Halloween 2010

Today was Halloween, and by most standards, it was a pretty normal day. I took Keaton shopping and we got a few things we needed (and plenty we didn't) while Case was at home working. We took Ernie (Keaton's stuffed Owl) to Build-A-Bear to get a costume. Yes, that is as strange as it probably sounds- I just thought it would be funny if Keaton was dressed as an owl, and Ernie was dressed as a... whatever. And Uncle Billy & Uncle Clay (my friends from Columbia) gave Keaton a gift card to the store, so what the hey. Ernie made a very cute Doctor (as did my hubby when he dressed up last weekend for the event at the Lincoln Park Zoo). :)

Anyway, the weird part happened when Keaton and I were driving around... his toy frog that sings songs suddenly started singing in a different voice (lower than normal) and started stuttering- pretty sure the batteries were out of whack... but it freaked me out a little. Then it kept singing the same parts of a song over and over and then would start over again. It was just strange, and it reminded me of this stuffed dog I used to have as a kid. It started singing once and wouldn't stop- I thought it was possessed. I think I ran to my parents and started crying. I think I watched too much Child's Play as a kid and thought dolls or stuffed animals could come to life. Not...that...I think that...now... or anything....

Another strange thing happened tonight after Keaton had gone Trick or Treating (we went to 2 houses, really, and then hung out at my friend Kelley's house for about 30 minutes before coming back home to greet kids). A group of kids came to the door, and one of the boys said, "I feel bad for Charley Brown. I miss him. It's too bad he had to DIE." What do you say to that? The way he said 'die' was also a little unnerving. Anyway, Casey and I were both like, "Yeah, it is too bad." Not much more to say after that. I remembered Chuck in his Pumpkin costume last year, greeting all the kids at the door. Ugh... I miss Charley Brown too, kid.

Anyway, I think Keaton had a good time seeing the neighborhood kids dressed up, and he seemed to like being outside. When we were at Tim and Kelley's he started flapping his 'wings' and looked like he was trying to fly... it was too funny. Here's a picture of that...

The kid passed out around 6:30 tonight, and although he woke up once briefly, he's been sleeping ever since. He skipped his afternoon nap today, so I hope this means he'll sleep through the night. He finally did last night, and didn't wake up until 4:30 this morning to eat. He went back to sleep until about 8:30 this morning. He's doing better for the most part... we'll see how tonight pans out.

In all, a pretty good weekend. I can't believe it's almost November. I can't believe I'm almost 29. And on that note... it's time for bed. :)

-Ash

Mo-Ti-Va-Tion

Today was such a great day with my boys. It actually was so good, I remembered longing for it when I was at work so many months ago... I feel like I've finally filled that void I'd had for awhile.

I'm not sure why I've felt a little empty. I think it helped that today Casey was not stressed about work stuff- he just got back from a 2 day trip to Tulsa (his second in as many weeks) and because of that he took a Saturday off. I was also strangely motivated to get housework done today- something that rarely ever happens- so we were both on the same page and got the house cleaned, vacuumed, mopped, etc, within a few hours. We had time to spend quality time with Keaton, paint our pumpkins, and rake the yard (Case did that... I will not take credit) all before dinner.

It helps also that Casey noticed that I've worked harder to get things done over the past week. Things I normally put off- laundry, dishes, normal housework- I actually did more of this week. I cooked meals, too. I'm thankful for whatever motivational bug bit me this week, though, because it's made life a lot less stressful and a lot more enjoyable this weekend. *Note to self... reread this entry someday soon when motivation levels are low again.

Keaton didn't sleep so great last night (again) but after he woke up around 5:15 this morning to eat, I put him back in his crib and he talked himself to sleep. It was funny to listen to him jabber to himself. Of course I didn't sleep during that part, but it was nice that he wasn't crying for once. He took a small nap before noon, and then another nice, long nap this afternoon around 3. The best part was, all 3 times, I laid him down while he was wide awake, which was a goal of mine lately so he could learn to sooth himself to sleep. (In retrospect, I would have done this loooong ago. There's that hindsight again.) It has worked fairly well, and with the exception of a few days this week when he has almost totally skipped his morning nap (and was fussy as heck because of it), he's done much better. I can only hope he starts sleeping through the night again. I don't mind waking up with him once to feed him, but he's been really inconsistent about that since we returned from our trips to Kansas and South Carolina (meaning he'll wake up 2 or 3 times during the night), and sometimes will not go back to sleep afterward.

