Resting

We have spent a restful day at home. And boy did we need it! I still don't feel like we had recovered from all the activities of Christmas.

Aaron was a sweetie and let me sleep a bit late this morning (til 8:30!) and then I took a short nap this afternoon while Jeremiah napped for 3 hours. Poor kid is tired out.

We have no big New Year plans. It just doesn't feel the same when I try and celebrate New Year's here. I miss the party's and the fireworks and the excitement of the New Years celebration in the Netherlands. To me, it doesn't make sense to loose all that sleep staying up until midnight when there is no champagne, fireworks, and partying on the street.

One year I would like to go to a nice New Years party, with dancing and cocktail dresses - the works!

But this year I will probably be an old fuddy-duddy and go to bed at a normal hour (because Jeremiah will be up at his regular time regardless of how late I stay up). We have stocked up on snack foods and are intending to watch football (yes!) all day on Monday.

On a side note: Rutgers University won it's first bowl game in like 30 something years the other night! Whoo whoo! It wasn't on TV so we didn't get to watch it. But it's cool anyway. (The reason it is cool is because Will & Mariana go to Rutgers law school.)

Next year we will be celebrating New Years in the Netherlands. Then I fully intend to get a babysitter for Jeremiah and head into the city for a fun-filled evening! No fuddy-duddy then! :-)

Stolen Apple

This morning while I was taking down the Christmas decorations (I usually wait until after New Years but I was inspired this morning) I realized that Jeremiah was being very quiet. So I naturally looked around to see what he was up to. He had crawled up on the dining room chairs and taken an apple from the bowl on the table. He had then proceeded to start eating it.
Man, I really need to keep a closer eye on him. :-)

Not seeking office

I don't know a lot about President Ford, which came as a surprise to me since I am something of a history buff and enjoy learning about the past. But of course today the news was full of people talking about his presidency and remembering him as a man. The phrases I heard over and over again were that he was a regular guy, he never sought the presidency, he was able to unite the country after very tumultuous times, he was able to restore America's trust in the office of the presidency. There were many stories about him being able to complete his political goals while still being curteous and friendly with his political opponents. I also heard it said a number of times that he was honest and told the American people the truth.

I thought about that this evening while doing the dishes.

I did not live through Watergate or Vietnam. But as I listened to journalists talk about the distrust and cynicism that people had at that time toward the government and the office of the presidency, I could relate.

Maybe what this country needs right now is a man (or woman) who does not actually want to be president. Someone who will not let the power of the office go to their head. Someone who will not make decisions in office based on how it will effect their political career. Someone who will speak honestly to the people. I am praying that God will raise up someone in 2008 who will not fit the regular politician mode - someone who can restore my trust in the government and the presidency. But, I am cynical of that actually happening.....

Christmas

Steve & Brenda open gifts.

On the swing with uncle "bleb bleb" and aunt "momi-ta".

We had a nice Christmas. I will just summarize - you can scroll down and check out the pictures (you can also check out my sister Moni's site for more pics and links).
On Christmas Eve we went to church - where Jeremiah was quite vocal and entertaining because it was already his bedtime. He said "yay!" every time a candle was lit on the the advent wreath and said "Jesus!" a number of times during the prayers. Good thing the service is geared to children. :-)
Christmas morning Jeremiah slept until 8am! I don't think that has happened since he was an infant. We got everything together and went over to Steve & Brenda's house where we enjoyed a relaxing day of fondue, presents, hanging out, and games with them, Caleb & Moni, and Chad & Cherise. It really was a nice, relaxing, fun, and peaceful day.
We spent the night there and drove down to Atlanta this morning to visit with Aaron's extended family. It was nice to see his aunts, uncles and cousins, and to watch them enjoy Jeremiah. He seemed to have a special bond with Aaron's cousin Kimberly and his "papa Shaw" (Aaron's grandfather).
We are home and after a quick dinner of pizza are putting Jeremiah to bed early. He has had a busy couple of days with a total change in his routine and a lack of sleep. It may take us a few days to recover!

Opening the cool box of dinosaurs from Uncle Chad & Aunt Cherise.

In the end (after the bike, the train, and everything else) the Veggie Tales coloring books enthralled him. I kid you not - he sat on the floor and looked at them ignoring everything else. Crazy kid.

