This past year has been the busiest, the craziest and, quite simply, the best year to date. God's blessings and provision never fail to amaze me. 2007 started off with a bang - I joined Paul in Georgia (where he'd been activated, in December.) Three weeks after I arrived down here Judah decided to make his appearance five weeks early. He spent his first week in the NICU, and then came home, scrawny and wrinkled - but healthy! - to happy and grateful parents.
Judah adjusted well to us =) He smiled, happily content, when Paul accidentally folded him up in his stroller. He looked on with no cares in the world when I mistakenly grabbed - and generously applied - Icy Hot instead of Diaper Rash Cream while I was changing him. Judah has a wonderful personality, and if I could bottle up one thing from this year to save and remember throughout life, it would be his laugh. It is contagious, carefree and delightful. Judah has two teeth that he proudly bares to any and all, and three more that are showing through his tops gums. He loves grinding these puzzling new 'toys' in his mouth. His favorite game at present is Peek-a-Boo. We play it until I get bored or start going insane. He's also contributed to our home decor. Cheerios can be found everywhere - smashed in the carpet, hidden in shoes, under couch cushions... the hiding places keep getting more creative.
This has been our first complete year in the military as a married couple... while it certainly falls short of winning Job of the Year award, there are no complaints. I am more than proud of Paul serving, and even though he is away from home long hours, and gone many nights with work I am so glad that most nights he sleeps soundly beside me. Paul was promoted to Sgt this summer, and started working on completing his degree by doing online courses. Both of these things have demanded a lot of his time, but he still makes the time to spend with his family. He is Judah's favorite person - Judah chants 'da-da-da' endlessly and claps when Paul gets home from work.
Despite Paul's hectic schedule we were able to do a bit of traveling this year - we spent three days for our anniversary in Helen, GA, we explored Atlanta, spent many days at the beach in SC and in October Paul and I went to Jamaica for a week while my sister stayed with Judah. Paul did a lot of traveling with work - Alabama, Colorado, Georgia and South Carolina . And I went with just Judah to visit a friend in Tennessee, and then also up to Ontario. We both love traveling and visiting new places, and hope in to be able to go to some new places in 2008.
Our big news at the close of this year is that we are expecting baby #2, due July 2008. We are rather ecstatic and looking forward to adding another bundle of joy and laughter to our home... which hopefully won't be the one we're currently living in as it is getting smaller and smaller as Judah gets bigger and bigger =) We are looking at moving the end of February to someplace nearby.
We enjoyed all the many visitors this past year - at least monthly we had someone(s) for overnight visits. It was quite fun, and we look forward to the continuation of company in '08.
Well, Christmas day has come and gone =) Judah's first Christmas wasn't overly exciting... I woke him up early (tho not as early as Paul and I were up... we did our stockings, breakfast and our gifts first!) I really tried to let my baby sleep... but by 8am I was just too excited to let him sleep any longer! So much to Paul (and Judah's!) disgust, I woke him up. We had all his gifts in a pile for him, but he really didn't care too much about them. We gave him a xylophone, and once that one was opened he really didn't give a hoot about anything else. Judah's special treat on Christmas was eating Jello for the first time. He loved it! When he'd finished his off he ate most of mine too =) Here are a few pictures:
Life amuses me. People in life amuse me even more.
Today I was reading through my BABYTALK magazine and there was an article on "One-upmomship" - basically, mothers bragging on their own little ones to other mothers. I read the article and found it humorous. I have never met another mother like that, and I even thought to myself "Thank goodness I have never come across a mother like this!"
I thought too soon.
When Paul came home from work we all went down to check the mail. Well, he checked the mail. Judah and I waited for him. Another couple and their baby were out doing the exact same thing.
What a coincidence. (totally stole that line from my Nigerian-wanna-be-husband! It's a good line.)
This couple introduces themselves and start chatting. They seemed sweet, and when Paul joined us the men kind of hovered on one side and us gals on the other side. That is when the "one-upmomship" showed her evil claws. It started with an innocent;
"So, is your son walking yet?"
