Happy Five-Month Birthday, Caleb Luke!

It's hard to believe Caleb is five months old already! Just within the past few weeks, though, he's seeming bigger and bigger and older and older.Caleb can roll now from back to belly and belly to back. He doesn't do it all the time, and I've never seen him do both in a row (making a full circle), but we still have to be careful of where we lay him. He LOVES to play with his feet. He loves his socks and his toes and likes to try to chew on them both. Caleb enjoys time on the floor to explore his feet and his surroundings. He is definitely not a cuddle bug like Joshua.

These days it is difficult to get him to keep his attention on nursing, unless he's absolutely starving. He loves to pull away to watch Joshua (one of his favorite activities) and to smile at Daddy. He loves to grin at Daddy! He is starting to eat some oatmeal cereal, but doesn't devour it like Joshua used to. His tongue still pushes it out for the most part. He'll get the hang of it yet!Caleb has been sleeping like a champ. There have been a few nights where he wakes up in the middle of the night hungry, but for the most part he's been doing amazingly well. We have a hard time laying him down at night because he cries and wants to be held. But, once he falls asleep, he's a pretty good sleeper overall. He must roll around in his crib at night because he's never in the same spot when I get him as when I laid him down.Caleb is also making all sorts of noises these days. They are very expressive and fun to listen to. He softly squeels away as he plays.Caleb just started playing in our bug stander-upper. It's not quite as cool as an exersaucer, but it's the same idea. He does a great job in it, and it's supposed to be working his core to strengthen him up for sitting. He also does well in the bumbo. He impresses us constantly with how big and strong he is!I just love this picture above with those big chipmunk cheeks. I just want to squeeze them (which I don't) and kiss them (which I do ALL the time!). Caleb has been a wonderful addition to our home. I now understand that some people have very easygoing children! And, I understand what it's like to completely love more than one child - I'm learning a lot about God and His love through my kids.I'm trying to think of other accomplishments of Caleb's. While this isn't an 'accomplishment,' it's something we'll look back at and laugh one day, I think. Caleb can still mess through his outfit like they are going out of style. Daddy had the pleasure of getting such an explosion twice yesterday.Happy 5-month birthday, little Caleb Luke! Mommy & Daddy and Joshua all love you to pieces. I'm glad you're part of our family. Great job on growing so big!

A "Good" Family Christmas Gathering

On Saturday we packed up our 4-wheel-drive sleigh and headed over the river and through the woods to Grandma Good's house, laughing all the way (ha-ha-ha)...thankfully she was NOT run over by a reindeer. (Can you tell I've been listening to lots of Christmas tunes?) She doesn't live that far from us, actually. :) This is one of our most favorite events of the season.

We arrived just after 3 pm, in time for the 'craft activity.' This year we all brought something to go in trail mix, and we gathered at the table to make our delicious creations. We've been munching on trail mix here, and it is wonderful. Thanks, Grandma Good, for the wonderful idea!

