Christmas

Christmas has come and gone to some, although I still don't feel like Christmas is quite over. We had the best Christmas ever! I will start with the beginning of the week. On Monday I had a few friends over for a a couple hours just to chat. Three of them are in College and so we don't see each other very often. My "best friend" from 1st grade just loves Andrew and so I had to get a picture of her holding him.
I love Andrew's outfit in the above picture! It was sent to him from his friend Leah and has Pooh Bear on the bottom of his overalls. So cute! :)

We had a good week leading up to Christmas. We were so excited because being near family is SO much nicer than being 20 hours away. On Tuesday Andrew and I went shopping with my Dad and stopped at our favorite little restaurant that has the best milkshakes and onion rings. My Dad used to with his parents when he was little and then when he and I would go Christmas shopping, we'd stop there for lunch. We had lots of fun and had a successful trip. :)

On Wednesday Andrew and I went over my parents house while Scott was at work as my Uncle and his family had driven here from California for Christmas and was coming over to visit.

On Thursday Andrew and I went with my family to see Voyage of the Dawn Treader (the new Narnia movie) for the second time (went with Scott on Sunday). It is a very good movie, and we all had lots of fun! :)

As you can see, I'm REALLY enjoying being near my family for the Holidays! We made lots of cookies last week and watched some Christmas movies in between working on gifts and wrapping them.

On Friday I made my Mom's Cinnamon Rolls to bake on Christmas morning (they were DELICIOUS!), cleaned the kitchen, worked on gifts, and finished wrapping everything. We then went over to my parents' for a light dinner before going to the Christmas Eve service at our church. Since we were all dressed up, we took some pictures. I just LOVE how this picture of Mom and I turned out.

Mom's "Christmas shirt" has glitter on it and so needless to say, we all end up with glitter on us by the end of the day. :)

Rebekah is very patient in letting everyone else hold Andrew even though she herself is dying to hold him, so I make sure I try and get a picture of the two of them on the rare occasions that she is holding him (without anyone trying to "steal" him).

Christmas morning, I got up at 6am. The earliest I've gotten up and stayed up in a very long time! Well over 6 months, I'd say. But we did go to bed early (at 11:30) and we were very excited about Christmas! Here are our filled stockings. My Mom made the bear in Andrew's stocking. It has a little sheep's suit and is just adorable!!!! Scott is working on getting Christmas music playing.

And our tree, with gifts underneath it.

Before we opened our stockings, Scott read the Christmas story from Matthew. It was so nice. Andrew slept through everything, but he won't get away with missing it all next year! :)

I managed to snatch a picture of Scott starting to open his stocking, and that was all I got from all of our gift opening. Oh well, hopefully I'll do better next year! I'd better!

Here is Andrew, sleeping peacefully, with his stocking beside him. :)

We were at my parents' by 8 and had such a LOVELY time!!! We took our time opening the gazillion presents that were under the tree (okay, there weren't really that many, but there definitely was more than I've ever seen there). All seven of us "kids" had gifts for everyone, and those alone overflowed the tree, nevermind when Mom and Dad added their gifts for us! :) It was SO much fun and we just had the best time!!!!

Daddy and Andrew are "buddies". :) After seeing each other quite a bit over the past week, Andrew gets excited when he sees Grandpa!

There were several "large gifts" like the one pictured below. Colleen is helping Joe "unwrap" his gift from her and Will.

They made him a castle, and it is just the coolest thing!!!! I have no idea how they did such an incredible job with it. Joe loves it and has been having lots of fun with it!

My parents got me some new clothes (which I very much needed) and we got some really neat gifts from my siblings. Hopefully I can take some pictures of them and post them soon.

My parents and I surprised Scott with a Wacom Bamboo tablet for his laptop. I successfully sneaked his laptop into our car without him even getting suspicious. He had lots of fun "playing" with it and did his first full illustration.

About mid-afternoon we went over to Scott's parents' house and had a lovely afternoon and evening!

On Sunday we went back to my parents house (my cousins wanted to visit one last time before they left).

Here is Scott playing with his tablet and Andrew "hanging out".

