After much patting and singing and listening to screaming child, the Ding Dong is down for his morning nap. If things continue the way they've been, he should be awake in....oh, about 4 minutes. Yesterday he skipped his afternoon nap all together. And consequently last night was not so good.

Things had gotten better in the sleep department, but we have taken a big step backwards. Usually, naps aren't that much of a problem, but lately Sam's been kinda manic and hyper. Also, a little clingy and anxious. He wants to nurse ALL THE TIME. I wonder what's going on with him?

I've looked at our routine, and not much has changed. The only thing I can think of is that last week, I watched a friends baby for the day. It was a rough day. None of us were too happy. But we survived and there were even moments of giggles and play. Actually, there wasn't all that much turmoil, but when you have 2 babies screaming and doing that pleading with their eyes thing at the same time...a minute is an hour. Pick one up, the other freaks. Put baby down to console other, we now have a full blown tantrum. They seemed to be having a contest on who could make me have a nervous breakdown the fastest. Luckily, they would suddenly be destracted by the dog or my jumping up and down, flapping my arms...hey, it works. It's like Cirque Du Soleil for 9 month olds.



I do it again tomorrow. I expect it to go better.

But it's not all stress and tears around here. Sam has begun to make interesting noises that have us in stitches. His new one is kinda like a yodle. And he loves it when you mimic it back. He is starting to share with us, which is sweet. I'll give him a pile of Cheerios and he'll start munching. Then he grabs a handful and puts his fist in my face. If I open my hand he'll place them inside, but he prefers to shove them directly in my mouth....which can be a little messy. I've actually been trying to get him to share with me for a while, but to no avail until recently. It was a mission because he's been sharing with someone else for weeks...



I don't know whether to declare Sam as "walking." I mean, he walks, sorta. But no more than 4 steps in a row. And the last 2 steps are usually more of a propelled fall. He prefers a crawl for long distances, but succesfully navigates short gaps without holding on to anything. But I can say he has mastered the STAND...



We are looking forward to some friends coming this weekend. I just hope Sam's sleep improves or I'll end up being a zombie. Perhaps this afternoon I'll hunker down in the Baby Corral with Sam and nap while he tries to get through the blanket and eat grass.

More evidence that being an asshole gets you what you want.

To deviate from my usual subject matter (DING DONG!), I would like to express my utter annoyance and disappointment with the outcome of Big Brother last night.

SPOILER ALERT! for any of you DVR/Tivo people...

I will be the first to admit that TV, Reality TV in general and perhaps Big Brother in particular, is not the most enriching way to spend ones time. But I like me some crap. And it will probably all go by the wayside as Sam gets older. But for now, he is tucked snuggly in bed while the debauchery plays out, so I will endulge my need for manufactured, semi-real, in no way representative of actual life, drama.

Last night Dick won Big Brother. And Dick is...well, a Dick. Now many people may argue that his Dickness was strategy. That it is what let him win the game. Now, I understand that these shows are, in their basest form, just a game. And I am the first one to get annoyed at players who take things personally as people get voted out or alliances shift. However, Dick was not just lying or manipulating game aspects. He was calling people names, making fun of other players religions, backgrounds and physical appearance. And it was obvious, OBVIOUS, this was not always in the realm of "game." He was intimidating because he IS intimidating. That appears to be the way he deals with people. He is the kind of person I don't tolerate. And now, he is judged to be the winner...once again reinforcing that in our selfish, get-what's-yours society, that the end justifies the means...

I am disgusted.

Survivor on Thursday. Yippee!
(I am waiting to pass judgement on "Chicken." I know he is from Virginia. CBS has regularly picked some questionable contestants from my home state (um, Johnny Fairplay...ugh) and if I am to stereotype people with names like "Chicken" this guy might just be another reinforcement of southern stereotypes. I hope I'm wrong...)

Hand towels are handy!

First, for a little cuteness...



Sam is chillin' under the coffee table. We put a blanket over it so it became a little fort. He thought it was pretty cool. I was relieved to get a break from the vigil, making sure the kid doesn't knock his teeth out as he cruises around. This morning he got the Godfather of all dings. Biggest, scariest to date. It was purple. He was walking around the table like he usually does. And I was watching, I swear. And when he got to the far side, he just let go. Why does he do that?! Anyway, he took a step, went down and smacked his cheek on the leg before I could grab him. It's the second time the table leg has caused some trauma, so now?



I'm sure J is going to be totally psyched about this interior design descision when he comes home.

He only left this morning and it already sucks. We look so forward to him coming home at the end of the day, it seems so strange to just put the Ding Dong to bed. And Sam is at an age that he gets totally stoked when J walks through the door. And not just because he does this "Rocket Blast Off" thingy that makes Sam go bonkers with glee. He's definetly a Papas boy. And Sam watches everything Daddy does. Like the other day, when there was a touch of fall in the air. What do you do when the temperature drops 5 degrees?

You tune up the snowboard!



I don't even want to know what that kid is thinking.

**YAAAAAWWWWWWWN**

I just dropped of J at the airport. He's gone to San Diego for a week for a tradeshow. So it's just me and the Ding Dong (oh, and Tubbs) holding down the fort. Should be exhausting.

Not to bore people with more talk of Sam's inability to sleep...but Sam can't seem to sleep. Last night was pretty bad.

7pm Asleep
7:15 Awake and crying
7:30 Back asleep (after a cajillion Old MacDonalds and some back patting)
7:45 Awake and crying
8:15 Back asleep (after a half hour!! of crying while I pat and sing...argh)
11pm Awake and crying
11:06 Back asleep with Daddy magic
2:15 Awake and crying

3:30 Back asleep.That's right, and HOUR AND 15minutes later. This stretch was punctuated with a few psychs. He would be asleep, but wake up screaming just as I am pulling back the covers to get back in bed. There was lots of nursing, lots of singing, lots of back patting.

4:30 Awake, nursed back to sleep pretty quick
5:45 Good Morning!

Yay! I'm a crabby, tired mess! And the Daddy Magic just got on a plane to the west coast. Last night was pretty crappy, even for Sam. He's usually not that hard to get back to sleep...and the little 15 minute naps were weird. I'm pretty sure we have some molars moving around. There was quite a bit of finger sucking. He wasn't completely wailing like he did with the last teeth, but I think it's safe to say he was uncomfortable. At least I hope that's it. It's always nice when there's a "reason."