Ahh, success

Got it on the first take, perfect!

 Well, except for Damen's weird hand gestures, what is that?  

Merry Christmas!

Two months

Yup, that's right, this kid is TWO MONTHS old!  AND I'm going to be one of those mommies that updates every exciting month that passes in the first year of life. 

 Because they change and grow so much!

SO, now he's 24.5 in long and weighs in at a hefty 15.5lbs!  

Seriously, he's huge.

Phobia

So, I have a phobia.  Just one.  Really.

I'm afraid of heights.  I can't climb a ladder without my palms sweating.  I can just BARELY drive across the 91-215 overpass with my eyes open.  I don't do edges/cliffs, walking bridges or step stools very well.  And just ask Dustin about the time we rode the re-entry ride at Lagoon (it's a tall tower that you sit around facing out, it suspends you from the top for 6-7 seconds and then plummets you back down to earth, thought we were going to DIE, and he may still have my fingernail imprints in his thigh).
I first realized this when I was 10 years old and I was asked to help another girl put up some posters in the school hallway.  I willingly climbed up the ladder and was ready to go.  Until I looked down.  That was the end of that.
A few weeks ago I was on my way out of town when I noticed in the sky hot air balloons.  Four of them actually.  They were beautiful in the morning light.  Until I realized just how high up they were, and how there were actually people in them, and they could look down.  OH NO, my heart started racing, my palms started to sweat, it was like I was there, up there!  (I'm actually freaking out a little just remembering).  As I continued driving I tried to avoid looking at them, just knowing they were there was too much!  Wow, I thought, this is crazy irrational for me to be feeling this way, down HERE, on the ground, safe.
So I ask you, is this normal?  Do arachnophobes freak out at pictures of spiders?  Do claustrophobes start to hyperventilate at the thought of a crowded elevator?
I love to tease my sister about spiders, her reactions are SO funny.  Well, they are to me anyway.  Spiders seem like such a silly thing to be scared of, they're teeny tiny bugs that you can squish in an instant.  Using that logic, am I really going to fall off the 91 overpass?  Probably not.  The ladder, well I am clumsy and tend to fall when safely on the ground.  I also love to climb, trees, rocks, naturey things.  Why is that different?

I don't understand this fear, I just know that it is a part of me that I don't like very much.  One day I'd like to be able to enjoy the sight of those hot air balloons in the early morning light.  One day.


PS  I also LOVE LOVE LOVE roller coasters, but that's different somehow. . .

Thanksgiving and stuff

Our Turkey FEAST!  I should have taken a picture of the bird, it looked just as good as it tasted!  Thanks in part to Tiffany who informed me about OVEN BAGS!  They're amazing, you just put in the turkey and your seasonings, bake and wallah, delicious, moist turkey!!  

I also made acorn squash and roasted potatoes and a chocolate Oreo pie.  I took out of the box/bag/can rolls, stuffing, and gravy.  It was my very first Thanksgiving dinner and I think it went over rather well!  

My friend Rene could not believe that after 13 years as a married, competent adult, I had never made my own Thanksgiving dinner. 

 Well we've always traveled to be with family on Thanksgiving.

 Until this year. 

 This year we had to debate about it.  

My parents wouldn't be there (China remember) and we had this adorable 6 week old to think about too.  He eats every two hours, it takes about 20 minutes to feed/change/burp him, and it's a 17 hour drive.  YOU do the math, it would take a lot longer than 17 hours. . . 

So staying home was our decision.   

We watched football, ate too much, had pie, told each other what we were thankful for, and slept in our own beds.  It was good.  We (I mostly) missed my sisters, and our nephews and niece, but it was ok.

On another note, this is Mason the mighty!  He weighs 16lbs and is wearing 6 month clothes, because he's enormous!  He'll be 2 months old next week.

Love him to pieces!

Meet Virginia

Last night I was headed to the store.  After a few minutes of trying unsuccessfully to get the car key into the ignition I called Dustin to the garage to "fix" it.  He started in with a screw driver and the key, nothing.  We worked at it for close to 15 minutes and the dang key wouldn't GO IN!  Finally he got the Valet key from the house and miracle of miracles, that key worked.  We tried the other key, nothing.  Dustin looked at the two keys to compare and started to say that one of them was more worn down, then he stopped, handed me the car keys and asked me to read what it said.  "Nissan", well that's strange, why was I trying to start the Toyota with Dustin's car keys?  We laughed and laughed, so tired yet determined!
As I drove down the street (after digging the right car keys out of my purse), a song by Train came on, Meet Virginia, and my thoughts went immediately to 2001.  We had tickets to their concert at the winter Olympics, but we were going out of town so I gave them to my coworker who had been trying for days to get into an event, any event.  He took his girlfriend and they had a great time.  A few years later he committed suicide.  I started to cry.  I couldn't stop myself.

This is the roller coaster of emotions I am currently riding.  If you'd like to hop aboard I'd love to share some laughs or tears, whichever I'm up for both.

This thing called love

I know the picture's a little fuzzy, it was the best I could find.

We've been married over thirteen years.

It has not always been easy.

We haven't always been happy to see each other at the end of the day.

We have disagreements.

We even have fights!

We kiss every night.

We tell each other we love each other whenever we leave, go to bed, or get off the phone.

We love each other.

I would be lost with out him.

In this world of constant upheaval he is my rock.

How many other women and men have said the same thing about their spouse?

How many of those same men and women are separated?

Divorced?

Unhappy?

It makes us realize that this thing called love is fragile, it needs a LOT of work.

We work every day to keep our kids safe, to keep food on the table, a roof over our heads.

We think of these things and make conscious choices.

Our marriages need just as much work, if not more.

We need to serve the one you love every day, the one you pledged to share your life and eternity with.

  

Lets compare!

It's obvious which boy is which, but do you see similarities?

THE NOSE!! 

And the cheeks.

Both super cute!