Well, Andrew is ready to eat, so I must go. I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Pictures

Here are several pictures (mostly of Andrew).....

Earlier this month we celebrated Scott's birthday! We got both of our families together (at my parents' house since their's is the largest) and had a party.

My sleeping boy:

And then he moved....

"Just Hanging"

Oh, and being "curious"


That's it for now.

3 Months and Other Happenings

I have many pictures to post, but I'm not writing from my laptop, and since I have time, I figured I better blog, picures or not since I am way past due!

Andrew is now 3 months old and can only fit into 6-9 month sleepers. He is still wearing 3-6 month clothes that don't have feet on them, and onesies. He had a cold for over a week, but it's finally gone now. We are very blessed because even though the cold lasted so long, it came in stages and was spread out so we didn't have any REALLY miserable times. You knew he wasn't feeling himself, but he wasn't extremely fussy. Andrew is such a mellow baby, I know we're getting spoiled. He never really "screams", just complains and "fusses". I'm sure we're in for a big surprise with the next baby (or not, who knows?). Andrew is also very close to figuring out how to roll over. He's almost got it, but not quite. It's hysterical watching him as he gets up on his side but can't figure out how to complete it and end up on his back. Sometimes he'll just give up, and it's funny to see his expressions.

I am doing good. I am trying to get back into a consistent exercise routine as ever since my cousins wedding (which I was doing good for), I lost my main motivation. So my new motivation is to get back into tip top shape so I can get all out of maternity clothes without lookin "buldgy" and so I can be in better shape when I get pregnant again than when I got pregnant with Andrew.

I've been doing much better at keeping on top of cleaning, laundry, and cooking. I'm sure that Andrew's willingness to play on the floor for more than 5 minutes is helping, but ultimately, I know it's because I'm working harder (with the Lord's help) to keep my focus on HIM! I'm re-reading Anne Ortlund's Disciplines on a Beautiful Woman from The Gentle Ways of the Beautiful Woman. SOOOOO good!!!! I read it sometime before I got married, possibly just before Scott "came along." It was so good then, and I knew it would be even better to read when I was married. Anne Ortlund's books are the kind that you should always be reading and should always be on your nightstand. Disciplines of The Beautiful Woman is my favorite at the moment. You can find her books at Amazon at a decent price. I'd post a link, but for some reason it's not working right now. As a disclaimer, these are just my own opinions of her books. I only encourage you to buy them because they have been SO encouraging to me, and especially now, with a baby added to my everyday life (and all that comes with that), reading snippets here and there, has been so helpful and encouraging. Her heart for the Lord is so eminent.

I'm out of time. Hopefully I'll be able to share more soon (and post all the pictures I keep meaning to post).

Cousins

On Thanksgiving I took this pictureof my newest cousin Jason (who is 6 1/2 weeks younger than Andrew) and Andrew. It is so cute, and I just know they'll have lots of fun together as they get older.

Thankfulness Part 8 (and other happenings)

Here, we are, the last day of November (although I'm doubting that anyone will read this before December comes seeing as that is 50 minutes away) and I'm sorry to say that I didn't do very good with my original intention of writing at least every day, adding to my "Thankfulness List." But 8 posts in four weeks isn't too bad, I think, considering that a 2 month old boy is keeping my hands quite busy.

Speaking of that 2 month old boy (11 weeks and 3 days to be exact), he is certainly growing. I just pulled out all the 6-9 month clothes (which is what he has on right now) as we are completely out of anything that resembles 0-3 month, and the 3-6 month are just barely fitting him. I'm really glad I haven't bought the onesies and outfit I plan on buying for his stocking yet! I would have bought the wrong size. Andrew was first born, I didn't know what to think of all the winter clothes we were getting that were size 6-9 month because I thought "he's not going to be 6 months old until March," and now I'm laughing at myself!

