1. Did you know that I have been pregnant with Baby Joshua my entire life? We didn't actually realize it, but when I was pregnant with Grayson, I was, indeed, also pregnant with Joshua. Our wedding? Pregnant. College? Pregnant. Prom? Pregnant. First day of kindergarten? That's right, pregnant with Joshua.
2. When the Hawkins were here we took the boys to an indoor playground at the mall. It is called the "preschool" play area and has a sign with a big hand showing the height limit (3.5 feet) to play. Now, everyone get ready, because I am about to get on my SOAP BOX. The area was severely overcrowded due to VERY TALL "preschoolers". These kids weren't even close to the height limit and most of them were playing very rambunctiously. They were shoving the APPROPRIATELY SIZED children aside, taking over the equipment and being downright mean to them. I was upset about the safety issue as well as the fact that the little kids couldn't really play, but let me tell you what really makes me HOT. Most of these older kids were big enough that they had to duck under the height sign to enter the playground, and most were old enough to read, and could probably produce a discourse on the ethics of height-based exclusion rules. When their parents let them walk in to play and sat and watched them, I felt (feel) they are teaching their children that the rules don't apply to them. They probably do this because it's more convenient for them at the moment than saying "no". Horrors! Just what we need more of in the world- more children with entitlement/authority issues. Children that become adults.
The play area is obviously not supervised by any mall employee, so I was 5 minutes away from putting on a name tag so that people would think I work there, and weeding out the big kids. I could discuss this subject for many more paragraphs, but I'll step off the soap box for now.
3. This past weekend I had to ship my baby off to Texas. I had started having some serious contractions that the docs aren't comfortable with (very painful, 3-4 minutes apart) and I need to keep this baby in for at least another week (past the 35 week mark). So I can't care for G anymore, and Mom needs to be able to work some because she will be here so much this Spring as it is. So off he goes, breaking our hearts. I'm not sure how we're going to deal- especially Joe- Grayson and he are especially close right now. I think G will be fine because he loves his Gran and Poppy and Hank and Texas. We'll keep you updated.
And I'll stop the list there, because no one likes a whiner. Ha!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
For Those of You in the Know
This is one of the birthday presents I received from Joe a couple weeks ago.
Awesome!
Clear eyes, full hearts, my friends.
And nice job Joe!
Awesome!
Clear eyes, full hearts, my friends.
And nice job Joe!
I'll Have the Hawkerson, Please
We just wrapped up a week of Team Hawkerson splendor. There has not been such a week for TWO and a half years and THREE and a half babies. Oh, how things change. But, oh the joy!
Between naps, feedings, changes, tantrums, and "teachable moments" (not to mention the kids, those were just my issues) there was play time, games, laughter, hugs and kisses. If there hadn't been an invalid among the group (not to name any names, ASHLEIGH) there is no telling WHAT craziness could have happened.
As it were, we
(boys to the Air and Space Museum)
(TH favorite Chipotle)
(this is how G felt about getting off the carousel)
(Night out a Ray's the Steaks- thanks to Brian and Abby!)
Used some good, old fashioned teamwork
(Sara won this game for any of you Settlers' players out there)
(Oh the indescribable joy (!!!!!) the boys took the planter down!)
("Helping")
And, of course, wore matching T-shirts
(Ben, Allen, Nate, Sara, Ash, Gray, Joe)
Between naps, feedings, changes, tantrums, and "teachable moments" (not to mention the kids, those were just my issues) there was play time, games, laughter, hugs and kisses. If there hadn't been an invalid among the group (not to name any names, ASHLEIGH) there is no telling WHAT craziness could have happened.
As it were, we
Played in jammies
Went on a few outings
(boys to the Air and Space Museum)
(TH favorite Chipotle)
(this is how G felt about getting off the carousel)
(Night out a Ray's the Steaks- thanks to Brian and Abby!)Used some good, old fashioned teamwork
(Sara won this game for any of you Settlers' players out there)
(Oh the indescribable joy (!!!!!) the boys took the planter down!) 
("Helping")And, of course, wore matching T-shirts
(Ben, Allen, Nate, Sara, Ash, Gray, Joe)We love, love, love you guys. It was such a joy to have our boys together. Thanks for sacrificing so much to come and for taking care of us!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Man of the Year
Ya'll. My husband is always the man of my year, but this year he has outdone even himself.
