High/Low

When Cameron and I were dating, we used to play this game called high/low. Basically giving the high and low points of the day or week. Now my lovely readers, its time to play with you.

High: A free 18-month YMCA membership. The military/YMCA is trying a trial program and we (military folks of this area) are the lucky guinea pigs. Even though the closest Y is a little ways away, I couldn't pass up the FREE membership. They have swimming lessons, gymnastics, ballet and of course an awesome gym. All for free. We intend to fully take advantage of it all!

Low: Malone is the recipient of her very first cold. We've made it a whole nine months with nothing that resembles an illness. But here we are, at the crossroads of where our luck runs out. She really is a sad sight to see. Runny nose, her hair in every which direction, circles under her eyes (a mirror of mine, for sure!) and a little extra dose of craziness. On the upside, she is super nice and cuddly even if it is with her little baby snot running everywhere. I'm loading up on oranges as my defense (remember how I love those oranges?) Think that's enough? ....hold on, I have to go wipe her nose. How I wish she knew how to blow her nose.

High: The pretty new red shirt I bought. It was cheap and from Target, a fact that will make Cameron cringe. I just like it. And the fajita chicken soup/chili I have in the crock pot right now. I hope its going to be as good as it smells.

Low: Malone's lack of sleep last night= my lack of sleep

High: Its my little sister's 15th birthday today! Happy Birthday, Christelly belly! You are awesomely amazing!

Low: Running out of candy to give out last night. We have a lot of kids in our neighborhood. I had to turn off our light. But apparently not everyone knows about the "if the light is on it means we're giving candy, if the light is off, we are not" rule.

High: Playgroup at Melanie's house on Tuesday. Fun girls. Good food. What more could you need?

Low: Feeling pathetic as I anxiously wait for a special email from Cameron.

One last High: I've rediscovered the West Wing. Its an awesome tv show that sadly, challenges my intellectual tracking skills and makes me want to do something great with my life. Schaefer for President 2032!

An apology of sorts

I was informed by Cameron that my last post was gross and people probably wouldn't find it as funny as I did. So, if you are like my husband and found my sense of humor disgusting, I apologize. But really, you didn't think it was funny? Could you not imagine me sitting on the couch trying not to move with white, slimy, spit up on my belly running down into my pants? :)

In anyways, Malone and I had a great day today. We had playgroup at my friend Melanie's house. Ahhh, its so good just to be able to hang out with some girls who understand where I am in life and who are going through many of the same things that I am. Plus, they are fun, funny and mighty purty... Malone was so excited to play with everyone that she skipped her morning nap and as soon as I put her in her carseat she shut her little eyes for some rest. She was so sweet.

When we got home she finished her nap and we got ready to go workout. Ever just feel like you NEED a workout? I rarely feel the NEED for a workout. More often I just do it because I feel like I should. But today I just felt like I needed to run a little. I dropped Malone off at the nursery (she was not super excited to say the least), turned on New Life's new Counting on God on my iPod and started running. It felt so good, all stress and all worries just melting away as I got refreshed physically and spiritually. If I was by myself, I would have sung along, but I decided to forego the crazy indicators. (By the way, have you ever been the only one at the gym not listening to music and all of a sudden you hear someone toot. And they look around to see if anyone noticed? Ha Ha ....sooooo funny... and yes, I am that immature that I laugh at tooting) Anyways, after my run I put my ear to the door of the nursery and immediately recognized Malone's screaming...at least I got 25 minutes, right?

Tonight, I am overwhelmed by how much I love being a mom. I don't know why. I just love what I get to do. I so treasure this time with Malone and wish I could freeze it in time. I love that I get to see her silly faces, I get to see her do new things, discover new sounds that she can make. I love the bathing, the feeding, even the dirty diapers....I am so blessed even when she spits up on me and cut my workouts short. I love it!!

Yes & No

- I think we finally we found our church yesterday! YES!!! We still need to visit a few more times, but we really liked it yesterday. More info to come. PS: No snake charmers or dream interpreters :) ha ha.

- Yesterday, Malone spit up into my belly button. She has been blowing strawberries on my belly for laughs. Contrary to conventional knowledge (maybe), the belly button is not large enough to hold any amount of spit up never mind a nine-month old's amount. Needless to say, it ran down into my pants. NO!! GROSS! but funny nonetheless. We had a good laugh. Oh the joys of motherhood!

Fun Fall Activities....I'm so lame with titles.

