13 To-Dos

We are having GORGEOUS, spring weather this week, which always gives me the itch to get things done. So, in light of that, this week's T-13 is a montage of my lofty list of "Things To Do". (Ok, so they're not all lofty, but I can't lead an entirely glamorous life, now can I?)

1. Weed the front flowerbed. I confess. I don't weed during the winter months. Its cold (yes, I remember I live in central Texas, and compared to some of those Northern states, it never really gets "cold" here...but I'm not conditioned to the cold, so cut me some slack) and I just don't have the desire. But now, its beautiful outside, so any excuse I can come up with to be outside (even pulling weeds) will do.
2. Clean out the garage. Through the winter months (due to my aforementioned determination to stay warm, and the fact that our garage is not heated), the garage has become a burial ground for a fat lot of boxes. If I just throw out the empty boxes alone, it will probably double our space in there!
3. Finish knitting my blanket. This one's not as overdue as the first two. I only started knitting it Tuesday, but its for a baby shower on the 3rd of March, so I've gotta step on it!
4. Wash the sheets. Ours and Norah's. I didn't get around to it last week, so it's definitely time! I love the feeling of slipping into bed with clean sheets!
5. Fold the laundry. I have about 5 loads sitting in the "clean" laundry basket. I've just been piling them in there (does anyone else do that?) so I could keep turning over the laundry. I don't know why I hate folding the laundry so much...
6. Finish mom's quilt. This will probably be one of my long-term goals...but it needs to be done. I've been working on this quilt since before Norah was born. I think its going to be pretty--she chose the colors: pink, brown, and green. It might sound strange, but they really look nice together. I've been stalling long enough. It's time to proceed.
7. Finish remodeling the master bathroom. Just before Norah was born we replaced our master shower and toilet and put in a new, tile floor. We still need to finish the walls and baseboards. (And yes, I did say "we"--which means I'll need a little help...honestly, Jason will wind up doing most of the work, but I can at least do the painting, which I know he hates.)
8. Plant flowers. I love to drive up to our house and see pretty flowers in our front flowerbed. It makes me happy every, single time. I usually plant violas in September, and they bloom through May...but this year I couldn't ever find any healthy ones, so my flowerbed is just a weed bed right now.
   
9. Decorate this week's cake order. I only have one cake to decorate this week, so this will be a "piece of cake". The small order has definitely given me a chance to get more done around the house--mop, clean bathrooms, do lots of laundry (even if most of it is still piled in the "clean" basket). I've had 4-6 per week for the past month or so, so this was a nice " (almost) off-week.
   
10. File our Income Taxes. I've got all the paperwork together. It's time to bite the bullet. I'm secretly dieing to see if we'll actually get a return this year (after paying the last 3--we stink at this game!) Everyone has told us that having a baby really helps, so we'll see. Truth be told, once I get out the calculator and make myself sit down and to them, I almost enjoy filling out the form.
    
11. Go through Norah's Clothes/Shoes. With the season changing, its time to go through Norah's closet and box up and store/return to Jenny the clothes she's outgrown, or that are out-of-season. I also desperately need to find some way of organizing her shoes. I'm leaning toward one of those back-of-the-door hanging shoe organizers, but we'll see what I can come up with. This too, is one of those tedious jobs that I enjoy.
    
12. Work on Christmas Shopping List. I love finding the perfect gift for everyone on our list. I try to keep a working list of ideas, starting around February of each year. That way, I don't have to think of ideas for them all at the last minute. I already have a couple of ideas, so I'd better jot them down before I forget!
13. Read. I've got a lot on my literary plate this year, and I've been having trouble finding the time to read. (Our recent, newfound obsession with "Lost" on dvd has really curbed my evening reading habit, but we're nearing the end of Season 2, so I'm hoping to get back on track soon) I've been working my way through the "One Year Bible" and am really enjoying that. I also just started "Wild at Heart", for the second time. I have several others in the hopper when I finish it, but I mustn't get too bogged down with books, because I've got to be free by July 21st for the anxiously awaited release of the Harry Potter finale!
    

A Little Help Here

I am pretty confident that we are bringing up quite the "little helper". I've blogged in the past about Norah's affection for the vacuum cleaner (she loves to "pet it" while I work), and I've been noticing she's grown increasingly fond of the dishwasher (a girl after my own heart). Ever since she's been able to pull up, she's come crawling (and now walking) into the kitchen as fast as she can when she hears the sound of the dishwasher door opening. Up until now, I always thought she wanted to climb inside. So, Monday I decided to watch her and see what she was so desperately attempting to accomplish by sprinting into the kitchen when the dishwasher was ajar.

