All the makings of a boating-enthusiast

Moses is getting closer and closer to saying real words, but it's still a lot of gobbledygook. He says "da" to refer to Dave and Doggy Bella, but that's really been the only sound with meaning.

Moses learned to point recently, and while he is pointing, he clearly says, "Yacht." We think it's "that," but we aren't entirely sure. He also says it when he gets excited and isn't pointing so we don't know what to make of it. Considering his love of water and this new knack for naming a watercraft, we're certain he's got sailing in his future.

-The Skipper

Backtracking

I've missed some bloggable moments lately because of school so I thought I'd backtrack a little bit.

The first weekend in November Moses and I went to visit my Mom, Kelly and sisters (Raychel and Paige). We stayed one night in Wichita Falls (where they live) and then we all drove to Dallas the next day as part of Raychel's 18th birthday celebration at the Gaylord Texan. From that little time on the road and without Dave, I've learned that a) Moses needs about 18 hours to adjust to a new situation (so don't count on holding him anytime before that) b) I could never be a single mom c) I shouldn't let Moses out of the stroller because he'll just want to push it, slowly, around the store d) Moses loves Mylar balloons.

We had a really good time visiting family and look forward to an even longer visit around Christmas time.

(not really a piano man)

(the birthday girl!)


Moses with my Mom (Gram Gram)

Me with (L-R) sisters (Raychel and Paige) and cousin (Alyssa)

I also taught Moses the sport of pillow diving, which has made for some hilarious afternoons.

Dave and I've been hard at work in the front yard trying to get shrubs planted before winter sets in. Moses is a huge help with the equipment.

(yes, I'm holding the shovel handle!)

We've also learned that Moses is a big fan of The Arcade Fire. PBS played one of their Austin City Limits concerts the other afternoon and Moses went nuts. It's really the first time Moses has had a response to any sort of music so we are pleased he has good taste.

-Lindsey

We're officially a three-ring circus.

Dave and I are happy to announce that we were married on Friday, November 9th at 3 o'clock in the afternoon!

We've wanted to get married for some time now and Friday was the opportunity we'd been waiting for. We love this time of year, and I'm obsessed with numbers working well together (11/09/07) so the day was perfect (and in the mid 70s to top it off!). Dave, Moses, and I went down to the courthouse where the Honorable Judge Hansen married us in his courtroom. It was just the three of us with the judge, and there was something very special and intimate about that. The judge also incorporated Moses in our vows, which was a special touch and brought on the waterworks (okay, my waterworks).

In five minutes time, we were skipping along as husband and wife and child...and nearly run over by a woman certain she could operate her car in reverse while smoking and talking on a cell phone. After taking a minute to concoct possible headlines for the near-disaster (Newlyweds flattened by PT Cruise-er; Marriage falls flat in record time), we ran the usual post-ceremony errands (Sonic!) and headed home.

Later that afternoon, our sweet neighbor took photos of us at a local arboretum to commemorate the big day, and that evening, Sally (Gram) and Maegan (Aunt Maegan) came over to watch Moses while Dave and I celebrated with dinner and drinks.

I couldn't imagine a better, more relaxing wedding day.

-Mrs. Ring

Hallo-what?

Halloween wasn't all that spectacular for us. Both Dave and I had class so we couldn't show Moses off to our neighborhood friends, and Moses had a big case of mommy-clinger-itis that made the night a bit of a challenge.

However, this afternoon Moses attended a little Halloween party at his Parent's Day Out. I didn't get pictures of him in his Yoda costume because I was too busy steering him opposite the sugar cookies and mini-blinds, but hopefully, someone there got some pictures that I can share with you soon.

Even without the Halloween hoopla, we've had some fun moments this week (and thoroughly trashed the house in the process).

Anyone up for hide n' seek? Or bacon?

His feet are stepping on a scale.
I wish I was that satisfied with my weight.

I'm pretty sure he hit me up
for some money after this picture was taken.

Ladies and gentlemen,
step right up and see the amazing Tinkertoy eater.

He's taking his nightly laps around the living room
(in new shoes, which make him walk faster).

Bobby Darin would be proud.

Our day in a walnut shell.

-Lindsey

A blogger's logger

I'm a little uncertain how I should feel about the coming winter. On one hand, Moses' poor skin is red and irritated, which requires frequent lotion application; on the other hand, we can finally tap into Moses' supply of winter clothes (which we've been hoarding since last season's sales). Skin issues aside, it's kind of hard to compete with this:





The plaid-shirt ensemble has me humming Monty Python's Lumberjack song. Once started, the tune is impossible to forget! It's going to be a long, long day.

-Lindsey

T-minus 31

Today Moses is 11 months! I can't believe that we'll be celebrating his first birthday in only 1 month. Yes, he is walking, talking (almost), and solving complicated algebraic equations, but he's still my baby.

Today was yet another freakishly warm fall day so we spent the morning outside.





We also took some more videos of Moses to celebrate his 11 month-self and to make up for the dark (okay, black) video in my last post.