I'm looking forward to his first Halloween tomorrow!! I'll take a ton of pictures, of course. So far it's a great start to the weekend. :-D

-Ash

Blah blah blahg.

Keaton's asleep an hour before his normal bedtime, which is always a little unnerving to me. Will he wake up in an hour and not want to go back to sleep? I guess we'll find out. Hopefully he'll sleep well tonight- it's been pretty hit or miss lately. If I were tired, I'd go to bed now too. Instead, I blog.

Cleaning up the floor tonight after feeding Keaton dinner, I couldn't help but think of Charley, and how I wouldn't have much cleaning to do if he were here. I sure do miss that guy. I saw his costume from last year down in the basement last week. I remember how excited he was sitting by the front door on Halloween and watching the little kids come by. Ugh... everything is so bittersweet right now. I miss the guy so much and I have great memories of him, and can't help but feel like we got robbed a bit by his passing. But who doesn't feel that way when they lose a loved one? All I can do now is try to remember all the good times. There were a ton in his 6 years with us.

Well, my kid has decided to wake up now, so I may have to cut this short. I hate being pessimistic when he goes to bed early, but since he rarely stays asleep whenever that happens, I sort of expect him to wake up at some point. I wish he liked sleeping as much as I do!

Case gets home tomorrow! Woo hoooo!!!
-Ash

So [NOT] smooth.

I am not a person you would call 'smooth'. In fact, I'm pretty clumsy. I would probably be entertaining to watch doing normal activities. Yesterday, for example, we had this crazy wind storm which I would ideally not be out in, but we needed groceries. After about an hour of shopping, we trekked outside and braved the intense winds. Between getting Keaton out of the shopping cart, catching the shopping cart as it tried to blow away, getting the huge back door slammed on me while trying to put bags into the car, and attempting to open the car door to leave and having to use my entire body weight to do so, I'm sure someone could have gotten a kick out of it. The wind was ridiculous, but I felt about the same when I got into the car. (So that's where the bruise on my leg came from... it all makes sense now...)

When I got home, I pulled into the driveway and quickly shut the garage door behind me so the wind would not be a factor. Keaton was asleep in the car seat (and really needed the nap, as he was getting a little fussy near the end of our shopping trip) so I took him inside and put him in his crib. I then realized that I could not easily open the back car door to get the groceries out without opening the garage door, which could potentially wake him. I decided to wing it and opened the back door as far as it would go (not far) and took the bags out one by one. One of the bags had a little hole in it, which ripped open and most of its contents fell on the floor. (Sigh). Sometimes when things like this happen to me, I am reminded of incidents- normally in movies or on TV- that are similar. This one took me back to Home Alone where Kevin is walking down the street carrying all of his groceries, proud at what he had accomplished, and the bottoms drop out and groceries go everywhere. The look on his face is exactly how I felt. Sometimes I just hope God is watching and is entertained by my clumsiness. :)

I remember trying to explain what "clumsy" was to one of the foreign students once, and he asked me if it is an illness. I laughed, but sometimes it feels like it might be. When I've got it, I've got it BAD. Sometimes my timing just works out and I do things smoothly- but that is very rare. So rare, I can't even think of an example right now. But more often than not, I am the Queen of Clumsy. (Flash back to me tossing a pop can to Casey, who was down the hallway in his old apartment in Manhattan, and I threw it into the wall, where it then ricocheted into the adjacent wall. He still makes fun of me for that. And I don't think anyone was ballsy enough to try and open the can.) Does anyone remember the entry where I broke my toe on the bouncy seat? That's what I'm talkin' about.

I hope Keaton doesn't get 'blessed' with the clumsy gene. And while I could, I will not give examples of Casey's clumsiness on here, it just wouldn't be right. But if we're lucky, it'll skip Keaton altogether and he won't have trips to the ER or stories of embarrassment like his parents do.

