Missing the Mark

These pictures have nothing to do with this post other than the fact that I took them this morning when we were reading the verse I talk about in this post! Also, the cuteness! :)

Lately God has been teaching me that some of our biggest flaws as humans actually stem from our perfect design as God's creation. They become flaws when they're misdirected. Silly people, we mess up perfectly good things all the time. Some people refer to sin as "missing the mark," and the reality of that is becoming quite clear to me. Yes, I believe in evil and I believe we are fallen, depraved people in need of the saving grace and love of a savior. But I also think that most of the sin in our lives is really just taking the attributes God has given us and using them in ways he did not intend.

I think we can see this all the way back to the original sin of Adam and Eve. Why did they eat the forbidden fruit? They did it because Satan convinced them they would be like God and have all his knowledge. Is it bad to desire knowledge and to be more like God? I don't think so because we're called to be more like Jesus in our lives. But the desire to be equal to God, to the point that you would doubt, disobey, and lie to Him to get what you want, well of course that is sin. And that is what Adam and Eve did.

This morning Scott and I were reading in Ecclesiastes 4:4:

And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one's envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Gosh, how true is that?? How often do we work hard to achieve certain things, whether that be status, power, wealth, relationships, a certain type of car or home, to be a certain type of parent, to have a certain number of followers on our blogs...all because we see someone else who seems to have what we want and that makes us want it all the more? We can all agree that envy is not a good thing, but I think it stems from us looking to others as our role models. Do you strive toward a certain career because someone influenced you? Do you strive to have certain standards, morals, values, etc...because of what you were taught by your parents, teachers, friends, church, TV, music, magazines, movies, etc...? I think we can all say that yes, most of our toil and achievements come from looking to someone or something as a model or guide. And why do we do that?

I think because God calls us to follow Jesus, to learn from Him, to become more like Him through the power of sanctification by the Holy Spirit. We were designed with this plan in mind. Wewere created to be a people who are driven to model their behavior and attitudes after someone else. Following Jesus was part of the plan from the day God created us. So it only makes sense that we have an innate impulse to follow others. The sin comes in when we misdirect that impulse to modeling after people/things other than Jesus. And when observing others as a means to gauge who we want to be, it's a slippery slope before envy sets in. It can easily become more than just hey, I really admire that person to I really want/need/desire what they have and it is making me angry and frustrated that I can't seem to achieve it!! God does not want us to waste our energies on those types of feelings!

When else can our innate, God-given characteristics turn to sin? How about the fact that we were designed to be creatures of worship? God created us to worship Him. At the core of our being, we desire to worship. But so often that desire gets misdirected to other things. Even atheists worship something. It may be jobs, money, spouses, children, clothes, television, sex, drugs/alcohol, sleep... it could be any number of things. And it's not always bad things. No one would tell you that you should not love, honor, and devote yourself to serving your spouse. But you certainly should not worship them in the sense of feeling they can do no wrong and they are your security in life. People are imperfect. They will always make mistakes, and in some way at some time they will let you down.

We were also created with a hunger. A hunger for the Lord. Everyone has it, but not everyone recognizes it for what it is. Instead, they try to fill that insatiable part of their souls with other things. Again, you see people modeling after the wrong things, worshiping the wrong things, and filling their lives with something that will never truly satisfy them. They will always be left hungry.

Even something like gossip! God calls us tell the world about Jesus. He create us with the ability to talk at length about someone else! To share the news with the world. The story of Jesus's death and resurrection is the best news there is for us to share! But instead, we use that ability to share the secrets of others and our unkind opinions. Even our design of loving others and being concerned for them can easily slip into gossip. How often have you started talking about someone's situation from a place of concern, possibly even as a prayer request, and found yourself getting a little bit of a thrill from sharing all the juicy details...maybe way more details than necessary for the prayer request? Yikes. I'll say it again--it's a slippery slope!

I feel like we can trace most sin back to misdirection. It's like God gives us these great gifts and we just mess them up! I know I do it all the time.

