Growth Spurt.

I sent this photo to Kyle this morning. He is in Sacramento, CA visiting another VA hospital.

Olive's sippy contains the remnants of a yogurt drink. She also had two bottles (we'll wean her someday ... she won't go to college with a bottle) as well as some morning cereal. All before heading to school where she will eat breakfast.

I see some outgrown clothes in her future :)

Fall Favorites.

Ok. Some would argue that fall doesn't find its way down to Houston. And in some ways, they *might* be right. The 'colors' aren't imminent (and are likely to not arrive). The nights will not be crisp and chilly for quite a few weeks yet. I did a search for apple picking around here (having become accustomed to that 'fall' activity in the STL) but came up empty.

BUT.

We are still looking forward to temperate (and sometimes cool) evenings. Kyle will start watching (and listening to) football again. We *might* get to wear sweaters. We will cook out, and possibly BBQ.

Mmmm. Fun times.

Sunday, Sunday.

Today, we roused ourselves and tried out a church near our *potential* new house. (Not to confuse, we're STILL talking about the same house.) The members were very friendly. If you were to make a scatter chart of those in attendance at the 11am worship service based on age, we would have been substantial outliers. (I know, nerd much? But I love charts and graphs.) I think we may look to join a more diverse community, but it is hard to know after just one visit.

We enjoyed Sunday lunch at Jenni's Noodle House. Their tag line is, "It's all good in the noodlehood." It is trademarked, and it makes me smile. They have a new location in the Heights.

Olive enjoyed the chicken dumplings, waiving the receipt to show her joy.



Kyle had some soba noodles, and I went for ginger chicken. Tasty. We all went home happy!

Doing Nothin' Much ... and Lovin' It.

Tuesday night we had a lovely evening at home.

Olive enjoyed her dinner and then impressed us all with her continuing-to-improve walking skilz. Her distances are definitely increasing, but she seems to walk better with something in her hand: remote control, toy phone, small stuffed giraffe ... go figure.

Kyle whipped up some yummy scampi-ish shrimp and chicken. We also had tomato salad, steamed broccolini (which sounds healthy, but I'm pretty sure some butter was snuck in there) and whole wheat linguini. Super tasty.

Then we relaxed. We watched some tv (The Good Wife - which I am enjoying more and more). I played on the internet a tad; Kyle listened to a webinar on some new arch-geek technology. Zoe frolicked in the rain and came in with muddy paws.

It was a very nice respite in the midst of what seems like ongoing life craziness.

Later!

Waiting.

So.

We are waiting.

I didn't lie when I said our tortise seems to be edging out the hare, but they haven't made it to the finish line yet.

And so. We wait.

Which means that sometimes it is hard to see what is really going on in our lives for the fog of waiting.

Now. This is annoying, and we will CELEBRATE when the waiting is done. BUT. We have friends and family who have waited longer and with more patience for far more important things.

The house. In perspective? But an annoyance.

So, what have we been up to?

Working. Gathering details for new opportunities. Sticking our toes into new adventures ... with trepidation and excitement. For Kyle, travel, travel travel.

Playing. We have done our fair share of travel for fun, for vacation, for family vists. It has been wonderful. But, I am ready to be without suitcase for a period of time. We shall see if that time comes ;)

This weekend we got to meet my cousin Sean's son Tyler. He is such a cutie!! He is about 6 months younger than Olive, and (hopefully) they will be friends when they are old enough to know what friends are.

We have a few other recent additions to our family that we hope to meet soon, and we no longer have the distance excuse!

Kyle and I went on a date Friday night, taking advantage of some newly nearby family babysitters. :) We had a great time. We didn't do anything fancy: enjoyed happy hour at a sushi bar, ran some errands, saw the weinermobile, enjoyed adult conversation, pondered our next steps ... Wonderful.

That's it for now. Enjoy your week. We will try to enjoy ours!

H

My Special Spotted Lady.

We've had a bit of sickness around here folks.

Kyle has been the only one exempt.

I was under the weather briefly but am well recovered.

Miss Olive is getting a new batch of teeth and, as a result, is sometimes Miss Cranky-Pants.

In the more-than-you-want-to-know category, we've been fighting a persistent diaper rash most of the summer. (We have been advised to, among other things, let Olive 'run free.' If you want to try it, I'll bring her to your house to 'run free' for an afternoon. Not overly helpful advice for my life.) The rash just might be gone. (yay! yay! yay!)

She also came down with an ugly case of roseola (yup, I shot that spelling from the hip). This (I've been told) is No. Big. Deal. ("Fever. Fever. Fever. Rash. Rash. Rash. Rash. It should be gone by Thursday." So said our pediatrician.) She was covered in spots and was NOT happy. They are largely gone. And we are hoping for some better nights of sleep in the near future!