Now, you're probably going to think I made this up, but I have a witness who can independently verify that it is, in fact, true. As I stood beside her, Norah reached into the silverware basket, and pulled out a spoon. (No, she wasn't trying to remind me it was time to eat.) She handed me the spoon, and smiled as I put it into the silverware drawer (I opted to let her "play" in the dishwasher when it was full of clean dishes, and for those who were wondering, I did remove all knives and other sharp and/or dangerous objects prior to her entrance to the kitchen). Then she reached back into the basket and handed me another piece of silverware and smiled as I put it away. She did this about 4 more times, and then it clicked: She wants to help me! She handed me every, single piece of silverware, one at a time, until we had put them all away. Then she started handing me things from the lower shelf of the dishwasher! At this point, I told her, "Thank you for being such a big helper! Let's go play." (Most of the stuff on the bottom shelf is breakable and I figured she'd done enough to earn her keep for one day)

Later that afternoon, she heard me unloading the remainder of the dishes and came running. When she discovered that I'd already beat her to the bunch, she didn't miss a beat. She came over to the dishwasher and plucked the silverware basket right out, and took off, as my Grandad would say, "Like a scalded mother ape" (you'd have to know my Grandad :) She ran from the kitchen through the dining room and was headed into the living room when I finally caught up with her. I have to wonder if she was looking for more things to wash so she'd have something else to put away. (And no, I don't typically keep stray silverware on the floor, in case you were wondering)

At any rate, Norah has proudly helped me put away the silverware every time I have done a load of dishes this week. Granted, it takes a lot longer putting them away one piece at a time, but its totally worth it to me to give her the sense of accomplishment, as well as to teach her how to be a helper. I love my job!

Fun with Words

I was over at Bee's place this morning, and found the coolest link I'd seen in a while. You enter in a web address (such as http://www.robinsoncountypost.blogspot.com) and it converts that web page into a different dialect---like Cockney or Redneck. It's pretty fun! Give it a try if you've got some time on your hands!

Whispering Hope

I couldn't resist sharing the sweet photo I snapped when Uncle Johnny stopped by to visit. Norah loves Uncle Johnny!

Norah has been getting more and more talkative. She already has a lot of words (some of them more accurately pronounced than others--but she's consistent with them, which at least tells me she understands the concept of talking). At one year of age, she can say: "Daddy", "Bye Bye", "Dog" (which really sounds more like "dah", but she uses it for dog every time), "Snack" (always pronounced with a question mark at the end, as if in great anticipation) "Duckies" (more like "duh-dees"--we go to visit them every night in the bathtub), "Bird", "More", "Milk", and a very occassional "Momma" (most of the time she insistantly calls me "Da-da". Oh, and how can I forget her most favorite word, "Hi!"

She says "Hi!" to nearly everyone we come in contact with. Her favorite place to greet people is Walmart. Every person, every aisle. Thankfully, we seem to grocery shop at the same time as a lot of other very friendly people, who are always kind enough to acknowledge a friendly baby girl.

Another place Norah loves to greet friends is when we go to church. Now, this wouldn't such a big deal if she limited herself to greeting folks in the foyer, but no, she prefers to continue her loud salutations in the auditorium, especially when it is quiet, like during the sermon. Last Sunday morning was our hardest one, to date. She was just being loud. Finally, when she started to pump up the volume in the middle of communion, Jason and I opted to migrate to the training room, where we spent the remainder of worship assembly with a very wiggly, loud baby who was seemingly not responding to any form of discipline.

When we returned home for lunch, Jason said a humorous (but honest) prayer, asking God to give us wisdom and patience for raising and disciplining Norah, and to help us to be "more stubborn than she is". God is fast to answer our prayers. When we went to church Sunday evening (which, truth be told, we were both dreading a little, considering the way we had to fight Norah that morning), Norah fell asleep in the car and slept through about half of the service. She woke up just as Foree was beginning his lesson. This is when she usually looks around for people to say "Hi!" to. And she did just that, but apparently some of our early morning discipline had sunk in, because when she found her "greet-ee", she simply whispered a raspy and subdued, "hi". At first I thought it was a fluke, but she continued to do it all throughout the remainder of church! Her first whispers were in church. I thought that was pretty cute. Granted, I know she was still distracting the people around us by conversing with them during the sermon, but at least she's learning to be quiet(er). We'll keep working on good manners as she grows and matures, but for now, we're just proud that she's learning to whisper.