Even in the best of times, although we don't always like to admit it, I can be slightly high maintenance. In a pregnancy year, you can forget it. It's over, done with, finished. I'm a mess. But then throw in a toddler (that doesn't eat or grow, and is frequently sick), full-time French, house remodeling, travel, shoveling foot after foot of snow all winter, the flu, and now, bed rest. And the guy is not only still standing, but has done it all gracefully, with a happy, well-loved wife and son to show for it.
I'm not saying this is an easy thing for him to do.
First of all, Joe is a (selfless) world-class worrier and it can overwhelm him. His thoughts are always filled with love and concern for his family and their well-being: the pregnancy and any discomfort associated with it, my state of mind, and G's intake of food (or lack thereof), health, development, and growth. However, instead of internalizing all these issues and letting them paralyze him, he gets busy serving his family, seeking the Lord's wisdom, and talking things out with me and others he trusts.
Secondly, as my Mom has always said, whatever Joe decides to do, he will work to be the absolute best at it. In the past this meant captain of the HS basketball team, valedictorian, Corps Commander and graduating with honors. More recently it means husband, father, and employee. As far as his career goes, I consider him wildly successful. Seriously. He is still in the early stages, but his co-workers love him, he is excellent at what he does and most important of all, he loves his job. On the father front, he did an excellent thing in passing on his personality genes to Grayson. The kid is sweet, laid back, and obedient. (We won't get in to what my genes would've done to the poor baby). Joe is the apple of Grayson's eye and his best buddy. As a husband he is funny, loving and constantly making sure that my needs are met. And don't just take it from me: our previous roommate Michelle (or Hawk for those of you who read the LPM blog), says that as soon as she gets engaged she will be sending her fiance to live-in with us for husband training with Joe. All of this to say, that in taking care of his family he works EXTRA hard. He doesn't just make sure things are checked off the list, or "good enough". He goes the extra mile to be the man God has called him to be. During a recent marriage mentoring session he told the engaged men that he doesn't consider his job done each day until Mama is happy and little boys are fast asleep. Wow.
I have to give credit where credit is due. First of all, the Lord continues to shape Joe into a man that will please Him. Clearly his parents have done a fantastic job and Grayson and I will always be indebted to them. However, there is a group of people that I have never thanked or expressed my personal belief in how important their influence was/is in his life: his maternal grandmother and aunts. Those Wootan women have set the example of hard work, leadership, how to treat people, and all out FUN. Texas summers for Joe and his cousins growing up meant adventure, laughter, good food and lots of manual labor- the perfect combination if you ask me. The boys that came out of those families are all as good as gold. So to Znobia, Charlotte, Cindy, and Zee- thank you and know that you are held in high esteem in this family.
I could go on and on with stories and examples of why Joe is always my Man of the Year, but I will cherish those for myself and leave you with some pictures.
Joe- you're my favorite and I am so lucky to be starting another year with you!
Even in the best of times, although we don't always like to admit it, I can be slightly high maintenance. In a pregnancy year, you can forget it. It's over, done with, finished. I'm a mess. But then throw in a toddler (that doesn't eat or grow, and is frequently sick), full-time French, house remodeling, travel, shoveling foot after foot of snow all winter, the flu, and now, bed rest. And the guy is not only still standing, but has done it all gracefully, with a happy, well-loved wife and son to show for it.
I'm not saying this is an easy thing for him to do.
First of all, Joe is a (selfless) world-class worrier and it can overwhelm him. His thoughts are always filled with love and concern for his family and their well-being: the pregnancy and any discomfort associated with it, my state of mind, and G's intake of food (or lack thereof), health, development, and growth. However, instead of internalizing all these issues and letting them paralyze him, he gets busy serving his family, seeking the Lord's wisdom, and talking things out with me and others he trusts.
Secondly, as my Mom has always said, whatever Joe decides to do, he will work to be the absolute best at it. In the past this meant captain of the HS basketball team, valedictorian, Corps Commander and graduating with honors. More recently it means husband, father, and employee. As far as his career goes, I consider him wildly successful. Seriously. He is still in the early stages, but his co-workers love him, he is excellent at what he does and most important of all, he loves his job. On the father front, he did an excellent thing in passing on his personality genes to Grayson. The kid is sweet, laid back, and obedient. (We won't get in to what my genes would've done to the poor baby). Joe is the apple of Grayson's eye and his best buddy. As a husband he is funny, loving and constantly making sure that my needs are met. And don't just take it from me: our previous roommate Michelle (or Hawk for those of you who read the LPM blog), says that as soon as she gets engaged she will be sending her fiance to live-in with us for husband training with Joe. All of this to say, that in taking care of his family he works EXTRA hard. He doesn't just make sure things are checked off the list, or "good enough". He goes the extra mile to be the man God has called him to be. During a recent marriage mentoring session he told the engaged men that he doesn't consider his job done each day until Mama is happy and little boys are fast asleep. Wow.
