2010 - A Fabulous Year in Review

What a fabulous year 2010 was to our family! In brief, here's the recap on our 2010:

JANUARY - Elizabeth cheered for the West Liberty Hilltoppers! Her favorite players were Tori Hansen, Laura Malernee...and John Wolosinczuk! She loves watching John play so much that when he wasn't on the floor, she would often turn her back on the court in protest. (I mean seriously, with nothing but 20+ win seasons every year, what in the heck does Coach Crutchfield know about coaching hoops -- more Wolosinczuk!) Yes, she can say his name, too -- much to the delight of everyone and the demise of TV sports reporters! (wol-oh-SIN-chuck)

Elizabeth celebrated her 4th birthday (actual birthday) with a modest at-home event with Mommy, Daddy, and Grandma. We enjoyed dinner at Fusion with cake and presents at home where Elizabeth got her first Barbie from Aunt Anne (the start of another obsession I'm afraid!)

Three days later, Elizabeth had her tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in her ears. Her ENT told us that her poor little ears were more infected than he thought they were and that her adenoids completely blocked her nasal passage -- making it all the more amazing that she didn't complain (EVER!) about her ears hurting and that she has always been such a good eater! In addition to the obvious reasons for which we were thankful following her surgery, I am additionally thankful that she doesn't take after me with allergic reactions to pain medication...but also frightened that hydrocodone causes her to strip naked and dance late at night. (At least her last dose of the good stuff caused her to do that, at which point we made the executive decision to stop giving it to her!)

We rounded out the month with her Sesame Street 4th Birthday Party! We were so thrilled to have Grandma, Nana & Papa, Rikki & (a guilt-ridden) Doug, and the Koeglers - Jason, Sarah, Campbell & Will as guests. (Papi wasn't able to make it due to weather. Doug was guilted by Elizabeth into taking whatever measures were necessary to ensure coming as she gently pointed out to him that he had never been to her birthday party and that she wanted him to come and bring her Aqua Sand. He complied, but perhaps in future years, I need to train her to ask for more expensive presents like a car or a college education...)

FEBRUARY - We continued to cheer on the Hilltoppers (the men's team was undefeated in January & February!). E's man, John Wolosinczuk, was featured on the Dorm Room website on Valentine's Day no less! Elizabeth was the darling of so many admirers at the West Liberty games in her uniform (custom made by Nana!) She got so many compliments on her game-day attire!

We got pummeled with snow (I didn't consider that part of our good fortune, but Elizabeth did when we went to Oglebay to sled ride and play in the white crap!)

MARCH - We were so excited to have the Martin family (Jason, P.J., John Patrick, and Jackson) move from Florida to Wheeling!!!

The Hilltoppers capped off great seasons. Hansen was a DII All-American, Malernee DII's two-time 3-point leader, the men were the 2009-2010 WVIAC Conference Champs! Despite her love and adoration of John Wolosinczuk, Elizabeth still refused to talk with him and she cowered behind either Reid or me when he came over to say hi or give her a high 5. She has more of a long-distance love affair with John...

March was basketball heaven for the Amoses and our fellow Mountaineer fans! The WVU men's basketball team, behind the leadership of Da'Sean Butler, won the Big East Championship endearing the team to many more fans in the metro-NY area (as so many of the team members were from that area) earning them a new nickname in NYC, the Metro'neers...much to the delight of Anne, Sean, & Alex (who, at 2-1/2 does a mean John Flowers impersonation and when asked who his coach is will reply, "Coach Huggins.") We went C-R-A-Z-Y here in the Amos household when the #2 seed West Virginia Mountaineers upset the #1 seeded Kentucky to reach the Final Four!!!

APRIL - Reid & I made the trip to Indianapolis to watch the Mountaineers in the Final Four (while Elizabeth celebrated Easter with the Mortons). We were obviously disappointed that the Mountaineers didn't win the national title, but what a fabulous trip we had in spite of the team's loss! While enjoying a couple of beers at a pub before taking in the Indiana Pacers' game (thanks to former WJU men's basketball and current Pacers' assistant coach Jay DeFruscio for the free tickets, I took in my first NBA game!) we met Butler's assistant SID, Josh Rattray. He's a fabulous guy -- and gave us a tour of historic Hinkle Field House the afternoon before Bulter played in the championship game, which they ultimately lost to Duke (blech! I hate Duke after that weekend more than I thought possible!) On our trip back home, we stopped by Historic Hoosier Gym (where the home games for the movie Hoosiers was filmed) and got to shoot some hoops and hang out in the locker room before stopping at the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

After having four previous miscarriages, we are cautiously optimistic when I get pregnant again. I teased Reid by telling him that we would be obligated to name this "Final Four baby" Bobby John Da'Sean Amos if it was a boy -- in honor of the Mountaineers...

MAY - Hans graduated from WJU with a degree in nursing! We're so proud of you, Hans!!! We're bummed that he would be moving back to Philadelphia, but can't say that we will miss his Communist soccer games ;-) Congratulations to Hans, too, for being named 1st Team All-WVIAC and 2nd Team NSCAA All-Atlantic Region!!!

We rounded out the end of May with a surprise 80th birthday party for "Grandma" Helen Wine and Alex's 4th birthday!!!

Reid got the opportunity to broadcast the MCLA Championship (lacrosse) in Denver, despite never having watched a live lacrosse game. He was fabulous!!! No surprise there as he is such a talented broadcaster! (Anne noted that Reid was the Keith Jackson of lacrosse -- "Woah Nelly!")

