The Future of Fountains?

On the way back from our holiday hotel adventure, we made sure to stop at the newest store in the wonderful world of Wegmans. We started our shopping trip with lunch in the Market Cafe, and were quite transfixed by the fountain beverage selection:

Pretty cool! You just pick the icon of the drink you want on the computer screen and then it comes out. I'm not sure how good a job it does of keeping residual flavors out of the dispenser, but it at least looks fun!!

I think I'll need to lay off the {soft drink} sauce for awhile, however. I had a doctor's appt yesterday and the scale was very, very, very unkind. Like, unkind enough that the doctor and nurse ended up each getting on it and determining it could be 4 lbs heavy. So I left feeling better about that being the case, but then I came home and our home scale was not nice, either. Ugh. I did go for a 1.5 mile walk yesterday and refrained from eating TOO many holiday sweets, but I'm just not sure where it's going to go from here!!


HAPPY FRIDAY!

and

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVORITE BROTHER!!!!!!! I can only hope that Brooks and his little sister share as many chuckles as we still do!

Tradition

Three years ago almost to the exact day, Carrie (who didn't even live here yet but was visiting her now-husband) and I met for lunch and a pic at a local restaurant. I was, of course, very very preggers. Kinda like I am now! So we figured we better do it again.

Same restaurant. Same birthday twins. But we let the B-man in the pic since technically he was in the last one, too!

We didn't get to gossip quite as much as we did the last time, what with an almost-3 year old and his needs, but it's always good to see my first Corning friend!

Side note: I've been asked now several times about my rings being on my middle finger. I am always tempted to spin a yarn about how that's the new cool way to do it but actually-- I just have this weird case of anti-bloat. Strange, right? I'm sure the cold weather doesn't help, but my rings often slip off the finger where they're supposed to be! If only that meant the pounds were also slipping off instead of sneaking on!

Family Adventure, Part II

After we'd checked out all the seasonal sights inside the hotel, we decided to brave the insanely high winds and blowing snow and walk to a nearby Mexican restaurant for dinner:

Guacamole prepared tableside? Yes, please!

I promise that someone was more excited about his dining experience than he's letting on here:

More proof that we did at least get a dusting of snow-- no, that's not dandruff! And I see I'm really channeling Rudolph here, too. Brrrr!

Back inside, we decided to go scope out the pool. On the way there, we ran into the Grinch. I'm pretty sure B has no idea who the Grinch is, but it does make me happy that the little guy is a friend to all. He had no problems getting a big Grinchy hug!

We trekked back up to our room where the boys changed into proper pool attire before returning. And look-- Muppets Christmas Carol was playing on the big screen!

The big downside to traveling with a tyke is the whole going-to-bed-in-one-room thing. We finally just decided we'd turn off all the lights at 9 PM and go to bed ourselves. (Where "going to bed" = "lying there playing/communicating/reading on our iphones"!)

We woke up to a tiny voice in the morning repeatedly saying, "I think this bed is just a little too big for me!" Followed then by, "Daddy, do you want to go to the swimming pool?!!"

So we went back for Round Two. Many thanks to Susan for the loan of floaties-- as you can see, B loved wearing them all through the hotel:

One of the many, many smiles this guy had while in the water with his daddy:

After the morning pool adventure, it was time to pack up and hit the road. Good thing B travels in style with his fab new Trunki suitcase (Thanks, Big D!)!!

All in all, it was a wonderful little adventure! I'm thinking it should become a family tradition...

Family Adventure, Part I

I got the idea in my head a few weeks ago that it would be fun to spend a night at the Gaylord hotel that's not too far down the road. Brooks has become a HUGE fan of hotels, but since--let's be honest--most of his experiences have been in motels, I figured he'd go crazy in such an immense, beautiful space. (The fact that they had a heated pool was also quite enticing to the B-man.) So I made a reservation for us to spend Sunday evening....and then the winter storm warnings were posted for up to 10" of snow.

Thank goodness for the hotel's generous cancellation policy, because if we'd had to make a decision more than 24-hours in advance (like most hotels), we probably would have changed our plans based on the weather reports. But since we had up until 6 PM on Sunday, that was plenty of time for all the forecasts to change to a call for a paltry inch of the white stuff.

So off we went. I had been inside the hotel once before, but the guys had never seen the spectacle!

