Against the Wind

Several weeks ago, Daniel's sisters made plans to come visit us on the second weekend in October and they offered to babysit Jack so that we could go on a date. We don't have many opportunities for free babysitting -- or dates -- so we were certainly interested in taking them up on their offer.

When discussing our date options, I told Daniel that I would love to go canoeing. It has been over a year since we were on the water -- I was 7 months pregnant on our last trip and I have been anxious to get back on the water. Mountain biking was also high on my list but it requires more of a drive than paddling.

Friday night, before Daniel's sisters arrived, we loaded the canoe on the Subaru. Saturday morning we enjoyed breakfast with Jack and his aunts before heading out the door. I'm sure I left them an overly extensive list, but that is what moms do -- right?

We figured that we had a 3-hour window to get out on the water and back home. We drove out to The Docks at Goose Pond Colony to put in -- about 20 minutes from our house. We decided that our goal would be to cross the main channel of the Tennessee River.

To start, the wind was against us. We were averaging 3mph and figured the return trip would be faster since we would have a tailwind.

Lake Guntersville and this area of the Tennessee River have this lovely thing called milfoil. It is basically the kudzu of the water. When canoeing {or boating} you want to avoid this weed since it is difficult to paddle through and motors can get tangled up in it. The waterways have paths through the milfoil that have been treated, which means that you have to take specific routes to cross the lake/river. It also means that you end up in narrower channels with bigger boats. Thankfully most of the boats that passed us were nice enough to slow down when passing us, though we did get to ride a few waves.

Once we made it to the other side of the river, we took a water break before turning around.

On the return trip, the wind died down and then turned into a cross wind. While better than a headwind, it wasn't as good as having a tailwind. We maxed out at 5mph and finished our trip with 4 miles under our belts.

On the way back, we decided to cut through a section of milfoil instead of going around. In the middle of this weed, the wind died down and thousands of tiny little bugs took over our airspace. We could barely breathe as they swarmed our boat. We paddled as quickly as possible to escape the barely visible bugs. We're still not sure what they were. We hope that we don't get caught in them again. Once we were on the open water again, and the wind picked back up, they mostly disappeared.

It was great to get out and do one of our hobbies together again. The weather was perfect -- sunshine with a cool fall breeze. In case you're wondering... the only time we talked about Jack was when we discussed how soon we thought we could bring him out on the water with us.

 

Jack is Eleven Months

10.11.12. Before we know can blink twice, it will be 11.11.12. and Jack will be a year old. With each passing day, our little one is becoming more of a boy and less of a baby.

This month we have experienced quite a few changes. Jack has been cruising pretty steadily since 10 months. He holds onto furniture and walls and walks around. You can tell that he is pretty proud of himself. If he is unsure or feels even a little unsteady, he gently plops himself down on his bottom and then stands up again.

He has started to let go of the furniture and walls and will stand briefly without holding on. This morning when I went to get him from his crib, he stood for several seconds before sitting down. He is getting stronger with each passing day and standing/cruising for longer periods of time. He is a good crawler, but I think he prefers to stand and walk.

Last month he was eager to try to nose dive out of your arms and onto the floor. He still loves to hang upside down, but we have taught him how to turn around and scoot off of the couch, feet first. It is so much better to know that he is capable of getting off of the couch by himself than to worry about whether or not he is going to decide to dive head-first onto the floor!  

Now that Jack is fully on the move, he has decided that it is great fun to follow Sophie around. Sophie is not a fan of this game. Every time she moves from whatever spot Jack is attempting to invade, he laughs hysterically. 

Speaking of laughing, Jack is developing several different types of laughs. He has an full-out belly laugh, a little boy giggle and some other cute noises whenever he thinks something is funny. He cracks us up with his laughter.

Jack loves to wave at everyone. This actually started at the end of 9 months, but now any time we are in public he is waving at everyone. At for the most part people wave back. They also stop and talk to him. It is really sweet, but this makes grocery shopping {or anything else we do} take at least 10-20 minutes longer.

