Smiles

Sawyer has started smiling! Honest-to-goodness-not-pooping smiling! :) It's still on occasion and I don't think he's completely aware he's doing it yet, but when we tickle him, there's an occasional smile. We noticed that he started doing this last night on the changing table before bed. He also giggles in his sleep. It makes me laugh. A lot. BTW, he's adorable.

I also paid off ANOTHER loan today! Hurray! I'm VERY excited about this. Dave Ramsey would be so proud :).

I've included some pictures of Sawyer (I got flack for not putting pictures up last post).
Not so good news....

Lynn, Dean's mom, is going back in for drip chemo after she gets back from her trip here. The spot in her lung has grown. Dean told me it wasn't a lot, but any bit of growth with cancer is not so good. Please keep her in your prayers.

Speaking of prayers.... please keep the Ashauer family in your prayers. They lost a daughter, mother, aunt, and sister early this morning. She was only forty. She left behind not only her sisters and parents but her husband and ten-year-old triplets. We rejoice that she is no longer in pain, but we are saddened by the loss here on earth. I'm so thankful that her children will remember her and got to spend ten blessed years with her.

Death, you cannot end my gladness: I am baptized into Christ!
When I die, I leave all sadness To inherit paradise!
Though I lie in dust and ashes
Faith's assurance brightly flashes:
Baptism has the strength divine To make life immortal mine.


 I've included some pictures of Sawyer (I got flack for not putting pictures up last post).

';;p;l  <------Biblo says hi.

 Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!!!

More House Pictures

Not too much has been going on lately. We're still settling in, and I'm still trying to find a wayward box of pyrex dishes. Frustrating.

Sawyer has slept through the night for quite a few nights in a row. Last night was not a good night. He woke up at 3:30. Prior to that he'd been sleeping in until at least 4:30 since Friday night. Hurray!!

 Kitchen

 Kitchen (With stellar table from antique store)

 Kitchen/ Breakfast nook

 Kitchen

 Spare bedroom (COME VISIT)

 Spare bedroom

 Doesn't the bed look comfy?! It has your name ALL over it!

 Downstairs bathroom

 Sawyer's Room---furnishings by Paul, Margaret, and Ashley

 Awesome picture/ coloring book that Lynn put together

 Reading Corner

 THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR!!!

Sawyer's Closet-- In case you were worried Sawyer didn't have enough books...

 ....Don't worry, he does!!

I'm still not done putting pictures of the house up. Both my office and our bedroom are kind of messy. I've been going through closets trying to find the wayward box (I still maintain a house elf---or a little-- took it). Anywho, that may mean that it looks like the closet threw up into the room. I'll get the last two up hopefully by the end of the week. We'll see.

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!!

Homestead (in part)

Since most of you haven't seen our home yet, I've taken a few pictures. I'll add more later. I haven't taken pictures of upstairs or the kitchen.

 Front porch right side (Rockers and table came from awesome antique store)

 Front porch left side

 Front of house

 Living Room

Living Room (and my super duper new chair/ table from super antique store)

 Living Room (and our Ghetto TV set up--- the table was Mom's when she was a girl)

 Living Room (You can see the cradle in the corner from Aunt Sandy/ the table is a goody we found at that awesome antique store)

Living Room (Eventually will have a picture collage above it)

 Dining Room (Tim made most of the wine)

Dining Room (Seating for 12---come visit!)

 Dining Room (Bookshelf that Dean designed--Opa built shelf/ Lynn made stained glass)

 

 Hallway/Stairs (David/Bek painted)

 You know who this is (he's playing on "Biblo's" really big play mat)!

He misses everyone! 

He's becoming a pro at both Skype and Facetime---if you ever want to chat!

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!!

Kerr Lake

We finally made it to Kerr Lake. We didn't spend much time there, but it was enough time for Sawyer to get his feet wet!

**Disclaimer--Sawyer started crying BEFORE we actually got in the water. He may have given himself a "bath" while I was trying to put on a different diaper and started his fussing then. **

I've included a video and some pictures for your viewing pleasure. :)

After Kerr Lake we came home for about an hour and a half. Margaret and Ashley took us to dinner. You'll never guess what we ate....

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!!


****I tried posting this on FRIDAY. I had to go to the library to get the video to download. Sorry it took so long!

Hills

I learned how to run in "northern" Southern Illinois. We don't know what hills are. I know what an overpass is.........

I think I ran the direction of the overpass maybe once. The rest of the time I ran toward flat land (although Mom still calls that direction a hill, but that's another story). When we lived in Overland, I ran in the neighborhood which was conveniently a circle with one hill. I ALWAYS ran in the downhill direction. I don't like hills.

