Tag, you're it

I've been tagged by some kind of blog survey thing...twice (thanks Carly and Nikki!).  So, I'm going to be obedient and carry on the chain so that bad luck doesn't follow me for the next 7 days.  Well, just kidding- I don't think it's quite like that.  It's just for fun.

 

So, for the first one...

The directions are to post the 6th picture in your 6th album and then explain it.  But to be truthful this is actually the 1st picture in my 7th folder because there was no 6th in the 6th.

These AMAZING kids are part of the West Houston Church of Christ youth group.  This shot was taken in July of 2007 on our middle school mission trip to Weslaco, TX.  We spent a week painting 5 houses in the community. I was about 4 months prego on this trip and I may or may not have climbed onto a roof to paint some trim.  Don't tell Andrew...or my mom.  Our group of 30 or so stayed in a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house the whole time! I'm not kidding. There were 2 showers.  But it was a great trip and I miss those kids like crazy.

Next...

I was nominated by Nikki for an I Love Your Blog "award." And this is the obligatory survery that comes with it.

1. Where is your cell phone? coffee table

2. Where is your significant other? on his way home from class, I hope

3. Your hair color? strawberry blonde

4. Your mother? Safety Harbor, FL

5. Your father? deceased

6. Your favorite thing? geez, only one...my cheapo Target shoes I guess

7. Your dream last night? don't remember

8. Your dream/goal? to reflect the glory of God more & more

9. The room you're in? living room

10. Your hobby? scrapbooking, cooking

11. Your fear? spiders

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? in God's will

13. Where were you last night? home

14. What you're not? excited about Wade teething

15. One of your wish-list items? garbage disposal installation

16. Where you grew up? Safety Harbor, FL

17. The last thing you did? made coffee

18. What are you wearing? jeans and a Gap sweater

19. Your TV? The Office

20. Your pet? Sammy

21. Your computer? hot-why do laptops get hot like this?

22. Your mood? surprisingly calm despite my wrecked house

23. Missing someone? my mama

24. Your car? Highlander

25. Something you're not wearing? socks

26. Favorite store? Target

27. Your summer? travel

28. Love someone? uhh, do you ever read my blog?

29. Your favorite color? red, maybe

30. When is the last time you laughed? few minutes ago

31. Last time you cried? not sure

So the people I nominate for the "I Love Your Blog" award have to do both parts of this.  Hahaha.

Jill

Daisha

Tahnee

Michelle

Sarah

And just so I haven't totally wasted your time, here's a picture of Wade discovering the joy of tupperware.

 

Callie Baby!

On Sunday morning a few minutes after 8am I got a text from Andrew saying "I can hear her little cry from down the hallway".  This was the 10th or so in a series of texts that had begun about 3:30am with "Anna's water just broke, she is on her way to the hospital". 

Andrew's twin brother David and his sweet wife Anna have a sweet new baby girl named Callie Elizabeth.  She weighed in at 8lbs. and 20 inches with about 3 times as much hair as Wade!

Aside from Callie being born I've just been trying to catch up from being gone.  It's not really happening but whatever.  Wade has been feeling pretty horrible.  I'm pretty sure he's getting at least one top tooth.  But my mother-in-law, Connie is here and helping TONS with him!

Florida Chronicles Part 5: The Uncles

Today was the day for uncles (and an aunt).  We started off at my Uncle Sam & Aunt Joan's house this morning.  Sam was my dad's brother.  He and Uncle Mark Scharff are the closest to blood related grandads that Wade has.  So, he's pretty special. 

Wade also got to meet Jimmy, who is my Aunt Joan's 94 year old dad! 

He also had a blast playing with their dogs Samantha and Brandy.

After Sam & Joan's we went to Christmas Wonderland.  There were no uncles there.  Well, at least none that were related to Wade. 

This evening CJ (my brother) returned from 6 weeks in Serbia, Bosnia and Kosovo. 

Wade was really uncertain of CJ at first. 

Soon they started playing though.  Here CJ is explaining an aqueduct to Wade.

And Wade warmed right up to him.

Uncle CJ, you wouldn't really put that on my head, would you? Uh, yah. And he did.  Remind me not to let CJ babysit.

I guess this was supposed to make Wade feel better.

But in the end they're still buddies...

Tomorrow I am heading home.  We have had so much fun the last week and a half here with Grammy.  It is sad to be leaving.  But it is good to be going home.  I know Andrew has been missing Wade terribly.  And soon after we get home my sister-in-law, Anna will be having her baby girl Callie.  Then before we know it, it'll be Christmas and we'll be heading back to see Grammy again!  Yay!

Florida Chronicles, Part 4

I didn't post last night cause it's been a rough 48 hrs. around here.  Tuesday afternoon we noticed that Wade was developing a runny nose. Although he's had a cold before this was his first runny nose.  Before it was mainly a cough.  So I wasn't really sure what to do with this.  During the day it hasn't been too bad, just catching the snot as it drips down his poor little face.  It's nighttime and naptime that has been difficult.  Tuesday night he woke up about midnight and I could tell his little nose was driving him crazy.  So, I put him in the swing and let him sleep in there for a few hours so his nose could drain.  Last night he woke up about midnight and Grammy said "just get him up and let him watch the game for a little while".  What!?! Do you know how many rules this breaks?

