This past weekend was Gay Pride and we attended a pre-parade brunch thrown by Jeff Harwell and his neighbors. If anyone knows how to throw a party, it's Jeff - he spares no expense, thinks of everything and goes out of his way to make it special. We had tons of champagne, food and custom made t-shirts with the logo "It's A Family Thing" on the front. We made Vin a matching onesie (see below). Once at the party you could iron-on additional logos or sayings on the back of your shirt. Vin's said Two Mommies Are Better Than One

Gay Pride is always a very special day for our people. It is a chance to celebrate who we are and this year we celebrated with our birth families and our families of choice. We were lucky to have Aunt Tara go with us to the party and then she took Vin so Teri and I could stay at the party. THANKS AUNT TARA!!!

I'll post pictures of the party soon but many of you wanted to see Vin in all his rainbow gl ory so here he is...

I'm sure that he will want to kill Teri & I when he is older but we had a fun time dressing him up!

Big Decisons

This week I made the decision to stop pursuing my Ph.D. Teri said she had been waiting for me to come to this conclusion. My logic behind this decision revolves around time. I do not want to spend up to three hours a day or more reading and writing papers while my son is in daycare. When I look into our future and consider that there will be at least two more children coming it doesn't make sense to continue going to school. Time will only become more scarce and I don't want to miss any of their childhood moments, big or little.

Once the decision was final I felt so good! I love school, and I love being a student but I was at least 8 years away from finishing this degree. I can always go back and finish later but for now I want to focus on my baby and my family.

Besides, I've learned more in the past four months than I have in my entire academic career. Here are just a few...

• Baby wipes can be used for all kinds of things, like cleaning your dashboard at a stoplight.
• Red lights are my worst enemy since Vin wants to me in constant motion while riding in the car.
• Burp cloths can double for a cocktail napkin when needed.
• Christmas carols make good lullabies, my favorite is Silent Night
• A baby's laugh is the sweetest noise in the entire world
• Fingernails are for picking baby noses
• The greatest power of one's breasts is not getting out of speeding tickets but rather the power to calm a screaming baby in an instant. Amazing!
• I find breastfeeding, folding baby clothes and washing bottles immensely satisfying, and couldn't be prouder of my ability to nourish Vin into his healthy 15 lb. little self.
• Lastly, although feminism has taught me that I can do it all, I'm choosing not to.

Are your ready for some football?

What did Vin do Saturday night and Sunday??? He did what every American male did this weekend - he watched football!

Saturday night he watched college ball with his Uncle Mat Sunday he watched the Cowboys with his Uncle Rick. Notice the #9 jersey he's sporting thanks to Rick & Yvette. What I love about this is that they did not buy him a onesie but got him his first jersey!

Vin at 4 months

Vin In His First Chilis Outfit

How Lucky Can One Girl Be!

Several weeks ago we realized that Teri would be out of town (Monday through Thursday) for my first week back to work. I began worrying about this and making arrangements for Vin. Knowing it was going to be hard enough to drop him off at day care but to start teaching and taking my own courses again filled me with anxiety. About 300 miles away – Patty was also worrying. I was not surprised by this, we are worriers, it’s what we do, so when I asked her to come stay with us she of course said yes.
Her being here lessened my anxiety tremendously. As I’ve written before, I now am a cliché; working mother guilt is REAL and I’ve not got a grip on all of it yet, but walking out in the morning, knowing that he’s with Mayme, was so comforting.
To add to all my initial anxiety, he’s had a cold from almost two weeks now. Runny nose, sore throat, cough – the whole bit, so we also made a trip to the pediatrician. Her advice… Vicks.

Now we are a Vicks family, Granddad Buzzard would slather us from armpit to armpit with the miracle cream and then tie a bandana around our neck to hold the heat in. So this week I passed the tradition down to the next generation.

Patty had intended to leave on Wednesday afternoon but her maternal instincts go the better of her and she said she couldn’t leave me alone with a sick baby so she stayed an extra day. While she and Vin played and laughed and she got to know his emerging personality. He loves her! Early in the week he seriously studied her face as if saying “ I know that you are not my Mom, but you sure look like her.”
I am truly blessed by her – she bought Vin some new toys, cleaned my house, detailed by vacuum cleaner, bought me fun new cleaning products to make my life easier and is of course always fun to be around.

(Mayme & Vin in matching outfits)

My blessings continue…
Tuesday night when I got back from school James was in the kitchen making his famous flat tacos, Jeffrey was outside adding chemicals to the swimming pool, Patty was on the floor surrounded by mobile parts, batteries and instructions. Never a dull moment around here! I am truly so grateful for everyone’s help this week and don’t know how to thank everyone.

Vin enjoying the mobile!

Jamesy making tacos