baby steps

Roxelle just took her first steps about 20 minutes ago!!! We were sitting on the floor watching tv and Will says "Mommy! Mommy, LOOK!" I turn to see Roxelle take 1 and a 1/2 little steps toward me, giggling all the while. FINALLY!!! She's 12 months and 10 days, already!!

I am so proud of you, Honey!!

Check out these 2 letters that Will received from the hospital today. One is from the Director of Human Resources and the other is from the Head Hospital Administrator.

If you click on the letters individually, they will open up into larger view.

These letters are to inform Will that he is being named the hospital wide Employee of the Month for October!!! His manager said that they will give him a party at the hospital and present him with his award. She said to invite his family, friends and well anyone that cares to come and celebrate. He needs to pick a date that he wants the party on and I will let everyone know when he does.

His floor manager, DJ, told him that this is a pretty big deal and will probably only happen once, maybe twice in his career so plan big! He even gets to choose what food to have! I am so thrilled for him! He, of course, is being very modest about the whole thing. Congratulations, Honey! You deserve it!!

Always a day late and a dollar short...

I know I'm always a day late and a dollar short. I thought all day yesterday about 9/11. I will never forget.

The footage is very real. Don't watch if you can't stomach it.
If you can, then grab a tissue and we'll watch it together.

My memory of that day is not out of the ordinary. I was doing the same thing as everyone else when I got a phone call from my sister Paula telling me to turn on the tv and my world came to a screeching halt. Mariah was 18 months old and I was pregnant with Brinlee.

I was working part time for Caldera Systems as a receptionist and I was just getting ready to leave for work when the 2nd plane hit.

I remember watching the replay of the 1st plane and trying to play out in my mind what could have possibly happened, but when the 2nd plane hit, is was horrendously obvious what was happening.

I can still hear the eerie quiet-ness of the skies and streets that day. I remember the sense of hopelessness in the days after and then the slow building up of unity across the nation.

I am proud to be an American and I send my prayers and well-wishes to those that have made and still make my freedom possible.

I am forever indebted.

billy bob

Look MOM! I have teeth!!!

(You have to click on the picture to make

it bigger and get a better view)

Oh, Asia.

That girl gets me laughing and angry all in about a 30 second span!

This morning she just had me laughing, though. She came up to my room and discovered her money purse. I was getting ready and she was on my bed. She suddenly says:

A: "Ughh! I don't want $2 dollars!"
Me: "OOO! I'll have it then!"
A: "Nooo-wuh! I want more dollars!"
Me: "Well, then you'll have to go get a job to earn more dollars."
A: "What?! Why?"
Me: "Because money doesn't grow on trees like the fruit."
A: *Thinks for a minute* "What if I find a dollar, no, a LOT of dollars in the street and I just start picking them all up? Then I'll be RRrrrich!!" *laughs her funny little giggle*

p.s. I finalized everything for her to start Kindergarten. After all my effort, I still couldn't convince VANSD to let her into public school, so she is going to a private school (Kindercare Learning Center). Much to my relief, it's not going to be quite as expensive as I was told it would be. It's actually not that much more than putting her in preschool for another whole year. She is over the moon excited!!!

delayed reaction

I guess I spoke a little too soon. (BOOOO!) After about a week and a half of Tatum being on cow's milk, this morning she woke me with her trademark "dairy" hacking cough. She's been fine with everything else since last April at Easter time. I guess she wasn't ready for straight milk yet. I am still happy that she can have pretty much everything else. I'll just have to keep her on Almond Milk for drinking for a while, I guess.