Christmas Recap

Merry belated Christmas to you all!


I pray you had a wonderful Christmas, celebrating the birth of our Lord Jesus...we sure did!




Christmas Eve was spent with Hubby's family, Christmas morning at home with our babes, (after all four of us slept in the living room together), and Christmas late afternoon with my family in NJ.




Hubby and I were so oblivious to the impending NJ blizzard...until Christmas night. Once a storm warning was issued and the estimate of 12-18 inches was given (around mid-day Saturday, mind you), my siblings started packing and hitting the road. We decided to stick with our plans, stay the night, go for a run Sunday morning, and see friends for brunch while the kiddos kicked back with my parents. It all worked out well, but we decided to change the "leave after Sunday dinner" plan and head out at noon instead. Glad we did...because at that point 2-3 inches were already on the ground, and by dinnertime Sunday my parents had plenty more! I believe they are sitting in 15-20 inches right now...yikes! So, while our NJ trip was less than 24 hours, we are still thankful we got to see most of my family for at least a few hours!





(No, we don't usually give out duck bathroom sets as gifts...we did a white elephant gift exchange. And no, my Dad wasn't given a knitted women's hat...just fooling around.) ;o)




And now this week is spent putting together and organizing new toys, playing with my new iPod Touch (my Hubby is great, isn't he?) ;o), and wondering when my voice will come back. Yup, this lovely cold turned into full-blown laryngitis, and since the recommended treatment is nearly impossible (YOU try resting your voice with a 5 year old and 2 1/2 year old!), I wonder when anyone will be able to hear me again. At least we can stay inside, snuggle, play, and watch movies like this one!



If you haven't seen A Christmas Story, you truly are missing out!!!


OH, and how could I forget! We have also been spending our time doting over 7 little puppies in our house. Yup, our Princess Lucy (a German Shorthaired Pointer) had beautiful puppies a week before Christmas, and they are just the cutest things!




They don't have their eyes or ears open yet, so we aren't really supposed to be holding or carrying them around...but that doesn't mean we aren't tempted to all the time! :o)


Hope you have a wonderful week!

Family Photo Shoot

Some of you have been asking about my updated photos on the right side. I'm so glad you noticed them!


A few months ago, we asked one of our wonderfully terrific neighbors (who does photography on the side) to take some family pictures for us. Given that we gave him two active kiddos and two tired and crazy parents to work with, Jonathan did some amazing work!














Even though Caedon's mood was one for the record books that afternoon and he refused to look at the camera with a smile, Jonathan managed to capture Caedon's true personality. He also took some adorable shots of Danae, and we were really pleased with the family pictures.








The photo shoot took place at a park down the road from our house, as well as in our backyard. Jonathan has often used our backyard for taking pics for other people. Apparently our old, about-to-fall-over barn makes a great backdrop. Who would have thought!





If you are interested in checking out Jonathan's work, here is his website. Several of our photos are in the "Individuals" and the "Relationships" sections.



http://jonathanmarkphotography.smugmug.com/



Enjoy!

Potty training? I don't think so.

Life has been...busy!


Wrapping up a dining room project, getting ready for puppies, Christmas shopping, a little bit of sickness, attempts at potty-training...I'm sure most of you know the feeling!


To spare you a post that's longer than my arm, I'll just tell you more about the latter: potty-training.



Here's the gist: It ain't going too well in our parts.



Our daughter was trained and on her way by a little over 2 years old. She showed great interest in using the potty right before she turned 2, and then it just went from there.

Wasn't she just the cutest??? :o)

Our son?




HAHAHA! Still cute, but oh so not potty-trained.



The only experience I have with a boy being potty-trained is the memories of my brother. Mom has a picture of him crying on the toilet, holding his little head in his hands, not wanting to use the stinking thing...at age 3+ years. I have always been told that boys typically take longer, so I don't know why I expected him to follow in his sister's footsteps.



We have tried bribery. We have tried new Toy Story undies. We have tried toys. He shows some interest, but it comes and goes.



He's just not ready yet, and here are a few signs to prove it:

1) He will pee on the potty, get down, go play, and poop and pee in his diaper 5 minutes later.
2) All three of his Toy Story undies ended up in the washer...within a matter of 3 hours.
3) He peed in his undies this morning, then asked to go on the potty, and then asked to wear a diaper instead.
4) He could care less about being a "big boy" and wearing his undies. They are just cool to look at.
5) Seeing his big sister in underwear and not needing a diaper change has no appeal to him whatsoever.
6) Explaining to him that diapers cost a lot more than being potty-trained doesn't work, either. Not sure why...



Yes, we'll get there eventually, and we're not worried or stressed about it in the least. When he's 5 and needing a diaper change in kindergarten, then we'll start to worry.

Lunch

I thought he finished his lunch.



I even rewarded him with a post-lunch/pre-nap cookie.



Then, after it's all said and done...I found this:






Spaghetti and meatballs, in my glass of water.


Lovely.

Early-morning alone time

I had the opportunity to go for an early morning run while visiting my parents this past weekend. But instead...





...I chose to catch the early morning sunrise at the beach.







Something I've been wanting to do for a while. A place I've been wanting to go.






Peaceful. Relaxing. And 37 degrees at 7:00am! Not exactly beach weather, but there's still something about walking around on the beach that I love!





I missed the sunrise by about half an hour, but being up to see this was still worth it!

Babies

Parker Kade



A little doll baby. A second handsome gift given to our friends this week.



Danae and I had the privilege of holding him and snuggling for a bit yesterday morning. It was sweet to see Parker's "newness" and take in his new baby smell!




Several of our friends are pregnant, and we are now entering the season of births. Beautiful little Violet, baby #3 to our friends Merle and Aimee, made her entrance almost two weeks ago, followed by Parker's arrival earlier this week.


Going in to meet Parker proved to be a little more difficult than I thought. I kept thinking that holding a newborn boy was going to be hard...when in reality, the problem was in the location.


I had not been back to the hospital where Josiah was born...until yesterday.


Seeing and holding babies isn't the problem. The gender of the baby isn't the problem. As soon as my daughter and I walked down the hall and into the maternity section, I lost it. The same halls, the smell, the nurses everywhere, the nursery...I walked my sobbing self to Julie's door and just stood there. The nurses probably thought I was nuts. My daughter asked why we weren't going in. And I just cried.


We took a little detour to a bathroom so I could dry my eyes and compose myself...during which time I told Danae what my problem was, and she responded with, "Mommy, you can't go in there crying." Ahh, the straight-forward advice of a five year old.


Seeing and holding little Parker proved to be easier than I thought it would be. I guess my objective, practical self just looked at him and said, "He's not your baby. He's not Josiah." The hospital is what caused the events of January 27 to replay all over again.


At least two more of our friends' babies will arrive at that hospital within the next four months, and while my reaction will probably be the same, deep down I know I can't avoid going there. I have been trying to sidestep those feelings and memories for the past few months now, and that has made me a sad, irritable person lately. I want to visit those friends and their babies, and going to that hospital was and will be part of the healing process.


Oh, the roads that God has us walk down. I know that this is all in the plan, and it will all serve a greater purpose someday. But it's definitely not easy in the moment, nor was it EVER promised to be easy.

Little Boys

I guess this is how little boys...






...watch Curious George...






...in their underwear.