one... I am the proud parent of a one-year-old. It's hard to believe one year ago I was sitting on the fourth floor of St. Elizabeth hospital getting ready to spend the first night as a parent. How scary it was, but how wonderful it has become. Macy is a beautiful, happy little girl and as fun as can be. I'm lucky and blessed and want a couple more just like her!

I spent most of the day getting ready for the small dinner party we had tonight in honor of her birthday. We invited the Schartz' over and, since Lisa's parents were in town, they came, too. So we had a psuedo family party with faux grandparents and everything. I must say I was pretty proud of the double layer cake I made and decorated all by myself.

And in true daddy fashion, Mike contributed to the celebration by putting on a small fireworks show in the back yard after dinner. In Texas, they sell fireworks for New Year's Eve. Macy was scared of them, but her and I did watch from the kitchen window for awhile.

And since my blogging fell by the wayside over the holidays, I will sum them up in 200 words or less....

Drive home good - drove all night - excited to see family
Christmas Eve morning - dropped Truman off at Holman's, visited John in hospital
Christmas Eve day - drove to Omaha - Sleep all afternoon!!!
Christmas Eve night - Omaha - Mass with Mike's Family - prime rib and gifts at Kaipusts'
Christmas morning - yummy breakfast enchilada's courtesy Mary Ann Kaipust
Christmas day - Gregory Christmas - Food & Fun!!
Christmas night - gift exchange with my siblings - Cotter!!! (inside joke, hadta be there)
Friday (26th) - Lunch with Nicole, visited John, ordered Macy's birthday cake, hung out with Levi while Mike slept
Friday night - Dinner at Scott's with Boldt's - toured Boldt's potential new home!
Saturday morning - quick trip to Target for birthday party supplies - pick up Grandma - pick up cake
Saturday - Family birthday party for Macy
Saturday evening - Macy pictures at Mall - hung with family at food court (ah, just like the good ol' days)
Saturday evening through Sunday morning - Drove all night. Horrible. Extreme tiredness. Not excited. sad family holidays are over.
Sunday - napped when possible. Mollie crabby.

And now, life goes on as usual....

Well... I scored a 980. Not the 1000 that I needed but I talked to the Department Chair of Psychology at UT and he didn't seem to think it would be a problem. He said they have accepted scores as low as 900 before if your GPA is high enough. I have a 3.8 so I'm still hopefull that I"ll be accepted without having to re-take the test.

BECAUSE IT WAS SO HARD!!! Granted, I did not prepare like I should've, but it seriously was the hardest test I've ever taken. I didn't feel confident about many of the answers I gave, I felt really, really rushed within the time limit and, quite frankly, I was surprised my score was that close to a 1000. A perfect score would be a 1600, so I guess I'm average. I'm just glad it's over.

The drive to Nacogdoches was absolutely beautiful. Winding and hilly roads lined with trees and trees and trees. Stephen F. Austin University was picturesque and Nacognoches itself was a lovely little town. It's the oldest city in Texas, you know.

And today seems brighter because the test is behind me and I have lots to look forward to in the coming week... Mike and I are going out on a date tomorrow night, Sunday we're having our family Christmas here at home and Tuesday night we'll begin the long drive back to Nebraska. I can't wait!!!

Nervous... I'm off to Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches tomorrow to take the long-anticipated GRE. I'm really not too nervous, just anxious to get it over with. I've barely studied, but figure it will be a test of true intelligence now. To be accepted as a UT grad student, I must get a combined verbal and quantitative score of 1000 (whatever that means.) Wish me luck!!

Mary Agnes Prather
12/14/1899 - 12/15/2003...
She was my great-grandmother, and she died today. She was 104 years old and died in her sleep. She lived at her home in Duarte, California until last summer and has been in a home since July. Great-grandpa died forty years ago. She was the sweetest woman I've ever known. She lived good karma. Never wasteful and always respectful of life and appreciative of kindness, generosity and goodness. I was lucky enough to see her twice this past year. Once in June with Mike, Macy, mom and grandma, and again this past November with Macy, mom, grandma and my sisters. We now have many priceless five generation pictures. And while there in June, she even thanked me for something I did almost 10 years ago. It seems at her 95th birthday celebration in 1994 I brought her a plate of food. She remembered and she told me how happy that made her. I loved her and am so thankful to have known her. I'm positive she will be rewarded for what she's given this world. I am thankful for all she's created in her 104 years; a family, a legacy, and, most of all, her daughter, my grandma, whom I can't imagine life without...

taki, shopping, cheesy and clean... I accompanied Mike this morning to his office where he met with a Dr. Taki. He is an anesthesiologist and Director of an Emergency Department in Japan who is visiting Tyler, specifically, East Texas Medical Center to learn about it's EMS System. Apparently, ETMC has such an impressive system that they want to begin applying some of their techniques in Japan. Dr. Taki and three paramedics from Japan have been shadowing Mike and various other ETMC directors and medics. Mike has been in charge of their schedules and invited me to come along today to meet them. I immediately liked them very much. Dr. Taki constantly smiled and I really appreciated their politeness. They bowed each time they passed me or anyone else. Dr. Taki spoke broken english but the paramedics' english was very limited. They had an interpreter, Kazuoa, who was a neat lady, also.