My reply - "Nope! Not yet. He will stand on his own, but he's not interested in walking yet..."
Before I had a chance to ask her about her son she says"Oh, he's been walking since he's 7 months old. He's kind of ahead in a lot of things. I was that way too when I was a baby. So, does your baby have teeth?"
Me - "Yes, how about yours?"
Her - "Oh yes. He's had them forever. He has five teeth. Five! How many does your son have?"
Me - (wanting to say "enough to bite you with") responded with a more gracious - "He has two."
Her -"So does he talk? Does he ever say anything?"
Me -"His favorite word is 'da-da'"
Her (again, before I could say any more!) - "Oh, my son says a lot of words. Right now he says 'No' - and he gets this look on his face. He knows what 'no' means. He is so smart."
She then tries to get Judah to smile. He had an early nap today so was quite exhausted, and I told her just as much, but she kept trying. When Judah is tired and not wanting to sleep all he does is stare intently at people. I love my son dearly, so this is coming from a loving mother, but he really does look quite stupid and simple when he just stares at people so intently (really, I love my baby! :) I told her again that he just stares at people when he is tired, and will not crack a grin. She seemed a little weird about it, so I apologized to her that he wouldn't smile and she said (and I quote, word for word!)-
"That's ok... I'm sure he does have a personality I guess."
I liked this woman - I really did. Her baby is the exact same age as my baby (though, evidently light years smarter...) and she is pregnant again and due one month before me - we have lots in common! But I just did not get the 'one-upping' with everything. Maybe I was just overly sensitive - though I don't think so, because it didn't bug me, just struck me as really funny!
I should have asked her if her baby can poop as much as my baby. Because my baby had five dirty diapers today.
I adore cinnamon, and this yummy snack is perfect for that addiction :) My friend served this last week, and I think everyone took the recipe home.
DIP:
1 1/3 cup peeled, cored and diced apple 1 tsp lemon juice 2 tsp brown sugar 2 tsp apricot preserves 1/8 tsp cinnamon
Mix all ingredients together and place in the fridge to chill.
CHIPS:
5 (6 inch) flour tortillas 2 TBSP melted butter (I just used cooking spray) 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1 1/2 TBSP sugar
Brush tortillas with butter (or just spray them with cooking spray!!) Cut into wedges Arrange on a greased baking sheet Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes
Really, they are so simple and so yummy! For appearance sake I think it would work a lot better to mix the cinnamon and sugar together and then sprinkle on top, but I was too lazy. And I more than doubled the cinnamon... probably was more like four times the amount. I love cinnamon.
Judah looked at these pictures and said "Mmmm!" What more do you need to convince you to make these?
And they have to be healthy... it's apples after all!
This morning Judah was eating cheerios (the worlds greatest invention!!) and tiny pieces of banana. I gave him a spoon so he could practice feeding himself, and he actually got some food on the spoon and then into his mouth. When I grabbed the camera to take a picture of him feeding himself this is all he would do:
He doesn't look so smart with the spoon going in his mouth backwards!! Oh well. *I know* that he fed himself with a spoon.
Judah LOVES being chased - it's so funny. We will give him free reign of the house and he will start crawling down the hallway. If one of us doesn't chase him right away he'll stop on all fours and look over his shoulder, patiently waiting for us to chase him. When we start after him down the hall he laughs his contagious laugh and starts crawling at the same time... it's quite hilarious. He can't laugh and crawl straight at the same time! He usually ends up bumping into walls as he scurries away.
Here is our tree! After a great debate as to what we should do this year, we finally decided we would buy one - it was slightly painful spending money on a tree knowing that in a month it will be 75% cheaper... but we did manage to get it for 40% off reg price. so it wasn't so bad.
I love our tree! It is 7 1/5 feet tall, and with the star on top it touches the ceiling. I love having a tall tree, and Paul loves having one taller than him =) The only place that the tree would fit in our apartment is in our bedroom!! It is kind of fun waking up to a Christmas tree in my face each morning.