Also, in the great turtle and hare race that is our current mortgage situation, the turtle seems to be edging ahead. We aren't counting any chickens, but ... progress feels good. (Yay. Animal references.)

H

Olive Loves to Move.

She loves walkers and rockers and objects that slide.

She recently discovered a lid to one of her toy bins is the perfect size for her backside. Riding in it was the of-the-moment game until she found the laundry basket. She struggled to climb in, so we helped. And then, Kyle pulled her 'round and 'round the room while she giggled and grinned.

Visits.

First. (And a bit belated.) Kyle and I went on a double date at the Shaved Duck on one of our last Saturday evenings in St. Louis. It. Was. Wonderful. I recommend it highly to our friends still in the STL. We enjoyed ourselved thoroughly.



Second. Last weekend we were in Kansas visiting family. We met Liz and Matt's new daughter, Betsy. We celebrated Kyle's grandparents' 70th wedding anniversary.




We visited Kyle's Grandmother Thiel, who celebrated her 103rd birthday this year.

My Favorite Things.

So. This one is pure fluff.

Being as my new employer permits casual Fridays ;), I wore a new skirt to work recently.

I picked up this vintage wrap skirt while on vacation earlier this month. I will admit that I loved the skirt but wasn't entirely sure that it really was my 'style.' I mean, the apples are cute and all, but do they really say, "lawyer"?

This little vintage beauty is tons of fun. It has pockets and is a great length for errands around and casual dinner out. (And, for casual Fridays with no client meetings, it works. No matter how much I might wish, it qualifies as neither business nor business casual. Such is life.)

I would love to trace it and make 10 more (!), but my current agreement with my sewing machine goes something like this:

I agree to ask of it no more than the straight lines required of hems; it agrees to function reliably. No fancy stuff from me; no angry fits from it.

(Yup. My sewing machine has a personality. Deal with it.)

In this regard, for the time being, status quo is where I'll stay.

Details.

So. We moved to Houston and then started running around like Tasmanian devils.

Here's the run down.

We moved. It was hot. We are bunking at my Mom and Tim's for the time being (and for a bit longer than was originally planned). (Thank You!)

We hosted a birthday party for Miss Olive. Family and friends were in attendance. A great time was had.

We went on vacation to New Mexico to celebrate my Mom's 60th (!) birthday. It was lovely. My brother, his wife and their daughter came along. My sisters and their families weren't able to make it this time (but hopefully next!). The weather was gorgeous and the terrain just beautiful. There was much laughter and relaxation by all.

Unfortunately, while we were on vacation my Mom broke her wrist and had to have surgery. She seems to be healing well, but would definitely appreciate prayers.

My sister and brother-in-law got one step closer to moving to the US from Hungary. There are tons of details to work out. (I thought moving from MO to TX was difficult.) But we are WAY excited for them to arrive on U.S. soil. (Soon!! But no pressure ...)

Kyle has traveled to TN and will be in NY some time soon. I am helping Tim prepare for some upcoming depositions and noodling on the details of my own firm. Soon, very soon.

We are now in KC visiting family to celebrate Kyle's grandparents 70th (!) wedding anniversary.

The house details are still up in the air. (Boo.)

And ... that's about it (for now).

H

Because we are so proud ...

Yum.

One of my favorite places (who can pick just one!?) to eat in Houston is Goode Company BBQ. It doesn't follow Kyle's rule that good BBQ places involve some element of fear, usually for your gastrointestinal security when you notice the long-term effects of smoke (as in the meat was smoked) on the decor and for your personal safety when you pull into a not necessarily savory part of town.

But one exception proves the rule. No?

OK, back to lunch. Kyle and I met for lunch one day this week at Goode Company BBQ, the location near my office on Katy Freeway, and I had a 'stuffed potato' for lunch.

It was a carb fest to be sure. But, I LOVE a potato with all the fixin's. And when you add some chopped brisket and a dousing of fabulous tangy and not-too-spicy-but-not-too-sweet sauce ... mmmm. Heaven on a plate.

Pouting.

So.

Tuesday was August 10, 2010. And we did not close on the new house. Hopefully, we will in the very near future.

In a very nutshell fashion, the new mortgage rules are tres complicated and the process will take a tad bit of extra time. Fun.

Focusing on silver linings?

1 - We will be around the house to help Mom with her wrist surgery tomorrow and her recovery thereafter.

2 - It is freakin' hot here right now; perhaps a bit of time will help ease the heat?

Other than that, we are working hard, keeping our noses to the grindstone, trying to be helpful at Mom and Tim's, enjoying Olive and Zoe, and looking forward to visits with family and a time in the not too distant future when we will have a home of our own.

I'll keep you updated!

My Favorite Things.

This may be the best photo ever. So. Cute.

Hello (Goodbye Part IV)