Wedding Bellls...

No, none of our siblings, relatives, or friends have gotten engaged (yet)! I was tagged by my friend Deanna and asked to post the sixth picture in my sixth folder. Well...here it is:

I'm supposed to explain the picture. My brother got married almost 2 years ago to Heather. Their anniversary will be in December. This is one of about seven or eight pictures I took. Of course the first five are pictures of Heather's hair when she was practicing with her veil and trying to figure out how to do her 'do! Don'tcha just love butt shots? At least at a wedding the backside of an outfit is pretty and flattering.

So... Sheila , Jen, Brandi, Danelle, and Desirae consider yourselves tagged! What is the sixth picture in your sixth folder? And, please explain it!

I've got a crying, hungry baby so that's all folks!

School Pictures

Charles had "school pictures" at his kids day out program last week. He burst into tears when it was his turn in front of the camera so we returned for a make-up session the next day. Thankfully it was Russell's Friday off and he was able to help. They're not the best, but after all the drama they'll do!

Oh, and he got a hair cut earlier in the week because we knew picture day was coming. He looks like such a young man with his new 'do!

Trip to Target

Yesterday was a rainy Monday, which makes me think of the Carpenter's tune "Rainy days and Mondays always get me down...." Needless to say, today I had cabin fever. Not that I wanted to go anywhere yesterday but the fact that I couldn't makes me feel trapped. I was supposed to go to MOPS but decided I just wasn't up for it. I'm thinking of dropping out...but that's another story.

So, I took my time getting us ready and then ran a few errands. First the bank. Then the gas station. I couldn't believe my eyes. Gas for $2.93! Russell has been dreaming of gas under $3.00, but I never thought the day would come. Now he's hoping it'll drop below $2.50. I didn't think we'd ever see prices under $3.00 but now that we have, I won't say his hope of below $2.50 is impossible.

After about being blown away at the pump...this is a literal statement, whoever dubbed Chicago the "Windy City" hadn't visited Wichita, KS...we went to Target. I enjoy just walking around the store. I see all kinds of things and it gets me out of the house, but I don't feel like I have to buy anything, although I usually do!

Charles was not excited about leaving the house so I did what any good mom would do upon arrival to Target...bribery. As soon as we walked in the store we headed for the snack bar. I used to wonder why they had one, but now I know. I got a combo with a medium drink and a small popcorn. I'd say it was $1.59 that was well spent! We refilled the cup at least 3 times and his poor diaper was soaked by the time we got home. So much so that it leaked through to his pants. Oops, I thought he'd just spilled something in the cart and then sat in it! I also had a back-up plan. Candy corn in a Ziploc bag I'd tossed in the diaper bag. It worked, better than the popcorn.

That's not to say Charles was a perfect angel. I was looking for more burp cloths and he saw something on the aisle he wanted. At first I just walked away and let him cry. Then, I realized what he was after and that I could use it in my mommy arsenal, so we returned to the aisle and I asked him what it was he wanted. What was it? Thomas the Train underwear. Is he a Thomas fan? No, only occasionally do we watch it on PBS. It's only aired on Sunday mornings just before we leave for church. But, if he's asking for underwear, I'm going to comply. He held that package throughout the rest of the shopping trip AND tried to open it with his teeth. He needed diapers. I remembered that Russell mentioned getting some less absorbent ones so he feels wet. I got the Target brand ones that we'd tried in the past as a means to save a few pennies but found didn't work very well. Maybe potty training isn't too far off after-all. I've given up recently because Micah was too demanding of my time and Charles threw a fit every time we mentioned going to the bathroom. He's learning to dress himself, so that should help things along too. We're headed to Texas at the end of the month so I'm waiting to try any intense training until after the long car ride!

We got a few groceries, then a refill. Walked through the children's clothing and down one aisle in the baby section. Then Micah started crying. By then it was 11:30. A whole hour had disappeared! We returned to the snack bar looking for warm water to make a bottle. I couldn't find any so we got a refill and purchased a cinnamon and sugar pretzel. I told Charles he could have a snack while I fed Micah. I decided that the $2.50 or so I spent on a pretzel was less than what formula would cost and I didn't know how I'd push a cart and hold a bottle at the same time, so I figured we'd sit in the snack bar and all of us would get something to eat. I put Charles in a high chair so he couldn't escape. I couldn't chase him should he run away while I was nursing Micah! To my delight he didn't throw a fit about the high chair. He at some more popcorn and pretzel and was in a good mood. He and Micah were done about the same time which I couldn't believe.

We looked at a few more things and then it happened...the Diet Pepsi hit me. Too many refills! We all clamored into the family restroom and that's when I noticed Charles' wet pants. He'd been saying that he was wet, but I thought he'd spilled on himself. I wasn't the only one who'd had too much Diet Pepsi! I quickly changed him and because people were knocking on the door I did one of those diaper changes where the kid is standing up. It worked and I didn't have to fight a battle with an over sized toddler on the plastic changing table.

Then, it was time to go. 12:30 by now. Time flies when you're having fun!

Playing Catch-Up

It's just too hard to get down to the computer and write an update. Of course I make it down to the computer (almost) daily, but usually my time is limited to checking email and Facebook. I then get "help" from Charles or Micah "calls" for me.

So, you may be wondering what's been going on since the beginning of September. Well...let's see what I can remember. I live on little sleep these days so things tend to get fuzzy!

