Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Breaking News

This just in...

It appears that at around 7:00PM EST in the state of Virginia one Chase Isaac rolled over of his own accord. This much celebrated event was repeated once to the right and once to the left for a grand total of three rollovers. Following each occurence, his parents cheered with glee from their perch above him. Ever the humble one, Chase did not seem to register the magnitude of this physical act as he seemed a bit confused as to why his mom and dad were standing over him yelling "Yeeaaa" and "Good job". He was, however, very thankful that the camera was nowhere close because he is getting a little tired of the constant flash of the paparrazi's cameras.

It seems that just this very evening Chase's dad had mentioned that more tummy time would be needed in order to reach this holy grail of baby milestones. Upon hearing this decree by the father, the mother suggested that they engage in a little belly action that evening before bed. Neither expected the blessed event to occur on this very first, mandated tummy time since young Master Chase has been under the weather since Thanksgiving. When asked what they attributed their son's masterful feat to, Chase's mother replied, "A mixture of baby Motrin, green beans, and baby slobber--the fuel of champions."

We'll continue covering this story as it unfolds, so stay tuned for further updates. Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Sunday, November 26, 2006

I don't need no stinkin nap




My son is not a nap taker. No matter how tired he may be, he will fight the nap till the bitter end. Usually after 20 minutes of fit taking, the nap gives in and Chase proclaims victory. On those rare occasions when the nap wins, the victory is short lived. 20 minutes of battle followed by a brief 20 minutes of sleep, and my son is up to face the enemy again. I am not to complain though because usually Chase sleeps well through the night. Of course, his dad is on duty during these peaceful nights whereas I get the luck of being clocked in during our child's crusade for a nap-free existence. As they say...what doesn't kill me, only makes me crankier. I'm not so cranky yet that I can't see the humor in the situation though. Behold my child's nap diversion techniques.





Mobile studying.








Blanket wrestling.



Mommy Staring.
This one usually breaks me. You'd give too if he you were faced with those pouty lips and sad eyes. Trust me, their power is beyond anything known to man.





I survived Thanksgiving 2006



As many of you know, we hosted Thanksgiving at our house this year. 18 adults and 2 kids. At my house. Yes, Laura--who only recently took on the whole cooking thing--hosted Thanksgiving dinner for 20 people. Talk about pressure. I enjoy spending the holiday with family and friends, and I personally had a great evening. Judging from the lack of reported food poisonings, I am going to assume that the dinner was a success. As a bonus, my family refused to listen when I told them not to worry about cleaning up the kitchen, so I had very little to do the next day to return my home to its normal state of mild chaos. Unfortunately, I was too busy to remember to take pictures, so the only ones that I have are the ones that Drew took. He tries, but he just doesn't have the patience to get the best shots. Or the desire to annoy people by making them smile and look at the camera. That's ok, I usually annoy people enough for the both of us.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

Food Glorious Food!





Chase got his first taste of rice cereal today. At first, he wasn't too keen on the idea as communicated by his constant screaming. Soon though, he began to suck the goo off of his spoon. Once he realized that a new flavor had been found, he began to attack the spoon by enveloping the entire thing within his mouth. Messes were made. Good times were had.

Lakehouse pictures





We went to the lake this past weekend. It is the first time that we have been there since it has undergone it's cosmetic makeover. When we arrived, the power was out, and it was pitch black. Luckily, the designer had put some decorative candles in the living room so we had some light. No water though because it is well water and without electricity the pump can't pump. Despite Andy's very best effort and the sacrifice of 10 matches, we couldn't light a fire because all the wood was wet from the rain they had that week. These inconveniences might have broken normal folks, but not my husband. He was determined to get pictures of the house, so he took pictures in candlelight. He was very excited, standing on stools to get a better angle and everything. The power came on an hour or so later, and he got to see all of the changes and take pictures in the rooms that had no candles. There are still things that need to be done--like get smaller stools because when we bought these, I must have forgotten that people have legs-- but overall we are quite pleased with the transformation. Extreme makeover has nothing on us!

Cool dude


Looks like someone thinks he's too cool for school now that he's 4 months old. What kind of attitude will we see when he hits a year??

