Just Checking In

We have been having a very busy time in our house for the past month or so. Not that we've really gone anywhere or done anything of great importance, but when you have a nine month-old, you are just plain busy. Jack is a very active little boy. He doesn't take good naps, which is still a tragedy to this worn out mom, but he sleeps great at night, so I really can't complain. He is sooooooo busy! He crawls everywhere, pulls up to his knees on the couch, the end tables, and the bathtub (which makes mommy nervous). His word of choice is still "Da da", and so far he has still never said "Ma ma" even though he knows that we want him to say it. When he plays in the floor he plays very seriously, and his love for electronics is growing by leaps and bounds.

He only drinks two "ba ba's" (bottles) a day, and sometimes only one (in the morning). He LOVES to eat--especially anything off our plates or out of our cups. One of his favorite treats? Well, of course it is a White Mocha Frappaccino from Starbucks! If I give him a drink from my cup, he will sit with his mouth open and little hands shaking as he begs for more. He drinks from a straw with no problem.

He has two teeth and he's working on another one (bottom left). So far no top teeth yet. The teeth thing is funny--some days he's fine--other days he is just miserable. We never know from day to day how it's going to go.

He doesn't like the nursery. At all. The last several weeks we have been paged several times by harried nursery workers who shake their heads and say, "We don't know what else to do for him". So daddy brings him out into the hallway and he and Jack listen to mommy's choir sing. Sometimes I can get him back in the nursery and sometimes I can't. This last Sunday we had a whole bunch of people coming over for lunch, so when we were paged we just went ahead and came home.

He is nine months old tomorrow! I don't know how much he weighs, but I'm guessing it's over 20 lbs. and he is LONG. He can wear 18 month pj's and 12 month shirts and pants. None of his 9 month pj's or pants fit him. He can still wear some 9 month shirts, but it's tight. He's gonna be a big boy. He's kind of like a puppy--if he grows into his paws he's gonna be big! But he's not chubby at all. He's just very long.

He's very sweet and he loves us very much and we, of course, are goofy about him. We love him so much and I am so thankful that I can stay home and spend this time with him. Now the next question is--do we want another one?

Summer Vacation Clips

Here is a short video that has some short clips of the kids summer visit. We really enjoyed having our whole family all together under one roof! I miss you Anne & Bryan!

Our Lil Peanut

Just a few video clips to show you what a fun baby our little peanut can be. We are truly blessed to be his parents.

Date Night!

For a few months now Betty and I have been attempting to purposely spend an evening together. We realized that with our busy schedules we just had to put a date on the calendar - then the only challenge would be actually keeping that date! Last weekend we were discussing the upcoming week and I actually thought to plan it myself! I called grandma-poo and asked her when she could watch Jack Jack she threw out a string of possibilities that would work with her schedule (yes she is back at work now!), we decided on Friday night because I get off earlier on Friday. Then grandma said that Jack could spend the night!!! I ran the idea past Betty and she jumped with glee - not that she doesn't love her baby you see, but we really haven't been alone since our honeymoon, and that was just a three day weekend!! We finalized the plans and dreamed of all the fun things we would be able to do without having to go and wake a sleepy baby and then transport him back home (usually crying halfway home till he would fall asleep again).

Friday came quickly enough and inevitably I got out of work later than expected. When I got home I found that betty had packed every single toy that our boy has into bags along with enough food to sustain a navy seal for a month. Before we left I set down at her desk to check my email and I noticed that she had a word document open on her laptop. I clicked on it and it was a FULL page of instructions on the care, loving, changing, playing, and feeding of our baby boy! The funny thing about this is that she is the one who jokes about me having "engineer brain" and planning every project down to 5 minutes. I got a kick out of her list!

We went to grandma's house and I took care of a few things for her while Betty fed jack one last time. We left and went out to eat at Olive Garden where we had yummy food and a waitress who blatantly lied to Betty (whole other story) Then in typical Jeff fashion we proceeded to go to best buy to spend the reward zone certificates and gift certificates that have been burning a hole in my pocket. Believe it or not, we actually couldn't find anything that we had to have! We went to Barnes & Noble and got some yummy coffee and a book on Excel VBA. We talked about going to a movie but we weren't interested in anything that was playing at the time.