We've continued to work on our whisper ever since, and she's doing marvelous. Of all the things she's learned, I think I'm the most tickled by this one. It was just so unexpected. We never dreamed she could learn to whisper so young, so we never even tried to teach her, and here she just surprised us by coming up with it on her own! (Although, I really do think it is God's loving way of telling us to "Hang in there, she's gonna be just fine")

13 Things I Love About my Valentime

In honor of Valentine's (or as Jason and I call it, "Valentimes", cause its just more fun to say it that way) Day next Wednesday, this week's T-13 is an ode to my sweetheart.

1. He's a man of God. I am so thankful to have a Christian husband leading our family. He says wonderful, heartfelt prayers that often convict me to put more effort into my own.
2. He's so handsome! After knowing him for pretty much my entire life, (ok, so I wasn't as into him in Junior High...but I learned my lesson) I still think I "married up". He has the most beautiful, clear, blue eyes (that he has passed on to our sweet baby girl) and a genuine smile that makes you feel pretty special when you earn it.
3. His great sense of humor. I can't remember a joke to save my life...so whenever I see a good one (usually from my friends through e-mail), I always make sure to tell Jason, and I love it when he pulls them out and brings down the house at get-togethers. He's a great joke-teller. He has a good laugh too--and that's important if you've ever met someone with an obnoxious one!
4. He's a great father. When Jason and I were dating, he once confided to me that one of his life's ambitions was to be a good dad. I can attest that he is living that ambition out. Norah loves Jason so much. I can already tell he's gonna be the "fun parent". He'll crawl around on the floor with her, acting ridiculous, tickling her silly, or helping her put together a puzzle-- all while winning her deepest affection. No wonder she wants to call everyone "Dada". She probably wishes he was with her all the time!
5. He's athletic. So maybe its a little immature on my part that I'm so proud to be "dating a big jock"...but I guess I kinda am. Jason and I have played sports together all throughout our marriage, and I've always taken secret pride in the awesome catch he made in the outfield, the huge putt he makes for a birdie, or the super-long drive he throws in the presence of strangers, leaving them awestruck (ok, sometimes I guess I cross the line of secrecy when I yell out things like, "That's MY husband!" but I can't help it!)
   
6. He smells good. I don't know how he does it, but he almost always smells good, even though he rarely wears cologne. He does shower regularly, and definately wears deodorant...but I prefer to think its something in his body chemistry--its more mysterious that way.
   
7. He's good at fixing things. Not that I'm Suzy Helpless, but I don't possess knowledge on many things, such as the inner workings of the toilet, replacing ceiling fans, or how to fix a curtain rod that is too tall (no, I know how to make it telescope inside itself if it is too wide--I'm not a total idiot, I'm referring to my problem the other day when the curtainrod stuck out too far because of the light fixture over my sink, and Jason cut the metal and redrilled holes so I could still hang my precious curtains)
8. He's easy-going. It takes a lot to make him mad...and even when he does get mad, if he takes a nap, he always forgets about it.
9. He's a hard worker. Ask anyone, including his past and present bosses. His favorite verse is 1 Thessalonians 4:11, and he lives it every day. You should see his hands. They are "strong hands".
10. He's not picky. I love that Jason hates shopping so much that he will wear anything (with few exceptions such as cords, which is such a shame, cause I think they look great on guys) as long as I buy it for him and he doesn't have to go to the store, himself. He'll also try anything I cook at least once, and most of the time, he's complimentary of everything I cook.
11. He's brave (and patient). I've lost count of how many late-night missions I've sent him on to "stake out" the house and make sure no bad guys are lurking about. (Many of which I've woken him up for) He never makes me go because he knows I'm afraid of the boogey man, and he rarely gets angry at me for being mistaken. (He hasn't found any burglars yet!)
12. He's thoughtful. He gives great gifts--and that's really saying something, considering we're talking about a guy who HATES to shop. Maybe its just because he'd rather think really hard beforehand so he can only go to one place, but I'd rather think he's just a thoughtful kind of guy.
13. He's a nice guy. I catch him all the time asking the cashier at Walmart how her day has been. He always says thank you. He's courteous to strangers. And I think that is so incredibly attractive.

Walking and Window Dressing

I snapped this cute picture of Norah Sunday afternoon. Jason and I had just gotten in from playing with the Aggie Disc Golf club. I had been wearing the blue bandanna like a headband to keep my hair out of my face, and Norah came over and plucked it right off my head, and made several futile attempts to put it on her own, until I finally helped her out. Much cuter on her, for sure!