After we were done at the office, Mike was wonderful enough to take Macy while I went shopping. I felt kind of strange walking into the mall without Macy. I felt lighter, but also like I was missing a leg or an arm or something. I browsed slowly throughout the mall, even stopping in Regis for a quick eyebrow wax (something that I always put off too long). I enjoyed being out by myself and realized that it was the first time this has happened since our move. I leisurely bought the last two christmas gifts on our list and by about 1:00, I have to admit, I was missing my husband and daughter and came home earlier than planned.

While I was out, Mike had made a trip to Sam's Club and bought the big bookshelf that I'd been wanting for a long, long time. He had even put it together and it was sitting by the fireplace, against the blank wall that has been driving me nuts. It looks great, but now I have to figure out what I'm going to place on the shelves. There are ten of them!! Not a bad problem to have, huh?

And as if we didn't do enough today, I still found time to paint my kitchen walls. I must confess I'm a bit disappointed with the color. I was going for a buttery color, but it turned out looking more like cheese. But I think it may grow on me, especially after I get the curtains hung and pictures on the wall.

And while I painted, Macy napped and Mike rug doctored the floors. We have white carpet throughout the house, so it was due for a cleaning. We had a good laugh earlier when we reminisced about how our Saturday nights used to be spent out partying til 1 and there we were, me, in paint-splattered clothes sitting on the couch watching Mike pull a rug doctor all around the house. But we're just as happy now, if not happier. And... the house looks great, and we'll go to bed tonight feeling especially accomplished.

shreveport... Yesterday we made the hour and a half trip to Shreveport, Louisiana. Besides the casinos, it was basically a crappy town, not unlike Port Arthur. But it was a beautiful day and we ate at the Hollywood Casino buffet.

On the way home we stopped at the Schwartz's. Mainly because Macy was screaming her head as we we drove back into Tyler city limits and we were 20 minutes from our own house. But also because we haven't seen them for awhile. Lisa's parents are visiting from Reno for the whole month of December and I got to meet them. Macy had fun playing with her boyfriends and even showed off her newfound walking skills and kiss blowing.

And damn the female curses!!! I woke up today with the ever-familiar hormonal blues. And on an absolutely gorgeous day, too. I think it topped out at 71 degrees. But my mood did seem to get a tad bit better as the day wore on. Macy and I shopped at Hobby Lobby and Target and stopped at a park on our way home. She loved the swings and the slide and also had fun crawling through the *big plastic tunnel (*official name unknown).

And tonight I made chicken tacos for dinner. Macy had her bath and Mike is watching one of his favorite movies "Deuce Bigalow, Male Gigalo." I think I'll go join him...

hooten, hollerin, hollerin, hooten... That brilliant Snoop Dog lyric runs through my mind ever since last night's party. Because the invitation read, "Celebrate the Season with the Hootens!" It was the first official holiday party of the season and we had a great time. We even had a sitter, but were greeted at the party with a message to call home. It seemed Macy had fallen and hit her head on the toy box shortly after we left. She was fine, but has a really nice bump and bruise. Her very first, and just in time for the holidays. We managed to have fun, anyway, and enjoyed mingling with Mike's co-workers in a beautiful, festive setting. I love the holidays!

And speaking of... I got an early Christmas gift today. A CD player in my car. You know, I've never had one. It was Mike's gift to me and he installed it this morning. He's the best. It'll be nice being able to listen to CD's without holding the adaptor in my hand while I drive.

Macy continues to practice walking. She took 20 steps tonight from the end table to the TV, mesmerized by the doggy olympics on Animal Planet. I don't even think she realized what she was doing.

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas... I tried to post last night but because of some "puter problems", it didn't go through. And it was a good one, too! Alas, I'll try to recap...

The last couple of days have been spent in the Christmas spirit. We had decided not to put up the artificial Christmas tree given to us by Mike's parents because it would be too tempting for little Macy to pull it right down. But this "no Christmas tree" idea just wasn't sitting well. So the other day, I tromped up to the attic in search of what little christmas decor we have (less the tree). And as Macy watched from a safe distance (behind the baby gate), I cranked up the "Holiday Legends" CD, (the one I just had to buy at Target after hearing the audio display made me so happy), and, singing along to Nat King Cole, I decorated the ficus tree with lights, tinsel and last year's Christmas bulbs (the ones that Truman didn't eat). I even strung some lights and tinsel along the mantel above the three perfectly spaced stockings, and set up the nativity scene (last year's gift from Mike's parents) and more tinsel on top of the entertainment center, right next to the tea-light lantern I bought in San Antonio. Vala'! Christmas!

And tonight brought an impromptu trip to the Mall for Macy's first picture with Santa. We really didn't think twice about it because she's such a social person, but the poor thing was petrified of Santa. And stubbornly, I wanted that picture, so I let her scream and we left with the dreaded screaming-baby-with-Santa version. I really felt bad as I retrieved her from the poor old man because she was actually shaking. We made it up to her with dinner at The Olive Garden. (It's amazing what 2 glasses of White Zin will do to a gal (not Macy, Me!))

(do you think I have enough parenthetical remarks?) And to all a good night.