We ended up getting home early... as we pulled into our driveway it really hit us... our little boy is going to be away from both of us at the same time overnight!!! We allmost turned the car around right there and headed back to get him! We decided to leave him with grandma and try to enjoy the evening even though we both wanted to see him so much.

We ended up having a pretty normal night, we watched an episode of Battlestar Galactica (our new favorite thing to do together) and went to bed. While I was last out of the bathroom and as I was headed to our bedroom Betty emerged from Jack's room, I smiled as I realized that she really did miss her little baby boy. We both went in his room and stood by his crib, then we went to bed and talked about him. Betty even slept with the baby monitor on.

We love you Jack. You are such a sweet baby and we love you with ALL our hearts.

Daddy.

A Happy Solution

Jack is fascinated by anything electronic (hmmm..... I wonder where he got that). In particular, he is obsessed by the computer. For Jack, everything is about the computer. If mommy is taking him down the stairs, he knows that the computer will be within sight. If he is riding around in his car, he inevitably ends up in front of the computer. If we sit with him in the big tan chair, he must stand up and look over our shoulders to see the.....you guessed it....computer! Basically, for Jack, all roads lead to the computer. It makes it very difficult to play with anything else or get anything done with him begging to be at the computer. He has even taken to crawling through the end table in order to reach the computer desk. So, today, I finally came up with the solution. You can see by the pictures that he is thrilled. He spent 45 minutes in this chair this afternoon. I got two loads of laundry done in that amount of time! The only reason why he left it is because he was getting bleary-eyed from looking at the screen and needed to take a nap. So he's napping now, but I expect he'll be back. Here are some other fun photos from the last few days.

What Do I Think?

Recently, I have been asked by several people what I think about what is happening at my alma mater. At first I really didn't understand what I was being asked. I knew that the president had stepped down for "personal" reasons, and while I was somewhat puzzled as to what those reasons were, I realized that it didn't really involve me personally and so I put it out of my mind. Yesterday and today I have come to realize what a huge thing is happening there and all around the nation regarding this incident. My first instinct was to dig for more information. I realized that I was not in possession of all the facts and could not make a real decision. I believe that I was given some very good information from Godly friends whose only goal is to serve Christ and see good come of this situation. I also feel that I received some very shocking information from the internet. After several hours of digging and sorting through this information and becoming more and more distressed over what I have been reading, I have come to this conclusion:

• God's Word is the only source of Truth in this world.
• God is not ignorant of this situation and was not surprised by it.
• My prayer and hope is that all parties involved would seek to give God glory. (Glory is defined as "giving the right opinion of God")
• The bottom line: I am not a part of this problem, nor do I believe that God would have me be a part of the solution. Therefore, with the exception of praying that glory is given to God through this situation, I'm out of it. Period. There are more important things (and that does not mean that it isn't important to those who are genuinely involved in the problem and the solution) that God wants me to accomplish today. Like laundry. Ugggh.

So, there you have it folks, my official thoughts on the matter.

Road Trip?

Is anyone interested in going up to Detroit for Ed's memorial service? I'm sure that it's going to be a very touching service. If you think you might want to go, leave a comment. I haven't made any final decisions yet, I'm just curious if anyone else is thinking of going.

This World Is Not My Home

Praise God these bodies are only temporary. Ed has been completely healed and given a new body as he looks upon our Savior face to face! Please pray for Kelley for sweet rest and comfort. The weight of grief is such a physical thing and she has already been going non-stop for months now. Pray that God will allow her to be carried on the strength of her Lord and her family.

Prayer

Please pray for my friend, Ed Horn, as today will most likely be his last day on this earth. I won't go into all the details, but if you have the time and want to receive a huge blessing, look at this website for Ed. He has been battling cancer for some time now, and it looks as though his body has so aggressively rejected the bone marrow transplant that he received just a short time ago that he will quickly pass into eternity. He leaves behind his young wife, Kelley, and their two children, Aiden and Kya. Throughout this trial they have modeled Christ in just about every way possible. They are friends of mine from college and although we have not actively communicated with each other in over a decade, I have read this website every day now for several months. I feel a great sense of grief for his loss, and for the pain that his family must be going through. Like them, I pray to Ed's heavenly Father to please take him quickly. Please pray with me that His will is done.

