tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70895438438908757152024-03-13T00:20:13.976-05:00Thoughts from a Storytelling MommyChalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.comBlogger567125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-23367183880526039542013-03-26T23:46:00.005-05:002013-03-26T23:46:47.531-05:00When a Blessing Surprises YouNights have been tough around here lately. I am still trying to find my footing when it comes to getting both of my children to bed at night. Preston is practically sleeping though the night at this point, waking anywhere between 3-5am for his feeding and then going back to sleep until 7:30ish. It's AWESOME and I am NOT COMPLAINING! I still can't believe he is already doing so well!! The only problem is that he is not going to bed until about 9:30pm and he is a fussy little man at night, to say the least! I know it's just a phase, but he needs to be held, rocked, and nursed pretty much non-stop from 7pm until he finally passes out. This does not lend well to completing Colin's bedtime routine. It works on the nights that Jer is home because I can hand Preston off to him while I take care of Colin. (Although it should be noted that poor Dad ends up holding a screaming baby the whole time until I get back!) SO, it's really tough when Jer is working at night and Preston doesn't want to cooperate with me. In case you haven't figured it out - Colin requires MOM to lay with him while he falls asleep...and I love that! <br />
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Tonight was just that kind of night and Preston was extra fussy, no doubt due to something I ate today. I finally gave up and just had Colin come get in my bed to fall asleep with me while I nursed Mr. Grumpy Pants. Poor Preston had been crying for a long time on and off and my back was aching from walking around with him and I was just plain exhausted from handling everything myself. In fact, I was feeling decidedly like Mrs. Grumpy Pants. I turned all the lights out and Colin got in bed bedside me while I continued to nurse. He curled up in a ball and tucked himself as close to me as he possibly could with his head nuzzled literally in my hip while I sat indian style nursing Preston. It was in that moment that both of my boys fell asleep and all of a sudden, like a giant wave crashing over me, I realized that I was in the middle of a blessing. I had both of my precious baby boys snuggled as close to me as humanly possible and their warm little bodies had finally found the peace to fall asleep while holding on to me. In the still and quiet of the dark, I bowed my head and thanked God for my precious angels. I stayed sitting like that for long moments after they were both asleep and let myself take it in and memorize the feeling of them, laying with me, nestled with me, loving me. These two boys, with their soft skin and chubby cheeks and sweaty limbs, are one day going to be grown up. I won't have the chance to watch their eyelashes laying in perfect crescents on their pink skin. I won't have Colin's skinny little boy legs curled around me or Preston's plump little baby fist resting on my chest. These moments are going to end and one day. These "bad" nights when I can't get everything right are going to slide right past me and if I am not careful, I will forget to notice what a blessing they all are. Because - let's face it - right now, they are still my babies. And right now, they need me more than anyone else. And right now, THAT is all that matters!<br />
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Now, if you will excuse me, I have to figure out how to fit in my bedroom with Colin, two cats and a dog. And a baby in his sleeper. It looks like Daddy gets the extra bedroom when he gets home. :-) Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-91700707250200609142013-03-20T10:45:00.000-05:002013-03-23T23:01:18.080-05:00Life with ColinToday is Tuesday and Colin is at school. Before he left today, we had the following conversation. <br />
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<em>Me:</em> Colin, I need to clean the house today.<br />
<em>Colin:</em> You can't clean up my office. YOU. CAN'T.<br />
<em>Me:</em> I have to, honey. I need to vacuum. <br />
<em>Colin</em>: Fine. But I will have to put it all back. And make sure you leave everything together. <br />
<em>Me:</em> I also have to mop the kitchen floor.<br />
<em>Colin:</em> NO! You want to take apart my ship, too?? NO!<br />
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You see, my son is brilliant. And he doesn't play like most kids. And my house doesn't look like most houses. He is lucky that I am his mom. :-) Colin has been officially diagnosed with something called PDD (Pervasive Developmental Disorder), which is an autism spectrum disorder. He's still young and I have a feeling that his diagnosis will probably change down the line to one new title or another, but the bottom line is that my boy is EXTRA SPECIAL and EXTRA AMAZING and SUPER BRILLIANT. I would not change a single thing about him. Well, I suppose that's not completely true. He also has that wickedly horrible anxiety disorder that I would take away if I possibly could. And as a mom, it's kind of my job to want to take away every single thing that could ever hurt him. So, in that sense, I would change him if I could. But I would never want a different little man...Colin is COLIN and I honestly feel that God gave him to me on purpose as a present. I am suited to be his mother and we fit together perfectly. He makes my life full and hysterical and amazing and VERY interesting. And everyone knows that I don't like to be bored! :-)<br />
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So, when Colin plays, he creates elaborate "set-ups". That's what he calls them...my set-ups. And he doesn't play with <strong>anything</strong> the way it was marketed to be played with. Ever. He also likes to turn the most random things around the house into part of his plan. Please see Exhibit A, which is the afore mentioned "office": <br />
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The picture above used to be my entryway. Emphasis on "used to". Now it is Colin's "office", which includes, but is not limited to, a plastic workbench with super hero cape, Lego table, elaborate Lego office set-up, puppet theatre, end table, entry table, diaper boxes used as storage, and toy bins that normally go elsewhere. It is clearly imperative that no one try to enter my house through the front door. <br />
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Next on the list is his "ship" that is set up on my kitchen floor. It is comprised of a Rescue Bot Police Station, canned goods from the pantry, a ton of old pacifiers, and squishy lizards and frogs. I was informed that this is actually the Death Star from Star Wars and the pacifiers are Storm Troopers and the squishy guys are the Rebel Troopers. Obviously. :-)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJBVMkMxoIJvInk4u__1B7ExpHnG9EPI1jUDLJ3mQjm7iIAkB1tKCZm4D8FqH7TbO6DISh04PhkMdVlwQESJpo9T9R7rXyGgw_1nnbDBYTKMgvEKZ13kOp5721mYSGf08ZyMVYma_opgB/s1600/blogcolin2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguJBVMkMxoIJvInk4u__1B7ExpHnG9EPI1jUDLJ3mQjm7iIAkB1tKCZm4D8FqH7TbO6DISh04PhkMdVlwQESJpo9T9R7rXyGgw_1nnbDBYTKMgvEKZ13kOp5721mYSGf08ZyMVYma_opgB/s320/blogcolin2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
The third set-up currently in play: War Zone set up in our extra bedroom. This one is so full of stuff that I can't name it all. The bottom line is that there is a major war going on here and it involves a lot forces from a lot of armies. Do you see the huge dollhouse up against the wall? You might think it's odd that my son requested a large dollhouse for Christmas this year, but you would be wrong. That has actually never been a "dollhouse". At the moment, it is a military hospital for injured warriors. So there. :-) The bad news for me? Due to the fact that we have family coming to stay with us next weekend, so I am going to have the joyous task of convincing Colin that his battle scene has to go.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnpraVD31J7W9RUpKoIGOagPihb6LRbEZdTpHKIsIOWh9_UaOih3Af18dddRO6oaedIji8HeQdbHzKy9EBfO8RRkNTrEMHbKOKjprfQjklCfjoxqGurtur6M5u6MSVXkAEemB1WtYabuq_/s1600/blogcolin1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnpraVD31J7W9RUpKoIGOagPihb6LRbEZdTpHKIsIOWh9_UaOih3Af18dddRO6oaedIji8HeQdbHzKy9EBfO8RRkNTrEMHbKOKjprfQjklCfjoxqGurtur6M5u6MSVXkAEemB1WtYabuq_/s320/blogcolin1.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">There is actually more to see around the house, his playroom (that is also Preston's room) has a huge scene where LOTS of vehicles were involved in a huge flood and had to be evacuated. By "evacuated", I mean piles and piles of toy vehicles moved to one side of the room and completely blocking the doorway. At least Preston doesn't sleep in there yet. :-) <br />
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I can honestly say that none of this bothers me. It really and truly doesn't. I think it is super awesome that Colin turns the most mundane household objects into toys and actual toys into something else that nobody ever thought of. I love that he sees nothing at face value and uses his mind to create distant lands and exciting adventures with cat food cans, for heavens sake! I just love him. I love him exactly the way he is. I would never want to somehow block his imagination because I prefer my house to be neater. I can't imagine stopping him from building a castle out of cans just because of something silly like pantry items not being toys. SURE they can be toys!!! I had just never thought of it before! His favorite place to go right now for a treat is Dollar Tree - the store where everything is $1. I will give him $10 and he will carefully go through the store and pick out all kinds of things for his set-ups. Last Saturday, he picked out a long rubber cabinet liner to use as a runway for airplanes. And office supplies. And cup holders. I can't even remember what those were for. But I guarantee you it was something cool. <br />
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I want Colin to look back on his childhood as being wonderful, despite his struggles. I want him to remember that we supported every single thing that made him Colin. I want our house to be where he gets to be himself and it's always okay. I want him to know that he is brilliant and amazing and that I love everything that he comes up with, even if it makes my house look a bit on the cluttered side. It just doesn't matter. HE MATTERS. <br />
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But seriously...call me before you come over, okay? I really need to clear out the entry way first. Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-46281740430284834422013-03-17T15:55:00.003-05:002013-03-17T15:55:58.913-05:00Getting Back on the Blog Wagon...Oh, hey there! It's St. Patrick's Day. I have two children. Things have changed around here. You would think I would have written about it. Or not. :-)<br />
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I truly can't believe that Preston has been here for almost 3 months. I really did want to blog about my different universe, but it is so hard to find time to sit down and collect my thoughts while taking care of a newborn and Colin Shaffer. And trying to shower on occasion. And sometimes sleep. Or vacuum. Anyway...<br />
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What I HAVE been doing plenty of is posting on Facebook. Just about the only time I can find is the two seconds it takes to post a picture and caption to my wall. I honestly can't even find time to return an email these days, but I have been posting little pictures and notes to my wall in the hopes that family and friends will find that to be update enough on our lives. It is amazing how quickly the days get away from me now! If there is ever a way to print and save Facebook walls from over the years, it would make a great baby book for Preston. I was able to blog so much when Colin was a baby and I was home with him, but it's a different ballpark all together with two kiddos. I am determined to post, however, because I love looking back at Colin's early days and I insist that Preston will have the same thing! You hear me, future self? You will blog! (shakes fist at the sky and realizes that she needs more sleep) <br />
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So, there is much to say regarding the new life in our house - far more than I can tackle in a single post or two. I am going to attempt to devote my time over the next few weeks to getting things written down. Our whole world has changed so much!! Preston is the fattest, most adorable little bear cub in the universe. He is a giant rolly polly baby and we are all so in love with him. It is VERY hard to believe that in 11 short weeks, we have gone from <em>this guy</em>:<br />
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to THIS guy!</div>
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He has bright blue eyes right now, which I am <u>certain</u> will change. However, they are <strong>so</strong> blue at the moment, so I am trying to take as many pictures as I can so that I can remember them! He is very vocal and has no problem letting you loudly know when he is tired, hungry, wet or HUNGRY. Did I say hungry yet? This kiddo has been eating non-stop since he got here. I am blessed to still be a stay at home mommy and Preston is surely reaping the rewards already. I went back to work after 12 weeks with Colin, albeit for only 3 months, but I had to wean him in order to go back. Once he went to the bottle, he didn't look back and quickly stopped breastfeeding. He was on a pumped milk and formula combo from that point on. Preston doesn't have that problem and is still 100% breastfed with no signs of stopping! He was born at 7lbs, 5oz and dropped down to 6lbs, 12 oz at his one week appointment. We went back a week later to do a weight check, making sure that he went back up to his birth weight by the two week mark. He gained a whole pound in that one week, so we were happy and went on our way. At his one month appointment, a mere 3 weeks later, he was up to more than 11 pounds and at his 2 month check, more than 13 pounds!! He is up to the 95% for weight and he is the heaviest little sack of potatoes you ever saw! :-) He is literally as round as he is tall! We just can't get enough of him. <br />
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As far as sleep, he woke up every hour to eat for the first 2 months. It was brutal, as it always is. The good news is that right around the 2 month mark, a switch flipped and he started sleeping longer. The switch actually never went off for Colin - it's easy to look back at my old posts and remember how little Colin ever slept. It was a 2 year battle to get Colin to sleep through the night, so to have my 2 month old start showing signs of better sleep was a miracle. As of right now, he is waking up somewhere between 2-3am and then 5-6am. That is HEAVEN to this mama. Colin was 18 months old before that happened. Needless to say, I am thrilled to be getting more sleep. It was one thing to be so exhausted when I had just one baby to take care of, but it's another thing entirely to have two children that need you. There is NO sleeping when the baby sleeps and my Colin needs me. I don't want him to have a mom at half speed! It's wonderful that I am starting to feel more rested. The next step is to move Preston to his own room, but I am <strike>petrified</strike> nervous to make the switch...I hate to mess with a good thing! Jer's family from PA are coming down for Easter weekend, so I think maybe I will wait and make the move after they leave. If I get my courage up. :-) <br />
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As far as the state of Chalna...I think I am doing pretty good, all things considered. The first two months as a mother of two have already taught me a lot of lessons. Preston is forced to be the laid back baby, that's for sure. He naps where he can, which is frequently in the car, or the grocery store cart, or the swing in my bedroom, or just his car seat where he fell asleep on the way home from some errand or another. Gone are the days of me staying home to accommodate the all-important nap schedule of an infant. Colin has a very elaborate night time routine that requires me to lay down with him to fall asleep. He has been having some extra trouble with his anxiety as of late (which is for another post) and I have learned that it is impossible to be in two places at the same time. I know that should be obvious, but still. ;-) Dad has gotten to be in charge of Preston at bedtime while I take care of Colin, but he is often at work during the bedtime routine. In just the last week, I have managed to put together a crazy plan that allows me to complete Colin's bedtime ritual while taking care of Preston at the same time. It has taken work and patience, but I think my Super Mom cape is still working! My house is a total wreck, but I have decided not to let it bother me. I know there is time enough to clean up once things aren't so chaotic. Preston is definitely a baby that needs to be held basically whenever he is awake, so I have a baby on me most of the time. It doesn't lend to a lot of cleaning and I refuse to be a lunatic about it. Don't even think about looking at my closet right now...just a warning. I am also incredibly FAT at the moment. Nope, I do not exaggerate in the least. I went to the doctor a couple of days ago and I weigh just as much as I did the week after I had Preston. LOVELY. And keeping in mind that I gained 60 lbs this pregnancy...mama is FAT. No other word for it. :-) My body clearly thinks it needs to hang on to every ounce of fat in order to produce enough milk for my giant baby bear. This is another thing that I am <em>forcing</em> myself not to worry about. I won't lie...this one is the hardest to deal with. I can't wear a single thing in my closet with the exception of maternity clothes. I don't even recognize myself when I pass by a mirror. But I am reminding myself that Preston is my last baby and this is the last time that I will be able to spend every free second holding chubby baby goodness. I love breastfeeding him and I am so happy that he is such a great nurser. The only way for me to lose weight is to drop my calorie intake way down and I refuse to have my milk supply affected at the moment. The best I can do is continue to eat healthy food and take Preston for as many walks as I can and deal with being fat and happy. So there! Take that, Gisele! (why OH why couldn't I get just a little bit of the skinny gene?!) <br />
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So, there is an update to get the party started. I am getting a bit more sleep, my hair is incredibly thick and healthy (I could seriously be a hair model right now), and I weigh a freaking ton. BUT, I am also getting to spend all my time with the two most beautiful boys in the whole world and <u>they are mine</u>!!! Coming up next, I will write all about the joy that is TWO BROTHERS!!! :-)<br />
