The Santa Dilemma

So it is pretty obvious that the American Christmas and the Christain Christmas are in direct opposition. One embraces the spend all, charge all, spoil all belief. The other embraces the non-consumerist point of view. One credits Santa Claus. One credits Jesus. I know that many Christian families celebrate both aspects of Christmas, but our family is having a difficult time figuring out where our family will fall on that continuum.
Do I throw away all the 'traditional American' view of Christmas. Do we not do Santa? Do we not buy gifts? I am not so convinced.
This year, Carson is too young to know the difference, but next year he will be able to better comprehend what our ideals/traditions are surrounding Christmas. I enjoy giving gifts. I enjoy getting together with family. I love going to church on Christmas Eve. These are all things we hold dear. Like the Nativity story. Like baby Jesus. These are all things he will be exposed to the most. I am sure, he will hear about Santa too. However, none of his gifts will be from Santa. His behavior won't depend on "Santa watching". He is going to get his picture on Santa's lap. Probably see a few classic Santa films--like Rudolph or the Grinch. And probably sing a few Santa songs. Although he will be exposed to Santa and this idea of Christmas, I hope he realizes what is most important about our celebration of this date, the birth of the Lord.
So many people are so passionate about their view of Christmas. They will ream you a new one about not teaching about Santa. Or about allowing your child to believe in Santa. I don't care. This is how I feel. For me and our family, Christ will be the center of Christmas.

Thanksgiving to Recent

We had a great third annual Thanksgiving at our house again. Carson looked at the ads with Dad and our friend Andy. Then he tried every food on the table, and practically gagged on everything (texture issues). Finally we played friendly games with each other. Well, the Battle of the Sexes wasn't so friendly. :) It was a great time to bring both families together and celebrate all God's Blessings in our lives.








Thanksgiving weekend the girls went shopping and a big group of us went Friday night. Of course, Greg spotted the number one item on his list and me being so nice, bought it for him. The game Rock Band is so much fun. A bunch of our friends some over and played until 230am!! Good thing Carson was at Grandmas! After that, we started decorating for Christmas and even Carson was loving it, calling out "OOH< OOHHH!" for everything new that lit up. It has been a fun week!

Big boy!!

Things are going along at a dizzying pace! Carson will be 9 months old next week. His third tooth is about to pop in. He is a few falls away from walking. Life is crazy and is throwing us curve balls right now, but I know we can deal with the changes!!

Carson's First Halloween

Carson was such a trooper on Halloween, he didn't even mind his costume. He actually played into his role of a little Dragon and was growling at passing trick-or-treaters. We didn't take him around, the candy wouldn't have been for him anyway. We just set up a trunk along side our family and friends at church and passed candy out to little costumed kiddos. It was a fun night! Carson did great!

October Fun

This past weekend we attended a Halloween Party (carson stayed over night at grandmas). We had a blast with our good friends. I was Vema, Greg was Shaggy, and our friends were Fred and Daphne. Hopefully some pics of Carson in his costume will be coming soon.
With the nice weather, Carson has been able to get outside and play in the leaves, he loved it!!

Wild Weekend

Last weekend, we went on an adventure with eight other close friends. There were five couple in all that committed to this trek, of sorts. We left the kids with sitters and set out early on Saturday. The day was filled with waiting, indecision, and, most importantly, adrenaline. The lines at Cedar Point, Halloweekends, were outrageous. We waited over an hour just to get a simple burger for dinner at a little stand. We waited to ride rides. We waited to leave. We waited to go to the bathroom. But all that time waiting allowed us to talk, laugh, and get to know each other even better. After our long day at Cedar Point we retreated to our hotel for some much needed sitting! It was a great weekend with friends. We had a blast. Next year, we will return but NOT in October. September or May, when the kids are in school, might be a better bet. Still, it was fun!

Before I was a Mom

This was an email I got from a co-worker, I loved it...

