My baby is NINE months old…I cannot believe how quickly it has gone by. It seems like just yesterday he was placed upon my chest. Really, it seems like just yesterday they were all making an appearance into my life. I can still see Christopher’s sweet face and cone head. Austin’s scared little face, pale skin and hollow eyes. And I still can remember the amazement at Matthew’s exciting birth, attended only by nurses. He seemed so tiny, yet so perfect. In the last nine months, this kid has seen it all: An air show, a Nascar race, the zoo, an almost 3,000 mile road trip, 2 movies, a state fair, a baseball game (15 minutes at least before we were rained out), and survived a weekend with my husband’s family. This kid has done it all!

Last night he had his first taste of Ramen Noodles, nothing he will have often, but I wanted to give him a taste. The other picture is me over 25 years ago sleeping in my own Ramen Noodles.

Obviously, noodles are exciting as you can see by our expressions.

Lots of fun to be had yesterday, Bobby, Matthew and I went to the mall just to walk. Matthew napped in his sling and we ran into a neighbor and his little boy Connor who just turned one. We also spotted Santa, in the food court, who was eating a Subway sub (hopefully not on the Subway diet, I would hate for 2006 to yield a less Jolly old saint Nick). We poked around the Discovery Channel store and agreed that we are both nerds. Bobby got his wedding ring sized up more than a full size and I got mine inspected and cleaned, and Matthew was quite taken with some stuffed bears they were selling to raise money for Saint Jude’s Children’s Hospital. We also got personalized Christmas ornaments in lieu of our tradition of each member picking out their own ornament. We ended up saving a ton of money and got family keep-sakes that can be cherished for many years to come.