Monday, January 24, 2011

This Guy

Yeah....I'm kinda crazy about him. ;)
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Today we celebrate 13 years of marriage.

That doesn't really seem possible. At the same time, it's really hard to remember a time when he wasn't with me. It seems just like yesterday we were this young, 21-year-old couple. Babies. Getting married. Still in college. Clueless. Madly in love. No idea what was ahead of us. I love the fact that we have pretty much grown up together. I went from living with my parents, to living in a dorm, to living with him. And that was perfect~ for me.

People give us a hard time for being a cheesy, sappy, mushy couple, and that's okay. I'm just thankful that we like each other as much as we do. At least, most of the time. ;)

Are things always "rainbows and butterflies" around here? Nope. We really couldn't be more different. Things that I get uptight about, he's relaxed about. And vice-versa. We parent differently. We think differently. We like different tv shows. You will never find me in a deer stand (well, unless he really wanted me to go). ;) You also won't find him scrapbooking.

But the older we get, and the further along we go on this journey, the better we get at handling problems and disagreements. And despite our different interests, we have a lot of fun together. Truth is, I would follow this guy to the end of the world. And I can rest in the fact that he would do the same for me.Photobucket

Thankful for how beautifully my photographer-friend (http://www.gypsyheartphotography.com/) caught the way we feel about each other.

Thankful that I get to share this life with him. It doesn't get any better than that.

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Happy that God has entrusted us with these three to take along on this journey.
Icing on the cake, people. :)

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Love, laughter, and complete chaos. That's us. :)

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

10

How in the world is it possible?
Not sure...and I'm going to try really hard not to be a sentimental, sappy mom in this post.
Not making any promises, though. ;)
My oldest is 10 today. The day after my baby turned 4.
Kind of a cruel thing to do to a mom, isn't it?
Honestly, beyond the bittersweet-ness that comes with watching your kiddos grow up, there's way more a sense of wonder, pride, humility, and most importantly, thankfulness.
Because Harrison was born before the world of digital cameras was introduced, I don't have pics from each year for him like I do for the other two boys. :(
So instead I chose some of my favorites to share.
This one is my favorite from our recent family pictures that were taken while in Texas.
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The Lego Maniac...age 8.

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My attempt at Christmas card pictures. Love this one of him.

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Summer after kindergarten, on vacation with Mimi and Papa in California.

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7th birthday (photo taken by Tomi Cheeks)

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Age 3, LOVING Mimi's cake at Thanksgiving.

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Baseball stud. :) (Photo taken by Tomi Cheeks)

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First art show, age 6.

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Age 6 (photo taken by Kelly Stocksen)
I know he's mine but...boy is he cute.

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Harrison is smart and funny.

He's kind-hearted and independent.

He still likes to cuddle, and loves his blanket...and doesn't care what anyone thinks about that.

I love that. :)

He's taken a new interest in music, playing guitar and singing in an ensemble group at school, and loves it. He's taking a break from baseball this year to pursue these interests, with the plan to play football in the fall. Not gonna lie....a little sad about the no-baseball thing, but love watching him go after his interests full speed ahead. Secretly hoping he misses baseball this season. ;)

Harrison loves his family.

He's a protective, patient big brother.

He loves the Lord, and it's incredible watching his relationship with God grow.

I couldn't be more proud to call him my son, and am thankful to see that with all the trial and error that comes with being a first-time parent, he's thrived in amazing ways. Whew. :)

Can't wait to see what the next 10 years hold for him, but really hope they don't go as fast as these last 10 years have. Happy birthday, Harrison! We love you very much.




Monday, January 17, 2011

Four

Today my littlest H is four.
At four he is funny, sweet, loves to aggitate his big brothers (and he's great at it) ;), ride his bike, build with Legos, play Wii Sports, rock out his guitar, and help me cook. He's tall and lean, with big green eyes. His hair is the darkest of the three boys, but still has a little blonde in it. Thanks to 3 years of (really) loving his paci, he sounds a little bit like Daffy Duck when he talks. :) It's really cute, but starting to go away as the little overbite he had is starting to close, you know, since he's big now and doesn't need that old paci anymore. ;)
He's my little buddy, and I can't help but think about how quickly it will be when he joins his big brothers at school. :( But for now I'm going to soak up every bit of preschool-hood that I can, and for today reflect back on his past birthdays, celebrating today's.
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Third birthday party...he was going through a shy stage then (he's way over that now), and covered his eyes when we sang to him, finally uncovering them to blow out his candles.