Tomorrow I need to go grocery shopping and I think I am going to buy ingredients to make some of our favorite Christmas cookies and candies ... we were wanting to avoid all the extra calories, but I am so missing all the yummy stuff! We'll just have to have a few holiday parties to help get rid of everything :)
Before indulging in this rather personal story of his life, you must get the full effect - here is what he looked like at this time in his life:
By Paul Morris - guest blogger
Late June 2003 I was in Korea visiting my sister Becky. Becky was an ESL Teacher at an after-school language institute for kids. While she was teaching during the day I would tour the city of Seoul.
Becky introduced me to a drink made from Aloe Vera pulp. It has an amazing flavor and is simply irresistible. What my sister sadly failed to tell me was that the aloe juice was a digestive aid usually consumed after a large feast and only in small quantities...
One day I went and bought a liter of it. The Aloe juice is such a mild digestive aid that even after sipping it for a whole afternoon it didn't bother me. In fact, it didn't bother me until the next morning.
I woke up early that morning because I planned a trip into the DMZ, that's the Demilitarized Zone in Korea. A line between North and South Korea, it' not even a line so much as a valley. The tour takes you to several historical points along the line as well as the main overlook into the valley. Anyhow, I woke up early that morning because I had to take the subway into the main city Seoul. The train left very early, about 0600, and I woke up late. I quickly threw my clothing on; it was formal clothing with the exception of my sneakers because the tour had a dress code. I took off running to the station to catch my train and only just caught it.
As I rode into Seoul I began to feel unusually gassy but didn't really think a second time about. There was no time to think about such things when the DMZ was waiting for me. As I left the train in Seoul I re-realized that I didn't speak Korean. After only 45 minutes or so I found the bus station. Looking at the time however, I realized that I had about 5 minutes to check in and get on the bus... This is where my stomach is starting to really ache... but I don't have any time for fantasy aches and pains.
I signed in and jumped on the bus looking forward to a fascinating look at Korean politics and history. It's about an hour and a half from Seoul to the Korean Military base that we were going to. Half-way there I'm wondering if all Korean buses lack bathrooms or just the one that I'm on. I've considered and dismissed half a dozen plots to make the bus driver pull over, but I'm not sure if maybe I'll step on an ancient land mine if I walk off into any of the openness around this road. Besides, there are two other buses on the tour and there really is nowhere but open space here... not the kind of place I want to drop my trousers in...
20 minutes later I think I might die; this isn't the way I imagined I'd go, but I'm sure that people have died worse deaths before... 5 minutes later I've decided that I don't want to die like this. there is no pride in dying of anal retentiveness, and if there is no pride to be retained by my agonizing death... well I'd rather be stripped of my pride and alive than stripped of my pride and dead because I'm not able to let go and live a little... so I swallow the last dregs of juice from the night before along with my pride, and I let go... don't get me wrong... I rationalized everything in my head... after all I'm thousands of miles away from home, no one here knows me, and if I ever had to publicly soil myself... this is the place to do it.
I used the side lean and tilt method to "let off a little pressure" but there is no such thing as "a little pressure." I suddenly found myself permanently in the lean and tilt position for purposes of self preservation, and prevention of further "squishage". Hey! I'm no expert in scatological matters... How was I to know you can't "let off pressure?" Anyhow, as I realized that we still had a few minutes to drive, I knew I had to pass off the horrible smell on anyone else besides me. I tilted my head towards the ceiling and with a very obvious look of disgust sniffed a few times and glanced accusingly at the people in the seats adjacent to me. It seemed to be an effective ploy because I didn't get any dirty looks in return.
Within ten minutes we arrived at the Korean military base. There are check points at the entrance of all military bases that I've been to, and this one was no exception. I waddled to the front trying not to look too duck-like. I show the guard my passport and ask the tour guide with a lot of hand motioning where the next pit stop will be. He tells me in very broken English that it will be in another 5 minutes. 10 minutes later I'm the first one off the bus.
