Brothers, books, and Bono

So, Laura M. has tagged me with the Kreativ Blogger award...I'm not quite sure what that means exactly; I don't think I'm necessarily a "kreativ" blogger, but whatever. (I appreciate that she thinks so, though.) I'm supposed to write down 6 things that are interesting about myself. If you are a blogstalker like me, you've already seen this post on other people's pages.


I'll have Sam updates, later--I promise.


1. I have two brothers...I know it doesn't sound too interesting, but a lot of people don't know that I have two siblings. I am the middle child, and my older brother is ten years older than I am. My younger brother is five years younger. We are VERY spread out in age. If you're doing the math, my older brother and younger brother are fifteen years apart. Can you imagine being fifteen years old and being told that you have a sibling on the way? One word--embarrassing.


2. I genuinely love sports, especially high school and college events. Given, I didn't have much of a choice with 2 brothers and a father who was a collegiate football player. I also didn't do myself any favors by marrying a complete and total sports freak, but I secretly love the fact that our worlds kind of revolve around sporting schedules. For example:
A) Anthony and I became somewhat of a couple at the 1998 College World Series.
B) Weddings (and a lot of party invites) are scheduled around football, basketball, and baseball games.
C) Saturday mornings are spent in front of ESPN's Gameday inhaling donuts. Saturday afternoons and nights are spent with friends while watching football and inhaling beer.


I would really like to see Oklahoma State win tomorrow night. I love underdogs, and I'm still sad that Texas Tech lost.


3. My husband proposed to me by painting "Will You Marry Me?" on the wall in the house that he had just bought. (We still live in this house.) I'll be sad whenever we do have to move. It's easily one of the sweetest things he's ever done.


4. I absolutely, positively LOVE U2. I've seen them in concert twice, and I hope to see them many more times. (Bono's wife's name is Ali. Coincidence? I think not.)


5. I love film and literature that have science fiction or fantasy elements. Like my friend Katie, I love vampires. (And we both liked them waaaayyyy before Twilight.) I own every season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and every season of Angel. I've read most Harry Potter books at least 5 times each. (I'm not exaggerating.) I've read The Hobbit and the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy, and I adored all of C.S. Lewis when I was little. I also like all of the original Star Wars movies, and I will watch Indiana Jones whenever it's on. The Neverending Story is another favorite, but it scared me to death when I was young. I do like the Twilight books, too.


6. I love to read. The smell of a bookstore is one of my favorite things, and I love the raw sense of promise in every book that I begin. I'm also in a book club. Sounds nerdy, I know, but we have a great time. I was invited by a friend to be a part, and I'm so glad I accepted. We started in May. Each month someone picks a new book, and then we meet to drink wine, eat, and discuss the book. Sometimes more drinking than discussing goes on, but we don't care. I've met so many lovely people that I never would have known, and it's great fun. I highly suggest starting one.


Our book for this month is The Road, by Cormac McCarthy. I'll let you know what I think.

P.S. Go Auburn Tigers and Oklahoma State Cowboys. Like I said, I like the underdogs.

I tag Katie. (maybe you'll feel guilty enough to do this if 2 of us tag you)

Just feeling the need to take advantage of naptime...

Not a whole lot to report on the Sam-front. His two little teeth are growing more everyday...It's weird to think that my child has teeth. For such a long time he just looked like a little old man without dentures. He has also discovered how to click his tongue on the roof of his mouth, and he's quite pleased with himself. He loves it when you click back. Eventually, I'm going to catch all of this action on film, but for right now I'm just posting a quick pic. (Read--I'm satisfying the grandparents.)





Sam loves to be up high. He also loves our cat and dog; maybe he will be a mountain-climbing veterinarian. Is there a need for such an occupation?

For those of you who don't like people who jump to Christmas rather than enjoy Thanksgiving, be warned. I'm about to get festive with my blog, and it's not going to be with turkeys. I am a self-professed Christmas junkie. I never fill out these little questionnaires, but it's about Christmas, so I'm indulging. Sue me.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Gift bags are infinitely easier, but I love to wrap. If I wrap as I buy, it's usually not a problem. I not only wrap all of our gifts at my household, but I also "get to wrap" all of my father's gifts for my mother. He likes to act as if it's some privilege, but we all know it's because he can't/won't do it himself. Oh, the joys of being the only girl in the family.

