Crying Out to Him

September 3, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Maelie’s naps have kind of been hit or miss lately.

This week was ok…she napped plenty but usually woke up once or twice, crying, and would then go back to sleep.

Today she went to sleep around 1:30 in the afternoon, and other than crying for a few minutes, was out immediately.

I figured she was so tired she’d sleep for hours.

So I was surprised when she woke up around 2:00…screaming. And it wasn’t an I-completely-protest-this-nap cry…it was an I-need-to-be-held cry.

I went up to her nursery, where I found her peeking at me over the rail of her crib, tears streaming down her cheeks, arms held out to me.

(Yes, it did melt my heart, since I know you’re all wondering!)

I picked her up, and she immediately snuggled as close to me as possible. I sat down in the chair with her and rocked her for awhile, singing a few songs, while she held me and cuddled up.

And I have to admit that as much as I was sad that she was upset, I absolutely loved that she wanted to be held and cuddled and close.

For that moment, I was it.

A few minutes later, I kissed her, put

her in her crib, and she went right back to sleep for another two hours.

(YAY!)

But as she was sleeping, I couldn’t help but think through what

had just happened and draw a parallel.

Just as Mae wanted me…and only me…I wonder how often I want my Father.

And only Him.

It is so easy to let the people in our lives be it.

To let them be the ones who listen to us when we’re hurting, laugh with us when life is just good, cry with us when it’s not. And there’s a time and a place for that…many times and places, in fact. That’s why God gave us friends.

But He desires that we treat Him just as Maelie treated me today…because He is just that.

He is It.

The One Who can comfort and love and listen and care… no matter what.

Just where I am tonight.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, encouragement, just life, Maelie, where I am

A Shoe-Loving, Purse-Toting Girl

September 1, 2011 by · 2 Comments

From the time I knew I w anted

kids, I wanted a daughter.

I dreamed about having a little girl to play princess with, dress in copious amounts of pink, and someday, giggle about secrets and crushes.

And of course, a little girl who would love all things purses

and flip flops.

When I found out I was pregnant, I was actually pretty sure I was having a boy. I wasn’t sad about that

thought at all, but my heart really wanted a girl. The day we went in to find out the gender of our baby, I was so nervous to find out whether we were having a Maelie or a Finn that my blood pressure shot up.

True story. (And yes, now you know what our boy name would have been. That name is no longer on the list so I can tell you that.

:))

So when we found out that baby was a girl, besides NOT BELIEVING THE DOCTOR, I was pretty stinkin’ excited. :)

Once she was born, the dressing-her-in-pink thing could happen, and that was pretty much it…the princess stuff and the purses and flip flops would have to wait. And it’s funny…even with the pink, there was some but not really a lot.

This week, Mae made my Mama heart smile, though.

She picked up her sandals and tried to put them on her feet.

Then she spent the next several minutes going through my shoes upstairs (I DON’T have that many, for the record…) and bringing them to me so she could put them on my feet. It was too cute.

And she even started showing interest in purses (sort of) by “borrowing” someones backpack at the McD’s play place today and

toting it around like she was going to school.

Backpack, purse…they’re related, right? :)

My girl loves shoes. And she totes purses.

She is definitely my daughter.

:)

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, Maelie

Infinitely Mae

August 24, 2011 by · 1 Comment

I failed mommyhood today.

Like, an epic failure…it was not pretty.

I’m not sure why…but I was frustrated, annoyed, not at ALL patient, and almost-mean… to my daughter.

I hadn’t seen her most of the morning because I was busy with something and Tobin had the morning off. I literally spent an hour with her, and all of a sudden she was just…difficult.

Translation: she was ONE.

It was hot, she was getting into everything, and so I thought that was the perfect opportunity for her to play in her pool. We suited her up, I plopped her in, and all was good.

For two minutes.

Then she decided to play the game, I-love-to-get-in-and-out-and-in-and-out-and-in-and-out-of-my-pool.

40 times.

In between those times, she’d take handfuls of rocks, play with them, try to stick one (or more) in her mouth. You know, the fun things that one year olds do to drive their mommies crazy. :)

And somewhere in there I just got annoyed.

I had been trying to watch my girl and catch up with a friend on the phone at the same time…and Mae was making that hard.

I gave up after about twenty minutes and took her inside, gave her an afternoon bottle, and put her down for her nap.

And then I felt horrible.

What was it that Mae was doing SO wrong? Nothing, really. Other than being herself.

She woke up around 4:15, which gave me time to play with her before I had to leave for my hair appointment.

As I was soaking up the Mae-just-woke-up-and-wants-to-cuddle moments, I started to make up a song for her.

And some where in the song, the words, And you are infinitely Mae, came out of my mouth.

She giggled, I smiled…and then I realized how true those words were.

It’s exactly who she is… the best possible Mae in

the world.

There is no other person in the world who can be Maelie better than she can.

Sure, she will do things that get on my nerves.

Of course she’s going to get into trouble…she’s one year old and curious.

Yes, she will put rocks in her mouth occasionally because that’s just what kids do.

And every day, she will melt my heart because she’s my girl.

