Wrapping up 2010

As 2010 draws to a close I find myself wanting to wrap it all up. I want to have every 2010 crumb swept off the kitchen floor. I want to have all the 2010 laundry spotted, washed, dried, and put away. I want to have every 2010 dish clean and put away. But, alas, it's not possible (it's already after 11pm on the 31st) to accomplish all of this. So, I'll get up tomorrow morning and sweep some more crumbs and do some more laundry and put away some dishes, and that will be that.

David has been on vacation from work this week and we have accomplished some good things. Most of the Christmas decorations are down and put away. It always makes me a little sad to put all the twinkly lights and glittery decorations away. This is (maybe?) a little known fact which I had to share with Seth. He was mid-tantrum while Dave was packing away the beloved Christmas train so I had to share with him that it wouldn't be special if it was out all year. And, truth be told, I think it helped me a little to say the words out loud to someone else. Plus, I really do like when it's all put away and the house looks less cluttered.

And today we hung shelves and pictures in our bathroom and bedroom. We got new bedroom furniture. Eleven months ago. So, today we finally unpacked the box that has been hiding behind the door and hung those shelves. Okay, it hasn't been there the whole 11 months. I spray painted the shelves to match the new comforter and I know I didn't do that last January, as I remember doing it outside.

But, blogging hasn't been much of a priority this week, so I never shared our Christmas pictures. So, here's a very brief recap: Christmas Eve at my parents' house with my sister and her family. Christmas morning at home with just the five of us, then my parents came by so the boys could show them their gifts. Christmas evening back at my parents' house with extended family. Seth, opening a new truck - love his expression!

Luke REALLY wanted a miguitar. I have no idea what the "mi" is about. I thought for awhile it was his way of saying "my guitar." But, he refers to other things as "my" this or that (the moon, specifically, is "my moon"), but the guitar is more of one word - miguitar. Odd, but too cute to be corrected really.

And Max, checking out a new sippy cup, Colts burp cloths (he loves his burp cloths) and a loud spinning top toy that Seth picked out for him.

And, finally, I'm not a resolutions type of person. It's just one more thing for me to fall short of finishing or accomplishing. But, I've been hearing about picking one word to be your theme for the next year. I've been thinking about this and I narrowed it down to two words. One seemed like too much of a stretch for me (that sounds wimpy but it's really just funny). The other I think I like, but I'm going to try it out for a few days before I share it. Knowing the word, I am cracking up as I type this. Of course, it's also almost midnight and I'm exhausted (no, 'exhausted' is not the word!), but exhaustion does make things funnier. On that note, Happy New Year!

7 months

My sweet baby boy was seven months old on the 21st. That night we were all in the older boys' room getting them settled into bed and I looked up and Max was on his hands and knees. I wanted to run over and shove him down, but I know I need to let him grow up. It's just so hard sometimes!

Max definitely knows when he wants something and will gladly let you know if you're not getting it for him fast enough. He loves sweet potatoes and most of the fruits he has tried. He chews on anything that comes close to his mouth. And he recently started reaching out for us while he cries the most pathetic cry. Mostly he's a very pleasant baby. He likes to roll all around on the floor. He loves to watch his brothers play. And when he smiles, that smile takes over his whole face - squinted eyes, wrinkled nose, huge toothless mouth wide open - it's the best!

Jolly jolly

One of my favorite holiday outings is to the Children's Museum. I think it's a favorite of the boys' too. Dave's employer is a sponsor of the Museum's Jolly Days so one night each year the Museum stays open late and all the employees and their families can come and play. Most of the regular attractions are open, plus the big slide and pretend ice fishing, etc. It's a lot of fun to be there "after hours," as it's a much small crowd, plus the added bonus of Daddy going with us! Max's first carousel ride, on a horse. I took all three boys a few weeks ago but Max had to ride in my arms while I stood that day so that I could keep track of Seth and Luke too.

Seth pretending to drive a race car. When Seth grows up he wants to be a member of a pit crew. He wanted to be a driver but he changed his mind because he doesn't want to crash. And no, I did not suggest that it was too dangerous!

Luke - ice fisherman.

Going down the big slide. It's tough to tell, but Dave and Luke are on the left and Seth is on the right, clearly winning this time. They got to go down the slide four times. I even slid with Luke one of the times. It was pretty fun.

It was snowing and all the Christmas lights were beautiful. This picture really doesn't do it justice! Sorry.

This was the same weekend we rode the train. The boys were exhausted. After we put the boys in bed I found out Seth's school was on a delay the next morning, which means he doesn't go since he's only half day. I was so happy for that extra day of rest (probably moreso for his teacher than for him!).

All Aboard!