That is all.

Spoiler Alert

We recently started watching Dexter and are finally on Season 3 out of 5. *No worries, I won't unveil anything here, for those of you who haven't seen it yet.* So far, I LOVE IT. It is nice to watch them all on DVD because you don't have to worry about commercials or cliffhangers. It is not nice, however, to be 2 seasons behind and find out plot twists while innocently watching Access Hollywood. Curse you, Billy Bush! He was interviewing someone about a show they are on and then he said, "Wow, I can't believe _____ happened to your character on Dexter, and _____ did it!" Ahhhhhhh!!! Not cool. I was so mad, I yelled at the TV and startled Keaton.

In happier news, Keaton started swimming lessons today. He did great, and seems to like the water just like I used to. He won't actually learn strokes or anything, of course, it just gets him used to the water. We sing songs and play games, and it allows the Moms to get a little workout. I may not be overweight, but I sure am out of shape! I think my legs may be jello-y tomorrow. :)

Case is on his way to Tulsa again tonight. He went last week, too, for work. At the beginning of November, he'll be in Salt Lake City for the AIChE conference. Hopefully it'll be the last big trip he has to take for awhile... I hate when he's gone! Hopefully Tiny Man will sleep well for me tonight. We are currently hanging out on the couch- he's getting sleepy so maybe he won't fight it tonight.

Halloween is this weekend!! Can't wait!

-Ash

Highlights

Highlights of the day:

• Keaton is taking nap #3 in his crib! The current one was ideal- he was wide awake when I put him in, and he fell asleep on his own. I hope this becomes a habit!

• Taking Mr. K to Walmart and seeing our happy greeter guy, who finally got to meet Keaton. About a year ago I was waddling around Wally World and he noticed I was pregnant... I am surprised we haven't gotten to see him since then- with Keaton, at least. He gave the guy a big smile, and the guy (Claudio) said, "His smile is just like his Mama!" :-D

• I have gotten a lot of good feedback on Keaton's costume, which makes all the time I spent very worth it. Not only that, but I hadn't tried it on him before until we got to the zoo, so there were a lot of things that could have gone wrong- I'm happy to say it fits well, and he's an adorable little owl! I'm glad it worked out so well, and I'm also glad I didn't have to sew a pattern or anything. Fabric glue and velcro did the trick. :)

• The weather here is crazy, but we skipped the super severe weather this morning. The winds are insane, but luckily the tornadoes that were close by skipped by Plainfield. Keaton and I almost got blown away while going in and out of Walmart earlier.

Pretty excited about Keaton's swimming lessons that start tomorrow! And my haircut... it's long overdue.

-Ash

Baby Talk

"Boo boo wah wah". This is Keaton's newest 'phrase'. I can only guess what it means, but he's saying it a lot now, clear as day. He also says Mama on a somewhat regular basis now- and we've noticed he only says it around me, which would imply that he knows who I am! :) He likes to say it most when he's hungry or mad. Makes sense to me.

No "dada" yet. We are saying it to him a lot every day, but he's holding out on us. He's not saying D sounds at all yet, but I think we're close. He still says "ankooo" and "aguuu" and "whooo" (which was super cute on Saturday when he was wearing his Owl costume and hooting. :-D I need to upload pictures of the costume. We didn't get a picture of him standing up in it, but there were some cute ones with Casey, so I will add those soon.

I am excited about Halloween this year, even if it means that we dress him up for 30 minutes, take him around the neighborhood, and then hang out at home and pass out candy. I'm not even totally disappointed that I'm not dressing up this year, because it's been more fun getting Keaton's costume ready- I guess I'm living vicariously through him. I look forward to dressing up next year, though, when he can understand a little better. My parents always made Halloween so much fun for me- I only hope I can pass that on to Keaton.

That's all for now- I'm trying to re-train Keaton to sleep in his crib since vacation screwed him up again... he just started rubbing his eyes so I put him in the crib- so far no tears. This is tough! Here goes nothing.

