Sweet Sixteen (months)

Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen Months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Testing out the Climber

I think you can see, we LOVE the climber! 

We helped Lincoln and he figured out the climbing side in no time.  He tries to climb the slide, but we take his hand and show him the other side.  He dances on the landing too : )

It's in the living room for now and will go outside soon, but I need to get something to put at the bottom of the slide so he doesn't scrape his bottom.

Couch Climber

Lincoln can get onto the couch now.  He has been doing this for almost 2 weeks.

It's a challenge.  You know, I am always excited to see Lincoln learn new things, but he makes me anxious.  I worry he will fall down, he gets fussed at and told to sit on his bottom all the time. 

Hopefully playing on his climber/slide toy will give him something to do other than climb my couch and drive me crazy.

A New Toy

Photo Credit: Toys R Us

The we ordered Lincoln a big and special present!

It arrives tomorrow and I am hoping David will have time to build it when he gets home from school.

Lincoln loves being outside!

Lincoln loves basketballs, baseballs, footballs, soccer balls, play ground balls!

Lincoln loves to slide!

Lincoln LOVES to Climb!

I think Lincoln is going to love this!

Weekend Recap

Friday: Target run for outdoor toys for Lincoln!  Dinner at Moe's! Started laundry, played, gave Lincoln a bath.  David put Lincoln to bed and then working on a paper for school for three hours.

Saturday: I let David sleep in; got up with Linc and we watched Sesame Street.  He can say Elmo and love when Elmo is on TV.  Played outside.  Lincoln took a 2 hour nap, I took a 1.5 hour nap and David worked on his paper.  Lincoln played outside some more.  David picked up Subway for dinner.

Sunday: David let me sleep in, he made french toast w/ a 12 grain bread- I did not like the texture of the bread and seeds, etc. in the bread. YUCK!  Boys played outside, I continued working on the laundry and took a shower.  David moved the back yard for Linc.  We washed the front windows, sprayed the screens, and washed cars.  Linc and I watched and Linc ate goldfish.  Linc took a two hour nap.  I am not sure how I managed to waste that time :)  We ran to Wa.l-M.art to get groceries and found a bucket to hold Linc's outside toys.  I made steaks, mashed potatoes and mushrooms for dinner.  Somehow I forgot a veggie :( I need to get better about that.  Played duplo, ball and climb everything for the rest of the night.  I put away laundry and sorted Linc's clothes that are too small or too warm for spring.  David gave Linc a bath and put him to bed.

I am all good!

The last post has been written for a while and I decided it was time to put it out there. 
It is absolutely not in response to anything currently going on with anyone.

We had a good day just hanging out today.  Linc is loving playing outside and pushing his toy lawn mower.
Lincoln also began saying BUBBLE today out of nowhere.  We have no idea where he picked it up, but were blowing bubbles for him for a half hour tonight :)

David has alot of homework this weekend.  For some reason each of his teachers think his life revolves around the class they teach.  So let's not take into account that he has a full time job, 2 classes, a son, a wife....  He has spent 8 hours on homework this weekend, working when Lincoln goes to bed and is napping.

It's just a season... just a season in our lives.  This will be nothing when we look back 60 years from now!

Baggage

I’m standing in a calm corner of a busy airport baggage claim.
The normal hustle and commotion seem to cause the floor beneath my feet to vibrate.
I am alone.

A bell sounds, a light flashes and the conveyor begins to move.

My grandma told me to tie a yellow ribbon to my bag to help me find it in the sea of identical bags that will soon come down the conveyor belt.

Each bag has a yellow ribbon, tied neatly onto the handle.

This is all my baggage.
I am alone.

There were no other passengers on this flight.

This is where I come to claim my baggage.

I begin looking at the address tags labeled childhood, loss, anger, bitterness, joy, fractured friendships, love, broken promises, lies, God.

Wait!
Why is God in a suitcase?
How did he get there?
Who put God in a suitcase?
I did.
I am alone.

In the last ten years, after many disappointments I began to try to find a way to cope.