On Friday the 10th, after David brought the boys' favorite fast food home for their dinner, we told them we were going on an adventure. We had them put on their pajamas and slippers, grab blankets, and we hit the road. First stop, Grammy and Grampy's to drop Max off for a few hours. Not sure who gets more spoiled, the baby or the grandparents, but I think everyone loves when there is just one child to love on all evening.

And away we went. Off to ride... The train station was a little more than an hour from our house. Of course, it was already dark outside, Seth had his program the night before, and I think the boys were just a little tired. An hour long car ride about did them in. I think Luke was nearly asleep when we got there.

Here they are waiting in the train station. We told them on the way where we were going. But they immediately started asking questions about the movie and I was suddenly worried that the train ride couldn't compare and there would be great disappointment.

Getting ready to board the train. Mom and the boys. I feel the need to say that I had on a gray coat and dark jeans. I fear it looks a little like I was also wearing pajamas. I was not. There were adults who were. Not judging, just saying, I was not one of those parents! Thank you for allowing me that brief public service announcement!

Here is Luke, not long after we got going. I think he was noticing some Christmas lights. Or maybe the flashing train warning signs on the side of the road (?).

This was one of the events we needed our cookies for. They passed out some cookies, but between the lighting and the train's movement, and my terrible vision, I couldn't even read if they were okay for Luke. I did eat one later, but ours were better anyway. Although Seth didn't seem to think so. He insisted he only liked one color of the icing (but it was all the same icing, just food colored, not flavored). Anyway. We all got hot chocolate too, but all of those pictures seem to be of my hands balancing multiple white styrofoam cups.

They stamped tickets with the boys' initials for them. Pretty cool!

Seth looked at the book for awhile. They tell you that you must have the book. I envisioned the story being read, with great enthusiasm, over the loud speaker. Not so much. We could've lived without the book entirely, but Seth enjoyed looking at it and I enjoy looking at Seth looking at books so it was all alright.

This picture is supposed to show you all that the train did a little swaying back and forth. This will be important later.

The North Pole. Two little boys scoping out the North Pole. Santa emerged and then rode the train for a little while.

An uncharacteristically sheepish Luke. He wasn't so sure about Santa. Since then he has informed me that he doesn't want Santa to bring him presents. I asked why not. He said, "I just don't love toys." I'm wondering if the whole guy coming down the chimney thing is bothering him a bit.

This was plenty close for Luke, and that's fine with me. I'm not the biggest fan of Santa and the whole notion of it. I mean let's review - he delegates ALL of his work and yet still gets all of teh credit, takes really really long vacations after the holidays, likely will never grow up, and lacks all fashion sense.

And this, I was desperately hoping this was the look of a little boy who had had SO much excitement that he just couldn't stay awake for a moment more. Instead it was the look of a little boy who got very sick to his stomach (remember the swaying ornaments?), but did his very best to hide it. Until he threw up in the car on the way home. I kept asking and asking, 'are you sure you're okay?' and 'is your belly okay?' And he kept answering, 'I'm fine.' At one point I said, "Are you going to get sick?" He answered, "No." And that was true, he just left out the part that he had already gotten sick! He didn't confess until the next morning that he started feeling crummy on the train. So, I didn't want him to sleep in his room (also Luke's room) and further contaminate Luke if he had the stomach flu. But we have a large L-shaped couch so he slept on one end and I slept on the other end and we left the Christmas tree on all night. I've always wanted to sleep by the tree but have never been able to justify giving up the good night of sleep I would get in my bed. So, this was a good excuse. And he never got sick again, thankfully! Poor baby. Also, thankfully, he still talks about the train ride with great enthusiasm.

On the way home, Luke said, "Daddy, Wukey is tired." Then about 30 seconds later, "Daddy! Wukey is still tired!" So funny.

So, it was a good time, but not one we will probably repeat too soon, mostly because Seth apparently doesn't handle trains so well. Guess we won't be planning a cross-country via Amtrak vacation anytime soon!

An Open Letter...

Dear Fellow Mall Patrons,

I am aware it is Christmastime. I am aware the mall is very crowded. Thank you , however, for affirming my deep deep desire to NOT go to the mall this holiday season. There were two items, two small items, that required a "quick" trip. Hence, I went shopping this morning. Not Saturday afternoon during peak mall time, but Friday morning.

And yes, my very old double stroller is a monstrosity. Trust me though, you would rather my 2 year old have a big ride than be roaming free at the mall. As such, I would like to let you know that the smile I flashed when you all walked in front of me, thinking I could really stop the stroller on a dime, was fake and plastered on my face. The stroller is old. The stroller is heavy. There was an infant carrier, with an infant. There was a two year old, a very strong two year old, clearly in the front of the stroller. Both were actually very well-behaved. Well, except for the brief incident where Luke got stuck half in and half out trying to slither under the tray in the front, but it was resolved quickly. Unfortunately, if I met you at the end of my whirlwind trip, I might have sighed loudly. I apologize for that.

