One Month Older

Better late than never, right? The last few weeks with Riley have been non-stop. During the week of Thanksgiving she started eating veges on her own, learned to pull herself up and is crawling like a fiend! We are definitely getting a work out with her now. She also turned 10 months old yesterday. I cannot believe she is almost 1!

Last week was not a good week for the Mauro household. We all got a nasty stomach bug! It breaks your heart watching your 9 month old vomit. It has to be one of the saddest things I have ever seen. We managed to make it to Portrait Innovations on Friday to have her Christmas pictures done. I always seem to forget I can set up how I want some of the pictures done. I just seem to go along with the photographers at PI like I have no say. But they are fast and cheaper than going to a very nice studio, and with Christmas around the corner, I had to get my cards done! Here are a few pictures of Riley from PI (not to be confused with Pawley's Island!).

Halloween and Random stuff

Riley had her first Halloween. She was the cutest pumpkin I had ever seen. At the time she was pretty sick with an ear infection, but we braved the weather and went to the Wade Hampton game. We lasted until about half time. Here is Riley pre-pumpkin and as a pumpkin.

Riley celebrated her 9 month birthday by watching Clemson lose to Florida State. You would never know she was upset. She played all night! She has the cutest Clemson/Carolina outfit that my lil sis Nancy gave her. Even the guys thought she was cute! I love her new Clemson bow. I am addicted to http://www.mybowdaciousdesigns.com/. You can custom make the bow you want or Rachel (owner) will create a style for you. Oh, back to the game....we have also realized Riley loves to flirt, especially with older guys. We're in trouble!

We had a fun time at G.G.'s last night. Riley got to meet her Great Aunt Darlene, whom PJ affectionately refers to as Aunt Din-Dean. I guess Darlene is hard to say when your a kid. She had the best time! She especially loved the hat Aunt Din-Dean got her!

Pumpkin Fun!

Riley made her first trip to the pumpkin patch today! She loved seeing all of the pumpkins. I was more excited about dressing her up and putting that big bow in her hair!

Riley is trying desperately to crawl. PJ does a good job of putting her pacifier a few feet away from her to make her crawl for it. Alas, she still can't seem to figure out how to move her little legs. She does do a really good job of rolling and as PJ says, breast stroke, her way to what she is trying to get to. It's so cute to watch.

The Spinx RunFest was yesterday. I completed 13.1 miles in 2 hrs and 42 mins. The funny thing was the marathon winner passed my friends and I as we were entering the Drive baseball stadium to finish. So, he technically beat us by 13.1 miles and 2 minutes! It was very grueling for me. I am glad I didn't, but I cannot say with confidence I would ever do it again or even attempt a marathon. As I crossed the finish line I thought about all those folks running the marathon! I was ready to stop. My ankles and thighs are paying for it today, but I did it, and that is all that matters!

Fun Times

Last weekend was "Girls Weekend". So much fun! It was great getting away, no husband, no baby, no dogs, really no responsibility except to have fun. And boy, did we! The last time we had a girls weekend was in 2005, so this vacation was much needed by all of us. It's always fun to meet up and reminisce about things from those good old high school days! Here is our updated 2008 picture.

I am not doing a great job with keeping up with my blog. Could it possibly be because I have a facebook account and 3 e-mail accounts to manage, oh AND a child. Probably! I am still training for the half marathon. October 25th is just around the corner, and I can't wait! I have come to realize, I am not the best trainee. As in, training myself. It was all I could do to muster the strength to run 9 miles last night. This business of not losing weight when training is NOT for me. I have been training for 8 weeks, and have lost a total of 4 pounds people!!! I know, I know, muscle weighs more than fat, yada, yada, yada. I think I will stick to smaller runs, like 5k's and 10k's. More power to those of you who like to go the distance. I have come to accept that I like to run short distances.

Riley's cousin Hannah, Aunt Amy, and Uncle Scott came for a visit over the weekend. It was so fun to see the girls play with one another. It's so hard to believe my baby girl is 8 months. I see changes in her every single day. I am so blessed. We ventured downtown Greenville for the St. Francis Fall for Greenville Festival. It was great! Lots of people out and about, and some really good bands. Of course we had brunch, again, at the Blue Ridge Brewing Company. I feel like I only go for the mimosas! Oh, and the grits! What's wrong with that??

I start my 8 day work week in the ER. I am really nervous about it. I don't know why I am psyching myself out about it. I just have to remember, I can only do what I can do. If I don't know something, call someone!

Here are the latest pictures of Riley. I must say the Tiger picture is my favorite, even though the Clemson Tiger football team needs therapy.

Grr!

