Thursday, April 30, 2009

Adam and Eve's Campout...what is missing from the Bible

Last Sunday, all the 2-coming-3 year olds at church got a Bible. It is a younger version of one Alden already has, and she has been reading both of them a lot recently. She likes the one in which got creates Adam and Eve in the garden, but by far, she is most interested in the story about Adam and Eve disobeying God and having to leave the garden. I think it has to do with the disobedience aspect, and we all know how that is Alden's specialty.

Anyways, last night I read those 2 stories to her, and she asked about 15 "Why?" questions. She asked where Adam and Eve were going since they had to leave the garden, and I just told her, "The desert." Alden says, "They are probably having a campout...with marshmallows....maybe they will go to the pool." Betcha hadn't read that in the NIV!

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

One thing after another

My post from last week was from Tuesday, which was about one of two days of Hudson being 100% better from the respiratory junk before he started with an ear infection. He was up a LOT Tuesday night, kind of fever-y Wednesday, and we went right to the doctor Thursday morning. Sure enough, he had a double ear infection...probably remnants of the last bug, exacerbated by the latest teeth he is working on. Poor guy. It took a good couple days for him to feel better, and he was pitiful to be around; clingy, sleepy, and lethargic..but cuddly, which is nice.

Friday, we went to the park to meet Alden's friends from school. It was great for both of the kids to be outside, and was definitely the first day I wished I would have remembered to lather them with sunscreen.

So, we bought this house partly because it is in a great older neighborhood, and we have a ton of trees. Well, there are some downsides to the trees. 1 - Our satellite no longer gets reception. 2 - the woodpecker that woke us up Saturday morning at 6:45...or should I say the woodpecker that woke Alden up, who in turn, woke US up. Well, this story did not end at all badly. Matt got up with Alden and let her have breakfast and watch Letter Factory, since he was leaving at 8 to help work on someone's house for church. I got up and fed Hudson, and he went back to sleep. When Matt left, Alden climbed in bed with me, read books for a while, and fell asleep. The next thing I know, it was 10:00! I mean, I don't even know when I have slept that long. The Lord knew I needed it after all the sleepless nights I had with Hudson this past week!

When Matt got back, we went to the pool, intending to leave Hudson in childcare. Well, the childcare people were a little short-staffed, so he watched Alden swim, and got in on the steps for the first time. We had to be really careful to keep his ears dry, but he had a great time playing in the water.

Matt was supposed to work that night, but had asked if anyone could take his shift. Well, 30 minutes before he had to work, someone called to pick up his shift, so he was able to come with me and the kids to our Sunday school class potluck. And, it was a good thing he did. We had our little shindig in the fellowship hall, and Alden ran around like crazy with the "wild boys." She is one of 2 girls in the group, the other only being 16 months old. At one point, the boys were all in a pile punching and wrestling, and Alden just jumped right on, joining in. She is a tough one. Hudson enjoyed crawling around, and meeting some other crumb crunchers.

Sunday, we had church and a quick lunch at home. Bebe and Pop pop came by to see the kids since Pop pop had just gotten back from Germany the night before. Just let him tell you about the beer gardens. I think they made a very favorable impression.

We went on a walk after naps, and last minute, decided to go to South Point to do some returns and try out a new car seat for Alden. On our way to Moe's, I spotted my little sis from AX, with her kids, husband, and parents. We had connected on facebook, but hadn't seen each other in years. It was great to see her boys, and catch up a little bit. After dinner, (which was more of an appetizer), we went to Cold Stone for ice cream (the main course).

All in all, it was a great weekend. The end.

9 Months!

Hudson will be 9 months old tomorrow! Hallelujah, we are making it closer to the 1 year mark!

He had his check-up today, which is now the 3rd time we have been to the doctor in 3 weeks. I keep going back and forth about our pediatricians. I like them all, but the past few times we have been, we have been there 2 hours, and have waited close to 50 minutes to be seen...with an appointment! I try to be understanding, but hello???, there is only so long I can be expected to entertain an almost 3 year old and a 9 month old, and THEN be locked up with them in a little exam room for another half an hour! Ahhh!

Enough of that, back to Hudson. He weighed in at 18 lbs 13 oz, and was 26 3/4 inches long, head circ. 44.5 cm. They didn't give me the percentage stats, but when I looked them up at home, he is still around 25% in everything. His ears have cleared up since last week, and the doctor said he is doing great.

