And...She Slept!

Emily slept all night last night! It seems yesterday was what I expected...a pesky and stubborn little canine tooth that won't push through. The other 3 are in, but this one was taking its sweet time to surface.

On another very, very exciting note...CONGRATULATIONS to our friends, The Baker's, on the birth of their new son, Brock Nicholas. I'm sure his two big brothers are ecstatic as well.

Today I get to prepare for another sweet friend's baby shower that we are hosting here at our home....babies are all over the place in the 'Boro! I'm super excited and with her permission will post pics. I can't give up what exactly we are doing, but I think it will be such an intimate and sweet time.

So...so long for now! I'm going to go and do all of the things I couldn't do yesterday!:)

Ahhh...Perspective!

Some mornings Emily gets to watch a little bit of PBS. In between 2 of the shows there is this short commercial type thing with a kid that is playing music on pots and pans followed by the voice of a child saying, "It's all how you look at it!" It gets on my nerves sometimes, but it does stick in your mind once you hear it a time or two.

Why did my sweet girl decide to wake up at the lovely 4am hour?...I have no idea. Why did she refuse to eat most of her breakfast and none of her lunch?...clueless again. And, why did she wake up after napping for only 45 minutes, only to leave me with the frustration of now choosing to console her and lose any chance that she will fall asleep again before tonight(even though she is pooped) or leaving her to cry herself back to sleep?...once again, I'm at a loss.

But, what I do know is that I was reminded of that silly PBS Kids thing this morning and it turned my I-am-so-exhausted-you-all-need-to-hear-about-it-blog into I am so thankful that I get to go to my child's side in the middle of the night and have her lay on my shoulder! I am so incredibly blessed that I have had almost 20 months to enjoy her!

I don't know God's plan for our family and we never know what obstacles are before us. But as I was thinking and praying for some dear friends this morning, I cried as I talked to the Lord about the road ahead for their family and the uncertainty of what is down the road for their little one. How could I complain about having to comfort my little girl in the middle of the night? It really is ALL about perspective and knowing that for the moment I will truly cherish these difficult but very sweet and tender times with Emily Paige!

I am thankful for the sweet Spirit of the Lord that gives us energy, strength, and such tender mercies for our children...I am reminded today that it is not by my strength, but His!!!

The Reason No One Should Ever Turn Their Back on a Toddler...or Wear This Shade of Lipstick!

She finds the lipstick...

She applies the lipstick...

And Mommy ruins the fun by confiscating the lipstick!


Wow, I know it must be a surprise. I disappear from the blogging world and then I mysteriously appear twice in one day! Of all the photo sorting and uploading I had going on, I forgot to post these lovely little shots of Emily and my lipstick (no I don't actually wear that color out...it was part of my redneck Halloween costume). Seriously, let this be a warning to all of you new moms, especially those of you with an affinity for bright red lipstick...BEWARE OF TINY FINGERS THAT OPEN ZIPPERS, SNAPS, OR VARIOUS OTHER DEVICES DESIGNED TO PROVIDE CLOSURE AND SAFETY OF YOUR PERSONAL BELONGINGS...THEY ARE FUTILE EFFORTS AGAINST THE MASTERMIND OF AN EXPLORING AND CURIOUS TODDLER! There, well you have been warned. Incidentally, this nasty stuff actually came out of my bathroom rug...it was EVERYHWHERE!! The hardest part was getting it off of Emily's skin. Oh, the joys yet to come my way!

We've Been So Busy!!

This past month has flown by. I honestly do not know where the days have gone. I just completed the uploads of all of the photos and videos from the last month and while sorting through them, I realized how much we had been doing. We have had so much fun with family and friends doing lots of fun things. We've celebrated birthdays, rejoiced at news of a new little cousin, held baby showers, said 'temporary' good-byes to dear friends, laughed hysterically with the FSM crew, took first plane trips across the country, visited grandparents, liberated various river animals, made some awesome memories with family, and accepted new jobs. That is definitely the short of it all!

I am so thankful for the fun that we have had over the last few weeks. It has been busy, but the memories make it so worthwhile! Our trip to Cali was awesome and filled with lots of firsts and sweet moments. I was nervous about Em's first flight, but she did so great. It was preceded by a visit w/ 2 of my brothers, my sister-in-law and their kids. We went canoeing, hiked, watched movies, ate yummy dinners, celebrated Derek's b'day, and laughed so hard...in the words of my sweet niece, "...Ham's a present!" Only a few of you will get that!! In the midst of all of this, Derek accepted a position with Nissan. So, we have lots to praise God for!! He has been so gracious to us. Even down to the smallest details, I have really felt the Lord's grace and concern for me and my family.

So, for those of you that thought I abandoned my blog....I'm back! If you want to check out all we have been doing, you can check the photo and video gallery. After this post, I really am going to try and keep up...Judy, would you hold me to that please!!:)

For now...Emily is sleeping and I am enjoying a moment to myself. Everything else is going well here at the Kramer's. We will keep you all posted on new happenings! Until then...