The best of days...

Best of Days is moving!

2009-03-12T09:00:00.000-06:00

I am moving Best of Days to my new mac website:

web.me.com/charltonw/Best_of_Days

I'm loving all the new things I can do on it, but I also decided to change blog sights to beef up our security. So, while you are all feverishly typing in my new web address so as not to lose contact with me, please also make sure that if you have us linked to your new blog that you use only our first names. Thank you! I will be taking this blog offline in a few weeks. Talk to ya later.

Somewhere it must be freezing over...

2009-02-27T12:51:00.009-06:00

because Steven ate bell pepper last night with his dinner. Charlton and I watched with bated breath as his dipped it in his ranch and ate the first piece. When he didn't spit it out and actually smiled and said, "mmm," I did a little dance in my chair. He ate all different colors- red, yellow, green- but green was his favorite. Couldn't see that one coming! I know that it probably doesn't seem like a big deal to you but like every mom, I'm on a quest to get him to eat more veggies, and although he has tried them a few times, he always always spit them out after one bite. I had some leftover sliced bell pepper from a party platter I made so I've been putting them out during dinner because I figured what do I have to lose. "They" say that if you keep veggies out and keep offering them, eventually your kids will eat it- so in this instance "they" were right even though I had little faith that he would. Oh ye of little faith, I know.

Steven discovered a few months ago that he likes eating raw carrots when he can dip them in ranch dressing (he didn't like ranch for a while), and boy, does he love ranch. So, I'm hoping that he'll eat anything as long as he can dip it- next up cucumbers (yes, I've tried this one unsuccessfully too). Drum roll please...Steven now will eat a total of 4 vegetables (not including corn and other potatoes): carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, and now bell peppers. I wonder if I can count the last one as three because of the different colors. Never-the-less, I am a very happy mom right now.

Anyone have good ideas for introducing a vegetable I didn't mention? My favorite is how I get him to eat sweet potatoes. It's not original- I got it out of a baby/toddler cookbook. You slice a peeled sweet potato into 1/4 inch slices and bake them tossed in a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. We call them french fries and Steven loves them. I just stick leftover fries in the microwave for 15 seconds to heat through and then place on foil under the oven broiler for a few minutes to crisp them.

Steven to the Rescue

2009-02-25T14:13:00.008-06:00

Relief is finally in sight! The three week period of illness is hopefully coming to an end and we are feeling much better. I'll admit that I started the ball rolling because I've been sick that whole time- I just keep catching something else before I'm over the last thing. Charlton was the most recent casualty last week and got Bronchitis mid-week that lasted the entire weekend. Because I have been feeling less than healthy, I never posted these pictures of Steven playing with his big firetruck that Lindsay and Kyle gave him for Christmas. He loves trucks and cars, and one that is big enough to ride on (not that he doesn't try with the smaller ones) is too awesome for 2 year old words so I'm posting it for him.

The last several weeks have not been very fun for any of us and so when I felt close to 100% this morning, I decided that it was time for Steven to have a fun day with Mommy lest he forget how wonderful I am. It was kind of gloomy outside so rather than promise him outdoor adventures and then get rained out, we went to an inflatable bouncy house. We had a blast (sorry no pictures-- I was having too much of a good time for that) and it felt good to get out of the house for a little fun.

Ka Chow

2009-02-25T14:10:00.001-06:00

Check out Charlton's mad Play-Doh skills and if you haven't seen Cars yet, you're missing out! It is Steven's favorite movie by far; he even says the lines in the movie now when we watch it which is cute and scary at the same time! It makes me glad we restrict what he watches.

The party's over

2009-02-17T15:48:00.003-06:00

I took this at Asher's birthday party a week ago-- I will leave the other party pictures I took to be posted by Jamie if she wants to. I never thought Steven would leave that hat on long enough for me to get a picture but he loved it and wore it the whole time he was eating. Although, he's usually pretty content when eating Chick-Fil-A nuggets and fruit. The party was exactly between my sickness and Steven's; Asher even came down with something at his own party so this is just a depressing time of year. Two weeks ago I had a bad cold accompanied by a cough that took (what seems like) forever to go away. It was only documented on this blog by my absence since I figured you didn't really want to hear about that. Steven, as you know, got sick this weekend and poor guy is still battling the mentioned bronchitis. I don't know that we had the same thing but it does seem like quite a coincidence even though there was a fairly healthy week in between. This is by far the worst thing he's had so far. Usually he won't feel good for a day or two but nothing until now has kept him from playing and being close to his usual happy self. Saturday, Charlton and I were beyond what to do as we all three laid on Steven's bed while he cried because his throat hurt and he couldn't nap. He has been beyond crazy the last few days due at least in part to the steroid they put him on for two days. So even though he is still not feeling good at least he is able to play some and rest. He was feeling bad enough yesterday that he asked to go back to the doctor. I had already made an appointment and they gave us a something different so hopefully this medicine will clear all the mucous out- isn't that a lovely word. That's what we're dealing with here around here.

Debuting Lala's Design

2009-02-16T14:04:00.006-06:00

A friend from church offered to teach a few of us how to sew and we try to meet once a week. We all have had some experience sewing but I'll admit that my sewing machine only came out of the closet a few times a year when I could no longer avoid doing a simple repair to our clothing. For our first project, we all made little girl dresses and this is the one I made for Saige (my nieces call my "Lala" FYI). Cheryl made one for Meadow and I'm sure that she will put up a picture of her dress any day now, right, Cheryl?! I was afraid that it wouldn't fit her during the right season since it took me so long to finish it (I won't say how many months). But it looks so cute- just in time for spring! It's funny the looks and comments I get from some people when I tell them we get together to sew...like it's incredibly obscure. It's a lost art I guess. I'm now working on some curtains for Steven's room-- which has become a "race car" room because of the cute fabric I found to incorporate his obsession with them. They should definitely not take me as long as the dress...at least I hope not.

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T13:12:00.004-06:00

I posted these pictures-- last week, 17 months, and 5 months-- old to show what he is and was doing every year around Valentine's Day. He's so big!

Our Valentine's Day has been interesting so far. Thankfully, Charlton and I decided to beat the rush and go out for dinner and a movie last night. We dropped Steven (who we thought was perfectly healthy) off at my parents' house and then had a wonderful evening together-- I'd say one of our best Valentine dates. We picked Steven up from Mammaw and Pappaw's at 10:30 and put him straight in his bed-- maybe 5 minutes. Every thing's normal and then he let out this cough that sounded like a barking dog just like that. We pretty much knew from that first cough that he wasn't just clearing his throat. So after a night of not much sleep and lots of coughing, I took him to the ped. office this morning. He has a type of Bronchitis. The doctor gave us a prescription and said that he would be over it in two days; although, today and tonight would be hard. Hopefully, he'll take a long nap since he didn't sleep much last night. We wish everyone a healthy Valentine's Day-- especially you, Kristi. =)

Let's Go Fly a Kite

2009-02-14T13:10:00.002-06:00

How many adoring family members does it take to help Steven fly a kite...6. Lindsay and Kyle came into town and we celebrated my mom's birthday with her last weekend. It was her idea to fly a kite on Saturday morning and it was a great one! Steven had seen a kite at our neighborhood park last spring but we have never gotten around to getting one ourselves. Mammaw got one and was ready when we had beautiful, windy, 70 degree weather last weekend. Charlton and Kyle were responsible for the actual kite flying.

And we ran into our buddy, Jackson, too.

Running in the wind

Cool sunglasses, can I try them on?

Pray for my friend, Jen, today

2009-01-30T08:57:00.004-06:00

My life-long friend, Jen, found out Tuesday that she lost her second child at 34 weeks gestation. They do not know why Baby Ty's heart stopped beating on Monday and might never have the answer. He was 4 pounds and 3.5 ounces and measured 18.5 inches long. Please pray for Jen, Brendan, and their 2 year old son, Tegan, while they grieve-- especially today at 4:30 pm as they bury Ty Gary. I can not imagine the pain of losing a child; my heart is very heavy today.

Beautiful 2 year old faces

2009-01-28T12:24:00.001-06:00

Saturday at the Aquarium

2009-01-27T15:29:00.005-06:00

Charlton went took a guys' trip to Dallas Friday and Saturday with some of his college friends. So, Steven and I went to the Downtown Aquarium with my parents Saturday morning. Charlton and I had taken him on Memorial Day and he loved it, but we hadn't made it back there since. It seemed like a good day since it was cold and gloomy with a chance of rain. He had such a good time that it was hard to get him to really focus on any of the tanks for very long...

...that is, until we got to the tiger exhibit at the end. Memorial Day he went right up to the glass and seemed upset that he couldn't pet them. Saturday, he was scared to be anywhere near the glass and wanted me to hold him for a while at first. He finally got down to watch more closely, but when the tiger walked close and caught him by surprise his reaction was pretty funny (to us). We've noticed that since his 2nd birthday he's become a little more cautious and aware that things can hurt you. He talks daily about things that "can hurt you" like the stove, oven, cars (in the road), his seatbelt (I explained we wear them to protect us from getting hurt).

He did enjoy this area where you could "touch the starfish and sting rays with one finger," and stand behind the scuba gear. We don't know the "big boy" in the picture above but he's cute too.
I always wait to the end to take a picture of Steven and I, and of course as usual, he's done taking pictures by then.

Cadence

2009-01-26T13:08:00.003-06:00

Charlton's sister, Jenn, delivered Cadence Elizabeth on Friday around 1:00 pm. We went to see her after she got home from the hospital yesterday. She is so tiny (6 pounds and 2 oz.) and precious- very alert not wanting to miss a thing. Another niece to enjoy girly things with- I love it! Steven was napping at Mimi's and so has not gotten to meet Cadence yet. I am so glad we didn't take him because last night before bed his diaper gave evidence to the fact that he has a virus. We are staying in today and tomorrow but so far he's been fine today- not happy I'm enforcing a BRATS diet- but healthy. Needless to say it will be a little while until he gets to visit her- I should has known because he got a virus during Meadow's birth too and I didn't get to see her for at least a week.

Leave of Absence

2009-01-22T07:24:00.003-06:00

Sorry about the break I've taken from blogging. I've been working on setting up my new apple website and blog. I'm not sure what happened but I was doing something else on my computer over the weekend and a box popped up. I glanced at what it said and then remember hitting a "Relaunch" button. Stupid. I lost everything I set up and it was ready to go, I just hadn't published it yet. So, I guess I'll keep using this one until either Charlton can recover it or I do it over. Pictures coming soon.

Christmas Family Pictures at Mimi's

2009-01-04T21:03:00.005-06:00

The trend on Charlton's side of our family is that there's a new baby every year. We didn't actually have a baby born in 2008 but Meadow was born in November of 2007 and Jenn's due in 4 weeks so it certainly was close this time. The kids change so fast we try to get family pictures every year around Christmas.

Copies of Patrick and Cheryl's pictures from Christmas. Man, I love these girls! How could you not?

Christmas Day at Mammaw's

2009-01-04T20:36:00.002-06:00

After a few hours at home we headed over to my mom and dad's house (all the way down the street) and had tons of fun with them, Lindsay, and Kyle all day. Steven and I made my mom this plate with his handprints on them. [We made one for Mimi too but I forgot to get a picture of it- remind me to next time we're over, Brenda.] I took him one morning to Mudpie Company, a paint your own pottery place, and an employee helped us do the handprints. Then I went back that night with girlfriends from the neighborhood and did the rest. It was so much fun!

Steven yelled "BIG present" while he was opening this one from Lindsay and Kyle-- next picture...

The "big" one was a Tonka fire truck- pretty cool!

Kyle (and Lindsay) picks out great presents but the reason Steven loves him is because he reads and plays with him. Though, Steven says you can still keep the presents coming, "Kycle" and "Insey." =)

Mammaw and Pappaw got Steven a t-ball set (among many other things),

and a picnic table for the back yard.

Christmas Morning

2009-01-04T19:56:00.006-06:00

Every year since Steven's been born we have set aside Christmas morning for the three of us. This year we started a few new traditions- I made smoothies (Steven's favorite) to tide us over while we opened presents and stockings and played. Once Steven got his, he wouldn't put it down. Then we had a hard time pulling him away from his cars for breakfast- a quiche. Don't know if I've ever heard of a Christmas quiche, but why not?! That's what we wanted, so I made it the day before.

His stocking was filled with stickers, fruit snacks, and Cars (Lightening McQueen, Mater, and Doc Hudson to be exact-- to go with a present further down). I get stickers at the dollar store and scored big when I found Cars (the movie in case you missed that) stamps. Steven loves getting stamps on his hand at school. He shows and tells everyone we see about them. You just can't beat the dollar store, can you?! If you haven't seen Cars, you really should. Steven highly recommends it!

Last year we just filled Steven's stocking since we knew he'd get plenty of presents at grandparents' house and wouldn't know the difference. This year he definitely understood and loved presents, but thankfully, was more interested in playing with what was in them than in opening his others. He only had a few to open so we took our time. His presents basically consisted of cars, trucks, and lots of books that I got at Half- Price Books. I also made him a notebook for his stickers.

Kristi, does this look familiar? Steven saw his cousin Billy open this Mac car transporter at Ma and Pa's and thought it was the most awesome thing he had ever seen. =) I was planning on getting him some kind of car/truck from Cars and this had both so it was perfect! He has already played with it for hours upon hours.

Nativity Advent Calendar

2008-12-29T15:42:00.005-06:00

Since I posted about our advent calendar, I have had several requests for the website we found it on-- Cherry Lane Keepsakes. They were out-of-stock last time I checked, but maybe you can get a post-Christmas deal on it which is how I always buy holiday decorations with this one exception. It's wood and metal so we felt it was worth it to have it last through years of use with young children.

Since Charlton is an attorney we have gotten into the habit of making disclaimers for anything we recommend. And since I'm posting it on my blog, the potential for a bad outcome is higher. This is the only thing we have ever bought on this website and do not know a whole lot about it. We were happy with the service on the order of this one item and were more than satisfied with the product that we received. So there you go.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

2008-12-29T15:38:00.002-06:00

I uploaded the pictures to this post last week but didn't have time to finish writing and post before Christmas Day and going out of town.

I got up a little earlier on Christmas Sunday to make sure we had enough time to take pictures before we left for church. The Sunday before Christmas is special to me. I always look forward to worship on Sunday morning, but we've been celebrating advent the whole month of December so I felt that my heart was more prepared for it this year. Everything about Christmas is so fun from white lights to reindeer and I have no problem enjoying them all as long as we stay focused on our Savior's birth. God sacrificed His ONLY son for us sinners who can do nothing to deserve it. As I delight in watching my beautiful boy grow every day I can only begin to understand what a huge sacrifice that is.

Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer

2008-12-23T14:28:00.000-06:00

This year's Christmas picture bloopers from the three (soon-to-be four in February) cousins: Saige saw something that apparently was pretty funny to all of them. So much for the idyllic picture I had in my head of the three of them snuggling and smiling in Popo's Santa sleigh. Some one should tell you when you're becoming a mom that those rarely happen- especially when multiple children are involved. =) Steven looks like he's on a roller coaster; at least he's having fun!

Away in the Manger

2008-12-22T21:43:00.003-06:00

We bought an advent calendar just in time for this Christmas season. You wouldn't think that a nativity advent calendar would be hard to find considering that the purpose of advent is to focus us on the birth of Christ (and his return). Unfortunately, that isn't so--Charlton had to surf through dozens of Santa and his elves, snowmen, and various other kinds of cartoon-like decorative calendars to find this one. We wanted something that would help Steven become more involved in our family worship time and get him excited about the story of Christ's birth (the reason we celebrate Christmas).

Charlton did an awesome job finding this one because Steven loves it! Each door contains a magnetic nativity character that he places in the stable background. He usually asks to do it during the day and always wants to open more than one door at night. It has totally changed our devotional time because he is now enthusiastic about everything we are doing and is actively participating. It's been a practical way for us to share and explain Christ's birth to him in a way him can understand. He'll be sad to put it away but it's a new tradition that we'll look forward to having with him every Christmas season.

The First Noel

2008-12-21T16:10:00.004-06:00

Yesterday we had our first Christmas with all of Charlton's family at Mimi and Popo's. It was a full day of fun.

And yes, it came with a sword, how cool is that:

Just had to get this book for our very own "Fancy Nancy"!

Santa, who's Santa? Is he as cool as Mimi and Popo?

When Christmas Comes to Town

2008-12-20T19:51:00.003-06:00

This what is looks like at Mimi and Popo's when Christmas comes to Houston. Popo is the Christmas light expert of the family and people come from all over the area to see his lights. This was the first year the kids really enjoyed the lights, and boy, do they LOVE them! The choo-choo train is a big hit! I took these quickly while the kids were running around in the yard tonight and they don't really do Popo's masterpiece justice (you have to see them in person) but it gives you an idea. We had our Christmas with them today-more pictures to post tomorrow!

Oh Little Child of Bethlehem

2008-12-18T12:56:00.003-06:00

We have not left the house much this week but I have still had plenty to keep me busy. Steven came down with a cold last weekend so we have been quarantined to the house all week to prevent him from getting more sick and passing it on to anyone else. I feel sure that a cold is not on many wish lists this season.

Poor kid has had a really bad cough that wakes him (and us) up in the middle of the night and naps, so there were a couple of rough nights at the beginning of the week but he is improving leaps and bounds everyday. He's been sleeping through the night again for the last few nights and last night I got eight hours again- oh, how glorious! His cough is almost gone so I think he'll be fine by Saturday which is when we are having Christmas with Charlton's family- that has been my only goal this week to get him as healthy as possible by then.

It was with this goal in mind, I kept him home from school both days this week and I was really bummed about it because this week he would have had his first Christmas program. His class was only singing one song, but I was still looking forward to getting every second on the video camera. He loves to sing right now so I know he would have sung his little heart out and it would have been so cute! (Sigh) I know that there will probably be many more Christmas programs in our future so I'm trying to move past it. =)

We are very blessed with a happy little boy. Even being sick this week, he has been happy and content to play in the house every day; although, he was down right giddy when we made a grocery run to Wal-Mart yesterday. All this inside fun with me will just make all our Christmas gatherings even that much more fun for him! He has so much enthusiasm for all things Christmas- it's fun to experience it with child-like excitement again.

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

2008-12-16T20:00:00.007-06:00

I fell off the Blog Challenge wagon for a couple of days, but now I'm back! This weekend we went to visit Charlton's grandparents and had our annual Christmas reunion with that whole side of our family. It was a quick trip but it was good to see everyone none the less. Mimi bought all the little ones Christmas pjs again this year and we commenced with the yearly group picture torture. (I just went to Charlton's cousin, Kristi, blog and she has a great comparison of the three older kiddos over the last three years).

Steven (27 mos), Billy (27 mos), Bristyn (8 mos), Meadow (13 mos), Saige (28 mos)

All the great-grandkids with Mama and Papa

A pretty good picture considering I waited until right before we left to take a picture of these three. We can always get a picture of the cousins here but the girls looked so cute in their polka dots and tights that I had to try.

Up on a housetop...

2008-12-13T06:39:00.000-06:00

...it's a bird, it's a plane, it's...we tell him the "S" stands for Steven.

He has no idea who Superman is but he went crazy when I pulled him out of his drawer for the first time. I was looking for bright red pajama bottoms for his Thing 1 Halloween costume and saw these pjs- gotta love costumes that are multi-purpose. We told him to stand on the ottoman and jump off which he already does anyway and loves! Have you ever seen a cuter super hero? Don't you feel safer already?!

God Rest You Merry Gentleman

2008-12-12T23:10:00.002-06:00

Steven decided to take a reading break from playing the other day and Charlton found him in the middle of all his books in his room in this same position- his back against his train table and his feet up on this basket of books. He moved by the time I got back with the camera, and Charlton put his pillow behind his back because it seemed more comfortable- so thoughtful! Steven was so active so early (walking at 10 1/2 months active) that he was not interested in sitting still for us to read to him much until after he was 18 months. He is still pretty busy but has "matured" so that he can now sit still and focus on different activities for a time; however, reading is now one of his favorites things to do and we usually tire of reading aloud to him before he is ready to be done. Charlton and I both love to read so we are delighted to share this "hobby" with him and glad that it is something we can enjoy as a family for many years to come.

Frosty the Snowman

2008-12-11T06:38:00.006-06:00

I stand corrected...it does snow in Houston. It's been a few years since I've seen any snow at all here especially in mid-December. These pictures were taken when Charlton got home from work and I should have gone back out and taken some more before bed because our yard was a beautiful white blanket which of course is now gone. We grabbed Steven's quilt and wrapped it around him last night. He was really excited to go out and that excitement lasted about two minutes outside when he realized how cold it was, then he buried his face in the quilt and moaned to go in. Of course as soon as we went in, he wanted to go back out. Charlton built him a little snowman- raisin eyes and dried mango nose (I was out of baby carrots)- isn't that how the song goes?

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

2008-12-10T06:25:00.000-06:00

Saturday afternoon we went to our neighborhood's snow day. They had artificial (obviously) snow in two small patches in the park for kids to play on. This is the first time that Steven has encounter it first hand. He points it out in books but as you can tell from his face it was much different in person and he wasn't sure what to think of it. Walking on it was tricky and it only took one slip to put him bare belly on the ice (it was pretty hard by the time we got there)- that was the end of snow day for Steven. Poor kid, that's probably the only snow he'll see all winter and he didn't get a very good first impression. He much preferred the bounce house they had also set-up.

Let's just go over to your house and play, Will.

Not super excited, are they?

This is so much more fun, Aunt Lindsay!

On the way home, Steven has the "I'm glad we live in Texas" look. I won't tell him the real thing is pretty awesome.

I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In

2008-12-09T14:37:00.003-06:00

It's that time of year again... Jamie's annual Christmas Blog Challenge (see Rules that apply). I missed the first day (yesterday) and I was tempted to changed the post options to show that I did post yesterday but I'm not a cheater (just apparently someone who seriously considers it).

Anyway, three "ships" did come in last week to kick off the holiday festivities- ones from Colorado, Atlanta, and College Station. My mom's sisters and brother-in-law came in for a visit mid-week, and Lindsay and Kyle came on Friday night and stayed the weekend with us.

My aunts and uncle had never met Steven in person so it was special to introduce him to more family. He loved them all and had a blast- especially with Uncle "Gak" (translation: Jack) who played with him a lot. They all went home Sunday and yesterday afternoon Steven asked to go to Mammaw and Pappaw's to play; we had been going over there for most of the day the last five days.

Old Friends Going New Places

2008-12-03T07:05:00.010-06:00

We drove to College Station on Wednesday morning to visit our friends the Fergusons. They have been missionaries in Peru for the last two years and are back in TX for a year before moving to Calgary (read more about their ministry below). We hadn't seen them since Lindsay's wedding right before they moved to Peru so we were excited to spend some time with them and introduce them to Steven in person. Anyway, we go waaay back. John was our RUF minister in college and Charlton and I were his first wedding he performed; Heather was one of my bridesmaids and Kevin, their middle son, was our ring bearer. I didn't realize at the time we asked them both to be in the wedding that there was nothing they could really do if Kevin decided weddings weren't really his thing. Despite a little belly sliding along the side of the stage, he did great. That's why people really go to weddings anyway, right- cute kids and the food.

Heather took some great pictures with her camera. I don't think there's anything more exciting for a mom of a two-year old than someone offering to take pictures of her child because they just want to. Thanks, Heather!

He actually stopped and and looked at the camera when she asked him to and they are amazing pictures. I guess Steven already loves the Fergies as much as we do! They live on 4 acres bordering a neighbor with miniature ponies.

What could be better for Steven than five big kids ready to play with him and lots of space to run around.

It was a great day for all of us!

John and Heather (along with their kids) are making the change from being missionaries doing campus ministry in Peru to being missionaries doing church planting in Calgary. I copied this description from John's old blog explaining their new ministry and below it have posted how you support them in their work for God's Kingdom if feel so led:

A brief summary: As we've thought about where we should invest ourselves in this next stage of life, we came up with 4 criteria: We wanted to be (1) in an important urban center; (2) near a major university; (3) in a post-modern / post-Christian context; (4) where the PCA (our church) is thin or non-existent. As we thought about the ways in which God has been shaping us and forming our thoughts along these criteria, I have accepted a call to be a part of a multi-site / multi-congregational church planting movement in Calgary, Alberta (we received a recommendation from Mission to North America’s Church Planting Assessment Center in June).

We looked at a handful of other options—including in our beloved home country of Texas—but none matched up with our desires like Calgary did. Calgary is (1) a beautiful city of over a million people with ~20,000 moving there every year; (2) home of the Univ. of Calgary—36,000 students; (3) post-modern and as several Canadian pastors have told me—very post-post-post Christian; (4) has only two PCA churches with about 200 people attending. In some major cities of Canada, over 40% of the people are atheist. Further, the fastest growing religious categories by rate of increase between 1991 and 2001 are Paganism (+281%), Native Spirituality (+175%) and Islam (+129%). Calgary needs the Gospel: only around 10-12% of the city attends a Christian church of any kind, and that number is shrinking rapidly.

We are excited and scared at the same time, feeling that this will be the biggest thing we've attempted to do for Christ's Kingdom to date. We have grown a lot, learned a ton, and we really feel like we are more prepared to do this now in ways that we wouldn't have been able to do several years ago. So we ask for your continued prayers.

Some of our supporters have asked us about continued support & partnership. The short answer: Yes! August will be our last month employed with Peru Mission, and then we will be in full-time fundraising mode for Calgary. There will be a few months gap until our mission board / paperwork, etc., are all in place to process gifts & receipts. We will keep you posted.

Thanks for being a part of our lives and the work of Christ’s kingdom. It is a privilege to be in this together with you.

Grace & Peace,
John & Heather Ferguson

Donations can be made to the New City Church Planting Movement in Calgary, including making donations by mail, online by credit card, via electronic funds transfer, or by stock donation.
If you choose to send in support with a check, mail the check to:

Mission to North America
1700 N. Brown Road Suite 101
Lawrenceville, GA 30043-8143

Office: (678) 825-1200
Fax: (678) 825-1001

1. Make your check out to “MNA.”
2. In the memo line, write “John Ferguson.” MNA prefers to list the church planter on the check rather than the account number.
3. 100% of your contribution goes directly to this project! There are no fees charged by MNA for these services.

School Days- Update

2008-12-03T06:44:00.004-06:00

Sorry to disappear for a few weeks- I am overloaded with my to do lists this season. We had a good Thanksgiving with both of our families this year. We went to Charlton's parents' that Day for dinner with all the siblings, and then spent Friday with my parents. We missed Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Kyle who were with Kyle's family on the other side of Texas but we survived knowing that Insey and Kycle are coming in to stay with us this weekend.

Steven had a Thanksgiving feast at school last Monday, and I went to join the festivities. Their feast was actually chicken nuggets and fruit which Steven ate really well- we were all happy! He would not leave his Indian hat he made long enough for me to take a picture,

but I did take a picture of this picture on the classroom wall with the Dalmatian ears from fire truck day. Steven is loving school now! It probably took him about three weeks to adjust to being dropped off at school; it was hard but worth it. We gradually were able to talk about all the fun stuff he does there and his new friends and teachers. Now he gets excited and talks about it to his grandparents and my friends- his favorite activities are craft and music time. I have to be sure to get my kiss because he just walks right into his classroom. He also doesn't need Frank to walk in anymore which I am very happy about so I just put him with his sleep mat. He is eating pretty well now at their lunchtime but naps at school are pretty hard to come by which I guess is understandable. I don't know if I could sleep on a floormat surrounded by 6 other two-year-olds either.

Sunday Best

2008-11-16T21:16:00.003-06:00

It was in the 30's when we woke up this morning and even though it was warmer when we left for church, Steven got to wear his first blazer. This is of course not including the time he wore a tux for Aunt Jenn's wedding over a year ago- a tux is a tux. Mimi bought him this very cool dress shirt and blazer- it's even more adorable in person. We took pictures in front of the bookcases in Charlton's study because we thought it'd be funny. Notice that the lower shelf in the first picture is Charlton's law books (how appropriate) but then we balanced it out with our collection of Harry Potter on the shelf above.

Charlton was trying to get him to pose with one fist under his chin

Tired of taking pictures by now but still cute.

Power Tools

2008-11-05T06:52:00.004-06:00

Charlton put together Steven's big (big) boy bed last weekend. He was running out of room in his convertible crib so we figured it was time to upgrade. I was a little sad to put the crib away but his new bed is just so cool. Steven thinks so too. He was jumping up and down while Charlton put it together. It was Aunt Lindsay's bed in college and we were happy to get it out of the attic and put it to good use again. Thank you, Aunt Lindsay, Mammaw, and Pappaw!

Steven was also mesmerized by Charlton's screwdriver- I guess it's just innate in boys to like power tools.

Trying really hard....

Watch out!

