Crazy, Random Fun

Still trying to get this blog caught up.... some days I think that will never happen again, but I'm not ready to give up the dream just yet!  Some post-Christmas/early January fun!

 Sometime when this picture was taken, I captured Thomas smiling in this handsome car sweater!

 Girls are loving their American Girl dolls, and ballet is one of their favorite things!  Put them together, and you get amazing wonderful-ness!

 For Thomas's 3 month pictures, we went to the same studio in a neighboring town we've been using since Elizabeth was born.  Thomas wouldn't wake up at all!  I tried everything, but he was out!

So we left with this....

 The fruits of our efforts....  at least I'm making an attempt to get good baby pictures of him??

 I've been very fearful of cutting Elizabeth's hair, because I have had a blast with her gorgeous ringlets. But, after nearly 3 years, it was time for a small clean up.  Elizabeth loved every moment of the experience, and Mrs. Keri did a great job preserving her curls!

 About to begin.

 All done and quite proud!

 We couldn't leave Abby Kate out of the hair-cutting process, so Mrs. Keri fluffed and styled her hair!

 Beautiful girl!

Thomas and I spent a lot of time like this his first few months.  He is about as good of a sleeper as Abby Kate was (my worst sleeper), so cuddling was the only way either of us could get some rest.  (Unless, of course, I was trying to, say, maybe, get a picture of him with his eyes open??)  At any rate, my extensive cuddle time with both Abby Kate and Thomas is something I look back now and cherish from those early days!

Christmas!!

Thomas's Baptism

Aunt Alicia came to visit for Christmas break.  We decided to have Thomas baptized then, so that Alicia could be there more easily.  It was a wonderful, special service for our family, and we were glad to share it with both sides of our family.

Thomas is 3 Months!

Rome First Christmas parties and indoor fun!  It was a cold and long winter!

Pre--Christmas Festivities 2013

Another attempt to catch up on the last 6 months of our lives!

 The older girls got their very first American Girl dolls right before Christmas as a gift from LaLa.  They went to a cousin's birthday party at the official American Girl Cafe and store and got to pick out matching outfits.  Christa chose pajamas and slippers!  Another big girl milestone hit!

 Everyone asks me all the time if it's different having a boy.  Putting this outfit on him (which reversed to a pumpkin scene) was definitely different!

 Santa Breakfast 2013

 Thomas played Baby Jesus, as all the girls have, at LaLa's church.  This year's Joseph and Mary were quite hysterical with him!  It was obvious that Mary's arm was getting tired, so she tried to hand the baby to Joseph.  Joseph put his hands up and scooted back, clearly not interested in helping.  Mary whispered something along the lines of, "Take him.  He's getting heavy!."  Joseph started pointing to the prop manger and mouthed something along the lines of, "Just put him in there."  Wish I had it on tape - it may be one for a TV show!

 Saint Mary's had a Christmas program as well.  Christa did a great job singing with her class.  "Eyes to see God's gift of love, ears to hear music from above, hand's to show how much we care, being Jesus everywhere."  It was so sweet!

Thomas had an encore performance as Baby Jesus for the school program, as well.  Christa got to play a sheep!

The Blur That Was This School Year (Part 1)

So, I've taken a long hiatus from blogging, as you can see.  We are currently in the last week of school, getting ready to begin summer break.  I mentally checked out about a month ago when Bible Study wrapped up, followed by Kindermusik, followed by pre-school for the middle girls.  We are heading into our final, and not even real week of school, and I am feeling very accomplished that our family survived this year!  It was definitely a difficult, character-building year, especially for me, as I adjusted to having 4 kids, very young, but now in very different stages of life with Christa being in "real school."  Honestly, I love the results of what this year has done in my own life and in Christa's, as she has grown, learned, and matured beyond anything I would have ever pictured!  But I am definitely looking forward to summer break, and plan to do things differently next year, in hopes that next year will be less challenging and more fun!  The baby, plus elementary school, plus Cline's shift-work schedule made for the trifecta of difficult adjustments this year!  It was also our "sickest" year as a family ever, with the stomach bug making rounds twice, and Strep a few times.  Abby Kate came down with some mystery stomach condition, that caused her to throw up about 16 different times in a 3 months period, but scheduling an appointment with a pediatric gastroenterologist seems to have miraculously cured this ailment, as we've had no problems in over a month.  However, she missed quite a few school days and fun activities, since we couldn't be sure she wasn't contagious.
As I was saying, it's been a fun and awesome year :)  No, in all seriousness, I have much to be thankful for this year.  Thomas is a joy, and a very easy, laid-back baby, and I am so very glad he is in our family!  He has a toothy grin just like Christa did, Elizabeth's eyes, and Abby Kate's round head.  Abby Kate has a special bond with him, as she snuggles up next to him every morning when she wakes up.   Christa's school is sweet and wonderful, and after a few months of adjustment, and a learning curve of what is expected of me in the homework/reading practice department, she is thriving, and we are planting roots in our new school home.  Cline's schedule.... hopefully is changing before next year, but I am very thankful he didn't have to work very many "extra" shifts this year! 
All this to say, we seem to be finding our footing with these new circumstances, at least temporarily, so I am going to attempt to catch up on this blog.  Enjoy!

