Ringing in the New Year

Yes, I admit I am sitting at home on New Years Eve. And guess what? I'm perfectly happy sitting here typing listening to the laughter of my hubby and parents playing Wii. Boy, how times have changed!! I have a little 9 month bundle of joy that keeps me at home now, and although my parents offered to babysit while we go out, we chose to have a date night out last night and enjoy a more quiet night in tonight. It seems pretty darn perfect to me!

As I often do around a holiday, I go back and read my blog post from the previous year. And like many times when I do this I am left wondering, "Who would've thought how much my life was about to change?" I began 2009 with great anticipation about becoming a mom finally. Little did I know what a traumatic experience Mathew's birth would be, or that I would be packing up my home and moving to Iowa, saying goodbye to a job I loved and so many great friends as well as my brother. It was a year full of MANY emotions. There have been some extreme highs and a few pretty intense lows. Luckily having Mathew makes all the lows seem so much more bearable and less important. I am hoping that 2010 brings some stability and consistency. I am struggling with Iowa feeling like my "home" yet, so I am dedicated to forming some connections and making an extra effort to make time for myself and my marriage amidst spending as much possible time savoring motherhood.

I will forever remember 2009 as a wonderful year overall. God allowed me to experience the greatest gift of all. Everyday I spend with him, I know is a blessing. I am so grateful that I've been able to spend so much time with him this year. I wouldn't want it any other way.

Thank you to our many faithful family and friends that continue to read our blog and have prayed for us and offered love and support throughout our journey this year. My prayer is that each of you are blessed in this new year, and throughout the coming decade. Savor the special moments with your friends and family, remember Christ in all things, and take care of yourself and your loved ones!

Reflecting

This picture was taken exactly one year ago today. It was Christmas Eve, spent in Florida, with my family. I was 29 weeks pregnant. We went to the OBGYN that day and listened to the beautiful sound of a heartbeat. I was full of excitement and anticipation. I'd dreamed of being pregnant over the holidays for years, and I was so joyous to finally be experiencing it.

Now, one year later, that sweet baby boy that was growing inside me at the time of this picture, now lies upstairs sleeping soundly. He's spent the day with both sets of grandparents-laughing, playing, attending church, opening presents (okay, more like eating the paper), and I don't think my heart could be any more full than it is right now. I am so happy, it almost hurts. My dream has become a reality.

I am so thankful for the precious gift of his life!

Nine Nifty Months

Mathew turned 9 months on Wednesday. It also happened to be the day that Grandma passed away, and everything has been rather out of the ordinary since then. Grandma passed, Mathew turned 9 months and had to go to the pediatrician, and we had a blizzard all in the same day. It was quite a strange day to say the least.

MJ originally had his normal check up scheduled for Wednesday, but we'd cancelled due to the weather. But shortly after cancelling, we got the call about Grandma and knew that we'd be leaving town soon. One of the shots he needed only has a two day window in which it must be administered so we had to call the doctor's office back and ask if we could come in after all. He was quickly figured out that he HATES the doctor's office. From the minute the nurse even approached him he cried and screamed. He cried throughout being weighed examined, shots, you name it. The doctor even commented, "Wow, he's really a handful at home, huh?" The odd thing is NO, he's not. He hardly ever cries. I don't know if he is becoming fearful of strangers or he knows that shots are coming or what, but he just does not like it one bit.

I take lots of pictures, but I'm always certain to take one at each month's milestone. It used to be so easy to get a great picture of him. He would start hamming it up the minute the camera came out. But now, it seems nearly impossible to keep him still long enough to even take a picture. He's all over the place! And if you can get him still, or just put him in the highchair (like I do), he closes his eyes every single time the flash comes on. Do you have any idea how many photos I've taken trying to get a good Christmas card shot?? Ha!

This is how the majority of my pictures turn out lately. Still pretty darn cute though! Such a happy boy at 9 months old.

Finally, when mommy turns the flash off MJ keeps his eyes open. He's getting so big!

At 9 months, Mathew is now crawling, pulling up, and cruising all over the place. He likes to pull himself up over and over again. He loves to play with his LeapFrog Music Table! He has his two bottom teeth, but none on top quite yet. He's still drinking a few bottles a day, along with an occasional sippy cup of juice, baby food 3 times a day, finger foods for snacks, and trying bits and pieces of our meals. We haven't found anything that he doesn't like. He babbles every once in awhile, but still not a whole lot of "talking." He weighs 19 lbs. 11 oz. and is 28.5 in. tall. He only gained a few ounces since his last checkup, so the doctor was slightly concerned and asked us questions about his eating habits. But, since he's still eating so well she chalked it up to him becoming more active, and we'll check his weight next month again. He dropped down between the 10th-25th percentile in weight, but is in the 50th percentile for height. His newest skill is waving hello. He likes to wave hi to us, people in restaurants, his babysitter, and the camera, as seen below...

This picture was taken last night as we celebrated Christmas, just the three of us. We were planning to do our own Christmas before heading to St. Louis, but since we're now leaving early for the funeral we decided to go ahead and do it. I made a crock pot of chili, we put MJ in his Christmas pajamas and we pretended it was Christmas. He certainly didn't know the difference, and we still got to have some special time together! He had more gifts to open than either of us (of course), but his faves were the crinkly paper, the bows, and they shiny ribbon. I wonder how many years we can get by with that??

