What's New in Mookietown

Things are pretty quiet around Mookietown, but she's doing a couple of new, cute things. (Everything she does is cute, you know, but these are just new!)

First, I think she's planning on being a marine biologist because she's practicing her echolocation skills. Either that or she thinks she's a whale. She's got the squeak down pat. :o) I'm not quite sure what she's trying to communicate with, though...perhaps the ceiling fan? Here's a little video:



She's growing like a weed - her footless pajamas are all looking like shorties right now. :o) She's taking better naps during the day (usually!) (except for today). She and I are both shedding like sled-dogs in Phoenix -- thanks Pregnancy Hormones! She's getting two little pressure spots on her bottom jaw where, all too soon, two little toofers are gonna erupt. She's getting better about hanging out and entertaining herself for a while. I think it's important for her to play alone on the play mat or in the bouncer with some toys. She spends a lot of time sucking on her thumbs, or her fingers...and I think she'd suck on her toes, too, if she could just get them into her mouth! She has, obviously, recently discovered her feet...so all photos of her at the moment are showing quite a bit of her little rump. :o)

And I think her favorite entertainment of late is what I call "the baby in the bed."  A few months ago, I bought Mookie a plastic crib mirror and installed it at the head of her crib. She never really noticed it because she couldn't crane her neck that way.  Well...a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that she was, in fact, craning her head, looking at the baby in the little mirror. "Yay," I thought! "I think I'll move it to the side so she can see her reflection when she wakes up from a nap, and she can entertain herself!"  So, I moved it.  And during the day, that's exactly what she did. I would hear her wake up, and then she'd notice "the baby in the bed" and start chattering with it. So Cute!! :o)  However, cuteness left the building that night.  See, as babies are prone to do, she would wake after just a few hours of sleeping, and kind of scan the room and squawk to see who responded. Well, thanks to the nightlight I keep in there for my sake, she was able to see the baby in the bed...and she started chatting away. Chat chat chat. It was time to feed her, so I went in and nursed her and she forgot about the baby in the bed. After that, we both went back to sleep. In about 90 minutes, though, as part of a normal sleep cycle, she woke up and did the scan-squawk thing, and again noticed the baby in the bed. And again started to chat. She fell asleep shortly thereafter, so I didn't need to intervene, but once again, about 90 minutes later, the chatterbox revved up again! This time when I went in to her room to feed her, I covered the mirror with a blanket because we can't be having that kind of social hour in the middle of the night!

Here's a picture of her looking at "the baby." Please note: her real head is not flat on top as the reflection suggests! It's a plastic mirror, folks! :o)

Oh, here's a conundrum: she associates being swaddled with going to sleep. And she's too tall for footed pajamas that actually fit her body. But with the discovery of her feet comes the kicking and the squirming and the trying to find those feet when she's in bed. So what happens is that she squirms her way out of the swaddle, and then it is somehow no longer bedtime because she's no longer swaddled. And it's getting colder at night, so if she's not going to stay in the swaddle, but she knows it's time for bed when she's swaddled, how am I supposed to keep her warm at night? She kicks helpless unsecured blankets off within seconds, so they are no challenge for her. She needs to be snug to sleep -- any suggestions for making her snug? I'm thinking of getting one of those sleep-sacks, she can't kick out of those! :o)

Well, I can't think of anything else going on with her for now. Hope you have a great week!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!

(these pictures didn't make the cut as Top Photo...but they're still pretty cute!)

(bless you!)

"Hi, Pup. You're cute. Please come over to my crib for dinner."

"Oh, did I forget to mention that you were the main course?"

"Huh. Can I get some help here? Maybe I'm not ready for solids quite yet."

Happy Birthday Grandpa!!