-Ash

SC Summary

Here's what I remember about South Carolina- a week later:

1) Had brunch at The Gourmet Shop in Five Points Sunday morning. It was great, but it reminded me of the days when he'd bring Charley Brown with us and sit outside at the tables. There were quite a few dogs there Sunday, so he was on my mind a lot. It got worse when we walked around the other shops, too, because I noticed a sign on one of the shop windows that said the dog that was a fixture at the shop had died earlier that week- of cancer. Throw in the fact that we walked near the store that used to be Three Dog Bakery, and I lost it. I haven't cried in awhile about Chuck, but the memories were too much that day. And just like that, I was okay again.

2) Spending most of Monday in the Department seeing people. I got to see almost everyone I wanted, some longer than others, but we were exhausted by the end of the day. That night we had dinner at my friend Jenny's house with she and her fiance Colby. They have 2 dogs, and Jenny's roommate Patty has another dog, which provided hours of entertainment for Keaton. We have video (thankfully) of him laughing harder than I think he ever has before when the dogs would bark or catch their ball. It really was hilarious all the way around, and I can't wait to (someday) upload the video... toooooo funny.

Well, I was going to update more, but Keaton's awake for some reason right now so I need to go check on him. He's not been sleeping through the night since we got back from Kansas. :( Boo....

-Ash

SC Vacation

I had forgotten how much I had missed South Carolina. We've been here since Wednesday and I am enjoying every minute of it and trying to really take it all in. I am going to have a hard time going back to Illinois, I'm afraid.

We arrived Wednesday morning, and went straight to the Chemical Engineering Department. We couldn't check into our hotel until 3, so we had time to kill, and we were most anxious to see our 'family' in the Department while we're here. It didn't take long for people to find out we were in the building, so Keaton got to meet a ton of people all at once. Maybe it's better that way, I'm not sure. He seemed to enjoy all of the attention, though- which is becoming a common theme on this trip. More on that later. Wednesday night we went out with our friend Eyma and had dinner and drinks. Then it was time to put Mr. K to bed. He hated the Pack N Play, so he ended up sleeping next to me in bed so we could both get sleep. Not so much fun.

Thursday we woke up and slowly got around to head to Charleston. We made it there before noon, had a tasty lunch at the Crab Shack, and went to Folley Beach. I took a TON of pictures and some video of the boys on the beach. I think Keaton enjoyed it, until a big wave came up and smacked him in the face. (We didn't actually take him out in the ocean, we just stayed right where the tide came up so he could get his feet wet.) He coughed a bit and the salt water cleaned out his nose (the saline drops got to rest for a night, so that was nice... haha)... but he was fine. He took a wonderful nap on the drive back to Columbia, and then we got ready to go to dinner with friends at Carolina Ale House. Dinner was nice (although we watched KU get the crud knocked out of them by KSU... such is life) and Keaton had fun meeting everyone. He also noticed that the Georgia women's Volleyball team was sitting behind us. All it took was the attention of one of them, and it was like a domino effect- soon almost the entire team was oooohhhing and aaahhhhhing over the kid. And he Ate. It. Up. My mom got him a shirt that says "Lock up your daughters"... it's becoming more appropriate every day, I think. Such a flirt!!!

After dinner we went to Walmart to try and look for a mattress or something that would be suitable for the PnP to make things more comfortable for Keaton, in hopes that he would actually sleep there through the night. We finally decided to get a sleeping bag to cushion the bottom of the crib because the padding they provided was shotty. So, we got back to the room and set up his bed, and Case and I went out in the living room. I spent the evening being paranoid about the sleeping bag and how fluffy it was. I think I woke up every hour to make sure Keaton was okay and hadn't rolled over or anything. Thing is, the bag was so fluffy that he sank down into it like a little nest and it ended up keeping him warm and didn't allow him to roll over. He did well almost all night (even though I didn't... thank you paranoia) and seemed happier in the morning and well-rested. I was thankful for the nap we took around 10 before we headed back to the Department to meet up with the staff for lunch. We went to DiPrato's, one of my favorite restaurants in Columbia. They have the most delicious Pimiento Cheese dip with pita bread... it's probably good that I temporarily forgot about it until we got here, because I know I would have craved it in IL and nothing would come close to the Columbia version. Lunch was nice, and it was great catching up with the office ladies. Keaton enjoyed the attention. I see a theme here, don't you? :)

We headed back to the Department after lunch. Keat was long overdue for a nap, and got pretty fussy, but we were able to see quite a few more people before we got in the car and went to the West side of town to meet Casey's cousin and my friend Aaron at Starbucks. Keaton took a nap on the way and woke up happy when Aaron and Christy arrived. It was a nice visit.