In the Hands of Our Savior

Holding hands can symbolize many things: safety, love, reassurance, comfort, and prayer just to name a few. Each of these was true for my grandma. Long before I ever came into the picture, I’m sure she often held the hands of her two children. Years later, as a grandmother, I know she would often hold my hand, as she did her other three grandchildren. She loved to rub; it was her special way of touching and soothing. While holding my hand, she would rub my forearm. Sometimes she’d even make it a game, using her finger to “write a message” on my arm while my eyes were closed, and then I’d guess what she’d wrote. Years later, her and my grandpa would tell us that they went to bed every night holding hands. Isn’t that love and devotion just amazing? It’s a love that I now strive for with my own husband. Grandma held her children’s hands, her husband’s hand, her grandchildren’s hands, and many dear friend’s hands as they faced their own hardships. But, today my grandma holds the greatest hand of all. The Lord has extended his hand and called her home, and she has taken it. I don’t believe that she merely placed her hand in his; I believe she grasped it firmly. Her days of providing us with love here on Earth are through, and while that brings great sadness that she can no longer hold our hands, I know she holds my heart, as well as so many others, forever.

I will miss you forever Grandma; may you rest with your Savior!

Nobody Does Christmas Like Grandma

Last weekend, after Thanksgiving, we decorated the house for Christmas. Since we'll be going to St. Louis for Christmas this year, we debated slightly if we should even decorate. It always seems like a lot of work when you aren't even going to be in town for the actual holiday. But, since it's MJ's first Christmas and our first Christmas in our new house we decided we definitely wanted to do so. There were a lot of things that didn't get put out because we knew that MJ would just get into them, but the essentials are all up. I've spent very little money on Christmas decorations over the years. The majority of the decor we have has either been given to us as gifts or were handed down to me by my Grandma Dorsie. Nobody did Christmas like she did! Grandma absolutely adored Christmas. She baked and baked and baked-all kinds of candies and cookies not to mention the actual meal she served on Christmas Eve. She had special stockings for all of us grand kids that she would pretend Santa came to her house to fill. She loved gift giving and spending time with her children and grandchildren. So many great memories took place at her home on Christmas Eve, year after year. So, it's no surprise that decorating this year felt somewhat bittersweet. While I am so excited to experience Christmas this year with Mathew, and so thankful for all that he's added to our lives, it's sad to me that he'll never know just how much his Grandma Great adored Christmas. He won't get to have special memories with her over the holidays. Grandma is still at the nursing home and if she continues to live through the holiday, it certainly won't be one that she is able to partake in or enjoy. But, I take joy in knowing how many wonderful Christmases she celebrated so joyfully, and that her ultimate present-everlasting life-soon awaits her. I know that Mathew will grow up loving Christmas with his own grandma's and other great grandma's and will make so many memories with each of them. He too will think, "Nobody Does Christmas Like Grandma!" Grandma's are great for showering us with love over the holidays, aren't they?

Here's a few pictures around our home...


From the moment we bought this house, I looked forward to decorating the stairs! My mom always decorated the stairs in our house with such pretty lights and greenery. I improvised and used some berries that I already had, but I was pretty pleased at how it turned out, without having to spend a dime!

This Dicken's Christmas village belonged to my Grandma. These aren't even all the pieces, but I couldn't find a space big enough to display the entire village. It certainly makes me think of her each time I look at it.

Yes, our Christmas tree is bare on the bottom. We tried to keep it baby-friendly. Mathew still manages to crawl over and pull on the branches. It's fake though, so no needles falling to the ground or branches to break off. As he gets older, I'd like to get a real tree, but for now I'm all about the fake easy maintenance one!

I've had this Santa lamp as long as I can remember. It sat in my bedroom every Christmas season, as a child. Each Christmas Eve I would leave the light on all night. As silly as it may seem, I've continued to have it in my bedroom every Christmas season, as an adult. Even Mat has learned to love my Santa lamp and leave it on with me each Christmas Even night. It only seemed fitting that it was passed on to Mathew this year. It is sitting on his bookshelf in the nursery. As he grows up, I hope he loves it as much as I have!

I thought this picture was so cute! The actual snow globe isn't overly significant; a student gave it to me last year, and I thought it was cute. MJ loves when I shake the snow around and play the music. I thought his chubby little baby hand grab it it in wonder was precious!

More, More!

I thought I would capture a quick video of MJ feeding himself this afternoon, and was lucky enough to catch him using his sign language, too. "More" is one of the first signs we started teaching him. He began doing it on his own a couple months ago. But he did it at such random times that we weren't sure he really understood the meaning of it. He'd sign "more" when we'd change his diaper, when playing, or often when swinging. Today, he clearly did it though as he was eating. So cute!

The Cutest Little Turkey Around

Mathew was able to chow down with the grown ups! It couldn't have been better timing. He napped just about the entire time all the cooking was taking place, and woke up shortly before it was time to eat. He tried turkey, mashed potatoes, mac 'n cheese, green beans, and cranberries and seemed to love them all! Then, he still ate his normal baby food and a bottle. Kid can throw down!

Only when you're this little and cute can you proudly proclaim that you stuffed yourself!

Of course Mommy had to have a cute Thanksgiving outfit for MJ! And as always, he was glad to pose for the camera. Every year I always feel thankful for certain things, but it doesn't even come close to comparing to just how thankful I am to have this sweet little boy in my life. Last Thanksgiving, I was incredibly thankful to be pregnant. I never imagined a year later I'd be living in Iowa, working a different job, and the many other changes that have come because of that. Without him, I think it would be a much harder transition with a lot more sadness. But, I remain focused on him and the blessing he is in my life, and the rest suddenly doesn't seem quite as important as it once did.