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TWO...Elmo party. This baby LOVES cake. Loves it. Definitely my kid. ;)

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ONE...this is one of my favorite pictures of him EVER. Thankful for a talented photographer friend
who happily took party pics for me so we could just enjoy the party. Missing her this year.

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January 17, 2007. His birthday.

After a short labor, he slipped into our world quickly, 3 weeks early. So quickly, that my doctor almost didn't make it in time. Thankful she did. And thankful I had the wisdom to cherish every moment of that day, remembering so many details, because I knew he would be my last, and I didn't want to forget a thing.

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Thankful for this little guy, and how perfectly he completes our family. Happy birthday, Hunter Man...you are very, very loved.

Monday, January 10, 2011

snow what fun it is :)

Snow days. Love, LOVED them when I was a kid, and love them just as much now. About 5-6 inches of snow was dumped on the Atlanta metro area last night, and we were thrilled to wake up to the beautiful white fluffiness this morning. School was canceled, Brian's office was closed...we are snowed in. Awesome. :)

By about 9:30 the boys were over being patient, and ready to gear up for some outside time. So we layered up, grabbed cookie sheets to use as sleds (they really worked!), and headed out. The giant hill we have in our backyard is a beating when Brian has to mow it, but it sure is great when it's covered in snow.
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Our next door neighbors had sleds and came over to share and play with us. We've got to get some of these. Wish you could have heard the happy-screaming-Hud as he was flying down the hill.

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Harrison was smiling like this pretty much the whole time...sledding, throwing snowballs, making snow angels...we finally had to drag him in. :)

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And this little guy was in snow heaven as well, loving it, laughing, sledding for about an hour. And then when he was done, he was DONE. Oh, the crying. "There's snow in my boots. There's snow in my gloves. There's snow in my eyeballs. I WANT TO GO IN!!" So we did. ;)

So while Hunter and I went in and warmed up, the other three kept on. And neighbors joined in. Have I mentioned how much I love our neighbors?
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And this guy was loving it too. I loved watching him play and laugh,
totally covered in snow, sledding, sliding, throwing snowballs...greatness.
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And yes, even I joined in the fun. I had forgotten how much I LOVE to sled. Haven't done it since we lived in Montana when I was 10. It's been awhile. ;)
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Definitely have to say it's been a magical day. And school has already been canceled again tomorrow....yippee!!

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Big

Two milestones for my tiny man today. Who is actually becoming not-so-tiny way too quickly. Milestone #1: I registered Hunter for Pre-K today...which doesn't actually start until September, but we had to get him on the waiting list early in order to get the Mon-Wed-Fri schedule we're REALLY hoping to get. We'll see. :) Warning: I'm not going to handle his first day of school well. Really hard to believe my baby is getting so big. *Sigh*
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Milestone #2: Hunter built his first real Lego set today.With some help from me, but it was remarkable seeing him build...I love watching those little fingers put the pieces together.
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I love how I can practically see the little wheels turning in that punkin head of his as he figures out where all the pieces go. But my favorite part?
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Watching the "I DID IT!" celebration when he's all finished.
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Man, I love this kid. :)

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Buckets and Resolutions

It's a new year. A time when people are talking about changes, goals, plans, dreams, etc. Truth is, I don't like New Year's resolutions...always felt like I was setting myself up for failure. I don't think my plans for a new "me" have ever made it past February. Had the best intentions, of course, but life gets in the way. ;) Guess when I really think about it, I'm okay with the way I am. Mostly.
This year, however, I'm trying again. With realistic goals.
1) I WILL (if it kills me) scrapbook 2010. Not worrying about the fact that years 2007-2009 aren't done yet, but focusing on 2010. Because it was a big year for us, and I want to document it.
2) I'm going to step things up a bit with my workouts. I've recently started running a little during my normal walks, and (shockingly)....I like it. Planning to work up to where there's more running than walking. And heading back to Pilates...this class is a once-a-week, 2-hour class . Haven't done that since before I was pregnant with Hunter, and I LOVED it then. Excited about starting again.
3) I'm going to un-plug more, and not be distracted by that stuff when it comes to my kids and my hubs. Not distracted by the computer and phone anymore, but be fully present for my favorite people. We love to play games, play outside, watch movies, etc. More of that in 2011. :)
4) Trying to find the balance between housework and play, busyness and downtime. I'm not good at relaxing. And the truth is, there is ALWAYS something to do....something to clean, clothes to wash, a project to finish, etc, etc. And it seems that the more I try to do, the more I FIND to do. Not that it's a bad thing~ I love having a clean home, and a life that is as organized as can be when you have 3 boys, but I want them to remember their childhood as one that was full of fun, hugs, and laughs in a clean (but not neccessarily perfect) and cozy home. Not one where their mom was too busy cleaning and making things perfect that she didn't have time to play and have fun. Think I can make that happen? We'll see. ;)
Ok, that's it. Pretty reasonable, right?
And now, my bucket list. Part of it, anyway. Things I would LOVE to do this year.
1) Play on the beach with my hubs and my babies. Because we've never done that, and we're so close now...it's gotta happen.
2) There are lots of old, classic movies that I have never seen. "The Sound of Music" is one. ALL of "Gone with the Wind" is another (I've seen parts, but not all). And I know Christmas is over, but I've never seen "Its'a Wonderful Life" in it's entirety either. Can you believe that? I'm a little ashamed of myself. The Doris Day movies I have seen I loved...want to watch more. Any other suggestions?
3) Learn how to play the guitar. Harrison's getting pretty good...maybe he can teach me. :)
4) Go on a mission trip with my family. I keep thinking that Hud and Hunter are too little, but that's wrong. The earlier they learn how to share the love of Jesus with others, the easier it will be to continue to share it throughout their lives. I would LOVE to go to China (or anywhere in Asia, really) but that may be a bit ambitious, and there's a really good chance that I will want to bring a baby back home with me :) so we'll have to work out the details there. We'll see.
5) I would LOVE to see Central Park in the spring. Thankfully, it looks like I'll get to see it with my mom and sisters this spring. Yay!


