Advent

We are celebrating the Advent season in our house this year with a Jesse Tree.
So, I'll be sharing our daily story with you all so you can enjoy this new tradition with us! I'll also try to take a picture of each of our ornaments so you can see our interpretation (some are quite loose interpretations!) of each story.
Today: Isaiah 11:1-2
Where the term "Jesse tree" comes from.

Reading:
God has a plan for everything. Long before Jesus was born lived a man named Jesse. Jesse had seven sons; the youngest was named David. When David grew up, he became a great king of Israel. God had a plan for Jesse and for his son David, even before they were born.
Jesus was also part of Jesse and David's family tree, born many, many years after David. People waited a long time for the birth of the savior. The season of Advent is a season of waiting for us, too. We wait for Christmas, the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus.
It is hard to be patient, especially when we are waiting for something wonderful like Christmas! But it is important to learn to be patient, and to trust that God has a plan for us, too.

Talk about:
Why is waiting so hard?

Prayer:
Dear God, we thank you that you have a plan for each of us. Help us to be patient as we wait for Jesus' birthday.

I'm thankful for ....... #4

I am so thankful for my family. I was blessed with an amazing family. My parents have been married for 41 years and were an awesome example of what a Godly marriage looked like. They also made sure we attended church every week (multiple times a week, usually!) and that we knew that we have a Heavenly Father that loves us and is concerned about us. They supported me in every activity I desired to do - Missionettes (at church), piano lessons, trumpet lessons, marching band, jazz band, band trips, Quest classes in elementary school, and the list goes on and on. They were at every Mesquite High School football game for my 4 years there (and an additional 3 for my older brother). They were always faithful to attend, cheer, encourage, and ust be there - for me and all my friends. I don't know how many kids at MHS called them "mom" and "dad".
I also have 2 older brothers that LOVED to torture little sister (And, for the record, they pulled me off the bunk bed when I was 2 - causing my broken wrist. I REFUSE to acknowledge that I "jumped".) :) My brothers married fabulous women and I am blessed with 2 amazing sis-in-laws. AND, they have made me an aunt 3 times -- Kaleb, Maddie and Hannah always make me smile. I love getting to see them grow, learn, explore, and challenge (haha -- torture!!!) my older brothers!!!
I have talked about my precious grandmothers before -- Nennie and Mema.

I also have an amazing family in my in-laws. I am fortunate enough to have loving, Godly mom-in-law and dad-in-law in the Kimballs. They have never treated me like an in-law, just another daughter. I love that. They are amazing parents and grandparents. It has been so fun to see them come alive since the boys have made them Mimi and Grandpa. They are so fun and never fail to drop everything and get on the floor to play with M&M. I am so grateful that my boys have 2 sets of grandparents to model God's love and a long-lasting loving marriage to them. When I married Eric, I received my third sister-in-law. Like her parents, Kim has never failed to treat me like a sister. We love to talk, shop, run, play, shop, and have pedicures (did I mention shop???) together when we are in the same town. Ben, Kim's husband, is a great guy that always keeps us laughing. I didn't realize how much until I was in the hospital after having Mason. K&B came into town to meet their first nephew and Ben had us laughing SO hard, my c-section incision hurt so badly, I was crying and had to get additional pain meds! I literally laughed until it all hurt!! That leaves sweet Emilyn. Em, you are a precious child and I miss that we are not closer and able to spend more time together. I love that you and Miles are so close in age (1 month and 1 day apart) and hope that you will be close friends your whole life. Your sweet smiles make me so happy and those beautiful, big brown eyes melt my heart. I can't wait to see you very soon -- 3 weeks!!
I am thankful for my entire family!

Mason-isms

Two funny stories about Mason today:

mason woke up from his nap to the sound of the heavy-trash truck.
he likes to watch it, so he opened his blinds (i could hear him from the den).
suddenly, he came running into the den gasping and sobbing. i knew he wasn't hurt but it took a couple of minutes and a couple of tries to figure out what he was saying through the heartbreaking sobs.
finally, i realized it was "they took our new pumpkins, mommy"
he was devistated!!! he was not just crying but sobbing.
he totally did not understand that daddy put the pumpkins out there for the trash men to take.
poor guy.
ahhhhhh, the simplicity of life through the eyes of an almost 4-year old!

this morning, as i was getting mason dressed, he was squealing right in my ear, so i nicely told him to be a little more quiet as he was hurting my ears.
on the way home this morning from running a few errands (including picking up our registration packets for the Turkey Trot on Thursday!!!), it was close to lunch time and i was trying to keep peace and quiet in the car, so i started making silly car noises. that almost always gets a few laughs and sometimes participation from mason and even miles at times. this time, mason says "no thank you, mommy. that hurts my ears."
what can you say to that? there really is no come-back!

miles is sick. again. he has been running a fever since saturday night. no other real symptoms of illness though. clear runny nose and associated cough. some throwing-up yesterday, but he does that everytime he gets congested. could be teething. should i take him to the doctor before the holidays? his fever was 101.6 before naptime today. i am not sure what to do. he isn't eating much and has been napping for just over 3 hours now. any thoughts? anyone?