(Just as an FYI, I used 3 different cameras on this little adventure, so try not to get whiplash from the vast variation in quality!)

Sure, decorated trees are grand, but B was most excited about the train that chugged on a loop through the atrium:

He and his daddy waited in line to ride:

At what exactly is the BG gazing? Oh, just the massive hotel with fountains starting to dance:

Finally, it was time to hand over his ticket to the conductor:

Uh-oh! Seats too small for BG's legs. Guess someone is going to have to ride by himself! He might be a little unsure...(but he had a fun ride!):

We're definitely still entrenched in the difficult-to-pose stage. I've learned that asking him to wave sometimes makes him have more normal facial expressions:

Because here's a common alternative:

Or even cheesier:

Coming tomorrow: everything else that kept us entertained!

Quick hello..!!

We're still whooping it up on a wee family getaway adventure!! Here's a hint:


Hope you all had fabulous weekends! "Talk" soon!!

(this is my first completely-mobile post in case it looks funny!)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

It's as cheese-a-rific as if posed by Olan Mills himself!! But it still makes me smile.

Best wishes to you and yours for a very merry weekend full of wonder and love.

A Whole Year?!

I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but it's somehow already been an entire year since "Baby Brady" arrived!

It's been such a treat to spend more time with Kathy this past year as we supported each other on this parenthood adventure. And it was an even bigger treat to celebrate the birthday boy last night with some festivities!!

The fam:

Some unruly guests:

Bellies:

Brady's not exactly sure what this large, flaming object is coming towards him:

But he did some cautious investigating:

And then he realized he needed to hurry or a cake-loving scamp might steal away his treat:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the big boy!!!

Can't wait to do "Round Two" with you guys in 2011!! The "B-Men" are going to be fabulous big brothers!

Petit Chanteur

B is finally using his monster memory in musical ways! After repeatedly hearing me sing one of my favorite songs from ye olde Camp Longhorn days, he finally has it down. (When he feels like it.) Here are the first two verses-- and no, I have no idea why he's so foamy at the mouth! :-)


*I know this violates my edict of "short and sweet" video clips. I was just mighty proud of the multiple stanzas!

Slow News Day

I'm so thankful that B still has school both Tues and Thurs of this week, so I can get a few more errands done. We spent the rest of yesterday at home, however, so don't have much to show for our Tuesday.

Instead, here's a little peek at one element of the "new" nursery. Since we've yet actually to DO anything with decorations in the room, this pic is from the woman who made the "rustic wooden name sign" (might be addicted to etsy now). I'm super excited! I sent her a pic of the bedding and she matched the flowers, shape-wise, to the ones in the fabric (which are actually cream colored stitching):


Based on some of your birth poll guesses, we need to get ourselves in gear and clear out all of B's clothes and stuff! (Anne's earliest guess of 12/31 is because on Sunday, Brooks informed her, upon being asked, that his sister would here "in 12 days." Yikes!)

'Course, a lot of you think she'll be tardy just like her brother. Guess we'll find out eventually, won't we?

They Weren't Kidding

I heard on the news yesterday that it would be the busiest shipping delivery day for UPS. Um, that was for sure the truth on our doorstep:


Considering that, later in the day, we had a USPS package delivery as well as one from FedEx, I can safely say that it is way more fun answering the door these days than usual (when 90% of the time, it's people who want you to buy new siding and/or windows.)

While a few of the 7 boxes were from other peeps, most of our deliveries this season have been the result of a minor love I have for internet shopping. I mean, really-- if they're going to offer free shipping, why would I choose to get out in the cold and fight for a parking space at the mall? Is it really a surprise that I memorized my credit card number years ago?

Speaking of spending time on the internet, I am SO EXCITED about all the entries in the birth poll. I think I'll close it before my next doctor's appointment on the 30th, so those of you who haven't entered a guess still have a bit of time. Click on the image below to enter your prediction:



And....because I'm always "saving money" with my online bargain-hunting, there really will be a gift card involved for the winner! These are high stakes, people!! :-)

Weekend Visitors

We finally got our act together last week and listed for sale on Craig's List the dining room table that we'd brought up with us when we first moved. It originally belonged to my parents (circa the fab 70s!) and we had it placed in various rooms until a couple of years ago, when we finally just stashed it to get it out of the way. (We don't have a dining room so it couldn't serve its actual function.)