The new bed with his new train sheets- I'm looking for a quilt or comforter but found these at TJ Maxx months ago and had to get them.

Then he broke in his bed by jumping off which is now not allowed for fear he will break his head. He wanted to jump into the small space between the bed and his dresser- less than a foot wide. I did not put this shirt on him for these pics- ironically and fittingly he already had it on. =)

Another hair-crazed Halloween

2008-11-01T12:13:00.016-06:00

Steven was Thing 1 (a character from The Cat in the Hat in case you're not up on your Dr. Seuss) this year for Halloween. We thought it would a fun one to do since their one of Steven's favorite characters right now and oddly enough there weren't lots of Thing 1 & 2 costumes being donned this year. =) We also like doing costumes that involve playing up one of Steven's best asset- his hair.

You might remember that he was a rock star with a Mohawk 2 years ago for his first Halloween (2 months old)...last year was pretty lame and he didn't dress up for long since I caught a stomach bug. I told Cheryl it must be the (family) Halloween curse because Meadow caught the same thing this year and they were quarantined like we were last year.

Here Steven is providing the background music for his grandparents and friends.

When Steven saw his friend, Will the firefighter, he ran to get his firetruck, and then handed it to him like,"here, this should be yours." Within two seconds he decided he had been too hasty and really wanted to keep the firetruck for himself. I was glad to see though that all the books we've been reading (and the visit the fire dept paid to his school) have helped him connect jobs with people and what certain trucks are for. he is just generally crazy about trucks and trains.

Greeting Asher who dressed as an adorable monkey. You can also see his baby "bee" brother in the background.

I decided to "dress up" two hours before our small gathering and threw together what I had in my closet. I ended up with a western style shirt (from Steven's cowboy birthday party at 1 yr) and fake costume jewelry from my Breakfast at Tiffany's look= a Texan oil man's trophy wife of course. My lipstick was gone by this time and collar wouldn't stay up but it's the effort that counts.

Steven smiled for both his pictures with the grandparents- that's got to be a record.

Our buddy, Luke the fighter pilot

Handing out candy at the front door.

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-19T20:47:00.003-05:00

Fall is my favorite time of year and we are finally getting some weather that is really enjoyable. So, yesterday we took Steven to a petting zoo/farm where they also have a small pumpkin patch set up. Now with the weather getting cooler, I'm getting in the mood for fun and parties and this is just the first of many seasonal festivities for the upcoming months.

Beginning of Fall

2008-10-18T14:12:00.004-05:00

It's October...which in Texas means we're still wearing shorts and eating snow cones. [This was last weekend- thankfully it has cooled down a little and we're now enjoying weather with highs in the low 80s and high 70s.] Steven wanted "red" but didn't mind also tasting our blue and purple ones to make sure they were ok too.

He's showing off his red tongue; we, of course, thought it was funny but I'm sure he was thinking, "isn't my tongue always red- what's the big deal?"

First Aggie Tee

2008-10-18T13:14:00.004-05:00

We got Steven his first Aggie tees the weekend we escaped to Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Kyle's place. I always love going to College Station during football season- the excitement is contagious- and I just couldn't resist getting Steven one (or two). We did not acquire many A&M things for Steven when he was a baby so I feel these were overdue. Lindsay showed us to a tent sale where they were selling "bookstore stuff" cheap. You've gotta love that. I don't remember them doing that when we were in school except for special event t-shirts like for Maroon-Out. Anyway since the t-shirts either run small or shrunk when I washed them, I knew I better take some pictures before he can't wear them anymore. What better place to take them than outside at the playground where Steven's in his element.

Posing (not that he did much) is tough work!

A comparison...

Steven at 6 mos.

and now at 2 yrs.

Again at 6 mos.

And at 1 yr. (I remember taking this picture comparing it to the above and thinking that he was so big! Actually I think I thought that at 6 mos. too.)

And last week at 2 yrs.

Fun At Mimi's

2008-10-13T12:54:00.004-05:00

Steven loves going to Mimi and Popo's and playing with his cousins. Soon there will be another- another girl too! =) Steven's totally outnumbered, but the girls are good about also playing with boy things when he's around and they always have fun no matter what they are doing. Thanks to Mimi for the pictures and wanting to spend the day with her grandbabies.

Be Kind, Rewind

2008-10-12T15:34:00.005-05:00

to see pictures from Steven's 2nd birthday party on Labor Day. Don't miss cute pictures of the cousins at the end-- music by our favorite children's musician, Elizabeth Mitchell.

Trains and trucks

2008-10-09T05:53:00.004-05:00

I'm not sure where the last month went- Steven is already 25 months. And like every two year old boy, he loves trucks and trains. My parents got him his first train set and table for his birthday and he loves it. He has even recently added the "choo choo" sound effect when he plays with it and it is just so cute. I think I have to agree with Uncle Kyle (partly) that toys nowadays are too flashy and make too much noise. You can buy trains now that will make hundreds of different sounds I'm sure but I feel that it is so much more satisfying in hearing Steven doing it himself and using his imagination while he's playing.

Another one of his favorite things right now is the alphabet. He loves anything that has to do with letters. We had gotten him an alphabet puzzle- it is for three year olds but he's a puzzle wizard- before his birthday because we were trying to challenge him a bit. I guess it worked because he learned all his letters from us doing that puzzle with him. He's still learning to say them in order but he can pick up or point out any letter and tell you what it is. Then for his birthday, separate friends got him a Leapfrog Alphabet DVD and magnet toy. It teaches phonics which sounds way too old for Steven, I know, but he knows all the letters and what sound they make from those two things- crazy! Charlton said he would have been skeptical if he hadn't witnessed it himself. They play the same song- the way to this kid's heart and mind is through music! So, now he plays with the magnets and brings us letters saying,"B says Ba." He's a smart kid!

He is so much fun now that he is two and we are enjoying him being older! Although, I will say that we noticed a definite change in his personality right around his birthday. We were kind of hoping that the "terrible twos" was just an abstract idea....turns out that it's not and we're already in them. Steven's laid back style has gone on vacation or maybe got swept away during the hurricane. He no longer is content to share or let other kids take his toys. He also has decided the he'll do anything to get his way and has decided that throwing big fits anytime he doesn't will show us how unhappy he is and we'll give in. He is wrong there. I'm hoping that some of this acting out is because of all the changes (school and hurricane related) that have occurred recently. His sleep schedule has been messed up with school too so that certainly doesn't help, but he has been quite a handful since his birthday and we're exhausted with handling this new stage. This new direction of behavior is certainly not ok with us and so we are trying to be very consistent with our discipline. This week has been better but still a little tiring. The good moments definitely out weigh the bad ones though and I'm hoping that my sweet boy returns to stay instead of just appearing every once in a while.

Escape to College Station

2008-10-01T19:46:00.007-05:00

As I previously mentioned in one of my hurricane updates, Steven did great with all the craziness until the Friday after the storm. In all fairness, it was the 7th day of things not being normal. He woke up that morning excited that Charlton was home again instead of being at work but was quickly un-excited that his world had not return to normal overnight. Our neighbors across the street and my parents down our same street both got power at 9 am that day. We were hopeful that ours would be on any minute until we were told that a tree a few houses down had fallen on a power line...that was when we realized that our power line was not going to be labeled a quick fix and might be passed over (not comforting).

We called a neighborhood info line and were told that everyone in the neighborhood should have power by Monday- not as bad as it could be but that meant it would be at least several more day. It proceeded to get hotter as the day progressed (funny how that happens) so I called my sister later that afternoon to take them up on their offer for us to enjoy their AC and their company for the weekend. Actually, they had offered for us to come over right after the hurricane but we of course were convinced that the power would be on that day. It was about as last minute as it gets but they changed their plans that weekend to accommodate us- what an awesome sister!

We threw our bags together, loaded the car, and then fought rush hour traffic across Houston to pick up free A&M football tickets from Charlton's boss who had called in the afternoon. After stopping for dinner and traffic before getting on the road to CS, we did not arrive at Lindsay's until 10 pm Friday night and unfortunately Steven did not fall asleep. And no, that did not help he get in a better mood for the weekend. =)

We, however, were very happy to have a break from the inconvenience of no power and the fun distraction of visiting Aunt Lindsay, Uncle Kyle, and Gus (their dog). Steven loves "Insey" and "Kycle" (the combo of Kyle and Uncle that Steven came up with on his own)- and when he also gets to see Gus he is pretty close to perfectly happy.

Alas, we did not get to take Steven to his first Aggie game like we had hoped. We discovered after our arrival to CS that A&M is one of the few major universities that makes toddlers have a ticket. I told Charlton that it's probably because Aggies have a lot of babies and want to brainwash, I mean indoctrinate, early. We did get to take Steven to the original (or at least the one we ate at in college) Freebirds- a popular burrito place for those of you outside of TX- and get a picture of the three of us.

Afterwards, Uncle Kyle and Charlton went to the game. Steven napped so Aunt Lindsay and I got to chat with no distractions which I realized later has been quite while since that has probably happened and it was nice!

After he woke up, we went in search of some good ice cream and Steven's first Aggie t-shirt. We spent two nights in the L&K hotel so on Sunday we were able to visit our old church that we went to during college. Here's a fun fact for you: we both attended there before we dated, while we were dating, and after we were married- that's a lot of history at one church during college.

It felt like only yesterday since we were there until I remembered it had really been been 6 years. It was a great trip back; we're looking forward to going again soon and Steven going to his first Aggie game- next time we'll make sure he has a ticket ahead of time.

School Days

2008-10-01T06:56:00.004-05:00

The Monday before the hurricane Steven started his first day of "school." That's what we call it anyway. He is going two days a week to a "development program" at a local church (similar to Mother's Day Out) mostly for his own social and educational benefit but I don't mind a little time "off" either. =) I tried to take pictures of him with his backpack but he did not want to get close to it that morning and would not put Frank down. He loves his backpack now but still refuses to wear or carry it.

It has been a little rough transitioning into school. He went twice before the hurricane and then missed three school days while everyone (including us and the church) was waiting for power to come back on. So by the time he went back, it was like the first day all over again. His teachers tell me he has a great time with all the kids and music and crafts, but I would hardly know it from what I see. He panicks as soon as we drive into the parking lot and screams "mommy" until I pry him out of my arms to hand him over to his teacher. It is a traumatic experience for both of us; however, they tell me that he's fine shortly after I leave.

He is always fine when I pick him up although he asks "mommy too" for the rest of the day checking to make sure that I'm still going to be with him. I'm trying to stay focused that it's going to be a long term adjustment and that this is fairly normal so we need to stick it out a little longer and I'm sure he'll look forward to it. He's been bringing me his shoes and asking to go out at 8:30 am all summer so we felt it was a good time for him to have a more structured activity with other kids. And as you can imagine I have had no problem finding stuff to do while he is away and I find that the times flies and I never get all I want do done before I need to pick him up. He is such a big boy but still a baby in so many ways.

11 days

2008-09-24T07:09:00.003-05:00

Wow, 11 days is a long time to go without electricity! We were very happy (an understatement) that our power came back on yesterday around 1 pm. I had checked at 10 am and noon before and after a play date before heading back to my mom's to feed Steven lunch and put him down for a nap. My mom had to go down the street to the mailbox so she checked again at 1:30 pm just to be sure and called me very excited that the back porch lights were on. We had been told everyone in our neighborhood would have power by Monday (the day before) but there had been a few electric trucks on our street all morning so we were hoping our power would be fixed soon. I dashed over to turn the AC on so it would cool down during the rest of Steven's nap. What do you do when you haven't had electricity in your house for 11 days? You rush back to plug everything back in and and crank up the AC!!! We came back as soon as Steven woke up and have been enjoying (a cool) home sweet home ever since.

Hurricane Ike definitely taught me a good lesson in contentment. The first 7-8 days were actually fine- it's easy to be happy when you're still in your own home and Mother Nature is providing the AC. But, Steven starting crashing on Friday and has not been happy about things not being normal-- when Steven's not happy, we're not happy. The last two days have been hard with him but we have many, many reasons to be thankful. Our friends and family have been so wonderful- we've had our pick of houses to escape to and meals cooked. We retreated to College Station for the weekend to stay with my sister and brother-in-law, and then upon finding our house with no power still on Sunday night, we have been staying with my parents for the last few days. We are doing well and are reminded of how much we have during a time when many in our area have literally lost everything- we are very blessed. The plan for this week is to recover the house (go grocery shopping!!) and try to get things back to "normal" for Steven- poor little guy. I think he already knows that things are better since we're home and I kept telling him that the house is cool and the lights were on- he went into his room and said "Steven's lights" so I think he knew something was different. Last week he couldn't play in his room much even though we were home because it was so dark. He was a little out-of-sorts the first hour we were home but then very happy by bed time.

Surviving Ike

2008-09-17T14:55:00.004-05:00

Hi everyone. Thank you for your prayers and concerns over the last week. We came through the storm well with no damage, but lost electricity. We have been able to use our water which makes a big difference; although, we were told not to drink it immediately after the storm passed and yesterday they told us to start conserving. We were able to buy a generator last night and we are using it for the internet, TV, and the fridge. We can unplug those things to use it for others; we might need to do a little laundry tomorrow. =) Most of our cold groceries are still in a cooler while the fridge gets cool enough. We were a little nervous about running out of ice but my parents and C's parents were both able to get us a bag so we are ok with that. We've also been fine with gas but needed some yesterday so Charlton went out about 8pm after it was dark and only had to wait in line about 45 min. The average wait during the day we've heard has been about 1 1/2 to 2 hours-- every gas station has a long line down the street. Those are the things in highest demand right now: ice and gas.

Things have actually been fairly pleasant since Sunday night when we got a cool front. The weather has been beautiful and made this experience bearable. We would have left several days ago if it had been hot, but since Sunday night the highs have only been in the low 80s during the day and lows at night have been in the low 60s. We keep the windows open all day and night which remind us our our days in Philly. =) Steven has been doing well including sleeping very well thankfully-- we've all been catching up on our sleep. His window was the only one we boarded up for the storm so he was scared when he woke up Saturday morning and it was pitch black in his room with the wind and rain still pretty stormy outside. He got a little upset in the car the first few times we went out to explore because there were huge trees laying in the road-- I'm sure the fact we were pointing them out to each other and exclaiming over them didn't help. We have been keeping him busy though visiting grandparents and neighbors and so he is having a ball now that the weather is good and the three of us do everything together. It's also been really nice to have to time to connect with our neighbors. We've been eating whatever we can fix here without electricity. Also, my parents have a gas stove and C's parents have a grill so we've scrambled all the eggs we had and grilled all the meat we had in our freezers. It's great to have hot food. By Sunday evening a few grocery stores opened and then Monday more commercial areas had power so there are more restaurants open everyday. Most of the damage in our area was due to fallen trees so there's quite a mess to clean up but we didn't have any flooding which is a huge blessing. God definitely protected our area from the worst and except for residential electricity things are getting closer to normal everyday. We were hoping for our electricity to come back on any time but they announced yesterday that the electrical company was hoping to get 50% of Houston's residences electricity by Tuesday. We didn't feel like that was very promising and while we weren't much more than inconvenienced by the storm (thank you, Lord!), it is getting old not having electricity. We feel like investing in a generator isn't a frivolous purchase at this point in Houston since we Lord-willing plan to stay here permanently. I'm sure that will be more opportunities to use it through the years though I hope not soon.

