to all who have donated to the leukemia & lymphoma society, thank you. i have reached, and surpassed my $1700 goal! amazing. you are welcome to donate more if you feel so inclined.

also, i have started a flickr account to get my photography out there. it's still quite small, but check it out here.

peace&love.

:singin' in the...always:

found a great website for you moms out there that want non-toxic baby stuff, particularly toys! this particular toy, chloe needs. she loves keys, which most babies probably do.

i forgot to mention in recent posts about chloe's singing. i may have told you how she sings when we sing, but it's crossed over into singing whenever there is any music on: the radio, record player, tv, at church, and sometimes, even with the blender. as a parent, i think hearing my daughter sing to worship songs at church was absolutely magical. two of our great passions, god and music, are becoming our daughter's great passions, too...at least at 7 months of age.

the other day we were playing in her room, i pulled out the guitar and started playing and singing, and sure enough, chloe chimed in, effortlessly, while she played with toys. so precious.

we love this kid.

:need we say more?:

:at last:

the poop finally came. thanks to a little organic unfiltered apple juice, we awoke to a fresh poop. this excited state we are in may seem odd, but if you're a parent, you know the relief when your little one finally lets it go. it's just awful to watch them struggle. so yeah!

chloe is getting big, and when i say big, i mean she weighs as much as some 2 year olds. in trying to keep with our convictions and living sustainably, i've begun shopping for some clothing for chloe that is good for her, and for the environment. this link is to a wish list of things that chloe could use. obviously they aren't must-haves, but items that could last awhile, and be passed on. i'm planning on getting chloe some stuff, and if you're feeling generous today, check out these items.

we sure appreciate your love & support!

xoxo.

:diversity:

sunday was chloe's first earth day. lucky for us, there is a huge earth day fair in balboa park every year. lovely, sunny afternoon spent perusing the booths and seeing the intense color, both the literal and figurative, of the event. jared and i were happy to see that there were a couple booths put up by Christian groups supporting environmental causes. of course, there was the usual faire, both liberal and conservative. there was the judgmental "Christian" guy, telling everyone they needed to repent and assuming we were all hedonistic bacchanals. and of course, the proud liberal touting a giant cardboard sign with bush and cheney on it that said, "can we eat them yet?" but, this is the world. i'm glad to take chloe somewhere to see so many different walks of life. while we didn't plant a tree or anything like that, i was happy to have a chance to partake in some way. i hope that we can live out an earth day attitude on a regular basis.

that's about all. some pictures to follow :)

:another baby?!:

ha. gotcha.

no, i'm not pregnant.

but, our good friends, jared and rhian, welcomed their baby girl, jaelyn marie, on thursday. she was a bit early, so she was 5 lbs 15oz. i haven't seen her yet, but we are going back this evening to try and sneak a peak. congrats.

as chloe and i slowly walked the halls, which happened to be the very same halls where chloe was born, this very bizarre sensation came over me. some of it was dread, remembering the times i had to pause and lean on jared as i labored in that same hall; some of it was odd, like the moms that were perfectly made up in the photos lining the walls; and incredibly, some of it was a desire to do it all again. this is the first time i have experienced such a feeling. i love chloe, but most of the time, the thought of doing all of it again, pregnancy, labor, delivery and then raising a child, is so very overwhelming. but i had it today. and as fast as it comes on, it is gone.

just so you know, there are no plans to have more children. at least not soon.

so, carrying on with our little bundle of joy, chloe...not much to report. she continues to be an avid wheel watcher, compulsive eater and off the charts HUGE (hence the eating).

2 new things: one, this great device in the photos below. i forget what it's called, but i choose to just say sucky thing, 'cause that's what she does, sucks. she grabs this thing with the ferocity of a lion going after a helpless wildebeest. she's insane. but i love it. it keeps her happy and quiet without much fuss on my part. get this thing for your kids.

the second revelation, is that chloe is obsessed with clocks. i noticed a particular fascination she had when we were at tia megan's house. they have a massive clock, which chloe was fixated on. i figured since it was so enormous, that it was an obvious point of interest for a baby. but oh no. i soon caught chloe wrenching her head to look at things in a room. what on earth? lights? pictures? no. a freakin' tiny clock with black numbers and a white face. i mean, it's not like she's right in front of it. she has to look up and across the room just to see it at all. but she's keenly aware of them. she did it again today when we were at the hospital. she just couldn't get enough of the clock in their hospital room...the tiniest wall clock known to man. i'm not sure what that means...maybe she's into numbers? shapes? it's quite peculiar.

anyway, that's that.

shalom.