Also, I'm very proud to announce that Norah has officially joined the biped nation! After nearly 2 months of experimenting with a few steps here and there, out of nowhere, she decided to up and walk last Friday. She's been cruising around on two feet, ever since. I'm amazed at how quickly her balance has improved. She can walk all the way across the room and back without falling! . Most of the time, her preferred posture while strolling is both arms up and a big grin.





Walking isn't the only new mode of transportation Norah tried this week. She also discovered that Great Grandmother gives one mean horsey ride! I wish I could upload her squeals of delight, because they were priceless. (And don't worry, Grandmother was fine--she's surprisingly spry...and I think she had as much fun as Norah)




Today was also an exciting day because I finally got the chance to make my kitchen curtains! (Thanks to Gramps, Johnny, Mom R, and Grandmother for the JoAnn giftcards/ Christmas money that funded the project!) Unfortunately, once the curtains were finished, I discovered that the curtain rod couldn't be installed because it overlapped with the light fixture above our sink. Thankfully, my super-sweet husband cut the rod and re-drilled holes in it so the rod and the light could co-exist, and I could have the satisfaction of seeing the finished product. Thanks, sweetheart for making time to help me after a long day at work (even before practicing your putting!)

13 Things I'm Glad I Tried

I've always heard it said that "its good to try new things". So I got to thinking about some of the once "new" things that I've tried that I'm thankful for. Maybe you're on the fence about experiencing some of the things on my list, and if so, here's what has earned my endorsement. (And no, I'm not getting paid for any of this-- just my unsolicited opinion, as a free service to you) Feel free to let me know if you agree with me, or if I talked you into trying something you, too love. (Just dont let me know if you try any of these 13 things and hate them, because I really don't need that kind of guilt)

1. Special K Red Berries- Delicious...and nutritious!
2. "The Illusionist" on dvd- we loved it! One of my favorite rentals in a long, long time.
3. Shutterfly- I tried Shutterfly.com for our Christmas cards and had a blast. I was really pleased with the price and finished product. I even had special thank you notes printed for Norah's birthday gifts (with a picture of her and her beloved sock monkey)!
   
4. Buck's Pizza Rolls- Not nearly as nutritious as #1, but still delicious, and you can't beat 50 cent rolls on Tuesday! I think they're the best pizza rolls in town.
5. Knitting- I never had any desire to knit. I thought it was for "old ladies" who were exceptionally coordinated. Then I tried to crochet and I stunk at it, so I decided to give knitting a try...and I really enjoy it! Its neat to be able to make something useful and practical from just a pair of needles and a ball (or 4) of yarn.
   
6. Raisins- I recently gave them a try after a lifetime of thinking I didn't like them. (I figured if I was gonna subject Norah to them, the least I could do was eat some, myself.) Turns out, raisins aren't too bad. (My little sis has informed me that when, in my old age, I try these new things and discover that I now like them, it simply means that enough of my taste buds have "died" that I now THINK it tastes good.)
7. Veggie Tales- I'm addicted. My current favorite is "A Snoodle's Tale", which is a parody of a Dr. Seuss book. Hilarious, smart, and moral.
8. Secret with Olay moisturizers- I've always been a Secret girl, but I love the new Olay moisturizing version of my old standby.
   
9. Walgreen's. Open 24 hours, 365 days a year. Great service. PLUS, I can upload all my digital photos to their website and they're ready in an hour! I love Walgreen's!
10. Speaking of "24"!!! Jason and I are addicted to "24" and can't wait to see what tight spot Jack Bauer will manage to get out of next. We've currently watched all the way through season 4 (all on dvd, commercial-free). It's fun to have a show that we look forward to watching together, after Norah's safely tucked in.
11. Dangly earrings. Up until last month, I had never owned a pair. Then a good friend (thanks, Katy) gave me a pair for my birthday, and lo and behold, I really like them! At first I felt a little like a poser, but after I got used to the way they felt, I really enjoyed wearing them. They really made me feel feminine!
12. Online Shopping-- I love to buy online. I feel like I can find practically anything I could possibly want on the web. Plus, I can usually find it for less than I would if I spent all day long shopping for it. Sure, it might take out some of the suspense of "the hunt", but I still prefer it to live shopping, hands down.
    
13. Disc Golf- yeah, I'll admit, it sounds pretty dorky, but Jason and I have clocked a lot of hours playing together, and we both really love it! We can already tell Norah's gonna get into it--she loves to watch Daddy practice his putting in the back yard. She even says "Daddy!" every time she hears the disc go into the basket chains!