for these moments

• the birth of our daughter
• the birth of the One and only Son
• adjusting our focus to the miracle of this season
• extra time in church to reflect on the gift
  
• talking about new traditions as
• new, proud, parents
  
• anticipation of the busyness that is to take place in a few short days
• slowing down to enjoy the baking, wrapping, singing
• Christmas caroling and
• hot chocolate in our p.j.'s looking at Christmas lights on a cold Saturday night
• thankfulness-- for everything
• memories of the rock of our family who is
• dancing in front of his savior this Christmas

For these moments, these pauses, the grace of God in the moment, I am so thankful.

the pea is getting sweeter

The little pea (a new nickname we've seemed to adopted for Julia) is just growing into the sweetest little girl we could ask for. The smiles that she gives you when she catches your eyes looking her way make every bone in your body tingle and your heart turn to goo. The sleepless nights as of late, seem to not even matter... and I'm sure a year from now I will probably slowly forget what they even feel like. So-- I'm taking these sleepless nights as a blessing of motherhood and loving every second of it. Sweet pea- we strive to have the child like faith you display at 12 weeks in this world.

leaves and lattes

This weekend was exceptionally quiet and low key as we all are eagerly anticipating the short week, Thanksgiving festivities, cooking and baking, and family get togethers. We had nice quiet evenings after that luscious moment when Julia is tucked in her bed with praying hands.

For these moments:

• quality time with Bryan to
• dream, discuss, deliberate on all of our blessings and
• be thankful for these that God has given
  
• Julia at night, laying in bed so peaceful, so perfect
• wanting these moments to stand still, to savor them
  
• hot coffee with special la-de-da drinks from starbucks
• coffee dates with hubby after a long work week
• weekends in the house to organize, play, scrapbook, cook as the
  
• trees that have shed their leaves remind you winter is almost here

For these moments, these pauses, the grace of God in the moment, I am so thankful.

so many changes

What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humor, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies. ~Rudolph Giuliani

Being able to spend priceless time with your grandparents bring tears to my eyes, as I have lost the most undescribable grandparent this year. More heartbreak continued when your pap-pap lost his daddy. I am most grateful that my parents are now grandparents and how special they are and will forever be to this little lady.

The little Lady turned eight weeks old.. 2 months, but I like to keep it in weeks, (she doesnt sound as old). And, the mister and I gave her up for one whole night, actually 29 whole hours to the best nee nee and pap pap there is. I think she had a rough start, which seems to be the pattern when she doesn't get back to sleep during the day. But, sleeping through the night is a huge success for a little babe like her. It's been about 7 nights in a row now. The day time, well that's a different story. So... mommy is going 'babywise' psycho for awhile to try and get this lady to settle on her own and fall asleep during the day.

A child needs a grandparent to grow a little more securely into an unfamiliar world. So true indeed

7 weeks

Little Lady- You are sleeping and eating like a perfect little baby. Your first Halloween was a great success with Nee-Nee and Pap-pap and the rest of the fam (minus your lovely auntie). You were the perfect little butterfly! You even got to go trick-or-treating while Mommy and Daddy collected your candy and Nee-Nee carried you bundled up little sack of potatoes. We had a great week... the weather as beautiful so we were able to take advantage of some outdoor time and had a great a brunch with the wonderful Miss. Emily... who gave us great news that her and the hubs are expecting their first little bambino in May. We are just surrounded by new little miracles it seems and it makes this part of our lives even more exciting. You had a great afternoon with your nanny (great-nanny), but my Nanny and Aunt and Nee-Nee. woohoo! Oh- And How can I forget... You've been sleeping for 7 to 8 hours at ONE time. Thank you Lord! :-)

snowy-tober

It's the first for me and for the little lady-- a snow storm in OCTOBER! Forget the pumpkins and apples now. I was playing Christmas music all weekend and rearranged the house in prep for little lady's FIRST CHRISTMAS! I know-- hubby thinks it's nuts... but I think I'm slowly starting wear off on him. I walked in his office and heard a little Jazz Christmas playing. :-) it's only 2 months away. I still love Thanksgiving, but why wait! Julia -- you turned 6 whole weeks and seem to have grown over night. last night... you slept an amazing sweet filled 9.5 hours until your little hunger cry burst through. I was jumping for joy at 4:30, I got daddy's coffee pot brewing, lunch packed, and egg sandwhich made before he came down.

and TODAY is your first HALLOWEEN! I know you'll sleep right through it all and probably all of your 'firsts' for that matter.. but not to worry... we have plenty of photos to capture the moment you can see one day! We even get to spend it with your nee-nee and pap-pap, and other aunts and uncles and great nanny! And your sweetest aunt is off winning halloween costume contests, so she can't be there tonight.. but boy we can't wait for Thanksgiving to see her again!

TGIThursday!

I think I am as excited as the hubby for a 3 day weekend. Thanks to his new found teaching career, we have both developed a new appreciation for days off, especially, nice little 3 day weekends. For a little start to the weekend... thanks to the wonderful and endearing... thepioneerwoman and another blogger's initial review dirty dish reviews We're having a fall supper of Italian Chicken Soup. The house is full of oregano and yummy chicken broth from the leftover perdue the other night. Top it with some crusty Italian bread, some apple crisp and a movie from redbox and we have ourselves a Thursday night. Love!

Ingredients

1 box Ditalini Pasta (very Short Macaroni-type Pasta Noodles)

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

1 whole Cut Up Fryer Chicken (I just pulled a pack of bone-in split breasts from my freezer. Definitely use bone-in chicken. They add a full-bodied deliciousness to the broth and they're cheaper)

8 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth (I used a can of 6 cups and left it at that)

1 whole Medium Onion, Diced

2 whole Green Bell Peppers, Diced

2 stalks Celery, Diced

2 whole Fresh Jalapenos, Diced

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

1 can (28-ounce) Can Whole Tomatoes

2 cups Heavy Cream

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Oregano (I confess, I used dried)

Salt And Freshly Ground Pepper, To Taste

Parmesan Cheese Shavings, For Serving

Crusty bread

Preparation Instructions

Cook pasta in a pot according to package directions, being sure not to overcook it. Drain and rinse in cold water to cool. Toss in 1 tablespoon olive oil and set aside.

Place chicken in a large pot or dutch oven and cover in chicken stock. Bring to a boil, then simmer chicken, covered, for 30 minutes. Turn off heat and leave covered for 30 minutes. Remove chicken from pot and shred meat. Discard bones and set meat aside.

Dice canned tomatoes and return them to their juice. Set aside.

Heat a small skillet over medium high heat. Add olive oil and oregano and turn off heat, stirring over the next minute to keep oregano from burning. Set this aside.

Either pour off chicken broth into a separate container or use a new pot to saute onion, green pepper, celery, and jalapenos in 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat until tender and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Add chicken broth, shredded chicken, and tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add cooked pasta, cream, and all the oregano and olive oil from the small skillet. Stir to combine. Turn off heat.

Serve with lots of Parmesan sprinkled on the top--the more the better!

And we can't forget.. Little Lady's 5 week photo.. sporting a one shoulder eyelet top as the farewell to summer.