My Princess and My Fella

I am so thankful for my little girl.  She is tiny in body, but not in spirit.  No day is ever a boring day when spent with Ella Beth.  She is on the go from the time she wakes up until the time she falls asleep.  Thank goodness we still get a nap in most days!  She amazes me at least once a day.  She doesn't forget anything.  (Which isn't always good for me..."Mommy, you said I could have a surprise if I put my sweater on nicely.  Remember that?!"  Good ol' bribery...coming back to bite me!)

So by now most of y'all know that I had Ella Beth's ears pierced, but I'll post it anyway. :)  Well, last Friday I took Ella Beth to her pediatrician's office to have her ears "medically pierced."  It was an experience!  She did great for most of it...most of it.  I truly believe that it didn't really hurt her at all because she never complained about it hurting, but the "pop" of the gun scared her.  I felt so bad after they did the first one (since it was done at the doctor's office they couldn't do both ears at the same time...bummer).  She cried and said, "I don't want to do the other one.  It scared me."  Well, we couldn't leave with only one ear pierced!  So, we bribed her with a sucker and the other ear was pierced.  Once the second ear was done she said, "Where's my sucker?"  That's my girl!  And, since leaving the doctor's office she has showed off her earrings to everyone.  She is so proud of them.

Here are a couple of pictures with her new studs.  Now, Ella Beth has tiny ear lobes and her diamond studs are tiny, too.  But, if you look closely you'll see what our princess loves to show off.

 

 

(Everyone told me that when Ella Beth turned two the "terribles" came with it.  No one told me, however, that when she turned two she would also turn into a wild child.  This, my friends, is Ella Beth's current smile.  Ask her to smile for a picture, and this is what you get!)

And, my little fella is 9 months old today.  Sniff, sniff.  I am so thankful for Landon, and how God chose to put him into my life.  He has to be the sweetest little fella ever!  He loves to snuggle...and I just eat it up!!!  He's so happy.  He has also mastered crawling.  He goes 0-60 in no time, and watching his little self crawl all around makes me smile endlessly!

 

 

Our Thanksgiving Thankful List:

Ella Beth: pre-school, Mommy, and Daddy

Landon: Mommy, Daddy, and his bottle

Scott: family, and how God has always watched over him and his familly

Amber: family, friends, and God's never ending love

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU!!!

7 Random things

I've been tagged by my friend JJ to come up with 7 random things about myself that you probably don't know.  Let's see how well I do.

1) My favorite word is "LOVELY."  I don't have a great explanation other than I just love it.  I save it for very special uses.  For example, hydrangeas (which are my favorite flowers) are always LOVELY to me. :)

2) I am terrified of scary movies.  I'm talking terrified to the point of tears.  I can't watch commercials that advertise upcoming movies on TV if they even look like they may be scary.  When I was in high school, I went to see Scream with my high school youth group.  After the killer asked Drew Barymore's character what her name was because he wanted to know who he was looking at, I buried my head in my youth minister's coat and didn't watch another second of the movie.  FYI: that scene was the very first scene in the entire movie!

3) One of my secret vices is sugary cereal.  I *heart* Lucky Charms, Coco Puffs, Cookie Crisp, and Honey Smacks.  Hey, they have to be better for me than donuts!

4) I am a clean freak locked inside the mother of two.  If I didn't have two children making constant messes, my house would be spotless.  I hate clutter, but am surrounded by it.  My desk downstairs is 100% horrifying because: a) I never have time to clean it, b) it's where everyone else (i.e. Scott) puts junk mail and our recycling magazines and newspapers, c) when I do have time to clean it, I'm way too tired and don't want to :)

5) I have always wanted a "pixie" haircut.  I am sure it would look absolutely horrible on me, and I am sure Scott would have a heart attack the moment I walked in the door...but, I'd still love to try one out.  Maybe I should buy a wig and tuck my hair up in it to see what it would look like!

6) I simply MUST get ready each morning.  I am not one of those people who can lounge around in their pjs all day and feel comfortable.  I must have a shower, dry my hair, and put on chapstick for any day to be successful.  I will (and do!) get up at 5:30 each morning just so that I have time to get ready before my kiddos wake up.  Yes, that sometimes includes Saturdays.  Scoff me if you must, but you wouldn't want my company otherwise!

7) I really don't enjoy being petite.  It's hard to shop for clothes and shoes; people think I'm much younger than I am...and treat me like it.  Most people think that being petite is "cute" - but cute gets old.

So here are the rules:

*Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

*Tell seven random facts about yourself on your blog

* Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs

*Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog

Ok - tag, you're it:

Ally
Angie
Ashley
Cherish
Karin
Kylie
Megan

Mr. Blue Eyes

8 months.

The bluest eyes I've ever seen.

The happiest little fella I've ever met.

Yep, this Mommy loves her boy!

How do you BOO?!

I have something to admit.  Halloween was more fun this year than I can ever remember.  Ella Beth was so excited and into everything.  She loved dressing up as Minnie Mouse, and she absolutely loved Landon as a little leopard. 

