Just a few things...

So we have officially visited Santa this year. First we went to the mall, but then our Parents as Teachers offered a santa visit too. I'm too cheap to get a picture with the "mall" santa. :)




Been making a lot of things lately, here are a few hair clips made for Olivia that I just love:

Blog Break

Wow. I can't believe it has been so long since I actually posted on my blog. Talk about a blog break. Sometimes a break is good. But, the downside is I have nothing to look back on from the months of September-December. I will have to work on that! I can't believe that this year is coming to an end. So fast. I'm actually ready for it to be over with. I wouldn't say it was one of my favorites. I was sad to see '08 go. But I'm looking forward to '10. I'm going to believe that this will be our year. Last year wasn't, so this one has to be, right? That and I like even numbers. :) I can't leave without a few pictures...

The Kitchen

The kitchen semi-remodel. This was hard. Mind you, my husband isn't handy. At all. He cans, he grills, and he cooks. And at my prodding, he tried really hard to get me the wood floors that I wanted. I am so grateful for him. There are times that we but heads so much, and I honestly think he is trying to make my life harder, but then there are times that he would try to give me the world if I asked.
Anyways, the kitchen. We really didn't plan it out, or plan for the kids to be at grandmas. Actually, a friend of Gregg's told him that he could help him the first weekend in August. Ok, that sounded great to me! It was short notice, but I was thinking that a few days of living around some light construction was do-able. Well, it was more than a few days, after a slight problem with one of the boards, and NO Help from Lowes, and a call from a friends brother-in-law, and a couple hundred dollars lighter, it finally is done. I am happy. New paint on the walls, new rugs and new curtains. I do love my new kitchen. Before during the demolition of the floor. It was outdated linoleum and carpet in the dining room.




And after:

1 Year

Today is Simon's birthday. How is it that he is 1 year already? I find it absolutely amazing my heart just swelled up bigger when he came. It's amazing that our family feels more complete with him here. It was the most perfect pregnancy and delivery. (Can labor be perfect?! Ha!) It was in my eyes, and I remember it like it was yesterday. It just couldn't have gone any better. I'm amazed at how he fits into this family of ours.




At 12 mos he is:
*Walking! For the most part, he is still pretty wobbly.
*Is on milk, and eating all table foods (no baby food for him now!) I believe he is even eating more than Olivia...
*Says, Mama, Dadda, Dat (Cat) Hi, tries to repeat our words
*Waves hi
*Loves to clap, dance, and "hop" on his legs
*Found the light switch, and thinks he's big stuff when he turns the light off in the dining room! :)
*Sleeps from 7:30-8 pm to 7-7:30 am
*Is taking 1 nap a day (he could still do 2, but it is just easier to do 1 and he does fine in the mornings)
*Loves climbing the stairs (still makes mom nervous)
*Is loved on every.single.day.

A New Career?

So, I have come to the realization that the dreaded haircut is needed. I thought Monday would be perfect to take the kids in to get a haircut. Olivia did fine, always has. What is not to love when you get a sucker afterwards? :) The boy was a different story. He flipped out. I made the mistake of setting him in the chair (still holding on to him), but turned to get my camera. He fell out of the chair! Poor little guy! He was ok, just a little shaken up! (Mom too, I had a hold of him, and thought he would be ok--guess I was wrong!) After I had him calmed down, I decided to try it again later this week. So today, I thought while we were running our errands, I would stop in at a different place. The minute I walked near a chair, he flipped out again. Olivia didn't mind, she ended up with another sucker. :) So, I decided to make a go of it. Here is a before shot:
And after:

I still have a little trimming to do around the sides and back a little. I have to keep the curls for a while, they are just too sweet! So, what do you think? A new career path for me?

Where has the summer gone?

Wow, has this summer flown by! I wouldn't say that it has been a good summer overall, but we have had a few good moments. Just haven't felt up to blogging lately, but have realized that I won't remember it all if I don't. :)

It is crazy that next week we will be celebrating Simon's 1st birthday. This year has gone by in the blink of an eye. He is almost to walking, cruising around the house as long as he can hold on to the wall, he is fine. He will take a couple of steps on his own, so we have been seeing a lot of this:

But I do love seeing this:

There is nothing cuter than diaper bottoms paired with tinkerbells :)

We have been working a lot around the house too. Bless my husband, I have come to realize that he is not a handyman, or a carpenter...instead he is a great gardener and loves to cook. I have come to understand that these are his talents, and to appreciate him for that. He should be proud of himself though, we did put in hardwood floors in the kitchen/dining area...I just think it took a few years off his life in doing so. Pictures to come soon. I will be glad that this will be the last night in eating in our livingroom.

