"Not me!" Monday...just a little early...

I did NOT keep my Bubbalu in his brand new footie pajamas for most of the day each day this weekend just because he looked so stinkin' cute in them, intending to take pictures to remember the stinkin' cuteness (and share it with you, too), but then never get around to it for one reason or another. I'm a scrapbooker for crying out loud! I'm always on top of my photo taking!

I did NOT eat standing up near the food table at a barbecue because hubby was watching Luke at the other end of the deck and I knew if I went to sit down, hubby would assume I would take over watching him and I wanted to just be able to eat and chat in peace. Not me! I would never do that. I'm a loving, attentive mommy.

I did NOT buy multiple different baby shampoos/body washes because I wanted to try out the different delicious baby smells. Not me! How many baby washes could you need? (My personal favorite is Method, by the way...it's light scent has a hint of marshmallow.)

I did NOT spend too much time blog surfing the other night instead of studying. Nope. Not me. I'm much more disciplined than that.

I am NOT sitting on the couch eating frosted flakes out of the box while surfing the net and writing my "Not Me! Monday" post. Not me! I'm on Nutrisystem and I NEVER cheat! (Leave me alone, it's been a rough day...)

Mommy music review...

How have I missed this? There is a song that I hear often on the radio, and I've always liked the tune, but never was really able to listen to the words until recently. It's called "In My Arms", and I quote:

Your baby blues
So full of wonder
Your Curly Que’s
Your contagious smile

And as I watch
You start to grow up
All I can do is hold you tight
Knowing

Clouds will rage in
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down

Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

Story books
Are full of fairy-tales
Of kings and queens
And the bluest skies
My heart is torn just in knowing
You’ll someday see
The truth for lies

Clouds will rage in
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

Castles they might crumble
Dreams may not come true
Cause you are never all alone
Cause I will always
Always love you

Clouds will rage in
Storms will race in
But you will be safe in my arms
Rains will pour down
Waves will crash all around
But you will be safe in my arms

In my arms
In my arms

*Sniff*... It makes my mommy-heart melt. I tracked it down online and discovered THIS...



A beautiful, heart-wrenching, warm-fuzzy, ovary-stirring, lactation-inducing album overflowing with motherly love (with a bit of an edge) from Plumb, an artist I have enjoyed in the past. She created this album for her two small boys last year for Pete's sake!...where the heck have I been?

I've been listening to it via iPod every day since I downloaded it and already have scrapbook pages forming in my mind featuring at least a couple of the songs, especially "Always"...

Out of nowhere you came
From a little dust and a little rain
And when I looked down at your face
It showed to me the truth in grace

I will always try to keep you very safe

So open up your eyes
So they can look in mine
And see a small reflection
And when you close your eyes
I pray the thoughts inside
Are beautiful and true

I won't always
Be this strong
And I won't always
Be the one
To kiss the bruise
Or heal the scrapes
To wipe the tear drops
From your face

But I will always love you more each day

So open up your eyes
So they can look in mine
And see a small reflection
And when you close your eyes
I pray the thoughts inside
Are beautiful and true

I will always love you more each day
I will always try to keep you safe

So open up your eyes
So they can look in mine
And see a small reflection
And when you close your eyes
I pray the thoughts inside
Are beautiful and true

I will always
I will always ... love you

*Sigh*...I urge all you mommies out there to give it a listen!

Obsess much?

My funny little guy has a funny little obsession with a few of his toys that I can only describe as OCD...in a backwards kind of way. His obsessions? A stacked ring toy and a Leap Frog "Phonics Bus. When the rings are stacked and the little removable characters are nestled in their bus seats, he just cannot help himself. He....MUST....remove....them.

He pauses from unstacking the rings only to unseat the tiny bus' tiny passengers (tasting each one for quality control, of course...)

...before continuing on with the unstacking...

I re-stacked them two or three more times, and he promptly unstacked them each time, but I won't drown you in those photos. He's only satisfied when all the rings are strewn all over the floor.

