It was worth a try...

Jake hasn't been able to shake the congestion and cough symptoms that he's been hanging onto for over a month so we took him back to see a PA at his pediatrician's office in early January.  Miss Allie was quite impressed with Jake and his manners and told him that he was a pleasure and that she thought he should teach a class on good manners for all of their patients.  Trip and I were so very proud of him!!!

Jake is beginning to ask a lot of very thoughtful questions about God.  Trip was bringing Jake home from school one afternoon recently and Jake was very quite for awhile and just looking out the window before he said... "Daddy, is God the sky?".  After a brief discussion he then asked... "Daddy, what is God made of?" to which Trip replied ... "Love".  These questions have made it clear that we need to find a church home for our family now that we have officially settled into our new house.  If he's ready to learn and he's interested then we need to give him every opportunity to learn about the love and the grace of our Lord.  

As you know, we promised Jake a dog when we got a house and a yard and as luck would have it a photo of an adorable one showed up on our community board at work with a note saying that she had been rescued and now needed a good home.  I stopped and looked at that sweet face over and over for a couple of days and then I brought a copy home to show Trip.  We talked and decided to find out more about her and to make arrangements to meet her in person.  We discovered that her name was Daisy and that she was a Great Pyrenees mix.  She had been found along a hiking trail with a broken leg and severe malnourishment.  She was very lucky to be found and rescued by Miss Anne who took great care of her for several months while she was nursed back to health but Miss Anne didn't feel like she could keep her so she was looking for a family to adopt Daisy.  We had a very nice visit with Miss Anne and Daisy and decided to give her a home.  Jake was over the moon with excitement and could hardly wait a whole week to bring her home.

Unfortunately our adoption was short lived because just ten days after bringing Daisy home with us we determined that we were going to have to give her back to Miss Anne.  Daisy is a great dog and will make someone a wonderful companion but it will most likely need to be someone without small children.  She seemed to like Jake but the herding tendencies of the Great Pyrenees part of her were too prevalent to work well with a little boy.  We quickly discovered a notable concern.  Daisy began nipping at Jake constantly and 'herding" him to the point that she wouldn't let him stand up or move from room to room without our intervention.  The nipping had us pretty concerned because she was only doing it to Jake and the frequency seemed to be increasing instead of decreasing.

Trip called a dog trainer who said that Daisy thought she was in charge of Jake and that she was nipping at him to change his behavior or movements because that was part of the herding instinct.  She told us that if Jake were older and bigger (10-12)  that she would be able to do private training to establish Jake as a leader but that since he is so little that it would be virtually impossible to stop this behavior because dogs with this personality won't accept "little people" as their pack leader.  The trainer also cautioned us that while she sincerely believed that Daisy was not trying to hurt Jake that she could still accidentally hurt him trying to do what she believes to be her job.

This threw all of us for quite a loop because we went into this planning to be Daisy's forever home and then found ourselves afraid to let her play with or be alone with Jake.  The final decision didn't come until one night when Daisy was resting/dozing near us while we were all playing a board game in the floor of the family room.  Jake decided to go get some yogurt and when he stood up and started to walk around Daisy it must have startled her even though he didn't touch her and she jumped up grabbed him by the right shoulder and threw him to the ground and might have done more if we hadn't jumped up and separated the two of them.  This one wasn't just a nip... she chomped down on him pretty good and left a bite mark and some bruising.

It is with great regret that we have come to the sad conclusion that we aren't going to be able to be Daisy's forever home.  She is a beautiful dog but sadly we can't take the risk that she might inadvertently cause Jake serious injury so we have made arrangements to place her back in Miss Anne's loving care.  We're really dreading next weekend when we will be returning her and aren't sure that Jake fully understands yet but we feel like we've made the best possible decision given the situation.

Mama said that I looked too cute not to take a picture, so....

Happy 47 Month Birthday to Me!

Mama even takes my picture when I"m sleeping.

I read Daisy a bedtime story to make her feel safe on her first night in her new home.

Look at me!

Just sitting in a box, watching Cars 2.

Making blueberry muffins with my Mama.

Daisy is a beautiful dog!

A big family Christmas...

The first Christmas in our new home was wonderful.  It is so nice to finally be settled again.  The rental house was a lovely place to lay our heads at night but nothing compares to being in your own home.  Believe it or not four months in and we're still working on getting all the boxes unpacked and really need to get some things on the walls but we have plenty of room to entertain so we became the gathering spot for the family Christmas celebrations on both sides of our family.  

First... we hosted a Christmas brunch for 20 and it turned out great even though we haven't purchased a new "breakfast" table or bar stools yet.  We just haven't found exactly what we want yet and didn't want to feel pressured to buy something simply because we needed seating.  As the date for the brunch loomed closer my anxiety level increased because I couldn't figure out how we were going to seat everyone and then a light bulb came on in my head which allowed me to realize that we could rent a banquet table and folding chairs from a rental company.  It was easy, inexpensive and worked out great so who knows we may take that route again before we finally find the table and chairs that we really want to purchase. 

