Eleven Months - Pictures

I realized on Sunday that Anne is 11 months old now (Friday) and we haven't taken pictures in a while. And it was a beautiful day! (And she was awfully cute.) So we went to the Nelson Atkins, the Kauffman Memorial Garden, and my favorite "secret" garden.  Here's a few.  If you want to see more, click here.

This one's my favorite. I've titled it "Independence." Once the trees really change color, I'll have to recreate it.

This one she just has a cute expression that I thought I should share.

And she just looks like herself here.

And this is a new face she's been making recently.  Just funny....

Used gum

I just fished a piece of used gum out of Anne's mouth in the church office.  Kind of turned my stomach.  Blech!  (Imagine Snoopy with his tongue out).

Business Name

So if I was to sell jewelry or facilitate little girl jewelry-making birthday parties, what would be a good name for my business?  something memorable but not too cute.  ideas?  I just know one of you has the perfect name.  :)  Post it in the comments, please.  I'll totally give you credit, btw. :D

Playing in the dirt

From Anne - 10+ months

We learned to play in the dirt last week!  It was so much fun!

Gratitude

If your everyday life seems poor, don't blame it; blame yourself; admit to yourself that you are not enough of a poet to call forth its riches; because for the creator there is no poverty and no indifferent place.

- Ranier Maria Rilke

I've been trying to live into this.  But it's hard!  We Americans (maybe others, too, I'm not sure) really like to blame other people.  But I'm trying to be grateful for every little good thing that happens.  I think it has to be a lifestyle.  One that you practice all the time.  So I'm working on it.

To achieve an ordered society, we have to eliminate the root cause of crime - all the people.

Stephen Colbert

Pray for my cousins. Their youngest baby died on Wednesday about 1 1/2 hours after she was born. I can't imagine their pain.

O God, you do not willingly grieve or afflict your children.

Look with pity on the suffering of this family in their loss.

Sustain them in their anguish;

and into the darkness of their grief

bring the light of your love;

through Jesus Christ we pray.

Amen. BCP

Anne's tickling me!

At least I think that what's she's trying to do.  She's grabbing at my shirt and laughing.  :)  How fun.

The Spiritual Seduction of Eloquence

I always enjoy reading Rabbi Gellman's editorials in Newsweek, but I thought I'd post a link to this one:  The Spiritual Seduction of Eloquence.  It's just a nice reminder to "stop and think not about how the words made us feel but what the words really mean."

And have I mentioned how much I really dislike election season (or in this case, years)?

Fall, here we come!

I admit to being shamelessly biased, but Anne's so cute! Today is the first really cool day and it's raining, so I put her in this raincoat and shoes before we walked to the church. And she was just too cute to pass up taking a picture. :) And on the fall note - it's so exciting! raincoats! yay!