Well, as most of you know, I had a baby! Surprise! That means I haven't run in oh...9ish months. It also means I'm still carrying around more weight than I'm used to. Did I mention I hate hills? In comes North Carolina.... didja know there are hills in North Carolina? In BOTH directions!?!?! I suppose it'll force me to be a better runner, but yeesh, I hate hills. Needless to say, my twenty-five minute run turned into a five minute run followed by a twenty minute walk. Oh well. I'll get used to it. At least Dudly and I still enjoyed ourselves!!

While hills aren't much fun to run up, they ARE really pretty.

Down the road...

 Across and down a bit from the cemetery...

What I saw when I turned the other direction...

OK...the last one I didn't take on my run, but he's still beautiful!!!


Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!

Adapted Recipes

I found both of these recipes online...or the idea for them. I didn't actually follow either recipe.

Banana "Ice Cream"

Peel banana. Cut it up. Freeze it. Put it in blender (they used food processor). Add heap of Nutella (they said leave plain or add peanut butter and cocoa). Blend. Eat.

The next recipe I looked at several different recipes to get an idea and then threw in my own stuff.

Stuffed Peppers

1 lb pork sausage
A whole lot of garlic (I'm not sure. It was a really big bulb)
2 jalapenos 
1 tomato
1 block of cream cheese
Dried minced onion (dumped a bunch in)
Fresh basil (tore up a bunch and threw it in)
5 bell peppers (any color)

Cook the sausage and "gut" the bell peppers. Chop and dice the garlic, jalapenos, and tomato. Put everything but peppers in a big bowl and mash together. (I did this while the sausage was still hottish. It helped with the cream cheese.). Stuff peppers. Bake at 400 for 45ish minutes.


Note: You might want to throw the garlic in while you're cooking the sausage. Dean informed me the garlic wasn't quite done. He loved it. He also reeked this morning.

Mail

I love getting mail. Especially when it's awesome mail. Like diapers. I love diapers. Sawyer got a package in the mail today from his Aunt Meaghan and Uncle Dum...David. He hasn't worn them yet as they need to be seasoned (washed three times), but as you can see from the picture, he adores them already.

For those who weren't aware, we're using cloth diapers. They really save on cost especially in the long run because they can be used for multiple children. We tried to steer clear of the "boy" diapers and go with gender neutral diapers. We DO have a few diapers that are more "boy" diapers. Dinos, cars, and the like, but most are useable for both a baby boy or girl. These diapers will also work as Sawyer is being potty trained. Not having to buy pull-ups? A win. Not having to buy endless amounts of disposable diapers that end up in landfills? A definite win.

I'm also told cloth diapers aren't what they used to be... Hallelujah!

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!

Six Weeks!

SIX WEEKS!! Doing a dance! I am now able to carry things that weigh more than Sawyer. This is good because I want to organize the basement and that involves moving boxes. I also want to work in my closet area where some of my books are stored. That involves moving HEAVY boxes. It also means that I can work out. I really want to go for a run today, but I need to see what Dean plans on doing around 5:30. I can also go on the longest roller blade adventure of my life. Of course, I have to find somewhere to roller blade. I don't consider rolling around the tennis court exactly an adventure. Which brings me to TENNIS! I have a tennis court located to the side of my house. Dean needs to learn how to play. Tennis is good because its a two person sport. We just need to be wary of Mr. Sawyer when we play. I also need to reflate my basketball because there are basketball hoops located on the tennis court as well. Unfortunately, none of these sports are volleyball. I need, need to find a volleyball league around here. I haven't played since May. It's driving me nuts. I'd settle for coaching, but that'll need to at least need to wait until next year. I'd also settle for sand, but sand is not nearly as wonderful as court. Watching Olympic volleyball absolutely drove me crazy.

It's hard to believe that Sawyer is SIX weeks old. It doesn't feel like it's been that long. Granted, our life has kind of been a whirlwind of activities since (and before) his appearance. I have a feeling though that life doesn't exactly slow down when you have a child...

Sawyer has been sleeping pretty well during the night except last night. He woke up at 2 and ate. Then he decided sleeping was for the birds. He also didn't want to be in his crib. So, we went downstairs and sat in MY comfy new recliner/rocker and rocked to sleep. He finally fell asleep around 4. Needless to say, this mama is TIRED today!

I took a picture of him right before bath time last night. He was a pretty content little guy. I'm very glad he was covered by that burp rag though. While I was taking the picture, he decided to give himself a "bath". He got to FaceTime Nana and Grandaddy before bath time. After bath time, he decided we needed to Skype Grannypooh and Grandpappy. It was a wonderful evening!

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!

My life is a perfect graveyard of buried...

pacifiers?

I'd like to point out that the look on his face is Sawyer trying to push some goodies out. They followed the click of the camera.

