Happy Halloween!

I'm a few days behind on the 10 month post- we were out of town this weekend but I promise it's coming this week. Here are a few pictures of Sadie in her Halloween costume to hold you over till then :).

the plague

Last week I got hit by what I have affectionately termed "the plague." I suppose I should give a proper medical diagnosis and tell you the doctor called it a "winter virus." All I know is I was sick, sicker than I've been in a LONG time sick. Nic was a superhero and took care of two babies (yes one of those babies is me). If this wasn't the flu, I don't want to know what the flu is. Once I'm back to feeling 100% myself I will be the first person in line at my local CVS for a flu shot. This is just a suggestion but I highly recommend you're second in line.

Now for the lighthearted stuff (and no more public service announcements I promise). We bought Sadie this DVD. It kept popping up on blogs I read, magazines, etc. so I gave in and bought it. I don't want to be a helicopter, overbearing parent so I've told myself one DVD is ok. It really is amazing how fascinated Sadie is by it. It's the only thing that will capture her attention for more than two minutes at a time. Basically they just repeat the letter over and over again; in a way it's kind of trippy but I see how it could work. According to Preschool Prep (the maker of the DVD) "Meet the Letters is a powerful tool designed to teach babies and toddlers the alphabet during an opportune window of time when they are learning to talk." I"ll let you know how it turns out.


Speaking of things holding Sadie's attention, we found this video courtesy of our friends (who are also parents) a while back, and Sadie has just recently been mesmerized by it. She has also learned to clap her hands so maybe we have a potential musician on our hands? Enjoy some Will.i.am for now!

Happy Nine Months!

Dear Sadie-

You are quite your own little person nowadays. Over the past month you've become quite the master at crawling. There's no such thing as giving you a five second head start any more; if we did you'd be tumbling down the stairs or pulling anything you can reach on top of you! You've learned to appreciate this new freedom pretty fast too. You're not such a fan of activities that limit your freedom any more (i.e. getting your diaper changed, changing your clothes, sitting for long periods of time).

You're still super social. You laugh when other people laugh and you love to stare at people's faces/reactions. You absolutely LOVE other kids, the moment I drop you off in the nursery you're crawling around and reaching for the other kids like they're your best friend. Baby is still your best friend though, despite the fact you often throw her down on the ground and right in the path of the stroller.

You're attempting to pull up on furniture but so far you only pull up to your knees. That's just far enough to reach everything on the coffee table. Because of that, the remote control has found a temporary home on the bookcase. You have six teeth now and despite a bit of fussiness you've taken it like a champ. Speaking of being a champ, you were a road warrior this month! You were in the car for 12 hours over a 72 hour time period to go to Louisville to celebrate Uncle Randy & Aunt Sam's wedding!

You're also no longer a vegetarian! We finally got up enough nerve to open the can of pureed meats. You've also had a little bit of yogurt, cheese, and bread. You love sweet potato puffs- they are a great way to keep you happy and content if there's even a hint of fussiness.

Your smile and laugh continue to melt my heart. You are such a sweet baby and I'm so thankful to call you my daughter!

Fantasy Football Thoughts

I'm enjoying playing fantasy football a lot more than I thought I would (despite the fact I got crushed this week). I must say though I'm amazed at how easily frustrated I get with "my players" when they have a bad week. Like Philip Rivers this week- come on buddy, 6.44 points TOTAL?

Anyways it made me think about some controversy stirred up by top Fantasy Football Draft Pick, Arian Foster, back in August. After having to leave the game because of an injury, Arian tweeted the following: “4 those sincerely concerned, I'm doing ok & plan 2 B back by opening day. 4 those worried abt your fantasy team, u ppl are sick.” In a final message to clear the air he tweeted: "I know opinions are usually cement. But, I love all my fans. My quarrel is with people who value a digital game over a humans health. #love""

When I first read this back in August all I could think was "He's so right, those people treat him like a possession instead of a person" but now that I've played fantasy for a few weeks I see how easy it is to get all caught up in it. I certainly don't want to dehumanize these players but I'm finding in order to do that I have to be careful about how I even talk about them. I have to remind myself that I don't hold the rights to these guys and they don't care who I am in the first place!

Any who, who would've thought five years ago I'd be blogging about sports? My how times have changed. It seems marriage has a funny way of doing that. And besides, I have a better fantasy football record right now than my husband :), a girl's gotta gloat some times right?

Two Things Tuesday

1) Nic and I were both sick last week and we saw this weekend as an opportunity to recover. As a result of said "recovery time" we watched a lot of TV this weekend. So when I tell you I've become addicted to yet another show you can at least understand why and sympathize with me at least just a little bit. Based on a friend's Facebook recommendation we started watching Parenthood and I got hooked fast. I stayed up late (I'm talking past midnight) to watch all the episodes Hulu had available. The only bad thing is now I'm scared to death for Sadie to grow up! Can we just skip the whole teenager/young adult phase?


2) I made granola yesterday. It's Alton Brown's granola recipe and I'm convinced it's the best out there. For some reason I equate the smell of maple syrup and oats with fall. Friday was the first official day of fall and I've been waiting for it to "feel like fall" ever since then. What's up with all this high humidity in September? This is Virginia not Louisiana. Bring on the cardigans and hoodies please!

For all you Sadie fans

In case you're wondering there's a tennis ball underneath the laundry basket. Yes we like to "torment" our dog for the sake of our baby's entertainment. You gotta admit it's pretty funny though!

the Mondays

I think I've got a case of the Mondays. It's overcast here and we haven't seen the sun in a few days so I think everybody is dragging today. I found this article over on Relevant Magazine today and I think it probably communicates much more clearly and eloquently my thoughts from my last post.

I do want to say that I know my last post has the potential to be considered selfish. I've been wrestling with selfishness a lot lately. One thing I've learned since becoming a mom is just how self-centered I am. It makes me appreciate my own mom that much more (thanks for putting up with me mom if you're reading this :)! I do really believe though that by taking time for myself to enjoy life I will be a better mom, wife, campus minister, and every other role I play in the long run.

Oh well, gotta run for now, I've got a crying baby who's vying for my attention, more thoughts on this later!