It (should be fun to play hoop) at the YMCA

Yes, it should be fun to play hoop at the YMCA, but there is an annoying little ball hog on Elizabeth's team...and his dad is their "coach" (if you can call the guy who's only coaching tip all freaking season -- no exaggeration here -- came AFTER his son, who's actually a year older than all of the Kindergarteners, mind you, fouled one of his own teammates to take the ball so he could shoot it...the "coach" told his kid to move closer to shoot. Not, "Hey, son. Don't freaking foul your own teammate. Pass the ball every once in a while. You might want to learn how to dribble..." Nada.)

We endured 5 weeks of YMCA hoops. Would have enjoyed it much, much more if E didn't ask why the kid, who will remain nameless to protect his innocence, never had to come out of the game (when they had 9 players show up on more than one week), why the kid, who will remain nameless, never passed the ball -- especially when she wanted to be like the Toppers and pass to her teammates (I know, this will serve her well in the years to come! Makes her former point guard Mama proud!)... Yes, there were 6 weeks in the season. Yes, I was sooooo annoyed, I had no remorse in blowing off the last week of the YMCA Winter League to take Elizabeth to Charleston for the WVIAC Tournament - where she was fortunate enough to participate in the Youth Basketball Clinic that the coaches put on...and where she learned more in a 2-hour clinic than she did in 5 weeks of basketball at the Y.

She's becoming a rather proficient dribbler and a very good passer. Her shot has good form for a kid her age. Most importantly, she likes to play! :-)

2011 Year In Review

What a year 2011 has been! Fun and eventful...memorable...frustrating and precious...some times all in the very same day!

Here's the year in review - Amos family style:

January - Elizabeth's 5th birthday was celebrated in Dr. Seuss style. It was a typical too-much-over-the-top party for our small gathering of Grandma & Papi, Nana & Papa, and the Koeglers. We had a lot of fun, though, so that's all that really matters. The West Liberty Hilltoppers men's basketball team was a highlight in the month - especially Elizabeth's favorite John Wolosinczuk! We tried like the dickens to get her to pose with him for a picture...he was such a good sport about it, too. We got a picture of John with Nana, John with Reid, and still no picture of Elizabeth and her all-time favorite baller... On the women's side of things, Elizabeth's favorite players continue to be Tori Hansen and Laura Malernee. Cate was growing and changing every day...and eating like a champ! She continued to nurse nearly every 2-3 hours -- if she was awake, she was hungry.

February - The Toppers' winning streak continued. The team is doing so well, Elizabeth has even started to cheer for some of the other guys on the floor (as opposed to turning her back on the action when John is on the bench!) She can tell you most of the players names by numbers - Corey Pelle #12; Barry Shetzer #24; Jordan Fortney #11; Alex Falk #22; Timmy (Hausfeld) #10; and of course, John Wolosinczuk #32 (but #1 in E's heart!) Still no luck in getting E to pose with John for a picture - Photoshop it is! John gave Elizabeth a Valentine's gift to which she was THRILLED (an autographed picture of him in action!) She gave him a valentine that she made. Elizabeth is just a funny kid...so glad she got my sense of humor! ;-) It may totally be worth revisiting my Blog post on the Ransom of Red Chief from February to better recount how this child cracks me up! Cate earned the nickname "Cranky Cate" as there were plenty of moments when she couldn't be consoled -- with no explanation. When she wasn't cranky, she was sweet and cuddly.

March - This month was all about Topper basketball! The team sealed up an undefeated regular season, and with that the WVIAC regular season title...and then the winning continued... They won the WVIAC Tournament - Corey Pelle won the Commissioner's Heart & Hustle Award and was All-Tournament; Barry Shetzer was named to the All-Tourney Team; as was Tim Hausfeld; and John - who was the MVP. Elizabeth, along with Cate, Grandma, and I went to Build-a-Bear Workshop where she made her "John Wolosinczuk Bear" (yes, that's what she named him - and I had to spell it a few times for the employee that was helping us) complete with the WVU shirt, denim skirt, and Hello Kitty undies. The Toppers hosted the regional tourney - and the winning continued. Corey Pelle and John Wolosinczuk were all-tourney again. Then I may have done the un-thinkable...I put Elizabeth and a nearly 3-month-old baby in the car (along with Grandma) and we drove to Springfield, MA, for the Elite 8. Cate was, for once, NOT cranky -- as she slept the entire 10+ hour drive. We only stopped once for gas, food, and a change. I really thought I would be in for it when we got to the hotel - that Cate would be awake for days, but she went right back to sleep. Elizabeth took much pride in going around the floor with her Daddy giving out the cookies that we made for the players - each got their own jersey and some chocolate chip cookies. (E insisted on making the cookies for the guys because "Timmy Eats Cookies" was on a sign at the WVIAC Tournament. She took it literally...sign was actually referring to Tim's guarding of "Cookie" Miller from WV State.) The Toppers made it to the Final Four before the perfect season came to an end. Corey Pelle was again named to the All-Tournament team.

