What Tennyson (and his parents) Have Been Up To Lately

The short answer is: a lot. Last Saturday (the 23rd) Tom's nephew moved in to his new dorm at EMU (my alma mater), so Tom's sister, brother-in-law, and their 3 children were all here. We are very excited to have a family member on his side close to us! It was so surreal to be back in the same dorm, on the same floor where I lived for 2 years! I was actually getting a little emotional, remembering all the good times I had in college and all the life-long friendships I made. Tennyson even put on a little concert for us on the piano in the main lounge. Isn't that adorable? He really looks like he knows what he doing!

All that strolling around campus made him sleepy

Then that evening we went to help a good friend of mine celebrate her 30th birthday! We enjoyed some great food and conversation with friends. What a fun time!

Tennyson has been.....Tennyson, which means busy. Here are some random photos of him from the past 10 days or so, doing everything from eating the farm animals out of his book to strolling outside the front door in just a diaper.

Though he still takes my dishtowels, Tennyson has moved on to include carrying my cookie sheets around the kitchen.....and sometimes hiding them under the rug.

I love this photo. Tennyson is watching his Daddy getting ready to mow.

He was like a puppy in the window with his face pressed against the glass.

Playing with kitchen utensils. I think he's playing the strainer. Makes lovely music.

The aforementioned - eating the farm animals out of his book

Enjoying some snacks

I just love his genuinely happy expression as he plays!
Tom kept remarking how much he looks like a little boy in this picture
and not so much the baby.
Digging in Mommy's cabinet
"Oh, hi Mommy! I wasn't doing anything."
Before
After
Lucky Break: the wind blew the door open
And he escapes!

If Only This Were True

I couldn't help myself! I HAD to share these! Enjoy, ladies!! (If you can't read the caption just click on the photo to enlarge it.)

The "Great" Outdoors

I normally don't consider the outdoors all that great. I am a city girl. Born and raised. I have never been camping. (This refers to "real" camping, not RVing.) Never. Nor do I ever intend to, despite my husband's "threats" to take me someday. Why would anyone voluntarily sleep in a tent and go without running water!? Nothing about that says "fun" to me.

We did, however, go to Skyline Drive the other weekend for some non-camping, outdoor sightseeing, and I was able to capture some lovely naturey things with the camera. Besides the good photo ops there was another bonus: blackberry milkshakes. If you haven't had one, you must.

The butterflies were out in full force!

This was too lovely not to photograph

These horses were possibly waiting for their milkshakes, too, at Big Meadows.

M.I.A.

Yes, I have been kind of MIA lately with the whole blogging thing. Since I have a houseful of 1-year olds 5 days a week I have NO time to do anything until after the kids are picked up. Then it's dinner time, cleanup from dinner, bath time and bed time for Tennyson. Then after he's in bed I rush around like a crazy person trying to get my house put back in order, from picking up toys and Cheerios off the floor to folding 2 days worth of laundry on our bed before I can even get in the bed to sleep. *sigh* I feel like most days I am just trying to keep my head above water.

I'm sure I'm the only Mommy in the world that feels like this, right?

Stressed.....but Blessed

This past week marked the official start of school for Tom and therefore the return of the full-time kids I care for. The first few days were really, really rough and the kids weren't the only ones crying. But the boys (both are almost 1-year old) got better by the end of the week. I just kept reminding myself that it would take them a little while to get used to a new routine, sleeping in a new place, and being without their mothers. And that got me thinking about why I was doing all this in the first place......for Tennyson.

Yes, I lost my job involuntarily and unexpectedly, but I often forget how God totally turned it around. Now I will be the first person to admit that though I am an organizational freak I sometimes procrastinate. And at this time in my life with so many interruptions from Tennyson and the shear strength it takes to keep up with him most days there is NO way I could have done office work from home. To tell you the honest truth, I decided to do childcare because it was the fastest way to make an income and so many of the work-at-home jobs take a long time to get up and running. On the rough days and weeks I just keep telling myself that this is just for a season. I won't do this forever.

Being a stay-at-home mom was always a dream of mine, but as time passed I just never thought it was going to be financially possible. Of course I figured I'd just be caring for my little one, not 4 one-year olds and an almost 3-year old, but.......The point is that even though things haven't worked out exactly the way I imagined I find peace knowing that I am the one that cares for my little boy every day. All I have to do is look in Tennyson's face and I realize that this is my dream coming true.

A Young Man's Battle

Yesterday Tom, Tennyson, and I visited a former student of Tom's in the hospital. Tyler was recently diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer and he was in for his 3rd round of chemo. My heart just hurts for him. He's 14. He's tired. He's sick. He's bald. He's starting high school this year. Can you even imagine what he's going through? Tyler is blessed to have a great support system in his parents, twin brother, and lots of friends.

I know we all have a lot going on in our lives. I know you probably don't even know this family. But I just want to ask that you be praying for Tyler. He's such an amazing young man and he's got an awfully long road ahead of him. Thankfully, his prognosis is good, but for this young soccer player you can imagine his disappointment in missing out on the season.

A good friend of their family is organizing meals, house work, etc. hopefully to cover the entire 42-week chemo schedule. If you feel lead to do more than pray please let me know so we can put you on the "helper" list.

Otherwise, please keep him, and his family, in your prayers. Pray for God's almighty healing power. Amen.

Walking Photos & Stats

Here are some photos of our little Tennyson Harper walking!!! I tell you what, this boy is amazing! In such a short time he's pretty much left his crawling days behind, and if he falls while he's walking he gets right back up and keeps going! I love that he gets such a kick out of doing the most basic of things. He laughs and squeals like he invented it. It's awesome!