I have witnessed a splintering divorce, my own failures when attempting college, met the love of my life, fought to tread water and keep afloat, married the love of my life, stood by my 25 year old love as he fought and won his fight with cancer, and become the mother of our precious son and bloomed into the family core I had always dreamed of. I have also made and lost friendships, tried to navigate a slippery and cracked relationship with my parents and siblings, stood by as three of my beloved grandparents went on to Heaven and have tried to bury my head and heart as I am losing another to dementia.

I have accumulated a lot of baggage.


I wish I had known that putting God in the suitcase would just magnify my frustration.

I am working on me. I am working on me so that I can be better for my love and our son.

I am not alone. GOD is here. I am breaking the cracks of the walls that I have put up. Somehow in all this period of trying, and failing, to protect myself the only one I held out was GOD. I was unable to protect myself from the hurt and failure. I am unable. HE IS ABLE.

This is not being written to blame any occurrence in my life for the way I feel today. I am writing this to remind myself that all of these events helped to make me who I am, all the good parts, what I like about myself and to help me focus being more of that.

Right now I am struggling with anger.
Right now I am struggling with bitterness from my past.

Right now, God offers me grace.
Right now, I am trying to apply grace to the wounds I am feeling.
God’s Grace describes ‘unmerited forgiveness’. He forgives when we don’t deserve it, probably especially when we don’t deserve it. God’s Grace is invaluable, priceless and if we were to attempt to try to earn it, we’d fail.

I am not writing this because I am living it. I am writing this because I am trying to live it. This is head knowledge for me and not heart knowledge.

The Meaning of Life

My friends Dave's Facebook Status: “Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming—WOW! What a ride!”

My Facebook Status: I think life is all about priorities and perspective. For me my family of 3, our health, our time together and finding our joy every day are number 1!!

Abraham Lincoln: Most people are as happy as they make their minds up to be.

Albert Camus : You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.

Albert Schweitzer: Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.

C.S. Lewis: Affection is responsible for nine-tenths of whatever solid and durable happiness there is in our lives.


Kin Hubbard: It's pretty hard to tell what does bring happiness. Poverty an' wealth have both failed.

Martha Washington: The greatest part of our happiness depends on our dispositions, not our circumstances.

Thomas Jefferson: The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family.

I find my most peaceful time are in the hectic, run of the mill, regular days spent with David and Lincoln.
I don't care at all about money, except where it relates to having a roof over our head, food on the table, transportation, diapers for our little one, and some to have fun with now and then.  Bills are a part of our lives and right now I am doing a great job of paying many down at a rapid rate.  However, it is not my goal to ever be rich and that's good because its probably not going to happen ;).  My goal is to contribute and provide for my family and make memories doing fun things.
I am grateful for my husband and our marriage.  We are both very aware that this season in our lives is a lot to deal with sometimes, but we have great hopes for David's career in the future with computers.  Having him be a full-time electrician and a full-time student, and of course, a full-time dad makes him incredibly busy. Although I miss him, I am totally proud of the way he is tackling things and still managing to help me.  There has never been a question, we are a team, and equal partners at that and I feel so lucky to be his wife!
I am really enjoying this time in our lives and really looking forward to the bright future David is working towards.

C.S. Lewis: God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.

Here's his sign...DUH!

David's cousin gave birth to her second and third children in January, adorable boy/girl twins.  Mom, Dad, first son and twins live in Massachusetts. Let me tell you, I cannot wait to get up there to see them, but it won't be until the summer. 

So... Last week we receive a cute birth announcement for the twins, dressed in blue and pink, and I hand it over to David.

David: So are they identical?
Erin:  Really, David?!?!?
David: What?
Erin: What did you just ask me?
David: Are they identical?
Erin: Think about it, babe.
David: What?

Hint: Boy/Girl twins are NOT identical.  One is a boy and the other is a girl ;)

Poor David, it really showed that he's been working 8 hrs., then going to school for 4 hrs. Sometimes obvious slips through the cracks- but I got a good laugh out of it :)

A Day at the Park - A picture heavy post :)

Lincoln in his cute outfit from his Auntie Angie

Lincoln LOVES to swing!

