Turkey Day

We were originally supposed to spend Thanksgiving with Stephen's parents, but due to special circumstances (my sister missing her train on Sunday and having to come in at 5 a.m. Thanksgiving morning, and my mother-in-law's crazy work schedule requiring her to be at work at 2 a.m. on Black Friday), we ended up spending it at my mom's. This meant I got to spend the day visiting with my sister and Ella, whom I hadn't seen in almost three months, visiting with Angie and her mom for a couple of hours, and gorging myself on Mom's infamous candied yams, deviled eggs, and green beans (cooked with onions and bacon). Sadly, there was no ham, but I'm hoping Santa will make me one for Christmas.

This Thanksgiving was an especially special one, considering it was Asher's first. He had THE BEST TIME EVER playing with Ella and getting underfoot in the kitchen. At one point, he got so excited he plunged into the cat food dishes, which required an early bath and change into pajamas before dinner. He enjoyed Puffs, corn, mashed potatoes, and part of a dinner roll for dinner. He can't wait until next year when he can enjoy some turkey, too. Just look at how excited he is.

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Dr. Smarty Pants & Mrs. Maternity Pants

This is a really exciting time for the Squinkors. Jeff graduated on Saturday morning, finally earning his Ph.D. after what I've heard was a lot of hard work. We were luckily able to be there and share the big day with them, as the graduation just happened to fall on a rare Saturday on which Stephen didn't have to work. Sadly, I didn't get to see Jeff walk across the stage to receive his diploma because I was in the middle of changing Asher's false alarm diaper, but I did hear his name over the loudspeaker, so I didn't totally miss it. After the ceremony, they hosted a very nice party in honor of Jeff in which we drank wine, ate lots of Italian food, and enjoyed many delicious desserts. Asher was such a good boy the whole time, and even took a 2 1/2 hour nap in the bedroom directly above the commotion of the party. It was an all-around amazing day.

If that's not exciting enough, they're expecting their baby girl (you know, MY NIECE) in just two short months. Angela claims to have gained a lot of weight during this pregnancy, but I hate to tell her, she's crazy if she thinks she's looks anything less than great. Well, you know, except for that stomach of hers. It is getting a little rotund. (This is coming from the girl who looked like this a year ago, with only a couple weeks difference between our due dates.)

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Holy Crap, She's FIVE!

I don't know how it possibly happened, but it did. Ella is now a KID. Just when I finally quit thinking of her as a little baby and came to grips with her being a toddler, she went and turned FIVE. What's next, Ella? Adolescence? Puberty? Dating? DRIVING?!

My sister sent me a bunch of photos from the past few days, and I'm absolutely shocked at how her appearance is changing. I just saw her three months ago, and I swear she looks so much more mature since then...less cute and more pretty.

I'll be honest, it's been a bittersweet year. We gained Asher, which obviously was the most wonderful thing ever, but I feel a little like we've lost Ella. She moved away to Virginia with her mom early this year, so we went from seeing her every couple of weeks (or more) to seeing her every few months. Kids grow up so darn quickly, so three months seem like a year. Not to mention, before Asher, Ella was the apple of my eye. Don't get me wrong, she still is, but I just haven't been able to focus on her or pay her as much attention as I did before Asher was born. I don't know if she's even noticed that, or not, but I feel guilty about it sometimes. I miss the closeness I felt a year ago with little Ella Bella. So...this must be a little tiny taste of the mixed feelings you get when having a second child?

Luckily, I will get a much-needed Ella fix in just a few days when she comes in to town for Thanksgiving with her mom. I'm so excited to see her, and I know Asher is going to be in heaven visiting with her. I just hope I'll be able to recognize her when she gets here.

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Refrigerator Monkey

Does this picture look familiar? It should. Just over a year ago, I posted this same picture, with the major exception being that there was a gray and white kitty in place of this little boy. How things both have and haven't changed since then. I see the staples of our diets are largely the same: bottled water, pickles, parmesan cheese, taco sauce, and chocolate syrup. Ah, it's fun to be predictable.

