Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Growing up...

It's official--Edith isn't a tiny baby any more!

As of this week, she is no longer having baby food.  She won't really eat anything if WE feed it to her any more.  She is only interested in feeding herself, and I don't even think she'll want me to nurse her for much longer.  She's so grown up, and it makes me happy and sad all at once.

And Dylan, well, he just gets cuter and more grown up every week.  He says the funniest things, and takes everything so seriously.  He's socially fearless and assumes that everyone he meets will love him.  And they usually do.

Both of them are so beautiful and well behaved (most of the time), and I am so proud to be their mom!

Friday, December 25, 2009

Christmas 2009--just a few snapshots...


Edith mostly enjoyed the boxes and the wrapping paper, though she also had a good time trying to play with Dylan's toys.

I get some rare (and pretty amazing) snuggles with Dylan under his new Thomas the Tank Engine blanket.
Edith likes her new rag doll, Matilda, that I made for her.  She especially enjoys playing with the yarn hair.

Dylan looks stunning in his new shirt and tie.
Edith also looks stunning in her beautiful little Christmas dress.

A bit of silliness during our big dinner.  Christmas crackers are an absolute must!

We all had a beautiful day.  Our Christmas duck was not great, but the rest of the meal was good.  My Christmas pudding was especially popular, which comes as something of a relief as it was made about 6 weeks ago and served without tasting it first.  SCARY!

Anyway, we are all exhausted but happy.  The kids were spoiled rotten by grandparents and great grandparents and certainly didn't feel a lack in the present department.  Martin and I chose small but meaningful and well thought out gifts for each other.  All in all, a tremendous success.

Now it's time for bed!

Monday, December 21, 2009

Fear...

I have always looked forward to the next stage with Dylan.  From the very beginning I looked forward to his first tooth, crawling, talking, walking, etc.  I've loved watching him grow up and become more independent.

But last night I was going through some clothes we were given for Edith, and I saw some cute little jeans that were 12-18 months.  They were so big, and all of a sudden I realized that in just 4 short months Edith will be wearing that size.  And I became a little bit afraid of her growing up.

She won't be my little baby for very much longer.  Already she is nearly crawling.  She also waves hello and goodbye and just last night figured out how to clap all on her own.

Maybe I am just terrified because I don't want to deal with another two year old.  Dylan seems to be past the worst of the terrible twos (though now I've jinxed it and he'll be horrible all during Christmas) and I don't want to do it again with Edith.  But I don't think that's it.  I've loved having a baby in the house this time around.  Seriously, it's been so delightful.  But soon I will have a young child and a toddler, and then it will be two children.  Before I know it, I'll have two teenagers.

Plus, the older they get, the older I get.  I know that's only simple logic, and I should have realized this before.  But it's not something I tend to think about on a regular basis.  In fact, usually only at birthday time.

Bottom line is, I don't want my baby Edith to grow up.  Can't I just keep her 8 1/2 months old forever?  I can't even imagine her as a toddler.  Though I'm sure she'll be a lovely one.  I think I need to start preparing myself for the fact that she is going to grow up and accept that it's going to go faster than I realize.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

A not so happy anniversary...

December 18 is a rough day for me every year.  It's the anniversary of one of the most defining events of my adolescence, and is a day I like to spend in quiet reflection about the way my life has turned out.  Looking at my wonderful life helps make me less bitter about that fateful day, because everything changed for me then.  17 is really young to learn some lessons, but I am glad things worked out the way they did.  It took me a long time to get to this point!

Also, a year ago yesterday is when we took Dylan to the emergency room in Nephi while he was having a seizure.  I will never forget holding his limp little body close to mine on the drive to the hospital.  I thought he was dead.  I honestly did.  I have never experienced fear like that before, and I hope I never feel that way again.  Ever.

So yesterday should have been a nice, quiet, reflective day.  Instead it was spent at a break neck pace doing housework, cooking, sewing, laundry, entertaining guests, and working on Christmas presents.  Oh, and taking care of the kids.  Sort of.  I got up at 6am and finally fell in to bed at about 11:15pm.  That's LATE for me.  Martin had a party to work at the Place, and he didn't get home until 12:30 this morning.  We're both pretty tired, and today is another full day. 

So even though I didn't get to spend yesterday the way I would have liked, I am grateful for the life that I lead.  I have a wonderful husband and two beautiful children, and they mean the world to me.  I sometimes wish that December 18, 1996 had never happened, but I know I wouldn't be where I am today if it hadn't.  And where I am today is pretty sweet.