The last part of my Thankfulness list... I'm thankful:

• That I don't have to work a "9-5 job" and leave my cute little bundle of joy
• That God has given me an opportunity to earn enough money each week to pay for our groceries and a little left over (perfect timing with Christmas in a few weeks)
• For the lovely ladies I got to visit with this evening at my parents house while their girls were in Bright Lights
• That we had such a lovely, relaxing Thanksgiving!
• That even though Andrew has a bit of a cold, it hasn't been bad enough that he's been overly fussy (he's certainly not himself, but he still smiles on occasion). I know we will have very bad times in the future (all-nighters and everything), but for now, I'm thankful that the first cold isn't as bad as it could be.
• That I am already using cloth diapers because I didn't get stressed out today when I realized that I only have 7 disposable diapers left and no chance to get any before Friday :) It's great how God provides!
• For my time with the Lord this morning
• For two hands (it is so much easier typing with two rather than one) :)
• For eyes, to see and read
• For ears, to listen
• For all that God continues to bless me with

This past weekend we went to a Christmas party at Scott's aunt and uncle's house. They do this party every year, and every year Scott's uncle dresses up and Santa and hands out gifts to everyone. Now, just so you don't get me wrong, we don't believe in Santa and we are not going to make our kids believe in Santa. But that doesn't mean we can't enjoy Scott's family's traditions. We had a great time at the party (we missed last year's because of our trip), seeing and visiting with all the family and here is a picture of Andrew with Santa (a.k.a. Uncle R.).

Aside from Andrew's cold (which he caught from his Daddy and I caught a touch of as well), we are doing very well! We had a great Thanksgiving and got to see both families, and compare Andrew to my two new cousins (who are 5 1/2 and 6 1/2 weeks younger than him), as well as letting him "play" with his two cousins (Scott's nephews). We also learned that my Mom's brother and his family is coming for a visit over Christmas, and we are all SOOOO excited!!!!!

Speaking of Christmas, now that we are passed Thanksgiving, has anyone else started decorating for Christmas? I love the Christmas season (as I'm sure all my readers have figured out by now), the decorations, lights, music, movies (especially the old ones like Christmas in Connecticut and Holiday Inn), cookies, my Mom's cinnamon rolls, and most importantly, what Christmas is about -- the celebration of Christ's birth. I know Andrew can't fully understand yet, but many times already, I have taken him over to where our manger scene is set up and told him the story of Christ's birth and why Christ came.

Here are a couple pictures from my cousin's wedding a couple weeks ago. As you can see in the above picture, I did dress Andrew up and he looked so darling, but we did change him after a short while as it was a little uncomfortable for him with his shirt and vest rolling up under his arms.

Here is my cute little boy with my very handsome Man!

And one of my family and I. I'm so thankful for each person in my family and love them all so much!

Last but not least, a verse the Lord brought to my mind this morning, and I just had to look it up!

"Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Philippians 4:8

Thankfulness Part 7 - Thanksgiving

So, it would appear that I have not been doing very good keeping up with my thankfulness list. But I'm not done yet. I still have 6 days left before December hits. We've been rather busy lately. Last weekend my dear friend and cousin married the Love of her life, and it was such a lovely wedding. I did dress Andrew up, and he looked so cute in his sweater vest and dress clothes (I did get a couple pictures, but they're on my camera still so perhaps in the next post...), but I'm glad I don't do that often because even though he looked so adorable, his shirt and vest kept riding up under his arms, and I doubt it was comfortable. Of course he had to wear the little booties that my Mom made him (see previous post).

In 19 minutes it will officially be Thanksgiving. I love the holidays, but as I think back to past Thanksgivings (and "Christmases"), my eyes begin to water as I recall all the great memories I have of family dinners/get togethers with loved ones who no longer walk on this earth. Growing up we always had both sets of grandparents and my Dad's grandmother over on the holidays and in the past few years that has extended into my Aunt's family too. That's what I remember most about the holidays, not what we ate that year or what we got as gifts, but the togetherness of family.

Thanksgiving last year, we were finishing loading up the trailer, changing the oil in the car, trying to fit as many boxes of books as possible into the trailer, and saying our goodbyes to our families as we would be heading out early the next morning for Scott's book tour. In a lot of ways we feel like we missed Thanksgiving (we had a lot of other things on our minds), and while we had a decent Christmas, it was very different not being with family. Praise God for Skype! So, needless to say, we are very much looking forward to tomorrow and the rest of the holiday season.

