Survived

Imagine this face (and the associated crying). Now put this face on an airplane. Then times that by five hours. Actually make the last hour not even sad crying but full on angry screaming. All I can say is that I'm glad Justin will be with me on the flight home.

Bye bye rat poison!

As you may recall, a few months ago (four to be precise), I had a little stroke thanks to my chiropractor. Besides feeling yucky for a few weeks, the only lasting side effect of that potentially life-altering experience was that I had to take a daily dose of rat poison--otherwise known as the blood thinner Coumadin.

I am very happy to announce that I had a follow up MRI last week, and it showed that all issues caused by the damage to my vertebral artery have been resolved. This is great news in general, but most especially because it means that I don't have to be on blood thinners any more. Good riddance, Coumadin!!

Priceless

Push mower: Free from a friend.

Back yard: Part of our lovely little (or big as the case may be) mortgage.

Looking out the window and seeing Justin mowing the lawn with Colton in his arms: Priceless.

He actually mowed our entire lawn this way. And as you can see, Colton loved it.

Cousins

It's great to have cousins. I should know. I have somewhere in the vicinity of 70 first cousins. With my sister Emily and her family in town this week from Hawaii, Colton got to experience first hand how helpful cousins can be. Charlie seemed particularly concerned for Colton's well-being. While Justin was belaying the older kids on the rocks above, Charlie was making sure Colton didn't get hungry while we hung out below. Colton especially liked the dirt-covered ones Charlie picked up off the ground...

Naptime

Colton had been asleep for a really long time, so I peeked in on him, and this is what I found:



I think he must have fallen asleep while praying. He's so spiritual...(And yes his head is completely burried under that blanket!)

A master at last

I think it has long been my mother's dream for me that I would get a master's degree. I seem to recall many conversations with her when she told me that while I wasn't married, I should get a master's degree because it would be much harder afterward (and nearly impossible once you have kids).

Well, I managed to do all three. I started my program (an M.Ed. in curriculum and instruction with a concentration in instructional technology/instructional design and development and a graduate certificate in eLearning--how's that for a mouthful?) in the summer of 2007--before I was married. Then I got married, and I just kept on working slowly through (emphasis there on slowly)...and then I had a baby, and managed to take about triple the course load at that point so I could just get it done. And now it's official! Yay for graduating! Yay for having a master's degree! Yay for not having to use it right now! Yay for Justin for dealing with me when I had a paper or project that I didn't want to work on!

If you would like to see some of my handy work, feel free to check out my fancy-shmancy portfolio website that I created (that's right, I know how to build a website!): http://portfolios.gmu.edu/bdurham

Look Alike, Part 2

We were at a wedding recently of one of Justin's close family friends. As I went through the line, someone said to me, "I hate to tell you, Bethany, but that boy is all Scott." Since they only know the Scotts, I didn't say anything, but I'm going to have to respectfully disagree. As it turns out, I think this boy is actually all Durham.

My cute cousin Jessie posted some great pictures on her blog of our parents as babies. I take this as proof that Colton really does look like Grandpa Cole. What do you all think?