January 2011

Let’s start with the most exciting news of the season: Francie got a Snuggie, and she loves it! Seriously, it was all she could do to take the blanket off when she showered. This is basically how she looked the entire Christmas holiday!

We decided to do Christmas with my family on New Years weekend. It worked out wonderfully this year. We were able to stay at our home for the Christmas weekend, and it was so joyful and relaxing not having to travel. Then, we got to do all the merry celebrations all over again the following weekend (New Years) with my sisters and parents (and husbands and babies, of course!)

Mary Frances’s morning hair-do was quite intriguing to Thomas. He couldn’t really understand what was going on. Doesn’t she look like an aerobic instructor from the 80s!? So adorable.

Speaking of The Fray, she is going through a little stage of “stranger anxiety”, and she was not so excited to be spending the weekend with us a bunch of strangers

 

All of the Grandbabies wore their matching Christmas outfits that Mimi made them. They were so precious! Thomas’s outfit was a little short on him by the time Christmas came…apparently, he went through a growth spurt sometime between when Mimi got his measurements and when it was time to wear the outfit.

The boys all got guns from Daddy Tom. Can you tell how excited Scott was!? Priceless

Since we were doing a “man pic”, we had to put Thomas in it! He is, after all, one of the boys…

Mimi and Daddy Tom helped T get steady on his feet so he wouldn’t fall in Charlie’s yard….

And of course we did the annual Childs Family Matching Pajamas Pic!

The rest of January was spent around our home. It has been so nice to have 4-6 weekends straight where we weren’t traveling! We have been working on a lot of little decorating projects around the house and practicing saying “Uh Oh!” with Thomas a lot. Oh yeah, and cleaning up his big little messes all throughout the day!

But this face makes it all worth it:

When T got bored with his toys, we would push him around the living room in a diaper box! That is his and Daddy’s new game.

And while I’m doing such a random post, let me continue being completely random and tell you how yummy this omelette was!  It’s a weight watchers recipe I found online…delicious! I’m planning on making one for my family when they come up next weekend for Thomas’s birthday party!

And I am still surviving and thriving off of my smoothies. Except, I’ve added a little boost to them. And now they’re green smoothies. Yum. Don’t knock till ya try it! You can not even taste the greens in there. My sister, Katie, talked me into adding some greens to my smoothies, and I’m never going back. If you’re into smoothies, you really should try it.

In other random news, Daniel’s mother (Mama T) gave me some of Daniel’s clothes from when he was a baby. These are Daniel’s overalls. And Thomas is so so so adorable in them. I think I dressed him in them like three days in a row. I just couldn’t get enough.

Thomas realizing that he has some big shoes to fill if he’s going to be as great of a man as his Daddy is!

Sometimes it trips him up just thinking about it….

And he fusses. And clings to Momma….

Then recovers….and all is well in life again.

And then it gets even better when Daddy comes home! This was Thomas’s first time wearing his overalls, and we were so pleasantly surprised when Daddy came home from work and was wearing his, too!

And then, Papa Joe stopped by, and he was also wearing overalls! Which really isn’t that much of a surprise because I think he wears them everyday except Sunday mornings Just 3 generations of overall wearing men!

Matching his Daddy and Papa Joe just thrills Thomas….

Thomas also found his little New Testament bible and loved it.  It is his favorite book by far. I think he loves its little size. There’s nothing cuter than Thomas walking around in his overalls and carrying his Bible.

And speaking of faith, this little girl needs your prayers. She has some kind of sore on her paw/underneath her nail, and we are hoping that it doesn’t get infected! She has just not been herself lately. She’s even turned down some treats! We know Lady really doesn’t feel well if she’s not eating her treats. And we also know she’s too bad to go to the vet, so we’re hoping that this clears up on its own!

 

I’m thinking of taking some of Thomas’s one year portraits in this outfit:

I love dressing him in collard shirts. He looks like such a little man in them!

