Brawlers: 12.09

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

'09 Was Fine

Woah, what a crazy year, full of change and surprises!
2009 began with me (elisabeth) experiencing morning (more like all-day) sickness and adjusting to the idea of having another addition to the family. Thank the Lord for anti-nausea medicine! That was the biggest surprise, but our new baby is also the biggest blessing. Jonah started piano lessons and hasn't looked back. I am constantly thwarting his practice sessions with pleas to stop or "You'll wake the baby!"
The month of April came and Jon and I took Jonah and Ava on a trip to San Francisco. We had a blast! We walked a ton and saw so many beautiful sights and even had some nice warm weather.
June saw the entire family in my sister's wedding in California. Well, we were all supposed to be in the wedding, but Boo was so exhausted from the busy week that she fell asleep on her Nana as the ceremony was starting and didn't quite make it down the aisle. Then she was hustled off to the babysitter's and didn't see the reception, either. The older two had the time of their lives and Auntie April (Bepo) and her husband Bela fulfilled Joe and Ava's "lifelong dream of being in a wedding!!!" They danced the night away at the reception and had a really memorable visit with all their cousins for the week, as well.
July we were back at home in time for Portland's heat wave and decided to skip the church camping trip this year (um, 9 months pregnant and 106 degrees in a tent? No, thank you.)
Jon's folks took the kids for a few nights while Jon and I streamed Netflix on the laptop and hibernated in our bedroom with the window A/C unit! We only left the house to satisfy those crazy food cravings. Well, I say crazy, but all I really wanted was Mango Bubble Tea...
In August we were blessed with Abram Jonathan, or Baby Abey or Gooey-guy as we call him. He was four days late and I finally went into labor while making a fresh peach cake ("Just let me finish getting this frosting on, little guy!"). He popped out fast enough that the epidural didn't even have time to really set in, darn it all. But he was 8 lbs 1 oz of perfection and we think he looks like his daddy.
Mid-September we started school again, Jonah in third grade and Ava in first. They are quite the readers and quickly absorb new material. They also love to be quizzed "Prizes, please Mom!".
We missed out on Halloween due to a bout with the swine flu--that's all I need to say about that...and Thanksgiving was spent roller skating with some great friends.
All in all, what a wonderful, busy, crazy, spin-so-fast-you-can't-keep-up year. And yet, we take time to hold each other, to kiss the baby, to play some pat-a-cake with the two year old, to play another round of Bible Charades, to read together.
We find that we can't count our numerous blessings and constantly remark on how good our Lord is to us. May you enjoy His peace this coming year, as well!

Christmas, and then some...

This month saw the beginning of some changes to our living room: new tile surround and a wood stove insert! Next: painting...
There are quite a few pictures of Christmas morning in there, too. I love the ones of the kids faces when they were opening their surprises! Everyday Boo still says, "It's almost Chis-mas! Jesus Bird-day!!"
Finally, it snowed today! Ava is so happy to eat snow again. It accumulated quite a bit and is coming down again after taking a short break. Brynne was the one who alerted us, she was coming down from her nap yelling "Is Nowing! Is Nowing!!" We were like "huh?" until we figured it out. Ava fell asleep praying it would still be around tomorrow...