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!

P.S. My child WILL enjoy Anne of Green Gables. :)

Schedules

As many of you know, I like schedules and routine. My whole day is thrown off if my morning routine isn't just so. Well, living with other people for a month did that. Moving to a new home did that.  Not having a "day" job did that. Having a baby REALLY did that. Needless to say, with everyone gone and things settling down into some semblance of normal, I'm finally getting a schedule back--albeit, not the one I was used to.

Today we're also starting a routines and schedules with Sawyer. I read an awesome article (very well written) about schedules, babies, and what the mama did with her three girls (all of whom were sleeping 8 hours a night by week 8 and 10 hours by week 12--I should be so lucky. I'm not holding my breath.).

This is what Sawyer's new schedule looks like.

7am--wake up/change diaper/ eat num-nums/ STAY awake and play
8:30--nap
10am--wake up/change diaper/ eat num-nums/ STAY awake and play
11:30--nap
1pm--wake up/change diaper/ eat num-nums/ STAY awake and play
2:30--nap
4pm--wake up/change diaper/ eat num-nums/ STAY awake and play
5:30--nap
7pm--wake up/change diaper/ eat num-nums/ STAY awake and play/ Bath time
10pm--eat num-nums/ go to bed (sleep through the night?)

We'll see if it works. I'll admit. Today already didn't start as planned. He'll be going to bed a little later than 10. Sawyer had a tummy ache this morning. He wouldn't take his first nap. So I tried having him lay on me to sleep. That worked, but by this point it was already almost 10. Furthermore, his sleep was really restless and around 11 kept crying out in his sleep. I felt helpless. I knew he didn't feel good. I let him sleep until 11:30. Needless to say, it's 1:36. He should be awake right now, but he's sleeping. I'll wake him up at 2:30.

I'd also like to point out that this schedule works out really well with the church schedule. :)

Here's a picture of a fantastic bib that Margaret got at the LWML conference (I think?).

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!!

Accomplishments

Sawyer is a pretty lucky young man. He's already done so many things in his life. I can't believe he'll be six weeks old on Wednesday!!

Sawyer has been to four (count them...four) different LCMS churches (St. Paul (Hamel), Holy Cross (Wartburg), Holy Cross (Collinsville), St. Paul (Norlina)).

Sawyer has slept through SEVEN worship services (6 typical Sunday mornings and an installation).

Sawyer has been to an installation service for a pastor.

Sawyer has lived in two states.

Sawyer has flown (and slept the whole way) on an airplane.

Sawyer has gone to school (visited my former students and colleagues when he was a week old).

Sawyer has visited the IC (headquarters for the LCMS).

Sawyer has used both Facetime (and successfully hung up on Grandaddy--oops) and Skype.

Sawyer has number oned all over four of his grandparents (great grandparents are in the clear).

Sawyer has numbered twoed all over Aunt Diane and made a little mess on Uncle David (Dum Dum).

Most importantly, Sawyer became a child of God's.

He's a special little boy (but we already knew that didn't we...)!!

Here's a picture of Sawyer getting ready for church this morning. I'd like to point out that this 0-3mo outfit will not fit him next week. He really was too long for it today. I'd also like to note that he's wearing a different outfit since he decided to make poo-poo when I was talking to Melanie. Thank goodness he was wearing pants at the time or Mommy'd be in a different outfit, too!!

On a different note... I think I'm going to become obese. One of Dean's new parishioners, Hazel, makes these stellar rolls. I'm not capable of eating only one or even two. In fact, I'm pretty darn good at eating six...or seven. with lots of butter. they're yummy. we've gotten like six tray fulls...

Hugs and kisses from Norlina!

Tracking Video

He's getting better at it!

Hugs and kisses from Norlina!!

Luke Michael

Meet Sawyer's new best friend. OK. So Sawyer doesn't know he exists yet, but he will! Skype play dates! I fully intend on doing this with my friends that have newbies. As many of you know, I have several pregnant (or now--not pregnant) friends that are due in the next few months (or delivered yesterday).

Emily and I have known each other since I was 5 and she was 6. We went to grade school together and then high school. I wouldn't say we were the best of friends all those years. We actually didn't really enjoy each other's company until we were in middle school. Throughout high school we really enjoyed tormenting my brother while carpooling to school, frequent stops at QT for hot chocolate, and the "new" rest area they put in between Hamel and Edwardsville. They sold snacks. We were hungry. Needless to say, I was ecstatic to learn that she was pregnant and due a month after I was (only...his birthday turns out to be September 13).

