Big Day Out

About three weeks ago (yes! THREE weeks ago. I am so far behind on my blogging.) Christian had a super special playdate with two of his favorite ladies, Kylee and Lily. Ms.Lily invited us to her pool for a little dip-a-roo and then back to her place for some lunch and fun! Getting ready for Christian's playdate at the pool was no small task. No ma'am. Instead it was quite the ordeal for about five seconds...(Yup. Count 'em. FIVE SECONDS!)...of swimming.

I bought a bathing suit for Christian (Which btw, did ya know there are almost NO BATHING SUITS left out there for babies? Believe me. I know this for a fact.). And I bought a bathing suit for myself (I had to go to the special "whale" section in Macy's to accomplish that particular mission...) On top of which I bought Christian a float raft, sunscreen, a new towel with sharks on it (so friggin' cute), swimmies that are only about two sizes too big because the smallest ones they sell start at 16 pounds (Do people really not think that babies under 6 months go for a little swim?) and lunch for me. What can I say? We were definitely prepared for a day at the pool!

Unfortunately, there had been a rain storm the night before so the water was a little chilly. I think Christian was put off by the water temperature...it just wasn't to His Majesty's liking. Totally understandable. HOWEVER! There IS a bright side! We decided to go back to Stephanie's house (that's Lily's mom...) to play! Christian had a blast! He had so much fun! But why don't I let the pictures (and videos!) do the talking?

Wakey, wakey! Time for a fun day at the pool!

Dressed and ready for action!

Mommy blowing up Christian's special raft!

Ummm...yeah. The diaper debacle. His swimmies were way too big!

Stephanie and Ms.Lily

Mommy and Christian

Post meltdown nap for Kylee...Lily is wondering why in the heck her friends weren't big fans of the pool!

Post meltdown nap for Christian, too...

The Mommies...Katie, Stephanie and Stephanie

Back at Lily's house it was time time get dressed! Lily was fascinated by Kylee's pacifier. She tried stealing it from her all day long...

Kylee, Christian and Lily

While all the babies were being changed into dry clothes, madness ensued! It was hilarious...at least to me. Kylee's pitching a fit because she's hungry and Lily was intrigued by all the new things her guests had brought with them. Christian, however, amidst the madness, was obsessed with the fan. Christian had never seen a fan before (Yeah. We don't have fans in our house...we live in a barn, people.) This video is just a glimpse into what happens when you get babies together for a playdate.

"I'm just gonna see if I can reach in here real quick..."

"What!? What!? I was just gonna give her a hug! I swear!"

"How big is Lily?" "Sooooo big!"

Kylee and her Mommy, Katie

 Christian just loved Lily's swing! He thought it was so much fun! (notice Lily goin' for the paci...)

Sleeping (BY HIMSELF!) in the swing! He took an hour and half nap...

(Laser eye stare)

Stephanie's sweet Mom!

 After Christian woke up from his nap in the swing, we drove by Mimi's house. Mimi is like an adopted grandmother to me even though I don't get to see her half as much as I'd like to. She is always on the go with her husband, and since I live on the other side of town, this was her first time meeting Christian. He was so taken with her. It was love at first sight. Mimi is simply the loveliest southern bell you could ever hope to meet. She is so genuine and kind hearted. I even got a video of her telling us a story in her sweet southern accent!

Melts my heart...

We also stopped in to see Grandmother (another special grandma!). By this time, Christian was in meltdown mode. It had been a long day and he wasn't too excited about visiting with everyone like Mommy was! Oh well! At least we tried!

Along with Mimi and Grandmother, we also saw Mrs.Walker! I've known Mrs.Walker for almost 13 years! Mrs.Walker is just like Mimi and Grandmother in that she is a true southern sweetie. Unfortunately, she also got to see Christian's not-so-friendly side...but hey! At least we tried...

 We had such a fun day together and with all of our friends! Thanks to all of you for being a part of his life and mine!

The Place I Want To Be...

Sometimes life gives you a gift. Sometimes you overcome adversity and all the odds that were set against you, and you end up in the place you want to be. Everybody has a different "house with a picket fence", but mine is rather simple.

I want a family full of love where the highlight of my day is the smile on my son's face when he wakes up in the morning. I want a husband who puts being a Daddy before being a man of the world. I want conversation that ranges from the daily adventures of my baby to the current political climate. I want to enjoy a hot cup of tea with the man I love on a quiet Saturday night. I want to fall asleep alongside my child and his father. And most of all, I want to give thanks to God for granting me all of these things...because he has.

I remember telling my husband before he was my husband that I wanted to be a Wife and a Mommy more than anything in the world. And I remember him telling me that I would be the best Mommy there ever was. I'm not sure that I am, but I do love being a Mom and Wife and I love the fact that my husband gracefully allows me to get up every day and try to be the best I can be.

Sure, life throws you a new obstacle every so often...it happens to the best of us...but what if you could die knowing you had everything you ever wanted? Wouldn't that be enough? Without the fancy house or car or well bred friends with lots of money, what have you really got? That's why I let what I want most in life define who I am. Because it's never the things you can touch that mean anything, it's the dream that you are living that means everything.

My dream come true...

A thought from Dad

Sunny morning babysitting..