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Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-50822438673235401812013-03-16T22:46:00.002-05:002013-03-16T22:46:40.995-05:00YOU! ARE! HERE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your last moment in my BIG belly - hospital bound!<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Dear Preston,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We are in the last days of winter, 2013. Next Wednesday, it will officially be Spring. This means that the season that brought us YOU is almost over. I waited an ETERNITY for the winter of Preston Dean Shaffer. My Christmas angel. My second son. My baby. I almost thought you would never truly be here...in fact, I worried for your entire pregnancy. I have never wanted anything quite so much. <em>You</em> are the rest of our family and we all just needed you to BE. HERE. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The morning of December 21st dawned early and COLD. I was very happy about that because you were my Christmas baby, after all, and I needed swirling snow and hot cider and Christmas lights and it just needed to be wintry! If you are old enough to read this, you know me very well and are not the least bit surprised by my perfectly imagined birth day. Anyway, we went to Baylor Grapevine before the sun came up, just as we had with your brother. I was sent back to triage and set up with my IV and fluids and everything went just as it had before. Have I mentioned how nice it was the second time around? I wasn't stressed, I knew the drill and I was just happy. I had already taken care of everything for Christmas and we were FINALLY at the hospital and ready to meet you!! We watched the news on the television above our heads and watched the clock ticking toward 8:00am, which was my scheduled c-section time. Dr. White arrived, looking fit and dapper as always, and told me that the OR was running a bit behind schedule, but I would be ready to go soon. It was about 8:30 when they finally took me back for surgery. My time in surgery was oddly funny and endearing this time around...I was very suddenly quite nervous when the anesthesiologist arrived and all the hustling around began. He was a great big bear of a man and he was busily talking about his family from Wisconsin coming in for Christmas and how he wanted them to stop on the way and bring him Runza sandwiches. I happened to work previously with several companies from Wisconsin and had to pipe in that I knew about the famous Runza sandwiches. All the while, as I am getting my spinal and being laid down and prepped, the whole room is talking about Christmas, sandwiches and whose family was coming and when. I remember someone talking about having family showing up that afternoon and she hoped her kids were at home cleaning the house. Now, I am no fool. I was well aware that all this mindless chatter, which literally did not cease for a second, was meant to keep me calm and focused away from what was happening. Which I thought was incredibly sweet and I will always remember it. Once they let Dad back in the room, I knew it was really time. The surgery was mercifully quick and while I admit to feeling a bit sicker this time while things were going on, it wasn't too bad. And then, suddenly, with the loudest cry that I have EVER heard, you were here. YOU!! WERE!! HERE!! Dr. White held you over to me and I saw you screaming and I have never in my life felt such relief and joy and happiness at once. There are no words to explain the feeling of seeing your healthy child for the first time. It is honestly as though God opened the heavens and shined his light into my soul. I started laughing and crying at the same time. It was a whirlwind after that. Your father decided to watch the remainder of the surgery <em>on the other side of the curtain standing beside Dr. White</em>. Of course he did. We are old friends with my sweet doctor now and he knew Dad was into watching and actually invited him over. How he remains to treat me normally after seeing literally all of my internal organs is beyond me. :-)</span> <br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">After the surgery, I spent a long time in post op with you. As it turns out, every pregnant woman in the area was trying to have their babies before Christmas and the place was PACKED. It was 2pm before I even got a room!! So we spent all morning and part of the afternoon in post op. They finally decided to let us bring family back there, so your grandparents and Colin all got to meet you while crammed into the little shared area where they wheel you after surgery. It was ridiculous and funny and I couldn't care less because YOU! WERE! HERE</span>! </div>
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You were so tiny at 7lbs, 5 oz. You were a whole pound smaller than your brother was! And you were just the most precious little thing!! Preston, you were just absolute perfection personified. You are without a doubt the most wonderful Christmas present I have ever or will ever receive. You are truly our gift from God.<br />
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Colin was over the moon when he finally got to meet you. He had been waiting so patiently for so long...almost every night for<em> <u>years</u></em> he would pray to God for a baby brother. He would ask me tough questions that broke my heart into a thousand pieces. "Mom, maybe God doesn't think I would be a good big brother. Is that why we don't have a baby?" Oh, Preston...he wanted you so badly and I just knew that you were coming. Down deep inside, I just knew. Colin was in love the moment he met you. I am so glad that you have each other. It does my soul good to know that when I leave this earth, I will leave you both together. (When I am very VERY old, mind you!) You will always have each other. Lord knows that you will drive each other crazy, but I know that you will love each other deeply and forever. <br />
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So, my sweet second son, baby of our house, and final member of our little family - now YOU! ARE!HERE! And we get to start our lives together, just the four of us, the way we were meant to be. I am already a little wistful about how much time has gone by...you will be <strong>three whole months old</strong> next week...but I am excited to head into your first Spring and all the rest of our seasons together. I don't know how old you are right now as you read this post. Maybe a teenager? A grown-up? It's hard to even imagine you any bigger than the 14 pound chubby bear that is snoring in the sleeper beside my bed as I type these words. But then again, it was only days ago that I couldn't imagine you any bigger than 7 lbs. I'm going to always want to freeze you in time, at every stage, because I always think that it can't get any better and you can't get any more amazing. And then you do. I love you so much, little bear. FOREVER! <br />
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All My Love, MomChalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-8326722848073875772012-12-13T17:13:00.001-06:002013-01-17T18:14:23.317-06:00The Last Thing on the ListIn one week, Preston Dean Shaffer will be here. ONE WEEK. The mix of emotions that I am feeling right now is absolutely all over the place. I have been a very busy bee over the last few weeks - trying to get everything lined up for Christmas and the birth of our son at the same time! It's been crazy, to say the least. Today was a big goal for me - Colin's big Christmas program at his preschool. I've been a bit nervous that something would happen and I would go into labor before I could attend this event and it's VERY important to Colin. This was kind of my final thing that I really felt like I needed to accomplish and now it's done! Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-57404034583385071212012-12-06T19:11:00.000-06:002012-12-06T19:11:03.493-06:00Proud MommyToday was one of those wonderful days when you realize that maybe all the hard work is paying off. Maybe - just maybe - you are raising a really good boy. :-)<br />
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Colin has been having a great year at school - his therapy has REALLY been paying off and for really the first time ever, Colin has managed to make some friends at school without the help of a teacher. This has also come with new challenges for my sweet boy, including becoming fast friends with a bit of a troublemaker. We shall call him "Joe" for writing purposes. Joe has a much older brother and right off the bat this year, Colin started coming home with some new phrases, sayings and behaviors that were obviously learned from someone in class. All relatively harmless stuff, just things that were a little too old for a pre-K group and would rather Colin not pick up on. Colin has also shared with me some of the disruptive things that Joe has been doing in class and how he sometimes got Colin involved. So, we talk a lot about Joe and I always just remind Colin to pay attention to himself and his actions and not worry about what others are doing and just follow the rules of the class. (Colin can be a bit of a police officer when it comes to school) Well, last night Colin broke down in tears and shared with me that he and Joe had to sit in the time-out chair during circle time. He was absolutely beside himself because he had never had a time out at school before and he was just inconsolable about it. I finally managed to get out of him that Joe had been bugging Colin to play some kind of "slapping" game and Colin kept telling him no, but to no avail. The poor little peanut - as he was telling me the story he kept saying, "I didn't want to do it, Mom! I said no over and over again! He wasn't listening to me!". The teacher caught the two of them talking and they both got sent to a time-out chair because there is a strict "no talking" rule during circle time. Colin was horrified! <br />
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So as I held Colin on the couch and we talked about the episode, I suggested he sit somewhere different tomorrow - away from Joe. He welled up again and said that Joe would be upset if he didn't sit by him and he didn't want to lose his friend. He was so worried about doing the right thing and also not hurting Joe's feelings. It was then that Colin looked up at me and said, "Mommy, I know. Can you ask Miss Sandra to move me away from Joe? You can tell her that I want to be good and I don't want to sit by anyone that will get me in time out ever again. And you can tell her that if SHE moves me, Joe won't be mad at me and think I am a bad friend. Is that okay? Can you please tell Miss Sandra that?!" I must say, this was a very proud moment for me. The fact that my socially challenged 5 year old came up with this plan - on top of being so insistent on not getting in trouble and still being a good friend - it just made my heart swell with joy. <br />
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When we got to school this morning, the first words out of Colin's mouth when we entered the building were, "Mommy, PLEASE don't forget to talk to Miss Sandra!". When we walked up to his classroom to check in, he said, "TELL HER NOW, MOM! Don't forget!!". It was adorable. Miss Sandra said, "Clearly you have something to tell me!" :-) I gave her the scoop and told her what Colin said. She was VERY impressed. She told me that Colin is not one to get in trouble and she LOVED that he came up with the plan to sit away from Joe. In fact, she said she "couldn't believe he came up with that on his own" and that it was a great idea and she had no problem being the bad guy. When I picked my sweet boy up today, he was in one of the best moods EVER. In fact, when he turned to say goodbye to his friends, about 5 kids (including Joe) jumped up and HUGGED him! All at once! It was the sweetest thing I have ever seen! Now, Colin is not one for hugging and touching like that, so I saw the sort of pained smile he gave and he said, "Miss Sandra, can you help me out of here?" HA!! He said it very sweetly and his teacher cleared away the huggers and Colin ran out to greet me. I got a subtle thumbs up from his teacher and Colin immediately launched into the story of how perfectly everything worked out and that Miss Sandra asked him to sit over by her and Joe was not mad at all. He was absolutely jubilant over how things went. And this mama is absolutely jubilant over the fact that she has one of the best boys in the whole wide world. It's just been one of those good days, I tell you. :-)Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-56989748910572705742012-08-04T22:54:00.001-05:002012-08-04T23:22:21.428-05:00A Thousand Dreams Come True<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big News from a Big Brother!</td></tr>
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Hello, old friend. Are you surprised to see me? There has been a lot going on during the last 4 months. I turned 35. We celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary. Colin turned FIVE YEARS OLD two weeks ago. I found out that I am pregnant. We've been busy. :-)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His first picture - 8 weeks pregnant</td></tr>
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<br />I AM PREGNANT. Almost 20 WEEKS PREGNANT. WITH MY SECOND SON. I had to take a second to look at that on my screen. It's a miracle. It's my dream come true. It's real. <br />
<br />My 35th birthday was the one I was dreading. Once you turn 35, you are considered to be of "Advanced Maternal Age" or AMA. I have always known that and for some reason during my years of infertility, I took solace in the fact that at least I wasn't 35 yet and that there was still time for it to just happen. That's pretty foolish, but still it was something that stuck in my head. I always assumed that I would be done having my babies by the time I was 35. As my 35th loomed large in front of me, I won't deny that I was mournful. A friend from growing up had just announced her pregnancy in the days before my birthday and it served to remind me that I truly was done with just Colin. I had been working very hard to come to terms with our family of three and while I did have mostly good days, it was still a challenge not to think about what I was missing. The person that I just KNEW was missing. My mom was in town for my birthday and she took me to lunch while Colin was at school. I vented to her about how upset I was with this particular birthday and she tried to comfort me. Little did we both know that I was pregnant at the time. On Sunday, April 29th, I turned 35. As I sat at my computer that afternoon and began thanking all of my friends for their Facebook messages, the thought crossed my mind that my period should be here. The first random thought was that I might need to add tampons to the shopping list. I pulled up the calendar on the computer and started counting back the days to figure out when I should start. As I kept counting, I realized that I actually couldn't remember when my last period was. I kept going back and racking my brain and for the first time in literally years, I couldn't exactly place the day. It was disconcerting that no matter how I looked at it, I had to be late. And then I was FURIOUS. I was not about to take a pregnancy test and suffer my millionth negative result on my birthday, of all days. I was actually mad that I let the thought even creep into my head. I had been working so hard to be happy and let it go, but I couldn't stop staring at the calendar that afternoon and wondering. I managed to wait until the next morning after I dropped Colin at school. I ran by Walgreen's and got a test. I had already gone to the bathroom about 30 minutes beforehand, but I still took one when I walked in the door. The two lines were bright immediately. I proceeded to take the other two tests in the box during that day. Bright pregnant. Finally. I was in total and complete shock. I still am, if I am being honest. <br />
<br />The oddest part of infertility is something that I had never thought about before. It is the time after you get a positive pregnancy test. I have never been so scared in my whole life. When you spend years trying to get pregnant, seeing a positive test is earth shattering. The joy and relief are so strong, but the fear is crippling. I never expected that, but it has been the reality. I couldn't get excited for a long time. I was terrified that it was going to go away, certain that it couldn't be real. I had waited so long that I was sure that if I lost the pregnancy, it would kill me. Honestly. Since my first pregnancy ended in miscarriage, I was almost too scared to function. I couldn't talk about it, even with family. Each office visit has provided momentary relief, but within no time, the fear is back. It sounds so silly, but I have been so petrified that things were going to go wrong. I couldn't even discuss baby names or nursery plans. At my last appointment in July, I found out that we are having another boy. I saw his precious face and hands and feet and body. I saw his beating heart (as I have at each visit). He was so clearly my baby boy laying there in my warm body and I finally started to let go of the strange fear. I will admit that it's not totally gone. My next appointment is on Thursday and I have spent the last few days wondering if I should be feeling more stuff by now and if maybe he's not okay. And then I make a huge effort to shut myself up. I am the size of a house. I am clearly having a baby and I need to let go and let God. But boy, this is harder than I thought it would be. I cannot wait until he gets here...I hate to rush my last pregnancy, but I can't help but wish he would come out and let me feel him in my arms. He is due on December 27, 2012. Colin was a c-section, so this one will be, too. Dr. White thinks he will probably come on December 21st. That would have us coming home from the hospital on Christmas Eve. He is our Christmas miracle. He is my dream come true. All of this unnecessary fear kept me from blogging. I needed to wait. But now I am ready to shout it from the rooftops. My miracle is coming! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">12 weeks and beautiful already!</td></tr>
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<br />Colin is over the moon. His response has been even more amazing than I dreamed it would be. We are all literally blissful. The floodgates should now open - I have so much to share about what is going on. Today, it's just about saying the words here and finally writing it down without fear. We are going to be a family of four. Finally. Thank you, God! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">16 weeks - It's a boy! </td></tr>
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* I started a post on the day I took the pregnancy test, April 30th. I didn't finish it and it was left as a draft. I decided to post it as is - I know I will love to read it one day, despite not finishing it. So that is the post below that has just popped up.Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-51782064971695766432012-04-30T22:59:00.000-05:002012-08-04T22:59:59.356-05:00TodayI turned 35 years old yesterday. It was a beautiful and rather uneventful day and I spent the majority of my time thanking everyone for my Facebook messages and playing on my new iPad. Sometime during the afternoon, I started thinking about my period. So much has been going on with Colin lately and for the first time in years, I couldn't recall the day my last period started. When you are trying to conceive, you ALWAYS know when your last period started. In fact, you generally know exactly what day in your cycle you are on at any given moment. But the past few weeks have been overwhelming and yesterday it hit me that my period should be starting soon. I pulled up the calendar on my computer and tried to think back to when I had my period. Not at any of the birthday parties we have been going to...not at Easter...hmmm...maybe the week that Jer did the Tough Mudder race? This was driving me crazy yesterday. Mostly just because I always know these things and it felt foreign to truly not remember, even when I gave it a lot of thought. My breasts have been sore all week, which is normal for me before my period starts, so I have been absentmindedly waiting on it to show. It was only yesterday, on my 35th birthday, that I realized I might be late. I thought briefly about buying a pregnancy test after Colin went to sleep, but talked myself out of it. No way was I going to spoil my happy birthday with a negative pregnancy test. I have seen hundreds of them and as usual, I swore off of pregnancy tests last month. :-) I let it go and enjoyed the rest of my evening. I requested Thai for my birthday dinner and Jer picked up a whole bunch of deliciousness, including an order of drunken noodles with chicken and tofu for me, as well as pot stickers and an eggroll. I generally don't eat that much in one sitting (I tend to be a grazer and eat small amounts all day instead of a big meal), but I ate the entire order last night. As I tucked the last bite of noodles into my mouth and wondered what I might find for dessert, I had another fleeting thought about being pregnant. It was an ungodly amount of food to consume in one sitting and there I was, still craving more food. When was the last time I ate that much?? I pushed the last couple of veggies around the plastic takeout container and fought the urge to think about the possibility. The worst part about infertility is the monthly disappointment, and getting your hopes up about "signs"...you always think you have signs or symptoms and then you are never actually pregnant. I was battling this a lot last night because I knew it, but yet I had "known" before and been wrong. I went to bed last night after sifting through my 100+ birthday Facebook messages and thinking a lot about how many wonderful friends I have been blessed with. I remember my last thoughts being about how special a Facebook birthday makes you feel.