How Quickly I Forget

Tonight I was going through my folder of photos of Mookie, slowly (ever so slowly) uploading them to Flickr. (sigh). I got Birth Day loaded, and then I was glancing through Week 1. Oh my goodness. She was SO little! And so cute! And she made tiny little motions, and she made tiny little noises, and her arms and face and nose and toes were all so very tiny! And it's only been 4 months! Sheesh! Thank goodness for digital cameras and video cameras, right? Now we no longer have to rely on our own brains to remember those very important details! (Wait...is that really a good thing?)

Anyways, I don't think I shared this before. It's a brief (way too brief) video of Mookie on Day 2 while she was in her little hospital bassinet. I was rubbing her tummy while she made the sweetest little tiny girl sounds. She reminds me of a baby bird. :o)




Watching it now breaks my heart, and brings tears to my eyes. As a day-old Mama, I didn't know that her little cry was because she was hungry. There's another short video a couple of minutes later where Dave is stroking her head and I'm rubbing her tummy. On the one hand, I love it because Dave's hand is so big compared to her little head...but on the other hand I can't put it up here because she's crying louder because she's hungry and I'm so clueless that I'm shooting video instead of feeding my child. I want to go back to that moment. Can I get a do-over? :o)

I am so thankful that I get 6-7 do-overs each day. :o) I am so thankful that she is a healthy, and vibrant little girl. And while I desperately want to go back to that moment and feed her, I know that I cannot. I can only learn from it and move forward.

I need to remember to pay attention to her in the moment, in the right now...and not try to capture the moment on the camera for "later". Later. What is later? Later is a thief, stealing my moments with my sweet baby girl.

And I need to remember to be still with her and with God. I don't want to be too busy dancing and reading and singing and walking and rolling over and giggling and teaching that I miss what God is trying to teach me. And what He is trying to cultivate and create in and through me for her.

And I hear that baby bird chirping for a do-over now. Good night! :o)

Dear Mookie: Month Four

Dear Mookie,

I can't believe you are four months old today! Has it really been that long since you were born? Oh, you are getting so big, and so strong, and, of course, cuter and cuter by the minute.

I'm trying to put you into your Bumbo chair every day so you get stronger, but you're not really able to sit up in it all by yourself quite yet. This picture makes me laugh.

You look tough and threatening, but utterly adorable.

You still don't like being on your tummy, and a month ago, you had only rolled over once - when I wasn't looking...but this month? All the time! You don't even complain when I put you on your tummy...you just get about the business of rolling over. Every time. You have found success in a funny move. Well, I think it's funny, anyways. When I put you on your tummy, you arch your back so your head and chest and feet are off the ground, and then you put one foot down and try to push over with your toes. I think it's brilliant, actually. You already understand the concept of surface area! Yay! You still get frustrated some times because you haven't quite figured out that if you don't move your arm out of the way, you can't roll over, but Mama's always there to help. The arch-and-roll maneuver is, apparently, your new modus operandi whenever you are somewhere you don't want to be. In the carseat, but want to get out? Arch-and-roll. All swaddled and fighting to not go to sleep? Arch-and-roll. About to get into your little tubby for a bath? Arch-and-roll. Don't want me to change your diaper quite yet? Arch-and-roll. You think it's funny. You think it's clever. Ha ha. Mama's not laughing. :o) Keeps Mama on her toes, yes it does.

You are just getting SO strong, though. I am so proud of you. I'm so sorry that I have to keep putting you back on your tummy, but if you don't build your upper body strength, you won't be able to crawl. Oh. Wait. Maybe that's a good thing. Maybe I don't want you motoring around the house any time soon. Okay, we'll stop that tummy time routine. :o)

Here's you mid-roll:

You are getting more used to normal things - like naps, and baths and don't fight so much when it's time for either one. The only trouble we have with your baths is when you are in your little tubby, and you add your own contribution (ahem) to the water. Then we have to start over. And we don't like that starting over thing too much. But I promise to be quick so you don't feel the need to contribute.

