Dr. Funkenstein

A.  Sorry that this video has horrible lighting.  I was literally backed up against our laundry room door frame.  I was more concerned about catching the moment than I was about lighting.  Oh well.
B.  Yes.  We were having a Parliament dance party.  We also dance to the Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga.  We just are very selective about which songs. And if you can find me better dance songs than Alive or Let's Dance than I'll give you a dollar.
C.  I'm really freakin' loud...

Without further ado, here she is in all her WALKING glory...

The Color Purple

Yes. It's been awhile. But it's been a long week full of fairs, festivals, fields of pumpkins and food poisoning. I'll bring you up to speed in a few days, but for now...I'll just let you take a few looks at my beautiful family taken by my wonderful friend Jenny who is working on her photo skills...

My two most favorite boys in the world...

Best husband in the world

Can I just take a beat to brag about my husband?

We'd been talking about getting me either a Nook or a Kindle. Researching, talking with friends with eReaders and the like. This was in response to his anniversary present for me. Remember how I said I have no game face? He got me a new Classic iPod...one of those ones with a billion gigs of memory. Well, I got him an iPod touch. And I'm planning on getting an iPhone when they come to Verizon. So I had no need for a mega iPod, particularly when I currently use my old 40 gig old school iPod from 2004. It's huge and literally has ALL our music on it. (Which is why shuffle is super awesome...who else gets to rock out to a mix of U2, Stevie Wonder, and oldies from high school like "Woop, Der it is" and Fiona Apple?) So when I unwrapped his gift to me, my face fell and he noted my disappointment and promptly returned it, asking what i wanted instead. Cue discussion of eReaders.

When I hadn't made a decision about what I wanted in a month, he promptly informed me he was going to get me something else. Something better. My response was that in truth, I didn't need an eReader, that I was fine.

My wonderful man's response? "This isn't about what you need, this is about what I want to get my wife. I'm giving you a bonus. Consider it your year end bonus for doing a wonderful job."
"What?"
"I wouldn't be able to do my job, travel, and work as hard as i do if it weren't for you. You keep this house running and do a beautiful job. I never have to worry about what is going on at home because of how great you are. So I'm getting you an iPad."
"Honey..." (Notice the lady didn't protest too much.)

So today my sweet man took us to the Apple store and gave me my bonus. I am blogging from it right now.

It is awesome. But the most awesome thing was simply being seen. Being valued. Not just stuck at home with the kids changing diapers, folding laundry, and complaining about cooking, but part of something larger. Part of a team. And then, BOOM!, out of nowhere, being voted Most Valuable Player, when all along I thought I was just the water boy.

Remember that DeBeers commercial where the couple is in Italy, the man gives his wife a diamond as he screams, "I love this woman! I love this woman!" and then she hugs him and through tears she whispers in his ear, "I love this man! I love this man!"?

Right now, I am typing on my iPad, letting you know that I LOVE THIS MAN! I LOVE THIS MAN!

A Real Conversation

Finding the Way Home

It was with mixed feelings that I recently attended an acquaintance’s book launch. It should come as no surprise, that my pride and excitement for my friend was mixed with both jealousy and fear (neither of which look very good on me, by the way). Jealousy, because let’s face it, not only did she accomplish her lifelong dream of having her very own ISBN number, but Sarah accomplished my dream as well. A part of me is inspired and encouraged by this, another part is condemned. I also felt fear because I have NO game face. None. Just ask Sloan about my reaction to some of his gifts for me. I am incapable of feigning pretty much any emotion, but especially incapable of pretending to like something when I do not. So what if I read my friend’s book and did not like it? What if I couldn’t perfect the casual smile, nod, and simple “Congrats!” that would be required to see her every Sunday at church?


Well, folks, this self-proclaimed literary snob’s fears were unfounded. Finding the Way Home, by Sarah Byrd is not only a good book, but the kind of book you have to shift your plans for just so you can sneak in a few extra minutes hours of reading. I was warned it was a dangerous book to read before bedtime as it was hard to put down, so I set a 2 chapter maximum for me to read each night—choosing to savor it like one might slowly eat a slice of cheesecake. Well, I grew up watching the Golden Girls and can totally eat a whole cheesecake in one sitting. I worked around my “2 chapters before bedtime” rule by waking up at 5 am. It cannot be stressed enough that I am NOT a morning person. I let Henry watch a few extra Dora and Thomas episodes until I finished the book. Few books have had this effect on me. OK, well, the entire Twilight series did this to me, but this is a book you don’t have to be embarrassed about enjoying. You can even share it with your Mother-in-law (which I did).

Set in the English countryside, the story centers around recently widowed American Suzanne Morgan and a British schoolmaster, Peter Stewart. It is a story about running from one’s past and learning how to be loved. We forget being loved well requires us to teeter, sometimes painfully, between self-confidence and self-abandon. This book takes us along that precarious ledge, and there’s not a more beautifully appropriate setting for that than the cliffed-shores of Britain.

Byrd’s character development is strong. I found myself shaking my book as I read because I could not shake Suzanne. It is a bit embarrassing to confess that I found myself actually praying for her. That’s right, people, I prayed for a fictional character. I’m choosing to see this as a sign of Byrd’s brilliant writing rather than my own lunacy. I wanted Suzanne to be stronger, to speak up, to know she was worth loving, which I’m pretty sure was Byrd’s entire point. I also wanted to slap the Vicar in the face, which I also believe to be a sign of a good book.