JUNE - My pregnancy progressed well, but we were still nervous...

Elizabeth got to watch her Daddy play golf (at least a few holes) for the first time. Mind you, I told her she HAD to be quiet...that she HAD to whisper...when Reid & Jason are approaching the area where we are sitting with Sarah, Campbell, and Will, and Elizabeth belted out a big "Hi Daaaaady!" before I knew it! Fortunately, he and Jason were amused by her...and they made the cut in the tournament...

Elizabeth got her very own set of golf clubs -- complete with the panda bear head cover...

Elizabeth was really taking off in the water with the help of her swim vest. She didn't at all complain with having wear the ear plugs, which we had our concerns about that being a battle before the start of summer...

JULY - We celebrated July 4th with the Cunninghams...getting to be with Alex for his first fireworks display (in the big town of Gassaway) was a lot of fun!

Elizabeth got to spend a week in Sutton with Grandma & Papi -- and Aunt Anne, Sean, & Alex! Swimming every day was the highlight of her time in Sutton! (In order to sound like Elizabeth, you have to make your voice rather nasal-ly and say "Aunt Anne" rather quickly, loudly, and very, very frequently! I don't recall her saying just Anne, it's always "Aunt Anne! Aunt Anne!")

Elizabeth began swimming independently (no vest!) E and I were at the pool at Oglebay and she said that she wanted to take off the vest to which I said sure. She jumped in and swam right over to me without hesitation. She never looked back at wanting that vest. A couple of days later when Reid was able to join us at Oglebay we surprised him when she jumped in and swam to me without her vest! She is truly remarkable!

Reid and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary! :-)

Late in the month I discovered that removing the wallpaper in the dining room wasn't going to be the complete headache that I was anticipating it to be...the exorcism began!

Reid began tearing up the bricks on the side of the back side "lot" at our house to make way for a small spot where we can get some grass growing to eventually put in a playground for Elizabeth.

AUGUST - My pregnancy was going well and we were able to breathe a bit easier with that!

We took Elizabeth to Idlewild for a day of fun. (I went along basically to serve as Reid & Elizabeth's personal photographer as being pregnant you aren't allowed on any of the rides.) Idlewild was great fun, but I cannot recommend it to anyone who is in the family way...

Elizabeth went off the diving board by herself! She was amazing!!!

We took Nana with us as we made our annual Amos family visit to "the Big City" of Washington, D.C. to spend some quality time with Rikki & Doug. Each year we take in the National Zoo -- the giant pandas remained Elizabeth's favorite. This year's trip was made even more special (Reid would say by his continuing bro-mance with Doug) with the celebration of Rikki & Doug's impending nuptials with a bridal shower in honor of Rikki! My favorite moment from the shower was when Rikki, with the help of Elisa, started opening the picture quilt that Carol made for her...and everyone that was there just got up and started gathering around the quilt. Everyone was holding a part of it and pointing out pictures -- truly sweet! Some other brief highlights of our trip: Carol learned from her future son-in-law that the public begins on the other side of the front door of their house...and we learned that Doug especially loves the adult mac & cheese...

SEPTEMBER - Reid interviewed the legendary Jerry West at the Greenbrier while at the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting and Business Summit! Awesomeness!!!

We took Elizabeth to her first Mountaineer football game...I thought I could pass out from heat exhaustion! Seriously...I don't think I've even been that hot before -- the extra weight from the pregnancy didn't help matters! WVU beat "the bad guys" (from) Maryland 31-17!

We traveled to The Homestead for the wedding of Rikki Amos and Doug Eckstein on September 25th! On the drive over the mountains on Thursday evening, I don't believe I've ever seen the moon look so large...unfortunately a camera wasn't handy for me to snap a picture of it! I wasn't on my camera A-game on Thursday at all, as I forgot to put the SD card in before we headed over to Sam Snead's Tavern...I wouldn't make that mistake again! Over the next three days, I took more pictures than could be counted. Elizabeth became instant friends with Lexi and Stella! After the rehearsal we all enjoyed getting to hang out at the Presidents Lounge (the boys enjoyed hanging out a wee bit more on the front porch...and raided the kitchen...and eventually retired at 4AM!), the wedding was simply beautiful and touching, we danced for hours at the reception...and before heading home, Elizabeth went bowling for the first time -- and even bowled a strike under the tutelage of Doug!

OCTOBER - We completed the dining room make-over (aka exorcism!) We love the room now (as opposed to cringing with the hideous 80's flowered wallpaper and border)!

We had a great time at my 20-year high school reunion! (20 years?!? Man, I'm old!) Everyone continues to Blame Palmer...some things, I guess, will never change!

We thoroughly enjoyed the time we had with the Perrys (Kristin, William, & Greer) as they were able to make the time to come to West Virginia during their trip to the US from Berlin! My friendship with Kristin is so incredible -- that we can have a great time doing nothing exciting (well at least "going Krogering" isn't exciting for me, but Kristin is excited to shop when she's in America as we have so much crap on our store shelves!) Reid took William out to golf with some of his buddies, who were all charmed by his Scottish wit! Elizabeth and Greer became great friends, too! It was especially fun to get to share my last big ultrasound with Kristin, who is preggers too (with an Alpha Gam legacy!)

Elizabeth dressed as Jessie from Toy Story 3 for Halloween! Nana, of course, was once again to thank for her over-the-top costume!