Charlton has not had to go back to work yet which has been nice-- he had originally planned to take today through Friday off for vacation anyway. Our home phone starting working today but we have been using our cells since the storm. Service is spotty so I haven't been able to actually get a call through but I can get my voice mails immediately and texting has been working well too although sometimes there's a big delay. Keep praying for our electricity to come on and for Houstonians that were more affected than we were. We are definitely counting our blessings and very thankful for God's protection over our loved ones.

Waiting it out

2008-09-11T22:41:00.003-05:00

Just a quick post to let you know that we are prepared for Ike and will be hunkering down in our house (all our family and friends are also staying around). We are not in any of the evacuation areas and so have been advised to stay put. We have tons of water, batteries, etc. so I'm sure we will be fine. We still would appreciate prayers for our safety and especially our neighbors on the coast.

The Invitation

2008-09-02T14:16:00.006-05:00

We really like parties and birthdays at our house so a birthday party is twice the fun for us. This being the case we usually have our own ideas of what we want that we can't find at a store. So, I got Photoshop Elements from my parents for my birthday and soon after started teaching myself how to use it so that I can make our own invitations, announcements, and cards.

This is my first project-- a green eggs and ham birthday invitation for Steven's 2nd birthday. It took me over a month to learn the program, design the invitation, and help from Patrick and Cheryl to print them before we got the end result. But, it was worth it when Steven saw it and with a giggle exclaimed, "Sam!" Charlton read Green Eggs and Ham to Steven every night for at least 2 months without missing one. It's still his favorite but he has branched out a little and is also totally obsessed with The Cat And The Hat and One Fish Two Fish. He is a Dr. Seuss fanactic!

Front Cover:

I am Two. Two I am. Do you like green eggs and ham?

Inside:

Steven Mark is turning two. He is very fond of you.

Would you come and help him do the thing to do when turning two? (Charlton came up with these two lines-- aren't they great?!)

Would you like them here?

You would not like them anywhere?

Two at Last!

2008-09-02T13:42:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to my big two year old! There are so many reasons that I love Steven that it would take up a whole blog to post them. Pictures from his party are coming soon...

Family Pictures at Mama's

2008-09-02T13:40:00.002-05:00

Our family getting ready for pictures:

Just our family with Mama and Papa:

Mama and Papa with all their great-grandchildren:

All of us (Mama and Papa's kids, grandkids, and great grandkids):

Celebrating Mama's 80 years

2008-08-27T15:17:00.005-05:00

We arrived in Stephenville on Friday night after the drive I described in the last post. We underestimated the importance of being the first to arrive-- Steven loved having all of Mama and Papa's attention. He had a blast talking and playing with them; he thought that Papa's duck noises were hysterical which made us all laugh. Steven definitely is a fun-loving kid and he loves being around all of his family.

Steven loves his Popo. He gives him a hug first and then digs through his pockets (just about every time we are with him). Smart kid, I think-- you butter him up first and then go for the front pocket which always has money in it. Unfortunately, Steven doesn't understand the value of money yet- that a $20 is better than $1 or that he should try to keep it. =) He always puts it back when he done rummaging around. We got to work on that!

Playing with Mimi

On the way up

2008-08-25T21:03:00.003-05:00

We drove to Stephenville, TX this weekend to celebrate (Charlton's) Mama's 80th birthday. Steven did great on the trip up and we were excited to discover that a reasonably long-ish road trip is actually pleasant with Steven...not without a little planning ahead though. We made the 1 1/2 hour trip to good ole College Station and I had already searched for a fun place for Steven to run off any extra energy he might be saving up. I found The Bounce- a place full of inflatable houses and slides. We had never been to one of these before and Steven was in awe of the fun going on in that place. It only took him an hour to wear himself out. Then, we met Aunt Lindsay and Uncle Kyle on their lunch break for some good Tex Mex before beginning the last leg (3 hours) of our journey "north." Steven did fall asleep in the car after lunch (which is what we were hoping) but unfortunately only slept 45 min. Even still, he was very content to look out the window for "big trucks" and have me read him the bag of library books I got last week. It included several Dr. Seuss and truck & train books. That's right, I pulled out all the stops!

Early Birthday Present

2008-08-20T13:58:00.004-05:00

I think he likes it!

We bought Steven a wooden swing set off Craig's list for his birthday. Charlton, Popo, and Uncle Patrick moved it and reassembled part of it 2 Saturdays ago. Then Charlton and Popo spend most of this last Saturday working on it again when rain permitted. We had the seller use his warranty to order replacement boards for the ones that had rotted through and we are waiting for those to come in- we are just in phase 1 right now. Phase 2 involves sanding and staining the wood to make it look like new again. They got enough together this time for Steven to be able to use the swings. He was napping when Popo left so he did not get to see Steven's reaction to his birthday present so these pictures are for him.

Thank you for all you hard work Popo-- it did not go unnoticed!! Several times everyday, Steven stands at the back door (because it has rained everyday since) and says "Steven's swing" and "Daddy slide" (we tell him that Daddy and Popo are building him a slide). He's going to be beside himself with happiness when they get the fort built and the slide on.

Rained Out

2008-08-15T12:58:00.002-05:00

We missed going to the pool on Tuesday so we tried to go today. It was sunny with one cloud in the sky. It was really cloudy and dark on Tuesday but then never rained so I thought we'd be safe going today. Of course, it started pouring after we were in the pool for five minutes. Oh well, maybe tomorrow. I even took my camera because I haven't gotten any of Steven at the pool this year. Thankfully, I took this one before we got in. Doesn't he look grown-up and cute?! His beach towel was a souvenir that Mimi and Popo brought him back from their trip to Disney World- too cute!

8 Years yesterday

2008-08-13T14:48:00.007-05:00

Charlton and I have been married eight years. It seems like a long time especially when we think back to our early years of living in College Station still in college. We were so young! I turned 20 years old just over a month before we were married. Since you are all intelligent people I know that you can figured out then I was 19 while we were engaged; I probably looked younger than that. It, I assure you, was tons of fun arranging all the events for the wedding because I always got asked how old I was and was told by young and old that I was too young to be getting married. I never heard as much as I did about getting married so young as I did in Philly- mostly at work. I had lots of co-workers that just couldn't believe how a person could commit at that young age and know that she would/could spend the rest of her life with someone else. I would love to have been able to then, and now, talk about how I have wisdom and maturity beyond my years and that my intellect far surpassed my peers. Obviously, I made a very good decision! However, every anniversary I am reminded how much grace and blessing that God has poured out in my life specifically when I think of Charlton. I do not deserve him!

I meet him nine years ago. I think that it was Feburary '99 when he came to the A&M RUF weekly meeting and we met. We started dating in August, were engaged Feburary '00, and were married August '00. I was starting my Jr year at A&M, and although I originally had been "very uneasy" to talk about getting married with that much school to finish, I was quickly "convinced" and excited about starting this adventure with Charlton at 20 years old.

I hear so many people say now that you should find yourself, finish school, start your career, make some money, live on your own, etc, etc, before getting married. We did most of that together and it has been a wonderful way to live life. I have never regretted getting married so young, and on the contrary, look back in amazement wondering how I could make such a wise decision at a young age when everything else told us we should wait until we were older. God was heaping tremendous blessings on us early on. Some days I wake up and can't believe my luck that I am married to such an amazing man! I tell people when they ask why we got married so young that I knew what a great catch Charlton was and that if I didn't snatch him up right away then someone else might try and steal him. It's a light hearted answer but true. I wasn't necessarily ready to be married in general, but I knew I was in love and HAD to marry Charlton and so it didn't matter if I was 19 or not, I was ready to commit myself for life! How do you explain such feeling?!

Charlton has helped me understand better who I am, my strengths and weaknesses, God's will for my life. Several months ago I read Sacred Marriage by Gary Thomas and in two chapters he wrote about Anne Lindbergh (Charles Lindbergh's wife). He included a passage from one of her journals in which she wrote about becoming engaged in spite of many people suggesting otherwise. I thought that it was a beautiful description of how committing to someone for a lifetime is truly freeing and liberating- such a contrast to today's view of marriage that it's hard to explain how love can completely take over your life and make you a different person in a good way. So many people today are worried about losing their identity by committing their life to someone else. God's made me a different person and given me a new identity as Charlton's wife-- that is, in fact, the point.

To be deeply in love is of course a great liberating force and the most common experience that frees young people.... The sheer fact of finding myself in love was unbelievable and changed my world, my feelings about life and myself. I was given confidence, strength, and almost a new character. The man I was to marry believed in me and what I could do, and consequently I found I could do more than I realize, even in mysterious outer world of flying that fascinated me but seemed so unattainable. He opened the door to real life and although it frightened me, it also beckoned. I had to go.

Yesterday marks eight years since I by God's grace made the best decision of my life. Praise God for His gift of marriage and for our wonderful 8 years together!

23 Months (11 days ago)

2008-08-13T13:36:00.003-05:00

Things have returned to normal here, or what we know as normal. That's a hard word to use with toddlers because Steven is changing all the time. When he hit 18 months, we talked about how much he changes every month. Now he changes by leaps and bounds every week and it's hard to keep up with (and we only have one kid so far!).

The big boy bed is still going well for which we are extremely grateful. And since things were relatively calm for a week we decided to stir things up a little and put Steven in a booster seat at the table- he actually asked to sit in a "big chair." That might not seem like a big deal but everything new that we're doing now is a "big boy" activity.

Charlton's new work schedule has been so wonderful! Since he started his in-house job a month ago, he gets home at 5:30 every day during the week (compared to 6:30 or 7 beforehand) which means that we can eat together as a family. I've always fed Steven his dinner around 5:30, and then we'd eat at 7 or later after Charlton was home and sometimes Steven would even be in bed before Charlton and I would sit down to eat together. It's also been interesting trying to get Steven to eat whatever we're eating. I hear most kids like that but Steven doesn't care if we're eating it or not, if he doesn't want it then he won't eat it...period. It's been a little of a battle (though not as bad as the bed) since our rule is that I only cook one meal so if he doesn't eat it then he's out of luck.

Our general feeling about milestones now that Steven's older is we'll know it's time for something when he's ready-- enter climbing out of his crib and asking to sit at the table. But, the most frequently asked question I get these days is if we are potty training. Let me say a loud, "N-O!" I don't plan on potty training Steven anytime in the near future unless he tells me one day that he wants to. We do have an Elmo seat that fits onto the toilet and he likes to sit on it, throw toilet paper into the bowl and flush. We talk about going in the potty a lot but he hasn't made the connection that you actually do something in it, or maybe he does I don't know. I've rushed him to the potty a few times when I know that he's about to go but he got upset that I did that. So now he sits on it when he wants to and we talk about how big boys go on the potty and when he does that he won't have to wear a diaper (he's been trying to take them off a lot). He's definitely not ready yet and I'm not going to force him...there's no need to rush. And mom and dad can only take one major change at a time.

Inside fun

2008-08-12T13:02:00.010-05:00

Most mornings we have regular activities I've scheduled ahead of time but Tuesday mornings I leave open for Steven and I to do whatever we want. This summer that means that we go to the pool on Tuesdays. However, today is pretty gloomy and not good pool weather so we decided to go to the Children's museum and invited Mammaw to go with us-- she also accompanies us to the pool sometimes. =)

But this was her first time to go to this museum and only Steven's second visit We got there when it opened at 10 and it wasn't crowded at first but by 11 it was packed with groups of YMCA kids. We had a good time but it was getting hard to maneuver around all the kids.

I wonder if it's always that crowded or if I just have a knack for picking the busiest times. That's why we haven't gone back for a while because it's hard to stay close to Steven and he is so distracted by all the older kids around that he just ends up running around rather than playing with any of the exhibits. He did like this thing that tossed balls around when you press a button-- that's right up his alley-- and he played in an old Mustang for quite a while.

Big Boy Bed

2008-08-04T21:28:00.005-05:00

We are doing fine here. It's taken me a little while to get back into the swing of things and get motivated because I've been a little overwhelmed by all that has been going on. Our family has been sad but doing well since Gama's passing so thank you for your prayers and thoughts.

Steven has successfully transitioned into his big boy bed though not without a fight!

He did really well for about five days and then I guess he realized that he could get out of it if he wanted to. So the next five days were pretty rough especially because they happened to be the same week that Gama was in the hospital and passed away. It was a lot to process. We spent a lot of time and energy putting him back into bed over and over and over again which he of course was not happy about. He would do ok at night since the darkness made his room less distracting, but he didn't nap much that week. By Friday (day before Gama's funeral) I was at my wit's end and then he suddenly decided to give up the fight-- probably because he was so stinkin' exhausted (as I might add so was I). Since then, he has not gotten out of his bed once. He always tells us when we get him up in the morning or from nap that, "Daddy said bed no-no."

Translation: Daddy said not to get out of your bed! It's pretty funny, and when we tell him (several times a day) he is doing really well with his big boy bed, he smiles and is so proud. I'm sure that he'll decide one day that he can get up again but hopefully the biggest transition is made.

He has been very clingy lately and we figure that this major change has affected him greatly, but overall he really likes it and is proud of himself so I think it will stick. I got a book called "My Big Boy Bed" from the library and he loves to read it. When he's really excited about it (usually when we show family and friends his "new" bed) he jumps and giggles on it-- so cute!

Side Note: Tropical Storm (possibly hurricane?) Edouardo is in the gulf and should hit Houston by 10 am tomorrow morning. It is only predicted at Category 1; it's still a hurricane but shouldn't affect us like Rita did. We are pretty far inland so we

are not too concerned but will be confined to the house all day tomorrow until it passes. Charlton's company has closed its offices.

