God's mercy

Tonight, for the first time in at least a couple of months, Henry asked for "Rock a baby" before we put him to bed. I praised God out loud for this gift, this precious, OBVIOUS reminder of the how BIG and marvelous He is!   He was tired and ready for bed, but wanted his Mama to rock him to sleep.  As I rocked him, I felt this overwhelming thankfulness for my son.  I've always loved him, never a doubt about that, but I felt this new-found appreciation for my child.

Like most of you, I've felt a heavy sense of grief in my heart today for the families that were struck by the senseless tragedy in Connecticut.  Henry wanting to cuddle and spend just a few more minutes with me was the obvious sign of God's grace that I needed at just that moment. After I put him to bed, I tearfully told Mike of how awestruck I am by His mercy, His love and compassion for His children. I know that God loves me but when He puts such an obvious reminder right out there for me to see and enjoy, I'm overwhelmed by His love.

I know that we aren't meant to always understand God's plans but I do feel that God knows that it frustrates us. His plan is always out of love and sometimes we're taught painful lessons through the decisions of others. Today's tragedy is just another example of that.  Healing will take place and people will come together but there's a long and painful road ahead of them. God also provides love, mercy and grace in our time's of need and wow, how wonderful His glory feels when you're in His presence.  

Even though our family wasn't directly involved, I've learned the lesson of not taking my family for granted.  Personal tragedy happens daily around the world. You can't turn on the tv or the internet without awful news that has happened in some one's life.  Yes, the tragedy today was of massive proportions, one that we will never fully comprehend.  The tragedy in my own life: why hasn't this lesson of not taking my family and loved ones for granted not permanently resonated with me before tonight? Will it be different this time or will I go back to my old ways of thinking and behaving?  Lord, please keep my feet planted firmly in this path. The path that you have created for me.  

I know that as parents the tragedy today is a huge reminder to hold on to our kids a little tighter, to tell them we love them. More importantly though, we need to do this constantly even as healing takes place. Our children should never ever doubt that Mama and Daddy love them. Keep these feelings tonight and always, cherish your children and thank God for them.

Flashback Friday - Henry's 1st Thanksgiving

These pics were taken November 26, 2010, admittedly the day after Henry's first Thanksgiving.  That day, we had a big lunch with Mike's side of the family and then a big dinner with my side of the family, so I was terrible with pictures on the actual day. Not complaining though, we are extremely blessed and THANKFUL for our families and even better that they all live in the same metroplex. 

 

 

I forgot how big his chunky thighs were. Love!

 

He loved climbing all over that elephant. He still enjoys him, but now he'd rather pick him up, throw him across the room and then body slam him. Poor elephant has endured his fair share of MMA style mayhem.

Playing with his great-aunt-Jennie-made sock monkey!  Monkey has also taken a beating but Jennie's sewing skills have outlasted the abuse.

 

He has changed so much in the last two years. I love that grin and still do. 

 

 

Sick?

Sunday afternoon Henry woke up with eyes almost completely matted shut. Great. We suspected pink eye and after a trip to the urgent kids care, sure enough double pink eye and a sinus infection. He had allergies for weeks leading up to it, but I had no idea it could all turn in to that.  Probably didn't help that I was only giving him half of the recommended dosage of Benadryl for his weight. Mother of the Year, I tell ya. Helps when you update your medication information. I guess the good news, I wasn't overdoing it. The doctor prescribed antibiotics for the sinus infection and eye drops for the pink eye. You can imagine how fun it has been to put his eye drops in. Ugh! 5 more days, we're halfway there! The flip side, he's getting better about it and my skills have improved as well.  Lots of bribery and patience is all it takes sometimes.

Fortunately Mike was able to stay home with him Monday and Tuesday. Here's a video of him playing Monday morning.

18 hours after waking up with eyes matted shut, he's up shooting hoops and pretty well I might add.  What's hilarious to me, I had a sinus infection a couple of months ago and thought I was on my deathbed for a week. A WEEK! This kid gets on antibiotics for 18 hours and appears fine. Resiliency is wasted on the young.  Don't kid yourself though, we were beyond thankful that he was feeling better so quickly. Usually when he's sick, he's extra snuggly and restful. This time he was angry and fought us tooth and nail on everything. Everything. Exhausting, so yes, we were glad to see him playing happily Monday morning. :)

Twisty slide

This video was taken the afternoon of November 17th.  Mama had a bridal shower to attend so Daddy and Henry took a trip to the park.  Henry loves the "twisty slide" and has just recently started going down it himself.  I love the giggling like a goon in the end. He loves to slide!

