casey jane

My heart breaks with utter joy and almost unbearable love every time I see this face… which is A LOT! What an incomparable and overwhelming blessing.

my little noah

My friends in Sherman threw me a wonderful baby shower last year and one of their gifts to me was a tree to plant when Noah was born.  Yes, I cried.  My grandparents planted a maple tree when I was born, so I was so excited to plant this tree in honor of Noah’s birth.  This little tree is still so small, but Jason and I can’t believe how many blooms it has.  It is growing so fast just like a little 7 month old I know!  There is a picture below from the baby shower (you can see the tree on the right) and one that I took of the tree this morning…

The Sherman Shower

The Noah Tree

There have been a couple of times Noah has been in funny positions when I go to his room to get him up from a nap… but today topped them all!!  I went in his room, saw him, and darted out to the living room to get my camera.  Thankfully I caught this one on film.  This kid is hilarious…. SUCH a boy!  (make sure you read the captions!)

SHHH... she'll never notice me.

Wait. Maybe this is better.

Ok. I think she spotted me.

I think I'll peak to make sure.

MOMMY! YOU FOUND ME!

Noah started carrots this week… what an adventure!  I am constantly entertained by this little boy (look for my next post coming tonight as well!).

Wow, I think I like these carrot things.

Maybe mommy won't mind if I fling some over here!

I'm gonna chunk some at you, mom!

Nothin' better than bein' messy!

Do you like country music?  I am sort-of a closet country fan.  (Mind you, it can’t be too twangy.)  Country music was very popular when I was in high school, and I loved it then, but I haven’t listened to it all that much since then.  For some reason I sometimes forget how much I like it.

When Jason & I were dating we went country dancing together almost every Thursday night.  We took an hour lesson and then danced for a couple of hours after that.  We think it was pretty romantic, and we actually got pretty good, if I do say so myself.  And I remember when Jason first played Kenny Chesney’s “The Good Stuff” for me, and I cried.  Yes, I’m sappy… I admit it.

A little while ago, Jason’s dad decided to get a new truck so he gave us his old one. Now when we drive it, it just seems right to listen to country music.  There’s nothing like driving that truck with the windows down on a cool evening listening to George Strait or Kenny Chesney (this sounds so funny coming from the city girl that I am… I have a feeling I’ll hear it from some of you).

In my life (and in my opinion) there is just something wholesome and sentimental about country music.  I know it’s not like that for everyone, but it is for me.  It takes me back, it makes me think, it makes me reminisce, it makes me grateful, it makes me cry, it makes me happy… I love it.

I drove the truck tonight and listened to Kenny Chesney (yes, with the windows down).  I am very fond of his song, “Never Gonna Feel That Way Again.”  Like I said, it made me think.  I thought about certain chapters of my life and how wonderful they were and how I would “never feel that way again”…..

“It was my life and it was fun
Another season of my life is done
Another race I’m glad I got to run
Another chapter of my life, it’s over
No I’m never gonna feel like that again
Time’s rushin’ by me like the wind
Never be as young as I was then
No I’m never gonna feel like that again”

But I also thought about THIS chapter and how sweet it is…

“It’s my life and it’s sure fun
Another season of my life’s begun
Another race I’m glad I get to run
Another chapter of my life I’m writin’
No I’m never gonna feel like this again
Time’s rushin’ by me like the wind
Gotta grab each moment that I can
Cause I’m never gonna feel like this again”

Truly I am grateful for the former chapters of my life and the memories I have. Time really is ‘rushin’ by me like the wind.’  And truly I am grateful for this new chapter and the joy it brings me every day.  Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful life you have given.

• The way he covers his eyes when he’s nursing.
• The way he wraps himself around the bumper and buries his face in it like a body pillow.
• The way he rolls all over the living room floor until he’s under a chair or the coffee table… guess he’ll be liking camping!
• The way he looks up at me with his big, dark eyes.
• The way he smiles and squints when I come to get him out of bed.
• The way he kicks off his socks every single time I put them on.
• When he sneezes and toots at the same time… a true boy!
• That he loves for me to hold him when he’s teething.
• The way he arches his back and head when he’s on the floor to see the TV (though I’m always trying to divert him!)
• The way he kicks so hard in the bathtub that he surprises himself.
• The way he kicks on the floor with a very serious face as if he’s an olympic athlete.
• His adorable cry.
• His huge toothless grin.
• That he looks for me in a crowded room.
• That he can chug an 8-oz bottle in 2 minutes but it still takes him 15 min to nurse as he takes his sweet time to finish (he’s savoring, I think).

Man, it is beyond wonderful being mommy to this little boy.  I often find myself in tears, unable to believe that God has given me this gift.  Thank you, Lord.

(I was about to sit down and write my own version of the following poem, because I thought that might be more interesting, but I hear a crying baby…  duty calls.  This is what being a mom is all about, and it is worth every last second.)  :)

Before I was a Mom…
 
 I never tripped over toys or made up the words to a lullaby.
 
 I didn’t worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
 
 I never thought about immunizations.
 
 Before I was a Mom
 
 I had never been puked on.
 
 Pooped on.
 
 Chewed on.
 
 Peed on.
 
 I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
 
 I slept all night.
 
 Before I was a Mom
 
 I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
 
 Or give shots.
 
 I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
 
 I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
 
 I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.
 
 Before I was a Mom
 
 I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn’t want to put him down. 
 
 I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn’t stop the hurt.
 
 I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
 
 I never knew that I could love someone so much.
 
 I never knew I would love being a Mom.
 
 Before I was a Mom
 
 I didn’t know the feeling of having my heart outside my body. 
 
 I didn’t know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
 
 I didn’t know that bond between a mother and her child. 
 
 I didn’t know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.
 
 Before I was a Mom
 
 I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
 
 I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache,
 
 the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
 
 I didn’t know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

Watch this video of Noah laughing… I’ve seen it 2.7 million times.  It’s the best ever.  :)

Bibi is my mom.  Bean is my son.  They make a cute pair, eh?

Bibi & Bean