Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm really looking forward to today. We're expecting some friends from Charlotte to arrive later this afternoon to enjoy dinner and a night or two at our house. We should have a full house of children playing (6 kids total) and great fellowinship. We should have a delicious bird, or shall I say BIRDS (we're roasting and smoking birds this year), stuffing, mashed potatoes, yeast rolls, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserol, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and more. It will be great!

I'll be missing my family this year, all of which are staying in their hometowns. I'll be thinking of you all!

I'm very thankful this year, mainly to God for giving me such underserved blessings through my family and friends. I'm thankful for food on the table, laughter, memories, conversation, friendship, and fun. I'm thankful for Patrick, Mallory, Ethan, and my extended family. I'm thankful for my TN church friends, playgroup friends and neighbors. I'm thankful for my FL friends, PA friends, NC friends and more. I'm thankful for so much.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Someone I've been thinking about today

**Updated due to correct info I received from my fam...

You know, I'm often caught up in my own little world and forget about the hurt of others close to me. I have to admit I rarely remember the anniversary of my grandpa Lahman's death, but for some reason it hit me today that it was around this time some 20-odd 19 years ago that he died and I'm sure that this time is heavy on my dad's mind and heart.

That was a strange Thanksgiving week - the week that Grandpa died - and I remember a lot of it: Dad being down in south FL a lot, having a Thanksgiving pagent at school and being told shortly afterwards that grandpa passed away (I think my mom told Amanda and I in the bathroom of the Main Street Burger King in Gainesville...), travelling down there for the funeral, staying at John and Ronas, trying to have a happy Thanksgiving dinner despite that the funeral was either on or the day before Thanksgiving the day after Thanksgiving (he died the day before).

I figured I'd list some memories I have of my grandpa...
1. Grandpa had an artificial leg (he had his leg amputated years before because of complications with diabetes). I used to knock on his leg a lot. He also used to take insulin shots...and I didn't like shots!
2. Grandpa was VERY handsome. I always thought he was a good lookin' guy.
3. I used to like sitting at my grandparents kitchen table in the Hollywood, FL condo. The swivel chairs were so neat! I also remember liking to see my mom and dad kiss in the elevator on the way up to my grandparent's 2nd floor unit. Amanda and I also used to play shuffleboard in the courtyard area...Anyway, I remember he and my dad having conversations at that kitchen table. I don't remember what they talked about, but they talked there. Grandma used to serve us drinks in plastic cups with pastel-colored rims...I don't know why I remember that...

I only have a few memories, since I was only 8 or 9 11 when he died. My dad was about my age when Grandpa passed and I just can't imagine what it must've been like. Dad -I know this time is hard for you and I know I forget A LOT, but I just wanted to let you know that this year, I remember.

Amanda & Terry (and any other family), do you have any memories you'd like to comment about?

Recent Videos...

Here is Ethan taking a walk...it was his biggest one at that point. He's now walking from one thing to another that is within "reasonable" distance. I love watching him wobble! And please excuse my girl on the potty...




Here is a video of the kids in the snow. Trust me, it's not very amusing...except for the dog...

Missing you, Florida!

For some reason, I'm missing my home state like crazy...almost to the point that I wish I still lived there. It's odd for me because I haven't felt like this in at least 10 years. Oh, there are plenty of things I DON'T miss, like the summer heat and flat landscape, but there are more things that I do miss. I can 99.9% bet that we will never ever live there, but I just needed to say that I do miss it and today more so than most.

I miss:

1. Friends....or shall I say family. My closest friends in the world are people I knew in my Florida years. There are several families who are like true family...Jamerson, Clendenins, Balls...and Michelle. I miss them. I miss the familiarity and closeness we all had, thanks to the determination of my parents to be close to these people which led me to be close to them. In addition to these friends are my true family - my grandpa and lots of aunts, uncles, cousins live down there. I miss being close to them, too.

