Daddy's Helpful Hand

Our SAM student was over the other night for dinner. We had finished eating and were sitting around the table waiting on the girls to finish up. Gabriella grabbed Clay's hand and entangled her little fingers around hers. Then she brought their hands up to her face. Holli and I looked over to see Gabriella sticking Clay's finger in her nose. We started to laugh and then Gabriella said, "Daddy, I diggin!"

Funny Video

Every since I have gotten pregnant with Micah I can smell garlic on almost everybody - especially Clay. During the beginning of pregnancies it makes me nauseated. The rest of the time during pregnancies (and sometimes even when I am not pregnant) it just generally repulses me. So, I pretty much quit cooking with garlic when I am pregnant so that I can stand to be near Clay. And if he ever comes home from work or somewhere and he has eaten anything with trace amounts of garlic in it - I can smell it on him as soon as he gets near. Which is kind of hard for him to avoid because garlic is in everything. So, I saw this video today - and in light of my garlic issues found it extremely funny. I hope that you enjoy!

In the Trenches of Motherhood

I am exhausted.

Today makes day 6 of Gabriella running a fever from 101 - 104 and her feeling yucky (with no answers from the doc except that its something viral).

The three days prior to her getting sick we were out of town due to Thanksgiving.

Micah was sick a few days before that with a slight fever and she was extremely whinny.

I am tired . . . .

Prayers are appreciated.

Christmas Traditions

My friend, Jenna, has started a discussion on Christmas Traditions and Santa Claus. Most of the discussion so far has centered around to do or not to do Santa Claus. She asked us to share our traditions - but since my response about Santa was so long, and I wanted to ask some of you what traditions you have in your homes to keep Christmas Christ - centered - I decided to do my own post on it.


Traditions in our household include:

The lighting of the Advent Candle Wreath.

Unwrapping a "present" which is a book related to Christmas every night preceding Christmas. We read the story to the kids and will talk about the book as much as they want. Some of the books are the story of Christ birth, some are legends about Santa Claus, some tell the truth about Santa, and some are just about how different families celebrate Christmas.

We give each kid three gifts to represent the gifts the three wise men brought Jesus.

Reading of the Christmas story before opening any presents.

This year we are going to try something new. We have been working on memorizing passages of scripture as a family. I have been meaning to post on this subject for several months. But starting after Thanksgiving, we will start reading the Christmas story from the Bible every night at dinner. My hopes are that Clay, Micah, and I will memorize most of it by Christmas and that Gabriella will be familiar with it. I will have to share the key that I have found to getting Micah (and me) to memorize scripture with y'all soon.

I also started this last year: I either have everything cooked by Christmas Eve or we eat a pop in the oven pizza for lunch on Christmas Day. I know it sounds silly - and even makes me sound lazy. But if I don't do this - I will spend the whole day stressing on making a big production on a meal. I then miss out on sitting still and giving thanks for the wonder of the birth of Christ and reflecting on Him. Secondly, I miss out on creating special family time with the family. It is kinda like making time stop - by not having to deal with all the normal duties - and savoring the day of Christmas.


Traditions we wish to start this year or as the kids get older.

A night of Christmas Caroling with good friends and hot chocolate.

The telling of the Christmas story on the felt board. I really need to get busy making all those pieces because I want to start this year.

Making a soft bed for baby Jesus (I have been wanting to do this with my kids for over 10 years - when I first read about someone else doing this with their family.). You set up an empty manger somewhere in the house for baby Jesus. You tell the kids that baby Jesus will need a soft place to lay when He comes on Christmas Eve. Then you all draw names of those in your family. Everyone has to secretly do kind things for that person for a week - or how ever long you decide, before you draw different names. But for every kind deed done, the person who does the deed gets to put a single piece of straw in the manager. The hope is that by Christmas it will be filled with hay for the baby that you will lay in the manager on Christmas Eve night.

The reenactment of the Christmas story - complete with makeshift costumes and stuffed animals.

What are your family traditions?

Practice For A Newborn

Being only 15 weeks pregnant, I was really hoping that we would not have too much of a remembrance of those sleepy nights of newborn hood until we got much closer to the arrival of the baby. But these last few days we have gotten a little bit of a reminder - and I can tell you that I am not looking forward to the part of not getting much sleep. Gabriella has been stopped up with sinuses and has been struggling to sleep. Clay and I have been going to sleep too late at like midnight and Gabriella has been waking up having trouble breathing and crying hysterically for mommy at 1 or 2 for the past few nights. I have tried rocking her and singing to her, but she is not going to sleep. If we put down in the bed, she starts crying again. So because I am so tired I have been putting her back in bed with us. Where she plays for the next hour or two. As Clay said this morning, Gabriella is the poster child of why kids should not sleep in the bed with their parents. She starts talking, and talking, and talking (which honestly I can't blame her too much - I do the same thing if I get woken up in the middle of the night - just ask Clay) and wallering, and rolling, and kicking, and jumping, and giving sweet kisses, and on, and on. She tells me all the colors she sees - over and over again. She even said, 'grarrr - I a monster.' So, though she is quiet funny - it was quiet frustrating and tiring.

BUT .....

Praise God - I started that post a few days ago - and did not finish because I was too tired, and since then she has started sleeping through the night again and feels better. So, we are getting more sleep.

Now if Clay and I could only learn to go to bed at a reasonable time again. Maybe we can forget about all the waking up in the middle of the night(well except to go pee) for a few more months.