April - Easter was fun when Cate was crying, which she did for most of the time at Nana's & Papa's. We were surprised with the news from Rikki and Doug that the Amos family would be getting a new edition due in late November! Elizabeth grew so quickly between the time I shopped for some of her clothes that were in her Easter basket to when she received these clothes that she literally only got one wear out of them - because Mommy & Daddy don't approve of the 'belly-shirt' look. Cate got an upper respiratory infection that required the "Willie Nelson" treatment - lots of smoke ;-) She's getting more active, too - rolling over, recognizing her hands and feet...and is now able to eat cereal, which is fed to her for the first time by Elizabeth.

May - Elizabeth declared that Mother's Day was "St. Mother's Day!" When she's not being such a sweetie, she is being quite the mental challenge for us (reference another Red Chief Blog post.) Elizabeth graduated from Pre-K. We were so lucky how her life was positively influenced by the good folks at Holy Family Child Care since we moved to Wheeling (next best thing to instruction by Nana or Grandma!) We especially adored her teachers for Pre-K, Miss Jenn and Miss Kelly! Alex turned 4 and we celebrated in Thomas the Train style -- quite easy and cute (if I do say so myself!) Cate continued to be cranky and sweet. Poor Reid had to walk the floors, nearly wearing a track on the finish on the hard wood as he paced the floors with a crying Cate on the evenings that I worked in Morgantown...until I got home and the crying would stop.

June - Getting that perfect 6 month baby on a quilt picture proved to be more of a challenge than it should have been...perhaps a sign of things to come from Miss Cate. Despite being a mama's girl, she said "Dada" first ;-) She also took to crawling this month. I survived an AACE Annual Meeting at Disneyland - barely. Not that there were issues with the conference...just that it was at the Mouse House. Blech.

July - Elizabeth loves to swim and took advantage of a dip in the water every time we could get her to the pool. She's becoming such a good swimmer...working on diving, but since she hasn't yet learned that patience is a virtue, she just wants to jump in and SWIM! Cate continues to reach milestones on or ahead of time -- sometimes at the most inconvenient of times... Elizabeth got to attend her first Red Sox game with Papi no less (HER Papi, not Baseball Papi - he was on the field...) Sox vs. Pirates, who were having a great season, making the Amoses quite happy (that would be Reid, Nana, & Papa...E was just all about backing a winner. For her first Sox game, she cheered for the team at the plate...and for Papi's & my sake, it was a great day as the Sox ended up on top!)

August - Summer at Holy Family for Elizabeth has come to an end. Where has the time gone...my baby is getting ready for Kindergarten! Elizabeth & I had a great Mommy-Daughter day shopping for school clothes...size 6-7 or 7-8 -- for a 5-1/2 year old in the 95th percentile in height...good luck finding a waist to fit! Cate went to her first baseball game -- the Pirates didn't fair so well as they lost to the Padres 5-15(!). Cate is taking a queue from her big sister as she loves the pool, too! She weaned herself from baby food this month and would only feed herself soft 'real-people' food. We still have quite a bit of baby food in storage...good thing it will keep for Baby Eckstein! We enjoyed our annual trip to D.C. -- a highlight continues to be the Giant Pandas at the National Zoo! We were at the National Cathedral - walking all over the place - exactly one week before the earth quake in D.C. that did some damage to the beautiful building.

September - Elizabeth started Kindgergarten in Mrs. Allen's class at Woodsdale Elementary! Cate finally had a reason for which to be cranky - she cut two teeth! She also stood unassisted. She's taken to cruising on the furniture. She is less cranky when she is being held by Mama -- or is able to hang out with her awesome big sister, Elizabeth, whom she adores!

