Crazy Life

We all have those periods in our lives when things just seem to go haywire. You know the times...you don't know whether to laugh, cry, throw things, yell, etc. Well, the past month and a half has been one of those times for us.

The week before Christmas, Mike got laid off from his job. This happened about three weeks after he had been assured that he was safe and had no reason to worry about anything. Talk about having the wind knocked out of you. We were lucky because his termination wasn't effective until Dec 31st and they gave him 4 weeks severance pay. We figured with that, we could be okay financially through the middle of February. At that point, if he didn't have a job we would have to move in with my parents until he found something. Needless to say, we have been stressed out and depressed. Very bad timing with me now being in my 3rd trimester. I have to tell y'all, Cobra isn't cheap!

I'll leave out all the details of the job search and skip right to the good news. After a few interviews, a personality test and a few weeks of just waiting around...Mike got an offer last night. It is a good offer and this will be a very good career move for him. This new job will allow him more growth opportunity and give him more responsibility. Both things he has been craving, but wasn't likely to get soon with his old company. Downside (which will hopefully turn into a good thing later)...we are moving...AGAIN. It seems we just can't stay put anywhere longer than a year and a half. Our new destination is Virginia Beach.

Since this all just happened in the past 24 hours, I'm a little short on details and probably will be for a little while. My head is spinning with all that needs to be done. I guess the positive to that is I don't have time right now to dwell on the fact that I have to leave this place that I love and the amazing friends I have here. Believe me...there will be MANY MANY tears shed in the future. Luckily, the distance is a short 3 hour drive so I'm not cut off completely.

So, yeah, that's our big news. Stay tuned for further installments to the saga!

Way back when

So, a few months ago I wrote a post about how content and happy I was with my life. I also mentioned that I knew the calm wouldn't last forever and that I was expecting a 'learning experience.' Well, the day after writing that post, I took about a dozen pregnancy tests and learned that I was expecting baby girl. I was under the impression that was the change coming my way. Granted, it was a happy change but I'd still consider it a learning experience. The lesson being that things happen on the Lord's time and not mine.

Skip ahead to the present time and I could not have been more wrong. I'm not really sure what God is trying to teach me at the moment, but I'm pretty sure this lesson would have been better received AFTER I give birth. I'm not really ready to let the cat out of the bag just yet, but just know that some big things are happening in our life. And while I'm sure one day, when this trial is all over and life has settled back down, I will look back and see how strong it made me...well, I'm not all that excited about it right now. I think content is the exact opposite of what I'm feeling right now. I think the appropriate word is turmoil. Yup, I feel a lot of turmoil.

Stay tuned for the next installment...I may just spill the beans.

On another note...did y'all notice my baby ticker???? 90 days!

Christmas in North Carolina

Being pregnant and all, I was totally against traveling anywhere for the holidays this year. So, my whole family decided to make the trek to our house for Christmas. Luckily, my Aunt and Uncle aren't moving back to Ohio until after New Year's Day, so they were able to house a few of our guests. The boys and their girlfriends stayed with Dini & Bill. My parents, Kathleen and nephew Noah stayed with us.

As tradition would have it, Dylan and I both ended up being sick the entire week everyone was here. Lucky for us all, Dylan was in pretty good spirits. Although, we did make a trip to Urgent Care on Christmas Eve. The child has been sick with a cold/cough for about two months and it seemed to get worse last week. Turns out he had ear infections in both ears. No wonder he'd been such a crab and sleeping like crap! We got him on some amoxicillin and hoped he would start to feel better. Unfortunately, that made him break out in hives. So, we called the Dr back up and got him on something else. Me? I just had a fun cold that made me miserable. We tried hard to not let our illness ruin the holiday, but I really didn't sleep good most of the time everyone was here.

My family's tradition is to celebrate on Christmas Eve. We had a yummy dinner (fried rice, several dips, chips, desserts, etc...we're into finger foods in this house), then my Dad gave a talk about the birth of the Savior and the reason why we celebrate this season, followed by some serious unwrapping of presents. The gift part can get a bit overwhelming and we were worried that Dylan would need to save some for the next morning. The kid, however, surprised us and just tore through his gifts. I feel like this was his first 'real' Christmas because he finally understood what was going on, so it was a lot of fun to watch him and hear all his little expressions as he opened each gift.

