P is for Party

Not only is today Halloween (which requires that I had to dress especially cute in a festive costume), but I had my first "by invitation" party at Mary Margaret Frampton's house. We arrived fashionably late and stayed until the bitter end. In fact, we stayed so long that I pulled up a space underneath the dining room table and took a nap. Yes, I was social for about 1 1/2 hours but then decided I need to catch some beauty Z's. Following Mary's, my Mom and Dad took me to the Hilltop Alehouse on Queen Anne Hill to enjoy some crisp beers and to check out the costume parade occupying Queen Anne Avenue... I took some notes on a few costumes that I may consider in the future! What a fun day!

Lincoln Park

Mommy and Daddy put me into my fuzzy bear suit for a walk around West Seattle's Lincoln Park in the Baby Bjorn. It was such an incredibly beautiful autumn day. A few sailboats took their chances on the choppy waves while the freshly snow-covered Olympic Mountains patiently stood as a lovely back drop. We ran into some of my mom's Starbucks acquitances while walking along the beach of Puget Sound. Just prior to our walk we had a great breakfast at Endolyne Joe's, which is part of Chow Foods restaurants around Seattle that include The Jitterbug, The 5 Spot, Atlas Foods, The Hi Life and The Coastal Kitchen). How many more wonderful days such as this do I have to look forward to?

Red Sox Red Sox Red Sox

Our Idiots have done IT by accomplishing the following: performing a record setting come back from 0-3 versus the Yankees by winning 4 straight games that included an amazing series winner on the road at Yankee Stadium, sweeping the Cardinals 4 games to nil to win their first World Series title since 1918, debunked (hopefully forever) the Curse of the Bambino. I've got some peeps from the Boston area that I was able to enjoy the Red Sox's rise to the title this year, and lemme tell you, what a fun ride it was. Go Pats!

All's Well In Ballard Tonight

Indeed, all is well in Ballard tonight. I just got done feeding and am doing my post-meal chill out. Mom is catching up on some email while Dad is outside enjoying the mild fall evening with a cigar and sip of a nice Reposado Tequila. Mom also just got done filling out her absentee ballot for this year's general election... I cannot believe I have to wait 18 more years to have my voice count. I may be young, but "Old crooks out, new crooks in" is making some sense to me right now.

This morning I had my one month check-up with Dr. Spector, which has been two weeks since the last visit. Daddy couldn't make it today, so Mommy's friend Anne-Marie accompanied her because we all know Mommy would not be able to deal with the second Hepatitus B shot that I got. Doctor Spector gave Mom and I some great compliments about me not possibly being any healthier and that I'm looking great. I've gained about 1.5lbs in two weeks and am weighing in at 9.5 pounds as of today. I am growing like a weed!

And of course the big news of the day is really about the Red Sox. I'm not even going to delve into how they've been playing and what great feats are to come... We're all too aware of the Curse of 1918. Let's just say that I'm quite glad they won tonight. And unlike my utter disdain for the New York Yankees, I really respect the Cardinals organization and would like to commend them on their accomplishments thus far. Go Sox!

Grammy Sam

My Mom and I just got back from picking up Grammy Sam from the train station. I can't believe I've had to wait this long to finally meet her. Like a great Grammy, and just like everyone else I seem to meet for that matter, she came bearing a huge bag of gifts. Nice! She took to holding me right away, which I really like since she smells so good. Tonight she is going to help Mommy and Daddy prepare a special marinade for a style of steak that was my Dad's favorite when he was little. And since I hear she doesn't sleep that well through the night anymore, I look forward to having a new face to hang out with during my 4:30AM feedings.

So Happy To See You

Today Bob and Mary Wildenhaus paid us a visit from Olympia. They are good buddies with Mama and Papa Herzog, as well as with my Mom and Dad. I look forward to many holiday gatherings and campground outings with them in the near future! It was great to see them and they came bearing more cute gifts pour moi... What could be better?

This evening Jeff and Jessica Anderson stopped by. The drove all the way from Covington and had to hire a sitter to watch their two girls, Audrey and Brenna, just to see me. Flattery will get you everywhere. Jeff and my Mom went to highschool together and have remained friends over the years. He owns a thriving business in Issaquah called Tropies To Go. Jessica knitted me a hat too!

Down With The Curse

Big, big news this evening - The Boston Red Sox have taken one giant step toward thwarting the curse of the Bambino by overcoming the biggest deficit in professional sports history AND poetically blowing out the HATED New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Weren't you just on the edge of your seat in hopes of seeing Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez cry? Timely hitting, tenacious pitching, and true grit are the hallmark of this ballclub and my parents and I are very excited to see the Red Sox do well in this World Series matchup. Perhaps the recently begun Ella-era will represent a new BoSox tradition of winning.

