Santa Pics

2008 Santa pic

2009 Santa pic.  Alli liked to see "Ho, Ho, Ho" from a distance, but was not all that keen on him up close.  She did not cry, but she also didn't smile!

Last Game

Suprisingly, it didn't rain for the last game of the season, so we all decided to go. A great time was had by all (except the Va Cavaliers, who lost)...

(Alli doing the TD signal)

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Happy Birthday to Us!

Chris and I both turned the big 32! We both enjoyed our relaxing birthday weekend. The Tigers even won a game for us! Alli spent time with Gi-gi and Pappy in Columbia while we relaxed and had a nice dinner at the Melting Pot Restaurant on Saturday night! It was very nice to have a date night. It was the first one we had had in some time!

Now we are off for a little more leisure time to Charleston!

Alli's First Clemson Game

We took Alli to her first Clemson football game on Saturday. She did quite well, (she even took a nap) and looked really cute in her cheerleading outfit. Of course, we watched the weather all week, and there was a very small chance for rain, but it rained anyways...darn weather people. They're the only profession I can think of that still get paid for doing a poor job. We had a good time even though it was cold and rainy!

Ahh, the weekend!

It's been a while since the last post. Between Alli & Chris, cakes, and work, I've been quite busy. Alli is looking less and less like a baby and more and more like a little girl, and acting like one too. She's 19 months going on five...according to her, there is nothing she shouldn't be able to do. She's now really good at climbing up on the furniture and kitchen chairs. She likes to sit in the big chairs at the table now. She likes to sit at the desk, go through the drawers and bang on the computer...as she was caught doing here.

Here are a few of us in all our orange before yet another disappointing, rainy Clemson game.

Last weekend, we met our friends Kay and Violet in the park in downtown Greenville. The girls had a great time together!

Alli's 18 mos Stats

Alli went for her 18 month old check up yesterday. Dr. Wilson was quite pleased/impressed with her. We are blessed with a healthy, talkative, and very active 18 month old! Unfortunately, she did have to get 3 shots, including the very important "seasonal flu shot"! She was quite the trooper and hardly even cried.
Here are her 18mos stats:
Weight: 28 lbs, 6oz- 92nd percentile
Height: 33.25 inches- 88th percentile
Head Circ: 18.5 inches- 61st percentile

Kindermusik

Alli started the Kindermusik classes this week. Kindermusik is a once a week class that introduces music to kids. It's supposed to encourage early reading, math, and reasoning skills, and self control. I just enrolled her because she loves music, all those other things, if they are true, would be a bonus! Alli's class meets at the Rock Springs Church in Easley which is quite convenient! I have been wanting to enroll her a class for a while, but the only ones I could find were during the day, and since I work, it wasn't exactly feasible. Last night was the first class. It was a little chaotic with all the kids being new to Kindermusik. Alli's class ranges from 3- 18 month olds, a 15 month old, a 16 month old, and a 12 month old. The small class is very nice. Alli was shy at first, being in a new environment and didn't really want to participate, but she warmed up quickly and turned into a huge ham dancing around stealing people's name tags. Overall, I think she's going to like the class, and all the parents seem really nice. I wish I would have had my camera! Sorry, no pics this week!

Tiger Football is BACK!!

Well, I won't say Fall is in the air, but football is definitely back in swing! So, the cool weather is sure to follow! Clemson's opener was last Saturday, and of course being the huge Clemson fans that we are, we definitely wouldn't miss it! We tailgated with our good friends, The Buzzells. It was fun to get all of our tailgating "stuff" out and dust it off. The game wasn't until 6pm, so we decided to tailgate the afternoon away! We literally "grazed" all day! Alli went to Columbia for a visit with Mimi and Papa. Since it's pretty warm here, and the game wasn't until 6, it would have been too much for her. We missed her, but it sure was nice to sleep in! Thanks Mimi and Papa. The Tigers looked pretty good for a first game out and we were definitely pleased with a win! Hopefully, we can play better tonight against Ga Tech!

Mimi and Papa must have really wore Alli out...On Labor Day, she slept in and took a 2 hr nap!

