"Bees!" and other stuff

Caelen is just so darn polite. I think I mentioned her saying Up Please. Now she mostly just goes around saying, "Bees!" "Bees!" and "det det" for Thank You.

My dad has been having some on-going medical problems with his stomach, but today they found out that it's nothing a little medicine won't fix and we're all so relieved! (Well especially Dad.)

Anyone want oranges? My tree is so full of them I can't eat them or give them away fast enough.

Oh and I also wanted to mention that yesterday was my late Grandpa Jerry's birthday and that we miss him so much!

Who knew the Travel Channel would save my sanity?

I have been trying to figure out why Caelen won't nap here at home. I do exactly the same thing here that I do at my mom's. I turn a heater on, close the blinds, give her the same two blankets......
Then it dawns on me, the only difference is NOISE. When I'm at my mom's, the TV is on, the sewing machines are going and we're talking. At night when I put her down for bed, Thomas and I are talking, the TV might be on and the dogs are thundering around the house.
I put her down at 2:15 and turned the TV up. She's fast asleep. Go figure.

I recently read Atonement by Ian McEwan. It's the book that got made into a movie with Kiera Knightley and James McAvoy and won some Godlen Globes or something like that. I haven't seen the movie but the book was pretty good. It took the author 300 pages to say what one author might say in 30 but I guess it was necessary to the style of the book. If you've read it, please leave me a comment about how you felt about it.

I also would recommend seeing A Good Year with Russell Crowe. My parents really liked it and had us over last night to see it. Worth seeing!

Go to sleep!

Please be praying for my Grandma Evelyn (shown here at Caelen's birthday party.) She had to go to the hospital this morning because of a bad infection that had her so weak she couldn't get around. They've got her antibiotics and say she looks good enough to go home. My mom and dad are having to do a lot to take care of her as she lives by herself here in town and isn't able to drive, so remember them too!!

I want to know this: Caelen sleeps beautifully at night in her crib. She sleeps beautifully every weekday morning at her Grandparents house for her nap. So WHY won't she take a nap in her crib here at home????? Yesterday I put her down at the normal nap time and she hollered for 30 minutes and then slept for 40! Ugh. Now she's in there crying, and she only slpet for about 10 minutes on the way home from church! Why, why, why???

Finally, a vacation!

We're planning a trip down to Arizona in a couple of weeks. We'll be visiting Thomas' step-brother, his wife and 3 daughters. We're travelling with Thomas' dad and step-mom. I'm really excited because every once in awhile I get this bug to just GO! I don't care where and for how long just as long as I get in a car or an airplane. Call it wanderlust.
Anyway, the three girls are about 5, 3 and 6 months old I think. So Caelen will fit right into that mix. It'll be fun to see where they live and get to know them better (I have met them once, and that was before this last baby.) It'll be fun to spend some time with Thomas' Dad and Faith. The last time we took a trip with them, Caelen was 4 months old. And the last time Caelen was on a plane she was 6 months old and it was for 5 hours to and from Hawaii, so I think we can handle 1 1/2 hours. I hope we can.......

Just being like my mommy...

So my little missy and I were reading books yesterday on her floor in her room. She got the book she wanted and I patted the floor in front of me for her to come and sit. We read the book, and when she was done she got up to get another. She grabbed a book about 3 feet away from me and plopped down on the ground, looks at me and pats the ground next to her!!! She makes me laugh so much sometimes.

Yesterday while I was working at my mom's she somehow managed to get a piece of Orbit gum from my purse. They're small pieces, and my mom saw her just as she stuck it in her mouth, wrapper and all! I ran over and tried to pry her mouth open but she clamped down so hard it was a good 15 seconds before I could really get my finger in there. By the time I did, it was gone. I said, "Did you swallow that!!!???" She looked at me, put a hand to her mouth and said, "All done...... uh-oh".

Don't forget Christmas!

So I thought I'd post a few pictures from Christmas time. I can't believe I haven't yet!
These first pictures are of us getting our Christmas tree. It was Caelen's first time because last year we decorated our tree on Sunday Dec. 3 and two hours later I went into labor! Just in the nick of time :)
Anyway, we don't usually dress up to get our tree but the only time we could really manage it was right after church.

These next pictures are from when we did an early Christmas celebration with Thomas' Dad and Faith. This was the day before Christmas Eve. Faith had just gotten back from a trip to China so we got a lot of awesome and unique gifts! Caelen looked just adorable in her Chinese handmade jammies. She also (among other fun toys) got a wooden tool set that she absolutely loves. So here's her carpenter Grandpa showing her how to use it!

These pictures are from Christmas Eve at my parents house. Last year Caelen was only 3 weeks old! Time flies

Not by my genius for sure!

They are not mine, they are not really mine

not even in the night when they cry out

and I, half-stifled with the need of sleep,

stumble awake and go to quiet them.

Not by my grace or genius have they grown,

nor by my merit did I bring them forth,

nor by that sealed and deep-loved partnership,

the light that crowns them is none of my own.

And in my tempers and my discontents,

when my own devil mutters and is bad,

I must remember still they are not mine,

not even to deny- but wholly Thine.

CHILDREN by Jane Tyson Clement

I think it is so important as a parent to remember the simple truths in this poem. I have many young mom friends and I realize that, sadly, there can be a lot of discouragment in the job. I wish it wasn't that way. I think for some, being a mom comes very naturally, and for others it's a bit more work. I have wonderful friends who fall anywhere on this scale. I think I would place myself somewhere towards the middle but more to the "I Love It, There's Nothing Better In The World" side. I DO love being Caelen's mom. Even when things are not perfect, it doesn't matter, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else with my life. I'm blessed in that way.

But for those of us who are human and get discouraged, how important it is to remember that our children, no matter how old! or how young they are, are not and never were really ours! They belong to the Lord and He has entrusted them to our care for a time. What a job! He loves them more than we ever will, and loves us the same. That is pretty darn amazing if you ask me.