We’ve been dancing ourselves lately - our Northwestern Wildcats have 8 wins so far this season.  That includes winning at Michigan this weekend for only the second time since 1960.  Go Cats!

Other than avoiding campaign commercials, we spent a good couple of weekends over the past month getting our back yard spruced up a bit.  Caleb’s parents came into town for a weekend and helped to install a new paver walkway and a set of new steps for the back porch.  Nancy’s dad made a spontaneous weekend visit in November and lent a hand in getting rid of the last of the debris from the yard.  Overall, the yard is (slowly) undergoing a transformation - giving us hope for the rest of the house =).

The Joker is due to arrive on the scene sometime within the next six weeks - the home stretch.  You can count down with us (or close to it) every time you hear the number of shopping days until Christmas.  Our due date is December 28.

Enjoy the newly updated pictures … we’ll be back in a bit.

“Upgrading?” you ask. “Had enough of city living?” you think. “Another rung up the ladder of the American dream?” you suspect.

But nope, actually, none of these is the cause of our move. You see, ours is only a temporary, forced relocation, courtesy of the District government. (Brace yourself- yet another ode to DC governmental bureaucracy coming. . .) Here’s the long version:
Back in April, Simona’s (”capillary”) blood test revealed an elevated lead level. Our doctor referred us to a lab for a second, more accurate (”veinous”) blood test. Sure enough, she had lead poisoning (defined as a reading of 10 or higher- hers was 20). Our doctor advised us to modify her diet, wash her hands frequently, and take other preventive steps to minimize her exposure. He also referred us to a non-profit organization that helps families deal with lead poisoning.

We spent the next several weeks meeting with them, determining the likely source of lead exposure, and taking corrective measures. These included spending countless hours doing home repair work (you may remember pictures of our windows. . .) while friends graciously baby-sat Simona. We also cleaned the entire house top-to-bottom (including wet-mopping the ceilings and walls, washing each toy, wiping down every single book, etc.). It was a LOT of work, costing us many hours of labor and several hundred dollars of supplies. We completed the work in late May, confident that we had eliminated any risk to Simona’s health.

At Simona’s next check-up, just after her first birthday, her blood tested at the same level as before. Our doctor assured us that this was to be expected, as it can take several months to come down again. We remained confident that we had minimized her lead exposure.

About a week or two after her second test, we received a phone call from the DC Department of Health. They were calling to “make us aware” of Simona’s elevated lead level and to offer their assistance. Sensing that we were about to be ensnared in a quagmire of District government “services,” Caleb tried to deflect their attention. We explained that we had taken care of the problem, that we were monitoring her closely, and that we would be retesting her frequently. Unfortunately, refusing their “help” would mean being referred to Child and Family Services, which certainly did not interest us. So, grudgingly, we allowed the DOH to come into our home and repeat the same tests the non-profit had performed previously.

As expected, there were still “hot” spots that evidenced lead present in our home. Not surprising, since every house built before 1978 likely has lead-based paint in it. So, in spite of the fact that Simona’s third veinous lead test came back at seven, we were required to allow a tester from the DC Department of the Environment to use X-ray equipment to test the indoors and outdoors for lead. We begged them to exempt us from this test, since any remaining lead clearly was not significant enough to impact Simona’s or our health, but it was to no avail. In late September, the tester came for a full inspection.

We heard nothing from the government for several months. Caleb began making radiator covers, as the paint on our radiators is in poor condition. It was the only spot about which we as parents were still concerned, so Caleb took it upon himself to build covers that would prevent Simona from touching the radiators. (You’ll see pictures in the photo update.)

Shortly before the holidays, however, the wheels of DC bureaucracy began turning once again. We received a “Notice of Violation” from the DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, citing us for having lead in our home. The notice informed us that we had fourteen days to abate the lead or face thousands of dollars in fines and jail time. Clearly, the best interests of our child were no longer at stake, as imprisoning us would most likely NOT benefit her physical or mental health.

We were able to obtain an extension until January 26, 2008. In the meantime, Simona’s 18-month check-up allowed us to obtain another physician referral for a veinous lead test. Her level was a six, and, as her second consecutive test under 10, allowed the DOH to close her file. Since, however, the presence of lead in our home is now “known” to us and the government, we are required by law to abate it.

Which brings us to this “move.” In order for the lead abatement process to be safe, we (including the cat) are required to move out while work is being performed. We will not be allowed back into the house until it is cleared by a certified contractor distinct from the one who performed the work. We were able to receive another extension, and our contractor begins work on Monday morning. He hopes to complete the work by next Friday.

In spite of the frustration that accompanies having to spend thousands of dollars correcting a mistake that was made years before I was even born, we have been quite blessed during this time. We are fortunate to have friends who will let us stay with them for the week, another friend who is willing to cat-sit for the week, and the financial resources to make the requisite repairs within the allotted time frame. We’ll let you know how it all turns out once we’ve moved back in!

 Simona’s vocabulary has also broadened and now includes words like Ba ba (baden, or bathe), Na (Nase, or nose), Amn (Amen), Hi, Hola, Baby, Inken (trinken, or drink, but it also sometimes means essen/eat), titte (bitte, or please), Mama, and, as of today, Papa!!

One other amusing Simona story:  Her new favorite game is to put her finger in her nose and wait until her dad says, “Finger weg!”  (Get your fingers away!).  She then laughs her head off and does it again. . . and again . . . and again.  You should try it- maybe you’ll be equally entertained!