The funny thing this year was that all of the adults (grandparents and uncles and aunts included) were more excited about giving Jeremiah gifts than he was about receiving them. He mostly ignored the packages for him and was content to play with the bags and boxes or just watch what was going on around him.

Jeremiah got a Thomas the train set from Uncle Caleb & Aunt Moni. Here he is inspecting the box.

Trying to put it together with Uncle Caleb.

How does this thing work anyway?

In the end the boys end up playing with it. :-)

Jeremiah got a tricycle from grandmommy and granddaddy. He saw it - knew immediately what it was and went and sat on it. "bike bike" he said. He kinda needs to grow into it - but it will be great for our yard!

Aunt Cherise takes Jeremiah for a ride.

Jeremiah spots the gingerbread house that Caleb, Moni, Aaron and I collaborated on. I thought he was interested in it because of all the colors and that he didn't realize it was to eat. I was wrong! :-)

Talking on the phone to Granny Bettis.

Sitting with papa and watching everyone open their presents.

Christmas Eve Pt.2

Our Christmas tree and stockings.

Jeremiah plays with his Star Wars action figures.

Were they for him or for Papa? :-)

Jeremiah and mama snuggle in bed reading books and listening to Sunshine and Snowflakes.

Christmas Eve

Jeremiah plays with his new toy - a board with all kinds of locks and latches. He loves it! And it keeps him busy.

Even more fun than playing with the presents is carrying the bags around like a purse. He says "bye bye" with his "purse" slung over his shoulder.

Opening the present from Oma & Opa. What can it be? (It was cool warm socks with sylicone like non-skid grip on the bottom. Very cool.)

Again with the bags.


We had a nice and quiet day here at home having our own little family's Christmas celebration. There are more pictures but these give you the idea. We opened presents this afternoon before nap time and then Jeremiah took a 3 hour nap! Wow! We mostly just gave Jeremiah books and some new clothes because we figure he will get toys from other family members. :-)

Right now Jeremiah is taking a bath and once he his clean and cozy we will go the our church's Christmas Eve service with Jeremiah in his pj's.

Tomorrow we will spend the day with Aaron's family, spend the night with them and then head down to Atlanta on Tuesday to visit his grandparents. We are really looking forward to it.

By the way - in case you were wondering, I did get Aaron and MP3 player. And also season 2 of the Office on DVD (but we opened that early so we could watch it!).

My Favorite Christmas Song

Oh, holy night, the stars are brightly shining;
It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees, oh, hear the angel voices!
Oh, night divine, oh, night when Christ was born!
Oh, night divine, oh, night, oh, night divine!

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,
With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.
So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,
Here came the wise men from Orient land.
The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,
In all our trials born to be our Friend!
He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger.
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!
Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His Gospel is peace.
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother,
And in His Name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
Let all within us praise His holy Name!
Christ is the Lord! Oh, praise His name forever!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!
His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!

The other day I heard a man being interviewed on a national network morning show say that Christmas is not just about seeing the baby in the manger but looking beyond the baby to our need for a Savior and the final redemption of the earth. This of course made the news anchors abit nervous and they hurried on to other things.
But it made me think.
There are so many good things around Christmas, and warm traditions that we all embrace (family, gift giving, food). But the song O Holy Night gets down to the core of why Jesus came to earth in the first place. Because the world, and our hearts, were in sin and error pining. We need redemption.

I also love the last verse, the picture of Christs power and glory being proclaimed through love, peace and an end of oppression. I want to be part of that!
So, while I fully intend to enjoy the good traditions of the holiday season, I want to be reminded more on Christmas of the gospel. That Jesus came as a baby in order to be the Savior and that one day He will return on the ultimate day of redemption. That give me a thrill of hope!

More discoveries

We got Jeremiah a little cd player/radio so he could listen to his music in his room. It is intended as a Christmas gift but I pulled it out the other day in a desperate attempt to get some housecleaning done. It is awesome! I turn on his music, usually Veggie Tales, pull out a basket of his toys and he is content to play and listen for about 1/2 an hour! Amazing!

Jeremiah's current favorite video is Baby van Gogh. I got it at McKay's hoping it would stimulate his interest in learning colors. He loves his ABC's books and his numbers books but pretty much completely ignores his color books. Go figure. Anyway, he loves the video and I like it to. It has a cute goat (van goat - how clever, hee hee) and it teaches colors using various famous van gogh paintings. When he wants to watch it he says "goat."

