Blessings

Praise God! We are beyond thrilled for this new addition to our family, though I'm suffering from the disillusionment that comes with nausea. We have been waiting for this for a long time, and it was beginning to be a struggle to trust in God's timing for this. But, He is ever faithful. And his blessings have abounded far beyond what I could expect, allowing so much joy in this pregnancy as I travel through it with two good friends, all of us due within a couple weeks of each other. We found out over New Year's, and it was the best way to end one year and start another. We had our first doctor appointment today - everything looks great, and I'm due September 10. I have been feeling worse than I did with Avery, who blessed me with beyond mild morning sickness for a mere week-and-a-half. This kiddo has decided that I need a stronger taste of what it means to feel nauseous, though thankfully at this point I've been able to keep it all down. However, I've been living on saltines and apples, with the occasional Taco Bell bean burrito with spicy green sauce (which, ironically enough, my mother craved and ate constantly with me). So, if you haven't seen me around in awhile, that's probably why.

And, I couldn't wait too much longer to tell, because my body is starting to betray me, showing super early this time around. Avery will also point to my stomach when we ask her where the baby is, although we wonder if she expects the baby to come out plastic looking like her baby dolls. Let's just hope she doesn't try to drag the baby by the leg, like I did with my sister.

This Got Me Thinking...

I'm going to stray from my usual content of featuring Avery for a couple posts. I've run across some things in the past week that have stuck with me.

Have you read this article yet? If not, go read it first. It popped up on the web last week, and I keep going back to it. As a mom, a stay-at-home mom, my job is centralized around my daughter, on raising her and shepherding her and training her up for the Lord. This will encompass many aspects of her life over the years, socially, emotionally, academically, etc. It's an overwhelming task at times, and we're still within the first 2 years. I don't yet know how we will approach schooling, or friends, or sleepovers, or weekend trips away, or extracurricular activities...the list goes on. She's already displaying independence and trying to enforce her will over mine. It is easy enough to break that will at almost-2. It will become increasingly harder as she grows, and I also want to learn temperance, where she is able to learn and grow and express herself, while keeping her under the command of God and us, her parents, to live respectfully and graciously. Oy - what a task that lies ahead of us!

So - enter this article. I think every parent wants their child to succeed, to do well, to learn and thrive and love it too. But this sounds so extreme to me! And maybe that is why Westerners tend to not do as well, or be as driven. Maybe they have it figured out. At least, in the sense that they churn out the smartest and most skilled. Is it simply perseverance that produces greatness?

What strikes me, though, is the lack of hope. Granted, this isn't a Christian-based article, or a Christian-based approach to parenting. But when I read something like this, absorbing it and pondering it, turning it over and over in my mind, I have to pass it through the filter of what God is calling me to do in response, with my own parenting. While having children that succeed academically or musically would be a blessing, it's not the most important thing. We must remember that "whatever [we] do, work at it with all [our] hearts, as working for the Lord, not for human masters" (Col. 3:23). It is well and good to work hard, but we must think of our motive. What is driving us? For those in this article, it is simply personal acclaim. May I remember that whatever I do as a parent, and whatever Avery does, if it does not have Love, then it is nothing.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

SIMPLIFY

The big thing on everyone's minds in January is resolutions. I never make resolutions because I never can follow through with them. And, I feel that if one truly wants to change something, they shouldn't have to wait until January 1st to do so. Diets can start any day. When you're a mom, your calendar year starts in August or September. Some people can resolve to work out more before the next swimsuit season rolls around. Whatever your fancy, you can resolve to change any ol' day, so why force it and stress over it at the beginning of a new year?

But. BUT. I'm hopping on the bandwagon this year. In a new sorta way. A friend mentioned that she and her husband each picked a word for the year. I've been reading about this idea for a couple years now, found first over at Ali Edwards' blog. (That's the link to her word for this year.) So then a friend mentioned that she was choosing a word, and it got me thinking again...every year I hope a word will find me, but nothing struck me last year or the year before. Now, 11 days late, I think a word has found me.

SIMPLIFY.

