It's hard to imagine that almost a full year has passed since my last post.  It has been a crazy, wonderful, life-changing year, and I couldn't be happier to be where I am now.  I don't intend to catch you up tonight though.  In fact I really should be taking advantage of this down time to accomplish a few time-sensitive Christmas tasks, but exhaustion has set in, and so here I am.

I really just wanted to wish you all (if any of you still stop by to visit) a most wonderful, blessed Christmas.  Much love to you, and hopefully I'll be back again soon.  Merry Christmas!

 Photo added April 21, 2013

I've been wanting to share so many fun things with you but also trying to wait until I could get all of my December photos in order, and that's taking a while now that I have my first kindle.  Yes, Brian is a sweetheart and gave me my top choice, the Kindle Fire, for Christmas.  I don't deserve him! Anyway, I love it, and I've been spending a lot of time on it.  In fact, I was going to use it to share this post with you, but I had some troubles using blogger within Amazon Silk (Amazon's own browser, which I otherwise love, for the most part).

I downloaded this song a day or two ago and have been listening to it while playing with my new toy.  I just love it; it's no secret that I'm a big fan of JJ Heller, but I only recently discovered my love for this particular song.  It so beautifully describes that wonderful love I came to know when I became a mother.  It's so simple and so true, and I can't help but share. (If there is already music playing, scroll down to the music player at the bottom of the page and pause playback.)

When I hold you

in my arms, Love

Something changes

It's the strangest feeling

The things that used to matter

They don't matter to me

When I see you

And you're smiling

How my heart aches

So full it is about to break

You make me believe in love

I could never count all the ways

That you change me, Baby

Every day the sky is a deeper shade of blue

When I'm with you

When I hear you, and you're crying

It resonates, Dear

In a place I didn't know was there

You make me believe in love

I could never count all the ways

That you change me, Baby

Every day the sky is a deeper shade of blue

When I'm with you

Beautiful Baby

You're sweeter than strawberry pie

Just like the morning

Your smile brings the sunshine

I could never count all the ways

That you change me, Baby

Every day the sky is a deeper shade of blue

When I'm with you

I could never count all the ways

That you change me, Baby

Every day the sky is a deeper shade of blue

When I'm with you

- When I'm With You by JJ Heller

♥

I'm having trouble choosing what to share from this holiday season; it overflowed with excitement and wonder.  The gears were in motion by Thanksgiving and never seemed to slow after that.  Thomas entertained us with his first violin concert, annual school holiday chorus concert, a spelling bee, tae kwon do promotional exam and separate ceremony; he and Gabe participated in the church Christmas pageant, I brought the boys to New Hampshire for one Christmas celebration and we all hosted Brian's family at our own home for another, I filled orders, mailed Christmas cards, ordered presents, baked cookies, breads, and pies, made Christmas candy, wrapped, cleaned, decorated... and then pretty much fell over flat by the time Christmas hit.  Was it all worth it? Absolutely.  Would I do it all again? You betcha.  Could I pretend to tell you I wasn't exhausted and next to completely useless during the whole week between Christmas and New Years? Not a chance!

Even narrowing it down to a few special memories is challenging this time around, though a couple of obvious things do stand out; first of all, Brian's family traveled all the way from Wisconsin and New York City to be here with us, and that was a special treat.  Usually our Christmas is a pretty quiet one, and while there are good things that go along with that, we always miss our extended family. Also, my father came out for a visit in early December and spent some quality time with all of us.  All the things the boys do are always special.  I will remember, in particular, my first time seeing Thomas perform on violin, as well as he and Gabe dressed up like a wise man and a lamb on Christmas Eve.

Something else, though, has etched its beautiful photograph in my mind, and it's something of a different sort.  Amidst all the chaos (yes, good, fun, healthy CHAOS), God blessed me this year through two amazing women. We all belong to the same online group where we share and bond with other Christian women.  In their incredible thoughtfulness and selflessness, they sent me twelve days of Christmas gifts as a random act of kindness. I was quite simply blown away.  From the book to the notes, the verses, and of course, the gifts, I wish to thank them (you) both from the bottom of my heart.  You have touched me in a way that will bring joy to me every Christmas as long as I live, and many times in between.  I cannot fully put into words what your generosity means to me.  THANK YOU!  God is alive in you in the most touching way.  May you be blessed abundantly!

Since I can't seem to choose from the other photos, please feel free to browse my December uploads on flickr.  I hope you had a wonderful, blessed Christmas, yourself. ♥

Merry Christmas!

I somehow ran out of Christmas cards this year, so I hope those of you who didn't receive one will accept this in its place; you were not forgotten! I hope your Christmas was a very blessed one. I know ours was; I will share photos and details soon. Much love to you this Christmas and always.

"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his Kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with Judgment and with Justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perfom this" -Isaiah 9:6-7

T-H-O-M-A-S

I guess all that reading has paid off; Thomas participated in the school spelling bee today, after succeeding through the first two rounds of competition and making it to the top of his class last week. Today's spelling bee was for fourth and fifth graders only (Thomas is in the fourth grade), but the winners will go on to compete with sixth, seventh, and eighth graders as well, and ultimately for a chance to win a trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, DC.

Thomas didn't make it past today's competition, but he did very well, making it through several rounds of words before misspelling "apron." He was one of 12 qualifying participants in today's spelling bee, out of a possible 111. I figure he'll be in a good position to try again next year. Way to go, Thomas!

Look who's 2!

Not to be lost amidst all the other happenings last month, my baby celebrated his second birthday. Plans changed a bit, so it was a quiet one at home with just us, but Logan sure had a blast, nonetheless.

Among my favorite memories have to be when he opened one of his presents from Grandma. He had been doing quite well with his potty training, and he and Gabe both love Toy Story (hence the shirt and toy pictured; he had just received both from Nana the day before), so she bought him some Toy Story underwear. He, however, had not yet tried underwear and didn't really get it. He opened up the present and was SO excited to see Buzz and Woody. He handed it to me and asked me to open it and read it. I chuckled and opened it, pulling out the underwear, and he looked at me with this sudden look of disappointment, as if to say, "Oh." Then he went for the next present. LOL. All was not lost, however. The next day we talked about it some more, and he once again became excited. He just didn't know quite what it was when he opened that package!

Happy Birthday, Little Buddy. I love you.

Current favorites: the toys from the Playmobil advent calendar, light-up musical Christmas tree with train, any book he can get his hands on, all the games on Gabe's shelf (Caribou, Candy Land, and many more), lego-style blocks (or anything that fits together, really), coloring, running EVERYWHERE, singing Jingle Bells, playing with the kitchen toys (especially with Gabe) bagels with cream cheese, fresh peppers, tomatoes, yogurt, apples, milk, and puzzles, for starters... Definitely puzzles. (He's disturbingly good at them.)

Oh yes, and for the record, he still pulls on/plays with his ears they way other children suck their thumbs. While he's doing it he makes little clicking sounds with his tongue, especially when he's tired. It's kind of cute. :)

This November

It's true what they say; time really does seem to go by so much faster with each passing year. I feel as if I was just posting about Halloween, yet here I am, and it's December. The tree is up, the first seven windows of our advent calendars have been opened, and I've started a small collection of Christmas cards on the kitchen counter. What happened to November? Actually, a lot. Maybe that's why it passed so quickly.

The most memorable event was yet another death in the family; my grandfather passed away just a couple of days before Logan's second birthday. As sad as it was to say goodbye, his passing was in a beautiful way, and while I couldn't be there with him in the hospital, I will be forever grateful for family who could and who shared with me what beautiful events passed during that time. Without going into detail, I just have to say that the Lord was with him, and with my entire family, helping all of us/them/him through the difficult time that it was/is, and I want to thank those of you who prayed for us. Your prayers were heard and answered, without a doubt.