2. The Gators. My dad was the biggest, baddest fan of the family and still is. He worked at a restaurant on campus and we spent lots of time at UF as a family. Amanda went there and I had plans to go there, but I wasn't accepted for the term I had applied for (I was accepted for the following semester) and I had no scholarship. So, I went to Santa Fe for 2 years then to UGA the remaining 2 (where I had the HOPE scholarship making my education was free). I wish I would have gone to UF because I have so much pride for that school. The campus is great and very beautiful. I have lots of memories being the UF Homecoming parades from childhood to high school. I never went to a Gator Growl, but maybe one day... I miss UF basketball games. I went to several while I was at community college there. I've only been to one or two football games in the Swamp and oh, how I'd LOVE to go to another one! One nice thing about Florida field is that it's open to the public. Lots of students run stairs there. You can even go down to the field and walk on it. Everyone seems to understand having respect for the field. If I ever had the desire to go back to school, I'd love to go to UF.

3. What Florida represents. It's a big part my heritage. I grew up there. I became a Christian there. I formed my closest friendships there. We had lots of Thanksgivings and Christmases there. Lots of concerts and recitals. Lots of joy, laughter, tears, pain...the things that make up a person.

For some reason, these things have been heavy on my heart today. I'd love to go back. But, I'm here now. And I'm happy where I am. I just miss the many yesterdays of my life sometimes. And today is one of those days.

Strides better today

I woke up this morning VERY early with my hubby and spent some time in I Thes 5. Verses/Phrases like "be patient with everyone", "be joyful always", "pray continually", and "give thanks in all circumstances" really caused me to check myself. I've thought about these verses a lot today and I'm more prone to pray my way through this.

I've thought that Mallory might not be ready, but she also might be. She did pee pee in the potty today...after holding it for 6 hours. We both got VERY excited and we were both happy that the "staying close to the potty" vigil was over. Mallory has been running around pantless and the little potty chair has been in the kitchen, living room and bathroom today. Mal has been content with reading her books on the potty, even for an hour and a half this afternoon. When she finally went, she screamed "I did it"! Well, she says that when she doesn't do it, too, but at least I was able to be in positive agreeance this time!

Anyway, I don't think I'm ready to turn back; I've already started and stopped once before. I don't want to quit just because it's hard for me right now. I think I'm going to at least give it a week.

A few other things happening around here:

1. Patrick is working his tail off. He's had a shift in responsibilities and is seeing more patients rather than managing these days. His stress level has greatly reduced, though with an increasing patient load, he still spends lots of time on the road and on paperwork.

2. Ethan is REALLY trying to walk. He's been taking several steps here and there. I've have some funny video to upload.

3. I'm getting ready to sing a solo in church on Sunday. I haven't sung a solo in church for at least 6 years (well, except for my grandma's funeral). I'm excited and nervous.

4. We enjoyed some snow today here are some pics and a video will follow.

Potty training success? Where for art thou???

Oh, we're potty training and it's not fun. Mallory just CAN'T make the connection going pee pee in the potty rather than in her pants. We spent the entire day at home with me asking the question - "Mallory, do you have to go pee pee in the potty?" to which she responds "All Done". She's peed on the carpet twice and pottied all other times in her training pants. I always ask her "Mallory, where should we go pee pee?" to which she responds "pee pee in the potty". But, tonight, after peeing in her pants (w/out her pull up) she responded (with a very proud look on her face) "pee pee in pants!".

I've only been at this for a day and a half and I'm already about to pull my hair out. It's definitely a whole new world that Mal just doesn't get. I'm loosing my patience and I don't want this to be a horrible experience. Advice, please? Or at least directions to good advice?

The Party

We had a great time at Ethan's birthday party a few weeks ago. I had asked a friend of mine to take pictures for E's party, and pictures he took! About 1200+! It's taken me a while to go through them and put finishing touches on them, so please forgive me for the delay.

We had a hay search (inside the hay were letters with candy taped on them), personal pizza's with each child's initial outlined with pepperoni, chili and fixin's for the adults, and a deliche chocolate cake shaped as an uppercase E and a yellow caked shaped as a lower case e. I couldn't have pulled it off without the help of my mom and mother-in-law and almost everything turned out just like I had hoped. It was such, such fun.

Happy Birthday buddy-roe.

Wordless...Saturday? Mmmmkay

Behold the Lamb!

We just bought tickets to Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb of God tour that will be in Charlotte on Dec 17. I've REALLY grown to love this album and I'm looking forward to playing this one the most this holiday season. I have to admit, the first time I heard this CD, I didn't like it. It's not traditional. There are no familiar Christmas tunes (until you listen to it over and over and over).

