James 1st Christmas

Sunday, December 16th was a very special day!  Matthew and I had James dedicated at church.

 

 "I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD." 1 Samuel 1:27-28

 

James also met his Uncle Mark for the first time.

The Toole guys!  Matthew, James and Mark

James and Uncle Mark!  Birthday Buddies!

We've also had numerous Christmas celebrations over the past few days!  We are so grateful for lots and lots of family and the time we've had with all of them!

James has had a great first Christmas!  He has tons of toys, clothes, books, and even got some formula!!  Thank you to all our family for the time together and the generous gifts for our little man!!  We love you all!!

James and Santa!! 

James and Grams

Uncle Josh and James

Aunt Monica and James

Some of James festive outfits, bibs and books...only some!

James knew just what to do when it came to unwrapping his presents!!

Mama and Santa

playing with some toys!!

Christmas Eve reading time!

Santa came!!  James was a good boy!!

Our growing boy

Last week I noticed our little monster was very interested in what I was eating and drinking all week!  For quite some time he smiles anytime I take a bite of something and say Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm...so this little Mama put it all together and we got some baby food!

I would love to be one of those Mama's that makes her own, natural food....but let's get real!  1. I don't have time.  2. I don't know what in the world to do! 3. James goes to daycare...how in the world am I suppose to make sure the food for the day is out, thawed, and is enough...therefore...we are doing store bought!  Matthew and I both had store bought baby food and I'd say we turned out just fine! 

We decided on Beech Nut baby food!  We liked the variety with Beech Nut and we also liked the price!  I didn't check out other baby food labels, but when I looked at theirs the only ingredients are the food + water!  Hey isn't that what homemade stuff is?!?!?  GREAT!  Convenience and healthy!!

James first food was bananas.  I think he cared more about the spoon than the food to be honest.  He grabs the spoon and doesn't want to let go, but gets mad if you don't give him more food!  Bananas went okay...but he LOVES green beans!!!  YAY!!!  Hopefully this means he will love veggies!!

What's next for the little monster?!?!?  MORE VEGGIES!!  

I can't wait for sweet potatoes, peas, butternut squash, and carrots...but 1 at a time of course!!  

We've got some exciting news...

DADDY DAVID AND CRISSY ARE GOING TO HAVE A BABY!!!!

We are all very excited and can't wait for baby Raney to arrive in late June 2013!

Our Sick Little Guy

We have officially had our first trip to the ER!  James was at daycare on Monday and they noticed he was wheezing so they gave me a call so I could get him into the doctor this week.  Well after calling the doctor they said if he was wheezing he needed to be seen TODAY, but they did not have any openings...so they told us to go to the ER because Urgent Care will not see little munchkins his size.  After 5 hours in the ER, a chest x-ray, and a RSV test (this was the worst!) he was diagnosed with RSV, bronchospasm, and a little Pneumonia on the right side. 

Our little guy has been such a trooper through all the medicine and breathing treatments.  He has always been smiley, happy, and talkative! 

We are forever grateful for our daycare and the caring ladies and gents there!  We love them!! 

Our whole world changed 4 months ago!

I know that every Mama says it, but I can not believe that 4 months has already gone by since James changed our whole world!

Some valuable lessons I have learned in the past 4 months…

● My Mama really did love me more ●

Growing up she would always tell me she loved me more, but I insisted that I loved her more!  Having James has shown me she was right and she loved me more; because there is no way James will ever love me more than I love him!  And there is no way anyone will love him as much as me!  Sorry Matthew! ☺

● Everything revolves around James ●

As much as people want to believe they can fit a baby into their lives and busy schedules you can NEVER do that!  James is our whole world and we revolve everything around him from going to the grocery store, to leaving the house for daycare, to making play dates, to cleaning the house, and of course sleeping!  I don’t think anyone ever ready for the changes a child will make in their lives…you may think you are, but trust me…you aren’t, but there is no way I would ever change a thing!

● Nothing else matters, but a happy, healthy family ●

I used to clean everything in the house on my days off and if I didn’t get everything done I would be upset….oh boy have those days passed…and even before James was born!  As long as Matthew and James are happy and healthy that is all that matters.  If I don’t get the house cleaned or a fancy dinner made all will be just fine and everything else can wait…trust me the laundry, trash, and dirty dishes aren’t going anywhere and they’ll be there when you can get to them.  Most evenings we make a simple dinner and enjoy time in the family room on the floor with our little guy! 

● We must prioritize our marriage ●

It’s very easy to get consumed and overwhelmed with all the tasks, chores, and appointments in our lives.  I recently read Gary Chapmans The 5 Love Languages.  Three are 5 love languages that we all speak.  Some people have more than 1 love language and are therefore are “bilingual”.  Matthew and I have learned each of our love language and now we can fill eachother’s “love tank”.  We had no clue what a love language was, nor were we speaking eachother’s love language.  It’s great to know ways Matthew feels most loved by me and of course I informed him of my love language and ways I feel most loved!!  

And here's a few pictures...of course!

James over the past 4 months

Matthew & James (one of my favorites)

James before his 4 month check-up