Now, I will go and have a cup of hot cocoa and attempt to unfreeze the painful fake smile from my face.

Seriously,
Cara

Sweet shepherd boy and a cookie maker

Seth's school Christmas program was last Thursday night. They were all dressed as shepherds. Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures during the program. No big deal really, since I turned my camera on after the big performance and it was dead. Thankfully, Grammy was there with her camera to save the day!
Seth did a great job - he looked like he knew the words and motions and was participating. He had been singing one of the songs at home. A lot. So much that Luke had learned it too, just listening to Seth. I thought we might've been in trouble Thursday morning when Seth asked Luke, "Luke, are you going to be quiet tonight and listen to me sing?" Luke's response? "Yes, but I want to be a rockstar like Seth." Hmmm. But, when it was time, Luke headed to the upstairs viewing area with Grammy, Grampy and Aunt G, Uncle Matt, and his cousins. They allege that he was well-behaved.

After the program, Seth was cracking me up! He was a social butterfly! He was running around, calling everyone by name and telling them goodbye. He hugged one little girl, that I hadn't even heard of, and told her he would miss her. (Uh, you have school the next morning!) But, it was really fun to see him "in his element."

Thursday morning the boys and I made sugar cookies. We had events coming up Friday night and Sunday night for which we needed "safe" Luke treats. We used store bought dough, but we still had to flour them, roll them out and cut them out. That was all we (I) could handle on Thursday. Then Friday morning while Seth was at school, Luke and I finished them off with icing and sprinkles.
Luke very much enjoyed cleaning up the plate of extra sprinkles. He was also generous with the sprinkles on the cookies. Not sure if you can tell, but this one has so many sprinkles that the icing is actually oozing off of the cookie. I really had to let go and realize that Luke was loving every minute of this mess and (1) not care that the cookies were less than perfect, and (2) not care that this was going to a massive mess to clean up in the end!

But, they turned out okay and Luke loved them. Seth wasn't much of a fan, but he's a ridiculously picky eater anyway! More to come on our fun Friday and Sunday events soon...

i love pictures...

Shutterfly has a great offer to receive some free cards just by sharing my past/current experiences with their company. So, I'd like to tell you about how easy and fun it is to make special photo memories into gifts and cards. If you are my mom or dad, stop reading. Otherwise, read on...

I love to take pictures, I love to scrapbook, and I love to give pictures as gifts, especially to grandparents. It has become a tradition for us that some of the grandparents receive a calendar each year. This year I am using Shutterfly for our calendars. I absolutely fell in love with a really feminine calendar - different backgrounds for each month - many in florals and pastel colors. We all know I don't have too much girliness in my life, so I jumped on this and started loading pictures and making my calendar. Then it dawned on me that perhaps Grampy wouldn't think a pastel, flowered calendar was so great for his desk at work. So, after I finished the first one for Grammy, I saved the calendar again and just went in and changed all the backgrounds to more basic/masculine choices. It was really easy and both calendars still have all the same pictures. Here's a link that will take you to all of the calendar styles.


Last year, after I made the calendar, I also made a simple photobook for one of the other Grandmas. It was easy to use the pictures already uploaded for the calendar and just pick out some of our very favorites. Here's a link to the snapbooks. They are small, spiralbound, and I imagine fit perfectly in her purse so she can show it off at church on Sunday mornings. I try to include a lot of the sillier pictures that you don't necessarily print and hand out, but in a book with lots of pictures, they are fun to include.


And finally, Christmas cards. I love making our Christmas cards. Unfortunately, I do not always love taking the posed family photo. So, this year I think I am going to choose a layout (yes, I should probably get on this!) that allows me to use 4 or 5 photos, then I can use one picture of each of the 3 boys individually and then just pick one or two of my favorite pictures of all 3 of them from this last year. It seems so much easier to get a good picture when you're not really trying! I especially love that Shutterfly has a tab for "religious cards," after all that is why we celebrate Christmas, so it's important to me that Christ be a part of my card!

So, there you have it - fun and easy gifts, courtesy of Shutterfly. Now, I just need to go and complete all of mine!

Seven years later

Once upon a time there was a banker named David, whose banker friend invited him to church. First (?), because it was a great church, and second, because there was "a girl" there that the friend thought David should meet.

That girl was away at grad school. Bummer for that girl. But there was a girl named Cara, who was also going to school, but was here in town.

After some shameless flirting (the debate will continue to rage as to who started said shameless flirting), Cara caught David's eye [or maybe the other way around; no wait, I'm writing the blog - David was completely smitten with Cara].

