A Story of Joy for 2016

Here's how the story goes:

Daddy asked his boys:

"Boys. Do you know how big a fruit snack is? Here, let me show you. Hold out your hand and hold this fruit snack super gently in your hand."

"Did you know that this fruit snack is the size of the baby in Mommy's belly?!" 

As you can tell...Keagan got it! SURPRISE!!  We are having a baby!! Finn promptly ate the fruit snack, then stated that he "ate the baby!"

We showed the boys a picture of an ultrasound of the baby. Well, actually it was an ultrasound of theirs because the one we had of this baby is just a blob. And has no resemblance of a baby.

From the look of his face I think it finally sank in for Finley!

"Is this where the baby is?!"

I am sure that I have mentioned over the past couple years that we wanted to expand our family. And we have encountered some difficulty (again) with trying to get pregnant. Of course, there was the matter of my health after the stroke and could my body handle being pregnant and then delivery. I saw multiple specialists a couple of years ago to get that answer, and was ultimately told that YES! I was ok to have another baby. And so the trying began. Without getting too into the emotional and medical aspect of it, it took nearly 20 months...but WE ARE HAVING A BABY!! And we are all beyond excited!

I am nearly 13 weeks along, out of my first trimester!!  Whoo hoooooo! We are due July 19th and we have decided to be surprised about the gender! I am still nauseous, but I have high hopes that it is improving. However, I was nauseous for well into my second trimester with both the boys so I am realistic that I have a few more weeks of this...mess. ... I am already showing...but I have been for a while. In fact, I feel like I look 6 months pregnant already. Oh well. The boys have been perfect...they are so patient with me when I am not feeling well and enjoy "family movie nights" in bed with me on a regular basis. They also have made room in their little hearts for their new baby. They regularly make suggestions on where the baby will sleep or play or eat. They kiss my belly (now that I've pointed out where the baby is) after they love on me. Both boys will occasionally say: "Good morning, Momma. How's the baby this morning?" I love it. We are so excited to welcome another blessing into our family in 2016.

Christmas Blessings and Traditions

It is super difficult for me to believe Christmas has already come and gone, and as I sit here and write this it is actually the first day of 2016. I say it all the time, but really...where is the time going? As a child, time stood still. But the further I get into adulthood and have children of my own, the time is flying. I am very fortunate that even my earliest memories of Christmas are very pleasant. My parents did a great job of making sure Christmas was special, no matter where we lived or who was present. There were traditions and decorations and the time was filled with a lot of love, joy, and wonder. I still feel those feelings when I prepare for Christmas in our house and it is very important for me to make traditions that our children can reflect back on. Though they are still little, and Finn doesn't really remember last year, traditions are starting to stick! One tradition is making and decorating sugar cookies for Santa (and Daddy...and Poppy...). I used to make these pretty well in advance so that they didn't have to be decorated on Christmas Eve. But last year, and as it turns out this year, I was down to the wire and we had no choice but to decorate them on Christmas Eve. But with several hands holding piping bags, it goes fast and it is fun and easy. While the decoration may not be something out of a Southern Living magazine, no matter how abstract they may be they taste absolutely delicious!

Another tradition that we have is new jammies. I gave up finding specific Christmas jammies for the boys a long time ago because, as cute as they are, they just don't look too manly as the boys have gotten bigger. And I generally wait til the last minute, so finding anything boyish + Christmasy is impossible at the eleventh hour. So they get special jammies, but they aren't holiday-special. Oh well. I figured they would both love-love their new PJs this year because they were Star Wars themed and, in case you have slept under a rock the last year, everything is Star Wars. Keagan, with his sweet and easy-to-please nature, just loved his new jammies. Finn. Well, Finn was Finn. He opened them, seemed to like them. But on closer inspection realized they had buttons and not a zipper (as in, the footed zipper jammies that babies wear). When I say he melted down, I mean he puddled. Giant crocodile tears flew out of his eyes and his bottom lip stuck out farther than his chin. And, being the child that is incredibly decisive and has something already in his mind that he wants...he immediately said he didn't like them and wasn't going to wear them. Some may take this as ungrateful. I do on most occasions, and become frustrated. But I don't really think my 3 year old has an ability to be "ungrateful" as we think of in the sense of teenagers. He is a child who knows what he wants and wants that specifically. Always has, and I believe he always will. (I suppose it is my job to mold this into something good...and teach him that life doesn't always give what we think it should...) Luckily, the meltdown was short-lived and once we explained that he could wear these or something out of his drawer, he chose his new PJs. (and for the record, he got mad that they were dirty a few days later and he couldn't wear them. so I know he likes them. thank God for washing machines...)

