NAH-nee

Greetings from the couch. I trust that your Christmas was merry and bright. We had a terrific week of visiting family, spending time together, playing with new presents, and eating to our hearts content. What a special week!

So the other night, Jeff was giving Emerson her bath while I was putting some things away in her room. I could hear them talking and giggling, and I was smiling right along with them because I LOVE the way they interact. Then, out of nowhere, I heard a stern "EMERSON BONNIE!!" from Jeff followed by silence. I popped my head in the door, and had to stifle the roar of laughter that was bursting out. The bathmat, the towels, the floor, the ceiling, and the Papa were covered with water. Em has a cup that she likes to fill and dump, and apparently she wanted to see what would happen if she threw it. Jeff was also trying not to laugh, which made it even harder to keep a straight face. Then, just when I had composed myself, she looked at us with a remorseful face and said "NAH-nee," which is Emersonese for "naughty." Gotta hand it to her...the kid is bright!

Make it a good one~
a.

greatest gifts ever

As I sit in my office surrounded by wrapping paper, ribbon, bows, and loads of gifts, I'm reflecting on 2008. It's been a great year for us, in spite of all of the scary news that reverberates from the TV and radio these days. We are all healthy and loved. I was able to leave my teaching job to stay home and be a full-time Mama. We traveled to Lake Tahoe, Ireland, and South Carolina (with lots of drives to see friends and family in Iowa and Wisconsin as well). And we are blessed to know and love so many wonderful people. But in the midst of all of this, Emerson is still our greatest gift. And she continues to amaze and awe me.

She is currently doing two things that blow me away: demonstrating that she understands our communicating, and communicating herself. I love to hear her tiny, precious voice as her ever-expanding vocabulary picks up more new words. And to hear her say Mama and Papa, well, I'll never get tired of that! I also love how she's become my little helper girl. I'll ask her to get her water bottle or to put her comb in the basket, AND SHE DOES IT!!! In addition to actually helping me, it just blows me away that she can do these things. Last year at this time, she was just learning how to roll over. And now, well, I'm amazed!

I probably won't have time to post for a few days, so have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Enjoy all of your gifts.

let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

We've survived the epic winter storm of '08. Actually, we only got about 3 inches, but I know that north of here near the state line had a foot or more. Ugh. I heard the icy sleet hitting the windows around 5am, and the snow is definitely heavy. It's literally the consistency of a snow cone. Great for snowmen and snowballs, horrible for shoveling.

Emerson received an early Christmas present today...her first sled. We bundled her up in many layers and hit the yard. This was her first time really playing in the snow. She's touched it and been out for a few minutes here and there, but we were out for a 1/2 hour or so today. SO FUN! {I love how the falling snowflakes look like tiny glowing orbs in these pictures}

Notice the "rope" on the sled. It's an extension cord. Our rope is buried under the snow in the shed. I wish Jeff could have known my Grandpa Sorren...they would have gotten along great!
Whoa...easy does it, Mama! Small person on board! She managed to stay in though.

Emerson was instantly in love with sledding and perhaps has a future as a sled dog musher...she kept shouting "go, go, go!!!" the WHOLE time she was being dragged around. And I have to say that pulling a 26+ pound kiddo around while running through the snow in sweats and a heavy coat is a WORKOUT!! This makes my 12 miler seem a bit easier tomorrow morning!

iPod game

I have a little game for you...indulge me! My friend Brad posted it on his facebook page and I thought it was fun so I tried it too. It's also on my facebook page. If you like it, post your own, and send me a link!



Step 1: Put your music player on shuffle.

Step 2: Write the first line from the first 20 songs that play, no matter how embarrassing.

Step 3: Guessers, post both artist and title correctly in the comments on my blog.

Step 4: For those who are guessing -- looking the lyrics up on a search engine is not kosher!