On to my thankful list. I'm thankful:

• For all that God has done in the past year (I can't believe it's been a year since we started our trip)
• That we get to spend the holidays with our families this year as well as start our own family traditions now that we are a family.
• That God allowed me to miscarry last summer as He has brought me so far since then (although it still brings tears to my eyes every time I think of it)
• For the 9 garbage bags full of boy clothes that I just went through that were given to us. It took me 2 weeks to go through them (it was so daunting), but I am so thankful for all the clothes as they mean I won't have to buy that much, and there's such an abundance, I am passing some along.
• That he Lord has impressed on me the importance of seeing what ways I can decrease our spending. I use whatever coupons I can find, but I realized that making our bread (which I've known how to do since I was 8), making our cereal, and making other breakfast foods like baked oatmeal, cuts $15-$20 off of my weekly grocery bill. That's a lot considering how little it takes for the "substitutes". I can make enough bread, cereal, and baked oatmeal for a month for $15-$20 tops!!!! That's a savings of $45-$60 a month. Pretty good, if I do say so myself.
• For Andrew's smiles every time I talk to him (he just wins my heart every time I look at him).
• That I have such a caring husband with a listening ear. He likes to listen to me talk, whether it's serious things, or just ramblings, and that means a lot to me.
• For the friendship that I share with my Mom. She considers me one of her best friends (next to my Daddy, of course) and I greatly treasure that!!! She's definitely one of mine!
• That even though my kitchen is still a mess from cooking dinner today, I am not stressed about it, because God has been teaching me to make the most of every minute I have, and I did get lots done today.

This past week I was reading some of Laine's Letters and in one of them, she talked about how she likes to keep a list of all that she does throughout the day so as she starts thinking of all her "to do's" instead of becoming overwhelmed thinking "how will I ever get them done" she can see all that she has accomplished. I know that as I've done that this week (although it's been mental lists, not written ones), it has encouraged me to add to my list of "accomplishments." Laine's Letters are very encouraging, and I encourage you to check them out!

It is time for me to head to bed. We're getting up early tomorrow so we can help in the preparations for dinner.

May you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Thankfulness - Part 6

I'm terribly sorry that this is so late. I should probably schedule posts (as in write them ahead of time), but that would take away from the discipline of taking time every couple days at least, to think about what I'm thankful for.

So, today I'm thankful:

• That I gave in to Scott and we now have our Christmas tree up "with all the trimmings" (see picture below)
• That I have continued to stay consistent in exercising daily as it is starting to pay off
• That I have also been consistent in eating healthier (less bread, more salad and veggies, and choosing healthier snacks like Almonds and Cranberries instead of chips or cake)
• For the adorable "booties" that my Mom made Andrew (see pictures). I was just thinking yesterday how sad it was that we didn't have any knitted booties (I've always thought they were so neat), and now we do! :)
• That Andrew and I can accompany Scott for some of his work as it makes for more time "together"
• That tomorrow we will celebrate 31 months of "togetherness." I just love my husband! :)
• That I have so many sisters. I love each of them and love when I get to spend time with one or all of them.
• That even though our second car died (see previous post) I don't have to stay at home every day as my family just loves (it would seem) have a visit from Andrew and I, even when it means they have to pick me up and bring me back home. I'm so blessed!
• For Water! I drink lots and lots of it, and don't what I'd do without it.
  

Yes, here's another picture of Andrew. I couldn't decide which one I liked better (the above or below), so I posted them both.

Yes, I know, it's still a week until Thanksgiving. But as you may recall we started listening to Christmas music last week (waking up one morning to snow is what started it) and we kept talking about how we couldn't wait to start decorating for Christmas and Scott kept trying to convince me to get out tree this past weekend. I didn't want to get it now and then have it be dead by Christmas, so we compromised and decided to see how much an artificial one would cost. Well, it's the same price, so we went with an artificial tree (for this year at least, as we do prefer a real tree, particularly going and picking out our real tree). We also found a little village set for a very reasonable price and set that up around the tree. Here is our first Christmas tree, and I must assure you, it looks 100 times more pretty and beautiful in person!

