Not now, I'm Tweeting for Bobbleheads

I recently opened a Twitter account. Not sure yet if  it was good decision, so far it's revealed several things about myself that I did not realize were running rampant.

First off, I'm not as funny as I think I am. Reading through popular tweets and following groups that I'm interested in I have discovered that most of the tweets that are "favorited" are humorous. That being said I have one of two problems- either I can't think of something funny enough to tweet or I can't be funny in the limited amount of characters that a Twitter account allows.

Secondly, I am more concerned with popularity than I'd like to admit. who knew that something as insignificant as a follower counter at the top of my "me" screen could illicit insecurity. But as I awoke today to find my count still read less than 10, I felt as though all the lunch tables were full and I was awkwardly carrying my tray looking for someone to accept me.

Third, I care way more about what my favorite 'stars' are doing than I should. Just because I don't have a subscription to Entertainment weekly or US magazine doesn't mean I'm not up to date on what's going on in the personal lives of my favorite public personalities. When the first 3 people I thought to follow were people I would most likely never even meet in real life, I had to take a long hard look at my priorities and whether or not I should even have the mind space set aside for such things as who recently divorced whom in Hollywood.

Lastly (and the only good to come of this recent media endeavor) I spent extra time in the Word this morning as felt that the phrase "in the world, but not of the world" needed to be readdressed in my life today. Reading in Romans 12:2, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." I find myself thinking that maybe opening the account was a good move after all. It revealed my sinful nature in a convicting way that caused me to dive into God's word. It led me back to my creator and showed me my value in Christ. That there is nothing in this world that can satisfy me like His love- not even a growing tally of followers.

I wrap up this insight into my Twitter experience with a small peek into our everyday lives. This morning I ask Luke if he has tweeted to win free Rockies Tickets. His response to me in all seriousness , "Not now, I've been tweeting for Bobbleheads." I turned to him and suggested the strangeness of the world we live in where Tweeting and Bobbleheads are in the same sentence.

@MaryBakerCO
:)

Back to the Home-front

We are back to reality here at Casa Baker after a week long Vacation. I don't know how everyone else feels about summer vacations, but once I'm back from ours I always feel like it can just hurry up and be September already! I'm ready to swap out all of my summer Scentsy-s for fall ones and ready for the cool mornings and evenings. I'm ready to not run the air conditioning all day long and ready to crack a few windows.

I am really hoping to be able to open a few windows soon with the allergy season finally waning (I hope) and Joshua's allergies finally in check. Josh's surgery seems to have gone well-he has a check up for it scheduled next week, and his re-occurring cough has yet to re-occur so that seems good. His speech however took a major fallout from the adenoids, which we knew was a possibility, but hoped would be minor. His speech developed so much during the period where his adenoids were super enlarged that it is now quite different for him to form words without them pushing down on his pallet like he was use to. He's trying his hardest to reform those words, and will begin seeing a specialized speech therapist who works with these kinds of cases. It's been discouraging for him and all of us, but as you know he's a kid who's spirit cannot be broken. It constantly amazes me the strength & courage he has to overcome any obstacle that gets thrown in the mix. God made him one tough cookie with a heart of gold.

It was so much fun for Luke and I to spend a whole week with our kiddos (even though I do it everyday, there is something different about bonding as an entire family.) Seeing how their minds work & watching their personalities develop even more never ceases to amaze me. Jonas has really become his own person with a really funny/sweet personality. He is always quick to say something unexpected and have us all laughing. We visited the "North Pole" here in Colorado as part of our trip and Joe LOVED every second of it. As a very tall  two-year old he was able to ride all of the rides and he could not have been more thrilled. His favorites, were in my opinion, the most dangerous of the rides. Here is a quick break down of favorite parts of our vacation.

Luke- The North Pole Ferris Wheel ride with the Kids/Sky Sox game

Joshua- The North Pole & Ride

Jonas- The North Pole/Baseball game

Me- Garden of the Gods

Summer is winding down here and we have a few things we are still anticipating. I have a high School Girls Bible Study that I'm ready to get back to, we are reading Francis Chan's "Crazy Love" and it's been amazing hearing the things the girls are learning from it and the ways God is using it to shape their lives in a more Christ-like way. We've already got tickets to a few more Rockies Games including one against the CUBS that I am eagerly anticipating. Also we're planning a little trip to Telluride in September for some sight seeing and a Jazz fest. Our little guys are super excited for VBS to start up in a few weeks, and Luke and I are excited for the Maroon 5/Kelly Clarkson tour that is heading this way! One thing about living in Colorado is that there is never a shortage of things to do. 

Our Joshua prays the sweetest, most heart melting prayers. The other night Luke tucked him and when he came out of Josh's bedroom he said "wow, that was some prayer! He went on and on forever, thanking God for everything- for Colorado Springs, for swimming in the pool, for the baseball game, he went on and on forever!" I laughed about it for a minute and then thought how amazingly blessed we are that Joshua can pray for that long just thanking God for everything that he's given us. It almost brings me to tears (tears of joy) knowing that God is at work in the heart of my son already teaching him James 1:17 "every good and perfect thing comes from above."

Here are just a few more from the vacation:

  

Joshua got "Sox the Fox" to autograph his stuffed fox. It was one of the greatest thrills of his life :)

Laptop Broke, Hearts Full, & His plan not ours

It has been FOREVER since I have written!! Our laptop has been out of commission for quite sometime now and I do love our Ipad, but not for things like blogging. Today however I have made the exception and am going to attempt to write this from the ipad since I'm thinking we may never get the laptop back to its old self.

