A Little Bit of Christmas

Exciting news tonight! This story actually goes back to last year...

I was looking through our Christmas things last year and was sad that we didn't have any Christ-centered decorations. I became fixated on the Willow Tree nativity set, but we were poor so that was that. For Christmas, Darreck and our friend Kyle made me the creche from the Willow Tree set in hopes that we could buy the figures someday. They spent so much time working on the manger, even going to the store and measuring the real thing. It was perfect, but we still had no figurines.

This year I bought some cheap figures to use as place holders until we became independantly wealthy, but I was still dreaming of the real set on sale at the mall. Tonight mom, dad, and grandma suprised me with not just the basic set, but also the three wise men to go along with it. It was our early Christmas present, and I'm still giddy!

In other news, Max went to the doctor today and got a clean bill of health. He is 21 pounds, 27 inches (same as at four months), and his head finally broke into the 20th percentile! We spent most of the appointment talking about how he doesn't think he needs sleep and how funny it is that he refuses to roll over. I think his doctor summed it up well when she said that he likes to do things his own way. I couldn't agree more, but that's what makes him wondeful.

Five Day Weekend and the Black, Black Friday

The one major advantage to Darreck working in a school is that he gets off all the days the kids do, so he got a five day weekend for Thanksgiving. We did some serious Christmas shopping, but Black Friday wasn't as exciting as it usually is around here. With mom, grandma, and Kayla gone, I was left to fend for myself while they went out and bought up half of Utah. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out which side of the family I got my shopping prowess from. However, the weekend shopping was a little frustrating. I wanted to get Max's Christmas shopping done, and every baby toy out there sings, beeps, chirps, and counts in English and Spanish. Ugh! It became a quest to find toys that foster imaginative play and don't lead to ADHD. Some of the toys even overwhelmed me, and I have 22 years of TV watching behind me.

Saturday was our lone break from the crazy crowds. We went over to our friends' house and watched a Griz football game. I'm so thankful for the chance we've had to make friends since moving here. That's always my one greatest fear when we change places, but I feel extremely lucky to be in the ward we are in. Hopefully we have many great weekends to come as we get further into the holidays!

The Non-Thanksgiving Day

We had a rather un-traditional first Thanksgiving for Max today. My mom, grandma, and sister went to Utah and left Darreck, Max, my dad, and I to fend for ourselves. So, while traditionalist grandma is away, we decided to play. We ditched the traditional turkey and stuffing in favor of fresh clam chowder, king crab legs, lobster tail, and shrimp scampi. Now that's something to be thankful for.

Unfortunately for us, the day did have its ups and downs. After making a meal worthy of Red Lobster, I managed to burn the rice- yes, the rice- in my parent's super microwave. Stupid thing, I'm maintaining its the microwave's fault. Also, Max puked up his sweet potatoes (the only traditional thing we had) in the middle of our meal. He spent most of the day in nothing but a diaper because his clothes were disgusting. We cranked up the heat and rolled with it, but seriously, yuck.

The strangest part of today, however, was how quiet it was. Usually, my mom and grandma take in strays on holidays, so the house is full of people. We had a very simple, quiet holiday all to ourselves. Well, except for Darreck. He got roughed up playing a very aggressive game of flag football with his friends this morning. Overall, the day just didn't feel like normal, but not necessarily in a bad way.

The most important thing to remember is how much I have to be thankful for this year. A brand new Max, graduating college, and getting to move back to my hometown. I have been incredibly blessed by my loving Heavenly Father, and it didn't take turkey to help me remember that all day.

A Very Happy Half Birthday

Happy Half Birthday to my fabulous little baby boy, Max! We've spent the day recounting exactly what we were doing six months ago, and for me it wasn't always a pleasant trip down memory lane. However, looking back, it doesn't seem possible that it's been six months. The change in Max and in our family has been so gradual that it seems like he's just always been around. In a way, it feels like he's always been a part of our family, he just had to wait awhile before he could join us.              

