Laying Low

I have got something like the flu (but it better not be because I got a flu shot) and M is still recovering from a tummy thing that started on Thanksgiving. We've also maxed out our pictures for the month on blogger, so I'll blog again once those things are all rectified. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I still have a big list of things I'm thankful for that didn't make it into daily posts. Oh well. :) Today I am really grateful for....

No more immigration!!
G isn't working Black Friday!
We are all healthy!
Kahlua Brownies!
Jobs for people we love!
Grace!
COFFEE!
Community!
New and old friends!
Choosing to live life abundantly!
Salvation through Jesus Christ!

Sibs!

Today I am thankful for all 5 of my siblings and their significant others! I have a different relationship with each of them and I love that. I am so blessed that we're all in Texas! This is one big, loud, wonderful family and I wouldn't trade it for anything!

Makafui's Turn!!

I am thankful for....

Mama!!!

Daddy!!

Gigi!!

Pops!!

Christmas trees in shopping centers (boy is gonna flip when we have one in. our. house.)

My new Mega Blocks from a friend.

FOOOOOOOOOD!

Being able to blink on purpose becuase it's such a fun trick.

Newspapers!

Hangers.

Books.

Exploring.

NOT having a crib anymore!!!!

And all my other wonderful family members that I don't have pictures with!!

Day 19

Being a mom and trying to figure out what's best for your child is not always easy. It can be way harder and complicated though if you feel stuck by rules and judgement...or if you don't have the courage to break from what's considered normal or acceptable.

This past week I took apart Makafui's crib and put it away. Not something I ever thought I would do for a baby less than 2 years old, let alone less than 1! And guess what? It is working out fabulously! He sleeps on the mattress on the floor, no walls.

I am so thankful that I am surrounded by people who love, encourage and support me while I figure out what's best for Makafui (maybe you've noticed, "norms" don't seem to fit him). I am thankful for freedom to do what I believe is best. It's wonderful being free!

Day 18

Today was our church Thanksgiving dinner. We had so much fun and I am so grateful for new friends!!

....Makafui was thankful for all the food! He seriously ate! :)

Day 17

I am thankful for our vaccum today! Since M has started self feeding AND crawling, we use that thing ALL the time!! Sometimes, it's the little things that make a difference in your day. :)

Day 16

Today is Makafui's longer out than in day! It's amazing to see how much he has changed and how much we know him in the same amount of time that he was cookin'!

On that note, I am especially thankful for our Dr.s, health insurance and the medical care we have available to us. I know there are a lot of people complaining and worried about the future of our health care and I get that. However, I can't think of another place I would have rather had a baby. I was so blessed to have found such a great OB, to have delivered at such an amazing hospital and to now have such a wonderful pediatrician. And to top it off, we now have insurance to pay for those things. I am very, very grateful for that!!

Day 15

I drove past a church today with a signboard that said: Jesus gives rest to the weary.

I love that. As I was meditating on that, it occurred to me that I am not weary. I could use a little more sleep (who couldn't) but spiritually and emotionally I am not weary. I couldn't say that last year, or the year before, or the year before that...I can't remember the year before that one.

I've spent a good chunk of the last several years being weary. Weary of waiting, weary of silence, weary of hurt, weary of lack of change or too much change, weary of hopelessness.

But God is faithful. He always has been and I knew he would be-even in the midst of weariness.

I am thankful for change and thankful for faithfulness.

Day 14

Today, I am thankful for the Internet! It's hard to imagine life without it (though I do remember life before the Interent, something Makafui will never know!:) and I find it to be suuuper useful!

This week alone I have: uploaded cute pics of my baby, e-mailed friends and family, Facebook stalked, looked up recipes, looked at grocery store ads, did symptom searches, Googled about 1,000 different things, shopped for parenting books (and then didn't buy), shopped for Christmas gifts, got art inspiration from Pinterest, cruised craigslist for several things, laughed my butt off looking at stupid stuff on Pinterest, looked up Bible verses, read the news, found out that there are way more verses to Jesus Loves Me than I knew, listened to music, did all of our open enrollment stuff, planned baby and bridal showers, kept in touch with people far away and more!