Tennyson went for his 12 month check-up today and all went well. He's now 23.6 lbs. and (supposedly) 29.75 inches, but the doctor said right away that he thinks he's quite a bit taller than that. You know how they measure them, by lying them down on the paper and making a quick mark on it by their head and their squirming feet.

Tennyson was a trooper during the finger prick, and aside from trying to eat his bandaid he barely noticed it. He cried during the shots, of course, but Mommy was finally brave enough to hold him this time. He calmed down pretty well afterwards thanks to a warm bottle and his teddy bear blanket. We opted not to give him 2 of the immunizations, as we felt he was a little too little for them yet. If he needs them before kindergarten I think we've got plenty of time.

The doctor did say that his red blood cell count was on the low side of normal. So we really need to make sure he gets more iron in his diet. Tennyson is somewhat at a disadvantage because he doesn't have teeth yet, but we're going to try ground beef and maybe some creamed spinach. Wish us luck with that!

Walking Boy

Tennyson is officially walking!! He mastered it much sooner than we thought he would! He chooses to walk over crawling, which we are still adjusting to. In a way, it's so strange to see him walking. Tennyson really took off on Tuesday and would walk all the way from the loveseat to behind the glider rocker. Or from the t.v. all the way into the kitchen, without falling!!! (For all you "Seinfeld" fans - "Little Jerry ran from here to Newman's in 30 seconds!" "Is that good?" "I don't know.")

But we are so proud of our walking boy! I am truly little sad that my baby is growing up though. I know it's bound to happen, but I just want him to stay my baby forever. *sigh*

Of course I have photos to go along with this post, but I can't do it now as I have a houseful of chittlins. So check back later.

Long Overdue Tennyson Update

In the past few weeks Tennyson has been learning new things by leaps and bounds. July 16th officially marked the first time he voluntarily let go and stood by himself for a prolonged amount of time, so we knew taking a step wouldn't be too far off. Sure enough he took his first step 8 days before his first birthday and every day he gets braver, walking further and further distances without falling down! It was exciting, but Mommy did cry a few tears. Unfortunately, like most parents, we didn't actually catch his first step on camera, but this photo is from a few days after that. Hmmm, I guess I need to work on getting more pictures of him walking while he's still wobbly! (Sometimes we refer to him as "drunk baby" because he falls over. Isn't that awful?!?!)


Tennyson also waves bye-bye now, and unlike the way most babies do it with just a polite, little open and closing of the hand, he uses his whole arm, moving it up and down in an exaggerated motion. It's hilarious!!!! I think I might actually have video of him waving. I always go for the camera, but some things are best captured on video.

Our little guy also has a few......less-loved tendencies: 1) He likes to turn the t.v. off and on and/or change the channels (usually while we are watching something).


2) He can open the screen door and crawl out onto the deck. So we have to keep the door shut and locked at all times. You never know. He could figure out how to work the lock next!


And 3) He likes to take my dish towels and hide them in either the trashcan or between the wall and the refrigerator. Why?! Why does he do this?!?! He seems to think it's funny!


Tennyson is such a BUSY, BUSY boy. He's in to everything. If he hears a door being opened anywhere in the house he seemingly has the amazing ability to teleport to it and try to go in or out, whatever the case may be. He enjoys emptying the contents of the basket where we keep the car keys. And pulling out the baby wipes from their container is something Tennyson must do at least 4 times a day. *sigh*

But overall Tennyson is just a happy, easy, sweet baby boy. Tom and I are often the recipients of Tennyson's open-mouthed, sloppy kisses! He just opens his mouth and falls onto yours. We love it! It's so awesome that he can actually show affection now! Sometimes I can't wait until he can put his little arms around my neck and hug me!!!

And in case you are wondering about the status of his teeth - he has none. No buds. No sign of any. I have long since stopped breastfeeding (yeah!), so......anytime now. Okay maybe not. I want Tennyson to hit these milestones as slowly as possible, so I have time to relish and drink in every moment with our son. He such a joy and we can hardly remember life before Tennyson. Well okay, so my house was cleaner, we got a lot more sleep, and Tom and I had more....."special moments" together. Ahhhh, but who needs that?! *wink*

Mini Photo Shoot ~ Kaitlyn

This is sweet, little Kaitlyn Olivia. I had the privilege of photographing her on Thursday. Isn't she an angel? Thanks, Cheryl, for letting me take pictures of your little one.

Tasty Tuesday ~ Rainbow Fried Rice

Rainbow Fried Rice

I got this recipe from Cooking Light (via the Southern Living website). I did use chicken instead of pork and left out the lettuce. The only other alteration I would make is to leave off the sesame oil at the end. It was just a bit too strong. Otherwise it was a tasty, lowfat, easy recipe!

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. canola oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup mined yellow onion
1 cup chopped roast pork/chicken
4 cups cooked long-grain rice, chilled
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp white pepper
1/2 minced green onions
1 tsp. sesame oil

How to Make It:
1) Heat canola oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add eggs; stir fry for 1 minute or until done. Remove from pan.
2) Add chicken to pan and cook until no longer pink. Add yellow onion to pan; cook 2 minutes or until translucent. Add rice and soy sauce; stir-fry 2 more minutes.
3) Return eggs to skillet. Stir in lettuce, peas, salt, and white pepper; stir-fry 1 minute. Sprinkle with green onions and sesame oil.

Yield: 6 1-cup servings

The Perfect Setting

Yesterday evening was beautiful here, so we decided to head to the arboretum for some outdoor time. There was a wedding the day before and all the white chairs were still set up. Well, it made for some great photos of our little guy! In the first three Tennyson was chillin' with the ducks.

In case you are wondering what he was doing.....he didn't like the feel of the grass on his knees so he was "crawling" on all fours.