#1. Independence
The Boy these days is growing by leaps and bounds. His independence is a bit bitter-sweet for me. I desperately need him to do things on his own, though I hate to see him growing up so fast. He loves walking (with help) and the look on his face is priceless.
He's even taken a few steps on his own.CLICK HERE TO SEE KURT WALKING
He's also started (with thanks to Mom and Cousin Martha) using a fork when he eats. I was surprised to see how quickly he picked it up and then again how skilled he is at it. If anything, it keeps him busy which is great for me!
CLICK HERE TO SEE KURT EATING WITH A FORK#2. Family
Thanksgiving this year was sweet, relaxing and cold! It's been a few years since Chase and I have been down to Littlefield and I didn't realize just how much I missed it all. It was great to spend time with Grandma, see many of the cousins and hang out. My favorite part of the day was when the boys played "I'll Get You- Turkey" with Melanie.
The baby loved sitting on Great Grandma's lap,
Walking around with Melanie,
Riding the "horse" (we attempted to ride the real ones but it was so cold we chickened out)
and watching others ride the horses and 4 wheelers (like I said, we were too COLD!)
#3. Another one of my favorite things is... This Guy
Isn't he a charmer!? (I mean literally- he's suppose to be a snake charmer. Like his 6 pack? No, this isn't from Halloween. A few nights ago a bunch of the families on our block got together and held a "Murder Mystery Dinner". Chase of course, was a surly snake charmer and I a fur fashion fanista. And no, neither of us were the murderer).Sure, he talks really loud, he would live on an animal farm in the middle of nowhere if he could. His idea of a day "out together" is shopping at Sportsmans. He thinks that dressing up is wearing his cleanest dirty shirt, but dang it- without him my life would be (a) boring! (b) just plain sad (c) nothing without my best friend.
#4. How much The Boy loves his Dad.
When he's not here, Kurt walks or crawls throughout the house yelling, "Dad! Dad-da!" I try and tell him that Dad isn't here, he's at work, but he just keeps screaming.When he thinks he's not g0ne, just in the other room, he'll call for him by simply yelling, "AAHH". He waits for a response (it's their favorite game when Chase is here) and his face just lights up when someone answers him. He even grabs the phone (or the remote that he uses as a phone, puts it to his ear and says, "AAHH!" In fact, it's one of my favorite things now to get him up from his naps, simply because when he wakes up, all you hear is, "AAHH! (pause) AAHH!" until someone comes to get him. Boy oh boy. Little does he know how he rules this household.
#5. Chase as a father
I knew Chase would love having a boy. I also knew that when the baby was first born, Chase loved him but I couldn't wait until he was old enough to really bond with him. Now, they go everywhere together (Chase calls them their "adventures"). Yesterday they (along with Brandon & Dannon) went hunting for chucker. I worried with The Boy tagging along. Chase was so good. He even took one of his ear plugs and cut it in half, making little ear plugs for the baby while they shot the gun (the second picture is the close up of the plugs in his ears). Chase said he just simply looked around and didn't make a peep.
In fact, the boys thought it was too funny that he didn't even notice when Chase shot the gun that they had to get it on video for me to see. Notice how he doesn't even acknowledge the gun going off until Chase moves. He knows something is going on, just not quite sure what. I love it!#6. This Machine
I'd show you the pile of ever-increasing Christmas presents that are coming from this beauty, but alas, that would spoil the surprise. You'll just have to stay tuned to see the outcome after the blessed holiday. Just know that I love this thing! I just finished my (count them...) 30th sewing project for Christmas (some are small, but I'm counting them anyway). I even dream in patterns and material (ever do that?) It's the last thing I do at night and the first thing I do in the morning (did I tell you The Boy has been going to bed at 7:30 and waking up between 9 & 10:00? PLUS he's still taking two (2 hr) naps during the day). Now you see why I'm able to get so much done.#7. Christmas
The smells. The songs. The spirit. I just can't get enough. If it were up to me, I'd have the tree up all year round. I started working on gifts back in October. My favorite part has to be setting up the tree. It takes me back to years ago (many years ago) participating in the Jubilee of Trees. Two when I worked at Robert's Crafts, and one right before my mission for the Mesquite Tree Festival.
My tree isn't much compared to those I've done before, but it means a lot to me. A few years ago, some of my students (along with their parents) gave me some of these darling ornaments. They were the only ones I had at the time and from there the theme just grew. Here are a few of my favorites...
Now it's all I can do to keep The Boy from touching and grabbing the ornaments. Luckily for me he goes to touch the branch and doesn't like the way it feels so he gives up. I love his face in this picture!
#8. Digital ScrapbookingYes, I'm addicted. I never thought I'd leave paper scrapbooking- ever! I loved it so much (and if you know me, you know I have so many books done and many more to do that I could fill up a bookshelf just with books I've done since highschool).
If you're like me and you think that you'll never change, I'm here to tell you it's possible! I am amazed at the time saved going digital. It use to be that it took me at least 30 minutes just to get set up and organized, get all of my supplies handy, and begin working. Not to mention the time it took to do a page. Some pages (my better ones anyway) could take up to an hour per page. Times that by the number of pictures I take and you can see where I'm going with this.
I won't even get into the cost savings because that's obvious. Just know that when I'm bored and the baby is playing (or napping or whatever) I can get 3-5 pages done in that same hour. I am in love with all of the freebies out there (seriously- all you have to do is look!), the templates talented people make (then I simply add my own choice of paper, pictures and elements) and the ideas these amazing designers have. If you've ever thought about it- ask me- I'll tell you why I love it and may never go back!
#9. This book
Years ago, when I started teaching, I read their book on teaching with love and logic. It seemed to spell out everything I felt but didn't know quite how to put into practice. I more than anything wanted my students to be disciplined, respectful and learn from their choices. I loved the way it worked! Mostly things you already know but an easy way to lay it out.When I got pregnant a friend of mine mentioned how much she loved their parenting book. The things I learned from the first book made me over joyous thinking maybe I could instill that in my future family. When we got married I took a synopsis from that book and wanted to instill that in my family. Our motto of: Trust, Love, and Respect (ourselves and one another) came right from that book. I'm not one to get into a "quick fix" type of anything, and I don't really believe this is. Here is just a snipit from the book:
#10. This fabric
Have you ever done this? I found this fabric a while ago and fell in L-O-V-E! I'm sorry it's such a small detail, but I can't show you all of it (it'll ruin the surprise for a certain lovely sister-in-law of mine for Christmas). I kept it for a while until I finally figured out what to do with it. The only problem is now that I made it for someone else and I feel I need to make something with it for- ME!I absolutely love it! If I could, I'd make a whole room out of it. Maybe I'll settle for just a purse or something. I was thinking about possibly any one of these:
So that's it. Just a few of my favorite things. Also, I need to give an honorable mention to: Hot Showers (seriously. After 3 months without them, each one is like a quick trip to heaven), Spiced Wassail (mine never turns out as well as my talented Mother in Law's, but boy is it yummy on cold nights!), Rocky Road Ice Cream (Dryers brand. Unbelievably yummy!)
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