A Year for the Books

Hi y'all!!!  I've been a big slacker with blog post lately but between my broken computer screen and Daniel's itty bitty computer who's keys are so small I'm constantly misspelling words.... it takes a lot of time to muster up the patience to write. :) 
All is great here. I'm all healed physically (other than my nasty scar and some occasional aches and pains) and emotionally I'm doing well too. I've been dealing with a little bit of anxiety over some things but overall I'm doing well.
So this post is going back to the roots of this blog. I started this blog as a way to keep distant friends and family up to date, but more importantly to act as an online "memory book" for our little family . With that said, 2013 was a huge, just unbelievably huge, year for us..... so for memories sake, I'm going to go through a little review of everything 2013 held for us!

January/February 2013
* Daniel finished up interviews for residency and we worked together to make his final rank list. Then the waiting and waiting started...

Daniel's "oh crap I'm submitting my rank list" face

March 2013
* Match Day came! We found out that we'd soon be spending the next five years twelve hours away from family in Mobile, Alabama!

How we made the announcement to friends

How Daniels school did the revealing of where he matched

Family pictures done in South Alabama shirts for our change of address cards.

April 2013
* I lost my Mimi. Not my grandmother by birth but in my heart she was. She was the last grandparent I had so it was a rough loss and I think of her a lot

* Daniel and I ventured to Mobile in a three day spree to find a house. Found one, signed papers, had inspection done, and it was ours in record time!

Daniel's "oh crap we just bought a house" face.

May 2013
* We moved to Alabama!

* We watched via Internet as a record tornado weaved it's way in and out of our family's homes in Moore, Oklahoma. Only blocks from several family members houses. It was hours before we knew everyone was safe and sound. Being 12 hours away during such a traumatic event for your home town sure makes you feel helpless.

*

*Daniel graduated med school!  After lots of hard work he officially was able to sign M.D. after his name and became "Dr. Daddy"

June 2013
*We had a month off as a family so enjoyed exploring our new house and city.

 *We also found a church that we fell in love with and started calling our own. This church has been such a blessing of knowledge and relationships for us.

July 2012
* Daniel started his 80 hour work weeks as a resident. Tired.... but loving every minute of it.
* Dax and I started our own traditions...... like going out for donuts on holidays that daddy works

Fourth of July while daddy worked

* I started a new "job".  I was blessed to have a childcare job fall into my lap. I began watching a sweet little toddler girl in my own home, allowing me the opportunity to be at home and take care of things there, while also spending time with my little boy and doing a little bit of my teaching that I love.

* Daniel and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary!

The picture on the left was our first picture together 12 years ago... we were 14 years old

August 2013
* Daxton turned 3!! Daniel got his first week of vacation time at the end of the month so we went back to Oklahoma and celebrated Daxton's third birthday with a wonderful Super Why themed party!

September 2013
* Daniel started his first month of nights... .and looked like this most of the time...

 * After our year long battle with secondary infertility, we were able to conceive.  Only for that pregnancy to end up being ectopic. It ruptured and that started a very long 6 week process of recovery (There is a collection of 7 post referring back to that ordeal if you need more info). I feel so very thankful to be alive.... and thankful for that angel baby.

Added a tiny angel wing to my mothers necklace.

October 2013
* October went fast. I was busy recovering so didn't get out much.... but we did make time for Halloween of course :)

* I also took part in my first Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day in honor of our little angel baby.

November 2013
* We spent the holidays away from family, but with friends this year. We took full advantage of Skype

December 2013
* Our first Christmas in our own home.... 12 hours away from family. It was very different.... but we really enjoyed starting our own traditions..... like a Christmas Eve picnic in the living room while watching Christmas movies

Seriously.... what an insane year it's been for us. So many first and so many starts of something new. Here's to looking forward to what 2014 has in store for us.... and praying it's just a tad bit calmer :)

Tis The Season!

So a year ago I wrote this post about Balancing Christmas ... and if you haven't read it you should ;)  At that point last year Dax was barely two, so we didn't have to think much or put this idea of "Balancing Christmas" into action. But now we're in full blown Christmas tradition mode. We have a three year old little boy on our hands that is really soaking in everything about the holiday season and is already asking me everyday if Santa is coming tomorrow.
So this year I started two different things that I hope will grow into traditions for us... because I really love what they stand for and they help keep me accountable everyday to Balance Christmas for our little guy.

So this is the letter that our sweet little Elf on a Shelf brought with him Saturday morning when he made his first appearance. This is a really simplified version of what I got at in my Balancing Christmas post, and as he gets older I'll go more into detail about forgiveness, intentions, a faithful value system, and a heart like our Creator. As I mentioned before... he's barely three and this letter seemed to be on the perfect level for him.

The second thing we started this year was an advent activity. I searched all over (with no luck) for an advent calendar of some sorts that would help me in the process of Balancing Christmas. Something that would help us count down the days until the oh so fun Christmas morning, but also kept our hearts wrapped around the true meaning of the season. Luckily, yesterday I stumbled upon this site and will be using it to base our daily activities on.  So today I printed the bible versus for the countdown chain and we did the first activity with Daxton's nativity.

