Happy Thanksgiving!

We are headed home to Clinton for Thanksgiving... it should be interesting. We'll have Weston, and Nathan's girlfriend/baby-mama Jeramie and her daughter Zoey. 3 New people, if you leave out Nathan's Great Embryolio, Paisley.
I am very excited. The older I get, the more I like spending time with my family. We still tend to argue, but I think we have more fun together than most people.

Weston's Thanksgiving Outfit! Doesn't he look thankful?!?

Weston has learned to roll over! Granted he does it mostly in his sleep, and when he realizes that he is on his tummy, he gets so mad! He hates Tummy-time. It's so funny to us. I can't wait to show the family how big he is and what he can do now. And I can't wait to see pictures of my almost-niece!!!

I hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving and that you enjoy the long weekend. If you have to work Friday, I'm sorry, it sucks, but I've been there. Just put in your time and go home to the leftovers. :)

Before I was a Mom...

I got this forwarded to my email today... and it expresses everything I am thinking every day.
On a very happy side note, my brother Nathan is expecting a perfectly healthy baby Girl (!!!) in April! Thank you to all that prayed for her health and well being!

Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom, I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts. I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put him down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.

I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

Weston - 3 months

So, I forgot to put Weston's 3 month pics up. He turned 3 months old on Halloween. I also have more pics at home... Trick or Treating, playing with his aunts/cousins. Here are the 3 month pics though:

our country

So I voted today. Surprisingly, for the first time I voted Straight Democratic ticket. I usually try to pick the best person for the job, this time it just seemed a lot easier. For the first time ever, I was not 100% for either candidate. I am always more Democrat than I am Republican, I always vote against Bush, I loved Al Gore. This time though... I'm not saying that I was pro-McCain, goodness no. But I am by no means 100% comfortable with Obama. There's just something uneasy about him. But I will say this: I made history today. And so did you if you voted for Obama. Today, for the first time in history, the United States has chosen a president who is not a middle-aged white man. Barack Obama has become the first of 43 men to be different. And what does that say about this country? We have elected a President who over 100 years ago could have been born into slavery (or at least servitude with a white mother,) who over 50 years ago would have had to sit at the back of the bus, drink from a different water fountain and attend a different school. In World War I & II, Obama could have enlisted but he would have had to serve in a segregated unit. This is an amazing day if for no other reason than that we have changed the history of our country. From this day forward, race will no longer have an impact on our politics. We could soon have a Hispanic- or Asian-American president. This is amazing, this is the first step. Soon, gender will not matter either.
I hope that President-elect Obama keeps his promises. I hope that the changes he wants to make can be accomplished and that he can make America a better place for all of us. I wish him well; I wish him good health, and I wish him luck. For John McCain, I also wish good health; but I also wish that he keeps his promises about bipartisan dealing. I think he could continue to be an influential and important part of the future of our country.
So... God Bless America and Good Bless our President.

He's growing up!

My favorite picture ever! 9/28/08 He is just gorgeous!

Weston attended his first wedding October 25th! Shannon's BFF Dee Ralston married her long-time love, Eric Dickerson. It was an awesome wedding! To check out the amazing video, click here: http://mediainnovationsblog.com/2008/10/27/deanna-eric-highlights/

This is the best wedding video I have ever seen and it's just the preview!

Our family in front of the church!

He looks almost 3 years instead of 3 months old!

Scott and I dancing our only dance.

Shannon and I fooling around. Shannon was a bridesmaid and she made all of the bridal party jewelry! Isn't she amazing?

Weston with Eric. There's a great pick of him with the bride, but it's still on my camera. Oops.

Weston and I enjoying our first dance! He's got more rhythm than Scott and I put together.

a tribute...

I'm going to be MIA this week. Scott's step dad, Hugo, passed away early Sunday morning. Hugo had been fighting a weakened heart for many years now, but it's still a big loss for Scott's mom, Lila. We were able to go to Cherokee last Thursday through Saturday night to spend some time with Hugo and to say our good-byes.
Hugo lived 82 years and had a very full life. From what I have heard, it took a heart attack 40+ years ago for him to truly appreciate his family, but once he saw the light he became a wonderful father and grandfather. Hugo was there for Scott and I whenever we needed him. I will admit that for the first 2 years of my relationship with Hugo, he was a little "touchy-feely." Everyone knew about it, and we laughed about it. About 3 years ago, Hugo became too weak to do much of anything, but his persistence and perseverance to live his life as he chose was a great inspiration. I was looking for pictures of Hugo last night and became aware that I didn't have a single picture of Weston with "Grandpa Hugo." I about cried. It still makes me sad. Weston has been held by Hugo every time we went to Cherokee. Hugo looked forward to Weston's birth just as much as Lila did. This was the only Grandpa that Weston would have on Scott's side, and we have no proof of them together. It's the most upsetting part of this.
I know that Hugo went onto a better place where his body could finally keep up with his spirit. We're very sorry to see him go, but we're also very relieved that he is finally free of the pain his body caused him.
We will be in Cherokee Tuesday evening through Sunday morning, with a brief Friday in Sioux City for West's first hockey game (planned before all this.) Thank you for your thoughts.

Twisted Fairy Tales

Still on a reading kick...

I love Fairy Tales. I think that they are the building blocks for society.

But, I also love the Twisted Tale... it's the fairy tale told in a different manner, either in the opposite direction or from a different point of view. Or from different source materials. Everyone in the reading community has heard of Gregory Maguire, and if you haven't, then you've heard of his most famous work... Wicked. Basically the more in depth story of the Wizard of Oz from the Witch's point of view. I love this book. I want to see the Broadway show, I am loving that marching bands have been acting out this book/play for over three years now. Any time a book can take the world by storm like this, it encourages reading. And I love that.

Gregory Maguire has taken on other fairy tales too... Snow White, Cinderella, etc. You just have to look for them. He has also written a sequel to Wicked - Son of a Witch, which is amazing.

So, I was obviously more excited than surprised when I read on the South Side Confidential blog this morning that Maguire had written a third book in the Wicked series. A Lion Among Men is brand new and available (I hope) to move into my house as soon as possible. It is obviously written from the point of view of the Cowardly Lion (real name? Brrr.) Check it out.

www.gregorymaguire.com/books/lionamongmen.html