2. Real tree or artificial? REAL! Anthony and buy it the day we get back from Thanksgiving holidays. I love to have all of my other decorations up a few days before Thanksgiving, and I save the tree for last. I can't wait to see how Sam likes the lights.

3. When do you put up the tree? See above.

4. When do you take the tree down? Hmmm...there's no set day. A couple of days after Christmas?

5. Do you like eggnog? I had honestly never had it until a few years ago, but Anthony's mom makes homemade eggnog, and it's really good. I think her mother used to do it, so Mary Pryor continues the tradition.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Long story--brace yourself. When I was in the 2nd grade, I wanted a trampoline. In all the excitement Christmas morning, I completely forgot that it was one of my biggest requests. My parents pointed out that Santa had left me a note on the front door. The note had a little poem on it, and the poem directed me and my little brother to follow the yarn that was attached to the note. The yarn looped all around the front of the house and then led to the backyard. Of course, it was attached to the trampoline. I was beyond thrilled. Years later, I found out that my parents had to keep the trampoline at our neighbors' house down the road, and my oldest brother, Brent, and my dad had to walk it down Christmas Eve after Blake and I had gone to bed. I'm sure Brent was thrilled. What high school junior wouldn't be?

I think the neatest part of the trampoline experience was that Santa had taken the time to write me a personal note.

7. Hardest person to buy for? Anthony. He never really wants or needs anything, and I just never feel that I can find the "right" gift. If I could actually deliver his fantasy gift, it would be a national championship for the Bulldogs before we're too old to care. That's one tall order.

A boy can dream.

8. Easiest person to buy for? My mom...She never buys for herself, so it's easy to find stuff that she would never buy on her own. (Her unselfishness wasn't passed to me; I have no problem buying for myself.)

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, we have two. One of them is a very nice one that we put out on a sofa table. The other is a child's nativity set. Funny story about that one--Mary Pryor gave it to us last year when I was pregnant. She then admitted that she had bought it before we were even married.

10. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? Mail.

11. Worst Christmas gift? I don't think I've gotten one...

12. Favorite Christmas movie? Charlie Brown's Christmas. I have the soundtrack, and it's my favorite. Also, my dog's name is Linus, and my cat's name is Lucy...Understand?

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I'll buy a few things before Dec., but I love to powershop in the middle of the chaos. My mom and I used to go to Memphis on Christmas Eve to finish up shopping. You wouldn't believe the deals you can get.

14. Have you ever recycled a present? I don't think so. Is that considered "green"?

15. Lights on the tree? Oh, yes! We do white lights, but when I was little, we had those super-cool, old-school colored ones. You know, the ones with the big bulbs.

16. Favorite Christmas songs?
Religious--"It Came Upon a Midnight Clear," "O Holy Night," and "O Come All Ye Faithful."
Secular--It's a tie--Nat King Cole's "The Christmas Song" and Judy Garland's "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Ooooo, and John Lennon's "So This is Christmas."

17. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yes, but I'll spare you.

18. Travel or stay home? We are all over the state of Mississippi. I think we'll be home most of the time this year, though.

19. Angel or star on the treetop? Star. I don't think I've ever had an angel on top.

20. Open presents on Christmas Eve or Day? Both. We open one Christmas Eve and the rest on Christmas Day.

21. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Fudge and trash. It's great for the diet.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Having to run around so much that you don't get to really enjoy the time with your family and friends.

23. Favorite ornament or theme? No theme. I love our honeymoon car ornament, and I just bought Sam's first Christmas ornament.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? We always do Christmas lunch, so dinner is all the yummy leftovers.

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I'm still working on that. I should probably hurry, though.

Question...

Is it bad that I sing Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back" to Sam, and he thinks it's funny? I change the words--"I'm bringing Sam back, and all those boys don't know how to act..."

Just wondering.

For anyone who needs a laugh...

Sorry to disappoint, but I don' t have any new pictures. I do, however, have an embarrassing story to tell. Feel free to laugh at my expense.

Tuesday morning I woke up, voted, packed up the car, and got on the road. My car was loaded with my own clothes, Sam's clothes, diapers, bottles, etc., and Linus. I was quite the sight. I was on my way to Senatobia for a very quick visit with my parents. On my way out of Jackson, I decided to stop at Chik-Fil-A in Madison for some yummy chicken minis. All of my work cohorts know about my relationship with the chicken mini--especially when I was pregnant. I'm pretty sure that chicken minis account for Sam's birth weight.