And I will be glad when this little man learns to use a napkin

***Disclaimer: After sending this picture to my family with the caption, “Are y’all ready for my par-tay!?” I got Summer and Katie lots of laughs and concerns about why his teeth look so crooked. He was just cutting that second top tooth, so it hadn’t even cut all the way through. As for why his top teeth look like they don’t line up with his bottom teeth?? Well, let’s just hope it was the way he was holding his jaw

Well, it’s off to Thomas’s  Friday morning music class! We are looking forward to putting together some shelves we made for the sunroom this evening and getting in bed early tonight. I’m running the Angel House 5k in the morning even though I am totally unprepared. My running has taken a back seat lately to the freezing cold temperatures. Deborah and I are still trying to do several morning runs a week, but it has not been working out so great lately. Either the rain of the morning temps being in the teens cancels out our runs. I’ve been doing good to get in two a week! So, tomorrow morning should be interesting. Wish me luck

Almost A Little Man

I do not have near enough time to give this post the detail that is deserves, but I’m going to write down a few things that have been making my heart smile lately:

*Thomas is now saying “Uh-Oh”…and it is every bit adorable as you might think it is. For a couple of weeks he would only say “UH!” when he dropped something, but within the past day or so he has started saying the full “Uh Oh!”…and if you say “Uh Oh” to him while he’s holding something, he’s likely to throw it down!

 

*Thomas took his first steps a few days before he turned ten months old. He is now walking all over the place! Such a fun and busy stage.

 

*Thomas is also making a “mmm” sound. I think he is trying to say “moooo”

 

*Thomas has started vocalizing what he wants and doesn’t want. For example, if I put him down in the kitchen, he walks straight to our bedroom and to our bathtub. When I tell him that it’s not time for a bath and pick him up and carry him out of the room, he pitches a fit protests

 

*Thomas is doing pretty good with his finger foods. We mainly just use purees to top off his dinners. He has started throwing his food everywhere. We are having a hard time deciding how/how often/how hard/what type of discipline to give. And how much he is capable of understanding at this age. We don’t want to use that as an excuse for bad behavior, but it is something to consider.

This week I tried to introduce cow’s milk to Thomas…he does not like it! So, I’m not mixing it with his formula in hopes of putting more and more cow’s milk and less formula each time until he is eventually only taking cow’s milk! Talk about a financial opportunity! Thomas gets his sippy cup with water during all three meals, but he does not want his milk in his cup….he wants that in his bottle! My first priority is to get him off of formula, next will be weaning from the bottle.

 

*We LOVE this stage. Having an almost one year old is so fun! We talk about how much fun he is almost everyday. One of the best things about being a first time parent is that there is so much joy and appreciation for each stage and milestone. I imagine after having several children it is easier not to rejoice so much in each stage with each child because of all the noise and business of everyday life. But for now, Daniel and I are truly soaking in these moments and having a lot of fun watching and attempting to teach Thomas new things.

 

My blog posts will probably continue to be short and sweet and far and few inbetween. I am keeping busy doing the everyday things of a wife and mother and trying to keep myself from doing pointless things like reading 1084390584 blogs a day and watching reality tv trash. I have joined a Kay Arthur bible study at our church, and I work on it during the week while Thomas is napping. He is on this irregular napping schedule, so I never know if he’s going to take one long nap, one short nap, two long naps, two short naps, or one of each in a day! Needless to say, I work diligently on my bible study while he is sleeping. That time is priceless.

 

I’m signed up to run another 5k this coming Saturday. To say that I am not prepared is an understatement. The cold weather and the whole having a one year old thing makes finding time to go for a run very difficult during the winter. There are many mornings when Deborah and I want to go but decided the temperature being in the “teens” is a little too cold. It was so much easier when I could just throw T in the stroller.  It will be interesting to see if/how I complete the race! As Summer and I joked at our last 5k, “We’re completing, not competing!” Amen, Sista!

 

Ok, Thomas just went down for a nap so now I must go find something productive to fill my mind with! I think I’m going to make a green smoothie before I read…yummy! I’ll have to post about eating those next month later. I may even do a little online research of cloth diapering today because I think I may hear it calling my name. It sounds like such a great way to save money! Feel free to write me and tell me how much you love using them and how much money you save and how adorable your kid looks in them in hopes of encouraging me to take the plunge, please! Good-bye, Friends!

