Mom sent some pics

Here are a few more pics my mom sent from our weekend at the lake a few weeks ago. In all my haste to record about Sat. at the lake, I failed to mention the great treat we had on Sunday. Granny (Me-ma) and Aunt Cherie visited us! They drove over an hour each way just to see us (well, I'm not that naive; I know they really came just for Ella). :-)

They were so excited to see her walking. She took to both of them immediately-like no time had elapsed since their last visit (in August). I'm so glad about that b/c we don't get to see them as often as we'd like. They also got to feed her-she helped herself to Me-ma's plate, Aunt Cherie's plate, and mine. Little Piglet.

A Great Family Outing!

We visited an apple farm(they also have a small pumpkin patch) Saturday and had lots of fun taking pics of Ella on top of pumpkins. They also had animals (cows, pigs, goats, donkeys, sheep), so Ella was entertained by those. However, she had the most fun watching the other kids on the small playground. Of course she wanted to play as well, so I held her as she jumped on tire rings-she thought that was just super. Then Daddy held Ella, and Mommy got to act like a kid again and jump as high as she wanted...so much fun. :-)

We didn't buy any pumpkins (though we did purchase some yummy dried apples). Sad? Well, not really. They had already been picked over and we had 2 at home, so it was no big deal. I thought if Ella got really attached to one, we'd buy it but she only liked playing w/the stems or rolling the small ones. In fact, the only way we could get her to sit still on the haystack was to give her small pumpkins to roll off. Then I'd snap the pic as she smiled at the fact that her pumpkin was magically caught by Daddy.

All that to say, we went to the patch, not for pumpkins, but for pictures. Crazy, right? Probably true, but if so, there were 2 other crazy couples there getting shots of their babies on pumpkins and haystacks as well. In fact, at one point, we had to stand in line! I guess moms are all alike in that respect; we'll do anything for that perfect photo opportunity!

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

Pumpkin-Carvin' Fun!

Friday night we had a fun time of pumpkin' carvin' and wiener-roastin' with our friends from Bible Fellowhip class. Will decided to do the pumpkin free-handed and I think it turned out fantastic. Ella enjoyed all the pumpkin mess and the other kiddos that were there. Oh, we had s'mores too...yummy! Earlier tonight, I decided to take our smaller pumpkin and do a carving myself using a stencil-this was my first solo effort and I think it turned out relatively well. The best part? It wasn't that hard (though it was tedious work) and it was pretty fun overall. Yay for me-I've actually cleaned out the "guts" of a pumpkin all by myself. :-)

A shovel in one hand, and a piece of pumpkin in the other...let the fun begin!  

"Daddy, I'm sure you need something from this bag-just give me a second to find it."  

"I'm being good-mindin' my own business."  

Will's happy pumpkin!  

First, you poke, then you cut. :-)  

Laura's pumpkin  

Various Pics

Below find miscellaneous pics taken in the last week. Enjoy!

She loves toting bags around.   

This was how I found her the day before the catastrophe-like, I said, I'd been warned!  

She found her hairbands and wanted me to wear one too!  

Wearing Daddy's shoes!
  

  

"Anyone breastfeeding in public should be arrested for indecent exposure."

I'm quoting someone's moronic opinion written to the editor of Baby Talk. The magazine got 8500 letters, most of them positive, in reaction to their Aug. 2006 cover which showed a mom nursing her baby (above). Funny thing-I got this issue and didn't think anything about the cover. Groundbreaking? Controversial? It didn't cross my mind-just a sweet baby eating. Well, in my Nov. issue, I saw the many letters to the editor and had to write something about it. Some people apparently thought the cover was immoral-one lady even called it "pornography."

Are you serious? So, I guess this rates right up there w/ the advertisements seen in the windows of Victoria's Secret and Abercrombie and Fitch, right? God, help us. The same small-minded individual who wrote the above quote also said, "Yes, it may be natural, but we have formula now." Oh, so, what you mean is, yes, it's been proven by all the medical experts (as if we needed their green light) that breast is best, not to mention more convenient and cost-efficent, but who cares? Just go buy some Good Start. What insane reasoning.