We're in a tiny space right now, overwhelmed by things I can't bear to let go of, because I just *know* that we'll use them when we buy a house and I won't want to shell the money out for them a second time. It's hard when you downsize your space temporarily. Only this has become a longer temporary than I first anticipated. I tend to struggle with contentment (another option for this year's word, but it's not broad enough for me). I think to reach contentment, I need to simplify first. To let go of the so-called need for stuff. I want to simplify my activities at home, so that I get a system in order that keeps me from feeling overwhelmed, that allows me more time with Avery. If I can simplify, downsize, let go of the non-eternal, then perhaps I can grasp more tightly onto the eternal. Get rid of the excess in our lives. Give. Be thankful.

Plus, I know it will make my husband happy.

End of Year

Did I mention that we'd be gone 3 full weeks? Yep - I haven't been home in 3 weeks. We pulled in tonight, dumped everything in the living room, put Avery to bed, and have crashed in our respective favorite spots in the house, to think about and do nothing. We spent a week at Luke's parents, visiting with family and celebrating Christmas. From there we went to my parents for 2 weeks for more Christmas celebration and prep for my little sister Brittany's wedding.

The wedding was last night - I'd love to say that it went off without a hitch, but not exactly! We had some panicked moments when we realized one of the other bridesmaid's cars was broken into at our hotel. We had been inside for 30 minutes to change before the rehearsal, and came out to find the lock broken and her camera and the bride's laptop stolen. We were 45 minutes late to the rehearsal so we could fill out the police report. But, the wedding day went near perfectly, the weather was gorgeous, Avery only broke down during the extended pictures after the ceremony because she was hungry, and then the bride and groom left for the honeymoon.

We are so happy for Brit and Dane. She made the most beautiful bride, and it was an honor to stand next to her. I was having too much fun partying to get good pictures, so hopefully the professional ones will come in soon. Love you Aunt Bean!!!

21 Months

Avery is talking up a storm this month - we can barely keep up with her word discoveries. There is still a lot of babbling on her end, but we're trying our hardest to decipher it. We love all of the names she's given the family members, especially Aunt Bean and Aunt Dell (Bri and Shell), and we love that she points everyone out in photos. She is so polite and tells everyone "thank you" when they give her something, and "thank you?" when she wants something. "Help you" is another favorite - it means she wants us to help her with something. 

She dances constantly, to any kind of music. She claps along to songs, calls movies "moo-moos", and spends as much time as possible running around outside. She continues to be a picky eater, but if there is ketchup in sight, you can get just about anything down the gullet (not that I actually let her have ketchup with everything). 

She got a tee-pee for Christmas, and I caught Daddy sitting in it with her, playing dress-up. So cute!! I couldn't find the camera before she noticed me, but I'm determined to get a shot of this one day. 

She went through 2 solid weeks of fighting bedtime, and eventually nap-time. I feared that our perfect sleeper had officially left us. We spent some nights still hanging out with her close to midnight, and we were both a little grumpy over Christmas travels thanks to darling daughter's bad sleep habits. But, praise God, she's back to her normal self, much to our delight. 

I'm so glad to start a new year with this sweet, precious girl!

Pattern Freebies

For all of my crafty momma friends, check out these amazing freebies at Homespun Threads. For Christmas, all patterns and tutorials are free. I think they email you the PDF documents after you "check out". Just thought I'd pass along the goodness. Merry Christmas!

In Joy and Sorrow

In joy and sorrow, I find peace and rest, come to Him in humbleness.

Psalm 71:8
My mouth is filled with your praise,
  and with your glory all the day.

v. 14
But I will hope continually
  and will praise you yet more and more.

Psalm 16: 5, 11
The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup
  ...in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 145: 8, 13b, 17
The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

The LORD is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works.

The LORD is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works.

"O Let Your Soul Now Be Filled With Gladness"
O let your soul now be filled with gladness,
Your heart redeemed, rejoice indeed!
O may the thought banish all your sadness
That in his blood you have been freed,
That God's unfailing love is yours,
That you the only Son were given,
That by his death he has opened heaven,
That you are ransomed as you are.

