Gracie's First Year

It hardly seems possible that we just celebrated Gracie's first birthday. She is our joy and delight as my Grandma Sue used to say. She has gone from this tiny fragile little bundle that we all fought to hold and would fall asleep on our chests for hours- to this sturdy little toddler that has walked so long that she can actually run to chase Sam and Faith. She has a bunch of teeth which is weird for our kids- Sam and Faith just started teething a few weeks ago at 6 and 7 years old. :) She just seems to love life- Daddy is her absolute favorite thing in all the world and lights up every time she sees him. Da Da is the only thing she will actually say and if he asks for hugs and kisses she flies over to him to dole out the lovin. She ignores the rest of us most of the time when we ask. She has discovered the dog and cat and thinks they are so fun to pet and sometimes pat a bit too hard. If you say hello? she'll put her hand up to her ear like she's answering a telephone. If you say "Where's Gracie?" she puts just one hand over her eye to hide from you. I told her to "shhhh" the other day and all of a sudden this chubby little index finger went up to her mouth and she started saying "s s s s" to me. She loves her baby dolls and walks around holding and hugging them until something else grabs her attention and then she drops or throws them with conviction. This is going too fast but I'm trying to soak in as much as possible and enjoy the ride. We love you Grace Elizabeth!

Ode to Soo Loo

I stumbled across this ad for an outdoor playpen thing on babycenter and I had to zoom in for a closer look to see what the HECK this was keeping OUT? Apparently besides bugs and other vermin- your baby is also protected from creepy Himalayan cats! Sick. Look at that thing just perched on top of the baby's playpen. If it talked you know it would have a snotty voice or an accent and is jealous of the baby.

You might wonder how I know this kitty cat might be a Himalayan? Ask me about our old friend from high school days named"Soo Loo" sometime, or as Tom Kilgore called it in a whispered tone "sooooo leeeeee". That stinkin cat loved to chew ribbon and bows, anwered the phone by knocking it off the hook all the time, knocked on Teresa's door- like a boxer going after the bag- to get in her room. Stupid thing scared me by running up and down the piano keys in the middle of the night one time and it sounded like a horror movie sountrack just before the clown jumped out of the closet to murder someone. Active imagination? You bet. I was lying in my bed paralyzed with fear and started chanting Psalm 23 until I realized it was that stupid cat up to his tricks again. My favorite memory of the dearly departed puff ball was one time when we were backing out of the garage we saw as the garage door was coming down that Soo Loo had gotten into the garage so we honked the horn (not sure what that was supposed to do?) which sent him into full out Fred Flinstone mode running as fast as his four paws would go but he wasn't going anywhere. Just sitting there spinning his tires, scared to death and going nowhere fast. It was just too funny so we stopped the garage door and honked a few more times to watch the show. I'm pretty sure one of us wet our pants from laughing so hard. Good times. Random memory.

Time Wasters & Germ Spreaders

Merry Christmas and Happy last day of 2007- it's 1:15am so it's officially December 31st! Drew is on a fire call right now and he has been gone quite a while. I'm always nervous when he runs out of here adrenaline pumping to a structure fire. I can't really fall asleep until he comes home or calls from the fire station to let me know all is well.



Sam is gone for a few days up north with his buddy Isaiah. He left Saturday and will be home Tuesday or Wednesday. That's the longest he has been gone from me and not with family. He called today and said he was having fun. As smart-mouthed as that little stinker can be with me sometimes- I miss him so much when he's not here.



Right now both my girls are quietly sleeping. This has been a fun Christmas Vacation but I have a newfound understanding of my Uncle Wade's definition of little kids- Time Wasters & Germ Spreaders. I always thought that was a pretty negative and overly simplistic way to portray these complex fascinating little characters that share my home. That was until I have been elbow deep in boogers and now vomit for days on end. This is the part of parenting where you earn your stripes and get your membership card. I wish I had stock in Kleenex...

Sam has my best example of both time wasting activity and germ spreading. I opened my phone the other day to find a picture of Sam that he had taken of himself post sneeze and prior to getting to the Kleenex...kids are gross.



The time wasting is actually the fun part of having kids- I consider that part the fringe benefit of parenting. Toy makers are genius- they know that people in our generation are nostalgia freaks so why mess with perfection. Just crank out the same old Cabbage Patch Kids, Strawberry Shortcakes, CareBears, Transformers and GI Joes that were cool in the 80's. Drew and I have spent hours playing with dolls, cars, puzzles, games, horses, play doh, dress up... you name it we've played it.



My personal new favorite are the infamous Webkinz. Addictive little suckers. I had no idea how much the parents could get pulled in. I've caught myself shoving my way in to earn some Kinz Cash so we can save up for a new backyard or that cool new couch. Am I serious?! Why am I lobbying for Faith to pick the name that I've picked for her newest pet?! Hours go by and I wonder what I've accomplished? Then I realize how quickly these days are passing us by and I convince myself that stopping to do dishes or dusting would be just this side of evil. They have now fully infected me with their germs and time wasting but I'm truly happier than I've ever been in my life.



I never knew how much my parents really DIDN'T know. They were making it up as they were going along too. Faith said to me tonight- "Mama, you're so smart and you know how to do pretty much everything, I wish I could be like that." Now I KNOW I'm really someone's mom. Because I remember being fascinated with the skill with which my mom colored, used scissors, cooked food, did her hair, drove a car and knew what to do when I was scared or sick. I'm honored and humbled that God chose us to be the parents of Sam, Faith & Gracie.



So here's to Time Wasters & Germ Spreaders! I look forward to all the fun of time wasting in 2008 and I pledge to do my best to stop the spread of germs (said in my most overdone superhero voice) armed with my disinfectant in one hand and a pumper full of Purell in the other. Happy New Year!