Joys of Motherhood 1

"Oh NO, she found the butter!"

Thank GOD and Logitech!

If you've been reading this blog for any length of time, you've definitely heard me whine about the fact that we don't get to see our grandkids often. Pop-Pop and I are literally stuck in the middle, geographically, about 500 miles away from everybody we love.

It's a dilemma because we feel if we move in one direction or the other, it's sorta like choosing between our kids/grandkids. Ever the teacher, I made you a visual aid to illustrate this concept. (Rachel and Travis have 3 dogs + Avery, so they've dubbed the new baby #5. That's TEMPORARY, so don't get worked up.)

So now you feel my pain.

I cried for a hundred miles
the last time we left SC.

So ANYWAY, we "visit" via our Logitech webcam a lot. Last night, Rachel and Travis called to ask if we'd like to sneak in a quick webcam before dinner. I dropped the super-secret sewing project I was working on, turned off the burner under the homemade veggie soup and we plonked ourselves down in front of the computer.

AND GUESS WHAT?!?!????
WE GOT TO WITNESS A FIRST!!!!!!!!!

As he's done hundreds of times,
Travis said, "Avery, what does the cow say?"
Before we could all chorus the answer,
Avery said, "Mmmmmmmmmmooo!"

We all sat there in stunned silence before breaking into a round of applause. Travis got him to say it over and over. Avery was so pleased with himself that he was shrieking in delight.

If you're not a grandparent, this might all seem pretty mundane. If you're a grandparent who sees your grandkids daily, it might be hard to relate. But for us, it was like witnessing a MIRACLE! Thank God (and Logitech) for our digital miracle!

HUGE NEWS!!!!!!!!!

LOOK TO THE LEFT!!
LOOK TO THE LEFT!!!!!!!!!!

The creepy floating
baby ticker is BACK!!!!!!!!!

Avery is going to be
a big brother!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG, Nannie and Pop Pop are so excited!!!!!

CONGRATS TO
RACH AND TRAVIS!!!!!!!

Not So Wordless Wednesday

I thought you might appreciate if
THIS picture came up
when you clicked on my blog,
instead of that creepy Sleepwalker.

Back with more soon.
I am swamped with orders,
which is a GOOD thing.

Will...Post...SOON...

Hi and sorry for the long absence and creepy picture. It's called Sleepwalker.

We have been out of town, celebrating Avery's FIRST BIRTHDAY. It's just amazing to me that he is already a year old!!!!!!

Like an idiot, I forgot my camera. Hopefully I'll be emailed some great pics.

In the meantime...I'm off to bed soon. We drove all night and I got an hour's sleep before I had to go to work. Sleepwalking right now...but I don't look quite as creepy as that pic, hopefully...

Time Out for an AWWWW Moment

I think I've been extremely restrained thus far.
We spent a week visiting Zoey over Christmas
and I have not posted the first picture or
even a single Proud Nannie Moment.

However, THIS I just had to share.
OMG do you love her eyes, or WHAT?Click it to get even
more wonderful Zoey-ness.

And I need to snap some pics of that project
I mentioned the other day.

That will be an easier
photography subject for me.

At least the project won't be
zipping around like Zoey does!

WOO HOOOO Last Day Before Break

And I'm SO excited to see Zoey
and our families!!
On meds for the creepin' crud I caught.
Finished wrapping presents.Alllllmost ready for the holidays.
How about you??

How Cute is THIS?!

Check out our little Zoey!!
Please remember that
she only turned one year old in August.
Even from the time she was a tiny infant,
she has had her own vibrant personality.LOL, she was NOT HAPPY!!
(She had been dancing around
and fell. The assembled adults
all laughed at her.)
This pose makes me think that
the "hands on the hips" thing
must be genetic in humans.
She is WAY too young to have learned it!!

I'm so excited that
we get to see her over Christmas.

Holy Cow

You know how I feel about having my picture taken, so that's why I blurred my (nonphotogenic) face. The Facebook title of this picture (written by Rach, Avery's mommy) was

Avery is well over half the height
of his Nannie - sorry, Nannie.

LOL. He just turned TEN MONTHS OLD. AND NO, I HAVE NOT SHRUNK, if that's what you were thinking. AND NO, I'M NOT STANDING IN A HOLE.

TOOTH FAIRY SALE!

Well, not the actual FAIRY, but her pillows.
Sadly, Avery and his mommy and daddy
just left.
We had to do something to cheer ourselves up.
So we're throwing a Tooth Pillow sale,
in honor of
Avery's brand-new tooth! $10 + shipping!!!

Tooth Fairy Pillows come with a free, personalized letter from the ol' Fairy herself! TONS of ribbon choices and you choose either 1-letter monogram or embroidered design on pocket.
Email us at soggybottomsbabyduds@yahoo.com if you'd like to order.
Thanks for stopping by!

Quickie Post

Just popping in to say that I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, if you live where Thanksgiving is celebrated or that you're at least having a nice Thursday! My arms have been too full of baby to type much - Pop Pop and I are in our glory! Hopefully, I'll have some new pictures to post soon. In the meantime, here's a couple of cute puppies just to make you smile!

So Much to be Thankful For!