Let's experiment a little, shall we? I stacked them again and moved them to the other side of the living room while Luke was busy playing with different toys. But those eagle eyes just couldn't stand to see them standing in their colorful, orderly tower...

...his backwards OCD kicked in again...

And as soon as he was done, it was off to other interests...

Until Mommy re-stacked them again...

Should I just start saving for his therapist now?

"Not me!" Monday...

I'm participating in a blog "game" (I guess you could call it...) hosted by MckMama over at www.mycharmingkids.net (She and her family are pictured in that button over to the right that says, "Praying for MckMama and Baby Stellan".) Kind of like a truth-or-dare expose (well...without the "dare"...) of moments that certainly did NOT happen throughout the week. And so, I introduce to you...


This week:

I did NOT go off my diet for pizza and ice cream...twice.

I did NOT go without showering on Saturday and just throw a hat on when I went out shortly on Sat. night.

I did NOT get up feeling a little crummy with a cold on Sunday and decide not to shower right away... then as the day went on think to myself, "Oh what the heck, no sense in showering now and wasting water." (I'm so earth conscious, aren't you impressed? Oops! I mean...I'm NOT so earth conscious...)

I did NOT make up for saving all that water by taking a looooong shower complete with multiple hair washings at a leisurely pace. (Mmmm... with a fresh new bottle of strawberry scented shampoo... ahhhh.)

I did NOT just use my t-shirt, or my hand, to wipe my son's runny nose... on more than one occasion.

I did NOT take video of one of my son's first temper tantrums, while attempting (unsuccessfully) to stifle my giggles. And his daddy was NOT sitting on the couch with eyes filling with laughter-induced tears. (I'm sure this is NOT going to cause Luke to need therapy later, either...)

I did NOT just start working again on my pregnancy album. (No, I'm not pregnant again...this would be from when I was pregnant with Luke...yes, the same Luke that turned one last month...)

Ahhhhhhh! It's so liberating. You should try it!

1 year Dr.'s visit...

This is probably not very interesting to anyone other than me but, oh well... here it is saved in blog history for posterity.

Current stats: 31" tall (71%), 23 lbs 4 oz (46%)

Does that mean he's on the tall and skinny side? In this family? I'm sure that won't last long. Wouldn't that be funny if he grew up to be tall and slender with pudgy, midget parents?

You can see all FOUR of his little pearlies on top in this shot, complete with that late-blooming 2nd front tooth (thank God! I was beginning to wonder if he just didn't have a baby tooth in that spot.)
Mommy kept blowing on the mobile in the corner, making it dance and twirl."Ooohhhh...Mommy that's neat.... do it again!" (Oh, don't you just fawn over those baby lashes!)

O.k., boring post is over.

"A person's a person, no matter how small."

That's a quote from Dr. Seuss, expressing more wisdom than a man who could possibly be our future president.

Frightening, I believe is the word I would use.

Here's an interesting quiz. What do you think?...

1. A preacher and his wife are very, very poor. They already have 14 kids. Now she finds out she is pregnant with the 15th. They're living in tremendous poverty. Considering their poverty and the excessive world population, would you consider recommending she get an abortion?

2. The Father is sick with sniffles, the mother has TB. Of their 4 children, the first is blind, the second has died, the third is deaf, the fourth has TB. She finds out she's pregnant again. Given this extreme situation, would you consider recommending abortion?

3. A white man raped a 13 year old black girl and she's now pregnant. If you were her parents, would you consider recommending abortion?

4. A teenage girl is pregnant. She's not married. Her fiance is not the father of the baby, and her fiance is upset. Would you recommend abortion?

...time's up!

In the 1st case, you would have killed John Wesley, one of the greatest evangelists in the 19th century.
In the 2nd case, you would have killed Beethoven.
In the 3rd case, you would have killed Ethel Waters, the great black gospel singer.
If you said yes to the 4th case, you would have declared the murder of Jesus Christ!
(From The Way Of The Master with Kirk Cameron)

I've heard debate after debate on abortion, reason after reason trying to justify one evil because of another but what it really comes back to, what simply cannot be denied is this: IT IS THE KILLING OF AN INNOCENT HUMAN LIFE. Regardless of how that life came to be, regardless of the circumstances surrounding it, it is an immeasurably valuable, precious life.

