What I've been up to lately....

Um, why haven't I been here to entertain with my words? (Dance, Monkey! Dance!) Here's the run down. I've been really busy...
Saying...
Gage, No!
Gage, what are you doing being so quiet in there? Oh Crap!
Gage, what are you chewing on?
Gage, what's in your mouth? Gross!
Gage, where did you find that!?
Gage, turn around and sit down. Stop standing on your high chair!
Gage, sit on your bottom in the bathtub.
Gage, hold still, you're getting poop all over my carpet...and your clothes...and your hair...CURTIS!!!! Will you please run a bath for Gage?
Gage, mommy needs a minute.
Gage, stop crawling up my leg.
Gage, don't put your mouth on the dog.
Ow, Gage, don't bite my knee cap.
Gage, go see Daddy.
Gage, that's yucky.
Gage, don't play with your spit up.
Gage, please hold still.
Gage, you're going to be an only child.
Gage, get out of the dog's bed.

Grabbing...
Paper out of Gage's mouth
Cups and keys off the coffee table
The TV tray before it dumps over
The fan before Gage pole dances on it and breaks it
Shots of tequila to calm my nerves
Gage before he hits his head
Gage before he climbs out of the bath tub
Gage before he leaps from his high chair
Cords that are hanging from the computer desk that Gage re-enacts Tarzan with
Boxes of Jello and uncooked potatoes from the kitchen floor
Tupperware lids Gage gets from the drawer
Gage before he dumps over the laundry basket
Gage before he drowns himself by dumping the dog's water bowl
Flip flops from Gage's hands
Jars of baby food Gage gets from the drawer when he's in his high chair

Get me?
Good luck to all my pregnant mommies to be!

It's a "Go"

I know I mentioned in a previous post that we MIGHT MIGHT MIGHT be moving into a house. Well, I am super excited to announce that we signed a 13 month lease on an awesome place last night. And, our friends are going to China to further the Kingdom. I feel like this is our way of helping spread the Good News of Christ, by being stewards of their home while they're out of the country.

I promised that I would NOT post pictures of their home on the internet, since it's still THEIR home, and they'll be living there when they return, and probably don't want to worry about crazies. However, I'm happy and excited, and I feel like we're listening to the Holy Spirit's prompting. Plus, A BACKYARD!!! And wood floors through out, so no vacuuming, which scaredy pants Scooter will appreciate. They're leaving a couple of pieces of furniture (one less thing to have to put in storage for two years), including a computer desk that rocks my socks off.

This will be the house where Gage turns one, where he'll take his first steps (as long as he doesn't decide to be all big and start that before the end of August), where we may have our second child. It's also the first HOUSE Curtis and I will live in together. We've had a couple of APARTMENTS, but not a house. And, that's a milestone that makes me content in a new way. It's our first little home together, with trees and a backyard (!!) and no more lugging fat boy up and down the stairs. Twenty extra pounds of warm bodied baby is a killer in the summer. I can't even imagine what being full term pregnant in the summer must feel like.

Which reminds me, my gorgeous (half) sister had her baby girl, Aubrey, on Tuesday. Fortunately, she's in WA state, so I think it's not as bad as it could've been this summer. That's my opinion only. I remember sweating in November when I was hugely pregnant last Thanksgiving. Pictures of that day are amusing, and Curtis likes to laugh and say "Hey, you look hungry". I probably ate a lot, because, who cares if I gained 5 more pounds in the last 2 weeks of my pregnancy, the baby weight is GONE now, suckas! But, the stretch marks remain...and, I didn't care. Being pregnant is the only time you can unapologetically stuff yourself on a meal by meal basis and no one can judge you. When giving my order at a restaurant I invariably started with "This is going to sound like a lot, but..." The BIG boss at my job would offer me snacks in the afternoons (like a granola bar, or something like that), and I never said no.

All these babies, and the thought of having a house that we will most likely be staying in for two whole years without moving, added to the fact that Curtis's truck will be paid off in the foreseeable future gives me baby fever. And, then I hear Gage's head hit the Exersaucer (or floor, or small toy) and I remember to take my birth control pills.

So, it's a go! The house, I mean.

Gage - Seven Months already!?!?

