Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

I started this post on Wednesday morning because we got about an inch of snow. Now it is Friday and we are all at home watching about a foot of snow fall! So I think this is much more appropriate now. I love the snow - of course in about a month or so I will hate it. As the song says - 'let it snow, we've got no place to go'. That is when snow is awesome! But when you have somewhere to go like work so you are walking to the train, and daycare so you have a little person that doesn't want to put on all of that extra clothes and hates the snow in his face I think to myself - it was much easier to just slip on some flip-flops. The snow is still a novelty so I will enjoy it - maybe even with some fresh baked cookies - but I am sure I will be complaining in about a month about it. Or I could be complaining tomorrow when I need to shovel but I don't know what to do with a toddler and a dog because the other adult is in Denver which makes things a little harder. Oh well - tonight we shall dine on cookies and milk - now I just need that fireplace! Enjoy the holidays!

Getting ready for Christmas

We got our tree on Sunday and we actually got some lights on it. Andy worked on getting the lights up outside - a cold front moved through so it was freezing. Murdoch and I brought hot cocoa out to him while he was working. Deucey kept him company on the front stairs even though she was shivering the whole, she wouldn't leave his side. I don't think we are going to put too many ornaments on this year - maybe a few at the top - I think there will probably be some little hands with a lot of interest in the ornaments not to mention a furry mouth that would like to eat some of them. Here are the other pictures.

Gettin' Messy

Murdoch had some fun last weekend playing in goop - cornstarch and water. It was a fun little afternoon activity and then it was off to the bath! Bob, aka Boppa, thought he just had a really good time eating his lunch :) The guy is messy but it isn't that bad. Hopefully we can catch up on some photos and updates this month!

15 Month Stats

Murdoch had his 15-month check-up yesterday and he is doing just fine. I decided to spread out some of the vaccinations because it would have been something like 5 in one day which means extra trips to the doctor's office but I feel like that should be a big deal. Here are his latest stats:

Height -32.5 Inches - 88%
Weight - 26 lbs. 12 ounces - 80%
Head - 48.5 cm - 85%

The doctor called him very symmetrical - I couldn't agree more!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Sorry that we don't get to see everyone on Thanksgiving. I will try to post some updated pictures over the weekend. Life has been very busy, as usual, so I just haven't had the time to post the picture/video updates - I have chosen sleep this past week.

Therapy via Dogs and Kids

My company had layoffs yesterday. I was not laid off but one of the guys on my team was and that caused an emotional day for me. I didn't know about it in advance, I only knew about it once it was done. I feel horrible for that person and I feel horrible for the rest of my team - this is going to put a burden on everyone now that we are down one more person. By the end of the day I couldn't focus, I needed to eat, and I needed a drink. I got home and there was this gorgeous bulldog waiting for me in her crate tail wagging and ran all over the house and almost knocked me over when she got out. Then about 10 minutes later a little guy arrived at the house and when he saw me he broke out the big grin and walked right over to me to give me his version of a hug. It was a rough day at work and often times the two of them make a day very long and tiring but I have to say the tension that melted away when I saw the two of them was more than worth all of the lack of sleep, extra vet bills, etc. that they cause. They are a form of therapy, sanity, and love that I can't get anywhere else.

My Mom's Visit

My Dad upload the pictures from my Mom's visit a few weeks ago. She doesn't like to have her pictures taken but going forward we are going to have to get some of my Mom and Murdoch - even if she hasn't showered! Enjoy the pictures and enjoy hump day!

For my funeral

No I am not dying, at least any more so than the average person on the street, and I am not trying to be morbid. I found this in the back of my date book that will expire at the end of the year and I wanted to make sure I didn't forget about it. I went to the Body Works exhibit two years ago and wrote this down as something I would like to have at my funeral:

Seneca's (4 B.C.-65 A.D.) quote: "Death is the release from all pain and complete cessation, beyond which our suffering will not extend. It will return us to that condition of tranquility, which we had enjoyed before we were born. Should anyone mourn the deceased, then he must also mourn the unborn. Death is neither good nor evil, for good or evil can only be something that actually exists. However, whatever is of itself nothing and which transforms everything else into nothing will not all be able to put us at the mercy of Fate."

I have no idea why I like that quote but for some reason it is comforting to me.

A Murdoch Memory

So this memory is a little gross but it made me laugh when my sister wrote me the following email yesterday:

I have been meaning to tell you.
Remember how when I came to visit last christmas murdoch's poop smelled like buttered pop corn. Well, my feet and the stink in them and in my shoes has changed from the normal foot funk to the smell of buttered pop corn.
I think of murdoch's pop everytime i take my shoes off.
emily

Before solid foods Murdoch's poop did indeed smell like buttered popcorn. I had totally forgotten about that until that email.

She then followed up that email with the following:

and you should put in the blog that when i was there, before you told me from where the smell was coming, i kept wondering why the people down stairs were eating so much buttered popcorn.

