Eleven...

Logan is eleven months old now. Eleven months! Just one month shy of being the big One Year Old! Yes, we are already planning his birthday party. Wow. Sigh. Did this past year really go by that quickly?
He loves to move chairs around, like the barstool above which is normally found in our kitchen but was moved to the living room. Somehow, sticking out his tongue helps. That is no surprise to us, because he sticks out his tongue for just about everything. That little characteristic becomes quite interesting (sometimes irritating) when it's time to feed him! We're starting to wonder if he will ever want to eat table food - everything that goes in the mouth comes immediately back out unless it's pureed! I guess he'll be hungry enough to eat chunkier foods eventually... We just keep trying!

Lo is still our 'funky crawler', and hasn't taken any steps on his own just yet. He loves to be wherever his big brother is, and playing with whatever big brother has at that moment. Caleb, in turn, loves his little brother but will manhandle Logan to get him out of the way - at which point Logan is sure to make himself heard from across the house! I'm getting visions of future wrestling matches taking place over my coffee table, and hearing myself say "take it outside, guys!" But, being the rational, wonderful parent that I am, I'm sure I'll always sit the both of them down and have a long, mediated discussion on what happened and why we need to get along, while eating freshly-baked cookies and having a big group hug afterwards. (wink wink)

Oh, boys are fun!! Seriously, I am so thankful for the two of them. The Lord has blessed me with two energetic, lovable, funny, good-natured little guys. My hope and prayer for them is that they will grow to be loving, respectable, caring, giving, kind, fun, and generous men who follow whole-heartedly after God. Men like their daddy.

Question...

Have you gone to vote yet?

I have. Today.

Early voting rocks. No long lines, no overly stressed election officials checking you in, no broken-down voting booths, and you can vote at any polling location in your county. (Or, at least we can here in TX.)

Go vote if you haven't yet. Go early. Get it done.

They might just give you a sticker for voting!

Today's daily logic...

Me: Caleb, you sure are getting tall.

Caleb: No, Mommy - you're getting small.

Po-tay-to, po-tah-to.

Concepcion...

Of the missions surrounding San Antonio, Concepcion is the most well-preserved. As the Park Ranger said, the greatest treasure lies inside this beautiful structure - original frescoes that have survived the Texas heat and humidity since the mid-1700's. The art combined Catholic teaching with the natives' symbols and style, making these frescoes very unique to this area.

Another fun fact: Would you believe that this mission is located in the ghetto? We're talking ghetto, folks. As in, I left absolutely nothing behind in my car, and was very happy that the Park Ranger accompanied me around this mission!

San Jose...

(the picture above is a bronze statuette of San Jose)

Continuing my tour of historic missions in the San Antonio area, I went to Mission del San Jose - just south of downtown. I found it amazing that the missions I visited were no more than 3-4 miles away from one another, yet were self-sufficient little villiages in the mid 1700's.

It was also incredible to think that while Spanish Franciscan monks were establishing these missions, teaching and converting the natives in this region, our Founding Fathers were beginning to set up the framework of the United States. Very diverse ways of life were concurrently happening in what we now know as the Home of the Brave.

Que bonita...

I enjoyed all the colors of Mexican crafts. Que bonita - how beautiful.

Paseo del Rio...

Scenes of the San Antonio Riverwalk during the day.

Remember El Alamo...

It's almost impossible to be in downtown San Antonio and not pay a visit to this historic Texas landmark. It's even harder to take photos of the grounds surrounding the Alamo with no other tourists in the shot...but it was a welcome challenge to me on this day! (pay no attention to the man's head in the first pic...oops, I guess I just gave that one away!)

Fun fact: nearly all of the existing structure has been reconstructed. A majority of the rebuilding/reconstruction efforts took place by the WPA in the 1930's.

Fiesta...

The prettiest pinatas I've ever seen.

Taste of Tejas, part dos

On our way home from San Antonio, we took a small detour through Luling.