We went to the doctor's office today, and you had a couple of little shots, but he said you were doing really well, and he commented quite a few times on what a wonderful baby you are and how glad I should be that I've got you. I said "Of course I know how blessed I am! She's the BEST baby in town." And he agreed with me. You have gained a whole pound in the last month, and grew an inch, so now you weigh 11 pounds, 10 ounces, and are 24 1/2 inches long. He said this next month will be full of more milestones, and that I need to be ready.

Like I always do, I took pictures today of you with the bear your great-grandma gave you. This time you are as big as the bear!

What are you two staring at? :o)

Well, whatever it is, you are beautiful.

This last month was a pretty busy one on your social calendar. You and I went to Phoenix and surprised your Grandma Sue when she got married. And you swam (and you fwam all over da dam), at least I held you while you kicked in the water. :o) I think you had fun, though. And I had fun, too, so we'll have to be sure to go swimming again together sometime soon.

A couple of Saturdays ago, you watched your first Michigan football game with your papa. They didn't win, but you seemed to enjoy the game, and Papa enjoyed holding you while the game was on. Maybe next time you watch a game, Michigan will win!

Then just a few days ago, your Bumpa came to visit you. He loves you, and was very excited to hold you every chance he could. He taught you "airplane" and "motorboat" and you seemed to love both of them. We will get to see Bumpa again at Christmas.

You are a lot more chatty this month than last. And you giggle a lot more, too. I can't seem to figure out quite what makes you giggle, but if I could, I'd do it nonstop because your giggle makes me so happy.

And ALL the crazy, silly, funny, expressive faces you make! My, oh my. You are a trip. I love every minute of being your mama.

As for your size, and all the growing you seem to be doing...right now, you fit perfectly in my arms. I can hold you against my shoulder, and your head is at the perfect height to rest there as you are falling asleep. I can "sit" you up in the crook of my elbow so your head is leaning against my upper arm, and your legs are dangling off my forearm. And when you decide you can safely rest your eyes for a few precious moments, you relax your whole body into my comforting arms. I know you will be too big for all this very, very soon, but right now I want to enjoy it. Yes, I let other people hold you, but inside I'm jealous of them for those moments. People tell me I should let you spend more time in the swing, or the bouncer, or on the floor...but I just don't want to! I want to hold you every possible minute before you are too big for me to do it! And for now, based on the way you smile, you seem to like it, too. So let's keep doing it, shall we?

Your papa said something the other day that I want to tell you. He was watching the video of you swimming in Phoenix, and he said that I looked really happy. He said I smile and laugh a lot more when you are around, and that makes him happy. And he's right. I am very happy that you are in my life. I really enjoy spending my days with you. I know right now you are too young to understand, but one day I hope you know that there is nothing I would rather be doing than sharing my days with you. I want you to know my laugh, and my smile. And I want you to feel like the time we spend together is the most important and precious time I could ever spend. I want you to enjoy life, and live it to the fullest, and I will be there right beside you the entire way, enjoying it along with you.

I know I've said it before, and I hope you hear it a million times more, but, second to my salvation, you truly are the most precious gift that God has put into my life. Just by being you, you are changing me. You are drawing me out of my self-protective little box. You make me goofy - and I like it! You make me care less what other people think, and care more that you are learning and growing. I can't wait to see the world through your eyes. I want to learn as you learn, and grow as you grow.

I pray for you often throughout the day, and when I do, I always thank God for you. And I am always awed and intimidated by the fact that God chose us to be your parents. He knew a long time ago that you would be with us today, and he spent some time preparing us, but there's more work to be done! :o) He gave us a perfect, beautiful, smart, funny, little girl who will challenge us and change us and make us better people. You make me want to be a better person every moment of every day. I absolutely want to be the best mama you could ever imagine, and I can only do that with God's help. So each day as you smile at the baby in the mirror, or kick your feet up in the air, or squeal with displeasure as I put you down for your nap, God is growing me into a better mama. I'm not going to be perfect, but I hope you remember the good moments, and forgive me for the bad ones.

I can't wait to see how you change and grow this next month. Every day is more precious than the last.

I love you more than you (or I) could ever imagine. Forever and ever and always.