Never has a duck waddled as fast as I did to that bathroom. A 5 minute pit stop has turned into a 10 minute stop. One stall has clogged and I've moved to the second. I used to wonder how people soiled the stall walls in public bathrooms... I hope no one else ever has to find this one out personally. The bus driver comes in and tells me in his broken English that we have to go. I try sign language under the stall but finally just tell him "no, I have a stomach problem." He understands and tells me they will return for another pit stop in one hour.
I'm relieved in more than one way.
But finally after several fake outs, my bowels are truly empty. I've never seen such a mess. My clothes are literally ruined, and stuff has fallen from them to the floor to the walls... At this point I smile, because I've reached a point where life can't get worse. And so, simply put, the rest of the day is bound to be great. I strip naked and begin cleaning the stalls, I am not so heartless as to leave this for a janitor.
I then embark in a sink shower using my socks as washcloths... I need you to picture this... So here I am, this six foot four inch white dude with an eight inch afro (this was pre-military of course.) standing butt naked in a bathroom on a Korean Military Base. People occasionally walk in and I decide that if I act like this is normal, they'll just think that all Americans takes sink showers. So I smile and wave, and everyone smiles and waves back at me.
Korea is such a friendly place.
Anyhow, I cleaned up and washed my pants in the sink. I threw away my under drawers and socks. The only clean clothing is my shirts... I refuse to put my pants back on and consider throwing them away too. I figure that maybe I can tie my button up shirt around my waste and wear my t-shirt on top. After looking in the mirror I'm nervous about that option. But I don't really see any other way.
Word must have reached the owner of the tour shop next door. He comes over and gives me some stomach pills and a pair of slacks that he'd had sitting in the back of his shop. I popped the pills and tried on the pants, but wait, these are Korean sized pants! Of course, that means that my 36x36 frame is now fitting into a size 28x28 pair of slacks. Thank goodness for stretchy materials! I pull a little harder to squeeze as much of me as I can into the slacks. I can't button them because they're too small by several inches, and I have no underwear on so there is a conspicuous v-swatch, but I easily cover all with my handy button up shirt tied around my waste. I much prefer this to being naked under my button-up.
The tour bus finally comes around to pick me up. I think that no one knows what happened because they are all so friendly to me. That could be because of an attitude change on my part. I am probably the happiest guy they have seen in a long time. After all, I figure I handled the worst that can happen, I've got life in the palm of my hand now. After making many friends on the bus we stop at our next stop, the overlook into the DMZ.
I still have the stench of foulness in my nostrils. So when 3 buses full of Korean school girls pulls up, my first inclination is to walk the other way. Something must have stood out to them about me however because I was not allowed to walk away. The Korean culture like many other cultures does not understand personal space and so I find myself in the middle of many schoolgirls. They are hanging off my arms and taking pictures and trying out their English on me. Frankly I can't understand a thing they try to say. My nostrils still burn, but I buck up and try posing for a few shots...
30 years from now some Korean grandmother showing her grandchildren pictures will tell them, "This is the crazy American that smelled like an outhouse."
Honestly, I will remember this the rest of my life... I had a great time in Korea, and I now have an even greater story to tell which you have just read... As I headed home on the train that night; I stoically ignored the stares at my high-water, skin tight, black slacks with tennis shoes, no socks, and a button up shirt around my waist. I had to stop by my sister's school to pick up the keys to her apartment... I'll always remember her expression as she did a huge double take on me. "Did you wear those clothes when you left this morning?" she asked. "Yes" I replied with a straight face...
