Zoo and Other Stuff

So, I'm feeling like a pretty bad blogger. I usually feel like I have no news to share... which is bad. I guess this little post is just to say... we're still here.

However, I can say that we had an exciting weekend last weekend. We went to the Memphis Zoo. We cleverly forgot our camera, but I managed to remember late in the day that I had a camera on my phone. The pics below are from that day... not great, but the subject matter sure is cute!






I recently took this video of Samuel singing "Mr. Sun". It's better the second time around. I apologize up front for the quality... it is from my phone.


I also got some cute video last night (on my phone) of Samuel. My kid is CUTE... even if he doesn't say it right!


I wanted to post this picture too. After the fun with the above video (and some procrastinating by the little one), Samuel and Daddy konked out in the chair:

What It Was Like

What was it like without Samuel last week? Well, in a word... NICE!

We truly love and adore Samuel. No doubt about it. But, last week was so refreshing. We didn't do anything unusual really... but just to be home and to be able to talk to one another for more than one minute was wonderful! We were able to get some much-needed rest.

Samuel had a good time at Granna and Papa's. They played, read books, colored, ate and ate and ate, slept... ... ... I think it was a little tough on Granna... Samuel requires a lot of attention these days. Her house is pretty much baby-proof, but there are a few places he should not go but does anyway. It was cold up there, though, so they didn't get out very much. BUT, Granna all day and Papa at night is a lot of fun for a little kid.

Saturday, we met them at Corinth. I admit, I was thrilled that he was happy to see us. He kept saying "Mommy, hey! Daddy, hey!" over and over. He'd hug us and smile so big. What a treat!

Then we got home. Saturday and Sunday nights, he kept us up. We felt like all our rest had flown out the window. I don't know what his deal was.. gas, dreaming, mouth hurting... ?? Who knows. Then, Monday night he had this stuffy nose and kept acting like his mouth was hurting. So, of course, I doped him up. Motrin and Benadryl (and of course Mylicon.. that's nightly anyway). And... he slept all night. He got more Benadryl last night, and he slept all night. I know it sounds cruel... but sometimes, you gotta get some sleep!

So, while it was nice for Samuel to be gone for a while... we are VERY glad to have him back home. He is so much fun... and funny. Now he is doing the Mr. Sun song from Barney - motions and all. He cracks me up. I love that little turkey-trot.

In other news, I just received word that MSU will not be closed for spring break. Here's the deal... no classes, so no students and no faculty. No major administrative initiatives to be implemented that week. Spring Break is the perfect time to shut down and conserve. There's no telling how much money we could save in utilities.. and with the budget crunch coming, why not? It really makes no sense to me. It would be so nice to be home or travel or whatever. So, what does this mean for me? I'll end up turning in leave to take off so that I can spend some time with Kris and Samuel... probably go up to TN and monkey around with the fam for a couple of days. Oh, the joys of university life... non-faculty university life that is. :)

A Few Days without Samuel

It sounds highly unusual, right? A few days without Samuel. It is almost like we've disowned him or something. But, no! He's spending a few days with Granna and Papa. Like a vacation for him and us. We took him up there Saturday and came home yesterday without him. It's a little weird, but I am kind of excited about it. We haven't been without him since July. Since we've had sickness for about 3 months straight, we need some extra rest! I'm hoping this will give us an opportunity to do just that.

So, last night we went to a friend's house for a bible study. It is the first time I've been to a meeting since Samuel has been born when I could actually focus on the topic and not on Samuel. Think about that... 20+ months of being in meetings where my attention has been divided. Wonder how much I've gotten out of those meetings.... pretty near nuttin'!

Tonight, we have no plans. We're going to come home after work and flop. (Maybe we'll go get something to eat... but then we're flopping!) It's going to be strangely quiet, but I am not going to complain!

I miss my little man already, but he is having a lot of fun with Granna today. They were coloring when I called him earlier.

Here's a funny... I've been saying, "Guess what".. he started saying "What?".. and I would reply "I love you." It progressed to... "Guess what"... "wuv wuv you". Now, we're up to "Guess what"... "I wuv you". Well, this morning it went like this: "Guess what"... "I wuv ME!" I cracked up! My boy is just something else!