Elise's First Foods

Elise turned 6 months while we were in Austin and I was excited to start solid foods!

 Not looking too impressed

This is weird...

 Hadley was a little surprised to see somebody in her seat, so she helped out

Smiling at Sissy

 Maybe we like it?

Maybe not.

Hadley hardly ever put anything in her mouth and I assumed eating would be difficult for her, but she took to it immediately and loved basically everything! Elise on the other hand puts everything in her mouth but seemed a bit confused when I actually wanted her to swallow what was in her mouth. She has now gotten the hang of it, still doesn't love the rice cereal, but does love pears, apples and sweet potatoes. When things settle down I hope to get back to making her food like I did for Hadley, but we will see how that goes!

Keepsake

When I had Hadley we started a tradition, it was kind of a mashup of different traditions I had heard about from friends. I gave Jamie a keepsake that he could use that she knew was "hers" and when she saw it would know that her father thought of her every time he used it. Hadley and I gave him a  pen with her birthday and initials inscribed and Elise and I gave him a money clip with her birthday and initials. I realize that they might not be things that they can use when they are passed down but I hope it can be a tangible memory of how much their father loved them.

I feel like she knows those boxes are pretty neat...

So excited! Actually, she looks like this 90% of the time she is awake.

Giving it to Daddy

 Helping unwrap

ECT

12.2.11

Elise's Blessing

We decided before we had Elise that would bless her (a blessing is similar to a christening where the father gives the child a blessing and her name is placed on the church records) in the States so family could attend. It was important for us to have her surrounded by people who loved her and it was beautiful. My mother made her dress (since our heirloom dress is for newborns) and her Teuscher grandparents flew in after going to our BIL graduation and at the last minute my sister piled her 3 month old in the car and pulled an all nighter to drive down from Chicago!! 

 The men who stood up with Jamie - my father, my brother, my brother in law and Jamie's father.

 The entire family

 The Teuscher Grandparents

 The Mockler Grandparents and my Sister's family

 Our family of four!!

 Happy Elise

Sister kiss

 She inherited my skill of shoving our entire fist in our mouth, so proud

 I just adored her dress, thanks Grandma!

Happy Blessing Day, Elise! 

Daddy is Home!!

We were so excited to see Jamie after 4 weeks apart, we are hoping we don't have to do that again any time soon! I wasn't sure how Hadley would respond, she can be a little shy sometimes but I was hopeful since when we would FaceTime she would insist on taking the phone to talk to Jamie and would drag the phone around wherever she was headed...even putting him in the back of her little scoot bus so she could take him with her! She would finish by kissing the screen goodnight. When he arrived she basically mauled him and would not let go. It was the sweetest thing and it is pretty accurate to say all the Teuscher girls missed him so very much and are glad to have him back!

 Attacking him!

She insisted he stay on the floor with her

 Finally let him up and lead him around showing him the house and her toys with his Welcome Home balloons in tow.

 Decided to show dad what we had been up to and took him berry picking with us

 This picture makes me melt, we were so happy to have him home. 

 Our life is better with him here.

 "noses" (eskimo kisses) before bed

Even Elise was thrilled he was home and couldn't stop smiling!

Little More Teuscher, Little Less Travel

 I am going to make an attempt at catching up, things have been crazy with the move.  I have to admit that I debated just calling it quits, it is not as though the world need one more poorly worded blog out there, but then decided I will keep trying to keep up. I love looking back and seeing what I wrote about the kids and what we did, it also is a great way to see pictures without going through all of the archives on iPhoto. So here is the next phase of the Teuscher Travels Blog - a little more Teuscher, a little less Travel.

My Favorite Things - Summer 2012

I should be catching up, but instead I decided to do a random "Favorite Things" post. I am fully aware that when people see me their thoughts are more along the lines of "that girl looks like she could use a nap..." and not "I should see if she will give out her beauty secrets!!!" but these little gems make my life just that much easier and I had to share.

