Zebra-Giraffe

Grace knows what a zebra looks like and 10 out of 10 times, when shown a photo of one she will say, "zee-ba." Grace knows what a giraffe looks like and 9 out of 10 times when shown a photo of one she will say, "zee-ba." This is new. She use to identify correctly. I can only surmise that, in a move of pure ironic genius, she formally named her stuffed giraffe Zebra; you know, how people call super huge biker dudes "Tiny."

Merry Christmas to All!

Merry Christmas to all! Our day has been filled with lots of love and time with local friends. We got up, unwrapped presents with Grace which was a quite a bit of fun. Brad and Jessie came over for eggs benedict, monkey bread, and mimosas...YUM. Then we were off to church where we got a good family photo. My pregnant belly is definitely showing that I'm not far from my due date and ready to deliver baby number two! Scott is currently prepping appetizers and desserts for our dinner over at the neighbors house while Grace eats lunch.

Grace was absolutely spoiled this year, which was not a surprise to either Scott or I. She received some great toys and clothes from many loved ones. She loves her new toy train, play hut, dolls and clothes.

We hope you all have a special day, like we have had this Christmas and wish you all a happy and safe new year!

Denver Dialing

Normally, we spend Christmas in Denver with Sarah's family.  As Sarah is 8.9 months pregnant, we thought it better to be a little closer to home this year.  Video chatting only mimics the real thing, even so, it was great to see the family.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Eve Lunch

Even at 9 months pregnant, Sarah is working - her last full day that is.  I took Grace to meet Sarah for lunch.  It was a beautiful day so we headed to the water for a stroll in Steilacoom, a sleepy little town with a lot of history and a great view of the Narrows and the Olympic Mountains.  We hadn't intended to have as much fun as we did, and so didn't have the camera, but the phone captured a few of the moments well enough.  We even had another couple take a family photo.  Can't imagine a better Christmas Eve lunch.

Coffee & Santa

Today Grace visited Santa for the first time.  One of Sarah's friends runs a coffee shop near our house and arranged for Santa to drop in near midday.  We were excited about this as we didn't have to fight the crowds at the mall AND, even better, we had a time slot - so no waiting in line.  

Grace is a little leery of strange people so we spent the morning trying to get her excited about the concept of Santa.  We got her repeating his name and recognizing him in photos.  While en route, she must have said, "Santa." fifty times.  We thought we had succeeded in our mini brainwashing maneuver.  Unfortunately, as soon as we got within 5 feet of Santa, the shy Grace quickly came out, and there would be no going quietly into a stranger's lap.  Ultimately Sarah had the good fortune of sitting in Santa's lap, and Grace sat with Sarah.  

Unfortunately, Grace does know how cute she is.

We don't have the Santa photos as of yet - the photographers didn't offer an electronic version.  They make money off the prints you know.  Even so, we did get a few photos of Grace and Mom hanging around the coffee shop.  Tartan dresses, emerald scarves, muffins & cappuccinos, oh so cosmopolitan.....

Grace works on a blueberry muffin while Mom enjoys a mocha. 

Grace's first Candy Cane.  She devoured it.

More photos at Picasaweb - Christmas 2011

Family Portrait

This is the time of year we give and receive family portraits printed on card stock or photo paper, sent as annual Christmas greetings.  A month or so ago, I got ahold of a magnetic drawing pad for a few minutes and sketched out our family.  Isn't it awesome!?  Soon, Mom's belly will be smaller and we will have a fourth Templin in the future sketches.  Here's to hoping all your Christmas gifts will be half as good as ours...

Preparations

Here we sit, just 1 month and 1 day from the expected arrival of our second child.  Of course, for those of you following at home, Sarah delivered a bit early last time, two weeks to be exact - and as such we had a little scrambling to do once the contractions started.  This time around we are going to be fully prepared.  Fool me twice... as the saying goes.  Today Sarah and I made several changes to the house.  As you can see above, two sets of diapers, below, the infant carseat has been officially prepositioned, and furniture arranged both in the nursery and master bedroom as appropriate.  These are just a few of the physical manifestations of the preparations that have been occurring over the past weeks and months.  Other preparations not so outwardly obvious have been, and will continue to occur right up until delivery.  Later, Sarah and I have a date to finalize our labor and delivery plan of action and then to practice our labor breathing and coaching techniques.  It's so much more interesting than dinner and a movie...

The infant carseat loaded and ready to go next to Grace's.   

Although she has no idea how much her life is about to change, 

Grace helps move the glider from the nursery to the bedroom

Wok & Roll

The two most beautiful ladies in the wold making dinner. Grace works on her original creation of "stir fried air" while Sarah cooks som veggies.

Visit to Pets Mart

I just picked up Scott from the airport after a weekend in Denver. My father/grandpa decided last minute to also fly out here from Denver an hour after Scott. He's been going through some Grace withdraw. So we decided to stop at Pets Mart to kill some time by the airport before we pick up grandpa. Grace spit up on her clothes she was wearing so she got to put on the brand new Christmas dress grandma sent home with Scott.

Utensils: No Problem

 Here's to my 3rd post in one day. Nothing like getting caught up on things I've been trying to do for weeks. I love my husband and our time together, but every once in awhile I cherish the time when he is out of town and I can be overly productive. Scott is in Denver, eating dinner with my family as we speak. He's there for the weekend meeting up with several buddies for a bachelor's party, and once again, gets to spend quality time with my family while I'm at home. I won't complain too much, Grace and I are getting some quality time together, and this pregnancy thing is getting a bit too tough to fly. Six more weeks until my due date and counting.

Tonight Grace and I had some veggie pizza and finished off with some fruit, kiwi's to be exact, one of Grace's favorite foods. We are working on the use of utensils, and like most other new things, she's a pretty quick learner. Not too messy and pretty efficient. Every day I think to myself "she's getting so big and so much more independent."

Puppy Love

Grace LOVES Porter. Porter simply tolerates Grace. The only time he really shows an interest in her is when she's got his ball when trying out her throwing arm while playing fetch. Overall, our dog is great with our daughter. What can you expect when an 18 month old repeatedly says your name, chases you around the house, wakes you from slumber, and occasionally pulls your hair or delivers an extra forceful love pat?

Now enter Gus, our neighbors new puppy. He genuinely takes an interest in Grace, following her as she moves from place to place and constantly wanting to play. Grace loves it and we get to hear her say "Puppy!" in the most enthusiastic voice! I'm sure he appreciates someone his own size, too. We get to visit Gus often which Scott and I enjoy. Nothing like getting to hang out with a puppy again, although this time without having to worry about the potty training and other responsibilities. Oh wait, we've got kids now, even harder!

Thanksgiving: The Easy Way

 Thanksgiving was a bit different this year than in the years past for the Templin household. There was no traveling to be with family and I had to work the entire week. The thought of putting together an elaborate feast was a bit overwhelming to say the least. But we ended up spending the holiday with our dearest friends Brad and Jessie, and the newest addition to their family, Gus, a black lab puppy. Grace and Gus get along quite well, and together they are just about the most adorable things to watch.
To make the holiday even better, we took the work out of it. Never thought I'd do it, but we ordered the entire meal pre made and cooked, we just had to stick in all in the oven and rewarm. The meal came complete with an 11lb turkey, yams, cranberry sauce, green beans/carrots, stuffing, gravy, rolls, and pumpkin pie. It was delicious!
We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and feel as blessed as we do to have so many wonderful loved ones in our lives!