I have to give credit where credit is due. First of all, the Lord continues to shape Joe into a man that will please Him. Clearly his parents have done a fantastic job and Grayson and I will always be indebted to them. However, there is a group of people that I have never thanked or expressed my personal belief in how important their influence was/is in his life: his maternal grandmother and aunts. Those Wootan women have set the example of hard work, leadership, how to treat people, and all out FUN. Texas summers for Joe and his cousins growing up meant adventure, laughter, good food and lots of manual labor- the perfect combination if you ask me. The boys that came out of those families are all as good as gold. So to Znobia, Charlotte, Cindy, and Zee- thank you and know that you are held in high esteem in this family.
I could go on and on with stories and examples of why Joe is always my Man of the Year, but I will cherish those for myself and leave you with some pictures.
Joe- you're my favorite and I am so lucky to be starting another year with you!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Christmas 2010-There is Hope!
After I wrote this title I realized that many of you might think I would be writing about the Christmas Miracle of the baby Jesus and the hope He brought to the world. I fully support and endorse that kind of hope too, but alas, I am not writing about that today.
Following the Christmas Catastrophe of 2008 and the Christmas Miracle of 2009 we were wary of what Christmas 2010 could bring. We were hopeful it would be nothing too crazy since Hank, the perpetrator of the aforementioned Christmas excitement, was safe and sound in Texas. Then last weekend we became concerned that we might be having our own Christmas birth with Joshua, WAAAAAAAAAY too early, including a fast-track membership into the preemies mom's club (which Martha has forbidden with good reason). We are so thankful to report that not only is Joshua still snug as a bug in my tummy, but there is HOPE that I won't be on strict bed rest for too much longer! Evidently the contractions I have had are not causing me to "progress" or get the baby going in any way. Which is a miracle because of course I had to go and FALL DOWN THE STAIRS on Tuesday morning. It was only three or four stairs and to those of you wondering, "Why weren't you holding on to the rail and did you have the light on?", amazingly enough I was actually holding on to the rail AND the light was on. The baby gate at the bottom stopped me. So it was back to the hospital to monitor the babe and me. I only had one contraction over a couple hours time and he looked great.
Because of all the non-progressing, the doctors now let me sit up as long as I have my feet up as well. For any of you that have ever been on bed rest of any reason, this is HUGE. I go back to the doctor in a week and a half and if I am still "not progressing" I will be able to get up even more! The further I make it, the more I can do. They have said that at 34 weeks I can do almost anything and at 36 I could even do an aerobics class if I chose. (Which by the by, who would choose that at 36 weeks?)
So there is HOPE! yay!
We kept our Christmas pretty low key. We let Grayson have his stocking first on Christmas morning. This was a mistake. We had put a bunch of cars in it and once he saw those he was decidedly not interested in opening any more presents! (See below)
Merry Christmas from Team Dickerson!
Following the Christmas Catastrophe of 2008 and the Christmas Miracle of 2009 we were wary of what Christmas 2010 could bring. We were hopeful it would be nothing too crazy since Hank, the perpetrator of the aforementioned Christmas excitement, was safe and sound in Texas. Then last weekend we became concerned that we might be having our own Christmas birth with Joshua, WAAAAAAAAAY too early, including a fast-track membership into the preemies mom's club (which Martha has forbidden with good reason). We are so thankful to report that not only is Joshua still snug as a bug in my tummy, but there is HOPE that I won't be on strict bed rest for too much longer! Evidently the contractions I have had are not causing me to "progress" or get the baby going in any way. Which is a miracle because of course I had to go and FALL DOWN THE STAIRS on Tuesday morning. It was only three or four stairs and to those of you wondering, "Why weren't you holding on to the rail and did you have the light on?", amazingly enough I was actually holding on to the rail AND the light was on. The baby gate at the bottom stopped me. So it was back to the hospital to monitor the babe and me. I only had one contraction over a couple hours time and he looked great.