I must run. Someone is ready for bed!

Thankulness - Part 5

Here's Andrew "hanging out with Grandpa". He looks so serious! :)

Andrew and I had an interesting day yesterday. Not long after Scott left for work he called me and said that the car (our old car that we took on our trip and just spent quite a bit of money on getting it in good working order so Jacob could use it while he was here) had died on him. Immediately I got up and started putting Andrew in his carseat because I new exactly what that meant. I had to go meet him so we could drop him off at work, hopefully before he was very late. The car did start up again and I was able to meet Scott at our local garage (which was a blessing since we didn't have to pay a towing fee or anything) and now we wait to see what they say about the car.

But the day wasn't over yet. After we left Scott at work, Andrew and I did a little grocery shopping on our way home, and then we ate and changed diapers before heading out to Walmart for the bulk of this week's grocery shopping. Now, I had made sure I burped Andrew before we left and all, but sitting in the carseat, on the shopping cart (since I needed quite a few items, there was no way he was going to fit "in" the cart and I had forgotten the sling) must not have agreed with him. He slept most of the time I was shopping, but then he woke up and started fussing, and I mean, really fussing so I picked him up (I was really wishing I had remembered to bring the sling as it's not easy pushing a full cart while consoling a fussy baby) and then he had a big burp and I said "oh, that's why you've been fussing." Then I thought to myself how glad I was that he didn't spit up. Of course, what happened, but I immediately realized he had spit up, all over my neck, my jacket and the straps of my handmade purse. YUCK! I grabbed the receiving blanket that was in the carseat and started wiping off Andrew (oh yes it got all over him too) and prayed "Lord, what do I do?" as I knew the carseat was not a good place for him at that moment and I couldn't reposition the carseat because my hands were full and let's not forget the spit up that was all over me. I glanced down the aisle in front of me and saw a lady from our church (whom I've known my whole life) and thanked the Lord right there. I walked up to her and said, "would you please be a lifesaver and hold Andrew so I can clean myself up?" She was thrilled to hold him (I don't think she had even met him yet) as she loves babies and I felt so blessed that God would time that all so perfectly! Yes, God cares about even the smallest things like having your son spit up on you in the middle of a store (on the opposite end of the bathrooms, no less) and providing some help for you.

Now after that long (perhaps boring), drawn out, story, on to my thankful list (and pretty much a rundown of my day). Today I'm thankful:

• That I was able to get laundry and dinner done for Scott before he left for work today
• That Andrew took a 2 hour nap this afternoon
• That I was able to get clothes folded and put away, my bedroom straightened, and the house vacuumed (it was in dire need of that)
• That as a result of all the above, most of the house in in very nice order now
• That Andrew was happy to play (after eating and a diaper change) so I could exercise, finish folding and putting away the last load of laundry for the day organize his clothes (he's constantly outgrowing stuff), and even get over half of the dishes from the last 3 days done. Yes, I have not had a chance to do dishes since my sisters helped me a couple days ago.
• That Christmas is coming! (I've been listening to Christmas music all this past week.)
• For Swagbucks as thanks to them I have extra "Christmas money" to spend at Amazon on Scott

I have gotten a lot done today and it's not even over yet (for me, anyway). I hope all my blog readers are having a lovely weekend!

2 Months

In 3 hours, Andrew will be 2 months old. He has grown so much and is constantly changing. He's started wearing bibs as he drools quite a bit and I'd rather change his bib 4 times a day rather than his clothes. I am very blessed because he hardly spits up (usually only once a day, if at all). He is very smiley and loves it when we sit (well, I sit, and he "reclines" or lays on his tummy) on the floor and play. He weighs 13 pounds and is over 24 inches long. Yep, I'd say he's growing! :)

I love watching him as he "talks" and just enjoying every moment with him. I know "babyhood" won't last very long (I have my two nephews to prove it) and so I am just enjoying being a mommy, Andrew's Mommy not taking a single moment for granted. Especially as we move closer and closer to Thanksgiving, I am constantly reminded of how very, very grateful, thankful, I am for my sweet, loving Husband, and my adorable, loveable, little boy! I love how when Andrew is not happy all I have to do is pick him up and he stops fussing (unless I don't figure out what it is he wants within a few minutes, cause in those cases he starts right up again). It might sound funny, I mean I know he can't talk or anything, but I know that he loves me. The way he looks into my eyes, I can see the trust and love there. I am just so amazed at how incredibly awesome God is. I mean, I've always known He's awesome, incredible, indescribable, but he is always showing me that no matter how awesome and amazing I think He is, He is always more so. Does that make sense? I look at the little boy who is laying on my lap (taking a nap before we head to bed in a few minutes) and I am in total and complete awe of God's creation.