What do you think? Are there flaws or sins in your life that you can trace back as something with an originally good purpose and intent? Maybe if we can spend a little time reflecting on that and praying about it, we can start to redirect our intentions to God's desires for our lives. That definitely makes the thought of overcoming sin seem much more attainable and desirable to me, rather than thinking of just having to "do better" or stop this or that. Instead, let's seek God to ask how He wants us to use those things. They aren't really flaws if we use them as He wants! How cool is that??

Be blessed!
Christy

{Almost} 17 Months!

It's been a while since I've done an update post about the little boy. He'll be 17 months old in a couple weeks. I should probably wait and update then, but there's no guarantee I'll find the time to blog then. So...here it goes!!

I can't believe how much he's changed in a year...and it's just flown by!!

Sweet snuggles in the morning with Daddy!

Vacuuming with Daddy! Lucky me!! ;)

He's ready to join the worship team like Daddy! :) {Am I sensing a Daddy theme here?? You can tell who this kid looks up to!}

Excited about his Valentine's gifts from his Granna! (wouldn't hold still for a good picture! Kids...!)

All bundled outside!

Silly selfies!

We love selfies!!

So funny!!

New Moves:

+ dancing! He sticks up elbow out to the side, almost like he's about to start square dancing. We call it "getting the wing up!" He stomps around, back and forth from side to side, and marches. He also twirls in circles. He LOVES music!

+ running! all over!!

+ attempting to dress and undress himself (obviously still requires assistance)

+ can climb onto the couch and climb off of just about anything (both on his tummy and on his bottom)

New Words:

+I can't even begin to document this!! I pretty much assume he can just say whatever he wants! He repeats just about everything we say. He can say all the colors, all the animal sounds, Mommy, Daddy, Brett (my brother), cat, dog, Elmo, Bert, Ernie, Cookie, Grover, (sensing a theme there?) cracker, jacket, smoothie, coffee, Bible, God, bubbles, car, movie, books, fish, duck, star, circle, bath, rock, socks, shoes, cup, spoon, bite, help, please, bib, teeth, eyes, nose, head, toes, one, two, five, nine, garden, outside, bye-bye, night-night, the list literally goes on and on! I'm not even shocked when he says new words anymore! haha!

Food/Teeth:

+ he's currently cutting his 12th tooth (4th molar)

+ he's allowed to eat pretty much anything at this point

+ his appetite varies from day to day and meal to meal, and sometimes he'll like a food and next time he won't. He's picky at times and a "good eater" at others. I never know what to expect when we have meals or snacks!

+ black beans are still his favorite and don't judge me that sometimes he eats them like 4 times a week! It's our fall-back when he won't eat anything else.

+ usually loves Greek yogurt, applesauce, peanut butter, bananas, crackers, chocolate chips, green smoothies, cheerios (only when sharing with Daddy!)

+ still nurses on demand at home and drinks whole milk at school. Drinks from all kinds of sippy cups--rubber spouts, plastic spouts, straws...

Sleep:

+ ehhh...we had a really rough patch b/c he was so sick for a while, and we did a lot of traveling the month before that between the holidays and visiting friends. We are getting back into better routines and he's actually falling asleep IN his crib now, instead of in my arms! That's progress, friends!! I still stand beside his bed until he's fully asleep, but it's a step in the right direction!

+ still sleeps with a paci, but that's usually the only time he gets it, unless he's really sick or we're going on a long car trip (like 2+ hours)

Favorite Songs:

+ "I Like to Move It" from Madagascar 

+ "Elmo's World"  

+ the intro song for Sesame Street

+ Itsy-Bitsy spider 

+ If You're Happy and You Know It

+ pretty much any music that he can dance to (which is basically anything!) Lately we've been rocking "Uptown Funk" :)

Favorite Toys/Activities:

+ books!! Books are his favorite!

+ balls

+ blocks

+ puzzles -- he can actually put together the chunky wooden ones! Or at least put the pieces in the right places, even if he doesn't get them to fit perfectly in the slots

+ shape sorters - still working on this skill, but he gets it right a lot of the time!

