Happy 2nd Birthday Dear Samantha!

This day, two years ago, after 36 hours of labor (YES, 36!), Samantha Delilah was born. She was stubborn to enter this world and has not missed a beat since! She keeps us on our toes and we think she is the cutest, smartest, wildest most outgoing and independent child we could have ever asked for.

Samantha will jump from the top of a slide to the bottom without bothering to sit down and its not uncommon to find her atop our kitchen counters dancing and jumping. She is always the filthiest of the kids when they have a play date and if she could live in a bounce house 24/7, she would be quite content.

Year 2 has already brought us nap-skipping and increased time-outs, but it's not all terrible. We also get to listen to her sing her favorite songs in her sweet Samantha voice and we can hold 2-way conversations and both understand each other.

To celebrate Samantha turning 2, we had a "Yo Gabba Gabba" themed birthday party a couple weeks ago. We decorated the house with all sorts of fun "Gabba" decorations, had a bounce house and squeezed a ton of friends and family into our little home. Both sets of Grandparents came to the party which really threw her for a loop. She kept saying, "Two Grandmas and two Papas are here." Samantha was showered with awesome gifts and lots of love. Thanks to everyone for making her 2nd birthday so special.

Here are a ton of pictures from the party:

98 Days to go!

So I just noticed the Baby Ticker on our blog is now in the double digits and I got a little bit freaked out. I rarely look at it and when I do it seems like it always says the same number as the day before. I never know what week I am in, I rely on asking my friend Marina who is due 3 weeks after me :)

Around week 20 people started to ask me when I was due (by then I was sporting a pretty noticeable bump) and I always replied, "Not until February." People always respond with, "Wow that's right around the corner!" I always shrugged that notion off and would walk away thinking we still have to get through 2009.

Well now I agree with everyone. It IS right around the corner. With the holiday season beginning and our social calendar filling up with various parties and events, 2010 is going to be here in no time.

This doesn't mean I am going to get out all of Samantha's old clothes and wash and organize them (if it is a boy he is going to look mighty cute in pink) or dig through our garage for all the necessary baby gear we saved, but it does mean that I will stop pushing it to the back of my mind and start making some to-do lists.

It's weird to think that my soon to be 2 year old will not be the only baby in the house. And it is weird to think we will be a family of five (yes we include our dog in our family count and yes I can see many of you rolling your eyes at that). I can't believe my backseat will have 3 car seats (yes, Lollipop has a car seat. More eye-rolls, I feel them).

What this does mean is that I am going to spend these next 98 days loving and cherishing even more than I already do the one on one time I have with Samantha. And it also means that I am going to spend these next 98 days loving and cherishing the uninterrupted sleep I get each night :)

2009 Fallon Family Photos

Last weekend we had our family photos taken by the fabulous Meg Fish at Padaro Lane Beach. Check out her website to see more of her beautiful work - www.megfishphotography.com

I put together a slideshow of my favorite photos from the shoot.

Cincinnati Turkey Chili

I am constantly experimenting with different chili recipes and came across this one in Cooking Light Magazine. I wasn't sure exactly what "Cincinnati" chili was and once I looked it up I was sold: A regional style of chili characterized by the use of unusual ingredients such as cinnamon, cloves, or chocolate. It is frequently served over spaghetti or as a hot dog sauce.

Go heavy on the chocolate!!!! It is so good!

From Cooking Light Magazine

4 Servings

Ingredients
4 ounces uncooked spaghetti
Cooking spray
8 ounces lean ground turkey
1 1/2 cups prechopped onion, divided
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 1/2 tablespoons chopped semisweet chocolate
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese


Preparation
1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain; set aside.

2. Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add turkey; cook 3 minutes, stirring to crumble. Add 1 cup onion, bell pepper, and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in chili powder and next 5 ingredients (through allspice); cook 1 minute. Add broth, beans, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in chocolate and salt. Serve chili over spaghetti; top with remaining 1/2 cup onion and cheese.

Little Diva

It all started with Samantha's 5 year old cousin putting makeup on her. Now I have to hide when I put on makeup or else I have to apply some to Samantha's face and she can tell when I am faking it and clear gloss won't do, she wants "more color!" As if that wasn't enough, I made the mistake of painting her toe nails the other day. Now she walks around with the nail polish saying, "Paint Samantha's nails" and only wants to wear open toed shoes so that she can see her fancy toes.

Even Daddy got suckered into doing a fresh coat of paint!

Reese Turns Two! (almost)

Little Miss Reese had her birthday party this weekend and it was so much fun. Sarah did a beautiful job with all the pink and green details, she even made Reese's outfit to match! The highlight was when Grandma Reichert (Sarah's Mom) brought out a bunch of instruments for the kids to play. Todd would say the highlight was the cupcakes (he ate 5!).

Bathtime Singing

Performing a melody of some of her favorite "show tunes": The ABC's, Old Mac Donald, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Wheels on the Bus, Dem' Bones and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Halloween Week II

We started off the weekend with more Halloween festivities. We went over to our friends the Jarchow's for their annual Pumpkin Carving Party.

All the kiddo's having dinner

Princess Serena

Pretty Kaya

The Jarchow Family (Max, Mimi, Mason and Martin)

My pretty princess carving a pumpkin with Daddy

Samantha and Jak

Todd takes pumpkin carving very seriously

Pumpkin #1

Pumpkin #2

All the pumpkins

Then on actual Halloween we headed to the Paskins (check out their blog to see the fun treats Sarah made). It was so much fun taking the kids trick-or-treating.

Gwendolyn, Connor, Reese, Sam and Bella

Mr. Incredible, Baby Dragon and Pumpkin Lady (The Stone Family)

The Bee Keeper and the Bee Hive (The Delios)

After we got home from the Paskins we got hit with a ton of trick-or-treaters. We weren't really sure if we would get any since we did not live in this area last year and we thought we would be gone most of the evening. I only bought one bag of candy and boy was that a mistake. We had to start giving away the candy that Samantha had collected earlier! As you can see from the video, Samantha was fine with the 6 or so pieces she ended up with. She kept counting them over and over.