Love,
Mama

(Click here for Dear Mookie: Month One or Dear Mookie: Month Two or Dear Mookie: Month Three)

Bikini Conversations

So I never actually finished posting pictures from our weekend in Phoenix.

Saturday (can't believe it was already 2 weeks ago! gosh!) we chilled (if you can actually chill in 103° weather). Mookie and I got up, had our respective breakfasts, and went back to sleep. :o) Well, she went back to sleep, I made some phone calls and relaxed. She woke up again at about 11:00, and we suited up in our bikinis, and slathered up with sunscreen, and headed out to occupy some space in the shade. My aunt and uncle were out there already, my brother and his girlfriend were on their way, and Mom and Dale had gone home to get their bathing suits and were on their way back.

Mookie and I "swam" a little more like we did the day before, and then we got back up on our deck chairs for a rest. Rob and Tracy got there and told me about a water slide at the pool that went from one level of the pool to another (yes, this place had 3 levels of pools, all interconnecting, all very awesome). And since it's been about 25 years since I've been on a water slide, I was very tempted. But, being the responsible mother I am, I said "No, I have to stay here with Mookie. You go off and have fun." (felt like an unwed teenage mother, I did) My aunt and uncle said they'd take care of Mookie while I went and played with my brother, so off we trotted. I have no pictures of the water slide, but MAN, was it fun! Serious fun. If you have the chance to go down a water slide, take it! You'll feel 30 years younger! (and the next day you'll feel 30 years older...ugh)

While I was playing with Rob and Tracy, my aunt and uncle were taking pictures of my little lovely.

Here's Barb and Mookie together. Such a beautiful pair.

Phil held her for a while, and the series of pictures is funny, to me. I imagine some kind of conversation going on...or at least one of Mookie's famous monologues. What she's actually trying to say, I don't know!

"Well, I don't know about you, but I think it's beautiful here by the pool. Hot as blazes, but it's nice enough in the shade, or in the water."

"Me? I think I'll be voting for Mickey Mouse for president. He seems to be fairly bi-partisan, and want what is best for the people. Plus, he's all about making people happy, so how can we go wrong?"

"Oh, I think Minnie Mouse would make a good first lady. She is a good hostess and makes everyone feel welcome. I hope to be like her one day."

"What do you think of my Speedy Gonzales hat? I think it's pretty funny."

"Want me to sing something to you? Let's see. On top of Spagheeeettti, all covered with cheeeeese. I lost my poor meeeeeeatball when somebody sneezed. Shall I keep going?"

Mama loving her water baby.

And this, maybe my favorite of the day (maybe!) is a sweet, sleeping baby. Tuckered out after a hard day of swimming and singing and just being cute. She slept on my chest for over an hour.

And that, my friends, is the last of the photos from the wedding weekend. If you haven't noticed, we had a fabulous time. I wish all weekends could be like that!

I hope you have a weekend as fun and fabulous as ours was. :o)

Party Like A Guac Star!

"Going green" is quite en vogue these days. Recycle this, reuse that. Cut down here. Use less there. Today, though? Going green is all about the guac.

September 16th is National Guacamole Day!

Woot woot!

According to Wholly Guacamole (and Reuters), here are some great reasons to eat more guac (like you need more, right?)

• It's rich in history. Originally reserved only for the wealthy and kings, guacamole was invented by the Aztecs as a nutritious snack.
• Skinny Jeans. The "good fats" in avocados effectively reduce cholesterol levels. Three tablespoons of all-natural guacamole with a handful of carrots has 94 calories -- that's less than a cup of low-fat milk!
• It fights cancer. Researchers at Ohio State University's Comprehensive Cancer Center say that avocados have cancer fighting power against oral, prostate and possibly other types of cancer.
• Avocados have more natural protein than cow's milk or a steak. ("Natural" = not denatured)
• Avocados are nicknamed alligator pears.
• Avocado trees produce up to 400 fruits a year.
• Shop early! Cinco de Mayo, Fourth of July, Super Bowl Sunday and Easter each account for approx. five percent of annual avocado sales. (Easter? Really? 'Splain that to me, please!)
• Guacamole's so popular it celebrates two Food Holidays --today, and Spicy Guacamole Day, November 14!