Christmas morning, my Mom made her amazing Caramel Rolls and Hot Chocolate. We spent the rest of the morning cooking a nice traditional dinner (ham, turkey, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole, pumpkin roll, etc). The rest of the day was spent watching football, lounging and just chatting. All in, we had a nice couple of days and everyone made out well with gifts.

No, my kid does not like to wear clothes. This was Dylan before all the festivities on Christmas Eve. He was totally ready to get started.

With 11 stockings to hang, the fireplace mantle was a little too small.

Just a glimpse of the amount of gifts. I had to take about 8 pictures to get them all.

Sweet cousins getting ready to open their presents. These two had a lot of fun together.

One of Dylan's favorite gifts is his new train table from Gram and Pa.

This was my mantle. Turned out pretty cute, thanks to my Mom. I started doing 'Elf on the Shelf' with Dylan this year. He had a great time finding 'Red' each day. I really do think it helped him behave himself the past few weeks.

I really wish I had taken some more pictures, but with being sick I just wasn't in the mood. The memories, however, will stay with me. Now I just have to figure out how to get Dylan to understand that it's going to be a long time before he gets to open presents again.

So Humbled

Dylan has been sick and in toddler mode the past 4 days. I have been on the verge of completely losing my mind; trying my hardest not to give his rear end a nice swat. Luckily Mike did not have to work this weekend and I was able to get away and shop with my Aunt for a few hours one day.

This morning, as I sat here in Mommy time out trying not to scream at Dylan for being annoying, I decided to catch up on my friend's little baby girl. I am not super close with this girl, but she is a super sweet, kind, and beautiful person. In September 2008, her 6 month old baby boy died of SIDS. I did not know her when this happened, but heard the story shortly after we moved into our house in January. I met her in February. In May, I found out that she was pregnant again. In July, I found out that her 20 week ultrasound showed some physical deformities. Her baby was born premature in October and they discovered that her situation was much worse than any ultrasound could have showed. This poor little baby has been a fighter and has already endured surgery. They were hoping to be able to bring her home by Christmas, but her situation has gotten worse. At this point in time, they are hoping for a miracle.

Upon finishing reading more about the baby this morning, I was truly humbled. I do not know why some people have to endure such trials in this life, but it surely made my current frustrations with my toddler seem inconsequential. Every time I think about my friend, my eyes well up with tears and I run to hug my perfect little Dylan. Then I take a moment to just sit and talk to my belly. I have been counting my blessings today. Any time a complaint starts to cross my mind, I remind myself that my life is awesome.

The Big '3'

Dylan celebrated his 3rd Birthday on November 30th. I still cannot believe how quickly the time has flown by. I feel like he was just a beautiful, colicky newborn who didn't sleep more than an hour at a time. No one could have prepared us for what a joy Dylan would be in our lives. We have our issues with him; he is a toddler and they all come with issues. But, this kid is so fun to have around. If you don't feel loved having a 3 year old in your house, the problem is most likely with you...not them. I can go from being so angry I can't see straight, to laughing hysterically in a split second.

Mike and I both love this little guy more than words can say. We look forward to what is going to come out of his mouth each day. We love his hugs and kisses. We enjoy seeing the pure delight on his face when we agree to play a game with him. Life truly does not get better than this.

My happy boy, ready to tackle the presents at his little party.

We decided to just do a big birthday bash every other year. This year, we were just going to have Aunt Dini and Uncle Bill over for dinner and presents, but Dylan insisted that his best friend David and his favorite Mommy "Nae Nae" (Renee) be there as well. Who am I to refuse my child his wishes?

David and his Daddy, David waited patiently for Dylan to open his presents.

Aunt Dini and Uncle Bill look on as Dylan opens the awesome game they got him.

Dylan opening his favorite new toy (ahem, his obsession).

