Praise the Lord!

I got 8 hours of sleep last night!!
Jonathan has still been waking up 4-5 times a night most nights. Sometimes we can just give him his paci and sometimes he cries until I nurse him. And I do not do well without good sleep at night. I've still been spending my days in the "I've just had a newborn" daze where my patience is short and I can barely get anything done. So about a week ago, we decided to give him a shot at learning to sleep without his paci in hopes that when he wakes up in the middle of the night he'll be able to settle himself back down. The first couple of nights went way better than I hoped. We had off and on crying, but never more than 30 minutes. And he was waking only 1-2 times a night. Then two nights ago was back to 4 times and I though we were doomed. But, last night the little angel went down perfect - no crying, and slept until 7:00 this morning without a peep. I feel so refreshed! .....Now, let's see, I should probably get some things done this morning with all this energy! :)

Michael Got Dressed

Michael has been able to dress himself for a while now. However he still runs into trouble with his shirt getting twisted or his socks not going on. And of course there is the daily "I don't want to"'s or the "I need help" when he really doesn't. So getting dressed has still remained a chore that I need to participate in. I usually goes like this:
Me: "Michael it's time to get dressed."
Michael: "I don't want to get dressed." (Michael doesn't ever like to change anything, ever!)
Me: "Well, you have to. Do you want to pick your shirt or should I?"
Michael: "You pick!"
I go in and get out some clothes for him and call him to come again.
Michael: "I need you to stay and watch!"
Michael then very slowly takes his pjs off and starts to put on his clothes, while taking a minute or two here and there to play with the trains or talk to Jon or anything else he can think of to get distracted by.
I finally give in and start trying to help him along.

Today however was...
Me: "Michael it's time to get dressed."
Michael: "I don't want to get dressed."
Me: "Well, you have to."
And I go into his room about two minutes later to tell him again that he needs to get dressed and I find him fully done. He picked everything out and put it all on himself (and correctly too). Way to go Michael!

My Shopping Trip This Morning

To do list before leaving the house:
Get dressed: check
Get Michael dressed: check
Get Jon dressed: check
Make sure Michael goes potty: check
Comb hair: check
Put on make-up: ooopps
Change Jon's diaper: check
Get shopping list: check
Get coupons: check
Get shopping bags: check
Strap Jon in carseat: check
Strap Michael in carseat: check
Put on my seat belt: check

Well, I almost remembered everything. I can't believe I'm one of those moms that ventures out of the house without make-up!! At least I showered. :) And I suppose the fact that I remembered both of my boys is a good thing too. lol

Maybe it's mommy brain.... pregnancy and postpartum hormones really do mess up your memory. Or maybe it's just that I have so many things to keep track of with the boys that I can't remember my own things. Oh, well, I haven't left the house in my pajamas yet so I guess that's something.

...

OK, well I did walk out once in slippers, but I caught myself on the front porch and came back in for shoes - does that count?!

Half Birthdays

Growing up, half birthdays were a fun celebration at my house. Like most kids we were fascinated by birthdays and spent hours figuring out when we would be 10 1/2 or 10 3/4 etc. For our half birthdays my mom would make a round cake, cut it in half and layer it to make a "half cake." Then we would get one present. This was such a fun tradition.
Last month was Michael's half birthday and I realized I forgot to share our celebration for all of you. I let Michael help me frost his cake - I did the frosting, he added more than enough sprinkles. :) Then when he wasn't looking later in the day I added a matchbox car. Tim always got a car on his cake growing up and we did one for Michael on his 3rd birthday and he thought it was the greatest. So when I brought the cake out with the car, he just got soooo excited. It was a cool blue race car that opened up to show the engine - a definite hit! We sang a half birthday song, ate the cake, and Michael played with his new car. It was a simple but fun night!
On a side note, when I made the cake there was enough batter to fill two pans. I only needed one pan to layer and make the "half cake" so I had another cake sitting around. Michael's idea was that we should save that one for when he turns 4! He was disappointed to find out that it would get yucky if we waited that long to eat it.