 Rushed and impromptu picture with Santa after getting Christmas portraits made.  Kids did great!  Thomas screamed through the whole interaction with Santa, but that is because he was hungry, and in my new mom, new schedule fog, it didn't occur to me to feed him and then try to take pictures!  I'm telling you, my inability to follow through with the simplest of tasks this year hit shocking new lows!

 We did manage to get a Christmas tree put up and decorated.  I think several branches were missing lights, but we just decided that wasn't important enough to fix this year!

 Every girl had to have her turn to put the star on top of the tree. 

 I took the girls to the annual Santa Breakfast at our pre-school.  It was cold, so the girls huddled together while I got Thomas and gear out of the car.

 Got this good picture of the kids right before Abby Kate threw up all over the floor!  This was the first of what would be many stomach issues for the winter.

 I tried to talk the girls and Cline into having a hip, fun bow on top of the tree, and was outvoted by everyone!  We stuck with the star.  But Chokee Nokee took my side, and put the bow on the tree one night!

Pretty sure this was the only picture I got of Chokee Nokee antics this year!  Part of the character-building that took place was that I no longer get upset or stressed out about missing out on photo-ops or record-keeping!

Beautiful

It's a busy morning, and the baby needs to eat.  I push aside all that needs to be done, and snuggle in bed to nurse my son.  As I start to look at my phone, I catch his big, bright, blue eyes looking up at me.  I pause for a moment, and put the phone down.    I stare at my son, taking in every detail about him and noticing how intently and contentedly he is looking at me, refusing to move his gaze to anything else.  I feel like if I look just a teeny bit harder, and maybe squint a little, I could see tiny hearts flowing out of his eyes.  And I know,

He thinks I'm beautiful.

I have felt everything but beautiful lately.  Scattered, maybe.  Harried, for sure.  A complete and utter failure at the simplest of tasks, every day.  But as I down look at Thomas, in his eyes, I am doing everything right.  He is perfectly calm and content, filling his belly while looking up at his mommy.

His beautiful mommy.

I think about the scale, which has been my enemy lately.  And I think about how every time I try to cut back on what I eat, my milk supply drops like an anchor in a whirlpool.  And I think about how my desire to continue nursing outweighs my desire to look good in a bathing suit this summer, but if only the numbers would just stop going up...

He doesn't care.  He thinks I'm beautiful.

I think about the hair appointment I had to cut short yesterday due to a family emergency.  The gray hairs that require more than just a cut at these appointments.  The wrinkles I'm starting to notice more around my eyes.  The biggest, grossest, most painful pimple on my chin since eleventh grade.  It is painfully obvious to me that I am not 25 anymore. 

He thinks I'm beautiful.

I think about the plans for the day - to prepare for the visitation and funeral of our Mudd, Cline's grandmother.  I wonder what I will wear that looks OK, since none of my clothes fit right now.  I wonder how I will make myself pretty today, and again tomorrow.  Right there, in my son's baby blue eyes, there it is.

He thinks I'm beautiful.
 
I think about the last time I saw Mudd.  She had missed her last few hair appointments, and her hair was straight and un-fixed.  Her makeup was undone.  Her night gown was unfashionable.  I looked at her many wrinkles and aged skin.  I touched her un-toned arm.  I weakly carried on conversation and helped her hold Thomas one last time as her mind and body failed her.  I stared at 85 years of living through unspeakable hardships, with all of life's troubles and imperfections.  85 years of loving horse racing and Georgia football games.  85 years of drinking Diet Coke and eating ice cream while having diabetes.  85 years of raising children and grandchildren, cleaning her house, loving her husband, serving her Savior.  And as I go through this weekend, I watch her legacy, four generations of her family line coming together like few families do to honor Mudd, to support one another, and bring glory to God as we walk into a new reality without her.  Leaning on the faith that she taught her children to find comfort as we begin to miss her.  I walk through her house, finding notes of truth and encouragement - bible verses everywhere.  85 years of a life lived well and grounded in prayer.  And I know she didn't look good in her last days.

She was beautiful.