Afterward, it was time for Caleb Luke to eat. Jessica, Don's wife, also had to feed their son Benjamin, so we hung out together upstairs feeding our little love bugs. When we came back downstairs, everyone was already gathered together in a circle to play the game of gift-giving. This year, Grandma Good did the game a little differently, and I loved it. We usually play "now you have it, now you don't." This time as we drew our numbers, we picked out a gift not to keep but to give to a specific person, whose name we had drawn earlier. Then we went back around and could swap our gift for that person if we wanted to. I had Jess' name, Shawn had Jordon's name, Colton had my name, and I don't remember now who had Shawn's name. But, it was fun! The gifts are all wrapped on a big table, so you have NO idea what you're giving any person. Shawn received a plastic container filled with items to wash his car, I opened a package containing a cutting board and hershey kisses, Jess got a frying pan and pancake mix and poor Jordon ended up with a huge box of toilet paper. His counterpart Colton got a big box of paper towels. I remember only a few of the other gifts. Austin opened a Sponge Bob pillow, Kelcey opened a container of sodas and coasters (which I had gotten last year or the year before), Kirsten opened towels and hand soap (I think), Phil got the mixed nuts, Kaley got a mini-skiball game and the list goes on. Grandma Good is so creative with buying all the gifts and wrapping them! Thank you so much! This year she also had a table where the little kids could each pick out a gift that was unmarked. Joshua picked a container full of foam blocks, and Caleb got a Barrel of Monkeys. Thanks, Grandma Good!Then it was time to eat...there is always an amazing spread of food laid out in her dining room. She had little mini-hotdogs and hamballs in two different crockpots, shrimp cocktail, crackers & cheese & bologna & slim jims, a veggie tray, fruit salad, broccoli salad, subway sandwiches, wraps, potato chips, a pickel tray, salad, and desserts galore. I can't even remember everything that was there! We all chat as we go through the line and then some stay upstairs while others head downstairs (which is where we ended up). We sat at a table with Ashley & Phil, who both crack us up!

Both Aunt Shari & Nonie took turns holding Caleb Luke. Shawn & I took turns watching the Bean (although, I must admit that Daddy did more than me...Joshua just loves his Dad - me, too!). Caleb had fallen asleep in Nonie's arms just before dinner, but after we ate he woke up from his nap hungry. So, once again I took him upstairs to eat.

When I came back downstairs, all the kids were already opening their gifts. By sounds, Joshua opened his first one (which was hockey sticks and balls) and wanted to play with them. Why would he want to open others if he was thrilled with this one? Grandma Good is once again so thoughtful. She had come over to our house to go for a walk with my mom (they both lost their loved ones to cancer), and Joshua & Shawn had been playing hockey outside with Shawn's regular size sticks. Joshua actually was doing really well! And now he has some sticks his size to enjoy! This is the first year that I didn't catch what the other children got because I was too busy helping my own kiddos.Years past, I used to love as they all shrieked with glee over their new treasures. And, we'd laugh as the adults tried to open the packages and put them together with their batteries. Then it was fun as the excitement started of the playing with all the new toys. I remember Don in particular trying to put together a doll swing for Kaley and not having very good luck and us all teasing him about it.Joshua also received a new work bench and tool set, which he got the cordless screwdriver out of and immediately put up his nose (silly kid!). He LOVED it! He also got finger paints and a puzzle Bible. Caleb received a new hanging toy that plays music (that Joshua hasn't put down yet!), some new bibs that say "Messy but cute...just like Daddy," a toy that has a hammer on it and lights up and counts (which Joshua has also been playing with), a new Max Lucado book that looks similar to Joshua's beloved "Stanley the Stinkbug." There may have been more, but my memory isn't serving me well these days. Both boys also got money toward their college fund. We also received a very generous monetary gift from Grandma Good.

The kids LOVED playing that evening. Joshua was running after Jordon & Colton as they were playing with their remote-controlled cars and having a blast. He got several time-outs throughout the evening for misbehavior, but once again I noticed how overwhelmed he seems to get in large crowds. He kept calling out "Mommy, where are you? Mommy, Mommy..." then it would be "Daddy, where's Daddy? DADDY!!!" and then he asked about Aunt Missy & Poppy and Nonie at various points in the evening. He did okay, but I'm hoping he gets better each year as he gets more comfortable with his surroundings. Caleb was just okay for his typical calm self, but he was good overall in the grand scheme of babies typical behavior.