Sitting and Playing

I realized today that this is the 4th year in a row, that I've had a baby in the house to entertain, and specific to this post a 6-9month old. Three years ago it was Michael, then it was Casey, a little girl I babysat for a couple days a week, and last year it was Shane, a little boy I sat for. And now, or course, there is Jonathan. My recollection of this age with the other three was that this was an age of frustration, both for them and me. They were no longer content to just sit and stare at things, but not mobile enough to keep themselves entertained, so they would sit on the floor and constantly cry for more toys to be brought to them.

Jonathan, though, has so far been very content to just sit and play with thing on the floor. Don't get me wrong, he wants to be mobile and really tries, but he is also content to just be sometimes, especially when he is sitting and can see other people. Now, I don't know if this is just because Jon is so much more laid back than the others or if it is because I have gotten "better." For example, I have found that I can fill a bucket with toys and set it next to the child. Then there is a supply of toys for him to pull out and play with and when the toys run out there is always the never failing entertaining bucket! On the Jonathan side, he seems to love people more than things, so if he can sit where he can see me or Michael he is very happy. And his two fav things to play with are his paci and his socks which is easy entertainment. :) He works so hard to get his sock (his left one) off his foot. This can take a good 5-10 minutes. Then another 10 minutes of entertainment is chewing on it and seeing all the fun noises he can make while holding the sock in his mouth.

All in all, Jon has been the easiest 6-9 month baby for me. I'm so glad too, because I was dreading this age a bit. Hope it stays so fun!

Awesome Humbling Future

In Philippians 1: 23-24, Paul says, "I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body." I use to read that and think, how could he truly wish for such a thing. I felt like there was so much of life I still wanted to experience and so many things I could do with God's help for the kingdom here on earth. Why would I long to die and leave it all behind? I began pray that I would understand this and that I would develop such a longing for Christ that this could honestly be my prayer too. I have since forgotten about that prayer.
Today I was reading in Numbers for our church's devotional plan and read the passage where Aaron is called up on the mountain and there he dies. My thought was, "Wow, how cool that must have been for him to finally meet the Lord face to face." Aaron served the Lord in His tabernacle, interceded for the people of Israel, and spoke the Lord's words to friend and foe. But God was always veiled in his interactions. How refreshing it must have been for Aaron to meet the Lord, worship Him in glory, and rest in His grace and love.
I was reminded of my old prayer and see know that God answered it. I too, long for the day when I can meet Him face to face. I long to leave the struggles and sadness of this world and bask in the Son! Now please don't think that I'm going to end my life or think morbid thoughts about death. It's not that at all! I'm happy and content to remain on earth and serve the Lord however He desires, but I look forward to my awesome and humbling future resting at His feet and singing His praises for eternity! Praise God!

New scrapbook pages

I've had some fun times scrapping lately! Here are a few pages:


credits: Chocolate Parfait and Star Quality by Jennifer Barrette, alphas by Traci Reed and Amanda Rockwell, font is Teckton Pro






credits: Tender Hearts by Lisa West; 2 stamp by Traci Reed; fonts are Dolphin, Eras Light ITC, and Forte






In this layout, I was challenged to describe my life or my mission in 7 words!

Credits: Grungy graph background by Gretchen Tripp, Foxy Lady, Party Pants, Lilac Garden by Miss Mint, an alpha by Sherri Tierney and another by Diannalynn Claridge, fonts are Bradley Hand, Dolphin, Elephant, Footlight MT Light, and Poor Nut, All That Pops photo effect by Holly McCaig






Credits: Winter Wonderland by Creations by Rachel






Credits: Honey Bunch by Kristin Cronin Barrow, scribbled alpha by Miss Mint, glitter dots/hearts by Brenda Smith, All That Pops photo effect by Holly McCaig, font is teckton pro, scraplift of SeattleSheri