38 Pictures of Times from the Southeast over Christmas

Whew. I think I have been uploading pictures off and on for the last hour. I have put off updating the blog for awhile, because the abundance of holiday pictures intimidated me. Thirty-eight snapshots may seem like a lot to post, but trust me, there were MANY MORE I had to let go in the selection process... I hope to post the ones from our Texas Get-Together soon.

I started with four shots of Evie and I since....IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Evie looks very, very similar to my baby pictures. As mom pointed out, this is my first year to turn 29. There may be many more years that I claim this number ;)

In these pictures, I was trying my best to mimic some of Evie's classic expressions...eyes wide open, etc.

Yay, we were able to see the Cox family over the holiday. I like this picture with all of the "Cox girls" and Evie. We met in Ringgold to give Rachael a ride back to Texas with us. The kiddos did great on the trip, and we made some fun memories...especially at our lunch stop at On the Border. I predicted correctly that we would make a 'memorable impression' on our server...and we did, I'm sure, with our 3 year old who'd been sitting in a van for HOURS, with me trying to nurse discreetly in a very, very narrow booth, and with our many pieces of 'luggage' that we brought in, in the form of diaper bags, jackets, etc. And as we walked out, the hostess yelling, "Don't you need a blanket for that baby?" (Our van was just yards away)


I love the pictures of Evie in yellow, surrounded by same color hues in the bedding. Evie is just coming to life these days, with smiles and happy cooing sounds. I love that.

In those pictures of Matt and Simon and I on a little walk, I am wearing my "marathon jacket." Nikki and I went to a goodwill during college (funny thing, I think it was the one in Fort Oglethorpe) and this was my discovery. It is very old and reminded me of Mary Tyler Moore, and drycleans nicely each year, even though I just got around to doing that last week for this season. Matt is famous for his 'marathon pants', a pair of Old-Navy slacks that have been thru it all. Frayed at the ends, patched at the legs, and a new hole in need of patching that gives a generous view of his boxer fabric...

An in one of the pictures on the walk towards the lake, Scott is laughing about how Simon has to hold up his pants (we forgot his belt) and is mimicking Simon's walk-technique.

In the one pix of Simon and Corey interacting outside on the driveway, you can see both of our family's minivans with the back trunk open. I thought it captured our stage of life at this point well, and so I snapped a picture. Kelly's second baby boy is due in just a couple of months!

An impromptu throwing of a small toy football with Scott, Corey, and Matt.
All of my indoor pictures from South Carolina were too dark, which makes me sad not to see more pictures of my family there. maybe mom or Kelly can pass along some pictures of our family there to me ... :)

We are trying to teach SImon what Christmas is really about. He's close. And has no idea that Santa is supposed to bring him gifts. We're not going to do the Santa thing with our kiddos, and I think they'll be okay.

So, when we asked Simon what Christmas was about he would reply, "Baby Jesus."
What did Jesus do? (Wanting him to know that he was born to save us, at least one day)
But for now, Simon replies, "He drinks milk."
Way to go, the Son of God, Savior of the world, most revered by Simon for the fact that he drank milk.

Another cute saying by Simon: The other morning I was hugging him when he first woke up, next to his bed. I said, "Simon you are my little blessing." He replied, "No, Mama, I'm your BIG blessing."

While I am reminiscing of cute sayings, Simon was laying down in the tub yesterday. It was just a little water, but I don't like for him to do that, for ear-ache prevention. So, I said, "Simon McDaniel, what are you doing?" (Since he was breaking a rule) He said, "I'm okay, I'm justing thinking about all the birds."

And a walking commercial, he said yesterday, "Mom, I need pbskids dot org." He said that. Hmmm...maybe we should watch something else together while I nurse Evie.

We love to hear Simon expressing himself in sentences and with new vocabulary. Just his simple delight and observances are sweet and refreshing. I was helping him get dressed for church on Sunday and he randomly said, "I love my mom." I said, "Thank you, Simon, I love you, too." On a roll, he said, "I love my dad." (I love it when he calls us 'my mom' and 'my dad.' He often asks, "Where is my dad?" Back to the love-declaration story...I said, "Daddy loves you, too." Then, to top it off, he said, "I love my parents." Parents? When did he learn that we are his parents?

