Eek!

We leave for the Florida Keys bright and early on Sunday morning. While I am mentally ready to get out of this cold, rainy weather and into something warmer and sunnier (it's going to be 30 degrees warmer where we're going!), I am SO not ready for 8 hours of flying. Marley will be fine on the plane, I think, but Amelia is at the worst possible age for flying. She took her first steps two weeks ago, and all she wants to do is practice walking. She really does not care for sitting still at all! Not to mention that we're not even close to being all packed.

I'm kind of in freak out mode right now, but I know it will be awesome once we are there. We will be staying at this house with Sarah, Matt, Alicia, Lilyana, and my parents. Now, if I can just get through the next couple of days without losing my mind. Just think sunny thoughts...

Beach Babies

11-month-old Marley: 20.5 lbs, 29"

11-month-old Amelia: 21 lbs, 29.5"

Riding the Bus

11 Months

That's 11 months, people!  We are just one little month away from having a one-year-old here!  "What's Amelia up to lately?" you might be wondering.  I'm glad you asked!

Favorite Pastime: Pulling things out of drawers/cupboards/bins, emptying bookshelves

Special Skills: Clapping, waving, pointing, standing unassisted, picking up teeny, tiny things off the ground, eating the teeny, tiny things she picks up off the ground.

Favorite Foods: Chicken, salmon, strawberries, oranges

Favorite CD: Neil Young's Harvest

Likes: Playing with her brother, reading books, taking showers/baths, swimming

Dislikes: Loud noises, being left alone, getting her nails trimmed

Locomotion: On the road to walking.  She took her first steps just this week!

Look here to remember back to 11-month-old Marley.

Mother of the Year

We had lunch at the newly opened Beachside Cafe today.  They opened just in time, too.  It turns out that Pioneer really wasn't our scene after all (think bikini espresso meets seedy night club).  Beachside Cafe seems pretty promising, though.  It has much the same vibe as Alki Bakery did (we've already been there twice since they opened last week), and I hardly feel awkward at all when things get a bit harried, as they usually do.

Today, for example, immediately following our meal, but before any of our stuff was cleaned/packed up, Marley decided it was time to go, and headed for the door.  I went to retrieve him before he could dive into the Sound for a little swim or some such thing.  Amelia took this opportunity to use her go-go-Gadget-arms to reach my half empty mocha, which I had mistakenly left in the same room with her.

I was able to wrestle the cup away from her, but not before she dumped most of it on herself, the table, and the floor.  I made Marley stand next to her while I ran to get napkins.  When I returned, (as if things weren't bad enough) she was lapping coffee off the table, like a dog.  What do I do about this?  Why, whip out my iPhone and take a video, of course!  Yup.  Mother of the year.  Hopefully CPS doesn't check the blog.

Motivation, or lack thereof

Maybe it's time to have my thyroid levels checked. Or maybe it's this rainy weather we've been having. At least I would have an excuse for my lack of blogging inspiration lately:) It's not like my kids aren't doing anything cute. Well, except for right now. Right now they are watching Yo Gabba Gabba. Yes, even Amelia. Hey, I'm not proud.

This morning, for instance, Marley woke up and RAN out of his room yelling, "I'm missing it!!"  He heard the garbage truck coming and wanted to watch it.  Luckily, he didn't miss it:)

Okay while you wait for more Marley and Amelia stories, here are some semi-current pictures to tide you over.