NOVEMBER - We were anxiously awaiting the arrival of Baby Cate...who gave us a "scare" that she would come sooner than expected. We quickly learned the efforts that people (not just family members) would go through to help us welcome our baby!

Reid and Elizabeth went to the Wheeling Christmas parade and got prime seating thanks to Bill & Debby Koegler!

We feasted at Thanksgiving (seriously feasted!) and were delighted to host Grandma (who had come to stay with us until some time after the arrival of Baby Cate), Nana, Papa, Rikki & Doug. We feasted (did I say seriously feasted?) on turkey (highly recommend brining the bird!), mashed potatoes, stuffing, oyster casserole, corn pudding, green beans, rolls, pumpkin pie, peanut blossom cookies, and Pilgrim hat cookies.

DECEMBER - Victoria Catherine Amos arrived at 11:00 AM kicking off the month and rounding out a quite perfect year! After all of the issues I had experienced the previous two years, we have felt additionally blessed with the addition of Cate! She brings us such joy!!!

Although we were most saddened with the news of the fire that destructed the Koegler's home, we were happy that no one was home at the time of the incident, no one was harmed...and happy to be a part of the group of friends that helped set them up in their temporary residence (before the real temporary residence) shortly before Christmas. Wheeling is a wonderfully friendly place to live and this effort was a testament to the people we have had the good fortune of meeting in our brief time here!

We celebrated the end of the year at Christmas getting to introduce Cate to her family and rang in the new year with just the four of us -- watching the ball in NYC's Times Square drop with Dick Clark doing the countdown.

2010 was a truly awesomely great year!

Kitchen - nearly done

After 30-ish hours of painting (including all of the freaking primer that had to go up!), not to mention the multiple "vacation" days that I took off from work...we got the kitchen into a pretty good state. We still need to do the countertops - and the pressed tin ceiling - and fix the damaged tiles, but things look much, much better than when we started!

Kitchen project - part deux

So I took Monday as a "vacation" day so that I could spend some quality time in the kitchen. All I have to say (well not exactly all I have to say...since I do have a Blog to keep, after all!) is THANK GOD I HAVE AN EDUCATION!!!

I hurt all over!

There are some cracks in the floor - as a result of settling in a 94-year-old home. At some point, before the Dorthy Draper pink & green laminate flooring went down, a leveling compound was poured in strips over the cracked portion. Yesterday I chipped away at the leveling compound and did an initial scrubbing of the floor (from the entry of Elizabeth's playroom - across to the dishwasher and down to the entryway. It wasn't a Sue-Baby scrubbing, but a scrubbing nonetheless. I still have lots more scrubbing to do to get that section of the kitchen acceptable.

After work this evening, don't ask me why...I must be a glutton for punishment...I went back at it for a bit. When Reid got home from taping Coach Waialae's tv show, he got after it for a bit, too. Elizabeth is a wonder at running the shop vac!

Every muscle in my body hurts. No exaggeration. This is much worse than any preseason that I endured (sans injuries requiring surgery, of course!). I have blisters on my right thumb and the outside left part (near the knuckle) of my right index finger -- bad ones. My fingers are swollen - right hand worse than the left. And for some bizarre reason, the top part of my left foot is swollen (yes, that is the same foot as the ankle reconstruction, but I doubt those two are related.)

We're nearly done at the chipping away of the leveling compound so that the additional scrubbing can commence. Then we'll need to figure out what to do with the areas where there is wood - as there is a different, larger floor plan for the current kitchen from its 1915 layout. We will need to figure out what needs done to repair the problem areas - cracks, bad tiles, etc. Will also need to figure out whether or not this floor is worth keeping or whether or not we need to look for a replacement.

Calling Bob Villa...

Kitchen - minor face lift

Although we love our home, I don't think it has been any secret of how much we hate the kitchen. With its carpeted floors -- how unsanitary, older cabinets, and hideous wallpapered walls (throw back to the "step bitch" - there must have been one heck of a sale in 1989 of this crap!)

Here is a picture of me assessing the situation on the day we toured homes in Wheeling. Wondering whether or not I could live with a kitchen like this. One that didn't have a dishwasher (gasp!) and with a small refrigerator. And the carpet...

Sadly, not much has changed since this photo was taken. We've added a new refrigerator - moving the other one to the basement. We added a dishwasher - as I couldn't live with dishpan hands. And all of the previous owners' nick-nacks are gone. On the cabinet that is in front of me in the picture is where my KitchenAid stand mixer has been - and my TV. Other than that, what you see is what you get.

I've been back and forth in my head as to what colors I should paint in there. I had settled on Benjamin Moore Million Dollar Red for the cabinets (as I would never do something so HGTV crazy as to paint kitchen cabinets, but we're being sensible and waiting until the house in Fairmont sells before really renovating the kitchen!), Benjamin Moore Wheeling Neutral for the walls, and a white trim that as closely as possible matches the trim in Elizabeth's play room.

Until....

Yesterday, Reid and Nick, a nice young man who is a freshman on West Liberty's basketball team, started the demo work on the floor!

The carpet was glued onto pink & green linoleum tile (think Dorthy Draper & the Greenbrier pink & green), which had adhesive and leveling compound under that, which has the original 1915 hexagonal gray marble tile with a pattern of green flowers & white centers. (Now I'm totally at a loss for what colors to use when I get to painting - all ideas are welcomed!) But for now, we'll be dealing with the floor to restore as much of them as possible, we hope! If not, we'll at least be down to the lowest level of flooring to put something on top of them...

