The Landek Family

Ellie's Christmas List

2011-09-22T13:23:00.001-07:00

Even though it's the first day of Fall, Ellie just made her Christmas list. She informs me that there are 7 items. Here they are, verbatim:
“I need a new toy pot.”
“The second present is we need a new field journal.”
“Okay, games. That’s three.”
“Craft stuff!”
“How about a mermaid salon! It’s got lots of pretty stuff to make you pretty!”
“Barbies is number 6 present.”
“Okay, number seven. Can I have some new blocks? That’s all for my Christmas list.”

Rough Calculation Fail

2011-01-15T14:30:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to run a phone cable from the basement up to the dining room. The problem is I have to drill through the floor to get there. The second problem is there are NO references in the basement as to where the wall is so I can drill on the other side. After taking countless measurements, I finally drilled a pilot hole. My degree of confidence was about 70%. After waiting a week, I decided to just drill the hole and get over my fear. After I drilled through, I put a coat hanger up the hole. I then went up to the dining room with a flashlight to see if I could see the hanger through the hole in the wall. Here is what I saw when I walked into the room:

Finn, Walking and Talking

2010-09-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

I promised a few of you a good video of Finn walking, and this is it. He started walking a few weeks ago, and has gotten so much faster and steadier already! This video was taken last Sunday, playing with bubbles. Enjoy!

What We've Been Up to Lately

2010-08-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

The Landeks have been busy bees this summer! Here are a few highlights from the past couple months:

Ryan recently got a new job! He's still working at the University of Chicago, but has moved from the OB/GYN department to the Surgery department. His new job offered a bump in salary and position, and he is now a manager. He's getting some glowing reviews from coworkers, and I'm so proud!

I (Molly) have recently secured my own job (as if being a mom isn't enough work!). I'm now working for Gk2Gk.com, approving member photos and profiles. It's a job that I can do from home while the kids are watching TV or napping, which is great!

In June, I was elected Secretary of the Munster MOMS Club. For those not familiar with this organization, MOMS Club is an international non-profit organization with chapters all over the country. We do playdates, fun outings for the kids, and Moms' Night Out events. We also participate in various service projects throughout the year. I've been in MOMS Club for almost a year now, and really enjoy it. I've made friends, Ellie has made friends, and having the support network has been great. It's also been nice to get more involved in our community, as putting down roots in Munster is very important to us as a family. Plus, hosting playdates motivates me to clean the house! (Kidding! Okay, not really.)

But on to what you're REALLY interested in reading about... the kids!

Ellie has had a good summer, filled with playdates and pool visits. Our little fish just loves swimming! Grandma and Papa Landek have a pool, so Ellie has gotten to swim quite a bit this summer, and has a tan that would make Miss Hawaiian Tropic jealous! We're very lucky that Ellie has no shortage of relatives on the Boyle side of the family, because it means that Ellie always has a willing swimming buddy.

Ellie had a great birthday in July. She got loads of cool stuff, and is already talking about next year's birthday.

At the beginning of August, Grandma Mouginis came to visit. Grandma took Ellie on her first carousel ride (our local mall has a full-sized carousel in it!). Grandma and Ellie are good buddies, reading books together, taking naps together, and making a trip to the Munster pool that was so memorable Ellie is still talking about it!

Here's Ellie on a recent trip to the Chicago Botanic Garden:

Ain't she cute?

Finn is busy ~~walking~~ almost walking. Seriously, I've been saying, "He'll be walking any day now!" since he was 8 months old, and here we are at nearly 15 months, and we get a step or two here and there. Whoever said that second children learn faster than first children was a filthy liar, LOL. (For the record, Ellie walked at 14.5 months.) However, just like big sister, he has made huge verbal strides, if not actual strides. Words and phrases he says:
Dog
Cat
Mom
Dad
TV ("TD!")
Num-nums
Baba
"All gone" (usually in the form of "TD all gone!")
Today when we opened a book, he said, "Let's see." ("Wessee.")

