Am I boring you yet? Sorry...we can't help ourselves

New Photos...not in any particular order

Oliver and Daddy on Thanksgiving...both looking rather smart.

This was yesterday. He now tries to do raspberries with his lips...it comes out more as pursed lips and spitting, but he's trying. You are guaranteed a smile if you do it for him. It's amazing how much he changes sometimes over night--yesterday was one of those days where he just seemed more aware, bigger and more capable too.
Looking for food or rather campaigning for food--his tongue is always working overtime.
boys in their brixtons
too cute.
Oliver and Grandmommy at Thanksgiving
He's a little boy-baby, holds his head up and has an opinion
smiles


Ready to hit the road in this cold cold weather!

It ain't no Thing!

Maybe if I were rich than I wouldn't have the riches I have now...hm

Happy Thanksgiving to our friends and family!

Bobby, Oliver, and I in typical fashion spent the holiday in Chicago (in Joliet Illinois) with my grandparents. It was a holiday of firsts: Oliver's first Thanksgiving, Bobby's first time meeting my grandmother and Rod, and Bobby's first time to the city. We are staying the weekend in fact to spend some time riding high on the CTA scoping out the city. It is nice to have the time together in a foreign place and we're really enjoying the nice weather and my old memories.

Tonight we had dinner at Moody's (a favorite cozy burger joint in my old neighborhood) with Amy and Ira (in from Florida) and tomorrow we're staying the night with friend Erika. It is a nice visit and a vacation I'm rather unfamiliar with lately. (We even purchased a disposable camera for the nostalgia :))

...lately I've had no time for posting. Life has been full of kisses, drool, and love. It has been a much busier, yet much more peaceful period in my life than I've experienced before. A time when anxieties are squelched by responsibilities, and love takes on new definition...that awe and wonder seem best friends, and well everything else--including oneself--seem less important. I find that I am full of different fears and have a different take on the old ones. I also find myself thinking that I am pretty happy with what I have--do I really need more? Sometimes I sad for what I haven't done--but for the first time I feel like life isn't the race I always thought it was--that I really could/can do anything and perhaps I will. I know one thing is certain--my mind is expanding an dI'm glad for once to feel like I'm keeping pace.

I find I'm very Thankful this Thanksgiving! Thankful for Bobby, thankful for Oliver, thankful for Julian...for my Mom, my grandfather, grandmother, sister, friends...amy, erika, laura, kara, andrea, ashlee (to name a few), thankful for my Dad and Vicki, for my siblings and nephews, for my wonderful Mother-n-law and all my in-laws for that matter, for my health, my beautiful experiences, thankful for being me--what a good feeling! Life is O.K. and that is something to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just a few...

Oliver is changing so much these days. One day is was smiles, the next day it is babbling, then some times we get straight-up laughter. He can lift his entire upper body up and is very attentive and active. When I put him in his bed to sleep he eagerly "chats" with his stuffed animals. He's a love, easy-going and sweet, and he loves his Momma. I'm a lucky a girl. Whatchyou talkin' bout!?

I'm a very strong 9 week old

re-defining 'fat'

Momma's boy

laughter

Photo Time

My favorite...favorite baby, favorite jammies, favorite photo.

real smiles these days...our practice smile days are behind us now.

he can almost roll over...that darn arm just gets in the way.

He looks like me as a baby here. So cool.

how much is that baby in the mirror? The one with the smiling face?

squeeky clean.

Oliver's favorite activity; he loves taking baths and showers and is very wiggly and serious about it.

What's big brother doing back there?

chatty boy

brothers

mangino baby

he's thinking about something here. He can be very serious and is quite the observer right now

spidey stuck in his own web

Daddy makes the best bed

this was a week ago and I've already had to pack that sleeper up...it no longer fits...we are bigger than 0-3 months now..3 month plus only.

this picture is already on our wall! Gorgeous boy in chainmail

zonked out...friend Kara has that affect on him :)

hmmm...

I miss my blog.

I miss researching ideas, and posting projects, sharing ideas, dreams, family, more than just a drop-a-photo depot. Julian is full of funny stuff these days, cussing all the time (yes, all the time), feeling competitive with a small baby, and getting so big that the baby fat is disappearing. Oliver is changing overnight--daily. Now he talks-baby talk and coos, convincing sounds to get more food, and tries to roll over, and smiles when he wants to, not just "practice smiles."

I'd like to talk about how motivated Bobby is with his new job and how it has breathed life into our home. How it seems like the day Oliver was born everything was made right in our little world.

I'd like to talk about how motivated I am by my friend Sara's house. She is moving and her house is so bare and clean and refreshing. I ache to have my house feel so free and clear of clutter. I want to be less sentimental about objects, less convinced that I will read all those books that I can't let go of, I want to be able to vacuum, dust, clean glass once a week without having to get rid of the clutter first and wonder why I spend all my time cleaning.

I'd like to post about my sick cat who I know I will lose any day. To pay tribute to her long life--a friend that I've had since I was nine years old.

Perhaps to post about the friends I miss, that I feel I've let down or continue to let down, or don't keep in touch with enough, the friends I have yet to send thank you cards to, the friends I admire, dream to know better, wish the best for, and just simply care for.

...about how I can't find a way to work in my field. That I question if I want to, that I cannot even put into words how I feel about it. I just want to consult people...where to start, where to start...

So...there we go. I will hopefully have Internet again soon and I can post more about these things...hopefully soon.

Ren Fest!!!

The last weekend of the Ren-fest we made it out to visit my friends and introduce Oliver to them before they hit the road. These photos were taken by long-time friend Vivien. We have so few pictures of the four of us...so that was nice to have.