Unsung Milestones

In parenting circles, there is a lot of talk about milestones. Usually the talk focuses mainly on a few big ones: first smile, sitting up, solid foods, crawling, walking, talking, running. As Elliot gets older, he has eclipsed two milestones that always stand out for me: helping dress himself and sitting on a stool, instead of his baby seat.

The first one, helping to dress himself, is a very useful one. When dressing babies, usually you don't get much cooperation which can make it challenging. Once they have been through the routine enough they start to pick up on when to straighten their arm or bend their head, which makes the dressing process a lot easier.

Sitting on a stool, instead of in a baby seat, is a little more nerve-racking. I know that he will probably fall off at some point (Andrew & Mari both did); I just hope that he is as old as possible when it happens. Elliot began sitting on a stool a couple weeks ago at Erin & Nate's. All of the other kids were, so he wanted to as well. When we got home he refused to sit in his booster seat.

Neither of these things are earth-shattering, but they do lead to the moments when I have to step back and think "Wow, he's not much of a baby anymore."

In other news, if we had stayed on the same baby-birthing schedule, we would have a newborn right now.

Andrew's 5th Birthday

I guess Andrew turned 5, huh? His birthday was last Friday. It was the end of a crazy week. He is very excited to be 5, but he is already talking about being six. He can slow down, as far as I am concerned.

He is still enjoying riding his bike more than anything else, I think. He would ride all day if he could. He also got a guitar for his birthday which he has been playing a lot. I just wish that he would learn how to maneuver without conking someone in the head.

A Visit from the Fire Department

Yesterday morning the kids and I were playing outside early (7:15-ish) and I decided to build a fire in our fire pit. Around 8:45 I heard and then saw a fire truck coming down our street and as they approached our house I saw them point. I went to the front yard to see what was going on and they said someone had called and complained. I told them that I had a fire in our fire pit. The lead guy said "The only problem I see is that you don't have a screen covering it." I said "Yes, I do." He looked closer and agreed. He also noticed that I had a hose handy, in case things got out of hand. He said that if someone called and complained again then I would have to put it out.

Now I just need to figure out who called and complained. I have a few suspects in mind.

Canvassing

Andrew and I went canvassing yesterday, which was an interesting experience. It seemed like a lot of people weren't home, which made it go pretty quickly. I think that we were out for a little over two hours, and there was very little complaining. I am not sure what I would have done if Andrew decided he had had enough.

Is it for real this time?

Apparently our power is on again. I am not sure if I want to rush to fill the fridge just yet.

Church Dinner

Last night we were dinnerless. We had no food at our house, and we weren't sure what to do. Susan ran past a church that was hosting a dinner, and we decided to check it out. We ended up enjoying a nice dinner of pulled-pork sandwiches, mac & cheese, cole slaw, garlic bread, and even dessert. Not too shabby.

Make Up Your Mind!

We were able to enjoy a few hours of electricity last night, but now we are back in the dark.

Duke Energy's Power Outage Map



As of Thursday Morning