Yes... we are VERY thankful.

Today marks a very special day for us. Thanksgiving Day last year was the first time we talked to Brown's birth mom on the phone. So exactly one year ago is when The Brown Train got rolling. And then it was a high speed down hill ride from there. He's quickly approaching his 1st Birthday. We have already rented 18 ponies and 11 inflatable moonwalks, but we'll probably end up canceling those and just toasting him with a cold glass of milk in his sippy cup and telling him "Happy Birthday. Thanks for being here. You've completely changed our lives and we don't know what we did before you came along. We love your guts. Kind of ridiculously." And then he'll just stare at us and then reach for a cheerio.

Anyway, back to our first Thanksgiving Day today. It's pretty memorable. The 3 of us are stuck at home while Brown enjoys his first ear infection and fights 103 degree fever. He's actually doing MUCH better today and I think his fever is gone. He's asleep right now (as is his daddy who is downstairs in the guest room sawing logs). So our meal today consists of what I made to contribute to the Chaffin Thanskgiving Gathering in Cleveland, TN - mashed potatoes and pumkin pie with homeade whipped cream. And really... what a great meal! Those are always the two things that I go back for seconds and thirds for, so what a bonus to only get to choose between those two things for our Thansgiving meal.

So even though we are very sad not to be spending today with Brown's cousins and great grandparents and grandparents, we definitely have SO MUCH TO BE thankful for this Thanksgiving. I wrote a note to Brown's birthmom this morning to say THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Wow. What a gift.

Standing Is Just Too Much Fun

I had to go in his room 3 times during his morning nap to lay him back down. Now that he knows how to pull up on the crib and stand, he has a hard time going to sleep. He just loves standing.

When I come in the door today...

The Brown is about to make that transition to being a toddler. As you can see in this grainy video, he has figured out how to open the cabinets in the kitchen which is a whole new deal for us. But this era of laying around on the floor, or scooting around is about to come to a crashing halt. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but in the next few weeks, he will be walking all over the place. We will likely not even be able to remember how easy it was to have a kid who basically stayed where you put him.

He is also changing mentally. I was telling Chris this morning that he is a different kid from just a few weeks ago. He will mimick what we do - with his mouth and occasionally waving to us when we wave at him. He will come toward you when he wants to see you (what a huge blessing as a dad to come home and have your child expressing joy to see you!), and he will even grab your hand to pull himself up. Each day brings new changes. I wonder what I will see when I come in the door today...

Books and Pull Ups

The quality of these pics and video is terrible, but you get the gist. I took these with my phone camera. He is starting to skootch a lot faster and REALLY trying to pull up. He can now pull himself up in the crib, so we've finally had to lower the mattress to the lowest, back breaking level. Today he was also able to pull himself up on a step, which was a huge accomplishment that he was VERY proud of himself for doing.

You can also see from these pictures how much he loves books. He really loves flipping through them and being read to. I'm so glad about that! I don't think I really enjoyed reading until I was 28.

Helpful Backseat Rider

Brown and Curt raked the front yard a few of days ago. He was very helpful to Curt. You can see him leaning down in one of these pictures to tell Curt that he missed a couple of leaves.

How do you spell "scootch"? Or "Skooch"? Or "skootch"?

Well, I don't know how to spell it, but that is what Brown is doing. He's not really crawling. Just dragging himself across the floor (still with only one side of his body seeming to do all the work). But he's going places, now. He is loving his freedom!

Cruz Azul Welcomes Its Youngest Player!

Brown's friend, Ellison, brought him the coolest soccer uniform from Mexico this summer! For those of you who might not follow the sport, Cruz Azul is a really popular Mexican soccer/football club. Brown wore their uniform proudly for his first Halloween.