For the countdown chain I just used red and green scrap book paper that I had and printed these perfect little activity strips. I cut them out and glued them onto the back of the scrap book paper. I love that the strips have not only the daily verse on it, but additional readings and an activity as well.

So those are a couple traditions we started this year to help us Balance Christmas! What are some things you and your family do to keep perspective on what it should be on during the holiday seasons??

"If" Day!

So how's your Monday been going?

Oh until 11:00 am ours was not so hot. Hubby slept very little... and I had a stomach full of butterflies.

But then 11:00am came and boy how quickly our Monday changed...

Daniel matched!!! Woohoo! All of his hard work over the past 4 years and money spent on interview season paid off. He officially gets to do what he loves (be a surgeon) for the rest of his life and he has a job come July 1st!

After being swept off my feet and spun in circles... we celebrated with a toast of champagne and then headed out for a celebratory lunch!

At lunch I asked him how he was feeling.... "I feel like I'm on cloud 19"

What a wonderful day. I couldn't be more proud of my husband.

Now only 4 more days of waiting to see where we matched at (again... cruel and unusual punishment... why not just tell us now?).

The 52 Project

 My biggest purpose in this blog is to document Daxton as he grows. I use it as a sort of "baby book" with intentions of one day printing pages and sticking them in a binder for him.

I also know that I do really well with set deadlines/plans/goals.

So with those two ideas in mind.... I decided to join the 52 project at a blog I read, Che' and Fidel.

With this project I'll capture a single photo of Daxton a week.... an expression, detail, moment, etc that I want to remember.

So by the end of the year... I'll have 52 wonderful pictures of moments I want to remember to make a scrapbook of.  I'm starting on the fourth week in so today I'll post my first 3 pictures from previous weeks... and then this weeks pictures.

1/52

Double chins and remote control cars for the first time

 

2/52

Curious chunky fingers

3/52

Choo choo trains and monkey jammies

4/52

 

 Tiny sunglasses, scarves, and froggy hats. 

He got told at Chic'fil'a, "that kids awesome!!" by a 7ish year old boy

Matthew 6:34

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:34

This is going to be the motto of my life for the next 4-5 months that's for sure.

Our calender is quickly filling up with award dinners, match day activities, commencements, graduations, etc...

And then there's Valentines Day, birthdays, and graduation gifts... 

And don't forget things like our lease ending at our current house in April, not getting to close on a house (in who knows where) until late May/June, packing our entire house, finding a storage unit, changing addresses and accounts to a completely new state....

oh, and there's this little person that depends on me 24/7 to take care of him and teach him... can't forget that...

also the fact that Daniel is getting ready to start a rural rotation where he'll be gone M-F.... leaving just me and said little person....

 

and last but not least... the stress that the "unknown" has on me... a person who likes to have a set plan all.the.time.

So if we're ever chitchatting between now and the end of May... or you just feel like sending me a sweet message, comment, or email.... please remind me to enjoy the process as well. To take each moment day by day. And to not worry about tomorrow. Thanks friends

Linking Up

I'm a big reader of blogs that are written by medical wives since we're right smack dab in the middle of our journey. Well a blog that I recently started reading, Medicine: A Love Story has started a link up on Thursdays.... and I decided I wanted to try to take part in it! I"m hoping to start writing more about our medical journey as the next 5 years are about to get nuts-o so I figured this would be a good starting point.... so here goes nothing!
  

This weeks question: What's the most interesting medical fact you've learned vicariously?

Being married to someone in medicine you learn a lot. I mean let's face it.... you're basically a doctor too (Daniel loves it when I say that). A few things super interesting, some things helpful, a lot of things you could care less about, and a ton of things that just make you say "ew". I'll start with a helpful fact I learned.... and then move on to something more exciting.... and "ew" fact.

Helpful fact: As I'm sure most moms were (unless they happen to be in the medical field too), my mom gave Tylenol the second my temperature got to 99.9.  "Got to keep that fever down!"  "Don't want to have a seizure!" Ideas that that were common in my house/family in general (and I still hear them anytime I tell them my little boy has a fever). But since I've been on this medical school journey I now know that fevers are great! Yeah, they mean you're sick, but you want a fever. I means your body is doing what it's suppose to and fighting the infection. So as long as you don't have a history of seizures, you're not in pain, and you're not rockin a temp of over 104..... it's probably safe just to wait out on the Tylenol.  Cue, "You're a crazy lady, I'm given my kid Tylenol right now" faces.  For me that's great knowledge since I don't like using medicine for myself (or little one) unless I absolutely have to :)

Now onto the part you've been waiting for.... my "ew" medical fact.  This will be short and sweet. Because I don't like to think about it....
While eating dinner I was putting butter on some corn on the cob (sometimes it's just necessary to make your healthy food a little less healthy) and Daniel, out of no where says.... "you know what cauterized fat looks like?"  and before I could even say "No...  I rather not know"..... he  splurts out "butter".
Nice babe, nice.