On a side note, I'm sincerely impressed by how loving and generous Grandma & Grandpa Good have always been. Between them, they have four kids: Mike, Jim, Jeff and Gayle. Mike has five kids: Missy, Shawn (my handsome husband), Brian, Alicia and Hilary. Shawn has two kids (Joshua & Caleb), Brian has two kids (Grant & Jenavieve) and Alicia has one (Jordon). Jim has two kids: Don and Ashley. Don has a son Benjamin. Jeff has one son Austin, and Gayle has four kids: Kirsten, Kelcey, Caley (sp?) and Colton. When you add spouses to that mix, you end up with a LOT of people! However, they both have always gone out of their way to make each one feel loved and welcome. I remember my first year of attending this Christmas gathering, they had an envelope with a Christmas card and gift for me. I couldn't believe it! And, as girlfriends and boyfriends have come and gone for some, they have always treated each one like they are special. Now, as we miss Grandpa Good who has gone to heaven, Grandma Good has continued the tradition of the social gatherings. She works tirelessly to make sure everyone has a good time, and she was even leaving the next day for Florida! But, she planned the event so all could be there.

Thank you, Grandma Good, for your generosity and hospitality! We LOVE seeing the whole family over the holidays and are grateful for the many blessings you have poured out on the family over the years. We love you!

Gingerbread House Creations

On Friday night, I went over to Jen's house to decorate Gingerbread Houses. Her friend Mary and her family join us every year, and this year Mary made the Gingerbread and Jen had Pork BBQ sandwiches for dinner for us at her house. I brought some candy and some food to go along with dinner. I don't even know how many years we've been doing this...I remember Rod & Sherry joining us one year. My guess is since early 2000s. This year, unfortunately, I flew solo since Jen's kids had just been throwing up, and I didn't want our kiddos to get sick. Shawn offered to stay home with the boys while I went and had fun.Here are the "naked" houses and the candy all spread out, ready for the fun! We had so much that I took a lot back home with me to freeze for next year. We never eat the houses...we used to use a hot glue gun before they got good at making the actual icing glue. And, now that the kids join us...it's just safer not to eat what you make! :) :) :)Here's the "before" picture of my house. Once again this year, Grace asked if she could join me rather than having to fight with her sisters over their house.Here we are! I must say this is our ugliest house ever. I just did the icing for the most part, and she picked out what went where. Ah the creations of five year olds! :) :) :) It didn't matter, though - we were having fun.Here are the kids in action!And the finished products...Jen's whole family with their house...and baby number five on the way!Mary's whole family with their house.And here's Gracie showing off our finished product. What a masterpiece!

Here are the "ghosts" of Gingerbread past...I don't remember making one in 2006 - probably because Joshua had surgery the beginning of that December. I don't remember much of anything besides that and the miracle he was. But, below are two pictures from 2005 - me & Shawn with our house and then me & Jen with both our houses: And here is my partner in crime Grace and me last year with our house in 2007:

More Sweetness

Joshua just came up to me and said 'I Lowel You!' which is how he says "I love you!" and gave me a big hug. He is so sweet! I didn't even iniate the conversation that time. I think he's beginning to understand feelings.

He was also doing really well at saying "thank you" for things...and I would always say back "you're welcome." Now, he says "you're welcome" instead of "thank you," thinking that I was correcting him. So, he just asked me to fix his crayon (the paper had come down too far over the tip) and then he said "You're welcome, Momma!" in such a sweet little voice.

Speaking of crayons, he is getting more and more colors correct when I ask them what they are. He says 'gleen' 'purple 'blue' 'lello' 'or-ange' and 'blown'. His brain astounds me everyday. For example, this morning he purposely knocked a letter off the fridge (which annoys me to no end, so we've been working on him keeping them ON the fridge). I told him to pick up the letter and put it back on the fridge. He looked at me, shaking his head, saying "No, no, no, momma, I want the L!" Clear as day...I looked and the letter he had picked up was L!!!!

Yesterday, he put a crayon wrapper on his finger and asked me to "sing the Light Song." I couldn't think of it for the life of me, but eventually he did enough hand motions for me to realize he meant "This Little Light of Mine."