And now, I leave you with a pic of the boys ringing in the new year in our hotel last weekend. They thought it was so cool getting to drink their sparkling grape juice out of real glasses, and getting to "clink" them. :) So fun!

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Saturday, January 1, 2011

Our Christmas in Pictures

What's a sure way to know if I've had a great time somewhere? I have very few photos to show for it. : / There are LOTS of photos in this post, but not nearly enough that cover all the fun we had these past two weeks. SO fun. But here is what I did manage to get...
Our Christmas morning...since we were heading to Texas for Christmas, we had our own Christmas celebration before we left, party of five style. ;) When we woke up, Brian read the Christmas story first....the boys were surprisingly patient and engaged, which made my heart very happy.
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Then we headed downstairs to see what Santa had brought. Hunter was SO excited about his orange 4-wheeler....

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Harrison and Hud both had a major Lego Christmas, which thrilled them to no end. I can't believe they both built their big sets that day. Crazy.
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Clearly, Brian was having fun with some of his gifts too. ;)
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And at the end of opening gifts, there was a special gift for each of them from Mickey Mouse, telling them that he can't wait to meet them this summer when they come to visit him at Disney World! Not sure who's more excited, me or them. Maybe me because I know just how magical that place is. They are really excited too...Hunter keeps asking me if it's time to go to "Disney Channel" yet. :) He has no idea how much fun it's going to be.
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The next day we loaded up the car (and managed to fit all of us and everything else in it, which was a Christmas miracle) and headed fort Texas. We spent Christmas Eve at Nana's, and it was great. Family time, a delicious dinner, and the Christmas Eve service at our old church. Really great getting to go back and see friends...it was nice getting to be with our old church family.
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Hunter really loves playing the Wii at Nana's....
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Cousin time....
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...that night we headed up to the farm for Christmas day. Harrison played his guitar for Mimi and Papa (with the help of his brothers~Hud on spotlight, Hunter was the music stand)... ;)
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Hud got involved in a very serious game of Monopoly with his uncles. :)

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Todd thought my mom's new cozy socks were a handband....hahaha.

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The boys got to drive their new car-thing, and LOVED it. They were very cool.

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Hud loved his cozy fort...in fact, he spent most of the day in here, playing his new DS games. The kiddo was in heaven. :)

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Hunter ended up sick on Christmas with some yuck upper respiratory stuff. Not fun. Thankfully he was better the next day, and improved even more over the rest of the week. It was pitiful.

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And apparently that's where I decided to stop taking pictures. Not happy with myself at all. The rest of the week was great too. Hung out with my friend Tomi, had a dinner date with Brian and our friends Brent and LeeAnn, shopped with my mom and sisters, watched the boys play hard with my dad and their aunts and uncles, taught a class at the Little Blue House, did a family photo shoot (can't wait to update the blog!!!)....we made tons of memories, and are thankful for a fantastic Christmas with our family and friends.
Now we're back home, and there is unpacking, a little laundry, and lots of cleaning and putting away of Christmas decorations to do. I'm going to buy my new calendar tomorrow...can't wait! Love the cleaning, fresh start, nesting thing that comes along with starting a new year. Here we go...bring on 2011!