What were Elizabeth & I doing during much of this demo work, you might ask. Aside from me getting a sunburn, we were planting tulips and crocuses in the front walk way of our house. I planted a few crocuses in two of the planters in back of the house (that are against the garage). I finished clipping the irises (dang perennials that require work in the off-season -- this isn't basketball!). I removed the mint that was in the landscaped area next to the driveway (and trust me this was enough mint for the Kentucky Derby!). I will be planting tulips and crocuses in some of that landscaped area, but Elizabeth wasn't being as mindful at that point, so we had to go in back of the house where she could be gated in.

Later in the evening, Elizabeth was "allowed" to help. She is so excited to help get to use the tools it's not really even describable!

So, this is basically the end of one long day's work. We are still trying to figure out what we can do in certain areas (like in the back wall of the kitchen, the tile stops, but a previous owner added the width of 10 boards when the kitchen was expanded at one time...and there is wood, too, in front of the sink where the tile ended in an odd area...not to mention that the cabinets were put over the Dorthy Draper tiles...)

Still lots to be done so that Elizabeth can realize her dream of wearing socks and skating on the kitchen floor.

Hail Wheeling!

I told Reid last evening that the deer must have had a great feast on the hydrangea bushes in the front of our house. The hydrangeas were chewed to shreds!

Apparently we got out of Wheeling at the right time. On Tuesday, July 21st, a hailstorm lasting for more than 30 minutes hit Wheeling. Our next door neighbors, Jim & Marie (the greatest neighbors in the world) phoned to make sure we knew to look over our property. The pictures they took of the aftermath showed hail stones from very small to nearly the size of golf balls.

Here is a picture that someone in the area snapped of the storm (no idea who or where):


I guess the deer didn't have a feast after all.

So, after talking with Jim & Marie, we set about to inspecting around our home. Fortunately, no major issues with the house. A few vents were dinged. Some paint was chipped off the house (not good, but it could be worse.) All of the stained glass is intact. Even the glass-topped patio tables are free of damage. The landscape lights show indentations, one is cracked on the top.

I started taking pictures of things like the landscape lights, the plants (I know that is hostas pictured and not the hydrangeas!) -- pictures that could help us should we need them for insurance...

The greatest damage was done to Elizabeth's table. (Doesn't she really look pathetic?) To make matters worse -- Elizabe th inspected her "colors" (colored chalk) and noticed that the lid to one of the containers wa s cracked (gasps!) She insisted that I take a picture of this, too!

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful to/for/about:

• That my Mom's MRI was negative - woo hoo! No surgery for Sue Baby!!!
  
• That the Lady Toppers are such good gals - they were great with Elizabeth when we had them over for dinner on Monday. E gave them all (I swear I think it was all of them) a tour of the house. It's easily done, mind you, when, "This is MY playroom. This is MY kitchen. This is MY dining room. This is MY bathroom. This is MY crib. This is MY bedroom. (Girls would ask if that was her "big-girl's bed" in HER bedroom - E would say, "No that's Grandma's bed.") This is MY bedroom." (The girls would say that was an awfully big bed for HER bedroom and E would say, "Well, that's Mommy & Daddy's bed.") Thankfully the girls went along with the tour...and E didn't take them to the 3rd floor...or surprisingly the basement.
• Reid - who brought me flowers...so sweet!
• Pat White - for being the greatest player to ever wear the Mountaineer uniform in my lifetime! What a privilege it has been to watch him play for WVU!
• My scrapbook space...plugging along on the next installment of Elizabeth's scrapbook...not to mention E's rockin' birthday party invites!
  
• Kennedy - who keeps my feet warm when they get cold - without a whimper! She's the sweetest little puppy ever!
• Elizabeth - who just continually cracks me up. You must hear her read "The Monster at the End of this Book: Starring Lovable, Furry, Old Grover" to herself. It's priceless! In addition to, at times, testing the waters to call me "Jennie" then saying "Is that your name, Mommy?"...she's taken to sometimes calling Reid "Sweetness."
• The ability to work from home! I get soooo much done...
  

And a partridge in a pear tree...

I've been oooohhh so bad about blogging in December - and just when I've been telling some folks on my also tardy Christmas cards that I "keep" a blog. If it gets much worse, I'll be in Reid's territory for the number of blog posts in a month...

We've had a whirl-wind December, but it has been so much fun! I was proud to have been in Mountaineer Field for Pat White's last game in Morgantown - despite the f-f-f-freezing cold conditions! After much debate, we decided not to go to the bowl game :-( as we didn't want to travel the day after Christmas. Good thing, as Reid is nearly over his cold...E has a bad one (we wouldn't have taken her, but wouldn't want to be away from her when she's not feeling well)...and I am just now able to breathe with the cold that I'm fighting. It didn't help matters that yesterday, while shopping at Rite-Aid for some Zicam to help with what ails me, I bought some Zicam...got it home to Mom & Daddy's...cracked it open and swabbed it up my nose. It burned like Hell. I thought that may be strange as to why it burned so much. Then I took a second look at the box...I had purchased Zicam for Cold Sores. That could explain a lot.

We have the absolute best neighbors! If the folks in Fairmont think that they are in the "Friendly City," they must reconsider. Wheeling has that beat with our neighbors alone. (Also, please keep in mind that with the number of years we were on Coleman Ave in Fairmont, one set of folks in our neighborhood would be considered friends, another at least spoke to us, the rest would look at me like I had three heads when I spoke to them.)