Watching the Rays struggle through Game 1.

After a couple innings he went back to bed and slept well until morning. 

Then today we went shopping. Everybody needs a little shopping when they feel under the weather. He actually did better being out and about and took a good nap in the stroller.

Wade AND Grammy sitting in a very small chair at Gymboree.

Grammy bought Wade the most adorable little outfit for Christmas (you don't get to see it for a couple months!).  Of course I had to try it on him when we got home.  So, then he just stayed naked. 

The little guy went down easily tonight so hopefully he'll sleep well through the night.

Florida Chronicles Part 3: The Beach

Today Wade experienced the beach for the first time. 

Florida Chronicles, Part 2: Naked Baby!

Wade loves having his diaper off.  Wouldn't you? Especially for crawling.  For a brief few seconds before bathtime he is diaperless.  Well, now that he's crawling it takes about 1 1/2 seconds to get from his back into a crawling position.  When Grammy saw this, she said- "oh let him crawl around naked for a few minutes."  Now we have a new routine.  He hasn't peed on the floor...yet. 

 

Just wanted to show you his adorable ghosty jammies from Aunt Cheri.

Florida Chronicles, Part 1

To my surprise, mom got internet hooked up at her house recently.  I say surprise mainly because the monitor on her ancient desktop computer does not work.  So...I suppose she uses her coffee pot to get on the web. 

Speaking of coffee pots, here is a hilarious story.  At least I think it is.  I will change the names of those involved to protect the innocent.  Let's call the characters Mary and Roberta.  In the crock pot a pork tenderloin is roasting away.  Sitting on the counter by the crockpot is a recipe for Pumpkin Spice Latte that Roberta just copied down from the CrockPot Lady.  (I'm sipping on it right now and it is delish!)  So here is how the conversation went:

Roberta: Let's get some pumpkin at the store after Wade wakes up so we can make the coffee recipe.

Mary: Yes, sounds good, that would be a good excuse to go to Target.

Roberta: (motioning towards the recipe on the counter) You know, I bet you could just make that in the coffee pot.

Note: remember the recipe is sitting right by the crock pot.

Mary: (spinning around at the speed of light to face Roberta) What!?! In the coffee pot?

Roberta: Yah, in the coffee pot.  You just need to heat it up.

Mary: Gee, I didn't think you could do that. Pausing with extremely puzzled look across her face. You mean cook the pork tenderloin in the coffee pot?

 

*Sigh* Never a dull moment.  Anyway, we've been so busy having fun since we got to Florida.  Here's what's been going on, in pictures, of course:

 

Friday, mom had to work for a few hours.  So, Wade and I walked down to the Safety Harbor Gazebo with my childhood friend, Tahnee and her sweet baby girl, Tessa.

We went to the Gazebo because on the 3rd Friday of the month there is live jazz in the park.  The "live jazz" consisted of a man with a saxophone and a boom box with a background track.  Occasionally, though, we would glance up from our conversation to find that Mr. Saxophone man had disappeared and left his background track to entertain us.  Good thing we were there for the company and not the jazz!

On the way home both babies fell asleep.

Saturday, we headed out to run some errands in the morning.  We came upon a neighborhood garage sale where some old friends, Pat & Pat Lynch, live.  I spent $6.10 and came home with a bag of clothespins (remind me to tell you of my adventures in line drying our clothes); a pillow sham for the spare bedroom; a silly looking baby picture album (given to me for free because I had a baby with me); a cute duckie net backpack for toys, etc; and a beautiful strappy black dress for some special future occasion. Here's a funny little dialogue for ya.  At a garage sale I had this conversation as I was looking around:

Homeowner (woman in her late 30's): What a precious little guy! Let me guess, he's 8 months old.

Me: Yup, 8 1/2 months, you're good.

Homeowner's daughter (about 5 years old): Yah, well that's cause we have a puppy who's 8 months old.

I love it!

After a nap, Wade went for a dip in the pool. It was a little chilly but he was splashing around and having a good time. 

If you're thinking, gee, it looks like he doesn't have any bottoms on, you're correct.  Totally butt naked.  I won't be getting in the pool till mom shocks it. Haha.

Sunday (today), we got up and went to church then ran a few errands.  After a nap, we headed to one of my favorite places on earth: Philipe Park.  It was extremely crowded since the weather was absolutely gorgeous today.

In case you forgot what his smile looks like...he's been Mr. Serious in pictures lately.

I can't get enough of that little grin.

Mom, what is this between my toes?

It's confirmed, Grammy is an angel...just look at her golden halo.

Yah, he is.

Dimples

How do I get this green stuff in my mouth?

