Life and 8 Months!

The kids turned 8 months on Sunday. This has been the most eventful and fun month so far since they were born. B has been pulling himself up on stuff. He'll crawl (scoot around on his belly) on the floor and get to wherever he's headed and then stand up. It's cute to see him grab my leg or the recliner and then stand. He'll crawl right over to us, hold his arms out, and climb up. The worst part is that he falls and gets hurt. It just breaks my heart. What I've noticed most is that he really pays attention to our expressions. If we look worried and scared, he cries more. If we just say, "uh oh" or "it's okay", he calms down and smiles. He's also been sticking out his tongue and giving us raspberries on our arms or legs (started on March 29th). He has learned to mimic our behaviors. It just goes to show how much kids pay attention to us, even when we're not looking.

They had their 6 month vaccines on March 25th (they waited so long because B has been sick on and off.) The doc has concluded that B probably suffers from allergies.

• B and K are in size 3 diapers (B can still fit into 2's though
• B is still wearing some 0-3 outfits! K is wearing 3-6 and 6-9 month outfits.
• Both are eating solids well - the routine usually consists of an every 3 hour routine of an 8 oz bottle in the morning, fruit with oatmeal, bottle, veggies, bottle, veggies, and another bottle before bed. They usually get water or juice with their solid foods.
• Mom keeps them three days a week, daycare one day, and Grams or Kevin keeps them on Fridays. (Boy, I am so thankful for family!!!! This would be so much harder if I didn't have them.)
• Neither use a pacifier anymore.
• B stands up in his crib now and grabs at the turtle nightlight on his dresser.
• K giggles at everything now, especially animals. She shakes her head like Stevie Wonder, too. Haha. Oh, and she can put her finger in her nose! Silly girl. Still isn't crawling yet. She can do it if she wants to, but she's not usually quite as motivated as B.

This past Sabbath, we went to the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens. (We were originally planning for the zoo but it was packed so, we went to the Botanical Gardens instead since it was right across the street.) We spent time together and got some really cute pictures. We dressed the kids up, put sunblock on their faces, arms, and legs, and put them in hats. They stayed in the stroller for most of the time. B slept for about half the trip. K really enjoys being out in the sun.

Since we were near TCU, we had lunch at Panera. Neither of us have eaten there and we were NOT impressed. Jason's Deli has much better quality food for the same price. The atmosphere is nice, but it's not worth the cost.

PERSONAL RANT:

I cannot even express how much I have changed since the kids were born. I have been given a completely new outlook on life. My family has become the most important thing to me. I have reached the point of watching very little television and being okay with that. I would prefer to spend time with my children and husband. There are days that we don't even turn on the television. I am so thankful for a husband that doesn't need to sit in front of the tv and watch sports for hours on end. He is a compassionate person; one who has a love for nature - plants and animals. He comes home after working a long day and plays the role of Daddy. No complaints - ever. Many times, I don't even have to ask him to do something because he's already done it. He knows me and knows what I would want to be done.

On the topic of my views of life changing, I have been thinking of how I want the kids to be raised. I've mostly been making homemade baby food because I want them to grow up eating "real" food and not jarred. I feel biology taking over and I have this sense of needing to be a wife and mother. When there are nights that I can't cook or I spend as much time with the kids as I want to, I feel like I've let my family down. Sometimes, I feel like work keeps me from performing my biological duties of being a wife and mom. When I bring work home or stay late, I have less time to do the things God has asked me to do - take care of my family. I love teaching. I just think I am mentally and emotionally drained.

I have been thinking about my spirituality, also. I have been out of church for a while now, and I need to get back...soon. I wasn't raised to be a specific religion. I was just raised to be a good person, have good manners, and treat others with respect. When I got to college, I became Seventh-day Adventist. After I graduated, I started working for a Cumberland Presbyterian Church in town and I joined. I met my husband while I was working there (he was not a member, I just met him somewhere else) and eventually, I moved on to teaching and left the church. I have found my true friends. Out of the two churches I attended, the people I knew from the SDA church and college still contact me on a pretty regular basis. I very rarely hear from the people of the church in which I worked and had worship for almost three years straight. My true church home is an SDA one. I want the kids to be raised in the church with strong values and beliefs. This is where I think we need to be. We are having many family discussions so this is still a work in progress. :)

Charla