I think I'm getting old...

Several things have happened in the past month or so that are leading me to believe I'm really getting old.

Clue #1 - At a staff meeting last week, this kind of boorish guy was getting ready to launch into another one of his dull stories when he said "You guys are probably all too young to remember this. Well except for..." and waved in my general direction. Apparently he considers me our historical witness to the Spanish-American War and the Great Depression.

Clue #2 - I've lost about 35 pounds this year, which is great. I've lost weight many times in my life, but what is different this time is that my skin appears not to have noticed. It's still at the old place I used to be.

Clue #3 - I have received not one, but two, pieces of mail in the past week or so exhorting the importance of getting long term care insurance. Am I really that close to being in a nursing home?

Clue #4 - For the first time in my life, I actually asked someone to turn down the music. I've always been a bit of a punker (even now, my favorite bands tend to be in the My Chemical Romance/Rage Against the Machine vein.) But we were at a restaurant recently and the sound system was cranked up so loud, I was getting a headache. I actually asked the manager to turn it down a little. I'm sure he thought I was like 70 years old or something.

Clue #5 - Our local FCC group had a bowling outing two weekends ago, which was great fun. However, I found that I was a bit stiff and sore the next morning. We're talking about BOWLING, people...not participating in a triathalon!

Anyway, all of this is leading me to believe that it's all downhill from here for me. Hopefully my five-year-old daughter will do her best to keep me young just a little bit longer.

Belated Happy Thanksgiving

We've been gone since Wednesday to spend Thanksgiving with my parents and some other family members. It was kind of a weird holiday, mostly because my dad had a double-knee replacement two days before Thanksgiving. So he was still in the hospital. He's actually up and moving a little already and will be in rehab for like two weeks. It'll be a long road, but it's going to be great for him in the long run.

Anyway, other than the frequent trips to the hospital, it was a nice holiday weekend. We had a terrific Thanksgiving dinner at my aunt's house. Here's Emma at the dinner table just a few minutes before we started stuffing our faces...


And I snapped a picture of Emma as she jumped off the stairs...such a funny girl!


My mom and I got up at 5:00 am on Friday to hit the stores. It wasn't too crazy and we actually got some serious shopping done. But I still have a lot to do. I'm usually done with Xmas shopping at this point, but I've been pretty lazy this year about things. I think it's going to end up being a gift certificate year for many family members and friends!

Obligatory mid-week post

I really have nothing interesting to say today (or most days, probably!) But I did take a cute picture of Emma brushing her teeth last night. That will have to do for now...

My daughter...the two-timer

Yesterday, Emma's friend Amy celebrated her 6th birthday. She had her party at a local nature conservatory, which was really cool. Anyway, shortly after we arrived, a little boy from Emma's class showed up with his dad to tour the conservatory. You may recall from my Oct. 31st post that Emma already has a boyfriend in her class, a cute little guy named Evan. But any thought of Evan disappeared as soon as Emma saw Ocea (pronounced OH-sha.)

Emma ditched the party and she and Ocea started running around together (this worries me...is Emma going to be one of those girls who drops her friends the moment a boy comes into the picture...gosh, I hope not!) I have to admit, Ocea is quite adorable.


Anyway, eventually Emma had to rejoin the party, which reduced poor Ocea to tears (his dad told me he talks about Emma constantly!) Later, Emma told me Evan was still her boyfriend and that she and Ocea are just good friends (I'm not sure that's how Ocea feels!)

It does concern me how boy-crazy Emma is. But I was reminded of how, in kindergarten, I pursued this poor boy, Bart Bonsall, to the ends of the earth. I was soooo in loooove with him! But then I lost interest in boys until like the 6th grade. Let's hope Emma follows the same pattern...otherwise, I'm afraid she'll be married by the time she's 8!

How could it be?

Has is really been five years since I got the most important call of my life?

It was November 5, 2002 at 1:30 p.m. when CCAI called with my referral of 8-month-old Yin Yi Qian. A few minutes later, I saw her face for the first time...


And here she is five years later...


It's a cliche, but it's true...you never know how fast time can fly by until you have children. It sure has been the best five years of my life!

My little cowgirl

Every fall there is a huge national horse show here with all kinds of equestrian and rodeo competitions. I am so not into rodeo, but I decided to take Emma this year to some of the equestrian events. She is so horse-crazy that I thought she'd have a good time, and I was right.

Here we are on our way in...


We spent a lot of time wandering around the horse stalls, looking at all the beautiful horses. We watched someone grooming their horse for competition, including braiding the mane. Emma could have hung out there for hours.

Then we went to a junior jumping competition, with kids as young as six. Emma couldn't believe there were girls just a bit older than herself competing! It was incredible seeing these little girls jumping these huge horses! It was really fascinating and we were lucky to sit next to a couple of teenage girls who were long-time competitors and they were thrilled to fill us in on all what to look for.

Here's Emma wearing our big purchase of the day...




A pink cowboy hat is not the most practical thing, but I have to admit she looks pretty darn cute in it!

I've been mulling it over for some time now, but I'm convinced Emma's love of horses is more than just a passing fancy. So I've come to the conclusion that equestrian lessons might be in our future. They are not cheap to say the least, but I think we'll give it a try after the new year. I just ordered a book from Amazon with lots of background and advice on what to do when your child is interested in pursuing horseback riding. It would have been nice if Emma had developed a fascination for something a little more economical. But you can't decide what your kids will fall in love with (sigh!)