Face to face with Christ my Savior
Face to face--how can it be?
When with rapture I behold Him--Jesus Christ! Who died for me!
Face to face I shall behold Him
Far beyond the starry sky
Face to face in all His Glory
I shall see Him by and by

When my life work has ended, and I cross the swelling tide
And the bright and glorious morning I shall see
I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side
For His smile will be the first to welcome me
I shall know Him--I shall know Him
And redeemed by His side I shall stand
I shall know Him--I shall known Him
By the print of the nails in His hands

The Gray Family - New And Improved

I hesitate to put these up because there is something wrong with our scanner, but these turned out so well that I couldn't wait to share them. We love our little family. We miss Sissy and Bubba greatly and are counting the minutes until we can see them again. In the meantime, little Jack is doing his best to make us laugh and keep us busy. Thank you, God, for your incredible blessings!

The Tooth Has Arrived!

Tonight I was feeding Jack a little bit of peanut butter on the end of my finger and I felt it! It's really there! No wonder he was a little TURKEY all day yesterday and today. Sundays are hard on Jack with church coming right in the middle of his morning nap and lunchtime, but today he was especially cranky and cried alot. It wasn't until this evening that I realized the problem! The good news is that it is finally in--the bad news is that we have a whole mouthful to go! Now I'm freaking out about feeding him peanut butter. What was I thinking? What if he is allergic to peanuts? Can I get him to the ER in time? I don't even have any Benedryl in the house. Good grief. So far he is doing fine. But I keep watching for signs of blotchiness and tongue swelling. Hard to tell in an already drooling, mouth contorting baby, but I'm watching nevertheless.

I tried to get a picture but he wasn't cooperating with me. By the way, he is also sitting up and doing the army crawl across the floor! He'll be 8 months old in a few days.

Yo Ho! Pirate Bry Bry

Here is Bryan (or "Bubba, Bubby or Bu" as Jack calls him) striking his best pirate pose. Both Sissy and Bubby went to VBS this summer and the last night was Pirate night. Check out the cool tattoo!

Busy Boy

Our little boy is coming out of his skin! It is no longer acceptable that he is unable to crawl, walk or run. He is frustrated ALL the time because he can't reach anything. His arm is always out, reaching toward something. Today we put him in the walker and his little feet were running before they even hit the ground. He has also figured out how to open the kitchen cabinets, and that if he gets real close to the stove there is another little boy in a walker just like his, staring back at him. I have a feeling that my life will never be the same. And I haven't even adjusted to this "normal" yet!

First For Everything

My son gave me a bloody nose. My infant son. You might have thought that the 11 year-old would be more likely, but no, it was the 7 month old. He has been very irritated today. He's been "yelling" at me very loudly, crying alot, not interested in his ba ba, and generally pretty cantankerous. I was holding him and trying to calm him down some when he reared back his head and just head-butted me right in the nose. I had the sense to put him down on the floor before I sank down beside him, holding my injured member, fighting back tears, and feeling rather dizzy. After my mother-in-law wheeled into the living room to find me on my hands and knees, I wiped my nose with a kleenex and observed bright red blood! Wow, it hurt. Jack just kept fussing as if nothing had happened. It's the first nosebleed I've ever had.

Project #2 on the list of things to do.

My brother in law sent me this video and I just couldn't resist posting it here. Maybe I will have my version completed by the time Jack has his drivers license. If only I could hook a mower up to the back!

Random pictures

Poor sick baby--still has a smile!

Happy Father's Day!

The pictures say it all! I have had these two finish nailers in hiding for a couple of months now. I have been so fearful that he would somehow find out--but he didn't. It was a total surprise and he LOVES them! Yippppeeee for me! And Happy Father's Day to Jeff! You're the best and you deserve your special surprise!