Curls! and Catching Up

Seriously, this boy was blessed with good hair. I don't know how he got it, but I absolutely adore it! He won't be getting a haircut anytime soon either, I'm so afraid as soon as he gets it cut, the curls won't grow back! Oh well, I love the baby look, and am just going to enjoy it for now.

This week has still been a little hard for me. All I keep thinking about is what could have been, the last time I talked to my dad, how I held the power to change the direction of our relationship, that I didn't want him to see any pictures of his grandkids. And honestly, I don't know why. I know why, but it is amazing to me to see how much anger has such a strong grip if you let it...and I did. This past week, at the bible study that I've been attending, Beth Moore talked about time, and grudges, two important lessons I wished I learned a little sooner. I've been praying that my dad knew Jesus, I honestly don't know if he did, but I've been praying that I will get to have some of this missed time with him again. So, still trying to process all the emotions that I've been feeling lately, and hoping that I may be able to start a new relationship with his wife...she is the only connection that I have left. I know that I'm a little too late, but I really want her to meet the kids. So, hopefully we will be able to plan another trip out to NC. Such a gorgeous state!

Saying Goodbye

Today I just got back from saying goodbye to my dad. Sunday, my dad passed away from lung cancer. I didn't think that it would affect me as hard as it has. You see, I haven't seen my dad in many years, and the last time I talked to him was the day before my wedding. It was a bit of a strained relationship. Mostly on my part. I didn't want to deal with an alcoholic. I didn't want to make him feel better for not being there for me. It was just easier to not feel anything towards him. I didn't want to be with someone who didn't want me. But it still hurts. Because I was ready to talk to him about a month ago. God put him on my heart, and I thought that I needed to see if he knew Him. I had envisioned him meeting his grandchildren for the first time. But it didn't happen. And Sunday at church, I lost it. They had a fourth celebration, and they had brought out the flag, talked about what each fold meant. I didn't want to be seeing the same thing at my dads funeral. But I did. Monday morning we drove out to Concord, NC. 16 hours, 992 miles. And during this trip, I met my dad's wife. Such a beautiful person. It made it even more real, to see where he lived. To see pictures of him during his illness. To see how much his wife loved him. I never got to see that side of him, and I wished I could have. I am having to process a lot lately. Learning not to hold on to anger and hurt. And now I have to live with the fact that I won't see him ever again.

A boy after my own heart...

***These cans aren't open!!

Seperation Anxiety

We have been sailing the seperation anxiety waters lately. So bittersweet. I LOVE that Simon knows that he is safe and secure with me, but at the same time, it is a litte fustrating. I can't leave the room without him starting to whimper. Oh the life. I know that this too shall pass, so instead of wishing for this phase to hurry up, I have been trying to sail with the ups and downs.
Today I tried to get him in for his 9 month photos...no such luck. The minute I put him down, he flipped out. So, we shalll see if tomorrow is any better. If not, I tried to take some of him myself, and these will have to suffice the grandparents.
If only he wasn't holding the brush...

And here are a few more of my favorites...
I LOVE taking pictures, it is something that I've always liked to do, someday, if I ever learn how photography works, I would love to do it professionally...in the meantime, my wishlist grows....
...camera lenses
...tripod
...a flash
...I can go on...




Love the outside pics. Yes, the grass is a bit long. He'll mow it tomorrow when he gets home. Maybe then I can get some more shots of the kiddos outside.

And so, with this seperation anxiety, I am anticipating a major meltdown tomorrow at church. Praying it doesn't happen, but will be expecting one.

**ETA, I have no idea how the pic of Olivia showed up, I must have put the wrong pic in, and am not an HTML genius, so I don't know how to delete, so just ignore!

This and that...

I love, love, love this time of year! I literally get giddy when it comes to garage sales. (Yes, I am a nerd.) There is something about finding that one thing I needed among all of the other stuff people want to get rid of. I have found several games that my PAT educator had talked about getting Olivia, educational books, some toys, and most of all: clothes. I love being able to see how far $20 goes. This weekend was our city wide garage sale, and although we didn't sell much this time, I am so thankful I found some good sales.
Not all of the clothes that I had found this "season" and not all of the clothes I had picked up on Saturday, (some are still in the wash), but this is a big chunk of what I had gotten for the kids for fall. There are a few summer pieces in there as well. I just can't resist. I can't stand the thought of paying full price for clothes that they don't wear for very long, will stain eventually, or just to play outside in. I figured that inbetween birthdays and all major holidays, these kids are covered in brand new clothes. So, I just "fill in".