But that is all background for this: Last night we went over to some friends house to visit for a bit. Jeremiah loves going over there because all the kids want to play with him and their house is full of toys. He was blissfully exploring their dining area when we heard him all of a sudden saying "goat, goat" emphatically over and over again. We searched high and low trying to see what he was talking about. Then it hit us - they had a picture of Starry Night hanging in the diningroom. Jeremiah saw it and connected it to his goat video. He couldn't tell me what color it was (blue). Oh well.

Now, I have to take a minute to brag. Jeremiah can say his ABC's up to F! He can also say the "l,m,n,o,p" part. He recognizes many of the letters! I think it is amazing!

Well, it is a rainy dreary day here. But I am enjoying it as an excuse to stay at home, relax, do some house cleaning and just generally chill out before the fun activities of the coming days!

What a way to end the day!

Yesterday was another busy day with a final mammoth grocery run (and I got Aaron's Christmas present!) and I guess all the busyness of the past few days caught up with Jeremiah. He napped for 3 hours in the afternoon! Wow. Then yesterday evening Aaron snapped these pictures. Jeremiah loves his Veggie Tales The Singing Christmas Tree cd. While I washed the dishes he lay on the floor and listened to it.
The rest of the week should be relaxed. We will spend some time outside today as the temps are supposed to drop later this week and rain is in the future.....

New Bath Toy

Jeremiah received his first Christmas gift this year from our friend Lisa. It is a fun Winnie the Pooh bath toy that has a spinning water wheel, slide, swing and bubbles that come out of the chimney. The slide and swing are for the Tigger, Piglet, and Pooh characters - not Jeremiah. :-) Jeremiah had fun playing with it this evening. I thought it was time for some pictures.

Today we went out and did a marathon shopping run and got the rest of our Christmas gifts. Well, let me clarify, I still haven't gottten Aaron's gift. The one thing we really wanted to get Jeremiah was one of those marble run towers that you build and then watch the marbles go down. No dice. It was nowhere to be found. Not at ToysRUs, Wal-Mart, or the specialty toy store in Chattanooga. What the heck? There are all kinds of crappy plastic toys everywhere that sing, light up, etc. But not a classic marble run! What is this world coming to? Of course when I came home I looked on line and ToysRUs has one on their website. Idiots. I guess he will get that as a birthday present.

Christmas Lyrics Pt3

Over Bethlehem appeared a star, while angels sang to lowly shepherds
Three wise men seeking truth traveled from afar, hoping to find the King of Heaven
And falling on their knees, they bowed before the humble Prince of Peace

I bring an offering of worship to my King
No one on earth deserves the praises that I bring
Jesus may you receive the honor that you're due
O Lord I bring an offering to you!

We sang this song in church this morning and my heart was moved by the picture of the lowly shepherds and regal wise men both offering the what they had in worship to Jesus. I too wanted to fall on my knees in worship _ but we don't do that in Presbyterian churches. :-)

I pray that this week (and in the year to come) I will offer back to God what He has so graciously given me.

More Christmas Lyrics

Today while we were cleaning in his room Jeremiah decided to open our bedroom door, get the Sunshine and Snowflakes album cover off of our dresser, and ran back into his room saying "no-lake" (snowflake). So, we put the record on again.
Here are some lyrics to one of the songs that made me stop and think:

Where o where are all the things that I thought Christmas time was going to bring?
Last year I thought maybe this year I'd see something else under my Christmas tree.
Where o where did that dream go? I guess it got lost in the deep deep snow.
I thought maybe people would change, but here we are, just the same.

This is the time of the year when you hear people shout about peace and goodwill.
Well, it's alright to shout it, but what are you doing about peace and goodwill?
You can sing Jingle Bells, sing Silent Night, get teary-eyed over Christmas tree lights
Watch your eyes fill up with joy at the sight of kids opening some new toy.
I guess that's Christmas to some, but that's not Christmas to me.

Where o where are all the things that I thought Christmas time was supposed to bring?
Last year I thought maybe this year I'd see love and peace under my Christmas tree.
Maybe if we remembered that first Christmas night:
When angels sang over all the earth, promising peace through our Saviors birth
If only people could see, maybe that's what we need under our tree

That was written in 1976.
I pray as Jeremiah grows up that Christmas will not be about what he can get - but what he can give. We started today by putting quarters in the Salvation Army bucket in front of the store. He loved it and of course wanted to ring the bell. The lady ringing the bell was so sweet and told him "Thank you." He smiled at her - his big, light up the sky smile- and said thank you back. Teaching him to think about others starts with small steps.
My prayer is that God will show us all how we can spread peace in the world around us.