Before you view them, here’s a brief description of what you’ll find:

Instead of labeling the three sets by month, as we usually do, we have split them into “June & July,” “Minnesota,” and “Maine Trip.”  The June & July set includes Simona’s first birthday, a few pictures from our first weekend away from her (when we went to a wedding in NY), and assorted summer fun in DC.

The Minnesota set includes pictures from our trip to Longville, Minnesota, where Caleb’s extended family vacations every year.  This is the first time we’ve joined them in several years.

Finally, the Maine Trip set includes pictures from our New England adventure, including two different weddings (in MA and RI), outdoor fun (boating, canoeing, and hiking), and time with family and friends (and some good lobster!).

Thanks for your patience, and be warned- viewing will take quite some time.  Enjoy!

Why yes, actually. It is. Simona has eagerly been awaiting both the arrival of her second cousin, Kimberly Sarah, and her own first birthday. But today the stork brought Simona a birthday present! Kimberly was born in Hamburg, Germany at about 6:00 PM local time and, in spite of being four weeks early, is in excellent health. So now Uromi can celebrate TWO great granddaughters being born on June 12!

Herzlich willkommen, kleine Kimberly. Wir freuen uns schon, Fotos von Dir zu sehen. Und herzlichen Glueckwunsch, Thomas und Romina.

The birthday girl on this side of the Atlantic has had a fun day so far and will be celebrating with a cupcake this evening. We will post pictures of that later, but for now the photos page includes updates from May. If you are interested in pictures of our house as it looked before and during the “work weekend” we had in May, click on the “house” tag at the bottom. I’ll post pictures of the finished windows as soon as I get another chance.

 As for photos:  On Mother’s Day, our good friend Sam took some beautiful pictures of Simona.  He is quite skilled, as you’ll see.  I’ve updated the “photos” page with just a few of them.  I figure I’ll do a bigger picture update sometime soon, at which time I’ll post pictures from our most recent trip to Iowa and our upcoming trip to South Carolina.  Plus, I’ll put up a few of the major project that has dominated much of our time in the month of May: working on our house.  (I’m sure everyone’s simply dying to see those!)  I’m trying to capture some of Simona walking, so I’ll post those when I can.  Until then, enjoy!

Well, Simona has been quite busy in the past month. . . highlights have included another trip to Germany (surprise!) for her Uromi’s 80th birthday party and a recent visit from Uncle Mickey and Jackie from New York.  A relatively “slow” month?  You bet, compared to what’s ahead: trips to Iowa and South Carolina for Uncle Seth & Aunt Linda’s college graduations, a trip to New York for Lauren Killeen’s wedding, and then a couple of summer vacations. . . whew!

In between all this, though, Simona has been practicing many new skills.  These include climbing anything she possibly can, going down stairs, standing without holding on to anything, and doing headstands.  All these might lead you to believe that she will, in fact, take after Tante KK.  That is, until you see in the photos that she also has been squeezing a little horseback riding. . .

Simona is now “cruising” (walking while holding onto furniture, for you non-parents) and has four teeth. And as you’ll see in the updated photos, she is now fully literate- what an early bloomer. At her nine month doctor’s check up, we learned that she is STILL off-the-charts tall. Sorry, Tante KK– sounds like she might not end up following in your footsteps as a gymnast. Maybe she’ll take up crew. . . ?

In November, I took a roadtrip to Iowa for Thanksgiving.  You may have already seen pictures of me with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncles Seth and Wyatt, and my Great-grandparents Neil and Great-grandpa Brenneman (plus plenty of extended relatives).  Great-grandpa Brenneman gave me my own little chair, and now that I can sit up on my own, I’ll have Mama and Papa take a picture of me sitting in it.  Iowa wasn’t nearly as cold as I’d been warned!

 December highlights included another roadtrip; this time, Mama, the cats, and I drove to Oma and Opa’s house in Georgia.  (Papa flew down later.)  Other family in Georgia included my “Tanten” (aunts) and my Great-grandparents Gregory.  My Tante Janice’s friend Gus was also there.  I’ll have Mama post some pictures of them, too.

Finally, I ended 2006 by taking my first international trip.  I figured six months old was old enough to head to Europe, so I took Mama, Papa, and Tante Linda to Glueckstadt, Germany to meet my Ur-Oma and other relatives.  I was a huge hit, as everyone enjoyed playing with and cooing over me.  Ur-omi and I had some alone time while Mama and Papa took day trips to Berlin and Hamburg with cousins.  Since I got my first tooth on December 30th, I was too tired to stay awake for the New Year. . .

. . . I’ll have to tell you more about that later, though!

What the pictures don’t tell you, and what she failed to mention, is how much she is growing and changing.  When I told my sister Linda about something Simona “liked,” Linda responded by asking, “Can you really already tell personality things like that about her?”

I wouldn’t have thought so, either, but it is amazing to see that Simona does already have and express her personality.  She laughs at specific faces I make, seems to be a morning person, and is friendly rather than shy when strangers smile at her.  Though I’m sure her temperament will change frenquently over the next few years, it’s fun to watch.

Physically, her new tricks also include being able to put her pacifier in her mouth by herself (though she’s really more of a thumb sucker, anyway); reaching for and inching towards toys that are out of reach, eating some solid foods, and being able to sit up.  (Unfortunately, that usually ends in a fall with a bump on the head, but she is easily comforted from that.)  Simona is also teething- the bottom front teeth are “bulging” and are on the verge of coming in.

Mama and Papa, for our part, are busy with school and work.  My semester is almost over, so I will be driving to Georgia with Simona soon.  Caleb will follow by plane shortly before Christmas, and we will be spending the week after Christmas with family in Germany.  We will try to post again before that trip, but if not, we wish all our friends and family who read this a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!