Another thing on the agenda? We are finally getting around to painting the house! It needs it terribly. I am just so bad at making decisions though. I second guess myself all the time. I just can't decide on what color to paint the house! Although I am leaning more towards the last one. I'm wanting a beige-y tone, but a little darker because I want a strong contrast with white trim and black shutters. So, hmmm...what to do...
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Of course it seems to look different now, but we both really like the last one, just afraid if it is too dark...being such a large space. I guess I will have to stare at it tomorrow for about 5 hours.

And last but not least, my litte tiger now has 2 little teeth!!
?

What a day...

Whew! Today is one of those days that I'm glad is over! Mondays always seem a little harder for me. Especially if the weekend was busy. Kind of like, "Hello, I'm Monday...and here is the rest of the week." Olivia had a bit of a hard time this morning. When she has days like today, it gets hard, but today I was vigilant in making sure I had patience with her. And although she did spend some time in her room for "a little bit of thinking time"-aka time out, we made it through a turbulent patch today. Now on to tomorrow...

And today, I checked in on Simon to see how he was doing during his morning nap, and I found this:

Mind you, he doesn't move around when he sleeps. He is always in the same position in the mornings, so imagine my surprise when I found him like this! To funny! I always lay him on his back up by the mobile, so how he managed to get on the opposite side of the bed is beyond me! Needless to say, he wasn't too happy when he woke up! I have a feeling that crawling is around the corner...he is really good about scooting backwards, and does a full circle, it is going forward that is his big obstacle right now. I have been seeing him get a little more mobile lately, so I think it will be time to lower the crib down soon!

Exhausted

My, what a week! I am exhausted. Spent. And been a little snippy. With a teething baby, a sick husband, and a toddler who is just so precious to me even with constant jabber. Not something I'm proud of right now. Trying to catch up on housework, laundry, daily activities, sleep, reading, everything. And it's not getting done, which is making me fustrated. Right now, as I type, I am looking forward to tomorrow. Ready to spend a little more time with the Lord. Needing his help as I navigate through another week of the same thing. Just wanting to spend a little time with HIM. Time to reflect. Trying to change my ways to be a better mother and wife. Just asking for a little patience.

And this is new. There never has been a time in my life where I have said "Can't wait to go to church!". So, I'm learning. Inviting Him into my heart. I've always known He was there, but just asked Him to stay close, but just not ready for Him to come in. Now I am. Such a hard journey, so much I'm learning about myself. So worth it though. Learning to read such a good book that I knew existed, but thought only "old people" read! HA!

And so, exhausted, yes. Praying tomorrow and next week are a little bit better.

We survived

The weekend that is! Whew! What an exhausting but fun weekend! Gregg was off this past week, so Friday we decided to use the DST passes and head out to Worlds of Fun...what a blast! So fun to watch miss O have a blast on all the rides! After each one we would ask her if she wanted to ride them again..."NO" was her response..HA HA!!





Saturday was the big 3rd birthday!! Wonder Pets! Wonder Pets! We are on our way...! It wasn't the same with some missing, but all in all it was a good day to celebrate! We are blessed to have family drive 3 hours each way to celebrate a birthday with this little girl. Of course, did I get many pictures? No.




Then on to the Memorial Day festivities in Mexico. Olivia had gone home with Grandma Baitinger and all the cousins on Saturday. We drove down Sunday afternoon to spend Sunday and Monday. What a long weekend! Good food and good times. We are so blessed! Now, I can't wait for a weekend to go and spend down at my moms to rest and relax!!

And there it is...!

Look close and you can see it! It's barely poking through, but it is there!!

And on such a beautiful day, why not go for a drive?



And it's looking like someone might need a haircut before their 1st birthday, but I don't think I have the heart to do it. When it's wet, he has the most adorable little curls...sigh...

Success

...is getting 2 kids and myself ready for church at 8 am. Without Gregg. This is accidentally sleeping in until 7, too. And they both ate breakfast. Crazy. You do what you gotta do to get to where you want to go. :)

Finally!

After days of fustrating crankiness...today after Simon woke up from his nap, I just happened to feel the ridges of a tooth coming in! Finally! 8 1/2 mos, I do believe he is taking his time in everything he does!! So, needless to say we have been seeing a lot of this...


But I like seeing this...(well, not the slobber rash by his mouth)

And who would have thought how much he loves zucchini! I LOVE making baby food!

And I can't forget our love for popsicles! (these are the healthy kind, made with strawberries and blueberries and yogurt! Would you like a popsicle? Sure!!)


And I really love to see this...
Love our $5 garage sale find! I've wanted to get this for Olivia when she was little, but was never going to pay the $40 pricetag...crazy how baby toys still intrigue preschoolers!