Do I breastfeed in public? Only when it's absolutely necessary. Why? Because I have a Circus Nurser-she doesn't just quietly latch on and remain peacefully sucking for 10 minutes. No, she likes to do tricks-sometimes she stands up and then sticks her hiney out-all the while nursing away. Sorry, a blanket doesn't cover that too well. Also she is easily distracted-if I tried nursing her in a public place, she would be more interested in all the people walking by than her source of nutrition. But most babies are not like ours. So to those moms who can do it in public w/no problem, good for you! Any woman I've seen BF, keeps herself covered-she's not trying to flash anyone, for Pete's sake.

As one woman wrote, "Personally, I prefer peace and quiet, but when it comes down to it, a hungry baby has absolute priority over someone's views about feeding in public. Does it bother you? Don't look. Do I get on your case when I see you stuffing your face with a Triple Whooper Deluxe with extra cheese?"

Love it.

Another Muslim lady commented how in Algeria when she nursed her daughter in public (covered by a khimar-"a head covering that also covers the chest")-no one thought anything of it. "And this was in a country where female modesty is cherished." Yet in the US, she got nasty looks. This just proves how backwards we are as a country to all things natural-including childbirth. But that's another blog in itself.

I actually found several other blogs that had addressed the August cover. One blog had many comments on it-all positive. My favorite was this woman's response, "With both children, I bf them whenever and wherever I happen to be - the mall, Cracker Barrel, McDonalds, or the library. Yes, I do get some 'looks', but I double dog dare anyone to approach me and ask me to feed my baby in the bathroom. Would you really eat your nice, juicy steak while sitting on the pot?"

You won't believe...

how Miss Ella greeted me this morning. I put her down for her nap at 10am like usual; about an hour later I heard her making loud noises, so I figured I'd better go in there and see what was going on. Well, there she was standing buck-naked in her crib w/poop smeared everywhere-on her crib sheet, on her face, stomach, hands, pillow....oh, it was awful! And then of course, there was the dirty diaper thrown haphazardly aside in her crib. I should have been prepared for this b/c when I got her up yesterday from her nap, she had unsnapped all of her buttons to her pjs but still had them on (and her wet diaper was intact). So, after sternly telling her, "No, Ella, No. We don't do this. Mommy changes Ella's diaper, not Ella," I drew another bath (she just had one last night) and quickly got her cleaned. Then I stripped everything out of the crib (bumper, blankets that had been covering the back/sides of her crib so she wouldn't bite the wood, poopie-stained stuffed animals, etc) and headed for the wash. So, now I guess I'm officially inducted into the Mommy Sorority-my first real horror-and I made it through. Does this mean Ella's ready to be potty trained?

Tagged by Em

Okay, Em, I know you tagged me like a month ago to do your book meme :-); sorry I'm just now responding. Actually, I'm ashamed that I'm not reading more. When I have a moment, I usually check emails/blogs instead of read-shame on me.

One book that changed your life:
Besides The Bible? Ina May's Guide to Childbirth--in the sense that it changed my perspective on childbirth

One book that you’ve read more than once:
To Kill a Mockingbird

One book you’d want on a desert island:
The Bible

One book that made you laugh:
Life of Pi

One book that made you cry:
Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas

One book that you wish had been written:
How To Clean Your House in 5 Minutes

One book you wish had never been written:
Created To Be His Help Meet (I'm only kidding here; even though I don't agree w/everything in the book, some parts were convicting, and now having read it, I'm accountable-uggh! Thanks, Em!)

One book you’re currently reading:
Heaven-I started this back in June/July? Then put it away for awhile and just started back up

One book you’ve been meaning to read:
Mere Christianity-I have it now-that's a start

And now I've added two more...

One book that you'll never forget:
A Widow for One Year

One book that doesn't appear by its title to be fascinating, yet really is:
The Bark of the Dogwood-a Tour of Southern homes and Gardens

And now, it's time for me to tag some people....Sarah, Liz, Letisha, Erin

Many Firsts!

Ella has learned so much in the last couple of days. I've been teaching her some more signs lately, now that she has the milk sign learned. "Car" was introduced about a week ago, and Friday, she did it very energetically when she saw a car pass by as we were getting the mail. The sign is like you're driving a car-turning the steering wheel and she does it full-force; does that mean she's going to be a crazy driver? :-) Hopefully not. She's done it several times since then-Will was so pleased the first time he saw her do it. We've also been working on the "more" sign for a few weeks, and Saturday she began doing that while eating her lunch. Yay! It's much better than her cow sound.