I'm sorry this isn't a longer post/update, but it's 1:40 (am) and it will take at least 20 minutes before I'm in bed (once diaper is changed, hands are washed, contacts are out, humidifier is refilled, and whatever else pops up) and I'm ready for bed now, so I'm thinking I should get started.

Thankful List - Part 4

I'm thankful:

• For sisters who so lovingy come over to keep an eye on Andrew and help me get lots of work done


• For soft, fuzzy, blankets (perfect for cool days)


• That I decided to make myself a salad instead of a sandwich (bread does not help those inches melt, you know?)


• For Teresa Tapp (yes, I'm working on getting myself back in shape)


• That I had a boy! :)

Mystic Seaport

On October 30th we took Jacob to see Mystic Seaport. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we had lots fun! It was extremely windy since we were so close to the water (hence our messy, windblown hair). It was rather "handy" having Jacob with us as for the first half of the day Andrew was in the stroller and so we took turns staying with Andrew and touring the ships. I took this picture (below) at one such time. You can see Scott and Jacob having fun taking pictures and such on the deck of this ship (I don't remember all the names).



And I had to take a picture of "Andrew". not that you can see him or anything. It was less windy at the end of the day but at the time this was taken, it was so windy I made sure Andrew was nice and protected from the cold wind in his little "bubble". As you can see, my sling as many uses. It is very versatile! :)

Here is my sweet, darling Hubby enjoying all the opportunities for picture taking with his oh, so very nice, camera. :)

For fun we did this "quest" thing (it was free... :) ) that the Nautical Instrument building gave us. They gave us a bag that had a compass and spyglass in it (we didn't get to keep them though) and we also got a GPS devise and instructions on things we had to do as we found different boxes throughout the "village". It was lots of fun and we learned a lot about ships, and how they did different things (like the codes they used with flags to send messages to other ships). This is me in front of the gazebo (it was a land mark for finding one of the boxes for the quest).

As you can see, when Andrew got tired of the stroller, I had to keep him warm in the sling. So, he was in a "fleecy" bunting, in the sling, with a receiving blanket tucked in around him and I kept my nursing cover on to give an extra shield against the wind. He was "toasty warm". :)

We went down the road a ways to a restaurant for a late Lunch half-way through the day, and I snapped this photo of Andrew. He's so interactive and smiley now. We've been having lots of fun playing.
The other day Scott was playing with Andrew and sat him up on his shoulders. It was so cute because Andrew grabbed a hold of Scott's hair and thought it was very interesting. Since then Scott has put Andrew on his shoulders again, and he is all smiles. :) It's so much fun watching Andrew interacting with Scott.

Andrew's first Shoulder Ride:

Andrew has a new buddy, Jacob. They have had lots of fun together, although, I'm sure the next time we see Jacob, Andrew will be even more interactive, running all over the place. :)

Just "hanging out"

Today is Jacob's last day here, and I can't say we're doing anything interesting other than just hanging out and taking it easy. Of course, we did forget to turn the clocks back last night so I guess we all could have slept in an extra hour, but that's okay. :)

Today also marks 8 weeks since Andrew was born. I can't believe how big he's getting, and even though he is about twice the size of his 2 cousins who were born in the last 2 weeks, I told him, he's still "my little baby". :) As of Friday he weighed 12 lbs, 13 oz, and is just over 24 inches long. He is just SOOOO cute. I say that all the time, but I just can't help it, he IS! :) I love him so!!!!

