Happy New Year!

May 2009 bring you moments of peaceful contemplation...

... balanced with a healthy dose of hollerin'.

Post-holiday workout

You know how it is.  You eat too many of Mom's spritz cookies and chocolate-covered toffees over the holidays and before you know it you have a roll of jelly in your belly.  But do not despair!  The very healthy and fit Ivy will lead you through a series of exercises to help you firm up and regain your pre-December shape:

Step One: Stretch.  Touch your toes and chew on a mini-barbell.  Count to 8.  Feel the burn, babies.  Release.  Repeat on other side.

Step Two: Biceps.  Turn a spinning wheel or similar device round and round until your pipes begin to steam.  Stop and reverse the direction.  Do this as many times as possible or until your mother realizes that you're messing up her spinning at which time your attention will be diverted to a pile of blocks in the middle of the living room floor.

Step Three: Agility and strength training.  Ask your father to hold a small length of rope in front of you, grab it with both hands and scale it to his shoulders.  This exercise is particularly useful when preparing for the President's Physical Fitness test. (OMG, history buffs, check out the first chair of the President's Council on Physical Fitness.  No wonder I've always been suspicious of this annual gym class torture.)

Step Four: Cool down.  End your workout by raising your hood over your head and take a cheerful crawl around the dining room.  Then head on down to the locker room and hit the showers and sauna.

(Ivy's workout wardrobe courtesy of Grandma Pauline, Aunt Christine and Grandpa Frank)

Ivy's first Christmas

Ivy made her entire family's Christmas a happier one this year.  We traveled to my parents' house in Cochrane and Ivy spent her first night away from home at her grandparents' house on Christmas eve.  She was an angel and, even though I don't have any photos to document the memorable experience, she wore the red dress that I wore for Christmas when I was 0ne.  My mom made this special dress and my grandma tatted the beautiful lace trim that enhances the collar and cuffs.  I repeatedly broke into tears when I realized that Ivy was embraced by the creativity of her grandma and great-grandma.  We went to a sweet service at the Hope UCC church that Ivy's great-grandparents attended and she was met by all the love and support of my precious hometown.  Ivy spent most of her time over the holidays on her grandparents' laps and I kept slathering her cheeks with Markie's Amazing Beeswax & Olive Oil moisturizer every time she turned her sweet (and very dry!) face towards me.  This explains the wet-duckling look that she has in most of her photos from the past 48 hours.

This has been the happiest Christmas I've ever had.  Special thanks to my parents who ensured that my sister and I have pleasant memories of Christmas when we were children.  They've helped us be the best parents possible and I look forward to creating holiday traditions for our own little girl.

Working on a building

Kevin's wonderful (and very cool) colleagues at the Max Kade Institute and the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures recently held a welcome home party for Ivy on the coldest day of the season.  Ivy fell in love with everyone and enjoyed her time with all the Germans, linguists and folklorists.  I think that we might have a trilingual child in our house if these folks have their way.  She received many thoughtful presents: a stuffed penguin, a luscious fleece blanket, a Target gift card, and  Professor Cora Lee and Herr Christian Kluge gave Ivy a fantastic Christmas present - a very hip Brio block set that matched her party outfit.  There are many blocks in this set and Ivy is still having fun unpacking the box and putting each one in her mouth.  I think this shows that she's already working on her very early math skills.

Special thanks to Antje and Grant for hosting the party and opening your warm & sunny home and hearts to Ivy.  She'll be back to sit on your laps and to play with your Birkenstocks.

With love to St. Paul

We are sending stacking cup-loads of love to St. Paul this morning and are whispering the names Bill and Connie as each snowflake flutters past our windows.  We are sending everyone in the Falvey family peaceful and loving thoughts on this December day and I'm envisioning Deacon Bill sitting down to a feast of coconut ice cream, plates and plates of chocolate cake and as many cookies and sweet treats as the angels are able to hold in their winged embrace.

Love,

Kevin, Shawn and Ivy

Ivy's turn to post

Editor's note: Given that I'm buried by loads of adorable laundry that need folding and baby bottles that need scrubbing, I've asked Ivy to say a few words about what her life has been like for the past 3 weeks.

Dear Fans,

It is I, IVY!, and I have a few things to say.  Namely:

1. I like squash.  And sweet potatoes.  And carrots.  I'm on a total beta-carotene kick right now and can see like, forever, in the dark.
2. I like naps during the day.  Sleeping at night is for wimps.  I really must stay up and catch The Daily Show and The Colbert Report to know what's going ON in the world. (My darn parents, though, cramp my style, man.  They insist on a "schedule" and an "appropriate" "bedtime."  Life begins AFTER 7pm, Dudes!  Seriously...)
3. Cats are awesome.  Especially the chubby one who sleeps on the radiator all day.
4. I look fabulous in red.  Violet, too.
5. My father totally cracks me up when he lightly tosses the soft balls that Amy hand-knit at my tummy and toes.  Ah, he has stolen my heart.
6. Mother is a push-over.  All I have to do is show her my neck that needs kissing and she totally melts and allows me to do whatever I please.  (I shall add this bit of information to my Book of Schemes.)
7. I have been outside a grand total of 6 times since arriving in Madison.  Each time I am completely smothered by a "snow suit" and "shawl" and have yet to glimpse more than two seconds of Wisconsin sky.  I am told that I shall see the out-of-doors in May.  Until then, I shall remain indoors where I am very content with the books and quiet toys that my parents purchased for me and very, VERY content with the loud toys that my cousins (bless them!) have shared with me.
8. I like pounding on things, `kay?  It's how I roll.
9. My teething companion, Yummy Bug, is the most faithful and cheerful companion a 9 1/2 month old baby could ever have.
10. Facial moisturizers are for geezers like my mother.  I must KEEP it REAL and rebel every time I'm slathered in all-natural balms and ointments.  (Unfortunately this happens several times a day.)  With all the fuss about "delicate skin" one would think that my parents would take a break from all the kissing.  And face-washing after all the above-mentioned squash meals.
11. And finally... I've started pulling myself up in my crib.  Ha!  The world is mine!

That is all for now, Dear Friends.  I intend to drop in now and then to monitor the progress of this weblog and make sure that my parents are not sharing any embarrassing stories about me.  Things are pretty great here and I've settled into my new digs.  The three of us are a happy little family.

Love,

Ivy Kestrel

A day at the office

So, you know how it is.  You wake up and eat some oatmeal, play with your blocks and practice standing for about 2 hours, take a nap for an hour, wake up, eat some lunch and then head out to the office where you immediately take off your socks in order to face a 60-minute work day.  Well, Ivy made it to the office last week and visited all her friends at the South Central Library System who have been patiently waiting to meet her for the last several months.  Her friends from the Wisconsin Library Association in the office down the hall stopped in to say hello and we promise that we'll return soon so Phyllis and Rose can meet her, too.  Ivy was very social and showed everyone how great she is at crawling.  She sat in a few laps and examined everyone's shoes.  Kerri and Lisa won the prize for having the most interesting shoes and Jean won the prize for having the most interesting mouth:

And Orlando Bloom won the prize for having the most wistful gaze.

I was relieved to discover that I had very few voice mails and that my in-box hadn't collapsed.  It was great to see all my friends at work who have been so supportive of all three of us throughout our adoption journey.