After a trip to Babies R Us to try and find a better mattress solution, we went back to the hotel and rested until dinner at 6:30 with Billy, Clay, and Patrick- my non-USC friends. Keaton did probably the best he has the whole trip during dinner- he was terrific! He sat up in the booth with us and 'chatted' with the boys. I think he enjoyed nothing being strapped into a high chair the whole time- in fact, we asked for one, but he ended up sitting in the Japanese-style booth with us (deeper, flatter seats) and never really needed any support the whole time. It was nice to eat the majority of my meal without having to hold him or help feed him because he entertained himself or was entertained by the boys or the waitress most of the time.

After dinner, Case and I took him to a new frozen yogurt place on campus called Yoga-hut. Then it was back to the hotel and off to sleep. Mattress #2 didn't work and he slept next to me again, but this time we both slept well.

I guess that's all for now. I'm going to attempt to nap with Keaton for a bit so Casey can get some work done. We're having lunch with Dr. Monnier and his wife, then tonight we're going to dinner with some students from the ChE Department. So far, vacation is going very well. :-D

-Ash

Curse you, Columbus

Dammit, Columbus... you really messed me up this week.

I have to order my prescriptions through a mail order company that our insurance covers. So far, this has never been as convenient as it sounds. There has almost always been a problem with it one way or another- either with me ordering it or the company taking longer to ship it. Last week I realized that my Rx would run out while we're on vacation, so I ordered it online... thinking it would arrive before we leave early tomorrow morning. Then came Columbus Day yesterday, and the hiccup in mail delivery. Ugh. I have now created a headache for myself... today we received NO mail at all. This is not good.

I called my doctor to see if they could get something for me and cover me through the week- I'm still waiting on them to call back, and getting more anxious as the time goes by. I was also hoping the mailman was just really slow today. So far no luck either way. Oh, and not that I need it right now, but my paycheck was accidentally put in the mail by mistake, so I'm waiting for it to arrive, too.

It's moments like this that really hit home for me that I could use some work in time management and thinking ahead about things. Boy do I feel like a moron! But for now I'll blame Columbus.

-Ash

Just kidding, Chris. I should have cursed the mailman... after all the back and forth phone calls to the Doctor and Walgreen's, the mailman drove up just minutes after Walgreen's called to let me know the Rx had been filled and I could pick it up. Of course, the Rx (and paycheck) were in the mail. Timing is a little off today. Argh!

Lil Punkin

One of the events I was most excited about this time last year finally came true; We took Keaton to the Pumpkin Patch today! He wasn't the smiliest guy on the planet, but I think we got some decent pictures. We tried going yesterday with our friends in Schaumburg, but it was 80 degrees and INSANE with people. We parked and walked in, then turned right back around... not to mention the fact that Keaton fell asleep while we were trying to find a parking space. I'm glad today worked out- we decided to get there shortly after it opened, and beat the crowds and heat.

We got pumpkins that look like us- I got a paler pumpkin than Casey's, and although I was tempted, decided not to get one that was white... it was probably a little too accurate. :) We got a little baby Keaton pumpkin. I can't wait to decorate them! I will take pictures and hopefully post them soon. If they aren't here, you can always check out Flickr. We also got Keaton a tiny little one, which he could hold in his hand and enjoyed teething on.

Ahhhh- Speaking of teeth, I almost forgot!!! Keaton got his second tooth on Friday! It's right next to the first one, on the bottom. Those are some SHARP little teeth. Yikes!