Landon playing at Kimberly's house:

All of the kiddos at Kimberly's.  None of them were much too happy about posing for this shot!

Our first Trick-or-Treater.  Brody lives next door; he and Ella Beth are big buds.

Mommy and Landon.

The kiddos in our family that we trick-or-treat with each year. We could barely keep Ella Beth still long enough to take a picture. You can see her excitement all over her face!

Landon with big cousin, Chess.

Ella Beth was so exited all night long. Her trick-or-treat buddy was Jordan, and they had a blast!

Jordan and her little sister, Kylie, "helping" Ella Beth. It's so sweet how the kiddos love Ella Beth and always make sure she is OK. :)

 

Ella Beth with cousin Kaitlin.

 

And a great shot with Mommy and Daddy!!!

 

Now, be honest...too many pictures for one post??? Hope you enjoyed them anyway!

My Vote

I have given up on trying not to offend others politically.  I am not a perfect person; I am not a perfect Christian.  But I am one who will stand up for what I believe in. 

There is nothing more that I believe in than life.  Life is given to all of us by our Heavenly Father - whether we call Him that, or not.  Eternal life is given to us by our Heavenly Father - it is simply ours to accept.

I have a friend that I grew up with.  He lived three houses down from me, we went to church together every Sunday, Sunday night, and Wednesday.  We hung out a lot.  We grew together in our spiritual journey, each trying to hold the other accountable.  It's so strange how views can change. 

My friend is "world traveled" as he calls it.  He has seen the animosity of the world.  He blames America's mentality for most of it.  To me, that's crazy.  I'll admit that I'm not "world traveled," but there are far too many people trying to get INTO America for me to believe that everyone hates us.  That being said, he keeps gently harassing me about my reasons for not voting for Obama.  This is what I finally put into words and sent him:

"Friend,"
I didn't watch it all (referring to Obama's 30-min campaign message on Wednesday night) because I am tired of the bologna this man throws
out there.  He sits in his high-class office and tries to relate to the
"struggling Americans."  Where is all of the money going that he has
"raised" to support his campaign?  Why not spread that wealth around? 
I'm tired of his radical liberal views being pushed to the side just
because people have been unhappy with the last president.  I have
examined Obama's record and have seen who he associates with, which is enough
to know that Americans can't trust this man to be our president.


I also can NOT put aside where this man stands on the issue of life. 
Life is given to us by our Heavenly Father from the moment of
conception.  When I went to my first appointments to confirm both of my
pregnancies with Ella Beth and Landon, they were no larger than a grain
of rice YET I COULD EASILY MAKE OUT THEIR HEARTBEATS. 


You don't know this, but when I was pregnant with Ella Beth the doctors
told us that Ella Beth had a 1:26 chance of being born with Down
Syndrome. (The "typical ration is 1:1000.)  We were given the option of
ending her life through abortion 20 weeks into my pregnancy.  There is
not a day that goes by that I don't think about that.  When I look at
my beautiful daughter - God's beautiful gift to Scott and me - I can't
believe that her life could have ended simply because of a "ratio."  Of
course, Ella Beth does not have Downs, but had we been given a 100%
confirmation that she would have been born with Downs - we would not
have done anything differently.  There is no more precious gift than
the gift of life.  That gift is one only God can give.  People have no
right to take that away.  I truly believe that people in authority
will be held to high standards by our Lord.  "From everyone who has
been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been
entrusted with much, much more will be asked." Luke 12:48  Obama has
been given a great gift of persuasion, but he is not using his gift to
profit the will of our Lord. 


There are things that I am unhappy with through our current
administration, but somethings - LIFE, TRUST, and HONOR - are far too
valuable to ever vote against.


Amber

Now it's your turn - what was your opinion?

I hope I haven't lost any "blurkers" (blog lurkers) or friends, but as they say...

YOU'VE GOT TO STAND FOR SOMETHING, OR YOU'LL FALL FOR ANYTHING.

My birthday is Tuesday...didn't you know?

Wow, I can't believe it's been so long since my last post. I don't have an excuse other than life's been busy, but that's always the case!

Let's see...where to start? First, how about some news that most people don't know about. I've been putting off posting anything about this, but I realized that it was prideful of me to do so. I've been so consumed with "not wanting to announce disappointment...again" that I've purposefully not shared. Well, no more pride - our house is under contract to sell. It's been a messy situation, but we should still be moving sometime in the near future. See if you can follow me here: the couple buying our house is from New Mexico. They have been living with their daughter and her family for the last three months. They love our house and put a contract on it a month ago; we were supposed to close on Halloween. Well, their house out in NM has been holding things up. The man buying their house is using inheritance money, and apparently with inheritance moo-lah there is a L-O-T of red tape. That being said, the contract on our house has been extended until Nov. 24. We have a contract on a house in a subdivision that is very nice, and we're hoping to call that home soon. I can barely contain my excitement at decorating a new house. :)

