In just twelve short months, our lives have changed so much.  Last Christmas was our first year celebrating Jesus’ birthday as foster parents.  It was one of the most memorable Christmases of my life.  I didn’t know how we would ever have another Christmas that would be able to compare.  I had no idea that only a year later, we would be celebrating our son’s first Christmas!

We have been so incredibly blessed and we cannot be more thankful for all of the special people in our lives.

Even though we aren’t able to celebrate with our foster sons and daughters this year, we are thinking about each and every one of you and sending all of our love your way.

Merry Christmas to everyone.

Love,

Andrea, Ian and Graeson

A family picture with our first three children ❤

She drew a star for the top of the tree 🙂

We will be posting pictures from this year as soon as we get them downloaded on the computer.  XO

December 15, 2011-(I forgot to publish this when I wrote it last week in case you are wondering why the date is wrong).

A dear friend suggested that I share a typical day of our lives each month as Grae is growing up so we can look back and remember each stage of his life.  What a great idea. 🙂

So, here it goes-

I am taking twelve weeks of maternity leave- we are currently on week five.  As much as I believed that this would consist of sitting in my pajamas and watching soap operas all day while holding my content baby boy… I was very sorely mistaken.  Even squeezing in time for a shower takes a lot of creative scheduling… and a lot of caffeine.

6:30 am– Ian leaves for work 😦

7:30 am:  Little man starts grunting and gurgling, which in Grae talk means- “I’m about to loose it if you don’t feed me in the next 30 seconds!” I rush to change his diaper before he starts to become hostile, then we head down to the couch and he nurses while I respond to emails on my phone (this also consists of a little facebook-ing).  We cuddle for a little bit before he falls back asleep on the soft fluffy blanket on the couch.

8:30 am: The morning routine starts… for me- breakfast and coffee (today it was poured over ice from the pot that was brewed last night).  For Little Dude- another diaper change (sometimes this requires a new outfit too ;)), some tummy time in the sun, and I warm up a bottle in case he decides he’s still hungry (usually he is, which means yet another diaper change is in the plans as well…).

Momma's Morning Iced Coffee 🙂

10:30 am: Nap time for Grae while I run around cleaning up and doing chores as quickly as possible- laundry, dishes, throw away all the dirty diapers that have stacked up in random places, etc.

11:30 am– Grae is wide awake and ready to play!  I put more food in that hungry baby belly and do my best to entertain the little man.  He seems to be most intrigued with flashlights and rattles.  He follows these things with his eyes like a pro-and has been tracking objects for two weeks now… what an over-achiever!  He also does a lot of sneezing, hiccuping, grunting, and kicking.  🙂

12:30 pm-Lunch time for momma, diaper change for Grae (today we went through 3 diapers in a matter of 5 minutes… he has great timing).

1:30 pm- A little embarrassing- but while Grae dozes off into another baby siesta, I watch “Bold and the Beautiful”, my guilty pleasure.  Don’t judge.

2:00 pm- Time for a walk around our neighborhood!  Today (EVEN THOUGH IT IS THE MIDDLE OF DECEMBER) it is 70 degrees outside so we don’t even have to get all bundled up!  Grae LOVES walks, he sits with his eyes wide open, trying to take everything in, quiet and happy as can be. He hears birds chirping and dogs barking and he moves his head from side to side trying to figure out where the noises are coming from.  By the end of the walk, he is over-stimulated and falls asleep again.  I usually push the stroller into our living room and let him stay there until he wakes up from his nap.

3:00 pm- Grae is STARVING! Watch out now- he likes to give anything within reach hickies- including his OWN ARMS!

4:00 pm- Because it is so nice out today, we decided to go play in the backyard with the dogs.  Grae seemed to like Deacon (my big male husky) the best.  He stared at him cross-eyed for ten minutes straight- mesmerized.  Deac told us his feelings were mutual as he licked Baby’s toes in admiration.

5:00 pm- Time to fix dinner… Baby G gets strapped onto me in our new wrap.  Best invention ever.

6:00 pm-Daddy’s home!  He feeds Grae a bottle then we eat dinner on the couch sharing stories about our days.

7:00 pm- This is Piggy Porkchop’s “HANGRY” time- as in, so hungry he is angry!  He is either nursing or eating from a bottle for the next two hours straight.  Don’t even think of taking that milk away… or else!  KEEP IT COMING, BABY.

9:00 pm- Bath time for baby.  Its part of our bed time ritual because after his bath, he is so relaxed (and usually pretty tired).

9:30 pm– Grae goes to bed, while Mommy and Daddy watch TV and hang out for a bit before heading to bed ourselves.

Midnight- GRAE IS HUNGRY!

3:00 am- GRAE IS HUNGRY!

6:30 am…. It starts all over.

It might not be super exciting or all that glamorous, but I wouldn’t want to spend my days doing anything else. 🙂 I’m loving being a “stay-at-home mommy”- I only wish it could last longer than 12 weeks.  (Thank goodness for summer vacations.)

Today has been an extremely hard day.  Our beloved dog, Mac, passed away this morning.  It really caught us off guard… it was completely out of the blue, which makes it that much harder.  He had a belly ache last night, but he often got sick after eating dinner.  Mac wasn’t exactly a healthy dog… we rescued him from a puppy mill 4 years ago.  He was a breeder dog (hence the name Mac, as in Mac Daddy).  When he came to live with us, he was in very bad shape.  His mate passed away the day they were rescued and Mac had heartworms so bad the vet didn’t think he would make it either.  His teeth were rotted something horrible- we had to have all but three of them removed.  But that little solider fought.  He was truthfully the sweetest dog that ever lived.  I brought him to school with me often and my students loved him dearly.  He could be a stinker- which only added to his charm, and usually didn’t listen to a word Ian said.  But we love that little bugger- and always will- more than words can say.  Pets become such an important part of families… it’s just not going to be the same without him. 😦

Please send happy thoughts his way.

I miss you already Mac and I will see you again someday.  Rest in peace, buddy.

We LOVE you.

My adorable mom texted me this poem this afternoon…thanks, Mom… You are the best.

Brown and white and pure delight
His future went from bleak to bright
When a fairy princess rescued him
How his tail wagged when she took him in!
She loved him, fed him, made him well
Was this a dream?  He could not tell
This happy he had never been
And he never wanted for anything …again.

We’ve had our Christmas tree up for weeks, but with a new baby and 70 degree weather (and 70 hour work weeks for Ian), it’s been kinda hard to get into the Christmas spirit this year.  Finally, 7 days before Christmas, we have decorated that poor tree!  And, I have to admit, I’m so glad we did.  There is just something magical about the soft glow of white Christmas lights with a tree full of ornaments- each carrying a special memory.  Now I’m starting to feel that Christmas love.  It is Grae’s first Christmas after all… not to mention Christmas is being held at our house for the first time ever. 😉

Our Living Room

Close up of our tree

Staircase Stockings

Our Christmas Card- he's so cute we had to frame it and turn it into a Christmas decoration 😉

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Could this be Graeson’s first genuine smile?  And if so, how did I get so lucky to capture it on camera?  😉  We are still waiting for the big, open mouthed, gummy smile that I know will melt our hearts, so we are taking what we can get for now.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

SMILE 🙂

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