There are others that I can't think of right now. Because that's always the way... sit down to write about all the cool stuff your kid can do, and you can't remember a darn thing. *sigh*

Finn is also finally getting the hang of solid food, and has realized that McDonald's cheeseburgers are FAR superior to baby food. His current favorite foods are strawberry newtons, cheese, bananas, animal crackers, and goldfish. He tried some of Sister's noodles at lunch today and loved them. We Landeks love our carbs.

Like Ellie, Finn has had a good summer. He's made some friends in the MOMS Club, we've gone swimming several times (he loves the water!), and he had his first birthday! Here's a pic of him ~~enjoying~~ tolerating a cupcake:

Ohhh! And we think he may be a southpaw, like his Daddy! How cool is that?!

Well, there's a "Real Housewives of DC" calling my name, so that's about it for now. Hope you've enjoyed the Landek summer recap. :)

My, how time flies!

2010-08-11T09:38:00.000-07:00

It seemed like just yesterday I was posting about how I planned to post more often. But check out the date on that last post... October 2009! Holy cow! I am a blog slacker!

In my defense, I've been pretty busy, what with the newborn-turned-infant-turned-almost-toddler, and the toddler-turned-almost-preschooler.

I am determined to update this family blog more frequently, though. Both to keep our family apprised of our goings-on, and to record some of the touching, smart, and funny things our kids say and do.

You may notice that the blog has a new look. I've been playing around with the background, which hopefully is cute but doesn't make anyone's eyes bleed. As always, the link to our Shutterfly site is on the right. The site is password-protected. Let me know if you'd like to become a member. Members can upload their own pics (great for those camera-wielding aunts and grandmas!), comment on pictures, and a whole bunch of other things that I can't remember right now. But trust me, being a member is cool.

I've also linked to everyone's Amazon wish lists, because people always want to know what the kids are into these days. This year I've separated the kids into two separate wish lists, because their tastes are now diverging into "little girl" and "little boy." And I've been nagging Ryan to update his Amazon list, as well, because he's one of those hard-to-shop-for types.

And that's about it. Stay tuned for new pics and updates about the kids!

Family Updates!

2009-10-09T06:00:00.000-07:00

2009 has been a busy year in our house. So much so that we sort of forgot about this blog.

Our biggest news is that our son Finn was born on June 2, weighing a very healthy 8 pounds, 2 ounces and measuring 21 inches in length.

The following month we celebrated Ellie's 2nd birthday. Hard to believe she's two already! The past year has just flown by as we've watched Ellie go from a non-walker to a walking, talking toddler. Like all two-year-olds, Ellie is going through a bit of the Terrible Twos. She's opinionated, dramatic, and downright fabulous.

On September 12, Ellie got to be a flower girl in Uncle Matt and Aunt Ashley's wedding.

Ryan was a groomsman, and I was a bridesmaid. It was a lovely ceremony and reception, and we're happy to welcome Ashley into our family!

Unfortunately, September ended on a bit of a sour note. Wrigley had a partial tear of his CCL (the dog version of the ACL), and has been recuperating for the past several weeks. He spends all his time in his crate or on his leash, so that he doesn't further injure his leg. Poor dog just wants to run out in the yard like he used to!

And of course I couldn't have a baby without having an organ removed afterward, because that seems to be my thing. This time, it was my gallbladder. I had surgery a few days ago, and am now on the mend, although I have to stick to a modified diet for a while.

And finally, Finn will be baptized on October 18th at Saints Peter and Paul in Naperville. This is the church in which we were married and Ellie was baptized, so this is very exciting and special for us. Finn will be wearing the baptismal outfit that his daddy, uncles, and Papa wore.

We do still keep up with our Shutterfly site, although you need to be approved on our account to view our pictures. Please let me know if you'd like to become our Shutterfly friend!

Oh, and because we're nearing Christmas, it's time once again for the shameless plug of our Amazon wish lists. You can find those on the right.

Happy Fall, everyone!

Ellie's second Christmas

2008-12-26T14:12:00.001-08:00

(The first one she kind of knows whats going on)

Happy Fall, Cute kid, and dog tug-o-war

2008-10-15T12:02:00.000-07:00

I haven't actually posted any news lately, so here we go:
Ellie had her 15 month checkup last week. Doc says she looks great. Height: 31 inches. Weight: 24 pounds, 5 oz. That puts her in the 75th percentile for both height and weight.

