Ten for September

10.  We have grass again!  Our summer grass just wasn't able to handle to dry, intense heat of early summer, so we've been grassless (and weed ridden) for the past three months.  It's finally cooled enough to plant fall grass, though, and it's thriving very well.  Devin has gotten pretty good at the planting and growing of baby grasses.

9.  Devin proved how much of a rock star he is by fixing both our toaster oven and washing machine in one day this month.  I broke the washing machine when a pillow snagged on the lid and tore open, and the toaster oven had been down for a couple months while we'd been shopping around for a replacement.  (I really liked ours, but it's not made anymore.)  Thankfully, with the power of the internet, a couple basic tools, and a lot of patience, they were both fixed as good as new!

8.  I started meal planning this month.  It was a fun challenge for me to plan out a week's meals, make a grocery list, and try to stick to a budget while shopping.  I managed to stick to the budget every time, but I never quite kept the dinners where I planned.  Nothing was wasted, though, and dinner time became much more enjoyable!  I'd missed cooking with Devin, but it was definitely fun to have dinners ready when he got home from working really long days.

7.  Football has been a lot of fun this month.  Both WVU and UGA are having pretty awesome seasons this year.  Calvin was able to wear the little UGA onesie we've had stashed since finding out I was pregnant for the first couple games but has since outgrown it.  So, we are back in the market for gear for both teams now.

6.  The documentary kick has continued from last month.  Recently, I watched a six episode series on the Iditarod and have become obsessed.  I've always been impressed with it and felt a connection that mostly came from having a husky.  We've added "volunteer at the Iditarod" to our bucket list now.

5.  Devin's residency applications have gone out!  It seems pretty crazy that we're at this point in the process now.  I don't think it's quick sunk in how close we are to being done with medical school.  But, we really are very close, and it's crrraaaazzzzyyy!!

4.  I'm back in my small jeans again!  On a whim, I tried them on a few days ago to see how far I had left to go to fit back in them, and they fit!  I really wasn't expecting that, so it was pretty exciting to just leave them on for the day.  I've been back to a normal weight for over a month, so it's nice to get back to a normal size, too.

3.  This past week Devin got his scores back on the written part of Step Two (his boards), and he ROCKED them.  Seriously, he did pretty darn amazing.  It was a very exciting morning in the Stephens household followed by celebratory lunches two days in a row.  He worked so hard on those tests in August, so it was really nice to see it all pay off.

2.  Calvin has hit some pretty awesome milestones this month. My favorite: he's been full out laughing all month long. If he realizes anyone around him is laughing, he throws his head back and joins in. He does the same thing while watching himself in the mirror. In addition to this, he's rolling over, rotating in a circle on his belly, grabbing toys to chew on them, and working on getting his first teeth in. It's been a very busy month for him!

1.  The very best part of this month was the last week which kicked off Devin's four week vacation!  Technically, he has a couple ER shifts to work and several things to do on the residency application front, but mostly we are just getting a lot of family downtime.  After the craziness of 13 hour days and 80 hour weeks for most of the month, it's been a very nice change.  It was a scheduling error that made this vacation month happen so early in the year, but we are definitely loving it!

A Married Little Sister

My sister was going to get married, but she was eaten by a bear.

 

 

Just kidding.

 

 

She actually just found someone who shares her great sense of humor.

 

 

They are pretty much perfect together.

 

 

Despite a few tears, all of the sisters really are happy for her. 

 

Congratulations Kassie & Jared!!

 

If things were different...

...I would have started back at work today.  Even though I know it's not happening, it's struck a chord with me thinking about it this week.  I imagine my first day back would have been a few phone calls, some paperwork, sorting through messages and mail, talking with a family or two, making a referral or two, and thinking about Calvin during and between each and every one of those tasks.  I probably would have cried at least once.

Thankfully, things are not different.  I'm making faces at my amazing child while I type this.  Already this morning, we had snuggle time after Devin had to leave early for work.  We did tummy time.  I sang silly songs with Calvin.  I nursed my baby in the rocking chair.  We played with the dogs.  I took out butter to soften for making banana bread.  I changed a diaper or two.  I stole a couple dozen kisses.  We traded a few dozen smiles.

Later today, I'll change more diapers.  I'll feed Calvin again and again and again.  We'll do more tummy time and read a couple books.  I'll love on my dogs, and I'll probably have to remind them to be careful at least once.  I'll try to clean, and I'll try to have dinner ready when Devin gets home.  I will kiss Calvin too many times to count and snuggle him to sleep at nap time.  I'll take pictures of him so that I don't forget what he was like today as I've done nearly every day since birth.

Today I am grateful.  While I can imagine what life would be like if it were different, it isn't what I want.  Right now, I have nearly exactly what I want.  Life is pretty close to perfect.  And, as I tell Devin nearly every day, I love our life.  I think we're standing in just about the greenest grass I ever did see.