October - The girls were the CUTEST kitty cats for Halloween -- thanks to Nana's handiwork! Elizabeth started playing a bit of basketball at the Y -- and loved it! After her first session, she declared that she was as good as John Wolosinczuk. (At least she doesn't lack for self confidence!) She also joined the Daisies and is really proud of the uniform vest. (I consider it a near miracle that I was able to get the iron-on stuff to actually stay on the vest and didn't have to engage Nana and her needle & thread!) We had great luck getting some good shots of the girls on a beautiful fall day at Oglebay... Cate started walking with 6 independent steps (10 months, 3 weeks, 3 days old.)

November - We started the month with a baby shower for Aunt Rikki in "the big city." We were so excited for the impending arrival of Baby Eckstein! I hit a freaking deer with my car. We found out that the big lump on Kennedy's back hip (only on one side) wasn't cancer or arthritis...but a fat deposit. (Reid loves telling everyone that, too!) Cate isn't helping Kennedy trim down either by throwing her food off her tray the very second she determines she is done eating. At the Wheeling Christmas parade, Elizabeth boxed out Sarah Koegler and a few kids -- when the reporter from Channel 9, Ali Myers, come over to our section of the bleachers and asked if anyone would like to be on TV. (Any question that she is Reid's kid??? Is it not enough that she look like him, but now she has taken to boxing out (well, that she got from me!) women and children to get on live TV!) The hand-held mic needed a new battery as they were filming...Elizabeth told Ms. Myers that she would wait. On take two, she was spot-on. Ali Myers asked her what she would like to say to Santa to which Elizabeth replied, "You can't talk to him, he's just flying on by..." Still needing a copy of that tape! Elizabeth got to participate in her first Little Hilltoppers Day at West Liberty - where she told me I was allowed to take 5 pictures and then I had to leave because this was all about her. (Isn't most everything???) Anne, Reid, & I had a magical evening the night of the WVU v. Pitt game -- great weather, good food, good libations, free Snuggies, good friends, and a big win! It was tough leaving the stadium that night - for us and many other Mountaineers who didn't want to see the end to the annual rivalry of the Backyard Brawl. We were so delighted to welcome Margaret Alisse Eckstein to the family on November 29, 2011, at 2:24 AM - she weighed 7 lbs., 1 ounce and was 20" long.

December - Cate turned 1 - the year seriously flew right past us!!! She loves to eat...loves the taste of my butter cream icing, but most definitely doesn't like the feel of it on her hands! She is walking all over the place and loves to climb stairs when we allow her to do so. The sale of the house in Fairmont became final (thank you, little infant baby Jesus!) I drove Nana (aka: "Driving Miss Daisy") to D.C. to meet Maggie. What a cutie! Reid was able to go the following weekend to meet his niece. (And, yes, he was jealous that I got to hold his niece before he was...) Elizabeth got her ears pierced. Mimi, our Elf on the Shelf, continued to do her magic by helping remind Elizabeth to be good. Elizabeth loved every one of her sleepovers this year with her cousin, Alex -- several this summer and fall...and right after Christmas. She is a great big sister -- making a big adjustment to everything being all about her to sharing time and parents with a cranky baby sister. We are so blessed to have two wonderful, happy (for the most part) children!!!

The Ransom of Red Chief

For some time now, I've been telling people who "threaten" to take Elizabeth home with them because she is so cute that it would be like the Ransom of Red Chief. They think I'm joking, but I'll let you be the judge:

• Sunday, January 16th - Reid, being a smart-ass, put the Catholic Mass service from Wheeling's Cathedral of St. Joseph service on the television. Elizabeth came downstairs from playing tea party in her bedroom and inquired, "Oh! We're staying home???" (Okay, I get it, this one isn't so bad...it's actually as if she was Jake's & my love child (it is West by God Virginia after all...) fast forward several years and I'm sure she'll enjoy watching service on TV while having "communion" (eating Italian bread, with a little butter, and drinking a bottle of wine!) Consider this one the warm-up for the next story...
• Monday, January 17th - Elizabeth's 5th birthday - Reid & E were playing on the Wii playing the boat racing game. Elizabeth lost the race to which she exclaimed, "What the Hell happened here?" Reid and Grandma quickly exchanged glances to ensure that they had actually heard her say what they thought they heard...Digging the hole a bit deeper, Elizabeth then says, "Jesus Christ, I lost!" When asked by Reid & Grandma what she said, Elizabeth explained, "I talkeded [sic] like a man!"
• Tuesday, January 18th - Elizabeth is obviously having a banner week at this point... I asked her to help me with dinner, she wasn't having any of that. She further wasn't thrilled about having to come to the dinner table for our family dinner - wanting instead to watch yet another episode of iCarly. She did as she was asked though...and upon my request, she called Grandma to the dinner table with, "Grandma, dinner's ready. Blah, blah, blah..."
• Monday, February 14th - Valentine's Day...actually, late night Valentine's night - 11PM - despite having been cuddling (aka wrestling with a jumping bean) for well over an hour and reading books, Elizabeth was not yet asleep. (That's not exactly news, just setting the stage...) I told Elizabeth to go upstairs to Mommy's & Daddy's bed and I'd be up in a minute. My throat is really sore (thanks to whatever bug that both Reid & Grandma have had), so I was making a cup of Russian Tea to take up with me. Just when I was about to go upstairs, I heard a little voice from the top of the stairs saying (but not so loud, for once, that she thought Mommy would hear), "Come on, Mommy, I don't have all day!"
• A while later we're still wrestling, I mean cuddling, in bed. I am continually telling her to stop fidgeting to which she responds, "But my heart keeps telling me to do it."

I'm still hoping that Red Chief will work up the courage to get her picture taken with her favorite basketball player, John Wolosinchuck, but for now this one will have to do (Disclaimer: Some objects in this picture may appear larger (E) or smaller (C) than in real life! And, John is a real sport for us trying to get E's picture with him!!!):

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thanful to/for/about:

• My funny Elizabeth (stories to follow!)


• My beautiful Baby Cate


• My fabulous and hard-working husband, Reid


• My over-the-top awesome Mom, who does my windows and laundry (among other things)


• My puppy, Kennedy, except when she whines every 45 minutes to go outside in this ridiculously cold weather

I'm thankful for a ton more, just couldn't remember when I did a Thankful Thursday post -- and we're getting ready to head out the door shortly to watch the #1 Hilltoppers, so it had to be a quicky!

Funny Elizabeth Stories:

When we were getting in the car from picking up dinner at Subway this evening, Elizabeth and I have the following conversation:

E: Mommy, when I'm bigger I'm going to have a boyfriend.

Me: Who is going to be your boyfriend?...Campbell (Koegler)???

E: Maybe...

Me: John Wolosinczuk???

E: Yes! After I break up with Campbell, it's going to be John Wolosinczuk!

I love how she is already planning for being a heart breaker!!!

When we pulled in the driveway this evening, she noticed the Ritzes in their kitchen and said that she could see her neighbor -- he was watching TV. I asked her if he was watching iCarly. E responded, "No, Mommy. Big people don't watch iCarly -- they watch the boring news!"

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!

Friday Funnies

A few funnies for this very busy Friday. (I'm so torn, do I watch the Olympic Opening Ceremonies or the WVU v. Pitt basketball game??? Olympics - live, WVU is recording...so I will have my cake & eat it too!)

Last night at the West Liberty basketball game, Elizabeth was enjoying a bit too much of her Valentine's candy when she thought it was a good idea to start sassing me. She was completely hopped, too, from having the Valentine's "celebration" at daycare. (She insisted it was going to be a celebration and NOT a party!) So she is sassing me and wagging her finger at me like Dikembe Mutombo as he blocked a shot...which, as you could imagine didn't go over really well with me. I told her to stop it and to, "Put that finger away." She replied, "But I don't have a pocket for it."

During the second half of the game as she was yelling for her favorite player, John Wolosinczuk, "Come on - boyfriend!"

On the ride home I asked her where she wanted to go to school - did she want to go to Wesleyan where Mommy went? Or to Fairmont where Daddy went? Or West Liberty? Or to WVU where both Mommy & Daddy went? Elizabeth said that she wanted to go to West Liberty and she wanted to play basketball AND football. "Football?" I asked. "Yeah, because I want to be a champion!"

She fell asleep this evening before the really good stuff on the Olympic Opening Ceremonies -- at 8:30 she was "Sleepy Time Down South" so the joke might actually be on me in the middle of the night!

