Happy Halloween

Our ward had trunk-or-treat last weekend, thus we celebrated early. He was a busy little bee.
Too bad he didn't collect any candy. I would have enjoyed every bite of it.

Goodbye, Camry

Oh, Camry. Like a old relative in a nursing home who drains his family's savings, you just refused to die. And then, to the relief of all who knew you, you did. Your engine shook, your gears stopped, and then all you could see was light. This light was not transcendent. It was not heavenly. It was orange. And it was the check engine light. Since you weren't worth the gas we put inside you, that little light meant it was time to go a better place. Probably the junk yard.

You, our Camry, will not be missed. You were a car; not a person. And you were a bad car. You were an ugly car. Your beige interior matched your beige exterior, which matched your complete beige-ness. Less flashy than a black hole, you excelled only in mediocrity. You had a tape player, for crying out loud. And it broke. You had a broken tape player. Once I left the doors unlocked and the key in the ignition. But even on the South Side of Chicago, no one would take you. And who can blame them?

We have fond memories in you, but no fond memories of you.

That, of course, is a fabrication of the truth. We have exactly two fond memories of you. First, you allowed yourself to be hit by a medical student in a 4Runner. We thank you. That was a nice check we received from the medical student's insurance company. We could have used it to repair you; but, as you know, you weren't worth it. The second fond memory we have of you is our last: the memory of that car dealer actually giving us money to take you. Surely he only did so because he felt sorry for us, and it wasn't that much, but we will always relish the pity that had a price tag.

What is there left to say, Camry? You made it on long trips? You hauled that trailer to Chicago? So what? You were a car. You're supposed to work. The fact that we were thrilled with these achievements only shows how low the bar was set.

Goodbye, Camry. I hated you every day.

Go Giants

If you are our friend, you are rooting for the Giants. If you are not rooting for the Giants, you are not our friend.

Fear the beard.

Update

So we are on night 4 and he slept from 7:30-6:45!! Night 1 was the worst as he woke up several times and cried from 2-3:45. It really was awful. Especially when he woke up the next morning because he was hoarse. Oh it broke my heart hearing him cry.
Night 2 - cried for probably 15 minutes.
Night 3 - cried for about 5 minutes
last night - no crying! Success. Thanks for all the comments, it helped a lot, especially on the first night.
So on to happier stuff. My sister and I went to Maryland to go apple picking. You know, to do stuff white people like. If you think that sounds racist, see this (it isn't racist, it's satirical). We had a jolly good time. The weather was perfect and the fruit was delicious. I've been munching on apples all week. Oh yeah, and they had the most wonderful tomatoes. You can't get them like that in the store. Beautiful tomatoes come at a cost, and I'll willingly pay it for a little piece of heaven.

Silly me, I forgot a hat for my fair little babe, so we improvised and used a blanket to protect his strawberry head. He didn't mind. It makes him look like a saint, no?

Sending out an SOS

Help. I need HELP!
My little munchkin used to be a GREAT sleeper. He would go to sleep by 8, wake up at 4 or 5, and sleep until 8.
Then we moved.
Now he is an awful sleeper. Last night I put him to bed at 7, because he was exhausted and he woke up at 12, 2, 4, 6 and finally around 7:45 for the day. He even napped pretty well yesterday, but refused his last nap.
I can't do this any more. He is almost 6 months old, he should be sleeping through the night. Not every night is like this, but most nights, he wakes up multiple times. We went through a period of inconsolable crying during the middle of the night. It was horrible. I'm sure our neighbors love us. He doesn't have an ear ache, and I haven't seen any sign of a tooth.
I've read online that a move can really mess up their sleeping. I'm starting to reconsider this move, just kidding, but my 2 am self is.
Advice Please. I know you all have it. So save me.
oh yeah, he rolls, it's a huge pain and won't sleep on his tummy. Oh yeah, one more thing, out of desperation, I tried a little cry it out session. He won - he went for 45 minutes. Don't judge, we were checking on him.



Above picture is to showcase his hair. It naturally stands straight up. I love it.

The good & the bad: Chicago

I think I'll take a minute to give a few words about my beloved Chicago. The things I'll miss, and the things I won't miss.
I'll miss (in no specific order):

• Our apartment, we had a great view of Lake Michigan and our apartment was spacious.
• The walk-ability of our neighborhood. We could walk to school, church, grocery stores, the library etc. Easily hop on the bus or train to go into the city. Our new place has a "good" walk score, but really, there is no walking.
• Our friends, enough said.
• The food. Oh man, Chicago has great restaurants. For our last night in Chicago, we went to Bandera, one of our favorite restaurants. Pictured above is their famous veggie burger. Oh my mouth is watering just thinking about it.
• The ward. Our ward was great and very unique. I don't think you could find a ward like it any where else. Can I get an A.MEN?!
• The UofC. Beautiful campus, weird (insert uber smart) students. I liked it though.
• Hyde Park Produce. Oh I miss you so very very much!
• The lake shore path. Perfect place to run or bike.
  

I won't miss:

• The parking situation. It was impossible all the time. Add in the bird poop factor and it was miserable.
• Kenwood kids, they were scary.
• Service or lack there of on the southside of Chicago.
• Issues associated with the southside - crime, murders - it wasn't by us, but nonetheless, it was not that far.
• Winter.
• Corruption in Chicago politics.
• Flamin' Hots - you HPer's know what I'm talking about.
  

I'm sure the lists could go on. But we'll just leave it at that. Overall, I miss Chicago a lot. It was comfortable and part of me feels like Chicago is where I grew up, and it's where our family started. Luckily, we'll always have a piece of Chicago since Asher is a native Chicagoan.