If you seem empty of any feeling,
Rejoice - you are his ransomed bride!
If those you cherish seem not to love you,
And dark assails from every side,
Still yours the promise, come what may,
In loss and triumph, in laughter, crying,
In want and riches, in living, dying,
That you are purchased as you are.

It is a good every good transcending
That Christ has died for you and me!
It is a gladness that has no ending
Therein God's wondrous love to see!
Praise be to him, the spotless Lamb,
Who through the desert my soul is leading
To that fair city of joy exceeding,
For which he bought me as I am.
Peter Jonsson Aschan

20 Months + 2 Days

It's December. Avery is closer to 2 than 1. This year is flying by.

She is so joyful and exuberant about life. She loves to dance, and will dance to any music she hears. Or to the sound of the salad spinner whirling, which she'll pump up and down while saying "wash wash" and swaying those hips back and forth.

She loves shoes, still. Especially high heels. She likes to try and put her own shoes on by herself and becomes quite distraught if I help too much. She shoved her footed sleeper feet into her sneakers the other day.

She gives hugs now, as well as kisses. Her favorite kisses are eskimo kisses with Daddy. When she sees her Nonnie, she runs to her, screaming, "Hi Nonnie, Hi Nonnie!!!". She points out any minivan that looks like Nonnie's, but always manages to only point at the Honda Odysseys, like Nonnie's. She asks to be tickled, "tickle, tickle" while tickling herself. She asks to "tuddle" before bed.

She brings books to me all day - I want to encourage this love of reading, but sometimes I just can't handle reading any.more.that.day. I reach a point where I feel like yelling No More Reading! But I won't, because she's precious, and I love that she loves books as much as her daddy and I do. Her favorite books are Goodnight Moon, which we read every night before bed, Not a Box ("box box") and Yummy Yucky ("ucky!").

She now points out things around the house that are ucky, like the trashcan and the toilet. She still touches things as she says "don't touch".

Tonight she figured out that laying down in the bath isn't scary, and that her voice sounds different when her ears are underwater.

She can go down the stairs, straight down the middle, if it's only 3 or so stairs total. Otherwise, she holds on, but still has no fear. I don't think she's realized that she can fall yet.

She talks non-stop. I have no idea what she is saying 1/3 of the time. The rest of it I understand. New words pop up constantly. The other day she repeated, "Hi, Precious" to my family. The family dog Coda is now Coco. Aunt Shell is An Dell, and Uncle Nick is Nicksh. Their dog Daisy sounds like Disease. Or Jesus. It varies. "Lunch" sounds like a curse word for a female dog. Uh-oh. She demands milk and juice all day long, but we make her drink water between breakfast and dinner. Raisins are "bee-bees". Crackers are "kikis", which used to be what she called cats, but now she says "ki-cat". Everything moos, unless we give her the correct animal sound which she will then repeat. She thinks monkey sounds are the funniest, or maybe it's just my poor impersonation of them. She can point at all of her body parts when we name them. She has names for her friends. Emme is Em-may. Skyler, Selah, and Analise have become Allah, Lala and Weece, or something similar.

She asks us to put bows in her hair now. I've given up on trimming the hair until it grows out long, so she walks around with her head tilted back trying to see from underneath her bangs.

We have an Advent calendar going this year, and tonight's activity was to introduce her to hot cocoa. She didn't take a breath the entire time she drank it. I guess she liked it. And she wore pajamas that said I Love Hot Chocolate. I didn't even plan that. I swear.

Love.This.Girl.

Life

Every year I feel like the first 3 weeks of November just drag, until you get to Thanksgiving (finally!), but when you go on a trip and then immediately come down with a virus that almost cancels Thanksgiving, the weeks just fly by.