Remembering Gama

2008-07-17T12:45:00.008-05:00

My grandmother went to be with our Lord yesterday afternoon. Her health has been gradually declining over the last year and has made her more susceptible to falls. She had several during that time. However, last Thursday she suffered a heart attack that left her heart at 20% capacity and her other major organs failing. I was able to see her almost every day that she was in the hospital for a couple of hours and I am very thankful that I had plenty of time to say good-bye. My parents were both by her side when she passed. She lived a long life and was ready to meet her Savior. Her funeral is planned for Saturday.

Gama has been my only living grandparent since I was 7 and really the only one I ever knew very well. She lived in the same town as we did for most of my life, and for a good part of that, she was just down the street. She played an integral role in my life and I would not be the same if she hadn't. I remember spending my first nights away from home at her house. She would always take me to Picadilly (a local Lubys- type) to get my favorite plate with Salisbury steak, broccoli with cheese sauce, and mashed potatoes with gravy.

She made lots of clothes for us until I got "too old" for that.

It really irritated her that I didn't think they were cool anymore. =) We spent lots of time up at the cleaners that she owned. She worked hard all her life. I try to imagine what it must have been like to be a single mom during that time and how much determination and perseverance it must of taken to overcome the obstacles for a woman to own a successful business by herself. I don't think that she ever did it because she liked the idea of being successful or making money; she always said that she wanted to give my dad (and us) the best life that she could...and she did. She bought me a car my Senior year of high school so that I could come back and forth from college the following year.

She always told me that a woman should have an education and skill to be able to support herself if she needed to. Those weren't empty words because when it came time for high school graduation, she paid for me to go to college.

Gama lived her whole life in the Monroe, LA area, but moved here several years ago to be close to all of us. Three years ago, Charlton graduated from law school in Philly and we moved back to Houston because we wanted to build a home close to our families. I spent two days a week with her our first year back and am so glad that I did. It gave me a different perspective on what aging was like for her (she didn't like it), and how self-less her love was for her main concern to be a better life for us with the things that she suffered in her own life. She wasn't very tactful or gentle about giving her opinions but I know her purpose was usually to help.

In November, my parents moved down the street from us and she moved across town with them to a new assisted living facility close by.

At that point she needed to be cared for by trained medical staff, but she was the one pushing for the move because she said she wasn't getting to see Steven enough. We've tried to visit her once a week since she moved in. No matter how she felt, she always lit up when she saw Steven. In the last few months, he was getting really good at talking to her and showing her things and she loved that he was trying to interact with her. I'm so glad that we have pictures of them together. I hope that we will always be blessed by living so close to family and being involved in their lives like mine was by Gama.

We All Scream for Ice Cream!

2008-07-13T16:13:00.005-05:00

Nothing brings out impeccable manners like ice cream. Steven practically shouts "more ice cream please" as soon as he knows it's around, and then says "more please" for another bite as soon as it's in his mouth. It's a vice for me as well. I wonder if you can pass that kind of thing on because I did eat a lot of ice cream when I was pregnant.

Note to Self:

2008-07-13T16:07:00.002-05:00

Push things further from the edge of the kitchen counter.

O Dreaded Day!

2008-07-11T14:28:00.004-05:00

Well, it happened...two days ago the unthinkable happened...maybe not unthinkable since it was fairly inevitable...but the thing that certainly I, and probably most mothers dread happened. Steven realized that he could climb out of his crib. I heard him wake up from his nap and cry for a few minutes. I was hoping that he would go back to sleep and he did get quiet after a few minutes but then after a little time cry out again. I was in the process of finishing what I was doing when I heard him right by his bedroom door and then I heard it open. For a few seconds, I went into panic mode:

NOOOOO!! Oh, wonderful, Nap time, please don't go away! You are my only guaranteed time to get stuff done! I do so love your peace and quiet. And you are the only time I can have the dishwasher open, mop the floor, be on the computer, read a book..... I could always count on you when I'm having a rough day to reboot. And now you're gone! Please don't go away.

Ok, so maybe that's a little dramatic since Steven will most definitely still be taking naps. However, I was very nervous about the fact that he can escape his place of rest and how exhausting it might be to keep making him go back to bed. I am happy to report that we have been very impressed with the way Steven has adjusted to his big boy crib. He loves it! He was a little confused at first when we came home and Charlton had taken off the front side of his crib. Although, he decided pretty quickly that he thought it was great that he is no longer confined-- no surprise at his excitement there. The first time he tried it out was nap time and he did get out twice initially to come find us. However, after being told that he needed to stay in his crib and we put him back in bed, he has never gotten out again. Yes, I am as shocked as you are!! We are not claiming victory yet as it has only been two days, but it's nice to have some wins under our belt to remind us when he doesn't do as well what he is able to do. FYI, I would recommend making the transition when Dad is home for support. The two times Steven got up, Charlton was the one who firmly told him to stay in bed. I have been pressing my face against the carpet fairly regularly the last two days to check if any little feet are running around playing behind closed doors when they should be sleeping. =) Thankfully, I haven't seen any.

Our Hero

2008-07-09T07:02:00.001-05:00

Monday was Charlton’s first day at his new job. He has been on vacation for the two weeks before that and it was wonderful! We didn’t go anywhere but did plenty around Houston. It might sound kind of boring but we really were just in need of some time together at home.

After three years of working at a law firm, Charlton has made the move in-house at a large energy company. He enjoyed the work and people at his firm but (thankfully) felt that the hours were too demanding to be able to have a good quality of life for our family. For that reason he started looking at in-house positions because he felt that the work and environment would still be interesting and challenging but definitely more “family-friendly.” His new group has been very welcoming and invited us to their Memorial Day BBQ that was days after his acceptance. It is especially nice that I was included and they are eager to get to know our whole family (no, we were not brave enough to take Steven along but they were disappointed which was kind).

I am so overwhelmed at God’s goodness in providing Charlton (and us) with this new opportunity and phase of life. We have been praying for some time that the timing and opportunity would be in His timing and it couldn’t have worked out more perfectly. Charlton's hours will be shorter and much more consistent, plus he gets every other Friday off! When we found that out I told him it sounded like a fantasy world that was too good to be true! I’m so thankful for a husband that puts our family before everything else on this earth—even his career. For me to say that I am lucky would be a gross understatement—I am blessed beyond measure by such a husband!

Happy 4th of July!

2008-07-04T13:53:00.005-05:00

We hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday! We had a nice morning together walking with the neighborhood parade. Next year I'll have to get my act together and decorate Steven's wagon for him to ride in. Then we visited Mammaw and Pappaw before lunch and Steven's nap. We're taking a break from festivities for the nap- we don't mess with that because we enjoy the quiet!

[Steven's baseball cap reads: Breakin' Hearts Since 2006]

3 Cousins

2008-07-04T13:30:00.001-05:00

Charlton went fishing with Uncle Patrick yesterday, so Steven hung out with us girls. Cheryl came over with Saige and Meadow to play while the Dads were away. Steven and Saige are so cute together at this age. They can play together now and have many things in common...such as their new interest in coloring. It's so good for Steven to play with her and learn to play differently with her than boys and be more gentle. Saige gets excited to play with him now too and tries to hold his hand and lead him to their next activity. He's not always into that but we think it's too cute!

Watch out, kids, there's a new crawler in town! Meadow will be 8 months next week and is very happy to be on the move. Cheryl and I get a kick out of comparing her to Steven-- we think she's going to be busy like her older cousin and the fact that she started crawling at the same age Steven did (to the week now that I looked it up) reinforces that theory. She's growing so fast!

Steven loves Meadow but is still working on saying her name. He usually settles for "Baby," but he doesn't skimp on the hugs and kisses. Meadow gets lots of love from Steven. He does pretty well being gentle but every once in a while with get on top of her for a smothering hug- she takes it in stride though. Yesterday was really the first time I've seen him try to play with her; he is showing her how to stack the cups. Steven and Saige also share a love for Elmo and were happy to share a seat in "Elmo Chair." We are so blessed to live around so much of our family. The girls are more like sisters to Steven than cousins, and we're adding another baby to the bunch. Charlton's sister, Jenn, is due the beginning of February and we are excited to add one more to the family next year. Although Steven loves the girls, he wants to put in a request that Aunt Jenn have a boy because he's starting to feel a little out numbered! Hi to Mimi, Popo, Aunt Jenn, and Uncle Evan who are on vacation!

22 Months

2008-07-03T13:00:00.004-05:00

Steven turned 22 months yesterday on my birthday. I forgot to mention in his last monthly update that he loves cars and trucks now-- actually everything is a truck because he loves saying the word. He points them out on the road now when we're in the car (for example..."Wow, big truck!"). He has also started pointing out airplanes which is pretty often since we live very close to the airport. He is just now starting to enjoy more activities which require sitting still and more attention. He has added Play-Doh to his love of puzzles, books, and Legos. I mentioned that I bought some a few weeks ago but wasn't sure if we'd actually try it for a while. Charlton was the one that pulled it out one day and Steven did really well with it (meaning he didn't try to eat it). He doesn't actually make anything himself yet; he likes for us to make something and then squeeze apart. He also likes to put it in and take it out of the can-- that provides entertainment for a while. It's not hours of fun or anything but I'm sure that he'll play with it longer as he gets older. I like it because I think it fills some of his need for experimentation and curiosity.

His vocabulary continues to grow as you can probably guess and I am continually surprised (I don't know why) at short sentences and phrases he says. The other day he asked, "Where's my bag?" and is now bringing things to us and asking, "What's this?" He can also say (and understand) things like "I love you" and "I'm sorry, Mommy." That is the best! In these pictures he's giving me flowers for my birthday after being away for the night at Mimi's. He is becoming such a big, little boy...two is just around the corner!

Birthday Monsters

2008-07-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

Today is my birthday-- my 28th. We've actually been celebrating my birthday for about a week- Friday night with Charlton's family and Saturday with mine. Then Mimi and Popo kept Steven Sunday night so that Charlton and I could have some time together for my birthday. We went to the Museum of Fine Arts, a movie, and dinner before returning home to a long night of sleep-- I love sleeping in. =)

To continue the celebration, I am posting part of my favorite children's board book: Birthday Monsters by Sandra Boynton. It's just so creative and I've realized since Steven was born that I really like stories with monsters. Our good friend, Jamie, gave Steven this book for his first birthday. She said that when she was picking it out, she hesitated for a minute because she thought that some people might not like a story with monsters in it for for their children. She said she then remembered that we liked Harry Potter so of course we would be cool with monsters. =) By the way, there are no monsters in Harry Potter...unless you count trolls...and giant snakes...boggarts...and ok, I guess I just like monsters...

You're not awake. It's 6 o'clock.
You hear a ring. You hear a knock knock.
You hear the door come crashing down-
The Birthday Monsters are in town!

Five Birthday Monsters barge right in
and yell, "It's morning, let's begin!"

They rush you down before you're ready
and use your breakfast as confetti.

"Oh Look!" They shout, "It's 6:08! "Your present opening can't wait!"
They've brought the presents they like best.
You get the wrap.
They keep the rest.

"And now," they say, "It's Hide-and-Seek!
You go and hide, and we won't peek!"

You find a hiding place that's great.
You wait, and wait,
And wait, and wait.
You realize 20 minutes later they're raiding the refrigerator.

If you can't learn to enjoy the simple things from your children, then when can you?

100 words!!!

2008-06-19T13:09:00.005-05:00

uh-oh 51. cashew
whoa 52. couch
wow 53. glasses
bo bo 54. sand
puppy 55. Barbecue
bug 56. paper
Momma 57. trash
Da Da 58. slide
cheese 59. please
keys 60. nuggets
hi 61. noodles
bye bye 62. kiss
eye 63. truck
ball 64. car
water 65. bowl
cracker 66. raisin
help 67. fish
no 68. socks
ice 69. shoes
hot 70. clock
this 71. toes
cat 72. plane
chair 73. church
juice 74. Bible
yes 75. feet
thank you 76. fork
stop 77. pillow
mouth 78. pick
bird 79. blanket
banana 80. shirt
Saige 81. go
Jackson 82. shake
baby 83. rabbit
rice 84. touch
apple 85. Frank
more 86. puzzle
car 87. nose
blocks 88. I love you
roll 89. diaper
down 90. bear
book 91. hat
water 92. Elmo
milk 93. all done
please 94. peas
Will 95. worm
Mimi 96. night-night
Popo 97. colors
Mammaw 98. hand
Pappaw 99. pray
bike 100. amen

These are Steven's first 100 words!! They are roughly in the order that he said them. Isn't he holy by ending his list with pray and amen-- he really did just say them this week. Funny that amen is the last one...or I guess I could say it's providential. =)

Anyway, you didn't have to read them all, but this is a really big deal in our house. Steven was a late talker and I started keeping track to make sure that he said the number of words he needed to hit his milestones. The first 30 came very slowly but then he hit a language explosion around 18 months and the list became fun for me to keep track of what he was learning. It felt like pulling teeth (not Steven's, of course, cause we worked hard for those too!) for so long that I am rejoicing that we've hit the 100 mark and he continues to pick up new words and phrases weekly.

Summertime in Texas

2008-06-16T13:20:00.006-05:00

No matter what the calendar says, summer started in May here in Texas. May is a hard month with a toddler. It's too hot to spend anytime between 10 am and 5 pm outside unless you are in the water and our pool was only opened on weekends until June 3. It was a long month of trying to find stuff to do outside the house and out of the heat. We are very happy that our pool is open now; although, it's not quite as relaxing as it used to be for me. =) Steven's just as busy at the pool as he is everywhere else- I guess that shouldn't be a surprise. So, when we don't want to venture down to the neighborhood pool we drag out our little one and hook up the sprinklers. He likes these smaller ones because they don't oscillate and he can control when he gets water in his face. He also likes to pick them up and move them around-- I guess because he sees Daddy doing it when we water the yard. Uncle Patrick has always called Steven "Deuce" because he's named after Popo and is the II. The other night we were at a family dinner and we taught Steven to say it and of course we were all laughing and making a big deal so he thought that it was really funny too. But the funniest thing is that he has a whole expression and different tone when he says it. So, now it's a game when we say, "Steven, what does Uncle Patrick call you?" This is the best pic I've gotten so far of the "Deuce face" as it's now known at our house:

21 months

2008-06-16T12:53:00.006-05:00

Steven turned 21 months almost two weeks ago, and he changes so much every month that I feel I have to update! He's at the age now that it feels like all the "new things" are really add-ons. Things he already did he just does better now. His vocabulary continues to grow weekly and he learns how to put together new two-word phrases everyday. His most exciting news this week is that he now can say "Frank" which I'm sure that Frank appreciates as opposed to the general "this" that Steven was using before.

