Fall Break

Ok, so I'm finally writing about our fall break "staycation." Mostly for my own record, but some of you may be interested in our ever so exciting life. ha!

Warning: This post may be long!

I don't have pictures of everything that we did, but Thursday night we went to Abby's volleyball game at JBU. They won, but it took all five games and it was so close! Hudson was such a trooper, it was way past his bedtime, but he stayed awake until we got back in the car to head home.

 Friday we made a trip back to Stillwater for America's greatest homecoming celebration! The theme this year was "Cowboy Nation."

Yet again, Hudson was so good! We ran into lots of wonderful Stillwater friends and had a great time. I'm so glad we decided to go even if we didn't make it to the game.

On Saturday, Julian came over to play while we watched the game with his parents. He and Hudson are hilarious trying to play together. They mostly just follow each other around and take toys from each other.

Hudson had a great time even though the game results were not what we hoped for. We redeemed ourselves a little bit today though!

Sunday we got to have a quick lunch with a good portion of Ryan's family before we headed to the big first birthday party for Julian.

Hudson enjoyed some cake and found some friends to play with. He also enjoyed checking out Julian's new toys. I'm thankful he has a friend close in age to do life with.

Sunday was one of our busiest days of the weekend. Papa and Uncle Jon came home late that night, so we loaded up Hudson in his jammies and took him to the airport to see them. 8 days without them is a long time. He adores these men in his life and they are such good role models. They were in the DR doing mission work and we are so glad they had a good trip!

Monday we had lunch with several of the Kindergarten teachers. I didn't take any pictures, but I am so blessed to work with a great group of women. They make my job so much more fun :)

I loved fall break, because it was all about spending time with those I love most. I'm thankful that Ryan got some time off and we got to be together as a family. I love the two boys (men) in my life and feel blessed to have them. I just want to cherish every moment with them. I hope you are feeling blessed by the people you do life with and those who surround you.

From the desk of one thankful lady,

The Great Pumpkin

Yesterday while we visited Brass Pro as part of dad's birthday celebration, we also snuck into the Great Pumpkin photo shoot. It was closed and roped off (we didn't know it would be closed), but we stuck Hudson in there anyway. Shame on us.

 We haven't made it to the real pumpkin patch yet, because we got rained out. Hopefully soon we will get there; we only have 4 more days. YIKES!

 But we got some great shots with our Charlie Brown friends!

It helps just a little bit that this guy is such a ham.

And have I mentioned that I went a little crazy with Halloween shirts? And I don't really even like Halloween. It's my least favorite of all holidays, mostly because of all the scary stuff. But all the shirts expect one were bought at the end of last season and I'm pretty sure that I paid less than $3 for each of those. Oh well. This one says "Creeping Cutie" and this picture is terrible quality, but I forgot to take one before we left the house so I snapped a quick one on my phone when we got to Ms. Heather's.

Last but not least, say a prayer for sweet Hudson tomorrow. He had a chest x-ray today (what an experience for Ryan) and has a cardiologist appointment tomorrow. It will be a few days before we know anything, but we are just praying for the best. Everyone keeps saying "don't worry" but I am his mommy so I'm allowed to. I think it's normal, but I know it will all be ok. I just love that little guy and want his sweet heart to be perfect :)

Goodnight all,

Dad

Happy Birthday to the best dad in the world!

 We celebrated by eating New York style pizza, dad's favorite! YUM!










And then taking a little trip to Bass Pro. They are already setting up Santa's Workshop, but we couldn't get closer because it was roped off. Can you believe it? Christmas will be here before you know it!

