beanie. but of course she got sun burned on her nose and cheeks. poor little lady.

i went over to my moms house last night for a little "so you think you can dance" and violet fell fast asleep! i put her in the car seat to go home.. and guess what?! she slept in it for 6 hours!!!!!! that is the longest stretch of sleep she's ever had. now, was it the carseat?? or maybe she's going to be sleeping longer??? we can always dream right?

anyway, life is good. violet gets to meet her cousin cassie this month and her uncle zack is coming for a visit! HOORAY.

First Trip!

2006-07-25T19:54:00.000-07:00

We took Violet on her first roadtrip this past weekend! We drove to Arlington, WA to her uncle Mike & aunt Stacey's wedding. Violet also got to meet her aunts, uncles and cousins from New York and Florida. We all had a fantastic time and wished the family lived closer.

Violet was an angel in the car. She slept the majority of the time and woke up only to eat.. then back off to sleep. The wedding was beautiful but incredibly hot so Violet only wore a onesie! Lucky girl. Poor John was in a tux!!

We got home on Sunday where it was over 100 degrees!!! And the next day Violet had to go in for her first set of shots. POOR BABY! She screamed and her face turned purple! Definitely not a fun experience for her or us. So far she has handled them pretty well.. I think she had a slight fever this morning and wanted to be held all day.

We're all pretty darn tired at our house. I think we're off right now to walk the (neglected) dogs. Love to you all.

Isn't She Cute!

2006-07-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

Violet is 8 weeks old and she weighs well over 10lbs! She caught her first cold 2 weeks ago, which was not fun at all. She wasn't allowed to take any medicine, just got saline solution up her nose! YUCK. She definitely turned into a CRANKY baby. I was thanking god that it was a cold and not a late onset of colic symptoms. She's feeling quite better now with just a slight lingering of a stuffy nose.

She loves to smile and mimic our facial expressions. It's amazing, I swear she's the smartest baby on the planet! :) She's also started to "talk" a bit as well. We went and had a picnic at a park the other day. It was great fun and Violet got to try the baby bjorn face out!

She really likes to have alone time in her crib throughout the day. I put her sheep in there and she instantly put her arm around it! No joke. So cute!

Well, she's in her swing right now and beginning to fuss... at least she gave me 5 mins to type this.

Love to you all!
Stacie, John & Lady Vi

crib time!

2006-06-25T19:02:00.000-07:00

1 month & 2 days old!

2006-06-23T17:02:00.000-07:00

violet had her 1 month birthday on wednesday! she is the greatest little lady ever! we've had a lot of fun taking her out on walks in her bjorn or her stroller. however, she doesn't like being in her car seat, so sometimes the stroller ride isn't her favorite.

we've discovered that she likes to lay in her "big" crib and watch her mobile. she also had a lot of fun at liam's house looking in his mirror...and at miles' house playing on his gym. so we went and got her very own gym with a mirror! when we lay her on her tummy she's able to pick her head up and move it from side to side. she's also kicking her little legs trying to move herself. so cute.

she loves taking naps on mom and dad! bathtime has also become a very fun time. it's all great!!!!!!

11 days, many more poops

2006-05-31T23:30:00.000-07:00

Stacie went to Dosha today and Violet and I took a walk around Hawthorne, lots of fun. Violet slept the whole time, and I think it was the most exercise I've had in the last ten months

I'm a little tired today/tonight, it felt like little Mai was up like 372 times last night, but in reality it was only twice.

Who would've thought that something so adorable could poop so much.

Bed time.

John

Violet is 1 Week Old!

2006-05-27T21:57:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that just last Saturday Violet Mai was brought into this world. 5 hours of labor and a beautiful girl was delivered into my arms! This past week has been an amazing time. I can't tell if it's felt like a year has gone by or only a few seconds. We've been managing pretty well at home. Nana Ellen has spent a lot of time here helping us adjust to the new role of "parents". We've also had quite a few vistors bearing gifts of food & arms to hold Violet.

John has been absolutely amazing! He is the best dad anyone could ever ask for!! I've been recovering from labor, breastfeeding, no sleep & sore muscles. And I couldn't do it without the love and help from John. I've still only changed 3 diapers!! :)

We celebrated Violets 1 week anniversary with nice little sponge bath! She did quite well. Only a few cries and of course a poop!

Well, I'm off to go rest and cozy with dad and Violet!

New Babe!

2006-05-22T16:55:00.000-07:00

We did it! Violet Mai is a living, breathing baby!

I say "we", but Stacie truly stepped up like I've never seen anybody do. Truly amazing and inspirational!

I'll post a few pics now and try to keep this updated.

Violet Mai Thering
05/20/2006
6lbs. 13ozs.
19 3/4 in.
Beautiful

John

the haps

2006-05-17T22:31:00.000-07:00

i just wanted to give everyone an update as to what's going on. my midwife has decided to induce my labor 1 week early. we are going in to the hospital friday, the 19th @ 7pm to start the induction. most likely my labor will start early saturday morning and we shall have little miss violet mai on saturday the 20th.

the past week i have been going in for acupuncture to get my body ready to be induced. i saw my acupuncturist 4 times and boy was that enough! it's definitely a test of patience. i'm hoping that it has had some positive effects on my body that will help my labor go as smooth as possible.

i'm filled with excitement and anxiety. i can't believe that she'll actually be here in my arms! it's almost like i'm just so used to being pregnant that this is my new body/state of being. what a crazy time.

thank you for all of the love and support you have offered john and i throughout this pregnancy. it truly means a lot to us. wish us luck~!

we'll let you all know when she arrives!!!!

love, stacie & john

36 1/2 Weeks

2006-04-30T20:48:00.000-07:00

Wow! So tomorrow is May 1st! I can't believe how fast the past 9 months have gone. I swear it was just September and the thought of having a baby in May was so far off. Now, it's here and it's almost hard to believe.
I wanted to thank everyone so much for such a wonderful time at the baby showers that were held for John and I. We had an amazing time and it was so great to see everyone! I bet it's the most pink stuff anyone has ever seen, right?!?