He is in a book and puzzle stage right now and it is so funny to watch as he chatters while he reads and plays- his imagination is really starting to blossom.

Charlton and I love to read and have looked forward to the time that Steven would sit still enough to listen to a whole book which he now does. He also likes to color and play with shapes. I bought some Play-Doh this weekend for him to try but I might hold off on that for a little while yet. Steven also does not like wearing clothes right now as you can see from these pictures and would much prefer to hang out in his diaper the whole day. I can't say that I blame him since the high has been in the 90's.

I couldn't finish this without pointing out the little scratch (probably courtesy of a sharp fingernail) on Steven's forehead. I had a slight funny feeling when I went to get him out of his crib that morning because it looks a little jagged. One might even say that it resembles a lighting bolt...

PS: He has been eating better the last few days. =) Thank you for your comments.

New strategy

2008-06-11T14:55:00.003-05:00

I'm going to shoot for shorter but more frequent posts to get my blogging back on track. Saturday night Charlton and I went to his cousin's wedding, and Pappaw took this picture of us when we dropped Steven off to spend an evening of fun with him and Mammaw. We interrupted Steven's golf game to take the picture (in case you are wondering what is protruding from the side of my head). You can start referring him to as "Tiger" now.

Eating Habits

2008-06-11T14:12:00.006-05:00

I had no idea before I became a mom how much of my time and frustration would revolve around mealtime or preparing for it. Have I mentioned that Steven is a picky eater? Oh, I have!? Yes, well, let me say it again...he is a VERY picky eater. In the last month, his pickiness has hit an all-time high which means that our dread of feeding him has hit an all-time high as well.

The last few weeks I have been limiting snacks and since that helped, we have completely eliminated afternoon snacks because he usually sleeps late enough that I can hold him off for an early dinner. The weird thing is that Steven doesn't really asks for them anyway so I've quit offering and just wait until he asks for something and then I fill in with whatever he didn't eat at the last meal. This is working pretty well, so mealtime is going a little better this week. I've heard that toddlers are picky and don't eat meals like we consider them as three solid meals a day, but I think Steven is an extreme case and just doesn't like to eat period. That's especially weird considering that his parents love food!!

I have also stopped giving him options. I put dinner in front of him and if he doesn't eat it after plenty of time then I tell him he's all done. I think that's helped a lot too. I try to give him one or two things I know he likes with something else either new or not a favorite. Last night he ate a rare but really good dinner of string cheese, a few bites of rotisserie chicken and BBQ sauce, corn on the cob and cantaloupe- he LOVES corn on the cob. You know you're from Texas when one of your child's first 100 words is "Barbecue." Please leave me a comment if you have any other suggestions for getting a picky toddler to eat better. =)

Eating more chicken

2008-05-29T13:22:00.005-05:00

Last week was the Grand Opening of our very own Chick-Fil-A and this is how we feel about it:

That's right delicious chicken and biscuit breakfast sandwiches are only two minutes away now. We are probably going to have to really exercise self control in the eating department...because they sell chicken instead of burgers so it's good for you, right? I took this pic of Steven when we got home from meeting Mammaw there for lunch; he got this balloon and a little stuffed cow. I got a big travel cup- I love useful free stuff. I have to say that even though this was the first day it was open and they were on their best behavior, Chick-Fil-A's customer service is really good and for a fast food chain is really awesome.

(FYI: I tried to post this last week but had trouble with Blogger- anyone else?)

Memorial Day at the Aquarium

2008-05-28T12:49:00.007-05:00

Charlton had Memorial Day off and it was fabulous to have him to ourselves for three days. Monday we spent the morning at the aquarium downtown; Steven had a ball! I have to admit that it's not that impressive if it's just adults and you are going for some serious study, but it is perfect for kids. We started outside (so that we could enjoy it before the temp hit 95), and went on the shark exhibit train ride. We swapped camera duty with another family of three to get this family photo. Steven wasn't that impressed with the train though I do love the cool guy smirk he's got on his face in this picture. It was pretty short and it takes you though a building with the shark aquarium all above you. It was cool but too hard for Steven to see-- we kept pointing and telling him to look up but he just kept looking around like, "I don't see anything-- this is lame."

On the end of the ride, you pass this JAWS set up which all the adults kind of laughed at. We were talking about how fake it looks, when a blast of water shoots up and there's a very loud BANG! I jumped about a foot in the air and then we died laughing because it was so bad but it still scared me.

Steven with Dad on the Ferris wheel.

Steven loved watching the fish. I've been showing him fish in books and trying to get him to say the word and recognize them but he didn't get it until he saw them live. At each tank he would point and say "fish" a dozen times. He watched these Goliath Groupers for a while- they were easy for him to see. I was so happy that my fun trip also turned out to be very educational.

Steven is touching a starfish. His arms were too short to touch the stingrays and other fish at the bottom- notice the wet sleeve- so the girl that worked the exhibit came over and picked it up for him to touch.

They have a white tiger exhibit inside with the aquarium- don't ask me how they fit in with the fish?! We have never seen a tiger exhibit that is glassed in and you can be face to face with the cats. Steven loved it and was running back and forth following the tiger. It was pretty amazing how close we were to him.

Because Mom does the shopping...

2008-05-21T14:28:00.013-05:00

I love these one piece outfits. It makes me want to snuggle with him all day because he just looks so cute and reminds me of when he was a "baby" and wore onesies all the time. I don't really miss the onesies now that he's older because it's just too much to snap and he won't stand still long enough for me to get to them all. Because I haven't been very good about blogging, I missed updates for 19 and 20 months, so here's a little update on Steven. He is over 27 pounds now...we'll have to wait until the next doctor's appt to get actual measurements and weight...I'm hoping that his 2 yr old well visit will be the next time we're there but that's still a few months away. His favorite book is Green Eggs and Ham, and if you ask him "Do You Like Green Eggs and Ham" like they do in the book he says a loud "yes!" He loves it when Daddy reads it to him because Charlton is very animated. Steven is still very active and loves to climb; he has been taking it to a whole new level by climbing in a chair and hoisting himself up to grab and hang off the living room mantel. He did the same thing in his room yesterday via glider to his bookshelf above so we might have to do some rearranging. He is saying about 75 words now (I'll do a separate post when he hits 100- yes, I'm keeping a list), and is attempting to go for the two words sentences now. He talks a lot and tells me a lot of stories- I'm just now starting to recognize single words in the middle of his "sentences." We are happy to be in the middle of a language explosion, and incidentally, you know you're a true Texan when one of your child's first 75 words is B-B-Q. He loves putting THE sauce on everything now which is very helpful in getting him to eat his veggies.

Thankfully, he looks like he's inherited Charlton's ability to tan. He already has a defined sock line and farmer's tan...and it's only May. I've learned to love my fair skin but let's be honest that it's just not cool for a guy to be really pale, so I'm relieved that he inherited this like so many other things from his daddy. Charlton and I recently got

Steven to let us look in his mouth with a flashlight and we are really convinced that we saw one 2 year molar popping through on the bottom.

It's hard to tell though since he doesn't let us look for long (and he was biting my index finger off). He loves Frank, apple juice, cashews, crackers, Legos, animals and going outside.

Who doesn't love pizza??

2008-05-21T12:58:00.010-05:00

Steven has had a few bites of our pizza before but technically he had his first piece of pizza last week. And even though we haven't had one in a while, he definitely remembers it because on the 2 minute drive home from picking it up he was pointing to the box and very loudly asking, "please, please." He was not content to have me cut up the pieces and put them on his tray; he, of course, wanted his own slice. He did really well eating it too. He sometimes has a hard time taking bites out of whole foods-- he'll take a huge bite and then can't chew it up so he spits everything out...and sometimes that's the end of the meal. Very frustrating on my end but this night I didn't care if he ate it so I had nothing to lose. =) I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he ate a whole piece but he had just had his dinner an hour before. Steven doesn't realize that this display of a big appetite only proves to me that he eats well when it's food that's he likes/wants which is why he doesn't get to eat stuff like pizza very often and I'm not very sympathetic anymore at meals. If he starts eating better maybe we'll renegotiate.

Mother's Day with Mammaw

2008-05-15T15:50:00.011-05:00

With Mammaw at a local cafe. He did not want to take pics that evening and I thought the straw would keep him still long enough for a picture; I was wrong.

Gama was feeling well enough to join us for dinner. She fell several months ago and also came down with a pretty bad cold shortly after that kept her in bed for a long time. She has been gradually getting better and has been doing physical therapy the last few weeks which has really helped her become more stable walking again. She says it always helps her feel better to see Steven-- that probably doesn't surprise anyone! =)

Helping Mammaw open her present

Giving Mammaw a kiss

Steven's best picture all weekend-- must because Uncle Kyle and Aunt Lindsay came to visit.

No day would be complete without pulling out all the Legos.

Jackson's visit

2008-05-15T15:00:00.003-05:00

Sorry that I've been MIA from the blog. We have been very busy around here with many things. One of them is that my good friend, Ashley, who lives across the street is 8 months pregnant with their second child and had to have her appendix removed 2 weeks ago. She is at home now and doing well but the last three weeks I have been very concerned about her and her family...so I've directed most of it toward Steven's little buddy and her 2 year old son, Jackson. So to help mom and dad out, Jackson has spent some time with us lately and these are the pictures I got of Steven and Jackson together.

Helping with the laundry

They thought that it was hilarious that they got to take a bath together! And they want to do anything that that other one is doing- like sticking out tongues!

Splashing away

Mom, can Jackson stay over every night?!

Jackson was so nice to wash his own hair.

My mom and I were talking about how most children have a tolerance level with other children and grow tired of them after a while. Not these two...a day after Jackson had gone back home I pulled up in his driveway just to drop off his PJ's thatI forgot to put in his bag when he left. I left the car running and just put it by the front door, but Steven went crazy when I got in the car and backed out...he was screaming "JACKSON...JACKSON." He thought that we were going to play and was VERY upset that we were leaving without Jackson.

Green Thumb??

2008-04-22T13:03:00.008-05:00

In honor of Earth Day, I thought I would post some pictures to show our resolve to beautify our little plot of earth. Embarking on something new is always dangerous and this is especially true with regards to gardening for us because until now we could plead ignorance instead of lack of talent. We did a lot of yard work two weeks ago and the things we planted are surviving nicely- much to my excitement. Charlton said (and rightly so) that we should make sure that these do well before investing time and money in a whole new landscaping project (the flowers we planted last year died in less than 2 weeks). They look pretty good so far so maybe it's safe to continue??? I'll keep you updated on how the gardening is going. I always wanted to plant Caladiums when I had my own home-- I just love them I don't know why??? They seem like a very Southern kind of plant to have in your flowerbed.

(Before)

(After- we planted the same thing on the other side of the sidewalk)

I'm also trying to find other ways to make us a little more environmentally conscious around here. Our neighborhood just started a recycling program which is great, and we already use energy efficient light bulbs. I just bought some of the Green Works cleaning products (made by Clorox); they are from plants and minerals instead of chemicals which will be nice with little kids around too. I'm interested to see if it cleans as well as the regular stuff-- has anyone tried it? I'm also planning on getting some cloth shopping bags (I think they're selling them at about every grocery store in Houston this month) to use instead of plastic ones. I'm not sure how practical it is to think that I'll actually remember to take them into the store with me but it's the effort that counts.

Week In Review

2008-04-13T14:48:00.010-05:00

Unfortunately, Steven did end up getting strep. The initial test they did while we waited came back negative, but I didn't realize that the doctor had swabbed him twice. Apparently they do another test in 24 hours if the first one comes back negative. The second one came back positive for Steven, and a nurse called Tuesday morning to let me know. For those who are interested to know, they also do a 48 hour test if the first two come back negative. I guess they believe the test if all three say you're clear. In any case, this is what we did while we are all recovering this week.I don't know who was happier when Mimi dropped off Charlton's old legos...Steven or Charlton? Steven loves them and likes it even more when Charlton build him things to take apart. Here is a fine example of Dad's Legos skills...a robot. He has also built a school bus, many cars, and a jumbo jet this week for Steven. "improving" Daddy's designMy little musical prodigy- he practices several times a week

Steven inherited two brand new Elmo toys from a good friend. They dropped them off one day during Steven's nap; he was in a particularly grumpy mood when he woke up because he was still not feeling well. I had already forgotten that I left the chair in the middle of the living room for him to find, but he spotted it as soon as he walked in. His face was so funny...first he was confused...then he looked around like, "is it really for me," and then he was full of joy and a love for all things Elmo. I feel like we're running a Elmo factory around here but we were really happy to get them and they were especially a good pick-me-up in the middle of a sick week. (purposefully) falling out of the Elmo chair

Filling Daddy's big boots

New York, New York

2008-04-07T15:00:00.004-05:00

I know that y'all have been dying for a recap of our trip to NYC. Unfortunately, Charlton and I came down with strep at the end of the week, so I haven't felt like posting until today. We are doing much better now that we've been on antibiotics for a few days. Thankfully, Steven dodged the bullet-- our pediatrician confirmed today that he's super healthy and that we should be past our contagious stage. Yea!

Charlton and I stole away the Friday after Easter for a long weekend without Steven. We have only ever been away from him for less than 24 hours since he was born. We were overdue for some alone time so we could focus on each other. We arrived Friday night without any problems and enjoyed dinner at Bobby Flay's Bar Americain which was only a few blocks from our hotel close to Rockerfeller Center. The food was excellent and it was fun to eat at a restaurant I had seen Bobby Flay demonstrate a few of dishes on the Food Network.

Our good friends, Jeff and Liz, were able to come up from PA and spent all of Saturday and part of Sunday enjoying the city with us. These first few pictures, we are in Central Park; thankfully, Liz had her camera because I found that without Steven as inspiration I was not as willing to be the photographer. Almost all our pictures are from Liz.

The weather turned out to be beautiful despite the predictions a week ahead of rain. It was in the mid 40's which is a little chilly for us Texans in the shade but we did quite well all bundled up in our coats- they haven't seen much action since our Philly days. Ironically, I spent a lot of time packing what to wear when really most of the time all that was showing was my coat, scarf, and gloves. We spent Saturday walking different areas of NYC. After walking through a very small part of Central Park, we walked through the NY public library which was just gorgeous. Can you imagine studying in there? I felt smarter just taking a break on this bench from all our walking. We kept wondering where all the books were and had to walk up to the third floor before finding this room. The hallways and stairways looked more like a museum than a library.