Aunt Emily is coming for a visit a little before Christmas and we can't wait to see her! She is taking one of her two vacations - she only gets two breaks while going to school - to come and spend it with her nephew and she takes care of him all day. It is so nice for everyone! Though I am sure a little exhausting for someone who has just finished a set of finals. I am really looking forward to that visit!

Some of my favorite websites

I like to surf the web - I just don't have enough time to do it! I thought I would share a few of my favorite sites and if you have a favorite site please share it!

Diapers.com - Diapers are expensive and bulky. The last thing I want to do is try to bring up those huge packages while carrying an infant/toddler on my hip. So thank god for diapers.com! It is a great website. If you spend over $49 the shipping is free and it arrives on your doorstep two days later! I compared some of the prices and the Huggies diapers are the same price at CostCo as they are at diapers.com. They carry a lot more than diapers - formula, bottles, clothing, toys, etc. I basically do all of my shopping on there for Murdoch. You can get $10 off your first order if you use code SAPA5662.

Bookins.com - This is an online book swap site. You list your books by ISBN and then other people make a request for those books. A label is automatically produced - you can just print it out, tape it to the envelope, and drop it in the mailbox - you don't even have to go to the post office! The other person pays the postage which is around $4 for all books and you get points for sending your books. You can then use your points to get books from other people and you just pay for the postage. I think the fact that you can just print out the label makes this so convenient so I love it!

Bookmooch.com - Same concept as bookins.com but you don't have the pre-paid envelopes. So you have to go to the post office which is another step but if you send it media mail it is usually about 2-2.50 per book so it is cheaper to send the book.

Radcru.com - For wine! Do I need to say anymore?!

Greendimes.com - Helps you stop junk mail - including catalogues which is very important this time of year, and they plants tree when you join. I can't tell you how much less junk mail I get since I joined - especially all of those catalogues! It is overwhelming. You can pick and choose which ones you want so if you still want your PotteryBarn catalogue you can keep it!

I am sure there are others but those are some of my favorites. Enjoy!

Mr. Giggles at 14 Months!

Enjoy!

Election Day!

So I have voted and I feel good about it! No politics talk for me though. I got to the polling place a little after 7 in the AM and there were about 50 people ahead of me - I thought that it was going to be bad! But it wasn't - only about a 20 minute wait and then off to the races. I am also going to post a Murdoch video shortly! Go out and vote!

It is never too early for Christmas

A solar powered helicopter! I saw this in Cookie magazine and I thought it was a great gift - Murdoch is getting one for Christmas. You can a 25% off coupon and it is environmentally friendly - made from wood and it is solar-powered! I thought I would pass it along.

Website for toy - http://www.estella-nyc.com/6estella.html

For the coupon - cookiemag.com/go/cookiedough

It is so hard to find Christmas gifts - at least I think it is - so hopefully this helps someone else out. Please let me know if you have any great gift ideas.

The Weekend

So obviously I have no new pictures or videos to post - I have them but I need them to magically appear on my laptop - without wires! Maybe the technology is already out there but I don't have it yet - I need these things to go right onto my laptop after I take them and then the blog would be much more up to date. Maybe before bed tonight I will try to get a little more organized in the blog area.

The weekend was good but busy. We had our Halloween party on Saturday - we moved the start time up in order to incorporate children this year which was good though at 8 I felt like it should have been midnight. So between getting ready for the party, the party, clean up after the party, daylight savings (who decide that this was a good idea - it is depressing that it is so late and the extra hour of sleep is a joke - Murdoch has no idea that the time has changed so we were just up earlier, or the same time depending on how you look at it)

I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween! We did thought we celebrated a day late. Videos and pictures soon!

Happy Halloween!

Murdoch had a little Halloween parade at daycare this morning so I went for a little while and got a couple of pictures - I will try to download those tonight. Last night he was 'coloring' and started to eat the green marker so that was everywhere - again - more pictures I need to download. So maybe tonight I will post those plus we have a giggles video from his 14 month birthday that is cute. So lots to post!

We are having a little Halloween party tomorrow so it will be busy until then cleaning, shopping, cooking etc. The weather looks sunny but chilly but way better than rain and raw!

Happy Halloween to everyone! I can't wait to see pictures of all of the cute costumes in the next week or so!

Random Thoughts and Updates

I tend to have random thoughts when I have had too much caffeine or if I am by myself too long - Andy is away and Murdoch and Deucey are not exactly the best chatters so I am not technically alone but if I don't have someone to talk to my mind tends to race in odd directions making weird associations. Andy usually feels overwhelmed by talking when he gets home, oh well.

Last night - I am watching the Biggest Loser. These people are working out, dieting, how much weight they have lost is flashing up on the screen. What am I doing - eating apple crisp. Okay I made it so on level it is better - no preservatives, natural ingredients - but I also tend to like the crisp part of apple crisp so I made a little extra topping. :) So I am sitting there eating sugar and butter and these people are crying on the treadmill - that doesn't seem quite right.