SO...enjoy the celebrations! I'll be celebrating with a chip in both hands. :o)

Put your hand upon my chip. When I dip, you dip, we dip.

Timin', a tick, a tick, a tick, Timin'.

Mookie usually takes a short nap (45 minutes or less) at mid-day. So today, when she stopped chattering, I knew she was asleep, and that I had to be quick, efficient, and most of all, quiet if I wanted to get my work done. I needed to make and eat my lunch, bake a loaf of bread, bake a batch of peanut butter cookies, clean up the kitchen after all the baking, tidy up the house, take out the recycling, wash some bedding, and (maybe?) rest a few minutes myself. Ambitious, no? :o)

Thanks to the bread machine, I can bake bread and cookies simultaneously. And once I got the bread going, I knew I could do other things while each tray of cookies was baking. I had it all worked out in my head. Precision timing. Better than a Tag Hauer.

By the way, the weather is lovely here -- as opposed to pretty much everywhere else on the continent -- so I had a few windows open to let the nice breeze through. As I was baking the bread, and the first tray of cookies was in the oven, I was pressing the criss-cross into the tops of the peanut butter dough balls (who knew this was so tricky?) (or should I say sticky?), the smoke alarm said, "BEEP-BEEP-BEEP." To which I replied, "Ssshhhh. My child is sleeping. Be QUIET!" as I fanned at it with the official smoke alarm fanner --my trusty oven mitt.

After I got it quieted down, I opened a few more windows, and turned on the stove fan. I picked up my fork and started pressing more criss-crosses into the dough, and "BEEP-BEEP-BEEP" went the alarm again. To which I replied, "For the love of all things holy - my child is asleep. Be QUIET!!!" with my teeth clenched just a little more tightly this time. And this time I picked up a magazine with which to fan it, since the oven mitt apparently doesn't work when one is baking two things at once. :o)

I started to walk away, and I had a bright idea...I'll remove the battery! That way it can't BEEP-BEEP-BEEP at me! 

So I did just that. And I went back to my cookies. The first tray was done by now, and the oven was ready for the second tray (imagine the alarm saying BEEP-BEEP-BEEP and the oven saying beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep all at the same time. Fun.)

Back to Tray Two, and can you guess what happened next? Yup. Again with the BEEP-BEEP-BEEP.  Grrrrrrrr.

I know this little inanimate object is designed to save me and my family from imminent danger, but my child was sleeping, for Pete's sake!  I needed to convince it that (a) I am not that bad of a cook, and (b) should my house actually burst into flames, I promise to take my sleeping child with me!!

So I did what any baking mother of a napping infant would do.

I uninstalled it.

Because Hell hath no fury like a mama whose child doesn't get enough sleep.

Notes:

(1) I reinstalled the smoke alarm after I was done baking.
(2) Don't believe any comments my brother makes about my cooking.
(3) The cookies tasted good.
(4) The cookies are for a friend who is currently deployed in the desert.
(5) As I...um...quality controlled the broken cookies (ahem), I remembered that there is usually sugar on top.
(6) The sugar is probably to help offset the stickiness, huh?
(7) I probably shouldn't wait 20 years to bake peanut butter cookies again.
(8) And if I do, I'll try to remember the sugar-on-top thing.

Murphy and Sod Were Brothers At Law School

JUST as I was about to sit down to type out a funny blog post about what I was trying to do today while the baby was sleeping...she woke up!

It's a good one, too! I just hope I can remember it for the next time I have a sleeping baby!

Until then, hope you're having a great day!

