Here we come, 2014...

Goodness. It's been awhile. I know. I'm hoping to do better this year! (But I have twice the number of kids I did before, so don't hold me to it.) ;)

Photo Credit K&R Photography

Most of you know that our sweet baby girl, Mary Alice, arrived on December 25, 2013... Yep! Christmas Day! Aside from the whole labor thing, it was my favorite Christmas present ever. :) I will try to get her birth story written down soon (to share with anyone who wants to read it!). Thus far, my professional motherly opinion is that having a newborn is easier the second time around. That's some hope for those of you who haven't taken the second kid leap yet! I think that's God's way of being merciful when you have rambunctious (or "busy," as people politely call him) first child to chase after too.


Jonathan is doing very well with her, I think! Half the time he is in his own world and pretends she doesn't exist. But sometimes he asks to hold her, and he is always the first to be alerted to the fact that she's crying. I like to think it's a protective brother instinct. ;) He had a bit of a rough time soon after she was born, which I was expecting. But then it stopped abruptly when Jon went back to work (thank heavens!!). Jon was able to take two paid weeks off after she was born which was a humongous blessing. We truly love being around each other and just hanging out as a family, so even though we were sleep deprived, we had a whole bunch of fun figuring out the "new norm."

We are Babywising again with Mary Alice and she is doing very well! She eats every 3 - 4 hours and once during the night. We've also started cloth diapering her this week. I know I'm biased but cloth diapered babies are just precious. I really feel like we've saved so much money - Jonathan is still wearing the diapers we got him as a newborn! It's quite a relief to get back to little baby poop. Jonathan is already a full-grown man as far as that goes... Ugh.

Speaking of my little man, he amazes us daily with everything he's learning! It is incredible to get to watch a little brain develop. He knows pretty much all his animals (and the sounds they make... He even does a sound for a squirrel... Not sure where he learned that...) and he knows most of his letters and what they stand for (D for daddy, etc.). He also has a "big boy" haircut now. I might have been a little emotional about it. ;) Some of our favorite Jonathan sayings:

"Booga!" (when he hears one of us blow our nose) 

After dinner, he usually goes through a list of dessert requests: "Nut-nut? (doughnut) Coo-coo? (cookie) Mu-mu? (muffin)" And if none of those have worked, he asks for a banana as a last-ditch effort. 

He's started letting me know when he has a dirty diaper: "Poop. Nasty." 

He loves all things boy. Balls. Trucks. Trains. And puzzles. They're his new favorite. And so is Mr. Potatohead from Toy Story. Because we believe in the parental right to use TV as a babysitter on occasion. Go ahead and judge. ;)

Work is going well for Jon. He has been spending a lot of time working in the NICU pharmacy, which he really enjoys, and the rest of the time he is usually taking care of various clinical responsibilities. We continue to look back over the last few months and feel more and more affirmed in our decision to stay in Albany. The Lord has provided above and beyond what we could ask or imagine!


Probably the biggest single blessing here has been our sweet church family. We have really enjoyed getting to jump in wholeheartedly since we know we'll be here for at least two more years. Jon had the opportunity to lead a small group Bible study through the book "How People Change" over the last few months. We loved having people in our home every week to learn about true heart change together, and we're looking forward to doing the sequel book in the coming months! (I recommend it if you haven't read it!)


As for this Mama, I am busying myself with keeping the rest of the fam fed, happy, and clean (sort of). I finally became a licensed pharmacist in early December (insert Aaron Murray fist pump), and am planning to do some PRN work starting in March! (My thought is that maybe if I can say I work "part-time," the state of my house will be more acceptable. ;))


Well, that's it for now. Better go check my clothes for poop and/or spit-up before the kids wake up. Being clean for at least 20 minutes is worth it, right??