I forgot to turn on the baby monitor before bed, so I awoke this morning to the faint sounds of Colin calling for me from his bedroom. I sat up in bed and cocked my ear to the sound as Jer walked out of the bathroom fresh from his shower and dressed for work. I jumped out of bed and took off for Colin's room and immediately sucked in my breath from the pain in my chest. I am never this sore and it was in that moment that I realized I was going to break down and buy a pregnancy test after I dropped Colin at school. The morning went normally and after I dropped Colin off, I actually circled the parking lot, internally debating with myself. I did not want to go buy another box of those damn tests for no reason. I always jump the gun and buy tests about 1-2 days before my period starts and I am just so tired of it. But today was different...I still can't put a finger on the first day of my last period. I have it narrowed down to 3/22 - 3/28 and that would definitely mean that I am late today. I flew into Walgreen's and bought the pack of tests, all the while berating myself for being so silly. I got home and walked straight back to take the test, despite the fact that I had gone to the bathroom not 20 minutes earlier. Sure enough, there was not much to test with and I just tossed the partially used test on the counter. The moisture line wasn't even registering yet, so I figured I would wait and test again after a few hours. About 5 minutes later, I walked back into the bathroom and literally almost passed out. There, plain as day, was a positive pregnancy test. A POSITIVE PREGNANCY TEST. Not faint, no squinting required, honest to goodness positive pregnancy test. I proceeded to say the phrase, "OH MY GOD" about 200 times. I paced the bedroom. I didn't burst into tears, as I imagined I would if this ever truly happened, but I dropped to my knees and prayed and thanked God and prayed harder. I then paced more, attempted yet again to calculate the date of my last period and went online to look for a due date. I called my mom. I paced. I tried to watch a show on the DVR. I called my doctor and left messages for his nurses. My official appointment is May 17th and I go tomorrow for bloodwork. <br />
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*edited to say that this is as far as I got on this post, the day I found out I was pregnant. It was left as a draft and I decided to publish what I had for posterity, despite not finishing the post. :-) ~Chalna 8/4/2012Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-64945361539526385272012-04-17T14:30:00.000-05:002012-04-17T14:31:36.571-05:00A TuesdayIt's TUESDAY. We don't do anything on Tuesday. It's the best day ever. Colin doesn't have school and it always feels like the first chance we have had to do absolutely nothing. Sometimes we get dressed, sometimes we don't. We always make a giant mess. And by "we", I mean Colin. My brilliant son is not satisfied to just lay out some trucks or play with his legos. Nope. My son likes to turn the living room into a city/zoo/pool/construction site/hotel/school...you can really change out any of those options on any given day. He turns the stack of dirty clothes into a mountain on top of his trampoline and plants a flag there. He takes out every tool bench he has to create check out lines at his grocery store. Today, he dumped his entire craft box onto the living room couch and created "art stations". He used popsicle sticks of various sizes and glued them TO my kitchen counter. Granted, there was paper there somewhere, but everything got glued to the counter regardless. I don't care a bit...Elmer's Glue wipes right up and I hate standing over him when he is trying to create something and bark in his ear about making a mess. Kids are <em>supposed</em> to make messes. He is having a great time and I shall clean it up later. No big shakes. It's a good thing for Colin that he was born with a mom who was not worried about disasters. ;-) He asked me to bring his table from his playroom into the kitchen so that he could arrange a battle. The battle is between the creatures that he made out of Playdough and his army men. My house looks like a large bomb exploded. When Jer gets home from work, I plan to send the boys to the park so that I can clean up the mess. We always like to have a clean slate for another day of "creating". But in case you are curious, or have only been to my house when it is tidy (in other words, when I was expecting company and pretended that we don't live in a trash heap), please enjoy this window into our Tuesday. ;-)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nv-cRjxCWpTplvBt_pQMOIPYZNg0_0U_YLw0xGdmgGxSQVhc0kqWiyGiDPydYM7TCVC2_k54zdoKzxXiT6q81CKtj7OBLyzJWgXcutk8Ti5_4SsPmZJAjLf-xn646aXym5MfJTn1nZAL/s1600/4-17-12+004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nv-cRjxCWpTplvBt_pQMOIPYZNg0_0U_YLw0xGdmgGxSQVhc0kqWiyGiDPydYM7TCVC2_k54zdoKzxXiT6q81CKtj7OBLyzJWgXcutk8Ti5_4SsPmZJAjLf-xn646aXym5MfJTn1nZAL/s320/4-17-12+004.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The "art stations". So lovely.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45WQa0MPGJ1XeYo86u3soGgq7AM7ZT6B9viBo4jFCXY9hqezIpaFMGQdRC-hv8AWz9rIVu3jMWmlvsCWOeEcQa4dQKeCMI8n02qlbIFdnyw7RumT-O2-eaYZ5CTc8Jk2Up5FkHIVJ3oLB/s1600/4-17-12+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg45WQa0MPGJ1XeYo86u3soGgq7AM7ZT6B9viBo4jFCXY9hqezIpaFMGQdRC-hv8AWz9rIVu3jMWmlvsCWOeEcQa4dQKeCMI8n02qlbIFdnyw7RumT-O2-eaYZ5CTc8Jk2Up5FkHIVJ3oLB/s320/4-17-12+007.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Notice the purple sticks glued to my counter? </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7BVvXHapNu07nsnONK2bXdnfqrcWXVP4Sz7S4GH1L-H9Cx9mxDYg82ww7ub536CX2zRndC3e9WUe6XPnbnSLDouEJtz77STAH2cwt7nqijv2yyFNp_EhIdX6wAAsUnX7ljx3S_rXSmQPs/s1600/4-17-12+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7BVvXHapNu07nsnONK2bXdnfqrcWXVP4Sz7S4GH1L-H9Cx9mxDYg82ww7ub536CX2zRndC3e9WUe6XPnbnSLDouEJtz77STAH2cwt7nqijv2yyFNp_EhIdX6wAAsUnX7ljx3S_rXSmQPs/s320/4-17-12+008.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The constructed battle scene with playdough creatures and army platoon.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3YX9ejssG0-kB010LoASbymAG6nM3kiYVUnGXUDFIo9fUha0k2-nMcdMX0qV5Al4jZkwpB4-iH6UR129uOC2y17fZU8MTXUjqoIDrmA3ZYCfU9Vf582NhDb3VcSDnqTjxDx1h7tjEAMyK/s1600/4-17-12+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3YX9ejssG0-kB010LoASbymAG6nM3kiYVUnGXUDFIo9fUha0k2-nMcdMX0qV5Al4jZkwpB4-iH6UR129uOC2y17fZU8MTXUjqoIDrmA3ZYCfU9Vf582NhDb3VcSDnqTjxDx1h7tjEAMyK/s320/4-17-12+009.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This makes sense to Colin...I am doubting the need for chocolate eggs and Christmas microphone, but whatever. ;-)</td></tr>
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While all this was going on, I cooked. I have just taken up Thai cuisine. Thai is one of my most favorite things on the planet and I have been trying my hand at more Asian stuff these days. It's the most delicious food, but usually requires a trip to the Asian market or Central Market at the least. I've been working on my Thai pantry and things are coming along nicely. Just moments ago, I completed the most delicious thing I have ever made. Okay, maybe that's a slight exaggeration. Wait, no it's not. I crafted what is basically a cheaters version of sticky rice with mango that is the Thai dessert staple. I could live off the stuff but there is no way that I am going through the actual process of making sticky rice, which <em>starts</em> with soaking rice for 3 hours. UM, no. I made this with orzo pasta of all things!! It turned out AH-MAZING. It is going to take all the willpower in the free world not to finish the whole batch this afternoon. I have also perfected my peanut sauce, which I made a big batch of last night for a chicken cabbage salad. I saved the rest for today and have my chicken satay marinating as we speak. I am making chicken satay "sandwiches" for dinner, using the marinated grilled chicken, cilantro, a cucumber/jalapeno salad, and the peanut sauce. I was going to make them on ciabatta bread, but ran into some naan at the store that spoke to me, so I am going to serve the sandwiches open face over a warm piece of naan bread. I am pretty sure that I just combined cuisines from more than 3 countries there, but whatever. I love to cook. Have I mentioned that lately? ;-)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqNaduwv5ekz7PKAfZiUOK5JnX_ihYMWSOinLHFdUQ1w08F4tMiJGYB8HmprPMs-QdPu0ZdBBRButy88qmGUmotpuhZF0U-QIzREmWdRaDiDnv2kQ4SpJinhenqqN9tuWvuMn8Y0D3x8Ch/s1600/4-17-12+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqNaduwv5ekz7PKAfZiUOK5JnX_ihYMWSOinLHFdUQ1w08F4tMiJGYB8HmprPMs-QdPu0ZdBBRButy88qmGUmotpuhZF0U-QIzREmWdRaDiDnv2kQ4SpJinhenqqN9tuWvuMn8Y0D3x8Ch/s320/4-17-12+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">HEAVENLY! This is seriously some of my best work. </td></tr>
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The weather is absolutely stunning right now and I know that we are heading back into the 110 degree hell known as Texas summer, so I am trying to soak it up. You know, by staying in the house in my pajamas and cooking. ;-) We did manage to spend some time outdoors and we were shocked to see that one of the bushes in our front yard is covered in different kinds of butterflies! I LOVE IT! I got the camera out and used it as an excuse to do a little photography practice. Colin tried so hard to catch one so that he could get a closer look, but they were not having it! <br />
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So there you have it for one random Tuesday in April. And now, since it's 2:26pm, I think I will go get dressed. And eat another piece of that dessert. And peel the popsicle sticks off the counter. Or something.Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-48122450273396771702012-04-10T21:47:00.001-05:002012-04-10T21:47:48.502-05:00Easter!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9pBNxqOozSxpidjBtPSTdTLjMUJEVbxCEoIBy6IG-z6KAh5KpAvAl4COzihSK0bNFei10P5EQGUC9tw9TIcZysH-tjquVtUWrFvxuMhKb5Y44voQk7a9e-J-XoVxHRCXKgZaxxyKc9ow-/s1600/Easter+2012+017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9pBNxqOozSxpidjBtPSTdTLjMUJEVbxCEoIBy6IG-z6KAh5KpAvAl4COzihSK0bNFei10P5EQGUC9tw9TIcZysH-tjquVtUWrFvxuMhKb5Y44voQk7a9e-J-XoVxHRCXKgZaxxyKc9ow-/s320/Easter+2012+017.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's 7:00am. The Easter Bunny has delivered.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My handsome man...a little bit later.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An old pro at egg hunts!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sigh...so beautiful! </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Easter loot...the bunny was good!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKDA6fghJ-ulIvHZhGU61GCZDjHKl2Zlrb9fVjEfu66JCJ7tDNks4BFvdRqqi0Lon-cRWgaGimiFtbces6ietPwc_ajjjO-A-rJJ9P5UUDdT-woVJxaHqwiFttDrNeqry1v8H7FglHsBv/s1600/Easter+Weekend+2012+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEKDA6fghJ-ulIvHZhGU61GCZDjHKl2Zlrb9fVjEfu66JCJ7tDNks4BFvdRqqi0Lon-cRWgaGimiFtbces6ietPwc_ajjjO-A-rJJ9P5UUDdT-woVJxaHqwiFttDrNeqry1v8H7FglHsBv/s320/Easter+Weekend+2012+018.JPG" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">School Easter Egg Hunt Day!</td></tr>
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Easter weekend was wonderful and busy and a little bit crazy. Even with all the drama surrounding Colin's anxiety, we managed to make it a happy time and for that I am incredibly thankful! On Saturday we went to our sweet friend Pierce's 3rd birthday party and I was really proud of Colin. He did freeze when we first got there, despite the fact that it was held somewhere that Colin knows well and with only his friends in attendance. But he walked in on his own. We circled the party and he was clearly upset and avoiding any and all eye contact. But I whispered to him on several occasions that we could leave whenever he wanted to and he didn't want to go. He was scared, but he knew that he wanted to be there and was willing to work through it. We sat off by ourselves for a good while, but after about 45 minutes he snapped out of it and joined every bit of the party. It's quite a process, but we are so blessed to have people surrounding us that understand and love us no matter what. Everyone was so supportive and helpful and I just can't put into words how great it feels to be in a group of people that I know are not judging us. It was absolutely no big deal to anyone that Colin was upset at first and nobody gave us a second glance as we sat by ourselves. Our friends are a safe place for my whole family and I don't know what I would do without them. Colin comes across as very angry and volatile when he is panicked and keeps his head down, cries and won't talk when spoken to. But this is all his defense mechanism. And I don't have to worry that anyone in my close circle is thinking badly about us. Even though I don't care what strangers think, it does feel nice to know that I am around people that understand and love us no matter what. The party was so much fun! The Roberts family always throw the best birthday parties! <br />
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That night, I spent a couple of hours putting the Easter Bunny stuff together and I packed the eggs with prizes that I found at Dollar General and Target. I bought everything I could find that was small enough to hide in an Easter egg. I was determined that Colin get the prize eggs that he was so upset about missing out on. I think I went a bit overboard, but it was well worth it to see the joy on his face. He told me a couple of times that the Easter bunny must have known that he had trouble with the egg hunt and sent him special treats. That made my whole day. <br />
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Colin woke up at the crack of dawn (as usual) and we hunted eggs by the light of the moon. There was no putting him off when he woke up, of course! I regretted the decision to let him wear pajamas to bed that are about 8 sizes too small because the pictures of the hunt are not exactly his finest fashion moment. But, oh well. ;-) My skinny peanut can still wear his 3T pajamas and loves them, so who cares. But they are SERIOUSLY too short now. I need to buy some new summer ones asap! Anyway, after the hunt, I whipped up a banana cake with brown butter icing (JOY) and we got dressed to head over to Jer's parents house. Colin had even more treats waiting there and loved his yearly egg hunt in their backyard. It rained and stormed all afternoon, but it was still a great day. There is only one thing that bothers me a bit and that is the fact that we haven't been to church yet with Colin. I really miss church on Easter Sunday and it reminds me that we really really need to figure out a way to become active church members, but I just don't know how to do it. Colin has never been able to attend church services because he can't be dropped off in a crowded Sunday school environment. Church is everything that scares him - a large building full of strangers, lots of noise, being dropped off with different faces, everything that causes his panic rolled into one outing. It just won't work. And he can't sit through big church yet, so we have waited. That was the MAIN reason that I made sure that Colin went to a church preschool. I thank heaven above that he has been getting a steady stream of christian teaching while going to school. He loves Jesus and God and we had lots of great conversation regarding the true meaning of Easter. So I feel blessed that he is getting a chance to learn about Christ even though we can't quite do church yet. And on another note, is it strange that at 34 years old, I still refer to it as "big church"? HA! <br />