Because of all the non-progressing, the doctors now let me sit up as long as I have my feet up as well. For any of you that have ever been on bed rest of any reason, this is HUGE. I go back to the doctor in a week and a half and if I am still "not progressing" I will be able to get up even more! The further I make it, the more I can do. They have said that at 34 weeks I can do almost anything and at 36 I could even do an aerobics class if I chose. (Which by the by, who would choose that at 36 weeks?)
So there is HOPE! yay!
We kept our Christmas pretty low key. We let Grayson have his stocking first on Christmas morning. This was a mistake. We had put a bunch of cars in it and once he saw those he was decidedly not interested in opening any more presents! (See below)
Merry Christmas from Team Dickerson!
Monday, December 20, 2010
The Bed Rest
Well, there has been a change of plans in our household over the past couple of days.
My pregnancy has been humming along quite nicely, just like Grayson's, and Saturday marked the first day of my last trimester (28 weeks). I can't say that my body is the best at being pregnant, I have lots of aches and pains, nausea and fatigue, but all things considered am very healthy- no complications. Well, baby Joshua (yes, we're having a boy and have named him Joshua) decided to up the ante on Saturday night around midnight. Of course. We ended up at Labor & Delivery where they monitored me all night, um morning, rather. Around 3 am I started having contractions. They were so mild that I didn't really feel them- it just felt like cramping- but the nurse came in and said,"Um, you're having contractions every 2-10 minutes." Because my bloodwork and a sonogram had already shown that everything was normal, Joe and I thought we were in the clear and would be released after we saw the doctor in the morning. We were SHOCKED. Cue the IV and shots of Terbutaline, a medicine used to stop the contracting. I was dilated to 1 cm and 20% effaced. Thankfully, my body responded quite well, and the contractions stopped within 30 minutes.
I was released by 9 am to go home, prescription for more Terbutaline in hand and ordered to bed rest. Fantastic. No problem! It's not like I stay at home with a busy toddler every day. Sorry for the sarcasm. Thankfully, Joe is off work for most of the next couple of weeks so we can make some plans and rally the troops. I'm not yet sure if this is going to be for the duration of the pregnancy or how strict of bed rest it will be. Joshua measured a week and a half ahead of schedule in the sonogram; he's almost 3 lbs, so that was encouraging. I go back to the doctor on Thursday morning and if anything changes I'll let ya'll know! The great thing is that I feel totally fine and every one is *currently* in good spirits!
I will leave you with this: Joe's favorite "look" during the winter is jeans with a thermal under a T-shirt. This morning was the first one he got Grayson up and dressed. (Not first time ever, but, you know). This is what G came out wearing:
Not the best picture, but I think you get the idea.
I just love it and I love that Joe.
My pregnancy has been humming along quite nicely, just like Grayson's, and Saturday marked the first day of my last trimester (28 weeks). I can't say that my body is the best at being pregnant, I have lots of aches and pains, nausea and fatigue, but all things considered am very healthy- no complications. Well, baby Joshua (yes, we're having a boy and have named him Joshua) decided to up the ante on Saturday night around midnight. Of course. We ended up at Labor & Delivery where they monitored me all night, um morning, rather. Around 3 am I started having contractions. They were so mild that I didn't really feel them- it just felt like cramping- but the nurse came in and said,"Um, you're having contractions every 2-10 minutes." Because my bloodwork and a sonogram had already shown that everything was normal, Joe and I thought we were in the clear and would be released after we saw the doctor in the morning. We were SHOCKED. Cue the IV and shots of Terbutaline, a medicine used to stop the contracting. I was dilated to 1 cm and 20% effaced. Thankfully, my body responded quite well, and the contractions stopped within 30 minutes.
I was released by 9 am to go home, prescription for more Terbutaline in hand and ordered to bed rest. Fantastic. No problem! It's not like I stay at home with a busy toddler every day. Sorry for the sarcasm. Thankfully, Joe is off work for most of the next couple of weeks so we can make some plans and rally the troops. I'm not yet sure if this is going to be for the duration of the pregnancy or how strict of bed rest it will be. Joshua measured a week and a half ahead of schedule in the sonogram; he's almost 3 lbs, so that was encouraging. I go back to the doctor on Thursday morning and if anything changes I'll let ya'll know! The great thing is that I feel totally fine and every one is *currently* in good spirits!
