One Exhausted Mama!

It's Saturday night at 9:00. Tommy's been in bed for the last hour or more (a rarity in this family). I feel like I should be celebrating and out doing something but... I'm spent! Tommy and I went to a birthday party for one-year-old Savannah Clements this morning and I was officially a wedding coordinator for a day for our friends Mike and Rebecca Sills. Now I sit here watching "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" on Fox and each assassination attempt is making me more and more exhausted! So with that, I think I'm going to hit the hay.

A Two-Year-Old Theology

One of Tommy's great Christmas gifts he received this year is a children's Bible called The Jesus Storybook Bible. Given to him by his Aunt Sue and Uncle Rich, this is not your average children's Bible. No little 4-line rhymes about Daniel in the lions' den and Noah's Ark. This Bible is full of rich theology and makes sure to share how each story, from Genesis through Revelation is really about Christ and God's faithfulness. I would recommend everyone with children to go out and get it.

Dean and I have decided to read one story to him every night before bed. While it has great illustrations and very much of an adventure book feel, some of the storyies can get a little heavy for a two-year old. Last night while I was reading about Noah's Ark, explaining how it was one of the greatest accounts of God's punishment of sin (I explained that sin makes Him sad) and simultaneous forgiveness, outside of the cross, he seemed to be listening so intently to what I was saying. However, as soon as I took a breath, he interrupted me to very excitedly point out a giraffe exiting the ark. Oh well, I guess he is only two. We'll still continue to read it to him every night. Maybe we can cover the wrath of God and the redemption of humankind next year?

Adventures in Potty Training Begin

Well, I've finally decided to go ahead and try it. I'm not at my wits end with diapers or anything, I just feel like now's as good a time as any to try to tackle the potty training thing. So yesterday I invested a hard earned $10 into a plastic potty chair that goes in his bathroom across from the big potty (it's funny, I always refer to it as the "big potty" now, even when talking to adults). I'm not quite sure how to do this thing - I haven't read any books or googled it or anything, but we started today with Tommy just sitting on the potty after breakfast. At first he wasn't too sure of it, but then when he realized that he gets to be naked (or at least partly naked), he thought it was a pretty good deal. So he sat. And I waited. And gave him a drink. And ran the sink to hear flowing water. Sure enough, he peed. Of course it was as soon as he stood up because he was bored and wanted to chase Dorsi around the house naked instead.

I learned a few very important lessons from this. When you're potty training, remove the rug (and any other cloth item) from the bathroom. Also, keep the door closed in case your naked peeing toddler wants to chase your dog- for the house's sake and the dog's. So if you need me in the next few days, you know where to find me! And if you have any suggestions, I'm open to anything.

Some Randoms

Last night at The Well was amazing. Yes, I feel like I say that every week, but this week was just incredible. The new set-up was awesome... let me just say that our volunteer set-up crew is great. Dean's message was outstanding. He really just gave a challenge based on what's been on his heart and in our conversations for the past I don't know how many months. And it's good to be back at Godby!

Aunt Sue is in town. And I'm exhausted! Let me explain. Sue is someone who is unbelievably (but not annoyingly) organized and her life's mission is to help other people organize and clean up their lives. So today while everyone else was working, she and Emily came over to help me clean out and straighten up my pantry/laundry room (it's really a pain having food and laundry in the same little room- I've washed boxes of rice and oatmeal that fall in my washing machine more times than I can count). After performing a small miracle in there, we moved onto everything else in the kitchen (yes, including the refridgerator and freezer), the whole time Sue happily asking "What's next?" My kitchen has been completely revitalized! When Dean came home and saw everything his exact quote was "Aside from Tommy's birth, this is the best thing that's happened to our family!" And after Emily successfully entertained Tommy enough so that he fell asleep, she took Dorsi for a good walk and then gave her kennel a deep cleaning. These people are amazing! And they're coming back tomorrow!

I ordered a wheat mill! So by the end of this week I should be able to make my own flour and cornmeal and all sorts of good stuff. I go back and forth between being ecstatic and thinking I'm absolutely insane. Right now I'm pumped. Dean just goes along with me.

Tommy and I had a great moment last night. I was reading his new Bible to him and we had just read the story of creation. We talked about how God made all the animals and plants and even him and the rest of our family. Afterwords, I asked if he wanted to pray and talk to God. He got all excited and asked if God was going to come to his house and sit on the couch with Daddy. How do you explain that one to a two-year-old?!? This afternoon the moment continued when I quizzed him again on creation before his nap.
"Tommy, who made Dorsi?"
"God"
"Who made Emily?"
"God"
"Who made Aunt Sue?"
"God"
"Who made the birds?"
"Aunt Sue"

I told you she's amazing!

Road Warrior

Tommy got a couple of tricycle-like items for Christmas. Actually one is a Radio Flyer tricycle (with a bell and streamers... it's so cute!) and the other is a Hot Wheels motorcycle thingy... with 3 wheels instead of two, for those of you wondering at home. He had been really excited about getting a red tricycle from Santa (he requested it by name), but when it came, he was a little freaked out. He loved it, don't get me wrong, but he just opened it, ran to the other room screaming in excitement, and ran back to the bike. I asked him if he wanted to get on it and he said "no" and that was the end of it. So we have to work our way up to it. The Hot Wheels is a little more his speed right now. It's got buttons with sounds and lights and even left and right turn signals so you really can't go wrong with that. Obviously highway safety is important (no we don't have a helmet yet).

