Christmas Countdown: Day 3

I started this month with great expectations of documenting all of the wonderful moments and memories of this Christmas season in words and pictures, but here it is the 6th of December and I only have one day to report on. We have been battling major illness in our household for the past month. H. Man has had it the worst and I think he is just finally turning the corner on a three week battle with bronchitis. We're praying that we are all healthy by Christmas and that we have paid our dues this last month so we can stay healthy the rest of the winter.

I decided to start a couple of new traditions to help us to enjoy the true spirit of Christmas a little more this year. The first thing I did new this year was to find 24 Christmas books, wrap them, and place them under the tree.

Each morning one child gets a turn to pick a book to open, and we read it together as a family. There are a mixture of fun stories like The Night Before Christmas, and The Polar Express, but I tried to make the majority of them ones that exemplified the true meaning of Christmas, like Christmas Day in the Morning, and A Christmas Bell for Anya. We have been loving this addition to our Christmas traditions. Each child can't wait until it's their turn to pick the book for the day and I love the mood it sets for the rest of the day as we start the morning cuddle up together on the couch reading stories about Christmas.

The other new thing we have done this year is that I made a Christmas Activity Advent for the kids. I got 24 bags at the craft store and filled each one with a treat for each child and an activity for the day. I hung them all up on our banister and each child takes a turn opening a bag for the day.

I had wanted to photograph and document us doing each of the activities, but I have only remembered to pull out the camera for one so far, and that was for our trip to see the lights at Temple Square on Friday night.

We all bundled up (although the weather was quite pleasant for December at 40 degrees) and headed downtown to take in the sights.

C. Bear was mesmerized by all of the lights.

The boys favorite thing was the life sized nativity. Little C. loved everything and Doug had to carry her or she would have spent the entire night wandering around, enjoying it all at her leisure.

After looking at the lights, we headed to a nearby café for hot chocolate and treats.

It was the perfect ending to a perfect night.

Wordless Wednesday: 8 Months Old!

Birthdays, and Blessings, and Baptisms, Oh My!

This has been one full and amazing month for our family! It started with Claire's blessing,

and was followed by G. Diddys birthday a few weeks later.

This was the birthday he has been waiting for forever. He turned eight and got to start scouts and get baptized! (More photos are coming of that event.)

The next week was H. Man's birthday.

 

This was also a "big" birthday for him. He turned twelve and got to receive the priesthood!

We were so proud of him. It was so awesome to watch him as he worthily passed the sacrament this Sunday. I can't believe we have a twelve year old child!

The week after H. Man's birthday, G. Diddy was baptized.

He was so excited! The day was awesome and he just radiated joy all weekend. I've never seen him behave so well in church. He read his new scriptures through most of sacrament meeting, and bore a wonderful testimony.

The final event is I. Mac's birthday today! 

He turned 10 and is an amazing child. We're getting ready to go swimming this afternoon and have his birthday dinner at Grandma's this evening.

The overwhelming feeling I have had over this past month is how much Heavenly Father loves His children. I have been struck by the fact that although these are my children here on earth they were His first, and it is my responsibility to do all I can to help them get back to Him again some day. I am so blessed to be the mother of these wonderful children. I hope I can be the mother they deserve. 

2 Months

I can't believe our little C. Bear is two months old today.  It's hard to believe that two months ago I felt like I would never be able to get on top of all of the house work and gardening again. Well, I'm a far cry from being on top of things, but I did get to spend several hours working in the garden this weekend, even though Doug was gone for most of it. After a rocky start, she has finally settled into a decent schedule. I'm able to put her down for naps in her own bed several times a day, and she even sleeps for a good 6 hour stretch at night and then another 4.

She has gotten to be so much fun too. She gives you the biggest, brightest grins at the slightest urging, and loves to carry on conversations with anyone willing to coo-along with her. The boys are convinced that she can say "hi" already, and I have to admit that when you say, "hi" to her, it sure sounds like she is saying, "hi" back. She has the most kissable chubby cheeks you ever saw, and although we may be biased, around here we think she is the most adorable little ball of chub we ever saw.

Blessing Day

We blessed our beautiful C. Bear in church today. It was a wonderful experience. The dress she wore was my great-grandmother's blessing dress. Little C. was able to wear this dress on her blessing day too and it was so neat. Events like baby blessings and baptisms always seem to heighten my knowledge of the importance of family. It makes it even more poignant to have my babies wear this link to past generations of my family.