Monday, December 14, 2009

All clear...

We haven't had any live bugs in our hair for several days now, and Dylan and I had our hair cut today.  We are officially lice free!  Of course, I am one of the most obsessive people I know about the cleanliness of my hair, so I will probably continue to use the nit comb for a few days at least.  But I feel less dirty now.  What a relief!

We're doing well.  Edith is doing especially well!  She sat up on her own for the first time yesterday.  If she is laying on her back, she rolls on to her tummy, pushes herself into a crawling position, and then pushes herself back to sit up.  It's quite impressive.  And she is SO close to crawling that it's almost painful to watch.  Especially when she topples forward and hits her chin or her forehead on the carpet.  OUCH!

We are still working on Christmas presents, but are in the middle of our fishing set for Dylan and really enjoying it.  The fish are turning out pretty adorable.  I'll get a picture posted as soon as they're finished so everyone can admire our handiwork.  It's kind of funny.  Last night I was hand stitching polka dots onto one side of the octopus and I realized how ludicrous it is that I am hand sewing and finishing a gift for a 2 year old.  He wouldn't care if it was glued on.  But it wouldn't last as long, and I want him to have something fun and durable.  So we will continue to hand stitch and make these gifts as nice as possible.  For the child who will never in a million years appreciate all the effort we've gone to!

Anyway, lots to get done before the Mundays come over at 4.  Martin got a bunch of bonus curry from Rapi last night and they are coming over to share in the bounty.  Hooray!

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Christmas tree fun...


Dylan had a good time decorating the Christmas tree. 

Edith had a good time trying to eat the decorations.

Some of the ornaments were more popular than others.


Decorating the top of the tree took some serious effort!


Our posh tree topper!


The finished result is truly stunning.

Super saver...



£2.48 buys a lot of groceries when you shop the reduced section on a Saturday night.  Hooray for Martin!

Sugar high...

We have gone to two parties today. It was the ward Primary activity this morning, and Nathan Munday's birthday dinner this evening. Dylan has had a steady diet of "party food," like sausage rolls, finger sandwiches, crisps, and biscuits. He is in bed--has been for about 30 minutes now--but he is on such a sugar high that he is in his bedroom singing to himself. I'm sitting downstairs just listening to him chattering away and giggling to myself.

It's been a good weekend, really. Martin worked a dinner party last night so I was on my own for dinner and bath/bed time. But it was ok. The kids went down to bed without a problem, and having me do bath time is a bit of a novelty so they both enjoyed that as well. And today has been so busy that I've not had a chance to sit and breathe, let alone be bored or lonely!

Edith was a little nightmare last night, waking 3 times to be fed, so even though it's only 8 pm I am really looking forward to bed and will be heading there in about 30 minutes. Pathetic!

Nighty night everyone. Here's hoping Dylan doesn't keep me awake with his singing!

Friday, December 11, 2009

Penny for your thoughts...

There are some things you just don't think about very often. One of them has been on my mind quite a lot since last night.

Martin was reading a "news" story on AOL about the cost of Christmas. Readers were polled about how much money they spent on Christmas gifts for their children, and the average for our area was about £260 per child(that's around $400), which was the highest in England. The lowest was in London and was around £160 ($240). Now, granted, I have no idea how much money my mom and dad used to spend on us. But I'm pretty sure it was nowhere near that much, and I remember having fantastic Christmases while I was growing up!

At the end of the news stories on AOL the readers can post their comments, and Martin read a few of them out loud to me. Some people were shocked and appalled that people weren't spending MORE money than that! But one person's post nearly broke my heart. They said that they couldn't even pay their mortgage, let alone buy gifts for Christmas. They said that they were heartbroken because their children would have to face the reality of economics at such a young age and would have to have their dreams of Santa shattered so early.

Martin posted that we were making most of our Christmas gifts this year. He said that he believed (and hoped) that our friends and family would appreciate thses gifts even MORE than store-bought ones since they came from the heart and involved a lot of effort on our part.

I also saw something on a blog that I stalk, erm, read. It was about a charity that helps hungry children in the U.S. They gave some statistics about how many people in one of the richest countries in the world are expected to go hungry this Christmas.

I couldn't even wrap my head around that--there are some families who can't even afford to feed their children! How is that possible in the United States of America? How much would it break your heart to hear your babies crying because they were hungry and not be able to do anything about it?

