"Isn't she lovely, isn't she wonderful? ..."

What a whirlwind our life has been since ... oh, I don't know, 2007? Seriously though, this last weekend was keerazy.

I was all prepared to go and host the games portion of Melody's baby shower on Saturday afternoon. We packed up, and were heading out to Georgia on Friday morning, when Laura called to tell us Mel had been admitted to a tiny little hospital in Podunk Alabama (where their doc normally delivers). The bed rest wasn't doing the trick, and her urine protein levels had shot up overnight. Her doctor was on the ball, and that's a good thing.

We went on down, and really enjoyed our time there. Squish came with her Mom and Dad, to provide the entertainment for the weekend, and let me tell you, she earned her paycheck! She couldn't have been sweeter and more fun if she tried.

Here's Squish sitting in her new favorite chair at Grandma's house:

And here she is, trying to decide whether to answer her cell phone,

or listen to Grandma read a story:

Jimmy and his brother Michael spent a good portion of Friday evening moving furniture for my mom. And you know that any time spent moving furniture means beer must be consumed. Only Jimmy chose to drink some 40-year-old homemade wine he found at my Uncle's house as they loaded the furniture to be moved. I think it was supposed to be red, but it wasn't. It was muddy brown, and smelled like poisonous death in a bottle. Jimmy loved it. And he lived, too.

On Saturday afternoon, we loaded up our baby gifts and drove to Podunk Alabama, where Melody and Laura were holding court in a teeny hospital room.

We visited as long as we could, and Squish got reacquainted with her Great Aunt Laura:

After we said our goodbyes, the real party started. Mel's protein shot up once again, and her doctor rang the alarm. She was to be transported to the big neonatal unit at a hospital in Columbus GA. Stat. Thank Jeebus.

Frances and I went for a visit there on Sunday afternoon, and while I was thrilled to see them in a much nicer facility, I was worried. Mel looked worn out, and so did Laura.

Jimmy and I drove back home Sunday night (after stopping for a quick picnic at West Point Lake with Michael, Patti, & family) to begin a new week, with exhaustion in our bones.

At 1:22 AM today, my phone rang. Laura was calling to say they'd have a baby within the hour. The baby's heart rate was dropping, so the doctor said, "Now!" And at 2:22 AM, she was born. She's the tiniest baby ... only 2 pounds, 13 ounces, and 14.25 inches long. But she's breathing on her own, crying, and looking around. Her name is Etta Jayne. And I'm her Aunt Dawn. Hee!

I feel so much happiness for this new family.

Isn't she lovely?

"That little spot on the ground is my hometown ..."

Look, I'm flying an airplane!

Not really ... he was doing all the work.

And I was glad of it too. Look at all that:

This is downtown Greenville,
and I know this because the pilot told me so.

It's Death Valley! (I knew this all by myself.)

I was trying to get a shot of Tillman Hall on the Clemson campus,

and I did. Sort of.
Is that it in the lower left corner?

Lake Keowee ...
where do all those people with the fancy lake houses and boats get their money?

(I'm buying a lottery ticket today.)

This is a scary black-haired lady with her pilot-son.
She's pretty proud.

Thanks Adam. I will always remember yesterday morning. I've added it to the multitude of happy memories of you I store in my heart. In fact, I'm putting it right next to the memory of you, in the driveway at about 2 years old, pointing excitedly into the air, saying, "Heh-cop-er! Heh-cop-er!"

I'm a lucky mom.

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So, yeah ... black hair. I was worried that I might scare Miss Squish yesterday, but she didn't seem to notice. She's got good social skills already.

I've had highlights all summer long, and this week I decided I'd tell the hair girl to put me back darker again. Wow. She follows instructions too well. My hair is solid black. Almost blue. And she cut the living daylights out of it too. I look ridiculous. This was at a salon with a great reputation too ... with the reputable prices, as well.

Seriously, I cried. And I spent the entire first day in the shower, trying to wash it out. No luck. Since then, I've pulled it away from my face with a hairband, and pretended I was one of those crazy old ladies who think they look young with blue-black hair. *whimper*

Today, I will try again at yet another "reputable" salon. Please send me some good hair vibes. I have to go out in public again next week.

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This weekend, I'll be working on my resume. We have to submit them to the instructor for approval next week. It might take me all weekend to try to make my sketchy work history seem like a good thing to a potential employer. I'll take some happy vibes in that department too.

We also have the big "Medical Terminology" test on Tuesday next week. And it's not open book. We did play a review game last week, split into two teams ... and my team won. The prize was an extra five points on the test. Score!

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Speaking of good vibes, I'm using all mine up by sending some to Brandy's Pawpaw (Adam's & Squish's, too) who is in the hospital, dealing with some rough times. He's such a sweet man, and I send love to everybody who is worried about him.

Also, to Sisters Melody and Laura ... Mel was put on bedrest this week, due to some high blood pressure and stuff. I know they're scared, but I have every confidence that they will have a happy ending, just like I did with the whole pre-eclampsia thing when I was pregnant with Adam. Love , love, love ... to all three of you.

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And the walking begins ...

There's a video of some of her first steps over at her Daddy's blog, if you want to see the momentous stuff in my life these days.

September 14, 2008

This is her "sleepy face", which totally turns me to mush.

She spent last Saturday night at our house, and I took this just after she woke up.