Our lives and hearts have been so full for the last too many months to count that I am not even sure sure I could give a full recap of what's been going on with us. So this will be aimed toward just a summer update for now :)

Joshua finished up Preschool at the end of May and is now enrolled in a Summer Learning program at his school. He goes most Wednesdays from 9-3 which honestly has been a huge reality to me-Joshua is growing up (sob sob). I miss him so much when he's gone and so does Jonas, we mostly mope around and just snuggle until Joshua gets home at 3....who knew Joshua was the life of our party!?!?! He has been loving the summer school activities however, and doesn't miss us at all. He loves eating his lunch with his friends and they play and do tons of cool stuff. Last week he got to walk to a huge park with them, slip and slide, read stories inside of tents, and pretend to roast marshmallows by a fire.

We were planning on being on vacation this week but as is usually the case - plans had to change. Most everyone who has ever spent any time with us knows that Joshua has always had a reoccurring cough and cold that seems to pop up about once a month. We've known for a while that his adenoids were the main cause of this issue but had been told that he was not a candidate for the surgery to remove them because he had a previous cleft pallet surgery that could be compromised during the procedure. The Lord really answered our prayers and provided us with a Doctor here that is on the cleft pallet team and can do the surgery that Joshua needs!!!! We did however need to cancel our vacation plans, and have sadly decided that the fun Trip to Utah/Idaho that we'd been planning we need to wait until the fall for us to afford it.

Lucky for us though, living in Colorado we live like we are permanently on vacation. We have been to at least a half dozen Rockies games recently and just Sunday took the boys with us for a Fathers Day adventure. Josh & Joe LOVED the game and have been pretending to play Rockies baseball in the backyard ever since. It is so exciting to find something that your whole family likes and can enjoy together. We have decided to take a much shorter and closer-to-home vacation in a few weeks once Joshua has recovered from his surgery, but stay close to home incase he needs any unexpected followup. Colorado Springs is home to a Minor League team that is one of the Rockies Farm teams and is conveniently located just over an hour from home :) the Boys are already excited to go that game, which is good because they weren't thrilled to be missing seeing Uncle Rich and Aunt Sue when I told them about the change in plans.

                                      

I can honestly say that God has blessed us SOOO abundantly that it's hard to realistically be to rattled over a change in plans that are ultimately a part of His plan.

Post-Traumatic-Pinterest-Disorder

I had read several status updates/rants/blogs written by disgruntled mothers who are feeling the "Pinterest Pressure" to do it all. It's kind of interesting to me as a Stay-at-Home mom and avid Pinterest user to see what all these ladies are saying. Bottom lining it for you, they are women who feel like they have to be a : Breastfeeding, clothdiapering, organic babyfood feeding, homeschooling, crafting, diy-ing, health nut, workout obsessed woman in order to be thought of as "worthwhile".

I am very few of the above mentioned list. I have never enjoyed exercise (gasp). Even when I use to work out everyday I never truly enjoyed it. I suffered a terrible abdominal wall injury from actually working out too strenuously and even after years of physical therapy the pain flares up unbearably when I begin exercising regularly other than yoga, walking and other mild & barely strenuous activities.

The one thing that I can say I have "worked out" in my life is finding my identity in Christ and what he values and deems worthwhile. I have worked very hard in my life to be completely satisfied with what God thinks of me and not the world, and it is hard work. Not that long ago I had to "unfriend" a friend on facebook because her obsession with her own body was invading my life. She was constantly (and probably still is for all I know) posting pictures of her half naked, completely toned, post baby body. I just don't need to see all of that, or feel like I need to measure up to it. I have never been or will be a size 0 (or 2, or 3, or 4.....the list could go on :)

My oldest son is turning 5 in a few weeks and the part of his party that I am the most excited for is NOT making the cake. That's right, contrary to what all the pictures on Pinterest tell me about making his birthday party perfect, I am not making him a homemade Spider-man cake. It has nearly killed me in the past to come up with some extravagant cake idea and this year I have already decided to buy one instead. When I told Luke he actually put his hands on my shoulders and said, "I am so relieved." He knows how seriously moms take these parties and he was thrilled that instead of putting my worth into how the cake turns out, I will this year be enjoying my sons birthday that much more. I am only doing the things that I want to do and love to do. I am making him a present, I put together hero capes for the party goody bags and I'm sure I'll decorate the house crazily, but because I want to.

If you have to- turn off the computer, unsubscribe from pinterest or unfriend the friend who is not doing your self confidence any favors, do it. God does not care how many homemade DIY items appear at my sons birthday party, or in my day to day life. He came so that I can have life and have it to the fullest, not to chain me to what the world deems valuable. I am very thankful that when I get to heaven God will not ask me how many cloth diapers I changed :) because the answer is 0. God didn't create us all to be the same and I am thankful for that.

I love Pinterest, but I don't find my self-worth in it, that belongs to Christ.