We've had a pretty fun few weeks around here. Nothing extraordinary, but lovely nonetheless. Cameron is home and we are just enjoying his presence so much. The weather has been beautifully fall-like and the trees around here are the most beautiful red/orange color. So pretty. Here's a few updates for you:

- I had this grand idea for us to go on our first (of many) fall outing to a Pumpkin Patch. I had visions of us all wearing sweaters, playing in the leaves, picking the perfect pumpkin, drinking warm apple cider as we're on the most perfect fall hayride, Malone giggling with glee in the background. Needless to say, my expectations were not quite met. As soon as we drove up to the patch, Malone closed her eyes for a much needed nap. It was cold, she was asleep, the pumpkins looked kind of brown from the car at least and I realized my dream was not going to become a reality this year. So Cameron went in, got us some hot apple cider and we enjoyed our Pumpkin Patch experience from inside the car. Oh yes, and we bought some beautiful pumpkins at Safeway.
Here we are enjoying the Pumpkin Patch.
- Then my parents arrived. As I wrote earlier, it was an absolute delight having them here. Malone was having a little bit of a hard time because I think her teeth were really hurting her (did I mention that she now has 5 almost 6 teeth?!) But we loved every second of their visit in anyways.
Here's my parents with Malone by the water. She's waving and saying hi, a new trick they taught her.

- We haven't found a church yet and visited another while my parents were here. Oh, good times. I'll just say, I had an experience with someone who was desperately trying to interpret my dreams....dreams I wasn't having :) Ahhh, gotta love the diversity of the body of Christ.

- Due to Malone's increase in dental activities, she now has to begin her lifelong battle with remembering to brush her teeth (Yes, dad, I do remember to brush my teeth at night!). We bought her a baby toothbrush and all.
Here's her trying to get the hang of it. I think she kind of likes it.














- It is no surprise that I am a pumpkin freak this time of year and have tried numerous pumpkin recipes lately. But I saved the best for last! Its a pumpkin cake with whiskey whipped cream from Pioneer Woman Cooks. It is so moist, so flavorful...I made it for company the other night and have been munching on the leftovers for 2 days now. Can you eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner? Picture courtesy of Pioneer Woman Cooks.

- I made chili for the first time last night. Thanks to all of you who answered my desperate cry on Twitter and Facebook for a recipe. I combined a few recipes and even found my own secret ingredient... that I will now share with you. Beer. Now, I know you all are questioning my boozer persona, as I just posted two recipes with alcohol in it. But really, the alcohol cooks out and its so little that it doesn't affect anything...or anyone. Anyways, it was awesome! I love the fall flavors!

- Malone and I went on a walk today and it was pretty chilly. We just had to try out her new hat. Doesn't she look cute?!- Lastly, we are embarking on a new adventure as a family. We are trying to teach Malone sign language. Studies have shown that sign language can be an effective form of communication for babies (verbal or not, hearing or not) and actually increases their speech capabilities while expanding their vocabulary. I had been hearing about it for a while and then my friend, Stephanie used it with her daughter, Eva and told me about it . Check out this video I found today:

Who looks like who?

Fun times!

Friends,

Sorry for my short absence. Just as you got used to my ever-present presence, I abandon you. :) But I must admit, I'm not TOO sorry, because my parents are here for a visit. I am a family girl. I love spending time with my family and am now excited that I can share them with Cameron and Malone. We've had so much fun visiting with one another, talking politics, showing them around and just hanging out. Maloney is loving spending time with her Ouma and Oupa too. Ouma (Afrikaans for Grandma) and her have been playing and singing songs and Malone has discovered the joy of Oupa's (Afrikaans for Grandpa) "African Belly Biter" and the horsey. They even brought her a bag full of South African candy...of course she can't even eat carrots never mind chocolates. But sadly, they leave again tomorrow. Boo-Hoo! I'm so sad and am counting down the days to when we can see them again.

Then and now

Friends, now you know what a week in my life looks like. Doing this I realized how boring I really am. At least I enjoy my boringness.

I was looking at Malone today and realized how much more grown up she looked to me. It was not her outfit because she was wearing a sleep & play onesie. It was not how peaceful she looked when she napped. It was not how helpless she was or how needy she was. But it was when I realized that she had figured out a little game I was playing with her. She got it! She even initiated our little cat & mouse game this morning.

She's so smart.

So I thought I would take you all back to the beginning, when she was just a longing in our hearts.

Here's Cameron and I and my awesomely beautiful family right before our wedding.

In the middle of our wedding

Here we are right after our wedding
Celebrating our 1 year anniversary. We just found out I was pregnant earlier that week.

24 weeks pregnant
8 months pregnant at Cameron's Pilot Training graduationThe morning of my induction. My belly felt a lot bigger than it looks now.

Malone being born...we were so surprised it happened so soon and overwhelmed with joy.Back at home...doesn't she look like an angel!?
And look at her now 9 months later
Aahhh, she's growing up way too fast