Alli conquers the chocolate covered frozen banana

Exciting news this week...Alli pee-peed on the potty Friday night!! We purchased a potty chair and sat it in our bathroom. She likes to put toys in it and pretend to flush! Before bath time, she usually just sits on it, when all of a sudden, the music went off on Friday night...I thought for sure it was a fluke, but no, she actually pee-peed!! That's probably TMI!! Yeah Alli!!

Alli has also learned to push the top clip-piece of the car seat down and wiggle her arms completely out...NICE!

We gave Alli a chocolate covered frozen "nana" as a treat the other day. Her facial expressions were priceless! She absolutely loved it! That was one cold banana!

Back from vacation!

Sorry it's been a while, but we've been on a much needed vacation! We stopped over in Birmingham, AL and visited our good friends Richard, Brea, and Riley the dog, on our way to Memphis. We only stayed 1 night with Richard and Brea, but it was very nice to catch up. We then headed to our old stomping ground~Memphis. We had a great time seeing all of our old friends and were able to meet "E" and Lia who are the same age as Alli. We were all pregnant together. The girls are all 6 weeks apart. We stayed with my old boss, Elaine. She even had a party in our honor complete with Gus's Famous Chicken, one of Chris' favorites! Alli LOVED her dog: Spencer and Spencer loved Alli too...he tried to hump her a couple of times!!! While in Memphis, we of course had the famous and wonderful Memphis BBQ, went to the Memphis Zoo (now ranked #1 in the country bc of the the giant panda bears~Ya-ya and Lee-lee), and went to a waterspray park with friends. Alli had a blast!

We then headed to Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge where we had rented a cabin with my best friend, Amy, her husband, "Officer Jeremy", and their 3 year old son, Conner. Alli and Conner had a great time together. Alli especially loved playing with Conner's collection of cars. It was nice to be able to see/catch up with Amy again. I hadn't seen Amy since Alli was 6 weeks old...she had really changed since then! Although, keeping an eye on 2 kids under 3 was quite a challenge. I assure you we were exhausted by 9pm. Unfortunately, while on vacation, Alli didn't sleep that well in her new surroundings, so ended up in the bed with us most nights...luckily it was a king size! While in Pigeon Forge we shopped, went to the Aquarium, went to a petting zoo, and took Alli on a pony ride. We had a great vacation, but are glad to be back home. Alli's finally starting to get back used to her schedule.

Here are a few pics from the trip:

Alli was enthralled with Conner's potty chair, so she got one of her very own on Monday! I think she understands what to do on it. She likes to sit on it and points at it and says: "pee-pee and poo-poo." Maybe we'll be able to start potty training early!!

First Hair Cut

Sorry it has been a while since the last post. Things have been busy at the Sielicki household lately. What have you been doing you ask...I don't have a good answer for that. It seems that we are always on the move.

Alli had her first real haircut last Friday. I've cut her bangs a few times, but with all her hair and curls, we were in need of a professional. I wasn't sure how that was going to go, but she did great. Tonia, our hairstylist at Lollipop Hair was great. She sat Alli on a carousel horse and began the spritzing. Alli liked the horsey, but wasn't fond of the spritzing, so she was given her first lollipop...boy, did she enjoy that! She sat still through the whole cut licking that lollipop. I didn't want too much cut off because I LOVE her curls and didn't want to lose them just yet. There's not too much difference...her hair just doesn't get in her eyes anymore. She even got a certificate for being brave through her first haircut!

Before After

We had a rough weekend this weekend. Alli's canines (teeth) are starting to come in, so there was much sleep lost. Hopefully, this won't last too long. I could use some sleep!

Alli's growing like a weed!

We went to the doctor yesterday for Alli's 15 mos check-up. Unfortunately, she had to get a tetanus booster shot. That's the one that always hurts the most, but she was a champ....only 1 squeal! As anticipated, she's as healthy as a horse and growing like a weed. Dr. Wilson was quite impressed with her vocabulary. She can pretty much repeat anything we say now, so we really have to watch what we say!
Here are Alli's latest stats:
Height: 32.75 in (96th percentile)
Weight: 27.25 lbs (94th percentile)
Head Circ: 18.25 in (61st percentile...still a little pea head)

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my honey, my dad, and my father-in-law! We traveled to Cola. to wish the grandpa's a Happy Father's Day on Saturday. A good time was had by all. Biy was it hot. Alli gave Chris (& me) one of the best Father's Day presents yet...she slept in until 9am!! That's the latest she has ever slept! To celebrate Father's Day, we got up and had breakfast and gave Chris his Father's Day presents...a new pair of Sperry's, a bucket (165 pieces) of double bubble bubble gum, and a stepping stone with Alli's footprint. I think he liked them all! We then went on to church and went to lunch at Brix.

