Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!

Wow, if I didn't have these things in my life I don't know what I'd do!?--

1) My husband. Mark is amazingly supportive. If it's a dirty diaper that needs changing, a dish that needs washing, or a wife that needs to talk- he's there, quick. I don't know who I'd be without Mark- he's been my side kick for over 9 years (!). I'm especially thankful that Mark helps me to be a better me, and we just have fun together.

2) My Sadie lady. This year has been the year of Sadie. She is my joy. I love every inch of her- she makes me laugh a lot. I am really thankful to be her mom!

3) My family. We are alike in so many ways, and different in so many others. Things are not always peachy when you have a handful of emotional, passionate, and dramatic peoples sharing life together. But, I love my family. We are there for each other when life calls for it (and sometimes just for fun!), and being with my family makes me feel safe.

4) Peets. I know this is silly, but Peets feels like community. When we go to our nearby Peets we always run into someone- sooz, roro, my mom, neighbors, friends, folks from work- it feels like Oakland to me, like home.

5) Creativity. This really fuels a lot of what I do, and I'm so thankful that I'm a creative person. Mark just commented yesterday that that's probably why I love teaching- I love creating ideas for lessons and motivating kids.

6) My church. We've been going to a new church this fall- Oakland City Church. It has really motivated Mark and I spiritually. It's also been great to become involved in a vibrant new community. 

7) Steadfast friends. I'm not a great friend- I've come to realize (even though I try). I'm good at having a couple of close friends, and I'm not so good at cultivating a large deep friend network. My two closest friends- Trish and Katie live so far away from me, but they are dear to me. And, they've put up with me for a long time. It's just like to have people that know you so well, and that experience the ups and downs of life with you. Thanks ladies!  It's also been lovely to have a group of friends in Oakland to share life with... we've lived here about 10 years and we've creating some lasting friendships...I'm really thankful for my everyday friends!! It's been so wonderful having a group of friends nearby that are at the same life stage and share the same values.

There's a lot more...but the rest is pretty superficial (like Hulu, new clothes, my car, farmer joe's etc...).

Be thankful today, and listen tomorrow- because tomorrow is the National Day of Listening (not shopping!).

Peace xoxo

Chatterbox

So my camera's battery is dead, and I can't seem to find the charger anywhere. And can you believe that Cannon charges $95 for a new charger! Hmmm, we'll need to shop around.

Sadie is one- who hoo (pictures to follow at a later date)! We had a lovely celebration for her in the park with family and friends. It was a perfect fall morning. At her 1-yr healthy child visit, her fabulous doctor, Dr. Tenney, reported that she is in the 90% percentile for height, 90% for her head size, and 50% in weight. Sounds like her dad!

Sadie motors around all day, here are some highlights:

• playing with toys- whether sanctioned or off-limit items
• constant talking, including her catch phrases, "uh-oh" and "oh yeah". and she started saying "happy" after her birthday- for reals!
• praciting her standing and taking a tentative step! Perhaps more will follow, soon!
• being a yogi constantly with the downward dog yoga pose
• playtime with friends- she's learning to be gentle and not grab hair
• she's loving food- homemade soups, vegetable/fruit medleys, crackers, yogurt, and of course, cheese

Here's a video shot a couple of days ago- Sadie is in her element. And, she calls this caterpillar toy A-B, because it sings the A-B-Cs. Hmmm, I think I have a little chatterbox on my hands.

Have a great Thanksgiving!!! XOXO

Round Up

It's a typical afternoon in the Anderson casa. Sadie is tired, but refuses to sleep. Instead, she's motoring away placing her favorite bath toy (a camo pick duckie from Aunt Susannah) in and out of plastic cups. She has toys in her room, but she always eventually crawls to find her bath toys- which are her #1 favorite.

I started teaching an online course- Literacy Assessment- for a teaching credential program in late October. So, if you were wondering why I've been a blog slacker- I'm been channeling my computer energy to teaching this class. I'm learning a lot as I go about how to teach an online class and more about literacy assessment. I'm glad for the opportunity. Perhaps I'll teach more college classes in the future. I think I would like that. To teach teachers, I think it really helps if you are an current teacher yourself- IMHO.