We have been broke this year. I mean totally broke, not just feeling the pinch a little bit. But we've always managed to pay the mortgage and the bills. Grocery money has been nearly non-existent at times, but we have never actually gone hungry because we couldn't afford food. We are truly blessed.

We are having Christmas this year. We have a tree, which is largely decorated with home-made ornaments and things that were given as gifts to us in Christmases past, and it is lovely. We are sharing the cost of our Christmas dinner with our family, so none of us will go over our food budgets but we will be able to have a traditional dinner with all the trimmings. Martin and I don't really have many gifts for each other, but our children will have gifts under the tree and we have been able to buy or make gifts for our families. It won't be much, but at least our kids will have a Christmas that is fun and memorable. And that will make it special for us--knowing that our children are happy.

As for the food situation, well, that truly is a blessing. We've been hearing at church for YEARS now about the importance of having food storage. A whole year's worth of food is the goal, but money and storage space limit us. I have about 4 weeks worth of food in my house at any given time. Sometimes more, sometimes slightly less. But I ALWAYS have extra. It's saved our bacon more times than I can count--especially in the last 6 months. I pick up a few extra tins of tomatoes or some extra rice or pasta every time I can. And our family and friends always help out when they can. Even if I had a whole month with absolutely no money to spend on groceries, we wouldn't go hungry. Our diets wouldn't be very exciting, but we would have food in our bellies for every meal.

We may not have a lot, but we have enough. And for that, I am truly thankful!

Monday, December 07, 2009

The walk of shame...

Probably the first walk of many, too. My poor baby Dylan has head lice, and he's generously decided to share them with me.

I bought my first ever bottle of head lice treatment and a nit comb. Edith doesn't have enough hair yet for it to be a worry. I'll have to check Martin when he gets home, but I think it's just me and Dylan. So we'll be doing some major social grooming at my house this afternoon.

I KNOW that it's not a matter of hygiene. I know that lice prefer clean hair. I know that most children get them at some point. I know I don't need to be embarrassed about the whole situation. But I still am! My child is covered in bugs. GROSS!

I remember having lice in the first grade. Everybody in the school was checked, and they pulled me out of class, called my parents, and sent me home until they were gone. I thought it was good fun. Except for the stinky shampoo, of course. My mother was probably mortified!

So now I know how you felt, mom.

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Puddles...

Sights of the Lincoln Christmas market...



A story in pictures...

We went on a Christmas tree hunt on Friday, and found our hunting ground on the back road between Barrow and Goxhill--two local villages...

The farmer led us out to the field of trees currently being harvested, where we chose our favorite.  Then he took out his handy dandy chainsaw and chopped it down for us...


We asked for a 7-8 foot tree, but this one was a BIT bigger than that.  Martin was carrying Dylan and I was carrying Edith, so the farmer carried the tree.  What a champion!


Edith and I chilled while Martin and Nigel (not really his name, but it sounds nice and British and I never got his real name) strapped the tree to the top of the car.  What did Dylan do, you ask?


Dylan splashed in a mud puddle, which we were fine with since he was wearing his wellies.  Then he FELL in said mud puddle, and this was the result.  Since his jeans were all muddy, this was how he had to come home...


We had to cut about a foot off the tree to get it in the house, and we had to do some serious rearranging of the furniture.  Our house was a bit untidy afterwards...


But we DO have an absolutely gorgeous tree.  All it has is lights at the minute, but we shall be decorating it tomorrow evening and more pictures will follow.


Now we're ready for Christmas.  Sort of.

Thursday, December 03, 2009

the latest and greatest...


The kids and I have been spending a lot of time playing together lately.  I never thought I'd be spending so much time lying down on my floor before I had children!

Seriously, I love playing with my kids.  Yesterday I played cars with Dylan.  I was Lightening McQueen and he was the fire engine.  It pretty much consisted of the fire engine rescuing McQueen because he couldn't fly, and we had the same script about 10 times, but I was amazed by Dylan's creativity.  He is so advanced for his age!  And Edith just likes company while she is lying there trying to crawl.

The Christmas lights are up in Barton and the high street is looking all festive.  The kids love the lights!

Got this slightly freaky but pretty cool pic of Dylan last night.  Long exposure for night time photos combined with a 2 year old's inability to hold still for longer than about 5 seconds!