After nap time, we took Alli over to Tim & Angie's for a swim...the first one of the season. She liked being in the float and playing in the "wa-wa," but she was more interested in what Bubba and Little Man (T&A's dogs) were doing. Thanks honey for being such a wonderful daddy and hubby!

On Thursday last week, after some nasty storms came through our area, Alli decided she wanted to play in the "wa-wa." Well, instead she went for the muddiest puddle she could find! As you can see she had mud from her head to her toes!!

A blow up dog...who knew?

Not too much going on at the Sielicki House these days, which is a good thing. The cake business is still steady. Alli is growing like a weed. She's almost 15 mos. She's into everything and is building quite the vocabulary. Time flies!

Alli LOVES dogs..."woof, woof" is her favorite animal sound, so when we saw this blow up dog ball pit, we knew it would be perfect! It even barks when you go through the dogs mouth, which is a tunel. As you can see, she loves it! Instead of finding a pump to blow it up, Chris decided to do it with his "hot air" (jk). He made it, but nearly passed out!

Tomorrow is Pa-pa's birthday, so we are heading to Cola town to celebrate. Happy Birthday Pa-pa!

Alli's baptism

Alli was baptized on Sunday. She was a perfect angel (she at least looked the part with her christening gown on). Both sets of grandparents came up for the special occasion, and our good friend Patilee too. While we were in front of the church, she just kept waving to the grandparents and rubbing her shoes together trying to get one off. Too cute! When the pastor sprinkled her, she swatted at her. She wasn't too fond of her head getting wet. We were really worried that she might say one of her 2 new words: "booby" or "burp". No worries though. We all came back to our house for lunch and cake!

Alli then decided she wanted to go home with my parents and spend the night. So, off she went to Columbia. Chris and I were able to clean the house, AND best of all, sleep in yesterday! I was worried my body had forgotten how to sleep in, but luckily it hadn't! Waking up at 9am was awesome! That's the one thing I miss!

Happy Memorial Day! Thanks to all of our solidiers for keeping us safe!

Here are some recent Alli pictures:

The croup...again!

We woke up at 3am yesterday morning to Alli wheezing and stuggling to breath. So, we put her in bed with us, and had the first appointment at the doctor's office yesterday. She apparently had spasmodic croup, which can be brought on by anything. We think her allergies have brought it on this time. So far, 2 doses of steroids down, and you'd never know. She's much better, and slept all night! Yay!
Chris has a week under his belt back at Bank of America. I think he likes it. It's just taking us all time to get used to this new schedule. Alli's used to daddy putting her in the car in the mornings and being home when she gets there to play (me too). Now, it's just mommy until after 6. There's nothing like cooking dinner with a toddler on your hip! I'm sure we'll get used to it!
Sorry, no pics on this entry either...I haven't had time to download pics from the camera yet. Maybe this weekend after all of the cakes.
I took on 3 cakes this weekend...what was I thinking?
By the way, I had a wonderful 2nd Mother's Day thanks to my hunny and Alli. Breakfast was yummy and I'm enjoying my new Sperrys very much!

Tummy bug & BoA

Alli went to stay at my parent's Sat.-Sun., so Chris and I got to have a date night! The first one in a long time. We did some yard work, went to a nice dinner at Sassafras in downtown G-ville, and were able to sleep as long as we wanted on Sunday...hooray for sleep! Sassafras was pretty tasty too. We recommend the pork tenderloin appetizer!
Unfortunately, Alli has not been feeling her usual chipper self this week. She's had some sort of stomach bug...fun times! I think she's starting to get back to normal. I do have to say I did enjoy her cuddling up in my lap and reading books with me the past couple of days. Normally, she's so busy, she'll only sit for a minute! Luckily, neither Chris nor I have gotten it yet. We have Lysol-d and wiped the whole house down. Hopefully, we won't! There's nothing worse than a stomach bug.
Good news at the Sielicki house...Chris is going back to work with Bank of America starting Monday! Hooray! Patience has paid off, and we all know that's not my best virtue! Thanks for all of your prayers.
The cake business is steady. I pretty much have 1 cake per weekend, which is plenty for me right now. With working full time, being a wife and mom full time, that's about all of the time I have for it. Next weekend, I have accepted 2 cakes, so we'll see how that goes! You can check out the other blog to see photos anytime!