The other day I noticed that I lost one on the diamonds in my engagement ring - it was a very small one so I wasn't that concerned. Then I find out later, because I remarked on Andy's ring being so shiny, that he had lost his wedding band on the golf course! Both of us now have shiny rings - his because it is new, mine because it is nicely polished. It kind of makes me feel like a newlywed - I keep looking down at my ring and remembering when it looked like this when I first got it. Getting your rings shined seems like a cheap way to feel like a newlywed - I should try that more often!

Deucey got her stitches out today and the cone has been retired! I am so excited though not as much as her - she is pancing around. I think we will hit the dog park this weekend and see if the eye holds up under heavy dog wrestling conditions.

My Mom is coming on Friday to visit Murdoch - it looks like we might hit 60 again and it is supposed to be sunny - much better than the 45 and rainy so it feels like 35 with the wind! More swimming lessons and we are heading over to see Hugh & Karen - they got married last week - just the legal part - the big party is next year!

And on a final note Murdoch's daycare teacher's husband died last week. He fought a long battle with cancer. Please keep her in your thoughts - it is a very hard time for her - not one that I can even imagine. She is returning to work next week so I will have to tell Murdoch to go easy on her and give out lots of hugs and kisses.

Off to get the buddy ready for bed - though right now he is in a very good mood so maybe we will hang out for a little while. I hope you are enjoying your week!

So sad

I think the fact that I just added the last post and realized now that I had already told that story makes me realize how tired I am - sorry for the repeat. Obviously my mind is just going in circles right now! Heading home soon - here I come bed!

The first chore

Murdoch has learned his first chore! Before Andy leaves for work Deucey has to go in her crate - she tends to destroy things if she is not confirmed while we are gone - I don't know why - I guess she just likes having us around. So every morning Andy gets a treat, Deucey runs and gets in the crate waiting for the treat, the door is closed and Andy and Murdoch are off to school/work. Murdoch has mastered this chore so he is helping Andy become more efficient in the mornings. It took about three days for him to get it - the first two mornings he would show Deucey the treat but he wouldn't let go of it - as you can imagine this didn't go over very well with Deucey. But now he does it all except get the treat - he is too short - and lock the door of the crate - the coordination is not quite there but I am sure it will be soon. I think the next thing on Andy's list is figuring out how he can apply this to getting a beer out of the fridge...

Exhaustion

So my exhaustion is partially self-induced so I really shouldn't be complaining but I feel like whining. It has been a long weekend. After traveling and getting no sleep in London I was already behind before the week even started and then I scheduled something pretty much every night this week - including our date night last night which consisted of going to the Madonna concert, which was great BTW. So now I feel like pulling a Costanza and sleeping under my desk. So I am hoping for a quick day and some rest this weekend. It should be a busy one - I need to re-dedicate myself to painting trim, which is hard with Murdoch around, clean, get rid of some things from the basement, and Murdoch's swimming lessons start up on Sunday. So it will be a fun but busy weekend. I have a full DVR so I am thinking that I will try to catch up on favs like Grey's and Project Runway - I am avoiding all entertainment media so I don't know who won PR. Enjoy the weekend! I hope you all get some rest and have a glass of wine and a few moments to yourself.

Ole

Andy taught Murdoch 'Ole' over the weekend in Maine and was showing it off the other night. It is so funny that Murdoch gets so excited - almost to the point of falling down - actually he did fall down once in this video. It is funny the little things that you can now teach Murdoch. Andy has also taught him to put Deucey in her crate in the mornings. Andy gives Murdoch a treat, he takes it, walks to Deucey's crate, she goes in, he gives her the treat, and then he closes the door. I think there will be a beer involved in these stories pretty soon. Enjoy the day!

Back from London! Chill-lax

I got back from London Sunday night after a nice flight - I got to sleep almost the whole time which was luxury because sleeping and flying with a child just doesn't go together.

I arrived Thursday night and hung out with Scott & Gary until about 3 AM drinking wine and talking. I woke at 6 AM with a horrible headache and couldn't fall back asleep. Friday we took a long walk to Canary Pier and had some great sushi and enjoyed the sunny and warm weather - it was in the mid-60s. Friday night we went to Popstar - a club in downtown London. And again I went to bed around 4 AM and woke up at 8 AM. Saturday we visited Gary's Dad out in 'the country' as Scott says and then Scott and I took a walk down to the Tower Bridge, had a Bloody Mary, and a few pints at his local bars as we walked back to the apartment. Saturday night we went to a birthday party for one of their friends. I thought I was going to die of exhaustion around midnight but I rallied and made it until 2. Sunday we all went to the airport - they had an earlier flight back to the States to visit Scott's parents so I went to the airport early with them. I arrived home to an empty house - Andy and the troops were still in Maine. I basically just got home, brushed my teeth and went to bed. And now I am back to work.

It was an awesome weekend - it was so great to see them, the weather was awesome, I was proud of myself that I was able to still go out to clubs even if I was about 10 years older than most of the people there, Gary would like me to promote the work Chill-lax here in the States, and I attempted the game 'Would you?' with them though I suck! Now it is back to the daily grind but it was nice to have a little break and go back to the days when I could do that every weekend. I am looking forward to seeing Murdoch for the first time since Thursday - hopefully he isn't harboring any bad feelings.