Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas! (Also wanted to say thanks for the separation anxiety comments; they were very helpful. Makenna and I both did very well during our time apart, and it was great to have some Husband and Wife time.)

Separation Anxiety

Is it normal for first-time moms to have separation anxiety?

John and I are scheduled to leave later on this afternoon to visit a school several hours away, and will be gone overnight. This will be my first night being away from Makenna since she was born. I feel like I should be ready and excited to have a little bit of a break, but I can't help but be nervous and anxious about leaving her. Makenna will be staying with my mom while we are gone, and although I know that Makenna loves my mom, and I trust her (my mom) 100%, I can't help but worry about whether she will be able to sleep okay in a strange house and bed, if she will eat okay, whether or not she will think that we have abandoned her, etc...

I know that I will enjoy being able to spend some alone time with John, and I just hope that I can relax enough not to ruin it. Is this normal, or am I just ridiculous?

Thanksgiving Weekend

Our Thanksgiving weekend started off a little rough with a failed attempt at getting some family pictures taken (that's another story), but it ended up being a really great weekend. On Wednesday afternoon, we took Makenna to a park in our neighborhood, and she LOVED it. She kept wanting to go down the slides over and over. I can't wait till this Spring when we can play at the park more often.



On Thanksgiving Day, we went out to my Mom and Dad's house for the afternoon and evening. Makenna loved it because there were lots of little cousins running around to play with. After our big meal, my dad took us all on a hayrack ride. It was quite cold out, but we bundled up, and since my parents live out in the country, it didn't take us long to find some horses to pet. All of the kids (including Makenna) loved being able to see and pet the horses. I hope that this hayrack ride will become a Thanksgiving Tradition.



On Friday John and I were able to go on a nice date. (Thanks mom and dad for babysitting.) We did a little Christmas shopping, and then went to dinner and a movie. We use to try to go on a date once a week, but since having Makenna our date nights have usually consisted of watching a movie at home after Makenna goes to sleep. I am hoping that we can start having more regular date nights out.

I love this time of year when we get more time to stop and be grateful for all of the wonderful friends and family in our lives. I thoroughly enjoyed the Thanksgiving break this year, and can't wait for Christmas!

First Birthday Party

Makenna had so much fun at her birthday party. My parents were kind enough to let us have the party at their house, so there was plenty of space for everyone. We had Baked Ziti - Makenna's favorite - for dinner, and cupcakes and ice cream for dessert. Makenna had her own cake to enjoy, but didn't make it that far; she ended up just playing with and eating the frosting on her cake. I think her favorite part of the night was running around with all of her cousins, and playing with the balloons. I quite enjoyed having a party for Makenna, and look forward to lots of fun parties. Thanks everyone for your help and your gifts!

One Year Ago...

After 15 hours of labor, no sleep, and 2 hours of pushing, we welcomed our beautiful baby girl into the world. I can not belive that Makenna is 1 already!! Where does the time go? I would like to reminisce about how much joy she has brought into my life, and how much fun it has been to watch her grow from a newborn baby into this little person with a BIG personality, but it will have to wait. I have dinner to make, a cake and cupcakes to bake, balloons and decorations to buy, and a (sick, fussy) birthday girl to get ready for her big party tonight.

Last Week

Last week ended up being a busy week for us. On Monday we flew to Indiana so that John could interview at the Kelley Business School at Indiana University. Makenna and I tagged along so that we could check out the town. John really liked the school, and the interview went well, so now we are just waiting to see if we get accepted (We are also waiting to hear from a couple of other schools; none of which are in NE).

Makenna was great on the trip. We couldn't have asked for a better travelling baby, and now that she walks all of the time, I don't even really need to find things to entertain her. She just thinks it is fun to walk around. We figured out that after this trip Makenna has been to 11 different states, and has been on 22 flights!! That is pretty good for not even being 1 yet!

We got back from Indiana on Wednesday, and John had to leave again Thursday morning to go on a business trip. I was pretty bummed since he was going to be gone on Halloween, but Makenna and I ended up having a pretty good Halloween thanks to my parents. They brought dinner over, and then we went and visited some cousins.

The Big Red Barn...

and Pumpkin Farm!

John and I took advantage of what was a beautiful fall day in Nebraska yesterday and went to this cute little pumpkin patch. We had such a fun time enjoying all of the activites that there were, and watching how happy and excited Makenna was about everything.

Makenna was serenaded by a nice man while we rode on the little hayrack ride to pick out our pumpkin. She was quite entertained, and even started hitting her leg along with the music! We got a good laugh out of that one.

I think Makenna's favorite part was the little petting zoo. She is definitely not shy around animals, and loved being able to pet, feed, and chase the baby goats around.

We are so glad that we decided to go to the pumpkin patch rather than just picking up some pumpkins at the grocery store (like John originally wanted to do), and I think the pumpkin patch will be added to our "must do" lists of traditions.