Christmas Recap

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas spending time with family and friends, relaxing, and reflecting on the Child given. We did! It was crazy and jammed packed with stuff, but we had another wonderful Christmas season. However, the week of Christmas, Amelia got sick :( It seemed to be one thing right after another for a couple days: throwing up, breaking out, fever, over tired... poor girl. She missed out on one Christmas dinner with her great Aunt and Uncle, but thankfully was mostly back to normal in time for Christmas Eve and Day. She only recently has seemed completely back to normal. And thankfully, no one else got sick around here.

A few pictures of our festivities for your viewing pleasure ...

(I, of course, forgot the camera for the Humphrey side and only took one at my parents. So much for capturing the moments.)

It's not a good picture, but Amelia Christmas morning.

Our usual tradition is reading some scripture of Christ's birth, let Amelia tear into her presents, open and play with EVERYTHING, and then eat breakfast together. Here, Amelia excited about her playdough set

and then of course, we had to play with it.

Amelia got a couple puzzles both a little challenging... She was up for the challenge.

Cousins on Christmas day.

Then, two days late, we got our white Christmas :) Amelia was so excited to play in it.

Have a Happy New Year!

Keep Breathing ...

We had a rare weekend with not much on the calendar, so we were planning a nice quiet day spent getting some odd and end things accomplished, Christmas shopping completed, and some fun family time... instead, Amelia woke up with a cold Saturday morning.

We thought nothing of it ... she was only coughing. We figured we would just take the day slow and make sure she got her rest. At naptime, she was wheezing and breathing like she had just run a marathon. I was feeling a little unsettled at her symptoms. Dad sat with her in the bathroom with the shower running for some moisture filled breathing while I called a good friend and a good doctor. I knew he would either calm my fears or tell me when it was serious enough to take her somewhere. (of course, this stuff never happens during the week where I could just easily take her to her doctor.) He said the fact that she was just sitting in bed, reading, and still working on breathing was probably a good sign we should go have her checked out. So, we instead spent the afternoon in the emergency care office with a tired, wheezing toddler and a daddy suffering from a bad headache. We sat in the warmest room ever, sweating, and waiting ... FINALLY Amelia got some relief ....

She was a trooper, and all the nurses and doctor were surprised at how well-behaved, helpful, and brave the two year old was. We suspect that Daddy not only passed along his allergies, but his asthma as well. *sigh* So after 3 hours at the Doctor's, we spend another 45 minutes getting medicine for her slight ear-infection (first one of her life) and a nebulizer. She has had a couple more treatments with her "machine" but finally seems to be breathing normally with just a slight cough. Thankful she is doing better, thankful we know how to care for this ... and here's hoping her colds are rare.

Holidays.

We had a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving. With James off all week, we were able to enjoy some family time, see a movie, do some early Christmas shopping, and rest together. Grateful he was able to get the week off. We did an early Thanksgiving at the Humphrey's since Luke and Laura were able to come home. It was great catching up with a handful of family.

Amelia with her Cousin Ian... She loves him.

Amelia also got to spend some time with her cousin Brenna. Clearly, Brenna wasn't sure who this girl was.

the whole family.

We also got to see Mommom and Daddad (amelia's great-grands) Again, wonderful to catch up and see them. And of course, Amelia got Dad-Dad to read to her.

On Thanksgiving Day, we went to my parents and ate, and ate, and ate, and watched football.

Amelia wearing Nana's reading glasses.

How else do you follow up Thanksgiving meal? After dinner hot tub party! Uncle Landon is teaching Amelia how to play the air guitar.

Then, as tradition would have it, we went out Saturday for Christmas tree shopping. Here's our tree! Amelia and daddy stop for a pose.

Ellie took a picture of our family

Nana and Papa with the Ellie, Lincoln, and Amelia

Cousins enjoying the ride to the trees

Ah, I love this time of year. Looking forward to more memories throughout this month.

Give thanks to the Lord...

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we decided to dedicate the month to giving thanks. Although it isn't and shouldn't be the only time of year we give thanks, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to encourage Amelia (as well as mommy and daddy) to consider all that we have in Christ. So I made this "thanks" board that each night at dinner Amelia suggests something we thank Jesus for in prayer. We write it down on the slip of paper and return it to its pocket. I plan on using these cards for years and looking forward to seeing how Amelia's prayers of thanksgiving change year to year.

Here are the things she's said so far: Food, Juice, Daddy, Mommy, Church, Ellie and Lincoln, and Friends. Sometimes she needs some prompting but most of the time she has something on the tip of her tongue. Looking forward to see what else she rejoices in... Oh, the mind of a two year old.

It also seemed like a great time to start scripture memory with Amelia. Here she is reciting Psalm 136:1. Of course, with the camera out, she needed some prompting but what joy it brings to hear her sing out His praises. I hope and pray she will learn to treasure them as well.

Halloween!

With Halloween yesterday, we, of course, had our annual party and trick or treating with Amelia's Cousins. This year we did it at our house. Amelia was so excited but I could tell she wasn't fully getting what would actually happen. But all day she was talking about it and kept asking me when would we go trick or treating. We also had a few other Halloween related events of the past couple weekends. Here's a bunch of pictures to fill everyone in:

ZooBoo a couple weekends ago. It was fun dressing up, trick or treating, and seeing the animals all at the same time. Its a shame our little cotton candy missed her nap that day making her too tired.