+ coloring/drawing/arts & crafts

+ watching Sesame Street

+ playing outside, at the park, and going for walks

+ checking the mail with Daddy each evening

+ bath time

+ dancing 

Height/Weight/Sizes:

+ 24 pounds

+ about 30 inches tall

+ size 5 shoes, size 12 month pants, sizes 12-24 month shirts and PJs 

Other:

There's a growing need for discipline around these parts, and it's a difficult path to forge! We're still in the stage where he isn't intentionally being bad, but he's testing boundaries and relentless about figuring stuff out...even if it's something we don't want him doing. He gets frustrated easily when he can't do something and will let out a high pitch scream. We're trying to get past that, but part of it is just his developmental stage. We encourage using words or gestures rather than fussing or crying as much as possible. It's worse if he's sleepy, so we usually start "spiraling" close to nap or bedtime. Despite the normal challenges of having a toddler who is rapidly developing, teething, and still not the best sleeper, Grayson is an absolute joy! He makes friends wherever he goes. Any time we are out and about, people stop to tell us how cute or handsome he is, and he'll really lay it on thick with the smile and the eyes and all the charming little boy goodness he has! :) He's freaking hilarious and makes us laugh all the time. He makes the best silly faces and sounds! Lately we've enjoyed immitating laughter from the various Sesame Street characters. He can laugh like Ernie, Elmo, and Bert. :) He can also say "om, nom, nom!" like Cookie Monster. 

I'm having the best time being a mommy to this little bean. :)

 

 

Things I Learned Amidst the Plague

If you know me personally or follow my Facebook, you know my family has been through it lately! Grayson was very sick for a week, with a cold that turned into a nasty ear infection--resulting in two trips to the doctor, lots of calls to the on-call nurse, days of scary high fevers, and lots and lots of medicine! Then we had a good week. The dust seemed to settle and my little boy was my little boy again--running around and laughing. Then one random morning I started noticing little bumps on his body which looked like bug bites. In a panic, I stripped his bed and washed everything in hot water, wiped down his mattress with Lysol, and scanned every inch of everything for a sign of bed bugs. By late afternoon his bumps had increased and intensified, so we took him to urgent care. Turns out, he is very allergic to penicillin, so his antibiotics for the ear infection were taking a toll on his body. After just a couple days, my poor baby was covered from head to toe in large, angry looking welts and splotches. He was swollen, red-purple, and scratching until he bled. This resulted in more fevers, more medicine, and two more trips to the doctor. Oh, and lots and lots of time off work! Then, as luck would have it, I got a cold at the tail-end of all this and was sick for a few days. I worked through it because ain't no body got time for missing more work!

So, amidst all this unpleasantness, sorrow, fear, sleep deprivation, and generally horrible circumstances, I learned a few things.

1) Thank God for breastfeeding. Seriously. Thank you, Lord! I have never been so grateful for not having weaned Grayson yet. During the first round of illness, with the scary-high fevers, Grayson would not eat or drink anything. Anything. I suppose if it had come down to it, we could have syringe-fed him liquids to keep him from dehydrating. But thankfully, he wanted to nurse around the clock. And I was more than happy to let him. Breastfeeding literally saved us a trip to the ER for dehydration. Not to mention the comfort and antibodies I was providing him.

2) I know a lot about Sesame Street, y'all. Like, probably more than any of you know. I'm not bragging; it's just the truth. We finished all the available seasons on Amazon (we have been working through these for a while), and we started on Season 1 of a DVD of classic episodes. So, I have seen the very first episode of Sesame Street. It feels cool to say that. (I know. Mom life!) And with watching those first few episodes and seeing the vast differences between 1969 Sesame Street and current Sesame Street, I decided to do some Googling because what else am I doing anyway? So, I learned a lot about it. And I'm oddly obsessed now.

3) Speaking of Sesame Street, I learned a new word! Deciduous. Do you know that one? Well, I learned it from Sesame Street! It's a tree that loses it's leaves once a year. Whoop! I'm sure that will come up in casual conversation soon (I mean, other than me telling people that adults can still learn from Sesame Street!).

