November-December Recap

Oh my goodness so much as changed in the last month. It seems suddenly Ethan hit 8 months and decided it was time to grow up.
- he has his first two teeth
- he is crawling EVERYWHERE and FAST!
- he is pulling himself up on anything he can reach (which lends itself to bruises all over his sweet little body!)

We had Thanksgiving at my moms. It was so fun to have most of the family together. Ethan had a great time in his walker going in between everyones legs.




Holidays with a baby certainly is different. No sitting down to rest- but a million times more fun.
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Right after Thanksgiving we went to Ft Worth to celebrate John and Jeffs 30! I love having the 8 of us together- especially for doing something different. We headed to the art museums, then bowling and then dinner! john got a family Bible written in arabic- best birthday present EVER!





And then last week we celebrating the beginning of christmas with a trip to Heritage for a night with the Vicks. We don't want to push it too hard- but seriously Caroline and Ethan would be the cutest couple EVER!!



I am behind blogging- as this weekend is CHRISTMAS! I will have tons to share after this weekend. I am so excited about Ethans first Christmas,even though he doesn't get it yet. He is certainly of an age where he can show when he's happy- and he is certainly happy with new toys! =)

Weekend in Pictures

Bryan and I headed to New Orleans for Marc and Allison's wedding! It was beautiful and so fun to be out of town with some of our best friends. And, with that came a mini-vacation for Ethan. He stayed at Moke and Diesels house.

Bryan and the Bride.. making fun of her red hair AGAIN I presume.


Bob and Bryan and their mini-versions!


James and Bry


Working outside with Diesel


MY FAVORITE- the boys in the morning!

Learning some piano with Moke


Visiting Nanu, Michelle and Buttercup


Bathtime in the sink


Visiting the baby in the mirror

7 months- the most fun by far!

I think 7 month olds are my favorite so far. He can entertain himself, he is alert, funny, his personality is showing. LOVE EVERY DAY WITH THIS GUY!

Ethan's stats
- Love ALL FOOD. He doesnt seem to know he doesn't have teeth. Pizza, crackers, chicken, raw vegtables... anything you are eating- he wants them!
- We are working on the sippy cup- but he wants nothing to do with it.
- He LOVES Mothers Day Out and their friends.
- We go to the arboretum almost every week, and he loves walks anywhere!
- He and Jake are best friends.
- He is learning to crawl- so far its a one knee in front of the other and then flat on his tummy. Its time to start baby proofing the house- we have already gotten into the PS3, dog food/water, dog toys, mommy's scrapbooks, and the remote controls.
- We love going to Moke and Diesel's house.
We love watching Wonder Pets with Daddy and Jake at night...

We had our first halloween...



We have Thursday morning playdates with our best buddies Bridgette and Aiden...

50/50

There has been a lot going on around the Head house lately. With this weather we are head over to the Arboretum just about every week. Having a membership during this past summer was useless- but with the weather cooling down and with the pumpkins out its PERFECT!

Bryan and I are also going through a time of prayer and relying on the Lord. We wanted 2 children for a very long time, but its been very clear that my body HATES being pregnant. After this months appointment with my doctor we found out that we have a 50/50 chance of preeclampsia and HELPP syndrome returning (if I can even get pregnant again!).

The consequences of getting it again? Premature baby, stroke, death (for me or baby). No big deal huh? With that news Bryan and I have certainly had some lenghly conversations. When it comes down to it this is what I know for sure. God tells me not to fear! In fact its the phrase most used in scripture. HOWEVER- he also gave us a brain and asks that we be WISE.

I want a sibling for this little man- but do I risk losing another baby? Do I risk leaving Ethan without a mother, Bryan without a wife or being dependent on them for everything? Everyone would chose something else. Everyone in my position would have their own lengthly list of reasons to try or not to try. But we...

... are going to leave this up to God. I don't think my family is complete. But what I think and what God thinks are two radically different things. We will try- we will pray-and then we will release it. God knows what is best and he will protect our family. Selfishly I hope that means having a sibling for Ethan. I would love two little rugrats around here.

But I am reminded of 1 Thessalonians 5:18 " Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." So we will be thankful. ALWAYS!
In the meantime little E is keeping us busy. He is moving as much as he can and my guess will be going from scooting to crawling in the next few weeks. Time to baby proof!

6 months

6 months already? We weren't sure we were going to get past the first 6 days! What a blessing this little man is!
He is sitting up, talking like crazy, loving MDO, and eating anything he can get his hands on. Sounds a lot like daddy!

Balancing Act

I am not so good at this balancing act of working mom. Not at all. As soon as I think I have it down I realize I have completely neglected some part of my life.