The counting makes me smile, not only because he does it but how does it. At home each night before bed, he and Mike race each other down the hall to his bedroom.  He counts "One, two, GO!"  Never gets to "three" before tearing off down the hallway. Funny how he knows how to cheat at racing at the ripe age of two!

New stuff

Lots of exciting stuff has been going on around here. Some good, some not so much, but we've made it through worse before and we'll come out stronger in the end. 

The good stuff: We added a new family member last week. Her name is Lucy and she's a 6 month old Chihuahua.  She's the sweetest little thing and a ball of energy.  Kiki hasn't paid her much attention but she's so laid back anyway that we figured she wouldn't care. Lucy wants to play with her but Kiki just looks at her and then lays down. Lazy bones!   I was a little nervous to add a puppy to the mix but she's (mostly)  house-broken and sleeps through the night so it was a little easier than bringing a young puppy home.  Henry loves her to pieces and will tell her "It's ok, Woosy! Don't cwy!" He always asks about her and Kiki; it's great seeing him love the dogs the way we do. Lucy thinks Henry is pretty awesome too but that might be because he's small enough to get kisses from without much effort.  We are very happy to have Lucy as a part of our family and look forward to a lifetime of companionship, love and fun with her.

Rotten!

 Kiki said as long as she still has some of Mama's lap, she's ok sharing it

Proof she will snuggle with anyone. Just kiddin', Henry. You two are such wiggle worms that I'm still surprised I got this pic.

In other news, last month we decided to make the switch from private, in-home care to a daycare.  Although the decision to move was extremely hard, (we love our Nanny and miss her dearly), actually making the transition was easier on Henry than we thought it would be.  He is doing really great with the structure and new routine. Each day they do "specials" including art, Bible, fitness, music and Spanish (Mike joked, "He barely knows English!") as well as daily outside play time.  There are 12 other kids in his class so he has lots of playmates, one is also a sweet friend of our family and member of our church as well.  The teachers are so sweet with him and seeing his happy face when I pick him up is a very welcome event as a working mom. When I went in to pick him up today, I noticed a note in his cubby, figuring he needed diapers or a change of clothes.  I was overwhelmed with joy, pride and peace when I read this little note.

Yep, definitely an answered prayer or one hundred!

So, that's a quick little update on what's going on with us.  We have lots on the horizon with birthdays, Thanksgiving, Christmas and even a wedding.  Oh and I have something fun planned for Saturday. If the weather holds out, I'll have more to share later. :)

Mike is watching the election coverage, it's still extremely close in the presidential race, but I think this Mama is gonna start winding down for the night.  Night!

Flashback Friday - Halloween 2010

Halloween 2010 was my favorite Halloween to date.  It was also Henry's first Halloween and the first time I saw the little puppy dog costume, I knew I had to put Henry in it. 

he had to wear a bib to keep his costume dry

Sitting up like a big boy!

Love that sweet little face!

 

 

Fire House Open House

The City hosted their annual fire station Open House today and we figured this event would be right up Henry's alley. The child LOVED IT!  There were fire trucks, an ambulance, Care Flight helicopter, the dive squad (which Henry calls the fire boat), fire safety house and even the search and rescue dogs were out.  They had a finger printing station where we got Henry his first ID card.  After that, he got a snack and we went out to watch an extrication. They talked about how the jaws of life work and high level fire rescue.  Very educational!

He really enjoyed watching the helicopter. Tonight he told us, "I was 'fraid of the helicopter. It was loud and went up in the sky!"

This is Mr. Jeremy. He's a friend of ours from church and he's also stationed about a block from our house. Every time we hear the sirens we say "Pray for Mr. Jeremy!"  Henry is always asking about Mr. Jeremy and his firetruck.

It was nuts watching this. I had chill bumps for the few minutes while I was watching, had to remind myself that this wasn't a real crash. Scary if you let your imagination run, ya know?

Henry was fascinated with the cars and "the accident". 

It took them less than 15 minutes to do this extrication.  Definitely heroes in action!

Henry pointing to the search dogs outside of the fire safety house.

And what he's waited his whole life for.....

He was grinning ear to ear, looks at Mike and says "I need my fire hat!"

And of course he had to touch every little thing!!

 

This one was taken earlier tonight to show that he kept up with his fire hat all day.  When we put him to bed tonight, he insisted that it go to nigh' nigh' too. I have a feeling we scored a home run with him today. Such an awesome thing to see your little boy so happy!