Much Better

Thanks to all of you who prayed for us! Yesterday was rough - but ended well. Aaron was able to get off of work and was home by 2pm. It was in the 70's so we spent the afternoon outside. We ended the day with sweet n sour chicken from our favorite Chinese place, Jeremiah went to bed early, and Aaron and I watched the first season of the Office on DVD.

This morning we are not 100% but we are much better! Jeremiah seems to be fine and is running around the yard today. It is another gorgeous day.

Last night Jeremiah was coughing alot on his sleep. So I went into his room to hold him for a minute to see if being upright would help him cough everything up. As soon as I picked him up he seemed wide awake and said, "rough, rough" very mater of factly (which is Jeremiah speak for cough, cough). He then snuggled up to my shoulder and fell back to sleep.

We haven't given Jeremiah any medication except for saline drops in his nose. He now likes to find the bottle of saline and proudly say "rops, rops" then he shake's it and says "rake rake." I think that I may be the only one that I can differentiate between Jeremiah's word for rake and his word for shake. But believe me there is a distinct difference.

Well, it is time for Jeremiah down for his nap. I think that since I have dusted, vacuumed, gone to the store, and washed the dishes I will put off working on Christmas presents for one more day and take a well deserved nap myself!

A different kind of Advent calendar

December fast

This is an Advent calendar that has a bite to it. On each day of December leading up to Christmas, count the appropriate privilege/blessing and pay the fine. Send the money to a group that fights poverty.

1. 10 ¢ for every hot water tap in your house
2. 75 ¢ for every vehicle your family owns
3. 5 ¢ for every pair of jeans you own
4. 25 ¢ if your family subscribes to the newspaper
5. 5 ¢ for every bed in your house
6. 3 ¢ for every /beauty makeup item you own
7. 3 ¢ for every pair of footwear
8. 3 ¢ for every light switch in your house
9. 20 ¢ for every tub/shower
10. 10 ¢ for every flush toilet
11. 2 ¢ for every bar/dispenser of soap
12. 15 ¢ if you have dishes to eat off of
13. 15 ¢ if you have cooking pots in your cupboards
14. 5 ¢ for every window in your house
15. 10 ¢ for every outside door
16. 20 ¢ for every television in your house
17. 5 ¢ for every magazine subscription
18. 25 ¢ if your family has more than 25 CD's (music or video)
19. 5 ¢ for every meal you had meat with this past week
20. 10 ¢ for every non-water beverage you drank yesterday
21. 25 ¢ if you have a snow blower or a gas/electric lawn mower
22. 3 ¢ for every item of hair care stuff
23. 15 ¢ for every bedroom in your house
24. 5 ¢ for every blanket in your house
25. 15 ¢ for every gift you received this Christmas

Aaron found this advent calendar on BuyNothingChristmas
I like the idea of having a visible reminder of all we have to be grateful for. I think that next year we will do this with Jeremiah - using a clear jar so he can see the money adding up and then choosing a charity together.
We also help with our Churches deacons ministry at Christmas time and I hope that will be a family tradition that will help us teach Jeremiah that Christmas is not just about us having a good time but about showing God's love in real and tangible ways. After all that is what Christ did for us...

Still sick

Still sick...
Didn't get a nap yesterday becuase poor Jeremiah was coughing. Didn't sleep well last night either.
Aaron is all stuffy too - but insisted on going to work because you know, government workers have to complete like 400 cases a month regardless of holidays, sickness, or computers that don't work at least one day a week.
Jeremiah is stuffy too but seems none the worse for wear.
I have to drag myself out to go grocery shopping today because I was putting it off until payday (which is today) so there is literally nothing to eat in this house.
Sorry so gripy. Just want to feel better - or at least be able to lay down and sleep!

Yuck...

Please pray for us today. I went to bed last night with scratchy eyes and stuffed nose hoping that a good night of sleep would prevent the cold. No dice. This morning Aaron finally had to wake me up so that he could go to work.

I feel horrible.

One of the things I have learned since being a mom is that being sick doesn't earn me a day in bed to sleep, read, drink tea. Nope. Jeremiah doesn't understand that I don't feel well.