He is starting to wave, and can't really point yet, but reaches his hand out to things, especially lights and fans. He "points" to dad and Lily. He has been eating like crazy; tonight he downed a bunch of lima beans, macaroni and cheese, chicken, and banana. He loves Yo Baby yogurt, which is about the only thing I can spoon feed him anymore. We are starting to try to sign more with him, and although he doesn't do them yet, he really understands "milk", "eat", "water" and "light."

Don't say no

Tonight we were at Bebe and Pop pop's for dinner since Matt had to work at OTB. After dinner, Alden just goes right up and starts bath water, announcing "It's bath time!" Then, after bath, Amber and I were sitting in her room and she announces, "I want popcorn for snack," kind of directed to Bebe, who was standing in the hall. As Alden walked out of the room, she stuck her hand out in front of my mouth and said, "Don't say no, Mommy." We were all dying laughing. She is B-O-S-S-Y.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Bababababa

Today was the first day that Hudson is really babbling, and it is so cute. Before, he was making some consonant/vowel sounds, but mostly doing this clearing-his-throat sound when he was trying to communicate. His little voice is so sweet.

This past weekend went by so quickly. Saturday, we met Bebe, my Aunt Murle and Uncle Joe for lunch at Chick-Fil-A, as they were on there way through town from Brevard. Alden and Matt played in the play area for a long time, and Alden was actually helping another little boy who was scared to do the slide. She was really proud of herself for being nice. Wow.

After naps, Matt had to work at On the Border, so I hauled the kids over to my friend Kristen's house for a high-school-friend get-together. Kristen and Kyle have a great fenced in yard, and the weather was perfect to be outside. It was great to visit with everyone, and I think we all ate too many of Mendi's excellent break-and-bake cookies, which were some of the best I have ever had. Alden and Caleb played really well together and the Hudson enjoyed watching the big kids run around.

Sunday, we got up and headed back to Charlotte. We stopped at Nana's for a couple hours, and then went to Bradd and Corinne's daughter's 1st birthday party. We hadn't gotten together with our old Shea friends since the fall, and all the kids had changed so much. On the way out of the neighborhood, we dropped in on the Bogans. Alden thinks Avery is the coolest.

This week is off to a normal start. I rode today and Mom and Amber came over for dinner and to help with kids while Matt was working. I am very thankful that we are all well again!

Friday, April 17, 2009

A few extras

Wow, it has taken me four posts to get caught up on April so far.

In general, we have had a sick month so far. Alden started with something the first weekend of the month, and we all have it now. I took the kids to the doctor before we left for Aiken, because Hudson had started the day before with a croup-y sounding cough, and was getting really congested, and he just told us to wait it out. Does that ever work for anyone else? Because, Tuesday morning, I was calling him to tell him we needed some medicine no matter what. No one was sleeping much, and that is when things get serious around here. But, we are all on antibiotics now, and on the mend. Hopefully, this is it until fall??

Some of the moms and kids from Alden's class have been meeting on Fridays at one of the local parks, and the first Friday this month we were able to go. It was just Alden, and two little boys, Rowan and Jake, but they had a great time running around and playing with Rowan's cars. They were running around the merry-go-round, making it spin, and Alden kept telling the boys what to do. "Stop boys"..."Alright, ready, set, go"..."No, stop again!" B-O-S-S-Y.

Hudson got his 4 top teeth the beginning of the month, all at one time. I think they are part of what contributed to his March bout of sickness. He has enjoyed trying them out on some table foods. He kind of fluctuates on whether he will eat baby food or not. Sometimes, he just wants to feed himself.

He has been really clingy lately, which has kept us from being productive at all. For example, it took me a day and a half to fold a load of laundry that was in his room because I kept having to pick him up...or intervene with him and Alden.

There is a little book club in the neighborhood, and this month the book we are reading is Clyde Edgertons' Raney (Sorry, I don't know how to underline things with Blogger). I think I read it in middle or high school and didn't like it at all, but I have been cracking up reading it this past week. I would definitely recommend it.

