I'm pretty tough in the gross-out category. I can take the spit-up and the poopiest of diapers, but Willa's picked up a new habit that turns my stomach.

Her top 2 teeth have broken through, and I'm sure it's a strange feeling that she's exploring, but she's grinding the bottom teeth against the newcomers up top. ACK! Just typing that makes me close my eyes and shake my head violently. yuck yuck yuck. Hope this ends soon.

These teeth look big, and there are delicate parts of me that come in contact with her mouth frequently. Those parts are nervous.

She was sick, then she was teething, then she was sick (again), and here come the top 2 teeth. During this time we started a terrible cycle that has resulted in not a whole lotta sleep. I felt bad for our crying baby sick baby at 2 am, so I'd get her from her crib and nurse her. And then I felt bad for our crying teething baby at 2 and 5 am, so I'd get her from her crib and nurse her. She always was calmed and slept again after. A few months of this, and now I'm feeling sorry for our crying baby who may not be able to fall back to sleep without being held and nursed. I'm also feeling bad for myself and Jim and the dogs - none of us have slept the night through in probably 3 months.
We bought a book to help figure this out in a kind and effective way. I'm too exhausted to read it.

Our walking mini-Parisian...

Cousin MaKenna hands off the toy that helped her learn to take those first steps exactly 2 years ago.
We will rue the day, but it's fun to watch her wild eyed pride as she finds more and more independence and mobility.

This photo pretty much sums up our Thanksgivingpalooza.
Wonderful visits with a whole lot of family and friends. Good meals. Quick moments of nice connections with Jim (mostly in the car). But too too much. We were all exhausted yesterday. I was ready to crawl into a cave to avoid large groups of people.
After 4 days of being held by grandparents and aunts, uncles, and adoring cousins, Willa's probably having a rough time sharing adults at day care today.

It is Thanksgiving Eve. I am thankful that Willa slept from 9:30pm - 6am.
She has a pink elephant (hoping this doesn't sway her political leanings later in life) that she's started nuzzling at night. Last night when I checked on her she had one hand behind her head and the other on the trunk of her elephant. She startled a bit when I came in, but sighed, smiled, and continued sleeping. A human body can't possibly hold the the size heart that mine felt at that moment. Maybe that's God.

I've heard new moms complain that once they had a baby, they felt invisible. They became secondary, and didn’t like it.

Willa and I left Jim at home for his black tie fundraiser, and went to my parents’ house this weekend for a family wedding (super duper fun family wedding). When we walked through the door, you’d think that her car carrier was magically levitating- that I wasn’t holding it. All eyes and grins were affixed on Willa. And I didn’t mind. She’s the best do-it-yourself (ourselves, this is a team effort) project ever and I’m pretty proud of our work of art.

Observing my family’s adoration for her gave me joy. It’s the best present I could ever give my parents and siblings. MaKenna enjoyed her cousin too; she zealously shared her fruit puffs and hugs. She was not pleased when Willa started to gnaw on her purse.

Dad and I danced to “What a Wonderful World” at my wedding, and again this weekend. Dad was what my brothers like to call a little “over-served,” but his intent was true when he said, “thanks for giving us such a beautiful grandchild.” I could only grin, blink back a few tears, and say “you’re welcome.”

“I hear babies cry, I watch them grow. They’ll learn much more, than I’ll never know. And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”

Willa's music education continued last night as Jim put the Beatles in and brought out his guitar. She reacted by scooting (knee foot, knee foot...) all the way to Jim, pulling herself up on his knee and plucking stings on the guitar neck. Given her musical interest, I'm going to suggest we hide the drums for a few years...

From the health desk:
Germboree '06 is nearly at it's end - we hope. Willa and I are almost 100% all better. Jim is now on the same blue antibiotics I took. Hope our family was a little ahead of the winter cold/cough curve and that we're not in for another several months of this.

Willa's to do list for tonight:
Sleep (because you forgot to last night)

Another 5th Beatle...
Jim and Willa had a sing-along last night at the highchair during a meal of mixed vegetables (orange variety). Willa's great on the "na na na's" in Hey Jude. I have a message on my cell phone to prove it.
She's started to bop to music now. When it's quiet and she's active, she looks at us and rocks as if to say, "hey, let's hear some tunes."

Willa and dad on a Fall walk

The holidays are starting us down, and I'm starting to get nervous. We tried Christmas shopping this weekend. But after about 20 minutes in the mall, we both were angry with people and Jim admitted to feeling old because he thought all the teenagers were dumb. We both hate the mall, and we both are pretty anxious in crowds, so online shopping seems made for us.

There's also the whole splitting holiday time with both families evenly issue. And to complicate things, we now have a baby and two families 2.5 hours apart who both want to see her. The pressure of appeasing both sets of parents and siblings (and on my side a cast of aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents) made me forget that it might be nice to wake up on Christmas morning in our house - just the 3 of us and our dog pals.

I am determined this year to not let the pressure of the Rockwellesque holiday image in my head ruin our daughter's first Christmas. It's going to be hectic and messy and far from perfect, the cookies might get made, gifts might all be bought and wrapped on time - and they might not, but it's going to be wonderful. I can't wait to see Willa check out our Christmas tree for the first time. Here's to the hope it stays upright all season!

"Hi, just calling to make sure you haven't moved to Canada."

"Why would I? Soon we'll have socialized medicine here - soon we'll have everything! You and your liberals will bring Utopia to Michigan"

"So... you voted against Utopia again, dad?"

Willa is mobile. And Jim and I are both exhausted. She's crawling, but not (of course) in any typical way. She's not on all fours, and she's not army crawling. She uses both hands, a knee, and a foot. It's awkward looking, but it works.

She was trying to stand up one day and got one leg up. And then she moved her knee forward and squealed with delight. "Hey mom, I'm self-propelled now! Look, I'm lightening fast!" The newspaper, our shoes, the dogs tails... are not safe. This weekend will be spent baby proofing.

In other news, antibiotic #2 seems to be gaining ground on the germs having parties in our lungs and sinuses (anyone remember that Cosby episode?). We should be operational in a few days. I'm scared to see how fast zippy can move when she's not sick!

Day care has launched a biological warfare on our house and despite the "shock and awe" antibiotic campaign, the germs are still winning.
We're waving the white flag (more like exhaustedly flopping it back and forth), but the germs persist.
All three of us are still sick (Jim, I heard the coughing this morning). And it's not even officially winter yet.
I'm looking forward to when our immune systems have overcome enough challenges to make us superhuman.
And then those germs had just better watch out!

This is Greta. She has her own merits. None of which will be shared here as she ate my favorite cook book last night.