Wrigley is in his 4th week of puppy class. If you ask me, he's the star pupil.

Oh, and Ellie *might* be a ladybug for Halloween... that is, if we can get the costume on her. So far, every time we've tried, she ends up screaming. She's terrified of the thing. *shrug*

Meet Wrigley

2008-08-30T15:49:00.000-07:00

Check out more pictures of him on our Shutterfly site.

Ellie's first year: the slideshow

2008-08-11T09:19:00.000-07:00

We worked our butts off to get this cute slideshow together in time for Ellie's birthday party... and then forgot to show it to everyone. So without further ado, here it is.

Fun with fingerpainting... sort of

2008-05-29T16:16:00.000-07:00

We tried fingerpainting for the first time today.

Starting out

She seems to be diggin' it

A masterpiece

"Okay Mom, I'm done now"

Getting a little cranky

And then it all went horribly wrong

Oh well, there's always a bib to be eaten

You can see more Ellie pics at our Shutterfly site:
landekfamily.shutterfly.com

Password: Landekpics

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T05:49:00.001-07:00

Are you serious?

I can't believe you people are making me wear these stupid ears.

Okay, you get one smile, but I'm not gonna like it.

Ellie Go Bragh

2008-03-12T14:32:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Landeks!

More laughing

2008-02-21T13:07:00.000-08:00

She loves it!

Ellie's 6-month checkup

2008-01-17T11:45:00.001-08:00

Height: 27.5"
Weight: 19 pounds, 11 oz.

Doctor says she looks great. She's sitting up really well. He said we can try meat, and we can also try using a sippy cup.

Here's a fun picture of a recent staticky hair day.

Green Beans Are Yummy!

2008-01-06T17:36:00.000-08:00

We've started Ellie on solid foods. So far she's tried rice cereal (eh), oatmeal (eh), peas (eh), bananas (yum!), applesauce (yum!), and green beans (yum!). She also likes oatmeal jazzed up with applesauce. Here's just a sample. More pics in our flickr.

Ellie's First Fauxhawk

2008-01-06T17:34:00.000-08:00

She's a rockin' chick.

Mommy's New Toy

2008-01-01T16:00:00.000-08:00

The Nikon d80 digital SLR. Awww yeah, baby! I don't even know how to use the thing, but it takes some good pics just on autofocus. Head over to our flickr page to the "Peanut Month 6" photo set to see more.

Ellie Laughing

2007-12-26T11:41:00.000-08:00

She's laughed for her mom and her dad but she thinks her great grandparents are far funnier:

Ellie's 5 months old!

2007-12-14T08:30:00.001-08:00

I tried taking pictures of her on her 5-month birthday. Out of 60-some pictures, not a good one in the bunch. But we did get a good chuckle out of a few of them. So here are some of the highlights... er, I mean, lowlights.

P.S. I swear there was no booze in her bottle!

Ellie's 4 months old!

2007-11-14T06:57:00.000-08:00

She had her 4 month pediatrician's appointment yesterday, and wow, is she big!
Length: 26 inches
Weight: 17 pounds, 10 ounces
The doc said she's "off the charts," and that her weight is perfect for her length.
She hated the shots, but did better than last time.

Jump around, jump around...

2007-11-06T17:19:00.000-08:00

Ellie + Jumparoo = Fun!

Finally diggin' the tummy time!

2007-11-01T09:35:00.001-07:00

For more tummy time pics, see our flickr page!

Happy Fall, everyone!

2007-10-21T08:28:00.001-07:00

One year ago today...

2007-10-21T06:27:00.000-07:00

We got married!

She's three months old!

2007-10-12T05:16:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple videos...

All I want for Christmas...