Flashback Friday - cousins

I was looking through old pics and stumbled on these. I forgot about these pictures, but so glad I have them. I remember that night, laughing hysterically at the babies' facial expressions. It's funny how a handful of pictures can cause the memories to flood back in.  It's also sweet to see how chunky and bald they were. :)

every. single. time.

 

Livie is thinking "Hey, look at these!" and Henry is probably thinking "What are you playing with? I want those!"

You can also read the blog post from two years ago: cousins

A letter to Henry - 2.5 years old

Henry, you are officially 2 and a half. I can't believe it yet it seems like you've always been a part of our lives.

You have the sweetest heart, most of the time. You've recently started telling us "Be bareful" (careful) and "I help you." You love to help when I do your laundry and you're good about picking up your toys when asked. You have recently taken interest in feeding Kiki. She loves that you help her out as you usually over-serve her. :) 

You love dress up and pretend.  I can't tell you how many pictures your Nanny has sent me of you in a "pretty dress" or what you call Izzy's tutus. I know you will hate me for this someday, but I think it's precious that you don't have a care in the world when you're playing pretend.  You love to dance with your whole body which makes us laugh and smile.

playing in Izzy's black sparkly tutu

you love dancing to the Hot Dog Dance

 

Despite playing in tutus, you are very much ALL BOY! You think it's hilarious to burp or toot and broadcast that you have to anyone in earshot.  You love to climb on the furniture or at the park. You're very much into sports and your favorite is baseball.  Football season started last month and you've taken interest, but you're not sure why Daddy screams at the tv when he watches. The secret buddy, we're Cowboys fans in this house which results in lots of screaming during the game.  I know your Daddy is really looking forward to teaching you about the game when you're a little older. You love motorsports from dirt track racing to NASCAR to drag racing and even dirt bike racing.

playing with a football

You love putting your Little People in your dragster

Cheering on cousin Emma at her softball game "Go baseball, go!"

You love going to church every Sunday and have lots of little friends in Sunday School. You know the story of Jonah and the whale and that Jesus loves you. Your Daddy and I love seeing you learn and grow in Him.

We took you to the doctor a few days ago for a nasty virus and you weighed about 27 pounds. You're still a little on the short side compared to your friends at church, but you've recently had a growth spurt.  Your shorts hit the middle of your calves when the summer started, but now they hit right at the knee.  This might explain your marathon nap times and ever growing appetite. Granted sometimes you are too busy to eat, but other nights you'll put down 8 chicken nuggets, grapes and a couple of glasses of milk.


Some days you test our patience and just when we're ready to throw in the towel and put you to bed, you turn on your charm and go back to being incredibly sweet. Your sense of humor and naive way of looking at the world around you are the perfect reminders of how blessed we are. Your Daddy and I love you to the moon and back and are so blessed to be your parents.

Flashback Friday - tater salad

I almost missed FF this week! I'm in a bit of a blogging funk as the sickies have hit our house.  It's always something, I tell ya.

This edition goes back to January 2011 when Henry was 9 months old. We were at my parents' house for family dinner. Ge-Gee made her delicious potato salad to accompany dinner and Henry was curious so we let him have a bite.

First bite

 

Not chewing, just thinking

 

I think his face says it all. 

 

Of course the little goober went back for round 2 and kept on going.  I think it was just too much pickle at first, but he eventually grew to love it and will eat nothing but potato salad if he sees that it's an option. 



Flashback Friday - laughter

Most nights can get a little rowdy around here.  Both Mike and I come from loud families so it's only natural that our house be loud too.  One of my favorite sounds is laughter and I especially love baby laughter. 

 

August 2011 - Henry 16 months

I vividly remember this moment taking place and I am so thankful I got it on video so I can watch it whenever I want. I love Mike and Henry more than anything in this world and seeing the two of them belly laugh and have fun makes everything right in my world.

Tone Deaf Tuesday

Yesterday was Nanny's birthday so Henry wanted to sing her a song.  It kinda resembles "Happy Birthday, to you!" :)

 

 

 

Not sure where that amazing singing ability came from. Ha!

