Landon's First Christmas!

We had a great Christmas celebrating, first and foremost, the birth of our Savior! I must say that having a child really puts things in perspective all that Mary went through 2,000+ years ago. I am so grateful on so many levels.

Here are some pics of some of our Christmas festivities - first at home, then up at the lake with Alan's family. I say some because our Christmas celebrating is not over yet - my sister and her family and my mom are coming up this weekend not only to celebrate Christmas, but also for Landon's first birthday party!

A Fine Piece of Real Estate

That is if you are a gingerbread man. At a Christmas party this past weekend, each family in attendance got to decorate their own gingerbread house. There are many exterior updates including: a satellite dish (the cracker on the roof), skylight (the 3 pieces of chocolate on the roof), in-ground swimming pool, and a built-in grill. If you know of any gingerbread people that are looking to move. please have them call 1-888-NEW-HOME.

My Attempt at Mom's World-Famous Truffles

Okay, so they aren't quite world-famous (yet!), but they're getting there. I must say, that until I molded and coated the truffles last night I did not have a full appreciation for the amount of work that goes into making them (at which point I did call mom and express my sincere gratitude for the many, many times she's made thousands upon thousands of truffles - no exaggerating here since she makes them for retreats at camp). They did not coat as well as hers; nor did my attempt to get red squiggles for the holiday season work - hence, the hot pink. However, I do know that they taste good considering she was the one that made the cake filling and I did sneak one. Hopefully, there's only 20 ladies at our Bible study Christmas party tonight....

The Santa Experience

As a disclaimer, I realize that with it being 12 days until Santa's busy day that he is at the North Pole and is utilizing the assistance of various other Santas to hear children's wish lists and bring joy to them.

Today, we took Landon to the downtown Macy's to check out the 8th floor and meet Santa. Landon loved the 8th floor display and was in awe of all the movement and lights, as I figured he would be. With eagerness (more on my part, then his) we got into the 1/2 hour long line to see Santa and was, unfortunately, disappointed. When we got into our room (as a side note: there are two rooms at Macy's so one can get through the line faster), Santa was staring off into space and didn't utter a greeting. I placed Landon on his lap and the pictures were taken. That was basically it. Santa didn't talk to Landon. Santa barely looked at Landon. Due to the lack of interaction with Santa, Landon just gave me a blank look despite my enthusiasm. To anyone who knows Landon, this is not at all characteristic of him. He's very engaging and friendly if people are that way with him. But, that wasn't even the worst of it - this Santa had a fake beard! C'mon, people, we are talking about the downtown Macy's where thousands of children flock after the Holidazzle parade and to check out their holiday display! You're telling me that Macy's can't spring for a Santa with a real beard and one who is proficient at interacting with children?

Next year, I'm just going to Ridgedale.

Stupid Bug, You Ruined my Dinner

By bug I mean the flu and by dinner I mean Alan's company's Christmas dinner at Lord Fletcher's, which has definitely become one of the highlights of our year. We dress up (I even bought a new outfit), we sit in the beautiful Chart Room, we eat (this year, there were pre-appetizers to the appetizers). Unfortunately, our night was cut short due to my illness (which somehow got translated by Alan's co-workers that I was pregnant again. Ummm...no).

I had been feeling fine earlier in the day but was starting to get a little stomachache as we were driving there. This I just attributed to being hungry. When we arrived at the restaurant I was feeling slightly weak as we were standing around having cocktails. When we sat down to dinner I couldn't stop yawning and just attributed it to the fact that I'm not used sitting for so long. I made it through the pre-appetizers before I excused myself to go to the bathroom, where I threw up. "This is what I get for ordering an appletini after more than 2 years of not having any alcohol," I thought to myself. I came back to the table, nibbled on some crackers, ate my chicken wild rice soup, and was feeling slightly better. Then, dinner came. I managed to eat 2 bites of my steak, but was so repulsed by the idea of eating (that should not happen at Lord Fletcher's) that I told Alan we needed to go.

Things progressed worse over the night, that I quickly assessed it was not due to an appletini or food poisoning. My leftovers are still sitting in the fridge, and at this point, I could probably eat them without any problems, but of course they aren't going to be as good as at the restaurant.

