Quinn is 14 months!

Quinnie turned 14 months last week!  I can't believe that she is really that old!  She is still on the teenie side and has her struggles (as in an eariler post: Honesty About Kids ).  But now, I want to focus on the positive - she is pulling herself up on anything and everything (including using my pant legs and Owen on the floor!).  She enjoys playing with the ABC magnets on the fridge, well really pulling them off the fridge.  She likes to play with her little laptop and look through some books.  She still loves to watch The Backyardigans and really enjoys playing "hide and seek" with her brother.

We've been able to take her swimming a few times and she is doing pretty well.  She seems to enjoy the water and doesn't get too upset when Mommy dunks her.

Weight - 18 lbs 8 oz
Height - 29.5"
Head circumference
Clothing size: 9-12 months
Diaper size: size 3

Words: Dada, Mama, O, and "yeah"

Foods: rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, peaches, pears, apples, bananas, prunes, squash, sweet potatoes, peas, green beans, and carrots. mixed vegetables, sweet potatoes with corn, pineapple, cherries, banana plum grape, apricot. garden vegetables, mangos, blueberries, banana orange, chicken noodles, vegetables and chicken, brocoli, sweet potato/turkey, zucchini, corn, some large banana chunks. Beginning to learn to chew better without gagging! (She ate a couple of mandarin oranges and pieces of cheese), whole milk, pediasure, cupcake!

Now eating table food well:  pizza, toast, macaroni, peaches, chicken, hamburger, pancakes, carrots, green beans, muffins,...

Getting ready for the start of (my) school year

Being a college professor definitely has its perks:  pretty flexible hours (I can schedule dr.'s appointments and the like around my teaching schedule), good holiday time off, plus the summer "off" (from teaching at least) (unless you teach summer classes - but then you get extra pay), great colleagues and great students (most of the time).  Of course, with all of this, especially the flexible hours, can come some downfall - lots of work to do at home at times (or always feeling you should be doing something), feeling like you can't call in sick (no one can cover my classes or they won't do a "good enough" job).

But I love the start of my school year - getting to teach some new students as well as some I've had before in other classes.  I love getting to share my love of statistics with the students and hope that if nothing else, they will at least walk out of my class not loathing it and possibly appreciating it.

So right now as I prepare for the new school year, I get to help prepare other instructors for one of our classes, get to meet with some students and get to know them and what they want out of school.

Even though everything I need for school is technically supplied for me, there are some particular things that I prefer to use:

1.  TI-84 Plus Silver Edition calculator (this is what I refer to as the "stats" calculator).  It doesn't integrate or anything, but it is well equipped for what I need in my classes.

2.  Pilot G2 pens - these are so smooth when you right, they are refillable and the come in lots of colors!

3.  San Cruzer flash drives - these definitely hold the amount that they say and this brand has never let me down yet (unlike some others...)

Classes start next Monday...time to get prepared!

Fall Wish List

A friend and I got to go out and do a lot of shopping before the school year starts (we're both college professors) and were able to see what a lot of the fall trends are.  I have never been a "trend-follower" perse as I can't afford to spend a lot of money on clothes (especially for myself). In addition, I am on the larger size for women.  The size I wear is still in the misses section, but on the higher end and if possible, I need petite size clothing as well.

Things that I noticed that were "in" while shopping were:  belted tops (and dresses), zebra print, embellished and printed tunics, and fly-away cardigans.  I have attempted to take these trends and figure out how they can work for me and my body shape.  So here is my wish list (click on image to view website):

I did try on a couple of the "belted tops", however, the belt location was not all that flattering.  This sweater (www.bluefly.com) is cashmere (hence the heftier $88 price tag) but it has the belt effect with the cinch in around the waist and has a wrap style to help out the larger gals out there!

First off, if you don't know me, I'm definitely more of a shoe person.  These Kelly & Katie brand shoes I found at DSW for $30.  (Hopefully they won't stay on the shelf too long for me!)  These shoes are shockingly comfortable (for heels) and don't have too high of a heel.  (Anyone who cares to buy these for me, I wear an 8.5 :) )

One of the biggest prolems I had with tunics is that the generally look like paper bags on me as they don't give any defining shape.  However, this tunic gives you curves (and hides) in all the right places.  I found this one at Kohls for $25.

This is the only item on my "wish list" that is now on my "have it list."  I liked the idea of a cardigan that didn't have to button (don't have to worry about the "pulling" effect).  Luckily this cardigan has some shape to it as well as defines a waist-line for you.  This one I got at Kohls for $23.

Ok, so jeans aren't a new trend, but when are they really out of style?  So these are the jeans that I absolutely love.  This is the curvy style from New York and Company.  This style (non-skinny) give more room in the hip and thigh than I'm used to.  This pair sells for $50, but keep a look out for their deals!  Currently they have buy one pair get another pair for $10!

Do you have any must-have styles for fall?