Ready for Fall

The end of week 6 in training for the half marathon was hard. It took all I had to run the 10 miler I had yesterday. It was a lot harder than last Sunday, probably because I worked beforehand. I am just tired!! It took 2 hrs 9 min, which was 6 min better than last week. This Sunday will be doubly hard because I will be at the beach with my girlfriends for a much needed vacation! I was sad to get home after Riley had already gone to bed. I had not seen her all day.....BUT she did start to cry, and cry, and CRY. She cried for an hour. Poor tummy! We finally had her laughing at 9:00! 1 1/2 hrs after her bedtime. It always make me feel so helpless when I can't calm her down immediately. Anyway, I am off tomorrow. Riley will be heading to daycare as I head to the Gaffney outlets. Ah! I can't wait :)

Here are some updated pics of the little girl. Daddy just had to put her in gamecock apparel. I was not home! Her Uncle Jeff came to see her, and she is wearing the top of her pumpkin costume for Halloween.

The Latest...

Running 10 miles is hard!! I ran 10 miles last night with two of my friends from work, who actually got me into this mess! It took us 2 hrs 15 minutes. 2 hrs of that we ran. I am pretty proud of myself. I did not think this was something I could do. Needless to say, I am in some pain today. I was only able to do 3 out of 4 this morning. So tired!

Riley is getting another tooth. There is something new everyday. Her Nana has been watching her while I have been on the dreaded 2nd shift schedule. So, better go. Time to get ready for work! Only 3 more days of this!

So Big!

Riley turned 7 months this week. It's so hard to believe how big she has gotten. She has a tooth coming in finally! You can't see it yet, but you can feel the ridges starting to poke through. She has also learned how to shake her head no. I am sure she doesn't know what it means, yet, but she will certainly get used to it as she gets older. Lord help us! She went to her first football game last week. To my surprise, she handled the noise very well. We ended up leaving at half time which was around 9pm. That was a late night for her since she usually goes to bed around 7:30. She also got to see her cousin Hannah last weekend at G.G.'s house. I missed it because I had to work (what's new??). It's so hard to believe Hannah is 9 months! Time sure has flown by.

Running update - I am now running more than half of my miles. Saturday is 8! My proudest day was this past Wednesday I ran 5 miles. It took me 70 minutes, and I ran 50 of those. I am determined to cross the finish line!

Here are a few pics of Riley over the past couple of weeks.

Such a cute fanny!

She loves to take baths now!

Go Generals!

Hannah and Riley at G.G.'s house.

Hannah and Riley

Riley with her moo moo shoes from Malachi.

Go Tigers! These are the overalls Lee gave Riley. So cute!!

Girl's Day!

Today I elected to keep Riley home with me on my day off. She had a very rough couple of hours early last night. I keep hoping a tooth is going to pop through that bottom gum, but she is still the toothless one. Her cries were more like screams, and nothing I did (i.e. Mylicon, teething tablets, Baby Orajel, Tylenol) would soothe her. She eventually fell asleep after crying for probably 2 hours. Poor baby! Today we have had a fun girl's day. We went to see her daddy at school. She met a lot of teachers and students. How awkward to walk back into high school again? You could just feel all the eyes staring at you. Glad I am not in high school anymore!

I have been keeping up with my 1/2 marathon training. My longest day has been 5 miles thus far. Last night I did 4 (per the training schedule), and I ran 2 of those miles at once. I was amazed. My legs are paying for it today! Here are a few updated pics of Riley with her cousin Bess. Food update - we are battling pears now, which I think she likes more than peaches. She also got to watch her first Clemson game this past weekend. Sorry it was a loss, but nonetheless, she looked cute in her outfit! Now, if only we could get a bow to stay pinned to her hair :)

Apples and Beer

This week marked Riley's first encounter with fruit. Let me tell you she was NOT a big fan of apples. She practically gagged every time. So, I thought I would try bananas. Again, I received the yuck face. I wish I had two more hands so I could take a picture of that face! Strike 1. The next day we tried fruit again. She liked it much better since I added the apples to her cereal. Not as strong. Success!

Riley has also learned that Blue Moon just might be one of the best beers on the planet. She tried to drink her Grandpa Jones' beer. Too bad she has to wait 20 1/2 more years!

Half-marathon is in 9 more weeks. I am up to 4 miles...running and walking. More like walking. I just want to cross the finish line!

What am I thinking??

What am I thinking???? I am crazy for agreeing to run a half-marathon on October 25th. Yep, 10 weeks away. I simply wanted to run the 5K, but no, my friends wouldn't hear of it. Half-marathon??? Isn't there supposed to be a natural progression? 5K, 10K, etc. After I freaked out about it yesterday and wondered whether the roads would remain blocked all day for me, the one who will cross in 12 hours, I was fine. I actually ran some last night. This will definitely involve some running, but ALOT of walking. Shouldn't I be running now instead of snacking on Cape Cod chips?? I have now closed the bag!