She also puts out her hands for a hug now. I think what made her finally get it was seeing me act it out w/Daddy. "Daddy, give me a hug." And he would stretch his arms wide to embrace me. A couple of times like that and she was doing it herself. She also started walking backwards Friday-she thought that was really funny!

Amazing how quickly they absorb everything at this age-just like sponges. Kind of scary to. I'm trying desperately to erase "stupid" from my vocabulary. You know, like "Why won't that stupid trashcan stay closed?" Instead, "silly" is going in its place.

We also got our girl to eat scrambled eggs for the 1st time Sat. The trick was to dip them in salsa. :-) She was none the wiser. We've tried unsuccessfully many times b-4 now only to have her spit them right back out. And she tried oatmeal again this morning, though she's not too sure about it still.

P.S. Will got another deer! This time right behind our house and w/his bow.

Treadmills are for climbing!
  

We have deer meat again!

This past weekend after dropping Ella and me off at the lake, Will headed to Kingstree to hunt w/his cousin Jim. Thankfully, he shot two deer (a buck and a doe), so we once again will have meat in our freezer. Why am I so happy? Well, besides the fact that it saves money, it's much healthier than cow's meat (leaner and no hormones, etc) and actually tastes pretty good. Will processes the meat himself, and I help w/the grinding and storing. Needless to say, this was a great early b-day present for Will who turned 32 Monday.

Ella had a wonderful time w/Ga-ma and Gan-pa at the lake. I think her favorite thing was watching Gan-pa feed hound dog. The ducks were also a treat. I don't have many pics to share b/c Will took the camera, so mine were taken on my mom's camera. Since her computer is acting up, she's having a hard time sending the pics to me. If and when, it ever works, I'll post more to share. There are some adorable ones of Kenny (Gan-pa) reading to Ella that I'd love to post.

In Prosperity, we enjoyed Roma's restaurant (awesome chicken spaghetti and pizza!) and the new Main Street Diner(yummy blueberry pancakes w/whipped cream on top!). Unfortunately, unlike Jeff, I don't have pics or links to post of these eateries b/c they don't have websites. While in Prosperity, Mom suggested we go to the downtown shops as a treat for me and Ella (well, really just for me). ;-) I don't think she'll ever come up with that idea again. She told me later that she could have handled 2 hours but 3 was just way too much. As most of you know, I am quite the indecisive shopper. We went into this one store and I must have stayed in there an hour deciding on frames and baskets. Sorry, Mom! Ella was actually pretty good in her stroller (we kept her distracted by offering her different stuffed animals in the store to hold), but at the end she was getting extremely tired and ended up falling asleep on the way home (w/ a new bunny by her side-Ga-ma just couldn't resist.) :-)
And it was on the way home, that we caught the tailend of the Clemson/Wake Forest game on the radio. We started listening right as they got the ball after the missed field goal attempt from WF and decided to turn the game around. Yay Tigers!

This week, Ella has been bringing me books to read to her and then lifting up her hands, so I'll pick her up and put her in my lap-so sweet. She also loves looking at and pointing to pictures of herself. And she's quite intelligent too. Today, as she was on the changing table, I decided to clean her little nose out. She kept turning further and further away from me, so I couldn't do it-she finally turned all the way around on her tummy w/ a sly grin on her face.

And she's started playing hide-n-seek w/me. Her favorite place to hide is behind the glider in her room, though today she chose under the kitchen table. Of course, I always look all around the room first asking, "Where's Ella?" "Oh, Ella, where are you?" Sometimes, she'll come out just to show me where Miss Ella is. :-) So cute.

And no longer does our dear Ella crawl when I'm chasing her. No, she just walks as fast as those little legs will carry her to get away. It's sad to admit-but our little baby is finally turning into a true toddler. You can just see the wheels turning as she tries to figure out new things everyday and the defiance she has when things don't go her way. Thankfully, her "trantrums" don't last long. I guess Will and I can't blame her for her lack of patience (she can get easily frustrated) as we're the same way. We've just learned not to throw tantrums in public...I hope! :-)

Now isn't this the cutest little Tiger you've ever seen? :-)
  

Pointing to a pic of herself.
  

Chillin' in her new jacket!