Really, really good barbeque was calling our name!

Brisket, pork ribs, and sausage - don't forget the pickle!

You know it's good when it's not served on a plate, and you have to eat it with your fingers.

Taste of Tejas, part uno

Galletas, or cookies, from Mi Tierra in San Antonio. Delicioso.

Thankful Thursday...

Is it me, or as we enter into fall and draw closer to Thanksgiving and Christmas, does it become easier to count your blessings?

Even with all the political and economic turmoil we're experiencing, we still have so much to be thankful for. I am no exception. Below is just a sundry list of things I am over-the-top grateful for at this time.

• A home that wasn't swept away in a hurricane's storm surge
• Electricity and clean running water
• A church that strives to serve the community, and fellow believers and friends who want to BE the church, not just DO church
• A healthy family
• Parents and in-laws who are incredibly loving and generous, and who have stayed together and provided examples to Ryan and I of solid marriages - even in rough times
• A country that was founded by Christian men, who put in place a democratic system
• The power of prayer
• Not having credit card debt
• The ability to keep in touch with dear friends who live so far away through email, blogging, etc.
• M&M's - oh, how I love them
• Being able to exercise again (with childcare!!)
• Lower humidity in south TX
• An amazing husband who has far exceeded any of my ideals - who meets me at every turn, who challenges and upholds me, who provides for his family well, who is about as hands-on of a father as can be, who cherishes me

My cup runneth over.

Sheets day...

Caleb looks forward to "sheets day" every week. To him, it's a huge adventure - and little brother is quickly catching on, but doesn't fully get excited over changing the sheets on Mommy and Daddy's bed just yet!

Caleb calls it "making bubbles", because after I strip the sheets, I will take the fitted sheet and toss it up so that it creates a 'bubble' on the floor. Caleb loves to either pounce on the bubble, or sit underneath it as it gently collapses to the floor. Logan isn't too keen on the sheet bubbles just yet, but has to be nearby so that he can supervise all the action!

Usually after we've grown tired of pouncing on bubbles and making a bubble tent on the floor, it's time to play on the big bed before I make it up again. On this day, Caleb decided he wanted to be a pirate - can you see his makeshift spying glass? Oh, this one is creative!

It won't be long until he figures out that you look through the other eye in a spying glass...

Ten...

Welcome to the world of double digit months, little buddy.

Logan turned 10 months old on Sunday, September 28th. He still does his funky little crawl all over the place, and it's usually either to find me or to get to his next 'support' - something that can support him as he stands up. I'm afraid our weeks (days?) are numbered before he's a biped like the rest of us!

Logan is our serious little guy - he doesn't smile as readily as Caleb did at this age, but boy does he have a great grin when he does! Logan is incredibly ticklish, and to me it's a thing of beauty when I can get him to giggle so hard he's doubled over in laughter! He's a sweet one - loves to cuddle, and can be so bashful at times it hurts (me). This little guy can sit and analyze something for the longest time. It always makes me wonder what he's thinking about as he is studying a pen, or a small Lego, or even our shoelaces - he'll pass them back and forth, hand to hand, give them a taste test, and look at the object from all angles. I watched him try to turn his head upside-down to look at the underside of a Matchbox car he was holding last week!

Logan still only has two teeth, and is very picky with food. A while back, we had trouble just getting him to eat the pureed baby foods, and now we're going through the same issue of transitioning him to "big people" foods. He wants nothing to do with it other than to study what we're offering him! He will get there - hopefully by his birthday he will want to dig into what we set in front of him, otherwise we'll have some sad pictures of the one-year-old who won't eat cake!

Speaking of his first birthday, I can't believe it's almost time to look at planning a little party for him. I've even been looking at cake designs that I'd like to do. Again, I just hope he wants to try the cake!

Maybe we should have a warm-up round to see if he'll eat cake. Oh wait, we will! ...his daddy turns 30 one week before his first birthday!!!