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Anyway, I really do have lots more to write about and lots of post topics running through my head, but I am going to call it quits for tonight. I have an episode of Smash burning a hole in my DVR and I <em>must</em> watch it. But I told myself that I was absolutely not going to put off blogging anymore, so I am patting myself on the back for waiting until <em>after</em> the Easter update. :-)Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-46014313171548700902012-04-06T21:59:00.000-05:002012-04-08T21:02:24.845-05:00Here and NowI am an eternal optimist. It's what I do. I am certain that regardless of the trial, things are going to turn out okay. I want everyone to be happy all. the. time. I really do think that everything is always going to be fine...better than fine...wonderful. There are times when my unflappable optimism is an asset. But there are times when I don't know what to do with myself. It has been exactly two months since my last post and the real reason for that is my complete and utter hatred of writing unhappy thoughts. Isn't that silly? It's my blog, my place to journal our lives, something to look back on to recreate the story of us when I can't remember it anymore. Life has ups and downs and I am certainly aware of the fact that it's not all raindrops on roses <em>for anyone</em>. I am at least somewhat rational and aware that it won't hurt a soul if I actually write about everything. However, the last couple of months have been rather trying and at the end of a busy day that was wholly lacking "whiskers on kittens", I would much rather park it on the couch and lose myself in the latest episode of Smash. <em>And on another note, how freaking awesome is Smash?!</em> :-) But I digress...<br />
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Colin is having a hard time. A really really hard time. See, I just wrote that phrase and then paused while I wondered how to go on with the story. There is so much and it's all so much greater than words on a page. He is beautiful and healthy and we have a wonderful life. We are blessed. I like to focus on that. But there is a lot more to the story. His anxiety disorder is overwhelming him right now and as his mother, it's a lot. Our daily life is a minefield at the moment. I suppose that things have always been like that in a way, but I was always able to carry him over the obstacles in our path. He is too big to carry now and while I am still holding his hand, he is having to learn to walk beside me through them. Does that make sense? I hope so.<br />
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His fear paralyzes him from deep within and the examples are plenty. I could write all night and not begin to share everything that has happened. I tried to pick him up from school after getting a haircut and he wouldn't come out of the classroom or allow me to touch him. Some days he can't go inside the grocery store and he can no longer get a haircut. I had to invest in my own salon tools and have taught myself how to do it via youtube videos and prayer. (just don't look too closely at his hair and it's fine) ;-) We miss parties and ball games and now he can't get himself inside the school. That is the only one that we can't let go of and now going to class involves back entrances and teachers holding him down so that I can leave while his screams echo around me. That one breaks me into a thousand pieces and shatters every ounce of bravery that I have. And I always just manage to get myself back into my car before I crack. I have to lay my head down on the steering wheel and cry until it feels better and I remind myself that he. is. going. to. be. fine. And HE IS. I am down on occasion, but I am not out. And don't all mothers do this? Carry the weight of the world on our shoulders so that our babies don't hurt? My load is far lighter than so many others and I know this and am thankful. <br />
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We had a parent conference with his therapist yesterday and she said something that really hit me. She told us that we need a chance to mourn the loss of the childhood we <em>thought</em> he would have. Which is so perfectly true. I can't keep trying to fit a round peg into a square hole. He is probably not ever going to be on the baseball team or in every possible school club and activity (ahem...like his mother was). He looks like me for sure, but he is Colin and he is going to like what HE likes. And that is okay! I could honestly care less! But I have been trying so hard to give him what I thought was the perfect childhood and I need to start paying more attention to what he actually wants rather than my idealistic image of it. <br />
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The good news is that we have a team of the absolute best professionals in the world helping Colin and I know that we are going to turn the corner soon. Everyone is already helping in every way they can. As the mother bear, I do find myself wanting to stand in front of him and keep judging eyes away from my baby. But I also truly and completely don't care what others think. Today, we attempted an Easter egg hunt at our pediatrician's office. He is so sweet and hosts the most adorable hunt in the yard beside his parking lot. I thought Colin might like it because of it's small scale and he was so so so excited to go. He even got out of the car and walked up to the festivities! When we left the house, I assured him that we would drive by first and check it out and he could decide if he wanted to try it. He hopped right out when we got there and walked up into the crowd, which was just a miracle. He even lined up with all the other 3 to 6 year olds (there were probably 20 other kids his age, 50 total at the whole event) with his basket, all ready to go. But when Dr. Martin's wife yelled, " Get Ready, Get Set, GO!", he froze and burst into tears. Heaving crying and literally frozen on the little curb in front of the grass. I tried everything to calm him down, but he was beside himself. He stood there rooted to the ground while all the eggs were hunted. He took his deep breaths and then pulled himself out of my shirt and asked if I would go with him and hold his hand. But, of course, the eggs were all gone. And then it was a real breakdown when he realized that he missed the whole thing. He went into full panic attack mode where I can't touch him or calm him and we just have to ride it out until I can break through to him. And these are the moments when I feel the eyes on us...Colin raging and screaming...but today, I did not care. Not a bit. One extremely wonderful mom (just one), took a handful of eggs out of her daughters basket and quietly placed them in the one I was holding while Colin screamed. And I wanted to wrap my arms around her and thank her, but I couldn't...so I mouthed my thanks and said a little prayer of gratitude for the people in this world like her. And you can bet that I held Colin in the car and told him that the Easter bunny was going to bring him the very best Easter egg hunt in the free world and it would be a thousand times better than anything that could have been in those eggs he missed. Which reminds me, I really need to go back to the store before tomorrow night. ;-) <br />
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You know what else his counselor told us? That Colin was brilliant and blows her mind constantly. She said that while we do need to mourn the loss of what we pictured for him, we need to also enjoy the special gifts that we are lucky enough to be apart of. And I didn't need that advice at all. Colin is the most amazing boy in the world. Listening to him talk and simply being near his mind is more joy than I could have fathomed. He is awesome. He likes to watch heart surgery online. He spends half an hour making an anatomically correct heart as decoration on an Easter egg. He contemplates the universe. He accepts absolutely nothing as fact and needs to see what makes everything tick. He is, quite simply, the coolest kid I have ever met. So this blog is going to perk up. I am going to write about the amazing things that come out of his mouth. I am going to write about how much smarter he is than me. I am going to write about our bad days and I am going to write about the outstanding ones. I want to remember all of it and the majority IS silver white winters that melt into spring. Well, not exactly in Texas, but you know what I mean. :-)Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-55708886525396140382012-02-03T18:02:00.000-06:002012-02-03T21:12:00.735-06:00Let's Make Stuff, Shall We?<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doesn't this look delicious?</td></tr>
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I need to stay away from Pinterest. It is killing me. I only <em>thought</em> Facebook was the greatest sucker of one's time...Pinterest is far worse. I will put Colin to bed with the<strong> full intention</strong> of quickly checking my email and then heading into the living room to watch shows on the DVR and relax with Jer. Then I look up and it is 11pm and I am knee deep in chocolate cakes, soap scum removal and debating the merits of making my own headboard out of old doors and a glue gun. Or something. I am clearly out of control. As I type this, I am eating a corndog mini muffin. That's right, CORNDOG MINI MUFFINS. I saw the recipe and made them for <strong>Colin</strong>. And he loves them. He ate 3. I have had 47. I am going to have to run for an extra hour tonight after this debacle. And then there was the great Nutella dip disaster of yesterday - I saw Nutella fruit dip front and center when I logged into Pinterest and since Colin lives for Nutella, I decided it must be made. While he was at school, I whipped up a batch (which is just Nutella and Greek yogurt - <em>so simple! so easy! why didn't I think of that?</em>) and presented it with a flourish when the little man got home. He was super excited for chocolate fruit dip and even posed happily for the above photo. Then he tasted it and spit it out all down the front of his shirt. That was awesome. As it turns out, my child does not appreciate the quality tang that accompanies Greek yogurt, despite the cup of Nutella added to it. I then proceeded to eat a pint of strawberries dipped in it because, oddly enough, I happen to think it was fan-freaking-tastic. I had to pour out the rest of the batch because there is only so much that my skinny jeans can handle. I hate Pinterest.</div>
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I was a busy bee while Colin was at school yesterday! On top of eating my weight in chocolate fruit dip, I finished up a couple of projects for the kiddo. I extended his bulletin board around the corner in his room so that he would have more room to hang his awesome school work and he LOVES it! After seeing the way it turned out, I plan to extend it to the floor. Bulletin boards are so cheap and Colin adores hanging up his art. I added the string of lights on a whim and Colin thinks it is just about the coolest thing ever. It's rather rigged at this point, but it's pretty cute regardless. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UTDsRPWUfm19NI4I2ZWDL97aq5M7NwWYMJ3FCPrpl1_JarwF50mzFPYMTkxxVBQ8N_-tWHl_vFMe1VdNA8pKaNfjw5j0JSVRABRD6NXOXhBVMzS6nyy9z-_ed90_WOFxJ_PrBRxXC611/s1600/2-2-12+008.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0UTDsRPWUfm19NI4I2ZWDL97aq5M7NwWYMJ3FCPrpl1_JarwF50mzFPYMTkxxVBQ8N_-tWHl_vFMe1VdNA8pKaNfjw5j0JSVRABRD6NXOXhBVMzS6nyy9z-_ed90_WOFxJ_PrBRxXC611/s400/2-2-12+008.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How did I know that Star Wars would be the first poster taped to his closet door? ;-)</td></tr>
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I really love Colin's room. When I found out that I was having a boy, I wandered into a little shop in Southlake Town Center that was full of custom baby rooms. Everything was ornate and beautiful and thousands of dollars. I was just piddling around and thinking about buying a frame (about all I could afford in this shop) when I stumbled onto a cabin/lodge themed boys room. I knew instantly that it would be the room for Colin. I wanted something different and special and this was so perfect. I spent months collecting things from all over the place to make the room come to life. My mom even made a "fishing" chandelier to hang from the ceiling! Anyway, it has morphed over the last few years into a little boys room rather than a nursery, but I still love it so much. Everything about his room is cozy and warm and I hope he remembers it always as being a place to feel happy and safe and loved. It's a great room. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQpbkpXa5tzC03f180FljMorKgoZ4ZznTBM_eE8jg6vE3_L30YA9egap3XzV7uQ7OrkiVviGcQnpBYZVK7fTDbSY5JBL75jnJTshmXxD4iDc9wCYtFE7rgGT8SKBaCPxJK0ld0OdpPK74/s1600/NYE+2011+064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQpbkpXa5tzC03f180FljMorKgoZ4ZznTBM_eE8jg6vE3_L30YA9egap3XzV7uQ7OrkiVviGcQnpBYZVK7fTDbSY5JBL75jnJTshmXxD4iDc9wCYtFE7rgGT8SKBaCPxJK0ld0OdpPK74/s400/NYE+2011+064.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A shot from New Year's Eve - we rarely get this side of his room in pictures</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view of his new bulletin board from the door</td></tr>
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And now for the most important news - I have Colin's space/Star Wars/science themed playroom well underway! We painted it an awesome grey color before we had new carpeting installed in December. I got his name on the wall using cool iron signs from Hobby Lobby and yesterday, I found the Star Wars posters!! I bought 3 and framed them with cheap poster frames from Hobby Lobby. Colin LOVES it. I should really get a trophy for this one - that child almost cried from joy when he saw it! While my dreams of a shabby pink room full of ballet slippers has indeed been forever crushed, this is still pretty awesome. ;-) I was struck by how much this looks like a boy's room, a BIG boy, rather than a baby or toddler. His playroom doubles as our office space, but it is clearly decorated entirely for a space loving little man. I have a lot more to go; I want to get rid of the plastic bins for toys and put in shelves, etc - but we are well on our way! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Long ago, in a galaxy far far away</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">there lived a woman without any girl stuff... ;-)</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf89tCb66MlljmlPagoMi_vkw_IkZ8hBPisim3hwIbb1w-PddmmR3j_a0uQkmU7f_mNFkvdlf8uy_Zh3D65ZGLxQKxWMQNfD3z_Ey5_OfTNn-1nmFFO6dHVMTdpGPJ4BYVxhHJSvLg5nNZ/s1600/2-2-12+028.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf89tCb66MlljmlPagoMi_vkw_IkZ8hBPisim3hwIbb1w-PddmmR3j_a0uQkmU7f_mNFkvdlf8uy_Zh3D65ZGLxQKxWMQNfD3z_Ey5_OfTNn-1nmFFO6dHVMTdpGPJ4BYVxhHJSvLg5nNZ/s400/2-2-12+028.JPG" /></a> </div>