Party like it's 1999

My husband loves the '90's. If he could still do, say and wear everything that he did in the 90's and be found socially acceptable, he would. He still listens to 90's Christian rock music...on Cd. He still references 90's pop-culture, he says things like 'Word' (he has a 90's catch phrase for anything) and it was just last year that I finally convinced him to throw out his Doc Marten sandals circa 1995 :)

So it should really come as no surprise to anyone that knows him that for his birthday he really wanted to go to a video store. We hadn't been to a video store since 2008 when we moved from Rapid City. Of course Rapid still has our favorite Mr. Movies up and running and I cry a little everytime I'm home for a visit because nothing says your home like 99 cent movie Monday, but most video stores are obsolete these days. We've been with Netflix since 2009 and we of course order a few things OnDemand from our cable provider, in a pinch I've also frequented the Redbox, but no where have I really seen a good old fashioned video store.

A little google-ing from a guy that just can't let go of the 90's resulted in Luke finding a real Blockbuster just a couple miles from us. The best part of the day however was listening to Luke explain to Joshua (who has no idea what a 'video' even is) what a video store is. I of course stepped in with "It's a movie store, they let you check out movies there." Lucky for us Joshua can get excited about anything so he went with it jumping up and down saying let's go!

The drive there was filled with Luke making comments like, "I can't wait to see all the movies lined up on the walls, oh and the snacks, they always have lots of snacks." I mostly just nodded :) It was everything he'd hopped that it would be and more! The smell was the same as he'd remembered it, they were playing a movie in the background, and the best part was he could share it with his sons.

That night after the kids were in bed Luke thanked me for humoring him and going along with the "video store" birthday adventure. Honestly it's turned out to be kinda great! The boys love going there and I've been able to use it as a reward for them already so it's kinda been a little gift for me too. It's so crazy when something so small can bring you a smile and some joy. It's also pretty great when your 4 year old says, "I really enjoyed that video."

An un-tainted love for Valentines Day

I have always loved Valentines Day. It's just so beautiful with red and pink little hearts everywhere. Glue and glitter and of course CANDY!

I'm Valentines Day survivor. I survived YEARS of never receiving a valentine from a boy other than my father. I survived crowded high school hallways packed with girls carrying giant bouquets, teddy bears, and balloons.I survived never once being asked to a Valentine's day dance, and believe it or not the first time I ever had a date for Valentines Day was the year I got married 4 days before our wedding day. I survived it all and came out still loving Valentines day like a kid.

Of course I kept my head down in the halls those high school years. I pretended I didn't see everyone holding hands. I sat at home reading my Valentines from my parents and going out to eat with good 'ol mom and dad instead of going out for a romantic meal and to the school dance. At thirty years old I can honestly say "Who Cares!"

I have one of those great moms who says all the "mom lines" and of course she use to say to me, "that boy not liking you just means that the boy you're going to end up with is even better." Man, did I ever hate it when she'd say that, and of course I'd always say something back like, "but I don't want someone better, I want that boy." :) Mature huh? Of course my mother who is always right....was right.

I have a TON of young facebook friends and always around Valentines Day I see these super sad status updates that read something like - "Happy National Singles awareness Day." or the classics, " I didn't get a Valentine" and "I wish I had a boyfriend (or girlfriend whichever the case may be)." If I had one piece of advice to those people it's this: Don't let it ruin Valentines Day for you, Someday you'll have exactly what you always wanted, or maybe even something that you never knew you wanted, but don't let it get you down. Read those valentines from your parents and cherish them. Trust that Love is something greater than one day a year and when it finds you you'll have it all year and Valentine's day will just be cherry on top of the sundae you already have.

Today me the kiddos worked on making Valentines to send out to our family and friends. We sprinkled glitter, the boys painted, and we laughed. I'm so glad that I never let anything ruin Valentines Day for me. I can honestly say the only regret I have is that I didn't always appreciate the corny Valentines from my Dad. My mom of course still sends me one every year, but after all those years that I thought gee thanks the only one I'll get from a boy, my dad's card is now the only card missing.

Ending up with my Husband - totally worth never having a Valentines date :)

Another Cold & Flu Season

I haven't blogged in what seems like ages! Right after a huge break due to my camera break down, our laptop also had several issues arise. Now up and running again (thanks to a miracle working friend) I think I'm ready to be once again committed to writing at least monthly.

It seems the last month and a half has had someone in our family sick about every other week. Whether it has been a stomach bug that hit everyone but Luke, Influenza that knocked everyone down but me, or the Pneumonia that had Joshua in the hospital. It's been a rough go around here. My least favorite part about sickness is missing church. We have such an awesome church family, one where you feel like everyone is really is family and you miss them when you don't get to see them. As the wife of a Pastor I always end up with stay home from church duty :(  I stay at home no matter who gets sick and sometimes it feels like it goes on forever!

I cannot wait for the cold & flu season to end. Joshua catches everything it seems! Understandable due to his medical past, his immune system will always be weaker than what it could be because his body is giving all it has to making blood, and I can't complain about that.

A few days ago we had an unfortunate inaccurate blood draw that aged me about 10 years in a day. The doctor sent Joshua to the Children's hospital immediately and we thought for sure he'd be getting a transfusion and who knows what else. His trip to the hospital proved the blood reading to be inaccurate , but was surely a blessing because it was there that the ER doc sent for chest x-rays and they discovered that the reason he wasn't recovering from the last virus he had was because he'd developed pneumonia. I'm pretty sure he thought that I was going to squeeze him to death when he finally got home that night after a day at the hospital.

Joshua's Medicine Chart...he's taking just a few things right now :)

Of course the hemoglobin had all of those terrible memories flooding back to me. And I'm not sure I've ever cried as hard as I did last Friday. A couple of thoughts though, that went through my mind that day I think are worth sharing.