His new red vaccuum! YAY! This gift was as much for me as it is for Dylan. Although I love my little cleaning helper, it is much easier to vaccuum when he has his own to push around.

Dylan also received his kitchen, some pj's, and some pieces to go with his Thomas the Train set. Now we just need to get him to understand that his Birthday only comes once a year!

Thanksgiving '09

I'm trying to play catch up a little this week. Things have been a little crazy around our house and I just haven't had as much time for the 'fun' stuff, like updating my blog.

We spent a wonderful Thanksgiving with the Elkington's. Because of the pregnancy, I just was not up for traveling this year. We told our families that we would be more than happy to have them come to us if they wanted to spend the holidays with us. So, the Elkington's made the trip from Delaware for Thanksgiving. My family will be making the trip for Christmas.

Our dinner was yummy, the company was good, we did a little shopping and had a little Christmas/Birthday celebration. I think Dylan especially enjoyed the last part because he loves 'pwesents'.
I just love this picture of Grandma and Dylan. He absolutely adores Grandma K because she will play with him non-stop. It is always a difficult adjustment back to reality once the company leaves and Dylan isn't getting that all day attention.

Grandpa and Grandma K got Dylan this awesome Pottery Barn Kids kitchen for his Birthday/Christmas present. It has already received hours and hours of playtime. Dylan loves helping me cook and bake, so I knew this would be the perfect gift for him. He loves to make pizza and serve it to us.

Grandpa and Aunt Ashley watching Dylan open his gifts.

Uncle Brett looks a little haggard after carrying in the big kitchen boxes.

Dylan is really into games now. Board games, puzzles, etc. You name it, he loves it and wants to play it ALL THE TIME! His favorite game right now is 'Kerplunk'. He calls it the 'plunk game'. I hear about this game at least 10 times each day. Aunt Jamie and Ashley were such good sports to sit and play it Dylan's way for a couple hours.

Thankful Thoughts

I am well aware that I still have two days before Thanksgiving Day, but I'm not sure if I'll get the opportunity to post my annual thankful list that day. So, I thought I'd get a little bit of a headstart. I have so much to be thankful for in my life. God has truly blessed me the past year and I would be ungreatful if I didn't acknowledge those blessings.

1. I am thankful for my wonderful husband. Our marriage is not without disagreements, but I have to say that I still feel that I married the best person for ME. Mike and I seem to balance each other out perfectly. He is an awesome Dad, a great husband, and a good provider.

2. My awesome husband helped to create this awesome little guy who runs around keeping me busy and making me go crazy. Dylan is the hardest job I've ever had, but I love this kid so much it can't even be put into words. The thought of him turning 3 next week just makes me bawl. The time is passing way too quickly. I'm greatful for the opportunity I have to stay home with him and watch every moment of his life.

3. This blessing, well, I can't even express my gratitude without emotions getting in the way. I am SO thankful to get the opportunity to have another child. I was beyond excited to have Dylan, but my feelings for this little girl are a lot more tender. Perhaps because I had to go through so much heartache to get her. Even though I've been more sick this pregnancy, I am taking the time to enjoy it. I cannot wait until April to hold my little angel.

4. I am thankful for each and every one of my amazing friends. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful support group.

5. I am thankful for my family, near and far. I miss being able to see them on a regular basis, but I suppose that is part of growing up. We all have our own lives to live. But, I think about them every single day and pray for their well being.

6. I am thankful for Skanska and that they have seen something valuable in my husband's work. I feel very fortunate that we have not had to endure the financial hardships that have befallen many recently.

7. I am greatful for this lovely house that we live in and for all the things in it that help me to feel at home.

8. I am thankful that it is finally Fall! I am so not a fan of of the Summer months. I hate to be hot and when exposed too much, the sun gives me headaches. So, while many of you will think I'm crazy, I love this cooler, cloudy weather!

9. I am thankful for people who are willing to share their talents with me. For example, my friend Gina, who recently took some pictures of Dylan for his 3rd Birthday. I will cherish them always and she was able to perfectly capture who Dylan is at this point in his life.

10. I am thankful for a Heavenly Father who loves me and guides me through this life. I know I couldn't make it on my own.