Zeke is really into drawing things, writing letters, and solving, and creating mazes! He is good too! Oh, and look, he’s a lefty like me :)

Here he is solving my star maze, and he made the triangle maze in the right corner of the picture.

Here are some cool other ones, Zeke made the two on top, and Jimmy made the bottom three.

Little Miss Lil is into taking off her clothes, and especially her jammies at night. We’ve resorted to duct tape. One morning before duct tape, I found her without clothes, and without a diaper sleeping in her bed! Silly girl!

Zeke loves his Daddy time, as always.

Lilly likes her “big girl” doll. Lately, Lilly has been playing in her room at night after we do her bedtime routine, and one night Jimmy went up to check on her, and he found her playing ring around the rosie with her big girl! She didn’t know he was watching her, and he said it was the cutest thing ever!

She did it again the next morning, and she wanted me to join in the fun too, then when Daddy got home we all played ring around the rosie with big girl :)

Lilly also still loves toothbrushes! She got a new pink princess one last week, and it already looks 6 months old. She carries them around with her all day, and chews on them. Just now I looked over at her, and she’s picking up her toothbrushes, and her big girl :D

Zeke beat me 3 out of 3 games of Sequence for kids. I finally beat on the 4th game :) We also like to play Candy Land, and Chutes & Ladders. Zeke is also getting really good at playing Star Wars Chess, Jimmy had been teaching him how each piece can move, but usually we just set up the game, then have a battle where pieces are knocked over.

Zeke: Mom! You forgot to give me a dollar after I gave you a back massage last night!
Me: Oh, I thought you were just being nice.
Zeke: I am being nice. A dollar isn’t bad.

He’s right, a dollar for a back massage is a good deal :)

———————–

Lilly loves her toy cupcakes she got for her birthday, but for some reason she always tells me she won’t share them with me.

Lilly: I NOT share my cupcakes with Mommy!
Daddy: Lilly, are you a princess, or a witch?
Lilly: A wit! Yeeee aaaah hahaha! (witchy voice :)

———————–

Zeke had to go in time-out-

Daddy: You get 4 minutes because you’re 4, and when you’re 5 you will have 5 minute-time outs
Zeke: Well, that’s ok because when I’m 5 I won’t do anything to go in time-out

Good to know, he’s going to be a perfect child in less than 2 months!

————————
One morning before Jimmy left for work-

Lilly: Mommy, when my bir-day party?
Daddy: In 4 1/2 months
Lilly: No, Mommy say!
Mommy: 4 1/2 months
Daddy: See?
Lilly: G0 away Daddy!
All of us looking at Lilly stunned
Lilly: Go to work Dad! Go to work!!

Five minutes after Jimmy left for work, Lilly was asking, “When Daddy be home?” :)

Jimmy and I think that our kids are at the best stage yet! They are SO much fun these days!

Lilly and Maddie having an Asian picnic :)

Zeke found the big Pikachu

I loved the little Doctor/Nurse area where they had a newborn care section!

Zeke and Bryson driving to put the fire out!

and another picnic for the girls :)

Other favorites of the museum were the castle area, doll house, music room, and of course the big tree house!

I think I have been a little stressed about being pregnant, thinking something will go wrong. I’ve been worried about sleeping on my back since 12 weeks, so I sleep lighter, and would wake myself up if I was sleeping on my back, but come to find out- you don’t need to worry about not sleeping on your back until about 28 weeks along. I think I’ll be a whole lot less stressed, and be able to enjoy it more the next time, (which I sure hope there will be a next time).

Something that has really been surprising to me is that you can’t always feel the baby. I thought you would be able to tell exactly where the baby was, and what part of the baby was where, but really, you can’t feel the baby unless they move, and even then, I can’t tell what part is moving, like if it’s a knee, hand, elbow etc. That’s been interesting to learn. Jimmy seems like he can figure out what is poking out better than I can :)

Last week at 32 weeks along :)

30 weeks

25 weeks

22 weeks

20 weeks

15 weeks

12 weeks

6 weeks- My tummy popped out really early, I felt so big at this stage :) Haha!

We all love this little guy! Zeke and Lilly talk to him through my belly button, and kiss my tummy :) Lilly asks everyday, “Mommy, when Danyer (Xander) come out?” I tell her 2 months, and she says, “Oh, two munts!”

Zeke and Lilly absolutely loved having their cousins come for a few days after Christmas!

the girls and their Barbies :)

Jimmy had the day after Christmas off too, so we went to the bouncy place.