Going To The Chapel (Escapade, Day 2)

I recommend you read the previous post before this one. It will make things make much more sense! :o)

One thing I forgot to mention about Thursday, and pulling off the surprise is that in the afternoon (after I had arrived in Phoenix, and was about 5 miles away from her), I called my mom to check on any pre-wedding jitters. During our conversation, she mentioned how sorry she was that she didn't plan it so that Dave and I (and the baby, of course!) (it's all about the baby!) could be there. Quietly smirking, I said, "You know, it would be nearly impossible to schedule a time for us to be there. Dave is just incredibly busy at work, and can't take any time off at all. Plus, this is about you and Dale, and your commitment to each other. I wish we could all be there, too, but know that we're praying for you, and we'll be there in spirit." (only one teeny white lie in there...not bad!). It's all to perpetuate the ultimate surprise. :o)

So, back to Friday, September 5th. Mookie and I woke up and had breakfast, and my uncle called to say they were out by the pool, and it was just gorgeous outside. You don't have to tell me twice! Mookie and I got into our bathing suits, and slathered up the sunscreen, and headed out to the cool blue waters.

I wanted a picture of her in her little bikini before we got into the pool. This one won't win any photography awards, but she is the cutest! :o)

And then, more fun than all-you-can-eat barbecue...we went swimming! :o) I've never taken a baby swimming, so there were probably things I could have/should have done differently, but she seemed to enjoy herself, and so did Barb and Phil and I...so that's all that really matters. I basically held her head above water and let her kick her legs as I turned back and forth. Then Barb got into the water, and "swam" with her for a few minutes. Mookie seemed to get tired, and we needed to get on with our day, so we dried off and headed in. This is another "not the best picture" picture, but it is my picture, and this is my blog, and I want to record this moment. :o) This is Barb, Mookie and I just before we got out.

So the next few hours were spent going between Joann's, Michaels, Target, Party City, and BevMo! (an adult beverage store) getting all of our supplies ready. We were a Wedding Planning Machine! Well oiled and timed perfectly. :o)  We got the bouquet (Mom didn't want one), a basket for Mookie (the flower girl, of course), some silk rose petals (for Mookie as well as their hotel room), some bows for the pews, some streamers for the rest of the pews, champagne and glasses for toasting, and...um...I think that's it! We were all set. Now we just had to get back to the hotel, get the baby to take a suitable nap (hah!), and get ourselves cleaned and ready.

When we were all set to go, we loaded everything into the car and got on the road. To further perpetuate the surprise, I called Mom again. It was about an hour before the wedding, and I hadn't talked to her, so I called. Barb and Phil got to listen to the conversation because my car has Bluetooth through the speakers...and they had a tough time not chuckling as I carried the "sorry we can't be there" banner even further. :o)  Sorry for lying to you, Mom! :o)  So we got to the church, got it decorated, and set up the video camera awaiting their arrival. The pastor was the only one who was supposed to be there, so we had to park my car down the road a bit. I certainly didn't want to give it all away in the final moments!

My brother called to say they were at the church, so we got poised and ready inside the sanctuary so that they wouldn't see us until they actually entered the sanctuary. We heard Mom open the door to the fellowship hall (just outside the sanctuary) and start chatting with the pastor. So we waited. And we waited. And we waited some more. Then we turned off the video camera because we knew it would be a while. :o) Finally we heard her wrapping up the conversation and saw the shadows on the wall as they were about to enter.

We were a little ways away, so the picture is fuzzy, but Mom was definitely surprised to see us standing there! :o)  And of course the first thing she wanted to do was hold the baby! Apparently she forgot about getting married!! :o) She had NO CLUE we were there. Never suspected a thing. We were champion surprisers. Yay! Gotta love it when you pull it off, right?

So, the wedding got started, and it was like that scene in The Princess Bride where Prince Humperdink is trying to get the priest to hurry up the wedding saying "Man and Wife. Say Man and Wife!" ... Mom was that eager to get to hold Mookie some more! :o) Zip, zip, zip...kiss the bride. Sign here and here and here. NOW she gets to hold the baby. :o)

We sat around the church just a little more, took some pictures...