I flew up to NYC to visit some friends mid-November, leaving Avery in the capable hands of her daddy and Nana. It was so wonderful being back in my favorite city, but it was interesting to see my ideas about it change over the course of four days. I still miss it, but more in a nostalgia way, not a homesick-want-to-move-back kind of way. This was huge in helping me work towards contentment with where I am these days. I loved my role as mom, but there were some days where I felt like I had left something behind, like I was missing out on a path not taken, due 1. to my own decisions to move back to Texas and 2. surprise pregnancy with Avery. But, being away for a few days gave me new perspective, helping me to see that I'm exactly where I should be, that I missed my life going on back home without me, and that I daily choose to embrace joyfully this calling to be Mom. Through God's grace I make it everyday. For awhile I bought into the lie that I can do it all (keep the pastry career going + be the #1 mom). But every minute I spent in the kitchen baking for someone else was time away from Aves. This became frustrating for both me and her. So I just quit baking, and kept wishing I could do it. But, again, the mind-shift happened. I started seeing that this is the time to nurture and shepherd my daughter. Perhaps I'll pick baking up again in the future, when kids are in school. Who knows. For now, I am content with where God has graciously delivered me.

Some highlights from my trip:
1. eating non-stop for 4 days
2. walking non-stop to work off those calories
3. No. 1 and No. 2 are my top two things I miss about the city
4. fall color had reached its peak in the city - Central Park was GORGEOUS
5. 60 degree weather and not a cloud in the sky until the day I flew out, which meant perfect exploring weather
6. eating at Hummus Place twice - I talk about this restaurant all the time, and if anyone goes to the city, it's the one place I recommend. If you go, make sure to ask for the spicy sauce and pickles on the side. They're free, but you have to ask for them.
7. catching up with old friends (really, this should be number 1 on the list!)
8. having drinks in an old apartment (now a bar) INSIDE of Grand Central Station...who knew?!
9. walking the new High Line installment on the west side of Manhattan - this was built after we moved back to Texas
10. checking out Eataly - we didn't make a reservation, so we didn't get to eat here, but the market is insane
11. Central Park Zoo - too cute!
12. Museum of Natural History - very cool, but I still struggle to love museums. I get bored.
13. FPB - Francoise Payard Bakery. The best almond/chocolate croissant, and I want their kitchen.
14. food, food, and more food. It's all we did.

Kathryn and me, Central Park, Day 1 of our adventures together

And, because this is just easier, a link to the pictures from my trip.

KiKi

I forgot to add these pics yesterday of her cute "kiki" outfit.

More Fall Excitement

Once again, I'm a bad bad blogger and have failed to upload pics (or even take them). We celebrated the beginning of fall by visiting a pumpkin patch at the church nearby, where Avery ran around and touched every pumpkin possible. She tried to run off with a couple of them, but we left them there for other people.

We also celebrated the first fruits of our garden...green bell peppers. Our tomato plants are flourishing, but I need to get tomato cages pronto, because the weight of them is making the stems split without proper support. Oops!

We also spent a lot of time in bed due to colds - Luke never caught it, thank goodness, but Avery and I were out for almost a week.

We played a little game of peek-a-boo ("pee-bo"). Avery is so funny when she tries to play without a blanket to hide under - she likes to just poke her fingers in her eyes or ball her fists up, and she'll wait and wait and wait as long as she can before popping her eyes open.

And a little fall cleaning to get the season off to a good start.

Happy Halloween!

getting stuffed - these came out 20 minutes later because it was hot and the costume kept riding up over her diaper

trick or treat!

the crew at home base

riding in style

on the road again

she carried this mini pumpkin that she got at the first house almost the whole time

Aunt Bri taking a turn

this house had a guy waiting to scare people just beyond that curtain - Luke announced that a little baby was coming in, so the guy just sat there and wouldn't give any candy...what a grinch!

Daddy's turn - he struck out 5 houses in a row - no one home

Check out my face - it's because the old lady to my left had just flashed her old lady hiney. Yikes!

This was Avery's first trick-or-treat-ing Halloween, so we took full advantage of it, although all of the candy will make it's way to work with Luke this week, hopefully. We started a tradition last year of camping out at my sister's house with my other sister and her fiance, handing out candy to the kids in her neighborhood. This year my parents drove in as well, and we ordered pizza and set up shop on the driveway.