At the terrifying thought that there could have been something seriously wrong with Joshua's blood again there were a few places where I found peace. The first was in knowing that I am not Sovereign, but God is. Jonas and I were sitting at home most of the day waiting for the phone to ring with any news while Joshua and Luke were having a myriad of medical staff tend to them. I spent alot of that time worrying, then praying, then beginning to worry again, counteracting it with prayer again and a couple of times just really bullying myself. "I should have known something was wrong." & "I'm not a good enough mother." Are just a couple of the things I told myself. Nevermind that the previous day Joshua had been racing around at the park and acting completely not sick. I still punched myself in the stomach with the accusation that I should have known something was wrong. It wasn't until I was at a stoplight sitting and silently praying for God to give me the strength to hear whatever the news would be, good or bad, that it hit me like some kind of spiritual semi-truck. God knew this was going to happen, I didn't. God knows what the outcome will be, I don't have to. I love Joshua, God loves him even more. God is sovereign over all things, I'm not....and that's a good thing.  It was then I was finally able to quit beating myself up and realize that whatever happened, God was in control and I couldn't ask for anything more than that.

Joshua playing at the park the day before his hospital trip-clearly acting like he wasn't sick at all!

The other peaceful moment I had was in thinking about the almost 5 years of Joshua's life so far. I remembered when he went through a phase and every morning he'd wake up singing a song. I remembered the first time he met Lambie, how he cuddled him that first naptime like he'd never cuddled any other stuffed animal and I knew that Lambie would be "the one". I remembered the time that my dad took Joshua to Runnings and asked him what toy he wanted, Joshua told him all of them. I thought of our family vacations to Omaha and all the fun little trips we take together. I remembered everything. I thought how blessed am I to have gotten to spend almost every minute of Joshua's entire life with him. If something awful were to happen to our family I know that I wouldn't have any regrets about how we've spent our time. If you've ever seen my facebook I'm sure you know that we do almost everything together. Some families may not have the same opportunities that we do, but I am surely thankful for the way we are able to spend our time.

I won't forget the relief I felt when Luke called later that night and said they re-drew a blood sample ran it and Joshua could come home without a transfusion. Praise God! On a side note: a transfusion can be a tricky thing for a person that doesn't make blood in a normal amount or process because that person's body will use transfused blood quicker than their own and their body will stop making their own blood after a transfusion because it feels like it has the blood it already needs. This can help an anemic person but also cause a chain of other events to occur, so it can become complicated. All I know is God answered our prayers.

My last thought is that I hope the next time I blog I can start with the sentence "None of us have been sick for weeks." Here's hoping!

Time for Love & Time for Cheer

This year's Christmas was one of my favorites. The boys are at such fun ages, and their excitement is contagious. We are very spoiled and dare I say got everything we wanted for Christmas.

Joe's favorite gift was his ride-on Thomas the Train. I could barely get him off of it the entire day, and he guards it constantly making sure that his brother knows whose it is.

Joshua's favorite gift was his Dreamlite. He'd been asking for one non-stop and even though I was worried that once he got one he'd change his mind, he really loves it.

I'm pretty sure that Luke's favorite gift was the Ipad my brother got us, but the set of Theologian Coasters that I made him for his office were a huge hit as well. He's been wanting a set of coasters for a while, but after looking at a few sets I didn't really see any that I thought he'd like. I remembered seeing a tutorial for homemade coasters on pinterest a while back and even though I hadn't pinned it, I did remember reading through the instructions and thought that I could pull it off. He loves them so much he has actually  requested that I make a few more for his birthday.

It's hard to say what gift was my favorite since I really loved everything I got. I of course love the camera that my mom got me, but the gifts from my husband were all very thoughtful. Topping the list of most thoughtful gifts was the Clarinet he gave me. I already owned it, but it was a mess. I hadn't even looked at it in a few years. It needed new pads, and some pieces were broken off, cork was missing, and the metal was kinda gross from age. The clarinet had originally been purchased by my father about 12 or so years ago. It is an antique, wooden, Normandy clarinet. I played for years and years on a cheapo plastic clarinet, but my dad always wanted me to have a really nice one. I remember how excited he was the day he brought it home, he was proud of his purchase and even though it wasn't anywhere near playing condition, he told me he'd have it restored someday. As you know my dad passed away 2 years ago, and he'd never gotten around to getting the clarinet up and running. When Luke brought out the case on Christmas morning I just looked at him confused and thought, "does he think that this was lost and he found it?" I was shocked when he told me to open it. Having it in working condition was a dream I thought would never come to fruition. I held it and sobbed thinking how much my dad would have cried if he knew that I'd get to play it. I know it would have made him so happy. It made me happy. I've already been playing lots and hope to do a few specials here and there at the church (after more brushing up of course).

Luke took a few days off from work after Christmas and we've been enjoying the family time together. I've been thinking a lot this week about what a great family I have. Once I was old enough to have a boyfriend, my Grandma use to always say to me, "find a good husband, and you'll be happy in life." She'd tell me every visit and on the phone too, "You find a good man like I did, when I found your grandpa, it'll make all the difference." My husband never met my grandmother, she passed away just shortly after we were married and she hadn't been well for a while before that, but the last time that my mother went to visit her I told my mom, "you tell Grandma that I found a good man, I found one just like grandpa, just like she said to. Don't forget, tell her I found a good one." When my mom came back she told me she'd relayed the message, when I asked what grandma had said, my mom said, "well she was very sick sweetie, but she knew, and she smiled...she knows."