Matt walked into Simon's room a few days ago, and by the odor, suspected that Simon might have a dirty diaper. (Yes, unfortunately, he still wears a diaper or pull-up at bedtimes. When asked, Simon truthfully replied, "No, dad, it's just gas." :)

A Random Thought and Suggestion, in case anyone is ever asked for advice on an infant-clothing line. ALL SLEEPERS SHOULD BE FASTENED BY A FRONT ZIPPER AND NOT 15 BUTTONS. Please. I am so tired of buttons. Save the buttons for bibs, as ALL BIBS SHOULD BE FASTENED BY BUTTONS, NOT VELCRO. Velcro attracts lint, and if isn't closed while washing, can ruin delicate fabrics.

Simon riding on Alex's toy Harley...isn't he cute? I feel like a horrible aunt, with no pictures of Alex. Yikes. Kelly and Corey, please forgive me and know that I have some cute ones from Texas that I am going to post soon.

A few pictures of a Christmas Eve 'singspiration' with Christmas Carols. Simon and Papa were building a castle. I like the picture of Matt with the guitar, Ollie next to him (Ollie accompanied by playing the water glass intermittently), Simon looking at a book, and EVIE SITTING BY HERSELF in the chair, looking like a baby doll.

I was watching a special on Good Morning America about a 'new trend' of moms having babies at home with no doctor or midwife. Not sure how 'new' that is, given that it used to always be that way. I am a fan of hospitals, though, for the safety of mom and baby, for those 'just in case' scenarios that often become reality. It was kind of affirming to hear, thru the opinion of the lady being interviewed, that the best option is a Certified Nurse Midwife in a hospital setting. Yay, I felt affirmed and then saddened as I remembered that our dear Susan has moved to New Mexico. Not that we'll need her again in a delivery room setting necessarily, but we feel incredibly bonded with her, as she delivered our two babies.

Evie's outfit where she looks like a present all wrapped up is too precious, especially with the little French hat.





































More mimicking of Evie's facial expressions.



































Handsome Simon.




















Matt and I think this scrunched up face is so cute. Good thing we love it, because it's one of Evie's favorite faces.

















Here's the French hat.












Grandma and Evelyn Grace.






Simon and Evie. This reminds me of the other day when Simon announced to me that he wanted a new baby sister. We were shopping in Cost-co, just Simon and I, and a couple walked by with a baby. Simon said he didn't like Baby Ebby anymore and wanted a new one. I guess he doesn't realize there isn't a Return Policy on siblings. I asked why he wanted a new one, and he said that baby Ebby cried too much. Hmmmm.... That isn't a sad story given that he is 99.9 % of the time loving her, or at least ignoring her politely.


Sayrah and Evie. Good thing Evie didn't follow in Simon's footsteps and have an accident on Sarah during the first holding.


Whee! The Wii.

And Matt is multi-tasking as he holds Evie! Shortly thereafter, I took my turn wearing Evie and we walked with Kelly and Sarah to picturesque downtown Cartersville and window shopped, as everything, EVERYTHING was closed that Sunday afternoon...that surprisingly chilly Sunday afternoon.



A fraction of the fam visiting around the table. Just a fraction.








Matt helping Grandma with their tv/vcr/dvd player. They recruited Matt and Corey to write down step by step instructions, as they've had some trouble using the television and vcr/dvd. Matt left his number for tech-support.











Simon handing Grandma some flowers (holly) from her yard before he was on the run again.













One of Evie's first smiles.

















What a sweet holiday moment....











Not as sweet, but much more comical, is Uncle Rick boxing Simon on the Wii.

