So yesterday we set it up and took it for a spin outside. To be honest, he was much more excited about making the lights and sounds go, but he did get the hang of riding/walking it and turning the handlebars. We went all the way to the end of the street, with him stopping every few feet to admire the street and the cars and the houses... it literally took us 30 minutes to go 0.2 miles. When we turned around to head back, he got tired right away because it's slightly uphill. He refused to be on it while I was pushing it, so he walked next to me while I pushed it. All the way home. We were quite a sight, I'm sure. Of course, I didn't think to just pick the thing up and carry it back, so today I have a sore back. Oh well, the things we'll do for our kids!

My Little Fire Fighter

On Wednesday night before Tommy went to bed, Matthew was over at our house. In his time playing with Tommy, he mentioned that maybe we might take him to see a real fire truck the next day. Okay, actually he promised that we would take him to see a fire truck the next day. Now I don't know all toddlers, but Tommy has a memory like a steel trap, so if you tell him something right before he goes to bed (or any time, for that matter), he will remember it and wake up talking about it. Thanks Matt.

So yesterday morning Tommy woke up talking about fire fighters and fire trucks and right after breakfast hauled out his halloween costume (it wasn't used for that long) and wanted me to put it on him. Not thinking to even change him out of his pajamas, he put on the whole ensemble- coat and hat. He played with his toy fire trucks for a while, but soon that got boring and he wanted to go see a real one. We called a friend who is with the fire department to see the best way to go about getting to see real fire trucks. Apparently you just show up. But he called the station near our house so they were expecting a really excited two-year-old in a fire fighter's costume. So we headed over there and he talked the whole way about how he was going to ride in the truck and put out fires and if I wanted to, I could ride in the truck with him. He's a big talker, as we've learned from Santa and Halloween. Sure enough, he was really pumped until they opened the garage and he saw... a REAL FIRE TRUCK! His grip on me immediately tightened and he said "Mommy, go THAT way!" (pointing to our car). I made him go in and the guys were great. They offered to let him try on their boots (he refused) and opened the door for him to climb into the truck. Not a chance. He did loosen up a bit when they turned on the lights. By the time we left, he at least said "bye" and "thank you" to the guys there. This may be a baby steps thing.

Then we went to lunch (still in his fire suit with his pajamas underneath) and he talked all about how he went to see a fire truck and went in it and put out fires... the kid dreams big.

Happy New Year!

I figure every blog today will share the blogger's New Year's Resolutions, so I decided to be different. Actually, I didn't make any resolutions... not because I don't believe in them, but it just kind of snuck up on me this year. However, at the risk of blending in with the rest of the crowd, I will share some highlights of 2008 and some things I'm really looking forward to in 2009.

2008:
What an incredible year for the Well! It was our first full year of existence and we saw major growth. Our One Year Anniversary celebration was incredible, just a chance for us to stop and reflect on God's faithfulness to us. Our Easter service at The Moon exceded everyone's expectations and was...memorable, to say the least. Our return to The Moon for the Christmas service was amazing - and we didn't even have to have the paramedics come out! People are really taking ownership of The Well and are proud to call it their Church. It's really humbling to watch.

Tommy turned two this year. It's funny, because when you're a first time mom of a newborn (maybe not just a first-time mom, maybe a mom in general) and you're nursing them every 2 hours round the clock and you become a walking zombie due to your lack of sleep and you begin to have crazy hallucinations, such as dropping them on the floor or losing them in the covers (this is all hypothetical, of course), you really don't think it's possible for them to survive the first few months, let alone make it to their second birthday! So not only did he survive, but he really started growing up! He learned to run and jump and play and talk like crazy. He's really a whole lot of fun now! And another huge excitement was that he was officially cleared from Shands by his neurosurgeon on June 5. Which means no surgery! We've come a long way from when he was a day old and we were told he would need surgery almost immediately. And we're unbelievably grateful.

Dean and I have been married for 5 years as of Sunday and honestly, each year gets better. I love him so much and am so proud of him and his obedience to what God has called him to do, both professionally and personally.

My brother moved to Tallahassee in March and it's been so great to have him here! After living with us for a few months, he still comes to stay every so often and I absolutley love it! Who knew that my annoying little brother while I was in school would turn out to be so great?

Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2009:
The Well's continued growth. Lots of really exciting things coming up this year, I can't wait to see it all played out. And relationships are being built that will last.

As Tommy continues to grow, I'm just excited to be a part of his every day experiences. Being a mom is more fun than I could have ever imagined (and harder, too!) and I can't wait to see what's in store for us this year... at least it won't be Shands!
We have a couple family vacations in the works and I'm really excited about those!

Dean and I are going to have an awesome year together... hopefully we'll finally get the new floors that we've been talking about for the last couple years! Not that that's what makes a year awesome. Anyway, it just keeps getting better.

In general, I think the thing I'm looking forward to most about 2009 is just continuing the relationships that I have and building new ones. Sounds trite and a bit cliche, I know, but that's a biggie for me.

So happy new year!