My younger brother Caleb is an incredibly talented writer... I just read this piece of his (and after getting permission to blog it!) here it is:
O GOOD! I THOUGHT SO
Don’t you care about me anymore? Oh good I thought so! I just had to hear it one more time So I could make one more rhyme About the way that you and me Go together like an apple in a tree But I guess that metaphor leaves you wanting more Cause eventually the apple falls from the tree So I guess you and me Are like the birds and the bee’s Two abstract and arbitrary animals brought together To mean more then themselves
A friend in doubt A friend in need A friend is more then you mean to me A lover in life A lover in death A love that stops my strife I can’t feel the way I did before I just can’t Go back to friends I can’t let this end
So close your mouth when your mind churns those doubts And open it to my reassuring lips Let my finger tips Engrave this rough design of love On the back of your head
And I know You can feel it too When they turn their backs I’ll open my arms When the world attacks I’ll keep you safe from harm
Don’t you care about me anymore? I know you do But I implore Just whisper it in my ear Just let it calm all my fears
And with a girl like you How can I not be paranoid? That I’ll lose you to the void Of lost love and spiraling emotions
Without you my hearts a hole Broken by your love’s first light A dripping passion Pooling as patience Waiting for the day When I can evermore whisk you away
A rhythmic tattoo Beaten by fingers As I wait for you On this cold October day Will you not arrive as early as I? And will you not rush through the pouring downpour Into my arms? Oh good I thought so!
Sorry about the horrible pictures - there was a lot of smoke and it was pretty cold, and Judah kept kicking me while I tried to take them... night pictures are pretty hard to take on their own, impossible when you're being moved around!
Anyways - last night we had some huge drama at our apartment complex - a fire! You could see it from our apartment, but it wasn't close enough to effect our building. They think the electrical room caught on fire. It completely destroyed the apartment above it, and some of the surrounding ones too. In all 8 families are now homeless. Thankfully no one was injured! A dog was killed, but no people! Praise God! =) They are investigating the cause of the fire... a little later I want to wander over and get a picture of the damage - I see some of it from our balcony and it looks like there is a huge hole in what was once the roof.
There were tons of firetrucks and other emergency response vehicles here last night - Judah wasn't interested in the flashing lights or the sirens, which is too bad as they were here in an abundance! There were so many of them here that they were blocking the entrance/exit and for two and a half hours vehicles were not allowed to exit or enter the complex! Which was a bummer as I'd been planning on going out, and then with all the smoke I really wanted to get Judah out just in case it ended up in our apartment (which it didn't!) I ended up going out in the end - but only because the friends I was going to go out with parked at a nearby store and then walked back to the apartment and helped carry Judah and his car seat and his diaper bag back to their car! There were a surprising amount of mothers doing that with their babies!! (Ok, I just saw three others, but have you ever seen a small caravan of people walking down a busy road carrying a baby, a carseat and a diaper bag?! My bet is no... so four people doing it is a surprising amount!)
Paul managed to miss all of the "lock down" drama (as one of the firemen told me it was called) as he left minutes before they blocked everyone in and came home minutes after they opened it up! Lucky guy.
I realize that the firemen have a huge, huge job and they're really to be admired and applauded for their hard work -but I really wish I had gotten the name of one of them so I could report him... he was an absolute jerk to me, which is fine, I was slightly rude back at him. (Really - only AFTER he was rude to me!) But there was this older gentleman who came up to this Mr. Rude Fireman and told him that he needed his medication, but that he'd been told he couldn't go in his apartment, but that he really needed them. The firemans response was "That's tough, you're not allowed back in." Excuse me?!?! The older man started to get panicky, explaining how he really needed his meds. The fireman made his second brilliant comment "Too bad." This REALLY made the old man panic and he just started going on and on about how important these meds were and they were time sensitive and he really needed to take them. The fireman did NOTHING to calm the man down or help him - he was rough, rude and flat out unkind to the older man - and he was making the older man get really worked up. The fireman ended up just wandering away, leaving the man standing on his own. It made me mad. This fireman was not anywhere near the fire - he couldn't even see the fire from where he was. So it's not like the older man was interrupting someone who was trying to put out flames! I thought it was rather unprofessional.
Oh well.
Paul *is* going to update the story soon folks! Hopefully tonight :)
I love my husband. I feel the need to say that before I say *anything* else about him in this post. *grin* So, lets make it very, very clear that I love the man that I live with - got it?! K, good. Now on to the story...
