Random Pics & Thoughts

Now that the Christmas and New Year's postings are out of the way, I just have some random thoughts and pictures to post.

Ray - As much as I don't understand his company's culture, I've not seen Ray as dedicated and fulfilled as he is in his job right now. He finally got recognized for all his hard work and dedication to his company by being named Human Resources Employee of the Year at the company Christmas party in December. I'm so proud of him and glad that he has finally been recognized as a contributing member of the team. He works very hard and I know he does his best to balance work and family and being in Utah, has a lot more balancing to do than most of his co-workers whose wives stay at home...I appreciate his hard work and doing all that he can to help on a daily basis with the kids and be home when I need him to be.

Me - After two relatively uneventful, textbook pregnancies, this pregnancy has been more emotionally and physically difficult than I was prepared for. I was much sicker during the first trimester than I've ever been and normally, I can drink milk by the gallons but have had an aversion to it this time. Also, my emotions are a complete mess...happy one minute and literally crying over spilled milk the next. I'm hoping that all this differences add up to a different gendered baby and at least they are solidifying the concept that this is definitely our last child...NO MATTER WHAT! I can't wait to find out next week whether we'll be pulling out the boys clothes again or whether I can go shopping for pinks and yellows and purples.

Kaden - Shortly before Christmas, we had parent/teacher conference with Kaden's pre-school teacher, Miss Bev. It was so surreal for me to be at a parent/teacher conference hearing about how my sweet Kaden is doing so well and above average in almost every category. The thing that made me the most happy is that he is nice to everyone and gets along with all his class members as well as loves to read and learn...that is one thing I've always wanted to instill in my kids is a love for reading and education so let's hope it continues. I love him so much and am so proud of him and hope I can continue to strive to be the kind of mom he deserves.

Jackson - What can I say about this little guy. He is so much fun and is talking like crazy and says at least one thing on a daily basis that just cracks us up. However, we can already tell that he is going to be very different from his big brother. He's going to be a jokester and much more daring than his brother. In the last month, we've made emergency visits to the dentist and the doctor for a chipped tooth (which hasn't turned black yet...we're keeping our fingers crossed) and a cut chin (which luckily only required glue rather than stitches). I'm not sure if it's his age or his personality but I feel like I need to keep him in a glass bubble to keep him from hurting himself right now...any opinions or stories to share?

Overall, I'm so grateful for my family. It's amazing to watch how closely bonded Kaden and Jackson are and how Jackson does EVERYTHING his big brother does and how much he looks up to him. It's also amazing to see the love and respect that the boys have for Ray and how much he means to them. I know more fully understand why it's so devastating for children of divorce or who lose a parent in death. The bond between a child and a parent is so automatic but so amazingly strong. During the many snow storms and extremely cold weather that we've had, I find myself so grateful for a home to live in and heat to keep us warm and with the economy right now, that both Ray and I have good jobs that look to keep us employed until this recession is over. But, it does make me realize we need to focus on our food storage and building up our savings account just in case. Most of all, I realize who the most important people in my life are and that is Ray, Kaden, Jackson and this new baby to come and no matter where we live compared to our other family members, we will be fine as long as we stick together and stay close to one another. I pray that I will never experience the death of a child or the death of a spouse as either of these experiences must be unimaginably painful to go through. See, I told you this pregnancy was making me an emotional mess, didn't I? Love to all!