I'm thankful for ....... Mason's version

Mason had a project at school - a turkey that they decorated with feathers and paint. In the middle it says:
"I'm thankful for....."
Mason's response:
"my trains and my brother."

I'm so glad he included Miles, but probably is more thankful for his trains than his brother most days! :) Thought that this might make you smile - it did me! :)

I'm thankful for ....... #3

I am thankful for Miles.
I hardly even know where to start on this one. Miles is such a joy. He has a personality that is HUGE. He lights up a room and lights up our lives with his very presence. He loves people, loves to be held, LOVES his daddy and brother, loves to be active, LOVES to be outside, loves shoes (yes, you read that right). He almost always has a smile on his face and loves to play.
Miles is able to do all this despite being sick most of his first 13 months of life. He started getting ear infections at 4 months and did so almost constantly until we had tubes put in his ears at 10 months old. He started having reflux at a week old and while mostly controlled, we do have the occasional spit-up still. At 4 weeks old, Miles became constipated and that is also an issue that we continue to have to keep close tabs on. (All his sitters/MDO workers think I am crazy at first, as I ask many, detailed questions about his poop each and every time I pick him up!!!)

Miles will be 17 months old in just a few days (on the 26th). He loves Mason so very much. He follows him everywhere and tries to do everything that Mason does. I have a feeling this is going to get him in some serious trouble soon! He tries to climb on everything that Mason does. In fact, he loves to climb on anything he sees. I have walked into our den to see him standing on the coffee table, jumping on Mason's bed (they were nicely playing trains when I walked out a few moments earlier), standing on the train table (no, it probably isn't that sturdy), standing on our bed........ I could go on for a while, but we'll stop there. Back to Mason -- they are going to be best buds very, very soon and I am so happy that they are close in age, even though the last 17+ months have been so trying and tiring!!!

Miles LOVES shoes. He is always putting on shoes (doesn't matter whose - in fact, the bigger the better as they are able to go on easier) and clomping around the house. He wears Eric's dress shoes, my heels (he does pretty well in them), my flip-flops, Mason's "running shoes", slippers, any and all shoes are fair game. If he doesn't want to put them on that day, he will simply carry them around the house. I find shoes in all the wrong places and looking for shoes to put on before we leave the house is an activity that has to start at least 10 minutes before we actually need to leave!!!

I could go on and on and on. But, I have two precious boys that I really want to spend time with. Have a very THANKFUL week!

I'm thankful for ....... #2

I am thankful for my hubby, Eric.
(And, just so that noone wonders, Eric and I did not have a bad day today like Mason and I did yesterday. No fights, misunderstandings, etc. Just thankful for him!!)
Eric is a hard-worker. He is very concerned that he always do his best - no matter what he is doing.
I love the way he can come in after a long day at the office, take his tie and shoes off at the door, put down the blackberry (surgically remove it, put it down - whatever!), and get in the floor and play with the boys. Mason loves to be chased around the house and Eric will not only chase him around, he will pick up Miles and let him play along. They all three fill the house with laughter.
Eric is an encouragement to me.
He is a motivation to me as well. He has gone with me on several of my long runs and has pushed the boys in the double stroller while running 4-6 miles (very, very) slowly to stay with me. He puts up with my complaining about how much I hate running and encourages me to get on out there and just do my best.
As most know, Eric is a marathon runner (show-off :)!!) and last December, he qualified to run the Boston Marathon. Not everyone can do that and, in fact, few are able to complete that goal. Eric set his mind to it, trained very hard for several years and finally was able to meet this huge goal.
There are so many things I can say about Eric. But, I will stop now. Just know that I love him, appreciate him, and am blessed by the husband, father and friend that he is.
I am thankful for Eric.