This picture pretty much sums up our time these days: chasing after a very curious and very energetic little boy who's into EVERYTHING. While home with him over the weekend when Stephen was at work, I was amazed at how fast he's become. I know I'm always saying he's fast, but I swear the minute I say it, he becomes even FASTER. For instance, I plopped him down on the kitchen floor to play while I made his lunch. Thirty seconds passed and I realized Asher was no longer in the kitchen. I peeked my head into the dining room - no baby. Where could he have been? Oh, he was only about four or five steps up the staircase. And when he saw me? He giggled and sped up. Our baby gate won't fit the bottom of the staircase, so we try to put a box in front of the steps. And wouldn't you know it, he just pushes the box over enough to squeeze past it. Yeah, and speaking of boxes, someone has figured out he can climb on top of them to get to things. FUN things he's not supposed to get into.

Asher is getting very close to walking, too. He is starting to stand without support. I'm trying not to think about all the trouble he's going to get into once he's up and running...I'll have at least a good twenty years to worry about that.

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Temper Tantrums? Not THIS Guy!

Just as I received weekly e-mail updates when I was pregnant, I also receive weekly baby e-mail updates. Every week, I'm shocked at how on par they are. Like, seriously, do they have surveillance on us? This evening, I received my 45 week e-mail, and it stated that Baby is entering the age of the temper tantrum. NO WAY! All that screaming and kicking and flailing Asher has been doing lately when he doesn't get his way, you mean that's not just his little happy dance? I'll be honest, I was a bit relieved. I've been worried that maybe we've got a spoiled brat on our hands, for surely it's too early for him to be legitimately throwing temper tantrums. Alas, I guess this new pain in the ass attitude is normal. Did I just say "pain in the ass?" Oops. I meant to say "independent."

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Getting in Touch with His Feminine Side

Well, I tried to clean out from under my bathroom sinks tonight. I tried. Actually, I did manage to get rid of several years' worth of expired medications, discolored lotions, emery boards that had lost their roughness, crusty makeup, dried-out lipsticks, and other assorted unnecessary "necessities" that I, for some strange reason, thought I shouldn't part with before this evening. I did this while Stephen was fixing a hearty chili dinner, so I had to entertain Asher at the same time. My idea of entertainment for him was to give him full access to investigate/play with/destroy every single girlie product I own. Tampons, maxi-pads, hot oil treatment, shower gel, make-up brushes, hair products, shaving cream - it was all at his fingertips. Surprisingly, Asher thought this was the most fascinating and exciting thing EVER. I probably could have worked in there for two hours and I don't think he would have gotten bored.

My cabinets are now clean and clutter-free, but that could be because my hundreds of tampons are currently strewn all over my bedroom and bathroom floors. Leave it to Asher to not put away his toys after he's finished playing with them.

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And So The Injuries Will Begin

Nothing major, thankfully, but Asher has had a sudden onset of boo-boos over the past few days. He fell over on his face at Marmie's on Friday, which apparently resulted in a bloody mouth. We never did figure out if it was his lip, cheek, or tongue that was hurt, but whatever it was, it must not have been too bad since he never complained about it after the fact. Sunday began with a bang when Asher was in the process of waking Daddy up in bed and decided to plunge head-first off the side of the bed onto the floor. The little booger darted so quickly that I had no chance to do anything but yelp out and grasp at the air. The acrobatics seemed to startle him (duh) and probably hurt his noggin a little, but he appeared to be fine after a minute. I, on the other hand, got to experience my first heart attack. Later in the day, while playing, he trapped himself between my nightstand and the bed, and managed to clobber his eye on the corner of the table. If you look at the picture above carefully, you can see the area around his left eye is a little red. We were concerned he would get a full-fledged black eye, and that we would have to spend the next few days darting judgmental glares from people out in public, but, luckily, it never came to that.