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On the other wall, I hung a GIANT map of the world. We decided that with a pilot for a daddy, Colin should get to track where he goes. We have started pinning all the locations that Jer flies to and it has been so much fun for Colin and a fabulous learning tool. We look at his flight route and then check out details about whatever country he has gone to. Jer is going to China next month, so that will be a fun one to mark down!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYYbxAB4_zpbhJQZ7aFFYoHGfg4YwsSczXeYM386f1xEhFgR7rUlJ6Qz3xAFWsaPPbIV6srD_lwZwHgi42sImqY152F1jtXfmjNxOiFrq59femq9w1wqko3txVJL5JRQRPaas-L-3-17t/s1600/2-1-12+001.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYYbxAB4_zpbhJQZ7aFFYoHGfg4YwsSczXeYM386f1xEhFgR7rUlJ6Qz3xAFWsaPPbIV6srD_lwZwHgi42sImqY152F1jtXfmjNxOiFrq59femq9w1wqko3txVJL5JRQRPaas-L-3-17t/s400/2-1-12+001.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">cutest baby EVER</td></tr>
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In closing, Colin actually fell asleep on the couch this week - which is totally unheard of in this house. It was so stinking adorable that I had no choice but to take a picture. Look at those precious little feet!! Sometimes I think that I love him so much that it's going to break me in two. :-) However, I quickly realized why naps aren't a good thing - it took about 4 years to get him to bed that night. I sang Twinkle Twinkle Little Star about 350 times. But that wasn't so bad, either. </div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-65583955371539536772012-01-31T21:52:00.004-06:002012-01-31T21:52:55.374-06:00This Week<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheof-hH2WhzU9zCOW58YFJO8vhCWikOmQl-rQ2yKxagKZxGr9agO944ZPizGaJOYFyNUg-9IyH972UGKEOfl6CVScAyFz0hQibBQrLhyphenhyphenzb7TYSqQk1v1umsaDmA7hC-NknZSfMnQ5EgFUo/s1600/1-30-12+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheof-hH2WhzU9zCOW58YFJO8vhCWikOmQl-rQ2yKxagKZxGr9agO944ZPizGaJOYFyNUg-9IyH972UGKEOfl6CVScAyFz0hQibBQrLhyphenhyphenzb7TYSqQk1v1umsaDmA7hC-NknZSfMnQ5EgFUo/s320/1-30-12+005.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evidence that Colin is brilliant.</td></tr>
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The above picture is <strike>disgusting</strike> not exactly attractive, I know. Yes, that is a bath rug and yes, that is playdough stuck to it in various locations. But that is beside the point (if you are able to pretend you don't see the playdough). We usually eat dinner while sitting at the kitchen counter, where I have bar stools arranged for seating. Colin has never been comfortable sitting in the stools and recently he began pulling up toy bins and ottomans in order to reach the counter and stand up to eat. He actually eats much better if he can stand, so I haven't minded the switch...with the small exception of how easily he can slip off his makeshift step stools. None of them are designed to hold his weight and our ottoman even has wheels! I told him that I would be on the lookout for a more acceptable solution and saw this little cheapo stool at Hobby Lobby yesterday for the lofty price of $4.99. I gave it a shot and Colin quickly pointed out to me that he didn't feel safe and that it was "too slippery". We stuck the stool in his playroom and went about our business. When I called Colin to the table tonight, he headed for his bathroom. I wasn't paying much attention as I was plating food and when I went to serve Colin, he was standing there with a huge grin on his face. I looked down to see the giant bathmat with his stool on top. He said, "Look, Mom! It won't slip at all anymore! We can just use it this way." I do not have a CLUE how he thought of this on his own. He must have noticed that the stool was more stable on the carpet in his playroom and then decided to try out the bath rug variation. All I know is that we never said a word about it and he figured it out on his own. Hence the ultra classy picture. I love Colin. Here are more lovely shots from our week:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihfHDpCEXKGgoKArvZL-EwFVogFUimlSkQDHjXu9j1X-b1FDkJlmsw46UUMaSiHpbtAZ0WrUFUXB5xUPUCOoS5s-Ewsta_O3C2mcGLIYauzDm1aw_qkGgV5qGwzds1KBEdeSWxoISOQZvI/s1600/1-28-12+038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihfHDpCEXKGgoKArvZL-EwFVogFUimlSkQDHjXu9j1X-b1FDkJlmsw46UUMaSiHpbtAZ0WrUFUXB5xUPUCOoS5s-Ewsta_O3C2mcGLIYauzDm1aw_qkGgV5qGwzds1KBEdeSWxoISOQZvI/s320/1-28-12+038.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin and his kitties</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhod35GF_jnsw4K-GCjLsGuiaPXWbJv3VDdXaDm_LW82EE35r_Td5_o_-Ws4Gt9K2AnM-kbVUNlizE9e3BzNZgG2ysF7S3ItC_jyMl5JTvwFnISfetl3W7jEG9dbeht_UAnVDBFuQLH0pMx/s1600/1-28-12+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhod35GF_jnsw4K-GCjLsGuiaPXWbJv3VDdXaDm_LW82EE35r_Td5_o_-Ws4Gt9K2AnM-kbVUNlizE9e3BzNZgG2ysF7S3ItC_jyMl5JTvwFnISfetl3W7jEG9dbeht_UAnVDBFuQLH0pMx/s320/1-28-12+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin on top of his "mountain". The view from the top is always best.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiceIv2-tIob-jKP-qfvtR292psGSxfiiPZLZUojrXqXtm4cT8HwkwKXTdIgT8XREy37NDmqHv7uFDhK8vGqHZIolUE-ko5CnvkEs_GZQRnsUX_WcqV-uQKItTJErR0DR60w5N_j8wN0cLW/s1600/1-29-12+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiceIv2-tIob-jKP-qfvtR292psGSxfiiPZLZUojrXqXtm4cT8HwkwKXTdIgT8XREy37NDmqHv7uFDhK8vGqHZIolUE-ko5CnvkEs_GZQRnsUX_WcqV-uQKItTJErR0DR60w5N_j8wN0cLW/s320/1-29-12+007.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DJ Jazzy Colin</td></tr>
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This week has been all about Pinterest - I am on one of my kicks again. I have so many projects that I want to take on and I knocked out this easy one first. I made custom dry erase boards for the kitchen using two cheap frames and some scrapbook paper. It's awesome! I have to write myself big visual notes constantly and I usually use a sheet of note paper and stick it on the counter where I can see it. I have come close to hanging dry erase boards in the past, but they are so ugly and my kitchen is right in the middle of things. This is already working perfectly! The frames just happened to fit nicely under our family picture and I think they look super cute. It will be fun to switch the paper our for holidays! I think they are a bit plain as of yet, but now that I see them hanging, I am planning to add some cute lettering inside the frame. Stay tuned! It's an easy start - I have a bunch of cool projects planned for the playroom that are going to be <em>much</em> more work, but I am excited to hone some new skills. I am even planning to tackle some sewing - like with a machine - but I am nervous about it. I have never considered myself crafty in the least bit. The only exception would be my odd ability to write pretty letters, but I don't think that counts. I have talked myself into giving this crafty thing a try because 1) my mom is excellent at making her own awesome decorations and 2) I never thought I would be a good cook and now it is my passion. So I suppose even an old dog can learn some new tricks. :-)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqJycp14tXRptO1xxYfZRPxlHv3PRbYvtehqHX74PU4gWF2w1kURMppx4Zm8ARA4MTuHccECYbY42PJMSqlAgTnku4rNFFwxRan_ZS1R5mDkZ3ezz5-PjdgUGZgkMujA6RdhtarzhvV9C/s1600/crafting+1-30-12+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzqJycp14tXRptO1xxYfZRPxlHv3PRbYvtehqHX74PU4gWF2w1kURMppx4Zm8ARA4MTuHccECYbY42PJMSqlAgTnku4rNFFwxRan_ZS1R5mDkZ3ezz5-PjdgUGZgkMujA6RdhtarzhvV9C/s320/crafting+1-30-12+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chalna actually crafts. <br />
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</tbody></table>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-8464552034974334522012-01-26T11:33:00.000-06:002012-01-26T11:47:06.679-06:00January Stuff<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A very well mannered lunch date at La Madeline</td></tr>
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A random update of random things on a random Thursday seems to be in order. January is it's usual self...totally lacking in Christmas cheer, but here nonetheless. I have been feeling rather blah for the last couple of weeks, but nothing out of the ordinary. I have never been a big fan of this month. :-) The good news is that it's almost over! I am feeling a burst of energy at the moment while I contemplate how much glitter I can use for Colin's class Valentine party and gearing up for a vacation to the cabins in Oklahoma with literally every single one of our best friends. AWESOME! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibfOczHwI_m8iCo9j3xE7UEQMV-ozgFWftmX54uHTDzVr3MpQg9sH2r2xTUBRrokKAqnTMv_9XDQeqZV0Y0JjKKC6zE5JUk5nTUTrn3NCf4uzeKWgz1vUt0ZaxQ6uNE_oaTou06t_IQXnJ/s1600/Colin1-25-12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibfOczHwI_m8iCo9j3xE7UEQMV-ozgFWftmX54uHTDzVr3MpQg9sH2r2xTUBRrokKAqnTMv_9XDQeqZV0Y0JjKKC6zE5JUk5nTUTrn3NCf4uzeKWgz1vUt0ZaxQ6uNE_oaTou06t_IQXnJ/s320/Colin1-25-12.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This guy is the best lunch date ever!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMJggxkBwL3wqRtl4OmWh-NX3yYRKMgh-6UDwspkVIbPsZ1UBzcj9rtPB9EJgk23UPbeYC0nqNMhyphenhyphenAwG3urdSMfHav5WWdU4c3bkMRyD1XD3oBFnoWZ5uOuPs-0PPNBhPgamPSGLDrZc/s1600/Chalna+Cell+Phone+1-24-12+009.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvMJggxkBwL3wqRtl4OmWh-NX3yYRKMgh-6UDwspkVIbPsZ1UBzcj9rtPB9EJgk23UPbeYC0nqNMhyphenhyphenAwG3urdSMfHav5WWdU4c3bkMRyD1XD3oBFnoWZ5uOuPs-0PPNBhPgamPSGLDrZc/s400/Chalna+Cell+Phone+1-24-12+009.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A handsome boy at school</td></tr>
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Colin is blowing me away at the moment in all sorts of ways. It seems like he has changed overnight again and that he is much older and wiser right now than he was even last month at this time. We have the most amazing conversations and I wish almost daily that someone was over my shoulder with a video camera to document the unbelievable things he says. We added a third day on to his school week when we got back from Christmas break and it was the best thing we have ever done. Only 6 children attend school in his class on Fridays, so we added that day to his schedule. His teacher reported back<em> after only his second Friday</em> that he is a completely different child. He loves the tiny group and the back and forth that he gets to have with his teacher and the other students. He has 23 kids in class on the other two days, so this is a huge difference and one that is suiting him extremely well. He told me that "Fridays are peaceful" and "I wish it could be Friday every day!". Bless his heart. Any child on earth would do better with a small teacher to student ratio like that, but Colin REALLY thrives in that environment. It makes me long for a giant trust fun so that I could send him to private school forever. <br />
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After Mrs. Courtney reported to me that Colin was not interacting with the other children at recess and only wanted to play with her, I told Colin's therapist about the situation. Courtney was giving Colin obstacle course like things to do (run to that fence and then gather up 5 rocks and then run back to me) in an effort to get him moving during their outdoor time and not just talking to her. When I mentioned this to his therapist, she popped right in with the idea of Courtney taking another child of similar temperament and asking that kiddo to do the tasks with Colin. Sheri thought that teaming him up with another child would help him create a relationship that he was struggling to do on his own. Well, she is brilliant because it worked perfectly!!! I feel so blessed that we have a teacher who is willing to try new things and had no problem implementing Sheri's advice. She tried it immediately and asked Gabriella (who Colin already clearly liked) to join in. They played that whole recess and have been best buddies ever since! Courtney was excited to tell me about the success and has reported back that they play together all the time now. And - the BEST part - Colin told me on Monday that when they went outside to play, Presley asked Gabriella to play with her. Presley is one of those girls who doesn't want to play with boys and won't include Colin. (Girls will be girls, after all!) Gabriella said, "<strong>No, thanks. I am going to play with Colin</strong>." Oh, melt my heart and soul right there!! I could just kiss that girl!!! Colin was puffed up and grinning from ear to ear when he told me this and I had to hide my face because I teared up right on the spot. That precious girl has no idea what that moment did for Colin, but it certainly did a lot. He talks about her constantly and refers to her as his best friend, which he has never done with a school friend before. He has already informed me that he is making her "a special Valentine that is not Star Wars and has extra hearts and stickers" and also told me that, "We have to stick the stickers on carefully because Gabriella might cry if they came off and I DO NOT want to make Gabriella cry!". I hope she doesn't break his heart right away. ;-) <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk_VVm76nUXteN8gbWIyISj26hQibBh282DstVUGrH0vPqgTDqkAYxTgDNzD8oYcZLu3cA_kvUzRp0vdPsADITI-1ckukNqWOol8zT5WhjWWMvcyWN7eGfi9SYplta2sHg_SK0fl74cM/s1600/003.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk_VVm76nUXteN8gbWIyISj26hQibBh282DstVUGrH0vPqgTDqkAYxTgDNzD8oYcZLu3cA_kvUzRp0vdPsADITI-1ckukNqWOol8zT5WhjWWMvcyWN7eGfi9SYplta2sHg_SK0fl74cM/s400/003.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin and his best girl, Evi</td></tr>
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This month has also arrived with another big change for Colin - reading and writing. He has always struggled with his grasp, ambidextrous issues (switching back and forth constantly without favoring a hand) and low tone in his arms. We still go to bi-weekly OT for this, but he has never been interested in writing and is very awkward with his grip. He is a perfectionist and never likes doing something he isn't automatically good at. Therapy is clearly working all the way around because out of the blue, his skills have jumped leaps and bounds. He writes his name on everything now and practices all the time. It looks great!! He is clearly proud of this accomplishment and is constantly asking to play with his markers and workbooks, which is new and amazing. He used to throw his markers across the room when the "C" in his name didn't look right to him and now he sits and happily writes the whole thing. He doesn't even get upset when part of it doesn't go right - like running out of room and not spacing properly to complete a word. He just shrugs it off now, which is a huge step for the little man. He also loves to sound out words around the house and figure out how they are spelled and can get the first letter of almost any word figured out on his own by sounding it out. Today's exception was "knob". He was pretty mad when I told him there was a such thing as a silent K. ;-) This interest in letters and words is brand spanking new and brings me so much joy. As the only "literary/artistic/math sucks" leaning member of this family, it gave me a sigh of relief. Ha! I think he is going to be reading soon, honestly! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My son, the genius baker.</td></tr>
