The L.A. Dime

On a whim, we decided to enter Sophie in the Parent’s Magazine Cover Model Contest. The contest closes June 24th, so go to this link and give her pictures great ratings and recommend them all! You can vote more the once.

I’ve been away from the blogosphere for a while, traveling and writing. For the first time since I was a kid, we took a family trip to the Outer Banks in North Carolina to stay together for a week in a giant beach house. We stayed at a place called The Atlantic Adventure in Corolla — which I later learned on the airplane home is pronounced Ka-RAH-la.

While we were there, I caught some rays, some waves, one tiny fish, a few puny crabs, and a slightly strained ankle. Pops caught a big ole sting ray, and Brian nabbed a puffer fish. Sophie turned out to be quite the water bug. She loved the ocean and the sand so much she tried to eat them both.

After spending some time with her entire Riddell family, including cousin Sawyer, Sophie now says “Hi” and “Uh-oh,” and knows for certain what a ball looks like.

It was a fairly grueling cross-country flight with an active (and very social) baby, but we had a wonderful time and look forward to doing it again next year. Maybe in Malibu?

Sophie celebrated her nine month birthday yesterday with a trip to Dr. JJ’s office. She’s currently 20.9 pounds (75th percentile) and 29 inches long (95th percentile). She took it upon herself to put on a show, and started clapping for the first time right in front of the doctor, and now that is her favorite pastime, aside from — crawling. Two week ago she started bopping around the house the day I left on a trip to Louisville. Luckily, Mom-Mom Saundra was here to witness it, and Tina came home soon after to help chase her around. She’s pulling up on things, and is able to walk pretty well while holding our hands. It looks like a fourth chomper is starting to poke through up top. She’s a spunky little talker, and at restaurants, she likes to shout to the passing waiters. We’re having a blast.

Thanks to Jake White, the happy newlywed, for directing me to Pandora, a website that allows you to build radio stations around your favorite artists, and using the Music Genome Project, it then expands your horizons into music with similar roots, styles, and connections. The music streams for free for as long as you want to listen. It’s a great way to have a constant variety of music you like playing on your computer, and to also explore new artists you may never have experienced. Like an iPod on shuffle, there is the radio-like surprise of not knowing what’s next, and you also get info on the artist as it plays. You can reject a song, too, and you’ll never hear it again. Every time you give a song a “thumbs-up,” though, you’ll be sure to hear it again, and to also further expand your playlist into similar songs. Check it out. Very cool.

R.E.M.’s new album, Accelerate, is a return to the roots of the band’s beginnings, and I’m a big fan. The Submarines, our good friends and favorite local band, have released their second album, Honeysuckle Weeks, and as hard as this is for me to admit, it’s better than their debut. I see big things in their future. Please give them a look. You won’t be disappointed.

My sis-in-law’s brother, Grant, recently sent some photos from Iraq where he has just begun his first tour as a Marine. Grant is a great guy, we respect his conviction, are proud of his service, and wish him a safe return home when his work is done.