Last week Paul told me he'd bought me a present and it was in the fridge. I opened up the fridge and there sat a bottle of Aloe Vera Juice. I almost peed my pants from laughing... Paul has a history with Aloe Vera Juice that isn't very 'pretty.' I had never tried it before, and he's always told me he'd get me some so I can try it. Last week was my chance to try it, and it was actually quite yummy.
Anyways... Paul's "history." Several years ago he was in Korea and drank a liter of Aloe Vera juice. At one time. Aloe Vera is a digestive aide. Basically it acts as a laxative. See where this story is going??
(Again, Paul - I love you! I am so not making fun of you here!)
So he drank this one evening, and nothing happened. The next morning he headed out for a tour of the DMZ (the de-militarized zone between North and South Korea.) It had a mandatory dress code of dress slacks and button up shirt - a rather formal tour.
The tour also involved a long bus ride. A long bus ride with no toilet.
Somewhere on the long bus ride the Aloe Vera Juice side effects kicked in full force.
Paul actually made a conscious choice to poop his pants while sitting on the tour bus. Minutes later the bus made a stop - for a bathroom break.
I don't feel like I can do this story justice - Paul has promised if I stop butchering the story that he will give his version (which would actually be the correct version, since he was the one there:) if I will stop telling my version of the story.
So stay tuned for the continuation of this story from Paul =)
This song is on one of Judah's cds and it makes me laugh! Ok, so most of the kid songs make me laugh, but I think this one is quite clever :)
What did Delaware, boys, What did Delaware? What did Delaware, boys, What did Delaware? What did Delaware, boys, What did Delaware? I ask you now as a personal friend, What did Delaware?
She wore her New Jersey, boys, She wore her New Jersey She wore her New Jersey, boys, She wore her New Jersey She wore her New Jersey, boys, She wore her New Jersey I tell you now as a personal friend, She wore her New Jersey
What did Idaho, boys, What did Idaho? What did Idaho, boys, What did Idaho? What did Idaho, boys, What did Idaho? I ask you now as a personal friend, What did Idaho?
She hoed her Maryland, boys, She hoed her Maryland She hoed her Maryland, boys, She hoed her Maryland She hoed her Maryland, boys, She hoed her Maryland I tell you now as a personal friend, She hoed her Maryland
What did Ioway, boys, What did Ioway? What did Ioway, boys, What did Ioway? What did Ioway, boys, What did Ioway? I ask you now as a personal friend, What did Ioway?
She weighed a Washington, boys, She weighed a Washington She weighed a Washington, boys, She weighed a Washington She weighed a Washington, boys, She weighed a Washington I tell you now as a personal friend, She weighed a Washington
How did Wiscon-sin, boys, How did Wiscon-sin? How did Wiscon-sin, boys, How did Wiscon-sin? How did Wiscon-sin, boys, How did Wiscon-sin? I ask you now as a personal friend, How did Wiscon-sin?
She stole a New-bras-key, boys, She stole a New-bras-key She stole a New-bras-key, boys, She stole a New-bras-key She stole a New-bras-key, boys, She stole a New-bras-key I tell you now as a personal friend, She stole a New-bras-key
What did Tennessee, boys, What did Tennessee? What did Tennessee, boys, What did Tennessee? What did Tennessee, boys, What did Tennessee? I ask you now as a personal friend, What did Tennessee?
She saw what Arkansaw, boys, She saw what Arkansaw She saw what Arkansaw, boys, She saw what Arkansaw She saw what Arkansaw, boys, She saw what Arkansaw I tell you now as a personal friend, She saw what Arkansaw
How did Flora-die, boys, How did Flora-die How did Flora-die, boys, How did Flora-die How did Flora-die, boys, How did Flora-die I ask you now as a personal friend, How did Flora-die?