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Also going in full force this month is Colin's intense obsession with all things Star Wars. He now owns all 6 films on Blu-Ray, as well as Star Wars underwear, pajamas, shirts and shoes. He has the light saber (thanks, Mimi!) and tons of the Lego stuff, too. He loooooves it. His favorite of all the films is "The New Hope" and he watches it from start to finish constantly. He loves the Storm Troopers, Darth Vader and Obi Wan Kenobi (which is Oki-One-Benobi when he says it). I can't get over how he isn't scared during any of the movies...you just never know with this kiddo! Jer is loving this turn of events, let me tell you. :-) Here are a few more snapshots from our month...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Super cool dude and a dog</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin in his fort with Enzo and Evi (the black heap on the chair) :-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fine fort workmanship for a January day. Colin dictated the sign to me. ;-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My latest creation - polenta with garlicky swiss chard and olive oil fried eggs! </td></tr>
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Lastly, as a note that actually does not involve my son, I am heavy into my cooking these days. I have been trying to branch out and try new techniques and push my skill level and I am having the BEST time. That is a whole other post, but suffice it to say that I am still in love with all things food related. :-) And there is your random January update post! </div>
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<br />Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-58613414132949778792012-01-13T11:52:00.000-06:002012-01-13T11:52:34.054-06:00My Shadow<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
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<br />Colin. He is gifted. He is brilliant. He is funny (if you like knock jokes that don't make sense, like I do). He is having a hard time making friends at school, although he doesn't know it yet. The teachers can't get him to play with the other kids at recess...he only wants to play with the conglomeration of adults trying, no doubt in vain, to get a moment of peace in the Texas sunshine. I like to think this is because he is way too smart for a bunch of 4 year olds. :-) Colin is hard to explain, although I have been muddling through it on this blog since he was 6 months old. He sees an awesome therapist who is doing a great job with him. He loves school. He makes the most hysterical faces and comes up with the most brilliant things to play. He is loving in the extreme and he is my shadow. Literally.</div>
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Sometimes, I forget that he is different. I keep deleting the word "different" because everyone is different and I just hate that word, but for the sake of making sense, I will leave it. To say he is smart is too cliche...he knows all the same letters and numbers as every other four year old and he can't read yet and when he writes his name you can only just now actually read it. In these ways, he is so normal. It's something all together different with my Colin...his observations on the world are what remind you that he is gifted. He lives in a special space where everything is just more. He sees more, hears more, tastes more, gives more. His latest teacher mentioned his giftedness to me this morning. If you are around him for any length of time, you see it. He says things often out of the blue that are so profound, they bring tears to my eyes. Sometimes they are so funny that I find myself crying tears of laughter. And sometimes I ache for him. Sometimes I want to turn it off for him, let him be normal, let him be four. But really, when it comes right down to it, I don't want to change him. I just want him to be happy. I want to give him every single opportunity to be whatever he wants to be. I want to eliminate his fears and pain, but what mother on earth doesn't want that? As my husband loves to say, "We all have stuff". And we do. </div>
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Colin had his very first night with a babysitter in December and it went swimmingly. Her name is Rachael and she is just right for Colin...a college student who is about to graduate in early childhood education, a quiet and respectful person, and clearly more responsible that I was at age 21. Everything about her is calming and she came over to get to know Colin before the big night, which was awesome. When she arrived to babysit, she brought crafts to make puppets and stamps and Colin was sold immediately. We had absolutely no problem leaving the house and he was perfect while we were gone. The telling moment came as we spoke to her at the end of the night. She was telling me about how fun and interesting Colin is and how he questioned everything she said and shot down some of her anecdotes. She tried to tell him about Santa Paws, a dog that Santa has....Colin was not having it. He explained to her that he sees Santa everywhere and has lots of books about him and nowhere does it show a dog. Therefore, she is obviously mistaken about the existence of said dog. She told us several other examples and said, "I quickly figured out that you guys must be realists that tell Colin exactly how it and don't encourage whimsical things...he seems so grown-up and takes apart everything that I say to him!" I couldn't help laughing while I explained that we are absolutely NOT those kind of parents. We encourage whimsy and make-believe and childhood joys constantly, but Colin was born too smart for his own good. I am about the farthest thing on the planet from a realist. LOL! We plan to have her back soon and I am so glad that Colin enjoys adults so much. <br />
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The picture at the beginning of this post is the perfect way to describe my days with Colin without using a single word. I grabbed my camera before I sat down so that I could get the shot. We are literally inseparable. He does not do a single thing without me. If I am cooking, he sets up a palate on the kitchen floor and moves all his toys there. He doesn't like to play alone and enlists me in all kinds of games that always involve me playing the part of student or child and him the part of grown-up. The only way I get to cook is by telling him that I am the cafeteria worker at whatever place he is currently running. Last night, he was the tour guide at Legoland and I was the child on the tour. Or he runs the grocery store and I am the patron. Or he is the waiter or hotel worker or teacher or life guard. I spend hours huddled in homemade forts, tucked in beside at least two of our pets and a mountain of books. We play puppets endlessly and Lego's in heavy rotation. We sit together at the computer while he asks long laundry lists of questions he wants to me look up the answer to. We watch his favorite music videos and often we move the living room furniture while he leads me in dances. From the moment he opens his eyes until the moment he shuts them, I am actively engaged with him and ensconced in his world. He is simply not one of those children who will run off and do his own thing. If he wants to watch a "Colin show", he wants me to be on the couch with him. And he doesn't sit beside me, he sits in my lap. As he is getting bigger, his lanky little legs stretch almost all the way to my feet and that is my constant view...his precious little toes floating above mine, television running in the background. He usually begins his chant of, "Mommy, sit on the couch with me! PLEASE!" right as I am finishing up dinner prep. I will always hurry to get things into the oven and then run off to grab my Nook, a pad of paper and pen and whatever cookbook I am currently scouring. I spend our time in front of the television with my head cocked to one side, using one arm to hold Colin in my lap and one arm to flip the pages in my reader or cookbook. Sometimes my neck gets a crick in it from looking over one shoulder for too long and I switch sides. He lays his head back against my chest and my face is always resting on his sweet smelling head as I read. We do this all the time, this little scene on the couch. Every morning that we don't have school, every late afternoon and sometimes in between. He likes lots of blankets, his mama and Enzo to be with him at all times. There are those moments when I wish that he would let me have a spare second to myself...I am human, after all. But I think it is a gift that my sweet boy wants to do nothing but be near me, hold my hand, play with me, sit in my lap, cuddle into my arms. He can do it forever as far as I'm concerned. </div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-4058057322210886822012-01-01T20:00:00.000-06:002012-01-01T20:45:48.310-06:00The Post that Almost WasI wrote a LONG post about the first weekend in December. A LONG POST. A beautifully written, carefully spell-checked masterpiece about the start of the Christmas season. My parents came and spent several amazing days with us, my mom and I shopped ourselves silly and I even got to turn into Cinderella and get all dressed up for a fancy party. I spent a couple of hours writing all about it. And then I deleted the whole damn thing. I was SO mad. So angry, in fact, that I didn't write at all over the next three weeks. I am admittedly a bit of a weirdo when it comes to my writing. Pouring out my heart and soul only to have it disappear with the click of a mouse did something to my brain. I just could not bring myself to start over on that post and then I didn't want to write anything. I can be a 3 year old like that. :-) So now, I am going back in and finishing all of these stories about the last few weeks because it was AH-MAZING. We had the PERFECT Christmas season! And it all started with this party on the first Saturday in December. But I refuse to re-write my post. So just trust me, it was great. The rest of the posts are going to be back dated because I started them all, but didn't finish them.<br />
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Our friend Bryan invited us to his parents big Christmas shindig and it was an absolute blast! We attended it with the Turners and Roberts and we gave those parents a run for their money! Bryan and Eren are two of our very best friends and their parents are so wonderful. We have gotten to know them all pretty well and even more so after we drank the better part of their collection of wine. ;-) It was a fantastic night and I really did feel like a princess to be all dressed up like that. It is very rare and I won't forget that night any time soon! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy Bejeweled Mama</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I still can't believe I got to wear this out!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin LOVES it when we leave. Can't you tell?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We clean up good! I love Jer's tie...I wonder who picked it out? ;-)</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: 0% 50%; border: 0px currentColor; padding: 0px;" /></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-40263774260875607992011-12-31T23:00:00.000-06:002012-01-01T11:35:23.238-06:00The Last Picture of 2011<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Last Picture of 2011</td></tr>
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There are no words for how much I LOVE that a tradition started in 2008 is still going strong! Tonight we celebrated New Years Eve with our usual Shaffer family celebration of delicious food and then I made the boys take our last picture. Colin had SO much fun with it this year and I really don't know how we will ever top the above shot. :-) I have so many posts that are in production right now and I have certainly learned my lesson about procrastinating when it comes to the blog during Christmas. There will be lots of December posts published over the next day or so, but I wanted to post our official last picture right on time. I am beyond happy that we started doing this and I love the collection that I am gathering! I am so blessed! Here are the rest of the shots...Colin took some of his parents and we had LOTS of hysterical outtakes. Colin was having so much fun that he wanted to set the timer and take shots all night...Jer finally gave up, which accounts for the lovely one of me and the peanut. Have I mentioned how much I adore this boy? :-) Goodbye, 2011! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mom and Dad looking stunning! ;-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first try and I LOVE Colin in this! Too blurry to be "official"...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5eMf_bXcHOL-I87zLskAegO2XrYE8AXVbwffMSFRXvw3YFq7m_tqqSrBTKztqPC1zvphhi27Bwr2OCE9p93nVKoCk-2zpx-fFISdR-GlFYTgH-dw_nL8dp8cJU-V9JnYnL4hTWOd-fNM/s1600/NYE+2011+017.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5eMf_bXcHOL-I87zLskAegO2XrYE8AXVbwffMSFRXvw3YFq7m_tqqSrBTKztqPC1zvphhi27Bwr2OCE9p93nVKoCk-2zpx-fFISdR-GlFYTgH-dw_nL8dp8cJU-V9JnYnL4hTWOd-fNM/s400/NYE+2011+017.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The attempt to get Enzo in the shot</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMZebxB8Fa4jWxFq-zkzsFrfNwHm6ZFbHArCQEI9yQxhj6D651DK-E9GbzZZCpNP_vBvYZplPxscmYDIMdy8Egk3Ot6Fh_zVb9n_-euFZ6RTehfK4W0cQ_WGqWrvaYabAbJO7roRE-vU/s1600/NYE+2011+020.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtMZebxB8Fa4jWxFq-zkzsFrfNwHm6ZFbHArCQEI9yQxhj6D651DK-E9GbzZZCpNP_vBvYZplPxscmYDIMdy8Egk3Ot6Fh_zVb9n_-euFZ6RTehfK4W0cQ_WGqWrvaYabAbJO7roRE-vU/s400/NYE+2011+020.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loves the camera...don't know where he gets that! ;-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_L0yMcSaTVLqg2CaC6_weXqvOFgm7T9B5hWH44m_R-NRHpOVaNPDaViO9ExSU_sXDIqzFDjCYrAWCPH8ZlEhjNk2eDpmkN3xVG7docXD36f57yMnpN9fJXV_bfkA_srf1HEOurTh9wo/s1600/NYE+2011+024.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_L0yMcSaTVLqg2CaC6_weXqvOFgm7T9B5hWH44m_R-NRHpOVaNPDaViO9ExSU_sXDIqzFDjCYrAWCPH8ZlEhjNk2eDpmkN3xVG7docXD36f57yMnpN9fJXV_bfkA_srf1HEOurTh9wo/s400/NYE+2011+024.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I super love this one, too! We had so much fun!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi71UFYGlfUJ1BOyDYvaWiPpPjp6wbL9iiHiKs-6JIreu-pAFOPKNe71WXtSvxWCl4juYIN77s0wFqOmN_REnxsrhjGnf21LNsksVnHPuRhKqVgG1lBHW_gKN3kly-ixaP8xYkwX_ddb4c/s1600/NYE+2011+026.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi71UFYGlfUJ1BOyDYvaWiPpPjp6wbL9iiHiKs-6JIreu-pAFOPKNe71WXtSvxWCl4juYIN77s0wFqOmN_REnxsrhjGnf21LNsksVnHPuRhKqVgG1lBHW_gKN3kly-ixaP8xYkwX_ddb4c/s400/NYE+2011+026.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Last Picture of Two Fruitcakes, 2011</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: 0% 50%; border: 0px currentColor; padding: 0px;" /></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-60027633361731621022011-12-25T13:28:00.000-06:002012-01-05T13:48:31.585-06:00It's Christmas, Ya'll!FINALLY! CHRISTMAS! THE BIG DAY! HERE! Let me tell you, we had the most fantastic, blessed, amazing and wonderful Christmas possible! Colin woke up at about 6:30am and then went back to sleep when I got in bed with him! I still can't believe it! He woke up and called for me, but was clearly not totally awake and didn't realize what day it actually was yet. ;-) He fell right back to sleep when I got in bed and we slept until almost 8am!! WOW!! That was my Christmas present right there!