Even science confirms that life begins at conception. At the MOMENT of conception, there is a dramatic change on the cellular level and that new little person gains it's own, individual, unique DNA.

So, do you think we as a country will ever acknowledge the fact that we give more rights to a convicted criminal on death row than we do an innocent child?

Or just find other ways to ignore what we're really doing?

Disgusting, I believe is the word I would use.

"Hey! I put some new shoes on..."

...Name that tune!

I forgot to post about another of Luke's little, boring-to-everyone-except-mama-and-grandma milestones!Luke has his first pair of real shoes! (Sesame Street, with Elmo, of course...) He's been wearing them for a couple weeks now, and after playing in the dirt Wed. night at Daddy's soccer game, they're already good 'n' dirty. He actually likes to sit and have me put them on him. It's the only thing he'll sit patiently for.

Prayer request...

For those of you prayer warriors out there stopping by our blog, I have a prayer request... My mother-in-law is battling breast cancer that has spread to multiple other areas. Her prognosis is not good, and she's starting to experience more pain and other negative side effects of the cancer and the treatment. Sometimes she is positive and fearlessly ready to face anything, other times she is discouraged and having a hard time coming to terms with what the Lord is asking her to go through. It would be incredible if she were to be healed, and if it's God's will, then so be it!! But if not, please pray for her comfort and for spiritual, emotional, mental and physical strength going through all of this. Also, please pray for my hubby as well. He is an only child and she is all he has left of his immediate family since his father passed in '01.

Thanks prayer warriors!

Name that photo...

I've seen other blogs do "name that photo" contests, and when I saw this one, I just had to do it myself. Besides, I see all you sneaky people stopping by from all over the place but not leaving comments. Yeah, you! So, take a stab at it, give this photo a title or caption... (A tip for those blog-challenged visitors: You CAN leave an "anonymous" message, you know.) I'll try to think of something fun to give away...(it may just be a "way to go!", but hey, this is my first try.)

My new view...

My little guy is doing so well walking on his own! I'm sure it's just a matter of time before I smack myself into a tree, because this is what I'm usually focused on.
(For the record, I know in this picture it looks like he's sashaying his sweet little self across the grass, but he doesn't normally walk with his hand in the air like a pansy...)

We all got to go to the park this weekend, TOGETHER. This is probably the first time Rainer has been to a park for something other than sports in years.Luke loves this "game", I didn't realize how much it gives me heart palpitations until I saw these pictures..*GASP!* Don't drop my baby!!!

Then we played a little soccer...It looks like I'm ripping his little arms out of his sockets, but he sure loved me to swing him and help him "kick" the ball. Oma and Luke took at a turn on the teeter-totter...Oh, it's way past my bedtime so I'd better go. Sweet dreams!

Blog stalking...

I've been doing a little blog stalking and have come across some great blogs that have got me thinking for different reasons...

A few weeks ago, a friend and fellow blogger mentioned www.ThePioneerWoman.com. I did a little browsing on her site and read her love story, the story of how she and her husband met, got engaged and married about 10 years ago. (Ok, well...she actually is still in the process of writing it and hasn't gotten to the wedding yet, but anyway...) She has a great sense of humor and wit and had me laughing 'til I cried more than once. What I really appreciate about her, though, is that she is so very much in love with her husband, and loves to show it. I don't just mean she loves her husband, I mean she is head-over-heels, wipe-the-drool-off-your-chin-girlfriend, in love with her hubby, whom she affectionately calls "Marlboro Man". (He's a cowboy, he doesn't smoke.) It's so refreshing to hear someone who brags up her hubby rather than complain or make sarcastic comments and jokes about him. (Guilty! Oh, it's just soooo easy sometimes...)