Anyway, back to the nicest neighbors in the entire world, Marie & Jim...in November, Marie told me that there was a little elf in the neighborhood that liked to visit small children and the elderly during the Christmas season and asked if it would be alright if the elf visited Elizabeth. Me being, well...me, thought that Marie was talking about a little person that dressed up in tights and curly shoes and visited the children in the elder to make for some nice Christmas cheer. I told Marie that it would be fine, but that Elizabeth would likely be scared (as she is scared of just about everything!) Silly me, Marie & Jim are "The Elf!" On December 1st, they hung a stocking on our back door with a wrapped present in the stocking for Elizabeth. Then each morning, Elizabeth would hang the stocking on the door...at some point during the afternoon, The Elf would drop a present in the stocking for Elizabeth until Christmas. (And to think I was looking for an advent calendar!) Here are the 24 days of Christmas, the Elf of Wheeling style:

1. Miniature tree with trimmings
2. Little People on the Farm look & find book
3. My Friends Tigger & Pooh paint with water book
4. Tootsie Rolls in a bank with $1
5. Bubble Yum watermellon chapstick
6. Santa cup, bowl, and plate
7. Snow shovel (the tag said, "To: Daddy's Little Helper")
8. Peeps shaped like gingerbread men
9. Get Ready Santa lift-the-flap book
10. Animal crackers
11. Tweety Bird bag
12. Fleece blanket
13. Puppy puzzle
14. Rice Crispy Treats (in holiday colors of red and green, of course!)
15. Sesame Street At the Zoo book
16. Reindeer candy corn
17. Three pair of gloves
18. Santa night light
19. Baby blanket with a doll sewn on it (perfect size for the car ride home!)
20. M&Ms in a candy cane
21. The Land Before Time book
22. Two Hello Kitty headbands
23. Teddy Grahams
24. Baby doll

How cool is that? It made Elizabeth's first Christmas in Wheeling so special! Marie & Jim have made us feel so welcomed, too, from only a few hours - literally - after we moved in! We are so lucky!

We've had a great Christmas! We celebrated Rick & Carol's 41st anniversary on the 23rd shortly after Rikki & Doug got to Fairmont. We did Christmas Eve and morning with the Amoses in Fairmont. Elizabeth was a really, really good girl and got a faboo play kitchen, among many other things. (Must download pictures before I can post pictures...will do so soon!) Then later in the day we packed up the car and headed to Webster Spring to celebrate with my family. Got to Aunt Cathy's house just in time for dinner. It's always a good time when the Morton clan gets together! Yesterday evening we headed back to Sutton to spend a little more time with my folks. We had a great time watching the Mountaineers today - as Pat White became the only QB in football history to win four straight bowl games as a starter beating UNC in the Meineke Car Care Bowl - no question the best player in a Mountaineer uniform in my lifetime! Oh how he will be missed!!! Then we kicked the tail of Ohio State on the road in basketball. It is a great day to be a Mountaineer - wherever you may be!

Merry Christmas to all...and to all a good night!

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful to/for/about:

• That we've found a good pediatrician...and that we trusted our instincts that something was wrong with Elizabeth even after the fever had broken. (E got a fever late Saturday, had it off & on Sunday - it was worse in the evening/night than it was during the day...ditto on Monday - it was really at its worst on Monday night when she had a fever of 104. The fever was gone on Tuesday, but we still took her to the doctor. Despite not showing any signs that her ears were bothering her, she has infections in both ears - plus her tonsils are inflamed as a result of the ear infections. She's all drugged up (I'll get to that in a minute) taking amoxicillin, Zyrtec, Motrin, and Tylenol.)
• Motrin - it makes a kid very, very sleepy. In fact, she's asleep right now! (8:30 pm - might be a new record).
• That Anne, Sean, and Alex are driving home right now. I miss them all terribly. We're going to have a great weekend - making apple butter at the Lazy W (Sean's parents' farm), there is a Halloween street parade on Saturday ("I be Wonder Woman [for] Halloween!"), and just some quality time with Grandma & Papi. It stinks that Reid won't be able to join us - we'll really miss him!
• My scrapbook space - thanks to my great space, I've been able to do quite a bit of scrapbooking. I'm up to Halloween (albeit 2006)
• Boo at the Zoo - Olgebay's Good Zoo, that is. When Elizabeth & I were waiting on Reid to get to Olgebay, I was telling her we were at the zoo and were going to get to see some animals. She said, "No we not. Where's Rikki?" Elizabeth was quite scared during the train ride and thereafter. I got a bit of a workout as a result, carrying her from the time we got off the train (that was the second stop for us at the Boo at the Zoo) until she was safely buckled into her car seat. Thankfully we rode the train while there was still a little bit of daylight - would have been absolutely tragic otherwise! We had fun, though! What a nifty event at Olgebay! The Charlie Brown & Lucy light set where Charlie tries to kick the football was lit - the other lights are being put out. I can't wait for Elizabeth to see the Christmas lights at Olgebay! I'll be thankful then for my GPS, so we can avoid Olgebay when going up to West Lib, unless we're wanting to see the lights...
• TV shows that I love - Top Design, Mad Men, Grey's Anatomy (which I'll be taping tonight so that I was watch the Mountaineers!) Speaking of Top Design - Eddie Ross, my fav because he's such a smart ass, talented as hell, and is the Senior Style Editor of Martha Stewart Living (go figure why I adore him so!) has a Blog. I've added him to my Blog Crushes.
• And that the Mountaineers were victorious tromping Auburn tonight - 34 - 17! Go Mounties!!!
  