We made a couple of trips to New Hampshire after it happened, first to spend some time with family, namely my father, and then again for the funeral, and I just have to say: Andy (my brother), you are amazing. -Andy has been an associate pastor at his church for a little while now, but living as far apart as we do, I have not been up to hear him preach. I knew he would be a natural, but it was still special to hear him deliver the service in such a personal, loving way. The Lord sure was with him through what had to be a very difficult job; not only was Andy leading the service for his own grandfather, but it was his first time leading any funeral service. I like to think God knew it would be a challenge but one that would strengthen and guide my awesome big brother onward in his journey to becoming a pastor. In any case, it was wonderful, memorable, personal... It really couldn't have been done any better.

I was blessed to be given the opportunity to create a slideshow for the reception, and oh, how I enjoyed looking back through the pages of Grandpa's life. When I was little I typically only saw him once or twice a year, as he lived a few hours away, and I cherished those few moments with him even then. I typically saw him on joyous occasions like holidays and weddings, so combined with my knowledge that it was special to see him in the first place, I always really looked forward to seeing him again, and I always held a certain fondness for him. I do always remember him smiling and keeping things light.

In the year leading up to this past November I happened to see Grandpa much more, and I couldn't be more thankful for that. It all really started last Thanksgiving when we were blessed with his presence in our home. I was so appreciative not only for my time with him, but for the memories he gave our boys; it was a very special, warm, happy Thanksgiving that was intended to be repeated this year. I may have felt a tear or two well up when I mentioned him in my words of thanks before our meal this year, but I hoped he would know it was only in honor of those happy memories.

I think I'll share the slideshow with you here; most of you reading have probably already seen it anyway, but if you're like me, you might like to see Grandpa's loving face again. You'll catch a glimpse into one of my personal favorite memories with one particular photo; my father had taken a drive down to visit, and I had tagged along, as I tended to do on road trips and visits. While I was young enough then that I don't remember every detail now, I do clearly remember coming away from it with that feeling of happiness and contentedness that follows a really nice day. The photo shows me in my bright pink jacket in the front, with my father and grandfather just behind me. We were enjoying a pleasant afternoon walk.

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Thanks be to God for Grandpa, for the happy times, and for the incredible legacy he left behind.

Halloween 2011

I thought about making up a rhyme in the style of Dr. Seuss for today's post, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Instead I think I'll just take you on a simple photo journey through the day.

First, the Cat in the Hat, all ready for school:

It was late, but I threw the Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes on as quickly as I could, sans hat and mittens for Thing 2, and grabbed a super quick, albeit blurry, early morning picture.

It was a beautiful day for the outdoor costume parade at Thomas' school. Unfortunately it was also very cold, and we spent quite some time outside, waiting for the parade to start. Even with all the Thing 1 and Thing 2 jumping, running, and playing, we were getting pretty chilly and were ready to pick up Thomas and bring him home as soon as the parade was through.

Thankfully it was only a half day at school because we still had some very last-minute pumpkin carving to do.

After some cleanup and a quick trip out to deliver a pie, it was time for more pictures. Logan didn't want to wear the hat at first. Nor the mittens. He was not a happy camper.

:(

...So we ran around the yard for a while and tried to get used to it. He left it on but still wasn't too sure...

...until it was time to bring out the pumpkins.

Then he started to get pretty excited, and when we went to visit our neighbor and she gave him a lollipop, he was just bubbling over with happiness. "Look Mommy! There's pop in mine punkin Mommy! Look!" All three of them were a pretty big hit, and from that point on instead of wanting his hat off Logan would only tell me if it needed to be fixed.

By the time we returned it was dark enough to light the jack-o-lanterns and grab one more picture for the memory books.

I really liked the one Thomas made. He designed and carved the face 100% on his own. I carved... a pumpkin... in my... pumpkin... because, well, when I asked Gabe what he wanted me to carve in his pumpkin, he said... a pumpkin.

Last but not least, we were in for another treat when some friends surprised us with a visit and joined us, along with our neighbors, for free cider and donuts from the fire department. I didn't get any pictures since they came after dark this year and I had my hands full, but it was pretty great. (Can you ever go wrong with apple cider and cider donuts?)

All in all, it was a pretty nice and really fun day, and by the end, I was beat! I hope you managed to have a little fun too. :)