A Doctor's Visit

I think God has an interesting way of putting things back into perspective for us.
Today Hudson had a check up for his ear infection and everything looked great. He has gained almost a pound in 2 weeks. He now weighs 19lbs 12 3/4oz with clothes on! Such a big boy he is!
But we also walked away with news we didn't want to hear and this is when my first statement begins to make sense. Our doctor heard a very faint heart murmur in Hudson at his 9 month check up, but he was sick so she thought that could be the reason. She listened again today and still heard the same very faint murmur. She wants us to look into it more, because it's always important to know the severity of it. At this time I'm uncertain of when his cardiologist appointment will be, what they will find, if treatment is needed, etc. But what I am certain of is that I serve a God who ALWAYS provides. Whether that's through healing, resources, relationships, you name it. He has it in His perfect plan. That's not to say that God wants my Hudson to be sick, but it's times like this I really rely on Him and understand more of who He is.
Yes I am worried, but I know that no matter if it's big or small God will take care of it and I'm going to rely on him for answers.
I didn't post this to get sympathy comments or advice or anything kind of attention. (Prayers would be awesome, because I know God is also a listening God.) But this blog is my journal of Hudson's life and so I simply want to remember each day as it is. And today it is this and that's OK, because God is my rock.

Jesus, Lover of my soul,
Jesus, I will never let you go
You've taken me from the miry clay
You've set my feet upon the Rock, and now I know
I love you, I need you,
Though my world may fall, Ill never let you go
My Saviour, my closest friend,
I will worship you until the very end
JESUS, LOVER OF MY SOUL LYRICS - HILLSONG

Much Needed Break

I don't have much to say, but Fall Break is here and we are having a little "stay cation" as a family. Ryan has a few days off and we are spending lots of time together and have a few fun things planned!

 I just wanted to post a few pictures to hold you over, until I have time to update again. I plan to take a much needed break from the blog (and technology in general) until it's over.

 I'm excited for this 5 day break and lots of quality time with friends and family!

Hope you enjoy whatever may come your way!

Hudson, you are growing so fast! You are 9 months old today!

Here you are at 9 months old:

You weigh 18lbs 14 1/2oz (25%)

You are 28 1/2 inches long (64%)

Head circumference: 18 1/4 (81%)

You wear size 6-12 month clothes and size 3 diapers.

You are a VERY good eater! You have tried tons of food and are learning to eat finger foods. You will try anything and don't seem to be picky! You still drink bottles 5 or 6 times a day (depending on your sleep schedule) and you drink juice and water from a sippy cup. You are still learning about how to use a cup, but you really like it!

Your sleeping habits aren't any better, although last night we got a taste of the schedule you used to have. I'm not sure if it will stick around or not. You take at least two naps everyday, but they range from 20 minutes to 2 hours. I am just facing the fact that you probably won't ever be a good sleeper, and we will just deal with it.

You have 7 teeth! Four on top and three on bottom! You love to use your teeth to bite and chew on everything!

You have learned how to give "sugars" which means you open your mouth real wide and lean in and get a kiss. It's so sweet!

You are starting to babble so much! Just over the last week or so I can't believe how much more you are talking. You are working on mama and dada and occasionally we get what sounds like baba or bye bye. You are still learning to associate these words, but it sure is cute to hear you say them.

You are crawling EVERYWHERE! Your favorite places to crawl are to the dog bed, the dog kennel, and the dog bowls. You just adore those dogs and you love to play in the kitchen and bang the dog bowls and any other dishes on the floor.

You are pulling up on everything and scooting side to side. You are still really wobbly, but love to walk while holding our hands. I can only imagine what it will be like when you take off.

You now ride in a "big boy" carseat and love it! You pretty much think you are big stuff in such a big carseat!

You are overall such a happy baby. We love you so much and we love watching how you change everyday. It amazes me that not too long ago you were just a little guy in my arms who couldn't get anywhere and now you are all on your own. You are independent and stubborn, but we love your sweet smiles and silly laughs. You are just loveable!

A few outtakes for your enjoyment:

There is never a dull moment around here!



Things I Love

Today I was making my poster because I am "Spartan of the Week" in my own classroom. Sounds kind of funny, but it's something we do for the kids so they can share about themselves and have a special time to be recognized. There are five things they do (one for each day of the school week) but since this is a short week we use times like these for the teacher, aide, or we just take a break! All of that to say it's my turn this week and as I was making my poster I was reminded of all of the things I enjoy in life.