When he woke up the second time, he jumped up and was beside himself to check out the spread. He is such a special little boy. Have I mentioned that lately? Where most children (me included!) would run out and begin tearing into everything, Colin was very slow and thoughtful. He carefully checked out all the wrapped presents and then would slowly decide which one he wanted to open. He immediately asked us to save all the ribbons! GOOD GRACIOUS! I almost cried over that one, it was so cute. My grandmother used to do that, so it was adorable and hilarious at the same time. ;-) He made sure that <em>each and every bow</em> was accounted for as he opened all the presents. He loved the trampoline from Santa and was especially excited that Santa remembered his Cabela's truck and red vacuum. He got two big Lego kits from us and literally jumped into our arms to say thank you when he saw them. That just made my year. Colin was so leisurely that it took quite awhile to open everything! Once he finished, he and Jer immediately started putting things together while I got breakfast underway. (We kept our pajamas on all day, I might add) I used like 12 eggs to make our stuff and tried to put them all down the garbage disposal at once, which apparently is too many. LOL! Jer ended up under the sink to fix the back-up and it was so funny! He is such a wonderful husband...first because he knows how to fix everything and second because he never gets upset and always takes me doing ridiculous things in stride! I feel so lucky to have a husband that treats me so wonderfully! He is a keeper, that one! :-) <br />
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Jer's parents came over soon after I got breakfast out of the oven and that was such a GIANT treat! We have never gotten to see them on Christmas day (since we moved back to Texas) and I loved having everyone over, relaxing and eating and playing! What a perfect morning! I just can't say enough...we are so very blessed!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFmbO5AYMlFL5Z4FY-D8Te8_ZwhRCDS2S4F0ukBeY7t8h2phdXtQOKaeMrXYUcGZEbKQ6xRMQdnTgbLe4BZ6rS8FMy8dyBMkmPQQqFhrAPLJmehfmUoANGZ27xnOzLESrHWI8bteYH0vw/s1600/Christmas+2011+001.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFmbO5AYMlFL5Z4FY-D8Te8_ZwhRCDS2S4F0ukBeY7t8h2phdXtQOKaeMrXYUcGZEbKQ6xRMQdnTgbLe4BZ6rS8FMy8dyBMkmPQQqFhrAPLJmehfmUoANGZ27xnOzLESrHWI8bteYH0vw/s400/Christmas+2011+001.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking out the spread for the first time!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxlNoR_60Mo95MIRaZNPPkx3FiJUArXDgM8ifPfd86c71TBypQlJVONN8dkneiehoeeNRD-s3OgaXp6wZi0LgFwesMvCFrb5JolbFFMYpd2JLutrA3irIZjVesXAqQAmwqnlMGnai98Vc/s1600/Christmas+2011+004.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxlNoR_60Mo95MIRaZNPPkx3FiJUArXDgM8ifPfd86c71TBypQlJVONN8dkneiehoeeNRD-s3OgaXp6wZi0LgFwesMvCFrb5JolbFFMYpd2JLutrA3irIZjVesXAqQAmwqnlMGnai98Vc/s400/Christmas+2011+004.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that sweet boy showing off his loot!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdqHps0ls-GIUUJvdbzQ5opaTBFGRPah7pH5di495acjIB4y26xC6g2xqksrplLfcZXn52mZ5b9WQM_z9iYuqPGt12MESfWjSXAZ4H4K8LiwCUOv6r07C4EqCbtdR7qBIs2NC8zVQooY/s1600/Christmas+2011+016.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxdqHps0ls-GIUUJvdbzQ5opaTBFGRPah7pH5di495acjIB4y26xC6g2xqksrplLfcZXn52mZ5b9WQM_z9iYuqPGt12MESfWjSXAZ4H4K8LiwCUOv6r07C4EqCbtdR7qBIs2NC8zVQooY/s400/Christmas+2011+016.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The vacuum! Yea!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidc_BxcQu5dJABU5FuNupiVlv01deENWkxgweRTJPaRuinTnFFvTWDI0ymOLXEtH1qrB06xuXkyF8NPXGgKF5qN3gi6280szDqI4Idz5qx8OH4w1iJXZCiIIt_tCIw-UVN0oMA72H_hg/s1600/Christmas+2011+020.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidc_BxcQu5dJABU5FuNupiVlv01deENWkxgweRTJPaRuinTnFFvTWDI0ymOLXEtH1qrB06xuXkyF8NPXGgKF5qN3gi6280szDqI4Idz5qx8OH4w1iJXZCiIIt_tCIw-UVN0oMA72H_hg/s400/Christmas+2011+020.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cabela's Truck! Thank goodness!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE_VKXvEGxPi4WKURrmpTSlF2wqQGEG1HV5DmxOk1OMMuX5xSTsvn1cXC5yqGQAL40uw9pfBWRCd52gFlGxQC4dGxrEc33_HsSENkj3J_WSCoRLuWcmcEQaqQbxWNj5KkSfwk0zVRCiPI/s1600/Christmas+2011+022.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE_VKXvEGxPi4WKURrmpTSlF2wqQGEG1HV5DmxOk1OMMuX5xSTsvn1cXC5yqGQAL40uw9pfBWRCd52gFlGxQC4dGxrEc33_HsSENkj3J_WSCoRLuWcmcEQaqQbxWNj5KkSfwk0zVRCiPI/s400/Christmas+2011+022.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">He was SO excited!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3361dN1Ca0Mrqv8ce7qBNZjstvs3CEBwTuRcq_EPOV0ME5Okh04dPXoyAONRij3em-USSckUC5WdyiWcXaMz02Nq86m9LgEDx96dJfyT_SXPZ9GgBGBL4f4DVztn4RKiHLQl0jhrsRAM/s1600/Christmas+2011+025.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3361dN1Ca0Mrqv8ce7qBNZjstvs3CEBwTuRcq_EPOV0ME5Okh04dPXoyAONRij3em-USSckUC5WdyiWcXaMz02Nq86m9LgEDx96dJfyT_SXPZ9GgBGBL4f4DVztn4RKiHLQl0jhrsRAM/s400/Christmas+2011+025.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Glowy Christmas Morning...and an Easy Bake Oven!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKVwC-A-KzHYKDnXfEsHMxIvNZSjHa-uN0XTj4TtO0FN8kzwqKDBmzBk8xTgw-7H5exJ9IvGRys9N5e5nwVJ3DIf_LDJojHiJ0pr1GJgOTG5dpNXCAAzKNoyTH9OZWCy-yXUPgDO0j0Y/s1600/Christmas+2011+034.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLKVwC-A-KzHYKDnXfEsHMxIvNZSjHa-uN0XTj4TtO0FN8kzwqKDBmzBk8xTgw-7H5exJ9IvGRys9N5e5nwVJ3DIf_LDJojHiJ0pr1GJgOTG5dpNXCAAzKNoyTH9OZWCy-yXUPgDO0j0Y/s400/Christmas+2011+034.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucky Boy!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzI5AYWZtTq1jcp4BrvuLSU98vA8vbBGXVrri8nvxDIRPTa4V5oQphKJdtoiTotG0juudGayVmQSTalNOwDrNJnNbJD6oexMf2Iogw83mKLWkWTSp9rix4NcFZqeVyGyvnqXewEtE_8SY/s1600/Christmas+2011+036.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzI5AYWZtTq1jcp4BrvuLSU98vA8vbBGXVrri8nvxDIRPTa4V5oQphKJdtoiTotG0juudGayVmQSTalNOwDrNJnNbJD6oexMf2Iogw83mKLWkWTSp9rix4NcFZqeVyGyvnqXewEtE_8SY/s400/Christmas+2011+036.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joy</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_HyutSydSey1h7qiIhIsfcELO3kKG56ra7GtQa2c7LVfGKbuWHMkEH-xjMK5eANR9vlvR8idCLDR20b_m6T5RrQkYm3GJ-1pwbG4QvAekku1RqTp8p_6b3GoMLS5c4eW1nzqDJGSEp0E/s1600/Christmas+2011+045.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_HyutSydSey1h7qiIhIsfcELO3kKG56ra7GtQa2c7LVfGKbuWHMkEH-xjMK5eANR9vlvR8idCLDR20b_m6T5RrQkYm3GJ-1pwbG4QvAekku1RqTp8p_6b3GoMLS5c4eW1nzqDJGSEp0E/s400/Christmas+2011+045.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LEGO'S!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuIBhlSd6mO-eLjNwuNpmrTV4klygzcQB-KmkGdJCfFl2PiQbDiZMQf15qg4Dpq-YCdXyPxrrUs7kYB5zr904mRHmNAwfuDSrMSkM0AxxIUPJAb1zj9LNhdr4KKesIAUkNkAEdCaSzyos/s1600/Christmas+2011+047.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuIBhlSd6mO-eLjNwuNpmrTV4klygzcQB-KmkGdJCfFl2PiQbDiZMQf15qg4Dpq-YCdXyPxrrUs7kYB5zr904mRHmNAwfuDSrMSkM0AxxIUPJAb1zj9LNhdr4KKesIAUkNkAEdCaSzyos/s400/Christmas+2011+047.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Making "Wuggle Pets" with Mom Mom!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKfeUh8zL4_qLHVlzt7Pyz_PQ4pGDpmsloiMsc4nMLQ6dHYsXMWjuVfLAkoWcshDT4C7H9ObxSXk-XHbwrbRNemojX7ugp99kxwy_fXelrVJhm11lIv4NghanjhYtoBvShT38e29YWGE/s1600/Christmas+2011+048.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVKfeUh8zL4_qLHVlzt7Pyz_PQ4pGDpmsloiMsc4nMLQ6dHYsXMWjuVfLAkoWcshDT4C7H9ObxSXk-XHbwrbRNemojX7ugp99kxwy_fXelrVJhm11lIv4NghanjhYtoBvShT38e29YWGE/s400/Christmas+2011+048.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pop Pop carefully reading the Wuggle Pet Instructions! ;-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PERFECT Christmas Morning!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My AMAZING husband under the sink...with antlers. I LOVE HIM.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-90829872079754193802011-12-24T22:28:00.000-06:002012-01-05T13:17:40.071-06:00Christmas Eve 2011Christmas Eve. I don't even know where to start. This year was totally different, which made for a lot of mixed emotions, the presiding one being that we had a fabulous time. My parents house is still under major renovation and there were no decorations hung there and nowhere for guests to sleep. There was just no way that we could have our usual Christmas there. Now, it should be noted that we decided last year that we would stay at our house for Christmas Eve this year. Getting "Santa" to my parents house in Tyler was a logistical nightmare last year and we knew that Colin was going to be old enough this year that we needed to stay home to preserve the secret of Santa Claus. That was hard to imagine because NOBODY and I repeat NOBODY does Christmas like my mom. It truly is important to create your own traditions as an adult with your own family, and going to my parents house during the season will remain an important one for the Shaffer household. We had planned to go there for either the days leading up to Christmas and come home on Christmas Eve or drive there on Christmas Day and spend the days after Christmas. But we didn't get much farther into planning because the renovations are far from done and it just wasn't an option. SO, we stayed here at our house for the duration of the holiday. It was actually surprising wonderful because there was no stress to travel and we got to really relax and enjoy the whole holiday. That part, I loved. I did, however, truly miss being surrounded by my big loud hysterical family. There is a moment when we are all together, with the cousins all playing and the adults all eating and the absolute joy of my parents house decked from the rafters with Christmas stuff when you just feel at peace. Colin missed Jackson and Pryce a LOT and asked about them so much. The only way I can describe my parents house at Christmas is "happy". It is just so happy and full of joy. That was GREATLY missed this year.
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We decided to go over to Jer's parents (mom and step-dad) house on Christmas Eve in the afternoon and have our special meal and let Colin open his presents from them. That was AWESOME because we normally have our Christmas with them on the 22nd before we leave for Tyler. It was great fun to be here that week and then go over to hang out with Mom Mom and Pop Pop before the big Santa prep started. :-) We had a great time! Mom Mom made our now family favorite Christmas meal, Seafood Gratin. I LOVE THAT STUFF! Colin opened presents and played with his toys and we ate a TON of food. I brought meatballs and a salami and cheese tray with roasted grapes. I also made Pop Pop his very own pecan pie for a a present and also whipped up my mom's lemon cake to take. It is amazing that I can still wear my pants after all this awesome food! Colin loved his presents and was especially taken with his Lightning McQueen remote controlled car. He thinks it is the coolest thing ever and has been playing with it constantly ever since! Jer's dad and step-mom and sisters got Colin the Leapster LeapPad and let me tell you, those two presents have been in CONSTANT rotation. Grandparents always seem to win when it comes to gifts! With the amount of time that Colin is on that LeapPad, I am hoping it teaches him to read. And do math. But I digress. :-)
After we stuffed ourselves silly and had as much fun as possible, we loaded back up to head home for the big night. Colin and I jumped right in to making cookies for Santa and reindeer food. Reindeer food is our newest tradition and one that we will absolutely be keeping. It was so simple and Colin had the most fun putting it out in the yard! He was taking it so seriously! Colin dictated a note for me to write to Santa and then informed me that he only likes chocolate milk. I made some that we left out with a few cookies and the note. I really should devote an entire post to our other new tradition this year, which is "Elf on the Shelf". We purchased the elf for Colin this year and it came in a beautiful boxed set with a book and instructions. Colin named him "Snowflake" and he would perch somewhere all day in our house before flying home to the North Pole every night to report back to Santa about Colin and how he did that day. He would then fly home before we woke up, but land in a new spot. Every morning for the whole month, Colin would BOLT out of bed and begin looking everywhere for Snowflake. It was so precious! You can't touch him or else he will lose his magic and Colin was so very careful not to go near him and only chat with him from afar. I loved absolutely every minute of it. Colin actually got teary on Christmas Eve because we knew that Snowflake would get picked up by Santa that night and would not return to us until next year. Colin asked to get his picture taken with him (his last perch was in the middle of the Christmas tree) and then sweetly told him goodbye, that he would miss him and that he loved him. Ever since that night, he has asked me randomly what I think Snowflake is doing at the North Pole and happily chatting about when he will come back. What a wonderful new tradition!! After we finished up with everything, Colin went to bed and Jer and I started to put everything together. I had wrapped everything in the days leading up to Christmas Eve, so all I had to do was make a million bows and Jer put together Colin's new trampoline. We listened to Christmas music and carefully laid out Santa. It was so peaceful and wonderful. It was just us together in our cozy house with our sweet little family surrounding us and I honestly loved every minute of that night. How lucky I am!