Tonight some of the "new moms" (Tina, Corie & I) got together and just had an evening with babies and snacks. Of course Violet was there in utero. Hopefully the next time we all meet she'll be there cooing along with all the boys!

I had an ultrasound last week and it was really cool! We got to see so much! She was sucking on her hand... she got the hiccups and we watched her whole body bounce around... we saw hair on her head!!... and we saw her look right at us and blink! It was absolutely amazing! We met with a doctor afterwards and he let us know that she looked great and it's just a matter of a couple of weeks now! CRAZY!

So, I'm in total preparation mode. Making sure we have as much as we can in order. Bags packed for the hospital, car seat installed in the car, and whatever else I come up with! I have started only working part time as well, which is great! 4 hours a day is PERFECT! Just when I am getting tired I actually am able to go home and take a nap and just relax. It's awesome! And, I also get to see a lot more of John, which is always a plus!!!

So, now that I've jumped around a bit on many topics it's time for me to retire and watch some tube! I hope all is well with everyone! Here's the lastest picture of me! Nice and big! ehehee.

xoxox.
Stacie Mai

little munchkin face!

2006-03-28T13:22:00.000-08:00

we went in yesterday for my 32 week ultrasound! here are 2 profile shots that we got of little miss violet mai!! (you can click on them to make it bigger) everything seems to be going great! she has turned so her head is down now and her feet are jabbing me in the ribs! she currently weighs about 3 1/2 pounds and she should be gaining about a 1/2 pound a week up until delivery. we saw her yawn, swallow and scrunch her face up a bunch too. so cute!

john and i started our childbirth preparation class yesterday too! our teacher is great and it's fun to be in a room full of pregnant ladies. 2 more months to go!

April 15th Baby Shower

2006-03-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone! Just a reminder for everyone to RSVP for the April 15th Baby Extravaganza!! Feel free to leave a comment to let us know if we will see you at our shower. Click on "Comment" and then once you get to the comment page, select "other" and just remember to put your name, no website needed. OR give Ellen a call. Her phone number is on the invitations! Hope to see you all there!!! The shower starts at 5:30pm.

HOORAY FOR MILES!

2006-03-09T19:24:00.000-08:00

Our good friend Tina had her baby!! His name is Miles Bennett Wood and he was born on March 4th! He could possibly end up as Violets boyfriend one day! =) Here is a picture of our visit with Miles at the hospital! Good work Tina & Brian!

Violet's first trip

2006-03-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

We just got back from Utah finishing VioletMai's first flight. Lots of fun, here's some pics.

Stacie was a lot queezier than normal, baby wasn't a big fan, but no serious problems.

These of course, are pictures of my beautful baby mama, Stacie Mai.

This was our second trip to SLC together, and like I said, Violet's first.

John

7 months!!!

2006-03-02T07:38:00.000-08:00

woah belly!

~baby weekend~

2006-02-20T10:21:00.000-08:00

the weeks sure seem to be flying by! this past weekend we went to tina & brian's baby shower for their soon to be little man! fun was had by all and many cupcakes were eaten by me of course. =) after the shower we went and visited with ed & corie's new baby "liam hoyt". oh man, is he the cutest thing ever! we have his blog page listed on our links if you'd like to check him out. we definitely left their house wanting violet to be with us NOW! ehhee.

i've been feeling really well. the tiredness has definitely set in again... but not as bad as before. my belly keeps on growing making it harder to get out of bed in the morning and putting on my shoes usually involves john's help! i have an appt. with my midwife this week to have my diabetes screening done. i'm not too worried about that test. i just hate having my blood drawn. yuck.

my dad called me yesterday with the fantastic news that he'd like to give us a crib!! so john and i went and picked one up. john set it up and it looks fantastic! i caught the kitties eyeing it and let them know that this isn't their new bed. we don't have the mattress yet, so i'm pretty sure they'll be leaving it alone.

save the date!

2006-02-02T09:43:00.000-08:00

so baby shower plans are in the works! my 2 wonderful mothers: ellen michals & pat schallert have graciously offered to host/plan my co-ed shower!!! the date is april 15th!! so mark it on your calendars and get ready to party baby style!

also, for all the lovely dava ladies out there... miss julia edge will be throwing a baby shower on april 9th for girls only! :)

closer to the dates i'll be putting up directions and any info that is not on the inviations. until then. *muah*

mama mia

2006-02-01T12:29:00.000-08:00

thanks to tina and this lovely internet i've found blogger! definitely a great idea for people to get updated on what's going on in our world at their own leisure. (then i don't have to send out mass emails either!)

things are going very well. i have just come down with a cold, which is no fun. sleeping with a cold is just not the same without the lovely help of Nyquil. :) Violet has been waking me at night with kicking, hiccups and whatever else she's doing in there.

i'm now 6 months along. the picture i posted is of me at 5 months and the belly just keeps on growing!

okay, i'm tired. i had insomnia and awoke at 3am and haven't gone back to sleep yet. i'll be sure to post any info regarding baby showers on here as well. check back.

love ,
stacie mai

* little lady *

2006-01-30T11:01:00.000-08:00