For those of you not familiar with the Chik-Fil-A drive-through system, let me enlighten you. The drive-through wraps all around the building, and while waiting in line, it's possible that you can get hit by cars pulling out of parking places between the building and the line. (Anthony is cringing right now; he HATES "driving stories.") Anyway, I'm about to be the next car to give my order when I see this lady get in her car...I'm right behind her. The whole time I'm thinking, "She's about to hit me; she's about to hit me"...she did. I laid on my horn, but it didn't matter. She slams into my driver's side back door. So here I am, in the parking lot of Chik-fil-a, car packed to the gills, dog going crazy, you name it. I get out and check on Sam, and all seems well. We then have to wait on the police to get there. Grreeeeaattt...

The policewoman shows up, (fairly quickly--yay for Madison police!) takes our information, and assesses the damage to my car. I truly felt sorry for the girl who hit me. She was a babysitter, and she wasn't even in her own car. Anyway, the policewoman asks me if I want to have anyone check out Sam.

Me: Should I?

Her: It's up to you...how old is he?

Me: Almost six months.

Her: Again, it's up to you. We just have to ask you for protocol's sake.

I'm thinking to myself, "I'm sure he's fine, but what if I don't get him checked and something is wrong?" Typical nervous mother.

Me: Okay, maybe someone should just check to be sure. I'm 99% sure he's fine, though.

She puts in a call to her headquarters, and the next thing I know, there is a huge fire truck and ambulance pulling into Chik-Fil-A WITH SIRENS ON. Highly, highly, embarrassing. To top it off, several of my old students were going in and out.

"Hey, Mrs. Sherman. What's wrong?"

Geez...

The paramedics get out and check Sam. Even more people start staring. His vitals are fine, and we're told we can go. I sign the papers and get out of there as soon as possible.

Without my breakfast.

This is the post that never ends...

Brace yourself...we've been very, very, busy the past few days. This may be the longest blog post ever. I'm afraid if I wait to post until later, even more stuff will need to be documented, and then I'll be in a huge, blog, log-jam. Ridiculous, I know. Anyway, I'll try to go in order.

1) Sam has teeth. I've been meaning to post this forever, and I've yet to catch a picture of them, but they are definitely present. His two lower central incisors popped up about 3 weeks ago. It's pretty cute.

2) Hoppy Halloween! Sam was a super-cute frog. We took Sam to Starkville this weekend for his first MSU game, so Halloween was spent in "Vegas." Since he's way too young to trick-or-treat, we strolled him around campus in his costume. He was getting a lot of looks, that's for sure.

About the pictures of Sam in the tree... (the tree frog, get it?)--I swear, we're holding him there. If you look closely, you can see our hands.

3) As I mentioned earlier, we took Sam to Starkville this weekend. We drove up Friday night, and stayed with Anthony's cousin, George Sherman. For all of you MSU alumni, yes, we stayed with "George Sherman, George Sherman, George Sherman's got you looking good." Or if you prefer, "Get the look, that gets the look." I hope these jingles are now stuck in your head. Anyway, Sam got to hang out with some of his relatives, Marguerite, Olivia, and Joseph Portera. (George's grandchildren)

George, Joseph, Marguerite, Olivia, and Sam. Sam is really interested in Marguerite's biscuit. I don't think anyone is surprised.

4) Gameday--Overall, I think Sam did remarkably well. The only reason we took him in is that we could get into the skybox with Joe and Mary Pryor. That helped matters quite a bit. The constant noise didn't bother him too much, and he even ignored most of the cowbells. The bursts of noise when we actually did something good were probably what scared him most, but he was a trooper. We were able to see one of my Madison Central dance team girls who is now on the team at MSU, and I took a picure of her and Sam. HILARIOUS. He was soooo tired. I love the look on his face:

He looks thrilled, right? Poor thing...Can you tell we got to campus right when he usually naps?

Other pictures from the day:

He was honestly more interested in the band than anything else.

We'll have to time our arrival better next year. I thought he would sleep in his stroller, but I obviously have no idea what I'm talking about. Contrary to the look on his face in half of the pictures, he really didn't fuss.