On Sunday, September 21 we had Micah's baby dedication. Russ' parents and brother came Saturday morning and were here for the service. It was a quick trip but they were able to be here for the dedication. The guys put in a new storm door in our kitchen. They started late Saturday afternoon and didn't get finished until midnight. Things did not go as planned and a trip to Lowe's was required midway through the project.

The dedication went well, Micah didn't cry or fuss and he let Pastor Ken hold him during the prayer. I think it's better to do this when they're little, an older baby has more chance of being upset. We left Charles in the nursery because we couldn't predict how he would act if we brought him up on stage.

You may be wondering about baby dedication. Here's what our pastor wrote about dedication:

It is because of Biblical instruction that I have come to establish four
basic aspects of a time of child dedication.

1. It is a time of thanksgiving, a time of publicly proclaiming one's gratitude
   as a parent to God for the gift of their child.
2. It is a time of public dedication of you as parents to the task of raising
   your child in agreement with Biblical principles, which are actually God's
   desires for you child. The greatest is that he/she come to a "knowledge
   of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4) to the point of a personal relationship of faith in
   Jesus Christ. It is our understanding that a time of child dedication is not the time a child is saved.
3. It is a time of public dedication of your child to God. You acknowledge before God that you choose not to selfishly grasp your child's life and abilities for merely their, or your, pleasure and benefit. Rather you want to hold your children with open hands before god, so that He may use their lives in ways He would desire and which would bring glory to Him.
4. It is a public statement to the assembled church congregation that you, as a
   parent desire the prayers and support of this church family in fulfilling your
   parental responsibilities.

Before we could participate in the dedication we had to develop a Parenting Road map, which outlines how we envision Micah at age 18. Quite intense, but since we already had one for Charles we made some changes and wrote one for Micah.

The next week was a hectic one. Carissa's birthday was Tuesday so we met her and the kids at Target for a leisurely shopping excursion. Charles and Elena walked through the store holding hands and did pretty well, most of the time. We looked at Halloween costumes and got drinks from the snack bar. Afterwards we went through the McDonald's drive-through and came back to our house for a birthday lunch.

The entire week Charles was under the weather. He ran a fever Monday afternoon. Tuesday he did well with our birthday celebration, but just wasn't himself. After his nap he was definitely sick. Tuesday night was miserable. Once Micah was asleep I heard Charles cry off and on. Finally he erupted into tears. Russell brought him to our bed but we wanted ME to take him downstairs. We had a drink and a snack and watched TV in the rocking chair. Finally I got him back upstairs and in bed with us. He fell asleep but then Micah was awake and ready to eat. Once Micah was done eating and back to sleep I crawled back into bed. Charles had since migrated to our floor!

All in all I think I got between 30 minutes and an hour of sleep that night. Charles was awake when Russ got out of the shower, sometime after 5 am and Micah was up too. Russell called in sick and helped me during the day. I got a little nap, but we had to take Charles to the doctor and I had a 6 week check-up with Dr. Craddock. I knew that if I didn't keep my appointment I wouldn't be able to get in to see her until the end of October or the beginning of November...Micah would be 3 months old by then! The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with Charles. We put him down for a nap and his fever broke. He spent the rest of the week recovering and didn't go to "school," something I'd hoped he would be up for so I could get some make-up sleep.

The next weekend the Walls, Robbins, Mom & Dad, Christy, and our family got together for a German dinner. Christy & Carissa made verenika, Aunt Lola made zwiebach, and Mom made green bean soup and provided homemade strawberry and raspberry jelly. YUM! Charles and Elena played together and did really well sharing. They've come a long way in the last year. I got Charles a sit-n-spin at a garage sale earlier in the week and brought it for them to enjoy. It was difficult to take turns, but they only had one or two disagreements. Charles got to teach Elena how to spin. They loved it!

Now it's October. I can't believe it! Charles had school pictures last Thursday and refused to sit for them...he broke into tears. Russ was home on Friday and was able to go with me to the make-up session at 9:00 that morning. We got a few shots, but nothing fabulous. Thursday while Charles was at school Micah and I went to the doctor for an annual check-up. It's so crazy, the doctor knows I'm healthy but in order to get my insurance to pay for blood work I have to waste both my time and his with an office visit. All I have done annually is fasting blood work to check a vast array of things.

The joys of being 30+ and having a gene pool full of high cholesterol, diabetes, and the like! Everything came back in the normal range so I'm good for another year. I also got a tetanus shot. They now include whooping cough in that vaccine and it's been making a comeback in recent years. They wanted to give me the vaccine in the hospital, but I chose to wait...they'd charge an arm and a leg at the hospital and this way I've got record of it in my file at the place that provides my primary care.

This weekend was Tabor homecoming. I had a 10 year reunion but decided it's too much trouble to take two little ones 50 miles for about 30 minutes talking with people I haven't kept in touch with. My brother was home and my aunts and uncles were here too. Uncle LeRoy & Aunt Norma celebrated a reunion too...50 years! It was also the school's centennial celebration. I heard that attendance was low and that the football game was like old times, they were obliterated. So, I guess I didn't miss too much.

This is a busy week for us. Tuesday we have MOPS. Wednesday is the weekly women's Bible study, Thursday while Charles is at school Micah has his two month well-child check which includes his first round of immunizations. Friday is Russ' day to work and that evening Mom & Dad leave for 2 weeks in Oregon. I'm so jealous. We had such a great time when we were there in April. I don't know when we'll ever get back.