Fancy-Free Life: November 2013

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

The Blessing Box

So, I've been reading the Blessing Box entries on my Instagram friend Beth Ann's blog each week (click {{here}} to check out her super cute blog) and every week I make a mental note to participate the following week... and then that mental note gets lost in the shuffle of being a full time working mother, teacher, wife, blah blah blah, and I never get around to posting.

But. Here I am :-) I need to take the time to give God the glory for the good He's doing in my life! It's so easy to focus on how exhausted, overwhelmed, and just tired I am these days... but there's so much going right, and I can't lose sight of that.

Things I am especially thankful for today:

My husband.
He was recently out of the country for some work-related training, and you don't realize how much you miss someone until they aren't there! I really, truly missed having him around. We take each other for granted too much. We desperately need a date night, if anyone is interested in babysitting an adorable 6 month old ;-)

My son.
Jesiah Blaine. My heart and soul.

My family.

I have such an awesome family. My parents, brother, sister-in-law, and niece mean so much to me. I was also blessed to marry into an amazing family. My in-laws are such a blessing to me, and I couldn't have married into a better family.

My friends.

Beth. Melody. Steph. Becky. Abigail.

Thanks for being my go-to-girls :-)

My job as a teacher.

I know I've had my share of complaints this year because of all the demands on teachers, and although I think we've been given way too much to do without the proper resources or time to do those things well, I still love to be a teacher. I love the moments when a child can ask a question, we can veer away from the lesson plan, and authentic learning can occur. Not just reading out of a scripted manual. Blah.

My coworkers.

I couldn't make it through the day without these people, my partners in crime.

Jen, Jen, Brianne, Gary, and Barb.

-inside joke-

...And it's 12:30am, which means I need to get up in 4.5 hours, so I better go get some sleep!

Hope to be back next week with a list of some less predicable things that I'm thankful for ;-)

Half a year... WOW!

This handsome, loveable, busy little boy turned SIX MONTHS OLD on the first of November. Seriously, 2013? Can you just slow down, please?!

And... to really compare how much he's grown...

His one month, three months, and six months comparison pic!

At 6 months, you weigh 17lbs 9oz and are 27 inches long. You wear size 3 diaper and 9 month clothes.

Jesiah Blaine, you light up a room with your excited squeals and your sweet grins. You get very silly and wound up at certain times of the day.

I absolutely love to hear your little chuckles and belly laughs. You also scream when you get excited :-)

This month, you found your feet! You love to grab your toes and socks and try to put them in your mouth.

You are becoming VERY observant. You notice little details like buttons, jewelry, and hoodie strings. You are also very watchful of animals. You love to try to pet BoBo at Nanny and Poppy's house, and you're getting more and more curious about Kitty. Kitty is also warming up to you a little bit, finally.

We started you on some solids this month! You get oatmeal and some fruit at midmorning and before bed time. You enjoy eating from a spoon in your high chair. :-)

You love your Mommy and Daddy! When Mommy leaves the room, you often start to fuss. You definitely keep your eye on me when I'm close by. I love our special bond, Jesse!

You are primarily formula-fed now. I continue to pump while I'm at work to provide you with a bottle of breastmilk while I'm away, however when you nurse at home, it's more for comfort than anything else. You're slowly weaning yourself, and I'm okay with that.

Your sleep schedule hasn't really gotten any better or worse from last month. We still have a few night time parties at your crib throughout each night ;-) but I don't mind them. All the more time to cuddle!

You are getting very, very strong! You love spending time in your jumperoo and walker. When we put you on the floor, you will immediately roll onto your belly and push yourself up. Sometimes you'll do planks, like this:

Other times, you'll push yourself up into a crawling position and rock back and forth on your legs. You scoot and roll across the floor to get to whatever you want right now. When you start rocking, you propel yourself forward and usually flop on your belly. You haven't quite figured out how to move your hands and legs at the same time to actually crawl. But, I think it's only a matter of time!

You are so much fun right now. You're so interactive, so curious, and there's so much personality coming out in you every single day. It's an honor, joy, and God-given privilege to be your Mommy... and I'm so blessed to have YOU, the sweetest little boy in the world, as my son. I love you, Jesiah Blaine!