My Friends Tigger and Pooh

Day one of our trip to Disney started at The Crystal Palace at the Magic Kingdom for lunch with Winnie the Pooh and friends.

Eeyore was the first friend to head towards our table. Noah checked him out from afar and seemed somewhat excited to see him.

It was a different story once Eeyore arrived tableside. "Umm... excuse me, can you please head back across the room?"

Next was Piglet. "Hey, back up off me, you pig."

Tigger bounced over next. "I am not finding any of this amusing."

The big finale. Winnie the Pooh. "Hey, get your paws off me you big bellied bear."

"Okay, seriously, I've had enough."

Celebrity Sighting

I was pretty excited to catch a glimpse of Dave Cook at Disney on Friday. They were filming the Christmas parade, so I think that was why he was roaming around.

Check out Dave giving a little dap to reindeer Pluto.

After his photo op with the American Idol, Pluto naturally gravitated to the next most energy-filled and charismatic person at the park. Noah, however, did not pay him any attention.

That is until Pluto got tired of being ignored and walked away.

Another Trip to Disney

This past weekend, Dean and I packed up for a trip to Orlando. An old high school friend of Dean's was taking a trip with his family, and we decided to meet up with him for some Disney fun. We loaded up the car for the four-hour drive at about 10:00 PM on Thursday night. You can say you heard it here first, I am not driving to Disney at night again. Noah slept the entire drive, but as we pulled into the driveway in Orlando just after 2:00AM, he was wide awake. He did not go back to sleep until 4:00AM. Ouch! And, he was up at 7:30AM to start the day. Double ouch!

We spent all day Friday at the Magic Kingdom. Noah only had about a 45-minute nap the entire day. He was tired, but he definitely hung in there. We played at the Pooh's Playful Spot, rode the The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride, and watched Mickey's PhilharMagic Show. I think Noah liked the PhilharMagic show even better this time. He even kept on his 3D glasses for 90% of the show. Next, Noah and I did a little strolling around Tomorrowland while Daddy rode Space Mountain. Then, we headed to Main Street for hot dogs. We had tickets for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, which was really nothing more than a smaller crowd at the park with free hot chocolate and cookies. With a smaller crowd, all the lines were less than a 5 minute wait, so we rode It's a Small World and Peter Pan's Flight. Daddy also took a ride on the Pirates of the Caribbean. By the time, the "party" was in full swing, Noah was fast asleep.

Noah had a front row seat to the Christmas parade, but he slept through the entire thing. It was pretty and fun and loud.

With Noah still asleep in his stroller, we found a good spot for the fireworks show. Apparently, the fireworks were a little too loud. Noah woke up and watched the whole show with his head on Daddy's shoulder. What an awesome fireworks display. Do you know they do that every night?! Wow!

Sweet Caroline

Congratulations to our friends Chuck and Jodie on the birth of their new baby girl. Caroline Campbell was born yesterday morning weighing 8 pounds and 13 ounces and looking just like her Daddy. We love you already, Sweet Caroline, and we can't wait to meet you!

Waiting for the Explosion

We are still "under the weather" here... well, not exactly "under the weather," but definitely not well. Noah woke up yesterday with a slight temperature and runny nose. So, I figured it could be that he caught the cold that I have or it could be teething. It looks like he has two molars coming in. Either way, I am instituting a mandatory hand washing, no kissing rule in effect until all signs of illness goes away. We keep passing it around, and I have had enough.

Noah had his 18 month doctor's appointment yesterday. He weighed 27 pounds (75%) and measured 33.5 inches (90%). The first question the doctor asked is "any words?" No. No words. Lots of talking and babbling, but no consistent words. She gave me a speech referral, but said she was doing it more for peace of mind than because she thought something was wrong. She pointed out that he does speak with inflection, so even though I don't know what Noah is saying, apparently, he has some idea. She has a son who didn't start talking until he was two, and she said at two, he had a speech explosion. So, she thinks that will happen to Noah. It's amazing how less worried I am at 18 months than I was at 15 months. I guess I'm used to it now and I have stopped comparing him to other kids. I am pretty sure that there is bound to be an explosion at any time now.

I did get on the phone today and call a couple of speech therapists. I learned two things. One they are expensive, and two most don't take our insurance. I left a couple of messages and decided to talk it over with Dean tonight, if we really wanted to get him evaluated now.

I got a return call from one of the therapists tonight. She was really nice, although, she is expensive and doesn't take our insurance. She spent about 15 minutes on the phone with me, asking specific questions about Noah and what he does and doesn't do and say. It was nice to have her ear for a little while, and honestly tell her all the reasons I worry and all the reasons why I don't. The take home message I got was that he's a boy, he's active, and at 18 months, he's still in the normal range. She said that five years ago, she didn't get kids for speech delays until they were 4, but now it's all about catching it early. She told me that she didn't think he needed an evaluation now, but if in three more months, he still wasn't talking, then I could bring him in for one. So, there you go, I guess time will tell.

Gone Fishing

When it's the day after Thanksgiving and your staff tells you the schedule is light, why don't we go fishing... there is only one thing to do.

Go Fishing.

I Am Thankful

My family of 3 in Florida. My family of many in Louisiana. Tivo. The second cup of coffee in the morning. Hot showers. My soft and cozy bed. Snuggling with Noah. Laughing with Dean. Flip-flops year round. Quiet time after Noah goes to bed. Nightime prayers. My faith in God. All the moments captured with my camera. Texts from far away friends. My scrapbook pages. Pinot noir. One Duck Stuck in the Muck. Roast, rice, and gravy. Noah clapping. My CHI flat iron. Naps on the couch. Jack Johnson. My laptop. Watching Noah run. Reading trashy romance novels. Noah's budding personality. Comfortable silence. Health. Getting no arm hugs from Noah. Giving no arm hugs to Dean. Ham sandwiches. 5 months down. 7 months to go. Peppermint hot chocolate from Starbucks. My IPhone. Grammy's backyard. Watching Dean live his dream. Boards in the door. Being done with my Christmas shopping. My hair in a pony. Noah dancing. Getting a break from bathtime. Dean being off. Definitely not a comprehensive list, but for all of this and every other big and small thing that makes my life so full, I am thankful.