The only other thing that I wanted to add was I LOVE JESUS! We serve an awesome God and I'm sad that we can't talk about it in my workplace, but I am thankful to be surrounded by other Christian teachers. What do you love? Are you taking the time to enjoy or things? Or are you to caught by in the busyness of life?? Just some food for thought... Have a great week!

The DR and Spaghetti Dinner

 This morning my dad, brother and brother-in-law left for the Dominican Republic. They are going to do mission work with a church in BA.

 We didn't go along for the ride to the airport, so Hudson sat at the door and was sad to see them go. He sure does love his pops and his uncles.

 We are praying that they have a great, safe trip and have lots of opportunities to share the love of Jesus. We got a text tonight that they made it there safely so we are excited to hear all about their trip when they get back.

 We had a quiet afternoon after we enjoyed lunch with a sweet friend. Can I just say that I am so so so grateful for friends?! Friends who I can share with, laugh with, and would cry with me if I needed it. We had a great time catching up and then had a relaxing afternoon watching the POKES!

 We made spaghetti for dinner and let Hudson try some. He is always so interested in what we are eating so we have been letting him try a lot of things.

 I am 100% sure that there was a whole lot more on his body than ever made it to his mouth.

 Needless to say, he made an immediate trip to the bathtub afterwards and then the bathtub needed a scrubbing once he got out.

Look at that mess! I sure do love him! 

My Prayer

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
Proverbs 27:17
Being reminded of this verse constantly. Everything I do either positively or negatively affects those around me. I pray that I am nothing but encouraging and lifting up others in all that I do; my actions, my words, my life.

10-10 Birthday

Yesterday we went to OKC for the afternoon to celebrate the baby sister's 19th birthday!

 We ended up in Bricktown and decided on Toby Keith's! It wasn't my favorite place to eat, but I guess it's all about the atmosphere right?!

 This is Trent practicing his awesome photography skills! Ha!

 This would be what he was practicing those skills on. If you know anything about my child then you know that this picture is odd. He is asleep in a restaurant when his whole family is around. That can only mean one thing-he's sick. Poor guy had a terrible day, we got to OKC and he had a fever of 101.4.  No need to mention that it was a long terrible day for the little guy.

 She might kill me for this picture, but it cracks me up! I love her personality!

 Here is the terribly sad and sick Hudson (in a blurry picture). He really didn't want anything to do with anyone yesterday. I felt terrible that he had such a bad day on his aunt's birthday. He absolutely adores her, but didn't act like it one bit yesterday :(

 This is the birthday girl and her boy. She is growing up!

I'm so thankful for each member of my family (even the unofficial ones)! I wouldn't have made it through yesterday without them. I stayed home with Hudson today and he is on his way to feeling better, but just not there yet. Praying we all get some rest tonight and we have a happier baby tomorrow. There is nothing worse that than little guy being sick.

We love you Abby! Happy 19th Birthday! Sorry it was a little rough for us.

What's Your Fair Favorite?

Today mom, dad, Jon and I took Hudson on his first trip to the Tulsa State Fair. I haven't been to the fair in years, but we had a great time!

We mostly walked around the QT center and looked at all of the exhibits.

This is fondant! How fun is that?

We also ate lots of delicious food like these nachos! Corn dogs, polish sauage, fried pickles, and lemonade were also enjoyed (I'll start eating again next week)!

We visited the famed donut burger stand. Can't imagine that combination of sweet and salty and really am not up for trying.

We also checked out some great artwork by friends and visited the petting zoo. Hudson was so good and loved watching all that was going on. He is very observant, maybe a little nosy. Ha! I don't know where he gets that from ;) He took a little nap on the way home so I know he was worn out! Hopefully with our busy day he will sleep well tonight. He seems to be sleeping a little more consistently, I'm just hoping he keeps it up. Goodnight!