The other part of this night that was special was that I got to meet my Fairy Godparents (that's what my Mom calls them), Jack and Martha Gruber. They were in town for work meetings all the way from Miami, Florida. Since they are pals with our beloved Anne-Marie and Brett too, they invited us all to watch the Boston game from their room in Seattle's Sheraton. It was sooo much fun and the food aftermath was a sight to behold: 6 orders of Buffalo wings, two pizzas, a cheese platter, 3 bottles of red wine, and one fine bottle of Champagne. Egads! Martha recently took up knitting and has done so with her typical flair for the fantastic - She made Mom and I matching pink shawls that are so fuzzy and soft. Daddy even received a box of his favorite cigars, C.A.O Brazilia's.

A Day At The Beach

So today seemed as if it were going to be a rather quiet day around the Ballard place as it had been pouring down rain and Dad is coming down with a cold. But no, the "rents" had to bundle me up in my cuddly bear jumpsuit and drag my 3 week old bum to Carkeek Park . Once there, I was glad that they did. Dad made use of the BB (Baby Bjorn) for the first time, which was great for me as it was sort of like being back inside my first residence, Mom's belly! The park was full of fun smells and sounds, not to mention beautifully colored trees. We traveled along a trail for a few miles that led us to my first encounter with Puget Sound. Here we watched a number of sailboats testing their luck with the wind...pretty cool! Of course, I pretended that I was asleep but was loving every moment of it all the while.

Bye, Bye Umbilical Cord

My umbilical cord finally fell off today, the 18th day of my existence. Good riddance.

The Storm Are Champions!

My homegirls on Seattle's Storm have brought my hometown it's first major championship since the 70's. Way to go gals. Big ups to Betty Lennox on her MVP performance.

Damn Yankees!

Congratulation Minnesota on the Twins' defeat of the New York Yankees in game 1 of their American League Divisional Series. Please help me get my life off on the right foot and put the Yankees away. NO MORE DYNASTY!

Mom is Doing it Alone

Today is a big day because grandma Cynthia is back to work and daddy is busy at work in the studio next door with clients from Amsterdam and Manchester, which puts my hormone-charged mom in charge of the whole house. I think mom is a bit stressed so I'm trying to be extra good, but this darn gas from feeding is giving me the fits.

Mom put together her breast pump today, sterilizing it and a bunch of bottles. I'm a little leery about feeding from a bottle, but I suspect I'll feed from just about anything when I'm hungry.

Tonight is going to be big as it's my first Monday Night Football with daddy. I can't wait to see Ray Lewis stifle the Chief's offense!

Friends and Fun

Today marked a visit by Jim and Lanetta Robarge along with David and Mary Barrett. They came bearing gifts and you know how much I like that. The Robarge's gave me a cute outfit to wear next summer as well as a neat crocheted baby blanket. David and Mary got me a cool swaddling blanket and matching hat, a hot lavendar outfit, and some real champagne for my mom and dad. I think everyone had fun hanging out, but it was hard to see what was going on because I pretended to be asleep the whole time. I don't know why I do that... I guess I'm just not one for much conversation yet.

After Grandma and Grandpa left to get back to their lives in Issaquah, my mom and dad loaded me up into the Korean Rocket and took me to Green Lake. And while I appreciate a nice stroll around the lake just like anyone else, this trip was all about my parents showing off their new toy. I was a little worried about my mom tackling the 3 mile walk so soon after her surgery, but we are all aware of how much of a trooper she is. They even stopped at Mix and got a custom ice cream concoction to enjoy while I chilled out.

Today is such a beautiful day that my daddy is sitting in his beloved backyard having his celebratory cigar that mommy bought him a few weeks ago while in Portland. It's a Padron Anniversario, which he tells me is an exquisite smoke. I think cigars are yucky, but this is from someone that poops her pants and sits in for hours at a time.

Hopefully our new family can have many more wonderful days in the future that are just like this one.

Billy Go Home

My bilirubin levels are finally on the decline so it appears as if I'm done with all of these pesky tests. Mom and dad are breathing a sigh of relief, except tomorrow is the last day of my grandma Cynthia looking after all of us. She's been doing all of the cooking and keeping up the house. My dad had to go back to work a couple of days ago, so this has been a BIG help to all of us. Mom looks a bit worried about being on her own. I know she'll be fine. Gotta go... People are showing up at our house with more gifts for me!