PLCA - San Diego!!

Jonathan had a convention for work in San Diego this past week. An entire week sans kiddos... ahhhhhhh.;) We had a great time!! This convention rotates among three places every year, so we did San Diego three years ago. Of course besides shopping (and the spa), we hit different spots this year. One of the cutest, trendiest places we ate at was George's in La Jolla. Pics below.

I also ordered breakfast in bed EVERY morning while Jonathan tended to work meetings. Ohhh, how nice that was... (Back to reality). I also met some of Jonathan's new colleagues who work in Houston. LOVE, love those guys and their wives!! They were so much fun, and I can't wait to see them again soon. In fact, a few of us (including the Hartels) are attending one of their weddings in Cabo this May.

Forrest & Jonathan

(Did I mention Forrest & Maurie went to LA for a few days after our San Diego trip??! They were there last night - the Oscars!! Earlier in the day, she saw Isaac Mizrahi and Ellen Pompeo while shopping. I'm SURE she will see more celebs over the next few days. Jealous!!
Ok, so before I posted this, Maurie has been keeping me updated with who she has seen... a laundry list of stars!! M & F ate across from the Vanity Fair after-party and spotted Sandra Bullock, P Diddy, Rachel Zoe, Tina Fay, Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller ---- AND the list goes on! Tonight they had dinner at Lisa V's restaurant (Real Housewives of BH) and because I'm especially jealous, I had to post the pic!:) I'm so regretting not staying the few extra days!!

Back to the conference....

Friends & New Friends

Maurie and I with Raj's fiance and Shuller's wife (Raj's fiance, Sierra, across from me; Shuller's wife, Margie, in yellow). We had a great time with them!!

Jonathan and I at one of the dinners (If I look big, it is because I am!! Post coming soon re that........!)

Most of the "guys"- Jonathan, Jared, Jonathan, Forrest, Raj & Joel

If you happen to notice, I wore the same dress to Zeus... events within a week of one another. Yes, I do that these days... Any way to convince Jonathan I need a new dress --- I get two wears out of it back-to-back!! No shame!!

AND I just do have to mention (so that Cecilia can reference this in the future)... When we got home, Cecilia was no doubt excited. So excited. BUT that rascal was more excited to see, guess who, DADDY! Excuse me!! Who takes care of you every single day??? That would be me, Mommy. C is such a Daddy's girl!!

Krewe of Zeus

A few nights before our recent trip, we went to Zeus with Maurie and Forrest Hartel. Zeus is the primary (well, only) Mardi Gras krewe in Hattiesburg. As sad as I was not to participate on the Coast, at least I got a little Mardi Gras fun in!!

C's Developmental Clinic... at Home!

Cecilia had another developmental assessment today by consultant, Terri Daniels, from the Forrest General Hospital NICU. She had her first assessment at the hospital at 8 months old and scored 11/11!! Today was her follow-up. We missed the scheduled visit at the hospital, so the consultant graciously agreed to come by our home. And before I give the results, must I say how awesome this consultant is - She has published neonatal clinical materials which are being used in 16 countries and currently provides clinical training for pediatric healthcare professionals. She also directs a recreational camp for children and adults with cognitive disabilities... so basically, she's seen it all. And while I'm boasting about all the wonderful resources right here in Hattiesburg (who knew!?!), I have to say how fabulous our FGH NICU is. I never knew what a resource we had here in our facility and renowned neonatologists until I had to use their services. A few quick facts about the FGH NICU are below.;)
*The FGH NICU has been dedicated to serving their smallest of patients since 1976.

*The new expansion of the NICU will allow from 9 to now 23 state-of-the-art beds.

*The lowest birth-weight baby treated at the FGH NICU was 14 oz. This child is now 21 years old, active and healthy.

*The FGH NICU admits approximately 250 newborn babies per year, with an average length of stay of 17 days. This beats the national average by one week.

*The FGH NICU gets over 60 transfer newborn babies from across the state of Mississippi and surrounding areas.

(I should work part-time in their marketing dept. Ha).

Anyway, Cecilia passed with flying colors!! We were supposed to attend next month's FGH NICU assessment, but after today, Terri said she has "graduated" from the NICU. She no longer needs to come for follow-up visits and is doing wonderfully. We emailed a bit after the visit and she said "Cecilia's development is perfect. Solid. Milestones are all in place, quality of skills is EXCELLENT, progressing beautifully, no concerns."

YAY for our sweet baby!! Below is a picture after the busy morning of performing her "tricks" for Terri. And check out that hair!!

Moving Day!!

Things have been crazy lately, and we just got back up and running in our new home... so I can finally hop on the computer before bed. We found this super cute, fun house a couple months ago, and things happened fast. After praying and... thinking, we were packing up boxes before we knew it. I am sad to leave the home we built and first moved in after we got married. That was also where we brought our sweet Cecilia home to. We will also miss our wonderful neighbors!!!!:(

Now for the continued unpacking... while watching Cecilia. Fun, fun. Fortunately, Jonathan's family has been a HUUUGE help, and we got a lot done this weekend.

Just a few random pics from moving day...

Our movers. Who knew Nick's Ice House had professional movers!! Well, they do and they did a GREAT job.

MDO!!

I finally gained the confidence to register Cecilia in a Mother's Day Out program, even though I'm at home with her. They opened a new class, and we got a spot! Yay! She needs to be around other children more and get those normal kiddie germs! Of course, I can't help but like those few hours of "me" time as well. I totally forgot to get a quick snap of her before I left the church, but luckily my friend Maurie was able to capture this after she dropped off Ella to the class next door.

Overall, Cecilia did fine for her first day. She got a little fussy, but she probably did better than I did. I went home and fought back tears until I picked her up (30 mins early). I know once she gets adjusted she will love it (and so will I) --- says all the Moms who are pros at this. Let's hope we are adjusted sooner than later!