Approximately 364 days until Lord Fletcher's next year.

When Life Gives You Lemons

Landon's response to the title would be, "Enjoy them!" While out for lunch today, I gave him the lemon wedge from my Berrylicious Lemonade (yes, that's what it was called), figuring we'd get a really cute sour face. He took it out of his mouth and looked at me as if to say, "Hey, this is something new," but then proceeded to put the lemon in his mouth and sucked on it for like 5 minutes, while Alan and I are shaking our heads in disbelief. He even cried when I took it away. Here are some pictures as proof.

Wrong Video

So I had intended to take a video of Landon dancing (It's super-cute. He hangs on to the side of his toy basket and bounces up and down. His favorite dance CD? Newsboys Go). Here is what I got instead. Sorry my camera was tilted. I was too excited and not prepared!

Lost

For those you expecting this blog to be an analysis of the TV show, I can't help you - I've never seen it. No, this blog is about all the things that I've been losing lately. Here is a list (I'm very much a "list" girl):
Landon's pacifier - this one is frustrating because I know that it is in the house here somewhere. Granted he has 3 more to choose from, but still... As Alan has referenced before - those things should come with GPS.

Landon's dedication/coming home from the hospital pictures - I had the pictures at the scrapbooking retreat I went to a few weeks ago, but then when I went scrapbooking on Friday they weren't in my case. I didn't unpack anything from the scrapbooking retreat and I've checked with the people that I went with to see if they might have picked them up by mistake (they hadn't). I was so excited because some of the pictures I got in fun sizes like 6 by 12 - perfect for scrapbooking. I'd really like to find them because fun sizes come at a price and I'm not too thrilled about paying twice for something I know I had.

Sleep - Yeah, I'm the only one to blame for this one. I did not get much sleep this past weekend. I don't think there was a night this past weekend when I didn't go to bed before 11:30 or midnight. So, when I try to catch up on my sleep (I got a 45 minute nap in yesterday, which certainly isn't catching up, but hey, it's a starting point) it all goes out the window. I had every intention of getting to bed around 10:30, but Alan was working on the bathroom floor and I felt guilty about going to bed without him (I was also trying to get my library book read). Once in bed and in dreamland, Alan calls out to me several times. Bentley, apparently, was sick and vomitting (don't know why I needed to get up to take care of that). Next thing you know, Landon's up and crying. Ugh - not good! We eventually all got settled down, although Alan ended up sleeping in the basement with Bentley, as she was pretty restless last night.

My mind - No, I haven't quite lost that yet, but if I keep losing other things, I know that it won't be too much longer before that's gone too!

We're in Double Digits

Landon turned 10 months old today. I can't even believe it. There's something about double digits that doesn't make it seem as if he's still an infant. It must be all that he's been up to that makes him seem so "grown up." Here's a glimpse of Landon at this stage:
He has 6 teeth and one more on the brink.
He can say "ma-ma," "da-da," and "na-na" (we are convinced na-na is banana, one of his favorite foods).
He just learned how to wave and can give you five.
He can stand by himself and walk around furniture.
He loves watching Bentley chase the ball up the stairs.
He can crawl up the stairs.
He loves to splash in the bathtub (still the baby bathtub because our upstairs bath is not quite finished!)
He loves to explore and see how things work.

Pudding Art

I decided to use pudding as an art medium with Landon the other day. Kind of like finger paint, but if he puts in his mouth, no biggie! I think it's safe to say that he enjoyed it...

Ewwww....gross!

So the city decided today was the day that they wanted to clean out our sewer system. Today - when I am at home with Landon because he had a 102.2 temperature yesterday. I'm sitting in our basement checking Facebook and our toilet starts making this horrible, gurgling sound. I didn't dare open the cover because I was scared of what I might see (too much TV and an overactive imagination first led me to think that a snake was stuck in the pipes and was going to greet me with a hiss - okay, please stop laughing.) Then, came the smell. Being a mom and working in day-care and the church nursery - I've changed a lot of diapers. Those many, many diapers were nothing compared to this smell. I went upstairs to call Alan and the smell was even wafting up there. No answer on either of Alan's phones - ugh! I look outside to see the city truck working by the sewer. Landon's up from his nap so I put his coat on and trek outside and across the street to question the worker. He said that they were cleaning out the sewers and that to help the process I should turn on our water for a little bit, flush the toilet, and pour some water down our in-floor drain in the laundry room and that I might want to open some windows. So glad that it is a 70 degree day as I'm dealing with this literal crap : )

Peek-A-Boo!

