Thanksgiving

As the holiday weekend begins its downhill slide, I figured I'd take a moment to give Thanksgiving its moment to shine. Poor Thanksgiving. When did it become the forgotten holiday? When did it become a mere excuse to overeat with family? (As if I need a reason to overeat.) Does it irk anyone else to see Christmas decorations up in homes and storefronts the day after Halloween? I've made it my own personal mission to give Thanksgiving its proper due. I'm determined that Sofia will know Thanksgiving and why it's important. So, here's a rundown of the Family Thanksgiving 2009:

David and I bought Sofia some cute little Thanksgiving books and spent the last week reading to her about the first Thanksgiving. Of course, there was a silly "Ten Turkeys On a Fence" book as well, but hey--it can't all be serious. We also watched the classic, "A Charlie Brown Thanksgving." We started Turkey Day at my parent's and then later went to David's parent's. Sofia had on a special dress for Thanksgiving and we were even going to take some family pictures. What ended up happening was that my hair freaked out (why?!) and then Sof fell asleep for the better part of 4 hours (which was OK, considering she had not slept AT ALL the couple nights before.) While she slept, I tried to battle my hair--namely my bangs. The battle could not be won, and in the end Annie ended up taking a scissors to my head, which resolved the hair issue, but by the time Sof woke up, it was time to head over to David's parents. There she proceeded to eat, spit up, and sleep some more. So much for the "fancy" first Thanksgiving portrait. Looking back, what would have made a great photo was David sitting on his parent's kitchen floor with a diaper-only clad Sofia (due to all the spitting up) trying to get the dog to cuddle up to the baby, and the dog wanting nothing to do with Baby Girl and only wanting to snuggle David. Great memories, nonetheless. So, what am I thankful for this year? Where do I begin? I am thankful for:

*my wonderful husband who loves being a daddy as much as I love being a mama.
*delivering a healthy and happy baby this summer who continues to be our healthy and happy little one.
*the friends and family around us who love Sofia as much as we do. It really does take a village, and we have the best one, hands-down. I don't know what we'd do without them--we are so blessed.
*David and I being able to continue in our careers when so many have lost their jobs and are feeling the pinch of a suffering economy.
*this little old house that has become our home. There is still more work to be done, but the remodeling and renovations have taught us so many things, in so many different ways.
*Coffee. Red wine. Shoe sales. Martinis with huge green olives. (But only when your brother-in-law doesn't steal your olives. Yes, that's directed at you, Dan.) Hey--you have to throw a little humor in there, too, right?

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Now the Christmas festivities may begin!

Monday Night Conversation

Scene: My parents' kitchen. David's finishing dinner and Andrew's watching the football game. TV commercial comes on. The following exchange ensues.

Andrew: Man, I wish we had a Popeye's.
David: Why? Do you want diarrhea?
Andrew: But they have crawfish.

This is why I love these boys.

Reflecting

I know, I know--I promised pictures of Sofia in her Halloween costume. I assure you, they're on their way. I just haven't taken the time to sit down and sort through them. (This coming from the woman who just sent out her daughter's 3-month photos to the relatives. Did I mention that my baby is now nearing 5 months old and soon it will be time to schedule the "official" 6-month photo shoot? Oh, well. Better late than never, I guess.)

Tonight David and I were sitting with the baby and just staring at her in amazement. (We're told this is common for parents--especially first-timers. Ha!) Anyway, we were discussing just how crazy it is to try and wrap our minds around how much life has changed since she arrived. November 1st marked the one-year anniversary of us finding out I was pregnant. The old cliche of "what a difference a year makes" definitely applies in this situation! Just a little over 365 days ago, David and I were looking at each other with a little of that deer-in-the-headlights expression and wondering what in the world we had just gotten ourselves into. When I think back about all the details of that day, I can still feel the excitement and fear and anticipation. Our little one has only been here for four months, and yet, we can't imagine what life would be like without her. Sofia, you are definitely the best thing to ever happen to us...