Nice Milky Latte

Just a word on the "milky latte" video clip. It is one of Jeff's favorites, and since he was loading videos for me, he included this one. I think that Jack may have been a week old. Aunt Gigi had called to say that she was coming over and bringing me Starbucks. I was so excited! I had been laying off the Starbucks since I was breastfeeding, but I was determined to drink this one. Obviously I was so excited that I talked to Jack about it upstairs. Unknown to me, the baby monitor was on and Jeff caught it on tape. It's a sweet reminder of his early days, breastfeeding and his sweet newborn baby cry. Sigh. Oh well, now I drink all the Starbucks I want!

Jack saying DaDa

Six Months

The last few weeks have been full ones, to be sure! Not only have there been changes in Jack, but there have been many changes in our house as well. The biggest change, of course, is the fact that Anne and Bryan are home! When they come home our little lives get a boost of energy and the house practically cannot hold us. We worked incredibly hard getting their rooms ready for them--new drywall and texturing, paint, new furniture, some decorating touches. They were finally done and the kids helped move their furniture in the day they came home! There are a few little finishing touches here and there that need to be done, but it was exciting to see them come in and rummage around in the attic for little treasures that they used to have in their rooms and had to leave behind when they moved to Florida. It has been a great challenge having two 11 year-old children around full-time, but it has also been extremely gratifying and rewarding. We are working on the Four Rules of Communication (yea verily, a fifth has been added). In case you don't know what they are, they are as follows:
1. Be Honest
2. Keep Current
3. Act, Don't React
4. Attack the Problem, Not the Person
(5. When in doubt, just shut up)

Anne and Bryan are absolutely each others' best friend. They are also each others' worst enemy. The fued over rooms, property, who said what and when, etc., are ENDLESS, but we are trying to teach them problem-solving skills that they can apply to ANY situation to end the problem without screaming, slamming doors or punching inanimate objects! So far they have done well. It was hard at first, but I can't tell you the feeling of pride in them that I have when I see them knocking heads over something, and then sitting down in the floor to discuss the problem and possible solutions to the problem. We are also learning the difference between "I'm sorry" and "please forgive me". We pray that they will continue this wonderful process of biblical communication even after they return home and we are no longer there to referee.

The changes in Jack are too numerous to count! He absolutely ADORES his brother and sister. We call them Bubba and Sissy. Bryan can be standing beside him and make a noise and Jack will just burst in to a fit of laughter. Anne has a special touch with Jack and takes extremely good care of him. She is able to rock him to sleep when I am unable to and he sit entranced when she sings to him. When Bry and Anne wrestle around in the floor he watches them and squeals as if he is just waiting to jump in there with them. He can roll over each way now and even gets up on hands and knees and scoots around. He is no longer left on the bed because he could be off the edge before I have time to turn around! He says "Da Da", "La La", and "Blah Blah" quite distinctly. No "Ma Ma" yet, but that's ok. At first we weren't sure that he was really saying "Da Da" and meaning Jeff, but now we are positive that he is asking for or talking about his Daddy. He will sit in his little walker and if Jeff is not looking at him he will say, "da da da da da da" with increasing intensity until Da Da finally looks at him!

Right now he is very sick. I had to take him to urgent care yesterday before he had a fever and there was gunk coming out of his eyes and nose. I was worried that he was getting an ear infection, but the doc said his ears were clear. They gave me some baby decongestant and some eye drops, so we're hoping that he gets better soon. He is pretty miserable right now, as you will see from the pictures I took yesterday and this morning. However, he is smiling this morning and although he is sticky, he is still very sweet. We love him so much.

He had his 6 month check up last week. The doctor has proclaimed him perfect! He is ahead of the game in many areas. He weight 17 lbs, 4 oz, and he is 27 1/2 inches long! What a big boy! I hope to have another post up today with some video footage for Father's Day.

Well, that kind of brings us up to speed. Our days are busy and the kids start VBS next week, so it's going to be crazy, but I'll try to do better with posting. Anne is a little computer bug too, so I am in competition for my desk!

Love to all!

PS. I'll have to try the pictures later since there is something wrong with Blogger and they will not upload!!!