4) I would be lost with my husband. I already knew this. He prepares most of my meals, so it kind of goes without saying. ;) But for real...he was a life saver! He took turns staying home with Grayson so I wouldn't have to run through quite as much sick time. He took Grayson to two of the four doctor appointments. He talked to countless nurses on the phone. He administered syringe after syringe of medicine. And he was there to share my concerns, give me strength and encouragement, and pray with me through it all.

5) God is SO faithful. I know the whole attitude of hey, it could be worse, is only so uplifting during hardships, but it really is true. In light of all we were going through, I found myself thinking about others who were going through much more difficult times. I found myself praying for them and praising God for each blessing we had -- access to doctors and medicine, the ability to breastfeed, sick leave, sleep when we could get it, and ultimate protection and comfort. There was one night, after we had discovered the ear infection, that Grayson's eyes became bloodshot and goopy. I immediately assumed he had pink eye, on top of everything. I was feeling so defeated and exhausted. I prayed out to God so intently and purposefully that He would heal Grayson's eyes and he would wake up with them totally normal. The next morning I was prepared for them to be stuck shut with goop, but I honestly wasn't worried because I just felt like God had healed him. And he did! Grayson's eyes were never red or goopy again. Sure it could have been a coincidence, but either way, I'm thankful it was not an extra thing we needed to deal with!

6) Y'all, when they say nothing good happens after midnight, that is the TRUTH! More than once I had to get up with Grayson in the middle of the night and actually go out to the living room and read Goodnight Moon 40 times and watch an episode of Sesame Street before he would finally go back to sleep (darn you, Prednisone and your insomnia-inducing ways!). The only interesting thing that happened during those wee hours of the morning was realizing that my brother was still awake and making grilled cheese at 3:30 AM. Sheesh!

7) The moment you decide you're going to be super diligent about saving sick time and money (particularly from the health savings account) so you can start preparing for baby #2 is the exact moment that it all hits the fan and you start flying through both :( It was a real reminder that we'll need to rely heavily on God to provide for us and grow our family because our own efforts are only so useful. Our hardest work can be destroyed suddenly. But if God wants us to have another baby, He will take care of us in a way that we are unable to.

8) Our friends and family are wonderful. Everyone was expressing concern, lifting us up in prayer, and offering to help in any way possible. One friend even offered to watch Grayson for the day so we could go back to work. I ended up canceling on her b/c I thought he had pink eye, but her offer was still greatly appreciated!

9) I can't say enough about Bulloch Pediatrics. Not only did they take care of us for three separate appointments during all of this, but Dr Whitlock, who is not even our primary doctor, called to check up on Grayson the other night. And their on-call nurse triage system is a lifesaver! We've used it more times than I can count. It's wonderful!

10) I love being a mom. It's hard in ways I'm never prepared for. It's frustrating. It involves endless sacrifice. But the love I felt caring for my sick baby and the joy I felt in seeing him get better...nothing beats it. It's the most heart breaking and fulfilling thing I've ever done. I wouldn't have it any other way!

The first time Grayson finally ate again! It was an exciting moment! His very favorite food--black beans! (no, it's not chocolate cake as many FB friends assumed! But don't worry, I definitely tried chocolate cake the night before and it was a no-go! ha!)

Lately...

Praying for:

+ Scott & Grayson and our little family as a whole :)

+ This is probably bad, but I realize in writing this that I'm not consistently praying for any one thing or person lately, other than my immediate family. I can think of a lot of hurting people in my life, but to say I'm actually praying for them would be a lie. I guess for today, I will pray that I have more of a heart for those prayer requests and will actually turn to the Lord in praise and petitions. 

Working on:

+ Preparing for fall advisement -- I start next week!

+ Reviewing everything for my seniors, making sure they are good to graduate this semester.

