A good friend of mine blogged about being a mom and it got me to thinking about what my role is as a mom. I’m sitting here listening to my son wake up, knowing that we are going to be spending the whole day together. That during the time we are together, I’m going to have to make sure he gets good food and enough milk, we work on his language development, and we have time to play. I’m going to also be working on straightening up the house (we just put all our Christmas decorations away) and I have a couple of errands to run.

Since Joshua joined our family, my life has changed tremendously, I never really knew what it was like to have one person completely dependent on me. I’ve taken care of kids over the years, but as always – I gave them back when their parents came home. Now, I’m responsible for this little boy’s life and how he learns to interact with the world. And how he comes to know his Savior.

I have to remember that I am and will continue to be his role model … what I do – he’ll want to do … so I need to pay attention to my actions and words … especially words – I’m realizing now just how much I swear … not f-bombs (much) but a whole bunch of other words. Both Steve and I are really trying to watch what we say and how we say it … because we know Joshua is learning language by leaps and bounds. Any parents out there with suggestions on how to stop swearing in front of your kids?

Anyway, just some thoughts rumbling around in my head for now ….

This last year has been a tough one for me. But it’s also had its high points.

I had to put aside a dream I’ve had for many years of having a child biologically. That was hard to do … but in doing so, I’ve been blessed with a wonderful little boy, whose giggle and smile brighten my day tremendously.

I got burned out on teaching – and it was subbing at that … but not because of the kids … it was the politics that did me in. I agreed in March to long-term sub in a special needs classroom. I took the job thinking that I would be able to work closely with a good friend of mine who was also a special needs teacher at the same school. Unfortunately, the teacher I was subbing for – hated my friend and I was FORBIDDEN to go to my friend for any help. Now, I’m not a special needs teacher and I could have used all the support I could handle, but the principal gave into the teacher I was subbing for and needless to say … I don’t want to teach again for quite some time.

I’ve also struggled with my health this year … the stress from the teaching job and then from Joshua coming home has forced my cholesterol sky high and I’ve gained back a bit a weight. So Steve and I are going to invest in a Wii and the Wii fit – many of my friends and family have said that both of those are fun and good for your health … so I’m going to be starting a new routine first thing in the morning before Joshua wakes up of working out to my Wii fit.

The good things this year far outweigh the bad for me and my family … and for that I’m grateful … but I am praying that 2010 goes far better!

OKay – now I have some time to blog – yesterday was Christmas … and it was our first Christmas as a family! Joshua had a wonderful time playing with the wrapping paper, the boxes and the bows – oh and yeah, he liked his presents too! We didn’t get him a lot this year, because he had a ton of presents from his birthday and we haven’t even gotten them all out for him to play with. The big deal was when the grandparents came over and were able to lavish tons of attention on Joshua. He ate it up and begged for more! I have to admit our son tips the “cute” meter everyday, but yesterday he was really REALLY really cute! We had fun playing with his toys, he got a Little People Noah’s ark with tons of animals, a fill and spill tool kit, and a drum set (yes, I married a drummer, so how could I not have a drum set for my son).

Then my parents came over and brought all the gifts from my sister and her family. And the funny thing is … my sister gave Joshua a drum set too – a different set with shakers and a rattle and funny shapes. So now, my son is set in the drum area … and unlike many people – I like the sounds of drums being played in my house!

Then Joshua got a Little People Nativity set from Steve’s parents – which is wonderful – cuz now we can talk all year round about the baby Jesus and what He means to us. I think it’s funny that Joshua got Bible-themed things and drums for Christmas this year!

We had a great day with him and then put him to bed really early (as in 6:30) and we watched Alice in Wonderland (the original animation) before we went to bed. It was definitely a wonderful day for us!

Four years ago today, Steve asked me to marry him after only 7 weeks of dating! Many of our friends and family members thought we were crazy to get engaged so quickly! Now four years later, after everything we’ve been through, I’d still say yes! I’m so lucky to be married to Steve, he’s loving, kind, generous, supportive, and funny! I’ve been blessed with an awesome husband! I’m so glad that four years ago, he asked me that important question … “will you marry me?”

Over the last week or so, I’ve noticed that Joshua is sleeping 13-14 hours a night. In that time, I’ve also noticed that he’s eating a lot more – A LOT more! He’s in a growth spurt. More people have commented that he’s grown quite a bit since he got here. I’ve watched the baby face change to a little boy face – and I can’t wait to see how that will change too.

playing at the zoo

Another thing we’ve noticed is how Joshua flirts with ALL the women (and young girls) around him. If I’m carrying him, he puts his head on my shoulder and smiles shyly, if Steve’s carrying him, he grins and waves to the people around him. He also has one of the most infectious laughs and I love it when he laughs – because everyone around him laughs too!

I’ve enjoyed watching him learn to walk … that was one of my big prayer requests before he arrived … that I would get to see his first steps – and I did! He had taken a few practice steps here at the house – but the first time he decided he really wanted to walk – it was the Sunday before Thanksgiving at my parents’ house. He saw his cousins, Max and Maggie, walking every where and he decided it was time for him to do it too. It was funny – at first he looked like a drunken orangutan – arms up and lurching all over the place, but now he just looks like a drunken sailor … not quite sure of his balance.