I guess that's about all for today. Casey's mowing the lawn, Keaton's sleeping, and I'm procrastinating cleaning the house. Guess it's time to get on it.

-Ash

Control

Sometimes I wish there were a remote control for life. I would definitely pause some moments (much like the Twix commercials where time kind of stops and you get a moment to process what's going on). I would rewind a lot.. And record would be nice, so when I totally forget things I could replay them in full detail and be like, "Oh yeah, that's what happened!" Man, it would be nice. I think I would not fast forward much- especially now that Keaton's doing so much and I feel like time's going too fast as it is. Mute and volume might come in handy, though. So many buttons... so much control.

We have four remotes for the entertainment setup in our living room. People like Casey who are technically inclined have no problem with them. Everyone else, including yours truly, cannot figure out why we have so many, what they all do, and why we can't just get a Universal remote. But for him it makes sense, because there are specific buttons on each remote that a Universal just wouldn't have. I wonder how important these buttons really are, and more specifically, what they do. But it's all about control. You have control over more things and more possibilities with more buttons. A Universal remote cuts corners and makes things more simple than they necessarily need to be.

There are just too many ways to make the connection between a remote control and life. If I were a remote, I would be a Universal. And if I could, I would have more control over my life.

-Ash

Smarty Pants

After yesterday's insanely long entry, I thought it might be nice to update on some things Keaton is doing lately.

As far as food is concerned, he now likes green beans, squash, and today he decided he liked chicken with apples. He tried chicken risotto with mangos at home, but promptly spit those out in disgust. Apparently my parents' dog wouldn't even eat it... haha! He is getting the hang of eating these little yogurt drops that melt in his mouth, and has pretty much mastered picking them up and putting them in his mouth all by himself. If they start to come out, he will take one of his little chubby fingers and poke it back in. He also started saying "Ah" for us on Sunday night, and will either say "ah" or "AHHHHH!!!" depending on how hungry he is. :) It's nice that he does that now, though, because it's easier to tell when he wants more. Today he tried a real sippy cup for the first time, and seems to like it better than the beginner sippy cups we were trying to use earlier. It may be because his gums hurt and he's having a harder time biting things, but either way he tolerated it better than previous attempts.

He is not even close to crawling yet, but he loves standing up. In fact, if I sit him in my lap and give him my hands, he pulls himself to standing. Some people have told me he may totally skip crawling, which I'm not ready for at all... but it's fun to see the smile on his face when he realizes he's standing up. He's still in need to some good quality tummy time because his arms aren't quite as strong as they should be at this point, but I'm not too worried and I know he'll get to where he needs to be soon. I'm propping him up more when he's on his stomach so he has to use his arms more.

Besides saying "mama" last week, he's making a lot more noises lately. He hasn't really said "da" as much, but we're working on it. 'Ga' and 'ba' are pretty common, though, as well as the old favorites 'whoooo' and 'ankooo'. Sometimes it sounds like he's trying to make a sentence, and he spouts out a bunch of sounds together. He now uses a lot more expressions, and has been raising his eyebrows a lot when he realizes we are talking to him or we understand what he wants, which is normally followed by a sweet little smile. Yesterday I said, "Where's Daddy?" and he looked up to a place Casey normally plays Peek A Boo with him. He's really catching on to things and it's neat to see him learning so much!

I'm sure I'm forgetting something so I'll try to remember and update again later.

-Ash

Topeka Trip, take 2

Let's try this again. The 10 day Topeka trip went well... now we're already back home and trying to get life back to normal. Whatever that is. :)

I will try my best to recap our time in Kansas. Here goes:

Thursday: Our flight went well. Keaton did great on the plane! He's really getting wiggly but luckily he slept most of the time. No tears, either! Woo hoo! For the life of me, I can't remember what we did this day. Yikes.

Friday: My high school reunion started Friday, so we went to the tailgate before the football game. Keaton did absolutely great and had a fabulous time flirting with all the girls- mostly my friend Haley's 2 year old daughter, Brecken. I told them that they shouldn't be surprised if some day he knocks on their door and asks to marry her, and that I would do my best to raise him well in the meantime. :) We had fun seeing people and showing off the Little Man. That night we went to The Rooster Tail and had fun catching up with more people. We even did a photo booth (I will attempt to remember to scan the pictures later- they were pretty funny).

