This is what happens when Mom has not noticed that it has become quiet and for too long

Just look at the crazed look on her face. Mischievous!

Walking a Mile in Mommy's Shoes

Nature Walk

Sophie and Keri go for a leisurely walk around the neighborhood about twice a day. Sophie loves passing by this house at the end of our block that has these bushes.
She indicates that she wants to be picked up so she can "pet" the bushy tails. They are really soft.

And with the fall coming on, we are enjoying some beautiful berries on a couple of our trees. I love the change of seasons. Something that never took place in Southern California.

She Can Change Moods Faster Than a Speeding Bullet

Sweet.

Less Sweet.

Medical News

So anyone who has hung around Sophie long enough will know that she has an inhalatory stridor or that her voice sort of squeaks when she breaths in on occasion. So the doctor said it was probably a weak area in the trachea but then, after she turned one, they said that was probably not that diagnosis because it usually goes away by age one. So Sophie's Aunt Kira, a speech-language pathologist (go team!) in a hospital asked the Ears, Nose, and Throat Specialist (ENT) what it might be and her friend said that pediatricians are idiots and that it was probably a flaccid (weak) epiglottis (a primarily cartilage, spoon shaped structure that flaps over your trachea to protect it when, say, you swallow). There is an even more intimidating medical term for this that I will not bore you with now. Well, I took her into the ENT here and said I didn't want to do anything invasive if we didn't have to, so we talked and he decided to scope her through her nose (which took like a minute for the whole procedure). He thought it was probably a flaccid epiglottis too but wanted to cover his butt in case there was something else going on in there. So she hated the procedure. I hated the procedure. But it was quick and the outcome...drum roll, please...a flaccid epiglottis! The problem goes away in 98% of kids that have it by age 2. And the other 2% outgrow it a bit later. So Kira's friend gets the grand prize of my thanks and anyone who was ever concerned about it may now put their minds at ease and look for something else in their lives to obsess over. Hooray for Sophie!

Good Morning!

This is Sophie in her vintage robe. It once belonged to her Aunt Kira when she was a baby. Ahhhhhhhhhh.

Family Photo Shoot

So this past Saturday we went to the Arboretum with some of our friends, Carly and John, and their two kids. We were there to enjoy the fall festivities (pumpkins everywhere) and take some family photos hoping at least one will work for our Christmas card. Well, here is one that didn't make the cut...but that is how it felt most of the time. We did manage to get a good one of all of us so our adventure was successful. On the way out of the arboretum, Neal noticed something swooped over our heads and we both noticed a very large bird swooping down from a nearby tree again. We thought it was an owl or large hawk and so we sneaked up on it and got a shot.
What a beauty! And huge! The body was a bit bigger than a professional football or so.

Fun With Sophie

First of all, I think Sophie should have to pay for part of the grocery bill or make a donation to starving children! When she signs that she is finished eating, I go and clean her up. Some food ends up uneaten on the tray which is no biggie to me. But then I take the tray off and there is a mess of food on her clothes (bibs are useless). After I collect all that off her I let her down...only to find another stash of food on the seat! I bet only 1/2 of what we give her ends up providing nutrition. The rest is decoration!

And...

introducing, Her Majesty, Sophie! Sophie loves to bring me her blanket! Does she want cuddles? No. Does she want to share her warm fuzzy? No. She hands it to me and immediately turns around so I, her lowly parent, may robe her with it. Then she walks away like the queen she is, until it falls off and we have to repeat the procedure.

Another Fun One

Post the 4th picture in the 4th folder in your picture file and tell us what it is!


Cadillac Ranch, Amarillo, Texas. May 27, 2006. We met Kira, Neal's sister, and her husband, David here. They traveling from Colorado and we from the Dallas area. There is not a lot in Amarillo. There is this place, a famous but mediocre steak house, and a canyon. If you do find yourself in Amarillo by some horrible mistake, do not, I repeat, DO NOT stop to eat at La Casa Grande. We should have known when the chips came with salsa that tasted like tomato paste and water. That was the best part.

Previous Quote of the Blog

A Collection of Quotes by Mahatma Gandhi
-Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.
- Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
- In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness. Our life is a long and arduous quest after Truth.
- You must be the change you want to see in the world.

Round Up on the Range

So Today we attended the Round Up on the Range, a family celebration of the food, fun, music, and lifestyles of the Old West, as the brochure puts it. It's basically like a Renaissance Fair but all cowboy-like. Did we mention we are in Texas? Anyway, we enjoyed a pow wow, introduced Sophie to a petting zoo, since she has been pointing at these creatures in books and trying say their names and imitate their noises for some time. We also watched a show with trained herding dogs and browsed the wares. We also witnessed a new Guinness World Record being set for "World's Largest Hayride." The old record was 224 persons and they broke it but by how much, we do not know. We got a little sun but had a great time and enjoyed wonderful weather.

Here's the World's Largest Hayride! Yee-haw!

So Pretty!

There are a ton of monarch butterflies in our area right now. For the past week, if you can just stop and wait outside for 1-5 minutes you will see anywhere from 2 to 8 butterflies flutter by. They are even more numerous in the green belts we take walks through. They are gorgeous! Hope they lay a ton of eggs for next year before they go off to their maker.

For the Grandparents

Mashed potatoes and who knows what else!Our nudist escapes from the bathtub...

Sophie now likes to point to the sky and find airplanes when she hears them. She is way into her daddy right now. It's fun to watch her eat pickles. She likes to knock on the door to indicate she would like to be on the other side of it. She can usually get one of mom's shoes on to parade around the room in. We have to sing the "Ding-a-wing-a-wing-a-wing-a-wing-a-wing-donk-donk" song so she will let us brush her teeth. She loves her toothbrush with flashing lights. By the way we have a brand new molar on each side on the bottom of her mouth. That was fun! She likes grabbing mom and dad's keys and "unlocking" the door. We love watching her grow and develop!

Uhg!

Our family has been sick with head colds that traveled into our chests. It's been a rough week! Sophie is our personal slug factory. I have never seen so much snot in my life and I've been a preschool teacher. However, those kids were sent home after 2 1/2 hours so maybe it just seems like Sophie's snot is more voluminous. Anyway, Uhg!