David's friend and his friend's wife set up a dinner outing with people at church, complete with a designated meeting place to meet and ride together to the other side of town for dinner. Cara showed up at the designated meeting place. So did David, his friend and his friend's wife. Oddly (or rather schemedly - yeah, it's not a word, but it conveys my meaning anyway), everyone else met at the restaurant, where Cara headed to the table and buried herself among some friends so as to not have to sit by David and look too "date-y" and have too many people gossip about them.

Good effort Cara. Eventually David worked up the nerve to ask Cara out on a real date - lunch at a much frumpier place than Cara would normally dine. Little did David know, Cara would've been just as happy with a slice of pizza from the food court. Thanks to law school finals, Cara and David didn't have another date for a few weeks - Christmas at the Zoo and dinner out. David alleges that he knew then that Cara was the girl for him. Cara took a little more convincing [her thought process at that time: I'm nearly done with law school. I don't have time for this nonsense.]

But David was persistent. One year to the day after their first frumpy lunch date, David proposed to Cara downtown at the canal, complete with twinkly Christmas lights and mind numbing cold temperatures.

In the next year, Cara wrote a big ugly all-consuming paper for law school, graduated law school, spent weeks at bar review, got kidnapped from bar review by her mom and sister to shop for a wedding dress, spent a week living in a hotel w/a fridge stocked full of her favorite study foods(courtesy of David - still one of the best gifts ever) to study non-stop for the bar, took the bar, passed the bar, planned a wedding, got married, and gleefully honeymooned in Cancun!

And never, never, ever, did Cara imagine that this is what life would look like 7 years later - attorney turned stay at home mom to three (!) little boys, with a wonderfully loving and supportive husband who works so hard to let her be at home (even though Cara is quite sure an attorney's salary was more what he had in mind, rather than a gluestick waving, cookie baking, minivan driving mama). But that's what this whole marriage thing is about, right? Compromise, change, growing together, and most of all - a whole lotta love!

Thank you, David, for 7 wonderful years of marriage, 3 fantastic little boys, and the promise of the rest of our lives together. I love you!

Countdown to Thanksgiving...

#1 - the list. Okay, so it's cheating a little. But, I've been a little worried about what to make #1 on my thankfulness countdown - I mean I've already covered my three boys, my hubby, etc. But, then I checked out Jill's great list and thought - oooh, fun. So, here goes - a simple list of simple things for which I am so thankful...

*toothless baby smiles
*the perfect rollerball pen
*hot chocolate made with milk
*a pair of crazy comfortable casual boots
*sleeping in
*cuddles from sweet little boys
*a great bargain
*bedtime after a long day
*dark nail polish
*curling up on the couch with a book and two little boys
*parents who love my kiddos
*my oldest and dearest friend
*overpriced mochas
*a sister who makes me laugh
*chocolate, preferably dark
*a new recipe that turns out just right
*pictures
*an old movie I've seen 50 times but still love
*fuzzy slipper socks
*a new scrapbook magazine in the mail
*awesome customer service
*a shared laugh with my husband
*a big hug from an old friend
*an old song on the radio
*giving the perfect gift
*letting the boys be creative
*doing something I didn't think I could do
*saying something out loud that needed to be said
*cuddling my baby as he falls asleep
*getting dressed up

Countdown to Thanksgiving

#2 - my sweet sweet Seth. I love this little guy. Sometimes I feel bad that he was the first baby to a clueless mom - but I'm pretty sure that plays into all that birth order personality thing. He's a bit high strung, like me. He likes to do what he likes to do, when he likes to do it. Maybe a little bit like me, too.

I was really worried about school because of those less than flexible characterstics, but not only does he love it, he's learning SO much. He loves to point out what letter a word starts with or show me letters on signs. He counted to 99 a couple of days ago. And he loves his teacher and the assistant and has made lots of friends.

I got to go to the Thanksigiving party at school. A teacher (other than Seth's teacher) stopped me and said he is the smiliest little boy. I keep hearing that from people at school. It makes me wonder a little if he's just so happy to be away from me? When I told Dave about the teacher stopping me, I looked at Seth and told him how happy I was that he loved school so much and that it was making him happy to be there. He looked at me and said, "Moooommmm, I smile for the ladies." HUH?

And finally, Seth loves his brothers. I love to watch him and Luke from a distance. Unfortunately, they can downward spiral into a fight in so little as a blink of an eye, but when it's good, it's adorable. I also love to see him interact with Max. If prompted, he'll tell him about his day or about his toys or whatever else pops into his head. He's very sweet to Max.

Countdown to Thanksgiving

#3 - bread. Okay, after "yesterday's" more serious post, you had to know today's was going to be silly. And, I've spent my day with flour and yeast, making bread and rolls so it was a logical pick. This could have been a fairly painless experience, but for the part where, in the midst of trying to form cloverleaf dinner rolls and roll out the dough for these sweet rolls, Luke got out of his bed 7 times. It wasn't pretty. I plan these things for naptime so I can try to knock them out quickly. Luke was having none of it today! But, I digress...

