Merry Christmas!

We had a really great Christmas; we were over at Mom & Dad's, and Noah opened up our present from us--a pair of red Converse high-top sneakers. Now, I know it may not seem like a lot, but we knew (from previous deliveries received from the elves in Knoxville) that Noah was going to make out like a bandit. So, we kept our present small, fun and something that we really would get a kick out of. Plus, the boy loves shoes--I think he gets it from both Mommy and Daddy, to be honest!

After we had our Christmas, we hopped over to our house (we were house & Shaka-sitting for Mom & Dad while they were spending the holiday with Mee Ma & Pee Pa), and Patrick's parents (Mimi & Papa) and sister (Aunt ???--we're not sure what he's going to call her; we've tried "Ray Ray," "Chul" and "Rachey" but nothing seems to be sticking, so we'll just wait & see. I'm sure Noah will have his own clever name for her in no time!) came over to watch Noah open up their presents to him.

And yes, Noah truly did have a spectacular Christmas--he received the world's largest wagon, a Spiderman sit-n-spin, two fridge phonics magnet sets (one with animals, one with letters--and I do think the letters are helping him! After we did the "T" and the "K," Noah repeated each sound. He's such a genius.), a ball pit (which we can hardly keep him out of!), a singing dog (he is completely enamored with this dog--he figured out right away how to turn it off & on, and is just fascinated with it), an Animal Baby subscription with matching plate and utensils (which, again, he's just completely fascinated with--he loves to try to feed himself, and does pretty well, but really loves banging the spoon & fork against the plate to make all sorts of fun noises), and I'm sure tons of other things that I'm just forgetting right now.

This is all in addition to the gifts he received when we had Christmas in Knoxville--an inchworm, a camo sweatsuit, a neat home-made stained glass panel with "Noah's Room" and Pablo (from The Backyardigans) on it, lots of fun toys & again--many other things that I'm probably overlooking, but all things wonderful and appreciated!

AND this is all in addition to the gifts he received from family friends--a baseball toy, a fun tub basketball toy, and a Backyardigans lunchbox!

We did our tradition of going to Hollywild on Christmas Eve; we drove through, saw the lights and decorations, chased deer, zebras and the elusive "Zonkey" (don't ask) as well as an emu or two through the "enchanted deer forest" (which at any other time of the year would simply be "deer pen" but I guess it becomes enchanted at Christmas time). Then we stopped off, got some cocoa and pretzels and walked around looking at the baby goats, the largest cow we've ever seen and llamas, more goats, buffalo, more goats, loose deer, and more goats. Noah wasn't too sure about the goats, but he did seem to like the other animals.

We had a great time, and I hope you enjoy the pictures--Patrick does have some great video of Noah opening presents, but it takes awhile to transfer the video and then takes time to format it, so he's been working on it, and I hope to have it posted here pretty soon. Our love to all!

Noah, Daddy & goats at Hollywild.


Taken at Patrick's Granny's--he's on his inchworm. He looks like such a little boy in this picture!


In his Vols jersey that Mimi & Papa bought him, and notice the red Converse. I know it's not really a color combination that most people would choose, but I dare to be different. And for all you Tennessee fans out there--Go Vols!


Hard to see him, what with all the camouflage. Good thing he's got his red tennis shoes on so we can spot him easily!!!


He loves his ball pit!!!! Thanks, Grandma & Grandpa!!!!


Noah learned the fine art of drinking through a straw over the holidays; and contrary to popular belief, this does NOT cut down on the amount of mess-making that he does! (Elephant cup--with matching plate & bowl--courtesy of Skyler's family.)


Opening up Mee Ma & Pee Pa's presents, in the world's largest wagon.


He does love his singing dog!!! Notice he's got his spoon in one hand and the fork in the other (Noah, not the dog.).

It's December Already? Huh????

Okay, is it really December? Really? Huh. I thought I had at least a few more months until the end of the year, but I guess not. And, whether I like it or not, it'll be 2008 pretty soon.

I've not been keeping as regular posts as I'd like; not sure where the time goes. Oh, yeah, I forgot about our 23 1/2 lb., 33 inch time vortex we have running around. It seems that I always start the day with the best intentions--get up, have some breakfast, dismantle a closet in our dining room (at one point the dining room used to be a bedroom, but when it was converted back to a dining room, the closet remained...lucky us), paint the laundry room...but alas.

So right now, I've got a closet that's about 1/3 dismantled (4" screws, put in at odd angles...I think this is a job for either a reciprocating saw or a Dremel--both of which we possess, but not the quietest tools to use--so using them during nap time is out!), and a laundry room that's ready to be painted (apparently I didn't stir enough, because when I went to paint, it was basically paint-scented water). Patrick is very patient, though. I don't think it surprises him anymore to come home to a laundry room where, just hours before, there was a pantry and all sorts of Rubbermaid-type storage lockers and there isn't now, or comes in the dining room whose closet has expelled all sorts of crap into the dining room, making it obvious that the closet's days are numbered, or finds whole rooms rearranged. In fact, when Patrick knows that it's important to me to get X done NOW (like, say, rip up the carpeting), he jumps in with both feet. Case-in-point--when we did take up the carpeting, by the time I got back home from dropping Noah off at Mom & Dad's, he'd done a fair bit of demolition. And, some of this stuff is very cathartic. I can't begin to imagine how good it'll feel to take a small sledgehammer to the closet.