Seriously, what would I do without the Internet? Our pediatrician has a great site, which I love and has kept me from calling for little things like medicine dosage and symptom questions. I'm also thankful that we have it in our home-we didn't when I lived alone and when G first came, he would job search at the business center in our apartment and then when I came home from work we would go use the free wi-fi @ Chick-Fil-A and job search until one or both of us was ready to cry from exhaustion/discouragement. I digress. Furthermore, without Internet, how would you loyal blog followers (and stalkers out there!) keep up with us? I'm thankful for this little nugget of technology!

Here's some unrelated cuteness for your enjoyment....

Look, Mommy! I DO like my crib!

Just kidding, still hate it.

Thankful for the Morning

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;

 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23

 

It's probably not hard for you to believe that we are having some ROUGH nights around here. I pretty much dread bedtime. It never fails though that morning does indeed come and His mercies certainly are new. I feel refreshed and ready to start again, pumped to be my sweet boy's Mama and glad that we are ALL getting some more mercy for the day. Mornings are great.

Day 12

I am thankful for chocolate!! I have had waaaay too much of it today, but it helps me get by after a rough nite. :) Yay chocolate!!

Day 11

Today, I am thankful for the Holy Spirit. Yes, that sounds like a silly Sunday School answer, but I mean it. I'm glad we have the Holy Spirit to "speak" to us and help guide us through life. This week has been wonderful with a few notable hard parts (like when my neighbor came down to check on me because she could hear my screaming strong-willed infant who refused to sleep...it made me feel pretty terrible, and inadequate, and judged). I've really been crying out to God for wisdom to know how to parent this sweet boy. In comes the Holy Spirit, giving me peace and speaking grace to me. No book or style or other people's experience can know how Makafui Will needs to be raised. God knows though and He's helping me to know through the Holy Spirit (even though on some days I'm not sure we are speaking the same language). Thanks, God.

Day 10

I am so, so thankful for food! Obviously, I love food! We are so fortunate that food is so easily accessible in this country. We have lots of grocery stores filled with a huge variety of things to eat. I am glad we can afford to buy healthy foods for our family and to splurge on the not-so-healthy every now and then. :)

Thankful for George!!

Today (on his Birthday) I am so, so thankful for my husband!! He is the greatest companion in this life and I love him more each day. This past year has had a new set of challenges for us and I wouldn't want to walk through them with anyone else! I am so glad that he is mine!

G is a wonderful and loving husband who takes great care of me and is always willing to learn new ways to show me love and support. He's a hard worker who really shines in his job and is never shy to give the glory to God and share his faith. He is an awesome Daddy who tenderly loves Makafui and gets excited about all the little things, just like I do. He is a loyal friend, and a great son and brother. Oh, and we manage to laugh and have lots of fun, too. This guy is pretty much gold! I love him so much and I'm still pretty blown away that God saw fit to put us together. Thanks, God!

Day 8

Today I am thankful for the power to make wealth (Deut 8:17-18). God has provided great opportunities for my husband and I to work hard and earn money. That is quite a blessing!

Day 7!

On the 7th day of Thanksgiving (and every month since February) I am especially thankful for my precious boy. Today, he is NINE months old!!

I only managed ONE sit still next to the bear picture. Ha!

This little guy has changed so much over the last month! Not only is he getting bigger and he's now on the move, his personality is really coming to light. He is very happy, extremely social and knows how to tell us he doesn't like something.

His latest trick kills me! If you say "gun show!" he does this...

How precious is that? Those are some impressive guns.

He also knows what "no" means and shakes (well, it's more like a funky bob back and forth) his head. He likes to do something that's a no-no, like spit food, them immediately start shaking his head no. Smart kid.

While my family was in town, we all went out to eat and M was having a rough time. My mom very compassionately asked what was wrong and I said, "Nothing, his little sinful personality is just coming out!" Makafui turned and looked at her, tilted his head down and very slowly shook his head no while a huge smile spread across his face. He knows what's up. Silly. Silly. Boy.

He waves and even throws in a "hi" to people wherever we go. He also waves to the mirror. He's not so hot on the bye-bye part, he prefers to practice waving and saying bye-bye in the middle of the night.

For the last two weeks he has spent the entire church service in the nursery (instead of just the sermon) and has done great! We are very proud of him. :)

He is crawling! He just started really moving forward yesterday, so he's a lot faster backward. He can get all over the place, it's just in a round about way. He pulls up pretty well too!

