Love Thy Neighbor

Ever find that hard to do? The apparent arsonist (17 year old boy) who escaleted all the way from garbage cans to an attached garage has been arrested and it just so happens he lives 2 doors down. From talking to neighbors and reading reports, I think more than we could have ever imagined has gone on while we sleep. I've had a whole rush of emotions including relief, hatred, disbelief, sadness...you name it. But I'm choosing instead to try to focus my energy and thoughts on the good neighbors we have. Like the young family across the street who watch out for us and even care for Kylie occasionally. Or the college boys next door who pushed me out last week when I got majorly stuck on the fresh-plowed alley snow. Or the many who come and greet Dakota on a regular basis, giving her something to look forward to every day as she hangs out in the yard. From here, we hope and pray our judicial system can do it's job and that we can put this behind us.

On to happier topics. Sort of. Kylie is sick. How do I know? Besides the coughing, sneezing, and pathetic looking face along with a fever? She naps. For me. We've been struggling immensely with her daytime naps at home....she naps great for Fae. Don't get me wrong, she spends plenty of time in her crib, but usually chooses to spend that time talking to herself, bouncing up and down, and throwing her lovey out of the crib. But yesterday and today have been met with delightful silence during her naptimes. Other than being slightly clingy, she's still plenty happy despite feeling yucky. Oh yeah, and she snuggled with me last night, falling asleep in my arms. Something she hasn't done in her almost 11 months in this world! I relished it and just sat in the rocking chair holding her, wishing she would also like to cuddle when she was healthy. As I write this she's babbling in her crib so she must be on her way to being well already!

As hard as Jon and Kylie tried to help the Vikes along last Sunday, we all know the outcome of that! On the flip side, you can see from the length of Kylie's skirt it is a GOOD thing the Vikes are done for the season:-) I also noticed just about every picture of Jon has him wearing UMD apparel. I digress.












This video is sideways b/c I apparently can't seem to remember that we have to keep the camera in landscape and not turn it like you can for pictures. But it's so cute seeing her ride the horse she got when she was born. She giggles everytime I put her on it and has even figured out how to rock it herself. She also knows how to slowly slide off the side now (contrary to what you'll see in the video).