the most fun i've had in fa' eva'

Bekki & me...it had been years since we'd seen each other! Yea, Bek! I had so much fun with you! I'm glad you got to be with your fam & take care of your mom. I'm also glad that I got to be part of your La Hacienda experience this time around! :)

Lori gave Langston a trim one night. It was funny to see (& hear) the "great haircut debate" once she was done. I was really happy with it. All the grands kept asking, "Is she finished?" (Yes, we like it long & shaggy!)


Silas & Langston usually get together once a year, at least. :) I'm so happy that Lindsay & I get to see our babies together...just like we've been hoping for the past 16 or so years! Congrats on the little girl, Andy & Lindsay!






Bubba's party was too much fun! I enjoyed getting to spend so much time with Lila (who I realized that I miss!). It was great to see Bubba, Kim & Jason, Zeb, Amy, Terrell, Malynna, & Kayleigh, & all the old CSC crew. Going back to AL this time was (as usual) packed with lots of spending time with friends, church family, & family. Only this time, I "went out" more than usual. (**Disclaimer: L. was a little sickly, so not up to par with his usual friendliness...sorry to all who hung out.) Mom & Dad watched L. (or sometimes L.& Z.) while I attended a Halloween party with some of my college pals, went to hang out with 2 of my high school friends (Julie & Lori), & I had girls (Bekki & Lindsay). I also took the kids or one kid with me to "visit" sometimes. It was fantastic to see everyone! I laughed so much, remembered all kinds of stories, caught up on people's lives, & picked up where we left off with SO many folks. I am blessed to have lots of great friends! I'm thankful for each of you!

which one is wright? white?

L-town & Madelyn on the day of the "Fock" happening...we also decorated Halloween cookies.

A few days ago L. was telling me yet another "Rocky" (sounds like "Wocky") story, when he got to a part about a man name Mr. Wright...or White, I still don't know. I tried to ask without making him upset (bc kids really hear themselves saying the word correctly.), but I never could tell what he was saying.
It reminded me of a story my friend Erin told me about her little Madelyn, who says "F" for all things "S." Madelyn was a little upset when another mom asked her about a "fool" bc she had clearly said, "fool!" (Stool, for those not fluent in Madelyn-ese.) I was horrified by my own studpidity when I was watching M. a few weeks ago & introduced her to the word "smock"...which came out as, you guessed it, "fock." Pretty close! Eeek! Her mom isn't mad at me, thankfully. ;) *oh, and another M. cute thing...she dubbed her new sis "Chocolate" pre-birth. I gotta' give her props; L. just went with one of names we didn't choose, Cecilia. (Btw, Nina & Georgia were the other runner-ups...Nina, I thought of you!)

everybody loves zo-wah

my little fuzzy-top girl...studying the grass & her toes. :)

Zora with Grandaddy

I took Big Z for an early 7 month appt. today. She was 20lbs. 8oz. & 27 3/4" tall! She has "dropped" down to the 97% in weight (I thought she was looking thin...ha, ha) & still around 95% in height. Her tummy wasn't ready for all the fruits & veggies we were trying (constipation times), so we lightened up on food (1-2 Tbsp per day) & are still doing cereal (4ish Tbsp per day), & have found a sippie that is both BPA free & easily sippable for a 6-month-old. And...lots & lots of breastmilk. Once I decreased the food & increased the breastmilk, all was well in poo-land. Zora helping Grandmother
Other Zora going-ons:
*lots of raspberries (sticking out the tongue & blowing spit, food, etc. all over the place!)
*sitting up really well (rarely tips over)
*repeats sounds with "B" now ("ba, baw"...she made the sound combo of "cow" one day...impressing her big bro, who later swore that she also said, "moo!" yea, & she caught a fish THIS big!)
*clasps hands; plays with fingers & toes
*passes toys from hand to hand
*copies facial expressions or sounds (esp. tongue things)
*snarls! (nose crinkled, forcefully breathing through nostrils...pretty cute.) :)
*Lifts upper body when on tummy; turns head all directions.
*Rolls or scoots on bottom to move.
Those are some of the newbies from the past month or so. She HATES being on her tummy--playing, sleeping, or anything, so I don't know when she'll finally decide to crawl.
She loves to cuddle, play with brother, nurse, babble (esp. in the a.m.), be held, meet new people, & watch other babies. She's really fond of chewing on her toes. She is usually in a good mood & can be "by herself" (on a mat or in the exersaucer beside me) for several minutes at a time. She is really a happy, friendly baby! We are totally enjoying Miss Z. & still can't believe her babyhood is going so quickly. Where have those 7 months gone?!
Get me outta' here!! (This pic was taken by brother, who is no longer bothered by such facial expressions or whining.)

