President Gordon B. Hinckley

President Hinckley passed away last night at 7pm. I am happy for he and his wife to be together, sad that we won't get to hear him speak anymore, and a little overwhelmed. Mostly it's sad to think that our children won't know him as well as we do. The newsroom has a wonderful biography posted tonight.

Our Little Adventurer

This week Christopher discovered he could stand on his own. And the next day he decided it would be okay to take a couple steps. He's still working on it, but he looks pretty confident!

Yesterday we went with other Grad Parents (group of students with kids) to the Ann Arbor Hands- On Museum. Even though it was naptime, he still seemed to enjoy it. He pretended to be a fireman, a cook, and an EMT. He even played in the splash zone! His favorite thing was to slide down a slide on his tummy. Very silly little boy!

Today

We are spending the day at home. At least Christopher and I are. After spending most of yesterday at the health center I'm ready for an entire day of pure fun and relaxation. Christopher and I are playing with his Christmas gifts and listening to music. And I'm hoping to get some house cleaning and scrappy work done while he naps this afternoon. No new snow today, so we might get to take a walk! Although maybe we'll wait for Daddy to come home and take a family walk.

PERFECT Training

It was ideal. Really. Wow!!! LOVE the spreading of the Fiskars message. If you have a chance to train with one of us, DO IT!

Why Today Should be the 13th

Today: laundry to be done...and ravioli all over the floor...bits of cracker on my chair...mountains of dishes that really are dirty but not used (covered in the milk that Christopher spilled from his cup while playing in the cupboard)...deadlines to meet...questions to answer...reading to be done...a training session to prepare for...too many e-mails to be returned...bills to pay...housing issues to be resolved...car to be seriously vacuumed...the weather is dismal...and I need sleep. Lots of it. It's Friday the 13th in this house. UGH! Oh, and Christopher has decided that today he doesn't really want to eat or sleep. He just wants to giggle and be mischievous. I guess there's something appealing about driving your mother nuts while throwing ravioli at her.

**Note to self: Tomorrow will be better. We're going to Costco to buy diapers...which means a whole 1 1/2 hours of family time. And then there's Sunday...which will be even BETTER.

Itty Bitty Scrap Shack Grand "Opening"

The message board is up and fully functional! So, if you're in the mood for some chit-chat, come join us. LOTS going on there this week!

Home

We've been home since Monday, but I'm still trying to catch up! (And wasting time like crazy...I've read two books since we've been home!) Christopher is trying very hard to learn to walk and Steve had a couple meetings about potential labs today. We've been to Walgreens to print photos, the bank, the grocery store, and the library. We came home to MOUNTAINS of mail...Christmas cards and packages. Love getting two weeks of mail in one day! On the way home from the airport it started to snow...we ended up with about 6 inches. Everything is so BRIGHT!

Waiting until I get the camera cable to post Christmas photos...but here's one from the flight home! Christopher got his own seat and LOVED that...had a snack, wore his seatbelt, and "read" a golfing magazine. Very grown up!

**Made the Itty Bitty Scrap Shack design team. ;) Thrilled about that...especially since my DT time for Tally came to an end this week. Looking forward to working with some new friends!