Because of that, I lowered his crib all the way down. He thought it was fun in the day. At night? Ha! We're back on the floor for the most part. And no, he does not move all over the room...yet. I guess we'll stay on the floor until we need to change it.

He is really getting LOUD!! What cracks me up though, is that he seems to get the whole acoustics thing. If we are in a place with hard floors and high ceilings, or a hallway, he really yells, like screams! It's like he knows it's going to be insanely loud and echo. It's funny most of the time, but sometimes we're out in public and I don't want him to disturb other people. We're working on "little voice".

 

 

He is trying a lot of new foods and is really good at feeding himself now. Plain yogurt and black beans are new favorites.

 

He says: hi, bye and what seems to be nigh-nigh at bedtime (when he's not going nigh-night) but still doesn't actually call G and I dada or mama. Weird.

Night times are, well, I guess a little better? They are better in some areas, but there is no noticeable improvement in others. I haven't been this exhausted in a while, but I'm keeping at it. He does go down without nursing and that part hasn't been as hard as expected. He's still up a lot in the night and I'm still nursing him a lot, just not nursing to sleep. And now day time sleep has gotten harder. Itsy, bitsy baby steps...

Despite the tiredness on my part, I am loving everyday with him! I am so thankful that Makafui is in our lives! I love him so, so much!!

On the 6th Day of Thanksgiving

I am thankful for my Mama! I could write a book about how wonderful she is, all the things we have done together and the funny stuff that no one but us laugh at! I am so grateful that she is in my life, my husband's life and Makafui's life. I am delighted that we live nearby and get to see her so often. I am always encouraged by her, I am often challenged-in the best sort of way-to be a better me, I am always loved and cared for by her and I usually laugh (hard) when we are together! Next to my hubby, she is my best friend! I am so, sooooo thankful for you Mom!!

Contacts

Today I am thankful for contacts! I really take for granted how wonderful contacts are. My vision is pretty terrible, I am so glad there is a way to correct it so I can enjoy my life and see! Glasses are nice, but contacts are wonderful. I love that when I'm up in the middle of the night, I can still see and I'm not fumbling around for my glasses. I am so blessed that we are able to afford contacts and I get to wear them instead of glasses. Thanks, God.

Church!

On this Sunday morning, the 4th day of Thanksgiving, I am so so thankful for my church!

We haven't been at this church for very long, but I am so blessed by it already. We are already making friends and seeing real community in action. We are loved and supported and are able to love and support right back. I've been a little slow to connect and reach out, but that hasn't really mattered. People are just ga-ga over Makafui and I look forward to watching him grow in this place and see the influence of other believers in his life. I am so grateful we found this place and are able to plug in. I look forward to being here for a long time! Thanks, God for putting us in a place that shows the real body of Christ!

On the 3rd Day of Thanksgiving

I am overwhelmingly thankful to be a full time Mommy! Yes, it is a hard, hard job, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am so blessed and grateful to be able to be a part of ALL of Makafui's life, not just evenings and weekends. Lots of things come together to make this happen, but ultimately, it's God's grace. I am so grateful to be able to raise my baby!

And a cute baby at that! :)

Day 2!

Today I am thankful for my dad!

My dad is totally wonderful. I'm so blessed to have him in my life and that he lives nearby. I love that he and my husband do a Bible Study together and that G really sees him as a dad, not just an in-law. He has and continues to teach me so much about life, everything from car stuff to Godly living. I am so thankful that M has his Pops nearby as well and that he will grow up with my dad being an influence in his life. I'm thankful that my dad is healthy, loves God and is engaged with his family...I couldn't ask for more.

22 Days of Thanksgiving!

Happy November!!

I can't believe it's November already! I love this time of year and I love Thanksgiving!! So in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'm gonna blog each day about something I am thankful for.

Today, I am thankful for my home.

I am so blessed that God provided us with this wonderful place! I love the location. I am thankful for our big windows and beautiful view. The open floor plan is especially great for when M is crawling-there aren't many places to hide. I love the ceramic tiles floors. Our big closets make me smile and keep our things neat and tidy. Even though I complain sometimes about how basic they are, I love that we have a washer and dryer in our home-that is a gigantic blessing! I love that we have 2 bedrooms, having M in our room the past weekend really showed me how great that is. I am so, so blessed by this wonderful little home. Thanks, God!