Back to the thankfulness! I do love bread. I know, that's not a good thing. But, I do. It's who I am. I also love my bread machine. I was reminded of that today, as today's recipe was not a bread machine recipe. Bummer. But, I do feel a sense of accomplishment when I succeed at non-bread machine bread. This one recipe of dough made 24 dinner rolls (for Thanksgiving) and about 18 sweet rolls (for who knows what).

Rolled out, sugared and chocolated up, and ready to form into rolls. Mmm, yummy. I will tell you though, that if you decide to make these rolls, ease up on the salt. They're a bit too salty for my liking (and I like salt, too). The finished product, with some icing.

I mean, who wouldn't be thankful for these?

Countdown to Thanksgiving

[Okay, so I was on such a roll of keeping up with my thankful posts (so rare for me) and then I got bogged down and started feeling more frazzled and frumpy than thankful. That said, I'm cheating and backdating this one so it looks like I still kept up.]

#4 - God's plan. I'm thankful to live where I live and have the freedoms that I am privileged to have. I could go on and on here about not taking things for granted, but this is supposed to be about thankfulness, not whining. The specific freedom I'm thinking of today is that of religious freedom. I'm thankful that we can go to church wherever we want. There was a guest speaker at church a few weeks ago and I find myself still thinking about his message.

This gentleman was from another part of the world. The thing that really struck me was how he was able to put together a timeline of his life and corresponding things that were happening here, halfway around the world, that would impact him later. I don't really remember specifics, but it was something like, when he was 3 or 4, an American couple went to Bible school with the intention of translating a portion of the Bible into his language. Of course, this couple didn't know him, but God did and had a plan.

That's the part of the message that I keep going back to. I know God knows me and has a plan for me. So, why, oh why, do I whine about certain things so much? I love love love being at home with my boys. But it's lonely and exhausting and not so glamorous. I had a very social work environment - friends I loved sharing my life with and could laugh with; lunches out; a grasp on current events. I got dressed up every day and put on makeup and nice clothes and shoes that made me feel pretty. Now, there are days where my slippers are the only shoes I wear (and some of you know how NOT pretty those are!). There's a lot of snot and spit up and raised voices and whining.

BUT, I keep remembering the message and thinking, "THIS is where God has placed me. And, knowing that, am I using this time the way that He would have me?" I'm not sure what it all means to me right now, but God keeps bringing it to my mind. And I know He has a plan for me!

Countdown to Thanksgiving

#5 - Max! Today, Max is 6 months old. I won't go on and on about how time flies. Because, frankly, I want to cry each and every time I think about how fast this half of a year has gone.

So, what's Max up to these days? Eating! Max seems to really enjoy most of the food he has tried. He started with rice cereal, then green beans, later peas, some butternut squash, a little applesauce, and most recently sweet potatoes. The only one he doesn't seem to love is squash. We've been making the veggies ourselves (well, not growing them, but cooking them and blending them up and freezing them) so I'm excited to see what fun combos he might enjoy after he's tried everything individually. Max loves his thumb. It really is cute. But, I know that when he's four and still doing it, it won't be nearly as sweet. However, at 6 months old, when he puts his head on my shoulder and grabs my sweater collar and sucks his thumb, I melt. He loves to have something in his hand while he sucks his thumb - burp cloth, blanket, my shirt collar, etc. But we don't put him in bed with anything at all, so today he reached an all new level of pitiful. I went to get him up from his nap and he had managed to wad up enough of his sheet to get it into his hand while sucking his thumb.

He doesn't quite sit up on his own, but rather folds in half if we try. He does roll front to back and back to front, and has started to push himself up on his arms a little. None of my boys have enjoyed 'tummy time' so I think they're a little slow to do much once they get to their bell(ies), other than scream.

And his brothers still adore him. I think they might be asking to hold him more now than before. And Max gets so excited to see both of them too. He's a hair grabber though so we have to remind the older boys that this will happen if they get their hair too close to his little hands.

He's a perfect addition to our family, and we are all so very thankful for him.

Oooh, a tag to chew!

Countdown to Thanksgiving...

#6 - Humor! Yes, you need a sense of humor to do this "job." Things I've laughed at recently:

*Lynette, calling our babies, one born in May of this year and one born in August of this year, "2010 models."

*Overheard today - My husband, "Luke, it's great that you wiped your booger on toilet paper. Next time, take that sheet off the roll and throw it in the trash."

*Luke, mostly nude, running from the bathroom, down the very short hallway and knocking Seth flat in the middle of the bedroom.

*On the way home from school recently, Seth informed me that he just "needed a break" and didn't want to answer anymore of my questions. Once we started talking again, Luke yelled, "Stop talking you two. I'm taking a break."

