Apologies

It is true...I have an addiction to pictures of Laci.

Sorry, can't help it.

She's too cute and I love my camera -

a dangerous combination resulting in an extreme number of pictures taken on a daily basis.

I am issuing an apology to my future children:

There will never be as many pictures of you as there are of Laci.

I am not deliberately depriving you of camera time,

it is just part of being the first born.

I'm sorry.

Please know that I don't love you any less,

and you would all be my first born if that were possible.

Under the Weather

My baby girl is under the weather today.  I think she is teething.  She has been drooling out of control for a few weeks now and has become a vicious biter.  Ok, maybe not vicious, but definitely a biter.  She has never taken a pacifier, despite my many efforts, but has recently changed her mind.  She likes to hold the pacifier with both hands, bite it as hard as she can, and then yank it out of her mouth with all her might.  Repeatedly.  That is until she loses her grasp and can't get it back in her mouth...then, she just gets mad.  Poor thing.  Too young for teething toys should mean too young for teeth.  She also loves gnawing on the side of my hand which leaves both of us a soggy mess after about five minutes. 

Now this morning, she has a runny nose and draining sinuses, causing her to cough pathetically and making breathing through her nose quite a chore.  I keep checking, but can't feel any teeth yet.  Thankfully, she is dealing with it fairly well.  She is now laying on the floor smiling at a silly bug toy and trying to chew Pooh's head off.  Ahhh, the life of a baby.

COLD

so tiny

It has been really cold here for the past couple of days.  Cold enough to snow for a few minutes yesterday, although nothing stuck.  I should be embarrassed to admit that I pranced around the house almost the entire time it snowed, singing, "It's Snowing!" like I was five years old again.  But I'm not.  I'm also not embarrassed to admit that I ran outside for a minute to try to take a picture of the snow and then bragged when I came inside because I got snowflakes on me and Ryan had to stay inside with Laci.  Sadly, the pictures didn't turn out.  You can't even see the snowflakes.  I hope it snows again and sticks just a little, then I will get good pictures. 

Did I mention it is really cold today?  Cold enough that our pipes by the well are frozen this morning and as of now, I still do not have running water in my house.  I'm OK with that...for now...I would like to be able to flush the toilet sometime today.  I learned that you shouldn't ask your husband why the pipes aren't wrapped when I know they were wrapped last winter.  He will respond with a scowl.  Plus, he's the one who has to stand out there in the freezing weather trying to thaw them out, so I guess he is receiving his punishment.

Did I mention how cold it has been?  Cold enough that our pond froze a little and so did the water in the horse troughs.  I should have been there to help my mom break the ice this morning, but I was still tucked into bed snuggling with Laci.  Lucky girl I am.  Why is it that horses like to hurt themselves so often?  Wiley did something to his shoulder and upper leg to cause quite a bit of swelling and pain.  No lacerations this time, just a stiff, swollen shoulder.  Who knows what he did.  I don't think it is major...nothing a little bute can't help.  Maybe we should consider installing video cameras in the barn to capture the millions of ways horses can injure themselves on a daily basis.  Maybe we could send the video into America's Funniest Home Videos.  Maybe we could win a million dollars.  Maybe horses are just dumb. 

Did I mention it has been too cold to go outside with Laci?  I miss our outside walks everyday.  The light parade is this weekend.  I have always wanted to go, but never have because it is always freezing cold and I really don't like being cold.  I can see this year will be no different.

some days just aren't smiley days

Did I mention how cold it is outside?  Yep, I think I did.

Winter Weather

Gray skies and chilly outside.

Sunny and warm inside.

My "I Did" List

I am a list writer.  I'm not as bad as my mom or my sister who have devoted entire notebooks to various lists, but I do like a list when needed - like for grocery shopping or running errands.  The worst list of all is the "To Do" list.  I always seems to make these lists too big.  I start listing the things I need "to do" and I just can't stop.  I add more things to the list faster than I can check them off.  I feel like the more things I try to cross off the "to do" list, the less I get done.  I hate not being able to cross everything off the list.  You'd think I would just write a smaller list, but for some reason, I just can't.  This is why I came up with the "I Did" list.

The "I Did" list is just that - a list of what I did during the day.  I only write down the things I actually accomplished, and just to make myself feel better I even include some of the trivial things like brushing my teeth.  The interesting thing I've found about the "I Did" list is that it actually motivates me to do more.  Once I get going, I start looking around to see what I can do to add to the list.  Of course, I might not get everything done that needs to be done, and I might end up doing something that I hadn't planned on, but at least I get to write it down and feel like I've accomplished something for the day.  At the end of the day, when I'm exhausted and wondering why, I can just look at the list and see.  The "I  Did" list is ideal for days when you feel like a hamster running in a wheel.  Today I needed an "I Did" list.

Tuesday, December 1st - Today I...

...put on makeup

...took Ryan to town to pick up his truck

...paid bills

...balanced the checkbook

...gave Laci a bath after her 2nd blowout of the day (first blowout 7 am, second blowout 11am)

...took cute pictures of Laci

...went for a walk around our field

...washed dishes

...washed laundry

...made lemon bars (yum!)

...bookkeeping work (getting ready for the year end)

...made dinner (chicken, rice & broccoli)

...washed dishes again

...gave Laci her 2nd bath of the day

Now it is almost 8 pm, Laci is sleeping, I'm posting really cute pictures, and I'm ready for bed. 

Not bad for a day's work.