Goodbye, Hello

We were sad today to see Grandma Necia go to Utah, but very excited for her to be starting her mission. We know that she is going to be wonderful at the work, but it'll be hard here without her! However hard it may be for us here, we are so proud of her decision to go. She'll do an amazing job, and I know that our entire family will be blessed for her willingness to serve the Lord. I'm so thankful for her wonderful example of selflessness.

In less serious news, we're 99% done on the tiling in the front entry-way. We still have to caulk trim seams and do some touch-up painting, but the tile is in, grouted, and sealed. A big thanks to Pennie and Tim for all there hard work! It's so cool having in-laws who 1. know how to do everything and 2. have all the tools. They brought over an air compressor to run their nail gun today. Seriously, how many families do you know who own their own air compressor? So cool. In case you're blind and can't tell which are the before and afters, the lovely afters are on the left-hand side, and the coming apart at the seams *literally* afters are on the right :)

 

 

Sledding and Shopping and Sleeping, Oh My

Black Friday is a big deal around here, as I eluded to in my last post. Friday went well, overall, if you don't count spending over an hour in line at Target at 5 AM a bad thing. Actually, I found some pretty good deals and really enjoyed breakfast at Perkins (Eggs Benedict, mmmm). While I took a long winter's nap in the afternoon, Darreck took Max sledding. Sorry I missed it, but I kinda felt like an extra in Night of the Living Dead, if you know what I mean. At least they brought back pictures!

Just thought I would share one more of Max's recent achievements. I have always been too chicken to give him his own cup and silverware, but Darreck braves messes better than I do and he's been giving him more independance eating. He was obvioulsy ready because he's been doing just fine and hardly spilling at all. It has also improved his behavior at the table! This is him eating his very own cereal with his very own milk all by himself.

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving, all. I must admit, as horrible as it is, that I usually look more forward to Black Friday than Thanksgiving, but I really enjoyed this year for some reason. Not that I don't always like giving thanks, but the food makes me sleepy and I have zero interest in football. Shopping the next day is much more my style! However, I do enjoy Thanksgiving just because I get to spend the day with family, however, this year was a little weird. We started out planning on having Pennie's sister, her husband, their 8 kids, and one son-in-law here, but they had to cancel due to a broken down van. Then, Gram's sister Marilyn and Uncle Ralph cancelled due to weather. We were going to combine mine and Darreck's family together, but dad and Tim ended up having to work opposite schedules. So, Darreck and I did Thanksgiving twice for, astonishingly, the first time since we've been married. It was fun, but I doubt I'll ever be hungry again.

Sunday in primary, Mandy Lowe said that her family makes a thankful chain each year that requires them to think of non-stereotypical things to be thankful for- you know, beyond family and faith and all those good things. I've been trying to do this all week and here is what I've come up with:

I'm thankful for:

1.  My garage!!!!!! Especially since this is the first day it hasn't been below zero for a week now.
2. Access to competent, affordable health care.
3. That we have options for shopping beyond Walmart here in Great Falls. Moscow was rough that way.
4. Purex 3 in 1 laundry sheets. I hate spilled laundry detergent and these solve the problem nicely.
5. Farkle, Phase 10, and Battleship. Darreck and I like to play games after Max is in bed some nights.
6. Flip-flops in the summer (and spring and fall).
7. Fuzzy socks in the winter.
8. Having a name that everyone can spell and pronounce. Darreck will tell you what a blessing this truly is.
9. Netlfix instant streaming for Wii and Hulu. 
10. Okay- sorry to go back on my word- but I'm most thankful for my wonderful husband, sweet little boy, and all the rest of my crazy family.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Another Half-Birthday

My not-so-little boy turned 18 months today. It's crazy how fast the time has gone by; it's all just one big blur. The first year went by really quick, don't get me wrong, but this past six months especially have just not seemed to exist. I can't even trace where the time has gone, and that scares me a little!

More about Monster Max:

• His weight today was 25 lbs. 6 oz (43rd percentile), length was 33-1/8 inches (75th percentile), and his head was 46.5 cm (17th percentile)
• His favorite activities are looking at books on his own and coloring. He's getting more into toys, and he loves playing with cars on the floor. He also really likes sitting down and "playing" the piano.
• He's a total monkey! It amazes me the places I will find him when I have to finally go to the bathroom. So far he has swung from the chandelier over the table (literally), climbed out of his crib, and fallen off the back of the couch more than once. We joke that I'm no longer allowed bathroom breaks.
• Max is super socially aware and loves being around kids. However, he's pretty shy and gets tense when he's in a new situation and doesn't know what is expected of him.
• He can be a total marshmallow. He won't defend himself if another kid pushes him down or takes his toy. He also gets upset if another child or our cat Tana is scolded in front of him.
• Most nights he goes to bed like a charm, but staying asleep is sometimes an issue. Also, like most toddlers, food is either an all or nothing affair. Some days he'll out-eat me and others he won't touch anything.
• His vocabulary is really taking off right now, and it's so fun to watch! His new saying is "what's that?" and he says it about 2 million times a day. And, if you don't answer, he'll start saying it louder and louder and louder until you give him an answer.