I will leave you with this: Joe's favorite "look" during the winter is jeans with a thermal under a T-shirt. This morning was the first one he got Grayson up and dressed. (Not first time ever, but, you know). This is what G came out wearing:
Not the best picture, but I think you get the idea.I just love it and I love that Joe.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Randoms
1. Grayson kissed a sheep on the mouth. We took Grayson and Ami D (Joe's mom) to Mt. Vernon a couple of weekends ago. It was the perfect outing for G because it is a huge plantation that he can explore without having to cross the street. (Not to mention gorgeous) There was a pen of sheep and he was having a good time petting them and feeding straw to one sheep in particular, all the time calling it "wuppy" (puppy). I turn away for one second and when I look back, Grayson has leaned in straight to the lips and the sheep obliged. He is a very affectionate and tenderhearted child which is precious and I have to say that I am probably more comfortable with him kissing the sheep than putting his mouth on the grocery cart.
2. We have received a 2 year old parking ticket from Italy. In Italian. A final notice came to an old address from Florence yesterday. Joe had no idea that there had been any type of infraction while we were there and we are concerned that it is a scam. However, upon further research we think it is the real deal and my husband, being the honest man that he is, feels like he needs to pay the 105 EURO. He is pretty sure that he was driving in a restricted area and a traffic cam caught a pic of the rental car and traced us that way. We are wondering what happens if we don't pay it, because obviously we had no problem returning to Italy and renting another vehicle. Oh, and what happened to the other 2.5 years worth of notices? (Allen, we will be contacting you shortly to discuss the appropriate action to take)
3. Katie bar the door! The Aggies are going to a respectable bowl game and we ended the season ranked.
4. The best money I spent all month was on a pink baby doll stroller. And it is Grayson's. He had such a great time with them during our trip to South Carolina (at all the little girls' houses) that I decided to check them out at Target the other day. $10! Are you kidding me? I snatched that sucker up and prepared for the verbal onslaught once Joe got home from work. It sounded like this,"Why couldn't you have gotten him a toy lawnmower?" (because he's never seen YOU push a lawnmower since we don't have a yard and he wouldn't have any idea what to do with it) "Why couldn't you have gotten a blue one?" (someone please find me the blue baby doll stroller out there. Purple, maybe.) Never mind the fact that the child played with the thing for 3 hours straight that afternoon, completely changing MY life. Joe has adjusted to the stroller for the most part, except for yesterday when he asked me if we could take the fabric off the frame and dye it blue. I pointed out that the frame would still be pink and he stood down. Let it by known that Grayson will not carry any sort of doll or stuffed animal in the stroller. He will allow race cars, sticks from the ground, and sometimes his milk.
That is all.
Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!
2. We have received a 2 year old parking ticket from Italy. In Italian. A final notice came to an old address from Florence yesterday. Joe had no idea that there had been any type of infraction while we were there and we are concerned that it is a scam. However, upon further research we think it is the real deal and my husband, being the honest man that he is, feels like he needs to pay the 105 EURO. He is pretty sure that he was driving in a restricted area and a traffic cam caught a pic of the rental car and traced us that way. We are wondering what happens if we don't pay it, because obviously we had no problem returning to Italy and renting another vehicle. Oh, and what happened to the other 2.5 years worth of notices? (Allen, we will be contacting you shortly to discuss the appropriate action to take)
3. Katie bar the door! The Aggies are going to a respectable bowl game and we ended the season ranked.
4. The best money I spent all month was on a pink baby doll stroller. And it is Grayson's. He had such a great time with them during our trip to South Carolina (at all the little girls' houses) that I decided to check them out at Target the other day. $10! Are you kidding me? I snatched that sucker up and prepared for the verbal onslaught once Joe got home from work. It sounded like this,"Why couldn't you have gotten him a toy lawnmower?" (because he's never seen YOU push a lawnmower since we don't have a yard and he wouldn't have any idea what to do with it) "Why couldn't you have gotten a blue one?" (someone please find me the blue baby doll stroller out there. Purple, maybe.) Never mind the fact that the child played with the thing for 3 hours straight that afternoon, completely changing MY life. Joe has adjusted to the stroller for the most part, except for yesterday when he asked me if we could take the fabric off the frame and dye it blue. I pointed out that the frame would still be pink and he stood down. Let it by known that Grayson will not carry any sort of doll or stuffed animal in the stroller. He will allow race cars, sticks from the ground, and sometimes his milk.
That is all.
Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!
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