After the library we hopped on the subway to look around Soho which is where we found this well-named street. We tried lots of different kinds of Dim Sum for lunch at Chinatown Brasserie.

We then walked over to Greenwich Village. I had heard so much about Magnolia Bakery in magazines, etc. that I was dying to try one of their famous cupcakes. And it was only blocks from a cool tea shop that Liz had been told about. Perfect...until we found the bakery and there was a line out the door (with an employee to make sure no one cut in), around the corner, and down the street. Since we aren't in NYC very often we decided not to waste our limited time standing in line. Bummer-- those cupcakes must be good!

Charlton and I like a cup of tea, but Jeff and Liz are big tea drinkers. So, we headed for the McNulty's Tea and Coffee Co. and it was worth the walk. All the tea leaves are in separate glass canisters and they measure your choice out on this scale. I had Liz pick us out some green tea to try and it is so good! We've been drinking it a lot (especially with our sore throats); I should have bought more at the rate we've been going. I think you guys started something!

Saturday night we saw Mary Poppins on Broadway. The sets and performance were of course amazing and so much fun to watch! Sunday we attended Redeemer Presbyterian for worship, and heard a wonderful sermon from Tim Keller. He has a new book out called The Reason for God that has made it on the New York Best-Sellers list that we are excited to read soon. After lunch and telling Jeff and Liz good-bye, we enjoyed some shopping and walked down a few streets where the artists have their paintings out to sell.

Monday we got home around 5pm; I especially was very anxious to see Steven. He did wonderful with our parents- he had two days with each. He was excited to see us and wanted to be held for the first hour or two we were home which was fine with us. He recovered pretty quickly and ran off the play just remembering to come back every once in a while to make sure we were still there. Charlton was able to have Tuesday off to so that we could spend a little time convincing Steven that things were back to normal. Last but not least...a picture for Steven for obvious reasons. Evidence that he was still on our mind even though we were miles away. Jeff and Liz- We had so much fun seeing you guys after so long! We'll have to try the West Coast next time.

Easter Day

2008-04-03T07:38:00.014-06:00

Easter day we went to our church and then only had to go several blocks over to have lunch and spend the afternoon with Charlton's family (minus Jenn and Evan-- we missed you but know we have to share you sometimes). Mimi planned an Easter Egg Hunt in the backyard for the kids. After the previous day's experience, Steven knew that there was stuff inside the egg so he just took out the goodies for his basket and left the eggs on the ground. Pretty smart, if you ask me! Thankfully, he doesn't know or care what candy is yet, but he liked collecting it. This was the best picture we could get of the three of them on Easter. They were not up for another photoshoot...poor Meadow, she's such a trooper. After Steven's nap, he enjoyed playing on the Mimi and Popo's swingset:

Easter Egg Hunt

2008-04-02T21:46:00.000-06:00

Easter posts were interrupted by our get-away weekend in New York. With all the preparations, I just couldn't find time to post them all (there are quite a few). And I can't post NYC pictures without posting the Easter ones first-- a little OCD, I know, but I can't help it.

Our neighborhood hosted a Easter Egg Hunt for the kiddos on Saturday before Easter. We were having Easter with my family that day so they came along to witness Steven's first Easter Egg Hunt. It was insane! There were so many kids (and he was only with 0-2 yrs.) that they literally had the pink tape up to hold everyone back and then yelled "GO." This is Steven in action! He actually grabbed the first one he saw and then clutched Charlton's leg for fear of being trampled by a more ambitious hunter. This was the only way he would get close to the Easter Bunny, and even then he gave him the death stare.
Steven with his girlfriend (she's wearing the outfit we gave her for her birthday). As you might think, Steven is a little young to have a girlfriend; however, I can honestly say that neither Kim nor I forced this relationship on them. Steven has always liked Madi and has gone to great lengths to get her attention, give her kisses, and shoo other boys away from her if they are getting too chummy. You might think that I'm making it up but others have witnessed it too. I find it remarkable at his age that he is so taken with her...and a little scary. Stealing an Easter kiss from Madison(14 mos)... his good buddy, Jackson, gets a hug. =)

Easter Photoshoot

2008-03-25T13:01:00.012-06:00

Mimi bought Easter outfits for the cousins so we wanted to get (or at least hoped to) get a picture of all three of them together. It took all four of us parents to get these priceless poses. We took them in a pretty outside area that happened to be positioned so that Starbucks drive- through patrons had first row seats to our circus. I'm sure that it was pretty entertaining. Even still, Uncle Patrick got some great shots!Steven (18.5 months), Meadow (4.5 months), and Saige (20 months) We were singing "Itzsy Bitsy Spider" to get Steven to sit still; he's singing along and Saige is sitting pretty.Giving kissesI think this picture is so funny...I imagine Saige is saying, "Tell me all your problems, Sissy," and Meadow is thinking, "hmm, let me think...I hate being forced to take pictures."

Pleasures that I don't feel the least bit guilty about:

2008-03-25T02:00:00.000-06:00

-Watching Dancing With the Stars (this season's going to be awesome)
-Being addicted to the Food Network
-New appreciation for the great outdoors
-Trying to become a nutrition "expert" and health freak now that I'm a mom
-Only working out once or twice a week (hey, I get a lot of exercise chasing Steven around)
-Watching What Not to Wear
-Steven's 18 months but I'm only up to 5 months in his 1 yr. old scrapbook
-Making peace with my house not being (and that it will never be) clean all at once while we have young kids
-Singing "Itzsy Bitsy Spider" to make Steven laugh in a grocery aisle
-Stocking up on Easter Candy
-Eating at Chick-Fil-A
-Being a list person: to-do lists, grocery lists, house project lists- I like them all!
-I look forward to cleaning out our closets
-Love getting my hair cut
-Sharing every last detail when I tell a story
-Being obsessed with my blog
-Stealing away for a long weekend in New York City with my husband

18 Month "Portraits"

2008-03-19T06:56:00.006-06:00

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I decided to put my photography skills to the test this last Saturday and take Steven's 18 month pictures myself instead of going to a studio. He's just not the sit-still-and-smile-for-the-camera kind of kid, and we like outside shots so much better. We took Steven to a duck pond-- ducks are one of his favorite animals and he enjoys quacking everyday. It was the hottest it's been this spring in Houston (low 80's) so we changed him into shorts before we hit the playground. His cheeks are a little flushed from all the activity. It's also allergy season here- pollen count is cray high- so excuse his runny nose. The montage is only a little over two minutes and the better shots are more towards the middle with pics of Steven and I at the end. I have so much more respect for professional photographers that will take pictures outside-- the lighting is tricky!

My Brown-Eyed Boy

2008-03-16T15:30:00.002-06:00

Steven turned 1 1/2 years on March 2. I personally like and still say 18 months because I just can't believe how old he's gotten and counting his age in years sounds so much older than in months...don't you think? I can probably only get away with that until he's two. Charlton's said the other day something about Steven's birthday not being that far away and that was the first time it hit me that he'll be 2 in less than 6 months.

I'm actually not sad that he's getting older even though it might sound that way; every month is more and more fun and I definitely enjoy him being able to do and talk more. He says about 25 words now and can use a fork or spoon to eat just about everything-- that is when he chooses to eat. I've had a rough time getting him to eat at all this week. Even the safety foods like homemade mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, and fruit that I can always fall back on don't work. There is definitely something wrong when Steven refuses fruit. He's getting his last two eye teeth in on top and I'm assuming that's why he refusing food almost completely-- supposedly they are the worst to get in and I think Steven would agree. Guess we'll just have to wait til these come in and we'll be done with teething until he gets his two yr molars. I won't miss teething when he's done!

Steven's still very social and loves playing with other kids. He usually greets each one as they join us at the neighborhood playground. I have noticed that in the last few weeks, he's developed more awareness of others and hangs back a few minutes to evaluate the situation before jumping in. He's still as curious and adventurous as ever though, and he has several battle scars now to prove it. He loves being outside and we have been enjoying the convenience of his sand and water table in the back yard. He gets sand all over him and everything else since he thinks that it's in there to be moved and thrown elsewhere.

We went to Steven's 18 month well-visit last week and he stayed in the same percentile for weight (which reads skinny), but made an impressive jump in height from 50 to 75% percentile in height. Considering Charlton's height, this was not that surprising but Steven's always been in the 50% for height since birth and I have been expecting him to take after Dad at some point. For this reason I look forward to every well visit to see when it will show itself and at this appointment it did.

Weight: 25 lbs, 3 oz. (25-50%)

Height: 33 inches (75%)

Children's Museum

2008-03-15T14:10:00.004-06:00

Several weeks ago on a rainy Saturday, we took our first trip to the children's museum. Unfortunately, everyone else in Houston had the same idea, so it was a little packed. We still had fun exploring the different activities as you can see from the pictures. Steven's favorites were the grocery store (he's really into sorting things) and the (live) chicks-- our kid LOVES animals. I don't know if you can tell but he has a look of pure joy on his face and had plastered himself to the glass when he realized there were animals inside the case.

Steven also learned how to milk a (not live- in case you were wondering) cow. Thankfully, there isn't a picture of my face, because I'll admit to being a little weirded-out on this one. I can't help it...I'm a city girl. Who knows when he'll ever have to use that skill set, so we'll just say that our trip was very educational- just a like a museum should be.

Back in the Saddle Again

2008-03-09T13:55:00.000-06:00

I've been avoiding my blog lately because I didn't want to fool with uploading my pics to the mac- for fear of deleting them and that I wouldn't be able to figure it out and waste my time. Hey, I'm a busy girl! But since it seems that I'll never get my computer back and Charlton got me an attachment for my memory card, I decided to embark on the adventure. Plus, I really want to learn all the cool stuff you can do with pics and video on a mac-- and I know it's gonna take some time so I guess I'll start now. I took these of Steven last week. He is wearing a t-shirt that use to be Charlton's- check out the back; Popo went to Texas Tech so that explains the front. I guess you could say that Steven's into vintage right now. Doesn't he look cute?

These books were a birthday gift from a friend (thanks, Kathryn) and they are his favorite thing to play with right now. They came in a box and every book has words and pictures to go with each letter of the alphabet- so there are 26 books. We love them! He takes them out one by one, then puts them back in, then back out again...you get the picture. I find them everywhere- under and in his crib, in his laundry basket, in the toy box, behind chairs...and I'll find him in his room looking through them pointing at the pictures. They are so great now that he's really starting to talk- I use them kind of like flash cards while we look at the pictures. One of them he was roaring at the other day which made me curious since it was "U"- I can't think of anything that starts with U that would roar- but sure enough there was a picture of a lion playing a ukulele. Smart kid! Like Father like son...

Introducing Frank!!!

2008-02-15T13:12:00.001-06:00

I'm having a little bit of blog withdrawal and have been thinking about how I'm going to be behind in posting pictures (I know everyone is just dying to know what we've been up to). =) My computer is still in the "shop" for a little while but we broke down and joined the mac family this week-- Charlton has been wanting one for years! We are still figuring out how to use it and I still can't get to my pictures yet but then I remembered that before my other computer crashed I had uploaded some pics for my next post. Yea! So this post tells the story of FRANK:Frank is Steven's very special stuffed animal and as you can see is an elephant. When Steven was several months old, I read an article about comfort objects. They suggested offering a stuffed animal or blanket to help soothe your baby when he is trying to go to sleep on his own. So, over the course of a month at different times I gave him all of his stuffed animals and every blanket we had been given. He liked to play with them but never showed much attachment. A few months later, Steven followed me into my closet and saw Frank sitting on the top shelf. (Our college has a tradition called "elephant walk"- that's a whole other story- and he was a gift that I kept over the years) Well, it was love at first sight for Steven, and Frank's been a member of our family ever since. He mostly stays at home; although, if Steven's teething or not feeling well we sometimes take him on errands. I made the mistake of leaving Frank at a friend's house one time and we had to go back and get him because Steven wouldn't take a nap without him.

I named him "Frank" as a joke because Charlton named all Steven's other stuffed animals really creative names (some from Harry Potter and other favorite things that Steven has no idea what they are) and I thought that he should have a really easy, simple name to remember...like Frank!

No computer

2008-02-06T17:55:00.001-06:00

Sorry that we've been missing in action for the past week. Our computer crashed last week and I found out today that it's going to take another 2-3 weeks for them to fix it-- our hard drive and mother board are dead. Thankfully, it's still under warranty but I'm going crazy without a computer at home. Just letting you know that it will be a while until I can blog again.

Also, this last Sunday was the first time our church met on Sunday morning. We feel very blessed that God has provided a permanent location where we can gather.

Christ Church is now meeting every Sunday morning at 10 am in Kingwood at Creekwood Middle School's teaching theatre.

Please check out the Christ Church website for more info, and if you live in our area please consider visiting-- we would love to have you.

My Sweet Boy

2008-01-28T12:28:00.000-06:00

I realize that when I'm usually talking about Steven to others, it's about how much energy he has or how he's a "hand-full." I usually mean it in a good natured way-- hopefully that comes across-- although, it might sometimes be because I feel a little overwhelmed. For some reason, I don't usually tell people the stories that reveal how sweet he can be. I am a blessed, blessed mom! Here's one I couldn't keep to myself:

Last week, all three of us got a virus. It was just a 24 hour headache and sore throat for me, but a little more persistent with the guys. We think Steven had it first, Charlton got it from him, and then I got it from C. Anyway, by Saturday night I was feeling pretty good. Steven was also feeling fine and was finally wanting to eat, so we gave him some cheese with his dinner. Bad decision! He woke up at 1 am Sunday morning and had vomited in his crib. I rushed in because I could tell his cry wasn't normal and then asked for Charlton to come help. After we had cleaned up and changed Steven and his sheets, we started to put him back to bed. He reached out to get another hug from us and then did the baby sign for "Thank You" before peacefully going back to sleep. I almost cried-- what a sweet, sweet boy I have!

Steven and I are back to 100% today and spent most of the morning outside playing in the backyard and going for a wagon ride around the neighborhood. We avoided other kids just to be safe, but now I feel pretty confident that he is back to his normal energetic, sweet self!

Celebrity Look-A-Like

2008-01-23T19:52:00.000-06:00

Apparently Steven has discovered the 1990s (Aunt Jenn, are you responsible for this?):

The resemblance is startling. If Marky Mark had a milk mustache in that picture, you might not be able to tell the two of them apart.

Looking on the bright side, I'm glad that Steven is getting his "lame" phase over with early. At this rate, he should be moving into his more serious "Italian Job"/"Shooter" acting phase by the time he hits 3.

