Pool Fun

Miriam and I just got back from a dip in the apartment pool. It was
the first time I've taken her there by myself--mostly because I'm
lazy. I should do it more often. However, there's something about a
mother with a baby in one hand and a cane in the other while walking
alongside a pool that tends to cause people to stare... Or maybe they
were just admiring Miriam's awesome Baby Banz sunglasses that her
grandma gave her. Yes, I'm sure that's it.

Pool

30.5

Happy Half Birthday to Joe! May you have many many more half birthdays.

Daddy's To Do List

Joe: (to Miriam) You're such a cutie... I have to finish graduate
school so I can pay for your college.

bon appétit

I'm still savoring the taste of those chocolate brownies that Joe
baked... the ones I ate right after the delicious italian cuisine he
made us for our Sunday dinner... which was right after our traditional
Sunday afternoon walk that I love taking together along the trail and
through the neighborhoods. Let's face it, I'm very blessed. For the
record, as well as being a good cook, Joe is also a loving father and
a helpful spouse in many other ways. He's faithful in his priesthood
duties and more than anyone else, I know I can rely on Joe. And we all
know he's a smart cookie to boot.

Last night we watched the movie "Julie and Julia". Before bed he
quoted Julia Child as he told me "You're the butter to my bread".
Thanks for the sentiment Joe. We do make a pair. I can't think of a
food that better fits your character than bread. You're my bread, my
daily staple.

Does the Tooth Fairy Bring Teeth As Well As Take Them?

There must be something magical about San Antonio--Whenever we have
visited, Miriam has grown a new tooth! Her first two appeared during
our May visit, and now tooth number three (on the top this time)
appeared this past weekend while in San Antonio for our friends,
Flavia and Richard's wedding. Now don't put your finger in this baby's
mouth or you'll be liable to lose it. *toothy grin*

In other Miriam news;
She's walking along furniture with some adeptness now.
She's been sleeping much better now that she's out of our bedroom.
Her favorite food is banana, although she eats mostly anything now.
She thinks apllesauce is sour, but she'll eat it anyway.
Her fuzz is still getting longer and we're wondering if she might
become a strawberry blonde or perhaps a light brown. Her eyes are
definitely blue though.
Her favorite activity is playing with the silverware when I'm packing
the dishwasher.
She gets excited when she sees dogs (She had fun playing with Rocky
over the weekend).

We've also come to believe she's spoken her first word; Several times
this week when I've walked into the room, she's broken out saying ma
ma ma ma... especially if she was upset. We're practicing da da now.
Although she's been saying those sounds for a long time, it's never
been in context until now. She definitely understands a lot of words
though. For example, when we were walking out on the trail last week,
Joe said "Look Miriam, a doggy" and she immediately swivelled her head
around to find it.

8 Hours

of uninterupted sleep last night. :)

Convention, Kindle, & Cool Tricks

I just got back last weekend from my annual NFB convention in Dallas.
Had fun seeing old friends--It's always a bummer that there are so
many meetings getting in the way of the real fun stuff. Braille
testing went smoothly, so that was a relief. I guess I've finally
reached a point where administering the exam with all the boxes of
confidential materials and important procedures no longer give me the
heebie jeebies, and thank goodness for that!

Joe's itching for the mailman to come and deliver his new generation
three Kindle. He pitched me a proposal about how he could study his
medical textbooks on it and I relented. Happy unbirthday to Joe. Did
you know it's also my unbirthday today too?

As for Miriam, she's already nine months old! I just can't believe my
baby is now closer to a toddler than to a newborn. I held my friend's
one-month-old on Sunday and just couldn't believe how tiny and floppy
he was. Surely Miriam was never like that! She's starting to take her
first steps along furniture and sometimes does the "look mom, no
hands" trick. She's currently having a trial run sleeping in the
living room rather than our bedroom. This is in the hopes that she'll
some day sleep through the night. She's such a pleasant, happy, good
natured girl, but waking up in the night is her one bad habit. No
doubt my bad habits are worse... Perhaps a little extra sleep for us
all will improve things.