Before I was a Mom-
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.


Before I was a Mom-
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom-
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom-
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put him down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom -
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom -
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

So Far, a Busy Fall

So far things have been crazy. Our lives have been filled with visiting friends, going to new and fun places with Carson, and enjoying the nice fall weather so far. Carson is now 'crawling' more like doing the worm, he has two teeth, and is saying da-da. Things are really fun right now with our little family. Soon, Greg and I will be taking a weekend off and heading down to Cedar Point with our friends. That should be fun :) Hope everyone is doing wonderfully!!

Missing my Little Man

For some reason this week I am really missing Carson. It has been hard to leave his smiling little face at grandmas. I just wish I had more time to spend with him. I am trying to workout for 30-45 minutes 3-4 times a week, so that takes more time away. I started my Masters Program, which is 3.5 hours a week, which takes more time away. I feel so sad when I leave him, knowing that I won't be back for another 12 hours. Hopefully this won't last long, and it won't cause any damage to him. I doubt it will. That is just me being silly. Maybe the nasty weather today doesn't help. I miss my Carson.

School is in Session

Well, it is back to work I go. It has been a fun summer to be home with Carson. We stayed in and played most of the time, but did have some fun adventures. He continues to amaze us with his joy and strength. I will miss the little man when I am at work, but I think it is good for us to have some time apart, he was getting really attached!

He got up on his hands and knees for the first time today. He will probably be crawling sooner than we thought. He has been scooting around some, but then surprised us today by getting up and staying on his hands and knees. What a crazy kiddo! We will be chasing after him shortly, I imagine :)

I hope everyone had a great summer. Wish me luck at work!

End of Summer

Well, summer is coming to an end, all too quickly. Carson is turning six months old on Saturday, all too quickly. Such is life, I suppose. Summer has flashed by. It has been a fun experience being a stay at home mom. Carson has grown and developed exponentially since our first day off in June. A couple of days ago he started saying MaMa--of course only when he cries :) and yesterday he started shaking his head no--mimicking us. He is sitting almost by himself, and he can hold himself up on the couch while standing. I am sad that I have to go back to work. I don't want to miss out on all these milestones. All the little things that make him who he is. Not to mention that I don't want to wake up at 5:30AM! BLAH!
Another highlight of our summer has been our crazy decision to go and get the tattoos that we have been talking about since we got married, five years ago. Greg drew mine up based on my love of tropical settings and a favorite sunset picture from our honeymoon in Key West. Greg's is based on our newest addition. It is the actual hand print from when Carson was 3 months. The artist was so cool and welcoming. It was a great experience. We got a sitter, and actually had a few other friends there for moral support. Another friend also got a tattoo on her foot. It was a fun memory that we will have, quite literally, forever.
Lastly, I went out, without the hubby and son, to spend a fun night with my girlfriends. It was a fun night at a local restaurant and then bar. I was witness to some crazy mamas, didn't participate this time, but enjoyed myself. It was a great finish to my housewife summer. We have one last bash to look forward to, the Dodders. Hopefully that will be as fun as the past few.
So here is my farewell to summer! I am looking forward to my favorite season, autumn! Maybe I can get a cute picture of Carson in the leaves....Have a great last few days of summer!

The Zoo

Family and friends made it out to the Detroit Zoo on Sunday. It turned from rain to a hot, humid day! We had a blast, though. Carson slept quite a bit, like usual. However when he was awake he was enjoying himself. He was awake for the first exhibit we went into, the butterfly house and aviary. He loved the aquarium and he enjoyed watching the butterflies flutter about. It was a good time for the family. Now we have to spend today resting and recovering from the heat and exhaustion!

Five Whole Months!

Carson just recently hit the five month mark! I can't believe how much he is growing and learning. He talks non-stop, actually is starting to wave when we say "hi", and loves to stand-with our help. This summer has been a blast. I would love it if August crawled by. I don't want to go back to work!