Winding Down the Mayhem

A friend of mine recently used the term 'Mayhem' to describe this month and I think it hits the nail on the head!  Between all the school stuff and the Jonah stuff and Mother's Day (I think this was started by a president and seriously - a man had to have made that day be in May.  No woman would do that to herself), my birthday, and our anniversary, and so on and so forth...and throw in a little surgery somewhere in there and you get crazy people!

But we are crazy in love over this one:

And apparently he is crazy in love with his watermelon.  He doesn't so much like eating them, just holding them.  Maybe it's a situation like Wilson in the movie Castaway, and every time we serve Jonah watermelon he feels cannibalistic.  I don't know...but I think it's a theory worth pondering.

He had on his Lewis onesie there because he was Simba for field day!  

Ok that probably doesn't make sense if you're not from England, Hogwarts, or the school where I teach.  We divide our high school students into 'houses' and at the end of each year the houses compete in field competitions to boost their points from the school year (for academics, service, etc).  The entry onto the field is the first event and this year Lewis House did a Broadway themed 'Lion King' complete with gazelle, lion, giraffe, and elephant costumes, and Jonah as baby Simba being held up.  By a student.  Standing on a cooler.  In the back of a truck.  On a football field.  

Yes.  We're very responsible parents.  Why do you ask?

In other news, I turned 30 and I couldn't be more thrilled.  As another friend said, the thirties are so great because you're finally comfortable in your own skin.  Yes.  It's so true.  

I got to celebrate on my birthday eve with cherished friends and on my actual birthday my boys took me to my favorite country haunt and a rooster crowed and this happened:

But it was smooth sailing from there as we sat outside listening to jazz put the sun to bed and enjoyed delicious food.

Sunday we invited our dear new friends over to Oma and Opa's for a cookout and had the best time.  Jonah swam for the first time and apparently that is quite his thing.  He LOVED it!!  I was so tickled that he loved it so much.  

Monday was our anniversary but we didn't make reservations in time for the place we had a gift card to, and so we decided to take raincheck on celebrating that...quite literally since this is what it's been like lately!  So wonderful!  

I feel like I live in Seattle and it's made me want to watch a lot of Frasier (and I did get about 5 minutes logged yesterday! Woohoo for mommy watching TV!).

Papa went to see Godzilla and Jonah and I enjoyed listening to jazz (a music choice which seems to be a recurring one here lately) and baking cookies.

It was wonderful and I relived our wedding the whole day.

It's a little hard for me to believe that I'm still as giddy over Howard as I was on our wedding day, and even much more so now that we've gone through so much life in the last 7 years and I've seen his character only strengthen and his wisdom only deepen.  

How in the world did I land that guy?!  

(The only thing I can come up with is well, I didn't. ; )

9 months!

I have to share that I already happen to have knowledge of who Jimmy Fallon's replacement will be on the Tonight Show.

Jonah Short.

What a HAM.  

Technically Jonah turned 9 months yesterday, but because I had a faculty meeting yesterday we made his well visit checkup for today, and well, it just seemed appropriate that I wait to blog then too. 

He came in at 95% for height, 75% for weight, and 90% for head.  I'd say the head part is genetic.  As are some other things...

Let's just put it this way: I'm sure we brought home the right baby from the hospital.

But if anyone needs yet further proof, hear this.  Jonah is not doing well in unstructured group environments.  

Sorry world.  There's 2 of me now.

He is really crawling on all fours, trying to pull up to standing, I've received a handful more of "Mama"s since that fateful day on May 15, and Jonah is preparing for his future Tonight Show takeover by experimenting with various voices and impersonations.  Currently his favorite is a clowny, throaty sounding voice combined with the reverberating rattle of gurgled spit.

He's big on spit.

He has two top teeth in addition to his trusty bottom chompers (that didn't sound right...) and he's gearing up for an upgrade in food.  

He loves to show us his muscles (a little trick we did not even teach him - he taught us!), and he is a CUDDLE BUG!  Any mood, anywhere, anytime.  Jonah loves being held.

Oh and yes - his hair is doing great.  He'll appreciate you asking.

Stay tuned tomorrow!  I will be doing a summer reading post!  I can't tell you how excited I am to read, read, read!

Danger: theological musings from a non-professional

I've been listening to the Bible on audio today via my Bible Gateway app.  I've never done an audio version of the Word (besides hearing it read in person).  It's so cool!  I get a ton more scripture in my day than if I try and wait until I can sit down and read...and I notice things I never have before!  Like what does it mean that people began calling on the name of The Lord after Enosh was born?!  They just started then?  Surely it can't mean relying on Him, but perhaps an actual name He gave them.  I mean there was a curse and no epidurals.  Somebody had to have cried out to Him.  A mother's son died.  I can't imagine she didn't call upon The Lord, with whom she had even dialogued.

