I forgot to blog last week...so maybe I'll do two posts this week! Don't get your hopes up; I make no promises.

I love Sundays; I always have. I love the opportunity to renew covenants that I have made and gather in worship with others. (For those of you who are curious as to what the Crossley family believes you can click here. The videos on this website are awesome! I like to watch them when I'm in need of a spiritual boost.)

At the beginning of this adventure known as medical school Tanner decided he wouldn't study on Sundays. Which gives me one more reason to love that day so much!

This Sunday Mariah and I got to tag along with Tanner on one of his church assignments. We visited the wonderful Sorhus family. It was so much fun. They have a wonderful assortment of exotic animals.

This tiny little bundle of joy is a Juliana Piglet. Oh My Word...so cute. I grew up with pigs and after all of my experiences the only kind of pig I like is a baby pig. This was the cutest baby pig I have ever seen. It was so teeny tiny, it had the most dainty squeal. Juliana's grow to be about the size of a pot belly pig. I was in love.

Then there were the bengal kittens

Mariah was so excited. These cats grow up to be really beautiful. I couldn't get a good picture of the adults but if you're really interested you can google them. Yes, I'm lazy.

There was an older kitten that I couldn't get to come to me, but of course, it hopped right on Tanner's lap and made itself at home:

Here's the irony in it all...Tanner hates cats, can't stand them. But they just looove him. Two summers ago we went to Point Reyes in San Francisco for my birthday and there was a cat there that would not leave Tanner alone. Tanner knelt down to get something out of his bag and the cat pounced. I was trying to get the cat to come to me, but she waltzed right by to jump into this handsome man's lap. Can't blame her.

You can just see the love in his face

I think the truth is that Tanner is a crazy cat lady stuck in a manly man body, he just doesn't want to admit it. But the cats know; they can sense it.

Then there was the Norwegian Fjord:

I've only seen these in zoos so I was pretty excited to get a picture. 

They also have, miniature Jersey cows, sheep, three dogs that look kind of like Brittany Spaniels but aren't Brittany Spaniels, chickens, and will be getting a goat soon. These people are my heroes.

I have been missing animals. The other night I caught a cat wandering around our house and tried to bring it into the house, I figured Tanner would get a real kick out of it. Anyways, I could only hold it with one hand so I had to kick on the door, hoping Tanner would come open it for me. The cat was wiggling up a storm, probably because it could sense the cat lady in Tanner coming and was just so excited. In its excitement it wriggled out of my grasp and ran off before Tanner could open the door. He wasn't as disappointed as I thought he would be when he found out the cat got away. Sorry, random tangent to show you how deprived of animal interaction I was feeling. 

Though the animals were all pretty amazing, I think my favorite at the Sorhus farm was David:

He was Mariah's favorite too. Boy did he love to talk. We struggled understanding what he was saying but his parents spoke his language so they translated for us. He was so adorable. I mean, look at that bow tie. What a cutie patootie.

Mariah's New Trick

It's so fun when Mariah discovers something new that she can do. This is one of the few times she has actually done this little trick so I'm glad I caught it on film. 

Don't you just love those chubby cheeks? They are too much. And sorry about all of my face, the only way I could get her to cooperate was if she could see herself being filmed on the ipod.

Daddy's Little Girl

This is going to be a mushy feel-good post. So if that isn't your thing, don't feel obligated to read on...you've been warned.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about Tanner and Mariah's special relationship. There is no denying it, from day one Mariah has been crazy about her Dad.

This picture was taken when Mariah was only a little over a week old. Tanner was singing to her and she lifted her head and looked right at him as if to say, "Oh, it's you! I've waited a long time to be with you." If we hadn't taken a picture of it I would have never believed it. This picture still makes me feel all warm inside and emotional and I'm pretty sure it always will.

Tanner and Mariah in their "onesies" (Tanner had to wear coveralls for work sometimes)

I would try to imagine how Tanner would be as a dad and he is all that I imagined and more with Mariah. He is so very tightly wrapped around her dainty little finger. I love to watch them interact together.

Mariah gets so excited when Tanner comes home. She just lights up when he talks to her. He doesn't have to do much to make her happy. One of the greatest things is the calming effect he has on her. There will be times when I am trying everything to make her happy and Tanner will take her and she will be content in no time.

Watching ESPN together-Tanner is indoctrinating her

You may be wondering why I decided to do this kind of a post. Well I'll tell you. Tanner is shadowing a doctor today and he came out of the bedroom looking all sorts of Doctor Dapper (I just came up with that on my own, I'm kind of pleased with myself). I wanted a picture of him and the first thing Tanner did was pick up Mariah to pose for me. It just made me think how special these two and their relationship are to me. When I was pregnant if someone would have told me that the baby I was carrying for 9+ months was going to love her daddy best I probably would have been a tad disagreeable with them, to put it mildly. But now that I see this wonderful bond that they share I wouldn't have it any other way. Mariah couldn't pick a better person to adore and look up to.

Boy am I crazy about these two! They are my life and my love and I couldn't be happier. 

Our Six Month Diva

Mom: Can you believe we are already doing another interview? Seriously Mariah, you should stop growing for a little bit.

Mariah: Sorry mom but thats asking a little too much of me.

Mom: You're right; I thought it was worth a try. So six months! What are some big things that have happened to you lately?

Mariah: Well I had solid foods for the first time on Sunday!

Mom: And what did you think?

Mariah: I'm not too sure. But I don't think I have a choice but to just swallow the weird stuff.

Mom: And I'm going to let you keep thinking that....Can I put up a video of you trying some food?

Mariah: Sure!

Mom: Too cute! What else has been happening this past month?

Mariah: Well I learned how to roll from my back to my stomach! The first time I did it was in the crib so you didn't even get to see it. Sorry about that.

Mom: Don't even worry about it! I'm just so excited that you figured that out. Now you just need to learn how to roll back to your back.

Mariah: Don't get your hopes up, that could take a while.

Mom: What is your favorite sound to make?

Mariah: I just love to scream/squeal as high as I possibly can, one of those ear piercing ones, over and over and over again!

Mom: And boy do mom and dad just love that. But at least it means you're happy...most of the time.

Mariah: Yeah sometimes I do the scream when I'm mad too. But you can't blame me; nothing gets your attention faster than when I do that.

Mom: You're a smart one. How was your doctors appointment today?

Mariah: Well I just loved the Doctor and her staff. I couldn't stop staring at them all. They were such nice ladies. It could have ended better though.

Mom: Yeah, vaccinations are rough. Can I tell everyone how much you've grown?

Mariah: I'm ok with that

Mom: Well Mariah now weighs 16.6 pounds and is 26.5 inches long! Yes, she is going to be a long tall Sally.

Mariah: You're making me blush!

Mom: What are some of your new discoveries?

Mariah: I found my feet! I just love sucking on my toes. I even pull my socks off sometimes so I can play with them. It's so fun!

Mom: I'm glad you're an easy pleaser. Well this has been great! Let's do it again!

Mariah: Sounds great! I have a pretty open schedule. Can't wait!