She died in Missouri, boys, She died in Missouri She died in Missouri, boys, She died in Missouri She died in Missouri, boys, She died in Missouri I tell you now as a personal friend, She died in Missouri
Where has Oregon, boys, Where has Oregon? Where has Oregon, boys, Where has Oregon? Where has Oregon, boys, Where has Oregon? I ask you now as a personal friend, Where has Oregon?
She's gone to Oklahom, boys, She's gone to Oklahom She's gone to Oklahom, boys, She's gone to Oklahom She's gone to Oklahom, boys, She's gone to Oklahom I tell you now as a personal friend, She's gone to Oklahom
Why did Califon-ya, boys, Why did Califon? Why did Califon-ya, boys, Why did Califon? Why did Califon-ya, boys, Why did Califon? I ask you now as a personal friend, Why did Califon?
She phoned to say Hawai-ya, boys, She phoned to say Hawai-ya She phoned to say Hawai-ya, boys, She phoned to say Hawai-ya She phoned to say Hawai-ya, boys, She phoned to say Hawai-ya I tell you now as a personal friend, That's why Califoned.
What did Mississip, boys, What did Mississip? What did Mississip, boys, What did Mississip? What did Mississip, boys, What did Mississip? I ask you now as a personal friend, What did Mississip?
She sipped a Minnisota, boys, She sipped a Minnisota She sipped a Minnisota, boys, She sipped a Minnisota She sipped a Minnisota, boys, She sipped a Minnisota I tell you now as a personal friend, That's what Mississipped.
Last night Paul was required to spend the night in a hotel ... work requires him to do all sorts of senseless stuff, but if they're paying for it (which they were) then ok! The hotel was only an hour away, he had to be there at 5 yesterday afternoon, but didn't have to go to work till 8 this morning, and he was getting a private room... sounded nice, so he invited me along. We had a lot of fun last evening - we went out with two of his co-workers for dinner, and Judah was delightful. When we got back to the hotel Paul and I watched a (rather dumb) movie on tv about radiation killing everyone in the world, except a few men in a submarine, who I think died in the end, but I convinced Paul to change the channel before they died, so I'll never truly know the ending of that movie. Despite the dumbness of the movie it was fun, and Judah thorough enjoyed his freedom to crawl around the hotel room - the mirrored closet doors were just about the coolest thing he's ever seen in his life.
So anyways, life was good, and were thinking that it was such a smart plan for me to of gone with Paul... till Judah decides at 1 in the morning that he's done with sleep - he wants to play for the rest of the night. I kid you not - from 1am -6am that baby slept maybe 45 minutes. He was in a great mood - if anything can be great at those hours. It was like he was so excited to be in a new place that he didn't want to waste a moment on sleep! At 6 we decided to get up. We packed everything up, ate breakfast, and then Paul headed to work and I drove the hour back home. Of course Judah slept the whole way home =) But other than the hour home he hasn't really slept a whole lot today - I am hoping he's saving it all up for tonight and that he'll give us a nice loooong stretch of undisturbed sleep. I'd say we deserve it, except it seems that when we became parents we lost all claims to deserving-ness of anything.
There was a knock on our door this afternoon, and when Paul opened the door there was a little white boy and a little black boy, both around 7 or 8 years old.
One of them said; "Were, uh, looking for three cigarettes for our, uh, Grandma."
Paul told them he doesn't smoke.
There was a rather loud exclamation of disappointment, and then they turned and left.
If you buy any Christmas cd this year make it Josh Groban's Noel... he is incredible! I heard him perform Little Drummer Boy yesterday on Oprah, which prompted me to check the rest of the songs on iTunes. I listened to the 30 second samples over and over again, and then finally bought 7 of the 13 songs from the album. Here he is playing on Oprah:
The guitarist is pretty impressive too - this is my favorite mix of this song!
The 7 songs are going to be played over and over and over again. I'm one of those annoying people that can put a song on repeat and not even notice that it has played 20 times in a row. So far Judah doesn't seem to mind that the songs have been playing since he woke me up at 7:30 this morning =)
Showing off his new shoes from his Aunt Essie
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