(Commentary provided by Charlton)

Going Green

2008-01-23T19:44:00.000-06:00

I would like to start by expressing that we do care about our environment...but that's not the kind of "green" this post is about. Also, these pics are random ones I have from doing stuff around the house over the last month. Ones where Steven's eating would be more appropriate but oh well.

I've mentioned that Steven is a little picky; although, if I'm honest he is actually a pretty good eater-- he's probably picky like most kids. I've started to accept the fact that toddlers just don't eat like adults do. One meal or entire day, he'll eat like crazy and then the next I can hardly get him to eat anything. He has never met a fruit he didn't like and he could probably live on that and dairy alone if we let him. He does pretty well with his whole grains, but vegetables are not high on his "like list." He likes peas, carrots, and corn (I know that corn is not a veggie but I cut him some slack) but that's pretty much it.

So, in an effort to get him the nutrients he needs and to teach him to eat his veggies, I am launching "Operation Eat Your Veggies" or as Charlton calls it "Operation Trojan Horse." Aunt Jenn gave me a cookbook for Christmas called Deceptively Delicious. It's basic idea is to puree the nutritious food that your child won't eat and hide them into yummy things they love. While you are tricking your kids into eating well, you also introduce the different disliked fruits or veggies (in our case) at lunch and dinner so that eventually they learn to eat the real thing. Steven would be missing out on so many nutrients if I waited for that day to come. So, in the mean time I'm being deceptive...so far I've made Applesauce muffins (with Squash puree) and Banana bread (with Cauliflower puree), and Blueberry Oatmeal bars (with spinach puree). Steven let out a "hmmmm" when he tasted each one and that gave me so much satisfaction. Charlton and I have been eating them as well, and my mom couldn't believe there was spinach in the oatmeal bars when she had one today. Now, I have to be honest that Steven is very out-of-sorts this week so he's not eating a lot of it. But, that makes feel even better that every bite he's getting is at least valuable to him in a nutritional sense. I've never been a health nut but when he realized at 11 months that he could refuse food that he didn't want to eat, I've been on a quest to teach him to eat right and well with every bite or at least most. That was Stage 1...now we've moved on to Stage 2. Sometimes Steven will refuse whatever we put on his tray but if I purposefully eat whatever I want him to eat in front of him--that's how I got him to taste the three above breads-- he always wants it. That is really aggravating so I'm using it to my advantage now. This has also made Charlton and I more careful about what we eat because Steven usually wants it too. See, everyone wins when I'm being deceptive!

As you can imagine, I've been doing a lot of cooking lately. =) Steven has been busy as well. He's added "hi," "good-bye," and "no" to his vocabulary since the last post. He is doing the baby signs for "hot" and hungry" now too, and he's is getting pretty good with his spoon and fork. He's so grown-up now! My mom came and stayed with him today so I could go run some errands alone- so nice! They mostly consisted of going to the DPS to re-take my eye test for a new license-- they make you after Lasik to remove the restriction on your licence. It wasn't too bad (about 1 1/2 hours) but I really didn't mind too much since it's slowly sinking in that I don't have to wear glasses anymore.

Braving the Cold at 16 Months

2008-01-18T12:50:00.000-06:00

It's been colder here this week (in the 40's), so we haven't been outside much except to get in the car. Yesterday, Steven and I braved the elements (at this point our Northern friends are laughing) to walk over to get the mail. I bundled him up and put him in the wagon, and he absolutely refused to wear his gloves. He's looks really cute in his camo coat that Mammaw bought him though.

Steven turned 16 months two days before my Lasik surgery and I didn't have a chance to update everyone on the new things he's been doing. Like I said in the 15 mo. post, we have been really focusing on developing Steven's language skills-- we're not worried just anxious to communicate. While we've been repeating words we think he might be interested in, we have also doubled our baby signing efforts, and boy, has it paid off! He now signs more, please, thank you, milk, shoes, socks, music, hot, candle (he sniffs when he sees one so that we'll pick him up to smell or look at it). He also can point to his (and our) belly button, nose, mouth, and head when we ask him where they are. He knows what a duck is and was very clearly "quacking" all this morning. He has only officially added "up" to his vocabulary, but understands just about anything we say. For example...Can you bring Daddy his Bible? (he runs to C's study and brings back his Bible), Let's brush your teeth (runs to the bathroom door), Do you need a snack? (he runs to the kitchen and goes to "his" cabinet where they are stored).

------

He runs just about everywhere these days and still loves to dance. In fact, we listen to music a lot during the day and when music isn't actually playing, we sing through a lot of his activities-- especially mealtime because it keeps things fun and light so that neither one of us gets frustrated when he's picky. He also loves to be outside and around other children. He has suddenly become very aware of babies in the last month and has to "love on them" whenever they are at his level. Poor Meadow has already endured many kisses from Steven, and while his motives are very sweet, I doubt that she feels anything but fear in her little heart when she sees his huge (to her) head bow under her carrier hood to lean in for a big one. Steven has gotten very good at kisses and Charlton and I ask him for one all the time. He actually puckers and delivers one now instead of just leaning in. I can't get enough of them.

In unexciting, non-Steven news...my eyes are continuing to heal well. Today marks two weeks since my surgery and almost all of the blurriness is gone. I forget that I had it because I feel and am seeing normally. Although, I forget that I don't wear glasses anymore, and yesterday I reached up to take them off when I brushed my hair. When I didn't feel anything to grab, I looked at the mirror in surprise and thought, "oh yeah." That was a great feeling. =)

Wishing a wonderful new year...

2008-01-14T13:10:00.000-06:00

from our family to yours!(the whole gang on Charlton's side) One where the grandparents are still loving it even when the kids aren't so cute!

I Once Was Blind, But Now I See

2008-01-11T13:32:00.000-06:00

Well, I wasn't really that blind, but I was completely dependent on my glasses...until last Friday. One week ago today, I had LASIK surgery. As far as surgeries go, it was painless and pretty easy, but it has and will make such a profound impact on my daily life! I'll be able to see as soon as I open my eyes in the morning, when I have to be up in the middle of the night with Steven (and future babies), when I work-out, and (the biggest one) Steven no longer has anything to grab and throw off my face. He's been pretty unfazed by this change. He did look at my eyes very intently the first several days with a bemused look (I guess he thinks I finally wised up and quit wearing them). I have noticed an increase in the numbers of tries he makes to grab Charlton's. =)

I realize that it's kind of weird for my friends to think about me not wearing glasses. My friends in Louisiana (where I grew up) and most of my college friends never knew me to wear glasses much because I could still wear my contacts then. I had to have a minor procedure the summer between my Soph and Jr year of college after which my doctor told me I couldn't wear contacts anymore or we would most likely have to do the procedure again. Ironically, this "minor procedure" in the doctor's office was much more traumatic than LASIK. Granted it was 7.5 years ago, but he used a scalpel and my eye actually bled afterwards. Not to be gross but I did end up fainting in the parking lot after looking in a mirror on my way out the door. Thankfully, my then soon-to-be husband caught me and helped my mom get me back to the dorm to rest. That's true love (even though now he'll tell me that it was pretty gross)! My eye was completely healed by our wedding that was about 3 months later...but I regress as I usually do when I tell a story...after all that I did not want to do it again so I have worn glasses everyday for the last 7.5 years.

My Philly friends, since they met me 2 years later, have never known me without my glasses which seems weird to me because in my head I don't think of myself with them on. I always get ready--fix hair and make-up--without them on so that's what I think of. I'm always bummed when I have to then put my glasses on, especially when I'm getting dressed-up. But no more! Woo-Hoo!!!!!!!!!!

We were at the eye center for 2-3 hours but the actual surgery took less than 5 minutes per eye. Charlton can tell you exactly what it looked like because he watched the whole thing on a flat screen TV. I don't want to think about how my surgery (which Charlton said was "amazingly cool") was entertainment, but I didn't care as long as I didn't have to watch it. It was painless; although, I could feel pressure on my eye when the laser cut the flap. The doctor and staff were really wonderful where I went; I am happy to recommend them to any one interested. I was surprised how much I could see immediately after the surgery. My eyesight was pretty blurry but I didn't think I'd be able to hold my eyes open at all. You have to use a lot of eye drops in the next week, but you really don't mind because it's really uncomfortable when your eyes get dry. The worst part about it was having to sleep in these goggles (very similar to swimming goggles) for a week, and I'll admit that I made it exactly five days and then threw them out with much pleasure.

I was a little nervous and grumpy the next day because even though they told me that my eyesight would be blurry for a few weeks, it still made me nervous that it might never get better. I really wanted to put my glasses back on to be able to focus a little better. However, I did an excellent report at my one-day check-up on Saturday: 20/20 in one eye and 20/25 in the other. I could read one or two letters on the 20/15 line so they expect me to be able to see better than 20/20 when my eyes have fully healed. I've felt fine all week but do get tired more quickly and more often than usual so I've been taking a nap when Steven does and trying to take it a little easier. Thus, no blogging and not much emailing because it was very hard to look at the bright computer screen for long. Today--exactly one week later--I feel good and just a have a little bit of blurriness (mostly later in the day when my eyes are more tired).

Thanks to my dear husband, my mom, and my mother-in-law without whom I could not have taken the time to have and recover from the surgery. I'll continue to update as my eyesight improves and I promise the next post will have pictures of Steven.

The Friendly Beasts

2008-01-02T00:57:00.000-06:00

I know that Christmas (and Dec Blog Challenge) is over but I had to use one more carol title because I had never heard of it and it was too perfect. New Year's Eve morning we went to the zoo because the weather was so beautiful (high of 72) and we wanted Steven to give Charlton's parents a personalized tour of the zoo. I'm taking of advantage of the fact that they generously took lots of pictures of the three of us and I'm posting all of them.

We had to take lots of pictures in front of the elephants. Steven's very special friend is Frank (a stuffed elephant animal). Frank has become a very important member of our family; Charlton and I also have great affection for him. He is a great comfort to Steven anytime he needs a little extra care when we can't be there. We now take Frank with us to grandparents' houses and sometimes in the car when we are just getting out because Steven is very content when Frank is around. Steven is sleeping very well now in pack-in-plays away from home, and while I can't totally attribute that to Frank, I think that he does have a lot to do with it. Elephants in general have become a favorite for us. More on Frank in a later post.... Another elephantSteven always finds a playground no matter where we are.That is one patient goat!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-01T16:05:00.000-06:00

Missy carded me, and I thought it was a great way to start thinking about goals for the coming year.

THE RULES:

1. Each player starts with 5 gifts that they would want for Christmas (I'll say the New Year, since Christmas is almost over!)

2. People who are “CARDED” need to write their own Blog about their 5 things & post these rules.

3. At the end of your Blog, you need to choose 5 people to get “CARDED” and list their names.

4. Don’t forget to leave them a COMMENT telling them they’re “CARDED”, and to read your Blog.

My Materialistic Gift/Wish List:

1. LASIK Surgery (scheduled for THIS Friday)
2. Paint and decorate Master Bedroom
3. Landscape (ourselves) the front and back yards this Spring
4. Curtains for all living area windows
5. A new purse

My Spiritual Gift/Wish List:

1. Desire to pray and read the Word daily
2. Wisdom for disciplining Steven in a consistent and God-honoring way
3. Contentment on the “bad days”
4. That I would better honor and show respect to my husband
5. Form relationships with the other families in our new church

The People I have carded:
Lindsay of In my Own Mind
Jenn of The Canadys
Jamie of Grace Upon Grace
Kristi of The Seven of Us (Plus One More)
Liz of van Bastelaar, etc.
Cheryl (but only if she wants to and actually has time with two babies) of Bowl of Cherries

Rocking Around the Christmas Tree

2007-12-31T14:33:00.000-06:00

This is the cute picture I promised with Aunt Lindsay and Steven wearing her old hospital t-shirt. We had so much fun spending time with her and Uncle Kyle; we hope they come to visit again very soon!

O Come All Ye Faithful

2007-12-31T12:49:00.000-06:00

Oops...I thought that the December Blog Challenge ended on Christmas Day but realized after reading Jamie's blog that that is in fact not the case. So as a faithful friend (?) I went back and added a Christmas Carol title to my posts that had otherwise boring names so that I could finish out the fun. I have also added my trophy for participating to the sidebar. Thanks, Jamie, for spicing things up!

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town

2007-12-30T14:06:00.001-06:00

We headed over to Charlton's parents' house Christmas Day after Steven's nap to be with Mimi, Popo, and his siblings. Mimi developed a good plan to open the kid's presents first so they could play until bed when we could then enjoy each other (and our presents) after they were each asleep in their own pack and plays. As a side note, maybe we should buy stock in Graco with the way things are going in our family. Last year we had two babies with a 1st Christmas and then added another this year...and everyone's just getting started.

The tricycles were a big hit! Steven and Saige look so grown-up and cute. It didn't take Steven long to figure out how to stand on the back and climb all over his. In fact, since Christmas he continually gets on and off of it all day. He hasn't quite figured out how to pedal (his feet fall a little short) but he likes to sit on it, have us pull him around in it, and put stuff in the "trunk."

Steven also got a guitar that looks just like Charlton's. He hasn't realized that he can actually play it by himself though. He generally picks it up and brings it to Charlton or I to play so that he can dance or occasionally strum it while we're holding it. During this week, I tried not to be offended when he brought it to me and then quickly took it away with a look of disgust. He keeps bringing it to me so I guess he's hoping I'll improve with practice even though I tried to explain that Daddy is the one who really knows how to play.

Johnny Cash himself

This is about the only way to get a picture of Steven and Saige together these days unless we want to subject them (and ourselves) to torture. His t-shirt was a present from Aunt Jenn and Uncle Evan and says, "I'm kind of a big deal." Very cute...however, it recently hit us that those kind of shirts can get us into trouble. A few months ago, I was looking for bibs that would go over head instead of velcro because Steven had decided that he didn't like to wear them anymore. The only ones they had at Babies R Us (appropriate for boys) were two that said "Chick Magnet" and "I'm the Boss." Even then I didn't like what the last one brought to mind but I decided since he really needed one it wasn't that big of a deal at his age. Steven is usually really good even in restaurants. However, one particular time he was teething and had a pretty big meltdown while of course wearing the "I'm the Boss" bib. We decided to only use that bib at home from then on. It's like when you see a kid with a t-shirt that says "I'm Spoiled" and they're throwing a huge fit in Target. Don't you think that that mom should discipline their child better? Jumping to conclusions maybe since everyone has those moments but the shirt seems true rather than ironic and cute.

Wow! I got so many presents this year I COULD wear a shirt that says, "I'm spoiled but I'm still sweet.",