Dear Thunder Thighs, Uh, where the heck did the last month go?? Oh, I think it's a blur because I have spent most of my time chasing you around the house all day. Yeah, because on June 16th, you started this cute scooting/army crawl thing. Except now, it's this terrorizing scramble across all surfaces, uneven and flat! You steamroll across the floor like a wrecking ball, and the dogs HATE IT. It's pretty hysterical. You have dumped the dog's water bowl over twice, I have had to pick up shoes and unplug everything within your reach, and just when I thought I had learned to manage this whole mobility thing, you started teething. Yeah, I mean like chewing on metal belt buckles and table legs. Not to mention, you started pulling up on things this past week, so now I have to keep the coffee table free of everything I don't want in your mouth. This is the first month's passing that's been a blur for me. Well, except for the first 2 months when I was in a place I can't remember called "Newborn Mommyland" where my nipples were cracked and I didn't shave my legs. I told your father last night that I don't want to go back to that place, but, I probably will so you don't have to grow up an only child and turn out like me, all mal-adjusted and unable to share. Yeah, kid, it's insane. You sleep through the night, except for the past few nights have been a bit rough, and I'm only soft hearted to you at 3am because I know it's the gums. Teething's a bitch. And, I don't care if you say that either. Because it's the truth! The funniest thing about this whole mess, is your unstoppable chewing on leather belts and wooden blocks, and this growling while rubbing your fists on your gums thing you do:


You're awesome! We love you so much. We even let you stay the night at Uncle Scott & Aunt Miranda's house so mommy and daddy could have some alone time this past weekend, and we were all very happy with this arrangement. They love you, and we loved having a break from you. Don't be offended. You loved having a break from your insane mother and you know it!

Every month you're getting bigger, smarter and more loveable. More you. And, we can't get enough of it!!

Love, Mommy

A 2nd Honeymoon

I'm going to go ahead and say this past weekend was in the top 3 best weekends I have ever had with my husband. The other two weekends include the first time he told me he loved me (and that he intended to marry me) and the weekend of our honeymoon.

And, now let me chase a rabbit. My favorite non-fiction author is Elisabeth Elliott. She wrote "Passion & Purity" many decades ago. When I was in college, having suffered enough break ups to assure myself that I was TIRED of hearing "i love you" with no real follow through in action, I read this book, and I found something that made so much sense to me that I prayed for the man I married to feel the same way. In one of the final chapters of "Passion & Purity", Elisabeth Elliott shares that her father told her brothers (I believe that was the situation, as it happens, I can't find my copy of the book to confirm) this piece of advice. "Do not tell a woman that you love her unless and until you are ready to follow that with a marriage proposal."

Surely you see where I'm going here. Curtis told me he loved me 4th of July weekend two years ago. It might sound like a silly thing, but it was the first time I
heard it followed by "And, you're going to be my wife." That's exactly how he said it. I had finally found a man who could take charge even when he was sweeping me
off my feet. Let me also give you a time line. Curtis and I had been dating exclusively for about seven months before he told me he loved me. By month THREE, at the latest, every other guy had thrown out this three word phrase. I remember he stood by the front door of his apartment, told me he loved me and boldly stated that even though he didn't have a ring right this second, he was going to marry me as soon as he could (and he did, about 5 months later). So, this weekend has always been special for us, because it was the beginning of our life as we now know it. And, he admitted he wanted to tell me he loved me about 3 months into the relationship, but he wanted to wait because he wanted it to mean for a lifetime. Now, tell me God didn't write that love story.

So, this past Saturday, Curtis had ran out to get something, and he called me when he was about five minutes from home and said that he had an overnight babysitter for Gage and I needed to pack his stuff because he was staying with his brother and his wife. At first, I sort of panicked. Like, you did what? You're sending our son away?? Have you lost your mind?! I worry NOT about who is watching him, but he's never spent the night away from home (from me, from MOMMY!!!!!). Until now. And, I only wish Curtis had forced me to do it sooner. Nearly seven months without a break, and always knowing that even if Gage is asleep for the night, he could always wake up, interrupt our movie, and annoy me just enough that it ruins the time Curtis and I have together.

So, we spent the evening together, stayed up until midnight, and slept in the next morning. Scott & Miranda brought Gage home around 10am. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't realize that not only does a baby monoploize my time most days, but he also monopolizes my mind. It's hard to remember to put anyone in front of your kids, and the problem with that is, you wouldn't have the kid without the man you made him with! So, the time away from being "Mommy" and just being "Jodie" really changed my perspective. It also reminded me of why I am so crazy about Curtis, and why we started a life and a family together. What a joy and blessing it is to be a mother, but how much more of a joy and blessing to have a loving husband to be married to, to love, to get into bed at night with.

This past weekend was like a mini honeymoon for my heart and mind. And, I am soooo ready to schedule Gage's next overnight trip!