A Dog On My Face

Last night was hard. I won't complain, I'll just explain. I do know that I have a very blessed sleep schedule and that isn't so common with a babe in the house. However, this was redic!

So Boof had a really rough night...has to be working on some more teeth, even when I nursed him he was unhappy and needed coaxing and as much comfort as a mama can muster for the young love of her life. Poor buddy! Anyways, he would wake up yelling and crying, we'd go get him trying to console him, then resort to food. Finally I nursed him to peace and rest and began the transfer- out of our bed with him on my shoulder, back into Silas' room, and into the crib...DANG! He is usually more than thrilled to be placed back into bed with a full belly and all his nigh-nighs, but this night was just too sad to think about leaving the mom. He immediately stood up with the saddest face streaked with tons of tears, and reached for me like his life depended on it. I rescued him and literally 1 second later he was sleeping on my shoulder again. Pat pat pat rock rock rock...shhhhhh...try again. Same story! Saddest face. Back in my arms. OUT COLD! And again...to no avail. No matter how long I waited.

Solution! Grabbing a nigh-nigh and Dog (The Bounty Hunter-although Thadd calls him Woof Woof -just a cute stuffed animal that Si is obcessed with-yay! It's a cute one this month!) We sauntered back to bed and I got to sleep with my baby, blankets, and Dog. This was really precious because Silas has not been interested in relaxing with me all that much anymore, he has to be playing with my hair and talking. I guess he thought my hair looked so good that he didn't need to pull it;) (see our new haircuts below!) But he just snuggled right in. Of course there is a perfect spot waiting for him in the crook of my arm, it will always be there and he will always fit just right. Then he reaches down, grabs Dog, and pulls him close to his face...which also means, my face. Which means, I'm now laughing. There's a dog on my face. I am finding a beautiful rest, finally, with the Man and the Boy that I love more than words. More than life.

Sometimes happiness means sleeping with a dog on your face.

"New Do's" For Me and You!

Silas got his first real haircut!

But never fear, he continues to rock the hawk like it's his job...just with a little more sophistication. He looks great, and it really does make his hair seem more full. It was fun getting our hair done together by my dear friend, Nicolette. Thankfully, I got my highlights and some style back. I was way better at staying still for my cut that Silas was for his, if it weren't for cheerios and spray bottles, he definitely might have lost an ear...or two. Nic-thanks for making us fancy! Si-thanks for being a good sport! And Blonde-I love you, welcome back!

Before...

AFTER!!!

Love this Girl.

Last week, my dear friend and cousin, Callie Cal-tron Callie Cat Tron-a-lon, came home! But only for a week. We had a really fun outing at Palomino on Thursday night though, and the time was priceless, as always! Silas loved spending time with Miss Callie, almost as much as she loved cuddling and coddling him. So now the Tron is back in Missoula, MT to finish up school and amp up to spend the rest of her life chasing her dreams. I love you Cal, come home (again) soon!!!

My Oh My! it's been a while.

We have some pretty awesome friends who gifted us their Mariners tickets for today's game! And wow...the seats were incredible! What could possibly be better than a free Mariners game on a Sunday afternoon- complete with family and kettle corn?! THE VIP PARKING!!! Talk about living the life of luxury! I felt so blessed to have this type of experience with little, actually, with no hassle! Silas could not have been better. We were at the game for his entire afternoon nap, which he did not get to take, but he just relaxed and smiled at all the other fans and held me tight when everyone erupted in cheering...which happened a LOT because we got 8 whole home runs and won the game!!! We played great today! It has been a while...and I can't say that we have been at all interested in the Mariners for the last few years, but this was sweet, and my favorite new guy (maybe he's been in Seattle for 5 years, I don't know, but he's new to me) his name is Rauuuuuuuuul!!! and that was fun. I learned a couple other things about the 2008 team, the pitcher's name is Felix, the lady behind us helped everyone get that point. And, the fact that everyone in Seattle is still in love with Ichiro. The top was on the stadium since "it's raining all day...it's raining all day" as Ethan pointed out in the car...loudly...but only for about 10 minutes. Anyways, it was very fun to be there with the Flicks, all of us getting more and more excited for Beckham's anticipated arrival, which will be sooo soon!

But my all-time favorite thing today, was the painted hallway with MY 1995 Mariner Champions! I am still proud and often brag about that fantastic season, and yes I do own my own copy (VHS) of My Oh My! I admit to being super tomboy and being obsessed with these guys. (You Gotta Love These Guys!- VHS 1996 season...own that too...uh...) Granted, that was 13 years ago and I was 9, and I knew all the stats and Joey Cora was my fave. How could he not have been?! Laura, today, was dreaming about that same past in which she came to games holding the "marry me A-rod" signs.... we were very different kids! And we THANK GOD have come a long way!

So, we have one grandpa rooting very strongly for little Si's future to be wrapped up in this American pastime. And Thadd and his brothers were all very gifted in the sport. I have to say football is way more fun...but if my future consists of badminton games and Oboe concerts, this love will not shift. I might just have to muffle a giggle once in a while. But for now, Silas likes baseball, at least his baseball rattle and his first baseball game.

Did I mention that he loved Randy and Griffy?! :)

A Call and a Promise

For those of you who didn't know about my newest tat...