Speaking of Mom & Dad's, you may or may not have heard by now that Mom & Dad have asked me to list their home here in Greer--they're going back to Florida. I know it's not permanent, but we will miss them, and as much as I know they'll miss me, I know that it's Noah that they'll truly ache for! It was very bittersweet, putting my sign out in their yard. On the plus side, this was a listing in a very slow time, and I was happy to have my name out there--maybe I'll get some buyer leads from it, and of course, the commission when the house sells. And, I knew that the home would sell quickly, and we do have an offer on it. (Not sure if it's the home or if it's me that is that good--but I had an offer less than a week after it was listed!) We'll have to wait & see if the offer goes to the closing table, and again, the double-edged sword--I sold a listing very quickly (yay, me), but that also means, absolutely, that my parents are leaving (even though that I knew they were leaving regardless--it just would be better for them for the house to sell sooner rather than later!).

I've got some opportunities for part-time employment, which is good. I know that overall, Greenville's housing market is better than not only South Carolina as a whole, but the US as well (US housing is down 20%, South Carolina 18%, Greenville 4%), but still--the media is killing us. With the interest rates the way they are, it's never been a better time to buy a home, but with the Today Show broadcasting features telling people to not now, no way, no how buy a home--it's tough to compete. I've been trying to put myself out there more, expand my sphere of influence, and just try to stay positive. I just wish there was more that I could do--I did see an ad about getting your Florida license on-line. Maybe I can do that & try to figure out a way to get Mom & Dad's home there sold!!!

Okay, so on to more uplifting news--Noah is great; although he did get in a tussle with Mouse last night. He got a few scrapes (nothing major, but enough to make me feel really, really awful and question my Mommy skills), but I think it hurt his feeling more than anything. He loves her so much; in fact, she was the only way we could get him to do anything but cry during our Christmas Card Posing Session (the results should be on their way to you as we speak)--so as a qualifier, I normally don't include the cat in family photos (and especially not this cat), but Noah loves her so much that we really had no choice. Pablo didn't get a smile. Even his beloved balls didn't work. The only other thing that worked was when he lifted up my sweater to find my belly button, and I guarantee you, that photo was deleted. No one wants to see that.

We had his 18 month check up, and yes, he really is 33 inches tall. He looks like a little boy now, and I think he's starting to favor Patrick a little more. His favorite word is "no"--and he responds to anything that sounds like a question with "no." "Noah, do you want some milk?" "No." "Noah, do you want to go for a ride/go outside/go swing?" "No." (As he's running to the back door, ready to go for that promised ride/outside/swing.) "Is someone awake?" "No"--which is a patent untruth, since to be able to answer one has to be awake. And, sometimes he responds to statements with "No"--"It's cold outside." "No." (Okay, I'll give him that one--it has been unseasonably warm here.) "You're wearing pants." "No." And again--sometimes he was wearing pants (or, in the case of nap time at Mom & Dad's, a diaper) and then suddenly he's not (like the case of nap time at Mom & Dad's...where he proceed to mark his crib & the carpet beneath. Sorry, Mom & Dad!).

He's also discovered spinning--you know, when you stand in one spot & turn around & around & around? He finds it very amusing, until he discovers that he can't walk straight and tends to fall down. His comprehension is still amazing to me; he's got such a limited vocabulary, but he understands so much more. And willful! Our boy is so willful! I guess he takes after his Mom in that sense! We've started really disciplining him when he throws things; we should have been doing it from the beginning, but we're trying to stay strong--he'll throw something (his bottle, his food, his utensils, anything he can grab) and then we just say, "No throw" and remove him from the table, very matter-of-factly. He HATES IT. And cries...and there are real tears, and he just looks at you and you just want to pick him up, and hug him and make it all better. But that's not going to help solve the whole throwing issue....so we're just going to have to be tough & stick with it. He's a smart boy, so I don't think it'll take him long to draw a connection between throwing & removal from the table. He still wants to be involved in everything we're doing, and even though some of the time the removal gets him what he wants (stop feeding me so I can watch Dora!), most of what we've seen is he wants to be back at the table with us. This morning I saw him deliberately testing limits, because he was throwing his bananas--one of his favorite foods--and he was really watching me, and you could see the wheels turning. That's what I find really fascinating--watching those cogs & wheels just spinning.

Here are a few photos, in no particular order or reason, but for you to enjoy!

(He's trying to pick the cat up. No, she doesn't like it all that much.)



(I don't know what's so funny, but that smile makes me light up like nothing else.)

(What, this you don't want me to touch? This thing, right here, that I'm holding??? Really? Oh, and that snowglobe--Rest in Peace. You were no match for the hardwood floors.)

(Use the force, young Jedi... He's holding a remote in the shape of a light saber. When he's not trying to stuff it down his "Balls-A-Poppin'" game, he's trying to control the universe.)