We're so lucky to have such a sweet, good-natured little guy. I can't wait to see what he does around Christmas- every time he sees a decorated tree he stares and says "pretty" over and over. I know that we'll have many more years to watch him grow and learn and become an amazing young man.

A New Challenge

I received a new calling at church today! I will be the new 1st counselor in the Primary presidency. I'll still get to do the music, at least for awhile, so I'm still happy. My biggest fear when I got the call to meet with the Bishop was that I was being taken out of Primary. I love working with the kids, especially during singing time. The only problem with this calling is that I'm replacing Super Woman! You know those women who just get kids, how to make them laugh and listen and feel the spirit? This is one of them. Her family is moving to Utah, and I'll be stepping into her very large (figuratively) shoes. It's going to be a challenge, but one I'm really looking forward to.

This and That

Nothing big to report, just a few little things- most of them bad, sorry :(

• Took the car in to have its oil changed and ended up also needing to get two belts replaced. Fantastic. I kept reminding Darreck that the total cost was less than one month's car payment, so we should just be thankful we have a paid off vehicle, which we are! But it sucks coming this close to Christmas.
• Someone tried to steal Darreck's bank account info! He got a call from the bank (and they did have the right bank, our address, and phone number) saying that his debit card had expired and to type in the sixteen digit code to reactivate it. Being smart, he hung up and called our bank's fraud line. Luckily they didn't get any info, but our bank still had to reissue all our cards and reassign new account numbers. It was a pain, but at least we knew what to do.
• Snow, lots of snow.

Now for something good, you'll see a new badge on the side of my blog with the heading "more about what I believe". Click on it and check out my new mormon.org profile. It just tells a little about my beliefs, and the website is also a good place to find answers about our doctrine and teachings. Check it out and stay warm!

Looking More Like Christmas

We took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather today and hung Christmas lights. I was SO ridiculously excited to hang lights this year. Something about home ownership and decorating for Christmas is all tied up together in my warped mind. Actually, when we first walked through our house in May I commented how perfect it was to hang lights on. Luckily for Darreck, our budget prevented me from going to "Clark Griswold" on the house. When choosing between presents for Max and lights for the house, Max wins out every time, rightfully so.

I also got my nativity fix for the year in my favorite store in the world, Real Deals. After seeing a nativity collection in Moscow, I decided that I also wanted to be a crazy nativity lady. I got my beloved Willow Tree set last year, and this year we added two small additions. I figure if I add one or two a year until the day I die, I will develop one crazy collection. We're off to a good start!

Primary All-Around

Today was our primary program, and I was so excited to show off what the children had learned. I'm the chorister, so we've been working really hard on the songs these past few months, and the kids did a wonderful job learning them. I love, love, love my calling! Not only do I get to use my musical talents, but I also get to work with kids- my two favorite things combined into one. Every week the kids inspire me with their strength and their testimonies. The young best see the influence that Christ has on their life, and they are also the most apt to following promptings of the Holy Ghost. I completely understand why the scriptures admonish us to "become as little children". They could leave me in primary forever and I would be a happy camper.

It was also Max's first day of primary, nursery at least, today. I have been counting down the weeks for months now until he was able to start, but it was surprisingly hard to let him go. All the kids looked so much bigger than him, and you could tell he felt a little overwhelmed. He did okay so long as Darreck or I were there, but he was not about to let us leave anytime soon. He'll adjust, but it's a little sad to know that we won't be attending all of church as a family anymore. I'm not sure why this is sad because Darreck and I are never together the second or third hours, but something about having to leave Max is eating at me today. It's a mom thing, I guess. One of those slightly annoying, catch you by surprise, emotional mom things. C'est la vie.

Great Day (Mostly...)

Grandma finally got her mission call today! She will be serving in the Family History Center in Salt Lake City. She reports December 3rd and, while we'll miss her, we're all so happy and excited for her. I know that she'll serve the Lord well, and I'm grateful for the wonderful example she sets for her family. It's such an amazing thing having strong, spiritual women to try and emulate. I know that she leads her life by the spirit, and that following that spirit has blessed our family in innumerable ways.

I also got to play an awesome concert today for symphony. We hosted a jazz combo fronted by a kick-butt clarinetist. The night was crazy, but so so so much fun! I was born in the wrong era- swing is my music! Unfortunately, I also developed a not so fun flu today, and I wish I had been feeling better for the big show. Oh well, I still played my best (albeit in a medicine haze) and now I'm off to bed.