My grandmother could not have been more right about finding a good husband. I think back on her words often when I'm with my 3 boys and we're laughing and having a good time together. "You'll be happy, and it'll make all the difference." Luke has his faults.....which I won't mention here :) but he is a very good man. He loves the Lord and he loves his family. This year one of my most favorite things about our Christmas was just our family being together, being happy. God has given our family so much this, because He gave us eachother.

Holiday Happenings

My blog has been pretty much non-existent since my camera broke at the beginning of November. Luckily my mother came to my rescue and got me a new one for Christmas!! It's fancy, and yes, I know it should be under the tree still , but she lives hours away and even though I'm sure she rolled her eyes when I told her that I was already using it, she's knows I've been opening my gifts before it was time since I was old enough to walk. She tells this horrific story about buying me shoes one year for Christmas. The gist of it is this : I opened them one morning, wore them to school, re-wrapped them. She'd lead you to believe she was forever scarred as a parent, but don't let her fool you, she finds it funny :)

I've been reading a few other blogs lately about holiday traditions. One holiday tradition that is among my top 5 easily is the Christmas Card. I LOVE sending and receiving Christmas cards. Even if I have read every post the person had on Facebook all year, I still cannot wait to read their letter! I'm like a kid in the candy store when the cards begin arriving. You can ask my husband, he thinks I'm crazy!! I will hold up the unopened envelopes and with sheer excitement say things like, "I can't wait to see their picture!" or maybe, "what do you think made the letter this year?" I love addressing them, I love placing the giant stack into the mailbox on December 1st (also a tradition of mine) and I especially love the day that you get the mail and it is ALL Christmas cards!!! It's one of my favorite days of the year usually around the 22nd and it is a day I smile all afternoon. I'm an old fashioned card nerd, it's okay I accept it!

Our entire Church is focusing on the Advent Season this year and anticipation of- as well as preparation for the Christ Child's arrival. I love advent at church and as Luke has been preaching about what true anticipation means I have seen it this year in my own home. I had forgotten what pure anticipation really looks like until I saw my little Joshua's excitement beginning to build. My heart overflows with joy as I watch his eyes light up every morning when he glimpses the tree lit in the living room. The other day he asked me , "Is Christmas coming to Colorado yet?" Almost, I told him about a week and a half still. I could see him trying to contain the excitement and think about something else, but inevitably he circled around the tree and curled up on the couch just starring at the lights, waiting for Christmas. The Lord uses my kids to open my eyes to so many things and this very instance is one of those times. What are the things that I can't get out of my head this Christmas season? The bills that need paying, the baking that should get done, the gifts that need wrapping, or is it the Birth of our Savior! I know what I want it to be.

We let the kids help decorate the tree for the first time ever this year. It was exciting, overwhelming, fun, and stressful all wrapped into one 30 min decoration session! As heirloom ornaments whizzed by and I told myself "if they break they are just things." I honestly loved seeing my kids looking at each ornament and placing it (sometimes) lovingly on the tree. The clear favorite this year is the Charlie Brown ornament. The boys are Charlie Brown Crazy this season. I think that I got the ornament in a bag of candy a few years back and just never threw it away. So glad now that I didn't actually throw it away because it has been truly loved this year. My current favorite is a set of red, glass, candle ornaments that clip onto the branches. For years growing up my parents had a "candle tree" we had real candles that looked almost identical to these glass ones. My dad would light the candles on Christmas eve while we played games and opened presents and then again on Christmas morning while ate our big Christmas meal. Even though these candles aren't real, they remind me of home.

This morning we worked hard on the kids' Christmas t-shirts, which is becoming a little bit of a tradition I guess. Last year the boys made reindeer shirts and this year it's wreaths!!!! They turned out super cute I think and of course the kids love them.

Lastly Joshua was really wanting me to take a picture of him being a "sickie" he is actually feeling much better but loves to draw out the attention for as long as he can. He successfully made a little "sick bed" for himself on the couch and is happily watching  A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.

Dominick the Donkey & Others

Well I made it to November 9th this year before wanting to pull out the Christmas decorations! When I mentioned it to Luke this morning he said I was much improved having made it past October this year. I'm pretty sure that every post from here to the end of the year will consist of Christmas ideas, thoughts, and obsessions. Don't worry Luke would never actually let me decorate this early :) but I can dream can't I?

I always look forward to decorating for Christmas. If you've known us long you know that we go ALL OUT for Christmas. In fact this year we are thinking about purchasing another tree! Our new home has room for 2 and we definitely have enough decorations for 2! Probably the item I am most looking forward to pulling out is the Advent Calendar I made the kids last year. I adore it, especially when there are 2 little boys jumping up and down in front of it eagerly anticipating Christmas!

