To my second born... on your first birthday

      To my second born, on your 1st birthday... How are you 1 already? I remember finding out that I was pregnant with you, and feeling overwhelmed. How can I be pregnant again? I barely had this mom things figured out, how was I supposed to add a second child? But God knew exactly what he was doing. Labor and delivery went very well, and figuring out life with you was pretty simple. You were my easy baby. Your brother had a hard time realizing he wasn't an only child anymore, but that didn't last long before he absolutely adored you... and now he can't stay away from you. ;-)

     Ezra, you are our ray of sunshine on a cloudy day. You were/are always full of smiles. Ezra, even though you are only a baby, now getting to that toddler stage, you've taught us so much. You are so content with only a few toys in front of you. You play by yourself so well, and then come to mama for snuggled, which I absolutely love!!! 

     You are my snuggle bug. I can always count on your snuggles during the day, and I don't want that to ever end, but I know it will one day, so I treasure each time I get that. I've enjoyed watching you grow and learn new things in the last year. Your first smile, your first laugh, your first steps... I've enjoyed each of these. 

     I was so excited when you learned how to crawl, because I knew that meant you'd be content a little longer, and if you ever needed me, you could/can always crawl to me, snuggle for a bit, and then go back off to play. Happy Birthday my son from your mama, who loves you dearly! I can't wait to see what God has in store for you this next year of your life. Love you! <3 

 

Happy 2nd Birthday James!

     My first born son, is now 2 years old! Where has the time gone?! James has been quite the tough child to figure out. With him being my first born, I was a new mom. I had no idea what to do with anything. I thought I had things together. Little did I know how much God was about to (and still continues to) teach me patience.
     James had all kinds of issues when he was a baby. From tummy/reflux issues, to dehydration and weight issues. It didn't help that I got pregnant again when James was only 4 months old. But, God knew what he was doing. I didn't think that I could do this mom thing. I wasn't cut out for the job. How could I be a mom to 2 when I couldn't even take care of 1 without falling a part and crying.
    God had mercy on me, and gave us Ezra who was an easy baby in almost every way, giving myself more relaxation and feeling like I can do this mom thing after all.
     While James still continues to be his strong-willed self, every day I find that God gives me more patience and endurance to get through the day.
     I have good days and bad days. When it's a good day, it makes me treasure them all the more. James is starting to actually say words now, making us sooooo happy! We taught him some basic sign language so that we can communicate a little bit before he learns to talk. He used to be such a shy child, and always disliked when other people held him or spoke to him. He's starting to come out of his shell a little bit. He takes a while to warm up to people, but when he does, he gives you all kinds of smiles and giggles. James absolutely adores his daddy, and will usually choose to be with my husband over myself, which usually works out since I have another little boy to take care of.
    James loves his little brother who's almost 1. They're starting to interact a little bit more. You can usually hear a giggle from Ezra when he sees James round a corner.
     James loves to be chased around, and for you to run while he chases you. He loves Almond Butter, cheerios, eggs, and healthy muffins as his favorite foods. We love our little boy and are excited to see what the Lord does in his life this year. Love you little boy of ours!

Thankful for the mess

    Life has been tough lately. My son developed whooping cough a couple months ago, which meant lots of weeks of constant throwing up because he was coughing so hard. James has had a lot of things going on with him that we're trying to figure out. But boy, he's such a cutie, and I love him. <3
     This week is supposed to be a week of Thanksgiving, and to look back at what you're grateful for. So, here's my post of thanks.
     Despite so so many hard days of Temper-Tantrums, messy house, dirty dishes, lots of laundry, snotty noses, baby spit up, and coughs, I'm thankful. You know, it's so hard to be grateful when you're in the moment of complete chaos. It's so hard to be grateful when you've barely gotten any sleep, you haven't taken a shower in a couple days, you've got a pile of tissues that need to be thrown away from snotty noses, and you don't remember when the last time was that you ate some food.
     But, looking back through the past couple weeks, months, and years, I am so truly thankful. I'm thankful for the mess my older son makes throughout the day, because it means that he's got an imagination, and that he kept himself occupied through part of the day. I'm thankful for baby hiccups, because it means that my baby has had enough to eat. I'm thankful for a messy kitchen, because that means that we have food to eat, and water to drink. I'm thankful for a dryer, because who knew something so small had such a significance in my life, and with all my dirty laundry, I'm thankful to have a working dryer again!
     I'm thankful for a husband who loves me despite my many sins and weakness, and my many days of lack of patience. I'm thankful for my two boys, because despite those hard days of their mommy having little patience with them, they love me, and trust me to take care of them.
    I'm so very thankful for those little phone calls and texts from friends and family, just checking in. I'm thankful for the ability to drive my husband to work once a week so that not only do I get extra time with my hubs in the car, but also so that my son and I can go to the Chiropractor on a weekly basis.
     I'm thankful for yummy meals that I've found on Pinterest, which makes diet restrictions so much easier to handle.
     I'm thankful for coffee!!!... something so small, but so delicious.
     So, that's only a small portion of what I'm thankful for, but it's good for me to get a different perspective every once in a while, and realize that I have so much to be thankful for!
What are you all thankful for? Comment below.

Pregnancy Announcement!

