Shameless Cuteness.

This is the blog where I allow myself to post whatever I feel like.  So I don’t feel guilty for posting these photos of Noah just because he is beautiful.  Not one little bit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Having a Bad Attitude is Not an Easy Job.

Here it is... The Grandparent Effect in video form. It's gotta stink to get laughed at for your attempts at fit pitching...

It’s All In The Lips.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Being StormChased.

The clouds are out to get me.

I don’t know how the rest of the nation has been lately (how have you been?), but Alabama’s weather has just not been quite right since our tornado outbreak.

First, we had a drought – in some crazy twist of irony.

Then, all of a sudden, we were having daily crazy thunderstorms.

And when I say daily, I seriously mean set-your-watch-by-it-daily.

A couple of weeks ago, me and the kids got caught in one of these.

(Obviously, I didn’t set my watch by it.)

We were at the hospital visiting my Grandmother (she’s doing much better now, thank you), and I managed to brilliantly park on the furthest-from-cover end of the top level of the parking deck.

When we left Mammaw’s room, it wasn’t raining.

When we made it to the parking deck, the rain was basically a solid mass of water, coming down horizontally.

Ali is not fond of getting wet.

Noah didn’t know how to close his mouth so he drank at least a gallon of rainwater.

I had no idea how I was going to get me and my two kids and my huge diaper bag and myself to the car without us being carried away by the wind, but somehow we managed.

(Noah is still drying out.)

Also thanks to these daily storms, we have basically been without power the entire month.

Literally, our power went out four times in three weeks, plus at least once while we were on vacation – every time the wind blows, or doesn’t blow, or it rains, or it doesn’t rain, the power goes out.

Living without power and with a four year old and a six month old is not what I signed up for.

But the most fantastic parts of our bizarre weather have been the skies.

These were cell phone pictures, so I can’t imagine how awesome the photos would have been if I’d had my “real” camera with me…

Before the Storm:

After the Storm:

That almost makes it all worth it.

Almost.

Except for the power part – nothing makes that worth it.

Enjoying the Journey.

He tries… so hard…

He takes a break to pound my arm with his paci, laughing the whole time…

He relocates the paci…

He tries again, oohing and ahhing at his lack of progress…

A little more fun work, taking up long stretches of time, with no frustration or fussing…

Finally, he gets it in.

And then he’s bored.

BabyFacts

There are some facts about babies that are absolute.

They will always sleep in on the mornings that you have to get up.

They will always get up at 5:30 am on the mornings that you could have slept in.

Their spit up will always miss their spit-up-catching bib and hit your shirt…especially if you just put it on.

If you’re dressed up to go somewhere fancy, they will most certainly award you with the trifecta of baby fluids.

At some point, you will find yourself comforting a baby by letting them ruthlessly gnaw on your fingers… or shoulder…or arm… or even leg…or computer, as mine is doing right now.

In some desperate moment of needing a break, you will convince yourself that waking a baby to change their dirty diaper is a greater sin than leaving them in it until they wake up.

And, at some point, you will most certainly put your baby in a laundry basket – for just a moment of having them trapped in one spot.

Ali

Noah

Good thing babies generally like laundry baskets.

Six Months: A Comparison.

Yeah, yeah…I know you’re not supposed to compare your kids.

Noah:

Ali:

No, she wasn’t ever as blond as him.

Yes, the real pier / beach grass background is WAY better than the cheesy portrait-studio-half-painted-half-fake flowers.

Oh – and yes, he most definitely smiles more than she did at this age.

Noah’s Stats:

17 pounds – 55th percentile

27 inches – 85th percentile

Ali at 6 Months:

16.8 pounds – 50th percentile

26.25 inches – 75th percentile

One day my kid’s not-so-tall genes are going to catch up with them – one day.