sully & the cow

We attended Maybelle's (our international student), concert for our Macomb Halloween event this year. WIU puts on a concert that is educational & still fun for the kiddies. The kids learn about instruments, composers, & get to hear music from the orchestra. It was nice. It would be awesome for a 6-12 year-old. L. enjoyed it, but kept asking, "where's the candy?" :) They did hand out small bags of candy as the kids existed. Oh, and Maybelle borrowed my costume...from the 8th grade! :) Bekki, do you remember it? We had a fun time.

Cassie's wedding

Cassie was my roommate twice. She turned off the alarm many-a-day as I slept through the buzz. She was my alarm. :) She convinced me to cut class (two years into college) for the first time (something I did rarely...I always loved the classroom...freak, I know). She often gave me little gifts (my Chestnut St. girls! We all did this sometimes...soymilk in the 'fridge, coffee, notes, messages on the dry board with our first initial by them). She told me when I dated crazy people. She told me when I should tell those people to stop phoning our apartment. We laid awake many nights talking about life: God, boys, beliefs, family, weight, food, make-up, clothes, me running around the apartment naked, her wearing sexy clothes, you name it. We enjoyed coffee trips & Christian Student Center retreats. She is the one roommate I can honestly say that I went into it thinking, "okay, I'll try" and came out thinking, "I just made a friend for life!" We still keep in touch & I hope we always do.
I love you, Cassie! I'm so happy for you. I knew your love would come. One of my favorite parts of your ceremony was seeing you walk down the aisle to "At Last," not only was it sexy & romantic, but it was exactly the way I know you feel about Brian. I hope God continues to bless both of you with gifts of love & understanding.

Sweet Home Alabama: Congrats, Cassie!

I think I'll end up posting around 4 different entries just to get all our stories & pix from the past few weeks out there! Here's the short of the long tale...one of my college roomies, Cassie, got married on November 1. She had asked me a long time ago to come as an honorary bridesmatron (I could just come & sit with her other honorary person, Kim, who just had the cutest twins); I couldn't do it b/c B. had a speaking engagement that weekend & I'd rather cut off my big toe than travel through Chicago with both kiddies by myself. Anywho...the more I thought about it, the more I felt like I really would be missing out to not be there for one of the best roomies, who I still talk to all the time...so...I decided to drive there by myself.
NO, no one let me get away with this madness! My parents drove up (thanks mom & dad!), then drove the kids & me back down for almost a week of fun, Southern hoopla at their place! It was Grrrreat! :) So, Congrats Cassie! I love you! Congrats, Brian! You got a super great partner for life! Thank you soooo much, family. I love you & I really did have an awesome time.
OH, and I didn't "alert the media" about this trip bc I wanted Cassie to be surprized...it worked! ;)

don't run with...

scissors, a fork, various other sharp objects. We've all said it, but I had never seen the "what could happen" until this email. I originally got this a while back, but another friend sent it to me today. It's worth making your stomach turn (& showing to your kid), if it prevents this "ouch" from happening again. I don't know this fam, but I feel sorry for 'em.
Jen, this is why I freaked out at the totally cute pic of Chasers with the fork.