-Lindsey

On turning pro

I'm so impressed with speed Moses has learned to walk: I mean really walk. Of course, he spends a large part of the day practicing--walking to the bedroom, beelining to the bathroom (his favorite place unless I have the mind to close the door), circling the sofa, and hunting for doggy Bella. His endless determination to explore his surroundings and learn new things is admirable. It's so amazing to watch him study an object that was once out of his immediate view and reach: he'll talk under his breath and turn it around in his hands, figuring it all out. He's also started to carry his finds around as inanimate companions while he scouts the house for fun (and sometimes trouble--see bathroom reference above).

Tonight, I took some videos to show the progress he's made in the past few weeks. Unfortunately, I did not have the foresight to adjust the exposure or turn on the overhead light so one of the videos is impossibly dark.

-Lindsey

Fun with Photoshop

Early this week I downloaded Adobe's trial version of Photoshop Elements 6. I've always wanted to learn my way around Photoshop and Illustrator, but at $600 a pop, it's not a practical hobby at the moment. I'm learning that Elements is a good alternative, especially since the price is an eighth of the other softwares'.

So, in my non-existent leisure time, I've been playing around with some of my favorite pictures, making signatures for an online message board I frequent. I'm pretty pleased with the results:





-Lindsey

Genetics

All these months of denying that Moses has my sensitive, eczema-prone skin went down the drain this morning.
Moses woke up with bright red cheeks, which at first I thought was due to our use of the heater last night and that his skin was simply dry. Then, we noticed that he had spots on his torso too. Thinking it was related to the mysterious short-lived fever he had Friday night, I called the doctor and he suggested I bring him in.
I was certain it was going to be Fifth Disease (not really a disease) because of the brightness of his cheeks, unexplained fever, and restlessness over the past few nights, but Dr. Gray said that even though Moses probably had a viral infection last week that contributed to the rash, it is ultimately his dry, sensitive skin that's causing the problem and that it's his body's way of telling us we're in for a long winter.
Great. I guess this year we're going double our purchases of vaseline, baby oil, and shea butter creme lotion and put the humidifier on wheels. I'm sorry kiddo.

(Now, after applying some Aquaphor, his cheeks look 75% better.)

-Lindsey

From the weekend

It was freakishly warm last weekend so Moses got to play outside with his dad at least one more time before fall settles in. If you didn't know, Moses is the stereotypical boy in that he loves being outdoors and getting dirty (we're talking ring-around-the-tub type dirty). After a good time outside, it's sometimes hard to get him inside peacefully.

We've also found a miracle in Baby Mum-Mums. They are rice rusks (which taste and dissolve like paper), and Moses adores them. One day last week, his teachers at Parent's Day Out told us that after finishing his first mum-mum in record time, he went over to his diaper bag, dumped out the contents, and secured a second one.

-Lindsey

If I were a bettin' mom...

I *think* we'll see teeth soon. I know I've said this before, but I'm certain this time. I don't think I could get it wrong at this point, though.

Surely, we'll see something before he's one.

His girl and his curls

I was looking through our pictures and couldn't find any recent ones of me and Moses so we had an impromptu, fun photo session today. There are some gems but also a nice selection of double chins. Here's the cream of the crop:

The below pictures are from last night when we were waiting for Dave to come home from class. I was trying to capture his beautiful "bath" curls, but no picture does them justice. His fresh curls are so, so very cute and ringlety (that's right, they are so cute that I made up a word for them).

-Lindsey

Like a mule.

As most of you know, Moses has never sat. By sat, I mean he has never ever sat in the traditional way--on his behind with his legs out front. If we try to sit him that way, he arches his back so we are forced to let him stand or lay flat on his back. Even in the bath, he reclines himself or stands, but he won't sit up. I brought this up to his pediatrician at Moses' last appointment, and he said that as long as he can physically sit up (which he does in his stroller or a shopping cart) then there's nothing to worry about and he's just showing preference.

In the past month, Moses has perfected his own version of sitting and does it all the time now. I think it's downright adorable.

Now, I can finally get some professional pictures done.

-Lindsey

Go Moses Go!

Moses is walking better and better each day. Today, Dave captured Moses taking an unprecedented amount of steps, for him at least.

-Lindsey

Cute little boy, am I.

Here's a glimpse of the future fun we'll have come October 31st. Yes, I know he's too young to know what's going on, but that doesn't mean we can't have a good time.

Also, we're contemplating this one for Bella.

-Lindsey

Anticipating fall

I've been a little lazy with my camera lately so I took Moses outside (it's beautiful today) to "play" with our lone pumpkin. I got some good pictures, and some not so good pictures (thanks to his affinity for leaf eating).

-Lindsey

Acocado!

Last week, Sally (Gran) came over to watch Moses while I had class. Moses had a great time and even devoured a whole avocado.

-Lindsey

Sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G.

Moses loves blueberries, but I don't think it's mutual. His poor hands and face were blue, blue, blue after this snack.

Figuring it all out

Last night Moses started to stand solo, and he even took some steps by himself--several times! He's been practicing all this for awhile by cruising then falling towards furniture that is too far away. It's hard to capture his successful moments, but we got a snippet on camera. Do these count as first steps? He's 10 months old today!

-Lindsey

He's crazy pants-head man!