I’m sitting on the deck with my coffee and the little prince this morning and a number of things occur to me.  The first of which is always the same on mornings like this one.   “Thank You God, life is good…  In fact, I always feel a little guilty about my state of happiness when I think about the plight of my peers, most of who are contemplating their next big purchase on a morning like this or agonizing over how to pay for the last one.  (Poor Souls)   And where it is true that I worked very hard this week to afford myself this time with Sir Christian James, my thoughts will not be of work this morning but of adventures to come with those I cherish.   We will talk of sailing, and sandy beaches, of how extraordinarily graceful his mother is when she free dives among the sea turtles.  We’ll discuss the sound of sea birds, frogs, dogs and even roosters.   And I will read to him if only to see his expression with my many silly theatrics.  He will know beyond the shadow of any doubt that we are the luckiest guys on the planet because we are both loved by the same incredible young women.  And he will know that all good things are by the grace of a God he cannot see but can certainly hear if he listens with his heart.

I’ve spent most of my life thinking nothing could compare to Kowloon Harbor, the Champs-Elysées or sailing the Islands. I was wrong. No experience, fair or foul could have prepared me for the way I feel when I look over first thing in the morning and see this little man’s smile.

Morning Smile

Having a serious talk with Dad

Ken's Corner

When Ken and I got together, I knew we weren't "the normal couple". I knew that we were a little "unconventional" and maybe we did tend to go "against the grain". (Big surprise, eh?) So it came as no shock to hear my husband singing his own twisted renditions of nursery rhymes to our son.

Perhaps you've heard these musical masterpieces...

"This little piggy went to the market to get a bottle of scotch. This little piggy stayed home and scratched his crotch..."

or

"This little piggy went to the market to get a bottle of scotch. And this little piggy stayed home because he was on government subsidy so his lazy butt didn't have to do anything..."

If those arrangements were pleasing to you, listen to this heart warming interpretation...


"Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet eating her curds and whey. Along came a spider who sat down beside her and said 'What's in the bowl '*witch*'?"

And let's not forget about special moments like these...

"Three blind mice, three blind mice. See how they run, see how they run. They all ran after the farmer's wife who cut off their tails with a carving knife....Say, why are there three mice blind? What are the chances of having three blind mice in one litter? I don't understand why someone would make up such a stupid song."

*Sigh* Ken, what am I gonna do with you?

The Third Month

"Christian is three months old." Let me say it again, "Christian is three months old." I honestly can't believe it. How is it even possible that our little boy is a quarter of a year old? He has changed so much in just three months.

Christian has accomplished EVERY milestone for the third month BEFORE he was 3 months old! His most impressive milestone to date are his vocal abilities. He "talks" to Ken and myself all the time. It is super endearing and the highlight of our day. He is quick and easy with his toothless smiles and he is even sitting in his bumbo with ease. Things are so different now that he is able to do more than just eat and sleep.

Which brings me to my next point. I don't think we're going to blog by the month anymore. I think there are too many other things to blog about and we seem to cover many of the milestones with other fun blogs.

We continue to be super thankful for our little man. He is a smiley, happy, active boy who is always doing something to take my breath away.

Ken's Corner

Being a daddy isn't easy. The bond between father and child has to be "earned" as Ken says. And since Ken stays at home with Christian while I am at work, he more than earns the strong bond between them. When Christian is upset, all I need do to calm him down is nurse him. Ken has to try everything else in the book (because he doesn't have the "instant comfort equipment" that I do).

This is his "Routine" for determining the cure for a meltdown:
1) Check the diaper
2) Give him a bottle
3) Walk around the house (we call this "taking the tour")
4) Let him look at his mobile in his bassinet
5) Let him look at his mobile in his crib
6) Take his clothes off and let him be nakey nakey eggs and bakey
7) Walk around outside
8) Go for a walk in the carriage
9) Put him in the bathtub
10) And if all else fails...repeat steps 1-9.

And since Ken and I don't believe in letting Christian cry it out, Ken's day is usually spent doing all of the above activities multiple times. (Although Ken says that he has let him cry for 10 minutes a couple of times. That's hardcore, huh?)

*SIDE NOTE: Because Ken is willing to do a number of different things to try to calm our kid down, I am so thankful that he is his primary caretaker. If Christian was at a daycare would they be willing to do whatever it took to ensure my kid was happy and comfortable? I don't know the answer to that, but I'm willing to bet that most people would try 1 and 2 of the "Routine" and then throw their hands in the air in defeat.*

Not only does Ken put Christian's happiness and comfort first, but he and Christian have a super special relationship. I guess the reason I am so impressed by their relationship is because I don't think most dads would revel in spending soooo much time with their kids. But Ken enjoys every minute.

And I'm not sure if you all know Ken very well, but he's usually a pretty serious guy. But when he's with Christian he is so silly. Like, sometimes I wonder where my husband went when I overhear the "conversations" he has with Christian. For example...

The other morning I was getting ready for work and I walk in the room to find this...

And Ken saying in the sing-song voice he ONLY uses with Christian, "The Little Baboo (Ken's nickname for Christian) is a flying nun! Oh no! Baboo is a flying nun!" I mean, seriously, who does that? He is so random. I laughed so hard I cried!

And then another day when I called home during my lunch break Christian was having a fit. What did he say to Christian in his special sing song voice to help calm him down and reassure him that the world wasn't coming to an end? He told Christian, "You better stop crying or Mommy said she's gonna trade you for a jar of peanut butter." OMG. I couldn't stop laughing.

So, because Ken and Christian have such a special relationship, I am going to document some of the funny things that happen between them in a blog called, "Ken's Corner". I can't promise that it will be weekly, but it will be often enough to keep you smiling!