Recent Highlights

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Met Chris and Brianna's brand new puppy, Winston
J's first trip to Cheesecake Factory (followed by him patiently letting me walk/shop the mall)
I picked up my work laptop and officially work part time from home
Sam is officially in the crib in his room (it was a lot of transitions)
Soccer and Frisbee at the park
It's officially Fall!
We celebrated my dad's birthday with breakfast and a hike
I'm nearly done with my first weekend without J since we've had Sam (I think?)

So much to celebrate! We want to praise God for these fun moments although we know His will is good, acceptable and perfect, no matter what is going on. Focusing on the positive helps me :)

Mesothelioma Awareness Day

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Hey all, I'm not sure if you knew this, but today is Mesothelioma Awareness Day! 

In order to celebrate, I'd like to share Heather's story with you. She is using her personal story to help raise awareness of this little known cancer, and to provide a sense of hope for others facing life’s difficult challenges.

I can't imagine going through what she went through, and what a great example of strength she is!!

To give you a preview: Heather is a wife, mother, and a mesothelioma survivor. When her daughter was 3 ½ months old, she was diagnosed with this rare and deadly cancer, and given 15 months to live. Despite her grim prognosis, she knew that she needed to beat the odds for her newborn daughter, Lily. It’s been 7 years now and she feels that it’s her duty to pay it forward by inspiring others.

Here is the link: www.mesothelioma.com/heather/awareness/

Her story is really inspiring, whether you have this or something similar, know someone, or have never heard of this cancer. Please go to her link to get inspired, give support, and celebrate today. 

Thanks!!

Monday Mom Moments

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Today we got a Ergo baby carrier. It's one of the kinds that have a strap that goes around your hips to better distribute the baby's weight. We found a red one half off and ordered it so we can carry Sam on our back (particularly for our Denver trip in October). Not only am I excited about that, but it was fun that Sam and I were already outside when the package came. Taking advantage of the fall-ish weather and trying to keep quiet so J can sleep (he's on night shifts), I set up a picnic blanket for Sam with toys while I moved around some of Liriope in our front yard patch. 

Once we got our package, I broke into it, and actually read some of the manual (I'm not good with directions usually), and let Sam play with box. It provided nearly an hour of entertainment for Sam, and I had about twenty neighbors drive or walk by, many smiling at Sam and waving.

Another mom moment from today - Sam and I were hanging out on the guest bed next to his room. We've gotten in the habit of reading to him in there if he's not sleepy enough to drop off into lala land for a nap (I mean, he cries for a while first). After a short chapter of my book and watching Sam kick a pillow repeatedly, I sit him up and hello - tons of spit up (which he doesn't do much of these days). It's running down the front of his onesie and dripping from his chin, and I get a great idea - I'll set him up against a pillow and grab a burp cloth really really fast from his room next door. I come back to a face down Sam (He reached for Dash), and now the spit up is all over the duvet in addition to the onesie and his face. Face palm. I see laundry in our future :)

Sunday Thoughts

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Well, so it's a month and a half since my last post. In my attempts to figure out balance and life as a stay at home mom, apparently blogging is one of the things that have fallen to the wayside. It's one of those things I aspire to do, but then when naptime comes, I totally forget about it. So, sorry. 

Sam is doing great, and loves to play on his own, but also loves attention and being held. He's moving around a bit, but mostly I stay nearby so when he gets frustrated with being on his belly or some awkward position, I can straighten him up. He's taking 2 to 3 naps, and while at first I get excited when he goes down, I miss him a lot. It's a kinda weird feeling. I clean some, I read books, and we like to visit others or run errands. The days always seem to go by quickly. It's a little different having J's work schedule being all over the place. Because of my desire for us to be able to hang out or do whatever with him when he's off, I haven't gotten a real schedule during the week (like grocery or library day). Usually I'm fine with that, but some days I crave the structure and routines. That's a lot of what's been going on :) We have our inside jokes and we laugh at Sam and the dogs daily (again, we aspire to getting some of these stories up on a blog). 

Our goal in September has been to having a visitor over a for dinner once a week (schedule permitting). I love the idea of making sure we nurture friendships, get in the habit for Sam as he grows, and having more witnesses to inspire me to clean. We've been doing pretty well :)

We had our 2 year anniversary last Tuesday. After some fancy egg in toasts for breakfast and some gifts for J, he let me go on a little shopping spree to pick out something to wear for our date that day. We got candy and popcorn to go to a secluded afternoon movie while my mom was kind enough to watch Sam (he loves his Mimi) and later on we cuddled and ate pizza. That's how I remember it at least. Marriage is different with a baby, but we're so happy.

Sunday related - our pastors went over Mark 13 today. What a confusing chapter for the modern readers! A lot of it is written in Jewish phrases that are tough for us to get. It was interesting. 

Okay, hopefully I'll get more regular with posting! It's always been a great creative outlet. (For Sam updates, check out JK and Company, Joey updated it recently - we'll get better :) )

  

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