I always worry that my baby will be good and not cry during the blessing. C. Bear slept for most of the meeting, but when Doug took her to go up to the front of the chapel for the blessing she woke up.  I was a little nervous, but the neatest thing happened. The entire time Doug gave the blessing she just stared at him with a huge, beautiful grin on her face. Doug said it was an amazing experience. It was as if she was connected to him, and on some level understood what he was saying and was feeling and recognizing the spirit that was present. She was perfect the rest of the meeting and there was an incredible spirit the rest of the day. We were blessed to be able to share it with our wonderful family and friends.

I am so thankful God gave us families. My family is truly the most important thing on earth to me. I am grateful for the glimpses into Heaven I get through my experiences with them.

Wordless Wednesday

Books and Babies

The title of this post pretty much sums up how I have been spending my time for the last week and a half.  I haven't had much sleep.  It is hard to find time for the little things, like eating, taking a shower, going to the bathroom. . .  My mom has been nice enough to take the kids during the day since C. Bear was born so I have had plenty of time to get to know and enjoy this cute, chubby girl, 

and since I can hold her in one arm, and a book in the other I have gotten in plenty of reading too.  I finished two fun books and have started on another.  I have been sticking to lighter reads, since there are plenty of interruptions with a newborn baby.  The first book I read was one I was actually surprised that I hadn't read yet.  It was Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott.  I love Little Women, but for some reason I have never felt compelled to read Little Men.  Although it is not as good as Little Women, I really enjoyed the book.  It is very idealistic and and somewhat moralistic too, but there were so many great bits of parenting wisdom in it.  I hope I can be as wise and patient a mother to my crazy boys as Jo was to hers.  The other book I finished was by one of my favorite authors.  It was The Keeper of the Bees by Gene Stratton-Porter.  If you have never read any of her books, I highly recommend that you do.  She has some beautiful insights into education, and our relationship with God, nature, and our fellowmen.  This book was no exception.

While we're on the topic of books, Meg posted a list of 10 books she loves to read today and invited others to do the same.  She has a great list, and I have a few books that I think I will be tackling next thanks to her.  Here is my list of 10 books I love (in no particular order).  

• Laddie: A True Blue Story - Gene Stratton-Porter

• Uncle Tom's Cabin - Harriet Beecher Stowe

• Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

• Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

• The Hiding Place - Corrie Ten Boom

• Approaching Zion - Hugh Nibley

• Mere Christianity - C. S. Lewis

• A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

• An Enemy Hath Done This - Ezra Taft Benson

• Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

I hope you'll post yours too. . .

Welcome Baby!

After a long wait C. Bear finally made her appearance into the world at 4:13 am on March 17th.  She was a whopping 10 lbs. 14 oz. and 22 inches long.  Amazingly enough hers was my easiest birth.  I was in labor for only 2 hours and I would say only 15 to 20 minutes of that was really painful.  I guess she made up for all the torture she put me through those 10 extra days she decided to wait before being born.

We had a bit of a scare after her delivery though.  My water broke right before she was delivered and there was a lot of meconium in the fluid.  When she was born she went limp and wouldn't breath.  They had to perform mouth to mouth right away and got her breathing.  I was terrified.  Luckily Doug was calm and said he knew everything was going to be alright.  They then inserted a tube down her throat and sucked out a tube and a half of green fluid.  She started breathing and crying a little more normally, but we had to give her oxygen for about a half hour.  Thankfully, after that everything seemed fine.  She started eating and probably could have done that for the rest of the day if I let her.  We had to watch her closely for the first 24 hours, but she has been thriving since that first scare.  

The kids came to see her a few hours after she was born and were so excited.  They all love their new baby sister, and can't get enough of her, which sometimes drives mom crazy.  They have been such big helpers though, getting me food and water and diapers and whatever else I need.  H. Man even did two loads of laundry for me yesterday which was such a help and so needed.  

Little C. is a little jealous and bothered by the fact that mom can't do all the things with and for her that she normally does.  She still loves her baby sister though and wants to hold her as much as I will let her, despite the fact that she tried to pull a handful of C. Bear's hair yesterday.  Hopefully this phase will pass quickly.

Doug has been amazing as usual.  He has been such a great help and comfort, doting on his new daughter and I and making sure the house stays clean and we all get fed.  He is the greatest husband and father I could ask for.  It will be hard to have him go back to work tomorrow.

We are just grateful to have C. Bear here and healthy and to have the opportunity to embark on this new journey as a family.