Thankful Thursday

Today I am thankful for/to/about:

• That Elizabeth at least gets "something" from me. I may regret this one later, though. Here's how I know my kid is related to me (because she sure does look an awful lot like her Daddy!): Yesterday morning while she was eating her breakfast, she smacked both of her hands to her head and said, "What - the - hell?" To which I said, "Elizabeth, you can't say that." In all seriousness, she looked at me and replied, "I just did." I guess this means when I relinquish my title, she will be known as The Mouth of the South!
• That I'm taking a few days off next week - tired of work at the moment...we're going to DC to stay with Rikki & Doug in their new house...and taking Elizabeth (and Nana) to the National Zoo - woo hoo!
• That I'm done, at least for the moment, with my expense report from the Annual Meeting - one trip ~ 7 days + 2 currencies (yes, 2 types of math) = not a good time.
• That Erin came to Wheeling for a visit and got to see our house...I'm still so in love with it! (Check back after I begin dealing with the hideous wall paper situation...)
• Mad Men - just a well-written show on TV...helps me get through until Grey's is back on in the fall...
• XM radio in my car...which means Air America Radio all the time (that Elizabeth isn't in the back seat saying, " I want 'Ginia, Mommy!")...and Air America Radio putting The Young Turks back on for my morning drive.
• My folks & Reid's folks for their generous gifts for our anniversary...got our patio furniture with the cash...and we're loving being outside to eat in the evenings!
• The MLB trade deadline is over...and that Manny is staying put...now if only he will kiss & make up - GOOOOO SOX!!!!

What the F*#K????

Seriously, what the F??? Who in the F writes on the front of MY house in BALL POINT PEN??? Are you F-ing kidding me???

Are the "good folks" at the USPS that over worked that they have to mark up my house in ball point F-ing pen on my F-ing house in order to remember that we are the only F-ing people to live here???

I'll post happier thoughts when I've cooled off a bit... GRRRR!

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful for/to/about:

• Cards that make me giggle - like our Anniversary card from Anne, Sean, & Alex. Touché!
• My scrapbook space - it is shaping up, but I haven't yet gotten it to the point where I'm able to scrapbook...soon, I hope!
• Erin letting me crash at her place on Tuesday evening...and the yummy Thai noodles lettuce wraps! I am so about stealing that recipe!!!
• Catching up on missed TV shows on http://www.surfthechannel.com/ (thanks, EJ (assist from JP) for the hook-up!!!)
• The best hugs from Elizabeth when we picked her up from daycare today! "Mommy & Daddy you came and picked me up!"
• TV in my kitchen...
• In-laws that come to visit - and fix things!
• Clothes chute that help me stay on top of the laundry (who would have ever guessed that one?)
• EBay finds - I just got confirmation that my newest cookbook has been shipped - Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cookbook (illustrations by Andy Warhol) - oooh...ahhhh....

Happy Anniversary

Today Reid & I celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary. It was a rather difficult one. Not because of our relationship with each other - that is great (unless there is something you need to tell me, Sweetness...) But, today was Elizabeth's first day in Day Care. Like we were told, it would be harder on us than it would be on her.

Elizabeth faired well. She passed on the beef-a-roni for lunch - and who in their right mind could blame her? But she did eat all of her green beans and peaches. She also ate all of her snack which was animal crackers and yogurt. She only took a 30 minute nap - not a shock to us, but I believe the other 2-year-olds take 2+ hours in a nap. She "played with the kids" and "played on the playground." She cried a whole big bunch when we came to pick her up. She wanted to stay and play. For dinner, she is insisting on sitting at the "big table" and to drink from a regular cup - not a sippy cup. She is inhaling her food right now as I type. She is still a little excited from her big day. When she took too big of a bite of rice than could fit in her mouth, she spilled more than she shoveled in. Then she said, quietly I might add, "Kennedy, come here. I need your help." Then she proceeded to feed her the rice she dropped in her lap. I was too busy trying not to laugh to play Amy Vanderbilt and correct the poor table etiquette.

Nana & Papa were her this weekend and helped out a TON around the house. Rick and Reid fixed the gate. Carol, Elizabeth, and I weeded in the back "yard." They got us a lot of gardening tools (Reid & I skipped out on the horticulture class - if there ever was such a thing) and attempted a crash course at what are weeds and what needs trimmed/watered/nurtured. I thought Mother Nature was doing a fine job...and to prove me right, it rained a bit yesterday afternoon and cooled things off.

Thank goodness for the rain as we had a power outage for 4+ hours last evening. We uncovered candles...and Reid's headband flashlight (saucy!)...and played a wee bit of Trivial Pursuit. I think the score was tied when the power came back on. Circulating air never felt so good - and we called it quits with the game to just enjoy AC and the ceiling fans.

Here are a few pics from the weekend that I was going to post yesterday, but lost the post in the power outage and the computer losing battery power...

E playing with her new sprinkler...Diego got lonely as E was perplexed with his spinning action...Nana, what's on your shirt? Water perhaps?..."Slick" Rick earning his nickname & Reid at work...Can it get any better than silky 'jamas & a popsicle? Elizabeth doesn't think so!

Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful for/to/that:

• be working from my beautiful new home in Wheeling (come and visit us, please!)
• Elizabeth has excellent manners - and often says "Ganks, Mommy/Daddy/Grandma/Papi/Nana/Papa..."
• Comcast finally came to our beautiful new home in Wheeling (come and visit us, please!) and installed our Internet and cable so that Reid didn't have to break his foot off in somebody's [bleep] - or that his "less rational wife" didn't have to deal with the not-so-good-folks at Comcast
• despite me literally kicking my "Sweet Baby Girl" Kennedy out of the bed during our last night at Coleman Avenue, she still loves me dearly and wants to be right next to me all of the time - which she currently is! (Explanation of the literal kicking out of the bed - I was, for starters, exhausted - see my previous post referencing the meeting from Hell - and note this was the night that I came home. Then, you may need to note that Reid was sleeping in the middle of our bed, serious bed-hog Elizabeth (who was happy to see me after my being in Toronto for a week) was in between Reid and me...I was on a sliver of the bed, nearly falling off the edge. I went to move, and figured that Kennedy would be on the wide open space of the other 1/2 of the king size bed - on the other side of Reid. Naturally, she was not. She, too, had missed me after I had been in Toronto for a week. She was at my feet. I went to move. I kicked Kennedy. All I could see were her sweet little paws and this very puzzled look on her face as she slid off the bottom of our very high onto the hard wood floor. She landed on her right hip. She's been limping a bit since. Poor Sweet Baby Girl!)
• the best family ever! My folks kept Elizabeth this week, until we came back to Wheeling - including driving her back up to Fairmont so I didn't have to go all of the way to Sutton to get her. Anne, Sean, & Alex served as high entertainment and play friends as well. (Exception would be when Sean tried to get Elizabeth to feed one of Charlie's horses - she still says, "No I not feed the horses!" She does, at least, recall feeding the chickens fondly, "They ate all the corn!" And I have a sneaking suspicion that Aunt Anne had her hands in the painting of her fingernails - a much bolder color than anything I have ever seen on Grandma!) My awesome in-laws - not only provided me a comfy place to sleep, but yummy food - and good entertainment of the Home Run Derby & All Star Game (neither of which Reid had!) Talking with Jake as he walked through the house yesterday giving me his impressions and opinions on what we should do in each room - and then I got a little giggle to myself as I heard him say "Oooh. Nutty Bars."
• Mermaid Man & Barnacle Boy on Sponge Bob for entertaining E at the moment...
• Sporty Baby Golf DVD - because, trust me when I say this - her swing looks unbelievable sweet for her 2-1/2 years of age...great turn, keeping her eye on the ball, makes good contact with the ball. Reid can see a college scholarship in her future. (I did have to hold him back last night, literally, from giving her tips - perhaps a wee bit premature on that!)
• batteries in the most annoying of toys don't last forever ;-)
• Snapfish - so I can share pictures and receive pictures from friends and family - totally loving Aunt Cathy's album from today!
• PhotoShop as I can do this (still a work in progress so that the lighting on Kennedy doesn't look like she was sitting in the living room and not with the three of us...which, of course, she was!):
• My DH & DD:

Gone, But Not Forgotten

I say: Hello. My name is Jennie. It has been nearly two months since my last post.

You say: Hello, Jennie.

Well, I've done it. I've pulled a Reid - in not posting to my Blog in what seems like forever. Let's just suffice it to say that I have been a little preoccupied.

Since my last entry:

• We celebrated Father's Day...
• Aunt Anne celebrated a birthday...Elizabeth sang
• Reid celebrated a birthday...Elizabeth sang "Happy Birthday" a lot - except for when there was a birthday candle. Then she obsessed "Blow it out. Daddy burn his finger" while remembering that Alex had burnt his finger with his 1st birthday candle.
• Mom/Grandma had a birthday...Elizabeth sang some more... (I'm still behind in my shopping, if you can believe that!)
• I've survived the Annual Meeting from Hell - the attendees all thought it went swimmingly well, which is all good, but here's the brief low down on why the 2008 Annual Meeting will go down in infamy: 1.) a flood in the back of our registration counter, 2.) Christian got sick - really sick and had to spend 2.5 days holed up in his room, 3.) a fire in the same room where the flood had been, 4.) Marvin passed out at the bottom of an escalator and folks watched him ride it up to the next level...he was taken to the emergency room where he was treated for a virus and dehydration, 5.) Megan went out of commission - sick, shaking, unable to sleep...need I go on??? Some pretty funny stories, actually, and fortunately everyone managed to survive...
• The day (yes, that's right sports fans - the day) after my return from Toronto, the moving truck arrived...and we packed it up on Friday & Saturday AM...and it pulled out for a MOVE to Wheeling...
• We (and by "we" I mean we had a lot of help - from Nana & Papa watching Elizabeth...and giving Reid, E, me, and my folks a place to sleep, my folks, Anne, Jeff Creamer & his buddy that I met for the first time, Herb Minch, Mike Wehler (another lovely 'gent I met for the first time), Scott Cook (ditto), and Dave Flatley (and ditto), Dan Hopkins (ditto again), and two of West Lib's football players, whose names I didn't catch, but I will most definitely be cheering for this fall (like I wasn't going to anyway...even when they play my Bobcats!) - I certainly hope I haven't forgotten anyone as we were so very fortunate to have all of their help!!!) WE moved an entire truck load of stuff from Fairmont to Wheeling...then
  Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, Mom, Reid, Elizabeth, and I unpacked...Jeff helped Reid move more stuff around - or out...
• On Wednesday I drove (95 miles from driveway to door) to Morgantown for work...I worked the remainder of the week...went to Mom & Daddy's for the weekend (after giving the new yet eerily old Gabes in Clarksburg a little lovin')...then have been back in the office this week...will finally get back to Wheeling on Wednesday night.
• Reid is going to "go Jennie crazy" on the not-so-good folks at Comcast if we don't have our cable and Internet installed today. I'm not kidding. Today on the phone with the not-so-good folks at Comcast he told them if the situation wasn't rectified by the close of business today that they would have to (and I quote) "deal with my wife, who is much less rational in situations like this than I am." I may be setting up a Pay Pal account to help with the funds to bail him out. I cannot understand why on earth it is so darned difficult to get someone to show up at your house when you have an appointment scheduled to hook up a little cable for Internet and cable. How on earth are people supposed to survive without TV? Or the freakin' Internet? (Fortunately for us, there is someone in the neighborhood that has an unsecured network - crazy, I know, but it has been slow but helpful!)

