www.Bellyville.net

He Gets Us in at All the Cool Events

I don’t think I’ve mentioned it here, but Eva’s daddy gets hit up to MC lots of local events. (He says he’s known as the “free guy.”) A week ago, he was one of the announcers for a pet show put on by our local Humane Association. Yep. A pet show. See?:

Eva and I went along to cheer him on (never hurts to have a friend in the audience) and to see all the animals. Not only was this a pet show, but there were also booths set up where merchants were selling their pet-related products (lots and lots of homemade doggie treats,) so the public was encouraged to bring their pets with them for the evening. That meant just about every person we encountered had a dog on a leash. Many of them would come right up to Eva’s stroller to check her out. And Eva? Do you think she cared?

Nope. Not at all. Except for a few giggles, she was way more impressed with all the lights and fans on the ceiling. And also the nice lady who gave her a cookie. She liked that lady.

Eight Months!

I had to count three separate times to be sure that Eva is, indeed, eight months old today. I’m still not totally convinced. And this is where all the sappy stuff goes about how the time flies and it was just yesterday and they grow up so fast. Sigh. And I’d be really sad about all that, except that there’s this incredible little lady I spend my days with, and she leaves me no time for such things.

Right now it seems like she’s doing something new every day. There are times when I think she’s about to get up and run across the room or open her mouth and start telling me about her day.

Little Eva’s got two teeth in her mouth, and there are more on the way. She’s pretty protective of them, though, so I have yet to get a picture for you all. But trust me. They’re there. And they’re sharp.

Lately, she’s begun pointing at the things that catch her attention, and thus was born “the Buzz Game.” Here’s how you play: Eva sticks out her finger at you, then you stick out yours and touch her fingertip and say “Buzzzz.” Eva laughs, and then you begin all over again. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what fun this is. Especially about the 26th round.

Another amazing month. Mike and I often find ourselves shaking our heads and wondering how we got so lucky. Happy 8-month birthday, Pumpkin.

Snowbound

Well geez. We went from 20-below to 50 degree weather to a blizzard. All within about two weeks.

Happily, we were visiting my parents this weekend (Happy Birthday, Dad), and we were all cozily stuck indoors together. We stayed an extra night so we didn’t have to battle icy roads, and that was just fine with Eva.

She’s started noticing her surroundings, and she points at EVERYTHING that catches her interest. So an extra night at Grandma’s house gave her the time she needed to be sure we all saw the clock on the wall. Over and over again.

 

Dammit.

Remember the heater story? (Click here if you need a refresher.)

Yeah. Well, on Wednesday we were treated to a repeat performance. In the middle of the afternoon I noticed the vents were blowing luke-warm air. And it just kept blowing. And blowing. And the temperature in our house began to drop.

When Mike came home from work, he tried resetting the system like he did that other time. Except it didn’t work. After many phone calls between Mike and his dad and his dad’s “furnace guy” (I know. But it’s not that weird. He’s a homebuilder.), we had to admit defeat.

By this time we were well beyond regular business hours, and, since it wasn’t too cold outside (the forecast was for 20’s), and since we’re not rich, we decided to bundle up and wait until morning to call the repair guy.

I’m pleased to report that we all survived the night and we didn’t even freeze our toes off. And the repair guy was able to come right away in the morning so we had heat by 10 AM. I asked the guy and he said we saved ourselves $80-$90 by waiting until morning to call. Are we bargain shoppers or what?

Outside!

FINALLY. After weeks of horrible sub-zero weather, we have a little taste of Spring. Yesterday our thermometer reached the fifties (!) and Eva and I got to go for a walk. I think we both have had a bit of cabin fever going on. Look how excited she was to be outside:

Got Some Extra?

So a little while ago, Mike and I received this email from Eva’s “cousin” Tanya (actually, she’s Mike’s cousin’s daughter—what does that make her? A second cousin?):

Dear Mike and Shannon,

Hello! I am jumping rope to help the American Heart Association fight heart disease and stroke in Jump Rope For Heart. Can you sponsor me by making a donation?

(Remember to check with your employer to see if they have a matching gifts program. This could double your donation!!)

Thank you!!

As I’m sure many of you remember, Mike’s grandpa passed away last November of a heart attack. He was also Tanya’s great-grandpa, and she’s jumping rope in his memory. What a sweet girl, right?

The neat thing is, there’s a website where you can see how much she’s raised so far: click here to see it. I thought I would help her out and pass this on to anyone who might be interested in the cause. So, if you’re feeling donate-y, (or if you hate heart disease,) click on over and give a little. Tanya, and the rest of Mike’s family, will certainly appreciate it.

So Hap-pea (Ha!)

Yesterday our girl ate peas. PEAS! And they weren't even mixed in her rice or anything. They were just plain old, mashed up, very-very green peas. And she liked them. (!)

I think it's because she's got such an outstanding personal chef.

The Cop-out

"Sigh. It's Sunday night already. I need to write tomorrow's post for Bellyville."

"Just put up a cute picture."

"Oh yeaaaah...I'm allowed to do that aren't I?"

It’s a Hit!

Some of you (those of you who read the comments) may remember me alluding to a Valentine’s Day gift for Eva involving her beloved Velcro. Well, it’s finished, and I promised to show all of you, so here goes…I give you The Pillow:

Awww. Cute right? I know. The plan evolved a bit over the days, but overall I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out. Don’t be deceived—this pillow has secrets. Those three flowers all do things. Like the first one? It’s crocheted (psst—no matter how it looks this word is not pronounced crotch-et-ed,) and you can unbutton the flower from its middle. The second flower's got the good stuff—it’s attached with…Velcro! And the third one, well the third one ties on, because about 2 years ago I got a pair of tennis shoes that came with both white and blue laces. And I used the white laces and kept the blue laces because I never, ever, seriously really never throw away anything I might one day possibly think about using for something. Yeah. It’s one of my more endearing traits—ask my husband, he’ll tell you. Anyway, that third flower ties because, not only does it follow the theme of the pillow, but also because I will now forever have an indisputable reference when my husband asks if I really need to keep that metal lid from the frozen juice container. I will say “Hell yes, I need it. One day I might make it into a beautiful toy for our daughter. Yes I will—remember the shoelaces? Remember how you didn’t think I’d use those? Showed you, didn’t I?”

Sorry. Another of my “endearing” traits is the tendency to give every single detail when telling a story. I call this “telling a story right.” My husband calls it “using too many unnecessary words.” I think we all know who’s right.

Anyway. I realize Eva won’t actually be able to button or tie stuff for quite some time, but she loves playing with the buttons and drawstrings on people’s clothes, so she’s been enjoying her pillow immensely. Which is good because I sewed her name in big red letters on the back so we can’t really give it away or anything.

Holy Cow!

I just realized that Bellyville has been in existence for a year. A year. Happy Birthday to us! What better way to celebrate than to look back through the archives? Here’s a link to the very first post we ever made, and the reason Bellyville was started: Click Here and Enjoy! (If you want to read more, you can always click on “Archives” over there in the right column and go to town.)