 

Ok, I'm pretty sure this blog is approaching the word limit per post, if there is such a thing.  Stay tuned for the beach, Frenchy's, Miss Betsy, Great Uncle Sam, Uncle CJ and more coffee pot adventures.

P.S. Go RAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(I am unashamedly a fairweather fan)

Mother Knows Best...

So I get this from my mom shortly after my last post...

 

Alright, dear,

Calm down-even if it's a brown recluse, you are about 20,000 times bigger than it. The problem you now have, is what if he (assuming gender here) is no longer in the bathtub when you dare to open the door????

Where is he??? Let knowledge be on your side at this moment. As long as you know where he is, you have the upper hand.

Equip yourself with a can of Raid (I hope you have-if not use Off or some strong cleaning solvent) and a broom (also assuming you have this). Take a deep breath and open the bathroom door with an eye towards the tub. We hope he is still in the same vicinity he was originally. Trap him with the broom (all the while, humming the itsy bitsy spider song to keep your courage up) and spray the Hell (excuse the term, but this is war) out of the area under and around the broom. Try to ignore the small cries emitting from the broom-he should have known better than to come in and this will serve as a lesson to any of his buddies that may be watching (from outside!!).

Come on, girl, you can do it!! You are woman, let's here you roar.

Let me know who wins..

Mom xo

 

Before I know it, I am up and heading to the shed to retrieve the outside broom.  All the while asking myself "why are you doing this?" Just give it a try-it's only a spider.  Going into the shed is scary in itself.  Who KNOWS what's lurking in there? Got the broom. Now the Raid.  Guess I used it all on those bugs in my cabinets in Houston (another story for another day).  I did have some good cleaning solvent options. But I also needed to consider spray nozzle type.  I needed aerosol for this-there's no time for saving the environment here, after all I am trying to kill a spider.  So, I opted for hairspray.  Armed with broom and hairspray I march downstairs to conquer my fears.  When I got there, he was gone.  I even shook out the shower curtain-I know, extremely brave.  My theory is that he heard me stomping down the stairs and began to tremble in fear.  His fear seized him and caused a heart attack.  And he is one of those types of spiders that vanishes after death.  So, ha, take that, stupid spider. 

 

I still closed the door on my way out.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider Climbed Up the Water Spout

I just need to calm my heart rate down for a minute before I can go on to my next chore. So, I'll share what just happened with you. I was downstairs (in the basement) cleaning the bathroom. I pushed back the shower curtain, leaned down and turned on the water to clean the tub. And then I noticed a little friend take a big hop towards me. A spider friend. I am not usually squeamish around bugs or arachnids or whatever. But, since moving here I have developed a little fear of spiders. We do find them with some regularity since we have woods behind the house-you would think I'd be getting used to them. I'm not. Back to the basement. So I dash out of the bathroom and close the door real fast. Standing outside the bathroom I realize the water is still running. Crap. How long does it take a bathtub to overflow? Andrew will be home in 7 hours...is that too long? Probably. I will say the spider was not huge. Probably the size of a dime. But, we have a friend who lives not too far from here who has had brown recluse spiders in her apartment on and off for several months now. These guys are poisonous and can really mess you up...click here if you have a strong stomach (and haven't seen any unidentified spiders lately). I muster up all my courage and lunge back in, turn off the water and run out, closing the door behind me again. I gather up my stuff and run upstairs. Of course, you know the first thing I do. I do this every time I see a spider and think there's a chance it's a brown recluse. I google it. Google image. And every time the same picture pops up (the one hyperlinked above). I never get a good enough look at the spider to see if it's really the poisonous kind. But he's downstairs in the tub behind a closed door (the carpet meets the bottom of the door and creates a pretty good seal). And I'm leaving for 10 days tomorrow. I'll make Andrew go check on him in a few days.

Btw, according to the www (which we all know is all facts) with our modern day plumbing it is highly unlikely that a spider could crawl up your pipes into your bathtub. So, how does that effect Wade's favorite little song...I've been singing lies to my son since he was 3 months old apparently.

If at first you don't succeed...

We all need a little motivation, right? Well, we have found Wade's.  This amazing duck (or is it a chicken?) from Andrew's sweet aunt is training him to crawl.  You can kinda tell the video has 2 segments.  The first segment shows some extreme crawling action.  I believe there are at least 4 crawl steps documented.  The second part is for those of you who need a little encouragement to persevere today.  Despite fatigue and distractions, stand firm to the end.  You will reach the chicken. Or duck. Or whatever it is.

Mayfield Dairy and Farm

I promise this will be my last post tonight! We went to the Mayfield Dairy today to see how they make milk and ice cream.  The Dairy itself was kind of a let down.  We pretty much just got to see them screwing the lids on the milk jugs and opening the chocolate cookie packs for ice cream sandwiches.  BUT then we went over to the farm and got some GREAT pics of the kids. 

I did not forget about correcting the 8 month photos and I plan to do it before I leave Thursday...so hold me to it.