Lilly thought is was so funny to pull her daddy down the slide

She also liked getting a ride to the top :)

Zeke did some awesome flips over obstacles!

I love that he has no enemies. We were talking last night about his work, and he said he likes everyone he works with. He works with many different personalities, and ages, but I’ve never heard Jimmy say something like “I can’t stand that person!” or “I just don’t like them.” It’s not that everyone he knows is so easy to get along with, it’s that Jimmy is so easy to get along with, and is not easily offended. I love that about him!

I love that he shares meals with me at restaurants so that it’s cheaper to go out to eat, and we can go out more often. I know a lot of times he doesn’t get full from half a meal, but he doesn’t complain, or whine about it.

I love that Jimmy is so sweet to give me lotion foot massages.

I love that Jimmy chooses not to play computer games, and other things I consider time wasting :) Instead he spends his free time with me and our children.

Most importantly, I love that Jimmy is just as wonderful at being a dad as he is being my husband! I think about this a lot, and I am so thankful that not only did I get the man of my dreams, I also got the father for my children I always dreamed of too. When I was dating guys, I thought I had to choose a guy that was either one or the other, but Jimmy is both!

I love my husband!

My brother taught us a new card game, and someone thought of the idea that the first person to lose had to do a dare and the person who won got to choose the dare. Jimmy got out first, and my brother Carlin won, so he dared Jimmy to swallow a spoonful of Apple Cider Vinegar. (We haven’t had to use it for weeks, my kids have been so good with not using potty words :) I wanted Zeke and Lilly to see their daddy take a spoonful, so I called them over to watch. My brother Joe, and Carlin decided they’d try it too.

Zeke was so amused with the whole thing! I tried to capture their smiles, here’s the best I could do-

The best part was right after this picture, Lilly turned to me and asked, “Mommy, did Daddy say poo-poo pants?” It made us all laugh so hard! She thought her daddy did potty talk, and now had to suffer the consequence!

The apple cider vinegar is nasty stuff, Jimmy’s face says it all…

Haha! You can’t fake a face like that! Jimmy now knows why we haven’t had potty talk in our house for so long :)

Zeke and Lilly left treats, and pictures for Santa. They even left some Cheerios for his reindeer :)

They’re not to the point where they can’t sleep on Christmas Eve though :) They both slept so well I had to wake them up at 7:30 because I couldn’t wait any longer!

Zeke got this bed set as an early Christmas gift. He has been doing so well sleeping in it! It’s cool because you can connect an i-pod to it and it plays music. The speakers are the two circles on the ends of the football part. The night we set it up, Jimmy played some songs on it while he and Zeke and Carlin played a basketball game in Zeke’s room. Zeke loved it! He said, “It’s like a party in my room!”

The only thing Lilly has been asking Santa for is a “boy lipstick”. She talked about it all day, everyday for the past few weeks. She would ask me, “Santa bring a boy lipstick me?” I would tell her, “Yes, on Christmas he will put it in your stocking”. When I woke her up and told her it was Christmas, the first thing she said was, “Santa bring a lipstick me?” I was worried I might get the wrong kind of chap stick since she was so particular about it being a boy lipstick, but she was happy with the blue Cinderella chap stick she got.

Santa left Zeke and Lilly each a personal letter, and he even left a few cookie crumbs on his plate. (Jimmy had fun with this :)

Zeke surprised that Santa got the white board/chalk board toy he wanted! We saw only one left in the store, and when we went back, Zeke was disappointed it was gone. Santa sure is sneaky!

Lilly was happy with her kitty from mommy, it meows, blinks, and moves its tail.

Another favorite this year was her big doll from Santa :)

Daddy got Zeke a Star Wars lunch box with neat sandwich cutters inside.

I gave Zeke a lego, he and Jimmy had fun putting it together.

Uncle Adam gave Lilly a Lion King Sing Along DVD

Lilly bottle feeding her horse from Grandma S :)

Her kitty came with a bottle too, she’s going to be such a great big sister!

Jimmy got a new suit, this is actually the first won since we’ve been married. His mission suits lasted a long time!

(This was actually the Sunday before Christmas, which is why Jimmy isn’t in his suit. I forgot to get a picture of all of us on Christmas.)

Jimmy was making them smile this cute by being funny behind me :)

Church was only an hour on Christmas, then it was back to jammies, and playing with toys, then we went to Jimmy’s parents’.

Lilly got the Rapunzel Barbie from Grandma and Grandpa Z

Zeke got a cool remote control car

Zeke and Dallin played like Lilly was the powerful girl, and only their helmets could keep them safe from her. They thought it was so funny when she would bonk them on the head with her candy.