    Hello fellow bloggers! Yes, it's been a while since I've posted! Lots has happened in that time! James is 6 months old now!!! Seriously, where did the time go?! He has 2 teeth coming in as well. The biggest news that James has for ya'll?... He's going to be a big brother!!! Please join us in celebration of a new life that God has been so gracious to bestow upon us. :-)

Patience Is A Virtue

     They say patience is a virtue, right? With being a full time momma, I try to remind myself of this quite often. For such a cute and precious baby, sometimes I run low on patience. This last week, it had been a long weekend full of fun activities, but needless to say, I was done. I was low on energy, and just ready to rest. Thankfully, James agreed with me and slept really well the night before so that I was able to get some rest. However, the next day, James wasn't wanting to fall asleep. He kept crying, and nothing I did would stop him. He doesn't normally do that anymore, but when he does, often times I get impatient. My husband is very good at taking him and trying his luck with James and putting him to sleep.
     I finally had to just put him in the Moses Basket that he sleeps in, tell him I loved him, and walked away for a bit. I'm usually in tears at this point because I feel like I'm doing something wrong because I can't calm my own baby down.
     After about 5 minutes, I walked back up to his room, and he was on the verge of falling asleep. I then put the pacifier in his mouth, and just like that, he was out, fast asleep.
     Last week, it had been night after night of very little sleep for both James and I. I was at the end of my rope. It was a Friday, and my husband woke up 30 minutes before his alarm, to get the baby for me, who was crying yet again. As he walked out of the room with our crying baby, I cried. It had been 4 long nights of very little sleep, and I was at the end of my rope. A few minutes later, I joined my husband downstairs on the couch. He said, "How was last night?" I couldn't speak at all. Tears began to roll down my face, and I was completely and utterly speechless. After a while, my husband said, "Would it help you if I took today off work?" And so, with a quick text to his boss to get the okay, he was off for the day. It was a chill morning after that. Josh decided to make my day better, so he went to grab us some donuts for breakfast from the local gas station, and then later on, we went to the theater to see a movie, out for a Starbucks coffee, and home for pizza and movie night. Thanks to my hubby, the day went from miserable to great! I'm very thankful to have a husband who knows my needs and knows what cheers me up the most. :-)
    I get mad at myself for getting so impatient with James sometimes. He doesn't realize he's being difficult, or that he just needs sleep. I started thinking about how I must be like that sometimes with God. God has a plan for me, and he knows what's in my best interest, but often times, I go my own way because I feel like it's the right way, or because I'm stubborn.
     Patience is one of the things that I can never be "great" at, or even "good" at. Often times, I feel like I've got it, and it's all good, and then BAM, God decides to humble me yet again. I Look at all the characters in the Bible, and see how patient they must've been in those times. Jacob waited a total of 14 years to receive Rachel as a wife! (Genesis 29) Abraham and Sarah waited for God to give them a child, Joseph was enslaved and taken to prison for a crime he didn't commit, and he waited there.
     I look at the patience that these men and women had in the Bible, and I feel like I lack so much in this area. I pray to God that He would grant me the patience that I need to be a good momma, and wife. God works in His ways, and gives us sanctification through trials He brings our way. In each moment, learn to be thankful, pray, and always seek Gods face... ALWAYS! <3

Crazy Momma Stories

   Becoming a momma, has been so many things. It's been nights of crying my eyes out, because our little guy won't stop crying, it's been tears of Joy because of all the silly noises he makes and smiles he gives, it's been a season of me taking care of a baby instead of a house, which means sometimes, I don't get a shower in, or my makeup on. Honestly though?... I wouldn't trade it for the world! Being a mom is hard work! I always knew it would be, but no matter how much I prepared myself, I wasn't fully prepared for what God had in store for me.
     The first 2-3 weeks after I had James, I was on survival mode... getting used to the lack of sleep, caring for the needs of your baby before your needs, while still trying to maintain being a wife.
     Here are some crazy stories that have already happened to me...
     When James was 8 days old, I was going to an appointment with him, arrived there a tad early, got out of the car to get him on the other side, and the door locked behind me, with my keys still in the car! Needless to say, I went into panic mode. Thankfully AAA got there within 10 minutes, right as we were about to break the window. Scary moment for this momma.     

     A couple weeks ago, James was choking on his own spit, after taking him to the pediatrician, she told us to head to the children's hospital for an overnight stay, so that they can monitor him and his oxygen levels. They told us he had Acid Reflux. I was up every hour at night with this little chunkers, who couldn't sleep because of the Acid Reflux.
     Despite all the little things that come up with this little guy, he's a joy and excitement to our life. We love you baby James!

Dear New Momma...

Dear new momma,

    You're new at this. You're still recovering from having a baby; I get it! You're trying to figure out how to be a mom and meet the needs of your husband and baby while trying to catch up on sleep and remembering to eat and take care of yourself as well. It's okay to cry. It's all overwhelming, I know, but God will give you the strength to endure every minute. Choose to focus on the precious gift you have before you, and know that you'll get through the day.

    I want to encourage you and let you know that it gets better! Pretty soon, you'll have the "mom thing" down a bit more. You'll figure out how to balance out spending time with your hubby, spending time with God, keeping up with friends, and still meeting the needs of your baby.

     I promise you, it'll all get better! Nursing will get easier, and you and your baby will soon be in sync with one another. Eventually you'll be able to make dinner with one hand and hold onto your baby with the other. Soon you'll get used to surviving on little sleep, and it'll become easier.

    You'll have lots of people telling you how to be a mom and what to do. Just stay calm, nod your head, and smile. Some of the information you get, you'll use, and some of it you won't. You're the mom; you decide what works best for you and your baby.

    Don't be afraid to ask for help. You'll have days when laundry, dishes, and other household chores won't get done. It's okay! Enjoy those snuggles with your new baby! ... they're only a baby once.

    New momma, above all things, seek God and constantly be in prayer! Becoming a mom is challenging but oh so rewarding! You'll soon look back and see  how far you've come. You've got this! ;-)
From one mama to another,
Caitlin