Here's a few pictures of the little guy I can't wait to meet, Luke Michael. :)

Grown up stuff

We were going to go exploring, but alas, grown-up stuff made us do grown-up things. We ended up going to Farm Bureau and getting both car and renters insurance. We also figured out what we needed to do in order to get our licenses and license plates. Goody. Let me tell you how excited I am to take that test. Not.

It looks like next Friday we'll be doing that. Hopefully we can take Sawyer to Lake Kerr next Friday, too.

Here's a picture of Sawyer chillin' in the boppy.

He's cute. I know.

Bilbo is going to end up getting himself killed. I don't know how he balances up there.

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!

Tracking

Sawyer is officially tracking things with his eyeballs. We've been using a colorful rattle. As we move it, he rolls his head (and eyes) back and forth! How exciting!


In other news, my good friend, Emily, had her baby today! Welcome to the crazy world, Luke!

Things I will miss...

I love North Carolina. It has long been my favorite state. It has the beach and beautiful forests, but let's be honest...it has the ocean. I love, LOVE going to the outer banks or, for that matter, any beach. If it has waves, salt water, and sand, I'm game (this is not to confused with a "beach" on a lake--salt water and waves are a must). This is one thing I will NOT miss about IL. I hated being landlocked for 16 hours in any direction. Being 3 or so hours away from the beach is FANTASTIC.

I created a top ten list of things I'm going to miss (I did not include family or friends on this list because that's kind of a given). They are in no particular order.

1. The City Museum. I'm like a really big kid. It's my jungle where I bruise/cut up my knees and bump my head. If you haven't been to the City Museum, go.

2. The Muny. I wasn't able to go this year what with it being ridiculously hot and my being pregnant, but I thoroughly enjoy watching various musicals from the free seats.

3. Freeness. There is a whole of stuff to do in STL that is free. Most cities aren't like that (thank you Anheuser Busch).

4. Madison County Trails. These are the best trails in the whole.wide.world. They are flat and smooth. Roller blading on them is a cinch! The trails in the city...not so much. When we lived in the city, we'd venture over the river for the trails alone.

5. Volleyball. I played volleyball every Sunday (up until I couldn't play physically anymore). I'm going to miss the group I played with and playing volleyball in general. I really need to find a league out here. Pray it's not too far away.

6. Chorale. I sang with my mom, Dean's aunt, and his cousin. I loved it. It was more challenging than church music and it gave me one more opportunity to sing during the week. Our director was fantastic. Actually, make that stellar. I absolutely loved singing under him.

7. Crown Candy Kitchen. St. Louis's oldest ice cream parlor. Yep. It's delish. Again, if you haven't been there, go. The food is cheap (The BLT (minus the L and T of course) might give you a heart attack, but it's so worth it.) and the ice cream is quite yummy. If you dare, take the 5 malt challenge. I'd probably throw up, but I don't like ice cream as much as some people.

8. Flat. People who live in "upper" southern IL take the flat for granted. When storms are coming, they're visible for a good ten miles if not more. As I'm sitting on my porch typing this, I think I can see maybe three. This is probably only due to the fact there's a hilly field across the road, or it'd be more like one. Don't get me wrong. I love trees and hills, but I am going to miss the flat lands filled with corn, wheat, and beans that are the norm back home.

9. Schnucks. Don't mock me. I like habits, routines, and knowing where things are. Plus, I love their produce.

10. Forest Park. This includes everything from picnics, the Zoo, Jewel Box, History Museum, ice skating, etc. It does not include the Art Museum. I still do not enjoy going there, but I am going to miss all the other features of Forest Park. Off the record, one day I really want to roll down Art Hill.

I didn't include the Melting Pot (original chocolate fondue--the kind with chunky peanut butter in it and Carmel Apple Martinis, OH MY!) because there is one in Raleigh. Heck, yes.

I also didn't include the Collinsville Book Sale on here because I'm currently sitting next to a flier that has information on it about Warren County Library's upcoming book sale in October. Shh. Dean doesn't know yet. :)

I'm obviously also going to miss teaching, but I didn't want to put that on my list since I did get paid to do that. That being said, I got a whole lot of book reviews and ideas from my students. I'm going to need book suggestions sometime in the near future.

I am NOT going to miss living in the city. Neighbors, cars, and smogginess are not my idea of fun. I'm looking forward to the quiet of the country. In fact, Sawyer and I are already enjoying it sitting on our front porch.

I am looking forward to exploring the activities around the area. I've already gone to the library, and we ventured into Raleigh. Unfortunately it wasn't for anything to exciting, but I did get a hot dog and Sprite at Costco. :)

After we dropped Mom off at the airport, Sawyer and I took the opportunity to snuggle on my new chair. I snapped a picture of him as he was starting to stir (I put him in his swing so I could get stuff done and he slept another 1.5 hours...).

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!