I have a feeling that we are going to be doing a lot of sitting on the couch reading books and watching Veggie Tales. And of course a nap is priority #1. :-)

Actually, the hardest part about being sick is trying not to give Jeremiah kisses and contaminate him as well.

Help!

Here's the deal - I have no idea what to give Aaron for Christmas.

I think I am starting to feel abit panicky.

Last year was easy, Aaron bought his motorcycle and that counted as all his gifts for the year. This year though the pressure is on me again...

I have thought about and discarded several ideas (mp3 player, beer of the month club) in my quest for "the perfect gift."

So I am putting it out there - any ideas?

Need..more..coffee.....

I think that I am officially becoming addicted to a morning cup of coffee. Somehow I managed to make it through life in the Netherlands and college without really needing the stuff. Then I started a stressful, high responsibility, 50 hour a week job and whamo! coffee was a necessity. When I was pregnant with Jeremiah (and nursing) I kicked the caffeine habit. But lately Aaron has been bringing me a cup of coffee in the morning.

I have gladly been accepting the small jump start.

This morning is a 2 cup morning though for various reasons. The main reason being that I have stayed up late the past 3 nights to finish some Christmas gifts that have to get in the mail today. The past few days have been non-stop busy. It is also grey and cloudy this morning.

Instead of being a good, disciplined mother this morning and getting up to get a shower etc. before Jeremiah woke up I opted for the extra 1/2 hour of sleep. So Jeremiah is being entertained by Vincent van Goat (a new baby einstein video that is supposed to help him learn his colors - he loves watching the goat puppet) while I sip my 2nd cup and check blogs.

I think we need a walk!

Jesus Born on this Day

Here are the lyrics to a song that was on a Christmas CD I was listening to. I love the lyrics.

Today a child is born on earth
Today the glory of God shines everywhere for all of the world
Oh Jesus born on this day, he is our light and salvation
Oh Jesus born on this day, he is the King of all nations

Behold the Lamb of God has come
Behold the Savior is born sent on His love to everyone
Oh Jesus born on this day, heavenly child in a manger
Oh Jesus born on this day, He is our Lord and Savior

Today our hearts rejoice in Him
Today the light of his birth fills us with hope and brings peace on earth
Oh Jesus born on this day, he is our light and salvation
Oh Jesus born on this day, he is the King of all nations

He is light, He is love, He is grace
Born on Christmas day

The words that brought tears to my eyes this morning -
Today our hearts rejoice in Him!
How long has it been since my heart has rejoiced in my Savior?
May the knowledge of God's love for you grant you deep rejoicing in Him today.

It has been a busy weekend. So, we have spent today trying to get back into the groove. Which didn't exactly work since I had a dr. appointment this morning and had to leave Jeremiah with a sitter (which he did not like) and then we took a nap this afternoon.

But the weather was beautiful today (a balmy 50 degrees!) so we took a walk around the neighborhood and picked up pine cones this afternoon. It was nice to go outside without having to bundle up as much as we have been the past few days.

The house feels festive with all the decorations up now. Jeremiah likes to look at the Christmas tree and say "balls, balls." He also likes it when we get Christmas cards in the mail because I let him open them and then we talk about baby Jesus.

I have noticed in the past few days an explosion of 2 word combinations coming from Jeremiah. He likes "big boy," "puppy dog," and "please okay." I notice him also taking on our speaking patterns and expressions. Which is kind of funny. He likes to say "uuummm," "alright," and "hey."

Well, I need to get back to working on various Christmas projects. I think I have bitten off a little more than I can chew and next year will not make cards and gifts. Right now there is a huge pile of stamping stuff in the middle of the floor!

2nd Hair Cut

Look at all that hair!
The finished product. What a handsome boy!

This afternoon I put on Dave and the Giant Pickle and decided to give Jeremiah a hair cut. Before you mourn the loss of his curls (for a second time) let me just explain that his hair had gotten so long that it was hanging past his eyes. I started out just doing a little trim, but then it started to resemble a mullet so that back had to be shortened too. It's a little choppy - definitely not salon perfect, but I think I did pretty good for my second attempt. Not to mention the fact that even though his Veggies were on Jeremiah was still pretty squirmy and not too excited about the whole procedure.

I still can't get over how much like a big boy he looks.....