Sadie's 1st birthday is this Friday. I can hardly believe it. My little one has grown up so fast. Her reasoning ability is skyrocketing. She's also more aware. So we have to be a little more careful- she understands so much, and is soaking it in.  One annoying thing is that she's learning how to manipulate us- her cries are more insistent and for things she really wants (food and freedom from her bed, mostly). But it's great to watch her learn and discover. As I type, she is putting her bath toy bucket on and off of her head, over and over.

We're planning to have a low key party at a nearby park- and we're hoping California graces us with some seasonally warm weather. Having a bunch of families over isn't as fun in our small house. A big space with slides and swings is definitely a lot more fun (and more manageable too)!

We went chestnut picking for Mark's 34th birthday. We had a lovely day. It was nice especially to have a lot of driving time for Mark and me to talk. Here are some photo highlights:

This are what the chestnuts look like on the tree. But you have to pick them up off the ground. They're not ripe when they are on the tree inside their prickly husk.

Okay- Well, I'll be sure to upload some photos from the birthday bash.

xoxo

Chatty Lady

Here are several recent videos of our chatty baby. She's 11 months-- 1 year on November 12th. She saying a lot of words now, including pa/ba for grandpa, bye-bye, ma ma, da da, up ("p"), dog, and a few more.

oaktoberfest for sure

So, we've been off this week. And it's flown by so fast. We stayed around Oakland- did some fun things with friends and family: Grandpa Vince visited from Chicago (so fun!) last weekend, we went to SF Zoo on Wednesday, and out to Underdog Wine Bar in Livermore today  to visit my brother. Other than that we really chilled a lot with Sadie, went on walks to Peet's (of course!), and yes, worked. Tomorrow we have a packed day- helping out at Harbor House, my old 9 to 5, and going to the most awesome (for reals) Oaktoberfest in our hood.

The biggest turning point this week is that we came to terms with the fact that we probably won't sell our house this fall. We'll keep it on the market until the staging contract expires...but the market is looking pretty bleak. On the downside, we did a lot of packing and cleaning to get the house ready. On the bright side, we don't HAVE to sell, and we really like where we live (besides it being a little smallish). So I'm trying to emphasize the positives so I don't get too bitter about the wasted $ and effort.

So here's my list, 10 things I love about where we live:
1) Great Walkability: Library, Dimond Park, Farmer Joes, Safeway, Peet's, CVS, Chase, Glenview, etc..
2) We have great new oak floors in the kitchen...they are wonderfully beautiful
3) We really like our neighbors!
4) My driveway garden rocks
5) PEET'S (this deserves to be on the list 2x)
6) Jean Quan Councilwoman - and hopefully soon-to-be mayor!
7) Sausal Creek trails a couple minutes away
8) Our bedroom paint color is perfect
9) Close to friends- nyquists, rorks, ogdens, family... and we always run into people we know
10) Oaktoberfest (but why can't they just call it Oktoberfest?)

So, i love the Dimond. And if we don't sell now, maybe we were meant to be here a little longer. And that's okay.

p.s If you're in Oakland, make sure to check out Oaktoberfest...year #3, and a guaranteed good time for all!
p.p.s. Last year they ran out of beer at 4pm.

Laughing and Talking and Walking

This video starts about two minutes into a Sadie laugh attack. But don't worry, she still had some giggles left for the camera. She then proceeds to walk all around her room, giving a lecture in her Sadie language.

Queen of Crawl

Sadie has had several developmental breakthroughs. In the past week, she's learned to crawl, stand up, and get from lying to sitting on her own! Also, she's started consistently saying bu-bu for bye-bye whenever we leave the house, and she's fascinated with dog and says d- d- every time she sees a dog. One smart baby. The only issue is...she's been interested in practicing these skills, and not napping. Grandpa Vince got to see her in action this weekend...she slept very little, but sure learned to get around her crib. I know this fascination with her new skills will pass...it frustrating and silly all rolled into one!

Yesterday, Sadie shows how she can get up to standing in her crib.


This video is from last week. Sadie's first attempts at crawling. She's gotten a lot faster in the last week. This is a long one, but if you make it to the end-- Sadie says bye bye.