Lip Stain

This discovery was life changing. When I was about 5, I remember asking my mom, who is always put together, why she wore lipstick and she responded with something along the lines of "when you are older your lips fade and need a little more color". I figured I would then have to wear lipstick when I was ancient. Apparently Ancient = 30. 

I hate lipstick. I hate the feeling, trying to find a color, wondering if it has worn off and the taste. Enter lip stain. My face does need a little more color these days and this is the perfect solution. I love this brand bc it was the most natural and just gave me some color without making me look like I ate a popsicle.

  CO Bigelow Lip Cream

Sometimes I do need some moisture, and this feels like heaven. Silky and not sticky. There is also a mint line that has peppermint oil and a tint, it is a little stickier than the lemon but it claims to freshen breath and it doesn't do a terrible job. I have this stashed in my bag for last minute touch ups.

Hair Dresser on Fire

It is a blog, not an item, but I love it. I have wavy hair and I finally decided I just need to accept and learn how to style it. This is a blog by a cute NYC stylist that gives super helpful tips for all hair types, explains hair basics (did everyone else know you weren't supposed to use a brush on curly hair?) and has some easy to do hairstyles. 

B&BW Antibac Foaming

Love these, actually had a stash brought over while in the UK, and love the new fresh fruit for summer. With the kids I don't like my hand smelling like perfume but the light fruit scent is perfect. Currently using the Fresh Picked Tangerine.

Rainbow Flip Flops

They are super comfortable and I missed them while in England. Jamie actually recommended them a few years ago, he knows all of the good summer items from living in San Diego. They are worth the extra cost and last for years.

Otter Box

I am hard on electronics, really hard. Most cheap items are safe with me, but the more expensive it is, the more likely I am to cause some kind of dramatic damage. I had an iPhone for about a month and Jamie bought this for me. It is indestructible, I think the kids that won those "drop the egg from the building" exercises must all work here. It has been sat on, dropped, chewed on and thrown and still looks perfect. I don't have to worry about Hadley watching movies on it and Jamie doesn't have to hold his breath every time I get near my phone - truly a marriage saver.

Petunia Pickle Bottom

I have come to a time in my life where "wipeable" is a desirable product trait. Doesn't hurt that I love the patterns at PPB as well. My diaper bag still looks practically new almost 2.5 years later and I love my new wallet that has the coins zippered inside so kiddos can't get to them.

Those are the favorites for now - do you have any summer faves this year? 

Austin Trip

Jamie had our good camera, so most of my photos are from my phone. They are decent quality but taking pictures of a constantly moving subject means they are a bit blurry. It has been so great to be here to adjust and spend time with my parents, they have been so generous and wonderful. We have been busy, so here is a quick snapshot of what we have been up to -

We spent time in the Pool

Lounged in the sun

Perfected our Makeup skills

So Pretty!

We learned to roll!

Spent some girl time

Hung out in the bumbo with our fat rolls, the girl has some serious junk in the trunk

Didn't want miss out on the fun

Had a picnic in Papa's media room

Grammy helped to put us to sleep

Hung out with our happy self

Hadley loves her Auntie Amber and her cousin Ryan, when he comes on the screen she says "oooh baby, sooooo cute"

Giggled with Grammy

Our first "real" hairstyle!

She kept trying to lick her pretty dress... the girl loves to put everything in her mouth. We call her a "Wide Mouth Frog", which was the nickname I had when I was her age. She is always smiling, can shove both her hands in her mouth at the same time and gives the best open mouthed kisses.

Obsessed with shoes, she even has favorites picked out of Grammy's closet

Also has a thing for hats, and insists we all wear hats with her and then chase her around yelling "gitchu!!" She is amazingly fast

And Grammy taught us to blow raspberries, and now blows them pretty much nonstop.

Only one week left, it has gone by too fast and I will definitely miss hanging out with my mom, the extra hands, dinner that just shows up and hearing gleeful "Papa!!" every night when my dad comes home. We are excited for the next phase but a stop to spend a few weeks at my parents was absolutely perfect.