Alli & Violet go to the Zoo

On Saturday, Alli and I met Kay and Violet at the zoo, then had lunch at Liberty Tap Room. Kay and I have been friends since middle school, and her precious Violet is about 6 weeks younger than Alli. We got back in touch through Facebook and realized how close we were, so have gotten the girls together a couple of times.
I thought it would be a good idea to see how they did in the wagon...it was Violet's 1st wagon ride. You never would have known! Alli did ok for a while, but now that she is walking, she wants to run a-muck!













Ritz cracker break












Alli lounging













The girls at lunch


We had a great day and can't wait to do it again!

Quiet week...yay!

Not much to report this week. Alli continues to crack us up at least once a day with her animated facial expressions and her "tummy sounds." She's one gassy kid. She can burp like a man...didn't get that from me! She's doing a lot talking more now although a lot is still unrecongnizeable. Although, her vocabulary is pretty big for only being 13 mos! She plays so hard that by 8pm she's done, which is nice for Chris and I.
Chris made Alli her own little chair out of some scrap wood we had in the garage this week. I think she really likes it. When she saw it, she started clapping and cheering. She'll sit in it for a bit then get up and do something else, then come back to it.
I made it through the Pokemon birthday cake and cupcakes last weekend and the 5 and 1/2 dozen cupcakes Tuesday for Relay for Life. This weekend is cake-free, and I'm kind of looking forward to it! We are meeting Kay and Violet at the zoo and for lunch Saturday. Looks like it will be great weather! We're really looking forward to it.
Chris got the luck of the draw and is on jury duty next week...lucky him! Hopefully, he won't be sequestered!! I've never been on jury duty (knock on wood). I look forward to hearing his stories!

Alli in the chair Chris made her

Easter bunny found us

The Easter Bunny came for a visit this past weekend. Luckily, he found us at Gigi and Pappy's. We headed for Columbia to spend Easter with the grands. We spent Saturday afternoon with my parents (Mimi and Papa) and spent the night with Chris' parents (Gigi and Pappy). We even did the double church thing Sunday morning...fun, fun! The Easter bunny left Alli a bunny, a book, a little chocolate rabbit, some jelly beans, some twizzler bites, and some Peeps! She must have been extra good. Alli digs Peeps! But, what's not to love with all of that marshmallowy goodness? A second molar has popped through on the top, so that brings the tooth count to 6 on top and 2 on bottom. She's been a bit cranky and clingy this week, so I'm guessing the new molar explains it.
She's really got this walking thing down pat. She only has problems on the grassy hill between Tim & Angie's and our house when she's excitedly on her way over to see Little Man or Throttle. She even tries to jump now when we put her on the neighbor's trampoline!
Alli's getting into books now. Her favorite book is "Little Quack's Bath Book." We usually read it 3 or so times each night while in the tub.
I have a cake and cupcakes due this Saturday for the side business. Things are steady, so I'm pleased. I'm also donating 4 dozen cupcakes to be sold next week for Relay for Life. So, that'll keep me busy!

Alli enjoying a Peep

Walking!

Alli is now walking like she has been walking forever! She's an old pro! Sad thing is that she doesn't really want to be held anymore. She wants to be off exploring. The even better thing is she's playing so hard and walking around soooo much that she's wearing herself out, and is sleeping hard at night. When we go in to check on her, she's hardly even moved.

We've been cutting up whatever we've been eating, and she's doing really well. We haven't found anything she doesn't like yet. I'm so glad she's not a picky eater, but I'm sure that'll change. We found out last night, that she LOVES refried beans. She loves to eat them and she even decided to wear some as moisturizer! I feel for whoever gets that diaper today! Hopefully, not me!!

