Now You Know...

Embarrassing facts about me:

1) I spill/drop everything.  If something is important to your (or delicious) I would advise against asking me to hold, transport, carry, or taste it.  Odds are it is going to end up on the ground or carpet of my car.  My husband finds this to be one of my lesser desirable qualities. 

2) I can't spell the word receive.  I mean, I can, but not without repeating the rule "i before e except after c."  And at least 50% of the time I type it wrong on first try and have to fix it.  I don't know why I can't get it through my head. 

3) Commercials make me cry.  If a commercial comes on for Disneyland or Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, I'm going to get teary-eyed.  I try to fight it...but it's no use. 

4) I'm afraid of trampolines.  I used to bounce on them plenty as a kid...but these days, I can't get on one.  I am not looking forward to the day when Will is old enough to want to jump on them.

5) I had to learn about Gangnam Style from my mom.  Yes, that's right, my mom is cooler than me.

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15 Things I Love

Life has been 15 ways past overwhelming the last month or so.  So, in order to make sure I keep my head on straight, here are 15 things that I love (in no particular order).

You know, counting my blessings and whatnot to keep myself from going crazy.

1) My mini man
2) My not-so-mini man (that hub of mine)
3) Oakland A's baseball (thanks mom and dad for the reminder!)
4) Diet Coke
5) A job well done
6) Laughing so hard you cry
7) Pumpkin-flavored EVERYTHING
8) A good night's sleep
9) My family, however far away they may be
10) Education
11) New clothes
12) My fit bit
13) Good friends
14) Prayer
15) Witty repartee (the very reason I can rarely go a day without chatting with Mama G)

What do YOU love.  Enjoy it today!

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Catch Up

I know it's been a really long time since I blogged.  Life has been a little crazy around the Parker house.  But, things are good. 

Will and I at the "Playground of Dreams" in Benicia

Geoff is in the middle of his final semester at NDSU.  He's excited to get his Bachelor's and be done with his degree.  He's worked so hard, and I'm so excited for him! 

In the interest of preparing financially for repaying school loans and whatever his salary may be post-graduation, we sold our house and are downsizing for a bit until we know a little more about our financial situation moving forward.  So, we're in the process of moving to an apartment.  Always a stressful process.

We've loved this place!

Work is going well for me.  I'm enjoying my new position and the new experience that it has been providing to me.  I have a great group that I supervise and as I'm getting a little more settled into the position, I am feeling great about things.  

Cousins playing with cars on Grandma's couch

Geoff, while doing school and still working on weekends, has also taken up an internship with a local computer company.  He's working to help them with marketing...and whatever else they need him to do.   

Hanging out with Great Grandparents

 Will and I took a week long trip out to California a week ago.  It was a wonderful trip.  We saw my dad's parents and my mom's dad.  We went to an A's game and spent an afternoon in Benicia.  We visited with AD and Danny.  I went out to a movie with my dad.  It was just what I need to to recharge my batteries and get me feeling ready to come back and get to work.  

The Birthday Gal and Guy (2 days apart).  Can you guess who's older?

Fargo took a dip in temperatures last week and we saw our first bit of snow fall.  Luckily, we're back up in the 50s today.  I'm hopeful we won't get too cold, too soon.  I'd love to take the little man trick-or-treating!

So, in general we are BUSY, but great.  TIRED, but happy. 

I'm hopeful to be a bit of a better blogger moving forward - I have so many silly things I'd love to share. 

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Growing!

Will had his 9 month checkup yesterday.  Doc gave him a clean bill of health and gave us the great news that he's growing - and fast.  If you recall, at his 6 month checkup he was 15 lbs 1 ounce and 25 and a quarter inches.  That put him in the 5-10% for weight and the 5th percentile for height. 

Yesterday, he weighed in at 19 lbs 9 ounces (25-50%) and 28 inches (25-50%).  So, he's been busy, busy busy.  He's gained over 4 pounds and nearly 3 inches in 3 months.

Anyway, I don't have time for any more of an update now, so I'll leave you with the following photos of Geoff and Will at about 9 months old. 