Happenings with Henry

Henry is quite the little talker. I was a chatty kid (and still am as an adult) and his Daddy told me that he had to be moved around in the classroom as a kid because he talked too much. Henry comes by it honestly.   His vocabulary is expanding daily and while I know he's not an over-achiever going above and beyond his peers, it makes me laugh to hear what he says sometimes.  He told me the other day "Mama, I need go bye-bye." So I asked him why and he said "To get money." Mike and I smiled at each other and he asked him "Why do you need to get money?"  Henry looked him straight in the face and said with all seriousness, "I need to get gas!" We of course felt like we had stepped 15 years into the future. Funniest, most random thing. One morning while getting ready for work, he asked me if he could "Help Mama drive?" I told him "No thank you. You need to ride in your car seat. Mama will drive."  He accepted that and moved on, getting his stuff ready to leave. When I took him out to the car and picked him up to put him in his seat, he made one last plea "I help Mama drive?" from the sweetest little voice. I smiled and told him that I needed him to help me find the school bus (we see several every morning) and long gone was the hope to help Mama drive.  Love that sweet boy!   He is also learning his letters and recognizes the letters A, B and C. He gets most of the alphabet song and can count to 20, but continously skips 6 and sometimes 8.  Who needs those numbers anyway?!

He loves going to church on Sunday mornings and adores his Sunday School teachers. He has a few little life-long buddies in his class that he loves to play with.  The early service teacher moved to another class so starting tomorrow, Mama and another lady will be the 9:30 teachers. I'm looking forward to teaching the little guys, but a little anxious on how Henry will do with me in there.  That whole thing about your kid being an angel for other people but a monster for the parents is totally true for Henry.  I think he will do good though, especially since it won't be just me in there. Anyway, Mike and I are so happy that he's learning about Jesus and the Bible.  A quick funny, he told me "Donah is in timeout!" referring to the story of Jonah and the whale. Yes, I guess God was putting Jonah in timeout. :)

He's appreciative when someone gives him something new. Papa went on a business trip and brought him back some little cars. You would have thought he gave him all the chocolate milk in the world he was so happy.  He kept saying "Tank you, Papa! Tank you!" He carried all 6 cars around for several days after that and if one would fall from his grip, he called it by name, "My ice cream truck!" He loves those little cars.  He loves to say "Tank you!"  He will say it at least twice when you hand him his milk cup in the morning, or put him in his car seat or hand him one of his toys. We're working on other manners, but he definitely has his "Please" and "Thank you!" down.

Unfortunately, Henry is still painfully stubborn. If it's not his idea, he's not going to do it. Well unless Mama or Daddy is more stubborn anyway. He has to be tricked into doing things that he doesn't want to. Like cutting his hair, for example. He hates it so with a little bribery in the form of a sucker and handing him a mirror, he usually caves and lets you do it. Of course there's lots of squirming and wincing but usually you can get it done.

He is OBSESSED with cars, trucks, ambulances, buses, trash trucks, helicopter, airplanes, tractors, trains, you name it, if it goes, he loves it! He has different noises for each type of transportation and will tell you where they're going too.  We taught him the other day that trash trucks go to the dump. On the way home one night he said "That trash trucks is goin' to da dump!" Yep, that's right!   We went out and bought a few things to convert his room into a "garage" (I'll post pics when we're done).  We even bought an antique-looking firetruck for his dresser.  The first thing he did was put a flashlight on the side and load up his smaller cars on the deck. So funny to watch him play pretend. I can't wait to see his room all pulled together.

Henry is still a great sleeper and several nights a week will ask or tell us that he needs to go to bed. He's on a pretty good routine during the week, but we let him stay up until he turns into a pumpkin (or brat!) on the weekends. He's extremely selective as to what goes in the crib with him. Right now, his Granny (Ruby) is 2 for 2 with Buster Bear and his Bart Simpson doll. He also has "Rowdies" which is a pillow pet, a light up turtle and his seahorse that plays music. Tonight he did let his new firetruck go to bed with him, but I have a feeling tomorrow night it will get the boot. I also have a feeling that he will have more crap in the bed with him when we convert him from the crib to a bed.  I know, most kids his age are in beds, but I'm not sure I'm ready to give up good sleeping habits yet.  And who knows, he might not get out of his bed, but why chance it? :)

He loves music and dancing. He has zero talent in either of these things but it's beyond adorable to see him dance and sing. His a typical oldest/only child who LOVES to show off. Of course, that is if he's not being bashful. For the most part though, he's quite the little performer. We taught him how to "show his muscles" and that is always good for a laugh. It looks like he's pooping, which I'm sure he will appreciate me telling you when he's older.  I love you, little buddy!

Flashback Friday - Eileen

So last week I did a post to tribute Brock, but the next sweet baby in our lives was Eileen.  I grew up always having a pet, either a cat or a dog, mostly both, so when Brock passed away, I knew the house would only feel lonely until we welcomed another furbaby into our family.  We contacted LBR and started the process to adopt a Boxer in need of his or her forever home.  We met Eileen and I was instantly in love.