Annual Pumpkin Carving

Amelia just liked playing in the seeds

Happy Halloween!

The homemade costumes were some of the best this year: Here is Ellie the Squid.

Lincoln the Hot Dog

Amelia the Cotton Candy

I made Vampire Bitten cookies for the party

After the party, we went out trick or treating. Amelia caught on quick.

Waiting on the candy.

It thoroughly wore Amelia out. Here she is with her great-grandfather grabbing a couple squeezes before heading the bed.

Happy November to all! And only 3 more weeks until Thanksgiving !!!

Whatcha got Cooking ...

Most of my posts are about Amelia. Obviously, she is the biggest part of what I am doing and more interesting (and cuter, I might add) than anything else. But lately, I've been a little more busy outside of my mommy role and thought I'd give a quick update on ME ... if you are interested :) come back, and next time I'm promise more crazy Amelia stories.

1. A couple weekends ago, I had my first catering job. A friend was having a Artisan/Antique Market with a large group of helpers. Some advice and food suggestions soon turned into a job offer. I loved it: planning a menu, considering options to stay within budget, spending 2 whole days cooking away. Hoping another opportunity comes along sometime.

2. I also taught a cooking class last Saturday. The youth group was having a special weekend and the girls got to come over here for a quick cooking lesson and some kitchen tips. That was a little awkward at first but I hear they all enjoyed it and got lots of good information. I made muffins before so we could eat, chat, and share some quick baking tips. Muffins are good also to suggest add ins or ingredient swaps to make recipes your own. At the request of the group, we made homemade chicken fettuccine alfredo. Some of the things I shared: how to hold/use a knife, how to get rid of onion/garlic smell on your hands, how to handle a kitchen burn, meat searing, deglazing, and a basic understanding of sauce-making.

3. Lasting, I've had fun trying some new recipes and making some up myself. My newest one: Steak pot-pie. Yes, not terribly different or creative but since my husband is picky and also allergic to chicken, I tried a different combination of things and put this together. The main ingredients were steak (clearly), zucchini, and carrots in a rich sauce. It got rave reviews.

The biggest excitement in our house this weekend: no more crib! Amelia has graduated to a big girl bed. After falling/climbing out of the crib about a week ago, we figured it was about time. She has done great so far! Although, I fear I have kissed nap time goodbye for good.

Mommy and Amelia trying it out

It also is the new favorite place to play.

James and I were thinking about how small she looked in her crib when we first brought her home...

a Message

A message for Amelia's Great-Grandfather, Dad-dad. She, of course, becomes a little more shy when the camera is out. But just so you know, she always wants to wear these pjs and when I say they are dirty, she asks if mommy can wash them. They are getting too small but tonight when I asked what pjs she wanted to wear she said: "Sponge bob. Sponge Bob is happy, and I am happy too."

Pumpkin Patch

This week we took our annual trip to the orchard for hayrides, pumpkins and family fun. This was the first year Amelia seemed to understand what was happening which avoided outburst of tears a couple times. And she is still talking about it and how much fun she had.

Amelia and Daddy before the fun.

on our hayride checking out the apple trees

There was so many pumpkins! But Dad and Bug found a good one!

Amelia liked sitting on all the big pumpkins.

We also decided to go through the corn maze since Amelia's favorite past time is to walk. We made it out with minimal trouble. Amelia was a great decision maker on which way to turn.

We had a great family day and Amelia survived without a nap!

Happy Fall!

Campout

We had a wonderful weekend; one of my favorite weekends of the year. Every October, my family meets at a campgrounds in Illinois to hang out and catch up. We lovingly refer to it as Campout. We've been going to the same place for 28 years and even the smell of the place brings memories. We had lower numbers this year due to other commitments (38 in total, when usually we have 50+), but coffee was still drunk around the clock, fires were still going, stories were still told, and we all enjoyed a relaxing and wonderful weekend together.

Here's some pictures of Amelia:

Amelia talking with Uncle Charlie

Amelia with Eliana, the newest member of the family. This is my cousin's granddaughter... yes, that is correct, my cousin is a grandmother.

Amelia had fun all weekend with her cousins and is still talking about them all. This is Tara who she made play with her most of Saturday.

Much frisbee golf is played... people of all ages

Enjoying just walking around outside.

Each year we set aside time to talk about what God has been doing and have 2 or 3 people share from their lives. (James actually shared this year. If you would like to hear that ... I posted that HERE.) I am so thankful for the like-minded souls, both in crazy humor and, most importantly, in Christ Jesus. Thankful for the encouragement and challenges these people give me, thankful we share in a Christ-filled heritage, and thankful for the unique opportunity to apart of a family that is this big and this close.

Looking forward to next year!

Cookies

Amelia and I made some sugar cookies this weekend, one of Daddy's favorite. Amelia got to decorate for the first time too. She did a fabulous job of both decorating and making a mess. But it was fun to finally be able to do it with her. Looking forward to Christmas cookie decorating and many more times in the kitchen with my girl.

And of course, a taste test when we were done!

One more thing: This week was our first choir Sunday of the season. I enjoyed it very much. We sang this song ... Great I Am. Take a listen. I've been singing/thinking on this for a few weeks now. A reminder of the power and the majesty of our God.

Have a good week.