I can't begin to tell you how often perfect strangers stop to tell us that we have our very own Gerber baby or that he looks like the Gerber baby. It is kind of weird. I guess that his big, round head and huge blue eyes just remind people of Gerber? This was the closest picture I had that I thought might kind of look like the Gerber baby... I don't know.

Speaking of his big head, Jack had his first MRI this past month {boo} but we are thankful that his head size is most likely a family trait and we have nothing to worry about. Hopefully there will be no more MRIs for Jack {ever}.  

Jack knows what the word "No" means and generally obeys when we tell him "No" or "Not for Jack" or "uh-uh." He will repeat "no" or "uh-uh" back to us and shake his head and stop doing whatever we have told him to stop {most of the time anyway}. Occasionally he is defiant and we have to redirect him to another activity. This is hardest in the kitchen when I am trying to cook and he wants to open every cabinet door. The best solution I have for this is to give him pans, tupperware and a wooden spoon. This seems to distract him enough for me to make dinner.

Jack has about 3 words that he uses consistently: Dada {dada}, Dah {dog} and Do-uh {door}. Beyond that he has great inflection and will babble away. It is funny to listen to him on his monitor, talking away to the stuffed animals in his crib. His nursery teachers at church say that he will chat with them as well. In his own baby language, he has a lot to say!

Playing has become more purposeful this month. Jack loves to swat at balls and crawl after them. He loves books with flaps. He really loves to jump in his jumparoo and anything that involves pushing buttons to make music. Our boy is a big fan of music. We recently went to a bluegrass festival and Jack kept bouncing along to the music.

This month...

Jack went on his first waterfall hike...

brushed his teeth for the first time... 

and got to take his first ride on a train.

We are looking to so many more firsts with our boy.

End of month stats

Eating: He pretty much eats what we eat {just smaller bites}.

Talking: Dada {dada}, Dah {dog} and Do-uh {door}

On the Move: Cruising with purpose. Let's go of furniture to stand by himself for brief periods. Likes to follow Sophie around.

Teeth: Jack has 3.5 teeth – bottom two have been in for awhile now. One of the top two is pretty much in and the other has broken through the skin. He is drooling all of the time, so I'm sure more are on the way.

*I will be writing monthly updates of Jack with pictures of Jack and the Tonka truck on the 11th of each month. One Month Old. Two Months Old. Three Months Old. Four Months Old. Five Months Old. Six Months Old. Seven Months Old. Eight Months Old. Nine Months Old. Ten Months Old.

See Jack {late August/early September 2012}

This is an ongoing series of videos that I am sharing so that our extended family can keep up with how Jack is growing and changing in these early years.

See Jack play with the paper on the table at the doctor's office.

{late August}

See Jack play with his Legos.

{late August}

See Jack "ride a little horsey" with his Nana.

{early September}



See Jack play with his cousins at the Creative Discovery Museum in Chattanooga.
{early September}


See Jack watch the Muppets sing "Manamana"

{early September}

Incline Railway: My {Very Late} Birthday Present

Very late may be a bit generous of a descriptor since this was supposed to be my birthday present LAST YEAR. Just 11 months late, but who's counting?

Last year Daniel surprised me with a trip to Chattanooga for a birthday breakfast at the BlueGrass Grill and a proposed trip to the top of Lookout Mountain on the Incline Railway. The only problem was that it was really foggy and we didn't feel like the views would be worth it. 

Plus I was almost 9 months pregnant and the thought of going into labor on the steepest train in the United State, while ascending a mountain didn't seem like the best idea...

At the time, we did take a scenic drive up Lookout Mountain and I experienced my first Braxton Hicks contractions. However, Jack did not show up for another week.

Anyways, I recently informed Daniel that he better figure out when he could take me to the Incline Railway since my birthday is fast approaching and he still owed me a trip. So on Friday, we headed to Chattanooga for a day of family fun.

We really needed that time together. We have both been busy with work and home improvement projects; then last week a friend of ours died unexpectedly. It just felt right for us to take some time to be together as a family.