Wrestling and snuggling with Daddy...love these sweet smiles.

Christmas Morning!!! I won't lie, I was a little concerned how Finn would react to his presents based on his performance over the PJs the night before...  And he did have some funny moments of disappointment when Keagan opened his "big" present and he didn't get his yet. The crazy thing is, he never, ever told me what he wanted. Never. So I ("Santa") blindly shopped for him...and was a bit worried when the first few presents he opened were given a blank stare and then moved to his pile. At one point Finn actually muttered that he wasn't getting what he wanted! Sheesh!  Keagan, on the other hand, just LOVED every.single.gift and gave everything the attention it deserved. Luckily, the mood was lightened when Finn did open the present he wanted (that I randomly purchased -on a whim- at Wal Mart one day, no idea he "wanted" it). And Christmas continued with very pleasant attitudes and joy. I am gonna have to do a better job next year preparing Finn on the meaning of Christmas and that we don't always get everything we want. I truly didn't think it would come so soon! Despite the early hang-ups, I will say that both boys were truly grateful for all their gifts and have played with everything they received. I have heard some parents say their kids don't play with the toys they have...that is totally not the case in this house.  

When Keagan was 3 years old he got his first gun. I think Josh may have gotten his first gun at 3 years old as well. Well...Finn is now 3, and so the tradition continues!! And he was all business when he got his first (left-handed!!) gun from Poppy and Gamma. And he informed everyone that he was gonna pull the trigger all by himself.  

Thank You Aunt Hannah for the new hat!!  We bleed blue in this house (Go UK!) but we make an exception for maroon every now and then. :) 

Great Grandma Gail always gifts the boys with some of the most unique books...and they are a welcome sight to both momma and daddy and the boys amidst all the toys!  

Uncle Wesley really outdid himself this year with gifts for us all. The boys absolutely love their new runway and present-time had to stop for a bit so planes could land and fly!

Finley couldn't wait for breakfast and so he went ahead and consumed a whole bag of BLUE cotton candy, immediately.  

I know it is hard to believe this, but these really are all the pictures I took of Christmas this year. I've been kind of slack...  We had a beautiful Christmas and the boys really enjoyed (and continue to enjoy!) all of their thoughtful gifts from everyone.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! May 2016 bring your family many blessings!

Angels We have Heard on High

Since the end of September, Keagan has been singing Christmas songs. He is always, ALWAYS, singing, it just so happened the topic changed to Christmas when he started practicing for our church's Christmas program. And listen, this boy loves a good performance. While we sort-of (ok... really) got tired of hearing Go Tell it on the Mountain all.the.time, I know he enjoyed the practices and even thoroughly enjoyed the performance. He is a singing, dancing, musical little being and though sometimes it becomes irritating (as in, during supper or when he is supposed to be sleeping or when Josh and I would be attempting a conversation) I really do love that he loves to sing. He has always been good at replicating a tune.

The children began practicing at the end of September for the production, and I really wasn't sure what all it would entail. I heard all the songs and learned Keagan was a shepherd, but other than that I didn't know how long it would be or how detailed. The kids performed one of their songs at the morning services to entice people to come to the Sunday evening service to watch their production, and it was a packed house that night. We barely got a seat near the front. And when it began, I sat on the edge of my seat. The children acted, sang, and detailed the story of Christmas for 45 minutes and we all laughed and cried. They did so wonderful! It was beautiful. The real meaning of Christmas is beautiful in and of itself but when pure and faithful children narrate it, it takes on a whole new meaning.

Can you spot Keagan? He is a shepherd!

 

 

The next night both boys participated in their school's Christmas program. As you can imagine, Keagan was very vocal around the house about the songs he had to sing. But Finley was not. In fact I tried to make him practice Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer one day, and he sang maybe the first two words, then quit. Josh and I honestly expected nothing from him on the night of his program. He is sort of shy and not really one to perform, both at home and in public situations. My pictures do not do it justice, but he sang every word of every song and even did the hand motions! He didn't really smile, at all, while he was up there...but he participated! So maybe he just "knows" what he has to do and doesn't need the practice? Or maybe he couldn't get a word in edgewise because his brother takes up all the vocal space...singing or talking...  (probably the latter)