Showing posts with label thanksgiving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thanksgiving. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

It's Been Awhile...

Hi!

(waves)

Remember me?

It's been awhile.

With an almost 10 week old who is very...spirited and fiery, blogging has definitely been pushed to the back burner. The way back burner. M is a doll baby most days, but requests a lot of attention and loves for her momma to hold and walk with her and of course entertain her. Add in the fact that she prefers to nap in my arms rather than anywhere else, well, that makes blogging, emailing or doing much of anything else for that matter, difficult to say the least. Thankfully, she is becoming more independent and interested in her surroundings, so I am slowly acquiring more "me" time during the day. I havent been very good at reading your blogs, much less commenting, but I am trying to catch up! Some very interesting, happy and/or challenging things have been happening to you, my bloggy loves, and I am eager to get caught up and back in touch with you!

A quick baby update:
M is smiling, cooing and laughing often throughout the day now. She hasnt mastered rolling over yet, but how could she, when she's always being held? So we're working on more tummy and playmat time. She learned how to spit and blow spit bubbles this past weekend. Not fun for mommy when Im trying to give her medication, but so adorable any other time. She's constantly chewing/sucking on something, be it her hand, my arm, daddy's fingers or her beloved Nuk paci. The drooling has also started. We have had a bout with thrush, a very mild case. She only had a couple of spots on her tongue, but thanks to my professional background, I knew exactly what it was and we caught it super early. We're both on meds for a week and Im very much hoping this kicks it. M was diagnosed with reflux when she was two weeks old. She's been on Zantac since, which has helped, but I have started a trial off of the Zantac to see if she really still needs it. Id like for her to only be taking medications if she truly needs them. So far, she's been doing great off of it.

She had her 2 month appt last week, complete with shots. No fun for mommy, but she handled them really well. I was able to breastfeed her during the injections and she only cried for about 30 seconds before going right back to eating. It was a great distraction and comfort measure for her and I highly recommend it to all of you breastfeeding mommas out there. She weighs almost 11 lbs and is just over 23 inches long. She's already grown out of so many of her clothing! Im so proud, but sad too. She's growing so quickly! We are cloth diapering and for the most part, love it! We have had a problem with a rash at night if she's wearing them. Im thinking it's either because she is going so long between changes at night or due to the detergent that we are using- Rocking Green, unscented. I spoke to a friend who recommended double stuffing the diapers at night since M soaks through one. Ill be trying that tonight.

We are prepping for Thanksgiving today. Im making a Pumpkin chocolate chip cake, a recipe I found here. Ive never made it before, but it looks and smells so good! I love all things pumpkin, so Thanksgiving just wouldnt be complete without a pumpkin dessert (or two!). I used the organic pumpkin that Becca sent me in my awesome care package. Im also making a chicken and green bean casserole that I found here. I cant believe Im not making anything from Pinterest! I did make two dinners this week that I found there. There were stellar! We are spending the holiday at a friends house with a few other couples and kids. I am excited, though I do wish we could be home with family. This is the second Thanksgiving in a row that we've missed at home. In fact, Ive only been home for two Thanksgivings in the last seven years. This was the "major" holiday that I always chose to work at the hospital so I could have Christmas off. We will be skyping with family tomorrow evening, so that will help with the homesickness. I think having a child now makes holidays that much more special and that much more difficult when we cant be with family. At least J will be home for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year! Woohoo!

What are all of you doing for Turkey Day? I hope you have a wonderful, laughter filled day! I am super jealous, but also relieved that I will be missing out on Black Friday yet again this year. Im pretty much finished with my Christmas shopping, so I dont need anything anyway, but I may cyber stalk a few of my favorite stores... =)

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!



Thursday, November 25, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving!

I just wanted to wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving! 
I hope you are spending it with loved ones, be they family or 
friends who are like family. This is my first year away from home 
for the holidays and I am SO thankful for my friends here. I was
invited to several different gatherings. Everyone was especially 
sweet when they found out that J would be on a work trip and miss
Thanksgiving this year completely (again). Ill be having lunch at our best
friends house and then dinner at another good friends house. I am 
excited to spend time with them all, but I really wish J were here. 
Anyhoo, I wont let it get me down. Ill stuff my face twice instead! =) 

Among the thousands of things that I am thankful for, I am thankful 
for my blog, my readers and the blogger friends that Ive made in the 8 or so months 
that Ive been doing this. Thanks to all of you!

PS... I know a lot of you have been getting snow this week. 
It's supposed to snow here for the first time this season TODAY!!!
We'll see what happens, but Im excited!
Let me qualify that: Im excited to see the snow, just as 
long as it doesnt screw up my Christmas market 
plans for the weekend and Js return home. ;) 
Happy four day weekend everyone!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

To all the Scrooges out there....

*Sigh*...

Why, oh why can't people be more tolerant and less rude?
Let me explain....

Today, J & I put our Christmas tree up
and
started putting up our decorations.
We watched Christmas movies
(Elf, Just Friends, Christmas Vacation),
and listened to Christmas music.
We baked cookies and made a huge pot
of chili for dinner.
It was the perfect day!

I LOVE the holiday season.
From September through December
is my favorite time of the year.
I always put my tree up in November,
just as my mom has always done.
It's tradition.
You don't have to like it, but please, respect it.

I posted this today on FB, that we were
putting up our tree and enjoying the beautiful weather
Germany was blessed with today.
This was almost immediately met with sarcasm and disdain
from a couple of people.

I don't care what they think, but
I was surprised by their negativity and judgement.
I respect their right to celebrate when they want too,
if at all. I just wish they would respect mine.

Personally, I don't think Christmas decorations, movies, music, etc.
detract from Thanksgiving.
In my opinion, four weeks just isn't enough time
to enjoy the happiness that the holiday season brings.
I'm not skipping over Thanksgiving.
I'm simply celebrating the holiday season, the season that I love.
I believe that the decorations, etc. add to the festive feeling
that this time of the year has.
They bring J & I joy, and really, in the end,
that's all that matters.

Last year, J was deployed to Iraq during the holidays.
He loves this time of the year as much as I do.
This year he will miss Thanksgiving,
so this weekend was the perfect
weekend for us to put our tree up.
Regardless of our past and present situations,
the above applies to us every year.
We will continue to put our tree up in November
and listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas movies.
Because that's what makes us happy.
It's tradition.
And it's ours.

So what do you guys think? When do you begin to put up your decorations,
listen to Christmas/holiday music,
and watch holiday movies?
Even if your opinion differs from mine, I'd still like to know! =)