Edwin's 1st Christmas

WOW - What a difference Christmas is with a baby...so much happened over this holiday weekend...so this might end up being a VERY LONG post. SORRY!

12/24: Christmas Eve

Edwin had his first veggies today - squash...although he didn't seem to enjoy it, it was fun trying something new and we will continue to try...



We hosted Christmas Eve in Newport this year...Grandpa Randy, Grandma Nikki, Mike, Joyce, Aunt Jessica, Brian, Chad, and Great Grandma Shirley came to help celebrate Edwin's 1st Christmas. Edwin got so many nice gifts - Pizza Elmo, Books, Blanket (handmade by AJ), and most exciting for Dave and I - a family membership to the zoo!!!! We can't wait to take Edwin and teach him all about the animals, especially the monkeys! (obviously)

Edwin's 1st Christmas gift...

12/25: Christmas

Edwin woke up around 8:30am on Christmas morning and Dave brought him downstairs to open his gifts from Santa Claus. Santa Claus didn't have to do much this year and opted for simple plastic alphabet blocks!

Afterward, we finished packing up the car and headed to Pittsburgh. Muellerville was as busy as ever with Christmas festivities. Once again, Edwin raked in the gifts - including new shoes from Great Grandma Mueller...everyone couldn't stop talking about the Edwin Claus and New Year Edwin pictures that we sent out - they were a hit!

We headed to Grandma Ross's house for the rest of the holiday weekend...

12/26: Christmas #2

Uncle Matt, Aunt Melinda and cousins Madeline and Meredith all came over to Grandma Ross's house to open Christmas gifts. Edwin was the big winner again - obviously spoiled!!!



In the middle of opening gifts, I noticed my pants felt wet - I looked down and sure enough, Edwin had spit up all over me, himself and Grandma's carpet - sooooo gross! So, we paused gift opening for an outfit change. We came back downstairs to resume gift opening and when Dave handed Edwin to me - he did it again...all over me...so, another outfit change - this time into pajamas...

Don't know what that was all about, but Dave took over gift opening duties after that...

There were too many gifts to mention. I didn't think we'd be able to get everything in our car for the trip home, but somehow we managed...

12/27: Canfield Mini-Reunion & Meredith's 2-Year Birthday Party

I got up and decided to go to Macy's and take advantage of some after Christmas sales...when I returned, Grandma Ross told me to feel in Edwin's mouth - yep! His first tooth popped through....so exciting!!!


That afternoon, Leanna and Dave Kemble hosted a get together for some of Dave's high school friends. Edwin had a great time because he got to see Jack (Dave and Leanna's son) and meet Ava (Jen & Jim's daughter).

Afterward we headed to Matt & Melinda's for Meredith's birthday party. I can't believe she is 2 already - geez...where did 2 years go???? The birthday party was a lot of fun...Meredith loved showing Dave all of her gifts...she gets extremely frustrated when she can't find Dave - and it is really cute watching her look for him.

12/28: Visit to Hudson (Twinsburg) and Steelers Game

We got up on Sunday morning and drove to Hudson to visit the Reeds. This was our first time meeting Carmen and Holden (Justin & Gia's children).





They are beautiful and Edwin had fun watching them play with all of their new toys. Holden was nice enough to share his dump truck and bus with Edwin...after a great visit and a yummy Chipotle lunch we headed back to Grandma Ross's for the Steelers game. Edwin wore his Steelers outfit and fit right in with the rest of the Ross family - I was the odd man out...

12/29: Back to NOKY

We left Canfield early so that we could get to the boarder and pick up Sedona before 2:00pm...we got there around 1:30pm. We finally made it back home and now I'm starting the process of finding a place to put all of this new stuff.

I'm sure I've forgotten things...it was a busy weekend and I'm still trying to take it all in. I feel so blessed to have Edwin, a wonderful family, awesome friends, and most importantly - my best friend/husband to experience this journey with...

Diamond Earrings???

So, I know you are all waiting for me to post some holiday updates/pictures...but that will have to wait until tomorrow when I have a little more time. I think we took 300+ pics over Edwin's first Christmas...are we crazy? PROBABLY!!!

Anyways, I know I've been telling some of you (most importantly Dave) that I want diamond earrings...well...it is confirmed via Hallmark that I have some waiting to do. Not to mention that I'm not working and Dave is the only one contributing $$$ to the household...

Hallmark has confirmed that diamonds are an inappropriate gift until your 60th wedding anniversary (traditional) or 10th wedding anniversary (modern)...so I'll have to settle for the following for our upcoming 5th anniversary in Oct 2009 - wood (traditional) or silverware (modern)...DARN!!!