I am truly raising little versions of myself in my children. When I got into the car this morning ready to drive Joshua to school, I heard him in the back seat asking to listen to Laurie Berkner Christmas. Now if you're a huge Laurie Berkner fan like my son is, you know she just released a new Christmas Album. I did however have to break it to him that I ordered it, but it wasn't here yet. My heart however filled with joy at the thought of him loving Christmas music as much as I do. Our all time family favorite is Dominic the Donkey. I cannot believe how many people have not heard it before! I grew up loving it,  my mother had it on a mix cassette tape that a friend had given her. When itunes first emerged I searched out all of my favorites from this tape she had always played at Christmas time, and downloaded  them so that I could cherish all those memories of her and I decorating the house together, her singing and me finding her ridiculous. Now I can play them all and my children can find me just as ridiculous. I love how God works things out in life :) Here is a link to Dominick if you have never heard it I hope you will love it as much as we do! It's just silly nonsense, but we've found the more you listen to it, the more you listen to it! My next random favorite is Christmas in Killarney also from my mother's mix tape and now a favorite of my children as well. Of course my heart belongs to truly Christ centered songs like O Holy Night, but there's something about a little Christmas silliness that I enjoy as well.

I was gone most of this week on an annual retreat. A friend (Marci) and I yearly escape our everyday lives for a Tuesday through Thursday trip. We refresh, catch up with eachother, and try to re-center our focus on Christ. This year my eyes were opened as usual. We spent time discussing forgiveness and reading about it. I've never felt so convicted by Matthew 18:24-31. How many times have I hesitated to forgive someone because of how great I felt their debt to me was (how much I hurt). Yet, how ridiculous do I look to God who has forgiven me so much greater a debt (and done it over and over and over again.) We also meditated on Matthew 18:21 & 22. How many times must I forgive? Seventy times Seven. Jesus told Peter face to face, forgive and do it over and over and over. No matter how many times I've read this, every time I need to hear it again, it is like reading it for the very first time, and feeling convicted for the very first time all over again.

Wrapping up my thoughts on a lighter note- Marci and I also had a good chuckle as we listed a few of our favorite Christmas movies. Surprisingly Christmas in Connecticut topped both of our lists! So here is my top 10 favorite Christmas movies, and by this I mean the movies I can watch over and over and over......

10. The Santa Claus II
9. It's a Wonderful Life
8. Home Alone
7. Disney's Christmas Carol
6. How The Grinch Stole Christmas
5. Christmas With The Cranks (another tear jerk-er)
4. The Christmas Card (I cry every time I watch it)
3. Holiday Inn
2. Christmas in Connecticut
1. Holiday Affair


I know the first thought of many of you is how is A Christmas Story not on the list, but honestly I don't really like that movie that much. I might watch it if it's on tv, but even then I'm not a big fan. I also don't get into Christmas Vacation much either. Luke is your guy if you're into those, but I like the classics.

One of my favorite pics from last Christmas!!!!

Keeping up with Christmas

I feel like I've had about 20 different projects half done, or just started. Finally this week I am getting to a few of them. In fact Jonas napped for over an hour today and I got so much accomplished!

I have been in a very premature Christmas-y mood lately while working on a couple of Christmas projects, and Luke has mentioned several times how "creepy" it is to be listening to Christmas music at the beginning of October. I say, "whatever it takes to get me in the mood to finish these Christmas gifts."

This is a "not quite finished" Christmas project that I have been chipping away at.

This year I've decided to give a few more handmade gifts than I usually do. I LOVE receiving homemade gifts and it's getting rare to get something so unique anymore. The problem with wanting to make gifts however, is the time it takes to do it, which is exactly why I have started so early :) A few of the projects are surprises for people who read this so those will of course remain secret, but I'm happy to share the rest!

I've thinking about making a pouch for the boys' characters and I finally put one together this week!

I still need to add the closure, but I think the boys are really going to LOVE these!

I finished Joshua's character set- it includes Super Why & Dino Dan on the left

Joshua is so happy to be back at school this week after missing 2 days for our getaway and then his school's fall break. Jonas has finally chosen his birthday party theme and much to my disappointment he did not choose a dino party. He seemed to really want a jungle themed party and since he's a much better talker than Joshua was at almost 2, Jonas has clearly spoken his choice.

This is the beginning of Joe's Birthday Banner

Joe has been loving the decor I made for his cake table

caught trying to get into it! Sweet Little Hands :)

 I managed to get the Boys' names up on the wall in their play room (Special thanks to Toni, for making them for me, we love them). I also ordered a couple of poster pictures when Walgreens had a special on them. I only paid $2 a piece for the 2 you see and they are soooo cute and nice quality, I wish I had ordered more of them, but you never know what they are like until you try. Next time I'm for sure ordering more! The boys love the one of them with their South Dakota buddies!

More to come on my Christmas projects as well as a few thoughts on Numbness to the Word, something we have been talking about in Sunday School. Next week I will have more blogging time - Luke will be out of town for a few days :)

Spontaniety

I am one of the least spontaneous people. I almost despise spontaneity with its unpredictability and unknown outcomes. I love it in others lives and almost live it vicariously through my best best friend who is quite the opposite of me, but in my own life I avoid it and plan, plan, plan. This past week however, I took the road less traveled and it made all the difference.

Last Thursday was my Grandfather's 92nd birthday! My mom decided to plan last minute road trip to see him in Mandan, ND. When I got off the phone with her I told Luke how I wished I could go too. Daydreaming about it I rifled through the possibilities of driving to Rapid City and picking up my mom, and then her, I and the kids (of course) would finish the trip together. The long drive with 2 little guys however, did not excite me. I took my daydreaming a step further and priced some airline tickets. After finding some that I could almost afford I ran the idea past my mom. She jumped at the idea and even offered to fund the trip (even better!) I didn't think I could make the trip alone with both kids since neither of them had even flown and I myself had never flown without my husband, so I checked to see if Luke could watch Joe if Joshua and I took off for the weekend. He said yes, and I booked the flight, pretty much the fastest I've ever moved on anything since it was Wednesday night and we flew out on Friday morning.