We made it to the base of the Incline Railway in time to make one of the last trips to the top. This railway is the steepest in the United States. At the top the grade is 74% – which is kind of nuts! The track splits halfway up the mountain so a train going the opposite direction can pass.

We enjoyed our scenic ride up the mountain. We only had about 30 minutes at the top since it was late in the day. It was probably the perfect amount of time for Jack. I think he had a good time riding the train.

After our railway experience, we headed downtown to attend the Three Sisters Bluegrass festival at the Riverfront. We decided to eat The Blue Plate Diner, which is right behind the grassy area where everyone sits for the concert. We even scored a table on the patio without having to wait too long. We had a lovely dinner and finished it off by splitting a slice of their Moon Pie Cheesecake for dessert.

This is our second year to attend Three Sisters -- it is very family and dog friendly event that happens to be free. We ended up leaving about 9 eastern since Jack was falling asleep in our arms; despite his best efforts to stay awake to watch all of the kids, dogs and general concert craziness. I'm sure that we will be back in the future.

It was a good day. We are trying to be more proactive about not spending our ENTIRE weekends doing things that can wait. We want to make more concerted efforts to spend time together doing things we love. Sometimes the chores can wait. 

Don't Waste Your Life

When it comes to the death of someone young, or at least someone close to your own age, it always seems so senseless. So unfair. So tragic. So many unanswered questions. So sad. So hard. So many thoughts. So many images flashing through my mind when I close my eyes.

This past week a friend of ours, Patrick Halstead, was taken off of life support after a drowning accident. It all makes no sense. We sit and question what could have happened. We wonder, why? What is God's purpose in all of this?

And there are no answers.

Patrick was a good father and a good friend. He was the kind of guy who would go the extra mile to check on you, just because. 

A few years ago when I was rushed to the ER for a blood clot, Patrick showed up at the ER {shortly after I posted a status update to Facebook}. He came at a critical time for me... I had just learned that besides having a blood clot in my leg, I also had a pulmonary embolism and they would be admitting me to the hospital for a week. Daniel had gone home to pack for the hospital stay and I couldn't reach him to update him about what was going on. I was terrified and alone when Patrick walked through the door. He was one of the few to visit me in the hospital and at the time he didn't even know me that well. He just showed up. Not many people just show up at the critical times in our lives... Patrick was special in that way: he always made time for people.

I hate that Patrick is no longer with us. I hate it for his son. I hate it for his family. I hate that we didn't get to see him when we were in Charlotte a few months ago. But Patrick taught me something invaluable: People are important and I need to be better about making time for people; making time to show up.

Today is Patrick's memorial service in Charlotte and my heart aches for his son, for his family, for those closest to him. When I hold my own son, my heart breaks a little more.

Patrick will be sorely missed by many. I take comfort in the fact that while life was not always easy for him, he was able to take the opportunity {after a lay off from Verizon} to work at the White Water Center in Charlotte doing something he loved. I take comfort in the fact that he didn't waste his life. I take comfort in knowing that I will see him again in Heaven.

Patrick -- I hope that you knew that you were loved. I hope that you knew that you touched a lot of people by showing up. 

*Pictures from a camping trip in the North Carolina Mountains in September, 2008.

Thatchers Barbecue and Grille

This post is a week overdue, but I really wanted to take a moment to blog about Thatchers Barbecue and Grille in Trenton, Georgia. We stopped here before we headed up to Cloudland Canyon and Urbanspoon did not disappoint us. 

With a rating of 94%, this little roadside restaurant could have easily been located in a bigger city. The store branding was great {as a graphic designer, that strikes a chord with me}.

Even better, the food was excellent and the prices were reasonable. The menu was large enough that we will definitely be dropping in again sometime to try out other eats on the menu.

Daniel had a chicken sandwich, while I tried a pork and chicken platter with pinto beans, sweet green beans and fried pickles that I shared with Jack. All of it was excellent.

If you make a trip to Trenton, Georgia to visit Cloudland Canyon or the Wilderness Outdoor Theater, MAKE SURE you stop by Thatchers. They are worth it!