What Would Your House Say?

If this house could speak, it would fill volumes. Unspeakable volumes.

The poor carpet. It would tell how it cradled a little baby as he slept and played on its surface. It captured the moments Parker's first crawl, first step, first bumps and bruises. It would complain of all the days and nights spent having trenches walked in it as we shushed a baby with a tummy ache.

The bathtub would rave of all the bubbles it held, the songs it contained, and the memories that were made almost nightly at 7:30pm.

My poor, poor couch would tell a painful tale: of drink spills, diaper leaks, sleepless nights, a bouncing child and food stains. That couch has seen the worst of us.

But if my house could speak of all these things, it might then tell the truth. The whole truth. It might tell what goes beyond surface level stains and wear and tear. It would be real in its tale. That we fuss and fight like everyone does. It would tell of a mother who loves-loves the blessing of her family. It would rumble on about discipline. That sometimes mommy snaps and yells, and hugs her baby and apologizes.

If this house could speak, it would not say we are perfect. That we don't struggle. But it would definitely say that we are joyful. That we've made unforgettable memories. That my son is surrounded with unconditional love. And it would say that this house and the hearts within it, belong to the Lord, every nook and cranny.

Like Mother,Like Son

As a child, we discovered that I was allergic to penicillin. I had broken out with a horrible rash after taking the medicine for strep throat. I remember my mom packing all three of us children up and going to spend the night with my grandparents because they lived close to the hospital. She wanted to be close incase something would have happened. Well, we now know Parker is allergic to penicillin. On Wednesday, February 1, Parker took his first trip to the ER. He was inconsolable all afternoon and could not get comfortable at bedtime. Around 10 that night, we decided it may be a good idea to just take him to get checked out. First of all, we were in and out in 45 minutes. Okay, that is unheard of at the ER. Poor baby was diagnoised with his very first left ear infection. They gave him some numbing drops for his ears and an antibiotic (Amoxicillin) and sent us on our way. He was feeling better the next morning. Fast forward to Monday night.....I was giving Parker a bath and noticed he has a small rash on his back. I gave him some benadryl and we went to bed. I woke him up Tuesday morning and his entire little body was covered in a BAD rash. The pediatrician could not see us until that afternoon so I stayed home from work and gave him some TLC. We arrived at the doctors office and he had 103 fever. Well, I lost it and started crying. I was so upset that his fever was that high and that his rash was so bad. She said his ear infection was really bad and had a lot of pressure on his ear, puss pockets on his throat and one of the worst medicine reactions that she had ever seen. They gave him some Tylenol and benadryl and we had to wait in the room until she could get his fever down. She gave him a new antibiotic and a steroid to help him. He woke up this morning and his rash already looks better. We had to go to the pediatrician first thing this morning to get checked out. She said his ear still looked really bad but his rash and throat looked better. I am so ready for my sweet, happy boy to feel better!

Fear and Worry

I don't think I ever really understood fear and worry until I found out I was pregnant. I worried about things I never thought I would even think about before. Every new pain, everything I ate and breathed, everyone who was around me...I constantly worried! I wanted to do everything I could to protect my unborn child. And everything I did affected that baby.Now that Parker is here I understand even more about uncontrollable fear! I never thought I could have such a concern about another human being. I feel so incredibly responsible for this child. It's my job as his mother to protect him and to take care of him...but I can only do so much!Each day I am reminded how fragile life really is. There is absolutely nothing I can do to completely protect myself or Parker. I can do everything in my power to make the best decisions to make sure he is healthy and taken care of, but truth is I am not in control. God is! I must trust that God loves Parker more than I ever could. What a profound statement! God, the creator of the universe AND my child, loves him more than I ever will. How can that be? I love Parker with every ounce of my being and would do everything possible to take care of him. But God still loves him more? Yes! So in trusting that (and that's a daily struggle) I must believe that HE will protect him. I must trust that HE has a perfect plan for his life and it doesn't necessarily involve my plans. I absolutely hate that I don't have full control. It's my weakness. But I want the best for Parker. And the best for him is God's plan...not mine!Every single night before I go to sleep I check on Parker and kiss him goodnight. I always say a prayer that God would watch over him and protect him during the night. I can't even fathom the thought of something happening to him. My stomach turns even speaking about it. I don't want to ever have to go through something tragic with him. I pray that HE will protect him and watch over him. I still worry all the time. I must trust that God is watching over him and protecting him.