Sorry for the big delay in posting! We've been bustling around for a week, getting ready for Thanksgiving 'company' - our son, daughter-in-law and GRANDSON AVERY!!!!!! We are SO excited that they're here!! Avery is just the cutest!!!!!!! Watch this video clip and see if you agree:

I hope you'll take a moment to think about all the things YOU have to be thankful for, whether or not you celebrate Thanksgiving.

ATTACKED BY A POLAR BEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!

These pictures were taken by an onlooker, who was powerless to stop the attack on this poor man! Fortunately, the victim is expected to make a full recovery. Prepare yourself, then scroll down to see!

Sorry, I just HAD to, LOL!
May your troubles always be smaller than you imagine.
Still no power in CT where our granddaughter Zoey is, BTW!

Still No Power in CT

The good news: our field trip was maybe the BEST one ever!! This class was SO well-behaved and that is not just me saying that - that came directly from one of the chaperones!! I was proud - they listened well, paid attention, were respectful, followed the rules, etc!

The bad news: there is STILL no power where our daughter-in-law, Sarah, our son, Trevor and our little granddaughter, Zoey live! Thankfully, Sarah's parents were able to loan them a kerosene heater (which is scary, but necessary). And also, Sarah's parents' electricity came back on yesterday, so maybe there is hope in the offing.

It's hard with no electricity when you have a baby! Fingers crossed it will be back on soon. This has been since Saturday.Trevor said they have police officers stationed at both ends of the local gas station - it's one of the few that has power and also has the ability to use credit/debit cards. He said that the line is several blocks long in both directions 24 hours a day! The police are keeping order...(for $132 a day, or whatever. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, check out my post from Saturday, Oct. 29).

Yikes

Poor Zoey, Sarah and Trevor are without power from the big snowstorm in CT. Their house was 56 degrees yesterday afternoon, and you know it was colder once the sun went down. They can't go to Sarah's parents' house, because they are also without power. Keep them in your thoughts - no power and no heat is rough with a 1 year old in the house.Sarah liked my kindergarten-teacher-idea of painting with pudding. Looks like Zoey liked it even more!

Hi and WOW!!

How did I miss AN ENTIRE WEEK???? Okay, first of all, we went to GRANDBABYLAND!!!!!!!!!! This time, it was the SC version of Grandbabyland, so we got to see Avery. I've decided to put a spin on the usual Nannie pics - I am the least photogenic person on earth, so I blurred my face in this one. But I just HAD to show you how HUGE he is!!!!
he is only 8 months old!!!!!!!!!!
We had a FABULOUS time, I can't tell you how much fun we packed into our visit!! Of course, I was uber sad when we got back.

I was also uber sad because I let my husband talk me into stepping onto a scale while we were there and O M G!!!!!!! Therefore, I've been exercising every morning before school.

And now it's ARL time. Here's a link to a post if you want to read about ARL.

This year, I have 130+ 4th and 5th grade kids to place in jobs and lots of new challenges.

So between ARL spreadsheets, ARL ID badges, ARL job lists to post, SmartBoard activities I've created for my class, in addition to exercising each morning, I have not been on the computer much. Anyway, I am BACK and will try to post again tomorrow or Sunday. I'm sorry if you've been checking, only to find NADA!

Lke Father, Like Daughter

Hey, it's Zoey's FIRST WRITTEN WORD!!!!!!!!
This was sent to me by her proud daddy. Not bad for 13 months old, eh?

Oh, and PLEASE GO HERE and check out the AWESOME animation her daddy, Trevor, did for an ESPN blog!! Click that arrow and make sure your speakers are on! Nannie/Momma is just bursting with pride over her two great writers!!

Evening conferences tonight, so I need to get going early to straighten up my messy classroom. Company's coming! LOL

How Did This Happen?

Avery's mommy requested a
monkey Halloween costume for him.
I'm making him this one,
except the felt is a gold/camel color.He will look cuter than this boy,
because, well, he's just cuter, LOL.


And here is a real tear-jerker,
at least for me it was.
Zoey is wearing this costume.

And here is her DADDY, wearing it in 1983.
(Same exact costume...with the eyes repaired.)
I made it for him.
That's my mom holding his hand.
She has been gone since 1991.
How did this happen,
that I somehow "lost" 28 years??
Where did that time go?
It's hard to comprehend how time flies...

Gotta Be Fair

One of my daughters-in-law once commented that we are the most FAIR grandparents she knows. (This was part of a conversation about why Pop-Pop and I can't move to either CT or SC...otherwise, it's like we're saying, "See ya later, Avery!" or "Have a nice life, Zoey!" while we live within a few minutes of the OTHER grandchild. Does this make sense? We could fly, but there's this little thing called MONEY.
But I digress.)
Anyway, Avery is getting SO big, too!
And YOU are going to have to put up with more Proud Nannie pics!
Here he is:

And look, TOOTHIES!!Nannie loves you, Avery!

Look How BIG

Zoey is getting!!
I didn't contact her little friend's mom to get permission to show his face, but I LOVE this photo and wanted to post it - hence the blurred oval.
These were taken at the Apple Harvest Festival where Zoey lives.
All I can say is thank goodness for cameras and webcams.
She is growing SO FAST!!
Nannie loves you, ZoZo!!!!