...the flower girl...

Then we went back to the hotel to kill some time, had the champagne toast, and then went to a fantabulous place for dinner. It's called "noca" and if you live in the Phoenix area, or plan to visit anytime soon, you should definitely go there (sorry, I can't find a website). The food was a-MAZE-ing.  I think the phrase "gluttonous pigs" was used more than once that night! Oh. Did we eat. Man.

One more photo, and I'll leave you for today.

...the wedding planner at dinner...

(a.k.a. Uncle Rob)

After what felt like an 18-course meal, we waddled back to the cars, then back to the hotel for the night. We had a big day of swimming and lounging scheduled for Saturday. :o)

...oh, and the water slide... :o)

Baby, You Can Drive My Car

So our escapade started at 6:47 on Thursday morning (Sept 4th). Mookie was strapped into her carseat, and I was strapped into my (driver's) seat. I had the bag of snacks beside me, and the iPod filled with fun kid's tunes (and soothing lullabies) for the journey.

We were headed due east, my friend, to Phoenix. We went through Riverside and picked up I-10. 400 miles, 7 hours and 45 minutes, and a couple of "snack" breaks later, we were there! Our first stop was The Buttes Marriott Resort in Tempe. Ho. Ly. Cow. That place is beautiful! The resort is literally built into the side of one of the "twin buttes" in Tempe, and it was stunning.

Here's a picture (similar to the one I posted on Monday):

My aunt (Barb), uncle (Phil) and brother (Rob) arrived about an hour later, and we got settled into our rooms. Quite well appointed rooms, I might add. However, I'd like to say, for the record, that a resort should offer some amenities (wi-fi?) for free. If Motel 6 can do it, so can the Marriott! Mookie needed a nap, so we just took a couple of hours to relax and put away ALL the stuff I had packed into our little car. You know, all the baby-related gear. Ugh. 

At about 6 pm, Mookie was up, and fed, and we went outside to sit and watch the evening go by. Yes, it was Phoenix in September. And it was about 100*F in the shade at 6 pm, but we did it anyways. :o) Barb and Phil and I were waiting for Rob and his girlfriend (Tracy) to break away so we could go to dinner and have a scheming session. While we were waiting, I decided to see what Mookie would do in the water. We weren't dressed for swimming, but the pool was empty, so I sat on the edge and put her feet in. She recoiled them back up as if she had touched hot lava! But then she let them back down again, and we were able to dip our toes in the water a few more times before Rob and Tracy got there.

(Phil and Mookie)

(Barb and Mookie)

They finally arrived, unloaded some stuff out of their car, and we headed out. As we were eating dinner, we coordinated who was going to buy what from where and do what when and how we were going to pull off one of the biggest surprises in family history. (I think the biggest was my pregnancy announcement last year).

See, we were in Phoenix because my mother was getting MARRIED!!!! Yay! She and Dale have been together for quite a few years, and she finally decided that it was time. She (obviously) knew she was getting married, as did Dale...but what she didn't know was that Barb, Phil, Mookie and I were going to be there to celebrate with them! When they planned to get married, it just wasn't going to work out for us to drive over, so I said I would rather she get married now than wait till it was convenient for us. Plus, her wedding is not about us. But then, things changed. And we could go! And so could Barb and Phil! And it just made sense to be there.

So during dinner we figured out how we were going to pull this off. Mom kept saying "No fuss, no muss, no nice." Which, to her meant that only Rob and Tracy would be there as witnesses, and that there would be no decorations in the church, and, well, okay, maybe you can take one picture...but nothing else.  Of course, the rest of us...well...we didn't honor our mother's wishes. :o)  We mussed and we fussed and we niced. The plan was to get bows and ribbons to decorate the aisle, as well as flowers to make a bouquet for Mom and a little flower girl basket for Mookie. We had to get champagne and glasses. Tracy had to secretly pack an overnight bag for both Mom and Dale because Barb and Phil gave them a night at the resort as their wedding gift. And Rob? Well, he was the mastermind behind all of this, and his biggest job was keeping Mom and Dale in the dark!