The brunch was so much fun.  We had my Mama and Daddy, my brother, his wife and their three kids as well as my Aunt & Uncle, their son and daughter along with their families and loved ones so the house was filled with love and laughter.  Everyone brought a dish to help out and the food was fantastic.  We all ate entirely too much and enjoyed having some time to visit with each other during such a magical part of the year.  It was a very blustery morning so Jake decided that he really wanted to stay in his footie pjs instead of changing into real clothes.  He was the envy of everyone.  He also took on the role of tour guide for our guests and as soon as each family arrived he would take them throughout the entire house to show them around which was just adorable.   He would even open the bathroom cabinets to show them Mama's stuff and Daddy's stuff.  It was all over much too quickly but we're planning on doing it again next Christmas and maybe sometime over the summer as well.  Family is too important to only see each other once a year so we'll try and hope that "life" doesn't get in the way of making it happen.

The magic of the season is so precious through the eyes of a child and Jake was so excited for Christmas this year... so much in fact that he was a bit overwhelmed which caused him to be a little out of sorts.  I think the unending events and the presents at every turn can be a little to much for little ones to process.  The holiday season brings family gatherings, parties and parades just to name a few things but it also means that schedules are out the window and exhaustion is not a little fella's friend.  This culminated in a few "un-Jake" like episodes which resulted in the threat of coal in his stocking but Santa decided to cut him some slack.  This is the first year that Jake has really understood the whole Santa concept.  He was determined to tell Santa that he wanted a JCB backhoe which he did in such a "big boy" way and the sheer joy in his eyes on Christmas morning more than made up for the holiday induced meltdowns we experienced over the two weeks leading up to the big day.

We spent Christmas Eve at Mamaw and Papaw's house with Uncle Russell, Aunt Kristi, Gage, Katie and Abbie.  We even enjoyed a quick visit from Laura, Thomas and Uncle Don which was a wonderful surprise.  I love being at my Mama and Daddy's house on Christmas Eve.  It brings back so many wonderful childhood memories.  The kind of memories that I want Jake to have of his childhood.  There have been only a couple of Christmas Eve nights that I haven't spent at Mama and Daddy's house and Trip has graciously allowed that tradition to continue for the more than twenty years that we've been together  but this year we decided that Jake needed to be at home for Santa so after a truly wonderful afternoon and evening with my family we headed back up the mountain to create our own memories.  It was so special to help Jake get milk and cookies ready for Santa and to listen as Trip read him the Christmas story and Twas the Night Before Christmas (among others).  He was so anxious that it was tough for him to go to sleep but he finally did along with his Daddy so I got to play Santa before turning in for the night.  Jake was so tired that he slept late on Christmas morning which I imagine won't happen again for several years.  I remember when I was little that I tossed and turned for hours on Christmas Eve trying to go to sleep but then Russell and I would be waking Mama and Daddy up before 5am to go see if Santa had visited us.  When Jake finally did wake up it was like he wasn't really expecting that Santa had come because we had the camera set up and when our adorable sleepy headed little boy walked into the family room he didn't even see his dream gift he just walked up to the camera where Trip and I were standing and then you could see him realize that Santa had been there and his reaction was so precious (check out the video below).

Grandma and Grandpa arrived on Christmas Day and we enjoyed some time with them before the rest of the family arrived for another holiday celebration on the 26th.  Grandma has an amazing way with Jake and he absolutely loves his time with her.  You'll begin to understand why when you see the picture below where they are "writing" with their feet.  We were so happy to have the house filled with family again and this time in addition to Grandma and Grandpa we also had Uncle Paul and Jennifer as well as Carley, Nolan and Johnathan.  Jake hasn't gotten to see Carley and Nolan very much so he was thrilled to spend some time with them and they were both just great with him.  He had a blast playing football with the Nolan and Johnathan and he was quite taken with Carley so he had to sit with her at lunch.  It is such a blessing to have found a house that allows us to host our families.  Trip and I love our families as well as each others families which is also a blessing and  we want Jake to know and love them all too so being able to spend time all together makes the holidays even more special.

You'll see below that I've also included a photo of our Christmas card which has a little story to go along with it.  We took Jake to a local Christmas tree farm to take our Christmas card photo this year and ordered our cards in plenty of time to receive them, address them and mail them out.  Unfortunately, I should not have ordered them when I was clearly too tired to focus on the task at hand.  I typed in our sentiment, spell checked it and reread it several times but still missed that the word "peace" had been entered as "piece" so when the cards arrived I had to throw them all away and reorder.  Even with rush delivery I didn't get them until the 23rd which meant that they didn't get in the mail until Christmas Eve.  Oh well... hopefully it's true that it's the thought that count but at least it was an adorable picture of Jake.