The other thing that has changed significantly since he came home, he’s eating regular food that Steve and I have. And that means that anything that’s on Mom’s plate is fair game for him. He’s gotten to the point that if I start to put food in my mouth, he wants it instead and yells at me. We were out to brunch this morning with my in-laws and prior to brunch, Joshua at a whole container of cheerios, a cup of yogurt and apple sauce, and a full sippy cup of milk. At brunch, he ate scrambled eggs, toast, and fresh fruit along with the cheerios and goldfish that we brought along and another full sippy cup of milk – then he yelled at me that he wanted my food too! If nothing else, it’ll help me lose some weight, cuz I won’t be allowed to eat everything on my plate anymore … LOLLL

I love my husband so much! And I am very proud of him – he sees a problem and fixes it! Ever since I married Steve we have had a problem with our toilet – we have to plunge it at least 1-2 times a week – it drives us nuts!

So anyway, after the toilet being plugged for a couple of days now we decided that we’d had enough, so today Steve replaced our toilet. For most men, that may not seem like a big deal … for me it’s wonderful! It seems like no matter what the problem – he can solve it! I love being married to a handyman!

It’s been a while since the birthday party, but I thought I’d blog about it anyway … Joshua had a blast at his birthday party – we dressed him up in his hanbok …

… a traditional Korean outfit.

We proceeded to have the Tol – in Korea the first birthday is considered very important and it’s called the Tol – there are four parts to the Tol – the first is the clothing – the hanbok. The second is called the Toljabee – it’s kind of a fortune-telling – in that you put several items in front of the child and the first couple of items he picks tells what he will be doing in the future … for example – we had a toy hammer (works with his hands) a child’s Bible (ministry or missions); a computer mouse, a wooden spoon, some Korean money and some yarn (longevity). Joshua first chose the wooden spoon – so he’ll like to cook and then he chose the computer mouse – work in computers. I had to laugh because I love to cook and Steve loves computers … he’s definitely our little boy.

Toljabee

The third part of the Tol is the food – and we had a ton of that – Joshua loved the chocolate cake ALOT!!!!!

Mmmm Birthday cake!

The final part is the prayers and blessing – and I wanted everyone involved in this part – so I got a journal for everyone to write a prayer for Joshua and then my friend Jaime (a children’s pastor) prayed over Joshua with us all.

Joshua also had a blast opening presents and playing with the boxes!!!!

It was a great day and I was so glad to celebrate his special day with so many wonderful friends!

One year ago today, you were born, but your father and I were already praying for you without even knowing who you were.  Seven months ago, we were introduced to you through pictures and we began praying for you specifically, that you would grow healthy and strong and be a happy boy.  We have been so blessed by you joining our family.

Here are some things that I’ve seen about you:

You wake up happy in the morning, you smile and talk happily to us and you are content to play in your crib for a while before you let me know it’s time to get up.

You love to play with your toys, but you are always checking to see if I’m there and if I’m watching you.  I’m so proud of the way you are learning to put blocks together and build things.

You LOVE music – all kinds of music – you dance and wave your arms as soon as you hear any music and we’ve discovered you like alternative music (which is wonderful – since that’s our favorite too!!!) You also love to have classical music playing all night in your room and aren’t very happy if we turn it off.

You have started to walk – mostly around the edge of the playpen, but occasionally when you aren’t thinking about it – you walk a couple of steps not holding onto anything!  In no time at all, you will be walking and then running and then look out world!

You have the most infectious giggle – every time you laugh or giggle – it makes me laugh! And you love to make funny faces to make us laugh a lot – then when we make the face back to you – you burst out in laughter!

Little boy, you have brought joy and happiness into our family and we are so grateful for you!

Happy Birthday, Joshua!!!

 

 

Four years ago today we met for the first time.  I remember how nervous I was – we had been talking on the phone for almost a month, and I felt so comfortable with you.  I wondered if that same feeling would continue face-to-face.

I remember that I wanted to look really nice – even though we were only meeting at Starbucks – to not have coffee – LOLLLLL.  So I finished work a bit early and planned out what I was going to wear – I wanted to stun you!

So I got to Starbucks about 10 minutes early – just cuz I was nervous and afraid I would miss you … and you were 10 minutes late (that’s a whole nother story).  You walked up and I remember you looked so nervous and unsure of yourself – but you sat down and we both felt so comfortable immediately.  We started talking and I remember thinking this was almost too good to be true – you were just like you were on the phone … funny, insightful, thoughtful and intelligent.  We ended up talking for almost 4 hours and you were late getting to your rehearsal that evening.

Every Thursday til we got married became our Starbucks date – we’d go and get tea, or a chilled drink or whatever, but we just spent that time talking and learning more about each other.  That Starbucks was the place you proposed to me and it’s still a special place for us to go to.

I thank God everyday for bringing you into my life and for connecting our souls the way He has … and it all really started on that first date!

Joshua just took his first two steps without holding onto anything!!!!  Yippee!  Why do I feel like I’m going to be running around like crazy in the very near future?