Step 5: If you like the game post your own



1. I was a little too tall, coulda used a few pounds BOB SEGER, NIGHT MOVES

2. 2 am and she calls me 'cause I'm still awake ANA NALIK, BREATHE (2AM)

3. You say I seem so grim, darlin' do you forgive me? **** LISA MARIE PRESLEY, S.O.B.

4. I beg your pardon, I never promised you a rose garden^^^ MARTINA McBRIDE, I NEVER PROMISED YOU A ROSE GARDEN

5. Shed a tear 'cause I'm missing you GUNS N'ROSES, PATIENCE

6. These days it seems as though I've lived a lonely lifetime because I've never had a girl like you to hold me tight THE REDWALLS, THANK YOU

7. You could say I lost my faith in science and progress STING, IF I LOOSE MY FAITH IN YOU

8. I tell you how I feel but you don't care **** FIONA APPLE, SLEEP TO DREAM

9. Christmas is sleigh bells **** PERCY FAITH, CHRISTMAS IS

10. It was all f*&#*d up at Rutgers, I saw you wit' cha man LL COOL J & BOYZ II MEN, HEY LOVER

11. Shake that thing, miss, canya canya SEAN PAUL, GET BUSY

12. Childhood living is easy to do ^^^ THE SUNDAYS (OR THE ROLLING STONES), WILD HORSES

13. Why don't we do it in the road THE BEATLES, WHY DON'T WE DO IT IN THE ROAD

14. Every night I dream you're next to me **** SHERYL CROW, IN NEED

15. Well, I'm an eight-ball shootin', double fisted drinkin' son of a gun GRETCHEN WILSON, HERE FOR THE PARTY

16. I don't wanna take it any more, I'll just stay here locked behind the door THE POINTER SISTERS, NEUTRON DANCE

17. The heat is on, it's on the street GLENN FREY, THE HEAT IS ON

18. Well, she was an American girl raised on promises TOM PETTY, AMERICAN GIRL

19. She's gotta do what she's gotta do and I've gotta like it or not BILLY RAY & MILEY CYRUS, READY, SET, DON'T GO

20. Said goodbye to his mama as he left South Dakota to fight for the red, white, and blue *** BIG & RICH, 8TH OF NOVEMBER



**** means, um, yeah. Good luck. These are REALLY obscure!

^^^ means this is a cover. I'll accept the original artist or the one on my iPod.

Have fun. I can't wait to see what you come up with!

not much to report

Just trying to keep warm here in the arctic tundra that is the Midwest. And we have a little girl who thinks lights out is the signal for play time. She was up from 12:45-5:00 last night singing, playing, trying to get me to brush her teeth again (needless to say that I didn't get my 6am run in today!), and is still up playing 45 minutes after bedtime. Grrr. Tomorrow's fun includes her 2nd flu shot, so she really needs good sleep tonight. We're keeping our fingers crossed.


Hope you enjoy a few cute pics from the weekend.

3 generations- Emerson, Mama, and Grammy

I couldn't resist this darling dress. AND those shiny black patent leather shoes. {SIGH} Having a little girl is such a blessing!

It's pretty big on her...I'm SO hoping that she'll still be able to wear it next year. I know, I know...I won't hold my breath.

Emerson LOVES playing with the "kitties." Here, she's showing her love for Kiwi, my parents' fur person.

Stay warm and make it a good week~

ho ho ho

Emerson was not so sure about this guy. She sees him all over our house and says "SAH-sa," but being deposited on his lap was a different story all together. The lady working there had to tickle her nose to get this one smiling shot. Oh well. At least she's not screaming. Not long before we got in line for Santa, we were playing on the indoor playground. A big kid, probably 3 or so, FLATTENED her. She went over backwards and her head hit the ground. She was quite rattled, and cried for about 10 minutes (which is about 9.75 minutes longer than she's ever cried after getting hurt.) I thought for sure that would set up a disastrous picture, but she proved me wrong yet again.