Having lunch with my cousins, Nolan and Carley.

So fun to have a house full of family.

Mamaw and Papaw gave me this guitar for Christmas
so I decided to put on a Christmas concert.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

Grandma and Carley... aren't they pretty?

Playing football with Nolan.

Okay... no Charlie Brown tricks Nolan.

Playing with Carley and Nolan in my room.

Christmas Day play time with Grandpa.

Grandma taught me to "write" with my foot.

Cool... an indoor putting mat with real holes.

This is just what I really, really wanted!

I'm so glad that Santa put me on the nice list.

Look Daddy... it's Francesco from Cars 2.

Santa really brought me a JCB backhoe with a 

flatbed truck to haul it on and I'm so happy!!!

Wow!  This is awesome!

Mama said... "Merry Christmas Sleepyhead".

Wait ... was that what I think it was?

 I love all the twinkly lights, Mama.

I think I'll just stay up to make sure that 

Santa finds his milk and cookies... okay?

Gage and Uncle Russell are up to no good.

Abbie and Katie on Christmas Eve.

Another one for me!  Wonder what it is.

We wish you a Merry Christmas!

Looks pretty good Mama.

Look Mama... I painted my hand.

Busted... sitting on the table eating leftovers.

Just hanging out in my room with Gage.

I love having my cousins here to play with me!

Papaw is wearing Mama's mistletoe headband.

I love spending time with my Paw!

You really didn't have to but I'm so glad that you did!

Christmas Brunch:  Table #1

Christmas Brunch:  Table #2

Mama's taking pictures so her chair is empty.

Getting ready to ask the blessing.

Be filled with wonder.

Be touched by His peace.

Believe in the miracle.

Christmas time's a coming...

Wow it has been a whirlwind since my last update (which was only two weeks ago)!  Trip and I have both been on the road a fair amount for work... our well pump went out and had to be replaced (that was a real learning experience)... Trip and I went to a football game and we took Jake to a basketball game... we went to Jake's school Christmas party and yesterday we celebrated our 4-year wedding anniversary (hard be believe that we have been together for 22 years!).

Appalachian made the playoffs and Trip and I decided to go to the 2nd round game which was a lot of fun even though we lost.  It was a date day of sorts because Jake spent the day at Mamaw and Papaw's house and had a great time while his Mama and Daddy got to spend a little time alone together.  We did a little early Christmas shopping, had lunch at a little place downtown, went to the football game and then enjoyed a nice dinner together at a little Italian place on the way to pick up our little man.  We don't do that kind of thing nearly often enough but we enjoy when we do ... even though we miss Jake when he isn't with us.

Jake kept Mamaw and Papaw laughing almost the whole day.  He is fascinated by the fact that his Mamaw has to give herself shots and she's trying to help him understand by explaining diabetes, insulin and low blood sugar.  She learned during this visit that he is really listening and understanding more than we thought because after his nap he said... "Mamaw, I have very low blood sugar so I need a lot of candy to get it back up".  It tickled her and Papaw to death.  Jake spent a good part of the day in the basement playing at Papaw's workbench.  He loves to play with tools and Papaw has lots along with the patience to teach Jake and let him play with them as long as he wants to hammer, drill and "fix" things.

Jake has had congestion and a loose cough for 3 weeks now so I took him to the doctor today and they diagnosed bronchitis along with a sinus infection and put him on antibiotics.  We saw one of the PA's this time and she was young and very pretty so Jake REALLY enjoyed his appointment.  He flirted something serious with our PA and tried his best to impress her.  There was a children's book in the room so Jake asked her why they kept that book in there and she said in case kids want their Mommy or Daddy to read to them while they wait to see their doctor.  I picked the book up and showed Jake the cover and he read the whole (fairly long) title out loud then looked over at the PA with a big smile on his face and said "yeah... I can read" then he invited her to go to his school Christmas party with him.  Trip was so proud!  Jake also told her that the Christmas tree in the lobby was beautiful and asked if she was the one that decorated it.  She told him that she was not but that she would take him out to the nurse's station so he could meet the ladies that did decorate it.  He marched right out there with her and announced that the tree was beautiful and that he thought that they had done a great job decorating it and then shared with them which ornaments where his personal favorites.  He was instantly surrounded by about 10 nurse's and office staff telling him how sweet he was and offering his lots of extra stickers so even though he had to get yucky medicine his visit to the doctor was quite enjoyable for him and his parents.

Favorite Jake Quote for this Update:   "Mama... you're the bestest girl I've ever loved."

Happy 46 Month B-Day to Me!

This Christmas tree is just my size...

Wow... that horse is pulling a sled with a Christmas tree on it...

I've been a VERY good boy Santa!

ASU Christmas Tree...

 

App State basketball games are really fun!

 

Put me in Coach... I'm ready to play!