After not getting any nibbles immediately, I sent the ad link to Anne to see if she had any suggestions. Turns out that, instead of advertising advice, we found ourselves a recipient-- she and Adam wanted to take it off our hands! Sweet! Then they decided they'd just go ahead and drive up this weekend and take as much of it as they could get in their car. Super sweet! So we were treated to a fun overnight visit with them-- AND they'll be back to spend the night Thursday as well on their way to Corning for Christmas.

While waiting for them to arrive, the boys got ready to go play in the (very, very small amounts of) snow. If I were the BG, I'd want you to know that my right cheek jowl isn't actually that big-- it's just being stretched by Brooks's shoulder! (It gets posted nonetheless because this blog author thinks it's cute!):

We love having them live close enough now that they can pop in so last-minute!

The men at work loading the car. Amazingly enough, they were able to fit the table top, pedestal base, 2 leaves, box of custom table pads, AND four of the six chairs!

A&A also won the prize for being the first to kick the B-man out of his new room. He had no problems going back to his old bed for the night, and REALLY had fun taking his Sunday afternoon nap in his "tent"!

(We figured we might as well make use of the remaining chair(s) until they get carted off, too!)

Pregnancy Update--and THE CHALLENGE!

(So for all of you text- skimmers, please still scroll down to the bottom so you can get in on the action!)

Seriously, how is it December 17th already?? It's pretty easy to lose track of time when one isn't traveling for Christmas, so I guess it makes sense that it's sneaking up on me. But whew! Where did the month go?

Speaking of months and time flying by....

Here's the latest: my doctor has finally agreed that the original due date of Jan 22nd makes the most sense. So I got a week back! (Or lost a week. Or something.) Basically, this means I'm 35 weeks tomorrow instead of only 34 weeks per the counting system we've been using since the very first ultrasound at 8 weeks when they decided to move back the date a week.

I had an ultrasound last week (at 33 weeks) because the ole belly had been measuring quite large at my regular appointments. So it's very possible this little one just might not be so "little" after all. Her measurements at the latest ultrasound seemed closer to the expected measurements of a wee one several weeks further along. No one seems to think this means she'll automatically be early, necessarily, but the consensus seems to be that she'll be at least an 8 pounder like her brother. I "get" the chance to have one more ultrasound (for some reason, they stress me out) for a size-check in a couple of weeks to ensure that an early induction won't be necessary. As you might remember, B was 11 days late so my doctor is clearly in the conservative camp when it comes to inducing delivery. But, at the same time, no one wants me to have a 12 pound baby! I mean, I have the birthing hips, but COME ON! ;-)

THE CHALLENGE

I just realized I'm way behind the times in terms of when the BIG GAME was initiated for the B-man's birth. (Enter "baboobirth" for the game name in the upper left of the site home page to see the results from 3 years ago!!)

I know Fridays are slow readership days, and with the big holiday week looming, there are probably even fewer loyal reader eyeballs on this today. But we gotta get this going before it gets any later! Who knows what the PRIZE will be this time?? (I think winner Carrie K last time really enjoyed her free cruise!!) ;-)

Better get your vote in NOW!! Click on the image below to enter your delivery date/info guess!



(You don't have to register. Just click on the pink "Enter a Guess" button on the top right of the screen that opens from the link above.)

Okay, So Maybe I'm Having Fun Preparing!

And I'm definitely from Texas!

(Linda Z and Emily K-- do you recognize the work of a certain Mary Jo?!)

PS: In other news and response to comments-- yes, I did get a new camera as an early Christmas/Birthin' prezzie! I haven't really done much with it yet (save for yesterday's snow pic) because I want to learn how to use it properly rather than just shooting with the automatic setting. I ordered a book so I can learn all the secrets...hopefully I'll have some time to figure all that out soon! In any case, photos from ye olde point-and-shoot will still be making regular appearances here for awhile (as with the above pic).

It Won't Fatten Him Up

But a taste of the first (very light dusting of) snow is very exciting!

Sigh

Well, it's not like I actually expected much out of B's first "performance" with his 2-year old preschool class at the school holiday program. I was even less surprised that he was the first in line to walk on stage....because of course he'd want to be with the teacher:

I'm not sure he sang a word of the song (We Wish You a Merry Christmas), nor did he stay still. Alas, even before the "performance" began, he was on the move: (Don't worry-- it's only a 9-second clip!)