*Max's apparent enjoyment of sweet potatoes, which causes him to open his mouth and yelp as the spoon approaches.

Countdown to Thanksgiving

#7 - Today I have guest bloggers. I asked the boys what they were thankful for a few days ago, and then again this morning.

Luke: God and Jesus. At 2, I'm pretty sure he doesn't quite understand what he's saying, but he knows we pray and he hears Seth and I talk when he comes home from school, so it's a wonderful start to helping him learn.

Seth: My dog (his favorite stuffed animal in all the world), our Baby [Max], and Daddy. Also, that I learn Bible stories at church and school.

Max: My blue fuzzy blanket, my warm sleep sacks, and my yummy thumb. And that Mommy and Daddy protect me from my crazy brothers. Okay, of course he couldn't really respond, but I'm just sure that's what he would say.

Countdown to Thanksgiving...

#8 - Today I am thankful for Luke. Well, technically, I'm thankful for Luke everyday. But today Luke is 2 years and 9 months old. Two years ago today Luke cut his lip open and had to have stitches. That day definitely ranks among my top 3 scariest (post-delivery) mom stories. I only remember the day because he was exactly 9 months, to the day, when it happened. He had to be sedated in the ER so they could stitch his lip and we weren't supposed to touch him when he woke up, etc. It was crummy. But that was then... Luke is a force of nature. My prayer for him is often that his personality will outshine his food allergy. That he won't be the kid in school that teachers groan over having to have in their class because of his allergies, but that rather they will be excited to have so much enthusiasm all rolled up into one person. And he does exude enthusiasm!

He loves to play with all of the Cars movie cars and reenact movie scenes, complete with dialogue. "Fly away Stanley, be freeeeee."

He still sleeps in a crib, although we've purchased the sheets and comforter for his bigger bed. I wanted to keep him in the crib as long as possible so he was "contained." However, he figured out how to escape a few months ago so there's really no point anymore. Besides, he sleeps with two blankets (fire trucks and numbers), Rescue the dog, Pat the hammer, Rusty the wrench(?), pretty Lightning, Buzz, sometimes Woody, Cupcake the dog, and whatever else he picks up on his way to bed. It's getting a little crowded. But, he's taking steps of his own to make some room in his bed, by shedding his clothes. He has decided that he doesn't want to wear his shirt to sleep. "My bwanket will keep me warm." This is hard for a mommy who sleeps in fleece pajamas and socks to put her sweet little boy in bed in shorts and nothing else!

Luke is as loving and cuddly as he is rambunctious. He loves to be held and to cuddle on the couch or watch a movie in our bed. He loves his Baby Max. He loves to go with me to get Max up in the mornings. But he always says, as he peers over the side of Max's crib, "I can pet him." Ummm, he's not a puppy - how about if we just love on him?

And finally, I love Luke's independence. Oh, it drives me crazy, no doubt! The massive meltdown, throw-yourself-in-the-floor-pounding-your-fists-and-screaming-at-the-top-of-your-lungs, when he doesn't get to put his own straw in his cup or put his own toothbrush back in the holder makes me want to scream. And maybe sometimes I do, but I love that he wants to do his own thing and be his own person. "I do it myself" is a phrase I hear often.

So, there you have it - just a few of the reasons that I am so thankful for my little Lukey!

Countdown to Thanksgiving...

#9 - I am thankful for the generosity of my husband. You see, today he is spoiling me. Today someone else is cleaning my house. I know many of you (okay, the two of you who read this) are saying to yourselves, 'HUH? She's home all day long and someone else is coming to clean her house? Insanity!' But I like to liken Lukey (say that 3 times fast) to a hurricane. The child can blow into a room and destroy things faster than I can clean them up. As such, I could not even tell you that last time my ENTIRE house was clean all at once. We are hosting Thanksgiving here again this year so my job is to keep it under control for the next week.


This has also given me a great opportunity to focus on decluttering rather than daily cleaning (sorry cleaning person, it's gotten pretty bad around here -not that she's reading my blog). I made a big list of everything that really needed tidied/decluttered and then I put all of those items on a calendar so I knew I could get it all done. I came close. However, my to do list tends to get preempted by everyone else's list - you know, hang Christmas lights while it's not freezing crazy cold outside and before it begins raining so you can bundle the kids up and take them outside in the rain in the dark and show them the lights turned on and then reassure your new neighbor that he did not move in next door to the Griswold's and you are heading inside to unplug the lights until the day after Thanksgiving. Oops, I digress. Anyway, the house is very tidy and I can't wait to come home to clean! So very thankful for the generosity of my husband today!

Countdown to Thanksgiving

#10 - I am thankful for music. Truthfully, I've had this post open and sitting here on the computer for a little while this morning, just sort of wondering what would strike me for today. Then a favorite group of ours came on the television and Seth got all excited and then it hit me - music!