+ eating healthier foods and trying out tasty new recipes each week

+ revising our budget with our smaller paychecks (since getting more insurance this year). We meet with the financial coach at our church this afternoon to go over everything!

+ a living will. It's long overdue and something that was actually on my summer to-do list last year, but it just never happened. We have all the information and the paperwork; we just need to sit down and fill it all out!

Hoping for: 

+ Grayson's newly developed cold to go away quickly!

Recently:

+ visited my best friend and walked around Providence Canyon and Uptown Columbus

 

 + Scott has been insanely busy lately with school, work, and his obligations leading one of the worship teams at a our church and leading our church small group. Mostly I've just been trying to keep up with his crazy schedule! Not much else has been going on lately! I think we're still taking it easy after the particularly busy holiday season. 

Reading: 

+ Stolen: The True Story of a Sex Trafficking Survivor by Katariina Rosenblatt and Cecil Murphey (my grandpa!) - so far it's very good! I'm a little more than halfway through. The first half of the book documents Kat's early teen life, her history of sexual abuse, and her repeated fall into the life of drugs and sex trafficking. Now, the book is taking a turn and Kat is sharing about her conversion to Christianity and how God saved her from that lifestyle. I can tell this is going to be a super encouraging book. It's not easy to read because you're constantly reminded that this is real life, but I think it's important for us to remember the very real hurting that is happening in our fallen world.

+ The Power of Habit - our office book club has been on a hiatus since before the holidays, but I just start reading this again this week. 

+ The Bible - specifically, Scott and I are alternating between 1 Kings and Mark during our combined study time. When reading on my own, I'm currently reading through Acts. Last night in small group we spent a fair amount of time in Romans. 

+ lots of children's books! Grayson LOVES books! Seriously, he likes them more than toys. :)

Watching:

+ We are caught up on the current season of Nashville, and we're impatiently waiting for the next episode to air! 

+ picking back up with Parenthood since we were exclusively on the Nashville train for a while there!

+ still occasionally watching the most recent season of The Voice. Maybe one day we'll finish it. Or they'll just finally take it off Hulu Plus. 

Listening to:

+ At this very moment, my Pandora is playing "Call Me Maybe." I'm not really listening to anything specific these days. I keep Pandora on shuffle, right now between Worship/Contemporary Christian, Andy Grammer, Taylor Swift, and One Republic. 

+ Still rocking out to TSwift's 1989 in the car :)

Laughing About:

+ I say this every time, but Grayson. Seriously. This kid is hilarious! I've been saying from the start that he has a great sense of humor, but it only becomes more evident as he grows in his ability to do and say more things. Being a mom is so much fun! :) And now, some pictures for cuteness! 

What have YOU been up to lately?

~Christy~

You Are What You Eat

Via

I didn't make some new years resolution to lose weight, get in shape, be healthier or really anything at all. Scott and I sort of stumbled into a relatively new lifestyle and it just so happened to fall right around the start of a new year. We each had doctors appointments shortly before Christmas. Scott's was just a regular physical and mine was for a relentless rash under my arms. Our appointments told us two different things about our health and our lives, and each bit of news spurred us toward healthier choices, particularly in our diets. Being the awesome team that we are, we have both embraced the goals and changes of the other.

Scott discovered that he has high blood pressure. It's most likely genetic because he already exercises regularly and eats fairly well. The doctor said it's "not if, but when" he'll have to go on medication. But he said Scott is really too young to be on it, and the goal right now should be to make changes that can hopefully prolong the amount of time before he has to start it. In addition to his regular exercise, Scott has decided to significantly reduce the amount of sodium in his diet. (When I use the word "diet," I mean it in the sense of what we regularly eat in order to live...he's not going on any particular type of diet in the way that most people think of the word.)