Joshua on the airplane for his first flight!

So thankful that my Uncle and Aunt (whom my grandfather lives with) are always happy to see me, we took off on an adventure, just Joshua & me.

A picture of the GIANT dragline Joshua got to ride in

Ready to head out on his tour!

The trip was PACKED full of exciting activities! We arrived Friday afternoon and that night we had a delicious dinner, cake, and Grandpa opened a few presents. Saturday was any little boys' dream come true as my Uncle had arranged for Joshua to get his own private tour of Falkirk Mine's Dragline. Joshua really enjoyed watching the giant shovel scoop up buckets of dirt. He got a little scared once or twice due to overwhelming size of everything, but I know it will be an experience he'll never forget. After our tour we took off for Minot to check out the Scandinavian Host Fest and meet up with My cousin Derek (and his wife Camilla) for dinner. Host Fest was filled with unique Scandinavian foods, gifts, and more. It was a lot of walking for 4 year old legs so we finally threw in the towel and sat down for a bit, but Joshua ended up with a super cute frog stocking hat for winter and of course a tiger one for Joe. Next we headed over to my cousins house and then out for dinner at a place called Space Aliens. I had never heard of it, but they seem popular in North Dakota. Decorated like space and filled with Arcade games, it was of course a hit with Joshua.

Playing in the corn at the Pumpkin Patch

Sunday we attended Church, a church that prayed and prayed for Joshua when he was sick and it was good for the heart to sit in the pew with Joshua next to me 4 years later and know that God faithfully answered their prayers to heal him. After church my mom left to head back home and Joshua and I rested for a bit after our action packed Saturday. Late afternoon however we headed to Papa's Pumpkin Patch and had an amazing time taking in all of the fall goodness. There were so many things for kids to do that you'd have to go 5 or 6 times to do everything they had to offer.

Monday we packed up our stuff and got ready to head back to Colorado. My cousin Scott made it home just in time to get in a little tag with Joshua before we had to leave. We ate a quick lunch and caught our flight back. Joshua was a little queasy on the return flight which made it a little more stressful, but we did make it back safe and sound.....and then the real excitement began.

Right after being reunited with Luke and Joe we got a flat tire. Just past the airport we had to pull over and try to figure out the tire situation. At first I was pretty relaxed having full confidence that Luke could change the tire and we'd quickly be on our way. What I didn't take into account was TONS of traffic whizzing by -not getting into the outside lane as they passed us- the van shaking on the jack as Luke slid underneath trying to reach the spare, visions of the van slipping off the jack and crushing Luke- whirled in my head. It was just too dangerous to attempt with as much traffic as there was. We flagged down a police car and  he called a tow truck for us. Of course the very best part was that we all got to ride in the police car. The kids enjoyed it much more than Luke and I did, but we were thankful to get the kids and van to a safer place where the tire could be changed. I finally made it home about 5:15 pm after landing at 2:30. So happy to be back home, but also thankful for all the fun times we were able to enjoy with family.
I usually don't go too picture crazy on here but I'm including a few extra photos from the trip just to give everyone the full experience :) I'm so blessed to have such an amazing extended family!

Joshua with his Great-Grandpa 92 years old!

Ready to check everything out!

Heading over to Dragline, the Giant shovel in the background

Heading inside to watch the shoveling happen

Front Row Seat for one Lucky Boy!

Joshua in his new Frog Hat

Being Silly with my mom :)

Living it up at the Pumpkin patch

Best Great-Uncle Ever!

Boooooo! flat tire

Joe who!?!

For those wondering how Joshua's preschool experience is going, he is absolutely loving it! We went to his school just last night for an Ice Cream Social and Story Time for the kids, and when we got home Luke said to me, "I'm liking this school alot, I really feel like they love the kids." If there is one thing that kids pick up on it's authenticity. Kids can tell when you're just faking it. I know Joshua feels loved there and he's learning lots of praise and worship songs and making new friends. I think that it has been a great new experience for all of us.

With Joshua out of the house a few hours every other day Jonas and I have been getting acquainted :) Joshua has a VERY dominant personality so with him out of the house, it's kind of been like "Joe who?" Luke and I have both mentioned how different the dynamic is when it's just Joe around. First of all it's MUCH quieter. Joe is just a more reserved personality, and honestly I've loved our alone time! So has Joe.

The first day we left Joshua, Jonas was a mess and I thought, "oh great, this is a disaster." However, the second day Jonas really came out of his shell! When we got back to the van he climbed in, made his way to the driver's seat, reached up to the visor where the kids Cds are and chose his favorite, Choo Choo Soul. Then, he turned to the car seats, looked at his and proceeded to climb into Joshua's seat. Who knew that Joshua had the preferable seat? I tightened it up and went along with it all thinking that this was probably his version of getting to ride in the front seat. I can remember when my mother would drop my brother off at school, and I would make my way to the front seat feeling pretty special since I never got to ride in the front when he was along, of course this was long before the days of car seats and passenger side airbags.

Joe has definitely enjoyed choosing the music, riding in the good seat, and having mommy to himself for the first time ever. Today we went to Starbucks where he enjoyed an apple fritter, and "coffee" (water in a Starbucks cup). Then we went to a huge park by Joshua's school. We ventured back home and I put his big boy bed together while he smiled looking on and saying, "car, car, my car bed, mine, mine, mine."