Lilly had her chap stick with her the whole day. She also used it all up in one day :) She now talks about how Santa will bring her another one on Christmas.

This one turned out blurry, but I love it anyway!

Both kids fell fast asleep on the way home. Grandma gave us the left over chips, and Lilly held tightly to them the whole way home.

decorating for Christmas :)

Cousin Dallin’s 5th birthday! Check out that awesome shark cake his mom made! His party was at the aquarium, in the sunken ship party room. It was fun!

Zeke’s favorite was still the sting rays. Lilly liked them a lot too.

(Zeke told me to put this one on the blog, so here it is :)

We got a one month pass to a bouncy house place, my kids love it!

Lilly does well getting through all of the obstacles. She tries hard to keep up with her brother, which isn’t an easy thing to do.

weee!

Gramma Charlotte came over, and Zeke and Lilly got to open their gifts from her, which they both loved!

Our kids thought it was so neat making sugar cookies together last week! It was a very fun family night!

Zeke wanted to make a football, triangle, moon, and bee cookie. Lilly did a few clumpy cookies, and some circles.

Apparently Lilly really likes red sprinkles :)

Zeke in his awesome Star Wars Lego robe, and Lilly in her cute princess jammies they opened from a package last night from Grandma Linda and Grandpa Dave!

Tonight we went to see the lights at Temple Square with Jimmy’s family. It was beautiful!

Lilly didn’t want to keep her gloves on, she had a better idea to keep her hands warm- put them on daddy’s ears under his hat!

Zeke had lots of fun chasing cousins, it was tricky to get him for a picture, but we got one of all of us together:)

Wow, that was lots of pictures, I should really post more often so each post isn’t a mile long!

THE GIFT OF LOVE

By: MaryAnn

As Christmas approaches, we find much of our time consumed with gifts.  There are the obligatory gifts, expected gifts, last minute gifts, homemade gifts, and neighbor gifts all mixed in with Santa gifts.  But there are other gifts, which are given less often – those are the gifts of the heart.

I remember still, the day I gave everything I had to give; it was more than I thought I could give.  It was the gift of life, the gift of family, the gift of joy.  It was created with blood and tears and given based on faith and prayers.  It was the day, more than 18 years ago, I went to court to relinquish my parental rights for here and for eternity so a forever family could be created.

I remember the bittersweet feeling as I left the courthouse empty handed, and the thought I had just given the most precious thing I had to give.  In my mind, it is the closest I will ever come to doing something for someone who cannot repay me – or can they?

I have read numerous blogs asking what gifts are appropriate for a birth mother.  I have read blogs surveying birth mothers and asking what they would like to receive, and what would be meaningful.  Perhaps it is the closed adoption I am part of, and my inability to receive tangible gifts, that have led me to think about the gifts of the heart.

I have been touched on more than one occasion by the thought: the best gift a father can give his children is to love their mother.  Why do we hear this repeatedly?  What does love between parents accomplish?  It says we love and respect one another.  It says we value each other.  It says we are thankful for one another.  It acknowledges our life would not be what it is without each other.  It creates a trusting and loving atmosphere.

Perhaps it is my wishful thinking which leads me to believe this also applies to adoptive parents loving birth parents and vice versa.  What does this accomplish?  It tells the child we love you – we love and accept all parts of you including where you came from and who you are becoming.  It says we are all on the same page and we all want what is best for you.  It says we are not rivals competing for your love, but instead we are friends, each contributing something different to your success. It says we have not forgotten the miracle in our lives and how it came to be.  It says we are so secure in our roles, we are not afraid to let you love another.

As I have thought about what would be the best gift I could receive as a birth mother, it would be this:  That the daughter I placed for adoption has a love for me because of the love her parents have for me.  That she is so sure of their love for me, she would never hesitate to talk about me or ask questions about me.  That should the opportunity ever arise for us to meet, she would not hesitate or be caught up in loyalty issues. Rather she would go to them, and not only she, but her family, would rejoice at the opportunity to meet.   There would not be fear.  I would not be a threat.  Instead I would be treated as a treasured friend.  This is the gift which would more than compensate the gift I gave.   This is the gift of LOVE.

I am realistic enough to know this outcome is not as likely as I would hope.  Closed adoption does not facilitate, demand, or encourage any of this.  Open adoption, however, makes it possible.  When we truly make adoption about love, it does not exclude.  It includes.  Adoption has room for everyone.