She came hopping in our house like she owned the place, even jumped up on the couch like she belonged there. She spent the next nearly 2 and a half years chilling on the couch. She was crazy rotten and madly in love with her Daddy.  She loved Mike and only put up with me because I fed her and helped get her fat butt in the bed. 

She had the sweetest disposition of any dog I've ever met. She loved everyone and was always so kind and gentle. I think the only inappropriate love she ever had was for cats and I honestly think she would have hurt one had she gotten the chance.  She wouldn't have meant to of course, but sometimes excitement for the unknown can bring out the worst in people. :)

While we don't know all of her backstory, we assume she was a mother at some point in her life as she was extremely maternal.  I really think if we would have let her in the box, she would have nursed those ducklings.  One Sunday afternoon, she got up on the couch next to me and snuggled up as close as she could, her head in my lap. She had been with us for over 3 months and had never insisted to be this close to me (Mike was always her favorite). Mike smiled and said "She's telling me that you're pregnant." Sure enough, a few days later, we found out that we were pregnant with Henry. She spent the next 8 months following every move I made and was my sidekick when I went on bedrest. She herded me like sheep, watching me constantly.

This is a video of when we brought Henry home for the first time. Ignore the hokey Mama voice, wish I could mute myself sometimes. Anyway, she was very interested in him and couldn't give him enough kisses. There were several times that first week or two we had to gently scold her and remind her that he was not to be bathed every hour.

 

 

Mama Bear, Sister

Eileen loved Henry from the very first day and in true mother form, she followed close by those first few days, making sure we were taking care of her baby.  If she heard him cry on the monitor, she was the first to jump up and head towards his room.  She loved getting on the floor to play with Henry and was always very patient with him.  I'm sad that Henry won't remember her, but I cherish the videos, pictures and memories we have of her.  I think of her every time I hear Dexys Midnight Runners "Come on Eileen" and "She's a Lady" by Tom Jones.  That one may seem random, but Mike always sang it after Eileen belched or farted. She was a gassy, nasty thing!

Lean Butt Bean Butt

Dumb Face

We miss you sweet lady!

Stay-cation Summer 2012

Mike and I took a couple of days off work (earlier this month) and had a little stay-cation with Henry. The original object of the game was to stay hunkered down in the house for 4 days and potty train Henry.  Well, that lasted less than 2 hours and we decided he just wasn't ready. Sidenote: he peed while watching tv and didn't even move a muscle. He either doesn't get the cues yet or was totally in to his episode Thomas the Train.  So while attempt #1 was a fail, he will be ready when he's ready.

Anyway, we knew we needed to find some fun stuff to do to keep ourselves entertained. Monday after a nice morning of sleeping in, the 3 of us ventured out to a local park so Henry could run off some energy. The little people watcher enjoyed watching all of the kids run everywhere, he got some climbing, swinging and sliding in.  After that, we picked up some lunch and headed back to the house for nap. Heavenly!!   After Henry went to bed that night, Mike and I watched a movie and enjoyed the quiet time.

Tuesday, day 2 of sleeping-in complete, we loaded up and headed to the Dallas World Aquarium.  Apparently we had the same idea as 800 other people so it was a little hard to stand and enjoy the animals. Another challenge - Henry.  He saw other kids running around like maniacs and wanted to join the fun. He's too young to remember the trip, but it's one Mike and I won't soon forget.  Let's just say, the trip lasted right at an hour and then we booked it out of there.  Maybe next year.

We did get to see some neat sea critters though!  I thought it was really neat that this species of crab is gentle in nature and that it attaches "sponges and smaller animals to their shells to divert predators."  Kinda like saying "Here, I'll hide behind you!"

Crab legs anyone?

Henry thought the crabs were pretty cool, but he wouldn't take his eyes off him when I wanted a picture.  He didn't trust the glass to protect him. :)

Looking for Nemo

There was an outdoor penguin exhibit that was really neat!  Little random fact, penguins lose 1/3 or more of their body weight during nesting season.  Definitely want to be a penguin in the next life.

I'll have to admit, these were quite a bit smaller than I thought they would be. I was thinking 3 or 4 feet tall but they maybe squeaked in at 2 feet tall.

Henry really enjoyed seeing the penguins and loved the outdoor exhibit.

He spotted a waterfall or as he calls it "water falls down!"

On our way out, we saw "wizzards" and "dey are distusting!" 

 

So while the trip might have been a little less than enjoyable, we will definitely make future trips when he's a little older and can enjoy it more.

 

More importantly, we enjoyed our time at home just resting and taking it easy. We had lots of laughs and loved being together.  Definitely looking forward to the next one!