Poor blog how I've neglected you but life has been incredibly busy. You've fell down the important ladder.

Just a few pictures of some of the things that kept us busy this month.

Colin's class at his Christmas Program

All the classes who participated

Elias swimming for the first time at my work party

We saw Santa Claus at the FMG

We hosted several Christmas parties and had 4 family Christmas parties.

We've survived on little sleep, cut our first tooth, recovered from being sick.

Sorry, December, you weren't well documented but as you can see we were too busy being too busy.

2011 has proved to be a pretty good year for us giving us many reasons to be thankful. Some of the high-lights:

• The birth of Baby Elias. As I even just think about how much joy that little boy brings into our lives, my eyes are filled with tears. I'm so thankful for him, his happy personality, his charming smiles, and his sweet kisses.
• My silly smart affectionate 3 year old. I'm so incredibly proud of the little boy Colin is becoming. And try to remind myself that when he pushes back that he is learning to be assertive and voice his own opinion.
• My amazing husband. I've always thought he was pretty great but his greatness has gone up another notch. He really stepped up to the plate when I was pregnant and took responsibility to many things around the house. Now that Elias is here, he amazes me daily by how much he does; works 50-60 hour weeks at work, more than pulls his weight at home, is a fantastic father to the boys, is the early riser, and even does the occasional 4am feeding :)
• Our health. I feel so blessed to all be healthy. So many things can go wrong with pregnancy and despite the normal pregnancy pains, we were blessed with another healthy pregnancy. In a year where many friends and family members around us had cancer and other major health scares, I'm thankful for minor illnesses.
• The boys' school. There are no words to fully convey how much we love their school. They lovingly care for Colin and Elias when we can't. Their teachers spend their days teaching my boys, making fun crafts, singing silly songs. The boys get to play with their friends but most importantly, they are told about God's love through words and actions.
• Jobs. While we may complain about our jobs, the hours, our co-workers, the stress of it all, I am so thankful for what it provides. Without it, we wouldn't have a roof over our head, food on the table, etc.

There are so many other things to be thankful for: our church, our Salvation, the sunshine, our family and friends, etc. We have so much to grateful for.

Colin and I made this Thankful Turkey craft today. The turkey is far from perfect but I love it. I love that Colin and I did it together. I love seeing my little boys' hand prints. I love hearing what Colin is thankful for. I especially love seeing Colin's handwriting on them. We have so much to be thankful for.

A few weeks ago at church, Pastor Brad said something that has stuck in my brain ever since. The series is about Suburban Legends; a series about phrases we often say without thinking. Sometimes we say them so much we believe they are true, but are they? This particular one was about "God will never give you more than you can handle."

Here's the bullet point that really stuck.

"Sometimes you have to change your conjunction"

Conjunction, remember that from English class?

Now that I've been back to work for 2 weeks, I feel like I need to change my conjunction.

I don't know if I can work full time while raising 2 kids, one of which is a baby and doesn't always sleep through the night, and keep up with everything I kept up with pre-Elias or even during my maternity leave.

I'm not sure I can blog as frequently AND find all the best deals AND cook dinner each night AND wash the dishes AND keep up with the laundry AND get groceries WITH coupons AND do fun outings with the boys AND try to keep the house looking nice AND keep up with my TV shows AND bake AND make freezer meals and homemade baby food AND try to get this house in a sellable fashion AND be able to volunteer at church AND see friends AND feel like I'm giving Mike, Colin and Elias quality time AND feel like I'm giving myself some time to do something for myself.

I NEED TO CHANGE MY CONJUNCTION; more importantly I have to be ok with changing it.

I need to be ok with saying I can do this OR that. Be ok with with saying no OR asking for help. I need to be ok with giving up a show or two (or 6). I need to be ok with buying store bought baby food instead of trying to make it now while fruit is season. I need to change it because I can't be the best wife, mother, employee, friend, etc, that God wants of me if I'm spreading myself too thin.

So forgive me if this blog is neglected more than I want. There may be times where my conjunction goes to "OR" instead of "AND".

"And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her "Don't be afraid, for you have another son." Genesis 35:17

Elias Graham

July 10, 2011 at 5:37am

8lbs 15oz, 20 1/2" of perfection

He's a Daddy.

A Good Night Moon reader. A horsey ride giver. A human jungle gym.

He's a Daddy.

A teeth brusher. A banana peeler. A time-out keeper.

He's a Daddy.

A singer. A dancer. A drum.

He's a Daddy.

A bubble bath giver. A tower builder. A race car partner.

He's a Daddy.

A jumper. A pair of shoulders to ride. A laugher.

He's a Daddy.

A hugger. A kisser. A everything-will-be-alright-er.

He's a Daddy.

A teacher. A prayer say-er. A owie fixer.

He's a Daddy.

A early morning riser. A Curious George fan. A sleep deprived man.

He's your Daddy.

Your hero. Your biggest cheerleader. Your protector.

He's your Daddy, Colin. The man who will love you no matter what. Colin, we are incredibly blessed to have such a wonderful man in our lives. Happy Father's Day babe. We love you more than these simple words can say.

{Picture: Father's Day 2008}

Things have been so hectic that I'm way behind with pictures. We had an extended family picnic a few weekends ago at Spring Grove park. I adore Spring Grove for pictures, so I brought my camera along in hopes to get a few cute family pictures. We took a bunch but here are a few of my favorites of everyone. I can't wait to head back again soon once the leaves start changing and hit up a few other spots.

Tim and Leah

Merridith, Baby and James

Dad and Mom

Our church is in the process of building a new larger church. A few Sundays ago they invited everyone to the construction site to not only view the progress but also to write Scripture verses on the floor. I, of course, had to work but Mike and Colin went along with my parents, Tim and Leah. Thanks Leah for the pictures!
Tim and Leah by their verse. (Proverbs 19:21)
Leah and her verse (Joshua 1:9)
Tim and his verse (Deuteronomy 30:11)
My mom's verse
{I'll add more including my parents prayer for Colin once I get my mom's pictures}

How cool that the church's foundation is truly built on Scripture.

Merridith and I have been trying to hit the zoo almost all summer and everyday hasn't worked for some reason or another. We both had Thursday off along with my mom and although the weather was iffy but we decided to chance it anyway.

Colin choking the little girl. Possibly in hopes of not always having to take his picture next to the funny looking people. Colin being a flamingo Wallaby Grandma and Colin in the barn (I love this picture!) Grandma and Colin in the bird cage What you can't see well is the bird landed right on Colin's arm. Freaked him out a little at first but now he keeps talking about the tweet tweet on his arm. Colin and Aunt Merridith looking at the Pengiuns Colin loved the Tiger. He kept pacing by the window He loved ROOOOOOOOOOARING at it. Short video of him roaring at it.
My little drummer boy
Colin laughing with Aunt Merridith and Grandma.
After the zoo, we headed to McDonalds to grab some lunch where Colin had his first happy meal.

Thanks Mom and Merr for a great morning. Colin and I had alot of fun!