We’ll have days like today sometimes.

When they happen, I need to do two things.

Work on replacing my impatience with love. And have more grace for myself, too.

I love my Mae… and all that she is.

Even on days like today.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, just life, Maelie, what I'm learning

Just Mae…and the Cool That She Is

August 18, 2011 by · 1 Comment

I love my girl…and I blog about her often.

I do spend the majority of my time with her, so I guess this is forgivable, right? 😉

The past few days I have j ust

fallen in love with her even more.

I’m not sure if it’s because she’s becoming more independent and more able to reciprocate love…or maybe it’s just because she keeps getting cuter!

The things she says (or tries to say), the things she does, the way she’s becoming this cool, little person…it’s just amazing to watch.

On Sunday and Monday we had several good walks and lots of time outside, and watching her move and explore was just fun…the few steps turned into many, many more.

She adds new words (or at least things that sound like words!) to her vocabulary every day.

She barks at our dogs, which totally cracks me up.

She sees certain neighbors outside and crawls (or toddles) toward them while shouting at them in her Maelie-talk.

Tuesday we had a date with a friend to get Starbucks and walk to Grafelman Park (our favorite!). It’s an outing we take at least every couple of

weeks, and as I sat there and chatted with my friend, I loved watching Mae explore even more.

She’s not afraid of anything, including eating wood chips…can’t say I’m too thrilled with that one! :) I noticed it again today outside in the yard as she was reaching for a not-very-small bug… total curiosity, zero fear.

I stopped for a moment and thought, My daughter is so COOL!

I love how the qualities she displays mirror exactly what Christ meant when he talked about having the faith of a child…innocent, pure, curious, accepting, willing-to-take-risks.

It’s amazing what children can teach us.

Just where I am with mommyhood…loving it even more and loving my Maelie-girl more than ever, too.

Blessed.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, Maelie, uncategorized, where I am

Future Skateboarder?

August 16, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Tonight Maelie had her first skateboarding lesson, courtesy of our wonderful friends/neighbors.

First she was content to just ride.

Then? It w as time for

a trick.

And of course, we needed to celebr ate the

accomplishment with

a big smile!

She looks pretty proud of herself, doesn’t she? :)

Sig

Filed Under: friends, just life, Maelie

Friday Caffeine

August 12, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

We’re going to change pace a little and have coffee Friday instead…’cause goodness knows, I need it. 😉

Last night I met up with a friend in St.

Charles, a college roommate from ’98-’99, and we hadn’t seen each other since I graduated in 2001. Talk about a blast from the past!

And you know what? It was amazing how we could pick up right where we left off. So many things about us haven’t changed, and the things that have? Were good. We had So. Much. Fun. catching up on life and sharing stories and wondering, repeatedly, why it had taken us a year to get together when we lived less than an hour from each other.

This is a friendship I want to hang on to…and I already can’t wait til we can get together again!

And all of that to tell you that we met at 6:30 at the coolest pub called The Office…and left after midnight.

So it was a semi-short night of sleep for me, but I’m good. Caffeine and power naps are wonderful. 😉

Movin’ on to other things…

For the last month, Mae has made it pretty clear that she’s over napping twice a day, which has definitely shaken up the routine we had figured out. What I do love is that she’s flexible with napping. She’ll go down to sleep as early as 10 a.m. and sleep for a couple of hours…but if she does that, I am almost guaranteed no afternoon nap,

so that makes the afternoon long. For the past few days I’ve kept her awake until about 2:30, and two out of three d

ays, she took a great afternoon nap. (And today, I took one, too! :)) My girl is growing up…definitely an adjustment for both of us.

Summer is winding down.

Our Bible study group met at parks throughout the summer, and yesterday was our last one. I have to admit I was a bit sad, although I enjoy going to Bible study, too.

There’s just something about summer…it feels so free. Back to life, I guess, huh?

Not that I have anywhere I have to be, but I’m starting to really feel the need to fill up my life a little more. There are a couple things going on at church/school soon that I can help with, and I’m working on my book. I’m already about 1/4 of the way done with it, which I’m happy about. Now I’m just hopin’ everyone else likes to read my stories as much as I like to tell them. :)

And? I’ve been going back and forth on getting a part time job a couple nights a week…more on that later if it actually pans out. We shall see.

I’ve been on the craziest eating schedule for the last two weeks.

I eat breakfast, but I almost never eat lunch,

and then I eat dinner. And I’m not hungry at all. No idea what’s goin’ on with my body.

Says the girl who had pudding for lunch. (Does that count?)

That’s something you don’t know about me yet. I LOVE pudding. Especially with Cool Whip.

Mmmmmm…

And while we’re on the subject of food…tonight I made funnel cakes. I was really wanting to watch State Fair, and so I got all domestic and made them, forgetting that I can’t eat them. Seriously…bad childhood experience that had something to do with eating two in one night, and I was up all night throwing up.

I stomached two bites, and we took the rest to the neighbors. And after making those and cleaning up the mess, I’m too tired to watch the movie.

Another time, I guess. It’s more fun with a friend or two anyway, especially if those friends will belt out all the songs with me.