But, I've come to love it. And I'm often moved to tears by the lyrics of some of the songs. The songs on this CD will bring you back not only to the true meaning of Christmas -the birth of Jesus, but HOW the birth of Jesus unfolded since the beginning of time. If you are looking to buy a good Christmas CD, buy this one (this link will also allow you to buy the album download)!

Here is a little blurb by Andrew Peterson about the jist of the album (HT: Between Two Worlds):

What makes this bunch of songs unique is that I wanted to remind (or teach) the audience that the story of Christmas doesn't begin with the birth of Jesus. Many people tend to forget or have never even learned that the entire Bible is about Jesus, not just the New Testament.So the musical begins with Moses and the symbolic story of the Passover (Passover Us) and works its way through the kings and the prophets with their many prophecies about the coming Messiah (So Long, Moses) to the awful four hundred years of silence before God told Mary she'd be having a baby (Deliver Us). After the song called Matthew's Begats, which lists the genealogy of Jesus, the story picks up in more familiar territory with Mary and Joseph and the actual birth (It Came To Pass, Labor of Love). The final song is called Behold, the Lamb of God, which ties together the Passover and the beauty and scope of the story.

Updates...

Well, we have had a very busy last several days. Over the weekend, we threw a party for Ethan's birthday, which was tons 'o fun. Both sets of grandparents were there along with many, many friends. I have TONS of pictures to sift through, so once I'm done with that, I'll post some.

In the mean time, Patrick is getting ready to take Mallory to Charlotte this weekend to spend some time with his folks. Patrick's mom just had a hip replacement surgery yesterday and is expected to come home tomorrow. Patrick is taking off work tomorrow and hoping to get there around the time she gets home from the hospital. Her surgery went great and she'll be going through physical therapy over the next several weeks. I think Patrick will be a great asset for her in these first few days at home. I'm making a meal to send down with him, since I know that it will be an adjustment for both of Patrick's folks as Mom Moss is recovering and learning the limits with her new hip.

Ethan and I will be together for the weekend. Though I'll miss Mal and Patrick, I'm looking forward to having the responsibility of one for the weekend. I'm hoping to get stuff done, yet I'm hoping to have some more bonding time with my boy. Speaking of E, here is a video of his new "trick" that Daddy taught him:

Two new songs...

Well, Mallory has been singing these songs for a while, but it's the first time I've recorded them.

The first song is "Cast all my Cares" (or as she says, Cast all my Pears)
"I cast all my cares upon You.
I lay all of my burdens
down at your feet.
And anytime I don't know
what to do,
I will cast all my cares upon You."

The second song is "Into my Heart"
"Into my heart,
Into my heart,
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus.
Come in today.
Come in to stay.
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus."

A quiet night

Patrick took Mallory on a date tonight. Ethan is in bed. I'm drinking some deliche Pinot Noir while enjoying the peace (well, except for the hum of the computer and baby monitor...). I should be doing about 5 million other things. My friend Kara's pre-birthday-party list about sums up what I feel (her daughter turned three last weekend). I have bathrooms to clean, laundry to start, food to prepare, floors to mop...blah blah blah. But here I am, doing what I like to do - "computering". I'm going to head up stairs in a bit, turn on a movie (probably some hokey chick flick), finish my wine and start my chores.

And by the way, I MUST mention that I was able to go on a girls-only night with some of my great friends this past Wednesday. We laughed about random stuff over martinis and wine and soaked in a few brief moments of no responsibility except to help each other enjoy the moment. We hit Kohl's because of a cherished 30% off coupon that one of the girls had. We were shopping at 11:00 at night because we could. Oh, it was so refreshing! Margaret, Kara, and Jenn - you girls are irreplaceable.

Ethan eats some cake!!!

Here's a video of Ethan eating his first piece of cake on his birthday. Please excuse the accidental picture taken in the middle of the video. And please excuse my over-excited voice in the background, but I just couldn't get over the fact that Ethan was sucking his thumb while holding the cake...

Photo Shoot for Ethan's First Birthday

My boy is one!

It was about this time last year when I held my baby boy in my arms for the first time. I love him so much...more than I did in those first moments when I thought my heart would explode with love for him. Happy Birthday, buddy. You're such a delight to me!

Halloween

Yesterday, I had a ladybug and a chicken. Both were very cute - both made me laugh out loud, especially the chicken. We took them to church and then the ladybug went out with her Daddy gathering candy from our neighbors. We had a great time!

See the difference and year or two can make...