Easter in Aiken

We continued Matt's birthday celebration in Aiken, heading down there on Friday to spend the weekend. Matt's mom made him a pumpkin pie with "33" on it, and we had a great salmon dinner.Hudson tried some fish, too. Cheerios are still the fave, though.Lily also likes that Hudson enjoys Cheerios. I can't imagine how much time we would spend picking food up off the floor if we didn't have a dog. It always seems like our time in Aiken goes quickly. We made a couple trips to Hitchcock Woods, although one was cut a little short since we tried to take Alden. She was extra whiny.

Starting out in the backpack.That didn't last long. The cat wanted out.Easter morning, we went to church with Matt's dad, leaving Hudson back with Matt's mom since he was sick. Then, we did Easter baskets and went to brunch. Alden and Hudson really liked the Easter bunny. Alden did not like having her picture made, surprise, surprise, so there aren't a whole lot of great pics from Easter. This was especially disappointing for me after working to get their outfits done in time, envisioning the perfect Easter picture in front of the azaleas while I was sewing them. Whatever, Allison.
Alden likes the "wolves" (they are really foxes) in front of the club.Note: No Alden. She was running around trying to figure out how to highjack a golf cart.After naps, Matt and I took Lily to the woods and had a great hike without the kids. Lily LOVES the woods, and it takes us back to our pre-child days when we went out there a couple times a day to walk around.

Alden and Grandma colored eggs that night.On the way home, we stopped in Charlotte to visit with Nana. Hudson loved playing pat-a-cake with Nana, and we all enjoyed getting to visit a little bit since we missed the big family Easter get together on Sunday.

What's next...we think

Matt has been busy working part-time at On the Border, and looking into the possibility of going to seminary. He took a couple classes through Fuller when we lived in CO, and really enjoyed them. He has always said that if he could go back to school just to learn, he would love to go to seminary, but since he never wanted to be a pastor, we just never thought it was practical. However, it has always been in the back of his mind, and every time I am in church (even since Charlotte) I feel like God has been saying "Matt needs to go to seminary." I just kept telling God to be quiet; we weren't interested, thank you very much. So, here we are, completely surrendering and walking down a path we feel like God has been nudging us towards for a while.

It is scary...there is a lot of uncertainty about finances, time management, if he should try to work and do school, what I should try to do, etc. But, we are trusting that it will work out if that is what needs to happen. As far as the pastor thing goes, Matt is trusting that God will show him what he is supposed to do, even if he doesn't know now. There are other possibilities in ministry, and who knows, maybe he is supposed to be in a church in some kind of role. As for me, I don't think I EVER wanted to be a preacher's wife, but I do want to be Matt's wife, so I am believing that my heart will be changed, too, if that is where we are called.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Happy Birthdays

We had two birthdays to celebrate earlier this month. The 3rd was Auntie Ashley's, so she and Andrew came up from Charlotte for the weekend to celebrate. It had been months since we saw Ash, and Alden and Hudson were glad to have some time with her, although Alden monopolized most of it, whisking Ashley off to play upstairs for a large part of the afternoon.
The 9th was Matt's birthday and we did a party with my parents and Amber to celebrate. We grilled out and did strawberry pizza instead of cake, which was Matt's request. The Easter bunny made an early trip to Bebe and Pop pop's house, too, and Alden got the Tinkerbell tree house that she has been talking about EVERY day. She is really into fairies right now.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Alden's Easter Party

Alden's class had their Easter party on April 1st, before spring break. They had a great time, even with the egg hunt moved indoors because of the rain.

Look a' My Face

"Look a' my face!" Alden must say this almost every time she eats something and thinks she has it around her mouth. Amber brought over cupcakes for dessert tonight and Alden had pink frosting all over (she actually looked a lot like the Joker...and she does have kind of an evil, cackly laugh when she gets going). We heard "look at my face" quite a few times, and then Alden would just crack up.

Another one of her latest exclamations is "Awesome!" (except it sounds more like Aw-Hum!) We hadn't ever heard her say it before, but when she unwrapped the train set that the Easter bunny brought her, she just busts out with "Awe-hum! Cool Choo-choo train! Awe-hum!" Whenever she talk about the train to anyone it is referred to as the "Awe-hum choo-choo train!" Good job Easter bunny.

Tonight, Alden was having her snack and talking about ghosts. Matt told her that the only ghost was the holy ghost, and explained that the holy ghost was Jesus and God here on earth with us. Alden just says matter-of-factly, "I don't know about that."