Big Thrills

Two things happened today that made me really excited.  One  came to my thoughts and left before I ever had a chance to write it down.  The other was that I straightened up the playroom this evening and found pieces of toys that have been missing for a while.  I had all but written these lost pieces off, so to have them appear and to have a playroom that is just about as organized as it will ever be is strangely satisfying.  The feeling is right up there with doing a load of laundry and finding that all the socks have their match.  

Incidentally, I did do a load of laundry tonight and found that of the 4 pairs of socks that made their way into that batch, 3 of of them had their match...How very fulfilling.

 Kev is away this week, so along with finding ways to keep everyone entertained till his returned, I am also staying up far too late, and drinking excessive amounts of coffee.  I'm guessing this isn't good for me but today, after my first cup of coffee, I convinced myself that it wasn't a full cup and  having a second wouldn't hurt.  Then during nap time, the house had a slight chill and it was so very quiet(praise the Lord), before I new it I was sucking down a third cup.  Three cups of coffee could explain why I am still up at 12:53 am.  Hmmm.

 Both little girls have reached new levels of cuteness by my standards.  However, at the very same time that I am praising their ability to be cute, they are basically emotional roller coasters most of the time.  According to the Dr. Mags is getting molars, and Libs is just really good at being three.  These two facts mean that at any given time in my life someone could be be screaming, crying, laughing, ore screaming.  Did I say screaming twice?  There is a lot screaming.

 The day that I took these last few pictures, Libby was playing with her baby doll stroller.  Maggie desperately wanted to play with her, but the Little wouldn't slow down enough for her to catch her big sister.  After several laps around the downstairs of our house, I got Maggie's stroller for her in attempted to stop the screaming.

 It took several minutes, but she eventually came around to  her stroller instead of Libby's and joined her in the pushing of babies through the house.

 The screaming never stopped though. It turned into happy screams accompanied by uncontrolled sister giggling.

Even on tired days(like today) filled with big thrills((like found toys and laundry), I can't get enough of those sister giggles.
It's music to my ears.
Grace and Peace and Bedtime
xoxo

The Come Back Blog

New Year's resolution number something or other: Make a big deal about birthdays.
Maggie's day of birth came and went quietly with just the four of us.  However, I didn't want the day to past without truly celebrating her first year of life with family and friends in a big (smallish big)way.

It was party "Because We Love Her," and we do.  It was just as a first birthday should be with good friends, and little ones running amok through my house, and cake, and presents.   I wish I had pictures of all of this, but she is my second child, and true to second child form, we picked the camera up at the beginning of the party and at the end of party, so I don't have much proof that there was anyone at her party except for her and I.  

These first two pics are Mags gifts from Babs and Grandad.  Mom has always wanted to purchase one of the little rocking chairs from Cracker Barrel.  Maggie's first birthday gave her a reason to do so.

 I never had a red wagon growing up and I truly feel like I missed out.

 Party pics in the order they uploaded to blogger:
Picture #1 Mags and I open her gifts.  What you can't see in this picture is that I was surrounded by little ones...it was all they could do to stop themselves from ripping the paper for her!

Picture #2 Maggie and I while she is eating her cake.

 Speaking of cake, I had lofty dreams from Pinterest of what this cake was supposed to look like,

 At 4:30 when the decorating wasn't going the way I planned, I pushed the cake to my mom and asked her to make it work...and make it work she did.
Hello my lovely...Yum!

 This cake was amazing.  My mom made it all actually.  I did nothing, but oh my, oh my it was good.  Two layers of red velvet, 2 layers of strawberry, and 2 layers of vanilla, with cream cheese frosting in between and on top.  Be still my heart.  Why does cake make me so happy?  What was I writing about?  I just lost myself in all the beauty that was this cake!

 Maggie's party, that's what I was talking about.  Mom made her a tiny strawberry cake.  We sang, we wished, she smiled.

 This is the kid table

 This is Maggie in her birthday clothes.

 These are the bottles that the kids drank out of, Maggie's chocolate milk

 Fruit cups..

 Fluffy, puffy things and Maggie Bell wreath

 Favorite detail of the party, besides Maggie's red curls, these favors.  I baked chocolate cupcakes , cut them in half, then layered them in a jar with icing...Adorable!

 Main dinning table

 Food table...

Our one year old.  Kev made a slide show with music of Maggie's year.  I could have watched it all night.  It was beautiful.

Birthday parties are fun.  Truth be told they stress me out, but in the end I'm always happy that we put the effort forth.

 Birthdays are a big deal

Grace and Peace

xoxo

Sick Day

This is the day that it started.  Four hours up in the middle of the night had her dozing in her lunch last Monday.  By the time she woke from her afternoon nap, her sad eyes told me that a Dr.'s appointment was in order.
Twenty-four hours later we were back in business.  I thought that the rest of had managed to sneak by with out her passing her germs to us.

