The traveling Santa hat

Michelle sent me an OSU Santa hat for Christmas. I thought it was a splendid idea to have everyone put it on for a picture. It at least makes me happy. (Mom tried to beg off, but in the end she looks like she had the most fun with it! Love ya Momma!)

Check Up

Nate has his 9 month check-up a week ago. Nate loves the doctor's office because he's got his own table with a big mirror and the ear and eye-check thingy to play with.


He is 20 lbs 15 oz and 28" long. He's growing so well. We asked the doc about Nate's new separation anxiety, and becoming a beast during diaper time, clothes time, sitting time, eating time, etc... The doc answered all our concerns with "yep, that's normal" and "yep, he's right on track".

Sooo...

Long time, no blog. Since last I posted, we went to the BAE Systems Christmas party with Matt and Amanda. The night started out fine and a few good pictures were taken:


And then THIS happened. This tasty (ha!) concoction was called a "Flea Bite". If anyone ever offers you one, run the other direction. Matt (aka The Pusher) made fast friends with the bartender and he made all sorts of evil things for us to consume.

Brief respite for a cute couples picture.

Then the drunkies paired up and our loving spouses tried to act like they thought we were funny/cute. I'm pretty sure by the end of the night, I was neither funny nor cute.

Here's the last picture of the night before I excused myself to the ladies room. It was an early night for me.


Last weekend Mike and I went to see Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy with a big group of friends. Thanks Sallie for arranging it! We had an awesome dinner and then I have to say I was mesmerized by the show. It's amazing to see how the human body can move. The sheer strength of those people was crazy. Poor Nate though...or should I say poor Amanda and Skyler?? Nate is going through some separation anxiety lately. Apparently he screamed for a good long time. Amanda said she was fine with it (at least she now believes me that he's not always angelic!). She and Skyler went to such lengths as to sing and dance, go for a car ride, and watch 1 minute clips of SuperWhy! on Youtube. Amanda said at one point Skyler said "I'm doing the best that I can!". I've said that very thing on many an occasion!

Mike's been in HazMat Chemistry class for the past two weeks. He has learned so much and I think he's enjoyed his time away from the station. It's been nice having him home every night but oh my aching back! I've been toting Nate around to all my clients' houses every day for the past 2 weeks. I normally only take him with me twice a week or so since Mike's schedule is 24 on/48 off. It's really made me aware of how fortunate to have Mike home so much.

I have some good video of Nate in his walker. Well. I don't have it right this sec, but once I upload it, I'll put it up. He's so freaking cute. He loves to go into the kitchen, take magnets off the fridge and tote them all around the house. He also loves to go to the back door and grab the blinds and shake them like crazy. Bosco's learned to move quickly or he's bound to get run over!

I've been lamenting to my mommy friends that Nate's been a PITA when it comes to diaper time. And when it's time to get dressed. And when it's time to get into his car seat. Or his high chair. Gah! It's miserable! Everyone tells me it's a phase, but just how long is this going to last?? I started to take this next picture because he was so cute with a Puff stuck on his chin. It quickly turned to "I've been in this seat too damn long, Mom" time. This is also what he looks like when I try to sit him in it to start.

Fun times at our house. Self-inking stamp, a ball, and a box of lawn bags. Good times indeed.

Christmas Cards

I saw this post on my mommies group blog:

When doing your Christmas cards this year, take one card and send it to the address below. If we pass this on and everyone sends one card, think of how many cards these wonderful special people who have sacrificed so much would get.

A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue
NW Washington , D.C. 20307-5001

Spread the word!

*Updated to say - obv bogus address. Got returned mail today. Bah!

O Christmas Tree!

We have Christmas fever around here. On Monday, Mike put up the tree and the boys hung out with me while I decorated it. I love all the ornaments we have. Almost every one of them has special meaning or at least a story to go along with it. I think that is way more interesting than doing a themed tree. Don't get me wrong. Trees that are trimmed in all red or all silver are pretty to look at, but they just seem impersonal to me.

My Nana & Poppops sent us kids an ornament every Christmas. It's fun to look back and see all the years stamped on them and knowing that they picked that ornament especially for us. I think that's a great tradition to keep going. Hopefully Nate will enjoy it as much as we do.

I thought it'd be a fantabulous idea to make cookies Monday night too. I was going to try Gina's "recipe" for lemon cranberry cookies. I called Mom for the sugar cookie recipe. I had everything except cream of tartar. I looked online for substitutes for cream of tartar which says to use some precise measurement of baking powder - or was it baking soda? (I was as confused by the directions that night as I am now - Mike had to explain it to me) Well, whatever it told me to use I don't recommend. It made the batter kinda foamy. I put it in the fridge for an hour so I could roll cookies, but it never stiffened up. Maybe it was all the lemon juice I had to use. Maybe it was a combination of the two. What was my point? Oh - why does a dog as spoiled as Bosco (see Exhibit A) still find it necessary to eat horseradish cheese or baby food bananas while we're not home?
*Exhibit A

Thanksgiving and stuff

We had a great Thanksgiving at my parents house in NC. It was a very quick trip, but we packed in lots of stuff in that short time. Mom and I were crafty, Dad and I ran the Turkey Trot 5K (I'm so proud of myself - I ran the entire way), I ate my weight in turkey and stuffing, Nate had mashed potatoes and a bit of gravy, the guys played golf, and the girls went shopping. Here's the proof:

Mom and I made decorative burp cloths and ribbon key chains. Fun! So much so that Mom bought me a sewing machine and sent it home with me. Thank you!

Ready to feast


Nate propped up on Daddy who is in a post dinner triptophan coma.

Family picture time





Mike and Dad golfed while Mom, Nate, and I went shopping.

Again... straws = tons o' fun

Mom found a great consignment store in New Bern. Nate loved this chair so much, that it's now his spot at Nana and Poppops house. It's great for relaxing after shopping on Black Friday.



By the time we got home on Friday night, Nate had a low grade fever. After an up and down weekend and a fever of 102.3 last night (and him waking every 30 mins through the night), I took him to the doctor this morning. Lo and behold, he has an ear infection. Poor baby. Hopefully tonight will be better.