AND FINALLY, THE LAST THREE PICTURES DEPICT WHAT YOU ARE PROBABLY DOING IF BY CHANCE YOU HAVE LOOKED AT ALL OF THESE PHOTOS AND MAYBE EVEN READ WHAT I TYPED. I AM PRETTY SURE THAT MATT DOESN'T READ ALL OF THIS PRINT, SO I DOUBT MANY OTHERS DO, BUT IF YOU DID, YOU MIGHT BE YAWNING JUST LIKE EVIE IS IN THESE PICTURES!
One of my 'birthday gifts' to myself was being indulgent in the time it took to record these special memories ... I've had a nice day so far, with lots of emails and e-cards from dear friends, a phone call from my sister and mom, some missed calls from Matt's mom and Shay, a card from Matt's parents, and now I see a missed call on my cell from Kellie Hill, so maybe I can include in my list of blessings a birthday greeting from her, though I do remember one year (2001, but who's keeping count) that Kellie called me on my birthday but didn't realize it was my birthday ... Ooh, and my Mary Engelbreit calendar and some decaf coffee from Amazon.com came in the mail today, just in time, and Matt and Simon baked me a pumpkin pie birthday 'cake' to enjoy today ... So, the very actual day of my birthday has been very special, and I haven't even mentioned the prior 'celebration' with my family last weekend and the painting that Matt surprised me with (painting as in a verb, not a noun.) and the gifts that he ceremoniously delivered to me yesterday, unwrapped, from his backpack, in their Target bag 'wrapping paper.'

Week Six

Wow, Evie slept eight hours last night. I think I fed her around 10 and then after some rocking, she slept 11 til 7 this a.m. Matt called her a sleeping maniac. That's one 'insult' I don't mind. Even if the long stretch is in isolation, it's pretty nice. Simon, however, woke up twice crying from what I think was a dream or maybe just being cold. So, we have yet to fully appreciate a nice long interrupted stretch of sleep, but we're getting closer. Everyday, a little closer. And, it's not like we are missing sleep from an illness or family tragedy, just catching a little less sleep because of two little blessings, so it's not so bad when you think of it in that respect.

I didn't know Simon was so into candy. We don't usually have it for him. He received a package last night from Uncle K.P. and Auntie Gisela with some candy in it and we let him open a couple of pieces this morning. He was so happy. And delighted. I was reminded of what comedian Ray Romano says about candy. His little girl was staring out the window and was smiling. He asked what she was thinking about and she said, "Candy," So, that's what it means by, "Visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads."

"Did you just go in Evie's room?" "Yeah, sorry." Hmmm...this just happened and I think her nap might be over. Different challenges with two little ones around.

Well, I've got to go get SImon ready to go to his friend's house today. They are going to decorate a christmas tree. I"m taking Evie with me to Mesquite for my postpartum checkup. Hopefully the cold rain will hold off until sweet little Evie is nestled in the van.

Tomorrow is packing day for our trip on Friday. We've made the laundry room a catch-all for everything going on the road trip with us.

In these pictures, Simon is talking to Timmy on the phone. He'll ask, "Where is my Timmy?" Sweet to see the reciprocated friendship from both little lads.

The Eve of Week 6

Well, it seems like Evie is definitely sleeping for longer stretches at night. Kind of keeping up with her age. Five hour stretches some at week 5, and some 6 hour stretches should be on the brink. She actually slept 7 hours last night for one stretch.

Simon was able to go to the Gaylord hotel and see all of the Christmas decorations yesterday with Gigi. 1.2 million or billion lights are boasted. Simon was quite enthralled, from what I hear.

Matt and I took Evie to church, hosted the youth Christmas party at Chili's..."The Wesleyans..." reminiscent of The Office's "Dundies" award ceremony. The best part was Ashton winning the Attendance Award and not being there to accept it. Or maybe Andy's acceptance speech which he actually wrote out and read, complete with a dramatic air. Oh, and then drove over to meet Eric and Lauren's new baby, Landry, born last Monday, exactly five weeks to the day after Evie. So, there's baby Ruth born on a Monday, Five weeks later, Evie, also born on a Monday, and five weeks later, Landry, also a Monday child :)

Simon and I made two pumpkin pies last night...so we have dessert for the whole week, and some for any drop-by visitors, as well.