I'm thankful for ....... #1

Several of the blogs I read are doing a daily post about the things they are thankful for. I think that is a fabulous idea. For me, it is so easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day things and forget to look at the bigger picture. Not seeing the forest for the trees.
Mason and I had a terrible, awful, horrible, worst day in his almost 4-years of life today. It was not one that I care to repeat or remember. I broke down and cried a few times it was so bad. I felt like I had failed. Failed him. Failed myself. Failed Eric. Just failed. Failed at teaching him how to have good behavior. Failed at teaching him there are consequences for bad behavior (because if I had succeeded at teaching him there are consequences, he surely would not have continued with the bad behavior, right?). Failed to find the right punishment. Failed to remain calm and cool under pressure. Failed Miles. Just failed.
(Yes, there is a point and I am getting back to the thankful part!! Hang with me!)
So, the first thing that I would like to share that I am thankful for is Mason. He challenges me. He makes me laugh (no, really!). He has a gentle spirit and a generous heart. He is so much like his daddy and that means that he will one day be an amazing husband, father and friend. He is a faithful friend and a doting brother. He loves to laugh. He is focused and will not move on to the next task until he is satisfied with the first. He has amazing manners and remembers to use them often.

I would like to share one story to illustrate his generous spirit. Mason's preschool class is doing a Christmas fundraiser - Go Nigeria! They are collecting dimes (one dime will feed a family for a day, I believe) to send to Nigeria. They sent home a pamphlet explaining the need and it had pictures of kids. I decided to use this as a teaching time and showed Mason the pamphlet and explained that the kids are hungry and do not have a pantry or refrigerator full of food like we do. We got down our spare change bucket and looked through it together for all the dimes. I was finished at that point. Mason had bigger ideas and a bigger heart. He insisted that we go get his piggybank and look through it for more dimes. He wanted to give the hungry boys and girls his money. If you know Mason, you know that he loves to get money (coins, he hasn't figured out that dollars are worth more yet!) and he loves to put it in his piggybank. We have never taken money out for any reason. He came up with the idea on his own. My momma-heart was so proud of him.
After the day we had, it did my heart so good to remember all the things I love about my big-boy. (And, if you have not seen him recently, he is HUGE!!) He is a handful and a challenge. But, I love him more than I can express. Thank you, Father, for blessing me with Mason.

Caffeine addiction?

Yep, I got it.
I had a check-up at the doctor's this morning and it called for bloodwork. So, I had to fast from midnight last night until my appointment today (not until 11:15). No food. More importantly, no caffeine. It was almost 1pm before I finished at the drs and found the nearest source of caffeine. By that time, I had a migraine coming on. Seriously??? Am I that addicted? Apparently so because I started feeling it hurting around 10am. This is one of those "it's not going away until I sleep" headaches. Great. How many hours until bedtime? (The boys and mine!)
..........................................................................................
Oh, and apparently Miles did not get the memo. So, I'm going to be clear.
Dearest Miles,
Love of my life. Baby of mine. Sweet boy. I pay someone to keep you 12 hours a week. That is all the time that your poor, hurting mommy gets to be away from you. All week. I love you. But, I would really appreciate it if you would start scheduling your poops for during that 12 hours and not the first two after you get home from said time away from me. Saving two really stinky poops for me this afternoon where I am trying really hard not to toss my cookies is not really nice.
Love always, Mommy

............................................................................................
Me: Mason, please take this diaper to the trash for me, ok?
Mason: That stinks.
Me: I know. Please take it to the trash.
Mason: What is it?
Me: Miles' poopy diaper. Please take it to the trash.
Mason: Oh. Can I look at it?

(Huh? Seriously. Only a boy would want to look at a poopy diaper.)
Me: No. Trash. Now. Please.

Dear friends with boys after having girls (yes, Keely and Irini, that would be you two),
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!! I can't wait until they get older! You just wait.....!
Love, Your supportive friend Kendra
.................................................................................
Before my head splits in two,
Saturday's run: 9 miles -> 1:48:48 Slow, SO windy, but I did it. I made it all the way around White Rock Lake. I have wanted to do that for several years. Goal completed.
Shorter run Saturday
Next long run, Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning - 8 miles

runs

Tuesday: 4.5 miles -- 46:50
Thursday: 3 miles -- 33:58
Saturday: planned 9 miles
It is 9.33 miles around White Rock Lake, so I am going to head down there in the morning for my run. It is an asphalt running path, so it is much better on the knees and hips than concrete. After Tueday's run, my IT band (runs from your knee to hip) hurt so badly, I could not walk. It was really, really tight. I stretched it and used this big foam roller -- let me tell you - that hurt just as badly as trying to walk! It is better once it gets warmed up and stretched out, so I am hoping for a successful run tomorrow. (Let me clarify that I define successful as making it through the full run and not dying in the process! :) ) I did read that long runs should not be done for time, only to put in the mileage and get the body used to running farther and longer. With all that said, I am hoping to complete it in 1:45 or less. I know it probably seems like a little thing to most people, but please say a prayer for me to finish it well and strong and without too much pain. I really want to accomplish this goal and be able to show myself and the boys that I can do this and the value of challenging goals.
Oh, Mason's poison ivy rash is looking so much better today. I am hoping it will be totally gone in another week!