Nothing major, as I said, but the point is, it's beginning. A whole new set of worries. A different kind of worries. He's not even walking, yet, but he's into everything. EVERYTHING...Not to mention, he's a little daredevil and doesn't seem to be afraid of a darn thing. And it's up to us to keep up with him and protect him from himself. Like a couple of weeks ago when Asher found a piece of iron somewhere in the house and had it stashed away in his mouth. Thank God Stephen noticed the cat-with-a-bird-in-its-mouth look on his face. We have no clue what the iron was from, let alone where he found it. But he did. And he tried to eat it.

Laurie said it best a few days ago, something to the effect of: Don't worry, Kim, I'm sure after the first ER trip the rest will be a breeze. Very comforting, thanks.

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The End of Fall Already?

Okay, so maybe I'm jumping the gun a little bit, considering the fact that Winter technically begins at the end of December. But, in my mind, once the leaves have fallen from the trees, once the temperatures plummet below fifty degrees for good for the season, once Thanksgiving has passed and the stores begin to play Christmas music, Winter has arrived.

Well, the leaves have begun to fall. In fact, all of the trees in the parking lot of my office building are bare already. The temperatures have been stellar (in the 60s & 70s) for almost a week now, but they're supposed to drop to the 40s & 50s in the next couple of days. I hadn't realized until this evening while talking to Stephen that Thanksgiving is just in a few short weeks. Tonight, I also gathered up all of Asher's Halloween apparel to be packed away and it occurred to me that it's just about time to start getting out his Christmas attire.

Yep, Winter is just around the corner.

I love the Christmas season, don't get me wrong - it's my favorite time of year - but, good grief, where has this year gone? Shouldn't it just now be about mid-July? Not to mention, I'm not quite ready to whip out my winter coat. And, Asher doesn't even have a winter coat, yet; just a winter jacket, but no toasty coat or snow suit or boots. And then there's Christmas shopping! And birthday shopping! What was I thinking, having Asher a WEEK after Christmas?! I'm so unprepared.

Oh, and thank you so much, end of Daylight Savings Time. In the morning, I go to work thinking it's the beginning of August because it's so bright out, but in the evening it feels like January, it gets so dark so early. Like my mind needed any more screwing with.

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Ten Months Old

Today not only marks the end of Daylight Savings Time, but also is Asher's ten-month birthday. Unfortunately for us, Asher did not want to use his extra hour for sleeping. Instead, he invested his extra hour into exploration, which seems to be the main focus of his time and attention these days. It's amazing to me how curious he is, and the amount of determination he has to figure things out. As exhausting as it is on us, the parents, I love it that he's so fascinated with the world and people around him. I just hope that, as he gets older and more mobile and more independent, he uses his endless amount of curiousity for good and not for evil.

It's been a very busy month for Asher Bug. For starters, he grew some teeth! Only two little chompers currently reside in the bottom of his mouth, but we think he may sprout some more in the not-too-distant-future, since he's been cranky lately and constantly chewing on his fingers or buggies or anything else that's remotely squishy. Because of this, we've slowly begun giving him more and more table foods to get him used to eating like a big boy. We're trying to get him trained on drinking from a cup, too. It's pretty messy, and a lot of coughing is involved, but he's getting pretty good at it. Asher is also still perfecting his waving skills. The meaning behind the waving isn't totally there, yet, but he's working on it. He took his first fairly lengthy road trip and surprised us by being in good spirits most of the time. He also had his first Halloween, complete with a bat costume, parade, and a lollipop.

Asher's memory and comprehension has started to notably increase this month, too. He is figuring out cause and effect. He seems to understand more words. He tries to imitate sounds. I'm totally sure this is all a sign that he takes after Dr. Uncle Jeff in the smarty-pants department.

I've begun thinking about planning Asher's first birthday party a little bit, but don't want to think about it too much because then I have to come to terms with the fact that, in just two short months, Asher will be turning a whole year old. That just isn't even possible.

Here are his pictures for October.

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