So, last week Ella Beth, Landon, and I went to the outlet mall to purchase a birthday gift. We were on our way back to the car when it started to rain. I was carrying Landon, carrying bags of clothes (and the gift that we really went for), and holding Ella Beth's hand. I was trying to hurry Ella Beth along when I heard her start making this "uh, uh, uh" noise. Figuring that she was just trying to keep up, I kept up my pace. All of a sudden there was a man walking towards us who just busted out laughing. I smiled at him and gave him a little "what's so funny look." He was so tickled he couldn't get any words out, so he just pointed. I realized that he was pointing at Ella Beth. When I looked down at her, I found that the reason she was "uh, uh, uh-ing" was because she was having hard time keeping up...due to the fact that HER PANTS WERE DOWN AROUND HER ANKLES!!! It was absolutely hilarious, and I just kissed Ella Beth all over for being such a good sport! Here is an unplanned reenactment while she was dancing in the playroom. (These jeans are size 12-18 months!)

 

We have been to a few birthday parties this last month. Ella Beth loved her birthday party (back in August); apparently, she loved her birthday so much she thinks she should have another. Lately, when people have asked her how old she is she says, "I'm two, and my birthday is on Tuesday." She cracks me up. She thinks she knows everything! She has been learning a lot at pre-school. She can't eat anything on her plate without counting it first. We have "circle time" a lot around the house. She sings constantly. She talks more than ever - which I really didn't think was possible! She is just so smart that it amazes me. If we teach her something once, she remembers it forever. The girl doesn't forget anything. The other day she laid down for a nap right after going to the potty. When she woke up from her nap the first words out of her mouth were, "I need to get an M&M, remember?! I tee-teed on the potty!" 3 hours later, and she made sure I hadn't forgotten!

Photography has been picking up quite a bit lately. I have really enjoyed meeting new families and capturing some precious (and fun!) pictures. I've been contemplating the purchase of a new lens, but it's very expensive. I'll just have to wait and see. Landon turns 8 months old tomorrow, so I will have some of my own sweet pictures to share. We are still working very hard on getting pictures of Ella Beth and Landon together. Man! I had no idea how hard it would be. Either we can't get Landon's attention, or Ella Beth can't keep her hands off of him long enough for him not to be pestered. One of these days I know I'll get one. Hopefully for Christmas cards at least!

How's your last month been?

The beginning of a new season

Or at least the beginning of a new month!  Goodbye, September.  Hello, October!!!

So...throughout the last month I had to make an extremely difficult decision.  It's one that I went back and forth on at least five different times.  It's one that was very emotional for me.  It's one that I have now accepted, and I have chosen to move forward with no regrets.

I am no longer nursing Landon. 

Wow, just reading those words brings up a few emotions.  Sigh. 

There were many different factors involved in my decision, but the top two were: 1) anesthesia and pain killers really do eliminate a mommy's milk supply; 2) Landon's reflux / milk protein allergy is very severe.  After my emergency surgery, nursing was not only painful, but it wasn't all that productive - leaving me with a very hungry and fussy little boy.  We started him on soy formula to supplement, but it turns out that Landon is allergic to soy.  Oh my word.  We went through 4 different times of formula until we found the correct (and very expensive) type that would work for his sensitive system.  Well, once he started getting full and satisfied with the formula, he did not want to nurse for full feedings any longer. 

I kept going back and forth between the decision to jack up my supply or let it go.  It was hard doing that.  I had to really sit down and work through the "issues" that I had with bottle feeding.  Of course, my biggest issue was that Ella Beth never had formula; it didn't seem fair that Landon should.  But, after really praying about it, I honestly know that I have made the best decision for Landon and me.  (That's despite the fact that I loathe washing bottles over and over!)

On another feeding note, Landon has finally, finally, finally started eating baby food!  Hooray!!!  I can't tell you how long it has taken us, but now we are enjoying watching him eat.  Right now he's enjoying oatmeal cereal, sweet potatoes, and applesauce. 

Well, Landon turned 7 months last week.  He's getting so big.  Moving around everywhere, sitting up and playing, saying "Mama" over and over (love it!), and laughing at himself all of the time.  Well, laughing at himself and his big sister.  She gets a kick out of making him laugh, too!  Having two this close is still difficult, but I can honestly say that if I had to do it again this is the way I'd do it.  They are about to enter into the stage of friendship, and I can't wait!!!

OK, so here are some cute pics I took of Landon to capture his 7th month. 

Wardrobe change!

And, just one naked shot.  My boy loves his birthday suit!

Here are a couple of pics that we took of Ella Beth in a field of sunflowers.  These sunflowers are amazing.  There are thousands of them in 7 separate fields that are close to my mom in Hartwell.  Nothing like God's beautiful creation to make life shine!

And this last picture causes my heart to skip.  Where has my baby girl gone?  Is there a pause button anywhere that I can press for just a little while?  I am once again reminded that I need to cherish every day with my babies.