Most impressive by far, though, has been his demonstration last night of how he could zip up his own pajamas. Daddy's been letting him do the "zip, zip, zip" and Joshua proudly showed me his newest accomplishment. I was so excited! My little boy is growing and learning!

Saying a Prayer for His Little T-Bear

Shawn & I take turns tucking Joshua in at night. It's one of our cutest times of the day as Joshua is winding down and very snuggly. He now tells us to "close the door and lay down" as we enter his room. It's cute and funny. Daddy gets to do this more than me because I'm often feeding Caleb his (hopefully) last meal of the day. But, I love it when I get to go in and read him his story, say prayers, sing to him and cuddle with him. Daddy created a routine of saying goodnight to Joshua's beloved t-bear, along with the Bean. The other night, Shawn came out and told me that Joshua held up his little t-bear, mumbled a bunch of things Shawn couldn't quite make out, and then Joshua proclaimed "AMEN!" He was praying for his little t-bear. He is a darling little boy. :)

Fit4Service

We've had another fun week. Sunday night we went to small group. Then Tuesday morning, I went to MOPS. Joshua went right into his classroom like a champ. Yeah, buddy! And, the little old ladies in the Ladybug nursery are dear. The speaker on Tuesday was a nice Christian guy who owns his own gym (yes, a man was in the room! ha!), and he talked about staying fit so we can serve others. He explained that when his wife had just had their baby, he was opening his own gym and wasn't sleeping a whole lot at night, started eating more food on the go, and didn't seem to have time to work out. Then, he said he noticed that he was emotionally drained and physically not doing well, and he began chatting with his friends about it. Eventually, he knew he needed to rest, eat well, and take time to make sure he was fit for his own good and the good of those he served. He noted that you can't serve others unless you are well enough to do so. He talked about overall well-being with PIES (physical, intellectual, emotional & spiritual) health. [Funny moment...we were all guessing what the letters stood for and a gal at my table thought it was "sexual" health for the 's.' Haaaa!] He then gave us a 15-minute workout that didn't require any video tapes or exercise equipment. We talked about interval training and how short resistance training workouts like this - even if you can only fit in 5-10 minutes a day - burn more calories and are better long-term than if you'd take an hour and do cardio only. So, we worked out that morning. [Another funny note, we were all on the floor doing hip extensions and a gal yelled out "I think this is how I got pregnant in the first place!" Haaaaa!!! I could no longer keep my form I was laughing so hard.] Anyway, we all loved it! And, I must admit that two days later and I'm still a little sore...ALL OVER! We worked our legs, arms and core and I feel each one of those muscles 'complaining' today still. :) :) :) He also gave tips for eating well over the holidays, noting that if you can kill it or pick it, it's probably okay to eat. He has a great blog at http://www.fit4service.ning.com/.

That night John & Angie and their two girls came over for dinner. We had a nice time visiting, and Joshua and their oldest daughter had fun playing together. Wednesday night, Don & Melanie invited us over to their house for dinner. Once again we had a great time fellowshipping. Joshua loves their little girl Abby, and we really like her parents. :) :) :) I wish I would remember my camera when we're going out...here's a few pics that Melanie took:Tonight I have class and then tomorrow it's gingerbread house creation time! Hooray!

Shawn's $5 Hair

So I forgot to post about the funniest moment on Thanksgiving. I have to preface the comment by saying that Alicia was telling us that everything for Jordon is $5 these days. Then as we were all sitting at the dining room table enjoying our turkey, there was a moment of silence in the conversation that was broken by Jordon proclaiming, "Yeah, Shawn, you and your $5 hair!" I howled. We all howled! My precious husband and his hair (which does need a trim). The comment was funny on so many levels. Leave it to Jordon to make us all giggle. :)

A couple weeks ago we were going through some pictures in our filing cabinet, and I found some of Shawn surfing from a long time ago. I thought he looked hot, so I kept them out. :) Others got tossed while others got filed back again for more amusement later. Enjoy...him and his '$5 hair.'