Two down, how many more to go?

It's been a tough month here at work. Why? We've lost two people out of our practice, both of whom are very close friends. I don't want to feel like their leaving is a betrayal, but honestly it's hard not to. I keep telling myself, as I have done many times before, it's just business. But, we all know it's not always just about the business. It's about the people.

Most of us just manage to muddle through our jobs on a daily basis. Honestly, how many people can say they really love what they do? Not too many. The only reason we typically stay in a job is because of the people. Now, I have to start all over with a new set of "people." I am not one for change these days and I'm being forced into it. Maybe change is good for those who left, but what happens to those you leave behind?

Round and round she goes

One of Mallie's new favorite pasttimes is twirling. Luckily she gets dizzy pretty fast so the circling doesn't last too long. But, it is funny to see her throw her arms out to the side and tilt her head back. Then, as she starts turning she just giggles and giggles. It's one of the best sights in the world!

Sail Away, Sail Away

I hear strains of Enya in my head when I think of sailing away. Maybe it's that darn song that was so popular many moons ago. Do you remember it?! Anyway, back to my point here. We scheduled our first family vacation that doesn't involve visiting other members of the family. We're moving up in the world!

September 24 through October 1 Shawn, Mallory and myself will be sailing the Seven Seas (hey...that's an OMD song) with our friends Melody, Adam and their little boy Christopher. So maybe Seven Seas is exaggerating. We'll be soaking up the sun in the Western Caribbean on Royal Caribbean cruise lines. Our ship is the Rhapsody of the Seas.

We're all very excited. Okay, just mommy and daddy are excited. Mallory doesn't know what's hit her yet!

Lovey Talley

It's been a bitter election season and it shows no end in sight. A dark horse candidate has emerged onto the scene. Apparently Lambie has been bad talking Dollie because she's made no headway in the polls.

Here's the current score:

Lambie: 9
Blankey: 10
Dollie: 4
Monkey: 0

The Biter is Back

Daycare has politely informed us that Mallory has taken up (again) the sport of torturing fellow toddlers by biting them.

-- The good news: all the toddlers in the room are doing it because those darn teeth. That means the reputation is still intact.
-- The bad news: how do I stop it?!

I blame it all on that little boy. I'll call him "B" to protect his identity. Yep, he started the biting trend and the others have just jumped on the bandwagon. You know that famous line uttered by all mothers: "if so and so jumped off a bridge would you too?" Well, apparently in this case the answer is yes.

How many teeth can one girl have?

Teeth seem to be a recurring theme in this blog. The basic point: I wish they would just come in already. Seriously, I am so tired of the whining, crying and clinginess. On the other hand, I feel so sorry for her. She's got four coming in at one time. Gotta hurt.

So, what is prompting this post tonight? Well, it's 10p and we've had to listen to Mallory cry for two hours while we've been trying to get her to go to sleep. The motrin hasn't worked. The rocking hasn't worked. The quiet dark room hasn't worked. What else can I try? (maybe a little whiskey?! just kidding).

To top it all off the AC broke today. Yes, it's hot and humid and we'll all sitting here sweating. It's uncomfortable to say the least. Know when the air conditioner people are getting here? Friday. Yep, 48 whole hours from now. As I told someone earlier...just stick a fork in my eye and get it over with already.

It's been a long day for all of us and it's only just the beginning.

UPDATE: What is that sweet sound I hear? SILENCE! This last time took about 15 mins of crying before she finally gave out for the night (okay, that's my wishful thinking). Cross your fingers for me.

My house is a zoo

Since my last post was about the zoo, I started thinking. Hey, we don't need to go to the zoo to see animals...I've got a few of my own. Just look at my cute little giraffe and bunny!

Zoo no more

I admit it: I am a HUGE Baylor Bear alumni. Love me some Bears. So when an email announcing Diadeloso in Dallas appeared in my inbox one day you couldn't contain my excitement. Diadeloso = day of the bear. On campus, students get the day off of classes and the school provides lunch and fun activities like rock climbing walls, concerts, hypnotists, etc. Hey, anything to avoid class, right? So Baylor has started Diadeloso Dallas and it was going to be at the Dallas Zoo.

My first thought: kill two birds with one stone. Reconnect with Baylor and take Mallory to the zoo for the first time. Win win, right? Ummm...no. I didn't need to look at the monkeys cause I had one in my stroller. We're not quite ready for the zoo just yet.

Summer days

The weather has been beautiful the last few weeks so we've been spending many evenings outdoors. It's fun for mommy and daddy to hang out and BS with the neighbors. Mallory absolutely loves to be outside and explore for different reasons. I'm not sure if it's the idea of freedom or if it's because outdoors is a new, fascinating world.

Somedays she'll sit quietly in the grass and watch the birds fly by, listen to the wind in the trees and remain generally content. Other days she's running around like a banshee and is the dirty neighborhood kid you always dreaded coming to your doorstep. You know the one who you didn't want to invite in because they might put their grubby little hands on your toys.

So now that she's been conditioned to love the outdoors we have a little monster on our hands. She got at time-out at school this week because she threw a tantrum when they tried to come indoors. At home she'll sit in front of the glass storm door and whine to go out. It's going to be a long summer for mommy and daddy.