8 months old

Our little boy is 8 months old today. Wow. He is such a joy. Christian melts my heart with his smile and his laughter. Every time I look at him, I just want to hug and kiss his sweet little face.

He is growing so fast. At nine months...

* Christian has started pulling up and even trying to let go and stand. He loves pulling up on my leg when I am trying to make dinner.

* Christian hates baby food. I try everyday to feed him rice cereal/oatmeal and a veggie. However, most of the time he wants nothing to do with it. Instead, he wants to eat what I am eating (steak and potatoes).

* Christian loves imitating Kayla. He tries to play keep away from me (just like Kayla plays keep away with him).

* Christian loves playing peek-a-boo.

*Christian loves music. Anytime he hears a beat he starts to dance. So Cute!!!

* Christian throws a royal tantrum if you take away a toy he wants.

* Christian hates getting his diaper changed. I have to sing to him in order to get him to stay still for a few seconds.

* Christian is a great sleeper (NOT!!!). He still wakes up at midnight for a feeding. Sometimes he will wake up a 3 am. I hope he starts sleeping through the night soon.

I am in trouble...

I am trying to break Kayla from needing a pacifier. So far, it has been a loosing battle. Tonight while winding down, Kayla asked for her paci. I explained that she was a big girl and did not need a pacifier. I then asked her if big girls used a paci. She replied sheepishly, "Yes." I then asked does Mommy have a paci. She replied with enthusiasm, "No!" I finally asked her if Mommy was a big girl or a baby. She then smiled real big and said, "A baby."

I am in trouble.....

Favorite Toy

For Christmas I spent hours trying to pick out the perfect gift for Christian. I searched high and low trying to figure out what he would like....to only have him bypass the toys and play with the boxes. Four weeks have passed since Christmas and he is still playing with the boxes.

No rest for Mommy...

Going on 7 nights and approximately 4 hours each night makes me a very tired Mommy. What is going on? My children were sleeping through the night or at least most of the night. Kayla was sleeping for 12 hour stretches. Christian would at least sleep for two 5 hour stretches. However, the two have ganged up on me this past week. Christian has decided to wake up and eat at 11:30, 12:30, 3:45, and finally at 7:15. Kayla decides that she is thirsty at 2:00 and that she cant sleep at 4:00. So, we turn a show for her to watch hoping she will fall back to sleep. At 4:45 she climbs into bed with me and wants to play. We get out of bed and put on Tinkerbell. Finally, the princess falls asleep at 5:45. So to say the least, I am tired.....I don't know how many more nights of this torture I can take. It would be different if I could sleep while they napping. However, Kayla has decided to drop her afternoon nap and Christian only take 45-60 minute naps. Even then, I don't think an hour nap will cure my need for sleep. It may actually make it worse. So, I am stuck walking around like a zombie until they both decide to go back to their normal sleeping patterns or until I finally pass out from exhaustion.

True joy

When you think of "joy", what do you picture? Many people imagine a giddy euphoria where your head is in the clouds and your feet are floating above the earth. They believe joy is about being excited,wound up and bursting with exuberance. Usually people look for joy in the external circumstances. They try to get things going the way they want in their world so then they can feel happy. Johnny cooperates. Liza cleans her room. Tommy gets good grades. These are external sources of pleasure, many of which believe will give you joy, yet you have no real control over them. I have realized that the place to find joy is in your heart. Joy is not a heady, out of body experience. Joy is the warm, grounded delight you feel deep inside. It's the hearing the laughter of your child, seeing your child's face light up with happiness, watching your child sleep peacefully and looking in your child's eyes and feeling the unspoken profound love,caring, trust and respect that we share for one another.

"So what's the source of my joy?" you ask....

Bringing in the new year

I wish I could say that our New Year's Eve was exciting and we stayed up late cheering in the new year. Instead, it was a safe and relaxing evening. Our intention was to pop some fireworks and ring in the new year with Kayla. However, we all were in bed before the clock struck twelve. Our New Year's Day was spent watching football, smoking a brisket, riding Opa's bike and finally popping some fireworks (thank you Opa for the fireworks). Kayla really had a good time New Year's Day. She got to spend some time with her Opa and help her daddy and him smoke a brisket. She also enjoyed watching me suffer as I pulled her around the subdivision on the bike (my body and butt are not use to riding a bike). After four separate trips around the subdivision, I had to call it quits. Kayla also watched with excitement as we popped the fireworks...nothing big, just sparklers and a few other simple fireworks.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Little Helper

Kayla helping me make muffins.

Kalya helping Jon with his store plans.

2009 : New Years Resolution

Ah, January 1st! Whatta day .... You get to indulge in black eyed peas and other goodies and promise yourself resolutions you might break by January 3rd! I know how everyone feels about New Years Resolutions ... You know, not keeping them and all. But did you make any? What goals do you have this year? Did you keep the one's you had last year? And if you did keep yours from last year, how did you do it?

Here's my resolutions:-
Become a better Christian!I plan to get more involved in my walk with Christ. I would like to start reading my Bible atleast 5 times a week if not everyday. This resolution is not just for me...my children as well.

Say something positive or uplifting to my husband everyday! With a two year old and an infant, it is easy to get caught in the day to day schedule of their lives. Then, you soon forget about yourself and the one that you fell in love with before the baby's crying and toddler running around in circles.

Loose weight and get in shape! I know, I know! That's everybody's resolution but I actually do plan on keeping this one because I just signed a one year contract to a gym to make sure I get fit.

Well, I hope that everyone has a wonderful new year.