My doctor confirmed what I had already suspected from my obsessive Googling. I have something called Candida Overgrowth, which basically means my body has too much yeast. There are a lot of ways this can affect your body. One is the way that might immediately come to mind for ladies. For me, it's mostly a persistent rash under my arms. It doesn't sound like that big a deal, but I promise you an excessively itchy, ugly rash for months on end is no fun at all! In addition to some temporary medications and creams, the long-term solution is to greatly reduce (or even eliminate) sugar in my diet (yeast thrives on sugar!). I could never fully eliminate sugar! And that includes things that break down into sugar after you eat it (breads, pastas, alcohol, etc...). So, I'm not giving up all that stuff, but I'm looking for ways to significantly decrease how much of it I consume on a regular basis.

Neither of us realized how much sodium and sugar we were consuming daily. We started reading labels and really thinking about what is in our food. It was shocking really. I can't even imagine how much sugar I was eating every day! From my morning cereal, to my turkey sandwich at lunch, to whatever we ate for dinner (generally at least partially processed or pre-packaged), to our nightly frozen yogurt dessert! And the amount of sodium in things we didn't even think twice about, like seasoning packets for tacos and chili or a box of rice, is truly astonishing!

The easy answer has not been to go nuts reading labels. The easy answer has been to eat whole foods that take the mystery out of it. Fruits and vegetables are healthy. No reading and deciphering ingredients needed! Between smoothies, juicing, and just incorporating more fresh fruits and veggies into every meal, we have increased our produce purchasing to being over half our grocery bill and the majority of our shopping cart! It has been SO nice to not spend as much time going up and down each aisle at the grocery store!

Some other healthy things we have incorporated into our diets that you won't find in produce include: chia seeds, almonds, dried fruit (used sparingly...there can be a lot of sugar in those), quinoa, nut butters, Greek yogurt, coconut milk, coconut oil, and loads of spices and seasonings that don't include salt!

Pinterest has become a wonderful tool. I used to not like Pinterest. I felt like it was a waste of time and mostly just led to self-loathing and bitterness because I would spend time just pinning pretty pictures of things I would never own, never do, and never cook or bake. I never referenced recipes that I pinned, and most of what I pinned was extremely unhealthy desserts. But now I'm using it so much more effectively! We have been trying out 2-3 new recipes a week and honestly haven't had a bad one yet. It has been fun choosing new recipes together, making something new together, and discovering how delicious non-processed, fresh, whole foods can taste! I'm enjoying all the new flavors and I especially love how much healthier I feel as a result. I'm no longer bloated and uncomfortable, I'm thinner and trimmer than before, and even my skin and hair are more vibrant!

Here is what a typical day of food looks like for me (during the work week):

Breakfast: Green banana smoothie -- banana, peanut butter (have been using PB2 for smoothies), coconut milk, plain Greek yogurt, spinach, cilantro, chia seeds, drizzle of honey {today I did the same thing but also included a small amount of unsweetened cocoa powder} = YUM! Also a cup of black coffee with half a tablespoon of coconut oil and a dose of Vit D3.

Mid-Morning Snack: homemade "trail mix" -- 1/4 cup whole, raw almonds, 1/4 sunflower seeds, and a little less than 1/4 cup of raisins

Lunch: 1 piece of fruit (lately has been an orange) and a salad -- spinach, raisins, sunflower seeds, feta cheese, shredded carrots, cucumber slices, drizzle of balsamic vinegar (straight) and a TINY bit of ranch. {sometimes we include grilled chicken in the salad}

Afternoon snack: banana {may start bringing something else so I'm not eating so many bananas all the time!}

Dinner: Varies, but last night we had this delicious recipe! Black bean and quinoa tacos!

Dessert: sometimes we skip this, or we do different things. If we do ice cream, we usually get Kemps frozen yogurt (Moosetracks is our favorite!) and do 1-2 small scoops in a coffee mug. We have limited this treat to no more than 3 times a week, which is a big deal since we used to eat it 7 times a week!! (yes, really!) Other good dessert options include: chocolate banana smoothie, fresh berries, cup of hot chocolate, vanilla Greek yogurt {optional...top with any of the following: organic granola, honey, banana slices, berries, semi-sweet chocolate chips}, or just a couple graham crackers and a glass of milk.