(She's sitting on the hearth, which I finally covered with an old comforter to lessen the chances of a trip to the ER.)

Yesterday 9/18/08

See? She wasn't scared of Black-Haired Nana.
And finally ... her new face, guaranteed to get her anything she wants.

She does this randomly, and I think it's the cutest damn thing ever!

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If anybody knows how to fix the Blogger glitches that plague me to death every time I add a picture to my page here, I hope you'll share the knowledge. When I add pictures, my spacing goes to hell. My paragraphs are gone, and no matter how many times I try to edit and put them back, when I click "publish", everything is all smooshed together again.

Also, why are some pictures "clickable", meaning you can click to see a larger version ... and some aren't? I have looked and LOOKED to find a way to solve these issues, and Blogger won't cooperate. The bastard.

Maybe this means I'm too stoopid to have a blog.

Hush, you.

"Everything old is new again ..."

The Daddy (10 months old in 1981)

& The Daughter (10 months old in 2008)

... and corn.

(You can click on the pictures to see a larger version.)

"You're young until you're not ..."

It's Birthday Season again! At least it is in our house. Yesterday, Brandy celebrated Year 29 (for real). Tomorrow, Adam will see #28. And then, before we get all the cake eaten, it'll be November and time to celebrate Emilie, Squish, and Jimmy.

Have I mentioned how much I love this time of year? I crave Fall. It's not here yet, but we've had a couple of days in the 70's, and I am anticipating it like crazy! Of course, the weekend temps are forecast to be back up to the 90's, so whatever. I may go ahead and hang my fall wreath on the door anyway.

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Looking forward to my first flight with Adam next week! I had hoped he could take me up on his birthday, and I could get all mushy and sentimental: "28 years ago today, I could never have imagined what a fine, smart, incredible man you'd be ... now look at you, piloting this plane and taking your old Mom for a ride!" Eh, he'd hate that.

Anyway, the plane was all booked for tomorrow, so he has scheduled us for an early morning flight on Wednesday. I'll be waving, so look up on your way to work.

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Yesterday, during my regularly scheduled Squishy time, since the weather was so nice, we loaded up the stroller, and walked to the park. She spotted the ducks (geese?) as soon as we got there. Sooo excited! She kept saying, "Duh! Duh!" What a smart little bug she is. I sat on the swings with her in my lap, and she almost fell asleep. She watched a man who was fly-fishing on the mudhole (that's what I like to call our little lake in the park), and she never let those quackers get out of her sight. Later, I put her in the baby swing ... she wasn't too sure of it at first, but loved it after she got the feel of it. Next time I'll take the camera.

She will be walking on her own in the next few days, it seems certain. And she's pretty excited about that!

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Still plugging along at the class I'm taking ... still pulling down those 100's on the daily tests. I took the first of three non-open-book tests last week, and scored 100 on that too. I'm a freakin' genius, no? (That was sarcasm, in case you can't hear my voice.)

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Today, I'm off to plan a birthday dinner for Squish's Mom and Dad, and then I'll make a run to Publix to buy what's needed. After that, some serious time with the Dyson must be spent. The cat hair is taking over our world.

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Here's what you came for:

Taken August 29, 2008

She loves to sit on Nana's stairs.

Only they're off-limits with a gate now.

Looking at herself in the mirror, with her new shades on:

(pay no attention to the scary Nana behind her)
September 7, 2008

10 months old:

If you're a family member, this picture will cause a time-warp in your brain. We have this exact same shot of Squish's Daddy, chewing on a corn cob. One of these days, I'll take the time to scan it and do a side-by-side comparison.

"Ooooh Mama, your hat is the bomb!"

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P.S. There are some pictures of her week at the beach over at her Dad's blog. The links on the right, if you need it.

"Breathing just to breathe ..."

Did you think I forgot about making a "regular" Friday update here? Yeah, well.

How was your Labor Day weekend? Mine was a'ight. A lot of driving, a lot of wine, and a little bit of visiting with family ... we drove to Georgia on Saturday morning and drove back late Monday night.

I was embarrassed that the food I took to share with Michael and Patti was horrendous. I guess the carrots I used to make the yummified carrot cake were old. I can't think of any other reason that they baked in the cake and turned out tough as a chicken gizzard. You couldn't chew those damn carrots.

And then I baked Applesauce Bread from a Paula Deen cookbook, which proved that not everything with her name on it tastes good. Blech. Even Jimmy -- the eater of all unwanted food -- said, "I want to like it, but I just can't."

Maybe I'll give up cooking for awhile. Oh wait. I've already done that.

It was good to see everybody, and I guess I'll see most of them again in about 3 weeks when I head back down there again for Laura and Melody's baby shower.

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Thinking tonight about Em and Jud, who will weather their first tropical storm/hurricane when Hanna heads into Wilmington about midnight. Hopefully Ike will keep his distance next week.

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No baby pictures ... our Squish was at the beach all week. I think they are making an early drive home tonight, again due to Hanna. I am having Squishy withdrawals!

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Didn't watch the pathetic Clemson loss to Alabama last Saturday night ... I was knee deep in a vat of wine and my sister-in-law's swimming pool. Maybe my rapt attention is what they need, and this week will be a better game, with me watching, and all. One can hope!

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On Sunday, Miss Squish will be 10 months old. 2008 is flying.

Next week, my first-born baby-child will be 28. My LIFE is flying.