Or were Adam and Eve mad at God?  Did they wrongfully direct anger at the curse toward God, and teach other generations to do so as well?

I don't know.  Here's what I do know.  I'm exhausted!  Good night all.

OU football and a friend's house (that's how we know she's our friend):

Cheap zoo at the Walmart fish tank:

 

HERE COMES A SPECK

Well.  Blogging these days just seems to be on the back burner for me.  May is a crazy month!

It also hasn't helped my blogging (I say that like it's a second career or something) that after a several-year hiatus I'm back on Facebook.  And, just like before, I'm addicted.  Only this time around it's so much better because I got to start from scratch and friend people I'm actually friends with.  I know.  The geniusness.

And yes, I'm old enough that I actually still try to type in "thefacebook."  That must mean I'm about to be 30.  

And even though I have started coloring my hair and Howard is salt-and-peppering, nothing made me feel quite as old as what happened tonight.  

Howard and I made plans to watch a movie.  Jonah is such a great sleeper and without a routine to get ready and gear up for tomorrow, we just found ourselves with an evening of time!  We saw it coming in advance and rented Gravity with Sandra Bullock and George Clooney and Sandra Bullock's underwear.  

Seriously.  Is it just me or is every single movie she's ever been in feature her underwear??

Anyway, we're sitting down to start the show and I had on my glasses, which are out of prescription so I can't see far away very well with them.  The start of the show was a black screen with small white lettering of sentences that were setting the scene.  The font was weird and they were a little blurry so I asked Howard to read those to me.  

I guess he decided I just couldn't see anything and would need help through the whole show because after those sentences finished and the image of the space shuttle came on, and it was clear that our attention should be drawn toward the right of the screen where a small white object was getting bigger and bigger,  Howard startled me by shouting - in all manner of seriousness and in a loud, clear, very frank voice  and tone - (as in the kind that's slightly twangy and feels like it should be followed by the word 'Mother') "HERE COMES A SPECK."

Well.

After the initial shock of being so helped in watching a movie, I proceeded to lose it to hysterical cry laughing because nothing makes you feel 85 years old like your husband shouting at you what's happening on the TV you're staring at.

It's good to know we have a head start on the growing old bit.  

In other news, we have a precious baby.  His development is really starting to take off.  He scoots and sits up, his memory is apparent as he knows where the books are, he knows if he puts his finger in the back of the 'In My Nest' book it makes the birdy move.  He waves hello and bye-bye, and in a moment of sheer joy that has not been repeated and thus has Howard convinced I am fabricating tales, he said, "Mama."

I know you said it, Jonah.  May 15, 2014.  The day I've waited for my entire life.  Sigh.  What profound joy to be your mama.  

Even if I am so old your father shouts the movie play-by-play to me.

Or maybe that just means he's old.

Let's go with that. ; )

The Storm Outside

After a whirlwind day of MOPS, teaching, the Dinner Circus, the Bath Party, the Bedtime Rodeo, I find myself in bed, exhausted, and grateful. 

Grateful for the storm threatening to rage outside.  Grateful for my husband who fills our home with so much love and fun and magic.  Grateful for my friends, old and new.  Grateful I just got to leave that sentence and go answer the call to put the pacifier back in the mouth of the most precious little (term to be used lightly) baby boy.

I had a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday.  After a close call (and unabashed stomping of my foot) with eating burgers, we landed at the only (girly) place left in town with room at the inn and it was lovely.  I got my eggs benedict and peach iced tea and Howard didn't didn't find anything on the menu to eat because he says he doesn't eat squirrel food, and that on Father's Day we're going somewhere that feeds people, not squirrels, and that on his birthday we're eating somewhere that will actually feed you... : )

But Jonah did enjoy the food.  He tried some of my orange, strawberry, melon, and even had some cheese biscuit!  He was so good, too.  He's always so good.  Maybe he'll want to run around soon, but right now he is so fun and easy to take places.  He loves listening to people's stories and watching them talk and get animated.  He's always up for a new adventure.  And with him there always is one.

I have no pictures because that's a whole headache I can't go into right now.  I just want to hand my computer, phone, and camera to someone and say, "Here.  Fix this." 

*Sappy lesson tie-in alert

And that is life currently.  My mind is on overload.  My memory capacity is full (and since my Erin Condren life planner isn't available for pre-order until June there's nowhere to dump all my saved mental files ; ).  There are storms of life threatening to rage right outside my door.  But in my home there are three people who are happy and healthy. After almost two years of grief, morning sickness, and multiple other complications from babies, that is huge.  And I am grateful.