She inspired me to think about all the things I really love about my hubby, remember when we first met and married, and get to crushing on my guy, too. I'm still trying to think of what "Marlboro Man" nickname to give him. I joked with the friend who introduced me to Pioneer Woman that her husband was the Gordon's Fisherman (he's a fisherman...I wasn't sure if I needed to point that out... No? It was obvious? Oh, you're sharp as a tack...) and my guy is "Nick Burns, Your Company's Computer Guy" from Saturday Night Live. (Those of you who know Rainer but haven't heard of Nick Burns, google it and watch some clips. You'll laugh.)

Another blog that has inspired me lately is one that I stumbled upon because the blogger and I share the same first name. www.noahsteven.blogspot.com Her blog is very different than the first one I mentioned. It's about her son, Noah, who died at only 7 months old from a mysterious illness, and the wisdom God has shown her through the ordeal and the grief that follows. (Tip: I wouldn't recommend reading it at work, I've been bawling for the past two days.) She has been so open and honest, and has been able to put into words some of the thoughts and feelings I had with my father's illness and death. One of my greatest fears is having to go through something with Lukas like I did with my dad. (For those of you that don't know, he passed away after a 4-year-long battle with leukemia.) The Lord has really been reminding me lately that Luke is not mine, he's just "on loan". God also has to keep reminding me that it's pointless to worry and I just need to trust Him. He kinda knows what he's doing.

I know some certain readers think that no post is complete without some recent Luke pics, so I'd better not disappoint...No, I didn't forget which side of the baby his face was on, I just wanted to have some pictures of his sweet little ears and the delicious nape of his neck. That was my grandmother's favorite place to plant kisses and I wanted to remember how precious some of his less-photographed parts were.

Lukas Paul, cat whisperer...

We certainly have ourselves a cat-lover. Tobo, our little (desperately attention-seeking) snuggle bug follows Luke wherever he goes, flopping down around him just hoping he'll get some lovin's. Every so often, Luke stops what he's doing and coos lovingly at "his kitty" as if he just noticed his friend had arrived, and proceeds to use him as a pillow. I finally got some better pictures of one of their snuggle fests yesterday. He tries to do this with our bigger cat, Toki, but he'll have none of it. He gets a shocked and irritated look on his furry face and looks at Luke as if to say, "What the H-E-double-hockey-sticks are you doing?!?" I don't have any pictures of that yet. I wonder if I'll be able to capture the essence of that kitty emotion on camera...

Remembering...

My heart goes out to all those who lost loved ones 7 years ago today. Praise God that we will see some of them again!

'Scuse the mess, my cup runneth over...

Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep breath in (I can't figure out how to type that sound...)........Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... I just got back from the first night of bible study and I'm all filled up.

I've been going to this bible study off and on for years and have really enjoyed it, and the group I was a part of. This year they split into a morning study and an evening study, with many of the members of my "small group" switching to mornings. I had to choose a new group to be in this year and had a hard time deciding. I told them they just needed to point me in the direction of the group that they would send the chick "most likely to be kicked out of class". I didn't want to accidentally pick a group of sweet, quiet ladies who drank tea and twittered when they ever-so-delicately laughed. Not that there's anything wrong with that, don't get me wrong! These are the same beautiful souls whom I have studied in awe wondering, "Why can't I be more like them?" BUT, that is just not the way God made me and I know I would drive the poor girls crazy! I'm sure it would take me only a matter of minutes to offend someone and it would be downhill from there.

However, as I often do, I forget that I have someone so very much more knowledgeable than myself directing me and He led me to a wonderful group of ladies who are just HILARIOUS and just as smart mouthed as I am. (Hmmm...is this really a good thing?) They all love the Lord first and foremost, and they love to be lighthearted.

Oh, Calvary Chapel Women's Evening Bible Study... you......complete.....me....*sniff*.

Eat my dust!...