Much too late for Mookie (and her mama) to be out at night, we headed back to the hotel to get all good and rested up for Our Big Day. The plan was to play in the morning (the pool was calling my name!), and work in the afternoon, and the wedding was scheduled for 4:00 Friday afternoon.

Tune in tomorrow for more of the story...

Hello, and Happy Monday

Hey,

I want to welcome all of you that have travelled over here from 5 Minutes For Parenting. I'll try not to bore you with never-ending stories about my child. :o)

And for my regular readers (all 12 of you, thank you, I love you)...Megan recently honored me in an amazing way. She says I moved her! That my letter to Mookie when she turned 3 months old moved her! Whodathunkit! 

Megan is a writer at 5 Minutes For Parenting (as well as a few other gigs), and once a week the writers spotlight blog posts that moved them. And Megan was moved my mine, and sent a few more readers over here.

So if you've never been to 5 Minutes for Parenting, go there now. If it's still Monday...then you'll get to read one of my favorite stories of Megan's: Moon Over Charlotte. It is hilarious. There are 5 writers, and they are always writing wonderful things about their children, about parenting, and sometimes about their challenges as mothers. But they are always very good reading.

And with that, I'll leave you.  I have much much much to tell you about my doings over the last few days, and I have much much much more cleaning to do since Dave's dad is coming to visit next week. Soooo...sometime between the changing the beds and dusting the magazines, I'll check back in and tell you a few fun stories. :o)  They involve surprises and escapades and ribbons and bows and Mookie in a bikini (oooooooh, she's a cutie!) and food, glorious food.

Here's a teaser:

(Dusting the magazines. Hah! Had you going, didn't I?!)

By the Light of the Silvery Moon

The other night, I was holding Mookie as she was fading in and out of sleep, before I put her in her crib for the night. What follows is what I was thinking to her:

Tonight, as I watch you sleeping in my arms, I am amazed at you. You are beautiful. Absolutely stunning. And I know you are going to hear that a lot as you grow up. I hope we teach you humility and appreciativeness. And I hope we teach you to pay compliments to others, as well.

I imagine you with long hair (well, any hair, actually). Will it be blonde or brown? Will it be curly or straight? I suspect it will be straight, but I hope there will be a fun and girly little flip at the end.

And I wonder what your laugh will sound like. I hope you laugh often. And freely. I hope that we provide you with plenty of opportunities to laugh. Then I hope even more than that that you find humor and joy in a million things and open my eyes and heart to all the funny things in this world that God created.

Are you going to be right- or left-handed? I have my suspicions, but we'll have to wait and see. What is going to be your favorite subject(s) in school? Where are you going to go to college? And what will you be when you grow up? What if you don't go to college -- will I be okay with that? I hope so. I hope I always support your dreams. But I hope you are always seeking, and following, God's will for your life.

I hope it doesn't take too long for me to figure out how hard to push you, and when to let you make your own way. That's a delicate balance, I think. Oh, and I promise to always guide and support you, but I will never do your science fair project for you.

I wonder if you will be an athlete, or a mathlete, or a musician, or an artist. Will you be in the drama club or the physics club -- or both? I hope that you are an athlete and a mathlete and a musician and an artist. I hope you always seek to cultivate the creativity and the talents that God has given you.

Then I wonder how old you will be when you start to recognize God's presence and His works in your life. And how old you will be when you choose to follow Him. And if you ever doubt your faith, will the foundation that we have built be enough to hold you steady? Will you know, and understand, to the core of your being, that God loves you immensely more than you can ever imagine? And that to God (and me) nothing else matters on this Earth as much as you do? There are lots of things I'll mess up as your mama, but this stuff about God? I hope I do it right.

But most of all, I wonder when you will really fall asleep so I can put you in your crib.

(my sweet sleeping baby)