Peek-a-boo is, without a doubt, Landon's favorite games. As you'll see in the video, he shrieks and throws his head back in great delight when he is uncovered. I couldn't help but think of how peek-a-boo parallels people's lives. We know of Jesus and we know that he died on the cross, but we keep him "covered" and not acknowledge Him. However, at the time when we do pull that blanket back and say "Jesus, I found you!" that Landon's reaction is probably similar to that of Jesus' when we come to Him and acknowledge our sinful status and recognize Him as our Savior. Luke 15:8-10 tells the parable of the lost coin and how the woman who lost the coin rejoices when she finds it. It continues, "In the same way, I [Jesus] tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Thank you, Landon, for the great reminder!!!

It is Finished!!!!

11:37 pm. No, I'm not talking about the bathroom (although we are getting there, slowly but surely). I'm talking about the Alaska scrapbook. Finally! 1 year, 4 months, and 14 days after getting back from the cruise. I said I was going to finish it tonight and I didn't think I was going to make it as I got into a fight with the scrapbook as I was taking out pages and had to reassemble it and had to retype a journal entry after I found an error with the date. I'm sure I'm going to pay for it tomorrow when Landon gets up at 5:30....

Here's a picture of two of the pages for your viewing pleasure.

I Guess I am Technically-Savvy

I can post video! Here's Landon with his new toy from Grandma and Grandpa. This is the most steps he's taken walking behind something like this. Enjoy!

A Revelation

Several weeks ago, I joined a small group at our church for women. After the first night, I was feeling a little overwhelmed because as a part of this small group we have: book lessons; verses to memorize; Bible reading; and prayer time to work on through the course of the week aside from our hour and a half meetings on Wednesday nights. I worried that I wouldn't be able to get the lessons, and all that it entails, done for the class while still being a wife, mom, nanny, cook, shopper, etc. I have found, though, that when I make it a priority to work on my lesson, God has been honoring that and I'm able to do much more in the day than expected!
As an example, yesterday I came home from nannying and tried putting Landon down for his nap. I kept hoping and praying that he would go down because I wanted to get my lesson done, among other things. I read to him, played with him, rocked him, changed him, and nursed him. He finally went down about an hour and a half later (3 pm). He napped until 6 pm!!! I was able to get my lesson done, do some housework, AND some scrapbooking. God is so faithful and He is more than willing to meet our needs when we surrender to Him!

Fall Fun

I can't tell you how anxious I was to get a picture of Landon in the leaves!!!

Third Times a Charm???

So a lot of people tell me how cute Landon is and it's not just family or friends out of obligation or politeness. Ladies at the grocery store go absolutely ga-ga over him, so in an effort to start his college fund, I've decided to enter him into some photo contests. Unfortunately, Proex and Edelweiss Baby did not deem Landon cute enough. Our third try is a little more national - Baby Gap and Gap Kids is hosting their casting call. So today I decked Landon out in a Gap-esque outfit and attempted to get the perfect shot of him. The picture is of the very first shot I got of him. Apparently his hunger pains far outweighed his desire to make me happy. After breakfast, other shots were hard to come by considering Landon would much rather be moving/playing. Maybe I should just buy a big, fancy camera and photographers lights because we never seem to have a shortage of great shots to choose from when I take him to the professionals....

A Silver Lining to Every Cloud

So my IRA is losing money, but I paid $2.83/gallon for gas today! Yeah to filling up the 4 Runner for less than $50 (I had a quarter tank of gas left, which is my usual fill up point)!

It's My Birthday and I'm Throwing a Pity Party

I love birthdays - especially mine. I am guilty of milking my birthday for all that I can. I sign up for free birthday meals from Red Robin and Noodles. I get free birthday ice cream from Coldstone. These specials enable me to celebrate my birthday for at least a week. On my actual birthday, I get phone calls from family wishing me well. I can generally do as I wish because "it's my birthday."

