10 months

These pictures make me a little sad because I think she looks like a little kid more than a baby.  I would forbid her from getting any older, but she keeps getting cuter and more fun every day.

At 10 Months Jilly:

- loves cats (much to my chagrin)

- is obsessed with tongues- she sticks hers out all the time and loves it when other people stick their tongue out as well

- stands all by herself and is a speed crawler

- hates to have her diaper changed, thus we often have a bare-bummed baby crawling around our apartment

- loves her play time with daddy every night will I clean up after dinner

- eats anything within her reach

Greatest Show on Earth

On Saturday we went to the Circus with Bryan's parents.  The highlight of the show was Jilly eating her first piece of licorice.  She loved it and was covered in red stickiness for the rest of the day.  The licorice also gave her a nice sugar rush- she was literally bouncing up and down until she crashed and fell asleep.  Perhaps not our finest parenting day, but we sure had a lot of fun!

Believe it or not, this is the best picture of the day.  Circuses do not lend themselves to picture taking.  

9/11

In 2001 I had just started my sophomore year of high school.  On the morning of September 11th I was sitting in Mrs. Rollison's homeroom and as people walked in there were whispers about planes, towers, and an attack.  No one quite knew what was going on so our teacher turned on the tv.  I remember smoke, lots of smoke.  I don't remember very much about school that day but I will never forget 6th period.  A girl was called to the office.  She seemed nervous so my teacher said, "Don't worry, I'm sure you're not in trouble," to which the girl replied, "I'm not worried about being in trouble.  I'm worried about my dad- he works in the Pentagon."  The room was silent as we all waited and hoped for her to return with good news.  Luckily, she did- her dad was fine.  

9/11 is always a reminder to me to be grateful for all I have.  I'm grateful for my family, my country, my friends, my health, my safety, my beliefs, my education, and my freedom.

A pair of pears

Actually, it's about 20 pairs of pears.  And they're all sitting on my kitchen counter.  I'm planning on feeding most of them to Miss Jilly girl.  But, even a little hungry caterpillar like her can't eat that many pears.  So I need any and all delicious pear recipes you have.   Thanks!

We're Moving!

But, not very far away.  We bought a townhouse that is about 7 minutes away from where we live now.  Best part of our new home?  We'll have a garage for all of Bryan's toys and a craft room/guest bedroom for all of my toys.  We may never see each other again.  As I type this I can hear our upstairs neighbors- sounds like they have set up a woodworking shop up there.  Yes, we're very ready to move.

So, not much is going on around here except packing which means I put things in a box while Jilly tries as quickly as she can to take everything out of the box.  She's made packing very exciting.

Utah

When I was little I looked up at those huge Utah mountains and proclaimed that the state was ugly and I hated it.  Then I lived there for 6 years and I fell in love with those mountains.  They are beautiful in their own majestic way, and provide so much entertainment for us!

Jilly and I were excited to visit Utah.  My family was there so Jilly had lots of fun playing with her aunties and uncle.  We also visited lots of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents.  I have 72 relatives living in Utah (I realize that I exaggerate a lot, but this is no exaggeration, I counted.)  We traveled all over the state seeing most of them.  To my Utah Friends- I am so sorry I couldn't see you, I didn't have my own car nor my own schedule.  We were at the mercy of the group and with 72 relatives to see friends had to get the cut.  We'll have to make another trip soon to see friends.  We love you!

While in Utah we:
- went up the canyon for a hike, picnic, and roasting s'mores
- got to be there for my cousin Josh's homecoming
- spent a day playing at Seven Peaks Salt Lake
- walked around Temple Square
- visited some adorable 3 week old puppies (our dog's half siblings)
- went to the zoo for Jilly's first time
- went on a hike up to Cecret Lake
- saw The Help while my saintly dad watched 9 little kids
- went swimming in my cousins' pool

Welcome Home Josh!  Can you tell that we're all on our toes trying to look taller?  Even on my toes I'm the shortest. 

Jilly loved hiking with her Grandpa 

My aunt and cousin fed Jilly a piece of cake- obviously she loved it 

Checking out the elephants with Auntie Jenn

She loved the monkeys and as I watched them I realized she is very much like them!

This puppy and Jilly just stared at each other for a while and they were both making the same squeaking noise at each other, it was so funny

at the Christus statue

Summer Reading

I suppose since tomorrow is September that summer is ending.  It makes me sad that our slow, relaxing summer is fading away.  We've had fun playing with family, traveling, swimming, watching Prison Break, and reading.  One of mine and Jilly's favorite things to do this summer was to go to the library.  She would crawl around playing with the excellent toys and books while I sat nearby and read.  And, to top it all off- the library has great air conditioning- bliss.

I read some pretty good books this summer, here's the roundup:

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Fascinating book; it tells the story of the first human cells to be reproduced in a lab.  But, they were cells from a black woman and they were taken without her or her family's knowledge or any compensation.  It was the perfect mix of science and a great story.

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Wow, this book was intense.  Jeannette tells about her childhood with an alcoholic and paranoid father who was constantly moving his family from one terrible living condition to another.  

People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks

I started out really liking this book but then I just got sick of it.  I think part of the problem was that I was listening to it and couldn't keep up with all the story lines.  It tells about a haggadah and how it miraculously survived through centuries of turmoil in Europe.

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

This was not the most uplifting book, but was an excellent story about life on a circus train in the early 1900s.  I'm so glad I can finally see the movie now!

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I read this book in high school, but I didn't remember it at all.  I loved it; it's such a sweet story mixed in with Civil Rights history.  It reminds me of To Kill a Mockingbird which is possibly the best book ever written.  

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magaic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson

I'm not finished with this yet, but I love it.  It's part history part creepy murder mystery.  Can you tell I'm big into history?  Bryan is reading it as well, so it's fun to talk about together.

Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation by Cokie Roberts

Yes, another history.  I'm not finished with this one either, but I love it.  We hear so much about Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, etc.  It's fun to finally hear about their mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, and- in Franklin's case- girlfriends.

What did you read this summer?