2007-10-10T18:59:00.000-07:00

People keep asking us what they should get us for Christmas. (Really, you people do your shopping this early?!) To the left, I put links to our Amazon wish lists, in case you don't feel like searching for them. Note: this is not a shameless gift request! Just a convenience thing for my MIL (Hi, Meg!) who is a wish list fanatic. :)

A picture is worth a thousand words

2007-10-10T18:53:00.001-07:00

I really don't know what to say about this, other than that it cracks me up. I call it, "Asleep on Mom's Lap."

Ellie likes the Jumperoo

2007-10-07T07:57:00.000-07:00

Hooray! She's finally big enough for the Rainforest Jumperoo. This thing is just a whole lot of coolness. It makes noises and has all sorts of groovy lights and things to play with. Her feet barely touch the floor, but she's figured out how to bounce, and is having tons of fun! (More pics in our flickr.)

Tummy Time!

2007-09-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

Ellie is finally starting to like tummy time. When I told her pediatrician how much she hates laying flat on her tummy, he suggested we try propping her up on the Boppy pillow... and here's the result! (I'm pretty sure she's the cutest baby ever.)

Dear friends and family

2007-09-22T15:03:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our new (and hopefully improved) website. We've added a link to our flickr album at the left. If you click on it, it'll take you to a whole bunch of photos, from our wedding, to honeymoon, to Ellie's birth, to today. Whenever we add new photos to flickr, you'll be able to view them from here. We promise we'll update the site often, so check back for more photos and videos!
Love,
Ryan, Molly, and Ellie

Ellie's 2-month doctor's visit

2007-09-22T15:02:00.001-07:00

Weight: 13 pounds, 6 ounces
Height: 23.5 inches
Ellie is a growing girl!
She had four shots, which she did not like at all!

Ellie, Month 3

2007-09-20T19:19:00.000-07:00

A picture from our trip to the Botanic Garden. For more pics, see our Flickr page.

She smiles!

2007-08-25T20:10:00.001-07:00

Ellie at 6 weeks

Hehe

2007-07-14T08:44:00.000-07:00

I promise we won't become those parents who post these videos every 4 hours. But some people need to see Ellie in action!

Our first family photo

2007-07-11T12:25:00.001-07:00

Mommy looks like death warmed over, but that's what 10 hours of labor will do to you!

Ellie Claire Landek

2007-07-11T08:55:00.001-07:00

8 lbs, 0 oz
20.5 inches long

(More pics to follow of course)

Week 39... one week (hopefully) left!

2007-07-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

Your baby's waiting to greet the world! She continues to build a layer of fat to help control her body temperature after birth, but it's likely she already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of her skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath.

Week 38

2007-07-02T16:29:00.001-07:00

Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs between 6 and 7 1/2 pounds (boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls), and she's nearly 20 inches long. She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old.

Week 37... Full Term!

2007-06-25T15:46:00.000-07:00

Very exciting milestone for Peanut today... she's officially full-term. Here's BabyCenter's weekly update:

Congratulations! Your pregnancy is now considered full term — meaning your baby is developmentally ready to handle life outside the womb. (Babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 weeks are post-term.) Your baby probably weighs a little over 6 pounds at this point and measures between 19 and 20 inches, head to heel.

We were told today that our baby is "bigger than average," so don't put a lot of stock in the 6-pound estimate given above. Peanut's Mommy and Daddy were both sizable babies at birth, so we're expecting this girl to be a big one, too!

33!

2007-06-13T11:22:00.000-07:00

33 more days till peanut time!

Week 35

2007-06-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

Your baby's getting big. She weighs a tad over 5 pounds (think bag of sugar) and is just over 18 inches long from head to heel, and it's getting so snug in your womb that your baby isn't really floating anymore. But tighter quarters don't mean less-frequent movement — your baby should still be kicking at the same rate she always has. Your baby's kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — the next few weeks are all about putting on weight.

Week 34... Slacking off!

2007-06-07T07:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's actually halfway through week 34 already, but here we go anyway with the weekly update:

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is probably almost 18 inches long from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. Her central nervous system is still maturing, but her lungs are well developed now. That's great news in case she decides to come early. If you've been nervous about going into preterm labor , you'll be happy to know that 99 percent of babies this age can survive outside the womb — and most have no major long-term problems related to prematurity.