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Christmas Eve! Click on the picture to see it in it's glory! :-)</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-69428479121670476612011-12-22T22:20:00.000-06:002012-01-05T11:58:42.366-06:00Christmas Lights at Texas Motor Speedway<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin got to stand and look out the sunroof the whole time!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jer was not happy that I disobeyed the rules and got out of the car...but I had to!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How can you pass up getting a picture of this? :-)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The slurpie made the trip even more fun!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin loved this part the most!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZK6ukLNwpfM6WWo1iLHphyphenhypheneJaZwdTIrV1gL4i57GsssSheLpVigVQEVNHuvdsYjFj2QaJrt-glEMRzf-yL_2jUfR4EY2dDXwsttFTxPVW6bgSccWcTIzfeatjn_ec1Uk5htUMnhCE8q8/s1600/Book+Exchange+021.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZK6ukLNwpfM6WWo1iLHphyphenhypheneJaZwdTIrV1gL4i57GsssSheLpVigVQEVNHuvdsYjFj2QaJrt-glEMRzf-yL_2jUfR4EY2dDXwsttFTxPVW6bgSccWcTIzfeatjn_ec1Uk5htUMnhCE8q8/s400/Book+Exchange+021.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was my favorite part! What a GREAT time we all had! </td></tr>
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</div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-66585251029936028052011-12-21T22:21:00.000-06:002012-01-05T12:28:26.771-06:00The Annual PJ PlaydateSo our playdates have been going strong for years now and the annual Christmas version is getting cuter, louder and bigger as time goes on. The babies are not babies anymore and now the overall din of a huge group of 4 year old boys and their not-so-little siblings is like a dull roar. But it is still wonderful. Eren hosted it again this year and added a book exchange to the fun. All the moms brought delicious treats and most of us even wore our own pajamas, which was <i>awesome</i>. I continue to be extremely grateful for finding these women and their children at exactly the time in my life when I would need them most. Sometimes the fact that Colin is an only child can hurt me a little bit more during this season because I remember the joy that my sisters and I shared together growing up. But having all of these fun things to do with our best friends certainly lessens the pain because Colin and these kiddos have grown up together and are exceptionally close. He gets to share these moments with his de facto brothers and sisters and it is so much fun to watch! We have the most wonderful kids!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg13oVbfrmWEp-Fs4gw_0BX2V8o6OJooJEveNXR6M_OyQ6FFP4UYjilqfgjQXCd74WCSDUZ8RsgmtTvpcBV6oRD0SWY4IQ0HgtFcKcTWzp7hoQwNxO6FZrmaoHAsSvPinlQqd7bskOLjc/s1600/Book+Exchange+029.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg13oVbfrmWEp-Fs4gw_0BX2V8o6OJooJEveNXR6M_OyQ6FFP4UYjilqfgjQXCd74WCSDUZ8RsgmtTvpcBV6oRD0SWY4IQ0HgtFcKcTWzp7hoQwNxO6FZrmaoHAsSvPinlQqd7bskOLjc/s400/Book+Exchange+029.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trevor (I think...could be indentical twin Elliot!), Colin, Anders and Ryan picking out their books!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjE9CBYd9K1PnoMNR8jwyCWVpRhJCN7dl5XhyphenhyphenlbWaHhBUn8rnxGrn_yTVIqhvJ5vOpQUxFqqOyyO9sewkiIzlsmUZ_CN9QKTFwtytOpwMERdHLA2-J-lipuUBaFPuE_Bm_ty7UVHE1SuU/s1600/Book+Exchange+030.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjE9CBYd9K1PnoMNR8jwyCWVpRhJCN7dl5XhyphenhyphenlbWaHhBUn8rnxGrn_yTVIqhvJ5vOpQUxFqqOyyO9sewkiIzlsmUZ_CN9QKTFwtytOpwMERdHLA2-J-lipuUBaFPuE_Bm_ty7UVHE1SuU/s400/Book+Exchange+030.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at all these cutie pies!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQAyWb01NMKjRlQWRWmkZ_aL5n-M8gP-mY7l3B6KH9nSnrWL7tbSF_1aL7ubsLAjBZ6WlL6Etf7ZAfN6FsIQXBJuTX2xl4jt27PY8OMbL1QhMmu9aVg499JqrBLMpfgtjnAoPOyBN31c/s1600/Book+Exchange+032.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQAyWb01NMKjRlQWRWmkZ_aL5n-M8gP-mY7l3B6KH9nSnrWL7tbSF_1aL7ubsLAjBZ6WlL6Etf7ZAfN6FsIQXBJuTX2xl4jt27PY8OMbL1QhMmu9aVg499JqrBLMpfgtjnAoPOyBN31c/s400/Book+Exchange+032.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of cute boys! I love Colin's moose pajamas!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids that we actually managed to get in a picture together. :-)</td></tr>
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</div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-86216597469815494062011-12-20T21:00:00.000-06:002012-01-03T18:59:05.229-06:00A Merry TwosomeThere is a lot that I want to remember about the Christmas season of 2011, but toward the top of the list has to be the dynamic between Enzo and Colin and how much it has changed and grown in such a short window of time. Enzo is an Italian Greyhound, which is code for skiddish and not fond of children. Colin is a child. The combination was not exactly ideal. Enzo has never been mean to Colin, but he <em>did</em> like to go the other direction when toddler Colin headed his direction. That has been the way of things for a long while...Enzo kind of just stayed out of Colin's reach unless he was being offered food. Clearly he has no problem accepting food. But I digress. ;-)<br />
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During the last two months, something dramatically changed. I don't know exactly how it happened, but one day, things were different. Enzo started getting cozy with Colin on the couch and then wanted to start getting into his bed during the bedtime routine. I found myself posting lots of pictures on Facebook of Colin and Enzo together. And it became very clear all of a sudden that Colin had become Enzo's "boy" and Enzo is Colin's best friend. It is the ultimate childhood relationship, I think...a boy and his dog. I am so glad that my two boys have each other! <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh91xRc-rhlVSKwgDoXKFNwn4zjiDb_0mAMNmWXuIOm0ZyAMUgdLiQkbfpNVoXnPuZDrh5zWsCmEa5YuVGSUH-tXtrZ6fP5t3pjRxpMkgvNaYQt4oIc_V_rF86gwtaX_QzM-Fl0aaBIixA/s1600/EnzoColin+003.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh91xRc-rhlVSKwgDoXKFNwn4zjiDb_0mAMNmWXuIOm0ZyAMUgdLiQkbfpNVoXnPuZDrh5zWsCmEa5YuVGSUH-tXtrZ6fP5t3pjRxpMkgvNaYQt4oIc_V_rF86gwtaX_QzM-Fl0aaBIixA/s400/EnzoColin+003.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeR-EMBAEWxSai6PGSSORUDE1B0uXGQqEfPkVIVZ3goHpsALBMJqQvpGGF4kNrorA85GWO1m4XpQGy6c4W82YCaoT82Nwb-98g21_ApCGKIHGWjF4maAiCHhJnZMVPFNvQHNlPbYncjG0/s1600/EnzoColin+016.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeR-EMBAEWxSai6PGSSORUDE1B0uXGQqEfPkVIVZ3goHpsALBMJqQvpGGF4kNrorA85GWO1m4XpQGy6c4W82YCaoT82Nwb-98g21_ApCGKIHGWjF4maAiCHhJnZMVPFNvQHNlPbYncjG0/s400/EnzoColin+016.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDTiEpahTxLK4g_qp3maNaOr8nAt2ulYKsWp2rTTAy5Ha0ufZcLKsTXrLWAJM8cHerB2lXZRAYJO7ZrHTTa_zlVBNvWkaJaWaa8JC6oyyfUWkFusKh7ye7YhVQcppjqvxnvSIxNLq5K4E/s1600/ColinEnzo+004.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDTiEpahTxLK4g_qp3maNaOr8nAt2ulYKsWp2rTTAy5Ha0ufZcLKsTXrLWAJM8cHerB2lXZRAYJO7ZrHTTa_zlVBNvWkaJaWaa8JC6oyyfUWkFusKh7ye7YhVQcppjqvxnvSIxNLq5K4E/s400/ColinEnzo+004.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LOVE</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: 0% 50%; border: 0px currentColor; padding: 0px;" /></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-10450582603180999152011-12-19T22:12:00.000-06:002012-01-03T16:13:18.695-06:00Cheesy Christmas 2011I have been waiting for months and it finally happened...the infamous annual "Turner Family Cheesy Christmas Party". It was, of course, hysterical. Bryan and Eren are seriously the funniest and most wonderful couple in the world. I would gladly watch any sitcom devoted to those two. ;-) The premise is to wear the ugliest and most cheesy Christmas outfit ever and also impress the crowd with the funniest White Elephant gift. This year, we took a bottle of Drakkar Noir and a set of plastic bracelets that said, "I LOVE BOYS" in neon. I thought it was pretty classy, if I do say so myself. I made jalapeno bacon poppers and some candy cookies and bought matching turtlenecks for me and Jer. They were solid black with red stockings all over and they were absolutely hideous. I LOVED IT. While it is hard to pick a single favorite moment from this party, it would have to be walking in to find that Lindsey and Frank had made sweatshirts to wear using other peoples family pictures. Lindsey choose us and Frank choose the Turners and I had tears literally rolling down my face when I saw them. It was absolutely HYSTERICAL. We look good on a sweatshirt, I tell you! We have also started a new tradition lately that was passed down from Nate. He has a signature move where he takes a "pass out picture" from everywhere they go and the more inappropriate the setting, the better. Like you will be looking through random vacation pictures of their family and then BOOM, you see Nate laying on the floor pretending to be passed out in the middle of a hike or at the dinner table. We get the biggest kick out of these photos and they usually make me laugh until my stomach hurts. ;-) Last summer, we start posing the famous pass out shot at some of our group parties or date nights and they are so funny that I can't stand it. We even took one all dressed up during the fancy party at Bryan's parents! (I know this is lame humor, but I am already aware that I am a DORK.) Bryan posed our biggest shot yet during their party and I will probably be laughing at that one for a LONG time. :-) Cheers!
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfjk9uWaROJs49BLFnWwUZ2O7RakTw7TolsHBOSc_-N1lxZoKz2M5PJNc6l48kTtntdX06arnADQnEDDIsJywyil1s52wZFC6ecApxsxAgeKy_-7nHeA8cqJ2pSbCjxQVYP1P2uCAtYsQ/s1600/2011-12-18+Turner+Christmas+Party.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfjk9uWaROJs49BLFnWwUZ2O7RakTw7TolsHBOSc_-N1lxZoKz2M5PJNc6l48kTtntdX06arnADQnEDDIsJywyil1s52wZFC6ecApxsxAgeKy_-7nHeA8cqJ2pSbCjxQVYP1P2uCAtYsQ/s400/2011-12-18+Turner+Christmas+Party.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: 0% 50%; border: 0px currentColor; padding: 0px;" /></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-43088542847744447242011-12-18T22:22:00.000-06:002012-01-05T12:35:20.301-06:00Christmas Cards!This year, Pinterest has dominated my holiday decorating and I am SO glad! It is no secret how much I love Christmas cards. <i>LOVE THEM</i>.
Every year, I use the fridge to display them all, but I have been looking for a better way. Two years ago, I hung them around the mantle, but ours is rather small and it looked pretty cluttered and I ran out of room quickly. Last year, I went back to covering the fridge, which is cute, but I wanted them in sight more often. I found the idea on Pinterest to run ribbon over kitchen cabinets (making the doors look like presents) and pin them there. That was my plan, but then at the last minute, I decided to move it to the entry closet door right as you walk in. It made the door look like a giant present, which was super cute long before the cards started rolling in. Then Colin and I had a blast making the pins, which are just tiny clothes pins that we put Christmas craft stickers on. It turned out absolutely adorable and it was one of my favorite things in the house this year. These cards make me feel cozy and loved and I don't think it will EVER get old to receive them and put them out on display! We even got several more after this picture was taken! I LOVE IT!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNs4Jv-FnBQM6jlAwK9NgV27gCdawgfj3qQARauYlyDwnpxR7NxT_YhlhCLKG_ToLunZq63ryme0zP6pW-JDlNH4yWBqk8cP4cqsBujd8cCyS9cZ3t5oNwHCn51VTzMTvikBO0Kyx7qA/s1600/Christmas+Card+Door+010.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLNs4Jv-FnBQM6jlAwK9NgV27gCdawgfj3qQARauYlyDwnpxR7NxT_YhlhCLKG_ToLunZq63ryme0zP6pW-JDlNH4yWBqk8cP4cqsBujd8cCyS9cZ3t5oNwHCn51VTzMTvikBO0Kyx7qA/s400/Christmas+Card+Door+010.JPG" /></a> </div>
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</div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7089543843890875715.post-19583827326045319182011-12-15T21:52:00.000-06:002012-01-01T21:15:24.879-06:00Colin's Class Christmas Party!Somehow, another year has passed and I was able to attend my SECOND annual preschool Christmas extravaganza today. I really honestly don't know how it happened. Five minutes ago, Colin was in Miss Gina's class. And now here we are. Where does the time go?!? I wonder how many more times I will say that over the next 50 years? Probably at least twice. Being a mother really turns you into a cliche. :-)<br />
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Due to the fact that I am <strike>completely insane </strike>slightly addicted to cooking, I decided to make Colin's teacher gifts this year. We spent literally all day Wednesday baking. I LOVED IT. This is honestly one of the very tip top reasons that I love this season. I love to make people happy. Seriously, I know that sounds over the top cheesy, but I get my kicks from surprising people with something that makes them super deliriously happy. I made a huge batch of chocolate chip/pecan/toffee cookies and my homemade-from-scratch-awesome-carb-filled-heaven-scented cinnamon rolls. I see those cinnamon rolls in my dreams. And this is the time of year that I make batch after batch and pray that I can still wear my pants in January. Which I never can. But that is another post. Anyway...</div>
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I made a pan of the rolls for Miss Courtney and Miss Blake and Colin was very quick to inform me that he HAD to bring presents to Miss Gina and Miss Heather from last year. SO, we arrived at school this morning with wrapped baked goods up to our eyeballs. Colin has gotten into dictating very detailed notes to me whenever he gives gifts and the cards did not disappoint! He comes up with cutest things to say and I am 99% sure that he asked Miss Blake on a date in her card. He asked her to "come have dinner at my house and see my beautiful Christmas tree". Yeah....that sounds way too much like a date for my liking. Their class party was a Grinch themed pajama party and the teachers were dressed so cute! Colin was a big fan of the "Grinchy Green Juice". Super precious! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pizza at school is still the coolest party ever</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7i3IiQKLpgrbEpJx1TRnZmJvOxlT9Fq2iCTxhDqG0I0Q6cc4Kl-ab1XoEu9IJosAqmJceA1b2TMQmqup6s6kNhLtZz0ikUL071ieaRAVjekIbt7G_eP7eJGDCJnSVVUuHBBc9StRD7vQ/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+454.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7i3IiQKLpgrbEpJx1TRnZmJvOxlT9Fq2iCTxhDqG0I0Q6cc4Kl-ab1XoEu9IJosAqmJceA1b2TMQmqup6s6kNhLtZz0ikUL071ieaRAVjekIbt7G_eP7eJGDCJnSVVUuHBBc9StRD7vQ/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+454.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green and red food = AWESOME</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5U1Aut49P0wW_SYQM5VGlHYkgUIjEeN2NbcKZssWzq6rvr5DkROze8oe3i7VoOFlbUdndjOn96qWuV0eaGGxwAFwfdfQCN-m3fM2hQP8fXD1GqIc1YcH2Ok-FvIzJJAc0FrP0CGOYfGA/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+458.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5U1Aut49P0wW_SYQM5VGlHYkgUIjEeN2NbcKZssWzq6rvr5DkROze8oe3i7VoOFlbUdndjOn96qWuV0eaGGxwAFwfdfQCN-m3fM2hQP8fXD1GqIc1YcH2Ok-FvIzJJAc0FrP0CGOYfGA/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+458.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laughing with his friends at lunch</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQJ6o9zqmBlLOjajfjHsQYO2K67eqIZ24B30SKKtcm2HlGKJDHQONwqJh13YNfOCqs1pSjf0oW4PM5zEDIAOO6fwuCqGA7trBHTW3nYVOG790b76yFdcrvQ1rN2hDeDsMBsSEaHuvFX0/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+464.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKQJ6o9zqmBlLOjajfjHsQYO2K67eqIZ24B30SKKtcm2HlGKJDHQONwqJh13YNfOCqs1pSjf0oW4PM5zEDIAOO6fwuCqGA7trBHTW3nYVOG790b76yFdcrvQ1rN2hDeDsMBsSEaHuvFX0/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+464.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musical chairs at a 4 year old party is ADORABLE</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqZsbFTwGq9cJOpKbcQ2HDiPOht0q6RtH-FLK3s3hbSzOI76Wj-DDnaL0ST4dt-23ajpQuE4ulJgmyRXzEPHaAWoqjWICKDXwwx22HiMbSGFjzgPzeeHH17VL3vvIlMxSQaUrtoQosFvk/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+472.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqZsbFTwGq9cJOpKbcQ2HDiPOht0q6RtH-FLK3s3hbSzOI76Wj-DDnaL0ST4dt-23ajpQuE4ulJgmyRXzEPHaAWoqjWICKDXwwx22HiMbSGFjzgPzeeHH17VL3vvIlMxSQaUrtoQosFvk/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+472.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Miss Courtney stopping the music! LOVE Colin's face here!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvZ9MR8WY3SBb_8uLtLQ_OY-nK7AzMAW-QtnM933CUVxhbKEmK1tPBH43Nq9T5YItaPsSh_DKlW4JzB1g9pqOCFAn83To4OAlwR8Px6TP09kEJgUUuMOqgmYGap8ZPFc9bYNxTVrLHcg/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+478.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvZ9MR8WY3SBb_8uLtLQ_OY-nK7AzMAW-QtnM933CUVxhbKEmK1tPBH43Nq9T5YItaPsSh_DKlW4JzB1g9pqOCFAn83To4OAlwR8Px6TP09kEJgUUuMOqgmYGap8ZPFc9bYNxTVrLHcg/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+478.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colin (far right) and his whole class opening their book exchange presents</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFD-7elkB_a1anDQDVwvmPpfnonr0N80V5fWw-KWlZV_pdTr5jgU0l6pZlcnsfmUyrSsZQvr-erb-B9AZP1wHRTDoVWaqYr2v5hHAR0EdiOOX99-GLjSuCEE2VaQ3oKkZNmX1h0RC3A0/s1600/chalna+cell+phone+pics+492.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsFD-7elkB_a1anDQDVwvmPpfnonr0N80V5fWw-KWlZV_pdTr5jgU0l6pZlcnsfmUyrSsZQvr-erb-B9AZP1wHRTDoVWaqYr2v5hHAR0EdiOOX99-GLjSuCEE2VaQ3oKkZNmX1h0RC3A0/s400/chalna+cell+phone+pics+492.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cinnamon rolls. JOY in swirled dough form.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: 0% 50%; border: 0px currentColor; padding: 0px;" /></a></div>Chalnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08746941285786568794noreply@blogger.com0