Dave, you are lucky that I believe Hallmark is the expert in this matter and I will patiently wait until the appropriate time to receive my diamond earrings!!!

:>)

Holiday pictures coming tomorrow...

Etc.

We're just getting back into our routine as we recover from Christmas '08 and the related festivities:

• 12/24 - Christmas Eve - The Rosses of Kentucky House, Newport KY
• 12/25 - Christmas Day - Muellerville, Pittsburgh PA
• 12/26 - Alt-Christmas Eve - Grandma Ross House, Canfield OH
• 12/27 - Meredith 2nd Birthday Celebration - MMmm House, Canfield OH
• 12/28 - Steelers 31 Browns 0 - Grandma Ross HD TV, Canfield OH

We also got to catch up with various friends from Canfield High School and their respective offspring, so the all-in-all, this year's trip was great.

Tomorrow, Mindy should be giving the full update including pictures as she is the Family Events Editor (whereas I am merely a staff writer responsible for assigning arbitrary metrics to the performance of marginal professional athletes).

In the meantime please enjoy some New Years resolutions that we will not be making in 2009 here at The Ross Experience:

1. Get hooked on another procedural crime drama and/or danced-based reality show
2. Incorporate more trans fats into family dinners
3. Once, just once read the free copy of The Campbell County Recorder that appears in our yard every Thursday morning instead of immediately throwing it away
4. Park Edwin in front of the TV more often to make time for World of Warcraft
5. Attempt our own minor home repairs, replacing the trusty 1998-2008 method of inviting Mindy's dad over for dinner

Christmas Vacation

1 more day of Christmas Vacation then back to regular updates...

Edwin's Game Day Attire

So we got Edwin all decked out for the big Steelers-Titans game.   He was excited initially:

But maybe we should've taken this concerned expression he wore around an hour before game time as a sign of things to come:

OK, Edwin, no Steelers gear during the playoffs for you!

Diaper Update

Some of you might remember this statement from Dave.

"I believe I ballparked something like 10% of total diapers as the number I'd be willing to change. If you estimate 10 changes/day, that 70/week. Let's say the kid's at daycare 50 hrs/week, or 30% of the time. That means there will be approx. 49 diapers changed/week that will be done outside of daycare. Thus, if I change 1 out of every 7 of those non-daycare diapers every week, I'll hit my 10% target (7 out of 70). 1 of 7 seems like a reasonable amount to me."

I'm happy to report that Dave changes more than his 10% "fair share" of diapers...I'm a lucky woman!

Ross Family - Christmastime 08

Saturday, Dec 20th, we met Grandma Nikki, Mike, Great Grandma Shirley, Great Aunt Chrissy, Great Uncle David, and Cousins Cody & Taylor for dinner at the Great Wolf Lodge. Edwin got to meet Rudolph, Santa Claus, & Mrs. Claus. What a great night!!!

Apparently, Edwin doesn't like Rudolph...

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

And for those who want more...check the complete photoshoot album. Shannon Schumacher has done all of Edwin's photoshoots for us and does an amazing job. Her prices are very reasonable and we would gladly recommend her to anyone looking for some amazing keepsakes! Call her at 859-491-2356 or email her at shannonschumacher@fuse.net for more information.

Santonio Holmes Confidence Index

At long last it's here, just in time for the final 2 weeks of the 2008 NFL season! The Ross Experience is proud to introduce the Santonio Holmes Confidence Index (patent not pending).

"I'm very confident." -Santonio Holmes

OK, here's how it works. The Santonio Holmes Confidence Index (SHCI) is an objective (read: subjective) measurement of our confidence in Santonio Holmes over time. It's a 10-point scale with the approximate confidence levels:

• 0.0 - equates to our confidence in the Bengals making the playoffs again in our lifetime
• 5.0 - equates to our confidence in our ability to accurately predict the result of a coin flip
• 10.0 - equates to our confidence in the sun rising tomorrow

Currently, the SHCI stands at a 9.5, its highest level since inception, primarily due to the game winning TD catch this past Sunday. That said the recent volatility in the SHCI has been quite high.

Our intention is to post updates regarding this index on the blog whenever there's a significant shift. But for now let's take a look back on the history of the SHCI since inception...

4/29/06 - 3.0

Holmes is drafted 25th overall by the Steelers. Customarily, we would expect the 1st round draft pick to start out at around a 5.0; however, he's an, ahem, "alum" of Ohio State, the institution that's produced the likes of Maurice Clarett, et al.