I finally got some o.k. pictures of Luke walking! He was walking up a storm last night and just kept going and going and going... He had obviously figured out the gravity of his new found skill. (Ha, ha...no pun intended. Seriously! I didn't notice until after I re-read it.) The pictures aren't the greatest, and I haven't even taken the time to get rid of the red eye, but I wanted to post these quick since he's been walking already for at least the past week, going progressively farther and getting more and more confident.He now walks across the room with no problem and is already unsatisfied with how fast he's getting. Sometimes he tries to break out into a run, but usually one part of his body or the other gets going faster than the rest. He then tries to correct it and ends up making an interesting landing instead, complete with a reverse twist followed by a half-axel. O.k., so maybe that's an exaggeration...

"Crabby" day today...

We were treated to a crab boil today by my bosses. (I have pretty great bosses, huh?) It was held at the home of one of my bosses who lives right on the waterfront. The weather was perfect, nice and sunny but not too hot, which meant more opportunities for Luke to wear that sunhat he looks so stinkin' cute in.As usual, hubby tried not to smile as I made a fool of myself to get him to do just that...It worked...He really was a trooper today...since he's working nights, this was like 2 am to him. I just parked him in the shade and kept the caffeine coming. Both my guys went down for a nap as soon as we got home. :o)

I *heart* carbs...

His one year portraits are back...He was... shall we say... "less than cooperative" during this photo shoot and the last thing he wanted to do was sit or stand by himself and have his picture taken. He didn't even want the cupcake!! It's a good thing I've got the scar to prove it, or we'd wonder if he was adopted! He certainly didn't get carb-hatred from me. He acted like we were surely trying to poison him with this strange, sticky confection. Ahhh, that's the way I'd want to go...death by cupcake.

The top shot was the best of the bunch. I was hoping to have some shots of him standing since that's where he's at, developmentally, at one year. Depending on what I can maybe do at home with my point-and-shoot, I may try to take him in again. I think we'll try someplace else this time though. I wasn't too pleased with Target studio this time, and I don't think the photographer was all that interested in her job that day. Hey, we all have days like that. Maybe we should have just given her the cupcake.

He is walking much further and more confidently just over the past few days, it's amazing. I am so proud of my strong little man!! I've finally gotten a handful of videos of some of his new ability and wish I could figure out how to get it onto my computer! I may just take our camera in to Best Buy or something to see if they have what I need to do it. I think I need a cord (or cords) to connect it to the computer?

Until the next post...go enjoy a cupcake for me! I'm on a diet. :o(

Higher, mommy, higher!

Last weekend I took Luke to the park for a little bit and he got his first ride on the swings. He loved it, except when he would start to slow down. Then he'd put up a fuss as if he were telling me, "Higher, mommy, higher!" That's my little daredevil...

Malfunction? Maybe not...

I have a bit of a sarcastic, smart inner voice that all too often comes out and sometimes gets me into trouble. Oh sure, it usually is good for some laughs, but I often wonder if I should aspire to be more like the women I admire who just seem to glow with wisdom and gracefulness. I can try to be such a woman with a "gentle and quiet spirit" but sooner or later...*blurp* there goes my malfunctioning inner monologue. I suppose that's just the way God made me. I'm just created to speak the truth in (smart-mouthed) love.

Then I watched Sarah Palin speak at the Republican National Convention, and I realized...*gasp!* My inner voice is running for Vice President!Right on, sister! Right on.

Social etiquette in the petting zoo...

I know, I know...shame on me... I'm playing catch up. I have a lot to post, but I'm going to have to pace myself. Hey! Mom's gotta sleep sometime!

At the end of August I took Luke to his first county fair. We went over to the Kitsap County Fair, part of my old stompin' grounds as a 4-Her. I got to meet up with an old friend of mine and had a great time catching up, but I'm just kicking myself for not getting a picture of us together! We did take some pictures of Lukas in the petting zoo, though. I thought he'd be all over all those furry creatures considering how much he loves his soft furry kitties back home. I was surprised he was actually quite shy with these new animals. Later I realized, though, that his kitties are his friends...he knows them. On the other hand, these petting farm animals were strangers. You wouldn't go to a county fair and snuggle up to strange people standing next to you in the snow cone line, would you? (Well, maybe you would...)
Ok, more to come soon!