I love how it can turn your thoughts to worship, turn around a crummy mood, induce a good cry, or inspire you to go just a little faster on the treadmill.

I love goofy dancing to fun songs with my boys.

I love how Luke can't hear an upbeat song without grabbing his little play guitar and being "a wocking man!"

I love that I can drive for a good five minutes, alone in the car, before it hits me that I'm still listening to Veggie Tales.

I love hearing Seth sing songs from school, of course when he thinks I'm not listening. My favorite so far is one that says, "obey obey obey, obey obey." I've also heard some "Happy birthday, Jesus," likely preparing for the Christmas program.

And I love singing to my sweet little Max. He will just lie there, looking up at me while I sing and then touch my mouth with his little fingers (probably trying to silence me, but hopefully thinking, awww, that's my mommy and she loves me).

It's beginning to look a lot like...

I have decided to take on a little project this Christmas season. It's a scrapbooking project and the really basic description is this: make a book ahead of time and every day of the Christmas holiday season add a picture from that day and some journaling of your day. The idea is to be present in the moment and really enjoy the season while documenting it. But by having the book already made (I started mine about 5 week ago and just have a few pages left to finish) you spend much more time making the memories and just a little time in December documenting the memories. I love to scrapbook and take pictures so it seeemed like a perfect little project. The idea comes from here.


So, I've been listening to some of this to get in the mood:



I decided mine would start November 26th, as that is the day after Thanksgiving and we always start decorating on that day. It will run through at least December 26th, maybe later if we have any holiday festivities that are later than Christmas Day. We often get together with Dave's family the weekend after Christmas and I wanted to be sure to include pictures from that time as well. It's sort of haphazardly (is that a word?) fun to put together a page (paper and embellishments anyway) having no idea what pictures will go on it. We have a few things planned so those days were a little easier to decorate for, but mostly, I am making the pages without a clue whether the pictures will be serious or silly.


Also, I decided to challenge (?) myself to only use products that I already have. I purchased the album and page protectors but all the paper and embellishments are coming from my stash of unused supplies. [I will disclose that I really want some glitter mist spray and am considering making the purchase as it could be used on other projects as well.]

There is a real trend lately toward digital scrapbooks rather than traditional scrapbooks. I know digital books are quicker and easier. I have made some myself and plan to make a few more just to catch up on some things that need scrapped but that I don't feel that I have the time for right now. But I must say that I love when a book starts to take shape and it gets all poofy with paper and pictures and chipboard and memorabilia. Can't wait!

Eureka!

I feel like I spend a LOT of time whining about my trips to the grocery store. Maybe not so much here but often to my poor family and friends who have to speak to me on grocery days. So, why not continue the boringness that is sometimes my life and blog about it?

I like to plan out a menu for three weeks and buy everything I can buy ahead of time all at once. Then I have a running list for the next two weeks for produce, milk, etc. This doesn't always happen, but it's my preference. Last week I went Wednesday morning, with a list that really only covered about a week. But even then, there were three issues. One, I didn't have nearly enough time to really shop before I needed to pick Seth up at school. Two, Luke felt a burning desire to be really helpful (read insist on getting items off the shelves, even though he couldn't really reach them, and scream loudly if I did not permit him to do so). And three, I ran out of room in the cart early on. See, Luke is in the seat with the belt. Max, in his infant car seat, is in the bigger part where the groceries should go. [One day, a likely well-intentioned older woman said to me, 'OH, there's a baby under all of those groceries.' To be fair, I was very very cautious of my grocery placement and he wasn't covered up and was in no danger at anytime. You know, no infants were harmed, etc.]. Anyway, after I ran out of room last week I came home and added a few more things to my list to stretch it a few more days and ended up BACK at the store about 10pm that night, after a little time on the treadmill. It was nice to be alone. It was not nice that they were trying to put out all the Christmas items and change over for the sales that start on Thursday. There were aisles I couldn't get all the way down and had to turn around and backtrack. Then there was ONE cashier working, and he was in an express lane, which meant that I had to ring up my entire cart of groceries. Nevermind that the coupon part of self-ringing is extremely annoying to me. But, I must say the entire trip was salvaged when the poor lonely employee had no more customers in his line and came over to bag the poor exhausted woman's groceries! I was so thankful for his help!


