Something I've thought about lots when I consider what to write in this blog is what to write about. Ha, ok that is a "duh" sentence if I've ever heard one, but let me explain. I think it's important when you have kids to remember yourself. I don't know if I can fully expand on this, but I'll try...
I think in order to give my kids the best parenting possible, it's important to give them the best of me. Remembering my dreams and passions, and indulging in what I enjoy every now and then. I do not mean doing these things at the expense of my son, but instead in the times that allow so that I can continue to grow personally and offer the best of myself back. Does that make sense?
That being said, I'm not always sure what to blog about...do I write updates about Tyler every week? Do I keep him out of it and maintain this as "my" space? I really don't think either one of those options are wrong...but I've decided that when I write here, it's more of a place for me to process and write my thoughts.
Does what I'm trying to tie together make any sense? Anyway, I digress...
What I really do want to do today is reflect on Tyler. He is...the best part of my day. Every day. He mimics everything these days. I am constantly surprised by which of my actions he picks up on and attempts to replicate - for example, trying to put toothpaste on a toothbrush. Or the other day when he grabbed Mitch's lunch bag and his keys, dragged them both to the front door, and waved goodbye to us as if he was going to work. He gives me kisses almost every time I ask for them, and even sometimes when I don't. And he has turned into a snuggler! I can't express how happy this makes me. When it's nap time or bed time I will pick him up and he wraps his little arms around my neck and puts his head on my shoulders. Pure bliss.
He points at absolutely everything and asks "DAT?!", and will ask this over and over again as we attempt to name everything he points at. He is working hard at matching my determined side and is becoming quite the finicky eater. He will pick up whatever he doesn't want, look me square in the eye, hold the food hostage over the side of his high chair, aaaand....drop. So intentional and SO irritating. In a cute way.
His favorite way of playing is to be chased and will giggle incessantly as we run around the house. He always wants to get caught though and will often run right at me, waiting to be tickled. He has developed such a special bond with our family members, and each one is different and significant in their own ways. He kisses my computer screen over and over when he sees his Auntie Jeana via skype. He growls "papa" as the name for both of his grandpas, and throws a temper tantrum if we try to take him away from his uncles (who he refers to as ca-ca). From the moment he gets up in the morning to when we go to bed he asks over and over for doo-wamma (grandmas) and always wants to look out the window just in case they might be coming over to play. He runs to his Auntie Holly when he sees her and refuses to let go. He has so many wonderful people in his life who love him.
I just could not have imagined myself happier than I am now as a mother. Tyler blesses me daily by his sweetness. Praise the Lord for his goodness and faithfulness, and for knowing the desires of our hearts.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Spinning Positive
Haven't said much about the house lately...mostly because I really don't even know where to start. If you ever build, I will give you one piece of advice: get. a. good. draftsperson. We did not, and have been dealing with consequences on a daily basis. This whole process has been a rollercoaster of stress and excitement. Thankfully our framing is almost finished which means that most of our structural stress will be over and we can now just work on finishing the interior. I look forward to the day I stop hearing "Who did these plans? Are you sure they knew what they were doing?".
We walked through the house again last night and I am starting to get SO excited about the potential. We have craaaaazy high ceilings (which we didn't mean to, but it's never a bad thing!) so the house feels huge-er than it already is. We ended up with a very large entry way (which we also didn't mean to) and will have really wide stairs going up and down (building a bi level). While this is somewhat of a waste of space, it will really make the entry way look nice. I'm so excited about my kitchen I can hardly stand it. I look at our cabinet drawings almost every single day.
I love thinking about the potential and the future of this house. I love looking at it knowing that, Lord willing, this is where we will raise our kids. The park across the street is where they'll play and skin their knees and learn how to ride bikes. I love knowing that good friends are close enough to walk over to when I need a cup of sugar or a cup of coffee. I love knowing that at the end of this, our hard work WILL pay off and we will have a beautiful home.
On a slightly different, but very related topic, something that has changed our lives significantly is Mitch's job. Wow. The value of having a husband who love his job is indescribable. He comes home happy almost every day, and it's so cool watching him become empowered and able to accomplish things he never thought he could. It's been pretty awesome timing having him start apprenticing as an electrician as we're building our house because he is learning tons about building processes and coming home with tips and ideas all the time. I honestly think that this job factor is part of the reason we've been surviving our house endeavor. I watch my husband grow in confidence and assurance and is become a man who is handier than I ever dreamed. He feels capable of attempting tasks he wouldn't have before, and has an "I could totally figure this out" attitude. While he did have some of this before, this new job has encouraged him to step out in so many more ways. Praise God for a place that makes my husband happy.