Saturday: We woke up super early- about 6:30- to head to KSU for Family Day. We met up with Leslie and her boyfriend Mitch when we got to Manhattan, then headed to tailgate before the game. The weather was so weird that day- a storm was moving in, but it didn't look too threatening so we decided to go to the game anyway. We ended up getting seats in the highest part of the stadium, which would have been cool if the thunderstorm hadn't gotten worse, and was headed right for us. We saw some of the most amazing storm clouds I have ever seen! I regret not taking the camera to the game. Anyway, the girls and I went downstairs to the restroom, when suddenly we heard the announcement over the PA system that the game was postponed due to lightning. People started pouring down the stairs, and like a salmon swimming upstream, I weaved in and out of people to try to get to Keaton and Casey. Mitch and Casey had Keaton, his stroller, the diaper bag, and anything else we left up in the stands, and were trying to come down to be out of the storm where we were. I finally reached them, and took a second to look at the incoming storm- the clouds were dark, and there was rotation in the middle of them. Again, something I have never witnessed in person. They opened Bramlage Coliseum and everyone started running in there for shelter. It was a little crazy... luckily it passed quickly and then the sky cleared up and the weather was beautiful. We ended up going back to the game and left with Keaton at the 3rd quarter. Casey wanted to check out the Engineering department so we went there while the rest of the family stayed at the game. Then we met up with the rest of the family and took Keaton to the Student Union to get him some KSU attire... for Casey, of course. Shortly after that, we headed back to Topeka so we could go to night #2 of the THS Reunion. I caught about a 45 minute nap before it was time to get ready for The Rooster Tail take 2. Saturday night was fun- maybe a little less fun than Friday- but it was great to see quite a few more people that I hadn't seen in years. I also found out that my friend Amy from high school is pregnant with twins!! So exciting!! For her. I would probably have lost my mind. ;) She's going to be an excellent Mom and I know she will have some adorable little babies!!

Sunday: Hmmm... nope, don't remember. Oh yeah. Case left for Chicago in the afternoon. Sad times. :( Sara, Lindsey, and Jeremy came over for a few hours to visit, which was fun. Turns out that Casey got home and couldn't get in our house because he left the house key with me in Kansas... my Dad returned our house key to him when we got to Topeka, but he thought it was for my parent's house and not ours. He ended up having to break the screen on our office window to get in... this was after waiting for 4 hours for a locksmith that ended up not even coming. I felt so bad for him, and worse because there was nothing I could do to help. Needless to say, there will be a spare key here soon.

Monday: Visited the office of the dentist (Dr. Kelly Deeter) I used to go to when I lived in Topeka. He and his staff are the only reason I ever enjoyed going to the dentist- they are all amazing, and it was great seeing them again! I think the last time I saw them was right around the time I got married, so it's been at least 7 years. Keaton flirted with the ladies (Does anyone else see the theme here? He's a complete flirt!!!) and I think they really enjoyed meeting him. We enjoyed a nice lunch with my Mom at Jose Peppers after the office visit.

Tuesday: I think I just remembered why I couldn't remember parts of the week... my allergies were out of CONTROL at home, and I was hopped up on Benedryl most of the time. Actually, it made me really tired, so I suppose I wasn't really 'hopped up'. I sure did take as many naps as I possibly could! I think we went shopping with Mom to get Keaton some Jayhawk attire, which was too much fun. Leslie came with us while De got her hair cut.

Wednesday: Met up for lunch with my Mom's friend Joan, her granddaughter Brooke that I used to play with as a kid (and who went to school with Casey and Valerie). We had a good time, and Keaton had fun flirting with Brooke's daughter, Ashlynn. Daniel and Shelley stopped by later that day to see Keaton. I think this was one of the days Keaton was SUPER fussy and drooling up a storm. Teething sucks!