Dear Daxton

Dear Daxton,

Last Friday was the saddest day of your little life, one of the saddest of my life, and will remain in history as one of the saddest days for this country.

20 sweet babies, only 4-5 years older than you, the same age as your best friend/cousin Zain, became angels in a horrible, horrible tragedy.

Luckily you're little enough that it didn't phase you. While mommy listened to live coverage streaming online, you watched Rudolph with all of your 2 year old innocence.

Mommy cried.... and you watched Rudolph.

I first pictured myself being the parents waiting at the fire station to be reunited with their little ones.... only for that to never happen.

I then pictured you being one of the babies in that school hearing the things they heard and seeing the things they saw.

I then pictured mommy as a teacher in that school. Most people don't realize how much teachers love their students.  We love each and every one of those kids like they're our own. I never called the kids in my class my students, they were always my "babies". And this year, as I got a Christmas card from a little girl I first taught 5 years ago I told your daddy that it was a picture of one of my "babies". The kids in our classes are our babies for the rest of our lives. And I couldn't imagine that happening to my babies.

This weekend, I appreciated all the small things. I watched you play in your toy car and smiled. I watched you lay on the couch and watch movies and smiled. I watched you throw your body down on the ground in a fit, and still smiled.

On Saturday night you were up every hour. And each time I walked into your room half asleep, I was thankful. 20 families don't get to wake up during the night with their little ones because of bad dreams or not feeling well. I sat in the dark in your room and cried tears of thankfulness that I still have you, and tears of sorrow for heavens new 20 angels.

Mommy is still having a hard time dealing with the emotions. I worried about your cousins as they went to school today, I worried about my teacher friends as they returned to work, I worried about all of my past babies that are now elementary schools. I picture you as a 6 year old each time they show the faces of the sweet angels on tv. I worry about the future and your safety.

But for now I'm going to be thankful. Daddy and I left today to go out of town for interviews and it was hard.  I asked Melissa what to do, daddy what to do, and mawmaw what to do. You're not feeling well so that made the decision hard, but I think deep down it came down to me not wanting to be separated from you.... because 20 families are now separated from their families forever. We left and as we pulled out of the neighborhood I cried. But we can't live in fear.

I've called mawmaw about a million times already and I get to hear you in the background each time. I can still hear your voice and smile. 20 other families can't.

Daxton, mommy loves you very much. From loss, great things can come. For me, it's a better appreciation for the small moments in my life with you. Appreciating your fits, your tantrums, your cries in the night, your hugs, your smiles, and your "I love you"s.

Love you forever,
Mommy


Sleep in heavenly peace sweet angels. We will never forget.

Winter Projects

With Daniel traveling so much and the weather being nice and cold we have filled our days with lots of Christmas time projects!  This post is going to be pretty picture heavy but I wanted to share some of our projects... and maybe give you some ideas of things to do too :)
Oh and best part about these projects..... between all of them I think I only spent a total of less than $5!  My projects are all pretty spur of the moment so I make use with the things I already have at home :)

Nutcracker
This little guy has been my favorite project. It was a mommy/son project so we both worked on it together. I found the wooden nutcracker at hobby lobby for 50% off, had acrylic paint, and then got a glaze to put over it to make it nice and shiny. I'm pretty sure painting a little figurine like this will be a new tradition for me and Dax.

Salt Dough Ornaments
Salt dough is so much fun and you can do so much with it. I found this recipe on pinterest and just cut it in half (it was set to make 12).
4 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 1/2 cups water
I let Dax help me do all the measuring and pouring and rolling the dough out on the cookie sheet. It was a pretty messy project but lots of fun! After you get all your shapes cut out don't forget to poke holes in the ornament to help air to go out.... or they'll puff up and you have to try to fix the damage later. Trust me... learned that one the hard way. Then you just put them in the oven for 20-25 at 300. And let them cool. I used acrylic paint because it tends to last longer and then covered them with a glaze again to make them nice and shiny.

We made all the cute hand print ones (and even a footprint one.... but my precious dog decided to eat it.... don't get me started) and then I let Dax have his way. He was really into a tiny toy dinosaur that day so we pushed that into a round piece of dough (top left on the picture about) and then he "walked" the dino around on the donut looking one (top right) and made footprint in it. He loved this!

(the left over salt dough made for great pretend "pancakes" )

Nature Paintings

If you've read the blog at all you know me and Dax both love nature. So we used a little acrylic paint and glitter to make a few ornaments and pictures for the walls.

The next day we painted glue on all of the final projects and used our fingers to sprinkle glitter on all of them! They all turned out really pretty and look great as Christmas decorations!

Glass Ball Ornament

I have a ton of extra ball ornaments that we didn't use on our tree so we decided to paint one with acrylic paint and at a cute bow on the top to hang on our tree. Dax was really proud of this project

 Gift Wrapping

In every class I've ever taught the kids have loved getting to wrap presents. So the other day I let Dax wrap a gift for his daddy. He thought he was so big and had so much fun! I let him do it all, the cutting, taping, folding, put a bow on, and even sign the tag. 

If you have any fun winter projects I would love to hear them!!!