Somehow, the slide shocked David and went to his glasses :( It hurt him pretty bad and we don't know how or why it happened.

There is a field behind the park and Linc really enjoyed the freedom to run. 

I think dogs spend alot of time back there :(  So I'm not sure how much time we'll be able to spend back there since Linc (well and me too) are a little nervous around dogs lately.

More Rites of Passage- Parents Edition.

Poor Lincoln....

This weekend Lincoln hada bit of a stomach virus.  Well, at least that is what we think it is. 

We were up late Friday night, David playing his computer game and I was watching a movie.  We heard Lincoln coughing, and I waited for him to stop and then went in his room to check on him.  Poor guy : ( He was trying to go back to sleep but had gotten sick all over himself and in his crib. This was around one o'clock in the morning. I gave him a bath and David stripped his crib.  Lincoln easily went back to sleep in his crib, but we repeated the process, minus the bath a half hour later.  Lincoln never cried.  Lincoln is such a trooper and great baby.  I know I cry when I am sick, but you'd never know with Lincoln, poor baby was trying to go back to sleep instead of crying, calling for us and freaking out.

Well, we thought we were over it, except that Lincoln's appetite has not returned, but tonight Lincoln lost it while we were out to dinner.  Luckly for us, the waitstaff and our friend we were out with were more than understanding. 

We don't know what's up with Lincoln or why he is getting sick, but hopefully he'll be feeling better this week!

Public Service Announcement Ahead

I am going to try to get much better about posting here on my blog. 

I need to do more posts on Lincoln and what he's up to these days.

I need to use this blog as a journal and outlet for some thoughts I am working through right now.

There are going to be some deep, introspective posts in the coming weeks.

If you are reading, and are a member of my family, please understand that this is my journal where I process my thoughts and feelings. Please do not take anything personal or be offended; there is no reason to, this ins't about anyone other than myself.  No one is, or will ever be, referred to personally.  I am processing events in my life that effect who I am today and how they relate to me daily in my life, my marriage and in being a mom. 

I am trying to figure out how to deal with some of the feelings that bother me.

This is my life. The Chronicles of Craziness.  The perfection of imperfection.

I want to be the best I can be, most importantly where is effects D and Linc, so I am going to delve into these issues.  I think processing them here will help me be that best version of me.

Thanks!

Eskimo Kisses

Lincoln's bedtime is pretty simple.  After changing into pajamas, washing his face, and brushing his teeth, I grab his bottle from the fridge and we head upstairs.  We read two books (if we haven't already read everything already. twice.) and then I give him his bottle and we snuggle for a few minutes.

Lately, he is not asleep when he finishes his bottle. He curls up with his head on my shoulder, and then his head will pop up with the happiest little smile on his face : )  He has been giving us noggin (touching or banging his forehead into ours) for the last few weeks.

Last night, when his head popped up and he put his forhead to mine I gave him an eskimo kiss, rubbing our noses.  He LOVED this!  He repeated it over and over!  I love this sweet affectionate boy.  I love my son!

Sidenote: He is also very into kissing books right now.  We have one I tell him has a picture of his Colorado Grandpa in - well, Bapa gets kisses all the time ; ) Love it!
I am going to make a small photo album for him, so he can have his own book of his people he loves.

Houdini

My son is on a quest to be the next Houdini. 

He is an accomplished magician.

As a newborn, Lincoln could escape even the tightest (and safest) swaddling blankets.

As a crawler, Lincoln could find himself behind shelves at daycare, crawling through our coffee table and even between the small space between our couches.

Now, as a 15 month old walking machine he can open the baby gate between our living room and kitchen!

My goodness, I guess I'll be buying a new gate tomorrow.  I would just leave the gate off, but then Linc is constantly going between the kitchen and living room and doesn't stop to play with his toys. 

ETA (Edited to Add): I bought a new gate and David put it up Wednesday afternoon : )