Brrrr

It's DANG COLD round these heah pahts! Supposed to go into the single digits tonight with negative wind chills. S'bout time Old Man Winter make an appearance. Next week should be in the 70s, as it's been goin'.

Ron and Sam are doing "guy time" together and I'm almost ANSY with the feeling of "what should I do with myself?!" I mean, there's plenty to do, but to be alone is almost euphoric, in a way. This is kind of fun!

So here i am, updating the blog.


Here's Sam with Gramma Samson's latest creation, the Ear Flap Wonder! I love it cuz it fits his head well, is made of VERY soft wool, and he doesn't tug on it cuz it doesn't fall over his eyes (all the hats i find for him are either way too small, or a little big because they are made for older kids). Way to go GRAMMA!


Here is Sam at his first hockey game! I'll admit, i was hesitant in going because I would have to bring Sam with me, but it all worked out really well and he was GREAT! He petered out around the beginning of the third period, but I was totally fine with that. He got into clapping (at the right and wrong times!), as well as peole watching. I can't wait to bring him when he GETS IT!


Here is Sam with his first "knobby" puzzle. I've been looking for one of these for a while now because i've noticed that he seems to like puzzles. Putting things in and out of 'designated areas.' He mostly crawls around his playroom with a piece in his mouth, but when i sit there with him, he does a pretty good job getting the lion or tiger or ELEPHANT (O my!) in the right space. And if he doesn't, i clap happily with that too!


And finally... well... here's my dad paying homage to Sam a few posts ago. :-)

PBS and Snooooozzzzzzes...

Today, for the first time since regularly breastfeeding Sam (which was more than 6 mos. ago), I took a nap with him.

What a joy!

Of course, first i had to "run him down" a little. Just cuz he was yawning here and there and rubbing his eyes doesn't do it anymore. He had to watch a little Super Grover on Sesame Street, drink a whole sippy of juice, grab clumps of fur out of Zap, play with a beaded bracelet i've never worn, and all in all, run out of steam.

But once he did........ there can't be anything closer to the sheer and utter calmness and love i feel when i'm lying next to my baby, listening to his breathing, watching his little face twitch into a random smirk or smile, feeling his body get warmer. I snuggled into him and relaxed, as though there were no laundry build-up in the basement, no overdue (or DUE) bills, no couch cushions to re-cover because of our crazy dogs.

Just me and Sam. Ah.

Oh yeah... and then 2 hours later, i find him half giggling, half whining in this position in his playpen. He looks BROKEN! I want to say he is just a 'bendy baby,' but he was clearly stuck. Of course i had to take a picture of it before helping him!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here's Sam, all full of vim and vigor before...

... he conks out on daddy's lap right before bedtime.

Christmas at Ellie's

On December 27th, Ron, Sam and I drove to New Hartford, NY where Ron's sister Ellie lives. There we had Christmas No. 2 with her family as well as Kim's (Ron's other sister). Shirley joined in the festivities as well! All five grandchildren together! Unfortunately, Ron's third and youngest sister Hope was unable to be with us as she is in South Africa. Sam fit into the Kid Crowd JUST GREAT! I can't wait to see him in action NEXT Christmas - he'll give all those kids a run for their money then!

Long Overdue Updates!

Nov. 19? Obviously, we haven't been keeping up-to-date on this. Here's a quick rundown of the past month-and-a-half:

Sam is almost walking; if he's got a wall or table to stabalize him, he can scoot along pretty well. He's not talking, but his sounds are increasingly complex and variant.

Chris's cousin Kathie and her family traveled down from Maine around the 9th for four or five days. They shacked up here at our house, so things were cozy but a lot of fun. Tia (10) and Tanner (6) really got a kick out of Samson. We ventured to Hammondsport one night for their holiday celebration and on the day before they left, Tia and Tanner blew their own Christmas ornaments at a local hands-on glass shop. They really enjoyed that too!

Our Christmas and New Year's celebrations were tamed by Montezuma's Revenge (aka, The Stomach Bug): Christmas for Chris and I; New Year's Eve for Sam. Last night, when we finally got Samson back in bed after waking up sick, Christine and I did get to enjoy a bottle of Rosa Regale (a delicious rasberry champagne) and some of those chocolate-covered Virginia Peanuts that Wegmans sells. Yum. Incidentally, the cork of the Rosa Regale ricocheted off the ceiling and hit Chris in the head. Very Funny!
(Oops.)

Other stuff happened, but I think I'll just let the pictures talk for themselves. The hiking club has been in full effect, so pictures can also be seen over at that site: http://corninghikingclub.blogspot.com


c%^)-~

P.S.- Ron was excited to see this address posted in the Cazenovia Connexus. If you're an old friend from Caz, please be sure to leave a comment! Shout-Outs to Adam Pause who is living what sure looks like the sweet life in Colorado and playing with his band, The Dust Farmers.