Well, Riley has advanced to green beans, and let me tell you, she likes them! She has liked everything she has tried so far. She has also started practicing holding a sippy cup. Well more like drop a sippy cup. Don't worry, we have one with handles too!

Peas and a New Car

PJ and I officially purchased a new car. With some financial talking with friends (thanks Lee!), we bit the bullet and got a 2009 Subaru Forester. I LOVE it! It will be so much easier to get Riley in and out of the car now. The major factor that sent me over the edge was that my AC went out in my Altima after 7 years! South, summer, 6 month old baby...need I say more?? The Altima has officially become the "man" car, and you know men can drive without AC if it'll save a few hundred bucks! Whatever floats his boat!Riley turned 6 months on 8/8. I cannot believe my baby is 6 months. .She also tried her next vegetable - PEAS! Surprisingly enough, she liked them. If she is like her daddy, she'll eat anything, especially if it has hot sauce on it!

Friends & Carrots!

This weekend was full of activity! 3 of my girlfriends from college came to visit. It was just like old times. It seems as if time never passes. They traveled from Richmond, Athens, and Charleston to meet Miss Riley. It was our 3rd (consecutive) girls weekend. Here is a pic of us from 2007.

And in 2008.....my, my, my what a year and 1 baby can do to your body!!!

Next year it will be at A's in GA since she will have a little one for us to meet. Saturday was pretty relaxed. We ate lunch at this awesome restaurant Chicora Alley. Love their Fried Mac & Cheese! Then we went back to my place, where the consumption of wine began (well, at least for me and L), followed by chinese. You just can't go wrong with chinese. Sunday morning came quickly. Sadly C had to head home early. A, L, PJ, Riley and I headed to the Reedy River Falls Park so Riley could have some pics made. They are so cute (will be available shortly)!! We then proceeded to have brunch at Blue Ridge Brewing Co. They have the best brunch and complimentary mimosas! I have had the eggs benedict and shrimp and grits. Our friends Kim and David from Columbia met us there with their little boy Gable. Such a cutie! Here is a pic of Riley meeting Gable.

Riley tried her first vegetable. Carrots! She loved them. She didn't get too messy, but there was the occasional spitting of carrots. I just hope she is not a picky eater!

Daddy's Girl

Riley really loves her daddy! I really think PJ is going to have a difficult time when school starts back. He has developed a close bond with Riley the past couple of months. Here is a recent picture of them at PJ's grandmother's house. If you look closely to the right, you will see her Grandpa as a young boy. How sweet!

"Chronicles of Riley - Part 2"

So where we're we......I think we made it to 11 or 12 weeks. Riley met her cousin Hannah for the first time. They are 9 weeks apart. Hannah was born 12/9 and Riley 2/8.

14 weeks - Riley is loving her new exersaucer. She is so small! We had to actually roll a blanket and place it behind her back to keep her up. Now she's jumping and pulling on everything!

15 weeks - Riley is as big as her bear, Millie. Aunt Josie got Millie for her. She's got to have a stuffed animal she can grow with! Too bad "Papa Bear" won't let her sleep with any toys in her crib.

16 weeks - I just love this picture of her. Her cheeks are so rosy!

17 weeks - It's amazing how big she has gotten. She can actually almost place hr feet firmly on the bottom of the exersaucer, and she is starting to reach out for things. Amazing!

18 weeks - First trip to the beach. She was NOT too happy about feeling the salt water on her little toes. The water was cold, but we just had to do it! The next morning it was very sunny!

Riley with her Godfather, Max.

19 weeks - Riley's first time in her high chair. She looks so small compared to the chair.

She's ready for a swim in the bathing suit her Aunt Brook got her. It's so cute, I want one for myself!

21 weeks - Riley's first 4th of July. She looks patriotic in her red, white, and blue. Next year, there will be fireworks!

23 weeks - Her first pool play date wit Kyle. They are not happy! The story goes like this - RIley splashed Kyle, he started crying, then she started crying. It was all over after that! It was the shortest play date in history!

My favorite picture of Riley to date. She is a Clemson girl, despite what her father thinks!

24 weeks - Here is Riley attempting to eat rice cereal for the first time. As you can tell she didn't know what to think of it at first! After a few more bites, she was ready for more.

25 weeks - Riley is sporting her first pair of sunglasses. My theory on this is - if they are important for adults to wear, why not kids?? We got these from http://www.babybanz.com/. Check it out!

This is Riley to date. Look for more to come. She is doing something different everyday. Today she rolled from her back to her stomach and then back to her back. She just kept on rolling until she got too close to the fireplace. Then I intervened! Still no teeth! That has been hard. Baby Orajel and teething tablets have been doing the trick. Anyway, stay tuned for more!