I love my job. God really has put me an amazing job. I am humbled that I God put me in a position that allows God to speak through me to teens. The issue? I LOVE MY KIDS! I adore each of my students and want to walk side by side with them. I want to go to EVERY game, do one-on-one discipleship, grab coffee, go take lunch to them at school, teach Bible Study and Sunday School, have 3 yearly mission trips. BUT thats just not possible. We have so many amazing students that yearn for community and I am trying my best to do waht I can- but honestly somedays I FAIL!



And then God gave me the amazing blessing of being Bryan's wife. He is THE MOST patient and understanding husband. Not growing up in the church he had no idea the hours a youth minister keeps. He never knew all the thing he would be dragged to early Saturday mornings, or the nights of take out since I was eating dinner with a student. I want to spend all my time with him. I want to make sure he has a great dinner waiting for him when he gets home. I want to make sure the house is cleaned and all his clothes are washed. But alas- sometimes I am short and snippy, and impatient, and put the students needs before his.


And then God gave us the miracle baby. Oh what a precious boy. And right now I am his world- he can't do anything without help.

I am so torn- I dont seem to balance well at all. I try to make sure everyones needs are met (at least the bare minumum but sometimes honestly that doesnt happen. How do working moms do it. 24 hours in the day doesn't seem like enough. Even now as I am writing this I am thinking that I should probobly be getting dinner ready or finding a service project for November, or writing a letter to a kid that has been having a hard time in school, or cleaning up the toys from the floor, or getting the laundry out of the dryer, or brainstorming on what to get my dad for his birthday. But all that makes me want to do is curl up in my pjs and go to bed. I AM SO RIDICULOUSLY thankful for all the blessings God has given me... an amazing job, amazing students, great friends, a loving husband, and a miracle baby- I just dont know how to juggle it all!

Firsts

This past month as been a month of firsts at our house. We survived our first lockin with a baby. Thats right- we are the crazy youth leaders that bring a baby to a youth lockin. We couldn't find anyone to keep him over night, but found a blessed soul that would keep him while Bryan and I took the high schoolers out for bowling and ice cream. So we picked him up at 11:30pm and put him to sleep in my office while we finished up our games of sardines,movies and Apples to Apples. After a whaping 30 minutes of sleep, I woke up to Ethan wining and ready for the day. YIKES!! The girls certainly loved having him around in the morning though.

Then we loaded up the car and headed on our first round of college visits. Apparently he is good for an hour and a half.. Which is how far I can go! :) he was a great traveler, the girls were happy to see him and great in hotel living!

5 months

Oh 5 months. Its such a fun age (except for this look how loud I can scream phase that I could do without most mornings and late nights). This month E is really catching up for lost time and there is no sign of premie in him anywhere.

We are playing in the Johnny Jump Up on a regular basis. We haven't got the "jumping" part down, but we just walk around in circles most times which is just as exciting... for everyone but the dogs!


We have started eating solids since he was taking in far too many calories with formula. This boy changes what he wants everyday. Somedays he LOVES his food and takes the spoon from me to eat. The next day he won't eat a thing. I am ready for something a little more consistant but this is a fun "play with your food" stage.


E started Mothers Day Out. Its a great way for him to learn to socialize and for me to get some work done at the office without any interuptions. His teachers are simply fabulous and the transition was so much easier than I thought. However, on meet the teacher night the kid starts screaming BLOODY MURDER and selfishly all I can think "OH NO! I want you teachers to like you!" I came in apologizing the first day of school and saying he is much better in the mornings than he is at night. And he is. However he is proving to be VERY Jekyl and Hide. He is happy and content, until he is not- and then he is NOT!!!


We have changed to sleeping about 8-9 hours a night. If I could just get that to be during normal hours that would be great. Until then I will be going to bed at 9pm.


I am loving every second of mommyhood. I love every second with him this little. I work with big kids and know that all too soon he will be one too. He will hate me, and talk about how lame I am to his friends. He will be embaressed to bring his friends home, and I will be a "horrible" parent because I make him come home at midnight. His shoes will stink and he will never make his bed- I am prepared and actually excited for all that too. But I know that all too soon this little muncher will be a big ol teenager- so I hold him more than I should- kiss him all the time- and spend every second with him that I possibly can.

When you gave a baby a spoon....

So the last 2 weeks we have been trying foods at the Head house. He was taking in far too many calories via the bottle so it was certainly time for soft foods. I did what my doctor and others suggested and started with rice cereal. Well that was a NO GO! He not only hated it , but would spit it back in my face when i tried. I tried oatmeal cereal- NO! I tried adding apple sauce and apple juice to either of those. NO! I did what is against all rules and added some rice to this bottle and he took that with no issues. So I thought- well what the heck.. I will go to veggies. HE LOVES THEM! This boy is certainly NOT his fathers child. At first he makes faces, but then helps me guide the spoon into his mouth for more.

Learning New Things

We are learning new things at the Head House. First we are working on the Bumbo... and doing so much better.



And then daddy has taught Ethan to hold the bottle (when there isnt much left in the bottle there is). Makes daddys night time duty a little easier.