A Cozy Sunday Afternoon

With the cold rainy weather, and a couple of stuffy/runny noses, we had a cozy afternoon by the fire with coffee and naps...

and a little toe-munching...

on our new rug!

Reading all those books sure tires you out!

Janes/ Brown/ Lincoln/ Sablone/ Folk/ McQuade Family Game Night

A Post Thanksgiving feast of fun at the Janes' residence !

Christian poses for the camera

Christian watches Gavan intently!

Gavan watches Christian intently!

The Clan (minus the sleeping baby)

Mr. Paddywack

My parents have a framed picture of me in their family room, as a toddler, reading to my dolls and stuffed animals. I had set up the whole scene while on an overnight at my grandparents in the corner of their diningroom, and when my grandmother found me quietly playing, she asked what I was doing. My response: "I am Miss Paddywack, and these are my students."
I didn't intentionally set the following picture up to mimick Miss Paddywack, but it kind of does... Only Christian is reading "Tonka Town" to his crew... a book i'm sure i never would have read to my students.
Mom, can I get a copy of that picture? I think a double frame is in order...

We've come so very far....

Thanksgiving Day Proclamation of 1789

by: President George Washington

"Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor, and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanks giving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many single favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.
Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the Service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks, for His kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the single and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of His providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, of the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have to acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge and in general for all the great and various favors which He hath been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humble offering our prayers and supplications to the Great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all people, by constantly being a government of wise, just and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone know to be best."

Given under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.

(signed) G. Washington

Source: The Massachusetts Centinel, Wednesday, October 14, 1789

Girls night out!

Got to go out to the Melting Pot with my girls tonight! It was so refreshing to be with them-- to be girly and eat chocolate-- Cookies and Cream Marshmallow Dream to be exact (right Toni?). It was Kate's 30th birthday-- and so hard to believe we're all exiting the 20's soon! We laughed and talked about boys and ordered seconds and scraped the last bit of chocolate off the bottom of the pots! AND i got to wear my brand new jeans-- woo hooo! Totally perfect night in my opinion! It really does make you appreciate these events more when you have a child. And I feel like I'm finally at a point where I can feel completely comfortable leaving him for the evening. He's got a somewhat consistent bedtime, and is totally in love with his daddy. So no worries. I drove home with a full belly and a full heart... from being with my sisters... and returning to my loves. Life is good. I feel so blessed.

First Snow...EVER!

This is the sled Gramsy and Poppy gave me last Christmas, before I was even born! My first snowfall came just at the right time, when I am learning to sit up. I wasn't too sure what to think about the cold wet stuff, but Mommy and Daddy seemed pretty excited about it, so I guess it's alright. They say that next year we'll build something called a Snowman. Sounds fun!

Graham Crackers!

my first finger food....

I only choked once...

mmmmm.... more!

Mom's Weekend Out

It was my first time leaving my baby over night-- to go to Jason and Brittany's wedding...

Dave and Christian got to bond for a full 24 hours-- which they did very well-- they both have a special grin now when they look at each other. It melts my heart.

It was great to get away with Toni and have a girly roadtrip-- 6 hours to Boston in a car actually flew by! I missed my boys, but was relieved to know that i could go away without any worries-- Christian is now sleeping a good 6-8 hours at night (thank God!).

The reception was really cool; lots of culture, lots of Salsa dancing-- Jason said it was "My Big Fat Puerto Rican Wedding".

The Amnion Crew

Guy Time !

Babysitting Silas

Today we got to play with Cousin Silas while the girls went out... so we got plenty of 'guy' time. i loved watching him and learning how to be a big boy-- playing with trains and riding bikes and eating PB&J. He made sure I had plenty of toys to play with from the moment i arrived. AND he gives me all his old clothes after he grows out of them. That's what cousins are for! We had a great time, and i even took a nap in my Pack N Play with no problem! Babysitting is lots of fun :)

Baby. Sitting.

Playdate with Isaiah

Today I went to Isaiah's house to play. Of course Mommy had to take a million pictures because we were so cute together. Isaiah is 6 weeks younger than I am, but his cheeks are definitely bigger-- and we weigh about the same! We both have blue eyes and brown hair and pale skin. . . and even though we don't look that much alike, those similarities, along with the fact that we are so similar in age, make us look like brothers in the pictures. Mommy says there are too many to choose from, so she's putting them all in a slideshow.