These are pictures of Max from the last week, and it amazes me how big he's gotten! Lately he has become fascinated with things he can take apart and put back together, such as the rings above. And, of course, everything right now goes straight in the mouth.

Another recent development is that he's figured out how to suck his thumb. A little bit of a late bloomer on that one. However, he's more of a casual sucker than a hard-core addict, and we're hoping it stays that way.

He's so close to crawling! He still adamantly refuses to roll over on purpose, and every time he does it on accident he gets really upset and tries extra hard to stabalize himself the rest of the day. Mom and dad, we've found, are not good motivators for crawling, but Aunt Kayla's toys are worth all the effort. Right now, he can scoot backwards and in a circle. Now if he can just get the forward down...

Probably the biggest change in Max over the past six months has been his happiness. He had a little bit of a rough start in life, but he's making up for it now in giggles and smiles. I feel so blessed that I have the opportunity to be his mommy. I can't think of any greater job on earth than to be a mother, nurturing this precious spirit that Heavenly Father has sent to our home. I hope that I can be a worthy temporary parent for him, and, most of all, I hope he always knows how much both his parents love him.

Happy Half-Birthday Max!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I've been trying to find a reason to blog lately, but life has been incredibly boring. Well, not boring so much as calm. I really can't complain with calm. However, today I felt the need to shake things up a little, so I decided to decorate for Christmas. Normally this lovely task would wait until after Thanksgiving, but most of the family will be gone to Salt Lake for turkey day this year. Darreck, Dad, Max, and I are doing a seafood feast because Gram won't be around to tell us we have to have turkey :) I'm super excited, but it doesn't really feel like Thanksgiving is a big deal this year. I promise to still be thankful and express that gratitude in a meaningful way, but I'm essentially skipping Thanksgiving and extending my personal Christmas season.

The biggest reason I'm so excited for Christmas this year is because it will be Max's first. My family, the rational people they are, keep reminding me that Max will not remember any of this, but I have no qualms admitting that my obsession really has nothing to do with him. Max's first Christmas is more a rite of passage for Darreck and me than anything else. It's a Christmas miracle in the truest sense that he has survived this long in our household without major injury. That, my friends, is something to celebrate.

Now that we have the decorations up, it's on to shopping and trying to find our service project of the year. Darreck and I believe in giving back year-round, but we ramp it up during the holidays to keep our celebration focused on Christ. Usually I think of something to do and start planning in the summer, but inspiration has not hit me yet this year. We've been so blessed lately, and I really want to think of something good to do as a family. I'm open to suggestions and will keep praying to be guided to those who may need our time and talents this year. Merry Christmas season to all!

Laugh Until You Cry

Tonight was the best symphony concert ever! We brought in a guest pianist/comedian (although, he got his degree from Julliard, so he still had some serious chops). We did some great pieces- everything from Scott Joplin to Pink Panther to Rachmaninoff. It was definately not a stodgy, run-of-the-mill symphony concert, and it reminded me why I love playing music so much.

Sometimes it's easy, in classical music, to start to take it too seriously and lose the joy that music is supposed to bring into the lives of your audience. All of a sudden, minor mistakes start to look like personality flaws and I wonder if I'm even good enough to be playing. Tonight, however, I made a million little mistakes (mostly because I was laughing) and didn't care one bit because I was genuinely having fun and so was the audience.

It's an amazing thing when an audience comes together, all reminiscing about memories a particular song evokes. We laughed over Chariots of Fire, remembered what love felt like during As Time Goes By, and joined in singing when the pianist added the Montana state song to jazzed up version of chopsticks.

It's nights like these where I know I have the best job in the world, and I wouldn't trade the talents I've been blessed with for anything.

Father Son Bonding

Bonding Guitar Hero Style!

Not sure if I'm more worried about the TV watching or that they were playing "Talk Dirty to Me" by Poision. Either way, Max really thought he was helping daddy out, and that made him happy.