The Baby Shower, May 20th

2007-05-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who attended! We had a wonderful time!

Week 33... But I don't want a conehead!

2007-05-31T08:08:00.001-07:00

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and measures 17.2 inches. Thanks to her recent weight gain, she's losing that wrinkled alien look. Most of your baby's bones are hardening now, but her skull is still quite pliable. It's actually in separate pieces with spaces in between. This flexible structure allows your baby's head to compress so it can fit through your relatively narrow birth canal. The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance. This is totally harmless, normal, and temporary. Her skull plates won't completely fuse until she's about 9 to 18 months old.

Countdown: 8 weeks to go!

2007-05-24T12:47:00.001-07:00

By now, your baby probably weighs almost 4 pounds and is almost 17 inches long. Her fingernails have grown in completely. Some babies have a head of hair already, while others have only peach fuzz. Your baby is taking up a lot of space in your uterus, but those tight quarters shouldn't reduce her activity level. You may have heard that it's normal for babies to slow down later in pregnancy, but that's not true. If you notice any reduction in your baby's movements, call your healthcare provider.

Molly's First Mother's Day

2007-05-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

Here we are, counting down 9 more weeks!

Week 31... Growth Spurt?!

2007-05-17T18:38:00.000-07:00

Your baby measures about 16 inches long. She weighs a little over 3 pounds and is headed for another growth spurt. She can turn her head from side to side. Of course, she doesn't yet understand that this movement means "no," but you'll be surprised how quickly she picks up on that and other gestures after she's born. The fat layer she's been accumulating for the last few weeks has caused her arms and legs to fill out nicely.

Week 30... Only 10 weeks left!

2007-05-08T05:27:00.000-07:00

Your baby's a bit more than 15 1/2 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and fills out your uterus. Your baby is now able to distinguish between light and dark, and she can even follow a light source back and forth. Once she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but won't be able to see more than a few inches in front of her face. You'll want to hold her close as much as possible so she can get a good look at you.

The Landek Mobile!

2007-04-28T16:12:00.000-07:00

Sadly, Ryan has had to retire his bachelor-mobile in favor of a more car-seat friendly ride. We got a 2006 Honda CR-V. I think we'll need to pimp out our new whip with some rims and a monster sound system. Kidding, I'm kidding. No I'm not.

She's getting so big!

2007-04-24T12:15:00.000-07:00

By this week, your baby weighs a little over 2 pounds and measures about 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. Her fat layers are continuing to build up as she gets ready for life outside the womb. The big news this week is that your baby can open and close her eyes — which now sport full lashes. This movement is more of a reflexive blink than a deliberate opening and closing, but it won't be long before she's batting those beauties at you.

Here's her pictures (week 21)

2007-03-15T13:17:00.000-07:00

As promised (if not a little late). These are all pretty similar. Just side views of Peanut's head. The video is far better but I haven't even got to putting that on the computer.

It's a Girl!

2007-03-08T08:44:00.000-08:00

Pictures to follow.

Peanut's heartbeat

2007-01-13T14:21:00.000-08:00

We rented a doppler off the internet to hear Peanut's heartbeat. It took a couple of tries but we finally found it:

peanut.wav

I think I calculated it to be ~140 beats per minute. Crazy.

More Peanut pictures from Week 13

2007-01-13T06:51:00.000-08:00

On most of these you can see the ultrasound technician's descriptions.

On the top of the 3-picture strip you can see Peanut's arms. Peanut is looking at us with his/her head on the left.

The middle one is very similar to the picture on the bottom. This is a picture of Peanut's face head-on. You can see the two halves of the brain and the teeth. This one kinda looks like an alien.

The bottom one is Peanut "in profile." The head (looking up), the neck, and part of Peanut's chest are visible. You can see the nose, the teeth and the spine.

I feel like a museum tour guide with all those descriptions. Cool stuff though.

Peanut on 1/9/07

2007-01-13T06:48:00.000-08:00

This one is pretty hard to see. Better ones to follow.

Peanut: Week 9

2007-01-02T17:53:00.000-08:00