For beverages, I have 1-2 cups of black coffee a day and other than that it's basically just water and my morning smoothie. We'll occasionally make fresh juices with our juicer. And yes, we do still drink alcohol, but very, very rarely.

Sometimes I'll have a glass of diluted, organic apple-cider vinegar before dinner b/c that helps regulate your body's pH levels, which can help with the yeast issue. Consuming ACV has other potential health benefits too. 

I've struggled with weight before, which you know if you've been reading for several years. I actually lost about 15 pound a few years ago just from working out a lot and eating a low-fat diet. But low-fat meant diet foods, and I have since learned how bad for you those things are! Now I steer clear of "low-fat" or "fat free" options, artificial sweeteners, and any pre-packaged diet meal that's probably loaded with sugar and/or sodium. It's truly amazing I was able to lose any weight eating like that! (I recommend the documentary Hungry for Change for more information about this, without all the Googling!) I do not claim to be a health expert, and am certainly not a perfect model of healthy living. But I've been amazed at the difference I've seen and felt in just a few weeks of making smarter food choices. I encourage you to give it a try! Don't worry about eliminating things from your diet just yet. Just work on incorporating more good things in, and eventually they start pushing some of the bad stuff out! :)

Happy Eating!

Tales of a Parent Tuesday! Vol. II

{Vol 1}

At Least it Wasn't Hemorrhoid Cream

If only he always slept this soundly! :)

It's 3:30 AM. Grayson has been extra fussy lately, waking several times a night and wanting to nurse every 1-2 hours. On top of a typical head-cold, he's cutting a molar. He's currently snuggled up next to me in my bed, an attempt to provide some soothing comfort to my poor, aching baby, and an attempt to provide some extra sleep to my poor, foggy brain! But then he wakes -- again -- in a frantic, shrill cry. One of those did-somebody-pinch-you-why-are-you-freaking-out type cries. 

Scott rolls over and mumbles into the pillow, "Did you give him milk?"

"Yes! I just gave him milk like an hour ago. I can give him more milk, but I think there's something else wrong." 

He reaches over to try and snuggle Grayson, who adamantly refuses, acting as though his daddy's warm embrace is an electrical shock or something equally horrifying. 

"Maybe try some orajel?" Scott suggests. 

"Okay. I'll go find it." 

In my sleepy stupor, I dig through the bathroom drawer. One day I will organize this thing! I shove aside travel size bottles of contact solution and half-empty bottles of Pepto Bismol and other medications, searching for something small and tube-like. I don't dare turn on a light, lest it wake Grayson up even more (because he's so peaceful while he's screaming). I pull out what I believe to be the correct tube. I squint my eyes, trying to focus on moonlight alone. I make out the word "Orajel." Bingo! 

I crawl back in bed, squeeze a tiny dab of gel on my finger tip and try to finagle my way between Grayson's gums without getting chomped by his 8 existing teeth. I do a half-hearted job, commence the inevitable nursing session, and try to get all of us back to sleep as quickly as possible.

The next day, Scott notices something unusual on my night stand. 

"Why is that there?" He asks, pointing to the small tube.

"It's the Orajel," I reply.

"Oh. Weird. I thought that was toothpaste. I got it from the dentist."

"No, it says right here, 'Baby Oraje...'" I pause as I read the rest of the wording on the tube. "Toothpaste," I finish reading. 

"Well, I'm not sure that helped his pain, but at least his mouth was clean!" Scott offers. 

I just have to laugh. At least it wasn't hemorrhoid cream or something else that's definitely not suitable for a baby's mouth. I guess that's what happens when you're operating on just a few hours of sleep and have to complete a task in the darkness with a toddler screaming in the background. The very fact that I found something that says "orajel" at all counts as a win in my book!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What crazy mistakes have you made during a night waking? I know we've all got SOMETHING!

Providence Canyon and Other Fun Things!

