Curiosity

This is one of those days where all the attorney's are out before the holiday weekend except one! And of course we can't leave unless he does. So, I thought I'd spend this time writing a post! An excellent use of my time, I know!

This morning M was regaling me with her extensive knowledge of the animal decals on her wall. Each animals name represents a letter of the alphabet (A - ant, B - Bird, C - Cow, etc.). I put these decals up before she was born day dreaming of the day she would be enjoying the fun and knowledge they provide. She knows a few of them and will "name" them by making their sounds, e.g. Monkey gets a "ooh ooh ooh", Cow gets a "moooo!" Owl gets a "hoo hoo" (in fact thats her name for an owl, a hoo hoo:), bird gets her sign approximation of the sign for bird (think of your thumb and pointer as the birds beak signed at your mouth, now turn it toward your mouth... that's M's sign approximation... SOOO CUTE!) But a lot of them are specific named animals like a Y - Yak, or a V - Vulture or N - Newt.... (I know what you're thinking... When I first got these decals I was thinking, "Isn't there a more well known animal that starts with an "N"?" and really, there isn't. Try and think of one... Anyway... she calls the Newt a "fog" aka a frog. Close enough for a one year old, right?!)

Anyway... the decals are on the walls that are above her changing table/dresser and so she stood up (with my help and with me standing right there so she won't fall) and she's pointing at them and just jabbering away! Of course, I didn't know what she was saying but she did and she sure had a lot to say about those animals! Then she would point up at the ones that are much higher and I would lift her up and she would continue her lecture on the now reachable animals.

I just adore these moments. Watching her learn and seeing the confidence in her describing these animals that are foreign to her and yet exciting to her. I hope she will always have that curiosity and that confidence so that she's free to explore and take on challenges without the doubt that plagues most adults. Until that time, I will do my best to continue to foster in her self-confidence and curiosity to explore the world around her!

Catching Up

It's been an entire month since I last posted! How sad of me! Every day I think to myself "I really want to blog, I'll do it when I get home, or first thing when I get to work" but alas I end up going to bed not long after putting the little one to bed or I get to work 5 minutes late and have to start working right away. But I have to try harder because it IS something I enjoy doing. Right now I've taken time out from work to type a blog on my iPhone while hiding in a bathroom stall so I can't be accused of texting :-). We do what we have to right?! I had drafted a great blog at the beginning of May about M a cute  misunderstanding...It was another time where I was composing a la bathroom stall and was interrupted. I apparently didn't save it correctly and when I returned to finish my post... poof! It was gone. I was unable to give the post the same witty description so I scrapped it....

....I had to leave my bathroom sanctuary as it seemed to be everyone's business time... if you know what I mean. Now I'm writing at my desk with a tiny minimized internet window. You see my problem! It's hard to get into the writing groove when I have to keep moving or starting and stopping. Sigh...

So England and Paris were wonderful. We walked until our legs were jello and then we sat for a few and got up and walked some more! In Paris we saw the usual beautiful tourist attractions, the Eiffel Tour, Notre Dame, The Arc de Triomphe and my favorite was the Louvre! One of the mini adventures in being in a foreign country is getting around and the Metro in Paris, just like the Tube in London were so easy to travel! There's still so much we didn't see and I'd definitely love to go back! I hope one day the rest of t family, as well as the munchkin of course, will be able to join us! So our in the last day of our European adventure we had breakfast in Paris, lunch in London and dinner over the United States (I think we were about over Nebraska at that time).

The month since I have been taking an online child nutrition and cooking class, took a break from my signing (I haven't been practicing.. Shame shame...), and generally feeling annoyed at my job. I know I'm not the only one who feels like I'm supposed to be doing something and this is definitley not it. Maybe I'm too responsible in that I have my bills and my family and I should be grateful I even have a job (which I am) but there are other people that seem to float effortlessly from one good thing to the next, never having any troubles along the way. Yes, I know that is only my outside perspective, and I'm sure they've had plenty of challenges along the way. Well, I do what I can to keep life interesting and try and figure things out as I go. Sometimes I just get so frustrated! I know, I'm not alone! Not in the slightest! So I do my best to take a breath, head up, and as my grandma always say, boobs out! Keep the adventures coming!

Jolly Ol' England

Well, we made it here! Our flight over was, at the most... Uncomfortable, and at the very least crowded! But it got us here safely so I can't complain too much. But when I return and I'm still sleep deprived I will say it started there. We arrived at London Heathrow at about 12:30 London time. From there our first two days were pretty non-stop. We found our way to the tube as the Brits call the subway. As I've never been on a subway before I can say that the tube system in London is very easy to get around on, which was a pleasant surprise. We'll see if the same can be said of the Paris metro. In a whirlwind of walking and sightseeing our first one and 1/2 days took us to Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, The Houses of Parliament/Big Ben, the outside of Westminster Abbey, The Tower of London with a viewing of the Crown Jewels, all amidst the madness of the London Marathon! It has felt like we were running our own marathon. and that would explain my sore calves, hip muscles and back (from carrying our backpack)! That and the horrible plank like English beds! I thought the bed at the first place was just a fluke but we come to Crewe Hall and its just as stiff! Crewe Hall is an historic beauty in itself. The past two days we've been in Crewe for Marc's training and it has been very laid back, although haven't really gotten to make up for lost sleep unfortunately! So tomorrow we leave early for two train rides to Paris. We should arrive there about 12:30 and our first stop after our hotel will be the Louvre! So excited! For now, I'll try to get comfortable on this dastardly bed!