If Your Heart Is Heavy…

I’ve read this quote on several blogs lately, and I think it is profound. I’ve heard people talk about how holidays can be the loneliness of all the days in the year. They can magnify those empty spots or those losses that we sometimes carry around in our hearts. They can be a reminder that there is one less plate set at the dinner table or sometimes the family gatherings highlight the corruption in family relationships. I personally know some people who dread the holidays, while they serve as a time of  peace and joy for others.  Wherever your heart finds itself on this Christmas, look around and remember that others in that very same room may be feeling completely different emotions. And embrace them and their joy or sorrow. Both yours and theirs.  Hold their hand and together proclaim that He is good.

 

He is gracious, and He is good. 

 

He is just, and He is good.

 

He is merciful, and He is good.

 

He is risen, and He is good.

 

He is faithful, and He is good.

 

He is compassionate, and He is good.

 

He redeems all things.

 

He is the Good Shepherd. 

 

And in this Advent Season, I am joyful the Savior in the manger.

Not Celebrate? Your burden is too great to bear?

Your loneliness is intensified during this Christmas season?

Your tears seem to have no end?

Not Celebrate? You should lead the celebration.

You should run through the streets to ring the bell and sing the loudest!

You should fling the tinsel on the tree,

And open your house to your neighbors and call them to dance!

For it is you above all others who know the joy of Advent.

It is unto you that a Savior is born this day.

One Who comes to lift your burden from your shoulders,

One Who comes to wipe the tears from your eyes.

You are not alone, for He is born this day to you.

                             Ann Weems, Kneeling in Bethlehem

My Little Giraffe

Thomas had a very uneventful 1st Halloween.  We are not big halloween people. Personally, I think it’s kind of creepy. Ghosts, spiders, witches, freaky jack-o-lanterns….it’s just not easy for me to get into all of that. However, I am all about babies in costumes, fall festivals, candy, apple cider, hay rides, games, fires, and fellowship with friends during this time of year!  That is much more the route and approach we plan on taking with “Halloween.” Call it what you want.

 

I used Halloween as a great excuse to waste $20 on a costume (I can’t believe I spent that much on a costume now that I type it out….grrr…) and get an adorable photo shoot with Thomas, at his expense:) It was hot that day.  He was nakie underneath his costume.  And usually, my photo shoots bore him. He’d rather be crawling around in the leaves and eating his pumpkin than sitting still and grinning at my lens. I had my favorite assistant that day helping me. Maybe you can recognize him from his carhartts with a hole in them and gray t-shirt. After all, navy and gray are the only colored shirts he likes to wear.  And sometimes, when we are living dangerously, he comes out in a hunter green t-shirt. We clearly live on the edge in the Smith household.

 

The whole, “Hey Babe (Yes, I call my assistant “Babe”…we’re just wild like that) pick some leaves up and throw them in the air around Thomas please,” idea totally backfired on me. For starters, the pile he decided to pick up just happen to be right behind my little giraffe and consequently, he was in the background of my photos…again! Secondly, his leave-collecting-project left our little man unattended as I behind the lens. This is about the time that the stem on the pumpkin started to look tasty….

And then, as quickly as it began, it was over. Thomas decided he was tired of sitting still once we took the pumpkin out of his mouth, and he was on the go!

So, we decided to do a change of location. We moved into Lady’s Territory, aka-our back yard, and brought along with us the wheel barrow my brother-in-law, Scott, made for me as a wedding present! It was a wonderful way to contain our mobile little man!

We parked it in front of our chicken-less chicken pen. We would love to have our own chickens in there, but we’re not going to buy chickens only for Lady to kill and play with them for her personal entertainment. As I type this, there is a dead little red bird laying in my back yard that she has been dragging around for several days. So, as long as Lady is my protector of the back yard, no chickens can had. We’ll just have to keep stealing some eggs from Papa Joe’s chickens across the road:)

  

Starting to get hot and grumpy…..

Luckily, at that same time, Papa Joe, Mama T, Great Aunt Cindy, and Uncle Greg pulled up in the driveway to see their little giraffe.

Thomas greeted them at the fence and thanked Papa Joe for rescuing him from his over-the-top obsessive Mother. I love those three generations of Smith men.