There are many, many years ahead of wishing one's kids would do everything perfectly, huh? Actually, don't answer that. It might stress me out! ;-) (Sorta like how his teacher is revealing her anxiety at my kid's behavior by tucking her hair behind her head!!)

New Digs

Okay, fine-- we're not really sending him to the "secret room!"

B is now officially moved into our former guest room and seems to be happy; in fact, he told us, "I just love my new room!"



We used a very loose transportation theme and have done some more accessorizing, etc, since this pic was taken on Saturday. We still have a bookshelf to buy and a few other things to figure out, though, so I'll wait a bit for a more thorough tour.

(In case you're wondering, the BG is not resting on the floor but rather on a partially pulled-out trundle bed! I've determined that trundles are the best-- they only take up a single bed's worth of room but when the lower bed is pulled out, popped up, and pushed together, you get a king-size bed for guests!)

The Stages of Eating

Worried.

Devastated.

Resigned.

(Not necessarily in this order.)

Hope you have a fabulous weekend doing some GOOD EATIN' yourself!

The Answer

Really, no one remembers this scene from Pee-Wee's Big Adventure? (Skip ahead to 1:24 for the big reveal.) It was the scariest thing I'd seen, and still kinda freaks me out!!!

Quick Quiz...if You're Not Too Freaked Out. (updated)

Updated 12:40 PM: All excellent guesses, but none of you is in my head yet. Here's a hint: someone is in search of the underground to a historical site...

Ian did a little tweaking on a pic he took a few weeks ago. It's frightening, I know. But, as soon as I saw it, I had an instantaneous thought about a particular scene from a movie that I'm sure many of you saw earlier in your life. First one to get it right in the comments WINS!!

(Geoff is not allowed to play; I sent him the pic when I first got it and he immediately knew the answer! Great minds and all that....)

GO!

Go Big or Go Home

(Where Big = Dorky.)

Yes, we went with THE PLANETS!

And, actually, I'm just happy he's looking at the camera and smiling, even if it's a slightly scary face!

But what I love even more is his expression and posture in the class pic. Many of the other kiddies are looking less than happy to be in the pic. And then there's perfectly posed B--right next to the teacher, of course!

Hooray for Science!

I think most of you know that we ended up in these parts 8.5 (!!!) years ago so I could attend graduate school. It was kinda crazy since we didn't have any connections to this location, but they paid me to go to school and, um, that was hard to pass up!! I ended up deciding I wasn't interested in pursuing a PhD and left with a Master's degree after 2 years. While I'm thankful for the educational experience, I realized just how different the relationship between student and school can be when it's not one's beloved undergraduate alma mater. All this to say that I can count on one hand the number of times I've been back to campus in the last 6.5 years!

I do still have some affection for the school, however, and I obviously have a BIG (nerdy) love for learning in general. So when I heard from a friend about registering one's kids as potential subjects for neuroscience/cognitive research studies, I signed up the B-man right away. (Loyal readers Alison and Jessica--aren't you proud?!) Yesterday was our first opportunity to "go to college and do science"!!!

By the time I remembered to ask if it were okay for me to take pics, the process was already underway. Basically, the researcher is investigating the most effective ways for a picture book to give instructions. So she first showed Brooks two sets of photos, each of which was a series of actions.

After that, they put him in front of a movie and lots of toys so that they could get ready to put on the"brain-wave-tracking cap thingy" (Clearly, I was not a neuroscientist!):

Yup, this expression pretty much sums it up. He did NOT like having that cap on, although I think the worst part was the chin strap. It was touch-and-go for awhile about whether he'd make it through the process, but we all worked together to distract him and he powered through.

She had to squirt gel in each one of those little holes and then attach a sensor to each one:

Once he was all hooked up, we went into a room with a computer screen where he was distracted with yet another toy before the experiment began:

They flashed some images on the screen and tracked his brain activity while he watched. Then we went back into the original room (sans cap, thank goodness) and he was asked to do some tangible activities related to what he'd seen.

All in all, they said it was a big success! Yay for advancing knowledge! And yay for getting to pick out a treat:

And a certificate to boot!

If anyone local is interested in getting involved, let me know and I'll give you the info. They start with infants and go on up in age!