Well, not this year and I'm disappointed. I would have liked to have slept in this morning but Landon woke up at 5:45. Alan's not feeling the greatest so I let him stay in bed a little longer. We went out just the two of us last night, which was great, but it was not the celebration that I wanted (side note: we saw the movie "Fireproof" and would highly recommend it!). I wanted to go to La Cucaracha in St. Paul for dinner afterwards, but Alan thought it would be best if we stayed close to home. We went to the suburban Sawatdee, which has a different atmosphere than the Downtown/Uptown locations. We were home by 9:00 pm (pathetic since Alan's parents were watching Landon so it's not as if we had to pay for a sitter). Mom and Grandma called to wish me a "Happy Birthday," but during mom's call Landon was screaming in the background so I had to cut my phone call with her short to put him down for his nap.

Now I know that life is vastly different when you have a child on board. I have often said to Alan, "I know that we had a life before Landon was with us, but I honestly don't know what it was and I wouldn't want that past life because Landon is such a joy in our lives." Today I got a better sense of life pre-child and with child. My birthday is no longer about me and it sucks. What would I change? I certainly wouldn't change having Landon around, but I think for future birthdays I will be more assertive in celebrating me. I'll get a manicure even though the polish will only last a day or two because I wash my hands so often. I'll be more assertive about going to La Cucaracha. I will not let being "Landon's mom" define who I am and how I celebrate turning another year older.

Thank you for coming to my pity party. I feel better now : )

I'm a Money-Saving Rock Star

I get a huge rush when I go grocery shopping and the bottom of the receipt shows how much I saved. I get an even bigger rush when it shows a percentage of how much I saved. Although Babies R Us doesn't show those features on their receipt, if I know I'm saving a ton, I'll calculate my own percentage saved. Like today, I saved over 70% on Earth's Best organic baby food! I went a little crazy and bought 30 jars, which are nomally 89 cents a piece for about 24 cents. Oooh fun! You see, the EB jars (stage 1 or 2) had a special - buy 10 jars and get $2.00 off. I had a coupon from EB's website for an additional $1 off ten jars. Then, I had a $10 BRU gift certificate from the last time I bought diapers. Hence, I paid $7.26 for 30 jars of organic baby food. You can't even make non-organic baby food for that cheap. Woo hoo!

Sure am Glad I'm not a Chicken!

As I was driving the other day, I pulled up behind a semi with cages upon cages stacked with live chickens. Those poor little chickens were so cramped in their cages, it looked as if their heads were against the top of the cage and they couldn't turn around if they tried. And, the truck is going down a highway at 60+ miles per hour so the force of the wind hitting those chickens was probably not too fun for them (Bentley doesn't even like sticking her head out the car window at those speeds). It almost made me want to become a vegetarian, but alas, I like chicken too much. I'm thinking that maybe I'll just switch to buying the more expensive cage-free chicken, but Alan brought up the point that chickens are accustomed to the cramped quarters and that after all, "we don't see chickens running around in the wild, do we?". True, not here in the city/suburbia, but somewhere I'm sure there are chickens running around (and not on a cage-free chicken farm). Now, even if I were to buy the cage-free stuff, then what do I do when I go out to eat and want chicken? I think I'll just be thankful that God made me a human being and not a cramped, cooped up chicken!

Leaving our Mark

So we're remodeling our upstairs bathroom. It's definitely turning into quite the project - way more intensive than I ever thought it would be, but certainly enjoying it and the multiple trips we make to Menard's each week (3 times already this week).
Anyway, we tore down our old walls (got rid of the tile) to put up new ones, but before we do that I've left our mark on our home. On the studs, I've written various things - "we were here" sort of thing, Bible verses, etc. Ooh that remind me - I want to write the current price of things like a gallon of gas or milk. It would be interesting to see what someone's reaction would be to all that sort of stuff years down the line. If you have any suggestions for other stuff to include, let me know! I will try to post pictures as soon as I get more taken....

Yes, I know, I know...

It's been a while. Sorry to those of you that have been checking and have been wondering. FYI - Landon's napping and I should be cleaning the bathroom and I'm doing this instead. I'm such a procrastinator : )