We walked through the house again last night and I am starting to get SO excited about the potential. We have craaaaazy high ceilings (which we didn't mean to, but it's never a bad thing!) so the house feels huge-er than it already is. We ended up with a very large entry way (which we also didn't mean to) and will have really wide stairs going up and down (building a bi level). While this is somewhat of a waste of space, it will really make the entry way look nice. I'm so excited about my kitchen I can hardly stand it. I look at our cabinet drawings almost every single day.
I love thinking about the potential and the future of this house. I love looking at it knowing that, Lord willing, this is where we will raise our kids. The park across the street is where they'll play and skin their knees and learn how to ride bikes. I love knowing that good friends are close enough to walk over to when I need a cup of sugar or a cup of coffee. I love knowing that at the end of this, our hard work WILL pay off and we will have a beautiful home.
On a slightly different, but very related topic, something that has changed our lives significantly is Mitch's job. Wow. The value of having a husband who love his job is indescribable. He comes home happy almost every day, and it's so cool watching him become empowered and able to accomplish things he never thought he could. It's been pretty awesome timing having him start apprenticing as an electrician as we're building our house because he is learning tons about building processes and coming home with tips and ideas all the time. I honestly think that this job factor is part of the reason we've been surviving our house endeavor. I watch my husband grow in confidence and assurance and is become a man who is handier than I ever dreamed. He feels capable of attempting tasks he wouldn't have before, and has an "I could totally figure this out" attitude. While he did have some of this before, this new job has encouraged him to step out in so many more ways. Praise God for a place that makes my husband happy.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Sign my waiver?
So my sister blogged the other day about how it would be such a good idea to have someone sign a waiver before travelling with her. This way there would be no surprises, you could avoid conflict, and have a signature to promise that this they'll stick with you. It may be said in jest, but I love it!
It got me to thinking...if I had a waiver form that had to be signed in order to become one of my good friends, it would probably say something like this:
"I, ________, being of sound mind, though not required to be so, especially since Josie is not always as such, do agree to friendship under the following terms:
I will answer my phone as many times as she calls, and happily answer the same question she just asked me half an hour ago and has forgotten the answer to. I will overlook the messy house, believing in good faith that the kitchen may be a disaster, but the cookies baking will taste great. I will eat her cooking confidently, knowing that she would never have put that sticky tack in the soup on purpose and will never do it again. I will encourage her in what she is passionate about, even though this may seem to be every single little small thing at any given time. I will be okay with it when she changes her mind up to six times in one day, though anything over and above that number can be either laughed at or challenged. I will hold her accountable to unnecessary stress and remind her to be nice.I will let her son marry my daughter if I have one I will love her children.
I think that about covers it! What would your waiver say?
It got me to thinking...if I had a waiver form that had to be signed in order to become one of my good friends, it would probably say something like this:
"I, ________, being of sound mind, though not required to be so, especially since Josie is not always as such, do agree to friendship under the following terms:
I will answer my phone as many times as she calls, and happily answer the same question she just asked me half an hour ago and has forgotten the answer to. I will overlook the messy house, believing in good faith that the kitchen may be a disaster, but the cookies baking will taste great. I will eat her cooking confidently, knowing that she would never have put that sticky tack in the soup on purpose and will never do it again. I will encourage her in what she is passionate about, even though this may seem to be every single little small thing at any given time. I will be okay with it when she changes her mind up to six times in one day, though anything over and above that number can be either laughed at or challenged. I will hold her accountable to unnecessary stress and remind her to be nice.
I think that about covers it! What would your waiver say?
Sunday, July 3, 2011
July Long
Possibly my favorite tradition of all time is our July long weekend tradition of going up with our good friends to their cabin on the lake. We go up there for other weekends as well, but there's something special about our July long trip. As Dom and I carried our boys to the boat on Saturday I couldn't help thinking back to our previous trips and how things have changed. Our first year was completely childless. Our second year I was barely pregnant and told our friends our news that very weekend. The third year Dom and Jen were both pregnant and I had a baby with me. This year, Tyler has a buddy to play with at the lake. We have two mobile boys that we get to share this experience with and it is SO much fun.
A thought went through my mind fleetingly as we drove up to the cabin this year that I was slightly worried about now that we have kids, it might not be as much fun up there. What a lame thing for me to think...it just gets better with kids. Watching Tyler experience the lake, the boat, the bugs, the sand...so cool. Just for fun, here's a look back at the last 4 years and how things have changed.
2008:
2009:
2010:
2011:
A thought went through my mind fleetingly as we drove up to the cabin this year that I was slightly worried about now that we have kids, it might not be as much fun up there. What a lame thing for me to think...it just gets better with kids. Watching Tyler experience the lake, the boat, the bugs, the sand...so cool. Just for fun, here's a look back at the last 4 years and how things have changed.
2008:
2009:
2010:
2011:
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