We saw Santa at the mall. I'll NEVER do that again. I'd much rather go to a brunch or train ride where we can take our own pictures (as opposed to paying through the nose for a photo disk) and not feel so rushed. I feel emotionally battered by the whole experience. I decided to buy the CD of the pictures so that I could print them in the sizes and quantities that I wanted, and {WRONGLY} assumed that I'd get the whole session of 10 shots or so. I mean, for $25, they're a few pictures to choose from, right.

Wrong. One picture. Love it or leave it. What a #*&@^$% ripoff!!

I HATE that I contributed to the madness by buying the shot, but a mall Santa is our only chance to see the Big Guy this year as our weekends are filled with family events. We WILL NOT be doing this again next year.

Ok, I'm climbing down off my soapbox now. Merry Christmas and all that cheer.

Make It A Good Day...

bliss

I'm filled with bliss today. We had a great day. Nothing extraordinary...just a great day. My kiddo constantly amazes me with her ever-expanding vocabulary. Her smiles and hugs and playing and independence makes me think that at some point in the last year, aliens swapped out the screaming baby that lived in our house and replaced her with this amazing big kid. And the laughter that echoes through the house when Jeff and Emerson are playing in the evening makes me smile even as I'm scrubbing dishes. I'm reminded how blessed I am to be able to spend my days with Emerson instead of spending them with other people's kids.

On this blustery winter night, I pray that you all are feeling blissful about something important too.

a.

a milestone for me

Yesterday, I did something that I NEVER, EVER thought I'd do. I ran 10 miles. Outside. In the snow! I really did it. Ran the whole thing, too. ( My training log allowed me to take 3 1-minute walking breaks, but I didn't need to.) For anyone who knows me, I'm not really the outdoorsy type. Especially if being outdoors involves the white stuff. (Unless I'm zipping down a mountain on skis, mind you.)

Gale, my training buddy, was not so convinced that I'd make it out there at 7:30 am. She praised my efforts more than once! But it was a great run. More tiring than usual because of the very slippery surface, but just great. I ran most of it alone, without my iPod to keep me entertained. I couldn't help but sing Christmas songs to myself as I kept pace with my feet. Now, I know without a shadow of a doubt that I'll be able to run the WDW 1/2 marathon in a few weeks.

Next week, 11 miles. And I can't wait. This whole running thing is really crazy. And more addictive than I could even imagine.

Make it a great week!

and now, a word from the cat

We all know that Emerson is the real star of this blog, but I do have another baby. Ok, so it's a fur baby, but she was my first baby and it's time she gets some attention here. Our darling cat, Jiko, is definitely craving attention these days. I'll admit that she doesn't get the playtime that she once did, so she's learning to make her own fun. Last weekend, she found a plastic bag on the floor, and decided to explore. Jeff & I were painting the kitchen, and I kept hearing a rustling sound coming from the family room. When I went to investigate, this is what I found.

Now, this is NOT the first time she's gotten stuck in a bag. Nor is it the first time I've taken pictures of her shenanigans. For a generally intelligent cat, she does have a weak spot for bags of all kinds. Jiko, thanks for the chuckle.

Jiko asks that if any of you are interested in a regular playdate, that you should call her cell at 555-MICE or email her at jiko@catnip.com She's love to find a less constricting means of entertainment.

big shoes to fill

Emerson has discovered that her feet fit {as it were} into our big shoes. She had a grand old time clomping around the house in my slippers the other night.

She was quite proud of herself! This is her "so big" look.

And, it's official. Em is a toddler. I've had a gnawing suspicion for a few months now, but today was her first day of LEVEL 4 at Gymboree, and that sealed the deal. Those kids are BIG. Like, they talk and you understand what they're saying BIG. Where did my tiny 7 lb. baby girl go? Sigh...

An author of a blog that I read recently signed off by saying Make it a good week. I REALLY like that message...the idea that WE have a hand in how we choose to live is a great reminder for this hectic time of year. So, in that spirit... MAKE IT A GOOD DAY!

you may not know this but...

...Santa is going to forgo the sleigh and the eight tiny reindeer this year. Instead, he'll be making his grand entrance via zebra.

Man, does she ever LOVE that zebra.