10/22/06 - 0.5

The SHCI drops it its lowest ever level, as Santonio fumbles a punt for what must've been the 17th time during his rookie campaign. This time it's a costly one, setting up an early Vick TD pass, in what would end up 3-point loss at Atlanta.

12/17/06 - 4.0

Holmes returns a punt 65 yards for a TD in a 37-3 win at Carolina. All those fumbled punts start to fade into distant memories.

12/31/06 - 5.5

Santonio finishes the Steelers' (and the Bengals') season via a 67-yard overtime TD reception.

12/30/07 - 6.0

Holmes closes what can only be described as a solid sophomore campaign with 52 catches for 942 yards and 8 TDs. Plus, only 2 fumbles, neither lost!

9/2/08 - 8.5

We draft Santonio in the 5th round of our fantasy football draft.

10/5/08 - 3.0

We are forced to bench Holmes in our fantasy league due to less-than-adequate 3rd-year performance.

12/14/08 @ 5:17pm - 1.0

Santonio fumbles for the 2nd time in today's game against the Ravens. The SCHI falls dangerously close to its all-time low.

12/14/08 @ 7:28pm - 9.5

The SHCI reaches its highest ever level as Holmes scores the game-winning TD against the Ravens.

Edwin 6 Month Update

HAPPY 1/2 YEAR BIRTHDAY EDWIN!!!

Today was Edwin's 6 month check up. The dr is pleased with his development and gave us the okay to start actual baby food - veggies first and then fruit! I'm so excited to let Edwin try some new flavors! He got 4 shots and some liquid medicine today - so he was really mad by the time we left. But it wasn't long and he was smiling again! He is such a great baby!!!

Weight: 17 lbs 15.9 ozs = 75th percentile

Height: 25 inches = 25th percentile

Head Circumfierence = 60th percentile

Who Does Edwin Look Like?

Great Grandpa??? He definitely has his cheeks!!!

Tucson, AZ - A Christmas Treat for Edwin and Me!

Most people know that my first trip to Tucson, AZ was when I was 5 years old...almost 25 years ago...crazy to think about that. I'm hoping the travel bug bites Edwin early...our first plane trip was a success! Edwin was a great baby all weekend. Traveling alone with him made me thankful for Dave - I don't know how single parents do it! It is hard work...enjoy the pics below...

As you can see Edwin loves his great grandparents and there was no shortage of spoiling. Wish we could've stayed longer!

Edwin's 1st Plane Trip

Edwin w. Great Grandma and Great Grandpa

Edwin Getting Love from Great Grandma

Grams & Paps - A Sweet Moment

Trip to Desert Museum w. Great Grandpa

Getting Love from Great Grandpa

The '90s

Now that Sirius and XM have merged, the number of '90s channels has doubled. Not only do we have '90s alt rock on channel 24, we now get '90s pop on channel 9.

Being in some sort of '90s mood yesterday, I flipped back-and-forth between these 2 channels on the hour drive to pick up Mindy from the Dayton airport.

It got me thinking, if I ever was to start a '90s cover band, what would the name be? Here's the options I came up with:

The Reservoir Dogs
The Shawshank Redemptions
The Last Action Heroes
Tim Watley and The Label Makers
Waterworld

I decided my favorite was:

The Beverly Hills Ninjas

Financial Panic of 2008

A one man show by Edwin Randall Ross.

Act I: Shock

"How many record Dow drops can there be?"

Act II: Investigation

 

"Eh, what happened now?"

Act III: Acknowledgement

"Ouch.  I realize I've only had 2 months of formal education, but from what I understand, this is not good."

Act IV: Sadness

"Trillions in wealth vanished into thin air!"

Act V: Despair

"Unemployment figures not seen in years!"

Act VI: Anger

"One bailout after another! Moral hazards everywhere!"

Act VII: Indifference

"Oh well, at least my money's all in cash since my parents have been too lazy to start a 529."

Edwin's 6 Month Photos

Couldn't Resist a Photo Opp

Not a good week to be a former player of one my favorite sports teams

Former Steeler:
How did Plaxico fall so far, so fast?

Former Bearcat:
Corie Blount's arrest a shock

Former Pirate:
Barry Bonds faces revised charges in sports-steroids probe

I can't shake the disquieting feeling that right now somewhere in some dark corner of some basement in Canfield, Ohio, some former Cardinal great is plotting something...

Getting Spoiled

It isn't even Christmas yet, and Edwin is already getting spoiled!!! Thanks Mom and Mike for everything!