Dr's report and words

Mason does not have an infection, just poison ivy. Nothing to do but wait. And, hope that the two sets of pictures scheduled for next Saturday (the 22nd) do not show his battle-scars. :)

Miles has several words, finally. He has been really slow in starting to talk. He has made noises for a while, but now says words that we can understand. He says bye-bye, daddy, doggy (although those sound very, very similar!), Go (as in ready, set, Go -- yes, we do a lot of running and chasing in our house), UP (as in pick me Uhhh-Puhhhh!!!), mommy (I hesitate to put this on the list, because I rarely, rarely hear it), No (this one is more "Nahhhhhhhh" than N-O, but it is crystal clear what he means).

Mason's first soccer season came to a close last night. I am happy to have our Saturday mornings back for a while. I do plan to start him again in the Spring, as long as he is willing and having a good time. At 3-4 years old, that is really what matters to me.

Ok, off to put two handsome boys in the bathtub to kill some time, I mean spend some quality time, before Daddy gets home and the sandman comes to visit! :)

Saturday's run

8 miles - 1:30:50
A little slower than I hoped, but I am still getting used to running outside with hills and terrain changes and not on a treadmill that is nice and flat and forces me to keep a pace :)
And, for the record, my training schedule only had me running 7 miles, but I was able to go 8. I have never run that far in my life, so I am pretty proud of myself. And sore. Very sore calves. Sunday my knee hurt all day, but I rested it and iced it, so it is much, much better today, thanks for asking :)!

Please say a prayer for Mason. He got a scratch on his cheek at school sometime last week. Other than the fact that it looked bad because it is on his face, it was really a non-event. We get lots of bumps and scrapes. Saturday morning, he woke up with a little patch of poison ivy (confirmed by our neighbor - a doctor) on the same cheek, about an inch below the scratch. Again, sorta a non-event because he was not really even aware of it, was not scratching it or anything. Well, today I had to pick him up early from school (around 11) as he was scratching it and it has spread and covers most of his cheek, including all over and around the scratch. It is warm, indicating a possible infection and fever? So, we are going to pick up Miles in a little while and head to the ped's office. They can't see us until 3:30, so I am just letting him rest. He put himself to bed around noon (odd behavior), hardly ate any lunch (again, odd behavior), and has been asleep for over 2 hours (really odd behavior). I am not really sure what the dr. will say, but I am a little worried about our big guy. Please say a prayer and I'll update on him later. Maybe I can get him to let me snap a photo - it's pretty nasty looking though.

My favorite Halloween candy!

I know, I am a slacker. I have not updated the blog in a week. Things have been busy and I just haven't been motivated to post anything. I have thought about it a few times, but just didn't. Sorry!
Maybe this will make up for it.....

The view from the front seat to the back of the Pil0t. Just makes me smile :)

Please say a prayer for my run Saturday. I need to run 8 miles and am just intimidated by it. I know that I can do it physically, but I fight against my mind telling me otherwise. This will be the farthest I have ever run also. So, from here on out, I am in new territory!

Mon - 4.5 miles - 49:10 (done)

Tue - Bike 7 miles (done)

Wed - 4 mi - 40:40 (ran out of time to finish a full 4.5 per my schedule) (done)

Th - rest (happily done!)

Fri - 45 min cardio (bike or elliptical)

Sat -- 8 miles (I'll post my time later)

The time change really affected the littlest M&M. He fell asleep while eating his lunch Tuesday. This was at exactly 12:00 noon. This is the first time I've had a child fall asleep in the highchair, so I had to get a picture!!!

Saturday is also my 10 year SMU reunion. Where did the last 10 years go? Eric and I are going to the game, but the boys are staying home to take a good nap. I might need one too after that run.....

Sunday is Mason's last soccer game. I am glad he did it - he usually enjoyed the games. But, I am glad to have our Saturday mornings back!