...Gave Thanks

1. THANKFUL FOR HAPPY SURPRISES.
I am almost ashamed to say it, but I feel I have to come clean. I have not used my film camera since I bought my digital one in August. I recently picked up two rolls of film I have had at the lab for a while and remembered one of the reasons why I love film. Opening up a packet developed of film is like Christmas morning. You never know what you are going to get! Here a few of my favorite shots from the rolls:









1. THANKFUL FOR PILES OF LEAVES.
We had a blast these past few days playing in the leaves. The weather has been very cooperative. I felt like a kid again.





1. THANKFUL FOR THE COMING SEASON WITH FAMILY.
Cecilia has been begging us for weeks to put up our tree. The neighbors across the street who put theirs up on November 1 didn't help. We finally agreed and got the holiday gear out of the attic on Sunday. Finnegan was mesmerized by the tree. It was so cute.

...Reunited the CIA

Cecilia was the seventh and final baby born at Lawrence Memorial Hospital (LMH) on Tuesday, October 28, 2003. Her pal, Isaac Riffel was the first. Twenty eight hours after her birth, Ceci's buddy Anna Twedt was born. They are all truly friends since birth....well almost.

Wade and I met Dan and Becky Twedt while attending our 6 week prenatal class at LMH. They took notice of us, well... because everyone in our class did. Who could ignore Wade and his wild personality and crazy questions? The Twedt's ended up in another of our classes at the hospital and so we sat together and ended up exchanging email address that night.

I still remember Dan walking into our hospital room the day after Cecilia was born. He popped in to say they were in labor in a near by room. It was so ironic and I kept saying, "I cannot believe they are here too!"

About two weeks later I decided to attend a breastfeeding (BF) support group at LMH. I was extremely nervous, especially about nursing in public. Looking back I just laugh. Why on earth was I nervous to whip out my girls in a room full of chicks doing the very same thing? It seemed like everyone in the room had known each other for a very long time and they were all pros at BFing. I remember feeling a bit embarrassed about having to wear a nipple shield. Cecilia destroyed my nipples with her bad "latch" technique the first few days of nursing. I was to wear this shield until I healed, but I was so afraid of her "latch" that I ending up wearing that thing for four months! What a pain in the butt that thing was. Okay, I am off track here. Where was I?

Ah, yes. The support group. Well, since no one in the room would talk to me I decided to strike up a conversation with the coolest looking chick in the joint. She was about my age, had tattoos and this was the kicker - she was having latch issues with her munchkin too! Ah, someone who knew my pain. Literally. This hip chick [aka Anj Riffel] and I hit it off and ended up hanging together at the weekly BF support group.

Soon later Anj, Becky and I started getting together. We were new moms, we all BF'd our kids, and well, our kids were all born within 48 hours of each other. Too cool, eh? I think it was Anj who came up with our play date group name The CIA - Cecilia, Isaac and Anna. It has to be the coolest play date name ever. I love putting it into my staff calendar at work. "Tuesday, May 4 - CIA Lunch" My coworkers think I am nuts.

And here they are... 5 years older and a sibling each later...The CIA.
[Also pictured "The VFO" established in 2007. Sorry Vivi, Finn and Owen. I Googled this and got Variable Frequency Oscillator (VFO). Pretty lame when compared to the CIA.]

...Got Rowdy On Monday Night

Hank's got nothing on us.

...Inherited Her Mother's Eye

For her birthday, Cecilia got her very own digital camera from Nana Debbie and Papa Tom. She took to it like a fish in water and began snapping away. I downloaded her beautiful work this morning and created her own Picasa Web Album online. This link has a permanent home on the right side of our blog. Ceci and I hope to update it frequently.
After weeding out several images of our hardwood floor, the remaining shots make up the first collection of her work. I think the shot of my rump is the best one...

OCTOBER

...FINALLY Uploaded Halloween Photos

I was planning to create this rad Halloween video with our costume photos, but I never got around to it. My mother is dying to see the her super hero grand kids dressed up to save the day so I gave up and uploaded our shots.
...uh, Jayhawks are too super heroes! More shots can be found in our October Web Album.

...Requests Your Help

Sweet little Sofia had a CT scan yesterday and the doctors discovered she has reherniated yet again causing some of her bowel to protrude into her chest cavity. Her parents are such strong people, but having to go through this surgery for the third time has to be exhausting and stressful. My heart just sank when I read the last few posts on her blog.
Please send your positive vibes, prayers and thoughts in their direction today as Sofie undergoes yet another repair surgery. This pretty lil' monkey is strong, but she can always use our support!

...Joined ebay

I usually give our no-longer-used kiddo gear/clothing away and everyone exclaims, "Why don't you SELL this stuff?" Honestly, I was intimidated by ebay. I was afraid of doing it wrong. My mom actually took a class called "ebay University" and my good friend, Lanette is a professional ebay seller/shopper. Their experience humbles me. Mom, Lanette and any other ebay master - please check out my current listings and give me some feedback. I am facing my fear head on!

http://myworld.ebay.com/mamajayhawk

...Voted with Flair