Thankful Thursday

Today, I'm thankful to/for/about:

• My Mom - who is just a rock star. I miss her dearly but am so thankful for the time she was able to spend with us.
• Elizabeth's continued health. She's so amazing! She is all about smelling things these days - truly a new experience for her!
  
• The Amoses for coming to the Friendly City of Wheeling for Elizabeth's birthday...and Aqua Sand. The novelty has not yet worn off, so I'm thankful for that, too! (I'm not-so-thankful for Disney for still making crappy stuff -- as the arm from the replacement doll has broken...same way as the one she got from Santa. I hate Disney Store products!!!)
• The Koeglers for being fun to hang around with! Sorry, Campbell, that Elizabeth "had an accident with Spike." (She sat on the remote control for Spike the dinosaur, which turned him on and he started moving. To say that Cam isn't a fan of his remote-control dinosaur when he is on and not sleeping would be a great understatement!)
  
• The Toppers getting their quality win over A-B tonight -- and the Falcons for upsetting WV State in Fairmont. That combination puts the Toppers in 1st place in the conference.

Some Elizabeth funnies:

• Two days after E's surgery, Friday, January 22nd, we were watching the Haiti relief program on TV. She loves to dance and was ready to get down. I had given her a dose of hydrocodone just to "make sure" that she would be pain free for the night and would be able to get a quality night's rest. She eventually got the rest, but I'm pretty sure that the hydrocodone didn't play a big factor in it. She was so high off of the stuff it was the last dose we would give her. At 10:30 PM she said, "I don't need my undies on because I'm going to dance!" while she proceeded to strip nakey and dance.
• Tonight at the game, Elizabeth spotted a few girls that were dressed for the evening -- in a club, not so much for a basketball game. Regarding one girl who was in a halter-top, Elizabeth said, "Mommy, why is that girl not wearing a shirt with these?" (pointing to her shoulders.) I asked E if she liked that girl's shirt to which she replied, "No. It's not very cute."
  

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful to/for/about:

• My health and the health of my family members. Some times I think I take this for granted...until something happens in the real world that snaps me back into reality.
  
• That the green m&m Elizabeth thought seemed like a good idea to stick up her nose on the car ride into Webster Springs last night came out without too much drama. And that, for at least a little bit, it caused her some discomfort - not because I'm sadistic, but so that maybe next time she won't think it is a good idea to stick something up her nose! (For those of you who are curiosity seekers, it was just a plain m&m...)
• For the good news from my dear friends and conspirators in "Team 911" - Shoog is preggers, Nicole is preggers, RFKM isn't, but his wife is...Katie-Kate, who clarified that she is definitely not preggers...and the rest of the general conversation that went back and forth this week (that doesn't need detailed here)...all of which has brightened my week! Miss all y'all as we are so far over-due for a get-together! Could it really have been that it was in 2003 that nearly all of us were last together??? We must rectify this soon...so we can really do something that will cause our children (and respective spouses) to need much therapy!
• Offense! Lots and lots of offense! The Toppers won last Saturday over Edinboro (84-63). I'll be very thankful if this winning streak continues on this Saturday over Cal!!! Go Toppers!
• Things that make me laugh...like the Liberty Mutual Football Coach of the Year voting. Not so funny in DII (vote now for Coach Waialae!)...but when I was checking the Division I leaderboard...who did I see in the Top 10 (#8, actually) -- Rich Rod. Hilarious! Nearly as funny as this little nugget that Ryan Zundell altered that also caused me to laugh (also at Coach Rod's expense)...

Yeah, Toppers!

West Liberty won the second round of the NCAA DII Football Playoffs!

84-63 over Edinboro.

For those of you who aren't followers of WLU football, they were the number 1 seed, so they had a bye last week. Edinboro was WLU's lone defeat in the regular season...the first game of the season...paybacks are nice!

Elizabeth was thrilled to get her picture taken with the Hilltopper Cheerleaders! As long as the cheerleaders are at the game, she will declare, "The Toppers win!" Too bad I didn't have my camera with me - only my Blackberry. They offered her pom-pons, but she was just a little bit freaked out, not that you can't see that on her face!

We're heading up the hill again shortly for the WLU men's basketball game vs. Wheeling Jesuit. Then back up tomorrow early afternoon for the WLU women's basketball game. Can the Toppers sweep this weekend???

Go Toppers!