Life is short! Shorter than most of us probably plan. We are not guaranteed tomorrow. We think that we are and we think that we are invincible, but sooner or later we will all pass away. And the only thing that will truly matter is if we have a relationship with God or not. I am confident that when I die I will be in heaven. I have trusted in God to forgive me of my sins and to give me His mercy and grace. I know that I have a place in heaven and I am thankful for that. Praise God that we can have a hope of something better after death. It doesn't make death any easier but it does give us hope.

I have a completely different perspective on life now. I worry not only about myself but also my son..and my husband too. Loving someone this much can be painful at times and cause lots of fear. But I trust that God is a big God and can take care of him when I can't.

Things I'm Loving

My best friends little boy, Briley, had Open Heart surgery on January 6 and he is doing great! GOD IS GOOD!
Great friends!

ORGINS moisturizer! I have some sun spots from staying out in the sun with no sunscreen and this moisturizer works wonders. I can already tell a difference.

Random Pictures

Silly boy playing with his favorite toy, a ball!
Chritmas picture with Santa at Bass Pro Shop!


Parker loves to wear a hat!

Eating dinner at Bluegill!

I was running his bath water and found him in the hall naked loving on his Giraffe. It was priceless!

I can't believe my sweet little boy is 16 months old. He will be 2 soon and I am looking forward to watching this sweet boy grow.

December.....

Parker turned 15 month old on December 3rd. I can't believe how fast my little, or not so little, guy is growing up. I promise to update my blog with pictures soon. He loves to call Santa HO-HO-HO.

On December 8th, Lee got home and noticed something wasn't right at our house. The laundry room light was on, which can be seen from the driveway. He let the garage door open and noticed the garage door leading out of the house to the garage was open. WE HAD BEEN ROBBED! While we were at work , someone broke in our house and stole electronics, jewelry and my comforter set. There are a lot of sentimental pieces that we can never replace that they took as well as my camera. Luckily they forgot my laptop, which had all my pictures downloaded on it. Someone obviously had been watching the house and then just let themselves in and filled their pockets. I can't believe it happened, but it could have been a lot worse. We filed a report and are hoping the police will come up with a suspect.

Twelve Months

*I'm way behind on my blog. I hope to catch up this week!

I cannot believe it! How did the year go by so fast? It is true, "the days are long, but the years are short." It makes me want to treasure every single day that much more. I love that I get to wake up to Parker every day. He is just the happiest baby and makes me laugh every day! I thank the Lord every day for him. I'm honored to be his Mama! Here are some things he is up to. He has learned so many new things this past month.

-He is 21.5 pounds. (50th Percentile)
-He is 30 1/2 inches tall. (75th Percentile)
-Size 3 diaper.
-Size 9-12 month clothes.
-Size 5 wide shoe. (measures 4 1/2)
-Naps twice a day.
-Goes to bed at 8:00 ish and wakes up around 7 normally.
-Has learned to clap! He will clap if he sees someone clap or if he hears the words, "yay!", "clap" or "patty cake."-Waves "bye bye" very consistently now.
-Has been walking since the 4th of July weekend.
-Has started trying to run.
-Has started getting up on his hands and feet. (Like a football stance.)
-Loves a balloon. They always have top priority.
-Loves to play with a baseball, football, basketball.....ANY ball.
-Wakes up saying "Ball" in the middle of the night or early morning.
-Loves to play with trucks and makes the sound with his mouth.
-Has not had a bottle since his birthday, September 3.
-Lifts his arms up for me to hold him and I love it.
-Can say:
Mama
Dada
Ball **His favorite word**
Bye Bye
Hi
Uh-oh
Oh No
Mine

Happy Birthday, Parker! We love you so much we can hardly stand it.