😉

And for some reason…I can’t think of anything else remotely exciting that might be happening right now. So I guess I’ ll drink the last bit of coffee from my mug and ca

ll it a night.

Thanks for reading.

Sig

Filed Under: coffee, friends, just life, Maelie

Tonight…

August 7, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

w e w

ent out on a family date to On the Border.

Usually our “family dates” consist of the Sonic Drive-Thru, or if we’re really feeling brave, we sit in our car an eat ice cream!

The big time, I know.

After our slightly-less-than-romantic anniversary dinner on Wednesday, I think Tobin and I were both wanting to go some plac

e we knew

we liked.

The problem is, we took Mae.

And don’t get me wrong…I have the most wonderful daughter ever. I love that girl.

But taking her to dinner with us

? To a sit-down-and-order-and-wait-for-your-food place

?

Um, yeah.

So she actually wasn’t too bad before the food came, other than semi-consistently letting out the new high-pitched squeal she has discovered.

(It’s not cute…it’s ear-splitting.)

When Mae’s taco (with extra tomatoes…very important) came, we cut it up and gave it to her. She loves tacos (and tomatoes).

What did she do

?

Started throwing…not dropping…it all over.

Then we tried rice.

Even worse.

It was the most un-peaceful meal we’ve had in a long time.

Not sure what was up with her or her lack of On The Border lovin’.

MY tacos were good.

:) And Tobin’s burrito was the size of Texas. Close, anyway.

But there must’ve been something not quite so wonderful about Maelie’s dinner.

I w as frustr

ated a bit at the time, but it IS a memory.

That toothy, silly, ornery grin she would flash as she pitched the rice here and there… was kinda cute.

And she does make me smile…and make me thankful to be her mommy.

I just don’t think we’ll be taking her back to On the Border anytime soon. 😉

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, being mommy, just life, Maelie, Tobin

Awesome

July 31, 2011 by · 2 Comments

I had a few thoughts to share tonight…and then my hubby walked up the stairs to bring me

something.

I needed? Toilet paper. 😉

This? Is what he brought me.

It HAD to be my blog post tonight.

Goodness, can she GET any cuter

?

Sig

Filed Under: just life, Maelie, Tobin

Life in Pictures

July 29, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Well, at least the last two weeks of life.

:)

My birthday daisies from a sweet friend.

Aren’t they gorgeous?!

A visit with some of our favorite Indonesia friends…such good times.

Magnums…now available in the U.S.!!! Enough said.

Maelie tries to share her bottle with the sheep at the petting zoo. Haha!

Mae and Kris… I seriously smile when

I look at this.

What a fun memory.

Swinging with one of her favorite people… I just love this picture.

Sig

Filed Under: friends, just life, Maelie

A Bit of Everything

July 27, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

It’s just been a little-of-everything kind of day.

You know, the kind that starts with an early morning run requiring me to get up before six. By choice. What’s wrong with me? :)

Then it’s followed, literally, by one of the darkest mornings I’ve ever experienced. Storms, rain, thunder, lightning…and almost-blackness outside.

When I put Mae down for her morning nap, her nursery was completely dark…which I will admit helped speed up the falling asleep process.

So, no complaints.

Then it was just me for awhile…getting a few things done, catching up on a couple e-mails, writing a bit, watching half of Raising Helen, which is one of those movies that makes me laugh and cry repeatedly throughout. It was a good movie for today.

Mae took a good nap, and then it was time for lunch and a game of “Let’s-Get-Into-Everything”. It’s her favorite game. :) Today she discovered Uno cards, the stepladder, the fact that the kitchen drawers pull out, and that she can see her reflection in the oven door. She also tried to climb into (?) the dishwas her, but I

herded her out of there quickly.

We played and read books and played some more. And while I ate the last few pancakes for lunch, she came and stood by my knees, waiting for me to give her bites. I…ahem…think she may have learned this from the dogs.

I should probably not

indulge it. However, it was cute.

And funny. And passed some of the calories on to her instead of letting them go into me.

I decided we should try for two naps today since Mae was up very early this morning, and she agreed.

Nap 2 was a success and gave me a bit of time to do some more things.

Tobin came home early, and I left at five to go get a haircut.

A desperately needed one.

You know how I’ve been growing out my hair?

Ooops…well, so much for that! 😀 She took a good two inches off the back today…which, for a normal person, is not a lot, but when you’re me…it’ s a lot.

Yay for a haircut! I decided that summer is about the worst time to ever try growing out my hair. Maybe this winter… or maybe not.

I came home just as the refrigerator repair guy was finishing up…yep, things just keep breaking.

Mae played for awhile, had her bottle, and then went quietly to bed…that’s kinda rare.

I tried to call Delta to check on some tickets we’re gonna need soon :) but their phone lines were closed already so we played frisbee til it was too dark to see. I strummed my guitar and sang a few songs on the back porch, and now I’m hanging out here, soaking up every ounce of my life.

I’m so blessed.

Tomorrow is park day…AND closing day.

Can you believe it?!

So. Blessed.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, hair, just life, Maelie, random
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