I love this one of Edith.  I think she looks like a fashionable little French girl in her little beret.  And this color really suits her.  What a beauty!
Dylan found Martin's "cup" laying around the house and was wearing it like a hat.  We decided to teach him where it really goes, and I can't decide which is funnier.

Such a serious little girl last night.  She's usually all beaming smiles.  I think she looks like an adorable little Christmas elf in this photo.  And that outfit is a 3-6 month.  She was eight months old this week!
I have no idea what Dylan was up to!  It looks like he's in the middle of either jumping or dancing.  Either way, he's having a great time.


This is how Edith looks about 60% of the time.  I have never seen such a happy baby in my life!

Have a nice "trip," See you next "fall..."

I shouldn't be so flippant about this, but it's all good so I can make a joke about it now.

Dylan took a tumble down our stairs yesterday morning.  When he woke up at 5:20am he got up to come in to our bedroom.  He must have slipped, because he ended up at the bottom of the stairs screaming bloody murder.  SCARY!

We got him calmed down, checked for bleeding and broken bones, etc.  Then Martin made sure he could walk ok.  It only took about 5 minutes.  I swear, kids are made of rubber.  We didn't even feel like we needed to take him to the hospital.  I think he went down the stairs like a slide, since he has a goose egg on the back of his head and a huge bruise that follows the shape of his ribs exactly.  Poor kid.  But he's just as hyper and happy as ever, so we're not concerned.

We DID keep his bedroom door closed last night though. 

Those stairs of mine are a real health hazard sometimes.  I remain the only person in the house who hasn't fallen down them.  Well, Edith hasn't either but she can't even crawl yet, let alone walk.  That stair gate is going to have to start staying closed all the time again real soon!

On a positive note, we did get our first proper night's sleep all week last night.  Both kids were sound asleep by about 7:30 (though it took Edith ages and I had to feed her extra) and Edith woke at 4am for a feed.  Dylan slept until nearly 6am.  Bliss!  Martin and Dylan are healthy again, I am on the mend, and I think Edith is past the worst of the cold now. I think it helped that Martin was there for bedtime.  He's missed it 3 nights in a row because of his Indian food delivery job--they've been really busy!  But the more deliveries he does the more money he makes.  Besides, he brought home a really delicious lamb curry for FREE the other night.

We are going to try to get a Christmas tree today.  I wanted one on Monday, but I want to get one from a tree farm where we can pick our own and have it cut down on the spot and the ones I know about weren't open for business yet.  I miss going up in the mountains and cutting our own down, and that's the next best thing.  Maybe I'll cave and we'll just get one from Mickey B's instead.  So hopefully I will have some adorable pictures to post tonight.

Tuesday, December 01, 2009

They're not little for long...

Edith had a rough night last night.  She was awake for about an hour and a half.  We'll let her off though, because she's not feeling well.  Dylan did the same thing the two nights before.  Typical.  It's either one or the other of the kids keeping us up.  I really would sell my soul for a decnt night's sleep!

But I digress...

I was holding her on my chest and kind of bouncing her to sleep when it occurred to me how big she's gotten.  She spent the first three weeks of her life sleeping like that--all curled up on my chest.  But now just her torso fits where her whole body, legs included, used to.  She's growing so quickly. 

And while the knowledge that she's going to be grown up before I know it didn't make me any less tired, it did make me cherish her a little bit more.  Even though it was 2 am. 

The whole family either is or has been sick.  I'm ready for all of us to be healthy again.  Taking care of sick kids when you're not well is hard work.  It's funny, how you seem to be able to take care of them even when you can hardly take care of yourself.  Being a parent teaches you an awful lot about sucking it up and just getting the job done.

Other than the sickness running rampant in our house (Which is no big deal, by the way.  It's just a cold!) we are doing well.  Dylan is sort of "getting" Christmas this year, and recognizes Santa when we see decorations and such.  He's jazzed about the Christmas decorations and lights, and can hardly wait to get a Christmas tree.  We're going to get one this week, because I want him to be able to enjoy it for as long as possible.  Edith will probably really enjoy the lights on the tree, and I only hope Dylan doesn't break everything.  He's incredibly destructive and disobedient at the minute. 

Oh, kids.  Part of me just wants them both to be grown up and independent.  But I know that's just the sleep deprivation talking.  I love taking care of them and watching them grow and develop.  I love how they depend on me, and they trust me completely to take care of them.  I'll be sad when they finally realize that mom can't fix everything.  Right now, a hug from me is all the reassurance they need that everything is going to be ok.

I would love to be that innocent again!