And to conclude this most random of posts, a few pictures of Elizabeth & Alex that make me giggle!

E riding "Big Pink" at the Belmont Stakes

E obsessing over her Daddy's birthday candle and refusing to sing "Happy Birthday" for the first time in days

E (2.5 years) & Alex (13 mo.) playing at Grandma & Papi's this past weekend

my svelte nephew

House Shopping

Reid, Elizabeth, and I toured 6 homes with our realtor on Sunday.

The first one was an older home that I had mentally moved my stuff into. Seriously. I knew exactly where I was going to put the Christmas tree...and the TV in the living room. In the pictures with the listing, it was stunning. I had concerns, mentally moving in of course, about how my dining room furniture was going to fit in the octagonal-shaped (yes, octagonal) dining room...and the kitchen looked small. But I was loving the look of the place online. Then we went there on Sunday. The living room, dining room, kitchen, terrace, and back yard did not disappoint. Beautiful. Then we went up stairs. WOW those were some tiny rooms. I was then mentally moving my Christmas tree into our faculty house on West Liberty's campus. Closet space wasn't good, but I don't expect it to be good in an old home. (And I love old homes!) I didn't, however, expect that two of the bedrooms (house has 4 bedrooms) would be so small that you could only fit a twin-sized bed and a small dresser in them. The master bedroom in that house is smaller than what we have in Fairmont. So, we moved on...

Then we were "treated" to a trip down Mike Brady's lane. A house built and last decorated in 1977 and one built in 1910 and last decorated in whatever year wood panelling would have been in fashion. Lots of freshly vacuumed shag carpet to go around both places.

Then we saw our house!

Built in 1915, it oozes charm. Warm and inviting. Stained glass windows in the entry, LR, DR, landing to 2nd floor, and family room. BIG closets (walk-in in the master BR, big one in Elizabeth's room, 3 regular-sized ones in the 3rd floor bedroom). Lots of extra storage in the garage and potential for lots of storage in the basement. There are 5 fireplaces in the house, but at the moment I can only recall where 3 of them are (LR, DR, master BR). The kitchen is sizable, but will need some work (although workable in the interim.) The downside is that there is only one bath, but it is a really, really nice one. There is a clothes chute (3rd floor, 2nd floor, main floor in the kitchen) all helping with the nasty chore of laundry (that neither Reid or I are fans of that task.) The family room is great - not too big, not too small - and just off of the kitchen. It will be the perfect place for Elizabeth to play while I'm in the kitchen. There are built-ins...two small seating areas on either side of the fireplace in the LR (pictured at left)...and two sets of bookcases/displays on either side of the entryway into the DR (pictured below right). There is a wonderful work-bench area for Reid so he can continue his tinkering with golf clubs. (Not that he doesn't already have a great work-bench for that task - he and Papa built one a few years ago.) But, ooh la la there is a rockin' scrapbook area for me!!! (Nice L-shaped built in area in the basement opposite of Reid's work-bench for me to catch up on my scrapbooking!) Coincidentally, it was the least expensive of the 6 homes we toured.

Then the rest of the house shopping was a bit of a blur as we couldn't stop thinking about the possibilities of that house.

We toured two more homes. One of which was very charming on the outside, but rather vanilla on the inside. (When it wasn't vanilla it was bordering on tragic.) The last home was huge, but I would need to either leave bread crumbs or hope my GPS unit could help me find my way around it. Not that I would need to GPS to help me find my way because of the size of the home, but rather the layout. It was like the architect was either mad or drunk...or both.

We put in an offer on Monday. The offer was accepted on Tuesday.

Wow! That was so much faster than what I anticipated it would be to house shop, put in a bid, and have the bid accepted. But what the hell do I know, I've never bought a house before...until now!

House shopping

So Jake was in town yesterday...and he, Reid & I went house shopping. Saw one with some promise...

Jake & Reid are initially more excited than I am...I'm looking at the kitchen and thinking "ugh."

But, God bless Sweetness, he and Jake did find an old home for me - built in 1925. Has surprisingly good closet space. Lots on windows (with custom storm windows). Nifty old house features (like a fold-out ironing board in the kitchen -- that I would convert into something like a message center...). Beautiful fireplace in the LR. 5 bedroom, 2.5 baths - which would give us ample space for Reid's office and enough bedrooms...

We'll see...

Speaking of Jake - thank God he was visiting us yesterday. On the way home from the golf course on Saturday, the heat gauge in Sweetness' wheel went off...some clamp broke and some hose got a little melted hole in it...(can you tell when I tuned them out???) Anyway, 3 trips to the part store later - Jake gave the Explorer some much-needed lovin'.