I hope all my readers are having a relaxing, restful Sunday. Don't forget to think of something to be thankful for today. I'm thankful that God made me a mother and gave me the ability to serve those I come in contact with.

Thankful List Part 3

Okay so I'm a day late, but here I am, once again with more things that I'm thankful for:

• Coupons
• The ability to capture all the wonderful moments that are continuously happening on camera and print them off
• Music - Growing up I only ever listened to Christian music and I'm so thankful that that was the way it was, because whenever I'm feeling "down" or need my spirits lifted, I just put in a CD, and seeing as the only CDs I own are Christian, within minutes, my heart is soaring
• Beautiful, Sunny days like today
• Women like Sally Clarkson and Elizabeth George who write encouraging books specifically for women (if I have a few moments, then I have gotten into a habit of grabbing a book that is encouraging in relation to my walk with God and my roles as woman, wife, mother, and homemaker.
• Blankets to keep my Little One warm :)
• Two new, warm coats (that fit nicely) that I didn't pay a penny for since my Mom had them sitting in her closet (she's such a nice Mom!)
• The fact that I need to go because my hubby has the day off! :)

I will hopefully get pictures up over the next few days. Our house guest is leaving tomorrow night.... :( :( :( We will surely miss him. He's become Andrew's "buddy" and it has been nice to have company while Scott's at work, not to mention all the fun the three of us (Scott, Jacob and I) have had playing Frisbee Golf and Wakeboarding on the Wii, but we wouldn't keep him from all the signings he has over the next month.

Thankful List part 2

I just remembered that I had challenged myself to post on here at least every other day things that I'm thankful for, thankfully, the last post was day before yesterday! :)

I'm thankful:

• That I'm able to go with my Husband on his new part time job
• For my smiling baby (even though he pees, poops, and spits up on me)
• For CLOTH diapers (they absorb better than disposables)
• For sisters and brothers who are always eager to see me
• For parents who are so supportive and loving
• For in-laws that I not only get along with, but love almost as much as my own parents
• For a large enough "small" house that we can host guests (like Jacob Parker)
• For Candles
• For all the beautiful old hymns
• For BOOKS!!!!!

I have pictures and a fun post in mind from our visit to Mystic Seaport last weekend, hopefully I'll get that on here before this weekend! :)

November

Seeing as it is now November and Thanksgiving is just over 3 weeks away, I am going to try posting at least every other day, if not daily with a few things that I'm thankful for to help me to focus more on a Thankful Attitude, and I'd encourage each of my readers to do something similar, even just writing down a list every day!

I'm thankful for:

• My Saviour, I'd be lost without Him!
• My wonderful, adoring, Husband
• My sweet son, Andrew
• My Mom
• A warm house as the weather has gotten much cooler over the last couple weeks
• Encouraging Friends
• New Friends
• Time to make dinner
• For a washer and dryer

There's the start to my list....

Giveaway

Check out the giveaway that From The Little Pink House is doing for Moody Sisters Organic Skincare. At least check out Moody Sisters at the etsy shop.

PICTURES!

Well, it took me a little longer to do this post than I planned, but it's finally here. :) So, pictures... Here is Andy sporting his cute little outfit from Aunt Lori! My sister says the colors look really good on him. :)

This picture was from about a week and a half ago when I gave Andrew his first bath with the [baby] bathtub in the big tub instead of in the kitchen sink (our kitchen sink is too shallow). He looked so cute!

A week or two ago, Andy and I went and visited Scott's parents while he was at work.

Here is the first picture I've gotten of him smiling! I had to post both pictures, so you can see the progression of what he was thinking. He's just so adorable!!!!!

And just for the record, we have since gotten some BOY hats (instead of the green that makes people ask "is it a boy or a girl?") but they weren't done drying at the time of these pictures.

We were delighted last weekend to get a visit from my Dad's cousins and their daughter Amy!

Amy and Andrew:

This past Thursday, we picked up Author J.R. Parker as he will be staying with us for another 2 weeks! We're really enjoying his visit (even though he's really here to promote his book Kestrel's Midnight Song) and frequently this is what I see:

On Friday we had a get together at our house and realized that we didn't have any pictures of Mom A. with Andrew, so of course, we had to get the camera out! :) I loved how Andrew wouldn't look at the camera because he was looking Grandma!