Over the weekend, we put her on our neighbors trampoline. I know, all of you are thinking..."you did what?" It was actually very safe. They have a net that is attached all the way around it, so she couldn't fall off, and there were like 6 of us standing all around her. She really loved it. The neighbor got on with her and bounced her a little.

Gigi came up on Saturday and had Alli's pictures made with her christening gown on. She wasn't very fond of having her pictures taken. I'm not sure if it was her teeth or the fact that the photographer had zero personality...probably a combination of both. He did get some good shots in-between fussing. Here are a few pics:

Sweet, huh?

I did my first cake for the business...the lady wanted a monkey face for her son's first birthday. I think it came out pretty good. She seemed pleased, and has already asked me to do her daughter's b-day cake and a baby shower cake! So, things are looking good. You can see it at: www.homemadebyhope.blogspot.com
We hope everyone has a wonderful Easter!

A side business

I've finally gone and 'dun' it! I've been mulling for a while over whether or not to start baking/decorating cakes on the side for some extra money. And guess what? I have my first cake this weeknd! I'm so excited, yet a little nervous. It's one thing baking for family and friends for free...it's another baking for a paying customer. I have started advertsing a little, and have had a pretty good response, so we'll see where this takes us. I'm working on another blog for the business, so you can check out my progress: www.homemadebyhope.blogspot.com Any comments would be welcome!
On to Alli...she's something else! She's gaining more and more confidence day-by-day and walking further distances all by herself. She's talking more and more...some we understand, other we don't. She's eating whatever we eat now! No more baby food and has moved over to whole milk in a sippy cup (except for at bedtime). You can't really call her a baby anymore (except she's MY baby!).
Now that we've joined a church, she will be baptized at First Pres. Greenville on May 24th. Her Gigi was so excited, she bought her christening gown already. We tried it on her the other night, and she looks like a little angel...the bonnet will cover up her horns...jk :-) She's going to have her picture made in it this weekend...let's hope it stays white!
Alli went from having 2 teeth on the bottom to having almost 7 now in 2-3 weeks! She's even working on a molar...no wonder she's been cranky recently!
That's all the news from the Sielicki household for now.

A lot of "firsts" this week

Over the weekend, we took Alli to the Greenville Zoo for the first time...I think she liked it, but probably would have enjoyed it more had she had more sleep Friday night. She's been waking up during the night fussing for almost 2 weeks now. We think she's having bad dreams. She's been such a great sleeper, so hopefully this too will pass.

Now that the weather has gotten warmer, Chris put Alli's swing up on the swing set in the back yard. She wasn't so sure about it, but is getting more used to it. (It also happened to be St. Patrick's Day, hince the shirt.)
We also took her to Bruster's Saturday for some ice cream. Even though it was her first ice cream experience, she knew exactly what to do. They have "baby cones" for the little ones...heck, she was done with that baby cone by the time Chris and I got ours and was ready to dig in. Alli LOVES ice cream! (Chris got a picture on his phone...will post later).

Over the weekend, Alli decided she would let go and start walking on her own! Yea Alli! She's been so close for so long. She's been doing the cruising thing for 2-and a half months. This of course means...we're in trouble now! Thank goodness for baby gates, which we still need to purchase! She's now all about pushing the stroller instead of riding in it too!

We had a busy week/weekend! We also joined First Presbyterian Church in Greenville. Alli will be baptized next month.

We took Alli to the doctor this morning for her 1-year-check-up. Dr. Wilson said she was exceptional, (but we weren't suprised :-). He especially liked her showing him "scrubby-scrubby." This is when she rubs her belly likes she's washing at bath time. She had to have her finger pricked for the first time today and also got 3 vaccines. She was none too thrilled about that, but was a trooper. Here are her 1-year stats:

weight: 24.4 lbs (89th percentile)

height: 30.5 in. (85th percentile)

head circumference: 18 in. (65th percentile)

One healthy kid...thank the good Lord!

Happy 1st Birthday Alli!

Alli, Chris, and I were blessed to have so many come to wish Alli a Happy 1st Birthday! It was definitely a day that we will remember for a long time!

Alli definitely enjoyed opening all the presents. She especially loved the bows and paper!

The cake was yummy too!

All in all, it was a wonderful day! Thank you for being a part of Alli's special day!

(More photos below!)