"Off the Bottle"

So the big news here at Casa Eliza is that while we were on Saba, Eliza's beloved Dr. Brown's bottles slowly faded away. There was no hoopla, no ceremony, no reward. Eliza just stopped asking for them.

This leaves me with two problems.

1. Between our NY apartment, our house on Saba, my office, my mother's house in NJ and my car I have 33 of these:



Trust me, when your kid's only source of nutrition is formula from a bottle you accumulate quite the collection.

2. The second problem is my beloved mother telling any and everyone who will listen that "Eliza is off the bottle." Now this doesn't sound all that bad, except for the fact that everyone and their mother is under the very, very, very, very, very mistaken belief that Eliza now eats steak au poivre with grilled asparagus.

So to be clear:

Eliza is "off the bottle" but drinks her formula from a cup or the box. Eliza is not "off the formula."

All of you well intentioned and kind folks can stop filling up my voicemail with congratulatory messages that Eliza now eats food. Hope does spring eternal, particularly for my mother, but please stop asking me how Eliza likes her steak cooked :)

This is the closest Eliza will get to steak (the bull not Peter!):

March for Babies 2010

Our intrepid little team, with no corporate sponsors and no splashy (or not so splashy) fundraisers and with just a constant reminder to friends, family and strangers to pay something forward, even a small something, to a worthy cause raised:

$5,440

Not too shabby.

The Eliza Grace Team has raised over $15,000 for the March of Dimes since we started our team in 2007.

We had some simple team t-shirts for our walkers:



We braved the rain:





We were thrilled to have Eliza's teacher Katie join us, and Aunt Carolyn and Nana of course:





Eliza's beloved Aunt Bonnie braved the elements to walk with us:



Words of encouragement were offered:



Cold hands were warmed:



And one little girl had a grand day with her best girlfriends, despite the soggy weather:



Eliza and I walk each year for the families still in the NICU, for those families who never brought their baby home and for the children and families who fight so hard every single day to overcome the effects of prematurity.

We are so very, very grateful to everyone who has supported us with their encouragement and kindness and their generous donations to a cause near to our hearts.

Thank you again ... maybe next year you will walk with us!

I Am Humbled

Tonight my friends and family donated a total of $4,000 to the Eliza Grace Team in the 2010 March for Babies.

Their generosity to such a worthy cause is truly humbling.

Thank you all.

Eliza Grace and I walk for the babies still in the NICU, for the babies who have come home and for those families who never were able to bring their babies home.

But we also walk to honor our friends and family who have supported us with love and kindness, and their generosity to a cause dear to our hearts.

Thank you all.

We're Back!

Waking up on Saba is the best thing ever! Sunshine, warm weather, an ocean view for 100 miles. You just can't beat it.



So what do we do on Saba? Well we see a lot of the local animals:









We wear our stylish hats when out visiting friends and family:





We check out the local restaurants to see which one offers the best coloring books:







We hang out with my cousins, Alma, Peter, the Johnson Cousins and of course Cerissa:









Visiting Nana Wilda's and picking her flowers is always fun too:





When the sand at our beach is no where to be found, the pool and hose will do:



Getting a bath in the kitchen sink is still fun each night, but it is getting to be a tight squeeze:



And there is nothing better than falling asleep to the sound of the tree frogs and the beautiful smell of the Lady of the Night flowers outside of the window: