All You Need is Love

I heart Lightroom...

2009-12-18T10:51:00.002-06:00

or I think I do anyway!!! I have never used Lightroom, but MckMama does and I love what she is able to do with her photos. And guess what....she is having a giveaway!! Go here to enter the contest. I have and will in as many ways as possible. But I will still most likely not win.... I never win anything. Doesn't hurt to try though!!

Singles Christmas Party

2009-12-17T11:06:00.012-06:00

Funny thing is... of the four couples at the "singles" Christmas party, three couples are married. :) Yep, we've got a lot of graduates!!! It was fun no matter what. Lots of yummy food, a few games, a toasty fire, and even s'mores. The theme for the night was ugly Christmas hats. We kind of forgot this part until five minutes before everyone arrived. So the kids dug around their dress up box and came up with their own versions, as did their Papa!!

Keelah and Brandon gave the kids a Rudolph nose. We had just a little fun with that!!

What kind of parents put a blinkie Rudolph nose on their 3 month old son? Hee hee!!

You're Here

2009-12-16T10:06:00.006-06:00

You're Here

This morning I was holding Caleb while we listened to K-LOVE and a song called "You're Here" came on by Francessca Battistelli. It is a song from Mary's perspective. I have heard many variations of songs from Mary's perspective but this song hit me in a different way this morning. As a mother holding her infant son, I tried to understand how Mary must have felt and thought as she held her infant son. Her baby boy was God in the flesh. Wow! She held in her arms the Savior of the world. That completely blows me away. I often look at Isaac and Caleb and am struck that they will be men one day; husbands, fathers, leaders of their church. She looked at her son and saw Emmanuel. Don't let this season of remembering the birth of Christ pass you by. The familiarity of the Christmas story can steal the significance. God became man. He lived, He taught, He died. He rose again and is ALIVE!!! Hallelujah! All glory and praise to Him!!

**By the way you can listen to the song if you click on "You're Here" beneath the picture**

Overheard at the Landes House

2009-12-16T09:57:00.005-06:00

Julia loves to dress up. This morning she is Tinker Bell, complete with fairy wings and a tutu. She has been trying to think of all the things that Tinker Bell has and wears so she can match her as close as possible. She came into the kitchen just now and said, "Mommy, I think Tinker Bell has baby suckers just like you" Just imagine the look on my face as I questioned her as to what she was talking about - cringing because deep down I knew. She lifts up her shirt and points to her well, um baby suckers! :) Oh, the things kids come up with. So stinking funny!! I am just glad she didn't ask me to help her make some baby suckers so she could look just like Tinker Bell. And by the way, why in the world does Tinker Bell have baby suckers? Not liking Disney right now ;)

Goals

2009-12-11T08:37:00.010-06:00

I am not one to set a lot of New Year's Resolutions. In fact, I don't think I have ever done that. Probably because I know myself well enough to know that I have absolutely no lasting discipline and usually end up quitting what I have started. But even considering my lack of discipline, I now find myself setting some long range goals. Call them resolutions if you like, but I am going to call them goals. I will attain these goals. I will!! You may care less what my goals are, but I am putting it out there for accountability. If you know my goals and areas of "weakness" then I am more likely to keep up with it. That's my theory anyway. We will see! So are you curious what I have in store for myself? See for yourself (or don't, whatever floats your boat)

Goal #1:

To complete P90X without stopping and starting and stopping and starting. (which is what I usually do when I start an exercise routine) I am already headed in a good direction with this one. Gabe and I are doing P90X together and just started our second week today. I have gotten up to exercise every morning at 5 am for the last 8 days in a row!!That is including Saturday and Sunday. Unheard of for me! After the initial jolt (I say that sarcastically - more like a slow crawl) out of bed, it feels good to get up and get moving before the day officially begins with the kids all up and at em' by 7:00. Now that I have added an extra 2 hours to my day, I am going full speed from 5 to 9 and usually fall down exhausted and am ready for bed by 9:30. It is worth it though!

Goal #2:

Train for and complete a half-marathon. If you know me at all, then you know how much a HATE to run! Just not my favorite thing to do. I have vivid memories (nightmares) of my high school coach dropping us off on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere and telling us to run until we see the bus. Ugh and a double UGH!! So for me to want to run a half-marathon is absolutely nutty! However, I just have this desire to accomplish something big like that. My goal is to start training as soon as I finish P90X.

Goal #3:

Become a "Pioneer Woman Wanna Be"! I feel about cooking the way I do about running. Of course I may not absolutely hate it, but it is definitely not my favorite thing. I just have never had a passion for cooking. Thank goodness I have a husband that never complains about my attempts at cooking. He is such a darling man! But I now have this weird desire to cook more and better. Have you seen the advertisements for the new movie Julie and Julia? That's kind of my goal here....to run down the list of recipes on the Pioneer Woman blog and try most of them. (I am not big on seafood - so that section may get skipped:) The more I try, the better I will get. Don't ya think?!

Goal #4:

To become more organized. I am a naturally organized person. Well, in reality I am more comfortable with an organized environment, but lack of time and resources limits my organization. As I sit here and type this I am surrounded with piles of papers and crates of files. Oh, and my "office" is at the dining room table. That's gotta change!! We need to get a small desk for our room and move all this junk into our bedroom. Not ideal but better than having it all out and about in our dining room. I won't even mentioned the state of our garage right now. YIKES! I am horrible with keeping things organized. Getting organized is one thing, I can do that. But keeping it organized is an entirely different story. So my goal is to get organized and stay that way. Moving on now!

Goal #5:

To be less stressed. "HA" you might be thinking to yourself. Less stress with three children under the age of 6? Yep - that's my goal. I tend to get wound up and stressed out, especially if I do not get a break. So part of my goal here is to take regular breaks. Thursday nights are going to be my night out by myself (okay Gabe?) Gabe is awesome about watching the kids so I can get out. I am the one that is horrible with actually doing it. Take yesterday for instance, it was a rather harried day and I desperately wanted to get out by myself just for a bit. But by the time Gabe got home, I just didn't have enough energy to go out and it seemed more exhausting to give it any effort. More importantly than taking time for myself, is to focus my time with the Lord. Am I alone in the battle of rushing through a day only to realize that you never stopped long enough to put God at the center of your thoughts and actions? I doubt I am alone in that. My goal is to put myself aside and put God first. To start each day talking (and listening) to my Abba. To rest in Him and lay all my cares (stress) at His feet.

So there you have it. Five goals. Not too tough. All attainable. What do you say, you want to join me? Think of five goals for yourself to work towards. I would love to hear what your goals are so that I can pray for you and encourage you. Up and at em' people, let's make some changes in our lives!!!

Pics of the Kids

2009-12-08T07:44:00.009-06:00

Took the kids to have their picture taken together yesterday. It takes quite a bit of energy and patience to coordinate three little ones; get them clean, keep them clean, get them dressed, keep them dressed..... You get the point! I did a good amount of bribing my children to try to get the best picture possible. The kids weren't horrible, but they weren't quite angels either. Isaac was so super distracted. He kept wanting to see what was behind the back drops and ask how the camera works. Julia was in a "mood" and was sportin' some sassy attitude. Caleb was happy for the first picture and was done after that. We would position Isaac and Julia then try to get Caleb's attention. By the time we did get Caleb's attention, Isaac and Julia were looking away or not smiling. It was exhausting to say the least. Here are a few of the pictures we got yesterday.

And here are a few of Caleb by himself....

His hair is looking a bit funky here. Even though his hair has thinned out quite a bit, he still has tons of it... and what he has can get a bit wild at times!! Oh and the shiny spot on his chin is indeed slobber :)

He looks so big in this picture. He can no longer wear many 3 month size clothes. I even put him in size 6 months outfits the other day.

Just chillin'

Love that smile

His serious face

He is so silly with that tongue!

3 Months

2009-12-04T18:23:00.000-06:00

Caleb is 3 months old today!!! Where has the time gone?! Doesn't feel like it has already been 3 months since Caleb was born. But here we are 12 weeks down the road, and enjoying every moment.

So what has little Caleb Doodle been up to this month? Well, he has started to giggle. Sweetest sound EVER!! He is still pretty stingy with his giggles though. Gabe just heard him giggle for the first time last night and he has been doing it for a few weeks now. Caleb is such a smiley and happy baby. He loves to play on this play mat and can now reach and grasp the toys. Over Thanksgiving he was yanking so hard that he was almost pulling the toy bar down on top of himself. Silly boy!

At his 2 month check up he weighed 12 lbs 7 oz and was close to 24 inches long. I can guarantee that he has at least grown longer since then. He is growing out of his 3 month size clothes fast. He is also too big for his Miracle Blanket. :( Actually he has grown too strong to be swaddled. He kept "unwrapping" himself at night which would wake him up. So we have been working the last few days to train him to sleep without being swaddled. It took him one day to learn. First day he struggled and struggled to go to sleep - cried for an hour that night at bedtime and didn't take good naps. The next day was better, well actually GREAT. He slept 11 hours and did the same last night. So the good ol' Miracle Blanket has been retired and will be lovingly kept in his keepsake box to show him one day how we mummified him every night to sleep!!

Let's see... other milestones this month?! He is really close to rolling over. He is definitely strong enough, he just hasn't made it over just yet. He found his fists this month and almost obsessively sucks on them. But when his fists won't cooperate, the pacifier is his buddy! Other than that, Caleb is just doing great.

Loves those fists

Tummy time

Happy Boy

Loves his Binky!

Thanksgiving in Coleman

2009-12-03T09:00:00.015-06:00

Happy (late) Thanksgiving Ya'll

We spent last week in Coleman with my side of the family for Thanksgiving. Other than missing my sister Melinda and her family, we were all there. It was fun and relaxing. We played a lot of games, ate a lot of food, and watch the kids explore the outdoors. I love that my children love to play and climb in the same trees that I did as a child. I think Isaac walked every square inch of their land exploring, chasing baby goats, catching all sorts of critters and bugs, and burying secret treasures. So glad we have places like Coleman and Arkansas to go where the kids can have room to roam. I missed getting pictures of the kids outside, but here are a few pics from our time in Coleman to sum up our trip....

Isaac did a lot of this....

You can't tell by looking at him, but this boy can eat!! He ate every bit of that turkey leg and licked the bone clean!

And this....

Camo boots on and ready to head outside

Julia did a lot of this.....

Smiles and Giggles! Grammy gave her these PJs for Christmas and Julia insisted on wearing them all day, so I let her! Everybody needs a PJ day every once and awhile.

And this...

She loves to draw, write, and color.

She would NEVER do this....

Ok, maybe just a little bit! :)

Caleb did a lot of this.....

Being happy and cute!

And this....

Snoozing the day away!!

Gabe did a lot of this...

Poor guy got a head cold while we were there. He wasn't feeling too wonderful. Thankfully he had an opportunity to rest and recover.

And he did this...

CATAN!!

I did a lot of this.....

**Oh, wait, I don't have a picture of me. Guess you know who takes the majority of the pictures!**

Well, I finally got in a few....

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Now on to Christmas!!!

All I want for Christmas....

2009-11-30T16:59:00.006-06:00

is my bottom front tooth!!!

The momentous occasion happened yesterday as we were driving home from Coleman. I turned around to deal with Caleb and saw Isaac lean over and give me a big toothless grin. It took me a minute to catch on as to why he had such a big smile. Then he held up his hand and there lay the tooth. It fell out and he didn't make a big deal out of it at all, just held on to it until we realized what happened.

Another bittersweet moment. My first baby is no longer a baby and growing up way too fast. How are we already to this phase of his life with him? He was just crawling the other day. But alas, the time has come for toothless grins. As much as I want time to slow down, I cherish these days and celebrate each and every milestone in my kids' lives.

Camo Baby

2009-11-17T09:16:00.010-06:00

I couldn't resist putting all three of my children in camo while in Arkansas. It is almost required attire while there. And thanks to Aunt Phyllis, Aunt Peggy, and Aunt Billy we have an ample supply of camo for the kids.

Can you find Caleb?!

Here are some camo baby pictures of Isaac and Julia....

Isaac is wearing the same outfit that Caleb is wearing in the pictures above. Isaac is about 2 months old in this picture.

If you can't have pink camo, then a little lace and ribbon will do! Julia is about 10 months old in this picture.

Trip to Arkansas - Part Two

2009-11-12T08:48:00.003-06:00

I originally had a long p0st typed,but changed my mind to simply say "we had a blast in Arkansas!!" To break it down, here is how our week went. We enjoyed.....

*four- wheeler rides (ok, I didn't actually make it onto a four-wheeler this time, but Gabe and the kids had fun)
*golf cart rides (often driven by Isaac - little nerve wracking. I am already not looking forward to Drivers Ed)
*shooting (I got to shoot Gabe's new pistol and Isaac got to shoot the BB gun)
*hunting (Gabe shot a total of 8 squirrels with the help from Isaac on one of them)
*dirt pile playing (Isaac and Julia had so much fun getting filthy - I think I washed off at least 3 pounds of red Arkansas dirt the first night. The bath water looked like mud!!)
*hiking and bird watching (Phyllis and Peggy took us for a walk and we got to do a little bird watching. Saw some woodpeckers. I am totally hooked on bird watching now!)
*Campfires and s'mores (YUM - enough said)
*Butterfly chasing and catching (Isaac and Julia spent an entire morning doing this)
*Horse rides (ok - not real ones, but they had fun anyway)
*FAMILY - we got to enjoy lots of time with lots of family. Doesn't get any better than this!

Here are some pics from our week...

Trip to Arkansas - Part One

2009-11-10T14:56:00.009-06:00

Actually that title is deceiving, because our trip to Arkansas started with a trip to Houston to visit Gabe's brother Matt, his wife April, and their precious little girl - Sarabeth. She turned two on Sunday, Nov. 1st, so we were there to help celebrate her birthday. We spent the day with them and watched Sarabeth eat her alligator cake and open presents. That night we went to their church's fall festival. I am not one to go out and by expensive costumes for my kids (plus we don't celebrate Halloween and never go trick or treating) but I love for my kids to dress up. Childhood is just not complete without a good dose of dress up. So before leaving on our trip, the kids and I raided our dress up trunk and I let them come up with their own costumes from stuff we already had. Isaac chose his red super hero cape and face paint. He was "Captain of the Super Powers" with lightning bolts on his cheeks and green wrist bands painted on his arms. Julia dressed up as her own version of a very pinked up Tinker Bell. She enjoyed fluttering around with her wings. It was fun to see their own ideas and creativity come to life. The fall festival was fun and I am glad we got to enjoy that with Matt, April, and Sarabeth.

Sarabeth was a bumblebee! Isn't she absolutely adorable?!

That's all for Part One! I will post Part Two tomorrow - and yes we did actually make it to Arkansas. Stay tuned - more to come!

P.S. I thefted (is thefted a word? if not I just made it up!!) these pictures from April's facebook. :) hee hee! Our camera battery wasn't working while we were there.

Two Months

2009-11-10T14:27:00.012-06:00

This post is just a wee bit late. Caleb turned two months old last Wednesday, the 4th. We were in Arkansas at the time so I didn't get pictures and this post put together until now. It always amazes me how fast time flies by. I can't believe it has already been two months. Caleb is doing fantastic and is such an absolute joy. He started sleeping through the night (9 to 10 hours) at 5 weeks old. It is kind of strange (but well appreciated) to have an infant that sleeps so well for naps and at night. The newborn stage with Caleb has been SO different than my past experiences. Not complaining though!!! Caleb has been smiling for a month now and is so very close to his first giggle. He just lights up when he sees someone he recognizes. He loves to be talked to and sung to. He will even start cooing along when you sing to him. Pretty darn cute! He also really loves to stick his tongue out. Almost every picture I have of him he is sticking his tongue out. Silly little boy! Just this past week he discovered his hands. I always think it is pretty funny when babies discover their hands... their eyes go wide in wonder at these fun little things attached to them. Caleb is fascinated with his hands and loves to suck on his knuckles. He also just started to reach and grasp for things. I know this is all mundane details for you but it never gets old for me. I am awed with my babies and how God created them. So just bare with me as I ooh and ahh over my lovely little guy. Happy 2 months my little Caleb Doodle!

Here is a comparison from last month to this month.....

Pappaw

2009-11-04T09:45:00.003-06:00

Rejoicing that he is finally HOME, but missing him in the meantime. We love you Pappaw!

Child Labor

2009-10-29T09:14:00.004-05:00

Don't get too carried away with that title..... it's just a joke. Starting this last couple of months Isaac and Julia have had their own set of chores to do each day. They have been doing things to help out around the house for awhile, but have not had daily chores until now. I know I should enjoy this age, because they actually want to help and most often (not always) are excited to do their chores. Isaac does things like gathering and taking out the trash, dusting, and feeding Oliver. Julia gets to clean the bathroom mirrors and sinks, dust, and also helps to feed Oliver.

The other day Isaac and I were talking about being humble and doing something for another person that they would rather not do. He asked me what my least favorite chore was..... without hesitation I answered "cleaning the toilet". Isaac immediately wanted to learn to clean the toilet. And who am I to stop him. I taught him the basics and he went to work. I must say he was mighty proud of himself, as was I. And to prove how much my children enjoy doing chores, last week when they were "soooo bored" of playing with their toys, I pulled the... "well if you are so bored I can find you something to do" - totally referring to putting them to work. My little plan backfired (or did it?) and they got excited to be put to work. Isaac went to sweep out the garage and Julia cleaned a toilet (she wanted to be just like big brother!!) I know one day I will only hear moans and groans with the mention of the word chores, so for now I am relishing every minute.

Gabe and I don't give our children an allowance for doing chores. We want them to help as part of this family without expecting to get paid for it. Doing things to keep our household in order is just what we do as a family. Everybody pitches in! On the flip side of that, we want our children to start learning from an early stage the value of money. So my question is, what do you do? Do you give an allowance for chores? How do you handle teaching your children about the value of work and the value of money?

Love Creek Orchards Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-26T14:11:00.008-05:00

This was our 5th consecutive trip to Love Creek Orchards in Medina. Our first trip was when Isaac was a few months shy of turning 2 and I was a few months pregnant with Julia. Now here we are with Isaac nearing his 6th birthday, Julia is 3 1/2, and Caleb has joined our family. Lots of memories made at Love Creek.

Isaac's first trip to Love Creek

Oh, how he has grown!

The weather was gorgeous on Saturday. Little too windy and sunny for Caleb's liking, but for the rest of us it was quite pleasant. We enjoyed hay mazes, hay rides, pumpkin patches, ponies, petting zoo, music, picnics, pumpkin painting...... let's just say it was a fun filled day for all.

Julia's first trip to Love Creek

Oh, how she has grown!

We had to get the annual pumpkin pictures of the kids. Isaac and Julia hammed it up for the camera. Caleb, on the other hand, was not too fond of being laid out in the bright sun and blustery wind. He was none too happy about our pursuit of a cute pumpkin picture of our newest little pumpkin. Oh well, there is always next year!!!

Caleb's first trip to Love Creek

Here are some of the pictures from this years trip to Love Creek Orchards....

If you hover over the pictures, there are captions on some of them. Enjoy!

One on One Time

2009-10-20T08:46:00.003-05:00

Just hanging out with Mommy .....

and Papa

Everyone needs a little one on one time!

6 Weeks and Very Blessed

2009-10-16T08:40:00.009-05:00

Caleb is 6 weeks old today. It is at this point with each of my babies that I really count my blessings. Most Moms are going back to work, handing off their baby to a caregiver. Before Gabe and I were even engaged, we talked about our expectations and desires for when we had children. From the very beginning we both agreed wholeheartedly that I would not work , but instead stay home with our children. One of the best decisions we have ever made. It hasn't always been easy living on one income. In fact there were years when Gabe worked for a different school district that I wonder how we even made it. But I know how. God. He provides for all of our needs and then some. For years I barely had to buy clothes for the kids because we had so many hand-me-downs given to us. We are just now getting to the end of that supply and Isaac is almost 6 years old!!! We always had enough food to eat and enough money for the bills. It has been tight and probably always will be. We are comfortable knowing that we will never be rich or have a large excess of money. We are okay with that. The alternative for us is not worth it. I would give up all the riches of the world to spend my days with our children, loving on them and watching them grow, learn and change. They are my riches. And in my opinion, my riches far outweigh any amount of money.

So with all of that said, my baby is 6 weeks old today and I am blessed beyond measure to be at home holding him and loving on him. Caleb is growing very fast. He is smiling and cooing, sleeping through the night (3 nights now), and loves to look around at his world. He is becoming very observant and gets a kick out of his mobile. He recognizes our voices and turns to look at us when we talk to him. Isaac is still so fascinated with him. It warms my heart that Isaac is already so protective and loving towards him. Julia (when she takes time out from playing) is so sweet and gentle with Caleb. Such a little Mommy!! But I can see that Julia still needs to be Momma's "baby" sometimes. She needs me to hold and cuddle her too. But once she gets her fill, she is off to explore and play like a big girl.

I wonder sometimes what I did to deserve such beautiful and precious gifts. And of course the answer is... I did absolutely nothing to deserve them. They are gifts from God. Gifts that I cherish and thank God for everyday. Can you tell I love being Isaac, Julia, and Caleb's Mommy?!!!

Big Smiles

Proud Big Brother

Proud Big Sister

Oh and one last thing.....

First Tub Bath

2009-10-15T08:50:00.011-05:00

After a rather muggy walk with Isaac and Caleb last night, we came home all sweaty, icky and in need of baths. First up, Caleb got a bath in the baby bathtub. This was his first tub bath. Why you might ask? He is almost 6 weeks old, right?! Well, for some odd reason my kids have very thick and deep umbilical cords. With each baby their cords took forever to fall off. Caleb's just fell of this past weekend. He absolutely LOVED the bathtub. As soon as I laid him in the warm water he immediately started smiling and cooing. And of course, as with most every baby, he "sprung a leak"! Isaac got a kick out of that!! Caleb just kept kicking his feet around in the water, loving every minute of his bath. He looked so big in the bathtub sling as you can clearly see in the pictures. I am curious to see how much he weighs now,but our next appointment is not for a few more weeks. I should do what a friend of mine does. She weighs her babies in the produce scales at HEB - then prints out a sticker with their weight on it. :) Can't you just see me doing that? Hilarious!!

After Bath Bliss!!

This picture shows how big Caleb is getting.

Best Day

2009-10-13T10:59:00.005-05:00

I have never regretted quitting my career as a teacher and becoming a stay at home Mom. Quite the opposite, I feel blessed beyond measure to have the opportunity to be in the presence of my little ones all day everyday. Granted that can be hard to remember on days when I have battled strong wills while watching mounds of laundry and dishes grow right in front of my eyes. There are some days that I fall into my bed at night and wonder what I actually accomplished. Then the thought occurs to me.... the laundry and dishes will always be there, did you love on your children today? Did you spend special moments with each of them? Did you make lasting memories? It is the little things that make a big difference in a child's life. I know my standard for being a great Mom is pretty high and I never quite make it to that standard. But I try - and that counts. I know I have made a million mistakes and will make a million more. I pray often that God would protect my children from my mistakes. I wonder what they will remember as they get older - all the good stuff or all the not so good stuff. I hope and pray that when they look back they will think they had some of their best days with me because I know without a doubt my best days are with them. I saw this video the other day and let the tears fall. I want to look back at our videos one day without regret and know that I did what I could do to cherish each moment with my children, that I taught them, that I held them when they were hurt, that I showed them love in every possible way .

**That's as small as the video gets - SORRY**

Grot

2009-10-13T08:11:00.012-05:00

Grot - the state of being better than great.

Sunday afternoon was grot! After a stinky weekend of sickness, God blessed our family with a fun and relaxing afternoon. Gabe and the kids came home from church on Sunday with Rudy's BBQ in hand ready to build a fire in the fireplace and watch a movie.After the movie we dug out all the supplies and made s'mores. So FUN and yummy of course. Isaac enjoyed it so much he invented a new word! I asked him what he thought of his s'more and he replied, "It is grot!" "What does "grot" mean Isaac?" "It means better than great" he answered. And yes indeed, the s'mores and our afternoon were definitely better than great!! After our tummies where full, we all settled down for a cozy and warm nap. Gabe, Isaac, and I all chose a couch in the living room and snoozed the day away in front of the fire. Ahhhh, I love fall! The cooler weather, the fire in the fireplace.....just what I needed!

You will notice in the pictures below that Julia is "absent". She stubbornly refused to eat her lunch, so she could not partake in the s'mores. : ( Where does she get her pickiness for food?! My family is laughing hysterically now. I am wee bit of a picky eater myself. Julia had to go take a nap while we made s'mores. So sorry she had to miss out on all the fun! By the way, Julia got up from nap complaining that she was hungry. After a bit, she ate what was left of her lunch. Wish she would have just done that to begin with.

Last night as I was putting the kids to bed, I hugged Isaac and told him he was grot! He grinned and asked with wide eyes... "You mean you think I am better than great?!" "Absolutely, Isaac. you are far better than great"

What Caleb thinks.....

2009-10-12T09:32:00.005-05:00

This is what Caleb thinks about his Mommy being sick with fevers and mastitis this weekend....

He was not a happy camper Friday when he had to be separated from his Mommy just in case it was the flu and not mastitis. Our content little guy cried more on Friday night than ever before. Poor baby didn't know what was going on, didn't like the bottle, and definitely missed his Mommy. That last one is more for my comfort than anything else because I sure missed him. It tore my heart out that I couldn't go in there to comfort him. :( But once we knew for sure that we were dealing with mastitis I was actually relieved. I have never been more happy to have mastitis. With the flu outbreaks and the seriousness of the H1N1 with infants, I was a bit worried about my 5 week old getting sick.

My temp got up to 103 on Friday night. One word.... MISERABLE! I do not get sick often, especially with fevers. I forget how absolutely horrible having a fever is. I was well taken care of. Gabe was a trooper and took great care of me as did the kids. The weekend wasn't a total loss though. We ended it with a special day spent together as a family. Pics and details in a post to come!!!

Overheard at the Landes House

2009-10-08T18:15:00.004-05:00

Julia is sitting at the table drawing pictures in her journal from our day at Landa Park. One of the markers is dried out due to a missing cap. She said... "Some little boy (said with dramatic flair) I know forgot to put the lid back on this marker" "Oh yeah?! Which little boy would that be?" I said (totally expecting and waiting for her to blame Isaac) "Caleb" was her answer. Wow - Caleb is barely 5 weeks old and he is already getting blamed by his sibling!

Julia can be quite the stinker... cute stinker... but a stinker nonetheless!!

Crazy Hair Night

2009-10-08T10:21:00.006-05:00

Last night was crazy hair night at AWANA. Can't do much craziness to Isaac's hair but we gave our best effort. He thought it was fun having spiky hair for the night. Of course, he promptly came home and brushed it down!! He is not one to live on the wild side as far as his looks go:) everything else is fair game!

Visit to Aunt Karen's

2009-10-07T10:30:00.009-05:00

Caleb and I made the very rainy trek to visit my sister, Karen, last Saturday. She is at home recovering from surgery so we thought some company would brighten her day and help the healing along. Plus, Karen insists that her doctor prescribed a nice dose of holding her newborn nephew to help with her recovery!!! I would like to see the doctor's note on that one ;)

Update: Karen came through and actually "produced" a note!! Hilarious!!

It was a great day spent with Karen, her hubby Bobby and sons Kendall and Jared. It was Bobby and the boys first time to meet Caleb. There is nothing like seeing a grown man and a teenage boy snuggling an infant. As always.... great memories!

This was Isaac, Julia, and Caleb's message to Aunt Karen!!