:final reminder:

i know i must get annoying doing advertising on this blog, but i'm doing it anyway :)

i am nearly at my $1700 goal for the marathon! thank you so much!

as a reminder, MAY 11 is the last day that Team in Training will accept donations before charging me for the difference. as much as i would love to donate more, i have limited funds. So, if you haven't donated yet, this would be a great time! you may still donate after that date, and even after the actual marathon, whether or not i have reached my goal or not. they could definitely use the support.

once again, i appreciate your continued support, whether financially or prayerfully! i definitely need the prayers!

peace&love.


ways to donate:

go to my TNT site: Kelly's site

OR

send a check to me, made out to THE LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY


if you need my address, contact me:)

:the chloe gardener:

friday was one of the best days. jared had a much needed day off, it was a perfect so cal spring day, baseball was on, and we gardened. we have a bunch of pots that our landlord left with nothing in them. so, off we went to the oldest nursery (so they claim) in san diego, mission hills nursery. how lovely! i wish i had a camera to capture all the colors and her first experience with plants. it is truly a blessing to live in such a verdant, temperate climate.

chloe is finally sitting up. she's a bit late on that, but she's able to do it for a good amount of time. she still has a few boo boo's and falls backwards. but basically, she's set. she loves her little toys and is getting so mature. she snuggles me now, which is very special. unfortunately for everyone else who loves her, she is not so loving. it's all about mom.

chloe also lost her voice recently. not completely, but just enough to make her sound a bit hoarse. she can still make plenty of noise!

otherwise, business as usual. i guess that's better than bad news :)

:chloe and the country:

down here in san diego, the country isn't exactly the rolling hills of farmland and rivers. but, the country is still the country, and we were a family in the country today.

jared volunteered with starbucks to help out with this "day in the country" for the united cerebral palsy foundation. i decided to skip my saturday run (because i was crazy enough to do the 13 miles on my own yesterday) and take chloe along. we weren't really sure what we were doing, but it ended up being a good first service trip. basically, it was held at woman's house who works with people who have special needs. most of the people there were just regular folk helping to fundraise. we worked the registration table, got to meet some very generous and loving people, and even got to eat the biggest chicken breast i've ever seen. thankfully, chloe was great until the very end. as you'll see in the photos, we saw the normal country faire: old men in a band, chickens, goats, dirt, grass and....llamas! what farm is complete without a llama!? i love those animals. they are the coolest looking creations.

anyway, we left feeling very content, humble and i think, connected. good times.

the bad part of the day was chloe's constipation. she's been doing this grunt thing for days now, which i assumed was in response to a monster dump knocking on the door. well, she let it loose today, but not without a bunch of pain. her poor little butthole just wasn't big enough to compensate for her poop. but, i'm sure she must feel better now.

that's all for now. have a wonderful easter. may we remember the true gift that is easter.

love&peace.

-the s's.

:a modest request:

this may come as an inconvenience for some, but ultimately this is our health and environment.

first, i want to thank anyone who has been generous in giving chloe clothes, toys, etc. we're definitely grateful.

while we are thankful, we are also trying to stay abreast of what is healthy, sustainable and environmentally sound.
so, from here on out we are requesting (but not demanding) that if you would like to purchase things for chloe, that you think about choosing a safer option. an example would be a wood toy instead of plastic, glass containers rather than plastic or even organic clothing. we realize that in some cases this may be an expense issue, which is why we certainly don't expect to get a bunch of stuff. but i'd rather have a few things that are good than a lot that may be harmful.

i know you may think i (we) am crazy, but there is legitimate concern and argument for the reasoning. while i'm not going to try and win people over to the environmentalist side, i challenge you, especially if you have young children in your life, to just check out the facts and choose for yourself. we all have to decide what's best for our own families.

for more info and links to informative sites on these issues, go here. of course, a simple search on google can bring you to a lot of helpful information as well.

thanks for your continued understanding, love and support.

shalom.

:future gameshow host?:

have i mentioned chloe's obsession with wheel of fortune? she's crazy about it. she could be eating, in the jumper, the highchair, whatever, and she'll stop all else to watch. we were never "wheel watchers", but now, at 7pm every night, i flip on the tv so chloe can indulge her gameshow fanaticism. see, i'm learning that it's not JUST wheel of fortune. but family feud, jeopardy, and even american idol. there must be something about the sounds and colors that are very intriguing. whathever it is, it keeps her happy.

sorry there haven't been many photos lately. haven't really been taking out the camera a bunch. but i'll add some today.

chloe's been pretty good at the sleep. at most, we have to get up once and feed just a little. but for the past couple nights, we've just let her cry when she cries (which is sometimes almost nothing), and go back to sleep. i just wish we didn't have an alley behind us. some guy coughed last night and she woke up. it's frustrating.

enjoy the photos...

shalom.

:bored, so i write:

chloe is asleep. happy to report that she has been a good sleeper for the past few nights. last night, she only awoke for a brief time at 5:30am. i didn't feed her, but just let her fall back to sleep until about 6:30. i wish that i could say i never woke up until she did, but there were a couple times that i awoke wondering why she hadn't fussed yet, and if she was ok. she likes to get her head in the corner of the crib and burrow in, which scares me. but, she is just fine :)

other than that, no news to report. honestly, status quo is ok for us. i'd like to bask in one stage for a bit longer. i realize that's a bit much to ask, as kids seem to be ever evolving.

in about a month, our good friends jared and rhian from church, and who live just down the street, are expecting their first child! we can't wait! rhian and i go on walks at least once a week and i look forward to the time when chloe will have a little buddy to play with. and i can't wait to share in the excitement, and struggles with someone else who is so close.

anyway, life moves on...

shalom.