Details on her costume: I wanted to make it, but needed something easy because I'm no master seamstress. I found a pattern for a bubble suit for a bumblebee or ladybug and adapted it for this costume, and the total cost for it all came in under $10 for the brown flannel, the purse, and some costume jewelry. We had everything else at home already. I sewed the face pieces out of felt, glued earring backs on two buttons for "pearl earrings", sewed felt high heel shoe covers, and stuffed her with plastic bags. All face pieces were safety pinned onto the costume so I could move them about if I wanted to. We tried gloves, to complete the look of Mrs. Potato Head's hands, but they were too bulky, and we also ditched the shoe covers because they kept spinning around.

Avery didn't quite understand what was going on, but it didn't take long for her to figure out that people were giving her things to put in her purse, and then she just started helping herself. She was very polite at each house, telling everyone "thank you" and "bye-bye". One older gentleman scared her a little bit, but once he held the candy out, she was ready to make nice - let's hope that doesn't become a habit!

We spent the previous night at a Trunk or Treat at an area high school where she quickly won over the cheerleaders. She is quite the charmer. Plus, her pic should show up in the local newspaper this week!

A Shameless Plug

My hubby thinks I'm weird for using Swagbucks, but he seems to forget that I've gotten almost $75 in Amazon gift cards from it, so I'm going to just ignore his comments. :) You can sign up through the Swidget on the right hand side of the blog if you want to try it yourself. Yes, I get points if you sign up, but then you can get other people to sign up and you get points too, everytime they get points! Everybody wins. :) I only use it as a search engine - I don't do all the special offers they have. And today they are offering an extra 20 swagbucks (click on the SwagCodes button on the Swidget), and then click on Sign Up and copy it into the codes box on the sign up form. Or click here: http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/mollyfantastic

Happy 1/2 Birthday!

We celebrated Avery's 1/2 birthday with some new friends, enjoying cake and 1 1/2 candles (and no pictures on our own camera). This is Avery at 18 months:

-22 lbs 14.5 oz (25-50%), 32.65" tall (75-90%)...she's taking after her Daddy. Dr. B says she's a "really healthy toddler!!"

-loves shoes of any kind, but especially Mommy's heels. They are usually on the wrong feet, and she only wears one at a time.
-still fascinated by books, and is often found reading to herself in her room
-says anywhere from 20-30 words, with new ones popping up daily. Sometimes I can hear a word that no one else would, so does it really count? At least I know what she's trying to tell me. This month we added: toash (toast), fish (for goldfish crackers), cookie (for graham crackers...not sure I've ever said cookie around her, and I think she's only ever had a couple bites of one in her entire life) fau-wa (flower), button (or a variation of it), kiki (kitty), meow, bath, Nana, pease (please), toes, boom!, moo, pee-bo (peekaboo), choo-choo + short phrases - Hi Mommy, Hi Daddy, Bye-Bye Mommy, Bye-Bye Daddy, no no no no
-is trying really hard to say bracelet and necklace and breakfast (almost got it!)
-recognizes chin and belly (as opposed to just the bellybutton)
-signs "eat" regularly now
-is fully taking one nap a day, from about 1 to 3 or 4 pm.
-recognizes friends and family and playmates, and is super excited to see them and very sad to leave them
-is really into her babydoll, and pushes her in the stroller more, instead of those chip clips
-has started sucking her finger at non-sleepy times, which is a little frustrating
-still cries when we drop her off at the nursery, but calms down quickly and even seems to have fun while she's there
-is still a cheese and fruit lover, and that's about it.
-is very girly, loving anything jewelry, purse, or shoe related. She has a bracelet of mine that she puts on while we're in the car
-recognizes objects and says the word when she sees something or hears the noise
-gives kisses anytime you ask, but will tell you "no" if she's not in the mood

Big Helper

Avery loves to help with dishes and laundry. She decided to add a little something extra to the mix today. I found this when I went to load the dishes after breakfast.

Random Pics, or The Goofiest Girl Around