The author characterized her book as gentle fiction. I tend to agree. I imagine if Rosamund Pilcher and Jan Karon had a love child, Sarah Byrd’s Finding the Way Home would be it. Here’s hoping for a large family…




Finding the Way Home can be found in print on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.com, and can also be downloaded for either your Nook or Kindle. You should go  to one of those places now and buy a copy for yourself and for your mother-in-law. All the cool kids (read: me) are doing it.

Isn't She Lovely?

Pretty sure she is the most beautiful girl who ever lived. 

Sorry for those of you with daughters; they're probably pretty cute too. 

But seriously, her hair is to die for.  People pay big bucks for those soft curls.

Here she is speaking her native language:  the raspberry.  We have entire conversations blowing raspberries at one another.  She also likes to play slaps.  As in, I slap her high chair three times.  She slaps it three times.  I slap, she slaps, etc.  Imagine the fun when Henry and her speak raspberry for three hours in the car.  Imagine...

She likes to cruise around furniture.  She pushes the walker around the driveway.  She will toddle around the kitchen, one hand on the dishwasher then lean a little to the left to lean on the island, cruise around the island then launch herself at the baby gate leading into the family room.  She likes to shake the bars of the gate.  Am considering getting her a tiny aluminum cup she can bang on the bars. 

She can stand on her own in the middle of the room  push herself up and a standing position without pulling up on anything.  Here she is at the playground at Henry's school.

Pretty sure she'll be walking by her first birthday. 

She continues to be an expert sleeper.  As well as an expert eater with her six teeth.  (She soooo didn't mind the extra protein she got from the beetle larvae I was unknowingly feeding her in her formula.  Thank you, Similac.  We're now all premade all the time.  Which is kind of nice too.)  Her favorite foods are Mum Mums, Honey Nut Cheerios, Sweet Potatoes, Lasagna, French fries and Goldfish.  Oddly enough, she wasn't a big fan of the chocolate milkshake I offered her tonight.  It's funny how I took pride in the fact that Henry didn't have a Happy Meal until he was 14 months and Gracie gets tossed french fries while we drive down the road.  And Henry didn't have cheerios or goldfish until after a year as well.  I was certain that he'd choke.  Considering that Henry feeds Gracie off his own plate, I just try to see that she doesn't get bits of flank steak or an entire Popsicle up her nose. 

Can't believe she is eleven months old.  The invites for her birthday party went out last week.

When we play in the yard and hear the high school marching band practicing, I can't help but remember how last year at this time I didn't even know she was mine.  But she was.  And for that, I must thank God for his grace and mine.

He's the Cheeky One

Upon meeting new people, the first thing Henry says is not "My name is Henry", nor is it "Nice to meet you".  Rather he says "I have Thomas."  Most people respond, "Oh, is your name Thomas?"  A reasonable question.  I have to explain that he simply wants all he meets to know that he has Thomas the Tank Engine. It is the thing that best describes him, and in some sad way, his love for Thomas is what defines him.  We can be at the playground and he will suddenly declare, "I need to go home and play with Thomas."  He'll turn down chocolate milk to build with Thomas Legos.  We have Thomas crayons, stickers, coloring books, Pez dispensers, paint by number books, pillow cases, blankets, vidoes, books, bath toys, in addition to mile upon mile of wooden track, train stations, and Thomas and Friends trains.  We sing the Thomas theme song while he washes his hands and brushes his teeth.  When Henry is angry he exclaims "Cinders and Ashes!"  And to really motivate him, I simply say to him, "I need you to be a really useful engine."  He has even asked if Jesus knows Thomas.  Perhaps the better question would be does Thomas know Jesus, but it was sweet none the less. 

So it cannot be stated enough that this past Saturday Henry has his "Vote for Pedro" moment where all his dreams came true.  We headed up to Strasburg Railroad in Lancaster County, PA for the occasion with our buddy Deb and her son Jack.  (Whom Henry loves almost as much as he loves Thomas.) 

We're ready to go meet Thomas!

He had been asking if it was Saturday for two weeks.  Thank you Sloan for telling him too far in advance.

Running to meet everyone's favorite blue engine...

Seriously.  How cute are my kids? 

Riding the Cranky Cars.  Peep!  Peep!

Riding Thomas. 

The conductor came by and took tickets and placed his cap on the kids heads.  So someone could then take your picture and you could buy it.  We're cheap.  We snapped pics ourselves.  And Henry loved his special Thomas engineer cap too much to wear the Conductor hat.

 In the middle of what was supposed to be her afternoon nap, this is the face of a girl who hadn't napped all day.  She also woke up with two more teeth the next day.  I think adopting has brought into our family someone who is easy going and doesn't complain.  So we've helped our grandchildren out in a big way...

By the end of the day, Henry's nose had snotted all over his face, his lips were chapped, and he was talking like Kathleen Turner.  But this didn't stop him from telling me, "Mommy, this is my favorite day.  Thank you, thank you.  You are wonderful for bringing me to Thomas."