It is Greek and says "Lift them to Who they belong" with Thadd and Silas' initials underneath. In Stormie Omartian's book, The Power of a Praying Parent (fabulous) she starts out with this great verse from Lamentations 2:19

"Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord.
Lift your hands to Him for the life of your young children."

It is a sweet call for me as a mama and a wife to pray for the Loves that God has so graciously blessed me with. It is my promise to give them back to God every day. Lifting them to Him in prayer, giving God ownership over their lives for His will, not mine to take place in these lives. Yes, by my Father's sovereignty I can cry to him with my desires for them while lifting the burden of past, present, future to Him still. And also me lifting my hands to Jesus in thanksgiving, praise and glory for these ones that I adore. Maybe someday our "quiver" will be so full, that this tattoo will at some point run out of room on my spine!

Lord, thank you for this righteous, wonderfully difficult call! Instill in me the courage, humbleness and heart it takes to keep this promise. I put them in the Hands of the One who holds them best. Thanks. Amen.


(Not everyone loves a tattoo. I understand that respect that and I thank you for respecting me in this journey of experiencing freedom in Christ with this decision for my own life and body.)

Silas, to me you will always be Love.

Well he is my boy. Changing always, who is he? Still my boy. My itty bitty monster is smiling up at me with two very large bottom teeth and two huge red bonks on his forehead! My itty bitty monster is climbing on everything and lunging off friend's laps and onto his little noggin. My itty bitty monster has big ears that cannot hide and they listen to me laugh and he laughs too. My itty bitty monster looks at me with those wide round eyes and questions me with those eyebrows and squints when he is really happy and those big blues sometimes still cry big tears until he's in my arms. My itty bitty monster stands with arms gripping around the mama's neck he loves so much squeezing and smooching and making me cry. That monster heart could not be bigger and neither could his big bell-town that will eat me out of house and home and he'll still be too skinny. The feet of a monster, toes curling crunching wearing cute shoes. Those monster hands are holding gripping fingers pinching learning growing clapping touching carressing my face up my nose grabbing my lips pulling my hair finding trouble here and there and always.

My itty bitty monster is even more loved than he was 5 months ago, 5 days, hours, minutes by the second this mama's love is growing. That is MY boy. My boy that I smile over watching him sleep my hand on his head praying pleading blessing lifting this monster to Him. I smile again and I tiptoe away. Can't wait for morning. I'm the mama. This is my life it's a beautiful life.

This is my boy.

I was just steaming some squash so I could put it in the food-processor for Silas as he naps, and I was catching up on reading some blogs (everyone is obsessed with "google-whack" it seems, so of course I tried it) Well, when I went to turn off the stove, the sweet delicious butternut squash smelled like chlorine. Sick! I was trying to figure out how this could be and if I couldshould still give it to my baby...so I annihilated it in Cuisinart and realized with relief, that the dishwasher is whirring away behind me! Great! The dishes are getting soapy and my squash is just fine. Those moments make me feel like such a great housewife...not the chlorine part, but the fact that I have multiple appliances going at once AND the house is clean AND the baby is sleeping?!

Multi-tasking and having all the rooms in my home in line. It feels so good, so good! Also, I finished the projects I had been working on for baby Beckham- my nephew-on-the-way, and I have had a little time to read and I love James Frey. You can all keep your own opinions, or keep Oprah's opinions, but I think he writes great books and I'm not praising him as a person but as a writer. A really gifted writer. I'm reading Bright Shiny Morning. His books are different that what I normally read which is usually something written by a Christian author, just because that is usually safe and I can enjoy a love story or any story and trust it will be clean-ish. Well, Frey is not so clean-ish, but it's life and it sounds so familiar and it makes me cry and smile.

Anyways, Silas is getting his first tooth! However, he is less cranky-drooly-snotty-biting-
as he has been in the past producing no teeth so this is weird but great! I just was tickling him and he was laughing with his mouth wide open and I saw two buds! They feel very close to cutting through but Si is still happy as a clam. Lord...this would be great, a happy teething toddler?! Say it is so!

8 months today...AND I'M SO FREAKING EXCITED!!!

Sweet love, it's been the best so far. We love you too much. Thanks for bringing so much joy into our lives...you are so cool!

Remlinger Rumble

After an early morning fishing extravaganza with Shawn, producing the fattest King Salmon EVER...Thadd met me and Si for a day in Carnation! So much fun. We picked the most beautiful and delish raspberries in the whole vineyard. Highly recommend this activity! I kept talking about what a great time I was having. Probably because it was fun to wear matchy hats with SiBorg. Silas ate his first batch of berries, even though we were planning to wait to feed him those until he was older, but no allergic reaction so it's fine! T and I agree, though, that Silas has never been as rowdy and rambuncious and just plain INSANE as he was later that evening when we were making jam...little sugar high? Most def. This child is not getting candy for a loooong time! If anyone can fly that high on raspberries...well, we aren't ready to find out what life looks like in our home when our son is downing Pixie-Stix!

We ran into the Greens and ended up chilling down by the river, all the while Christy and I battling the babies to keep them from inhaling rocks by the fistful. We won a majority of the time but know it won't be long until our little men outlast outwit and outplay us. They are so strong and we are so proud!

Well, lots and lots of fun. Lots and lots of jam. Lots and lots of red raspberry stains. And lots and lots of love!