Halloween #1

Today I had just finished feeding Josiah and I had to sneeze... which I expected to startle him... instead, he thought it was the funniest thing ever.  This is the most he's ever laughed... it was so contagious!  (Excuse the wobbly camera view, I was holding him in one hand and the camera-phone in the other!)

Our Big Boy!

No wonder he likes watching football so much... Our 6 Month Old 3 Month Old just might be a future linebacker!  He weighs 18 lbs 8 oz!!!  Holy cow!  I was guessing 17 lbs, but wow!  So yeah, he's definitely off the charts... although he is about 26" long too, so he's just a big boy all around! 

We had him at the pediatrician's office today after a rough night and morning.  His reflux started getting worse over the last week (he's been arching his back and turning away during feedings) but the poor thing was really hurting last night.  After just an hour or two of serious fussing/screaming/crying, Mike and I looked at each other and said "can you believe he was like that so much during his first 6 weeks?!"  He's been such a happy, mellow baby for the last 2 months, that we kinda forgot how hard that was!   Anyway, he's started a new medicine and today she recommended that we thicken his bottles with baby oatmeal (rice cereal is constipating... and that's the last thing we need to add to the mix right now).  This afternoon he's felt much better and was back to his happy self, and hopefully it'll continue.

This boy is going to outgrow his carseat, swing, bouncy chair and more before he's 6 months old!  :)  According to his doctor, babies do grow the fastest during their first 4 months, so he'll likely start slowing down in a few weeks.  :)   He is becoming so coordinated and so interested in everything.  He loves grabbing and playing with anything we put in front of him.  And he loves to sit up or stand so he can check everything out!

The Day Has Come

Most of you know how much I have wanted to quit my job at CBN, long before I was even pregnant. I have worked there for 2 years and have basically been frustrated with it for a year and a half.  Don't get me wrong, I know what the economy is like, and I'm certainly grateful that God provided me with a source of income for the last two years.  But until about 3 months into my pregnancy when I finally realized I had to either quit or learn to cope, I used to come home in tears at least once a week, and was so stressed out, angry and frustrated on a daily basis.  I won't go into all the details, but let's just say I've never been so perplexed by leadership that could refuse to improve their department, could ignore employees who wanted to go above and beyond, and who could waste resources so selfishly.  It used to really really stress me out.  But then I finally realized that it was wearing me down too much, and I was either going to have to quit, or I'd have to just learn to deal with it until I was able to quit later.  Well, with a baby on the way, we needed the extra income, so I swallowed my pride, took on a bit of a "whatever" attitude and managed to survive another 9 months.  Going back 2 days a week during my extended maternity leave was definitely manageable, but I knew I'd never go back full-time.

So since they aren't willing to work with me in a part-time capacity (surprise, surprise), today was my last day.   It's a very delayed sigh of relief.   It'll definitely be a stretch for us until we sell our house, but we've been planning for this and we're trusting God to continue to provide for us.  I really am excited about being able to stay home with Josiah full-time.  I know in this "day & age" it's definitely not the norm to make it on one income, but it's something we feel led to do, and while it will require a lot of sacrifices, we're excited about it.  I'm definitely up for doing some creative odds & ends to earn extra money, but now I'll only have one full-time job:  taking care of Josiah and Mike.  :)  Pray for us as we get ready to list our house again.  We're dropping the price a bit and hoping that this time we'll have more luck. 

A Day with Friends & Family

Josiah got to see two cousin Amy's today! My cousin & Mike's cousin both came over to see him. 

And in between their visits, we went over to Senneca's house to deliver her baby gifts from work, and boy did Lyric & Josiah have fun together.  Lyric just loved him to death and Josiah just watched Lyric's every move.  Lyric kept bringing him toys, and hugging him and kissing him on the forehead.  He wished Josiah could walk & talk with him, but even though of course he can't do that yet, it didn't stop Lyric from playing with him:  He even put these Mickey Mouse hands on Josiah - haha!   He didn't want us to leave, it was so adorable.  Lyric is going to be a great big-brother to little Lenox.  

Could it be?

Could I finally be free to leave my ridiculous job?  Tomorrow morning is the big day:  The day I tell my boss that I'm willing to keep working part-time, but I'm not coming back full-time. My FMLA time runs out Monday, so Tuesday is the last day they have to let me work part-time.  I'm really not sure what will come of it.  They'd be pretty stupid to let me quit right now, considering that Senneca just left for her maternity leave and Christy would be the only Project Specialist left.  But frankly, they don't have a track record of making wise/reasonable decisions.  I'm really okay with whichever way it goes.  If it weren't for the fact that we could use some extra income while we wait for our house to sell, I wouldn't even consider staying.  I'd love to be able to stay home and take care of Josiah everyday.  But the two days-a-week schedule isn't so bad and it's much more profitable than any other part-time work I could look for.  So we'll see what happens. I doubt I'll have an answer tomorrow... considering we've still been waiting over a year for a revised job description!!  But they'll have to let me know by Tuesday... because no matter what, I'm not coming in on Wednesday!

3 Months Old (+2 days)

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Well, somehow I missed blogging on Josiah's 3 month birthday (Tuesday, the 20th). I guess I was too busy enjoying him after I got home from work.  He has been such a happy, fun boy this week!!!  I completely enjoy my days home with him.  He definitely recognizes his mommy & daddy now... and saves some of the best smiles for us.  It's really cute.  He can also hold lots of stuff now.  His favorite seems to be something cloth (burpcloths, washcloths, blankies) but he likes to bat at and grab the toys on his bouncy chair, activity mat and anything we hold in front of him.  It's made car rides much easier too... I can just lay his little dragon toy across his lap and that entertains him for a long time! 

He is very very fascinated with watching us eat now...even opens his mouth and grunts sometimes like he wants some!  hmmm... I wonder if he's going to be ready for some new tastes before long!   He has also seemed very interested in Shelby... he smiles when she comes near him, and if she lays close enough, he reaches over and "pets" her... yikes... well, so far so good.  :) 


Other new things for our little 3 month old:  He has started doing this pouty lip thing... it's really dramatic and hilarious... he's not actually upset... he does it when he's content.. probably because it makes us laugh so much.  He's content to play independently longer now... and I often find him smiling or laughing at his toys.  He LOVES looking at himself in the mirror.  Loves it!  He figured out how to go up & down in his kicker-chair.  And he can ride sitting up in the stroller (as opposed to just in the attached carseat).  :) 


All of the sudden, time seems to be moving really fast.  Mike and I have our birthdays next weekend, then just a couple weeks until Thanksgiving, and Christmas is only 2 months away!!!  Good grief! 

It's Lily's Turn

Since you all did such a GREAT job of praying for baby Lenox, you are needed again!!!  This time it's for Lily, my good friend Suzanne's little girl.  Lily just turned one on Friday and tomorrow she has her big surgery!  Lily was born with a cleft palate and tomorrow, she gets it repaired!  They have known this day was coming all year, and prayers for a great surgery, for peace for Lily and for her mommy & daddy, and for a good recovery are especially needed now!  It's going to be tough for a little while, but better days are ahead for sure!
Working at CBN, I hear stories about children with cleft palates & cleft lips in other parts of the world all the time.  So many of them are not as fortunate as Lily.  We are so blessed in the U.S. to have access to the best medical care and it's such a great thing that Lily can have this surgery.  It can be devestating and tragic for these little children whose families are so poor that they cannot afford the surgeries they need.