Thursday: I visited Kyle's Mom and introduced her to Keaton. He loved their cat, Gus, and would smile and make little noises at him whenever he would walk by. My kid loves animals!! Afterward, I went back to Dr. Deeter's office again to see a few ladies that weren't there on Monday. It was great seeing them again! Keaton enjoyed all of the attention, of course. :) We went back to my parents' house. While playing Peek A Boo with Keaton, he looked at me and said "Mama". I almost started crying- it was his first real word, and he said it direcetly TO me. It was priceless... I kept getting teary whenever I told anyone about it. My kid knows me by 'name'!! :-D
That evening, I went out for coffee with Sara and Lindsey. It was exactly what I needed, and I'm really glad we got to do it. It was a nice mental break from the little squeaky boy and all the craziness of the week so far. I got back to my parents' house and picked him up, then drove out to meet the Hetricks at Billard Airport. They were getting ready for their 30th anniversary dance on Saturday and were putting up lights. Then we went out to their place and Keaton and I passed out.

Friday: Keaton and I went grocery shopping with De and Val to get ready for the bonfire at their place that evening. We ran into the Shrimplin grandparents at Walmart, and they got to see Keaton and how much he's grown. I don't realize how much he's changed until other people notice it... he really has grown up a lot since July. Sitting up, eating solid foods, babbling, and attempting to stand are just a few of the milestones he's reached recently. So proud of him. :)
Keith picked Casey up from the Kansas City airport that afternoon, and flew him home via helicopter, which was a fun arrival. Keaton and I were super excited to see him, and things felt like they were back to normal right away once he arrived. I was so tired from the rest of the week, running around like a chicken and taking Keaton everywhere. He's so big now that I get tired just putting him in the car! We barely got to see him before people started arriving for the bonfire. We had a fun time with my parents and the family friends visiting from Iowa, roasting hotdogs and marshmallows outside. Keaton got sleepy around 7:30, so we took him inside and thawed out from the chilly evening. It was the first day of October and the weather sort of hit that home... I even put Keaton's monkey hat on him and his fluffy fleece pajamas. :)

Saturday: The day of the party. We spent a lot of the morning and part of the afternoon laying around and trying to rest up for the evening events. Around 2 pm, the family got ready to take family pictures. They only took about 30 minutes, and then we were headed to my parents' to drop off our luggage so we could head to the airport the next day. After grabbing a quick bite to eat and chatting with my parents, we went to Billard to help with any last-minute details before the start of the party. Keaton took an awesome nap, and ended up making it through most of the party without having any meltdowns, and enjoyed all of the attention he got... which was a LOT. He fell asleep and stayed in De's office for over an hour in the Pack N Play before we put him in the car to leave.

Saturday after the party was a pretty eventful evening in itself. Keaton started crying, and my Mom had a panic attack as we were leaving. We got home, and Mom still wasn't doing well. We got Keaton to sleep, and Mom took some medicine that normally helps her feel better, but it wasn't working. We also realized that we had left some things at the airport, so Casey considered leaving to go back and get it. After a lot of discussion, and a lot of miscommunication, Casey left for the airport and Mom thought she was getting better, so I went to bed. Shortly after I was in bed, Dad knocked on the door and said he was taking Mom to the hospital. Since Casey wasn't home yet, I stayed there and obviously couldn't sleep because I was worried. He came back and about 5 minutes later, my parents came back home; Mom started feeling much better right before they got to the hospital, so she had Dad turn around. Luckily everything worked out and she was okay- she gave us quite a scare.

Sunday we left for the airport after lunch, and made it back home by about 6. Keaton did great on the way home- despite the teething issues, he really did well with all the travel this week Again, I'm so proud of my kid! We spent a pretty lazy day at home today, but it was nice to lay around in my pj's and cuddle with Keaton all day. It has been nice to be home, but I already miss my family a lot. It was great being home for 10 days and getting to see people I haven't seen in years. I feel like I made the most out of my time at home- heck, I probably did more than I should have- but it was worth it. It may not have been worth the extremely long recap in this blog, and I kind of doubt anyone is still reading at this point, but I figured it would be nice to try and remember as much as possible. I'm sort of amazed at how much I've already forgotten. Time flies when you're having fun!

-Ash