We spent last weekend visiting my long-time best friend and her family in Fort Mitchell, AL (basically just over the GA/AL line...very near Columbus, GA). We had such a great time! I had not seen Hayley since October, and that is too long for us! We've been best friends for almost 21 years now! We grew up together, just a few houses down the street but basically living together b/c we had sleepovers every single weekend and hung out until our parents made us come inside every week day. Hayley may as well have left her toothbrush at my house during the summer, she was there so often! Anyway, visiting her is always like a breath of fresh air! She has an adorable soon-to-be 4 year old and soon-to-be 2 year old. I assume that Grayson and her youngest son would get along the best, given they are only 6 months apart in age, but Grayson and Leland, her oldest, seem to be best of friends! It was SO sweet watching them play together and make each other laugh hysterically! I don't think I've ever heard Grayson laugh so much and for so long!

We spent a lot of the weekend just hanging out at the house, but we had some fun outings too! We spent the day hiking at Providence Canyon (AKA "The Little Grand Canyon") on Saturday. It is a really amazing place! You walk down to the canyon floor and walk alongside these massive canyon walls, all the while trekking through sticky mud from the stream running through the canyon. It was definitely an adventure with three little boys, two of which required being carried the whole time. Thank goodness for strong daddies and backpack carriers! Here are some iPhone pictures of our time at the canyon-- Yes, I realize I'm not in a single picture. #photographerfail

Hayley with her sweet boys -- Leland and Cody

Of course we had to spend some time exploring the playground!

He kills me how he looks like such a big kid in these last two pictures! Just chillin' and playing with sticks!

I guess I'm kinda, sorta in this picture! #shadow

After our trip to the canyon, we headed back to the house for diaper changes and snacks. Then, we headed back out to visit River Walk in Uptown Columbus. It is such a cute little downtown (uptown?) area with this beautiful river running alongside it. The area is really well maintained and there are nice walkways where people of all ages were jogging or going for walks. There were also TONS of people walking their dogs (both at the canyon and River Walk), which Grayson was thrilled about! Every second he was pointing out dogs and waving and shouting "HEY!" :) Also at RiverWalk, they have man-made white water rapids in the river! People can actually pay to kayak through there. How cool is that?? Not something I would really want to do, but I still think it's pretty awesome!

We had dinner at this TINY burger/taco place and it was delish! The little boys were so well-behaved and Grayson ate his black beans like a champ (was there ever any doubt??). Then we went to a Growler place where we felt like parents of the year as we pushed our strollers around while making our beer selection. Don't worry--it was a fairly classy establishment! Scott and I chose an amber craft beer which wasn't great, especially considering the price, but it was fun to try something new.

After getting back to the house and got the kids to bed, we had a bonfire in the backyard and stayed up past midnight (a big deal for me and Scott!!) just talking and listening to music. I had a great time reminiscing with Hayley, but I'm sure we were boring the guys to death. Oops! Sometimes it just has to happen!

Sunday we just spent the day at the house, playing with the kids and jumping on the trampoline! Scott took an adorable picture of Grayson and Cody eating breakfast together at the kids' table. I can't believe what a big boy my little boy is becoming!!!

Hey, look! I'm sort of in that one too. Yep, the one with the awesome socks! ;)

We left and headed back home after dinner and managed to safely get home, despite both of us feeling too tired to drive by the end of it. Lots of prayers and TSwift keeping me awake during my shift!! And it felt oh, so good to crawl into my own bed that night!

Monday we had off work, but wanted to be home so we could get some much-needed stuff done! We cleaned the house, grocery shopped, and played outside with Grayson. We played with bubbles for the first time and it was both exciting and frustrating for Grayson. He had fun watching the bubbles and trying to catch them, but was annoyed that he couldn't catch one without it disappearing and even more annoyed that he couldn't blow bubbles for himself! Every time I tried to hold the wand out for him to blow, he would snatch it from me and put it straight into his mouth! Good thing the bottle says it's non-toxic! :/

It was hard going back to work after such a great weekend, but look! It's already Friday again! Hooray for short work weeks! :) No big plans for this weekend yet, but I'm sure we'll get into something!

Hope you had a great long-weekend and are geared up for another good one today! :) Happy Friday!