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Noteworthy

Heeellloo!

Hope you haven't missed me too much. 

I can't believe it's been almost 2 months since I last blogged. 

Items of note:

1) Will now has 6 teeth!  They came in one week after another for 6 weeks straight.  So, he's got 4 on top and 2 on the bottom.  He loves to bite with them.

2) His pincer grasp is quite impressive these days and he's crazy about feeding himself. 

3) Will started crawling officially on August 4th (his 9 month b-day).  He's still kind jerky and slow, but it's ADORABLE and he loves being more mobile.

3) I got a promotion to the Support Department Floor Supervisor.  I started about 2 weeks ago and it's been great.  Hard, but great. 

4) Geoff is about to start his FINAL semester of his Bachelor's degree.  I'm so immensely proud of him and excited for him. 

5) In 8 days, we'll be celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary!

So, that's a VERY short overview of some of the happenings around here, but I thought I'd at least get something down on "paper."

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Blink!

Well, Will is growing up so fast these days, I can't seem to blog fast enough to document all his awesomeness.  Every time I blink he's doing something new (and awesome). 

Since our last 'chat', Will got his first tooth and fed himself some cereal puffs. 

First Tooth: 6/7/2012 - 7 months 3 days old. 

First Fed Himself: 6/14/2012 - 7 months 10 days old

Teething wasn't a big deal for us.  In fact, we didn't even realize he had a tooth coming in until the day before it erupted.  He was a little extra fussy that day, so I jokingly said, "he must be teething."  But, sure enough, when I checked - there was a tooth coming in.

He has not been very cooperative in getting photos of his crooked little bottom-left tooth.  Every time I try he either squirms away or sticks his tongue out.  So, this blurry little number is all you get. And, yes, that little white thing is a tooth, not food - although the state of his face might mislead you.  haha.

I got a video of him eating (and the extreme concentration involved), but I recorded it with my phone, so it's sideways, so I won't post it here.  If you have a mobile device, however (so you can turn it the right direction) and wish to see it, I'm happy to share.   So, instead, here's a picture of his bead head this morning. 

Happy Friday.

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Seven

Monday was lil' Will's 7 month birthday.  I, quite literally, can't believe I have a 7 month old child.  Time just slips away so quickly.  I've been loving every minute of it. 

He's got the best little personality.  He loves life, he's engaged and a bit stubborn.  He's smart and happy and quite content to entertain himself for bursts of time. 

He's getting to be a better and better sleeper.  I'm still up about once a night with him, but never for too long. 

He still hasn't gotten any teeth, but we've introduced lots of new foods to him and he [pretty much] likes everything.  Since we last talked, he's added avocado, beef, chicken, ham, pineapple, yogurt, butternut squash, broccoli, green beans, carrots, turkey (not a fan), and little puffs (banana and mango flavored) to his menu.  He can hold his own bottle and likes to grab the spoon while he eats sometimes, but he's not a self-feeder yet. 

He's a good little sitter.  He can't get himself into (or out of) the sitting position, but once he's there, he's happy.  He's also getting to be quite a mover.  He can't crawl (on his belly) yet, but he scoots around on his back (pushes with his legs and travels around on the back of his head) and rolls and pivots on his belly.  Last night he was all over his room - from one end to the other. 

He likes to chat.  This morning when I woke up, I could hear him babbling to himself.  So, I went into his room and he had turned on his mobile and was talking to it and grinning like a mad man.  It was fantastic.

Watch the following video if you are looking for a reason to smile today. 



He's got the babas and the mamas and sometimes even a dada down pretty well.  My favorite is when he will sometimes just shout mom!  He doesn't know what he's saying, but it makes me so happy.

We've got a business trip at the end of the month - and both Will and I are very excited to see Grandma G when she comes to nanny him for a few days. 

Hard to believe he'll be almost 8 months by then.  Hopefully, for Grandma's sake, he's not really crawling by then, or she'll have her work cut out for her. 


We love you, Will.

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