I'm surprised at how much I'm loving our time together. Of course I love Joe, but I never knew all the details of his personality, his likes and dislikes are so apparent when Joshua isn't around. He actually has his own opinions! 

A Momma Bear's Cub

Luke has always jokingly referred to me as "momma bear" saying things like, "you don't want to mess with a momma bear's cubs." I'm a protective mother, especially of our oldest, Joshua. Since his rough start to life I have always been extra cautious when it comes to him. Even now if both kids are at the park and climbing too high I rush to Joshua first even though Joe is younger and smaller because I still think of Joshua as frail and fragile.

Since our visit to Joshua's school (Mount Olive Lutheran Preschool), I've been a little sad. I've noticed just in the last few days he's been more reserved, serious and anxious to be a part of a classroom. He's growing up and maturing, and even though it's what I've been praying he would grow into, I feel like it is happening so fast. My baby is growing up. We went to the Library today and instead of excitedly rushing in he walked slowing and quietly asked to read books in the chairs. I'm not going to lie, I was teary eyed watching him sit quietly flipping through a National Geographic Magazine.

If you've ever experienced God answering your prayer, I mean truly proving to make possible the impossible, I am sure that experience is seared into your memory. Joshua is my answer to so many prayers I prayed in desperation. Often I think his wild creativity and excitement for life are viewed by others as overwhelming, but where they see a rambunctious 4 year old, I see God's faithfulness. The blood disorder that Joshua was said to suffer from in its very description is the opposite of Joshua. "Lethargic, barely able to reach the top of a staircase without exhaustion," is what the doctor had told us would be the signs of him needing more transfusions. His energy, to me, is like a rainbow after the rain; a reminder that even when God didn't have to heal him - He did.

His growing up, maturing, and heading to school is what so many thought would never happen. while on vacation this last week we had a chance to visit our old friends at South Canyon. Many of them approached me saying they couldn't believe that Josh was the same boy they had prayed and prayed for. I have nothing to respond to them with other than "he really is a miracle."

I've been smothering him with kisses these last few days knowing than when I drop him off this Tuesday his goodbye to me will be short and if I'm not careful to enjoy these 'little boy' moments it will seem all to quick and I'll be dropping him off at college. I think the tears are just beginning for this Momma Bear.

Vacation Time is Almost Here!

We can hardly breathe here at Casa Baker now that Vacation is approaching!! I however have been super busy this last week getting a few things together for the boys and organizing our home.

I rarely have a day where I am motivated to throw out things we don't need anymore, but the other day I was! I loaded up 2 large boxes and hauled them off to Savers (thrift store) to donate. I try hard not to keep  stuff just for the sake of having stuff, but it's hard! My greedy, comfortable American heart has a hard time parting with things. However, I feel fantastic about lightening our load this week and plan to purge a few more items this coming week as well.

I have been organizing the boys' things and getting them ready for our trip. As promised here is a look into what the kiddos do in the car to keep entertained (quiet).

The boys road trip entertainment box is almost ready for us to roll.

Here are a few things that I like to include in my LONG trip with the boys box:

1. Lots of books! My boys both love books. I include the usual car and truck kind of course and then also animals, lift the flap books occupy them for longer and my older son likes to the look & find books.

I pull the books from their bookshelf about 2-3 weeks before the trip so that it's been quite a while since they have seen them.

2. Their Leap Pads. These are old versions of leap pads that I purchased at the thrift store for about $3 each! When we get ready for a trip I go and buy new (thrift store) cartridges for them for about $2 each and they entertain the boys for at least an hour. Joe, my little guy, really loves his even though it's a little beyond his skill level, he still points his reader pen at all the pictures and listens carefully :)

 3. Little kid Ipods. Each of the boys has a pretend Ipod that they received as a gift at one time or another. They love listening to them and trading and listening to the other one too. They each play about 6 songs and kids like to sing along and "dance" in their carseats.

4. Dollar store doodle boards.

5. A couple of educational push-button electronic toys for my Big Boy. Joshua doesn't sleep in the car hardly at all anymore :( so I pack extra things for him to do since Joe will sleep a portion of any trip.

I saw this particular one listed on another blog as a god road trip entertainer and the next day found it at the thrift store for $1.99! Seriously how crazy it that!?!?! It makes different noises and then you match it to the correct noise source. ex: meow to cat

This is a writing and Drawing activity where letters and pictures light up on the screen and can be traced with a pen for writing practice. Another awesome thrift store find and writing practice is definitely something Joshua needs.

This has several options of learning games. One has letters that float by and use press the corresponding letter on the keyboard, another has 3 consecutive numbers and you find the one that is missing.

6. Car sets. Each of the boys has a rollup car set that I put in the stockings last Christmas. These are so cute and perfect for when we eat out on vacation. They like them in the car too, but then I use a clipboard to keep them stable.

I'm not sure if the kids are as ready for vacation as I am, but that's okay because I am ready enough for the entire family! I saw plain colored T's at the Dollar store yesterday and HAD to buy them and make vacation T-shirts for the boys. They're kind of silly but I love them and the kids are too little to know how crazy I am so they'll wear them!

Front View

Close up

Back view

It's still about a week until we leave, but I will be plenty busy will all the laundry that has to get done between now and then. Of course Luke wanted a T-shirt too, but I told him I didn't think so :)