And one more of Andrew and I! The first couple weeks I only have 2 pictures of the two of us, so I've been trying to make sure I periodically take one.

Andrew is growing and growing. I'm having to get out the few 3-6mo outfits we have (and we picked up a couple at Walmart last night, as his 0-3mo outfits that have feet are too short for him. He is so incredibly adorable!!!! We just love "playing" with him!

I am finally starting to figure out how to balance everything, Wife, Mother, and Homemaker. Jacob's visit is definitely "helping" me stay consistent (God's timing is so perfect). Of course, this post has been sitting on my computer screen for about 8 hours now. :)

Well, Andy is ready for bed and so am I, so I guess that's all for now.

1 Month

Note: I wrote this almost a week ago, and was waiting to post it until I uploaded pictures from my camera. But I have yet to do so, and I don't want to wait any longer until I post this. So, here's the post, and I'll have to do a picture post, once I upload all the pictures I have! :) I've been trying to catch him when he's smiling...

One month. An entire month has gone by since I gave birth to my precious baby boy. I can hardly believe that it has been that long and yet already it seems like such a long time ago since I was pregnant. Andrew now weighs approximately 10 1/2 pounds and is over 23 inches long. He is spending more time each day gazing around, taking in everything he sees and tries copying his Daddy when Daddy tries helping him practice his words. I am slowly getting used to life with a newborn, although I am constantly refocusing on the Lord as it is so easy to start focusing on how hard it is to get things done because Andrew isn't old enough yet for us to have any sort of routine. My dad preached on Sunday night and his sermon was about Faith, the choices we face, and the decisions we must constantly make. It was another reminder to me of how important it is for me to keep my focus WHOLLY on God! I must daily, sometimes minutely make the decision not to be bothered by the clothes I've been trying to get folded and put away for a week or the dishes that sometimes pile up for 5 days before any get washed, or the fact that my room has never been in such a disarray since we've been living here. Having a little one who needs me constantly is so very different. Good, great, but different.

• I have learned the blessing and value of a shower, no matter how short it has to be.


• I have become very good at typing with one hand.


• I have come to take full advantage of any few minutes I can type with two hands. :)


• I have learned how to balance a plate or bowl on a pillow or with two fingers so I can eat while I'm nursing.


• I have discovered that after such a labor and delivery as I had with Andrew, I have to still take things very slowly. I would love to be exercising full blast, but my body is not yet there. I've taken 3 walks over the last week and they were slow, short walks. The longest one was just barely over half a mile. (I know that sounds pitiful, I think it is too, but my body thinks it's quite the workout!)


• I have learned (yes, learned) that I love cloth diapers. At least, I love the cloth diapers I have. The first two times I tried them on him, I wasn't too impressed (he leaked both times) but then I learned how to put them on correctly, and boom, I love cloth diapers!!!! :) I'm only using them when we're at home, and not at night time yet, but so far I've had more leaks with disposable diapers than I have with the cloth diapers.


• I also have learned that homemade cloth wipes (cut from an old receiving blanket and clothes that that were ripped) work a whole lot better than disposable wipes. Now I just need to get over to my Mom's so I can sew the edges before the unravel from being in the wash.


• I didn't know just how much I would love holding my baby! I keep reminding myself that we need to start doing "tummy time" even if it's just for a few minutes. I know he'll love it because he loves being on his tummy and I'm looking forward to watching him as he grows and becomes interested in his toys.


• I have learned that it is useless for me to get attatched to any outfit I put on him as I never know when I'll have to change it.
  
  

Andrew

Andrew is 3 weeks old and growing and changing daily. I'm too tired to do a real post as Andy hasn't slept more than 90 minutes straight in 30 hours, so you know what that means for me. :)

Anyway, I just wanted to share a few of my favorite pictures from the last 3 weeks.

My Mom is such a natural! :)

I love this picture! My dad started bouncing Andrew on his knee while singing John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt and Andrew sat straight up. It was so cute! He's holding his head up much more frequently now and he never stops gazing all around him, taking in as much as he can!