Wow, this post has rambled on just to get to this! Yesterday I took the boys on a little walk through the neighborhood to look for leaves that we could use for a craft. I wanted Luke to walk, rather than ride in the stroller, so he could help. So, I thought, oh, I'll just get the infant carrier thing that straps to the front of me for Max. We got it, as a gift, when we had Seth. So, it's nearly 5 years old and can be a little confusing to hook a baby into. However, it worked great. Max was fine on the whole walk. This brings me to eureka! Today I got up early and got ready to leave the house. Thus, getting out of the house in time to do the shopping. AND once we got to the store I put Max in the carrier, thus freeing up the entire basket part of the cart for, wait for it, ...groceries! Luke still wanted to be my helper, but that's easier to deal with when the other two issues are out of the way. Now we can eat for the next few weeks AND we can try out the pumpkin cake recipe that I want to sample before serving it to a house full of family on Turkey Day. Yeah me! Off to bake.



Finally, if you've read all the way to the end of this painfully boring post, kudos to you. And I'm sorry it never really got too interesting. However, here's a photo of Max in the carrier before we headed out on our walk yesterday. Please notice the expression on poor little Luke's face. I think it hit me that I couldn't carry him and Max at the same time. He's a little attached. And apparently I thought Max should smile for the picture, thus the annoying 'don't you wanna smile little baby?' face. Ahhh, good times...

And I used to get paid to do this?

I was practicing my cross exam skills (or lack thereof) this week. I was asking Seth about chapel at school on Wednesday. He didn't seem to be able to tell me anything about it, other than that it had taken place. So, I decided to put to use my education that we're still paying for and create a little timeline of events.

Me: Okay, so you walked into the room. Did you stand up or sit down.
Seth: We stood up for our pledges.
Me: Okay, do you know the pledges?
Seth: Yes, I do.
Me: Okay, and then what did you do?
Seth: We sang some songs.
Me: What did you sing?
Seth: We sang "Holy Holy Holy." [Sidenote here - Luke thinks the song is "Hold me Hold me Hold me."]
Me: Then what happened? Did someone talk to you or did you watch something like a movie?
Seth: She talked ot us.
Me: The principal talked to you?
Seth: MOOOOM. It's Princi"b"al.
Me: No, Seth. It's principal. Puh puh puh pal. Trust me. I know how to spell it. It's a P.
Seth. Oh, okay.
Me: So, what did she talk to you about?
Seth. She talked about stuff and things.


Honestly. That was his answer. Stuff and things. All that wandering around and questioning to get to "stuff and things." And to think, I used to get paid to do this! Yikes.

Halloween and Helmet Head

We started out Halloween night taking pictures, of course, at our house. What's the point in dressing up a 5 month old if not to take pictures? I mean, he can't eat the candy or trick-or-treat so it was all about the photo opp.

Next we headed to Grammy and Grampy's for a little visit and some specially prepared treat bags, complete with all kinds of candy that was safe for Luke, some little stuffed bats and pumpkins and some stickers. On the way home Seth said, "I have a gooooood feeling. I think there's a sucker in here!" So funny!

Then we came home to trick or treat in our neighborhood. Seth lasted about 4 houses, at which time he declared he had enough candy and would like to go home. That was shortly after he decided that I should have put a coat on him because he was cold. And Luke was way more interested in whether there might be ducks in the pond that we walked by than in trick or treating.

Cutest moment: Seth refused to go up to a house but Luke went away. The sweet lady gave Luke two pieces of candy. Luke didn't put them in his pumpkin basket. Instead he walked straight down the driveway to Seth, handed him a piece of the candy, and said, "here ya go." Sweetest little guy ever!

Second cutest moment: My mom put together trick or treat bags, paying special attention to only include candy/cookies that were safe for Luke. I pulled it out Monday night and told them they could each pick one thing out of their bag. I told them how neat it was that Grammy made sure it was all safe for Luke. Seth's response, "Umm, that's because she loves us." Yes, yes it is!

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There's really no great transition here, but perhaps it was all in the spirit of dressing up. Seth and Luke spent Saturday morning helping David clean out the garage. Luke attached himself to this bike helmet. He asked that I call him "Helmet." He wore it to eat lunch and even said, "Please say, 'Eat up, Helmet.'" That was funny. But, seriously, the look on Max's face was priceless.

Here's a little zoom in of the look he was giving to Luke and the helmet. I can only imagine that he was thinking, "that kid's different but this tops 'em all!" Eventually Luke had to rock out in the helmet. And not much else. This was just after dinner, where he got food all over his clothes and, thus, isn't wearing them anymore. Apparently his feet were cold (?). And this kid can turn nearly anything into a guitar. And he means business when he plays it!

And finally, Sunday morning Luke, Max, and I stayed home from church. I laid in bed most of the night listening to Luke cough most of the night. He coughed until he threw up a couple of times. I thought that warranted staying home. [I digress, but I believe it to be allergies - nothing congatious. I would not have even considered taking him to church if I thought he would contaminate others! But I thought at least he and I were too tired and pitiful to go.] Anyway, the point of the story - Luke came to me, wearing the helmet, and informed me, "We are staying home from church and I do not have to take the helmet off!" Well, alright then!