“I eed you to go on a thafari with me and eat some thgabetti “

              Jacob used to tell me he was, “a little bit big and a little bit little.”  Little does he know, he will feel that way for a VERY long time.  I think I still felt a, “little bit little,” or at least not all the way big, until just a few years ago.  As proud as I am of that little/big guy when he learns something new, I absolutely love the things that remind me he still has a little “toddler” left in him.  Lately, it is his speech that I am hanging onto because I know that soon enough it will be gone.

                I love Jacob’s little kid voice and I love the way he talks. His voice is still a bit squeaky but he is starting to grow out of the lisp and is slowly correcting things word by word. In fact, when I correct him, he gets it right every time. Truth is though; I do not always correct him because I am savoring that little voice.  My favorite things that he says are: “I eed you” (I need you), “I’n going” (I’m going), “thgabetti” (Spaghetti), and anything with an “eth” (s).

                I know that he will always be MY little boy, but right now I am just savoring the time while he actually little.

Did you hear the one about Maryland having an earthquake and a hurricane in the same week?

It is pretty unlikely for Maryland to have a hurricane. It is even less likely for Maryland to have an earthquake. To say it would be extremely unlikely for Maryland to have both in one week could be considered an understatement. BUT, that is exactly what happened last week. Our story opened up on Wednesday with an earthquake followed by preparations for Hurricane Irene and ended with a tropical storm on Saturday night.  (Can I count the ridiculous amount of baking I did this weekend within my preparations?)

                Needless to say, it was a busy week for us.  Some of the preparation was for naught, as we were lucky enough to have power and avoid the many downed trees, but I don’t mind.  I am certainly a “better safe than sorry” person.    The funny thing is that Jacob loved it.  After the earthquake he asked Becky if she could, “do it again,” and when he woke up after the storm, he was slightly disappointed in our maintained electricity.   As a worrier myself, I hope he is always able to things in stride as well as he did over the past week.





Jakey loved finding branches



                I am thanking God for the safety of my loved ones through the past week and am praying for those who are not so lucky. At this point many are still without power and some are dealing with flooding, home damage and injury or even worse, loss of life.  We have been blessed.  

Hoping for a quieter week this week!

Kiss Me in the Corner

I don’t usually drop Jacob off at preschool; I am lucky enough that Holly does since she works there. However, our schedule got a bit thrown off today, so I took him.  Every once and a while he cries when I drop him off, but he didn’t show any sign of concern, so I didn’t expect any tears.  In fact, as I pulled up to the school, so did Holly, so I figured he would be just fine.

As I expected, he went in and played and did not seem concerned when I prepared to go. What happened next, however, was NOT expected.  I asked him for my typical hug and kiss when I went to leave. He looked over at me from the far corner of the room, the corner that you can’t see if you’re a kid entering from the hallway, and says, “come kiss me over here.”  He didn’t follow it up with, “so  no one sees,” but he didn’t have to. I could see it on his face.

Really? Really!

I though this didn’t happen for at least a few more years. In fact I always ask him if he will still cuddle me when he is big and he says yes. I guess I never asked if he will do it in public. I know it is normal. Even as I write this I am a proud at his show of independence. But still, my boy grew up a little today.  As proud as I may have been, I failed at hiding my surprise and unacceptably hurt feelings.  In fact after I talked a minute with my sister and headed out the door, I asked him for a mash (to bump fists, if you call it something else) and he gave me a mash, then he came over to give me a hug . . . in the middle of the classroom.  Thankfully, he didn’t get too big today.

Man, I love that kid!

How many kids do you have?

The above is a question that is often asked of parents and for the most part it is innocent.  Other parents are often just trying to find common ground with number of children or with the next questions of gender and age.  I have found, however, that the answer to the, “how many” question can often lead to judgmental looks and inquiring questions if you have a large family (let’s call that more than 4 children) or a small family (only 1 child).

I happen to be on the small end of the spectrum with “just one” child, while my sisters are inching toward the opposite end with 3 or more children a piece.  By January they will each have at least 4.  It is not odd that one of my parents’ 4 daughters are pregnant and often we are pregnant 2 at a time. I also am part of  church and community where large families are pretty much a common place.   

This gets me to my point of the “how many question.”

I notice that when people come across a large family, you can see the questions on their face. Silently they are asking, “Did you want this many?” “Do you know how to prevent this?” “Are you Catholic?” “Are you done?” Instead they something that they perceive to be witty like, “Oh, working on a football/basketball/soccer team, huh?”  Really? Really? That is all you could come up with? I am sure those parents have not heard that before!

To the opposite, I have also noticed that when I tell people that I have one child they ask, sometimes out loud and sometimes in expression, “Oh, just one?” They also may follow with a line of questioning about if I plan to have more; along with a lecture about how a big space creates two “only children.” 

I think people are becoming more sensitive to the fact that couples with no children may have consciously made that choice or it may have been the hand they were dealt.  People seem to SLOWLY get better at not pushing as it might be a very sensitive topic for a couple, especially one that has been hoping for a baby for years.   However, there is also an assumption that just because you have one, you could and should have at least one more.  People don’t realize that that one may have been a miracle and a sibling has been prayed for since that miracle came along. There are also other things that may stop a couple from having siblings for their precious children.  Personal situations are often unknown. 

I guess my point is that we should realize that just as families have made personal choices about schooling, where to live and other life choices, they have also made a choice about the number of children they have, probably for a good reason. And, if they haven’t had the opportunity to make that choice, don’t push them.  Children are an amazing gift that come with a lot of responsibility. Who better knows the right size family for any one couple other than that couple.  You? I doubt it.

Also, before you go assuming that I can’t have another child or that I sulk every night about not having another, I will tell you, neither of those things are true.   I do have some personal things going on that are delaying another child, but we do plan to have more.   Also, no sulking at my house.  At least not about that.  I have a beautiful, wonderful, smart, healthy, happy child who is my world. For that I am grateful. Sure, I hope to have another child one day, but not because I feel like something is missing.  I hope to have another child because my sisters are my best friends and I would love to have that for my little guy.  And, no. I am not too worried about the space causing a lack of friendship. My husband’s best friend is his little brother who is 7 years younger, no siblings in-between.  And lastly, if it doesn’t happen,  that’s what friends are cousins are for, right?



Even as a baby Jacob (in the green) appreciated his cousins.
Too bad some of them hate pictures. Poor things!

*Note, this was originally posted August, 2011.   I now have a beautiful daughter in additional to my son.   When my children play, even at 9months and 7 years-old, I can already see a bond that I know will grow stronger with time.  Surprisingly, I still get asked, "don't you want more?" :) 

J Bar W Ranch, DJ Colson and Good Old-Fashioned Fun

     For the two of you who read my blog, you may have seen my post about going to the rodeo at the J Bar W ranch last summer. The ranch is in Union Town, MD and the small town feeling is just wonderful. If I didn’t have such a wonderful story for this year’s rodeo, I could go on and on but for now, I will have to tell you to go to the last post. Eventually, I will get to into more detail because it was a great night.

So now, onto my story. Holly and I spent the evening with our kids watching them watch the rodeo. Their faces were priceless; especially our little cowboys, Jacob and Wyatt. As the rodeo came to an end our boys wanted to meet the bull riders. It was so cute. They walked up to them with the amazement of anyone meeting their favorite sports star. My nephew Wyatt noticed another fan getting her hat signed and immediately grabbed his straw hat and set off on his quest to get as many signatures as possible of his rodeo heroes. Jacob desperately wanted to follow suit, but his black felt hat didn’t really bode well for signatures. What was a boy to do?

As my sister dug through her purse to find her handy-dandy notebook, one of the bull riders did the sweetest thing. He dug through his bag and pulled out one of his old gloves that he said he had retired about 2 weeks ago. As DJ Colson signed that glove and handed it to my son, I hope he realized what an amazing moment he created. When Jacob gets truly excited about something he does not always jump up and down. Sometimes he just stares in awe. That is what happened at that moment. After getting more signatures, I thought Jacob would, for sure, want to call his daddy and tell him about his amazing new treasure. But no, he said it was a surprise and he would have to wait to see it.

Our evening's hero is above in the white vest and the treasured glove is below.

Thank you, DJ Colson, and the rest of the cowboys, cowgirls, bull riders, bull fighters, announcers and team at the J Bar W that once again, made my son’s night!

Sweet Summer!

As summer is nearing its end, I have so many stories I could tell about Jacob’s first fishing trip, my cousins visiting, trips to the farm, etc. However, sometimes all you need is pictures to weave a story. You know, a picture does say a thousand words. So, here is the story of our summer so far!

Movies!

This has been a summer of more movies than ever for us.  Jacob has been able to sit through a movie for a while, but in the last year he has really started to get into the plot.  This summer we saw The Smurfs, Cars 2 and Winnie the Pooh.  Jacob even saw Smurfs and Cars a second time with Ms. Becky.   I am not one that thinks kids should be plopped in front of a TV for hours every day while eating a bunch of junk (well, maybe it is okay some days!), but there is something magical about seeing a movie in the theatre with popcorn in one hand and candy in the other. I love sharing that magic with my little buddy!

Art is the ability to convey that we are not alone. When I sit down next to you in a movie theater, we get to share each other's point of view. We become part of a collective soul. That's the magic in the movies.

~ M. Night Shyamalan

The Pioneer Woman

Have you ever met someone that changed your life almost in an instant? Maybe your spouse or a great friend?  Well, I won’t say this is exactly the same; but it just might come close. ;)

I have a few old friends that I have connected with on face book that have status updates that I really look forward to.  Some are funny or sassy, some have great quotes, and some are just so filled with the joy of life that you can’t help but to be inspired.  For me, Jen P., is the latter.  Much to my happiness, she also has a blog full of cute family stories, her love of God and wonderfully yummy recipes.  I often drool over her pictures and one day I just couldn’t take it any longer. I HAD to make the monkey bread she had made; recipe courtesy of the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond.   For those of you who have made monkey bread, you know that it is not hard, but boy, is it good. For those of you who have not, I suggest you do.

If the monkey bread was not enough, I searched through the Pioneer Woman website and found a plethora of yummy recipes. I mean, down-home, butter-filled, lick-your-lips, yummy!  This woman can cook and to top it off she is a suburban girl married to a country boy. For some reason, I can relate to that. 

These recipes were so good and Ree’s writing is so engaging that I have cooked more lately than I have in a long time. I even reorganized my cabinets to make some of my previously less-used pans and dishes available.  Perhaps the best part is that I often find Jacob at my side, ready to help. Considering the richness of some of these recipes, I don’t cook them every day, but she has some healthier recipes too.  Besides, sometimes you have to treat yourself.

Thank you Ree Drummand for reminding me how much I love to cook and for making it a family affair. I cannot wait for the Food Network show.

Vegetables are a must on a diet.  I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. 

~Jim Davis

Might not be good for you, but it sure is gonna be good!

~Paula Dean

Imagination

I love my son’s imagination. Sometimes it can be the source of being scared at night but I still love it.  I love how he can make toys out of his hands or make friends out of toys.  Lately however, we have had to work on not allowing the imagination to turn into lies. Don’t get me wrong, Jacob can tell the difference between a story and the truth, he just does not always share it with me. In fact, I am now finding a regular phrase at my house to be, “Is that real or a story?” Each time Jacob will reply with complete honesty, as nonchalant as can be, “Story!”  We are working on him starting by saying it is a story to make sure he does not slip into full lying. However, if I am going to be as honest as he is, I have to tell you; I sometimes love his stories enough that I am not really as mad as I seem.  There is something wonderful about a kid’s imagination, and I hope he keeps at least a little of his forever!

I am imagination. I can see what the eyes cannot see. I can hear what the ears cannot hear. I can feel what the heart cannot feel.

~Peter Nivio Zarlenga

My Little Swimmer!

Over that past 4 years, I have learned that sometime I can teach Jacob things, and sometimes, I just have to wait until it clicks in for him. This summer we had one of those “a-ha” moments in the “big pool.”

Jacob has always liked the pool and the water, but he never loved the idea of water in his face. He would splash around the bathtub or the baby pool with full on excitement. That is, until he got splashed in the eye or it was time to rinse his hair.  At that point he needed the ever-important, eye towel to wipe his face. This summer that changed!

At the beginning of the summer we started with an inflatable pool and he was blowing bubble and putting his face in. Then, on the first trip to the pool, Jacob realized he could stand in the 3 feet and that gave the confidence to try swimming.  All of a sudden, he just got it. Don’t get me wrong, he didn’t join the swim team or anything, but he was independent in the water for the first time ever in the big pool. In about 6 weeks he went from standing and playing to swimming between my legs.  The best part is how much fun he has and how proud he is of himself. This was a big, new step . . . and he loved it!

Inflatable pool full of dad's hot air,

I was three years old splashin' everywhere.

 And so began my love affair with water

~Brad Paisley

Time is Flying!

Mid-August in Maryland means last minute vacations, humidity and back-to school shopping.  For me, however, I have not been part of that last activity for over 10 years. Sure, Jacob goes to preschool, and I might need to get some tissues or a folder to bring his papers home, but I do not have lists of items to buy and I do not have to prepare for fights about homework.   As I watch this year, though, I have a different feeling.  I am realizing that this is my last year of “freedom” with my little guy and my last year of preparation.

As I think about it, to be honest, my anxiety level is going up. Once he starts school, I can’t use my every other Friday off to plan a fun “mommy and me” day.  We can’t just plan weekend trips and not care about how many Mondays or Fridays he misses.   I will have to start making sure he gets to bed on time every night and not just on days that he has pre-school.  No more keeping him up on Monday night because we are at my parents or because my favorite childhood movies are on. I will have to be organized to get dinner in and homework done after work before that earlier bedtime.  I am also worried that about doing the right things so that he is prepared.

Don’t get me wrong. I know it is only kindergarten. I know that he can miss some days here and there without a crisis and that homework should not be too intense. But . . . I also know it will change things, and I am not ready!

You know what that means?!? It means we have a lot of fun, late nights and maybe even a little learning to get in over the next year at my house! Maybe we will even work in a little time-management planning; Nah, that can wait.

If growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree,
I'll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up
Not me!

~Peter Pan

Slacker!

So I started this blog last year and I have been a big slacker. Considering that about 2 people read this, I guess it's really not a big deal. Anyway, I plan to get better at it but to be honest, I can’t promise that I won’t slack, again. What I can tell you is that I have had a great summer with my boys and other family and friends and I want to share it.  Maybe if I can get myself into a pattern, I will get better at being consistent with my blogs. And if not, I will at least have little bits and pieces of my life to share with friends and family; and in the future to look back on and smile!