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Thanks for the memories


My Pop passed away today. He wasn't my Pop by blood, but he was my Pop in love. My own grandfathers died when I was very young, so I never had the chance to get to know them. I did have two grandmothers, but I never had the kind of relationship with them where I was their pride and joy. I am sure they loved me, but visits with them were not centered around me and there wasn't any spoiling of any kind involved. I've always been kind of sad that I didn't get to have that storybook relationship. Lucky for me, I married into a family that had the dream--four living, loving, involved grandparents. Even luckier, they were willing to share it with me.

From the beginning, Gran and Pop welcomed me into their home and hearts. They had a framed family tree with my name on it. Hanging proudly in their front room was a large bridal portrait of me. I was family and that was that. It was a good feeling having these adopted grandparents who treated you as one of their own.

Pop was a character. I don't have a specific favorite memory of Pop--more like a montage of the way I felt around him: at ease, happy, appreciated. Nothing seemed to bother him--he was happy to be who he was, where he was. He was a kid at heart as demonstrated by his love of the Pink Panther and his train set in the basement. It is every kid's dream to have a Pop that plays as enthusiastically as you play.

Ever the entertainer, he regaled the family with stories at dinner that would have us rolling. His sense of humor wasn't sarcastic and not exactly what you would call dry humor, but he could find comedy in the most mundane things. He looked at life like I imagine the stand up comedians of his time did. Often, after he would insert his wit into a conversation, I felt like there should be that "badumbum" sound they play after comics say the punchline of their jokes. I think he would have fit right in on Johnny Carson's show. His humor was something that stuck with him to the very end. It was what made Pop, Pop.

Pop was a creative soul. He worked hard on his bushes, shaping them into a zoo full of animals. He built bird houses and shadow boxes. Always keeping busy, creating and sharing. So in honor of Pop, I thought I'd share a few of my favorite tidbits about his life.

My mom's favorite memory of Pop involves a hot dog. Apparently, when Pop came to WV for Andy's graduation, he was on a restricted diet and wasn't allowed to eat hot dogs under normal circumstances. This day was special though, and he got to have a hot dog. Mom remembers his eyes lighting up as she handed him the plate. He made her feel like the best hostess, and all he got was a simple hot dog. That's the thing about Pop...he made everyone feel good about themselves. That's why everyone loved him so much.

Andy's favorite memories involve going off in the canoe together and going to Phillies games. He also remembers how Pop would make up silly stories and sing them at dinner. He would have the family laughing so hard that they couldn't breathe. I think Andy is a lot like Pop. He has his easy going nature and more than a bit of his humor.

I remember the fish tank with the diver half in the tank and half out. It was so playful, so Pop. I'm sorry that Chase won't get the chance to get to know him. I know he would have loved him just as we do.

Though I never personally heard him say it--I will always think "cheap skin" when I am peeling after a sun burn.

It was a standard joke at holiday dinners for Pop to ask Danielle to pass everything from the salt to the main course. It's become a ritual in our family that Danielle is the official passer at dinners. It is in these memories and traditions that Pop will continue to live on.

Though I only knew Pop for 6 short years, he touched my life in many ways. I am truly thankful for having had the chance to know such a wonderful human being. So, thanks for the memories, Pop. May you forever rest in peace.

Friday, November 03, 2006

Sooo Sad


The dream is over...no national championship for the Mountainers this year. Chase is very
upset as you can see. To ease your pain over this recent devastation, I am including some cute pictures of the noodle. Just my way of reaching out to the long suffering Mountaineer contingent.



Reason #123 why Chase is definitely my son

When I go to training, Jeanne makes me do these back exercises called supermen. Basically, you lay on your belly with your arms straight out over your head and lift up from your waist and your thighs. Looks kinda like you're flying. Get it? Supermen? Flying? Hee hee. You hold this flying position for however long Jeanne feels like torturing you that particular day. Usually for a count of 20 or so. It may not sound like it hurts, but go ahead and try it. Right now, I'll wait.


Kinda hurt huh? Anyway...back to how this relates to Chase. The little bugger is growing and growing and growing. I've tried bricks on his head, but they don't seem to be working. Our tummy time now is spent with him trying to sit up, roll over, or crawl away instead of just laying there like a slug. Now, he looks just like mommy when she is trying to do her supermen. He gets frustrated like mommy too, and then he cries uncle and collapses from the exertion. Just like mommy.