Fall Slideshow

Unfortunately slideshows cannot be posted under "posts", but i wanted to showcase the latest photos of our little pumpkin.... these are some fun shots from the past couple of months... as summer has turned to fall... there were too many to choose from, so a slideshow is, of course, the only answer-- enjoy...
i may be adding more as the weeks unfold...

Proud to be an American!

Bubby and i decided, since it was a rather warm day for November, to hike to our local polling place (about a 20 minute walk)--

I expected there to be somewhat of a line at 11:30am, but apparently people took their lunch breaks early or something, cuz it was snaking around the parking lot by the time we arrived!

2 hours and 15 minutes later (with a few passing showers!, and a nursing break!) we filled in our little circle, and hit the road... making it home before dark (ok, long before dark, but still!)...
crazy!

at least people are exercising their right to vote. and most people seemed to be in relatively good moods...considering the wait. it helped that the volunteer people were handing out sandwiches, snacks and coffee... although i think they should have been offering to act as "placeholders" about a half hour after they give you a cup of coffee. there were several other women there with small babies, and one who was 8 months pregnant. i think there should have been a special line for us too!

next time i walk 20 minutes to vote with a baby i'll be sure to bring an umbrella and a bottle... and if i can carry it, a chair!

O Wow.

have you ever had one of those "Oh. Wow." moments when you take a bite of something delicious? i had one of those moments tonight when i finally got the bubby to sleep and realized i hadn't eaten since lunch time (about 6 hours previous). fortunately i had just pulled a lasagna out of the oven, whose recipe i had to improvise with a bit.... i threw in some shredded cheddar with the shredded mozzarella-- and added a half cup of sour cream to the 2 cups of ricotta to thin it out (it seemed too stiff once all the shredded cheese had been added), so it made the filling extra smooth and creamy! then i ran out of lasagna noodles for the top layer, so i made a layer of elbow macaroni (all non-boiled noodles) and covered it with sauce.... oh, and i threw in some sage sausage with the ground beef so there was a little kick to it...
anyway, i'm not sure if it was just my empty belly, or the eclectic nature of the entree, but it was heavenly to bite into! and as if italian heaven weren't enough, my o.wow. moment turned into a hedonistic rush to get my bread toasted so i could eat it WITH the meal (what was left of it by that point.) in my haste i forgot that you're not supposed to cut the bread with the knife blade toward your hand. oops. a little reminder to enjoy what you have, and not be greedy for more. fortunately it's nothing a bandaid can't fix.
and now i'm basking in the "so full i could burst" afterglow of a perfect meal.
ahh, the american way....

Brown Look-alike Meter

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Ancestors - Pedigree

6 month milestones

proficient roller-over-er: he's finally got it down (both directions)-- those muscles are doin their job-- time to get that changing pad nailed to the wall, and start using the seat belt attached to it!

sitting up with very little assistance: in the boppy, or by himself, he's getting the hang of it... it's so amazing, one day he topples over and the next day he can sit (almost) by himself.

sippy cuppin' : the first sip was quickly interrupted by a grin of delight -- i wish i had it on video-- the sheer joy of having a dribble of water enter his mouth by his own hand(s)-- was too much for his little face to contain! i'm definitely a fan of the 'no spill' kind.

belly laughin' : i turned him upside down yesterday for the first time and he laughed hysterically. a little later i was holding him and suddenly pretended to drop him, but 'caught' him half way down-- even more hysterical laughter, as if he loved it more than life itself!

merciless flirtin' : he's suddenly vying for everyone's affection. especially his father's. it's too cute for words-- dave says it's weird to call that flirting-- but he stares at him across the room and coos and squeals in anticipation--and when dave finally looks at him, he grins from ear to ear and sometimes even turns his little head away and looks back at him out of the corner of his eye. SO CUTE!!!!

self-expression: the high pitched scream. gotta love it. especially in church.

resisting nap time: i'm 1/2 a year old-- i don't need a nap! I SAID, "I DON'T NEED A NAAAAAAAAAP!!"

word recognition: well, kind of. Sometimes if i say, "where's daddy?" (looks at dave) or, "do you hear a car?" (looks out the window), or call him by name (turns toward me) ... but not every time... we'll have to keep up the repetition.


before we know it, he'll be off to college.......