This picture does not fit in with my post, but I had to add it.  We had Gus groomed on Saturday.  I asked the  groomer  not to make him look like greyhound or a poodle.  Apparently, I also needed to clarify that I also did not want him to look like a cartoon.  I'm okay with this, I know that hair only grows one direction.  I am a good and kind master and bought him a coat b/c it is cold outside and he is basically naked now.

Thursday night Kev started telling me he wasn't feeling quite right.  Friday night he went to bed with shivers. Saturday morning Libby woke up with the same sad eyes that Maggie had.  By noon on Saturday I had the shivers that Kevin had the night before.  Throw in constant body ache, and I have been here, on the couch all day today.
Being a mom, and being sick at the same time is not fun, but it has it perks too.  I got served this plastic meal today,

by this lovely waitress...pink eye and all.

and I got to watch them both my girls take out every toy we own and scatter them from one corner of my downstairs to the other.

Sick day is over.  I'm hoping that tomorrow we are up and running again, and by we, I mean me, so I can keep up with my little destroyers.
Grace and peace
xoxo

From The Mouths of Babes

From the open window in the corner of my room, while I rolled my fitted sheet into a ball, folded my fitted sheet I heard "Wendy, you have to fly, Peter watch out for the alligator!"

On the way home from a birthday party Saturday night, "Mommy, Aiden's dragon party was so beautiful, it was just beautiful."  (In your head while you read this imagine her saying it in a dreamy whisper...sort of like she was reliving all the fun in her head.)  In the same voice after dinner the other night she told me her after dinner treat was "magical", then proceeded to stand on the middle of her table and sing a song about it.

Last night when Kev got home from his soccer game I witnessed this conversation,
Libby:  Daddy did you win?
Kev:  No Libs
Libby:  Why you not win Daddy?
Kev:  Well, the other team scored more goals
(Repeat this part three or four more times)
Libby:  Daddy and there were lots of people there?
Kev:  Oh yes, there were even lots of kiddies playing in the field next to me
Libby:  Did you pet them?
Kev:  No!  That is frowned upon by most people
(Kev looks at me as if to say what is she talking about?)
Libby:  But, why there were lots of cats there Daddy?
Me:  Kev you said there were "kiddies", she thinks there were kitty cats playing soccer
Kev: Oh!!!!  No Libs there were no cats, but there were children
She ponders this for a moment and then
Libby:  But Daddy, did you win?
(Repeat the conversation again)

Libby Jones, professional bed time delayer extraordinaire.

Everyday with her is like seeing the world from a child's eye.  It is delightful.
That's all.
Grace and Peace
xxxx

Happy Sigh

About a year and a day ago, I was sitting in my living room chair nervously pondering the events in my life that I knew were about to take place.  I was thinking about my Little and how well I  knew her, and how much I loved her, and how  I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to do it all again.  I was sure I couldn't be the same Mother to two children.

After all, your first born, is, well, your first...they get all those first things with you.  I was certain that everything with Maggie would just be the second time that I had experienced all those big and little parent moments.  Do you know what I mean? Second pregnancy, second birth, second newborn, second everything.
God had different plans for my Littlest though and even a year later I am moved to tears when I think about the way she came to us.  I had no idea how I could love another baby as much as I loved my Libby...but then it happened...

I held her.
It was like... magic.

One year later and I can still say that birthing Maggie was the most amazing experience of my life.  I speak the  truth when I tell you that I could absolutely feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in the room with us that night, covering us with peace and comfort and endurance like I have never felt before.

  Peace was there and when I screamed in pain that I couldn't do it anymore, He nudged me on and said I could. Then I reached down and there she was.

Our bodies sank into each other and I loved her. Oh, how I loved her so much.  My mother bear instincts kick in, my arms wrapped around her perfect little new born body and I didn't want to let her out of my sight.  I just wanted to keep her there in my arms all night.

My Maggie Bell.

Still amazing.

The little girl that amazed us that night continued onward and amazed us all year long, from her quizzical little newborn stares, to her surprising strength, to her sometimes shockingly bad sleep habits.  She has taught us that no two children are alike.

She brought with her  into this world sweetness that I'm sure it didn't have before.  Her shy smiles are hypnotizing, as are the lovely red curls that frame the back of her head.

Sometimes I wish so hard that she would reach her fists up over head and do that new born stretch  she did so well, just one more time.  I wish I could feel her tiny body all tucked up next to mine, or run my hand across her new to the world wrinkled skin...

Time tells me that it is not possible.  Time tells me  to enjoy today, becasue today she laughs, and today she nearly runs to great me when we have been apart, today she can exert her will, and today she knows how to love us back.
Today she has been with us a whole year.

Happy hearts.

Here's to my Littlest.  We love you deeply.

Grace and Peace to you my dear one
xoxo