My 6 week postpartum check up is Wednesday. WE received a letter from the doctor's office, from our midwife, letting us know that she is leaving the practice this January and moving to New Mexico to work at a hospital there. I was pretty sad; I even cried. Funny how you get attached to someone who is there for the delivery of both of your children. I thought I was weird to be so affected, but Matt read the letter, and though he didn't cry, he was also sad. He said, "I guess that means we won't be having any more children." So, Wed. will be the last time I see Susan. I'm planning on bringing her a really cool India bag. Good colors, a muted green and blue. She is always complimenting my bags, so I think she'll like it. Matt did a good job picking out this bag for me at the office.

So, we were planning on not decorating this year, as far as a tree, but we were going to put up our stockings and decorate the mantle, with live evergreen and holly, so we would get the 'smell' of Christmas. But, somehow, we even unceremoniously opted out of that as well. It is very freeing. We are leaving this Friday, anyway, and SImon is getting lots of Christmas tradition at other places.


We were looking at a Christmas story book last night, with the Nativity, and it was fun to hear Simon "read" it to us. Apparently the wise men brought Baby Jesus popcorn in those fancy urns.

Matt and I were talking last night about how amazing Christmas really is. Jesus, the Savior, our Savior, coming to earth as part of God's wonderful redemption. I guess some years I am even more amazed at God's mercy. Maybe it's because we tend to grow in the knowledge of our own weaknesses and need for a Savior, so that the reality of Jesus becomes more and more amazing. And whenever the idea of the holiness and supremacy of Christ takes root, it really makes you "fall on your knees" just like the Christmas carol says.

Week Four and Five

We had a nice, picturesque family 'holiday' evening on Monday, with a fire, pumpkin pie, christmas music on the record player, and painting Christmas pictures with Simon at the kitchen table. I forgot how good a 'real fire' smells.
Last Friday, I had my first solo outing with both of my kids. Not too exciting, we were going for Simon's flu shot...
This morning at breakfast, I was about to run and check on Evie, but Simon said, "Mommy, sit here." So, I accepted his invitation. Then he said, "Let's pray. I'll pray. I pray for the food. Thank you. Body. Oatmeal. Water. My water is too cold. Amen."
At 5 weeks, Evie has now slept two night stretches of 5 hours! She has cried out at about 4 hours, but I was too tired to get up and I guess I fell asleep and before I knew it, another hour had passed and she 'awoke' again.
We included a couple of pictures of our 'yoda' Evie.
Evie had a fussy weekend and we were sad to miss potential naps and sleep times...but Matt tried to help team morale by suggesting we think of it as a "lock-in." Hmmm...
There are some pictures of Evie's first bath in the tub. We usually just give sponge-type baths on her changing table, but Monday evening Evie was such a mess we pulled out the 'big tub.' Matt was changing her diaper and she kept adding to it until there was literally a puddle on the table...Matt got the easy job of the bath while I cleaned up the changing table :0
It's humorous how different her first bath was than Simon's. For Simon's, we had everything prepared, a camera ready, it was a milestone. For Evie, Matt didn't even know we had a tub and I was retrieving it from the laundry room as he was holding Evie over the tub. As I cleaned up the changing table, Matt answered a phone call (the phone was in his pocket), Simon was hanging onto Matt. It wasn't without mishap, Evie did bump her head pretty strongly against the side of the baby tub :(
We took our car into the shop to fix a mysterious problem before our trip. Our heater/air wasn't working. Then, it began working ALL OF THE TIME. You couldn't turn it off. As we drove to the mechanics, the brake light came on for the FIRST TIME and so Matt asked them to also check out our brakes and just a general tune-up before our highway voyage. Turns out our brakes were shot. We needed 4 new brake pads and the back pads had 'less than 2% left and the front pads were almost as bad.' So, by God's grace, we discovered this potentially dangerous problem before leaving town! We are quite thankful for that.
Simon just took out his toy camera and announced, "I'm going to take a picture of you." I smiled and said, "Cheese." Then, he looks at the camera and says, "That is a good picture. I took a good picture."
I love the pic of Matt rocking Evie to sleep as he watches something on his ipod. Parenting in 2007 ;)